By: Jon Kolko


    The huge yellow object looked as if it was a fortress. I walked up
    to what appeared to be a door, and knocked. A voice emitted from a
    small speaker near the door:

      Warning before attempting access: This Base is protected by an
      intruder protection system.

    A keypad appeared in front of me. The voice sounded again:

      Enter the Base Access Code.

    Not knowing what to do, I type "HI" and hit <ENTER>. Suddenly, an
    invisible wall of tremendous force pushed me away from the Base!

      <ZZaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaappp!>

    An absorbing energy field surrounded me and prevented me from
    moving. A hovering camera emerged from the roof and floated around
    me.

      <CLICK!><CLICK!><CLICK!><CLICK!><CLICK!><CLICK!><CLICK!><CLICK!>

    The bright camera light blinded me, and I couldn't focus my eyes
    anymore! Bright orange and yellow spots appeared and I felt as
    though I was shrinking and moving at the same time. After an
    un-countable period of time, I was able to see again, although the
    surrounding environment looked strangely different than before!

    Because I was feeling woozy all over, I immediatly gulped down a
    Ration and patched up my entire body with a whole MedPack. I
    began to run to my north, in order to make up for lost time.

    Before I had a chance to move, a tremendous cyclone consumed me in
    it's eye! Caught in the cyclone's frenzy, it ripped at my body and
    tore at my pack! Something struk me in the head and I lost
    consciousness!

    When I finally woke up and looked around me, it seemed strangely
    dark, and completely quiet. Looking around, I muttered to myself:

      "It seems strangely dark, and completely quiet."

    Suddenly, I heard the rumbling of a spaceship behind me. As I
    turned to look, I saw the monstrous mothership of the hydrites.
    The docking panel slowly comes open, and bright light and mist
    flow from the entrance.

    Adventurous as I am, of course, I spied on the Hydrite spaceship.

    "Your time has come, mortal!" a sinister voice rumbled. "It humors
    me that such a pathetic organism as yourself could defeat me."

    I suddenly realized that this must be the evil ruler of the
    Hydrites who has tormented Earth for so many years. It was the
    Overlord who seeks the precious water crystals for his own inhuman
    race. It was the slave driver that captured the HeXonium force in
    the midst of the Revolution. It was the embodiment of all evil,
    Overkill himself.

    His eyes glinted for a second as he scanned through my inventory.

      "You have caused me enough problems destroying my Hydtite
      fleets, and you foolishly hold a token of your appreciation, a
      Sniffer, in your pack. It is now time you had a taste of your own
      medicine. Consider it a token of MY appreciation, as I claim
      your own head as a trophy".

   I grinned at the thought of all the Hydrites I had butchered. My
   hands gripped tightly around the weapon as the adrenaline started
   pumping.

   Overkill raised a massive, scaly hand in the air and majestically
   strided down the landing ramp onto the ground. His black cloak
   swirled around him, almost like a living thing. All I could see was
   his white, lifeless eyes.

      "Do you have what it takes, pathetic human? Or are you like the
      rest of them, scared of your own fate? Come, I want to hear you
      scream."



   <NOW TRANSFORMING FROM STORY MODE TO "REAL" MODE - FROM YOUR VIEW!!>


   You clash in for Hand-to-Hand combat as you realize your Herculean
   no longer exists, thanks to the cyclone. Thankfully, the overlord
   misses with his Herculean, and you are both all set with 70 Hit
   Points.

   The stress builds as you throw your printed-out maps on the ground.
   You wipe the sweat on your pant legs, and turn the background light
   out to avoid glare. You brush the hair out of your eyes, and stare
   at the waiting prompt. You force your hands to the keyboard, with
   your index finger pointed at the [A]ttack key. Changing your mind,
   you move it to the [T]o the Death! key. You take a deep breath ...



   ... And attack! You hit with your Xendrix, knocking off a quick 13.
   He nails you for 10 (SCORE 60:57). You rip into his backside for a
   nice knockout of 7. He plasters his Xendrix across your skull for
   an easy 15 (SCORE 45:50). Overkill looks as you point over his
   shoulder, and you peg him in the groin with your Xendrix for a huge
   blow of 20. He has forgotten his cup and can barely come back with a
   nick of 3! (SCORE 42:30).
   The sweat on your index finger causes you to suddenly slip, and you
   completely miss the spacebar! Overkill takes the chance to dig in,
   and hits you for a 11 (SCORE 31:30). You take careful aim, and your
   Xendrix storms into his unprotected backside! He lets out a yell
   that can be heard all over the wasteland! With no time to
   retailiate, he misses you completely (SCORE 31:11)!! The tension is
   getting greater, and you can feel the power in your fingertips
   building. You hit him in the shin, for a direct hit of 6, but he
   slams into your spinal column and takes off an easy 17 (SCORE
   14:5).

   In the quick seconds that go by, before the next combat line, you
   think of all sorts of things.

      "This is it!"
      "My moment of glory!"
      "Easy win!"
      "What's for dinner?"
      "I *HAVE* to hit this one!"
      "Ohpleaseohpleaseohplease!"



   <NOW TRANSFORMING FROM "REAL" MODE TO "COMBAT" MODE - FROM YOUR
VIEW!!>



Hit range in "B"


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NO CARRIER
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