(75 Days Later)
Ethan was currently flying at an extremely fast speed in the skies of Afghanistan.
Two and a half months had gone by since he had transmigrated into this world. In the past 75 days, Ethan had initialised his own plans.
The first thing he did was study. Using the free internet, he studied every damn subject and right now he was as big a genius—or even greater—than Tony Stark. The big brain from Brainstorm had been put to good use.
Even so, for now he had developed only his theoretical knowledge. His constraint was money and resources. Although he could have used various methods to make money, he did not do so. He gathered all the knowledge and continued to live in the same poverty.
The only money he earned was by beating up roadside thugs, like the ones who had killed him. And that was sufficient enough for him, but only to eat...
Finding Tony Stark had proven to be a tough challenge. Well, he could have hacked into Obadiah Stone's computers and phones and gotten a link, but again he faced the same resource constraint. He needed advanced computers and systems. He could not possibly have used an old computer from some run-down cyber booth to hack into the firewalls of such an influential person.
So, he chose the manual method. He first eliminated all the civilian-populated areas and then slowly closed the perimeter of the mountainous region.
Well, 'slowly' for him, at the speed of Jet Ray, meant three days. For the past three days, he had been in Afghanistan, and today was the day he was going to meet the legendary Tony Stark.
.
.
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In a dimly lit cave, two men were engrossed in their work, connecting wires in a strange kind of metallic body, when a sound snapped their attention.
"To build something like this in such a place… you are a genius, Stark," sighed Ethan. His gaze was fixed intently at the rough machine that was standing in the cave.
Tony's head snapped in surprise in the direction of the voice.
He looked around to find a young man, around 21–22 years old, standing in front of him. From his appearance, the man looked to be from the same country as him.
He was shocked to find the boy standing inside the cave. He heard no sound of the door being opened or any kind of disturbance. His first instinct was to lean forward and try to reach for the little 'precaution' he had made for himself.
Seeing this, Ethan chuckled, "Relax, Mr. Stark, I mean no harm."
"Who are you?" asked Tony instinctively, while his face was marred by anxiety. Reaching out for the 'precaution' was still not out of his mind.
Yinsen, next to Tony, was also anxious—well, not much for himself but more for Tony.
Ethan grinned, reaching into his jeans pocket and producing a metallic card. Apart from spending on food, he had saved some money to get himself five of these premium metallic cards. It had been a costly affair but totally worth it.
ETHAN ALCARDO
OMNI CONSULTANCY SERVICES
This was what the card read. Below this was engraved the green-coloured logo of the Omnitrix.
He had used the name "Omni" and this logo as a tribute to his source of powers.
"Omni Consultancy Services?" Tony muttered in confusion.
Ethan smiled, "You see, I provide my services to people who require it."
"And I believe, that at current point of time, you require it more than anyone else," added Ethan.
"What I require is to leave this damn place…" said Tony in frustration. "How did you even come in here?"
Before Ethan could say anything, Tony's eyes widened in surprise, "Holy mo********er… don't tell, you will rescue me."
Ethan grinned, "As I said, you require my services more than anyone."
Tony felt excited. If that man really could come inside, it was a good chance that he could take them out too. Although he had been building the suit, how could he be confident of saving them both- himself and Yinsen?
Even if he was confident in his talents and brain, a small amount of scepticism always remained. He did not want to put his life on the line for an unpredictable chance.
"Mind you, my services are not cheap," said Ethan, bringing Tony back from his thought world.
"Well, I don't have any money," mocked Tony in sarcasm.
"You will pay after you land in Los Angeles safely," replied Ethan.
"How much?" asked Tony. Money was something that he did not lack… especially not when he could die.
"100 million dollars," was what Tony heard, and his eyes bulged in shock.
"100 million… You know how much that even is?" asked Tony in a loud voice.
"I thought your life would be worth at least this much," said Ethan emotionlessly.
Tony almost choked, "You are blackmailing me. Nothing is different from these terrorists."
Ethan turned and sat down on a small stool, "Well, I doubt that these people will let you go even for 200 million dollars."
"Tell me in 20 seconds," added Ethan. "If it is a no, I will leave."
Tony looked horrified, "Will you really leave me here to die without the money?"
Ethan chuckled, "I don't do unfair business."
Tony almost gritted his teeth, "Fine… I don't know why I am even trusting you."
"But if you really rescue me… 100 million it is."
Ethan smiled, "Good decision."
"I want the money as soon as you land in Los Angeles. It is the first thing you will do… even before you eat a burger, transfer me the money. Account details are on the back of the card."
Tony flipped the card to see the details, "Fine."
Ethan smiled and started walking toward the door, "If you delay my payment, I will force you to pay the interest."
"Don't doubt my capabilities," chuckled Ethan.
He slid open the massive metallic door, and Tony heard, "Hey… what are you doing… Who are you?"
And then a gunshot. And Tony shuddered, wondering if it was Ethan who had just killed someone after all his boasting. But then another gunshot followed, and then a barrage of gunshots.
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