XRD: CROSSROADS

The sun beat down, warming the crumbling old asphalt path that wound between dilapidated buildings and overgrown trees. Insects buzzed quietly, moving along to their own hidden rhythms. Suddenly, the silhouette of a sprinting Stalker burst around the corner of a building. He ran with every ounce of strength left in him, eyes locked forward, breathing heavily as beads of sweat poured down his face. In one hand, he gripped a gas mask; in the other, a vibrating Compass artifact.

Just meters behind him, a mutated wild boar gave chase, baring its razor-sharp tusks. One tusk was snapped off; the other trailed a tattered piece of bloody cloth. Suddenly, the Stalker’s PDA beeped frantically, sensing an incoming anomaly. As the warning tone turned into a solid, piercing shriek, the Stalker threw himself flat against the dirt, rolling desperately to the side.

The boar barely had time to turn its hideous snout before its own momentum carried it forward. In an instant, the beast was hoisted into the air. It thrashed, legs flailing, letting out a horrific squeal as a vortex of sand and debris whipped up around it. Its bloodshot eyes, filled with rage and terror, locked onto the Stalker lying on the ground. Then—a brief, loud pop.

As if torn apart from the inside, the remains of the boar exploded outward from the anomaly, showering the area—and the prone Stalker—in blood and debris.

The Stalker lay perfectly still, breathing heavily, listening closely for any other pursuers. Once convinced the anomaly had settled, he slowly stood up, bypassed the hazard zone, and trudged toward a rusted old bus. A few paces away, the artifact in his hand began to glow and vibrate gently. Raising it to inspect it, he was instantly blinded by a sudden flash of brilliant white light.

The next second, the sensation of falling took over. Plummeting from a height of several meters, he hit the wet earth with a heavy thud. When his vision finally cleared a few minutes later, everything had changed. The buildings were gone. Surrounding him was nothing but dense forest, open fields, swampland, and a crossroads splitting into two dirt paths.