007. Looks Like Your Luck Is Running Out

"Captain, you don't actually believe his lies, do you?" a concerned voice crackled through the communicator. "He's probably a spy."

Black Widow smirked and responded coldly, "Just do your job."

Her eyes remained fixed on Jiang Chen's back, waiting for him to falter—waiting for the moment he'd turn around and beg for mercy. After all, fear was human nature. When pushed to the brink, even the toughest of minds would crack under pressure.

She was ready to exploit that.

But just as she was about to press him further, Jiang Chen moved. His body shifted, and he raised his right foot, inching it forward.

Black Widow, who was previously wearing a smug expression, froze. Is he actually going to do it?

For the first time in a while, her calm demeanor was rattled. Most people would hesitate or panic in a situation like this, especially with the threat of life-threatening lasers. Yet Jiang Chen was steady.

Her eyes tracked his every movement, her nerves slightly on edge. As his foot neared the deadly laser grid, she contemplated calling him off. But doing so would be admitting defeat, acknowledging that her psychological tactics hadn't worked.

Only Nick Fury could ever beat me at this game, she thought. No one else.

She sucked in a breath, watching the scene unfold.

Unbeknownst to her, Jiang Chen was also panicking—but on the inside. System, if you're out there, please bless me now! he silently prayed as he stepped into the laser tunnel.

Suddenly, with an audible ding, everything went dark.

"Wait, what?" Jiang Chen muttered in confusion, his surroundings swallowed by blackness.

Even Black Widow was taken aback, her sharp instincts momentarily failing her. The voice from the communicator chimed in:

"Captain, it seems like... the power just went out."

Black Widow stood there, speechless. A power outage? In a high-tech facility like this?

"Power failure?!" she thought aloud, bewildered. A place like this doesn't just have power outages. There must be a backup system or something.

For a moment, the thought crossed her mind—was Jiang Chen truly as lucky as he claimed?

Hadn't he won five million dollars, even when she'd rigged the game?

Before she could dwell too much on it, she pulled out a small flashlight and darted into the tunnel. The sudden voice over the communicator continued:

"Captain, the entire city's down. A guy with a hammer just fell out of the sky and hit a generator at a substation. The city's electrical grid is out."

Black Widow rolled her eyes in exasperation. "Hammer guy... Thor. Of course."

No matter what, it seemed S.H.I.E.L.D always had to clean up the mess left by the Avengers. She could already imagine the string of complaints the government would file after the citywide blackout.

Still, she couldn't let the distraction slow her down. She reached the secure room, where critical documents detailing treason by high-ranking U.S. officials were hidden. These officials had been under investigation for a while, and after coming up empty-handed, the task was given to S.H.I.E.L.D.

It wasn't about saving the world this time, but when it came to government corruption, S.H.I.E.L.D took it just as seriously. Other agents had tried and failed to recover these files from the casino, but Black Widow was confident in her abilities.

The fact that this mission had been solved so easily, though, gave her pause. Could Jiang Chen really be that lucky? she wondered.

The alarm suddenly blared to life again, pulling her from her thoughts.

"The emergency backup power system will activate in twenty seconds," the voice warned.

She quickly grabbed the papers and sprinted back, reaching Jiang Chen just outside the door. He was waiting there, leaning against the wall with a smug grin.

"You didn't escape?" she asked, surprised.

Jiang Chen sighed and shrugged. "Power's out. Elevator's dead."

Black Widow blinked, momentarily stunned. This basement had only one way out, and without power, there were no options. If the backup system doesn't kick in soon, we're trapped down here.

Another voice cut in over the communicator: "Captain! A group of hostiles are closing in on the second floor. If you go up now, you'll be surrounded."

Black Widow turned to Jiang Chen, her smirk returning. "Looks like your luck is finally running out."