Zone Legends

Chapter 5 of another tale from the Exclusion Zone 5. ZONE LEGENDS The Zone run came together fast. There were palms to grease, papers to forge, patrol and drone schedules to get, but Oleg had it all done in forty-eight hours. He’d even managed to keep Major Yushinko from getting wind of it. Savak was […]

Nicknames

Chapter 3 of another tale from the Exclusion Zone 3. NICKNAMES The next night, Savak looked over the floor of the Bad Habits and could practically hear money flowing into his pockets. A Friday night, a payday, the bar was packed with off-duty security and Institute pencil necks all knocking back drinks and eyeing […]

Gopnik Blues

The start of another tale from the Exclusion Zone ONE: THE GOPNIK BLUES Savak Tul lit a cigarette and headed toward the noise coming from the rear of the garage. He dragged deep, filled his mouth and lungs with smoke, then exhaled through his nose the way he’d seen in an American gangster movie. Halfway […]

Radio Free Pavlohrad

A ZONA ALFA/KONTRABAND AAR The Cape Cod Wargame Commission met last night to venture into the Deep Zone with a game of Zona Alfa/Kontraband. For this mission, five Stalkers were tasked with repairing a radio tower to boost Radio Free Pavlohrad – a pirate station broadcasting from a secure, hidden location somewhere in the embattled […]

Short Stories

Writing stories is another thing that keeps me busy. More so now that I’m shifting to full-time writing. I want to take a moment to mention seven of my short pieces that are available as audio books. Tales from the Exclusion Zone, from fifteen minutes in the future, from the gritty cyberpunk streets of New […]

Ushanka Security

“We got you covered.” After a pair of near- disastrous jobs, Yuri Bonyev, the Exclusion Zone’s premier tour guide, decided to shift his operation from a one-man outfit to a full blown salvage and security crew. For all its danger, the Zone is a busy place: Scientists, Corporations, Traders, PMCs, Criminals, Cultists, Loners… So many […]

In the Zone

*the following is an edited version of my recent interview in Miniature Wargames magazine. It offers an overview on ZONA ALFA development and game play. Can you introduce Zone Alfa? Zona Alfa: Salvage and Survival in the Exclusion Zone leans heavily into the fictional STALKER/METRO 2033 settings. If you’re not familiar, think Post-Apocalypse Soviet-style, in […]

ZONA ALFA: Yuri’s Crew

After a spate of recent Zone tours turning sour, Yuri Bonyev is shifting away from working as a freelance guide and moving into what is euphemistically known “retrieval work”; searching the Exclusion Zone for valuable salvage and artifacts. In preparation for ZONA ALFA‘s official release, I started modifying figs from The Assault Group’s Modern Russians […]

Coming soon: Strange Treasure

The adventures of Zone Guide, Yuri Bonyev, continue. In finishing and editing, it became apparent ‘Strange Treasure’ was a far more appropriate title. And with that came the need for a more relevant, engaging cover. So… To finish what I started, I’ll post the final chapter here this weekend. However, the full and polished story […]

More Zone fiction. Part 3

3. THE NEW TRINITY True to their word, the boys from Vladivostok had brought their own guns. The sky was brightening uncomfortably fast, but Kaspar and Gleb knelt on the grass and began dividing the rucksacks’ contents into two large backpacks as if they had all day. Yuri was stung by the notion they had, […]