Under Eternal Winter

I - Vojka - I

Hope...

... Echoed in her mind with each sped-up heartbeat forcing its way up her throat, where each labored breath drew a loud gasp from her gasmask. She couldn't turn away from what was beyond her; her muscles froze like ice, and her mind raced away from her grasp. The sounds surrounding her were drowned out by the obsession within her vision. The only thing she heard was the loud beating in her chest.

Beyond her lay the overgrown bunker, still sealed and unscarred. It stuck out to her; it was so familiar from every dream and every absent thought she ever had, but she stared at it like an awestruck child, unable to do little more than gaze upon it. Her eyes locked on the crease between the heavy doors, their color drowned out and obscured by the overgrown and twisted plants surrounding the concrete doors.

She heard a voice, and she panicked, dragging over a clump of fallen branches still floating in the muddy swamp water to conceal the bunker. She heaved over the branches and fallen leaves, covering the exposed bunker door. She took a step back, her gaze fixed on it, hoping that was enough. She smiled at her work. From a distance, the bunker door was well hidden; she just hoped no one else got close enough to see it first.

She turned back, the image of the door and its surroundings burned into her mind. The dreams of what it held from the world turned her heart into a beating drum—wild with its sound, every muffled breath holding every note only to join the next. The drumming beat rose and fell with her breath, slowing her panic down to only her shaking hands tapping nervously at her hips. Another breath slowed her anxious hands, and with an exhale, her body shook and brought itself back to normal ever so slightly, her heart slowing to a steady tap-tappity-tap. Another breath followed her as she turned, breaking her gaze with the hidden obsession. Her feet sloshed in the mud, and her gaze drew up to a figure standing on the bank of the bog, his rifle resting in his arms. His mask was slightly cracked—the voice came from him, her escort across the surface. He looked down at her from the bank of the swamp, scanning the desolate wilderness before staring at her.

"Thirty minutes, мусорщик." The man said, taping his watchface. Her eyes ran him up and down, as if inspecting him just for a moment. His suit is kitted for exploration and escort. It was durable, even if its wearer was not.

"Мусорщик." She thought. "Scavenger."

She nodded, her eyes sticking to the man in front of her as she let out a deep sigh. "There's nothing here. We should head back." Her feet hit firm ground with the next step, and she lifted herself out of the bog. Her eyes locked onto the cracked mask, and the revolver at her hip sung at its sight, but she held herself. His equipment was valuable, but one miss, and she'd be the one left for the shrimps. She looked around aimlessly and took a step past him. "There's a storm inbound. Let's get somewhere safe."

"Whatever you say." The man nodded with a tired voice, giving no time as he turned, setting off back into the city with her following behind. The swamps were dangerous and toxic, but the rotting, snow-capped buildings were where the true threats lay.

Whenever she was outside of the metro, she had to be vigilant for anything, but the wilderness gave her a strange feeling of serenity, even if it felt like there were eyes everywhere. The city, on the other hand, was a warzone in its own right. Any number of dangers existed: demons, nosalises, bandits, and even other stalkers, though that's rarer. One mistake would result in another unmarked grave.

It didn't take long to walk back to the city edge, but within the shattered streets, it would feel like an age had passed by the time they reentered the metro. Growls and roars from nosalis packs, screeches from demons flying above, and a few gunshots in the distance put the two on edge. At any moment, anything could go wrong. They started by crouching between buildings as they made their way through the robbed and empty businesses and deserted offices, cleaned out by scavs and stalkers equally. They were still several blocks from the metro as they kept their slow pace. The only thing that mattered was that it was safer; they didn't care about the time it took to weave between buildings on snow-covered streets and hide for a moment before moving from alley to alley. They got closer to their goal with each step. At last, the stairs leading down to the metro entrance could be seen. It felt as though a weight had been lifted off their shoulders as they dove below into the metro entrance. They ought to be safe there within the metro. For now.