Heavy Metal Thunder (63 page)

“You alright now?” says the guard.

“I’m alright,” you say, gritting your teeth.

“You sorry?”

“I’m alright.”

The men release you,
then
see to their beaten companion. You do not feel like apologizing to the old
laborer.

Turn to section
19
.

The gaping mouth opens wide, ready to clamp down on
your head and shatter your helm. With shaking hands you grasp the implosion
grenade, turn and jerk the pin free, then toss the thing down the monster’s
gullet. There is a long delay as the creature works the thing around in its
mouth and you consider praying for it to work. But the prayer is unnecessary:
In a flash of soundless violence the creature’s head is blasted into a twisted
sculpture of destruction. The grenade is so powerful that you are jerked free
of the tentacles and sent careening into the ground: Lose
1 Blood.

If you survive the blast, then you gain
2 XP.
Be sure to erase the
Implosion
Grenade
from your inventory.

You look about and see more heads rising, more seas
of tentacles swaying. They are alarmed at the death of their brother, but
cannot reach you. You laugh wickedly, hungry to finish off the entire thing.
Wise to the monster’s tricks, you look for weak points that you can
investigate.

If you want to look at the hole you see in the
distance, turn to section
384
.

If you want to follow one of the blue channels that
runs
throughout the beast’s skin, turn to section
373
.

As you blast away, Captain Numitor shouts over the
com-link, “Commander, the suicide bomber has destroyed our shield generator!
How far are
you-
”

“We’re at a safe distance!” bellows Uther, lying.
“Fire, Captain!
Destroy their ship!
”

Oh God
, you think.

The dark of space is filled with flashes of red. You
are blinded and close your eyes in pain, seeing only a white light behind your
lids. You are sure that both ships have destroyed one another. You hammer the
jetpack for all it’s worth.

The intense light dims. You search the darkness.
Your helm beeps and identifies the single vessel left on the field…

The
Penelope’s Vengeance
is safe and sound.
Behind you, the Invader ship is run through by a barrage of laser fire,
blasting it into a ruined hulk. Sybel whoops loudly and your hard heart fills
with joy as you fly home.

Captain Numitor comes over the com-link and says,
“This is one of the first battles of the Black Lance Legion against the
Invaders, gentlemen, and I think the enemy is going to realize that
humanity’s
not done yet
.”

“Welcome to the team, Cromulus,” says Commander
Uther.

You gain
5 XP
for surviving your brutal
odyssey and trial by fire. Now that you have survived this adventure, you can
transfer your character information (statistics, experience level, equipment,
and notes) into the next battle in humanity’s guerilla war against the
Invaders.

As the lights of the docking bay shine along the
side of the
Penelope’s Vengeance
, you make a silent vow.
I don’t know
who I was before the war, when the solar system belonged to us and our species
was drowning in mediocrity and nihilism. But I will do anything I can to become
powerful enough to defend this changing humanity from its alien conquerors. I,
Cromulus, will rise up within the Black Lance Legion until the war is over and
won, even if I have to rise so high that I command the entire Legion itself.
And no one, alien or human, will stand against me.

Humanity will survive. No matter the
cost to my soul
.

To
be continued in

Heavy
Metal Thunder Book 2:

Sol
Invictus

Blood

Blood is an abstract score that represents vitality
and health. If you have ever played any sort of RPG, then Blood can be thought
of as “hit points.”

When you are wounded,
your
Blood score will drop. When you rest or take healing medicines,
your
Blood score will rise. You begin this game of survival
with a
Blood score of 10.
This is your maximum Blood; your Blood cannot
rise above this amount. For example, if your Blood has dropped to 6, and you
heal 7 Blood, then your Blood increases to 10. However, as you rise in levels,
your maximum Blood score will increase.

If your Blood ever reaches zero, then you have died,
and the game of survival is lost.

Experience Points (XP)

As you learn and grow on your journey, you will earn
Experience Points, which are abstract representations of your actual
experience. When you gain enough Experience Points (or XP), you will gain
additional character Levels and receive additional Stat Points, Skills, and Blood.

You start out this game of survival at
Level 1.
When you have at least 15 XP then you will gain one character level and the
rewards that come with it.

Character Level

As a Level 1 Black Lance Jetpack Infantryman, you
start out with:

10 Blood

1 point per Stat, +3 points to
distribute

1 point per Combat style, +1 point to
distribute

5 Skills

With every Level earned, you gain:

+3 Blood

+3 Stat points to distribute

+1 Combat points to distribute

+1 Skill

Experience Points
Per
Jetpack Infantry Level

Level  
2          15 XP

3
         40

4
         75

5
         120

6
         175

7
         315

8
         465

These XP/Levels apply only to the Jetpack Infantry
class. As your character advances in rank within the Black Lance Legion, he
will earn Levels and Skills applicable to his advanced rank.

Statistics

The person that is
you
can be reduced to five
statistics:
Strength
,
Intelligence
,
Dexterity
,
Charisma
,
and
Will
. You begin the game with a
score of 1 in each
stat
, plus 3 additional points
which you may distribute
as you see fit. How you distribute your bonus points will help determine the
nature of your character and how you interact with the universe.

Strength
- Physical musculature, endurance, athletic prowess. A high score in this stat
will make you a more powerful warrior. A low score will make you a tired
weakling.

Intelligence
- Mental computing ability, creativity, cleverness, wisdom, and understanding
of the nature of things. A high score in this stat will help you outwit the
enemy and keep ahead of the competition. A low score will make it difficult for
you to grasp some concepts.

Dexterity
- Your flexibility, agility, reflexes, sense of
kinesthetics
,
and ability to fire a gun accurately. A high score in this stat will help you
pull off tricky maneuvers. A low score will make you a clumsy person.

Charisma
- Force of character, social grace, good looks, aura of charm, ability to lead.
A high score in this stat will make others trust you. A low score will cause others
to shun and distrust you.

Will
- Beneath the
thin veneer of your personality, behind everything you learn and all the
choices you make, there is the raw force that drives you. A high score in this
stat will help you to keep going where others have failed. A low score will
make you a weak, spineless person. One can even have a battle of Wills with
others.

In some rare instances your statistics may be
temporarily lowered. For instance, great injury can lower your Strength or
Dexterity, confusion can lower your Intelligence or Charisma, and a great
ordeal can lower your Will. (Hint: While a 2 in any score is better than a 1,
having a 3 in one score may give you an edge in some situations. Still, it is a
risky gamble, as you do not have many skill points that you can distribute at
first.)

Combat!

The will to kill, the struggle to
survive, the bloody battle from which only the gore-drenched few can emerge
victorious.
The Black Lance Legion has taught you
two forms of combat. You begin your personal war with 1 point in each of these
modes of combat, plus 1 more point that you may distribute as you see fit.

Ground Combat (or 1 G Combat) -
The normal hand-to-hand mode of fighting that man has excelled in since he
climbed down from the trees.
Includes everything from
grappling to striking to parrying to strangling.

Zero G Combat -
The Space Age combat that the Jetpack Infantry specializes in. The Black Lance
Legion grunts engage the enemy in intense aerial combat among the stars,
grappling for supremacy on wings of fire. A good Jetpack Infantryman has to
maneuver with grace and bash with skill.

Skills

The Black Lance Legion
have
taught you several skills so that you may effectively fight the Invader forces.
Below is a list of
nineteen skills
available to Jetpack Infantry.
At
Level 1, you may choose 5
in which you are proficient.

Navigation
.
The ability to make sense of the hidden paths within the
void.
Skilled navigators can use the stars and planets as guides to find
the quickest routes through the solar system. Becoming lost in the void can be
a fate worse than death in battle.

Computers
.
Knowledge of the various systems built by humans that store
and retrieve information and guide machines.
Even without this skill you
can still use a computer, as can most humans in the space age. However, this
skill will give you the upper hand in making any program do what you want.

Stealth
.
The ability to move about unseen and unheard.
In this
era, Stealth also includes an understanding of how to hide your infantry
armor’s
various electronic, heating, and other apparatuses
prone to remote detection by the enemy.

Pilot
Ship: Small
.
The ability to pilot the smaller commercial and military
spaceships made by humans.
Includes use of older
pre-Invasion ships as well as the newer, advanced ships.
The controls of
spaceships are very complicated, and without this skill you will be almost
completely clueless about ship functions.

Demolitions
.
Knowledge of the ingredients of explosive materials and the
know-how to put a simple bomb together.

Jetpack
Skill
.
Every Space Infantryman understands the
basics of piloting his own jetpack. This skill will give you greater
understanding of jetpack piloting, jetpack maintenance, and knowledge of the
Legion’s more advanced jetpack models.

Weapon Proficiency: Hand-to-Hand.
With the introduction of bulletproof energy shields and jetpack infantry that
can move faster than bullets, close-in combat has become important on the
battlefield. A good infantryman can outmaneuver and kill enemies up close,
pierce the shields of enemy ships, and hack through hulls using the expensive,
energy-producing weapons made by the Black Lance Legion. If you pick this
skill, you will be proficient in the use of one type of H-to-H weapon:
Blades
,
which includes knives and swords;
Maces
, which includes heavy blunt
weapons like steel batons and maces; or
Spears
, the long, piercing
weapons of the Legion. Blades are good for slashing flesh and hacking off
limbs, Maces are good for bashing armor and bones, and Spears work well if your
enemy is some distance away, or when used in groups of other spearmen. You may
select proficiency in one of these weapons if you choose this skill, but you
may choose this skill more than once if you desire proficiency in more than one
type of H-to-H weapon.

Weapon Proficiency: Ranged.
Knowledge of the Way of the Gun.
Energy shields are
expensive to make, and are not widely used; plus, to kill from afar is still
the safest path in war. If you choose this skill, you will be proficient in the
use of one type of gun:
Rifles
, which includes long-range single shot
rifles and automatic rapid-fire rifles;
Handguns
, which include small
automatic handguns and older revolvers; or
Shotguns
, which are the heavy
bruisers of gun warfare. You may choose this skill more than once if you desire
proficiency in more than one type of ranged weapon. Note that once you have
chosen to fire a gun at the enemy, you must fire at least one bullet, even if
you realize afterwards that you have no hope of hitting the enemy!