Storm ≛ Tony Stark ≛

1.

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The TV displayed the news report of the incident that happened only a few days ago in central Malibu. Businessman Obadiah Stane was said to have had a brawl with who they were calling Iron Man. The name was fitting for the red and gold suit that was seen flying around the city and appearing in the Middle East to defend against terrorists.

'Truth is.... I am Iron Man,' Tony Stark said through the TV at his press conference. The buzz of reporters was droned out by the news reporter narrating from the studio.

Susan Storm sat on the sofa with her legs up next to her and her laptop on her thighs. She paused her work to watch the report unfold about Tony Stark being the newest superhero. The genius was never short of the limelight, but it was a shock for the world to hear that he was inside the suit that possessed technology the world had never seen.

'The talk of a new superhero has brought discussion about what was said to have been the failure of the Marvel-1 mission,' the news reporter leaned on his desk in the studio as a picture of the rocket Marvel-1 appeared in a box next to him. 'With Susan Storm being the only survivor of the mission, the cosmic rays that were rumoured to have hit the vessel, have said to have caused a mutation in Miss Stor-'

The word 'MUTE' appeared on the screen as Susan put down the remote control. She let out a sigh and looked away from the TV to her laptop. The report she was attempting to complete sat with one measly paragraph. It was difficult to start and even more to continue. It wasn't easy to right an official statement about the happenings of the Marvel-1 mission.

'On July 13th, the crew of the Marvel-1 rocket were hit by a storm that contained cosmic radiation. The storm was unseen by the pilot's radars, and the effects were fatal when not protected by radiation gear. At the time, Susan Storm was planting radioactive batteries into the hold for proper storage. But Dr. Reed Richards, Ben Grimm and Johnny Storm-'

Susan closed her laptop. It was still too much to bare. The report would have to be finished by her assistant and published at a later date. The tears that dribbled from her eyes didn't surprise her and she raised her hand to wipe them away, only to find her sleeve with nothing in it.

She stared for a moment as her forefinger appeared as well as her thumb. Soon, the rest of her hand was visible and she able to wipe her eyes. Susan was yet to learn to withhold the effect of her emotions on her abilities, but she found sadness, embarrassment and anger to be the most provocative.

The TV continued wordlessly as Susan stood up from the sofa and walked over to the hallway table. Above it was a mounted mirror that showed her reflection. Her hair that was once blonde was now a dark brown, an effect of the cosmic rays. Her eyes were glossy from the tears and her cheeks were flushed. She was surprised at the ability to see herself in the mirror judging by her lack of control from when her emotions were unhinged.

On the hallway table was a picture frame that held a photo of her and her brother, Johnny. Taking the photo into her hand, she brought it up to her face to see it up close. She stood smiling brightly, her blonde hair glowing in the sunshine. Johnny had his arm around her shoulders and displayed his close-lipped smile. He was always a charmer who was too cool to smile properly in photos. Always the cooler Storm, as Ben Grimm would say.

Ever since being back on Earth, Susan found it difficult to live with the fact that her brother and friends were gone. The effects of the cosmic rays were something she still couldn't explain, and the death of Reed, Ben and Johnny were affecting her daily. Sometimes, she wished she hadn't survived. The reporters harassed her nonstop about what happened and journeys outside her house had become non-existent. Instead, she used her spare time to go to Reed's old lab. It was the only thing that kept her sane.