Before today, Tony Stark treated movies like he treated everything else: with mild amusement and zero emotional investment. Who cries over fictional characters? Who gets angry when a pixelated hero suffers?
But now that he was the fictional character... the perspective shifted.
When Jarvis mentioned the possibility of Pepper being targeted—of her being "fridged" to motivate his character arc—Tony felt a cold hand squeeze his heart. It was a physical sensation, sharp and terrifying.
He had many flings. He had many acquaintances. But Pepper Potts was the only person who could tell him to go to hell and make him listen. She was the anchor.
"Jarvis," Tony said, his voice unusually low. "Set a reminder. Upgrade Pepper's security detail. Triple it. I don't care about the cost. And keep it subtle. I don't want her panicking."
"Reminder set, Sir."
Tony exhaled, trying to shake the dread. "So, I'm the catalyst. The Big Bang of the Heroic Age. Once I become Iron Man, the crazies come out to play."
"It appears so, Sir."
"Then we need to be ready. Jarvis, open a new file. Project: X-Files. Scour the dark web, military intranets, urban legend forums. I want a database of every anomaly, every rumor, every unexplained event. If there are other 'Supers' out there, I want to know their names before they knock on my door."
"File created. Scanning global networks..."
Tony leaned back, waiting. But the diary wasn't done with him yet. New text began to form, glowing faintly on the page.
June 11 (Update)
Speaking of Iron Man... I remember the first time I saw the Mark 1. That 'Catfish Face' helmet looked so clunky.
But man, after seeing dozens of Mark suits over the years, that clunky bucket of bolts grew on me. It's iconic.
It's a shame I can't see Tony Stark hammering away in that Afghan cave with my own eyes. That was the moment he became a god.
He literally saved the Marvel Universe single-handedly. What a legend.
Tony froze.
Two phrases hit him like a repulsor blast.
"Catfish Face Helmet."
"Mark Suits."
"Catfish face?" Tony blinked. He grabbed a napkin and a pen, sketching rapidly. "A helmet... tapered chin... wide eyes... welding mask aesthetic..."
He looked at the sketch. It did look a bit like a catfish.
"Mark suits," he whispered. "Plural. Dozens of them."
The final piece of the puzzle clicked into place.
"I don't have superpowers," Tony realized, a manic grin spreading across his face. "I don't get bitten by a radioactive iron. I don't learn magic."
"I build it."
"It's armor. It's always been armor. 'Iron Man' isn't a description of my skin. It's a description of the shell."
It made perfect sense. He was a weapons manufacturer. He was the Da Vinci of death. He had toyed with the idea of powered exoskeletons before—the military had asked for them—but he had always dismissed them as inefficient. Too heavy. Too power-hungry.
"But if I'm the pilot..." Tony muttered, his mind racing. "Cost isn't an issue. Power isn't an issue—if I can miniaturize the Arc Reactor technology."
He looked back at the diary entry.
"He literally saved the Marvel Universe single-handedly."
Tony's ego inflated to dangerous levels.
"Did you hear that, Jarvis?" Tony pointed at the book. "'Saved the Marvel Universe.' 'Legend.' 'God.'"
"I believe the diarist is using hyperbolic fan slang, Sir."
"Hush. Let me have this."
Tony strutted around the room. "So, I'm not just a protagonist. I'm The Protagonist. I'm the MVP. The franchise rests on my shoulders."
"Sir," Jarvis interjected, his tone analytical. "The phrase 'Saved the Marvel Universe' carries a dual meaning. In the context of the story, it implies you save the world from a catastrophic threat."
"Obviously."
"But in the context of the 'Fourth Wall'... it implies something else. It suggests that before your story, the 'Marvel Cinematic Universe' was a risky venture. A gamble. Your success—your movie—was the foundation that allowed the entire franchise to exist. You didn't just save the world, Sir. You saved the studio."
Tony stopped strutting. He looked at Jarvis, then at the diary.
"So," Tony said slowly. "In the real world—the world of the writers and the audience—I am the one who started it all. Without me, there is no Spider-Man movie. There is no Avengers. It all begins with Tony Stark."
He liked that. He liked that a lot.
"Well," Tony smirked, adjusting his cuffs. "I always knew I was the most important person in the room. Nice to know the rest of the multiverse agrees."
"However," Jarvis added, pouring a bucket of cold water on the moment. "The reference to 'hammering in a cave' confirms the original timeline. You were meant to build the Mark 1 with primitive tools while held captive."
"Right. The 'Cave Arc,'" Tony nodded. "Lucas calls it 'God-Tier.' He wants to see me suffering in a dungeon because it makes for good cinema."
Tony's expression hardened.
"Sorry to disappoint the audience, Lucas. But I'm not building my masterpiece in a cave with a box of scraps. I'm building it in a sterile lab with high-speed internet and a cappuccino machine."
"And the result," Tony turned to his fabrication unit, "will be a hell of a lot better than a 'Catfish Face.'"