//------------------------------//
// Chapter 1 
// Story: Metro 2033: A Stalker's Tale 
// by Hurgusburgus 
//------------------------------//

I bit down on the two fingers in my mouth and the bandit screamed, recoiling. I scrabbled away, finding my revolver and snapped off two quick shots at my opponent. The man howled in pain and collapsed. He was the last one. I squinted in the dark and found my AK. Once more at ease with the weapon, I kept going for my target – Bourbon. Stupid man – Dry was no longer a safe haven for him. I hastily recollected my belongings, swapping my old Duplet for a scruffy, but well-kept Uboinik and resumed my advance. I’d been tailing Bourbon for a while now, both undergound and on the Surface, always a step or two behind him and the kid he was travelling with. What was he playing at?

But this was no time to think about things like that. I ran up to the door, hearing a short burst of fire on the other side and I flattened my self against the steel door, trying to listen in. I could barely hear anything. After a couple of minutes, everything fell silent and I tried my luck with the door handle. Of course, it was locked. Well, time to resort to extreme measures. I pulled out a grenade out of my rucksack, wedging it alonge one of the hinges and lit the fuse. Quickly, I scrabbled away, taking cover behind a pillar.

*thooom*

Cautiously, I emerged in the clear, coughing a bit as the dust settled down. The door had moved some, hanging ajar in the aisle and I wasted no time prying it open. Well, I tried to.
“Come on, suka! Open the fuck up!” Of course, it obliged at the worst moment and it nearly fell on top of me as I tumbled backwards.
“Blyin!” I coughed, nose full of dust. Okay, no time to screw around. Need to find Bourbon. I rushed forward, but ground to a halt when I saw what had taken place here. Bourbon was on the floor, lying face-down in a puddle of blood. The bandit leader was also dead, a ragged gunshot wound in his neck.
“Ah, shit, Bourbon… Not like this wasn’t bound to happen someday.” I knelt down, whispering sadly. My AK clattered on the floor as I went to check him for pulse. Just as I touched him, he stirred weakly, groaning in pain.
“Fuuuuck…”
“Bourbon! Shit, stay still! I need to find the wound.”
“Wait, who…? Alyona?”
“The one and only.” I grinned, relieved he was still lucid.
“What are you doing here? I thought I left you at Riga Station.” He coughed weakly.
“Stay still, you asshole. Let me patch you up. I won’t be able to get the bullet out of your guts, but at least you won’t bleed out any more.” I checked by breast pocket and pulled out a small brown box. Flipping it open, I pulled out one syringe and stuck it in Bourbon’s wrist. The mix of drugs in it would stabilize his heartbeat and boost his blood coagulation, along with some antibiotics to keep him clear of infections. At least he won’t be bleeding out no more.
“Ooha! That tickled!” He groaned, sitting up giddily. I helped him up, handing him the bandit’s AK.
“So, what now?”
“I left my backpack in a nearby vent. We should get it.”
“So we’re sticking together now?”
“I see no other choice. If you help me to get to one of the stations to a doctor, I’ll owe you a favour, I’d say. You did just save my life.”
“My, the mighty Bourbon thanks me for saving him? I thought I’d never live to see the day.” I grinned and he scowled.
“Ha ha, very funny. Now cut the bullshit and let’s get going.” He snapped back and immediately winced in pain.

I rechecked the wristwatch I always made sure to have on me as we slowly made our way through the old tunnel. Bourbon was humming quietly.
“So, Bourbon, old friend… what were you doing out here?”
“I needed to get to Dry. What were you following me for?”
“I had to warn you. Your old butt buddy got offed. The bastard who shot you really had it in for you.”
“Ah. I know that. Figured it out too late, though. So you were out to warn me?”
“Yeah. Caught up to you too late. So who was that boy who was with you?”
“A kid I met at Riga. Artyom. I needed to get to Dry and he needed to get to Polis. Hell if I know why. So we stuck together. He really knows how to handle himself. Hope he’s okay.”
“So you were to part ways at Dry?”
“Pretty much, yeah.” We kept walking slowly, seeing as Bourbon still winced with every step he took, firing off a subdued curse every time.

“Okay, Alyona, I need to take a break. Just a couple of minutes.”
“No worries. I could use a snack, too.” He sighed relievedly as we took refuge near a slab of concrete and I unpacked some of my food. Bourbon provided the vodka. Pretty soon, we were singing, though we tried to keep quiet in an effort to not draw any attention to us. When does that sort of idea go as planned?

“Shit! Bourbon! Sit still or you’re going to get fucking fried to a crisp.” The somewhat drunk smuggler burped.
“Wha-?”
“Fucking stay still!” I hissed through clenched teeth, eyeing the bright orb of energy leisurely floating down towards us. An anomaly. Cold, clammy sweat covered me as I tried not to make any sudden moves. The trick was not to move or it’ll fry you dead. The first time when I saw an anomaly was when I first met Bourbon, coincidentally. I’m a Stalker. I go to Surface frequently in search for loot to sell. Long story short, I had my leg trapped in a rockslide and there was a bunch of snouts clambering towards me. My Bastard was out of my reach. Then one of those anomalies showed up and fried the mutated bastards. A while later, Bourbon showed up and freed me. Said he’d followed the noises. Nevertheless, he took me under his wing, teaching me how to survive in the Metro and on the Surface. I repaid him by keeping an eye out for him occasionally, helping out with his ever-present debts.

But I’m getting off-track. We sat without making a noise there. The anomaly would pass by us without a problem unless something happened.

Something happened.
*braaaaap*
My head swivelled towards the culprit.
“Bourbon, you pidar-“ That was all I got out before everything dissolved into light.

Sukin ti sin!

Ow. What the fuck did I do last night? Think, Alyona, think…
Someone groaned in pain.
“Oh, fuck… I think my gut’s busted real bad, Alyonushka.”
That cleared my head some. Though still groggy, I managed to pull myself up and crawl over to Bourbon who was lying limply on the ground.
“I think my wound’s open again.”
“B-be thankful for that. I’d kick your ass otherwise. The fuck were you thinking, you mudak? Can’t stay quiet for a moment, can you?”
“Don’t blame me, blame the vodka! Wait! Don’t blame vodka, blame me! Wait-“
“Oh, shut up, you ass!” I snapped, pulling out my medkit again and jabbed him with my last syringe. Rummaging through my backpack, I pulled out a length slightly filthy bandages that I always carried with me. I threw off my jacket and sweater, and sliced away a part of my shirt with my knife.
“O-o-o-o-o-o-oh!”
“Stop staring at my tits, idiot!”
“What? You have a nice rack!”
“Shut your gob or so help me I’ll blow your head off!” I growled, folding up the relatively-clean strip of fabric and pulled Bourbon’s jacket up. I cringed a bit as I saw the mess of blood on his stomach.
“Fuck… Okay, man, this is going to hurt a bit. I’d cauterize the wound but it’d take too long to build a fire.”
“Oh, just do it already. I can take the pain” He gritted his teeth, waiting. I firmly pressed the rolled-up wad against the bullet hole and wrapped the bandages around his midsection to keep it in place, trying not to screw around be done with it as quickly as possible. Throughout the whole ordeal, Bourbon didn’t make a single noise. I had to give it to him, he was tough. Once I’d finished, he nodded gruffly, tidying up his clothes as I finally decided to give a look around the place. From what I could gather, we were in a forest. Wherever we were, the air wasn’t poisonous, too. That or we both were dead or dying and hallucinating terribly. Bourbon, being the eternal pessimist would go with the latter. Me, I occasionally at least tried to look for the light at the end of a tunnel. Usually said light was a couple of mudaks in a railcar. So…

My train of thoughts was interrupted as something rustled to my side.
“Shit!” I reached for my AK, but then realised it was still back with Bourbon. So, revolver it was, then.
“Alyona, find something?”
“Shut the fuck up, man!” I fired back at him. He shrugged non-comittally, letting me wander a bit further. The fuck was that thing? I spied a flash of yellow and… pink? No, seriously, the fuck was that? No matter. There were more pressing things to be done with. Cautiously, I went back to Bourbon and collected my belongings and on we went. Where to?

No fucking idea.

Twilight Sparkle was a smart pony. She had a very extensive collention of books and tomes that always helped to solve any problem that arose. So it was a source of endless frustration that she could find no references regarding these ‘Bourbon’ and ‘Alyona’, as Fluttershy had diligently explained to her, giving detailed descriptions of the two strange beings.
“Bourbon seemed to be injured, right?”
“Yes. He said something about a wound. Alyona tended to it, I guess, but I’d say it still isn’t healed.”
“Did they seem friendly to you?”
“Well, not really. They were cursing a lot and threatening each other. But I didn’t stick around any longer than that.” Twilight frowned, deep in thought.
“I don’t know what we should do with so little information to work with. I’d better write a letter to the Princess. She always knows what to do. I’m sure she’ll be able to sort this out.”