Soren adjusted his glasses as he stood in front of his private medical clinic, watching as a familiar figure approached.
Tony Stark, looking noticeably exhausted, stepped out of his car, clutching a stack of documents.
His trademark arrogance was absent, replaced by a weariness that only a man facing the collapse of his empire could understand.
Soren raised an eyebrow. "Tony? This is a surprise."
Tony smirked, though there was no real amusement in his eyes. "What can I say? I enjoy shocking people, Docter Macaluso."
He extended the documents toward Soren. "This is an equity transfer letter."
Soren accepted it, flipping through the pages with curiosity.
"Just call me Soren." He said with a smile before glancing back up. "You don't look too good. Something wrong?"
Tony exhaled a tired sigh. "Where do I even begin?" He ran a hand through his disheveled hair.
"After I got back from Afghanistan, I shut down Stark Industries' weapons division. The stock price dropped like a rock, down more than sixty percent in the last few days. Investors are pulling out, the board wants me gone, and if this keeps up, we'll be bankrupt before I can fix anything."
Soren narrowed his eyes. "If Stark Industries isn't making weapons, what else does it have?"
Tony's lips pressed into a thin line before he responded.
"I have a plan."
He leaned forward.
"I'm working on the Arc Reactor, clean, limitless energy. It could change the world. But I need funding, and with the way things are going, no one's going to invest in me."
Soren tilted his head, considering.
"I might be able to help with that."
Tony's eyes flickered with surprise. "Oh?"
Soren simply reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out another folder.
He handed it over.
Tony opened it and immediately froze.
The logo on the first page shone in bold lettering:
Osborn Industries
Beneath it~
Equity Stake: 8%
Tony blinked in disbelief. "Eight percent? You're telling me you own almost a tenth of Osborn Industries?"
"You sound surprised."
Tony shook his head. "I thought Osborn was just name-dropping when he talked about other big shareholders. I didn't realize you were one of them."
He exhaled sharply. "Damn. That means, besides Osborn himself, you're probably the biggest stakeholder in the company."
"That's the benefit of treating high-profile patients. Some people are willing to pay handsomely for their lives." Soren shrugged casually.
Tony let out a dry chuckle. "No kidding."
Then, his expression softened.
"Man… thank you. Seriously."
Soren waved a hand dismissively. "Consider it an investment."
Tony's gaze lingered on him for a moment before he spoke again.
"Alright, deal. Once this storm passes, I'll give you another three percent of Stark Industries. You saved my life, and I'm not about to be stingier than Norman Osborn."
Soren chuckled. "You'd better handle this well, Stark. I'd hate to see my new 'local tycoon' friend get thrown out by his own board of Directors."
"They can try." Tony smirked.
Soren nodded. "Good. Now, I have my own business to take care of. I'm heading to Osborn Industries, there's something I need from them."
Tony watched him for a moment, then smiled. "I'll owe you one… Soren."
Osborn Tower loomed high, a testament to the ambition of its founder.
Soren came here for a very simple purpose. His medicine laboratory has not been put into use. Because there are no medicinal materials, it is not possible to develop medicines.
These medical ingredients for developing medicines are not common in the market, rare plants that only grow in extreme environments, and some can't even be found on this planet!
It hadn't been long since Soren Macaluso became a major shareholder of Osborn Industries.
But now, most of the higher-ups knew his name, but that didn't stop Osborn's personal secretary from doing a double-take when he walked in.
The man quickly composed himself, flashing a professional smile. "Mr. Macaluso, welcome!"
Soren nodded in acknowledgment. "I'm here to see Mr. Osborn."
"Of course, right this way."
As they walked toward the private executive elevator, the secretary gave a brief update on the company's latest developments.
"Mr. Macaluso, as you know, Osborn Industries remains one of the largest corporate groups in New York, particularly in the field of biopharmaceuticals. However, we've also expanded significantly into other sectors. Just recently, we secured the contract for the New York power grid renovation project. Osborn Industries will be responsible for modernizing and maintaining the city's entire electrical network."
Soren raised an eyebrow. "A monopoly on the city's power infrastructure? That's bold."
The secretary smiled knowingly. "Mr. Osborn believes in innovation... and dominance."
By the time the conversation wrapped up, they had arrived at the executive elevator. The doors slid open, revealing two people already inside, a blonde woman and a man in overalls, clutching blueprints.
Soren's gaze realized something.
And then, in a sudden realization, so did hers.
The blonde woman's eyes lit up in surprise. "Mr. Macaluso?!"
Soren blinked, then quickly recognized her. "Gwen?"
It had been some time since he had last seen Gwen Stacy, daughter of Captain George Stacy.
Days ago, George had brought Gwen to his clinic, personally thanking Soren for treating him after an incident. Gwen had been curious, fascinated by Soren's medical expertise, often asking him about his techniques.
And, if he remembered correctly, George had subtly hinted at wanting Gwen to keep in contact with him.
"What a coincidence." Soren said with a smile. "Are you working here now?"
Gwen nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah! I just started in Osborn's research division. It's an incredible opportunity!"
Before Soren could respond, the secretary interjected smoothly.
"Miss Gwen, you might not know this, but Mr. Macaluso is the second-largest shareholder of Osborn Industries, right after Mr. Osborn himself."
Gwen's eyes widened.
"Wait… what?"
She stared at Soren, as if seeing him in a new light. She had always known he was successful, but this, this-this was...
A billionaire.
In the background, the third occupant of the elevator, the man with the blueprints, stood silently.
Originally, it had been him and Gwen in the elevator, and they had been having a friendly conversation.
This had been his first time striking up a genuine conversation with a woman like her. And, for a brief moment, he had felt a small flicker of hope.
Now, Gwen's entire attention was on Soren.
The moment she found out who he was, it was like he didn't exist anymore.
His grip on his blueprints tightened slightly. Still, he forced a polite smile and awkwardly cleared his throat.
"Uh… nice to meet you, Mr. Macaluso."
Soren turned to him, giving a brief nod of acknowledgment.
The man adjusted his grip on his blueprints and introduced himself.
"My name's Maxwell Dillon. I'm an electrical engineer at Osborn Industries. I, uh… I'm working on the new power grid project."
꧁𓊈𒆜༺⚜༻𒆜𓊉꧂
Fellow Phantoms and aspiring Phantoms to be, if you seek to access advanced parts of this story procced to my shadowy realm of p@treon.
PhantomDream