Hello All!

I am back in exactly in 2 weeks. I am proud of myself. LOL

Well, here you go. Please let me know what you think! The more reviews the fast I update.

Chapter 6:

I quit

Finding a secret base was harder said than done; though to be honest, they would definitely not want an easily found base. Tony could already see it now: bad guys showing up left and right with a new weapon in their hands. Having to save Barnes every five second as someone was totally kidnapping that damsel in distress. Yes, he was awesome and could handle anything that came at him, but he wasn't in the mood for that right now. Rogers would probably give him that famous Captain stare for allowing harm to come to his best, which was another thing that Tony had no interest in.

Maybe, Tony was letting his mind wander too much, but they were on a clock and they were struggling to find a stupid base. Though, Tony had no idea of how much time was on said clock that marked the end of the world. His mind was just on doing whatever it took to stop Thanos. Stop, it, he thought, yelling at himself. This rabbit hole was an endless pit and was not good for anyone. On the plus side, Tony had an idea on the way back to the Tower which could lead to the retired S.S.A base. Usually, he pretended this place didn't exist, which meant that it had been years in either timeline since he had been here, but Howard could have something valuable locked inside. The only issue was that it brought back painful memories, especially after his parents died. So, he just avoided it.

Yet, he had Ayo stop at the famous Stark Mansion in the hopes of finding something in his father's lab. The house was pretty much been left untouched since the funeral with only a gardener, caretaker and a lone security officer on the properties. Pepper had suggested that he sell the Mansion, but even if there were nothing but painful memories here, he wouldn't bring himself to sell it. His mother had loved the garden and even planted some of the flowers herself. She would go on and on about her colorful roses, talking to them as if they were alive. She would light up whenever someone remarked on them.

That was the main reason why he couldn't part with the mansion. This was why he hired a 5 star gardener, caring more about the flowers than the inside of the house. It didn't matter what the inside looked like as long as the outside looked spectacular, and it was why the neighbors hadn't complained about the mansion that hadn't seen its glory days in years. The caretaker for the most part kept up with the daily maintenance, but he did not touch the décor or furniture, which had simply been covered by a white sheet.

"Do you really need two to A.I.s on this?" Ayo asked as she pulled up to the front of the mansion.

Did Tony need both FRIDAY and JARVIS on this? No, he did not. JARVIS, with his large processing servers, could have handled both tasks at the same time. Besides, JARVIS was hardly ever without work, as he was more than Tony's personal A.I. He assisted Pepper with the daily running of the business. This was wy he wanted to give FRIDAY something or else she would just cause trouble. It was also allowed her to grow and learn. "Two A.I.s are better than one, and an idle A.I. is never good." With FRIDAY, she didn't have anything yet to do as she was still in the early stages of development. So while JARVIS was running through the SHIELD's files, FRIDAY was running property deeds along the Virginia and Washington, D.C. line looking for a red flag. They didn't need to look at every deed, just look for something in an old industrial/warehouse complex or an empty field in which a hidden base could lay beneath. Even then, it was a massive search, but hopefully, they could narrow it down.

"Must take after their creator," Ayo replied, stepping out of the car. A car that she claimed as her own. A car that probably felt ancient compared to what she used in Wakanda. Did they have cars in Wakanda? Why did she need one of his?

"And what is wrong with that? I'm the bee's knees," he replied, lingering in the car. He warily eyed the front door, an old oak door dulled in the years forgotten. He remembered the last time he walked through it: the day of his parents' funerals. That day was mostly a blur with him only remembering the pain. There wasn't a lot of things he regretted, but he regretted his actions that day, and if he allowed himself to go down that hole, he also regretted the last thing he had ever said to his parents.

Ayo rounded the car and paused at Tony's door. The look on her face was a mixture of concern and exasperation. "Did you forget how to use your legs?" she asked.

He thought about responding with a snarky comment, but he pushed it aside. "Just some bad memories. There's a reason why I don't live here, besides the fact that I don't want to become a craze mansion owner, who lives alone." He answered, getting to his feet. With a deep breath, he shut the car door—harder than intended, causing him to wink- and crossed to the front door. His hand hovered over the doorknob for a second, willing himself to move. This is for the future, he thought, as he twisted the knob and pushed the door open. With a deep breath, he walked in.

It had been a while, even without the time jump, but besides the dust that caked everything, nothing changed, and Tony could feel the memories rushing up like violent waves. It was like he was wearing his Binarily Augmented Retro-Framing (or BARF), which he had yet to create in this timeline, with these memories being to vivid. Shaking off the memory, he stepped deeper into the room, which smelled like old moth balls and mold. "Did Wakanda create some wicked air freshener? Because that would be awesome right about now."

Ayo didn't answer, only stared. "Geez, a hard crowd tonight," he voiced as he headed toward his father's office. Even now, he wanted to avoid the room, but he shoved those feeling away. He had a secret base to find. It took a few painfully long minutes to walk to Howard's office, tucked away in the far corner of the mansion. Howard had purposely did this so no one could randomly walk by; they would have to make the effort. Granted, child Tony would've avoided it either way, after Howard caught him sitting in his chair once. That was a mistake that was never repeated.

Tony pushed open the door to his father's office and just stood in the door frame. This room looked nothing like the day of the funeral. Sure, the father/son pair didn't get along all too well, needing space, but that didn't stop Tony from destroying the office, cursing his father for leaving him. It had been Stane—the asshole—who had found Tony and pulled him out of Howard's office. It had been Stane who comforted the young crying genius who had became an orphan. It had been Stane who put this office back together… and talking all the SI documents. "Let's check the lab," Tony spoke, turning back to Ayo. "I doubt there is anything in here." Not with how Stane had cleaned house.

Ayo didn't move as she peeped into the room. "Are you sure? Would it not be wise to look around?"

Tony gave her an exasperated, wild look before stepping in, though he wasn't sure what exactly she was looking for in this empty room. However, he would humor her. He took the left side while she took the right. Each drawer was empty…well, besides for common household spiders and their nasty webs. God, he hated spiders. They were creepy little bugs. Shaking his head, he moved onto the next cabinet, though each was like the last. "Oh, you want some pain med that expired in 1993?" he asked as he held out the bottle to her. "Think it would kill me? Or maybe, it will give me some kind of a trip."

"It is a wonder you are breathing, Stark."

"Ain't that the truth," he snorted, as he continued down the lines of cabinets. Each was as empty as the last. Stane did not leave anything, not even the deed to the mansion. He took everything, which pegged the question of why. Was there something special here? Did the snake learn anything in those papers? Learn some hidden secret that Howard wanted to keep secret? On the other hand, Stane did leave the books that lined the bookcase behind the desk. Each were covered with dust, a clear sign to how long it had been since they were read.

Ayo gave Tony a concerned glimpse before picking up one of the 3 lone photos in the room. It had not aged well, even though it was kept in a nice frame. The picture was of Howard, Maria and a pre-teen Tony. While Howard looked like someone had stubbed his toe, there was a smile on Maria and Tony's face. "You were this cute?" she asked, waving the frame at Tony. "Who would have thought?"

Tony looked, only sparing a fleeting glance at each photo. He barely remembered taking that photo, though he remembered the sterned look on his father's face. There was always a firm look gracing Howard's face; it was glued on. Granted, Howard had a smile in the other two photos: his wedding photo and a company shot with Stane. "Hey now, I'm drop dead gorgeous," he replied, as he resisted the urge to punch the photo of Stane. Sure, the rest of the world didn't know what had occurred, but Tony knew and had to live with the media talking about how SI lost a key player. It was disturbing and revolting, but his board knew the truth. He didn't, at least, have to listen to them go on and on.

"If we cannot find that base, we would always use this mansion," Ayo suggested as she put down the frame. "Seems forgotten enough." There was a heavy layer of grime on the table.

Tony couldn't say he hadn't thought about it. It would make life easier, but he couldn't have Barnes at any place tied or could be traced back to him. Sure, Tony had some shell companies, but those weren't untraceable. With enough power and money, shall companies could be mapped and ripped open, and Tony doubted Hydra would allow things such as laws to stop them, especially with Senators in their ranks. There was no telling what they would do once Barnes was stolen—saved? "I think the dust alone would kill me," he replied, letting out a fake sneeze.

Ayo focused on the other photos a second before turning back to Tony. "Or maybe, it is the memories?"

Tony shot Ayo a look, his eye twitching. He really did need to work on his poker face. It had been sucking lately. "Me, bad memories?" he chuckles, waving it off. "I have no such thing." If Ayo gave Tony a look, he didn't notice as something on the wall caught his attention. "What are you, my pretty?" Stepping to the bookcase, his hands went to the wall as he noticed several scratches. These scratches—more like scrapes and scuffs—ran up and down the wall. It was almost like a- "Motherfucker, I'm going to be so mad," he yelled as he crossed to the other side of the bookcase. He ignored Ayo, who was staring at him, and shoved as hard as he could. It gave a little push back after years of neglect, but bookcase moved as if it was on a tracked. And like magic, a small hidden room was revealed.

How had he not noticed this? Tony did not know, but it annoyed the hell out of him. Like really? It wasn't even well hidden for crying out loud. This was going to bug the genius for the next few years. "Just like dear old dad," he mumbled, taking a step in. Unlike the main office, this hidden one hadn't been cleared out, and there were paper shattered everywhere. Even from the doorway, an S.S.R. logo was visible on the folders, though that wasn't the only paperwork there. There was some from S.I. with handwritten notes on the edges. Random doodles on notepads littered the desk. If it wasn't for the dust and the random blood thirsty spider, Tony would have expected his father to walk in at any second. God, did that thought sting?

Tony shook his head, trying his best to force out those thoughts. He may have seen the famous video only once, but it was fried into his head like some kind of moment in a horror movie. Questions popped up like ghosts, haunting him. On the night of Howard's death, was his father coming back here to pick up where he left off? Was his father working on this just before his death? What was so important that he hid it in his own home? Granted, this was his father, a man who kept Tony at an arm's length at all times, and there was no telling what this man was working on. Did he—

"Stark!" Ayo yelled.

Shaking his head, Tony snapped back to reality. "Geez, my ears. Anyone teach your matters?" he asked, turning from the desk to the framed photos on the wall. Not to his surprised, they were of Captain America and his howling commandos. Some were just of Rogers and the commandos posing for a camera, because apparently soldiers had time to pose for photos during wartimes. Others were random shots taken at a base, candid shoots, which were the money shot if you asked Tony.

"Where did yours go?"

"Time travel, Silly," he replied, pulling himself away from the photos. Note: there are none of me. "Maybe, we will get lucky in here." He said, going back to Howard's second desk. In the corner of the room, there was a bulky computer that had seen better days. Pulling out his phone, he turned to ancient paperweight. There was a good likelihood that the thing would not turn on, but Tony didn't need it to turn on. He just needed the hard drive of this old ass computer.

Ayo watched as Tony ripped open the hard casing of the computer. "I'll be amazed if you get anything off it," she said, turning her attention away from Tony. She scanned the room, taking in every detail. She observed the photos as well, but she also noticed the Captain America items that lined the room. There was a huge map just above it with black marks everywhere. Some were over water, while over land, but as time went on, each black 'X' grew bigger and messier. It had anger written all over it.

"JARVIS, pull as much as you can off this thing," Tony ordered as he glanced up to Ayo. He could see her studying each inch of the room, taking in Howard's hard work. It was been unnerving to have her scrutinize Howard's 'Collection', which bordered on obsession. Though to be honest, this wasn't Howard's biggest collection of Captain America Crap.

"Be my pleasure, Sir." Came Jarvis reply.

Tony turned his attention to the forsaken paperwork on the desk. It was haunting, as images popped into his head. Images of a life Howard would've had if he had not been murdered, cut down by Ba-No, Barnes didn't do it, even if it was Barnes' hands. Howard was cut down by Hydra. "Anything on SHIELD's servers, J? Anything that can help?"

"I have found nothing yet referring to a SHIELD base code name Ragtag. I have, however, found some questionable files, but none directly point to Hydra."

That was not surprising; if Tony was running Hydra, he wouldn't be stupid enough to put Hydra's files on SHIELD's servers. Even if they were behind the strongest fire wall, it was hackable. Just look at them now. "Just keep looking. And make sure to keep Wakanda in the loop."

"Very well, Sir."

Ayo glanced up files she was looking through. "I have been keeping my King up to date."

Tony figured as much, wondering what exactly Ayo had been telling T'Chaka, but this was nothing to do with that. He did this to build trust. "Hakuna Matata!" If Ayo replied, he didn't hear her, though she probably mumbling something under her breath. It wasn't an uncommon response for someone talking to him; it made him chuckle. It was a game, a game he loved to play.

*O*O*

After obtaining the files from his father's old fossil of a computer and scanning through his father's hidden files, Tony and Ayo returned to the Tower. Using everything that they had, they were able to narrow down the secret base (Or what they hope was a secret base and not a pile of lies) to a five-mile stretch. Tony had high hopes, especially after he upgraded the quinjet radar. Though radar wasn't a good word to describe it, the purpose of the device was to detect any disruptions the electric grid. More specifically, it was looking for any blank spots (black holes) as well as strange increases in electricity. With it, he could scan for any irregularity in the electrical grid while being several miles in the air. It shouldn't be too hard to look for something that shouldn't exist.

Ayo had gone off to doing whatever that she did whenever she was not at his side. There countless ideas in his head, and each were weirder than the last. Tony wasn't sure, and he would be lying if he said he wasn't curious. Was she kicking down his walls? Throwing craze house parties? Sex parties? Like it always did, his overthinking got his head spinning; however, he wasn't going to use either one of his A.I.s to spy on the Wakandan. He was pretty sure Ayo would and could kill him if he did; plus, it would not do anyone any good. He wanted to build trust, not destroy it.

After running tests in his lab, Tony was sure the 'radar' would work, though he was itching to test it. Both JARVIS and FRIDAY objected to the idea stating he needed sleep, which in retrospect was very fucken annoying. Instead of one overprotective know-it-all A.I., he had two, and to make matters worse, they were teaming up against him like a pair of wild dogs protesting a puppy. It must've been that conversion he had with JARVIS in the jet, as that A.I. was singing a different tone.

"Boss, JARVIS and I have both locked down the quinjet and lab and suggest it would be wise to get some rest," FRIDAY spoke.

JARVIS wasn't far behind with saying, "Miss Potts is also in agreement and is expecting you in your quarters. Should I give her an ETA?"

Tony's head perked up at the mention of Pepper, though his heartbeat betrayed him. "I wanted to get to work on those prosthetics I promised the Kiddos." He also wanted to work on a special internship or camp (if Peter was too young for the whole internship. When is too young to science? Trick question, the answer is none!) for Peter at S.I. If the Bald-headed Wizard with the time stone said it was okay, Tony was going to do it. Letting Ben die, that would be hard.

"At this rate, Sir, you would be dead on your feet before you finished the first one. No one would want one of those prosthetics," came JARVIS's dry reply.

"Hey! Take that back! Anything I create is gold." Tony protested, shaking his fist in the air.

"Should I take inventory of the lab?" FRIDAY asked, her sassy tones breaking through. "I would agree with JARVIS."

Tony stood there for a few second, just staring at the wall. What the hell did he do? What the hell was he thinking having two A.I.s. "No, this is not happening. I liked it better when you two were fighting!"

"After our discussion, Sir, I thought I it would be wise for FRIDAY and myself to refocus our efforts. You have been a handful, especially lately." JARVIS replied, matter of factly. The A.I. didn't have a body, but if he did, there would be a Cheshire cat smile on his face.

"It is logical," Came FRIDAY's response. "It would service us well, as you tend to be reckless and thick."

Was this what love was? If so, Tony didn't want it. "If you two start spouting 'Resistance is futile,' I quit. I mean it. I quit. You can have the world." He expressed, turning to the elevator.

"You speak as if you had a choice, Sir."

"There would be no escaping us, Boss."

No, Tony was not flashing back to Ultron, who hated him with every fiber of his being. This was something else.

"You are ours," the A.I. added simultaneously, which hit Tony like a ton of bricks.

There was no denying the chill that ran down his back, but Tony refused to let that grow inside of him. It was an overreaction—another one if he was counting-, and he wasn't going to fall for that crap again. Besides, they weren't Ultron, who was sentient, and they could not disobey an order from him, unless Pepper or Jim used their codes, but they both had to follow orders. "Okay, I'm hiring a therapist for you both. I don't know who specialize in crazy A.I.s, but I am sure I can find someone."

"I will get right on that," FRIDAY replied; at the same time, JARVIS had asked, "Are you okay? Your heartrate has increased."

"I'm going up to Pepper," Tony said, ignoring both of them. This was something he would need to get used to. "So, you both can leave me alone."

"A wise choice." At this point, Tony wasn't sure who had said it, as they blended together at this point. And did it really matter? He was screwed.

The main light in the bedroom was off, leaving the light on the nightstand as the only light source. It casted just enough light for the paperback book that Pepper was reading. Yes, a paper book as she did not like e-books. She enjoyed the feel of paper in her hands. She enjoyed turning the page, and heck, it was better for the eyes, which was something she reminded Tony of every time he tried to point her toward an eBook. So while Tony complained about how much space books too up, Pepper kept buying books, forcing Tony to find space—which wasn't too hard living in a tower this big, but that was not the point. The point was that books were a waste of space.

Hearing Tony at the doorway, Pepper glanced up and smiled. There was no anger from this morning in her expression. "I see you decided to come up to bed," she said. She looked totally relaxed in her position, sitting against the headboard with her legs under the covers. There was a pillow beneath her left elbow and two behind her back. Her hair was pulled back into a loose ponytail.

"You seem like you're in a better mood," Tony said, as he kicked off his shoes. That was probably not the best way to start a conversion, especially when the last two fights had been horrible. There was no need to bring them back up. "I supposed that mean I didn't blow anything up."

Titling her head to the left, Pepper closed the book and gentle put it aside. "When I see news story like these, I can't help but smile," she answered, picking up a tablet and showing it to him. "These are what I like to see. These are what make my heart skip." On the lit screen, there was a picture of Tony being bear hugged by a little girl while other kids smiled in the background. Even from his distance, the huge smile on his face was visible, reaching his eyes. There was no pretending with a smile like that.

"The entire time I thought they were going to eat me," Tony teased as he climbed onto from the foot of the bed. It dipped under his weight, though that did not disturb the red head at the head. His eyes on her, her beautiful face, as he crawled to her. "I may need five showers to get their buggers off me, but they are cute little things."

Pepper let out a gorgeous laugh. "Of course, you would say that." With a smile that could light up the night sky, she met his stare and held it. There was an undeniably lust and longing in her eyes. Waving him over, she placed the tablet back on the table and waved him over. "Now, I want to know where this is coming from? Since when did you like kids? You called them bags of dirt and germs."

Just like that, his heart pinged. Not now, he thought, pushing back those thoughts, especially the ones of Peter. If he let himself go down that rabbit hole, he would never come back up. There would be another fight, he could feel that much, so he shoved it down as far as he could. However, there was no stopping the guilt. He wasn't the man she knew. But who are you? It wasn't like took over this body…He just went back in time, like someone hit rewind. Yea, let's not think about that. "Well, they still are," he declared. "But I will admit that they have their uses."

Pepper gave him a look. "Uses? What?" she laughed at him as she lowered herself to her back, allowing him to hover above her. "Did the kid germs get you? Did they fry your brain?"

"Hey, now. No laughing at me. I protest!" He said, as he looked down at her with a light smile. "I will sick Friday and JARVIS on you." He threatened, playfully.

She rolled her eyes at him. "I still don't know why you need two A.I.s, but they will be your downfall." A devilish look appeared on her face. "Now, I have two A.I.s to keep you in check."

Okay, he was totally screwed. Here was another downside to having two A.I.s, in addition to them taking over the world. "Hey, now. I-" Pepper cut him off, placing a kiss to his lips. It was warm and sweet, and Tony just wanted to bathe in it. He wanted to take it all in, but god, why couldn't he stop thinking? Why was he letting his mind go down this route? Was this okay? "Pepper," he articulated, pulling away. "This morning. The fight." It was left unresolved, the issues still growing beneath whatever this was. "Maybe-"

Pepper tugged him down, interrupting him with a strong kiss, as she kicked her legs out from under the covers. "Not now," she demanded against lips. "Not now." There was this desperation in her voice that that struck Tony hard, and he gave in, though giving in wasn't the best word for it. It wasn't like he didn't want to, because he did. It just felt off.

Inches from her face, Tony looked into her eyes. "Pepper," he uttered, not moving from her. "I love you and I'm sorry." God, there was so much he wanted to say but the look in her eyes stopped him. She was in no mood into talking, not that anyone would be unless you were Tony, who seemed unable to stop himself. "There-"

She interrupted him again with a harsh sigh and another kiss. "Just shut up and kiss me. You talk too much," she ordered, holding him—not that she needed to. Tony had no will power; plus, he was glue to her by that stare of hers, which was equal parts warmth and hunger. With him no longer pulling away, one of her hands dropped away from his collar and went to the hem of his shirt. Her hand found its way up his chest as she wrapped her legs around him and pulled him close.

*O*O*

Tony slept pretty well—quite pleased of himself for the 5 hours that he got-, but he was still up before Pepper, who was Still naked under the massive comforter. She almost invisible under the thing with only the top of her head poking through, but she looked content. She looked happy, which was more than he could say about himself. Not now, he scolded himself as he turned from bed and forced himself out the room with one thing on his mind.

As he approached the quinjet, he noticed Ayo standing at the hanger door, her eyes drilling into him like a lion looking at his foot. "Up already?" he asked, glancing behind her at the sky. The light was just peaking up through the tall buildings, marking that sunrise due to arrive soon.

In her hands, she held her Wakandan spear as she stared at him with a piercing look. She was cleaning it, but she looked just as scary as a father protecting his daughter on her first date. "Not leaving me without me?" She asks.

"Now, why would you think that?" He paused for a second, letting that thought wash over him. "Nope, scratch that. You are right," he answered, picking up a bag of blue berries as he made his way to the jet. "I would've totally left you. That self-sacrifice part of me is, you know, self-sacrificing." He said as he popped a blue berry into his mouth.

"So that's why you have to carry all this crap on your shoulder?" she asked, getting to her feet.

Even if he hadn't travel to the past (Or was it more like time was rewind?), he would still have a laundry list of defects, which included this. Each drove him to do the dumbest shit, which Rhodey liked to remind him of every day. It was why Pepper got mad at him, why she was mad at him now. "Well, have you seen my arms?" he asked, putting on cheery smile. "Look at these bad boys. Sure, I am no super soldier, but man." He reflexed.

Ayo rolled her eyes. "How are you still living?" she asked, her eye twitching.

"O ye of little faith," Tony voiced, as he rolled his eyes back her. "I am Iron Man."

"More like Iron Boy."

"Do I look like a boy, J, Fri?" he asked his A.I.s, which probably wasn't the best move. It seemed like JARVIS and FRIDAY was on anyone's else side but his own. How shitty was that? Okay, that wasn't true. They were on his side, like two parents who disagreed with their child and did everything to protect them,

"At times, Sir, I am unable to tell the difference between a child and yourself." JARVIS retorted.

FRIDAY, on the other hand, said, "I have yet to meet a child. Though via my research, you do share some of the qualities."

Tony groaned loudly as he waved them off. "You two don't count anymore. I need some more A.I.s to balance you two out, and…" He paused for a second, his eyes crunch up. "No, I just quit. You all can find some other time traveling Genius to save the universe, because I am out!" He threw his arms up, pretending to dramatically storm to the jet.

"Time traveling, Sir?" JARVIS inquired. The A.I. paused for a second as if it was thinking. "That would make sense with your latest behavior. Why I have not come to that conclusion before is beyond me. May I ask why you have done so? It would be most interesting to study."

Tony froze. Did he just let the cat out of the bag? Granted, how could the A.I. not know? He hadn't been very secretive about it, cursing and spouting off like a crazy man. "See, Ayo! He believed me without issue."

Ayo rolled her eyes. "JARVIS is an A.I. that you created. Why wouldn't he believe you?" she replied, her exasperation bubbling up. "It is like King T'Chaka sent me here to babysit you." Her accent only seemed to get heavier.

"I assume it would get the same reaction if I agreed with JARVIS?" FRIDAY spoke.

"Yes!" Ayo harshly sigh, as she crossed to Stark and yanked on his shirt, pulling him toward her. It wasn't exactly gentle as Tony almost fell forward on his face, catching himself at the last second. "Let's head out before I change my mind."

Tony yelped loudly. "Hey!" However, it wasn't long before he gave in and followed her. If someone was making a certain sound in the background, it went unnoticed by Ayo. Tony, on the other hand, rolled his eyes. He was so quitting.

*O*O*

Tony made his way to his gray and silver Iron Man Suit as Ayo sat in the pilot seat, running system checks. She was preforming scans every few seconds, looking for any abnormalities, while Tony checked out what appeared to be abandoned warehouse surrounded by other warehouses. There wasn't anything abnormal about the other warehouses, while this one warehouse giving off big red flags. According to the paperwork that FRIDAY pulled up, the owner had long since been dead; yet, the land was not for sale. It didn't look like it was going on sale anytime soon. Granted, that could be because no one knew who to contact for it. The city had no idea, only noticing that it was being held in a private trust. An unknown trust. Like what the hell? How did that happen?

Shaking his head, Tony climbed into the Iron Man Suit and exited the jet. With the weird reading from the supposedly abandoned warehouse, the genius wanted to check it out first as this was their most promising lead. It wasn't like there was a sign reading 'Yes, we are hiding', but thanks to his upgraded radar, he knew something wasn't adding up. There was completely no reading coming off the warehouse. Normally, that was what you got when someone were trying to hide something, which just peaked Tony's interest.

The Iron Man Suit touched down as softly as he could. "JARVIS, make sure you are scanning everything." Tony ordered.

"Already on it, Sir," JARVIS replied. A voice, if Tony allowed himself to think about it, still gave the genius a pause, as he was waiting for Vision to pop up. "I would advise caution. I am picking up activity behind that door."

"Aye Aye, Captain," Tony responded, as he approached the door. "If this is a kid spray painting, I'm giving all of you away."

"You can try, Stark." Came Ayo's answered.

Tony hummed a response as he kicked open the door. He was tempted to 'rain down hell' on the place and ask for forgiveness later, simply because he needed to release this anger that were boiling just beneath the skin; however, he needed this place. A simple door was easier to replace instead of an old building, a building that belonged to no one. The door went sailing across the room like a missile and hits the back with an incredible force. Tony took a smalls step in and looked around, but he only saw hallways. He was getting horrible flashbacks to that Siberian Hydra facility (A base he would need to visit soon), as he slowly made his way deeper into the warehouse. Though he didn't have to worry about two super soldiers, it felt exactly the same.

Somewhere along the lines, Tony lost connection with Ayo, which didn't bode well. It took some advance jammers to knock out his tech; however, it did give Tony some hope that they were on the right track. On the other hand, did that mean this base was not abandoned? Did that mean someone was here? "Crap," he uttered, going through all the data that he got in his head. This couldn't be a SHIELD base, right? There was no record of this base on the SHEILD servers, which JARVIS spent hours scanning and documenting.

He got his confirmation seconds later as he rounded a corner. This was an old S.S.R. Base—the freak symbol was on the wall, proudly displayed. Maybe, there was an old S.S.R. agent here, just making sure nothing happened to this place. Even with S.S.R. gone, there were probably secrets in this place that no one wanted to see the light of day. There were somethings that would be more damage if revealed than stole by a shadow agency. "Shit," he uttered as the room became clear to him. This wasn't just some large warehouse—much to what it looked like from the outside; this was a hanger, a massive hanger, which didn't look neglected in the least. There was modern tech everywhere.

For the most part, the hanger was empty, except for a few crates along the wall. There was no jet or plane in sight, which was odd. What was a purpose of a hanger without a jet? There was a door on the far side of the hanger, which was strange. If he was going off the blueprints, nothing was supposed to be behind that wall. However, something told Tony that that door didn't lead outside. He may be cut off from Ayo, but his scans were still able to go through metal and bricks. That door led down. Down where? Tony didn't know but he was going to find out.

However, Tony didn't get much time to ponder that as one second he was looking around and the next he was in a firestorm. It wouldn't have been so bad if it was just bullets, but he was getting hit by some kind of sonic cannon, which felt just how it sounded. He was only hit once, but man, did it hurt. Tony, refusing to be hit again, took up into the air, as his eyes scanned for the source of the blasts, though it was coming from multiple directions. But there was only one heat source? Must be automatic. "Track these things back to the source," he demanded, dodging another blast.

"Targeted," JARVIS replied.

A few compartments popped open on the back of the Iron Man Suit, and the several rows of missiles were launched a second later. They hit their targets, destroying several sonic cannons and blasters, which was far too advance for the S.S.R. base. A clear sign that this place was not abandoned and there was no stopping the panic that flooded Tony. Did he unknowingly just walk into a Hydra base? Did Tony have some bad luck or what? Because there was no other way to describe this shit show of a shit show. If this was a bust, there was no need for him to be here.

Just as Tony was able to blast a hole through the secret base, a single man in a black suit popped out of the door to nowhere and looked up at Tony with a neutral expression. There was a Shield logo on the badge around his neck, which just pissed off the genius more. Did he really think he would be that lucky? Here he was thinking he might get head of the game, but yet, here the fuck he was. What—

"Mr. Stark," the Shield Agent yelled, as he looked up at the Metal Man. "I must ask you to lower your weapons and step out of the suit. There is no need for violence."

Unsure of what to make of the Agent, Tony slowly lowed himself to the ground, wishing he could run this face against the SHIELD servers. However, JARVIS's abilities were limited when was cut off from the main servers. "You attacked me, Buddy. Not the other way around. I feel insulted you didn't want me at your party."

Hitting something on his smart watch, the Agent looked up, and as if by my magic, the hinger doors jolted and started to gradually open. "Why don't you ask your Pitbull to come join?" he asked.

As the sun peeked through, the connect with Jet was restored and Ayo was back in his ear. "Are you okay, Stark?"

"Yup, what's firework between friends?" Tony answered, only to Ayo. His focus was sorely on the Agent, who for a SHIELD agent looked rather small. Did SHIELD agents come in that size? "So, what's the name?" he asked the Agent, as the helmet on the suit retracted.

"Agent Koenig," he answered, his eyes bouncing between Tony and the landing quinjet. "Now, Mr. Stark, how did you find this place?" He had a friendly enough face, but with a gun in his arm, he was prepared to protect this base at any cost. "Granted, I should also ask why you are here. There is nothing here for you, Mr. Stark."

Tony wasn't sure what to exactly tell him, as he had a few questions of his own. Mainly, what was this place? Was Fury hiding something here? Though the door that Koenig had come from was now firmly closed, it didn't seem like there was anyone else. If there was, would they not be here as well with their guns? If there was not, what was the point of a one-man base? Maybe, he was using this as a safe house? "I was looking for a place where I could hide. I wasn't expecting a lone tiny man in this huge base." He said. "I was expecting an empty warehouse."

It was at this point that Ayo had landed the jet and was quickly went through landing protocols. Seeing the jet touched down, Koenig did not waste anytime closing the hanger doors. "Who said I am alone?" Koenig asked.

Tony narrowed his eyes at him before saying, "Then I guess everyone hates you. Do you hate you?"

"Well, I did not expect to be threatened by Iron Man."

"I am not threatening. I'm most definitely not threatening. Look at this face," he said, pointing at his face. "I'm adorable, and it's the truth. Just look it up on the internet. Or you can ask Ayo. Well, I think that depends on the day, because some days she finds me adorable, while other days I feel like she wants to kill me. So in-"

"Only you, Stark," Ayo replied, interrupting him. With her Wakandan spear in her hand, she stepped out of the jet with a deadly look. "He could be trying to kill you, and yet, here you are? Rambling like a fool." There was no attempt to hide her accent as she approached them.

Koenig gave Ayo a once over before turning his attention back to Stark. "A Wakandan?" he asked, a hit of surprise flashing across his face. "I'm impressed."

Tony glanced at Ayo, not understand what she was doing. Why hide her accent only to reveal it now? "You got Wakandan from that? I got hot African Woman, who could kick my ass without trying."

Both Koenig and Ayo let put a heavy sigh, which earned a grin from Tony. "Do not tempt me," Ayo replied. At the same time, Koenig spoke, "How has his mouth not killed him? No, seriously. Big Fan, but how is he alive?"

Rolling his eyes like it was the most obvious thing ever, Tony turned his attention back to the SHIELD Agent. "Because I am Iron Man." He replied.

Ayo's eye twitched as she took her step forward, ignoring Stark. "Why are you here? This place should not exist. We searched the entire SHIELD archive and this base is not list, even in Fury's personal files."

Koenig gave them a hard look. "I'm going to look past the fact that you hacked into to our servers—which I will get out of you at a later time- and ask again, why you are here? What are you looking to hide?"

Tony and Ayo traded looks, communicating through their eyes. It was odd as Tony never thought he would get there with her, but here they were. There was hesitation in both them, as there was a part of them that wanted to turn around and leave. What good was a not so secret base? However, they had already spent valuable time looking for one, and they weren't sure if they wanted to walk away, but putting it here could be risky with Koenig. There was no way to tell if they could trust this man, but not all SHIELD agents were bad.

"What if I told you Hydra was back?" he asked, his eyes glued to the Agent's face. He searched for any kind of tell. If he just outed Hydra to Hydra, he doubted he would make it through the night without getting murdered, thought they would have two angry A.I. on their asses wanting revenge.

Koenig looked at him. "Bullshit."

"Oh, I wish it was bullshit. Trust me, it would make life easier, because I'm pretty sure that they will execute me in my sleep, not that I sleep. Sleep is for the weak and we know me," he said, flexing his arms. "I thrive on a lack of sleep."

Ayo was doing her best to keep a straight face, but there was a soft twitch in her right eye. "What Stark is trying to say is: Hydra is hidden within the shadows of SHIELD."

Koenig did not look convinced. "Fury would know if that was the case."

There was an insult on the tip of Tony's tongue, but he stuffed it down. Now was not the time to insult the pirate, especially when this agent seemed to trust Fury. "Why don't you let us play show and tell? Hmm," he said, stepping out of his suit—much to Ayo's displeasure.

"Fine, but let's do that somewhere more comfortable," Koenig said, eyeing the empty suit. "After you show me this proof, we can talk."

*O*O*

To say this his place was huge an understatement, as it stretched miles beneath the ground and Tony had been correct. With each room—too many to count- they passed, there was not one single SHIELD agent, which Tony counted as a blessing. It meant there was still hope they could use this place. Plus, this place wasn't bad in the least, even if the main structure had been built in the S.S.R era. It was upgraded enough that you would not notice the age of the building, which included a few labs that Tony would love to look at.

The Agent pass each of those rooms by and lead Ayo and Tony to an office deep within the base. And as if there were people they needed to keep out of the conversion, Koenig closed the door and turned on the monitor. He waved Tony over it. After Tony laid everything out on the screen, Koenig just stood there, looking over the evidence with large eyes. The amount of proof that they had could not take down Hydra, which was branched across world like an ever-growing weed. It was enough evidence to get started. Just enough evidence to know that SHIELD could not be trusted. "You have to tell, Director Fury."

There were in what Tony assumed was the 'Main' Office in this reformed S.S.R. base. It was a mixture of new and old, with brick walls. It was quite interesting to see how they upgraded this base to fit their needs. It was no Stark Tower, but it was worked for what they needed it for. "I tried that once. I felt like Alexander Pierce was going to eat me or something. He was looking at me like I was some juicy steak."

Ayo, letting out a heavy sigh, narrowed her eyes at Tony. "Yes, Stark could have put more effort into it, but once he got something in his head, he is a complete idiot."

Tony was taking Ayo's insult as proof that she liked him. If she was willing to put up with him, it meant something. "As of right now, I'm going to keep this close to the vest. I know Fury is not Hydra, but I'm not sure who around him is not. Currently, we know of only a few: Fucken Alexander Pierce, Senator Stern, the entire Strike Team, and Agent Sitwell. We know there're more, waiting to snap their trap, and I cannot risk Fury showing his hand, thinking he can trust someone he can't. Hydra can be anyone. If a someone on the World Security Council can be Hydra, anyone can be."

Koenig started at the large screen in the corner of the office, looking like he had seen a ghost. It was all there in black and white. "And how are you sure I am not?" he asked, turning back to them.

That was a question that Tony was going to pander for a while. "Time will only tell, but you're too tiny to be a Hydra Agent. I feel like they have a height requirement and you don't meet that." He replied, ignoring the glare from Ayo.

The insult did not seem to faze Koenig as he replied, "That is all handy dandy but why did you come here? Looking for a base of operations?"

"No, I am not planning on showing my hand just yet," Tony answered. "I'm looking for a place to hide someone." He wasn't going to reveal who just yet. Koenig could still be Hydra, even though it was highly doubtful. Though Tony did not have the best judgement, he didn't believe the Agent had it in him to be Hydra. However, he still didn't want to reveal the Winter Soldier before he had to. The less people who knew about James Barnes the better. "He's a brainwashed prisoner of Hydra. I need a place to him where they can't find him, because they will come after him and he probably won't be friendly at first."

Koenig didn't answer quickly, pausing to think. "I would think that Stark Tower would be secure enough. No one could get past the famous Iron Man."

If it was anyone but Hydra, Tony would agree. If Barnes didn't have those fucken trigger words, he would agree, but as long as those trigger words exist, no one would be safe. Barnes could be turned within second, and that would be good for no one. Crap, he cursed in his head, as certain memory popped into his head. Barnes, triggered words used, had fired pointblank at a suitless Tony. If it wasn't for his Tech, he would be dead. Barnes may not have wanted to kill him, but he would've without hesitation. He would've killed them all. Shit, he thought. As if it was yesterday, he could still feel the table break beneath him when Barnes threw him like a rag doll. The fear that rushed through him could never be forgotten.

"Tony," Ayo uttered, worry breaking through her voice.

Shaking his head, Tony snapped back to reality. "Sorry," he uttered, his heartbeat in his throat. He really wished these stupid flashbacks would stop. They were getting old. "So what you say?"

"And you won't tell me who this person is?" Koenig asked, narrowing his eyes at him.

"No, we can't be too careful nowadays. If we can hide him here, I'll give you everything you will need to know besides his name." Tony shrugged with a smile on his face. "What's this world coming too? Hydra behind every corner."

"What if I tell Fury?"

"Why did Fury hide this base even from SHIELD itself?" The genius asked, as he turned to the S.R.R. symbol. It was an odd feeling to be in a base that Howard had once walked through. Peggy was surely right next to them, giving orders like the boss that she was; there was no doubt she would burn Hydra to ground if she knew… if she wasn't trapped in her own head. "Just like us, he doesn't know who to trust. He built this place for a what if. We are in that what if situation, so what are you going to do, Agent?"

There was a war on Koenig's face. "For now, I will go along with this, just because I am big fan, but at any point, I reserve the right to bring Fury in."

Tony didn't like the idea of Fury poking his head into his business, but he knew at one point he would have to. Fury was a necessity evil and he was the Director of SHIELD. "Fine, but if he does anything I don't like, I get to poke out his other eye."

If Koenig had issue with that, he didn't say. "Then, we have a deal. And if we are going to fight Hydra together, you can call me Billy Koenig."

"I will call you Agent. All you black suits are faceless to me." He paused for second as he glanced around. There was one thing that this place needed. "And I am installing FRIDAY."

"Who's Friday?"

"Only one of the two best A.I.s ever," Tony answered with a smile. Not only would FRIDAY make this place better, he would be able to keep an eye on Koenig. "Even if she sends you running for the hills screaming 'I quit,' You will love her."

The End for now:

1) Before anyone asks, that sense with Pepper does not mean I have chosen a pairing. I am still am not set on a pairing. There is a break up coming, and Tony would be single for quite a few chapters as he comes to term with his flashbacks and future knowledge. Now, what happens after that, I am not sure.

Pepper/Tony- 42

Stephen/Tony- 43

T'Challa/Tony-8

Steve/Tony- 5

Bucky/Tony- 1

Ayo/Tony- 1

Ayo/Rhodey-6

2) With Stane's death, I wasn't exactly sure what was released. I just know they said he was killed in a plane crush. In my head, they would have kept as much secret as they could as they would want to protect their image.

3) In review someone asked if Daisy and Jemma would show back up, i didn't want to review it just yet. However, it will only be a matter of time as we all know what base Tony just found. They will pop up more.

4) I will note we will be seeing more Peter in the future, even if he isn't spider-man just yet.

Until next time.