A Hellborn Freeman
Chapter One
Freedom
Green electricity arced across a previously empty space in a Seattle alley. Rats scurried away, but more than one was burnt to a crisp behind the dumpster at Rita's Chicken Kitchen. As the bolts faded away, the body of a young man still in his teens appeared.
The young man slept on.
As the sun rose, a few stray rays fell upon his eyelids, and they fluttered open.
He gazed uncomprehendingly forward for a few seconds, and jumped to his feet to look for any nearby hostiles, before his mind caught up to his body's reaction.
'Why am I looking for hostiles?' he thought.
Realization hit him like a brick.
He shoved his hand in his back pocket and it came up empty. No wallet, no money, and no idea where or who he was.
'I can fix one of these problems immediately, seeing as I'm in a city.'
He walked out of the sunlit alleyway, and began walking along the street, and found an abandoned paper on a nearby bench. Its title proudly declared it to be the Seattle Times.
'Where to now? I've obviously been through some kind of trauma.'
A large sign for the Emanuel hospital presented itself as an answer.
Walking in, he caught a glimpse of a large mirror. For a fleeting moment, he thought he caught a glimpse of a soldier with intense green eyes, but dismissed it as a lingering effect of whatever caused his amnesia.
The receptionist, once he reached her, was understanding of his dilemma.
"We need to call you something young man. John Doe just doesn't work with a strapping youngster like yourself." The older woman's eyes misted slightly. "How about we call you Gordon?"
Thus the young man once known as Xander Harris began a new life.
... 3 months later
The young man sat in a room talking with Dr. Liah, or as he called her, Li.
"Gordon, you've been staying at my place and working here at the hospital for 3 months now."
"How could I forget?" he said, quietly as always, but with bitter amusement, and a hint of a cackle at the end.
Dr. Liah laughed dryly.
"If only we could measure that humor of yours with an instrument, we'd know who you were in an instant, Gordon"
Gordon said nothing, content to allow her to continue. Her ice blue eyes locked with his green eyes, setting behind identical square lenses.
"You need to put your past behind you. Look at your scars- I've never seen someone with so many not from a bad situation. You've done wonderful work here at the hospital, and I've seen some of the things you study in the library. Dr. Antons hasn't had a major lab accident since you started helping him- that's a sure sign of greatness. You deserve more than just a cursory first name Gordon- you're going to go down in history!" Dr. Liah had worked herself into a rant.
Gordon placed a hand on her shoulder, pausing her lecture.
"Freeman" he said.
"What?"
"I am a free man. Who I was and what happened to me doesn't matter anymore. I am Gordon Freeman."
AN
There you go! Chapter 1 is up, and now you see the premise behind the story. Hopefully.
Thanks to my reviewers! Please review!