Justin Hammer walked out of the prison and fell into deep thought as he looked at the old but decent suit he was wearing. Just yesterday, his application for medical parole had unexpectedly been approved. Hammer Industries had long gone bankrupt, leaving him with almost no remaining assets, and with Tony Stark currently at the height of his power, Hammer could not fathom how he had managed to get out.
"Mr. Hammer?"
The door of an Aston Martin parked at the prison entrance opened, and a well-dressed gentleman with a brilliant smile stepped out. This gentleman reminded Hammer of his past self, and since the man looked somewhat familiar, Hammer immediately extended his hand to shake the other's. He then searched through his memory with some uncertainty before identifying the man's identity.
"Mr. Dario Agger?"
"Yes. I know you have a lot of questions, but please don't worry. The reason I sought you out is because I need a professional to help me manage Stark Industries."
Hearing these words, Hammer looked utterly bewildered. Manage what? Have you not woken up yet?
"Excuse me, sir, did you say..."
"Roxxon Energy Corporation is about to acquire Stark Industries. When the time comes, I'll need someone who knows the industry to help me manage it. Oh right, the White House will soon hand over the remaining assets of A.I.M. to Roxxon, and I hope you can manage that part first. Get into the car behind this one; your partner is in there. I still need to go to the White House for a meeting."
"My partner?"
Justin Hammer looked toward the vehicle behind him in confusion and could not help but ask, "Who?"
"Ezekiel Stane. You might know his father, Obadiah Stane."
——
A few hours later, at the White House, President Ellis and his cabinet attended a meeting on "United States National Energy Security," featuring Dario Agger, the CEO of Roxxon Energy Corporation.
"As everyone knows, after Tony Stark announced his departure from the weapons industry and entered the energy sector, energy prices across the United States, especially electricity prices, began to drop rapidly. Tony Stark has delivered a massive amount of cheap and efficient electricity throughout the nation by utilizing his arc reactors—"
Agger paused abruptly at this point and looked at all the government officials participating in the meeting. "So, I would like to ask everyone, what is the price?"
President Ellis tapped his fingers on the table and said nothing. Agger nodded and began to explain: "The price is that the energy security of the entire nation will be completely controlled by Tony Stark."
"Isn't that a bit alarmist, Mr. Agger?"
"Alarmist? No, Mr. Secretary. Please listen to my analysis. The cost of the electrical energy output by Stark Industries is already far lower than the cost for most power companies generating electricity through traditional methods. This means that for every arc reactor put into service, a local power company is destroyed by Stark Industries."
"Following that comes unemployment, bankruptcy, and an unprecedented energy tycoon controlling the energy lifeline of the entire country. Please tell me, Mr. Secretary, does the government have the right to intervene in Stark Industries in an emergency? Do we even have the authority to analyze and reverse-engineer the arc reactor on Colonel Rhodes's armor?"
Hearing this question, the Secretary of Defense hung his head dejectedly. The reality was that they did not.
"Exactly, that is the problem we are facing. The electricity output by Tony Stark is available for everyone to use, but the arc reactors generating that electricity belong to him alone, and we are powerless to interfere."
Agger threw out his conclusion: "This means that except for certain departments and enterprises that insist on paying higher costs to maintain energy security, the energy of the entire United States will become something in Tony Stark's pocket—the last person to do that was J.P. Morgan, gentlemen."
"Then... do you have any way to solve this problem, Mr. Agger? The name Tony Stark alone is enough to make us abandon many options."
The President remained completely silent throughout, leaving his security advisor and secretaries to ask the questions. Faced with this query, Agger merely smiled faintly. "It's very simple. The reason Tony Stark's arc reactor is so competitive is that it is sufficiently efficient and cheap. But what if we could be even more efficient and cheaper?"
Everyone looked at Agger. They thought Agger had developed an arc reactor of his own, but the PowerPoint presentation Agger projected contained far more terrifying content: "We have established contact with Malekith, the ruler of Svartalfheim. If you are unfamiliar with him, his nation is hostile to Thor's homeland, but that is unimportant. What matters is that in Svartalfheim, we discovered oil reserves equivalent to three to five times the current global reserves, and this is still not fully explored."
President Ellis sat up straight instantly, his eyes locked onto the large figures on the presentation, and asked in disbelief, "Three to five times the global reserves?"
"That's right. Roxxon Energy has already drilled a few oil wells, and they are indeed effective. Mr. Malekith is willing to sign an agreement with us—not with Roxxon, but with the United States government—granting all of our nation's energy companies exclusive extraction rights, with the exception of Stark Technology, which supports Thor."
"Gentlemen, the era where Middle Eastern nations created oil crises by controlling production is completely over, and the era where the Russians made money through energy exports is also completely over." Agger revealed a smile. "Our United States will become the country with the largest oil reserves in the world. After all, the natives there have no need for oil."
President Ellis found it somewhat hard to believe, yet he asked Agger with considerable interest, "Are there any conditions for this agreement?"
"Well, it's very simple. The United States government must pledge not to join Asgard's side to participate in the war, and must declare that the actions of the Avengers are purely individual conduct, and things of that nature."
Agger spoke lightly while looking at everyone with a smile. He was very certain that no American president could refuse such a temptation.
This was precisely the simplest way to destroy the Avengers—by placing them on the opposite side of the entire nation. Malekith might be a villain, he might be capable of any evil, but if he could provide the Americans with this oil, then he could just as easily serve as an ally.
Of course, one of the premises for all of this was that the Dark Elves were inherently powerful fighters, meaning the Americans had no way to simply seize the oil from their hands by force.
President Ellis pondered for a long time, seemingly weighing the pros and cons. Finally, he let out a long breath and asked Agger a question in return.
"The Avengers suggested a long time ago that there might be a connection between Roxxon Energy and Hydra. How do you explain that, Mr. Agger?"