Half-Life: Collision

Chapters

Arcane Materials
Collision Course
Unforeseen Consequences
White Canyon Commute

Arcane Materials

[WHITE CANYON]

Chapter Two: Arcane Materials

Phase Ray’s tram car slowed to a halt alongside the Sector C platform. A cyan-coated earth pony in a security uniform and vest made his way to the door, a smile plastered on his face. Strapped to his side was a metal harness that housed a standard-issue security pistol, with a complicated reloading mechanism underneath him. A trigger mechanism jutted out in front of his left foreleg. The weapon harness was designed to allow non-gryphons or unicorns to utilize modern weaponry, and was standard issue for most security, police, and military forces that included pegasi and earth ponies.

“Mornin’ Phase!” he called out, cheery as usual.

Phase sighed, forcing a smile onto her face.

“Good morning, Officer Ricochet,” she replied, unable to bring any semblance of enthusiasm to her voice.

Ricochet simply grinned as he flipped the lock on the tram off with his forehoof.

“Looks like you’re-”

“Yes, Ricochet,” Phase Ray interrupted, frustration building, “I am well aware of the fact that I’m late.”

Ricochet chuckled, allowing the door to slide open.

“Aw, don’t worry about it. We’ve been having plenty of problems this morning, I doubt you bein’ late’s gonna make things any worse.”

Phase stepped out of the tram, walking alongside Ricochet to the Sector C airlock. As they reached the door, Ricochet stepped to the side, peering into the retinal scanner lock.

“Hey,” he said, “If it makes you feel better, I hear Spark’s gonna be a lot later than you.”

Phase perked up at this. Spark Plug was a recent hire, and made a habit of kissing up to her and the other science team members. He was kind of a joke around the office- no matter what was asked of him, Spark Plug would do his best to get it done, no matter how absurd, and he was never late. If he, of all ponies, was somehow not on time for the test, things were probably more hectic than she thought.

How that was a good thing was beyond her, but at least she wasn’t the only one making mistakes.

“Yeah,” Ricochet sighed, “Poor kid took the wrong tram. Last I heard he’s scramblin’ through the offices upstairs, tryin’ to get down here.”

A shrill beep from the retinal scanner signalled the airlock door to open. Ricochet turned to Phase and gave a quick salute.

“Well, go get ‘em Doc.”

“Thank you, Ricochet,” she sighed, stepping into the airlock.

“Oh! Hey, if you see Smash, remind him to meet me at the hazard course once my shift’s over,” Ricochet called out to Phase as the door closed, “I got a score to settle!”

Phase chuckled, in spite of herself. Atom Smash and Ricochet had a bit of a rivalry between them, made worse by Smash being one of Sector C’s lead scientists, a position that may as well have included a weak physical constitution as a job requirement. Naturally, it embarrassed Ricochet to no end that he and Smash were perpetually tied for 10th place on the Hazard Course speed record.

Phase contemplated as the outer airlock door locked into place. Things were actually going fairly well, in spite of her being late. Maybe she had been overreacting on the train. It wasn’t too much of an issue anyway, if Spark Plug was late- he was the one they were putting in the chamber, after all.

She looked up to greet Buckshot, the pegasus guard who operated the inner airlock, smiling slightly.

He smiled back, then raised an eyebrow, before finally scowling.

“Aw, come on! You ditched the bowtie?”

He fluttered over to the inner door controls, frowning.

“Sellout,” he muttered, slamming his hoof down on the button.

Phase’s smile flipped upside down.

‘Nope, I’m still doomed.’

[BLACK MESA]

Chapter Two: Anomalous Materials

Gordon walked into the locker room, keeping his pace brisk and his expression blank, hoping to avoid the wrath of Doctor Magnusson- how was Gordon supposed to know the microwave had been set on ‘high’? The cream-on-white color scheme of the room was dull as usual, and most of the lockers remained shut. A quick glance to the right revealed Doctor Tanner fiddling with his shoelaces, frowning.

“Why do we all have to wear these ridiculous ties?” Tanner moaned.

Gordon paid him no mind as he slipped off his lab coat, headed for his locker.

“And these ludicrous pennyloafers!”

Gordon hung his coat on the side of his locker, undoing his tie.

“Triple-pleated khakis?” Tanner scoffed, “Preposterous!”

Gordon finished changing into his tight undershirt and boxers, ready to gear up for the test.

“I swear, no one here has an eye for fashion!”

As he turned around, Tanner looked to him, rubbing his bald head.

“Does this labcoat make me look... fat?”

Gordon rolled his eyes at his co-worker’s antics, heading off to the far end of the locker room to the HEV storage chambers.

He turned to the three chambers, noticing his was the only one remaining. He silently thanked the random number god for that- he and Gina weren’t on speaking terms at the moment. Having to change together would be more than a bit awkward. He made a mental note to see if Barney would be willing to talk to her for him- he had experience with that kind of thing, what with Lauren and all.

The stasis chamber hissed as Gordon pressed his thumb into the scanner, the computer confirming his identity at a painfully slow pace. Eventually, the glass doors slid apart, revealing the Mark IV HEV suit in all its glory.

Its bright, orange glory.

“Ah, I remember my days in the Hazardous Environment suit.”

Gordon’s head spun back at Tanner’s voice. The guy had a habit of sneaking up on people and ambushing them into a conversation, a trap Gordon refused to fall into. Shaking his head once again, Gordon headed down the short stairway to retrieve his suit.

“Of course, back then it was the Mark III...”

Gordon slipped into the lower portion of the suit, clamping it into place behind his legs.

“Mind you, the base color wasn’t so... loud.”

Gordon smirked at the comment as he pulled his gloves on, the color being one thing the two could agree on.

“And the helmet wasn't ventilated... or optional...”

That reminded Gordon- he needed to get his helmet back from repairs. The faceplate was a mess after what had happened last month on the hazard course.

The suit beeped, signaling that it was now ready for use. The mechanical, female voice of the HEV’s onboard monitoring system began listing off the various systems being engaged, none of which Gordon had ever needed to use. He stepped back up, nodding to Tanner as he passed.

“I will admit,” Tanner said with a smirk that Gordon found more than a little creepy, “That suit certainly... flatters your fundament.”

Gordon did a double-take at the comment, noting that Tanner’s eyes were focused uncomfortably low.

Gordon quickened his pace, leaving the room without a word.

[WHITE CANYON]

Phase trotted down the hallways of the testing area, hoping to reach the control room before anyone noticed she was late- an unlikely scenario, but she had to keep hope. One of the security guards, a Gryphon who Phase had yet to learn the name of, tried to strike up a conversation, but barely managed to get past, “Hey, doc,” before Phase Ray sped past him. She rounded a corner, took the elevator down, and finally reached the door of the control room.

A middle-aged Gryphon scientist stood waiting for her- or Spark Plug, or any number ponies who were late for the test.

“Ah, Phase Ray. How kind of you to join us today,” he snarked, looking over a clipboard in his claws.

“I’m so sorry, Doctor Hawkeye,” she panted, mind racing, “There was a system crash in my dormitory, and my alarm clock wasn’t working, and...”

Doctor Hawkeye’s cold stare shut her up.

“I don’t care for your excuses, Phase Ray. We can’t afford any more delays- not with the administrator breathing down our necks like this.”

“Calm down, Doctor,” came a soft voice from behind a computer terminal, above which various clipboards floated in a shimmering purple light, “Administrator Ironhoof will understand- and so will I.”

The Gryphon sighed, rolling his eyes.

“Thank you, Professor Sparkle, but I don’t think he’s as forgiving as you seem to think he is...”

“Oh, hush,” the voice repeated, “It’s a simple sample analysis. I’m sure he can wait.”

On cue, the source of the voice rose from behind the terminal. A purple unicorn in a lab coat, with an immaculately maintained mane of a darker purple than her coat, save for a single pink streak running through it.

Phase Ray’s eyes widened, and her mouth hung open.

“T- Twilight Sparkle?”

Phase Ray couldn’t believe it. Princess Celestia’s Protege, one of Equestria’s foremost experts on the arcane, and the Element of Magic herself- Twilight Sparkle- was here, at White Canyon. Phase had idolized Sparkle ever since her days at Celestia’s Academy, and had a collection of scientific journals published by the illustrious mare. And she was here. In Sector C.

“It- It’s an honor, Professor, but why are you... here?”

On any other day, Phase would have fainted right there. Between the stress of being late and the exhaustion of galloping all the way to the control room from the front desk, she could only stare in awe.

“Uh, I’m here to oversee the test?” Sparkle nervously chuckled, “The Princess was impressed by your recent findings. She asked me to join your team for the time being.”

“Ah- I...” Phase Ray stammered, “I... wasn’t aware.”

Hawkeye glared at her.

“I sent a message down to the front desk an hour ago.”

Ah, that explained it. The security officer at the front desk, one Buckshot Steel, had mentioned that a recent system crash had erased several messages for her.

“No matter,” Hawkeye groaned, holding his clipboard out to Phase Ray, “There have been some last minute adjustments to the test parameters- go down and set the dampening fields to these specifications.”

Phase nodded, telekinetically taking the clipboard. She quickly glanced over it, cocking an eyebrow.

“65 percent... isn’t that a bit low?”

“These instructions came directly from the Administrator,” Hawkeye growled, “If you have a problem, take it up with him. After the test.”

“Right,” Phase gulped, nodding.

Hurriedly moving for the door at the opposite end of the control room, she paused for a moment as she passed Professor Sparkle.

“I’ll be honored to, uh, work with you, Professor,” she stammered, a nervous grin on her face.

“The pleasure is all mine, Doctor Phase Ray,” she replied with a friendly smile.

With that, Phase scrambled out of the door, her heart racing. She was going to be working with Twilight Sparkle. The Twilight Sparkle. This was going to be the Best. Day. Ever.

Phase practically skipped down the hallways to the damping field controls, not a care in the world at that point. As she approached, she caught sight of a red-orange earth pony stallion in a lab coat with a long, ragged mane that stood out from the other scientists. He glanced towards her, giving a large grin, and chuckling.

“Well, you’re lookin’ happier than a parasprite in harvest season this mornin’, Phase!”

Doctor Atom Smash was a living contradiction. Born and raised on a farm west of Dodge Junction, he spent much of his childhood doing manual labor. Despite this, he had an incredible intelligence, and often found himself reading scientific journals and teaching himself from them.

“Good morning to you too, Smash,” Phase giggled in response, “How are things going down here?”

“‘Bout as good as they can get, given the circumstances,” Atom Smash worriedly replied, shaking his head, “Ah swear, we’re pushin’ our gear to the limit with this test.”

When he came of age, Smash graduated from the Manehattan Institute of Technology with a PhD in Theoretical Physics, and was quickly offered a teaching job at the university, all the while retaining his rustic, country-colt mannerisms. It wasn’t long before he was recruited by the government to be a part of the White Canyon team, an offer he graciously accepted.

“Well, hopefully it’s worth it,” Phase replied, looking over her instructions.

“Ah suppose,” he sighed, “We can’t start ‘till Sparky shows up, anyways. Speakin’ of which, ah should head on up to the control room to meet him. Got some questions for Ol’ Hawkeye while Ah’m at it.”

“Well, you’d best get to that then,” Phase replied, “I have to calibrate the dampening fields anyway.”

The two offered their goodbyes, going off in opposite directions. Phase paused for a moment after Smash had left the room, before wincing.

‘Drat,’ she cursed to herself, ‘I forgot to tell him about Ricochet!’

[BLACK MESA]

Gordon stepped into the test chamber airlock, nodding to his two colleagues inside. The younger, Phillips, he knew, but he couldn’t for the life of him remember the name of the older one.

“I’m afraid we’ll be deviating a bit from standard analysis procedure today, Gordon,” Phillips began, stepping forward.

“I heard,” he replied simply, nodding. He wasn’t sure about the parameters for the test- the anti-mass spectrometer was rarely used at 90 percent, let alone 105. It seemed like they were pushing it.

“Yes, but with good reason,” the older scientist replied, “This is the purest sample we’ve seen yet.”

“And potentially, the most unstable,” Phillips grumbled, frowning.

“Now, now,” the elder assured him, “As long as we follow standard insertion protocols, everything will be fine.”

“I don’t see how you can say that,” Phillips sighed, “Though I will admit, the possibility of a resonance cascade scenario is extremely unlikely... I just-”

“Gordon doesn’t need to hear all this, he’s a highly trained professional!” interrupted the elder, stepping between Gordon and Phillips, “And we’ve assured Administrator Breen that nothing will go wrong?”

“... Right,” Phillips conceded, “Gordon, we have complete confidence in you.”

Gordon raised an eyebrow. Phillips didn’t exactly sound sincere.

“Well, let’s let him in now,” said the elder, stepping towards the retinal scanner.

Phillips spared Gordon a glance that told him exactly how he felt about all this, before heading to his scanner.

Gordon sighed, cracking his knuckles and tapping his foot impatiently.

[WHITE CANYON]

Phase was headed back to the control room, having finished her calibrations. She was a tad uneasy, the excitement of meeting Twilight Sparkle of all ponies being dulled by the task at hand. Something about this test seemed... off. She couldn’t put her hoof on it, but things were just not going right, like the gods themselves were trying to prevent them from going through with this.

She shook the thought aside as Atom Smash rounded the corner, flanked by Spark Plug, his Light blue coat clashing with the orange of his HEV suit.

“Hey, Phase!” called the young colt, enthusiasm in his voice.

“Good morning, Spark Plug,” she replied, smiling faintly, before turning to Atom Smash, “Smash, I’m glad you’re here. Some of these last minute changes-”

BOOM!

Phase spun around, alarmed, as Smash and Spark Plug jumped back in surprise. A nearby piece of equipment had exploded behind them, smoke rising from its open panel as a small alarm beeped furiously.

“Hot damn!” Atom exclaimed, rushing towards it, “She’s gonna blow!”

Mind racing, Phase dashed towards the smoking panel with speed that would impress the Wonderbolts. Adrenaline rushing through her head, she flipped switches and pulled wires with a flurry of levitation magic that would have been impossible for a casual onlooker to keep up with. Finally, the smoke cleared, and the beeping came to a halt.

“There,” Phase breathed, “I shut it down.”

Atom Smash grimaced, stomping the ground with one hoof.

“What in Tartarus is goin’ on with our equipment today?” he growled.

“It... it was never meant to run like this in the first place,” Phase panted, wiping the sweat from her forehead.

Spark Plug glanced between the two, worried.

“You need any help with this?” he asked, nervously pawing at the ground with his hoof.

“Nah, we’ll take care of it,” Smash sighed, shaking his head, “Just get on down to the chamber, Sparky.”

Spark Plug looked between the two, then the broken equipment, gulping.

“Right...” he sighed, turning towards the elevator.

Phase and Smash watched him descend before turning to the panel, frowning. Cautiously, Phase flipped a single switch, only to be showered by a flurry of sparks.

Atom Smash sighed with a worried frown.

“Yep, this is gonna take a while.”

[BLACK MESA]

“Testing, testing...” came the nervous voice of a scientist in the control room, echoing across the Test Chamber, “Everything seems to be in order...”

“Alright Gordon,” came a deeper, more confident voice, “Your suit should keep you comfortable through all this. If you would be so kind as to climb the ladder and start the rotors, we can bring the anti-mass spectrometer to 105 percent, and keep it there until the carrier arrives.”

Gordon sighed, beginning his ascent. No turning back now, no protesting the changes. Might as well get it over with and get back to work.

He reached the top of the ladder, walking across the small catwalk to operate the control panel. He glanced at the video monitor to his left, showing the control room team waiting patiently for him to begin.

Cracking his knuckles, he flipped the primary power switch and went to work on the panel, slowly bringing the rotors up to the necessary levels.

“Very good,” cooed the scientist in the control room, “We’ll take it from here.”

And now for the fun part.

Gordon stepped away from the controls, leaning against the catwalk railing and watching the anti-mass spectrometer rumble to life.

“Power to stage one emitters in three...”

Gordon wiped a smudge off of his glasses.

“... two...”

He put a hand in front of his eyes, preparing the for the incoming light show.

“... one.”

There was a bright flash, and beams of energy sprung from the rotors to the central emitter at the top of the chamber.

“Everything seems to be in order. Stage two emitters activating... now.”

Another flash. Now, three faint beams sprang from the rotors to the analysis port, along with a larger, more coherent beam. The chamber began to rumble and vibrate, and Gordon began to carefully make his way down the ladder.

“Gordon, we cannot predict how long the system can operate at this level, nor how long the readings will take- please, work as quickly as you can.”

“Overhead capacitors to One-Oh-Five percent...”

Several lights flickered on the floor at the far end of the chamber.

“Gordon, I’ve just been informed that Doctors Cross and Green have prepared the sample,” the scientist stated, “Look to the delivery system for your specimen.”

Just as Gordon reached the area housing the delivery system, a cart rose up from the floor on a small service elevator, a small cage creating a barrier in case some clumsy soul somehow fall down the shaft.

Gordon gripped the cart handles, steeling his resolve...

[WHITE CANYON]

“... Standard insertion for a non-standard specimen,” Professor Sparkle stated over the intercom, “Go ahead, Spark Plug. Schlomp the carrier into the analysis port.”

Atom Smash raised an eyebrow at the Professor’s choice in words, eliciting a blush from the unicorn, before Phase Ray gave him a poke in the ribs and an angry look.

“Show some respect,” she berated him in an almost inaudible whisper, before turning back to the chamber window.

Spark Plug looked up at them, giving a quick salute, then slowly began to push the cart towards the center of the anti-mass spectrometer, the orange crystal at its front seemingly glowing in the light of the chamber.

Phase Ray looked down at her console, quickly going over all of her readings, checking for any discrepancies. The entire control room was silent, on the edge of their seats. It was... unnerving.

Spark Plug was near the center of the chamber now. Phase scanned every monitor before her, sweating ever so slightly. Why was she so worried? Things were going fine so far, but with everything that happened before the test...

She looked over all of the data before her. Nothing of note so far...

Her eyes darted to the final monitor, scanning the data on it.

‘Oh, Celestia.’

She whipped around, ready to cry out for them to halt the test.

She had barely opened her mouth when the first explosion went off.

The minutes that followed were the most important in the history of all species involved.

[BLACK MESA]

“GET HIM OUT OF THERE!”

Gordon ran for the airlock door. He didn’t know what was going on, and he didn’t care. The sample couldn’t be retrieved, not now. He had to focus on getting out.

“Attempting shutdown!” cried one of the scientists in the control room, yelling over the panicked screams of his colleagues.

The doors weren’t opening. Why wasn’t Phillips opening the door?

Gordon slammed his fists against the airlock door in a futile panic. He could hear the explosions from the spectrometer, the screams from the control room. It was chaos.

“It’s not- IT’S NOT SHUTTING DOWN! IT-”

[WHITE CANYON]

“GET BACK!”

Without warning, Twilight Sparkle leaped onto the main console, horn alight with a brilliant glow. A purple screen of light appeared over the window just in time for a bolt of green bolt of energy to crash into it. Faster than any normal unicorn could react,Twilight shot a bright beam from her horn, enveloping the specimen in a thick purple bubble

“I’LL TRY TO CONTAIN IT!” Twilight shouted over the screams of the science team, “JUST GO!”

Phase lay on the floor, terrified. She could see Atom Smash kick open the glass door of the control room, before dashing towards her.

“GET UP! WE HAVE TO GO!”

“B- but Spark Plug...”

“DAMNIT, PHASE, AH AIN’T TAKIN’ NO FOR AN ANSWER!”

“We... we can’t leave him there...” she whimpered, unable to move.

Another explosion rocked the chamber. Phase could only stare in shock as she saw Twilight flying backwards, her horn scorched and smoking.

She could feel Atom Smash dragging her across the floor. She could barely process what she was seeing, let alone move.

She closed her eyes, letting the black void of unconsciousness consume her.

[BLACK MESA]

The screams from the control room had stopped. Gordon was still banging his fists on the door. He glanced back, wondering if the delivery system might offer an escape route- just in time for a bright flash of green energy to consume him.

[THE BORDER WORLD]

It was dark. There was nothing. All Gordon could hear was the sound of his own labored breathing. And then...

A flash of green. He fell onto the ground, dazed.

… wait, ground?

Gordon glanced up. What he saw... he simply couldn’t comprehend.

An unfamiliar, alien sky stretched above him, nebulae and cosmic objects clearly visible. The ground was a strange kind of dirt, porous yet brittle, and in an odd yellow-brown hue.

Immediately in front of him was what looked to be water, but the creatures inside of it were something else entirely. Gordon could make out two legs, an elongated body, and what appeared to be tentacles in front of their face.

A flash. Darkness again.

[WHITE CANYON]

Suddenly, Gordon was back in the test chamber. The same explosions and warning sirens filled the air. But something was different.

“CELESTIA AND LUNA, SOMEPONY LET ME OUT!”

A panicked wailing was coming from the airlock door, but its source was... impossible.

What appeared to be some sort of alien creature, light blue in color, was banging mercilessly on the airlock door with what appeared to be its forelegs. Barring the fact that it was speaking english, the most disturbing characteristic of the creature was its clothing.

An almost exact match to Gordon’s HEV suit. Obnoxious color and all.

The creature turned around, revealing, large, panicked eyes, and a face with what appeared to be a snout extending from it.

“WHAT IN TARTARUS?! STAY AWAY FROM ME! OH, CELESTIA, I DON’T WANNA DIE-”

The creature was cut off as a large piece of equipment fell from the ceiling, crushing it completely. Not even Gordon’s HEV could have saved him from that, and the creature’s likely wouldn’t either.

Flash. Darkness.

[THE BORDER WORLD]

Gordon was in a dark room- or at least, it was probably a room, the only light coming from several strange, fungus-like growths on the ground. Suddenly, several strange creatures emerged from the shadows, bipeds with wrinkled brown skin and a single, enormous red eye. A third arm extended from their chest, and they had some sort of green... things around their neck and wrists.

They simply stared at Gordon for a few moments, as if in wonder. Then, their eyes shut, and they reached forwards, shaping their hands- all three- into a sphere, from which a green glow appeared.

Their guttural chant would be forever burned into his memory.

“Gar jung... Gar jung...”

Flash. Unconsciousness.

Collision Course

Half-Life: Collision

Chapter 3: Collision Course

[WHITE CANYON]

“Emergency response team to... Sector C Test Labs and Control Facility.”

Phase Ray’s eyes blinked open, slowly. Everything was blurred, and her ears were ringing.

Rising to a sitting position, she glanced around as her vision cleared. She was just outside the control room, lying in a corner. From the looks of it, Smash had dragged her out through the left entrance, towards the elevator to the upstairs labs. Warning sirens blared across the room, the flickering ceiling lights mingling with the static red glow of the alarm system. Equipment was smashed, broken, and smoking, with metal debris scattered across the floor.

“C’mon, c’mon...”

Phase turned her head to the source of the voice. Atom Smash stood over the limp form of Doctor Hawkeye, thumping his hooves against the gryphon’s ribcage.

“Damnit, breathe...”

She glanced around the room. A few other scientists were huddled in another corner, while a gryphon security officer patched their wounds. Another security officer, a pegasus, lay on the ground being tended to by a scientist, his combat harness tossed to the side.

“All... Sector C... staff,” cooed the PA system, “please call the... security office... immediately.”

Atom Smash let out a particularly foul curse under his breath as he stepped away from Hawkeye, moving towards Phase Ray.

“Phase,” he sighed, “Thank Celestia you’re up. Ah was gettin’ worried there.”

Phase nodded weakly, too tired to say anything.

“We just lost Hawkeye, and I ain’t seen hide nor hair of Professor Sparkle” Smash solemnly stated, lying down next to Phase, “We’ve got everything under control now, though. ‘Cept for... well, everything.”

“... Where’s Spark Plug?” Phase asked.

Smash sighed, looking away from her. He didn’t need to say anything. The answer was obvious.

“Celestia and Luna...” she breathed, tears welling up in her eyes, “Why... why didn’t they listen?”

“We tried to warn them...” Smash assured her, putting a hoof on her shoulder.

“I never thought I’d see a resonance cascade, let alone create one,” she sobbed, leaning into Smash’s embrace, letting the tears flow.

“None of us did, Phase,” Smash consoled her, “None of us did.”

They sat there like that for what seemed like hours, the sound of the alarms broken only by the occasional sob or the chillingly calm voice of the PA system. Everypony in the room was silent, either clutching their wounds or tending to those of others.

Finally, Phase had cried herself out. She gently pushed Smash away, wiping away the lingering tears in her eyes.

“Have... have you called for help?” she asked slowly, trying desperately to regain her composure.

“Tried to,” Smash sighed, standing up again, “All the phones are out, and we’ve got folks here we’re afraid to move.”

“Then what...” Phase sniffled, “what do we do?”

Smash looked around the room, then turned to her, furrowing his brows.

“We gotta make our way upstairs. Let somepony know we’re trapped down here.”

Phase nodded. Normally, she would tell him to send the security officers up, but judging by the state of affairs around her now, that wasn’t an option.

“I’ll come with you,” she stated, rising to her hooves.

Smash opened his mouth to protest, but stopped before he could get a word out. He could see it in Phase’s eyes- she couldn’t stay here. All the destruction, the chaos... the death. Staying would only make things worse for her. He closed his mouth, then nodded.

“Alrighty, then. Garret,” he stated, calling out to the gryphon officer, “keep these folks safe, y’hear? Ah’m headed upstairs with Phase Ray.”

“Yes sir,” the gryphon replied with a salute, before returning to his patients.

Wordlessly, Smash moved towards the downed security officer’s battle harness. He grabbed the harness with his mouth, and began to attach it to himself, pulling the straps shut and flicking various latches closed. Phase wasn’t sure why he was taking it- maybe all his time on the hazard course had simply drilled the need for a firearm into his head. It was almost unnerving how easily he had adjusted to the situation, how well he was dealing with the disaster around him.

Yet still, she found herself following Smash off towards the elevators...

[BLACK MESA]

Eli stood over Doctor Kleiner, who sat on the floor, dazed. He couldn’t think of anything to say- things had gone so wrong, so quickly. This wasn’t how things were meant to happen.

Or were they? Eli recalled his conversation with the man in the blue suit, with his strange way of speaking and stiff, robotic posture. Eli remembered the warning he had given him.

‘Prepare for unforeseen consequences.’

Eli shook his head, wracked with guilt. ‘Why didn’t I listen?’ he asked himself, ‘Why didn’t I try to stop this?’

Suddenly, Kleiner’s head shot up, his eyes going wide behind his cracked spectacles.

“By Schrodinger's Cat!” he exclaimed, “He’s alive!”

Eli turned around, bewildered, to find himself watching Gordon step out from the creaking elevator.

“Gordon!” he cried, “Thank god for that hazard suit! Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” Gordon replied, brief as ever, “You?”

“Izzy and I made it out of the control room okay,” Eli explained, “We tried to call for help, but all the phones are out.”

Eli paused for a moment, glancing over Gordon’s suit, contemplating.

“Gordon, you’re gonna have to get to the surface and let them know we’re stranded down here. There’s no telling what kind of-”

Suddenly, a sound not unlike the crackling of electricity filled the room, and an orb of green-and-yellow energy appeared inside of a sealed glass tube near the opposite wall. The sound intensified, and the orb grew, filling the room with a green glow, before disappearing with a mighty ‘zap’.

Where the orb had once been, a small, four-legged creature with a brown hide now stood. It was roughly the size of a cat, with the majority of its body taken up by what appeared to be its torso. At its front were four fang-like protrusions, with fierce looking teeth at their ends.

“My God,” said Eli, staring in shock, “What have we done?”

“Fascinating...”

Eli turned around to see Kleiner, now standing upright, his attention focused entirely on the alien creature.

“What a remarkable creature!” he exclaimed, his previous anxiety quickly fading away as he walked towards the tube the creature stood trapped in.

“Izzy, be careful!”

“Oh, relax, Eli. It’s completely trapped!” Kleiner exclaimed, now standing directly in front of the glass that separated them from the creature.

Eli sighed, rubbing his forehead.

“Great,” he groaned, “It’s gonna take me hours to drag him away from that thing...”

“My, you’re a cute little thing, aren’t you?” Kleiner cooed to the creature, now completely oblivious to his friends.

Eli turned to Gordon, rolling his eyes.

“Look, You’ll need me for the retinal scanner up ahead. I’d come with you, but I have to stay here and keep an eye on Izzy. I’m sure the rest of the science team will help you along the way,” he explained, a commanding look in his eyes, “And for God’s sake, keep that suit on ‘till you’re in the clear!”

Gordon nodded in understanding, moving to the control room door. Eli followed, activating the retinal scanner. With a confirmatory beep, the door slid open, revealing the burning remains of the control room. There were a few bodies mixed in with the debris- Eli did his best not to think about them.

“Good luck, Gordon.”

Gordon simply nodded before running into the control room, making a break for the other side.

Eli sighed, moving back to the trapped creature that Kleiner was so fascinated with. Already, he was formulating a plan in his mind. First, he would have to get Kleiner away from that... thing, then get to the surface. After that, he needed to find his family and make sure they were okay.

His mood fell the more he thought about it. The very thought of Azian or Alyx in danger frightened Eli beyond reason. He had to find them soon. He couldn’t let anything happen to his wife and daughter.

“C’mon, Izzy, we can’t stay here forever,” he sighed, trying to get his colleague’s attention.

“Oh, poppycock. We have plenty of time!” Kleiner proclaimed, adjusting his glasses, “Besides, I want to learn as much about this little fellow as I can before we go.”

Eli was about to protest, when the room was once again bathed in green light. He whipped around to the source, as did Kleiner, revealing another ball of green energy- and this time, it was in the open.

Suddenly, something changed. The previously yellowish center of the anomaly became a vibrant lavender, and the light shifted colors accordingly. Then, with a resounding crack, the light and the ball disappeared. Where it had been, something had appeared- and promptly flown into the wall in a blur of purple and white.

The blur smacked against the wall with a thump, letting out a yelp that sounded strangely similar to that of a woman, before hitting the floor.

“Oh dear!” Kleiner yelped, staggering back.

“Stay back!” Eli barked to his friend, fearing for their safety.

The room was silent for a moment afterwards, save for a soft groan from the new arrival. Slowly, the creature rose from the floor.

Eli’s jaw dropped at what he saw.

“What in the world...”

The creature was a brilliant lavender color, save for what appeared to be its hair, which was long and extremely straight- as if it had been done up that way. It had a small snout on its face and large, expressive eyes, with an eerily human-like quality to them. Sticking out from its hair was a short, blunt horn, that appeared scorched and smoking. As absurd as Eli found the thought, he couldn’t help but be reminded of the painted unicorns that Alyx’s room was decorated with.

The strangest quality of the creature, however, was not its physical traits, but what it was wearing.

A stained white lab coat.

Eli’s mind raced to come up with an explanation- perhaps it had somehow gotten caught in the coat while running around the laundry system. The alternative... well, Eli couldn’t come up with a rational alternative. Why else would an alien creature- one that resembled a unicorn, no less- be wearing a science team lab coat?

“Ugh, my head...”

If Eli’s jaw could drop any further, it would have hit the floor.

‘That’s impossible.’

“What happened...”

‘I got a concussion, and now I’m hallucinating.’

“Luna’s stars, my horn...”

‘That is not a unicorn, and it is most certainly not speaking english in the voice of a young woman.’

Suddenly the... unicorn... opened its eyes, scanning the room, before settling its gaze on them. Its pupils shrank and its eyes went even wider as it stared at the two humans before it. The scientists gazed back at the creature in a combination of fear, shock, and in Kleiner’s case, awe.

The unicorn's lip quivered, as if it were trying to come up with a response to what it was seeing.

“By Boltzmann’s Beard...” Kleiner stated, slack-jawed.

The unicorn interpreted this as an opportunity to leap back several feet, scamper backwards into a corner, and start screaming.

[WHITE CANYON]

“Professor... Twilight Sparkle... please... check in... immediately.”

Even the PA system’s cheery tone seemed to have darkened in the wake of the resonance cascade. It was now on full alert, with its tone becoming more concerned and commanding, yet still retaining that friendly voice that Phase had found so annoying earlier that day.

Now she would give anything for it to be pestering her about employment opportunities again.

“Phase? Ya still with me?”

Phase shook her head, forcing herself to focus on the task at hand. She gave Smash an affirmative nod, moving on ahead.

They came to the elevator shaft that would lead them back to the labs. The doors were firmly shut, and the elevator car couldn’t be seen through the doors’ glass panels. The call button was scattered across the room in various miniscule and unidentifiable pieces, a scorched set of wires marking where it was supposed to be.

“Well, we ain’t takin’ the elevator, that’s for sure.”

“You could shoot out one of those panels,” Phase suggested, gesturing to Smash’s battle harness, “It looks like we could crawl through.”

“Can’t afford to,” Smash replied, shaking his head, “Ah’m savin’ as many of these here bullets as Ah can for those jumpy little critters.”

Phase shuddered at the memory of their first encounter with the crab-like creatures. They had just left the surviving team members when they encountered one of the horrid little beasts. It had lunged towards Smash, who barely dodged in time to avoid it. He had used three bullets on it- one hit, while the other two went sailing into the floor. By the time they reached the elevator, Smash had killed two more of the creatures, setting him back another four bullets.

Smash glanced to the side, eying a sturdy-looking length of pipe that had come loose from the wall. It looked short and thin enough for him to grip in his mouth, but when he tried to pull it off it refused to budge.

“Phase,” he said, turning to his unicorn companion, “Think ya can pull this thing loose?”

“I think so,” she nodded, focusing her attention on the pipe.

Her horn lit up with a slight yellow-orange glow, which quickly encompassed the pipe. With a few slight tilts of her head and a soft groan of exertion, the pipe snapped out of its place on the wall, floating gently in front of Phase. Smash gave a slight grin, before motioning to the glass panel on elevator.

“May as well let you do the honors,” he drawled, hoping to lighten the mood, if only a little.

As much as Phase would hate to admit it, he succeeded, and she allowed herself the faintest hint of a smile. She telekinetically raised the pipe and gave a few slow practice swings to ensure her accuracy, before raising it above her head.

With a startlingly loud crash, she brought the pipe down, obliterating the glass that stood in their way.

Scraping a few jagged remains off the sides of the panel, she stepped back, opening the way for Smash, whose grin had grown even more since she last looked at him.

“Ah don’t suppose ‘Ladies First’ would apply here, would it?”

She shot him an incredulous look, suppressing a grin of her own.

“Eh, worth a shot.”

Smash crawled through the opening, stepping onto the maintenance catwalk that looped around the elevator shaft. On the left and right were ladders and criss-crossing stairs, in order to accommodate staff or visitors of any race. Curiously, despite this particular attention to detail, the engineer who designed the catwalk had neglected to put guardrails on it. Making a mental note to file a complaint with Health and Safety when this was all over, Smash carefully edged towards the stairwell, with Phase crawling through after him.

As the two friends ascended the shaft, they became aware of a commotion on the floor above. Gunshots could be heard, and they could make out an eerie wailing. They stopped for a moment, worried. Phase and Smash had both assumed the disaster had spread to the labs, but they didn’t expect things to be as bad as this.

As they edged further towards the entrance to the labs, the wails died away, and the gunshots became less frequent. By the time they reached the top, they wailing had stopped completely, and they could hear the faint, mechanical clicking of a weapon being reloaded, along with what seemed to be a guard’s voice.

“Goddamn... What the hell are these things?”

Smash sighed in relief at the voice, hoping that the security team had arrived to help.

Phase, however, was slightly curious. As they headed towards the elevator doors, she considered what the guard had said. She didn’t recognize some of the phrases- ‘the hell’ in particular. It had been used in the same manner as most ponies would say ‘in tartarus’, but she had never heard the word before. Perhaps it was some kind of slang?

Suddenly, the guard called out again, hearing the duo’s hoofsteps clanging in the elevator.

“Hey, who’s in there?”

“Don’t shoot,” Smash called out, “we’re science team!”

“Science team?” the guard asked, seemingly relieved, “Oh, thank Christ! C’mon, get over here!”

“Christ?” Phase repeated under her breath, puzzled, as she walked out into the labs.

Phase and Smash stepped through the elevator door, turning to face the guard...

It wasn’t a pony. Or a gryphon, for that matter. It was clearly a guard- it wore the blue shirt and black kevlar vest of the White Canyon Security team, but everything else about it was completely alien.

It was about a head taller than Smash, and stood upright on two legs. It was simian in its structure, as best Phase could tell, having a pair of long arms that ended in a pair of smooth hands. Its skin- for it lacked a coat of any kind- was a pale white color, with a hint of cream. It had a fairly typical face for a simian creature, with two eyes, smaller than that of a pony, a nose protruding the center, and a mouth just above the chin.

“What in the hell?!”

The creature scampered back, drawing its gun and aiming it in the duo’s direction. Smash went through a similar motion, pushing Phase Ray back and raising his hoof to the trigger of his harness.

“What in Celestia’s name?!” Phase cried, eyes wide as she stared at the impossible creature before her. How was it in a security uniform? How was it speaking Equish?

“What the shit are y-”

Before the creature could continue, a screech pierced the air, and one of the crab creatures leaped at it from around the corner, latching onto its head.

Smash swore loudly, ushering Phase back further as the guard-thing flailed about, grasping at the crab.

“GET IT- GET IT OFF!”

The being yelled for a few more seconds, before its voice was reduced to a choked gurgling, and it slumped against the wall. Phase didn’t need a doctorate to know that the creature- the impossibly Equine creature- was dead.

The duo stared in shock, not removing their eyes from the crab, which convulsed slightly on the being’s head, as if it were sucking the brains out of its head.

Phase rushed back into the elevator, leaning her head over the edge and releasing the contents of her stomach into the shaft. Smash, on the other hand, cautiously stepped towards the guard-creature, eyes wide in disbelief.

“By Celestia,” he breathed, shocked senseless, “What have we done?”

[BLACK MESA]

Eli sat in the corner of the room, exhausted. The purple creature was speaking nervously with Kleiner, who looked similarly nerve-wracked. From their body language, it appeared the two would dart away from each other at a moment’s notice, but somehow they had kept their wits about them long enough to discuss the incident.

After its arrival and encounter with Eli and Kleiner, the creature, apparently female, had backed into a corner, shouting questions about their existence and repeatedly asserting that “This is not scientifically possible!”

Eventually, both parties had calmed down sufficiently to put down the blunt objects they clutched defensively, the alien apparently having some form of telekinetic ability that allowed her to hoist a heavy-looking gas canister in front of her. After some nervous exchanges, Kleiner and the alien began to explain their respective situations.

Apparently, the unicorn (she insisted this was the correct term), one Professor Twilight Sparkle, was from a world known as ‘Equus’, hailing from a nation of ponies (again, she insisted this was the term) called ‘Equestria’. She claimed to have been a guest researcher at one ‘White Canyon Research Facility’ at the time of the resonance cascade. According to her, the ‘Arcane Materials Lab’ had been performing a ‘Thaumatic Purity Analysis’ on a crystal sample when disaster struck, and their equipment went haywire. Professor Sparkle had attempted to contain the event, but was struck by a beam of unknown origin, being flung across what Eli could only assume was dimensions before teleporting into their room.

Frankly, Eli found it hard to believe. A crystal analysis, a resonance cascade, ‘White Canyon’? The similarities were beyond improbable- the odds of such a world existing, let alone experiencing a resonance entanglement with Earth, were infinitesimally small.

Yet the proof was right in front of his eyes. The unicorn was discussing the disaster in detail with Kleiner, citing discoveries that nobody outside the Black Mesa facility could possibly know about and rattling off the specifics of the test at this White Canyon facility. Impossible as it seemed, this creature was from another world, identical to theirs in small but significant ways.

And worst of all, she was unable to identify the creature that Kleiner had become so fascinated with. Which meant either the resonance cascade was so far reaching in their worlds that it was bringing previously unknown species to the facility...

… or there was another world entangled in this mess.

A world far more alien than this Equus.

Unforeseen Consequences

Half-Life: Collision

Chapter 4: Unforeseen Consequences

[BLACK MESA]

“Man, this shit is something out of a sci-fi movie...”

Gordon and Officer Lewis walked down the lab hallway, an emergency flare in his hand, ready to be lit. Lewis was a tall man, african-american, with a bald head and a lean figure. He clutched his pistol warily, scanning the hallway for threats. He had offered to escort Gordon to the front desk, hoping they would be able to call for help from there.

They had seen some messed up things along the way though. Humanoid figures with crab creatures on their heads, whose wails chilled Lewis to the bone. Worse though was their appearance- to his horror, they seemed to be wearing lab uniforms.

Lewis hesitated to use the word ‘zombie’, but it was what described the creatures best. The way they lurched forward with their arms outstretched, wailing as they swung their claw-like appendages at anything the moved- there was no other way to describe it. Those crab-things were turning people into zombies, people they knew. Lewis wouldn’t admit it, but before Gordon had showed up, he had lost his lunch twice while avoiding them.

Gordon paused, turning to face the passage to the locker and break rooms. Soon after, a loud cry could be heard from inside, along with a loud clanging.

“Holy hell,” Lewis gasped, “someone’s still alive in there!”

“Let’s go,” Gordon stated, lighting his flare and running for the lockers, his companion close behind him.

The locker room was a mess. Lockers were left open or ripped off their hinges, and bloodstains littered the floor. Two zombies could be seen- one was slumped against a bench, seemingly dead, while the other feasted on the corpse of a scientist.

Lewis stared at the corpse, shocked.

“Oh God, Tanner...”

If he hadn’t already vomited up everything he had eaten in the past two days, Lewis would have probably spilled his guts all over Gordon’s suit then and there. Instead, he simply averted his eyes, holding his head in his free hand while keeping his gun trained on the zombie. After a moment, he turned around, gripped his pistol tightly, and fired four shots into the zombie’s head... thing.

“Chow time’s over, you bastard...” he breathed, still disturbed by what he had seen.

He turned to Gordon, who still held his flare defensively.

“Alright, Doc, grab what need, but don’t dawdle,” he said turning to watch the entrance, “I don’t wanna stay here any longer than I have to...”

Gordon nodded, heading for the charging stations near the HEV storage area.

Lewis sighed, trying to clear his head. He had never liked Doctor Tanner much- he was way too cheery, and had this weird habit of staring at Lewis’s ass when he thought nobody was looking. But seeing him like this... He hadn’t been ripped up too badly, thank god, but Lewis doubted he’d be getting an open-casket.

As Lewis gathered his thoughts, Gordon went to check his locker. Nothing of note- his jacket was still hanging from its hook, his Laidlaw novels were still on the top shelf, and his diploma- while face down with its frame cracked- was still intact. His thermos had spilled, but that was the least of his worries.

He shut his locker, satisfied. He wasn’t about to take any of his things with him- not while these monsters were running wild. They’d be safer in his locker, anyway.

Suddenly, Gordon heard a soft shuffling from the bathroom stalls. Cautiously, he moved towards the stalls, ready to jump back should something dangerous leap out.

“Someone in there?” he asked quickly.

It was silent for a second, before the shuffling occurred again- this time, accompanied by a voice.

“H- Hello? Who... who are you? What are you?”

‘What am I?’ Gordon was puzzled. It sounded like a science team member- likely scared out of his wits.

“Hey, what’s going on over there?” Lewis called from the entrance, growing curious.

Slowly, the stall door opened as Lewis approached, and Gordon moved around to get a better view of the occupant.

Gordon’s eyes went wide and he stepped back in surprise. The stall’s occupant was science team, alright- but it wasn’t human.

It wore the typical lab coat and red tie of the team, but that was where the similarities ended. It looked to be some sort of horse, absurd as it was, with a green coat and yellow mane, and a short horn on its forehead. Realization struck Gordon as he recognized the creature- it was the same species he had seen in the test chamber; the one that had been wearing a hazard suit.

He only had a few moments to consider this. A guttural wail could be heard behind him, along with a yelp of surprise from Lewis. The horse-creature cried out similarly, slamming the door shut... somehow.

Gunshots rang out as Lewis opened fire, missing most of his shots as he scrambled away from the zombie, which had apparently only been playing dead. Thinking quickly, Gordon ran up behind the creature, holding his flare up to its skin. The tattered remains of the zombie’s lab coat quickly caught fire, spreading across the creature with surprising speed. He jumped to avoid the flames, dodging a swing from the zombie’s claws in the process, and scrambled away.

Gordon could hear the clatter of a magazine hitting the floor as Lewis reloaded, firing two shots into the withering torso of the zombie, which collapsed with a final gasping moan.

Breathing heavily, the two paused to breathe.

“Now...” Lewis gasped, “Now like I was saying, who’s in there?”

“SHUT UP!” cried the voice from the stall, terror in its voice, “Just shut up, you- you FREAK OF NATURE!”

“Freak of- what?” Lewis replied, exasperated, “Look, buddy, I’m with security; I’m tryin’ to help you!”

“I don’t care what uniform you’re wearing!” spat the voice, “You are NOT with the security team, you- you CAN’T be!”

“What are you... Look, pal, I know things are crazy right now, but I-”

“I don’t CARE!” yelped the frightened voice, “I am NOT leaving with you, and that is FINAL!”

Lewis groaned, rubbing his head.

“Okay, you wanna be that way, fine. If you change your mind- and you better, if you wanna make it out of this mess- I’ll be at the front desk trying to call for help, alright?”

The stall’s occupant offered no response, save for a whimper of fear. Lewis turned around, moving for the locker room’s entrance, and Gordon followed suit.

Lewis turned to Gordon, noticing the bespectacled scientist eyeing the occupied stall.

“He’ll come around,” Lewis assured him, “and if he doesn’t show at the front desk, I’ll come back for him. I ain’t leaving anyone behind.”

Gordon nodded, understanding Lewis’s sentiment- though he doubted the security guard was fully aware of the situation. That horse-creature was clearly intelligent, and it seemed afraid. It could have been an innocent victim, a civilian from wherever the crab-creatures were coming from.

That didn’t explain how it spoke english, though. Or why it was wearing a science uniform.

[WHITE CANYON]

Phase Ray was tired.

She walked forwards with Atom Smash, the guard-alien’s pistol in her lab coat pocket (Smash had insisted that she take it) and the pipe she had taken downstairs levitating in front of her. She had killed two crabs that had come dangerously close to her face with that pipe, and now clung to it like a foal and its blanket. She had even killed one of those... crab-ponies with it.

Crab-ponies. Former co-workers, acquaintances, friends, that had been taken by the crabs. Where their head should have been was one of the crabs, and their bodies had been hideously mutated. A large mouth-like cavity cut from their neck down the their ribcage, and where their forehooves had been, claws had burst from their skin. Smash simply called them zombies, but Phase despised the term. It belittled them, reduced them to a stock horror movie monster. Those things had been ponies once, before those horrid little monsters had taken them. They deserved better than to be mocked like that.

She didn’t say this aloud, of course. Now wasn’t the time to start an argument with Smash. They had to keep their attention firmly on survival.

The two friends had reached the front desk, only to find more bodies and crab-ponies. A few bullets and a rather unorthodox use of emergency flares had taken care of the former employees. As they had quickly come to expect, the phone lines were down, and the tram platform had collapsed. So, the two smashed in a ventilation duct and headed in the next best direction- Materials Storage. There was an elevator to the Sector C offices through there, and they hoped they could find help there- or, if worse came to worst, an escape route.

They clambered out of the air duct to find themselves on the other side of the labs, just outside of Materials Storage. The duo advanced, weapons at the ready, to the Storage airlock.

“Think things’re any better up there?” Smash asked, breaking the silence that had fallen upon the pair.

“I don’t know,” Phase replied, exasperated, “I just don’t know.”

Smash slowed his pace, giving Phase a concerned look.

“Phase, we gotta make it outta this mess. Don’t matter what happens, we have to get help. If we don’t find any in the offices, then we’ll keep goin’ up.”

His gaze drifted, as if he were unsure of his own words.

“We can’t give up, Phase. Folks’re countin’ on us.”

Phase nodded solemnly, understanding his meaning. She just wasn’t sure who he was trying to convince- her, or himself.

They rounded the corner to the airlock, and were greeted by a dead unicorn security guard. There was a crab-pony slumped on the ground nearby, the crab itself having been dislodged slightly from its host. Phase tried not to look at where the pony’s head should have been- the brief glance she had gotten of its mangled cranium made her sick enough already.

Smash let out a muttered curse, briefly checking the guard for any sign of life. Nothing.

He bowed his head, muttering a quick prayer before reaching his head down to undo the guard’s holster. He pulled it off, carefully removing the magazines before placing it back on the ground. Wordlessly, he offered the bullets to Phase, who reluctantly placed them in her lab coat’s pocket.

Noticing the airlock’s retinal scanner was broken, Phase stepped toward the door, raising her pipe and bashing in a glass panel, clearing the way ahead.

[BLACK MESA]

Lewis sighed in relief as he and Gordon dispatched the last of the zombies in the lobby, stepping behind the front desk.

“Okay, I’m gonna try to call for help and see if I can get anyone else to safety. You keep heading for the surface- there’s gotta be someone up there who can fix this.”

Gordon nodded in agreement, tossing his burned-out flare to the floor.

“Good luck,” he offered, ducking down to a nearby air duct.

Pulling the grate loose, Gordon crawled through the vent, emerging inside the lab’s local network room. It was chaos inside- consoles had exploded and burst into flames, and there was a large hole in the wall that led to the Materials Storage airlock. He could see zombies through the plexiglass wall of the side room he had emerged in. One had been a scientist, which now wandered in circles and moaned, and the other a security guard that seemed intent on banging its head against the plexiglass until he willed it out of existence.

Gordon turned to the door of his side room, which sparked and sputtered slightly. It was trying to open for the nearby zombie, unable to differentiate living staff members from dead ones, but was held in place by a blunt red object- a crowbar, on closer inspection.

Gordon looked back at the vent he had come out of, which was now just out of his reach. Only one way forward.

Moving to the door, he grabbed the crowbar with both hands, wrenching it free from the door. He quickly backed up, hoping to avoid the zombies. He was already formulating a plan in his head- the advanced hazard course, which science personnel rarely bothered with, had included a section on self-defense in addition to the usual obstacle course- a section that included improvised weaponry.

Gordon stepped back raising the crowbar into a striking position as the zombies lurched forward...

… only for a nearby piece of equipment to explode, lighting them on fire and crushing one underneath the debris. Within seconds, both zombies went still, smouldering on the ground.

Gordon stared at the bodies for a moment, surprised by his own luck, before heading through the hole in the wall to Materials Storage. The whole way, he clutched his newfound weapon defensively.

[WHITE CANYON]

Phase Ray and Atom Smash stood at a crossroads.

On their left was a burning hallway that would lead them further into Materials Storage, while directly in front of them was an elevator shaft to the offices, the car hanging precariously about halfway down from the shaft door. The elevator was powered, if the bright lights inside were any indication, but one of the two cables holding it aloft had been knocked loose, and was creaking slightly.

If they climbed into the car as it was, they ran a significant chance of plummeting to their deaths- but on the other hoof, the alternative path was on fire.

Phase and Smash exchanged glances. Their choice was obvious.

The loose cable lit up with an orange aura, reattaching itself into its proper position.

Phase smiled, in spite of the slight strain the task put on her, as the elevator car gave a positive-sounding beep and rose back into its proper position in the shaft.

“Good thing Ah got you with me,” Smash chuckled, “Imagine havin’ ta go all the way through Storage just to get upstairs!”

[BLACK MESA]

Gordon scrambled out of the collapsed elevator car, thanking whichever higher power was watching over him for flooding the bottom of the shaft.

Breathing heavily, he scampered out through the open door on his floor of the shaft. He had climbed into the broken down car in a fit of desperate stupidity, lacking any other way of progressing forward that wasn’t on fire. Naturally, a cable had come loose, and the whole thing plummeted to the bottom floor.

Wiping his glasses dry, he looked back at the shaft in disdain.

Somewhere out there, someone must have found a working elevator to the Office Complex, whoever that lucky person was, they were almost assuredly laughing at him.

[WHITE CANYON]

Phase once again found herself smiling. She supposed that most ponies would consider that odd in a situation like hers, but as a famous earth pony once said, sometimes you just have to giggle at the ghosties. Admittedly, the childish turn of phrase probably didn’t include parasitic alien crabs that turned ponies into monsters in its definition of ‘ghosties’, but the point still stood. Being able to see the bright side in the situation was going to be essential if Phase wanted to stay sane.

The elevator hummed to life, pulling them upwards to the Sector C Office Complex. The two friends breathed easy for a moment, counting their blessings.

Smash turned to Phase after a moment, his expression becoming more serious.

“So, Phase, ‘bout the surface...”

“What about it?”

Smash sighed, clearly having trouble figuring out what to say.

“You and Ah... We been lucky so far,” he started, “but we don’t know how long that’ll last.”

Phase’s expression fell, her eyes showing a mix of fear and sadness.

“Smash,” she replied, “we can’t-”

“Ah know, Ah know,” he interrupted, “Ah ain’t sayin’ we shouldn’t stay positive, but... Look, if somethin’ happens, and we get separated... Ah want you ta keep goin’. Ah can handle mahself, and Ah know you can, too, so...”

He paused, unsure of where to go from there.

“Look,” he continued, “whatever happens, one of us has to get to the surface. If that means y’all gotta go on without me, Ah don’t want you to think twice about it, y’hear?”

Phase was silent, considering what she had heard. She knew that their best bet- everypony’s- was to get to the surface and call for rescue. But she wasn’t sure if she could leave a friend behind to do that, especially not Atom Smash. Still, Smash was right- he could handle himself, better than most ponies she knew. Leaving him wouldn’t be easy- or pleasant- but it wouldn’t mean the end. He could always find another route, or if things came to it, shoot his way out of a sticky situation.

“Smash, I...” she started, “Let’s just deal with these things as they come, okay?”

Smash sighed, conceding defeat.

“Alright, Ah won’t worry ya ‘bout it,” he replied, shaking his head, “But we’re gonna hafta deal with it eventually.”

“That’s assuming we don’t find help in the offices,” Phase replied, “Which we will.”

Smash wasn’t so sure about that, but he didn’t say anything. Phase was stressed enough as is, and he needed her to stay collected (if not calm) if they were going to survive.

The elevator dinged as it lurched to a stop, opening to reveal a surprisingly pristine Office Complex hallway, branching into two similarly clean hallways. Smash was surprised, to say the least- maybe things were better up here.

That sentiment was crushed under the cruel hoof of fate as they stepped out. Immediately, a loud crash was heard down the corridor to their left, the lights flickering out and being replaced by the now unnervingly familiar red glow of emergency lights. Fire alarms rang throughout the hallway in a shrill cacophony. Smash instinctively hunched down slightly, raising his hoof the trigger of his harness. Phase began to raise her pipe to a swinging position, but Smash quickly instructed her to use her pistol instead.

“Close quarters now,” he explained, “Best ya keep your distance.”

Phase was in no place to argue- he was the Hazard Course expert, after all- and nervously levitated her pistol, holding it so the sights remained in the center of her vision as the announcement system chimed in with its own opinion.

“Fire detected in... Sector C Office Complex.”

‘How insightful,’ she snarked to herself, staring intently at the corner into the smoking hallway.

The seconds ticked by, and it became clear nothing was going to come screaming out of the inferno any time soon. Cautiously, Smash began to creep towards the source of the smoke, instructing Phase to watch the second hallway.

“Hello? Anypony alive?”

No response came. He rounded the corner, finding the hallway blocked by burning debris. It seemed that some sort of pipe or electrical system had blown, and taken the ceiling down with it. Smash sighed, turning back around to regroup with Phase.

“Well, we ain’t gettin’ out through there, tha-”

A wave of intangible green energy swept through the room with a thunderous crack, causing the ceiling lights to fluctuate and the two ponies’ vision to flash and take on a green tint.

Phase opened her mouth to scream.

She and Smash disappeared with a flash.

[BLACK MESA]

Galloway was in a bit of a pickle.

Admittedly, that was the understatement of the century, but it was still technically correct.

The young security officer hung precariously from a dangling piece of catwalk on what used to be the Sector C tram platform. He wasn’t sure what was going on- his radio had fallen into the pit below during the first earthquake- but he could tell help wasn’t coming any time soon.

He groaned as he once again tried to hoist himself up onto the debris he clung to.

‘Come on...’

He pulled with all his might, his hands squeezing the metal with the strength of a boa constrictor.

‘Just...’

His elbows began to bend.

‘... a bit...’

His arms burned from the strain as he hoisted his torso further up.

‘... fur-... -ther....’

With a gasp, his arms gave way to gravity, dropping him back to his original hanging position.

“Shit!”

Galloway breathed deeply, desperately attempting to stay calm in spite of his perilous situation. He had tried calling out for the guys at the front desk a while ago, but nobody answered. Things were not looking good.

‘Shit, where the hell is everybody?! For f-’

Before he could finish his thought, a wave of green... something flashed through the cavern, shaking the already crumbling catwalk more than Galloway was comfortable with. For a moment, he was blinded by a flash of green. Then everything around him looked green. Then his vision started fading into green.

In his panic, Galloway slipped off of the catwalk, falling into the abyss below. He supposed he should have been making prayers, or seeing his life flash before his eyes, or just screaming every profanity he had locked away in his dirty little mind.

Instead, he found himself wondering why his death had to be green, of all colors.

He disappeared in a flash. Of green, naturally.

[WHITE CANYON]

Suddenly, Phase and Smash were back in the hallway.

Phase was panicking, but she couldn’t move any more than squirming in place.

“SMASH!” she yelled, struggling to be heard over the electric cackle of the energy field, “WHAT’S HAPPENING?!”

Smash was similarly trapped in place across from her, struggling to move.

“SOME KINDA HARMONIC REFLUX!” he yelled, clearly just as surprised as Phase, “BUT AH’VE NEVER SEEN ONE ON THIS SCALE!”

Another flash encompassed Phase’s vision, but she hadn’t moved yet. She could see the energy intensifying around Smash, growing brighter and brighter.

“PHASE- PHASE, REMEMBER WHAT AH TOLD YA!” he yelled, looking her dead in the eyes, “GET TO THE SURFACE! NO MATTER WHAT!”

“SMASH, NO!”

Another flash. This time, Smash had fully disappeared, leaving the bright field of energy behind. Phase couldn’t even bring herself to scream.

Her closest friend on the science team, gone- just like that. In a harmonic reflux, he could wind up anywhere. Literally anywhere. As in, every possible place in the universe and then some. Phase was no astrophysicist, but she knew the number of places in the universe that were safe- let alone survivable- was soul-crushingly insignificant.

Smash was dead. He had to be.

[BLACK MESA]

Atom Smash yelped in shock as he found himself in another Office Complex hallway, a pair of panicked screams coming from behind him. Desperately looking around for Phase, he found himself staring at something else entirely.

Two aliens stood in the hallway, similarly trapped by the force of the harmonic reflux. They were similar to the one that he and Phase had seen outside the test chamber elevator- though these were wearing clothing similar to the business casual uniform of scientists and office workers, as opposed to a security uniform.

“NO, NO! STAY BACK!”

“HELP! OH GOD, SOMEONE HELP US!”

The two aliens screamed in fear, both at the sudden reflux and the appearance of Atom Smash, trying to scramble away in spite of the force holding them still.

Suddenly, the force that restrained Smash and the aliens lifted, and the two parties tumbled over from the sudden shift in gravity and balance.

Smash stood up and backed away slightly, his hoof rising to the trigger of his harness. He glanced the two aliens over- then noticed a new shape had appeared behind them, with tentacles and an elongated, horizontal body. The two bipeds whipped around, stumbling backwards in terror, unsure which creature they should take their chances with.

“NO! I DON’T WANT TO DIE!”

“WE’RE TRAPPED!”

Suddenly, the aliens’ screams clicked something in Smash’s head. His instincts took over, and he barreled forward, coming to a stop between the bipeds and the tentacle beast.

“GET YOUR DAMN HEADS DOWN!” he hollered, his slamming the trigger of his harness as he maneuvered himself to aim at the beast. The bipeds obeyed, shocked into a state of terrified obedience, dropping to the floor and cowering.

Smash scowled, continuing to fire into the beast, a reptile of some sort. Alien or not, those bipeds were intelligent- and they were terrified. Smash wasn’t about to abandon them, not when they were in danger like this.

Besides, if they could talk, maybe they could give him some answers.

Elsewhere...

Galloway fell, and the green grew brighter.

He wondered if he should have any last words- not that anyone would hear them.

“AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!”

Yeah, that’d work.

The green flashed, encompassing his vision until it went completely black.

[WHITE CANYON]

Phase felt the force around her fade, gravity taking hold of her once more. She offered no resistance to the downward force, her hind legs collapsing underneath her as tears welled up in her eyes.

“Smash...”

He had told her this might happen. That they might be separated. But she didn’t think it would be so sudden. So final...

Just as she was about to vomit for the third time that day, another green flash lit up the hallway. An orb of energy just like the one that had surrounded Smash grew across from Phase Ray, crackling with electricity.

“-AAAAAHHHH!”

A scream filled the room as the flash intensified, before suddenly disappearing. Where the orb had been, a lanky blue-and black body appeared, falling flat on the floor with a soft, yet painful-sounding thump.

Phase stared in surprise, recognizing the new arrival as another one of the primate aliens she had seen outside the elevator in the labs. It, like the one before it, wore a security uniform, and its skin was a similar shade to the previous one’s, with a slight hint of brown. She cautiously stepped forwards, levitating her pistol defensively as the guard-thing moaned, turning its head towards her. As she grew closer, she could hear it croak out a few words.

“I... h- hate... green...”

With that somewhat unusual statement, the creature went limp, its chest movements being the only indication it was still alive...

White Canyon Commute

Half-Life: Collision

By Dirtyblue929

://LOADING SECURE FILE: WHITE CANYON REPORT
://LOADING...
://LOADING...
://DONE.

Chapter One: White Canyon Commute

“Good morning, and welcome to the White Canyon Research Facility!”

Phase Ray smiled ever so slightly as the cheery male voice of the announcement system reached her ears, echoing slightly across the cavern she waited in. Leaving the station platform behind her, she stepped into the automated tram with the slightest spring in her step, hooves clanking against the metal floor. She sat down in one of the provided seats, exchanging a quick ‘Hello’ with the disembarking passenger.

“This train is... Inbound to... Sector C Test Labs and Control Facility.”

With a loud creak, the tram began to slide forward on the electrified rail that stretched along the roof of the cavern.

Phase looked back at the station platform, the large metal and concrete wall jetting out slightly from the rock wall, held up by metal supports. All across the walls of the caverns, windows and catwalks could be seen. Many ponies would be in awe of the engineering marvel that was White Canyon, but for Phase, it was just another stop on the transit system.

“Current topside temperature is... Ninety-Eight degrees, with an estimated high of... One hundred and Eight. The White Canyon facility is kept at a pleasant Sixty-Eight degrees at all times. The time now is... 8:47... AM.”

Phase’s cheery attitude quickly turned sour at this.

‘Oh, Celestia, I’m late!’ she screamed in her mind, eyes widening as her yellow coat began to flush red around her face.

‘8:47?! How is that even possible? I checked my clock three times last night!’

Her thoughts were interrupted by another cheery statement from the announcement system.

“Employees are to be reminded that daylight savings time is now in effect.”

Phase’s ears flopped down.

“Daylight... savings?” she repeated to herself, her left eye giving a solitary twitch.

Doctor Phase Ray graduated from Princess Celestia’s Academy for Gifted Unicorns with a PhD in Arcane Studies. She was employed at one of the most prestigious government research facilities in Equestria. Her cutie mark, a Crystal emitting several beams from its core, depicted the process by which large-scale non-magical teleportation experiments were conducted. She played a major role in the planning for all experiments conducted in the Sector C labs, including today’s.

Phase Ray was a genius.

And she had forgotten to set her clock forward one hour.

With a moan of displeasure, she banged her head against the glass of the tram car, sending a jolt of pain up her horn in the process.

“If your intended destination is a high security sector beyond Area 1, please have your identification and security clearance card readily available, or you may be escorted to security for processing.”

‘It’s going to be a long day.’

://LOADING SECURE FILE: BLACK MESA REPORT
://LOADING...
://LOADING...
://DONE.

Chapter One: Black Mesa Inbound

Normally, Officer Galloway was more enthusiastic about mornings- assuming he got his coffee, of course. But when 8:30 had come and gone, and Gordon had still failed to show up for the morning’s test, he was beginning to have doubts about the day ahead of him.

He looked out through the tunnels of the Black Mesa Transit System, hoping the next carriage would arrive soon. The science team was already antsy, and Doctor Magnusson was always looking for an excuse to blow up at the rank-and-file. If Gordon didn’t show up soon, that anger would eventually be directed towards the Security personnel. And Galloway did not like being yelled at.

He glanced at his watch. 8:47. Gordon was over half an hour late now.

Trying to distract himself, he let his thoughts wander. Richards was hosting poker night later that day. That would be fun.

… And now, all he could think about was if Gordon would be late for that, too.

Calhoun still owed him a beer from that bet they made on the hazard course.

… And he owed Gordon a beer, too.

Galloway sighed and leaned his back against the wall.

‘It’s gonna be a long shift.’

[WHITE CANYON]

“A reminder to all security staff: Pegasus and Gryphon flight drills will begin at... 2:30... PM. Remember, in the event of an emergency, flight-capable staff are White Canyon Security’s first responders.”

Phase sighed as she stared out the window at the concrete and metal walls of the transit system, the rough-hewn caverns of Sector E having disappeared long ago. She absentmindedly produced a small brush from her purse, undoing the bun her brown mane was tied in and telekinetically straightening her hair.

Below her, the White Canyon Facility was abuzz with activity as usual. Scientists commuted between labs, discussing the results of their latest tests and bad-mouthing their rivals. Maintenance crew rushed to the site of the latest equipment failure, most likely a broken vending machine. Security officers absentmindedly patrolled, content to stand around and look pretty, as usual.

“Do you have a friend or relative looking for employment? The White Canyon Research Facility is currently hiring ponies or gryphons with experience in the fields of... Biological Engineering... Thaumatic Engineering... and... Theoretical Physics.”

Phase put her brush away and began to redo her bun, attempting to tune out the PA system’s voice. It had never bothered her before, but after learning she was nearly and hour late for the day’s experiment, she found it harder and harder not to be annoyed by the system’s cheery tone.

The tram came to a stop in front of a large, circular blast door. Glancing to the left, Phase caught sight of a security officer sitting at a control panel. The officer was light brown Gryphon in a blue uniform, with a reinforced bulletproof vest over his chest, underside, and back. For some reason, he was paying no attention to the tram passenger waiting patiently for him to open the doors.

‘What in Equestria is taking him so long?’

Phase took a closer look at him, squinting to see what he was doing.

‘Wait, is that... BY LUNA’S MANE!’

Evidently, the officer had lost himself in an... interesting magazine. He briefly looked up, then, noticing Phase’s shocked stare, he threw his ‘reading’ material down, hurriedly operating the control panel.

The blast door hissed open, splitting in half and sliding into the wall. One nervous glance towards Phase Ray and a worried salute later, the officer sent the tram on its way once more, praying that his precious Playcolt stash would not be put in danger by the events.

“Reminder to all security staff: Colonel Redwing of the Gryphon Commandos will be visiting the White Canyon facility this coming... saturday... for his monthly inspection.”

All of a sudden, Phase was glad to have the PA system distracting her again.

[BLACK MESA]

‘83 bottles of beer on the wall, 83 bottles of beer...’

Galloway whistled along to the chant in his mind, bored out of his skull waiting.

‘Take one down, pass it around, 82 bottles of beer on the wall...’

He sighed. Contrary to his ‘initial hypothesis’, as the geeks would put it, the campfire song was not making time progress any faster.

“Maybe I should just tell ‘em Gordon isn’t coming,” he wondered aloud to himself, “Save me a lot of standing around.”

The image of an angry Doctor Magnusson in his mind dispelled that idea.

Suddenly, Galloway became aware of a clanking and whirring in the distance. A smile grew on his face. A tram was coming in for a stop, and if he wasn’t mistaken, it was being ridden by none other than...

‘Gordon!’

Galloway made his way to the tram platform, adjusting his tie slightly.

‘Freakin’ finally...’

“Morning Doctor Freeman!” he called out, giving a wave, “Looks like you’re runnin’ late.”

A sigh and a roll of the eyes was all he received from the quiet scientist, but Galloway didn’t mind. He knew that Gordon would be taking the brunt of the science team’s frustration now that he was here. Unlocking the tram car, he and Gordon walked side-by-side back to the airlock.

“Y’know, Calhoun’s been pretty scarce around these parts,” Galloway said, hoping to start a conversation, “Heh, guess his bar tab finally caught up with him.”

“Figures,” Freeman stated simply, arms crossed, returning the discussion to its state of awkward silence.

Galloway punched in the code to the Sector C airlock, before turning and giving a nod to his friend.

“Knock ‘em dead, Gordon,” he grinned, nodding to the airlock.

Gordon gave a curt nod and the slightest of smiles in response, before walking off.

“Hey, catch me later!” Galloway called out after him, “You, me, and Calhoun can all go out and get that beer he owes ya.”

The airlock shut behind Doctor Freeman, who gave no audible response.

Galloway’s enthusiasm faded. In his anxiousness to see Gordon arrive, he had forgotten how boring the guy could be.

Quietly, he leaned against the railing of the platform and sighed for what must have been the hundredth time that day.

‘... 82 bottles of beer on the wall, 82 bottles of beer...’