Disclaimer: The characters and story originally created by Dmitri Glukhovsky in the book and video game series "Metro: 2033" and its sequels do not belong to me. Those properties are owned by Glukhovsky, 4A Games, and Deep Silver. This work of fiction is intended for entertainment purposes and is not meant to be canonical, though I tried very hard to make it fit within the parameters. I do retain my rights for the creation of my own original characters and ideas. I do not make any money from writing this story.

Song Recommendation: "Pain Mgmt" – Rise Against, "DArkSide" – Bring me the Horizon

Chapter 41: Dear Aleks

The room was drenched in a wash of heavy gravity even after Colonel Melnik left the room. Artyom held Aleks' right hand with both of his own, not daring to sit down just yet. She looked exhausted, more so than usual, as if it took every last ounce of the strength she had to take part in that conversation. He didn't know what to say, believing that any further dialogue would just make her feel worse even if he changed the subject. Thankfully, it was only a few moments before Nataliya gently knocked on the open door and came in to conduct her hourly rounds. Artyom smiled at her but Aleks barely moved.

"How's your pain, dear?" Nataliya asked with the chart in her hands.

"I don't know," Aleks mumbled and blinked slowly.

"Headache? Nausea? Dizziness?" the dark-haired nurse prompted again.

"I feel… nothing," Aleks confirmed with a little quiver of her lip.

Artyom tensed up his face, feeling whatever she apparently couldn't. Nataliya put a hand on her shoulder and leaned down to speak quietly to her.

"You've been through a lot," she still tried to smile as if it would spread. "We're all here for you. Can I get you anything?"

"I… want to talk to Nikolai."

Nataliya looked confused and glanced up at Artyom, she didn't know the name but he did.

"I'll get a hold of him," he offered quickly. "I can go right now."

"Okay," Aleks whispered, accepting that she was going to be left alone again.

Nataliya patted her, looked over the monitors and the IV line, and noted something down in the chart before hanging it on the end of the bed and heading off to her next patient. Artyom let go of Aleks' hand slowly but didn't walk away yet. He let out a short sigh, trying to tell himself that he wasn't responsible for her current mood. Was she upset by everything Melnik had said about the Nazis? Was she caught up on Hunter's pending funeral rites and what she might say about him? Was she considering her possible enlistment again?

"What would you like me to say to him?" Artyom asked cautiously. He was hoping he wouldn't need to explain everything that had happened with her to the now-leader of the Red Arrow. 'You take good care of her, Artyom, don't let her out of your sight,' the bearded brother had instructed firmly as they left his company over a week ago. Did Nikolai know about Ivanovich? Would he have to explain that, too?

"I just… want to… make sure that at least one thing is going right." She still wasn't moving or speaking very loudly.

"I'll come right back, okay?" He promised as warmly as possible.

"Thank you, Artyom."

He navigated his way up to Sector A1 on an autopilot, deep in thought about how to address Nikolai and explain why Aleks wanted to talk to him. He fully expected that Nikolai would have questions for him and would likely say something to admit that Ivanovich hadn't returned to Avtozavodskaya after the Venice incident. Did Ivanovich explain to the brothers of the Red Arrow why he was leaving? If Nikolai was worried about something like that, wouldn't he have tried to contact Aleks, too? Ivanovich had followed her protocol when trying to contact Artyom from inside the Reich, stating that he was from Exhibition as a cover. Maybe it was all in the note that was stashed in the hair clip. Artyom remembered to bring it this time but had gotten side-tracked assisting Colonel Melnik with his miniature cross-examination. That would be the first thing he would mention when he returned to the med bay.

Fyodor the communications officer was quick to dial in the correct frequency, even though it connected to Novokuznetskaya instead of directly to Avtozavod. Everything for the Red Arrow was filtered through Valya whom Artyom had met with by chance after the chaos near the Church outpost. The emplaced clan member answered readily, happily surprised to hear from Artyom but then sounding concerned as he took down the message. He promised a speedy return on the inquiry, noting it as urgent and assuring that Nikolai would be calling back himself in short order. Artyom was authorized to give him the exact frequency for his location and confirmed that he would wait there for the response. Once again, he tried to organize his thoughts. 'Push the emotion out of it, just state the facts.'

"Incoming for you," Fyodor spoke gruffly, giving a phlegmy cough and a thumb's up.

Artyom pulled the headset over his ears again and nodded that he was ready.

"Artyom here," he said informally.

"Hey man, it's Nikolai. Is everything alright?" Nikolai wasted no time in asking and Artyom could hear the apprehension in his voice.

"For the most part… just checking in," he tried to speak as clearly and calmly as possible without being cavalier.

"How's Aleks? Is she there?"

"She's around," Artyom wasn't sure how long he could keep this falsehood up. Maybe it was better to just explain it all and take whatever blame was coming. "She's been injured but we're taking care of her. It'll be okay but she can't come to the radio herself."

"How do I know—?" Nikolai started with an aggravated huff, catching his breath and stopping himself, then he seemed to change his mind. "She trusts you, so I trust you. Tell me what happened."

"It's a long story," Artyom finally sighed, his own anxiety had been building up and he tried to release it along with all the air from his lungs. For some reason, he switched the subject completely, really going back to the beginning. "Do you know about Ivanovich?"

"We haven't heard from him in days, he said he needed to go somewhere and take care of something. What do you know?" Nikolai wasn't accusing him of anything, just asking calmly.

"Well, I'm sorry to be the one to tell you… he's gone back to the Nazis."

"He what?" Nikolai sounded hollow, as if he might collapse, not knowing how to follow up on the revelation. "When did—? How do you—?"

"Aleks and I were sent out for recon. Our first stop was the tavern at Mayakovskaya, there was a squad in there talking about him. We followed them up to the surface," Artyom was good at explaining all this in concise sentences now. Nikolai only gave short thoughtful noises to confirm that he was still listening to it… all the way to the end.

"Shit," Nikolai finally let out after a contemplative silence. He didn't sound angry, only stunned and reflective. Artyom was certain he was about to receive quite an earful of complaints from the man who had commanded him to keep Aleks safe but instead of that Nikolai inquired. "But she'll be okay?"

"It's going to be a long recovery. I'm sure she'll want to come see you when she can walk again. I'll ask if I can bring her to you myself."

"Thank you, for everything," the charismatic brother meant sincerely, understanding that it wasn't anyone's fault that Aleks had been hurt or captured. "So, that's it?"

"Well, she wanted to know how things were with you. That's really why I called."

"Ah, she's so sweet, of course," Nikolai sounded more like his old self again. "Everything's been good here, normal. No more issues with the shipments, no sign of Sturmann. Dmitri's been watching the tunnel approach with a few of the guys. The residents keep asking me about Aleks all the time. Oh, tell her that Alina had the baby on Sunday morning – a boy! Healthy and strong. His name is Mikhail."

"You don't say," but Artyom hadn't known about a pregnant resident of Avtozavod, his mind's eye connected instantly to his own Mikhail. He contemplated asking if Nikolai knew anything about it; if he'd known Aleks for several years maybe he was close enough to have heard about the story. But despite the pressure sitting in his chest that desired to solve the puzzle, something in his gut interrupted and told him not to say anything. "I'll tell her everything's good, then."

"Thank you, Artyom," Nikolai said again. "Keep us updated, yeah?"

"Yes, I'll call you again after the surgery, probably a few days," he confirmed with a smile even though Nikolai couldn't see it. "Take care."

"You, too." And the channel switched off.

Artyom removed the headphones and signed Fyodor's log book. That checked off another major thing from the ever-growing list of worries, and it had gone way better than Artyom could have hoped for. He kept nodding to himself, feeling so relieved and thankful that he hadn't been berated or blamed. Nikolai sounded as if he was handling the business of running Avtozavod quite well, Aleks had made a good choice when naming him as her successor. He wondered again about how much time they might have spent together, remembering the facts he'd learned in the last few weeks.

Nikolai and Dmitri hailed from the Red Line, working as spies as well as traveling traders. It never seemed that they were conscripted in any official way, perhaps their occupational business sense weighed more than the need of men on the front lines. Aleks had explained that she met the brothers shortly after her escape from Reich three years ago, so it's not as if they were childhood friends, yet they operated and conversed so smoothly. Neither Nikolai, Dmitri, or Ivanovich had ever questioned or challenged Aleks' authority, always working in support of her. It appeared that Nikolai's assumption of her role had been planned out for a while, likely having to do with her hesitation to join Hunter in Polis.

Of course, Artyom understood it all much better now than he had back then, but he still wondered if when she returned to Avtozavodskaya – would she ever come back? Would she join the Order as she and Hunter wished? She would have to stay here in D6 while her injuries were healing at least, because how could she expect to travel to her home station on one leg? They had yet to take her in for surgery on her knee, and he had overheard that physical therapy could take months even after everything had healed. In that kind of time at least he knew he could figure out one thing – how was Katya doing on their mission to find Mikhail?

"Hey, Aleks," he greeted her cheerfully, trying to impart that he'd had a pleasant interaction with Nikolai and that there was nothing to worry about.

"Did you get a hold of him?" she asked right away, though she remained reclined in bed, the new book he had brought was splayed open on her chest.

"In fact, I did," he smiled and pulled up a chair next to her, leaning his elbows on the mattress. "Everything is great. I told him why you couldn't call yourself."

"Oh, God," she was beginning to worry anyway. He put an arm across her lap and she gripped at it nervously.

"No, no, he's not upset. I had to tell him about Ivanovich, too, but he seemed to understand it all just fine. I thought he was going to yell at me but he didn't."

"So, how's it going there?" She wouldn't let herself dwell on the thoughts.

"They're doing well. Dmitri's handling defense, Nikolai said all the shipments are regular, no sign of Sturmann anywhere, and you've got one new resident," he grinned but wasn't sure if he should tell her about the name. Maybe if he said it, he could learn something from her reaction.

"Alina? How is she?" she looked over at him expectantly.

"She had a healthy baby boy on Sunday morning, his name is Mikhail," Artyom watched her intently, looking for any subtle cues on her face or in her voice.

"Oh," Aleks' eyes widened a bit and she suddenly looked as white as the sheets on her bed as she replied quietly. "That's a good name."

"Yeah, I think so, too. I know a Mikhail here in the Order who's pretty great." He prompted her one more time but she didn't give anything else away. Was that a sign in itself? Or was he reading into it too much?

"Thank you… for doing that."

"It was good to hear from him," Artyom nodded and patted her before withdrawing, remembering his next order of business. "I brought that note I found, from Ivanovich. When we got you from the cell you had your usual hair clip and this was inside of it," he held up the folded paper for her to see and then tried to hand it to her. "I didn't read it, just opened it enough to see that it was from him."

"Will you read it to me, please?" Aleks didn't lift her head or look at him.

Artyom sat back and unfolded the paper carefully in his lap, it was slightly damp and stuck together like her hair had been. Thankfully it seemed to be written in pencil so it was still completely legible, and it wasn't coded like the rescue instructions had been. He cleared his throat and held the paper out where there was more light.

"Dear Aleks," he had been right, it was for her. Should he just hand it over for her to read for herself? "Do you want to see it? I don't need to know—"

"No, it's okay. You deserve to hear what he has to say. What else could I possibly hide from you anyway?"

'Mikhail,' Artyom thought to himself, he tried not to make a facial expression. She did remember him, right?

"Dear Aleks," Artyom started again, "I didn't think I would ever see you again, that you would end up here. I know you must think of me horribly, to see me back where we started but please allow me to explain. After the Venice incident I went to Hansa, to Dobrynin, because Novokuznetskaya closed their border. None of our guys were on shift to let me pass."

"So, that's why he was there," Aleks said quietly.

"I tried to be careful at the Hansa, but Sturmann cornered me. He told me that my daughter was still alive," Artyom looked up at Aleks with alarm, she looked equally as surprised and sat up to look at him.

"What? But I thought… but they said… keep reading," Aleks waved a hand at him animatedly.

"I couldn't believe it. I didn't trust him of course… but he had her passport and showed me the picture. Little Tanya, she looks just like my Masha, and completely healthy. No mutations. Sturmann offered me this chance to go back to Reich, no consequences, no questions asked. So, you understand, I did not mean to betray you, but my place in the world is here with my daughter."

"Wow, I can't believe… well, that's good, I guess." Aleks laid back again, shaking her head a little bit in disbelief.

"There's a little more," Artyom held up a hand as if to pause her thoughts, "I promise to you that I gave no information about our station or our people. I hope you have found your answers about Hunter, and that the Rangers will recognize your spirit and your capabilities. Let your new home be with them. I wish only the best for you, and I hope that my actions today have proven that. Live well, and long – Andrei."

"I don't… know what to say," Aleks wiped her eyes but she seemed to be all out of tears. "I just hope everything is okay for them. I hope he didn't get in any trouble because of me, because of what he did for me. If he's smart, he'll cut ties with the Resistance."

"Maybe he'll try to escape again, get his daughter out of there," Artyom thought out loud, trying to give her hope.

"Maybe," Aleks tried to smile. "If so, everyone is welcome at Avtozavod."

"Are you… are you going to go back there?" Artyom was afraid to ask.

"I'd like to," she took a breath. "I miss them. I came to Polis, to D6, because of Hunter but now it's like there's no reason for me to be here. I'm going to be useless for months, can't walk, can't go on missions. So maybe it's best that I… just get out of the way."

"But you'll come back when you're better? You'll go visit for a bit and then…?"

"I don't know."

It was silent for a while between them, Aleks contemplating her purpose and Artyom contemplating her next move. Of course, he understood that she wanted to return home at some point, he'd just told Nikolai as much on the radio. But what would happen if she remained with the Order? If Mikhail was going to these lengths to avoid her, how much longer could he keep that up if she was here all the time? There's no way that the likes of Ulman and Katya could continue to keep quiet indefinitely, and it would be steadily eroding Artyom's defenses because his desire to help the both of them would eventually override the secrecy. Couldn't there be a positive outcome from all this?

"Can I ask you something important?" She said without looking over at him, her voice light and hollow.

"Of course. Anything," Artyom leaned forward in his chair.

"I need you to answer honestly, no matter how much you think it will hurt me. Will you, please?"

"Okay," he promised uneasily.

"Hunter isn't coming back, is he?"

"I... I don't think so, no." He had promised to be honest, and he'd given up his own hope about it, but he hated saying it to her anyway. "I'm sorry Aleks."

"Am I cursed?" Her voice rose up, she was trying not to cry again.

"What do you mean, cursed? Don't be silly," Artyom was confused momentarily.

"Nobody should have to go through this twice." She stared up at the ceiling.

"Go through what twice?" He asked even though he could guess at what she meant - losing someone you loved was hard enough, but she had lost two people. Had he given her enough hints? Was he finally about to hear her speak of Mikhail?

"I almost got married once. Eight years ago." Aleks let out a breath and closed her eyes as she brought forth the information. She was already giving so much away; she looked just like Mikhail had when he first recognized her, and the time frame she gave fit perfectly.

"You did?" Mikhail hadn't let on that their relationship was that serious. Could her sparrow tattoo be their version of a wedding ring? He couldn't let her know what he had learned since her capture so he quickly added, "Who was he?"

"He was..." she sniffed back her tears and smiled painfully, "He was everything to me."

"What happened?" This part he'd been dying to hear from her for so long, he leaned forward in his chair and held his breath.

"They killed him."

In just three words she had ended his optimism and he sat there completely stunned as he tried to imagine what could have happened. He never would have guessed that to be her answer because he knew it to be false. Why did she think that? Was she just making it up so she wouldn't have to tell him what really took place? Did they make her think that Mikhail was dead while they only deported him from the station? Had Mikhail staged his death for some reason? Is that why he was hiding? There was still a missing piece to this puzzle but it didn't appear that Aleks had the answer. In fact, she had just made the situation even more complicated. He had to know more, he had to make sure he heard her right.

"The Nazis? What for?"

"We were in the Resistance together. I know you've heard all about that by now, and how dangerous it is to go against the fascists. We were trying to get away, so we could have a real life. The red scarf I always had on... it belonged to him." She still wouldn't say his name and she didn't really answer the question.

"Ivanovich made sure you had it before we got you," he remembered suddenly. Ivanovich must have known what it meant to her, and he probably knew Mikhail, too. Could it really be the same exact shemagh? What about the one Kirill was wearing?

"You mean? It's here?" She lifted her heavy head up from the mattress and stared at him hopefully but she still had so much grief inside her eyes.

"Yeah, I can go get it from... from Melnik if you want." He lied about its whereabouts. Mikhail still had it with him, wherever he was.

"I don't have anything else left," she might have meant the scarf, or the people she was mourning. Her head fell back and she let out a little sigh and then continued the narrative, "Ivanovich was there for me after he died, my own mother barely gave a shit. And then she went and married... ugh. You know, she probably wouldn't have even met Petrovich if it wasn't for what they did to us. They said they were going to kill me, too, but instead they must have thought living with that grief was a worse punishment or maybe they didn't want to waste the bullets on a woman. My mom was dating an officer in the Second Unit at the time, maybe they… I don't know. Fuck, it makes me sick when I think about it. I barely remember anything after they took him away from me... it felt like I was dead anyway."

"I'm sorry, that's really awful," he didn't know what else to say to her. Each new tidbit she let out was filling in some of the blanks but he still couldn't find that missing piece.

"I really thought that they'd kill me this time. Back then, Varnayev was the one who gave the order for him to be executed. That's how he finally got a job working for the Second Unit. And then… just now with him… I thought he would… he almost… I thought I'd finally get what I deserve and it would have been okay... because I know who's waiting for me on the other side." Aleks reached a hand up to the ceiling as if she was expecting to fly up to heaven at any second.

"Don't talk like that, please," Artyom was desperate to tell her that Mikhail was alive. Now he knew what it was like to have to keep a big important secret even though you really wanted to say everything that was on your mind. But there was no guarantee that she'd have a positive reaction to that news, either. And he couldn't risk making her feel any worse about it. He'd have to wait for Katya to track Mikhail down and get his side of the story. "Please, Aleks, there are still lots of things... reasons to stay, reasons to live. I can't... I can't tell you every single one of them but, please. It will get better, I promise. Do you believe me?"

"I want to, but I... I'm so tired." She pressed a hand over her eyes, physically holding back the flood. "I miss him so much. I thought that with Hunter… I could have that feeling again, but it wasn't the same. And now he's gone, too… Ivanovich left… everything was for nothing… maybe I'm just not meant to…"

"Will you be okay for a minute? I know it's a horrible time for me to leave but I... I have to go talk to somebody, and I'll be right back okay?" He had to go and find Katya. This was getting dire.

"I'm not going anywhere with a broken leg, and they watch me like a hawk," Aleks gestured vaguely towards the door to indicate the medical staff but still kept her other hand over her face and took a deep breath. "I'm sorry I said all that but you're the only one who gives a shit to even listen. And if I don't say it out loud to someone, it would swallow me up."

"I know, I know. I'll be right back, I promise." He scurried out of the room, closing the door behind him so she could have privacy.

Artyom headed for the exit in a hurry, trying to determine where he might be able to find Katya or who might know where she would be. Was there a way to call her somehow? Could he find Anna and ask her? Why was it so difficult to get a hold of someone around here?

To his surprise, Colonel Melnik was still present in the med bay. He was standing near the nurse's station at the front of the sector, already in the midst of another conversation with a different doctor about a different patient. He immediately noticed Artyom looking upset and held up a hand to pause everything.

"What's the matter Artyom?" he asked knowingly.

"It's... she's really depressed, I'm worried about her. Have you seen Mikhail anywhere?"

"I was going to ask you the same thing," Melnik narrowed his eyes with suspicion.

"No, sir, not at all. He hasn't even been in his room. Katya went to look for him. I think Aleks really needs to see him... but she, she thinks he's... well, I'm guessing you know his story already." Artyom remembered Ulman saying that Melnik was the one who had been there when Mikhail got his memory back.

"Unfortunately," Melnik confirmed without detail.

"Why does she think he's dead?" Artyom tried to ask anyway, wringing his hands and barely able to make eye contact.

"It's not my story to tell," Melnik pressed his lips together as if to hold back the answers. He likely knew what the missing piece was but he wouldn't give it up.

"Can't we do something to help them? Please, sir, didn't you see him on the rail car?" Artyom looked up at the Commander with as much sorrow and hope as he could muster. He had been willing to divulge everything he knew about Aleks and Hunter, so why couldn't he say what he knew about Mikhail?

"Yes, I did," the Colonel sighed heavily. "I'll send a ping out for Katya. If you see her first, tell her to come to my office. It's probably best to have her go talk to him, rather than one of us."

Artyom didn't have a specific response so he just nodded his head solemnly.

"Is there anything else that you think will help in the meantime?" Melnik surprised Artyom with the question. Maybe he was feeling guilty about his conversation with her earlier.

"Um, I uh… I contacted her people back at Avtozavod. I've been trying to read to her," Artyom blinked a few times, trying to think of something useful. "Ulman was asking if he could visit her, too."

"Hmm, that might be a good distraction. He's over in the armory with Volkov, go and fetch him but don't let him get ahead of himself. This matter with Lieutenant Vorobyov is to remain sealed until Katya and I have spoken to him. Understood?"

"Yes, sir." Artyom took a breath and tried to relax. Knowing that the Colonel was now invested in the same mission he and Katya had initiated was reassuring but the solution couldn't come soon enough.

"You've done a lot of good so far, Artyom. Stick with her as best you can, leave the rest to me. I'll let you know how it goes when we find him," Melnik set a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Thank you, sir," he confirmed as usual with a nod and immediately set off to retrieve Ulman.

The armory was on this same floor on the opposite side of the bunker. 'Weapons and death on one side, medicine and life on the other,' he thought darkly, and then scolded himself for thinking such a thing. As he neared the doors of the sector, a hail of gunfire echoed metallically from inside. Apparently, the Order was continuing to test all the equipment they had recently found, checking every single firearm to see if it was in good condition. If the Order didn't end up using all the new weapons themselves, they were sure to sell them off to Hansa or whoever wouldn't immediately turn the barrel back at them once the transaction was complete. Artyom tried not to dwell on it for too long, the last thing the Metro economy needed was more guns. He clenched his fists as he entered, a new side-quest was beginning.

There was a Ranger standing at almost every single lane of the firing range. Artyom immediately spotted Volkov standing off to the side with his thickset frame and bushy beard; he'd been at the strategizing conference and Artyom had served a watch with him once or twice. He was a kind man, not at all the personality you'd expect just by looking at him. He seemed to be the instructor of the assortment of men along the lineup, commanding them to cease fire as Artyom came over to them.

"What's up, son?" Volkov stroked his beard and looked over curiously at Artyom's disturbed countenance.

"I'm looking for Ulman, please," Artyom stated quickly without looking the man in the eyes.

Upon hearing his name and Artyom's voice, Ulman emerged from the lineup. Artyom hadn't recognized him with his back turned because he was wearing a different uniform than usual, olive drab trousers and the traditional striped undershirt peeking out from a casual grey hooded sweatshirt. What was with this getup? Katya had been wearing almost the same exact thing yesterday.

"What's up, Artyom? Are you alright?" Ulman asked exactly as Volkov had, noting the discomfort in his old junior partner immediately.

"Uh, Melnik said you could come and visit Aleks," he spilled out swiftly. "She's been really down, I'm… trying my best to… I need your help."

"Okay, let's go, then," Ulman accepted without hearing the rest of the details. He gave a casual salute to Volkov who simply nodded his understanding, and then placed his arm around Artyom's shoulders and steered him outside. "What happened?" Ulman asked warily as he stopped and turned to face him, his expression was similar to when he'd found out that Aleks had been captured and it made Artyom's insides knot up even tighter.

"She's just… she's really depressed and… talking about dying and Varnayev and," Artyom couldn't organize the words any better than that.

"And has… you-know-who come to visit yet?" Ulman narrowed his eyes slyly but there was no smile on his face.

"No," Artyom said solemnly, "Melnik is telling Katya where to find him but I don't know what's going to happen yet."

"That's a shame," Ulman said quietly. "He deserves to be happy, and so does she."

"It's like everybody sees the possibilities but they don't," Artyom sighed, finally getting his mind back on track.

"Well, she might if anybody was allowed to tell her about him," Ulman frowned but then his voice perked up to his usual. "I bet she would have been the same way on the railcar as him."

"That's what I think, too. It's been really hard not to say anything… and she thinks, she said that they killed him. How can that be?"

"I don't know," Ulman sighed and thought about it for a minute but couldn't come up with any ideas. "Let's just focus on what we can do right now."

"I don't think I need to tell you what not to say in there," Artyom looked into Ulman's eyes to see the gloom fading. He was putting on his comedian personality like a suit of armor, one piece at a time.

"Right, from here on my lips are sealed," Ulman made a gesture as if he was zipping his mouth closed and locking it but Artyom knew he'd still have plenty to say.

"It's Melnik's orders," Artyom warned to reinforce how serious it was. Ulman simply nodded his head, seeming to already be sticking to his promise.

They walked over to the med bay quietly. Artyom measured his breaths to become neutral again, beginning to trust that Aleks would enjoy the visit. Ulman could put a smile on just about anybody's face, so he tried to remain optimistic as he led the way to her room. Aleks sat up with alarm at first but seemed thoroughly relieved when she recognized that it was Ulman behind Artyom this time.

"Hello, my dear Aleks!" He greeted her excitedly. "Welcome back!"

"Hi Ulman. I heard you were on the rescue team, so I wanted to say thank you," she was forcing the smile at first but it became more solid as Ulman responded and spread his cheer around the room.

"Aw, you don't need to thank me, but it does feed my ego, so you're welcome!"

Artyom let Ulman have the closer chair and pulled the other one up next to him so they could all sit together.

"Artyom said you got to handle the demolition, so you're welcome," Aleks stressed and raised her eyebrows. She knew how much Ulman enjoyed blowing things up.

It was so nice to see such a positive emotion possess her face again, he wished he'd been able to bring the comedian down here sooner. 'Thank you, Ulman,' he thought appreciatively. His old partner spent the first half hour relaying everything he had done on the recovery mission, somehow able to give the details without mentioning anything about their elusive cohort. Artyom was impressed, watching Aleks drink in the narrative eagerly. Anything to keep her mind away from the distressing topics they had been speaking of earlier was a welcome relief for both of them. He got up to fetch the group a pitcher of fresh water because Ulman was definitely going to need it after talking so much. He returned with the refreshment in the midst of a different story.

"So, there I was near Turgenevskaya, with only six rounds left in my Kalashnikov, staring down a whole hoard of nosalises," Ulman gesticulated wildly as he continued the tale, not starting over again for Artyom.

With an amused sigh Artyom shook his head but at least Aleks was finally smiling genuinely as Ulman continued to tell what was likely a heavily embellished story of personal grandeur. Whether it was true or not, it was having a good effect so Artyom let his former partner get away with everything and didn't interrupt as he poured out the water into three small plastic cups.

"And the next thing I know, this old guy comes along riding a giant spider bug!"

"No way!" Aleks laughed even though she clearly didn't believe it and only winced a little bit because her bruised ribs had begun to heal.

"Yes way!" Ulman insisted, "He was swigging god-knows-what from a huge flask and bellowing this song so loudly you could probably hear him from the top of Ostankino tower!"

"Don't be ridiculous!" Artyom interjected with his own laughter, trying to picture the sight realistically but also sneering at the memory of being at the top of that same tower.

"Okay, okay, it wasn't that loud of course but still!"

Ulman sustained the entertainment until he'd exhausted his imagination and looked over at Artyom for a prompt or to ask him to take over. Artyom shrugged, having been happy to listen to someone else for a while and not be stuck in his own mind. He dug into it just a little bit and searched for something compelling but not too serious, and what hadn't he told her about already?

"How did you guys find D6?" Aleks asked at random. Had she been wondering about it since her arrival? Were they allowed to tell her? Why did she want to know? How would they explain it?

"Well, we didn't even start looking for it until we really needed it," Ulman began somewhat indecisively, gazing off in thought before he continued. "For one thing, just be glad that this kid survived a trip to the library!"

"Artyom said you were with them when they found this place," Aleks stared at Ulman with expectant curiosity. Artyom had already told her about the library and most of what he had done on his original mission, she wanted the story from Ulman's humorous point of view. "How did it go?"

"I didn't do much at first, it was all up to Artyom here," Ulman looked serious and patted Artyom's shoulder. "And Khan helped us find him, I still dunno how he knew where he'd come out at. We thought he was a goner!"

"Khan?" Aleks perked up and looked at Artyom.

"The very same," he nodded, indicating the man Aleks remembered meeting in Arbatskaya before they came to D6. He had helped her sort through whatever the anomaly had caused her to see and hear.

"He's so strange but he speaks like he knows everything," she said with wide-eyed intrigue.

"He creeps me the hell out, but he's a good man to know," Ulman confirmed and then continued. "Anyway, we only got into the Metro-2 by accident kinda, running from those worm cult guys way past Kievskaya."

"Worm… cult?" Aleks said slowly with a disgusted expression.

"Yeah, they thought the monorail was their God-creator or something," Artyom almost shivered at the memory. "They had these paralyzing darts they used on us, and poison ones, too. They ate people."

"Artyom you're freakin' her out!" Ulman nudged at him and frowned.

"It wasn't that bad," Artyom tried to take it back nervously but the damage was done. He shut up and let Ulman handle the rest even if the story was going to be partly fabricated for her enjoyment.

"Anyway, we got into the Metro-2 somehow or other in the complete darkness and the monorail shows up at the platform all by itself. You should have seen the Colonel's face," Ulman tried to copy the mentioned expression and Aleks giggled. "The train took us straight here but the bunker was a total biohazard. Melnik and Artyom got the reactor going and then after the missile strike we got the rest of the guys in here and cleared the place out."

"And there really wasn't anyone here at all?" Aleks asked with an eyebrow raised.

"Not a soul," Ulman shrugged. The weird amoeba things and the hostile pink goo in the reactor didn't count as living creatures. "If anybody from the military or government was here, they shipped out or died off ages ago."

"So much for Invisible Watchers," Aleks sipped her cup of water uncomfortably.

"If they're invisible, how do you know they aren't here right now?" Ulman looked over slyly, he'd said it with enough humor that it didn't frighten anyone.

"They watch us shower and all that shit?" Artyom dared with a smile.

"Yeah, so make sure you get behind your ears!" Ulman chuckled.

They continued swapping jokes and stories right up until the last minute of the visitation hours. Nataliya even added in a short story about a patient who once ran naked around the clinic in Polis before telling the men that it was time to leave for the night. Artyom gave Aleks a kiss on the cheek, happy to see her amused and exhausted in a good way. He promised to come back first thing in the morning like he always did, and she asked him to bring her some real food for once. He laughed and agreed and Nataliya promised not to tell on them. She didn't need to give Aleks a sedative this time and that made Artyom feel even better about how the day had turned out. Slowly she would forget about the pain and misery and life would continue on. Ulman gave her half a hug and promised to come back another time and tell her more stories, and she was glad to hear it, offering some of her own to him in return.

It was only after they left the med bay that he began to wonder if Katya had any success yet in their joint mission that the Colonel had joined in on. Melnik promised to keep him informed about the search for Mikhail, but Artyom hadn't been summoned or given any notes.

"You alright?" Ulman shook him from his thoughts as they neared the barracks.

"I'm okay," he replied too quickly.

"What's on your mind?" His partner knew him too well.

"Same as before," Artyom sighed. "Why is he avoiding her? I don't understand. Something's missing. I just want to help. Maybe they could be together again, be happy again."

"You're doing enough already," Ulman patted his shoulder. "Let's go have a drink, c'mon."

Artyom followed his former partner willingly, being told that even caretakers need their own support system. He wasn't always aware how much energy he was spending trying to be there for Aleks because he really did want to stand by her and talk with her. But the ongoing effort of balancing dark secrets with hard truths was getting heavier to carry with each passing day. The bottles of brew that Ulman kept stashed away in his room helped to ease the burden and Artyom might have been a bit overzealous in thanking his former partner for his intervention and expressing how much he appreciated him in general. The comedian just laughed and took the compliments, accepting his status as Artyom's role model because Hunter couldn't have that title anymore.

"My door's always open," Ulman submitted warmly.

His barracks room was across the hall so Artyom didn't have to go too far on his unsteady legs before he fell face first into his bed and drifted into a sound sleep.