Separation: A one off Metro 2033 fanfic, unless people want more.
"Hurry Anton! The caravan is leaving!" Nika exclaimed excitedly, the sixteen year old girl had grown up in the metro, raised by her brother, who was only five when their parents died and they were forced underground with the few who made it.
"Calm down Nika, Gora and the others won't leave without saying goodbye!" Anton slowly walked to his younger sister.
"But my shift teaching the younger children starts in twenty minutes! I don't have time to waste!" The metro was a harsh place to live and grow up in, once a child's learning finished and they were of correct age and knowledge they were instantly put to work.
"Fine, I don't want to be responsible for you missing your shift… again." Anton said jokingly.
The pair jogged through the market, dodging between traders, stalls and passersby. Once they arrived at the tracks, Nika and Anton recognized the car in the trading caravan that had their friend on it.
"Hey! Anton, little Nika, you made it!" Gora chuckled, hugging his old friends in turn.
"Look, Gora, you know Nika, she'll never shut up about it unless we have a proper goodbye." Anton looked at his sister, who was trying her best to put on an innocent face.
"Hehehe, I don't know if I could pull through without the fair-wells from you little one!" Gora said ruffling Nika's hair. Gora was thirty, nine years older than Anton, and was the first real friend Anton made in the metro. When they had first arrived Anton was scared, being bumped by the adults all scurrying around trying to grab whatever they could. But when a man ran up to Anton and told him to hand over everything he had, there was a large "thwak" the man had fallen to the floor, unconscious as a fourteen year-old, with a baseball bat swaggered towards them. Since that day Anton and Gora had watched each other's backs.
"Come on Anton, Nika is sixteen, she can look after herself, when will you come on one of these caravans with me?" Gora pleaded.
Nika grabbed Anton's sleeve and looked up at him, with a pleading look in her eyes.
"Gora, you know well enough that I cannot and never will leave Nika before she finds a boy… or man, to settle down with when she's ready. I am not going to rush my little sister."
"Who are you calling little Anton? You're only five years older than me!" Nika retorted.
"Alright all non-caravan personnel please leave the tracks now, so we can brief and arm those in the caravan."
"Good luck Gora!" Nika said, backing up and waving.
"Come back safe buddy." Anton said nodding.
"Bye you two! See you in a week or two if all goes as planned." Gora said, being forced into the briefing area, as Nika and Anton left the tracks and headed towards their tent.
"Nika, you have ten minutes before your shift, hurry or you'll miss it!"
Nika sprinted to the tent, grabbed her small food satchel and ran out, passing Anton as he returned to their dwelling.
"Bye Anton!" Nika shouted, all ready far away.
"Bye Nika." Anton sighed.
He opened the flaps that lead into their tent, barely big enough for one grown man. It had seemed a lot more generous of that man back when they were kids. Anton, sat down on his bed and reached behind his pillow, to his small box, around the size of a desk drawer. Inside was a revolver, with eighteen rounds, he had stolen from a travelling merchant when he was nine, a pocket knife, a yoyo that had been heavily damaged, a few coins and a pocket watch his father had given him. Anton picked out the pocket watch, carefully closed the lid on the box and placed it back behind his pillow. He opened the watch, realizing that the antique had finally stopped working after all these years. Anton did not remember what his parents looked like; he only remembered that he loved them. He closed his eyes, tightly, trying to pry into his past, to get a glimpse of his parents. But it was futile. Anton had been working as a look out at one of the gate ways the night before and hadn't slept since. So as he attempted to recollect, he only found the sweet embrace of sleep. Anton did not really dream, at least, never about anything important, there were always a few scenes that never linked together, unless he was having a nightmare, which was becoming far more common since he saw mutants while on lookout. As he slept, he heard whispers, that seemed far off, getting closer and closer, though they didn't make sense to him… A boy, will destroy us… Peace… we want peace…
These whispers hadn't fazed Anton, knowing they were a dream. Even though they had become more concerning recently, he did not feel like he could share his thoughts with anyone. If he told Nika, she would get frightened, if he told Gora, he would laugh, Anton had always thought of himself as the strong silent type, a doer, not a talker.
It had been four hours since Anton fell asleep, when he was awoken by Nika, attempting to sneak inside the tent.
"Do you wear iron boots?" Anton asked drearily, rubbing his eyes.
"Sorry Anton! I really was trying to sneak in this time… I know you don't sleep well."
"It's fine Nika, how was your shift teaching the little ones?"
"It's fine, there was a new girl today! Her parents just let her come to the lessons, that has to be a good sign right? And I heard there were two births this month! Repopulation Anton! Maybe one day we'll be able to leave the metro again!"
"Don't hold your breath Nika… From what travelers have said, it's a wasteland out there, the radiation and the sun light blind or fry people who are out there for too long."
"It sounds like you have given up hope of returning to Moscow brother…"
"I haven't given up hope of returning, I have only given up hope of ever living on the surface, the radiation will not disperse for hundreds, if not thousands of years. But I promise, if I ever find a way to get to the surface, I will bring you up with me, or at least bring you something back."
"Put whatever coating you want on it… I hear defeat in your voice."
"Nika, I have seen more horrible things out there than you have seen in your nightmares. Do not lecture me on bravery!" Anton's voice was getting angrier and louder.
"Anton shh! There are people trying to sleep all around us. Let's just leave it."
"Yeah… Good idea. I should try to get a few more hours sleep before I go back on guard duty."
"Work shifts suck eh Anton?"
"Don't complain Nika, you do four hour shifts at tutoring, I have eight hour shifts on the fiftieth meter, nothing ever happens there. But I get to hear some fine stories."
"Tell me one Anton!" Nika said smiling and sitting next to her brother.
"Some other time maybe. Go to bed little one." Anton pushed his sister and indicated towards her bed.
"Fine Anton, but promise when you get back from your shift you'll tell me one?"
"Haha fine Nika, you are far too persistent sometimes. Goodnight."
Anton lay back down and closed his eyes, Nika moved a lot while she was attempting to get to sleep. But Anton learned how to ignore it. He soon felt himself dropping from a great height, but the more he looked, he realized he wasn't falling, but was flying through the metro at a great speed. He zigzagged through stations, no one noticing him, through the ring stations, then past the Red Line, until he reached a small station, almost certainly independent, he looked up and got a small glimpse at the station's name: VDNKh.
Anton was gobsmacked, he had flown through the entire metro in under a minute, he tried to speak, but his mouth was sealed shut. He slowly drifted further, through VDNKh and came to an abandoned station, Botanical Garden station. He couldn't believe his eyes, as he was being pulled up a broken escalator, he could see sunlight, it was blinding, but right in the middle of his field of vision was a silhouette with long slender arms and fingers. He came so close his face was almost touching that of the shadow. Then it spoke to him.
"Anton… We want peace… Soon he will come to destroy us… D6… Artyom… Help us…" The whispers from his nightmares had come from this creature!
Anton's mouth was no longer stuck.
"How?" he managed to let out.
"Kill… Hunter… Come to VDNKh… You… Can stop this…" The creature's voice contained almost no emotion, but it sounded sincere.
"What is Hunter?" Anton queried.
"A threat… If you do not stop him… We will find someone else… and will no longer be able to guarantee the safety of your station… or your sister…"
Anton eyes shot up, his eyebrows arched.
"LEAVE NIKA ALONE!" Anton screamed and he sat up instantly in his bed.
Nika jolted upwards and shot a sideways glance to Anton.
"Anton, why did you scream?" Nika started sitting up on her bed.
"It's nothing Nika… nothing at all." Anton was sweating… it was just a dream, he could ignore it. "I should get up anyway; my shift starts in an hour."
"Alright… I trust you. See you after your shift."
"See you then Nika."
Anton got up and put on his large jacket. Reached behind his bed and pulled out the box, grabbing the revolver and the spare rounds, he then left their tent.
He strolled through the market, it was nearly empty apart from the few travelling merchants who were trying to deal goods to those working "night shifts". Anton strolled right past them. Stopping at the border gate.
"Hey Anton, good to see you!" The gate guard said hopping down from the small wall to face Anton.
"Hello Dimitri, I'm here for my shift." Anton stated.
"Your shift doesn't start for a half hour, what are you doing here…" Dimitri was concerned and looked Anton up and down.
"Nothing, I just didn't feel like sitting round doing nothing."
"What about Nika? Surely you could talk to her, better company than these jerks." Dimitri said, gesturing behind himself, at the other gate guards.
"I don't want to talk to Nika right now. I've got private things on my mind, I just want to sort through them, and where better than guard duty."
"When you're right you're right Anton. If you want, I can get you to your post early, the guy you replace won't complain."
"Thanks Dimitri."
"No problem." Dimitri turned around and started talking to the men guarding the gate, one jumped down as Dimitri climbed up. He gestured for Anton to follow, which he did. After following the man to a metal wall with many guns on it, the man stared ponderously for a few seconds, then leaned forward and grabbed a Bastard Gun.
"Here, this will do." He then grabbed two spare magazines and handed them to Anton.
"Thank you." Anton took the gun and headed to his guard station.
Four weeks passed, and when a cart was heard coming from down the tracks, both Nika and Anton ran to the station and awaited Gora's return. Though the few people who did return were in shambles, they quickly staggered onto the platform, spurting gibberish. Claiming "THE DARK ONES! THEY JUDGE US UNWORTHY!" then they all approached Anton and clasped onto his sleeves.
"HELP THEM ANTON! KILL THIS ARTYOM! THEN THEY WILL LEAVE US ALONE!"
Anton pushed the three men aside. "I wish for you to tell me where Gora is." Anton said calmly.
"HE DIED ANTON! THEY ALL DIED! THE DARK ONES KILLED THEM!" The men simultaneously collapsed and started having fits on the ground. The men on guard duty all looked at each other puzzled.
This was all Anton needed to hear. To defend his station… to defend Nika, he had to kill Artyom, or stop the Dark Ones. He casually walked to his tent, lost in thought. Nika was awake, sitting on the bed and fiddling with an old broken teddy bear's head.
"Nika… I-" Anton's voice trailed off.
"What is it?" Nika looked concerned, she got off her bed, dropping the bear's head.
"I… I have to leave the station for a while, it will be a dangerous trip and I may not make it back. So I wanted you to know that I have told Dimitri, he'll keep an eye on you."
"Anton, where are you going?"
"Somewhere far away." And with that, Anton left the tent.
He strolled to the gateway, where Dimitri was waiting with a Bastard Gun in hand.
"Anton, do you really want to do this? I mean, leave Nika?"
"I don't have a choice." Anton walked to Dimitri, who handed him the Bastard Gun and two magazines.
"Good luck Anton." The gate opened and Anton took his first steps into the Metro, knowing he may never see this station, or his sister, again.