Artyom Alekseyevich Chyornyj/Synopsis

==Biography==
===Background===
Artyom was born on 31st March, 2009, shortly before the nuclear bombing occurred, and was raised underground in station until it was overrun by a massive horde of rats. Since then, he'd lived with his adoptive father, Alexander Sukhoi, in .
When he was a child, not long after the war, Artyom - along with his friends Vitalik the Splinter and Zhenya - often ventured outside VDNKh to explore the Metro. On one such occasion, Artyom stole a shotgun and they ventured north. They arrived at station, but wanted to see more - Artyom says he cannot remember whose idea it was, but presumes it was Zhenya's.
Artyom opens the hermetic door to the surface to see the world they can only remember from when they were small. Artyom mentions that they were very lucky that it was night when the door opened, as they would have otherwise been blinded by the Sun, though they had no idea of this at the time. They were astounded by the stars, and stared for ten minutes before a loud noise scared them away. In their hurry, Artyom dropped the shotgun and failed to close the door.
Once back home, they were punished for going out alone, but all three friends kept silent about what really went on. However, in The Gospel According to Artyom, Artyom reveals what really happened that day - instead of a loud noise, the group were cornered by mutated dogs. Artyom told the others to flee, and he attempted to shoot them, but his gun jammed. He was saved by the Dark Ones, who met their first human being here.
After this, Vitalik is not mentioned again. He was killed at age 18 (when Artyom was 16) whilst guarding the VDNKh southern tunnel; bandits were trying to break in, but Vitalik was alone, since Artyom and Zhenya were smoking back at Zhenya's, trying to forget about the mutated dogs. The bandits snuck up on Vitalik and shot him in the back of the head. As a result, one of the southern tunnels was collapsed to prevent any more bandit raids. Artyom regrets this, but only recalls it when hearing Mikhail Porfirevich's poem. However, as it does not seem to affect Artyom too greatly, it is likely they were not close friends.
The opened gate allowed the Dark Ones to get inside a few years later, and because of the events taking place at this time, he would be branded as their "chosen one" to help the two species reunite. Many years later, when Hunter was investigating the Dark Ones, and their potential threat to VDNKh Station and the rest of the metro system, he gave Artyom the responsibility of travelling to the centre of the metro to warn the rest of the metro's inhabitants of the danger.
The story is much the same in the video game universe, but Artyom didn't have a shotgun, and he instead knows that he was the one who suggested they open the door, which he regrets.
==Novels==
In one section of the novel, while attempting to flee from some mutants, Artyom barricades himself in an apartment building. After surveying the area he's in, he notices a bookshelf covered with a sheet. Among the books uncovered, he notices a picture drop from the shelf. As he picks it up, he notices that the picture is of a young boy and apparently his mother holding him. On the back, he is surprised by what he finds. "Little Artyom, 2 months old".
Although it is implied that this is Artyom's real home, one still has to keep in mind the fact that the name "Artyom" is rather common in . Another doubt presents itself when he shows the picture to Sukhoi when he returns to VDNKh, Sukhoi tells him that he does not recognise the woman in the picture, and that he didn't get a clear look at his mother's face when he saved Artyom from the rats.
Zhenya was attacked by the Dark Ones a week before Artyom returned to VNDKH, and died the day before Artyom's return, which disheartened Artyom. In The Gospel According to Artyom, Artyom states that Zhenya's death was the final straw and motivation for him to destroy the Dark Ones. In , Artyom often converses with Zhenya much to the amusement of his companions. Artyom is aware that Zhenya is dead, but talks to him rather than himself.
In the epilogue to , Artyom describes his time after and the fate of the Dark Ones. Once returning to VDNKh, he was welcomed like a hero, as if he was "coming down from the heavens in a shiny chariot". Artyom thought of himself as a murderer and that he wished himself being dead, that a monster would eat him or that he could himself from a tree.
Artyom wishes that he could tell the inhabitants of the metro the truth about the Dark Ones, that they were there to help, that they wanted peace. He believed that they would laugh in the face of the truth or that he had been indoctrinated by the Dark Ones into believing them. Artyom describes his past in a little more detail, about the time when he, Zhenya, and Vitalik went to the botanical gardens and opened the airlock.
However, whereas the events happen very quickly and they are scared back into the metro in the original novel, the new epilogue goes into detail about what really happened. While wandering the surface, Artyom is cornered by wild, mutated dogs. His shotgun not working, and he tells the others to go. He is saved by a Dark One who scares the dogs away, some of which start to uncontrollably convulse. As the Dark One pities Artyom, he sympathises with him.
The Dark One shows him visions of his mother (similar to the scene in the video game level "Dead City"). It then parts with Artyom, leaving the words "You are the first" in Artyom's mind. The brief, non-hostile interaction with the Dark One inoculates Artyom, giving him a barrier against the Dark Ones' messages. After the events at Ostankino, out of guilt, Artyom returns to the botanical gardens regularly. No mutants occupy the former home of the Dark Ones - only soot and ash. During one such trip, Artyom sees a lone Dark One. Whether or not an illusion, Artyom runs towards it, taking his mask and gloves off. The Dark One is small, roughly half the height of Artyom.
As Artyom tries to communicate with it, he touches the Dark One's head with an un-gloved hand. Artyom sees the emptiness in the creature's eyes and understands that he is alone in this world as well (similar to a vision at the end of "Ashes" in ). Moreover, Artyom is a much more mature character in 2035, who has grown significantly after all the things that he has been through over the course of the books and games. Sometime after the events of Last Light, he married Anna in spite of her father's disapproval. The couple left their Ranger lives behind in favour of a seemingly normal family life at Artyom's home station of VDNKh.
Artyom has also begun losing his hair due to continued exposure to doses of radiation while on the surface, which is another reason for strife between him and his wife, who wishes for nothing more than to give birth to a healthy child that they may raise together as parents. Artyom claims that, during the events of Metro 2033, when on top of the Ostankino Tower, he heard a radio transmission from another city while the missile guidance system was finding its range. No one in Exhibition believes him - not even Anna, putting a great strain on their relationship.
==Games==
===Metro 2033===
Artyom is now 24 years old. Given the collection of postcards on his wall, Artyom seems to be a daydreamer. Among these are postcards of , , , , and . Although Metro 2033 is a story about Artyom's journey through the metro, it is equally also about Artyom's growth as a person. The video game reflects this, and unlike the novel, also gives the player an opportunity to influence this. It is suggested by the moral point system that, since the events of the game depict one of the first times Artyom has ever left VDNKh that even somewhat mundane experiences (such as finding corpses and hidden caches or giving money to the poor) can help him to better understand life in the metro system, as well as consider other answers.
Ranger: If Artyom obtains too few positive moral points, or decides not to shoot the guidance system, then Artyom, having faced and killed the Dark Ones in a mental battle, comes out of the dream and sits back to watch as is bombarded by missiles. The game ends with a short glimpse of Artyom's face as he watches the earth being scorched for a second time. Artyom's monologue shows his conviction that he had destroyed the Dark Ones out of the love for his fellow men – уet is already beginning to doubt his actions.
Enlightened: If Artyom obtains enough positive moral points, then Artyom awakens several seconds before guiding the missiles, and the player is presented a choice. As Artyom comes out of the dream, he sees the Dark One laying below the guidance system, reaching for it, trying to stop it - all the while still repeating the message of, "...we want peace...". The player then has about 20 seconds to make the choice in destroying the guidance system and stop the missile strike. The Dark Ones of the surface will praise Artyom's wisdom and mercy – Artyom's own monologue giving hint as to his own feelings of how war had already destroyed the world once, and he wouldn't allow it again. He concludes that the future of humanity, and the Dark Ones, stretches beyond them – like an endless metro tunnel.
===Last Light===
Artyom is now almost 25 years old, and appears again as the protagonist. In this entry, the player gets a more in-depth look into how Artyom himself is feeling about the events unfolding in the game, in not only the pre-level narration he continues to give, but in the form of hidden journal entries. Often times, these journal entries express Artyom's frustrations with the world he lives in. With Pavel Morozov, the Reds, and the near perpetual state of war that the metro seems to always be in there, Artyom frequently expresses regret in Last Light, not only over the loss of his mother and his lack of ability to remember her, but as time goes on, also in his original slaying of the Dark Ones.
Artyom is revealed to be a sentimental and kind person. As seen at the beginning of the game in Sparta, Artyom still keeps his postcards, Hunter's , and his guitar in his room at D6. Conflicted and in anguish at first over having to slay the Baby Dark One, Artyom (with guidance from Khan Aitmatov) rapidly decides to accept and spare the Baby Dark One, and the two mutually benefit as a result.
Furthermore, through his narrations and notes, it is revealed that Artyom is a very bookish and philosophical person, frequently quoting the , among other works. Despite his seemingly extensive knowledge of the Bible and frequent quoting of it, Artyom himself doesn't seem to be very religious, or is at least very pessimistic about it, judging by his very -like views of God. Artyom also speculates that some of the creatures he encounters throughout his journey might not have been born of the radiation, but might have lived deep underground, avoiding humans, but sensing humanity's weakness, they are now stepping forward to take their place.
Developing quickly from a poisonous relationship, Artyom calling her his "pain-in-the-ass partner", Anna rapidly grows fond of Artyom soon after he returns from his journey across the swamp to Sparta Base. After Artyom saves Anna from Lesnitsky in "Contagion", the two spend time under quarantine. Believing themselves to have been both infected with the virus and finding the situation hopeless, Anna begins to fall for him, which he use as an opportunity to have sex with her.
Despite this, the relationship could still be perceived as being at least distant. Artyom makes little mention of Anna and their relationship in his journal entries after the quarantine, and on his way to D6 for the final battle, the two do not do so much as say a word to one another when they pass, though Artyom being a silent protagonist does not help to stimulate conversation. However, this might be a consequence of the stressful time that they were having, concerning the perilous situation that the metro was in. In short, they simply didn't have time to talk to each other.
C'est la Vie: The Rangers are overrun by the Red Army. Mel'nik, down for the count, is approached by a gloating Korbut, who then turns to address Artyom. It is too late, however, as Artyom, ordered by Mel'nik, engages D6's self-destruct system. Artyom stands alone on the platform and closes his eyes as the explosion begins. In a tunnel vision, Artyom sees the saluting Rangers, flashes of his childhood, Anna, the saluting visages of Hunter, Ulman, Khan, Mel'nik, Alex, and apparently Bourbon, too. His mother's words, "Don't be afraid. There's nothing to be afraid of now." echoes in his head as D6 detonates. The Red Army, trapped and panicked, breaks rank as fire tears through their numbers and engulfs Metro 2 in an inferno. Anna became pregnant with Artyom's son. When their son asks about him roughly ten years years later, Anna responds by stating Artyom was "the bravest of us all, because he was never afraid to embrace the things he never understood".
Redemption: In the true ending (as Metro 2035 and follow this ending), where Anna did not keep her child, the Dark One stops Artyom just before he sets off the explosives to destroy D6. The Baby Dark One and the Dark Ones trapped in D6 save the Rangers, before hypnotising the Red Army into attacking each other. Afterwards, the Baby Dark One personally tears Korbut apart. Several scenes then play in a spinning metro tunnel cutscene section, with Artyom's narration providing more information about the aftermath of this victory. Ulman is revealed to have died. A wheelchair-bound Mel'nik is then revealed to have taken charge of the Polis guards. Artyom then says that Khan just disappeared after the battle, saying that Khan once told him, "What if this little Dark One is the last of the angels sent to save us?", then expresses that, "The fact that the little one came back and brought his kin... Maybe that was the pardon and salvation... For me... For the Order... For all of us in the Metro? The last light of hope in this kingdom of darkness.", before Artyom is then seen in a field with the Dark Ones. The Baby Dark One tells him that it will be better if they go away, but that they will come back one day. Artyom then expresses that he knows that they will meet again, and that he thinks they really were sent to save them, "Maybe we did earn forgiveness."
Contrary to , many fans believed that both Last Light endings were good, as the "C'est la Vie" ending had a more heroic spin to it than the Ranger ending did. It is possible to know which ending will occur at the end of "Polis" as Artyom and the Dark One board the train in Polis to D6 while Anna stares at Artyom; the Dark One will say that he will ask his kin to aid the Rangers in the battle, but if enough moral points haven't been earned, he will instead say that he has to save his family.
===Metro Exodus===
In the third game of the series, set in 2035, 26-year-old Artyom is once again the protagonist and player character. After the events of Last Light, he leaves the Moscow metro with his wife Anna and several Spartan Rangers (including Stepan from Metro 2035). They board an extensively modified steam locomotive, known as "The Aurora", and travel eastwards along the in search of a new place to live and prosper. Along the way, they must face many dangers across post-apocalyptic Russia.
Eternal Voyage: Artyom and Mel'nik die from the radiation in after finding the cure for Anna; Artyom is still rescued, but succumbs to his when there are not enough donors to give him blood. After he finally passes, he wakes up on a dark version of the Aurora, in his room. He is greeted by a shadow of the late Zhenya, chuckling and giving him a hard time about making him wait. A child is heard running down the passenger car and Artyom follows; this child might be Artyom as a child looking for his mother. He meets a shadow of Bourbon in the kitchen, where Bourbon has a few comments to make. He continues into the bridge where he meets Khan's shadow. Khan seems to be reaching out to Artyom from the land of the living, and says that Artyom will be on the train forever and that he will give everyone in VDNKh Artyom's regards, bidding goodbye. Mel'nik barges into the bridge spouting bravado and comments on seeing something strange in the distance. He and Artyom stop the train at a white train station, where Artyom finds a postcard of and the Aurora leaves him behind. While Anna is still saved, she is deeply saddened by the loss of both her father and husband. The game ends with Mel'nik and Artyom having been buried on the shores of Lake Baikal (in the same place as shown in the postcard) while the remaining Rangers fire a .
Your Destination: Artyom secures the cure for Anna and nearly dies from Novosibirsk's radiation, but Mel'nik arrives at the last moment and sacrifices himself by giving Artyom his dose of the anti-radiation drug. Artyom drives to the train tracks and is rescued by the other Rangers, who keep him alive through blood transfusions. As Artyom lapses in and out of consciousness, he dreams of Mel'nik, who leads him through a metro tunnel with a bright light at the end. This light is revealed to be a hill overlooking Lake Baikal. Mel'nik explains how he had been too afraid to leave Moscow, too attached to his rank and position as the leader of the Order. He also blames himself for what happened to Anna due to his false belief that Russia had been under NATO occupation. Anna then appears in the dream and begs Artyom not to leave her. Mel'nik asks Artyom to stay with his daughter, and that his body be buried at Lake Baikal. He also asks Artyom to become leader of the Order, and not to forget that the Order was created to save people. Bidding him farewell, Mel'nik vanishes as Artyom wakes up. Anna survives, and the crew bury her father on the shores of Lake Baikal, where they found a new community, with Artyom voted by the rest of the crew to be the new leader of the Order, citing the deceased Colonel's words, indicating the Order still intends to help people in Moscow.
Category:Synopsis