Earth Attack

by Steve Skidmore

  “Tell me more,” you say.

  “Star mines react to light and movement. Highly deadly. Avoidance recommended. Plotting alternative course.” The timings flash up on your display.

  “Risk of getting through star minefield?” you ask the computer.

  It replies, “30 per cent chance of survival.”

  If you wish to take Route one, through the minefield in the corridor, go to 10.

  If you want to take Route two, the longer way round the minefield, go to 16.

  23

  “OK,” you say. “Send over the coordinates.”

  “This is too dangerous,” whispers QTee. Agent Roberts and Agent Lee nod in agreement.

  You shrug. “It’s not every day you get to meet the Emperor Of A Thousand Worlds.”

  “It will be a trap,” says QTee. “You shouldn’t go up there.”

  Tyranno’s voice booms out. “Do not listen to these pathetic fools. I will send the coordinates for your teleportation up to the Deathworld. I will not give you this chance again.”

  To teleport to the Deathworld, go to 9.

  To ask for more time to consider, go to 33.

  If you don’t want to meet Tyranno, go to 12.

  24

  The droids march towards you, firing bolts of energy at you from their weapons.

  You easily evade their shots and return fire with your eGun. You hit one of the droids and it explodes into thousands of pieces.

  However, more skeleton droids appear. They open fire and the corridor is a mass of explosions as energy blots flash through the air. You realise that you will have to change tactics.

  If you wish to try to evade the skeleton droids, go to 31.

  If you wish to attack the droids using your power over ice, go to 2.

  If you wish to attack the droids with fire, go to 48.

  25

  “Teleport,” you whisper. Nothing happens.

  Tyranno moves towards you. “I’m afraid you can’t escape. I have blocked all communication links. There is only one way you will leave this place… dead!”

  He motions with his hand and you drop to the floor.

  If you want to wait to see what Tyranno is going to do, go to 39.

  If you wish to detonate the vortex bomb, go to 32.

  If you wish to threaten Tyranno with the vortex bomb, go to 17.

  26

  “Maximum speed,” you order. But before the suit can respond, the creature grabs hold of you in its giant hand.

  You struggle to free yourself, but the suit has melded onto your enemy’s hand. You feel the DART suit melting as the creature absorbs its metal.

  Soon the suit has vanished and you cry out in pain. You life force is slowly being sucked from your body as the creature absorbs you, molecule by molecule.

  You failed to stop Tyranno’s element monster! To begin again, go to 1.

  27

  You blast the alien zombies with your eGun. Their bodies are ripped apart. You dodge a couple of laser beams, before finishing off the remaining creatures. They are no match for your weaponry. However, you know that time is running out. You have to get to Tyranno before he can order the attack on Earth.

  You order the suit to travel at super speed.

  As the DART suit speeds you through the corridors of the Deathworld, you see a series of flashing lights ahead of you. You fly towards them.

  Go to 37.

  28

  “Tell me more,” you say.

  Tyranno laughs. “I propose that you stay here and watch whilst I destroy your planet!”

  Before you can react, he holds out his hand. A burst of green energy shoots out and surrounds you. You try to move, but you are trapped. You try to speak, but no sound comes out of your mouth.

  “I am surprised that I got you here so easily,” says Tyranno. “I am amazed that my followers were defeated by you. Still, they were expendable; in fact they were just a diversion. I really wanted the pleasure of destroying your planet myself. And after I have, then I will destroy you, too.”

  You can do nothing as thousands of spaceships pour out of the Deathworld, heading down to annihilate your beloved planet.

  Earth is doomed! To confront Tyranno again, go to 1.

  29

  “Ice attack,” you order. The suit obeys, filling the chamber with snow and ice.

  “Super speed,” you order. You hurtle towards Tyranno, using the ice storm as a cover.

  But before you can reach him, a huge fireball fills the chamber and the snow and ice vanish in a second. Tyranno sees you heading towards him and holds out his hand. A wave of energy hits you and sends you flying backwards.

  To try to escape, go to 11.

  To attack with your needle laser and missiles, go to 41.

  To attack with your eGun, go to 38.

  30

  Agent Roberts points at a comm-link screen. “We have just picked up this broadcast.”

  “It’s Tyranno,” says QTee.

  “Where is the signal coming from?” you ask.

  “We’re not sure,” replies Agent Lee. “It seems to be a cross-dimension communication. Our scanners can’t pick up anything. He could be anywhere in the universe.”

  “What does he want?”

  QTee stares at you. “He wants to talk to you!”

  If you wish to communicate with Tyranno, the Starlord, go to 4.

  If you don’t wish to, go to 46.

  31

  “Avoid attack!” you order the suit.

  The suit responds, but your enemy’s assault is too ferocious. You are hit time after time, and are sent spinning through the air.

  “I can’t take any more of this,” you shout. “Time to fight back!”

  “All weapons systems offline,” responds the DART suit. Another blast hits you and you drop to the floor. Pain racks your body, but it doesn’t last for long as your enemy moves in and sends you to oblivion.

  You have failed. To put a stop to Tyranno, get back to 1.

  32

  “Arm vortex bomb,” you whisper.

  “Armed,” replies the suit. “Do you wish to launch and detonate?”

  You know that this is the only way to defeat Tyranno. You will have to make the supreme sacrifice to save Earth.

  Tyranno moves towards you. He smiles. “You have failed, your puny planet is going to be destroyed.”

  “I don’t think so,” you reply. “Earth wins! Fire and detonate!”

  “No!” cries Tyranno. But he is too late to stop you.

  There is a huge blast and a roaring noise as your body is ripped into millions of atoms as the vortex bomb tears open the dimensions of time and space.

  Go to 50.

  33

  “I need time to think about this,” you tell Tyranno. “No offence, but you have declared war on Earth and your followers have tried to kill me, so don’t get me wrong, but I don’t really trust you.”

  “I have heard of this Earth humour,” replies Tyranno. “I don’t understand it. You are a foolish species. Very well, you have two of your Earth minutes to decide.” The screen goes blank.

  You beckon QTee and the agents to you. “Can you get a fix on the Deathworld?”

  QTee shakes his head. “There’s a blocking signal on all comm links. You can only teleport when he gives us the coordinates and opens the channels.”

  “But I have to get to the Deathworld if we are going to be able to defeat him.”

  “It is bound to be a trap,” says Agent Lee.

  QTee thinks. “I could alter the coordinates slightly, so I will get you onto the Deathworld when they open the channel. But it’s risky. It might not work. You could be teleported into another dimension and be lost forever.”

  You groan. “Teleporting isn’t much fun at the best of times! Having all your atoms scrambled and then reassembled halfway across the galaxy is bad enough, but the idea that they might not get reassembled at all…”

  Agent Roberts looks grimly at you. “It’s y
our call.”

  The screen flickers back to life. Tyranno appears. “What is your decision?” he asks.

  If you don’t want to go to the Deathworld, go to 12.

  If you wish to use Tyranno’s coordinates to teleport, go to 9.

  If you want QTee to change the coordinates, go to 18.

  34

  “Locate Tyranno,” you order the suit.

  Seconds later the suit’s NAV system displays a diagram of the Deathworld and a route leading to Tyranno.

  Leaving the watchers to their task of observing the universe, you move out of the map room and into a long corridor. The walls are made from crystal, layered with scrap and other junk.

  You put the suit into stealth mode and cautiously make your way through the corridors of the Deathworld.

  Your caution is well founded as the DART suit issues a warning. “Skeleton droid fighters ahead. Highly dangerous!”

  If you wish to try to avoid them, go to 42.

  If you decide to fight them, go to 14.

  35

  “Head through the minefield,” you tell the suit.

  “14 per cent chance of survival,” the computer replies. “Advise caution.”

  “No time for that!” you say. “Super speed!”

  The suit responds. You fly at top speed into the star minefield. In the blink of an eye, the star mines flash red and attach themselves to the DART suit.

  You have made a fatal mistake! There is a series of enormous explosions as hundreds of the mines detonate, ripping you apart.

  You should have taken more care! If you wish to start your adventure again, go to 1.

  36

  “What sort of weapons are you thinking of?” you ask QTee.

  The inventor smiles. “Some new ones I’ve been working on.”

  But before QTee can show you the weapons, Agent Roberts lets out a shout. “The creature’s breaking through the main entrance.”

  “But that’s impossible! That steel door is over two metres thick!”

  “I’ll attach those weapons to the suit and explain what they do,” says QTee.

  If you want to attack the creature attacking Area 61 immediately, go to 15.

  To use the new weapons, go to 20.

  37

  You find yourself on a huge observation deck, looking out into the vastness of space. The flashes of light are coming from beyond the Deathworld. You look down and you give out a cry of despair. Thousands of Tyranno’s spaceships are attacking Earth! The planet is in flames.

  The invasion has begun. You watch on, knowing that you have failed. Earth is doomed!

  Try to save Earth again. Go back to 1.

  38

  You point your eGun at Tyranno and shoot him with blasts of energy.

  To your amazement, Tyranno’s body disintegrates! You smile and think how easy it was to defeat the Starlord.

  However, your feeling of victory lasts for just seconds. There is a roaring noise as the Starlord’s molecules swirl around like a tornado. You stand amazed as Tyranno’s body re-forms before your eyes.

  He laughs. “You cannot kill me! I am the Starlord. My body is made of Star Dust, which I control.”

  He points at you and a flash of crackling energy shoots from his hand and covers you. Slowly, you feel your body being pulled apart.

  You have failed in your quest to defeat Tyranno. Have another shot: go to 1.

  39

  Tyranno stands over you. “You miserable creature, you have failed! To think you could defeat me. And now I will unleash death on your planet, and you will watch.”

  You can do nothing as thousands of spaceships pour out of the Deathworld, heading down to annihilate your beloved planet. Tyranno pushes your face against the observation window, and you know that your turn to die will follow shortly.

  Your quest is a failure. Go back to 1.

  40

  “Tell me more about the vortex bomb,” you ask the inventor.

  QTee looks grim. “It is designed to rip through the fabric of time and space. To put it simply, when the bomb explodes, Tyranno will be blown to atoms and what’s left of him will be sent into a dimension outside time and space from which it can never return. Of course, the same thing will happen to anything else within the blast zone.”

  “How big is the blast zone?” you ask.

  QTee shrugs. “I’m not sure, it could be five metres, it could be more. It’s a risk we’ll have to take.”

  “You mean it’s a risk I’ll have to take!”

  “Let’s hope you can defeat Tyranno without using it,” says Agent Lee.

  You realise that this mission is going to be your most dangerous and possibly your last.

  Go to 5.

  41

  You bombard Tyranno with a barrage of missiles and energy bolts, but the Starlord simply absorbs them into his body. He returns to the attack with streams of energy pulses and star missiles. You are sent crashing to the ground.

  Before you can recover, Tyranno holds out his hand and a wave of toxic energy surrounds you.

  You try to break free, but you are trapped inside a bubble of energy waves. He holds up his hand and raises you from the ground. You are left hanging in the air.

  As Tyranno moves towards you, you glance through the great windows of the chamber and see the Starlord’s spaceships pouring out of the Deathworld, heading for Earth.

  To detonate the vortex bomb, go to 32.

  To threaten Tyranno with the vortex bomb, go to 17.

  To try to teleport back to Earth, go to 25.

  42

  You decide to turn around to avoid the droid skeletons, but as you do an alarm begins to sound in the corridors of the Deathworld.

  QTee’s voice crackles through your comm link. “Tyranno knows you are on the Deathworld. He knows we’ve tricked him! He is going to attack Earth…” Then the signal goes dead.

  You turn back towards the droids, but by now they have seen you. They hurtle towards you, firing energy bolts.

  To attack them with fire, go to 48.

  To attack them with your eGun, go to 24.

  If you still wish to try to evade the droids, go to 31.

  43

  “Fire missiles!” you order.

  The suit sends a stream of missiles towards your enemy. They burst against the creature’s body, but instead of destroying it, the creature seems to absorb the weapons. It grows even bigger as it turns on you.

  You realise that the creature is an element monster! It can absorb the Earth’s elements. The metal in the missiles is adding to its power! It lumbers towards you, its huge outstretched arms reaching for you.

  If you want to fly away, go to 26.

  To attack with your eGun, go to 7.

  44

  “Fire into the room!” you order the suit. It responds and sends a barrage of energy bolts at the opening to Tyranno’s control centre.

  To your shock, the attack fails — there is a protective force field across the door! The energy bolts bounce back towards you. They shred your armour and knock you down, dead.

  Your quest has failed. Go back to 1.

  45

  I’m taking no chances, you think. “Launch missiles,” you order the suit.

  You wait a moment, but nothing happens. You repeat your order.

  The suit replies. “Unable to respond. There is a blocking device in this room. All weapons systems are disabled.”

  At that moment, the watchers turn towards you. Their long tendrils reach through the air and grab hold of you.

  “Maximum power!” you order.

  The suit replies, “System malfunction.”

  You try to get away, but it is hopeless. Hundreds of tendrils engulf you and the creatures pull you into the middle of the star map. There is a blinding light as your body is accelerated through space and time.

  Go to 3.

  46

  “I don’t think we should talk with him,” you reply. “We have nothing to say.”

/>   “Shhhh!” QTee shakes his head and points at the screen. “Tyranno’s forced open the comm link. He can see us and hear every word we say!”

  Tyranno’s voice booms out. “Well, Earthling, if you have nothing to say, then I will let my forces do the talking!”

  If you now wish to talk to Tyranno, go to 4.

  If you still don’t want to, go to 12.

  47

  Your arm crackles with fire and you launch a scorching hot jet of flame at Tyranno. He is engulfed in a massive fireball.

  But your sense of victory is short-lived. The flames die down and Tyranno steps forward through the smoke. He is completely unharmed! “I am the Starlord, you fool. Stars are made of fire, and so am I! Did you really think fire would hurt me? Now it’s my turn!”

  He points at you and pulses of swirling, fiery gasballs streak towards you. They’re like small stars, you think, before they burst around you filling the air with powerful shockwaves. You are sent spinning through the vast chamber. You eventually crash into an observation window and slump to the floor. You stagger to your feet.

  “You cannot defeat me!” says the Starlord, laughing loudly.

  If you wish to attack with your eGun, go to 38.

  If you wish to attack with your ice power, go to 29.

  If you wish to try to escape, go to 11.

  48

  “Attack with fire,” you order.

  Streams of flame shoot out from the suit’s weapons system, engulfing your enemies in a fireball that fills the corridor. You see them melting before your eyes! But your sense of victory lasts just seconds.

  In the confined space of the corridor, the fireball explodes and you too are hit by the flames. The intense heat causes the suit to catch fire and instantly begin to melt. “Systems failing,” warns the suit. “Systems fail…”

  Your skin is exposed to the fire and you feel the heat of the flames. Then thankfully there is no more pain as you slip into blackness.

  You are dead. To begin your adventure again, go to 1.

  49

  You evade the creature’s attack and send another deadly stream of energy bolts at it. Again you hit your target! This time the creature succumbs to your attack as it explodes into a million pieces. You shield yourself from the flying debris.

  When you look up, there is no trace of the monster. It has become what it once was: part of the Earth.