It was another quiet night. In the morning, Liu A'dou got up early and made breakfast. Only now did he understand why most S.H.I.E.L.D. staff worked in pairs—because they were just too busy. Liu A'dou was getting annoyed that Ada was so buried in her job. He hadn't seen his wife since Christmas, and it was driving him crazy. Were they trying to push him into cheating?
This morning's menu was fried rice with eggs and a glass of juice. Being alone meant he didn't bother with anything fancy.
Natasha had replaced the night shift agent and resumed surveillance. She knew she probably wouldn't find anything new, but a job was a job—even the boring ones had to be done.
Sure enough, Liu A'dou was having breakfast in the same spot as usual. But today, Natasha felt something was off. A vagrant walked down the street wearing a gray trench coat and an old baseball cap. His pants looked like they hadn't been washed in ages, and his shoes were caked in mud. He was an ordinary homeless guy on the surface, but something about him caught Natasha's attention.
The vagrant walked past Liu A'dou's house, and for just a split second, glanced through the kitchen window.
Natasha's eyes narrowed. She watched him turn the corner and disappear, but the uneasy feeling in her chest only grew stronger. Something was wrong.
Nightcrawler had memorized Liu A'dou's location in the kitchen with a single glance. After rounding the corner, he vanished and reappeared right behind Liu A'dou. His tail lashed out like a steel whip aimed at Liu A'dou's spine.
Natasha couldn't believe what she was seeing. The homeless man from just moments ago had suddenly appeared inside the kitchen on the surveillance feed. The target was seconds from death. She bolted from the car, drawing her gun.
But she was too late. Nightcrawler was already right behind Liu A'dou. Natasha barely had time to get into a firing stance—there was no chance to shoot.
The sharp, agile tail was about to sever Liu A'dou's spine. Natasha thought her surveillance mission was about to end in failure.
Then it hit.
Nightcrawler's yellow eyes lit up with a fierce gleam.
At that moment, Liu A'dou was grumbling about how S.H.I.E.L.D. had separated him and his newlywed wife. As he ate, he suddenly noticed a thin shadow flicker across the table. Instinctively, he flicked a chopstick behind him.
Nightcrawler's tail was instantly caught—held in place and unable to move forward even a fraction. A pair of chopsticks? Seriously??
But under Stryker's control, Nightcrawler couldn't stop until the target was dead. So he teleported again, appearing back in the kitchen with two kitchen knives in hand. He had originally thought Liu A'dou was just a regular human, so he hadn't brought any weapons. Now he knew better.
He vanished and reappeared again—his position now changed.
Liu A'dou furrowed his brow. This guy's a mutant. Why is he here looking like he wants to kill me? "I'm a friend to mutants," he said quickly.
Nightcrawler didn't respond. He launched his next attack.
The teleport was too fast—Liu A'dou only saw a flash of silver as a kitchen knife came swinging down from his left. At the same time, pain flared on his right as Nightcrawler's tail struck his abdomen.
Liu A'dou was sent flying with a burning pain in his gut. Nightcrawler's teleportation was incredibly precise—he could appear anywhere at will. Staggering back against the wall, Liu A'dou thought, This power's no joke.
Two more knives came down toward his head, fast and without hesitation—clearly aiming to kill.
Come on, hurry up and save me, Black Widow, you're way too slow. A real Saint could see through light-speed punches—there's no way he should be getting smacked around by a tail. But just now, he'd thought of a brilliant way to reunite with his wife. He was going to accept S.H.I.E.L.D.'s protection.
Maybe then, he could see his beloved Ada again.
Bang.
The gunshot rang out, shattering the window. The bullet struck one of the kitchen knives, knocking it away and drawing Nightcrawler's gaze toward the window.
Natasha had finally opened fire. Another shot followed, but Nightcrawler vanished. The next thing she knew, something slammed into her side, sending her flying.
Nightcrawler moved too fast. Even though Black Widow's body had been enhanced with special drugs, she still couldn't match the speed of teleportation. He turned into a cloud of smoke and launched a flurry of attacks. In the blink of an eye, Natasha was scrambling to dodge, not even knowing where to aim her gun.
The mutant showed no mercy. His tail whipped across her face, swelling her cheek in an instant. Nightcrawler was a one-man army. He could dodge bullets, teleport to his target in an instant, and strike with the speed of lightning. His only vulnerable moment was during the attack itself.
Gritting her teeth, Natasha reached for a pair of circular devices at her waist—an electrified trap. These two discs formed a directional electric field. If anything passed between them, it would be hit with a jolt of electricity. She laid them near herself as bait. Nightcrawler's strength was his speed, but to strike, he had to get close. This was her chance.
Sure enough, he fell for it. He reappeared right in front of her, tail coiled around a kitchen knife, ready to slice her throat.
Zzzzt—
He stepped forward, landing right between the two discs. In that instant, electricity surged through him. Struck hard, Nightcrawler instantly vanished in a puff of blue smoke, retreating into the distance.
Natasha clutched her aching cheek, fuming with rage. She was still a woman, after all—and she'd nearly been disfigured. Of course she was furious. But what she couldn't understand was why a mutant had tried to assassinate Liu A'dou. From everything she'd seen, he was clearly on the mutants' side. There was no reason for it.
"Natasha, you don't look much like an agent. You sure you're not FBI? Who are you, really?" Liu A'dou had somehow appeared next to her.
"Who I am doesn't matter," Natasha muttered, covering half her face, not wanting him to see her in such a mess. "Do you know that mutant?"
"No idea who he is. But I think I need protection. If you are FBI, then I request protection. My guess is that some radical extremists don't want to see me improve relations between mutants and regular humans—so they're trying to kill me."
Natasha nodded. That made sense. "Hold on." Since she was already exposed, there was no point keeping up the act. She immediately sent a report and let the director make the call.
Maintaining world order was S.H.I.E.L.D.'s duty. If Liu A'dou were assassinated by a mutant, it could spark a war. Director Nick Fury made the decision at once: Liu A'dou was to be placed under protection.
"Well?" Liu A'dou asked.
"We'll assign you a new place to live and deploy agents to protect you."
Liu A'dou was disappointed, but he had kind of seen it coming. Boarding the flying aircraft carrier was no easy feat. For now, this was the best he could do. Eventually, he'd figure out a way. One way or another, he'd reunite with his wife.
But S.H.I.E.L.D.'s efforts were already a step behind. The true mastermind behind the attack was their own superior—Secretary of Defense William Stryker. The moment Liu A'dou's new hideout was confirmed, Stryker sent out more assassins.
Clearly, his hatred for "traitors to humanity" who sympathized with mutants was just as deep as his hatred for mutants themselves. He was determined to kill Liu A'dou, whatever it took.
Fanatics were terrifying. Stryker's hatred of mutants had twisted him into a monstrous villain.
"Nightcrawler. Lady Deathstrike. This time, the two of you go together. Make sure Liu A'dou dies."