The Vibranium fragment in his pocket suddenly felt hot, like a red-hot iron sheet pressed directly against his outer thigh. Ye Mo's pupils contracted, and he sprang straight from his semi-reclined position, his back slamming against the edge of the control panel with a "thud." He didn't call for help or look at Tony; his right hand had already instinctively reached into his pocket and gripped the thing—the temperature was still soaring, and the vibrations traveled from his fingertips all the way to his shoulder blades.
"Here you are." He said in a very low voice, almost as if he were squeezing it out between his teeth.
The moment the words left his mouth, the first muffled thud came from the direction of the main entrance to the laboratory, like a heavy object slamming into the blast door. Then came the second, the third, the rhythm quickening, the creaking sound of twisting metal piercing the eardrums.
Tony didn't even look up, his finger tracing three red lines on the holographic screen. "I know." His tone was eerily calm, as if the impact had just been someone moving furniture next door. "I just finished charging the turret; it just needs a trigger signal."
Ye Mo didn't reply. He pushed off the ground and shot towards the door like a bullet. The hem of his hoodie swung in an arc, and the knees of his work pants grazed the corner of the control panel with a soft "sizzle." He wasn't thinking about anything, and the system didn't give any warnings. His body reacted before his mind could process it—at a time like this, even half a second of hesitation could turn the entire laboratory into fireworks.
Five steps from the door, his arms began to change color. The surface of his skin turned metallic gray, and his muscle fibers seemed to be stretched and reorganized from the inside by an invisible hand, with his bones making a faint "clicking" sound. By the time he stood in front of the door, his entire left arm had been completely hardened, and his right arm had completed 80% of the transformation. The skin on his chest and shoulders was rapidly hardening into silver-gray armor.
The banging outside the door stopped.
Silence is more frightening than attack.
Ye Mo slowed his breathing, his ears perked up, staring at the alloy door that had already been dented. He knew this wouldn't be the end, but only the prelude. Sure enough, less than three seconds later, a cylindrical object slid in through the crack in the door, rolled twice after landing, and the red light on top began to flash.
"Grenade!" Tony yelled from behind, but he didn't really need to.
Ye Mo was prepared. He took a half-step forward with his right foot and slammed his Steel Bone Transformation left hand down, pressing the grenade firmly into the ground. When the shockwave exploded, sparks shot out from between his fingers, and a wave of heat, carrying debris, hit his face, blowing off his hoodie. The explosion made the entire space vibrate, but his arm remained motionless. The floor beneath his palm cracked into a spiderweb pattern, and the grenade remnants were embedded in his Steel Bone palm, like a crushed soda can.
Before the smoke and dust had even cleared, the second wave of attacks arrived.
"Boom--!"
The Rocket flew close to the ground, hitting the center of the door precisely. Ye Mo's pupils contracted sharply. Without thinking, he crossed his arms to block in front of him, and Steel Bone Structure instantly covered his entire front body. The blast wave hit him in the face, and he was thrown back half a meter. His shoes scraped two black marks on the ground, and his back slammed hard into the deformed door frame, shaking his internal organs.
The flames engulfed our vision.
As the smoke dissipated slightly, the figure in the doorway was still standing, arms crossed, his Steel Bone gleaming with a dark luster, bearing several charred marks, but structurally intact. His hat was long gone, his bangs were blown wildly by the hot wind, and the silver half-rimmed glasses on his nose were askew, the lens cracked.
"Wow." He took a breath and adjusted his glasses. "That was a pretty good barrage."
No one answered from outside the door.
Only the sound of footsteps, dense and orderly, could be heard, at least seven or eight people, surrounding him in a fan shape. Ye Mo could hear the crunch of tactical boots on gravel, the metallic scraping of guns being cocked, and a low-frequency hum—like the sound of a human body burning unstablely at high temperatures.
He knew these were Extremis Soldier.
Tony's voice came from behind, unusually calm. "Third vent on the left corner, hidden compartment button, press it."
Ye Mo didn't turn around, only glancing at the location out of the corner of his eye. He lightly tapped his left foot, then suddenly exerted force with his Steel Bone right leg, moving two meters to the side like a cannonball. His knee smashed through a pile of scrapped equipment, and his right hand reached for the corner of the wall. His fingertips touched a slightly protruding metal plate, which he pressed down hard.
A soft "beep" sounded.
Suddenly, three cracks appeared in the ceiling above, and three palm-sized automatic turrets popped out, their rotating barrels locking onto targets outside the door, red dots sweeping across the enemy's forehead.
"Da da da--!"
Bullets rained down.
Chaos erupted outside the door. Some roared, others rolled to avoid the attack. A soldier who was about to raise his gun fell backward, blood spurting from his forehead. The other two were pinned down behind cover and could only return fire blindly.
Seizing the opportunity, Ye Mo took a sudden step forward, his Steel Bone right fist swinging in a wide arc as he smashed into an enemy trying to flank him. The man reacted quickly, raising his gun to block, but the barrel was bent by the blow, and he flew out like a sandbag, knocking over two of his accomplices.
"Well done!" Tony whistled from behind. "I wouldn't mind having ten more."
"Save your energy praising me," Ye Mo growled, quickly retreating to his original position in front of the door, his arms once again in a defensive stance. "They won't just send small fry."
Before the words were even finished, a crimson figure leaped out from the right, moving so fast that it left afterimages. The person was radiating intense red light, with cracks in their skin revealing a molten orange-yellow hue. They carried a modified shotgun, the muzzle still smoking.
Just as Ye Mo was about to go forward, the other party did not aim at him, but instead turned the gun towards the inside of the laboratory and pulled the trigger.
"Watch out for the equipment!" Ye Mo's pupils contracted. Without thinking, his Steel Bone Body suddenly shifted to the side, using his left shoulder to take the bullet.
"Bang!"
The shotgun shells exploded, blasting a crater into the Steel Bone surface and sending Mars flying. The impact made him stagger half a step, but his feet felt firmly planted on the ground, preventing him from retreating.
A series of rapid knocking sounds came from Tony's end. "Don't let them get near the control panel! The data hasn't been backed up yet!"
"Do you think I'm just for show?" Ye Mo gritted his teeth, his right arm's Steel Bone instantly extended, his palm thinned and lengthened, forming a short blade, and he swung it horizontally with a backhand. The Extremis Soldier couldn't dodge in time, and a deep gash was slashed open in his chest, hot blood spurting out and vaporizing into Red Fog in the air.
But just then, another Rocket came hurtling in.
Ye Mo caught a glimpse of the trajectory out of the corner of his eye, and his heart skipped a beat—this time the angle was tricky, shooting down obliquely from the dilapidated platform on the second floor, and it couldn't block the inside at all.
Without hesitation, he crossed Steel Bone arms to protect his head and lunged towards the door, using his back to catch the explosion.
"Boom!!!"
The shockwave shook the entire building, dust fell from the ceiling, several wires snapped and dangled, sparks crackling. Ye Mo was blasted to his knees, his knees sinking into the shattered floor tiles. Large patches of charred blackened material peeled off the surface of his Steel Bone, revealing slightly reddish tissue underneath—a sign that his abilities were about to give way.
But he held on.
Amidst the smoke and dust, he knelt on one knee, bracing himself with his hands, and looked up at the doorway.
The enemy did not attack again.
A brief silence.
The only sounds were the crackling of flames and the intermittent wailing of distant alarms.
Ye Mo gasped for breath, his fingers digging into the cracks in the ground as he slowly propped himself up. His Steel Bone were slowly repairing themselves, a grayish-white substance spreading from his joints and re-covering the damaged areas. He wiped his face and found his palms covered in a mixture of ash and blood.
"Are you still alive?" Tony's voice came from behind, slightly teasing, but his tone was tense.
"I won't die." Ye Mo straightened up, stood back in front of the door, and slowly raised his arms into a defensive stance. "But next time, could you please tell me in advance whether your turrets have armor-piercing shells?"
"Yes, but it has to be loaded manually," Tony said, quickly manipulating the control panel. "And I don't have my hands free right now."
"Then let's pray they don't unleash another volley." Ye Mo stared at the direction of the dark figures moving outside the door, his throat dry. "Otherwise, this suit of mine will really be ruined on the spot."
Footsteps sounded outside again.
This time, there were more people, and the pace was more stable, as if they were rearranging their formation in an organized manner. Ye Mo could see at least five high-temperature heat sources approaching from different directions, two of which were ridiculously hot and were clearly enhanced types.
He glanced down at his Steel Bone arm; the cracks on its surface hadn't fully healed, and its Regeneration rate couldn't keep up with the damage. He knew that if he were hit by another Rocket -level attack, he might not be able to stand up again.
The gate must be guarded.
Behind them was Tony, the core program of the Anti-Extremis Armor, their only chance to turn the tide. As long as this place didn't fall, there was hope.
He stretched his shoulders; the metallic scraping sound was exceptionally clear in the silence.
"Hey, Tony," he suddenly said.
"Um?"
"If I lie down later, remember to drag me inside. Don't let me die at the door; that would be too embarrassing."
"Don't worry," Tony said without looking up. "If you really collapse, I'll stuff you into a cryogenic chamber the moment you're fixed up, then kick you awake to continue taking bullets."
Ye Mo grinned, revealing a set of white teeth.
The next second, he suddenly widened his eyes, crossed Steel Bone arms to protect his face, and leaned forward like an iron beast ready to tear its prey apart.
Outside the door, the firelight flared up again.