Desperate Measures

Chapter VII

Kat slipped back from the decaying woodshed into the cover of the forest's edge. She moved as deeply into the forest as would allow a clear line of sight and positioned herself behind some low bushes. From her chosen position, she could easily see both sides of the cabin and the shed. For a few minutes she worried that the small fire wouldn't take, but the old shed was quite dried out and soon started crackling enthusiastically. Setting her MP-7 to single-fire, Kat settled in and waited anxiously. After a few more minutes she saw a masked face at one of the windows.

Two combine troopers soon came jogging around the corner of the cabin. They both stood staring at the flames as if unsure what to do about the situation. Kat knew she would probably only have one good clear shot. She felt an icy calm descend, everything jumping into crystalline focus. One of the troopers turned to walk back to the cabin. Taking careful aim, she waited until he had nearly cleared the corner of the building. As he stepped out of sight of his companion she pulled the trigger. The SMG bucked in her hands and the trooper fell to the ground. She immediately sighted on the second trooper. He had turned towards the sound of the shot and dropped to one knee. As he fumbled for his sidearm, Kat put a bullet through his chest. He toppled over backwards, his feet drumming on the ground for a moment and then went still.

Kat stood and moved cautiously towards the burning shed, switching her weapon back from single shot to burst. As she passed the fallen trooper, she picked up his dropped H&K pistol and stuffed it in a vest pocket. Keeping low, she moved quickly to the back of the cabin. As she progressed around the building she paused at each window, listening carefully. Reaching the front of the cabin, she could hear someone moving around inside and the sound of radio chatter.

Feeling like a spectator to her own actions, Kat slowly eased herself up to peer into the closest window. Inside was a single black masked figure. He stood facing the door; a shotgun was held ready at his hip but his attention was turned to a blinking security console. She ducked back down, readied her weapon and took a deep breath. Taking a step back from the cabin, she popped up and fired a burst through the window. There was a heavy thud inside the building and the crackle of damaged electronics.

Kat ran to the front door, dropped to a crouch and pushed it open with the muzzle of her weapon. As the door creaked open, a shotgun blast exploded though the top half of it. Shit! She fell back from the door, heart pounding. Gathering herself up, she quickly moved back to the window.

Feeling along the foundation of the cabin, Kat picked up two golf ball-sized rocks. She tossed one gently to land on the steps at the front of the building and then hurled the second to hit lower half of the shattered door. She was immediately rewarded with a second roar from the shotgun. At once, she stood and fired into the room. The soldier had been lying on his side, gun pointed awkwardly at the door. The weapon dropped from his hands and he rolled onto his back with a gurgle. Kat watched for a moment and could detect no movement. Cautiously, she entered the building.

The small cabin had only a few nearly empty rooms. In a corner of the front room Kat noted a pile of familiar looking equipment. She quickly checked for any remaining Combine soldiers. In the last room she found Barney lying motionless on the floor, his hands and feet tied. Kat scanned the corners of the room and hurried over to him. She felt a wash of relief to find him still breathing, though unconscious. Kneeling at his side, she cut him loose and shook his shoulder.

"Barney! Wake up!" He shifted slightly with a groan.

"Come on, please wake up!" Kat rolled him onto his back and lightly slapped his face. He clumsily raised a hand to fend her off. She grabbed his hands and tried to pull him up into a sitting position. He groaned again as he sat up and pulled one of his hands away, putting it to the back of his head. Kat reached around and felt a large lump at the base of his skull. Her hand came back bloody.

"Oh God… Do you think you can walk?"

He finally turned his gaze to hers, his green eyes vague and unfocused. "…Kat…?"

"Barney! Please! You have to try to stand up." She tugged frantically at his arm. "I think they might have called for backup. I'm sure they reported your capture. We've got to get out of here!" Every second that ticked by, Kat could feel their chances of escape getting smaller.

As Kat helped him to his feet, Barney seemed to gradually regain his bearings. "They…they took all my stuff…"

"It's okay. I saw it in the front room." Kat guided him towards the front of the small building where they quickly collected his equipment.

"Are you going to be okay? We're going to have to move fast."

"Yeah, my head hurts like hell, but I don't feel so…fuzzy." He examined the sparking console. "Damn. It looks like you were right about the backup. We better get going."

They ran out of the cabin and started towards the woods. As they passed along the side of the cabin, Kat glanced down. She came to a sudden halt. "Wait a minute. I have an idea." She dug around for a moment at the exposed foundations and stuffed several egg-sized rocks in her vest pockets. She handed a half-dozen more to Barney. "Hold on to these. Come on." She turned back towards the open land between the forest and the seaside.

Barney grabbed her arm, "Where are you going? We'll be completely exposed out there!"

"I know, but how long do you think we'll last in the forest? There's plenty of cover, but they'll track us down eventually. You know that. You have to trust me." They stood for a moment, eyes locked.

At last Barney gave a short nod. "Okay. Let's go." They turned away from the forest and jogged across the open plain towards the sea.

They were nearly halfway there when they heard the sound of vehicles approaching in the distance. Barney looked back. "Damn it! Two APC's. Run!" The vehicles accelerated, engines roaring, as the drivers spotted the fleeing figures. Two hundred yards to go and the ground became rocky and uneven.

Kat ran for all she was worth, pulse pounding in her ears. The APC's were rapidly gaining on them but would certainly be hindered by the rough ground. Barney was slightly ahead and seemed to be trying to find a path that would slow the vehicles.

One hundred yards. Her lungs were burning and it felt as though her equipment had doubled in weight. The sound of the vehicles slowed and came to a stop. There was a pause then a few shots rang out. Kat and Barney both ducked reflexively. The soldiers didn't seem to be in a rush. They think they have us trapped.

Fifty yards. As they neared the edge of the bluff, Barney shouted over his shoulder, "Now what?"

"Just find us a way down to the beach! I'll take care of the rest!"

They ran along the edge of the bluff. The soldiers weren't even bothering to fire at them now although she could hear them following. Barney gave a sudden shout, "Here!" He had found a steep slope deeply eroded into the wall of the bluff. He crouched down at the head of the narrow defile.

Kat skidded to a halt and crouched next to him. Gasping for breath, she reached into her vest pockets and pulled out a plastic bag and a couple of rocks. She removed an antlion gland from the bag and gave it a gentle squeeze. A dark, noxious paste oozed out. She rubbed some on the rocks and tossed them down to the shoreline. She then took a small amount, smeared it on the front of her vest and did the same for Barney. There was an ominous clattering from the beach.

She marked several more rocks and handed some to Barney. "Are you ready?"

He looked down at the beach. Already there were at least a half-dozen antlions swarming around the rocks Kat had thrown. He leaned forward and put a hand on Kat's shoulder, "Are you absolutely sure about this?"

She hesitated, dropping her gaze. "I'm as sure as I can possibly be."

"Kat…"

She returned his stare fiercely, "What do you want me to say? There's not much of a choice now anyway. How many soldiers could there be in those APC's? Can we fight all of them?"

"Point taken. Next time just say 'Yes, Barney, I am absolutely sure.' You want to flip for who goes first?"

There was a sudden crackle of Combine radios from nearby. Kat slipped past him with a strained smile, "It's my lunatic idea. I'll go." She slid down the steep slope sitting back on her heels. Barney followed close behind.

They reached the bottom in a small avalanche of sand and pebbles. The growing group of antlions immediately took notice and headed towards them. Kat readied her weapon and held her breath as they approached. There was no aggressive posturing though and the antlions simply circled around them as though to examine these new creatures.

"Unbelievable," Barney murmured.

Kat allowed herself a small smile and turned to him, keeping her movements controlled and deliberate. "Okay. Now we have our cavalry." She looked back up the slope. "How far can you throw?"

Barney followed her gaze. "I can get a rock to the top of the bluff, if that's what you want."

"Throw one about halfway and let's see if they take the bait." He did as she asked and most of the antlions skittered up the slope, several remaining behind as though to guard them.

Over the chittering of the antlions, Kat could hear the sounds of the Combine soldier's radios at the top of the bluff. "Now! Quick, don't let them see us down here!" Barney heaved the rock. The antlions midway up the slope launched themselves after it as it passed overhead.

Kat and Barney ducked behind the wall of the bluff. The sound of gunfire and frantic radio communication burst out from above.

Barney turned to Kat with a grin, "Well, it looks like you might have found Werner his secret weapon. And he'll be sooo thrilled to hear that you're not a risk taker. Come on, let's get out of here."

I had such a vivid image in my mind for the chase, but it seemed to end up pretty short. I hope it came out right. It sure looked good in my head.: )

I'll keep up with this, but I'm a little stuck again. I know where the story is going, but I'm not exactly sure how I'm going to get it there.

Metroid13 - Just curious; did you read the whole chapter? Barney survived removing his mask in the game, so I figured it would be okay here. Anyway, in my personal HL2 universe in my head, CP are unmodifiedhuman volunteers, therefore they are not totally dependent on their masks. That's just my view and I understand that there are a lot of theories on, well, lots of stuff in the game. That's kind of what got me writing this fanfic in the first place. I hope that little point didn't ruin the whole thing for you. : )