The blood-red lights were still flashing. Ye Mo stared at the words on the screen: "Test Subject 07." His mind was a mess, as if a pile of things had been stuffed into it. His ears buzzed, and images flashed before his eyes-iron cages, syringes, people in white coats, and a mechanical voice reciting numbers.
He shook his head and pressed a hand to his temple. The barrier Emma Frost had left was still there. Otherwise, the system would have locked him down long ago.
"Can't stop," he whispered. "Now's not the time to space out."
He glanced at the prisoners in the holding room. They were still connected to tubes, motionless. He wanted to save them, but something more important needed his attention now.
A signal sounded in the distance, seemingly from underground. He had heard that frequency before. It was the emergency channel used by Stark Industries' main control center. But at this point, it shouldn't have been Tony using it-it was Obadiah.
"Is this guy stirring up trouble again?" Ye Mo frowned. "Of all times?"
He immediately activated Thermal Vision and scanned the entire building. Walls, pipes, circuitry-he could see them all clearly. Soon, he spotted an abandoned cooling duct to the east that led to the underground data hub. That was where the signal originated.
"Looks like I'll have to go there first." He drew his gaze back. "The rescue will have to wait. If the armor's lost, no one will be safe."
He turned and left, his footsteps light but quick. Barely two steps later, the metallic patch on his arm suddenly twitched. A system notification sounded: [Regenerative Phasing: cooling down, 1.8 seconds remaining].
"Off by point two seconds... pretty accurate," he muttered. "But I can't wait."
He took out a Vibranium fragment and pressed it against the wall. It vibrated, emitting faint electromagnetic interference. Taking advantage of the blind spot in the surveillance, his right leg instantly turned intangible, and his entire body slipped into a crack in the wall like mercury.
Wall Phasing succeeded.
Red lights still flashed in the corridor outside, but the guards had all been drawn away by the earlier alarm. Ye Mo moved along the ceiling, very slowly. Each step came at an interval of point eight seconds, just enough to evade the radar scans.
He knew he couldn't force his way through a place like this. He had to calculate the timing and keep to the rhythm.
After passing three defensive lines, he reached the observation corridor outside the data hub. Through the glass, he could see a control console and several rows of servers. Two people were talking.
One was Obadiah, dressed in a suit, a smug smile on his face.
The other man wore a dark coat with Hydra's insignia on the cuff. Even without a mask, Ye Mo recognized him-Hydra's technical director, specifically responsible for backdoors in weapons systems.
"The virus is already planted." The man's voice was quiet but steady. "As soon as Tony starts the Mark III test, the control system will switch permissions."
Obadiah nodded. "He thinks I'm on vacation? The moment he puts on that armor, Iron Man is mine."
"There is one problem, though." The man frowned. "Mr. X's ability has appeared in the database. There may have been an internal leak."
"It doesn't matter." Obadiah sneered. "Just some small fry who can walk through walls. If he actually dares show his face, I'll make him die inside his own ability."
Ye Mo lay against the outside of the glass, hearing every word clearly. He didn't move or charge inside. Acting rashly now would mean throwing his life away.
He gently pressed the Vibranium fragment against the glass. It could interfere with signals and also conduct sound. Combined with his ability to read lips, he could piece together pretty much the entire conversation.
Transfer of control... Mark III test... he thought. So as soon as Tony powers it up, the armor belongs to Obadiah?
This couldn't wait.
He felt in his pocket. The silver half-rim glasses were still there. They were the emergency signal he and Tony had agreed on. If the glasses appeared in a certain location, it meant there was danger and he had to stop immediately.
He quietly retreated to the ventilation shaft opening, wedged the glasses into a gap in the grille, then tapped into a communications frequency and transmitted a string of code.
It was their code phrase: "Don't touch III. It's sick."
After sending the message, he didn't leave.
Instead, he circled behind the servers and hid beside a cabinet next to the main control console.
He had a clear view from here. He could see Obadiah's every move and access the system at any time. If Tony hadn't received the warning, he would have to act.
"Hope you're not too stubborn." He crouched down. "Otherwise, your armor really is getting a new owner."
Time passed, and the communications channel remained silent. Obadiah and the Hydra man were still talking, discussing plans to activate backup armor simultaneously at seven bases around the world.
"They don't just want one suit of armor." Ye Mo understood. "They want to take over everything."
As he was thinking, footsteps sounded in the distance. Not a guard's-Tony's.
He's here?
Ye Mo held his breath and placed his fingers on the cabinet's interface. The moment Tony approached the main console, he was ready to cut the power.
But the footsteps stopped at the corner.
Then came the sound of a call.
"What did you say? Don't touch the Mark III?" Tony's voice came through the speaker. "Who did this? Obadiah?"
"Unclear," JARVIS replied. "But the signal is trustworthy. It's a preset emergency code."
"Then we'll wait." Tony paused for two seconds. "But I won't wait forever. The public wants to see the new armor demonstration, and the Department of Defense is watching too."
Ye Mo's heart tightened.
A demonstration? Activating the Mark III in public? Wouldn't that be handing control straight over?
He quickly considered several approaches. Hack in remotely? No, the firewall was too strong. Reveal himself? Too risky. Once his identity was exposed, S.H.I.E.L.D. might arrive immediately.
The only thing he could do was wait until Tony operated it himself, then interrupt authentication from inside.
He looked down at his arm. The metallic patch had returned to normal. Regenerative Phasing was off cooldown.
"Just waiting for you now." He clenched his fist.
Just then, Obadiah suddenly picked up his phone and said, "Tell the media we're moving the press conference up by two hours."
The Hydra man frowned. "That soon? What if Mr. X interferes..."
"He can't handle everything." Obadiah sneered. "He's either running for his life or saving those useless people. By the time he catches on, Iron Man will already be history."
As Ye Mo listened, the corner of his mouth moved slightly.
"Buddy, you really think I don't know what you're up to?"
He slowly shifted to the maintenance hatch beneath the main console and gently pried the panel open with his fingers. Inside was a main data cable connected to the armor's authentication module.
If he severed that cable at the instant of authentication, the system would fail and trigger its restart protection.
But he couldn't act too early or too late.
He had to hit the exact second when Tony entered the password and the system began verification.
"Let's see when you come online." He stared at the countdown on the screen.
Ninety minutes until the press conference.
Tony still hadn't appeared.
Obadiah had already begun configuring the remote program, his fingers flying across the keyboard.
Ye Mo crouched behind the cabinet, completely still. Sweat slid down his forehead and landed on his shoulder.
He raised a hand to wipe it away, his gaze falling on his left palm. The new metallic pattern was growing hot.
"Don't act up now," he whispered.
Suddenly, the main console's screen lit up.
[User login request: Tony Stark]
The authentication interface popped up.
Ye Mo immediately tensed, his fingers resting against the data cable, waiting only for the next command.
Obadiah stood up, walked over to the main console, and stared at the screen.
"Come on." He chuckled softly. "Put it on."
Tony's voice came through the speaker. "JARVIS, initiate the Mark III self-test."
The system began responding.
The green progress bar slowly advanced.
Authentication entered its final ten-second countdown.
Ye Mo applied a little pressure with his fingers.
Five more seconds, and he could act.
Just then, out of the corner of his eye, he saw someone gently pick up the silver glasses at the ventilation shaft opening.