Away from the land, Henry felt like a fledgling just tossed out of the nest, except his fledgling's flight speed was a bit excessive.
The high-altitude air currents were much more complicated than he imagined. He was sometimes blown off course and sometimes nearly plunged into the sea due to overcorrection.
His Armor, besides being cool and highly defensive, offered no assistance with flight. Everything had to be figured out by him.
"Jarvis, I feel like a drunken seagull." Henry's trajectory was wobbly in the air, and he kept complaining.
"Seriously, this is much harder than racing. At least a racecar has a steering wheel. I'm relying entirely on my will; this is too idealistic and not scientific at all."
"Sir, according to aerodynamic principles, you can try to output energy more smoothly through your feet while maintaining core muscle stability." Jarvis's gentle voice sounded through the Armor's built-in communicator.
"Stop, hold it." Henry rolled his eyes.
"Don't talk to me about science. I am an unscientific product myself right now. What I need is practice, a lot of practice."
For the next hour, Henry was like a mischievous kid with a new toy. He was having a blast over the vast Pacific, diving from high altitude, skimming over the sea surface, and kicking up white splashes. He even raced a pod of dolphins, and his speed was so fast he almost gave the poor animals a complex.
After thoroughly getting the hang of flying, he remembered the real purpose of his journey.
"Alright, playtime's over. Jarvis, help me test my current top speed, and plot the optimal route to the Kunar province in Afghanistan."
"Affirmative, Sir. Please fly in a straight line at maximum power; I will use satellite tracking to measure your speed."
Henry took a deep breath and unleashed his internal power without reservation. His entire body turned into a black lightning bolt, instantly breaking the sound barrier and trailing a spectacular white sonic boom cloud behind him.
A few minutes later, Jarvis's voice sounded again: "Sir, your maximum speed is stable at approximately Mach 1. At this speed, it will take about 10 hours and 15 minutes to reach the target area."
"What? Only Mach 1?" Henry slowed down, his face a look of distaste.
"That's not much faster than our slowest private jet! I thought I could fly at the speed of light. Fine, just kidding. I hope by the time I get there, Tony hasn't sworn brotherhood with those terrorists."
"Sir, your physical abilities are still continuously strengthening. There is significant room for future speed improvement," Jarvis consoled him.
"Future is future, now is now." Henry sighed, resigned, and flew towards the designated direction. "Whatever, 10 hours it is. It's still faster than flying commercially, and I don't have to go through security."
The long journey was monotonous, especially at high altitude, where there was nothing but clouds and sea.
"Jarvis, don't just stand by. Talk to me." Henry yawned.
"Let's analyse this: where do you think my idiot brother is most likely being held?"
Henry was extremely bored. Even though he knew Tony was in a cave, this was the only way he could pass the time by chatting with Jarvis.
"Based on the intelligence provided by the military, the attack site is located in a mountainous area of Kunar province, with complex terrain and numerous caves. To hide the hostage and weapons, the terrorists would most likely choose a natural, easily defensible cave as their base."
Jarvis's holographic map unfolded in front of Henry, marking potential locations.
"Yes, that fits the terrorist aesthetic perfectly," Henry analysed, stroking his chin.
"Those guys captured Tony for two reasons: either to force him to build missiles or to extort Stark Industries. But they clearly underestimated my brother's stubborn nature. That guy would rather die than build weapons for terrorists. So, he must be trying to save himself."
"Your analysis aligns with my calculation results, Sir," Jarvis said.
"Mr. Stark has a very high probability of utilizing the materials provided by the terrorists to secretly manufacture an escape suit."
"Exactly, he'd definitely do that. Besides women and parties, the only thing in that guy's brain is mechanics," Henry sighed helplessly.
"So, he needs a place that can provide basic tools and materials and is also covert enough. Jarvis, filter out all locations that meet these criteria, focusing on mountainous areas with metal ore deposits."
"Filtering... filtering complete. Three areas have the highest probability, located in..."
During the remainder of the tedious flight, Henry and Jarvis analysed the situation back and forth, deducing every possibility. There was no alternative; although he knew Tony was in a cave, neither the movie nor the comics specified which one. He had to find it himself.
They talked about Tony's embarrassing stories and complained about the company's mess, making it feel less like a dangerous rescue mission and more like a leisurely international trip.
Over ten hours later, the blue ocean below was replaced by a desolate desert and continuous mountain ranges. Henry knew he had arrived.
"Oh, look at this godforsaken place." Henry floated over Afghanistan, looking at the barren landscape, and couldn't help but complain again.
"It's all yellow; you can't even see a single tree. The air is dry and hot, with a smell of gunpowder. I really don't know how my brother managed to stay in a place like this; there isn't even a decent bar."
He closed his eyes, focusing his attention completely, and activated his fully enhanced senses. The serum brought him more than just strength and flight; it also gave him dramatically improved physical abilities. He could now hear conversations from a great distance, a sort of weakened super-hearing.
Instantly, countless sounds rushed into his ears like a bursting dam. The rustling of wind over sand, the distant cries of a few vultures fighting over carrion, the roar of a patrol truck's engine, the Arabic conversations of the soldiers, and even the faint scraping of a lizard crawling over a rock miles away. All sounds were magnified to a terrifying degree of clarity, creating a cacophony that stabbed his brain.
"Wow, that sensation is really not great."
Henry frowned, diligently sifting through the ocean of sound to find his target. He was like the most patient sound engineer, constantly adjusting the focus of his hearing, filtering out the useless noise.
A minute later, his ear twitched slightly. He heard it.
Amidst the chaotic background noise, a clear, ringing sound of hammering metal stood out. Immediately, a voice he knew all too well appeared—the sound of arrogant, contemptuous complaining.
"Ethan, I'm telling you, the first thing I'm going to do when we get out of here is buy every single Middle Eastern kebab shop in the world and turn them all into pizza places! This stuff is absolutely disgusting!"
Another slightly older but gentle voice responded, "Tony, I think we should focus on how to get out first."
"Of course, of course, that's what I'm doing." The familiar voice continued.
"You'll see, Ethan, this is going to be the greatest invention of my life! It will get us out of this hellhole! The materials are a bit crude, though, and there's not even a decent paint job. This iron-coloured skin is really unworthy of my handsome face. Sigh, I wonder how that brat Henry is doing. Without me to watch over him, he's probably already on some woman's—"
Found it!
Henry abruptly opened his eyes, a smirk playing on his lips. The cave was about fifteen kilometres from his current position.
"Found you, my idiot brother. Don't worry, I'm coming to take you home."
As he finished speaking, he turned into a silent, black phantom, speeding towards the source of the sound.