Roadside Picnic

Three years pass, and the narrative’s perspective shifts to that of Richard Noonan, the engineer and entrepreneur who supplies equipment to the Institute. At the Institute’s headquarters, Dr. Valentine Pillman—the Nobel Prize winning physicist interviewed in the book’s Introduction—gently ribs Richard for collecting a massive paycheck in return for doing little to no work. Most of what’s recovered out of the Zone is still poorly understood, and much of it appears to have no purpose. However, there are a few alien artifacts that have a profound technological impact, particularly the so-called spacells, small batteries that generate an enormous amount of energy and are capable of reproducing themselves.

Richard, it turns out, has long served as a covert operative for a secretive government organization working to halt the illicit flow of contraband out of the Zone. Richard receives a call from his handler, General Lemchen, who demands an in-person meeting in a half hour. When he arrives at the meeting, Richard expects praise for having effectively stopped the flow of Zone materials through Harmont. All the old stalkers are purportedly dead or retired, while the young ones lack the wherewithal or mentorship to operate with much success. The Vulture, legless but still alive and considerably wealthy, runs a “picnic” service for tourists who want to visit the barrier to the Zone. While many of these tourists do enter the Zone, most are too afraid to bring anything out with them.

Not long into his meeting with General Lemchen, Richard realizes he will not receive praise after all. General Lemchen is livid that while the domestic flow of Zone materials is virtually nonexistent, stalkers are now selling artifacts to “enemy forces” (117). While the exact nature of the conflict is unclear, North America is presently involved. Angry and embarrassed that this is transpiring under his nose, Richard immediately suspects the Vulture of running the scheme. The only other stalker alive with the talent to organize such a scheme is Redrick, but Redrick has only been out of prison a few weeks.

After the meeting, Richard drives to the Borscht where he shares a long-ranging conversation about the Zone with Valentine over many drinks. They discuss the prevailing scientific and popular theories about the purpose of the Visit. Some believe the Visit is a test of humanity to determine if we are intelligent enough to use the aliens’ artifacts to make contact, therefore signifying that humans are worthy of further communication. Others believe that the aliens are still watching Earthlings, studying them to later correct what ails human civilization. Valentine has a far different take on the matter:

‘A picnic. Imagine: a forest, a country road, a meadow. A car pulls off the road into the meadow and unloads young men, bottles, picnic baskets, girls, transistor radios, cameras… A fire is lit, tents are pitched music is played. And in the morning they leave. […] A picnic by the side of some space road. And you ask me whether they’ll come back…’ (131).

In Valentine’s view, the aliens probably didn’t even notice humanity’s presence, and certainly haven’t thought about it since departing.

After dropping a very drunk Valentine off at his home, Richard drives to Redrick’s apartment. While he regularly visited Guta and the Monkey over the past three years, he hasn’t been to the apartment in the weeks since Redrick’s release. Moreover, over the course of Redrick’s prison sentence, the Monkey has slowly shed her human qualities. Guta tells Richard, “She almost doesn’t understand anything anymore” (147). When Richard asks if she’s taken the Monkey to any doctors, Guta replies, “One of them said she’s no longer human” (148).

The Monkey isn’t the only inhuman thing residing in the Schuhart household. In the years following the Visit, bodies interred in cemeteries located in the Zone begin to rise from the dead as “living corpses.” As if by instinct, the corpses return to their old homes. Largely unresponsive and believed to be harmless, the Institute’s policy is to take these corpses to study and later incinerate. When Redrick’s father returns to his old apartment, Redrick refuses to part with him, and now the corpse simply sits in the family’s living room all day.

Upon Richard’s arrival, Redrick is in a meeting with the Vulture. As the Vulture leaves, Richard hears Redrick yell, “That’s it, that’s it, we’re done!” (149). When Redrick sees Richard, he greets him with high spirits. The two share drinks and discuss Redrick’s future. With plenty of money from his sale of the hell slime, Redrick wants to leave Harmont. Unfortunately, the federal government has banned emigration from Zone areas because whenever these emigrants arrive in a new city, that city’s existing residents begin to suffer all manner of misfortune, including increases in car accidents, suicides, and natural disasters. Redrick also pours his dead father a drink. While the father doesn’t immediately respond, he later clenches the drink and brings it to his mouth.