Disclaimer:I do not own anything pertaining to Marvel Comics or Iron Man, or anything else related to this material of which I written about. All rights are reserved by the original owners.

Author's Note: This story is almost finished! As much fun as I've had writing this, it needs to be completed. I'm thinking maybe 1 or 2 more chapters. So, if you haven't read the full thing or have some re-reading to do, now would be a good time to get it done. The action is really going to kick up in the next one. Please take some time to write a review – you know you want to.

Chapter 10

~ 1 month later – time in cave: 10 weeks (2 ½ months) ~

The detailed sketches of the armoured suit had really taken shape over the past month; without a doubt, Tony Stark knew what he was doing when it came to machines and technology. A cursory glance around the cave – which had been the entire world to the three people inside – would reveal an assortment of parts, tools, and half-finished devices. To the captors, it seemed like the Jericho missile they had demanded was nearly completed. They had certainly waited a long time.

The female soldier that was being held along with the inventor and the doctor, Julia Ramirez, had thrown herself into the work. She found purpose in constructing that suit; all her faith was tied up in Stark's promise that it would be their ticket out of there. It was in her mind everyday as she worked with the two men, and every night as she tried to think of freedom before she fell asleep.

Keeping them all on schedule, and sane, was their placid doctor, Yinsen. He was the only one with a watch, and had taken on the role of time-keeper. Thus, at noon everyday they stopped working to have lunch, which usually consisted of potatoes or rice, some meat, assorted vegetables, and tea. Julia was grateful that they fed them so well, unlike most prisoners.

"I'm going to need a computer," Tony announced as the trio sat around the fire during their break.

"What for?" Yinsen asked, without a trace of disbelief.

"Programming. All of the microchips and processors need to be reprogrammed to get the suit operational, and the only way to do that is with a computer. How feasible would getting one be?"

"Quite feasible, actually. Bakaar was pleased with your progress during his last visit, so I'm sure your request will be met." The doctor was referring to the second-in-command of the terrorist group known as the Ten Rings. Neither Tony nor Julia had seen its leader, only Yinsen.

"I don't think that you'll be able to get much software though," Julia pointed out. "How do you plan to program the suit?"

"The old-school way if I have to, write the codes."

Julia was impressed, but she frequently found that Tony impressed her. His sheer ingenuity was unmatchable. During all of this time, she was able to get to know a quieter side of him that few people ever got to see. Like the majority of the world, she knew about Stark's reputation as an international playboy, a self-absorbed billionaire, and a man who felt above any sort of responsibility. She had a strong disliking for him before she even met him. When it was announced that the Stark of Stark Industries would personally be coming to the unveiling of the Jericho missile to be used by the US military, Julia could barely stop herself from groaning her dismay aloud. A womanizing, alcoholic, showoff like Tony Stark would only disrupt the order of the base. The situation held special irony for her when he chose to ride in the Humvee she was driving.

He had fallen asleep at his workbench again, something that happened a couple times a week. Julia approached and gently touched his shoulder.

"Tony? Tony, you'd be more comfortable lying down. You need to get some sleep," she said softly.

"I was just thinking; I wasn't sleeping," came the groggy reply. "Pepper, could you turn out the light?"

Julia was a little surprised – she hadn't heard him mention that name for a while. She decided not to wake him up from his dream-like state, and turned off the work light as he stumbled to his cot. It was late, Yinsen was already asleep and she was also feeling tired from another long day. She pulled on a thin sweater that she would sleep in because of the chill that set in after the fires burned low.

"Julia, are you awake?"

It was Tony; she thought he'd gone right back to sleep after she sent him to bed. "Yeah, I'm here. Everything ok?"

"I just had a dream, or at least I think it was a dream… it was so real though…"

"You fell asleep at the table, and when I woke you up you called me 'Pepper'," she explained.

"Really?" There was a pause, he was probably thinking about his assistant, then he made a sound that was something between a laugh and a sigh. "I used to do the same thing at home, sometimes because of too much work, other times because of too much play."

"Somehow that isn't a surprise. Which reminds me, I was recently thinking about our lives before, and I happened to recall that I really didn't like you at first."

He chuckled. "When was that?"

Julia walked over to his cot and sat at the foot of it. "When you came to Afghanistan for the missile demonstration."

Tony smiled up at her from his reclined position. "Did my reputation precede me? It usually does."

"Well, that and I already had it in my mind that you were a cocky jerk."

"Yeah, I get that a lot," he replied, un-offended.

"But, when you started cracking jokes and making Pratt and Jimmy laugh, I started to think that maybe you weren't so bad after all." Julia was referring to the other two occupants of the vehicle at that time.

"You were laughing too, if I remember correctly."

"How could you tell? I had all that gear on."

"Your face lights up when you laugh, and I could see your 'excellent bone structure'".

She flushed, a little embarrassed. "I can't believe you remember that. You must've used that line before."

"No, that one was original. And I get to look at your excellent bone structure everyday." Their eyes locked for a moment, yet oddly enough he was the first to look away. "Besides, it's one of the last good memories I have before this. I think about it all the time," he murmured.

Julia could sense his change in mood and knew that he needed some space. "I should make sure I turned everything off at the welding station before I go to bed."

She departed to the other end of the room, letting him become lost in his thoughts. It had been a long time since she had seen him in such a somber mood. The stress of their whole situation was probably the cause of it; after all, they would only get one shot at escape.

A few days later, Tony was seated in front of a laptop, programming the machine just like he said he would. He had explained how the arc reactor in his chest would be the power source for the entire suit. Julia didn't fully understand how it would all work, but it seemed like Stark knew what he was doing. The device had the primary function of keeping the shrapnel inside his body from entering his heart, but Tony had hinted from the beginning that it would be able to power much more that a simple electromagnet.

The most labour-intensive part of the whole process was the armoured plating that would cover all of the moving parts and weaponry underneath. This involved melting down large amounts of metal, shaping it, and then welding it all together. Despite the air ducts in the cave, the chamber became a virtual oven. The only cool part was in the back washing area, where they periodically took sanctuary from the intense heat of the fire.

Julia there stood in front of a candle-lit mirror tying her hair back before going to work. It used to be quite short, the ends of it barely brushing her shoulders, but now it was well past them. She hadn't ever fussed over it like most women do their locks, and kept her wavy brown hair in a tight bun at the nape of her neck so that she could easily slip on a helmet. Over the months of letting it grow out Julia began to notice how well it suited her, as did Tony. She recalled the day she asked Yinsen to cut her bangs – he could've moonlighted as a stylist by the way he used those scissors – and the way Tony stared at her afterwards. If only Pratt could see her now.

The heavy clanging from the metal being shaped was so jarring that she initially wondered if she would be physically able to do the task. Yinsen had also voiced his reservations about Stark's capabilities, but once Tony got going there was no stopping him. It felt as though they had gone back in time to the days of blacksmiths and metalworkers. She'd glance at him as they worked, sweat pouring off of them both, but he'd grin back at her – he was thoroughly enjoying it all.

"How are you feeling?" he asked. "Still sore?"

"Not as much. I think I'm already building muscle," Julia had to talk loudly to be heard over all the noise. "It hasn't even been a week that we've been doing this."

"Doesn't take long – this kind of work will shape you faster than any gym could." He heaved another plate into the water to cool it, flexing his bare, well-defined arms.

"Stark, Ramirez, I'm getting you more water before you both pass out!" Yinsen shouted. The doctor still wore a formal shirt, but had rolled up the sleeves. He didn't do too much of the forging because the others had insisted that he reserve his hands for the delicate medical work that he performed.

"I could sure use a beer right about now," Tony sighed, wiping his forehead with the back of his hand.

After they had turned off the work lights of the daytime hours, the glow of the fire was so warm and inviting. Yinsen had already turned in for the night; he always stuck to his schedule of being in bed before eleven o'clock. His fellow captives decided to linger fireside and drink more tea. They chatted pleasantly for a time until there was a lull in the conversation.

"I think the suit will be ready within the next seven or eight days," Tony said solemnly.

Fear in an almost tangible form seemed to flood the space where her diaphragm had been in one swift movement. "Really?" was all she could manage to say.

"There isn't that much left to do. Once it's done, we have to make our move. I can't assemble it and wait."

Julia felt weak. This was exactly what they had been planning for, yet to finally be so close to the day all of their plans would come together… "At least we've got some time to get mentally prepared for the whole thing."

A glance at his face surprised her – his eyes had a look that was near to haunted. "I just want you to know," he murmured, "that this could be our last stand here. I don't exactly have a back-up plan."

"I know. We'll have to give it everything we've got."

"There are just so many things I have to do. I've wasted so much of myself on meaningless things. There isn't much waiting for me at home."
"Don't say that…"

"I don't have any family, no pets, no relatives. The number of people that I'm closest to, I can count on one hand. Even then, they aren't friends exactly. That's it – aside from all of the material stuff, which I don't care about anyway. That's my entire life right there. You and Yinsen have families to return to. He was right when he said that I'm the man who has everything and nothing."

"Tony, stop it," she said with a stronger tone, though she knew that it was probably true.

He continued as if he hadn't heard her. "I never even got to say goodbye to my father. I didn't know him really, but there are things that I wish I could've asked him; like, how did he feel about the company? Was he ever conflicted? Did he have doubts? I didn't even ask myself those questions until we were put in here. And believe me I have plenty of doubts. What have I done to make the world a better place? I've only made war more convenient. And now I can see who is really paying for it. People like Pratt and Jimmy."

"Don't blame yourself for what happened to them; there is always risk involved in what we do."

"Whose of weapons killed them, and nearly killed you? Mine. Virtually everything in this stronghold is made by my company." He pointed at the blue glow in his chest. "I'm the reason I have this. That rocket that exploded read Stark Industries on the side. I was close enough to read it. The instant I saw it I knew the capabilities of that thing because I'd worked on stuff like that."

Julia turned away, wincing from the memory of seeing the rocket explode in front of him. She only looked up when Tony clutched her hand.

"I promise that I'll make this right. I wouldn't be alive now if it weren't for that reason."

"I know you will," she replied. He looked so fatigued; the stress was getting to him. Then again, it was getting to them all.

The suit was bulky – there was no way around it. Julia didn't need a scale, even if there was one around, to know that it probably weighed a ton, or at least more than a person could possibly hope to maneuver. Not only was Tony Stark supposed to wear that thing, but he would have to be able to walk and move in it. She had grave concerns about the whole thing, but didn't dare voice them. One aspect of the military that a soldier always kept in mind was not to question one's superiors, and Tony was the boss on this operation. Yinsen, however, lacked a military background, and the two men were now in a heated discussion.

"Stark, you'll barely be able to lift an arm once everything is bolted together. I don't think that it will be possible for you to stand, unless the suit can support itself."

"Once I get it fully hooked up to the program it will come online and start functioning, and all I'll have to do is control it."

"But we can't be sure that it will work that way without testing it!"

"And we both know that we can't test it that way. If they look through that camera and see me walking around in a tin can, they'll know something's up."

"Even if it does work, will the reactor be able to support both you and the suit without burning out? The plan is useless if you collapse in the middle of escaping."

"My math is right – I know it is."

"The suit could be more taxing on the reactor than you calculated. Fifteen minutes of run-time for this machine is just an estimate."

"Once again, I know that my math is right. You've got to trust me on this."

Yinsen threw his hands up in the air. "I just don't want to see you come this far to have it all fall apart."

Tony also relented. "What I really need right now is support. This is going to work. This is the plan and we can't think about everything else that could happen. And I know that there's a lot riding on this, on me." He cast a meaningful look at them both, but it lingered on Julia, who sat in silence nearby. "I know that you're depending on me to do this; I just need to lean on you guys a bit."

Once a definite plan for escape was devised, the final testing on the parts of the suit began. There was no hidden corner that they could use, and they would have to rely on limited screens to avoid detection by the people watching. Both arms of the suit were completed, but did not yet have the thick armor plating, so they could have passed as the missiles the Ten Rings desired. What was more, they responded perfectly to Tony's careful programming.

"I don't want to connect the entire leg parts," Tony said, "but I need to check the hydraulics. The upper section doesn't have much besides the bracing and the plating."

"Alright, sit up on the table here and we will try to get this contraption on your foot," Yinsen replied.

Julia also came over to help, wielding a screwdriver. "Just tell us if it's on too tightly or if it pinches," she told him.

After about eight minutes it was on. "This is going to be very heavy with the metal plating," the doctor commented. "How does is it feel right now?"

"Ah, it's ok." Stark handed him a wire. "Here, plug this into the computer and hit the code."

As soon as the key code was entered, the leg of the suit powered up as well. "It's running on this end – try moving your leg."

Tony did so and it responded in a jerky fashion at first, before moving more smoothly as he got a feel for it. The inventor already had a grin on his face. "It's working; that's good enough for me! I could kick a pretty good field goal with boots like these."

Julia laughed despite the tension; they were literally one step closer to freedom.

They had just cleaned up the evidence of their suit testing and Tony had gone back to welding when the viewport in the door of their cell made the three stop in their tracks. Julia was already reclining on her cot and quickly closed the curtains around it before the door was opened. Instead of Abu Bakaar standing in front of several armed guards, a tall man with a shorn head entered, flanked on both sides by his men.

Inside her enclosure, Julia watched intently, scarcely breathing for fear that she would be noticed. The man had to be the leader of the Ten Rings that Yinsen had spoken about, known as Raza. He spoke English and addressed Tony Stark only, talking about Stark weapons and expressing his desire to control an empire as large as Genghis Khan's. She could see Tony bristling at the man's presence, while Yinsen tried to send him cues to remain calm.

Suddenly the language changed, as Raza addressed the doctor. After a brief exchange he gave an order to his guards, who put Yinsen on his knees. Julia clenched her fists to keep herself from gasping at what she next saw; the terrorist leader held a glowing coal in a pair of metal tongs. She didn't have to know what they were saying to realize that they might torture Yinsen right there. Her heart beat at a feverish pace as she tried to choose between waiting the situation out or making a move now.

Before she could do anything, Tony took a step forward, saying, "Look, whatever he did-" A unified shout from Bakaar and the rest of the men in addition to drawn weapons halted his intervention, but Raza also paused in moved the burning object closer to the doctor's face. "I need him," Stark said boldly, then mumbled, "Good assistant."

Raza let the piece of coal drop from the tongs to an anvil, inches away from Yinsen. "You have till tomorrow, to assemble my missile." He gave another order in his language before turning to leave. Julia felt her heart stop as his men moved swiftly towards her location.

There was no where to hide and no where to run. They tore back the curtains and two guards grabbed her arms, pinning them behind her back, as she was hauled towards the center of the action.

"Hey, wait! What are you doing?" Tony shouted.

The guards stood her in front of Raza who slowly unwrapped some of the scarf from around her face. When they had first been brought to the cave, Yinsen had instructed her to where it out of respect for the land's customs; it had served as a protection, until now. He yanked off the rest of the fabric and glared at her. "You don't need this woman here anymore. Your only concern is to finish the missile, Stark."

With that she was dragged out of the room. It was useless to fight at this point, but she still struggled under the hold of the guards as they led her away. Julia couldn't look back to see his face, but the sound of Tony hollering her name echoed down the dark corridors.