Laura was jolted awake by the harsh reality. The slap of realization hit her hard—she couldn't handle this man alone. She needed help.
Picking up her coat, Laura cautiously walked toward what she assumed was the exit.
"Send her out," Su Sheng instructed Riley.
Riley escorted Laura out. Along the way, Laura couldn't help but feel astonished. It seemed she was on a boat, and when she stepped off to take in her surroundings, the boat vanished. Yet, when she reached out to touch it, the vessel was still there, its surface perfectly camouflaged with the surroundings.
She stood there for a moment, processing everything, before finally turning to leave.
Since Dr. Manhattan wasn't around, Su Sheng lost interest in meeting the other members of the Watchmen. Although Laura had a slender waist and long legs, she didn't pique his interest like Riley did—he wasn't considering changing his pillow just yet. With Riley back onboard, Su Sheng piloted the Disciple, and they slowly took off.
Meanwhile, it took Laura a considerable amount of time to reconnect with the rest of the Watchmen and report what had happened.
Moscow, Bolshoi Theatre
A renowned ballet company was performing tonight at the Bolshoi Theatre. In a private box, Soviet scientist Valentina sat on a leather sofa, sipping red wine as she waited for the performance to begin. She wore a red dress, her long hair elegantly styled, and her makeup flawless. But despite her composed appearance, her eyes betrayed a sense of helplessness and anxiety.
She had failed again.
The research on the Firestorm Matrix had hit another dead end. Valentina felt as though she was on the brink of a breakthrough, just one step away from success, but that final step remained elusive.
"What am I missing?" she murmured to herself, shaking her head as she took another sip of wine, trying to focus on the performance.
Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.
"Come in," Valentina responded absentmindedly.
The door opened, and a man with distinctly Asian features entered, smiling as he dragged another man behind him.
Valentina recognized the man—it was her driver.
"You…" Valentina quickly stood up, watching as the stranger tossed her unconscious driver aside and entered the room with a stunning woman in tow.
"Hello, Miss Valentina." Su Sheng greeted her with a smile as he took a seat on the other end of the sofa. He glanced at the wine on the table and chuckled, "It's boring to drink alone. Mind if I join you?"
Valentina hesitated for a moment before she smiled. "Of course."
Just as Su Sheng was about to pour himself a drink, Riley, ever the attentive companion, quickly poured two glasses for them.
"Cheers."
"Cheers."
The two clinked glasses and took a sip. Su Sheng smiled and said, "I appreciate your courage and composure, so I've decided to make your night as pleasant as possible."
"Should I thank you for that?" Valentina asked, raising an eyebrow.
"You should," Su Sheng replied modestly. "Have you ever heard of time travel?"
Valentina's expression stiffened slightly.
"You already know what you look like in the future, don't you? Did Vandal Savage tell you? If so, that saves me from wasting my breath explaining it," Su Sheng chuckled.
Valentina frowned. "You're not very good at flirting."
"Maybe I'm usually more direct. Let's be honest—I'm a bit interested in the Firestorm Matrix, so I'd like to learn about the system from you. In return, I'll help you become a Firestorm and give you a one-way ticket to any time you want—past, future, anywhere."
Valentina narrowed her eyes. "Why should I trust you?"
"You already do, don't you?" Su Sheng responded with a knowing smile.
He gestured to Riley to pour more wine, then casually wrapped his arm around her as he settled in to enjoy the ballet performance that had just begun.
The performance was captivating, but Valentina couldn't focus on it at all. Instead, she found herself pondering the strange man sitting across from her, wondering if his outrageous offer could actually be true. If he was indeed a time traveler, and if he could truly help her become a Firestorm, then perhaps it was worth the risk. And if he was lying, Valentina was confident she could handle it. With that in mind, she raised her glass and smiled. "It's not very gentlemanly to have your arm around a woman in front of another woman."
"It doesn't matter—I've done worse things," Su Sheng said with a laugh, his attention still on the performance.
As they chatted between sips of wine, Valentina's initial caution began to fade. What started as an attempt to pry information from Su Sheng turned into a genuine conversation. She even started to believe that he might actually be telling the truth about being a time traveler.
"You said this theater would be one of the top ten in the world?" Valentina giggled. "Maybe I should ask the theater to rent this box to me long-term. Better yet, I could just buy it!"
"Why not buy the whole theater?" Su Sheng suggested casually.
Valentina paused, then smiled. "You're right. Maybe I should!"
The two-hour performance concluded successfully. Valentina stood, retrieved her coat, and approached Su Sheng. "I accept your offer. When will you come to see me?"
"Why not now? I don't have a place to stay in this era, and I'm sure you don't mind, right?"
Valentina retrieved the keys from her unconscious driver's pocket and looked at Su Sheng. "Can you drive?"
"Happy to serve, beautiful lady!" Su Sheng replied with a mock bow, and Valentina smiled as she took his arm.
They left the theater and found Valentina's car. Su Sheng took the wheel, Riley nervously got into the passenger seat, and Valentina settled in the back, giving the address.
The car started slowly and drove off into the night.
Su Sheng was not a scholar. He wasn't the type to bury his nose in books every day. His interest in the Firestorm Matrix was more of a passing curiosity. However, Firestorm's abilities were intriguing, particularly the power to alter atomic properties and transform objects—like turning lead into gold. With that kind of power, it would be like having a money-printing machine, though Su Sheng had never really worried about money.
Not that he ever needed to.
PS: Laura is the heroine from Watchmen. Valentina is a character from the fourth and fifth episodes of Legends of Tomorrow Season 1. In the TV series, she becomes the Soviet Firestorm and ultimately explodes. In the comics, she's a member of the Doom Patrol, codenamed Negative Woman.
The founder of the Doom Patrol is codenamed the Chief. He is paralyzed from the waist down, physically disabled, and uses a wheelchair. Unfortunately, he doesn't have superpowers, otherwise, he would resemble Professor X! Of course, he has hair!