Seated on the plane, Sean browsed through recent headlines, a thought lingering in his mind...
'Does the real Mandarin exist in this world?'
In the original timeline, the Ten Rings' villainous leader, the Mandarin, had been nothing more than a puppet, a fabricated persona played by a washed-up British actor obsessed with Shakespeare and luxury. Basically a smokescreen to divert attention.
But as Iron Man's archenemy, the Mandarin had truly existed in some unknown parallel universe.
Under countless aliases, this long-lived figure claimed descent from Genghis Khan, born in the distant East. Much like Tony Stark, he had been obscenely wealthy from a young age, wielding a brilliant mind and vast resources in pursuit of immortality through ancient mystical arts.
Rumor had it he possessed ten rings of unimaginable power, each with unique abilities, and had nearly killed Iron Man on multiple occasions. He was basically a competent super-villain.
"How amusing." Sean studied the Ten Rings emblem frozen on his screen; ten interlinked rings forming a circle.
The symbol was no stranger to him. Long before Tony became Iron Man, Obadiah Stane, the former CEO of Stark Industries, had conspired with Afghan warlords to assassinate the playboy heir and seize the Stark family's military empire.
Those very warlords had kidnapped Tony Stark. Their leader had been a member of the Ten Rings. Though Iron Man had crushed their stronghold back then, the terrorist organization had now resurfaced under new leadership.
"Tony, is this karma for your past mistakes?" A faint smile tugged at Sean's lips as he mused.
While Iron Man might still be in the dark, Sean saw the full picture clearly.
Aldrich Killian... this name had been splashed across tech magazines and weekly journals lately, its frequency rivaling Sean's own media dominance at his peak.
The tall charismatic man on screen was the founder of A.I.M. (Advanced Idea Mechanics), the second-largest emerging research institution in North America, trailing only the unstoppable rise of Umbrella.
Recently, the media had taken to comparing Aldrich Killian to Sean Cyphers, just as they once pitted Sean against Tony Stark, framing them as rival geniuses.
Reportedly born with physical disabilities, Killian had endured bullying and mockery throughout his school years until his genius intellect earned him respect in college.
This rags-to-riches narrative, amplified by the press, had quickly labeled him a 'role model for youth' and the 'new American Dream'.
The formula was identical to Sean's own rise; layering himself in dazzling narratives of struggle and triumph to win public sympathy and media adoration.
Sean chuckled. Clearly, this was another 'genius' skilled in theatrics and branding. Audiences loved tragic backstories so long as they ended in glory. Without such seasoning, how could one cook up a soul-stirring tale to move the masses to tears?
That said, geniuses were often obsessive. In his youth, Killian had idolized Tony Stark, viewing the arrogant playboy as the pinnacle of intellect. He dreamt of one day meeting his hero.
This worship was as universal as musicians aspiring to be The Beatles or basketball players idolizing Michael Jordan.
A rebellious and brilliant figure like Tony? Half of America's youth likely saw him as an icon, the other half seethed with envy at the silver-spooned prodigy.
After college, Killian founded A.I.M., struggling to keep it afloat while tracking academic breakthroughs... until New Year's Eve, 1999. At a symposium in Bern, Switzerland, he finally met his idol.
The encounter ended disastrously.
Back then, Tony Stark had been a reckless playboy who mocked others for sport. Upon meeting the disabled and poorly dressed Killian, he played a cruel joke, stranding his starstruck fan on a freezing rooftop all night.
Little did Tony know, that thoughtless prank would shatter a devoted admirer and forge an enemy who would nearly destroy him.
"Extremis." Sean murmured the word.
This was Maya Hansen's early breakthrough. A bio-electric technology that was capable of hacking the human brain's repair center and rewriting its code. If the body's biological system were a computer, Extremis was the ultimate virus.
Later iterations theorized DNA editing and genetic rewriting. But at its current stage; limb regeneration, immune activation, and enhanced physiology were already achievable.
Many venture firms bet big on A.I.M.'s future, convinced it would soon rival Umbrella's meteoric ascent.
Aldrich Killian, now dubbed the 'Tech Mogul', dominated headlines, his star shining brighter than ever.
Sean tapped the desk.
Years ago, strapped for funding, Maya Hansen had sold the Extremis research to Killian before joining Umbrella to focus on genetic engineering with Dr. Connors.
Sean had halted her Extremis experiments for one reason: its fatal flaw.
While humans shared 99% identical DNA, the remaining 0.1% variation made each body unique. This caused Extremis to trigger erratic rejection. Not everyone could endure genetic rewriting. Solving this required computational power far outweighing the benefits.
Killian's 'success' had been built on corpses. He recruited veterans as test subjects. Early, unstable Extremis batches had sky-high mortality rates. Subjects overheated from within before detonating like living bombs.
The tech could forge a super-army, but applying it to humanity? Even with Skynet's resources, Sean saw no merit in reviving it.
Which meant one thing...
Behind Aldrich Killian's 'miraculous' transformation lay a hidden force, one with bottomless funding and manpower to fast-track Extremis in just thirteen years.
And the Mandarin's bombings? Merely cover-ups for Extremis test subjects going critical. No bomb fragments were found because the bombs were the people.
"So who's pulling the strings? HYDRA? Or is it the actual Mandarin himself?"
Sean's eyes narrowed, a smirk forming on his lips, "This just got interesting..."