Late at night, three hundred meters beneath the Triskelion.
Nick Fury’s black leather boots clicked in a steady rhythm against the sterile floor.
His single eye swept over the massive isolation analysis chamber in front of him.
Suspended motionlessly inside the energy field was the coffee-purple Chop-Chop Fruit.
“Three weeks, Dr.
Gable,” Fury said, his voice cutting like a blade.
“I want answers.”
Dr.
Gable, a white-haired scientist with heavy dark circles under his eyes, wiped the sweat from his forehead.
He held up a data pad with trembling fingers.
“Director, we…
we did everything we could.”
“And the results?”
“There are no results.”
Dr.
Gable slammed the data pad onto the desk, his voice bordering on a breakdown.
“This thing violates science entirely!”
He rushed over to the main console and brought up a series of flashing charts.
“Look at this!
Cellular structure analysis: its structural units have no DNA, no RNA, and even its proteins exist purely on a conceptual level!
Our mass spectrometer shows that it’s simultaneously composed of carbon, silicon, an unnamed element, and…
‘willpower’?
Either the equipment is broken, or I’ve gone insane!”
“Continue,” Fury said, expressionless.
“The energy scan is even crazier.” Gable pulled up another set of data, the graph line spiking wildly like an epileptic seizure.
“We detected radiation, but its wavelength alters based on the observer’s thoughts!
Dr.
Hansen thought it was gamma radiation, so the instruments displayed a gamma spectrum.
I thought it was a neutrino stream, and the readings instantly shifted to a neutrino signature!”
The other scientists in the lab kept their heads bowed in heavy silence.
“Director, in the realm of science, we are world-class.
But this thing…
it’s witchcraft!
Pure witchcraft!” Dr.
Gable took off his glasses, rubbing his bloodshot eyes as he pleaded, “If you truly want to understand it, I suggest you go to Kamar-Taj to find a sorcerer, or ask that Chinese restaurant owner directly…
what kind of demon stuff he sold you!”
Fury remained silent for three seconds.
Then he stepped up to the isolation chamber and pressed the disengage protocol.
The energy field dissipated, and the Chop-Chop Fruit fell into his gloved hand.
“Research terminated.”
Fury placed the fruit inside a reinforced alloy briefcase.
“Seal all data under Level 9 clearance.
What happened today was never spoken of and never heard.”
He turned and walked away.
Dr.
Gable collapsed back into his chair, staring at the Director’s back as he vanished beyond the airtight door, muttering under his breath, “Finally over…
I don’t ever want to see something that breaks the laws of physics again…”
Ten minutes later, on another floor.
Inside a briefing room containing only a long metal table and four chairs, Natasha Romanoff, Clint Barton, Phil Coulson, and Maria Hill were already seated.
Fury entered and placed the briefcase in the center of the table.
*Click.*
The briefcase opened, revealing the Chop-Chop Fruit.
Its coffee-purple rind glinted matte beneath the cold white lighting, the spiral patterns on its surface seeming to twist slowly.
“One hundred million dollars,” Fury said, getting straight to the point.
“Bought from that Chinese restaurant owner.
Eating it grants superpowers: the ability to split and recombine your body at will, alongside complete immunity to cutting attacks.”
Four pairs of eyes fixed on the fruit simultaneously.
The room grew so quiet that the faint hum of the ventilation system was audible.
Coulson broke the silence first, his tone cautious.
“What’s the catch, sir?
Power like this can’t come without a price.”
“There is one,” Fury nodded.
“Two, actually.
First, the consumer becomes parasitized by the ‘devil’ residing within the fruit—Shaun Vance’s exact words.
Second, you will be cursed by the sea.
Any contact with seawater will seal your abilities and leave you completely powerless.”
Hill’s brow furrowed.
“That means no maritime missions, staying away from coastal regions, and even being careful on rainy days…”
“It’s not absolute,” Fury said, glancing at the four of them.
“A small amount of seawater won’t affect it, but whichever of you eats it needs to weigh the decision carefully.”
Another silence descended.
Natasha tapped her fingers lightly against the tabletop, an enigmatic smile gracing her lips.
Clint kept his eyes fixed on the fruit, his lips pressed into a tight line.
“Director,” Natasha spoke suddenly, her voice calm.
“With power this strong, why didn’t you keep it for yourself?”
The question was sharp as a dagger.
Fury met her gaze directly with his single eye.
“First, I am a commander; I cannot afford to have a vulnerability.
Second…” He paused.
“I need someone who can fully master this power and who I can trust completely.”
“So you’re choosing among the four of us,” Coulson realized.
“Choosing a ‘tool,'” Natasha said, her smile fading slightly.
Yet, her hand reached toward the fruit.
“My life was already hell anyway.
Living with one more devil won’t make a difference.”
“Nat!” Clint grabbed her wrist tightly.
Natasha turned to look at him.
“You shouldn’t always have to carry this burden,” Clint said, his voice low.
“Let me do it.
I have a family, but—”
“Precisely because you have a family,” Natasha cut him off, her free hand snatching the fruit with lightning speed, “you can’t eat it.”
She opened her mouth and took a deep bite!
“Mm—!”
Natasha’s face twisted instantly.
It was a nightmare of a flavor—a horrifying mix of rotten fish viscera, ten-year-expired yogurt, and rusted iron filings!
Yet she forced herself to chew and swallow.
A second bite.
A third bite.
…
It wasn’t until the entire fruit had been eaten down to the core that Natasha leaned against the table, gagging violently.
Her face had turned pale, cold sweat dripping from her forehead.
“Water…
give me water…”
Hill handed over a bottle of mineral water.
Natasha chugged a huge gulp before finally catching her breath.
Only then did Fury speak up dryly, “Actually, you only needed to swallow one bite.”
“What?” Natasha gritted her teeth.
“Did you just say one bite was enough?”
Fury nodded.
“That’s what Shaun Vance said.
The first bite grants the ability; everything after that is just…
for taste.”
Natasha closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and opened them again.
“I really want to go ‘have a chat’ with this Shaun Vance right now.”
“Demonstrate the power first,” Fury said.
Natasha stood up straight.
She closed her eyes, concentrating her thoughts.
A few seconds later.
*Click.*
Her head slowly detached at the neck, floating in the air ten centimeters above her shoulders.
Her body remained standing while her head floated off to the side.
Coulson stood up in shock, Hill gasped, and even Clint’s poker face cracked with emotion.
Only Fury, determined to maintain his all-knowing composure, desperately suppressed the wave of shock surging inside him.
“This feeling…
is remarkable,” Natasha’s head spoke, her lips moving smoothly.
“I can ‘feel’ every part of my body, as if I’ve gained countless extra hands and feet.”
She controlled her head to spin in a circle while her body simultaneously executed a ballet turn.
The head and body rotated independently, a scene both eerie and striking.
“In future missions, if I ever get captured, I can just break free directly.”
Natasha’s head flew back onto her neck, reattaching with a crisp click, and she stretched her neck slightly.
“I can even use this to scare targets during assassinations.
Imagine a target having dinner and suddenly seeing my head float in through the window…”
As she spoke, her right hand detached from the wrist.
The palm flew out, circled the room, landed steadily on the table to pick up a pen, wrote a few words, and then flew back to reattach to her wrist.
“Precise control will take practice,” Natasha said, looking at her reassembled hand.
“But the potential is huge.
Thank you, Director.
I’m quite satisfied with this ‘gift’—even if it tasted like scraps from a cafeteria in hell.”
A faint smile appeared on Fury’s dark face.
“Training begins tomorrow.
Remember, your weakness must never be exposed.”
“Understood.”