Plans? What plans?

[hotredhero]

Uh, hello? Is this thing working? Because I could have sworn when you said we were going to do things that I would actually, you know, have some say in what was going on. It is me, you know. My life that you're playing your games with, so I'd appreciate a little warning before you made important decisions like where you plan on putting me.

Oh. Space. Great.

Yeah, I love space. Space is nice. Why wouldn't I love space?

You know, aside from the whole having a home and a company that has my name on it and about twenty other projects that aren't really conducive to dropping everything to ride off on space ships where I don't have any of those things.

...

Oh, damn, look at that. My suit's dented. Well, I better get on this. We'll have to put off the whole "jettison Tony out into the galaxy" idea for later. I'll get back to you on that one, okay?

Comments

[hotredhero]

Say what? That your programming skills don't exceed those of a well-placed cat?

Or that you couldn't plan your way out of a paper bag?

[cc:]

[therealgenius]

[ohmygod look at that frown this is a broken man Tony!!!]

You think I'm a moron.

[hotredhero]

[Oh, come on, he didn't even feel that one. Don't lie to me.]

You hired a Russian psychopath with a bad chip on his shoulder to sabotage my life by offering him resources that could potentially destroy everything and everyone in the entire city.

You do realize how that would have ended for you if I hadn't won, right?

[therealgenius]

[Tony why you do dis]

I didn't know he was...I didn't know he was...I didn't have any clue who he really was, I didn't. I wouldn't have, I wouldn't, if I knew, I wouldn't...

[hotredhero]

[Uh, hello? Almost blew up the Expo.]

Well, you're lucky that it turns out he wasn't quite as good as he thought he was. And that I happen to be good enough to back up my claims.

[therealgenius]

[Howard HAD to have been cooler about this shit than you, man]

Oh, here we go again, you and your claims of being the absolute best.

[hotredhero]

[Damn it, Justin, stop bringing up my dad!]

But I am the best.

[therealgenius]

[NOPE.PNG

Because his computer stuff sucks what is a .jpg???]

That's what you said...and then Vanko proved you weren't the only one who could control such technology.

[hotredhero]

[Sir, you need to stop copying Tony and start working on your own basic skill base first.]

You really call that control? And, while I'm on the subject, it wouldn't have caused that much damage if you hadn't been feeding him a stream of money.

Vanko is gone. And I really doubt you are going to take his place on your own, so I'm still right. The technology for the Iron Man suit is out of immediate reach for everyone else.

[therealgenius]

[Oh, fine.

He'll just find other crazy geniuses to fund, man. He's rolling in the dough.]

Even if I've seen the schematics for War Machine?

[hotredhero]

And I'm sure any attempts to replicate that design will end in a bad sequel to the last time you tried to copy my work.

[Man, don't you have any hobbies? Better hobbies?]

[therealgenius]

[...he likes to make Gingerbread Houses?]

I'll be taking extra precautions this time around, thank you very much.

[hotredhero]

[So can we expect fewer explosions around Christmas?]

You mean you won't touch anything?

Seriously, just give it up. There's nothing for you to get out of this. It's mine, and I'm not handing out the technology so that everybody else can screw it up.

[He means hurt other people with it, but let's not get sensitive right now.]

[therealgenius]

[Yeah bro he's making the Sistine Chapel this time!!!!]

You think just because you invented something that you own it? Where would we be if Alexander Graham Bell and Thomas Edison were as selfish as you? Are you serious?

[hotredhero]

Probably debating over my monopoly of electricity and communication devices.

I own it because I'm the only one that has the capabilities to produce and control it. Weren't you listening?

[therealgenius]

As of now, if you're going to keep up that line of thought. And what in five years when, when, when North Korea is blasting down suits? Will you give it up the people—the American people—then? Is that what it'll take?

[hotredhero]

I guess we'll just have to find that out, assuming that anyone can reproduce that technology in ten years or so. Considering the only headway you made was the result of theft and it still failed, though... Doesn't look all that promising.

[therealgenius]

Aha, ah, no. Your suits were kept within reach of Rhodes, and it was him who brought the suit to the government where it should have been all along. It wasn't theft, it was you being outrageously careless with the thing you want the people to just believe you created for peace. The thing you piss yourself in and fall in over drunk in, the same thing. I don't see it, Anthony, how do those things relate? Can you explain?

[hotredhero]

Uh, actually, that's still my private property. So, yes, Hammer, it was use without my permission. But that wasn't what I was talking about. The business with Rhodey didn't even amount to anything, because the additional armaments your people tried to install ended up being a big waste.

I was talking about the actual working technology. You know, the technology used by the terrorist you sponsored.

[therealgenius]

The technology only capable of being reproduced by Tony Stark.

Oh. Wait.

Are we destined to do this? Forever running in circles of who did what? I'd like to forgive you one day, Tony. I'd like you to forgive me one day, for all the bad, bad things I've done.

[hotredhero]

Now it is. Thanks, Hammer, I've got it under control.

What, you don't like carousels? I thought you were the carnival type.

[Forever unimpressed.]

Okay, sure. As soon as you admit you were wrong and caused a mess that I had to clean up.

[therealgenius]

People still go to carnivals, really?

[Justin manages to look...mildly contrite. Mildly. Kind of. Maybe a bit more than mildly, but it's not going to burn any tongues.]

You mean to you or to the public?

[hotredhero]

Oh, we're going global.

[As if he would ever swallow a second of that crap, Justin. It's all fun and games for Tony. Trading barbs, pretending that maybe they don't want to lock each other out of every new innovation. Might as well play, since he doesn't have a choice.]

[therealgenius]

[He could just walk away to leave Justin, jacket whipping in the wind, staring after him and thinking of how, exactly, to get close enough to remove that little warm coil in his chest just long enough to get his point across without killing him.]

With what? My apology?

[hotredhero]

[Don't worry. He'll leave and break his heart in good time. At the moment, he's pretty free.

And keep dreaming about that one. Not going to happen.]

You were the one that said it. I was just accepting your offer.