"Tony Stark shoved an arc reactor into his own chest."
"He even bound the operational authority of the large arc reactor beneath Stark Tower to the one in his chest."
In New York, inside a factory that appeared on the surface to be a logistics company but was in fact an integrated weapons transport and modification facility run by Aegis Security.
Obadiah Stane, the true mastermind behind Aegis Security, stood with his hands on his hips, his face etched with impatience as he glared at the man across from him:
"He clearly doesn't want me meddling in anything to do with the arc reactor, and I don't even know what he's planning."
"So I want you to build one based on Tony's miniature reactor first—at the very least, it'll give me some leverage in negotiations with him."
Standing opposite Obadiah was a bald scientist much like himself, a Russian-born professor named Yuri Petrovich, whom he had specially recruited from Empire State University.
At this moment, Professor Yuri looked deeply troubled:
"I'm sorry, Obadiah. The kind of miniature reactor you want—my research confirms that such a thing is impossible to build…"
His words were cut off mid-sentence by Obadiah's brusque interruption: "Tony Stark built one in a cave! With a pile of scrap!"
Obadiah jabbed a finger hard into Yuri's chest, his anger so intense that his mustache quivered.
"I'm sorry, but I am not Tony Stark." Professor Yuri flinched at Obadiah's sudden outburst but still managed to get his point across.
Obadiah's blazing fury suddenly fizzled out. Of course he knew Yuri Petrovich wasn't Tony Stark.
Tony was a playboy, but he was never just a playboy.
The leap of Stark Industries from a weapons development and manufacturing firm founded by Howard Stark to the sprawling, multi-industry Stark Industries conglomerate owed everything to Tony Stark's brilliance.
"You're right. You're not Tony Stark." Obadiah placed a hand on Yuri's shoulder. "You spent your whole life competing with his father, and now you can't even measure up to his son."
Yuri Petrovich's breathing grew heavier. He was a brilliantly talented Russian-born physicist who had been a contemporary rival of Tony Stark's father, Howard.
But due to his affiliations and a string of unfortunate circumstances, he had always been viewed with suspicion in the West, only managing to secure a professorship at Empire State University a few years ago through the strength of his own knowledge.
Compared to the radiant Howard Stark and his son Tony, Yuri Petrovich was as ordinary as a passerby.
Professor Yuri knew full well that Obadiah was goading him, but he truly couldn't replicate the miniature arc reactor. It was a product utterly beyond its time.
"Actually, you've come to the wrong person, Obadiah," Professor Yuri said, meeting Obadiah's eyes. "I have another candidate to recommend."
Obadiah paced impatiently in front of Yuri, then spun around at those words:
"Who?"
"Anton Vanko," Professor Yuri replied. "He once worked with Howard Stark on the arc reactor project. He was later accused of being a spy and has been missing ever since."
Professor Yuri locked eyes with Obadiah:
"If anyone in this world can build a miniature arc reactor like Tony Stark, it's him and no one else."
Obadiah stared fixedly at Yuri Petrovich, a smile tugging at his lips. He stepped forward as if in friendly camaraderie, cupped Yuri's head in both hands, pressed their foreheads together, and stared into his eyes:
"Anton Vanko is dead. Didn't you know?"
"If he were still alive, do you think I'd come to a half-baked hack like you to build my reactor?"
Yuri clenched his fists. Only now did he learn of Anton Vanko's death. At Obadiah's unabashed contempt, Yuri stared back just as fiercely, their foreheads still touching, his breathing growing ragged:
"I can't do it."
Obadiah said nothing more. He had no further interest in this useless Russian scientist. As he strode toward the factory exit, he pulled out his phone:
"Arrange a flight to the Middle East for me."
He was going to meet Abu Bakr of the Ten Rings in person, to demand face-to-face why Tony Stark hadn't died—and instead returned perfectly intact… and what means Tony Stark had used to escape.
On North Brother Island, Batman was conducting a geological survey of the entire island and had obtained results that satisfied him.
Beneath the surface lay vast granite bedrock, over twenty meters thick—more than sufficient to support the parking and launch platform for the Batwing.
Below that were caverns and an underground river, perfect for creating an island within an island, a cave within a cave, and leaving space for the Bat-submarine.
The caverns were large enough, yet the granite bedrock made the island remarkably stable. Batman ran silent calculations and determined that the structure could easily support more than ten Batwings parked here.
Part of the lower layer was a shallow aquifer—a potential drawback, but burying the Alfred AI's servers here would allow the East River to serve as part of the server cooling system.
"If this island had never been contaminated with viruses and toxins, it could have been another tourist attraction in New York."
Batman completed his survey of North Brother Island but didn't stop there. He piloted the Batmobile underwater, circling the island slowly.
Not only the island's geology but the surrounding hundred-meter radius fell within Batman's survey scope.
Several hours later, Batman returned to the Batcave. Using a trust fund to purchase North Brother Island anonymously, he immediately began renovations under the cover of construction at Parker Tower.
"Vibranium can be worked under specific sonic frequencies. Barbara, use the sonic cannon on the Batmobile to test from low to high frequencies and find the optimal range for processing."
Batman issued the order, letting the Oracle AI run frequency tests on the vibranium while he began tracing the source through the black market channel where he had acquired it.
Vibranium's molecular structure defied common sense. Batman suspected it was some kind of synthetic metal, though like N-metal, it could also be extraterrestrial.
Its appearance on the black market had been disguised, but to Batman's eyes, that disguise was all but transparent. Tracing the vibranium's circulation path through the tangled web of the international black market, he pinpointed a single region in East Africa.
"The map shows a relatively underdeveloped, agriculture-based country called Wakanda. There are no anomalies in import-export data, energy consumption, or even communications signal density."
The deeper Batman investigated, the tighter his brow furrowed:
"Is Wakanda a highly advanced technological civilization masquerading as a poor nation? Like Arthur's Atlantis?"
--
Support me & read more advance & fast update chapter on my pa-treon:
pat reon .c-om/windkaze