Malekith's voice echoed through the ruined hall, dark and threatening, as he declared, "Don't be arrogant. This is the kingdom of darkness, the territory of our Dark Elves. If you dare to offend me and kill the only remaining members of my clan, I will not let you go!"
Su Zhan turned to Sif with a wry, almost amused smile and asked, "Why do I feel like he's just putting on a show? He doesn't have the presence of a true leader at all."
Sif met his gaze, her lips curving into a knowing smile. "Because he's bluffing. He's afraid of you."
"Dark Elves, huh… After today, they'll just be a memory," Su Zhan replied with a confident grin. Flames began to rise around him, the air shimmering with heat as he stepped forward. With every stride, the temperature climbed, and Malekith could feel the burning intensity on his face.
Sweat beaded on Malekith's brow. He faltered, then turned to flee, panic flashing in his eyes.
Su Zhan's sneer was cold. He raised his hand and, with a thought, conjured a telekinetic field that slammed Malekith back and trapped him inside a shimmering, square force field. Malekith crashed into the invisible barrier, his desperate blows useless against its unyielding strength.
Su Zhan approached, his expression calm and unhurried. He reached his hand through the force field, and flames surged inside, filling the space with searing, suffocating heat.
"Supernova power," Su Zhan intoned, gathering the flames and channeling the energy of a supernova into his arms. This time, only his arms blazed, the fire focused and controlled with surgical precision, thanks to the mastery he'd gained from Pyro's ability.
"No, no…" Malekith's silhouette was quickly lost in the inferno, his agonized screams echoing from within the flames.
"Explode for me!" Su Zhan commanded, his voice ringing out as the temperature inside the force field reached its peak.
With a thunderous boom, the flames detonated, a mushroom cloud of fire rolling outward in waves, scorching the ground and leaving nothing but ashes behind.
"Malekith, Dark Elf… hmph." Su Zhan snorted in disdain, then turned to Sif. "Do you think Odin will thank me for helping him get rid of Malekith?"
Sif's eyes shone with admiration. "People from all nine realms will thank you," she replied earnestly.
Malekith had been a nightmare for countless powerful beings across the realms. Now, he had fallen at Su Zhan's hands. If Sif hadn't witnessed it herself, she would hardly have believed it was possible.
But as the reality set in, Sif's thoughts grew conflicted. With Malekith gone, Su Zhan might have to leave soon, too. An inexplicable sense of urgency filled her heart. If she didn't do something before Su Zhan left, this might just become a fleeting encounter, and she would drift further and further away from him.
Meanwhile, Su Zhan surveyed the Dark Elf spaceship. "This ship is impressive. I don't have my own yet, so I'll take this one back to Earth. S.H.I.E.L.D. has an aircraft carrier, but this Dark Elf ship is on a whole different level. It'll be my trophy, and in the future, just seeing it will remind others that I destroyed the Dark Elves. That's a real deterrent," he thought.
He had intentionally spared the last Dark Elf before destroying the rest, just so he could force him to teach him how to operate the spaceship.
"Don't… don't kill me! I'm willing to surrender!" the Dark Elf, now awake and terrified, begged for mercy as Su Zhan approached.
Su Zhan curled his lips. "Teach me how to operate this ship. If you do well, maybe I'll let you live. It wouldn't hurt to have a Dark Elf as a servant."
Desperate to survive, the Dark Elf obediently explained the ship's structure and systems. The ship was huge, and while it had an automatic operating system, Su Zhan wanted to understand it himself, so it took some time.
"You'd better not try to run," Su Zhan warned, then ignored him for the moment.
The Dark Elf, thoroughly cowed, didn't dare make a move. After all, if even Malekith had been killed so easily, what chance did he have?
"Su Zhan, show me the rooms on this ship. I've fought the Dark Elves for so long, but I've never seen what their ships are like inside!" Sif said, approaching once Su Zhan was finished.
"Sure! I haven't seen them either."
Su Zhan smiled, took her hand, and led her through the ship. Most of the rooms were ordinary and mechanical, with rest pods instead of normal bedrooms. Finally, they found a larger, more spacious room with something resembling a bed-a rare comfort among the Dark Elves.
"These Dark Elves really don't know how to enjoy life," Su Zhan remarked, shaking his head.
Just then, he heard the door close behind him. Turning, he saw Sif standing there, her expression a mix of shyness, determination, and resolve.
Su Zhan immediately understood what she wanted. Before he could speak, Sif pressed a finger to his lips.
"Don't talk. If you do, I'm afraid I'll lose the courage I finally worked up. I don't know why I'm making this decision, but there's a voice in my heart telling me that if I don't, I'll regret it forever. I used to hate your glib talk, but now it makes me smile. I feel lucky to have met you, and I want to hold on to that luck."
Clang!
Sif's armor fell to the floor with a crisp sound.
Su Zhan could tell she was nervous-otherwise, her armor wouldn't have hit the ground so loudly. A goddess had mustered the courage to make her choice. How could Su Zhan not respond? It would be shameless to let a woman take all the initiative at a time like this.
"Let me handle it," Su Zhan said softly. Sif lowered her head and let him take the lead.