Chapter Fifteen: The Secret Agent Organization

"Thank you, but last time I was in New York I almost blew up Harlem," Dr. Banner recalled his previous ordeal and politely declined Tony's invitation.

"I promise, this time you'll feel no pressure." Tony casually picked up a magnetic screwdriver. "No stress, absolutely no surprises." With that, he walked to Banner's other side and poked him with the screwdriver.

"Ouch." Dr. Banner was suddenly jolted by electricity and turned to look at Tony, who leaned in and inspected him closely. "See? No problem."

"Hey!" Steve had just entered the lab, only to see Tony provoking Banner. "Are you out of your mind?"

"Heaven knows," Tony shrugged, unconcerned as he retracted the screwdriver. "I'm genuinely curious: how do you control your anger? Is there a secret? Music, perhaps, or something else?"

"Are you always joking?" Steve interrupted Tony, knowing that provoking Dr. Banner could have serious consequences.

"It's entertaining," Tony raised an eyebrow at Steve. He believed keeping Banner relaxed would help him control his emotions, but saw no need to explain this to the old-timer in front of him.

"Putting everyone at risk is hardly entertaining," Steve replied sternly. As a soldier, he was unaccustomed to Stark's antics. He turned apologetically to Banner. "Sorry, Doctor, I didn't mean you."

"It's fine. If I couldn't handle a little provocation, I wouldn't be here," Banner responded calmly. He had anticipated this—after all, he'd seen plenty of Stark's headlines.

"You're too tense, big guy. Relax," Tony circled around the table and poked at Artanis, who hovered silently in midair, receiving no response.

Only then did Steve notice the floating Artanis and asked in surprise, "What's wrong with Artanis?"

"He's meditating," Tony said, poking Artanis again, but still eliciting no reaction.

Steve frowned. "You should focus on solving the problem, not disturbing others, Mr. Stark."

"Am I not working?" Tony set down the screwdriver and picked up a container of dried blueberries. "Why did Fury only now assemble us? What secrets are hidden here? I need to resolve all doubts before I can solve the problem."

Steve looked at Tony intently. "You think Fury is hiding something?"

"He is the king of spies, Captain. A spy, unfathomable. You feel it too, don't you?" Tony popped a blueberry into his mouth and glanced at Dr. Banner.

"Well," Banner began evasively, "I just want to finish my work and then..."

"Doctor," Steve cut him off. If it were only Tony's suspicion, he might dismiss it, but if Banner felt the same...

Banner sighed and removed his glasses. "When Loki and Fury discussed the Cosmic Cube, they talked about using it to light up the world."

"I heard that," Steve nodded, signaling Banner to continue.

"I think it was meant for you," Banner looked at Tony, who then offered him some blueberries.

Banner took a few blueberries. "Even if Barton didn't mention Stark Tower to Fury, he could have learned about it from the news."

"Stark Tower?" Steve was confused. "That tall, ugly—"

He stopped mid-sentence under Tony's gaze and quickly corrected himself, "That building in New York?"

"Powered by an arc reactor, using clean, renewable energy, the tower can sustain itself for over a year," Banner looked at Stark, admiring the genius scientist.

"That's just a pilot project," Tony naturally took over, turning to explain to Steve, "I'm the current pioneer of clean energy, that's what he's getting at."

"So why hasn't S.H.I.E.L.D. invited Tony to join this initiative? Why are they involved in the energy industry?" Banner was skeptical of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s claim about 'lighting the world,' especially knowing it was a spy organization.

"Once I uncover all S.H.I.E.L.D.'s secrets, I'll investigate the matter immediately," Tony took out his tablet and walked over to Steve.

"Excuse me, you mean..." Steve was stunned by Tony's actions, knowing this was against regulations.

"Since I came aboard, JARVIS has been running decryption protocols. It won't be long before I know what S.H.I.E.L.D. is hiding. Want some blueberries?" Tony closed the screen and offered Steve some.

"Are you still puzzling over why you weren't invited?" Steve didn't take the blueberries, frowning at Stark. Hacking S.H.I.E.L.D. was no trivial matter.

"Do intelligence agencies worry about leaking their own secrets?" Tony withdrew his hand. "They brought me in but won’t tell me the truth—they need to be ready for the consequences."

"Loki was just trying to sow discord. He wants to start a war, and if we’re divided, it plays right into his hands. Orders are orders; we must obey," Steve surveyed the group.

"Obedience isn't my style," Tony said nonchalantly, chewing blueberries. He didn't agree with the old soldier's philosophy.

"Your style is just showing off, isn't it?" Steve looked at Tony, thinking that on the battlefield, someone like Stark would have been dead long ago.

"Of everyone here, who’s dressed in outlandish clothes and doing nothing?" Tony glanced at Artanis beside them. "Even our alien friend is diligently meditating."

"Steve, don't you feel out of place?" Banner glanced at Artanis. As an alien, it was normal for Artanis to wear armor like Thor, but Steve...

"Focus on finding the Cosmic Cube," Steve took a deep breath. To be fair, Tony had a point—he didn't belong in this laboratory.

Steve left the lab. Truthfully, Tony and Banner's words had affected him. He, too, wanted to know what S.H.I.E.L.D. was planning with the Cosmic Cube.

"Is he really the one my father praised so highly? They ought to freeze him again," Tony remarked after Steve departed, and he and Banner turned their attention to calibrating the data. Once successful, they could simply await the scan results.

"He knows Loki well. His perspective is different from ours," Banner agreed somewhat with Steve's words. At this stage, infighting would only play into Loki's hands.

Tony and Banner then discussed the Hulk once more; Tony believed that the Hulk's emergence had saved Banner's life, just as the reactor had saved his own.

Meanwhile, Artanis was meticulously unraveling the spell on the scepter. Once begun, the process could not be halted, or the spell would be triggered.