So, Tony continued, "What you see on the screen is a car with an engine I created which runs not on gas, nor batteries. It runs on a micro-Arc Reactor. The same thing that's fitted in my chest, but much smaller and secure. How fast does it go? Well, I took it for a spin and hit two hundred miles per hour. And the range? Five thousand miles in one go with no stops. After that, you might need to top off the proprietary coolant—don't worry, it's only gonna cost you five bucks."
Ring!
Bzzz!
At that point, there was madness in the studio as more and more staff entered the live studio to watch Tony.
"Alright, folks, here's the scoop; the base model's going for a cool twenty-six grand, topping out at eighty grand if you want all the bells and whistles. It's a sedan, but we've got an SUV and pickup truck in the lineup too. These babies are production-ready and will be flaunting their stuff at the Stark Expo this year. By next year, January at best, you'll see them on the road." Tony dropped the biggest bomb. The price was actually affordable!
"But wait, there's more! We took the same engine, but supersized it and threw it in a trailer truck. Guess what? It performed just as well. We even put a mega version on a 737 and—hold onto your hats—Boeing's impressed. Not only will these planes fly nine thousand miles without needing a pit stop, but they only need the coolant. Yes, folks, this is the future of energy! And soon enough, your homes will be powered by this marvel at a price that's just too good to be true. How's that for a bit of futuristic flair?"
Bzzzz!
Bzzzz!
Bzzz!
Even my phone now? But I'm not done yet.
All the videos of the cars, trucks, and planes were shown to the viewers on TV and the internet. But like the studio, many of the viewers had fallen into a dumbfounded silence. What the heck was this sudden superfast pace of technological advancements? Fuck, they were still fighting in the Middle East for oil. And here, just like that, one single man destroyed the whole industry.
Instead of awe and excitement, the internet started trending It_wasn't_a_suicide and Save_Tony_Stark tags. It was really bizarre.
Back in the studio, Christine gathered herself and continued with the interview. "Wow, that was a lot to take in."
"I bet." He smirked at her face.
She almost blushed there. "The future feels awesome all of a sudden, Mr. Stark. Mr. Eron? What do you have to say about this new rollout?"
Mr. Eron was a typical trust fund kid who grew old in wealth and still thought he was smart enough to understand the market. But, as the saying goes, even a broken clock is right twice a day; he was too. "I-If Mr. Stark's invention is genuine and works as great as he claims, and at that price then… I don't think crossing a trillion in valuation is that far… five trillion? I can see that happening in the future."
Just five? Tony internally scoffed. The world energy market was huge, and his plan wasn't just to take over the transportation industry.
"General Aron?" Christine looked at the defense expert, a retired General. "Can you see this tech being useful in defense?"
"If those reactors can be made big enough to power ships and jets, I see a bright future ahead," General Aron replied but soon sighed. "But Stark Industry has no interest in manufacturing for the military anymore."
"On that note!" Tony said with a characteristic smirk. "General, I've got a question for you. When the Department of Defense makes a purchase, who gets the tender?"
"Whoever can provide the best quality at the best price." Answered the General.
Tony frowned this time and looked back at the camera. "So, why exactly is the Department of Defense—and a bunch of other agencies—breaking up with Stark Industries? I mean, look at the data—our competitors are floundering worse than a fish out of water, and some of them are even charging more! I've got signed letters from Generals and even the Secretary of Defense himself. Guess they're really into the whole 'breakup drama' thing."
On the screen, multiple pages of letters, tender slips, and more information flashed. Names, pictures, and even a few audios were played.
"Why is the US government suddenly all about buying junk at premium prices? Sounds like a great way to turn taxpayer dollars into confetti. What could be the reason? Did I anger someone in a high place? Wait, is this because of the Sokovia thing?"
The number of people in the US who cursed Tony from their offices numbered tens of thousands as they watched the interview. Acting like a clueless kid, Tony rambled out all the clues and pointed fingers.
"I guess I have no option left but to file some lawsuits for corruption."
"..."
There was true silence for a while. Fucking over the energy industry, and then smearing the US government for supposed corruption.
The man was on a highway to ruins, they all thought.
"Ehm… That was the exclusive interview with Mr. Tony Stark. Thank you for watching WHiH World News with Christine Everhart!"
The 'On-Air' light was turned off. Finally, everyone heaved a long, calming breath.
Tony frowned, however. "I wasn't done yet. The IRS part… Ugh, leave it."
I should mention it some other time. Tony wasn't blind to the implications. Having just declared a fight with two of the most powerful entities in the world was already pushing it. But he also knew how important a very powerful, and hidden side of the government considered him—SHIELD included.
Time to go to space.
"I'll be on my way then." He got up and removed the microphone attached to his suit.
Christine followed him in a rush. "Wait, Mr. Stark. I thought you wanted to 'discuss' something after the interview."
He chuckled and continued to walk. "I got somewhere to be, Christine. But, if everything goes well, how about I crash at your place?"
"YES!" She cheered a little too loud, only to look down in embarrassment. "I mean, yes of course."
"See you later then."
With that, Tony got back into his suit and flew off the building's roof. He made his way to his California mansion where the rest of his armor attachments were waiting for him.
"Sir," Jarvis said, "The deployment of Iron Guardian in Washington state has been completed. That marks the twelfth state."
"Sweet! But let's hit pause on the research for now. I'm gonna need all your computational mojo for this mission."
In no time, Tony landed on the terrace of his mansion. There, he stepped on top of a huge, rocket booster-like cone that attached itself to his legs, and all the way to his waist for stability. Then, two spare Iron Guardians lifted a twin-wing-like booster and attached it to Tony's back.
Facing the speed of Mach 25 wasn't going to be a walk in the park, so even Tony took it seriously. Like a good pilot, he did all the safety checks by the book and then checked the backup systems.
"Sir, the coordinates are locked."
Let's not die tonight.
"Jarvis, countdown."
"Ten… Nine… Eight…" Jarvis initiated the launch sequence. The boosters were made of clusters of powerful Arc Reactors, the real ones, unlike the ones Tony was using in cars. "Three… Two… One…"
BOOM!
"Fuck!" Tony felt the roof of his beautiful house get destroyed under the insane booster powers. The beam-like blue energy came out below him and in no time his body suffered the forces of nature. Blasting off into the sky, course-corrected by Jarvis, he just stared upward without stopping.
This is fucking awesome!
"Music!" Tony ordered, and soon enough AC/DC blasted into his ears.
He saw ice form on his visor, then it melted away, followed by more ice which eventually got removed by the suit's systems. Weightlessness was an element he greatly enjoyed, but it felt amazing to be in control of his movements thanks to his propulsion system.
Eight minutes later, Tony found himself in orbit.
"The structure is right before you, Sir. It seems to be under some camouflage," Jarvis reported. "Turning on Radiation Vision."
"Sweet Jesus!" Tony gawked at the thing in front of him. A massive ship like nothing he had seen in his life. It was mostly invisible, however, and only the parts where the energy from his Arc Reactor was bouncing off were visible. "Oh, we didn't make this one… this ain't fucking human!"
Tony flew around the whole structure and helped Jarvis scan a model of it. Soon enough, they guessed where the entrance was.
Eventually, Tony flew closer to it and placed his metal palm on the wall that was theorized to be the hangar area. "Ready, Jarvis."
"Charging."
Woosh!
A blue wave of energy left Tony's palm and did something to the ship. Its hangar area slowly opened up on its own.
"I feel like a child again," Tony chirped excitedly. This felt so much different from meeting Thor. "Let's explore this thing."
Thud!
As soon as he entered an invisible threshold in the hanger area, the hatch behind him closed. Once completely closed, he fell down on the metallic floor.
"Gravity!" Tony barked, a nerd in his heaven. "How fucking advanced are the creators?"
At that point, Tony couldn't stop himself. He stepped out of the booster attachments and walked deeper into the ship in just his Iron Man suit. Jarvis scanned everything in the way, making a map and finding a place to enter into the ship's systems.
"Looks like living quarters," Tony mumbled and changed his direction. "This looks like a cafeteria."
Eventually, he ended up in a massive hall-like area with a huge, wide panel at the end. Multiple buttons, screens, and so much more flashed there. The entire place was illuminated by some long panels of lights on the floor.
As adrenaline waned, Tony started to feel the depth of the situation. Who left it here? Who were the travelers? Where are they now?
"This looks like a weird, round USB port," Tony mumbled and approached the panel. He put his finger over the round port, and his suit quickly changed shape at the finger, a tool he made to pick locks. This time Jarvis used it to access the ship. "Make sure you localize yourself first."
"Already done, Sir," Jarvis responded and finally connected itself to the ship's panel.
Ting!
Bzzzz!
As if an engine suddenly started, the entire ship started making a vibrating rumble. The lights became brighter and some hovering screens formed over the control panel of the ship.
"Jarvis? You did that?"
"Sir! Look at this!" Jarvis mimicked human excitement that time and put something up on the alien screen. "Look at the title! It's written in English!"
Tony just stood there in an absolute daze. Merely reading the heading had done that to him.
"Light-Speed-Engine."
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