Xanta Lejenda and her friend, former marine Denis Kuznets, arrive in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone to search for Xanta’s brother, Mute the stalker, who vanished without a trace near the Fourth Power Unit. The experienced guides Mosquit and Pif agree to escort them beyond the Perimeter. But it isn’t possible to keep the secret rescue operation hidden for long: Mute is an extremely important figure in a complicated game that began within the Zone on the territory of the most powerful local clans. A huge reward has been put on his head, and he is being hunted—by friends and by deadly enemies alike. Apparently, not long before his disappearance, he obtained some incredibly important information for which major players are willing to pay any price. That’s why a real hunt begins after the rescue expedition: the clans are convinced that Xanta knows the exact location of her brother…