Author's Note: Another chapter update. The only difference is, this is the last one I'll be doing for this chapter in a while. Gotta focus on my other stories in my Young Avengers series.
Speaking of which, I've got a little announcement to make. As you know, I previously stated that I would focus on regularly updating one fanfic story at a time, but now, I realize that's too long of a wait. I mean, I haven't updated the Ghost, the Trickster, and Molly McGee since Christmas. So to help, I will add one or two Young Avengers updates along with the regular ones. Sure, that's going to draw attention away from some of my other fanfics, but I really want the Young Avengers to work more than anything.
So after this, you can expect me to update the Black Panther of Amphibia next week along with whatever I feel like at the time.
Anyway, enjoy the story. Any and all comments are welcome.
When Yama arrived at his plaza, he expected a peaceful elevator ride up to his floor. However, he didn't expect the TV screen to glitch out. What started out as an ad for the new San Fransokyo Metro Express changed into Madame Masque glaring at Yama through her golden mask.
"Were you successful?" she asked threateningly.
"Well, I was," Yama said, "But the rich boy… got away."
Masque's glare grew scarier. "I see. So you failed just like you failed my father."
"Whoa, hold on. That's not fair, Whit…"
"DON'T CALL ME THAT!" As Madame Masque yelled, the elevator lights flashed red and it began to plummet with Yama inside. "I AM MADAME MASQUE NOW! I WILL REBUILD THE MAGGIA, AND IF YOU CAN'T KILL TONY STARK AND BRING ME HIS REACTOR LIKE I TOLD YOU TOO, THEN IT'S CLEAR YOU HAVE NO PLACE IN…"
"WAIT! I CAN DO THE JOB! I SWEAR! I HAVE A WAY TO DO IT!" Yama begged.
The elevator stopped just before it hit the bottom. After a moment of disorientation, Yama picked himself up to look back at his skeptical boss.
"Go on." Madame Masque said.
"I have an army of robots. They're tough, battle-ready, and merciless. They'll rip that crazy battery out of the boy's chest easily."
"I see." Madame Masque said. "Very well. I'll give you another chance. But if you fail, your future in the criminal underworld will be up in the air."
Yama gulped.
One night, when Tony decided to visit San Fransokyo, he stopped by the lab where Hiro was. When he opened the door, he was delighted to see Baymax up and running again. Meanwhile, Hiro was typing around on his computer.
"Well, if it isn't the world's friendliest Thanksgiving Day parade float." Tony chuckled. "Welcome back, Baymax."
"Hello, Tony Stark." Baymax greeted.
"So now you rebuilt him, Hiro, what's next?" Tony asked.
"Okaaaaaay… Done!" Hiro said as he pulled out a new red chip which he then inserted into Baymax's chest. There was a white superhero symbol on it.
"Did you make a superhero chip?" Tony asked.
"I am now capable of defending innocents and various other heroic deeds." Baymax said.
"Perfect. This is just what I need." Tony said. "After the whole thing with Yama's gang the other day, we'll need all hands on deck. That's why I'm rebuilding my armor at home."
Just then, the hallway began to light up. Hiro gasped and pulled Tony behind Baymax.
"This is bad. We're not supposed to be in here. We've got to hide."
"Behind Baymax?" Tony asked. "You sure you're a genius?"
"I will help." Baymax said.
When Professor Granville opened the door and entered the lab, she found a white balloon chair sitting in the center of the lab. It was Baymax folded into a chair shape and Hiro's foot was showing before he pulled it back.
Granville was not fooled.
She walked over to Baymax and sat on him as if he were a real chair.
"Ah, comfortable." Granville said. "Hmm. What to do with this upperclassman lab." She moved herself around to keep bumping at Hiro and Tony. "Clearly, it should go to someone who follows the rules. Someone who doesn't try to pass off a robot as furniture. You can come out now, Mr. Hamada."
Knowing they were caught, Hiro and Tony revealed themselves. Hiro had a shameful expression when his dean confronted him.
"Didn't I make myself clear when I told you this lab was off-limits?" Granville asked. "And what are you even doing here, Mr. Stark?"
"Uh… A quick check-up from Baymax? Ow."
Baymax's head was turned to Tony. "I was alerted to the need for medical attention when you said 'ow'. On a scale of one to ten, how would you rate…"
"His future? I'd say 3." Granville interrupted. She removed herself from Baymax and headed to the table. She pulled out a magnetic device and used it to levitate a metal gear.
"Balance, boys. Had to achieve. Harder to maintain. One tiny wrong decision and…" She blew into the gear making it flip out of control until it shot itself up in the air. "Tadashi and Howard Stark did not allow themselves to be distracted. Now, you could follow their lead or you can choose a different path. The choice is yours, Mr. Hamada and Mr. Stark." She turned around and left the lab leaving Hiro to lower his head.
"Pfft. Like she knows what we're going through." Tony said. "Anyway, what say we start on reworking Baymax's armor?"
"I can't."
Tony stared in confusion. "Can't what?"
"Tony, I need to focus on going down the right path. Tadashi's path." Hiro said before removing the superhero chip from Baymax.
"What? You're actually taking that ice queen's words to heart?" Tony asked. "Maybe you forgot, but she was comparing you with your brother and me with my dad. And she doesn't even know my dad. How would she know what he was like?"
"Tony, if you want to focus on something else, I won't stop you," Hiro said, "But I can't let myself get distracted."
"Hiro, did you forget that Yama is after me?" Tony asked. "I told you, I need all hands on deck here."
"Look, you can handle a few thugs by yourself." Hiro said. "I'm sorry, Tony, but I can't."
Tony frowned. "Fine. If that's the way you want it, go ahead. Leave me on my own." He turned and left the lab, but not before slamming the door shut with Baymax noticing.
"Tony showed restraint in his tone and behaved roughly to material objects." Baymax said. "This indicates that he is angry."
"I know, but there's nothing I can do." Hiro said packing his stuff.
Tony mumbled to himself while welding his armor together at his workshop. "Stupid Hiro with his stupid studies following stupid Granville's stupid advice. 'Balance is hard to maintain'. 'Focus on going down the right path'. Who chooses that over their friend?"
"Sir, you'd be pleased to know that Fred has arrived." JARVIS said.
"Perfect. Send him in." Tony said.
A second later, Fred rushed into Tony's lab wearing his lizard costume. "Tony! You won't believe how happy I was when you called about a night patrol! Are you rebuilding your armor?"
"Yep. Just adding in the finishing touches. Should take me a couple of hours." Tony said.
"Awesome." Fred said. Then, a glowing object caught his eye. He turned to see a familiar device resting at the table. "Hey. Isn't that the arc reactor you built for Yama?"
"Yeah. I've been meaning to disassemble it." Tony said. He picked up the arc reactor and put it in a drawer. "So did you talk to the others?"
"Yeah. I made a signal light, I gave a big speech, and I chose the new name for our team 'Iron Hero 7'. But now, it looks like it's just 'Iron Hero 2' now."
"Just as I figured." Tony said. "Hiro's a no-go too. Said he'd rather be like his brother and not get distracted."
Fred sighed. "That's a bummer."
"Yeah. Never in my life did I ever think that out of everyone on the team, I'd ever agree with you and you alone." Tony responded.
"I get it. …Hey!"
"Sir," JARVIS said, "You may want to see this."
Suddenly, a holographic TV screen appeared before Hiro and Fred. They watched as the words "BREAKING NEWS" flashed on it.
"Breaking news now! Seemingly indestructible robots have invaded Night Market Square annihilating everything in their path. We're also getting reports of destruction on Shimomoto Boulevard. I think it would be smart for you to avoid that area. Who is behind this robo-rampage?"
As the news were announced, images of very familiar robots were on a rampage on the streets of San Fransokyo. Tony and Fred recognized them instantly.
"Hey! Aren't those naked Baymaxes?" Fred asked.
"Yama. He must have reverse engineered Baymax's endoskeleton while he still had it." Tony said. "And now, he's got a whole army of them."
"What do we do?" Fred asked.
"You go and get the others! Tell them this is a life-and-death situation!" Tony said. "I'll stay here and finish my armor!"
"On it!" Fred said putting his hood on. "Fredzilla, away!"
On his way to the city, Fred made a call which Hiro, Wasabi, Gogo, and Honey Lemon answered. "Guys! Are you seeing the news?"
"Yeah. Can't believe Yama copied Baymax." Hiro said.
"This is our call to be heroes!" Fred cried out. "Everyone, gear up, and let's show these guys what Iron Hero 7 is all about!"
"Fred, the police can handle this." Gogo said.
"The police? They never handle robot invasions!" Fred said. "The city needs our help now!"
"Guys, Fred's right." Honey Lemon said.
Gogo groaned. "Fine. Let's gear up."
"Come on, come on, come on." Tony said while on his computer which was hooked to his armor. The screen read 'User interface at 93%'. "Why does this kind of stuff finish so slowly when you need it to finish now?"
"Sir, there is a problem." JARVIS said showing Tony a holographic security screen. The front of his house was swarming with a small group of Baymax copies with Yama behind them.
"Oh, that's a very big problem!" Tony said. "Activate defenses!"
Just then, the front yard revealed several laser turrets around the area. However, no matter how many times they were blasted, the robots quickly went through the defenses.
"Well, that's money wasted." Tony said. "JARVIS, call the others! Tell them Yama's here!"
"Already done, sir." JARVIS said.
BOOM!
Tony was blown back by an explosion which came from his wall. Yama walked through the giant hole with his robots right beside him.
"Knock-knock, rich boy." Yama said.
"Stay back!" Tony warned. He reached behind him without taking his eyes off of Yama. "I've got a weapon here, and I'm not afraid to use it!"
Tony grabbed the first thing he could and held it up against Yama. Unfortunately, his face fell as he realized what he pulled out was a small wrench. Yama laughed at it.
"That's cute." Yama said before Tony threw it at his head. "OW! That's it! Hold him, you buckets of bolts!"
On command, the robots grabbed Tony's arms before he had the chance to run. They kept him in place while Yama went for his arc reactor.
The rest of the team arrived in their suits as soon as they could, but by the time they got there, the penthouse was already almost empty. They looked around before Baymax pointed at the workshop.
"My scanners indicate Tony on the ground over there. He is without his arc reactor and his heart is in critical condition."
"WHAT?!" the team gasped before rushing to the lab. As Baymax predicted, they found Tony slowly crawling across the floor. The gaping hole in his chest were displayed for everyone to see.
"No, no, no!" Hiro panicked. "This can't be!"
"We're too late!" Honey Lemon gasped.
"What do we do?" Wasabi asked.
"Without advanced surgery, the only way to save Tony now would be a transplant for his missing arc reactor." Baymax suggested.
"Problem is, we don't have a spare arc reactor." Gogo said.
Suddenly, Fred's head jerked up. "Hold up! We so do!"
"What?" Hiro asked.
Fred immediately raced to the lab drawers and opened one up. He then pulled out the other arc reactor that Tony stored away.
"Good thinking, Fred!" Hiro said taking the arc reactor. "Now, everyone, keep still."
The team watched as Hiro carefully slid the arc reactor back into Tony's chest hole. He then stepped back carefully watching with the others for another minute.
Finally, Tony managed to breathe heavy and cough. Everyone smiled seeing him get back up slowly.
"That was certainly not fun." Tony groaned. "I guess it's a good thing I decided not to disassemble it yet."
The team pulled Tony in to hug him together. Baymax joined in lastly before they broke.
"Tony, we're really sorry." Honey said.
"Yeah. If we hadn't been so hesitant about putting our suits on before, we might've saved you." Wasabi said.
"No. It's my fault." Hiro said. "Tony, I should've had your back. I chose to do what Tadashi would have done, and if he was in my position, I know he would've protected you."
"Thanks for the apologies, guys." Tony said. "But there's one problem left."
"Yama." Gogo said.
"Exactly, roller derby." Tony said. He looked over at his armor and the computer which read "100%' on its screen. "So let's teach him a lesson."
After leaving Tony's home, Yama returned to the city and stopped at an alleyway. He pulled his phone out of his pants and made a call.
"Madame Masque, I have it." Yama held the arc reactor in his other hand.
"And you're sure it came from Tony Stark's chest?" Madame Masque asked.
"Yep. He was barely alive when I left him." Yama bragged.
"Wait." Masque said. "You mean you didn't see him die?"
"I left him for dead. Isn't that enough?"
"No, you idiotic… Never mind. Just get to the extract point with the arc reactor. We'll talk about it when you get there."
"All right. But there's just one little problem…"
"What do you mean, it's broken?!" Wasabi asked Tony loudly.
"Well, when Yama plucked it out of me, I used a lot of my remaining strength to knock it out of his hands." Tony said. He was flying across town alongside the others. "The impact kinda made the shell casing crack. So… My bad."
"This is not good." Hiro said. "If there's an energy leak, we could be looking at a big explosion. Look around, Baymax."
"Scanning for Yama." Baymax said as he slowly turned his head around the city until he pointed. "Yama located there."
"That's where the train station is." Honey Lemon said.
"The electric train, people!" Wasabi panicked. "Those energy leaks could overcharge everything around the arc reactor!"
"This really is going to be a bumpy ride." Tony said.
Yama was out of breath when he reached the train station. He stepped onto the escalator and began to ride it. However, on his way up, the arc reactor fell out of his pocket and landed on the steps. There was a crack on the side which let out a blue energy which shined on the escalator. Because of that, the supercharged escalator launched Yama up at super speed and threw him and the arc reactor right onto the empty train tracks.
When Yama got up, he was about to grab the arc reactor, but when he heard a train sound closing in quickly behind him, his survivor's instinct gave in and he jumped out of the way. Instead, the train hit the arc reactor and exposed itself to its radioactive energy. The train didn't stop at the station once it was hit. It kept going faster and faster.
Iron Hero 7 was within the same general area as the train. They knew that ahead was the Central Station, which was the end of the train tracks.
"We have to stop it before it hits Central Station!" Hiro cried out.
"Skates and blades, cut off the engine from the rest of the train." Tony ordered Gogo and Wasabi. He then turned to Honey Lemon and Fred. "Stretch and comic geek, slow down the passenger cars! Hiro, you, Baymax, and I will get the arc reactor to a safe distance and destroy it!"
Everyone agreed and separated. Gogo carried Wasabi to the passenger cars where he cut the link to the engine. Meanwhile, Honey Lemon threw chemical balls which Fred lit up. They covered the cars to slow them down.
Baymax landed on the tracks and held out his hands just as the train hit him. He pushed back hard to try and slow it down. Meanwhile, Hiro reached out his hand and pointed it at the arc reactor stuck at the front of the ship. With his magnet gloves, he pulled it right into his hands. The train stopped immediately.
"Got it!" Hiro proclaimed.
"Wait for it." Tony warned.
Suddenly, the crack in the arc reactor got bigger and another energy leak escaped and hit Baymax. He fidgeted around.
"Warning. Overcharge."
"Hiro, give it to me!" Tony shouted. Hiro complied and tossed the arc reactor to him.
With the arc reactor overcharging his suit, Tony's engines took him up high into the sky faster than ever. Some of the surges made Tony wince in pain, but he knew that the arc reactor in his hand would detonate any second now, so he had no time to waste.
As soon as the cold stratosphere began to ice over his armor, Tony gripped the reactor in his hand and threw it as hard as he could letting it fly as high as it did. Tony made sure there was some distance between him and it before it finally detonated.
BOOM!
While the arc reactor exploded above, Tony's rocket boots stopped working and he began to fall. He was barely awake, so he couldn't have the strength to slow down. Thankfully, he had a savior to his rescue.
Baymax flew in fast as a rocket and grabbed Tony in his red-armored arms. He carried Tony down to the streets where the others were waiting and set him down gently on the ground.
"Is he okay?" Honey Lemon asked.
"He's experiencing minor shock impulses and he is feint." Baymax said. "There is nothing major."
"Yeah. You heard him. I'm fine." Tony said with heavy breaths. "Good job, guys. Let's just not come in tomorrow. Let's just take a day. You ever try shawarma? There's a shawarma joint about two blocks from here. I don't know what it is, but I wanna try it."
"So are we all a fully-committed super team?" Fred asked. "Will you all sign legally binding contracts to that effect?"
"How about we do this?" Wasabi asked holding his hand in and welcomed everyone else to stack their hands on top of his.
"To the power of seven!" Fred cheered.
"And then shawarma after?" Tony asked.
The next night, Tony waited on top of a building for Hiro and Baymax to arrive. He had on his newly rebuilt armor. He heard the medical robot fly on in with Hiro at his back. He greeted them by lifting the faceplate off of his face.
"So how did your talk with Granville go?" Tony asked.
"Pretty well, in fact. She let me finally have Tadashi's lab." Hiro said. "Listen, Tony, I know I said it before, but I'm sorry I got you hurt. I shouldn't let a fear of risks get between me and helping my friends."
"Good to know, because nearly dying twice on the same night was enough for me." Tony said. "At least with you, Baymax, Wasabi, Honey Lemon, Gogo, and Fred, the near-death experiences would be less frequent. Well… maybe not with Fred."
Hiro laughed at that. "So if the other night was any indication, Madame Masque really wants you dead, enough to send a robot army at the city. Do you know why?"
"I don't know. I've never heard of her." Tony said. "But whoever she is and whatever beef she has with me, she won't stand a chance against Iron Hero 7."
"I hear that." Hiro said climbing on top of Baymax. "Come on. We gotta catch up with the others. Fred's really eager to finally go on our first night patrol."
Tony nodded and put his faceplate back on. He and Baymax flew off the rooftop and joined the others as they jumped, skated, and slid across town.
"We didn't set out to be superheroes. But sometimes, life doesn't go the way you planned. The good thing is, my brother, Tadashi, wanted to help a lot of people. And that's what we're gonna do. Who are we?"
Within the dark lab, Madame Masque raised her fist and slammed it on the table grunting loudly. The other man in the room, Obake, turned his purple, glowing face toward her.
"Would you mind not making a scene? I'm studying." Obake said. He was in front of his computer screen which had a snapshot of Iron Hero 7.
"All this work, all those robots, and Tony Stark still manages to cheat death!" Madame Masque shouted. "What's it going to take to get rid of him once and for all?"
"Perhaps we're thinking this all wrong." Obake said.
Madame Masque turned to her partner. "What do you mean?"
"Believe it or not, I see a kindred spirit in Tony Stark. Just as much as I see one in that other gifted boy he's with, Hiro Hamada."
"What's your point?" Masque asked.
"Well, you want to kill Tony Stark out of revenge for what his father did to you. But blaming a man for what his father did isn't very logical." Obake said. "Here's my alternative. Tony is just as much of a man as his father wished him to be. What if instead of ending the bloodline, we could corrupt it? Help him see the brilliance behind our vision? Shouldn't be too hard for you, would it? After all, you and he do have a history."
Madame Masque paused for a moment staring at Obake. "You mean, we turn him over to our side?"
"I see that as a win-win." Obake said. "What do you think?"
Masque turned away for a moment. She then reached into her pocket to pull out an old, square photograph. There were two kids playing happily in the Stark home living room. One was a younger Tony Stark in his pre-teen years, and the other was a girl around the same age with long, black hair.
Madame Masque stared at the photo for a few minutes before folding it back up and putting it in her pocket. She then turned to Obake to give her answer.
"Yeah. I guess I can live with that."