"Do you think it'll work?" Yinsen asked, his voice steady, but his hands betraying a slight tremble as he fastened the armor plate over Tony's chest.
Sparks flew from the makeshift wiring, dancing like fireflies in the dark. The Mark 1 suit stood half-assembled, smoke curling faintly from its edges. Crude, bulky… but it was a miracle.
Tony looked down at the suit—his suit. The plating was scorched in spots, barely holding together, but the arc reactor in his chest throbbed with life. Weak, yet persistent.
"Honestly?" Tony said, tapping the exposed metal along his ribs. "There's no 100% chance. But if we sit here, we're dead for sure."
Yinsen gave a grim nod. His eyes—tired, yet fierce—met Tony's. "Then this is better than waiting."
Tony sat back as the armor's interface blinked to life, the reboot sequence crawling across the crude display. The servos groaned. The hydraulics hissed.
"Just a little longer," Tony muttered, glancing at the monitor. "Power systems are nearly synced. Once we're live, I'll draw their attention. You run when the first blast goes off."
Yinsen paused for a moment, then shook his head. "No."
Tony frowned. "No?"
"We run together," Yinsen said simply, his tone resolute. "I didn't survive all this just to watch you go alone."
Tony stared at him. The silence between them said what neither had to.
"…You sure?"
Yinsen offered a small smile. "Positive."
The reactor pulsed a bit brighter.
Then—
BOOM.
A deep thud echoed through the stone corridor.
Tony's eyes snapped to the entrance.
Another bang. Then shouting. Harsh voices. Footsteps. Guns being cocked.
They were coming.
Dust began raining down from the cave ceiling. The door to their workshop shook under the pounding of rifle butts and boots.
Yinsen's smile faded. He turned toward the tunnel. "They're early…"
He looked at Tony—one last time.
"I'll buy you time."
Tony's heart dropped. "No. Yinsen, wait—don't—"
But Yinsen had already grabbed the battered rifle. His hands trembled as he slid in the last clip and sprinted into the shadows of the tunnel.
"Make this count, Tony."
"YINSEN!" Tony yelled, struggling against the still-locked servos. The armor's legs were immobilized as the final data checks completed. He slammed his fists against the clamps, eyes wild.
But he was trapped.
A moment later—gunfire.
Loud. Brutal. Echoing.
Yinsen's defiant voice rang out in bursts between the shots, shouting something Tony couldn't make out.
Click. Click. Click.
Empty.
Then a final scream.
Silence.
Tony stopped struggling.
He sat there—jaw clenched, hands trembling, eyes burning.
A single beep echoed in the silence.
[REBOOT COMPLETE]
The interface blinked green.
Tony opened his eyes.
Steel surrounded him now—not just armor, but resolve.
"Let's finish this," he whispered.
He reached to the release clamp, fingers gripping the handle.
HISSSSHHH.
Steam hissed out as pressure released. Metal plates snapped into place. Servos clicked. Hydraulics pumped.
The Mark 1 stood.
Crude. Unpolished. Heavy.
But alive.
Iron Man had taken his first step.
The tunnel ahead flickered with orange firelight. Shadows danced on the cave walls as guards cautiously moved in.
Yinsen's body lay just ahead—still, empty rifle at his side. A smear of blood led across the floor.
A guard muttered a command in Dari, another raised a flashlight toward the corridor.
THUD.
A metallic echo rolled through the tunnel.
Then another.
THUD. THUD. HSSSSHH.
The guards turned as something massive stepped from the shadows.
And there he stood.
Tony Stark.
Enclosed in a bulky steel monstrosity of his own making, chest reactor glowing like the eye of a storm.
One guard screamed.
"Shoot him!"
Bullets erupted from all directions.
Rounds pinged off the metal plating, throwing sparks. Shells flattened and fell. The Mark 1 didn't stop. With every impact, Tony moved forward like a machine—unstoppable. Implacable.
A low whir hummed from his shoulder.
"My turn," Tony said.
He raised his left arm. The makeshift flamethrower extended with a click.
WHOOSH!
A jet of fire erupted, engulfing the corridor. Guards screamed, some scattering, others caught in the blaze. Walls blackened. The air burned.
Tony stepped over Yinsen's body, gaze heavy but silent.
"I won't waste what you gave me," he whispered.
Then he kept moving.
Outside the Cave
The camp erupted into chaos. Men shouted, scrambling for weapons. One guard leapt behind a machine gun mounted on sandbags.
Too late.
Tony raised his right arm.
FWUMP.
The rocket launched.
It struck the ammo depot.
BOOOOOOM!
The explosion ripped through the base. Fire spiraled into the air, metal shards raining down. Bodies were flung. A shockwave rippled across the camp.
Tony was at the center of it.
Unmoving.
Walking through fire like a juggernaut.
Guards charged, screaming—he met them with fists like sledgehammers. One punch shattered ribs. Another sent a man flying into a wall. A third crushed an assault rifle like a tin can.
His suit sparked. Plates peeled. The armor was failing.
But it didn't matter.
The Mark 1 had done its job.
Tony reached the outer perimeter. The last ridge of sand and debris.
He turned and looked back—eyes narrowing.
In his hand, the detonator.
The last failsafe.
He pressed it.
KA-BOOM!
The entire weapons stockpile buried beneath the camp detonated, sending up a tower of flame that lit the desert sky like a second sun.
The ground cracked beneath the force.
Tony was flung backward, tumbling down the rocky slope. The armor tore off piece by piece—shoulder, knee plate, left gauntlet.
He landed hard.
Dirt flew. Silence returned.
The wreckage smoldered behind him.
The armor was gone.
But Tony Stark lay there, breathing. Alive.
Above, over the ridge—
A chopper roared.
The sound cut through the dust like a miracle.
A silhouette leaned out the side—helmet on, rifle raised.
Rhodey.
"Tony?!"
Tony blinked through the haze.
And smiled.
Rhodey leapt down with a squad of commandos, sprinting toward him.
"Jesus… You look like hell."
Tony exhaled and reached up.
"Missed you too."
As Rhodey pulled him into the helicopter, Tony looked back one last time—at the burning wreckage, at the place he was supposed to die.
Instead, he found rebirth.
Iron Man was born.
And the world would never be the same.
*******
if you like my fanfic, and want to support me and read advance chaps, checkout my fanfic on Patreon :- patreon.com/FantasyLi
There are regular updates too.
I have written Twenty chaps and will write more soo
***