"'Veronica' sounds like a woman's name."
While Batman was engaged in a fierce battle inside the engine room of the Helicarrier hovering over the Pacific Ocean, Titanium Man was shaking his head repeatedly inside the ruined Russian base:
"To think that with death staring Iron Man in the face, the thing he misses most in his heart is a woman."
He squatted down—his three-meter-tall frame still standing considerably taller than an ordinary woman even while crouching—and looked at Iron Man's blood-stained face. Titanium Man's voice echoed out through his titanium-alloy armor:
"Do you want to live? Want to see this Veronica you keep talking about?"
Even with an epinephrine shot injected into his system to restore a considerable amount of his bodily functions, Iron Man still chose to lie completely motionless on the ground when facing the Crimson Dynamo, Titanium Man, Rhino, and dozens of Hydra soldiers brandishing rifles and heavy weaponry.
He appeared to have given up all resistance entirely, merely pining for his beloved woman, "Veronica," in his final moments.
Hearing Titanium Man's words, Iron Man's eyeballs twitched slightly, and a single word slowly escaped his mouth:
"Yes."
Titanium Man let out a satisfied laugh, remaining crouched as he pressed his finger directly onto Iron Man's exposed forehead:
"Then join Hydra. We can reunite you with your Veronica—and even if you want ten or a hundred, we have more than enough technological means to help you make it happen.
"Otherwise..."
Titanium Man slowly applied pressure with his finger, pressing down point by point against Iron Man Tony's forehead, causing Tony's head to shudder uncontrollably.
Clearly, if he refused to join Hydra, Titanium Man would pierce Iron Man's head straight through with his finger.
At this life-or-death juncture, a flash of ruthlessness flared in Iron Man's eyes:
"I can join... but I have one condition... You cannot make me step down from the Avengers or give up Stark Industries."
"Oh, of course," Titanium Man replied, his voice sounding as though he were teasing a puppy. "How could we possibly ask you to give up the Avengers and Stark Industries? They're your gifts for joining Hydra."
The ruthless flash in Iron Man's eyes had not escaped Titanium Man, yet he released the pressure on Iron Man's forehead and stood up instead, saying:
"Now I need you to come with us. Spend half a month fully transferring the assets of Stark Industries, and I'll also need complete access to all intelligence on the Avengers."
"Fine..." Iron Man agreed through gritted teeth.
Titanium Man grew even more pleased, nudging Iron Man with his foot:
"Get up. I know that after taking that adrenaline shot, you're at least capable of moving around."
Lying on the ground, Iron Man was kicked into a few tumbles across the dirt. By the time he came to a stop, his Mark VIII armor abruptly flared with bright white light.
"Reboot complete," Jarvis's voice sounded. "Veronica deployment ready. Three, two, one..."
"Eject!" Tony Stark bellowed at the top of his lungs!
Pfft!
Tony Stark's heavily battered body was launched out of the Mark VIII instantly!
Titanium Man, Crimson Dynamo, and Rhino all snapped their gazes toward Tony, but just as they prepared to move, a series of whistling roars echoed down from the sky!
A massive aerial floating platform hovered high in the sky above, its individual components detaching one after another.
In what felt like a single blink, one of the components streaked straight toward Iron Man like an artillery shell.
Crisp, powerful sounds of mechanical transformation rang out continuously as armor plating sections shifted to enclose Tony's body.
Previously, the Mark II required the assistance of mechanical arms for a donning process that lasted well over a minute; what arrived now, however, was a brand-new Mark VIII!
With every battle and every flaw uncovered, Tony Stark upgraded his Mark series armors. From the moment the Mark VIII flew to his side to the moment Tony completed the suit-up, less than three seconds had elapsed.
Whoosh!
Iron Man pushed against the ground with one hand, his palm thruster suddenly erupting with a crimson flare that propelled him back into a stable stance. Without a moment's delay, Iron Man took to the skies.
"You want to know who Veronica is? I'd be honored to give you a proper introduction."
Iron Man's voice, spoken through gritted teeth, echoed from inside the Mark VIII.
Not intending to waste any more breath on Titanium Man, he turned and rocketed toward the sky, flying straight toward the components detaching from the high-altitude floating platform.
While Tony Stark had deployed the Mark VIII moments earlier, these components had simultaneously been assembling themselves rapidly in midair.
By the time Iron Man arrived, a suit of red-and-gold armor—several times larger than the Mark VIII and a full head taller than even the Hulk—had already completed its assembly.
Rhino, who had been lounging lazily on the ground, pulled himself up. His heavy body stamped against the earth with dull thuds as he raised his head to gaze at the fully deployed Iron Man.
Driving the colossal armor, Iron Man plummeted downward at high speed, slamming heavily onto the ground.
BOOM!
A heavy thud—far more intense than the tremors caused by Rhino's steps—echoed from nearby, throwing up the dust that had only recently settled.
The Hydra soldiers' bullets, rockets, and grenade launchers fired continuously into the dust cloud. Firelight pierced through the haze repeatedly as the dust was kicked up a second time.
Yet none of it seemed capable of halting the strides of the behemoth within.
The clashing of metal, hydraulic drives, electronic prompts, and heavy footsteps emerged sequentially from the dust. Clad in the heavy war suit, Iron Man strode out of the haze, appearing before everyone's eyes.
The Hydra soldiers stared at the massive armor as they launched their final rocket.
Yet the heavy armor displayed agility completely at odds with its massive build. With a swift grab of his hand, Iron Man caught the rocket mid-flight, tossing it back into the ranks of the Hydra soldiers with a flick of his wrist.
With a thunderous explosion, this small yet elite squad of Hydra soldiers—sent specifically to ambush Iron Man—was instantly blown off their feet.
"Curious to know who Veronica is?" Iron Man slowly clenched his massive fists, the Mark VIII operational UI rapidly transitioning into Veronica's combat display. "This is Veronica—the big guy that's going to beat you bastards straight into the core of the Earth."
Enclosed entirely within his titanium-alloy armor, no one could see Titanium Man's expression.
Yet Crimson Dynamo could clearly feel the fury rising inside his companion.
With a quick shift of his gaze, Crimson Dynamo took the initiative before Titanium Man could explode, piloting his machine—which rivaled the Veronica armor in size—straight toward Iron Man.
BOOM!
Fist slammed against fist. Rolling shockwaves completely stirred up the ruins of the Russian base, turning the entire area into a hazy zone of grey dust.
Hummm... A thick, yellow repulsor beam shot straight out from within the dust cloud, accompanied by a agonized scream from Crimson Dynamo.
Titanium Man's brow furrowed beneath his helmet as he turned to Rhino:
"Do it! Take down Iron Man!"
Dropping onto all fours, Rhino—whose size was not much smaller than Crimson Dynamo's—lowered his head, pointing the sharp horn atop his head forward as he charged blindly into the dust cloud.
No longer standing idly by, Titanium Man plunged in right alongside Rhino, trailing just behind him.
Crunch! Crunch!
The sounds of tearing metal echoed continuously. By the time Titanium Man and Rhino finally burst through to Iron Man's front, Crimson Dynamo had already been shredded into countless fragments. The Hydra operative driving inside was tossed a hundred meters into the sky with a flick of Tony's hand.
"AAAAHHHHH—"
The screaming voice gradually faded as the Crimson Dynamo pilot flew higher and higher. Titanium Man's face darkened beneath his suit; puffing out his chest, a red diamond-shaped light beam shot straight at Iron Man.
Rhino's charge reached its peak speed at that exact moment, intending to smash Tony—clad in the Veronica armor—into pieces.
--
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