The Trickster (Iron Man 1) Book 1

Fish-N-Chips

3rd P.O.V

Caleb and his dad were waiting for Obadiah in front of the ARK reactor at Stark Industries.

They didn't have to wait long as Obadiah strolled in, hands on his waist, cigar in his mouth and looking really mad.

"Well, that, uh, that went well." Obadiah sarcastically said.

"Did I just paint a target on the back of my head?" Tony asked, leaning against the railing.

"Your head?" Obadiah scoffed. "What about my head? Or your son's head? What do you think the over-under on the stock drop is gonna be tomorrow?"

Caleb rolled his eyes. As if Obadiah cared about him. His relationship with the older men was, in a way, complicated.

"Optimistically, 40 points." Tony replied while taking off his tie while Obadiah turned like a lion in a cage, behind Tony.

"At minimum." Obadiah stopped and leaned on the railing on Tony's right. "Tony, we're a weapons manufacturer."

"Obie, I just don't want a body count to be our legacy." Tony cut him off.

Caleb looked at his dad. Never had his dad said something of this sort. He was acting really different since what happened, which was normal, but it was weird.

"That's what we do." Obadiah said, practically ignoring Tony. "We're iron mongers. We make weapons."

"It's our name on the side of the building, I think dad should be able to decide-" Caleb started, but was completely ignored.

"And what we do keeps the world from falling into chaos." Obadiah said and Caleb huffed, crossing his arms.

"Not based on why I saw." There was a pause. "We're not doing a good enough job. We can do better. We're gonna do something else."

"Like what?" Obadiah asked. "You want us to make baby bottles?"

Tony and Obadiah were now face to face, almost defying each other with their eyes.

"I think we should take another into ARK reactor technology." Tony said in a very serious tone.

"Oh, come on." Obadiah denied. "The ARK reactor, that's a publicity stunt." He said, motioning towards the reactor. "Tony, come on. We built that thing to shut the hippies up!"

"It works." Tony stated.

"Yeah, as a science project. The ARK was never cost effective. We knew that before we built it." Obadiah said. "ARK reactor technology, that's a dead end, right?"

"Maybe." Daddy Stark replied falsely.

"Am I right?" Obadiah asked, looking at Caleb for approval, but the teenager only stared at him blankly. "We haven't had a breakthrough in that in what? Thirty years."

"That's what they say." Caleb piped up.

Tony narrowed his eyes at Obadiah.

"Could you have a lousier poker face? Just tell me, who told you?"

"Never mind who told me. Show me."

"It's Rhodey or Pepper."

"I want to see it."

Tony looked at his son and Caleb mouthed 'Rhodey' to him. The elder Stark detached his cast and unbuttoned his shirt. Caleb frowned as he looked at his dad's chest. The small reactor created a small circle in the middle of his chest, just like Caleb had developed. Coincidence?