Become a Homelander and a Marvel superstar

Ward's mind raced.

This is by no means a coincidence.

If Fury sent it to Coulson, then Fury is there.

And Garrett's decision to send him there meant...

then.

"Skye..."

Ward looked at her with an expression that said, "I'm in a difficult position, but I have to do it."

"I think... Coulson is right."

"What?" Skye was stunned, staring at him in disbelief.

"I want to help you, really," Ward said sincerely, "but Coulson is our superior. At least on this plane, we have to listen to him."

"Furthermore, if those coordinates really did come from Chief Fury... then we have to verify them no matter what. Even if it's just to prove his innocence or to arrest him."

Ward turned and nodded to Coulson.

"Sir, I support your decision."

Coulson breathed a sigh of relief and gave Ward an approving look.

"Thank you, Ward."

Skye stomped her foot in anger as she looked at the two men.

"You...you are utterly unreasonable!"

"This is not a democratic vote, Skye." Coulson regained his superior's authority, his tone leaving no room for argument.

"I am the commander of this aircraft. As long as I am on board, you must obey me."

He turned to look at Melinda May.

"Mei, set a new route. Proceed at full speed to the coordinates."

"Received." Mei didn't waste any words and immediately pushed the control stick.

With its wings tilted and engines roaring, the Airbus traced a huge arc through the clouds as it flew toward the mysterious coordinates.

Skye sullenly sat back down in her seat.

Looking at the busy crowd around her, she felt like an outsider.

"Fine... since you won't obey orders."

Skye bit her lip, her fingers secretly groping on her watch.

Send messages via an encrypted channel on the watch.

[Operation stalled. Coulson forcibly changes course, target coordinates: 49.27.41.-80.3.40. Suspected Nick Fury hideout. —Skye]

……

Let's go back to the present.

Midtown Manhattan, New York.

The former Avengers Tower, now the Water Tower.

A huge "V" sign has been erected on the roof.

Inside the building, renovation work is also in full swing.

However, the original laboratory inside the building, which belonged to Tony, was specially approved by Azumi to be the "Stark Independent Research and Development Center".

At this moment, Tony was wearing goggles and holding a welding torch, fine-tuning a strangely shaped mechanical part.

"This is absolutely insane..."

He looked at the holographic blueprints and talked to himself, his eyes gleaming with the fanaticism unique to scientists.

"Neural overclocking...time perception distortion...using the spine as a core for heat dissipation and conduction..."

"This design concept completely abandons the protective concept of exoskeletons and instead pursues the ultimate human body modification."

"Although it was brutal, I have to say... he was a genius."

As someone cursed by knowledge, Tony immediately recognized the potential of this technology.

If the problems of prosthetic rejection and neural overload can be solved, it will allow humanity to evolve to a new level.

"However, the original design was too barbaric."

Tony picked up the electronic pen and drew several crosses on the drawing.

"We don't need to remove a person's spine and replace it with metal; we can create external neural bridges, with the assistance of nanotechnology..."

He had already formed a rough outline of "Mark's version of S.A.W.S." in his mind.

"Pat-pat, pat-pat."

Footsteps sounded.

Ah Zu walked in, carrying two cups of coffee.

"Didn't sleep all night? Our chief scientist?"

"I can't sleep." Tony said without looking up. "This thing you gave me is really interesting."

"Looks like you picked it up quickly. Is there any chance of mass production of this?" Azu asked.

"Mass production?" Tony took off his goggles and rubbed his bloodshot eyes. "Technically, there's no problem, but its original design is too brutal. People who wear this thing will most likely develop mental illness. I'm optimizing the neural blocking algorithm and trying to replace the metal interface with biogel."

"If it works..." Tony's eyes lit up, "any ordinary person equipped with it could easily defeat Captain America, although each time it would only last for a few seconds."

That's enough.

Azu nodded in satisfaction.

"I want you to develop Sinweistein in two phases: military and civilian."

"Civilian version?" Tony frowned. "What for? To steal discounted eggs from the supermarket?"

"It's used to make humans feel like they've evolved," Azu laughed. "Even if it's just to have faster reaction times when playing games, people will still pay for it."

"You truly are a capitalist through and through." Tony shook his head, but did not object.

"You have to understand, Tony. Superheroes can't always be on top."

"If we keep the technology to ourselves, the public will fear us and see us as outsiders."

"Only when the people evolve along with us will they support us more wholeheartedly."

"Heroes come from the people and should return to the people. That's Walter's philosophy."

Tony remained silent for a moment.

"You're a terrible guy, Anthony," he sighed. "If you ever run for president of the United States, I'll definitely vote for you."

"Tony, there's one more thing."

"What?"

"About your identity."

Azu reached out and pointed to the Mark 43 that Tony had placed in the glass display case.

"Walter's roster of registered heroes is still missing one crucial name."

Iron Man.

Tony fell silent.

He put down his tools and looked at Azu.

"We've talked about this, Anthony."

Tony's voice was somewhat low.

"I have no interest in being a hero right now. Really."

"The Ultron thing... taught me something. The more I try to protect the world, the easier it is to mess things up."

"My current mental state is not suitable for wearing that metal suit to fight."

"I need some quiet time. To do research, to invent things. That would be the best salvation for me."

"The matter of heroes..." Tony glanced at Azu, "...is left to you. You'll do a better job than me."

Azu looked at Tony.

He could see the weariness and escapism in Tony's eyes.

Knowing that the Ultron incident deeply hurt him, coupled with the disbandment of the Avengers, he needs time to heal his wounds.

"All right."

Ah Zu sighed and did not insist.

Forcing him to wear the armor wouldn't work; the system wouldn't acknowledge anything unless he did it willingly. There's plenty of time.

"Since this is your choice, I respect it."

"This will always be your lab. Just tell Ashley if you need anything."

"Thanks." Tony picked up his coffee and offered a toast.

Hint! Gained +2000 Special Popularity Points! (From Tony Stark)