My apologies if this is going to fast for some, but my wife and I will be leaving the States one week from today and we won't be taking the laptop with us, and I'd really like to finish this series up before I leave. Unless there is a major objection, I'd like to space these out at no fewer than 2 levels every three days.
Parathymeter - anyone know the significance of this name? It's not in the dictionary and a Google search only yields Marathon Evil references. In any case, this level gives us our first romp around the home world of the Mystics. Our job is to find a way into a major complex, but that task won't be easy and will take two major levels to accomplish. In Parathymeter we start out atop the structure we need to gain access too, but all the doors are locked. If you look around you can see some hints of things to come, but you probably won't have much time to notice as you'll be battling a bunch of cyborgs as you start out, and more will teleport in when you make a run for the ammo stash. At first there will be some drones to help you but, once again, soon you'll be battling more drones than you can count. One caution - you really, really need to leave this level with 2X shields. There are two 2X power-ups to be had, here, one of which appears at the very beginning of the level. It's your choice, but you may want to leave this one for later or for the end if you can. Don't worry, you will be coming back here.
Depending on how you start out, this level can be either difficult or hellatious. Jumping straight down into the water is not your best bet, although if you slip, you may not have a choice. Stepping across a series of pillars brings you to a point where you can either jump down to a terminal that takes you to the first pattern buffer, or you can proceed directly across to the secret pathway that is described in the Spoiler Guide. I used to think that this pathway is shear hell - lots of cyborgs, mystics and drones, all of them against you. With skill, this path is actually your best bet, although you can always come back later for the ammo and 2X power-up. If you do navigate this path, there is an undocumented secret that can only be gotten this way, but you may want to wait for that until you have secured the pattern buffer. Oh, and if you look down and back behind you when you first set foot on those pillars, there is an undocumented secret door that you can jump down to that leads to a room with a mystic, a couple of drones and a nice ammo stash. Since the only exit is down into the water, however, I would leave this until later.
Once you make it to the pattern buffer, a switch nearby opens a door around the corner to a large room with a large group of Mystics and a chip that you will need to gain access to the rest of the level. There is also a 1X shield recharger in this room. There are many ways you can take out the mystics but I like to lob a couple of nuke bombs at them to finish them off quickly. Chances are you'll have more than enough of these to get you through the rest of the game. Once you insert the chip in the slot that is clearly visible across the way, you'll be able to enter a series of four underwater towers, starting with the one that is farthest from the pattern buffer, destroying wires at the top of each tower. Where you can, you might want to avoid stepping onto the tops of the towers, as in one case it triggers a hoard of drones to appear. After all the wires have been destroyed in all four towers, you'll have access to a passageway back near the beginning of the map. You've probably already taken out all the mystics and cyborgs that inhabit the platform in front of the passageway, but there are more cyborgs and drones inside, so be careful. Eventually you'll find yourself back at the start of the level.
This time you will find a destructable set of wires that you can punch, and this will open a door that leads to a large room filled with mystics and cyborgs. Once they're gone, you're done. Before leaving, be sure to access the two undocumented secrets and pick up the ammo to be had. One as already mentioned is found in a secret room that can be jumped down to from the pillars. The other is at the end of that secret passageway - the one with the 2X power-up and the large ammo stash near the start of the level. Once you reach the end of the passageway, you may notice a door that opens to an area similar to the starting area of the map. Entering the area releases a lot of monsters, but there is a 1X power-up and a nice little ammo stash. Leaping around an obstruction allows access to an alcove with some heavy ammo, but some friends will teleport in to keep you busy. Once you've accessed all the secret areas, pick up that remaining 2X power-up and head back to the exit terminal. This is a very longwinded terminal that basically explains that you still cant get into where you need to go and will have to sneak in through the septic system. Of course you'll take the time to read all the instructions for the next level, Septic Exodus, right? Sadly, there isn't much information to be had on Septic Exodus, and failing to read it here can have consequences. This is an approach to mapmaking that should rarely if ever be used.
