Title: All That Counts
Author: Shannon – shannyfish
Disclaimer: Iron Man and Avengers do not belong to me, but Marvel Entertainment and Disney. This is for entertainment purposes only.
Rating: MA
Summary: Pepper accompanies Tony everywhere. The weapons demonstration for the military in Afghanistan is no different. An AU to "Iron Man".
Warning: none
Author's Note: Here's the Tony chapter! I followed my rough outline, but Tony turned things around a bit differently than I'd originally planned! Enjoy!
I know this plotline has been done before, but hopefully this comes out as something different. Constructive criticism is as always appreciated! Check out my blog on my writing at
. . .
"Letting it get to you. You know what that's called? Being alive. Best thing there is. Being alive right now is all that counts." -The Doctor ('The Doctor's Wife')
. . .
"Pepper!" Tony screamed. Yinsen was pulling him back and guards were holding him firmly in place. Tony's heart like it was being squeezed. He tried to push past, but it didn't help. They only shoved him and he found himself being shoved into Yinsen. She'd looked so terrified and here he was breaking his promise to protect her. He'd promised her that Raza wouldn't take her again, that they wouldn't touch her, and that they were going home today.
He wanted to keep those promises.
Pepper was more than just his assistant. He'd seen something in her long ago when she worked for Stark Industries before he'd made her his assistant. Tony was sure that it had been a combination of her mind, charm, and good looks. He couldn't help it, he was fairly sure he'd been drunk then…or at least intoxicated. He didn't have any regrets. Pepper had grown into something more than an assistant. She was his conscious. She was his anchor to reality. She was the light in his world. She was his best friend. Not the kind that tells you how fabulous you are, she was the one who would tell you how badly you screwed up and then tell you how to fix it. And she deserved so much more than the last several years…
Would he have been able to keep sane without her?
Maybe.
Would he be this okay?
Maybe.
Would he have already decided to change things when he got home?
Maybe.
Would he be able to do it without her?
Absolutely not.
He needed her, like air.
Pepper Potts, his savior.
He suddenly realized that maybe that was why his heart twisted so painfully. The arc reactor was still functional, so it wasn't the shrapnel pushing against his heart. He fumed as he glared in Raza's direction.
If he laid a hand up her—
"Now," Raza said. "I want to see the missiles."
"Bring Pepper back," Tony said quickly.
"Stark," Yinsen said quietly. "Let us show him…"
"No," Raza responded.
"I did what you asked, I built Jericho," he said as he motioned in the direction of the false Jericho missiles. "She doesn't need to be harmed any further than she already has been…"
"Who said I was harming her?"
"Then—"
"We do not need the distraction," Raza said. "I have brought a doctor to look at her. Here, our women are looked after by female doctors… I'm sure you can understand that the doctor requested seeing her in a private area." He just smiled and Tony just couldn't tell if he was flat out lying or if he was being sincere. "She will not be harmed. I have seen to it. She will be well taken care of."
Tony turned to see Yinsen giving him a very stern look on his face. He'd been spending too much time with Pepper. He recognized that face. It meant that he'd screwed up. It wasn't his fault, though! He was just trying to protect her the best he knew how! Right now, he wasn't doing a very good job at it!
"Fine," Tony huffed. He moved towards where the 'missiles' were. They were shells with crap stuffed into them to make them heavy and believable enough if they were moved. One of them, he'd purposely made a panel for. It worked, except it hardly contained any ammunitions. So, if they needed him to fire one, that was the one…he'd just pack it a little better before firing it…or claim that there was something faulty. He could figure out something on the spot.
He was explaining the controls to which the Jericho was mounted. Tony didn't spare Raza from all of the weapons talk. He gave him all the details. He wanted to convince him. He was fairly sure that he was doing a good job, too. "You see, the beauty of Jericho is—" Tony said and then suddenly froze when he heard Pepper's screams. He heard Raza murmur 'Zahara' before disappearing out the door.
Tony turned to Yinsen who looked completely confused and shocked. "That's Pepper… Something's wrong…" He wondered if Raza had given her to his men, but then why would he be so concerned when she screamed out? Wouldn't that be what he wanted? Raza had seemed sincerely concerned and Tony had seen it in his eyes, he cared. And though Tony was battling other emotions over Pepper, he found jealousy raging inside of him as well.
"Time to suit up," Tony told Yinsen.
"She's stopped screaming," Yinsen pointed out. "Raza has most likely—"
"I don't care what we think is happening… We're getting out…now. We'll find Pepper on the way out," Tony said and moved to where they hid the armor pieces. It had been easy enough. There was so much scrap and leftovers that littered the workspace that no one would have really been the wiser.
Yinsen was irritated, Tony knew. He wanted him to be patient. He couldn't be patient. He didn't want to find Pepper in a pool of her own blood… He didn't want to find her raped and beaten… He wanted to take her home, like he promised. He wouldn't break that promise. They were going home. No matter what it took, he was going to keep that promise to her.
"Right now, we're alive… We have to be smart about this, Stark!"
Yinsen was following as he complained, that was really all Tony cared about. "We are," Tony told him as he pulled out the pieces and set them up, so that assembly would be easy. "There's a plan. You've told me how to get out of this cave. I remember." Yinsen sighed. "I'm not going to just sit in here and wait…not when Pepper—"
"I do not believe that Raza would hurt her…you saw how he acted when he heard the screams," Yinsen pointed out.
"She's still not back," Tony told him. He still remembered how battered Pepper had been when they'd returned her the last time. There had been bruises everywhere. "Look, we said today… It's going to be today." Tony left Yinsen for a moment and went to where he and Pepper normally slept. His heart ached a bit more upon seeing their empty sleeping spots. He picked up the discarded Kevlar vest that Pepper had been wearing. He carried it back and shoved it at Yinsen. "You're going to wear this."
"Pepper—"
"If you want to give it back to her, that's fine," Tony told him. "Either way, wear it until we get to her."
Yinsen nodded. He set it down on the worktable. "But first, let's get you bolted in." He picked up the tool he needed to start the process. "Tell me the plan." And Tony started to recite how to get out of the cave, just as Yinsen had told him previously.
. . .
Clad in the armor he'd designed, Tony tested his movement. Yinsen ignited the flamethrowers on it and it seemed like everything was set. Tony didn't know how long it had taken for him to be bolted in, but in all that time…no one had come back. No one had brought Pepper… They'd just been left alone. All the while, Tony had worried. It ate at him. His gut twisted and it overshadowed even the pain he still felt.
Between his body still healing from the beating he'd taken before and the surgery, Tony felt like crap. But he had to keep going. He'd pushed himself for Pepper. He'd made sure that she had the pain medication that she needed. He could cope with the pain. After all, the pain pills really hadn't been helping for a bit. He was fairly sure that he was just going to have to get used to having a hole in his chest with some foreign device. At least the arc reactor was the better option than Yinsen's original electro-magnet.
"Time to go," Tony told Yinsen.
He waited as Yinsen pulled on the Kevlar vest and secured it. Tony was ready to move out once Yinsen was ready. And he was. They had talked about this. It was a plan. Yinsen was to stay back until Tony cleared each area. They'd find Pepper as they made their way out. Yinsen was fairly sure that he knew where all the 'rooms' and nooks of the cave were. Tony just hoped that he was right.
The blast for the doors was easy. Tony had set that up, no problem. But he really hadn't been ready for what came after. He swung his arms smacking anyone in his way into the rocky interior walls. He was trying to conserve his ammo and weapons. It wasn't hard, most of the men went running in the opposite direction.
It took them much longer, but they swept through slowly. "Here!" Yinsen's shout rang out. Tony moved to the room that Yinsen was in. It had a heavy door on it, which was open. There were three bodies, shot to death, on the floor. He found Yinsen kneeling on the floor holding up Pepper's clothing. "The buttons have been removed," Yinsen said as he looked over the blouse.
The yell that came from behind them caught them both by surprise. Tony was sure that he'd cleared the area and that no one was there. The shot had rung out before Tony could even turn fully in the suit. But it wasn't the shot that scared him. It was the fact that the shot hit Yinsen. Tony turned and was about to fire on him when a shot hit the man first.
More were coming…
But he couldn't leave Yinsen. He looked down and examined Yinsen, the shot had grazed his arm and had hit through in the arm opening. The shot had hit him in the chest. "We have to go," he said and was about to try to pick him up.
"Find Pepper," Yinsen barely got out. "This was always the plan." Tony felt worry overtaking him. He stared down at Yinsen, he had the scarf that Pepper had been wearing clenched in his hand.
He was alone.
"There's nothing you can do for him now."
The voice behind him sent anger through his body. He felt rage and jealousy. Tony knew he was right, though. As much as he hated it. Yinsen wasn't making it out. He needed to find Pepper though.
Raza.
Tony turned to see the man standing there, gun in hand. He had been the one to kill the man who had killed Yinsen. "Where is she?"
"This is far more impressive, Stark," Raza complimented.
"Where. Is. She?" Tony asked again.
"I sent her away. They wanted you dead, but they didn't say that I needed to kill her. I sent her with my brother. He's taking her to my home where she'll be safe and taken care of," Raza told him. "I did not lie to you, Stark. I intend to keep her safe and unharmed. I thought I could trust these men," Raza said as he motioned to the dead men on the floor. "I managed to get to her before they did anything. I assure you that she's safe…they ripped her clothing and scared her…but they didn't do more."
"How can I believe you?" Tony asked as he tried to think if he really believed Raza.
"She's not dead on the floor," Raza told him.
"She said that you were going to keep her as your wife," Tony said.
Raza smiled. "That does not please you."
"No," Tony responded.
"I told you. I plan to keep her safe. It was the only way. She may not be safe if I sent her home to the United States," Raza said.
Tony held up his arm and opened the panel that held the small missile. "Tell me where she is!"
"Not here."
"I noticed."
Raza just smiled. "She's safe. You should die happy knowing that." He held up his gun and pointed it at Tony.
"She's not safe! I'm taking her home! Tell me!"
"Kill me," Raza said, his smile transforming into a ghoulish grin. "You know what happens then? My beautiful Zahara is still safe… My brother will marry her in my place… He is young. He may not respect women as well as I do. I'm sure that my father will teach him…and teach her… Think about it…"
Tony was thinking. He was so torn at whether or not he could believe or trust Raza. "I'm going to find her…"
"You can try, Stark."
"You would have saved Yinsen…"
"I would have," Raza confirmed. "He was a good man—"
"He had a family!"
"His family is dead, Stark," Raza told him. "I'm afraid that Abu and some others killed them some time back… They didn't realize they were Yinsen's family…but now they are together."
Tony didn't know that… He thought that he could help Yinsen. That he could reunite him with his family… He was planning on helping them any way that he could… But really, Yinsen had been the one who had helped him. He'd saved his life…in more ways than one. He'd kept them all safe and alive.
Being alive is all that matters right now.
"Move!" Tony yelled. "Move! Before I change my mind!" Tony shouted. He was burning up with anger, but he felt the need to let Raza have another chance… Maybe he really had been trying to help in small ways. That didn't mean that Tony was just going to forgive him for everything, though. He was just going to keep going and not look back. If Raza got in his way again, then he'd kill him without a second thought.
Raza didn't move. "I am supposed to kill you, Stark."
"Not today," Tony told him and as Raza fired, the bullets bounced off of the armor. Tony brought up the heavy bulky arm and swung it. Raza went flying and he made his way out of the room and back towards the exit. He went over the plan in his head as he continued on. He couldn't run in the suit, but he made his best speed just the same.
He was going to get out.
He was going to find Pepper.
They were going to go home.
. . .
As he exited the cave, bullets bounced off of the armor and as he took in the sheer number of men outside and the Stark Industries weapon crates after his eyes adjusted to the blinding light. He couldn't stay there. He knew that with the number of people shooting at him while he just stood there that there was a greater chance of someone penetrating his armor.
He needed to go.
First, he needed to take care of business. He needed to see that his name wasn't tarnished any further…and he was going to start now, but he would continue fixing it once he returned home. Tony started to set the weapons crates on fire and firing on them. What a true nightmare this trip had become…
He was sure that his father was rolling over in his grave right now.
Stark Industries had belonged to his father who had made it big with new weapons and military contracts. Though he and his father had never had a good relationship growing up, Tony was sure that he would have been appalled to see his name on weapons in the hands of terrorists. Once he found Pepper and completed his promise, he was going to track down every Stark Industries weapon in the hands of non-US military hands and destroy them all.
And it was then as fire surrounded him and explosions took over that he realized that he needed to be more like his father… He needed to care about the Stark name… He needed to do more with the company. He actually needed to be involved. Tony was sure that that would give Obadiah a stroke when he got back. He had to do it though.
He had to live.
He had to have purpose.
Real purpose.
"I'm coming, Pep," he whispered as he engaged the thrusters and took off. He just hoped that he'd be able to land it…in one piece.
. . .
He was starting to feel like he'd really made it. That Yinsen's sacrifice wasn't for nothing. Tony really wasn't in much control of the suit though. It wasn't like he'd had the computers and JARVIS that he had back home. And then it suddenly hit him.
He missed JARVIS.
He missed his robots.
All of them.
He missed Happy.
He missed Rhodey.
He felt completely lost without Pepper.
At the same time, he was feeling completely free as he shot through the air. He had been trying to keep an eye below him, but there was so much more activity than he'd expected. Several vehicles were in his view and he didn't even know if Pepper had left by way of vehicle or in what direction she had headed in. He just hoped that it wasn't into the Hindu Kush into another cave.
He saw a vehicle hit another and Tony felt the urge to help, but couldn't. The armor was doing its own thing. He found that he was losing altitude and was about to crash. He knew it was coming and he was cringing at the horrible thought.
When the armor collided with the sandy desert floor, he groaned and yelped…and screamed…and groaned again…and cursed. If he didn't hurt enough before, he surely did now. Tony was fairly sure that his bruises had bruises. After a moment, his vision stabilized and he remembered seeing some kind of massive set of buildings.
Tony was hoping that it was military.
He was hoping that it was US military.
Removing the armor's headpiece, he threw it away. He discarded every piece that hadn't already fallen off. Tony didn't know if he'd broken anything, so far his limbs seemed to move…miraculously. But his ribs were another thing. His whole chest hurt, but he could handle it. The arc reactor was still functional, so he was good. He could take the pain.
As he got to his feet, he pulled the welding jacket off and positioned it so that it would protect his head and face from the sun above. He also hoped that it wouldn't make him a target, maybe someone would just think that he'd gotten lost. He tried to get his bearings. He had figured that if he could make it to that base. He was still hoping that it was a US military base. Then he could get them to help him find Pepper.
He was still Tony Stark after all.
And if Rhodey was alive, then he was sure that he'd be on board with getting everything cleared and mobilized. They had to find her. He didn't think that tracking her down by telling them that Raza (no last name) had sent her off with his brother (no name there either) to his family (in he didn't know where the hell).
Without his armor, he needed transportation and weapons. Which was why he really needed the military. He didn't care if they didn't want to help him or not. If they gave him a truck and a gun, he'd find her himself. And then at least they could tell Rhodey he was alive.
It would be enough.
It had to be a military base.
Tony groaned as he headed through the sand. Every step was labored and took far too much effort. His chest ached and he tried to focus on three things: breathing, walking, and Pepper.
He was going to find her.
. . .
TBC…
