Half-Life 1. CP Cleansing

**Well, since three of the five people who voted decided on this story, I figured that I'd write this one first. Most of the chapters will be longer, so updates will not be as frequent as they were for A Means of an End. But, I'm betting that you'll think that they're a hell of a lot better. **

**Each chapter of this story will be a one day of the revolution that Gordon and Alyx missed. The story will mainly be focused around Barney and what I think his leadership would be like.**

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Day One

"Where are they doc?" Barney asked as he anxiously stared at the teleporter platform, waiting any moment for Gordon and Alyx to appear.

"I don't know. According to my calculations, the teleporter should have already activated on their end." Doctor Kliener turned away from the console overlooking the teleporter and said, "It's quite possible that the Combine made a push for them."

"No doubt that they did." Barney said as he looked up at Kliener. "But unless they had an entire battalion of troops, I can tell you that Gordon and Alyx would have made it out." Barney stroked his chin in thought before saying, "I'll bet they were sent somewhere else by mistake, teleporters being what they are."

"Yes that would be a logical explanation." Doctor Kliener said slowly, his mind considering the possibilities.

The two made their way out of Doctor Kliener's teleport room and toward the entrance to the doc's lab. Barney was about to say goodbye to Kliener when a message could be heard on the COM system over by the cluster of security monitors.

"……_.Sierra Base calling Alpha, please respond. I repeat, this is Fred at Sierra Base calling Alpha."_

Barney quickly moved over to the monitors and changed the frequency on the COM system to match the central screen. An image of a rebel soldier in his early thirties filled the screen. "This is Barney, go ahead."

"You won't believe this Barney but all of our rebel stations are being swarmed with citizen volunteers! Apparently, Nova Prospekt has been wiped off the map, and people figure that now's the time to take it to the Combine."

_Good work Gordon_, Barney thought with a smile. Looking at Fred he said, "That must be the best news I've heard in a while. Alright, send word out to every rebel station. Break out the weapons caches and arm as many people as we can. We'll make a push for the heart of the Combine centre." Barney looked at a map of the city before he said, "Alright, get every base in your sector to get ready to push down from the North. Then relay orders to Echo, Lima, and Zulu; tell them to do the same for their area and head toward the Citadel. We'll start the assault in one hour."

Fred's pupils dilated at Barney's orders, "You want to make a push for the citadel, are you crazy!"

"No." Barney said with a smile before explaining, "We'll advance on the Combine like a web. If we get enough people pushing toward the citadel from every direction, they'll be overwhelmed. We'll push them back into the citadel and keep them contained there."

"Alright, we'll send people out in groups of a minimum of three squads. Sound good?" Fred asked as he loaded a clip into his SMG.

"Perfect, good luck."

"Same to you." Fred responded before cutting the channel

"Alright Doc, I'll need you to stay here." Barney said, turning away from the screen and picking up a Pulse Rifle. "We can use this area for a re-supply point, and it would help if you could arm any citizens who come along."

"I'll be on the look-out. There is a cache around here that I can use to supply any wanderers."

"Alright, thanks doc." Barney said, moving forward to shake Kliener's hand. Barney quickly moved toward the keypad, punched in the correct numbers, and ran out of Kliener's Lab to the apartment complex above.

Taking the lift to the top of a building, Barney moved onto the rooftops. He slowly walked around the edges of the brick buildings, wary of the large drop below. Barney looked down at the dirty streets to see that Civil Protection forces were growing increasingly more active. Barricades were being placed in the streets, APCs were patrolling the roads, and the CPs themselves were running to locations, their comlinks rattling off information.

_They know_. Barney thought with a grim feeling as he continued to watch the police forces move, _but how_. He pushed the thought aside as he stood up and continued moving toward Station Echo. If the assault was going to be a success than he would have to hurry, there wasn't much time.

With that thought in mind Barney redoubled his pace, from a spectator's view his boots didn't seem to be anything but a blur as he ran atop the rooftops of crumbling architecture.

It took nearly thirty minutes of scrambling over rooftops, getting into apartments, and avoiding CPs before Barney finally arrived at Echo Station. The resistance had converted several apartment buildings into temporary safe-houses in City 17. They were usually stock-piled with munitions, maps, and equipment that had yet to be smuggled else-where.

As Barney looked around the relatively large apartment room, he could see that this place was no different. The adjoining rooms of the building had been converted into living quarters for the rebels. Couches and mattresses were used as temporary barrack accommodations, though they were far from comfortable. But in all the times that Barney had been here, he had never seen the place so full.

Citizens filled every square centimetre of space, the experienced resistance members were scrambling to find weapons caches. They opened the tops of large boxes and handed out weapons and ammo to every person. Citizens lined up as semi-automatic machine guns, pistols, shotguns, and Pulse Rifles were handed down the line. The weapons were passed back quickly while a few resistance members gave operating instructions to those who needed it.

Barney looked out at the scene in awe; he hadn't really realized how long he had been waiting for this day. Barney could see a command room up ahead so he slowly made his way toward the area. As he got closer, he could see a few rebels going through maps and discussing different tactics. "John!" Barney shouted when he saw Echo's commander, "How's it goin'?"

John turned away from the COM system with a smile and said, "Great! Every other hide-out in the area is distributing weapons and medkits to the volunteers. We'll be ready to head out in ten minutes."

Barney thought of the CPs and asked, "Is Diego still undercover?"

John thought for a minute, his eyes scanning back and forth as if he were searching his brain for an answer. "Yeah, I think he still is."

Barney nodded, "Patch me through to him."

John changed the frequency of the radio, and whispered "Diego, this is Resistance Station Echo, come in."

"I'm here." A hushed voice responded with the coldness associated with the voice modifications of Metro-Cop helmets.

"Diego, this is Barney. Do the CPs know about our plans?"

"I don't think so." Diego responded slowly, as if in thought. "But we've all been alerted to prepare for rebel incursions. I think they plan on an attack, but they're definitely not anticipating the scale." Diego cut himself short and said, "Listen I gotta go, I'll meet up with the nearest squad I find, out." There was a click as the transmission ended.

"Get everyone ready John." Barney said as he primed his Pulse Rifle.

"Right." John said before turning to face the other rebels in room. "Mendez, I want those citizens armed right now! We're moving out!"

Mendez nodded before getting into the apartment corridor and shouting, "Get these people armed. Move, move, move!"

The additional motivation from Mendez allowed the weapon distributors to arm everyone in just under two minutes. Barney and John moved out into the hallway when everyone reported ready. The citizen militia were now armed with everything from pistols to AR 2s. They stood in double-file formation, waiting for their orders.

Barney and John moved to the end of the hallway, with everyone's eyes facing them. Barney looked at them as he spoke, "For too long we've been cast aside, forced to endure painful lives. And it's not just the Combine, or Breen, I'm talking about. I mean the CPs! Those fools, who spread a disease called 'security!'" Barney's words had the desired effect, anger flashed in the citizen's eyes as they remembered the pain that the Metro-Cops had forced onto them.

Barney loaded his rifle as he continued, "The best way to rid ourselves of these criminals and traitors, is a bullet!" Barney shouted out his statement as he pulled out his pistol. "That's the best way to cure ourselves of these idiots!"

The Citizens cheered, loaded their weapons, and ran out of the apartment as Barney shouted, "Three squads to a group! Let's go, let's go, let's go!" Twenty five citizens followed Barney as he headed in one direction. He turned to the citizens and shouted, "Weapons hot, we're going in."

His citizen followers checked their rifles as they stormed through the alleyways and the other winding passages of the city. Traditional squad tactics were replaced with all out assault. The citizens emerged near, what Barney guessed, to be a CP resupply depot.

Armed Metro-Cops ran with weapons as they set themselves up for an engagement. Small barricades were placed to allow Civil Protection units to take cover when under fire. A burst of pulse fire cut Barney's observations short, the rest of his group tucked behind abandoned cars as a CP fired at them from above with a mounted turret.

"Damn!" Barney hissed as the glass above his prone form was riddled with pulse capsules. He looked at the rest of his group and shouted, "I'll take out the turret. Once I've got it secured, advance on the CP depot. I'll cover you from above."

The citizens nodded in acknowledgement as Barney crawled to the base of the building where the turret was keeping its steady rate of fire. A locked door was the only means of an entrance, but Barney quickly removed that obstacle by kicking the door down. Inside, the building's only main features were two rooms and a staircase. Barney quickly took out his Pulse Rifle and slowly advanced up the tightly turning stairway to his target.

Barney approached the door on the top level. Every step he took brought him closer to the hammering sound of a turret on full auto. It didn't take many more steps for him to see a CP operating a mounted Pulse Rifle, belts of pulse capsule rounds were being fed into the gun as it kept up its high rate of fire.

Acting fast, Barney kicked the door in the rest of the way as he charged the Metro-Cop. The traitor had little time to do anything more than turn his helmeted head in surprise before Barney brought the butt of his AR 2 crashing down on the cop's face. While the CP grunted and writhed in pain, Barney quickly shouldered his rifle and fired a burst into the incapacitated CP, ending his life.

Barney slung his AR 2 over his shoulder while he disengaged the Combine turret from the railings of the balcony. As soon as the gun's magnetic locks disengaged from the railing Barney shouted down at the citizens, "Its all clear. Move it up!"

The militia gave a shout of approval as they crouched behind the cars and fired at any CP units they could see. Bullets and pulse capsules tore into the unsuspecting CPs, radio chatter became frantic as the cops tried to figure out where the enemy was shooting them from.

As soon as the magnetic-lock on the Combine turret engaged on the opposite side of the balcony railing, Barney let loose a volley of fire into the Combine forces. The Metro-Cops had just started to protect themselves from the firing citizens and, consequently, most of their bodies were left exposed to Barney as he unleashed a storm of fire into their midst.

An APC became Barney's priority target as Metro-Cops ran toward the vehicle to try and start it up. Good marksmanship ensured that the Combine never reached their objective. Citizen militia were advancing at this point, as the number of CPs rapidly declined.

It took the remaining hour left in the day for Barney's group to secure the Combine depot. It was quickly marked as a fallback position if things went sour. And, judging from the fact that CP units had been reporting their positions while being under fire, it wouldn't take the Combine long to figure our that a full-scale revolt was in progress.

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**Well, how was it?! Please make a review and let me know!**


	2. Overwatch Insertion

**Wow, I was amazed to come back from my brother's house yesterday. I log on and BOOM, four reviews. Thanks to Still Bullet, Vypress, VertigoPilot, and The Shadow Syndicate for the reviews. Oh and Vypress I corrected the mistakes you metioned, thanks for pointing them out. And thanks to Still Bullet, glad to know you're liking the story so far. Oh and I wanted to thank you Still BUllet, for the advertising you gave me in chapter three of your Resonance Cascade fic, much obliged. Oh and thanks again Still Bullet for...don't worry I'll think of somethin'...**

**And just so everyone knows, John was not a refrence to anything. Nothing...at all. It was just the first name I thought of when I was making the first chapter. Though, The Shadow Syndicate was right about Mendez being a reference to Halo.**

**OH and I bet some of you were looking at the title and thinking, "My God, a fanfic by Spartan-IV that doesn't start with the letter A. "**

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Day Two

Barney and his group rested at the Combine depot, APCs were lined up in rows inside the fortified structure. There was also a small armoury, pulse rifles and SMGs were placed on easily accessible shelves. The citizens had slept in shifts over the night, though strangely enough, the Combine hadn't made a push to retake the depot. Barney took this as a good sign, if all had gone according to plan then most, if not all, of the Metro-Cops would've been completely overwhelmed in the first day.

"_Barney come in, this is John." _

Barney's radio crackled from the belt of his CP uniform. Pulling out the small device, he clicked a switch and replied, "This is Barney, go ahead."

"_We're pinned down by CPs over here!"_ John shouted, the sounds of bullets and pulse fire echoing in the background. _"It looks like most of them have retreated to this area, they've built a serious defence. It's blocking off a major route into City 17, if we can't push past them we won't be able to assist you."_

"Understood, what's your location?"

There was a short pause where John could be heard yelling, _"Head for cover!"_ Pulse capsule discharges could be heard roaring in the background as John returned, _"I'd say we're about 600 metres to the east of the train station."_

"Acknowledged. We're only 400 metres away from you, stand by."

"_We won't be going anywhere for a while."_ John replied dryly before cutting the channel.

Barney quickly stood up, grabbed his Pulse Rifle and motioned for the other rebels to follow him. The three squads fell into step behind him as he sprinted toward John's location.

It took seven minutes before Barney could hear the sounds of weapons fire, and another five minutes before he could actually see the CP blockade. Looking down from a collapsing apartment building, Barney could see that large, dark gray metal walls had been placed at onto a roadway. The walls reached a length of ten feet, and even from this distance, Barney could see the Metro-Cops firing from the top of the wall.

What prevented the rebels from storming the gateway, however, weren't the cops on the wall but the turrets that were mounted near the gate. An extension had been designed, it featured metal bars being added to create a large rectangular cage. The sides were protected with welded metal plates, as was the front, to an extent. The plates were positioned to make room for both Combine turrets and their operators. The front also featured a wide metal bar that was ideal for turret emplacement. And that's exactly what the Metro-Cops were using it for.

A total of six turrets dominated the landscape, and they created an overlapping field of fire that prevented anyone from storming the barricade. Barney studied the fortress from his elevated position in what was left of the building they were occupying. A frontal assault was clearly out of the question. But as Barney looked at the adjoining rooftops he saw that there was another way to approach this.

Barney pointed to two squads, looked at the other rooftops and brought his forearm toward the target location in a quick up and down movement, a signal to move out in that direction. The remaining squad looked at Barney as he whispered, "Stay close and quiet."

The militia forces nodded as they followed him onto the gently sloping roof of an abandoned building. The citizen troops proceeded to run in single-file, their strapped gear would have alerted the CPs below if the turrets weren't firing on full auto. As soon as Barney stopped and turned to face the CP barricade, his squad did the same. The citizens brought their weapons bearing down on the CPs operating the turrets below as Barney pulled out his radio, "John?"

"I'm here, where the hell are you!"

"I want you to storm the Metro-Cop's barricade on my command." Barney cut the channel before John could form an answer.

Barney shouldered his Pulse Rifle and immediately fired a burst into the closest CP. As if that were a signal, the rest of Barney's group opened fire on the CPs clustered in the cage. Since the Metro-Cops hadn't bothered to protect the cage from an aerial assault, the combined rebel fire quickly tore apart the defenceless Combine troops.

While the unexpected barrage confused the cops who were on the wall, it didn't take them long to realize that they were being fired on from above. Four rebels fell from the rooftops with a scream as 9mm bullets impacted into their flesh.

Barney quickly pulled out his radio and shouted, "Now!"

A few seconds after the command had been given, John's group sprinted toward the CP barricade, weapons firing as they let out war cries. The Combine forces on the wall had stood up to allow better fire of Barney's rebels, such an action left them exposed to John and his group from below as bullets impacted into armour and flesh.

Combine radio chatter turned into a frenzy of panicked communication as the surviving CPs tried to regroup and reform their unit cohesion.

"Units reform at rally point—" The CP's transmission was cut off when a bullet impacted through his skull.

"Fall back, fall back!" Another CP shouted when John and his team broke through their barricade's gateway. The citizen militia quickly stormed the road on the otherside, firing as they slowly advanced. A few humans were killed from CP pistol shooters, their backs were against a building as they fired at anything moving.

Two citizens in the frontlines fell to their knees, blood seeping from bullet holes in their chests. Nine mm rounds continued to tear through the air as the crazed CPs fired as fast as their finger could hit the trigger. The pistol's recoil kicked against their palms with such speed that the Combine could already feel bruises starting to form.

Barney stopped his group from shooting at the CPs on the barricade's wall, he pointed with his rifle toward the enemy lined up against the far building and shouted, "There! There!"

His squads complied and unleashed Pulse Fire into the Combine's midst, their bio-signs could be heard flat lining as the barrage of weapon discharges collided with the last remnants of the Combine fortification. A wounded citizen limped over to the the group of CPs, shot one of them with his pistol then yelled out, "This is our city now!"

Cheers erupted at the rebel's words. A direct route toward the citadel had just been secured. Now all they had to do was take advantage of it. Barney turned out the cheers as a distant hum could be heard. "Oh no." a rebel beside Barney whispered.

Barney turned to the rebel to see that he was looking up into the sky. Barney followed his gaze, only to see hundreds of drop-ships filling the skies. _Overwatch_, Barney thought as he looked at the canisters being cradled by the drop-ships. "We need to move."

Barney frantically searched for a quicker way to join up with John's platoon. A Combine power cable presented him with the perfect means of opportunity; he grabbed the cable and used it to rappel down, his squads took the hint and followed him.

Five of the rebels were still waiting to rappel down from the roof when a drop-ship hovered above their position, its turret charging. The narrow roadway provided no form of cover, though a small building in the distance offered a temporary refuge. The citizens looked to Barney for an order, which he gave with a single command. "Run!"

While the newly formed platoon sprinted toward the distance building, the rebels who hadn't been able to rappel down from the roof were cut down by the drop-ship's pulse turret. The drop-ship hovered a few centimetres above ground as the beetle shaped canister it was carrying opened. Overwatch soldiers piled out, three soldiers formed a small circle as they crouched and brought their Pulse Rifles searching for enemy targets. The squad leader, D-42, was the last to pile out of the canister. He activated his comlink and said, _"Targets are retreating, ninety degrees to the left. Track and fire at will."_

"_Understood."_ His squad replied as they simultaneously stood up and rotated their bodies toward their retreating enemy.

"_Range estimated at 100 metres."_ D-42 said as he shouldered his AR 2. _"Fire, fire, fire!"_ 42 said his last order in quick succession before aiming at the nearest rebel and squeezing the trigger.

Three rebels fell into the pavement, pulse capsules wedged in their backs. Barney shouted for the citizens to stop. Up ahead of them two squads of Overwatch were bearing down on their position, with more soldiers firing down at them from the rooftops. Screams echoed with the sound of weapons fire as more and more citizens started falling to the soldier's accuracy.

"Stay together! Stay together!" Barney ordered as some citizens started panicking. "Form up, loose formation." He barked out his command, trying to be heard over the weapon discharges and screams.

The rebels copied the Overwatch formation. The first line of rebels sat in a prone position, the next line crouched, leaving the third line to stand and fire above their companion's heads. The two lines in the middle fired on the Overwatch troops shooting at them from above.

The sudden re-establishment of unit cohesion took the Overwatch off guard, though they reacted quickly enough that only a few troops were killed before the rest took cover. D-42 clicked on his COM, _"Squads four and six, concentrate your fire on the first line of citizens."_

"_Acknowledged, switching targets."_ A modulated voice responded before squelching the channel.

A burst of pulse fire tore into the unprotected citizens. About twenty seconds after the order was given, the first line of rebels on 42's side was eliminated by combined fire from the Overwatch squads on the rooftops. Answering fire from the rebels came in the form of a few well placed shots that were sufficient enough to knock a Combine soldier to the ground below.

D-42 motioned for his squad to advance as soon as he noticed that the citizens had shifted their aim to squads four and six. His troops complied, firing at the distracted rebels. Pulse capsules tore into the clustered humans, blood splattered onto the road as the pulse fire tore through clothing and flesh.

"Keep the pressure, drive them back." 42 ordered as he reloaded his AR 2.

"Understood," his squad replied as they continued to slowly creep forward. 42 used the distraction to his advantage by throwing a grenade into the heart of the enemy formation. He could hear the citizens panicking as they tried to throw the grenade back. 42 was about to order his troops to kill whoever survived the blast when the grenade arced back into the air and toward the Overwatch squads on the other side of the street.

The resulting explosion knocked the majority of the Overwatch onto the road, either dead or stunned. Barney took advantage of the formation break, he sprinted through the temporary gap, slammed the butt of his rifle down on a recovering troop and shouted, "Follow me!"

The citizens quickly disengaged from the battle, keeping low to avoid the pulse capsules that flew through the air. A small store provided a temporary refuge; Barney ran inside and took position near a window to cover the retreating squads.

Eventually John was the only one left outside. He was slowly backing away from the Overwatch, pulse rifle firing madly at any soldier he could see. Barney put a quick burst into an aiming Combine soldier and shouted, "John, move!"

John was about to do just that when a burst of pulse capsules tore through his left leg. He fell with a scream, his weapon skidding away from him. Barney moved toward the door but was stopped by a rebel's hand on his arm. "You can't go out there!"

Barney locked his eyes with the citizen and said, "I'm never leaving anyone behind."

The citizen let go of Barney's arm as he gave a small nod. As soon as Barney ran out into the street, Combine soldiers resumed firing. The citizen looked at everyone and barked, "Well don't just stand there give him some covering fire!"

The militia forces nodded as they fired at any Combine that they could see. While Barney quickly picked up John and draped him over his shoulders as he sprinted back to the abandoned store. Bits of cement were flung into the air as the Combine continued their relentless onslaught. As soon as Barney made it back to the refuge the doors were slammed closed and objects were piled in the door's path to make sure it stayed that way.

While medics examined John, Barney pointed to four people, "See if you can find another way out."

The appointed four nodded as they moved off to examine the building thoroughly.

Meanwhile the citizens by the two windows were scrambling to return fire at the advancing Combine soldiers. Pulse capsules and 7.62 mm ammunition shattered what was left of the store's glass as the soldiers kept up their steady rate of fire. A citizen who left cover to try and return fire fell to the floor, his skull cracked from a pulse capsule round.

A grenade followed not long after, the pulsing bright red light offered some illumination in the dimly lit store. Barney grabbed the grenade and waited until there was two seconds left before returning it to its sender. A grunt of pain could be heard through the large booming sound, letting Barney know that at least one trooper was killed.

The small scouting party returned as the Combine soldiers could be heard banging on the door. "We found a way out." The four reported as they looked at Barney.

"Great. Now if only there was a way we could leave without being gunned down by the Combine." Barney said dryly as he walked over to the medics around John. When he was close enough he whispered, "How is he?"

"Not good." The medic said as she didn't hesitate to give him the bad news. "His primary artery was severed by one of the pulse capsules, there's nothing I can do."

Barney grimly nodded, this assault wasn't going as well as he'd planned. He was about to order everyone to return fire on the soldiers when John grabbed his arm. "Get out of here Barney. I'll hold them off for you."

Barney hesitated, the last thing he wanted to do would be to leave a friend behind. John seemed to sense his hesitation because he locked his eyes with Barney and whispered, "You saved my life. The least I can do is save yours."

Reluctantly, Barney nodded. John would die anyway after all. And, knowing John, Barney knew that he would rather die in battle than die fleeing away from an enemy. Barney clasped his forearm and said, "We'll meet again someday."

John gripped Barney's forearm in return and smiled as he said, "You just make sure that it's not for a long, long time."

Barney nodded with a small grin before signalling for everyone to leave the store. The four who had scouted for an escape route led the way into a tunnel that ran through the foundation of several buildings.

John sat against the far wall of the store as he loaded his pulse rifle and prepared for the soldiers to break in. A mere minute passed before the old bookshelves holding the door in place broke and a soldier poked his head through to survey the store. John quickly put a bullet in the troops head and laughed as the corpse fell to the wooden floor.

The Combine responded by firing through the wooden boards, believing that sheer luck would kill the rebel in the store. John laughed after the firing stopped, "You missed!" He shouted at the Combine.

D-42's anger boiled as he heard a citizen laugh from inside the building. "Squad five we're moving in"

"Executing command." One of the soldiers responded as they stormed the breached door. Automatic fire could be heard roaring from inside. The weapon sound was replaced by the sound of a soldier falling to the ground.

John grunted in pain when the rest of the squad opened fire on him, pulse capsules tore into his body as the soldiers fired an entire clip into him. John grimaced as he felt himself slipping, he tried to fire off another shot but it was too late. The last thing he saw were the twin blue goggles of a Combine squad leader as it gazed down at him.

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**Yeah, this took me a while to map out. Let alone to write. I hope you guys liked it. And I also hope the beginning didn't seem as lame to you as it did to me. Let me know what you think. You can do it!**


	3. Dawn Raid: Part I

**This is going to be a two part series. I just wanted to get you guys this chapter before I get uttterly consumed in catching up on the homework I missed for the past three weeks that I was sick. So I'm going to be inactive for a while, especially if I'm going to maintain the A's I've worked to achieve this year. Except French, of course. **

**Anyway, special thanks to all those who reviewed. Particularily Still Bullet. I always read those when I feel like I need a booster to keep me writing.**

**And I'm glad you agreed with my choice on giving Combine troops designations Shadow Syndicate.**

**And if you haven't already I'd appreciate it if you read 'A Friend's Sacrifice' and offered feedback for it if you could. **

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Day Three

Barney and the rest of his group continued on through the darkened passageway, having escaped the abandoned store. The only source of illumination came from tac lights emitting from captured enemy pulse rifles. The beams of light swept around the passageway, revealing cement walls overhead and the support columns used in the construction of the building's foundation.

"How the hell are we gettin' out of here?" A citizen asked for the seventh time since the group had been walking for ten minutes, with no end in sight to the passageway.

"God damn it Mark!" a citizen named Jackson responded from the back of the single file line, "I'm not even going to tell you to shut up!"

"Quiet!" Barney hissed from the front. A few minutes went by before a small hatchway could be seen by the light from Barney's pulse rifle. Barney moved over to the wooden hatch, it looked as though it would enter the basement to an apartment complex. Barney nodded to a citizen as he slipped his rifle across his shoulder. The citizen nodded and moved toward the other side of the wooden hatch. Barney held up three fingers, then two, one…

Moving quickly Barney and the citizen pushed on the hatch, letting it fly open with a crack. Barney and the citizen brought their weapons sweeping inside, only to be met by the weapons of others.

Barney relaxed his trigger finger when he identified one of the rebels as Mendez. Mendez looked down at Barney and said, "Barney? Ha, this is the last place I expected to find you."

"You and me both," Barney replied as he pushed himself out of the passageway and into the building above. Mendez laughed in response as the two helped pull the other citizens out of the passageway.

As soon as everyone was accounted for, Mendez looked from the rebels to Barney and asked, "Where's John?"

Barney visibly swallowed, he looked at Mendez' confused expression and said, "He didn't make it."

Mendez's blue eyes grew wide in anger, he took a swipe at the nearest wall and screamed, "Damn it!"

"I'm sorry—," Barney started to say but Mendez interrupted.

"Spare me the sympathy," Mendez growled as he turned to face Barney. "I'll take my problems out on the Combine."

Barney nodded before he looked around at Mendez's squad and asked, "What are you guys doing in here anyway."

"We were going to secure some explosives from one of the rebel hide-outs in this area," Mendez said, the echo of angers still present in his voice. "But Overwatch squads got there before us. They killed everyone inside and they've locked the whole area down. I figure that it's just a matter of time before we start seeing Striders enter the mix. Needless to say, we need those explosives."

"Then we'll get them." Barney said as he moved toward a map.

Mendez looked at him like he was crazy, "Maybe you didn't hear the words 'squads of Overwatch' and, 'locked the whole area down.'"

Barney grinned, "No I heard you." He continued scanning the map as he asked, "Where is this hide-out exactly?"

Mendez walked beside him and pointed to a building that was about a kilometre away from them. "It's here. I sent a team to scout out the Combine's defences."

Barney nodded his approval, "Good, we'll need the information." Barney turned to the groups of armed citizens and shouted, "We're going to launch a raid!"

Barney led three other citizens across the roof a crumbling building, whose names he had learned to be Chris, Sarah, and Justin. There were a total of six teams of four surrounding the building where the explosives were located. Mendez's squad, with the exception of Mendez, were pushing forward to help reinforce the rebel positions that were in danger of being overwhelmed by Overwatch soldiers.

Looking up toward the sky, Barney could see that the sun was close to setting. He had decided to attack the Combine's position at dawn since the resistance had to attack at a time when the Combine wouldn't expect them to, but they also had to be able to see while they were attacking. Since the resistance had yet to acquire any night vision goggles, a night assault was clearly out of the question.

Barney pulled out his radio, "Report in team," he whispered the order, just in case the Combine were able to hear them.

"Squad Three is in position, standing by." A voice Barney didn't recognize whispered back.

"Two's ready and willing," another reported.

"Five's in position."

"Six is ready."

"Squad four is green, clean, and extremely mean." A voice that could only belong to Mendez reported last.

"Remember to have at least one person cover you while the others move in. We'll start the attack on my signal."

"Well then you'd better give it quickly. I'm not sure how much longer I can control my trigger finger." Mendez commented dryly.

As the minutes slipped by, Barney continued to watch the Combine's movements. The front door to the building was protected by four Overwatch troops, a standard squad. The plan that Barney layed out called for squad two and four to neutralize the guards on the roof and then to assist squads three and five; who would keep Overwatch reinforcements from helping those who were garrisoned in the apartment. Mendez and his group would follow Barney inside, the two squads would aim at neutralizing the Overwatch inside.

If it all went according to plan then the explosive cache would be secured in just under ten minutes.

Barney turned to Chris, "Cover us from up here, then follow us down and secure our exit."

"I'm on it." Chris replied as he loaded his pulse rifle.

Barney took a deep breath before clicking his COM, "Now!" Barney barked his order into the COM while he, Justin, and Sarah rappelled down the rooftop to the Combine secure complex below.

Pulse capsules impacted into the cemented buildings with a crack as the door sentries spotted Barney and the other two citizens. The first two soldiers fell to the ground when answering pulse capsules from the rooftop tore through their bodies with thunderous force.

Realizing that a citizen was covering their advancing companions, the remaining two sentries crouched and returned fire. Their accuracy forced Barney to duck or risk losing his life. A few seconds before the Combine troops could target and neutralize the vulnerable human, weapons discharges tore into the two troops. Mendez and his group fired from the alleyway to the right of the building. Muzzle flashes illuminated the darkened passageway as the pulse capsules and shotgun shells tore into the Overwatch troops.

The soldiers fell with grunts of pain, their weapons clattered to the ground. Barney nodded in appreciation to Mendez as he and his group came forward. Barney then pointed to Sarah, who was wielding a shotgun, and motioned for her to take point inside.

She nodded before entering the darkened structure, the others right behind her. The sound of gun-fire outside the complex, reminded the two teams that the other squads were fighting to buy them some time.

Barney pointed to the left hallway once they were in the complex, a signal for Mendez to take his group that way. Combine radio chatter could be heard in close proximity to their location. There wasn't much time.

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**I know it was a little short but like I said, I'm a little pressed for time. Plus I'm taking my tests for the Canadian Reserves tomorrow. Wish me luck!**

**I named the citizen Chris after myself...I know, I know. It's a good name though right?**

**Oh and tell me what you thought about this chapter!**


	4. Dawn Raid: Part II

**Alright here's the last part to the Dawn Raid chapter. **

**Thanks for the review Still Bullet, its great to know that you're enjoying these chapters. **

**Oh and in case any of you actually care, I did pass my Aptitude Test for the Canadian Reserves. All I've got to do now is take the physical test (whenever they schedule that) and I'm in! ****Then all I have to do is finish High School, get through University, then apply as an Infantry Officer and BOOM, instant career.**

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Barney kicked down the door of the Combine complex, the door had barley broken off the rusty hinges when Barney snapped his AR 2 up and fired a burst into a surprised Combine soldier. Sarah and Justin moved off to the left hallway when Barney gave them a quick hand signal. Mendez's squad headed to the right as soon as they cleared the entry way, their tac lights swept through the house as they tried to give themselves some visibility.

With Sarah on point, Barney, and Justin followed in her wake as the squad proceeded further into the dimly lit hallway. Radio chatter could be heard coming from a door at the end of the hallway.

"_Sentry bio-signs have destabilized."_

"_Implement defensive protocol Theta-six."_

"_Acknowledged."_

Barney pointed to Sarah and then to the left side of the door, as she nodded her head Barney turned to Justin and motioned for him to take the right side. As his two other companions got into position Barney put his back to a wall, his gun pointed straight at the door.

A quick nod was enough to let Justin know that he would have to quickly open the door. He put his hand on the knob and looked to Barney for confirmation. As soon as Barney tilted his head, Justin quickly turned the knob and kicked the door open. Barney's quick reflexes ensured that he was the first to storm the room.

A quick glance allowed Barney to see that the room had once been a kitchen of some sorts. Several appliances were haphazardly placed in the room, though that was the only similarity to a kitchen that the room had once had. Now, there were Combine terminals and consoles spread across the room, with weapons stored away in small shelves.

Three Combine soldiers stood at the far end of the room, they were clustered around a security terminal, though they immediately made a grab for their weapons when they saw that an armed human was in the room. Barney quickly shot the two soldiers that were the closest to reaching their weapons. He switched his rifle to target the third soldier when he felt a searing hot, stab of pain slice through his right ankle. Barney dropped to one knee with a sharp cry, his skin felt as if it were being attacked by an entire colony of fire ants. Barney turned around to see that two soldiers had been standing by the doorway into the security room. Barney didn't have to look long to know that the pulse capsule round would've torn through another part of his body if Sarah hadn't blasted the troop with her shotgun at point-blank range in the last second.

Barney shifted his gaze back to the soldier at the far end of the room. The troop was already armed and was in the process of aiming at Barney. In a flash Barney's mind raced as it absorbed the tactical scenario. He knew that Justin and Sarah were reloading their weapons and would not be able to protect him. His own weapon had skidded away from his reach when the pulse round tore through his leg, leaving him with very few options. So Barney did the last thing that the soldier expected, he charged him.

Barney would've liked the see the look on the soldier's face as he sprinted toward the armoured troop. A final burst of speed was enough to allow Barney to gain enough momentum in his tackle that the soldier was pushed back into the security console with an audible bone crushing snap as the troop's back was impaled with one of the sharp edges that the Combine always placed on their consoles.

Staring at the lifeless soldier, Justin walked beside Barney, "Talk about design flaws," he commented mildly.

"That was stupid," Sarah said from the other side of the room.

"Oh," Justin said before looking back at her and saying, "How about this: 'I think he got the point.'" Justin glanced between the two and said, "Yeah, yeah. Pretty good huh?"

"Why are you still talking?" Sarah asked with an amused glance at Justin.

Justin glared at her, "Okay fine, you make the quip remarks next time."

"Quiet! Stay sharp!" Barney ordered as he motioned for them to follow him to the next room.

The three advanced toward a door at the end of the kitchen, radio traffic could be heard buzzing as the soldiers inside requested status reports from the other squads in the house. Barney clicked on his radio, "Mendez, location?"

"Outside of a room at the end of a hallway, I can hear a lot of conversation going on inside."

"Good. We're outside the same door. Synchronize your assault with ours, we'll go inside in ten seconds."

"Understood," Mendez replied before the radio channel garbled; a signal that the channel had been cut.

Barney reattached the radio to his belt before turning to Justin and Sarah. "Sarah, you're on point. Justin I need you to branch off and give us cover when we're inside."

The other two nodded their understanding as they re-formed the single file line. As soon as they were in position, the group stormed through the door. Sarah quickly ran straight through into the small adjoining room.

The area inside looked to have been a living room at some point. Couches and other pieces of furniture were placed close together at the far end of the square shaped room. Several crates were stacked close to a squad of Combine soldiers, their demeanour was that of a surprised predator. But as they reached for their weapons, it was clear that their confusion wouldn't last.

Justin used the split-second enemy hesitation to his advantage by moving behind a couch. He shouldered his AR 2 and was able to quickly bring down a soldier in short-controlled bursts. Justin emptied an entire clip into the soldiers before his last burst penetrated the target's thick armour, the dead Combine troop had just fallen to the ground when the rest of the Combines opened fire.

Justin barley had time to crouch behind his limited cover before pulse fire started pounding his position. The couch was soon filled with holes as capsule after capsule tore through the vulnerable fabric. Justin fought back a rising fear growing inside him as he returned fire.

Barney and Sarah noticed that the Combine were focusing their efforts on eliminating Justin so they both opened fired at the Combine soldiers. Shotgun shells and pulse fire flying into their midst were enough for a couple of soldiers to turn and fire at the new threat. Barney cursed as he and Sarah crouched back to safety, this squad was fighting more fiercely than any other soldier squad Barney had engaged. A quick glance back in their direction let Barney know why. In the back of the Combine formation, Barney caught a glimpse of a white uniform, the outfit of the Elite.

Barney frantically pulled out his radio, enemy pulse fire booming overhead as he switched on the device. "Mendez! Where the hell are you?!"

Combine radio chatter came in through on the other side before Mendez shouted back, "We're pinned down by reinforcements! We'll assist as soon as we're done!"

"Acknowledged," Barney grimly responded before cutting the channel. Turning to Justin on the other side of the room he shouted, "Justin, suppressive fire!"

As soon as Justin returned fire Barney stood up and threw a grenade into the Combine's midst. Frantic radio traffic let Barney know that the grenade had found its intended mark; he crouched up just enough to let him see the Combine. He was surprised to find the grenade being thrown back in his direction. Luckily, the Combine had waited to the last second before throwing it back. The result was that the grenade exploded halfway through its intended destination, the shrapnel from the blast found its way into the chest of a nearby Combine soldier.

The pointed projectiles collided into the trooper's armour, tearing through the protective layers in a handful of micro seconds. The soldier fell with a grunt, his blue goggles losing their luminescence as his bio-signs flat-lined. The Elite Combine troop switched its red ocular lens onto Barney as it charged an energy bomb.

Barney heard the distinctive whine of the charging weapon, he glanced at his two squadmates and shouted, "Pulse bomb, take cover!"

Sarah complied instantly, while Justin stood from his cover and fired at the Combine. The energy bomb was released from its confines with a loud snap, the ball rebounded away from the far wall and continued bouncing. Barney looked at Justin and shouted for him to get down but he ignored the order and continued firing. Justin emptied clip after clip into the Combine's position.

The Combine soldiers ducked to avoid the sudden barrage, leaving the Elite exposed to Justin's fire. The Elite turned its helmeted head in surprise; the last thing that filled its ocular lens was the scene of pulse fire tearing into its eyes. The remaining Combine looked at their dead leader before resuming fire, but instead of targeting Barney and his squad, the soldiers concentrated their efforts on eliminating Justin. He gave a sharp cry as a pulse capsule tore through his forearm, leaving his weapon to drop to the floor. Despite Barney and Sarah's best efforts, the Combine continued their advance, filling the air with so much pulse fire that even the best evasion tactics were futile.

Justin shook as pulse fire tore through his body. He brought a finger to one of the wounds, only to see that his fingers were coated with crimson blood. He started feeling dizzy as his bloody supply continued to fluctuate, even so he managed to look at Barney and Sarah before he collapsed on his back.

Barney gritted his teeth in anger as he continued firing at the Combine. He forced his rifle's aim to correct itself as he continued his savage attack, leaving enemy troops grunting in pain as both he and Sarah fired into the exposed flank of the Combine squad. With such vulnerability, it didn't take the two long to eliminate the rest of the squad.

Barney ran over to Justin and crouched next to him when he was close enough. Justin's stomach was riddled with pulse capsules; the wounds had formed a pool of blood beneath Justin. His breaths became short as he tried to hold onto the small amount of life he still had. He used his remaining strength to bring his arm to Barney's shoulder, a dim light in his eyes as he asked, "We…..we…did it?"

Barney nodded, causing a small smile to touch Justin's face. He looked back at Barney, "I need you…..to…promise me….something."

"What?"

"You need….to make this work. Stop….the Combine." Justin rapidly breathed between phrases, his strong will trying to hold out as long as possible.

"I will—" Barney cut himself off when Justin's hand slipped from his shoulder, the light in his eyes dimming until his breath gave out. Barney used his index and middle fingers to close the eyelids around Justin's life-less eyes as he whispered, "I promise."

Sarah fought back tears as she gazed at Justin's life-less form. A few silent seconds passed before the door on the other side opened, Mendez and his team took combat stances as they stormed through. They relaxed when they noticed that the area was secure, but their relieved expressions quickly turned to one of horror when they noticed Justin's life-less body on the floor.

Barney placed Justin's arms around his chest, Barney then placed Justin's AR 2 in his unfeeling grip. There wouldn't be time for any kind of burial; they would just have to push on if the rest of the group was going to make it out alive.

Barney grimly walked over to the crates, some of the lids were off of the large green containers, a sign that the Combine had been trying to analyze the technology. There were only two crates, Barney felt a stab of disappointment before he noticed that one of the crates was completely filled with Rocket Propelled Grenade Launchers. Memory foam divided the crates into three layers, while one contained the launchers, the other was filled with the explosive ammunition.

The groups split into teams of two, Barney was left to take point as the other four hauled the crates out of the complex. Barney jogged with his AR 2 pointed toward the ground as he pulled out his radio, "Chris, what's our exit status!"

"Clear right now, though we did have a few incursions earlier on."

"Acknowledged," Barney replied before switching frequencies. "Remaining squads, report!"

Pulse fire answered over the radio before a distraught rebel spoke through the interference, "Overwatch troops are pushing in on our location. We're losing ground fast!"

"Pull back!" Barney barked into the radio.

"There's no time!" An explosion boomed into the channel, followed by a loud scream. "We can't pull out, but we'll buy you some time." The channel dissolved to static as another scream pounded into the channel.

Barney clipped the radio back on his belt before he gestured for the group to move faster. They proceeded to run as fast as they could out of the complex. As soon as they exited the doorway, the group found themselves gazing at the scene of a dead Combine squad near the entrance. Chris followed as the rear guard as soon as the group continued moving.

They were about to run inside an adjoining apartment complex when a loud boom echoed through the city. Barney casted a horrified glance at his companions as he thought, _Oh no_.

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**I did rush the ending a bit I've got to admit, but other than that I thought it was great. **

**'Course that doesn't mean anything, I want to know what you have to say!**


	5. Strider Assault

**Immense thanks to Still Bullet and Afalstein for the reviews, I think you'll be surprised for this one Afalstein.**

**And thanks again to Still Bullet, you inspried me to write this as fast as I could. Well...that and I was listening to some fast-paced songs while I was writing this. And, Still Bullet, no worries about the poll. The reason you couldn't vote was that its the exact same poll as last time, I only changed the title and deleted the option you voted for. Like I said, I plan on writing all of those at some point so I'm not overly concerned about it.**

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**Day 4**

The ground shook with a force akin to thunder, but with the tempo of war drums. The sound intensified as the resistance fighters frantically searched for the source of the sound. The answer came with a low screech.

From the nearby street emerged a behemoth of a synth. Long flexible legs moved with the stiffness associated with cybernetic enhancements, armour plating made the creature's legs hit the ground with a loud snap as its sixteen metre segments bent to examine the small prey before it.

A querying screech resounded from the colossal life-form as it bent its cannon mounted armaments to study the small life-forms in front of it. Its querying noise quickly turned to one of anger as soon as information was sent to its neural pathways. Orders from its masters designated the entire populace as a target.

_Overwatch squads have failed to contain the outbreak. _

_Nullify all opposition, eradicate all structures._

The relayed instructions made it clear that the humans in the city were to be exterminated

By this time Barney and the other citizens had hastily dropped the boxes, popped the lids, and were in the process of loading the launchers when the Strider's primary pulse turret erupted with a pounding rhythm. The first barrage tore through a citizen with sickening crunches. The wide barrels mounted on Striders were capable of firing wide pulse capsules that were similar in size to that of a tank's explosive shells. The enlarged rounds made short work of the citizen, his autonomic reflex caused him to launch a rocket into the sky as he fell to the ground, dead.

"Fire, fire, fire!" Mendez shouted with anger at the loss of a squadmate. He aimed the launcher and squeezed the trigger, having to force himself to keep the tube steady as the rocket exploded outward with a bang. The explosive flew straight and true as it impacted into the carapace of the Strider.

The beast let out a low growl as it shook its massive bulk to try and shake off the damage. The creature was quickly able to stabilize itself and fire off another barrage. Pulse fire erupted with an enormous crack, the rounds found their way near citizen fighters who were loading their launchers for another strike at the giant synth.

Barney and Mendez sought cover near the entrance, while the rest of their inexperienced group stayed in the open. Such an action left them wide open to the Strider's pulse turret as it continued its constant firing. The crust of the Earth seemed to shake as the Strider moved its legs to a position that would allow it to easily target the citizens.

Mendez shouted for the others to move but they either couldn't hear, over the roar of both friendly and enemy fire, or weren't obeying. Either way, the result was the same. The enemy synth kept firing its turret, sending round after round impacting into the dirt as the targeted humans twisted their bodies to avoid the deadly fire. An RPG round exploded at the base of the Strider's carapace, eliciting a ravenous growl from the creature as it fired at the nearest human.

A targeted resistance member fell with a scream as a pulse round shredded through skin and bone, leaving a whimpering citizen in its place as the launcher fell from his shattered arm. Luckily for the citizen he wouldn't have to suffer long. The Strider raised one of its armoured legs before bringing the spike-covered limb slamming down with enough force that the sharpened spikes severed the victim's spinal cord, ending his life in a bloody mess.

Another rocket impact brought forth an awareness of pain into what was left of the synth's biological system. And with the pain came one of the few emotions that the Strider was still capable of experiencing. Rage. With an ear-splitting screech, the Strider unleashed a rapid pulse cannon burst toward the already-frightened citizens. The last four humans fell to the ground either screaming in pain or in dead silence. Mendez and Barney watched in horror as their companions fell, the Strider gave a triumphant whoop as it stood back up to its full height.

A series of images transmitted to its cybernetic systems, recon drones recorded images of resistance members in a nearby building. Text from its cybernetic systems scrolled across its ocular implants.

_Eradication required in grid three sector one at coordinates one-eight mark seven_.

From Mendez and Barney's perspective the Strider had just stood up before it set its body in motion again at a rampant pace, pulse turret firing madly at any hostile target it could detect. The two shared a silent minute of horror at what they had just witnessed, their entire strike-teams had just been wiped out, in a scant minute no less. Barney was the first to collect himself, he relieved the citizens of their launchers and slung the weapons around his shoulders. Mendez gathered up the explosive ammunition inside a duffel bag that had been placed in one of the crates.

Barney and Mendez headed into the building that had been their destination before the Strider arrived. They moved up the wooden staircase as fast as they could, launchers bouncing against their backs as they ran. Their quick movement allowed them to scale the staircase and storm out onto the roof fairly easily. The area had once been an attic, but directed pulse fire had shredded through a number of wooden boards, allowing Barney and Mendez to look out to City 17.

At least that's what they expected to see, but the scene playing before them would be more fitting in a war movie. Colossal Striders marched through the streets, their pulse turrets firing as the beasts emitted loud shrieks. Citizens could be seen scampering for cover as they returned fire, squads of armed citizens fired from platforms that acted as bridges between buildings. The Strider's cannon appendage glowed a dark blue. As the weapon charged, a low hum could be heard in the air. The pleasant sound quickly turned to one of terror when a blue beam discharged from the cannon with a thunderous roar. The beam lanced across the sky before it made contact with the distant bridge, splitting the metal frame in half in a matter of nanoseconds. Those who survived the blast screamed in terror as their bodies were propelled down to the street below, hitting the pavement with a crashing smack.

Even though Barney felt compelled to look away from the horrific scene, he couldn't bring himself to comply. Instead, his gaze drifted off to see Striders tearing structures into different pieces as their powerful cannons exposed the structure section by section. Citizens who sought cover in the buildings met a gruesome fate when the building's support structure collapsed in on them. Their screams were droned out by the sounds of weapons fire, moving Striders, discharging cannons, and beast-like screeches.

Fires erupted as the heat from the Strider's cannons ignited the wooden material inside the structures. The lucky citizens died from the Strider's cannon, while the unlucky ones were trapped inside a burning building, their pleas for mercy left unheard as the cybernetic monstrosities continued their merciless assault.

If the Striders weren't bad enough, Overwatch groups made their way toward the distracted citizens. An entire group was annihilated as Combine squads fired down at them from the rooftops. One vigilant citizen managed to fire a rocket at the roof of a building. The fiery explosion was strong enough to weaken the support that the enemy soldiers were standing on, causing them to fall to their deaths with muffled screams. The victory was cut short, however, when an advancing squad of elite troops fired pulse bombs at their prey.

Most of the citizens were vaporized within a few seconds, while the remaining resistance members attempted to fall back. Only to be trapped among advancing Combine troops, they enclosed the retreating humans in a tight circle. The citizens were so overcome with fear that they didn't know what to do. The Combine, on the other hand, didn't have any such problems; they raised their rifles and unleashed pulse fire at their enemies, killing them instantly.

Barney and Mendez glanced at the destruction and battles being waged for a few more seconds before Mendez turned to Barney and said, "The battle's begun."

Barney locked his eyes with Mendez, "Then let's end it," he responded before loading his rifle and heading down to the streets below. The Battle for City 17 had just hit the climax point, and Barney was determined to bring it to a resolution.

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**I tried to be as descriptive as possible for this chapter, plus I tried to give an insight into the mind of the Strider.** **All in all, I think I was successful.**


	6. Retaliation

**The next chapter...**

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**Day Five**

Explosions created a stark contrast to the night sky as fiery clouds of heat erupted against the shrouding darkness. Smoke rose into the air with such abundance that the entire area seemed to be coated in a light haze. Barney and Mendez had scaled down the destroyed apartment building, jumping from the sections of the open floors until they reached the street below. Now they were running down the long road, gun-fire was a constant reminder that engagements were being waged throughout the city.

The two continued to run down the road, tac-lights providing their only source of illumination, but the sound of an engagement up ahead forced them to slow down. Barney put his back against the wall and turned to face the adjoining road, only to see that rebel forces were engaging a large number of Overwatch squads. Combine soldiers were guarding a large metal wall as the structure conformed to its surroundings. Hydraulic pumps blasted the wall into a completely secure section. Once part of the wall was in position, hydraulic clamps would anchor the wall into the concrete of the road and houses, ensuring total security.

_They're trying to block us out_, Barney thought as he watched the wall pound its way into the concrete pavement. He knew that if they weren't able to advance past this wall, they'd have to push through an entire new section of the city to get to the citadel. He had no doubt that the Combine had planned an ambush to wipe out any advancing citizens.

Muzzle flashes provided a brief illumination in the darkness as the night-vision equipped Combine continued their stead-fast assault. Citizen fighters fell as they tried to fire back at an enemy they could barley see.

Barney was prepared to give them a hand. Unslinging two of the launchers from his shoulders, Barney tossed one to Mendez before aiming at a soldier that was briefly illuminated by pulse fire. He grunted when he squeezed the trigger, sending a sharp recoil digging into his shoulder. The discharging rocket raced toward its target, a heat trail lighting the environment in its wake. A bright flash erupted with a roar, followed by an electronic scream as the explosion wiped out an entire file of Combine.

Mendez followed Barney's example, firing rockets from the other side of the street. Combine forces started spreading themselves out, taking an action that would reduce the damage caused by the blast radius of the RPG explosives. Barney shouted at the citizens, "Rebels! Concentrate your fire on the centre troops; we'll eliminate the flank guards!"

Rebels shouted their acknowledgement before concentrating their fire on the soldiers in the centre. Mendez and Barney continued their focused fire, blasting soldiers apart with the explosive rounds. With the assigned positions, it only took a few more minutes before all the Combine had been eradicated.

Barney motioned for Mendez to follow as he re-shouldered the RPG and sprinted toward the rapidly enclosing wall. "Form up!" Barney barked as he ran past the citizens. Though they did hesitate for a couple of seconds they complied and followed in Barney's wake as he continued to run towards the massive wall.

Barney jumped through the small gap still left in the enclosure as it continued to seal itself. The squad of citizens followed suite, leaving Barney to shine his Tac-light in the gap as he waited for Mendez. Thunderous crashes could be heard, the hydraulic machinery creaked as the pistons prepared to lock the last section into place.

A scant second before the wall slammed into place, Mendez dived through the opening, the duffel bag of explosives still slung across his shoulders. "What took you so long?" Barney asked with an amused grin.

Mendez's exasperated glance was lost in the darkness but his slightly angry reply made up for it, "You try sprinting with a few kilograms of explosives strapped to your back."

Barney smiled before turning around to see how close they were to the Citadel. He was mildly surprised to find that the Citadel dominated most of Barney's view. Even as a CP, Barney had never been this close to the colossal structure; the citadel looked to be only about five kilometres away. Slamming a fresh clip into his rifle, Barney was about to motion for the others to the follow when a citizen shouted from a partly destroyed apartment overhead.

"Barney! You'd better get up here!"

Before Barney could do anything more than open his mouth, the citizen retreated back inside what was left of the apartment. Sighing out in mild frustration, Barney made his way towards the building. It looked as if the place had been the direct target of a Strider's cannon; half of the building was completely exposed.

Barney's group stepped inside as soon as a citizen opened a door on the lower levels. Inside, they found a small cluster of equipment. Monitors, transmitters, and weapons were formed up into a small room.

Doctor Kliener's face was on the monitor. Even from this distance Barney could see that he had adopted a grave expression, clearly he had some bad new to discuss. The rebel operating the machinery stepped to the side as soon as Barney moved close enough to the monitor. "What's wrong Doc?"

"Vortigaunts have been in contact with a group of their kin that have been captured. Apparently…." Kliener looked off to the side before turning back to the monitor, "Eli is at the citadel."

Barney's eyes widened at the statement. Eli was the founder of the resistance, he knew more about the scientific and technological operations of their group than anyone else. If the Combine were known for anything, it was their brutality and ruthlessness. Eli would resist of course, but Barney knew that it was only a matter of time before he broke.

Bring his attention back to the monitor, Barney looked at Kliener and said, "Don't worry doc, we'll get him back. We're only about five kilometres outside of the Citadel, but the Combine are starting to throw everything they've got at us. It will take a while but we'll get there." Turning the conversation away from the grim tidings Barney asked, "Any news on Alyx or Gordon?"

Kliener's eyes turned downcast as he whispered, "No. No word…..nothing."

Barney felt disappointment course through his mind. But he quickly pushed his bitter, hopeless feelings aside, he had to concentrate on how to get Dr. Vance out of the Citadel. The rebel operator was about to turn off the transmitter when a low beeping noise could be heard from inside the apartment.

Barney snapped up his AR 2 and pointed it towards the origin of the noise. The other rebels did the same, Tac-lights provided a narrow beam of illumination as the rebels brought the light sweeping towards the far walls. A red light could be seen pulsing in the distant darkness, before it started moving closer to their area.

Whispered inquiries were made as to what the thing was, but Barney knew that he couldn't provide any answers. The object seemed to hover in the air as it came closer. As soon as it was within range, Barney illuminated the mysterious object. The Tac-lights allowed them to see that the hovering mystery was nothing more than a sentry drone of some kind.

The drone moved closer until it was only a metre away from the rebels, Barney was about to fire at the drone when a blinding flash of white light erupted from the drone and overloaded his retina. Mendez was the first to recover, he quickly fired half of a clip into the machine and got a small amount of satisfaction from seeing it explode in a small fiery ball. That satisfaction was cut short when a rebel examined the remains with his light, "Isn't this one of those recon drones?"

A loud wail erupted through a nearby street, followed by the quick tempo of pounding limbs. Barney's eyes widened when he remembered that a Strider had done the same after it had annihilated a group of rebels. He shouted for everyone to move, "We need to leave! Right now!"

A rebel looked as though he were about to ask why but Mendez cut him off, "A Strider is inbound, move!"

The threat of an approaching Strider was enough to get everyone to move double time. The unarmed fighters quickly scooped up weapons as they searched for the quickest exit. A gap in the far wall proved to be just that, it was on the second story but the increasing volume of slamming legs let the group know that the Strider was practically right on top of them. Citizens jumped out of the wall, the contact with the ground was a little harsher than they would have preferred but no-one really complained.

Barney was in the rear line, motivating everyone to move as fast as possible when a screech could be heard from the other side of the building. A few other citizens looked over to see that a Strider was looking through the ripped section of the complex, its cannon armament glowing a light blue as it started charging. Barney and the others had just started running when the cannon discharged with a rumbling crack. The resulting beam cut through the concrete section of the building in a handful of micro seconds as the discharge raced toward its targets. The humans were just about to jump down when the beam exploded with a concussive force. The resulting explosion was powerful enough to send Barney and the others catapulting down to the other side with a scream.

Barney could still hear the sounds of his screaming companions, the crumbling building, and the wailing Strider before his vision fell into darkness.

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**To tell you the truth I thought this chapter was terrible...hopefully it didnt seem that way to you.**


	7. Recovery

**I'm feeling pretty good about this chapter. Thanks for the reviews Afalstein and Still Bullet, they did inspire me to keep writing. **

**Thanks for the suggestion about adding strategy Afalstein, though I already did decide to add that in. **

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Voices. A series of noises transmitting to his ears were identified as sound waves from vocal cords. Within thirty seconds, the voices could be heard enough that he was able to distinguish the conversation. But his hazy mind seemed to be functioning slowly. To Barney, the voices sounded as if they were being said from underwater.

"_Soldiers are right behind us! For christ's sake, pick up the pace!"_

"_Five of them are unconscious!"_

"_Well drag them if you have to, but get moving! You two, cover us."_

Vaguely, Barney felt two pairs of hands grab hold of his shoulders as he felt his body being dragged across the concrete pavement, rocks from the road rubbing painfully against his back.

Pulse fire was the next sound that Barney's hazy mind could register. Screams came next, the sound of those who had sustained life-threatening injuries. "I need a medic over here!" A rebel shouted as he guarded a downed comrade. The guarding fighter returned fire at the approaching Combine troops, forcing them to halt their advance and fire back.

All hell seemed to break out into the street as rebels tried to grab their wounded and drag them back to safety without losing their own life in the process. Harrowing pulse fire from the Combine seemed as though it were specifically used to prevent the rebels from accomplishing their goals. Resistance fighters fell as they ran to help others, pulse capsules shredding their chests as they attempted to run through the darkness.

Small lights shook in the hands of their operators as panicking resistance troops tried to bring their lights bearing toward the Combine soldiers so they could return fire. Mendez formed the surviving, and still conscious, rebels into a wedge formation so that they could protect the wounded. Combine soldiers planned to take advantage of their compassion by forming a half-circle formation, rifles pointed outward. Pulse capsules were concentrated on bringing down the rebels in the centre of the formation, that way the Combine could spear their way through the resistance's defence as quickly as possible.

Mendez quickly fired of a controlled burst at an approaching Combine soldier. The three discharging rounds shattered the helmet of the soldier, leaving the target to fall backward as its vital-signs flat lined. _This is like godforsaken trench warfare_, Mendez thought with an angry snarl as he continued to fire at the Combine. The two parties were in a deadlock, with neither side giving any ground as they continued to exchange fire.

"Mendez, we need to retreat!" A citizen at his right shouted in his partly deaf right ear.

"I'm open to suggestions!" Mendez shot back.

The citizen looked around, trying to find where an ideal fall back position would be. He relaxed his guard, bringing his rifle to a standby position around his shoulder as he surveyed the nearby buildings.

A tactically adept trooper noticed the weakness in the enemy formation. The soldier moved his rifle until the human's back was in the sights of his rifle. As soon as a target acquired image flashed across his HUD the soldier squeezed the trigger, unleashing a sustained burst that sliced through the vertebrae of the target's body with utter precision.

The death of the citizen barley registered to Mendez, he was so engrossed on trying to keep the Combine at bay. He fired every clip from his rifle at full auto, fighting with all the aggressive tendencies he could muster. His companions covered him while he ejected a spent magazine from his rifle. Looking back at the others he shouted, "Doesn't anybody have any pulse bombs left?!"

When no-one answered him, Mendez loaded a new magazine and continued firing.

By this time, Barney had regained consciousness; his mind was now fully alert as it absorbed every detail about current unit deployment. Luckily, he found that his rifle was still slung across his shoulder. He moved into a crouching position and inspected his pulse-rifle. A quick check of the weapon's readout confirmed that a full clip was loaded, in addition to a spare pulse bomb.

Barney weakly raised his rifle, aimed it at the largest cluster of Combine troops, and squeezed the secondary trigger. The energy ball exploded from its confines with a snap, the discharge raced toward a cluster of Combine forces. They troops were concentrating so hard on maintaining a steady aim that they never saw the energy coming toward them, until it was too late. The superconductive plasmatic energy impacted against its designated targets, their cybernetic systems shocked their entire system as the plasma overloaded, and conducted, the electricity. Though the sheer heat of the plasmatic energy was enough to vaporize the organic tissue it came into contact with. A bright white flare seemed to engulf their bodies as they were converted into a gas.

The entire process took place in a handful of milliseconds, the only thing that the Resistance fighters had time to see were five Combine troops dissolving in a white flash. With the majority of the Combine task force decimated, their unit cohesion fell apart. The surviving soldiers broke formation and headed for cover. Even through the thick darkness, the citizens could see the Combine scattering off to the sides. By this time Barney had walked up next to Mendez, his tac-light illuminating a group of soldiers as he shouted for the others to fire.

The response was instantaneous.

Rebels opened fire with surprising accuracy, the enemy soldiers let out electronically modified screams as pulse capsules and 7.62 mm rounds tore through their heavy layers of armour. A few of the soldiers attempted to return fire, they loaded their rifles and sighted on their prey. Another burst of fire from the Resistance let the Combine know who the real predators were.

The concentrating fire put a quick end to the remaining soldiers, leaving the rebels to flee the area and find safety before more Combine reinforcements arrived. Those who could still walk shouldered their weapons and grabbed their fallen comrades. Each wounded rebel was dragged toward the closest building.

The structure looked as if it had been a temporary rebel command post, various pieces of equipment were scattered about the large wooden floor. The wounded were carried into the far corner. The few medics present in the group quickly moved towards the injured, establishing who should be treated first according to triage.

Mendez quickly pointed to two people and motioned for them to guard the entrance while the others tried to formulate a plan for advancing on the citadel.

One of the sentries looked out at the empty street, "Man, I would kill for a turducken about now."

His companion looked at him with a confused expression, "A what?"

"Ya know, turducken. That's where you stuff a chicken inside a duck, and then stuff that inside a turkey. I used to cook it in my oven, which was stuffed inside my kitchen, which was stuffed inside my home."

"I really don't want to—," The rebel cut himself off when he noticed that the sun was starting to rise. He looked over at the slightly illuminated surroundings, "Aw man the sun is up, we've been up all night!"

"Calm down, we'll be fine."

"Are you sure? I've never lost so much sleep, what if I fall asleep on guard duty and the Combine come?!"

"Put a cork in it sentries!" Mendez yelled from the far side of the room.

Turning his attention back to the map on the wall, Mendez tried to get a fix on their current location while he listened to the conversation between Barney and another rebel.

"What's the status on the others?" Barney asked.

"Last word we received indicated that the western sectors are taking heavy casualties. Striders are tearing that place apart, but so far our forces have been able to keep them at bay using the few RPG's they have."

"They must be regrouping somewhere; I haven't seen nearly enough dropships for them to all be leaving the Citadel."

"If there is a staging area for the Combine, its got to be around here," the rebel base commander, Matt, replied as he pointed to an area only a kilometre and a half away from the Citadel.

"What makes you think that?" Mendez asked as he looked at the indicated area, as far as he knew there was nothing of interest in the vicinity.

"We lost contact with a platoon shortly after they informed us that they were closing in on the Citadel. I sent a squad after them but they never reported in, there's something going on in there."

"All the more reason for us to find an alternate route," Mendez reprimanded coolly, "If the Combine have set up a major operation, that last thing we want to do is lose more people in a futile attempt to break through."

"Normally I'd agree," Matt replied as he turned to face Mendez, "but all of our other squads and scouting parties have run into dead ends. The Combine are enclosing everything in a kilometre radius from the Citadel, this is the last route."

"And why do you think they're leading us to this place? Obviously they have a defence grid that they no doubt consider impenetrable. Do you think we can just march in there and ask if they'll let us through?!"

"If you have another idea, I'm listening!" Matt shot back as he stepped closer to Mendez.

"Calm down!" Barney ordered, stepping in between the two. "As far as I'm concerned you're both right. But we can't afford to lose any more people on worthless scouting missions. We've got to concentrate our efforts and take advantage of the opportunity that exists right here, right now!" Barney said his last four words as he jabbed the map, then pointed towards the floor, his voice rising with enough confidence that even Mendez believed it could work.

"I take it you have a plan?" Mendez asked.

"Possibly," Barney grinned before studying the map. "Matt are there any other squads in this area?"

"Yeah, we've got two squads here and another two over here." Matt said, pointing to streets to the left and right of their current position.

"Tell the squad leaders to synchronize their assault with ours. We'll head straight in and draw their fire while the other two head up their streets and flank them." Barney paused, as the adrenaline started to fade from his system, he became aware of just how tired he really was. "We should get a few hours of sleep first. We'll head out about four hours from now."

"Understood, what about the wounded?" Mendez asked, his gaze lingering on the rebels laid out in the dimly lit corner of the floor.

Barney looked at the injured as he spoke, "If they aren't in fighting shape when we're ready to go then we'll leave a couple of medics to stay with them. They may be able to stabilize their condition." Barney turned his gaze away from the scene of struggling rebels. Medics ran from patient to patient, injecting their bodies with healing agents to, at the very least, try to suppress the immense pain most of them were experiencing. Most of the wounded had already died, multiple projectiles had severed vita internal organs. The ones that were left only stayed alive out of sheer determination to see this through to the end. As Barney and a few other rebels closed their eyes and drifted to sleep, they could only hope that they wounded would get their chance.

* * *

**"I used to stuff that inside my oven, which was stuffed inside my kitchen, which was stuffed inside my home." Pretty funny, I think. **

**Anyway I was thinking of adding two or three more chapters to this story before its officially done. Sound good? Great. **

**Now, what was your impression of this chapter? If you don't review...I think we have a problem here...**


	8. Entrapment

**Thanks to Afalstein and Still Bullet for the reviews. **

**Still Bullet, I sent you a review response but I'll say thanks..again. **

**Afalstein, I suggest reading the last paragraph of the last chapter if you don't know what's happening in an updated chapter. As for the name Matt, I realized as I was writing chapter seven that I should have given a name to one of the rebel's in chapter six. So I decided to do it in chapter seven.**

* * *

**Day Six**

A gentle nudge on his shoulder was all it took to snap Barney out of his sleep. His grip tightened around the handle of his AR 2 as his eyes swept through his surroundings, though he relaxed when he noticed that Mendez and the others were preparing to move out.

"Matt just contacted the other squads, they'll be heading out in five minutes. We've got about twelve other people going with us, a couple of medics are staying behind to remain with the wounded." Mendez reported as soon he noticed that Barney was awake.

"Understood," Barney said as he got himself to his feet. A quick look up into the sky let him know that it was still early morning, plenty of time for them to mount an assault on the Combine.

"Let's get this over with," Barney whispered to himelf before turning back toward the armed rebels. "We'll split into three squads of four; Mendez, Matt, and I will be team leaders." Barney looked at four capable rebel troopers, "You four will be with me."

The appointed troops nodded, quickly jogging next to Barney, while he looked at the others and said "Let's move!"

Barney took his squad down the left side of the street, they moved at a slow jogging pace in a single file line. Mendez led his team down the centre, while Matt moved from the right.

Being on point was enough to make Barney analyze every square centimetre of his surroundings as they jogged down the street. He felt extra energy pump through his system, adrenaline filled his blood stream in response to an uneasy feeling he couldn't shake down. His eyes scanned every window of the buildings that lined the beat-up roadway. Barney's intuition told him that something was very wrong.

It didn't take him long to realize that practically every street in the city had been crawling with Combine blockades and patrols. But this street looked almost completely untouched by weapons fire of any kind, with the exception of the damage done by the Strider that had rendered Barney unconscious.

Barney eventually connected his uneasy feeling to the fact that Combine forces probably wouldn't expect rebels to have breached their blockade. As the squads proceeded down the street on parallel courses Barney pushed his distracting thoughts to the back of his mind, if this plan was going to work he would need to be fully alert.

A couple more minutes of jogging let the three squads see the distant outline of a combine fortification. Even from this distance Barney could see the gray coloured walls stretching into a long line, it looked as though it was specifically designed to prevent any more resistance advances. What surprised Barney was that there was only a small garrison of soldiers posted on top of the walls, with another squad guarding the entrance. The Combine were either incredibly ignorant about security or—

Barney reacted with a sudden impulse; he threw himself to the ground just as an ear-splitting crack sounded into the air. The sound was quickly followed by the scene of blue beams scanning back and forth, as if probing the ground. The lights found their way onto a rebel just as Barney shouted for the others to take cover.

The targeted rebel never had a chance to follow the order. Another crack reverberated into the street as a pulse round tore through the rebel's skull. Another citizen took cover behind an abandoned car as he cried, "Ambush!"

One of his squadmates turned to him and shouted to be heard over the dozen discharging sniper rifles, "Well I'm glad you're here to tell us these things!"

The glass of the car windows started shattering as round after round tore into the vehicles. Rebels pressed themselves against the metal frame, praying that the limited amount of cover would be enough to save their lives. Barney hissed when a shard of glass glanced off of his neck, he felt a trickle of blood seep down his skin. "Can anyone see them?!" Barney cried as he forced his body to turn around so that his eyes could scan for their attackers.

"They're in the buildings, second level!" A voice shouted, answering Barney's query.

Barney took up a crouching position as he rested his pulse rifle on the hood of the car. He ignored the loud cracks and sounds of near misses against his ears as he tried to aim his weapon. He lined up on the nearest window and squeezed the trigger, sending a flurry of pulse fire that tore through the vulnerable glass material. A few grunts of pain could barley be heard above the constant stream of firing Combine rifles, but it was enough to give Barney the courage to fight back.

"Enemy location verified, return fire!" Barney ordered as he reloaded his rifle.

A citizen with fast reflexes fired his rifle at a window on full auto, the sound of an electronic scream let the resistance know that one sniper was down. The citizen who fired shouted as he reloaded, "That's what I'm talking about, who's ambushing who now?!"

The rebel had just reloaded his weapon when a discharging sniper round tore through his skull. The rebel slumped to the hood of the car, blood seeping from a large gash in his forehead.

A citizen screamed with rage at another death. Acting on primal instincts of revenge he stood up from his cover and fired his rifle on full auto. Spent capsule coverings riddled the ground as pulse fire impacted against the cement building the snipers were holed up inside. The rest of the citizens laid out covering fire for their companion. They opened fire from trisecting sections of the street, creating an overlapping grid of weapons fire that shredded through glass and brick walls.

But as soon as the lone citizen stopped to reload, the snipers left their cover. Six beams of sapphire lights showed on the citizen's torso, all he had time to do was growl in anger before six sniper rounds fired off almost simultaneously. Each round created a small hole in its target, rupturing organs and creating a systemic blood flow that killed the human almost instantly.

Anger was the only thing that people felt at that point, but there was enough logic rooted into their system to keep them from acting rashly. Barney analyzed the enemy unit deployment, his mind raced as he ran through various tactical strategies. After a few seconds he concluded that there was only one option; turning to the others he shouted for them to open fire. The squads did just that, they gritted their teeth as they fed all of their anger and frustration into their bullets. Not even the slight pain from the rifle's pounding recoil on full auto could compare to what the squads had lost.

As the snipers stopped firing, presumably to take cover, Barney darted from his temporary protection. He pulled the pin on his last grenade, counted to two, then hurled it into a badly damaged window. Panicked radio chatter could be heard just before the small device went off with a bang. The force of the explosion was strong enough to blast the sniper out of his hiding spot, his sniper rifle slung on his shoulders.

Barney stood in the middle of the sniper's line of fire as he shouted, "Soldiers, advance!"

Answering acknowledgments could be heard as the three squads reformed into one platoon. They stood in the middle of the street, firing at any of the broken windows. Electronic screams became a background noise to the sound of discharging weapons, it wasn't long before the rest of the snipers joined their dead friends.

Mendez picked up the only sniper rifle that had fallen to the ground, a beam extended as far as the rifle could fire; bringing a whole new meaning to the words: laser sight. A long black barrel was big enough to fire off 14mm pulse rounds, almost twice as big as those carried in the Overwatch assault rifles. A complex crosshair pattern was encrusted onto the scope of the rifle, with up to 15x magnification it was an extremely effective long range weapon.

Mendez eagerly shouldered the new weapon; he sighted on a combine soldier at the top of the not-so distant enemy fortification. He sighted on the soldier's helmet and pulled the trigger, wincing when the gun's recoil drove itself into his already bruised shoulder. But he felt that the pain was worth it when the round found its mark against the soldier's head, the velocity of the round caused the soldier's corpse to catapult itself off of the wall.

Mendez repeated the process, firing off round after round until the rifle's bolt clacked; the weapon was empty. Barney smiled at his friend's accuracy before gesturing for the others to storm the vulnerable Combine blockade. His platoon answered his decree with war cries, sprinting toward the base as fast as their weary limbs could carry them.

Barney could have sworn that the remaining gate guards shook; they almost froze in fear as their enemies charged their position. Panicked radio chatter blared from their helmet's speakers as they made inquiries about the status of their snipers. Pulse rounds tore into the Combine's armour before their cybernetic systems could override their biological emotions. A lucky discharging round tore into the skull of a charging rebel, she fell in a heap as her nerve impulses no longer regulated the movement of her limbs.

Mendez would have thought that melee combat no longer had a place in modern warfare, but jabs from pulse rifles and other weapon strikes to the torso were proving him wrong. Citizen forces engaged the four remaining soldiers in a fierce melee combat, they struck the still shocked troops into the head with such force that their helmets cracked.

It didn't take long for one of the few remaining Combine blockades to fall into resistance control. Barney's platoon let out a cheer that they hoped would carry all the way to the Citadel.

Another route to the Citadel brought the humans that much closer to total control of City 17. The Combine's time, had come.

* * *

**So just how good was this?...**

**Just so you know I plan on writing an awesome one-shot before I update to this story. Usually I concentrate on one thing at a time but I've got this really good idea nad I'm afraid that if I don't start writing it...I'll probably lose it completely.**


	9. Explosive Solutions

**The last chapter of Urban Warfare. **

**First off, I know that I wrote out Theta Squad's designation as actual numbers rather than words, but you try writing FIfty-Two and Thirty-Four 50 times. Plus I realize that it would probably take a few hours for a headcrab to restructure a human into a zombie but, for the sake of the plot, I had it only take a few minutes.**

**Second: big thanks to Still Bullet for the awe-inspiring review. **

**Third: I'm completley out of school now so I'll have more time to work on my fics. At least for a week or so.**

**Fourth: Check out my 8,000 word one shot about the Seven Hour War, its the apptly named fic: The Seven Hour War.**

* * *

D-42 paused in the street after gunning down a citizen, a video feed filled a small portion of his HUD. His squad continued firing at a group of insurgents while his eyes locked onto the video. A large group of citizens broke their way through what 42 recognized as being a gateway to a blockade. The feed zoomed in on two citizens highlighting their faces before the display changed to show just the highlighted two. Text scrolled across his HUD:

_Priority assessment re-evaluated, threat level red. Designations: Anticitizens Two and Three. Targets are responsible for failed incursions, search and destroy._

Forty-Two closed the files while he turned his attention back to his squad, he raised his rifle and continued firing at the last squad of citizens firing out of building windows.

D-42's group had been tracking down the locations of rebel hideouts ever since they had failed to eradicate that last squad. Now they were destroying the last rebel supply line in this area, disrupting the flow of both weapons and personnel.

"_Initiate eradication protocol omega."_ 42's electronic voice spoke into the COM system implanted in his throat.

"_Acknowledged, protocol initiated. COM silence will be initiated when we move in on the site."_ His squad responded as they moved toward the rebel fortification, weapons at the ready.

"_Fifty-Two, setup a charge."_ 42 ordered while he reloaded his rifle.

"_Understood, setting plasma charge."_ Fifty-Two pulled out a small circular device, pressed the charge to the wall, and then set the timer for five seconds. Fifty-Two and the rest of the squad took cover behind the wall as 52 rattled off, _"5…4…3…2…1..Clear!"_

The charge went off with a small bang; the door blew off its hinges instantly, leaving a small cloud of smoke in its wake. Fifty-Two and Thirty-Four moved into combat positions. Fifty-Two rolled into the now open doorway, kneeling as he brought his weapon up to shoulder height. Thirty-Four stood above Fifty-Two, scanning back and forth with his weapon. They switched to infrared vision, the once dark building was now illuminated by the silhouetted heat signatures of rebel soldiers.

The two soldiers opened fire at separate targets, the pulse capsules shredding through any opposition as the two moved in with weapons hot.

By the time the thick smoke dissipated, five rebel soldiers were dead inside the building. Judging by the number of pulse capsules lodged into the wooden walls, it was clear that the small amount of cover inside the narrow hallway had been insufficient protection.

D-42 motioned for 52 to take point with a quick movement of his free arm. The others fell in step behind, eyes sharp and weapons primed. Rebel emerged from doors on the far side of the hallway, SMGs and pistols firing rampantly. Their sloppy offensive was quickly countered by quick bursts from 42 and 52.

The small band of rebels fell from well-placed head shots, leaving 42 and his squad free reign of one of the few remaining rebel supply lines. Forty-Two paused while Fifty-Two started setting up the plasma charges.

Bringing up the file on Anticitizens Two and Three, 42 shifted the files to a corner of his HUD while he replayed a recording of their first battle. He paused the video when he saw a rebel ordering others to follow him through what would have been a successful ambush. 42 zoomed in on the rebel and compared his appearance to the one designated as Anticitizen Two, it was a perfect match.

The four Combine soldiers exited the building as soon as 52 reported that the charges were set. Using the command interface linked into his cybernetic systems, 42 sent an activation signal to the cluster of charges. The explosives engulfed the small building in a fiery storm, leaving nothing but rubble in its place.

As 42 gazed back at the Anticitizen files, he felt one of the few emotions he was still able to experience course through his conscious mind, rage. After a few minutes, he tore his gaze away from his HUD. As soon as his squad asked for their next instructions he sent them the files, and designated a blocked off area as a likely ambush location. The rebels were heading towards the Citadel so they would need to by-pass this fortified area in order to proceed any further.

This rebel would be exterminated, 42 would ensure that objective.

* * *

"Stay close and quiet." Barney whispered to his platoon as they crept through winding alleyways to what Matt guessed to be a direct route to a major Combine operational centre, their last line of defence protecting the Citadel.

The platoon emerged into a wide street, weapon sweeping across every surface. Most of them relaxed their posture when they didn't see anyone. Barney, Mendez, and the more experienced rebels, however, did no such thing. If their service in the resistance had taught them anything, it was to be wary of a vacant street in Combine controlled territory.

"Weapons hot, stay alert!" Mendez barked at the inexperienced rebels.

"Yes sir." The others said in acknowledgment as they re-shouldered their weapons.

"We need to find a way out of here." Barney said as he continued to look around, "Matt, any ideas?"

"If we can get to the top of that building, we might be able to find a way out." Matt said as he gazed at a nearby structure that was at least three stories tall.

"Good idea." Barney replied before turning to Mendez, "Mendez, you're our rear guard. Keep your eyes sharp."

"I always do." Mendez said with a small smile.

While Barney and Mendez took their respective squads toward the objective, Mendez motioned for his forces to fall back and cover the entrance.

D-42 shouldered his newly acquired sniper rifle while he spoke into his COM implant, _"Squad, status?"_

"_Preparations complete, ready to engage."_ 52 responded while the other two in 42's squad flashed green lights to his HUD.

"_Initiate shoot on sight protocol gamma. Confirm acknowledgement."_

"_Confirmed,"_ The others responded simultaneously, _"Targets approaching the northern side."_

The last communiqué was quickly followed by the sounds of discharging sniper rounds.

"This way," Matt said, pointing toward a large doorway.

"Right," Barney said as he redoubled his pace. He felt an odd feeling spread through his senses like a plague. Something…..was very wrong.

Just as the squads started to turn ninety degrees and jog down an adjoining roadway, two booming sounds rang into the air. The sound was almost instantly followed by the scene of two rebel bodies hitting the ground, blood pouring out of open holes in their skulls.

"Ambush!" A rebel cried as he searched for targets to return fire at. A blue beam on his chest was his only warning before another crack reverberated into the air. The pulse round tore through the rebel's heart, leaving a red hole in his jacket as his corpse fell to the ground.

"Move to the building! Go! Go! GO!" Barney commanded with a crisp tone that was enough to get most of the rebels moving.

There were a few others who panicked and tried to run back to safety, but the Combine sharpshooters gunned them down without hesitation.

The remaining rebels followed Barney as he sprinted toward an open doorway, willing his legs to move faster. More sniper rounds fired from somewhere ahead of them, slaughtering charging rebels with pinpoint accuracy. Those who were hit fell instantly, their cries for assistance barley heard above the steady crack of sniper fire.

Barney was the first to dive into the building, though he was quickly followed by five other rebels. Half of Barney's squad had been lost to sniper fire in the first ten minute exchange of fire alone.

Turning to those still alive Barney said, "We'll head up to the top and take them down from here."

"This used to be a friendly outpost," Matt said sadly as he gazed at a trail of blood leading away to a corner.

"Matt, focus! Stay sharp or we'll be joining them."

"Right," Matt replied as he unslung his SMG and pulled himself together.

"You two," Barney said as he pointed at two soldiers, "Guard the entrance. Everybody else follow me, I'm on point!" Barney clacked the bolt on his rifle and slowly advanced up a nearby staircase.

"_Targets have taken refuge in structure 4560, orders?"_ 52 asked the squad leader.

"_Standby," _42 said before switching frequencies, _"Theta Team leader requesting viral bombardment on structure 4560 at coordinates 18 mark 47 mark 3."_

"_Request granted, target verified. Bombardment commencing."_ A modulated voice replied before cutting the channel.

"_Bombardment is incoming, gamma protocol still stands."_

"_Confirmed, awaiting target locks."_

Barney stopped when he heard a soft wail emit from the sky, as the sound grew louder his memory clicked and he remembered what those sounds meant. "Incoming canisters, take cover!"

His squad scattered in different directions, half of them moved downstairs, while the other half remained where they were. Barney headed for the third floor; he ducked behind a support column and gritted his teeth in anticipation.

The canisters impacted at the speed of sound, the hardened metal nose cone was strong enough to puncture through anything in its path, even concrete. Canisters tore through every floor of the building, turning the third floor into a makeshift rooftop.

Of course what happened next was even worse than being buried under tons of cement blocks. The hatches of the canisters opened and headcrabs started pouring out, the small creatures jumped onto the heads of still stunned rebels. Their penetrating appendages entered the victim's skull and into the brain as they started the excruciatingly painful process of zombie conversion.

Matt held onto another rebel as he attempted to pull off one of the creatures, "Hold still, hold still!"

The two rebels guarding the front entrance panicked at the sight of hungry headcrabs, they fired their semi-automatic machine guns and backtracked back into the streets. The two fighters stood side-by-side, killing any headcrabs foolish enough to chase after them.

While the parasitic organisms may have failed at killing the two rebels, the Combine didn't. Another discharging sniper round was aimed well enough to tear through both of the rebel's skulls, leaving them to collapse in a heap on the cold cement floor.

The canisters continued their merciless assault, they impacted in such numbers that the building was exposed from every possibly angle. The left side of the building took the worse beating, a well aimed canister punched right through a group of support columns. An entire section of wall collapsed in that instant, dust rose into air as soon as the cement blocks crumbled to the pavement.

* * *

Mendez looked at the destruction with wide-eyes, _guard duty be damned_, he thought. Mendez looked at one of the rebels in his squad and said, "You stay here. Everybody else come with me." He motioned for the others to follow him toward the building at a full sprint.

"_New targets sighted at sector five, vector 6 mark 18."_

"_Targets sighted, fire at will."_

"_Acknowledged."_

Mendez was concentrating so hard on his distant objective that he never noticed the rebel next to him suddenly fall to the ground with a smack. It wasn't until someone shouted, "Snipers," that Mendez turned his attention back to the welfare of his squad.

He noticed the blue beams searching for targets, "Keep moving, don't let the beams touch you!"

A few rebels fell while they ran, sniper rounds tore through their flesh with enough forces to send them hitting the pavement on their backs with screams. The ones who couldn't make it to the building were forced to seek cover in the street. Only two rebels succeeded, the injured were gunned down again as they tried to crawl to safety.

By this time Mendez, and the three that had stuck with him, emerged into the building Barney was still inside. As soon as they entered, the four were immediately under attack by headcrabs. The parasitic creatures jumped for their heads, penetrators twitching with anticipation.

7.62mm ammunition tore through the headcrabs in seconds, leaving the creatures to moan in distress. The small party of rebels headed down to the basement when they discovered that the doors leading to the stairway were locked. A ramp covered with a large patch of blood led down to the lower levels of the basement.

Mendez guessed that a water leakage had been caused by the bombardment since the basement was flooded with water. The group proceeded single-file with the water level up to their knees. With a doorway in sight, the group picked up their pace toward a staircase. They were only about ten metres away when a zombie emerged from the water, its cries for help drowned out by the headcrab's thirst for more blood.

The surprised rebels only had a chance to squeeze off a burst of rounds before the zombie slashed at its prey with long sharp claws. Two rebels fell back when the claws slashes through their stomachs, one of the rebels remained motionless while another stood back up with whimpers of pain. His companions fired a full clip into the zombie, sending yellow blood into the water as the rounds shredded the target's vulnerable chest cavity.

The two uninjured rebels helped their wounded companion up the staircase. They stopped moving when they were halfway up the staircase, a decision that would prove to be fatal. A couple of fast moving headcrabs jumped from above when they saw the humans. Since the uninjured rebels were trying to assist their wounded companion, they never saw the parasites coming.

* * *

Barney laid on his stomach to avoid the incoming sniper fire. Blue beams passed mere centimetres above his head as he crawled toward a working transmitter. It wasn't anything more than a small viewscreen with an antenna, but the signal was strong enough to carry to Kliemer's lab. At least he hoped it would be.

Barney entered the code for Kliener's transmitter and kneeled as he placed the small viewscreen on the ground. Static was the only thing filling the screen for a moment, "Doc! Doc, are you there?" Barney almost shouted in desperation as he hoped that the image would stabilize.

After a while his continued cries were answered when Kliener's face appeared on the screen, "Yes Barney I'm here, and I'm no longer alone. Alyx and Gordon are here too."

Even though Barney knew he had lost most, if not all, of his squad to snipers and headcrabs; he felt a twinge of happiness when he saw Alyx wave and Gordon move to the side of her. "Man that's good news! I almost gave you guys up for lost."

"They'll be moving up to your location Barney," Kliener said as he moved back into view of the transmission.

Barney was about to reply but he stopped when another wail could be heard falling on his position. "Oh crap," he said before shouting to warn any potential survivors, "Incoming!"

Another headcrab canister impacted through the third level, its metal nose tearing through the concrete in its path, another hole now sported through both levels of the building. Barney turned back to the transmitter, "Get going!" he shouted before cutting the channel.

Barney found the remains of a support column, the square shaped cement barrier provided a small amount of protection from the discharging sniper rounds.

* * *

Two hours from when Barney made the transmission, 52 swept his targeting reticule over a figure running through the streets, upon closer inspection he realized that it was the figure formally listed as Anticitizen One. 52 quickly switched his targeting reticule over the figure clad in orange armour and fired. The round narrowly missed as the rebel took cover behind a nearby wall. 52 waited for the rifle's capacitor to charge again before firing off another round.

As soon as the round impacted harmlessly against the rebel's cover, the target sprinted out into the street, this time using an abandoned car as a means of protection. By this time the target was only twenty metres away from 52, but despite the soldier's best efforts the target kept evading the pulse rounds. It wasn't long before a grenade arced into the air and flew straight through the window and into the building that 52 was holed up inside.

In a panic the sharpshooter made panicked transmissions about the grenade before the device went off with a boom. The force of the blast propelled 52 out of his hiding place and into the street below.

* * *

Mendez opened his eyes with a groan; he used his remaining strength to grab on to a wooden structure that was slightly above the water level in the building's basement. Blood continued to flow out of his open wound, encrusting the wooden platform with pools of red liquid. Mendez had to fight just to keep himself conscious.

At one point he opened his eyes to find a man in orange armour standing over him, Mendez found the strength to tell him that the others moved topside before zombies rose out of the water. They creatures cried out for blood as they marched toward potential prey.

A few blasts from Gordon's shotgun countered that assumption. He blasted holes in all of the zombies before moving on up to the stairs, leaving Mendez behind in a state somewhere between life and death.

* * *

Barney noticed a shimmer of orange and black armour moving up to his level, he shouted for Gordon's help in taking out these snipers. Gordon complied with a few well placed grenades.

52's rage grew to a boiling point when he heard the screams of his squadmates echo over the COM channel. He continued tracking the Anticitizen targets, sending round after round impacting into cement blocks. He was so engrossed on targeting the humans that he never noticed the grenade until it landed right at his feet. 52 quickly shouldered his rifle and tried to throw the device out but the countdown was already dangerously low.

The device exploded a second later, sending shards of bloodied glass onto the street below. Gordon cracked a smile at the destruction before helping Barney to his feet. The two set off for a gateway in the distance, Barney led the way to the Combine's last line of defence in this sector.

The coming battle would test both Human and Combine resolve, but with Gordon at his side, Barney knew who the victors would be.

* * *

**So there you have it:**

**Mendez was that wounded guy you find in the basement of that building, Matt was added to the bodycount, and Barney lives to fight on. (not a surprise there)**

**Apologies in advance if I screwed up on dialogue, its been a while since I played through Half-Life 2.**

**Oh and if you played through HL2, congratulations on annihilating Theta Squad. Ha ha.**

**My version of the Battle for City 17, hope you enjoyed it. Kudos to all reviewers and thanks to all my readers, its been difficult but fun.**

**Anyway I've started working on a sequel to A Means of an End, it'll be called Empire Beneficiary. So keep an eye out for that. I may be out of school now but I start my BMQ (Basic Military Qualification) with the Reserves in the beginning of July and then I go through Soldier Qualification in August, so whether I have time to write or not I don't know.**


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