Chapter 47: Test Run

[Third Person's PoV] 

Melissa's finger hovered over the enter button, before curling her finger into a fist and turning towards Tony, who was wearing his large safety goggles as he had a small flashlight inside his mouth tinkering with what's in front of him. 

"Tony, are you absolutely sure I can use the name? Won't it be better if we switched the name" Melissa asked with uncertainty. 

Tony shifted his goggles to his forehead and took the flashlight out his mouth, "Melissa, that day he didn't just shield me, he also shielded you. You can use the name… Here" 

Tony said as he turned towards her, he put a hand on his chest and raised his other. "I, Anthony Stark, give you, Melissa Shield, access to his name and use if your A.I," 

As he was done then he looked at her with a raised brow, "There, better right?" 

Melissa sighed, "I suppose so," She said with a faint smile, which she then hit the enter button. 

A status screen appeared with a process bar which quickly filled up, there was an activation noise as a male British voice introduced him. 

The letters J.A.R.V.I.S appeared on screen, "Good even madame, I am Jarvis… Just A Rather Very Intelligent System" The letters went in a row as he introduced himself, "How am I be of any assistance" 

"Hello Jarvis, I am Melissa Shield… And for now just be on standby for further notice" 

"Of course" Jarvis responded. 

Melissa giddily started drumming on the Table, "Are you hearing this, Tony?"

"Loud and clear, dear" Tony said with a smile of his own as he moved and connected wires around. 

Tony reached over and grabbed his arc reactor, he gave his Arc Reactor a flip in his hand before putting it in an empty socket, he twisted around like he was screwing in a light bulb, which began buzzing with power soon after. 

Melissa grabbed a harddrive from the side of her computer, she pushed her seat out and rolled to the other side of the room where her plus one was currently at, connected to wires. 

Melissa opened up its side and inserted the hard drive, a hologram screen appeared close to it, Melissa tapped casually and gave it a few taps before another loading screen appeared: Installing Personal A.I system. 

After getting the green light Melissa took out the hard drive, and started securing everything. 

Tony performed a last minute system check and nodded, "Everything is operational, are you ready?" 

"Uhh…" Melissa was busy typing something before pushing everything away, "Yup, I'm all ready…" She said as she started disconnecting the excess wires. 

Tony and Melissa then tapped their watches, causing the machines at their respective stations to give a little shake as if they were just waking up.

Tony had given their arc reactor eyes the ability to blink, which started off slowly. The one on Tony's desk was royal blue with golden accents and had flipper-like hands.

Melissa's machine was similar except for being royal purple with golden accents. Both machines had small thrusters in the back that lifted them up from the tables.

They swayed side to side slightly before stabilizing themselves.

(Image)

"Friday, how are you doing?" Tony asked.

Friday flew close to Tony and started orbiting around him before she saluted. "Everything seems to be in order, sir."

"And you, Jarvis?" Melissa asked, watching him maneuver up and down and side to side.

"Everything is in order on my end, ma'am," Jarvis replied.

Tony and Melissa then nodded towards each other. They both spread their arms and said, "Suits."

In an instant, the machines transformed. Components shifted and expanded, clicking into place with mechanical precision. The royal blue and royal purple machines began to reshape, encasing Tony and Melissa in their Iron Man suits. Plates of armor extended over their bodies, merging seamlessly until they stood fully suited and ready.

The arc reactors, initially part of the machines' 'eyes', descended and embedded themselves into the chests of the suits, powering them up with a bright glow. The masks formed last, sliding over their faces and sealing with a hiss, the HUDs inside flickering to life.

"You just gotta love a cool suit up sequence" Tony said, his voice now resonating with the suit's internal speakers.

"Let's test these upgrades," Melissa added, flexing her armored fingers.

"Shall we fight against one another?" Tony asked with a slight smile. 

"Yes, I have to test how Jarvis functions in a fight" Melissa instantly agreed. 

"Friday window" Tony ordered, the windows from their lab started to open leading down towards the ocean making it a perfect run way for them. 

They both took a running position before they began sprinting towards the ocean, they both jumped and spun around as they started flying towards the middle of the ocean. The air around them became visible as they flew at high speeds. 

Once they were a safe distance away Tony and Melissa faced off each other, "You ready?" Tony asked. 

"For you? Always" Melissa said teasingly. 

They didn't say anything else as they began attacking one another. Tony and Melissa both made finger guns, the tips of their fingers glowing with different colors. Tony's fingers shimmered with an ice-cold blue, while Melissa's crackled with flames.

In unison, they fired, the projectiles colliding mid-air and creating a massive steamy explosion that sent waves churning beneath them. They exchanged smirks as their thrusters hummed to life, propelling them toward each other. Upon meeting in the middle, the force of their combined power churned the ocean below.

They engaged in close-quarters combat, trading powerful punches. The sound of metal clashing echoed across the empty expanse. Their suits began to show faint scratches, evidence of their fierce exchanges. Melissa expertly blocked one of Tony's punches, then quickly placed a hand on his stomach, unleashing a powerful repulsor beam that sent him spiraling backward.

Regaining his balance mid-air, Tony shot toward her, opting for a kick instead of a punch. Thrusters ignited on his calves, enhancing the force of his attack. Melissa raised both arms to defend herself, but the kick plunged her into the depths of the ocean below, creating a massive splash.

Emerging from the water, Melissa quickly recalibrated, her suit glowing as she activated her thermal vision to track Tony's movements. She spotted him hovering above, readying another attack. With a swift motion, she activated her fire-based repulsor beams. Which they created using their previous ideas of the Skin Suit weapons, Melissa unleashing a torrent of flames aimed directly at him.

Tony countered by diving into the ocean, as her flame repulsors hit the water, steam billowed up, creating a thick mist that obscured their vision. He seized the opportunity, appearing back above, darting through the steam, trying to flank her.

But Melissa was ready. Using her own thrusters, she propelled herself out of the mist and twisted mid-air, launching a volley of explosive projectiles at the point where she predicted he would emerge. The ocean erupted in a series of explosive bursts, each explosion sending ripples across the surface.

As the smoke cleared, Tony soared from the chaos, a determined look etched on his face. He grinned, recalibrating his targeting system. "Nice moves, but it's time to kick it up a notch!" He activated his suit's advanced targeting capabilities, locking onto her with precision.

Melissa responded by engaging her suit's cloaking technology, becoming partially invisible as she repositioned herself. Tony scanned the area, his sensors on high alert. Suddenly, she burst from her hiding spot, her fists glowing with repulsor energy as she charged toward him.

They collided in a fierce exchange of blows, the sound of metal clashing reverberating through the air. Each punch resonated with the strength of their suits, creating shockwaves that rippled through the water below. As they traded blows, both suits began to show signs of wear, scratches marring the once pristine armor.

In a swift move, Tony blocked one of Melissa's punches and countered with a powerful uppercut, sending her reeling. As she stabilized, she activated her suit's propulsion system, launching herself into a spin and delivering a roundhouse kick aimed at his head.

Tony narrowly dodged, using his own thrusters to propel himself backward and regain distance. He fired a series of targeted energy blasts from his palms, but Melissa deftly evaded, her suit's agility on full display.

Melissa tackled Tony and activated her thrusters at full capacity, breaking the sonic barrier. Tony started to grunt as Melissa gave him a strong bear hug.

Tony kept delivering punches toward her back and head as they flew. Melissa then slowed down significantly, and it wasn't long before they both crashed back into their lab.

As they landed, they rolled and crashed into the entryway, ending up on the ground. Melissa was aimed down towards the open ocean, while Tony was facing up towards the lab, both were looking towards the lights on the ceiling.

When their masks lifted, they both had cuts on their lips. A long silence followed, broken by Tony asking, "Wanna go on a date?"

"Absolutely."

"Cool, it's a date then."

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