Chapter 26 - 26: Battle Gains

"What the hell is this?" "What does this message even mean?" "My god, this guy is too arrogant!" "How did he even embed a message into a satellite image?" "Have we already been hacked?" "What is this pitch-black thing?" …. For a brief moment, intelligence agencies across the globe were shaken to their core by the message hidden in the satellite images. "Welcome to challenge me." That single sentence alone was enough to send chills down the spines of intelligence officers worldwide. Just how was this message transmitted into the satellite feed? Whoever had the ability to tamper with high-level surveillance systems without triggering any security protocols—what kind of entity were they dealing with? The thought alone made cold sweat trickle down the backs of intelligence directors worldwide. In S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Triskelion headquarters, Nick Fury narrowed his one good eye, staring at the massive screen displaying the satellite images. The message, along with the eerily familiar hacking method, made his mind flash back to an event three years ago. That time, S.H.I.E.L.D. had been invaded in the exact same way. No warnings. No traces left behind. Just like now. "Director, could it be…" Maria Hill hesitated for a moment but couldn't help voicing her suspicion. "Yeah, it's him." Fury's voice was grim as he continued studying the image, as if he could uncover the culprit's identity just by sheer willpower alone. "Sir, we've found another anomaly in the satellite data." A S.H.I.E.L.D. agent rushed over, handing Fury a newly enhanced image. "We discovered signs of biological activity roughly twenty kilometers from the battle site." Fury's gaze immediately locked onto the silver-and-red armored figure in the image. "Find it! No matter what it takes, I want that thing brought in." "There's a high chance it's connected to our mystery attacker!" ... Meanwhile, Tony Stark was rudely awakened by the sound of helicopters. The moment he opened his eyes, he found himself staring down the barrels of multiple rifles. Searᴄh the nôvelFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Whoa, whoa, whoa! Relax, guys! I'm Tony Stark—certified, tax-paying American citizen! Great to see you all." He raised his hands in surrender, flashing his trademark smirk. A soldier on the radio spoke into his comms, "Sir, the armored individual claims to be Tony Stark. Orders?" "Knock him out and bring him in." A cold voice responded through the earpiece. Before Stark could protest, a sudden jolt of electricity coursed through his body, and darkness took over his consciousness once more. Both Stark and Yinsen were swiftly loaded onto the military helicopter and taken away. ... News of Stark's recovery spread like wildfire. "Tony Stark rescued by the military!" "Stark Industries regains its backbone!" "Military launches large-scale operation in Langarl Desert." "Authorities remain tight-lipped about classified developments." ... Inside Hive Base, Gene looked at the constant stream of news headlines and chuckled. Right now, lying on a workbench in front of him were the severed arms of the Mandarin. A DNA extraction module was already at work, carefully analyzing and cataloging the genetic material from the remains. As for the Ten Rings? They had already been sent to the Skynet Base for further research. Gene was particularly interested in the power they contained. "DNA extraction complete. Beginning deconstruction and analysis." The cold mechanical voice echoed throughout the lab. "Analysis complete. Detected 2.35 billion base pairs in the genetic sequence. Initiating PCR replication." "Estimated time to complete clone production: 10 days." Gene smirked. That's right. He was cloning a brand-new Mandarin. One that would only obey him. Soon, the world's underground organizations would witness the return of a Mandarin who was completely under his control. And this time? He would wield all ten of the legendary rings. ... A flash of golden light, and Gene reappeared in Skynet Base. As soon as he arrived, the system immediately began scanning his body for any post-battle damage. "Unknown energy impact detected. Initiating diagnostics…" "Body integrity: 99%" "Minor damage detected—deemed negligible." Within moments, a swarm of nano-repair bots emerged from hidden compartments, latching onto Gene's armor. Five minutes later, his systems had been fully restored to 100% efficiency. "All things considered, that Mandarin was a disappointment." Gene muttered as he examined the research data on the Ten Rings. He had expected the so-called master of mystical power to put up more of a fight. But in the end? The Mandarin had been utterly pathetic. However, the black magic he had used at the last moment was intriguing. Gene had already mastered Kamar-Taj's sorcery and even fused it with his advanced technological algorithms. Every spell could be individually compiled like a separate program, integrated seamlessly into his body. That's why he was so interested in the Mandarin's last-ditch sorcery. ___ "I need two new subordinates to help me manage my bases." Gene's gaze flickered toward the endless stream of T-1000 androids rolling off the production line. His advanced servers, hidden beneath the Mason Industrial Twin Towers, began fully activating. Countless lines of code surged through his neural network, intertwining into something far greater. "It's time to create two new AIs." "One male, one female." "The male will manage Skynet Base." "The female will oversee Hive Base." He smirked. "Their names will be Skynet and Red Queen." At that moment, vast computational power surged through the facility, as if reality itself was being rewritten. An infinite sea of ones and zeros cascaded from Gene's neural network, weaving together the consciousness and emotions of two new artificial entities. The world's most powerful quantum servers were pushed to their absolute limit. Not only that, but Gene had also hijacked supercomputers from every major country to amplify his processing power. Then— In the depths of cyberspace, two orbs of pure data emerged. One pulsed with a cold blue light. The other glowed with a deep red hue. And with that… The birth of two supreme artificial intelligences was complete. -------------- T/N: Access 30 Chapters in Advance on my P@treon: [email protected]/MPHFics