"Home, at the All-Russian Exhibition Hall, it's not a long way to the ground - a full 56 stairs, but Parma doesn't stand deep underground."

Artyom climbed up the creaking bullet-riddled escalator, where he did not see the end.

The light from the flashlight he held was not very strong, just enough to illuminate the broken glass of the lampshades scattered on the escalator in the darkness, and the crooked sign of Guangyi, on which the figures were blurry and gray, and there were some meaningless words spelled out by the letters.

Why did he go up there?

Why did he die?

But who needs him down there?

Does someone really need him, or does he just need a character from an unfinished book?

Do you need to continue to lie to yourself?

When Artyom left behind his glory and his wife Anna and left the All-Russian Exhibition Center, he felt that he was fulfilling a plan to escape that he had never imagined.

Look for clues from signals, from hope for survival.

But so far, Artyom has never found a clue to the signal, nor has he seen any hope of survival on the ground.

Artyom didn't know how to face his stepfather, Sukhoi, and couldn't look him in the eye for him.

When Artyom wants to call his stepfather in a dream and share with him what he has seen, heard, and experienced, the image of the stepfather is always fleeting.

The stepfather could not forgive him and did not want to accept his salvation.

Father and daughter had collected a few books, and before they could be exchanged for food and ammunition, Artyom had flipped through several books, and the one that impressed him the most was an old botanical manual.

The illustrations above are not vivid, only black-and-white photographs and some pencil sketches that have faded over time, but there are no illustrations at all in the other books, so this manual has become Artyom's most iconic and has received a new pillar.

He did not forget his stepfather's teachings that it is dangerous to be gullible and unseemly to cling to others, but he nevertheless broke through himself and revealed his heart to Anna.

Artyom tries to snuggle up to Anna, but Anna thinks he's grabbed her boots.

Alone, he headed for the ground, not intending to look for it in a low voice.

It was he who drove him up, and when he went up, he went up.

If something happens to him on the ground, it's all his fault, and only he has the power to stop it.

Finally, he climbed to the top of the escalator.

He was already at the end of the spacious marble hall, where the iron-reticulated ceiling had collapsed in many places.

The sunlight was extremely bright, and gray-white beams of light shone through the distant holes, and the light even splashed into the dark room where Artyom was.

Artyom extinguished the flashlight, took a deep breath, and quietly moved forward.

Numerous bullet holes and fragments of the escalator mouth prove that people have been here.

A few steps away was already the territory of another creature.

A large piece of dung, a loose licked bone, and fragments of animal skins all prove that Artyom has reached the heart of the beast's lair.

In order to avoid burning his eyes from the bright light, Artyom squinted his eyes and walked towards the exit.

The further Artyom went, the darker the secluded corners of the hall he traversed.

Artyom adapts to the bright light and loses the ability to perceive darkness.

The next hall was filled with steel bars from the sentry booth, piles of unimaginable rags, and the wreckage of various machines.

It was evident that the above-ground showroom of Pavirets had been turned into a freight transfer station, dragging all the good things around them before the mighty beasts could drive them away.

In the darkness, Artyom occasionally felt something shaking, but he blamed it all on his increasingly blurred vision.

Getting darker and darker, Artyom was no longer able to make out the ugly silhouette of the sleepy monster that had merged with the mountain of garbage.

The sound of a monotonous wind blowing through the hall muffled their heavy breathing, and Artyom was just a few steps away from the fang-and-clawed trolls.

only to discover their existence.

Artyom listened vigilantly, and suddenly froze there. His gaze stopped at the overturned newsstand, only to see a strange hunchback......

He suddenly felt weak.

The little hill where the newsstand is buried is breathing.

Breathing is all the other waste heaps, and Artyom is surrounded by them.

To get a closer look, Artyom pressed the button of the flashlight and pointed the light at one of the hillocks.

The white light of the flashlight shone into the folds of the white hide, and then swept the beam along the unknown body before dispersing, and in any way could not reach the edge of the body.

It was the same kind of behemoth that had attacked Artyom in Paverets, only that it was much larger than that one.

The monster seemed to be in a daze, so it was unaware of Artyom's presence.

Suddenly, a giant beast close to Artyom roared, sucking in air through its crooked nostrils, teeth and claws......

Artyom then remembered that he should hide the flashlight and move it out quickly.

But where the dragon is entrenched, every step of his way is accompanied by great difficulties: the farther away from the subway escalator, the denser the behemoth gathers, and the harder it is to find a place to settle between their massive bodies.

It's too late to turn around. @

Artyom is no longer thinking about the possibility of returning to the subway on his own.

He could pass through here silently, without disturbing any of the beasts, to the surface.

Concentrate and hold your breath, take care of the situation on all sides, and give it a go......

They must not wake up from their slumber, they must let him cross this place safely, he does not need to leave himself a way back.

Artyom didn't dare to come out, and even tried not to think - what if they suddenly could hear the sound of his brain spinning?

He slowly moved towards the exit.