Susan was very worried about Doom, because Doom was her fiancé (movie setting).
On top of that, Doom hadn't shown anything unusual. Before Reed ruined him and drove him into total bankruptcy, Doom was actually quite a gentleman, at most… a bit that way.
"Richards, where do you think Doom went?" Susan couldn't help asking her ex-boyfriend.
How would I know where he went? All I know is you'll be mine in the end!
"I'm sorry, Susan. I'm the one who caused Doom to become like this," Reed said with a sorrowful face.
"Reed, this isn't your fault. No one can guarantee the data is 100%100% correct," Susan said, using a more intimate form of address. She truly didn't think it was Reed Richards's fault. Space exploration was an adventure by nature. Doom was just unlucky.
Just then, someone from the hospital called Reed.
"Reed! Ben is gone!"
"Ben probably just went home, right?" Reed asked, confused.
"No. A huge monster burst out of Ben's room. A huge monster made of stone!"
At that moment, Stone Man Ben was running home. On the way, he grabbed some clothes to cover his terrifying appearance, but it still caused an uproar.
After all, humanity still hadn't seen true superhumans at this point, and Zod Heath always hid behind high-tech as a cover.
A tall, muscular figure with obviously abnormal stone skin was never going to blend in completely.
Soon, the onlookers called the police. At first, the NYPD thought it was nonsense, but as more and more calls came in, they took it seriously and quickly locked onto Ben's current location.
"Oh my God, what is this?"
When the police arrived, they saw Stone Man Ben with their own eyes and looked utterly shocked.
"Don't move!"
"Hands up!"
American police issued warnings, ready to open fire if he didn't comply. With that appearance, he looked like a monster.
Ben had already tried to see his fiancée, but she'd been terrified by his appearance and ran away. He was desperate to catch up and explain that this was only temporary, that he would soon turn back.
Seeing that the stone monster refused to obey, the police opened fire immediately.
Bang bang bang!
Dozens of bullets struck Ben. His hard stone shell blocked them, flattening and deforming the rounds. Ben didn't expect the police to shoot so decisively. They didn't injure him, he didn't even feel pain, but he was still enraged.
"Get away from me!"
He roared at the police, frightening them into stepping back.
Then one of them pulled out a shotgun.
At the critical moment, Zod arrived.
"Big guy, stop." Zod landed in front of Ben.
"Who are you?" Ben stared at the man's black armor, which was clearly high-tech, and the special device on his back that crackled with electricity.
When the bystanders saw Dark Knight Zod appear, they immediately cheered. The police also relaxed for reasons they didn't fully understand. Facing an unknown monster like this, they had no confidence either.
"Dark Knight Zod," Zod said.
"I… I don't want trouble. Move!" Ben said. He had already spotted his fiancée. He wanted to chase her down and explain.
"That won't work," Zod Heath said, even though he knew exactly what Ben was anxious about. He pretended he didn't.
"I said, move!" Ben stepped forward.
A subtle but far from weak magnetic force shifted the surrounding magnetic field. The binding forces between atoms changed in delicate ways. That microscopic drift in atomic structure manifested in reality as a powerful twisting force.
Ben couldn't keep threatening anyone, because his body was twisted to a terrifying degree, and cracks spread through the stone plates of his body.
"W-what is this?" Ben panicked.
"This is the power of magnetic fields, Mr. Stone," Zod replied, then signaled that the police could approach.
"Dark Knight Zod subdued the criminal!"
"Do we take it back to the station?"
"We can't. Call in professionals."
The police edged closer carefully. Ben struggled with all his might, but couldn't break free of that invisible pressure. That was normal. His strength was only a little over 100100 tons, and after Zod twisted him, he pressed the magnetic field of the entire street down onto him, a weight dozens of times greater than Ben's strength.
"Wait!"
Reed and Susan hurried over. When they saw Ben, they froze.
"Ben, is that you?" Reed asked in shock.
"…Yeah," Ben nodded slightly.
"Sorry, this was an accident. He's our friend. He has no criminal record," Susan quickly explained to the police, and to Dark Knight Zod as well. She hadn't expected to see him again.
"I'll leave this to you," Zod said to the police, then flew away.
Susan watched Zod leave. From the look of it… he didn't recognize me?
Before leaving, Zod had already removed the magnetic restraint on Ben. Ben immediately crashed to the ground, panting.
Too terrifying. It felt like he could be killed at any second. Where did this Dark Knight Zod even come from?
At the same time, Johnny, the Human Torch, also discovered his own superpowers. Naturally, he was thrilled. This meant picking up girls would be easier in the future, and he could become a superhero too!
It wasn't just Johnny, the spotlight-loving Human Torch. Reed and Susan also unexpectedly discovered their powers. The four of them gathered together to discuss what to do next.
Compared to Johnny's eagerness, Ben was furious. Why did everyone else's powers not change their appearance, while his did?
Ben's ability wasn't weak. You could even say he was the strongest among them now. But he was ugly. He didn't even look human anymore!
If he could transform at will, Ben would be happy. After all, everyone wanted to be different, and Johnny's idea of forming a superhero team didn't sound bad either.
Someone had already set an example for them.
"I need to run tests and see whether this mutation will cause problems for our bodies," Reed said cautiously. He wasn't blinded by superpowers. Biologically speaking, mutation was extremely risky, risky to the point of being like lighting a gas tank and expecting not to explode.
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