Tony Stark is missing!
Even though Pepper saw Tony flying up from the sea in his armor, he didn't return to her — or to Stark Industries.
No one knew where he'd gone.
A full day passed, and still, there was no message.
Pepper's heart was hanging by a thread.
By the time Natasha arrived, she had already taken command —
organizing the rescue and cleanup while having S.H.I.E.L.D. satellites sweep for Tony's signal.
It wasn't until nightfall that they finally detected the trace of his armor.
When Pepper heard Natasha's words, she immediately stood up, eyes filled with hope.
"Kai… please, bring Tony back."
"Leave it to me," Kai said simply.
He rose from his seat and walked over to Natasha, confirming the coordinates where Tony had gone down.
Tennessee — A Snowy Field
"Sir… Sir…"
Jarvis's voice echoed faintly. Tony, unconscious and half-buried in snow, groaned and stirred.
"Turn off the alarm, Jarvis. I'm awake…"
The beeping continued inside the armor. Tony pried his eyes open, his head pounding.
"Sir, this is a system alarm," Jarvis warned. "Armor power is below five percent."
Red warning text flashed across Tony's visor — System Failure. Power Critical.
He reached up, forcing the helmet open, and cold wind slapped his face. Snowflakes drifted down endlessly in the dark night.
"Jarvis… it's snowing. Are we up north?"
"Sir, we are approximately five kilometers outside Rose Hill, Tennessee."
Tony blinked. "Tennessee?! Jarvis, why the hell are we in Tennessee? What about Pepper? Damn it—we shouldn't be here!"
"Sir, the armor's energy is depleted," Jarvis replied calmly.
"Then start flight mode!"
"Insufficient power."
"Open the armor manually!"
"Sir, the release mechanism appears damaged…"
"Then eject!"
The armor's joints sparked weakly, groaning as the suit slowly opened.
Tony sat up, panting, his breath fogging in the freezing air.
"Wow. What a fantastic day…"
He picked up a piece of ice, wiping the blood off his arm, and muttered,
"You know what, Jarvis? Inside the armor was actually warmer."
He was about to lie back down when Jarvis's voice grew faint.
"I think I'm going to sleep now, sir…"
"Jarvis? …Jarvis!"
Tony sat there in the snow, shouting into the night.
No response.
"Don't leave me, man…" he whispered.
Minutes passed. Finally, Tony found an old rope somewhere nearby, looped it through the armor's arm, and began dragging it behind him as he trudged through the snow.
He was wearing nothing but a torn T-shirt. His breath puffed white in the freezing air, the only light coming from the faint blue glow of the arc reactor on his chest.
The image was bleak — Tony Stark, billionaire genius, now reduced to dragging his own broken armor through the snow.
After ten long minutes, he stopped, leaning forward, gasping for air.
Without Jarvis's navigation, he had no idea where he was — but he kept walking anyway, determined to find someone.
"Come on, man," he muttered to himself. "Once I find civilization, I can—"
"What are you trying to do?"
A familiar voice cut him off.
Tony turned sharply — and froze.
Kai was standing there, hands in his pockets, smiling faintly under the falling snow.
Tony blinked, and for a split second, his eyes gleamed with something that looked suspiciously like relief.
"Why, are you that happy to see me?" Kai teased. "If you're about to cry, hurry up and get it out now. Otherwise, when we go back, Pepper's gonna think someone kicked your ass in Mexico."
"Damn it, you little bastard…" Tony muttered, flipping him off with numb fingers.
Kai laughed. "Wow, rude. Here, I brought something for you."
He pulled out a still-warm cheeseburger from his coat and handed it over.
"See? Thoughtful, right? I figured you hadn't eaten dinner. And hey—if you double my bonus this month, I might even tell Pepper you're still alive."
He smirked. "Oh, and that burger costs fifty thousand dollars."
Tony didn't even argue. He tore the wrapper open and started eating in big bites.
"Double the bonus? Fine. I've got plenty of money," he mumbled between mouthfuls.
"But just so you know… I don't usually take things from people."
He paused, swallowing.
"You're the first one besides Pepper."
Kai grinned. "Aww, that's touching. Next time, I'll throw it at you instead."
"You little punk…" Tony muttered, but there was a trace of warmth in his voice.
When the burger was gone, Tony let out a quiet sigh of relief.
In the cold, lonely snowstorm, that small act of kindness felt like everything.
Kai nodded toward the wrecked armor beside them. "Come on. Pepper's still waiting for you."
But Tony hesitated. His eyes were serious.
"What's wrong? Don't tell me you're actually enjoying this weather," Kai said, glancing at his thin T-shirt and frostbitten hands.
"I'm thinking…" Tony said slowly. "If I should even go back."
Kai frowned. "What do you mean?"
Tony sat down heavily on the damaged armor.
"This time, Killian's after me, right?"
"That's right," Kai said quietly.
"Then if I go back, I'll just bring danger to Pepper again." He stared into the snow, voice low. "As long as I stay away, they won't have a reason to target her."
He looked up at Kai, his expression hard. "Honestly, if you hadn't shown up when you did… I don't even want to imagine what could've happened."
"I can't—" Tony's voice cracked for a second. He clenched his fists. "God, Kai… I can't put Pepper in danger again. You know what I mean."