Marvel's Superman

Chapter 151 - 147 The Name Apocalypse, Nautilus. (II)

"The nuclear industry is being actively developed, and soon they will be able to build the first generation of nuclear reactors. In time, I will absorb the energy and make myself stronger."

Sebastian, brimming with confidence, exclaimed, "I believe that even Superman couldn't withstand the terrifying power of an atomic explosion!" ??

Namor frowned, still not relaxed.

He asked reluctantly, "Is there nothing we can do about Superman? The golden trident, the symbol of Atlantis' kingship, is still in his hands, and if we can't get it back, sooner or later, more rebels will come forward."

"There are other means to do this."

Sebastian pondered for a moment, hesitantly said: "Legend has it that the first mutant in history was named Apocalypse."

"His physical strength was so strong that he was once regarded as a deity."

"As the long years were too boring, Apocalypse fell into a deep sleep. If I can find his whereabouts and get the way to reach the end of the evolutionary path from the hand of this great god and break the restrictions of the mutant species, I may be able to defeat Superman."

Sebastian said vaguely; he didn't want to wake up the legendary mutant god.

No one wanted to have a boss sitting on top of them. He just relayed the information on Apocalypse, only to temporarily calm Namor's agitated emotions.

"Apocalypse?"

Namor's eyes lit up slightly as if he had a plan.

…

…

S.H.I.E.L.D. Headquarters Building, Washington, D.C.

Howard was busy in Lab No.1. A chicken's nest-like messy hair and heavy dark circles under his eyes indicate that he hasn't been getting enough sleep.

"So, is this what you got?"

Luke said with his arms over his chest, looking at the model in front of him and frowning, "A smaller version of a nuclear reactor?"

"That's right. Although the Tesseract doesn't respond to my various stimulation methods, just like a goddess who stands high above me, never paying attention to the various ordinary pursuers, I am not without any gains!"

Howard looked tired but excited. He spoke in a fierce tone, "I wanted to use the magnetic constraint to realize nuclear fusion, to release the massive energy from the nuclear fusion reaction of the protium and deuterium contained in seawater under specific environmental and ultra-high temperature conditions. This is the inspiration given to me by the Tesseract!"

"But I soon discovered that the magnetic field that binds the plasma, although not afraid of high temperatures, is very unstable. And plasma loses energy during the heating process …"

Howard paused, as if thirsty, and poured himself a glass of water.

"I'm the only one who can't understand what he's saying?"

Taking advantage of this gap, Captain America, who was standing on the sidelines, spoke up.

He was so overwhelmed that he couldn't participate in Howard's endless ramble.

What nuclear fusion, magnetic confinement, plasma? It was all a big headache!

Luke grimaced and laughed, "I've specifically studied it, so I can probably understand what Howard meant."

There are two main types of research on controlled thermonuclear fusion.

Inertial confinement fusion and magnetic confinement fusion.

The former uses a high-intensity laser to irradiate deuterium and tritium targets quickly to achieve fusion.

The latter uses a strong magnetic field to restrain charged particles, confining deuterium and tritium gas in a special magnetic container and heating it to hundreds of millions of Celsius to realize fusion reaction.

Howard's main direction of attack is the second one.

His design is somewhat similar to the Tokamak device that would appear a few years into the future.

It was an experimental program proposed by a Soviet scientist in the 1950s.

After decades of work, the feasibility has been proven.

He had to give it to him; Iron Man's father's vision and mind are ahead of the times.

"When did you show up, Rogers? Sorry, I didn't notice you at all just now."

Howard waved his hand, completely ignoring the tall, strong pecs of Captain America.

When doing research seriously, let alone Roger's two big chest muscles, he wouldn't divert his attention even if a young girl was standing naked in front of him.

The most he would say is: Don't disturb my research for truth!

"Where were we? Oh, yes, the controlled fusion project is so massive that we won't be able to get an answer for a while. So, I decided to take the next best thing and do something easier and more challenging."

Howard picked up where he left off and continued, "And then, there you have it, the first-generation nuclear reactor! Putting it on a submarine would perfectly satisfy Ross Gunn's idea of 'atomic energy driving the machinery first to propel the ship.'"

"You've fixed the most critical core of a nuclear submarine in a few days …"

Luke patted Howard's shoulder and said with emotion, "Although you must have heard this many times before, I still have to say, Howard, you are a well-deserved genius!"

"Hearing this compliment from Superman's mouth honestly satisfied my vanity like never before."

Howard laughed, then hugged a pile of design drawings and a large stack of draft calculations to Rogers and said,

"Let the mediocre scientists on the Atomic Energy Commission do their research; they can only look up to the glow of knowledge radiating from Howard Stark and -- I'm going to sleep!"

"Wait, as the first nuclear submarine, don't you want to give it a name -- you're perfectly qualified to do so."

Luke remembered.

"Uh, good idea! Let's call it the Nautilus. I like Verne's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, and I like Captain Nemo even more."

Howard paused and answered.

Then he walked into the lounge and slammed the door shut.

Before long, the two men standing outside heard snoring.

"The guy is exhausted."

Luke smiled and looked at the model of the nuclear reactor. He couldn't help thinking of Iron Man's Ark reactor.

It doesn't look too far away.

…