//------------------------------// // Chapter 7 Forget about Freeman // Story: Black Bloom // by Bronycommander //------------------------------// Chapter 7: Forget about Freeman Apple Blooms body tried to defend itself against the Zombification without success. She was still alive but it was painful and agonizing. She could faintly still hear. Konrad’s radio got a transmission. “Come in Cooper! Do you copy? Cooper, do you read me? Forget about Freeman! We’re abandoning the base. If you have any last bomb targets, mark them on the tactical map. Otherwise, get the hell out of there!” Explosions filled the background. “Repeat, we are pulling out and commencing airstrikes. Give us targets, or get below! Over!” Suddenly, someone ripped the Headcrab off. Apple Bloom gasped as she sucked in as much air as she could. She coughed. Her vision was blurry. Still her savior was familiar to her. Also, an air raid siren filled the sky and the filly saw other Ospreys leaving the facility. Konrad regained consciousness. His vital signs weren’t good. His vest had no power and his health was at 15%. Morphine was administrated. Still, he had to hold his right leg with his left hand and his weapon with his right hand. Mia, Jacob, Tanner, Michael and Tower regained also consciousness. After seeing Apple Bloom's condition, Tanner shouted, “Medic!” Blood was running down her head from the headcrab, she had multiple scrapes and scratches. Tower gave her a syringe to patch her up and bandaged her head. “Keeping you in one piece's proving to be quite a challenge!” “Th-Thank you.” Apple Bloom was stable but still weakened. Mia lifted her gently up. Except for them, there were no survivors from the crash. It crashed near an underground car park. “Anyone else need medical attention?” Tower asked the survivors. “We’re hurt, but we'll hang tough,” Tanner and Michael replied. “Took a little damage, but I can make it,” Jacob said. “Just a few scratches,” Mia added “You look pretty hurt, sir. This outta keep you frosty.” Tower gave Konrad some painkillers as he had run out of supplies. "Sorry sir, that's all I can do for you." "It's alright." Damn, those painkillers do nothing! he thought as The pain did not subside at all. Apple Bloom could hear an audible gasmask breathing sound from Konrad. His vision was black and white/grayscale, blurred as if he had tunnel vision. “I can’t see, I can’t breathe…I can’t breathe…” None of his teammates scolded him as Konrad was known to be very pain Insensitive but even he had his limits and that was reached if not way over it. They walked in. Airstrikes caused debris to fall. With a sprint, the group made to the other side before they were squashed. At the other side was a security office with a radio and a dead security guard. A Soldier was able to send a radio transmission. “Forget about Freeman! We’re cutting our losses and pulling out! Anyone left down there now is on his own! Repeat: If you weren’t alrea--- What? Oh shit! No! No---“Indiscriminate screams of impending doom followed by Radio Static was heard. The underground car par rumbled from airstrikes. “Seems like we missed the last flight out of here. Left for Dead.” As those words left Jacobs mouth, Apple Bloom broke down in tears as the radio message and the rumbling from the airstrikes were too much for her. “Shh, don’t cry, we’re here for you, shh.” Mia rocked her to calm her down. Konrad had an Idea. “Apple Bloom, look at me, sweetheart, please.” She looked up with tear filled eyes. Konrad booped her nose and formed a heart. He also reached for something in his pocket. It was a green scarf. He made a new bow for her. She giggled. “Thank you, uncle!” “Anytime, anywhere. This scarf belonged to my father. He was a soldier like me. I always carried it with me to remember him. Now you have something to remember us.” He patched himself up with a medkit. For some reason, I feel old when she calls me uncle, and I’m in my early twenties. But at the same time, I like it when she calls me that. “Ahh, the morphine… feels good.” Jacob patched himself with another medkit up. Several Vortigaunts and Alien Grunts teleported in. Gordon used a switch to activate two celling turrets. They took care of the Aliens. “Alright, let’s go.” Gordon deactivated the turrets. The next corridor was blocked by a mine of biological origin. “What is that?” “Some kind of mine I think.” Gordon replied to Jacob and detonated the mine from a distance. Five beetle-like creatures attack him but the marines took care of them. “What were those things?” Apple Bloom asked. “Don’t know. Don’t care.” Michael was out of breath. “The nightmare I had once was not as worse as this.” “What nightmare, uncle?” “I dreamed once, that I was fighting zombie ponies with red eyes and rotten flesh. They overwhelmed me in seconds. But this is nothing, compared to this real nightmare.” At a catwalk, Tanner and Michael used a First aid station. They killed 4 Vortigaunts. Jacob opened a hatch for Gordon that leaded to the CenCom Reservoir. Dead marines were scattered everywhere. “Good luck, Gordon. We will find another way out. No offense Apple Bloom, but swimming in your condition isn’t a good idea.” “None taken.” “I don’t think we will meet again, but it was an honor to fight with you Corporal.” Gordon saluted Konrad which he returned. After Gordon left, Michael talked to himself, “Should have join the Air force or the Army.” The Blast door opened but malfunctioned after it opened. A wounded scientist tried to come through. “Please, help me!” Before anyone could help him, he was killed. “Jesus!” Tanner shouted as an Alien Grunt broke through the door. The Squad and the security guard fired with their MP5s at the Grunt. The concentrated firepower caused the Grunt to retreat. “Well, I don’t think we will see him again,” Tower commented. They heard gunfire. A marine shouted “CRRAPPP! HUNGGH!” as he was punched through a concrete wall by the Alien Grunt. The Marine was dying and warned them as they entered. “You've got the get out of here. Listen to me, Ford. Those things... they'll kill all of us...” Advancing slowly and careful they came to another security room. Agonizing screaming could be heard from a marine that was attacked by snarks. He was on the other side of the room, so they couldn’t help him. “Poor bastard.” Tower had sympathy for him. Konrad found a still working radio. “Come in, anybody! This is Corporal Ford, Echo-3-Juliet. Does anybody read me?” Static. Then an answer came. “Corporal Ford, we’ve been left behind as well. We are onto your position now.” “Copy that. My squad has also civilians with it.” “Understood. There’s a maintenance hatch to the north entrance where we are. Good luck, over.” “Over and out.” Jacob opened the hatch. “Ready?” “Ready.” Tanner smiled at Apple Bloom. “I have not...come this far...to die now!” Konrad reloaded his MP5. The way consisted of a small catwalk, under it an abyss. Konrad walked ahead as he was ambushed by Black Ops on the upper catwalks. Konrad went to cover and returned fire. His comrades killed one Black Ops as Konrad had to reload. A Black Ops attacked him with a knife, but he dodged it. His weapon slipped into the abyss. In a brutal hand-to-hand combat, the two men struggled with the knife. Konrad gained the upper hand, punching the Black Ops into the face. “Die!” He kicked Konrad into the gut causing him to fall on his back. Michael saw this and shot the Black Ops before he could finish Konrad off. Michael smiled but pointed at the Black Ops on the upper catwalk. He aimed at Konrad, but Konrad was quicker as he drew his Desert Eagle to shoot him. Tower and Michael went to his aid. Tanner was proud of his men. But then, there was a roar. The same Alien Grunt from earlier was behind him. He punched him. Tanner fell with a scream into the Abyss. “Tanner!” The Grunt looked at Mia and Apple Bloom and roared. Jacob was about to fire but the Grunt knocked him out. Apple Bloom trembled in fear. Mia was cowering in a corner as she clenched the filly protectively. "Damn it! I don't have a clear shot! You?" Konrad asked worried "No, we neither!" Michael replied also worried. Another Squad of Black Ops arrived. They fired at the Alien Grunt. They defeated him. Jacob woke up, only to see an MP5 pointed at him. "Sorry Ma'am, but orders are orders." One Black Ops said to Mia as he was about to pull the trigger. To everyone’s surprise, a LAV-25 broke through the gate that was on the end of the cat walk, getting the Black Ops attention. They were busy fighting the crew of the LAV that Konrad used this to sneak behind a Black Ops. Knocking him out, he took the MP5 and threw a grenade at the remaining Black Ops. “Corporal, what is going on here? Nobody told us about Black Operations in the mission briefing.” One of the two survived marines said to him. “They want to kill us. But we’re almost out of there.” “At your command, Sir. The Entrance is just ahead.” “Attention, all military personnel, Evacuate Black Mesa research Facility. Renegade Gordon Freeman is not your objective.” The intercom buzzed through the carpark. They moved to the control room where the switch for the gate was. One marine was hit by a security guard that defended a scientist but was killed by the other marine. “No, I don’t wanna die!” The scientist panicked. “Relax; we only want to get out of here.” The marine spoke before he was hit by a Black Ops. Konrad fired a rifle grenade at him. “Let’s go!” He shouted. “Alright, I can open the gate. The Lambda team informed me about you.” The scientist used the switch. “Want to join us?” Jacob asked the scientist. “Nothing rather than that. The Lambda team is bent on fighting the creatures, with all their hopes set on Freeman. Let those fools try and fight a battle they can't win. I just want to get out of here.” “Mommy, daddy, we made it!” “Yes we did Apple Bloom, yes we did.” Jacob was glad. He had survived this mess.