The Great Swamps. Southern Farmstead.
09:39 20/09/2018

*BRATATA! BRATATA!*

Short burstS of rifle and shotgun fire could be heard comming from the South of the Swamps, where a small firefight between our fellow Stalkers and some Renegades was occurring. Speaking of which, after Sidorovich told them about Strelok's friend, Doctor was his name, being in the Great Swamps, they instantly made their way there.
They both went to the South, near the Cordon military outpost.
It was the "safest" route for both of them, since another way into the swamps would be the Northen Farmstead, which was occupied by Ecologists. Unfortunately, the Machine Yard was also nearby, which was occupied by the military.

*BAM! BAM! BAM!*

This was a problem for Gabriel. He's been trying to lay low and avoid every contact possible with the military. He was a desertee after all, and they wanted him dead or alive... But considering the ammount and the kind of insults he spat at his commander before he left... They probably discarded the "alive" option. So, they had to take a different route. A longer but safer route.
They would enter the swamps from the South, and make their way to the Old Church. After that, they would pass by the Pump Station and make their way to an abandoned shack, passing by the Lungrot Anomaly. And finally, their destination: the Tuzla Tunnel.

*SHUNK!*
"AAARGH!"

However, that wouldn't be easy... Radiation was a threat present in all areas of the Zone, but something worse than just radiation is irradiated water... And the fact that they were in a swamp didn't make it better.
That, and both mutants and Bandits, Renegades or, worst case scenario, the military. Thankfully there were some allies in the area too. The Pump Station was also occupied by the Ecologists, Yuri's faction, which were also beutral with almost any faction in The Zone. Then there was Clear Sky, which are mostly present at the South-West. They were neutral with Loners, Ecologists and some other factions too.
It would be a long way, but fortunately, they had enough ammo on them.

Gabriel: "Was that all of them?"
-He asked his companion while he retrieved his M9 Bayonet from a dead Renegade's neck, cleaning the blood out of the blade using the corpse's clothes.

Yuri: "Yep, all clear..."
-The other replied as he began to loot some of the renegades. He also had a habit of getting their patches, but, unlike Gabriel, he collected them instead of selling them. Depending on who you're selling the patches to, you might get some money.
After the dust had settled, they continued their path towards the Tuzla Tunnel, now onto the Old Church.

Gabriel hated this area, a lot. The idea of a normal swamp already annoyed him, now a swamp with irradiated water? Sounds very fun. That means he hasn't visited this area that often, even during his time in the military, although he was stationed at the Agroprom Research institute.
However, Yuri had been here before, multiple times. When he was part of both Duty and the Ecologists. In fact, when he visited the Pump Station a while ago, there's where he thought about joining the scientists. So, the other knew this area quite well, so he would be the one leading the way.

*SNAP!*

Yuri: "Oh shit!"
-The Ecologist shouted as he heard and felt a bullet narrowly missing him, but hitting his companion instead.

Gabriel: "ARGH! YOU BITCH!"
-Thankfully, due to his suits superior ballistic protection, the plates managed to stop the bullet... Still, that hurt quite a bit. Enough to anger him like the silverback gorilla he is.
Back to the threat, suprise, more Renegades. They barely even know about this faction. The only thing they knew is that they were like the Bandits but somehow more miserable and even more ill-equiped. Hell, even the Bandits don't want to associate themselves with the Renegades.
But that didn't matter right now. What mattered is that our fellow Stalkers were shrinking their numbers just a little bit.

*BRATATATA!*

Gabriel: "Got you, bastard!"
-The soldier shouted before killing the enemy that shot him, who came out of the destroyed wall that separated the church and the graveyard from the swamps.
Meanwhile, Yuri pulled out his SPAS-12, getting ready for some up close and personal encounters. Same thing with Gabriel, who pulled out MP-133. As soon as they doubled that corner, they went in guns blazing, murdering any Renegade that dared to stop them.

*BAM! BAM!*

*BANG! Schklic-klickt!*

Their enemies didn't last long, just like back at the Farmstead. Not even two minutes.
However, their fight didn't go unnoticed, as some Clear Sky memberd heard the gunfire and began to complain about on The Zone's open channel.

*Beep-beep*
Vadim Four-eyes. Clear Sky: "Hey, I just heard some shotgun fire comming from the Old Church, anyone know what's going on?"

Yuri: "All clear... Seems like people already know we're here."
-He said while checking on his PDA, seeing the message from the Clear Sky member.

Gabriel: "Nice, we got an audience now."
-The Loner joked as he reloaded both of his weapons, putting his shotgun away to switch to his AKS-74N.
As they left the church, walking past the graveyard, where the God's Acre Anomaly was, going towards one of the main roads. However, they took a shortcut in between the high grass, avoiding every possible contact with the water. The walk was pretty silent and uneventfull, except for a couple of zombies they found near the Pump Station.

*BRATATA!*

*BLAM-BLAM-BLAMM!*

They killed all of them with ease, and proceeded to loot their corpses while butchering them for some parts. That trader on the Train Hangar at the Garbage, Butcher was his name, would buy them for a fairly good price.
Zombies tend to have some weird stuff on them though. One time Yuri found an I.E.D made from a RPG-7 warhead in one of them, and Gabriel found one that had nothing but drugs. Cocaine, marihuana, hell, it even had a cannabis joint, ready to smoke and all.
Anyways, after they dealt with the zombies, they continued their path towards the Pump Station, which was now right in front of them.

Speaking of said location, it was built to extract anomalous substances from the bottom of the swamps, which are then taken by both the Ecologists and Clear Sky for studying and experimenting. However, Clear Sky didn't have the same authoritation the Ecologists had. Both factions were neutral between each other, since they had similar goals, however, the military was allied with the Ecologists, not Clear Sky. The reason they were there too was because this was originally taken by them, and becaise the Ecologists allow them.
The structure... Well, it's fair to say that it wasn't build up to OSHA standards. It almost looked like it was hanging by a thread, with rusted metal and poorly placed wooden planks to make additional structures around it. Nobody would render this safe, at all.
But this is the Chernobyl exclusion Zone, who fucking cares?

Ecologist: "Hello, brother."
-One of the scientists greeted Yuri, knowing him since he had been here a couple of times already. However, he didn't know Gabriel and didn't know that he was a deserter... Thankfully.

Yuri: "Hey."
-He greeted back, waving his hand a little bit and walking past his buddy.

Gabriel: "Shit man, this thing is hanging by a thread..."
-He whispered to Yuri, hoping that nobody around would hear it. He thought that such professionals would think twice before using such a poorly constructed and badly mantained position like this, but no. Still, who was he to judge anyways?

Yuri: "Tell me about it..."
-His companion replied, whispering too, now both of them exiting the station through the other side. What followed would be more muddy terrain, a long way towards the Abandoned Shack. They would be met with the Lungrot Anomaly on their way there, but that was still a little further.
Unfortunately, after some minutes of walking, Gabriel suddenly stopped, gesturing Yuri to do so as well. He then raised his hand and placed it next to where his ear would be.

He heard a growling noise... But it wasn't any normal growl. They both knew what kind of mutant did that sound.
A Snork, and it was nearby. Gabriel got ready and pulled out his knife, ready to attack at the perfect moment... He did it his way. It wasn't easier than just shooting the damn thing before it jumps straight at you... But it was more fun.

*ROOAAAR!*

Now the beast showed itself, jumping straight for the soldier, comming from his left side. He ducked to dodge the Snork's attack, but it didn't just let it pass right above him.
Oh no.

*SHUNK!*

He stabbed the damn thing mid-air, digging his knife into its ribcage. Once he nailed the mutant, he slammed it down to the ground and getting on top of him.
A hard punch in the face shut the beast up before the Loner began stabbing it in the torso a couple of times, finishing it off with a final stab to the throat.
Yuri wouldn't just be an espectator though, since another Snork also appeared and jumped towards him. Unlike Gabriel, he didn't just duck and dodge the beast, he aimed his Remington 700 at it and fired a shot, nailing the mutant mid-air. The rifle wasn't so loud due to the KZRP Suppressor he attached to it.
He was one hell of a sniper. He could shoot a bug in the ass from 500 meters, just with iron sights.
However, that shot didn't kill the Snork, it just wounded the mutant, which landed right in front of him, rolling clumsily. He then crushed the beast's head with his boot.

*PSHT! Schcklic-klickt!*

*SHUNK-SHUNK-SHUNK!*
*SHUNK!*

*CRUNCH!*

Gabriel: "They should have named you 'Shatpshooter', it suits you better."
-The Loner joked before pulling his knife out of the Snork, geniunely impressed by his aim.
If he joined the army and went on the sniper school, he would've passed with flying colours. He, on the other hand, wasn't that good of a shot at long range. He preffered close combat, and, apart from using his knife, shotguns and short, compact rifles were his thing.
However, if things required long range shooting, he was a good spotter for his companion.

Yuri: "Meh, that's too used."-the Ecologist replied as he rubbed his foot on the dirt, in order to clean some of the blood and brain matter.-"Now my boots are all sticky..."
-His companion replied with a chuckle, noticing how casually upset he sounded. Oh, I just crushed a former-human's head, but fuck, my boots are dirty now.
It seemed both funny and slightly disturbing, but he just ignored that and proceeded to walk once again, being followed by Yuri.
Minutes later, they were finally near the Lungrot anomaly. Their geiger counters began to go crazy as they walked past it. The problem is, they couldn't get any further away from it, otherwise they would step on the irradiated water.
So, what they did was run past it as fast as they could and reach an improvised bridge, which were wooden planks placed above the water, and cross to the other side before one of them got minor radiation poisoning. After that, it was just a straight line to the North, towards the abandoned shack, which seemed pretty similar to the Fishing Hamlet, South of the swamps near the Clear Sky Base.

Once they got there, both jumped over the fence and got in the area. It was... Just that, an abandoned shack. A huge tree was near it, allowing anyone to enjoy its shadow with a campfire underneath it. Speaking of which, there were remnants of such a campfire in the area, and some other military-looking crates nearby. So this wasn't as abandoned as they thought.
However, they would have to give it a use, since the sound of static and the message that popped up on both of their PDA's meant no good. That and the sirens that began sound loudly, indicating the arrival of a Psy-Storm.

Connection lost...

Psy-Storm: Find Shelter.

Gabriel: "Shit! To the shack, run!"
-The soldier shouted as he and his companion sprinted towards the abandoned shack, hoping that it would be useful enough against the disaster that was about to come. Fortunately, as soon as they both went inside, another notification popped up, indicating that the structure they were in was valid as shelter.

Psy-Storm: Stay sheltered.

Gabriel: "Fuck, didn't your egghead friends said it would happen around 11:00!?"
-The Loner asked, sounding a bit stressed. He remembered his first Emmision and Psy-Storm back then, not a good experience... At all. And being suprised with such a disaster all of a sudden wasn't exciting either.

Yuri: "Yeah, or so I thought..."
-He replied, unlike his friend, sounding oddly calmed. He kind of got used to Emmisions and Psy-Storms, kind of just seeing them as thunderstorms on steroids.
However, that didn't matter. They were safe now, and their destination was pretty much around the corner, so they would just wait until the storm was over so they could continue. Speaking about the storm, it was hell out there. Multiple lightnigns began to strike down upon the ground. Any sentient living being outside would not only be dead... Those were the lucky ones. The unlucky ones would turn into the zombies they killed before, mindless husks wandering The Zone with no purpose anymore... What a horrible way to go.
So, while they waited, Gabriel decided to do the only thing that helps him calm down during such disasters: playing his guittar.
He always carried it around, and he had it even before he joined the military, so he was a pretty skilled musician.
And speaking about playing, he began to play another song. Unfortunately, this one had no title, like many of the songs he plays, but at least they're good to hear.

~♩ ♬ ♪ ♬ ♩ ♪ ♩ ♬ ♪ ♩~

It was like therapy to him. Everytime he was feeling down or stressed was a good time to play. He especially enjoyed it in the night, in front of a warm campfire and, obviusly, with his friend by his side.
More songs followed along with some casual chatter between the two, and after 20 minutes or so, another notification popped in their PDA's indicating the ending of the Psy-Storm.
Some people were already talking about it on The Zone's open channel.

Connection established...

Junior Sargeant Shurtrat. Military: Shit! That was tough... Is everyone okay?

Gabriel: "Finally..."
-He sighed before walking out of the shack, not before taking his belongings with him.
It was now raining, and the sky was darker and foggier. Some thunders could also be heard in the distance, meaning that, although the Psy-Storm was over, the normal storm wasn't.
However, it wouldn't last long... Probably.
Now, both Stalkers got back on track and made their way towards the Tuzla Tunnel, which could be seen from the shack they were in before, but a barbed-wire fence prevented them from reaching it easily. So, after circling around for a bit, they found an opening, which lead to a short path that would take them to Doctor's place.
After passing by some Vortex Anomalies, they finally made it.

There was a suprise waiting for them, though. It seems like Doctor wasn't completely alone, and the entrance to his dugout was guarded by a Pseudodog.
That scared the crap out of Gabriel, not expecting such an encounter all of a sudden, raising his shotgun and aiming for the beast, ready to kill it.
However, he was stopped by his friend, who placed his hand on top of the barrel and pulled the weapon down, gesturing him not to shot the dog. Speaking of which, it was just standing there, panting slightly... As if it was just a normal dog.
Gabriel thought his friend lost his mind or something, even more so after he saw his friend throwing a bolt at the dog, which began playing with the thing... Then Yuri aproached the beast and crouched right next to it and began to pet it.

Yuri: "Can't we adopt him?"
-Now that was it, that's where he drew the line. No, absolutely not. He hated these animals, rightfully so, despite them being not that hard to domesticate.

Gabriel: "Hell no!"
-The soldier shouted in response, shaking his head furiously at such a stupid suggestion.

Yuri: "Aw come on! It's so cute."
-He replied while he rubbed his hand under the dogs chin, which let out some friendly grunts while shaking its tail.

Gabriel: "Well... When they're not trying to bite your face off... I guess."
-Now that he saw his companion petting it, he had to admit it... It was kind of adorable. Still, that thing was horrendously ugly. Its dirty and wiry fur didn't look friendly, neither were its purely white eyes.
He wouldn't have it as a pet. He thought of it as having exotic animals as pets, like people having snakes, black widows or pumas as domestic animals. It wasn't uncommon, but he wasn't a fan of that, same thing with The Zone's fauna.
After that, both Stalkers focused back on the task at hand: talking to Doctor, which they did, not before entering his dugout, leaving the dog outside.
Inside, they found the man they were looking for, sitting in a matress in front of a campfire, with a shovel, a bucket and a tire nearby.

Doctor: "Yes, what do you want?"
-The old, grey-haired man in a trench coat asked, seeing the two individuals that entered his hideout.
Both Stalkers looked at each other before one of them decided to speak.

Yuri: "We heard that Strelok is still alive... Do you know where he is?"
-The Ecologist asked, looking at the man in front of him, whom got up and looked directly at him. He seemed suprised when the words "Strelok" and "Alive" were present in the same sentence.

Doctor: "Strelok? Are you sure?"

Gabriel: "Quite certain... The entire Zone can't stop talking about him. We need to find him. Have you got any ideas where he might be?
-The soldier asked, deciding to speak too. Both of them saw how the man seemed quite suprised. How hasn't he heard this stories about his old friend being back?

Doctor: "Well, well, even after all these years... Regrettably, I do not know for certain. The man is like a ghost..."-now that wasn't the answer they were expecting... Both Stalkers thought their "little" adventure was over sooner than expected. But the man began to talk again.-"But there is one place he would visit somewhat frequently... It would be his hideout in the Agroprom Underground. You may be able to find him there, or at least some clues."

Gabriel: "I know how to get there, I've been there before... But I do not know much of the layout. Where is his hideout exactly?"
-The Loner asked for more specifications. He knew how to get in and out of the Agroprom Underground, and some mutant and enemy precense in there, but he didn't know where Strelok's hideout would be.

Doctor: "Check the walls for any large circular openings you could climb into. One of them would lead into his hideout."

Yuri: "Thanks for the info... I suppose we can continue our little adventure."
-He said that last part to Gabriel, who seemed a bit more excited than before. As they were about to leave, they were stopped by Doctor, whom was going to tell them something.

Doctor: "If you find him... Please tell him to visit an old friend every once in a while."
-He kindly requested them, since he really missed his friend. For a long time he thought he was dead, and now that he knew he was more alive than ever, he really wanted to see him again.

Gabriel: "Will do. See you later."
-He replied as he waved goodbye to the man before exiting the dugout, being followed by his friend. Apparently, the weather changed while they were in there. The sky wasn't that cloudy anymore, and the rain had finally stopped.

Yuri: "Well, let's go."
-The Ecologist said to his friend, pulling out his rifle and taking the safety off. He recieved a pat on the shoulder from Gabriel, whom nodded in response, a sly grin hidden underneath his helmet, but was noticable by looking into his eyes.
Now, to the Agroprom Underground.

TO BE CONTINUED...

≻─── ⋆✩⋆ ───≺≻─── ⋆✩⋆ ───≺

WOW, first chapter? That soon?
Yep, 3460-ish words. I gotta say, I really like where this is going and how it will go.
So far, I think it's going good, what do you think?

Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! And as always, have a nice day!

-Doom_Vietnam_Slayer.