"Rest assuredâthere wonât be any issues with this demonstration. Once I show off our American power, everyone will be stuffing their bags with money!"
Harren Reich, the CEO of Cyber Technology, impeccably dressed in a suit, sat in his car exuding confidence, occasionally looking at the van in the rearview mirror.
Is this what success feels like?
The car had already entered the military restricted area; he was about to fulfill the largest order since the founding of Cyber Technologyâan order from the Department of Defense.
What does it feel like to be the center of attention among military, political, and business heavyweights?
He had already begun to fantasize.
The car made its way toward the garageâthe garage for tanks and other heavy unitsâwhere he would first meet with all the bigwigs amicably before moving on to the demonstration.
As the car gradually approached the main gate while he was thinking about that feeling of everyone casting their eyes on him...
He saw that inside it was already a bustling scene, with everyone crowding around and talking with someoneâ
"Hmm?"
The car stopped, and Harren got out, baffled, thinking he was the star of this demonstration.
The showy voice could be heard from a distance.
"...right, theyâre just missiles, arenât they? If you decide to go big, Stark Industries can definitely increase production capacity at any time.
If you plan on handing over the development of the next-generation fighter jets to me, I might even consider taking time away from dating models to get the work done... just kidding.
Iâd definitely expedite it, maybe a week? Seriouslyâ
Helping the United States defeat our enemies has always been Stark Industriesâ forte... Who did you say?
Letâs not talk about him, thank you."
Thereâs only one arms dealer in the world who carries himself with such flamboyance.
Heâs not very tall, with curly hair, a fast and clear way of speaking, and a love for playing with women...
Of course, no one at the scene allowed him to fool around, but he was still so popular among the men.
Tony Stark.
"Damn it..." Harren cursed under his breath, straightened his clothes, and quickly walked towards the crowd, "Ahemâ"
Finally, someone noticed Harren, the poor guy who was secretly annoyed by Tony stealing his thunder.
But since both of them were colleagues from the same club and Tony had helped him a lot, he had no choice but to greet him with a smile.
The most authoritative presence on the scene was a burly man in military uniform wearing sunglasses, with an expression as cold as ice: General Krigkov, the highest-ranking officer at this meeting.
His upright posture and strong build made it hard to believe he was a general in his sixties.
Next, standing behind him, was Colonel Rod, head of both the Air Forceâs Procurement and Research and Development Departments.
To his surprise, there was another man he had not seen before, with an eyepatch, not dressed in a uniform.
Shortly, members of Congress would be watching this demonstration from behind screens.
Harren greeted each one: "General Krigkov, Colonel Rod, and this gentleman is..."
General Krigkov spoke calmly: "Colonel Rollins. You only need to know that he will also be deciding whether some special institutions will purchase your equipment."
"Alright, alright, I got it."
Harren secretly rejoiced.
Tony casually put his arm around Harren: "Come on, genius, you donât mind if I also take a look at your secret weapons, do you?
Donât worry, Stark Industries wonât steal your thunderâdoes this thing cost as much as a Jericho Missile?"
"This... we can talk about the price later, letâs take a look at the weaponry."
Harren felt irritated by Tonyâthis "expo" was supposed to be his stage!
It had to go according to his rhythm!
Tony waved his hand: "Okay, I was a bit hasty, letâs see your brilliant invention."
Thatâs betterâ
Congress connected in shortly after.
Harrenâs lips curled into a smile, made a brief introduction of himself, and then he opened the briefcase:
It was actually a small computer, designed to control something.
"First, gentlemen, let me introduce this transport vehicle, the Boar CX-8 troop carrier, which uses high-strength titanium alloy cabin combined with Carbon Fiber Composite Material.
The external shell of the vehicle has an impressive thickness of 15 centimeters, with an inner layer of bulletproof polymer and energy-absorbing foam, capable of withstanding an energy impact of up to 10 megajoulesâ"
Boom!
As Harren hit the keyboard, the vehicle let out a deafening noise!
The doors of the vehicle suffered a slight deformation...
Colonel Rollins, Colonel Rod, and Tony were startled, while General Krigkov squinted his eyesâ
An energy impact of 10 megajoules was almost on par with a main cannon strike from an M1 Abrams.
Boom!
The vehicle emitted a massive sound again!
The entire vehicle started to tremble!
If the specifications of this armored vehicle were accurate, then it was indeed a very robust vehicle.
And the more durable it was, the more exciting the contents inside became!
Boom!
On the third strike, the doors of the vehicle finally cracked open!
The enormous impact force was absorbed by the door and converted into heat energy, with wisps of white smoke rising...
What was that?
Everyone present started to eagerly want to know the answer.
Boom!
Finally, on the fourth strike, the doors of the vehicle were greatly deformed, and a pair of cold, mechanical hands grasped the gap, tearing forcefullyâ
Crack... crackâbang!
With a combination of pulling and kicking, the doors of the vehicle were opened to create a massive gap!
It was a robot!
No, upon closer inspection, this was not a complete robot; as it turned around, you could see the other side of its metallic skull was a human face!
This was a black man with a fierce frown and a fierce gaze, like a warrior perpetually on alert...
"Allow me to introduce to you, our brand-new productâthe Death Warrior!"
The Death Warrior turned toward the range, where several target vehicles designated for scrapping were simultaneously closing in, and a number of small missiles launched!
Boom!
Like a firework explosion!
The firepower was ferocious beyond compare, but just as advertised, this product would become the United States militaryâs decisive weapon in urban warfareâthe key was street fights!
The Death Warrior slightly bent his knees and with a powerful thrust, leaped high into the air!
Flames spat from his calves, and with the boost, he jumped more than twenty meters in a single bound, then rapidly ran and hopped, darting into the prepared urban warfare simulation field!
This was a complex three-dimensional site constructed to simulate a battlefield rubble area, with multiple moving machine guns and heavy firepower hiding behind cover, ready to crossfire at any momentâ
But the high-strength alloy on the Death Warriorâs body made him completely ignore the bullets, moving like the wind, his fists like Heavy Hammers, easily smashing through one wall after another. Bullets flew, crushing the targets with an overwhelming posture!
And machine guns werenât the biggest trouble in street fightingâ
The military had specially simulated the most troublesome thing.
From a blind spot, a Rocket quietly launched, silent...
Boom!
Flames instantly enveloped the Death Warrior!
Harren suddenly stiffenedâhe hadnât been notified of this kind of heavy firepower!
"Damn it... donât let there be any problems, Michael, Michael, if your gadget screws up, weâre out of business..."
He muttered to himself, incessantly tapping on the control box in his hands...
But no matter how much he tapped, the screen kept showing errors!
When the dust settled, the Death Warrior was standing at the site of the explosion, with flames burning and a shallow crater from the blast left on his body.
But that was all, and although he didnât move immediately, he still seemed largely intact...
The only sound left on the site was Harren tapping on the keyboard. About ten seconds later, the Death Warrior moved again, kicking the launcher to pieces!
After that kick, the Death Warrior completely stopped operating, hanging limply on the spot like a shut-down robot.
However, regardless, the mission was completed.
"Fantastic! Uh!"
Harren danced with excitement!
Clap... clap clap clap clapâ
Applause came from behind him, and Harren swiftly turned around to see General Krigkov, who always had a stern face, now offering a smile.
"Well done, truly. At this distance, many of our armored vehicles would have had a headache from such a sneak attack."
Tony also clapped his hands, "Really not bad, that type of mini missile looks like itâs from Hammer Industries, I can make those too, and even better. We can discuss it later."
Rod pondered the capabilities that the machine had just displayed.
According to the target document, the so-called Death Warrior was actually a form of human cyborg modification.
Could they add some more efficient load-bearing equipment to pilots?
Colonel Rollinsâs eyes were equally filled with excitement, considering some secretive matters.
Harren was overjoyed, "General, about our order..."
"Very..."
Krigkov was about to speak, but another end of the video screen issued a request to join the conversationâ
"This thing looks powerful but seems still immature, and compared to deploying these technologies into high-risk wars, shouldnât we consider deploying them in civilian fields to improve the quality of life for citizens?"
Another congressperson spoke, "Thatâs right, I noticed this is a modification technology, this person who underwent the mods..."
"It was voluntary," Harren replied quickly. "As for civilian use, if our sticks arenât big enough, how can we maintain peace?"
"Thatâs sophistry, weâre initiating..."
"Cough cough, Congressman Kohen, weâre currently discussing a procurement case. Besides, Cyber Technologyâs initial purpose was to help our military be unbeatable.
Youâre now forcing them to turn military tech into civilian use on the spot?"
"Get real..."
The scene quickly became noisy, and Krigkov furrowed his brows as a soldier hurried in.
He quickly understood why there were so many objections.
In the video conference, a congressperson brought out something new, a video clip.
"It looks like Governor Newsom has been discharged from the hospital, thanks to technology from... International Genetics Cooperation Ltd. He also seems to have fitted a high-tech prosthesis.
He appears quite normal, and even plans to make a speech; the technology sounds mature too."
The room suddenly fell silent, Harren stood frozen, his face darkening suddenly.
"It looks like..." Krigkov paused, changing his tune, "I still believe this is a weapon with potential, but the congresspeople need more time to think.
Letâs stop here for today."
No one objectedâthe debate over whether to prioritize civilian or military use of similar technology was indeed worth discussing.
The key lay in political factors, and it was normal for congresspeople to be cautious in their decisions.
If they werenât sure it would pass, it was better to postpone the vote.
Congress communications shut off, and Krigkov said, "That should be it for today, Mr. Stark, I wonât see you out, I think weâve talked enough.
You and Colonel Rod likely have more to discuss."
"Of course, you have a new favorite nowâthough if you plan on ditching Hammer for equipping this... Death Warrior, come to me."
Rod saluted Krigkov and left the scene with Tony.
Harren stayed behind, internally seethingâ
Just because that damn Governor didnât get killed, now it was really affecting him!
Krigkov looked at his expression, patted his shoulder, and motioned to walk with him.
"... Mr. Reich, since thereâs still disagreement in Congress, the Department of Defense will also temporarily postpone the procurement.
However, Colonel Rollinsâs department might give you a place to showcase your talents."
Harren was taken aback. Colonel Rollins, wasnât he from the military?
Krigkov walked away alone, and the one-eyed Colonel Rollins stepped forward, shaking hands with Harren.
"You must have heard a lot about our legends, so for our next collaboration, you must understand the need for secrecy."
Rollins took out his credentialsâ
He was from the CIA.
The CIA?
Harrenâs recently dampened spirits immediately reignited, looking at the Death Warrior not far off, struggling to restartâ
Michael, we made it!
However, the Death Warrior hung his head low, unable to even blink.