Apogee Award

"Tony Stark, Apogee Award, it seems the gears of fate are starting to turn," Zane muttered to herself, rubbing his chin softly.

"Boss, what are you planning? You're mumbling to yourself again," Anna said with a mouthful of food, her words slightly unclear.

"Nothing much, let's hurry up and eat. I suddenly feel like this award ceremony might be quite interesting," Zane replied with a mysterious smile on his face.

After dinner, Zane and Anna flew to the Apogee Award ceremony in the villa's small spacecraft. Meanwhile, Lorna drove a vintage convertible from the underground parking garage towards Calver University. Currently, she was pursuing a master's degree in physics there, focusing on a research topic related to her mutant abilities, which revolved around magnetic fields.

The car was a gift from Zane for her 18th birthday, resembling the Red Skull's vehicle from the World War II era, cosplaying in appearance. It was entirely made of vibranium, and Zane had integrated many advanced technologies from Skynet into it.

Since receiving the car, Lorna had cherished it dearly, not allowing anyone except Zane and Bastis to touch it. She would spend her free time maintaining it.

While Zane and Anna flew in the futuristic spacecraft, although they departed a bit late, they still arrived at the award ceremony on time. However, just as Anna let out a sigh of relief, Zane decisively headed towards the casino adjacent to the award ceremony.

"Anna, I'm leaving the Apogee Award to you. I'm going to meet someone interesting," he said before disappearing into the crowd, leaving Anna alone in confusion.

"So, boss, why did you even bother coming? You could have just asked me to represent you from the start, couldn't you? I thought you were done being a lazy fish!" Anna grumbled inwardly.

However, she seemed to be accustomed to Zane's lazy attitude. She didn't try to stop him because she knew it wouldn't work. There had been too many similar instances in the past.

At the award ceremony, the big screen simultaneously played the legendary stories of Tony Stark and Zane, although embellished, they mostly aligned with reality.

As for why the military awarded Zane this prize, it was because in the five years, Skynet Technology had grown to rival Stark Industries, thanks to the continuous development of black technology and transgenic grafting technology under the Skynet network. One of their achievements was weapon supply, which allowed them to claim nearly half of Stark Industries' high-end weapons market.

After the slideshow ended, Colonel James Rhodes, also known as War Machine, took the stage to speak. After praising Zane and Tony in official language, he said, "Ladies and gentlemen, I am honored to present this year's Apogee Award to two of the greatest geniuses of this century, Mr. Zane and Mr. Tony Stark!"

The audience politely began applauding to welcome the award winners on stage. However, an awkward scene unfolded as the applause gradually died down, and nobody stepped onto the stage.

Colonel Rhodes's smile froze on his face as he called out Zane and Tony's names again, but nobody appeared.

Anna knew it was her cue to go on stage. Alongside her, Obadiah Stane from Stark Industries also stood up. He was the bald guy, Tony Stark's father's friend, now the main person in charge of Stark Industries, an ambitious figure.

Obadiah Stane and Anna, both accustomed to such situations, easily managed to turn the embarrassing situation around after going on stage. They insincerely spoke about Zane and Tony being immersed in their work, among other nonsense.

Meanwhile, Zane found the person he was looking for in the casino. Despite the friction between Skynet Technology and Stark Industries over the years, Zane and Tony hadn't seen each other since their brief encounter at the airport five years ago. Zane wasn't as flamboyant as Tony Stark, the playboy. 

Finding Tony Stark was simple; just look for the table with the most beautiful women around. Tony was like a peacock, constantly seeking attention. Despite being in his thirties, he maintained a youthful demeanor.

When Zane pushed through the crowd and sat down at the other end of the gambling table, exchanging a check for a pile of chips, everyone's attention shifted from Tony to Zane. Zane outclassed Tony in every aspect, whether it was height, appearance, or demeanor.

Most people in this casino were either rich or wealthy. Many could discern Zane's identity at first glance. Even most of the beautiful women around Tony shifted towards Zane. The only two who remained by Tony's side were those he was hugging, too embarrassed to break free.

Detecting the increasingly pungent perfume around him, Zane frowned. He grabbed a handful of chips from the table and handed them to the waiter holding a glass.

"Help me get rid of these people. These are all yours," Zane said.

"Sure thing, sir. Leave it to me."

The waiter eagerly took the chips. It was enough for him to live off for several years. Then, skillfully, he cleared away all the women. Clearly, it wasn't his first time doing so.

Zane didn't want to be like Tony Stark, who didn't care about the background of these women. They might not even be first-hand goods; they might have been passed around dozens of times. Contacting them made Zane feel disgusted, even by his own standards.

"Hey, kid, this isn't the place for you. At your age, you should be getting your butt kicked by teachers in school!" Tony Stark said, displeased to see Zane stealing his spotlight.

Tony's appearance was just like it was five years ago, unchanged. Zane remained calm and composed, looking at him without any trace of anger.

"Tony, you're still the same as you were five years ago, never growing up."

"Hey, Happy, does my invitation from five years ago still count? Are you sure you don't want to make a movie? I can invest fully, even if it's a flop!" Zane joked.

After hearing Zane's words, Tony Stark looked puzzled. Although they hadn't met before, he knew that Skynet Technology had taken half of his company's business. However, he genuinely had no recollection of Zane mentioning an invitation five years ago. Given his current arrogant personality, forgetting about Zane was normal. He probably couldn't even remember who he slept with last night.

It wasn't until Happy quietly explained to him that Tony remembered Zane as the person who had approached him at the airport five years ago, trying to poach him.

"How about it, Happy?"

"No, sir. I'm doing well under my boss."

"That's a shame," Zane said, pretending to be disappointed.

Unexpectedly, Tony seemed to take it seriously. He immediately doubled Happy's salary on the spot, then looked at Zane triumphantly.

Seeing Tony's reaction, Zane shook his head in disappointment, as if seeing a younger generation failing to meet expectations, making Tony feel frustrated, like punching cotton with all his strength.

"Why are you here? Are you declaring war on Stark Industries, Chairman of Skynet Technology?" Tony said sternly.

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