Barney's hands were slick with sweat beneath the gloves. He gripped the airboat's handles firmly as he made the turn down the tunnel, breathing a sigh of relief on seeing the gate was down. ET's corpse pressed against his backside as he applied the brake and his vehicle came skidding to a soggy halt.
Barney pulled his right glove free and shook the hand out. When he put his two fingers to his mouth to whistle, the fingers felt clammy and wrinkled as they touched his lips. Nevertheless, the two high notes came out loud and clear, bouncing further down the tunnel. It took a solid few seconds for the sound to fade completely. He placed the glove in his pocket before pulling the other one free.
"Clear!" A man in blue Resistance garb, a pistol at his belt, came running along the topside of the gate, the beam of a flashlight dancing merrily before him. Barney squinted as the man turned the flashlight at him. "Yep! It's him. Good to see you, Calhoun."
Something clanked off to Barney's left and the gate rose from the still waters, putrid brown droplets shaking off its rusted exterior. Barney lightly applied the gas and drew up alongside a short pier, the paint long since flaked off its ancient wood. A vortigaunt padded up to the shore, extending a hand to Barney on his boat. He took it gratefully, letting himself be pulled up and hoisted over to the dry land.
"The Barney Calhoun," said the vortigaunt, relinquishing his grip and bowing his head. "It is fortuitous that you have made it this far."
"Haven't been hearing any warning sirens!" called out the man from behind him cheerfully, his own boots squeaking against the dock as he joined the two of them. Barney turned to him just in time to see him frown and scratch his eyebrow. "Well, not about you, anyway. They seem more concerned about an exogen breach…?"
Barney jerked a thumb back to the stiff body in his airboat. "Yeah. That."
"Ah. So this is the interloper." The vortigaunt leaned down close over the boat, the top part of his lip peeled back, exposing sharp teeth. "The Eli Vance will know what to make of this. They are already making headway at the coast. Contact with the Shore Point has been lost."
"Station 6 has been wiped out," said Barney, folding his arms. "Weird thing was, some guys looking like citizens but, uh, acting like snakes, tried to head me off beforehand. Then the Combine shelled the area. They didn't touch Station 7, though."
"Rest of the Railroad's okay," called out a feminine voice from beyond. A woman in grey-green Resistance getup emerged from the tin shack up the flight of stairs from the dock. "Hey Barney. Eli's on the horn." She folded her arms and pursed her lips. "You … you weren't followed were you?"
"Not as far as I can tell. It's pretty dark outside." Barney made his way up the steps, pausing at the top to remove his boots and turn them upside down. Green-brown water slid out of his boots in a congealed mess. He sighed and left the boots where they were. "Ugh. No choppers, no UFOs, CP was asleep a their desks. Been pretty quiet." Here's hoping it stays that way.
"All right. Good." She gestured inside the doorway. As Barney stepped inside, sodden socks squishing against the wood floor, the familiar crackle of a radio greeted his ears.
Barney hit the transmit button, sprawling on the rolling chair before the radio. "Hey doc, it's me."
"Barney! Thank God. Station 7 radioed in to let us know you weren't in the shelling, but even Alyx doesn't like taking that route at night…"
"Why not? It's quiet." Barney stifled a yawn and then wiped his eyes. His vision drifted slightly. Ugh. See if they've got any coffee before I finish the trip. "Haven't seen any little green men, my passenger's been cooperative, and it seems like the Combine are turning their attention inwards. Which makes sense, seeing as I was jumped by three fellas who looked like citizens but sure as hell weren't."
"What?" A note of alarm gripped Eli's tone. "Plainclothes Combine…?"
"No, doc. The aliens have taken to putting on civvies and pretending to be refugees." Barney wiped his brow. "Uh, they wanted the body. When I didn't hand it over, they pulled weird laser guns out of their asses and started shooting the station up. Then the Combine shelled the area; I think they had the station pre-sighted for mortar fire."
"But how could they do that unless…?" Eli took a breath over the radio. "We need to uproot every station on the railroad. We've got a spy."
"Yeah. Figured as much." And it's only going to get worse if the aliens get in on the whole espionage thing. Barney shook his head, fighting off another wave of exhaustion. "No sign of any Combine or alien activity so far. It's just a few more bend up the river, right?"
"Yes, Barney. You're close." Eli paused, likely thinking. Barney understood. He could remember what it felt like, to think. Right now all he could think about was a nice cup of coffee. "You might want to hole up there for a day before finishing the trip tomorrow night. There's only a few hours left until dawn."
Barney stroked his chin. Hmm. Sleep and coffee. But there was something niggling at the back of his mind.
"Doc, you just said we gotta uproot every station. I figure it's only a matter of time before those bastards do a full sector sweep." Barney did not relish saying this. He could feel a dull headache building behind his eyes. "Way I see it, these guys gotta get moving, and I could be putting 'em at risk."
"Are you sure, Barney?" Barney could not help but appreciate the tone of genuine concern. God bless you, doc.
"I dunno about sure, but it's what I'm gonna do." Barney rose from the table, thumb still on the transmitter. "Just, uh, make sure you've got a bed ready for me when I get there. Other than that, everything'll be fine. Trust me."
"All right, Barney. Good luck. God bless. We'll see you soon." Eli's voice cut off with a snap. Barney lifted his hands over his shoulders and let the fingers interlink. It felt like every bone in his body just cracked. He let out a yawn and headed for the entrance. To his complete lack of surprise, everyone had been listening in.
"Sounds like we've gotta pack up," said the man. Barney assumed he was the station head. "You're heading on out of here?"
"Not without some coffee?" Barney ended the sentence on a faintly pleading tone. The man smirked.
"Yeah, sure. Gimme a minute." He headed back indoors.
"The Barney Calhoun's airboat lacks defenses other than its inherent speed." The vortigaunt inclined his head again, and then gestured to what looked like some kind of anchor to his left. "We would be honored to impart this weapon for the remainder of the journey."
"Yeah, carrying that thing will be a real bitch. Although I guess we could fix it to our own boat." The woman paused, frowning, but then shrugged. "Well, hell. We only got the one. You figure you could use it?"
Barney looked at the anchor again. Then he saw the barrel. Jesus, that thing's huge.
"Came off a hunter chopper," said the woman, noting his surprise. "Yeah, they're not invincible, especially when they aren't in the air. You ever seen one of those guns in action?"
"Yeah," said Barney, thinking back to some of his time with Civil Protection. "They can sure lay down the hurt." He stopped, thinking about coffee. The man emerged with a steaming cup in his hands, and Barney accepted it gingerly. Christ, that's just what I needed. He stopped thinking about coffee. "I think I'm good."
"The Barney Calhoun is certain?" asked the vortigaunt, red eyes looking in puzzlement to Barney. Barney shrugged.
"Dunno about certain, but that gun's yours. Made it this far without a peep from anybody, figure attaching a gun to my boat might change that. Besides, there's three of you and one of me. Needs of the many, I guess."
The man clapped a hand on Barney's shoulder, only to immediately apologize as Barney's coffee swilled dangerously close to the mug's brim.
"Uh, sorry. I mean – thanks, Barney. We appreciate it. We'll start packing up once you're gone."
"You're a class act, Calhoun," said the woman, smiling.
"The Barney Calhoun's sacrifice will not go unnoticed by those who weave the Vortessence."
"Yeah, I'm hoping it's not a sacrifice." Barney lifted the steaming mug to his lips, feeling his insides warm up. He glanced dolefully at his sodden boots. "You got a place I can dry those things?"
After twenty minutes placed as close to the stove as they dared, the boots went from water-logged to simply a little damp. The mug lay finished, and now Barney craved beer. I mean, beer and driving an airboat at night. What could go wrong? Barney's imagination conjured up a good few answers, some involving ichthyosaurs, and he resigned himself to strapping his boots back on and straddling the airboat seat completely sober.
The second gate clanked as the chains rose it up, black water sliding off its bottom.
"Take care Calhoun! You're almost there!"
"Mind the barnacles!"
Barney, hands freshly gloved, lifted a hand in farewell and then gunned the airboat down the tunnel. He quickly twisted part of the handle to turn on the flashlight. Good thing too, as the entire tunnel roof glistened with barnacles, just as they had warned. He steered between them carefully, already wishing he'd bought the gun. Entire planet needs a cleanup. Yet another thing the Combine didn't bother with. Hell, just a few hours ago, they were dumping more hostile xenian wildlife into Station 6.
Barney patted the bulging backpack behind him with an unsteady hand. The tunnel widened out into a waterway. Now, the canals gave way to more natural rivers and streams. When he looked to either side of him, some of the cityscape gave way to dead trees and the dark shapes of hills. Barney kept his gaze on the water before him. Despite the blare of his airboat's beams and the roar of its engine, he passed through a waterway checkpoint without difficulty, no one rousing to stop him. He pressed onward, the clammy night air warming around him by the minute.
Despite the smell of the fetid water and the chill settling in his spine, Barney could not help but remember days spent driving at night on the highways back in the U.S., the lights of other cars streaming past him endlessly in the other direction. A soda in the drink holder. Boston playing on the radio. That reality seemed impossible, now. What do those highways look like, these days?
At long last, Barney came to a sight he could actually remember from his last trip out this way. A short tunnel gave way to a huge lake, still in the very early morning. The very first hint of orange rose from the other side of the shoreline, turning everything into the very light gray of early morning, making Barney immediately crave more coffee. Barrels and small logs bobbed on the surface of the water, gently floating away as Barney carefully drove past them. Several concrete structures dotted a hill on the distance, and a very familiar dam rose into the sky on his right.
There. Home. At the bottom (quite a drop if Barney remembered correctly) would be Black Mesa East in all its PTSD-inflicting glory. Unfortunately, none of the gates appeared to be open. Right. Should be controls at the observation station…?
Barney gunned the airboat forward into the lake proper, disturbing the stillness. Hair prickled on the back of his neck. He looked around, suspicious. Only the chirping of crickets greeted him. Come on, Barney. Almost there. He started forward again. This time, something else greeted him.
Lights flashed in the distance. Something thumped and kept thumping, like a mouse's heartbeat on a monitor. Movement disrupted the view of the early morning horizon. Chopper! Barney turned off the light.
"That thing's not coming towards me," said Barney, smiling and nodding his head, keeping his head down and accelerating further. He glanced up. The hunter chopper now almost hovered on top of the lake. "Nope. It doesn't know I'm here."
From above, something hummed as if charging up. The chopper tilted itself upward, revealing the gun pointing straight at his airboat.
"Fuckfuckfuckfuck-"
Barney pealed hard to the left. The airboat frame pinged once as a pulse round slammed into it, the heat from the impact almost burning his cheek. The water around him churned and splashed as bullets slammed into the surface. He grunted as something hard slammed into his back, forcing him forward. His full body weight sprawled momentarily against the airboat controls, almost flipping the boat over. Something heavy splashed into the water behind Barney. Then, just as suddenly as it started, the stream of fire stopped.
"Dammit, E.T, what're we gonna-" Barney shifted his behind, suddenly realizing a familiar presence had vanished. He looked over his shoulder. The backpack floated serenely in the lake behind him. "Oh, come on!"
Barney felt for his back. His hand came away with only a little blood. All the while, he kept his airboat turning. The hunter chopper flew to the other side of the lake before stopping, turning, and training his gun on him again. In the silent distance, lights flashed again.
"Vital alert: autoimmune dysfunction detected. Protection agencies are compromised. Inquire. Isolate. Sterilize."
I think they just identified my uniform. Barney revved the airboat twice, deeply regretting many things, but most of all, turning down that gun. He sent the airboat forward as the chopper made its next pass, this time turning his airboat and slamming it against a jutting rock, disrupting the chopper's targeting. It made the pass without firing once.
"All autonomous units: Airwatch reports localized disturbance in your sector-" but the rest was cut off by Barney's airboat roaring up to the floating backpack. He reached down and tried to pull the body up with one hand. He got it an inch off the water before it fell back in, the drenched fabric adding to the weight.
"Fuck it!" Barney looked up. The hunter chopper now faced towards him again. The gun began to whir.
Barney, in pain and out of options, sucked in a deep breath, and flung himself from the airboat.
The brown water came up quickly, and the chill felt more intense than Barney would have guessed. His breath came out in a shock of bubbles as he pushed himself towards the bottom of the lake, legs kicking. Then, as the bullets fell like rain, he curled himself up, close to the bottom, praying silently to no one in particular, face numb from the cold.
The gunshots stopped. Barney flipped around and kicked the bottom of the leg, legs sinking to the ankle before he found firm ground. Still, he rose from the water, choking, right arm flailing to catch ahold of the backpack. He pushed it towards the airboat, where it slapped against the skid. Barney swam towards the boat, entire body shaking, partly from cold, partly from fear. When's it make its next pass?
But Barney clambered back aboard without the hunter chopper flying overhead. He pulled the backpack aboard with both arms, grunting, placing the frigid backpack behind him. Up ahead, the hunter chopper-
-exploded?
A flaming piece of metal erupted from the hunter chopper, which blared a warning siren. Green blasts leapt into the sky from unseen figures, and the hunter chopper took swift evasive action, turning back towards the dam gates, gun trained on unseen entities.
"Localized exogen breach confirmed. Mobilizing local protection teams. Alerting extraterrestrial combat units. Readying air assets for pathogen filtration."
The hunter chopper blared more warning notes. Barney turned his airboat towards the closed gate ahead of him, thanking the God he thought had long forsaken the planet. Although I don't like the sound of "pathogen filtration." That one's new. Thought I knew every code in the book.
The gate controls lay on top of a short tower, which fortunately featured a ladder. Barney stepped from the boat and on to the lowest rung, shaking some of the water from his body. A muffled bang drew his attention a few more steps up. Another part of the hunter chopper vacated the chassis in a flaming ruin.
Barney pulled himself atop the tower and grabbed the crank. With a groan it began to turn, the wheel quickly growing slick from the water on Barney's gloves and wrists. His hands slid against the metal, forcing him to grit his teeth and get a good grip. Come on…
The gate rose slowly. Something else fell off the hunter chopper. When next Barney looked up, the green blasts now emerged from a far closer source. Damn it, damn it, damn it…
The crank stuck, and the gate clicked in place. Barney whooped and slid back down the ladder, landing in the sucking mud. He boarded the airboat again, this time feeling for the pistol at his belt. Here's hoping it doesn't jam if I use it. They were supposed to be water-proofed, but that didn't mean mud-proofed.
The hum of the hunter chopper gun grew close. It let loose with another spray of pulse rounds, and Barney could hear the muffled splashes from well behind him. He heard a familiar raspy scream echo from behind him.
"Come on…" Part of a dock had fallen in half, leaving something close to a ramp. Barney screamed as he jumped it, the airboat motor screaming as the vehicle tore through the air. It landed with a spine-crunching crash, making Barney swear under his breath. He threw himself from the boat and towards the sign that said "Observation," following the small concrete pathway to where the gate controls lay.
Everything grew cold all of a sudden. What light did grace the lake faded. Barney froze, his entire body shivering, his chest tightening in a fresh onslaught of fear. He looked up, as his caveman ancestors likely did when first confronting the unknown when it came from the sky. A UFO, a goddamned UFO, green and purple, lights flickering at its edge, its lower half rotating continuously.
"Exogen breach detected. Filtration systems not at full readiness. Code: Shield. Delay. Sacrifice. Innoculate."
A lance of green erupted from the UFO, skewering the (now puny) hunter chopper. The helicopter burst in half, its rotor flying some way past the dam gate and into the distant waters below, while its chassis plummeted into the lake proper, ploughing into the shallows and coming to a smoking halt.
Barney stared open-mouthed at the looming monstrosity above him, a mix of scrotum-deflating fear and a strange sense of vindication permeating his being. And they called me crazy…
A deep bellowing cry echoed across the lake. Barney came to his senses and bolted for the distant observation platform – a small panel in a booth overlooking the lake. The switch for the main gate didn't work – Barney flicked it back and forth uselessly – but the secondary gate switch opened as soon as he wrenched the switch back towards him. Above, the UFO thrummed ominously.
Barney did not know if he was making himself more visible by sprinting, but he did not care. Black Mesa East had fighters, vortigaunts, beer – everything he needed to make the UFO not matter anymore. He checked the backpack once more as he slid into the airboat's seat, then turned on the engine. Something chittered from below him.
"Go!" Barney screamed to no one in particular, and the airboat surged forward, off the cliff and into the water. It landed with a resounding crash. The chittering turned into an alien scream, and something green whizzed over his shoulder. Barney did not look back. He simply swerved back and forth, trying to remember his Active Shooter training from way back when, before Black Mesa even. Zig-zag! Zig-zag!
The gates drew closer with every passing moment. A series of logs formed a loose ramp for him to make the jump in. Barney gunned it forward, more flashes of green flying overhead. One connected with the top of the dam gate and left a smoking hold. Barney screamed and lowered his head, readying himself for the gut-wrenching drop.
The airboat cleared through the opened gate, a single plasma(?) blast following it and flying off into the horizon. For a moment, Barney hung, weightless, hands only loosely gripping the steering. One instinctively moved back to steady the backpack. Then gravity reasserted its hold, and Barney plummeted, his scream shattering the still beneath the dam.
The airboat hit the tranquil waters with ear-splitting force, its skid momentarily dipping fully below the water at the impact. Part of the frame came loose and fell into the frothing waters. Barney heard his entire body crack as the laws of physics told him what a naughty boy he had been, and his hand momentarily pressed hard into the softness of the backpack's contents.
Then the airboat bounced up, off the water, and came to a rough halt. Barney sobbed once without realizing it, out of relief more than anything, only to look up. The UFO remained. Something else cleared the top of the dam, glimmering in the early morning light.
Barney watched it, transfixed. A white disc, featureless, humming loudly as it approached. The UFO had a baby. Barney, wincing from the mild pain in his back and joints, felt for his pistol, but it was half-hearted. I made it home. I won. You're not a part of this. Go away!
The disc stopped just above the water, sending ripples across it from whatever means it used to transport itself. It looked serene. Almost beautiful. Then naturally, something terrible happened.
The disc span itself vertically before splitting open. Two guns protruded from its formerly smooth surface, yellow eyes glared out. Spiky black ridges jutted from its rear, where a lengthy spiked tail wove in place. It gave a metallic growl. Barney, still just barely able to care, simply wrapped his arm around the backpack and slid with it into the water.
A blast of orange heat followed, making the water ripple. Barney sunk to the bottom without even trying, his soaked clothing dragging him down. Above, distorted by the shifting water, the strange disc returned to its beautiful state. Airboat parts floated away, revealing its passage to where Barney lay against the lakebed, throat beginning to burn as he held his breath. This time it flipped itself to face straight down, guns pointed at his chest. Well. Here's hoping the water blocks it. Barely cognizant, Barney lifted a single middle finger at the apparition above him. The alien, clicked, whirred…
…and exploded in emerald light.
Barney started, bubbles streaming from his nose. The alien staggered and twitched in the air, twisting back into its mobile shape, only to be slammed by green light once again. This time, glowing yellow cracks materialized all over its surface. Barney, guessing what was about to happen, thought better about surfacing, and instead kicked himself back down, waiting. The third bolt came, and the alien shattered, making the water hiss as hot fragmentation came barreling down around Barney.
Barney, lungs crying out for air, launched himself for the surface. He came up with a strangled yelp, arms feeling for the backpack. There, singed, partially ripped open, a purple arm dipping into the water! Barney grabbed it, calling for help. Ahead, at water's edge, a man waved, flanked by two vortigaunts.
"Holy shit! Barney? Is that you?"
"The Barney Calhoun! This is no time for such submerged shenanigans." The vortigaunt reached out. Barney gripped the alien with his free hand and almost yelped again as it pulled him up with surprising strength. The man fished the backpack out with a billhook, whistling as he pulled it up.
"Jackpot."
The UFO above let out a massive scream of a siren. Barney looked up just in time to see it beam something down, less than ten feet from them. The air shimmered with heat.
"Go!" called out the vortigaunt, thrusting Barney backwards. "Go to the Eli Vance! We will handle the interloper!"
One of the purple aliens, bug eyes popping, fell to the grounds at impressive speeds, only to be immediately set pinwheeling by a blast of electricity. Barney, knowing when he was outmatched, grabbed the backpack, hoisting what was left of it over his shoulder. His fellow human, clearly feeling the same way, led him onward.
"Up here! To the airlock!"
Yet no sooner had they stepped forward, the air shimmered again. A purple spotlight fell where they intended to go, and something whistled from on high.
"Get down!"
Something far, far bigger than the E.T. they had just sent down hit the Earth. It reared up, green armor glistening in the heat, slamming a fist against its chest and roaring.
A bolt of electricity hit its chest. It grunted and readied a weapon bigger than Barney was.
Lances of green passed over Barney's head, and the vortigaunts ducked, chanting in their weird language. Out of sight, something else hit the ground. They're just gonna keep airdropping things on us! Barney felt for his pistol.
The big fucker stopped short. The vortigaunts had ducked around the silos, and more fighting could be heard from around the corner. It paused momentarily, thinking, and then pulled something small and cylindrical from its belt. It pulled the pin free. The grenade began to beep.
Barney aimed once and fired at the alien's outstretched arm. For a moment, the alien hung still, grunting in surprise as the grenade fell from its grip. Then it burst into green, shards of armor and chunks of steaming flesh flying. Barney gagged at the smell.
"Jesus, Calhoun." The other guy pulled him up, also choking, pointing to the airlock. "There, we can get the rest of the vorts. Let's-"
The air cracked again. A vortigaunt screamed a death rattle – Barney knew the sound. Something big roared into the night. As the UFO shrieked another siren, however, the air stilled. Clouds gathered high above, in the direction of City 17.
"Filtration systems active. Airwatch confirms presence of exogen breach. Filtration commencing. Converge. Isolate. Diagnose."
A plume of light erupted far off in the distance, light blue and luminous. The UFO similarly glowed blue, the light turning into the entire craft into a light azure. Then…
The UFO tilted, suddenly struck by tremendous force just off its center. Green and orange flames licked its suddenly broken surface, sending debris crashing to the earth. Then, smoking, with all the inevitability of a tree cut in half, it began to list and fall, out of sight, into the distance. Seconds later, a massive crash, making Barney's heart stutter for a moment. Then, peace.
"Converge. Isolate. Diagnose. XCOM inbound."
Something red and angry rounded the corner. It looked like the alien Barney had just wasted, only larger. A single clawed glove, glistening green, adorned its right hand. It pounded its chest and howled at Barney, its eyes alive with hate. But from behind, footsteps.
"Contact! Light it up!"
The beast charged, and Barney lifted his gun. The pistol jumped in his hands while, from behind, the staff of Black Mesa East reminded these aliens, just for a moment, who the real masters of the planet were.
Green sprayed from the beast as it careened forward, but even as it cried out and slumped, the gunfire did not slow its momentum. Barney jumped to the side as the massive corpse skidded past, likely thoroughly invalidating whatever efforts Barney had gone to just to bring the fucking E.T. corpse to Black Mesa East. We're not exactly short on bodies now, are we?
Barney stood there, panting. The body smoked and bled. But all was silent. All was still. Something thudded against Barney's back.
"Thought you said everything would be okay?" asked Eli Vance, grinning up at Barney, face drawn but warm. He clapped Barney on the shoulder again, then pulled his hand back, frowning at the blood. "You're hurt … and that wound isn't clean."
"We should get him to the decontamination shower," said a woman in a large white sweater. Mossman. She spared Barney only a quick calculating glance, any possible concern masked by her obvious interest in the alien body. She looked up at the smoke-laden sky "And … I think we should get out from the open."
"Yes," replied Eli, a little distracted. He frowned at Barney. "Good. It's good to see you're all right. Did the vortigaunts…?"
Barney shook his head. Eli clucked his tongue.
"I suppose that confirms their suspicions. I think I've lived through enough alien invasions for a lifetime, don't you?" He put his arm around Barney and let Barney put his arm around Eli. The scientist bore Barney's weight surprisingly well.
Dr. Mossman waved at the assembled Resistance troops. "Come on! Grab the bodies. Dr. Vahlen won't want to be kept waiting. Hurry up! They were right at our doorstep, the Combine are almost certainly going to do a sweep!"
Eli hoisted Barney up, trying to keep him awake. "Come on. Let's get that wound looked to, some coffee in you, and then you can tell us all about what you've seen."
"I'm gonna need a little something extra in that coffee, doc," rasped Barney, looking up at Eli's face. Eli stopped, looking contemplative.
"Yes. Me too."