'Shut it down! JARVIS can't get it to-' the suit broke through another forcefield and held its repulsor up to Sue's face. Its glow reflected off her eyes and Tony saw the true horror in her expression.

'Power down!' Tony yelled, holding his hands up to ignite the implants in his forearm. The suit turned its head to its owner and Tony watched as it stood up straight with its hands by its sides. The lights in its eyes faded and the system shut down, Sue shoving her foot into it for good measure. Pieces of the suit fell out of their place and spewed across the floor; unthreatening once disassembled.

'Oh my god, Sue. Are you okay?' Tony ran across the room. 'I must have called it in my sleep. That's not supposed to happen!'

Sue pushed her hair from the sides of her face and massaged her temples that ached. Sweat sunk through her clothes and she could feel her tank top stick to her torso. The tiles under her feet kept them cool after she collided one of them with Mark 42. She wanted nothing more than to lie down on the black marble and forget what just happened. Not only was she exhausted, but she was terrified. The light of the repulsors bleached her eyes and made the dark kitchen a blurry background to the glare that remained in her sight.

'I'm so sorry, Sue,' Tony put his hands on Sue's biceps and turned her to face him. 'I'll recalibrate the sensors. I can't believe I did that. I'm so sorry... I'm so...'

Tony pulled Sue into his chest and squeezed her tightly in a hug. He felt how sweaty and hot she was, making him feel even more guilty. He felt her loosely hold his middle and pant softly into his shoulder. The suit acted on the fear Tony felt in his nightmare. It thought that he was in danger and needed to eliminate whoever else was in the house. Sue just so happened to be in sight when it walked itself up the stairs from the workshop.

'I never wanted to hurt you. God, I'm so sorry. Don't go, please. Susan... don't leave.'

Sue melted into Tony at the crack in his voice. His pleads made her tear up and she knew how Tony felt. She knew he didn't mean to activate the implants in his arm, but it was another reason why he shouldn't have put them in there in the first place. He was mentally unstable and if the implants were sensitive enough to be activated in his sleep, they were a danger to himself and everyone around him.

'I-It's fine,' she mumbled. 'Can we go back to bed?'

Tony swallowed and pulled away, looking down at the woman he nearly killed. Her bottom lip trembled and her large doe-like eyes he adored showed her true terror. Tony looked back and forth between them and the worst pain he ever felt swelled inside his heart. She wasn't scared of him but scared of what he had made. The suits weren't apart of him, they were their own beings.

'Yeah... yeah, let's go,' Tony nodded, his pitch high and forced.

He stood next to the bed as he held back the duvet. Sue slipped under the covers and Tony pulled them up to her chin. He tried not to run around the bed to make it to the other side. Even though he practically threw himself into the mattress to be beside her, it still wasn't quick enough for Tony.

Sue laid on her side as Tony came up behind her. He stared at the back of her head, wondering if her eyes were closed or wide open. His hand rested on the curve of her waist, waiting for her breaths to soothe and slow. When they did, he headed downstairs for another night in the workshop.

He was supposed to tell Sue about The Mandarin, but he figured it would be too much for tonight. The real danger would have to wait.

---

Sue found out about The Mandarin the next morning.

She woke up alone in Tony's bed and was disappointed to not see him beside her. But she knew it was inevitable after last night. The only reason she slept was from the energy the situation took out of her, physically and mentally. Her sleep was dreamless, the only luxury that Tony didn't have.

Before she went down to the workshop, JARVIS had turned on the TV in the living room as soon as she left the bedroom. The shutters were open and let the morning sun reflect off the ocean and into her eyes. Once she adjusted to the sun's beam, she saw the pieces of the Mark 42 that remained across the kitchen floor. She assumed Tony would get one of the robots to clean it up, but she wished he would make the effort considering the circumstances.

Plonking herself down on the sofa, she watched the TV's news report without making the effort to take in any of the information. Her mind was elsewhere, and she readied herself to make her way down to the workshop, when she realised what the news report was covering.

'The Mandarin has taken responsibility for the explosion that occurred at The Chinese Theatre, last night,' the news anchor narrated over the footage of the destroyed theatre. 'Dozens have been pronounced dead and many more injured. Among those injured is The Human Torch and recently undead, Johnny Storm. Sources say he was there with billionaire Tony Stark's ex-bodyguard, and the two are currently in hospital with serious injuries. No word from Susan Storm, sister to Johnny Storm, or from Tony Stark. Here was the message left by The Mandarin. Please note that some of the footage and images in this video can be considered disturbing.'

The news report changed to the flashing images and war footage that was associated to the broadcasts of The Mandarin. The man himself appeared on screen while narrating. He had dark hair tied in a bun and a long beard that was an ashy grey. He sat on a throne as he spoke to the camera, terrorising the audience that saw the broadcast only hours prior.

'True story about fortune cookies. They look Chinese, they sound Chinese, but they're actually an American invention. Which is why they're hollow, full of lies, and leave a bad taste in the mouth. My disciples just destroyed another cheap American knock-off, The Chinese Theater. Mr. President, I know this must be getting frustrating, but this season of terror is drawing to a close. And don't worry, the big one is coming; your graduation.'

The news anchor appeared on screen again and continued to show images from The Chinese Theatre. Shadows of people that were incinerated stained the brick walls and everything inside was destroyed. There was no bomb found, yet the damage were devastating. Police were investigating but getting nowhere. People were dead yet no one knew what happened.

Sue sat quietly. Johnny, Johnny, Johnny. The name repeated in her head and the news anchor's words circled around them. But she couldn't grasp them. How had she never heard of The Mandarin up until now? He's been terrorising places almost everywhere in America, claiming all of the bombings that seemed random were from his associates and under his orders. Sue had been so stressed out about everything with the company and with Tony, that she hadn't watched the news. All they talked about whenever she did was her and things that were currently stressing her out. It was a cycle she needed to break, so the news wasn't something she watched on the daily.

'Johnny...' she said aloud, and it finally clicked.

'JARVIS! Is Tony downstairs?!'

'No, ma'am. He was in quite the hurry when he left the house.'

'How long ago was that?!'

'Approximately six hours ago, ma'am.'

---

Tony sat for most of the night in Happy's private room while he was unconscious. He would have been there earlier if he had stayed awake the whole night like he normally would. It seemed that when he chose to sleep, everything went wrong. Mark 42 attacked Sue and Happy and Johnny ended up in hospital. It was all a long string of bad luck.

He had seen the news report and The Mandarin's message. Happy had been within five metres of the blast and the hospital thought it was a miracle that he had survived the incineration. But when Johnny also was said to have been injured, Tony knew how his long-time friend had lived.

'It was like... he exploded from the inside...' Johnny had said.

After checking in on Happy when he first got to the hospital, Tony went to Johnny's room that was down the hall. Unlike Happy, he was awake. Johnny gave him a lopsided smile when he walked in, modelling a bandage around his raw ear and a splint that held his arm up to his chest.

'You don't look nearly as bad as the other guy,' Tony had tried to joke as he fell into the chair by his bed.

'I tried to take the hit. Fire doesn't do much to me, as you already know. But there was something else that did damage to me. That's something.'

'So, it was an explosion?'

'Not the kind that you'd think.'

Johnny admitted that he needed some sleep. Tony stood to leave the room, when Johnny called him back.

'Is Sue okay?'

'She's fine...'

'Just fine?'