Northbound City

In the late twenty-second century, the world is a landscape of shifting ice and perpetual cold. For the eight thousand residents of Northbound City, survival is measured in treads and torque. As a massive, mobile settlement on endless tracks, the city must migrate across the northern landmass to follow the warmth and avoid the treacherous, fracturing ice.

Talen Orr, an apprentice route engineer, has spent his life following the "Master Route"—a map drawn years ago by those who came before. But the ice is changing faster than the maps can record. When a routine scan reveals an instability that could crush the city, Talen realizes the old ways of navigating are failing.

With the leadership divided between a desperate retreat to a crowded, resource-starved southern settlement and a perilous journey into the unknown North, Talen proposes a radical, flexible method of travel. It is a plan that requires not just engineering, but a total reorganization of how the community lives, eats, and works together.

As Northbound City embarks on a journey that will test the limits of their machines and their spirits, Talen must learn that leadership is not about having all the answers. It is about making the best decision possible with the truth of the world as it is today. In a world where the earth beneath your feet is always in motion, safety isn't found in a destination—it's found in the courage to adapt.