Stark Industries, Secret Laboratory Section 16.
The air was thick with the smell of scorching and the lingering scent of gunpowder.
Only seconds ago, the Iron Monger had been an overbearing force that seemed ready to tear the world apart; now, it was nothing more than a massive heap of scrap metal.
As the EMP grenades continued to take effect, every electronic component inside the mecha fried.
The cockpit plunged into darkness, the ventilation system died, and the hydraulic systems locked tight.
“Damn it!
Move!
Move for me!” Obadiah Stane frantically wrenched at the control sticks in the dark, but the steel titan didn’t budge an inch.
He felt as if he were sealed inside a steel coffin, and the creeping sensations of fear and suffocation began to spread.
*Screee—!* The harsh sound of metal being cut echoed from above.
Holding a high-energy laser cutter, Hank expertly sliced a neat opening through the mecha’s chest armor.
“Target confirmed neutralized.
Preparing to recover the power core.” Hank’s cold voice reached Obadiah’s ears like a death sentence.
“No!
This is mine!
This is Stark Industries property!
You can’t take it!” Obadiah screamed himself hoarse, but he couldn’t stop the hand in a tactical glove from reaching in and forcibly ripping out the recently installed Arc Reactor.
*Hum—* As the blue light flickered out, Obadiah was plunged into a state of total, desperate darkness.
*** On the ground.
Pepper Potts, a survivor of the catastrophe, slumped behind a shipping container, her whole body trembling.
Agent Phil Coulson had suffered a few scrapes but remained relatively composed.
He kept his eyes fixed on the black-clad soldiers who had appeared out of nowhere.
“Is this…
the organization the Director mentioned?” Coulson watched with shock as the soldiers efficiently dismantled the mecha and packed away its parts, even producing a specialized containment box for the reactor.
This level of professionalism would put even SHIELD’s cleanup crews to shame.
“Are you alright, Miss Potts?” A gentle voice spoke from above Pepper.
Pepper looked up to see the young man she had seen at the press conference.
He was standing atop the container, looking down at her with his signature faint smile.
“It’s you…” Pepper recognized him.
“It’s me.
It seems Stark didn’t have time to make that call, but it’s fine; we made it anyway.” Levi jumped down from the container.
“Allow me to introduce myself.
I am the Overseer of the Foundation, Levi.
Consider tonight’s service a welcoming gift for Mr.
Stark.” “As for the fee…
this heap of scrap and that reactor will serve as debt repayment.” “Wait!
That is SHIELD evidence!” Coulson finally couldn’t help but step forward, holding up his credentials with righteous indignation.
“Mr.
Levi, regardless of what organization you belong to, you have no right to take this—” *BOOM!!!* Before Coulson could finish, a massive sonic boom echoed from the sky.
A gold-and-red figure descended like a falling star, slamming heavily into the open space in front of the lab and kicking up a cloud of dust.
Iron Man, Tony Stark, had finally arrived.
Wearing the brand-new Mark III armor, his palm thrusters glowed with a dazzling light as he aimed them at everyone present.
“Pepper!
Where are you?!” Tony’s anxious voice blared through the armor’s external speakers.
“Tony!
I’m here!” Pepper cried out.
Seeing Pepper unharmed, Tony breathed a sigh of relief.
His gaze then locked onto the dismantled Iron Monger and the black-clad soldiers hauling away its parts.
“JARVIS, scan these people.
Who are they?
Obadiah’s accomplices?” “Sir, scans show their weaponry and equipment are extremely advanced; I cannot identify their affiliation.
However, based on facial recognition…
the man in the lead is Levi.” “Levi?” Through his faceplate, Tony looked at the man standing in the center of the ruins.
It was him again!
The man who had predicted his ordeal like some kind of prophet!
“Hey!
You in the suit!” Tony raised his palm, locking onto Levi.
“Explain why I’m seeing a pack of heavily armed robbers in my factory.” Facing Iron Man’s threat, Levi didn’t show the slightest hint of panic.
*Clack!
Clack!* The ten Gauss rifles of Hank’s squad instantly snapped up, locking onto Tony.
The sudden sense of lethal crisis caused JARVIS to trigger frantic alarms.
“Sir!
Warning!
Extremely high energy levels detected from electromagnetic weapon locks!
If they fire, the Mark III armor cannot defend against it!” Tony’s heart skipped a beat.
*Cannot defend?
How is that possible?* The Mark III was made of a gold-titanium alloy!
“Mr.
Stark, is this how you treat your savior?” Levi waved his hand, signaling Hank and the others to lower their weapons.
“Savior?” Tony snorted.
“All I see is you guys committing a robbery.” “This is containment,” Levi corrected him.
“The machine Obadiah was piloting used an extremely unstable power core and was in a state of loss of control.
According to the Foundation’s [Anomalous Object Handling Protocol], we have the right to perform a forced recovery.” “Besides…” Levi pointed to the reactor glowing with a dim, older light on Tony’s chest.
“If we hadn’t stepped in, how many rounds could that old battery in your chest have lasted against this big guy?
Three minutes?
Five?” Tony fell silent.
JARVIS’s calculations told him the win rate was less than 10%.
“So, don’t be stingy.” Levi walked up to Tony and tapped on the gold-and-red armor, producing a crisp metallic ring.
“I’m taking this scrap metal.
As for Obadiah…” Levi pointed to the sliced-open cockpit, from which Obadiah’s faint curses could still be heard.
“Leave him for you and SHIELD to handle.
This is a family matter; we won’t interfere.” With that, Levi turned and walked toward the black transport vehicle already loaded with loot.
“By the way, remember to settle the bill.
This one was free, but next time…” Levi looked back, flashing a grin.
“We take cash.
Or shares.” The convoy started up and drove away arrogantly.
Tony stood where he was, watching their departing backs with gritted teeth, helpless to do anything.
“Damn it!
JARVIS, look them up!
I want the Foundation’s entire history on my desk!” “I am trying, sir…
but it might burn out your mainframe.” “…” On the other side, Coulson watched Levi’s departure and silently pulled out an encrypted phone.
“Director, the mission…
was half a success.
Obadiah is in custody, but the Iron Monger and the reactor…
were taken by the Foundation.” “They are strong.
Ridiculously strong.” On the other end of the line, Nick Fury was silent for a long time.
Finally, he said only one thing: “Tell Natasha to speed things up.
We need to know their weaknesses.
Now.” *** Site Base, Underground Containment Area.
Looking at the wreckage of the Iron Monger and the blue-glowing Arc Reactor being wheeled in, Levi was in a better mood than if it were New Year’s.
[Ding!
Congratulations, Host, on completing the mission: The Birth and Fall of Iron.] [Reward Obtained: Large-Scale Arc Reactor Blueprints!] [Reward Obtained: 2,000 Containment Points!] [Special Clue Obtained: Detected anomalous biological signals in the New York sewers (Suspected juvenile…
Hard-to-Destroy Reptile?)] “Hmm?” Seeing the final clue, Levi’s smile froze.
The Lizard Lord?
Even if it was just a juvenile, that was still the “absolutely immortal” and “life-hating” big guy!
This was basically the rhythm of New York being leveled!
“It looks like I won’t be able to keep these newly earned points for long.” Levi sighed and looked over at Hank, who was maintaining his equipment.
“Death, don’t rest yet.
We might have a big problem on our hands.”