Battle Strategies | Tony Stark [1]

THREE

"Well... How would you describe it?" Stern asked him, leaning forward in his chair while he raised his eyebrows.

"I would describe it by defining it as what it is, Senator." Tony spoke, not answering the question as he should.

"As?" Stern's voice was beginning to portray his annoyance and he was clearly losing his patience with the playboy billionaire.

"It's a high-tech prosthesis. That is... That is... That's actually the most apt description I can make of it." Tony glanced over his shoulder and saw Athena rolling her eyes but he knew her well enough to recognize the smile that was trying to form on her lips while she tried to remain looking unimpressed.

"It's a weapon. It's a weapon, Mr Stark." Stern deadpanned, disagreeing with Tony's statement.

"Please, if your priority was actually the well-being of the American citizen-"

"My priority is to get the Iron Man weapon turned over to the people of the United States of America." Stern cut over Tony, his eyes flashing dangerously.

"Well, you can forget it. I am Iron Man. The suit and I are one. To turn over the Iron Man suit would be to turn over myself which is tantamount to indentured servitude or prostitution, depending or what state you're in." Tony kept his face blank, turning his body fully around to face the Senator. Tony's attention was fully on him now, hence the heavy glare he was sending his way. "You can't have it."

"Look, I'm no expert-"

"In prostitution? Of course not. You're a senator. Come on." Tony hit the desk in front of him with hand and all signs of previous seriousness was gone.

The courtroom filled with laughter at Tony's words. Turning around, he waves cockily at the crowd behind him. Tony grins at Pepper and Athena, who both look at him with no amusement in their eyes but pure annoyance. He mouthed "no?" at them and then sighed as they both shake their heads.

"I'm no expert in weapons. We have somebody here who is an expert on weapons. I'd now like to call Justin Hammer, our current primary weapons contractor." Stern announced. Tony's head perked up at mention of the Hammer's name and looked at the said man unimpressed as he entered the courtroom and sat down.

Tony looked behind him at Athena to see her reaction, and saw that Pepper was doing the same thing. Athena covered her face with her hands and refrained herself from glaring at the man. It was a known fact that Athena had no time for the stupid, and Justin Hammer fell under that title in her mind and in many others'. A sly smirk presented itself on Tony's lips as Hammer readied himself.

"Let the record reflect that I observed Mr Hammer entering the chamber, and I am wondering if and when any actual expert will also be in attendance." Tony's patronizing tone was about the only thing that could have made Athena smile at that moment and she agreed with him wholeheartedly.

Hammer raised his glass at Tony and laughed sarcastically. "Absolutely. I'm no expert. I defer to you, Anthony. You're the wonder boy."

Athena narrowed her eyes at the man as Tony looked away, bored and fed up with the man already. Justin Hammer stood up and made is way up to the screen. "Senator, if I may. I may well not be an expert, but you know who was the expert? Your dad. Howard Stark."

Tony turned his head sharply at the mention of his father's name, annoyance quickly boiling inside him. He glanced over his shoulder at Athena, who mouthed at him to stay calm, though he could see the anger in her eyes as well.

"Really a father to us all, and to the military-industrial age. Let's just be clear, he was no flower child. He was a lion. We all know why we're here. In the last six months, Anthony Stark has created a sword with untold possibilities. And yet, he insists it's a shield." Tony heard a sharp breath exhaling from behind him, deducing it was from Athena as he shook his head at the man's words.