By the end, the once pristine villa looked like a construction site. Tony didn't care. He was completely absorbed, focused, and energized.
James watched. This was what a real tech genius looked like.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
After a long day, the lab was a mess. James took the pleasure of having a quick shower and crashed in the guest room available.
The next morning, Tony and James had breakfast via delivery. They ate quickly, both being preoccupied. While waiting for the new equipment for the lab to arrive, James turned on the TV—only to see Justin Hammer's smug face on the news.
"He's holding a product launch... in your Expo building?" James raised a brow.
Tony scoffed. "What product? He's a clown. Just ignore him."
James narrowed his eyes. "Something's off. J.A.R.V.I.S., pull all available data on Ivan Vanko."
[Understood, Mr. James.]
Tony leaned in. "That guy's supposed to be dead."
The records were sparse. The official report claimed Vanko had committed suicide in prison.
James frowned. "No way. That man wouldn't take himself out. And now Hammer's suddenly launching a new product? Feels too convenient."
"You're right," Tony said, finally taking it seriously. "Let's prepare just in case. I'll start producing a few more reactors."
"And it's time you hand over the suit you made for Colonel Rhodes. Let him represent you on the military front. Just make sure the rights stay with him."
"If anyone else touches it, I'll blow it up," Tony muttered.
Just then, the new equipment they needed arrived, and they soon got to work.
"James, stand clear. I'm powering up the prism accelerator," Tony warned.
The beam fired. A bright laser shot out and sliced through the air. James then quickly turned the valve, guiding the beam until it hit the triangular target metal.
With the power shutting down. The two of them walked up to examine the result—an intense glow coming from the triangular core.
"It worked." Tony pulled the element out and slotted it into his reactor. "Ah... Oh man... That feels incredible."
James squinted at him. "Tony, stop making those sounds. You're going to make people think something weird's happening in here."
"But it is great! I can feel it already." Tony opened his shirt, watching the toxic palladium traces fade. "We did it. Come on, let's make a few more."
They activated the system again and produced five more cores, bringing the total to six with Tony's.
"You gonna upgrade yours too?" Tony asked, handing him one.
"No. I'm going to upgrade myself instead." Tony was confused on how a human body could upgrade itself.
James picked up a spare reactor and gave a mental signal.
[Cortana is active. New element verified: clean, stable, usable. Begin absorption?]
'Start it up. Let's see what you can do.'
A surge of energy rushed through his arm holding the new reactor. James felt it immediately—a wave of warmth and pressure that made his body hum.
"Ah... Alright, that's... intense."
Tony raised a brow. "Okay, now you're the one making weird sounds. What the hell are you doing?"
"Upgrading. Talk later," James said, gritting through the surge.
[Brain enhancing at 10%... 20%... unlocking datasets… processing...]
Ten minutes passed, James clenching his jaw through it. The glow of the element began to fade in his hand.
[Upgrade ready. Please enter the first password to unlock Program One.]
James focused. 'Program One: obey my commands.'
The password triggered without him speaking it aloud.
[Program One accepted. Please enter Program Two.]
'Program Two: protect my life at all costs.' Another mental password—this time, his old phone's lock code.
[Accepted. Initiating upgrade. Estimated time: three days. Body strength doubled. Energy reserves are low. Cortana will return upon completion.]
James let out a long breath, the spent element still warm in his palm. He looked at Tony, who was watching with confusion.
"Your new element is perfect."
Tony narrowed his eyes. "What just happened to you?"
"As I said—my physiology's different. Your new element gave me the energy needed to trigger an upgrade. My body's now twice as strong as before."
"Seriously? That's insane. Can't you do more? There are more reactors right here."
James shook his head. "I'm still human. There's a limit to how far I can push it—at least for now."
Tony stared. "Okay… so aside from the big green guy, you might be the most overpowered person I know."
James nodded. "Now that we're done with the upgrades and know that it works great. What do you wanna call this new element?"
Tony and James exchanged ideas, after several minutes and debates on what name they should give the new element. Both agreed to call it BADASSIUM. Both liking the name since it sounds bad ass and strokes Tony's ego.
"Call Colonel Rhodes. It's time he suits up. I'm heading back to New York to grab my gear. When Hammer holds his press conference, I'll be on the perimeter. If they try anything? the three of us can shut it down."
"Good plan. You want some custom armor-piercing rounds? I could whip up a batch."
"No need. They won't have that kind of plating. My standard AP rounds will do just fine."
Tony smirked. "So, what are we calling your suit?"
James thought for a moment. "[Umbra Sentinel]"
"A Shadow Watcher? Well it suits you being an assassin and all," Tony said.
James suited back up, packed a small duffel with his coat and holster, and launched skyward. At a glance, people thought he was Iron Man.
He landed on the penthouse rooftop with a solid thud. Removing the armor took more effort than expected.
"Gotta ask Tony for some robotic arms next time," he muttered.
Carlos was already waiting for him to arrive. "James?"
"Yeah, this is the suit Tony built for me. You could wear it too since we're about the same size. But taking it off? Not fun. We'll also need to upgrade the roof hatch for future landings."
Carlos chuckled. "Busy lately?"
"Not really. I think I can take a vacation soon. How's Hannah doing?"
"She's great! Smart and capable. You picked well. That's just about her being an employee, of course. Got to work with her more to know her better."
James smiled. "Glad to hear it."