Chapter 14: The Heart of the Machine
[Time – Late Night – Tony Stark's Lab]
The lab was quiet, the only light coming from the pulsing blue glow of the Arc Reactor in Tony's chest. Adam, a ghost in the shadows, watched. He had received a System warning. [WARNING: Hostile Force Detected. Threat Level: High.]. He knew what was coming. He knew the scene he was about to witness. But knowing and seeing were two different things.
He watched as Tony, working on his suit, looked up. He saw Obadiah Stane, his face a mask of false calm, a cruel, cold smile on his lips.
"It's a shame, Tony,"
Stane said, his voice a low, chilling purr.
"After all we've done together. All the money we've made."
Tony, his face a mask of confusion, looked at him.
"What are you doing here, Obie? It's late."
Stane smiled, a cold, predatory smile. He pressed a button on a small, hand-held device. A high-pitched, agonizing sound filled the air. Tony's body went rigid. He fell to the floor, his muscles spasming. The Arc Reactor in his chest, his lifeline, began to flicker and fail. Stane leaned over him, his face a mask of pure, unadulterated hatred. He plunged a hand into Tony's chest, a single, cruel motion. He pulled. The Arc Reactor came out, its blue light fading, its power gone.
"I need your technology, Tony,"
Stane hissed, his voice full of venom.
"And you… you've become a liability."
Stane's hand held the Arc Reactor, its light gone, its power stolen. He looked at Tony, a single tear running down his face.
Adam's heart was in his throat. He had to act. He had to do something.
[SYSTEM: Critical Condition: Target 'Tony Stark'. Heart Rate: 10 BPM. Action Required: Stabilize Target's heart rate?]
[WARNING: Requires permanent bond to System core. Yes/No]
The message was a brutal, terrifying choice. He could walk away. He could let Tony die. Or he could act. And the act would cost him. A permanent link. A part of him, forever tied to this man. He didn't hesitate. He chose.
"Yes."
[SYSTEM: Permanent Bond Initiated. Host and Target 'Tony Stark' are now linked. Health and Stability are now shared.]
[SYSTEM: Deploying B-Rank: Life-Force Stabilizer. Target: 'Tony Stark'.]
A brilliant, pulsing red light flowed from Adam's core, an invisible stream of energy that flowed from him and into Tony's chest. The red light of the System, a dark and powerful force, now beat in time with Tony's failing heart. Tony's chest, still and motionless, began to move again. His heart rate, a slow, dying beat, began to stabilize. The red light of the System now pulsed in his chest, a new, strange, artificial heartbeat. He had done it. He had saved him. But at a cost.
I am now a part of him. A living, breathing part of the System. My life is now his. If he dies, I die. There is no going back.
The System's menu, once a cool, utilitarian blue, was now pulsing with a faint, angry red glow. The price had been paid. The bond had been forged.
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