It was 9 AM on the 25th.
On a farm in the suburbs of New York, two old men were bickering.
"You old scoundrel, don't you have your own home?"
Old Tom was furious, seeing Old Jerry come over to his house for a free meal first thing in the morning.
"Oh, it's always more lively watching TV with more people around."
Old Jerry, familiar with the layout, opened the refrigerator, found his favorite cheese, and plopped down on the sofa with the plate.
Seeing that he was impervious to reason, Old Tom knew it was useless to say more. He could only turn on the TV and tune into Vought Television.
"Vought is truly resourceful, being able to arrange live broadcasts for conflicts like the Missile Crisis," Old Jerry remarked with emotion.
Indeed, the reason they were glued to the TV so early was because Vought Television had reported last night that several of the . Bear's warships were heading towards Cuba and were expected to arrive today, possibly leading to a direct confrontation with the United States.
They also announced that they would broadcast the entire conflict between the . Bear and the United States live today, a first among all global media.
"Other media can't even get past the blockade. How did Vought Television manage it?" Old Tom wondered.
"Oh? You don't know yet?"
"Right, you don't read The Observer Daily."
Old Jerry shrugged and handed today's The Observer Daily to Old Tom.
Old Tom recoiled as if he had seen something dirty, but he still caught a glimpse of crucial information.
"Angel, the Battlefield Reporter, Will Provide Live Broadcasts from the Conflict Zone!"
"Angel actually became a battlefield reporter?"
Even though Old Tom disliked The Observer, he had no ill will towards Angel, so he immediately exclaimed in surprise.
"It's very reasonable. After all, he can fly, which makes him much better than an ordinary reporter," Old Jerry praised.
"Angel truly lives up to his reputation as the most famous of Superheroes, daring to go to the most dangerous places. He's much stronger than the X-Squad, that group of Superheroes who got famous through hype," Old Tom commented.
Old Jerry glanced at The Collector Daily in his hand, which read—
"Fake Heroes, X-Squad!"
It took Old Jerry a while to pick out two sentences without forbidden words from the unseemly article—
"...The highly praised X-Squad, touted as 'everyone is a Superhero,' has yet to perform any heroic deeds, clearly living up to an undeserved reputation."
"...Since the Mutant Shaw is the mastermind behind the dangers to the World, why doesn't the X-Squad, as Mutant Superheroes, go to Cuba to stop the crisis...?"
He frowned: "Nonsense. Cuba is a Military conflict. How can the X-Squad get involved?"
Old Tom said smugly, "Even so, it doesn't change the fact that the X-Squad hasn't made any contributions."
Similar arguments to theirs were happening all over the World, but regardless of public opinion, the ratings contributed to Vought were real.
The entire World was watching humanity's fate through Vought Television.
This was the stage Fang Yuan had set for the Mutants. Just like before Angel became World-renowned, Professor X and his team naturally needed a global live broadcast for their debut.
However, limited by the technological level of the current era, live video broadcasts from the battlefield were not yet possible, so they could only use the form of news channels rebroadcasting Angel's audio.
But because Angel was the only reporter on site, able to obtain a large amount of first-hand news, Vought Television still became the focus of global attention.
Even television and radio stations in other countries began to rebroadcast Vought Television's signal.
"It is now 9:25 AM. The United States fleet has established an embargo line off the coast of Cuba, and no ships can enter."
In the television broadcast, Warren's voice came through, making everyone's hearts tighten.
The TV host also pulled out a map, and an expert on site introduced the scope of the embargo line to all viewers.
This live broadcast was the top priority since Vought Corporation's establishment, and Murray had been preparing for it for a long time.
The live studio not only had a host but also Military commentators, nuclear weapons experts, and even former congressmen and former Military generals.
But the most prominent guest was former President Harrison!
Murray had personally negotiated this.
When he first made an offer, Harrison's attitude was firm, saying his identity was too sensitive to participate in such a program.
Murray added a zero to the offer.
Harrison wavered, stating that the current situation was tense and he needed to consider it.
Then Murray said, "Double it!"
Harrison: "..."
It must be said, money is a good thing.
With Harrison and others present, the authority of Vought's news broadcast soared. Moreover, Harrison was currently the only national leader who had used an atomic bomb, which also made him a specialist in the field.
With them, the audience wouldn't find it boring; on the contrary, listening to their analysis, the situation felt increasingly tense.
"At 9:45 AM, we received news from the Military that a full mobilization has been initiated, ready to start a major war at any moment."
Angel's report came again, making the atmosphere on site even heavier.
"If the . Bear takes any more aggressive actions, a war is highly likely!" Harrison, with his experience as President, stated unequivocally.
But it never rains but it pours; after more than ten minutes, Angel sent back another message from the front line.
"At 10:03 AM, two . Bear warships are approaching the embargo line in the distance."
They're clashing, they're clashing.
Everyone in the live studio stopped talking, handing over the broadcasting rights to Angel.
"10:08 AM, United States warships are approaching the embargo line."
"10:11 AM, the United States fleet's cannons are aimed at the . Bear warships."
"10:15 AM, the United States Military has begun hailing them."
"10:18 AM, the . Bear warships show no signs of slowing down!"
"10:20 AM, the . Bear warships are less than 1 nautical mile from the embargo's stop line!"
Angel's tone became more and more urgent, and the atmosphere in the news studio had solidified. Even Harrison, who had once been President, had a slight sweat on his forehead.
If he was like this, let alone everyone else.
Old Tom and Old Jerry, unknowingly, had also stopped chewing, staring blankly at the TV's updates on the . Bear warships' movements.
On the large paper map, the marker representing the . Bear warships was already tightly pressed against the stop line.
If it crossed, any slight disturbance could trigger a war between the two nations.
"Hey, you old scoundrel, do you think the . Bear will stop?"
Old Jerry swallowed, replying with an uncertain tone, "It... it should, right? Normally, it's just a scare. As long as someone backs down."
"What if... they don't?" Old Tom finished, and the two exchanged glances, tacitly not speaking further.
At this moment, Angel's commentary continued, becoming more and more frequent.
"10:23 AM, less than 500 meters from the stop line!"
"10:24 AM, 100 meters!"
"10:25 AM, one warship has stopped, but the other has not slowed down; it has crossed the stop line!"
At this moment, the hearts of the entire World clenched. A major war seemed inevitable, and this time, it might be even more brutal than the previous two combined.
But suddenly, Angel's shout came from the TV: "Wait, a plane is flying over the scene!"
"It's the X-Squad!"
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