Spike put a claw on the acceleration lever, and looked out the windshield.
He waited.
I put a hand on his shoulder and looked with him.
“3...” I said.
“2..” Applejack continued.
“1..” Rainbow said.
“NOW!” We all yelled at the same time. Spike pulled back the accelerator, causing the train to start slowing down at a rapid rate.
I grabbed the chain and pulled it down, which made the train let out a loud whistle. The wheels squealed as the thing attempted to stop its movement. Canterlot station was rapidly approaching, and I worry we overshot the stopping time.
Fortunately, it was only by a little bit. The train stopped slightly after the destination.
Nobody spoke. Nobody took a breath.
And then we all started cheering.
“Yeah!!!” I yelled out, pumping my fists in the air. Spike hugged me tight and slapped my back, while RD started dancing in the air.
“Yeehaw!” Applejack yelled, jumping up on her hind legs.
We all celebrated some more, but eventually we regained our bearings. Spike let go, Rainbow stopped dancing, and Applejack readjusted her hat.
“Well.. lets get going.” I said, tossing open the door. I walked into the next train cart, and opened the exit door. I hopped onto the station platform and looked around.
Oh yeah.
Hell.
Can’t say it wasn’t expected.
I heard the others step off after me, and turned around.
“Okay, so.. why did we come here?” Spike asked, raising an eyebrow..? He doesn’t have eyebrows.
Weird little detail.
No wait, getting off-topic. Why are we here.. why are we here.. right.
“Uh.. we have to go to Xen. Fight the big bad guy, you know? I’m assuming that the teleporter is somewhere in this city, considering it’s the biggest in the nation, correct?” I asked.
Spike nodded.
“Okay, yeah. Last time, I had to get someone to open a portal for me, but I DID find a couple random portals throughout Black Mesa. My guess is that there’s one here, as I stated before, and it’s the one that they all came from. It would only make sense that their main base of operations is in the big city, right?” I explained. They all nodded.
“Yeah, that makes sense. So.. where is it?” Rainbow asked, looking around.
“That.. is an excellent question.” I said, and began looking myself.
I felt discouraged because I didn’t find it immediately, but a saving grace came in the form of a young man’s voice.
“Is that it?” Spike said, pointing far off. I looked to where he was pointing and didn’t see anything.
“Spike, I’m too short.” I said. “I can’t see where you’re pointing.”
He’s at least 5 inches taller than I am. And I don’t think he remembered that fact.
He looked at me and his eyes widened. “Oh! Oh, yeah. Here.” He said, putting his arms under my armpits and pulling me up.
Well, this is degrading.
“Is the green thing the teleporter?” He asked, and I saw what he was pointing to.
“Yep, that’s it. But where is it?” I asked. It seemed to be on top of a building.
But what building, exactly?
“On top of the castle..” He muttered, sighing afterwards. “Well, this isn’t going to be easy. The damn place is probably crawling with guards. And if the weird behavior of those Ponyville guards is anything to go by, I assume they won’t be very friendly either.” Spike said in exasperation, setting me down.
Spike groaned with emphasis. “Alright, let’s go save the world..”
“Aw, chin up, Spike! It may seem a lil’ hopeless, but it’s never hopeless if ya got your friends with ya.” Applejack comforted him, putting a hoof on his shoulder. Or at least, she attempted to. Did I mention that he was tall?
“Thanks, Applejack.” He said, smiling slightly.
“Alright.. All in favor of going through this city, kicking ass and taking names?” I said, raising my hand.
Everyone else raised their hooves/claw.
“Alright! Let’s go. Spike, what’s the fastest way to get to the castle?” I asked. “And the least dangerous.”
Spike put a claw to his chin. I noticed that he did that when thinking. Odd habit, but it’s not like I don’t do the same thing sometimes.
“If we take.. a left at Sunlight boulevard, we can run through some nearby alleyways, which will drop us near Saxon Avenue. Follow that for a little bit and then take a right at Jule Street. That should put us right next to the castle gardens, which is an entrance we can take to get inside.” Spike explained, doing little motions with his claws. “That’s fast, and we can hide out in alleyways if we get in a bad situation.”
“Okay. That’s good, good idea. Let’s go, and try to keep it on the down low, everyone. If we go into this guns blazing.. we might not make it out with our guns empty. Understand?” I asked for confirmation.
RD looked away nervously, gulped, and nodded. Spike nodded, doing a thumbs-up. Applejack nodded quickly, seeming to want to answer before she second-guessed herself.
We’re a ragtag team of misfits, but we get shit done. No doubt.
“Now.. let’s go save the world.” I said, hardening my face.
Everyone stared, but then Rainbow started laughing. I instantly deflated.
“Hah- sorry, but heh! You were so giggle serious!” She choked out, doubling over in a coughing fit. I pat her back as she rode it out.
She stood back up, coughed one more time, and nodded at me. “Thanks.”
“Yeah..” I said, getting serious again.
She started to giggle once more.
“Alright, now, come on. Let’s actually get moving.” Spike said, chuckling.
We all ran off towards Sunlight Boulevard, not noticing the eavesdropping mare.
Her horn flared as she started a telepathic message.
“Hello, anypony on the guard?
The strange.. stallion? Is coming to the castle. You know, the wanted one. A dragon is with him, along with.. Rainbow Dash and Applejack?
I don’t know why they need to go to the castle, but it seems important to them. I don’t know what they’re planning. I recommend you prepare-“
A headcrab latched onto her face and she let out an ear-piercing shriek.
I hugged the wall with my back as I looked around the alley corner. Two guards stood there, oblivious to my presence. I turned to look at the group, and pulled out my crossbow to signify what was going to happen. They all nodded at the same time, as if it was choreographed.
I turned out slightly from the alleyway and lined up my shot with the iron sight, because there wasn’t a scope. I pulled the trigger and the projectile flew out at great speeds, piercing the neck of a guard. It went right through and was visible on the other side. Yikes.
The other guard started looking around for whoever did it, and I used that as an opportunity to get him too. Both were now bleeding out on the floor, arrows sticking from their necks.
I moved my hand in a movement that said “Continue on”, and we all kept walking; ducking into alleys whenever a royal guard showed his ugly mug.
We hadn’t encountered many aliens. My guess is that they were all already wiped out by the royal guard. They seem capable.
It definitely won’t last. That teleporter is still open, after all. I can see things falling out of it as we speak.
“In here!” Spike whispered, pushing me into another alley. He followed in with AJ and RD trailing behind. “We have to go through two more alleys and then we’re a little bit away from the gardens. We’re probably going to have to book it from there.” Spike explained, pointing to another alley. “There’s our next stop.”
I looked out of our current alleyway, and saw that the coast was clear. I nodded to the group and walked out, but instantly fell back inside when a guard walked out of a nearby store.
“Hey!” He yelled.
Shit!
He ran into our alley, but froze when he saw all of us.
He sweat-dropped and scratched his head nervously. “Uh, I’m just gonna go..”
He sped off.
“...unexpected, but not unwelcome.” I commented, and looked out of the alleyway again.
The coast was actually clear this time, except for a headcrab. I shot it, using my last arrow in the mag.
I pulled out the empty piece of metal and threw it to the ground. I pulled out an extra and popped it in, hitting it until I heard a ‘click’. I pulled back the loading mechanism and an arrow popped into place.
“Alright, you guys ready to rock and roll?” I asked. They nodded, and we sprinted to the alleyway.
We did the same scouting process, and ran to the final alley. The garden is right over there. The gate is wide open. That’s what I like to see!
But that’s not.
The damn place is infested. Zombie guards were everywhere, along with headcrabs and bullsquids.
I took a deep breath, and inconspicuously shot a zombie guard. The headcrab flew off its head and landed on the ground, while the body died. The headcrab turned around slowly and jumped at us. I didn’t have time to pull out my crowbar, so I attempted to shoot it midair. Bad idea, but it worked out. The damn thing flew back to the ground, arrow embedded in its skull.
“Nice shot!” Rainbow cheered.
Every zombie turned to look at us.
I glared at Rainbow and she shrunk down in shame. I groaned and pulled out my crowbar.
The first zombie charged and I thwacked it. Everyone else joined in and we beat the poor thing into the ground. The next one came by and we did the same process, but before we could kill it off another one showed up.
And then another.
And another.
“Fuck it, run to the gates!” I yelled. We can’t possibly take on all of these things.
They all dashed off towards it and I followed after them, not having been prepared for them to run off. I ran as fast as I could, but couldn’t avoid every attack. I fell to the floor as bullsquid mucus hit me right in the back.
“Warning: Blood toxin levels detected.”
Oh, right. This stuff is highly radioactive.
I quickly stood up but fell again when something swiped at my back.
“Minor lacerations detected.
Vital signs are dropping. Evacuate area.”
Thanks, suit! I’m trying!
I stood up and just fucking ran. I booked it. I think this is the fastest I’ve ever ran in my entire life.
“Come on, Gordon!” Spike yelled, standing inside the garden. He was situated behind a bird bath, while everyone else stood behind a statue a little ways away.
I dodged and weaved around plenty of the bastards, and jumped over a houndeye. I jumped over a sonic wave from a different houndeye, and ducked under a pair of zombie claws.
At this point, I was breathing very heavily. I was exhausted. I had been running around a ton for the past few hours.
But I can’t stop. Not now.
I stomped on one last headcrab, but tripped over a houndeye. It started to charge up, but I kicked the bastard like a football.
I entered the garden and quickly grabbed the gate. I slammed it shut, and grabbed a nearby padlock.
I locked it tight, and fell to the floor. I lied down on my back as I regained my lost energy.
“Tartarus yeah!” Spike yelled, running up to me. “Dude, that was so cool! They were all like ‘Rahhh’ and you were all like ‘Buck it, I’m running’ and you got hit! But you still kept going, and then got hit again! And you STILL kept going! Man, that was so bucking cool..” Spike trailed off. I wasn’t really paying attention.
Health: 60
Armor: 30
I clicked my tongue. I need a STIM-pac.. but I don’t think I’ll find any here. I need to be more careful in the future. Being reckless like that isn’t something I should be doing.
A stupid man is a dead man, and I didn’t attend college for years to earn a doctorate just to die stupid. I’m Doctor Gordon Freeman, damn it! I’m a physicist!
I leaned on my crowbar as I stood up, and looked around at the place I was in. Wow.. this is a really nice garden.
There were plenty of flower beds around, filled to the brim with.. whatever flowers those are. I ain’t no damn botanist. There was a big hedge-maze to my right, and to my left there was another one. They seem to be connected. Two bird baths sat near the gate, parallel to each other.
And right smack-dab in the middle was a large statue, featuring two ponies with the same features as Princess Twilight. Wings and a horn.
I assume these are Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. Both are lightly smiling, yet still carried an air of authority.
Beautiful statue.
I put my crowbar back on the hook and turned towards the group.
“So.. how do we get to the teleporter?” I asked Spike, cutting him off.
“Hm? Oh! There’s an entrance right over there. It goes into the kitchen, and then from there we just have to climb a few sets of stairs and go through a few doors. We should arrive at the spire, and then we can climb outside a window and walk up a set of stairs that’ll lead us to the roof.” He looked back at the zombie crowd. “But I doubt it’s gonna be that easy.” He whispered.
“Wazzat?” I asked.
“I said..” Spike cleared his throat, “I doubt it’s gonna be that easy. Place is probably filled to the brim with guards and aliens.”
I rubbed a hand along my face and sighed. “Yeah, yeah it is. Alright, let’s get this over with.” I pulled out my crossbow and held it in one hand. In the other, I held the crowbar.
Both are useful, and I’d rather NOT need one and have it than need one and not have it.
“Wait, can’t I just fly you all up there? Yeah, I can. I’ll go up and take out anything standing in the way-“ Rainbow started flying up, but I grabbed her tail.
“Nope! Don’t go up there! Don’t go ANYWHERE NEAR the portal!” I yelled. Oh, yikes. Shouldn’t have yelled. Seemed a little aggressive there, Gordon.
“What?! Why?!” She yelled, squeaking in protest. She stopped trying to fly away when she realized I wasn’t letting go.
“The portal is VERY radioactive. Incredibly so. I don’t know what’ll happen to you if you get close. I know I said that we were all going to go to Xen, but after some further thought, I don’t think that’s possible. You guys don’t have HEV suits.” I explained, letting go of her tail. She started to rub her flank in exaggeration.
“What’s radio-active?” She asked. Applejack nodded with her, as did Spike.
Seriously? Do they not.. they have MICROWAVES!
I rubbed my nose. I’m getting a headache.
“It’s poisonous. Bad. If you’re exposed to radiation for too long, you’ll probably experience a horrible, painful death.” I explained.
Her eyes widened and her pupils shrunk. “What?” She squeaked.
“Yeah. Avoid it. Don’t worry, my suit has a built-in Geiger counter. I’ll tell you if we encounter any radiation, okay?” I said. She nodded slowly.
“Good!” I clapped my hands together. “Now that that’s dealt with.. let’s infiltrate a high-security royal living chamber. Fun.” I frowned. Why does it have to be on top of the castle?
Seems counter-productive. Half of the aliens will just fall off and fucking die, so what’s the point?
These aliens are.. dumber than I thought.
I walked up to the door to the castle and pulled the handle.
ChkChkClick!
Locked.
I pulled out my crowbar and smashed in the doorknob.
“Open-!” WHAM
“Up-!” SMASH
“You-!” THWACK
“Bastard!” SHATTER!
I kept beating it to hell, until there wasn’t a doorknob anymore.
I turned back to the group, smiled, and pushed the door open. “After you, ladies.” I said, moving out of the way.
Spike lightly punched my arm, and I chuckled.
They all walked inside, and I followed. I shut the door behind me, but it just opened back up. Right, destroyed handle.
The kitchen was really nice. Expected of royalty, after all. There were about 15 fridges sitting around, all presumably carrying different things. There were many mixers, ovens, stoves etc; and there was a nice, big island in the middle. What for? Well, anything! The option’s there.
Oh, but right now, it’s the bed for a zombie. A couple crowbar/baton/frying pan/baseball bat thwacks took care of that problem.
Spike wiped a little blood off his cheek. “So, we just need to go that way.” Spike said, pointing to a large archway. “That’s the way out of the cafeteria.”
Just then, the roof caved in. Blocking our exit.
“Oh, cool.” Spike said, his expression deadpan.
Cool!
Cool.