Martha's "Prophecy"

Queens's first snowfall arrived without warning. The morning sunlight refracted through ice crystals into rainbow hues, falling across Martha's windowsill and coating the half-dead succulent with a layer of silver frost. The old woman sat in a rocking chair by the window, a wool blanket draped over her knees. Her knitting needles flew swiftly in her hands as yarn slipped between her fingers, gradually taking the shape of half a red sock—for Snowball, though the fat cat had never liked wearing anything.

Lin Mo crouched beside the radiator with a wrench in hand, trying to pull out the ball of yarn stuck inside. Snowball had chased the yarn the previous night and tangled the entire skein into the gaps in the radiator. It now looked like a gray cocoon, with only the tip of its tail sticking out, twitching occasionally to prove it was still alive. "Mrs. Martha, your cat is getting more and more troublesome," he said with a smile. A faint, translucent glow shimmered around his fingertips as he carefully used Basic Phasing Ability to separate the yarn from the radiator's welds.

"Let it be." Martha did not even look up. Her knitting needle clicked through the yarn. "Staying in this dump of a building, even a cat would get depressed if it didn't find something fun to do." She glanced out the window. Snowflakes were spiraling down, laying a thin white blanket over the street. "Look at this snow. Something's off about it. In past years, we'd still be wearing short sleeves around this time."

Lin Mo followed her gaze. At the coffee shop on the corner, Peter was standing on tiptoe as he swept snow. His red scarf fluttered in the wind like a little flag. The boy held a thermos and took a sip from it every so often. It was probably hot cocoa from Aunt May. "Climate change, maybe." Lin Mo pulled the last strand of yarn from the radiator. Snowball shot out with a meow, shook the dust from its fur, and was immediately scooped into Martha's arms. "The weather's getting stranger and stranger these days."

"It's not the weather that's strange." Martha suddenly set down her knitting needles. Her eyes looked through the window toward the distant sky, as if they could pierce the heavy clouds and see somewhere even farther away. Her voice lowered, hoarse with the weight of years. "The world is about to change."

Lin Mo froze, nearly dropping the ball of yarn in his hand. He remembered the footage he had seen on the news the day before: Iron Man's armored formations drilling above Manhattan, blue energy cannon fire lighting up half the night sky; an explosion on the streets of Brooklyn, where witnesses claimed they had seen a huge green figure flipping cars before military helicopters chased it for three blocks and it vanished. Things that once existed only in comic books had become daily headlines.

"You mean... the superheroes?" he asked cautiously, tossing the yarn into the trash. The wristband on his wrist grew faintly hot. Its screen flashed, then quickly went dark, as though warning him of something.

"Not just them." Martha held Snowball and gently stroked the soft fur on its back. "Iron Man flying all over the sky, the Green Giant fighting in the streets, and now someone who can walk through walls..." She gave Lin Mo a meaningful look. There was no surprise in her eyes, only calm understanding. "This world is like a leaky sieve. Things that used to be hidden away are all spilling out now."

Lin Mo's heart clenched. Martha really did know his secret. Ever since the fire, ever since he had helped Elderly Irene snatch the eggs, the old woman had seemed to carry a transparent mirror that showed her every little thing he did. Yet she had never exposed him, only occasionally reminded him in her own way.

"I..." He opened his mouth, wanting to explain, but Martha interrupted him.

"Don't get nervous. I'm not senile yet." The old woman picked up her knitting needles again, and the red yarn rolled across her lap. "That little trick of yours is nothing compared to those who fly in the sky or smash things on the ground. But remember this: small scuffles aren't scary. What's scary is attracting something stronger." She tapped the window, and the frost patterns on the glass trembled loose and fell away. "It's like poking a hornet's nest. Poke it once, and a few hornets come out. Poke it again, and the whole nest will fight you to the death."

Cold sweat instantly seeped down Lin Mo's back. He knew what Martha meant. Mjolnir in New Mexico, the prince of Asgard, S.H.I.E.L.D.'s secret base... these were no longer minor disturbances. They were a hornet's nest that reached into the universe. He remembered Peter's notes mentioning an agent named Clint Barton on Phil Coulson's team, a marksman accurate enough to hit a fly in midair, as well as a woman called Black Widow, who was said to be capable of taking down an entire squad of special forces alone. Those people had gathered in Pepper Town for far more than a hammer.

"How do you know about all this?" Lin Mo could not help asking. He had always thought Martha was just an ordinary old woman, someone who at most knew the neighborhood gossip. But her words carried a clear awareness of superheroes and unknown threats.

Martha smiled, the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes bunching into a flower. She pulled a photo frame from an old wooden chest beside her rocking chair. The glass was covered in dust. Inside was a young man in military uniform, an eagle perched on his shoulder, with a desert behind him—one that looked remarkably like the wastelands of New Mexico. "My son, Ben's comrade," she said, gently wiping the frame with her fingertips. "He spent time over there and told me some stories. There were ships that could fly in the sky, people on the ground who couldn't be killed, and monsters with glowing eyes that ate children's shadows."

Lin Mo's breath caught. Flying ships meant Asgard's Bifrost? Unkillable people meant Wolverine? Monsters with glowing eyes... possibly aliens. Martha's Son really had connections to the X-Men. He knew far more than Lin Mo had imagined.

"He always said," Martha murmured as she put the frame back into the chest, "peaceful days are like this layer of ice. They look solid, but one knock shatters them. Young people like you always think you can change the world, but you don't understand how heavy the world is. It can crush a person into dust." She looked up, her gaze falling on Lin Mo's wristband. Though she could not see it clearly, the understanding in her eyes made his heart skip a beat. "Use that thing less. Especially outside. Who knows how many eyes are watching."

Lin Mo instinctively covered the wristband with his sleeve, his cheeks warming slightly. He remembered Carlos suddenly asking at the repair shop the day before, "Say, if aliens came, do you think this dump of a shop could hold them off?" At the time, Lin Mo had taken it as a joke. Now that he thought about it, perhaps his old friend had noticed something too. The world was undergoing a drastic transformation. Everyone was sensing and responding to it in their own way. Some chose to step forward, while others chose to hide.

"I understand, Mrs. Martha." Lin Mo stood and dusted off his pants. "I'll be careful."

"Not careful. Stay out of it," Martha corrected, tossing the half-finished red sock to Snowball. The fat cat immediately hugged it and started chewing. "Iron Man has money and technology. If he wants to save the world, let him. Captain America carries a Shield. If he wants to fight, let him fight. You..." The old woman pointed at the wrench in his hand. "Just fix computers properly, fix Ted's lousy magic box, and you'll be better off than anyone."

Something struck Lin Mo's heart, leaving a dull ache. He thought of his anticipation for his new ability and his longing for Pepper Town, and suddenly felt a little ashamed. Martha was right. He was not Iron Man, with power enough to stand against the world. Nor was he Captain America, carrying the mission of saving it. He was only an ordinary person who had gained superpowers by accident. Perhaps all he really could do was protect this run-down building and the people around him.

"I want to get married and have kids someday. I need to live that long first," Lin Mo said half-jokingly, trying to lighten the mood.

"You will." Martha spoke with certainty and began rocking again. "As long as you don't jump into the fire pit. No matter how much the world changes, people still have to live. Look at Ted. He talks every day about going to Las Vegas, but doesn't he still haul boxes at the logistics company every day? And Peter, that boy takes pictures of spiders all day, but doesn't he still go to school and do his homework?" Her voice softened, like winter sunlight. "That's life. When something earth-shattering happens, you still have to eat, and you still have to sleep."

Lin Mo smiled. He walked to the window and watched Peter pile the swept snow into a crooked snowman, using coal briquettes for eyes and a carrot for a nose. He had even found a red knitted cap to put on its head—it looked just like the one Martha was making. "Looks like Peter took your knitted cap."

Martha leaned over for a look and cursed, "That little brat," though there was a smile on her lips. "Forget it. Snowball wouldn't wear it anyway." She put the half-finished sock into a basket. "Stay for lunch. I made potato soup with bacon. It smells wonderful."

"Sure." Lin Mo happily agreed. He helped Martha move her chair closer to the radiator, then added more wood to the fireplace. Orange flames licked at the logs with crackling pops, warming the whole room.

During lunch, Martha suddenly remembered something. "Oh, right. Are you going to the community Christmas market next week? I made some handmade socks to sell. If you go, help me watch the stall."

"I'm going." Lin Mo scooped up a spoonful of potato soup. Its rich aroma mingled with the savory scent of bacon as it melted in his mouth. "Ted said he's performing an upgraded version of his 'The Great Turkey Transformation.' I need to be his assistant so he doesn't mess up the props again."

"With those lousy props of his, I don't think he should upgrade anything. He'll turn it into 'The Turkey Memorial Service.'" Martha's words made Lin Mo laugh, and Snowball meowed as though joining in.

After lunch, Lin Mo helped wash the dishes and noticed an old photo album on Martha's bedside table. Curious, he flipped through it. Besides photos of Martha's Son, it contained yellowed newspaper clippings: reports on Iron Man revealing his identity for the first time, news of the Hulk appearing in Brazil, and even a blurry photograph of a man in a blue bodysuit holding up a Shield in front of a group of soldiers.

"Ben collected all those," Martha said from behind him. "He always said that only by knowing who your enemies are can you know how to avoid them."

Lin Mo closed the album, and suddenly he understood. Martha was not unaware of how dangerous the world was. She had simply chosen to face it in the calmest way possible. She collected newspaper clippings to understand the threats. She knitted socks to preserve life as it was. The courage to keep knitting socks peacefully in the midst of a storm was perhaps stronger than Iron Man's armor.

By the time Lin Mo left Martha's home, the snow had stopped. Sunlight broke through the clouds and shone over the snow, reflecting a blinding glare. Squinting, Lin Mo saw Ted emerge from the logistics company carrying an enormous box marked "Fragile"—probably his newly bought magic prop. When the man saw him, he waved excitedly and nearly dropped the box.

"Mo! Come take a look! I bought a new Human Levitation prop! They say it can make people float!" Ted's voice echoed across the snowy ground, full of childlike excitement.

Lin Mo smiled and walked over to help steady the box. His Phasing Ability activated instinctively, and he "saw" a magnet and an iron plate inside. The principle was laughably simple. "This thing might fool kids."

"If it can fool them, that's enough!" Ted did not care in the slightest. "It'll definitely make a fortune at the Christmas market! I'll give you half. That'll be enough to buy you a new oscilloscope!"

Warmth filled Lin Mo's heart. He watched Ted struggle home with the box, his shadow stretching long across the snow. Suddenly, he felt Martha's "prophecy" might not matter all that much. The world would change, aliens might come, and superheroes would save the world, but none of that stopped Ted from chasing his magic dreams, Peter from photographing spiders, or Lin Mo from fixing computers.

Life was like the wool sock Martha knitted. No matter how cold it was outside, warmth could always be hidden within.

Back in the basement, Lin Mo opened his notebook and looked at the New Mexico map taped inside. It no longer felt so urgent. He picked up a pen and drew a tiny wool sock beside it, then a fat cat with a ball of yarn in its mouth.

The wristband lit up, and the countdown changed to [25 days 10 hours 23 minutes]. The new ability was still waiting. Mjolnir in Pepper Town was still embedded in the rock. But Lin Mo's mindset had changed. He was no longer fixated on gaining an overwhelmingly powerful ability, nor was he in such a rush to head toward a distant battlefield.

What he had to do was, over the remaining twenty-five days, help Ted fix that ridiculous Human Levitation prop, accompany Martha to the Christmas market to watch her stall, spend Christmas with Peter and Aunt May, and then... wait for the new ability to arrive, whether it was Wolverine's healing factor, Cyclops's shockwaves, or even just Hawkeye's precision throwing.

Because no matter what the ability was, its ultimate meaning was to protect these ordinary moments.

Lin Mo closed his notebook. Outside, the sunlight happened to fall on his wristband, its pale blue screen reflecting a gentle glow. He smiled, picked up his wrench, and began repairing the engine he had not finished the day before. Carlos had said the customer was paying especially well—enough for a new oscilloscope, with plenty left over to add some stock to Martha's Christmas sock stall.