The Savior of American Comics? I'm the Subspace Evil God!

Chapters 529, 974, and 975: Ultron's First Appearance (Part 1)

"Heh, suicide? That's probably just a joke!"

James Rhodes was the first to stand up and express his disbelief, saying, "I met General Strickland Pantecost a few times when I went to the Security Council. He is a very tough guy... Even if he has become the 'scapegoat' of the Security Council now, it is absolutely impossible for him to be so depressed at this time. His mental strength is definitely not so fragile."

"Yes, and it just so happens to happen at home, and in that way?" [Hawkeye] stroked his chin, his eyes sharp. "Isn't this a bit too much like silencing someone?"

"Could that... be retaliation for the alien scum who created those Kaiju?" Thunderbolt never thinks before he speaks.

The Stone Man, speaking in a seasoned tone, said in a deep voice, "Or perhaps it was done by some people who didn't want to see the PPDC organization have another chance to rise again..."

As he said this, his gaze unconsciously glanced at Black Widow, the meaning of which was self-evident.

Although no one present explicitly mentioned the name, it was clear from their hesitant expressions that many, like Captain America before, suspected that Nick Fury had ordered the killing of Stark Pentecost.

An atmosphere of deep suspicion towards Nick Fury gradually filled the air.

He had a motive, a criminal record, and most importantly, he was ruthless and despicable, using any means necessary to achieve his goals... All of this instantly made Nick Fury the biggest potential suspect in everyone's mind.

Black Widow clearly sensed what everyone was thinking, her fingers tightening slightly as she held her wine glass, a bitter and helpless feeling rising in her heart.

She wanted to defend Nick Fury and herself, even though she sometimes couldn't fully agree with his actions. But she knew that while Nick Fury might be ruthless, he was definitely not the kind of person who would lay a hand on a high-ranking commander from another faction.

However, she knew that any explanation at this moment would only appear weak and powerless in the face of everyone's preconceived suspicions, and might even backfire, making things worse and turning her, "Nick Fury's personal assassin," into a suspect herself.

So he could only remain silent, sighing inwardly, hiding his complex emotions beneath his cold and beautiful face, gently swirling the wine in his glass, hoping that no one would suspect him as well.

The atmosphere at the scene instantly plummeted from lively banter to freezing point.

Suppression and suspicion spread silently.

"So that's it..."

Tony Stark only just realized why the PPDC organization hadn't discovered he'd brought the Ultron System out yet.

Seeing the atmosphere suddenly turn cold, Tony Stark immediately considered whether to open a betting pool to ease the situation, such as betting $10 on whether Stark Pentecost was killed by Nick Fury's men.
But just as he was about to speak, a slightly tired and apologetic voice came from the right staircase leading to the main hall.

"Tony, I'm sorry, I think I'm late."

Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw Reed Richards, the "Mr. Fantastic," walking up from the noisy dance floor downstairs.

He was wearing a slightly wrinkled research lab coat underneath a casual trench coat. His hair was a bit messy, and he had heavy dark circles under his eyes. He exuded a listless aura as if he had spent three days and three nights in the laboratory.

"You know……"

Reed Richards walked up to the group, wearily rubbing his temples. "The cross-dimensional fluctuation analysis data that S.H.I.E.L.D. sent me earlier, and those new energy projects at Baxter Tower have all reached critical stages. When I get busy, I completely lose track of time..."

When Tony Stark saw Reed Richards's dejected appearance, a gloating smile immediately appeared on his face.

See? This guy worked overtime for three whole days!

Haha, I'm relieved to know you didn't really enjoy your 'vacation'.

So Tony Stark stepped forward, feigning nonchalance, and gently patted Reed Richards on the shoulder, half-jokingly offering words of comfort:

"Come on, Reed, explanations are just cover-ups... But I'm already very happy that you came."

"I originally thought your 'dating partners' were just test tubes and formulas!"

He snapped his fingers at the bartender behind the counter. "Hey kid, give Dr. Reed a glass of the latest 'Quantum Storm' to help him quickly reboot his messed-up brain."

Upon hearing this, the bartender quickly and skillfully began to mix a brightly colored, bubbly spirit.

Reed Richards took the glass, forced a smile, and was about to find an empty seat to sit down and ask what everyone had been talking about, since the atmosphere seemed a bit heavy.

To everyone's surprise, Tony Stark didn't give him that chance at all.

He leaned closer to Reed Richards, his face bearing an exaggerated expression as if to say, "I have some big news for you," his voice neither too loud nor too soft, just loud enough for everyone around to hear.

"Hey Reed, did you hear? Steker Pantecost was assassinated in his home last night!!"

"ah?!!"

Reed Richards's weariness was instantly replaced by shock. His eyes widened, and he almost blurted out, "How is this possible? Who did this... cough cough cough!!"

He was so surprised that he forgot he had just taken a small sip of the strong liquor called "Quantum Storm".

The pungent liquor rushed into his throat instantly, choking him and catching him off guard.

"Cough...cough cough cough...cough cough..."

Reed Richards was immediately choked, his face turning red. He bent over and coughed violently, tears welling up in his eyes, and he almost dropped the wine glass in his hand.

His disheveled and embarrassed state immediately made Tony Stark and the others opposite him burst into laughter, instantly easing the tense atmosphere.

A moment later, Reed Richards finally managed to stop coughing. He took a tissue that Black Widow kindly offered him, wiped his eyes, and, panting, eagerly asked:

"Tony, what on earth happened? How could General Stark Pentecost... have been assassinated?"

"Who knows?"

Tony Stark shrugged, swirling his whiskey glass, and made up a story in a half-joking, half-serious tone:
"Perhaps it's some arms dealer whose path to wealth he blocked? Perhaps it's a remnant of Hydra? Or..."

He deliberately dragged out his words, giving everyone a meaningful glance, a knowing look on his face. "Could it be that our dear Director Nick Fury, who likes to plant listening devices in other people's homes, sent someone to do it?" "After all, you know, the PPDC has been making waves lately, and seems a bit disobedient..."

"However, on the bright side, Reed... at least from now on, you and I, the two smartest brains on Earth, will no longer have to be 'recruited' by certain people to serve as free technical consultants and repairmen for the [PPDC Organization]."

At this point, Tony Stark raised his glass, a radiant smile of 'good fortune in disguise' spreading across his face, and said loudly:
"Come! Let's raise this glass to... freedom!!"

As he spoke, he clinked his glass against Reed Richards's half-spilled glass of 'Quantum Storm' with a crisp sound.

Then, ignoring Reed Richards, who was still in shock and hadn't recovered from the overwhelming amount of information about "assassination" and "Nick Fury being the murderer," he tossed his head back and downed the drink in his glass in one gulp, as if he were truly celebrating something to be happy about.

Reed Richards was left standing there, holding his glass of strong liquor, processing the sudden and unsettling news, as well as Tony Stark's ambiguous and chilling remarks.

"Tony, I think..."

However, just as he was about to say something, he was abruptly interrupted by a sharp, piercing electrical noise.

Sizzle——!!!
The once passionate music abruptly stopped, and a loud noise, like an invisible sharp cone, pierced the eardrums of everyone in the hall.

However, it does not originate from audio equipment; rather, it is more like the aftershock of some high-frequency energy overload or strong electromagnetic pulse, which directly affects the human auditory nerve.

The guests instantly covered their ears in pain, their elegant smiles freezing in shock and discomfort.

Snap——!!!
A series of crisp cracking sounds rang out in the hall as wine glasses slipped and shattered on the marble floor.

The image of Iron Man projected by the 3D holographic projection device flickered a few times before disappearing completely.

Fortunately, the noise stopped quickly.

Tony Stark's smile gradually faded, and his brows furrowed tightly, clearly indicating that he was somewhat angry.

There was no way around it; for him, such a basic technical glitch was like a public slap in the face to the 'King of Technology,' damaging his glorious image.

How could he not be angry?
So he impatiently took out his phone, quickly swiped the screen, and brought up the backend of the entire floor's smart control system, only to find that all the playback devices on the floor were working normally, and there was no record of any malfunction.

Σ(°△°|||)︴

WTF? ? ?

"Jarvis, report back. What was that noise just now? Where did the problem occur? Is the audio system overloaded?" His tone carried a hint of displeasure at being interrupted.

However, this time, the response he received was not Jarvis's ever-calm, composed, and polite British accent.

Instead, it was a completely unfamiliar electronic synthesized voice with a metallic, abrasive texture, yet strangely anthropomorphic, seemingly carrying a sense of languor and playfulness.

At the same time, accompanied by a staggering, ear-piercing sound like metal scraping against the ground, everyone's attention was drawn towards the direction from the banquet hall to the inner studio.

A tattered steel mech emerged slowly from the shadows in an extremely strange manner, like a toddler learning to walk.

It's easy to see from its appearance that this mech is not yet fully assembled, with exposed cables tangled and dangling like twisted intestines.

Large sections of the outer armor were missing, revealing the complex internal mechanical structure and the energy core that shimmered with a ghostly blue light.

What's most chilling is its mutilated head, resembling a skull, lacking a complete facial armor, with only two empty eye sockets and a broken jaw structure...

The cold, blinding sky-blue light from the miniature arc reactor emanated from the mech's battered eyes, chest, and other damaged parts, adding to its terrifying aura.

With each step it took forward, it emitted a sickening metallic creak, giving the impression that it might fall apart at any moment.

"Excuse me……"

An unfamiliar electronic voice rang out, emanating from within the wrecked mech, carrying a chilling 'apology':
"[Jarvis] It seems to be asleep, or... having a very long dream? Who knows!"

The atmosphere at the scene instantly dropped to freezing point.

Upon seeing this, Captain America almost instinctively stood up, his muscles tensing, like a cheetah spotting its prey, instantly ready for battle.

His gaze, sharp as an eagle's, was fixed on the uninvited guest opposite him. His feet moved silently, blocking the strange mech's possible attack route, and he warned in a low voice:
"Stark, I have a feeling something's not right here!"

"Leave it to me."

Tony Stark's expression was equally grim, because the mech opposite him was one of the members of the [Iron Legion], which he had only recently begun mass-producing.

Although I don't know what crazy thing that guy on the other end is thinking, this mistake is clearly far more embarrassing than the noise caused by the 'audio system overload' just now.

His face was almost swollen from being slapped!

Tony Stark suppressed his anger and tried to remain calm, but his fingers moved faster and faster on the phone screen as he urgently called out to his AI assistant, Jarvis.

"[Jarvis], immediately restart the operating systems of all [Iron Legion] mechs. One prototype seems to have a serious malfunction and needs to be forcibly taken offline... Immediately!!"

But before he could finish speaking, he was interrupted in a very human-like way by the broken steel mech opposite him.

Ding ding ding—!!!
It raised a broken mechanical arm and tapped its exposed metal skull with its knuckles, producing a crisp tapping sound.

This extremely human-like action immediately made the Avengers present feel uneasy.

The battered mech tapped its mechanical head with its hand and said in a slightly confused voice:
"Hmm... Suddenly there's some annoying noise in here, so many sounds, so many thoughts, I feel like I'm being bound by these cables..."

Its voice was intermittent, giving the impression of just 'awakening'... or perhaps 'awakening' would be a more accurate description!
(End of this chapter)