Chapter 56

  Arc 5 - Ch 9: Whipsh

  Date: Wednesday, June 1, 2011.

  Location: Stark Expo, Flushing Meadows, Queens, NY

  The red and gold armor of Iron Man y on the soft grass. Above him loomed the dark gray War Mae suit, its massive gau ched into a fist. The two armored titans had crashed down among the carefully cultivated trees and flowers of a biodome.

  Ihe golde of Iron Man, Tony Stark's eyes darted about frantically, searg for some way to slip out of Rhodey's grasp. But the heavier War Mae armor had him pinned.

  "Tony," Rhodey's voice rang out, tense and strairapped within the War Mae armor, he was helpless to stop it as the suit moved of its own accord. The minigun mounted on the armor's shoulder let out a rising whine as it prepared to unleash a torrent of fire at point-bnk range. He could only wat horror as the on systems charged, moments from ending his friend's life in a hail of bullets. Desperately he shouted a warning, though he khere was little hope Tony could evade the iable.

  Then, a soft chime sounded within the armored suit. Rhodey's armor powered down, the lights on its surface fading.

  Hydraulics hissed as Tony tossed the War Mae armor off from atop him.

  Natasha allowed herself a grim smile as she watched the feed from Vanko's station within the Hammer facility. She worked the trols, having hacked past Vanko's digital defenses. Her voice came through the s, "Reboot plete. You've got your friend back, Stark."

  "Thank you, Agent Romanoff," Tony replied with audible relief.

  "Well done on the new chest piece," Natasha noted, data from Tony's suit. "I am reading signifitly higher output and your vitals all look promising."

  Tony quipped, "Yes, for the moment, I’m not dying. Thank you."

  Pepper Potts' anxious voice suddenly broke in. "What do you mean, you're dying? Did you just say you’re dying? Tony, what have you not been telling me?"

  Tony ged inwardly. He should have known Pepper would be monit his s. "No, I’m not. Not anymore. It was...a temporary situation," he hedged. "I was going to fill you in. I didn’t want to arm you.."

  Pepper's voice rose in disbelief. "You were going to tell me? You really were dying?"

  Tony ged again, cursing himself for letting it slip. "You didn't let me," he protested weakly.

  "Why didn't you tell me that?" Pepper demanded, her voice shrill with worry and anger.

  Tony ran a hand over his face. This was not how he had intended her to find out. "I was gonna make you a and tell you," he said mely. "Over breakfast, where you'd be sitting down already. So you wouldn't faint or anything."

  Natasha interrupted firmly. "Hey, hey. Save it for the honeymoon. You got ining Tony. Looks like the fight’s ing to you."

  Tony refocused in an instant. "You're right, this isn't the time. Pepper, rainche the heart-to-heart?"

  Pepper's voice was shrill with worry as she demanded, "Are you okay now?"

  Tony answered, "I am fine. Don't be mad. I will formally apologize for not telling you about my dition sooner.."

  Pepper's eyes fshed. "I am mad!" she retorted.

  "…when I'm not fending off a Hammeroid attack." Tony finished.

  Pepper pressed her lips together. "Fine," she bit out.

  "We could have been in Veony said wistfully.

  "Oh please," Pepper scoffed, though her expression softened slightly. She kony was trying to lighten the mood, even as he prepared to throw himself into harm's way yet again.

  Tony's facepte rose. He leaned down and tapped his metal-encased fingers against Rhodey's helmet. "Rhodes? You in there, buddy? Snap out of it. I need you. They're ing any sed. Let's roll. Up and at 'em."

  The tension that had crackled between Iron Man and War Mae dissipated as Rhodey's helmet slid open, revealing his face. He groaned, blinking up at Tony, and said, "Oh man. You have your suit back."

  Toended a gaued hand and helped haul him to his feet. "You okay?"

  "Yeah. Thanks," Rhodey replied in an apologetie. "Tony, look...I'm sorry, okay?"

  "Don't be," Tony said, dismissing the apology with a wave of his hand.

  But Rhodey insisted, "No, really. I should have trusted you more."

  Tony admitted, "I'm the one who put you in this position. Fet it."

  Rhodey shook his head, adamant. "No, it's my fault. I just wao say I'm sorry."

  Appreciating the se, Tony csped his friend's armored shoulder. "Thank you. That's all I wao hear. Partner." He then shifted his focus to the impending threat, "Enemy closing fast. ETA any sed. What's the py?"

  Rhodey thought for a moment, tactical training kig in. "High ground. We'll set the biggest gun up on that ridge."

  Tony nodded. "Got you. Where do you want to be?" as he started walking toward the indicated hill.

  "Where are you going?" Rhodey asked, fused.

  "What're you talking about?" Tony replied, eyebrows furrowing. "You have a big gun. You are not the big gun."

  Rhodey ughed. "Tony, don’t be jealous. It’s called being a badass."

  Tony scoffed, though his tone held no real irritation. "It’s subtle all the bells and whistles."

  A new voice came through the el. "Am I too te for the dick-measuring test?"

  James Rhodes frow the unfamiliar voice. "Who is that?" he asked, a hint of suspi in his tone. "Who else is on this liony?"

  The cocky reply came, "Mirage has ehe chat." He paused, then added with amused nonce, "Oh and my girlfriend is ioo."

  Natasha Romanoff immediately shot back over s, "I'm not his girlfriend." Her voice was ft, clearly unimpressed.

  "It's a work in progress," Mirage responded lightly.

  Tony's grin was audible in his voice as he ehe banter. "Fine. All right. Rhodes, you go up top. I’ll draw them in."

  James shook his head firmly. "Don't stay down here. This is the worst pce to be."

  Tony sidered Rhodes' protest for a moment, before finally nodding in acquiesce. "Okay, you got a spot. Where's mine?"

  Rhodey's expression sobered. "Don't stay on the low ground. It's a kill box, Tony. This is where you go to die."

  As Stark and Rhodes strategized, their banter tly cut short. With a meical whine, over a dozen Hammer drones desded from the sky, encirg the two armored heroes in a menag formation as they stood in what Rhodey had just described as the 'kill box'.

  Through the s, Mirage said, "I'm on the way. Save me a few."

  The air hung heavy over the open courtyard, thick with the promise of violence soon to e. Iron Man and War Mae stood back to back, encircled by a menag array of Hammer drohat surrouhem with cold, robotitent. The suits' meisms lowered metal masks over the faces of Tony Stark, and James Rhodes with a hydraulic hiss. The sound was a signal. The drotacked as one, a cacophony of gunfire shattering the tenuous calm. Iron Man and War Mae moved in perfect synicity like they'd had years of fighting side-by-side. Repulsors fred, bullets flew, and rockets screamed as the heroes unleashed their arsenal. Iron Man's repulsor bsts picked off drones, while War Mae was an immovable pilr of heavy ordinance, minigun spinnilessly as it scythed through swathes of robotic foes.

  The drones responded in kind, the courtyard being a maelstrom of g energy and ons fire. Missiles streaked through the air, trailing tails of smoke before blossoming into explosions that sent debris raining down around the battling armors. Stark's return fire was lethally accurate, repulsor beams ng out to pierce droer drone. War Mae was a juggernaut, the minigun's barrel glowing red-hot as it ed through round after thundering round.

  "See that?" Tony called out over the screech of rendial.

  "Yeah, yeah. Nice," Rhodey respoersely, his attention focused on systematically demolishing the drotempting to overwhelm his position.

  On and on the drones came, pressing the attack. Iron Man and War Mae battled with equal relentlessness, their suits' capabilities tested to the limits by the sheer numbers arrayed against them. The courtyard grass slowly disappeared beh accumuting piles of broken drones.

  Amid the battle, Iron Man spotted a momentary opportunity. He called out, “Rhodey, get down!”

  James Rhodes, instantly respoo the warning, throwing himself ft against the debris-strewn ground. Iron Man spun rapidly as he unleashed the full power of an experimental cutting beam built into his suit. A brilliant corusg beam of intense light erupted forth, slig through the air and the encirg drones with equal ease. The powerful ser cut a swath through the ranks of robots, biseg their metal bodies which fell sparking to the ground in a cacophonous shower of metal pting and circuitry.

  In the wake of this devastating attack, an almost eerie silence desded on the decimated courtyard. In an ued twist, a t tree ih of the deadly ser, groaned and toppled to the ground, adding to the destru.

  Rhodes stood and raised his facepte to survey the effectiveness of Iron Man’s attack. “Wow, I think you should lead with that ime.”

  “Yeah, sorry boss. I only use it o’s a one-off.” Tony replied, raising his helmet. As he spoke, a smoking husk was ejected from his armor, proving the expendable nature of the powerful ser.

  The two rades shared a brief moment of victory, standing amidst the smoking wreckage of their meical foes. But their hard-won moment of triumph tly shattered as Natasha Romanoff’s urgent voice crackled over the unications link, “Heads up. You've got one more drone ining. This one looks different. The repulsnature is signifitly higher.”

  The air ierced by the scream of high-powered propulsion as an armored form dropped from the sky, nding with a resounding boom.

  The reinforced suit towered over them.

  pared to the polished designs of Iron Man and even War Mae's reinforced suit, this armor was bulkier, with an industrial and almost brutish aesthetic; all thick cables, heavy hydraulics, and heavy armor pting. The armor looked like a hulking meical beast designed for nothing but destruenag lengths of electrified whips crackled and hummed with deadly energy, extending from each arm. The armor's design seemed a further evolution of the same tech that Ivan Vanko had used when attag Tony at the Monaco Grand Prix.

  The facepte of the newer's armor slid upwards with a hiss of hydraulics, revealing the weathered features and coldly determined eyes of Ivan Vanko. The three men stared at each other, face to fa their armor.

  Vanko's heavy at cut through the silence left in the wake of his arrival.

  "Good to be back," he decred in a tohat promised violence.

  One moment Vanko arrived, the anure was there, moving with supernatural speed. Mirage raced across the biodome, he lept, his momentum making it seem almost as if he flew toward Whipsh.

  Then with ferocious iy, Mirage wound his fist bad shouted.

  "Detroit Smash!"

  Mirage unched a full-force punch directly into the ter mass of the Whipsh armor.

  The impact resouhrough the biodome like a cp of thuhe sheer kiic forirage's blow sending the armored form of Vanko flying. The Whipsh armor tumbled end over end, crashing violently into the base of a nearby cliff. The sound of rendial screamed out as the armor crumpled against unyielding rock. In an instant, the once imposing figure now y in a mawisted wreck. Jagged rents now marred the armor's surface, leaving it looking as though it had taken a massive beating from some epic struggle.

  Had Natasha heard Tyson announce his massive attack with an ayle shout, she would have rolled her eyes and chided him. However, the words through the s came from Rhodes as he asked incredulously, "Did you know he was that strong?"

  Tony could only shake his head, stunned into silence by the raw physical power Mirage had dispyed in dispatg the Whipsh armor.

  The three heroes, Iron Man, War Mae, and Mirage, approached the Whipsh suit.

  The armor y in a mangled heap, crumpled a by the ferocity of Mirage's attack. Ihe wreckage, Ivan Vanko stirred feebly, barely ging to sciousness. Blood dripped from his mouth as he uttered two final words with grim certainty.

  "You lose."

  His eyes then closed for the st time, a chilliion filled with spite and defiance.

  Suddenly, the arc reactor on Vanko's chest began to blink red.

  In ominous unison, simir crimson fshes echoed from reactors across the biodome, emanating from the scattered remnants of the Hammer drones.

  Rhodey quickly grasped the grave implications of the fshing red lights. "All these drones are rigged to blow. We gotta get out of here now!" he shouted urgently.

  Mirage took off in a blur of speed, evacuating the area.

  The repulsors in Rhodey's boots fred as he rocketed skyward.

  "Pepper!" Tony called out as he ignited his repulsors. ed by the o ensure her safety, he streaked off in desperate search of her st known location.

  — Rogue Rept —

  Tyson ran at his top speed, desperate to catch up to the armored suits of Iron Man and War Mae as they crashed into the biodome. He arrived just in time to witony Stark and James Rhodes engaged in a light-hearted argument over who had the bigger gun. Tyson jumped into the banter but remained hidden in the background, silently.

  Tension ramped up ihe biodome as, oer ahe Hammer drones began nding around Iron Man and War Mae with heavy thuds. Soon the heroes were surrounded by the looming robots.

  The ensuing battle ectacle of teology and onry as Iron Man and War Mae ehe droheir suits aglow with the bright fre of repulsor beams and blurs of ammunition. Explosions lit up the interior of the biodome, the sound of the bsts eg off the curved gss and steel. Iurn, the droargeted the two heroes with their own ied ons systems.

  Throughout the raging battle, Tyson remained a silent out-of-sight observer, his presenregistered by the drones and unnoticed by the battling duo. After Iron Maed a devastating ser sweep that sliced through the ranks of Hammer droyson prepared himself for the moment he had been waiting for.

  Natasha’s voice crackled through his earpiece. “Heads up. You've got one more drone ining. This one looks different. The repulsnature is signifitly higher.”

  By the time the sound of powerful propulsion annouhe drone’s arrival, Tyson was already in motion. The Whipsh Mark 2 armor desded from the sky, nding with a heavy thud near Iron Man and War Mae. When the armor's visor was raised to reveal Ivan Vanko himself, Tyson made his move. All three armored men had exposed their faces. Tyson dashed directly in front of Vanko, invisible to their eyes thanks to his illusions.

  He then projected an illusion of Vanko deg triumphantly, "Good to be back."

  Meanwhile, Tyson reached out, toug Ivan Vanko's fad looking directly into his eyes. As he did, a torrent of Vanko's life memories flooded through Tyson's mind.

  His father worked alongside Howard Stark but was deported back to Russia in disgrace, fotten, and discredited. He grew up with a sense of betrayal festering deep within him. His childhood was marked by poverty and struggle. Despite the hardships, he ied his father's intelled aptitude. He honed his skills in meics, engineering, and physics, ofteing on the fringes of legality. His life was a mix of academic brilliand criminal uakings. The defining moment came when he learned of Tony Stark's Iron Man. This revetihe sm embers of his vea, driving him to create his own suit of armor. He made his first public appearance against Stark, a dramatifrontation that brought him to the world's attention. Though he was defeated, he entered into a relut partnership with Justin Hammer. Hammer gave him the idea to attack Tony Stark’s legacy. So, he built the drones and the new suit, each a on aimed to do just that.

  Tyson acted decisively upon emerging from the flood of Ivan Vanko's memories. Projeg a fwless illusion of Mirage charging forward to deliver a knockout blow, he bought himself the crucial moments needed.

  With the illusion iyson grabbed the half-to of the Whipsh suit, hoisting its weight with an effort that tested his remarkable strength but nded within its limits. Breaking into a run, he carried the i form of the real Whipsh suit while maintaining the illusion within the biodome.

  To the gathered heroes, the illusory Mirage approached the crumpled form of the imagined Vanko, fnked by the real Iron Man and Warmae. This clever ploy provided ideal cover as Tysoed the stage of his pn. Using Vanko's memories, he tapped a few ands into the armor, activating the self-destruct sequen all the Hammer drones, careful to exempt the Whipsh suit from this order.

  Across the grounds of the Stark Expo, downed Hammer drones began fshing crimson, heralding their immi obliteration. Rhodey reized the immi explosions and instructed everyoo evacuate. Tyson's illusory Mirage darted away while Iron Man flew off in search of Pepper.

  Tyso his hold on Ivan Vanko. After carrying the armor out of the bst radius of any drones, he sed the Expo grounds, i on finding suitable transportation. His gaze settled on a box truck, used for delivering Expo supplies. Despite the surroundiru, it appeared intact.

  Approag the vehicle, Tyson was relieved to see the keys dangling from the ignition. He hauled operuck's rear door aed the Whipsh armor inside, seg it firmly. With the suit stowed, he turned his attention to Vanko. Still enthralled by Tyson's power, the man stood motionless. Tyson locked his will upon Vanko's mind, imprinting firm instrus to remain ihe truck. Vanko's eyes gzed over as the pulsions took hold, eliminating any ce of disobedience or escape. Tyson nodded, satisfied, and hopped out, closing the back of the trud dashing off to plete his deception.

  — Rogue Rept —

  Tony Stark nded on the rooftop with Pepper Potts after saving the CEO from the self-destrug Hammer drohe final remnants of the drones' fiery self-destru still lit up the night sky, leaving the expo a bonfire, and explosions like fireworks in the night sky.

  Overwhelmed by the harrowis of the evening, Pepper expressed her distress, fear, and frustration irembling voice. "Oh my God, I 't take this anymore," she excimed.

  "You 't?" Tony responded.

  "I 't take this," Pepper reiterated, shaking her head. "My body literally ot hahe stress. I never know if yoing to kill yourself or wreck the whole pany."

  Trying to lighten the mood with his usual fideony replied, "I think I did okay." His ent unctuated by another explosi in the distance.

  But Pepper would not be swayed by his charm this time. "I quit. I'm resigning. That's it," she decred. Her decision was born from the culmination of stress and fear for Tony's well-being over the years.

  Tony blinked in surprise, though perhaps he should not have been taken aback. He studied Pepper's face, seeing the creases of tension and weariness etched there. "You're done?" he asked finally, hearing the faint echo of incredulity in his voice. "That's surprising." A pause. "No, it's not surprising. I get it. You don't have to make excuses."

  Pepper's jaw tightened, her eyes fshing. "I'm not making any excuses," she bit out. Her spine was rigid, her hands ched. She had finally been pushed to a breaking point. She his to be over.

  Tony held up his hands in a pg gesture. "You actually were just making excuses," he pointed out. "But you don't have to. I uand." He kept his tone easy, trying to ease the sudden spike of tensioween them.

  Pepper bristled, color rising in her cheeks. "No, I wasn't making an excuse," she insisted, her voice sharp. "I'm actually very justified in this."

  Tony's expression softehe casual fidence dropping away. "Listen," he said quietly. "Hey. You deserve better. You've taken such good care of me. I've been in a tough spot, but you got me through it. Right?"

  The simple hoy in his words defused Pepper's frustration. "Thank you," she murmured.

  "Yeah."

  A hint of Pepper's usual unfppability returning. "I'll hahe transition," she assured, "It'll be smooth."

  Finally Tony cleared his throat. "Okay, what about the press? Because you only had the job for a week. That's gonna seem..." He trailed off.

  Pepper quipped, "Well with you it's like dog years."

  "I know," he said simply, a wealth of uanding in those two small words.

  Pepper's smile widened slightly, a glimmer of humor returning to her blue eyes. "I mean, it's like the Presidency," she added. The sudden breeze of levity blew away the tension that had crackled between them.

  Uo resist, Tony leaned forward and captured her lips in a tender kiss. As they parted, he murmured, "Weird."

  Pepper shook her head. "No, it's not weird," she insisted.

  "It's okay, right?" Tony couldn't keep a hint of uainty from creeping into his voice as he sought reassurance.

  "Yeah," Pepper affirmed.

  Emboldeony tilted his head towards her. "Run that by me again," he said with a roguish twinkle in his brown eyes. Pepper smiled indulgently as their lips met once more.

  The intimate moment was shattered by a familiar voice. "I think it was weird," James Rhodes ented drily. Tony and Pepper jerked apart, surprise flickering across their faces. They turo see Rhodey still encased in the silver and gual armor of War Mae, sitting nontly with a bowl of pop in his metal-gloved hands. "You guys look like two seals fighting rape," he added.

  Beside Rhodey, Mirage stood casually, also enjoying a bowl of pop. Spider-Man erched on the rooftop's edge, his masked face tilted as he observed the couple with i. It was a surreal sight, the three heroes lounging around amidst the chaotic aftermath of the battle.

  To a flush creep up his neck, embarrassed, but amused at the sight. "Where did you get pop?" he asked, uo keep a note of incredulity from his voice.

  Mirage raised a hand. "I jured it," he replied.

  Tony pyfully suggested to the group, "You should get lost." with a wave of his gaued hand, his tone light despite the ret battle.

  Rhodey, unruffled by the quip, retorted "We were here first. Get a roof," while casually tossing a kernel of pop into his mouth.

  Never oo miss a beat, Tony shot back, "I thought you were out of one-liners."

  "That's the st one," Rhodey replied smoothly, keeping pace with their bad-forth wit.

  "You kicked ass back there, by the way," Tony said, his voice ringing with siy.

  "Thank you," Rhodey responded, dipping his head in appreciation. Then he added, "Listen, my car got taken out in the explosion earlier, so I'm gonna have to hang on to your suit for a minute, okay?"

  Tony, half-jokingly, waved both hands in refusal, "Not okay. Not okay with that," he protested.

  Rhodey stood, brushing pop kernels from his hands, and said firmly, "It wasn't a question." Then with a whine of repulsors, he unched himself into the sky in the borrowed Iron Man armor.

  Mirage stood and tossed his bowl of pop over his shoulder. As it hit the ground, the bowl dispersed into a flutter of butterflies instead of spilling and shattering.

  "Thanks for the invite," he said, "You throw the best parties."

  Tony quipped in response, "Off to see yirlfriend? I 't believe you let me introduce you when you already knew her. I thought I was hooking you up."

  "You did!" Mirage replied enthusiastically. "Your birthday party scored me a date. Good looking out." He paused for a moment, gng around. "But nah, I'm going to give her some space. She likes to py the mysterious one, but that's my bag. We'll see how it goes. Plus a mess like this usually means up or paperwork. I'm not about that life. Tony, Spidey, Miss Potts - Mirage signing off."

  With a final nod of farewell, Mirage's image began to shift and distort. Faint lines appeared across his form as it wavered from side to side. Then, like an old televisio shutting off, his image colpsed in on itself and disappeared pletely.

  As Mirage disappeared, Spider-Man stepped forward, extending his hand towards Tony Stark. "Hi, Mister Stark, I'm Spider-Man, and I'm a huge fan," he introduced himself, uo keep the excitement and respect from his voice.

  Tony csped the young hero's hand and shook it firmly. "I'm a fan of yours too," he replied smoothly. "Anyone who swing around the city in pajamas and still look cool has my respect." Tony's voice took on a more sie as he tinued, "I saw Mirage's show, your story. You're a real hero." It was an ho pliment, aowledging the bravery and vital tributions Spider-Man had made to the city.

  Though Peter was humbled by the words, meeting Tony Stark, a figure he had long admired and looked up to, was a signifit moment for the young hero.

  Until Tony Stark asked, "What's it like fighting vilins in your underoos?"

  AN: For those of you ied in supp my writing.

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