Dmitry Glukhovsky - Metro 2034 English fan translation (v1.0) (docx) Read Free Page A

transformed the junction into a fortress: Two heavy machine gun-nests, one and a half meters thick protection walls made out of sand bags, tank-stoppers made from tracks, high voltage traps and a carefully thought through alarm system. But when the mutants came in waves, like on this day, it seemed like this fortress would fall.
    The machine-gunner mumbled with a monotone voice to himself. Bloody bubbles came out of his nostrils and he looked surprised at the shiny red wet palms of his hands. The air around the Petscheng ( it is a heavy machine gun ) flickered because of the heat but now the damned thing was jammed.
    The gunner made a short grunting sound and leaned against the shoulder of his neighbor, a colossal fighter with a closed titan-helmet and turned silent. In the next second they heard a bloodcurdling scream: The creature attacked.
    The man with the helmet pushed the blood-smeared machine gunner out of the way, stood up, raised his Kalashnikov and fired a short burst. The disgusting, sinewy, grey-skinned animal had already jumped; spread its claws and flight membranes and flew at them shrieking. The hail of bullets ended the scream and the dead animal continued to fly into the same direction. Then the 150-kilo ( 300 pounds ) body slammed into the sand bags and created a thick cloud of dust.
    “That’s it”
    The seemingly never ending onslaught of creatures that came out of the sawed-off pipes on the tunnel ceiling, just a minute ago, had stopped. The guards left their cover carefully.
    “A stretcher! A doctor! Bring him to the station, fast!”
    The colossal man that killed the last animal attached a bayonet to his assault rifle and approached the dead and injured creatures that were lying around on the battlefield leisurely. He pushed down the head of the first animal and ran the bayonet right through its eye, then repeated the process until he was sure that every creature was dead. Finally he leaned himself against the sand bags, looked to the tunnel, raised the visor of his helmet and took a sip out of his canteen.
    The reinforcements from the station arrived after everything was already over. Even the commander of the outer guard posts came limping, breathing heavy, cursing at his illness and with his jacket open. “Were do I get three men now? Am I supposed to cut them out my body?”
    “What are you talking about Denis Michailovitsch?”
    Asked one of the guards.
    “Istomin wants to send a recon team to the Serpuchov skay a . He is fears for the caravan. So where do I get three men now? Especially now …”
    “Still nothing new?” Asked the man with the canteen without turning around.
    “Nothing.” Reassured the old man. “But not a lot of time has passed. What would be more dangerous? If we
weaken the south now, there might be no one left to greet the caravan when it arrives”
    The other one shook his head and turned silent. He still didn’t move when the colonel asked if any of the guards would join the three men team.
    There were enough volunteers. Most of the guards had enough from sitting around and couldn’t imagine anything more dangerous than guarding the southern tunnels.
    From the six volunteers, the colonel choose those who he thought to be expendable. A reasonable thought: Nobody of the three ever returned to the station.
     
     
     
    It had been three days since they had sent the recon team on the railcar. The commander thought that the others were whispering behind his back and looking at him with distrust. Even the most intense conversations ceased when he entered and the tense silence that followed seemed to be a silent request: Explain it to us, justify yourself.
    But he only did his job – ensuring the security of the outer guard posts of the Sev astopolskay a . He was a tactician, a strategist. They didn’t have enough soldiers anyway. What
right did he had to waste them on doubtful and senseless expeditions?
    Three days ago he had been absolutely convinced. But now,