Ha, Michi, like people actually pay attention to signs, let alone read them
Right.....
EDIT: LAF Formatting doesn't understand Cyrillic, noted!
Translation:
"I,Stremousov, Kirill, joining the ranks of the Vladimir Ilyich Lenin All-Union Pioneer Organization, in the presence of my comrades solemnly promise: to passionately love and cherish my Motherland, to live as the great Lenin bade us to, as the Communist Party teaches us to, as require the laws of the Pioneers of the Soviet Union.
After a short pause, it started again, with a different name. Over and over and over....
Oleg turned off the receiver of his headset. Using any kind of radio in this area was useless, the continuous transmission burned through any channel he switched to, the transmitter was just too powerful. At least you knew you were getting close to the deserted Young Pioneer Camp. It would be a dry place to rest and recover for a bit with some food and heat, and very welcome it was.
He turned to Dimitri and Mikhail. "We will stay for one night, no more. Keep your radio's off, save the batteries, using them here is useless. We will leave again at sunrise. no iffs, or butts.
The young men looked confused, but knew better then to go against the old man. Oleg had seen most of the Zone and had been here for years. They, mere weeks.
<the team spends the night at the camp and moves out at sunrise>
While on the trail, Mikhail pointed out to a rusty metal tower between the trees, just a bit beyond the path. "What is that?", he asked. Oleg stayed silent for a second, then explained it was the transmitter for the messages flooding all the channels. No need to go there, we need to press on. "But.." Mikhail said, "We could turn off the power, stop the transmission, clear the airwaves!". Oleg wanted to explain, but then just said: "Follow me"
Clearing the brambles, the team approached the transmitter. The base was a hexagonal brick bunker, with a rusty steel door, slightly ajar, weeds and flowers surrounding it, trash and rusted equipment littering the concrete pad beside it. A electrical buzz hung in the air, something with a lot of power. No other noise could be heard, no birds, not even the rustling of leaves in the wind.
Oleg looked at Mikhail and Dimitri. "Go check it out. I know it is a safe place, but just see for yourselves". The two stared at each other, and made their way to the door of the bunker. Getting closer they could almost taste the static in the air, tingling the hairs on the back of their necks. The door opened with remarkable easy, and they stared inside the small, dark, cramped bunker. It was empty,damp, musky, with some plants growing in through a window. Their eyes slowly adjusted to the dark and then it revealed itself.
There was nothing there! No equipment, nothing! There had been something, at some point, as the stubs of the cut cables still stuck out of the concrete, but there was nothing now. Dimitri switched on his headset and regretted it instantly. It was painfully loud! The pain made him pull the receiver from his ear with a yelp. "...Pioneer Organization, in the presence of my comrades solemnly promise: to passionately love..." reverbed bounced off the walls of the bunker before he switched off the headset. He stared in amazement at Mikhail. And Mikhail stared back, white as a sheet.
As they walked back out of the bunker, Oleg was standing there. In a almost fatherly voice he said: "I could have told you, but would you have believed me? Best to see it with your own eyes. The Zone still has many mysteries, and this is one of them. Now, let's make haste, we have a few more hours to go before we get to our destination and having every hair on my head singed with all of this static isn't making me any prettier".
He chuckled, and then let out a good laugh. Tension broken, Mikhail and Dimitri laughed as well. Relieved, they headed back on the trail, leaving the Radio Bunker behind them. As they broke from the forest edge, and walked into the sunshine, Oleg felt the sun warm his big bald head.
Switching his headset back on, all the channels were clear except one, which still, very faintly, repated the same message over and over, with a new name every time.
Time to move on. Time to head deeper into the Zone.
The Radio Bunker (or Transmitter Pillbox, both work)
It's a Sarissa Precision British Pill Box from their set of 3 British Pill Box Set
I blocked off 3 of the slits anc added slats, turned around and reversed the door so it has vents on the lower part. The door still works. I used the insert that comes with it to add the cables, made from aluminium tubing and brass wire. It is removable so I can swap it out in the future, if I have a need for it. Added a collection of tufts, leaves and a decent paintjob. The top is a metal H0 tower for supporting overhead lines for scale trains. Magnet imbedded in the top, and a round MDF base with a nail in the bottom. Card punch for stars.
This was the 2nd bunker of the set of 3.
December 21, 2011, 02:45:57 PM