The meeting in the tent lasted late into the night. The generator sounded especially loud in the silence, and the dim yellow light cast wavering shadows across everyone's faces. The discussion over what to do with the stones had reached an impasse—Doctor Strange insisted that they had to scatter the stones across the universe as soon as possible, Carol supported him but wanted a safer transport plan, while Lin Xiao argued that they should first research ways to seal them away.
"We can't take any more risks." Doctor Strange's voice carried a rare note of agitation. "With every minute that passes, the spacetime rifts could grow wider."
"But acting rashly is just as risky," Lin Xiao countered. "What if something goes wrong during transport? What if the stones fall into the wrong hands again—"
He never finished.
Suddenly, hurried footsteps sounded outside the tent.
A medic rushed in, pale and breathless.
"Mr. Stark... Mr. Stark's condition has worsened!"
Everyone's expression changed instantly.
Pepper rushed out first, with Peter right behind her. Lin Xiao, Captain America, Doctor Strange, and the others exchanged glances, then immediately rose.
They ran toward Tony's medical tent.
Inside, the monitor's alarm blared piercingly. The heartbeat trace on the screen went from faint fluctuations to erratic quivering, then began to... flatten.
The doctors were performing CPR, but Tony's body showed no response.
Pepper knelt beside the bed, holding his hand as tears streamed silently down her face.
"Tony... Tony..." she called softly, her voice breaking.
Peter stood frozen in the doorway, his eyes wide and his lips trembling.
Lin Xiao walked to the bedside and looked at Tony's pale face. This once-proud genius now looked like a shell slowly growing cold.
He knew.
He knew this moment would come eventually.
But he hadn't expected it to come