[Tennessee]

As Eddard and Stark drove, Stark said in a plain voice, "What you did was wrong, Eddard."

Eddard understood Stark's words but said nonetheless, "I was planning on recruiting the boy, him seeing death would be the least of his worries if he ever worked closely with us."

"He is thirteen, for god's sake, Eddard, he doesn't work for you."

"He idolizes you, he would walk the same path as you."

"He is a good kid, no need to destroy his life, by getting him involved in our games."

"I don't play games Stark. Him walking the same path as you won't be bad."

"I disagree, Clarke, there is nothing good in what we do. We kill in the name of protecting but at the end of the day, we are just killers. A nuclear deterrent has never truly achieved peace, it just makes the whole place a quiet graveyard."

"So that's what you see yourself as? A weapon?"

"A loose cannon with principles of my own."

"The avengers are so much more, Stark. We aren't here to stop petty politicians, we are here to protect the world."

"We were just lucky, Clarke, it wasn't a true invasion but a skirmish in your own words. The Avengers weren't enough even for that."

"The Iron Legion that you have been working on, that's what you will use, won't you?" Eddard asked remembering the files Jarvis had sent Harry.

"That's the plan."

"You are afraid."

"I am."

"So that's what the running and trembling were about. You are having panic attacks, aren't you?"

"No," Stark denied immediately.

"Shouldn't have let you carry that missile." Eddard sighed.

"Nobody else could do it anyway." Stark did not deny Eddard's words.

"You know what, I agree. I was a hypocrite for killing the bald guy," Eddard laid back down in his seat tired.

"What makes you say that now, carrottop?" Stark asked.

"Had it been Ms Romanoff begging me, I would have spared her," Eddard said bitterly, "She is a murderer who changed her ways, he may have done it as well."

They stayed quiet for a while, after which Stark whispered, "Romanoff is more an exception than the rule, Clarke, even her manipulative tendencies still linger despite her change from a spy to a combatant in the Avengers."

"And the kid shouldn't have witnessed it either, I was so wrapped up in serving out justice that I forgot that kids shouldn't be killed but they shouldn't see people getting killed either."

"You are a surprisingly naive man, Clarke," Tony said in amusement.

[Miami]

They had just infiltrated the supposed mansion holding the leader of the ten rings who was responsible for the bombings.

The problem was that after interrogating the guy, Clarke and Stark realized that the woman that Stark had supposedly taken out was there along with an old acquaintance of Stark's, Maya Hansen.

They were about to fight when she smirked at them and showed them a video.

It was of Pepper Potts under what she called the Extremis. Eddard's stomach had dropped knowing where the situation was headed.

They were cornered and couldn't really fight out of the place without risking Pepper's life.

The woman, Ellen Brandt, smiled viciously when Stark dropped his makeshift gun and then looked at Eddard expectantly.

Eddard looked at Stark who was giving him a desperate look.

He sighed, "Even if I surrendered, I don't think you can hold me."

"Don't worry, we still have an account to settle for Eric's death."

The woman said as she injected something into his neck.

The next thing he knows when he woke up, he felt a searing heat on his face as if it was burning.

Eddard was captured.

As the heat receded and he opened his eyes, he could see Stark looking at him in horror.

Aldrich Killian looked at Eddard and said, "Mr Clarke, it is a pleasure of mine to meet you."

"Me too," Eddard couldn't help but retort as he felt his face healing.

"You aren't still pissed off about Switzerland, are you?"

"How can I be pissed at you, Tony? I'm here to thank you. You gave me the greatest gift that anybody's ever given me. Desperation. If you think back to Switzerland, you said you'd meet me on the rooftop, right? Well, for the first 20 minutes, I actually thought you'd show up. And the next hour... I considered taking that one-step shortcut to the lobby. If you know what I mean."

Eddard laughed at the man,"It is sad that you didn't end your pathetic existence."

"Oh, I did end my pathetic existence, Mr Clarke. I created Mandarin so that I could end my existence but now you have discovered it. Not that it matters, after tonight I will be the most powerful man in the world, as I control the west through politics and the east through war."

He pushed three spherical balls that projected the image of a glowing Pepper.

"Now, this is live. I'm not sure if you can tell, but at this moment the body is trying to decide whether to accept Extremis or just give up. And if it gives up, I have to say, the detonation is quite spectacular. But until that point, it's really just a lot of pain. We haven't even talked about salary yet. What kind of perk package are you thinking of?"

"You are a maniac." There was a creaking voice as Eddard pulled on the chains that held him.

Killian smiled at him and said, "Don't struggle, Mr Clarke, those blocks holding you are made from a very strong composite material that doesn't absorb radiation."

Eddard could feel that Killian had underestimated his physical strength since he could actually snap the thing like a twig but couldn't risk Stark's girlfriend.

"Get to work, children," Killian said looking at Tony and Maya, he then added, "Stay," as he looked at Eddard.

When he left, two guards entered the room and Hansen freed Stark from his binding and they started working on it.

This went on for some time before the dungeon they were being held in was attacked by Stark's armour which eliminated the men there and freed Stark.

Maya Henson had been the only one left standing among Killian's men.

Stark looked at her and said, "I will see you in two days at Avengers Tower."

Eddard was confused by Stark's action of letting her go as he broke the chains holding him.

"Why did you let her go?"

"He is going for the US President, she doesn't want to follow him anymore."

"Do we know where Pepper is? Do we know anything?"

"Let's find out."

[221B Bleecker St.]

As they had been leaving the Mandarin's compound, they came across James Rhoades who had been captured by Killian's enhanced.

They realized that the plan was to use the Iron Patriot as a trojan horse to enter Air Force One.

Rhoades informed the Vice-President of said development, though it was apparently too late since the attack occurred nonetheless and took out the whole crew of Air Force One barring the President who was under hostile control.

Eddard had opened the space bridge to take a break at 221B and informed the order of the President's location along with Stark and Rhoades.

Stark was activating what he called the house party protocol while Eddard finished the last test on Project Angel-Wings and Project Domain.

Draco and Stormi who were enhanced by the new serum would be joining them and Stormi would be using Proto-Excalibur herself. She would draw the energy from the system's reserves instead of Eddard.