"Shiller, Director Nick is looking for you, he's asking how to calculate the new season's salary standards..."
"Is now the time to talk about this?!" Stark yelled. "Can't you see he's already gone mad?!"
Suddenly, in Stark's line of sight, Shiller seemed lost for a moment, then quickly recollected himself and said, "Alright, I'll be there in a moment."
With that, he turned into a misty grey cloud and flew towards the Sky Carrier, leaving the group in the sky looking surprised. Stark's teammates turned to him and asked, "Didn't you say Shiller lost his mind? He looks pretty normal to me..."
With jet propulsion from his battlesuit, Stark also ascended to the Sky Carrier.
When the Sky Carrier returned to S.H.I.E.L.D., Stark and Steve were planning on leaving, but Natasha stopped them, then said: "Hold on, the director has something to discuss with you as well."
Shiller entered the office first. After a while, Natasha came out to summon Stark and the rest. Stark, Peter, Steve and a few other members of the Avengers followed in.
Nick stood behind his desk, his face stern. Once everyone was gathered, he said in a low voice: "There's news I have to break to you..."
"Just recently, in a congressional meeting, someone has proposed a 'Superhero Registration Act'. Now, they want you to vote on it. If the majority agrees, the act will be enacted."
"Superhero Registration Act? What is that?" Steve asked, clearly puzzled.
"Simply put, Congress hopes that all masked heroes will publicly disclose their real identities and register with S.H.I.E.L.D, under the agency's supervision."
"Why is there a sudden proposal for such an act?" Steve asked again.
"Isn't it because you guys caused chaos?" Nick folded his arms and grumbled bitterly. "I don't know who it was, but their power explosion unsealed the Demon God, leading to too many supernatural beings taking the stage."
"Additionally, the imitation of superheroes is on the rise - there's even a variety show now with an expanding audience."
"Don't you know what Congress's old men are like? They believe these to be unmanageable powers that should be supervised, controlled. Importantly, if you guys seem too influential, won't they seem less important?"
"If superheroes replace parts of the government's functions, their authority will be reduced, and the public will stop trusting the government and instead trust superheroes. They will not allow this to happen."
"Speaking of which…" Nick tapped the table with his knuckles and said, "Today's fight has given them an excuse to swat at you guys. You've made too big of a fuss."
"Right when Shiller and Tony started fighting, they urgently convened a meeting. It's been less than one and a half hours since then, and the act has already passed the majority voting in the house, waiting for your response."
"So, they've been waiting all this time, right?" Steve asked, frowning.
"Correct. Ever since the moment superheroes took the stage in New York, you should have anticipated this. They believe this nation came to where it is through checks and balances on power. They believe the same model will apply in the future."
"Therefore, whenever a new power emerges, they will seek to limit and supervise it. This includes extraordinary beings with super strength."
"And what does S.H.I.E.L.D. think of this?" Stark asked.
Nick let out a sigh, "This is also their way to restrain S.H.I.E.L.D. Once we start regulating you guys, you'll surely be unhappy and will find ways to resist S.H.I.E.L.D. When we start pitting against each other, won't that obstruct mutual progress?"
At this moment, Natasha glanced at her watch and said, "The director has to speed things up. The military is pressuring us. If we're late, they might slander us…"
Nick waved his hand and said, "There's no time to explain further. Everyone, get on the plane. Once we get to the meeting place, follow my lead."
With that, Nick led the way out. The others followed him, with Shiller and Stark not even looking at each other, marching right out of the room.
By the time they reached Capitol Hill's meeting place, it was already packed. Steve saw some familiar faces—those were the congressmen who witnessed the Star explosion last time. There were others who were even more familiar to Stark, they were generals from the military.
As they walked in, someone recorded their names. Iron Man and Captain America gave their code names, so did Spider Man. When it was Shiller's turn, he indifferently said, "Moon Knight."
Stark snorted in disdain at the name, but Shiller didn't care — all he needed was a pseudonym to get in.
Once in the center of the venue, the group found their seats separately. Stark and Shiller chose two opposite seats. Steve hesitated for a moment before opting to sit next to Stark. Peter, who was concerned about Shiller's mental state, sat next to Shiller.
Everyone settled down, and an elderly congressman standing in the center began reading from his script: "Given the uncontrollable nature of superheroes and their immense power, Congress deems it necessary to restrict their activities to ensure the safety of the public..."
"Public safety has always been our focus. The Superhero Registration Act will enhance superhero cooperation while also better ensuring the safety of the public..."
Upon hearing this, Stark was about to speak up when he heard Shiller slam the table from across and say, "I agree!"
Everyone looked at him, gobsmacked. Even the congressman reading his script was taken aback. But who knew, Shiller quickly continued:
"However, I believe merely registering identities, age, and occupations won't achieve efficient supervision. We must register comprehensive identity information, including identity, age, education background, parents and three generations of family, specific physical condition data, specific abilities, religious beliefs, sexual orientation, favorite food and colors, medical history of mental illnesses, etc."
"Furthermore, I believe, the powerful abilities of superheroes may lead to their high self-esteem, causing them to neglect public safety and misuse their powers, hurting ordinary people."
While saying this, the congressmen were nodding in agreement. But next, Shiller's tone became more rhythmic:
"Therefore, I propose that superheroes should receive public education to understand that for achieving indiscriminate justice, the revolution must continue until an absolutely fair society is reached."
"For this, everyone shall practice selflessness."