Chapter 11: Turmoil
Arthur stared at the glowing crack on the light-net for three seconds, then turned his head and asked Wanda, "What is that kid Tony doing right now?"
Wanda closed her eyes and sensed for a moment, "He is in the laboratory. His heart rate is high, and his mood is terrible. But the anchor point fluctuation... it has stabilized for now."
"As long as it is stable, that is good." Arthur rubbed his hands together, "Now, it is time for us to get to business."
He walked to the bronze globe, pulled up the light screen, and began writing an encrypted message.
Wanda leaned in to look, "What are you writing?"
"Sending some 'after-sales feedback' to Director Fury." Arthur swiped his fingers across the screen, "Just say that we have monitored a new situation on our end; there is a problem within Stark Industries, potentially involving a technology leak. Ask him if he is interested in continuing to exchange intelligence."
The message was sent.
This time, they waited for a minute.
The globe vibrated.
The light screen refreshed.
[Fury: Be specific.]
Arthur grinned, "This guy is quite direct."
He replied: [Obadiah Stane is acting strange. He is contacting people he shouldn't be, and wants to take things he shouldn't take. Have you been monitoring his capital flow?]
Ten seconds later.
[Fury: Yes. In the past seventy-two hours, he has transferred four large sums of money to overseas shell companies, eventually flowing into Southeast Asia. The recipient has an indirect connection with the Ten Rings.]
[Fury: How do you know that?]
Arthur looked at Wanda.
Wanda nodded, her fingers tapping the air.
Wisps of red Chaos Magic energy flowed from her fingertips, weaving together in the air to form a blurry image—a bald man sitting in an office, typing on a computer screen which displayed an encrypted communication interface.
In the image, Obadiah's face was clearly visible.
"A magical'surveillance camera'." Arthur gave Wanda a thumbs up, then replied to Fury: [We have our own methods. In short, Obadiah is in contact with the Ten Ringsand wants to get his hands on Tony's Arc Reactortechnology.]
[Fury: Evidence?]
Arthur had Wanda freeze the image on the frame showing Obadiah's computer screen.
Although the specific text could not be seen clearly, it was obviously some kind of encrypted communication interface, and the background pattern vaguely contained a variation of the Ten Rings Symbol.
He used magic to project this image onto a crystal chip, packaged it together with the energy fluctuation data, and sent it over.
[Arthur: This is the energy signature matching data. The emotional fluctuations emitted by Obadiah during communication have a high similarity to the Ten Rings's energy imprint. He is nervous, excited, and... plotting.]
This time, they waited for thirty seconds.
[Fury: Received. S.H.I.E.L.D. will strengthen monitoring of Obadiah. What do you intend to do?]
Arthur and Wanda exchanged glances.
"What to do?" Arthur asked.
Wanda thought for a moment, "We cannot let him hand the technology over to the Ten Rings. That anchor point... if the Ten Rings gets the Arc Reactor technology, will it accelerate the connection?"
"Most likely." Arthur nodded, "The Arc Reactor's energy signature is very unique. If the Ten Rings gets ahold of it to cause trouble, they might really be able to pull things from that collapsing world over here."
He replied to Fury: [We plan to intercept it.]
[Fury: Specifically?]
[Arthur: Before Obadiah completes the transaction with the Ten Rings, we will get our hands on the Arc Reactor prototype.]
[Fury: Infiltrate Stark Industries?]
[Arthur: Yes.]
[Fury: Do you need support?]
Arthur smiled.
[Arthur: No need. The two of us are enough. You keep monitoring Obadiah's funds and communications; notify us immediately if there are any anomalies.]
[Fury: Understood. Stay in contact.]
The communication ended.
Arthur turned off the light screen and stretched.
"Alright, the job is here." He said, "Let's go 'borrow' something from Stark Industries."
Wanda was a bit nervous, "Infiltrate directly? Wouldn't that be too risky?"
"What is risky about it." Arthur walked to the bookshelf and pulled out two robes that looked like ordinary trench coats, "We are mages, not special forces. Infiltration relies on this—"
He pointed to his own head, then pointed to Wanda.
"magic, and your sensory abilities."
Wanda took the robe and put it on, "So what is the plan?"
"Simple." Arthur also put on his robe, "First, use a Portalto get to the perimeter of Stark Industries, then use invisibility magic to get inside. You sense the location of the Arc Reactor, and I will handle unlocking and grabbing the item. Get it and leave, without leaving a trace."
"And what if we run into Tony?"
"If we run into him, we run into him." Arthur grinned, "At worst, we will just say hello and say, 'Hi, Tony, we are here to help you clean house.'"
Wanda was amused by him, "Will he believe that?"
"Whether he believes it or not is not important." Arthurwalked to the center of the room and started drawing a circle, "What is important is that the technology his father left him, which he then improved, must not fall into the hands of those guys who want to commit cross-dimensional invasion."
Golden sparks swirled into a Portal.
Arthur took Wanda's hand and stepped inside.
The Portal opened in an alley two streets away from the Stark Industries building.
It was eleven at night, and there were not many people on the street.
Arthur and Wanda walked out of the alley and looked up at the brightly lit building across the street.
"Good grief, this building is really tall." Arthurexclaimed, "That kid Tony is truly rich."
Wanda closed her eyes to sense.
A few seconds later, she opened her eyes, "The Arc Reactor... is in the top-floor laboratory. The energy signature is very obvious, like a small sun."
"Is Tony there?"
"Yes." Wanda nodded, "But he is in a very low mood right now, sitting in the laboratory zoning out. Obadiah... is in an office three floors down, on the phone."
"Calling who?"
"I cannot hear the specific content, but the emotional fluctuation is very dark." Wanda frowned, "He is plotting something, and he is very urgent."
Arthur touched his chin, "Then we need to hurry. Let's go, inside."
The two walked to the side of the Stark Industries building and found a surveillance blind spot.
Arthur raised his hand, and golden magic energy surged from his palm, covering the two of them like a layer of transparent film.
"Invisibility spell, improved version." Arthur whispered, "Not just visual invisibility; it even blocks infrared and thermal sensing. Duration... about half an hour, enough time."
Wanda also channeled Chaos Magic; red energy flickered slightly and then merged into the invisibility film.
"I added emotional shielding." She said, "This way, even if there are defenses against mental sensing, they will not be able to detect us."
"Professional." Arthur gave a thumbs up.
The two walked to the security door on the side of the building.
The door lock was electronic password plus fingerprint recognition.
Arthur reached out and pressed on the keypad, and the golden magic energy seeped inside.
The panel flickered and displayed [System Error].
The lock opened with a "click".
"Magical version of a 'master key'." Arthur pushed the door open, "Let's go."
The two slipped inside and walked up the stairs.
Wanda sensed the situation around them the entire time.
"Security guards are patrolling, two on each floor, with fixed patrol routes." She whispered, "We just need to avoid them."
Arthur nodded, following Wanda's guidance, climbing up one floor at a time.
When they climbed to the twentieth floor, Wandasuddenly stopped.
"What is wrong?" Arthur asked.
"Obadiah..." Wanda pointed downwards, "He left his office and is heading towards the elevator. His mood... is very excited."
Arthur frowned, "Where is he going so late?"
"I do not know." Wanda shook her head, "But he is carrying a suitcase, and there is a very strong energy shielding device inside the case. I cannot sense what is inside."
Arthur thought for a moment, "Forget him, let's get the Arc Reactor first. If he really goes to trade, we will intercept him after we finish."
The two continued to climb up.
When they climbed outside the top-floor laboratory door, Wanda stopped again.
"Tony..." She whispered, "He is inside, but he is asleep. He is slumped over the table."
Arthur looked inside through the glass window on the door.
Inside the laboratory, Tony Stark was indeed slumped over the table, with various blueprints and parts scattered beside him.
In the center of the table, that glowing blue Arc Reactorprototype was sitting on an open display stand.
"Good opportunity." Arthur gently pushed the door open.
The door was not locked.
The two slipped in and tiptoed to the table.
Arthur reached out to take the Arc Reactor.
Just as his fingers were about to touch it—
"Who?"
Tony suddenly lifted his head, his eyes not yet fully open, but his hand was already pressing on the alarm button under the table.
Arthur reacted faster.
He flicked his finger, and a faint golden magic energy shot out, hitting Tony's wrist.
Tony's hand went numb, and he pressed nothing.
"What the hell..." Tony shook his hand, waking up completely.
He looked up and saw Arthur and Wanda standing on the opposite side of the table.
Although the two had invisibility magic on them, the energy disturbance caused when the Arc Reactor was picked up made the invisibility film show subtle ripples.
Tony saw two blurry figures.
"Who is there?" He stood up and reached for another spare handgun under the table.
Arthur sighed.
"Tony." He spoke, his voice processed by magic, sounding a bit distorted, "Don't be nervous; we are not here to steal anything."
Tony's movements paused, "Then what are you here for? Breaking into my laboratory in the middle of the night, and holding my reactor?"
"Here to help you clean house." Arthur said, "Obadiah is in contact with the Ten Rings and wants to steal your technology. We plan to take the item away for safekeeping before he succeeds."
Tony was stunned.
"Obie? The Ten Rings?" He repeated, "What are you talking about?"
Wanda spoke, her voice also processed, "The anchor point fluctuations inside you, have they been intensifying recently?"
Tony instinctively touched his chest, "How do you know that?"
"Because we have been monitoring." Arthur said, "The Ten Rings planted something inside you, and Obadiahwants to use your technology to activate it. There is no time to explain the specific details; in short, trust us this once. We will take the reactor for now, and return it to you after the matter is resolved."
Tony stared at the two blurry figures for a long time.
Then he suddenly laughed.
"Fine." He said, "Take it."
Arthur and Wanda were both stunned for a moment.
"You just believe that?" Arthur asked.
"What else can I do if I do not believe you?" Tony spread his hands, "You were able to break into my laboratory without a sound, and could even make my hand go numb so I could not press the alarm. If you really wanted to steal something, you would have already stolen it; why would you waste time talking to me?"
He walked to the coffee machine and poured a cup of coffee.
"You can take the reactor, but I have a condition."
"What condition?"
"Take me with you." Tony took a sip of coffee, "I want to see what on Earth Obie is up to."
Chapter 12: Evidence Gathering
Tony Stark stared at the two blurry figures for three seconds, then suddenly laughed.
"Fine," he said. "You can take the Arc Reactor."
Arthur's hand, which was halfway through picking up the prototype Arc Reactor, froze upon hearing this.
"Just like that?"
"What else?" Tony Stark shrugged. "You managed to sneak into my lab without a sound and numb my hand so I couldn't trigger the alarm. If you really wanted to steal something, you would've done it already, so why bother wasting words with me?"
He walked over to the coffee machine and poured another cup.
"But I have a condition."
Arthur tucked the Arc Reactor into his coat. "Speak."
"Take me with you," Tony Stark said, taking a sip of coffee. "I want to see what Obie is actually up to."
Wanda tugged on Arthur's sleeve and whispered, "His emotional fluctuations are chaotic—suspicion, curiosity, and a little bit of... excitement."
Arthur thought for a moment. "I can't take you. It's too conspicuous."
"Then don't think about leaving either." Tony Stark pressed the table, and the lab door locked with a click. "The defense system in my lab can withstand three missile hits. Even if you have some... strange magic, breaking out by force would take some effort, right?"
Arthur chuckled. "Tony, are you trying to play hardball with us?"
"Let's play an information exchange instead." Tony Stark put down his coffee cup. "You tell me what Obie is doing, and I'll let you go. A fair trade."
Wanda suddenly spoke up. "The shard in your chest—has it been hurting more frequently lately? Especially at night?"
Tony Stark was stunned. "How do you know that?"
"Because it's communicating with somewhere else," Wanda said. "Every time you get emotional, it becomes active. Obadiah Stane wants to use your technology to strengthen this connection."
Tony Stark's expression changed.
He touched his chest. "What kind of connection?"
"Cross-dimensional," Arthur continued. "Simply put, a 'hook' or anchor was planted inside you by the Ten Rings. Obadiah Stane has hooked up with the remnants of the Ten Rings and wants to use your Arc Reactor technology to activate this anchor and bring over things that shouldn't be here."
Tony Stark was silent for a few seconds.
"Proof."
Wanda raised her hand, and a wisp of red chaos energy flowed from her fingertips, weaving into a small, phantom Ten Rings Symbol in the air.
The phantom glowed faintly, resonating with the spot on Tony Stark's chest.
A sudden sharp pain shot through Tony Stark's chest.
He clutched his chest, his face turning pale.
"See it?" Wanda retracted the energy. "Same source. We detected the same energy signature in the Ten Ringsmembers in the Afghanistan cave. But inside you, it's alive."
Tony Stark caught his breath and sat back in his chair.
"So Obie, he..."
"Is betraying you," Arthur said bluntly. "And it probably started a long time ago. Did he know about your kidnapping? Was he anxious when you shut down the weapons division? Now he's taking your core technology to trade with terrorists—what do you think he's trying to do?"
Tony Stark didn't speak.
But with his Superman hearing, Arthur could hear TonyStark's heart beating like a drum.
"We can take the Arc Reactor for now," Arthur said. "To stop the trade. As for you... just stay put and don't cause trouble."
Tony Stark looked up at him. "And if I don't?"
"Then you can just wait for Obadiah Stane to build an Iron Monger and use your own technology to beat you into the ground," Arthur grinned. "Or worse, wait for him to bring something over from that crumbling world, and we'll all be finished."
The lab was silent for ten seconds.
Tony Stark suddenly stood up, walked to the door, and pressed the switch.
The lock clicked open.
"Go then," he said. "Take the Arc Reactor. But..."
He turned to look at Arthur and Wanda.
"When you catch Obie, I want to be there."
Arthur nodded. "Deal."
He pulled Wanda along and walked out.
"Wait," Tony Stark called out to them again. "How do you know where Obie put the stuff?"
Wanda closed her eyes to sense it.
"Not in his office," she said. "It's below... on the fifteenth floor? There's a private lab with strong energy shielding, but I can feel the residual fluctuations."
"The east side of the fifteenth floor, the private R&D area," Tony Stark said. "Even I can't just walk in there; Obie used a top-level security lock."
Arthur waved his hand. "Security locks are useless against us. Let's go."
The two slipped out of the lab, and the door closed behind them.
Tony Stark stood in the lab, looking at the empty display stand, and touched his chest.
"Anchor..." he whispered. "Cross-dimensional..."
He walked to the computer and pulled up the surveillance system for Stark Industries.
But the surveillance feed for the private R&D area on the east side of the fifteenth floor was completely black.
It had been cut beforehand.
Tony Stark's expression darkened.
Arthur and Wanda went down the stairs.
The invisibility magic was still active.
"Did he believe us?" Wanda whispered.
"Half-believed," Arthur said. "Tony is paranoid, but smart. Since what we said matches what he's observed, he has no choice but to believe."
"So, are we going to the fifteenth floor now?"
"Yes," Arthur said. "Let's take out Obadiah Stane's lair first."
The two went down to the fifteenth floor.
This floor was very quiet, and only half the hallway lights were on.
At the entrance to the private R&D area on the east side, two security guards were standing there, their waists bulging—they were clearly armed.
Arthur and Wanda slipped past them, and the guards didn't notice a thing.
The door was made of alloy, with an electronic lock and iris recognition.
Arthur reached out and pressed his hand on the recognition panel, and golden magic energy seeped in.
The panel flashed, displaying [Access Granted].
The door opened.
The two slipped inside.
Inside was a large lab, filled with all kinds of instruments and equipment.
But the display stand in the middle, which should have held the prototype Arc Reactor, was empty.
"We're late," Arthur walked over and touched the display stand. "It's still warm; it was just moved recently."
Wanda walked to the display stand and reached out, pressing her hand into the air above it.
Red chaos energy flowed from her palm, outlining faint energy traces in the air.
"The Ten Rings' energy signature," Wanda said. "Very strong. Obadiah Stane has touched the reactor, and... there are similar fluctuations inside him, just very weak."
Arthur activated his Superman vision.
The lab walls, floor, and instruments became translucent in his eyes.
He scanned the room, his gaze stopping at the ventilation duct entrance in the west corner.
Behind the duct, a palm-sized data terminal was hidden, still glowing faintly.
"There's something here." Arthur walked over and pulled.
The ventilation duct grate was easily ripped off.
The data terminal inside fell out and landed in his hand.
The terminal screen was lit, showing the last few lines of encrypted communication records.
[Cargo transferred to Point B]
[Transaction time: Tonight 23:30]
[Location: Port Warehouse No. 7 (Abandoned)]
[Confirmed recipient: Ten Rings (Remnant)]
[Note: Bring enough manpower; there may be variables]
Arthur handed the terminal to Wanda. "Take a look."
Wanda took the terminal, and chaos energy seeped in.
A few seconds later, she looked up. "The record was updated half an hour ago. Obadiah Stane just left. He's carrying an energy-shielded box; the prototype reactor should be inside."
"Port Warehouse No. 7..." Arthur rubbed his chin. "I've heard of this place. It's over in Brooklyn, abandoned for several years."
"It's 10:40 now," Wanda looked at the time. "Fifty minutes until the transaction."
Arthur pulled the palm-sized crystal shard from his coat and pressed it against the data terminal.
The encrypted communication records in the terminal were quickly copied to the crystal shard.
Copy complete.
Arthur stuffed the terminal back into the ventilation duct and reattached the grate.
"Let's go," he said. "Get out first, and send the intelligence to Fury."
The two left the lab, went down the stairs back to the ground floor, and found an empty utility room.
Arthur took out the crystal shard and connected to the remote communication function of the Bronze Globe.
A light screen popped up.
He quickly typed: [Obadiah Stane has transferred the prototype Arc Reactor. Transaction time: Tonight 23:30. Location: Port Warehouse No. 7 (Abandoned). Recipient: Ten Rings (Remnant). Encrypted communication records attached. We are heading there first to set up surveillance.]
The message was sent.
Ten seconds later, a reply came.
[Fury: Received. S.H.I.E.L.D. monitors have tracked Obadiah Stane's vehicle heading toward the port. Perimeter support is in position, but we need you to confirm the situation inside the warehouse before taking action. Maintain contact.]
Arthur closed the light screen.
"Fury's side is handled," he said. "Now, to the port."
Wanda nodded, but her brow was furrowed. "Arthur, I sensed something else in the lab just now."
"What?"
"Dimensional distortion," Wanda said. "Very weak, but it definitely exists. It's a bit like the fluctuations from the Sanctum barrier cracks, but... more chaotic."
Arthur's expression turned serious. "You mean, the place where Obadiah Stane is trading might also have dimensional issues?"
"Possibly," Wanda said. "The Ten Rings's anchor technology is inherently cross-dimensional. If they want to activate something at the port warehouse..."
"Then we have to go even more," Arthur opened the utility room door. "Let's go, Portal."
Golden sparks swirled into a circle.
The two stepped inside.
The Portal opened in an alley in the port area piled with shipping containers.
At 11:00 PM, the port was very quiet, with only the sound of waves in the distance.
Arthur and Wanda walked out of the alley and looked toward Warehouse No. 7.
It was a large metal warehouse, rusty on the outside, but two black SUVs were parked at the entrance.
Around the warehouse, seven or eight people in plain clothes but clearly armed were patrolling.
"Tight security," Arthur narrowed his eyes. "Ordinary people can't get close at all."
Wanda closed her eyes to sense.
A few seconds later, she opened her eyes, and her expression changed.
"Arthur..."
"What's wrong?"
"Inside the warehouse..." Wanda's voice trembled slightly. "There are strong signs of dimensional distortion. It's not a crack, it's... some kind of device running, tearing at space."
Arthur's Superman vision penetrated the warehouse's metal walls.
He saw inside the warehouse, Obadiah Stane standing before an open shielded box, inside of which was the prototype Arc Reactor.
And next to the reactor, there was a strange metal device, covered in Ten Rings Symbols.
The device was glowing faintly, and the air around it was distorting.
"Good grief," Arthur whispered. "This old guy isn't just trading; he wants to conduct an experiment on the spot."
Wanda grabbed his arm. "The energy fluctuation from that device... it's resonating with the anchor inside Tony Stark. It's trying to establish a connection."
Arthur checked the time.
11:20 PM.
Ten minutes until the transaction.
He rubbed his chin.
"Plan change," he said. "We can't wait for the Ten Rings to arrive before we act. We have to go in now and smash that device."
"How do we get in?" Wanda asked. "There are so many people outside."
Arthur grinned.
"Simple."
He raised his hand, golden magic energy surged out, covering them both with a new layer of invisibility film.
Then he pulled Wanda along and walked swaggeringly toward the main gate of the warehouse.
Chapter 13: Transaction Interception
The iron door of Warehouse No. 7 at the port was so rusty it was practically crumbling, but the two black SUVs and seven or eight burly men wandering around outside made the atmosphere quite serious.
Arthur and Wanda were crouching behind a pile of shipping containers opposite, covered by an invisibility magic spell, as if they had toggled on an "invisibility cheat."
"What's the situation inside?" Arthur asked, lowering his voice.
Wanda closed her eyes and sensed for two seconds, her brows furrowed so tightly they could crush a mosquito. "Obadiah is there, and the Arc Reactor is in a box. Also... there are at least fifteen armed men, their energy signatures are messy; they are remnants of the Ten Rings. The most critical thing is that in the middle of the warehouse, there's something 'tearing paper'."
"Tearing paper?"
"Tearing space." Wanda opened her eyes, her gaze tightening. "The energy from that device's operation is resonating with the anchor in Tony's chest. It's forcing a path open."
Arthur's Superman vision swept inside, and he chuckled. "Well, well, this old guy Obadiah is offering a two-for-one deal. Not only is he conducting a transaction, but he's also giving a live demonstration of'space jump technology'? The after-sales service is quite thorough."
He checked the time: 11:25.
"Let's not wait. If we wait any longer, they'll actually pry the door open." Arthur loosened his wrists. "Same old rules: I'll rush in for some 'physical persuasion,' and you handle crowd control. Focus on 'taking care' of Obadiahand that space-tearing thing."
Wanda nodded, red Chaos Magic already faintly swirling at her fingertips. "Be careful. That device's energy is unstable."
"Don't worry." Arthur grinned. "Your husband here is a dual cultivator of magic and physicality; my specialty is brute force."
After saying that, he dropped the invisibility and swaggered toward the main entrance of the warehouse.
A Ten Rings sentry at the door was puffing on a cigarette. When he looked up and saw a figure walking over, he was stunned for a moment and quickly reached for the gun at his waist. "Stop! Who goes there!"
Arthur didn't stop walking. "Food delivery."
"What?"
"Meituan... no, Kamar-Taj Express Delivery. Mr. Obadiah's 'Interception Combo' has arrived."
Before the man could react, Arthur was already in front of him, reaching out to gently press the side of his neck.
The man rolled his eyes and collapsed to the ground.
"Enemy attack!" someone inside roared.
The warehouse was instantly in chaos.
Arthur kicked open the half-closed iron door and charged in.
The lighting inside was dim. Obadiah was standing in front of an open metal shielding box, inside which the small Arc Reactor prototype was emitting a faint blue light. On the ground next to it, a metal device engraved with the Ten Rings Symbol was emitting a piercing hum, and the surrounding air was visibly twisting and pulling.
"Catch him!" Obadiah's expression changed, and he pointed at Arthur, shouting.
A dozen or so armed militants grabbed their weapons and opened fire on Arthur.
Bullets whizzed over.
Arthur couldn't even be bothered to dodge. With his biological force field activated, the bullets hit half a meter in front of him as if they had struck an iron plate, clattering to the ground.
"Did you not eat?" Arthur quipped, his feet not stopping as he crashed into the crowd like a human tank.
One punch for one, one kick for a group.
The scene was, for a moment, very much like "an adult beating up children."
Seeing things were going wrong, Obadiah grabbed the shielding box and tried to sneak out the back door of the warehouse.
"Where are you going, Mr. Stane?"
Wanda's voice sounded from behind him.
Obadiah turned around and saw that Wanda was standing in the shadows of the warehouse beams, her eyes glowing red and her fingers slightly raised.
Red Chaos Magic wrapped around him like a rope, instantly binding him and the box tightly, leaving him unable to move.
"Who... who are you?" Obadiah was both shocked and angry.
"Concerned citizens, Mr. Zhang and Mrs. Ma." Arthur, having already taken down the last minion, clapped his hands and walked over. "We specialize in helping old comrades like you who have gone astray to undergo some 'life path correction'."
He bent down and took the shielding box from Obadiah's arms.
Just as his fingers touched the box—
Buzz!!!
The Ten Rings device nearby suddenly erupted with blinding white light!
The Arc Reactor prototype in the shielding box also began to flicker violently, the blue light turning into an unstable crimson.
"Oh no!" Wanda shouted. "The energy resonance has reached a critical point! It's forcing the door open!"
The space in the middle of the warehouse shattered like glass, and a twisted rift with edges flashing with electric light was forcibly torn open!
Behind the rift was not the warehouse wall, but a scene of chaos: the pitch-black, smoking Stark Tower, crowds of people fleeing and looting wildly in the street, and in the air, wreckage of burning Iron Man armor falling—it was exactly that mirror world glimpsed before!
"Holy crap!" Arthur looked at the scene inside the door. "Is this after-sales demo too realistic? Opening a 'zombie server' experience channel directly?"
A powerful suction force poured out from the Portal, and scraps of paper and small parts in the warehouse flew into the door.
"Arthur! The door is unstable; it's draining energy from this world to stabilize itself!" Wanda struggled to maintain the binding of her Chaos Magic, but the energy ropes binding Obadiah were being distorted by the suction.
Almost at the same time the Portal opened, the sound of screeching brakes and footsteps rang out around the warehouse.
Nick Fury led a team of heavily armed S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents to the perimeter of the warehouse and happened to see the surreal scene inside through a broken window: the rotating Portal, the doomsday scene inside, and the couple, Arthur and Wanda, standing by the door.
Fury's single eye widened, and he growled into his communicator: "All units stand by! Assess first! What the hell is that?!"
Inside the warehouse.
Arthur held the shielding box with one hand, while drawing circles in the air with the other. Golden magicrunes quickly formed and were pushed toward the Portal.
"Wanda, help! Use Chaos Magic to interfere with its energy structure, and I'll close the 'door'!"
Wanda nodded and diverted part of her power. The red Chaos Magic was no longer just for binding; it transformed into countless fine threads, actively reaching toward the twisted electric light at the edge of the Portal, attempting to disrupt its energy arrangement.
The Portal trembled violently, and the scene inside began to shake and blur.
"No! Wait! Save me!" Obadiah suddenly screamed in terror.
Two Ten Rings remnants who had previously collapsed near the Portal had awakened at some point. With a look of mad determination on their faces, they scrambled and lunged at the Wanda-bound Obadiah, grabbing his arms tightly, one on each side.
"Mr. Stane... with us... together... witness... the New world..."
They shouted hoarsely, using their last bit of strength to drag the struggling, screaming Obadiah as they rolled violently toward the unstable Portal!
"Crap!" Arthur wanted to use magic to pull him back, but he was half a beat too slow.
The figures of Obadiah and those two Ten Rings remnants, the moment they touched the electric light at the edge of the Portal, vanished instantly, as if erased by an eraser.
The doomsday scene inside the door flickered one last time and then went completely dark.
Arthur and Wanda combined their efforts to slam the final composite magic spell into the center of the Portal.
Sssh—!
It sounded like fabric being torn and then stitched back together.
The twisted spatial rift shrank inward violently, finally turning into a point of light and vanishing with a poof.
The warehouse returned to calm, leaving only the groaning militants lying on the ground and the lingering smell of burning in the air.
The light of the Arc Reactor prototype in the shielding box gradually stabilized, returning to a faint blue.
Arthur held the box, exchanged a look with Wanda, and both breathed a sigh of relief.
"The door is closed," Wanda said, wiping the sweat from her forehead. "But Obadiah..."
"Exiled to the 'zombie server,' which saves us the trouble of dealing with a traitor," Arthur smacked his lips. "I just wonder how many episodes he'll survive over there."
Outside the warehouse, Fury and his men cautiously approached the entrance, guns pointed inside. "People inside! Raise your hands! Walk out slowly!"
Arthur, holding the box, walked to the entrance with Wanda, looking at the S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents outside who were acting as if they were facing a major threat.
"Director Fury, here to clean up?" Arthur handed the box forward. "The goods have been intercepted, the device causing the trouble blew up, and the main culprit... uh, accidentally traveled through time. The scene is a bit messy, but the result is okay."
Fury's single eye stared fixedly at Arthur, then at the chaotic warehouse behind him, and the lingering aftereffects of the dimensional disturbance in the air.
"That 'door' just now," Fury's voice was low, "what was it?"
"A fast lane that shouldn't have been opened," Arthurput away his joking expression. "It connects to a worldthat's almost finished. The good news is the door is closed. The bad news is that if this thing can be opened once, it can be opened a second time. Obadiah isn't the key; the key is this 'door-prying' technology he and the Ten Ringscooked up."
Fury was silent for a few seconds, then waved his hand, letting the Agents go in to clean up the scene and collect all the wreckage and evidence.
He walked up to Arthur, took the shielding box, and handed it to Agent Phil Coulson nearby.
"The Arc Reactor prototype will be temporarily kept by S.H.I.E.L.D.," Fury said. "I need a detailed report on everything that just happened. Also, that 'mirror world'..."
"We don't know any more than you do," Arthur said truthfully. "But one thing is certain: the crisis hasn't been resolved; it's just escalated from a 'transaction dispute' to a 'dimensional defense war'."
Fury nodded without pressing further, just taking a long look at Arthur and Wanda. "Keep in touch. Next time there's a 'big scene' like this, give a heads-up in advance."
"Will try," Arthur smiled.
Fury left with his people and the box.
Only Arthur and Wanda were left in the warehouse.
Wanda suddenly pressed her temples and let out a soft groan.
"What's wrong?" Arthur asked hurriedly.
"Just now when closing the door... over at Tony's side." Wanda's face was a bit pale. "The anchor inside him shook very violently, as if... it was forcibly pulled by the Portal just now. Although it has calmed down now, that'sense of connection'... seems to have gotten a little stronger."
Arthur frowned. "Does this anchor have a 'learning function'? You leech the Wi-Fi once, and the signal gets better?"
He stroked his chin, feeling that this matter was becoming more and more troublesome.
The top-floor laboratory of Stark Industries.
Among the dozen or so surveillance screens in front of Tony Stark, one was displaying the infrared footage of S.H.I.E.L.D. vehicles around the port warehouse.
On another screen in front of him was the blurry footage of the last few seconds of the warehouse interior, which Jarvis had just forcibly hacked into (and was quickly kicked out by the S.H.I.E.L.D. firewall).
In the footage, Obadiah was dragged toward that bizarre "door" and then disappeared.
Tony sat in his chair, motionless.
The coffee in front of him had long since gone cold.
He touched his chest, where a moment ago, a sharp, stabbing pain as if pulled by a hook had surged.
Now, there was only a chilling cold.
"Obie..." Tony whispered the name, his face expressionless.
He picked up a tablet nearby, which contained a summary compiled by Jarvis of all of Obadiah's abnormal financial flows and encrypted communications over the past few months.
The evidence was irrefutable.
He was silent for a long time, then grabbed the cold coffee cup and smashed it against the opposite wall!
The porcelain cup shattered, fragments flying everywhere.
"Jarvis." Tony's voice was a bit hoarse.
"Yes, sir."
"Thoroughly audit all projects, permissions, and personnel arrangements within the company related to Obadiah Stane." Tony stood up, walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, and looked at the night view of New York outside. "Freeze what needs to be frozen, kick out what needs to be kicked out. From today on, Stark Industries is under my command."
"Understood, sir. Also, regarding those two 'mysterious consultants'..."
Tony looked at his reflection in the glass and touched his chest again.
"Leave them a top-level non-emergency communication channel," Tony said. "By the way... in my name, send a thank-you letter to that 'New York Sanctum'. You decide the wording, just make sure the meaning is conveyed."
He paused and added a sentence.
"Just write... 'The door, closed well. Thanks.'"
Chapter 14: Iconic Scene 1
Fury left with his people and the containment case holding the Arc Reactor prototype, leaving the harbor warehouse in a mess with a lingering smell of burnt material.
Arthur glanced at Wanda. "Not bad, didn't tear the building down."
Wanda pressed her temples, her brows still furrowed. "Over at Tony's... the vibration of the anchor has subsided, but that feeling of being 'marked' seems to have deepened. His current emotions... are very low, and he's anxious—more anxious than at any time before."
"Having just been backstabbed by the person he trusted most, and then witnessing a cross-dimensional horror movie trailer with his own eyes, anyone would be anxious."
Arthur took Wanda's hand. "Let's go, back to the New York Sanctum first. Let S.H.I.E.L.D. clean up this mess."
A golden Portal opened in the corner of the warehouse, and the two stepped in, their figures disappearing.
The next second, in the library of the New York Sanctum, sparks swirled, and the two walked out.
Master Danny was wiping a crystal ball; he looked up and glanced at them. "Resolved?"
"A phased victory." Arthur plopped down onto a chair. "The goods were intercepted, the device causing the trouble exploded, and the main culprit was exiled to the 'Zombie Server'. It's just that the aftermath is a bit troublesome."
Wanda walked to the bronze globe, tapped her finger lightly, and a light screen popped up.
"Send a message to Fury, tell him to transfer the Arc Reactor prototype to Tony." Arthur said. "That thing's energy is stable now; it's useless to keep it here. Return it to its rightful owner."
Wanda operated it quickly.
Not long after the message was sent, a reply came back.
[Fury: Understood. I will transfer it personally. Regarding tonight's events, I need a detailed report.]
"A report?" Arthur chuckled. "Tell him the report title should be 'On How to Properly Close a Door That Should Not Have Been Opened, Plus Complimentary Traitor Disposal Service'."
Wanda was amused and smiled, but she still earnestly replied with more formal wording.
After finishing the communication, Wanda closed her eyes and sensed again.
"Tony... he's returned to his Villa in Malibu. His emotions are still very bad, his heart rate is high, and he's pacing back and forth in the lab alone."
She opened her eyes and looked at Arthur. "We need to do something. About the Obadiah matter, and that anchor... he needs to know more, otherwise he will drive himself crazy."
Arthur rubbed his chin and thought for a moment.
"True. Since the show has reached this point, it's time for the protagonist to enter the stage and formally meet the second lead." He stood up. "It's not good to keep letting him guess blindly. Let's go, to Malibu, and 'lay our cards on the table' with him."
"Now?" Wanda asked.
"Right now." Arthur said. "Strike while the iron is hot, and by the way, see what the seaside mansion looks like."
Malibu, Tony Stark's Villa.
In the lab, Tony stared at the familiar containment case that had just been delivered by Happy.
The case was already open, and the small Arc Reactorprototype inside lay quietly, emitting a stable, dim blue light—almost identical to the one in his chest, except for the size.
On another screen nearby was the last image captured by Jarvis before being forcibly cut off and kicked out—Obadiah's twisted, terrified face as he was dragged toward the light Portal.
Tony picked up a whiskey glass nearby, wanted to take a sip, but then irritably put it down.
His chest was throbbing with pain again—not the physical pain from the shrapnel pressing against it, but a deeper, dull ache, as if something was "taking root" inside.
"Jarvis, scan around the shrapnel in my chest. Are there any abnormal energy readings?" Tony asked.
"Scan complete, sir. Compared to before, the baseline energy reading has increased by seven percent. Furthermore, intermittent, unidentifiable dimensional resonance ripples have been detected."
"Dimensional resonance ripples..." Tony repeated the term, feeling his headache worsen.
Just then, Jarvis's voice sounded again: "Sir, abnormal spatial fluctuations detected in the living room. An unauthorized Portal is forming."
Tony was stunned; he grabbed a modified pistol from the table and rushed out.
In the living room, golden sparks were rotating into a circle.
Arthur and Wanda walked out of the Portal and ran face-to-face into Tony, who had rushed out with a gun raised.
"Good evening, Tony." Arthur said casually, as if greeting him. "Your living room is huge."
Tony's gun was pointed at them, not lowered. "Who are you? How did you get in?"
"We walked in." Arthur pointed to the disappearing Portal behind him. "magic-side 'Uber', direct, no traffic jams."
Wanda said softly, "Tony, we have no ill intent. Can you put the gun down? Your current emotional fluctuations will make that anchor more active."
A familiar sharp pain flared in Tony's chest again.
He stared at Wanda's eyes, which were glowing with a faint red light, and then looked at Arthur, who looked relaxed and even a bit "overly familiar." Gritting his teeth, he slowly lowered the gun.
"Obadiah..." Tony started, his voice a bit hoarse. "That door he was dragged into—what's on the other side?"
"A world that's about to end." Arthur walked to the sofa and sat down naturally. "You can understand it as a... worst-case scenario 'what-if' world. If Obadiah's conspiracy had succeeded, if The Ten Rings had obtained your technology and successfully activated the anchor inside you, our world might have become like that."
Tony walked over and sat on the opposite sofa. "Who exactly are you people? Why do you know these things? Why... help me?"
"Lots of questions." Arthur smiled. "One by one. We're basically... dimensional repairmen and security guards. We know these things because we have our own 'monitoring methods'. We're helping you because you're not a bad guy, and the things you've created and the trouble you've gotten into fall right within our'scope of business'."
Tony looked at Wanda. "You can feel the thing in my chest?"
Wanda nodded. "Very clearly. A forcibly implanted, unstable cross-dimensional coordinate. It's now tied to you, to your Arc Reactor energy, and to your emotions. What Obadiah and The Ten Rings wanted to do was to fully activate it and turn it into a fixed 'backdoor'."
Tony took a deep breath, his fingers tapping his knees unconsciously. "So, when I was kidnapped, it wasn't just a simple extortion by terrorists?"
"There's something else behind The Ten Rings." Arthurcontinued. "Some of the technology they use doesn't belong to this world. You could say you've been 'marked' by a cross-dimensional force."
Tony was silent for a full half-minute.
Then he looked up, the cynicism in his eyes completely gone, leaving only the sharp, calm gaze of a genius inventor forced to face an absurd reality.
"Evidence." He said. "I want to see evidence. Not blurry surveillance footage, but real data, analysis."
"Already prepared." Arthur pulled a transparent crystal tablet from his robes (actually, it was magical space) and placed it on the coffee table.
With a tap of his finger, a 3D light screen projected from the crystal tablet.
The light screen was divided into several sections. One section was a complex comparison chart of energy waveforms, clearly marking the high degree of similarity between the anchor fluctuations in Tony's body, the dimensional rift fluctuations at the Sanctum, and the fluctuations of the The Ten Rings device at the harbor warehouse.
Another section showed a clearer, magically processed multi-dimensional scan of the moment the Portal at the harbor warehouse opened, demonstrating the process of the spatial structure being forcibly torn apart.
There was also a section containing partially decrypted content of the encrypted communication between Obadiahand The Ten Rings that Jarvis hadn't been able to intercept, mentioning keywords like "anchor activation" and "sub-dimensional connection."
Tony stared at the data and images, examining them very carefully.
"These analytical models... are not something current Earthtechnology could achieve." Tony said, his tone a statement of fact.
"magic-side assisted computation, plus a bit of... super-specification sensory ability." Arthur didn't deny it.
"What is your goal?" Tony looked at Arthur. "Don't tell me it's just to be helpful."
"Protection." Arthur answered crisply. "Protecting the people we care about, protecting this world from being ruined by all those messy dimensional disasters. And you, Tony Stark, your technology, your wisdom, and the trouble you've gotten into are all part of a larger crisis that might happen in the future. Helping you is eliminating hidden dangers; it's doing our job."
"Sounds like some kind of... vigilante." Tony commented.
"You could put it that way." Arthur spread his hands. "But we don't handle street muggings; the business we handle is more high-end, like 'preventing the world from being destroyed'."
Tony's mouth seemed to twitch, as if he wanted to laugh but couldn't quite manage it.
He was silent for a while longer, then looked at Wanda. "Is there a way to remove this 'anchor' in my chest?"
Wanda shook her head. "There's no safe way to detach it for now. It has deeply integrated with your vital signs and energy core. Forcing it out could be... fatal. But we can help you stabilize it and isolate it from external activation attempts. Just like closing that door in the warehouse earlier."
Tony touched his chest and nodded, as if accepting this reality.
"One last question." Tony looked at Arthur, his gaze direct. "What exactly are you? Not Mutants, I know the energy signature of Mutants. And not Asgardians. Your power system... I've never seen it at all."
Arthur and Wanda exchanged a glance.
"This answer might be a bit out of scope." Arthur said. "Simply put, we come from a place that... observes and maintains the narrative balance of the Multiverse. I fell here by accident, and Wanda is the most important person I found here. We know many things that might happen in the 'future', and our mission is to prevent those terrible 'futures' from becoming reality. And you, Tony, you are a very important character in this'story'. We can't let you be written out early, and we certainly can't let you become the key that destroys the world."
After listening, Tony leaned back against the sofa and let out a long breath.
"So... I'm a character in some Universe's story? And you are the 'readers' who know the script?" His tone was a bit incredulous, but more than that, it was the calm that comes after exhaustion.
"That's about the gist of it." Arthur said. "But don't think of yourself as a puppet. Knowing the script doesn't mean the ending is fixed. Every choice you make changes the direction of the story. Like you shutting down the weapons division, like Obadiah's betrayal being stopped ahead of time—these things are already different from the'script'."
Tony was silent for a few more seconds, then suddenly laughed—a laugh that carried a bit of self-deprecation and relief.
"Fine." He said. "Although it sounds crazy, but... given what I saw with my own eyes tonight, and this damn thing in my chest, I choose to believe your story for now."
He sat up straight, his eyes becoming sharp and spirited again.
"So, Happy to work together? Mr. and Ms. Dimensional Repairmen."
Arthur smiled too and extended his hand. "Happy to work together, Iron Man."
Tony grasped his hand and shook it firmly.
"I need to upgrade the armor." Tony let go of his hand and immediately entered work mode. "If I have to face this kind of... cross-dimensional stuff in the future, the Mark 2 isn't enough. I need more powerful energy output, more comprehensive sensors, and maybe some means to counter magic or dimensional interference."
"You're the professional on technical issues." Arthursaid. "If you need advice or materials from the magic side, you can find us. Also, keep this."
He took out another small square that looked like an old Nokia phone, but with tiny runes carved on the casing.
"Encrypted communicator, magic-powered, absolutely tap-proof. If there's an emergency, press this button." Arthurpointed to a glowing button on the side of the square.
Tony took it and weighed it. "More stylish than the one S.H.I.E.L.D. gave me."
"That it is." Arthur stood up. "Alright, the cards have been laid out, and it's almost dawn. We won't disturb you while you plan your new armor."
Wanda also stood up and nodded gently to Tony. "Take care to rest; emotional stability helps keep the anchor calm."
Tony watched them walk to the center of the living room; Arthur raised his hand to draw a circle, and the golden sparks swirled again.
"Hey." Tony suddenly spoke up.
Arthur turned back.
"Thank you." Tony said, his tone very serious. "For the Obadiah matter, and for... not letting me become the key to destroying the world while knowing nothing."
Arthur grinned. "You're welcome, remember to give us a five-star review."
The Portal formed, Arthur and Wanda walked in, and the sparks dissipated.
The living room returned to quiet.
Tony stood where he was, looking at the empty living room, then looked down at the magic communicator in his hand, and the Arc Reactor prototype quietly glowing on the workbench.
He walked to the floor-to-ceiling window; the sky outside was already starting to turn white.
"Jarvis." Tony said.
"Yes, sir."
"Initiate the 'Clean House' protocol at the highest level. Then, bring up all the design schematics for the Mark 2." Tony watched the dawn rising over the horizon. "We've got a big job to do."
He touched his chest, where the shock of learning the truth seemed to still linger, but now, there was more of a heavy, goal-oriented sense of responsibility.
And a hint of excitement for the challenges ahead, which were far beyond imagination.
Chapter 15: Iron Monger
The showdown ended, and Arthur and Wanda returned to the New York Sanctum. Life seemed to have returned to the rhythm of routine monitoring of dimensional fluctuations.
But both of them knew that the progress bar for Tony's "version update" must have been maxed out.
"Jarvis, pull up the energy output curve for the Mark III. Also, the data from that new alloy we tested last time..." In the basement laboratory of the Malibu Villa, Tony had dark circles under his eyes, with over a dozen floating screens flashing before him.
He had replaced the one in his chest with that old, larger Arc Reactor. While the energy output was stable, it just didn't feel right.
That compact new Arc Reactor prototype returned by Furysat in the most conspicuous spot on the workbench, like a taunt.
"Sir, you have been working for forty-eight consecutive hours. I suggest you rest," Jarvis's voice sounded.
"Rest? Let me finish the blueprints for the Mark III first." Tony didn't even look up, his fingers flying across the virtual keyboard. "If Obie could be sent away by 'alien express delivery,' who knows what will come next? I need to be prepared."
As he spoke, he touched his chest. Occasionally, a faint, pulling sensation of abnormality would come from there. It didn't hurt, but it reminded him that he still had a "cross-dimensional registration" hanging on him.
Upstairs in the Villa, Pepper was holding a stack of documents, her brows tightly furrowed.
She had just audited several large fund flows from the past three months and discovered some extremely covert transfer records pointing to overseas shell companies, all authorized by Obadiah Stane.
"Tony..." She walked to the laboratory entrance and knocked on the open door.
"Hmm? Pepper? Just leave the documents over there." Tony pointed to a table in the corner piled with parts.
"It's not documents." Pepper walked in and handed him a tablet. "Look at this. There are some irregularities in the final payments and material procurement flows for projects previously handled by Obadiah. I suspect... he might have transferred some core data, or perhaps, left behind a contingency plan."
Tony took the tablet, scanned it quickly, and his expression darkened.
"Jarvis, perform a full scan of all the company's core servers, especially the areas where Obadiah had top-level access. Look for any abnormal data backups or transmission records."
"Scanning now, sir."
Tony returned the tablet to Pepper and rubbed his temples. "Thanks, Pepper. As for the company... please keep a close eye on things for the next few days. Even though Obie is gone, the mess he left behind is surely more than just what we see right now."
Pepper nodded, her eyes filled with concern. "You need to rest too, Tony. You look terrible."
"I'll sleep once I finish this." Tony pointed to the 3D model of the gold-and-red armor on the screen, which was beginning to take shape with sharper lines.
Pepper sighed and turned to leave the laboratory. She knew she couldn't persuade him otherwise.
A few days later, at the Stark Industries park, in Obadiah's former private R&D workshop.
This place had been sealed off by Tony's orders, but Pepper needed to personally inventory some of the experimental equipment and residual data inside for legal audits and internal filing.
She brought two security guards into the spacious workshop, where some unfinished mechanical parts and design blueprints were still scattered about.
Pepper carefully flipped through the paper notes on the workbench, which were filled with Obadiah's scrawled handwriting and complex formulas. When she flipped to a certain page, her hand froze.
On that page was a rough but distinct structural diagram of a giant humanoid suit of armor, labeled with notes like "Heavy Armor Platform," "Dual Energy Interface," and "Countering the 'Mark' Series." In the corner of the blueprint was an inconspicuous Mark, resembling a twisted ring symbol.
Pepper's heart skipped a beat. She immediately took out her phone, preparing to call Tony.
Just as she looked down at her phone, a heavy sound of metal scraping against the ground came from the shadows deep within the workshop.
Pepper and the two security guards looked up simultaneously.
A tall, bald figure in a rumpled suit slowly walked out from behind a pile of discarded mechanical skeletons. His face was unnaturally pale and gloomy, his eyes murky, yet they exuded a desperate, all-or-nothing madness.
It was none other than Obadiah Stane.
"Miss Potts," Obadiah's voice was hoarse. "Still worrying about the company this late?"
"Mr. Stane? You... how are you here?" Pepper instinctively took a step back, and the two security guards immediately stepped forward to shield her.
"Me? I've always been here." Obadiah twitched his lips into an ugly smile. "Tony destroyed everything I had, but I still have to... leave behind some 'legacy'."
Just as he finished speaking, several large robotic arms on the workshop ceiling suddenly activated and lunged downward!
The two security guards reacted quickly, drawing their guns and firing, but the bullets only sparked harmlessly against the robotic arms. The arms easily swatted them away, and then a giant steel hand precisely grabbed Pepper, who couldn't escape in time.
"Let her go!" one of the security guards struggled to get up.
Obadiah didn't even look at him, walking straight to the back of the workshop and pressing a hidden switch.
The ground split open, revealing a huge, pitch-black vertical shaft, from which the faint roar of machinery could be heard.
Controlling the robotic arm, he held Pepper and walked step by step toward the entrance of the shaft.
"Tell Tony," Obadiah looked back, speaking to the terrified Pepper and the struggling security guards, "if he wants her to live, he must trade it for that new, lovely 'little heart' in his chest. He knows the location. Don't try any tricks, and don't involve those'strange friends,' or else..."
The robotic arm tightened, and Pepper let out a pained groan.
Obadiah, clutching Pepper, disappeared into the depths of the shaft. The ground closed up, as if nothing had ever happened.
New York Sanctum, library.
Arthur was pondering a light point flickering slightly on the bronze globe when Wanda suddenly pressed her temples and let out a low cry.
"What is it?" Arthur immediately looked over.
"Tony... and Pepper," Wanda's face turned pale. "Intense fear, anger, and... despair. The location is at the Stark Industries park, Obadiah's old turf! The energy fluctuations are very chaotic, with strong... mechanical energy and a familiar, dark energy."
Arthur's eyes narrowed. "Obadiah? That old guy crawled back from the 'zombie suit'? And he's pulling off some 'Edo Tensei' combined with 'kidnapping and extortion'?"
He quickly tapped the globe, and a light screen popped up, showing that the energy readings in the Stark Industriespark area were rising sharply, mixed with clear energy signatures of an Arc Reactor, as well as a trace of... disturbing lingering energy from The Ten Rings.
"Let's go!" Arthur pulled Wanda up. "Let's go take a look. I'm afraid we're about to see a performance of 'Iron Man 1.5'."
A golden Portal bloomed in the Sanctum.
At the Malibu Villa, Tony had just finished testing the last joint bearing of the Mark III when Jarvis's alarm sounded.
"Sir, I have received an emergency communication from the company's security department. Miss Potts has been kidnapped in Mr. Obadiah's old R&D workshop, and the kidnapper is Obadiah Stane himself. He demands that you go alone to the old assembly area in the southeast of the Stark Industries park and trade the new Arc Reactor in your chest for Miss Potts's safety."
The tool in Tony's hand clattered to the floor.
His face turned livid instantly, and the light from the old Arc Reactor in his chest seemed to dim for a moment.
"Jarvis, locate Pepper's life signal, and pull up every available surveillance feed! Also, activate the Mark III, now!"
"Sir, the Mark III's energy core is an old-model reactor, and its power output may not be sufficient to deal with an unknown threat. Furthermore, the perpetrator explicitly demanded that you go alone."
"Do it!" Tony almost roared. He quickly stripped off his grease-stained work clothes and walked toward the Mark III armor, which had already automatically deployed.
The armor components rapidly attached to his body, the gold-and-red suit shimmering with a cold luster under the lights.
The faceplate closed, and Tony's voice came through the speakers, filled with suppressed rage and determination: "Also, send a message to the 'repairman' couple... No, never mind. If they can't even'see' this, then they shouldn't be in this line of work."
He walked to the floor-to-ceiling window at the edge of the Villa, and the window opened automatically.
"Jarvis, full thrusters. Destination, Stark Industries park."
Boom!
A gold-and-red streak of light tore through the night sky.
Stark Industries park, southeast corner, old assembly area.
This place was as spacious as a small plaza, with rusted shipping containers piled in the distance. Obadiah stood in the center of the open space, with Pepper beside him, held and gagged by a robotic arm. He looked even more haggard and insane than before, but his eyes burned with a terrifying light.
Behind him stood a behemoth.
It was a giant humanoid suit of armor over three meters tall, matte gray in color, with rugged and heavy lines. Its limbs and torso were covered in thick armor plating, with large thruster pipes on its back. In the center of its chest was an empty socket, clearly designed for an Arc Reactor.
Iron Monger.
Tony, piloting the Mark III, landed with a boom on the other end of the open space. The faceplate popped open, revealing his cold face.
"Obie, let her go."
"The reactor, Tony." Obadiah's voice came through the armor's external speakers, laced with static. "Take that new one in your chest, take it out, and put it on the ground. Then, back away."
Tony glanced at the terrified Pepper, gritted his teeth, and reached toward his chest.
"Tony! Don't!" Pepper shook her head desperately, making muffled sounds.
Just as Tony's fingers were about to touch the reactor—
"Tsk tsk, the classic 'villain dies from talking too much' segment." A slightly teasing voice rang out abruptly from the shadows at the edge of the open area.
Arthur and Wanda's figures were leaning against a section of an abandoned crane support, though no one knew when they had gotten there. Arthur was even crossing his arms, looking like a bystander who was just there to watch the show.
Obadiah and Tony were both stunned for a moment.
"You..." Obadiah exclaimed in surprise.
"You really did come." Tony let out a sigh of relief, but immediately tensed up again. "Don't interfere! This is between him and me!"
"Rest assured, I won't steal your 'damsel in distress' scene," Arthur waved his hand. "We're just passing by, and while we're at it… helping you clear up the battlefield."
As soon as he finished speaking, Wanda's eyes glowed with red light, and she mimed a grip with her hands in front of her chest.
An invisible field of Chaos Magic quietly expanded, enveloping the entire old assembly area. The sharp metal shards scattered on the ground, the loose steel structural bolts, and even the tiny cracks in the floor were all slightly reinforced and smoothed over by a gentle yet resilient force.
Arthur raised his hand, golden magic runes flashing briefly at his fingertips, as an invisible barrier covered the more distant factory buildings and office blocks that might be affected. In his own words, "This is called pre-emptively conducting a 'public property damage assessment' and 'reducing insurance claim amounts.'"
Although Obadiah didn't know exactly what had happened, he intuitively felt that the surrounding environment seemed to have "stabilized" quite a bit, which only made him more irritable.
"Tony! The reactor! Now!" He controlled the mechanical arm to tighten, and Pepper let out a muffled groan of pain.
Tony didn't hesitate any longer and violently ripped out the new, compact Arc Reactor from his chest! Its eerie blue glow was exceptionally striking in the night.
He bent down, making a move to place the Arc Reactor on the ground.
At that very instant, a fierce light flashed in Obadiah's eyes. The empty port on the chest of the Iron Monger suit behind him suddenly opened, and a powerful suction force surged out, actually pulling the Arc Reactor from Tony's hand through the air!
Click! The new Arc Reactor embedded precisely into the Iron Monger's chest, its light flaring brilliantly! The massive suit shuddered, its joints and sensors lighting up one after another, and a low roar of engines sounded.
"Hahaha! Power! This is true power!" Obadiah laughed wildly, released Pepper, and quickly climbed into the open back cockpit of the Iron Monger. The hatch closed.
The Iron Monger's massive steel head turned toward Tony, its eye sensors lighting up with a crimson glow.
"Now, Tony, let's end this!"
Boom! The Iron Monger took a heavy step, the ground trembling, and a massive steel fist swung toward Tonywith a whistling wind!
Tony's faceplate snapped shut instantly, and the thrusters on his feet erupted, allowing him to narrowly dodge the blow by shifting to the side. The fist slammed into the ground, shattering the concrete like tofu.
"Jarvis, full power output!" Tony shouted from inside the suit. The micro-missile bay on the Mark III's arm opened, and several small missiles fired, slamming into the Iron Monger's heavy chest armor.
As the explosion's fire faded, the Iron Monger merely swayed, its chest armor sporting a few scorch Marks, but it clearly hadn't sustained any substantial damage.
"The power gap is too large, sir," Jarvis reported calmly. "The opponent's energy core output is over two hundred and thirty percent of ours, and the armor thickness far exceeds our estimates."
The Iron Monger raised its arm, the forearm armor sliding open to reveal two rotary cannons.
"Tony, times have changed!"
Rat-tat-tat-tat! A violent storm of metal engulfed the area where Tony was.
Tony could only push his thrusters to the maximum, dodging and rolling in a sorry state through the air and on the ground, occasionally using his arm armor to block, but every impact left his arms numb, and multiple sections in the suit's status display turned yellow.
"Arthur! Are you just going to watch?!" Tony roared toward the shadows after dodging a strafing run.
"We're watching, it's quite a show," Arthur's voice drifted over leisurely. "But you seem to have forgotten, the old one in your chest—the energy is running out, right?"
Tony's heart sank. Jarvis immediately prompted: "Energy remaining at forty-one percent, and consumption is accelerating under high-intensity maneuvering."
The Iron Monger clearly noticed Tony's predicament and attacked even more fiercely, even beginning to use the thrusters on its back for short-distance dashes, attempting to catch the more agile Mark III.
"Wanda, add some 'latency' to that big guy." Seeing that it was about time, Arthur said to Wanda.
Wanda nodded, the red glow in her eyes intensifying, and she lightly pointed her finger toward the Iron Monger.
The Iron Monger, currently chasing Tony, suddenly experienced a moment of uncoordinated stuttering, as if its control system had received instructions half a beat late. Although it recovered quickly, it was enough for Tony to put some distance between them.
"What's going on?" Obadiah roared inside the cockpit, checking the dashboard.
Tony seized this brief opportunity, sharply pulling up in altitude and flying toward the sky above the seaside industrial area.
"Trying to run?!" The Iron Monger's main back thrusters spewed thick exhaust flames, and its massive body actually took to the air. Though clumsy, its thrust was astonishing, and it followed closely behind Tony.
The two suits, one after the other, burst through the roofs of the industrial area and began a chase in the night sky.
On the ground, Arthur and Wanda opened a Portal and appeared directly on top of a taller water tower nearby to continue "watching the battle."
"The old Arc Reactor's energy won't last much longer," Wanda sensed. "Tony is very anxious; he's trying to figure something out."
In the air, Tony's energy alarm had already sounded.
"Sir, energy remaining at seventeen percent. Recommend immediate disengagement from combat."
"Disengage? Pepper is still down there!" Tony gritted his teeth, glanced at the relentlessly pursuing Iron Monger, and then looked at the pitch-black sea below. A risky plan began to form in his mind.
He abruptly changed direction, no longer flying toward open ground, but instead charging toward a group of large cooling towers by the sea! The Iron Monger followed closely behind.
Tony utilized the Mark III's advantage of being more compact and agile, weaving between the massive cooling towers, baiting the Iron Monger into making more violent maneuvers.
"Jarvis, record its flight altitude and external temperature readings!"
"Recording, sir. Target's current altitude is four thousand two hundred meters, external temperature is negative seventeen degrees Celsius, and it continues to drop."
This is it! Tony abruptly poured all his remaining energy into the thrusters, performing a near-vertical, limit-pushing climb!
The Iron Monger roared and followed. The altitude climbed rapidly: five thousand, five thousand five hundred, six thousand…
Frost began to form on the surface of the Mark III, and the alarm sounds became increasingly urgent. On the Iron Monger's massive body, ice covered it even faster, especially on the joints and thruster nozzles.
"Warning, external icing rate is thirty-five percent, thruster efficiency dropping…"
"Warning, flight control system experiencing latency…" Alarms popped up continuously on the screen in front of Obadiah.
"What's going on?! De-icing system! Activate de-icing!" He operated the controls in a panic. But it was too late.
After reaching a certain critical altitude, Tony abruptly shut down the thrusters, letting the Mark III go into freefall, while using the last bit of energy to maintain balance and cushion the impact.
As for the Iron Monger, due to icing and system interference, its posture went out of control. The massive machine spun in the air, falling straight toward the empty wasteland outside the Stark Industries park below!
"No—!!!" Obadiah's desperate roar was drowned out by the terrifying, thunderous sound of steel colliding with the ground. Boom—!!!
The Earth shook, flames shot into the sky, and it exploded into a massive fireball.
Tony controlled the Mark III, landing shakily not far away, dropping to one knee, the light of the Arc Reactor in his chest so faint it was almost invisible. His faceplate popped open, and he gasped for air, looking at the burning ruins.
Arthur and Wanda teleported over and walked to his side.
"Done," Arthur said. "Though the scene is a bit big; tomorrow's headline will probably be 'Unidentified Explosion at Stark Industries Park, Suspected Arms Testing Accident.'"
Tony ignored his sarcasm, struggled to stand up, and stumbled toward the spot where Pepper had been released earlier.
Pepper had already been calmed and brought to a safe place by Wanda using magic; she was just frightened, but otherwise unharmed.
Tony hugged her, holding her tightly, and only let go after a long time. He turned around, looking at the pile of burning Iron Monger wreckage, his eyes complex.
Arthur had already walked to the edge of the wreckage, avoiding the flames, and used magic to telekinetically retrieve a few pieces of twisted, still-hot armor shards.
On the shards, one could faintly see tiny, dark golden energy patterns that were rapidly dissipating.
"Energy from The Ten Rings, though it's so weak it's almost gone." Arthur handed the shards to Wanda to look at. "It seems Obadiah's return, and his ability to build this big hunk of iron, wasn't just based on his own 'inheritance.'"
Wanda sensed the shards: "The energy is dissipating, very thoroughly. Obadiah is dead, and this temporary link… seems to have broken too."
Tony walked over and looked at the shards: "What is this?"
"A distant relative of the 'registration form' inside your body, but it's 'disconnected from the internet' now." Arthur put the shards away. "You're fine here, so hurry up and clean up the mess. Remember to strengthen your defenses; this time it was an Iron Monger, next time who knows what it will be."
Tony nodded, watching Arthur and Wanda open a Portal and leave again.
He held Pepper, looking at the chaotic industrial park before him, and then looked at the dust beginning to drift from the sky, illuminated red by the firelight.
"Jarvis."
"Yes, sir."
"Initiate full cleanup procedures. Also," Tony paused, "from today on, at Stark Industries, for all matters, there is only one final decision-maker. Do you understand?"
"Understood, sir. Welcome back."
Arthur and Wanda returned to the Sanctum and immediately began analyzing the residual energy on those few shards.
"It dissipated too fast; I can barely capture any effective characteristics." Wanda said with some regret.
"But at least it proves that The Ten Rings, or whatever is behind them, has reached out further than we thought, being able to recycle even an 'abandoned pawn' like Obadiah." Arthur recorded the analysis results and sent them to the Ancient One at Kamar-Taj via a magical messenger.
After finishing all this, he stretched.
"Alright, Tony's 'newbie village graduation exam' is passed. Next, it's time for other 'new students' to step onto the stage, right?"
Wanda leaned on his shoulder and said softly: "I hope it can be peaceful for a few days."
Arthur laughed: "Wife, with our 'accident-prone constitution,' do you think that's possible?"
Wanda thought about it and also smiled: "It seems… unlikely."