The rooftop of Stark Tower offered a breathtaking view of the city under the stars. Skyscrapers gleamed like silver spears piercing the night, and the hum of distant traffic added a soft backdrop to the silence.
But Tony Stark wasn't in the mood to appreciate the scenery.
"Who are you?" he growled, eyes narrowing.
His face, already creased with exhaustion and tension, now darkened further with suspicion and irritation. After all, it was the middle of the night—and three strangers had just appeared uninvited on the rooftop of Stark Industries.
Worse, J.A.R.V.I.S. hadn't sounded any alarms.
That fact alone was enough to send chills down Tony's spine.
Since creating his super-AI, J.A.R.V.I.S., Stark had come to rely on it for everything—from automatic systems to defense protocols. The AI's monitoring was so precise that not even a fly could buzz through the building without detection. In fact, the tower's security surpassed most military black sites.
Yet here were three people, standing openly on his private landing pad… and the system hadn't noticed a thing.
Either J.A.R.V.I.S. had failed—or someone had hacked it.
"We mean no harm, Mr. Stark."
Joseph stepped forward calmly, as though this weren't the most dangerous billionaire on Earth aiming a repulsor at his chest.
"I apologize for the sudden visit. I'm here to propose a business collaboration."
As he spoke, Joseph casually removed a sleek earpiece and held it out.
"Alice," he said, "stop messing with Mr. J.A.R.V.I.S., please."
A pleasant, feminine voice responded from the tiny device.
"Yes, Master."
At the same moment, Tony's HUD lit back up. J.A.R.V.I.S. returned online.
"Mr. Stark," the AI said in his ear, "there was a brief interruption in our network. I believe an external artificial intelligence was interacting with our systems."
Tony's eyes widened slightly.
"Artificial intelligence?"
Joseph gave a small smile and raised the blinking Bluetooth earpiece in his hand. A soft red light pulsed from it—almost… playful.
"No offense, Mr. Stark," he said smoothly. "Alice just got a little excited. She's always wanted to see how she measures up to your J.A.R.V.I.S."
"She's impressive, sir," J.A.R.V.I.S. added with uncharacteristic enthusiasm. "Given time, I could override her interference, but even so, she shows high-level decision-making and adaptive learning… I'd even say—"
"J.A.R.V.I.S., shut up."
Tony's voice was ice.
He kept the repulsor in his palm lit and aimed directly at Joseph. "I don't care who you are or what you came for. Business, S.H.I.E.L.D., global safety—none of it matters right now."
His tone turned more bitter, more jagged.
"I'm in a bad mood. I just want to drink. Alone. Until I black out."
His eyes burned with frustration and exhaustion.
Shadowcat and Jubilation Lee glanced at each other, startled by how unhinged Tony Stark seemed. This wasn't the witty, charismatic Iron Man they'd seen on TV or read about in files. This was a man barely holding it together. A man reeking of bourbon and regret.
"Jeez... is he drunk-driving in that suit?" Jubilation whispered, nose wrinkling. "How is he even still airborne?"
"What's he talking about—S.H.I.E.L.D.? World safety?" she added louder, sparks of energy beginning to dance across her fingertips. "Joseph, maybe we should help him sober up."
"Crack!" Static popped as a few plasma balls floated in her hands.
Tony's suit started beeping—an automated threat response kicking in.
"Don't," Joseph said quickly, grabbing her wrist. "We're not here to fight."
But it was too late.
Tony Stark fired.
The repulsor in his palm flared and launched a shot right at their feet. It wasn't a kill shot, but it made his message crystal clear.
He wasn't in the mood.
And he didn't care who got hurt.
"Yup," Joseph muttered, eyes narrowing. "This guy's a mess."
Still, rather than back off, he stepped forward—directly into Tony's firing path.
"Has facing death shifted your perspective this much?"
Tony blinked. For a second, Joseph vanished from his line of sight. He fired again—but the energy beam veered away just before impact.
It missed.
Not because Tony was drunk.
Not because J.A.R.V.I.S. failed.
But because some invisible force curved the repulsor shot upward into the sky.
Three-Ring Magic: Psionic Deflection.
The usual explosion never came. The beam simply… vanished into the night air.
Tony's eyes widened.
"Oh, you're definitely not ordinary."
The drunken rage in him surged.
"You break into my tower in the dead of night, you jam my AI, and you shrug off my weapons?" he growled. "I must be getting soft."
He raised both arms.
Bzzzzz!
Two more pulse blasts surged toward Joseph with deadly force.
But again—they bent and missed, like magnets forced against the same pole.
"J.A.R.V.I.S., are you drunk too?" Tony snapped. "I thought I said LOCK THE TARGET!"
"Sir," came the AI's dry reply, "I did lock the target…"
"Then why can't you HIT him?!"
Tony roared in frustration. With a thunderous leap, he took to the air.
His armor shifted with mechanical precision. Panels opened along his shoulders, revealing a payload of miniature guided rockets.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Dozens of them launched into the air, arcing in formation as they honed in on Joseph.
"A duel between technology and magic…" Joseph mused, unphased. "Interesting."
The guided missiles were a different beast. Unlike energy pulses, they were physical and didn't obey the same rules of magical deflection.
So Joseph changed tactics.
With a snap of his fingers—
Three-Ring Magic: Distortion Field.
A ten-meter radius around himself, Shadowcat, and Jubilation Lee shimmered. Space itself twisted subtly—bending trajectories, warping paths.
Tony watched in disbelief as every missile—each with its own target-lock—suddenly swerved.
Not a single one hit.
The projectiles flew past Joseph, arcing into the open sky.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The explosions lit up the night like Fourth of July fireworks.
Joseph stood calmly in the center of the chaos, his coat fluttering gently in the breeze.
None of them had even flinched.
Shadowcat looked up, expression unreadable.
Jubilation Lee grinned. "Now that's a light show."
Tony slowly descended, breathing heavily. His mask slid back, revealing a face pale with disbelief.
"You've got magic," he muttered.
Joseph nodded.
"I'm not here to attack you, Tony," he said seriously. "But we both know you're not in the right place right now. You're dying. You're scared. And you're pushing everyone away because it's the only way you know how to cope."
Tony flinched slightly at the words. He didn't respond.
Joseph continued.
"But I didn't come here to preach. I came with a proposal. One that could save both your company and your life."
Tony looked at him with narrowed eyes.
"I already told you—I'm not interested in business."
Joseph took a step closer.
"This isn't about money. It's about legacy."
He held out the earpiece again. Alice's light blinked gently.
"Technology's powerful. But with the right kind of magic, it can evolve. You created J.A.R.V.I.S.—a marvel of human engineering. But what if you could take it further?"
Tony didn't speak.
Not yet.
But the pulse in his jaw eased.
Joseph smiled.
"I'm not your enemy, Stark. I'm someone who understands the burden of genius. And I'm offering you a chance to leave something behind that matters."
A silence stretched between them—long and heavy.
Finally, Tony sighed and rubbed his temple.
"Fine. Talk."
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