[Obadiah sat on the sofa, unable to take his eyes off the glowing reactor. He held it in front of Tony and smirked. "A true masterpiece! Take a look!"]
["This is your final legacy! Now, we can call it... the core of a new generation of weapons!"]
["With this, we can seize control of the entire world! No doubt about it!"]
[Placing the reactor inside a protective box, Obadiah continued, "I really wish you could witness my prototype! But don't worry, unlike you, it's not as stingy!"]
["It's a shame you dragged Pepper into this. I had planned to give her a chance to live!" Obadiah sighed before standing up and walking away.]
George frowned as he gazed at the sky. "Tony Stark is in serious trouble! He never expected that the mastermind behind all this would be Obadiah. He had no defenses against him at all!"
"If it were anyone else, unless they were extremely paranoid, they wouldn't suspect the person who had watched them grow up would try to kill them, right?"
The 2nd Generation Spider-Man sighed. "It's not that he was careless—it's just human nature. A person is more likely to suspect outsiders, not those closest to them. The last thing you'd expect is betrayal from someone you trust."
"Yeah, that's true. Tony Stark should be fine, but Pepper might not be so lucky. I just hope she stays safe."
George nodded, feeling helpless. This was exactly why he had prevented the 2nd Gen Spider-Man and Gwen from being together—he feared situations like this.
"Tony's reactor was stolen, but don't forget, there's a backup reactor in the villa! Thankfully, Pepper never destroyed it. Now, Tony's survival depends on that!"
Gwen agreed with her father and explained Tony's slim chance of survival.
[That night, Rhodey was driving when his phone rang. Answering the call, he frowned, "What do you mean, someone hired to kill Tony? Slow down, Pepper!"]
[The sudden information confused Rhodes. He couldn't wrap his head around it. "Why would Obadiah do this?"]
["I'm serious! This is urgent! I can't explain everything over the phone!"]
["Okay! Where's Tony?" Seeing that Pepper couldn't explain it clearly, Rhodes decided to find Tony himself for answers.]
["I don't know! He's not answering my calls! Go check on him—quick! I hope nothing's happened! Thanks, Rhodey!"]
[Meanwhile, Pepper, Coulson, and a team of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents rushed to the underground garage, ready to drive to Stark Tower. After hanging up, she turned to Coulson.]
["I know a shortcut!"]
[Rhodes, gripping the steering wheel tightly, made a sharp turn and sped toward Tony's Malibu villa.]
[At the villa, Tony struggled into the elevator. Without the reactor, his body was rapidly deteriorating. The shrapnel in his chest could pierce his heart at any moment.]
[Pale and drenched in sweat, he staggered out of the elevator. The lingering effects of the sonic weapon left him weak and barely able to stand.]
[He pushed the door open with great effort. His eyes locked onto the old-model reactor resting on the table, but before he could reach it, he collapsed onto the ground.]
[Tony crawled forward, inching toward the table. He reached up, desperately trying to grab the glass container housing the reactor, but his strength failed him, and he fell back down, gasping for breath.]
[Just as Tony was about to lose hope, his robot, Dum-E, rolled over and extended the reactor to him.]
[Tony exhaled in relief, looking at the little robot that had always been more trouble than help. He managed a weak smile and praised, "Good boy!"]
[Then, with the last of his strength, he smashed the glass cover...]
"Phew... That was close! Thank god for that robot!"
"That little troublemaker actually came through! I love this thing!"
"If it were me, I'd upgrade it and put it on display!"
"In an emergency, the least reliable thing somehow became the most helpful! Dum-E might be a handful, but at least it knows when to step up!"
The spectators all breathed a collective sigh of relief. Ever since Tony's reactor was stolen, they had been on edge.
[Meanwhile, Obadiah stood in front of the Iron Monger suit, holding the miniature Arc Reactor he had stolen from Tony. Slowly, he stepped forward and plugged it into the suit's power socket.]
[The moment the installation was complete, the Iron Monger suit powered up successfully. Watching the suit come to life, Obadiah grinned in satisfaction.]
["Tony! Tony!!!" Rhodes arrived at the Malibu villa, finding the entire place in darkness. He called out multiple times, but there was no response, prompting him to rush inside.]
[Climbing in through the broken glass, he spotted Tony lying motionless on the ground. "Oh my God! Tony!!!"]
[Rhodes sprinted over and helped him up. "Are you okay?"]
[Tony, now fitted with the old-model reactor, was gradually regaining his strength. He nodded and immediately asked the most pressing question on his mind. "I'm fine! Where's Pepper?"]
["She's safe! She's with five S.H.I.E.L.D. agents—they're on their way to arrest Obadiah!" Rhodes quickly updated him.]
[Hearing that Obadiah had already completed a prototype, Tony's expression darkened. "Five agents aren't enough!"]
[Rhodes' face tensed. He grabbed Tony's arm and helped him stand. "Then get up!"]
[At that moment, Pepper and her team arrived at Stark Tower. Moving swiftly, she led them inside. "It's in Area 16!"]
[Coulson followed close behind. Soon, they found the entrance to Area 16. Pepper pulled out her access card and tried to unlock the door—only to find her credentials denied.]
[Coulson, unfazed, extended his hand. An agent immediately handed him a small explosive device, which Coulson affixed to the door handle.]
[Pepper, unaware of what it was, curiously asked, "What is that? Does it open the door like a magnetic card?"]
["Please step back a few steps." Coulson remained expressionless as he activated the device. A red light began flashing, and Pepper quickly realized it was a bomb.]
[She immediately retreated behind the agents and covered her ears. With a controlled explosion, the door handle was blown apart, rendering the lock useless.]
[The sudden noise alerted Obadiah inside. Without hesitation, he activated the Iron Monger suit and charged toward them.]
"Hahaha! Rose, look at her! She's so adorable!" Otto laughed, seeing Pepper's confusion over the explosive.
"Theoretically speaking, it did open the door! Just not in the way she expected! Hahaha!" Rose covered her mouth, giggling.
"Oh no, this is bad!" Pepper's face turned red as she realized her mistake. After working with Tony for so long, she had assumed all agents carried sophisticated high-tech gadgets—only to learn their solution was simple brute force.
Tony couldn't help but laugh. "Finally! She always teases me with my embarrassing stories—now I've got one on her!"
...
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