"Steve? Ha! It's been years, damn it. You still look annoyingly good!"
Howard Stark laughed heartily as he clapped Steve Rogers on the shoulder, greeting him and exchanging pleasantries.
Captain Rogers wore the sky-blue uniform of an Order Executor. He didn't seem to be on a mission, and he wasn't carrying his legendary shield. Two young Order officers followed behind him, looking like aides.
"Old friend, haven't you been busy playing 'commander' with the Aerospace Force these past few years? What are you doing at that prison?"
Apart from his butler, Jarvis, Howard Stark had two other friends he'd known longer than anyone else in his life. Both friendships had been forged during World War II. Unlike Howard, now stooped with age, the Rogers couple still looked as dashing as they had back then.
Though he was curious to run into Steve here, Stark felt much more at ease knowing that his old friend would accompany him on his visit to Wolf Tower.
"Ahem. I have some Order business to take care of. I heard you'd be going, so I came along. Come on, take my aircraft."
Howard nodded repeatedly, telling his driver to wait nearby. Then he followed Steve toward a blue-and-black standard issue shuttle on the landing pad, chatting casually as they went.
"I heard the Howlett Group had a mishap with an important experiment in space a few days ago. I'm very interested in the 'Cosmic Storm' project myself. Dr. Richards once came to ask about a possible partnership, but Stark Industries still has a lot of catching up to do in space research."
"Mm. I don't know much about the group's affairs."
Steve didn't seem to know anything about the experiment Howard was talking about. He brushed it off casually, ushered him aboard the shuttle, and