He left the group behind. The others strode off with confidence, their rifles gleaming, while Mikhail slipped down a different alley, heart pounding so hard he thought it might give him away. He didn't want them watching when he failed — because failure, in the Zone, meant death.
The city ruins loomed around him, bones of concrete and rebar. He kept his gas mask ready, the filter already old, his ears pricked for the whistle of anomalies.
The first came sooner than expected. A faint shimmer in the air, like heat haze. He tossed a bolt — it clinked, then vanished with a snap of blue light. The air folded in on itself, a gravitational trap. Mikhail swallowed hard. He marked it in his journal quickly, hands shaking, then skirted wide.
Hours passed. No loot, no artifacts. Just ruin and silence. He almost turned back — until the growl froze him in place.
A blind dog padded from the shadows, ribs showing, eyes glowing faintly. It was alone, but that didn't comfort him. Lone dogs were hungrier than packs.
It lunged.
The world blurred — teeth snapped down on his arm, but the shield burst to life. Energy flared in a crackling flash, hurling the beast back with a yelp. The ring throbbed hot against his skin. Mikhail staggered, staring, gasping.
The dog circled again, uncertain now. He fumbled with his pistol — a rusted old Makarov — and fired. The first bullet jammed. He cursed, slammed the slide, fired again. The shot went wide. The dog lunged once more.
The shield flared again, weaker this time, but enough. He steadied his hands, fired a third shot. This one struck true. The dog collapsed, whining, then fell silent.
Breath shaking, Mikhail reloaded, muttering to himself. The ring saved him — twice. Without it, he'd already be bleeding out in the dust.
He crouched by the carcass, noting the faint burns across its muzzle where the shield had flared. Another line in his journal: "Ring reacts only to lethal force. Shields entire body. Recharge time: seconds. Energy strain unknown."
He closed the book carefully. His first day wasn't over yet. The Zone was vast, hungry, and watching.
And he was still alive.