17Alpha

The unit moved hastily trough the desolate areas of city 17. Rundown buildings, old destruction from the seven hour war, aliens and other things went by far and large ignored.
None of those things were set targets in the reconnaissance mission. None.
The target was a group of people solely referred to as the human resistance. A group who went against the combine. Against the only truth, the unit quickly remarked to itself.
In the past two planetary revolutions, the unit didn't find any targets worthy of noting and following further. Merely old pattern humans which if discontent to the truth, were apparently loyal.

Movement!
The unit caught a hint of motion from the corner of it's eye's. Fast motion was not typical. The loyal did not run, the necrotic did not run and the headcrab units were too small to register such a large motion.
Follow!
The unit reached this conclusion in almost an instant. And soon, very soon, a caucasion, brown haired human male, just past the first half of his expected living level past her vision.
Most interestingly the human carried a firearm. very untypical behavior of loyal citizens.
The unit decided to begin monitoring. Not noticing the slight flicker of static as one of the circuits of her eye implant ceased to function.

Mechanicus Supreme

(ooc: I've added some Combine "official" species names for other races. Humanus Genicus is human obviously, see if you can guess what the other one is!)

As he watched the production line churning out the new batch of Hunters for the Overwatch, Mechanicus Supreme let his cogitators ponder on the future of this world that was the newest edition to the Empire of the Great Bio-Machine. The same would happen here as had many times before, on many different worlds. The Combine would conquer by force, assimilating any who surrender, exterminating those who resist. Then, once all the biomass had been stripped from the planet, the majority of the force would move on, leaving the planet as a Combine outpost. Such was the way of the Combine invasion forces.

Turning away from the production line, he headed towards his personal laboratories. The human, Breen, was not aware of this lab's existence, nor did he have the security level to access information about the shipments delivered to it. If he did, Mechanicus Supreme mused, he would be appalled at the so-called 'inhumane' acts that happened within these steel chambers. Mechanicus Supreme registered no remorse for these acts, as his experiments furthered the cause of the Great Bio-Machine. As he entered the labs, he was greeted by one of the attending Stalkers.
"Welcome, my lord," the thing said to him through vox-enhanced vocal chords. Mechanicus Supreme scanned the area, then replied
+++ARE THE EXPERIMENTS GOING TO PLAN?+++
"Yes my lord," said the Stalker, "The subjects are being coerced successfully."
+++WHAT OF THE MISSING SHIPMENT?+++
"We tracked it down, according to reports the train had been subverted by mercenaries. The specimens had escaped, but we found a sample of Xenthus Parasiticus Majoris in their place. We captured and dissected the specimen, to see if any of the mutations apparent in different races' physiology had occured on this planet yet."
+++SEND ME THE AUTOPSY REPORT ONCE WE ARE DONE.+++
"Yes, my lord."
+++NOW, HOW ARE OUR FIRST EXPERIMENTS FARING?+++
"Very well, my lord. The dissected specimens of Humanus Genicus have provided us with information on the species' evolutionary background, weaknesses and more. These files will provide us with the information needed to create the Mk2 TransHumanus soldiers." Mechanicus Supreme nodded, and moved further up the corridor.
+++WHAT OF THE SENSORY CHAMBER?+++
"Ah, the specimen is performing just as expected." They came to the sensory chamber. Looking in through the viewing window, they saw a human civilian, restrained in his chair, his eyes held open. Multicoloured flashes of light ignited all over the chamber in fast succession, and the air was filled with an infinitely modulating sine wave.
"This specimen is lasting slightly longer than the last. But it shows that the minds of the Humanus Genicus can be overwhelmed, so much so that the body shuts itself down, inevitably killing itself."
+++JUST AS I EXPECTED. LET US MOVE ON TO THE NEXT PHASE OF EXPERIMENTS.+++ With that, they moved on, heading deeper into the labs in the depths of the Citadel.

RP Conversation
Involving: Desekrator (LorgarForneus) and Ivan Zakharov (Deimenried)
Drafted: 20th Oct 2008 via IM


> Ivan continued his examination of the surrounding area. He felt like he had entered an alien territory; someone else's home, and not his. After meticulously searching the area for all geological landmarks and strategic points, he set off to return to the camp.
> The surrounding trees started crackling. Flashes of blue light and sparks of electricity appeared deeper in the forest. The air filled with a loud crack, and space seemed to distort within the forest.
> "What the hell..." Ivan whispered to himself.
"Did anyone else just hear that?" Grigori's voice crackled over the radio
"Another Portal Storm?" Sasha replied. "They are frequent here, from what I've been told." Ivan took his radio in his hand.
"That didn't sound like a Portal Storm... Grigori, I'll rendez-vu with you and we'll check it out.
Barely seconds later, Grigori replied. "Roger that."
>The storm abated, and the forest grew quiet. A rustling emanated from the forest, in the direction of the anomaly, as if something was approaching from that direction.
> "What's going on?" Ivan whispered, as the energy dissipated.
"Don't know." Grigori replied as Ivan joined him deep in the forest. "Seems to have been some serious disturbance," Suddenly, Grigori raised his weapon as a shape approched from the undergrowth, "What's that?"
> The rustling grew louder, as whatever was approaching got closer. It was merely seconds away now.
> "HALT! СТОП!" Grigori half-shouted, hoping that whatever it was could understand him.
> All of a sudden, a man burst out of the foliage. He looked at the Red Eagles, and said "Skygenne... Skyggene inne tomrommet!" and collapsed on the ground.
> Ivan and Grigori simply looked at each other, and gazed back at the strange man who had just collapsed in front of them.
"O....K...." Grigori muttered, "That was wierd."
"What did he say?" Ivan asked, lowering his gun.
"No idea... It wasn't Russian, or Ukranian, that's for sure..."
Ivan smiled, "Well, we'll have to see how talkative he is when we get him back to camp, eh?" Ivan shouldered his L85A2 and grabbed the unconcious man's ankles, "A little help?" Grigori shrugged and grabbed the man's arms. Together they carried him back to the camp, and layed him down by the campfire.
"Think he'll be alright?" Grigori whispered to Ivan as Andrei checked the newcomer over.
>Fading in and out of consciousness, Desekrator moaned. He had no idea where he was, or what had happened. The last thing he remembered was being sucked into a portal storm on the outskirts of Stavanger. Well, what used to be Stavanger. Hearing voices, he tried to hold still. Apparently, one of the voices came from someone checking over him. Hoping they hadn't taken his weapons, he bided his time,
trying to figure out what they were saying.
>"Some trauma..." Andrei muttered, "More than I've ever seen in the field, I might add..."
"Is he going to be alright?" Ivan replied, standing over them, arms folded. Grigori, Sasha and Valentina stood watching, eager to see who the newcomer was, and how he had come to these parts not speaking at least English.
"Eh," Andrei shrugged, "Time will tell, Ivan. Time will tell. Just give him some rest. See if he wakes up."
After much hanging back, everyone eventually returned to their labours. Andrei occasionally glancing in the newcomer's direction.
>Hearing the voices fade away, Desekrator opened an eye to scan his surroundings. He seemed to be in a militant camp. That's odd, he thought, I never came across any camps like this when I was in Norway. I'm definitely somewhere else... He slowly moved around, checking for his weapons and guitar. Seeing them opposite him, he sighed. Well, I best try to communicate with these people
, whoever they are.
>Andrei glanced back from unloading supplies from the Ural, and saw the newcomer moving around. He jogged over to Ivan, who was chatting to Grigori about the strategic value of their new camp.
"Some good spots." Ivan nodded, "There's a rather nice outcrop overlooking a railway line about 20 minutes out from he-"
"Hey, guys!" Andrei whispered as he jogged over to them, indicating the newcomer, who was now moving around. Ivan walked over to him. "Hello? Я Иван Захаров. Мы красный орел."
>Desekrator looked up. Sitting straight, he thought about the language the militant was talking to him. He recognised it, but he wasn't sure where from. "Hvem er du? Og der hvor er denne sted?" he replied, hoping they may know some Norwegian.
>"Что? uh, Вы говорите русского?" Ivan tried, shrugging.
>Aha! I know where I've heard it, Desekrator realised, It's Russian. I'll have to try a different tact. The guys are military, they must have at least a little working knowledge of English. Desekrator decided to try his luck. "Er... any of you guys know English?"
>"Pretty much all of us." Ivan laughed. "Practically a requirement of living out here. The Combine seem to have moved all the English-speakers here..."
>Desekrator shook his head "I should have tried it before..." He looked up at the militants, and gazed around the camp. "Who are you guys? And where is this place?"
>"We are the Red Eagles." Ivan began, indicating the rest of the group who had gathered around. "A mercenary group. We do work here-and-there. Whatever gets us enough to get by, and keep the Combine off our asses. As for where you are, we're not 100% ourselves. We too have just arrived here. Near City 17 is about as specific as I can get at this point..."
>Desekrator looked confused "City 17? What the hell is that?" He shook his head again, trying to remember what happened. "The last I remember was being caught in a portal storm off Stavanger..."
>"It's possible you could have changed location quite extremely.." Valentina chipped in, "What amazes me more is that you materialised at ground level. I've seen people teleported hundreds of feet in the air, even in solid roc-"
"Alright." Ivan interjected, "The bottom line is you are somewhere, I suspect, within Russia. City 17 is one of our last remaining cities. The Combine destroyed the rest... but I'm sure I don't need to tell you that."
>"Russia!?" Desekrator exclaimed, "Av odin's skjegg! How the hell did I get here?" He looked at the Red Eagles once more. "And what are these Combine you mentioned?"
>Ivan looked at his group, all of whom looked as bemused as him. "Where've you been? The Portal Storm years? The Seven Hours war?" No response from the newcomer, "How can you not know about those?"
Valentina mused for a couple of minutes, before asking; "Is it possible that Portals travel through space and time?"
"Let me put it this way, friend." Ivan's tone lowered, "The Combine are a scourge. They took our lands from us, and forced us to flee in shame. Do not be fooled by their appearance. They are far from human. Stay away fom the cities and you just might live long enough to see your first sunrise."
>Desekrator nodded, still slightly bewildered by all this new information. He stood up, and scratched his head. "Well, if you need an extra hand, I can offer my services. I owe you for letting me recover anyway." He moved over to retrieve his weapons.
>Ivan turned to the rest of his group. The majority of the responses were either shrugs or nods.
"Well," Ivan sighed, "we could always use another gun... and we've been meaning to expand... Alright." He managed finally, "For the time being you are an honourary Red Eagle." Ivan held his hand out to him. "And what might your name be, Merc?"
>Desekrator took his hand and shook it. "My name is Thor Fredrik Haugen, but you can call me Desekrator." He strapped his axe back to his waist, and retrieved his other weapons.
>"Alright then. I am Ivan, the group leader," Ivan turned to the rest of his group, "This is Andrei, Sasha, Valentina and Grigori." A the group displayed a mixture of waves and salutes. "Alright everybody. Back to work now!" The group wandered off to finish the final camp preparations.

"So... 'Desekrator'... what did you do before the Portal Storm hit?" Ivan asked, sitting by the camp fire.
>Desekrator smiled "I was a hunter and musician for ten years. before that, I was in the Norwegian military." Desekrator picked his guitar up and sat down with it, acoustically jamming some sweep solos as he talked with Ivan
>"You've travelled quite a way then. I was in the military too..." Ivan pondered, "We all were. We were called up to defend a rocket base from what we thought was an American invasion... We were wrong. The Combine attacked with swarms of their bio-mechanical war machines. We fought bravely, but we were outgunned and outnumbered. Many died before we finally fled into the forests. We didn't stop until we reached where our old camp was. We were in disgrace; abandoning the lines was the most cowardly, and yet hardest thing we ever did. Since then we've been searching for a way back; the way to White Forest. To right the wrongs of the past. To retake it, and redeem ourselves for our failing. Then, merely hours ago, we were ratted out by a Combine conspiritor. We were forced to flee again. A blessing in disguise." Ivan nodded, staring into the fire, "It brought us closer to White Forest, and yet so far. Nobody knows a safe route to it any more. And that is how we came to be here.."
>Desekrator nodded "Looks like you guys have come a long way too." He looked over and grinned "You wouldn't happen to have a guitar amp, would you?"
>Ivan smiled, shaking his head, "The only electronics you'll find here are military radios and shield generators. We know a Trader. He might be able to fix you up with something."
>Desekrator laughed "Nice one dude." He shredded again. "What's the plan for you guys now? And how can I help?"
>"For the moment we're sitting on our hands..." Ivan mused, fiddling with his L85A2. "We've been set up with a friend of our old Trader who claims he can get us work here in Sector 17. With any luck, you'll see your first Combine soldier. If you're unlucky, you'll see your first Strider."
>Desekrator just nodded. Putting his guitar back to one side, he pulled out his hunting rifle. "At least it'll give Psyklon something to kill if we do.Where should I store my stuff?"
>"The stores are as secure as anywhere." Ivan replied, indicating where Andrei was unloading the crates. "Not sure if we'll have any ammunition for that," he indicated Desekrator's rifle, "But any that is useful is yours. Most in there is AK or NATO ammunition..."
>"Don't worry, I'll find something..." Desekrator headed off in the direction of the stores, shouldering Psyklon once more.
>"Hey there." Andrei called, seeing Desekrator looking through some of the crates. "Need anything in particular?"
>"Just some ammo for a Mauser hunting rifle." Desekrator looked around, impressed by the amount of weaponry they had stored.
>"7.62mm, yes?" Andrei asked looking for a particular crate.
>"Yes, that's what I'm looking for. I need a box for Psyklon." Desekrator gave his rifle a pat
>"Okay... Here we are!" Andrei exclaimed, pulling a box of 7.62mm NATO rounds from a crate. "Never thought these would come in useful!"
>"Today's your lucky day." Desekrator smiled and thanked Andrei. He then walked off, to make sure his weapons were all in working order.
>Andrei checked his watch, and put his NV goggles on, testing them before turning them up, ready to take the night watch. The rest of the group had settled down by the fire, talking about the things they might find working in Sector 17....

Rowan Ophelia

Rowan paused on the outskirts of the Red Forest to look back at what had been her home. In the distance she could hear engines, gunfire and explosions. I think that has decided which way I'll go. She turned her back to the sounds and resolutely started to walk down the verge of a road prepared to hide herself in the hedge if anything was to come down the road. Gwen also turned briefly in the direction of the gunfire before meowing and trotting after Rowan.

After a couple of hours of walking down the road Rowan stopped to have a bite to eat. After finding a rock to sit on Rowan got out the food that she had packed before leaving. While she was eating her lunch Gwen went off into the hedgerow to hunt for her lunch. Rowan finished her lunch of berries and cold smoked venison and Gwen had not returned so Rowan got out her tarot cards. While she was studying the cards Gwen returned and rubbed herself up against Rowan's legs, absent-mindedly she reached down to stroke Gwen's head.

"Well Gwen, the cards suggest that we are going in the right direction plus they mention that we will gain travel that will take us to the forest guardians that were forced to leave. The cards also say that the guardians are searching for something important to them." After a pause Rowan added, "I'm glad that we'll get a lift, I'm not as fit as I thought I was." Gwen gave a small meow before starting to walk down the road again. "You're right Gwen, we should keep moving."

An hour after they had started walking again Gwen heard an engine coming from behind them. She meowed to Rowan and sat in front of Rowan. Once Rowan had stopped she could also hear the engine, after a brief look around them she decided to hide within the hedge to see whether the vehicle was there to help them or an agent of Death. As the vehicle got closer Rowan could see that it was friendly and belonged to a Trader that sometimes got her supplies like cheese and bread that she couldn't make for herself. She extracted herself from the hedge and stood beside the road waving her arms.

The driver started to brake as he thought she looks familiar, oh God it's that crazy old woman, what's she doing out here? By this point he had come to a halt. He leaned out of the window and called down to Rowan from the cab of his truck. "Hello, Rowan is it? What are you doing out here?"

Rowan smiled towards the friendly face of the Trader in his slightly battered truck that had seen him safely through much trouble. "Yeah, I'm Rowan, I'm on a journey to follow the group who used to live in the Red Forest. Can you give me a lift to wherever you are going?"

The Trader thought about this for a moment I have a spare seat, but do I want her conversation? But then again I'm not going much further. "Yeah you can have a lift, I'm going as far as the forest outside City 17 as I heard through the grapevine that some of my trade had recently relocated this area." As Rowan climbed up into the passenger's seat she replied to the Trader, "You are a dream come true I think that is where I need to be." Great I've got the crazy one whose on a mission. As he rolled his eyes in exasperation Gwen jumped up onto Rowan's lap before she shut the door.

Luckily for the Trader the journey passed in silence. As the night drew in they reached the outskirts of the forest. "Well we are nearly at our journey's end you are welcome to share my camp site tonight as I am assuming that you have no where to stay yet."

"Thank you for your kind offer but I prefer forests at night." As they came to a halt Rowan climbed down from the truck. "Thank you for the lift. If you ever need anything in return I'll be in the forest." As Rowan and her cat disappeared into the forest the Trader drove off to his final destination.

Rowan said with a smile, "Well Gwen lets explore this new forest." Gwen gave a happy smile and they both set off into the forest. After a short while they came across a clearing which had a camp set up within it. Rowan and Gwen went around the edge of the clearing, keeping to the shadows. They noticed that within the camp were the Guardians of the Red Forest as she recognised Andrei who was on night watch. Once they had gone deeper into the forest Rowan turned to Gwen, "That is one part of the mission completed. We just have to lead them to what they desire the most now." Gwen meowed in reply before bounding off into the shadows, Rowan took this moment to have a rest as she trusted Gwen to find a suitable home for them both.

After a short while Gwen came back to Rowan who was still awake looking at the stars above her. Gwen rubbed herself up against Rowan's legs and then motioned Rowan to follow her. Rowan followed Gwen to a cave system deep within the foliage, "Oh you clever cat" Rowan said smiling and stroking Gwen before heading towards the caves that were similar in dimension to their previous home. "This is perfect Gwen." Rowan said before she started to decorate the cave with the possessions she had brought with her.

David Landerson

The outcroppings along 'Freeman's' escape route proved themselves almost impossible to navigate as David attempted to follow him. After only a few minutes along the rooftop getaway track Dave heard gunfire ahead of him, likely aimed at the apparent Freeman.
As cautiously leant around the next corner Dave saw Freeman disappearing through a window in the side of the building ahead, amidst a hail of 9mm rounds from the pistols of the Civil Protection officers on the street below.
'****, he's gone now.'
As David stood he could feel himself being watched, and it wasn't the CPs; they'd have started shooting if they saw him. For a good thirty seconds he stood and searched the surroundings with his eyes but finding nothing, only stopping his search as a gunshot ricocheted off the roof tiles next to him.

Spinning to face the way the bullet had come he Dave spotted three Civil Protection officers heading along the roof towards him.
"****, ****, ****!" David exclaimed as he ran up the slanted roof and scrambled over the peak just as his eyes latched to what seemed to be a grey-clad female, but a moment later she was gone. The CPs, unfortunately, were not. David hurriedly slid down the roof and ran along the edge, chancing a fall, to reach the downpipe he had used to climb up onto this same roof not an hour ago.

As he scurried down the pipe he heard the Overwatch Announcement system's voice spreading news of a 'miscount' in the sector. The only question left in David's mind was whether the miscount was his absence or if it was the guy that was apparently Freeman. But this was shoved from his mind as he thought he caught a glimpse of the grey-clad woman again, this time she was on a rooftop above him for but a split second before disappearing.

Before he continued Dave checked the magazine in his USP and pulled his hood over his head to cover his face from scanners and, hopefully, the prying eyes of whoever that woman was.

17Alpha

"Code major eight nine four zet", the assassin intoned trough the operated mic in her throat. She required the traditional combine forces to stand down and let the target get to safety.
It was already paranoid enough, possibly even noticing her, "Disperse, target secured."
Maybe now, the target would calm down and proceed to it's staging area.
If not the target would be eliminated.
The assassin dropped further behind, making sure to be only seen when wanted to.

Ivan Zakharov and "Desekrator"

It was a clear morning at their new camp; cold and crisp. Winter was closing in, although the Combine's atmospheric meddling had somewhat skewed the atmospheric cycles to the point that precipitation in any form was exceptionally rare. In the past, there would be snow by this point in the year but now the ground was just cold and hard. It had been a strange night's rest; being so close to City 17 meant that the announcement systems were audible, carried over the breeze into the forest. It was strange to hear announcements other than those pertaining to the killing of the Red Eagles. Announcements of "Miscounts" were the morning's "hot topic" as the group sat around the camp-fire.
"What do you suppose it means?" Grigori asked, pausing from shovelling his canned rations into his mouth.
"Maybe there's some sort of intruder in the city?" Andrei offered, as his perimeter patrol brought him past the fire.
"Reason enough to stay away." Sasha sighed, "Leave them to whatever it is that's bothering them. The main thing is that something is bothering them."
Ivan raised his canteen, "I hear that! The more trouble for them the better." There was a brief silence before their radios burst to life with a rather flustered voice of Florian.
"Rise and shine, we've got work to do, Mercenaries. We haven't got a lot of time so listen up and listen well. A rebel camp is under attack by the Combine. Normally I don't really give a rat's *** when this happens, but they happen to be looking after a good client of mine; a scientist. If he lives, he may prove useful in your search. Head south from your camp for about half a kilometre. Follow the gunfire. Florian out."
Ivan scrambled for his provisions, "I was rather hoping for more warning than this!"
================
Grigori grabbed his RPK and a box of rounds, seeing Andrei getting kitted out. "You coming with?"
"Yeah, I wasn't even needed on watch last night." Andrei smiled, "It was about two hours before Florian's forest patrols relieved me of that post. Quite refreshing to get a good night's sleep for a change."
Grigori laughed, "Just don't go falling asleep on us out there!"
"Alright, alright let's go!!" Ivan shouted from the edge of the camp. The group quickly followed. It was late morning, and a chill was still in the air as they ran between the thick fir trunks. In the distance, the sounds of small arms fire echoed. They quickly left the forest and were out in the open. They were getting close; the fire was much louder, and interspersed with frantic shouting. As they crested the next hill they saw what was left of the rebel encampment. It was a small shanty-village forged from small crude wooden cabins and a wooden palisade. The camp was littered with burning shells of cars and rebel corpses were scattered. The group took position behind a cluster of large rocks on the hill crest overlooking the camp.
"Alright then, you two." Ivan smiled, turning to Val and Desekrator "Would you do the honours?"
Valentina and Desekrator took their rifles, "Gladly." Val replied smiling. Looking through the scope she could see a lot of destruction. Only a handful of the rebels were still alive, along with two fighters in all black with matching full-face gas masks who were fighting alongside a man in a protective suit, wielding a pistol whereas they bore black FN F2000s. On the southern outskirts of the camp were the corpses of a dozen Overwatch soldiers. Six still remained and were taking shelter behind an APC, laying down suppressing fire with the APC's mounted Pulse Autocannon. "Six tangos and an APC." she said, eye still to the scope.
"Alright." Ivan said, turning to the rest of the group, "Grigori, Sasha; you're with me. We're going to flank and take out the APC." He took his MM-1 from his back, putting three HE rounds into the carousel. "Andrei, you make sure they don't try the same thing." Andrei nodded, and Ivan began his advance with Sasha and Grigori in tow. The hillside was remarkably well covered; bushes and rocks were relatively abundant, and the Combine were too preoccupied with eliminating the remaining rebels to worry about a flanking manoeuvre. They stopped behind a bush 100m from the back of the APC. To the right of the APC, the Overwatch soldiers were keeping cover, occasionally firing around the front or over the top to add to the APC's suppressing fire. Ivan signalled Grigori to continue to the next patch of dense vegetation. Within seconds, Grigori had made it, and had set up his RPK in the bushes.
"I'm in position." he whispered on the radio.
"Roger." Ivan replied, "On my signal; mow down the bastards. Desek and Val; You take anyone out stupid enough to break cover."
"Roger." "Roger That." "Got it." They immediately replied.
Ivan took aim though the elevation sighting of the MM-1. "Go." Within a second of the signal, the bush across from Ivan lit up as Grigori's RPK pelted the sheltering Overwatch soldiers. It wasn't long before the other soldiers figured out where the fire was coming from. They turned to fire, back-pedalling to take shelter behind the front of the APC. As soon as one of the soldiers took a step out from the cover, his helmet practically exploded as Valentina put an SVD round straight through the side of its helmet, its body falling limp to the ground. The remaining soldiers began to panic, not knowing where to go. Ivan took his cue and put all three HE rounds into the back of the APC, which exploded in a shower of dirt and flaming metal, sending debris and Overwatch soldiers flying through the air in flames. One soldier remained, struggling to stand. It staggered backwards to have its head perforated with a Mauser bullet. "Clear. Everyone to the camp."

Slowly everyone made their way to the camp. As they neared the camp-fire, the man and his two protectors walked forward to meet them. Around them, the surviving rebels were identifying the bodies. Some wept, others simply stood silent.
"You must be Zakharov." The man held out his hand to Ivan. His voice seemed like a strange mix of Russian and German accents. "I am Nikolai Zaytsev; Professor Nikolai Zaytsev, if that still means something in these times." He paused, muttering "I like to hope so."
"Good to meet you, Professor." Ivan shook Professor Zaytsev's hand, looking at the two fighters beside him.
Zaytsev saw Ivan's gaze turn to his entourage "Oh, these are my personal guard. Johannes and the other is named "Cyrus", if he is to be believed..." The two guards removed their gas masks and lowered their hoods then proceeding to shake hands with Ivan. "They are rebels too, in a sense of the word. They have fought the rampaging Combine since the Seven Hours War, and are among the most experienced of those in the resistance. In fact they were students in my research group leading up to the War; Headstrong, but useful nonetheless."
Ivan nodded, "Florian told us that you might be able to help us find a way to White Forest."
"I owe you my life," Zaytsev replied, "And it is a common goal for us both. I have been working closely with the surviving scientists who have taken residence in and around City 17. We hope to get to White Forest ourselves. Unfortunately, I cannot tell you for what purpose. You understand, we cannot share such information so frivolously with every hired gun we meet."
"I can respect that," Ivan began, "Just so long as those reasons don't conflict with my own."
"I highly doubt that," Zaytsev replied, "But I shall keep that in mind, Ivan. Irrespective, I am sure that with your help we can chart a course through to White Forest safely."
"What's stopping us now?" Ivan shrugged.
"To put in in general sense, 'anomalies'." Professor Zaytsev paused briefly, trying to find a simple way of explaining the unique nature of Sector 17. "After the Combine came through the Portals, and established the chain of Citadels, they sealed them shut, putting an end to the 'Portal Storm Years'. Most sectors are quite ordinary as the Citadels suppressed the portal energy contained within the surrounding area to the point that the portal energy has dissipated completely, but Sector 17 is different. This is the Combine's seat of power, and as such they must maintain a way to communicate with and summon reinforcements from their home world. This means they have to open portals regularly."
"So how does that relate to the anomalies?" Ivan asked, feeling somewhat out of his depth; this was the kind of thing that he would not normally engage in conversation about, but in this case, it was imperative to the final search for White Forest.
"Quite simply, the anomalies are localised pockets of portal energy which manifest themselves in a variety of different ways, depending on the surrounding conditions. The presence of a stabilisation field means that a full release of that energy, referred to as a "portal storm" by the more uninformed, cannot occur."
"So it's just trapped?"
Zaytsev nodded, "To put it in simple terms, yes. The constant portal activity leaves a residual amount of energy, but the field prevents it from triggering a so-called 'portal storm'. Anyway, I think it would behove us all if we continued this conversation another day. Besides, there will be plenty of opportunities later if you accept my offer."
"And what might that be?"
"I am offering you and your band of militants a contract of sorts. I need to carry out my expeditions safely. Florian cannot spare any of his Woodland Guard to this end, and also you seek the same end as I."
Ivan glanced at Professor Zaytsev's bodyguards. "What about these two?"
Zaytsev merely laughed, "They are my research partners more than my bodyguards, and the rebels are not nearly professional enough to withstand a Combine attack. That is why I need you and your squad."
"How much?"
Zaytsev smiled. It was an inevitable question. "Your normal rate. I am offering you more or less permanent work, and the means to fulfil whatever desire draws you to White Forest. No catches."
Without even glancing back, he shook Professor Zaytsev's hand. "Deal."
"Very good." Zaytsev smiled back, "I will take my leave. Florian told me he will forward me your frequency. I will contact you soon; our work must begin very soon if we are to ever find White Forest."

Professor Zaytsev, and what few rebels remained, set out east along a dried-up riverbed to regroup at the next encampment.
"You really think he has all the answers?" Grigori asked, watching after the Professor's group.
Ivan sighed, "I hope so..."

Thor Fredrik "Desekrator" Haugen


Desekrator looked around his surroundings. He gazed upwards at the great monolithic structures surrounding him, at the white sky with it's burning black sun. The buildings had odd, unnatural angles, yet reached straight towards the sky, like some great beast clawing futilely at the unforgiving cosmos. Desekrator gazed around him, and followed the black sun's light, heading towards the center of the great, nameless city. It was then that he saw it.

A great obelisk, it stood taller than any other building, unnerving him with it's non-Euclidean geometry. It seemed to exude it's own hellish light, yet it was shrouded by a great veil of darkness. As Desekrator headed toward the cyclopean structure, he started to sense a low growl being emitted from the great obelisk. Perceiving rather than hearing it, the voice spoke in a strange, alien language, if it could even be called a voice. It pervaded Desekrator's skull, repeating the same message;
"Kth'lyk Sss'hyth'taa Ekh'fthgh Khr'zykth"

As he got closer, the growl got louder and louder. He fell to his knees, clutching his head in agony. He let out a pained scream.

Desekrator woke up at the Red Eagles encampment, frantically looking about, holding his axe in his hand. Seeing no one around, he sighed and wiped the sweat from his forehead. He got up, and headed off to find Ivan, to discuss what was next in his plan. The whole time, he was thinking of his odd nightmare, and what it could portend.

RP Conversation
Involving: Ivan Zakhaov (Deimenried) and Desekrator (LorgarForneus)
Drafted: 14th Nov 2008 via IM

> Ivan stood at the edge of the forest, gazing through his binoculars down into City 17. The skies were full of Scanners and helicopter-gunships. He heard someone approach and glanced back to see Desekrator. "Hey. Woah, you look like you've seen a ghost!"
> Desekrator shook his head "It's nothing. Personal daemons I haven't figured out yet." He gestured at the binoculars. "Making plans?"
> Ivan shook his head and returned to his observations. "Still have to wait for that egghead to call back with some work. Mostly looking for what could be making the Combine so edgy. I've never seen that many Scanners in one place..."
> "Hmm... I take it that's unusual then." Desekrator was still getting used to these Combine things. For the minute, he put it out of his head. He was more concerned about other things. "Are you sure you can trust that scientist guy? And all this about anomalies... I have an odd feeling about it..."
> "As long as he pays I couldn't care less about anomalies..." He paused, thinking about the reason they had been drawn here. "But then again, those anomalies stand in the way of our goal."
> "White Forest?" Desekrator was still unsure of this whole dilemma, but planned to quiz the scientist later, by himself.
> "Yeah," Ivan replied distantly. Ivan half-jumped, and fumbled in his pouches before retrieving the PDA Zaytsev had given him. After a quick read Ivan turned to Desekrator. "Looks like our wait is over!" And with that, he made his way back to the camp.
> Desekrator followed, still not liking the way this was going. If he tries anything... He knew the scientist wouldn't, of course. But it was his field of expertise, rather than the guy himself, which made Desekrator feel uncomfortable.
> Ivan gathered the group and led them to a remote cabin on the shores of a dried up lake. The landscape was rugged, but heavily vegetated and overgrown with harsh plant life and the hardiest of trees. Ivan led the group to the door, knocking gently. One of Zaytsev's bodyguards emerged, F2000 in hand. Without saying a word, he glanced at the group before checking the surroundings. With a nod, he stepped aside and beckoned the group inside the cabin. It was Spartan within, with only a table, some chairs and a chest of drawers. Standing before one of the partially boarded-up windows stood Professor Zaytsev.
He turned to the group, "You got my message? Good. It is imperative that we begin this expedition as soon as possible."
"Hold up." Ivan said, holding up his hand. "What kind of expedition."
Zakharov paused, nodding; "We need to better map the anomalies. Fortunately we have found an area which we believe to be clear.. or at least we suspect to be clear... Some people still live in the forests, quite safe from the combine thanks to these anomalies It is such people from which we got this information "
> Desekrator immediately felt uncomfortable. He studied the scientist's face, trying to determine his feelings. he couldn't tell, as the scientist had a complete poker-face. I'm keeping an eye on you, Mr Scientist Desekrator thought to himself, and listened to what this expedition entailed.
> Professor Zaytsev caught Desekrator's stare before glancing back to the rest of the group. "I am sure that you are aware we are operating under dangerous conditions, so we must exercise extreme caution! There is still too much we do not yet fully understand about these anomalies Stay together, and whatever you do, do not wander too close to an anomaly! Some appear to have objects within, and many have died with the belief they could retrieve them. Do not make that mistake. Wait outside while we perform some calibrations and finalise our route. We will be with you soon." As soon as he finished, the bodyguard opened the door again. The group filed out, and the door was shut behind them.
"I don't like the sound of this..." Valentina muttered.
Ivan put his hand on her shoulder, "Just remember; every step he leads us, he leads us closer to our salvation." He paused, taking a deep breath, "I don't trust him either. Too cryptic."
> Desekrator shook his head, thinking about the task to follow. "It sounds like he's up to something. And I don't like the sound of these portals, either." Desekrator had a flashback of his nightmare, and rubbed his forehead with his hand. "I just don't think that any good can come of this."
> Ivan looked over to Desekrator. "Hey, you alright?"
> Desekrator looked up. "Yeah, I just think this is a bad idea, that's all." He didn't want to say anything about his nightmare, lest they all think him as crazy as the scientist. He didn't know why this nightmare was affecting him so much. He decided to figure that out later. For the time being, he was worried about the portals.
> Before Ivan could answer, Zaytsev and his associates emerged from the cabin. Zaytsev was now dressed in a hazardous environment suit, the black visor masking his face. When he spoke, most of the sound came through the radios. "Is everyone ready? Good. I need you on this expedition in particular, as the area we are attempting to map is reputed to be Combine territory." Valentina and Ivan looked at each other. "But then again, great discovery does not come without great risks! Off we go then!" With that, Zaytsev and his two bodyguards set off along the lake. "Come on!".
"This guy's a nut case." Ivan muttered passing Desekrator.
>Desekrator just nodded "I told you..." He shook his head and followed the scientist, unshouldering Psyklon.
> The journey took around an hour before Zaytsev stopped, turning to his associates.
"Alright, detectors on. Let's see what we can find here." Zaytsev muttered. He turned to Ivan. "Alright then. Stay alert, and don't stare into any anomalies.." Zaytsev's voice turned dark, "You don't want to know what happened to the last poor bastard who looked into the Shadowspace...."
> Desekrator could feel the anomalies pulling at his consciousness. He tried to clear his head, and concentrated on his orders. He looked over to Ivan, to gauge his reaction.
> Ivan merely looked blankly at Zaytsev as if in disbelief. They entered another forest, advancing much slower than before. Zaytsev's team was examining their surroundings as they walked, checking their readings. Valentina tapped Ivan on the shoulder, indicating a car with a perfectly hemispherical section taken away from its bodywork. Zaytsev saw their glance. "Fantastic aren't they?" He said walking up to them as the others stopped to look. "That is by far the most common portal anomaly we have catalogued during our research. A simple portal; An origin and a destination. Naturally formed ones usually change destination about every week or so as there is no directing force." Zaytsev saw Andrei look away, and laughed, "Do not worry. The Shadowspace, as it is called, is only visible in portals with no destination; An origin with no destination. These are very much benign!" He paused a while, taking some readings before leading on.
> Desekrator looked over at the car, and shuddered. He still distrusted this scientist, and he felt as if he could feel things watching them. He couldn't explain it, but he felt as if the anomalies themselves were watching them.
> "This blows..." Valentina whispered to Ivan, making sure Zaytsev didn't hear. "No Combine to fight."
"Easy money though," Ivan whispered back smiling. "We're set for life."
"Yeah, but I'd rather die fighting than in some weird... ball-of-physics-gone-wrong!" Suddenly Zaytsev stopped, signalling everyone to immediately halt.
"****... " He muttered, "The readings are all over the place!" In the air around them there was a humming sound. Zaytsev took out a small steel bolt from his pocket and cast it forward. The bolt had barely made it 20 metres from them before electricity arced seemingly out of thin air, striking the bolt. Looking around, his gaze finally rested above. When Ivan looked there were overhead power lines. Through the trees to the left and right, he could just make out two pylons. "Vampires..." Zaytsev muttered. He saw quizzical looks from the Red Eagles, "Portal anomalies that use whatever energy they can find at the origin or destination instead of the relay point. Whatever energy there is; Thermal, electrical... even nuclear fission in rare cases... In any case, we need to find another way around..."
>Desekrator looked up "Follow the left hand path around it."
> Zaytsev looked at him, one eyebrow raised. "What?"
Cyrus wandered over to the left of the path. "No he's right, the PEP reading down here is normal. Looks all clear." He looked up at Zaytsev who looked even more confused than before.
>Desekrator just shrugged. He had absolutely no idea how he had known that, and felt just as confused as Zaytsev looked.
>Cyrus shrugged. "Gift or curse?" He muttered, advancing down the path. Zaytsev and Johannes followed.
"Okay, that was weird.." Grigori muttered just a bit too loud as the rest followed. The path was narrow, and the advance even more cautious than before. They passed many of the "benign" portal anomalies they had passed before.
"I don't care what he says." Valentina whispered to Ivan. "They don't look so benign to me."

A flash of light caught Ivan's eye. There was a shimmering sphere spanning the path before them; eerie, almost spectral. Zaytsev signalled the group to stop again. "I really hoped we wouldn't cross one of these bastards..."
"What is it?" Sasha asked nervously.
"A 'Crusher'." He stared at the sphere and again at his detector. "Two portals that are overlapping with conflicting destinations. As for its namesake? You walk into one of those and you will be compressed as you attempt to cross two event horizons. Nothing remains of you except a small sphere of super-dense matter about a centimetre across...."
>Desekrator listened, and rubbed his forehead in frustration. Why me the thought to himself. He was already sick of these anomalies. All of a sudden, he heard a voice behind him. he turned around, and it it vanished. Looking confused, he turned back to the crusher, eager to see how this scientist would get past. He put the voice out of his head for the time being, but he would investigate later.
>"Anyone else getting a headache?" Valentina asked, her head in her hands. Zaytsev and his colleagues glanced at each other. They know something... Ivan thought.
"Yeah... " Ivan replied, giving Zaytsev an expectant look. At first he was just pretending, but suddenly his head began to hurt. Zaytsev said nothing, and led the group around the Crusher and onward. "Bastard he knows someth-" He muttered before he heard a voice; deep and monotonous Иван.... It sounded as if it came from in his own head. He looked around to see if anyone else heard it, but most were just looking around idly following the scientists.
>Desekrator looked over at Ivan. He seemed troubled, so Desekrator kept his eye on him as he followed the scientist and his team.
>The group continued down the path, passing more Crushers and portals. Suddenly he heard the voice in his head, much louder than before. Путь закрыт... Barely a second after the voice disappeared Zaytsev stopped the group again.
"Dammit... More Vampires..." He muttered. Ahead there was a line of burnt stumps and charred bones spread across the path and deep into the forest either side. "No way through..." Путь закрыт. Zaytsev's voice almost syncronised with the one in Ivan's head.
>Desekrator looked around, still keeping one eye on Ivan. He sensed something building up, and kept himself cautious. He wasn't sure what it was, but he knew he'd find out soon enough. "Doctor, check your scanner again."
>"Why? I don't see..." Zaytsev paused as he looked at his detector. "What the hell..." Ivan's headache grew worse. Soon all sounds were becoming indistinct. "There's some sort of psi-emission building up, but I can't pinpoint the Source. Ivan? Ivan! What's wrong? IVAN!" Soon he could hear nothing; nothing but the voice. Иван Заха́ров... Путь к белой пуще закрыт... Поверните назад прежде чем оно слишком последне... Ivan stared past the charred remains. Suddenly as if he was moving, flying over the forest past the anomalies Then he saw it; He saw White Forest. He felt as if he was standing before it, the burning shells of armoured vehicles surrounded him. The sky was a piercing crimson with black clouds forming on the horizon. He looked around but saw nobody. He took a step forward, pausing as he heard a crunch beneath his foot. He looked down to see he had stepped on the arm of a skeleton laid on the ground beside him, its bones blackened and brittle. Beside it lay an L85A2, foregrip slightly melted and scope covered in soot. He shrugged off the ill feeling in his stomach and continued to walk towards the base. He approached the main gate on the tarmac road, pausing as he saw another two L85A2's on the ground. No corpses were around, but next to each rifle was a small black sphere. He attempted to pick up one of them but it weighed too much. What is this? he thought to himself. Белая пуща. the voice replied. Ничего для вас здесь но смерти.. A chill ran down his spine. He looked up at the sky, something catching his eye on one of the the trees. He moved closer to see what it was. He stopped as he saw it was a woman's body impaled on a broken branch limb. At the foot of the tree was an anomaly he had never seen before. He moved closer, careful not to meet the same fate. He looked to see her face. His stomach turned as he saw Valentina's vacant eyes staring back at him, blood still dripping from her open mouth. He heard her screams inside his head before the voice returned. Ничего для вас здесь но смерти. Ivan shook his head, his mouth agape as he walked backwards away from the tree. Для вас и ваших друзей. Suddenly he stopped as he was jolted by a small electric shock. He turned to see the body of Zaytsev's assistant Cyrus slumped against a tree, smoke rising from his corpse and blood around his mouth. Suddenly, Cyrus's vacant stare twisted into a smile. "Ivan Zakharov." he said in the strange voice. Cyrus slowly stood and walked up to Ivan until he was practically toe-to-toe with him. A twisted smile came across his face as his eyes bore into Ivan. Welcome to White Forest
> Desekrator stood back, knowing the vacant look on Ivan's eyes as one of a person within his own world. "Stand back, he'll be fine. He has to find his own way out."
> Ivan turned to run, but something stopped him. He saw a figure in the road, walking slowly towards him. As he got closer he could see he was dressed immaculately, wearing a blue suit and carrying a thin black briefcase. He stopped a metre from Ivan.
"Mister Zakharov" he said in a deep, yet oddly soothing voice. "We meet at last." Then there was only darkness.
> Desekrator held the others back, and waited for Ivan to come to. "He's still breathing... give him room."
> Through the darkness, Ivan heard Valentina's voice.. "Ivan... Ivan!" Slowly the world came into focus, He saw Zaytsev, Desekrator and Valentina looking down at him.
"Whatever caused that isn't showing up on the detectors..." Zaytsev whispered over his shoulder to Johannes.
"Perhaps it is 'psi-radiation'?" He replied.
"Please, Johannes. That's just an unsubstantiated theory peddled by half-wit post-docs who spend more time in a pool of their own drink-induced vomit than in a lab coa.. Ah! You're awake."
Ivan groaned as he sat up. "What happened?"
> Desekrator helped Ivan up. "All we saw was you go over, and into a weird meditative state of some sort." He looked over at Zaytsev "Are you sure nothing appeared on the scanner?"
> Zaytsev shook his head. "I can't figure it out. Let me try something..." He took out another detector attachment and replaced the standard. "Now let's see if those idiots are right... retune the threshold... ah!" He fiddled with the detector, "I don't believe it... they were right... I'm reading over 250 PsE/min here... "
>Desekrator just glanced over, and turned back to Ivan. "You alright?"
> Ivan nodded. "Yeah I'll be fine... still got a headache though..."
"We should get out of here immediately..." Zaytsev muttered. "It seems another psi-emission is building... Larger than the last one. If we stay we'll all get fried." Zaytsev led the group quickly back the way they came.
"What the hell is causing it?!" Sasha asked.
"I have no idea." Zaytsev replied. They stopped at the edge of the forest. "Alright. We're safe at this distance. We should call this off for now. I think we've got enough new discoveries for one day..."
> Desekrator sighed in relief. "Back to base camp?"
> "Yes, you should all get some rest." Zaytsev said, putting away his detectors. "There's no telling the effects of prolonged exposure to psi-radiation. We'll contact you when we need your services again." And with that they departed, leaving the Red Eagles somewhat confused.
"What? That's it?" Andrei snorted, "Prolonged exposure to particles with unknown effects and they just wander off?"
"Why weren't they affected?" Valentina asked.
"Something doesn't add up." Ivan muttered. "I hope we find out before it's too late..."
Slowly the group returned to their camp to mull over the events of the day.

David Landerson

It was the tingling in his spine that gave her away. He knew she was still watching even if he hadn't seen her for the last couple of blocks;
'She knows I know...'
With the thought in mind Dave tried to return himself to a calm and composed state, and, on the outside at least, he succeeded. He stopped himself looking about and pulled his hood from his head.
'Come out and play...' he mentally taunted the woman as he made his way down into one of the canals that criss-crossed C17.

"Hey you!"
The voice startle him and David came within a millisecond of putting a bullet into the middle-aged woman that was crouched in the entrance of a tunnel to the right of him.
"Don't shoot!" she covered her face with her arms as if they would stop a bullet.
"Sorry. You startled me." Dave replied calmly as he lowered his gun, "What're you doing here?"
"Keeping watch for the underground, we're trying to move people out of the city."
"And whose smart idea was it to start on the day when the Combine have got something serious up their arses?"
"Well, that has sort of cut into our plan..." she paused, "But you must hurry on, I have to stay here to help any more people out that I can. You should be able to find your way, just follow the Lambda symbols."
With a nod and a muttered thanks David took off around the corner and kept running close to the wall of the canal, his mind constantly wanting him to look around but at the same time knowing if he did then she would know he knew she was still there...
'If I can't lose her in these canals and the sewers then I can't lose her anywhere... And I have a feeling that means I'll be dead.' his thought process stopped for a moment before a frantic thought burst into his mind, 'Who the **** is she?!'