Introducing new characters, as well as shedding fresh light on ones we all know and love, Project Hometown is the action packed prequel to The Remaining Universe that shows the madness of how it all began and looks unflinchingly at the grit and determination of the men who died to make it happen, as well as the ones who survived to become the legendary warriors known simply as “Coordinators.”

This is where it begins…

If the candidates in the Project Hometown Selection Process have learned one thing, it’s that the whole program was designed to mess with their heads.

Dominic “Dom” Russo is one of those candidates. After nearly a year in the program, he has survived Phase 1 (AKA “Hell Indeterminate”) and the infamous Phase 2 (AKA “The Lord of the Flies Phase”). And now he’s HALO jumping into Phase 3, where simulations and training end, and a real-world test of his skills begins.

But where on earth can you send teams of operatives to test their mettle in a real-world environment, without causing a massive international incident?

Welcome to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, a country embroiled in a decades-long civil war, specifically chosen because it is so conspicuously ignored by the world. Like Vegas for violence, what happens here stays here.

To Dom, it seems pretty straightforward: he and the other three guys on his small team simply have to prove they’re able to get strangers to work with them in order to stand up to a coalition of rebel forces amassing in the region of North Kivu. Pick a village, teach them how to defend themselves against the rebels, equip them, and then boogie out before things get too hot.

But nothing in this selection process is ever straightforward. Unbeknownst to the teams of operators scattered across North Kivu, a power struggle is in full swing back at home, where a slimy politician, a cold-hearted military contractor, and one lonely US Army colonel are battling for the very soul of Project Hometown. Because even as far as they’ve taken this secret project, they still have yet to agree on exactly what type of man they want to fill its ranks.

Who will be best prepared to resurrect the American government in the event of a society-ending disaster? Hard-core killers who will follow orders no matter what? Or men of high moral caliber, who will always do the right thing?

Caught between these warring philosophies, Dom and the other teams on the ground soon find themselves caught in yet another pressure cooker, where they will be forced to pick a side. Because in Phase 3, their choices have very real consequences—not only for their chances to complete the selection process, but for the people who have to keep living there after they are gone.

As the bullets start flying, and innocent lives are on the line, each of these candidates will have to dive into the deepest parts of themselves and decide what type of man they want to be.