The sunlight shone on his back, a real warmth. Ye Mo stood motionless in the ruins, his hands still in his pockets, the Vibranium fragment he had been squeezing and squeezing until the edges hurt his palms.
He knew that the warm current was gone. It hadn't just receded; it had completely disappeared, like a battery that had run out of power and wouldn't respond no matter how many times he pressed the switch.
His Regeneration ability was still there, but very slowly. A thin scab had formed on the wound on his right arm, and it would burst open with the slightest movement. He didn't care about that, and took a step forward.
The sound of crying came from afar.
It wasn't a scream or a cry for help, just the kind of intermittent sobbing a child would have, stuck in their throat. He could tell they were terrified.
"Let's go," he said. "There are others waiting for us."
Tony was leaning against the half-collapsed billboard, panting. Most of his armor modules had been removed, leaving only the torso connected by wires. He looked up at the sound, "What did you say?"
"Save them." Ye Mo didn't turn around. "Now."
Emma Frost stood up from a pile of rubble. She had been crouching down to comfort an old man who had grabbed her hand and wouldn't let go. She gently pulled her hand away, patted the old man's shoulder, and then walked over.
Thor hoisted Mjolnir back onto his shoulder, its Hammerhead covered in dust, with arcs of electricity occasionally flickering. He nodded and took the first step forward.
The four people dispersed and walked towards the city center, and no one spoke again.
--
Tony walked to the corner of the third block, took a palm-sized metal box out of his backpack, pressed a button, and a circle of blue light swept out. Small drones buzzed into the air and flew in different directions like a swarm of bees.
"Signal restored by 30%," he said while operating the tablet. "The temporary base station won't last long, but it's enough to draw a rescue map."
He looked up at a collapsed office building, its exterior walls cracked open, the inside pitch black. Footage from the drone showed faint signs of life on the second basement level.
"Someone is alive," he said. "B2, three people, with low body temperature."
Ye Mo closed his eyes and scanned the area with his Telepathy. He wasn't detecting enemies, but searching for a heartbeat. Three faint fluctuations were hidden within the concrete interlayer; the rhythm was unstable, but the heartbeat was definitely still there.
"Southwest corner, steel frame support area." He opened his eyes. "There's space below, but the entrance is blocked."
Tony launched two engineering robots, which crawled along tracks into the gap and began cutting through the steel bars. In less than ten minutes, the passage was cleared, and the rescue team descended along ropes to pull the three people out.
One of the women opened her eyes, saw Ye Mo standing to the side, and her lips moved. He shook his head, signaling her to be quiet, then turned and left.
--
Thor arrived at the subway station entrance, the entire road was blocked by an overturned train, with an advertising tower several meters high pinned to the ground. He heard banging and shouts for help coming from below.
He placed his hand on the steel beam and lifted it with force. The metal made a screeching sound as it was slowly lifted up. Five workers crawled out, their faces covered in dust, their legs too weak to stand.
The neighboring residential buildings were pitch black, with shattered glass everywhere. He raised his hammer and tapped the ground lightly. A current shot up along the broken wire, and the streetlights flickered a few times before two of them lit up.
The children ran out of the house and looked up. A little boy pointed to the sky and asked, "Is it thundering?"
"Not thunder," Thor said, "It's light."
He knocked three more times, and more streetlights came on. Although the lights were unstable and flickering, they were enough to make it clear where one was walking.
--
Emma Frost walked into the ruins of a supermarket. Shelves were overturned and milk powder cans were scattered everywhere. In the corner sat a mother and daughter. The child, about six years old, was shivering in her mother's arms, her eyes wide open, not saying a word.
She crouched down to be at eye level with the child. She didn't try to read the child's mind or give any commands; she simply placed her hand gently on the child's small hand.
A gentle ripple spread out, like wind blowing across water. The child's shoulders relaxed, his breathing deepened, and he fell asleep on his mother's shoulder.
Her mother looked up at her, tears welling in her eyes. "She hasn't slept a wink since last night."
"Now she can sleep," Emma Frost said. "Don't let her see those things again."
She stood up and walked towards the next gathering point. On the way, she encountered several young people who had spontaneously organized to distribute drinking water. She stopped and asked if there was a priority list for the elderly and the injured. They nodded and handed her a handwritten note.
She took it, glanced at it, and noticed that three names were marked "out of contact." She folded the paper and put it in her pocket, intending to check later.
--
After noon, the four met up in the center of the square.
Tony removed the last few pieces of his armor, sat on the stone steps, and tossed four bottles of water from his bag. Ye Mo caught them, unscrewed the cap, and took a sip. The water was a little warm, but very clean.
"Drink sparingly," Tony said. "There won't be any more supplies later."
Emma Frost took the water, but didn't drink it. Instead, she turned and handed it to an elderly woman with a cane. The woman thanked her repeatedly, and Emma just nodded.
Thor looked up at the sky, a crack appearing in the clouds, letting sunlight stream down onto his face. "Mortals are stronger than I thought," he said. "They didn't wait for the gods to save them; they started repairing themselves."
Ye Mo took off his glasses and wiped the lenses with his sleeve. A sliver of green sprouted from the scorched earth; right at his feet, a blade of grass pushed aside the rubble. He stared at it for a long time, then murmured, "As long as the roots aren't broken, that's enough."
--
As darkness fell, the power had not yet been restored.
Tony remotely activated Stark Tower's emergency system, and a beam of light shot from the top of the main building, shooting straight into the night sky. The beam rotated, like a lighthouse, illuminating a radius of several kilometers.
"The shelter is in the East Gymnasium," he said into the communicator. "All survivors, gather over there; there are food and medical tents."
Thor raised his hammer again, drawing three arcs of electricity through the air. The brief flashes, like the aurora borealis, dispelled some of the darkness. Several children standing in the street looked up and smiled.
Emma Frost sat cross-legged on an open space, closing her eyes and concentrating. The emotional Bobby she released were more intense and covered a wider area than during the day. The frequency of panic was decreasing, and her heartbeat was becoming more and more steady.
Ye Mo stood on high ground, leaning against the broken wall. His Telepathy swept across the area; the pain signals had lessened, and his breathing had become regular. Looking at the beam of light in the distance, he whispered, "It's alive."
--
At two o'clock in the morning, the temperature had dropped very low.
Tony dozed off against the car door, his coat draped over his shoulders. Emma Frost was wrapped in a rescue blanket, her eyes closed, but her brow furrowed. Thor sat in the middle of the road, clutching his hammer, watching over a group of sleeping homeless people.
Ye Mo was still walking.
He walked through three streets and came to a kindergarten that was half collapsed. A charred cartoon sign hung at the entrance, swaying in the wind. He pushed the door open and went inside. The classroom was full of ash, the desks and chairs were overturned, and the posters on the walls were half burned.
In the corner was a little girl's pink backpack with a bear printed on it. The zipper was open, and inside was a family photo; the three people in the photo were smiling happily.
He squatted down, took out the photo, wiped the dust off with his sleeve, put it back in, zipped it up, and placed it on the podium.
I had just stood up when I heard a noise outside.
A pickup truck pulled up, its cargo piled high with bottled water and blankets. The driver, a middle-aged man with a full beard, got out and shouted into the walkie-talkie, "The second batch of supplies has arrived. Anyone want to help unload?"
Ye Mo walked out.
The man glanced at him. "Are you a volunteer too?"
He nodded.
"Then I'll lend a hand." The man opened the carriage door. "There are three more trips tonight, can you manage?"
"Yes," he said. "I have plenty of strength."