Iron Man Never Retreats

Rhodey said, "No, thank you, I don’t smoke…"

Then he watched Stark casually take out a cigarette and toss it into the air. In an instant, a slim blue-and-silver mecha armed itself onto him. Rhodey swallowed and said, "Give me one. Thank you."

Elsewhere, General Johnson had just climbed back into the cockpit of a giant robot when a fist the size of a sandbag filled his vision.

Iron Man had been about to join Rhodey in dealing with Johnson, only to be blocked by the Steel Monster that had risen again. He heard Obadiah say, "You know, most of what I told you about your father wasn’t The Truth."

"In reality, he smoked, drank, chased women, daydreamed all day, loved wild ideas, and after screwing up a whole pile of things, he only ever made others clean up his messes."

"All those heroic stories about him were made up by me. He was actually a complete bastard."

"But do you know how I stopped him whenever he opened his mouth to spit out another stupid idea?"

Iron Man had a bad feeling, but before he could answer, a sandbag-sized fist appeared in his field of vision.

Watching Iron Man fly backward, Spider-Man rubbed his hands together and said, "All right, now the question is, who do we help?"

Captain America patted his shield and said, "I think Obadiah has a point. He’s Stark’s elder, after all. He has more reason than I do to beat him up."

"But wouldn’t it be bad if we just stood here watching?"

"Then we won’t watch. Come on, there are still wounded people to carry to the ambulances."

Elsewhere, Iron Man crawled out from a heap of steel bars, dizzy and disoriented. "Wait! Uncle… Fine, Howard was an asshole, and so am I! But I think there’s a better way to settle this. We could sit down and talk! Or hold a board meeting or something! Stop solving everything with your fists…"

"You’re even less qualified to say that."

With a roar from the Steel Monster, the giant robot leaped up and landed before him. Its shadow enveloped Iron Man’s armor as Obadiah said, "You’ll soon understand that your iron shell is useless, even if you’ve given it a different look."

Iron Man was helpless. Obadiah clearly had his heart set on beating him up, and his temper flared as well. "You’ll soon find out whether it’s just a different look!"

As he spoke, he nimbly evaded the Steel Monster’s fist like a bird. Almost instantly, he flew behind it and punched it in the back.

The Steel Monster swung backhandedly, but Stark dodged again. Though his current armor was thinner and lighter, its modified power system made it faster and more agile.

He extended his palm, and the steel bars in the nearby ruins began to tremble before rising into the air in an instant, pointing straight at the Steel Monster. Jarvis said to Stark, "The magnetic control system is still being upgraded. It cannot operate at high frequency, and its energy is about to be depleted…"

Stark clenched his fist, and the steel bars shot toward the Steel Monster.

Obadiah clearly had not expected that move. The old Iron Man had fought like a warrior, mostly trading punches with enemies apart from using his repulsors. But this silver-and-blue mecha made him look more like a mage.

As Stark swung both arms, the steel bars shot rapidly toward the Steel Monster. Obadiah only had time to control his mecha and dodge most of the bars on the left, but several still struck the right arm of his armor.

But he was far more decisive. The instant he was hit, he used the force to leap away and threw an uppercut at Iron Man in midair.

A string of sparks burst from Iron Man’s mecha, but he refused to yield. He immediately dove in reverse and punched the Steel Monster in the neck. The Steel Monster swayed slightly, grabbed one of Iron Man’s legs, and hurled him away.

Iron Man was rattled senseless again. He happened to land at the battlefield between Rhodey and General Johnson, where Rhodey was also beginning to lose ground. Iron Man shouted, "Come on! Swap opponents! Let’s start the second half!"

It was the right decision. Rhodey’s mecha was stronger, but General Johnson’s giant mecha had eight tentacles. If he was not fast enough, he would be violently flung away. Stark’s more agile armor was indeed better suited to dealing with it.

So Rhodey steadied himself, shot upward, then dove straight toward Obadiah’s Steel Monster.

After choosing the right opponents, the battle quickly became clearer. Using his superior mobility, Stark tore off more than half the tentacles on General Johnson’s back. Without them to assist its movement, Johnson’s mecha became a true iron can, nothing more than Iron Man’s punching bag. After just a few punches, flames began bursting from it everywhere.

The robots he had summoned were also quickly dealt with by Stark’s speed.

On the other side, Rhodey’s head-on clash with the Steel Monster was unpleasant, but the Steel Monster’s legs had already malfunctioned in the earlier explosion. After several exchanges, it collapsed to the ground, seemingly unable to stand again.

Rhodey walked over to Iron Man and said, "I once heard my former superior, General Andro, mention that he knew your father when he was young, but I don’t know what exactly happened."

"That damned, despicable bastard Howard! He used military contracts to prop up General Andro! I was never supposed to be just a lowly Air Force major general!"

"That doesn’t matter anymore," Stark said. "Right now, you probably can’t even remain a major general."

"Everyone knows only Iron Man can build these mechas. I used the technology you gave the military. As long as…"

"No, that’s not what I mean. What I mean is, although Howard was an asshole, I do think there were things worth learning from him. For example, finding the right partner in the military. Of course, that isn’t you…"

"Weren’t you going to shut down Stark’s weapons manufacturing division?"

"Where did you hear that rumor?"

Johnson turned to look at Obadiah’s mecha.

"Did my uncle tell you that?"

"Then did he tell you that every Stark is like this? We’re fickle. Just a few minutes ago, I changed my mind. Not only will I not shut down Stark’s weapons manufacturing division, I’m also planning to formally cooperate with the military. I happen to have a few ideas about individual exoskeletons and medical support systems…"

"No! You can’t do this! Damn it, I already promised Hammer Industries…"

"Fools always go looking for other fools." Obadiah’s voice came from the distance again.

A string of sparks erupted from Johnson’s mecha. Clearly, he had punched something inside.

"So it seems these mechas were made for you by Hammer Industries. But forgive me for saying so, these things are already outdated."

"Yeah, you only gave outdated technology to Rhodey." Even now, Johnson did not forget to sow discord.

Rhodey stood nearby with his arms crossed. "He just gave me a cigarette. A very fashionable cigarette."

Stark did not waste any more words on Johnson. He walked over to the collapsed Steel Monster and opened the cockpit. Obadiah lay inside. He did not appear to have suffered any external injuries, but his complexion was terrible. He looked as though he were about to die.

"Doctor! I need a doctor!"

Schiller appeared in response, spreading his hands. "I’m guessing you don’t need a psychiatrist like me."

"Of course not, but stop talking and get him to the hospital."

The Symbiote said in Schiller’s mind, "His heart…"

Schiller felt Obadiah’s pulse and found that his heart rate was indeed badly abnormal. Obadiah coughed and said, "An external energy core isn’t enough to power something this enormous…"

"You tampered with your own heart?" Schiller asked.

Stark anxiously tore open Obadiah’s shirt and found a scar on his chest. "Hurry! Get him back to my lab first!… Damn it, the path of biomechanics is completely unworkable! It’s nothing but burning through life!"

"You’re as arbitrary as your father. You never listen to anyone…" Obadiah said, but when he saw the blood running down Stark’s forehead, he ultimately said nothing more.

"Get him back first. As it happens, I know a pretty good neurosurgeon. You’ll see him at Stark Tower shortly."

After Schiller and Stark left, only General Johnson and Rhodey remained on the battlefield. Johnson cursed madly, "You damned lunatic! Rhodes! Don’t you know a soldier’s duty is to obey orders? I’m your superior now! That old Andro retired and fucked off long ago!"

"Yeah, he retired honorably as an admiral, got a well-paid cushy job in Congress, collects a huge pension, spent two months in Hawaii last winter, and his granddaughter just got into Harvard…"

Johnson’s mecha exploded violently again.

After a long while, he said, "You’ll regret this, Rhodey. Stark was never trustworthy. You’ll regret becoming his friend."

"They’re selfish, sensitive, and suspicious. Sooner or later, they’ll destroy everything. They have genius brains that can save themselves, but they won’t save you. They won’t save a watchdog."

Rhodey removed his mecha and stepped out. He looked around.

This place had been completely reduced to ruins. Not far away, Spider-Man and Captain America were loading the wounded into ambulances. Most people had evacuated in an orderly manner, though many had been injured by the aftershocks of the explosions while fleeing and had only just been rescued.

New York was enormous. The aftermath of this battle had only affected several nearby streets. On the roads farther away, cars and pedestrians were still bustling about.

Soon, a streak of purplish-red glow lit the horizon. Dawn was about to arrive.

"You’re right. Starks are all bastards: impulsive, willful, never considering the consequences of what they do, waiting for others to clean up their messes. But Iron Man is different…"

Rhodey looked toward the light at the horizon. He reached up, removed his epaulet, lowered his head to examine it, pinched it between his fingers, and then threw it at Johnson’s face.

"…Iron Man never retreats."