Soft sobs suddenly rose from nearby.
Wanda stumbled into Pietro's arms, her eyes red and tears streaming down her face, her voice choked with lingering fear:
"You scared me to death! I really thought you were going to be stuck on that island forever."
Held tightly by his sister, Pietro froze for a moment, then repeatedly ran his hands over his limbs and torso. Once he confirmed that he was completely intact, with nothing missing, all his lingering fear vanished, replaced by youthful, swaggering pride.
He lifted his head and puffed out his chest, an smug smile curling his lips as he said with affected nonchalance:
"Are you kidding? How could I die that easily? I'm Quicksilver, the fastest person in the world!"
The sea breeze blew gently as everyone gradually came back to their senses.
Erik rose to his feet, slowly sweeping his gaze over everyone present.
Raven, Alex Summers, Darwin, Charles, Pietro, Wanda, Azazel, Riptide, the White Queen, Moira-even the innocent civilian pilot was safe and sound.
After this brutal battle against overwhelming odds, everyone had survived. Not a single person was missing.
Only Shaw had been utterly obliterated in the nuclear blast, leaving no remains.
Erik stood rooted to the spot, his eyes filled with astonishment and complicated feelings as he murmured:
"Was I overthinking it...? He actually kept everyone alive. But what about Shaw?"
Charles slowly approached and gently patted Erik's shoulder, his voice warm and tinged with relief:
"Shaw is dead. It seems we both misunderstood the Boss. For a while, I thought he'd deliberately brought out Compound V and let Shaw grow stronger and wreak havoc."
Erik remained silent for a long time before gently shaking his head. Thoughts churned behind his eyes, and his outlook changed completely.
"You underestimate him. No one in