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[Vol-3] [Ironman] Ch: 86 [Time Skip]
🕑 Added 2025-05-09 19:13:25 +0000 UTCAN: Slightly fast paced. I've explained the necessary things that took place during the skip and kept it tight.
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[Year: 1991 – 6 Months Later]
Six months had passed since the world changed.
After Tony Stark and the Shadow Legion exposed corruption and tore down the rotten core of global systems, chaos followed. Governments fell. Secrets came to light. For four long months, nations scrambled to rebuild.
But things eventually settled.
A new system was formed. One that was less controlled by hidden hands and more open to progress, peace, and truth. Fury took this chance to place his men inside the system.
During this time, Howard and Maria Stark quietly took the perfected Super Soldier Serum that Tony created. Their bodies rejuvenated. They looked and felt like they were 25 again. Stronger, sharper, and ready to stand beside their son in the new era they helped spark.
It created quite some confusion among the people and Stark Industries since it ain't every day one sees an old couple gaining their youth. He called it a lab accident and the effect of some mixed-up chemicals.
Then, the news of Steve Rogers has been kept under the radar. Fury knows about him, and so he deployed some agents to keep an eye on him from a distance.
As for Tony, he did some things... Created some things... We'll come to that in a bit. [Next Chapter]
Next was the Stark Expo.
Howard Stark made an announcement:
"The Stark Expo will return. Two months from now. New York City. A celebration of progress, peace, and the minds shaping our future."
Special invitations were sent to scientists, inventors, and visionaries. Not just celebrities of science, but the quiet geniuses working in labs, universities, bunkers, and even bedrooms. Tony even found some rare minds thanks to his vast network and three AIs. He won't just let talent rot in some dump.
...
[Location: Susan Storm's Apartment]
Susan Storm sat at her desk, surrounded by papers, coffee mugs, and a holographic screen displaying her latest control system simulation. Her fingers moved fast across the keys. The system was perfect.
Ever since Tony Stark released the holographic computer to the public last month, it has killed the old market. Who wouldn't buy them for 30% less price of the latest PC hardware and a better futuristic interface? Easy to carry, doesn't weigh much, has all the necessary hardware in a simple tablet or a laptop-sized device, depending on the model.
It was like Tony's name spread throughout the world with just a single move, just before the Expo. What a coincidence, right?
A soft ding broke the silence. Her inbox flashed.
Subject: Invitation to the Stark Expo
Sender: Tony Stark
Priority: High
Susan raised an eyebrow. She opened the email and read it. Slowly, then again. Her eyes widened.
She turned in her chair, calling out, "Johnny!"
From the next room, her younger brother's voice replied, "What?"
"Get your lazy ass in here. Now."
Johnny stumbled into the room with a protein shake in hand, wearing sunglasses and pajama pants. He had some fun last night with a couple of girls in his custom-made new car. The girls just left a few hours ago.
"You won't believe this," Susan said, handing him her tablet.
Johnny read the message, his jaw slowly dropping. "No freaking way."
She nodded. "It's real. We're invited to the Stark Expo. VIP access. Full accommodations. He even referenced one of my old papers from MIT. How did he even find that?"
Johnny grinned. "It's Tony Stark. He probably has AI reading everyone's brainwaves."
Susan rolled her eyes. "This isn't a joke, Johnny. This is big."
He flopped onto the couch. "I know. You think Ben got one too?"
Susan didn't answer. She was already typing a message to Ben.
[Location: Brooklyn – Ben Grimm's Workshop]
Ben wiped sweat from his forehead as he stood over an engine block. His work gloves were covered in grease. The smell of fuel and hot metal filled the air.
His phone buzzed on the bench.
Message from Susan: Check your email. Like, now.
"What did Johnny do again?" He grunted, dropping his tools and reaching for his phone. A moment later, he was staring at the same email.
Ben let out a low whistle. "Well, I'll be damned."
[Location: Xavier Institute – Library]
Hank McCoy sat at a long wooden table, flipping through a thick volume on mutant biology. His glasses slipped a bit as he reached for his tea.
The sound of a new email came from his tablet.
He took the tablet, read the email, and froze.
"Well," he muttered, "Looks like I'm going to New York."
[Location: Various Labs, Universities, and Safehouses]
Across the country and beyond, brilliant minds received the same message. Each one different in field, background, or beliefs, but all had one thing in common: they'd been seen.
Some stared in disbelief. Others whooped in excitement. A few cried.
...
[Location: Egypt – Outskirts of the Sahara Desert][Time: Late Afternoon – Golden Hour]
The sun was low in the sky, casting a warm orange hue over the endless sand. Quiet and smooth winds rolled across the dunes. But deep in this forgotten land, something new was rising.
A massive structure stood in the middle of the desert. Flat, wide, and steel-gray, it stretched across several square miles. Dozens of robotic arms moved in sync, carrying metal sheets, welding beams, and laying down power lines.
This was the Starfire Base.
A full-scale spaceship construction and testing site. Hidden from the world.
Invisible to satellites.
Shielded by jammers.
Protected by Stark drones that flew in silent circles above the compound.
Inside the base, the walls were white. Bright lights lined the ceilings. Robots walked in rows. They were working nonstop.
In the heart of the structure, the Starfire ship was already taking shape. It was still in the early phase of development.
Tony stood on a balcony, hands on the rail, watching the workers below. He wore black cargo pants and a grey t-shirt, his hair messy. He was wearing smart glasses that fed him constant data.
Next to him stood a floating orb with glowing blue rings.
"Update," Tony said, without looking away.
"Construction is 12.4 percent complete. Structural integrity: optimal. No malfunctions detected," Hermes answered.
Behind them, a large monitor lit up, showing blueprint layouts, ship specs, and resource counts.
"Elena," Tony said, turning toward the control deck, "Status on incoming materials?"
"All shipments have cleared customs. They are en route via encrypted transport drones. No threats detected," Elena answered.
Tony nodded. "Good. Keep the perimeter locked. No one in or out unless I say so. We can't be too careful."
He took a deep breath and looked at the ship again. This was it. In the past months, he managed to create a detection device for cosmic radiation thanks to the energy readings from the Tesseract. He also created a containment device to trap and store cosmic radiation. Now, all he has to do is go to space and recreate the situation of the Fantastic Four from the comics or movies. Once his body evolves, he'd be free from the pain of the Mind Stone inside his head and gain new control and abilities.
'Well, no need to get overexcited. It's still a long way to go,' He reminded himself and calmed his excitement. 'Time to focus on the job at hand.'
...
[Location: Celestial Island – Secure Perimeter]
[Time: Early Evening]
The dead celestial was freaking giant, bigger than any island on the map. And as usual, Yelena deployed the tech.
No radar could find it.
No satellite could see it.
No one could approach without being torn apart.
Perimeter drones moved in silent circuits through the humid air, each equipped with advanced motion tracking, heat vision, and kill protocols. Cloaking tech made the island completely invisible to eyes, and frequency jammers kept even the most advanced listening tools deaf. Turrets rotated in carefully coordinated arcs, ready to obliterate anything that moved without proper ID.
It took two months to set everything up due to the unknown structure. Then there was moving resources and all. And the exploration.
Near the center of the island, just beyond a natural waterfall fed by the mountain’s internal spring, a facility had been carved into the stone. The natural formation made it easier for them to set things up. Built underground with reinforced alloy plates, hidden entrances, and natural geothermal cooling systems, it housed the island’s central command.
Inside the control room, ten women stood around a central table displaying a 3D map of the island.
Yelena stood at the head of the table. She wore a tactical jacket over her Widow armor, sleeves rolled up. She looked alert as usual.
“Any drone pings from the west coast?” she asked without looking up.
“No,” replied Ingrid, one of the older Widows. “Patrols are clean. Perimeter holding. Jammers synced.”
Yelena nodded. “Turret calibration?”
“Complete,” said Aiko, tapping a panel. “They’ll pierce a vibranium hull at full charge.”
“Good.” Yelena stepped back, arms crossed. “That leaves extraction.”
The holographic display shifted, zooming in on a quarry-like pit deep inside the island.
Raw Adamantium...
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AN: Next Chapter: Lunch invitation for Susan Storm
