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*Whoosh!*
Black Widow's sudden cry cut through the chaos like a sharp blade, immediately grabbing the attention of every terrorist nearby.
She calmly stepped out from her cover with both hands raised high in a clear sign of surrender. Her voice rang out, loud and firm, directed at the nearby S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. "We're surrendering! You hear me? We surrender!"
She didn't stop there.
"Drop your weapons, every single one of you!" she ordered, her tone commanding and unwavering. "Now! Put them down, all of you!"
After clearly declaring their surrender, she quickly turned her focus to the rest of the armed terrorists still standing. She barked another firm order, determined to take control of the situation before it spiraled any further.
At that point, continuing to resist would've been nothing short of suicide. Their leader had already thrown in the towel, and with the odds stacked hopelessly against them, the rest of the terrorists really didn't have much of a choice. They followed her lead one by one, dropping their weapons and slowly stepping forward with their hands raised high in surrender.
What happened next didn't need much explaining.
The S.H.I.E.L.D. agents wasted no time. They moved in quickly and efficiently, rounding up every last one of the surrendering terrorists without a hitch.
Within minutes, the entire base was locked down and entirely under S.H.I.E.L.D.'s control.
And Tony Stark?
The second Hope got to him, and he was pulled out of there and swiftly evacuated. By now, he was already far away from the scene, safe, secure, and well out of harm's way.
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Temporary Command Center – Just Outside the Main Entrance
Pepper Potts was a bundle of nerves, pacing back and forth like a wind-up toy about to snap. Her breathing was shallow, her thoughts racing a mile a minute. Natasha had already confirmed that Tony had been rescued and was en route to the temporary command center, but that wasn't enough, not for Pepper. She couldn't relax. Not until she saw him with her own two eyes.
Behind her, a line of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents stood ready, a medical team stationed nearby with gear prepped and waiting. Everyone had their eyes on the road, tension thick in the air. The wait felt endless, every second crawling by, stretched thin by anticipation.
And then, finally—
A convoy of vehicles appeared on the horizon, headlights cutting through the dust as they rolled to a stop in front of the command post.
*Thump! Thump! Thump!*
Car doors swung open one by one. From the third vehicle, Tony Stark emerged, looking worse for wear but still on his feet. His clothing was torn, his face bruised, and his gait slightly uneven, but he was walking, alive, and alert.
He climbed out slowly, carefully, like every movement had to be calculated.
"Tony!"
Pepper's eyes lit up the second she spotted him. Without thinking, she rushed forward. But as she got closer, the emotion hit her like a wave. Her chest tightened, and her nose stung as the reality of his condition fully sank in. "Oh my God, Tony... what did they do to you?"
"I'm alright," Tony replied with his signature smirk, brushing it off like he hadn't just walked out of a hostage nightmare. "Just giving the whole rugged-survivor look a test run. You like it? I think it's kind of badass."
Even now, Tony couldn't resist cracking a joke, completely unfazed as usual, teasing his assistant like nothing had happened.
Before Pepper could respond, a new voice cut in.
"Mr. Stark!" A middle-aged man stepped forward, his appearance neat and unassuming, a receding hairline, calm demeanor, and a face that practically radiated 'government agent.'
"I'm Agent Coulson," he introduced himself smoothly, "from the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division."
Tony squinted. "The what now?" he said, brows raised. "Is that a department name or a tongue twister?"
*Clang!*
The sharp sound of metal hitting pavement echoed as the medical team, already prepped and waiting, rushed over with a gurney in tow.
Tony took one look at it and frowned, visibly annoyed. "You've got to be kidding me," he muttered, giving it a dismissive wave. "I don't need that thing. I'm not that broken."
Standing just off to the side, Coulson caught Tony's tone and gave a subtle nod to the medics. Without a word, they quietly turned the gurney around and wheeled it out of sight.
Stepping into the role of host, Coulson personally guided Tony toward the command center. Clearly, he had a dozen questions lined up, but now wasn't the time. Tony was alive, rattled, and running on fumes. There would be time for answers later. For now, Coulson made sure Tony had something to eat, offered a few brief instructions, and then excused himself to give the man some peace.
As for Yinsen, Tony's fellow captive and the man who had risked everything to help him, he was already safe inside. Ever the intuitive type, Yinsen immediately picked up on Pepper's emotional state when she entered. Saying nothing, he offered a warm nod and quietly slipped into another room, giving them space.
Pepper knelt beside Tony, gently wiping away the layers of soot and grime from his face with a damp cloth, her eyes scanning him with concern. "How are you feeling?" she asked softly.
Tony let out a tired breath, leaning back in his chair. "I was starving a minute ago, but now that I've eaten, I'm feeling a lot more human," he said with a weak chuckle. "Still... I could really use a decent bed."
He closed his eyes for a moment, clearly exhausted. "God, I miss my old one," he groaned. "You have no idea. I've been sleeping on wooden planks for days, with no mattress and no pillows. Just solid, unforgiving boards. My back is going to file a formal complaint."
Pepper winced, her heart twisting at the thought of everything he must've endured. "Tony… what exactly did they do to you?" she asked, her voice breaking slightly. "You must be beyond exhausted."
Then, as if suddenly remembering something important, she stopped mid-motion and set the towel aside. "Hang on!"
*Pop-pop-pop!*
A cluster of shimmering bubbles floated gently through the air, gliding toward Tony and lightly clinging to his skin. As they made contact, a wave of cool, soothing energy washed over him, like stepping into a refreshing breeze after hours under the sun.
In an instant, the exhaustion that had clung to his bones, the relentless days of hammering metal, crawling across stone floors, and welding in the choking heat of a cave melted away. It all felt distant now, like waking up from a nightmare that had already begun to fade from memory.
Even though he'd felt this strange "bubble magic" before, Tony couldn't help but be amazed all over again. His eyes followed the bubbles with fascination.
'How the hell does Pepper do this?' he wondered, genuinely baffled.
'Wait!'
Something clicked in his mind like a puzzle piece falling into place. He remembered her mentioning something weird a while back, something about eating a so-called Devil Fruit. According to her, it gave her these bubble powers. Back then, he'd rolled his eyes, absolutely certain it was a scam. Some overpriced exotic fruit with zero scientific backing and way too much hype.
But after what he'd just been through, after seeing what Hope did in that cave, Tony wasn't so sure anymore. He replayed it in his head: her grabbing him by the arm and literally phasing them both through a solid wall. No explanation. No tech. Just... walked him through it like it was made of mist.
"Tony?"
Pepper's voice gently broke through his thoughts, snapping him back to the present. She tilted her head at him, a little concerned. "What's going on in that head of yours?"
Tony looked up, brows drawn together as he tried to make sense of everything. "Pepper, your whole bubble... whatever-it-is, it's not the only insane thing I saw today. Do you wanna know how I escaped that cave?"
He leaned forward, his voice low but filled with disbelief. "Someone literally walked me through a wall. Like, straight through it. No doors. No tech. Just phased us out of there."
Pepper blinked, then smiled knowingly. "Oh! That must've been Hope. I saw the two of you greet each other earlier, so you know her?"
Tony nodded. "Yeah, I've met her a few times, but I didn't know she could do that. Any chance you could call her over? I need to ask her how she pulled that off. It's driving me crazy."
"She's like me," Pepper explained casually, as if discussing something as normal as a favorite brand of coffee. "She's also a Devil Fruit user. The fruit she ate is called the Liquid-Liquid Fruit. It lets her turn anything she touches into liquid."
Tony blinked. 'Liquid-Liquid Fruit?' That... was not the answer he expected.
He sat back, trying to process it, his mind racing. 'Wait a second... are these Devil Fruit powers actually real?' He'd dismissed it all as nonsense before—pure fantasy. But now?
Now, he wasn't so sure.
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Next Chapter: Tony Stark Nearly Pisses Himself
Next Next Chapter: I Have to Visit That Devil Fruit Shop
Next Next Next Chapter: A New Customer and the Rise of Zoan-Type Fruits
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