Dust Country

A decade after the world dried out, survival runs on fuel, water - and rumor. Across a continent swallowed by dust storms and abandoned highways, Mara Cole drives north in a reinforced truck known as Old Bertha. She's been on the road for years, navigating a landscape where every mile costs something and every stranger is a risk. But this time, she's chasing something different. A story. Somewhere beyond the plains lies a place people call Engine Town - a settlement where machines still run, water still flows, and the lights never go out.
Most believe it's a myth. The few who claim it's real rarely make it back. Mara isn't alone for long. A young drifter joins her. Then others. A caravan forms - fragile, desperate, and growing. As they push deeper into the dust country, the road becomes more dangerous: rival groups, failing supplies, and the constant threat of the storms themselves. But the real danger isn't the journey. It's what waits at the end of it.
Because Engine Town is real. And it has rules. A grounded post-apocalyptic thriller about survival, systems, and the cost of letting people in, Dust Country is a slow-burn journey through a world where hope exists - but only for those who can earn it.