                RETRIBUTION

PART 12 BY THE CHOIR BOYZ TEAM. .................

Tired of the ridicule and the constant laughing of the
recruits, Smith&Jones decided that he would recover more
comfortably in the base on level 4, "The Crows Nest".  The
base was just north of "Inner Circle", a base constructed by
Hawk.  He knew that the base was well stocked by Black Widow
and Athena, and that he could get some uninterrupted and badly
needed rest in there.  It was not a short nor easy journey by
any means, especially after the night that Smith&Jones went
through.  Terminators seemed to be running in packs and
Vishnus appeared at every passage.  Smith&Jones had avoided
every possible confrontation by every means available.  He did
not wish to fight for any amount of water crystals nor glory.
He simply wanted to get to the base, de-rad, and continue his
long recovery back to sobriety.  As he approached the location
of the base, he became disoriented, he was extremely hungry,
and his hit points were low.  He had no provisions and his
head was pounding.  He wondered aloud if he was lost, but he
was certain that the base was here.  He rechecked his
coordinates and then checked them again.  Something was out of
place.  Something was very wrong.  The radiation seemed to
affect him more than usual.  In fact, his rads were rising to
a dangerous proportion.  He gazed at the sky which seemed to
be extremely dark for the time of day, yet the heat from the
sun was almost unbearable.  The pollution in the air was
thick.  The was no sign of movement.......anywhere.
Smith&Jones once again checked his coordinates.  Panic took
over as he realized he was exactly where he had planned to be.
The base was gone, only to be replaced by a huge pit, by
ground zero.  Radiation mounds had sprouted all around what
used to be the base.  Impassable rocks were gone!  The base
had taken a direct hit from a nuclear missile.  But who ......
Smith&Jones ran south.  He had to get back to the Complex and
warn the others.  He tried to pace himself, knowing that his
chances of reaching the Complex were slim.  He was sick from
the alcohol and the intense radiation.  He had no medpacks and
was easy prey for any that happened upon him.  He was a dead
man with only one chance in a million.  He continued south,
and then....  thump..thump.........thump..thump...

Crazyshack threw open the doors to the game room.  He was out
of breath and his face was pale.  Crazyshack was new to this
sort of business, and was usually uncertain of the events that
took place and the surroundings.  But he was learning quickly
and was sure that someday he would make a contribution to the
overthrow of Overkill.  He found Osprey and Scarecrow involved
in a game meat darts.  Osprey had just relayed a blow by blow
description of the death of Arctic Fox.  Osprey was relieved
that they would not have to contend with the young mercenary.
Scarecrow was relieved that the Wastelands would be a little
"more quiet".  The two were still scheming, but the games
relaxed them a bit.  There was still a lot to prepare for.

Crazyshack, just moments earlier, had viewed the Frontier Log
and saw that a nuclear blast had destroyed "The Crows Nest".
The log also showed that Nukem had gotten Smith&Jones just
south of the base.  Crazyshack was not a member of any
squadron, but knew someday he may need a helping hand.  Since
he knew Osprey a little better than Scarecrow, he gave Osprey
the bad news.  After Crazyshack had cleared the room, Osprey
told his friend about the log.  "Haaaawwwwk.......", shouted
Scarecrow.

                                Michael Willis
                                Cleve Sanders

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