Chapter 15: Palladium Solution
The research notes were degraded, barely legible after decades in storage.
Justin spread them across his lab table—Howard Stark's original work on the Tesseract, acquired through Ghost Network contacts who'd bribed someone at SHIELD's archive facility. The documents shouldn't exist outside classified vaults. Getting them had cost Justin a small fortune and several favors he'd have to repay eventually.
Worth it, if they saved Tony's life.
"Sir," AEGIS said through the lab speakers. "Biometric monitoring suggests Mr. Stark's palladium levels have reached critical toxicity. Estimated survival time: three to four weeks without intervention."
Justin's hands clenched on the papers. He'd been watching Tony deteriorate for months—the press conferences where Stark looked gaunt, the leaked photos showing dark veins spreading across his chest, the increasingly erratic behavior that suggested a man who thought he was dying.
Because he was dying.
"Can he solve it himself?" Justin asked.
"Probability analysis suggests 67% chance of success if given sufficient time. However, time is the limiting factor. He may expire before completing synthesis."
Justin closed his eyes. In the original timeline, Tony had figured it out. Had created the new element, stabilized his reactor, survived. But that timeline had included Nick Fury's direct intervention—SHIELD providing Howard's research, pushing Tony toward the solution.
This timeline was different. Monaco hadn't happened. Events were diverging. And Justin had no guarantee Fury would intervene the same way.
"I could let him die," Justin thought. "Eliminate my competition. Become the sole advanced tech developer. It would be pragmatic. Strategic."
The thought made him sick.
"AEGIS, pull up everything we have on element synthesis. Theoretical physics, materials science, everything."
"May I ask why, sir?"
"Because I'm going to create something that doesn't exist yet."
The transmutation took three days.
Justin worked in isolation, his private lab sealed and soundproofed. He'd studied Howard's notes until his Scientific Intuition could fill in the gaps—the theoretical element was possible, a new arrangement of protons and neutrons that created stability where conventional physics predicted none.
But theory and reality were different things.
He arranged the materials carefully: palladium (ironically), platinum, exotic isotopes acquired through questionable sources, and trace amounts of vibranium dust that cost more than a luxury car. The transmutation circle he drew was twelve feet in diameter, the largest he'd ever attempted, with geometric patterns so complex they hurt to look at.
This was going to drain him. Badly.
Justin stepped into the circle and pressed his palms to the floor.
The light that erupted was blinding.
His Scientific Intuition guided the process, showing him exactly how to reshape atomic structures, how to force protons together in configurations that shouldn't hold. The void energy flowed through him like molten glass, burning through his cells, using his life force as catalyst for creation that violated natural law.
The materials began to change.
Protons rearranged. Neutrons stabilized. A new element emerged from the impossible mathematics of transmutation—not much, maybe a gram of material, but stable and glowing with soft blue light.
Justin collapsed.
The lab floor was cold against his cheek. His body felt like it had been wrung out and hung to dry. The void marks on his arms were glowing, spreading visibly—past his elbows now, creeping toward his shoulders, geometric patterns that pulsed with each heartbeat.
"Sir!" AEGIS's voice was sharp with concern. "Your vital signs are critical. Initiating emergency protocols—"
"I'm fine," Justin gasped. His regeneration factor was already working, healing cellular damage from the transmutation. But it would take hours to fully recover. "How long was I out?"
"Four minutes. Sir, the void corruption has increased by 7%. This is unsustainable. At current progression—"
"I know." Justin dragged himself to sitting position, his arms shaking. "But it worked. Check the sample."
The element sat in the circle's center, glowing softly. His Scientific Intuition confirmed it was perfect—stable, non-toxic, exactly what Tony needed.
Ivan Vanko's voice came from the doorway: "That should not be possible."
Justin turned. The physicist stood there, his expression caught between awe and horror.
"How long have you been watching?"
"Long enough." Vanko walked closer, studying the element without touching it. "You transmute matter. Create elements that don't exist. This is..." He struggled for words. "This is beyond science. This is something else."
"It's both," Justin said. "Science pushed to its limits and then pushed further."
"By what? What are you?"
Justin met his eyes. "Someone trying to save lives. That's all you need to know."
Vanko stared at him for a long moment. Then: "You create this for Stark. To save him."
"Yes."
"Why? He is rival. Competition. Letting him die would benefit you."
"Because the world needs Tony Stark more than it needs my ego satisfied." Justin pulled himself to his feet, his legs unsteady. "And because I'm not the kind of person who lets people die when I can help them."
"Even people who don't know you're helping."
"Especially them." Justin picked up the element carefully, feeling its warmth. "This goes to Tony anonymously. He figures out the rest himself. Gets the credit for the discovery. His ego stays intact, and I sleep better knowing I didn't let him die out of petty rivalry."
Vanko shook his head slowly. "You are strange man, Justin Hammer. But maybe... maybe good man too."
The package arrived at Stark Industries three days later.
Justin watched through AEGIS's hacked security feeds as Tony opened it in his private lab. The element sample. A note that said simply: From someone who wants you to survive. Figure out the rest yourself. -A Friend.
Tony's confusion was visible even through grainy camera footage. He held up the element, examined it, ran preliminary tests. Justin watched his expression shift from puzzlement to intense focus as his genius engaged.
"He's got it," Justin murmured. "Come on, Tony. Put the pieces together."
And Tony did.
Over the next week, Justin watched remotely as Stark tore apart his father's old SHIELD materials, built a particle accelerator in his basement, and synthesized more of the element. Watched him realize the arc reactor in his chest could be powered by something that wouldn't kill him. Watched him rebuild his very core technology based on the foundation Justin had provided.
The press conference came a week later. Tony looking healthier, stronger, announcing a "breakthrough in clean energy research" that would revolutionize power generation. He didn't mention the mysterious package. Didn't acknowledge the help.
Justin was fine with that.
"Mission accomplished," AEGIS said. "Mr. Stark has stabilized his arc reactor. Palladium poisoning is resolved. He will survive."
"Good." Justin leaned back in his chair, his body still aching from the transmutation. The void marks were darker than ever, clearly visible even through long sleeves. "That's one disaster prevented."
"Sir, you appear troubled. Probability models suggest Mr. Stark's survival increases global safety by 23.7%. This was the correct decision."
"AEGIS, sometimes you say exactly what I need to hear."
"I am programmed to be helpful, sir."
Justin smiled despite his exhaustion. "You're programmed to be honest. The helpfulness is all you."
Natasha found him in his office that night.
She didn't knock. Just walked in and sat across from his desk with the expression of someone who'd figured something out and wasn't happy about it.
"A miracle cure for Stark appears anonymously," she said. "Package delivered through channels that can't be traced. Containing an element that shouldn't exist. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that?"
Justin kept his expression neutral. "Why would you think I was involved?"
"Because you've been monitoring Stark's health through your Ghost Network. Because you have capabilities I don't fully understand. Because you're the type of person who'd help someone and refuse to take credit."
"That's a lot of assumptions."
"Am I wrong?"
Justin considered lying. Considered deflecting. But Natasha deserved better than that.
"I know Tony Stark is valuable to the world's future," he said carefully. "If someone helped him survive, that's good for everyone."
"You could have let him die. Eliminated your rival."
"He's not really my rival." Justin's voice was quiet. "He's just the only other person who might understand what it's like to see future possibilities and feel responsible for building them. The world needs Tony Stark alive."
Natasha studied him. "You keep talking about the future like you've seen it. Like you know what's coming."
"Maybe I do."
"That's not an answer."
"It's the only one I can give right now." Justin met her eyes. "I'm trying to make the world better, Natasha. Sometimes that means helping people who don't know they need help. Sometimes it means intervening in ways I can't explain. But my intentions are good, even if my methods are questionable."
"Your methods are exhausting," Natasha said. "Fury is getting tired of not understanding you. I'm getting tired of defending you without knowing what I'm defending."
"Then stop defending me."
"I can't." Her voice carried frustration. "Because every time I investigate you, every piece of evidence I find suggests you're doing exactly what you say—trying to save lives, prevent disasters, build something good. It's infuriating."
"I'm sorry?"
"Don't apologize. Just..." She sighed. "Don't die. Whatever you're doing that makes you look like death warmed over, whatever price you're paying for these abilities—stop before it kills you."
Justin glanced at his arms, where the void marks glowed faintly beneath his sleeves. "I'll try."
"That's not a promise."
"It's the best I can offer."
Natasha stood. At the door, she paused. "For what it's worth? Helping Stark was the right thing. Even if he'll never know you did it."
"That's what makes it the right thing."
She left. Justin sat alone in his office, watching news coverage of Tony's breakthrough. His rival—no, his counterpart—had survived. Would continue innovating, building, pushing humanity forward.
And Justin had helped make that possible.
The void marks pulsed. His regeneration factor worked overtime, healing the damage from transmutation. Outside, New York hummed with life.
One disaster prevented. Dozens more coming.
Better keep working.
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