84: Well, Its Big..

Mjolnir Landing Site

At the site, a group of ordinary people gathered around the periphery of Mjolnir. Another group of detectives cordoned off the area. 

"Why don't you let us in, damn detectives!" yelled one man. 

"We were having so much fun! Why are you kicking us out!"

Although Nick Fury had ordered them here, the local New Mexico police didn't seem to care that much. By the time they arrived this morning, a bunch of muscular men had already gathered, trying in vain to lift the hammer that was embedded in the ground.

Now a car pulled up and Phil Coulson stepped out, surveying the scene not far away. "Finally made it, was worried Fury might fire me," he muttered to himself. 

Coulson quickly directed his own people into position.

Inside S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters, an agent reported to Fury, "Director, Coulson is in position. Barton will arrive shortly too."

Fury nodded. "Has Natasha reached Stark's place?" 

"Yes, she's entered with Miss Potts and has access to Stark's workshop now."

"Good. I'm heading over to see Stark next then."

At Tony's mansion, Happy drove up with Pepper and Natasha, the latter dressed in a crisp business suit that outlined her perfect figure. 

Seeing Natasha, Happy couldn't help an admiring whistle. Her murderous gaze immediately silenced him.

Pepper entered Tony's home almost unimpeded. "Welcome Miss Potts," greeted J.A.R.V.I.S.

"J.A.R.V.I.S., where is Tony?"

"He's sleeping downstairs."

Pepper looked puzzled. The downstairs wasn't Tony's workshop, so why would he sleep there? Only when she entered the workshop did she grasp how much it had changed.

"My god Tony, what did you do here?" 

Amongst a maze of black pipes, Tony and Yinsen were passed out on a sofa after a long night's work. Pepper's voice jolted Tony awake. Bleary-eyed, he said, "Oh, yeah, I did some redecorating here."

Pepper carefully navigated the cluttered workshop to reach Tony's side. She looked at him worriedly. "You should get some proper rest in your room, you don't look well."

Tony quickly realized his mistake. He had been so busy that he forgot his green juice! 

"I'm fine, trust me," he insisted, rummaging around until he found a bottle of green juice to drink. The color returned to his face. 

Keenly observant, Natasha noted Tony's palladium poisoning symptoms and his mysterious green drink. She filed away this potentially useful information to report back to Fury later.

On the sofa, Yinsen also stirred awake slowly. "Tony, ready to make that new element?" he mumbled.

Pepper's ears pricked up at the key term 'new element'. She folded her arms sternly. "Tony, what exactly are you up to?"

Tony stammered out an explanation, "W-well, you know our current arc reactor as a new energy source...isn't exactly, uh, environmentally friendly!"

"Yes, not environmentally friendly!" Yinsen chimed in supportively. 

"So I'm developing a new, more eco-friendly element for it!" Tony declared.

Pepper looked skeptical. Running the company was easy, but understanding Tony's inventions was hard. 

Sensing her doubt, Yinsen added, "It's true, we're making a renewable, green energy alternative!"

Studying the workshop and both men's behavior, Natasha surmised they were seeking a new element to replace the toxic palladium in Tony's chest. And from the scale of the redesign, it seemed they were close to a breakthrough.

"Miss Potts," Natasha interjected, tapping Pepper's shoulder, "where is the bathroom please?"

"Upstairs, J.A.R.V.I.S. will guide you," Pepper answered. 

"J.A.R.V.I.S., show the lady to the bathroom please," said Tony. A blue guide light switched on. "Just follow it upstairs."

Distracted, Pepper forgot her earlier questions. "Go on up first. I asked Happy to buy your favorite burgers."

Tony felt a rush of warmth for Pepper's thoughtfulness. "Perfect, I'm starving after last night."

As Natasha walked out, Pepper called after Tony, "I'm busy with the company lately and can't watch over you as much."

"Take care of yourself. I'll tell J.A.R.V.I.S. your usual meal schedule so he can remind you."

Usually Tony bristled at nagging, but with Pepper he just said mildly, "Okay, I'll follow your plan." Then he added, "But no milk for breakfast, please?"

Upstairs, Happy walked in carrying food. "Hey Tony, your face looks bad, you doing okay?"

"Big redecorating last night, I'm beaten. Food and rest will fix me right up." 

Yinsen nodded in corroboration. "We just need some food and sleep."

Happy accepted their story easily. "Well, I got all your favorite burgers here!"

In the bathroom, Natasha knew J.A.R.V.I.S. was present so she took a special encrypted headset from her bag and put it on. The headset is linked to an mp3 player-like device. She tapped the player, connecting swiftly to Nick Fury's private communication channel.

"Director Fury, I have bad news to report."

Fury, who had just gotten in a car, wore a matching headset. Hearing Natasha's ominous words, his expression darkened. "Is Tony Stark dead?"

Natasha: "?????"

Natasha was momentarily at a loss for how to respond. I have bad news for you, why did you immediately assume Tony is dead? 

"No, Tony Stark is alive and doing fine. He and Yinsen seem to have developed something new. I think your plan to leverage favors from him will soon fail."

Fury took a deep breath and glanced at the large iron box beside him. He didn't believe Tony could discover new elements with his limited capabilities. If he could, the palladium issue wouldn't have plagued him for so long. That's why Fury planned to wait until Tony was desperate before providing Howard's memento. 

But with the golden mech's appearance, everything seemed beyond Fury's control now. 

"Understood, Agent Romanoff," he finally said. "I'm heading over now. Hopefully, it's not too late yet."

After starting the car, Fury added, "Stay close to Miss Potts. We may uncover clues about Tony's breakthrough through her."

"Yes sir."

In the bathroom, Natasha packed up and followed J.A.R.V.I.S.'s guidance back down to the living room. Pepper had finished lecturing Tony about self-care and left with Natasha to return to Stark Industries. As CEO, many duties still required Pepper's attention daily. 

Watching Pepper and Happy's departure, Tony finally let out a violent cough he'd been suppressing. 

"Ugh, they really need to speed things up, my time's running out."

Concerned, Yinsen quickly handed Tony a freshly made green juice. "Here, drink this." 

After Tony downed the juice, some color returned to his pale face. "Thanks Ethan. I think we can end this soon if we synthesize the new element successfully."

Yinsen inspected the device that measured Tony's blood palladium levels. 62%! The reading made him frown worriedly. "Tony, avoid using the suit until we've fully produced and tested this new element. The faster your arc reactor drains, the quicker the toxins spread. I know you understand that too."

Tony nodded. "You're right. If I hadn't worn it last time, we wouldn't have this solution now. Let's rest a bit before continuing downstairs." 

Seeing the faint discoloration already creeping up Tony's neck, Yinsen sighed helplessly. He could only pray the element synthesis concluded without further incident.

Meanwhile, in another part of New York, a slovenly middle-aged man in a military uniform slinked through the streets into a small alley. Another man fully wrapped in black awaited him there.

"Ivan Vanko?" the black-clad man asked gruffly.

The disheveled man, Ivan Vanko, gave a slight nod, chewing on a toothpick. 

After confirming Vanko's identity, the man in black pulled an ID card from his coat. "This is a Stark Industries employee badge. It will grant you access inside."

Vanko mutely took out a stack of dollars in exchange. The two quickly concluded their shady transaction and departed separately. 

Unbeknownst to them, a camera in the alley corner had recorded the entire exchange. As Vanko's face was clearly captured, S.H.I.E.L.D.'s system immediately flagged him.

"Sir, a dangerous individual has been detected," reported the agent at the computer console.

Another black-suited agent came over to inspect the screen. He spoke into his walkie-talkie, "Captain Hill, we have a situation here."

Hill quickly arrived. "What is it?"

The agent gestured her to the monitor and explained, "Ivan Vanko. A physicist was imprisoned for 15 years for selling Soviet weapons-grade tech on the black market. Then he disappeared." 

Hill scanned Vanko's profile and frowned. "A physicist imprisoned for 15 years suddenly appears in New York City... and you flag this for me why?"

The agent inputs some commands, bringing up an additional detail. "His father is Anton Vanko. He worked with Howard Stark."

Hill's expression changed. With that connection to Howard, Vanko was no ordinary man. "Good work." 

Using her higher clearance, Hill pulled up more of Anton Vanko's background from S.H.I.E.L.D.'s databases. After reviewing the intel, she deduced Ivan Vanko's purpose for being in New York.

"What transaction occurred in that alley?" she immediately asked.

The agent shook his head. "Unclear. Looks like they exchanged something but the camera resolution is too low to identify it."

Even after zooming in, only the vague shapes of two people trading indistinct items could be made out. 

"Send it to tech for enhancement," Hill ordered. "They need to determine what was exchanged ASAP." 

After the agent acknowledged, Hill headed straight for the command platform and contacted Fury.

"Director, Anton Vanko's son Ivan has resurfaced in New York."

Despite driving, Fury's interest was piqued hearing that name. "His son? Where is he now?"

Hill checked the camera footage. "Unknown for the moment. He has strong counter-surveillance skills. Our agents lost him. But his target is certainly Tony Stark."

"You're headed there now. He may intercept you en route," Hill warned.

But Fury sounded unconcerned. "Hill, I'm still director for a reason. Have some faith."

"There's no activity yet on my route," he reported. "I'm nearly at Stark's." 

Hill breathed easier hearing that. Still, she felt Vanko came prepared this time for revenge. 

According to Hill's intel, Anton Vanko was expelled by Howard for mental instability, spending his remaining years in poverty and publicly accusing the Starks of theft and butchery. He had vowed to take revenge and reclaim what was his if ever given the chance. 

Hill didn't know what exactly Vanko was referring to, but it must be important for Howard to banish him so completely. 

"Director, do you know why Howard exiled Vanko?" she asked. That information wasn't in S.H.I.E.L.D.'s system, meaning Fury had special clearance.

But Fury only said vaguely, "I'll explain another time, Hill. For now, find Vanko. I'm nearly at Stark's place. No trouble so far."

"Yes sir," acknowledged Hill, terminating the call. After surveying the array of screens before her, she took out a tablet and pulled up several higher permission cameras to try tracking Vanko's movements.

Having evaded the agents tailing him, Vanko looked up with a sly smile. Suddenly he gasped, spotting a white figure swinging through New York's concrete jungle like an acrobatic monkey.

He muttered something in Russian. Before he could study the strange sight further, Vanko lowered the brim of his hat and continued on his planned route.

Above, Gwen also noticed someone watching her and glanced down. Other than sparse foot traffic, the street below seemed normal. 

"Pika...chu..." said Pikachu in her arms plaintively.

"It's okay Pikachu, we're almost there. Lu- I mean Andrew has cooked lunch already."

"Pika...chu..." Pikachu waved his little paws excitedly. 

Soon they arrived at the balcony of Andrew's apartment. A tempting aroma wafted out to greet them.

"Mm, Andrew, what are you cooking? It smells amazing," said Gwen as she entered.

"You're back, Pikachu," Andrew replied, emerging from the kitchen holding two steaming dishes. "Yes, your food is ready on the table."

"Pika...chu..." Pikachu scampered straight for the treats.

Andrew smiled watching the two. "Seems you two got along well last night."

At the mention of last night, Pikachu frowned and chattered indignantly, "Pika..." 

"Pika...chu!"

"I see, Uncle George squeezed you," interpreted Andrew with a laugh. "Next time he does that, give him a little shock back, just a small one."

Gwen lightly swatted his arm. "Don't teach Pikachu bad habits. What if he randomly zaps someone in the future?" 

"It's fine, he's restrained. Aren't you, Pikachu?" 

"Pika...pika..." agreed Pikachu.

The delicious food disappeared swiftly. Looking at the empty dishes, Gwen glanced sideways at Andrew. "Hey, do you think I'm getting fat?"

Andrew appraised her briefly before noticing her chest area. "Hmm, they do seem a bit bigger," he remarked absently. 

Realizing where he was looking, Gwen's face turned crimson. "Andrew, you..."

Sensing his gaffe, Andrew was about to apologize when Gwen mumbled, "You're so mean..."

Unsure whether he should still say sorry or not, Andrew hesitated. But Gwen quickly stood up. "I'll wash up first before you do the dishes today."

Watching Gwen's back as she diligently washed dishes, Andrew wondered why she seemed vaguely pleased. 

With the plates cleaned, Andrew brought Pikachu to the living room for tea while Gwen finished up in the kitchen. The mundanity of it all made him smile softly. Such a simple life...

Abruptly, Red Queen's avatar popped up on the computer screen. "Master, Stark Industries is under attack."

Hearing this report, Andrew was puzzled. Who would be foolish enough to attack Stark Industries now? 

"Bring up the live feed, Red Queen."

The screen switched to a view of Stark Industries' gate. A man stood there shirtless, wearing some kind of tech vest. Two glowing energy whips extended from his arms down to the ground, leaving a trail of scorch marks in the concrete.

One look and Andrew immediately recognized the attacker. "It's him!"

To be continued...