The Chornobyl Exclusion Zone is rapidly changing after the second explosion, known as the release. The main character, after a failed business venture, accepts a spontaneous proposal from an old friend to try a way of earning profit that has been gaining popularity among a narrow circle—going into the Exclusion Zone for strange creations. At the designated location, Nikita finds an empty tent. The second meeting point is already beyond the perimeter. Leonid’s phone is turned off, and Nikita decides to get to his companion before dark. But at the collection point, instead of a guide and Leonid, Nikita finds traces of gunfire and his friend’s cap.