Roy was relaxing in his mansion, surrounded by his girls, when his phone rang.
TONY STARK.
Roy sighed. "Here comes trouble."
He answered.
Tony's voice exploded through the speakers:
"ROY! ROY—ARE YOU READY? BECAUSE I HAVE SOMETHING SEXIER THAN YOU."
Roy raised an eyebrow. "Impossible."
"Okay, fair. But this is a close second! Look!"
A hologram call appeared—Tony posing dramatically in the Mark VI armor, triangular arc reactor glowing.
Roy blinked.
"You… added LEDs to your nipples?"
Tony gasped. "It's called a design choice, thank you."
The girls behind Roy burst out laughing.
Hela: "Mortals are strange."
Velzard: "This one especially."
Tony heard them. "HEY—tell Blizzard Barbie to hush, I worked hard on this!"
Roy shook his head.
"It looks good, Tony. Stronger reactor?"
"Yes! Thanks to my mysterious silver-haired cheat code of a friend."
Roy smiled slightly. "You're welcome."
Then—
A second incoming call flashed on Tony's HUD.
UNKNOWN CALLER.
Language: Russian.
Tony frowned. "Hold on, Roy. Who is—?"
He answered.
Ivan Vanko's distorted voice hissed through:
"Tokboy. You lose."
Before Tony could respond, Ivan hung up.
Roy, hearing the last part, sighed.
"…Tony?"
Tony: "Yeah?"
"Suit up."
Tony: "Already doing it."
He launched into the sky—red and gold streaking toward Stark Expo.
Scene: Stark Expo — Chaos Unleashed
Tony arrived at the Expo stage at high speed.
Rhodey in his War Machine suit waved.
"Tony! You made it—"
Before he could finish, his weapons locked onto Tony.
Rhodey: "OH COME ON!"
Tony: "I know this isn't you!"
Then all the Hammer Drones turned, targeting Tony as well.
Tony groaned.
"Roy told me this would happen… why do I never listen to him?"
He blasted into the air—
—and immediately:
ALL the Hammer Drones + Rhodey followed him like angry metal bees.
Scene: Natasha — Hammer Industries Facility
Natasha stormed through Hammer's security.
Every guard?
Neutralized in seconds.
She kicked open a door—
Justin Hammer froze in fear.
Natasha: "Where is Vanko?"
Hammer pointed frantically. "T-the workshop! He's supposed to be—he's supposed to be dead!"
Natasha found the workshop.
Empty.
Chains on the floor.
Tools missing.
Natasha: "…He played you. Figures."
She plugged in her gauntlet USB.
"Let's see what your pet Russian left behind."
Within seconds—
Control override engaged.
Rhodey's suit systems began responding again.
Natasha smiled.
"Colonel Rhodes—control is restored."
Rhodey: "THANK YOU!"
Tony: "Nat… marry me."
Natasha: "No."
Scene: The Duel — Tony & Rhodey vs. Hammer Drones
Rhodey landed beside Tony, shoulder cannons whirring.
Tony: "Okay, big guy. Rules?"
Rhodey: "Same as last time."
Tony: "Don't touch my stuff."
Rhodey: "Don't blow up my house."
Tony: "No promises."
Then the drones attacked.
Explosions. Metal shredding. Two armored heroes fighting back-to-back.
Tony blasted three drones in the air.
Rhodey shredded four on the ground.
Then—
BOOM.
The ground shook.
Ivan Vanko descended in his upgraded suit—bigger, armored, and with two massive electrified whips.
Tony: "…I hate déjà vu."
Rhodey: "He upgraded."
Tony: "Yeah, well… we did too."
Scene: Ivan Vanko — Final Fight
Vanko cracked the whips, splitting pavement.
Tony dodged left.
Rhodey fired everything he had.
Vanko blocked both with reinforced armor.
Tony: "Rhodey!"
Rhodey: "On it!"
They crossed paths, firing in coordination. Tony distracted him from air; Rhodey attacked the joints.
But Vanko kept charging, relentless, electric whips tearing through concrete.
Finally—
Tony shouted: "HERE!"
Rhodey: "GO!"
They blasted their combined repulsor beams at Vanko's core.
The armor overloaded.
Vanko looked at Tony one last time.
"You lose."
The suit exploded.
Tony and Rhodey dove for cover.
Silence.
Smoke.
Victory.
Scene: Roy's Reaction
Back at the mansion, Roy turned off the TV feed of the Expo battle.
Grayfia: "Should you help them?"
Roy: "If they need me, they'll call."
Velgrynd: "Tony nearly died."
Roy took a sip of tea.
"He's Tony. That's normal."
Hela: "Are you sure you don't want to adopt him?"
Roy: "Absolutely not."
The girls laughed.
Just then—
Tony called again.
Bruised. Exhausted. Grinning like an idiot.
"ROY… you saw that, right? I was AWESOME."
Roy smirked.
"You almost died five times."
Tony pointed. "But I DIDN'T."
Roy nodded.
"Good job, Tony."
Tony looked touched.
"Really? You mean it?"
Roy's expression softened.
"I do."
Tony smiled—exhausted but proud.