A Robin Red breast in a Cage
Puts all Heaven in a Rage
- Auguries of Innocence by William Blake
The heady rush before battle made her feel alive. She stretched out her hand and swung her sword in place.
"Cleave, crush, stab...cleave, crush, stab!"
She repeated the exercise until her limbs were loose and free.
Then she straightened and saw red hair flying in the sunshine.
"Uh...from where did that come from?"
She ran towards the source of color and saw it was a slender red-haired woman, running towards a huge black cloud.
The cloud seemed to be made of smoke and ash and something else, something inhuman.
She ran towards the woman and stretched out a hand to stop her but she couldn't. She couldn't reach the red-haired one in time.
"No! Virginia! No!"
Virginia ignored her and ran, sword raised, yelling a battle cry, as the smoky black mass billowed and puffed towards her.
Tony came to with a jerk, his heart pounding violently. He looked around and stood up shakily.
"Where the hell am I? Oh..." he tried to move his arm and realized he couldn't move.
Then he remembered where he was.
The meadow...Rhodes!
As he saw the undead version of his friend menacingly walk towards the center of the meadow, he broke out in a cold sweat.
Pepper.
Looking very small and slender wearing his chest plate, Pepper was facing down the tall and large Black Knight. She looked straight at her opponent and then quickly hopped out of the way as the Knight took a huge swing with his axe at her.
Tony pulled desperately against his chains. "Stop you fool! Leave her be!"
Then he gasped harshly as the battle axe swung down again, hitting the grass with a mighty Thwack! as it missed Pepper.
Thank god she's light and quick! By the time he swings, she manages to move away!
He saw Pepper breathing hard as she moved again, to dodge another swing. Then the Knight reached out towards her and she moved away from his grip but fell backwards in the process.
"I can't just watch! I have to do something!"
He pulled on the chains again, calling on his power but his head and chest began to throb and he fell to his knees in pain.
Then Tony remember the source of his weakness. He glanced sideways at the red orb nailed to the tree.
"Damn you, Bloodstone!" He yelled in anger.
He glanced back to see the Black Knight strike out at Pepper, who blasted him in the chest with a stream of fire.
"Yes! Fire! Maybe that can..."
Then he groaned loudly as the flame was swallowed up harmlessly by the black goo on the Knight's chest. He saw Pepper's face fall with disappointment, then she yelped as the Knight swung his axe.
The blade clipped her lightly in the chest and she fell backwards from the impact of the blow.
"Come on Pepper! Get up! Move!"
She got to her feet slowly and Tony cursed violently.
She's tiring! Of course she is! She's been fighting these fiends for some time now! I have to help her, I have to get in there somehow!
Fear and dread coursed through him. He stood up, focused and pulled hard on his chains, trying to break them but they held.
Then he looked down at his Arc, which had started to burn brightly. Can I break them with you? No time to delay!
Tony gritted his teeth and moved sideways, as much as he could being tied up, to aim the Arc towards one chain end, tied around the tree.
His chest and head were throbbing with pain but he ignored it and urged his Flame to burn from him.
He heard a faint roaring within him and said loudly, "Dragon! Come on! Together now!"
He shot out a small blast of flame that missed the chain completely and hit the ground.
As he took a deep breath, Tony looked up to see Pepper come at the Black Knight, sword raised. She swung her sword at the Knight, whose black mass absorbed the blow. He then reached out, alarmingly quick for someone so huge.
This time, she didn't move away quickly enough and Tony's heart jerked painfully as the Knight picked her by the throat. The fiend grinned at Pepper, who wriggled and struggled against the bone hand on her throat.
He shook her lightly and then he caught her hair with the other hand.
She cried out and Tony felt fiery hot rage boiling within him. He felt his fire flow through his veins. He closed his eyes and saw the blue ribbon of Flame swirling within him.
Then he opened his eyes and aimed at the chain once again.
This time he hit it and the blue fire melted the chain end quickly, freeing one of his hands. He quickly freed the other in the same way and reached up towards the jewel on the tree.
The blinding pain was making him sweat and his heart was racing but he ignored the intense feeling in his chest and pulled the small Bloodstone off the tree and threw it to the ground. He smashed it viciously with his foot and heard the Dragon roar in his head.
Anthony! Go to Virginia! Use her fire against the Black Knight! Burn him!
His heart was pounding in his ears as Tony saw the Black Knight still holding Pepper. He looked down at his hands. The chain shackles were still on them but he saw the broken chain trailing in the grass and had an idea. He pulled the chain end off the tree, so he had the complete chain.
The Knight's back was to him, so Tony began to run quickly towards the Knight. As he neared the tall figure, he jumped onto his back. Before the fiend could react, he quickly wound the chain around the thick neck, doubling it along its length, in order to choke the Knight. Tony pulled backwards on the chain, his legs nearly touching the ground.
The Knight was so strong that even though Tony had jumped on him with force, he just moved slightly but he did not let go of Pepper.
Instead he held her and stretched one bone hand backwards, to try and catch Tony. Tony could feel the sticky clammy coldness of the black mass against his chest. He tried to knee the Knight in the back but the mass just stuck to him like paste.
The Knight was still feeling around for him and with one hand, Tony punched the back of his exposed head hard. That shook the Knight and he dropped Pepper.
His head! His head is still flesh and bone! That has to be it!
Tony yelled, "Pepper! Use your Fire! Burn the chain."
The Knight was shaking now, trying to throw Tony off. An ordinary man's neck would have broken, with the way Tony was pulling on the chain. But the Knight was just immobilized, albeit temporarily. Pepper took advantage of his distraction and stretched her hands out. Tony saw her eyes flame orange.
She levitated slightly off the ground and both the Knight and Tony stared at her in awe as she looked like a fire-breathing angel, with her red hair billowing lightly around her and her bright, glowing orange eyes. Red, blazing fire surrounded her like a halo.
Pepper bore down on the Knight, hands stretched towards him and touched the chain with her flaming hands. Then she began to burn them in earnest and Tony let go of them with a yowl as he felt the heat on his hands.
He backed away rapidly as the Knight let out a gurgle and tried to dislodge Pepper's flaming hands from the chain around his throat. She wasn't having that and tightened her fiery grip on the metal, turning it white-hot with heat.
The Knight gasped loudly and Tony gulped in fear and awe as Pepper muttered angrily in a voice very unlike her own, "The sound of your heart in your ears, the light fading from your eyes... tell me, Black Knight, how does it feel to have your life being choked from you?"
Pepper's hands were now completely around his throat, burning the Knight with glorious fire. The black mass was swirling and coagulating wildly as if it was struggling to stay alive. It began to dissipate in a thick black smoke as Pepper continued to burn the Knight alive.
Tony could do nothing but watch in horrified awe as the mass melted away. Then Pepper snarled angrily and caught the two ends of the chain in both hands. With a vicious jerk, she pulled them in opposite directions and neatly severed the Knight's head off his melting torso.
Tony felt sick to his stomach but controlled the urge to gag as the head rolled on the green grass and began to crumble into ash, smoke billowing from it. The Knight's inky black mass of a torso and legs, became a fine black powder in front of his eyes and blew away with the wind.
Pepper was standing there, hair open, face and neck full of sweat, hands raised by her side. Her eyes were still bright orange and slightly unfocused as the fire gradually faded from her palms. He came to her, worried because she was weaving very faintly, where she stood.
She focused on him and then nearly stumbled, hands held high, backing away from him, eyes wide with fear.
"Pepper..."
"No! Don't touch me! I might burn you! Tony! Don't!"
He gently touched her bare arm and smiled softly at her. "It is okay, Pepper, you won't burn me..."
Then he pulled her into his arms, burrowing his head in her soft neck. She hugged him back tightly and he inhaled her scent deeply. He wanted to comfort her and perhaps comfort himself too.
"Tony... Tony... I am so glad you are okay..." she whispered to him tearfully.
He could feel her heartbeat racing against him and he whispered back, "Pepper, I am so sorry... I couldn't fight him... I was too weak..."
She pulled back and looked him over, gasping loudly. "Tony, look at your chest! That monster punched you so damn hard!"
He tried to fob her off, his injuries now a dull ache on his bruised body but she looped her arm gently around him and gave him support to walk.
Tigliath walked slowly over to them and Tony saw that even his cat was scratched. He bent to look at the scratches and Pepper shouted out a greeting as Jarvis and Happy entered the clearing. Happy and Jarvis supported Tony as they slowly made their way back to the Keep.
