#stalker fables

[uchudishe]

Ah, yes, Lieutenant Maki. They say "The forbidden fruit is the sweeties one", and for the most people it indeed is. There is a slight problem that nine out of ten times chase after that forbidden fruit will end up in your guts decorating the local trees even before you taste the thing. Has that stopped anyone? No. But a bunch of scarred veterans with skill and gear protecting the forbidden fruit - will. The aforementioned vigilantes call themselves "Corps", and Maki might be as well the oldest and most proficient member of the faction. Not much known of how exactly he ended up in the Zone, and his time in it could be rounded down to usual Loner-Who-Made-It. As why he went to Corps - rot if I know. Maybe it is a substitute for potential instinct, boredom or whatnot. His experience of staying alive for so long turned out invaluable - you can take for the metric that he is allowed to go on the solo missions. (That is to dismay of his closest comrades - one of which are believed to be his sister, but I am not sure). The jack of all trades, he could be seen eliminating mutants and bounties, scouting, investigating, hunting for artifacts, escorting and whatnot. Main course, for sure, is barring anyone from moving up north towards their death. Even if saving from death sometimes requires bashing a bug with a butt of a rifle.

[uchudishe]

And once again, Stalker Fables. Here comes the mothboy. Lore-ish entry is under the cut.

"If you ask me, Professor Neolith is a prime example of a big head from main lands - curious, naive and tied up by bureaucracy. Also being included in that small congregation of scientists, who seek not the "how it works" or "how can we use it" sides of Zone, but "the hell happened here?". Historian, if you will.

Okay, I know you didn't came here to hear me analyzing how people work. Why would I even include a middle-class researcher into the story is because if not him, Team Radsnake might as well never came into being - solely because Kabbu would probably not survive. If you expect something dramatic, well... maybe it was? There was no tear-jerking "hold on just a little longer", it was just moth being both too important to get kicked around and too stubborn to comply.

He and the a few soldiers assigned to protect him found Kabbu a dozen of hours after beetle lost his squad escaped centimera, and Neolith, naive as he is, insisted they should help the Stalker, and refused to back down. Soldiers - I'm afraid to imagine sheer amount of swear words they dunked on Neolith - decided that it easier to comply that try and reason, and together with Professor carried Kabbu back to scientists' bunker. After healing his wounds, the beetle worked for scientists a few months - given he has an actual experience with monsters, he was an invaluable asset on that - and most importantly, helped Neo, feeling obliged. Soon, though, they part ways, but it is far from the last time two will meet, for Neo's help soon aid Team Radsnake in their mission..."

[uchudishe]

...yeah. Lore thingie under cut.

"Sounds like an oxymoron, but it is pretty expected to see unexpected alliances here, in the Zone. That being said, last thing anyone expected from an ant mutant hunter is to put a good word for a supposed bandit - at least his gear surely was one of the bandits'.

Celia known around as the daredevi picking up the hunting contracts most bugs avoid. PseduoGiants? Spore Controllers? Centimeras? She has quite a few on her trophy wall - if she had the said wall, I mean. It's hard not to be a powerhouse, when you're an ant gone stray and your natural endurance helps ya to keep a hecking machine gun loaded with expansive and AP mixed belt shooting straight at the target even on the move. You may be a dangerous beast, but try to fight under the precise hail of bullets - you'd had to have no brains or self-preservation, I say.

Where were I? Ah, right. And all of the sudden, one day you see her walking together with a ladybug. You know, their species has, to say the least, quite a dislike on the Big Land - and moreso, there was a gossip Levi hails from one of the Loners group gone into banditry. Nobody likes bandits. Still, Celia picked him as her partner. Seemingly, Levi saved her at some point, and after that, he became her "cover me abdomen" bug, shooting mutants who try to bite her in the arse, disposing of things like pseudoaphids, psy-weevils and their illusions, and such, and such. Also, cuts her ammo expenses by sniping small fries and checks finances.

And... hm. Now, I don't want to tell ya about their shenanigans - not because I am noble and don't pry into personal matters, I just don't know - but some whispers say that this ant is, ironically, very protective of her ladybug. I know, right? Her lesser ancestors should've been protecting aphids from these beetles, and yet if now any pseudoaphid will try and harm Levi, she WILL turn it into a poorly minced piece of meat in lead sauce. But don't dare tell anyone I said that - I don't want to have an angry blue ant pointing guns on me for, cough, "slandering"."

[uchudishe]

(This joke has gone too far)

A little sketch-y story of Stalker Team Snakemouth below.

"Aye, Radsnake Team were quite a rag-tag bunch. So, count: you have a runaway bee, who abandoned her home hive outside the Zone, snuck into and almost immediately joined Freedom - for thrill and money. She didn't cared much about ideology, bit she needed somewhere to drop by, to sell loot and enjoy scarce comforts. That made her some troubles, tho - in her chase after riches, she made a few questionable deeds and had lotta contacts with shady reputation. Yet in her defense - she despised banditry and mercs, and never shyed away from help - just be sure to repay her for help; next, a beetle, former Duty soldier, part ways with em after his whole unit was torn apart by centimera. No, he didn't blamed superiors for that - that was more accident, and yet he refused to serve alongside, assumingly because was burdened by shame. He spent most of his time helping fellow stalkers, hunting mutants and participating in raids against bandits and renegades; last, moth, previously known as "another Monolith loony" - many of those guys scattered around Zone after psi-veil fell, and he was not an exception. With little to no memories about past life and with an intent to know what happened, sporting pretty supernatural ability to feel and use artifacts, he still remains the most mysterious team member. Also, rumor said they layer with a help of a scientist tamed a pseudochomper, but they never showed up on bases with it - for obvious reasons.

Former two met when Vi ventured after a whisper of a legendary artifact. Place where it allegedly was were overrun by nasty mutants, so she needed someone to get rid of them. Kabbu by then was low on money and work, and since Vi paid him some in advance, joined her. Since no one technically were following their ideology, while a bit awkward, but functionable enough, duo ventured to the old lab, just to get ambushed by pseudoGiant inside. Luckily enough, a said monolith moth helped them out - even if got severly wounded in process. They found the artifact, sure, but question arose - what to do with an unconscious fanatic? I don't know what Kabbu thinked and how managed to get his point across to Vi, but they dragged that guy out.

Considering that later those three managed to do in a few months things that factions tried to accomplish in years, this proven to be a correct choice."