Ch. 7 - Dangerous Territory
Strange Visitor: Iron Before Steel
Chapter 7 – Dangerous Territory
July 12th, 2009 – Stark Residence – Malibu, CA
Pepper Potts skillfully descended the steps toward Tony Stark’s basement workshop, a file in hand as an excuse if needed. Still, mostly, she had decided to show up at his home unannounced so that she could finally confront him over his… unusual… behavior of late.
He’d been different since he came home from his captivity, but that was to be expected. She knew he wasn’t seeing his therapist, despite what she and everyone else told him, and that didn’t surprise her either. Concerned her, terrified her, yes. But surprised, not at all.
Tony was complicated. He was brilliant, driven, compassionate (though most people didn’t ever see that side of him), and loyal to a fault. Her new friend Yinson was a fantastic testament to that. Tony took paying off a debt to an unparalleled level for most people. He’d created an entirely new division of Stark Industries to put the man who saved his life to work in a job that “was befitting the station of a saint, hero, and man who could make a decent cup of coffee in the middle of nowhere” as he’d said at the press conference announcing the Stark Med Tech Division.
Pepper hoped that the board would allow it to proceed. It was one of the best decisions Tony made after he got home. There was a ton of potential in the medical technology sector, both in a business and humanitarian sense, that SI hadn’t explored before. Tony could make a difference there and make up a good chunk of the value the company had lost when they shuttered weapons manufacturing.
Which was a lot since Stark Industries was a weapons manufacturer.
But they could be more! The board had to see that. Pepper knew something had happened between Tony and Obediah at the party since neither had spoken yesterday, as far as she knew. And Stane was now part of the faction pushing to have Tony declared mentally unfit for his position! That she hadn’t seen coming. Those two were always like family. It was tough to see them struggling like this. She could see how Tony’s behavior was concerning, but with Obi trying to freeze him out like that? It just didn’t make sense to her.
The party. Ugh. It was so unexpected. And embarrassing and electric and… weird.
It started so awkwardly. She hadn’t felt comfortable at all dressing up like that. She had always preferred to stay to the side, quietly keeping things from falling apart. That was what she did best. Pepper didn’t know what had come over her to wear that gown and to play the part of Cinderella for the evening.
That was a lie. She knew.
The look on Tony’s face when he saw her for the first time that night was all the reason she needed. She wanted him to look at her like… something to be desired for once. She’d dealt with the aftermath of way too many conquests for Tony as his assistant, and she knew better than to fall for a man who needed an Excel spreadsheet to keep track of the number of women who would throw a drink in his face if they ever ran into him again.
But she also knew the real Tony. The one who was hiding all the pain and anguish and shame of the things that had been done in his name and wanted to atone for that. She knew the man behind the mask.
And he was someone worth falling for. She could admit that.
But until that party, she hadn’t thought she’d ever had a chance to draw his attention like she had that night. And it felt glorious. She could admit that, too.
Who knows what might have happened if that trailer park tramp reporter hadn’t shown up and ruined everything? Tony had left her waiting for that vodka with olives, vanishing into the night. She’d found out from Happy that he'd had a confrontation with Miss Whatever from Channel K-Trash and then found out about Obi as he was leaving.
Talk about a one-two punch.
She was going to scold Tony severely for leaving her without a word, though. Who did he think she was? She was right. He wouldn’t last five minutes without her to walk him through his day. Yet another reason getting involved with him would be a titanic mistake.
She filed that away to be dissected in more detail later.
As she reached the bottom of the stairs, she was surprised by the crunching of glass, seeing glittering shards scattered everywhere about the workshop floor. The reason, shockingly enough, was that two of the full-size plate glass windows at the entrance to Tony’s workshop had been destroyed.
This was new. She could hear Tony inside arguing with someone about… Tony stuff, she guessed from the chatter.
She carefully stepped through one of the open windows, no sense bothering with the door, and maintained her balance in the heels she wore. She didn’t spend ridiculous amounts of money on her outfits, but her Louboutin heels were a soft spot. No scratches, please.
After she stepped through, what she saw brought her to a stop and literally stole the breath out of her lungs.
JARVIS was admonishing Tony as he struggled to get out of some sort of… suit of armor! He was suspended several feet in the air as four robotic arms struggled to remove the suit while Tony flailed and complained. A large man stood nearby, between her at the door and the shop floor.
What in the name of God is going on here?
That was almost exactly what she decided to ask Tony. “What’s going on here?” The man to her left jumped at the unexpected arrival, uncrossing his arms and taking a small step away from the staring strawberry-blonde.
Still struggling in the suit with JARVIS chirping at him, Tony half turned to look at her over his shoulder. He paused for a second, likely thinking up some ridiculous excuse for whatever was happening, before he shrugged and replied, “Let’s face it, this is not the worst thing you’ve caught me doing.”
Pepper blinked at his casual dismissal of the current state of affairs. The man to her left scoffed and spoke.
“Is it in the top five? I bet that list would be one hell of a story. I’m not sure I’d want to hear it, though. No, that’s not true. I do want to hear it.”
The large dark-skinned man standing nearby was chuckling as he commented, distracting Pepper from her appraisal of Tony’s condition. Are those bullet holes?
“I’m sorry, I don’t think we’ve been properly introduced yet. I’m Tony’s assistant, who will be getting the full story about exactly what the hell is happening here momentarily, Pepper Potts. I assume you are one of our two new employees that Tony recently added to the company directory?”
The man looked surprised and pleased at the revelation. He must not have known who she was. Pepper glanced back at Tony, who was now out of the suit and retreating toward the back of the room.
“Oh! Yeah, sorry, Ms. Potts. Thank you for making everything so easy for me and my little girl! And our neighbors as well. I didn’t expect Tony to make that happen when my little Natalia said she wasn’t going without her friend. I’m still a little embarrassed about that, to be honest. John H. Irons, but my friends call me Hank. After all the trouble you went to moving us down to Long Beach so quickly, it’s the least I can do.”
The man had a firm handshake that she matched, but she was surprised at how gentle his grip was. He gave her a bright, genuine smile that she couldn’t help but return, even in her current surprised state.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Irons. Hank. It was no problem. Tony clarified that getting you, your family, and friends here was a top priority. I didn’t understand why it was a priority until just now. So you’ve got some engineering experience, I see. I wasn’t sure where he planned to have you working. I know Mrs. Williams was put in HR and Mr. Williams in the garage. I hope that they are doing well also.”
It had taken her the better part of two weeks, but she had found a pair of homes for sale in an exclusive neighborhood of Long Beach. The houses were out of the price range for most people but barely showed up on Tony’s radar. He also liked that they were on the water, so he’d arranged for Irons to own a small speed boat. Tony had said it would help him avoid traffic on the highway, which wasn’t wrong. What would have taken over an hour by road could be traveled in 15 minutes by boat. Well, more like 25 for someone who doesn't drive like Tony.
“Yes, all of us are doing quite well. The girls are excited about school, too! I can’t believe Tony bought us both houses on Naples Island. I had to talk the Williams into accepting. If I’d been doing a job at Stark Industries instead of working on Tony’s project directly, I don’t think I would have said yes.”
Pepper nodded at that. Hank seemed like a good sort. And a family man, too. She’d have to make sure Tony didn’t corrupt him.
“I get that, believe me. Tony has more money than sense, so this is one of the better expenditures I’ve taken part in on his behalf. I’d be happy to humiliate him by telling you about some of the others, too, at some point. But before we do that, I need to yell at Tony because I’m pretty sure I saw bullet holes in that… whatever it was that he was just wearing. TONY! Where are you!?”
Irons flinched at her shout and held up both hands as he backed away. She could see a woman’s fury properly cowed him, so he must have been married or close to it at some point.
A shouted response told her that Tony had moved into the connected lab through the frosted glass door at the side of his workshop. It was time for a reckoning. She needed to know what Tony had been up to with his latest antics and what he intended. It terrified her that he seemed intent on placing himself in mortal danger to make up for his past mistakes.
No matter what, it was time to take a step back and reflect on their personal feelings. How could she express them properly toward a man who might just be set on getting himself killed? The fact that he was her boss had fallen far down the list of impediments to potential happiness in her thoughts.
“If you will excuse me, Mr. Irons, I need to have several words with my employer. Some of them might even be repeatable.”
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July 20th, 2009 - Lower East Side Manhattan, New York
504 Grand St – Moishe’s Kosher Bakery
“Alright. I admit it: this strudel is the best pastry I’ve ever had. I’m gonna need about six more before we leave. CK, you can never tell my mom. Or yours.” Pete Ross quickly took another large bite out of the berry pastry that he was demolishing as they sat outside the small bakery on Grand Street.
“See! See! What did I tell ya? Always trust Ol’ Ben for the best places ta eat in New York. You see how big I am? There’s a reason fer it, fellas.” Ben Grimm crowed back in triumph as he took down his own babka almost as hastily.
Clark grinned as he glanced between his two friends. Who’d have thought he’d be eating an afternoon snack while hanging out with the man who would be Thing one day? That thought made Clark frown for a moment.
He’d never really followed the Fantastic Four comics, so he only knew the basics, but one thing he did recall was how miserable Ben Grimm ended up when he became a hero. Was that something Clark should try to do something about?
The thought had come to him more than once. But it always ended up being pushed away, other situations and crises coming up and taking his focus elsewhere. Sitting here with the man himself on the curb as they enjoyed an afternoon rest brought it to the forefront of his mind again. And again, there was no easy answer forthcoming.
The truth was, there likely wouldn’t be anything he could do for Ben, at least not anytime soon. He had no idea when the incident would take place or, more importantly, how. It seemed unlikely that this iteration of the characters would be altered by ‘cosmic rays’ or some other such comic book nonsense. The characters hadn’t been introduced when Clark was still living his old life, so the most he would be able to do was try and warn Ben off of going along on whatever doomed mission would inevitably pop up.
And like Tony Stark’s captivity, Clark wasn’t even sure it was the right thing to do. The world might one day need the Thing. What if this world’s version of Thanos was destined to fall beneath Ben’s rock-like hands?
Clark could only swallow the rising guilt at the thought of being unable to help a friend or prevent his suffering and try to soldier on.
“What’s the problem over there, farm boy?” It appeared Ben had noticed Clark’s emotional turmoil and distraction.
“Hmm? Oh, nothing. Just thinking about an issue I’ve been having with my latest chapter. You know, work? Must be nice not to have to worry about that, huh, you guys?” Clark teased back with an effortless lie. It wasn’t really a lie because he had been having an issue with his latest book. It was harder to remember things clearly from his last life, as opposed to his almost perfect recall in this one. His new book suffered a bit from that as he struggled to remember all of the plot points.
“Ha! Shut up, CK! You work about as hard as we do; don’t be jealous! You know I get some money each month from the Army? I’d say I’ve earned it,” Pete grinned as he tapped his metal leg. He sent a wink to Grimm, who was also a veteran.
The big man grinned back. “Yeah, Clarky. I work. It’s just irregular hours. My buddy Stretch uses me when he needs me to test some of his ideas. It’s a livin’.” Clark knew Grimm was far more intelligent than most people realized. He’d met Reed Richards in college, both in the comics and here in this world. Afterward, he’d done a tour in the Air Force as a pilot.
Those piloting skills would be what led him to his fate one day.
“Now that ya mention it, Stretch just hit me up about a new idea he’s had. A new engine, using gravity or somethin’. Says it will move a ship through space faster than light, like on Star Trek. I told him if he can build it, I can fly it. Ain’t this a helluva world we live in, boys? Angry green giants that knock down buildings, hooded heroes who can run faster than bullets, flying metal men who wreck up illegal arms depots, and now my buddy talkin’ about takin’ us to other stars and things. It’s an age of miracles upon us, I tell ya!”
Clark coughed as his previous thought had proved almost prophetic.
Pete covered the silence with an awed response. “Damn, Ben. That sounds cool as hell. Maybe you can see if your buddy has an extra seat on that flight.” Pete laughed at that, but Clark didn’t find it nearly as funny for reasons only he knew.
Well, shit. As if I didn’t have enough things to worry about.
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August 3rd – 2009, Triskelion, Washington, D.C
Training Floor Gym Locker Rooms
Natasha Romanov finished tying her standard white training sneakers with a flourish before pulling her constantly growing hair back into a ponytail. She wouldn’t admit it, but she rather liked how her hair looked at this length. It was just past her shoulders now, resting between her shoulder blades. It wasn’t so long as to be a problem during ops or to prevent her from getting into a wig should one of SHIELD’s undercover missions call for it.
It made her feel free to wear it like she wanted for a change.
She looked to the lockers where Agents Carter, Drew, and Harcourt were also finishing getting into their sparring wardrobes. Melinda May was already fully dressed and leaning against a locker nearby as she listened to the conversation among the collected agents. Bobbi Morse was still halfway dressed beside her, smirking at whatever Maria Hill said. Nat had missed it in her moment of personal contemplation – she needed to watch that. Sloppiness and inattention are fatal in this line of work.
“You heard me. Fury told the boys of Strike to stay out of the gym today so that we wouldn’t have to worry about Rollins staring at our asses while we stretched. Probably because he heard about Nat threatening to break his nose the next time she caught him doing it.” Hill laughed loudly as she shared why it was a no-males-allowed day on the mats.
“Thank God. I can usually ignore it, but he’s been extra creepy lately, right? Does anyone know why that is? Other than the fact that no normal woman would ever willingly allow him to touch her without payment up front?” Morse snickered back. That got a reaction from Harcourt.
“He’s been focused on Agent Romanov ever since someone let it slip that Natalia was her given name. After that incident downtown with ‘Madame Natalia’ last year, he’s been very…with his attention. Frankly, I think Nat should push him out of the next quinjet they’re on together. Fury would let it slide for her, I’d bet.” The agent grinned at Natasha, indicating she was joking. Natasha knew there was more than a bit of truth to her suggestion as well.
And she wasn’t against it. Rollins had been an issue lately. If someone else didn't do something, Natasha was more than willing to take the heat for injuring the budding stalker. Rumlow may have been a greasy pig, too, but he was more than willing to take no for an answer and kept his glances from attracting attention.
“If it isn’t Nat, it’s Jessica who he's creeping on. Even Sitwell yelled at him last week for not keeping his eyes on task. How bad is it when Sitwell calls you out?” Sharon Carter added.
Jessica Drew tossed her long black hair over her shoulder, also tied in a tight ponytail, and nodded before turning to the last member of the room. “At least you don’t usually have to spend much time around the Strike Team, Gemma. I’ve never been more jealous of anyone than you when I’m stuck in a quinjet after a mission, and it smells like Rumlow and Rollins have been wrestling in a pig trough. And that’s being unkind to the pigs.”
Nat watched as Gemma grinned, blushing slightly as the agents' attention fell on her. Gemma was here for her yearly physical evaluation; for the rest, it was just another day between missions.
The task force hadn’t made much progress in tracking down their superhuman quarry. Fury had started sending them back out regularly on missions once Stark had been recovered. Barton had said it was just about like old times. The search for the Marvel was still a live wire humming in the background, though.
She thought back to that day, almost seven months now, when she’d frozen in the face of a nightmare. She was sure she’d be dead now if the unknown interloper hadn’t appeared from almost nowhere. She almost felt guilty that she’d put an entire clip into the person on reflex, but she didn't worry too much since there’d been no blood at the scene. Not a single fucking drop.
Her attention had wandered again. She found it happening increasingly often, mainly where the Marvel was concerned. She felt like there was a debt there. Which, after Barton, was the last thing she wanted.
Hill’s voice drew her back into the conversation. “The metal man struck again yesterday. I just got out of a briefing with Fury about it. Two more weapons stashes were obliterated—one in Eastern Turkey and another in Iran across the border. I don’t know who this guy is, but he’s giving us some free time with all this heavy lifting. Fury, of course, wants him signed up.” Hill laughed at that, as did most of those present - Nat included.
Fury always wanted the best people to work for him. She felt something warm in her chest at the thought of being included. Natasha pushed that feeling away to be analyzed later.
Melinda May finally spoke up. “The news has been calling him ‘The Iron Man’ lately. The Post in New York has a hundred-thousand-dollar reward for his identity. The reward on the Marvel is half a million now for a picture of his face.”
Morse continued. “The Daily Bugle is calling both of them fascists. Again.”
Harcourt snorted at that. “The Bugle calls everyone a fascist.”
Hill couldn’t resist. “Anyone want to bet on which one of them gets outed first? The Marvel or Iron Man?”
May rolled her eyes, Bobbi laughed, Carter and Drew both shared a quick look like they were considering it, Harcourt shook her head and muttered something about sucker bets, all while Gemma Simmons looked back and forth in confusion. Nat smirked before offering her own two cents.
"Sounds to me like you know something, Hill. Where’s Coulson? He’s been out of town for a few days now, hasn’t he?”
Hill didn’t miss a beat. “He’s still trying to debrief Stark. Fury told him not to return until they got his full report on the Ten Rings and Afghanistan. At this rate, we might not see Phil again until the New Year.”
Natasha laughed a little at that. From what she’d seen, trying to keep Tony Stark on a leash was a lost cause. It was no wonder the man had never had a serious relationship. It was doubtful he could find a woman to put up with him for more than one night. She could only feel relief that she wasn’t the one tasked with keeping an eye on Stark. She wasn’t sure whether either of them would survive that encounter.
“Poor Coulson. That’s what happens when you get a reputation for being too pleasant. You get sent to deal with all the problem children.”
Hill’s smile got wider. “Well, it's a good thing neither of us has ever been called ‘too pleasant,’ huh Romanoff? I’m feeling like today’s my lucky day. Twenty bucks say I put your ass on the mat first today.”
Romanoff’s smirk only got sharper as she nodded in acceptance of the challenge.
Easy money.
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August 17th, 2009 - Paradise Ranch – Groom Lake, Nevada
USAF Testing Facility “Area 51”
Alexander Pierce threw down the report, photos spilling out of the manilla folder as they scattered across the table.
“You’re telling me this isn’t us? This is not part of ‘Steel Soldier’ or a derivative of Weapons Plus that we’ve been running. How the hell is that possible?”
Major John Corben, nominally of the United States Air Force but really a loyal soldier of Hydra, could only nod his head hesitantly in confirmation.
"Correct, Mr. Secretary. The US Government is not affiliated with the individual who created this unknown weapons platform. You are correct in your assessment that much of this technology was theorized or practically built for Steel Soldier ten years ago, but we couldn't take it beyond short and controlled testing. This is way beyond where we are, even now, with the reopened Steel Soldier. We don’t have any idea who this is. We aren’t even sure it's a man in a suit. Half of our analysts swear it has to be a drone. I’m of the opinion that the tech needed to pilot this thing safely doesn’t exist. Or at least we aren’t aware of it if it does.”
The two men had to be careful about how they spoke. They couldn’t appear to be anything other than concerned citizens and government officials in the face of a potentially terrifying new weapons system. The Air Force administered the facility, but HYDRA had its tentacles in every project on the base. They just weren’t alone here. They had to be precisely who they appeared to be, as they couldn’t be sure who was listening in any given room. Pierce was here in his capacity as Secretary of the World Security Council. He had to go beyond American concerns, officially, and into the diplomatic arena due to the emergence of this ‘Iron Man’.
A weapon like this could destabilize the entire global balance of power.
Which was exactly why HYDRA wanted it in the first place. Someone else had just beaten them to it.
Corben collected the report from across the table, tucking the photos and notes into the folder. Pierce spoke again.
“How long is the list of people we know who could do this? A dozen? Two?”
Corben thought briefly, running through the names and countries in his head. Finally, he gave a curt nod and agreed with the offered numbers. “I’m unaware of more than two dozen people with a combination of intelligence, resources, and, most importantly, the motivation to do so. The usual suspects will be on it. Luthor, Richards, Stark. I’d say Hammer, but I don’t think he’s capable. Kord doesn’t seem the type to be interested. If you want, I can put together something more comprehensive. Give me twelve hours, and I’ll have it in front of you.”
Pierce stopped pacing and turned. His eyes bore into Corben’s own, a fervor and perhaps even desperation shining behind them. “We’ve lost too much. We are falling behind and can’t afford to fall further back.” What they had lost over the years and who went unsaid. Johan Schmidt, Arnim Zola (at least in the flesh), the remade Erskine serum, Weapon Ten, the Winter Soldier… the list was long.
They couldn’t afford to fall behind someone else, not if their plans were to be made a reality.
“Get me the names. We’ll task some agents to look into it as soon as possible. My old friend Nick Fury would be happy to have the gloves off in this. I want that suit. The world may depend on it.”