Capítulo 42: Chapter 42: The Shadow Syndicate
"What did you find out?" Warren asked as soon as he returned and met with Garrett.
The former Level 8 S.H.I.E.L.D. agent and current commander of Overwatch had a satisfying answer for him. "We found out that Justin Hammer approved the sale of the leaked weapons. Although the transaction was discreet and left few clues, our agents did a great job."
While Warren had entrusted Harry to manufacture the super soldier suit, the field operatives recruited by Overwatch were all mutants, allowed to use their abilities to investigate the case.
"Tell me who else is involved," Warren inquired, his curiosity piqued.
Garrett responded, "The terrorists paid a large sum of money, and Hammer had been secretly conducting business with various gangs disguised as legitimate businessmen for several years. The problem lies with the syndicate."
"The Shadow Syndicate," Warren muttered, "led by Martin Lee. Do I need to send someone to apprehend him?"
"Let's not create a big commotion. I still need him to find the hiding place of those terrorists," Warren explained.
"Understood," Garrett acknowledged.
Once Warren left, Garrett's respectful expression swiftly transformed into seriousness. He summoned a small team. "Capture Martin Lee without causing a scene."
Three field operatives received their orders and immediately set off.
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"Oh, my god!" Pepper exclaimed in astonishment, stretching out her words to express her surprise.
Tony, her boss, had disappeared for half a day, and when he returned... he had bullet holes all over his body!
Despite wearing thick armor, those bullet holes alarmed Pepper.
"Um, these bullet holes didn't even penetrate the outer layer of armor... Hey, JARVIS, be gentle," Tony said.
"Sir, please refrain from moving," JARVIS replied as the robotic arm it controlled struggled to remove the armor, encountering some difficulty.
"I designed it to be removable. Why is it so hard? It seems we need to make some improvements."
"Tony!"
Pepper was getting annoyed.
"Heh, don't worry. It's nothing. Warren, that guy, fought terrorists without even wearing armor," Tony teased.
"So, let me get this straight. Warren, a billionaire, can go to a war zone with terrorists just to fight them? Are you joking? You were just kidnapped not long ago. If that's the case, I suggest putting up a 'Warren Worthington and Dog not allowed' sign at the entrance," Pepper said, refusing to accept his explanation.
Seeing Pepper's anxious expression, Tony's heart softened, and he stopped fidgeting.
JARVIS chimed in, "Haha, good one."
Finally, the armor was successfully removed.
"Pepper, listen. I'm doing something meaningful. We're investigating the terrorist who kidnapped me in the first place."
"You want revenge? The great Tony Stark can't bear to be at a disadvantage? So, you and another billionaire decide to run to a battlefield? If that's the case, I suggest you spend some money and hire someone to do it," Pepper refused to accept his explanation.
"Nobody else can do it!" Tony stated with certainty.
"These terrorists have my weapons and Warren's weapons. With just these weapons, they could easily overpower any regular military force. Only we can stop them."
"If you insist on doing this, then I'll resign," Pepper threatened.
Tony shook his head helplessly. "Why are you acting like Batman's butler, Alfred?"
"I'm worried about you," Pepper replied.
"But what you need to do is trust me," Tony said, walking up to Pepper and looking into her eyes.
"You've always been by my side, even when I was at my worst. Now, I want to do something good and make up for the mistakes I've made... Don't leave me."
After saying those words, Tony felt a tinge of cheesiness and quickly added, "I mean, you should trust me. Who am I? I'm Tony Stark! Did you see that suit of armor? With it, terrorists couldn't even touch a single strand of my hair!"
With a confident and slightly cocky expression, Tony subtly conveyed something in his words that made Pepper hesitate.
So, she reluctantly said, "Don't take unnecessary risks."
"I won't."
"Don't go alone."
"No problem."
"Coordinate with the military and Overwatch. Doesn't Overwatch have many mutants? They can turn invisible, teleport, control fire. Make sure to bring enough people."
Tony smiled at Pepper's slightly nagging tone. "Overwatch? Wasn't it you who said we should put up a 'Warren Worthington and Dog not allowed' sign at the entrance?"
"There's no dog," Pepper retorted, a bit sulky.
"No dog?" Tony gently pulled Pepper into his embrace.
"No dog."
Pepper pushed him away, and then...
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"Headquarters, this is Team Lynx."
"Team Lynx, the target is about to leave the Safe Haven Shelter. Prepare for the capture."
"Understood."
An Audi parked on the roadside. Three male mutant field operatives were on a mission.
Codename Lynx possessed feline-like attributes due to his mutant abilities, granting him reaction speeds several times faster than a human, extraordinary physical coordination, night vision, and hearing.
Codename Hot Eye had an acute sense of heat sources, acting as a human thermal detector.
Codename Iron Eater had the ability to transform his body into the composition of any object he touched through skin contact, hence the special rings on all ten fingers.
The mission was not particularly difficult—to capture a gang leader. Even with the target possessing top-tier human physical qualities and combat skills, he was no match for them.
For instance, Lynx's mutant ability granted him lightning-fast reflexes, akin to bullet time in movies. An ordinary person wouldn't stand a chance against him.
Iron Eater had the advantage of transforming his body into various metal materials at will, making it impossible for Lynx to defeat him in a direct confrontation.
Hot Eye was the least combat-oriented among them.
"The Safe Haven Shelter. Can you believe a gang leader is involved in charity work?" Lynx commented.
"Perhaps he's trying to alleviate his guilt for all the bad deeds he's done," Hot Eye responded.
"He's coming out... Hot Eye, monitor the surveillance cameras. I'll incapacitate him, and Iron Eater, take care of the bodyguards. Then we'll take them away," Lynx instructed.
Seeing the target appear, the three operatives ceased their idle chat.
Iron Eater, a tall and burly man, pretended to admire the surroundings as he approached the target.
Lynx kept his hand behind his back, twirling a few tranquilizer needles, walking behind him.
Hot Eye's voice came through their earpieces.
"Two cars. Each car has one person in the driver's seat."
Lynx glanced at the target, Martin Lee, accompanied by two bodyguards.
As the bodyguards opened the car doors for him, Iron Eater made his move.
A silver metallic color spread from his middle finger, expanding to cover his entire body in half a second, transforming him into a metallic figure.
Approaching the bodyguards, he grabbed their heads with both hands and forcefully slammed them to the ground with a thud.
At the same time, Lynx locked onto the two drivers. As they reached for their guns, Lynx swiftly threw three tranquilizer needles.
Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh.
The three needles found their marks—two drivers and Martin Lee himself.
"Done. Lift them into the car, and then each of us takes a vehicle and drives away," Lynx ordered.
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