"Huh?" Upon hearing Robert's words, both Tony Stark and Pepper were momentarily stunned. They exchanged confused glances, not understanding why Robert had suddenly stopped them. Kara, however, stepped in front of them, gently shaking her head and saying in a low voice, "Let's wait until the Saiyan says it's safe. Don't rush; something might be up."
Kara didn't fully understand what was going on either, but she trusted Robert implicitly. If he said to wait, then they would wait.
"Okay." Tony Stark quickly realized the same thing and remained hovering in place, though his gaze was fixed on Robert and the mysterious figure, curious about what was happening.
Meanwhile, the mysterious figure, having extinguished the flames, noticed that Pepper had vanished. His brow furrowed as he scanned the area, trying to locate her. Suddenly, his expression turned serious as if he had sensed something. Warily, he began watching his surroundings.
"Did you save Pepper?" At that moment, Robert appeared before the mysterious man, startling him.
"Whoa..." The man instinctively stepped back but quickly composed himself. Seeing Robert, a look of surprise crossed his face. "Are you the Saiyan? I've heard of you."
"Oh? You've heard of me? That's rare. My name isn't something just anyone knows," Robert said with feigned surprise, smiling at the man.
"I, uh, happened to come across your name. I'm a fan! I've always wanted to meet you, and I never thought I'd run into you here!" The mysterious man spoke excitedly, seemingly to show his sincerity. He even removed his helmet, which resembled a fishbowl, revealing a handsome face with a genuine smile.
"Oh? Is that so? Then why were you here, and how did you happen to save Pepper?" Robert nodded slightly, but his tone turned curious as he asked, "Do you live nearby?"
"Uh, no, I don't. My name is... well, actually, it's better if I don't reveal my real name. Even Tony Stark found it dangerous to use his real name, so I'll stick with my alias—Mystery Man!" He scratched his head awkwardly, his posture shrinking slightly as he spoke.
"Of course, if you want, we can exchange real names. That way, it's fair..."
"You call yourself Mystery Man? Are you a superhuman? What's your ability?" Robert cut him off, sensing that the mysterious figure was keen to learn his real name. But Robert had no intention of sharing it. Instead, he pressed on with another question.
"My powers are a bit complicated. I acquired some mysterious energy that lets me fly and release energy, but I haven't fully figured it out yet. This is my first public appearance, and I just happened to be in the right place to help Ms. Pepper." The man, now calling himself Mystery Man, looked slightly embarrassed.
"I'd heard about the previous attack on Ms. Pepper and thought I'd check it out. Maybe I could even join the Avengers."
"Do you have powers?" Robert's eyes glinted as a powerful psychic force enveloped Mystery Man, instantly knocking him unconscious. The man didn't even have time to react.
"Hmph, as expected, just an ordinary person. No, wait… there's something off about this guy," Robert muttered as he looked at the unconscious figure. His instincts told him there was more to this man than met the eye.
"Head back to the base! Call the Martian Manhunter to meet me here!" Robert ordered Tony and the others before disappearing with Mystery Man.
"Uh? Oh!" Tony and the others were even more confused now, but given how odd the situation was, Tony nodded in agreement and returned to the Avengers base.
Meanwhile, Robert and the unconscious Mystery Man arrived in a remote area. With a flick of Robert's hand, a mysterious energy surged through Mystery Man's body.
With a hum, his body trembled, and suddenly, a soul was drawn out from within.
"Hmm? Was I wrong?" Robert stroked his chin, muttering to himself as he observed the soul.
From the moment Robert had seen this so-called Mystery Man, something had felt off, reminding him of the Skrulls. True, Skrulls couldn't perfectly mimic superhuman abilities after transforming, but Robert was certain that Mystery Man wasn't a superhuman at all—he didn't possess any extraordinary powers.
Just as Robert was pondering this, the Martian Manhunter appeared beside him, smiling confidently. "Seems like you finally encountered something you couldn't handle alone. Looks like you still need me after all!"
"Indeed. I've extracted his soul, but I need you to read his memories. I suspect this guy is a Skrull, but I don't have concrete proof yet," Robert explained, nodding.
"A Skrull?!" The Martian Manhunter's eyes widened in surprise as he stared at Mystery Man's soul. "So they're back again, huh? Tony and the others have been eager to deal with the Skrulls. Let's hope this one gives us something useful!"
With that, a wave of invisible energy emanated from the Martian Manhunter as he began reading Mystery Man's memories.
In the past, when the Skrulls first appeared, the Martian Manhunter struggled to identify them. Their ability to perfectly mimic others made them nearly undetectable. However, after extensive research on Skrull biology and psychology, the Martian Manhunter had become adept at uncovering their hidden identities, making it much easier to extract the truth from their memories.
"They're truly an impressive race when it comes to deception," the Martian Manhunter mused as he delved deeper into the Skrull's consciousness.
The Martian Manhunter's newfound ability to detect memory traps within Skrull consciousness had proven invaluable. While it was still challenging to expose a Skrull impersonator without reading their mind, the Martian Manhunter had made significant progress in countering their tricks.
"I knew it! I'm glad I was cautious," Robert said, smiling slightly as he watched the Martian Manhunter extract the truth.
"Where else would an ordinary person suddenly decide to perform for superhumans, pretending to have powers he didn't actually possess and even attempting to join the Avengers? Something was definitely off!"
"Good thing I was here. If Tony had taken this guy back to the Avengers base, not only would the location of their base be compromised, but there's no guarantee the Martian Manhunter would've detected him. If Tony or Reed had been replaced, that would've been a real disaster!"
If Tony Stark or the others had been swapped with Skrull impostors, Robert might have noticed the subtle differences in their energy signatures. But even if he discovered the impostors, finding where the real Tony and the others were hidden would have been a nightmare.
"You're right, but you missed one detail…" The Martian Manhunter spoke up, having finished reading the Skrull's memories.
"Huh? What did I miss? I mean, his soul's already revealed as a Skrull," Robert asked, confused.
"The one thing you got wrong is that there *are* ordinary people crazy enough to act out in front of superhumans," the Martian Manhunter said, gesturing to the unconscious body. "The name 'Mystery Man' was actually something this guy came up with. It wasn't part of the Skrulls' plan; they just happened to replace him and went along with his idea."
"What? Was he out of his mind? All those explosions and flashy effects had energy fluctuations but no real substance. Did he seriously think he could fool superhumans with special effects and some disorienting gas?" Robert exclaimed, incredulous.
"Apparently, he did. After the Skrull took his place, for some reason, they also thought the plan could work, so they continued with his idea," the Martian Manhunter said, still baffled.
While the plan might have tricked inexperienced superhumans, attempting to deceive seasoned Avengers was nearly impossible. The Skrull had even managed to cut off Jarvis's connection to prevent the AI from detecting anything suspicious, but that was as far as they got. Robert's timely return and the Skrull's lack of any discernible power gave them away instantly.
"Could it be that when Skrulls take someone's form, their behavior and mindset are influenced by the person they're impersonating, even if they aren't that person?" Robert pondered aloud.
This wasn't the first time Robert had encountered this phenomenon. The Joker's mental instability was well-known, and after being copied by a Skrull, even the Joker's essence seemed to carry over, to the point where the real Joker managed to return from the Hell dimension and reclaim his body.
Now, seeing this Skrull follow through on the real Mystery Man's ludicrous plan, Robert wondered if the Skrulls might have a weakness—getting too absorbed in their roles.
It was still just a theory, but it could explain why Skrulls seemed to act more like the individuals they mimicked, potentially losing themselves in the process.
"It's possible," the Martian Manhunter agreed, nodding thoughtfully.
"The Skrull isn't dead. Did you find any information about other Skrulls?" Robert asked, his gaze shifting to the Skrull's soul.
"This time, the haul is bigger than before. Now that we have more experience, we can deal with them more effectively. Hold on—I'll be right back. We might catch something big!" The Martian Manhunter grinned, clearly excited, before vanishing into thin air.
"Mm! Mm!" The Skrull's soul, seeing the Martian Manhunter disappear, began struggling in panic, but no matter how hard it tried, it couldn't break free from Robert's grip.
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