"Stick to the plan!"
"Stick to the plan!" Tony shouted, but it was too late. Yinsen had already picked up a gun and ran out to distract the guards.
"Yinsen!" Tony called after him, knowing deep down that Yinsen was right. The progress bar was only at 50%.
As Yinsen charged at the soldiers entering the tunnel, he was met by a larger group. Meanwhile, Tony focused on the progress bar, watching as it quickly jump from 50% to 80%, then surged to 91% in an instant, finally hitting 100%. The lights went out as all the energy was absorbed into the armor.
Tony knew it was time. Waiting inside the now-dark tunnel, he watched as the Ten Rings soldiers approached. When they were close enough, Tony swung a heavy punch, knocking the nearest one to the ground.
Bullets were shot in rapid succesion. The soldiers, believing they had killed their enemy, exchanged glances. Then, one of them widened his eyes in terror as another soldier was hurled back by an enormous iron armored figure. The gunfire continued, but it was useless. Tony took them down one by one.
As he advanced through the tunnels, two more soldiers rushed at him. The first was sent flying into the wall with a punch, while the second was kicked back and then finished off with another punch from Tony.
The remaining soldiers in the tunnel fled. One of them, in a panic, turned to fire more shots, but it made no difference. His comrades had already locked themselves behind a metal door, leaving him trapped outside. They listened as his scream echoed, followed by the sound of the door being smashed in by the armored suit.
Three soldiers ran from the tunnel. One tried to charge Tony, but a single punch embedded Tony's arm in the wall. As he struggled to free himself, the soldier fired a shot at his helmet. The bullet ricocheted off the armor, hitting the soldier and killing him instantly.
Tony paused, momentarily stunned by what had just happened, then yanked his arm free from the wall and continued down the tunnel.
Reaching Yinsen, Tony called out, "Yinsen!"
"Watch out!" Yinsen screamed, just as a rocket came flying toward Tony. He barely dodged it, the rocket hit the wall behind him, which send debris flying.
'Two can play that game,' Tony thought, raising his arm. He fired a rocket toward the base's leader, who had launched the first attack. The missile struck the wall behind him, knocking him unconscious from the shockwave and falling rubble.
Tony got closer to Yinsen's side and opened his helmet.
"Stark," Yinsen said, his voice weak.
"Come on, we've got to go. Move for me, come on. We have a plan. We're sticking to it," Tony urged.
"This was always the plan, Stark," Yinsen replied, his breath heavy.
"Come on, you're going to see your family. Get up," Tony pleaded.
"My family is dead. I'm going to see them now, Stark," Yinsen whispered.
"It's okay. I want this... I want this," Yinsen murmured, his voice fading.
"Thank you for saving me," Tony said, tears filling his eyes as he felt grateful.
"Don't waste it... Don't waste your life," Yinsen gasped once more before falling silent, passing away.
-----
Back at Kamar-Taj, Liam focused intently, nearly completely opening a small portal before hearing Mordo speak.
"Good job, you've made solid progress. You've almost opened a portal the size of your hands, that's excellent. Over the next few months, we'll focus on stabilizing your portals and increasing their size until you can fit your entire body through," Mordo explained.
"Thank you for your teachings, Mordo," Liam replied.
It had been two months since Liam's spar with Mordo, and in that time, Mordo had not invited him to another spar without magic. But that wasn't important right now.
'Tony Stark should be found today... I have to be careful,' Liam thought as he returned to his room.
Once inside, he opened his laptop and began scanning the internet for any updates on a press conference. Hours passed with no news of Tony being found alive. Worry started seeping in. 'Is Tony dead? No way, the butterfly effect can't have hit this hard yet, right?' Just as anxiety and fear began to set in, Liam finally saw the headline he'd been waiting for: "Billionaire Tony Stark Found Alive."
Clicking on the article, he watched footage of Tony stepping out of an airplane, only for the feed to be interrupted by his security pushing the reporters back. Satisfied, Liam turned his attention to his stock investments. He had bought in when the stocks had dropped to a twentieth of their value, and now he watched as they began to climb. His $50,000 investment doubled to $100,000, then $200,000. The numbers kept rising until it hit $1 million. It paused for a moment before climbing to $1.1 million.
The press conference was announced to start in 20 minutes, and in anticipation of further gains, the stocks surged to $1.3 million. With just 10 minutes left until the press conference, Liam sold everything, locking in $1.25 million. In 2008, that kind of money could go a long way—especially with property prices being what they were back then. Liam thought about how houses that cost $250,000 back in 2008 would be worth more than double that in 2024.
With a satisfied grin, Liam sat back and waited for the press conference to begin. As the stocks had been in high demand, his shares were sold almost instantly. He pulled out his phone and sent a quick text to his grandfather, letting him know he'd call after the conference with some good news.
Minutes later, the press conference began.
Loud applause filled the room as Tony Stark entered alongside Obadiah Stane.
"Ahh, would it be alright if everyone sat down? That way everyone can see me, and it's a little less formal," Tony said, taking a seat on the podium.
"Good to see you," Tony said to Obadiah.
"Good to see you too, Tony," Obadiah replied.
Tony took a deep breath before addressing the crowd. "I never got to say goodbye to my dad. I never got to say goodbye to my father."
Pausing briefly, he continued, "There are questions I would have liked to ask him. I would have asked him how he felt about what this company did.. If he ever had doubts, if he was conflicted. Or maybe he was every inch the man we all remember from the newsreels."
He scanned the room, his tone becoming more serious. "I saw young Americans killed by the very weapons I created to defend them and protect them."
"I saw that I had become part of a system that was comfortable with zero accountability."
"Mr. Stark! Mr. Stark!" Several reporters shouted questions.
"Hey, Ben," Tony acknowledged one of the familiar faces in the crowd.
"What happened over there?" Ben asked softly.
Tony's face hardened as he spoke. "I had my eyes opened. I realized I have more to offer this world than just making things that blow up. That is why, effective now, I will shut down the weapons manufactoring from Stark International until a time where I can decide what the future of the company will be."
The room erupted into chaos as reporters scrambled to get their questions answered, but Tony had already said his piece.
Obadiah stepped up to the mic, attempting to calm the room. "What we should take away from this is that Tony is back! and he's healthier than ever. We're going to have an internal discussion, and we'll get back to you with the follow-up."
Liam closed his laptop, grinning as he grabbed his phone. 'This is it. The official beginning.'