You find yourself in E1M1

[Shadowswift]

((game is becoming too linear. need more commands to spice things up a bit more))

[metchsteekle]

>go into the water tunnel where the shambler was and look about

[foq]

>use Pheonix's console to interface with the mainframe... and update your log

[Shadowswift]

>use Pheonix's console to interface with the mainframe... and update your log

Phoenix is currently interfacing with the mainframe. You ask him what hes doing...
"I'm running a traceroute, hoping maybe that'll give me a clue as to where our Connection is severed. What do you need?"
You order him to open the log you wrote earlier and update it. You include what little you've discovered about the shadows, Quake's overthrow and the death of Yogg-Shargoth.
"I think I found a clue here, sir. Apparently, our Network Connection's first stop is at the entrance slipgate. It seems to stop there."
This all sounds really familier...
"My guess is if we can get that slipgate working again, our Network Connection will be able to connect interdimensionally. We should be able to get some kind of communication with Earth that way."
Wasn't that your idea before? Oh well. At least you're not a total dumbass. You ask Phoenix if he can fix the entrance slipgate.
"I'll give it my best shot, sir." You escort him to the entrance (just in case theres some bastard up here you forgot to shoot) He sets to work while you set off elsewhere.

>go into the water tunnel where the shambler was and look about

You know the Shambler is dead...but you still really don't wanna go in here....oh well. Lets check it out anyway. You head down the lift and over to the bridge. You jump into the knee-deep water and head down the tunnel. As soon as you enter the tunnel, your nostrils fill with the scent of death. God, its awful. You almost wretch. You retain your soldier composure and proceed. Its as awful as the glipses you saw on camera before the monster destroyed it. You steele your stomach and begin searching the corpses.

Ray finds...
A broken Rocket Launcher
(4) Grenades
(17) Shells (10ga)
Complex Networking For Dummies Manual
A Bloody Note
A Half-Broken Pair of Glasses

What a pile of crap. The RL might be useful...if, ya know, it worked. Missing a lot of parts. It'll pretty much take an entire other working gun to get it working again. The glasses are missing a lense. The other is scuffed, but otherwise ok.



>

[foq]

>read bloody note, get to Pheonix with the manual

[Shadowswift]

>read bloody note, get to Pheonix with the manual

The note is pretty filthy. You can't make out most of it. You attempt to deciefer the parts of it that aren't spattered with blood and damaged by water. You are able to make out the following:
"................................................. .................................................. ....
.................................................. ...................................Check out the
...........................................into.......Mainframe. It is.............................
.................................................. .................................................. ....
.................................................. .................................................. ....
......................................probably.......spam. However, I found.......that....
..............help? Please? If...............................never................too late.....
................................................who knows?........................................
.................................................. .................................................. ....
........................Respectfully yours,.................................................. .....
.................................................. .................................................. ..."

That's pretty useless. Maybe the Mainframe can clean it up a bit. You head up to the Mainframe and insert the note into the scanner reader. The computer starts to do something on its screen. It shows a copy of the note as it is on the screen.
">clean and deceifer" You tell it.
"Bad command or file name." It replies. Shit....maybe you should interface with the thing using your....er, Phoenix's console. So you head along your merry way back to the enterance. Phoenix is here. He has his PDA plugged into the machinery on the side of the slipgate. He is also using your tools to try and open the thing up.
"Oh hey, boss. Everything ok?" He says respectfully. You order him to accompany you to the Mainframe. "Hoorah, sir." The two of you head back to the Mainframe. Phoenix plugs in and tells his Console to tell the computer to clean and decode the note as best it can. The computer begins working and tells Phoenix's Console that it may take a while to complete. You decide to give Phoenix the manual you found. He looks over it with interest. "This is great stuff. Wish I had known this when I started this mission. Pfft....to think a tech-junky like me would learn a lot from a 'For Dummies' book....hm? Oh, did you need something else, sir?" You ask him if he has made any progress on the entrance slipgate. "Not much. I can't even get it to talk to my Console. It looks as though most of the internal machinery is fried. When, how and by what, I don't know. It was working just fine when I came here...but from what you told me when you ressurected me, that was quite a while ago." You ask if there's any hope of repairing it. "With technology, sir, there's always a way. If I can crack it open, I'll compile a checklist of the parts it might need to make it work. We can probably get them from the slipgate at the exit. Of course, that means we won't be able to use that slipgate, but we don't really need to head back to Quake, do we?" You ask him why he can't simply hook up the Network Connection to the exit slipgate. "That one isn't pointed at Earth. It's pointed at Quake. I highly doubt we'll be able to find any active ISP's in Quake. It is possible to change the destination of each slipgate but...uh.....unfortunately, I haven't the first clue how to do that. Only HQ can recalibrate the slipgates and can probably do it remotely...but we need to ask them to do that first...heheheh." You nod and order him to resume work on the entrance. You hang out at the Mainframe and wait for it to finish work on the note.
[[Continued]]

[Shadowswift]

[[Continued]]
About an hour later, Phoenix buzzes you on MM2 and stirs you from a catnap you were taking.
"Sir, I think my list is complete. If you'll let me, I'd like to begin taking apart the exit slipgate now for parts." You agree and order him to come to your position. He arrives promptly and plugs into the Mainframe. "Watch this, sir. I learned this little trick right before the Shadows showed up and....er....stopped me." He enteres in a few complex commands. "And.....there. The slipgate is now closed." He smiles with pride. "This will make it a little safer to take apart. It might also buy us a little time before the Shadows invade, though I'm sure it won't take them long to figure out how to use Quake's power to rip open rifts. The thing that worries me, however, is what if they skip over this Complex entirely and head straight for Earth? We'd never know and we'd be powerless to stop them. Hell, for all we know, they could have already done just that. They could very well have wiped out our HQ and we'd be none the wiser. So...we'd better make this a very quick repair job. That means I'm going to need your help, sir." You nod and allow your companion to lead the way. The two of you quickly disassemble the exit slipgate and haul the parts to the entrance. Phoenix guides your efforts to help as the two of you replace the black residue-caked parts with the pristine ones. Within a half-hour's time, the slipgate hums to life. Phoenix plugs in to it and runs an inquiry. Its running perfectly and is connected to Earth. Part of you really wants to forget this whole thing, dive into the slipgate and go home for a nice long rest...but you could never do that. The very world is resting on your shoulders and you couldn't sleep at night knowing you let it down. The two of you dash back down to the Mainframe and tell it to enable the External Network Connection.
"Trying...
Connection accepted.

>"
Excellent!! You now have a direct line to HQ. You attempt to open a phone line to your SO. It rings a few times.
"Lieutenant Ewing. Master Sergeant Who? Ray??? Holy-" The lieutenant drops the phone. You can hear him frantically trying to get someone's attention on the other line. Someone picks the phone back up.
"This is General Navejar, speak up and if this is a joke, I am not laughing." You explain your situation to the general. "This is serious, sergeant. If you are who you say you are, your word is credibility enough to mobilize the entire military...but I think we both know how that would turn out. Besides, if they were to invade here first, we would be defenseless. Sergeant, you are the hero of the first slipgate war. You alone stopped the forces of Quake from seizing control of our dimension."
You did? Wow. That's pretty amazing...
"This sounds to be a different, and far more dangerous situation, sergeant, but I'm trusting you to handle it in the same manner you handled the first war. We will send you whatever aid we can when we can. At the moment, it looks like only simpler data can be sent via our connection through the slipgate. We might be able to send you small items, like parts and small weapons. I've already dispatched the Science Department to the slipgate on the other side of yours to repair it to full power. I'll keep you updated on their progress. I will also periodically send you useful items as soon as I can make them available. At the moment, I have an upgrade for your Console. It'll fix whatever damage you caused to it as well as let it wirelessly connect to the Slipgate Complex's Mainframe where ever you go. You know what that means, Sergeant? It means you can stay in constant contact with us. You let us know everything that goes on down there, you get me?" You acknowledge. "Good. Go to the slipgate to pick it up. Breaking contact for now. Contact me the moment your Console is online. Out." You disconnect and make a dash for the slipgate. Lying on the grid is a small USB device designed to wrap around the bottom part of your Console. You pick it up and slap it on to your wrist, then head back down to the Mainframe to connect it. Once connected, you contact HQ.
"Sergeant Ray, that had better be you calling from your Console. Good, you've got it. Now then, we need to get you properly equipped to face this threat. We're working on sending you a Thunderbolt as soon as we can increase the power to our slipgate. In the meantime, any small parts or maybe ammunition you think you might need, let me know. I'll send it right over."
Sweet. You've done well for yourself today. You just might come out of this alive now. Now then....lets see, small parts and/or ammo....you scratch your chin and contemplate what kind of crap you can milk from HQ.



>

[metchsteekle]

>inquire about a rocket launcher repair kit, ammos for the shotguns and laser rifle tell them of the shadow weapon and see if they can help repair it or whatnot.

[Shadowswift]

>inquire about a rocket launcher repair kit, ammos for the shotguns and laser rifle tell them of the shadow weapon and see if they can help repair it or whatnot.

"Rocket Launcher repair kit? Hm...don't think they make such a thing. Hm...weapons department says they have a broken Grenade Launcher. I could send it to you in pieces and maybe you could repair it with those?" You agree. Might be fun. "Ok what else...ammo? Sure. I'll send you all the shells and cells you need."

Your shells(10ga)are now maxed at 100.
You receive 100 energy cells.
Phoenix receives 100 shells(10ga) and 100 energy cells

"I don't have any 20 gauge shells lying around...but don't worry. I've got somethin in mind to where you won't need em. I'll send it as soon as I can. Now what was that you said about a shadow weapon? You have what? You have one of their weapons? Cool. What's it called? Shadowpulse Rifle, nifty. What? You broke it? Well shit. Hm. R&D may have something for you here. They're telling me it's called a reverse-polarity magnifier. Sounds like it might fit where that broken part is. I can't guarentee it'll make the gun work, it's enemy technology after all. Hell, it might break it even more. But give it a try and if it doesn't work, you can always grab another rifle off of another dead enemy, right?"

Ray receives a Reverse-Polarity Magnifier

You take the damaged part out of your Shadowpulse and replace it with your new toy. You try to fire it, but it just clicks. You tell the general.

"Ah, well. Hold on........R&D says the Magnifier is missing a part, but they don't have a replacement for it." You inquire what the missing part is. "Hold on.........well, you'll get a kick out of this. The Reverse-Polarity Magnifier is missing...the magnifier. Apparently, theres supposed to be a small oval lense attached to the front of it. The idiot that built it overlooked that small step, I guess. Oh well. If we find one, we'll send it to you. Weapons Department says they've finished with the GL. Incoming..."

Ray receives Grenade Launcher parts

"If theres anything else you need, let me know. Out"


>

[metchsteekle]

> put rocket launcher and grenade launcher together into a super cool gun, scavenge the base for a possible convex lens, eat some food

[foq]

>fortify the base

[Shadowswift]

>fortify the base

You ponder how well your new base would withstand an attack. It does have fully automated laser turret defenses, though we see how useful those were against that big-ass shambler. You could upgrade the turrets with lighting tasers, that might be cool...but getting the parts from HQ and installing each one would take days and you'd have to have the security grid offline for the duration. You don't have that kind of time. They could attack you any second. These shadows are going to come after you whenever and where ever they want and could probably bypass any base defenses with relative ease. Fortifying the base would only be a waste of time...time you simply do not have.

> put rocket launcher and grenade launcher together into a super cool gun, scavenge the base for a possible convex lens, eat some food

You frankenstein the two guns together. The finished product is a very crude launcher made mostly of solder and scrap metal. You decide to call it the Grenade Rifle.

Ray creates the Grenade Rifle!

Instead of blooping grenades on the ground infront of you like a standard GL would, this rifle fires grenades at high velocity much like a rocket. However, the projectile will not self-propell and eventually falls to earth after maybe 30 or 40 yards, if fired straight forward, where it will detonate after a few short seconds. Should the projectile hit an obstacle, the force of the impact *should* be great enough to detonate it...but you need to run more tests on that theory. Physics wasn't your strong suit in school. You stuff the large weapon into your inventory and turn your attention to your doctored Shadowpulse Rifle. You remove the Reverse-Polarity Magnifier and study the design where the lense should go. You scratch your chin and wonder where you might find a lense...
"Uhh....boss?" Phoenix innocently chimes in while pointing to the broken pair of glasses hanging on the collar of your shirt. You smile sheepishly and grab the glasses. You carefully remove the remaining lense and discard the damaged frame. The lense is quite large, far larger than the devise requires, but luckily, these glasses were made of actual glass rather than that plastic shit people use now-a-day. You are able to grind the glass down against the stoney ground in the courtyard to where the lense is now almost the perfect size to fit the magnifier. You open your Console and call the general.
"What is it, sergeant?" You ask him to inquire about your lense to someone from R&D to see if it would work. "That pretty crafty shit, son. The eggheads say that if the glasses were the right presription that it should work perfectly. Give it a try." You slide the lense into the slot on the magnifier, slip the magnifier into the Shadowpulse Rifle and pray to the Gods. You fire a round. What happens is something you would never have expected. Instead of firing a round of Shadow Plasma, the rifle fires a short bolt of the purest, brightest light you've ever seen. When it impacts against a nearby wall, it leaves a small singe and some white residue. You report your results to the general. "Amazing. The Reverse-Polarity Magnifier must be reflecting and reversing the Shadow Plasma cells creating light instead of shadow when fired. By all logic, that weapon should eat though those shadow bastards like a teflon bullet through a flak jacket. Good work, sergeant." You beam with pride as you caress your new rifle. You decide to call the thing the Lightspark Rifle now and for good reason.

Ray creates the Lightspark Rifle!

"By the way, I've finished preparing my next present for you. Use it in good health. Out." The general cuts contact. You head back up to the slipgate and find Phoenix holding a box like a child holding a new toy. You walk over and inspect it...

Phoenix receives a Do-It-Yourself 10 gauge modification upgrade kit (double-barrel break-action)

"Can I?" He squeaks. You nod. He jumps with glee and throws his Super Shotgun onto the ground and immediately sets to work. Quicker than you've ever seen someone tinker with something, he finishes. The gun in now almost twice as large, does 4 times as much damage with a much greater kick. Very pleased with himself, he slings the monster weapon onto his back and smiles.

Phoenix creates the REALLY Super Shotgun!


-Character-
You have 60 Health
You have 127 Yellow Soul Armor
You are equipped with your Lightspark Rifle
Your communicator is ON
Your Console is ON

-Inventory-
Badly-Bloodied Hand Axe
10 Gauge Pump Shotgun
Enforcer's Blaster Rifle
Nailgun
Lightspark Rifle
Grenade Rifle
(100) Shells (10ga)
(100) Energy Cells
(97) Shadow Plasma Cells
(5) Grenades
(1) map of E1M1's Security Grid
(1) USB cable
(1) stimpak

-Companion-
Phoenix has 100 Health
Phoenix has 123 Yellow armor
Phoenix is equipped with the REALLY Super Shotgun
Phoenix's Communicator is ON
Phoenix's Console is ON

-Companion's Inventory-
REALLY Super Shotgun
(51) Shells (20ga)
(100) Shells(10ga)
(100) Energy Cells
(1) Fully-Stocked Toolbox
(1) Complex Networking for Dummies Manual


Satisfied with your advancement in firepower, you ask the general to send you over two Double Quarter-Pounders with cheese and two large Cokes. The general happily complies. You and Phoenix devour your meals contently. Who knows, they could very well be your last.


>

[foq]

>Discard 10ga shells
>Get nails and grenades from HQ
>See if HQ can send some explosive barrels... maybe you can use the forklift to set traps for shadows.

[metchsteekle]

> forgot about the health, get health

[Shadowswift]

> forgot about the health, get health

You request the general send over some medikits.
"I'll send what I can, though it won't be much. Medical Department has been slacking lately. I'll send more when they become available."
Ray receives 4 medikits and 3 stimpaks

You use one of each.

Ray is now at 100 health

>Discard 10ga shells

What?? Are you nuts?! You won't be able to use your shotgun without 10ga shells! You ignore this passing thought.

>Get nails and grenades from HQ

"We have a surplus of nails we can send, but grenades are coming up short."

Ray receives 100 nails and 15 grenades

"We'll send more when we aquire them."

>See if HQ can send some explosive barrels... maybe you can use the forklift to set traps for shadows.

"Unfortunately, those are quite a bit too large to send through with the slipgate's current power influx. We're working on it, though. I know we don't have a lot of it right now, but give it some time. Is there anything else you need?" You contemplate the current situation. Hm...Flatbed is still broken. The slipgate at the entrance is still disassembled also.
"A motorized flatbed? Yeah, R&D has some spare parts for that. Lets see about the slipgate...damn. Don't worry though, I've got a specialist on the way. He has the parts with him. He'll be here in no time. Oh, hang on.........Science Department says they've increased the power flow to the slipgate slightly. We should be able to send over whole weapons now. Whats your take, sergeant?" Sweet, you could have the pick of the military. Your inventory is getting pretty heavy...better pick some good stuff, preferably stuff that'll work well against Shadows.


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