Marvel's Venom, starting with a Hydra undercover agent.

“I’m sorry, Rhodes, I’m sorry, Pepper…” Tony stared blankly at the white ceiling.

Suddenly, he seemed to remember something, and his empty eyes gradually became focused.

"Pepper... USB drive... S.H.I.E.L.D.... There's still hope! Pepper might be using the USB drive right now, Obadiah can't leave yet!"

"Someone! Someone!...Obadiah! I need to talk to you!" Tony shouted as if he had gone mad.

Chapter 97, Action

"Sir, the prototype you requested is basically complete," a bald scientist wearing glasses said excitedly as he approached Obadiah.

"Compared to Tony Stark's designs, it boasts more robust materials, a larger size, and more ferocious firepower. It's practically a work of art born for war, a true war machine!..."

As the bald scientist explained, a massive, silver-white steel armor slowly rose from the ground, its size even larger than the one Tony had created in the cave.

Its wild lines and the visible ferocity of its firepower instill fear in everyone who sees it.

“Originally, we were struggling with the energy problem and couldn’t start it up, but now that we have the Ark Reactor that you gave us, its energy is no longer an issue. This reactor has truly given this war machine a soul.”

“Every time I see this reactor, I feel ashamed of my stupidity. It’s right in front of me, but I can’t figure it out…” The bald scientist said with some regret and sigh.

Although both are scientists, the gap between people is so vast that he may never catch up with Tony Stark in his lifetime.

Tony Stark could build a scaled-down version of the Arc Reactor from a pile of broken parts in a cave in Afghanistan, but he couldn't even successfully replicate the original.

Listening to the bald scientist's感慨 (expression/reflection), Obadiah, unusually pleased, didn't say much, but simply patted him on the shoulder and said, "Study hard, and one day you'll understand it. Now Tony Stark has also come to terms with reality. If you have any questions, just ask him, and he'll answer them for you."

"I can give you everything you want: funds, resources, social status, even valuable scientific research. I can give you all of that, but all I ask is that you give me what I want, understand?"

"Find this thing as soon as possible, and then successfully replicate it. I don't want one war machine; I want a batch of war machines that can serve as an army." As he said this, Obadiah gripped the bald scientist's shoulder tightly, and the iron grip made the bald scientist feel heavy pressure.

"Please rest assured, my colleagues and I will work hard to conduct research and replicate it as soon as possible. We have already made some small breakthroughs at this stage, and with Tony Stark's help and explanation, the speed will be greatly accelerated."

The bald scientist quickly bowed his head and assured Obadiah, afraid that the other party would be dissatisfied.

Obadiah didn't say much when he saw this, he just patted him on the shoulder and then walked out of the secret testing area.

But before he could even step out of the dozen or so access gates in the underground area, a panicked report came through his earpiece.

"Sir! We're surrounded! There are so many people outside the R&D center! Ms. Pepper is there too! And they have heavy firepower!..."

"They say they're from S.H.I.E.L.D.... They say you've committed treason, murder, and many other crimes, and they want us to surrender!..."

Upon hearing the voice in his earphones, Obadiah immediately stopped and frowned.

S.H.I.E.L.D.... He'd heard of that name before; the agency had been a great help in Tony's safe return this time.

As for their leader, Pepper... it seems Tony has already taken action, getting Pepper to find those hidden documents, but it appears he's a step too late.

After thinking things through and assessing his current situation, Obadiah put aside his fleeting idea of ​​peace talks.

Given what he's done, he deserves to die ten times over, so now that things have come to this, he shouldn't hold onto any more illusions.

Thinking of this, Obadiah immediately turned around and walked back, while ordering the person on the other end of the headset: "Stop their subsequent actions at all costs. If you can't stop them, delay them. Understand?"

“Understood!” his man replied immediately.

Outside the Stark Research Center, Pepper was leading Coulson and Holm to continue inside.

At this time, the research and development center was surrounded by S.H.I.E.L.D. After obtaining conclusive evidence, Coulson did not hesitate at all and immediately led Holm to gather people to forcibly take control of Obadiah.

That's how S.H.I.E.L.D. operates. As a secret agency, they don't need to concern themselves with the legal procedures. As long as the evidence is sufficient, it's common for them to get on the bus first and then buy the ticket later.

If necessary, they could even kill Obadiah directly, since every crime he committed carries a minimum sentence of thirty years.

However, they were still wary of Tony Stark, whose whereabouts were unknown, so they adopted a strategy of first surrounding him and then preparing to negotiate, rather than launching a direct attack.

Daisy is currently sifting through all clues about Tony Stark at the base. Once they pinpoint Tony's location and confirm his safety, they can start using their trump card. The Quinjet fighters flying at low altitude are already itching for a fight.

“Sector 16 is inside. Obadiah created a secret experimental area beneath Sector 16 to research that terrible weapon,” Pepper said as he pushed open the door to the research center.

Normally, even though this place is deserted, there are at least one or two staff members. But today, for some reason, there isn't a single person here.

Just as she was feeling incredibly confused, Holm, who was next to her, immediately pushed her and Coles to the corner and then lay down on the ground.

The next second, bullets came flying from all directions, weaving a dense barrage in the hall, making them quite embarrassed and afraid to show themselves.

"Oh God! When did so many people get here?!" Pepper covered her ears, feeling both scared and confused.

Holm lay on the ground and looked at Coulson. At Coulson's signal, Holm picked up the walkie-talkie and said, "Suppressive fire and cover. Take out their firing positions at the twelve o'clock and two o'clock positions!"

As Holm finished speaking, several small missiles flew straight in through the door and landed precisely at the spot Holm had just mentioned.

The raging flames exploded instantly, and the intense gunfire abruptly ceased.

Just as the thick smoke had not yet dissipated and sporadic gunshots began to ring out again, Holm suddenly sprang up from the ground and plunged headfirst into the smoke.

Then came a series of heavy thuds as if sandbags were falling from above.

As the thick smoke gradually dissipated, Pepper looked at the corpses, some with their heads twisted 180 degrees, others with their heads separated from their bodies, and suddenly understood what those sounds had been.

While she was still in a daze, Holm had already walked up to them with a normal expression.

Seeing his calm demeanor and smelling the blood mixed with the scent of gunpowder emanating from him, Pepper's throat tightened, and she quickly rushed to a nearby corner to vomit.

Chapter 98, The Venom of a Study-Loving (Nonsensical) Person

Seeing Pepper vomiting uncontrollably, Coulson took out a tissue to hand to her, but just as he reached out to speak, the sound from his earphones interrupted his thoughts.

“I’ve found Tony Stark! Obadiah has hidden him in the ‘secret room’ in District 16, which is deeper inside the research and development center where you are now.”

"Tsk, this guy's really in a sorry state. Obadiah took the arc reactor from his chest and just connected him to a beat-up car battery. He's currently strapped to a wheelchair, holding the battery in his arms, explaining the structure of the arc reactor to a bunch of scientists..."

Daisy, in the makeshift base, was speaking to Coulson and Holm via voice channel.

Hearing her words, Holm hurriedly asked, "Can you see him now? Can you help me plan another route so I can go down from the other side and bring Tony Stark out?"

Hearing Holm's question, Daisy immediately replied, "I hacked into a few surveillance cameras, so I can see his current movements. As for the two additional lines you requested... wait a moment, I'm loading a full map to plan for you... Got it! This line will work!"

“This route might not be suitable for others, but it’s just right for you.”

Upon hearing Daisy's reply, Coulson looked at Holm and said, "Then we'll split up. I'll lead the men in from the front, and you'll enter from the other route and bring Tony Stark in."

"Understood!" Holm nodded, then turned and walked to the other side, going straight into the ventilation duct in the ceiling.

Meanwhile, Pepper, who had emptied her stomach, finally recovered. She took the tissue Coulson handed her, wiped her mouth, took a deep breath, and continued, "Sorry, let's keep going. Section 16 is in there."

Coulson nodded and waved, and then a dozen or so agents spread out in front of and behind them, continuing to move forward.

They had all drawn their pistols and were ready to fire at any moment. After what had just happened, no one dared to let their guard down.

......

"Good, good, no wonder they said that if others couldn't get through, I could. So that's how it is."

Holm lay prone in the ventilation duct, looking at the very sturdy welded alloy fence in front of him and complaining.

The builders here had long been prepared to prevent others from sneaking in through the ventilation ducts, so they welded high-strength alloy fences onto them at intervals.

If it weren't for the fact that Holm had Venom as an ally, he really wouldn't have been able to get past those fences.

He placed his right hand on the fence, and as the viscous black liquid surged, a flash of black light appeared, and the alloy fence shattered into several pieces.

"How many of these are there? I think I've already taken apart more than a dozen, but there seem to be so many left." In Holm's mind, Venom yawned and complained listlessly.

It has lost count of how many of these little gadgets it has disassembled. At first, it found it quite interesting, since these things are so sturdy that they are unbreakable to humans, but to it it was just a matter of waving its hand, so it felt quite accomplished.

But as he dismantled more and more, after dismantling more than a dozen in a row, his sense of accomplishment had long since disappeared, replaced by boredom and irritability.

"I really don't understand why the person who designed this would create so many fences. If you just put up a few, other people wouldn't be able to get in. Why make so many?" Venom asked, still puzzled, after dismantling another fence without any sense of purpose.

"Maybe it's to make more money on materials," Holm shrugged and guessed.

"Ah~ I know, I know! This is called a kickback, right? Or embezzlement! I've seen it in TV dramas with human actors." Venom suddenly said excitedly, as if the knowledge he had accumulated in his mind had suddenly come in handy.

Upon hearing its response, Holm was speechless and muttered, "What kind of awful TV shows did you watch while I was sleeping?"

Faced with his question, Venom thought for a moment and replied seriously, "It's nothing, I just see what I see. Sometimes it's a suspense drama, sometimes a family drama, sometimes a documentary, and sometimes an idol drama... By the way! Did you know that there's a country where idol dramas don't just feature males and females, they also feature two males or two females..."

Holm's eyes widened upon hearing this. Although he had been somewhat prepared, what Venom mentioned was still beyond his imagination.

"Ahem! Well, watch less of these kinds of TV dramas in the future. Don't you like chocolate? I'll increase the chocolate budget by 10% from now on. When you have nothing to do at night, you can eat chocolate and read a book."

"Really?! Wow! I can have chocolate tonight too!" Holm's suggestion instantly excited Venom, making him even more energetic and faster at chopping at the fence, as if he had been somewhat slacking off earlier.

Seeing Venom's excited expression, he secretly reminded himself that after this mission was over, he should carefully select the TV channels he had subscribed to so that Venom wouldn't learn anything he shouldn't.

As a symbiote, Venom doesn't need to rest, so while Holm rests, Venom will engage in some free activities that it likes.

This free time includes, but is not limited to, wandering around the house, researching online, secretly eating chocolate, watching movies, listening to music, and so on.

Its ability to understand human society so quickly was largely due to the free time it had each night.

However, it seems that this effect has both advantages and disadvantages. While learning about human society, Venom has also learned some of the worst aspects of human society.

As Holm made his way deeper into the base through the ventilation ducts, Coulson and Pepper had already passed through several security gates and were gradually entering Sector 16.

Since Pepper's cards were of little use here, Coulson resorted to the traditional SHIELD method—micro-explosives—to open these access gates.

At first, they encountered resistance and attacks after opening the gate, but the resistance became weaker and weaker over time. It is unclear whether the people were all killed or the people became afraid, so they chose to passively resist or sneak away.

Although their journey had been smooth, Coulson felt increasingly uneasy.

Based on his years of experience as a secret agent, he always felt that the current situation did not mean that the mission was going smoothly, but rather that the real storm was yet to come.

Chapter 99, Iron Tyrant

As his thoughts raced, Coulson and Pepper had already passed through the last security gate.

"Here? Why is it so dark?" Pepper looked at the vast, pitch-black space in front of her and felt a little lost.

She only knew the location of District 16, but she didn't know what it looked like inside. In her opinion, it should be like a proper laboratory, bright and clean, full of high-precision equipment. How could it be so dark, with only some beeping instruments emitting blue light?

"It seems they were prepared all along," Coulson said, raising his pistol to his chest and looking around warily.

After he finished speaking, he pressed the button on his headset and asked Holm about his current location on the communication channel, and also confirmed Tony Stark's current status with Daisy.

After learning that Holm was nearing his destination and that Tony Stark was not in any danger, he began to make his own plans.

Clang! Clang!

As the agents walked down the dimly lit corridor, the chains beside them rattled and clanged as they moved.