Chapter 27: Tony Escapes
On a dimly lit street, a black sedan, riddled with holes, sped away in a hurry. Behind it, a manhole cover lifted, and a thick lizard tail slowly slithered into the sewer below.
Inside the car, Agent Hill clutched the door handle tightly, her heart still racing. The windshield was shattered and barely holding together. Nick Fury's face bore cuts from the broken glass.
"Boss, what was that thing?" Hill asked, still shaken.
"I don't know," Fury replied, "but one thing's for sure—it probably thought we were a couple of steaks it could devour."
Tonight's encounter made Nick Fury more certain than ever: he needed to speed up the formation of the Avengers. And that golden mech, along with whoever was behind it, was already on his Avengers list...
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In the Middle East...
"Yinsen, stay behind me," Tony Stark instructed. "Keep about five meters away, and I'll get us out of here."
With Yinsen's help, Tony had donned the Mark I suit, and it was functioning perfectly. If Alan were present, he'd be surprised at the change in events.
According to the original storyline, Yinsen was supposed to sacrifice himself, distracting the Ten Rings to give Tony time to power up the suit. But because Tony had created the suit ahead of schedule, thanks to the influence of the Emperor's Armor, Yinsen no longer needed to buy time.
At the entrance of the cave, Tony raised his bulky arm and slammed it against the large iron door. With a thunderous crash, Tony led Yinsen out of the cave, unleashing a brutal assault on the members of the Ten Rings.
There was no mercy—every one of these men had innocent blood on their hands. During his captivity, Tony had witnessed too many atrocities, so when he struck, it was without hesitation or guilt.
Flames, machine guns, crushing blows—an onslaught of firepower rained down upon the enemy.
"Yinsen, take the car and go! I'll catch up! Hurry!" Tony urged.
"I hope to see you alive!" Yinsen called out as he escaped in the vehicle, while Tony continued to cover his retreat.
"Alright, time to enjoy the fireworks!" Tony declared, unleashing a barrage that destroyed all the Stark Industries weapons in the area.
The entire canyon was soon consumed by explosions.
Amid the fiery destruction, the Mark I suit's rocket thrusters fired up, launching Tony into the sky.
But the fuel quickly ran out, and Tony plummeted back down, screaming as he crashed into the desert. The Mark I suit shattered into pieces upon impact.
At that moment, a car approached, and Yinsen grinned with his gleaming white teeth. "Looks like I saved you again, Tony."
"I think you did. I owe you a drink when we get back," Tony replied.
Yinsen jumped out of the car and pulled Tony out of the desert sand. As they sat in the car, Tony noticed Yinsen gathering up the scattered remnants of the suit.
"Hey, Yinsen. What are you doing?" Tony asked.
"Aren't we taking this back with us?" Yinsen questioned.
"Forget it. I'll make you something better when we're home," Tony laughed. "Just drive. I'm roasting in this heat."
The two, both having narrowly escaped death, laughed heartily as they drove through the desert. After a while, Tony looked up and saw a helicopter flying overhead.
It was a U.S. military helicopter!
Waving his arms frantically, Tony yelled, "I'm over here!"
...
Inside the State University Library.
Gwen and Alan sat across from each other.
"You want to become a vigilante who fights crime?" Alan asked again, confirming Gwen's thoughts after hearing her plan.
Gwen nodded enthusiastically and, with a bit of pride, pulled out a notebook. "Yes, and I even designed a suit for myself."
It was the product of her all-nighter. Curious to see if Gwen's spider costume resembled the one he remembered, Alan reached out to take the notebook, but Gwen playfully pulled it away.
"If you agree to let me become a vigilante, then you can see it," she teased with a hint of playful charm.
Would Alan agree? Of course, he would. If Gwen didn't become Spider-Woman, the spider suit would be meaningless!
Was he doing this for himself?
No, it was for the people of New York who were suffering in the chaos and violence.
Like the line from the movie says: New York needs Spider-Man!
"Of course, I respect your choice," Alan replied.
Upon hearing his agreement, Gwen's face immediately lit up with joy. She opened up the design sketches she had stayed up all night working on.
Alan took a look and commented, "Cool! It'll look amazing on you. If you become a fashion designer, you'll definitely win international awards."
"You were the one who inspired me with that sportswear you bought," Gwen said.
"Well, I guess it wasn't a bad purchase, then!"
On the notebook was the Spider-Woman costume Alan remembered—the classic suit of the White Spider. It featured a white hood, with black extending up from the legs to the chest, while the upper part was predominantly red and pink.
As Alan admired the design, Gwen handed him a small glass vial containing some milky-white liquid.
"What's this?" Alan asked.
"It's the spider silk I found in my backpack," Gwen explained. "Left behind by the super spider. It's incredibly strong, but after some time, it reverts to liquid. I collected a bit of it, not sure if it'll be useful."
Alan nodded and said, "If we can analyze its composition and replicate it, we could create equipment that allows you to shoot webs."
"With that, you'd be able to tie up criminals when capturing them."
Gwen's eyes lit up at the idea. "Alan, you're a genius!"
"Come on, let's head to Dr. Connors' lab and borrow some equipment for testing!" Gwen, eager and excited, quickly gathered the items from the table and dragged Alan toward Connors' laboratory.
Her urgency made Alan chuckle. He gently took her hand in his. "Alright, let's go."
Gwen blushed slightly, her voice soft as she said, "We can slow down a little, you know."
Catching the hint, Alan slowed his pace.
Outside Dr. Connors' Laboratory.
Peter Parker rushed to the entrance, out of breath from running, and walked into the lab, embarrassed.
"Sorry, Doctor. I haven't relaxed like that in a while," Peter apologized. "I overslept a bit, but you're still here, right, Dr. Connors?"
...