The Spetsnaz don’t share his equanimity.
“Pizdets!” one of them cusses. “I hope the two Zones are not trying to merge!”
“Don’t talk bullshit,” the sergeant replies. “Last time I checked, the Exclusion Zone ended at Cordon and that was yesterday.”
“Wouldn’t mind the Russians having their own Zone,” a regular soldier says. “At least they’d be busy containing it and quit poking their nose into Ukrainian matters.”
Strelok gives the solder a stern look. “You have no idea what you’re talking about, boyevoychick!”
“Listen, here’s a joke,” says the Spetsnaz sergeant in an attempt to cheer up the mood. “An American and a Russian satellite meet in orbit. The American is spying on us, and the Russian is — broken down.”
The junior commando on Strelok’s other side dutifully laughs but the others don’t react. Maksimenko shakes his head.
“Vlasov, you are a capable non-com but telling jokes is not your strong side.”
“Just trying to cheer us up, komandir.”
“Then try a better joke next time,” Strelok says grinning.
“You happen to know one, Stalker?”
“Many. Listen to this: one day a journalist visits a Freedomer base—”
Strelok breaks off as the column comes to a halt and the 14.5mm heavy machine gun of the lead BTR starts firing. After a minute that was probably needed for the soldiers travelling inside the compartment to get to their firing positions, a half dozen automatic rifles begin to rake an unseen enemy.
“Leader One to Leader Two. What the hell is happening?” Maksimenko shouts into his radio set.
“Leader Two to Leader One. A horde of fleshes blocked the bridge. Stand by.”
The gun fire ceases after a few moments.
“Leader Two. We’re about to remove the carcasses from the bridge. Moving on in three minutes.”
“Leader One. Acknowledged. Make it two.”
“Why didn’t we just drive them through?” asks the junior Spetsnaz.
“Idiot!” Sergeant Vlasov bashes on his subordinate’s helmet with his fist. “Who will dig the gore from wheels and chassis? You volunteer, huh? No? I thought so.”
“Those mutated pigs smell like shit,” Maksimenko says. “Let those guys in the tin can clean up the mess.”
“And where will I have my fun?” asks Strelok. “Will you tell me at me at least what I have to do exactly?”
“Stay put in Cordon.”
“We’re in Zaton. Why the detour?”
“I wanted to be a nice guy for once and agreed to take some supplies to our outpost at the Ranger Station.” Maksimenko jolts his head towards the two big crates travelling with them in the compartment. “We still have time. Cordon will be a good place to get all this over with.”
“Care to elaborate?”
“Think of it: Tarasov knows the area like his vest pocket… you, his old buddy being kept there at the mercy of a bastard called myself… He’ll probably try to contact you and you’ll lure him right into our welcoming arms.”
“You want to lock me up at your Outpost until he comes—or doesn’t, eventually? Come on, Captain! I’ll be bored to death!”
“Infiltrating our base might be too risky even for that cunning bastard. He wouldn’t try. The Dairy Farm will do, all the more because it will give him the impression that you’re about to be brought to Cordon Base and then out of the Zone.”
“What if the Farm is occupied by Stalkers?”
Hearing this, both Maksimenko and the Spetsnaz sergeant give him self-confident smiles.
“I got it.” Strelok nods. “Shrewd plan… and then what do you want to do with Tarasov?”
“None of your business. There’s something else I wanted to talk about.” Maksimenko opens the artifact container on his SKAT armored suit. “What’s this, Marked One?”
“Let me see.”
Strelok glances at the artifact. It consists of two copper disks in the size of a saucer, about a few centimeters thick, with a space of a hand’s span and a half between them. There’s just empty space between. However, there is some force between the two disks, because it is impossible to press them together or pull them apart either.
“It’s a Spring,” Strelok says, visibly unimpressed by the artifact. “Kinda hybrid between Battery and Shell. How much did you pay for this crap?”
The truck starts rolling again. With Strelok not having an intercom, Maksimenko has to speak louder now.
“A patrol stumbled on it in the Dark Valley, just north of the building with the entrance to Lab X18. Gave the grunts a little cash and a week’s leave for it. Is it valuable?”
“Comes to about 3000 at Sidorovich. 3200 tops.” The truck speeds up and Strelok too has to shout to make himself heard over the engine noise. “Maybe 5000 at the egghead’s den in Yantar, but that’s still not enough to quit your day job!”
“Not too bad either. And what does it do?”
“Depends,” Strelok says playing with the artifact in his hands. “It does something about the gravitational field around you.”
“What? Speak up!”
“I said, it can prevent you from breaking your neck when you fall from a tree or something!”
Maksimenko looks disappointed. “Doesn’t sound too exciting.”
“Could be useful to have one during combat jumps,” Sergeant Vlasov observes with a little envy in his voice.
Strelok gives him an wide grin. “Your Spetsnaz is right, Captain. It can be very useful in certain situations.”
“What situations?”
“Like this!”
Holding the artifact tightly, Strelok jumps off the truck. Desperately, Maksimenko and his two Spetsnaz grab after him but reach only into thin air. The Stalker steps on the bridge railing and takes a straight header into the deep valley beneath.
“Shit! That dog… that sly dog!” Maksimenko shouts and barks a quick command into the radio set. The convoy halts.
Joined by the two Spetsnaz who look as embarrassed as their captain, Maksimenko stares down into the abyss but sees only fog.
“Put your NVG on and scan the area!”
After a minute, Vlasov shakes his head. “Can’t detect anything, sir. No movement, no body.”
Maksimenko shakes his head while frantically thinking about what to do.
“Shall we go after him, komandir?” Sergeant Vlasov asks.
Looking towards the stretch of bridge ahead, Maksimenko stamps his boot to the ground in frustration. “Damned Stalker! Shit, shit, shit! By the time we get off the bridge and climb down to the riverbed, he’ll be at the Jupiter plant already or in Dark Valley or I don’t know!”
“Plus an artifact worth five thousand. He pulled a clever Stalker trick on us, I give him that.”
The captain stares at his second in command.
“Don’t even dare remind me of that, Vlasov!” he shouts. “Goddammit! I hate Stalkers! Each and every single one of them!”
“Tovarishu Kapitan!” From inside the truck, a regular army soldier shows him a backpack and a small device. “I found something.”
“It better be good, soldier!”
“He left his carbine behind!” Knowing that he has just saved the situation, the soldier triumphantly smiles. “His PDA too. Must have slipped from his pocket!”
Maksimenko and the two Spetsnaz share a look of relief.
“Slava Bogu!” Sergeant Vlasov sighs. “I was already preparing my butt for a kick from Kruchelnikov’s boots.”
“That was a damned close shave, Vlasov.” Maksimenko shouts over to the driver. “Let’s get moving, davai!”
Back in the truck, Maksimenko fiddles with Strelok’s PDA. All he will have to do is to turn on Strelok’s distress signal once they reach their destination, and Tarasov shall walk by himself into the trap. He calls on the soldier who found the device.