"Would someone please explain to me what's going on?" asked Happy.
Bella pulled off her helmet, releasing her brown curls.
"I have to get this armor off if I can't get the arc reactor to power it. Otherwise, I'll get stuck in here again."
"And I need to find my bow," said Agent Barton.
"Bow?" said Happy. "What's going on? Why do you have an Iron Man suit, Miss Stark? And what are you wearing, Natalie?" he asked, indicating Natalie's S.H.I.E.L.D. uniform.
"Ivan Vanko is alive, and he's attacking Stark Expo with Hammer's drones," said Natalie. "Mr. Stark is attempting to hold them off. I'm Agent Natasha Romanoff from S.H.I.E.L.D, and this my partner, Agent Clint Barton. And Miss Stark's suit is a gift from Mr. Stark." Natalie turned back to Bella and Agent Barton. "Okay. Bow and arc reactor. Got it. He's probably got them in his workroom somewhere."
"And every second we spend not looking for it is time I don't have," said Bella. "Which work room, Natalie – sorry, I mean Agent Romanoff."
"This way."
Natalie – Natasha – led them to a small room with a computer.
"I'll check the desk," said Natalie. "Miss Stark, try the cabinets over there."
No amount of searching could locate the arc reactor. Bella's suit grew heavier and heavier. Why did the metal Tony used have to be so heavy?
"Agent Barton? Could you hook me up to a camera again?"
"What?" said Natalie.
"I'm not responsible if I electrocute you, okay?" He tore out a camera and started to hook her up.
"I'm not planning on holding you responsible."
A wire moved slightly in the wrong direction. Bella yelled. Agent Barton adjusted it quickly. "You okay?"
She took several deep breaths. "Yes, fine. Keep going."
He finished and walked away to join She stood in the corner, wires in her chest, waiting for it to charge up again.
"Stark?" Natalie was talking into the computer. "Hear me?"
"Loud and clear."
"Tony!" said Bella.
"Izzy!" exclaimed Tony. "You're okay? Did he hurt you?"
"No, I'm fine."
"Izzy?" echoed Agent Barton, grinning.
"What's going on?" she asked, ignoring the S.H.I.E.L.D. agent. "Vanko's got my arc reactor, I'm hooked into the electricity at Hammer Industries. Doesn't last long, but there's nothing else I can do."
"What's going on?"
"I'm just getting chased around by Rhodey."
"What?"
"Yeah. Vanko's got control of his suit. I came to the Expo because S.H.I.E.L.D. told me that was where they thought he was planning to strike. Vanko called S.H.I.E.L.D. just before I left Stark Expo to come here. Threatened to kill Barton if anything happened to stop his plans."
Natalie started typing on the computer. "Looks like he left after I arrived, probably knew it was his wisest option."
"Did it stop them?" asked Agent Barton. "S.H.I.E.L.D., I mean. Did they go ahead anyhow?"
Natalie didn't respond. Computer keys clattered.
Bella's suit felt much lighter now.
"JARVIS? Are you there?"
"Yes, Miss Stark."
She pulled the helmet on, then disconnected the wires. "I'm going to look for my reactor."
"I'll go with you," said Happy. "We don't know if the building's empty."
"If anyone is here, they're probably too scared to come out after seeing what I did," said Natalie.
On the way through the halls, they passed many unconscious guards. Natalie's handwork, Bella guessed, and mentally made a note to never make the S.H.I.E.L.D. agent angry.
Several times, they had to stop and recharge Bella's suit. But their search yielded nothing.
"Think he took it with him?" asked Bella.
"Wouldn't be surprised."
Then Bella had an idea. "Back to the workroom, I have an idea." She took off running, the suit growing heavier with each step.
Once there, Bella went to the worktable and started to go through it again.
"What are you doing?" asked Agent Barton.
"Looking for pieces."
"What, are you going to build an arc reactor?"
Bella pulled out the wreckage of a frame of one and started twisting it back into shape, thankful for the strength given to her by the suit, even with its low level of power. She found bits and pieces that looked like they were new – Vanko had probably smashed her arc reactor. That was okay. She was going to get a new one.
"I figured he'd have parts of one left. It's not something you do perfectly the first couple times. You're going to have to scrap some of your work because you simply can't get it perfect. This one doesn't have to be perfect or pretty, just has to work."
She started pulling out broken pieces and fitting them together.
"How is that even going to hold together? You're not fastening anything."
"Marvelous stuff, tape," said Bella, picking up a roll of it from the desk. "The reactor doesn't have last. It just needs to hold together for a few hours."
"How did you learn to do this?" asked Barton.
"I helped build the first one," replied Bella, taping two wires together. "I figured Vanko would have some pieces somewhere that didn't work out the first time, judging from my own experience, but that could be put together into something that would work, at least for a little while."
She put tape over the top to hold it together, then stuffed it into the hole in her chest. She whacked it with her fist a few times to get it in all the way.
"That feels about right. It probably can't cope with sustained flight, but it should work."
Natalie, Happy, and Agent Barton were all staring at her. It was only then that Bella realized exactly what she'd just said and done.
But she wasn't going to think about it. Instead, she was going to get something done. "I'm going to help stop Vanko," she said. "JARVIS, are you still there? Please put me through to Tony."
There was a small beeping sound.
Barton looked puzzled. "Miss Stark, what are you –"
"Tony? What's going on?"
"Trying to stop the drones while being chased by Rhodey."
"I'm on my way." She jumped into the air, bursting through the ceiling and up into the night air.
Does anyone think Bella's solutions to her missing arc reactor are at all unrealistic? Just checking.
I am going to wait for three reviews before I post the next chapter. I'm open to advice, or comments, or just your opinion of the story (I especially like hearing people's honest opinions of my stories). Unless, of course, all you have to say is that you hate my story, for one reason or another, and do not bother to present a decent reason why. Even if a story's not very good, there is a polite way to tell someone so.