A Stone for a Souvenir

New Mexico's rising sun was like a red-hot branding iron, baking the desert until shimmering heat waves twisted through the air. Lin Mo stood beneath the gas station canopy, watching Dale fill the car's tank. The gasoline sloshed with flecks of light, making the wristband on his arm glow faintly.

"Really not staying to watch the sunrise before you go?" Dale stuffed a bag of beef jerky into Ted's hands, grease from last night's barbecue still clinging to his beard. "The desert sunrise at this hour is ten times prettier than New York's fireworks."

"No, Cousin," Ted said, cramming the beef jerky into his bag. The zipper could barely close—it was stuffed with souvenirs he had bought: a T-shirt printed with Mjolnir, a preserved desert lizard, and a stone ornament supposedly "from Asgard." Lin Mo had checked it with his Phasing Ability. It was just an ordinary piece of sandstone. "If we don't leave now, we'll really miss the bus back to New York. Lin Mo still has computers to fix."

Lin Mo smiled but said nothing. His mind was nowhere near the bus back to New York. It was on the sealed-off area several kilometers away. After helping Thor escape last night, he had barely slept. His thoughts had been filled with the hammer's dark-gold patterns and the wristband's abnormal vibration frequency. Before leaving, he had to go there once more, even if only to look from afar.

"I'm going to the restroom," Lin Mo told Ted, pointing toward the crude toilet behind the gas station. Ted was busy photographing that "Asgard stone" and waved without even looking up. "Hurry up. The bus leaves in half an hour."

Lin Mo circled behind the restroom and immediately activated Physical Enhancement. At five times his normal speed, he swept across the desert like a gust of wind. Sand and gravel scattered beneath his feet, while Dynamic Vision helped him avoid several hidden dune traps—Ted had twisted his ankle in one yesterday and howled in pain.

There were more S.H.I.E.L.D. agents outside the cordon than yesterday. Two more white mobile laboratories had arrived, one with the words "Biological Research" printed on its side. Several people in lab coats were carrying a metal container inside, its radiation symbol painfully bright under the sun. Phil Coulson stood before a makeshift command tent, tablet in hand, speaking with a bespectacled agent with a deep frown. Her ID badge swung briefly—Lin Mo caught the name: Fields, biologist. Peter's files had mentioned her. She specialized in extraterrestrial biological samples.

Looks like last night's escape made them tighten security. Lin Mo hid behind a clump of dead brush and muttered inwardly. He could see several new cameras on the wire fence, as well as energy sensors emitting a faint blue glow, like fireflies clinging to the mesh.

Crossing the cordon directly was clearly impossible. After observing for a while, Lin Mo found a thirty-second gap in the patrols on the western side—enough time to sprint through with Physical Enhancement, then use Phasing Ability to pass through the final wire fence. He took a deep breath and rolled his ankles, grains of sand rustling beneath his feet.

At that moment, an argument suddenly erupted from the command tent. It was Thor! Somehow, he had been captured again. Through the glass door, he roared at Phil Coulson, his golden hair flaring from anger like an enraged lion's mane. "You mortals! Release me at once! Otherwise, my father will not spare you!"

"Sir, please remain calm." Phil Coulson's voice came through the glass, still as steady as a windless lake. "Until we confirm your identity, you cannot leave."

Lin Mo's heart skipped a beat. Thor had been locked up again? Had last night's escape been for nothing? Just as he was about to move closer, he saw Hawkeye emerge from a laboratory carrying a black case and head straight for the command tent where Thor was being held. The case looked familiar—the same material as the shell of the S.H.I.E.L.D. encrypted hard drive Lin Mo had repaired before. It probably held some kind of device for suppressing superpowers.

He could not wait any longer. The instant a patrolman turned around, Lin Mo shot forward like an arrow loosed from its bow. Wind howled past his ears, and the wire fence rushed closer. He could hear the energy sensors beeping—they had clearly detected his rapid movement.

"Stop!" a patrolman shouted behind him, followed by the sharp clack of a gun being cocked.

Lin Mo did not look back. In the final second before hitting the wire fence, he activated Phasing Ability. His body passed through it like a sheet of thin paper, and the energy sensor's alarm abruptly stopped—it could not detect an entity in a phased state. He landed on the sand inside the cordon, rolled with the momentum, and ducked behind a massive boulder. From there, he could see exactly where Mjolnir was.

The dark-gold hammer was still embedded in the rock. There were even more S.H.I.E.L.D. agents around it than yesterday. Some scanned it with sonic detectors, others collected rock samples, and one agent was using a laser cutter to try to remove a small fragment from the stone. The laser only left a faint white mark on the rock.

This stone really is unusual. Lin Mo stared at the boulder holding Mjolnir. It was darker than the surrounding sandstone, its surface covered in dense patterns like marks left by lightning. The wristband vibrated violently on his arm, and a blinding red notification appeared on its screen:

[High-intensity Asgard energy residue detected... Same origin as Mjolnir's energy... Sample collection strongly recommended.]

Collect a sample? Lin Mo froze for a moment, then understood—the wristband wanted him to take a piece of the rock home. He looked around. The agents were all focused on Mjolnir, and no one noticed him in the corner. The opportunity had come.

Pretending to tie his shoe, Lin Mo crouched down and quietly reached toward the base of the boulder. It was ice-cold to the touch, like gripping a piece of metal freshly taken from a freezer, yet a faint warm current seeped from it and traveled from his fingertips into his arm. He gently scraped at it with his fingernail. A pebble the size of a fingernail fell onto the sand with a soft patter, coated in a layer of fine grit.

The instant he picked up the fragment, the wristband suddenly flashed with intense blue light. Startled, he hurriedly stuffed the stone into his pocket and turned off the wristband screen. The nearby agents seemed not to notice anything unusual. Only the agent operating the laser cutter frowned and glanced in his direction before lowering his head and continuing to work.

Time to go. Lin Mo brushed the sand from his hands. Just as he was about to activate Phasing Ability and leave, he saw Phil Coulson walk out of the command tent and look directly at him. Their gazes met in midair, and Lin Mo's heart leaped into his throat.

There was no surprise in Phil Coulson's eyes. There was even a faint, almost imperceptible smile. He gave Lin Mo a slight nod, then turned and walked toward the laboratory as if nothing had happened.

Lin Mo's back was drenched in cold sweat. He understood that look—Phil Coulson had known all along that he had infiltrated the area, yet deliberately let him off. Why? Because he had helped Thor escape last night? Or because of the wristband on his arm?

There was no time to think. Lin Mo activated Phasing Ability again and passed through the wire fence at top speed, landing in the desert beyond the cordon. The patrolmen's shouts still echoed behind him, but he had already run far away. Physical Enhancement made him as fast as a motorcycle, and he soon left the sealed-off area far behind.

When he returned to the gas station, Ted was anxiously pacing beside the bus. The moment he saw Lin Mo run over, he immediately shouted, "Where did you go? The driver said we're about to leave!" He pointed at Lin Mo's pant leg. "Why are your pants covered in so much sand? And why is there a little rock stuck on them?"

Lin Mo looked down and found a fingernail-sized black stone caught in the folds of his pant leg. It was the very fragment he had scraped from the boulder. Without showing any reaction, he slipped it into his pocket and patted Ted's shoulder. "I took a walk around the dunes nearby. Something came up."

"What could possibly be more important than catching the bus?" Ted grumbled as he boarded, complaining nonstop. "If I'd known you were this slow, I wouldn't have come with you. I should've stayed in Las Vegas and watched a magic show..."

Lin Mo did not respond. He merely watched as the bus left Pepper Town, the desert outside gradually turning into blurred patches of color. He touched the stone in his pocket. Its coldness came through the fabric, and the wristband began vibrating faintly again. This time, it was not an alarm, but a gentle blue glow, as though confirming something.

"What are you looking at?" Ted suddenly leaned over and pointed at Lin Mo's wrist. "Did your wristband light up just now?"

"No. It was sunlight reflecting off it." Lin Mo hurriedly hid his wrist beneath his sleeve, his heart pounding like a drum. He could not let Ted learn where the stone came from. If this kid found out he had brought back a piece of "Asgard energy crystal," he might brag about it in a bar. Then S.H.I.E.L.D. agents would probably come knocking.

When the bus entered Arizona, Ted finally fell asleep, drool running from the corner of his mouth onto his Mjolnir T-shirt. Lin Mo quietly took out the black stone and examined it in his palm. Its surface was smooth, and under the sunlight, he could see delicate patterns much like those on Mjolnir, only shallower. He scratched it with a fingernail and did not leave a mark—it was far harder than ordinary rock.

The wristband suddenly displayed a notification:

[Asgard energy sample collected... Analysis commencing... Analysis complete: This sample contains faint Odinforce residue. It can improve Physical Enhancement synchronization rate (current increase: 5%, total synchronization rate: 53%).]

Lin Mo's eyes lit up. It could even improve the synchronization rate? He tried clenching the stone, and sure enough, a warm current spread from his arm through his entire body. The strength in his muscles seemed to increase again, and even Dynamic Vision became clearer. He could make out the outline of cacti several kilometers away through the window.

"What a treasure." Lin Mo carefully tucked the stone into the pocket closest to his body, together with the map Peter had drawn. This inconspicuous little rock had somehow become the most unexpected gain from his trip to New Mexico.

The bus jolted along the highway for two days and two nights before finally arriving in New York on the morning of the third day. The air in Queens was thick with exhaust fumes and the scent of bakeries, completely different from the dryness of the desert. Ted got off with a yawn and his bag in hand, complaining that "New York beds are still more comfortable," while Lin Mo stood on the station steps and looked at the distant skyline, feeling something he could not put into words.

New Mexico's desert, S.H.I.E.L.D.'s cordon, the hammer embedded in stone, golden-haired Thor roaring in fury, Phil Coulson's meaningful look... It all felt like a bizarre dream, yet it had been etched vividly into his memories, with the black stone hidden in his pocket as proof.

"Come on, Mo." Ted tugged his arm. "Martha must have made breakfast for us. I've really missed her toast."

Lin Mo nodded and followed Ted toward the apartment building. Passing the neighborhood park, he saw Peter changing feed for that spider. The spider in the glass jar had grown larger than before, and the black rings on its legs looked as if they had been painted in ink. The boy spotted them and immediately ran over excitedly. "Brother Lin! Brother Ted! You're back!"

"Yeah." Lin Mo smiled and ruffled Peter's hair. "I brought you a gift." He pulled a small preserved desert lizard from his bag—Ted had bought it, and Lin Mo had always found it creepy. It would make good research material for Peter.

"Wow! Thanks, Brother Lin!" Peter's eyes shone as he carefully accepted the specimen. "Did you see Mjolnir? Was it really cool?"

"Cool doesn't even begin to cover it. It was downright incredible." Ted jumped in, spraying Peter's face with spit as he spoke. "Not even a tank could pull it! And there was this blond lunatic who kept shouting that it was his hammer. S.H.I.E.L.D. caught him several times..."

Lin Mo said nothing and merely touched the black stone in his pocket. The wristband's synchronization rate had stabilized at 53%, and its energy sensor indicated that the stone's power was slowly being released. It would likely last for about a week. He knew that this trip to New Mexico had been about far more than simply picking up a stone.

Back in the basement, Lin Mo hid the black stone inside the iron box beneath his mattress, together with his savings and Peter's map. As he closed the lid, he suddenly felt the wristband on his arm grow lighter, as if it had completed some kind of mission.

Sunlight streamed through the small window and fell across the toolbox on the floor. Lin Mo picked up a wrench and tried tightening a screw he had failed to fix yesterday. The strength from Physical Enhancement made it easy, and even Phasing Ability seemed to flow more smoothly—when he had closed the box just now, his fingers had unintentionally passed through the metal sheet without the usual resistance.

"Looks like this stone has hidden effects too." Lin Mo smiled, suddenly filled with anticipation for his next check-in. With Asgard energy enhancing him, what ability would he gain next time? Would it have something to do with Thor?

A knock came from the door, followed by Martha's voice. "Lin! You just got back, so hurry over and eat breakfast. I made your favorite fried eggs. They'll get cold if you wait any longer!"

"Coming!" Lin Mo called back, grabbing his coat as he headed out.

The hallway was filled with the smell of fried eggs. Ted was already seated at Martha's dining table, his cheeks stuffed full of food. Snowball lay on his lap, gnawing on a piece of bacon. Peter held the lizard specimen and scribbled in his notebook, while Aunt May worked busily in the kitchen, humming a cheerful tune.

Looking at the scene before him, Lin Mo suddenly felt immensely at peace. As thrilling as the New Mexico adventure had been, it could not compare to the warmth of breakfast in Queens. The black stone might contain immense power, but to him, the most precious things were these noisy, ordinary days.

"What are you spacing out for? Eat up." Martha placed a plate of fried eggs before him. The golden yolk spilled out and mixed with ketchup like an abstract painting. "You didn't go hungry in New Mexico, did you? Look how thin you are. A gust of wind could blow you over."

"I didn't go hungry. Cousin Dale treated us to barbecue." Lin Mo picked up his fork, warmth filling his heart.

The sunlight outside was just right, spilling through the window onto the table and gilding everyone's faces. Lin Mo took a bite of fried egg, and the rich fragrance of yolk spread through his mouth. He suddenly felt that no matter how many adventures awaited him, as long as he could return here and eat Martha's fried eggs, he had nothing to fear.

As for the black stone hidden in the iron box? He would treat it as a souvenir from New Mexico. Perhaps one day, it would prove very useful.