Heeeeeeey peopleeee. Sooo, new story ideas are awesomeeee. Let's see where this one goes, shall we?
"Wh...what did I do wrong? Why did he have to hate me? Why did he have to turn on me?" Pepper asked to Tony as they sat in the lab. Pepper looked down to her feet. She felt regret for her decisions.
"Am I stupid? Ugly? Unpleasant? Why did he have to turn on us?" Pepper asked to herself out loud. She hoped Tony was listening, and by the looks of him putting down his wrench and turning to her it was safe to assume that he was indeed listening. He walked over to her.
"Pepper, don't say that about yourself. You are smart, you're pleasant, and you are most definitely NOT ugly. You're the smartest, most pleasant, most beautiful girl I've ever met, and Gene was stupid to betray you. No, he was a complete and total idiot to betray you." Tony comforted. He blushed once he realized what he'd said. He didn't know what came over him, but hearing his friend upset brought out a new side of him. He beamed at the sight of Pepper's smile and let her nudge his arm lightly as she leaned back slightly in her seat in joy.
"Thank you, Tony, you're always there for me." Pepper said with a smile as she hugged Tony. As she hugged him, Tony wondered what the soft feeling inside him was that seemed to go away when he lost touch with her, as it was an unfamiliar feeling to him; but ignoring it, he waved it off and went back to his work. As soon as he bent down over his work again, he saw a far too familiar flash of light and metallic, heavy footsteps. Tony looked up from his work to see the commotion; the disturbance was a heavily unpleasant one.
"Tony Stark. I have…an assignment, for you."
Flashbackk.
The dark-haired Mongol boy took slow steps to a large chair with two spheres behind it; the inner one rotating. He looked down to the floor as he took each step and studied how his feet moved his body. He stopped in front of the so called throne of the secret organization he'd been at the head of for so long now that he didn't know what life had been like as a mere onlooker; he looked at the chair. He remembered how he'd spent days meaninglessly twirling his rings around on the ancient string that had once belonged to his mother.
He dropped a ring onto the chair and watched it hit the hard surface. As the holographic image of earth appeared once more, revealing the locations of the fifth through tenth rings, he picked his cell phone out of his pocket. He scrolled through his contacts; most were 'friends' he had made from high school. He recalled the person who had encouraged him to enroll in the school in the first place. The kid he'd thought was an innocent friend but had turned out to be the guy he'd been battling his whole time as the Mandarin.
"What a coincidence," he crossed his arms behind his back, "that's where I'm enrolling." he turned away from his seat and pounded the wall-accompanied by a grunt- nearby in anger. He clenched his fists tight. He'd had friends once, people who trusted him. Now he had nothing and no one by his side. The Tong had deserted him after witnessing the boy's betrayal. He had no step-father and he had no family whatsoever; not that he considered Zhang family anyways. Gene scrolled to the bottom of his contact list; he couldn't call Pepper, she had blocked him. As did Stark and Rhodes. One thing he saw that did not discourage him was the one person that had not blocked him; Whitney. She seemed to be fond of him, even being the only one who was; even if she didn't know it yet. Gene scrolled back to Tony's contact.
"Stark," he growled, "you will help me. Whether you like it or not."
Flashback end.
"Gene. What are you doing here?" Tony could not even bare to look at him without thinking of how his once-friend had wronged him. He saw his father, hurt and scared, in the Gene's eyes. He could not bear to look without squinting the tears back into his eyes. Gene crossed his arms and walked around in a small circle.
"So this," The Mandarin observed his surroundings, "is your lab?" Tony did not bother to answer. He wanted so badly to look back at Pepper and see what her current state was, but held back; it was time to concentrate on Gene and whatever it is he wanted. Gene removed his helmet and held it in between his arm and his chest as he walked around more. Tony could notice a smirk upon Gene's face that seemed to say 'I have a dirty little secret'.
"You'll be pleased to know that you will be completing an…interesting task for me." Tony stood from his seat.
"You can't make me do anything." Tony asked in an assertive, angered tone.
"I'm sure my new friends at A.I.M. will change your mind." Gene immediately stopped Tony. Tony stepped back, perplexed look on his face.
"How are you involved with A.I.M.?" Tony demanded. Gene smirked.
"You'll find out if you say 'no' once more." Gene folded his arms behind his black armored back and paced in front of Tony and Pepper. Tony stepped back to let the boy explain his story before quizzing him further.
"I am not going to waste my time cutting around the main point. There are ten rings, not five; ten. And you," The young Mongol stopped his pacing and stared the young inventor in the face.
"And you are going to help me find them."
Tony took in the words he was just told and reflected on them. They sank slowly into his mind as he grasped the concept of ten rings upon the boy's fingers instead of five. Tony stood and walked over to the dark-haired boy in curiosity. He thought of their past, and the fun they had shared. Tony had come to Gene at first for assistance with understanding his 'dead' father further than he'd thought to, and he'd ended up fighting him.
"If I do this…will you let my father go?" Tony insisted. Pepper immediately stood and placed a hand on Tony's shoulder.
"Tony, what are you doing?" She asked. Tony, ignoring her, stared Gene in the eyes.
"Your father is useless to me. You can have him. But, if this is the way you insist on doing it then that will be your prize." There was another flash of light, and with it Gene was gone. Tony turned back to Pepper in silence.
"Tony, have you gone bonkers? If he gets all ten rings, no one will be able to stop him! We'll all be done for! What were you thinking?" Pepper asked questions rapid-fire.
"I was thinking we could just get through to him somehow." Tony explained. Pepper could not believe what she was hearing.
"Tony, with all that we've been through with him, this is how you're figuring it will work? Words don't get through to him anymore!" Pepper spoke in anger, hoping her words would make sense to him. It didn't look like they were.
"Maybe we can get lucky." Tony bent over his work once more. Pepper felt full-on furious at what she was hearing.
"Luck? You're willing to bet on luck?" Pepper yelled.
"Well, maybe you can get through to him too." Pepper was appalled at Tony's sudden behavior.
"Tony!" Pepper crossed her arms. She was furious.
"Is that how you see me? I'm just the friend you can throw around? Do you really think I'd want to put myself through that heartache again, Tony?" Pepper didn't want to believe it was Tony she was talking to.
"Pepper, that's not what I meant, come on…" Tony realized what he'd said and felt the huge burden of a mistake he had just made. Obviously it was too late for sorries.
"No, Tony, it's like I don't know you anymore. You've become an entirely different person than I came to know you as." Pepper sounded sorrowed by this point. Tony felt deep remorse.
"Pepper, please…" Tony begged.
"No, Tony, it's too late. Just…just stay away. If you're going to bet on your friends to get what you want then I don't want to be a part of it." Pepper walked out.
Well, sorry I know that was short. But it's an idea I'm going to build on and I feel it's definitely going places from here. I gots big plans for this story :D revieeewwwwww.
