The Diablos, impervious to bullets and grenades, attacks and kills two members of the squad. The survivors hide in a cave, where they are attacked by a pack of monster-sized spiders called Nerscyllas. Artemis is injected with a paralyzing venom, and as the others try to save her, more Nerscyllas arrive and swarm them. Artemis wakes up in a Nerscylla lair, finding her team dead or infected with Nerscylla spawn, and escapes the lair by setting the pursuing monsters on fire. Above ground, Artemis runs into the Hunter and, after fighting each other, they grudgingly agree to cooperate. She learns that the portals are created by the Sky Tower, a structure located across the desert.