(tima is part of the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. universe.)

along the forested border of rostok and yantar lies an unassuming concrete ventillation shaft. it's the only clue that there's a small bunker nearby, the entrance carefully rigged with a series of traps ready to maim or kill any curious stalker. this bunker is the home of tima and his companion smyrna, two loners who have been roaming the zone together for quite some time.

personality

tima is deadpan and stoic like many ex-monolithans. his exposure to high amounts of psi-radiation has left him extremely damaged and he is completely mute due to either mental or physical complications from his past. he mostly communicates via writing things down on paper for others to read. throughout the years, he and smyrna have cobbled together a makeshift sign-language system that they can use to quickly communicate simple phrases. tima can be very detached and withdrawn, coming off as a little socially inept at times. though this has improved over the years, he still exhibits some behaviors that other stalkers see as strange.

he is intensely cautious and distrusting of others, knowing that most view him with disdain for his past affiliation with the monolith. tima is hesitant to associate himself with noontide because of this, desperate to avoid anything aligned with his past. not knowing anything about his former life before the zone or his actions when he was part of the monolith disturbs him deeply, though he won't ever say it. he takes great care to avoid areas that were once 'home' to his kind, much to smyrna's disappointment.

despite his calm demeanor and aloof personality, tima can be extremely violent if pushed to that point. he's retained the combat skills that he picked up in the monolith, and can prove to be a quick thinker in tense situations. he loves animals, especially smyrna's dog iryska.

tima often suffers from intense headaches and hallucinations. he isn't bothered much by emissions, at least not in the way others are. sometimes when a particularly strong emission sweeps through the zone, tima can feel something grasp the very edges of his mind. if he listens closely, it's almost as if something were calling out to him from the sweltering winds.

background

before the zone, tima lived in odesa and spent most of his nights working as a bouncer for a nightclub. he was extremely outgoing and well known in the nightlife scene for his warm, dependable personality and headstrong attitude. he came to the zone in order to escape military conscription, deciding that if he were going to get sent to the zone it would be on his own terms. tima was adamant about refusing to be a pawn for the military.

he wouldn't make it long in the zone before a disastrous expedition led him along with a small group of other loners too close to the brain scorcher. tima would be brainwashed and enslaved to the monolith, while his companions would be lost to the zone. his life within the monolith is unknown, with tima having zero memory of those years.

after the brain scorcher had been shut off, tima found himself alone and desperate, wandering aimlessly with no food or ammunition. after being shot at and wounded by a group of bandits, tima was discovered by smyrna, a loner who had been hunting for artifacts in the region. the two were extremely cautious of each other at first, but smyrna took pity on him and brought him to the cordon to get fixed up.

though the two would initially go their separate ways, they would eventually re-unite several times and end up becoming extremely close.

now

tima and smyrna live out of their bunker, frequently stopping in rostok to trade artifacts and other goods found while traversing the zone. the two have a mutually beneficial reaction, with smyrna protecting tima from those who would seek revenge on ex-monolithians, and tima providing muscle for his friend.

life in the zone seems almost idyllic, until the ward shows up and strange things start happening at SIRCAA...