Iron Woman - (Fem Iron man X Pepper)

Chapter 31 - The Chitauri

After getting my suit back online, I fly to New York...the rest of the team wasn't here yet.

"Ma'am, I took off the arc reactor. The device is already self-sustained."

"Shut it down, Dr. Selvig." I fly over to him.

"It's too late! It can't stop now. He wants to show us something! A new universe."

"Okay." I sigh, aiming my hand forward the device. A huge blast erupts, I stare down in shock as the device is unharmed.

"The barrier is pure energy. It's unbreachable. The Mark VII is not ready to be deployed."  Jarvis says.

"Skip the spinning rims. We're on the clock." I say. As I land and look down to see Loki smiling up at me as my armored suit get taken off of me.

I causally walk inside and to my bar, "Please tell me you're going to appeal to my humanity." Loki says.

"Uh...actually, I'm planning to threaten you." I smile.

"You should have left your armor on for that."

"Yeah, it's seen a bit of mileage. You've got the blue stick of destiny......Would you like a drink?" I ask.

"Stalling me won't change anything."

"No, no, no! Threatening. No drink? You sure? I'm having one." I nod.

"The Chitauri are coming, nothing will change that. What have I to fear?" As Loki says this and turns, I slip on two bracelets.

"The Avengers...." Loki looks at me confused. "It's what we call ourselves, sort of like a team. Earth's mightiest hero's type of thing." I shrug.

"Yes, I've met them."

I smile, "Yeah, takes us a while to get any traction, I'll give you that one. But, let's do a head count here. Your brother, the demi-God; a super soldier, a living legend who kind of lives up to the legend; a man with breath-taking anger management issues; a couple of master assassins, and you, big fella, you've managed to piss off every single one of them." I point.

"That was the plan."

"Not a great plan. When they come, and they will, they'll come for you." I say as I walk around the bar.

"I have an army."

"We have a Hulk." I smile.

"I thought the beast had wandered off."

"You're missing the point. There's no throne, there is no version of this, where you come out on top. Maybe your army comes and maybe it's too much for us, but it's all on you. Because if we can't protect the Earth, you can be damned well sure we'll avenge it." I nod.

Loki slowly walks up to me and raises his scepter. "How will your friends have time for me,when they're so busy fighting you?" He smiles. I watch as he taps my chest with the scepter, hitting my Arc Reactor a few times. "It should work." He frowns.

I shrug, "Well, performance issues. You know? Not uncommon. One out of five..." In anger, Loki grabs me by the throat and flings me across the room. "Jarvis. Anytime now." I groan.

Loki grabs me by the throat again and lifts me up, "You will all fall before me."

Suddenly he throws me out of the window, I yell out as I fall below. I hold my arms out, waiting for my suit to scan my bracelets. I look over as it does, slowly it transforms around me. Just before I land on the ground, I fly up.

I fly up to the broken window, "And there's one other person you pissed off! His name was Phil." I say angrily. As Loki raises his scepter, I blast him back. I look up as the device creates a hole in space, and from it, the Chitauri army spills out in flying chariots. "Right. Army." I say in shock.