The headlights are blinding, the carbines are leveled, and the first major arc of the Driftless resistance has hit the end of the line. Station Zero is stepping away from the mic for a brief maintenance cycle—here is when the signal cuts back through the static for Book Two.
Before Hot Carrier goes live, a quick heads-up on why Signal Drift’s chapter numbers are shifting as Book Two begins — the story hasn’t changed, just the count.
With Cronauer gone and DHS working the streets of Viroqua block by block, Dave, Bill, and Brett have hours, maybe minutes, to strip Station Zero bare before it’s found. A stolen trailer, a bluff at a checkpoint, and one of Bill’s trademark mistakes decide how the night ends — and what’s lost for good.
The crew got the transmitter off Nottingham Ridge, but they had to leave the battery bank behind in the fire. Without it, the station has no power after dark. Bill and Brett gear up in the Vault and head to Waters Edge, a marina outside Stoddard, to scavenge deep-cycle batteries off abandoned boats. The marina isn’t abandoned. Desperate holdouts are living there, and DHS has been watching the place from above. Bill and Brett get out with two batteries and one conclusion neither of them likes: the only place left with enough batteries is La Crosse.