The radio hissed like a snake in the snow. Jack Mercer froze, staring at the broken device. Lena's green glow had faded, but her hands trembled.
"It's lying," Finch said, kicking the radio. "The Revenant is gone. We blew it up!"
Jax zapped the radio with Ean's MP gun. It exploded into several pieces. "Problem solved."
However, Lena shook her head. "It is not on the radio anymore. It's… everywhere."
A cold wind howled. Jack tightened Vega's scarf around his neck. "We need shelter. Now."
The Ice Cave
They found a cave hidden behind an ice waterfall. Finch built a fire while Jax set up motion sensors. Lena curled up beside the flames, her breath shaky.
"You okay?" Jack asked.
Lena held up her hand. Tiny green sparks danced on her fingertips. "It is like the static inside me now. What if I… turn into it?"
Jack poked the fire. "You won't. We'll fix this."
BEEP-BEEP-BEEP!
The motion sensors were activated. Outside, shadows moved in the blizzards.
"Forged!" Jax cocked her gun. "They found us!"
The Frozen Attack
The Forged were different here—their bodies were made of ice and static, their eyes glowing like broken TVs. They crawled into the cave, their claws screeching against the stone.
"Aim for the chest!" Jax yelled and fired her EMP.
The blast hit a Forged, but it only slowed. "They're resistant! The cold's protecting them!"
Lena's hands flared green. "I'll try!" She slammed her palm on the ground. A wave of light exploded, shattering the two chips forged into ice.
But more kept coming.
"We're trapped!" Finch ducked as the claw swiped at his head.
Jack grabbed a burning log from the fire. "Use heat!"
He swung the flaming wood at Forged. It screamed, melting into a black sludge. "They hate fire! Everybody, grab a torch!"
The team fought back, driving Forged into the storm. However, when the last monster fell, the cave roof cracked.
"Get out!" Jack yelled.
They barely escaped before the ice collapsed and buried their supplies.
The Snowmobile Graveyard
Stranded and freezing, they stumble into an old military base. Rusted snowmobiles and broken robots were scattered across the yard. A sign read: ARCTIC RESEARCH STATION 7 – ABANDONED 1989.
Finch found a generator. "Maybe I can power it up!"
Jax kicked open the storage shed. "Jackpot!" Inside were dusty coats, canned food, and—
"A map!" Lena held up the yellowed paper. "It shows another tower… here." She pointed to a spot marked X.
Jack frowned. "That's 50 miles north. We'll never make it on foot."
An engine roared.
They spun around. A snowmobile raced toward them, with its rider hidden under a fur hood.
"Forged?!" Jax aimed her gun.
The rider skidded to a stop and lifted his goggles.
"Miss me?" Vega grinned, her scarred arm wrapped in bandages.
Vega's Return
"Vega!" Jack hugged her, then stepped back. "How'd you survive?!"
She shrugged. "Jumped into a snowdrift. I woke up in a creepy ice tunnel. Found this place." She tossed Jack a key. "There is a working snowmobile in the garage. But we gotta go now. The Revenant's building a new tower—bigger, meaner."
"How do you know?" Finch asked.
Vega rolled up her sleeve. Her scars glowed, mapping her skin. "It's talking to me. Showing me things."
Lena touches Vega's arm. The glow spread to her hands. "She's right. The Revenant is stronger. It's using the old towers like… antennas."
A rumble shook the earth. The radio inside the shed crackled.
"RUNNING WON'T HELP… I SEE YOU…"
Vega revved the snowmobile. "Let's move!"
The Chase
The snowmobile zoomed across the ice, towing a sled with Finch, Jax, and Lena in it. Jack rode with Vega, squinting through the storm.
"Where'd you learn to drive this thing?" he yelled.
"YouTube!" Vega swerved around a crack in the ice.
Suddenly, the ground exploded in a series of giant worm-like creatures bursting out—a Forged made of ice and static, with a mouth full of spinning teeth.
"WHAT IS THAT?!" Finch screamed.
"Lunch!" Jax fired her EMP. The blast stunned the worms, but they lunged again.
Lena stood on the sled, her hands ablaze. "I'll stop it!"
"No! You'll crash us!" Jack grabbed her arm.
Too late. Lena's green light hit the worm, but the recoil flipped it over.
The team tumbled into the snow. The worm dove toward them—
BOOM!
A missile blew the worm into pieces.
Everyone looked up. A helicopter hovered above, its side painted with black lightning bolts.
A voice boomed from a speaker: "Need a ride?"
The Black Signal
Inside the helicopter, soldiers in black gear were staring at them. A woman with a buzz cut and a robotic arm smiled. "I'm Captain Rook. Welcome to the Black Signal."
"The what?" Jack asked.
"We fight the revenants. Or did you think you were the only ones?" Rook tossed a medkit to Vega. "Your friend Eli is alive. He is building a tower at the North Pole. That's where we're going."
Lena's eyes widened. "Why?"
The Rook's face turned serious. "To open a door. A door to the revenant world. And if he succeeds…"
The helicopter's radio interrupted: "TOO LATE… THE DOOR IS ALREADY OPEN…"
Outside the window, the sky tore open—a green crack in the air swirling with static.