51 Chapter 50

Susan Storm looked at her husband incredulously. The news had come as a shock to her. Just a couple of days to go before the voting for the high level positions of Earth Federation, the US government had chosen Reed Richards as their representative.

Susan understood why those politicians asked that of Reed. They were already in a tight competition against Doom who was being hailed as a savior for having single handedly fought the Hydra. And the main competitor, the US president was now mired in controversies surrounding the reveal that many high level officials in the US were actually Hydra.

They had to find someone who could compete with Doom and who was better at it than Reed Richards who had been rivals with Doom since their college days. It was also internationally known that Reed and his team had thwarted many of Doom's plans in the past. Putting Reed against Doom was a strategic move to show the contrasts between an actual hero and a villain who is trying to be a hero.

Even though she understood all these intrigues, what Susan didn't understand was why Reed would agree to such a request. She knew for a fact that Reed loathed the dirty politics and how the politicians conducted themselves. He had tried to distance himself from that world as much as possible in the past.

"At this rate, there is no other way to stop Doom. If he wins that election, he will become the ruler of the Earth and that too in a completely legitimate manner. There is no telling what he would do if he really gets that position." Reed spoke as he tried tying his tie while looking at the mirror.

Sue shook her head and walked in front of Reed to fix the tie. "Maybe he has changed? You saw yourself how he has been trying to help. From that fight with Thanos to eradicating Hydra, he has been only doing good. Do you really need to stop him? It's not like he is doing anything wrong."

Reed shook his head, "You know what kind of a person Doom really is. When he gets all that power as the highest position on the planet, the scale at which he can do things will only increase. I don't want to leave things to chance and regret it later. Besides, after I win the election, I can just let the others do the work and even resign to let someone else take my place."

Susan chuckled, "You are already so sure about winning. What if you don't win? What'll you do then?"

"When have I ever lost to Doom. Like every other time, I will win against him again. You just have to watch me by the side and cheer for me when I do win." Reed kissed Sue on the forehead and turned to look at his reflection in the mirror.

Susan also looked at the mirror and smiled, "I hope you do."

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All the major news channels were broadcasting the same scene at the time. It was a large stage with two men standing in front of a giant screen, holding microphones in their hands. There was a panel of half a dozen people sitting in front of the stage each looking serious and holding on to different documents.

A host walked on to the stage and started off the program. "Welcome everyone to this historical event where the two main candidates for the position of the Chancellor of the Earth Federation will be debating and putting forth their arguments for why they should get that position.

We are here live from the UN assembly hall where in a short few moments, history will be made right in front of our eyes. So stay tuned and pay attention everyone.

Our first candidate as most of you should know is the ruler of Latveria, Victor von Doom. And our second candidate who has replaced his predecessor, who recently gave up his candidacy, is the leader of Fantastic Four, Mr. Fantastic, Reed Richards himself.

We have two most brilliant scientists and leaders in the running for the position of the Chancellor of Earth Federation. The format of this debate is simple. Our panel of moderators will ask questions to the candidates and all they need to do is to answer.

To make this historical moment even more historical, courtesy of Savant Tech, we have a website which all of our audience, all over the world can access and vote for their favorite candidates. So do check the website link showing on your screen right now."

This debate was an event that was planned in order to create an awareness regarding the Earth Federation itself as well as to drum up some supporters for the candidates. The reasoning for making it a live event was so that the world understood what their possible leader's thoughts were like unfiltered.

As for why the event was packaged as a variety entertainment show, it was to keep it interesting enough so that people actually pay attention. It was imperative that as many people as possible watch the show and become informed about what was going on.

Savant on the other hand had found a way to use this worldwide event to publicize his own internet empire. The voting options were provided on all the apps and websites run by Savant Tech along with a different dedicated website. Savant was hoping to redirect more traffic to his sites with this debate.

The debate finally started and one of the moderators asked the first question, "I want to address the elephant in the room first. Mr. Reed and Mr. Doom…"

Doom interrupted the moderator, "Doctor. It's Doctor Doom." The cold and flat voice of Doom booming through the speakers. Suddenly there was a silence in the huge hall.

A bead of sweat appeared on the moderator's right temple as he gulped and continued, "Ye-yes. Doctor Doom and Mr. Richards, you have been known to be rivals for years, your public fights being recorded for the world to see. There have always been voices claiming that Doctor Doom is a super-villain and a terrorist while Mr. Fantastic has been a known superhero. Would you like to comment on this?"

Reed gave a nod of encouragement at the moderator and looked at Doom to see if he would answer first. As for Doom, he didn't even turn to Reed and just brought the mike up to speak first.

"Thank you. This was something I wanted to address in public. Yes, I have fought with the so-called heroes and I have done some terrible things. But Doom has no regrets. There are things that need to be done and Doom doesn't shy away from doing them. You may label me anything, Doom won't justify himself."

Reed sighed and brought the mike to his face, "So you won't take responsibility for all the death and destruction caused by you? How can you even try to become the Chancellor with such an attitude?"

"Destruction caused by me you say? Did Doom destroy things on his own or was the destruction a byproduct of you and your heroes fighting me? I don't see why you insist I was the responsible party." Doom smirked.

Doom was neither an anarchist nor a chaotic villain who liked to destroy things without purpose. So, almost all the destruction that happened was a direct result of the heroes trying to stop Doom.

Reed frowned, "The heroes were only trying to stop your diabolical plans. You would have done far worse things if we hadn't stopped you."

Doom turned to Reed and said, "So you say. I've only ever fought against your Fantastic Four because of a grudge we have. I have no grievance with the world, but if people or heroes try to get in my way, of course I will fight them. I wouldn't let anyone to hurt me and my people's interests."

While Reed was trying to discredit Doom, Doom was using the accusations to show how he would be a great leader for the world. Doom didn't deny his wrongdoings nor did he justify them with ridiculous excuses, he just did what he felt was right.

The approval for Doom was clearly showing in the number of votes that were displayed on the screen. Although Reed was getting a lot of votes too, Doom's graph was rising at a visible rate.

Another moderator chimed in at this point, "How do you view the powers and responsibilities that come with this new Chancellor position that is being called the highest position on Earth? Mr. Richards should answer this one first."

Reed nodded. "The Chancellor of Earth Federation is a seat of power far beyond everything currently on Earth. It represents the leadership of the planet itself so it comes with the responsibility of the wellbeing of countless lives and the planet itself. The responsibility is a heavy burden while the power that comes with it is so huge that it might even corrupt those who wield it. So, I find that much care is needed to be in such a position…"

Reed was trying his hand at subtle manipulation through his words as well. He was giving out his opinion while also pointing out reasons why Doom would not be a good fit for the position. And it reflected in the voting where Doom's votes clearly decreased while Reed's increased.

After Reed gave a very clean and standard answer, it was Doom's turn to speak. "It is nothing. Doom has been a ruler for years and very good at it too. I don't see why this position is any different. The scale has increased but everything else is the same. Doom can rule over Latveria so he can also rule over the planet, the star system and even the galaxy.

I just have to fight off the invaders and provide an environment where the people can prosper. That is the responsibility. As for power, nobody has ever dictated what I can or can't do, so the power from being a chancellor does not make any difference to Doom."

Doom's votes once again shot up, leading ahead of Reed by more than 20%. If someone else said those words, they would sound like bullshit but when said by Doom, anyone who heard it would think it was reasonable.

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Author here, I have taken some liberties with the characterization and story of Doom to better fit my narrative. So please take that into consideration.

Throw them stones at me. Stonesssss

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