Two days later, they landed in Weipa — the last truly civilized place in the far north.
They were struck by how rural it looked. Houses were scattered between patches of thick greenery, as if the bush kept pushing its way back in. The town felt almost empty. You could walk thirty minutes in any direction and be out of it, swallowed by the wild.
But what hit them the most was the atmosphere. People moved quickly, heads low, eyes flicking toward alleys and tree lines as if expecting something to step out of the shade. No one lingered outside longer than necessary.
And the insects… there were far more than they expected. Crickets rattled in the bushes, spiders clung to walls, ants marched in thick, restless lines. Wasps and mosquitoes drifted in the humid air — larger, faster, louder than they should have been. Their buzzing had a strange pitch to it, higher and more frantic.
At one point, they spotted a cluster of bees on a fence post. Most looked normal, but a few were noticeably bigger, with longer stingers that caught the light. A little farther, a group of crickets scattered — except one, nearly twice the size of the others, its shell darker, its hind legs thicker, built for a jump that felt… wrong.
None of it was dramatic. But all of it was off. Just enough to make their skin crawl.
Tom slowed down first. Then he stopped altogether. "Uh… guys?"
They followed his gaze.
Near a trash bin, a small rat lay on its side, twitching weakly. A swarm of ants — big ones, nearly three centimeters long — covered its hind legs. They moved fast, coordinated, biting in perfect rhythm. The rat jerked once, then went still.
"That's not normal," Tom whispered, voice thin. "Ants aren't supposed to do that."
Austin didn't answer right away. He just exhaled through his nose, the kind of tired breath that said he'd already seen worse these past days.
"Yeah. Add it to the list," he muttered. "Come on. We grab what we need and we go. The pilot's waiting."
They headed toward the supermarket and quickly stocked up on what they needed: canned food, water, bandages, disinfectant, and a handful of basic medical supplies.
The cashier looked like he hadn't slept in days. Heavy bags under his eyes, shoulders slumped, hands trembling slightly as he scanned their items. His gaze kept drifting past them, unfocused, as if he was listening for something outside rather than paying attention to the register.
"You okay, mate?" Blake asked, stuffing the items into bags.
The cashier glanced at him for half a second, then looked down again.
"Hundred and nine dollars," he murmured.
Blake paid, and they left, each of them throwing one last look at the cashier's hunched, desolate silhouette behind the counter.
Outside, the heat hit them again, thick and buzzing with insects.
"I kind of get why the townsfolk walk like that now," Blake said with a short laugh — the kind you let out when something is funny only because it's unsettling.
"Yeah, the town gives me the creeps," Tom muttered, shuddering as he subconsciously picked up the pace.
They made their way toward the small airstrip on the edge of town, where the helicopter and its impatient pilot were waiting.
As soon as they approached, the pilot noticed them. He checked his phone, then walked forward, stopping in front of Adam.
"You're Adam, right? Let's not waste time," he said, his tone carrying a hint of stress.
"I'm Adam. Sorry for the delay — we were resupplying for the group." Adam ignored the attitude and extended his hand with a polite smile.
The pilot hesitated, glanced at the hand, then finally shook it with a firm, slightly stiff grip.
"Felix," he said. "And just so you know, I wouldn't have taken this job if the pay wasn't that high."
There was a trace of nervousness in his voice.
Thanks, BlueOx, Adam thought as he released the handshake.
Felix turned away and headed toward the helicopter.
"Hop in. Put your stuff in the back," he called over his shoulder.
The group climbed aboard. Tom and Patty took the rear seats, while Austin and Blake settled in the middle. Adam moved to the front, taking the co‑pilot seat beside Felix.
"I'll give you three days, max — like we agreed," Felix said as he adjusted his headset. "And depending on how things look, I might leave earlier. My call. Clear?"
"Yeah, three days should be enough," Adam replied with a calm nod.
Felix shot him a sideways look, surprised by how composed he was.
"Not many people would head to Cape York right now," he muttered. "I don't get why you'd want to fly into a place that wild with everything going on…"
"Don't worry, we're pros," Adam said with a grin.
"Whatever, I'm getting paid," Felix grumbled.
He flicked a few switches, the engine beginning to hum.
"Alright, everyone ready? We're heading to Cape York. It's about an hour from here. We won't stop until we reach the area, then we'll start scouting. Once we're above the region, you'll use the drone to analyze the terrain. After that, I'll find a spot wide enough to set us down. You'll have forty‑eight hours to prepare everything, get your stunt done, and then we're out."
They all nodded.
Felix checked his instruments, eyes sharp.
"Alright… powering up. Rotor's good… and we're off."
The blades accelerated into a blur, the helicopter lifting inch by inch before rising smoothly into the air.
Felix tilted the nose forward, bringing the machine into motion. With a controlled sweep of the cyclic, he banked the helicopter into a sharp turn toward Cape York and increased power, sending them surging ahead.
As they sliced through the air, the group settled into their own routines to calm their nerves. Tom fiddled with his drone, checking settings he had already checked twice. Patty went through the supplies again, counting and recounting. Blake and Adam talked quietly about training and timing. Austin unfolded a worn map he had drawn on, tracing their route with a fingertip.
He had printed it before coming here, marking every zone where a canyon was likely to be. Some were places he had already explored and knew for certain held deep cuts in the land. Others were only possibilities—areas they would have to check once they were in the air.
For the first hour, no one spoke much. The landscape below shifted gradually — sparse roads giving way to dirt tracks, then nothing at all. Just land. Endless, indifferent land.
"We're here." Felix's voice sounded in the cockpit.
The group leaned toward the window, looking at the scenery.
From above, Cape York looked like a patchwork of biomes stitched together without logic. One moment the land below was a stretch of scorched red earth, dry and cracked like the outback. A few hundred meters later, it shifted into a dense green mass — a tropical forest so thick it looked like a living wall. Then came open savanna, long waves of golden grass broken by scattered eucalyptus trees. Beyond that, the terrain darkened into marshes, stagnant pools of brown water where crocodiles drifted lazily.
Farther ahead, the ground fractured into ridges and narrow gullies, hints of canyons carved by ancient floods. From the air, they could spot movement everywhere — wild pigs scattering, a kangaroo bolting across a clearing, birds erupting from the treetops as the helicopter passed.
Cape York felt like a world made of pieces that didn't belong together. Untamed. Unpredictable. Indifferent.
"This looks… perfect," Adam said, unable to hide the spark in his eyes as he imagined all the possibilities a place like this could offer.
"Damn sure it is," Blake added, leaning closer to the window, just as captivated.
"I couldn't have dreamed of a better place…" Adam added, awe softening his voice.
Austin, on the other hand, stayed focused. He compared the terrain below with the map on his knees, not with hesitation but with the calm precision of someone who had done this a hundred times. His eyes moved from one patch of land to another, searching for a landmark he knew had to be nearby.
Then he saw it.
A massive sandstone plateau rose out of the savanna — a flat‑topped mesa with sheer red cliffs on all sides, its shape unmistakable even from kilometers away.
"There," he murmured, tapping the map with his finger. "That's a Jump‑Up I know."
"Guys, we've arrived!" Felix's voice cut through the cockpit noise, loud enough to carry over the rotors. "We don't have much fuel, so we need to find a plateau to land on, fast. Once we're down, you can start doing your thing."
Austin stood up slightly, bracing himself with one hand on the seat as he held the map out toward Felix.
"We passed that Jump‑Up a moment ago," he said. "It should be wide and flat enough to land."
Felix glanced at it on the map and said:
"Ok, we'll turn back. Point me towards it when you see it."
A few minutes later, Austin perked up, spotting the formation.
"Here! The big rocky shelf rising above the savanna," he said to Felix, leaning forward and pointing through the windshield. "That's it."
Felix directed the helicopter toward it. And as Austin had said, it was perfect. The plateau stretched over several hundred square meters, with no trees blocking the approach, a flat surface of solid rock, and enough elevation to give a clear view of anything that might be moving around them.
"Alright, guys, we've got a landing site," Felix announced, raising his voice over the rotors. "We'll be on the ground in a minute."
He eased the cyclic forward, lowering the helicopter into a controlled descent. The plateau rose toward them, the rotors kicking up dust and loose gravel as the skids hovered a meter above the rock.
Then—thud.
The helicopter touched down, a short jolt running through the cockpit as the machine settled onto the solid stone.
Felix cut the engine power just enough to stabilize the machine.
"Everything's good. We're down safe," he said, his voice steadying now that the rotors were slowing. "You guys can hop out and start scouting, get yourselves settled."
The moment Adam heard the confirmation, he unbuckled, pushed the hatch open, and jumped out onto the rock. Heat rushed against his face, dry and heavy, carrying the scent of dust and sun‑baked stone. He took a long breath, letting the vastness of the place sink into him.
Cape York on the ground felt even more unreal than from the sky.
The others followed shortly after, each carrying supplies and equipment. Boots thudded against the rock one after another, the sound swallowed almost instantly by the vast, open silence around them, broken only by the wind sweeping across the plateau.
Austin clapped his hands once, gathering everyone's attention.
"Alright, here's the plan. We've got three days' worth of food and water, so we're fine on that front. No showers, obviously—just use a bit of water to clean yourselves if you need to."
Blake groaned. "Three days without a shower… great."
"Deal with it," Austin said. "We're not moving from here. Cape York has a few touristic spots, sure, but this area is pure wilderness. Even without the mutations, it's not a place we can wander around."
Tom nodded. "Yeah, no argument from me."
"So," Austin continued, "we stay on this plateau. Tom will launch the drone and scan the area. I'll guide him to the canyon we're looking for. The rest of you can do whatever you want, but you do not leave this area. There's a marsh, a tropical forest, and a desert around us—none of which are safe."
"So basically… don't move..." Patty said with a yawn.
"Exactly," Austin said. "Once Tom finds something, we'll check it fast. If it's suitable, we prep for the stunt."
Blake cracked his knuckles. "Finally. Something fun."
Adam grinned. "I'll make it quick, guys. Then we're out."
Austin turned toward Patty, Blake and Adam. "Ideally, one of you should walk around the area from time to time. Just a quick sweep. Snakes, scorpions… whatever decides to wander up here. Crocodiles shouldn't climb this high, but Cape York is Cape York."
He opened the side pouch of his shoulder bag and pulled out a small handgun, holding it by the grip.
"Rotate every hour or two," Austin said. "You won't need it, but it's better to have something to scare an animal off or warn the others if something's wrong."
Blake grinned at the sight of the handgun. He lifted his shirt just enough to reveal the one already tucked into his waistband.
"Give it to Adam or Patty," he said. "I wasn't coming all the way out here without my own."
In the end, Patty took it. Adam didn't feel comfortable holding onto a gun and preferred to stay fully focused on the stunt.
Meanwhile, Tom had already unpacked his drone, unfolded the arms, checked the battery and the camera, and set it on the ground. A few taps on his controller later, it was ready to take off.
"Ok, I'm ready. We can start," he said, looking toward Austin.
"Don't hesitate to call out if anything happens," Austin added one last time to the trio before heading over to join Tom.
"Alright, I'll start surveying the area. We'll swap every two hours," Blake said. "We'll try to handle most of it so you can save your energy, but you'll probably still have to do a few rounds." He turned toward Adam, gave him a quick pat on the shoulder, and headed off to begin his sweep of the area.
Adam watched him leave, unsure what to think. He opened a can of fish and joined Felix and Patty for a quick bite.
For the next two hours, they continued this routine. Somehow, they all started to feel relieved as nothing had happened. But on Austin and Tom's side…
"Austin… we should really get the fuck out of here," Tom whispered, gulping. His face was getting paler by the minute.
Small animal carcasses lay here and there—birds, rodents, even a young wallaby.
All of them half‑eaten, swarmed by insects that were still recognizable… but far too evolved.
Ants nearly five centimeters long, moving in tight, coordinated lines. Bees the size of a thumb, their bodies thicker, heavier, vibrating with a deep, unsettling hum. A praying mantis almost twenty centimeters tall, perched on a branch, its forelegs elongated and sharp like blades.
They weren't monstrous. Just too adapted, too fast, too strong for this early stage of the world.
And the strangest part wasn't their size. It was the absence of everything else.
No normal insects. No flies, no ants, no beetles. Only these hyper‑evolved species, as if this patch of wilderness had jumped months—or years—ahead of the rest of the world.
Suddenly, a shadow flashed, slicing the mantis clean in half. They didn't even manage to see what happened.
But the brief silhouette… it hadn't looked like an insect.
"Nope, nope, nope, I'm out of here!" Tom panicked, yanking the drone away, already thinking of bolting.
Austin's face hardened. He hadn't expected things to be this bad. But now he was sure of one thing: the world was absolutely going to shit.
Then his eyes suddenly lit up.
"Wait. Go that way," he said, voice sharp and steady.
Tom snapped out of his panic at the tone alone and redirected the drone. As the camera swung around, the landscape shifted—right between the marsh and the tropical forest, a canyon opened up in the distance, cutting through the terrain like a wound.
"See? We got what we wanted," Austin said as the drone flew deeper along the formation.
Tom felt uneasy. He couldn't tell if they were lucky… or incredibly unlucky to have found it at all.
"Don't overthink it. Just scan everything, grab a water sample at the end, and get out of here. We'll talk with the others and decide what to do next."
An hour later, only the small lake at the end remained. Tom lowered the drone and activated the small gadget he'd installed, dropping a flask to collect a water sample. A few seconds later, the indicator flashed green.
"Perfect. Get out," Austin instructed.
Tom felt oddly reassured by Austin's calm voice. His own thoughts were a mess with everything happening around them.
As the drone began to rise, a massive shadow burst out of the water, jaws wide open.
Tom jolted, pure instinct taking over as he yanked the controls left, narrowly avoiding the snapping maw.
"Fuck, fuck, fuck—!" he muttered as the drone blitzed upward, finally clearing the danger zone.
Below, the water rippled violently. A massive shadow drifted just beneath the surface, then slowly rose. Only the snout and the eyes broke the waterline, motionless, locked onto the drone's last position—like a predator waiting, patient and certain.
An hour later, the drone returned, gliding through the air as if nothing had happened, before coming to a stop and landing right in front of Tom.
Tom crouched immediately, running his hands along the frame, checking every joint, every rotor, making sure not a single scratch marked his baby.
"Okay… let's meet with the others," Austin said, letting out a long, tired sigh.
A few minutes later, the group was seated back inside the helicopter, sheltered from the sun, the wind, and the relentless mosquitoes.
Adam slapped one last persistent, oversized insect away — he had grown numb to them by now — and finally asked:
"So… what did you find?" His eyes were bright with expectation.
Austin felt bitterness rise in his chest. He exchanged a look with Tom before answering.
"We found the place. It's perfect. Honestly, we were incredibly lucky — it wasn't even one of the known spots I had in mind, and we got it in under four hours." Blake and Adam grinned, already imagining the stunt.
Then Austin continued, his tone dropping.
"However… the situation out there is worse than we imagined. Every insect in this area is wrong — bigger, faster, coordinated. The kind you really don't want to meet." A flash of the earlier shadow cut through his mind. "And… it might not be just insects."
"And there are fucking crocs in the lake," Tom blurted out before he could stop himself.
Adam's grin froze.
Austin unlocked the tablet and handed it around. Pictures. Short clips. The canyon. The carcasses. The insects — too big, too fast, too organized. And the shadow.
Slowed down frame by frame, faint feathers appeared along its outline — just enough to make the shape even more unsettling.
The helicopter fell silent.
"Let's just leave!" Felix burst out from the side, clearly scared shitless, hearing all of this for the first time. He had stayed inside the helicopter the entire time, refusing to set foot outside.
Realizing he had signed a contract to fly them here, Felix's face grew even paler.
Adam's mind, meanwhile, was a jumble of thoughts. Everything that had happened so far clashed and collided in his head. It felt like the world itself had been trying to stop him ever since his date with Marie. He could already imagine her arguing with him, throwing every reason she had at him just to make him pull out of Cape York.
But… something inside him refused to bend.
A spark. A maddening, stubborn spark that had only grown stronger with every obstacle thrown his way.
It felt like giving up now would be surrendering to the world — to everything it had tried to impose on him.
Do I really want to give up after everything I went through? he thought.
The spark exploded.
"No! No… we won't leave," he burst out, cutting off the group just as they were starting to argue.
"I WILL DO IT. Whether it's alone… or with you." Adam finished, a wild determination replacing the clarity he had moments before.
The decision was made. Cape York would break before he did.