[ Tony's assistant, Happy, strode briskly into the hall, tapping the badge on his chest as he passed by employees. ]
[ "Badges, people! Don't forget your badges," he reminded, his tone half stern, half routine. ]
[ "Guys," he added, waving a document, "I've even posted reminders in the bathrooms." ]
[ Carrying a folder under his arm, Happy turned to Pepper. "Tony left a bunch of high-tech suits lying idle in the basement. We should actually put them to work." ]
[ Pepper took the pen handed to her by an assistant and raised an eyebrow. "You're suggesting we replace all the guards with robots?" ]
[ Happy shook his head. "What I'm saying is that the biggest weakness in our security is the human part of human resources. We should eliminate that vulnerability as soon as possible." ]
[ He wandered off to lecture more employees about their badges, earning patient smiles and rolled eyes. ]
[ Pepper looked at him, arms crossed. "Okay, Captain Security," she teased. "Congratulations on the promotion. No one's more qualified than you." ]
[ Happy grinned. "Thank you for the compliment, but no need to thank me." ]
[ Her tone shifted. "However! Since you took over, our employee complaint rate has tripled." ]
[ "Thank you!" ]
[ She sighed. "That's not a compliment, Happy." ]
[ He chuckled. "Of course it is! Clearly, someone's stirring up trouble; that's a sign I'm doing something right." ]
[ Pepper pinched the bridge of her nose. "I swear…" ]
[ Just then, the receptionist approached. "Miss Potts, your four o'clock appointment is here." ]
[ Pepper turned back. "Thank you." ]
[ Happy frowned. "Did you confirm this guest with me first?" ]
[ Pepper waved him off. "We'll talk about that later, Happy. I have to deal with something… awkward." ]
[ He held the door open for her. "Awkward how?" ]
[ Pepper leaned in and whispered, "I used to work with him. He kept asking me out. It's… uncomfortable." ]
[ Inside, she met the visitor, well-dressed, composed, radiating quiet confidence. ]
[ "Pepper," Aldrich Killian greeted with a polished smile. ]
[ "Killian," she replied evenly. ]
[ "You look incredible. Truly," he said, his gaze lingering a beat too long. ]
[ "You look great too," Pepper replied politely. "What have you been up to all these years?" ]
[ Killian spread his hands, laughing softly. "Oh, the usual, five years of physical therapy. And please, call me Aldrich." ]
[ Happy interjected, hovering by the door. "You've got your access card, right?" ]
[ "Happy," Pepper warned, exasperated. ]
[ "Alright, alright," he said, backing out. "I'll take a walk." The door clicked shut behind him. ]
"Killian! It's him!" A chorus erupted across the chat.
"The guy who waited for Tony on the rooftop!"
"The head of AIM? Wait, he's Pepper's old colleague?"
"Not just a colleague! He used to chase after her!"
"Man, is Killian actually trying to steal Tony's girl?"
"But why does he look so different now?"
"Last time we saw him, he was limping and broke. Now he's… suave?"
"Five years of 'recuperation,' huh? Sounds like an upgrade."
"Happy looks like he wants to punch him."
"Well, he's Tony's bodyguard. He's just doing his job."
"Still, this is getting weird."
"When Tony met Killian back then, he didn't even know Pepper, right?"
"So if Killian has evidence from that time, and he talks to Pepper…"
"Yikes, Tony's not gonna like this."
"And Tony's already dealing with anxiety. Bad combo."
[ Killian opened a sleek metal case and smiled. "After years of dodging presidential bans on unethical biological research, my think tank has made a real breakthrough." ]
[ From the case, he lifted a button-sized device and pressed it to the back of his ear. "I call it the Extremis Virus. Let's dim the lights." ]
A wave of question marks swept through the chat.
"????"
"Wait, what did he just say?"
"Didn't Maya invent the Extremis Virus?!"
"He killed Maya and stole it?!"
"No way! He's too polite for that!"
"What the hell are those three metal balls?"
"Damn, they're projecting holograms!"
"Holy, this is insane!"
The office lights dimmed as the online audience exploded in amazement.
[ Killian gestured toward Pepper. "Behold, the human brain." ]
[ He tossed the three metal spheres onto the table. They rolled to a stop and began to glow, weaving beams of light into a luminous holographic display. ]
[ "Oops," Killian said lightly. "That's the universe. Let me adjust it." ]
[ A flick of his wrist, and the stars warped into a vast, glowing image of the human brain. ]
[ "The brain," he said with quiet pride, "astonishingly similar to the universe, don't you think?" ]
[ Pepper stared, awe-struck. "It's… incredible." ]
[ "Thank you," Killian replied, eyes gleaming. "That's my brain." ]
[ Pepper blinked. "What?" ]
[ "This is live," he explained, tapping the device behind his ear. He took her hand gently. "Come. Let me show you." ]
[ They stepped into the holographic brain as if walking through a nebula. ]
[ "Now," Killian said, "pinch my arm." ]
[ Pepper hesitated, then complied. Instantly, a bright pulse flared within the holographic cortex. ]
[ "That," Killian said smoothly, "is the primary somatosensory cortex, the region that perceives pain." ]
Billions of viewers gasped. The display was more breathtaking than watching Thor summon lightning. Three metal spheres and a microchip, enough to project a human brain in real time.
"Incredible!"
"Are you kidding me?!"
"This defies physics!"
"The tech looks even more advanced than Tony's holograms!"
"Maybe it's reading brainwaves and converting them into visible data!"
Meanwhile, in the Human Potential Organization, Ashton, Kayden, and their colleagues sat frozen before the screen. The demonstration shattered their understanding of science.
"President Ashton!" Kayden said excitedly. "This is perfect for our team, absolutely revolutionary!"
Ashton's eyes trembled. "Revolutionary is an understatement. This could redefine industrial civilization itself."
One researcher whispered, "Is this an advanced EEG?"
The room fell silent. Even that was an understatement. Traditional EEGs capture faint brain signals through scalp electrodes, translating them into simple electrical waveforms. But this…
Ashton leaned forward. "Yes, the principle is similar, signal capture and conversion. But Killian's device doesn't just record. It translates thought into a living, visual map."
Kayden nodded vigorously. "The implications are endless, especially in medicine! Real-time mapping of functional regions, unprecedented understanding of the cerebral cortex…"
Ashton agreed. "Indeed. The process itself may not be complex for them, but its impact on us is immeasurable."
Kayden tilted her head. "It might even be simpler than the Extremis Virus. We already have the groundwork in EEG technology."
Ashton smiled faintly. "You may be right."
[ On-screen, Killian continued his presentation. ]
[ "Now, this," he said, manipulating the hologram, "is the true potential of Extremis." ]
[ The brain's image warped, revealing a glowing void like a cosmic nebula. ]
[ "Here," Killian said, "is an empty slot, proof that the human brain, and our very DNA, is designed for evolution." ]
Ashton shot to his feet, excitement palpable. Kayden watched in awe and confusion. The theory was alien to her, but its brilliance was undeniable.
"Update… update… update…" she murmured, the word sparking revelation. Iterate. Optimize. Evolve.
"An empty slot in the brain," she whispered. "If we could detect that, if it truly exists, "
Ashton's eyes burned. "Exactly. Those superhumans… maybe they've already activated it. Maybe they're the upgraded ones. If so, then the Extremis Virus is proof, humanity can be rewritten."
He began pacing rapidly. "If we can confirm this, everything changes. This could be the key to creating a supernatural being."
"The Extremis Virus," he continued, "may be the Terra Federation's path to evolution, a man-made process rivaling Rogers himself."
Kayden nodded eagerly. "Yes! If Rogers' transformation involved the energy of the cube, Extremis could replicate that on a global scale. Imagine, anyone could become extraordinary."
The atmosphere in the Human Potential Organization grew heavy, charged with awe and fear. Given the Terra Federation's resources, only Ashton's team had a real chance of recovering the Extremis formula. The weight of that realization pressed down on everyone.
Ashton exhaled slowly. "From the way Killian speaks, he's already perfected it."
Kayden's heart skipped a beat as she looked back at the live broadcast, just as, in the Council, the elders began to argue bitterly over who would control the recovery of the Extremis Virus. Disagreement was an understatement. The world itself was on the verge of splitting in two.