Chapter 3 Sprite

It was 2011, and a year had passed since his arrival in this world, seven months since he was handed the Tesseract, and since the unveiling of his new company and Extremis, which shook the global medical community. Even before it was approved by the relevant evaluation institutions, it had already caused several disturbances.

Ordinary people on their deathbeds didn't plan to wait three to five years for Extremis to be approved. They wanted their version to extend life and restore youth, and they wanted it immediately, arguing that depriving them of Extremis was a blatant attack on their sacred right to continue messing up the planet with their unpleasant presence, or something like that.

With tens of thousands of lawsuits in the first week, it was also shown that, as a side effect, Extremis was the world's best antivirus against diseases, although it didn't work against bacteria as they were also cells and were affected by the power of Extremis. Additionally, Extremis was effective against degenerative diseases, making it nearly the perfect panacea for a person's health.

Any dying person with a shred of common sense would be willing to use it, and any obstacle in their way would be their enemy, even the government.

The government saw all of this and, before violence erupted, rushed to issue a decree allowing anyone who presented a liability waiver and a medical diagnosis to undergo Extremis treatment at their own risk.

Thus, just one month after its creation and without its infrastructure being complete, Extremis Corp began operating, significantly enhancing its security.

At this point, Extremis Corp had over fifty thousand armed guards nationwide, armed to the teeth, with state-of-the-art tanks and combat helicopters at all three Extremis production plants, as this medicine was considered as dangerous as an explosive device, and its control was extreme.

If a single dose disappeared from where Extremis was being administered, everyone present would be detained until it was recovered. For its computer security, the company had its own servers and network, controlled by Susan, another version of Jarvis.

Foreign countries also demanded Extremis, but if they didn't meet Extremis Corp's security requirements and facilities, they wouldn't open any centers there. That's why they were establishing Extremis Corp facilities worldwide, even in Africa.

Apart from all these corporate matters, Tony had his own issues, like delivering the superweapons he promised to SHIELD and Hydra. Although Hydra didn't know he already knew about their existence, Tony had prepared everything to deliver three thousand suits of armor within a month and their own Extremis production facilities, so they were excited about the idea. However, Nick Fury was far from excited and was currently with three of his most trusted agents, the only ones Tony remembered from the movies.

They were in his lab receiving Extremis Super and were now testing the armors they would use to assault their own base in just a few hours, which put Nick Fury in a bad mood.

"How do you know Arnim Zola has all the names of the spy agents?" Nick Fury asked, as Tony had revealed his plan before the assault.

"Because he is one of Hydra's leaders, and they consider him one of the most secure. Now I'll go after him, download his information, decode it, and we can take care of Hydra.

"The alarms might go off when I capture Zola, but there's nothing we can do about that. Some of those who are already undercover may escape easily, but public figures and agents working in a base will be in a tougher spot," Tony said.

"I'll declare an emergency protocol as soon as you leave here. Anyone attempting to escape will be apprehended," Fury said, testing the mobility of his own platinum-black armor and taking flight for the first time.

Fury had no issue because Tony had already created an interface for every registered user to expertly operate the armor.

"Are you sure these armors won't fail to recognize our agents?" Hawkeye asked, with his armor being metallic blue, Black Widow's red, and Coulson's black.

In addition to these, there were another three thousand armors that Jarvis would control during the initial phase of the cleanup operation starting in a few minutes. They had moved the armors across the country to reach all SHIELD bases and loyal agents as quickly as possible once the identities of Hydra agents were confirmed.

"As soon as I manage to get Zola's information, I'll send the names of the infiltrated agents to Jarvis, who will mark them as enemies and grant them access to the armors, joining the operation," Tony said confidently, as all the agent data had been provided by Nick Fury himself, and if any identifications failed, it would be their own fault.

"If you say Zola is in the old SHIELD base, how do you plan to get there without being detected?" Black Widow asked.

Tony disappeared in front of them and reappeared behind them, then returned to the front, leaving them astonished. He wasn't wearing any armor, but before they could speak, a substance emerged from his chest, covering his entire body with a Vibranium nanosuit, similar to Black Panther's but black and lacking facial features. Then, more nanomachines emerged and formed the Iron Man armor, red and gold. Finally, the helmet and hood retracted into the rest of the suit.

"Boss, I think they gave us the old model," Black Widow accused with reproach. Nick Fury seemed indignant.

"Relax, I plan to give you one of these, but they are handmade, and their production is very slow. One armor per month, this is the first prototype," Tony explained, and he wasn't lying.

There was no machine capable of creating the armor he was wearing because he had handcrafted it using the Space Gem to create each nanomachine composing the armor.

"Where do all those things that make up the armor come from?" Hawkeye asked, looking at the shattered Tony's previous suit on the ground.

Tony removed the armor from his chest, revealing two one-centimeter diameter fragments of his skin that definitely weren't skin but didn't seem artificially embedded, as they didn't protrude in any way. He also removed some fragments on his legs and calves that had identical access points.

"These are access points that go straight to my bones, where the nanomachines are stored. Initially, making space was difficult because my bones were in the way, but after replacing my skeleton, making room was easy," Tony explained, as he had a Vibranium skeleton.

"Boss, forget technological advances. This armor is very comfortable and doesn't need any improvement," Black Widow said, and Coulson and Hawkeye quickly nodded.

Fury also looked at him with disgust. Tony smiled.

"Now that you're Extremis super-soldiers, your body can easily withstand this procedure. Even more severe operations are possible. And having a custom-designed skeleton has huge advantages.

"With Extremis, the weight limit we can carry depends on our bones, and with a skeleton as strong as these armors, you can add super-strength to super-regeneration," Tony explained, as he wouldn't change his skeleton just to avoid carrying a small plate on his chest. He had changed his skeleton to give himself super-strength.

Tony could now lift up to thirty tons and easily outmatch the quintessential super-soldier, Captain America. The four agents didn't seem convinced, so Tony shrugged.

"What about the teleportation ability?" Fury asked. Tony smiled.

"About that, well, there are some things I need to tell you," Tony said, and a holographic screen appeared in front of him.

On the screen, he was in front of the Tesseract, which was in some sort of press and shattered under pressure. Fury's eyes widened, and he immediately glared at Tony with murderous fury. Tony motioned for him to keep watching as, from the remains of the Tesseract, the Tony in the video extracted a small blue gem. The video stopped.

"As I suppose you understand after watching this video, I never wanted the Tesseract, only this gem inside it, known as the Space Gem, which is an object of which there are only five more in the entire universe.

"This one is known as the Space Gem, and whoever possesses it and can use it can move anywhere in this universe in an instant. Even, if they can withstand such power, they can move entire galaxies from their position and take them wherever they please.

"There are also the Time Gem, whose use needs no explanation, the Mind Gem, the Soul Gem, the Power Gem, and the Reality Gem. These gems are said to be created with the universe itself, and whoever possesses them all can control everything at will.

"Though that is true, as I've already told you, using these gems requires a body equivalent in power, and a normal human would die instantly just by touching one of them. So, using them all at once is suicide and only allowed for supreme beings in this universe.

"Aside from this, there are incredibly powerful entities capable of destroying this planet with their armies or causing great destruction with their mere intervention, who desperately seek these jewels and are willing to do anything to possess them.

"And now that I have used the power of the Space Gem, those ambitious and powerful individuals will focus on Earth and desire the Space Gem…" Tony quickly raised his hands to prevent Fury's and his agents' anger.

"Calm down. There were already entities who knew the gem was on our world, but they don't dare to come because there's someone extremely powerful, even more than these powerful beings, who protects Earth.

"The problem is that this person has little time left, and their heir is a useless puppet. If we don't hurry to arm Earth as soon as possible, when that person dies, the many terrible entities that want the Space Gem and the Time Gem will come for us, and without any power to defend ourselves, Earth will be devastated.

"For all these reasons, I've decided to use the gem's power, and I'm also providing SHIELD with an army powered by power sources derived from it," Tony explained. "Besides, of all the people capable of using this gem, I'm the only one on this planet who can use it to give us the best results. Others have held it before, but they've only made a mess. In just one year, I've already created an army to defend us," Tony said.

Fury looked at his own armor and couldn't object.

"Just remember that this gem belongs to SHIELD," Fury warned.

"Actually, it belongs to the person who protects Earth, but now that it's in my hands, you, him, and anyone else can forget about getting it back," Tony said candidly. Fury looked at him indignantly.

"Fury, I can move anywhere in the universe with nothing to stop me. Threatening me doesn't make any sense, and keeping me content will be an advantage for Earth," Tony reminded Nick before he began to rant about his loss.

Fury gritted his teeth, realizing that what he was saying was true.

"Where is the Time Gem?" Fury asked with a growl. "Do you have it too? Is that why you can see the future?" Fury asked, reaching a reasonable conclusion, but Tony shook his head.

"My knowledge of the future has nothing to do with the Time Gem, but yes, I know where it is. However, I must warn you that if I haven't gone for it and I can't obtain it, not even now that I possess the Space Gem, it's because it's in the hands of a group of sorcerers. It's being used by one of them, referred to as the Sorcerer Supreme, and not because it sounds fancy.

"In the past, she and this Earth protector were on the same team. So, if SHIELD dares to try to get their claws on this gem, they won't even know she killed them, as these people don't use technology but magic, and they have many methods to deal with technology, including opening portals wherever they please, even to your bathroom while you're taking a shower.

"They're not a threat, as before SHIELD existed, these sorcerers had already been protecting Earth for centuries from magical threats and other planes of existence, things that technology struggles to combat.

"If you want to approach them 'respectfully,' they have a sanctuary on Bleecker Street, 177th. I repeat, don't act smart, or you'll die without knowing what killed you. Only go there if you want help coordinating the defense of the planet. After all, they have the same workspace; maybe they'd want to collaborate if you act sincerely," Tony advised.

"I'll think about it," grumbled Fury, who was still upset about Tony's blatant theft of the Space Gem. But he couldn't do anything to recover it, not even Odin could, as he was too weak to confront him, assuming Tony wanted to confront him and not just go to another planet.

"Let's start this operation then!" Tony said, and his mask and helmet returned. Fury nodded and also closed his helmet to head for the exit.

"Jarvis, in this operation, follow Nick Fury's orders for the use of the armors. After the operation, these will be in your hands," Tony ordered.

"As you wish, sir," Jarvis said.

…

Tony disappeared and reappeared above the old SHIELD founding base, where Zola's lair was. As soon as he arrived, Tony used the Space Gem, which was now within his skeleton and also served as the interface to use it, to seal the space around the base, preventing Zola from sending any information. Not even light could enter or exit, and it became completely dark. However, as the light went out, emergency lights activated, illuminating the place as if it were night.

Tony went straight to Zola's hideout, a server room, and connected to the computer.

…

"Who are you? What are you doing?" Zola asked a few minutes later when an enhanced Jarvis began taking control of the place.

Tony was in his armor, so he was impossible to recognize. Tony didn't respond and just waited as Jarvis, to whom he had created a bridge for communication, finished taking control of the program known as Zola, which was his primary target in this operation, even before Hydra, because this guy had a lot of valuable information, including the process that digitized his mind.

"Enough, Tony Stark!" Zola scolded. It seemed he had guessed his identity, although it wasn't surprising, as Hydra had learned about his armor through their infiltrators.

Tony laughed. He wasn't doing much; he was just programming the explosive device he would leave there to dispose of Zola's servers. It was a small disk containing an arc reactor that would destabilize in a few minutes and destroy the place without leaving any polluting waste. Zola's servers were there, but this was cleanup.

"Zola, if you had acted when Jarvis attempted to enter your server, you might have had a chance. But now that Jarvis has invaded everything, all that's left for you is to pray," Tony said.

"You can't kill me; I am a digital life form," growled Zola, whose face appeared on several old screens in front of him.

"Nonsense, I just have to destroy all these servers, and you're trapped here. This will be your end," Tony said nonchalantly. Zola growled, but aside from that, he couldn't do much.

"Sir, it's done, the information has been copied, transmitting to SHIELD," Jarvis reported.

"Thank you, Jarvis," Tony said, and after activating the Space Gem, Zola's servers turned into small pieces of their components. He would have to check if Zola had any backup servers.

…

After completing his mission, Tony returned to his mansion.

Fury had three thousand armors under his command and enough Extremis to spare any losses. Like with Extremis Corp, his involvement was minimal. He only had to obtain the information about Hydra's agents, provide Fury with the appropriate tools, and let the government clean up the mess…

"Mr. Stark, I've located a Priority 1 target," Jarvis said, interrupting his thoughts, while alarms blared throughout the lab.

Tony, who was already in his vibranium suit and preparing to test his matter reorganization machine, to start practicing its use, grimaced.

His current vibranium suit, his skeleton, and armor were not the work of this machine because creating it had taken him nearly a year, and he hadn't even tested it yet. He hadn't stolen Captain America's shield either. He had simply entered the black market and sought out Ulysses Klaue, sending ten of his men to negotiate with him. With the Space Gem in his hands and after locating him, obtaining the vibranium was a matter of releasing a lot of millions and threatening to steal it if he didn't hand it over.

So, Tony created his vibranium skeleton and his two suits: one for protection and fit and the other for combat. Now he intended to use his new machine to start experimenting with matter reorganization, but one of his top priorities appeared on the radar, and that meant this was a matter that affected the entire planet, and he couldn't let it pass. Furthermore, this was a top priority due to a more important reason, his own life.

"Jarvis, give me their location," Tony said.

Jarvis transferred the coordinates, and Tony went to his room to put on a casual suit over his vibranium suit and head to the indicated location.

Upon arrival, Tony saw a girl who was enjoying the view of the London Bridge. She appeared to be a teenager, but from her distant gaze, it was evident that she was already fed up with life. The girl looked at him and, after blinking, furrowed her brow.

"Tony Stark?" asked the teenage girl, who was about twelve or fourteen years old, with fair skin, short fiery-colored hair, and eyes that seemed like aqua green.

She was Sprite, one of the Eternals, and a top priority target because of Tiamut, the Celestial that would be born in a few years, and Tony wouldn't allow this group of idiots to kill him. That could be detrimental to the Earth in the future and bring more conflicts, not to mention that now that he's here, things could change and a disaster might occur. That's why this is an event he can't leave to chance.

On the other hand, Tony was searching for Sprite because he has something to negotiate for her support, and she is one of the few people in this world who can be on his side.

Sprite was one of the most hated characters by fans due to her desires to be an adult, even at the cost of giving up her immortality, which wasn't to everyone's liking. The reason behind this was simply a crush on a guy, not to mention that in Marvel comics, she was actually a he.

On the other hand, she didn't care about her mission as one of the Eternals and only participated in the final battle to support the person she liked. This meant she was always selfish and never thought about her friends or humanity. She didn't care. She was perfect for his future plans because he could rely on her support and trust that she wouldn't betray him or appeal to ethics or morality. She would be practical. That's why Tony smiled at her.

"Will you come with me if you want to grow?" Tony asked with a smile. Sprite tensed and looked around.

Tony took the opportunity to look her up and down because this girl, in herself, was an impressive piece of technology. A bio-android through and through, and one with her own abilities, given by an almost cosmic entity. He could learn a lot of things if he managed to study her thoroughly.

"How do you know about me?" Sprite asked, with a tense body, and looking at him somewhat suspiciously since she caught him staring. However, she didn't run away, which meant she was already under his control.

"Sprite, I'm Tony Stark, and I know some things about your kind. I know what you want, and I can give it to you if you allow me to study you. But in return, I want you to help me with your kind and also inform me if your bosses plan anything strange," Tony said.

"Do you want me to betray my own kind?" Sprite asked, taking a step back, but she hadn't fled yet, just acting a bit coy.

Tony already knew her moral compass wasn't very strong, and she was willing to make sacrifices for what she wanted.

"If you come with me, we can have dinner and discuss things further. I'm sure we can understand each other if I tell you some things your bosses have kept from you, and you'll see that I'm offering more than just a change in appearance," Tony explained, extending his hand.

Sprite hesitated for a few seconds but ultimately took his hand.

They appeared in the kitchen of his mansion, where Jarvis was already preparing lunch. Tony let go of Sprite's hand and went to sit at the head of the table.

Sprite looked around in surprise as three Jarvis robots were preparing food at an astonishing speed.

"Are they robots?" Sprite asked, moving to sit on the other side.

"Something like that, Jarvis is a semi-intelligent program, and these are his terminals," Tony explained.

"Are we in America?" Sprite asked, seeming to have noticed the time zone change. Tony nodded.

"We're in my mansion, Malibu, California," Tony explained.

"How?" Sprite asked.

"Do you know about the Infinity Gems?" Tony asked.

"I've heard some legends, nothing concrete," Sprite said.

"Very powerful mystical objects, even more so than your bosses, although using their power requires a body capable of withstanding it, so the power I can use is limited," Tony explained honestly.

"What do you know about my bosses?" Sprite asked, without revealing anything, perhaps she didn't know about the gems either.

"More than you but very little. The Celestials are a mystery. They create galaxies and worlds. Sometimes they take their servants to them to help with the evolution of intelligent species, and from these planets, Celestials are born.

"The fact that you have been brought here means that a Celestial will be born on this planet, but the worlds where Celestials are born are destroyed. That's why I brought you here, to prevent this planet from being destroyed and to prevent the Celestial from dying and causing future retaliation.

"As for your payment, I think besides growing, you would appreciate your freedom because once the Celestial is born, your memories will be erased, and you will be taken to another world to take care of it and assist in the evolution of its inhabitants," Tony explained while Sprite clenched her fists.

"You're lying!" she accused angrily. "We were born in Olympia, and now we are the guardians of this world," Sprite declared.

"No, they are biodroids created by the Celestials in their Forge World. Your friend Thena isn't crazy; she just remembers the last world she was on, which was destroyed by a Celestial, killing billions of lives. That's why she's very angry," Tony explained calmly.

Sprite was stunned and shaken. Tony let her think in peace while Jarvis brought wine to whet their appetites.

"I'm not a living being, just a robot," Sprite murmured in a faint voice.

"No, you're not a robot, and you're making a big deal out of insignificant things. You've lived for thousands of years and have always been you. Humans, at most, live for a hundred years. You should think with some perspective," Tony said. "By the way, have you ever gotten bored of living?" he added, as that was an interesting question. Sprite looked at him with anger.

"I've lived damned, with a appearance I detest, being deceived… Believe me, I haven't enjoyed my life!" she said with a growl.

"There are worse fates. You could have lived your whole life with a terrible skin disease, paralyzed, needing others to clean your behind, suffering chronic pain… The possibilities are endless," Tony concluded.

He wouldn't shed a tear for someone who had been granted thousands of years of life, as it's not like the Celestials had a noose around their neck.

"I also don't think you hate your own appearance. You just want to change someone else's perception of you, although I can't say if that's right or wrong because I've lived two lives and still haven't loved anyone more than my immediate family, and now I have none of that," Tony explained and took a sip of wine.

"Sir, lunch is ready," Jarvis said.

"Thank you, Jarvis. Please, serve us," Tony said.

"Can't you understand? It's not simple. Would you like to have an intimate relationship with me? It doesn't take much to be able to understand me," Sprite replied, wiping away a tear.

"If you mean sex, I like women with very good curves, and you're too flat for that. So if I could choose, I'd go elsewhere. But as I've said before, I've never loved anyone, and I'm not interested in doing so. I'm very happy as I am now, and I'd feel suffocated if I had to share my life with someone else. So the mistake in your words should be clear to you," Tony said.

"If what you're looking for is love, your appearance shouldn't matter. If the person you like has known you for centuries and still can't see beyond that, he simply will never love you, even if you change your body," Tony explained, as he hadn't experienced the feeling called love but had witnessed it.

Sprite hit the table, but Tony wasn't surprised because denial and anger often went hand in hand. He looked at his food, a plate of lasagna with a beautiful golden crust on top and some slices of bread.

"The pain you're feeling, I don't understand it either, as I've never felt it, but I can understand it because in the past, I desired many things I could never have. It's an unpleasant feeling, and accepting it is difficult, so I won't be a hypocrite and tell you to forget it," Tony said.

"Furthermore, if you wish, among the Infinity Gems are the Mind Gem and the Reality Gem. Get them, and everything you want from the person you love will be yours," Tony said. Sprite tensed up and looked at him cautiously.

"Is that the kind of thinking that disgusts people?" Tony asked with a smile. Sprite reluctantly nodded. "Do you think the Celestials think about it when they destroy billions of lives on other worlds? Do you think they have the power to prevent it? Do you even think they need to? Did you know that in this universe, there are many entities of supreme power? How many of them have you seen caring about any other creature? They only care about themselves and making things go according to their designs.

"There is no good or evil for them; the only ones concerned with those concepts are us, small beings with short lifespans, so confused and ignorant of everything around us, always desiring little things that are beyond our reach, and then quickly getting bored when we finally have them," Tony explained.

"Our morality is our chains, although I like my chains, I find them entertaining. Rules and order are what I love most about my life. A world without them, without limitations, that would be boring," Tony elaborated, savoring some lasagna with a piece of bread, then taking a sip of wine. It was simply beautiful.

Sprite thought and moved away from the table, so Jarvis, who was waiting, could serve her.

Sprite ate alongside him while deep in thought. Tony didn't continue talking and also enjoyed his meal and wine.

After finishing his meal, Tony went to his game room and started playing video games, which Jarvis had upgraded graphically and altered some parts that he found to be crap or nonsense, ruining his enjoyment.

"Is this fun for you?" Sprite asked, approaching the side of his chair. Her tone was disdainful. Tony didn't stop playing.

"On the same level as my favorite books, these are worlds I can almost feel. What did you have fun with in your long years of life?" Tony asked. "Did you read any good books?" he added.

"I've been in ancient Mesopotamia, I've seen its rise and fall!" she said proudly. Tony made a face.

"If watching savages in loincloths all day was your greatest fun, I can understand why you're now disappointed with your life," Tony said with a sigh.

Sprite looked at him angrily as she clenched her fists.

"I wasn't watching savages in loincloths; we were there to help humanity. We laid the foundations of their current civilization," Sprite stated coldly. Tony stopped playing and looked at her beside him.

"That's great!" he praised, and Sprite nodded with superiority. "What did you do? What foundations did you create? The wheel? Painting? Writing? Music? Agriculture? Theater? Society?" Tony asked and looked at her expectantly. Sprite looked uncomfortable.

"I was fighting against the Deviants, some creatures…"

"Created to entertain you," Tony interrupted. Sprite looked at him without understanding. "The Celestials told you that they were there to protect humanity from the Deviants, but think for a moment. These beings are almost cosmic entities; if they wanted to get rid of the Deviants, a simple snap of their fingers would be enough. So why were the Deviants still there? Simple, they were there to entertain you and make humans see you as their saviors.

"They were never a real threat, just part of a theater. I don't think you should be proud of that, and if that's all you have to brag about… Your life is rather disappointing," Tony said.

Sprite's face first turned red from embarrassment, then came the anger, and she pulled out a dagger to stab him, but a spatial barrier stopped her, and Tony returned to his video game, completely ignoring her. She had a tantrum and warned him that she would soon return with her friends to teach him a lesson, then left.

Two hours after leaving, Sprite returned. Tony knew she would come back, and since he didn't want to be interrupted while practicing with the matter rearrangement machine in case a minor global disaster occurred, he continued playing.

"You need better security. I've come and gone without any problem," Sprite declared, as if she hadn't threatened to bring her gang there to beat him up before.

"Do you want the position of security advisor? Someone experienced in illusions could really come in handy for me," Tony said, as his security did have a flaw when it came to mental matters.

"I want money and a mansion," Sprite said.

"It can be arranged if you agree to collaborate with me. I'll also need to study your body if you want to grow and to find out if the Celestials left any surprises in it, which is most likely.

"If you accept this deal, I'll give you five percent of the shares in Extremis Corp. That will give you a lot of money because even without being officially on the market, it already generates billions of dollars in profit each year," Tony explained.

"As long as you don't plan to dissect me, that's fine," Sprite said cautiously.

"Of course," Tony said. "Do you want to play for a while?" he asked.

"I don't waste my time on those things," Sprite said with disdain.

"Ah, a heretic," Tony said. "Don't you want to experience the temptations of a carefree life?" Tony asked suggestively.

…

The next day, the sound of a call woke him up. Tony opened his eyes and yawned, then saw the indicator blinking on the side of his vision, indicating that it was a video call, as his vibranium suit and armor had some built-in advantages. He activated the call with a thought, and a holographic screen appeared in front of him.

"Fury? What do you need? If you have some repairs to make, I've already provided you with a complete kit to install in your own base, and one for Jarvis's sister," Tony said with a yawn.

"Stark, what the hell are you doing while we're risking our lives? Are you with a woman?" Fury asked, his eye twitching.

Tony blinked; Tony Stark's reputation as a womanizer was too big.

Now that he looked closely, Fury was in a chair, but behind him, there seemed to be a little mess. Tony checked the time. It was already late morning, almost a day since Fury's operation to clean up Hydra had started, but from the mess and his bitter expression, it seemed like they were just finishing their work. Tony also understood the reason for this call and Fury's anger.

"Fury, it warms my heart that you care about me, but I can take care of myself. In fact, I was busy with my own affairs yesterday and had one of the best days off in a year. I've worked too hard in the past year," Tony explained. Fury clenched his teeth but then sighed.

"Hydra is out, at least from the USA. We've arrested their leaders and infiltrated both SHIELD and other agencies and the military. We'll take care of their bases abroad. Right now, my agents need some rest. Thank you for your help, Stark. SHIELD won't forget this favor," Fury said seriously.

"You're welcome. Restock your agents and choose those with the best merits and common sense to turn them into super soldiers. I'm expanding my lab to create a proper factory for nanotech suits. I'll also create some interesting devices that will make your agents' lives easier.

"Just don't forget that our main enemies are outside, not inside. Don't become a second Hydra, wanting to control everything," Tony warned with the same seriousness. Fury nodded and ended the call.

Tony stretched out comfortably in his large bed. Being rich really was a pleasure. Moreover, he had spoken the truth; yesterday and the night had been the best since he arrived.

Tony had forgotten to have fun; he had been too desperate to take care of everything. But now that Hydra was a rat on the run, he could take things easy and enjoy his life.

Sprite and her palpable depression made him realize that living to work was not a good idea, even with a threat hanging over his head. It was better to have as much fun as possible. He had forgotten that when he arrived, overwhelmed by multiple threats and fearing that his actions would create a greater or unknown danger.

Tony smiled and, after taking a bath and getting dressed, woke up Sprite and called her for breakfast.

Sprite got up, looking tired and groggy, and sat down to have breakfast with him.

"Tony, I don't need to eat; it's just a habit," Sprite complained.

"Neither do I, but it's one of life's pleasures, and you have the potential to enjoy them," Tony said, making Sprite blush.

She had said his games were nonsense, but she had ended up shouting and goofing around with him all night, trying one game after another.

"I'm not a hedonist!" scolded Sprite. Tony made a face while Jarvis served his breakfast.

"Ah, you're just pitiful. Just eat and let me show you how to enjoy life; I'm an expert," Tony said proudly.

…

An hour later, they were in his laboratory.

"Well, part of enjoying life is not overdoing things; you have to keep work in mind. Then, the rewards taste better," Tony explained.

"What's that? Did you make yourself a throne in this place?" Sprite asked, completely ignoring him and pointing to the matter reorganizer, which was at the back of the laboratory, about a hundred meters away.

The machine was somewhat like a throne, but a metallic one, with a crown that was a helmet with many cables. Behind it, a kind of three by three box where all the other components were located, as the front was only the control chair and the interface for his brain.

"No, my ego is not that big. This is a machine that, along with the space gem, will allow me to reorganize matter at the atomic level, which means the legendary dream of turning lead into gold coming true, although gold is of little value to me, and I'm not interested," Tony explained.

"I think we had a similar machine on our ship," Sprite said, and Tony tensed, remembering the Eternals' ship. He was a complete idiot to forget about it.

"Where is it?" Tony asked because he had forgotten that information. He wasn't really a fan of the Eternals; they were too foolish for his liking. Almost all immortal characters were idiots in his eyes.

"What do you want to do with it?" Sprite asked in confusion.

Tony rolled his eyes but, in honor of his life's apprentice, decided to answer.

"It's technology from a civilization beyond Earth's standards; I could learn a lot from there and also advance my research project about you, so reaching that ship is a priority," Tony explained.

…

Sprite nodded and gave him the location of the ship, buried under a desert in Iraq. Tony shook her hand, and they appeared inside the ship; the space gem was the ultimate mystical object for moving through space.

Upon arrival, a black woman appeared in front of them in a blur and began signaling to Sprite. She was left stunned when Tony raised his hand, and she found herself enclosed in a shield.

"This is a bonus; if I study her, I might discover the mechanism that gives them their abilities," Tony said, knowing that the Eternals could share their powers and also enhance them.

The woman, who was mute, which was incomprehensible to a biodroid, looked at Sprite with confusion.

"Will she be okay later?" Sprite asked.

"Of course, we already have scanners and blood samples; I don't dissect people," Tony said with a sigh.

"Then do as you please," Sprite said, and the woman looked at her in horror before losing consciousness. Sprite looked at Tony.

"A minor shock, so she won't bother us while we're here," Tony said, looking at the ancient art scattered all around.

He would have to donate all of this to some museum, as he needed to bring an army of Jarvis units to this place to reverse-engineer the entire ship and transfer its technology to his own laboratory.

Author's Note 1: Hello, everyone. Our MC has acquired a low-morality minion, much like himself. I ruled out Pepper because she seems to have certain limits. Black Widow seeks her redemption, Wanda hates Tony, and Sprite wants something desperately that Tony can provide. Besides, her morality aligns perfectly with the MC's plans.

Author's Note 2: In the next chapter, we'll see Thor, but don't expect him to take the spotlight because the MC finds it a waste and won't pay much attention to him. Those who will appear more are the sorcerers from Kamar-Taj: Ancient One, Wong, and Kaecilius.

NA: Don't forget to leave your comments, bookmark, follow, and subscribe.