After several hours of jolting travel, Aetheris was brought back by the armed group to their stronghold within the base.
Here, since Aetheris wasn't injured and on the verge of death like in the movie, he was brought directly before the leader of the base.
A bearded man with gray-white whiskers, clearly a high-ranking member of the armed group, walked up to Aetheris and looked down at him condescendingly.
"Oh, look at this poor billionaire—reduced to being my prisoner!" he said, then burst into loud laughter.
Ding. Reward distribution in progress—
Ding. Reward distributed. Mark II Iron Hellfire has been delivered. Would the host like to retrieve it now?
At that moment, a robotic voice from the Divine Choice System echoed in Aetheris's mind.
"Damn it, system, do you want me dead? How could I possibly summon it in this situation? Do you even need to ask?" Aetheris grumbled inwardly.
The Mark II battle armor had to be manually worn, and the assembly process took some time.
In the movie, the process of Tony Stark donning his armor was filled with mechanical beauty—but Aetheris wasn't watching a movie now. No enemy would stand around like an idiot waiting for him to finish suiting up.
"Mr. Stark, I wonder if you could put that clever little brain of yours to work and develop a few small weapons for me?" the bearded man asked.
Unlike the original Stark, who resisted at first, Aetheris agreed right away without hesitation.
The original Stark had only given in after being nearly drowned.
"Oh, my dear Mr. Beardy, I'd be absolutely delighted to serve you. It would be my honor," Aetheris replied smoothly, shameless flattery pouring out of him one line after another.
Forget weapons—if you asked me to build you an aircraft carrier right now, I'd agree too!
Even the armed guards nearby couldn't bear to listen any longer.
So much for his reputation. This so-called legendary playboy turned out to be a total wimp.
"Well then, what are you waiting for? Get to work," the bearded man said. He had actually prepared a full set of medieval torture devices for Stark.
Shame he wouldn't get to use them.
"Oh, my dear Mr. Beardy, I'd be happy to work for you. However, I'll need an assistant and a place that's absolutely safe and quiet. Might I trouble you for that?" Aetheris asked, assuming the air of an old-fashioned gentleman.
"No problem. Sultan, take Mr. Stark to Yinsen's room. I believe they'll get along just fine," the bearded man ordered casually.
A young armed militant, his face wrapped in a turban so only his eyes were visible, stepped forward.
Aetheris gave a slight bow and offered the bearded man a gentleman's salute before following the militant away.
"Boss, are we really just going to let him go like that? What about Obadiah?" the second-in-command asked.
"Heh, let him go? That Stark is a billionaire—and a weapons genius. With him here, he'll provide us with endless wealth and firepower. I'll keep him trapped here forever, working for our glorious cause!" the bearded man's eyes gleamed with fanaticism.
"Get in. And don't try anything funny, or you'll regret it," the young militant warned.
As the saying goes: Better to mess with the devil than a petty thug.
Aetheris nodded obediently and entered what seemed to be a very familiar cave.
Outside, yellow sand blanketed the sky and the air was hot and dry—but inside the cave, it was a whole different world: the temperature was pleasant and comfortable.
Inside, a middle-aged man with a balding head was tinkering with some electronic devices, paying no attention to who had just entered.
Aetheris instantly recognized him—this was the doctor who saved Tony Stark in the movie: Yinsen.
"Don't try anything stupid!" the militant warned again.
But neither of them paid him any attention. Annoyed, he slammed the heavy iron door shut, muttering to himself whether he should spit in their food later.
"Uh, let me introduce myself, I'm—" Aetheris had just started to speak.
But Dr. Yinsen cut him off immediately:
"The legendary weapons developer—son of Howard Stark—Tony Stark, playboy, billionaire, who inherited Stark Industries, the largest weapons manufacturer in America, from your father Howard Stark."
At four, he was already building circuit boards. By six, he had constructed a V8 engine. At seventeen, he graduated from MIT. In the world of science and technology, he was hailed as a child prodigy inventor.
Now, he was the newly appointed CEO of Stark Industries.
"Did I get that right, Mr. Tony Stark?" Yinsen asked, his tone thick with sarcasm.
"Woohoo, turns out I'm that impressive?" Aetheris replied with a grin.
Being praised like that felt amazing—no wonder so many people loved flattery.
This profession really was in short supply.
Ever since stepping into this cave-cell and seeing the kind-hearted Yinsen, Aetheris finally felt at ease.
There was no rush to summon the Hellfire Mark II Iron Man armor just yet. First, he needed to build a connection with Yinsen—the selfless man who embodied the spirit of Norman Bethune.
Yinsen was a genuine genius, skilled in both mechanical engineering and medicine. He might prove to be a great help in the future.
And in this world, talent like his was incredibly rare.
Aetheris desperately needed someone like him.
Of course, before Aetheris took over his body, Stark had also been that kind of talent—but now, this version of Tony was more like a has-been.
The creation of the Mark I armor owed much to Yinsen's help.
And future versions of the suit would still require Dr. Yinsen's support. This was a man willing to sacrifice himself for others!
"Hello, Dr. Yinsen. I'll keep it short," Aetheris quickly jogged over, grasping Yinsen's hands with tears brimming in his eyes. "I've finally found you, Dr. Yinsen!"
What's going on? What is this situation?
Yinsen stared, bewildered. Don't tell me Tony Stark is into men too?
Are all rich people perverts or what?
Yinsen forcefully pulled his hands away from Stark's warm grip. "Mr. Stark, please speak properly. No need for all this... physical enthusiasm."
"Yinsen, my dear Yinsen, you have to help me!" Aetheris wailed like a child.
"Alright, Mr. Stark, please calm down and tell me what's going on. I'm just an average guy with limited skills, but if there's anything I can do to help, I'll do my best," said Dr. Yinsen, who was kindhearted by nature.
"Yinsen, I have a way to get both of us out of here," Aetheris suddenly lowered his voice.
"What way?" Yinsen asked, instantly excited. He knew someone of Stark's caliber wouldn't joke around—especially not with a stranger.
After all, joking in a militant base was like lighting a lantern in a latrine—just asking to die.
"Keep an eye on the outside for me. I'll need five minutes," Aetheris said seriously, locking eyes with Dr. Yinsen.
"Five minutes? I'll do my best," Yinsen replied. He didn't even ask what the plan was.
Maybe it was just an engineer's instinct—one look, one signal, and trust was established.
Unlike those in the liberal arts, who spouted endless nonsense and still said nothing useful.
Just create some noise. Distract the guards at the entrance. That's all I need!
So Yinsen grabbed a TIG welder and walked to the iron door, banging away to generate lights and noise.
The guard outside heard the ruckus and peeked in, only to be blinded by a sudden burst of light—nearly frying his eyes.
The five minutes Aetheris requested were based on an ideal scenario.
In the movie, Stark had mechanical assistance to suit up the Mark II Hellfire armor. Right now, all Aetheris had was the diligent work of his own two hands.
"System, summon the Mark II Armor!"
Boom!
A set of crimson and gold Hellfire armor landed in the chamber within the cave.
(End of Chapter)
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