|
Post by CaptainNips on Sept 24, 2013 7:24:22 GMT -5
"No, the main exit is blocked by rubble. We're looking for another exit..."
Mikhail nodded, though his spirits were lowered. Alternate routes meant more walking, and more walking meant darkness. Darkness meant Them. Giving a uncertain sigh to calm himself, he followed her to the other side of the station.
"Lead the way then, friend. I trust your knowledge any da-"
A large clang broke his statement. "Shit..." he instantly said, pointing his Saiga over the surrounding area. Nothing. His mind began to play devious tricks on him... of ghosts... mutants and Dark Ones. But he was given little time to do so as Nadya took off once more.
"This is it." The two reached the service door, both obviously feeling slightly relieved. Mikhail's head quickly darted backwards, swearing he spotted a shift in the eerie darkness. His companions warning after opening the door set him on edge, and with more fear. Again being broken out of his thoughts, he was pulled along into the tunnel.
"Hurry! We can't stay here!" she exclaimed.
He shakily chuckled, "No shit!"
Even as they ran, the stalker felt as if a supremely hostile presence was on their tail. He could nearly see... imagine it, breathing and huffing, clawing the ground as it trudged lustfully ahead. He almost shoved Adder aside as he too jumped down the hole.
Hoarsely breathing in and out, he instinctively looked around. A slime-covered tunnel... great, he thought. Probably used to be an old sewer passage, or maybe even part of the elusive catacombs deep beneath dead Moscow.
"We're safe here", she said, panting as well. "Whatever was up there...it would have consumed us."
He nodded in agreement, beginning to slow in his breaths. His lighted gaze moved up to the hole entrance above, truly fearing that the monster... or whatever it was, would purge through. Mikhail started to second-guess why he went with her to the Botanical Gardens. Nah, he thought, if I stay with her then I'll be fine... she's the expert brains, I'm the guns.
Feeling an urge to say it, he spoke out of his silence, "Thanks, Nadya. Ppreciate it."
He twisted the knob on his headlamp as he thanked her, charging it to a brighter beam. The sudden darkness made him wish he possessed a pair of those coveted night vision goggles from Polis. He dared not take a step forward without Adder being a pace in front, for he greatly relied on her vision to foresee any upcoming dangers.
Mikhail peered ahead with his headlight, spotting a brackish green liquid sitting absently on the floor further down. The man also thought he could make out a slumped and ragged-clothed figure against the tunnel. In the dry air and dark environment, the corpse was mostly mummified. The skin brown, limbs of bone and face sunken.
He always felt for any dead stalkers or metro-dwellers he found on the road, always wondering what their story was. Clicking his tongue to his teeth, he spoke, "Poor fellow... he was probably here not long after the missile strikes... I wonder how he got lost down here in these dreadful passages."
Looking to her, he continued, "I hope this tunnel leads up... so you can find out what you want to know..." After a short pause, perhaps after a reply of hers, he inquires curiously, "Who was this heroic man anyway? The Stalker who killed... you know. I heard he was a man of Exhibition, but that I find hard to believe. As I do for many of the rumors circulating about him... some even say he survived the Kremlin's haunting aura. And escaped capture from the Fourth Reich, single-handedly killing 15 SS! Disappearing like a ghost afterwards..."
The man chuckled, lightening the mood, "Whatever they say about him... this guy is quite the Stalker."
|
|
|
Post by Lawnmower Joe on Nov 10, 2013 18:06:22 GMT -5
"Hard to separate myth from fact", said Adder, leaning closer to the corpse. A quick inspection of its pouches and pockets revealed nothing of interest save for crumbling papers and a stained identity card. The snake-eyed stalker examined this thoughtfully, taking in the man's face and name. His corpse was absolutely unrecognisable now, the man's identity solely preserved by this small and tattered piece of paper and plastic.
"In the Stalker's case, I'm not too interested in all the things he supposedly did. I'm looking for something else", said Adder, pocketing the identity card as if it were some small treasure. "I'm looking at the man's beginnings. The thing that started it all, the thing that the Metro's people are too scared or too hateful to contemplate."
She crept further along the tunnel, her boots and knees scraping along its slimy surface. Water droplets glittered in the pale ray of Mikhail's torch. A few meters down the tunnel, Adder found rusted ladder rungs leading upwards.
"Here we are", she said, reaching for her gas mask. She stood uncomfortably, her hands reaching for one of the rings and gripping it firmly. After placing one foot on a lower rung, she began the ascent to the surface. The upward tunnel was tight, its damp walls rubbing against her rucksack. A glance upwards showed a distant and dim light, far far above.
Finally they reached the top, and Adder saw that the access to the surface was barred by a heavy steel grate. Water dribbled through the edges and some strange purple moss was growing along the walls.
"I'm going to need some help", she said, placing her hands against the grate, "think you can squeeze in here?"
|
|
|
Post by CaptainNips on Nov 11, 2013 5:59:40 GMT -5
Mikhail comprehended Adders reply. Though he was nervous to enter the no man's land of the Gardens, he was also curious on the nature of humanity's old foes. He followed her further down the tunnel, shining his light to see the upward ladder.
He climbed up and stood by his companion. They were in a small chamber, with the metal grate right above. Brackish slime seeped from the bars, with dim clouds being seen far above.
"I'm going to need some help," Adder said, "think you can squeeze in here?"
Mikhail chuckled, "I'm going to have to..."
The stalker then took his mask from his belt and fitted in a new filter. Leaving his Saiga in one hand, he pushed against one side of the grate. It resisted, being strengthened by months of rust from the nuclear spring. With a grunt and a stronger shove, the grate flipped aside. Mikhail turned to Nadya and nodded, "Alright now... I'll give you a hand once I'm up."
The stalker then clutched to the rim of the opening, with a small hop, and used his brute strength to pull himself up... his gloves scrapping against gravel and loose mud. Now standing up, he looked down and offered a hand to Adder, her cat-like eyes looking back up to him.
"Don't forget your mask."
He'd grunt if she accepts the hand, pulling her upwards into the desolate ruin of the Gardens vicinity.
"There we go..." he'd say with a last grunt and look over the surrounding area.
They stood by the side of what was once a street... the buildings collapsed and gnarled with vines and cracks. The new spring had changed the dead city drastically... and the new environment never ceased to amaze him. Mikhail had grown tired of the biting wind and raging snow... very unpleasant.
The air around them was oddly... quiet. As of the whole area was condensed in a deathly silence unwelcoming to any who tread there. Not a single sound could Mikhail hear... not a nosalis yelp, nor the wail of a Howler. Mikhail was uneasy... and aimed his automatic shotgun over the buildings and alleys to the side.
He would look to Adder and give a forced grin behind his gas mask, "I don't know what exactly you hope to find Nadya... but I hope it's not far from here."
I'm right behind you," he'd say after a pause.
|
|
|
Post by Lawnmower Joe on Nov 11, 2013 19:27:53 GMT -5
Nadya crawled out of the manhole, and was surprised too see that the area around it had become swampy and humid. She looked up and saw that the Exhibition was shrouded in mist not unlike the kind she had known before the War. The twisted and vague silhouettes of buildings were barely visible in the murk, and the air was strangely quiet. Looking down at her feet again, Nadya saw that the ground was carpeted with a damp layer of greenish-red moss.
"Life", she said, her voice muffled by her old rubber gas mask, "it has started to colonise the place already..."
Hesitantly she took a few steps away from the hole, her feet squishing in the wet and viscous moss. Sudden movement at her feet revealed a large number of strange insects scuttling away.
A few more steps brought her into what seemed to be a large esplanade. The buildings visible in the mist became clearer, and memories came flooding into Nadya's mind.
"That building up ahead is the entrance to the Exhibition", said Nadya, pointing towards a large, arched structure. As she drew closer she saw that it had suffered greatly from the ravages of the apocalypse and time: cracks were visible in the stone, and large blocks had fallen off. The edifice was being slowly taken over by the same moss that covered most of the ground.
"Come on", said Nadya, going beneath the arch and around the twisted wreck of a car. Beyond the arch lay the Exhibition, silent as the grave. Nadya recognised the battered form of the main pavilion, and in the distance she saw the tall narrow spyre of the Ostankino Tower, now a lot shorter than it used to be.
"I remember this place before the War", breathed Nadya, "someone special took me here a few months before it all happened...the trees were green with leaves, all the flowers were blooming and the place was full to bursting with people."
She shook her head. Now was not the time to let her memories flood her. She had to stay focused.
"We'll explore the area and look for anything of interest...now what's this?"
A soft breeze had lifted some of the mist, revealing a strange, organic structure in the distance. Great arches rose into the air like the twisted bones of some great beast. Nadya headed straight for it, recognising the structure from the tales told around the Metro.
The Hive!
|
|
|
Post by CaptainNips on Nov 25, 2013 5:41:19 GMT -5
Mikhail grunted as he pulled her up, gawking as well at the almost alien world that surrounded them. Vines strangled the buildings and greenish-red moss was abundant in every corner. The murky air began to stick to his gas mask as they acquainted themselves with the new atmosphere. Mikhail rubbed his mask lens and looked to Adder.
"Life", the stalker began, "it has started to colonise the place already..."
The Hansa soldier gave a vague nod to this, deeply contemplating the thought. He wasn't sure if this revival of life was a good thing... but he knew Mother Nature would certainly go on without humanity. The city was almost entirely unrecognizeable... Mikhail would try to play scenes of old Moscow in his head, but nothing clicked. From a polluted city to a ruin shrouded by nuclear winter, Earth was reclaiming the land... and the cycle of life would continue.
He followed Nadya, his boots sinking slightly in the muddy and moss-ridden ground. Up ahead, the Exhibition pavilion, just as changed by the swamps like the rest of the area.
"I remember this place before the War", Adder said abruptly, "someone special took me here a few months before it all happened...the trees were green with leaves, all the flowers were blooming and the place was full to bursting with people."
Mikhail remembered that place as well. It was the only spot so far that provoked his nostalgic memories as a young boy. He remembered his Mother, Galina, taking him for a walk in the pavilion.... to talk about his Father, and the divorce. Young Mikhail had sternly disputed against this, fearing his whole life to fall apart. His only wish was for them to stay together. But that didn't matter a couple days later, he thought, The missiles fell on Moscow a couple days later... I guess I actually got what I wanted then... two parents, but all I knew Up There destroyed...
He was broken out of his train of thought by suddenly landing his foot in a puddle and the sound of his companion speaking. Up Here.
"... now what's this?"
Mikhail turned his gaze towards where Adder indicated. The mist began to part and shift under a slow breeze. Skeletal spires were revealed on the horizon, almost like the gnarled rib cage of a gargantuan, long dead beast. It looked like something off of this planet, not from Earth... it can't be. Then again, I don't think this planet can still be considered 'Earth'.
Adder suddenly darted off ahead, and Mikhail ran hurriedly after her. "Hey! Where you going, Nadya... you know what that thing is?"
He held his Saiga to his chest and watched the ground closely as he navigated through the ditches and moss that consumed the ground.
|
|
|
Post by tharina on Nov 30, 2013 10:57:09 GMT -5
With a rough noise Tharina pushed aside a little pile of broken concrete plates, which just found out they had a rendezvous with gravity. "Screw that shit.", she coughed and tried to wipe the dust from her gas mask, as she could barely see. The raised dust filled the ground floor now. With some moaning she managed to crawl a meter and found some space to get up on her feet again. With one hand she checked her clothing and her mask for any damage - with the other she searched her coats pockets for Chirp, her trustworthy all-metal-some-rust companion. "Ah, good riddance... " she pressed out of her hurt lungs, touching her ribcage and taking deep breaths.
The bald woman was standing in the midst of the old Vrachi Bez Granits Meditsinskaya Klinika. The last hours were not exactly going as planned. She lost one of the mercenaries she hired on the way to the building - and the other one was either lying dead under what had felt like a ton of rubble - or he actually did escape the collapsing building the very second in which the upper floor caved in. Indeed, Tharina had to smile - what a relief. She was one lucky gal.
Her gas mask was fine. A little Crack at one edge, but nothing that couldn't last for an hour or two. Chirp was giving good news, too: radiation levels, at this point, were not as bad as she had expected. She packed the Geiger-counter again and readied her pistol. After all, she had what she came for. Even though getting back inside the Metro could prove somewhat difficult, especially without some hired guns. She wiped some of her ammo clean and put it in her pockets.
With careful steps she went for what she assumed to be an exit - dim light falling into the building, though she still couldn't see far with all the polluted air around her. Glass cracked under her boots and old concrete gave away on more than one occasion. But all in all, the old hospital seemed worthy for this little expedition. Who would have known it even still was here, so close to the botanical gardens. She took some more soft steps until she reached the outside again. Her knees hurt. Breathing hurt. After a few more steps she was sure, that one of her ribs had taken more than a bruise. Now it was a matter of time.
She changed her filter - she had two more left, but quality over quantity. In some distance she could make out two shadows in the mist. Behind her, she heard scratching and she turned her head quickly, lifting her gun and taking a step back. 'Not Lurkers. Not now', came to her mind and without thinking twice, she took her heals and ran for it, right in the direction of what she though was the nearest entrance to the metro systems - and in the exact direction of the Exhibition.
|
|
|
Post by Lawnmower Joe on Dec 15, 2013 18:03:12 GMT -5
Beyond the Exhibition's main entrance the ground seemed to have been torn into a maze of trenches and fissures. As Nadya approached the area, a flock of strange flying mutants took off with startled crow-like cries. The stalker stood still, gazing up at the twisting structure that rose from the mists. Not even the wind seemed willing to disturb the sepulchral calm of the place.
Something snapped behind her, dry and loud in the silence. Nadya turned and saw Mikhail, cradling his Saiga like a talisman. Although she could not see his face beneath his gas mask, she had a feeling the place was making him uneasy.
"We're close" she said, her breath and words whistling through her gas mask, "close to what, though? I'm hoping answers."
Without another word, the snake-eyed woman dropped into one of the trenches. Brackish water sloshed around her boots, and she felt a brief surge of fear. Her dosimeter remained quiet, though, and she started to move through the labyrinth. Strange plant-like growths had begun to encroach over the Dark Ones' domain, and more insectoid creatures scuttled away from Nadya's loud, intruding boots.
Is this our world any more? she wondered, no...it's something else...
She looked up again at the skeletal structure, now directly above them. Its arches cut through the fog like crumbling roots.
...something new. A new world.
"The Buddha said that all is impermanence", she said, "and now I'm starting to think he was right. There's nothing but ash and dust left of our world, and all of it is like dirt in the rain. It will fade away inexorably. But the world won't end. Man may die, but Life will continue Living. A new world is emerging from the ashes."
She took a few steps forward, pushing the twisting brown fronds of some creeping plant aside. "The real question isn't whether we can bring the old world back, but whether or not we can adapt and survive in the new one."
Something cracked softly beneath her feet, and she looked down. Things lay jumbled in the brown water, tangled in weeds and buried in mud. Nadya bent down to retrieve one, extracting it slowly from its viscous resting place. It was a bone, yellowed by time spent in acidic swamp water. The stalker raked her brains to try and identify it. Was it a femur? It looked like one, although it was too long to be human.
Nadya crouched and began digging through the mud, algae and water. Small creatures swam and twisted away from her prying hands. Life in Death, Life from Death. She dragged out more yellowing bones, algae clinging to them in thick, almost hair-like clumps.
So many bones, and none of them human. Her left hand dove once more into the cold water and closed around something round and firm. She tried to pull it out, but her fingers slipped on its smooth surface. Ferreting for purchase, her fingers finally hooked themselves through two holes.
"Out you come", she said as the object emerged from the swamp water. She cleared the weed and muds off, revealing a skull.
For a moment she stood in almost complete silence, the only sound being her breath.
"So it's true", she breathed, her hand caressing the top of the skull as if it were the most precious object in the world. "The Dark Ones existed. They were here."
The skull was large and tear-shaped, tapering to a fine point where a human jaw would have been strong and square. The top of the skull was large, far bigger than anything a human would have. Nadya found herself wondering about the creature's brain size, and surmised it probably possessed a highly complex nervous system. In silence she marvelled at the skull, turning it over in her hands, her eyes drinking every detail.
____________________________
The two intruders had caught the Watcher by surprise, emerging from an entrance It had believed to have been forgotten by their kind. The Watcher had followed them, at first drawn to their psychic patterns like a moth to a flame and then watching them from cover. It had observed them intently, both visually and psychically, taking in their every move and analysing any thought it could catch.
The bulkier intruder was a male, its mind a treasure trove of experience, its body a coiled spring ready to leap forth. The male's movements spoke of contained, well-oiled violence. A soldier. But its thoughts were cautious, aware of its surroundings yet awed by them. It also seemed to have a certain warmth for its companion, a female. The male's thoughts there were warm, muddled, affectionate, protective. The Watcher had then directed its attention to the female.
The female was quite tall, but not as bulky as the male. Its thoughts were...strange. Very abstract, far removed from the more practical, primal thoughts most humans seemed to exhibit. The female's thoughts reminded the Watcher of the Master's. In complete silence it had followed the two intruders, watching them as they entered the Hive - (warm, safe, family) - and went through the alleys - (life everywhere, noise) - to a point where the female bent down and began rooting though the water.
From Its perch the Watcher saw the female bring up bones - (fire arrows in the sky, what are they? Not safe, must run, must) - the bones of Its kind. Thoughts raced through cracks in Its tamed mind, memories tried to push through, intruding on its clean path of thought. The Watcher shook its head and blinked, chasing the thoughts away.
...The Dark Ones existed. They were here.
Thoughts spoken. The Watcher saw the female turn to its companion, its lips hidden beneath the plastic and rubber monstrosity that humans needed to breathe. It knew the female was speaking, and It knew what the female was talking about. What surprised it, though, was the clarity of these thoughts, the underlying structure and the symbols. The female knew more than it was letting on, or was on the verge of knowing a lot more.
The Master would be very interested in meeting this female.
The Watcher's mind reached out, tendrils of thought feeling for the mind of Its Master. It found Him easily, as His mind was great.
There is a female human at the Hive...it is showing great interest in the place...her thoughts...
The Watcher made the Master see and feel the female's thoughts, hear its words. For a moment there was only silence, and then new thoughts reached the Watcher's mind.
Bring me the female. She seems of a higher order than the others. The doors of her mind and perception are ajar, she should be easy to subdue.
What about the female's companion? It is armed and dangerous and may defend the female.
Subdue him if you can and erase his memory of the event. If he resists, kill him.
With that the Master fell silent. The Watcher accepted Its orders with the calm bliss of the true servant - (ENSLAVED, YOU HAVE BEEN ENSLAVED, PUPPET, PUPPET, PUPPET) - and, silent as a shadow, skimmed through the blasted Hive of the Dark Ones.
|
|
|
Post by CaptainNips on Dec 19, 2013 10:13:45 GMT -5
With a cringe of uncertainty in each of his halted steps, Mikhail trudged on after Adder towards the twisted structures. Not only were the buildings cracked and ruined far off from the pair, but the ground as well. The whole earth was scarred with gnarling trenches, craggy pits that extended across most of the land around them. The burly Stalker knew he did not want to get trapped in them. Graves for the Dead they are... we are thick in the realm of Death itself.
"This is no longer our home..." he say to himself, "Not anyone's home..."
He was not the only one who was observing the alien-like landscape, as his companion turned and said briefly, "We're close. Close to what, though? I'm hoping answers."
Mikhail opened his mouth to answer but closed it abruptly as Nadya carefully hopped into a trench. What more of an answer do you need, than what surrounds us With little hesitation though, the Saiga-wielding man jumped down behind her. His heavy weight making a brief splash in the murky and greenish water. In a well-practiced habit, he checked the geiger-counter on his wrist. Nothing. That was odd... as crags like these are usually pulsing with radiation in other parts of the Dead City. He shrugged and wiped a slick of mud from the tinted-lens of his mask.
The Gardens really had become it's own environment, just as the city was reclaimed by nature. Even the trench which they were in appeared to live as a single organism. Bugs scrambled around their boots in the mud, and plants were greedily taking up what soil they could get in the poorly nutriented canyon-like habitat. As Mikhail sloshed through, he stared up above... seeing the chasmic spires now right above them. Even the somewhat sunlit sky was consumed by fog. But no, even the remnants of the Dark Ones were unshrouded by the other-worldly mist.
"The Buddha said that all is impermanence", Nadya said "and now I'm starting to think he was right. There's nothing but ash and dust left of our world, and all of it is like dirt in the rain. It will fade away inexorably. But the world won't end. Man may die, but Life will continue Living. A new world is emerging from the ashes."
The Stalkers brow furrowed. He had no idea who this 'Boo-dah' was, but he liked the way the man thought. Transience was the way of the world, Mother Earth's bound code. And Mikhail knew many of the past failed to see it that way. Why did our world turn to Hell itself anyway...
But it was her tone that was most curious to him. Her voice seemed translucent, simply entranced or influenced in the land twice-struck by missiles. To Mikhail, it sounded as if a desire to discover more was coated over her words... and he hung on each one.
"The real question isn't whether we can bring the old world back, but whether or not we can adapt and survive in the new one," the female Stalker added.
Mikhail replied in return, "That question is answered every day for us, Nadya... I don't think humanity is ever going to change to suit this land we once called 'home'." Perhaps we already have...
He watched her scoop up several bones, inspecting each one before withdrawing another from the puddles. Until, finally, she held up a skull. Not human either. Its very appearance sent slivers of cautiousness in his spine. Adders statement echoed Mikhail's thoughts, "So it's true. The Dark Ones existed. They were here."
Mikhail breathed out. Her words and the way she said them had truly unsettled him. No longer did this feel like a simple exploration, but as an intrusion into a crypt better left untouched... a labyrinth full of secrets never meant to be known. Every second there sent a natural sense of suspicion through him... the passing moments making him feel more and more on edge. Like they were being Watched.
Making sure he had her gaze, he'd say back, "I don't think anything indicates that they weren't. But there you go, there's your evidence." After a pause, he'd looked behind him and continue, the veterans voice hopefully not making him seem a coward "Look Nadya, this place gives me the creeps every damn second... Like we're messing with a coffin ready to spring it's contents right at us. And, honestly, this doesn't feel like a regular expedition anymore. You have your proof, and I don't see what else you intend to find."
Meeting the lensed eyes of her mask through his, he asked with a genuine voice of concern, "Why are we really here, Nadya?"
The ex-Hansa was not about to let her go beyond the boundaries of sense. His own recent affection for her rose as he awaited an answer. As far as he knew, Mikhail was not about to let her fall into the perilous hands of danger (not that she couldn't handle herself). Which was what he was there for anyway, his arms ready for any act in the name of protection.
|
|
|
Post by tharina on Dec 21, 2013 21:34:48 GMT -5
She could hear the claws of Lurkers chasing her, scratching over the remains of concrete, through which the roots of newborn plants already had burst. The medic tried to breathe as calm as she could. Which proved to be quite the challenge while running for ones life.
Air and filters are precious, little treasuries... save those filters, a screw it, goddamn, run!
She tripped once, paniced and wailed, but came to her feet again; unfortunately the next branches and gaps did not keep the woman waiting and she stumbled. In front of her, the remains of Exhibition rose from what looked like craters and old dugouts.
This is the wrong way. How did I even end up here? She cringed at the thought of what lay in front of her. Her next step led her into the depths of the trenches. She landed on her rump and had to force herself not to scream, swallowing hard, pushing her sleeve in front of the gas masks filter. She could hear the vague sound of mutants above her and cowered, shaking, holding her breath, trying to be still and quiet. The lurkers seemed to have lost sight, but as those creatures were mutated, who knew If they could still trace her by smell or sound. She was too busy staying alive, so she did not waste a thought about gathering information concerning Lurkers' hunting habits. Or maybe she did - for a mere second.
After what seemed like an hour, but was most definitely not more than a minute, she lowered her arm and took a careful breath, listening for scratching, howling or any sound else that would affiliate to a creature bigger than the insects, which shared their earthbound kingdom with Tharina for this moment.
Nothing. In fact, there was a dead silence. Dead as you, If you don't get your ass out of here. She reminded herself of her surroundings and a shiver ran down her spine; grabbing for Jammer (her not-so-safe Kalash 47) she counted her ammunition before loading the gun. She considered climbing out of this hole but no, she didn't want to be vulnerable and turn to the very direction she knew the mutants were waiting. Risk the unknown or face a known threat?
Curiosity killed the cat, she thought and took her first steps in the most lit tunnel, leading further into the Exhibition and ultimately to the presumably safe tunnels of the Metro system. Her heart was pounding. Her head started pounding. A thought flashed through her mind. What If the rumors are true? What if they actually exist?
What started as a nervous fear turned into a king-sized headache. She staggered along, keeping her weapon close and making an effort to find more sunlight or a hint of direction. The fog was thicker than she thought and she rarely got a glimpse on the way in front of her. She shook her flashlight, which refused to switch on. She could hear voices in the distant, echoing through the tunnel in which she crawled. If she could listen to these people... had they already noticed her?
She paused. Flashes of light swept across her mind and she sank down, reaching for a filter. Had she almost forgot to change it? How could that have happened. She took a deep breath and with a screeching sound she loosened the old filter so she could replace it. Finally, another deep breath. No more worry or doubt - those people knew she was here, at least as long as they weren't deaf. Only one filter left, her rib hurt and her geiger counter went haywire. She had to find whereever those voices came from - this, or she could call this place her grave. She struggled to her feet, grabbed the gun and went on.
"кто здесь?" she called. [Who is here, who is this?]
Finally, after another minute of crawling through what seemed to be a giant formicarium - Only that I am the helpless little ant - she could spot two figures in the mist. She lay away the Kalash, putting up her hands and crawling closer to hopefully get a better view on the people in front of this tunnels exit. If this was her last stand, she at least wanted to see the fuckers shooting her... at least make an exit. If not... that’s just as well!
|
|
|
Post by Lawnmower Joe on Dec 25, 2013 14:48:58 GMT -5
Nadya rose and looked around her, almost as if she expected the cold and silent air to answer some of her questions. And what questions would those be? Some were known, others were vague forms at the antipodes of her mind, not yet fully conceived.
Her mind railed against the shackles of her frail human senses and her frustration grew. Bones and burnt earth were not enough. They were merely fuzzy photographs in a messy album, traces without context and whose true meaning lay hidden behind a wall of lies and unknowns.
Her racing thoughts were interrupted by the uncertain voice of her companion. "Why are we really here, Nadya?"
Why are we really here, Nadya? The words, although muffled by Mikhail's gas mask, still seemed to crawl with barely concealed fear. The same fear that had lead mankind to unspeakable acts in the name of survival.
"I don't know" said Nadya, "answers? The truth?"
She turned to face Mikhail, her eyes looking straight into the dark round lenses of his gas mask. "Why are you afraid, Mikhail? There's nothing to be afraid of here.
There was a splash, and Nadya snapped around to face the intruder, her old SKS rising. A hunan form had stumbled into their line of sight, caked in mud and breathing harshly. Nadya lowered her rifle and considered the newcomer warily.
"Who are you?" She said.
None of them noticed the tall dark figure behind Mikhail and Nadya. A veil seemed to have fallen over their senses, occulting any sign of the being's presence. The Watcher eyed the dirty newcomer with displeasure - (another human, too many humans) - but did not see any need to alter Its plans. It stayed in the background, watching the three humans, more specifically the strange female, and waited for the appropriate moment to strike.
|
|
|
Post by CaptainNips on Dec 29, 2013 4:39:52 GMT -5
"Why are you afraid, Mikhail? There's nothing to be afraid of here."
The Stalker clenched the grip of his Saiga, looking to the side uncertainly. The man was only slightly unnerved to have his inner fear be noticed, though he knew himself that he couldn't really hide it. For every frightened look in one direction, he'd feel as if there were eyes, staring... right at the back of his head. For every movement he felt like the arms of the dead would suddenly rise up and drag him down... making him one of Them. For every look upwards Mikhail felt as if it was the last sight he'd see of daylight, before dirt collapsed into the coffin-like trench. This place was not normal, and something in his gut told him they were not wanted... and he'd rather be far away before that welcome came.
"Like hell there isn't... This place practically pulses with death. Hell, you want answers? Well let me tell you this... where we stand is a graveyard, and place where humanity did anything else but search for answers."
Mikhail had opened his mouth to continue, but was broken off with the sudden splash. He was the first to dart around, his Saiga levered instantly... his sights cautiously searching for the cause of the sound. It was human... a Stalker, who'd seen the worst by the looks of it. Mikhail lowered his weapon, letting his companion do the talking while he stood guard beside her... that itching feeling of vulnerability never leaving his bones.
|
|
|
Post by tharina on Jan 1, 2014 0:31:45 GMT -5
She could hear some words in short distance, as she crawled out of her hole, her hands held high. Her rifle was loosely hanging at her right side.
"Like hell there isn't... This place practically pulses with death. Hell, you want answers? Well let me tell you this... where we stand is a graveyard, and place where humanity did anything else but search for answers."
She stumbled, took a careless step into a puddle of mud and with bated breath she pulled her foot out of the pot-hole. One of the figures raised his weapon stunningly fast, she could hear him releasing the safety catch and freezed right where she stood... on the face of it the first one was a man, standing at about six foot and with broad shoulders. He seemed to eyeball her in mere seconds, which meant he was either a practiced and trained Stalker - or way too light-headed. Finally, he lowered his weapon. At least, she would not die in her shoes, right here, right now.
The other person was a woman. With her vision still blurred and the crack in her mask, she wouldn't have noticed, but then she did speak.
"Who are you?" She said. Tharina tried to get a glance of her vis-à-vis. First, she took her left hand down and used it to lean on the wall next to her.
"I'm sure my Name is not half as interesting to you as my allegiance," the woman said with a smile, "and I don't mean to interrupt your business, whatever brought you to this part of wasteland. The Name's Kruljac, I'm from Semyonovskaya and I have to say, my day has been one rough ride of bad luck. Until I met you, I hope." She made two more steps closer to them, trying to climb out of the trench. She held her rib and kept an eye on the two strangers. "So, If there is something that would convince you of selling one of your filters or even getting me to a Metro entrance, I'd love to know. And If there's nothing I can do for you... don't mind me, then, I'll find the next ladder... I hope."
The medic grabbed the leather that held her gun and made sure the Kalash did not point at the people who now were her best chance of survival.
Even though I do not like that, not at all. Something is not right here. It's silent. Not even air seems to be around.
|
|
|
Post by Lawnmower Joe on Jan 25, 2014 15:08:01 GMT -5
The Watcher hesitated as the new arrival drew closer. It seemed tired and wounded, its thoughts were jumbled and tinged with apprehension. This state could not last, however. Soon the newcomer might gather its wits and join the other humans, and when they formed a group they were far more difficult to trick.
And so, the Watcher acted.
"Sell you filters?" Said Nadya, considering the request. Filters, like food, ammunition and clean water were precious. "What do you offer for then?"
But the woman's answer never came. Instead, time seemed to slow to a crawl and a mist fell over Nadya's mind. Slowly she looked at Mikhail and the stranger, and both seemed frozen in place and oblivious to what was happening. Nadya felt a presence behind her, and she turned around like an insect in molasses, her eyes wide and glassy behind the lenses of her gas mask.
Hello, Nadya.
A tall black figure, human and alien, it's cold blue eyes boring into her very soul. Nadya tried to speak, but found her mouth dry and immobile.
I want you to come with me, its voice resonating in her mind with irresistible authority. Nadya found herself absolutely unable to resist, and her legs moved forward of their own accord, dragging slightly in the muddy water.
Good, now come, said the being, swaying gracefully around. Nadya's mind was flooded with bliss and benevolence. All she had ever wanted was to follow and protect the tall dark being, and follow it she did. Within minutes the odd pair had disappeared in the warren of ditches and tunnels beneath the dry arches of the hive.
The Watcher went at a quick pace, quite pleased at how easy it had been. Of course the other two might be precipitated into a world of folly and nightmares as their meagre minds struggled with the complex illusions He had weaved, but it was of no importance. What mattered was the female who walked alongside Him.
The Master would be quite pleased.
|
|
|
Post by CaptainNips on Feb 22, 2014 9:13:25 GMT -5
Mikhail watched the run down stalker with cautious eyes, his Saiga not lowered an inch. He didn't like the look of this Kruljac; Semyonovskaya? he had sparingly heard of this station and the stalker was clearly far from home. Her clothes were muddied and torn and her Kalash had seen better days. The stalker had fallen on hard times, which could cost her her life on the surface. It was clear she wouldn't make it to the next metro entrance in her tattered state, not without help.
"Sell you filters?" Nadya replied, no one on the surface would willingly give away a filter, as they were your countdown for life as much as your source of air in the dead city. But this was another matter, and Mikhail nodded an approval as Adder demanded a trade for the supplies.
The former-Hansa veteran lowered his automatic-shotgun, then awaited an answer from the Stalker. Nothing. He looked around in the ravine, not a single person or tiny insectoid making a move. His vision was blurry and even the slightest turn took an excruciating amount of time. Time had stopped, and the world turned as if in quicksand. Nadya... Adder. No answer. Voices began to echo in his head, longing to be heard... Voices of his past, shouts of old battles - Roars of slain monsters. There were here, then they were there.
Laughs. Taunting. Turn around.
Run.
He found himself sprinting down the ravine. Nadya and Kruljac were out of sight. Each rising of his leg brought down with a heavy thump. He emerged into a clearing, the tall grass forming a pastoral landscape ridden with death. Wasteland. The spires of the aged Dark Ones stretched into the dark sky on the horizon. Figures began to show at his vision. Calling. Mikhail. A solitary figure on the horizon. Nadya.
Go after her
He ran towards her, her form shrinking and shrinking ahead with each passing second despite his sprinting. It was if he was running in space, his legs making no progress. His breath increased, the sound of his pants being the only sound in the euphoria. The voices went on. He ran, an outward root protruding before his march. With a grunt, he fell, shaking his head as the white continued to blur his vision. He tried to force himself up, but his muscles tensed, refusing to rise. He wouldn't move. Get up, a looming voice said. Get up. A gloved hand oustretched from above him, he took it... the strength of the holder felt empty as if made of air, despite him being raised up so swiftly. Dusting off his knees, Mikhail looked to see the face of his aid. Dmitri, Mikhail's past trainer and mentor, a man long dead and past. His grizzled features grinned for a moment, then his airy figure stepped back... and dissipated.
Blinking, Mikhail rubbed off some muck which had clamped onto the lens of his mask. Standing still for a second, he tried to make sense of the apparition he had encountered and his daze across the clearing. He had reclaimed some of his sense, though his mind was still groggy... like an exhaustion. The veteran had little time to recollect as he spotted a dark form disappear down a slope. "Nadya!" he shouted, running towards her with his Saiga at his side. She was going beneath the spire itself, into what ever craggy depths lay below. Slowing his pace so as to not trip, he went down the slope and yelled back to nadya who was not far ahead. "Nadya! Where are you going?"
The stalker was alone, the slope emerging into a dark tunnel causing Mikhail to flick on his light. Yet he could not help but feel a different presence around, like when they stood alone in the ravine. The fear of being Watched rising on the back of his neck. Running forward he reached out to touch her shoulder, his fingers only barely touching her even as he stopped dead behind Adder. His eyes widening, he looked from side to side... a disturbance in the air around him setting him on edge.
Something was there...
|
|
|
Post by tharina on Apr 10, 2014 17:54:43 GMT -5
"What do you offer for them?"
Tharina wanted to grab for her last good medical kit. She actually had antibiotics left - one package, crafted down in the tunnels. It was all wealth left on her, except for Books and scavenged medical technology. She never got the chance to trade, though.
She blinked. That's all the time she had before time seemed to slowly freeze. She blinked again, her vision went blurry. In the corner of her eye, she could see the woman to whom she just talked. The woman turned around, walking away. That's the last she could see. The medic dropped her gun, not because she wanted to, but because her hand was turning numb.
Her eyes tricked her. Everything turned white, then dark. She stumbled, got down on one of her knees. She could feel herself falling for what seemed an eternity, while thoughts and images ran through her head like speed trains. Time just didn't seem to matter anymore.
What. Her head turned but things around her didn't seem to change. Then, a light flash. Screams shattered her head and forced her to put her hands over her ears. The noise continued and she could feel her consciousness crumbling like the concrete beneath her shoes. Faces in front of her.
Who... Familiar faces were in front of her, scrutinizing the appearance and pose in which she crawled forwards. Stepan? .... Gabriela? ... The visions changed. Wasteland, fire and smoke, a gruesome green light, which screamed bloody murder and radioactivity.
Fight or flight. She grabbed for her knees and coiled up in a corner. Terror and fright were shown in her face, while she tried to convince herself that this horror-trip actually was nonexistent and reality was even worse: She had only one filter left and was lying on the ground. Her hands were bloody, her head had a wound and both the humans she met out here had disappeared out of sight.
Finally, her mind was her own again. "I can't remember this part of the ruins. Have I been here? How long was I tumbling around?" And quite on time.
In some distance she could make out the gunslinger, the companion of that woman. He was agitated, moving towards a pitch that lead into what seemed to be a tunnel.
Underground? She clutched for the remaining filter and wiped her mask clean. She picked up pace, getting up again and following that man, in desperate need for the safety of dark, thick ferro-concrete and ventilation systems. Tired footsteps brought her into darkness, lifting her gun. With a silent sob, Tharina narrowed her eyes to slits and tried to focus, despite the fact that she had not been homesick like this for years.
|
|