Silence settled upon the small clearing. Six moved as one, the wooden coffin between them. Rhodey and a smattering of Happy’s old boxing friends, and his coach were helping to bring the wood case to its final resting place. A devastated Pepper sat amongst the crowd in the front row, the tears pouring down her face.
The media was abuzz with the criminal exploits of Iron Man, the simultaneous disappearance of Tony Stark, and the revelation that Stark’s longtime friend Happy had been behind the plot. Shortly after the first buzz came the news of Happy’s death in prison at the hands of an unknown visitor. *
*All from the first two issues - Uncanny Scott
Stark Solutions and the Stark Foundation provided all costs for the funeral. As the coffin settled down and the pallbearers moved to their seats, tear stained eyes searched for the one man that had yet to show. Tony and Happy went back a long time, so the fact that Tony had chosen apparently to skip the event entirely. Something was not right.
====================
Warm rays of sunshine bathed the beach as scantily clad women bounced across the sandy landscape. Palm trees swayed in the breeze, casting small bits of shade upon those laid out upon their loungers or towels.
In the middle of all the revelry sat a lone lounger, it’s built and shorts clad owner soaking up the rays. Dark sunglasses covered his eyes as delicate fingers slid through his long hair. Another set of fingers gingerly placed ripe green grapes through the pursed lips. Holding a martini in one hand with a grin on his face Tony Stark was in heaven.
Taking a long sip his eyes drifted from each woman out to the expansive beach and the blue waters beckoning. “Now this is heaven. More grapes ladies, and don’t skimp on the martinis either.” Everything was just right.
Stark Solutions- Seattle Branch
Michael Dawson expected more rain, more than there was really. Everyone seemed to expect the same thing the day they finally visited Seattle. The city was known for its rain, so much so that the amounts tended to become exaggerated over time. Having just transferred from the Stark Solutions branch in New York, it was slightly disappointing in a long chain of disappointments.
Losing his wife to a painter. Evicted from his apartment. Even his dog had died, causing the man to wonder if he was cursed. Then came the offer from higher up to move to Seattle as part of the new security detail. It seemed that Stark was always looking out for the men and women under him, no matter what way they needed it. Course he was far from naïve enough to believe that the big man transferred him because of his life problems, but it was a nice thought to have. Something to comfort in the middle of the night at least, or when times were really tough.
Since Stark and his personal crew moved back to New York it had been more than quiet in the rainy city. No super villains or terrorists calling Iron Man out. Not as many protests against the newest Stark projects. No it seemed that controversy and destruction only followed the boss and his ironclad bodyguard. That in and of itself was a minor blessing in the life of Michael Dawson.
“Easy night, Mikey boy. Just make it thorough a few more hours and there is an ice cold beer and a warm television waiting for ya.” Muttering to himself, the guard settled down into the lone chair in the cramped room. With all the monitors clear for the moment, a bit of shuteye for a few minutes couldn’t really hurt.
No sooner had his eyelids settled, than a massive alarm blasted through the complex. Shooting up, a hand grabbed for the nightstick and gun on his hip. A figure waltzed across the front pathway, hood pulled tightly over their head. Bursts of light emerged from the covered hands, slamming into the perimeter fences and leaving the grounds wide open. As the perimeter guards sprung into action, their actions were for naught. The same beams that decimated the fences sent most of them flying as well as killed quite a few of them. None of their weapons seemed to work on the cloaked individual.
An explosion sounded as the outer walls were breached. Grabbing his weapon tightly, Mike exited the room after making sure to look both ways first. Random sounds of gunfire sounded throughout the halls, along with a few screams and subsequent explosions as well. Turning a corner, the young guard was brought to a stop at the sight of charred corpses and a high level of smoke decorating the hall. Holding the bile back, Mike moved forward. Weapon held high, he moved bravely through the dark smoke. As the smoke cleared the figure stood revealed, their clothing having burned away, revealing a man that looked almost entirely made of some kind of light.
The glowing eyes landed upon Mike and a twisted smile, if one could call it a smile, emerged upon it’s face. The gun wavered as it rose up to aim at the creature. Mike’s finger slipped on the sweat-covered trigger as he took a deep breath. “Freeze! You’re trespassing on Stark Solutions property!” The words sounded hollow, and no doubt they’d be the last he ever uttered. What a waste.
“Stark. Yes. I come bearing a message for Mr. Stark. Perhaps you can leave it for me.” The being moved quickly across the floor, bullets harmlessly slamming into it. The burning hand was around the man’s neck, his feet kicking in protest. “Tell Stark, tell him that his time is up and it’s time to pay the piper. The age of iron is over.”
With a mighty toss the creature lobbed Mike through a window, watching as the guard bounced and then came to a stop. Pain shot through the entire body as the man tried to pull himself to his feet. Bright light filled his eyes as the entire building was bathed in it momentarily, before the entire place exploded. Debris rained down, as the fetal position was assumed. Watching the smoldering ruins that was once the Seattle branch of Stark Solutions, Mike witnessed a streak of light disappear into the night air before the darkness finally overcame him.
Stark Solutions Penthouses, New York
“Business or pleasure?”
The question was an apt one to ask yet redundant at the same time, as there was little doubt of why the tall, non-descript blond man had come calling. When the Sentinel of Liberty came calling, there was the inward urge to leap up at attention. Afterwards came the worrying and wondering why such a recognizable man would come seeking you out. With their relationship, it was easy for Tony to figure why his old friend would decide to show up at such a time.
“I didn’t see you at Happy’s funeral the other day. Pepper was worried.”
A thin laugh emerged, as a hand gripped the almost empty martini glass. “So she sent Captain America? Well the girl always did know when to play her high cards.”
A frown crossed the normally stoic face, eyes staring at the glass and it’s alcoholic contents. After years on the wagon of sobriety, it was disheartening to see a man fall off so easily. To be shaken so much by the loss of his best friend to seek out comfort in the bottle, that didn’t seem like the new Tony that Steve knew. Not the Tony that had kicked the habit after a long struggle.
“You shouldn’t be drinking Tony. You’ve worked too hard to slip now.”
“So the all mighty Captain America is gonna lecture me on a few drinks? Can’t say I’m really shocked Steve. You’re predictable. Always have been. I mean really, the forties are over. Get with the times.”
None of what came from the Iron Avenger’s mouth remotely sounded like him, yet it did at the same time. “What happened to you Tony?”
“Life happened.”
“Happy wouldn’t want you drowning your sorrows and throwing away all your hard work for this. What about Rumiko and Pepper? What about Iron Man?”
The glass fell to the side as its former holder sprang to their feet. “How do I know what Happy wanted? The man I trusted for years. The man I poured my heart out to on numerous occasions. That man betrayed everything we ever had. So I don’t know or care what he would want. He’s dead to me.”
Fury was etched upon every inch of his face, his lip quivering. “As for the rest…none of it matters. Iron Man is dead and gone. Why should I waste my time helping those that waste that extra time in their lives frivolously wasting it? I’m done Steve. Iron Man is dead, and Tony Stark is here to stay and live.”
Stark Solutions - New York Branch
“Were there any survivors?” A hand slid the report back across the table, green eyes rising up with tears brimming. The destruction of an entire branch of the company had been reduced to just a single sheet of paper.
A slight shake of the head was the only answer the young man could give. With a nod and wave of the hand Pepper dismissed the assistant to leave her alone with the report. Living Laser’s, Dr. Arthur Park, message during his attack was troubling. They hadn’t seen the living light super villain in some time. For Park to crawl out of the woodwork now of all times was more than suspicious.
The reports were brushed aside as she could no longer really pay attention to them. Condolences were going out to all the families that had lost someone in the branch destruction. The survivors were being moved to the finest hospitals and receiving top of the line care. It was the least Stark Solutions could do for its employees. It would be what Tony would have done if he were around.
Thoughts of her friend and boss brought a fresh wave of depressing feelings. Tony hadn’t even bothered to show up to Happy’s funeral, and that was quite a distressing fact. After all the two had been through it was out of character for Tony to be so dismissive. Sure Happy had seemingly betrayed him in the end, but all the times before that were still solid and gold. On top of Tony’s odd behavior was the increasing ire of a forgotten girlfriend in Rumiko, who was banging down the door practically everyday demanding time to see Tony. The final concern was Happy’s betrayal itself. Just like Tony’s aforementioned behavior it was out of character. Something strange was going on, and Pepper was at a loss for what it was. It was all too convenient in a way.
With a sigh the papers upon the desk were shuffled and slid aside, as an errant one of the papers fluttered back out onto the desk. As she reached to put it aside, Peppers eye was caught. After his return, Tony had built Stark Solutions from the ground up after learning of the loss of his original Stark Enterprises to the Fujikawa Corporation. Since learning of Stark-Fujikawa, Tony had received daily morning reports on the company’s stock reports and other pertinent information. Sort of like keeping up to date on a child lost in a divorce. The paper before her eyes now was one of those reports.
Listed were the prices for stock in the merged corporation along with plenty of other information. What caught her eye was the massive selling of stock just moments before the destruction of the Seattle branch. The red flag went up instantly. True they were two different companies but the fact that the name Stark was in both tended to blur them together in the public eye. Earlier reports had shown that the hit to Stark Solutions had led to drops in stock prices for both Stark companies. For someone to know to sell their stock before the drop meant more sinister motives. Meaning they knew about the attack.
Scanning down the document more she gasped as the name of the seller became clear. It just wasn’t possible. A hand reached over and hit the intercom button. A brief shot of static was replaced by silence, as the channel was open. “Michael, I need you to send for Ms. Fujikawa. Tell her it’s urgent.”
Penthouses
“Target spotted. Unintended target is within premise as well. Orders?”
“Engage primary target. Deal with secondary target as well.”
“Understood.” A hulking bastardized version of Iron Man stood atop the building across from Tony Stark’s penthouse, three figures standing tall beside them.
The first was a glowing green man wearing an outfit that essentially ended with a skirt. Dr. Chen Lu, The Radioactive Man to most, was a Chinese national given super powers after experimenting with radiation upon himself. Having come to blows many times in his super villain career with Iron Man, Dr. Lu was more than happy to be part of the small strike team.
Beside the glowing doctor stood a man in a full body suit that was blue and white and reminiscent of snow in some regards. Donnie Gill was the super villain aptly named Blizzard. Using technology within the suit, Gill was able to form and control ice to his own whims. Not the first Blizzard that plagued Iron Man, he was the latest and current.
The final member of the group was Arthur Park, the Living Laser. Fresh from the destruction of the Seattle Stark branch, Park was raring to take on Stark once again. It had been quite a long time since the two had crossed paths. Now was the time to rectify that situation. With a curt hand signal the towering armored man motioned for the three to move forward.
Inside as Steve tried to get through to his old friend, the window suddenly shattered inward. The villains poured through the new opening, not even hesitating for a moment before powers flared. A stream of ice struck the spot that Tony had been in just a moment before, yet the industrialist was nowhere to be seen. Rolling behind an expensive and ornate couch, he avoided the blasts easily. Continuing to move a cringe lit up his face as the couch was demolished. Well there goes money well spent.
A beam of light and one of radiation slammed into the raised shield of Captain America. With practiced ease the living legend flung the shield at his attackers. Gliding straight through Laser, the item ricocheted off the far wall just to come back and slam into Chen Lu in the head. The Radioactive man sprawled across the floor with a groan.
Before the shield could return to it’s bearer the armored man grasped it from the air and flung it aside to the ground. The only way to it was to go through the man. Eying his fallen weapon, Steve surged forward with Olympic level grace and speed. Diving up through its arms he almost reached his target before force yanked upon his ankle. Sent flying across the room, Steve tucked and rolled before slamming into the far wall.
“You cannot defeat us Captain. We know all there is to know about you and our target. Today is the day Tony Stark will die. But first he will watch you die.” Before he could recover, the star spangled hero found himself held up by the throat. Gasping and sputtering for air, he couldn’t find any leeway to free himself as Laser and Chen Lu secured his arms and legs. “Today is the day Captain America dies as well. Soon America will follow.”
====================
Fingers tapped impatiently upon the desktop as the papers are pushed back once again. Fury is evident upon the reader’s face, anger close to just boiling over at any second. “You’re going to tell me you actually believe that I went out of my way to sell my stock before an attack upon Tony’s company to make money?”
“The facts don’t lie, Rumiko.”
Pepper ignored the glare as her eyes remained trained upon the woman seated across from her. Documents and information could be forged, something Pepper was quite familiar with, yet something about this didn’t seem that cut and dry. No doubt Rumiko had nothing really to do with it but whoever did wanted Pepper and others to assume as much. Until their identity stood revealed the game would have to be played. Otherwise the trail could easily go cold.
“You mean the same facts that prove that your ex-husband betrayed his best friend before his death?”
Two pairs of anger-filled eyes met as the woman behind each pair tried to reign it all in. Sure releasing it upon the other woman would bring them both joy, but it would come no closer to proving any accusations or declarations of innocence. “Don’t tempt me.”
The lithe Asian woman shook her head as she stood. “And what does Tony have to say about these accusations? Since he doesn’t have the guts to come to me. Spends the night in my bed, then never calls again. Not that I should be surprised. The man is too damn hung up over you to really care about another.”
Shock was plastered across Pepper’s face as the words came out. They had been down the road before a long time ago. Yet there it was now brought back to the surface. Thoughts whirled and recalled the conversation with Happy weeks before about her and Tony. Could the man really still harbor some feelings for her somewhere? Shaking it all away, she had no time to dwell on high school drama type issues; the shock was washed away to be replaced with a stern face.
“Doesn’t matter what Tony has to say. I’m here, presenting it to you.”
The door opened as the head of a young blond haired man poked in. Looking around feverishly, a scared look was painted upon his features as eyes finally settled upon Pepper. “Ms. Potts, there are reports of some incident at the company penthouses. They say the top floor was attacked by a bunch of super villains. Shall we send out a call for Iron Man?”
Captain America had been sent there to bring Tony back to Earth, was the only thought in Pepper’s mind. Kind of hard to bring Iron Man in when the man himself was trapped in that very room. “No, Michael. I’ll put the call in. Contact the proper authorities.”
“Yes, ma’am.” With that the head was gone and the door closed again.
“Rumiko…we’ll deal with this later. I have more pressing concerns to deal with.”
The woman waved a hand dismissively. “No we are done with this. I must take my leave regardless, pressing matters have come up. We will not speak of this again Pepper, as you may tell Tony we’re through. Any relationship between us or our companies died here today.”
The raven-haired woman moved through the door, slamming it closed behind herself. As soon as the door was closed Pepper dashed across the room and opened a secret panel upon the wall. A code beeped in as she pressed the keys. Another panel slid open revealing a secret compartment. Smiling at what was inside she slid in just as the door sealed shut behind.
====================
A yell went up as the armored hands were smashed away from Captain America’s throat. Tony stood over the fallen hero, star spangled shield in hand, his chest heaving from being out of breath. How the man could heft the shield around at all times was beyond Tony. True he wore a couple hundred pound heavy suit of armor upon his body, but the weight was evenly distributed as well as easily negated by technology.
“Guess you owe me one, Cap.” Tossing the shield down the man moved across the room again fully intent upon returning to the wet bar.
“Stark!” The voice rumbled from deep within the armored man, as he stood tall once again. “You will pay for that!”
“Yeah, yeah, send a memo to my secretary.”
As Cap tried to regain his strength and jump back into the fight, the group of villains began surging upon the clearly uninterested Tony Stark. Just steps away, the ground exploded before them in a barrage of repulsor fire. Leaping back the armored figure glared up at the newest arrival. Gold and red shined in the light as repulsor jets settled the second armored figure into the middle of the room. Energy crackled from Iron Man’s hands as he stood between the villains and Stark.
Looks of shock were painted across both the villains and Cap’s faces. Raising a glass of scotch towards the fight, Stark just laughed. “Who saw that one coming?”
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Next Issue: Another Iron Man? Return of the Iron Monger? What the heck is up with Pepper and Rumiko? Find out next issue!