Collection Of Short Stories

Afghanistan

14-04-2013         09:24      Afghanistan

It's five years today. Five years since the last time we were in Afghanistan. Five years since the convoy was attacked. Five years since the first time Tony Stark was held captive by the Nine Rings. Five years since he's had an electromagnet keeping him alive. He sat opposite me as we drove along that same road, calm and relaxed as he blared ACDC through the car speakers, a glass of brandy in his hand.

He gave me a once-over as I nodded along with the music, gazing outside at the barren desert landscape. He kicked my foot gently, and I turned to look at him. He raised his glass to me before shouting over the music.

'Have a drink! Takes the edge off.' he said. I shook my head, smiling, before replying.

'I'd have to get very drunk to take te edge off, Tny.' I said, smirking before I looked back out the window, my heart sinking into my stomach the further we trailed into the desert.

Tony wasn't the only one who had been taken that day. I had been a marine. My team and I had taken up the vanguard, a hundred feet ahead of the convoy. Our truck had been blown to pieces. We had all survived though, and had been taken hostage by the Nine Rings, like Tony.

They had wanted money as well as weapons, so they took us to get the money. Simply because America is known for loving her troops. Tony was held for three months. We were held for a grand total of eighteen. Tony only found out about us after Staine was killed, and by then, I was the only one left. I couldn't put myself back into the Marine Corp., so Tony made me head of security for all his 'little adventures'.

09:53

Tony kicked my foot again, draggin my attention away from the scenery.

'Hey, you're my head of security. You're not allowed to be nervous.' he smiled on of his rare, genuine smiles and nodded to his briefcase. A portable Iron Man suit.

'I've got your back either way.'

Suddenly, the sounds of gunfire filled the air. A voice cracklede through the radio, uttering those two words which had the ability to strike fear into the heart of every soldier.

'Contact rear!'

We all snapped to attention. I turned and called to the driver.

'If you drive, they'll blow us to pieces. As soon as there's enough smoke, get us behind that rock formation over there.' I said, pointing off to the left.

'Copy that.'

I looked back to Tony, reaching under my seat and pulling out a sniper rifle.

Tony raised an eyebrow as I pulled out a full magazine of bullets. 'You're going to shoot? In a skirt?' he asked in disbelief. I rolled my eyes.

'Suit up and get out of here. Fly close to the ground until you're out of range. Then get to the Peace Summit and explain what happened.' He took a breath to argue, but I interrupted him, loading the magazine into the rifle.

'I'm a marine. I'll be fine. I'm less worried about these guys, than I am about Pepper, if I don't get you out of here. Now go! That's an order!' I shouted over the sudden din. Tony nodded grimly, donned his suit, and flew out the door. As soon as he was gone, I took a breath to give more orders, and we were blown sky high.

17-04-2013         08:24    

I groaned and pulled my head forward. Without a doubt I had a concussion, along with a collection of other injuries which ranged from cuts and bruises to broken bones.

I opened my eyes, only to find myself staring down the barrel of a gun, and froze. Gun. In a hand? No. On a stand. String trigger. Camera to the side. Nine Rings emblem on the wall... Wait, what?

I started and looked up. There was an armed man on either side of me. Another stood in front of the camera. I had a huge, constricting, overpowering pain surrounding my chest. How long was I out?

Suddenly, the room shook and a piece of the roof fell in front of me, in a dusty cloud. From the dust, five bullets silently flew. The camera man, and the two men on either side of me collapsed, along with two others behind me. Iron Man stood up and walked towards me. A searing hot pain was building just below my left ribs, and I noticed that the gun rig had fallen.

Tony's mask lifted and he quickly untied my hands as I slumped forward. He caught me and gently pushed me back, against the chair.

'Where're the others?' I croaked, putting my hand against my ribs and feeling blood. I cursed and put pressure against the bullet hole as Tony picked me up.

'They didn't make it through the attack. Let's get you out of here.' Before he took off, I called to him.

'Tony?' He looked down at me. 'I'm switching jobs with JARVIS.' I told him. He chuckled and took off, flying high and fast, away from the compound.

17-04-2013         09:35      Afghanistan

We landed at the air base and Tony set me down, supporting me as we walked over to Col. James Rhodes, Rhodey. Rhodey ran forward and wrapped an arm around me, keeping me upright.

'I think I'll take that drink now, Tony.' I croaked and the two men smiled. Well, at least I still had a sense of humour. The ground turned to a waving sea and I groaned, feeling dizzy. A medic team ran over, reaching us just as my knees turned to jelly and I blacked out.

09-10-2013         19:05      Malibu

I waited in the lobby for Tony and Pepper to come down. Tonight was the night of Tony's annual Charity Ball, and he had invited me.

After I got back from Afghanistan, my lung collapsed. But there were complications, meaning that I couldn't get a transplant. Half of my ribcage had collapsed too, which was why I had been in so much pain at the compound. It left me in a coma for a month, hooked up to an iron lung.

But Tony, being the genius, philanthropist that he is, felt bad about what had happened. So he built me a new ribcage out of adamantium, and built me a new lung too. With a lot of complicated technology, he hooked it up so I could breaht properly, without any assistance.

The only thing that went wrong in the procedure was to do with the adamantium ribcage. Tony had to solder it in place, which caused some of the adamantium to melt and run off in my blood. So I now have a shining, adamantium, labyrinth-like pattern running from my chest, up to my shoulder and down my left arm. I smiled, running my fingers over it. I could have much worse scars.

The black dress which I wore accentuated them. It had a cut-out waist-line and thick shoulder-straps which joined on my back, at my shoulder-blades, before falling with the line of the dress to my lower back. The dress was simple, but the silver, glittering straps drew attention to my battle scars. I was proud of them.

Tony and Pepper stepped into the lobby, looking like the love-struck star couple that they are.

I followed them out, breathing in the fresh, cool air. Smiling as I looked at the clean, sandless streets.

Sand rarely passed through here, only one type constantly around, passing.

The Sands of Time.