Tony Stark
Tony Stark was not a man without his enemies. In fact, his way of thinking was, every person needed a healthy dose of someone that really really hated them. The reality was, you couldn't live your life pleasing everyone; you lived your life the way you believe you should. And that of course meant that there had to be one person in the world who would simply despise you for doing just that. Like take for example: walking outside your home to your office, there was bound to be one person along the way who must have cursed you, i.e. for Tony it would be how rich of a pompous assh*le he was. The question was, did Tony care ? No. Because you couldn't win on something like this and to him, it was trivial. He didn't need anyone to like him - just not having anyone come at him seeking vengeance or trying to hurt the people he cared about was enough.
For Tony, however, that small request was too much to ask for. No. People who hated him, despised him, always wanted todo something show that they were serious. Like today, which should have been a normal routine visit to one of his biogenetics facilities, he was suddenly locked into a hostage situation.
Hands raised slightly above the chest and using the most neutral tone he could, Tony Stark was trying his best to talk some sense into a man that was threatening to kill everyone in the facility with a deadly gas. Oh, and that wasn't adding on the fact the man also had a gun on him. Irony was, the man wasn't some random person that snuck into the facility. He was a man that Tony Stark himself had hired .
Quinn Sharpe was an associate of Dr. Helen Cho, a person that she had worked with on and off for over a five year period of time. In that time, even Bruce Banner himself worked with him. The man held an excellent track record and his various connections to key members of his team also added to his CV. So when Helen approached Tony to add Quinn to their Project Cradle team, he didn't question it, much less do his usual thorough background check. Even with the surface check, the man was clean, nothing was amiss about him so he was given security clearance as well as Tony's trust.
Yet that trust was short lived. It turned out that Quinn Sharpe was a person that was deeply affected by what had happened in Sokovia the tragedy had put him over the edge.
"Look, I'm sorry for your loss, Quinn. I am. But there's a lot of innocent people here. People who have nothing to do with Sokovia. It was a tragedy, we did what we could to save the people. If anything, just let everyone here go. I'll stay. I'm your target, right? I can stay. Just let everyone else go. Do the right thing, Quinn."
Tony, even as he spoke, was readying to activate his Ironman pulser on his right wrist. All he needed was a second of distraction, and he could knock the man out before he could do any harm. Yet in the time that he had started to 'negotiate' with Quinn, Tony realized despite the insane threat of killing everyone in the facility, the man was remarkably calm. He reminded of Helmut Zemo, a man meticulous in his planning and would indefinitely go through with his threat. Seeing the similarities between them, Tony felt a slight more cautious in dealing with the man. If he was like Zemo, who had killed over a dozen delegates from the International Vienna Centre just so that he could make a point of destroying the Avengers, then he didn't doubt Quinn would do the same, just to make a point. Using innocent people as pawns to pay for a mistake that the Avengers did. No, a mistake you made, Tony a voice in the back of Tony's head whispered.
Tony needed to neutralize the guy, he needed an opening of some kind. If he made an error, in an instant, Quinn would release the gas.
As if reading his mind, Quinn spoke, "You really shouldn't bother activating your blaster, Tony. You can and the minute you do, I'll flood this entire building with a toxin that will be a greater legacy to your name than Ultron."
Tony's eyes narrowed at Sharpe's words. People knew about Sokovia, about the damage the ensued in the battle with an alien life form. But Ultron… that was not released out in the public. How did he know this information?
"You've been accessing classified files within FRIDAY," stated Tony in realization.
"Well done, plus one for the genius!" Sharpe shook his head, "Funny how Ultron's role was hidden away from the public and replaced with an 'alien' threat. Does anyone here know you created the threat that ended up putting Sokovia as the sacrifice for the mistake?" The man paused for a dramatic effect, scanning the room, "No.. I didn't think so. Look at their faces, they have such trust in your vision, your disruptive designs, to protect the world, change it... but they have no idea how your experiments have put people in the line of fire, have spilled blood, all because of this inflated ego of yours, you think you can do whatever you want."
"Quinn," started Tony, trying ignore all the eyes in the lab staring at him, "it was a mistake. A terrible one that I am responsible for. I know it and that's why, that's why the Accords exist now. It will keep people in check. I've signed the Accords, so something like this, it won't ever happen again." Tony hated to placate to the man's feelings. Yes, he felt guilty for everything that had happened, he still had nightmares about it sometimes. But he didn't want to do it for a man who was acting like a terrorist, threatening to hurt people. Yet, this was the only way Tony could think of to not agitate the man, even to buy time. Someone must notice that it was strange Tony wasn't contactable.
"Won't happen again?" scoffed out Quinn with bitterness, "How nice, you get to sign a little piece of paper and all the bad feelings go away. No. No, it doesn't work that way, Tony Stark. I can do the same too, take someone you care about and I'll just say I'm sorry. Will that work for you, Tony? Would that suffice?
Tony didn't like the way the conversation was headed. Time to reroute it a bit.
"Look, I'm not perfect, I'm far from perfect, but none of the tragedies was ever for the sake of ourselves. Ultron. I made it to protect Earth from potential threats. It ... failed to do as it intended. It hurt a lot of people, but it's intention, it had always been to protect, to save people."
"Save people…" the man trailed off. "Of course. You just weigh who is more important. Do you know how it feels to have someone make that decision for you? My boys were not even eight, Tony, when their lives were taken away from them. Eight. On a mistake you made and never had to own up to it. You were called a hero," Quinn let out a dry laugh, "having saved the world from an abomination you created. All is forgiven for signing a simple government contract while my family is buried six feet under. How, Tony, how can I even the playing field to this?"
God, the man sounded way too much like Zemo, thought Tony. It felt like deja vu, though Tony did not want it to end up the same way it had then.
The tension in the room was on high. No one moved, no one could barely breathe.
Until suddenly the lab door slid open and a scientist entered with a small group of people.
"Mr. Stark, I'm here with the Guardian's Initiative group as you requested - ", and the man saw Quinn and the gun in his hand and it seemed to click – they should not be there.
"Okay, guys, let's move on to another –," he started but Quinn waved his gun at them.
"No. Stay. Leave and I'll shoot someone," said Quinn. "I've been waiting for you." He gestured with his weapon for them to enter and the scientist and his small group reluctantly stepped further inside the room. Without even glancing at the console, Quinn typed something and the lab door made a locked sound and suddenly a series of reinforced steel panels dropped down, sealing them in. This was a security lockdown that Banner had installed himself when he worked in the lab - in case he turned green... thought it was never needed. The man had been the calmest when he was with his element - science. There was no way that no one would not notice something like this.
"Now that our guests are here, we don't want any more interruptions." Quinn looked at Tony again, "I can read the wheels turning in your head, Tony. You must think, hey, someone must notice this lab is on lockdown mode! Don't worry, I've already thought ahead for you as it's just a drill. Memo has been passed around to everyone yesterday." Quinn suddenly looked past Tony and then said, "Dr. Jacobson," he said barely missing a beat, "Do stop trying to text for help, there's absolutely no cell reception in here. I'd hate you to have to waste your cell phone battery."
"Now, back to business. It looks like even after everything that has happened with Sokovia, and the creation of Ultron, you, Tony Stark, still haven't learned your lesson. Still trying to build something to 'protect' the world. I have to admit, I was surprised how creative you've become, putting an anonymous contest online to find qualified individuals from all walks of life... you're a true man of diversity."
"How did you get this list," asked Tony, though he knew the answer already, and Quinn knew that he knew the answer as well. It was a rhetorical question really.
"It's amazing what you can find when you have clearance. You hurt a lot of people, Tony, and one could say I was willing to forgive, I was. Until I came across this new initiative you were starting up, an experimental one. I can only wonder what new invention you were coming up with, another Ultron even? It doesn't change with you. You even did this under Secretary Ross's nose. Your signing of the Accords, it really is all a show."
"Quinn, I don't know what you think the Guardians Initiative is, but it's not another Ultron and it's not done under Ross's radar. It is pending -"
"Don't f*cking lie to me, Stark," snapped Quinn his eyes had turned from cool and collected to a sudden not so stable person. Back it up, Tony, back it up , he told himself. If he didn't Quinn might actually release the gas.
"I've seen the communications between you and Ross, and there's not a word of it shared between you and him. You've learned nothing, Tony. Nothing. But I'm here today, to give you a lesson in humility. You'd be surprised that familiar faces can turn up even on a wide scale search among millions of people."
Quinns words made Tony turn towards the Guardians Initiative recruits and among them, instantly, Tony saw a familiar face - Harley Keener. Quinn saw the recognition in Tony's eyes, smiled, and in that same moment, the man took aim at the kid and fired his weapon.