The Chernobyl Nuclear Disaster defined the last decades of the 20th century.
It was a death knell for the Soviet Union and a blow to the legacy of atomic power.
A calamity of unprecedented scale, the fear of radiation it sparked would go on to shape
geopolitics in the region for years after. Radiation was indiscriminate; it did not stop
at national borders nor respect any ideology.When the Cold War came to an abrupt end and the world
moved into the 21st century, Chernobyl was consigned to history, a place best forgotten.
Yet as the dust settled on former states of the Soviet Union, few realised that the effects of
Chernobyl upon the world were just beginning. In 2006, as Ukrainian scientists began to slowly work
their way through the overgrown time capsule that was Chernobyl and the city of Pripyat, something
wholly more dangerous than radiation would intervene.
It is still not entirely known what caused the Second Chernobyl Disaster.
Seemingly overnight, the ancient Ukrainian forests and decaying Soviet apartment blocks
were made into something wholly other. A new unseen force now moved within this land,
twisting reality on a whim. None of the scientists or military personnel within the Zone
survived. Following this incident, the Ukrainian Army placed a tight cordon around Chernobyl,
cutting it off from the rest of the world and creating The Exclusion Zone.
Today, the Zone covers a territory of 30 square kilometers,
centered around the remains of the Chernobyl nuclear power station.
This area includes the forested and fielded countryside common across Northern Ukraine,
several abandoned villages and a good portion of the now deserted city of Pripyat.
Around the edge of the zone is a perimeter guarded by elements of the Ukrainian Army, authorised to
use deadly force on anyone attempting to enter, and anything attempting to leave.
This ruthlessness is viewed as necessary considering the things that inhabit The
Exclusion Zone. The few explorers or adventurers that can slip past the deadly military cordons
will find themselves facing a bizarre range of hazards. The overgrown fields,
dying forests and decaying buildings within the Zone are filled with twisted wildlife, as deadly
for their feral behaviour as they are for the radiation they emit. This radiation is present
in large quantities throughout the zone, the enduring legacy of the first Chernobyl disaster.
A group of fanatics going by the name Monolith are the only truly
organised human group within The Exclusion Zone.
These armed zealots seem devoted to preventing anyone from accessing the shell of the Chernobyl
nuclear power station, and unleashing horrific violence on anyone attempting to do so. The only
other notable human presence are the STALKERS; scattered individuals brave, stupid or desperate
enough to regularly travel in-to and out-of the Zone in search of treasure or discovery.
While often hostile to outsiders, they are mere inconveniences compared to the
true danger of The Exclusion Zone. Within this area there exist reality-breaking ‘anomalies’,
pockets of geographical and temporal space where the laws of physics are suspended.
These anomalies are extremely hard to spot, having no uniform visual or audible distinction,
as well as no fixed location or size. Where one day a dilapidated town-square
may be entirely mundane, the next day it could be impassable to any form of life.
The effects of the anomalies are as varied as their behaviour, from something as comparatively
straightforward as a reversal of gravity to the complete reworking of physical chemistry.
When these anomalies dissipate they will sometimes leave behind Artefacts;
seemingly normal items imbued with special properties.
Though often destructive and dangerous, it is possible for these artifacts to display
beneficial traits, such as the ability to safely absorb large quantities of radiation.
It is the pursuit of these Artefacts that drive the majority of STALKERs into The Exclusion Zone.
Tracking anomalies before passing into them can only be done with an anomaly detector, a small
handheld device similar in design and function to a geiger counter. These instruments measure
for anomalous presence, emitting a sharp tone that increases in frequency the closer it comes
to an anomaly. Many STALKERs will use detectors of varying technical complexity to locate Artefacts;
however, there is always the risk that whatever anomaly created the Artefact is still active.
Any experienced STALKER will immediately withdraw from an area once they hear this frantic beeping,
though by then it may be entirely too late.
Although most veteran STALKERS will have crossed from one side of the Zone to the other in search
of these artefacts, few will have ever travelled directly through the middle.
At the very center of The Exclusion Zone, beyond the guns of Monolith and the worst of
the reality-bending anomalies, there resides a force beyond current human understanding.
What exactly inhabits the Chernobyl nuclear power station changes depending on who you ask;
some believe it is the scientific discovery of an age, whilst others are convinced that it must be
the cause of the mysterious second disaster. For a few desperate souls, it is said to be an immense
monolithic device, originating from some unearthly place, that grants the wishes of those who are
able to reach it. The dream of using such a thing drives many to venture into The Exclusion Zone,
though a readiness to believe such stories may also be the reason so few return.
In recent years a sudden drop in anomalous activity surrounding Chernobyl
allowed for official, better equipped exploration efforts to be attempted.
The Ukrainian Army mobilised to make a push into The Exclusion Zone, headed
by an airborne strike team whose helicopters flew directly over the power station itself.
Unfortunately, this dip in anomalous activity was only a short-lived cessation.
A sudden outpouring of energy from the station caused these helicopters to crash,
and the survivors were left to fight through The Exclusion Zone, facing the disorganised
remnants of Monolith and a sudden resurgence of anomalous hazards in a chaotic push
to reach central Pripyat and withdraw. The retreat from The Exclusion Zone was messy and chaotic,
punctuated by heavy casualties and only possible thanks to unlikely assistance
in the form of a group of STALKERs. The last information gained from this expedition,
before the borders were sealed more firmly than ever, indicates a frightening trend.
All evidence suggests that The Exclusion Zone is growing.
Anomalies are appearing further away from the center at an exponential rate, and every year
the Ukrainian Army is forced to withdraw a little further, extending the cordon a little larger.
With time The Exclusion Zone may come to cover all of Ukraine,
then all of Eastern Europe, spreading across continents and oceans, until eventually, all
the world is subject to the same reality-warping horrors that stalk the shadows of Chernobyl.