Oh no, I can't go to work lately. I'm kind of addicted to Delta Force. I open the game in the morning and before I know it, it's evening...
When I read and revised this chapter myself, I could sense something was off, but I couldn't quite put my finger on what was strange about it.
No matter how I modify it, it just doesn't feel right. It's so frustrating.
Late at night in dormitory B-217 at the SSC base, Quentin and the behind-the-scenes logistics team finalized the operation plan, repeatedly rehearsing and refining every step and every detail.
They abandoned the limitations of the Elementals in Prague and planned to expand the scope completely, preparing to replicate the Battle of New York that shocked the world.
That catastrophe of the Chitauri descending from the sky and tearing the heavens apart with wormholes is a fear etched into the very bones of New York City residents, and also Tony Stark's most glorious and memorable heroic moment.
Quentin needs to do is perfectly replicate this disaster and then end it himself.
Using all the surface-level permissions they tricked Peter into giving them, along with a large holographic projection array and a formation of stealth drones that the team had meticulously tuned, they planned to forcibly create a giant holographic wormhole over New York to simulate a panoramic view of an alien fleet invasion.
Countless holographic drones equipped with attack modules will disguise themselves as Chitauri fighters and Zerg soldiers, wreaking havoc throughout the city.
Fire, explosion, collapse, panic—all the disaster scenes will be perfectly recreated using holographic technology, so realistic that it will fool everyone.
When New York is in complete chaos and the entire population is in despair, he will reappear alone, as the sole savior to stop the entire catastrophe.
At that time, he will completely replace Tony, replace SSC, replace everyone, and become the ultimate hero who protects the Earth.
The entire team performed their duties diligently, working through the night to debug equipment, calibrate holographic parameters, and plan drone attack routes. Everything was progressing steadily according to the perfect script.
The entire base was in turmoil. JARVIS, who had been keeping a close eye on them, sent a full briefing to Tony and Lynn, who were far away in outer space, the moment Quentin's team finalized the plan.
Tony received Quentin's action plan and the upcoming New York catastrophe simulation.
The four people who were enjoying their vacation on an alien satellite had no choice but to end their leisurely atmosphere.
Tony abandoned his usual casual laziness, his face darkening as he quickly scanned all the intelligence. Lynn stared at the disaster simulation on the communication screen, his expression remaining calm and unfazed.
"The operation time has been set; he plans to recreate the Battle of New York tomorrow morning."
Tony tapped the terminal lightly, his brow furrowed. "They really went all out. They're incredibly bold, directly targeting the Battle of New York, trying to elevate themselves to the top in one fell swoop. They're really greedy."
"Let's go back," Lynn said calmly.
Without much hesitation, the four of them immediately packed their things, and Lynn opened the portal to return to Earth.
Returning to my familiar home, the floor-to-ceiling windows offer a panoramic view of the bustling New York City skyline at night. The night is deep, the city lights are dazzling, and the traffic flows endlessly, creating a peaceful and serene scene. No one could have predicted that tomorrow morning, this place would be completely swallowed up by a man-made catastrophe.
Floor-to-ceiling windows offer unobstructed views of the entire New York City, making it the best vantage point.
Lynn gazed into the void and softly instructed, " JARVIS, monitor the entire process, record every detail. In non-lethal situations, no proactive intervention is permitted."
Tony turned to look at him, a hint of reluctance in his eyes. "Are we really just going to stand by and watch without intervening? If the Battle of New York is replicated on a similar scale, the destruction will be immense, and innocent civilians will be caught in the crossfire."
Lynn stood sideways in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, gazing at the sleeping city, his tone calm yet firm. "Since you've chosen Peter as your successor, these are essential lessons in his growth. A hero who can stand alone cannot grow in a greenhouse. His kindness, gullibility, and unconditional trust will never mature without experiencing a profound defeat."
"I will monitor the situation closely and do my best to avoid casualties, at most causing building damage and public panic."
"You just need to handle the follow-up work, the cleanup, and the repairs. This time it's going to cost a fortune."
Tony paused for a few seconds, "... You guarantee there won't be any accidents?"
I will do my best.
Tony didn't say anything more. He walked to the window, placed his hands on the railing, and his knuckles turned slightly white.
He knew Lynn's judgment was correct, and he also knew Peter's biggest weakness: he was too naive and too easily trusting. This scam was both a calamity and a trial.
"To be honest," Lynn turned to look at him, her tone calm, "I've always felt that Harley is the most suitable person to succeed Iron Man, rather than Peter."
Tony was taken aback by what he heard, and the image of Harley Chinaa instantly flashed into his mind.
The image of that once somewhat timid, introverted, and sensitive boy, yet meticulous and extremely intelligent, instantly filled his mind.
Compared to Peter, who is impulsive and easily swayed by emotions, Harley is calm, rational, and possesses a composure and judgment far beyond his years, making him indeed more suitable for the position of Inheritors.
"That Harley..."
He paused for a moment before continuing, "Let's see if Peter can pull himself out of this situation. Once things are settled here, I'll go check on him."
The long night passed quietly, and as dawn broke, the morning mist slowly enveloped the entire New York City.
At 7 a. m., New York City was still in the quiet before awakening. The streets were sparsely populated, shops had not yet opened, and a misty morning light gently enveloped the city, making everything seem peaceful and serene.
Just moments before the city awoke, a sudden change occurred. The clouds above the city churned violently, the once clear sky darkened abruptly, and dark clouds rapidly gathered, obscuring the rising sun and daylight. Above the city center, the air twisted and trembled violently, and a gigantic black rift tore through the sky out of thin air.
A deafening roar suddenly echoed throughout the city, and a gigantic wormhole spanning hundreds of meters appeared, suspended high in the sky above New York, its dark opening deep and terrifying. The next second, countless holographic drones, disguised as alien insectoid soldiers, swarmed down upon the entire city.
A deafening explosion erupted, flames shot skyward, and debris and rubble flew everywhere. The glass curtain wall facing the street shattered instantly, with countless shards of glass raining down. Shop signs, billboards, streetlights, and traffic lights along the street were instantly torn apart and blown away by the shockwave.
Thick black smoke rose from the street, spreading wildly with the morning breeze and quickly enveloping half of the city. Immediately afterward, several holographic drones disguised as alien warplanes skimmed low over the city's main road, their belly-mounted energy cannons firing continuously. Blinding blue beams of light slammed into the asphalt road surface, instantly shattering and collapsing the hard surface, leaving deep, charred ravines and spiderweb-like cracks spreading across the road.
Parked cars were overturned and shattered by the shockwave, their bodies twisted and deformed, engulfed in flames, and thick smoke billowed into the sky. Street greenbelts were instantly destroyed, plants carbonized, branches broken, and scattered across the ground in a scene of utter devastation. Traffic booths at intersections were completely leveled, their metal supports twisted and bent, leaving behind a landscape of rubble and debris. High above, holographic drones scattered, bombarding the exterior walls of high-rise buildings and the glass curtain walls of office buildings with their energy.
A series of rapid explosions followed one after another, the sounds of explosions, collapses, and roars echoing throughout the city, deafeningly loud. Dozens of high-rise office buildings suffered damage to their exterior walls, with large shards of glass falling from hundreds of meters in the air, a terrifying and perilous sight. The roofs of some lower-rise buildings were directly pierced, walls collapsed, and thick dust and smoke filled the sky, instantly obscuring visibility.
The once neat and bustling streets of New York were transformed into a disaster scene in just a few minutes. Roads collapsed, vehicles burned, buildings were damaged, thick smoke blocked out the sun, and flames spread wildly throughout the neighborhood, leaving behind a scene of utter devastation. The few pedestrians who were out in the early morning were instantly gripped by extreme panic, with screams, cries, and shouts of fleeing filling the air. The once peaceful morning had become a living hell.
No one doubted the authenticity of the disaster; everyone believed that the Battle of New York was repeating itself.
Inside the SSC base, the security system immediately detected a large-scale energy signal across the city. A piercing alarm shattered the morning tranquility, screens lit up with a red emergency warning, and massive amounts of disaster footage, damage data, and reports of urban damage were frantically scrolling and refreshing.
The remaining base support personnel instantly awoke, their expressions changing drastically. They frantically gathered information on the disaster and determined its severity. "Emergency Warning! A giant wormhole has appeared in downtown New York! Suspected second invasion by alien civilization!"
"Large-scale damage in the urban area! Multiple blocks collapsed and caught fire! The disaster level continues to rise!"
"A large number of unidentified flying units have invaded the city's airspace, continuously damaging public facilities and buildings!"
Urgent reports rang out one after another, and the base instantly entered the highest level of combat readiness.
Coulson immediately activated the emergency contact mechanism, frantically dialing Peter's communication channels while also contacting Hawkeye, Ivan, Banner, and others who were on vacation.
"Top-level disaster strikes New York! Suspected alien invasion! All personnel, evacuate immediately!"
Communication was established quickly, and emergency orders were issued rapidly. At the same time, the base activated its Quinjet takeoff plan, and standby fighter jets immediately took off and sped to the locations of each team member to bring them back to the unit for combat.
Everything unfolded precisely according to Quentin's pre-planned script. Everyone was kept in the dark; everyone thought it was a sudden apocalyptic catastrophe. No one knew that it was just a meticulously planned drama with the entire city as its stage.
On the top floor of Stark Tower, in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows, Tony, Lynn, Pepper, and Natasha quietly looked down at the distant New York City, where thick smoke billowed and flames soared into the sky.
Black smoke billowed, obscuring the morning light. The entire city was shrouded in smoke and devastation, its former prosperity utterly shattered. The scene of catastrophe was both shocking and tragic. Natasha crossed her arms, her gaze coldly fixed on the chaotic battlefield in the distance. "That was a convincing performance. This deception was truly convincing."
Pepper spoke softly, a hint of helplessness in her eyes. "It's a pity for the peace of this city, and a pity for Peter's sincere heart."
Tony gazed at the ever-spreading flames and thick smoke in the distance, still feeling a pang of reluctance, but he remained silent.
He knew that from the moment Peter unreservedly handed over all his trust and authority, this play was already destined to be inescapable.
Lynn silently surveyed the ravaged city, using his abilities to help civilians resolve a potentially deadly crisis.
All four of them were waiting for the boy to appear and grow up.
The farce has just begun, and the climax of the scam has only just arrived.
Minutes later, a deafening roar echoed across the sky as two Quinjet pierced through the thick smoke and swooped down at high speed into New York's temporary operational airspace.
Banner was the first to land and provide support. He did not participate in the battle directly, but rushed to the most severely damaged central districts immediately.
They cleared away the rubble from the collapsed walls with their bare hands, quickly searching for trapped civilians with steady and efficient movements.
Immediately afterward, Ivan's armor soared through the air, golden arcs of electricity crackling around his body, a deafening roar tearing through the clouds. His palm-mounted arc cannons unleashed a barrage of attacks, clearing a large area of the low-flying drone swarm.
A barrage of lightning strikes hit the drones in quick succession, causing several drones to disintegrate and crash instantly.
The fuselage shattered in mid-air by the counterattack, the scattered metal fragments, and the exploded mechanical debris were instantly replaced by the shattered flesh and blood of the Chitauri and the fragments of alien mechs in the unnoticed distortion of light and shadow.
What everyone sees is always the brutal battlefield scene of alien warships crashing and the Zerg being routed. There are no fragments, no lighting, no flaws that allow anyone to see any loopholes.
Finally, Hawkeye appeared. He stood atop a tall building, his posture swift and steady. With one hand on his bow, he simultaneously nocked three specially made attack arrows and fired them in succession. The arrows pierced through the thick smoke, accurately striking the core fuselage of multiple drones, causing a series of explosions in mid-air, with layers of fire erupting.
In the instant the arrow struck, the fuselage exploded, and thick smoke billowed, the holographic system replaced the battlefield details in milliseconds, erasing the mechanical texture and adding the unique luster and explosive effects of alien technology. Even with Hawkeye eyesight far exceeding that of ordinary people and extremely keen observation, it could only see the scene of alien units collapsing and falling, completely unable to detect any falsehood.
The three worked together seamlessly, quickly suppressing the fire in the streets, clearing out invading units, and evacuating stranded civilians, doing their utmost to minimize losses and provide disaster relief. However, no matter how many enemy units they destroyed or how many fires they suppressed, new "alien squadrons" continued to pour out of the wormholes high in the sky, and the pressure on the battlefield did not lessen in the slightest.
If any drone is destroyed, nearby formations will immediately correct the image.
Quentin's support team worked behind the scenes to correct every flaw in the battlefield in real time, ensuring that this simulated catastrophe remained in its most realistic and devastating state.
The sight of the group coming to their aid was captured on camera throughout the city, but it also quietly became the prelude to Quentin's ascension to godhood.
Looking out the window of Stark Tower, Tony exhaled softly as he gazed at the scene below.
"This kid, he's got everyone wrapped around his little finger."
Lynn responded calmly, "He gained access through Peter's trust. Although JARVIS altered some key data, most of the basic information is accurate. As long as he doesn't actively pull back the net, no one can see through this charade."