Marvel: A Lazy-Ass Superman

Chapter 473: Chapter 473: S.H.I.E.L.D.’s Assessment

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Phil Coulson, still smarting from the earlier ridicule, gave a wry smile. ”Sir, you knew this would happen, yet you didn’t stop me.”

Nick Fury replied, ”Having someone give it a try doesn’t cost us anything. And you just got shown the door—not shot and carried out by medics. That’s already a good outcome.

”Besides, I told you all from the beginning—before trying to pin the label ’Superman’ on that man, you should’ve investigated the creators of the Superman comics. Find out what they actually knew.”

Still smiling bitterly, Coulson said, ”The original creators of Superman, Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, passed away in ’96 and ’92.

”And the series has continued ever since, with new stories, new enemies, and new settings. Many different creators have been involved. Investigating the original authors doesn’t really mean much.”

With a look of gotcha, Fury said, ”Exactly. That means Superman isn’t based on a single clear real-world reference that was artistically adapted. So what’s the point of taking a comic book and questioning a living person with it?

”You’re no different from those fortune-tellers who scam people—spouting vague nonsense with no time or place attached, then claiming accuracy after something happens.”

Coulson fell silent. After a moment, he asked, ”Sir, may I ask your personal opinion of Henry Brown? Not the agency’s—your own.”

Fury might have brushed off someone else, but Coulson was a promising recruit he intended to cultivate. So he answered:

”His file isn’t highly classified. With proper clearance, even you can access it. So what I tell you doesn’t violate policy.

”As for the extra details not yet in the records—hear them and forget them. There’s no official source, and I won’t admit I said any of it.

”Before 1990, his missing years were spent in an extraterrestrial research facility in Siberia. But as you know, after the collapse of the Red Empire, many things changed.

”So in 1990, Henry Brown appeared in Alaska. By 1991, he became Audrey Hepburn’s assistant and bodyguard under the classification of a mutant.

”That same year, the desert emergency landing incident involving a small passenger plane—that was the first anomalous crisis he was involved in.”

Coulson said, ”If he really had Superman’s abilities, he should’ve been the one who resolved that incident.”

”Correct. Unfortunately, although Professor X cooperated with the government afterward and helped assess the participants’ behavior and positions, he only stated that no one had betrayed anyone—and refused to provide further details.”

”Even S.H.I.E.L.D. couldn’t get the X-Men to cooperate more?” Coulson asked.

”Mutant affairs are complicated. Our policy is to avoid deep entanglement. We only request X-Men assistance when facing anomalies we can’t handle—and even then, it’s a last resort. They’re also a group we have to guard against.”

”Understood.”

Fury continued, ”Back to Henry Brown. In ’93, after Audrey Hepburn passed away, he returned to Los Angeles and got caught up in the massacre of State Senator Mike Liddell Horton’s family.

”According to internal intelligence, he wasn’t the killer and had no direct involvement in the deaths. He was simply dragged into it. But the incident revealed something important.”

”What was that?”

”If he doesn’t want to cooperate, forcing him is pointless. Senator Horton wanted Henry Brown to use his abilities to protect him—but the senator still died. So did his family, secretary, and bodyguards. Not one survived.”

Coulson thought for a moment. ”Failure to render aid? I don’t think California has such a law.”

Fury explained, ”If someone has a duty of care—like hired security—they could be charged with negligent homicide. In cases involving minors, abandonment charges might apply.

”But Henry Brown wasn’t employed in such a capacity. And legally, the senator is still listed as missing—no body, no confirmed death. The perpetrators were from the Continental Hotel, not Henry Brown.”

Coulson started, ”The Continental—”

”That’s not today’s topic,” Fury cut him off. ”Also from internal intel—afterward, Henry Brown operated under the alias ’Fixer,’ acting as an underground doctor in South Los Angeles.

”When crime boss Andrew Saxon was taken down, the Fixer played a significant role. But he also walked away with around six hundred thousand dollars in dirty money, which put him on the radar of both the police and the FBI.

”Same problem, though—no direct evidence linking him to the Fixer identity. The FBI even searched his home during the chaos caused by the Skrulls. They didn’t find the money.”

Coulson tried again, ”The Continental—”

”Drop it. That’s an order of its own on the other side of the world. The U.S. can declare war on the world, but it can’t survive another civil war.”

”...Understood. Does he still operate as the ’Fixer’?”

”Now? Of course not. As CEO of Stark Pictures, his position carries weight. His umbrella has shifted from the Continental to Stark Industries—a far more powerful backer. At least, that’s what most people think.”

”Most people?” Coulson asked.

Fury smirked. ”At first, everyone assumed that film-grade digital imaging technology was Tony Stark’s work. But does anyone still believe that now?

”Even with Stark Industries behind him, how solid is that backing? Anyone capable would want to test it. Maybe their partnership is just surface-level. So when Sony had an urgent need, they made a move.”

Coulson followed, ”Which led to the Los Angeles Sony building explosion.”

”Exactly,” Fury said dismissively. ”They signed off on a lost property inventory—then boom, the building exploded right after.

”Who’s the prime suspect if not him? But again—no direct evidence. The FBI, for its own sake, didn’t push too hard.

”And the incident sent a clear warning: his property isn’t easy to take. At least until someone figures out how he detonated those explosives, no one will dare covet his things.

”Honestly, if it weren’t for the Skrulls exposing a few cracks, has this man ever truly suffered a loss?

”He doesn’t need Superman-level abilities to live well. Maybe he has used such abilities—but there’s not even indirect evidence, let alone direct proof.

”If you want to suspect him, you can’t base it on a comic that existed before he even arrived on Earth.”

Coulson frowned. ”So there’s really no evidence at all?”

Fury paused. ”If we’re talking about Superman-like individuals, it’s not that there’s nothing.”

Coulson’s eyes lit up. ”There is?”

”In ’92, during the X-Men’s defense against extraterrestrial forces, there was a ’Clown’ figure reported by U.S. soldiers. His abilities closely resembled Superman’s.

”But he only appeared once. We reconstructed his face—possibly actor River Phoenix. But he’s already dead.

”Then there was the end of the Skrull–Kree conflict. When Maria Rambeau, myself, and Skrull refugees were returning from space, we were pursued by Kree fighters.

”At that time, a mysterious figure dressed in black—able to fly freely in near vacuum—shot down multiple enemy craft. That’s the second Superman-like individual. Unfortunately, I couldn’t catch up, and there were no ground sightings.”

Coulson asked, ”Was it him?”

Fury shrugged. ”Same answer—no direct evidence. At that time, Henry Brown should have been in Louisiana, while we were in California.

”Unless we can confirm he can fly and has super speed, there’s no way to connect him to that black-clad figure across such a distance.

”And this kind of logic doesn’t work in reverse. We can’t use it as proof that he is Superman—it’s not reasonable.

”Besides, he’s not the kind of super-criminal we’re tasked to handle. The most we can do is classify him as a potential threat and conduct non-contact investigation with minimal surveillance.”

Coulson added, ”But I’ve heard many within the agency support taking action—even without sufficient evidence. That’s why I wanted to confirm whether he’s Superman... not Ultraman.”

Fury let out a short laugh. ”With only circumstantial evidence, we can suspect and investigate. But without direct proof, no decision that violates civil rights will ever be approved.

”If we approve action against Henry Brown today, tomorrow we can use the same logic to accuse the White House, the Pentagon, or Congress of treason—and purge them.

”J. Edgar Hoover already burned that path for everyone who came after. No agency will ever be granted that kind of power again. After twelve years of McCarthyism, no one wants a repeat.

”And if someone does try to give such an order, they’d better be ready for the consequences. This is a man confirmed to have a body of steel—not a mutant, but an alien.

”That means our usual solutions—like mutant suppression collars—won’t work. He’s not easy to deal with.

”And don’t forget—he’s the CEO of Stark Pictures. Not some nobody who can disappear without anyone noticing.”

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