Chapter 53: Race Against Time

Chapter 53: Race Against Time

"His condition is dire. Apart from the risk of infection from the mess of wires he's implanted within himself, he's also aged, and his body's resilience is no match for a young person's. There's a significant risk of lasting repercussions after the injury, even if he manages to overcome the infection and inflammation. Perhaps you should inquire if he has any final wishes..."

Stark pounded the table violently, causing Strange to jump. This notoriously cantankerous doctor retorted, "You'd better make sure your fee matches your temper."

"I'm quite sure your courage matches my power," Schiller replied to Strange.

Stark gazed at Obadiah lying on the lab table. His pupils were beginning to dilate, and an extreme emotion enveloped Stark. He couldn't comprehend why Obadiah had done this.

"I've always wanted to prove to Howard that the biotechnology path I proposed was not entirely worthless. It could grant immense strength, even to those whose bodies have withered with age, allowing perfect control of Mech armor through physical prowess."

"But you're on the brink of death!" Stark angrily exclaimed. "What could possibly be more important than life itself?"

"Howard died long before I did," Obadiah said with a sigh. "He deserved to die early, but it's a pity he died too soon."

Stark was left speechless. He heard Obadiah continue in a sighing tone, "He deserved to die early, but it's a pity he died too soon."

A complex mix of emotions surged within Stark. He knew that Obadiah and Howard's relationship was not the perfect partnership many imagined it to be.

When you walk alongside a genius throughout your journey, it's hard not to feel jealousy at times. Perhaps Obadiah had once thought he could prove that he could carry on without Howard.

Unfortunately, without Howard, he didn't know who he needed to prove himself to.

Obadiah was old now, and perhaps he knew that if he didn't act now, he might never get another chance.

At least one Stark had to understand that he was right. If the elder Stark couldn't, then Tony Stark Jr. would.

"I'll find a way to save him!" Stark lunged to the other side of the lab table, frantically searching for materials. He couldn't afford to think about Obadiah stealing his Mech armor core anymore. Over the years, Obadiah had been almost his only family, and now he was on the brink of death. Stark couldn't care about anything else.

"A heart support brace! We must make a heart support brace for him!" Stark declared.

Strange shook his head, saying, "You truly have no medical knowledge. His heart is on the verge of failure, and a brace won't solve that problem."

"Then make several braces!"

"Unless you can mechanically create a new heart for him, his current heart cannot perform the essential function of pumping blood to his body. He has, at most, three hours before heart failure and death."

"Are you just going to speak in cold, harsh truths, Doctor?" Stark asked angrily. Strange was even angrier. He said, "Are you a rich person who thinks that one sentence can buy me an entire afternoon? I'm just stating the facts. He's beyond saving! Don't treat doctors like gods; even God couldn't save him after poking holes in his own heart."

Schiller patted Strange's shoulder and said, "Can't you see the situation now? This billionaire, who's now barely left with his money, is willing to pay any price to save his uncle. Name your price if you can come up with a solution."

Strange rubbed his temples and said, "We're all doctors; don't you think I want to earn that money? If medical means could save him, then there would be no one in this world beyond saving."

"What did you just say?" Stark suddenly turned his head and asked.

Strange was momentarily stunned. He said, "What did I say?"

"Yes... a mechanical heart! Create a new heart for him!"

Stark turned frantically and said, "No!! Wait, please wait... How could he..."

"Just as you were before, the will to survive is crucial. Once it's gone, the body deteriorates at an unimaginable rate."

Stark tightly gripped the parts in his hand, saying nothing, and turned back to continue the experiment.

Schiller asked the symbiote in his mind, "Can't you reassemble a heart for him?"

"No, his heart is missing something. It needs the symbiote to sustain it. If he leaves me, he will die."

Schiller remembered, as it seemed to be the case in the comics as well. The elderly Eddie relied on Venom to transform cells into a part of his body. Without Venom, he would die.

"We have the parts that can be combined," the symbiote added.

Schiller said to Stark, "You can try to manufacture the parts, and I can use a reconstructive method to merge them with flesh, without the need for sutures or stitching."

Stark pointed to a drawing with a pen and paper, showing it to Schiller. "The structure of the Ark reactor can be applied to the heart. See here, we can replace the entire left ventricle, strengthen the myocardium here, and install an artificial heart pump here..."

Schiller called in Strange, who looked at the drawing and said, "Theoretically, it's possible, but I advise against it. The fusion of the human body with metal carries significant risks, a medical challenge that has never been overcome, and you're not a doctor. Even if you can temporarily save him, ongoing maintenance of the parts and metal aging will pose problems..."

Schiller said, "Obadiah seems to have been working on postgraduate materials and mechanics. He must have some useful materials. JARVIS, can you locate where Obadiah was doing his research?"

JARVIS buzzed for a moment and then said, "Calculating... pinpointing... location confirmed. Stark Industries former site, the former Stark Automotive Group."

"Storage devices detected... those materials haven't been uploaded. Please wait, I'm using physical decryption..."

In just a few minutes, a Mech armor flew in, carrying a heavy computer. Stark inserted a USB drive into the computer, and soon JARVIS said, "Data encrypted... decrypting... decryption complete... all uploaded."

Stark quickly turned to his mainframe, but as he opened the mainframe screen, he froze.

It was filled with countless materials and diagrams. Schiller couldn't make out what they were saying. After a moment, Stark stepped back and said, "Maybe he's right... maybe he's right..."

"He found another path, a completely different one from the mechanical armor..."

"You're running out of time," Schiller said.

"No, now I only need half an hour, no, no, no, 20 minutes. These materials are all ready. JARVIS, help me calculate immediately. Let's start by constructing this model..."

An hour later, Stark, Schiller, and Strange emerged from the laboratory, their faces exhausted. Strange's hands were covered in blood, and he said, "How is it possible that something like this exists in the world? You've truly created a heart from a pile of scrap, and it's actually beating. My God..."

Schiller wasn't faring much better. Replacing a heart was strenuous work, and his chest was soaked in blood.

Stark leaned against the wall and slowly sat down. He said, "Am I really just like my father? Blindly arrogant and single-minded..."

"No," Stark looked up at Schiller, who spoke. "You're even more ruthless than your father."