The final satellite transmission from Victor Sloane contained no coordinates. It held only the sound of giant tracks and something massive breathing in the smoke.
Sloane Holdings does not leave assets behind. They deploy a specialized tactical extraction unit to a localized thermal anomaly known as the basin. The team expects hostile terrain, poisonous atmospheric venting, and difficult vertical climbs. They prepare for a standard recovery operation.
They drop directly into a biological meat grinder.
The basin conceals an isolated ecosystem untouched by millions of years of extinction. It is a hostile environment ruled by an ancient king. The rescue mission instantly shatters. The objective changes from extraction to simple continuation of life. The mercenaries must navigate stampedes of colossal herbivores, sheer cliff faces serving as nesting grounds, and collapsing geological traps. Their advanced weaponry is completely inadequate against the raw scale of the basin inhabitants.
They are no longer the most dangerous things in the jungle. They are protein.