2014.03.02 - Grounded: Man of Steel

Hour 65. Still going...

Tony knocks back another coffee. It's been a long day..s. "Alright, let's calibrate the Tyson-Sagan emitters on the framework. I need the darkmatter to react at an order of magnitude against the thermal couplers to produce energy at a frequency of sixty seven point three kilajoules. The bromide and argon matrix should provide the stability to hold the passage open as long as we want, and I can shut it down remotely and reactivate it from within the confines of the suit. Final specs on that, JARVIS?"

"Sir, we're doing composite armor from Marks Seven, Fifteen, Forty, and using the Gemini configuration fitted with the new weaponry we've devised for Operation: Screw Darkseid."

Since the last time he was here, Clark availed himself of the Legion Flight Ring he kept in a small wooden box in his Metropolis apartment along with some other keepsakes. Instead of climbing this time he instead lands on the balcony, still dressed in the non-descript and black utilitarian gear from a couple days ago.

“Tony,” he calls as he steps inside, brow furrowed, “How’s it going?”

Tony Stark is alerted to Superman's presence once again, and steps out onto the balcony. Frankly, he looks like hell, but you won't hear him admit that. "Clark.." he says, "It's going ok. C'mon in..I've got a little something for ya." - Tony waves you into the Penthouse as he enters.

“If I thought you’d listen to me,” Clark points out, following behind Tony, “I’d tell you to get some sleep.”

Inside the Penthouse, Clark takes another look around, “I’m grateful for this. Really. If I can’t get my powers back then at least I can still help somehow.”

Tony Stark nods, "I will, eventually." he says, "Soon. I won't be any use to you guys in the field like this, I know that much." he turns back around, "So, I know you said you wanted your face visible, but the way the armor is constructed, the helmet's vital to monitor the systems and maintain operations via the HUD. But..I did do the next best thing."

“I trust you to know what you’re doing.”

Clark doesn’t offer anything more on that, obediently following along to see exactly what the modern day Hephaestus has put together in his forge.

Tony Stark smiles and nods, "JARVIS, walk out the Kal Armor, would you please?"

"Certainly, sir."

It steps out slowly, the footfalls sounding just a bit denser than Tony's when he's wearing his. Surprisingly, it will only add an inch to Clark's height. But there it stands, A perfect approximation of Superman in Iron Man form - almost like an Andy Warhol piece. The colors are spot on, the Kryptonian outfit Superman wears is perfectly represented, The iconic "S" perfectly represented - There's no arc reactor glow visible. Even the faceplate's optics are Clark's shade of blue, with the black hair in the right spot and the recognizable curl on the forehead. In fact, there is only thing missing - The cape.

"It's an entirely new build from the ground up. I've packed in everything that approximates your own abilities. Strength, super extended life in the power plant, flight, heat vision up to thirty two hundred degrees farenheit, super cool breath down to a kelvin below zero..."

"I studied every bit of known footage on you. It can do everything you've shown you can do. I've even equipped so the power plant recharges in sunlight. Although I did include one thing of my own.."

Clark’s eyes widen, a look of awe crossing his face as the suit steps out into the open.

He nods his head slowly as Tony speaks, stepping up until he’s directly in front of the armored equivalent of himself. He runs a hand over the s-shield, taps his fingers on the face plate and leans around to take a better look at it.

“This is amazing,” he says quietly, only now realizing just what good he could do even if he never gets his powers back, “But it’s missing one thing.”

He reaches into the satchel he wears across his chest, pulling something red from it. He steps around behind the suit, fastening something about the neck. As he steps away, his iconic cape unfurls behind it. The image is complete.

“There.”

Tony Stark nods, "I was going to do something with that, but I thought I'd leave that to you. Just be careful with the cape - the repulsors in the heels for flight might singe it a little." he says, smiling. "I was hoping you'd like it."

"I do," Clark answers, finishing with the cape, "And I wouldn't worry about it getting damaged. It's made of a lot sterner stuff than you'd think."

He takes another step around the suit, admiring it in silence for a second.

"There's a risk in going to Apokolips. If I can use this and it can work then ... isn't that all we need? Proof that no matter what Darkseid does he can't keep humanity down?"

He puts a hand on the suit's shoulder, turning to look at Stark.

"I think we've already won."

Tony Stark nods, "I'll be up seventy two hours before I'm done, but I can promise you one thing: We're going to beat him. You, I, and everyone else that's helping us. We're going to beat him so bad that he'll never think about coming back here ever again."

Tony takes a deep breath and says with the sort of finality he's associated with, "And if he does..I'll be ready."

"And I'll kill him."

“Darkseid might deserve to die,” Clark says flatly, “But we’re better people than that. If you kill him then you’re risking becoming like him.”

He exhales noisily, looking down at his feet for a moment.

“He killed my father the last time he came to Earth. The reason he took my powers is that he promised to bring him back to life in return. For a moment I thought that my father wouldn’t want me to accept that deal and I almost turned him down.”

He looks up, features steely.

“But then Darkseid told me he’d made a similar decision himself once. The death and unending suffering of a loved one in exchange for power. I couldn’t let myself be like him. You shouldn’t either. We can always find another way.”

He gestures at the suit, “Just like you’ve done here.”

Tony Stark looks out at the skyline. "Clark," he says, voice edged by fatigue, but still alert. "You have to understand something. What I've done here, is because of how I used to be." he shakes his head, "I'm not like you..I'm not like Bruce," letting him know that he knows, and now they all know. "You guys have a moral center that was bred out of me. Because there needs to be at least one person like me, and I accepted that long ago. You can't be the one that does it, it's not IN you to do it - it's not in him, either, because he refuses to become the thing that killed his parents..but me? It's mine by blood. I won't become anything like Darkseid if I end him. If anything..I'll be more like you guys."

Tony turns back around to face Clark, "Because sometimes...there's no other option. There are times when you can't negotiate, and you can't bring someone to justice in the way we'd like. So there's me, and I'll do it. I don't know how not to."

Clark watches Tony talk. He watches him look out at the city and listens to him speak. When he’s finished, the Last Son of Krypton smiles lightly.

“I think you do,” he offers, “And you’ll know that before the end.”

That said, he turns to the suit, “So, should I come back later for this or ... ?”

Tony doesn't answer Clark's statement. Obviously, he thinks more of Tony than Tony himself does. He motions to the suit as he walks back over. "Oh no, it's ready to leave the showroom as is. It's keyed to the same bio-signature that JARVIS recognizes, so it will only operate for you. It's a one of a kind. All you gotta do is extend your arms to open it."

Tony does so, to show Clark how, and the front of the suit, shield and all, opens and retracts allowing for Clark to step in.

"That's a one-off action, so I could show you how to operate it. You back in, it closes around you and you have a completely space-proof, sealed and pressurized environment. I've taken the liberty to uplink JARVIS to the suit for as long as you need to get used to how to operate it. He'll be able to help you until you can operate it yourself comfortably."

“Okay,” Clark answers, a touch hesitant as he looks at the suit, “Alright, let me just give it a shot.”

He’s used to flying around under his own power. This is a very different step in a very different direction. He takes a long, deep breath and backs into the suit. True to Stark’s word it opens and closes around him, sealing him in. A very different Man of Steel.

“Well,” comes his voice through the suit’s speaker, “I suppose I ought to take it for a test run.”

Tony olds up a hand, "Hold on." Stark says, "That doesn't sound right." - "JARVIS, scrub the digitization, and filter through with true sound." and looks back, "Try that again, Superman. I didn't have vocalizer quite right."

Behind the faceplate designed to be a stylized version of his own appearance, Clark chuckles at the quick change. He says nothing as he takes a step towards the balcony, testing out his control of the suit but quickly getting the hang of it. Outside he looks up at the sky, kicking the jets into gear and hovering a foot above the ground.

In the distance, the wail of sirens draws his attention and he quirks an eyebrow behind his new mask. He turns slightly, glancing over his shoulder at Tony. Soon, a plume of smoke rises above the buildings from between two buildings on the horizon.

“This looks like a job for Superman.”

Continued in Grounded: Battle of the Fortress.