Phoenix Incorporated

This story is part of my request series All About Harry. Do you want to make a request? Look at my bio page for info.

Aldrich Killian has a meeting with the CEO of Phoenix Incorporated and he has a lot of hopes set on Harry Potter's good will, he is hoping that he'll get the funding he's always craved and the change that he might get a look into the highly successful company and their research is exiting. He hopes that this might be a way of continuing on a peaceful path, but for that to happen everything has to work out absolutely perfectly.

I don't own Harry Potter, Iron Man, any other Marvel intervention or other stuff you might recognize

Chapter 1
Words: 3 329

November 22nd 2012
London, England

Aldrich Killian was excited, it may not show, but the founder of A.I.M - Advanced Idea Mechanics - could barely hold it together. The excitement was brimming over and if he had been his former self he was sure that he would have broken down in tears of joy.

Harry Potter, a rising name in the industrial world, had agreed to meet him. He was in London now to see the man and he could hardly wait. This was the opportunity he had been waiting for, for many years, thirteen to be exact.

Chief Executive Potter was relatively young, no older than 32, but he had taken up the mantle and he had done so with admirable poise when he found out that he had inherited a fortune and the foundation of an extensive business about a decade earlier.

Phoenix Incorporated was a company that was focusing on the betterment for all of humanity, human evolution and health related science. But most importantly from Aldrich point of view; they had the money to back it.

The thing was that they were very covert. If you didn't have the right contacts you'd never know of their existence, no matter that their income of the last quarter alone had measured in two-digit billions. Aldrich had been extremely lucky to come in contact with a man who knew about this world and who had been able to put him in contact with Potter.

If the meeting went well he'd have all the funding he could ever dream of needing and he would be able to forget about Stark Industries once and for all. He might even be able to ignore the whole Mandarin business, if he so chose.

They were meeting at a hotel, as Potter's assistant had told him that allowing him into their offices were for a later time when they had established a relation between their two companies or rather if they did so and even then it was depending on how well the cooperation went.

He could live with that. He didn't need any special equipment for this meeting. He had all he needed to convince Potter that working with him was the right choice safely stored in the front pocket of his suit jacket and resting behind his skull-bone. However he had to admit that the reluctance to let him into their offices did intrigue him.

It was now a quarter to two and they had said to meet at two pm. He wanted to be there on good time but not too good, that part was essential as it would show that he was serious about the deal, but not give the impression of him being desperate.

Aldrich entered the lobby of the hotel that Potter's PA had told him to be at. Already the foyer was decorated with several Christmas trees and looking at them Aldrich would have to approve of the hotel Potter had chosen. The trees were real and the decorations were far from tacky as they were kept simple with muted gold and touches of red. Other than that the room displayed clean lines and a lot of light wood and organic materials. It was pleasant and professional all in one.

He sat down on one of the couches near the entrance, Eric Savin falling into the one next to him, sprawling ungracefully, making Aldrich's upper lip curl slightly in disgust. But he restrained himself; it wasn't as if he had brought the man because he enjoyed his pleasant company. Savin was a gun and as such the large, blue eyed mercenary needed a wielder and they were both in agreement that Aldrich was the best man for the job.

"Tell me why we're here again?" Savin asked in a bored drawl, which only increased Aldrich's irritation with him.

"For an opportunity that will take us and A.I.M to the next level, if things go well the whole world will benefit from it."

"Right," the mercenary muttered uninterestedly. In any case before Savin could say more they were interrupted.

"I hope so too," a voice with an unmistakable English accent said from behind commenting on what Aldrich had said. "Mr. Killian I presume?"

Aldrich turned around, not knowing what to expect as he had never met Potter before and he hadn't been able to acquire any photographs. As he turned he saw a well-dressed man, in a dark costume tailored suit, looking to be in his mid twenties, standing there. He had messy, dark hair that was tamed by being cut short and glasses, his back was ramrod straight and an almost-not-there-smile was playing on his lips. More or less what he had expected, which was nice to see, he liked being right.

"Yes," he said rising to his feet. "I am Aldrich Killian. It's a pleasure to meet you Mr. Potter." He offered his hand and was pleased when Potter accepted without hesitation, grabbing it in a firm grip and giving a single shake.

"Please, call me Harry."

"Then I insist that you call me Aldrich."

The dark-haired man nodded, casting a quick glance at Savin. "Will your friend be joining us?" he asked in a tone that didn't betray his feelings on the matter.

"No. Eric is not a man of science, if you know what I mean and if you are looking for a demonstration I'll be happy to be of service myself."

"I see," Potter said a calculation look in his eyes, gazing intently at the pair. "Well then, we've got a private room waiting."

"Lead the way."

Potter walked to an elevator at the back of the lobby, waited for Aldrich to step inside and pressed the button to get up to the seventeenth floor, the top floor.

"What can you tell me about A.I.M?" Potter asked in a conversational tone as the elevator began to ascend, moving smoothly and soundlessly.

"I believe you already know the important parts," Aldrich began.

"But I want to hear them from you."

Aldrich faltered for a moment, but it didn't take more than a fraction of a second for him to bounce back. This situation reminded him eerily of that New Years Eve in Bern, Switzerland.

He had tried to talk with Anthony Stark in an elevator, getting a promise of a meeting on the roof. He steeled himself with the knowledge that this time it was different, this time he knew that the meeting would happen; the man he wanted to speak with was riding the whole way up together with him.

"Alright," he said. "We are here to talk about Advanced Idea Mechanics, but more importantly about a project called Extremis. What we have tried to accomplish is a method which allows us to rewrite the operating system of the human body, to further progress human evolution."

"I see," Potter said, his tone still not revealing how he felt about anything. "Here we are."

The elevator came to a stop and the CE of Phoenix Incorporated stepped out, walking down a corridor without waiting fro Aldrich to follow. A short walk later they stopped in front of a door, which Potter opened with a key-card, this time he allowed Aldrich to step inside first.

The room was comfortable with a seating area consisting of several plush leather armchairs, taking up most of the space. The armchairs were flanked by a few side-tables holding beverages and fruit to be enjoyed at their convenience. A few discreet landscape paintings hung on the walls and one of the walls was completely covered in windows.

Through the glass you could see a view that Aldrich supposed some would find charming; the River Thames was floating bellow, gray and slow on its way towards the sea. The water was covered by mist so thick that you could barely see the opposite shore. Oh the joy of London in November, Aldrich couldn't care less however. His attention was fully on his companion who had followed him inside and sat down in one of the armchairs.

"Please sit," he said and he continued once Aldrich had sat down. "Now tell me about your vision."

"A vision is better if shown," Aldrich said with a smile, enjoying the play of words. "I'll just dim the lights." With an easy hand gesture the lamps was turned off and the windows were tinted dark so that the amount of daylight in the room was diminished.

Still smiling Aldrich took out three small, metallic balls from his pocket. He threw them onto the floor where they rolled a few feet before coming to a stop. Holographic projectiles were shot out and within moments a three dimensional image filled the room. Looking much like a galaxy, spots of golden and blue light formed shapes and patterns, filling up the room.

"Behold the human brain," Aldrich said enjoying the expression that broke out on Potter's face. For the first time there were true emotions on his face, awe being the most prominent one, which he interoperated to be a good sign. "Come on, we can have a closer look." Aldrich got up and Potter followed him hesitantly.

"This is brilliant," the Brit said softly, turning around and taking in all the lights which now surrounded them.

"Thank you."

"Huh?" Potter swirled around his gaze looked on Aldrich.

"This is my brain; we are watching a live feed." He tapped a finger behind his ear, allowing himself a smug smile.

"Ingenious," the word was said so lowly that he wasn't sure Potter had said it.

"I'll prove it to you."

"What?"

"I'll prove this is truly live. Pinch me." Aldrich pushed up the sleeve of his suit.

Potter blinked. "Pinch you?"

"Go on, I can take it."

With a small shrug Potter pinched Aldrich's arm and almost instantly a large part of the holographic image of his brain lit up, a vortex spreading in a thick band of golden tinged light, before it went out again.

"What was that?"

"To put it simply; that was the brain's pain centre. Now if I do this…" Aldrich moved his hands in a manner as you would on a touch screen, zooming into the brain by moving his hands apart, grabbing at lights representing nerves, twisting and turning until they could clearly see a small ring with nothing in it. "What we see here is a blank spot; it more or less tells us that our brain, our DNA is incomplete. We have a slot just waiting for us to put in an upgrade."

He paused in the speech he was planning to perform looking at Potter to gauge his reaction. He was expecting Potter to look awed again, but that wasn't what happened. His eyes had narrowed behind the glasses.

"Is it possible to bring up a feed of my brain?" he asked.

The question surprised Aldrich and he didn't immediately answer.

"I have a theory, doing this could confirm it instantly, something we with our… tech haven't been able to do," Potter explained and Aldrich noted how he hesitated to say tech.

Aldrich cleared his throat. "Yes, we could bring up an image of your brain, but I fail to see what that would accomplish."

"More than you think. So how do we do it?"

Aldrich took out the remote belonging to the holographic pebbles and turned off the feed, made the light turn back on and sat down as the other man remained standing, looking a bit annoyed. "Mr. Potter," he said, then he remembered that the man had asked him to use his first name, he'd better use every advantage he had. "Harry. I've sent files to you, showing great trust in doing so, but I know very little about you and Phoenix Incorporated. Before we proceed I would like to ask a few questions."

"Fine." The Englishman sat down, putting up his foot to rest on his knee in a position that wasn't especially elegant, but showed unmistakable confidence.

"First, would you tell me what you think about Extremis?"

The frown on Potter's face smoothed out as he started talking, letting Aldrich now that Potter was impressed by their research just by watching his expressions.

"Ms. Hansen's research is amazing and as far as I know unparalleled. To use a virus as the carrier of the genome I find is very innovative, using the body's own lack of defences to change and enhance it... We know that bacteria live in symbiosis within our bodies and that we wouldn't be able to survive without them, using the same method and applying it with a much smaller organism to get further reach is a stroke of brilliance." Potter paused, the frown returning. "But for all the good that the Extremis Project has the potential to achieve I am worried. "

"What worries you, Harry?"

"The fact that it has a huge potential of being weaponized. I can see this becoming a new super soldier serum. Wars have been started for less and with humans of this calibre on the field it will be a blood bath waiting to happen. If I and Phoenix were to partner with you, there would be a contract for you to sign saying that as long as we are in a partnership A.I.M will not research or sell with the purpose of warfare."

Aldrich hesitated for only a second. "We can work with that. To help humanity and to advance us is and was A.I.M's original goal. With the funding you at Phoenix Incorporated could provide we would have no need to seek the profit we would gain by making arms deals."

"Good. We are one the same page. What we want is to incorporate your research with our tech, as we believe it would benefit both parties."

"That reminds me," Aldrich said before Potter could continue. He was beginning to get eager. He had been brimming with curiosity ever since he heard about the UK based organization, wanting to hear more about their work. "Nearly nothing of the research made by Phoenix is public. What is it that you do? I know that you work with bettering conditions for humans by studying our evolution and trying to enhance us mainly in the purpose making advancements in medicine."

"That is precisely what we do," Potter answered, a proud smile forming on his face and Aldrich listened with keen attention. "We are striving to find cures to all health problems, from cancer to heart diseases, from a common cold to Alzheimer's. We want people, everywhere, to be healthy, to have longer lives not just in years but in years of quality living. Our goal is to eradicate health problems of all kinds, and you seem to be a step on the way with Extremis' ability to regenerate."

"That is an ambitious goal. Admirable as it, it must be hard."

"All things worth striving for are."

Aldrich smiled. "A nice proverb. My father liked to use them. He was always spewing them. That one was one of his favourites and it is also one of mine."

"Have I answered your questions?"

"For now."

"Could we proceed then? I am eager to see if my theory is correct."

In lieu of an answer Aldrich removed the small sensor that was located behind his ear. He handed the small piece, no larger than a baby tooth to Harry, instructing him on where to place it. "Just put it right behind the shell of your left ear, right above the junction of the jaw, it should stick by itself."

Potter did as instructed, placing the sensor in the right spot with nimble fingers. "There we go. Would you bring up the image?"

Aldrich turned off the lights again, pressed the remote and an image of a brain once more filled the room.

It looked much like his own brain, although the lights were marginally dimmer and fewer. Aldrich knew that this was because the Extremis virus had increased his reaction time, allowing his brain to work faster, forming more neural connections and this was visible in the amount of light that the holographic image displayed. Potter's brain was the brain of a normal person.

"Can you please zoom into the same area that you showed me earlier?" Potter requested next.

"Of course." Aldrich got to his feet and manipulated the image with his hands, until they arrived at the same spot in the brain that he had brought up earlier to show the empty slot, only it wasn't there.

"What?" he murmured, looking at the glowing, sparkling vortex that existed in the spot that was supposed to be all dark. "I must have gotten it wrong," he said although he knew he hadn't. He had navigated through the image of the mind so many times that the possibility of him getting it wrong was miniscule at most.

"It is as I thought," Potter said, breathlessly, letting out a small tinkling laugh.

Aldrich had never seen any part of the brain with so much activity. It was like watching a continues show of fire works, once more leading his thoughts to the New Years Eve in Bern thirteen years earlier.

"What is that?" he asked.

"I'm sorry, but you do not have the clearance which will allow me to tell you, suffice to say that it is the tech we at Phoenix have at our disposal."

"Is it possible to get clearance?" Aldrich wanted it, he wished to possess it, to make it his own and that was without really knowing what it was. But just looking at it he knew that it was all he'd ever dreamed of. Seeing that Phoenix Incorporated already had this amazing piece of technology made him both bitter and hopeful.

"If this partnership goes well, I'll be able to provide you with clearance, but to begin with you won't be seeing much of the results. What we want, what I want is access to your research, later you'll be able to see ours."

Now this displeased Aldrich, but he was nothing if not patient. He had worked behind the scenes for years and there was no reason not to agree, as long as he was allowed to continue the party on his own in the mean time.

"I will admit, that I am a bit disappointed to hear that, Harry," he said in a morose tone, "however I understand that there is nothing you can do. My contact told me quite clearly that your work is highly classified and that I was lucky to even get to speak with you. I understand that these things take time, but I am sure that you, as a businessman, also understand that the world stops for no one. I would be willing to write up a partnership contract, allowing you access to our research on the Extremis virus, if you allow us too keep expanding and doing research without having to answer to you."

Potter pursed his lips; he seemed to be thinking of the suggestion, cautious and at the same time eager. Aldrich had understood that Potter wanted his research and it was likely that he would go to certain lengths to get it; the question was how far he was willing to go, having expressed a dislike for the possibility of using Extremis as a weapon.

"We'll have to agree on the finer points of such a contract, but I believe that we can come to an agreement." Potter eventually said.

Aldrich smiled, it was a bit shark like with too much teeth. Vague, suggesting a compromise, like a true businessman Potter didn't promise anything. He was looking forward to seeing how far he could string along the Englishman.

"How long are you staying in London?"

"We're going back to Florida on Saturday."

"Then you'll have time to meet again tomorrow? We can draw up a contract then."

Aldrich smile grew wider. "Splendid."

End Chapter 1

AN 15th May 2013 (9th October 2013):

Sooo… I saw Iron Man 3, twice, and I wanted to write. I thought about the movie and tried to think up a way to have Harry play a part. This is what I came up with. I'm not sure whether it's good or not, whether it is believable or not, but I am sure that I needed to write something. You be the judge on the first two.

Anyway Iron Man 3 was good, though I was bothered by small stuff such as clothing being too durable and hair regenerating into the same hair style as before it was burnt off or whatever. But I dig Tony Stark and I'm listening nonstop to the soundtrack so all in all my response was positive. Also love the scene at the end of the credits, hope you didn't miss it and I hope you enjoyed my story. I will continue this story at some point taking us through the events of Iron Man 3 with Harry mixed into the story, but I don't know when I'll do it.