(no subject)

[vance_prime]

Enter Alyx Vance.

She's looking very subdued at the moment, and has a moderately-sized stack of papers under one arm.

"Bar? I need a map of North American rail lines in my world, circa 2001. The biggest one you can get me."

She takes the folded paper that materializes and heads for the biggest table in the Bar. Vance Prime has work to do.

[ooc: Open until it scrolls.]

Comments

[acts_of_gord]

Gordon's not looking a whole lot more cheerful himself. He's been going over part of the stack himself, once Alyx's finished with it, and he doesn't like what he sees. Just one of the many things that tends to leave him quieter than usual.

At least there's space here and time here to consider it properly, right?

[vance_prime]

Alyx spreads the map out; it takes up most of the table, and even flaps off the edges a bit.

"Hey, Gordon? I've got a set of colored markers stashed up in our room here, would you mind...?"

[acts_of_gord]

"Sure," says Gordon. "Going to need any pushpins while I'm at it?"

[vance_prime]

"Nah, I don't wanna ruin the table. I'm running enough of a tab as it is without deliberate property damage."

[acts_of_gord]

Gordon nods. "We'll have to come up with something to do about that," he murmurs, and heads upstairs. When he returns he's got the markers, and a glass of one of those chai drinks he introduced Alyx to last year. If you're going to do work like this you might as well do it with something decent in your stomach.

[vance_prime]

Alyx accepts the shake with a bright smile and a murmured "Thank you." Then she takes a green marker and starts marking all the major urban areas. (The Resistance cells and the observed train routes will come later.)

[acts_of_gord]

It's kind of embarrassing. Up until recently Gordon hadn't even managed to find out where half of these cities were.

"I get the feeling I'm going to need a briefing after all of this is done," he murmurs.

[vance_prime]

Alyx huffs a faint laugh. "I didn't know what half of these cities were named before the War until I read it here. I think we can call it even."

[acts_of_gord]

"Point," Gordon says. After a moment, he starts following his own lines along the map- nothing that gets in Alyx's way, mind. Just arcs, or straight lines, from City 08 to various other points around the continent.

[vance_prime]

"What are you doing?"

[acts_of_gord]

"Sorry." Gordon jerks his hands away. "Routes my father used to fly. I can't imagine too many of them are going to be relevant to this... I was just remembering." He shrugs.

[vance_prime]

Alyx frowns slightly. "You okay?" she murmurs.

[acts_of_gord]

"I'm fine," Gordon says. "Dad was... I'm just wondering where he was when everything went down, more than anything."

He's not really sure how the fact that all he can manage to feel is a kind of odd curiosity would sound if he said it out loud.

[vance_prime]

"I... don't know what to tell you," says Alyx honestly.

[acts_of_gord]

"It's all right," Gordon says. "I'll ask Eleanor when we get back. If anyone knows, it'd be her..." He shakes his head ruefully. "Anyway. Didn't mean to get in your way."

[vance_prime]

"It's okay," says Alyx. "We've got time."

A beat.

"On that note, we'd better make sure the door works."

[acts_of_gord]

"Point," says Gordon, getting up and heading over to the door. It opens without a hitch.

"Well. That's a relief."

[vance_prime]

"No shit," agrees Alyx. "Being Bound gets really old really fast."

[acts_of_gord]

"I'll give it this much," says Gordon. "I'm almost glad it happened after Black Mesa. I don't know that I'd've been any use to anyone right after all that."

[vance_prime]

"That happened because of the fucker in the suit," points out Alyx. "I'm not ready to be grateful to him for anything."

[acts_of_gord]

"Even so," Gordon says. "You weren't there."

He looks down at the map, runs his finger over it until he finds Espanola, New Mexico.

"I'd come here a few times before the Incident. Maybe I'd've wound up here anyway without his interference. Either way, if I'd just wound up back on Earth..." He shakes his head. "It wouldn't've ended well."

[vance_prime]

Alyx lays her hand on top of Gordon's.

"I wish I could've been there to help."

[acts_of_gord]

He looks up and smiles at her gratefully. "If you thought I was unimpressive when we first met, it was even worse then," is all he says in reply, though.

[vance_prime]

A faint, wry smile.

"There's also the part where I hadn't turned three yet."

[acts_of_gord]

"There's that," Gordon agrees. "Although you were a very impressive two-and-a-half year old, vocabulary-wise."