American Comics: Multiverse of Madness

142. Regressed Civilization.

After leaving the confines of Hammerfall City, Alex and his companions truly witnessed the living conditions of ordinary people in this world.

Their target was Count Nefaria. This guy was formerly the head of the Nefaria family of the Mafia. Later, he acquired ionic energy and transformed into a supervillain. He not only possesses superhuman strength and speed, but he can also fly and shoot laser beams from his eyes. He was practically a weakened version of a Kryptonian.

Alex believed that the energy he could extract from Nefaria would significantly recharge the Timepad. Since the criminals' victory, Count Nefaria had gone into semi-retirement. If it weren't for Barton's mention, Alex might have overlooked this guy.

Thanks to Hawkeye's intel, Alex found his actions much easier to carry out, and among these targets was Moonstone. Alex remembered that Moonstone was also a member of the Thunderbolts, as well as one of Hawkeye's targets for revenge.

In other words, if he moved quickly enough, Alex might meet Barton at Moonstone's location. The journey was difficult. Former towns had long vanished, replaced by isolated villages scattered across the map. But passing through these places for a rest was no easy task because there was no certainty that anyone alive still resided in those villages.

Wide and smooth roads had become a source of income for gangs who charged tolls. Ordinary people could only take mountain paths to travel, sleeping in hills and graveyards. But those places seemed even more dangerous than gang territories, as one could never be sure whose eyes were watching from the dark.

Crossing over Sierra Mountain, they saw a small village at the foot of the barren hills.

Alex wasn't sure whose territory this was, but from the looks of this poor place, it didn't seem worth a gang's attention. From a distance, the village was surrounded by wooden fences. The houses were devoid of any aesthetic appeal or concept of lighting, probably hastily built. Alex saw that many of the roofs were leaking, with one even half-collapsed.

The road from the barren hills to the village was winding and desolate, with not a blade of grass in sight, only the faint life of a few crops in the fields suggesting any vitality.

Alex and his companions donned robes, hiding their faces under hoods, exchanged a glance, and slowly entered the village.

There was no "gate" to speak of, only a wooden sign with the village name "Rock Springs Village" crudely carved on it. Alex had to spend some time deciphering it because one of the letters was misspelled, indicating the low level of literacy here.

Upon entering the village, the three of them quickly attracted the attention of the local residents.

But that was all it was—attention.

The villagers continued their farm work, only casting distant glances, with no one attempting to approach or converse, nor did anyone try to get close to Alex and his companions. They just watched. Their eyes were filled with extreme wariness and numbness.

Alex saw no humanity in them, like programmed NPCs or walking corpses, devoid of life.

"Is this really the 'future' world?" Pietro exclaimed.

"This is the regression of civilization in the wasteland era. Here, everything changes drastically. Those in power hold the most resources, living in luxury, but for ordinary people, this place is no different from the prehistoric era," Alex said, his voice tinged with melancholy.

Alex had thought about gathering some supplies from this village since his fresh water resources were running low. He had some instant food to trade, even though he had no money. But now, Alex gave up the idea. Seeing these villagers barely hanging on to life, he just wanted to leave quickly.

As they passed a house, a child caught Kara's attention.

A little girl, no more than four or five years old, dirty, wearing tattered clothes, her bare feet covered in scars and calluses inappropriate for her age.

Alex and his companions had seen this house before entering the village. It was the one with the half-collapsed roof.

Getting closer, they saw that it was even worse than they imagined. Not only was the roof broken, but the entire house also lacked a door, with a large hole in the wall through which Alex could clearly see inside—there was an even younger boy.

As Alex and the others looked inside, the little girl noticed them. Perhaps it was her first time seeing outsiders, and she appeared extremely frightened. Her large eyes were filled with terror, and she seemed to want to find a place to hide, but unfortunately, the house was too broken to provide any hiding spots. Seeing this, Kara clenched her fists.

Alex understood that Kara was reminded of herself and her brother. This was something he couldn't console; she had to come to terms with it herself.

Kara stopped, took out a candy from her pocket, and after taking a few steps forward, her stiff face gradually softened into a smile, trying hard to show kindness to the little girl. Seeing this, the little girl was stunned.

Maybe it was her first time seeing this expression?

After a while, the girl seemed to make up her mind and limped out on her scarred feet. She was like a fawn, ready to flee back to her house at the slightest scare, never opening her heart to strangers again.

Kara held out the candy, her smile growing as the girl got closer. The girl gently took the candy from Kara and gave her a big smile. That was the smile she should have at her age. Then, the girl ran back into the dilapidated house and came out with a bowl of water. Perhaps this was her only treasured possession.

The bowl was old and looked dirty, but the water inside was very clean, with no impurities.

Kara accepted the bowl with a smile. She couldn't describe her feelings at that moment. She just felt heartbroken and wanted to lament the world's injustice.

Just as Kara was about to drink the water, her arm was suddenly grabbed. Kara turned, seeing Alex's calm, emotionless face under the brim of his hat.

"…"

And a cold, soft sigh.

"…the water is poisoned."

....

20 advanced chapters on p@treaon
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143. Bullseye's Special Mission.
144. A Superhero Organization?
145. Kara's Powerlessness.
146. The Batrang That Shouldn't Exist.
147. Vermin.