A Night at Umbrella

Ultimately, Tony didn't go to the Middle East. Because that night, Colonel James showed up.

"Listen, Tony, I don't care what you discovered in the Middle East; you need to act like you know nothing."

Seeing the serious expression on his friend's face, Tony looked puzzled, "What happened? Is the military pressuring you?"

James shook his head.

"You don't need to worry about that. Just promise me, don't get involved with the Middle East anymore. I'm doing this for your own good..."

"You didn't see the mass graves in the Middle East? How can something like that happen in this world? As a human being, where's your conscience, your sense of justice?"

"The military has already decided. Next month, they will send 20,000 more troops to Middle-East to ensure the massacre in Gomira won't happen again."

Hearing this, the sharp-minded Tony immediately put two and two together.

"Wait... was the Gomira massacre something they allowed?"

"Tony, sometimes being too smart can bring trouble. As your friend, I don't want to see something happen to you. Besides, you're no longer the chairman of Stark Industries. Your biggest bargaining chip is gone."

Tony remained silent, pondering over what James had just said. Why hadn't Congress or the military ever really gone after him, no matter what reckless stunts he pulled?

It was because he was the chairman of Stark Industries, overseeing a multi-billion-dollar enterprise employing tens of thousands of people, and the largest supplier of weapons to the military.

But now, without the title of chairman, Tony no longer held the same protection, and the military's tolerance of him had drastically diminished.

Just as Tony was about to speak, the door suddenly opened, and Pepper walked in, dressed in a sleek black suit and holding a briefcase.

"Who said Tony isn't the chairman of Stark Industries anymore?"

Upon hearing her words, Tony immediately smiled and rose from the couch.

"Pepper, does that mean you have a plan?"

Pepper set the briefcase down and sat on the couch, her face brimming with confidence.

"I've spoken with several shareholders and executives. Next month, we'll hold a shareholder meeting, and they'll all back you. Even if Obadiah issued five billion shares, it doesn't matter; they don't have enough money to buy that much stock. We'll definitely regain control of the board."

James, hearing this, quickly added, "Then wait until you're the chairman again next month before stirring up trouble in the Middle East."

Tony, who had been excited moments before, suddenly looked deflated.

"Hey, buddy, you can't do that."

He then walked over to the window and pulled the curtains aside.

"And by the way, get your people out of here. Stop monitoring me."

"Tony, do you have any idea how much damage you caused? One F22 costs 140 million dollars, and that's just the production cost!"

140 million dollars was a lot of money, but back in the day, Tony would have brushed it off without a second thought. However, since Obadiah's betrayal, his financial situation wasn't as cushy as before. Even the development of the Mark V had stalled due to lack of funding.

So, hearing "140 million" made Tony slump back onto the couch as if the wind had been knocked out of him.

After a moment of silence, Tony suddenly spoke up, "Jarvis, project the image of the Insect-men."

At his command, a three-dimensional hologram appeared in the living room, showing the insect-like creatures Tony had encountered twice in the Middle East.

"Are these things something your people created?"

James froze at the sight of the lifelike and terrifying hologram, "Where did these creepy things come from? Tony, are you filming a horror movie or something?"

But as he saw the serious expression on Tony's face, James began to sense something was off.

"Did you encounter these monsters in the Middle East?"

Tony jumped to his feet, waving his hands excitedly.

"Bingo! I call these creatures Insect-men. They used to look like humans, but after I killed them, they mutated into these monsters. Haven't you been curious about why I've been consulting with biologists lately? Well, it's to research these creatures. Tell me, are these freaks some military experiment?"

"No!" James quickly shook his head and examined the terrifying creatures closely. "Were they created through some kind of enhancement technology?"

"Enhancement technology?" Tony scoffed, taking a sip of his drink from the glass Pepper had handed him.

"I'd rather call them failures. Have you ever seen Captain America turn into something this horrifying?"

In the world of enhancement technology, Captain America was the gold standard, so Tony naturally used him as a comparison.

James also took a sip of the drink Pepper handed him, and then a name suddenly popped into his mind.

"Could it be... that company..."

Seeing that James might know something, Tony became intrigued.

"Which company?"

After hesitating for a moment, James finally said it.

"Umbrella..."

Tony and Pepper gasped in unison upon hearing the name.

"Umbrella!!"

"Yes. Although I'm not too sure about the details, since biological research isn't my department, I deal with weapons development. But I've heard that recently the military has been working closely with Umbrella and has given them quite a few orders."

Pepper frowned slightly, "Isn't Umbrella a pharmaceutical and cosmetics company? How did they get involved in biological research?"

Tony set his glass down and nodded.

"Yeah, hasn't the military always worked with Oscorp when it comes to biological research?"

James looked around cautiously and then pulled the curtains closed.

"Actually, it's becoming something of an open secret that Oscorp's biological research isn't on the same level as Umbrella's. That's why the higher-ups are leaning more toward collaborating with Umbrella. But everything I just said is still confidential, so don't repeat it."

Tony and Pepper both nodded, not wanting to put their friend in a difficult position.

After chatting for a while longer, James eventually left.

Tony, however, sat there, his mind racing with thoughts. After a while, he told Pepper to head upstairs and rest, saying he had more research to do.

Pepper, exhausted from the day, didn't think much of it and went upstairs.

Tony headed down to his lab and stood in front of the nearly repaired Mark III armor and the significantly larger Mark IV suit.

After a brief consideration, he chose the Mark III. While the Mark IV offered more protection, tonight's mission would require agility.

After Tony left, Pepper, watching the light vanish into the night sky, sighed softly.

..............

Late at night, a thick cloud rolled across the sky, obscuring the moon and plunging New York City into darkness.

Tony, inside the Mark III armor, hovered high above the Umbrella building. The lights inside the tower were still bright, indicating people were still working late into the night.

"Jarvis, find me a way in where I won't be detected."

"Yes, Mr. Stark."

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