blueteamnovel Chapter 28: 28 Facing Responsibility
Chapter 28: 28 Facing Responsibility
Chapter 28: 28 Facing Responsibility
"Tony, you should have come to New York today," Obadiah said to Tony Stark.@@@@
"If you had been here, things might not have gotten so bad."
"You told me to lay low, Obie," Tony replied. "So I laid low. Just staying home..."
As the two exchanged pleasantries, Kagura Hitomi went back to focusing on her work.
The conversation between Obadiah and Tony mainly revolved around the huge losses caused by the shutdown of the military department, and Obadiah was trying to use this as an excuse to get Tony to hand over the technology for the arc reactor.
Naturally, Tony wasn't about to agree.
"Forget it. There's no room for discussion, Obie," Tony's tone was firm.
"The arc reactor stays with me."
With that, Tony shoved the pizza box into Obadiah's hands and turned to go downstairs.
"Do you mind if I go down and see what you're working on?" Obadiah asked.
"Goodnight, Obie."
"Alright, goodnight, Tony."
After watching Tony leave, Obadiah let out a long sigh, shaking his head in frustration.
"Oh, right, Hitomi. Come downstairs, I need your help."
"I'm coming, Mr. Stark," She replied as she set down her laptop and headed downstairs.
"Hitomi, you know what to do," Obadiah grabbed her arm and whispered, "I want to make things better."
"Don't worry, Mr. Stane," She smiled gently. "I won't let you down."
Sorry, but that was a lie, Mr. Stane.
Obadiah, of course, didn't know what was truly going on inside Kagura's mind.
As she left, he smiled contentedly, as if everything were still under his control.
In his mind, no matter how smart Tony Stark was, he could never guess that his trusted assistant, Kagura, was actually working for him.
The shrewd, bald man wore a smug grin.
Once he obtained the designs for the arc reactor, eliminated Tony Stark, and mass-produced the Iron Man suits, Stane Industries would become the top dog.
Obadiah Stane would rise to the pinnacle of his career, becoming the world's leading arms dealer.
Dreams like this were always intoxicating. And this was a dream tailor-made for him.
Tony Stark's Mansion, Underground Lab
"They'd become the most ruthless war machines ever, changing the world's balance forever."
"That's exactly what I'm worried about."
"Yeah."
She nodded, then hesitated for a moment before deciding whether to bring up the military division.
"But?"
"But I think..." She bit her lip.
"Shutting down the military division entirely might be... too rash. And I don't think it would really change the global arms trade."
Tony fell silent for a moment.
"Hitomi, you've seen those soldiers who died from Stark Industries weapons, right? You've seen the pile of weapons in that cave base, haven't you?"
"Yes, it was shocking." She replied.
"All of that is my responsibility. I completely ignored my responsibility." Tony sighed again.
"Kagura, I can't continue with the arms trade. I don't care who takes over, but I can't keep doing it. Sorry, I guess that's my selfishness."
He looked deeply into her eyes. "No matter the company, no matter who it is, if they're good enough, let them take over the military sales. I'm stepping out."
Tony stopped his work and placed a new design for the Iron Man Mark II prototype in front of Kagura.
"From now on, I have to take responsibility for what I ignored before."
"Mark II?"
The design before Kagure showed a silver Iron Man suit.
"Yeah."
Tony nodded.
"But it's not for sale. It's not going on Stark Industries' equipment list. It's just for personal use, to take responsibility and end the suffering that international justice, police, and military can't reach."
"I don't know who to trust right now. I went to Rhodes, but he's not interested."
"Are we talking about a private vigilante here, Mr. Stark?"
"It's not about the law, Hitomi."
"We're talking about responsibility and conscience."
Tony looked her in the eyes. "Can I count on you?"
"Mm, of course." She nodded.
"I'm your family, Mr. Stark."