Chapter -12: Weapon Briefing

"Oh, good morning, my dearest Air Force Colonel," Tony said, greeting James Rhodes while eating a burger.

"Tony, if you could come earlier, that would be better," James Rhodes said, glancing at Tony silently. Although he was used to Tony's tardiness, waiting in the cold wind for more than two hours this morning had left him quite speechless.

"Hey, next time I'll try to come early," Tony said with a smile.

"Rhodey, don't worry about Tony. His lateness is a problem he can't change," Adrian said as he stepped forward and boarded the plane.

"It's not like it's my fault for being late today. If it weren't for Adrian insisting on arranging bodyguards and weapons, we wouldn't be running late," Tony said, following behind Adrian.

"Even if I didn't insist on arranging the bodyguards, you would still be late. Besides, arranging bodyguards is a perfectly reasonable precaution," Adrian replied without looking back.

"You guy..." Tony Stark shook his head in silence and then stopped talking.

"Tony, actually, I feel that Adrian is right. Getting some bodyguards is a very sensible arrangement. I've warned you about this before, but you never listened to me. This time it's necessary. Though I accompany you to most of your activities, I can't always be there. If any sudden danger arises, I might not be able to protect you completely on time," Rhodey said.

"I believe in you," Tony said, patting Rhodey's shoulder before walking into the cabin with him. As for Pepper Potts, she had to stay behind to handle things for Tony Stark in his absence.

....

Under Rhodeys' skillful piloting, the plane safely landed at a military airport in Afghanistan.

Upon arrival, a considerable number of Afghan military personnel were already assembled at the airport, awaiting their arrival.

The highest ranking offer is a middle aged man with a lieutenant rank.

After spotting Adrian and the others disembarking from the plane, the Afghan military personnel greeted them enthusiastically, shaking hands with both Tony and Adrian.

The black-suited men accompanying Adrian and Tony Stark, naturally they did not receive the same level of privilege and attention from the Afghan military personnel.

Half an hour later, at an arms testing site nestled in a mountain range, Tony stood clad in a black suit and sunglasses, facing a group of uniformed men gathered before him. With a smile, he began introducing the weapons on display.

"Is it better to feared or respected and I say it is too much to ask for both?"

"With that in mind, allow me to present to you the flagship product of our Stark Industrial Freedom series."

"Here we have the first missile system that integrates our proprietary repulsor technology."

"People say the best weapons are the ones you never have to use."

"But I respectfully disagree."

"I prefer the weapon you only have to fire once."

"My father understood this, so does the United States and it worked out pretty well so far"

"Sometimes, you need to give them a reason to think twice."

"Fire this once and I personally guarantee…."

"The bad guys won't even want to come out of their caves."

As Tony Stark gestured towards a missile device nearby, the missile rocket suddenly shifted, aiming directly at the mountains behind Tony Stark.

Immediately after the command, a missile was launched and streaked across the sky. Upon detonation, it fragmented into numerous smaller missiles that rained down on the mountainside.

"Boooooom…."

The thunderous roar of explosions reverberated, accompanied by the shriek of shrapnel slicing through the air, as waves of devastating air turbulence surged toward Tony Stark.

"For your consideration, The Jericho"

As the turbulence swept through, Tony extended his right hand and slowly raised it upwards, as if defying the chaos with calm determination.

As the air wave subsided, Tony smiled and strolled over to a nearby alloy box. Opening it, a refreshing smoke of ice wafted out, permeating the air. Inside, he discovered chilled wine and an array of wine glasses.

"I'll be throwing this, if the deal exceeds 500 million or more. Cheers to peace," Tony Stark remarked as he handed a glass to Adrian. He then raised his own glass, offering a toast before taking a sip.

Although Adrian felt that Tony's introduction of weapons was very aggressive, he had to admit that Tony was quite badass down there.

After the weapons presentation, Tony was ready to leave the shooting range with Adrian and others in a military vehicle.

In the process of preparing to leave, Tony proposed to sit alone in a military vehicle. Adrian was the first to reject Tony's proposal and then sat in the car with him.

"Hey, it would've been great if you joined in on the weapons introduction. Even if you didn't want to explain, just having you there would have made the scene less forced. Your presence would have made the situation much better than being a homebody." After getting on the car with Adrian, Tony smiled and said to him.

"I don't think there is anything good." Adrian glanced at Tony Stark. At this time, the spirit was highly hit, because he knew that the next time he went back, he would be attacked by terrorists. His body is obviously tight.

"It's not that great," Adrian replied, glancing at Tony. His attention were on edge, knowing that they would likely be attacked by terrorists on their way back. He could feel the tension in his body.

"Why do you seem so tense, Adrian? Ever since we arrived at the military camp, you've been acting strange. It's like you're anticipating something. Relax, nothing is going to happen. The weapons briefing is over, and there's no need for you to explain anything. In fact, such events are quite trivial. As a member of the Stark family and a holder of 20% stake in Stark Industries, you should get used to such situations. After all, you'll be on stage sooner or later," Tony said with a reassuring smile, noticing Adrian's tense demeanour.

"Alright, I'm not nervous about the weapon briefing. But I do have a feeling that something bad might happen. Tony, you should be careful and not wander off," Adrian said, giving Tony a meaningful look. His gaze shifted to scan the surroundings through the window, while his left hand discreetly gripped a small bottle inside his pocket.

Inside the bottle was a spider.

It was a spider Adrian had grabbed when Tony was demonstrating the weapons.