The Track of the Pocket Miner

Page 7

Some distance away, Hitsead Slith drops down into sector T-14. Carefully looking about he sees no danger and moves quickly toward the tunnel entrance. It is easily visible, of circular section about eight feet in diameter. It emerges from a small hillock and descends at about 20 degrees slope. The grass near the tunnel mouth is well trodden. Stepping into the tunnel the Eli gags at the odor. It is the putrid smell of fresh poop. Setting his visor for light amplification the steps into the tunnel. The tunnel walls are glassy smooth. It was obviously cut with a disintigrator. The tunnel is arrow straight and goes almost due south.

The Eli walks into the tunnel weapon at ready. His visor, amplifying the available light enables him to see that the way ahead is clear. Suddenly his foot slips out from under him. He tries to maintain his balance but the slippery stuff is all over the glassy smooth tunnel floor. As he begins to go down his jet pack which is set on auto detects his fall and attempts to right him. The jets fire and the hapless Eli is flung into the tunnel ceiling with a mighty crash. Hitsead's helmet is jammed down over his ears. His gyros are tumbled and the jet pack begins firing wildly trying to bring him to an upright position. He recoils off the smooth tunnel floor and then flies wildly up the tunnel bouncing from floor to ceiling.

The Disco Nightmare streaking low, arrives at the tunnel mouth just in time to see the Eli blasted from the tunnel mouth. Arms and legs flailing, Hitsead gyrates through two compete barrel rolls and crashes into a clump of trees. Accompanied by a shower of leaves and broken branches he falls on his head and lies very still. From the Disco Nightmare, The Fabian watches as a carnivorous plant, disturbed by the movement, begins to quest about with huge root-like tendrils. He lands as close as possible to the feebly twiching Eli, cuts the engines and leaps out the side door. He is going to make an attempt to rescue Hisead.

Asbeef and his brother Oerkjof move quickly to sector S-15 where they take cover on the edge of the woods. Asbeef readies his Portable Missile Launcher and begins to seek the target. He has no sooner began to focus his range finder on the Miner's track when the vehicle suddenly accerates and moves toward Cold Mountain firing its laser full automatic into the jungle. Asbeef fires anyway, but the missile falls short.

Zuvebee riding the blast of his jet belt, flies over the crest of the hill and finds himself the unhappy recipient of a burst of laser fire. The Pocket Miner's Track has begun moving at high speed directly at his position. The Orphan Eli turns quickly and lands in a clump of trees at G-5. The track, firing full auto laser fire into the trees, smashes into the light forest firing its disintegrator to cut its own road. Its huge robot arms are snapping their claws in a very threatening manner! From concealed speakers, music from Manfred Manns' Earth Band plays "I came for you! For you! I came from you!"

Tuibb Nrdle, hiding in a clump of forest in map sector D-6 is suddenly surprised as a burst of heavy cone rifle bullets rake the trees around him. The explosive rounds showering him with fragments and splinters. Through a cloud of falling leaves and dust the Eli sees a Guardian type robot firing at him from cover in sector B-8. He whips his Blast Rifle around and fires. An intensely bright ball of flame erupts from the muzzle with a satisfying "kapoot". The vegetation around the mechanical is instantly incinerated by the scatter as the flaming ball bursts on the bucket head and the robot disappears in the smoke and flame.

Honebead Nik, under cover in E-8, watches as the Miner's armored track vehicle suddenly moves, accelerating rapidly firing its laser into the jungle where Zuvebee has taken cover. He fires his Grenade Launcher at the Pocket Miner's Track as it charges past him. Although it appears big as a barn to the Eli, it is a difficult target. The high speed track bounces over the terrain waving its arms and snapping its claws. His first shot soars over the racing vehicle. The second round explodes prematurely on the vehicles force screen and his third goes into the dirt just in front of the track as it plows into the forest. "Gowds of Space!" Honebead swears, "Its going after the Kid!"

Superheated air expands with a crack and burning splinters fly as the evil Wombat track thing searches for Zuvebee with its laser. Clouds of dust fill the air as its disintegrator cuts through the jungle. As trees fall, the trackbot's claws snatch them out of the air and cast them aside as if they were but straws. The Orphan would like to crawl into the earth, but he can't stay here. If the laser doesn't get him, the disintegrator surely will. He jumps to avoid the low sweeping beam of the disintegrator and fires his laser rifle full auto into the advancing track. The Luck of the Eli is with him. The track's screen flares off and smoke comes from the front plate. The track's laser is after him, but Zuvebee pulls off a difficult evasive maneuver. He flies at the diagonal, climbing at 45 degrees all the while doing a barrel roll. It works! The bouncing track, the dust filled air, and the large quantities of flying vegetation between himself and the laser have thrown off the trackbot's targeting system.

"Oh, Mutha!" The young Eli screams into his helmet com, "Yo baby boy is comin' home today!" As he races for cover in sector I-2 he yells, "Can't one O' you sombitchs get dis damn thin' off me back?"

Continued on page 8:    

(Find out more about the Disco Nightmare) (Read the stats for the Eli warriors) (See the map for the game.)

For questions concerning this webgame contact John McEwan at john@tin-soldier.com

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