Jason pushed himself up, hands on the ground.
His shirt was in tatters. He ripped it off, revealing bruises on his arms, chest, and knees.
First time he'd been injured since getting powers.
He raised an arm, licking blood from a wound.
Eyes closed, he savored the long-forgotten taste of blood.
When they opened, his gaze burned with excitement and mania.
This—pain, blood, the risk of death—was what thrilled him, what made combat alive.
*
Seeing Jason limp out of the factory, clothes shredded, Tony felt a twisted satisfaction.
For over six months, Jason had haunted him, a nightmare robbing him of sleep and peace.
Today, he'd kill Jason, break that mental chain, and restore the Stark's honor.
Tony landed, lifting his faceplate. "You know, I imagined our showdown a hundred ways."
"The best one? Top of the Empire State Building, global livestream, all eyes on me as I crush you in front of the world. Just thinking about it gets me going."
"But reality's a bitch. Tony Stark beats Jason Walter, a historic moment, and no TV crews or crowds to witness it. What a shame."
Jason sneered. "Tony, arrogance is your fatal flaw. The fight's just started, and you think a slight edge means you've won."
Tony glanced around, mocking. "Sorry, I don't see your comeback plan anywhere."
Jason raised his right hand, pointing at the Arc Reactor in Tony's chest.
"Tony, your first weakness is that. It's got insane output, but how long can it run at full power? Don't forget, my powers don't have a time limit."
Jason nailed the suit's biggest flaw.
Tony's expression didn't change, quietly charging his repulsors.
"Don't worry. This'll be enough to take you down."
He raised both hands, aiming at Jason.
Three arm-thick electromagnetic pulses blasted out.
"Roar!"
Jason stomped hard, cracking the tank-proof concrete.
*Bang!*
The recoil launched him sideways.
*BOOM!*
The pulses hit the ground, blasting a two-meter-wide crater.
Jason landed, stomping again, bouncing erratically like a springboard, impossible to track.
Watching Jason flee, Tony scoffed, "Typical sewer rat. Good at scurrying."
He fired repulsors from his boots, soaring above Jason, predicting his path and firing pulses.
But Jason darted like a monkey, chaotic and unpredictable, dodging every shot.
Jarvis warned, "Sir, he's deliberately draining the reactor's power."
Tony frowned. "I know, but he's too fast. Even pulses need time to hit, and that's enough for him to slip away."
"Any countermeasures, sir?"
Tony grinned. "Jarvis, we've got backup."
Jason leapt to a factory rooftop.
Wondering why Tony wasn't chasing, he heard rockets firing nearby.
"Heh, these idiots never learn," He mocked, switching to wind energy and soaring dozens of meters up.
But then, shockingly, the dozen missiles arced midair, chasing him.
*What?*
*How?*
*I'm using wind, not heat—how are they tracking me?*
Jason couldn't figure it out, but now wasn't the time.
He shot skyward, forming an energy orb in his right palm and firing it at the missiles.
If he couldn't dodge, he'd destroy them.
A nice plan, but the missiles shocked him again.
They swerved, dodging his wave, still closing in.
*Fuck!*
It clicked—these were remotely guided.
*Cheap bastard, calling it a duel and sneaking in help.*
Jason spat, speeding away.
The missiles were faster, gaining on him.
"Shit!"
Unable to shake them, he gathered all his energy into a surface shield.
*BOOM!*
The sky erupted in flames.
*Whoosh!*
Jason plummeted, crashing into another Stark factory.
When he crawled up, his excitement was gone, replaced by rage.
*These fucking gnats. I'll kill them first.*
Fists clenched, he stormed out.
Nearby, two guards on a rooftop spotted him.
In their excitement, they didn't think, shouldering rocket launchers and firing.
*Whoosh!*
Jason heard the flames, turning to see a rocket speeding toward him.
He didn't dodge, letting it hit.
*BOOM!*
Flames engulfed his position.
The guards cheered, faces red, dancing. "We hit him! We got him!"
Their joy faded as the flames shrank, absorbed into Jason's body.
Their smiles froze.
They reached for another rocket, but in a blink, Jason was gone.
A cold voice sounded behind them. "You two shits were laughing pretty hard."
They turned, trembling, meeting Jason's bloodshot eyes.
*Whoosh!*
Jason flashed forward, grabbing their heads and lifting them.
Skipping energy, he used raw strength, digging his fingers into their skulls.
"Agh!"
Screaming, legs dangling, they flailed like slaughtered pigs.
Jason's face stayed cold, crushing their skulls with brute force.
*Whoosh!*
More rockets fired from afar.
Jason tossed the lifeless bodies, taking off toward the source.
Dozens of rockets flew at him.
Eyes wide, he calculated time and distance.
As they closed in, he dove straight down.
From the earlier chase, he'd found the trick.
Rockets outsped him in a straight line, but his maneuverability was unmatched.
A sharp direction change could shake them until their fuel ran dry.
His quick thinking worked. The rockets overshot.
Losing him, they looped wide, coming back.
But by then, the guards who fired them were in sight.
Jason saw their panicked faces.
*Die.*
He roared internally, charging energy into his fists.
One hit would turn them to paste.
Clearing the grunts first was key—without interference, he could kite Tony to death.
A solid plan, but Tony had the same idea.
From nowhere, Tony appeared above.
Three full-power pulses blasted at Jason's back.
*Whoosh!*
Hearing them, Jason looked up, seeing the pulses inches away. His face froze.
No time to think.
Instinctively, he formed a shield.
The pulses hit instantly.
*BOOM!*
Jason was blasted away, crashing to the ground.
The rockets followed, exploding around him.
"Perfect! Keep the rockets coming!" Tony shouted, elated.
He fired an anti-tank missile from his left arm, then unleashed more full-power pulses.
This was the moment.
The guards, pumped, screamed and fired rockets, guiding them to Jason.
*BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!*
Dozens of missiles and pulses created a small mushroom cloud.
"Did we get him?" Tony asked, heart racing.
"No thermal signature. Unknown if successful," Jarvis replied honestly.
From the inferno, a black figure rose.
Bathed in flames, unyielding, like a demon from a fiery hell.
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You can read advance chapters and view R-18 images of the characters on pat reon page.
pat reon.com/GreenBlue17
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