The Story of Tony Stark/Iron Man (Marvel Cinematic Universe)

Rediscovering the Element: Researching his Family

Nick Fury gave Stark some of his father's old material to aid in finding a cure for the palladium poisoning. Stark found several items, including the notebook with the drawings of a "hypercube" and two Captain America comic books. Watching an old tape of his father, Stark discovered a hidden message where his father told him that he was proud of his son and viewed him as his greatest creation.

Stark then drove to the Stark Industries Headquarters, buying some strawberries along the way and met with Pepper Potts who tried to inform him she was too busy to talk. Once Stark got her attention, he attempted to apologize in his way, which Potts struggled to believe and insisted she needed to focus on Stark Industries' future. They were interrupted by Happy Hogan and Natasha Romanoff who were both now working only for Potts.

As Potts and Hogan left the office, Stark spoke with Romanoff and questioned how she could keep this lie going and she insulted him before leaving. Stark prepared to leave the office, dumping the strawberries into the bin, but first he thought he saw a hidden message in the diorama of the 1974 Stark Expo proved to be a diagram of a new element's atomic structure. Stark took the model into his car and drove it back to his mansion for further study.

Putting the model on his desk, Stark ordered J.A.R.V.I.S. to make a scan of the model, removing all the trees and buildings from the scan so he focus just on the model itself. As J.A.R.V.I.S. questioned what Stark's plan was, he explained that he believed he had found a hidden message. Eventually Stark realized that the new element was inside the globe in the center, with Stark thanking his father for gifting him with it as it would soon save his life.