79 Everyone Has a Duty to Take Down Hammer

Aboard the Halo transport ship, Kagura, Bucky, and Natasha arrived at the Rhodes Island Industries headquarters.

They quickly gathered in a meeting room to exchange intelligence and map out their next steps.

Regardless of whether Natasha would eventually join Griffin, both she and S.H.I.E.L.D. had already become deeply involved in the investigation of Whiplash, Ivan Vanko.

And the group behind Ivan?

The ever-looming threat of Hydra—the shadowy organization constantly at odds with S.H.I.E.L.D.

"Alright, let's go over what we know so far."

Kagura activated the room's holographic display.

"Natasha, did you uncover anything at Hammer Industries?"

"Yes." Natasha nodded.

"Justin Hammer is indeed developing his own version of Iron Man suits, but they appear to be remote-controlled rather than piloted."

"He's also acquired arc reactor technology from Ivan Vanko."

"Considering Hydra agents ambushed me, it's safe to assume that Hammer Industries is working with Hydra."

"And since Hydra knew about my mission ahead of time, that means there's a mole inside S.H.I.E.L.D."

"I completely agree." Kagura frowned.

"That means you'll have to be extra cautious moving forward, Natasha."

"No doubt." Natasha sighed.

"I hate this—being unable to trust anyone. But that's the life of a spy."

She continued, "As for Ivan Vanko himself, he's nowhere to be found in Hammer Industries."

"At least, I didn't find any trace of him there."

"He's probably under Hydra's protection," Bucky speculated. "Working with Hammer remotely, sharing his tech from the shadows."

Kagura folded her arms in thought. "So we still don't know where Ivan is, but we can safely assume Hammer Industries is a hostile entity."

"That sums it up." Natasha agreed.

"But do we have a way to track down Ivan?"

"There is one way," Kagura said after a moment.

"But I'll need to run it by Mr. Stark first—and we'll have to plan carefully."

"Tony Stark?"

"Exactly."

She pulled up a new holographic projection.

"Justin Hammer's goal is to showcase his unmanned Iron Man suits at the Stark Expo, hoping to embarrass Stark."

"Meanwhile, Ivan is out for revenge. That means the most likely place for him to make a move is…"

"The Hammer Industries Exhibition," Natasha concluded.

"You're planning to use Stark as bait, to lure Ivan into revealing himself?"

"Precisely. Even if Ivan doesn't appear in person, he'll have to control the suits remotely."

"And if he does, I can use Rhodes Island Industries' satellites and tracking tech to pinpoint his location."

"It's a risky plan," Natasha admitted.

"We'll have to account for the safety of the Expo attendees and Stark himself."

"Exactly. We need an evacuation plan in case things go south. Also, can we disable the live weapons on Hammer's suits?"

"Unlikely." Natasha shook her head.

"We have no authority over Hammer's exhibition."

"In that case, we'll have to be extra careful," Kagura said.

"Hold on," Bucky interjected.

"What about Justin Hammer? He could just deny any connection to Hydra or Ivan, then keep making weapons with the stolen tech."

Kagura chuckled. "You're sharper than I expected, Mr. Barnes. I figured you'd be more… direct."

Bucky glanced at Natasha. "Was that a compliment?"

"Just take it as one, White Wolf," Natasha smirked.

"But Bucky has a point," she continued. "We don't have anything solid to take down Justin Hammer."

"Oh, but we do."

Kagura grinned playfully, twirling a USB drive between her fingers.

"What's that?" Bucky and Natasha asked in unison.

"Before picking you two up, I sent a drone loaded with a hacking program into Hammer's research facility."

"It infiltrated their servers and… well, let's just say I found video evidence of Hammer meeting with Hydra."

Natasha's expression turned to disbelief. "You're telling me that Justin Hammer, a CEO, actually recorded himself discussing illegal activities with Hydra?"

"Not exactly," Kagura corrected.

"Based on the metadata, it looks like this footage was from a security camera in a conference room."

"There's no audio, but the visuals are more than enough proof."

Natasha pinched the bridge of her nose. "So you're saying Hammer sat through a top-secret meeting without disabling the security cameras?"

"Or," Kagura shrugged, "he just never thought anyone would hack into his servers."

She inserted the USB into the holographic display.

"With this evidence, Hammer Industries is done."

"We don't even need the law—Rhode Island Industries and S.H.I.E.L.D. can wipe them off the map. And Hydra won't risk exposing themselves to protect a mere pawn like Hammer."

"The Hammer Industries exhibition is in three days," Kagura continued.

"I'll be handling the tracking operation on-site. Natasha, you and Bucky will take down Ivan once we locate him."

"Got it," Natasha said. "But what if Ivan shows up in his own upgraded suit?"

"Good question. If he's already suited up, don't engage—fall back immediately. Your safety is the priority."

"Understood."

"But if he does bring out another electrified-whip suit, are we calling in Iron Man for backup?" Natasha asked.

Kagura smirked. "Don't worry, Natasha. When the time comes, you can leave it to the charming and deadly Flashblade!"