Tony Stark sat in the center of his glass-paneled workshop, high above the streets of New York, a holographic screen flickering to life in front of him. His brow raised as he stared at the data pouring in about structural models, emergency schematics, urban infrastructure projections all compiled in a surprisingly coherent document.
What surprised him more than the intel itself, though, was the delivery method a flash drive.
And the delivery boy?
Spider-Man.
"Seriously?" Tony muttered as he turned the drive over once before slotting it into his console. "Guy swings in like a Red Bull delivery kid and drops this like it's Amazon Prime. Next day chaos initiative and that suit urgh it needs improvements?"
The files opened with the header:
URBAN REHABILITATION AND RAPID RESPONSE INFRASTRUCTURE PLAN
Compiled by: Wilson Fisk
Endorsed by: Satoru Gojo
Tony blinked. Then laughed.
"Sheesh," he said, scrolling through the schematics. "Talk about complete reconditioning. The Kingpin writing cleanup plans? What's next Zemo doing charity marathons?"
A few sarcastic taps later, he dove deeper. It was all there, proposed locations for rebuilding centers, emergency bunkers in metro zones, a rapid-response cleanup crew system designed to activate within minutes after superhuman battles or catastrophic events.
Tony leaned back in his chair, muttering, "We break it, and Fisk sweeps it huh, Cute."
According to Gojo, the once crime-lording Wilson Fisk was now championing urban renewal funded partly through private enterprise. A massive shift, to say the least.
"What the hell did Gojo do to this guy? Mind-meld? Jedi therapy?"
Tony scrolled through simulations showing drones clearing debris, and possible nanobots reinforcing cracked building foundations, but that looked a bit too advanced for Fisk, and prefab shelters rising from underground bunkers in seconds which also felt a bit too much for someone like Fisk to do and each designed to house civilians displaced by superhero brawls. He saw neighborhood sectors marked in red high-risk zones with frequent hero-villain fallout.
The thought settled in his mind like an uncomfortable truth 'We're the reason half of these people keep losing their homes.'
He exhaled sharply, remembering the kid pitching him the idea months ago. "Crisis-resistant living spaces," the kid had called them. "City-wide trauma buffers."
'And I laughed him off.'
Tony's gaze narrowed. He remembered Fury's report. The kid had somehow rebuilt no, remade an entire section of the city he and Magneto had intentionally vaporized during their… "heated" disagreement. Turned it into a mass of obsidian glass.
"Goddamn city glassblower."
Pepper's heels clicked on the polished floor as she walked in, tablet in hand.
"What's with the grumpy face?" she asked, peering over his shoulder. "More alien invasions or billion-dollar lawsuits?"
Tony didn't look up. "Fisk actually and then there's Gojo and the Spider-kid. Urban renewal initiative, you know, just your average Tuesday."
Pepper squinted. "Fisk? As in the Kingpin?"
Tony nodded. "Former, apparently. Gojo did... something to him. Rewired the guy's neurons, I guess. It's like he took him to IKEA and rebuilt his personality from scratch… quite terrifying really."
Pepper frowned at the schematics. "And you're actually considering working with him?"
Tony exhaled. "You ever watch those old Godzilla movies?"
Pepper raised a brow. "Yes?"
"Remember how every time the lizard showed up, people always had conveniently placed shelters to hide in?"
She nodded slowly.
"Well, that's what this is. Avengers level emergency pods. Pop-up shelters for when Thor and Hulk play demolition derby in downtown Brooklyn. It's nuts... but it's smart."
She watched him as he rotated a virtual building mockup.
"So you think it'll work?"
"Well I think it has to work," Tony said, his voice more serious now. "Because for all our talk about saving the world, we've also been turning people into couch-surfing nomads. Maybe it's time we build something they can fall back on."
Pepper tapped her fingers on the console. "Still doesn't explain how Gojo got Fisk to do this."
Tony gave a flat smile. "I could tell you... but you'd need three therapists, a bottle of whiskey, and a PhD in psycho-spiritual deconstruction. Let's just say Gojo played Minecraft with his brain."
The phone rang. Tony's wrist lit up with the ID: SPIDEY-KID (DO NOT BLOCK).
"Speaking of chaos," Tony murmured.
Pepper asked. "What does the boy want this time?"
Tony laughed as he picked up. "Probably broke another washing machine with his webs."
But the moment he answered, the line crackled and an explosive boom rattled through the speaker.
Tony's eyes narrowed. "Please tell me that wasn't Starbucks."
Peter's voice came through in a rush: "Okay, so I might have stumbled into what I think is a coffee shop dilemma, but turns out there's a bomb in the mix as well. Not just any bomb, Mr. Stark it's, like, futuristic. Kinda flux-y, kinda 'I came from 2099' vibes. And it's humming, which I'm pretty sure is a red flag. Also... Oop hold that thought."
The line filled with static, gunshots, and someone shouting "BUG!" in the background.
Tony glanced at Pepper. "Cell service these days. Can't even survive one coffee shop explosion."
"Mr Stark," Peter's voice crackled back in, "I think I see something. There's a blinking panel and wait, wait okay! I think I can disarm it. But uh... quick question why would a coffee shop be hiding a quantum flux detonator under the barista counter?"
Tony blinked. "Is there, like... a quantum mocha menu I missed or—?"
"Mr. Stark," Peter cut in again, "I got it. Hold on, almost done. Wait what am I supposed to do with the double cheesecake?"
Tony smirked. "You bring it to me. Obvious answer."
Click. He ended the call.
Pepper folded her arms, unimpressed. "You're a terrible influence on him."
Tony leaned back, folding his arms. "I'm the best influence on him. Ask literally no one."
Before Pepper could retort, another call buzzed in. The ID read: PATCHES.
Tony frowned. "…What now?"
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