Both men had already donned oxygen masks. Beh them, their faces were pale with terror. They g to their trols, trying desperately to maintain bance despite the shattered windshield and Zack’s intimidating presence. “Rex. I’m not going to kill you,” Zack said, giving one of them a light pat on the shoulder. The pilot flinched so hard the pne shook, causing screams to erupt from the cargo hold below.

  In the back, over 400 young pepole were crammed together, their screams eg as the turbulehrew them off bance. Many huddled in fear, sobbing untrolbly. “Shut up!” one of the two soldiers guarding the cargo hold yelled. Both men, armed with rifles, gred at the women with greedy eyes. “It’s just a little turbulence! Quit g, or I’ll give you something to cry about!”

  “Haha, look at them cry! These people really are something else,” one of the soldiers said, ughing cruelly.

  “I love it when they’re scared. Makes it more fun ter,” the other added with a smirk. His lips curled into perverted smile, as his gaze locked into some of the woman in the crowd.

  Their ughter echoed through the , adding another yer of dread to the already harrowing situation. Meanwhile, Zack stood calmly in the cockpit, watg the se unfold with cold eyes. Little did they know, while they were joking and having fun, a battle had already ended in the cockpit, and the boss they believed was dead was very much alive.

  Meanwhile, the transport purned and adjusted its course, heading towards a new destination. "tact the other pell them that if they don’t want to be shot down, they better turn around and nd in NYC," Zack ordered the two terrified pilots in the cockpit.

  The sed transport aircraft, realizing the situation had gone sideways, had already fled the se. With a speed of less than Mach 1, Zack couldn’t be bothered to give chase. Instead, he instructed the pilots of his po use the s to call the other transport back, saving himself the trouble.

  The two pilots, their faces pale with fear, immediately activated the radio and began calling. After a tense few moments, one of them stammered, "Th-they respohey said... they'll follow us and nd!"

  The cold wind, biting at over ten degrees below zero, poured in through the shattered windshield, frosting the pilots' faces and leaving them trembling as they spoke. "Good. Now take us down—it’s not far from here," Zack said coolly.

  Following his orders, the two transport pnes desded from the skies, dropping from tens of thousands of meters to just above ground level. They made emergendings on a clearing outside a steel pnt, an area cleared by Zack’s Ant and Spiders. "Not bad flying. e on, follow me," Zack said, giving the pilots a pat on the shoulder before heading off the pne.

  Truthfully, Zack should have carried them off himself. Both men were bruised and half-frozen, struggling to even stand. Still, they mao stumble after him. The sed transport pne soon followed suit, making its h nding. From its cargo hold and cockpit emerged five men—panicked and unarmed—who quickly threw up their hands in surrender. With a nervous salute, they stood in a liheir fear written all over their faces.

  "Are there more on this pne?" Zack asked the two frozen pilots he’d helped out earlier.

  "Y-yes, two more," oammered, teeth chattering.

  Before they could finish their expnation, Zack tossed the pilots onto the grass and strode toward the sed pne’s cargo hold. But just as he reached the tail, the hatch suddenly creaked open from inside. "Finally nded, huh?" a voice grumbled. "We agreed—I get to pick at least three of these women!"

  Two men, rifles in hand, stepped out. Their smug expressions froze the moment they saw the se outside. A meical Ant and Spider stood in front of them, fnked by four other ferocious-looking meical dog, all aiming heavy mae guns directly at them. The men’s rifles cttered to the ground, one even hitting his own foot in his shock. "Get down here," Zack ordered icily.

  Without hesitation, the two me off the pne, quickly joining the others in a huddled group, hands on their heads. "e out," Zack said as he stepped into the cargo hold, addressing the terrified women crammed together inside. His tone was calm, but his words carried weight.

  Man and woman, huddled in fear, their eyes wide. Months of chaos in the post-apocalyptic world had stripped away the st remnants of civilization’s order. The strong preyed on the weak, and they had bee odities to be traded or stolen.

  If Zack hadn’t intercepted the phese men would’ve takehese people, turning their lives into unspeakable nightmares. "Where are we?" one of them finally asked, her voice trembling as she found the ce to speak.

  "NYC," Zack replied simply. "Your new home."

  His words hung in the air, followed by a few moments of silehen, soft sobs broke out, quickly growing into a wave of relieved, cathartic cries. For the first time in months, they felt something other than fear.

  "Don’t worry, Sir! I will take care all of them," Charles promised. Despite being nearly seventy, his voice was firm. He raised his left arm—now a -built robotid Zack had crafted for him. Its nerve du teology made it even more flexible than his inal limb.

  "There’s no need for special treatment," Zack said with a faint smile. "Just let everyone know they’re free to love who they want."

  Charles chuckled. "Don’t you worry about that! With the Ant and Spiders around, there’s o worry about anyone causing trouble."

  Satisfied, Zack gave a nod. "Alright. I’ll leave the rest to you."

  Before departing, Zack had Ego s the people, seleg three woman who stood out for their skills in cooking and house keeping: Mia, Lily, and Grace. All three were youween 17 and 22—and had survived the horrors of this new world with their spirits intact.

  "Mia Carter, Lily Brooks, Grace Porter," Zack called their names.

  The womeated before quietly responding, "Yes."

  "Rex. Follow me," Zack said, leading the way to the Avalon that had nded nearby.

  As the women trailed nervously behind him, Zack turo the nine prisoner from the transport pnes. "You lot, get over here!" Zack barked.

  "Yes, sir!" The men scrambled to obey, their heads bobbing in submission as they followed Zato the Avalon.

  Ihe three women were ushered into the cockpit, while the nine prisoners were shoved into the cargo hold. Ihan a few mihe Avalon took off, leaving behind the steel pnt and carrying its new passeowards a better—or at least different—future.