home *** CD-ROM | disk | FTP | other *** search
-
-
- Doom: Episode 1 Map 1 -- The Hangar
-
- I readied my pistol, the only weapon they deemed me safe with. The
- weapon was extremely well made; the gyrojet bullets used were fast and
- extremely accurate. Automatic firing, it was top of the line, but still it
- packed only so much of a punch. It would have to do.
- The hangar doors whispered open, revealing the reception lobby that
- lay beyond. All was quiet. A soldier lay bleeding in the middle of the
- floor, a number of bullets and shells having sliced through his soft, tender
- flesh. I picked up a couple of pieces of armour plating, they could come in
- handy later on. Suddenly, a gurgled shout from behind me. The control tower,
- could anyone be left alive in this carnage?
- I moved quickly to the side room, the poor lighting not aiding my
- vision at all. A short flight of stairs led up to the observation deck.
- Movement. I aimed my pistol at the top of the stairs, the creature moved
- forward ... Marines? Two men shuffled about at the top of the stairs, blood
- splattered over their uniforms and faces. The lighting was too poor, I
- couldn't make out anything accurately. I lowered my weapon. Mistake number
- one.
- A shotgun blast roared out, my left arm leapt to the side, military
- buckshot tearing through the unprotected flesh. Pain rocketed through my
- body. I grunted, my eyes narrowed. I raised the pistol and fired twice,
- leveling the first trooper, another two shots silenced the second. Their
- weapons dropped to the ground with an echoing clatter. "My mistake was
- lowering my guard, yours was missing."
- I ran up the stairs, intent on gaining the new weapon. Mistake
- number two. Another blast tore into my right leg, the uranium pellets doing
- their job quite effectively. I tumbled up the stairs, carried on by my
- momentum. I rolled over the shotgun, grasping it with my bad arm. I cocked
- it one handed and fired back down the stairs. I knew I wouldn't have a
- chance at hitting anything, but it would make them think. Or so I thought.
- It seemed to only get them more irate, I could hear two shambling about at
- the foot of the stairs, growling and firing off into nothingness. One's
- screams were cut short by a shotgun blast. Interesting ...
- I peered down at my feet, the first trooper I had killed lay strewn
- about me. "My God ... Hamlin?" I knelt down to confirm my first impression.
- Hamlin was a sector sargeant, one of the first people I met on my arrival to
- Mars Base. I thought he had shipped home a month ago. The corpse that lay
- before me bore only a vague simularity to the man I once knew. He looked
- as if he had been dead for quite some time, perhaps two weeks. Thick,
- blackened blood oozed slowly from the two holes I had put into his body. He
- may have been human once, but he was no longer. The other corpse was in a
- similar state. What was going on here? I searched my near perfect memory,
- a 'gift' of the creators of NewTypes. My mind stored facts much like a
- computer, an effort to make sure we learned from our mistakes. "Christ ..."
- I gasped. Some 4,879 men had been shipped from this base in the last year
- alone. It would seem a very generous estimate that half of those had made
- it home to Earth ... Survival seemed difficult to achieve now, if not
- impossible. I ejected the shells from the second shotgun, quickly shoving
- them into the chamber in Hamlin's gun. A quick scan of the tower proved
- qutie useful. A small stimpack lay nearby, a useful concoction of pain
- killers, stimulants and Plasti-Flesh, a patch for open wounds to prevent too
- much loss of blood. I quickly applied the pack to my leg, I needed to walk
- more than I needed both arms. I holstered the pistol and then examined the
- number of shells I had left. 'Eight shots.' I thought to myself worriedly,
- 'It will have to due. Let's see if my training means anything here.' A
- quick search of the console also proved fruitful, revealing a small locker in
- which lay a suit of light armour. I buckled the protective Plasti-Steel to
- my body, confidence beginning to rise. I was amazed at the stupidity of
- these creatures. The one downstairs had still not come up to visit. Looks
- like I'd have to go down and say hi.
- Latching the final strap of armour to my body, I cocked the shotgun
- and moved forward quickly. The stimpack worked as prescribed, allowing me
- full movement and perfect reflexes. At the top of the stairs I even let
- myself smile. "Let's rock!" I called out, blowing the head off the zombie
- at the base of the stairs.
- I made my way down the main tunnel to the processing area. I paused
- before the door. Unearthly growling and howls could be heard beyond the
- twelve inches of solid steel blast doors. Taking a deep breath, I pressed
- the access panel, allowing the door to open automatically.
- A group of troopers were upon me; former marines now corrupted,
- perhaps by the very forces of Hell itself. My shotgun fired six times, then
- was silent. I breathed heavily, examining the carnage before me. Five former
- soldiers lay at rest on the ground, their blood intermingling, one's body
- still twitching with unnatural life. Given time, I gathered up what ammo I
- could, including twelve shotgun shells, and collected what armour plates that
- I could scavenged. It was then that I noticed the wound in my side, the
- military buckshot proved stronger than light Plasti-Steel, I would have to
- find something stronger soon, I doubted that the light armour would last much
- longer, even with replacement plates. Scouring through access hatches, I
- found a couple of vials of pain killers, it would have to do. I gulped the
- medicine down, tossing the empty bottle to the side. I pumped the shotgun
- once.
- I proceeded out the only exit, my hands nervously fingering the
- shaft of my shotgun. The pink horror threw me for a bit of a loop. I was
- beginning to understand how the others failed to survive. I entered
- into the reception area, now strewn with garbage and toxic waste. Barrels
- of the stuff had been sitting throughout the base, and I had now found their
- source. I took down three troops with three shots, my body becoming used
- to the combat, my mind processing maneuvers and tactics at a fantastic rate.
- Mistake number three. The ball of flame slammed into my chest, sending me
- up against the wall. More Hellspawn, this time in the form of brown,
- spiked humanoids. Two stood upon a raised platform, eyeing me maliciously.
- They both fired at me, their hands moving in intricate gestures before
- spouting gouts of flames. My body reacted instantaneously, sending me
- to the ground, rolling to the side. I sat up on my knees and fired five
- shots off in quick succession. Silence.
- The new creatures lay dead on the platform, or what I could take for
- being dead. Their blood oozed green and red, drugs pumped into my system
- to prevent the coming nausea. I grabbed a couple of clips and ran for the
- door.
- The door flew open before I reached the access panel. A bruiser of
- a marine stood before me, his skin gaunt and pastey white. With a twisted
- grimace, he leveled his shotgun and fired into my gut. Grunting in pain,
- I lunged myself forward, knocking his gun to the side. Stupidly, he turned
- to regain his weapon. I jammed the muzzle of my shotgun under his chin and
- squeezed the trigger. His head disappeared in a splash of red mist. Shouts
- were heard from inside. I fired blindly into the room, cursing at seeing
- my shot hit into a barrel of waste. Another brown imp came for me from
- across the darkened room. My body reacted before my mind could process
- conscious thought. A second shot rang out, followed by an explosion. The
- imp went flying into the opposite wall. Other screams of agony could be
- heard through a nearby grill. The barrels were explosive! My mind filed that
- tidbit of information away for instant recall. I may just need such heavy-
- handed tactics. A second grill stood beside the fallen imp, and I side-
- stepped over to place myself in front of the grill, firing another blind
- shot. Another explosion, then pain. Fiery acid flew into my face from an
- exploding barrel. I crumpled to the ground, screaming in agony, clawing
- at my face in blind rage and pain. I stood up shakily, holding the shotgun
- loosely before me. I staggered forward, the exit door to the first access
- tunnel lay before me. I found a medkit, an overglorified stimpack, hanging
- on a nearby wall, as well as the remains of a couple of stimpacks. I quickly
- dressed my wounds with bandages and Plasti-Flesh. I then sat down and
- examined the array of chemical enhancers that lay inside the medkit. "Fuck
- it." I said out loud, and pumped all the chemicals into my harness, to be
- regulated as needed by the micro-computers installed in the 'juice' harness.
- Picking myself up, I made my way to the exit airlock.
- The door slid open noisely, followed by a hissing scream. Another
- imp stood before me, somewhat surprised at my sudden appearance. His
- mistake. The shotgun fired twice, splitting the creature in half. I smiled
- and entered the airlock. Some scrap armour lay nearby, probably dumped by
- one of assaulting soldier I arrived with, as well as some dropped ammo. I
- loaded up as well as I could, waited for the air pressures to regulate,
- then I proceeded down the first access tunnel.
-
-