After joking about their team name, Carl, Donut, and Mongo are abruptly teleported back to their garage. The bugbears’ minivan is gone, but the trailer and chains remain attached to Carl’s truck. Donut notices that the race AI voice seems increasingly glitchy, and Hedy hurries over as Mongo enthusiastically bowls into her.

The GPS announces the rules for heat two: a ten-kilometer paved course through rolling hills, random assignment to one of two paths, a mandatory gatekeeper monster kill before a team can continue, and severe weather in the form of torrential rain and giant hail. The biggest immediate problem is that Donut, not Carl, must drive this heat. Carl and Donut discuss possible workarounds, including mercenaries or a custom driving aid.

Hedy inspects the truck, criticizes its current setup, and explains the racing rules in more detail. Teams can bring up to three mercenaries, including ones they already employ, but Hedy advises Carl to create a backup driving system for Donut anyway. Carl briefly thinks of Katia while considering engineering solutions, feels a surge of sadness, and then refocuses on preparing for the next race.

Hedy recommends spending their heat-one upgrade on mobility because later heats will demand more maneuverability than normal tires can provide. She presents three main options: retractable spider legs, a hover conversion, or all-terrain vertical-climb tires. After reviewing the pros and cons and browsing the wider, often deadly-looking upgrade list, Carl realizes future heats will likely force crawlers into direct conflict with one another. He accepts Hedy’s advice and chooses the spider legs upgrade.

Just then, Mordecai messages Carl to put Rend away before entering the safe room. Carl discovers that Rend and Mongo have been playing inside the truck, raiding its freezer, and scattering frozen food across the garage. The chapter ends on a comic note as Carl dryly introduces the chaotic pair to Hedy as her new bodyguards.