EST – SANTEGO MILITARY BASE
We see a remote military base in the Arizona desert, tan and dusty but crawling with military personnel. Cargo trucks motor along between buildings, and soldiers interact with the camaraderie of brothers at arms. Their desert-tan uniforms mark them as Marines.
Green letters print out along the lower left corner of the frame: SANTEGO MILITARY BASE, ARIZONA
At one end of the military base we see an obstacle course being run by new and seasoned soldiers alike, and we hear the booming voice of a drill sergeant spurring them on through the course.
EXT – SANTEGO MILITARY BASE
A technician sits at a radio, listening to an incoming message through headphones. He reacts with surprise and flags down a passing officer, whose uniform tag identifies him as BURKE and whose stripes identify him as a sergeant.
RADIO TECHNICIAN
"Sir!"
SGT. BURKE
"What is it?"
RADIO TECHNICIAN
"I'm getting a distress signal from the Black Mesa Research Facility!"
It appears that Burke was forewarned of this, but he was hoping it wouldn't happen.
SGT BURKE
"… Shit. Okay, thank you."
Burke heads over to a public address microphone and activates it. His voice echoes from speakers set up around the base.
SGT BURKE [P.A.]
"All members of HECU report immediately for duty. I repeat, all members of HECU report immediately for duty."
Various soldiers glance up. Among them are two corporals playing chess, whose name tags identify them as ADRIAN SHEPHERD and RICHARD COOKE. Shepherd is in his early twenties, tall, broad-shouldered and muscular, with a blond crew-cut. Cooke is a few years older, also muscular (hooray for the military fitness program!), and has a dark crew-cut.
CPL COOKE
"All right. This is it!"
CPL SHEPHERD
"Shit. Just when I had you against the ropes."
CPL COOKE
[laughs] "Suck it, Shep. I'll still kick your ass when we get back to base."
They get up and start following the general wave headed for the barracks. The HECU soldiers around them chatter in excitement; clearly they have been prepared for this.
CPL SHEPHERD
"I just hope this isn't another babysitting mission. I mean, rescuing geeks from a research facility? Somebody probably got a papercut."
CPL COOKE
"Hey, don't sell the unit short. HECU, right? The…"
SHEPHERD/COOKE
"Hazardous Environment Combat Unit."
CPL SHEPHERD
"Yeah, more like Huge Effing Cock-Ups. I mean, indoor combat training? We fighting Hans Gruber or something?"
CPL COOKE
"Yippy ki yay."
CPL SHEPHERD
"I guess that makes me Bruce Willis."
CPL COOKE
"Ha! You wish."
Shepherd gives Cooke a playful punch to the shoulder.
INT – SANTEGO MILITARY BASE – OFFICE
Burke takes a metal lockbox out of a drawer and opens it with a key on his keyring. Inside we find a stack of four narrow sealed manila envelopes, each fairly unremarkable overall except for the Black Mesa logo on the corner where one would expect a return address to go, and the words TOP SECRET stamped where the mailing address would be. He takes these out of the lockbox, and then closes and re-locks the box, returning it to the drawer.
INT – BLACK MESA – OFFICE COMPLEX
Gordon is helping with first aid, and is presently finishing tying a knot on a bandage on a scientist's arm.
GORDON FREEMAN
"Okay, how does that feel? Does it feel too tight?"
SCIENTIST #9
"No. It still hurts, though."
GORDON FREEMAN
"Try wiggling your fingers."
The scientist does so, successfully.
GORDON FREEMAN, cont'd.
"Okay, if you start feeling any numbness or tingling in your fingertips, have someone loosen that bandage a bit so your circulation doesn't get cut off. Now—" [calling to the refugees at large] "Everyone got some kind of weapon? Hold it up, please."
A forest of hands lifts, each one wielding a makeshift weapon. Half of them are holding up pens or pencils; a few have found metal rulers, and one is holding up a T-square.
GORDON FREEMAN
[discouraged] … Uh. None of you knows how to fight.
SCIENTIST #8
"We're scientists, not soldiers, Dr. Freeman."
GORDON FREEMAN
[sotto] "Ah God… this is gonna be hard." [aloud] "Look, I need all of you to stick close until I get back. You know as well as I do that there's a lot of hostile life-forms down here, and I don't want any of you to get killed. So buddy up. Make sure at least one other person knows where you are at all times. If you have to pee, pee in pairs."
DR. BARNABY [o.s.]
"Dr. Freeman!"
Gordon looks over in the direction of the voice.
GORDON FREEMAN
[sotto] "What the hell did I just say about not wandering off alone?" [aloud] "Yeah? What is it?"
DR. BARNABY [o.s.]
"I've found one of the security offices on this floor."
GORDON FREEMAN
"Any firearms in there?"
DR. BARNABY [o.s.]
[uncertain] "Yes, but… I think I also found Charles."
Gordon takes only a moment to remember the unfortunate Charles before he heads off at a run to Barnaby's position.
INT – BLACK MESA – OFFICES – HALLWAY
Barnaby is outside the security office, watching bleakly through the blood-smeared window as a headcrab zombie in a lab coat wanders around inside. On the wall opposite is a cork bulletin board with a few notices and a schedule pinned to it. On the floor is the mangled corpse of a security guard, and "Charles" has a number of gunshot wounds in the torso; the wounds are not bleeding. Barnaby jumps slightly as Gordon closes with him.
DR. BARNABY
"Ah! God, you scared me!"
GORDON FREEMAN
"Scary times, sir. Is that Charles?"
DR. BARNABY
"Poor Charles… he was such a nice man. Always cheerful. He brought donuts to the office just last week."
Zombie-Charles lumbers up to the window and pauses, swaying slightly. It appears to be watching them. The forelegs of the headcrab wave idly at them. Gordon notes the gunshot wounds.
GORDON FREEMAN
"Didn't even stop him. Shooting them in the chest doesn't work."
DR. BARNABY
"I'm not entirely sure he's still alive."
Gordon glances over the monstrosity in the office, noting in particular the huge maw in place of the chest.
GORDON FREEMAN
"No. I think we can safely say that Charles is dead." [beat] "I'll make this quick. I need you to fetch me the fire extinguisher from down the hall."
DR. BARNABY
"Okay."
Barnaby jogs off, and Gordon kicks open the office door, entering to confront the zombie. He reaches over and shuts the blinds.
We hear a roar and a yell, and then something getting brained. Gordon bashes the thing two more times to make sure, before opening the blinds again as he straightens up. Barnaby returns with the requested fire extinguisher just in time to catch the tail end of the battle, and he recoils when he sees the revealed carnage within. There is a splatter of yellow blood on the bulletin board. Zombie-Charles is slumped in the corner, its crushed headcrab oozing blood.
Barnaby enters cautiously, keeping an eye on the dead (re-dead… dead again) zombie in the corner. Near the corpse, Gordon pries off the lock of the gun cabinet and starts looting it, donning a belt holster and loading it with ammo clips and a couple handguns.
DR. BARNABY
"I brought your, uh…" [offers the fire extinguisher]
Gordon glances up.
GORDON FREEMAN
"Good. You keep that. If something comes up and tries to grab you, spray it in the face. I think the CO2 messes with them."
Barnaby frowns, but ultimately keeps the extinguisher.
DR. BARNABY
"Do you have any theories?"
GORDON FREEMAN
"About what?"
Barnaby nods at Zombie-Charles. Gordon follows his gaze. He regards the corpse for a few seconds before returning to his task.
GORDON FREEMAN
"Offhand, I'd say the crab on his head is some sort of cerebral parasite. I've seen a couple of these so far, but I haven't been able to determine how or why they work like that. Maybe if I got a chance to pry one free I'd get a better idea, but there's no equipment for a proper dissection down here."
He takes an assault rifle and checks it over: making sure the barrel is clear, etc. He seems to know what he is doing. Barnaby watches, feeling like he is missing something.
DR. BARNABY
"Dr. Freeman… what was your doctorate in, again?"
GORDON FREEMAN
"Theoretical physics… why?"
DR. BARNABY
"You certainly seem to know your way around a gun, is all I'm saying."
GORDON FREEMAN
"Well, it's amazing how much information you can find about anything on the Internet."
There is a slightly frightened pause as Gordon, satisfied that the gun is in good condition, begins loading it.
DR. BARNABY
"The… Inter…?"
GORDON FREEMAN
"I'm kidding. It was part of my Hazard certification in Anomalous Materials. I got top marks on the Weapons section."
He chambers a round.
DR. BARNABY
"I really wish you would take this a bit more seriously!"
GORDON FREEMAN
"Sorry. But, hey – the military's on its way, and before you know it everyone will be safely out of here and this whole thing will blow over. You'll see."
He offers Barnaby a handgun, butt first, but Barnaby declines it with a wave of his hand. Gordon shrugs and stows it. As he shuts the gun cabinet:
DR. BARNABY
"By the way, you've got yellow bodily fluids splattered on you."
GORDON FREEMAN
"Where?"
DR. BARNABY
[beat] "Everywhere."
GORDON FREEMAN
"Oh. Yeah."
Gordon makes a token effort to wipe away the alien blood from his visor as they leave the security office.
GORDON FREEMAN
"At least they don't bleed concentrated molecular acid. I'd be in trouble then. Now, I need you to stick close to the others in the cube farm – you can have one of them tell you what I said about not wandering off alone while you were wandering off alone. Okay?"
DR. BARNABY
[sigh] "All right."
They reach the offices, and Barnaby heads in.
GORDON FREEMAN
"Now barricade the door. You don't want anything sneaking in."
DR. BARNABY
[nods] "You know how to get to the surface from here?"
GORDON FREEMAN
"I remember the newbie tour from my internship. The elevators are still shut down, and the fire stairs don't open from the inside unless the alarm is tripped, so..." [pauses, remembering] "Main stairs are down the south hallway… then take those all the way up to Level 1…"
DR. BARNABY
"And then you follow the long hallway to your left, and take the second right. There should be a sign directing you to Sector D and the main facility entrance. With any luck, the military should be arriving about the same time you do."
GORDON FREEMAN
"Okay. I got it."
He turns to go.
DR. BARNABY
"Dr. Freeman?"
Gordon glances back.
DR. BARNABY, cont'd.
"I have to tell you, you've demonstrated exemplary leadership qualities, considering the crisis. I've never seen such a level head on someone so young. If you keep this up, I predict you'll really go places."
GORDON FREEMAN
"Thank you, sir. I just hope we survive all this."
DR. BARNABY
"Me too."
Gordon heads off.
INT – BLACK MESA – CONTROL ROOM
Dr. Keller sits in his wheelchair at a control panel – a different location than the earlier control room. This room is much bigger and less intensely lit than the control room by the anti-mass spectrometer. It is also relatively OSHA compliant, with a wheelchair ramp leading up to each of two exits in addition to the stairs. Dr. Cross stands near him, peering over his shoulder at the readout, and Dr. Green is investigating a crate at the end of the counter, with a Black Mesa logo and MILITARY SUPPLIES stenciled on the side.
DR. KELLER
"As you can see here, the rift between Earth and the borderworld is widening. I can't figure out why, though – our best bet will be to reset the dampening fields. I'm not sure if this place will survive another resonance cascade."
Green pries open the crate with a crowbar, to reveal hand grenades nestled within. She brightens.
DR. CROSS
[pointing to a monitor displaying a map of the complex] "We can go through the plaza here to get to the dampener controls."
DR. KELLER
"Before you leave, though, I want to make sure to synch your radios to mine, so I can guide you."
As he types, Dr. Green straightens up, holding a couple grenades in her hand.
DR. GREEN
"Look what I found. These should help us if we run into anything."
Keller gives her a sideways glance.
DR. KELLER
"Just don't bring the whole facility down on our heads, Colette."
DR. GREEN
"I'll be careful."
Keller finishes typing as Green and Cross equip themselves with grenades.
DR. KELLER
"There – that should do it."
[he picks up a microphone and speaks into it]
"Testing, testing…"
His voice echoes in their headset radios.
DR. CROSS
"Loud and clear, sir."
DR. GREEN
"Same here."
DR. KELLER
"Good. Let me know when you get to the dampeners and I'll walk the two of you through it. Just be careful – you could run into anything down there."
They nod and head off through the door behind him.
INT – BLACK MESA – CORRIDORS
Cross and Green enter a short hallway ending in a broken glass door. Green smashes it and clears away the broken fragments, and they make their way through.
A couple of headcrab zombies, sensing their presence, turn in their shamblings and stagger towards them, bellowing raggedly, but get peppered with bullets. Green places a tight cluster of shots directly in the headcrab of one, and the zombie falls.
DR. GREEN
"Aim for the head! Saves bullets!"
Cross shifts her aim and squeezes off a couple more rounds. The second zombie falls.
They step over the fallen zombies and head around a bend. Up ahead is another set of double doors. They continue through into:
INT – BLACK MESA – PLAZA
They are on a walkway about halfway up a two-story-high plaza whose roof opens into a dome skylight. Below, on the ground floor, we see an elaborate fountain (not operational) surrounded by some artificial trees in planters. A couple of the trees have been tipped over and gnawed on. Some Vortigaunts are wandering around below as well, and presently one of them attacks one of the fake trees, shoving it over.
Up ahead, purple lightning crackles, culminating in extra-dimensional burst of energy as more Vorts beam in ahead of Cross and Green
They blast away at the Vorts, ducking behind columns to reload and to avoid their electrical blasts, which blow chunks of plaster and decorative tile from the columns, sometimes inches from the scientists.
When the threat has been eliminated, the echoes of gunfire fade to reveal a faint noise far above them continuing in the quiet. Green looks up, and points.
DR. GREEN
"Look!"
Dr. Cross looks, and her expression turns to relief and excitement as she spots the military transports passing by overhead, visible through the skylight.
DR. CROSS
"The military's almost here! Thank God!"
DR. KELLER, radio
"That's good to hear. Hopefully once we get this contained they'll be able to give us a lift out of here."
DR. CROSS
"It shouldn't take us too long. Come on, Colette."
She tugs at Green's elbow, and the two continue through a half-raised door and into a glass-lined corridor.
INT – BLACK MESA – GLASS CORRIDOR
A couple of Vortigaunts are already in the corridor and they turn as Green and Cross enter. One of the Vorts starts to fire up its electricity attack, but Cross shoots it. The other one charges, swiping at Cross. It manages to grab her, and opens its mouth to bite—
Cross quick-draws a handgun and sticks the barrel in its mouth. It has one second to comprehend what is about to happen before Cross blows its brains out. Green pries off the dead alien, and they step over the bodies on their way to the next door.
INT- BLACK MESA – OFFICE
The door opens onto a walkway around the upper level of this office area. From the walkway, a steep set of metal steps leads down to the lower floor, which is dotted with desks and mainframes. The corpses of technicians and scientists are sprawled here and there, and there is a door at the far end of the room, labeled TECHNICIANS ONLY and sealed with an electronic lock. The walkway is currently occupied by a huge hulking alien creature, at least nine feet tall, similar in overall theme to the Vortigaunts, but this one is covered by armored plates; one hand is a huge pincer, while the other is occupied by a writhing biomechanical gauntlet of some sort that emits a dull buzzing noise. As they enter, this ALIEN GRUNT turns and fires a cluster of what appear at first to be tracer rounds from the gauntlet, which emit a high-pitched, angry buzz. The rounds home in on the two scientists, who quickly realize that the rounds are not just intelligent – they are alive!
The alien insects, resembling shiny metallic hornets, swarm around them, causing a few frantic moments before they manage to duck back through the door.
INT – BLACK MESA – GLASS CORRIDOR
They stomp on the few stragglers that have managed to follow them through. The hornet-rounds clatter against the door as Cross and Green exchange a glance.
DR. CROSS
"Alright – any ideas about what that was?"
DR. GREEN
[considers] "That was a bee gun. And that… thing is standing between us and the dampener reset controls."
DR. CROSS
"I don't like our odds against that thing. It was pretty heavily armored. I'm open to ideas."
There are a few moments of thoughtful silence.
DR. GREEN
"You know, my dad always had a fairly elegant method of getting rid of beehives…"
She takes a grenade from her belt and pulls the pin.
INT – BLACK MESA – OFFICE
Green opens the office door again and whistles sharply at the grunt.
DR. GREEN
"Hey! Elephant man! Catch!"
She lobs the grenade at the grunt, its clip falling free. It reflexively catches the grenade in its pincer. Green ducks back, shutting the door between herself and the imminent explosion.
The grunt has only a few seconds to comprehend how hosed it is before—
INT – BLACK MESA – GLASS CORRIDOR
The door jumps under the shock wave of the explosion in the next room, and the two reflexively shield their faces as the safety glass lining the corridor rattles but does not shatter. Immediately after the main explosion, we hear a heavy double impact (as the grunt is knocked back against the wall and falls to the ground).
DR. CROSS
"Elegant solution, huh?"
DR. GREEN
"My dad preferred dynamite. Come on."
She opens the door and both scientists peer through.
INT – BLACK MESA – OFFICE
The grunt is laying face-down on the walkway, looking quite damaged and possibly dead. The hive-hand makes no noise. In the wall above and behind the corpse, there is a large dent where the creature hit.
DR. CROSS
"That works."
They head in and hurry down the stairs to the main floor, picking their way between the desks and over bodies to the far door. They key open the door and head through.
INT – BLACK MESA – DAMPENER CONTROL ROOM
The two enter, looking around cautiously. Around them, machinery hums, indicating the amount of power that the dampening fields require for effective functioning. Lights and indicators (a distressing number of which are red) blink on panels up ahead, and a ladder leads up to a catwalk above them, granting access to a further rank of machinery.
DR. CROSS
[into radio] 'Dr. Keller, we're in."
DR. KELLER, radio
"Good. I'm glad you made it. Any technicians alive in there?"
DR. GREEN
"I don't see anyone, dead or alive."
DR. KELLER, radio
"Okay. Do we have power to the dampening fields?"
DR. CROSS
"Looks like it… but everything's offline."
DR. KELLER, radio
"Okay, you'll need to reset the main controllers, then the auxiliary controllers. Ahead and to your right you should see those panels, marked Main Control and Aux Control."
DR. CROSS
"I see them."
Green hears movement above and glances up, but sees nothing definitive. She readies a handgun.
DR. GREEN
[aside to Cross] "We might have company. I'll watch your back while you do that."
Cross nods. She scans the rows of buttons, switches, and indicators until she finds a yellow button marked MAIN RESET, next to a mollyguard shielding a red button marked EMERGENCY SHUTDOWN.
DR. CROSS
"Resetting the main controllers… now."
She pushes the yellow Reset button, holding it down for a few seconds. Most of the lights on the main panel go out, but when she releases the button they come back on, flashing in a startup sequence before returning to a happier-looking default pattern of greens and blues.
DR. CROSS
"… and we're back."
DR. KELLER, radio
"Good. Listen, I'm picking up an increasing amount of dimensional energy building up in your location. It could just be some residual fluctuation from the cascade, but be careful."
DR. CROSS
"All right. Getting ready to reset the auxiliary controllers."
She moves over to the Aux control panel and locates the Reset button.
DR. CROSS
"Resetting the auxiliary controllers… now."
She pushes the reset button – and as she does, several Vortigaunts beam into the room nearby.
DR. GREEN
"We got company!"
She steps over to cover Dr. Cross as the Vortigaunts advance, their goal apparently the control consoles. Green fires at them; her initial aim is to scare them off, and at first they are driven back – but then sigils on their collars and cuffs flash blue, causing them to jerk in pain, and they surge forward again. Green opens fire, felling them a handful at a time.
Behind her, Cross releases the rest button, and the auxiliary controllers go through their startup sequence as before, before settling back to their default state.
DR. CROSS
"We're back up!"
DR. KELLER, radio
"Great – now get those dampeners back online, fast!"
Cross is now free to add her own firepower to Green's, and she blasts away with her own rifle in short bursts, clearing them away from the ladder to the second tier, with the handful of remaining Vortigaunts in hot pursuit, the sigils in their collars and cuffs glowing cold blue, then red.
Cross climbs backwards, trying to drive off their pursuers with gunfire. By the time they reach the top, all but one have fallen, and Cross kicks this last one in the teeth as it tries to grab her leg.
DR. CROSS
"Things are getting pretty hot in here, sir!"
DR. KELLER, radio
"I can tell – there's a lot of energy focused on your location right now. It's almost like it's being aimed, or some such. The dampening fields should block it off once they're up."
Green heads over to one of two cranks and begins to turn it. As she does so, a score of Vortigaunts are beamed in on the lower level. They start swarming the ladder.
DR. CROSS
"Oh, crap."
DR. GREEN
"I don't like to hear stuff like that behind me, Gina."
DR. CROSS
"Just get those dampeners online, whatever else happens! I'll cover you!"
She ejects a spent magazine and reloads quickly before opening fire on the incoming swarm. Vortigaunts bellow and fall, only to have their companions climb over their dead bodies.
DR. CROSS
"Progress report!"
The crank stops turning with a satisfying clunk.
DR. GREEN
"Dampening field one is on line!"
DR. CROSS
"Keep going!"
Green turns to head for the second crank, and yet another Grunt beams in, not seven feet in front of her, just beyond the crank. The catwalk shakes as it lands.
DR. GREEN
"You have got to be kidding me…"
She unshoulders her own assault rifle and opens fire on the hulking creature. Bullets spark off its armor until she finds the sweet spot at its abdomen. It roars in pain, but lunges forward. Green dodges back and continues firing as though her life depended on it – which it does – until the thing finally stumbles and falls. Green steps up and puts two final rounds into the back of its head. She looks a bit shaken, but she puts away her gun, steps over the fallen hulk, and steps up to the second crank and begins turning it.
DR. CROSS
"You okay?"
DR. GREEN
"Yeah. I think so. Keep an eye out."
DR. CROSS
"How are we doing, Dr. Keller?"
DR. KELLER, radio
"Good. Everything's going fine. The dampening shields are just about… hang on. Why is that…?"
DR. CROSS
"What's wrong?"
DR. KELLER, radio
"The energy I've been seeing should be diminishing – but if anything, it's getting stronger – wait—"
Alarms start to blare.
DR. KELLER, radio, continued
"We're getting a power surge! Get away from the controls!"
Cross and Green jump back as sparks jump from the machinery.
DR. CROSS
"What's going on?"
DR. KELLER, radio
"There's a massive power spike going into our systems – I need to shut down the dampening fields before they overload. Watch out!"
Further sparks fly as internal components are reduced to toasty silicon. Cross and Green instinctively shield their faces.
DR. KELLER, radio
"I think I've just about—there."
The machinery powers down without further damage.
DR. GREEN
"With all due respect, sir, what the hell was that?"
DR. KELLER, radio
"It was like something was deliberately interfering with the machinery. I'm not particularly paranoid, but it looks like some… intelligence doesn't want the rift closed. And considering the increasing numbers of armed borderworld life-forms coming through, I'm starting to think this isn't some freak accident. Ladies, I think we're under alien invasion."
Cross and Green exchange a concerned glance.
DR. CROSS
"Alien invasion? But the chances of that are—"
DR. KELLER, radio
"I know – I know! I don't like the sound of it any more than you do, but I have to go by the facts I have in front of me. So far, that's the best explanation I can come up with." [beat] "I don't think the two of you are safe where you are. There should be a door on the second level of that control room. It'll take you to one of the maintenance platforms for the tram. I'll see if I can get the tram up and running so I can get you away from there." [sighs] "I just need some time to figure out what our options are."
Exeunt Cross and Green via the door to the tram platform.
EXT – AIRSPACE OVER BLACK MESA
The portions of the research facility that are visible aboveground come onto view as an Osprey swoops in, intending to land. We see a large tarmac come into view outside the facility's entrance, with six helipads, one occupied by a black military helicopter, and three others occupied by tan personnel transports of a similar type to the oncoming Osprey. Even from this altitude, we see ground combat being engaged between military forces and alien creatures. Things appear to be going to hell already.
INT – OSPREY – AIRSPACE OVER BLACK MESA
The Osprey is loaded with two dozen Marines, including Shepherd and Cooke. The soldiers are chattering excitedly about the upcoming mission.
PILOT, background
"Coming up on Black Mesa. Estimated ETA five minutes… Roger that. Everything normal… wait. Got something on the radar here… what is that? Whatever it is, it's huge…"
Their commanding officer, whose shoulder insignia identifies him as a sergeant and whose name plate identifies him as SANDERS, glances ahead and, seeing that they are close to their destination, reaches into an inside pocket and takes out one of the envelopes that Burke was handling earlier.
SGT. SANDERS
"Attention!" [The chattering quiets] "Before we land, I need to give you your final orders. Now listen up!"
He goes to break the seal on the envelope, but never says another word – because at that moment the Osprey rocks and shudders, and a beam of yellow-white energy scythes through the body of the chopper from above. One of the wings is sheared off, and its propellers chop into the body of the craft, bisecting Sanders; the soldiers brace as the Osprey pinwheels out of control. Alarms sound. Engines scream in protest. Through the broken window of the chopper's door we see the ground spin closer and closer until the Osprey crashes, jolting its passengers out of their seats.
EXT – BLACK MESA – TARMAC
Shepherd is still alive, but knocked senseless. He manages to force his eyes open briefly, glancing at the burning envelope; we do not see the contents before it is consumed. Around him, we hear combat erupt as the Osprey is swarmed. Cooke drags Shepherd free of the burning transport while others lay down cover fire. Cooke stows him behind some debris and joins the battle. Nearby we see other injured soldiers dragging themselves out of the fray, or huddling behind cover – one of them is pounced on by a headcrab, and he screams and struggles, trying to pry the thing free. The Marines have been trained for hazardous environments – but nothing could prepare them for this.
Shepherd's senses clear in time for him to see a ball of energy whistle towards his shelter, and he dives aside before it is obliterated, showering him with debris and shrapnel. He crawls painfully towards the shelter of a door leading into Black Mesa, desperate to survive; one of his legs appears to be broken. Presently, one of his comrades-in-arms rushes over to help, supporting him as they make a beeline for the doorway.
As they reach the doorway something whirrs past just above the frame, and Shep's aid suddenly stops walking. A few seconds later, the man's severed head drops to the tarmac near Shepherd, followed by the collapsing body. Shep drags himself into the shelter of the doorway, trying to maintain consciousness as the world spins around him. He is dizzy and disoriented, and can't quite focus on the headcrab now stalking him.
Presently the door he is leaning against slides open, and the headcrab explodes, having been shot with an assault rifle.
DR. KLEINER
"Come on, young man. It's not safe out here."
The only impression we get of Shep's rescuer is lab coat and rifle hanging from a strap on his shoulder. He sounds like a kindly, older man. Kleiner grabs Shep under the shoulders and pulls him inside to safety. More on Kleiner later.
INT – BLACK MESA – SECTOR D
Gordon mounts the stairs two at a time, trying to rendezvous with the military as soon as possible. He pauses as an announcement is made over the loudspeakers.
ANNOUNCEMENT
"This facility is now under military control. All employees report to Sector D for debriefing and first aid. Repeat, this facility is now under military control…"
GORDON FREEMAN
"Music to my ears."
He continues on, passing by a lab-coated body sprawled facedown on the steps. At the back of its head we get a glimpse of an exit wound about the size of an orange.
Ahead, we hear the chattering of automatic gunfire, and the roars and bellows of alien creatures, and the cries of help from the trapped Black Mesa employees. Gordon stumbles slightly over the corpse of another scientist, this one riddled with bullet holes. He frowns in puzzlement, but thinks nothing sinister of it – after all, this is a warzone.
GORDON FREEMAN
[thoughtful] "Must have been caught in the crossfire."
He continues on, rounding a corner to see a Houndeye feasting on the corpse of a soldier. He shoots at it, and it yips and bounds away. Beyond this, he catches sight of an office up ahead, at the far side of a four-way junction currently populated with military personnel. He continues forward, with hope in his eyes.
Gordon brightens as he sees a military uniform and rifle through the observation window. He raises his hand and opens his mouth to call to them…
… but his greeting dies on his lips, turning to ashes in his mouth as he takes in the truth of the situation.
The soldier is standing behind a scientist, who is on his knees with his hands clasped behind his head in a classic execution pose, with the soldier's rifle pointed at the back of his head. As Gordon watches…
SOLDIER
"What do you know about Lambda Core?"
SCIENTIST
"Nothing! I-I don't know anything about Lambda Core! I don't even know what they do in there!"
SOLDIER
"Useless old man..."
Gordon ducks back around the corner a split second before the soldier glances in his direction. He looks badly shaken.
Satisfied that no one is there, the soldier returns his attention to his captive, chambering a round, thereby producing the single scariest sound you can hear at the back of your head.
Gordon jumps slightly as he hears the gunshot, followed by a body falling to the floor. He has the look of a man who has just realized that the light at the end of the tunnel is, in fact, an oncoming train. In the background, the sounds of gunfire and the screams of Black Mesa personnel take on a decidedly sinister bent.
HAZARD SUIT (FREEMAN)
"I am detecting a sharp increase in heart rate and adrenaline levels, Dr. Freeman. Would you like a mild sedative?"
GORDON FREEMAN
[whispering, on the edge of panic] "No. No no no no no no. That's the last thing I need right now. Oh God. Oh God. I don't need this. I don't need this right now. What the hell are they doing? They're killing the scientists. Why are they killing the scientists?" [Beat. Sickening realization.] "They're silencing witnesses. This is a cleanup mission. Oh God…" [into radio] "Cross. Green. You there? Please, answer me!"
DR. CROSS, radio
"We read you. What's up? You sound spooked."
GORDON FREEMAN
"We've, uh, got a bit of a problem."
DR. CROSS
"We've got some bad news down here, too, Dr. Freeman."
GORDON FREEMAN
"Oh, I think mine is worse than yours. The military's here."
DR. GREEN
[puzzled] "But that's good, right?"
GORDON FREEMAN
"Only if it was a rescue mission. They're killing everyone – aliens and employees alike. They're trying to sweep this whole thing under the rug."
DR. GREEN, radio
"Oh my God – are you sure?"
GORDON FREEMAN
"As sure as I am that the boiling point of radium is 2010 degrees Kelvin."
DR. CROSS
"What are you going to do?"
GORDON FREEMAN
"I guess I'll do what scientists do – find some answers." [beat] "So, what's your bad news?"
DR. GREEN
"We don't think the resonance cascade was a freak accident. It's starting to look like it was orchestrated."
GORDON FREEMAN
"Orchestrated? By whom? How the hell do you plan something like this?"
DR. GREEN
"We don't know yet – but something's keeping the rift open, and they're sending what look like actual troops through. This is an alien invasion."
GORDON FREEMAN
"…Crap. This has to be the worst first day at work ever."
DR. CROSS
"We'll see what we can find out at our end. Hopefully we'll be able to stop this."
GORDON FREEMAN
"We have to – otherwise we're all boned. Stay safe down there, and keep me posted, okay?"
DR. CROSS
"We will. Cross and Green out."
GORDON FREEMAN
"Freeman out."
He takes a few more moments to gather his wits, waiting until his hands stop shaking. Once the tremors fade, he clenches his fists, a look of fresh determination on his face. He un-shoulders his assault rifle and heads off down the corridor at a jog.
Author's note: I looked up the boiling point of radium specifically so Gordon could have his "God what a nerd" moment up there. I also did a bit of research on the military stuff like ranks and the Osprey, so if I get anything wrong let me know. Looks like things are going to get really interesting near the surface.
Next up: Barney's still alive?! And, we finally meet Gordon's mentor, Dr. Kleiner!