"Hah? You're trying to deny it at this point? You've been the mastermind behind all these terrorist attacks!"
Tony raised his repulsor and fired a shot at Killian—Bang!
"Tell me, where's Pepper?"
"Pepper? Hehe…"
Knocked to the ground, the Iron Patriot suddenly pointed to the sky. "Isn't she right there?"
DuDuDu——!
The sound of helicopter rotors.
Judging by the noise, it seems to be a large armed helicopter…
Everyone looked up, and sure enough, it was an armed helicopter. Killian's men were aiming several Vulcan cannons at them—
Rumlow's eyes narrowed, and he quickly commanded, "Everyone, scatter and take cover!"
Dadadadada——!!
The machine guns opened fire!
Boom!
Killian took the opportunity to fire a repulsor blast from the Iron Patriot suit, blasting away a S.H.I.E.L.D. operative!
Dang! Dang dang!!
Several bullets struck the armor, leaving only shallow dents!
The Iron Patriot grabbed another S.H.I.E.L.D. operative and twisted his neck, breaking through the encirclement!
Peng!
Iron Man fired at him, making Killian stumble again.
That enraged Killian. He used the comms to order his subordinates in the chopper, "Give our Mr. Stark a little surprise!"
Whoosh!
A missile launched from beneath the helicopter, streaking straight toward Iron Man—
"Not this thing again!"
Tony, traumatized from the L.A. explosion, tried to run for cover into the factory area.
Ding!
A cylindrical arrowhead deployed small claws, clamping onto the missile.
At the same time, the blue light on the arrowhead stopped blinking.
Boom!!
Hawkeye had preemptively shot the missile, detonating it in advance. He didn't stop, swiftly moving and climbing to a better vantage point on the corridor, then aiming at the helicopter's rotor—
Whoosh!—Boom!
The helicopter was forced to make an emergency landing.
However, more than a dozen Extremis-enhanced warriors emerged from it.
They were all glowing with flames, charging towards the Avengers and the S.H.I.E.L.D. team!
"They're charging straight at us?... Open fire!!"
Rumlow led his team in a coordinated attack—
…but the bullets only caused minor wounds, barely harming the Extremis warriors.
Unless it was Ye Li's specially-prepared elephant rifle, it wouldn't do much damage.
Soon, the Extremis warriors clashed in close combat with the S.H.I.E.L.D. operatives.
The difference in vitality made their casualty ratio worsen.
"Damn it!"
Seeing his squad members falling one by one, Rumlow's expression darkened...
After all, quite a few Hydra agents had infiltrated this team.
However, seeing the rapid regeneration of the Extremis warriors, his eyes flickered…
'This ability seems useful... If I can get my hands on it…'
On the other side—
Bang! Clang!!
Iron Man was engaged in a battle with Killian, who was piloting the Iron Patriot suit.
However, Stark's suit had just been repaired, and Killian, being the most successful Extremis warrior, quickly gained the upper hand.
"Your armor…"
Killian twisted Tony's wrist and sneered, "…doesn't seem that great, huh, Tony?"
"Hey! That suit you're wearing—I made that too!"
Tony's chest suddenly glowed brightly—
Boom!
Killian was temporarily repelled, but Stark's suit sparked from the energy drain.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Black Widow fired a few shots from her Widow's Bite at the Iron Patriot, more as a symbolic attack. Then she moved closer to Iron Man and asked, "Stark, do you have a way to deal with him?"
"Oh, I almost forgot! Now that you asked… of course, I have a way!"
Tony suddenly spread his arms and shouted—
"Guys! It's your turn!!"
Whoosh~~~
A cold wind blew past.
Natasha: "?? What are you doing?"
"Uh…"
Tony awkwardly said, "Hey, guys, hurry up… don't embarrass me, or I'll report you to Li…"
"Heh heh, Tony, have you lost your mind?"
Killian lifted the machine gun mounted on the Iron Patriot's back, resting it on his shoulder, and aimed at Natasha and Tony.
"I'll kill this S.H.I.E.L.D. agent first, then deal with—"
Bang!
Suddenly, a blue energy shot struck the Iron Patriot's chest, causing its arc reactor to flicker erratically!
Everyone looked up—
On the corridor above, a clone soldier stood holding a gemstone-powered energy weapon!
More clone soldiers kept appearing around and below him.
"Who are they?"
Hawkeye, hearing footsteps behind him, turned his bow in that direction, only to see figures in silver-striped black combat uniforms dashing past him at incredible speeds—completely ignoring him.
"Their speed! These guys aren't ordinary humans!"
Barton was shocked.
That kind of superhuman agility—he'd only ever seen it in one person before—
—Captain Steve Rogers.