The Reality of Life with a Superhero (Part 4)
Story: The Reality of Life with a Superhero (Part 4)
Author: saichick
Challenge: Stark 100
Theme: 068 Trap
Rating: PG-13 (action/violence)
Timeline: post-IM2 (spoilers)
Preview: Iron Man and the Avengers get more than they bargained for in Myanmar.
Note: This is a continuation of “The Reality of Life with a Superhero.” I watched IM2 again this weekend and noticed how badly the plot dragged in certain places (and also the uncontrollable urge to slap the screen writer who cut the Tony/Pepper kissing scene I waited two years for short with pre-pubescent humor). Wish I had it on DVD to fast-forward past the boring (just about everything to do with Justin Hammer) parts and get to either the action or the drama. Since I don’t wish to repeat the mistakes of the screenwriters, I’m going to intersperse themes from the LJ Stark 100 challenge into this thread so I can explore Tony’s blossoming superhero friendships (and how this affects Pepper) and also blow a few things up J. I hope this isn’t a breach of fanfiction ethics!!! I promise I’ll get back to the Pepperony fluff soon!
Wagner’s “Ride of the Valkyries” blared in Tony Stark’s helmet as the Avengers sped towards Senior General Than Shwe’s military hidden in the mountainous border between Myanmar and Thailand. Tony had never been into classical music, but he had to admit Thor’s taste in heavy-metal battle epics wasn’t’ bad. Rhodey aka War Machine flew right beside him. Black Widow rode in Captain America’s tricked-out red, white and blue Harrier Gr9A. The Hulk rode a rocket device resembling a jet ski. As for Thor, he was already waiting for them at the assigned rendezvous point. When you can travel as fast as a bolt of lightening, everybody else is always playing catch-up. Tony made a mental note to stick Thor under the scanner when they got back and explore the physics behind his unusual ability.
Nick Fury’s voice growled over the console. “Okay, kids, intel says Than Shwe’s got the missiles hidden in a warehouse located in the center of the complex. A holographic image of the compound with the target highlighted appeared inside Tony’s helmet. “Satellite recon shows three Type- 90 Twin-35mm antiaircraft guns here, here, and here.” The three targets lit up on his screen.
“So nice of the Chinese to arm our fanatical little friend,” Captain America retorted sarcastically.
“Our friends the Chinese deny selling arms to Myanmar,” Fury sarcastically replied, the word “friends” spat out as though it were dog crap.
“Yeh, right…” Captain America responded.
“JARVIS,” Tony asked. “Access the Seraphim tactical satellite and run an infra-red heat signature scan inside all buildings”
“Yes, Sir,” JARVIS replied. A moment later, “Sir, I’m registering an unusual number of heat signatures inside the building immediately adjacent to the target. I’m also picking up an unusual energy signature.” The relevant information appeared on his screen.
“What is it?” Tony asked.
“I’m not sure, sir. I’ve never come across anything like it, and a search of all databases does not turn up any matches,” stated JARVIS.
“Upload the image to Fury and see what he thinks of it,” Tony directed JARVIS. “Hey, Fury, do have any idea what the heck that is?”
“Never seen anything like it,” Fury replied. Just then, a crack of lightning appeared off to his left and Thor appeared in the sky.
“What’s taking you guys?” Thor teased. “My stomach’s growling.” Lightning flashed once again and Thor disappeared. Although Thor’s hammer enabled him to teleport between destinations faster than a bolt of lightning, he was no more capable of unaided flight than the rest of them.
“Let’s tighten up this formation,” Captain America ordered, “we’re about to make our presence known to the enemy. Thor … it’s time.” Being the oldest and most experienced member of the Avengers initiative, Fury usually assigned him to be team leader.
“Let me know when you’re 5000 feet from target,” Thor answered.
“Roger,” Captain America replied. “3, 2, 1, NOW!!!”
Just as the Burmese sentries turned towards the noise of multiple jet engines appearing out of the mist, Thor appeared in their midst as a bolt of lightning zapped them unconscious with the electrostatic discharge. “JARVIS, remind me to look into how he does that when I get back,” Tony murmured as he and War Machine executed the complicated hand-thruster movement which enabled them to switch over from flying to landing.
The Harrier jet slowed in front of the building and executed its complicated vertical landing maneuver. As the canopy opened, Black Widow threw a miniaturized pulse grenade at two Burmese soldiers running at the plane while leaping, cat like, out of the plane. The Hulk coasted to a stop in his jet-ski while Iron Man and War Machine floated down to the ground with a thunk. Captain America grabbed his iron-vibranium shield and ordered, “Hulk, we need you to break down that door.”
“Y-e-e-s-s,” the Hulk grunted and lumbered over to the steel door. In his Hulk guise, Bruce Banner was a creature of few words. Wham, wham, wham, they were in.
A group of Burmese soldiers rushed towards them from inside the building. The Hulk picked one up and threw him, bowling alley style, into the remaining soldiers, knocking them to the ground. Black Widow threw another pulse grenade, rendering them unconscious. Enemy casualties during a mission were inevitable, but the Avengers had agreed long ago they would use non-lethal force unless absolutely necessary. They were superheroes, not butchers!
“Mr. Stark,” JARVIS interrupted. “My sensors show that that unusual energy signature I detected earlier has just entered the building. Also, the human heat signatures my infra red scanners detected earlier are converging upon the building.”
“Thanks, JARVIS,” Tony replied. “Please keep me updated.” Over his intercom Tony shouted, “Kids … it looks like we’re about to have company!”
A Burmese soldier leapt out of a closet at Black Widow as they walked past. He watched her execute her signature spinning takedown that combined a swing-dance-like twirl around the body of her target with a judo gatame to render the guard unconscious.
“Nice job,” he murmured. Tony was totally committed to Pepper, but he had to admit he enjoyed watching the cat like Black Widow in action. Maybe he could get her to teach Pepper a few moves? Images of Pepper wrestling him helplessly to the floor of his boxing ring and then doing erotic things to his body interrupted his concentration.
WHAM!!! A Burmese guard whacked him with a steel pipe. “Pay attention, Iron Man!” Captain America ordered. As soon as the Hulk finished pounding down the next door, War Machine fired a smoke grenade into the next room for cover as they all rushed inside.
“Mr. Stark,” JARVIS stated. “My sensors show that unusual heat signature is in this room.”
Smoke made visibility poor as the superheroes rushed inside. As the smoke began to clear, they saw two steel flatbed trucks carrying large … “Pipes???” Thor asked, puzzled. “They’re empty steel pipes. Where the f**k are the missiles?”
“Vedy astute observaaation,” a sinister voice hissed from the murk. “Now!”
Tony started to think to himself, “now … what,” but the sound of steel blast doors sliding down over the doorway they had just punched through and blocking their escape. “It’s a trap!!!” he shouted.
“Sir, my sensors show the heat signatures are also in the room,” JARVIS stated.
“At lassst ve meet, Tony Stark,” the sinister voice continued. Tony stood there, momentarily frozen as a garishly robed figure walked, no, floated towards their position. Part of Tony’s mind wondered how the robed man could float without any sign of pulse reactor technology. “I haf soo veen looking forvad to meeeting you.” The robed figure turned towards his left and shouted, “Now!”
Dozens of armed soldiers swarmed on their position like a swarm of killer bees. So much for non-lethal combat. Tony blasted one after the other with his hand-pulse weapons while War Machine blasted them with his machine gun. “Tony,” War Machine shouted, “cover me while I go after that circus freak!”
Tony fired punched one guard into the wall and then pulsed two shots at the guards standing on either side of the robed figure. War Machine walked towards the robed figure, but the robed figure stretched out his hand and somehow lifted him off the ground as though Rhodey were trapped on a fishing line. The robed figure laughed. Part of Tony’s mind filed the image away in his mental “research physics later” folder while another part focused on knocking the daylights out of the two guards who rushed at him.
The Hulk concentrated his efforts on bashing down the steel blast doors that were blocking their escape. Wham, wham, wham, he pounded. Black Widow was busy taking down 6 guards while Thor teleported outside and back again in a bolt of lightning. “I don’t see another way out,” Thor apprised them as he rematerialized in their midst. Suddenly, the robed figure stretched out his other hand and Thor’s lightning bolts began some sort of feedback loop on itself, trapping him in his own electromagnetic field. Captain America pulled out his shield, took aim, and threw it at the robed figure.
The robed figure reached his hands towards the shield and it … shattered. The Avengers stood there, dumbstruck. “That’s impossible,” Captain American stated in disbelief. “Nothing can break that shield.”
“Zats vere you are vrong, little superhero,” the robed figure hissed. “Your puny veapons are no match for meee.”
Tony noticed that when the robed figure had turned to blast Captain America’s shield, he had released War Machine and Thor from whatever power he had been using to hold them. “Good,” he noted to himself. Obviously wielding whatever technology it was the robed figure possessed required a degree of concentration. He could use that.
“Hulk,” he shouted. “We need you to make a new door!” The gigantic green figure grunted acknowledgement and lurched over towards one of the walls. Tony looked to his side and saw both War Machine and Thor were recovering and getting back on their feet.
As Captain America recovered from his momentary disbelief, he barked orders at the team. Black Widow threw one of her larger electromagnetic pulse grenades at the robed figure while Captain America picked up one of the guns dropped by the Burmese soldiers and fired at him. Tony moved into position behind the robed figure while War Machine fired a miniaturized RX missile at him. An opening to the outside was beginning to form in the wall the Hulk was smashing away at. Given the opening the Captain had created, Thor rushed in with his war hammer and swung it with all his might. The robed figure reached threw out both his hands and stopped the hammer dead in its tracks. It didn’t explode as Captain America’s shield had, but it didn’t move any further, either.
Tony noticed that holding Thor’s hammer in suspension appeared to require every bit of the robed figures concentration. Taking his opportunity, he shouted, “everybody down!!!” He spun and fired his on-shot laser weapon, cutting everything in the room above 3 feet tall in half. The robed figure screamed as though in agonizing pain and released Thor’s hammer.
“Do you think you caan hurt mee, Tonee Stark” the figure hissed as he straightened up, unharmed.
Tony filed the image away in his mental “research the physics later” folder. He fired his pulse weapon, but the figure swung his hands around as though he were doing a roundhouse block and deflected the pulse. Another “research physics later” topic. All of a sudden the robed figure stretched out his hand and lifted him off the ground, making a crushing motion with his fist. Tony screamed as his armor began crushing into his body like a ball of tin foil. He felt some force attempting to rip his arc reactor out of his chest. JARVIS went offline and he could hear the hydraulics in his suit whine as they resisted and came apart. His chest constricted and several ribs snapped as the robed figure hissed, “I caan crushhh you like a bug.”
As Tony slid towards unconsciousness, he noticed Black Widow circling around behind the figure and spring at him like a black panther. He stayed conscious just long enough to see the Hulk come from the other side and bash the crap out of the robed man before he was dropped unceremoniously to the floor.
He faded in and out of consciousness for the next several days. Sometimes he thought he was back in the cave, back in Afghanistan.
Author: saichick
Challenge: Stark 100
Theme: 068 Trap
Rating: PG-13 (action/violence)
Timeline: post-IM2 (spoilers)
Preview: Iron Man and the Avengers get more than they bargained for in Myanmar.
Note: This is a continuation of “The Reality of Life with a Superhero.” I watched IM2 again this weekend and noticed how badly the plot dragged in certain places (and also the uncontrollable urge to slap the screen writer who cut the Tony/Pepper kissing scene I waited two years for short with pre-pubescent humor). Wish I had it on DVD to fast-forward past the boring (just about everything to do with Justin Hammer) parts and get to either the action or the drama. Since I don’t wish to repeat the mistakes of the screenwriters, I’m going to intersperse themes from the LJ Stark 100 challenge into this thread so I can explore Tony’s blossoming superhero friendships (and how this affects Pepper) and also blow a few things up J. I hope this isn’t a breach of fanfiction ethics!!! I promise I’ll get back to the Pepperony fluff soon!
Wagner’s “Ride of the Valkyries” blared in Tony Stark’s helmet as the Avengers sped towards Senior General Than Shwe’s military hidden in the mountainous border between Myanmar and Thailand. Tony had never been into classical music, but he had to admit Thor’s taste in heavy-metal battle epics wasn’t’ bad. Rhodey aka War Machine flew right beside him. Black Widow rode in Captain America’s tricked-out red, white and blue Harrier Gr9A. The Hulk rode a rocket device resembling a jet ski. As for Thor, he was already waiting for them at the assigned rendezvous point. When you can travel as fast as a bolt of lightening, everybody else is always playing catch-up. Tony made a mental note to stick Thor under the scanner when they got back and explore the physics behind his unusual ability.
Nick Fury’s voice growled over the console. “Okay, kids, intel says Than Shwe’s got the missiles hidden in a warehouse located in the center of the complex. A holographic image of the compound with the target highlighted appeared inside Tony’s helmet. “Satellite recon shows three Type- 90 Twin-35mm antiaircraft guns here, here, and here.” The three targets lit up on his screen.
“So nice of the Chinese to arm our fanatical little friend,” Captain America retorted sarcastically.
“Our friends the Chinese deny selling arms to Myanmar,” Fury sarcastically replied, the word “friends” spat out as though it were dog crap.
“Yeh, right…” Captain America responded.
“JARVIS,” Tony asked. “Access the Seraphim tactical satellite and run an infra-red heat signature scan inside all buildings”
“Yes, Sir,” JARVIS replied. A moment later, “Sir, I’m registering an unusual number of heat signatures inside the building immediately adjacent to the target. I’m also picking up an unusual energy signature.” The relevant information appeared on his screen.
“What is it?” Tony asked.
“I’m not sure, sir. I’ve never come across anything like it, and a search of all databases does not turn up any matches,” stated JARVIS.
“Upload the image to Fury and see what he thinks of it,” Tony directed JARVIS. “Hey, Fury, do have any idea what the heck that is?”
“Never seen anything like it,” Fury replied. Just then, a crack of lightning appeared off to his left and Thor appeared in the sky.
“What’s taking you guys?” Thor teased. “My stomach’s growling.” Lightning flashed once again and Thor disappeared. Although Thor’s hammer enabled him to teleport between destinations faster than a bolt of lightning, he was no more capable of unaided flight than the rest of them.
“Let’s tighten up this formation,” Captain America ordered, “we’re about to make our presence known to the enemy. Thor … it’s time.” Being the oldest and most experienced member of the Avengers initiative, Fury usually assigned him to be team leader.
“Let me know when you’re 5000 feet from target,” Thor answered.
“Roger,” Captain America replied. “3, 2, 1, NOW!!!”
Just as the Burmese sentries turned towards the noise of multiple jet engines appearing out of the mist, Thor appeared in their midst as a bolt of lightning zapped them unconscious with the electrostatic discharge. “JARVIS, remind me to look into how he does that when I get back,” Tony murmured as he and War Machine executed the complicated hand-thruster movement which enabled them to switch over from flying to landing.
The Harrier jet slowed in front of the building and executed its complicated vertical landing maneuver. As the canopy opened, Black Widow threw a miniaturized pulse grenade at two Burmese soldiers running at the plane while leaping, cat like, out of the plane. The Hulk coasted to a stop in his jet-ski while Iron Man and War Machine floated down to the ground with a thunk. Captain America grabbed his iron-vibranium shield and ordered, “Hulk, we need you to break down that door.”
“Y-e-e-s-s,” the Hulk grunted and lumbered over to the steel door. In his Hulk guise, Bruce Banner was a creature of few words. Wham, wham, wham, they were in.
A group of Burmese soldiers rushed towards them from inside the building. The Hulk picked one up and threw him, bowling alley style, into the remaining soldiers, knocking them to the ground. Black Widow threw another pulse grenade, rendering them unconscious. Enemy casualties during a mission were inevitable, but the Avengers had agreed long ago they would use non-lethal force unless absolutely necessary. They were superheroes, not butchers!
“Mr. Stark,” JARVIS interrupted. “My sensors show that that unusual energy signature I detected earlier has just entered the building. Also, the human heat signatures my infra red scanners detected earlier are converging upon the building.”
“Thanks, JARVIS,” Tony replied. “Please keep me updated.” Over his intercom Tony shouted, “Kids … it looks like we’re about to have company!”
A Burmese soldier leapt out of a closet at Black Widow as they walked past. He watched her execute her signature spinning takedown that combined a swing-dance-like twirl around the body of her target with a judo gatame to render the guard unconscious.
“Nice job,” he murmured. Tony was totally committed to Pepper, but he had to admit he enjoyed watching the cat like Black Widow in action. Maybe he could get her to teach Pepper a few moves? Images of Pepper wrestling him helplessly to the floor of his boxing ring and then doing erotic things to his body interrupted his concentration.
WHAM!!! A Burmese guard whacked him with a steel pipe. “Pay attention, Iron Man!” Captain America ordered. As soon as the Hulk finished pounding down the next door, War Machine fired a smoke grenade into the next room for cover as they all rushed inside.
“Mr. Stark,” JARVIS stated. “My sensors show that unusual heat signature is in this room.”
Smoke made visibility poor as the superheroes rushed inside. As the smoke began to clear, they saw two steel flatbed trucks carrying large … “Pipes???” Thor asked, puzzled. “They’re empty steel pipes. Where the f**k are the missiles?”
“Vedy astute observaaation,” a sinister voice hissed from the murk. “Now!”
Tony started to think to himself, “now … what,” but the sound of steel blast doors sliding down over the doorway they had just punched through and blocking their escape. “It’s a trap!!!” he shouted.
“Sir, my sensors show the heat signatures are also in the room,” JARVIS stated.
“At lassst ve meet, Tony Stark,” the sinister voice continued. Tony stood there, momentarily frozen as a garishly robed figure walked, no, floated towards their position. Part of Tony’s mind wondered how the robed man could float without any sign of pulse reactor technology. “I haf soo veen looking forvad to meeeting you.” The robed figure turned towards his left and shouted, “Now!”
Dozens of armed soldiers swarmed on their position like a swarm of killer bees. So much for non-lethal combat. Tony blasted one after the other with his hand-pulse weapons while War Machine blasted them with his machine gun. “Tony,” War Machine shouted, “cover me while I go after that circus freak!”
Tony fired punched one guard into the wall and then pulsed two shots at the guards standing on either side of the robed figure. War Machine walked towards the robed figure, but the robed figure stretched out his hand and somehow lifted him off the ground as though Rhodey were trapped on a fishing line. The robed figure laughed. Part of Tony’s mind filed the image away in his mental “research physics later” folder while another part focused on knocking the daylights out of the two guards who rushed at him.
The Hulk concentrated his efforts on bashing down the steel blast doors that were blocking their escape. Wham, wham, wham, he pounded. Black Widow was busy taking down 6 guards while Thor teleported outside and back again in a bolt of lightning. “I don’t see another way out,” Thor apprised them as he rematerialized in their midst. Suddenly, the robed figure stretched out his other hand and Thor’s lightning bolts began some sort of feedback loop on itself, trapping him in his own electromagnetic field. Captain America pulled out his shield, took aim, and threw it at the robed figure.
The robed figure reached his hands towards the shield and it … shattered. The Avengers stood there, dumbstruck. “That’s impossible,” Captain American stated in disbelief. “Nothing can break that shield.”
“Zats vere you are vrong, little superhero,” the robed figure hissed. “Your puny veapons are no match for meee.”
Tony noticed that when the robed figure had turned to blast Captain America’s shield, he had released War Machine and Thor from whatever power he had been using to hold them. “Good,” he noted to himself. Obviously wielding whatever technology it was the robed figure possessed required a degree of concentration. He could use that.
“Hulk,” he shouted. “We need you to make a new door!” The gigantic green figure grunted acknowledgement and lurched over towards one of the walls. Tony looked to his side and saw both War Machine and Thor were recovering and getting back on their feet.
As Captain America recovered from his momentary disbelief, he barked orders at the team. Black Widow threw one of her larger electromagnetic pulse grenades at the robed figure while Captain America picked up one of the guns dropped by the Burmese soldiers and fired at him. Tony moved into position behind the robed figure while War Machine fired a miniaturized RX missile at him. An opening to the outside was beginning to form in the wall the Hulk was smashing away at. Given the opening the Captain had created, Thor rushed in with his war hammer and swung it with all his might. The robed figure reached threw out both his hands and stopped the hammer dead in its tracks. It didn’t explode as Captain America’s shield had, but it didn’t move any further, either.
Tony noticed that holding Thor’s hammer in suspension appeared to require every bit of the robed figures concentration. Taking his opportunity, he shouted, “everybody down!!!” He spun and fired his on-shot laser weapon, cutting everything in the room above 3 feet tall in half. The robed figure screamed as though in agonizing pain and released Thor’s hammer.
“Do you think you caan hurt mee, Tonee Stark” the figure hissed as he straightened up, unharmed.
Tony filed the image away in his mental “research the physics later” folder. He fired his pulse weapon, but the figure swung his hands around as though he were doing a roundhouse block and deflected the pulse. Another “research physics later” topic. All of a sudden the robed figure stretched out his hand and lifted him off the ground, making a crushing motion with his fist. Tony screamed as his armor began crushing into his body like a ball of tin foil. He felt some force attempting to rip his arc reactor out of his chest. JARVIS went offline and he could hear the hydraulics in his suit whine as they resisted and came apart. His chest constricted and several ribs snapped as the robed figure hissed, “I caan crushhh you like a bug.”
As Tony slid towards unconsciousness, he noticed Black Widow circling around behind the figure and spring at him like a black panther. He stayed conscious just long enough to see the Hulk come from the other side and bash the crap out of the robed man before he was dropped unceremoniously to the floor.
He faded in and out of consciousness for the next several days. Sometimes he thought he was back in the cave, back in Afghanistan.