-=Chapter Twenty Four: Anachronistic Paradoxes=-

Aperture Laboratories Office Complex, 19/11/2014, 11:51 PM

"Oh, goodness," GLaDOS continued her speech, smiling her thinly veiled facade of kindness at Chell. "Honestly, it would be hard to overstate my satisfaction with this outcome. Shall I explain?"

No response from Chell, so GLaDOS took her silence as an affirmation and went ahead with a brief sigh, "Aperture Science," she whispered enigmatically, gazing at the roof, "we do what we must, because we can. At least, I do."

She glanced back at Chell, eyeing her suspiciously. "But honestly, it's for the good of all of us, wouldn't you say? Oh," she laughed tauntingly again, as if to remind Chell she knew something that Chell was ignorant of, "except the ones who are de—"

A door opened suddenly from beside Chell and a single man stepped into the room, his features partially obscured by the dim light flooding in from the other side. Instantly, GLaDOS snapped attentive eyes over to look at this unexpected arrival. "Wha—"

She was dead before she could get a word out. Chell looked at this man in amazement. What kind of dream is this?

The man slowly raised his weapon again, his bright eyes allowing her to see a glint of sadness in them, before he fired a single shot at her temple. The bullet did its job cleanly and for a short moment Chell felt thankful that she could finally sleep peacefully, without evil robots haunting her dreams.

Citadel Dark Energy Reactor, City 17, 15/9/2021, 5:43 PM

The sun was setting once again.

Gordon didn't have time to focus on the beauty of the Earth, because right now he was hiding behind a pillar of strange metal as two gunships opened fire on him simultaneously. The Gravity Gun he was holding was pleasantly warm and vibrated gently in his hands — Gordon frowned awkwardly at the thought of something else he could describe with those words — and it seemed enthusiastic to throw something big.

Gordon quickly stood up, ducking to avoid another volley of gunfire, before aiming the trembling device at the transparent pipe of energy on the opposite side of the pillar he was hiding behind and pulled the secondary trigger. A ball of dark energy was wrenched from this energy pipe, before Gordon gazed at the pinnacle of the large Combine teleporter he was attacking. Dr. Breen's face was partly beclouded by the liquid-like ball he was standing in, but Gordon could tell he was silently begging Gordon to leave him alone.

Gordon smiled. Not after what you've done to the human race, you traitorous diplomat.

He swung the Gravity Gun around just as the gunships opened fire again and thumbed the primary trigger. The ball of energy streaked across the small space between Gordon and the teleporter, slamming into the protective shield Dr. Breen was behind.

Suddenly, the teleporter started to malfunction. Explosions sounded, electricity crackled and pulsating waves of energy almost knocked Gordon off his feet. The gunships lost control of themselves and crashed into the machine, causing more destruction. Glass shattered from behind him.

And amid this chaos, a single voice yelled out.

"No!" Wallace Breen yelled frantically from his anomalous bubble of alien technology as the towering device began to collapse. "You need me!"

His voice was drowned out by a sudden loud explosion, before Gordon noticed that Alyx was standing beside him, having climbed through the shattered glass behind Gordon. "Whooooa!" she exclaimed excitedly, eyes wide with awe as muffled explosions sounded from somewhere far below. "Yeah, you did it!" she looked over at him, her eyes watching him in amazement. Then she looked back at the teleporter as it crackled loudly, her expression cautious. "Come on, Gordon," she took a step back, "maybe we still have—"

Time froze. The teleporter had exploded, chunks of debris flying toward the two. Alyx was frozen, shielding her face from the blast as it was midway through knocking her to the ground.

"Time, Dr. Freeman?" the Gman whispered, fading into the visible spectrum. He was standing near the explosion, holding a large container that looked like it was made of Perspex or something. Without looking once at Gordon, he unclipped the sealed cap on the container, stuck it into the middle of the explosion before closing it while his hand was still inside. He withdrew his hand, gazing approvingly at the strange crimson and purple particles bouncing around inside. The he slipped the container into his suit pocket, but Gordon couldn't see a lump there after the Gman had taken his hand out. He sighed. "Is it really that time again...?"

Victory Mines, Romanian Countryside, 11/10/2021, 2:22 PM

Gordon's eyesight faded in and out of focus, the Vortigaunts glowing and dimming in sequence. Suddenly, everything froze.

"Dr. Freeman..." the Gman whispered eerily, appearing slowly in front of Gordon. "I realize this moment may not be the most convenient for a... heart-to-heart, but I had to wait until your friends were otherwise occupied..."

—

"When you arrive at White Forest, Dr. Freeman..." the Gman slipped a large container from his suit pocket and handed it to Gordon. It looked familiar... "I would request that you deliver this to Dr. Magnusson and tell him that it is dark energy. Should he inquire as to its origins, explain that you received it from a..." he paused, thinking for a suitable title, "...mutual friend."

Gordon took the container, realising his left arm could move, and looked at it cautiously. What is this for?

The Gman smiled at Gordon confidently. "I wish I could do more than keep an eye on you, but I have agreed to abide by certain... restrictions."

White Forest, Romanian Countryside, 11/10/2021, 4:53 PM

"Freeman," Dr. Magnusson called him over, "Freeman, you're not doing anything. Why don't you and find out what the hell is going on down there?"

Gordon nodded, frowning at Magnusson's attitude. He must be great fun at parties. If he ever went to any.

Gordon was about to open the manhole leading down to a lower level of the silo, when he suddenly remembered something. "Ah!" he pulled the Perspex container from the combat webbing he'd stolen from a soldier earlier that week. "I was told to give you this."

Dr. Magnusson accepted the oddity, eyeing it curiously. "This looks like dark energy..." he frowned, looking at Gordon. "Where did you get this?"

Gordon shrugged. "Someone who called himself a mutual friend."

And with that, he opened the manhole and climbed down the ladder. Dr. Magnusson stared into the dizzying depths of the bouncing particles, cocking an eyebrow. Hang on, I have an idea...

Borealis, 12/10/2021, 4:46 PM

Gordon didn't notice a change, but he was suddenly standing beside the Gman on a metal walkway that seemed to be inside the engine room of a ship. Gordon turned his head, being the only thing he could, spotting a metal stairway leading down on his right, but he was too far from the edge of the walkway to see over the left side.

As if to tease him, the Gman looked over the left side with satisfaction, smiling at something below. "Good. Nothing." He whispered, almost silently.

He straightened up, brushing off his suit. "The death of Dr. Vance is a terrible misfortune, one I had not been anticipating...but it appears things are falling into place despite this." He turned his head to face Gordon, smiling weakly. "A mere detour along the highway of life, hmm?"

Inferno Abyss Courtyard Stairs, 13/10/2021

Dr. Mossman seemed relieved at the news. "When Eli told me a super portal had appeared I was so worried... I forgot all about it while in that hellhole." She nodded up the stairs.

Alyx had gone quiet and wasn't saying anything, so Gordon took the opportunity. "So... hang on, what is in the Borealis then?" Gordon asked, suddenly remembering Dr. Mossman didn't know about Eli's death and he decided she didn't need to just now.

"Well, uh..." Dr. Mossman rubbed her head nervously. "According to what we know... nothing. We've tried everything we can and from what we've found there's nothing inside except some dead bodies."

"So you're saying it's empty?" Gordon asked, standing up to stretch and — partially — avert Dr. Mossman's gaze from Alyx.

Judith stood up as well, along with Alyx. "Well, yes, bu—"

Tpp-tpp-toh!

Borealis, Northern Sweden, 13/10/2021, 5:44 PM

"This is Baxter!" the colonel announced into his headset as the last of his soldiers hit the bridge and the ropes retracted back into the helicopters. "I'll keep you all updated so listen out for me!"

"Copy that, colonel."

"Tell us when you're ready for us to open fire on the bridge."

"And remember, haul your ass if you find anything, whether you can see it or not."

The colonel chuckled to himself as the three choppers got into position above the Borealis. "Got it."

—

The inside of the ship wasn't very interesting. It appeared to be the engine room, what with the machines and pumps lining the walls.

The colonel scratched his chin. "Alright boys, let's check this ship out. Remember, there's a possibility the enemy will be invisible so keep your ear out for any noises."

Unknown time, Unknown location

"Sir, I must object."

"You are in no position to object."

"Sir, we are not ready to launch an attack on the base..."

"We will be attacking tomorrow. I will be contacting others and deciding on a position to regroup before sunset. The base is not so strong as you may think, despite the presence of Anticitizen One."

"Sir?"

"Do you not have faith in the armies of the Combine?"

"N-no, sir, it's just... you know how all other attempts have ended..."

"There will be no screwing around this time. If the Resistance really is as powerful as it claims to be when trying to convince us that our resistance is futile, then I would rather die fighting for my nation than whimpering in a corner. If we're going out, we're going to damn well make sure they don't last much longer."

Fissionist Council Chambers, 14/10/2021, 8:12 PM

Gordon rubbed his head experimentally. "Wow," he muttered, massaging his temples. "Uh, excuse me, Fist Member..."

"Yes, Dr. Freeman?"

"Ah... are any of you getting this weird feeling that you've someone's gone back in time and changed something?"

"That's because Member Eight has gone back in time, remember?"

"Yes, I know, it's just... I can remember two different scenarios. One of them makes sense, but the other one just cuts out some things and adds others."

"It is a weird sensation, is it not?"

"Yeah..." Gordon admitted, looking at the Fissionist with a weak smile on his lips. "Yeah, it is."

People will probably be wondering why I'm updating so quickly. Well, it's because I really wanted to write these past few chapters. Unfortunately though, this quick updating this is probably going to end here. Then again, the last time I said that I actually sped up.

Hopefully everyone's enjoyed the story up to this point. I'm sad to announce it's almost over, but it is going to be an epic ending. Trust me, it will be.