One huge brain in a tank seemed crazy?
How about thirteen, arranged in a loose circle along the walls?!
Of course, these were smaller than the one living in Konrad's mind, but they still gave him a brutal headache. Even being in the same room was too much, their Psy waves amplified or not.
Strelok made it this far without any injuries, yet he looked as if he were in immense pain, too.
"Kill every switch you can find," he grunted, dragging himself around.
Not that it would work.
"The Dampener burns my head," Konrad mumbled. "Will I get more parasites if I stab 'em?!"
'Parasites?!' the parallel brain complained. 'You say the most hurtful things sometimes.'
But he pondered for a while.
'This sword has a magical barrier, unlike your machete. And I'm also here to keep 'em out, so—'
Music to his ears.
Even Strelok yelped at the sound of the breaking glass, scowling at what he was doing.
But Konrad wouldn't take any chances.
"This is more final," he grunted, crushing one tank after the other.
Whoever set them up would not turn things back on now.
His Psy Dampener still melted by the time he finished, and he had to throw away his helmet.
"But I guess it still did something," he panted, the pressure finally easing up.
Strelok breathed easier, too.
So it was about time they sat down to talk.
"You have to hear me out now, right?" Konrad started, taking a deep breath.
It was heavy with the metallic smell of blood, rust, and—
The putrid stench of brain fluids.
"Whatever, otherworlder," Strelok muttered, loosening his helmet, too. "I'll listen. But don't expect anything else. So? Why've you been chasing me?"
Where to even begin?!
"You refused to kill me in Tokyo, remember?" he asked. "Well, to kill a close friend of mine. But given that you rejected Lucifer's order, would you be willing to fight against him instead?"
The man scoffed, sitting on a control panel, kicking at debris.
"I'd kill the damned Doctor with my bare hands if I could," he said. "Heck, I already tried, but—"
"Yeah, he's tougher than he looks," Konrad nodded. "But we found a way."
"Good luck, then," Strelok grunted, leaning back. "You have my blessing, or whatever you want. But I can't do shit right now. Not until I get back what I've lost here."
"Right," Konrad sympathised. "Losing our magic to the Blowout is a bit problematic, but—"
"Losing it?" the man laughed. "I never had any to begin with."
That gave him a pause.
"B-but you're Lucifer's—"
"The Doctor reincarnated me, yes, with a promise of a tight-knit family. That, I did get—but he never gave me any strength to protect them. If you want magic, only my sister has it."
Konrad blinked, taking a better look at the tired man.
One with a receding hairline, looking closer to fifty than thirty-eight.
Exactly what he expected from people in the Zone. People born on Earth.
"I'm nothing special, kid," Strelok claimed. "And my sister's magic only got her kidnapped, too. I couldn't do shit back then, and couldn't do anything against the Doctor now. But finally—"
His voice trailed off as the ground beneath them rumbled.
Or was it his imagination?
"It's fine, our plan needs no magic," Konrad tried to get him on board.
But the old man changed his tone.
"You're not listening, kid. I don't give a damn about your plan. I listened, but now that I found her traces, finding my sister is more important than taking that bastard out."
He was already at the door when Konrad finally put the pieces together.
"Your sister?" he scowled. "You're here to rescue her?!"
The man smirked.
"At this point, it's more likely I'd die trying. But I no longer—"
"I'll help," Konrad offered without thinking. The rumbling became stronger. "Help me take down Lucifer, then we'll rescue her together. I'd even bring an army once my home is safe."
But the response was yet another scoff.
"Why would I trust you?" Strelok demanded. "I can't even count all the broken promises."
Well, yeah. Developing trust issues next to Lucifer was nothing out of the ordinary.
"If you want to help me, do it now. And then I'll follow your stupid plan or whatever," the man offered. "But having made it this far, nothing on Earth can stop me from finding her."
"I understand," Konrad tried reasoning. "I want to help. But my world's under siege as well."
And Strelok had already held his palm up.
Not that he would let that cut him off, but the rumbling and his PDA did.
"Attention Stalkers. An Emission is imminent. I repeat, an Emission is imminent. This might be a big one, so find shelter immediately. And stay there until the radiation levels normalize."
Sidorovich sounded more panicked than before.
The shaking got worse, too.
"Konrad?! You still there?!" his radio crackled from somewhere.
Shit, he threw it away with his helmet.
"Well, it's my cue to leave," Strelok announced, grabbing whatever little gear he had. "Help me, or stay out of my way. Regardless, I'll be heading for Pripyat."
Of course. Never a calm moment to think things through.
"Wait," Konrad yelled as he scrambled to get his headset, too. "Dmitry, I found him. The Brain Scorcher is down. Go and find shelter somewhere inside. It's safe now, but I'm going to—"
What? He had no idea what to do.
There was no time for going on a quest, saving long-lost sisters, and stuff.
He didn't have his magic to portal home, either.
If Strelok didn't come with him on his own—
'Can you take control of him?' he asked the parallel brain. 'Without causing any damage.'
'Nope, he's still wearing his Psy Dampener,' the voice noted. 'But given how good you are at knocking people out—'
He should have done that, actually.
But by the time the brain suggested that, it was already too late.
Strelok has left the control room, running towards the corridor passing overhead.
"This underground passage leads straight to Pripyat," he yelled back without looking. "If you want to come with, you'd better hurry before the whole thing comes down."
Right. Because if he did, it wouldn't collapse on them on the way?!
Damn it.
"Wait," Konrad repeated, trying to catch up, but he was still out of breath. "I'll help. I promise. But right now, we have a much worse chance of winning than if I brought my friends along."
Strelok only paused to give him a look.
"I'd rather take a terrible chance now than one that might never come."
And with that, he climbed the perforated steel steps, creaking under his heavy boots, and—
Konrad hesitated one second too long before he followed. The shaking became worse, and as his target reached the top of the stairs, the whole thing collapsed.
The next few seconds taught him many new Ukrainian swearwords.
Strelok managed to hold onto the floor above, pulling himself up in the end.
Leaving Konrad with no way of following him anymore.
"Well, that simplifies the question," the man grunted, dusting himself off. His hands shook, but he seemed determined. "If you're true to your word, meet me in Pripyat, then I'll help. If not—"
He didn't finish. He ran.
And before he knew it, the underground complex below the Duga had shaken itself apart.