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Rhodes stared at the polished steel armor hanging from chains, his eyes filled with undisguised envy.
"Pretty cool, right," Tony said casually.
Happy looked far less relaxed, his face full of concern.
"So, does this mean I am about to lose my job as a driver?"
Rhodes paused.
These two were clearly not on the same wavelength.
"No," Tony said, "I need to go out for a bit, you drive."
"And will I get the same salary and benefits," Happy asked seriously.
Rhodes sighed.
"Just get in the car," Rhodes said, "today I will show you what professionalism really means, where to."
"The Air Force command center," Rhodes replied, "I need to make sure the airspace stays clear."
----
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Violent explosions echoed from the direction of Stark Industries.
Jimmy tapped the driver's seat lightly.
"Hey, friend, it is dangerous ahead, just stop here."
Jimmy jumped out of the car and sprinted toward Stark Industries.
When Jimmy arrived, he saw Tony slam Obadiah away with tremendous force.
Crash!
Jimmy landed on the ground, startling Pepper, who had been watching the battle unfold.
"Jimmy."
"Yes," Jimmy replied quickly, "are you all right, Ms Pepper?"
"I am fine," Pepper said, "but Tony is in serious danger."
"I will grab a weapon," Jimmy said, "Ms Pepper, how do I get to Section Fourteen?"
"It is right."
Pepper paused and looked down.
"How did that hole get there?"
"Oh," Pepper said immediately, "that hole is Section Fourteen."
Pepper knew the layout of Stark Industries extremely well.
Even if she rarely came down here, that did not mean she was unfamiliar with it.
Jimmy jumped straight down.
Pepper gasped.
"Jimmy, it is really high, are you okay?"
"I am fine," Jimmy called back, "stay back, I will be up soon."
---
Down below, in the dim light, Jimmy spotted rows of weapons stacked haphazardly on racks.
In the corner sat a massive gun that looked like an anti-aircraft weapon.
Four barrels.
A huge ammunition drum.
Designed to be braced at the waist while firing.
That was the one.
Jimmy lifted the weapon and flipped open the feed cover.
Inside were rounds as thick as his forearm.
His eyes lit up instantly.
This was exactly the kind of gun he liked.
He fired a test shot into the wall.
Boom! Crash!
Accuracy was solid.
Recoil was manageable.
Completely within control.
This felt far better than an M2.
Jimmy ran back to the opening and leapt up the way he came.
"Where did Tony go," he asked.
"They flew up into the sky," Pepper answered.
Yes.
They had just taken off moments ago.
---
High above, Tony and Obadiah faced each other.
"Not bad," Obadiah said, "looks like you upgraded your armor, I made a few small improvements to my Iron Monger as well."
"Iron Monger," Tony scoffed, "that name sounds like it should be said in another language, then translated back."
"What are you talking about?"
Tony climbed higher, once again exploiting the freezing issue to disable Iron Monger.
But his energy reserves were running dangerously low.
As he descended, he was already on the phone with Pepper.
"Tony, how are you holding up?"
"I am almost out of power," Tony replied, "I need to get out of the suit soon."
"Get down, Tony."
Jimmy shouted from the rooftop, lifting the massive gun and taking aim.
Boom!
A shot passed just inches over Tony's head.
Iron Monger, who had been trying to ambush from behind, was blasted into a backward flip.
"How did you get here, Jimmy," Tony shouted.
"Obviously to save you," Jimmy replied, "get behind me."
Jimmy fired shot after shot, forcing Iron Monger to stagger, metal parts rattling violently, components flying off one after another.
Obadiah was completely disoriented, firing missiles at random.
One shell exploded not far from Jimmy.
Jimmy rolled forward to avoid the shockwave, but shrapnel sliced across his cheek.
"Alright, now you are asking for it," Jimmy growled, anger flaring, his finger switching to burst fire.
The gun roared.
A blazing chain of fire stretched from Jimmy straight into Iron Monger.
Three seconds.
That was all it took.
One leg was blown off.
Both arms followed.
Iron Monger's chest was torn open.
And in those same three seconds, the gun in Jimmy's hands was completely ruined.
"Finish it."
Jimmy sprang forward, claws flashing, moving like a gust of wind.
Metal screeched.
Jimmy locked onto Iron Monger's head and unleashed a brutal assault.
The remaining half arm slammed into Jimmy again and again, heavy blows pounding into his body.
Jimmy ignored it completely.
His claws were razor sharp, but tearing apart this armored giant was still difficult because of his lack of strength currently.
Each strike felt like cutting through thick leather.
The broken arm flailed wildly, bullets firing erratically, punching holes into Jimmy's body.
Jimmy stopped dodging altogether.
He traded blows relentlessly.
One heavy strike in exchange for four slashes.
One bullet for several torn components.
Whoever collapsed first would lose.
Tony watched in shock and rushed forward to help.
Boom.
By the time Tony arrived, Iron Monger had fallen.
At the instant it collapsed, Jimmy leapt upward.
He landed holding Obadiah's severed head, the upper section of the spine still attached.
The sight was brutal.
Tony froze, unable to step closer for a moment.
Thud.
Jimmy dropped to the ground and sat down, breathing heavily.
"At the critical moment, it still takes me to save you, you old bachelor," Jimmy said, panting, "hurry up and swap that glowing thing, the one in your chest is about to fail."
"That is an arc reactor, not a light bulb," Tony snapped, then paused, "Are you okay, Jimmy?"
"I am not."
"Pepper, call an ambulance."
"Stop," Jimmy interrupted, "an ambulance will not help, I only ate once since last night, and I burned a lot of energy just now, I am starving."
Tony sighed.
"Alright then, Pepper, prepare a huge meal, and have Happy come pick us up. Need a hand getting up?"
"Forget it," Jimmy replied, "change your reactor first, yours is flickering."
Tony looked down.
Jimmy was right.
The arc reactor was nearly depleted.
Tony pulled the reactor from Iron Monger's chest and installed it into his own armor.
---
"So how do you clean up a battlefield?" Jimmy asked. "Down there, I saw the armored monster you built in that cave; this one is just a larger version. If you do not clean this properly, who knows when someone might build a whole batch of little monsters and start calling you dad."
Tony stared at him.
The logic made sense.
"Fine," Tony said, "I will handle the cleanup. I need help getting down."
"No."
"Alright then," Tony said, "Pepper, stay back, I am about to set off a very big firework."
Tony dragged Iron Monger onto the massive arc reactor platform.
He flew down, activated every switch, then slammed his fist onto a red button.
Boom.
A pillar of blue energy erupted upward, followed by a deep thunderous pulse that swept through the Stark Industries facility.
The battlefield was erased.
"All clean," Tony said, landing beside Pepper and Jimmy, snapping his fingers.
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~Support with 200 PowerStones = 1 Bonus Chapter
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