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[Ironman] Ch: 94 [Stark Expo] [pt.1]
🕑 Added 2025-05-21 20:21:36 +0000 UTCAN: Unedited. Wrote this ch on UPS. Didn't have enough charge to edit.đ So, let me know if there are any mistakes. See ya tomorrow.
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[Year: 1991]
[Location: New York City â Stark Expo Grounds]
[Time: 9:00 AM â Opening Day]
The morning sun hit the glass of the newly finished Stark Expo center, sending a cascade of light across the steel and chrome spires surrounding it. The plaza buzzed with the energy of thousands of attendees, all flooding through the security gates, flashing badges, adjusting cameras, and pointing at the holograms flickering over their heads.
The reporters were swarming around the place. Then there were those investors and researchers from high places. Students, kids, and even independent researchers were there.
Above the entrance, a massive display blinked with animated lettering:
STARK EXPO 1991 â FORWARD TOGETHER
Dozens of drones zipped through the air, projecting advertisements, interactive schedules, and stylized previews of key presentations. Holograms of clean energy models, biomech limbs, modular space architecture, and AI symbiosis drifted in the air like a slow-motion ballet.
In the center of the grounds, surrounded by elevated walkways and massive LED screens, stood the keynote stage. Stark Industries banners hung from the towers like flags, and the crowd packed tight against the barriers.
The security was tight. Melina was in charge of it, so there was nothing to worry about.
There was a big timer which was ticking...
10 seconds left before the main event starts.
Everyone was there in the main hall.
Then, the music cut off as soon as the timer hit zero.
The lights shifted to the main podium.
And Tony Stark stepped into view.
He wore a deep blue suit with a matte black undershirt, no tie, no badge, and no script. Just confidence and clarity.
The crowd erupted into applause and cheers. Camera drones hovered for a better angle. Journalists scrambled to get the perfect shot. His fame increased massively after the release of the commercial holographic technology and computers. So, people were expecting something groundbreaking again from him.
Howard and Maria stood in the top gallery, looking at their son with pride. Natasha was also there with them. As for Yelena, she wanted to come, but someone had to look after the Celestial Island.
Tony raised one hand and gave a single nod.
"Welcome to the future," he said into the mic, voice carrying clear and strong. "And thank you for showing up to meet it halfway."
The applause returned, louder this time. He let it settle before continuing.
"This year, the Stark Expo isnât about products. Itâs not about sales or shareholders. Itâs about people. The thinkers, builders, and risk-takers who work in basements, garages, and midnight labs. The ones who dream past the limits the rest of the world tells them to accept."
A pause. Then he smiled slightly.
"And Iâm done pretending science needs permission to change the world."
That line hit. It echoed across the crowd like a spark.
"So, without delaying further, let's begin..." He pointed toward the 16-year-old boy standing on his right. The spotlight fell on him.
The boy stepped up beside Tony, stiff at first, blinking under the lights. He wore a plain sweatshirt and jeans, hands tight at his sides. His name lit up behind him in bold white letters:
Alex Reyes â Age 16 â Bronx
He was nervous.
Tony looked at him, then turned to the crowd.
"This is Alex. Two months ago, his school science fair disqualified his project because they said it was too advanced and probably stolen. They gave first place to a baking soda volcano."
There were murmurs and a few scattered laughs.
Tony continued. "Alex built a micro-drone the size of a fingernail. It maps interiors in real time and sends data to any device with less than a one-second delay."
The screen behind them shifted to a close-up of Alex's drone. Then a live feed from its camera. It flew out over the crowd, zipped through a narrow camera rig, and back again. People gasped.
"This is the future of surveillance, disaster response, and urban search. And he built it on spare parts."
The crowd applauded, this time louder. Alex smiled, just a little.
Tony clapped him on the shoulder.
"He's now a fully funded developer under the Stark R&D Grant. Next."
Another spotlight. Another name.
Dr. Mei Tanaka â Robotics Researcher â Dismissed from MIT
Tony introduced her as she stepped onto the stage with a calm, collected gait.
"Mei was fired from her lab because her employer didnât believe assistive robotics for elderly care had a real market. They told her to shift her research toward 'combat exosuits for defense contractors.'"
The screen lit up with her prototype. A soft, joint-assisted exosuit that could be worn by people with arthritis or recovering from strokes. It moved gently, responding to muscle impulses with smooth, lifelike grace.
She demonstrated it herself, lifting a weight her frame had no business carrying, then letting go without a sound.
"She didnât want to build weapons," Tony said. "She wanted to help people stand up. And now she will. Stark Industries has provided her with a full lab, a team, and no military strings attached."
Next came a young woman in a wheelchair.
Lena Khatri â Age 22 â Engineer â Rejected by Five Universities
Tony waited as the audience quieted. Lena rolled herself to the center, unbothered by the silence. A female assistant carried a chair and placed it on the stage. She sat down on it.
"This is Lena. Every institution she applied to told her she lacked âformal credentials.â None of them bothered to test what she could actually do."
Tony glanced at Lena, then stepped aside and gestured to her with a small nod of encouragement.
âShe built something unique. Personal mobility without wheels.â
The crowd leaned in.
Lena tapped a button on her chairâs armrest.
With a soft hum, the wheels retracted, and the entire frame lifted several inches off the ground. Her chair hovered in place, balanced and still. Then she moved smoothly, effortlessly, gliding across the stage like it was a perfectly polished floor.
There were gasps. Whispers of disbelief. Then cheers.
Tony smiled as she completed a slow turn and stopped beside him.
âZero-impact movement. Designed with affordability and modular upgrades in mind. First applications start next month in hospitals and mobility clinics across the country. And it started in a garage in Queens.â
The applause rolled louder. Lena gave a small, quiet wave and returned to her place.
Tony turned slightly toward the other side of the stage.
âNext.â
A man in his early thirties walked up. Messy hair. Lab coat. Looked more like a night-shift tech than a keynote guest.
Name flashed on screen:
Julian Park â Biochemist â Unfunded Independent
Tony nodded toward him. âJulian cracked a food packaging issue no one was solving. Not because it wasnât important, but because it wasnât profitable.â
Julian raised a clear film between his fingers, barely visible.
âBiodegradable, edible, shelf-stable for up to two years. Breaks down naturally within forty-eight hours in soil or water. Costs less than a penny per unit to produce.â
A projection showed the material being exposed to rain. It dissolved instantly into a harmless mix, completely gone.
âNo more plastic wrappers in landfills,â Tony said. âNo microplastics in oceans. He did it without a lab team. Just time, tenacity, and his kitchen stove.â
The crowd clapped again, louder this time. Whistles. Someone in the back shouted, âFinally!â
Julian gave a humble bow and walked off.
Tony gave the signal again. âNext.â
After a few more demos...
The name appeared:
Dr. Susan Storm â Geneticist, Independent Researcher
Tony stepped toward the center stage again.
âOur next speaker is someone I met not long ago. And in that short time, sheâs done what most institutions couldnât accomplish in a decade. Sheâs not just brilliant... sheâs relentless. Sheâs spent years chasing an answer no one wanted to fund, no one wanted to risk, and no one wanted to believe could work.â
He turned slightly toward the side of the stage.
âShe built a cure. Not for a disease, but for a burden. For a life people didnât choose.â
A murmur passed through the crowd. Tony continued.
âThis is Dr. Susan Storm. And what sheâs about to show you⌠is the beginning of a new kind of choice.â
The spotlight shifted. Susan stepped forward in a fitted black blazer over a slate-grey shirt and narrow-leg pants, her hair tied back. She walked calmly, carrying a small, flat case in her left hand.
She stopped at the center, just past Tony, and faced the crowd with quiet command.
âGood morning,â she began. Her voice was steady. Clear.
âIâm not here to talk about erasing anyoneâs identity. Iâm here to talk about agency. About the right to choose what kind of life you want to live.â
She held up the case and opened it. Inside was a small glass vial, faintly glowing with a pale violet hue.
âThis is the RECODE serum. It doesnât suppress abilities. It doesnât âfixâ mutation. It does one thing, and one thing only... restores biological equilibrium to people whose mutations are causing them pain, instability, or progressive internal damage.â
The screen behind her came to life, showing side-by-side genetic models. Mutated genes flickering erratically on one side. On the other, stable strands post-serum application.
âThere are mutants who canât touch their loved ones without causing injury. Children whose bones grow faster than their skin. People with voices that rupture organs. For too long, theyâve been ignored, hunted, imprisoned, and discarded by society and the law.â
She paused.
âThis isnât about fear or being ânormal.â Itâs about the freedom to say: I donât want to suffer for something I didnât ask for.â
The crowd was silent. Focused. Listening.
Susan continued, her tone unwavering.
âThis serum is voluntary. Reversible. It rewrites nothing that wasnât already trying to repair itself. It doesnât erase the mutation. It stabilizes the unstable cells. So people can heal. Or sleep. Or stop hiding.â
The screen behind her showed a simulation where mutation cells were stabilizing without scarring. A girlâs arm stops mid-shift from a spasm-inducing mutation.
âIâve tested it. In the lab. On simulated samples. And now, thanks to the resources and support of Stark Industries, weâre moving toward real-world trials under full medical oversight. Ethical, consent-driven, and free of corporate ownership. More details will be announced soon.â
Applause started. Light at first, then growing. Some stood. Others just sat, stunned.
Susan stepped back slightly and let the screen fade.
âI didnât come here to ask for anything,â she said. âI came here to show that even the worst problems arenât impossible. Just... inconvenient for the people who donât have to live with them.â
She closed the case and gave a small nod to the crowd.
âThank you.â
Tony returned to her side as the applause surged again. This time louder. More than polite. It was real.
He leaned in and said low enough for her alone, âYou crushed it.â
Susan gave him a small smile. âI know.â
Tony stepped back to the mic.
âLadies and gentlemen⌠this is why we build Expos.â
He took a deep breath...
"Now, I guess, it's time for the finale. You must be wondering what I have created during my years of absence from the limelight... other than the perfect holographic technology? Well... Here we go..."
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