Inside Tony's Moroccan mansion.
"So you're saying Odin and these gods really exist?"
Fury, with his one eye glaring, spoke in an odd tone to Lynch.
Lynch shrugged and pointed to Thor sitting beside him.
"This guy right here is Thor. How about he puts on a lightning show?"
Thor, hearing Lynch, stood up with his hammer.
"Okay, okay! I believe you!"
Fury quickly raised his voice. After all, he had seen the report sent by Coulson and knew this muscular guy was indeed extraordinary.
"Can you sit down?"
"Of course."
Thor shook his hammer and sat back down.
"Tony, are you guys talking about a replacement for palladium?"
Lynch, lounging on a chair, took a sip of his drink and looked over at Tony.
"Yes, but I've tried every possible option—it's just not working!"
Tony said, a little frustrated.
"Natasha, Thor, you two can leave now."
Lynch, sipping his drink, waved the two of them away and then continued,
"Since you've tried all existing possibilities, just create a new one."
"A new possibility?"
Tony muttered in confusion, falling into thought.
"Director Fury, you can talk to Tony now."
Lynch gave Fury a look, put on his sunglasses, and started sunbathing on the balcony.
"The thing in your chest is based on unfinished technology..."
"No, it's a finished product."
Tony didn't agree with Fury's criticism of his work and immediately retorted:
"I miniaturized it, and it worked wonders."
"No."
Fury shook his head.
"Your father said the arc reactor was just a stepping stone to greater technology. He was planning an energy revolution that would leave all competitors in the dust. His vision was much grander. The arc reactor, compared to that, is like a double-A battery."
He gestured animatedly as he spoke, but Tony, remaining calm, poured himself a drink.
"Was it just him? Anton Vanko was involved too, right?"
Fury quickly responded:
"Anton Vanko was like the other side of the coin. He saw it as a way to make money. When your father found out, he had Vanko deported. After the Russian government realized Vanko couldn't deliver, they exiled him to Siberia. He spent the last twenty years in a drunken stupor. Not the best influence on his son—the one you met in Morocco."
"So, what is this new possibility I haven't tried yet? What do you mean?"
Tony asked, still confused, holding his glass.
"He said only you have the resources and the brains to finish his plan."
Fury replied calmly.
"He said that?"
Tony looked skeptical.
"He was talking about you, wasn't he?" Fury stared at Tony, questioning.
"If it's you, you'll be able to solve the mystery that's been plaguing you."
Tony shook his head silently, looking conflicted.
After a long pause, he spoke quietly, looking down:
"I don't know how you know all this, but... he didn't think that much of me."
"What do you remember about your dad?"
"He was cold, calculating, never said he loved me, never said he was proud of me. Now you're telling me he believed I could change the future? That's hard to believe. And the fact that he entrusted this task to me? I don't get it..."
The more Tony spoke, the more his face darkened, and his tone grew more agitated.
"The happiest day of his life was the day he sent me off to boarding school."
"That's not true."
Fury shook his head, denying Tony's words.
"Oh, so clearly, you know my father better than I do."
Tony responded sarcastically.
"Actually, yes."
As Fury spoke, two agents dressed in black brought over a box and placed it beside Tony.
"He was one of the founders of S.H.I.E.L.D."
"What?"
Fury glanced at his watch and stood up, preparing to leave.
"I have a two o'clock appointment."
"Wait, what's in this box?"
"You'll be able to figure it out."
"No, no, I don't know anything!"
"Ask Lynch. He's still here."
With that, Fury turned and left, leaving Tony dumbfounded.
"Lynch?"
Tony called out hesitantly, but there was no response from Lynch.
"Come on, are you seriously sleeping at a time like this?"
...
Sitting in a room, Tony opened the box Fury had left behind.
Inside were some old items—books, notes, and newspapers.
He pulled out a rolled-up piece of paper first and looked at it. It read, "Stark-Vanko."
After a quick glance, Tony didn't find anything significant, so he tossed it aside and continued rummaging through the contents.
He noticed an old newspaper. The headline read, "Soviet Scientist Defects," alongside a photo of Vanko. Still, nothing of importance.
Next were a few metal boxes that seemed to hold something. Glancing at the labels, Tony realized they were old videotapes.
He put one of the tapes into a player, and soon, his father—Howard Stark, dressed in a suit—appeared on the screen.
"Anything can be achieved through technology: better living, healthy bodies, and for the first time in human history, a chance for world peace. I am Howard Stark. Everything you need for the future is here—the city of tomorrow, the future metropolis..."
Howard spoke confidently on screen, standing in front of a model of what he called the "city of the future." Meanwhile, Tony absentmindedly flipped through his father's notes.
"Hold on..."
Howard walked off-screen and came back with a smile, saying:
"I am Howard Stark. Everything you need for the future is here. I want to personally—"
Mid-sentence, a small boy suddenly popped up at the bottom right of the screen, causing Howard to turn his head.
"Tony, what are you doing? What's that? Put it back where it belongs..."
At his father's words, Tony looked up, expressionless, at the screen, watching his younger self and his father interact.
"Where's your mother? Maria! Take him away..."
After little Tony was led away, Howard turned back to the camera, a bit flustered, trying to gather his thoughts:
"I'm going to walk back in, then introduce..."
Suddenly, the screen filled with static before cutting to a new scene where Howard was seated, explaining the Stark Expo.
Disappointed, Tony watched for a while longer before drinking the last of his drink, preparing to walk away.
Just then, Howard's tone shifted.
"Tony, you're still too young to understand this, so I'm recording it now..."
Hearing this, Tony turned back to the screen, paying closer attention.
Howard pointed to the Expo model behind him and continued with a smile:
"This is for you. One day, you'll realize this isn't just about human invention. It's my life's work. It's the key to the future!"
The camera zoomed in on the details of the model, showing the lifelike buildings and greenery.
"I'm limited by the technology of my time, but one day, you'll understand it all."
Howard's expression became serious, his tone earnest:
"When that day comes, you'll change the world."
After a pause, Howard added, with deep emotion:
"My greatest creation... is you."
Tony stared at the screen, momentarily lost in thought.
In his memories, his father had never spoken to him with such care, let alone offered such praise.
Tony had rarely brought up his family on his own.
Throughout his childhood, his father had never given him any affirmation or praise, even though Tony had always been exceptionally smart and talented, far ahead of his peers.
Later, his parents died in an accident.
That had always been an unbearable pain for him.
In later films, Tony even developed a new technology to erase these painful memories.
But at this moment, after hearing his father's heartfelt confession and expression of love, Tony suddenly realized...
Maybe he didn't really understand his father after all.