Chapter 198: Tony Stark’s Trouble

Since Peter had finally learned that his parents were alive and had even gotten the chance to speak with them, he seemed much happier than before. Everyone around him could feel the change. At school, he even started talking more casually with Flash. Even the criminals noticed the difference. Spider-Man had become much more talkative during fights, leaving criminals wondering if they had somehow signed up for a lecture instead of a beating.

“I heard you fought with that Green Goblin last night?” Jack asked Peter, who was sitting nearby, half-listening to class, bored out of his mind.

“Yeah, that guy’s been causing chaos and disappearing. Yesterday, with the Plumbers’ intelligence, I was finally able to corner him. I nearly had him, but it’s a shame he used a distraction and escaped,” Peter said, clearly unhappy about it.

“Hmm.” Jack raised an eyebrow, knowing Peter wasn’t telling the whole truth. From the intel, he knew that in yesterday’s fight, Peter had completely dominated the Green Goblin with the help of his new suit. But at the last moment, when Peter realized Green Goblin was Osborn, his emotions spiraled out of control, and Osborn slipped through his hands. The reason wasn’t hard to guess. Peter had probably learned from his parents that Osborn’s company was the reason they’d had to leave in the first place, and that they would have died at Osborn’s hands if the Plumbers hadn’t saved them. Still, Peter didn’t bring up the truth because he had already decided to handle Osborn himself, not wanting Jack or anyone else to get involved. So Jack didn’t push further, and Peter changed the subject.

“Jack, what do you think of my mentor, Dr. Connors?” Peter asked, hope in his eyes.

“Mm, a pitiful man. He could’ve made history creating a medicine that regenerates limbs, but bad luck turned him into a lizard monster instead. Why do you ask?” Hearing Jack’s words, Peter didn’t know what to say, since that was exactly the truth.

“Well… you know, after that incident, he hasn’t been working, and he’s just been staying home. Because Oscorp fired him, he can’t even find another company to work for. Small companies don’t want to offend Oscorp, and bigger companies don’t want him either. So, can I invite him to the Plumbers as a scientist? I think he could be a big help,” Peter said, looking at Jack hopefully.

Mm, Dr. Connors. Even though he did some wrong things as the Lizard, his actions show he’s actually a good guy at heart. He was also one of the top scientists in the field of biology. If he gets access to advanced knowledge through the Plumbers, who knows? He might surprise us someday.

“Okay, you can arrange it. Ask Alice for the full details,” Jack said. Peter thanked him, and soon class was over.

As usual, since Jack had planned not to make too many changes to his schedule, he kept doing everything as before. After class, he continued practicing music with the group, and once or twice a week, he even went to the dojo to see Colleen. Jack noticed that Colleen had also noticed the physical changes in both him and Peter, especially their improvement in combat, but since she didn’t ask any questions about it, neither of them brought it up. Everything continued as normal

There was some good news too. After months, Gwen’s dad, Captain Stacy, had finally recovered from the Sin-Eater attack and returned to the office, so they threw a small party at her house to celebrate.

Since seeing the news about Tony’s drunken party and his fight with his friend James Rhodes, both in Iron Man suits, Jack had planned to confront Tony Stark and save him from the palladium poisoning. But when he told Howard about it, Howard disagreed, surprising him. The reason was that Howard wanted to be the one to surprise Tony in person. Hearing this, Jack realized he still didn’t fully understand Howard. In the end, he left the matter entirely to him and stopped worrying about Tony. He continued with his own life, spending time with Gwen and occasionally showing his face during their night-time hero activities. The rest of his time was spent researching new things and training with the new aliens he’d unlocked so he could use them perfectly in a fight.

On the other side, at Tony’s villa

Tony landed at the villa, and the machines quickly removed his Iron Man suit. As soon as he was free, he walked straight to the fridge and grabbed a drink. He took a few sips before Pepper walked into the office with her assistant, Sarah Collins, and a stack of papers.

“Tony, why did you fly off to Afghanistan again to fight those terrorists? You’re the CEO of the company, don’t forget that!” she complained as she handed him the papers to sign, as usual.

Tony glanced at the papers without much interest. “You know, Pepper, I think you’re starting to enjoy giving me orders.”

“Someone has to,” Pepper replied without hesitation. “Especially when the CEO keeps flying off to other countries whenever he feels like it.”

Tony gave her a small smile, but then his expression changed. He looked at Pepper for a moment before saying, “I’ve decided. From now on, you’re the CEO of Stark Industries.”

Pepper stopped and stared at him.

“CEO? What are you talking about? This isn’t the time to play around!”

“I’m not playing around, Pepper. I’m serious this time.” Tony put his drink down before continuing, “I’ve decided you’re the right person for it. You’re the CEO. Arrange the formalities.”

Pepper looked at him in disbelief. “Tony, you can’t just decide something like that out of nowhere.”

“Why not? I’ve made plenty of decisions out of nowhere.”

“That’s exactly what I’m worried about.”

Tony smiled slightly, but this time he didn’t argue with her. “Trust me, Pepper. You’ll be better at it than I am.”

Pepper stared at him for a few seconds, realizing that he was actually serious. She still looked confused, but Tony had already turned away.

He then looked toward his assistant. “Sarah, book me a flight to Moscow.”

Pepper immediately looked at him again. “Moscow?”

“Yeah. I have something I need to take care of.”

“And what exactly are you going to do in Moscow?”

Tony picked up his drink again and casually replied, “Something important.”

Pepper sighed. “That’s not an answer.”

“It’s the best one you’re getting.”

With that, Tony walked away, leaving Pepper staring after him.

Later that night, Sharon Carter, still disguised as Sarah Collins, sat alone and reviewed everything she had gathered about Tony. His declining health, the palladium poisoning, his recent behavior, and the strange decision to hand Stark Industries over to Pepper had all been included in her report.

She sent all of it to Nick Fury, along with one more important piece of information.

Tony Stark was planning to fly to Moscow the next day.