Chapter 29: Aldrich Killian
Riley's POV
"Hey buddy, where's your badge?" Happy asked Jake as we arrived at Stark Industries.
Jake snickered, obviously not caring what Happy is saying.
"He's with me Happy. Don't worry about him." I assure Happy.
Happy studied Jake, who was a little taller than him. Jake gave him a confident smirk. Happy started talking more and more about security stuff which honestly made me want to just blow my own head off.
"I put a memo in the toilet; come on. Tony has got them in his basement, they're wearing party hats, this is an asset we can put to use." He said.
"Uh-huh. So, you're suggesting that I replace the entire janitorial staff with robots?" I ask with a slight snicker.
"What I'm saying is that the human element of Human Resources is our biggest point of vulnerability. We should start phasing it out immediately." He explained.
"What!?" I asked.
"Did you seriously just ask that?" Jake asked laughing.
Honestly though, robots for janitorial staff?! That's just hilarious and creepy at the same time. Happy nods.
"Happy, okay, I am thrilled that you're now the Head of Security, okay. It is the perfect position for you." I told him.
"Thank you." He said with a smile and shrug.
"However, I do appreciate it.
Since you've taken the post-" he cuts me off.
"You don't have to thank me," he said.
"We've had a rise in staff complaints of 300 percent." I informed him.
Jake scoffed. I bit my lip to contain myself from laughing.
"Thank you." He said with another proud smile.
"That's not a compliment." I told him.
"That's not a compliment? It is a compliment! Clearly somebody is trying to hide something." He argued.
I was about to argue back but an employee approaches me.
"Excuse me." She said.
"Yes?"
"Miss O'Conner, your four o'clock is here." She told me handing me a folder.
"Did you clear this four o'clock with me?" Happy asked the employee.
I see Jake roll his eyes and face palmed himself.
"Happy, we'll talk about this later
But right now I have to go deal
with this very annoying thing." I said to him while the 3 of us made our way to my office.
"How so?" He asked.
"Jake and I used to work with him, and he used to ask me out all the time, so it's a little awkward." I explained to him.
Jake gives me a questioning look.
"Which one?" He asked as we entered my office.
I see a blonde man with his back facing us.
"I don't like the sound of that." Happy mumbled.
The man turned around and it's Aldrich Killian. But now he's taller and he's actually handsome.
"Riley." He said with a grin as he walks up to me.
"Killian?" I gasped in disbelief.
In all honesty, he looks hot.
"You look great... You look really great," He complimented me.
"God, you look great. I... I... I can't... what on Earth have you been doing?" I asked still in disbelief mode.
"Nothing fancy, just five years in the hands of physical therapists. And please, call me Aldrich." He said with a small charming smile.
" Uh, you were supposed to be issued a security badge." Happy butted in.
"Happy, it's okay." I told him.
"Yes?"
"We're good."
"You sure?"
"Yes."
"Stand down." I ordered him.
"It's nice seeing you don't look so much of a wreck anymore, Killian," Jake said giving Killian a fake smile.
"Good to see you too Jacob," Killian called out as Jake and Happy left.
I turned back to Killian.
"It's very nice to see you, Killian." I said to him with a smile.
"It's very nice to see you too," he said smiling back.
"So what brings you here?" I ask getting back to business.
"After years dodging the president's ban on "immoral biotech research", My think tank now has a little something in the pipeline. It's an idea we like to call "Extremis"." He explained as he put something behind his ear.
"I'm gonna turn your lights down." He told me.
The lights dimmed. He threw 3 little silver balls on the ball. It opened and showed a hollogram. I stared at it in awe.
"Regard the human brain. Uh, wait, hold on, hold on; that's, that's the universe, my bad. But if I do that... That's the brain, strangely memetic though, wouldn't you say?" He asked.
"Wow, that's amazing!" I said in astonishment looking at the holographic form of the brain.
"Thanks, it's mine." He said.
"What?"
"This... you're inside my head. It's a live feed. Come on up, I'll prove it to you." He said.
He stood on my table and hold out his hand for me. I took it and he helped me up on the table. I stood in front of him. I looked around still in awe.
"Come on. Pinch my arm." He said.
I gave him a questioning look.
"Pinch me. I can take it," he said.
I pinched him gently on his arm. A golden yellow colour flashed on the hologram.
"What is that?" I gasped.
"The primary somatosensory cortex.
It's the brain's pain center, but this...
is what I wanted to show you." He said pressing a button on his remote.
He put a hand around my shoulder and he reached across my chest and placed the remote on his other hand. He reached into the hollogram and pulls it towards us, zooming in a certain part of the brain.
"Now, "Extremis" harnesses our bioelectrical potential.
And it goes... here." He explains as we look into something which looks like a hole.
"This is essentially an empty slot, and what this tells us is that our mind, Our entire DNA in fact, is destined to be upgraded." He explains again.
"Wow." I smiled.
Jake's POV:
Happy and I are currently outside of Riley's office watching Killian showing his big brain to Riley. It's weird, very weird and it seems like she's actually enjoying it.
Happy's tablet started ringing. I looked over and see it's Tony trying to video call us. Happy answered and put the screen high up that you can only see his forehead. I snickered.
"Hello?"
"Is this forehead of Security?" Asked Tony making me chuckle.
I adjust his camera for him.
"What? You know, look, I got a real job. What do you want? I'm working; I got something going on here." Said Happy glancing quickly at Riley and Killian.
"What? Harassing interns?" Asks Tony.
"Let me tell you something, you know what happened when I told people I was Iron Man's bodyguard? They would laugh in my face. I had to leave while I still had a shred of dignity. Now I got a real job; we're watching Riley." Happy informed Tony.
I nod in agreement.
"What's going on? Fill me in." Said Tony.
"Alright, so she's meeting up with this scientist... rich guy, handsome. I couldn't make his face at first. And you know I'm good with faces." Said Happy.
"Oh yeah, you're the best." Tony agreed.
"Yeah, so I run his credentials, I make him. Aldrich Killian. We actually met the guy back in... Where were we in '99? The science conference?" Asked Happy.
"Switzerland." Tony answered.
"Killian, I don't remember that guy," said Tony.
I rolled my eyes.
"Of course you don't remember; he's not a blonde with a big rack. At first it was fine, they were talking business, but now it's like getting weird... he's showing her his big brain." I informed Tony.
Tony gave me a questioning look.
"His what?" He asks confused.
"Big brain, and she likes it. Here, let me show you. Hold on." Happy focused the tablet towards where Riley and Killian are.
But the camera was still on us.
"See?" Asks Happy.
"Look at what? You watching them? Flip the screen and then we can get started." Said Tony.
I chuckled.
"I'm not a tech genius like you, just trust me, get down here." Said Happy focusing the camera back to our faces.
"Flip the screen, then I can see what they're doing." Tony insisted.
"I don't know how to flip the screen! Don't talk to me like that anymore. You're not my boss. Alright, I don't work for you, and I don't trust this guy. He's got another guy with him; he's shifty." Happy snapped.
"Relax. I'm just asking you to secure the perimeter. Tell him to go out for a drink or something." Tony suggested.
I scoffed.
"You know what? You should take more of an interest on what's going on in here. This woman is the best thing that ever happened to you
and you're just ignoring her." I snapped at Tony.
Happy nod in agreement with me. Tony sighed.
"A giant brain?"
"Yeah, there's a giant brain, there's a shifty character... I'm going to follow this guy. I'm going to run his plates and if it gets rough, so be it." Happy said.
"Or you know I can just beat the hell out of him right now?" I suggested with a shrug.
"That could work." I heard Tony mumble.
I got up from my seat and about to head towards Killian's bodyguard but my phone rang. I groaned but answered it anyways.
"Hello?"
"Agent Williams, is Agent O'Conner near you at the moment?" Asked Fury.
I furrowed my eyebrows.
"No but why?" I asked curiously.
"We received a sudden report about Victor Trent." He said in a low voice.
My eyes widen.
"Agent O'Conner can't know until we officially find that bastard. I need you to track him down but you cannot tell her, am I understood?" Asked Fury sternly.
"Yes sir." I ended the call.
"Sorry fellas but I have an important business to take care of." I said to Happy and Tony.
"Tony, make things right." I said to him seriously.
He raised his hands up and nods. Good. I left the building.
Riley's POV:
Killian just finished showing me his brain. I was marvelled by it but now I realized how it was kinda weird.
"Imagine if you could hack into the hard drive of any living organism and recode its DNA." Said Killian.
"It would be incredible. Unfortunately, to my ears it also sounds highly weaponizable. As in enhanced soldiers, private armies, and Tony is not-" he cuts me off.
"Tony, Tony, you know, I invited Tony to join AIM. But something tells me now there is a new genius on the throne, who doesn't have to answer to Tony anymore and who has slightly less of an ego." He said.
"It's going to be a no, Aldrich... as much as I'd like to help you." I said declining his proposal.
He frowned and sighed.
"I can't say that I'm not disappointed,
but as my father used to say
'Failure is the fog through
which we glimpse triumph.'" He said as I led him to the exit.
"It's very deep, and I have no idea what it means." I said with a smile.
"Well, he was kind of an idiot, my old man. I'm sure I'll see you again, Riley." He said giving me another charming smile.
He leaned in and kissed me on the cheek. I turned my head to him as he pulled away and left. I watched as he climbed into his car. I heard footsteps, I turned and jumped slightly.
"Happy," I gasped.
"The car is ready... if you're ready to go." Happy said, looking at me suspiciously.
"Yes, I just um, God, I forgot my other things so I'm just gonna..." I muttered as I head back inside.