Son of Iron Man
Welcome back, true believers! Grab a torch, because things are about to get dark. We've got a secret meeting, another betrayal and a superhero battle coming up, but before we begin I'd like to thank everyone who has written in to suggest characters. I love seeing your ideas and letting you help shape the story! I've just about reached the part where it's time to introduce them in terms of writing, but there's still time to submit more characters! I'm thinking at the moment I'll write a chapter for each new character exploring their backstory, so if I start with the ones already suggested there should still be plenty of time for you homies (I'm a hip cat) to create your own heroes and send them in. But don't forget to read this chapter first!
It's a relatively short chapter today, but it's chock full of drama and action. Enjoy!
Chapter Nineteen: Rusted Iron
The room was dark. Emily could see barely a thing ahead of her as she navigated without sight. When she felt she was at its head, she knelt down and bowed her head.
"I have failed you, my master," she said sadly. "Toby Stark yet lives."
"Have patience, my servant," replied a voice, cold and detached. "As long as Stark dies, I will be satisfied. What of the poisonous lipstick I gave you?"
"It failed, my master," Emily said.
"What?!" The voice exploded, and for a moment its composure was gone. "But that was enchanted with Asgardian power! How could it...?" the voice trailed off. "No matter. I have faith in your ability to carry out your task."
"It was Toby's friends who saved him," Emily said.
"Then it is obvious what you must do. Sever his ties to the Avengers. Get him on his own, and strike at his heart," the voice told her.
"Yes, my master," Emily said, standing to leave.
"Wait," the voice said, stopping her in her tracks. She stood for a moment, waiting for the next cold words. Soft words. The words... Of an Enigma. In their place came a pair of lips. As Emily kissed Enigma, she started to wonder how it would hurt Toby if he could see her. And in that moment, she had her plan.
Ben was sat in the Facility's living area. The screen in front of him showed Spider-Boy swinging through the city, and Ben's controller vibrated as he fired off webs. He felt the sofa shifting as someone sat beside him.
"What are you playing?" asked the voice of Emily.
"Someone made a videogame about us!" Ben said excitedly. "It's pretty good, actually. Way too easy, though, I always see the threats coming."
"Could that be anything to do with your spider-sense?" Emily asked.
"Could be, the game's set at the point where Spidey's already mastered it," Ben said thoughtfully.
"Ben... You know you are Spider-Boy, right?" Ben paused the game a moment and looked at Emily, comprehension dawning.
"Oh, right. You know, for a moment there I thought I was still just good old Ben Parker." He looked wistfully at the controller. "Things were so simple back then."
"I know what you mean," Emily agreed. "There was a time where I had a different guy every week. Now I'm stuck with just one."
"He's a good one to be stuck with, though, right?" Ben said.
"Oh yeah, don't get me wrong. It's just so... Samey. I wish I could just kiss another guy without it meaning anything, you know?" Emily asked, and as she did so she slid a little closer to Ben.
"No, I can't say I do," Ben said, shifting away. Emily followed. He began to grow uncomfortable.
"You will, once you get bored of Katie," Emily said matter-of-factly. "Where is she, by the way?"
"Out on the town," Ben replied, shifting further away but finding he had reached the edge of the couch.
"Good," Emily purred, and suddenly she was upon him. She pushed Ben onto his back and smothered him, kissing him repeatedly. He tried to push her off, but that only seemed to make things worse. In the end, knowing he wouldn't get this chance again and couldn't resist if he wanted to, he returned her advances. Ben's heart was pounding with the knowledge that they could be caught at any moment, but he liked the danger. Then, the inevitable happened...
"What the hell are you two doing?!" came an explosively angry voice. The pair looked up to see a livid Toby. As he advanced toward them, his armour formed around him. Emily rolled off Ben and suddenly a repulsor was in his face.
"Put on your suit. This may get a little public."
The wall of the building burst outward and a flash of red and blue flew out from the hole, quickly followed by a flash of red and gold with a blue trail. As Ben got to his feet, Toby crashed into him, knocking him back down. Summoning all his strength, he smashed Toby backward, buying enough time to run far enough across the bridge to shoot a web toward a building. He let loose, and the string of web flew straight and true... Landing on Toby's armour.
"Let's go for a ride," Toby said, shooting upwards before flying toward a building. Ben smashed right into it before falling toward the ground, only to be caught by Toby.
"Stop!" He pleaded, "It wasn't me!"
"It looked a hell of a lot like you!" Toby spat, dropping Ben and letting him plummet to the ground. Before he could, though, he shot a web and caught himself, swinging into an arc which ended with him kicking Toby out of the air. The duo plummeted, this time with Ben on top.
"She! Kissed! Me!" Ben shouted, punctuating each word with a punch. The pair plowed into the ground, cracking the concrete but themselves unharmed. The cold metal visor lifted to reveal the betrayed face of his friend.
"Is that true?" Toby asked. Ben simply nodded. Toby stood up, knocking Ben off him as he did so. "This isn't over," he assured him before blasting off. Ben was left, battered and broken, to contemplate the day gone by. He had messed everything up!
Katie was sat in the shade of an umbrella, drinking her coffee and watching the world pass her by. New York City was one of the busiest cities she had ever seen – not that she had really seen any others – and everyone in it had their own story to tell. As they passed her by, Katie tried to guess what was occurring in this page of their particular stories. One young man was dashing through the crowds, flowers in one hand and a necktie in the other. She guessed he was on his way to a date, possibly his first based on his nervous movements. Another person walked by, the young man's complete opposite. A silver haired old lady hobbled by, pushing a fabric trolley filled with shopping. As she watched, another young gentleman approached the lady and offered her aid, which she gratefully accepted. A smile crept onto Katie's face.
"Almost enough to restore your faith in humanity, isn't it?" came a voice. Katie gasped and faced front, only to find Toby sat across from her. She breathed a heavy sigh of relief upon seeing her face.
"Oh, it's you!"
"The one and only," Toby nodded with a grim smile.
"What's that – that look on your face?" Katie asked, concern creeping into her voice.
"Look, we need to talk," Toby said heavily. "This isn't the best place, though." He stood up, pushing the chair back, as his suit formed around him. Just after his faceplate clanged shut, he added: "Grab your bags and hold on tight." He took Katie by the waist as she grabbed her shopping bags and took off, landing on a nearby roof. He couldn't go too far without his hands to guide his flight. Toby set Katie down gently and retracted the suit to his watch. He looked seriously at her.
"What is it?" Katie asked, a little uncomfortable.
"I wouldn't mention this to you at all, but I need an ally in this. I need to know I'm doing the right thing."
"What are you doing? What wouldn't you mention?" Katie seemed confused.
"I'm going to take down Emily," Toby stated. Katie's eyes widened in shock. "There's something wrong with her, and until we can figure out what it is, we'll have to get her contained before she can do any more damage."
"More damage? Something wrong with... Toby, what's going on?" Katie asked firmly.
"OK, don't freak out. I walked into the living area earlier and Emily and Ben were..." he trailed off, reluctant to say the final word. "Katie, they were kissing." Katie's eyes widened, her lip quivered.
"W-what?" she stuttered. Her knees buckled as her mind raced, desperate to find another meaning to Toby's words.
"Your boyfriend and my girlfriend were kissing," Toby reiterated. "Wait! Where are you-?!" But Katie was gone, her bags left behind. He took off, trying to get an eye in the sky, but she was gone. Not even JARVIS could locate her in the crowd. With a sigh, he touched back down onto the rooftop. For a moment, he contemplated trying to find Ty or Lupin, but this wasn't their fight and he had no business trying to drag them into it.
"Looks like this is something I have to do alone."
At the heart of the Avengers Facility was a forest which Toby had planted and used some form of science to grow within a year. Lupin didn't really understand the details. He had been living there for some time, now, hunting the rabbits which had taken up occupancy on the island. He had never been troubled by the artificially grown forest... Until today. He had awoken to find himself deeply unsettled. He couldn't quite put his paw on it, but it was there, and it was growing. He soon realised that it was the same uncomfortable feeling he got indoors. But he had never felt it in the forest before. Could he have gotten more sensitive? There was only one way to find out. He padded through the forest toward one of the glass walls of the facility. The feeling grew as he approached, until his head ached. Whimpers grew in his throat until he raised a paw and touched the wall. He let loose an involuntary howl before dashing off back into the forest.
Ooh, that sounds ominous. What's up with Lupin? What is Toby's plan? Is it a good thing that I've started asking rhetorical questions again? Was that last one actually rhetorical? There's only one way to find out: join us next week for our very own... Civil War!
