The east wind lit a thousand flowering trees by night, then blew down stars like rain (3K)

"You can even give orders to Rogue's people. Who the hell are you?"

"Just a mercenary. I happen to be pretty good friends with Rogue, that's all." Su Xiao smiled. "Oh, right. Didn't you ask me yesterday why I was helping Noah? Because when you help people, they help you in return. That's all there is to it."

Su Xiao made it sound easy, but Panam didn't believe it was really that simple.

She took a deep breath and followed Su Xiao and the other two into the AV, her expression conflicted.

Jackson Plains lay south of Pacifica and Santo Domingo, with Laguna Bay to the east and the Biotechnology apartments to the west.

Following the highway south through Jackson Plains would take you to the North and South California Border Station.

Using the intel from Rogue, they took Panam along in the AV and spent most of the day flying over Jackson Plains before finally finding a suitable ambush site.

The sun blazed overhead, and the rocky ground beneath them was scorching hot.

Su Xiao lay prone on a heat-resistant blanket, with another wrapped around him to keep the heat from burning him.

V lay beside him, bundled up like someone from the Middle East, holding a pair of binoculars.

Before them lay the only highway out of the city through Jackson Plains. Militech's convoy consisted entirely of ground vehicles, with no aircraft. To leave the city, they had to take this road.

Emmerich, Crispin, and Panam lay in ambush on the other side of the highway.

Su Xiao had originally hired Panam only as a guide, but after seeing his lineup, she suddenly changed her mind and decided to stay.

She knew a fierce battle was coming, one far larger and more intense than an attack on