500: SECOND ROUND

500 — SECOND ROUND The first round is over. But the real game is only beginning. The twelve finalists who survived Veyron City are now connected to a massive orbital station called Erebus. In this new arena, simply surviving is no longer enough. There are six Core Keys. And only the six competitors holding a key will advance to the final. In narrow metal corridors where gravity constantly shifts, zero-gravity battle zones, and deadly sections of the station, everyone wants the same thing: A key. Ethan Kane, however, is still the same. No armor. No advanced combat system. Only a Model 500 in his hand. But no one is laughing at him anymore. As Marauder, Kira-9, Nyx, Jax, Vex, and the other finalists fight one another inside Erebus, Ethan is trying to secure his ticket to the final while also beginning to understand why Helix is so interested in him. Because Protocol 500 is not merely a tournament experiment. Helix is not measuring Ethan's combat ability. They are measuring when he will break. As the pieces surrounding Victor Hale's death, Julian Cross's past, and Helix's true objective begin to come together, Ethan faces another problem for the first time: He is no longer alone. He realizes that he has started protecting Jax, Nyx, and Kira. And Helix has noticed. By the end of the second round, only six competitors will remain. But an agreement has already been made between two of the finalists. Ethan Kane and Marauder. They will face each other in the final. And this time, Ethan is facing more than just a tournament. Beneath the ice of Europa, a much greater war is waiting for him. In SECOND ROUND, the fifth book of the 500 series, the arena changes, the rules become harsher, and Ethan's most dangerous test begins.