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After knocking out the "Bald Hero," Arthur suddenly remembered that he was still holding a helicopter in his other hand.
He quickly set the helicopter down and glanced over at Tony and the others, only to find that the three of them were staring at him with utterly dumbfounded expressions on their faces.
"Ahem... what are you standing there for?" He asked, feeling a bit awkward. His earlier pose had indeed been a bit over the top.
"Nothing, I was just watching you... um, perform what a glorious comeback for an old man looks like!" Tony quickly replied, then changed the subject. "Who is this?"
"He came to tear down the house."
"So, a bald husky?" Tony asked, glancing at the man on the ground with a confused expression.
Arthur thought for a moment and said, "He lacks a bit of seriousness you usually see in terreriots."
"That's enough already!" Pepper interjected, looking somewhat exasperated. "Is now really the time for jokes?"
"Indeed not," Arthur said, glancing at the helicopter's pilot. "Tony, take him into custody."
"And then what?" Tony stepped closer.
"Then we head to the base," Arthur replied. "Your mess needs to be dealt with."
"Which part are you referring to?" Tony asked, glancing at Maya. "And what about her?"
"Take her along too."
...
Only Tony, Maya, the Bald Hero, and the helicopter pilot arrived at the small base. Pepper stayed behind to deal with the other helicopter issues.
Natasha had already been waiting there. When she saw everyone arrive, she first glanced at Tony. "Long time no see."
"Yeah, it's been a while," Tony nodded. "So, based on your investigation, this old man next to me has been playing the role of a fortune teller in front of us?"
"That's his hobby," Natasha replied, glancing at Arthur. "I looked into the AIM you mentioned."
"All I want is a surprise," Arthur said.
"Alright," Natasha said, looking at Maya. She felt a slight sense of satisfaction, thinking that in terms of figure and looks, she had a bit of an advantage. "Extremis, is that the surprise you wanted?"
"Of course," Arthur replied. "Also, let me introduce you to this..."
"Maya Hansen," Natasha said, pulling out a file and handing it to Arthur. "The main developer of Extremis. I just don't understand why you brought her here."
Tony, always one to stir the pot, chimed in, "Because she saw him transform into the Instructor."
Natasha paused for a moment, then drew her gun. "Are we dragging her over to silence her?"
"Don't joke about that..." Arthur said, glancing at the information in his hand, which was about Maya Hansen.
He casually handed it back to her. "See if there's anything missing. You can add it yourself."
Maya was on the verge of panic as she asked. "Who exactly are you people? What do you want?"
She felt completely blindsided by today's events. She had her own reasons for coming to see Tony, but how had things turned out like this? Who were these unexpected players?
"I don't even know you, yet everyone seems to know me so well!"
"Alright, let's get down to business," Natasha said, putting away her gun and finding a place to sit. "First point: Mandarin!"
"Right, what does Mandarin do?" Arthur asked Maya.
Maya blinked, taken aback.
"Wait... why are you asking her that?" Tony interjected, clearly puzzled.
The situation was changing too quickly for him to keep up.
Arthur glanced at Natasha, who said, "Your former bodyguard had an incident. You wouldn't be totally indifferent to that. You must have already started investigating related information, right?"
"The explosion in Tennessee and the one last night are of the same nature," Natasha said, pulling out a file and placing it on the table. The next second, the table lit up, projecting a hologram that displayed a video.
The footage showed a laboratory, with two people strapped to frames. The first was a woman, and the camera focused on her right hand, which was mangled.
A blond man in front of the camera spoke excitedly about rebirth and other concepts.
Another man was also strapped to a frame, and from their conversation, it was clear they were voluntarily participating in this experiment.
The purpose of the experiment was to test a new genetic product, temporarily named Extremis.
The results of the experiment showed a stark contrast. The first woman, injected with the 'virus,' was in great pain, her face and body glowing orange, but her damaged right hand was bizarrely healing.
The other man, however, was not so fortunate; he screamed in agony.
The blond man on the screen seemed to realize something was wrong. When he saw the situation, he immediately ordered everyone to leave. Just as they exited, the entire laboratory exploded violently! The source of the explosion was not a bomb, but the man completely engulfed in orange light.
The video ended there, leaving Tony dumbfounded. He turned to Maya. "I remember you showed me this before... but wasn't it being used on plants at the time?"
Maya fell silent, feeling a sense of dread wash over her.
This footage wasn't something just anyone could access.
And now, not only was it being displayed openly, but more importantly, she was here too. These people probably didn't want her to leave at this moment, and perhaps she wouldn't be able to leave in the future either.
"I think you definitely wouldn't want us to torture you, right?" Arthur said, a hint of charm in his voice. "After all, I do have a soft spot for beauties like you."
"Is she pretty?" Natasha blurted out.
Tony and Arthur both turned to look at Natasha.
Natasha thought for a moment and then said, "Forget I said that."
"What did I just hear?" Tony asked, looking between Natasha and Arthur. "Why do I feel like someone's ambitions have grown, are you planning to become my aunt?"
Arthur and Natasha ignored Tony, focusing their attention back on Maya.
Maya rolled her eyes, biting her lip. "If I tell you, what do I get?"
"A chance," Arthur replied. "A chance to stabilize your product. Of course, it's just a chance."
"Your guarantee is useless," Maya shot back, looking at Tony. "I need your guarantee."
(End of Chapter)