"It's over," Lucas smiled, lowering his fist.
The Iron Monger was a smoking wreck. Obadiah Stane was... well, let's just say his employment contract had been terminated with extreme prejudice.
Tony Stark struggled to his feet, the Mark 3 servos whining in protest.
"You pack quite a punch," Tony groaned, leaning against a concrete pillar. "Remind me never to arm-wrestle you."
"That was just a love tap," Lucas shrugged. "If I really wanted to hurt him... well, let's just say there wouldn't be a body to bury."
Tony shivered inside his suit. He believed him.
"Thanks for the assist," Tony said, his voice sincere. "Last time we met, you didn't give me your name. Now that I owe you ten million dollars... I kind of need it for the wire transfer."
Lucas considered it. He had tried to stay anonymous. He had tried to be a background character. But fate (and the Plot) had other plans.
"I'm Lucas Chen," he said simply. "You can find my details. Just deposit the money into my account. And keep the change."
"Lucas Chen," Tony repeated, storing the name in his secure database. "Got it. Consider it done."
"I'm leaving now," Lucas added, glancing at the approaching sirens. "I don't do press conferences. And I definitely don't do autographs."
"Wait," Tony called out. "What about..."
But Lucas was already gone. A sonic boom echoed in the distance as he vanished into the night sky.
"Show off," Tony muttered.
Just then, Pepper Potts ran towards him, her face streaked with tears and grime.
"Tony!" she cried, throwing her arms around the metal suit. "Are you okay? Oh my god, you're bleeding!"
"I'm fine, Pep," Tony winced, hugging her back as gently as a man in a titanium suit could. "Just a few scratches. And maybe a bruised ego."
"You... you built this?" Pepper asked, stepping back to look at the battered armor. "This is what you've been doing in the basement? While I was handling the board meetings?"
"Yeah," Tony admitted. "It's not exactly a hot rod, but it gets the job done."
"It saved my life," Pepper whispered. "You saved my life."
"Well," Tony smirked, "I had a little help from Superman."
"Superman?" Pepper looked around confused.
"Long story," Tony waved it off. "Let's just say we have a new consultant on the payroll."
Just then, Happy Hogan pulled up in a black Audi, tires screeching. A team of Stark Security guards jumped out, securing the perimeter.
"Happy!" Tony shouted. "Clean up this mess! I want every piece of scrap metal accounted for. Especially the big ugly one."
He pointed at the remains of the Iron Monger.
"That's my tech," Tony said darkly. "Nobody else gets to play with my toys."
"On it, Boss!" Happy shouted, directing the team.
"Tony," Pepper asked, looking at the approaching police lights and news helicopters. "What are we going to tell them? Stane is dead. There's a giant robot in the parking lot. And you're wearing... that."
"We can't hide this," she warned. "It's too big."
Tony looked at the chaos. He looked at the suit. He thought about the diary.
In the original timeline, he held a press conference. He read off a card. He lied.
And then, he told the truth.
"We're not hiding anything," Tony decided, his face setting into a determined expression. "The world needs to know. Stane was a monster. But Iron Man?"
He looked at his reflection in a shattered window.
"Iron Man is a hero."
The Next Morning. Stark Industries Press Conference.
The room was packed. Reporters were shouting questions. Cameras flashed like lightning.
Tony stood at the podium, a small bandage on his forehead. Rhodes stood beside him, looking nervous.
"Mr. Stark!" a reporter yelled. "Can you explain the events at Sector 16? Witnesses describe a 'robot battle'!"
"It was an industrial accident," Rhodes tried to intervene. "A prototype malfunction."
Tony looked at the cue cards.
Deny everything. Training exercise. Robo-glitch.
He looked at the crowd. He thought about Lucas. He thought about the aliens coming. He thought about Thanos.
"The truth is..." Tony started, tossing the cards aside.
The room went silent.
"I am Iron Man."
Chaos erupted.
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