Where did the time go?
A rapid report of gunshots can be heard from a recently darker-than-usual part of the Nexus. A bit later Alyx emerges from the darkness, holding the very pistol responsible for the noise. Maybe she was attacking the darkness? She looks exhausted and high-strung, always good signs to look for in someone entering a populated area bearing small arms.
She spots the sign - she's a quick reader - and shakes her head. "I really don't have time for this. But while I'm here, assuming this is real and I'm not passed out somewhere hallucinating the whole thing guess I might as well ask - what's there to stop anyone with, say, inter-dimensional transport and near-infinite military resources just coming in and extending their territory? Out of curiosity."
She rubs her head. "...I'd kill for an aspirin right about now..."
She spots the sign - she's a quick reader - and shakes her head. "I really don't have time for this. But while I'm here, assuming this is real and I'm not passed out somewhere hallucinating the whole thing guess I might as well ask - what's there to stop anyone with, say, inter-dimensional transport and near-infinite military resources just coming in and extending their territory? Out of curiosity."
She rubs her head. "...I'd kill for an aspirin right about now..."