The recruits huddled inside the transport, oblivious to the drama unfolding behind them.

Murmurs of confusion rippled through the truck bed.

“Why is there another truck tailing us? What’s their game?”

“Maybe they’re tagging along to Mount Sepulcher? Are they out of their minds?”

“Probably just using us as bait. We flush out the bugs, they swoop in to scavenge the Cores.”

“You think Captain Sterling runs a charity? He’s not stupid. If they find a Core on the road, it’s going into his pocket, not theirs.”

“Hey, look closer. Isn’t that the Iron Spear Syndicate logo?”

Hearing the chatter, Jax glanced back through the slats.

The distance was too great, and the dust cloud kicked up by the convoy obscured the faces in the chase vehicle. He couldn’t confirm if it was Butch, but his gut screamed that the ghost hadn’t given up.

Just then, Captain Sterling hopped out of his jeep and strode toward the transport truck.

Jax felt the weight of the Captain’s gaze immediately. It wasn’t a casual look; Sterling was hunting for someone.

Sterling reached the truck, resting a heavy hand on the metal railing. He scanned the sea of grime-streaked faces until his eyes locked onto Jax.

“Jax?”

Finch, sitting directly in front of Jax, nudged him. “Hey, brother. He’s calling you.”

Jax suppressed a sigh of annoyance at the nosy neighbor. “Ahem. Right here, Captain!”

He raised his hand.

Sterling stared at him for a long, uncomfortable moment. Then he nodded.

“Watch your back.”

With that cryptic warning, Sterling turned on his heel and walked away.

Jax stared at the retreating figure, bewildered.

What the hell was that? He walked over here just to tell me to be careful? Is that a threat? A warning? Or does he know something about the Iron Spear tail?

Jax’s mind raced. If Sterling was genuinely concerned, why single him out? Unless… unless Sterling had plans for him that required him to be alive.

He looked down at himself, then at the recruits around him.

Does he have a thing for dirt?

Jax shook his head, dismissing the absurd thought. He wasn’t exactly model material right now, and neither was anyone else. The layers of filth on their skin were thick enough to stop a knife.

No, this was about the Iron Spear Syndicate. Sterling had taken their bribe, but he had also warned Jax. It was a double game. Sterling was letting the wolves follow, but he was giving the sheep a heads-up.

He wants a show, Jax realized. He wants to see who survives.

The convoy rumbled on. Jax’s anxiety began to spike for a different reason.

They were approaching the turnoff for Sector 33. If the convoy took that route, his Sentry Towers and fortress would be exposed to hundreds of eyes.

He was trapped. He couldn’t hijack the truck, not with three Awakened watching his every move. If he tried anything, Sterling would put two rounds in his chest before he could stand up.

Jax gripped the railing, his knuckles white.

Finally, the convoy reached the fork. To Jax’s immense relief, the lead vehicle ignored the turnoff for Sector 33 and veered left, staying on the main highway.

The crisis was averted. His secret base remained a secret.

Jax exhaled, the tension draining from his shoulders. He tuned back into the conversation around him. The recruits were swapping stories about Redrock Bastion, but Jax found himself bored. His life on Earth had been far more vibrant than anything this dusty city could offer.

Thirty minutes later, the landscape changed.

They entered a wide valley, flanked by low, rolling hills. The road narrowed, hemmed in by the slopes.

“Whoa, look at that!” Finch exclaimed.

Jax looked. On the ridges above the valley, two distinct camps were set up. Flags fluttered in the hot wind—the Fierce Tiger Syndicate and the Triangle Syndicate.

Jax recognized the names. Mid-tier powers in the Sprawl, boasting about a hundred members each.

In the wasteland, a hundred mouths were hard to feed. Logistics were a nightmare. These syndicates were likely scraping by, their members sallow and thin from malnutrition. Jax noted that only a handful carried firearms; the rest wielded crude melee weapons—spears, machetes, clubs.

They lacked Defense Towers, forced to camp in the open and rely on numbers for safety. It was a precarious existence. Defending a valley mouth was safer than venturing deep into the mountains, but the pickings were slim.

Worse, sharing a hunting ground usually led to conflict. When the bugs swarmed, chaos erupted. Kill stealing was rampant, and arguments over loot distribution often turned lethal.

The recruits in the truck, mostly slum-dwellers from Redrock, stared up at the camps with wide-eyed curiosity. They had never seen the reality of the Sprawl up close.

The convoy pushed past the camps, driving deeper into the narrowing valley.

Jax scanned the ridges, his instincts on high alert. No Insectoids yet. But the silence was heavy.

He checked his watch. “Three-thirty. Two hours until sunset. If we don’t clear the pass, we’ll be camping in the dark. That’s suicide.”

Finch grinned, flashing his yellow teeth. “Relax, brother. We’re in trucks. Bugs can’t catch a convoy. Why do you think we drove?”

Jax looked at him, then let out a dry, humorless chuckle. “You’re underestimating them. If a swarm hits us in this terrain, you’ll learn a hard lesson: sometimes four wheels are slower than two legs.”

Finch waved him off. “Impossible. Sandworms aren’t that fast.”

“Sandworms?” Jax shook his head. “You think that’s all that’s out here? There are things in these mountains that eat Sandworms for snacks. And…”

The convoy slammed to a halt, cutting Jax off.

The sudden stop threw recruits against each other.

A soldier sprinted down the line from the lead vehicle, waving his arms.

“Captain Sterling! We have a problem! The road is blocked by Hive Spires!”

Sterling jumped out of his jeep, his face hardening. “Say again? Hive Spires?”

“Yes, sir! They’ve grown across the entire road. It’s a wall. The trucks can’t get through. We need to detour or clear it.”

Sterling cursed. “Show me.”

As they hurried to the front, the recruits in the truck began to panic.

“I thought they surveyed this route! How did they miss a wall of Spires?”

“Redrock recon flew over this sector a week ago. They said it was clear!”

“Did someone plant them? Is this a trap?”

Jax frowned, a cold feeling settling in his gut.

Hive Spires again.

He had seen them before. They were usually associated with Rodent-Maw Creepers. If Spires were blocking the road, it meant a nest was nearby. And nests didn’t just appear overnight without something feeding them.

“This is bad,” Jax muttered.

Before anyone could respond, the crack of gunfire shattered the afternoon silence.

The convoy erupted into chaos.

Jax pressed his face to the railing, straining to see.

Ahead, the road was choked by towering, fleshy structures—Hive Spires. But it wasn’t just stone and alien resin. Through the gaps in the Spires, long, whip-like tendrils were thrashing wildly.

The vanguard soldiers were already firing, their muzzle flashes bright against the shadows of the Spires.

Sterling’s voice roared over the din, amplified by his Awakened lungs.

“DISMOUNT! Grab your weapons! We fight!”