"Where are we going now?" Pepper turned her head to look at the pursuers behind the car and asked Coulson.
"To find reinforcements" Coulson replied calmly, keeping his eyes on the road.
These people had been chasing Coulson and Pepper for over an hour.
Strangely, their goal seemed to be solely to cut off their communication with the outside world. Apart from the initial collision, they hadn't attempted to attack Coulson and Pepper again.
Instead, they had formed a perimeter, restricting their movements. What was interesting was that their blatant actions hadn't attracted any police attention. This had to be Obadiah doing.
As the car slowly entered Brooklyn under the encirclement, Coulson suddenly said to Pepper
"Hold on tight."
Although Pepper didn't fully understand, she quickly grabbed the handle on the car door.
Coulson stepped on the gas, and the car shot forward, crashing into the vehicle blocking their path.
"Whoa!" The collision drew gasps from onlookers.
The other cars that had been following Coulson and Pepper quickly closed in, and many people got out, drawing their guns and aiming at Coulson car.
"Get out!" a black-clad man stepped forward, banging the butt of his gun against the car window and shouting.
"Quickly!" several others surrounded the car, pulling at the doors.
"Alright, alright" Coulson opened the door and raised his hands, whispering to Pepper
"Miss Potts, don't do anything rash. It'll be fine."
Pepper rubbed her nearly dislocated arm and reluctantly followed Coulson out of the car, wondering inwardly, What on earth is this guy planning?
The surrounding bystanders, seeing the situation, took out their phones to call the police, but the signals were jammed, and they couldn't make any calls.
One of the black-clad men approached a man who seemed to be the leader and whispered,
"Captain, this might cause quite a stir..."
The man referred to as the captain glanced around and nodded, saying "Take them to the car."
"Move! Move!" several black-clad men grabbed Coulson and Pepper, dragging them toward the car.
Suddenly, all the black-clad men collapsed to the ground, unconscious.
"What's going on?" Pepper exclaimed in shock, clutching Coulson arm in fear.
Before Coulson could answer, another group of black-clad men rushed out from the buildings across the street.
"Oh!" Pepper panicked, trying to hide.
"Miss Potts, those are reinforcements. They're on our side" Coulson quickly reassured her.
Pepper patted her chest, calming herself, and said.
"Your people... can't afford clothes? If they can't, I'll buy them. These outfits look way too much like the bad guys."
After the events of the past hour, Pepper was clearly shaken and emotionally unstable.
"Sorry, Miss Potts" Coulson said apologetically, gently comforting her.
"We need to go. We need to leave quickly" Pepper steadied herself and said to Coulson.
"Follow me, you four. The rest of you, handle this" Coulson instructed as he, along with four agents and Pepper, got into a car and drove away.
"Miss Potts, where are we heading now?" Coulson asked.
"Stark Industries headquarters" Pepper replied, pulling out her phone to call Tony.
"Hello, Tony? Tony, you need to be careful with Obadiah! Hello?"
After dialing, there was no response from the other end.
"What's wrong, Miss Potts?" Coulson asked, noticing Pepper grave expression.
"Tony might be in trouble" Pepper said, hanging up and immediately calling Yinsen. But Yinsen phone went unanswered. She then quickly dialed Rhodey number.
....
At Tony home, two men were seated on the sofa, Tony Stark and Obadiah Stane.
"Take a deep breath, relax, Tony" Obadiah said, placing a hand on Tony shoulder. He then extended something from Tony right hand—a paralysis device.
Obadiah held the device in front of Tony and said.
"Take a look at this little gadget, remember? Too bad the government didn't approve its production. It could have been useful in many situations requiring temporary paralysis."
Tony was immobilized, his eyes wide as he stared at the ceiling.
Obadiah stood up, walked over to Tony, and pinched his face forcing him to look at him.
"Tony, you know what? When I ordered your assassination, I was really worried I might be killing a... a golden goose."
As he spoke, Obadiah removed two chips from his ears and pocketed them—tools that blocked the sound waves emitted by the paralysis device.
"But look" Obadiah pointed at the arc reactor in Tony chest. He then opened a briefcase he had brought with him, took out a disassembly tool for the reactor, and aimed it at Tony chest.
"You survived, and that was fate. You were destined to lay this last golden egg for me."
Obadiah pulled the arc reactor from Tony chest, smirking as he said.
"Did you really think your creation would always belong to you?"
Obadiah looked into Tony eyes, his gaze flickering for a moment before he continued.
"Your father built the atomic bomb for us. If he had been as selfish as you, what would the world have become?"
"Look, how beautiful! Oh, Tony, this is your Symphony of Fate, a masterpiece! And this will be your legacy. The next generation of weapons will all use it as their core... under our joint control—no, under my control" Obadiah said, sitting beside Tony.
Tony could only watch as his treasure glowed brilliantly in Obadiah hands.
Obadiah put the reactor back into the briefcase, stood up, and said.
"I will set the world back on track. I wish you could see my suit. Unlike your conservative design, it will change the world."
Obadiah stood up, leaned over, and looked into Tons eyes.
"It's a shame you dragged Pepper into this. I had hoped to let her live."
With that, Obadiah left, and Tony could only watch his retreating figure, his eyes filled with boundless anger.
With his back turned to Tony as he walked away, Obadiah face was filled with a smile—a triumphant one, yet also one accompanied by tears that drenched his entire face.
"Hate me, Tony. This is Survival of the fittest. Let us face each other in a fair fight to the death. In this war, I will no longer be your godfather, no longer your family. We are enemies, adversaries!"
"And the one who survives this war will carry the burden of Stark, the legacy of your father, and move forward. The future of the world will ultimately be in the hands of... HOLY FUCK!"
Before Obadiah could even reach the door, it automatically swung open, and he collided head-on with Raiden and Yinsen, who were walking in.
Obadiah, holding a briefcase, and Raiden and Yinsen, holding a bottle of wine, entered with broad smiles.
The only imperfection in this scene was Tony Stark, standing behind Obadiah, pale as a ghost, devoid of any color, his chest hollow.
For a moment, the room fell into silence... and an awkward atmosphere.
-------------------------------
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