by Roger Bourke White Jr., May 2023
20 -- Heading for House
21 -- What the Chip is all about
22 -- Loose Ends
23 -- Truman Dam Time
May holds her breath a moment, then breathes deeply in a deeply satisfied way. Behind her the Friends bunker is a smoking ruin, it is time to move on... and now move on to the big time -- it is time to meet up with Mr. House in New Canton.
May travels to the Freeville North Entrance. She goes in. She is now exploring in the outskirts of the big city. She heads south for the City Center entrance. This area is far from crime-free and she deals with several thugs as she journeys.
As soon as she enters City Center there is a surprise: Victor, in a local Vigilbot, comes up to greet her and invites her to head into the Hot Shot Spot casino -- home to Mr. House. This is pretty special, indeed, partly because prior to her arrival the Hot Shot Spot has been closed and locked up tight. It opens for her, she goes in, and meets Mr. House on the top floor -- the penthouse.
Mr. House gives her the first mission he has for her: to recover the Iridium Chip from Sonny, head of the Urawinner Casino located in the next-over section of City Center. She sleeps and refreshes herself in the Presidential Suite in the Hot Shot Spot and then heads over to the Urawinner.
She talks first with Swill, Sonny's partner in running the casino. She tells him about the nasty things Sonny had been doing out in the wilderness to get the Iridium Chip and how he is trying to take over City Center. Swill isn't happy to hear it. He gives May a key to Sonny's room and tells her to search it. There she discovers Panderman, a Vigilbot Sonny has reprogrammed as part of his take-over-the-Strip plan.
When Swill hears about Panderman he approves when May says she will take him out. She does, and Swill is now running the Urawinner casino. May heads back to House -- Iridium Chip in hand.
May returns to the Hot Shot Spot and gives House the chip. He then shows her what the chip is all about.
The chip contains software that upgrades House's Vigilbots -- they now have better weapons and repair systems. House is ready to assemble a significant army, but there is more to be done. House gives May her next mission.
"Take the chip to a secret bunker and upgrade my Vigilbot army there."
The challenge is that this bunker is located in the middle of the Legion's biggest fort in this area. Yes, some serious deception is going to be involved.
House tells her to head to Balloon Bay and meet up with Cursor Lucus who will take her to the legion main fort and arrange for her to meet Caesar.
Caesar first takes the chip from her, then gives it back to her with the mission to destroy the bunker under the old weather station that is in the fort premises. May takes it and heads into the bunker.
There she has a choice: complete House's mission and upgrade the Vigilbot army there, or complete Caesar's mission and destroy the bunker and its contents. She chooses to complete House's mission.
But... surprise... the racket that House's Vigilbot army is now making sounds to Caesar like the bunker is destructing. He is happy, too. He gives May the mission to kill House and lets her travel as she likes. She heads home, it's bed time.
With the main Vigilbot army upgraded there are just a few more things to get accomplished before the big confrontation at Truman Dam begins.
One of these is getting the Rovers to participate, and participate on the right side. May travels to Dry Wall Canyon again and talks with the Rover leaders. She persuades the four underlings, who then persuade the top guy, and the Rovers will be on House's side in the upcoming confrontation.
The Vigilbot army will need electrical power. May sneaks in and installs an override chip at a critical substation.
Loose ends are now taken care of. It is time for the big confrontation.
"The NDA and the Legion are facing off at Truman Dam. You should be there." House tells May. "There are two missions for you to accomplish: installing an override in the command room so my Vigilbots can play there, too, and defeating the top Legion player, Legate Arnus. He will be there to command the Legion."
May takes a deep breath, nods, and says, "I'm ready."
"Then go." says House.
May travels to Truman Dam.
---
The fighting is well in progress when May arrives. May mixes in with NDA soldiers shooting Legion soldiers on the top of the dam. She heads for a doorway that will take her to a corridor that will take her to the command room where she can install the override chip.
She gets to the command room, but it is guarded by NDA soldiers who tell her no one is allowed in. She explores a bit further down the corridor and discovers both NDA and Legion troops are inside fighting. She heads back to the command room entrance.
When she gets there she fires up the Hide Boy she found earlier. With that turned on she can sneak by the guards and go in. She installs the override chip and sneaks out again.
That taken care of, she heads down the corridor, turns on a final switch, and heads out a different door than she came in.
Here there are legion and Vigilbots outside. She is still invisible. She heads for the edge of the dam opposite the one she started at which has the doorway to the Legate's Camp. She opens it and heads there.
In the Legate's Camp she meets up with Legate Arnus, supreme commander of the Legion forces in this region. Much to her surprise it is her voice not her blaster which defeats him -- she talks him out of continuing this campaign. She convinces him his troops can be put to more valuable uses elsewhere.
That done, she heads back to the dam. But, it turns out the mission is not quite complete yet. As she heads back she is confronted by General John Henry, head of the NDA forces in the region. She talks him out of a fight, too. Yay!
And now the mission is complete -- New Canton will be run by House.
May heads home for yet another well deserved rest.
-- The End --