Standing behind Pepper, Happy
felt that something was wrong. He clearly remembered that there were thirteen people in the room when he first came in, but now, when he counted again, there were only twelve.
"Am I just too stressed out lately?" Happy thought to himself. "I'm even getting the headcount wrong." Although Happy had a somewhat eccentric personality, he was very professional. He had made a mental note of the number of people in the house as soon as he entered. But now, he found that the number was off. However, Happy didn't dwell on it and simply dismissed it as a momentary illusion.
Klein brought the two of them to an empty room and said, "This room is well soundproofed. If you have any questions, please feel free to talk here."
Pepper nodded and began. "Mr. Moretti, you must be aware that Tony Stark has not been seen for a long time. Just as the rumors outside suggest, he disappeared after going to Afghanistan. I have used all available means to find Tony, but I haven't been able to find any news of him. Now, I can only put my hope in you."
"I understand, Ms. Potts. You wish to entrust me with the task of finding Mr. Stark. Could you provide me with more information? I can then send someone to look for him."
Pepper nodded and recounted the details of Tony Stark's experiences before his disappearance. "He went to Afghanistan to demonstrate Stark Industries' latest missiles to the military, and then..."
Klein nodded as he listened, and even took out a pen and a notebook from somewhere to jot down his thoughts, appearing to be working with intense focus. "Very good, I fully understand what you've told me. I will notify our people to retrieve Mr. Stark."
"In two days," he declared confidently, "in two days, we will bring Mr. Stark back."
"Hmm, huh? What!" Pepper agreed subconsciously, but then she realized something was wrong with his statement. "What do you mean by bringing Stark back within two days? Could it be that your people were the ones who kidnapped Tony?"
"You can find Tony in two days?" she pressed, her voice a mixture of skepticism and hope. "please don't give me false hope!"
Klein adjusted his monocle and said with a calm smile, "Ma'am, please believe in our abilities. There are very few things in this world that we cannot accomplish. Our people have already begun to take action. Please patiently wait for my news."
Klein then returned to the room with the other men. "Alright, let's continue!"
On the round table, a crystal-clear insect with twelve distinct rings on its body kept wriggling and making human-like sounds. "Hey, hey, hey, the game just started! I haven't even done anything yet! Who killed me?!"
In the vast desert of Afghanistan, an ambulance was speeding across the dunes, pursued by two armed helicopters that were relentlessly attacking it. Suddenly, the sand behind the ambulance began to move rapidly, and a massive drilling machine emerged, rushing toward the ambulance.
At that moment, the back of the ambulance compartment opened, and Tony Stark lifted a heavily modified energy cannon, aiming it at the "Bone Crusher" that was charging toward him.
"Ambulance, sharp right!" he shouted.
The speeding ambulance immediately executed a beautiful, sharp drift, narrowly avoiding the oncoming Bone Crusher. Tony Stark seized the opportunity and fired a powerful shot, hitting the Decepticon directly. Struck by the weapon, which had been masterfully modified by Tony Stark, the Bone Crusher immediately lost all ability to move and was left paralyzed on the sand.
The car doors closed again, and Tony Stark asked the ambulance, "Ambulance, how far are we from the US military base?"
An emotional, mechanical voice came from the empty driver's cab. "Tony, according to the information you entered, it's still seven kilometers to the US military base you mentioned."
"Hopefully, we can hold on until then." Tony Stark threw aside the now-scrapped energy cannon in his hand. It had been a temporary modification made using the only weapon available in the ambulance and parts from his now-destroyed Mark I armor. Although it was extremely powerful and could take down the Decepticon Bonecrusher in a single blow, it was only a one-use weapon.
After being kidnapped by terrorists, Tony Stark had built the Iron Man Mark I in a cave and successfully escaped. After his escape, he had rushed toward the US military base he remembered from his last visit and had finally been spotted by two US military helicopters. But what he hadn't expected was that the two helicopters would transform into giant, hostile robots, ready to kill him right there on the spot. Fortunately, at that critical moment, a robot in the shape of an ambulance had appeared and saved him.
Through his communication with "Ambulance," Tony Stark had learned that his savior was, in fact, an ambulance—an Autobot from the planet Cybertron. The ones who wanted to kill him were the Decepticons. The Autobots had come to Earth to stop the Decepticons from destroying the planet. Coincidentally, they had landed in Afghanistan, encountered Tony Stark just as he was about to be killed by the Decepticons, and saved him.
Because Ambulance was not built for fighting—just as its name suggested, it was skilled in treatment and repairs—it was only equipped with a few small missile launchers. As a result, the man and the car were constantly being chased by the Decepticons.
The ambulance was moving very fast, and the Decepticons chasing it could only barely keep up. Every time they got close, Tony Stark would use the ambulance's only weapon to attack. After he had modified the weapon, the Decepticons didn't dare to take a direct hit. After the ambulance was riddled with bullet holes, they finally arrived at the nearest US military base.
The American troops stationed there were about to intercept the approaching vehicle. After all, anyone could tell something was wrong when an ambulance suddenly appeared out of the desert. However, after Tony Stark got out of the vehicle, the soldiers let him pass and quickly reported his arrival to the head of the base. After all, they had been searching for Tony Stark for the past few months.
"There are enemies! Be alert!" As soon as Tony Stark finished speaking, the two armed helicopters entered the airspace of the US military base.
"Helicopter ahead, this is a US military base! Land quickly, shut down your engines, and prepare for inspection!" a voice commanded over the base's loudspeakers.
"Hey, are you an idiot?" Tony Stark shouted, extremely dissatisfied with the US military's slow response. "I told you, this is the enemy! Quickly order an attack!"
The two armed helicopters seemed to obey the orders of the US military and slowly descended from the sky.
"Mr. Stark, no force dares to act recklessly in our base, and the same goes for them!" the base commander said confidently.
Tony Stark looked at the descending helicopters and had a nagging feeling that something was wrong. Those two Decepticons wouldn't surrender so easily. Suddenly, Tony Stark realized what was about to happen and shouted to the person in charge, "Idiot! They're about to attack! Quickly give the order to defend and open fire!"
"What did you say?" The person in charge didn't understand why Tony Stark was so panicked. They had already arrived at the US military base. How could they still be attacked?
A loud, metallic collision sound came from the attack helicopters that had landed on the ground. Then, under the stunned gazes of many soldiers, they transformed into two huge robots. The robots raised their arms, which began to emit a bright blue light.
Tony Stark's eyes narrowed, and he subconsciously shouted, "Ambulance!"
The ambulance parked nearby no longer hid itself and immediately transformed into an Autobot, rushing to Tony Stark's side and shielding him.
With a loud bang, Tony Stark was hit hard on the head and fainted.
Seeing this, Ambulance, who was not skilled in combat, did not join the fight. Instead, it began to treat Tony Stark, who had suffered a serious head injury.