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	<string id="stalker_story_1">
		<text>So we’re creeping into this hangar, right? Dust and cobwebs everywhere. Filth up to the rafters. The detectors are dead silent - like, not only there's no-one around, but even we seem pretty much non-existent. So we’re getting into positions along the perimeter: Sanyok leading the way, the rest covering his back... then all of a sudden: WHAMMO! There were these huge iron joists rusting under the ceiling, so one of them breaks off and goes plummeting down! Somehow, Sanyok managed to dodge, and the shit slams into the floor right where he had been standing a moment earlier. Well, Sanyok dives down, rolls over, doesn’t even get up to his feet and, still there on the floor, starts blasting away! So we all freak out and start off firing like crazy. Then Sanoyk starts screaming blue murder, something about a creature in the corner. I look over there, and don’t see a thing... That's right, the entire operation is ruined, total clusterfuck... So we go looking around the ruins for about five minutes, stepping carefully, making sure we don’t get under any joists. And it was really creepy, man, one after another sees something and lets bullets fly at sweet Fanny Adams. Two of our guys got completely screwed: one fell into a pit, and the other got bashed by the door that flew off its hinges. Now we really got worked up, it’s plain some bitch is fucking with us! So we spark off our psi-protection, toss a gas grenade in each corner and wait, fingers on the triggers. So we’re waiting, and waiting... Turns out the motherfucker was flying or something like that... So while we were all running around on the floor it was lurking on the ceiling and having itself a ball… It dawned on us too late, and by pure accident. That piece of shit shook loose some more joists, so half the roof comes crashing down to the floor, dead right on our heads, four of our guys get squashed flat right there... But we got that son of a bitch! As soon as Sanyok heard it rustling on the ceiling, he blazed away by reflex – a damn good reflex, I must tell you! You should’ve heard that thing yelping! We all jump up firing with every gun... That bitch tumbled down squalling so loud my ears almost started bleeding. Man, we gave that thing hell, clubbing and kicking, and Sanyok, he flicked out his knife to slit it open... Well, the commander dragged us all off, otherwise we would have shredded the motherfucker to pieces...</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_1_name">
		<text>On the creature in the hangar.</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_10">
		<text>Have you heard about Guide? The very first true stalker. He was the one who originally broke into the Zone and he's still alive. People say he can take you to any place, you just need to name it. Now, finding him’s a bit tricky, ain’t no posters around with his address... And he won't go with just anybody, either. From what I hear, he charges quite a bit. But if you find him and have enough cash, you can rest assured he’ll take you where you need to go. Now, that’s someone I’d like to have a chat with. You can bet he's been past the Red Forest...</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_10_name">
		<text>Superconductor</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_11">
		<text>Now, having dough and having lots of dough, that’s two different things… You think moolah is easy to get? No fucking way! For buckshee you only cop it here with something fugly or get popped by a stalker… You’ve got to use your noddle. You’ve got to use your noddle over there, and even better over here. Roughnecks don’t last long around here. Ain't gonna go far if all you got is rats in the attic… Anyway, here’s how it was. The three of us, the late Bruise and Loop, were rambling across the farmstead, to take a shortcut. All of a sudden we see some bloke hotfooting our way. So we lay low. The bloke is walking right by us, totally unawares. And the guys all tiny, and hauling this huge sack along. The subgun hanging at the ready, we’d be stuffed with lead at the drop of a hat. So Bruise says to me, why don’t we shake him up some, see what he’s got over there? And I says, quiet you moron, watch where he’s about to stow away the loot! … Well.. Suddenly, the bloke vanishes into thin air! We didn’t see a damn thing! Alright, so we sit and wait. He pops up in ‘bout 20 minutes. And while he’s standing there, shaking off dust, Loop sneaks up behind and blasts half his head off. So him and Bruise start frisking this guy, he had a royal bulletproof vest, and a fanny pack, too… I had to piss so I walked off, I knew the guys would always give me my share, so no prob. All of a sudden - KABOOM! Turns out that nerd had his vest all wired so it would blow up if someone tried to take it off. I buzzed off right away, who knows who’s gonna show up for the gun shot and the explosion… Went back there a month later. Not a bone left of Loop, Bruise and that bloke. Nada. So I reckoned where he could’ve dived into the ruins, and crawled in there myself… Passed three rooms, zilch! Suddenly I see a bunch of beds piled up in one corner. What the heck are they all doing there? Started taking them apart. And what do I see in there? Holy cats, a hatch! So I lift it up and turn on my flashlight. Good grief, I’m in heaven!.. Well, what I saw there is my business… I didn’t come off the loser. But think of it, had I dragged my feet, I would’ve been dead already or running around barefoot and slobbering, as some do…</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_11_name">
		<text>The hatch into heaven.</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_12">
		<text>They say there’s this one gang... People call them Shamans or Druids. So it appears they don’t use any electronic equipment at all, say they want to stay close to the nature and stuff… Well, they reason the Zone reacts stronger to equipment… To all this electromagnetic emissions or something… They say it attracts monsters. Basically, they believe the Zone is like a living being, you know. Like, it’s no good going into it with all these gadgets. If you’re right in your mind you’ll get by fine without ‘em. Doesn't stop them from carrying assault rifles, though… Guess the old teeth and nails are not up to the task, eh? But then again, you don’t hear a lot of stories about one of them kicking the bucket. Well, at least no more than about us… So, who knows, maybe they are on the right track there… They seem to be coming more from the Belarussian side, though… I’d like to have a look at them one day and check out their pockets for some artifacts…</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_12_name">
		<text>The story of the battle druids.</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_13">
		<text>Does anybody know the score on these top secret labs deep in the Zone? They’re still functioning, aren’t they… Well, yeah… How the heck does anybody manage to survive there at all… No food or energy… So the question is: what if it’s not even people working there? I talked to this one guy… He didn’t see the labs himself… …No, he didn’t see them with his own eyes, but his scanner tapped some weird talks in Yantar. They were talking about some laboratory. And the other guy was swearing to the first one that he had run into this figure dressed in a suit like the stalkers wear, but much fancier… And this translucent figure as if told him to piss off. Something like, be gone, we’re working here. Scared the shit out him, I’m telling you! I mean, have you seen anything like that before?.. But on the other hand, it all sort of happened not far from the Red Forest… You know what I mean… Right. So it probably ain’t true… But then again… mutations, they take different forms, right? So, maybe those are not people any more, but some sort of energy entities? Could be, eh? C’mon, what are you laughing at… Cracking up over nothing…</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_13_name">
		<text>Ghost's shadow.</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_14">
		<text>Here’s what I’ll tell you. You almost can’t sleep at all in this part of the Zone… I’m lucky I can’t sleep anyway, but the nightmares people see... Sometimes they don’t wake up in the morning. Some get a heart attack, for example. Some fly off the handle, some go nuts… But rumor has it there’s actually one cure. If you need to sleep real bad, you should find an old bucket… a big pot will do… a caldron or something… As long as it has no holes… You stick your head into it and have a good night... There now, you may laugh all you want. I’ll see you in a couple of days when you are ready to drop dead from exhaustion. Morons... So tell me, what the heck are grunts roaming about sporting these fancy helmets now, eh? Well yeah! For about two years neither hide nor hair, and now they’re all over the place! And the brain buckets are something new. Someone found the body of one such grunt, they’ve seen it. There’s a mesh inside, made of thin copper wire, attached to the liner. What the hell is it doing there? Mark my words, there’s something strange behind all this mumbo-jumbo. This place is useless in terms of anomalies, these are not the grounds for those, other areas are safer and with much better swag in store… So I reckon they’re researching the grounds. Marking the area for their base. They want to get through to the Sarcophagus, I’m telling you… What we should do is try and stay as far away as possible from them when the moment comes…</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_14_name">
		<text>A nightmare-proof bucket</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_15">
		<text>You guys heard about "Interception" yet? Rumor has it they’re real pros, top notch, like! Man, you should have seen them at work! The things they do! Nothing like those old farts at cordons! Not only do they go into every stinking hellhole, they stay in the Zone for months on end! Swear to God! They’ve got bases, and many of them, and some nice hideouts, and choppers dropping food for them right by the perimeter. Their commander is some guy named Gromov… now I reckon the name’s fake, they call him "Major" or "Grom". You don’t believe me?! Pakhomych taped them once! He taped them and buzzed off a minute later. Didn't want to catch lead poisoning, if you know what I mean... Top secret stuff, damn it! Y’all know Pakhomych, eh? Yeah, that's the guy! Real thing, these guys. True elite. Who knows what the heck are they really doing here? And the loot they get! If I could just get one third, no, ten per cent of what they have! I’d already have a mansion in Sochi and live in clover… They say they’ve got this one gadget that detects monsters from two hundred yards away. Any stinking creature! If I had such thing I’d be picnicking left and right in the Zone… And you know what else they say? There are these other chaps, not dogs of war, but sort of like stalkers… Anyway, some of them got through to the center of the Zone. And not only did they get there safe and sound, but they say they learned to tame them beasts! They never even go past the perimeter, to the Big Place, and no one ever goes to them… well, except maybe those who’re destined to reach the Sarcophagus… And some artifacts they’ve got, too!.. Duty know about them alright… those slimeballs, they know about them and fight them, but won’t leak a word! You try asking one of them, and they just say "horsefeathers!" Some bastards, eh?</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_15_name">
		<text>Interception, the inhabitant from the interior.</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_16">
		<text>Brothers, did you hear about unbelievers who broke through to the antennae? Fortunately, the Monolith guided us and the brothers picked them off just in time. One was eliminated immediately, the other two ran away. Cowards! They’re all cowards! True faith leaves no room for fear! Two managed to escape, but the Monolith is wise and omniscient. It would not have let them live without a reason.</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_16_name">
		<text>On those who got to the antennae</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_17">
		<text>Brothers, the Monolith summoned me last night and I spoke with it. It was awesome in its greatness, nearly blinding me, but its light filled me with powers beyond mere mortal comprehension! I know, I feel its power within us all! Only firm faith can overcome evil. It told me its power can fill only those who have faith. Finally, it revealed to me that our victory is at hand!</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_17_name">
		<text>On the Monolith in dreams</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_18">
		<text>Brothers, the Monolith put my faith to the test, and I nearly strayed from the path. But I withstood! Glory to the Monolith! Its trials strengthen us! We were on our way back from the Dark Valley, and I fell behind. Evil grabbed at the opportunity and started tempting me. And… I doubted. The image of truth became distorted; the enemy whispered into my ear lies about how the Monolith uses us as slaves. But then I realized - it’s a trial! I remembered the glory and the splendor of the Monolith. I regained my inner strength and my confidence. Since then I have no fear of any trials and know no doubts. Glory to the Monolith!</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_18_name">
		<text>On the test of faith.</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_19">
		<text>I walked in the Dark Valley, a place teeming with unbelievers who haven't seen the power of the Monolith yet. We were on guard duty. The attack came at night. We fought bravely. My brothers stood their ground as befits true believers, and the Monolith summoned many them that day. But not me. My time had not come yet. My gun was useless and silent. And suddenly the Monolith spoke to me: "You are one of mine, and my power rests with you. Stand strong in your faith and you shall defeat my enemies for my greater glory!" And then I turned into shadow. I bent down and walked around them. Dumb savage spies, they didn’t notice a thing. They thought we were dead and were laughing at the empty bodily shells of our brothers. But I was already behind their backs. And then the power of the Monolith came forth from my hands. And that’s how he killed them all. I’m happy to serve you, oh, Light of Perfection!</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_19_name">
		<text>On the fighting in the Dark Valley</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_2">
		<text>My partner and I had been keeping an eye on this Research Institute for a while. Too bleak of a place it was. No animals around, no mutants. Except, every time someone went in there, they returned either scared to death, or gone bananas, or never returned at all. So we thought we’d give it a try and check it out ourselves. We left before dawn, but by the time we got there it was already bright daylight. Left the car on the road and walked to the edge of the forest. There we stopped, my partner stayed on the ground and I climbed up the tree with the optics to look around the area. So I climb up there and see the Institute facilities, and they don’t look that desolate at all. The windows aren’t broken, little grass in the yard, not up to your waist like in other places… By all appearances it looked as though the place was inhabited, but it was dead silent and not a single movement anywhere. Then suddenly there's a burst of fire to my right. Someone's blazing away from a machine gun. So I zoom in there and see a stranger on the roof of one of the buildings, running to and fro like a cat in heat and firing away in all directions. I looked and looked but couldn’t make out who he was shooting at - he was all by himself. And then… it started. [short pause] Right before my eyes. The subgun broke loose from his grip as if on its own… Like it suddenly got wings!.. The guy opened his mouth, probably started screaming, whipped up his knife and held it up. And then I saw – I swear – another knife hanging right in front of him! Just hanging there in the air pointing at him, and no one holding it. What happened next is best not be told before daylight… That thing started shredding that stranger for about five minutes… Bit by bit, son of a bitch, a little stab here, another cut there… The bloke was bleeding all over… When he started staggering, his knife got kicked out of his hand too. Then he was lifted up in the air and like... twisted one time and another… I’d never seen anything like it before, like he was a rag doll or something… I was soaked in sweat by then. After that… No, I’m not going to tell… Anyway, after I caught my breath, I looked around the whole area for another five minutes. Hands shaking, the binocs all dripping with sweat… Not a single damn thing! Not in the regular range, not in infrared, no-thing. When I climbed down, my partner looked at me, and decided not to ask questions. When we got back to the base I started tanking up for about a week… Then, when I snapped out of it I tried to ask people around if they had heard anything like that before. But they kept giving me this strange look like I had gone mental or something. So that’s the thing…</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_2_name">
		<text>Horror at the Research Institute.</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_20">
		<text>Brothers, as we were patrolling the outskirts of the Dark Forest we came upon an unfaithful loner. We did not kill him, seeing as he was already on his way to conversion, although he was still half-way in his animal state… Such is the wisdom of the Monolith: once again it revealed to us the true countenance of our enemies. Now our faith is even stronger! It is at hand, brothers! The victory over the unbelievers is at hand. Soon the Monolith will fulfill our greatest desires! Those who are truly faithful to it will be drawn to it, to its glory, its greatness! We shall abide in its radiance forever!</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_20_name">
		<text>A convert in the Black Forest</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_3">
		<text>Anyway, here’s what this one friend of mine told me. His boss wakes him in the middle of the night, tells him to hurry up to the lab. There’s, like, some cargo there. So my friend’s half asleep, doesn’t know what's going on. What the heck is with this cargo? And the boss is like, you drunk or something? There’s a fresh corpse on the table, the dinner is served! Anyway, he goes to the table and sees SOMETHING… Now, he had seen all sorts of stiffs from the Zone: boiled, grilled and ripped apart, not to mention dozens of mutants… But the sight of that thing - gag-a-maggot! Anyway, at first glance it looked just like a human being, except the head was way out of proportion: huge and ribbed like a pumpkin. And the body? Man, straight from a concentration camp, skin and bones. But that’s what he figured out afterwards. At first, he says, he only saw a lump of flesh all smeared with some orange-red muck, blood or something…. Those pricks sure didn’t spare their ammo. Ya know all they talk about duty… searching for anomalous objects, dang it… search my foot! My friend says it looked like something between a colander and a torn-up hot water bottle… and they obviously trampled it with their shitkickers. Not an object, but a damn piece of meat in black rags. So he worked his butt off the rest of the night and half of the morning. Turns out it was that very creature the locals had been calling the Illusionist: black rags, sending hallucinations onto stalkers, the head about a yard around… You know what’s funny? What they thought was its face turned out to be the top of its head. No, it does have a face, but it’s tiny-winy: the winkers always shut and the nose the size of a pin, but the cake-hole as wide as a gate. Probably when it walked its head would always hang down, ‘cause there’s no strength to keep it up… a snip... And get what these creatures eat for lunch. Mushrooms! Damn mushrooms! You’ve all seen ‘em! The Zone’s full of mushrooms, so the old-timers swear these creatures squeeze the juice out of them. Talk about shitty food… You know what else he was hiding in this little baggy on his hip? Well? How would you know! Alright, it was dried brains. And you know who’s brain it was? The controllers’!..</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_3_name">
		<text>Pathologist's supper.</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_4">
		<text>Once we had this one retard tailing along… So we’re going our way, stopping every now and then for a brief rest, and as soon as we do he drops on his butt and starts snoring. And when it’s time to go he’d be the last one to lift his ass off the ground. Well, once he finally did it… He fell behind, and that’s when the controller got him - zap! - and brain was gone. You rookies better pay attention. Any rustle, any movement… Even if a fricking bunny darts by… Though, Lord save you from running into any of the local bunnies… Anyway, you have to be alert every stinking second. Clips and grenades at hand, finger always on the trigger. The moment you spot something, fire off half a clip right away. There's something behind the bush? Shoot first and ask for credentials later. That’s the basic training around here: think too much and you'll be dogfood in no time! And about the controllers, now this is a different story. You burst a fire at the rustle and drop down right away, that very second! On your back or face down, it doesn’t matter. The controller grabs you if he sees you, he needs to concentrate or something. So you lay low and listen for any noise, checking if any scum is heading your way. You may quietly recharge your gun, take out your grenades… Anyway, if all is quiet, count till three and… Get your ass out of there! As far away as possible! You all got it? You yardbirds… Be on guard every second, that’s the only way to survive…</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_4_name">
		<text>An easy prey for a controller</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_5">
		<text>You know, I’ve been thinking… Well, not really thinking, just had this idea… What if all this, everything around us I mean, is some sort of an experiment on us? You know, like little green men… I mean, why not? It’s as good an explanation as any… I'm thinking: if it's really a training ground, what exactly are they trying to prove here? To see what artifacts we are slobbering over the most? And what if them artifacts are like some sort of bombs, eh? They must be all over the world now, in all sorts of laboratories. The rich cough up for them big time, right? Like, wow, cool stuff! Now that’s what I want… Hell, you wouldn't believe what sort of useless shit they'd buy from you, as long as it's from the Zone… You know, all this "now ain't I cool" stuff, make everybody jealous… and one day - ka-pow! Think of it, man! Wouldn't that be something? Ha! But hey, who really knows what it’s all about… Well maybe those who’ve been behind the radar, they would probably know… Then again, they may know something, but they can’t say a word except dribbling and mumbling now. Or maybe that’s precisely the reason they’re all dribbling and mumbling… Oh well… Can't help thinking about this stuff, you know… It’s all pretty sad, really…</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_5_name">
		<text>Pitfalls</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_6">
		<text>Right… I seem to remember you asking me about something last night, though I can't recall… Ah, got it. You wanted to know why it’s only our eggheads messing around in the Zone. Curious why the foreigners won't show up, even though there’s enough stuff here for thousands of Nobel prizes… Alright, let's see. First of all, what the heck do they need coming down here for, when they can simply pay some of our guys and get the results on a silver plate? Second of all, they’ve actually been here themselves, and quite a lot of them, too. It’s just that in the last two years these gringos have been badly scared of going into the Zone… There was this incident, you see. So now they stick to buying loot and information. And they're paying pretty well, so many loners work for them, and the looters, too… What, haven’t you heard this story? C’mon! The whole Zone was buzzing about it, and you mean to tell me you haven't heard? Ah, what the heck. There was this large expedition, you see. The scientist alone counted about thirty, people from all over the world… All stars, you know, big shots and stuff… They were all rigged out: all premium-quality gear, heaps of it. Had a whole platoon guarding them, and a couple of our guides. So they all got onto their APCs and took off. Well, what happened then? Came back about a week later… Twelve people in a wreck of an APC. They got as far as the spiker by the Rotten Forest when they fell into an ambush… The looters… Oh yeah… The bastards couldn’t care less where you come from… Finished off almost everyone. Only three people managed to get out across the border line, two stalkers and one egghead. The latter went bananas from all the excitement, so they had to send him off to a nut-house. Now he's writing a book about the Zone I hear. The stalkers didn't seem that bad. Must be down to the experience, we thought. Except… I guess they also lost it in their own way: One of them took off to the radar and vanished, the other one went back to the Big Place. And the rest were taken by the Zone. Ever heard about Station Thirty-Two? That’s where they all bit the bullet. It was all quiet at first, pretty much normal… They’d be reading their meters, taking samples, poking their gear into anomalies… And then they all started going nuts. Every friggin one of them. Everyone slowly going off their rocker. One of ours, the one that retired eventually, told me about it… Some actually ripped their own throats open, others would smash their heads against the wall, and some would simply… Gun in their mouth and… And then the beasts started swarming all over them them. Those few who were still sane enough barricaded themselves in the house. You get the picture, right? Dark night, all the local beasties outside, and people going nuts one after another inside. In short, in the morning those who still had it together broke out of there somehow. Went straight on, even got caught in some anomalies… Got to the Rotten Forest… But none of those who had been left behind have been found. They say loads of controllers were recorded in that area. That’s how it was… Since then, no one goes anywhere near Station Thrity-Two, and the foreigners steer clear of the Zone…</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_6_name">
		<text>The chronicles of egghead globalists.</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_7">
		<text>I'll tell you something. I was right there when them Duty guys captured that Illusionist! Stumbled over them by pure accident! My car, you know, my Niva, had its right front wheel broken off. The bolts chopped off on some hummock. And not a single spare part in stock. Well, I cussed for a minute, and then I thought, why don’t I go to the plant, pick me up what I need. It was ‘bout half a kilometer away, about thirty minutes walk both ways. Besides, I’d already been there before… All of a sudden, I seem them Duty boys! And not just a patrol, but about fifty of them! What the heck, I thought! So I hid in the bushes right where I was standing. "If they saw me and start combing the area, that’ll be the end of me", I though. Anyway, I’m lying low, holding my breath. All of a sudden I hear a salvo and they start blazing away like crazy! Only once in my life have I heard such blasts and firing... The first base assault, remember guys? Anyway, I’m lying there, listening closely… and it's all like WHAM! and BANG! Five minutes later all goes quiet and I'm listening for anyone walking my way. Nothing. Well, I get my balls together and peep out through the binocs. The guys are trailing out of the workshop… all messy, dragging their dead and the illusionist on a tarpaulin… or the remains of the Illusionist rather… and disappear into the glen. Then I hear the sound of engines and the sound dies away. I waited a little more, to make sure they’re all gone. And then I went inside. Well, you know what they say - the Duty guys don't leave leftovers! But I wanted to check it out anyway. And what a sight it was! The walls were all pierced almost all the way through. The joists lay all over the floor, part of the roof collapsed. Up to my knees in shells, a real shooting ground. Blood, some scraps… Didn’t find anything useful though, well, two full jets and a machine gun crushed down so bad you couldn’t get it out… Needless to say I didn’t even think about the bolts… So I went back to my car, chewed the cud for a while, took one bolt off each of the other wheels, and went back on low gear… And what if I had come out there half an hour earlier? Makes you think, doesn't it?</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_7_name">
		<text>Duty illusion.</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_8">
		<text>Yeah, so I got as far as Pripyat outskirts that time. Well, I though I’d look around first. Found the highest spot, this huge boiler-house with a chimney. I walk in there on tip-toes. Seems alright, dust everywhere, no footprints… So I crawl into the fire-chamber and start clambering up the stairs inside the chimney. So I’m climbing up, and the soot is not even smudging, hard as a rock! I get to the top and peep out… Beautiful view! Half the city spread right there before my eyes! So I take out my binocs and look around. [small pause] And then… I was about to climb down, when suddenly I realize that I’d completely forgotten to check out what’s going on right under my nose! So I bend over slightly, look this way, look that way… Holy shit! That would’ve been some mess! There's this dwarf strolling around the courtyard! And I had almost climbed down! It’s a good thing he didn’t see me. But I couldn’t knock him down either: the Akm hanging on my back, and the chimney way too narrow to stir in it. The Makarov under my arm wouldn't be of much help either, it was about fifty meters, plus the height of the chimney… if I didn’t get him the first time, he’d do me in. So I’m sitting there, thinking. And watching what he’s up to. And he was up to something weird, I’m telling you. First he was rummaging in a pile of lumber, rubbish flying left and right. And then suddenly he stood stock-still. Sort of listening to something. And then it all started. The garbage in the pile started stirring. The dwarf sprang back, stood up straight, put his hands to his head and twisted them somehow weird… and all of a sudden that rubbish goes flying at him! From everywhere!.. Bits of iron, bricks, rubber, tree branches, crap… Covered him from top to toe. Holy shit, I thought. The little guy's dead and buried. End of the story. But no! For about two seconds the rubbish lay still, and then wham! It goes splattering everywhere! There were iron pipes there, those stuck right into the concrete fence. The dwarf stood there for about a minute, thought something to himself, then turned around and trotted inside the building. It took me a while to catch my breath. "Well, I thought, time to save my bacon". And then, I smell smoke. And it starts getting hot. Holy shit! Someone made a fire down below! A minute later I couldn’t breathe anymore. I managed to climb out to the edge of the chimney, but there was no platform or anything, so I just perched there dangling my feet… The smoke was really eating my eyes out by now, I was choking for air… Anyway, I needed to get my ass out of there! Thank God I always have about forty meters of rope with me, just in case, you know. So I folded the rope, it wasn’t too thick, barely fixed it to the chimney, tore my necktie in half, wrapped around my hands and started climbing down praying to all gods in heaven… All I could think about was: don’t let me fall down! No safety rope, right? Nothing! The rope was really cutting into my hands… and sure enough, as bad luck would have it, it ended about five yards above the ground. Had to jump. I had no choice, did I? And I went crashing down! I was lucky not to break a bone, though I did get quite a few bruises and sprained my right leg alright! Hurt like hell, all over my body. And yet, I took off so fast I could’ve probably won a gold medal in racing…</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_8_name">
		<text>Seriy in Pripyat.</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_9">
		<text>I couldn't even believe my eyes then. You know, I thought I’d seen some really beautiful girls, right? But this one… she was… Perfect. Yes. That’s it. Perfect. It felt as if the whole world around her was black and white and sort of blurry. But she... She was sharp and clear and full of color. And the way she moved! Man, I hadn’t seen anything like that before. I mean, I had a lump in my throat. What does she have to do with all this science? What has she got to do in the Zone?.. That’s right, in the Zone! It was the break of night… There’s this nine story block of flats by the bus station. First something flashed by in the window on the first floor. So I unlock my Akm right away, and suddenly there she is, coming out of the building… I nearly rubbed my eyes, I mean, you know you can expect anything from the Zone! So, she comes my way. And I’m just standing there like a moron, staring at her… but holding my gun ready, you know, out of habit… Then she noticed me… Smiled… Said hello… And so I’m listening to her but not hearing what she says, just staring at her. She was wearing blue overalls, bright blue… but it wasn’t loose at all, almost like a catsuit… And her body... Talk about amazing! And then I realize that I’m not even paying attention to what she says, just grinning from ear to ear… Turned out she was from the research group. Asked me if I could help her. Help her! I would jump into an anomaly for her right there! She said she was studying the… whatchamacallit … Zone endemics. You know the plants that don’t grow anywhere but here. Said she had run off from security because she didn’t like having them constantly sniffing around, and came there all on her own. I don’t know. I believed her. So I agreed to help her, bring her some stuff. Two days later she came back just as we had agreed. Nearly got knocked out about five times while gathering all that stuff for her. So I’m going there with this one thought in my head: I’m going to see her again! And nothing. I didn’t even see the house where I’d met her. And that's it… But you should’ve seen her! She was like... all glowing from the inside.</text>
	</string>
	<string id="stalker_story_9_name">
		<text>On loneliness.</text>
	</string>
	<string id="Stories">
		<text>Local folklore</text>
	</string>
</string_table>
