Doom: Episode 1 Map 3 -- The Toxin Refinery Continued
        
        Boom.
        The shotgun rang out, a one in a million chance.  The only chance I
had.  The buckshot smashed the panel, showering sparks over me as I lay on
the ground.  The pedastal was lowering, my gambit amazingly worked, but with
the damage to the switch, I would have only one chance to make this work.
        The pillar sank all the way into the ground, revealing to me a blue
talking face.  A holographic warning system, though the audio seemed to be
non-functional.  Inside lay one of mankind's most useful, and most dangerous,
creations.  Nanotech surgical implants, commonly referred to as Nanosurgeons,
were created in the late 1990's by a german team of physicists and bio-
engineers.  Near-microscopic mechanical surgeons that could be injected into
a human body to repair virtually any damage done to the host, each with a 
specified job that it had been programmed with.  Any wound, any illness, 
could be taken care of with a full Nanosurgeon unit.  It was only a matter of
time for them.  Soon after their creation, it became all too apparent that
the nanosurgeons did their job too well.  Gunshots, ripped flech, poisons and
disease were all handled by the microscopic surgeons, but so were prosthetic
limbs, cybernetic implants, even heart monitors and transplanted organs. 
Anything foreign was removed, the nanosurgeons knew no difference.  The
technology was banned in 51 countries, deemed too dangerous to be useful.
UAC kept the technology active, creating the warning system, a holographic
face that informed all around as to it's contents and purpose.  At the moment
I had no choice.  I broke the magnetic seal, and blackness overcame me.

        I awoke, surprisingly, with little pain.  I sat up slowly, pulling
myself free from the dried blood about my body.  My muscles ached, but the
sharp pains were gone.  Remarkably, I could move and feel with my left arm,
the one mangled by the demon earlier.  My chest bore a criss-crossing of 
scars, my burns having healed as well.  I understood well enough the 
principles behind the workings of nanosurgeons, but I had never witnessed the
results.  Each nanosurgeon, each one of nearly ten thousand, had a specific
purpose.  Some spread pain killers throughout the body, others in the removal
of dead flesh.  Some coagulated blood, probably the reason mine had dried so
fast, while others dispersed chemicals to increase blood flow.  The most 
important were the ones that stiched up open wounds.
        I heaved a sigh, resisting the urge to scrach the hell out of my once
mangled arm.  The nanosurgeons did their job perfectly, as I knew they would.
The problem now was how to go about reattaching my juice harness.  All the
tubes had been forced from my body, small scars marking where they had once
been.  I would need to find a medpack first.
        The room that I was in seemed to me to be the remains of a first-aid
station.  A number of scattered medpacks and field equipment told me that.  I
hoped I could find one that had not been totally destroyed.  After half an
hour, I managed to put together enough of a medpack to be of use.  It was
strange to be moving this slow.  The nanotechs had also purged my system of
the drugs that I used for combat and everyday life.  My head was clear, but
I wasn't used to thinking at this speed.  I was too far gone, I realized.
Even with the physical purification of my body, the mental addiction was still
there.  My life was too dependent on the drugs.  But I still had six more
levels to force my way through, and things were not about to get easier.  I
shook my head darkly.  My first chance to be free of the drugs, my first
chance.  Now I realized that I needed them if I wanted to get out of here
alive.  I had no choice, forever a slave of drugs.  I pulled out the scapel
and began cutting.
        The pain of the cuts proved to be much less than I expected, I still
had memories of far greater pain suffered today.  The only real pain were
the three holes I had to cut into my neck.  Made one wish that the lights
were functioning in this area.  With the last tube taped to the base of my
neck, between the two collar bones, I took a deep breath and restarted the
harness computer.  Instantly, a mild sedative coursed through my body, easing
the pain of my cuts.  A shot of adrenalin followed, giving me back the edge
that I had earlier lost.
        After an hour of work, I was ready.  I rebuckled what armour I had,
picked up the shotgun, and headed up the stairs.
        A short barrier cut off the stairs from the main level, but as I 
approached, I found that they were motion detecting.  Obviously of aid in
case of emergency.  I was about to leave the stairwell when I noticed that
another part of the wall off to my left had also descended.  Interesting.  I
stepped back to allow the barrier to reset itself, then I ran forward.  The
barrier slipped down just as I glided over it, making my way for the second
door.  I arrived as the second barrier rose, the door before me opening at
my arrival.  Ghoulish shouts, and my shotgun roared again.  It was over
quickly, three imps and two of my former sargeants.  Remarkably, I took no
damage, my overhauled system was finely tuned.  Reloading quickly, I scouted
the room.  A river of waste ran around the outer edge of the room, two 
run-offs on either side.  Three pillars filled the room, but I found an item
that made me smile.  A KA-091 Light Assault Rocket Launcher.  The launcher
itself weighed barely 5 kilograms, and was capable of firing small atomic
warheads.  Nothing devestatingly large, but enough of a kick to kill anything
on impact.  Two rockets were already loaded, one primed and ready for firing,
the second lay on a magazine rack to be immediately loaded upon firing of
the first.  A small box lay beside the laucher, holding five more rockets.  I
filled the rack with four more, magnetically clipping the last to my leg.
Now I meant to kick some serious ass.  The quarters were too tight for the
launcher, so I clipped the launcher to my back.  Testing out the weight, I
turned to leave.
        I paused, looking at one of the run-off tunnels.  It was not overly
large, but I could certainly fit down it.  The question was, would I want to.
There had to be a access platform somewhere around here, presuming that this
area was once used as a testing area.  That would also explain the nearby
medical unit.  I found the ruined remains of a radiation suit, and that
decided me.  Psyching myself up, I plunged into the violently green ooze.
        Pain flashed through my legs, the toxic waste burning through my
metallic armour, but after only a few steps, I found the landing.  I plunged
forward, throwing myself onto dry land, grunting in pain.  I rose slowly,
finding myself face to face with an access switch.  I pushed the button, but
nothing happened.  Strange.  I had thought it would be a cut-off valve, but
the river continued to move slowly past me.  Perhaps the demons had destroyed
it's link with the mechanical servos that would operate the door.  Damn, I
had gone through all that pain for nothing.  And I would have to go through
more to get out of here.
        Steeling my nerves, I ran into the river again.  I resisted the urge
to scream as the acidic liquid found it's way to my vulnerable skin.  The
drugs pumped into my system furiously, trying but not succeeding to deaden 
the pain.  The I was out of it, and I collapsed to the ground, catching my
breath.  Damn, what I wouldn't give for a functioning radiation suit.  Too
late now.  I rose to my feet, and headed back the way I came.
        The outer room had a couple of surprises for me.  I came across an
intact medpack, which I quickly used to tend to my burned legs.  I also 
found a couple of caches of ammo, which I quickly clipped to my armour.  I
headed down the staircase, listening as the barriers swished open behind me.
I was left with two choices, right or left.
        I decided to head back to where I started.  From there I could get my
bearings and decide how to proceed.  Besides, I was less likely to be
attacked in an area I had already cleared.  I noticed that the creatures did
not move around much.  In fact, I wasn't really sure that they could even
open up a door.  Then it clicked.  Who the hell was leading these dead-heads.
Surely none of them sported enough intelligence to deploy themselves.  The
fact that they would rather shoot themselves than me showed that much.  There
had to be a greater intelligence leading them.  Perhaps the creatures Lt.
Stavens and the others found before I was forced to enter the complex.  The 
nine men failed to survive that.  What chance would I have?
        I cast the question aside, instincts cutting in.  I swung my shotgun
to my left, the room had changed.  I was back at the access tunnel, the
corridor curving around a large pool of acid.  I registered the change a 
second later; a platform had risen from the toxic waste, leading itself 
across the poison to ... a blank wall?
        I cautiously made my way across it, certain that the walkway would
collapse at any time.  Ten feet from the wall, it did.  I reacted instantly,
moving backwards as quickly as possible.  "My god."  I managed to say.  I
realized I wasn't sinking into the ooze from the simple fact that I still
had my legs.  I saw now that it had been an illusion, the walkway wasn't
sinking ... the far wall was rising.  The wall came to a halt, revealing to
me a short tunnel, finely cut before me.  After a moments hesitation, I 
slowly moved down the corridor, gun at the ready.  The tunnel ended in a
small room, devoid of anything.  The perfect place for an ambush.  I stepped
in cautiously and received my answer.  The far wall of the room rose quickly,
shouts to attack.  Buckshot tore through my shoulder as I blew the head off
a trooper.  Four others moved in quickly, all intent on getting the killing
blow.  I denied them that.  Five shots later, silenced reigned.  I moved
quickly into the room, discovering my mistake too late.  The room beyond was
roughly circular, but as I entered, two sections across from my threw 
themselves open.  The hiss of imps reached my ears as I tried to back up to
a better position.  It was then that the demon hit me.
        Another pink bastard, its jaw desperately trying to lock onto my 
right arm.  Two shotgun blasts through its gaping maw stopped that, but not
before opening up a huge gash along my forearm.  Fire threw itself at me,
the imps fireballs exploding in front of my face.  I fired blindly, taking 
another blast in the chest.  Another jumped on me, the numbing electricity
rocketing across my nervous system.  I batted the imp away, rising quickly,
battle frenzy taking over.  The imp was slow, still trying to rise as I 
booted it to the floor.  I stepped on its neck as I lowered the shotgun.  
        Boom.
        Silence reigned again, only my heavy breathing could be heard.  I
stood there for a minute, collecting my senses as I looked about me.  The
demon and imp that jumped me came from a small side room, I hadn't noticed 
them previously, too eager to get out of here.  A medpack was hooked to the
wall, and I used it to bandage my arm and the burns.  Collecting ammo 
quickly, I made my way through the circular room, investigating the openings
beyond.  Both curved to a common passage, scraps of armour lay about.  I
proceeded more cautiously down the tunnel, my eyes and ears searching for
any more surprises.  The door opened quickly, revealing a small but empty
room, just like the last one.  I entered slowly, covering all sides as I did.
Nothing.  "Out of tricks, hmm?"  I said, grinning with relief.  
        I had found the exit, the access tunnel lay to my right.  With a
punch, I hit the access panel, and headed quickly down the tunnel.
