16TH FINALS: IRON MAN VS. ANONYMOUS

Back in the Garden, the crowd, as well as the remaining Avengers and Thunderbolts, all eagerly wait to hear the update on the Iron Patriot. The announcer stood on stage with his left fingertip to his ear, listening to the people reporting behind the stage. Once he received his instructions, the announcer turned to the audience. "Ladies and gentlemen, I've just been informed that the Iron Patriot has been safely transported to the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helocarrier, and he is a little shaken up, but otherwise unharmed. However, his armor was severely damaged in the match, but fear not, he is currently getting a 'spare' set of armor so he can continue with the tournament. And speaking of which, it's time we find out who will be the Patriot's next opponent...in the eighth and final match of the thirty-second finals!" This announcement caused the crowd, both Avengers and Thunderbolts fans alike, to let out an excited, almost deafening roar.

Back in the Avengers' corner, Iron Man was performing a few last-minute diagnostics for his armor before his match. This, in turn, caused J.A.R.V.I.S. to give the Armored Avenger this report inside his helmet. "DAMAGES ARE ONLY AT TWENTY-SIX PERCENT, SIR. HOWEVER, WHILE THEY ARE NOT SERIOUS, CAUTION IS STILL ADVISED."

"Yeah, so you keep telling me," Iron Man replied, then turned his attention to Spidey, who seemed to be worried and thus decided to put the young man's fears to rest by keeping up with his confident playboy persona. "Well, kid, you saw how Osborn used one of my armors in battle," said the Shell head in a positive tone. "Now, you get to see battle armor is used properly in the hands of a pro."

Spidey smiled behind his mask, admiring Iron Man's confidence as well as his positive nature, no matter what the situation. Personality traits he always admired about the Golden Avenger, aside from his scientific genius. "Hey, no argument here."

However, this also caused a very serious Ms. Marvel to share her opinion as well, finding the Shell-Head's seemingly over-confidence troubling. "Happy that you're happy, kid," she told the Web-Head will still narrowing her brow at Iron Man. "But, I'm hoping that your hero here will be smart enough to work safe for the sake of his team and will try not to be reckless."

Despite Ms. Marvel's justification in lecturing him about being careful, Iron Man still gave her a smirk behind his faceplate. "Where's the fun in that?" said the Shellhead, earning him an irritated glare from the Warbird.

Meanwhile, the announcer, still having the cheering crowd in his hand, soon walked the Avengers and approached Iron Man himself. "Mr. Stark, are you ready?"

"On my way," Iron Man replied, and as he watched the announcer nod and walk over to the center of the stage, he turned his intention back to the annoyed Ms. Marvel. "Carol, trust me, I know I'm not going to help Clint and the others if I join them as a prisoner, so I will be careful. Besides, if I can handle gods and planet-eating aliens, I know I can handle whatever goon Osborn picked to try and take me down. So relax." After reassuring Ms. Marvel, will little to no success, Iron Man soon turned his attention to the rest of his teammates. "Don't wait up, Avengers. I'll be back." With that said, Iron Man turned and walked over the teleportation pad.

The announcer watched as Iron Man stepped on to the pad, then turned back to the crowd. "All right, folks, let's not waste any time. Let's wrap up the sixteenth finals with the Invincible Iron Man taking on his mystery opponent!"

With that said, the teleportation pad activates, and Iron Man vanished out of sight as he was transported to an unknown location.

And as the crowd cheered with anticipation, the skeptic Ms. Marvel crossed her arms, still none too pleased with the Shell-Head's carefree attitude. "Would it kill Stark to take this just a little bit seriously?"

It was here that Wasp walked over to her concerned friend. "He does, Carol," she said in Iron Man's defense. "Take from someone who's worked with him a few times. Tony's just as worried as the rest of us; he just doesn't want to show it in front of us," As she continued, Wasp pointed her finger at the Thunderbolts, who were all looking at the screen to see who Osborn's pick to fight the Shell-Head. "And, more importantly, not in front of them!"

Spidey remained silently, but he still agreed with the Wasp's comment. "That's something I can definitely relate with," thought the Web-Head. "Especially if I'm dealing with a team of psychos." Spidey then looked up at the screen to see the fight, all the while feeling a little worried. "Still, I do hope that Tony is ready for whoever Norman's picked to fight him."

Meanwhile, on the very top of Mount Elbrus in Russia, a large steel platform has been built by S.H.I.E.L.D. engineers, as proof by the S.H.I.E.L.D. symbol painted on its center. Moments later, there was a flash of light, and Iron Man arrived on the platform. Upon arrival, J.A.R.V.I.S. once again spoke up in his creator's helmet. "WELL, IT WOULD SEEM THAT FATE HAS BROUGHT YOU BACK TO RUSSIA, SIR. I BELIEVE YOU WERE HERE NO MORE THAN A MONTH AGO."

"Yeah, when I found out that Edmund Bulski of my Russian branch was secretly using my tech to make and sell weapons and I had him put behind bars." Iron Man replied, sound a little bit angry on how someone in his own company would use his resources to create weapons of mass destruction, something he vowed never to do again. "All which caused me to pay him a little visit and put him behind bars. "In fact, when I saw him, he already made himself armor and called himself Tita-" It was here that Iron Man's eyes grew large with shock as he soon had this terrible thought enter his mind. "No way, Osborn's crazy, but there's no way he'd be that crazy to get him out of jail!"

Suddenly, the Ref Bot soon floated into view and hovered to Iron Man, with the announcer's smiling face on the screen. "Nice to see you've made it to Russia safely, Mr. Stark!" said the announcer enthusiastically. "And now, let's reveal the identity of your mystery opponent!"

At first, all was quiet, something which hyped the anticipation for the crowd as they waited for the mysterious new challenger. Until finally, everyone watching around the world, including Iron Man, saw what appeared to be a fiery object falling from the sky, which then landed on the platform with a loud, thunderous bang. As the smoke cleared, the object, as well as Iron Man's opponent, is revealed to be:

TITANIUM MAN: (a large, green-plated armored man with glowing yellow eyes that stood at eight feet, nine inches tall and looked like he weighed half a ton. He also showed a specially built-in buckle in his waistline, which showed to be Iron Man's one chance at beating this tank of a man, but it looked like a slim chance.)

For Iron Man, seeing this fearsome armor, one that was being worn by his corrupted former employee, Edmund Bulski, it caused him to let out an irritated sigh, knowing that this fight proved to be more difficult than he thought. "Never thought I'd say this, but I wish I was wrong right now."

In the states, the announcer soon took this opportunity to introduce the green-plated giant to a stunned crowd. "Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Iron Man's opponent and honorary Thunderbolt...TITANIUM MAN!"

Back in Russia, Titanium Man looked down at Iron Man and chuckled in delight. "Previet, Mr. Stark," he said in a booming Russian accent, then pounded his fists together as a form of intimidation. "I believe you, and I have, what you Americans say, unfinished business."

"Wow, I can barely contain myself," Iron replied sarcastically as charged up his repulsors gauntlets.

The announcer saw this as a sign to get the match started, and mentally commanded to Ref Bot to fly up into the air. "All right, gentlemen, let's close the sixteenth finals with a bang! BEGIN!"

With the match officially underway, Titanium Man started things off by holding up both of his open palms. "And now, feel the raw power of your superior!" yelled the armored giant as he fired two concussive blasts at the Armor Avenger.

Iron Man spotted this, however, and thus mentally activated his jet boots to launch himself into the air and narrowly avoid the blasts. Once saving himself, the hovering Shellhead looked down at Titanium Man. "Congrats Bulski, you set a new record by being the one trillionth guy to tell me that!" With that quip, he pointed both of his hands down and fired two repulsor blasts of his own at his giant opponent, aiming for his faceplate to try and stun him.

Titanium Man, on the other hand, successfully defended himself by holding up his arms up in an 'X' fashion to block the blast. Moments later, the armored giant retaliated by secretly pressing a button in his left gauntlet, and as he puts his arms down, what appeared to be a rocket launcher popped out of his left shoulder, and seconds later, fired a missile.

Naturally, the airborne Iron Man saw this coming and easily avoided it by moving to the left side, allowing it to zoom right by. However, the missile surprisingly turned around and flew straight towards Iron Man's back, revealing itself to be a heat seeker.

Fortunately for the Shellhead, though, there was a hidden camera located behind his collar, allowing J.A.R.V.I.S. to see a missile coming. "BEHIND YOU, SIR."

Heeding his A.I.'s words, Iron Man looked over his right shoulder to see the missile, then spun around, held up his right hand, and fired a repulsor blast, destroying the missile. Afterward, the Shellhead himself let out an impressed scoff. "Heat-seeking missiles? Really? Is that the best you-" Suddenly, Iron Man felt a strange force pulling him downward, and as he looked down to see what it was, he haw saw Titanium Man holding up his right hand, which had a built-in magnetic generator. It wasn't long before the stunned Golden Avenger found himself in his giant opponent's open palm and in his grasp. "Okay, that's pretty clever."

"Nice of you to notice," replied Titanium Man, smirking behind his faceplate. Moments later, he held Iron Man over his head and proceeded to slam him face-first into the platform.

Titanium Man seemed to take pleasure in hearing Iron Man's pain-filled voice as he continued to pin him down. "Does it hurt, Stark?" he asked the Shellhead with a smirk, then soon remembered their last battle, and his happiness soon turned into anger. "Well, believe it or not, the pain you feel is nothing compared to what you did to me! You embarrassed me in front of Mother Russia! Then for one month, one of my life, I rotted in a prison cell instead of attaining the power that I have worked so hard and long for!" With rage in his eyes, as well as still having a magnetic grip, Titanium Man lifted Iron Man off the platform and overhead to slam him once again. "Well, today, I take back the glory and power you took from me, and as a bonus, I will do so by humiliating and breaking you in front of the world!"

As Titanium Man raveled in his thirst for revenge, he was unaware that Iron Man was regaining consciousness, and thus was able to think of a desperate plan for escape. "I so do not want to slammed like a rag doll again." said the Armored Avenger. "J.A.R.V.I.S., I'm thinking now is the time to try out Project E.B.G."

"VERY WELL, SIR," said J.A.R.V.I.S. GRANTED IT HASN'T BEEN TESTED YET, BUT I KNOW, 'RUN BEFORE YOU WALK,'" With that said, J.A.R.V.I.S. activated the E.B.G., which stood for Electric Burst Generator, in his creator's armor. Sure enough, Iron Man briefly glowed, until finally, an electric forcefield burst from his armor, which was not only powerful enough to short out Titanium Man's magnetic gauntlet but also stunned him enough to make him stumble backward. Now free, and with the electric field gone, Iron Man powered on his jet boots and rocket away from the staggering behemoth, then made a U-turn and flew back towards him at full speed. Afterward, the Armored Avenger pulled his right fist back, and once he was close enough, he delivered a hard right hook to Titanium Man's faceplate.

Sadly, much to Iron Man's disappointment, the punch did absolutely nothing to Titanium Man, who laughed as he turned to the now surprised Iron Man. "Was that your best?!"

A sight which left Iron Man himself now worried. "Well, this is no better," the Shellhead, then noticed Titanium Man pulling his left fist back and going for a stiff jab. This prompted the Golden Avenger to act by pulling his legs upward to dodge the punch, saving his belt buckle from being destroyed. As such, Iron Man decided to fight back by taking a page out of Spidey's book by placing his feet on top of Titanium Man's fist and use it as a boost to jump up and flip right over his giant opponent's head. Moments later, Iron Man placed both of his feet on the back of Titanium Man's head, then activated his jet boots, which not only caused him to rocket off but also caused Titanium Man to stumble forward. Not wanting to stop there, the airborne Iron Man quickly turned around to fly straight towards the still stumbling giant once more. This time, however, he flew in low and with his right fist, punched the back of Titanium Man's left knee, causing him to fall back first onto the platform floor and finally getting the big man off of his feet. Now in control, Iron Man flew straight up into the air, then stopped to look down at his fallen opponent, pointed both of his hands down, and fired two repulsor blast, aiming for Titanium Man's belt buckle in hopes of finishing this.

Unfortunately for the Golden Avenger though, Titanium Man saw this even while on his back, and thus held his left arm up and fired a massive repulsor blast of his own, which collided with Iron Man's blasts. Thus the two armored men began a 'tug of war' of sorts by trying to push their blast forward and overpower the other. And even with one hand, Titanium Man was proving to be the stronger of the two, for he was able to stand up on his feet while still firing his blast. Before long, it started to overpower the other blast and began moving straight towards the Shellhead himself!

Despite his best efforts, Iron Man could only push the incoming blast back and was soon forced to deactivate his repulsors and move back and allow the blast to shoot straight up into the air. As Iron Man looked up into the sky to watch the blast dissipate, he was exhausted. Both from the damage of his armor, and in the physical aspect of his body underneath. Nevertheless, he still was determined to win this match but needed to know the status of his suit before he could continue. "J.A.R.V.I.S., give me a status update."

"POWER RESERVES ARE NOW AT THIRTY-FIVE PERCENT, SIR," replied J.A.R.V.I.S. "MAINLY DUE TO USING THE ELECTRIC PULSE GENERATOR, WHICH WILL NOW BE IMPOSSIBLE TO USE AT THIS LEVEL. AS WELL AS THE UNI-BEAM."

This news caused Iron Man to groan in aggravation, and even forcing him to admit that Ms. Marvel might've been right after all. "Terrific," said the Shellhead, not sounding too pleased. "Then it looks like I'll have to use the one thing that's helped me save the world as well as my own skin: my brain. Bright side, the E.B.G. must've shorted out Bulski's magnet hand, which means all he has left is..." As he looked down, Iron Man is shocked to see Titanium Man is now flying thanks to his rocket boots and coming up towards him like a rocket. "Rocket boots..." Iron Man said to himself, then saw Titanium Man going for a right uppercut and quickly moved to the left side to avoid it. But even in dodging that blast, the Armored Avenger soon found he was not out of the woods yet, for he soon spotted Titanium Man stop himself, then as he turned to face him, popped out his rocket launcher again and fired another missile at him. "And a rocket launcher!" uttered the Shell-head, who then flew up high to avoid getting blasted out of the sky, but just like before, the missile was a heat seeker and soon followed Iron Man up into the air.

Titanium Man just hovered there and crossed his arms as he watched with evil glee at Iron Man, trying his hardest to shake off the missile but to no avail. "Give up, Stark!" he called out. "That missile will follow you to the ends of the Earth! And to think, it was making these weapons that brought you the fame you were born into! Quite funny how your past has come back to haunt you, isn't it?"

Upon hearing the gloating Titanium Man mention the words 'comes back,' Iron Man soon gets an idea of how he can use the missile hot on his trail to his advantage. As such, he quickly turned around and zoomed straight towards Titanium Man, with the missile still following him.

As for Titanium Man himself, he only laughed as he watched Iron Man coming towards him, instantly recognizing his tactic in maneuvering the missile in hitting the shooter. "You disappoint me, Stark," said the laughing Titanium Man as he charged up his left repulsor to fire a blast of his own. "You think that old trick will work on..."

Suddenly, Iron Man used his right hand to quickly fire a repulsor blast at Titanium Man's faceplate, which caused the surprised armored giant to hold up both hands and block the blast. However, this moved proved only to be a distraction; for now, he tricked Titanium Man into using hands to protect his face...instead of using them to protect his belt buckle. And so, once he was inches away from his green-plated opponent, Iron Man pulled up, and in the process, caused the missile to hit Titanium Man's buckle instead.

As expected, yellowed energy soon consumed Titanium Man's massive body, froze him in a contorted expression. "NOOOOOOOO!" he yelled as his now frozen body falls from the sky and landing hard on the platform below.

The now victorious Iron Man flew down and landed safely beside his now motionless opponent, and seconds later, the Ref Bot floats right beside the Shellhead with the announcer's smiling voice on the screen. "Ladies and gentlemen," said the elated announcer. "Here is your winner...Iron Man."

Iron Man continued to look down at his fallen enemy with contempt. "I hope you missed your friends in prison, pal," said Iron Man. "Because you're now on your way to seeing them again." Though he was glad that this fight was over, Iron Man knew that the real battle was just on the horizon. As such, he looked back at the Ref Bot's screen, where thanks to his faceplate covering his face, the cheering people in the Garden thought he was looking at them, but in reality, he was really looking for Osborn, who at this point, had not yet returned to the arena. Still, he allowed the Ref Bot's built-in camera to record him, as he knew that Osborn must still be watching from the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helocarrier. "And Osborn, don't get too comfortable in S.H.I.E.L.D.'s little flying treehouse. Because when I get to you, you're going to be just like Bulski...out of armor and into an orange prison jumpsuit!"

WINNER: IRON MAN