"Gordon!... Gordon!... Wake up, Gordon..."

Light once again assaulted Gordon's eyes as he regained consciousness. However, it wasn't as bright as the sun's light. He was once again in a dimly lit room with stone walls. The lack of windows led Gordon to assume that he was underground in some way shape or form.

"Finally!" A familiar voice called from nearby. "A little bit longer and we'd of thought you were dead!"

The man stepped out of the shadows, revealing shaggy black hair, a light beard framing his face. He wore a short-sleeve blue polo with black jeans and matching shoes. "About that beer I owed ya..." Barney Calhoun sighed. "You remember me, don't ya, Gordon?"

Gordon nodded, adjusting his glasses and sitting up. He'd been laid on a worn mattress in the middle of the room. He stood up and dusted himself off slightly as Barney walked over to a console on the wall. He typed something in, and the light blue screensaver changed to an image of another sort of underground area. However, it was soon revealed to be video feed once another familiar face popped in.

"Yes, Barney? What is it? I'm in the middle of a critical test!" Dr. Isaac Kleiner said, sounding annoyed. He hadn't changed much since Gordon saw him last. Still wearing his white lab coat and light blue button-up from Black Mesa. He'd traded his tie out for a basic red one, though. That was just about all Gordon could see of his colleague, however.

"Sorry, doc." Barney chuckled. "But look who's here!" He stepped away from the screen, revealing Gordon to Dr. Kleiner.

"Great Scott! Gordon Freeman! I... Expected more warning!"

"You and me both, doc." Barney agreed. "Found him surrounded by Monokumas next to a helicopter wreck. Its a miracle either of us made it outta there."

"Well, Barney. What do you intend?"

"I'm thinkin', I'm thinkin'..."

"Say, are those underground paths still in decent shape? I never thought we'd need them until now..."

"Dammit, you're right. Gordon, I know its a lot to drop on ya, but do you think you could make it to Dr. Kleiner's lab? There aren't as many Monokumas down here, they're all on the surface huntin' people down."

Gordon nodded in affirmation.

"Great! I hope this makes up for that beer." Barney chuckled. "And, before I forget..." Barney reached for an object in a shadowed corner next to the console, and then turned back to Gordon. "I think you dropped this back in Black Mesa."

Gordon couldn't help but smile as he took the crowbar from Barney's hand.

Komaru Naegi woke up to a room not too unlike the one Gordon found himself in. Steel walls, no windows, a strange guy standing next to the door. However, unlilke Gordon, she didn't recognize this boy, who couldn't of been much older than she was. Pale skin and frayed hair, a chain around his neck.

"You look completely exhausted..." The boy mused.

"Who... Who are you?"

"Me? Oh, my name's not really important. I'm just a humble Servant. I had heard this town would be safe, so I came here to seek refuge. But then, the riots... And on top of that, I get captured by them. I've seriously got no luck at all. But because I pleaded for my life, they allowed me to live... As their servant."

"U- Um..." Komaru muttered, completely at a loss for words.

"Ah, I'm being rude." Servant said. "Enough about me, let's talk about you. Either you truly are exhausted, or you're simply afraid to wake up and face reality. After all, you were asleep a full two days."

"A full two days!?" Komaru asked incredulously.

"A full two days." Servant confirmed. "More than enough time for the world to change completely. Yes, even our world can change just that quickly. Like a watercolor painting caught in the rain... Ah, but you're more concerned about yourself than the world right now, correct? You're wondering what is to become of you, now that you're trapped in this place."

"Wh- What's going to happen to me...?" Komaru asked, almost whispering.

Servant simply sighed in response, causing Komaru to be even more confused. "Ah, my apologies. Your reaction was so... Normal. It surprised me a little. Ahaha, you honestly... Don't have a single unique characteristic."

"Um..."

"Well, no need to be depressed about it. This world is filled with unremarkable people. And the only one capable of empathizing with common, boring people... Is a common, boring person such as yourself. So, that's why you pass."

"Wh- What are you talking about?"

"Well, that is just my personal opinion. It doesn't matter to them at all. Which means I'll need you to take a proper test."

"...A test?"

"Ah, but before that, I'll return this to you."

Servant held out his hand, which held the Hacking Gun. But didn't Dr. Freeman have this last?

"I'm not sure whose it was. But out of all the company you had, I felt you'd need it the most. And I do apologize for borrowing it without permission, but I simply had to analyze its capabilities." Servant said. "It sure is an amazing little machine... A device that forcibly hacks machines by shooting program codes with electromagnetism... However, it was a bit too powerful. I made a few adjustments. For game balance purposes."

"Game... Balance?"

"Oh, no need to worry. You'll have the opportunity to upgrade it later."

"U- Um... I have no idea what you're talking about..."

"I understand how you feel, but... It's about time you started the test." Servant stated, walking towards the door. "If you can safely make it to where everyone is waiting, you pass."

"Everyone...?"

"You'll meet them when you get there. However, even after you meet everyone, make sure to keep that gun of yours a secret. If you don't wanna die, that is..."

And he left the room, locking the door behind him.

Agent Kojima was the only one who didn't wake up in a gray, windowless room. Instead, he awoke in a warehouse, a faint red light streaming in from the crimson skies outside. Someone had wrapped some gauze around his head, covering one of his eyes. His sunglasses had been removed at one point, nowhere to be found.

"H- Hello? Is anyone there?" He called into the seemingly abandoned warehouse. When nobody responded, he got up and walked deeper inside, keeping an ear out for any sounds of life.

As he entered a new storage unit, however, he knew something had been here. Boxes lay broken in pieces on the ground, several things clearly missing from the shelves. Agent Kojima was too busy admiring the destruction that he didn't notice a pair of chrome green night-vision goggles behind him until whoever their owner was grabbed him by the shoulder, instantly scaring him.

"Hey, calm down." The man said. "I'm not here to hurt you."

He couldn't see the man's face behind his gas mask, nor could he see the man's hair underneath his U.S. Military helmet. He wore a ballistic vest over a full white camo military getup. Several forest green supply bags hung from straps of the same color running down the sides of the soldier's vest.

"What the- Who are you? Are you the one who took me here?"

"Consider yourself lucky." The soldier replied. "Doesn't look like anyone else survived that helicopter crash, and if they had, they left you to die. You would be dead if I hadn't found you.

"Okay..." Agent Kojima muttered. "But that doesn't answer the question of who you are."

"Corporal Adrian Shepherd." The soldier revealed. "Newest recruit to the Hazardous Environment Combat Unit."