In the end, Aunt May agreed with Tony—it was time for them to move. A new home was necessary, especially now that their identities had been exposed.
When Tony stepped outside, Natasha was already waiting downstairs, a car prepared and ready to go.
Aunt May was surprised when she saw Natasha. She had met her a few times in the past, but back then, she had no idea who she really was. Now, realizing that Natasha had been sent to investigate and contact her all along, the pieces began to fall into place. [*Tl: Background: Aunt may was a Shield Agent before she retired to take care of Peter]
Natasha, noticing Aunt May's gaze, offered a small, apologetic smile. It was, after all, her investigation that had led Nick Fury to confirm that Peter Parker would most likely become Spider-Man.
Tony helped Aunt May and young Peter Parker into Natasha's car, which then drove toward the new home Tony had just purchased. Meanwhile, he flew overhead, personally escorting them.
—
Alexander Pierce was well aware that Tony had gone to pick up Spider-Man. However, he had no intention of making a move just yet. Tony Stark was still useful—he was an essential piece in solving the coming war.
Even though Pierce had pushed hard for the Insight Project, there was no guarantee it would be effective against aliens, let alone powerful beings like the Ancient One. As a result, many of Hydra's plans had been delayed again and again.
For now, Hydra remained completely silent, lying low to avoid detection. Unfortunately for Pierce, he didn't understand the Ancient One at all. He didn't realize that everything he was doing was ultimately in vain.
—
Once Tony had settled Aunt May and Peter into their new home, he and Natasha headed straight to S.H.I.E.L.D. to meet with Nick Fury.
"It looks like you're very satisfied with him," Nick Fury commented as they sat in the conference room.
"Yeah," Tony nodded, but before he could say anything more, an unexpected figure entered the room.
It was Thor, the God of Thunder.
Ever since the energy disturbances from the Rainbow Bridge had settled, Thor had returned to Earth in search of Jane Foster. He had been on the planet for quite some time now, but Tony, having been preoccupied with his own matters, hadn't been aware.
At Fury's invitation, Thor had joined the Avengers.
Tony and Thor exchanged nods—a simple but firm acknowledgment of their past battle together. Though they had only fought side by side once, the experience had forged a strong camaraderie between them.
After Captain America Steve Roger, Hawkeye Clint Barton, Hulk Bruce Banner, and Captain Marvel Carol Danvers, who had just returned from deep space, took their seats, Nick Fury got straight to the point.
The topic of discussion?
Why did the Avengers split? What is Avenger Civil War?
From the way things looked in The Screen, it seemed as though a major internal conflict had broken out—possibly even a civil war. Otherwise, why would Tony be in such urgent need of new allies? Why would he recruit a high school student?
There were visible scars on Tony's face, evidence that he had been in a recent conflict. However, since The Screen had only shown glimpses of the situation, no one knew the full context yet.
That was what they needed to discuss—What caused the Avengers to divide? And who were the ones responsible for the split?
Just as Tony was about to speak, the voice of the narrator suddenly echoed through the room…
—
["To understand the third generations Spider-Man, you must first understand who Tony Stark is. You've all heard of him, and I've told you about him before, but you definitely don't know how he became Iron Man!"]
["Tony Stark has many labels: genius inventor, billionaire, playboy, Iron Man. But in the beginning, he was not Iron Man—he was the world's largest arms dealer."]
—
Tony's expression darkened slightly. The words of the narration stirred up painful memories—memories of the darkest days of his life.
Thor, who had no knowledge of Tony's past, seemed intrigued. The others, already somewhat familiar with Tony's history, could tell this wasn't a pleasant trip down memory lane for him.
Meanwhile, First-Generation Spider-Man and Second-Generation Spider-Man were watching in their own universe with great interest. They were curious about who Tony Stark really was. If possible, they also wanted to know more about Natasha, Bruce Banner, and Dr Strange—the heroes whose stories were yet to be revealed.
More importantly, they wanted to understand what kind of war had affected the entire universe and what kind of threat had led to such catastrophic casualties, plunging everything into a life-or-death crisis.
—
[The Screen displayed a convoy of military Humvees, kicking up a thick cloud of dust as they drove through a desolate landscape.]
[Tony Stark sat comfortably in the back of one of the vehicles, a glass of whiskey in hand. Noticing the soldiers around him stealing glances, he smirked. "You guys are looking at me like I'm on trial in a military court! Damn it, what did I do?"]
["Feels like you're about to stop the car and execute me! Why so serious? Hey! Somebody say something!" Tony called out.]
[One of the soldiers hesitated. Tony turned to him. "Why are you staring at me?"]
[The female driver in the front seat suddenly spoke up: "They're not staring at you… they're afraid of you."]
[Tony blinked, then grinned in realization. "Oh my God! You're a woman! I totally didn't notice! Sorry about that!"]
[The driver remained calm. "The military emphasizes gender equality. Right now, I'm just a soldier."]
["Right, right! I get it! But, if I'm being honest, you've got a great figure! I kind of want to look at you more—wait, that sounded weird, didn't it?"]
[Tony's playful remark managed to break the tension in the vehicle. A few of the soldiers chuckled.]
["Alright, everyone relax!" Tony waved his glass, flashing his signature smirk.]
[The soldier in the front passenger seat turned around and asked, "Sir, I have a question for you! Is it true that in the past 12 months, every Maxim magazine cover girl has slept with you?"]
[Tony pulled off his sunglasses and looked at him. "That's a great question. The answer is yes and no. March was a scheduling conflict. Luckily, December had twin sisters. Any other questions?"]
[Laughter filled the Humvee. Even the female driver couldn't help but smirk.]
[Another soldier eagerly raised his hand. Tony raised a brow. "Why are you raising your hand?"]
["Can I take a picture with you?" the soldier asked excitedly.]
["Of course! But let's set some ground rules—no posting it on your personal social media."]
[The soldier nodded quickly and handed his camera to the front passenger. He then made a peace sign, leaning against Tony for the photo.]
["I was just joking!" Tony teased as the soldier's excitement nearly made him jump out of his seat.]
["Yeah! Peace! I love peace! Peace would put me out of a job!" Tony muttered as he posed for the picture. Just as the front passenger was about to take the shot—]
[BOOM! The military Humvee in front of them suddenly exploded!]
—
The room fell silent.
Everyone watching The Screen tensed, their eyes fixed on the unfolding events.
For some, this was history. For others, this was new information. But for Tony Stark, it was his past—the moment that changed everything.
The beginning of Iron Man.
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