OGCrafter
patreon
Chapter 38: The Widow: Tony Stark Has A Diary Too!
🕑 Added 2025-03-26 12:46:02 +0000 UTCThe fate of Melaleuca had directly intimidated the presidents of the America, preventing them from auditing the military’s accounts. Even though Congress required every department to submit audit reports, there was one exception—the Ministry of National Defense.
"I’ve never had access to them!"
With so many accounts, it was impossible to make sense of them, and no one dared to try.
Who would dare to check?
Nick Fury believed that if the president of the America sent a team of accountants to Afghanistan to inspect the military’s finances, the plane would likely be shot down mid-air.
Even if they were lucky enough to survive, they'd be ambushed by local warlords at the airport, and all of them would be killed before they could even identify who was responsible. It could have been any warlord, or even a rival tribe. No one would ever know for sure.
But as far as Nick Fury knew about the activities of the American Army in Afghanistan, there were far too many scandals to count. Mass killings had become routine, with the military also growing opium locally, which was then sent back to the America for consumption. In addition, military equipment from the America was sold to various parties.
Where exactly the equipment ended up? No one knew. It was lost, and that was all.
So, military equipment in Afghanistan could be just as advanced as the America’s own. Quite literally, it could be the same equipment.
This further supported the truth of the situation described in Luo Chen’s diary. Stark Industries was initially part of the military-industrial complex, so it made sense that their weapons ended up in the hands of local warlords.
Back in the day, President Truman had warned about the growth of the military-industrial complex, which posed a threat to the interests of the America. But now, the military-industrial complex itself had become a threat, with the American government working to protect its own interests.
The military of the America had essentially become a rogue force, one that no longer heeded the civilian government’s orders. If this continued, major problems were inevitable.
However, this was beyond Nick Fury’s control. He could only look the other way. If he didn’t, one day he might find himself intercepted and killed by the military or the police on the street. It was a constant risk.
"So what are you getting at, Natasha?" Hawkeye Barton asked, breaking the silence.
"Given all the signs and evidence, it seems things are likely going to unfold exactly as Luo Chen wrote in his diary. Luo Chen tried to avoid influencing the timeline, and as far as the storyline goes, Tony Stark didn't go through the same path again," Black Widow Natasha Romanoff explained. "Isn’t it strange that, after such a great shock, his R&D focus shifted from developing conventional weapons to developing armor?"
Natasha paused, then added, "There’s an old saying in the East: 'The country is easy to change, but a person’s nature is hard to change.' How could Tony Stark’s nature have shifted so easily? If he hadn’t experienced life and death, he wouldn’t have made such a dramatic change."
"So you’re suggesting that he may have known something? Maybe, like us, he got his hands on a diary?" Nick Fury quickly understood what Natasha was implying.
Once Nick Fury made the connection, Phil Coulson and Hawkeye Barton immediately grasped the implication.
Since the conditions for Tony Stark’s development hadn’t changed, but his kidnapping had been altered, and Tony Stark had started working on the Mark Armor earlier than expected, there could only be one explanation.
He knew something in advance—he knew about the changes in his life’s script and had been able to prepare for them.
From this perspective, the situation became clear. In fact, they were nearly certain that Tony Stark must have a diary too, one that contained the same information as theirs, which allowed him to anticipate his own kidnapping.
As a result, he didn’t go to Afghanistan, pushing his trip aside despite some dissatisfaction from the board of directors. This caused some complications with the military’s new missile project, but Tony Stark remained resolute in his decision.
All of this had a reasonable explanation.
And since Stark knew that he would eventually become Iron Man and rely on his armor, why not arm himself in advance?
"It looks like it’s time to reach out to him early," Nick Fury said.
In truth, Nick Fury had long planned to contact Tony Stark, but he had been waiting for the events in Luo Chen’s diary to unfold. He wanted to wait until Tony Stark had gone through the catastrophe, become Iron Man, and then recruit him into the Avengers.
But now, the plan had fallen apart. Like Luo Chen, Nick Fury had been caught off guard by Tony Stark’s unexpected change.
The group nodded in agreement, and Natasha Romanoff said, “Especially since you want to build the Avengers. Barton and I are not enough. If you can bring Tony Stark on board, you won’t just gain a powerful combat force, but most importantly, you’ll secure a source of funding!”
Nick Fury nodded. The funding issue was another reason he hadn’t been able to establish the Avengers sooner. The Avengers weren’t a formal part of S.H.I.E.L.D.; they were a newly established team, and funding them would require navigating the complicated bureaucratic landscape of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Behind S.H.I.E.L.D. were the five major countries, each with their own massive accounting teams that closely monitored every penny of government funding. It was a massive task to get money for an unofficial organization like the Avengers.
If Nick Fury wanted to fund the Avengers, he’d need to build an unprecedented organization, one that would face intense resistance. If he wasn’t careful, he could find himself mired in red tape, or even worse, face major funding issues.
And Nick Fury wasn’t as bold as the military-industrial complex—he wasn’t about to take down the accounting teams of the five major countries, not unless he wanted to risk his life.
In an organization with so many powerful bosses, explaining every expenditure of funds could be a nightmare. Many of the funds would be classified and couldn’t be openly discussed.
But if Tony Stark could be brought in, securing sponsorship wouldn’t be a problem. Even just a few hundred million dollars in annual sponsorship would be more than enough to fund the Avengers, and with that kind of wealth, they wouldn’t have to answer to the five major powers anymore.
“Makes sense!” Nick Fury thought this over and felt a surge of motivation. Bringing Tony Stark on board would solve many of the Avengers’ problems at once.
They would gain another reliable combatant, and not just any combatant, but one with vast resources. Without Tony Stark, it would only be Natasha Romanoff and Hawkeye Barton, and while they were formidable, they were still just part of an ordinary agent team.
And now they had another major benefactor!
