Ye Mo's knees were still trembling, not from fear, but because the steel Steel Bone in his right leg was almost falling apart; every movement felt like an iron nail scraping against the bone. He steadied himself by holding onto Mjolnir, refusing Thor's help. Although the guy had a strong grip, if word got out that he was being supported by a god who was injured, how could he maintain his reputation as " Mr. X "?
The smoke and dust above the ruins hadn't settled yet, and the charred remains of the aircraft were still emitting wisps of smoke. A few Dark Elves were twitching on the ground, probably survivors of the lightning strike. Ye Mo raised his foot and crushed the helmet of a guy trying to get up with his still-functioning left leg. With a crack, the guy stopped moving.
"Clear the area." He caught his breath, wiping the blood from his face. "Leave no survivors; it's a waste of time."
Thor stood slightly behind him, Mjolnir hanging heavily on the ground, arcs of electricity still crackling at its tip. He glanced at the distant horizon, his brow furrowing. "Something's not right."
"What?" Ye Mo asked.
"The enemy withdrew too cleanly." Thor squinted. "Just a moment ago they were clamoring to use the blood of the three of us to restart the ritual, and now there's not even a single one left to shout slogans."
As soon as he finished speaking, Emma Frost's voice came from the right, weak but clear. "The main ship has moved."
She leaned against a broken metal plate, her fingers pressed against her temples, her face as white as paper, but her eyes were fixed on the void ahead. "A large spaceship is initiating a higher-dimensional jump program; its energy signature matches Malekith's flagship. They're not fleeing in disarray, they're making a tactical retreat."
Ye Mo grinned, his gums covered in blood. "Oh? I thought they'd been beaten into submission, turns out they're just changing locations to continue their act."
"You're still in the mood for jokes?" Emma Frost gasped for breath. "We're all injured right now; chasing after them would be suicide."
"We still have to send it." Ye Mo stretched his left arm, the Steel Bone emitting a harsh grinding sound. "You don't understand, this can't be delayed. If Malekith recovers from this, and combines the Aether with their crappy technology, they might just create a 'dark matter nuclear bomb.' Then it won't just be this wasteland that gets blown up, it'll be the entire galaxy."
He paused, and suddenly a mechanical voice rang in his mind—[High-intensity energy resonance residue detected; priority tracking of the jump trail recommended].
"The system spoke again?" Thor glanced at him.
"Mm." Ye Mo nodded. "Official confirmation, we have no choice but to follow."
"You still believe that stupid system?" Emma Frost rolled her eyes. "Last time it made you crawl into a radiation pile, it almost turned you into a glowing object."
"Didn't I survive that time?" Ye Mo shrugged. "And look, it didn't make me jump into the black hole, which means there's still a bottom line."
Thor couldn't help but laugh out loud, "Are you two done arguing? The flagship is about to leave."
All three looked up at the same time.
At the edge of the distant starry sky, a colossal, pitch-black warship slowly rose into the air, its surface adorned with eerie runes and patterns, resembling some ancient activation incantation. Then, space began to distort, and ripples spread outwards, gradually pulling the warship into a cracked black tunnel.
"The jump has begun," Emma Frost said tautly. "One second later, and the trajectory wouldn't have been locked."
"We don't have any ships." Thor looked around. " The Bifrost can carry people, but not entire warships."
"Who said we were going to use a proper ship?" Ye Mo limped toward a pile of wreckage, pried open a few twisted pieces of metal, and pulled out a palm-sized black device from underneath. Its surface was covered with cracks, but its core was still slightly warm.
"What is this?" Thor asked.
"Loot." Ye Mo blew off the dust. "A short-range warp beacon from the Dark Elves. I took it while I was shooting down a reconnaissance plane. It's broken, but it can still detect warp energy remnants, so it's like a secondhand GPS."
Emma Frost frowned. "It works?"
"Not necessarily," Ye Mo grinned. "But let's give it a try. Anyway, the three of us have nothing left to lose besides our lives."
He crouched down, pressed the beacon to the ground, and the end of his left hand's Steel Bone deformed, extending a thin, needle-like structure that he inserted into the beacon's interface. A surge of electricity coursed through him, he groaned, and sweat beaded on his forehead, but he didn't let go.
"System, parse the protocol format of this thing for me," he muttered to himself.
[Comparing Dark Elves 7th Generation Warp Code... Match Rate 63%, Basic Heading Data Available]
"That's enough." Ye Mo opened his eyes. "I've got the heading; the coordinates point to an abandoned star system in the outer Orion ring. The distance is unknown, but the trajectory is clear."
"But how do we catch up?" Emma Frost pressed. "On foot? By hitchhiking?"
Thor suddenly raised his hand, palm facing upwards. "I can use the remaining energy of the Bifrost to open a temporary passage, but it can only last for ten minutes, and can only connect to one light ship."
"A lightweight one will do." Ye Mo stood up, brushing the dust off his pants. "As long as it can fly, I'll accept it even if it's a space tricycle."
"There's a stalker ship on the outskirts of Asgard, a remnant of the last war, still moored in the asteroid belt." Thor closed his eyes, concentrating. "I'll try contacting the bridge keeper."
Emma Frost immediately said, "Wait, if you activate the Bifrost, Asgard will notice, Odin might block the passage."
"The old man's been dozing off a lot lately," Thor smirked. "Besides, I said I was going on patrol; he won't check my attendance record."
He clasped his hands together and whispered an ancient incantation. The ground began to tremble, and a faint golden light descended from the sky, landing between the three of them and quickly expanding into a circular light array. At the center of the light array, a blurry image appeared—a streamlined silver warship, quietly resting among a string of floating meteorites.
"Got it." Thor opened his eyes. "Navigation is synchronized; the passage is valid for ten minutes."
"Then what are we waiting for?" Ye Mo, leaning on Mjolnir, limped towards the light array. "Get on the bus, catch the last one."
Emma Frost didn't move.
"You really want to chase after them?" She looked at the two of them. "In our current state, we can barely protect ourselves. If Malekith has set an ambush, the three of us will all perish in deep space."
"I know the risks." Ye Mo stopped and glanced back at her. "But you also know the consequences. If we let him catch his breath, the next time he appears, it might not just be about stealing a particle; he might just put the entire universe into night mode."
He paused, his voice lowering, "I'm not a hero, nor do I want to be a savior. But after being here for so long, this is the first time I feel like I can actually do something. This time, I don't want to back down."
Emma Frost stared at him for a few seconds, then finally sighed, "Fine, but if you make me take the fall again this time, I'll really lose my temper."
"Don't worry," Ye Mo laughed, "This time I'll block the way, you just swear."
Thor was the last to step into the light array, waving his hand to recall Mjolnir. Golden light surged, instantly engulfing the three figures.
The next second, they appeared at the edge of the asteroid belt.
The hunting ship was smaller than expected, entirely silver-gray with sharp lines, like a dagger stuck in space. The hull was somewhat rusty, but the engine assembly was still glowing slightly red, indicating that the power source was still running.
"Well maintained." Ye Mo patted the hatch. "Much better than my old secondhand electric scooter from college."
The three entered the ship; the interior was cramped, and the control consoles flickered with a faint blue light. Thor took the pilot's seat and quickly activated the system. Emma Frost went to the co-pilot's console, connected via Telepathy, and began calibrating the course.
"The beacon data has been imported," she said. "The residual frequency of the transition wake is stable, allowing us to lock onto the tracking path."
"Let's go then." Ye Mo plopped down in the back seat, stretched out his right leg, and gasped in pain. "Does this lousy ship even have seatbelts? I'm afraid I'll fall apart halfway through the trip."
"Yes," Thor said without turning his head, "But I can't guarantee we can withstand the warp shock."
As the roar of engines grew louder, the hunting ship slowly detached from the asteroid belt, turned around, and aimed at the spatial rift in the depths of space that was not yet fully closed.
"Preparing to enter the jump orbit," Emma Frost reminded. "The estimated travel time is unknown; it could be several hours, or it could be several days."
"It doesn't matter." Ye Mo leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes. "As long as I can catch up, it's worth a nap."
The ship trembled slightly, the space in front of it began to distort, and a dark blue passage slowly unfolded.
Just as the hunting ship was about to enter, Thor suddenly spoke, " Ye Mo."
"Um?"
"If you really go after him alone, I'll beat you up."
Ye Mo opened his eyes and smiled, "Then you'll have to catch up with me first."
Thor didn't turn around, but a smile played on his lips.
The hunter ship rushed into the warp portal, and behind it, the golden light dissipated, and the asteroid belt returned to silence.
Deep in the universe, a faint signal continues to be transmitted—the warp remnant left by Malekith's flagship, like an invisible thread connecting the fugitives on one end and three relentless pursuers on the other.
Inside the ship, Emma Frost tapped her fingers lightly on the control panel, correcting the course.
Thor gripped the joystick tightly, his eyes calm.
Ye Mo gazed at the endless sea of stars before him, his right hand unconsciously touching the crack in the Steel Bone of his left arm.
A small piece of reflective film was still stuck in the crack.