Chapter 65: Immediate Shutdown

The car soon arrived at the press conference venue. Amid the crowd's cheers, Obadiah Stane stepped forward to open the door just as the car stopped and shouted:

"Look, it's Tony!"

Seeing Tony step out, Obadiah hugged him warmly and softly called his name.

After the embrace, Obadiah let go, smiling and patting Tony's shoulders.

"I thought I'd have to visit you in the hospital."

Tony turned to glance at Pepper still in the car and said:

"No, no, I'm fine."

Obadiah continued patting him and said:

"Let me have a look at you first."

Tony replied:

"Let's get to the press conference."

Obadiah nodded:

"Follow me."

At the venue, Tony and Obadiah waved to the crowd. Obadiah called out cheerfully:

"Hi, welcome everyone."

Pepper stood at the back among the journalists, smiling warmly as she watched Tony step forward.

At that moment, a man next to her spoke up:

"Miss Potts."

Turning, she replied:

"Yes?"

Phil Coulson looked at her and said:

"May I have a word?"

Pepper declined:

"I'm not participating. If you have questions, the press conference is about to start."

Coulson glanced at Tony before turning back to her:

"I'm not a reporter. I'm Agent Phil Coulson."

"Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division."

He handed her his card. Pepper glanced at it and commented:

"That's quite a mouthful."

As she took the card, Coulson replied:

"I know. We're working on that."

Pepper put the card away and added:

"Defense, FBI, and CIA have already been here."

Coulson explained:

"We're an independent division, more specialized. We'd like Mr. Stark to describe in detail how Smith Doyle rescued him."

Pepper's face fell, her smile fading. She answered coldly:

"I'll arrange a meeting with Mr. Stark."

Coulson smiled:

"Thank you."

Meanwhile, on stage, Obadiah stood awkwardly while Tony sat at the podium and said:

"Hi, everyone, can you all sit down?"

Gesturing for them to sit, he continued:

"That way you can see me, and I can be more casual."

As everyone sat or crouched, Obadiah stepped down and sat beside Tony.

Arriving just then, Rhodes crouched next to Pepper and whispered:

"What's he doing?"

Pepper kept her eyes on Tony and replied:

"Don't look at me. I don't know."

On stage, Tony glanced at Obadiah and said:

"Good to see you."

He had no idea that Obadiah was behind his kidnapping. To Tony, seeing his 'uncle' alive was something to be happy about.

Obadiah smiled and rested a hand on Tony's shoulder:

"Likewise."

Tony stared at him and said:

"I didn't even get to say goodbye to my dad."

Turning to the reporters, his tone grew somber:

"I wanted to ask him what he thought about making weapons. If he ever doubted, ever wavered. Or if he really was the iron man the media claimed."

"I saw young Americans killed by the very weapons I built to protect them. And I saw how the system lets people sleep easy without responsibility — myself included."

A reporter raised his hand:

"Mr. Stark."

Tony gestured:

"Go ahead, Ben."

The reporter asked:

"What really happened out there?"

Tony stood, replying:

"I finally woke up. I realized what I need to do for this world is to contribute — not build weapons of destruction."

"So, I'm shutting down Stark Industries' weapons manufacturing division."

"Effective immediately!"

The crowd erupted. Pepper's eyes went wide. Obadiah jumped to his feet and grabbed Tony.

Tony continued:

"Until I decide on the company's new direction, I imagine today's headline will sell out fast."

"I will find a path I believe is right and aligned with our nation's best interests."

Rhodes looked on grimly, knowing this meant Stark's military standing would plummet.

As Tony walked off stage, Obadiah quickly grabbed the mic and said:

"The real headline is Tony's back, and he's healthier than ever. We'll discuss this further and share the final decision soon."

…

At the Assassin Alliance.

Smith had just returned to his office from the lab when Fox burst in, shouting:

"Smith — too fast!"

Smith froze. Too fast?

"Why?"

Fox explained:

"Tony announced the immediate shutdown of Stark Industries' weapons division."

"He moved too fast. We were still negotiating contracts — with this news, they all fell through. We only secured two of the earlier deals. One securities firm even backed out just before signing."

"If we'd had three more days, we could've signed billions more."

"Some media are even saying Tony must've hit his head while missing."

Smith now understood. Though disappointed they hadn't secured more shares, there was no fixing it now. He simply asked:

"How many shares have we borrowed so far?"

…

(End of Chapter)

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