When Tony came to, he found himself outside the cave.
Leon had lugged both him and the bulky Mark I armor out of there like they weighed nothing. Even Yinsen, who had hidden inside a missile casing, had been dragged out after Leon swept the entire cave in a full-on carpet search.
After a long, sincere explanation, complete with facial proof, voice recognition, and a bit of high-level charm, Yinsen finally believed that Leon was indeed Tony Stark's younger brother.
Frankly, after seeing the sheer devastation of the Ten Rings' base, he had to believe it.
The place was annihilated.
Not a trace of bodies. No screams, no mercy. Just smoke and shadows.
Pure vaporization.
Soon after,
Tony groaned awake, clutching his jaw.
"Ow, my jaw!"
The helmet of the Mark I creaked open. Tony winced.
"Tony, are you okay?" Yinsen asked, concerned.
"Heh. Still breathing, at least."
Tony offered a wry smile, until his expression shifted to a snarl.
"Wait, where's that bastard who pretended to be my brother?! I'm gonna blast him to hell!"
"Big bro, who are you planning to blast?"
Leon strolled back after splashing water on his face.
Bathed in the morning light, his handsome face, equal parts refined and rogue, made him look like a magazine cover model that had wandered onto a battlefield.
"Leon! You're just in time. There was some imposter, wait, what?!"
Tony's eyes widened.
"You… what the hell are you doing here?!"
"Because that so-called imposter was me, you dumbass."
Leon gave him a crooked grin.
"No way! You… How the hell did you get this strong?! And that suit, what is this, cosplay?!"
"Hold up… did you inject the Super Soldier Serum?! It has to be that!"
Tony went into full-on brainstorm mode, stringing together every piece of scientific knowledge he had.
"But that doesn't make sense. The serum doesn't give this level of strength. And most test subjects go full psycho. Or at least half psycho…"
Leon just sighed.
"Look, I'll explain later. It's a long story."
"Then shorten it."
Tony wasn't letting this go.
He'd seen too many things go sideways when power came without a leash. If Leon's abilities came with side effects like mind-altering aggression or loss of control, he needed to know.
This was his only brother.
He couldn't afford risks.
So Leon gave him the basic rundown, how he got hit by a truck, nearly died, and then woke up different.
No mention of the system, of course.
But everything he did say? Was true.
Tony couldn't find any holes in it.
"Goddamn it."
"Who the hell's targeting the Stark brothers?!"
Tony's expression darkened.
"Let's head home first," Leon suggested. "Could be an internal issue. Stark Industries has plenty of enemies."
"You've got a point."
Tony nodded. He thought back to what he'd seen in the Ten Rings camp. Their weapons, all Stark designs.
There was no doubt now.
Someone had been selling his tech to warlords behind his back.
Maybe even someone inside the company.
He didn't want to think about it just yet.
So he changed the subject.
"Hey Leon, can you fly now?"
"Fly? Do I look like Superman to you?"
Leon chuckled, punching Tony lightly in the chest.
"Good," Tony smirked. "Watch closely then, your big bro's about to show you what it means to take flight."
And just like that, Tony lit up like a kid with a new toy.
He activated the manual thrusters on his Mark I suit.
With a thick puff of grayish smoke, the leg jets screamed to life, and he rocketed skyward.
"Wooohooo! Look at me! This suit is one-of-a-kind! Human flight, baby!"
Tony whooped with joy.
Unfortunately…
He barely made it 50 feet up before the janky welded-together flight rig fell apart midair.
"AAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!"
Leon facepalmed.
"Show off one time and you crash. Serves you right."
"Leon, what do we do?!" Yinsen panicked. "He's gonna break every bone in his body!"
"What else? Catch him."
Leon smirked.
He locked onto Tony's trajectory and leapt, ten meters into the air, caught his brother mid-fall, and braced for impact.
BOOOOOOM!
The two of them slammed into the earth.
The Mark I shattered into scrap metal.
Leon sat up, brushing Tony off.
"Nice flight, big bro. Next time? Maybe don't."
"That was just bad luck," Tony grumbled. "When we get back, I'm making a better version, one that'll blow your mind."
"Hmph. Good luck with that."
Leon shrugged. "By then I might be flying myself."
That was just how they were.
Constant banter.
But nothing but care underneath.
"Uh… guys?" Yinsen spoke up, raising a timid hand. "How are we getting out of here?"
"The Ten Rings' trucks are totaled," he added. "Most of them are molten slag."
Tony immediately turned to Leon.
Leon smiled.
Tapping his earpiece, he gave the order:
"J.A.R.V.I.S., bring me the Jet Sliger."
"Right away, Master Leon."
Only 15 seconds later, a sonic boom tore through the dust, and the Jet Sliger skidded to a perfect stop beside them.
"The Jet Sliger?! You actually brought that thing out here?!"
Tony was stunned.
Then he remembered: Leon's body wasn't exactly normal anymore.
But still,
"Dude. That thing's only got two seats! You literally had it designed for picking up chicks!"
"And me and Yinsen? We'd be crushed by the G-force in that thing!"
"Relax."
Leon shrugged.
"We'll squeeze. And I'll drive slow."
"Sir, I'm relieved to hear you're safe," J.A.R.V.I.S. chimed in from the onboard speakers.
"J.A.R.V.I.S.! Oh my god, I missed you!"
Tony cried dramatically. "You have no idea how miserable it's been without your voice."
And so,
They stacked like human Jenga:
Tony in front.
Leon in the middle.
Yinsen in back.
It was settled.
"Leon, your pistol's poking me."
"Pistol?"
"You son of a-!"
"Let's go. Time to head home."
With the brothers still bickering, the Jet Sliger peeled off across the ruins of the Ten Rings base and roared into the distance.
=====
Half an hour later,
Under a pile of rubble near the base…
A burnt, disfigured bald man crawled out.
It was the Ten Rings' commander.
Still alive.
When Leon had fired his chest cannon, the guy dove into a trench beneath a stone pile.
It collapsed on top of him, yes.
But it saved his life.
Burned, but alive.
His eyes glared toward the horizon, where the Stark brothers had vanished.
"Stark… you bastards… I'll-"
"You'll what?"
"!!!"
Leon stood behind him, back already, smiling like a devil.
Then, without hesitation, he plunged both hands into the man's chest,
And ripped him in half.
Blood splattered. Gore rained down.
"Tch. Couldn't even last six hours."
"Pathetic."
"Because of you, I just lost next month's cover girl to Tony!"
You see, they hadn't actually left.
Leon and the others had just made it look like they had, hoping to lure out any survivors.
They were biding time, waiting for Rhodey to send an extraction team.
Bored out of their minds, Leon and Tony made a bet:
Were there any Ten Rings members still alive?
Leon said no.
Tony bet yes.
The stakes?
Next month's magazine cover girl.
Deadline?
Until Rhodey arrived, six hours max.
Well…
The result was clear.
Leon had overestimated the enemy's survival instincts.
And paid the price.
"DAMN it!"
Every 250 P.S = 1 Extra Chapter
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