Untitled HL2 Fic 2
Notes/Warnings:
More stuff from that HL2RP arc from long ago. Basically the server deviated from the standard lore and Gordon showed up again and... died. So the rebellion had to happen another way. I used to RP as a Vort every now and again. Vorts are cool, hence the inclusion here.
No content warnings, except that it's cringe lmao
Richard Bartram stepped out of his small cottage, Ruger Mini-14 in hand. The house had withstood the harsher weather of last night. It had been for some time now that he had been living out here. Two years perhaps? Ever since escaping Warsaw - City 79 as it was now known - he had lived here, a trusted Vortigaunt guiding him along.
His house was humble. An old cottage by a lake, dilapidated when Mr. Bartram had found it, but it was now in as good a shape as it could be, given the circumstances. Ra’Chik’Te - the Vortigaunt he lived with - had helped him patch the old building into a livable condition.
Six months had passed since City 17 went down, the Citadel destroyed by a band of rebels. Six months since any Combine patrol of the outlands. Six months since any other signs of life - human or Synth - had made itself known. The occasional animal would still make an appearance though, both terrestrial and Xenian (some places in the forest had been taken over entirely by the extraterrestrial flora and fauna). Just as well, there was a small village-like gathering of Vortigaunts, of which Ra - Richard’s nickname for his alien pal - had once been a part of.
The Vortigaunts, through their mysterious telepathic abilities, were how Richard got his news. The heroes that stormed the Citadel in City 17 were part of the best news story yet. A woman named Fable, a man named Knight - both had to be codenames of course - had overloaded the core, destroying the tower and its housing City.
The old Scotsman scratched at his stubble, adjusting the knit cap on his salt-and-pepper hair. He was in his mid-sixties (he made sure to continue marking down the date on what little paper he had left - birthdays included), dressed in a light blue turtleneck under a beige coat and his old pair of standard-issue pants, he stood at a staggering height of 6’2”.
He stepped around to the back, standing by the lake where he checked the leech net. The Xen leeches were vicious little bastards, but they were good eating - plus they bred like rabbits, so he was in no danger of overfishing them. Sure enough, the net was full in its small, hand-made rock enclosure. Richard made a mental note to empty out the trap later.
“Brrkoow! Cheet!” came a familiar sound to the man’s left. He smiled and stepped over to his beloved pet. It was a Houndeye that Richard had initially found as a pup. He nursed the thing back to health - it had been abandoned by its pack, evidently - and it grew fond of him, aiding him in hunting as well as proving to be a nice companion, similar to the old retriever he had before the Seven.
Richard took a knee and set his rifle down, patting the creature on the back.
“How’re you doin’ today, Stripes?” he said, continuing to smile as he petted Stripes.
Familiar hooved footsteps sounded behind him. He turned and flashed the approaching creature a grin.
“Mornin’, Ra. You sleep well?” he asked as the Vortigaunt approached.
“Yessss….this one slept with a great lack of disturbanccce. How isss your pet today? Healthy as alwaysss I trussst?” Ra’Chik’Te asked.
“Yep, he seems to be. He likes them leeches that we’ve been feedin’ him. Seems as if he were only a pup yesterday,” Richard said with a smile.
The Houndeye, of course, was only a few months old, having been found by Richard only a month after the fall of City 17. The fond thoughts didn’t last, however, as Ra put a hand on Richard’s shoulder.
“Do not be alarmed, but it appearsss that we have people on the ridge,” he warned, pointing up to the cliffside ahead of them.
Richard stood up, taking up his rifle as he did. He aimed it up to the ridge and looked through the scope. There was a group of people up on the ridge, most of them dressed in rebel uniforms. One man led the way, carrying a shotgun at his left side as he did. He was black, with an authoritative look to him; he had a shaved head and was clad in a green shirt, jeans, and work boots. One more person stood out to Richard. A woman with blonde hair, she was wearing loose clothing and holding the man’s hand, walking along at his right side. However, the most prominent feature about her was her stomach. She appeared to be pregnant, not too far along, but enough to show a rather large bump.
Richard smiled and lowered the rifle. “They’re of no harm to us, Ra. At ease,” he said, adjusting his posture to a more relaxed state. He took a knee again and set his rifle on the ground at his right side. He smiled and reached out to pet Stripes again. “Who’s a good boy?”
Shh... don't wake her up.
