Natasha knelt beside the unconscious Human Torch, her expression grave as she checked his pulse and examined his injuries. "He's badly hurt and has fainted. It looks like his ability has already been devoured," she reported to Nick Fury. Then she moved to Susan, who still hadn't woken up, and her frown deepened as she realized the truth. "She… she's fine, but she's just drunk."
"Drunk…" Nick Fury echoed, and for a moment, the entire group seemed to share a collective sense of exasperation and disbelief at the absurdity of the night's events.
Fury turned to Su Zhan, his tone sharp and commanding. "I hope you can give me an explanation for all this."
Su Zhan met Fury's gaze without flinching. "Of course, but I'd like an explanation too. I assume you know about the 084 incident? After I finished that mission, I just wanted to relax. I went out for a stroll and ended up meeting Susan at a bar. I invited her for a drink. When I left, I saw her drunk, wandering alone in an alley with someone following her. I wanted to help, but she immediately mistook me for an accomplice of Puppet Master. She wouldn't listen to my explanation, and when I tried to walk away, she attacked me. I had no choice but to defend myself. In the end, she passed out from being drunk, so I brought her here to sleep it off. That's when this bug showed up."
He pointed at Spider-Man, his voice laced with sarcasm. "I don't know if your people have just gotten too arrogant or if you're all just used to acting first and asking questions later. Would it have been so hard to ask what happened before attacking? First impressions matter. Instead, you assumed I was some villain. Spider-Man didn't even bother to ask-he just attacked. I told him my name, and if he'd bothered to check, he'd know I'm working with S.H.I.E.L.D. But instead, he called the Human Torch, who's even more reckless. He didn't give me a chance to explain, just attacked over and over. What am I supposed to do, just stand there and take it? Only after they're defeated do they want to listen to my side. And even then, it's not like they're particularly strong…"
Su Zhan finished with a dismissive shrug. "That's the whole story. Believe it or not, it's up to you."
Nick Fury's expression didn't change. He cut straight to the point. "Can you return the ability you devoured from the Human Torch?"
Su Zhan's reply was calm and unbothered. "No, I can't." And even if he could, he certainly wouldn't. He had planned this from the start, deliberately showing weakness to bait Johnny Storm into attacking, so he could absorb his ability without causing unnecessary trouble. If he'd just stolen Johnny's power without provocation, the Fantastic Four, S.H.I.E.L.D., the Avengers-they'd all be after him. Su Zhan wasn't afraid of making enemies, but he preferred to avoid it when possible. This way, he had plausible deniability: he'd only taken Johnny's power because Johnny attacked first.
Nick Fury frowned, clearly displeased. "We'll take this to the Helicarrier. I'll notify the rest of the Fantastic Four so we can settle this."
Su Zhan only shrugged indifferently. In truth, he was quite curious about S.H.I.E.L.D.'s legendary Helicarrier.
Once aboard, Su Zhan ignored the tense, busy atmosphere around Nick Fury and wandered the ship, taking in the sights. Black Widow, Natasha Romanoff, shadowed him closely, her presence a silent reminder that S.H.I.E.L.D. trusted no one. No matter the situation, they always kept control. Even though Su Zhan was technically a S.H.I.E.L.D. consultant, he'd never planned to stay with them for long.
As they walked, Natasha spoke quietly. "I think you deliberately targeted the Human Torch's ability. When you absorbed Pyro John's power, maybe it was an accident, but this time, it felt intentional. And from what I've seen, you need the Human Torch's ability."
Su Zhan paused and looked at her, his voice calm but edged with steel. "Don't forget, if Johnny hadn't been so arrogant and attacked me first, I wouldn't have had the chance. Even if I wanted his power, I couldn't have taken it unless he created the opportunity. I don't attack people unprovoked. He's not my woman, not my friend-I don't have to put up with his attitude. If someone wants to challenge me, they'd better be ready to pay the price."
Natasha fell silent, unable to argue. Even if Su Zhan had wanted Johnny's power, it was Johnny's own rashness that had led to this outcome.
"I'll arrange a room for you to rest," Natasha said. "This isn't going to be easy to resolve, since it involves the Fantastic Four. Coulson is on his way. When there's news, I'll let you know."
Su Zhan shrugged indifferently. "That's fine. I could use some sleep. Hopefully, when I wake up, you'll have figured something out."
Natasha said nothing more, leading Su Zhan to a simple, unremarkable room. He didn't care about the accommodations; he knew S.H.I.E.L.D. wouldn't try anything drastic in this situation. Fury might act tough, but as long as Su Zhan was valuable, he'd be more interested in using him than locking him up.
With that, Su Zhan lay down, closed his eyes, and let himself drift into a rare, comfortable sleep, unconcerned about what the morning might bring.