"Hank?" Charles saw Beast Hank and was completely shocked. "Why do you have a chainsaw?"
"Um... I..." Hank didn't expect Charles to return so quickly, and he didn't know what to say. "We... um... were playing a game... and I wanted to join in..."
"What kind of game is it? And why do you need a chainsaw?" Charles couldn't believe his eyes. "I can't believe what I'm seeing. I thought you were sensible, Hank. Do you realize how dangerous that tool is?"
"I..." Hank looked down, feeling regretful for his impulsive actions. "I'm sorry, Professor..."
"Okay, let's not blame him." Erik comforted Charles. "If you think the chainsaw is dangerous, the people inside are even more dangerous. Have you figured out what to do?"
"..." Charles rubbed his temples, feeling a headache coming on.
Before he could decide on a plan, they heard Fang Mo's voice from the activity room. "Hey, isn't that our mind-reading prince?"
Everyone turned their attention to Charles and Erik upon hearing this. However, they were still young and too caught up in their excitement to notice the tense atmosphere. Raven, in particular, jumped off the couch with enthusiasm. "Who's the mind-reading prince? We agreed to call Charles Professor X..."
"Look at his pale face, he clearly doesn't like that nickname," Fang Mo sat on the couch, happily poking the fire. "Let's just call him Wheelchair Guy. With his personality, he might end up as a high-level quadriplegic one day."
"So, what are you all up to?" Seeing Charles remain silent, Erik took the lead. "And why is the room so messy?"
"We're playing a game." Salvador the Angel realized something was off and spoke up quickly. "Fang Mo... brought out a gold block and said we could take whatever we want from it."
"A gold block? What gold block?" Erik asked, confused.
"It's this," Alex, also known as Havok, pointed to the broken gold block in front of him, a smile of excitement on his face. "I can't believe it. Looks like I'm the richest person here now."
"Except for Fang Mo," Darwin added.
"A gold block?" Charles and the others shifted their attention to Alex's side upon hearing the conversation. Indeed, there was something broken into two halves on the ground, but without an explanation, no one would consider it gold due to its large size.
Erik tried to manipulate the object with his powers, but since gold isn't affected by magnetism, he couldn't hide his surprise. "Wow, could this thing really be made of gold?"
Charles also picked up on the thoughts of the others to some extent.
He wasn't invading their privacy or anything like that. In fact, he had been practicing self-control recently, so he could only sense their emotions. He noticed that these young mutants were very excited.
—
Charles started to believe the story a little when they mentioned gold.
"Where did you get all this gold?" Charles asked Fang Mo, surprised. "Aren't you focused on combat? Is this gold... stolen?"
"I dug up this gold myself," Fang Mo replied directly to Charles. "You clearly haven't been handling things well. You left these children here without caring for them. So, what's wrong with me, as an elder, giving them a small gift?"
"Your gift is really generous," Erik couldn't help but comment.
"It's nothing special," Fang Mo shrugged and smiled. "If Charles ever becomes paralyzed, I could even give him a golden wheelchair..."
"Why do you always bring up me being paralyzed?" Charles asked. "You don't seem hostile, but you keep mentioning it. Why?"
"I'm just reminding you with good intentions," Fang Mo smiled and raised his hands. "Your voyeuristic soul is so corrupt that it could harm even a healthy body. Who knows, one day you might become paralyzed?"
"Let's not talk about whether I'll be paralyzed or not right now," Erik interrupted Fang Mo's banter, focused on their arch-nemesis Sebastian. "We've found Sebastian's trail, and he's currently in the Soviet Union. We need to fly there within an hour."
"The Soviet Union?" Fang Mo remembered the plot upon hearing this. If he recalled correctly, the trace they found in the Soviet Union wasn't Sebastian but the White Queen Emma. It was a trap to lure Charles and Erik there, allowing Sebastian to attack and kill the young mutants on their side.
"I'm not going," Fang Mo straightforwardly declined Erik's invitation.
"Why?" Charles asked, confused. "Aren't you searching for Sebastian? Why won't you come with us?"
"Have you seen the gold on the ground?" Fang Mo couldn't be bothered to explain and made up an excuse. "I dug it up from the Soviet Union's underground treasury."
"Well, if that's the case, we have no choice," Charles and Erik exchanged a helpless look and left first.
CIA agent Moira quickly followed them. She believed that compared to the young mutants, these two were more dependable.
Soon, the three of them flew together into Soviet territory.
After Charles and the others left, Fang Mo stopped teasing. He had already had enough fun earlier, and now he had to capture Sebastian. Therefore, he decided to go back and take a nap first.
However, the other young mutants were still excited about the gold and continued celebrating late into the night.
—
The next day came quickly.
Fang Mo woke up early and went to the kitchen with a big piece of beef.
This beef was from the Minecraft world and was as big as a washbasin in real life, with beautiful patterns on it like marble.
The CIA chef had never seen someone eat steak so early in the morning, but he knew Fang Mo was special and didn't want to ignore him. He took the beef, cut a piece, and quickly cooked a juicy and tender steak for Fang Mo.
After finishing the steak, Fang Mo asked the chef for another portion and then went to the activity room.
About two hours later, Logan came in with a cigar.
"Have you eaten?" Fang Mo asked Logan. "If not, do you want me to cook for you?"
"Can you stop causing trouble in the morning?" Logan replied without looking at Fang Mo. He sat at the bar counter, took out a glass, and prepared to drink. "Do we have any peanuts left?"
"Or should I prepare some fennel beans for you next time?" Fang Mo smiled and said, "Drinking whiskey all the time isn't that interesting. Next time, I'll find a way to get you some authentic aged cellar liquor, fermented at low temperatures. It has a really nice aroma..."
"I always feel like you have something else to say." As Logan poured himself a drink, he said, "But thanks anyway, I've never tried that stuff."
Just as Logan was about to drink, Fang Mo suddenly took away his glass. Then Logan saw that Fang Mo had brought a large plate of hot steak, filling the air with its delicious smell.
"Don't just drink, have some food." Fang Mo smiled and placed the plate on the counter. "There's a big event tonight, so remember to stand by my side and make comments when the jokes come up."
"Got it." Logan grabbed a piece of beef and ate it. He chewed and said, "I'll try to stay away then... Mmm, this steak is really delicious."
He took another piece and enjoyed it.
Unlike Fang Mo and Logan, the other young mutants woke up in the afternoon because they had stayed up late the previous night. They groggily ate in the cafeteria before going to the activity room.
The CIA people were efficient.
They had almost destroyed the place the night before, but by the next day, everything was back to normal. They fixed everything and made it look like new, except for the grass.
As for Alex, he had the most gold, so he talked to the CIA's higher-ups and gave them some of the gold for the repairs. The agents were curious about where Alex got the gold, but when they heard that Fang Mo brought it, they stopped asking.
Time passed quickly, and soon it was night. Logan looked at the sky outside, then put down his glass.
Fang Mo hummed a tune while watching TV, not feeling worried at all.
The young mutants on the other side were unaware that something bad was about to happen. They kept playing games and having fun.
But good times don't last forever. Before long, they heard strange noises from outside.
"What's happening?" Salvador the Angel asked nervously.
"I don't know," said Beast Hank, frowning. "But it doesn't seem good."
Everyone gathered by the window to see what was going on outside.
Suddenly, the head of the base fell from the sky and crashed outside the window, making a big mess of flesh and blood splattering on the glass.
~~~
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