"New World, New Threats"
Cpl. Adrian "The Destroyer" Shepherd
Status: MIA
Location: ?
The first thing sense that came to him was his sight. Although he wasn't really thinking clearly to care.
He was staring into a blue, barely cloudy sky, a gentle, calm breeze blowing through the trooper as he began to regain consciousness. He blinked a bit, his vision blurring a bit before clearing up. His smell returned as well, as had touch, and only then did he realize, he was lying one the ground on his back.
Slowly, he began to lift his body up, assuming a sitting position, and began to take stock of his surroundings.
He was on top of a grassy hill, surrounded by flowers of varying colors and shapes the hill overlooking a vast grassy plain, a large, expansive forest in the distance. The flowers looked nice. Smelt nice too, as the Marine took a whiff of the air around him, nodding in satisfaction. They certainly reminded him of home.
Home…
He then jolted up. His mind had been a mushy mess waking up, but clarity has finally returned to him. He began to remember what happened and how he was here: The defeat of the worm beast, his presumed demise, his rescue by the suit man, the detonation of the bomb he had defused, his accepting the suit man's offer.
"Save the world that lies beyond, and you shall be granted freedom", the man had cryptically said. What had he meant by that, he wasn't sure. What he did know for sure, was that he needed to find out where he was, and what to do next. He was supposed to save this world. The question was, save it from what?
He swept his questions to the side. He'll get the answers in time, but not like this. He was too out in he open, too exposed. He needed to leave. Now.
He got up, but then he remembered. Earlier, when he accepted the deal, the man said that when if he went through the portal, changes would be made to him. What changes, he thought. He stretched a bit, and was about to dismiss the thought, when he noticed something. He felt…
Shorter. Way too short. And his body felt good. Way too good. As if the scars he had gained, the injuries he had sustained, had vanished in a whim.
To say he was confused was an understatement. His body was aching when he got rescued, worn and torn from so much fighting. And to top it off, his face didn't feel right.
Carefully, he undid the latches on his mask and took it off, setting it to the side. He reached around for his rucksack, unzipped it, reached in and pulled out a mirror shard he had obtained in Black Mesa. Then, he held it up to his face… and he blanched in disbelief.
He looked like he was 17 years old again, as if 10 years of his biological clock were ripped out of him. His scars were still there, the knife wound on his cheek visible, but anything beyond that, he was his youthful self again.
Shepherd was speechless for one second, not knowing what to feel for a few seconds. Then…
"HOLY FU-"
After a bit of an existential crisis that lasted for a solid 10 minutes, Shepherd finally regained his composure. No use complaining about it now. It is what it is. If the man in the suit saw it fit to rip off a full decade off his biological clock, then so be it. Besides, he hadn't felt this good in over a loooong while. It's certainly unnecessary, but nonetheless welcome.
Before he would do anything else, he saw it crucial that he made sure he was armed. The man said that he could keep his gear when he went through, but like his father used to say, "There's no harm in being too careful." Besides, a new world means new threats.
First, he made sure his Powered Combat Vest was charged up to max. The HUD showed it was at 100% capacity. Good. His vital signs were at 100% as well. Good.
Now for the underlying issue of arms. Luckily, they were all there. His Glock 17, his Beretta (He took it off a dead Black Mesa guard), his standard issue Desert Eagle, although the laser sight was burnt out. Adrian made a note to fix that later.
Then he checked for his SPAS-12. Good, still there, and in tip-top shape. Full loaded too, so, nice bonus. His stash of frags were there too, although that was when he noticed something odd.
There were flashbangs assorted alongside the frags. The trooper never recalled picking up flashers on his journey through the facility, but he thought little of it. At least he had something that he could use to his advantage.
He then checked for his primaries. The MP5SD. Still there, although for some reason, it was also equipped with a holo sight. Probably from the suit guy again. No matter. The underbarrel grenade launcher was still there, a 'nade loaded inside. Then he noticed yet again another item he didn't remember picking up: an M16 with an underbarrel 40 mike. "Okay," the trooper said to himself. "This is getting weirder." But then again, he was 17 now. What else is new? His Satchel Charges were all there. So was his private supply of Tripmines, although he barely ever used them anyway. He reached out to a pouch on his right , concealing a Snark Nest, where he pulled out a lone Snark. The alien bug writhed in protest, chirping angrily. At least he has that, he thought, as he put the rebellious bug back in its nest.
Then, he heard a familiar chitter.
"Frogman!", he cried, calling out to his Spore Launcher, who was on his shoulder the entire time. He felt weird calling it that way- he felt like a child- but his sense of humor was so broken anything was funny to him. But to know that Frogman was still with him was all that he could care about at that moment. He picked up the green lizard(?) from his shoulder and hugged it, with Frogman purring in happiness
"Who's a cute little grenade launcher? You're a cute little grenade launcher! Yes you are! Yes you are!", the trooper cooed, rubbing the top of the Spore Launcher's head, with it responding with a satisfied purr.
He then turned his attention to his right arm, where Sparky, the Shock Roach resided. He had been reserved and quiet the entire time, letting out a chirrup of jealousy.
"Oh sorry, Sparky, don't worry, I didn't forget about you", he assured the bug, petting it in the head, with the bug relaxing a bit.
Barney, the Barnacle Grapple, said little, as he had little to complain about. He was just along for the ride. Anywhere but that glass container he was housed it was good.
He made sure his M249 was with him. It was, locked, loaded, and ready to tear apart some poor sucker with the pull of the trigger. His HECU RPG was loaded too, ready for the time to come for it to be called upon once more. Then, he turned his attention to what he personally thought was the most weirdest piece of tech he had on his person.
The Displacer Cannon.
It was heavy, and had he not had the PCV to amplify his strength, he would've quailed under the sheer bulk of the weapon. He made sure his fingers were off the trigger, 'cause the last thing Shepherd would want is to get teleported to who-knows-where. The power indicator showed that the weapon was at full capacity. Good. Depleted Uranium-235 was a bitch to acquire, so it's nice to know he still has his trump card.
Then, he turned his attention to his melee weapons. The pipe wrench was strapped to his belt, and the combat knife in its sheathed on his left forearm. Holding up the wrench for Adrian to see, he reminisced a bit about it. The steel bar had gotten him out of a lot of messy loops in the past, and he was ever grateful. His knife had served him just as equally. He refused to admit it, but those weapons were the best bit of good news he'd ever had in days.
After finally assessing his armaments, nodding in satisfaction as he knows that everything he had is still with him- although the new pieces of equipment were a welcome bonus- he strapped up, made a quadruple check, and then finally, he set off towards the forest, in search of answers.
All while a dark shadow observes in subtlety, watching intently at this new potential prey.
After quite a long while, the Marine enters the forest at last. Finally, some decent enough cover, he thought. He breathed a sigh of relief. He was not out in the open anymore, and that's more than enough for him. However, he was not too keen on letting his guard down yet. As Murphy's Law stated, anything that can go wrong, will go wrong. He'd seen too many Marines under his command breathe a sigh of relief, letting their guard down for one second… which was apparently long enough for an Assassin to plant a bullet right between the eyes.
Never again.
He prowler the forest floor, his M16 cocked and ready to fire, the 40 mike begging to let loose. He kept his eye trained on the iron sight, using his hearing and sight to the max. He was anticipating a fight. In his field of expertise, it was an instinct every Marine must have. After all, he had not a clue as to what he could face here.
He trekked on. A full hour passed. Step, step, turn, aim, scan, step, step, scan, step…
His nerves were raw, his finger itchy, his breath labored. This is becoming laborious. Still, he held back. A Marine must be patient, and he had that in spades and aces.
Then he heard it. A twig snap, a low growl behind him.
He whips around him, rifle at the ready.
The first thing he noted was how peculiar the target was. It looked definitely like a wolf, but larger, with some humanoid characteristics, and it was almost the size of a Shock Trooper. Its fur was a startling jet black, and it was on all fours. The thing had bony spines protruding all over it, staring from the name, then flowing down to its back and arms. More strangely enough, the werewolf thing's head was a lupine skull, teeth protruding outwards, and most disturbing of all, the eye sockets glowing a malicious shade of red.
"Huh. That's new..", Shepherd said, sizing up the monster. Then he heard growling to his right. He turned, and more of the beasts have come to join their comrade, eyeing their target. More of them appeared to his left, then from behind, and it was crystal clear that he was surrounded by them. He counted at least 10 of them, all growling menacingly. He spied a particularly big one in front of him, staring at him intently. Alpha, he noted. He needed to take that one out.
He was surrounded. Everywhere. There was one of him and ten of them
He like those odds.
He readied up, unsheathing his knife and attaching it to the barrel, creating a bayonet. The wolves pages the ground, ready to charge. He tensed, waiting for the next move…
Then he heard stomping behind him. One of the wolf things was charging at their prey, claws outstretched and ready to gut the puny thing alive.
Only for Shepherd to duck, causing the wolf to swing at the air where Shepherd once was. For its troubles, 7.62mm hollow point rounds bore into the creature's eye, Shepherd electing to fire in semi to conserve precious ammo. A bullet pierced the eye proper, another split off its jaw, and another hit it square in the cranium. The wolf dropped, the life fading away from its one good eye.
"10", Shepherd muttered.
Two more wolves, outraged by the death of their kin, howled bloody murder, and charged from the right, one particularly aggressive one kicking up dirt as he and his companion ran at Shepherd. On all fours, he noted. Shepherd crouched, switched to burst, took aim, and fired off three bursts. The first salvo took out the one on the left, dropping to the ground, lifeless. The second salvo missed and hit a wolf that was looking for an opening in the arm, causing it to roar in pain as the bullets embedded into its flesh, and the third salvo missed entirely. The aggressive one reached Shepherd and immediately swinged at his legs, fully intent on lobbing off his feet. Shepherd had of course anticipated this, and jumped, swinging his right foot forward. His combat boot was thankfully connected to the PCV, so when his boot connected with the wolf's lower jaw, apart from causing his suit power to dip by a hairbreadth, it sent the wolf staggering backward, the kick disorienting it long enough for Shepherd to drive the M16 into the wolf's chest, the bayonet lodging into where the heart would be. While the monster reeled in horror, the Marine pulled out his Deagle, whipped behind him, and bore two rounds into the wolf that had its arm shot, disorienting it before a third bullet hit true to Shepherd's intent, spilling brains all over the ground below. It fell to the ground, joining its fallen comrades. And to be safe, he holsters his pistol, turned around to face the stabbed wolf, grabbed his rifle, and pulled it out. Using his rifle as a pike, he swung hard and fast at its throat, splitting it open, spraying blood all over him. The monster fell, slain for good.
"9, 8, and 7", Adrian counted under his breath. Like ducks in a pond.
Three more wolves charged, these ones carrying more experience than their fallen, but not enough. One wolf ran at him from one side, and another from the other. To avoid being eviscerated, he rolled, causing the two wolves to crash into each other. The third wolf swung and would've decapitated Adrian had he not met the paw with his own fist, his other hand on the handle of the rifle. The punch, backed up with the power of the vest, was so hard it broke off the wolf's wrist, causing the wolf to howl in pain. He swept off the wolf in a double sweep, knocking off the wolf's balance. With the creature on the ground, he swung the rifle/pike at its throat, killing it. He pulled out both a flashbang and a frag, pulled out the pin on the flash, and threw it at other two wolves behind him. The wolves stared too long at it, and are then blinded by the grenade going off. Shepherd then pulled the pin off the frag grenade, counted to three, and yeeted it at the wolves. By the time it hits the ground, the grenade explodes, turning both wolves into bloody gibs.
"6, 5, and 4", he mutters, smiling.
Then suddenly, he feels something hit him from behind, sending him flying forward. He crashes into the ground. He gets up, his HUD showing suit power at 87 percent. Angrily, he turns to face his assailants, which were the three other wolves that were on his left side before. He grabs his rifle, but not before a wolf comes forward and attempts to slash him, only for the trooper to roll behind it and fire at his legs, tearing off the joints connecting the thigh to the femur. The wolf falls to its knees, giving Shepherd the chance to drive the bayonet into the creature's head, dispatching it immediately.
He was about to pull it out when the second wolf grabbed him from behind and slammed him into the ground. Before it could raise its claw to gut him open, Shepherd wrapped his leg around the wolf's arm and then he rotated his body, throwing off the wolf and ending with Shepherd on top of him. Shepherd used the element of surprise to his advantage and stomped on the wolf's face, shattering the creature's skull face.
Another wolf charged in and swung its claw at him, but Shepherd ducked, returning the favor with an uppercut to the gut, a hook to the face, a good leg sweep, and finally adding the cherry on top by using his bare hands to rip out the monster's throat, a piece of skin coming away as he killed the last grunt wolf, as he called them.
"3, 2, and 1", he said, cracking his knuckles. Then, he finally turned his attention to the big bad. The last wolf.
The Alpha was staring angrily, miffed with the fact that this human, this insect, killed everyone under his watch. He'll make that human pay. It then roared, and charged, Shepherd running to meet it.
What the wolf did not see coming was that suddenly, Shepherd jumped at the wolf, curling into a ball, and crashed into the Alpha like a bowling ball. He popped right back up to his feet, but the Alpha did the same, growling menacingly, but Shepherd didn't cower. The wolf ran towards him and curled its fist, punching the trooper hard, with Shepherd blocking, although it does chip off a bit of his suit power. Punch after punch, the Alpha began to continuously clock the Marine, the suit power dipping with each hit. Finally, the Alpha was about to muster up a particularly strong swing, before Shepherd caught the Alpha's fist. Ty as it might, it couldn't retract its appendage, caught in the iron grip of a very angry Marine. Then, he quickly twists the creature's fist, causing it to reel in pain, before suddenly, Shepherd begins to retaliate. Putting in as much power as he could, he began to tear the Alpha apart, each punch causing severe amounts of damage to the wolf.
Jab, straight, straight, hook, uppercut, jab, roundhouse kick, frontal kick, each hit laced with power and hatred. The wolf, powerless to stop him, falls apart under its own injuries, falling on its back. Then, the life in its eyes slowly began to fade away, leaving Shepherd. Alone. Surrounded by death.
"Zero", he said out loud. He then walks towards the body containing his rifle, when something unexpected happens.
The bodies were turning to dust. One by one, they began to fade out of existence, until, the bodies were gone. As if they never were there to begin with.
"Wha….", Shepherd muttered, grabbing his rifle from where the body used to be. However, it didn't matter now. He needs to leave. Now.
Grabbing his rucksack, which had been dropped during the melee, he picks up the pace, and trekked off into the cover of the foliage of the forest.
All while an unassuming crow watches from afar.
