Sad Hammer

Liam walked up the stairs to the stadium, approaching the gates where security personnel were checking tickets. He handed over his card, and after the ticket was verified, the security guard waved him in.

Walking inside, Liam was almost blinded by all the disco lights. 'If I didn't know any better, I'd assume this was the new NYC strip club,' Liam mused. He continued strolling through the halls, curious to see what he might find among the smaller gadgets displayed along the way.

The halls were lined with areas showcasing inventions for purchase. As he walked, Liam spotted products he recognized from his past life: the iPhone 3GS, the PlayStation 3, and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 295. But what really surprised him was the vaccine for AIDS. 'So, this isn't just a weapons expo—it's also for advancements in technology and medicine,' Liam thought.

He made his way to the main stage, where the event's highlight would soon take place. Liam hoped Tony would arrive quickly; he really did not want to endure Justin Hammer's talking for long.

Finding a spot in the middle of the crowd, Liam sat down, positioning himself in case he needed to act later. 'Now we just wait,' he thought.

Minutes passed before the lights suddenly cut out, leaving only a spotlight on Hammer, who awkwardly danced his way to the microphone. Watching the insufferably cringeworthy performance, Liam grimaced. 'I swear, I'll commit seppuku right here if someone makes him dance back off the podium,' he thought, horrified.

"That's what I'm talking about!" Hammer announced with enthusiasm. "Thanks for coming."

"Ladies and gentlemen, for far too long, this country has had to place its brave men and women in harm's way," Hammer began his speech. "Then Iron Man came along, and we thought the days of losing lives were behind us."

"But, sadly, that technology was kept out of reach. That's not fair. That's not right. And, frankly, it's just too bad."

"Regardless, it was an impressive innovation—" Hammer continued talking, and Liam felt himself getting drowsy. 'With all this talk, could he have actually managed to make something similar after all?' Liam wondered, while in battle with his closing eyelids.

He awoke slightly as Hammer finally stopped talking, knowing the main event was about to begin.

"Ladies and gentlemen, today I present to you the new face of the U.S. military…"

"The Hammer Robotic Suits!" Hammer announced, gesturing dramatically at fifteen large robots that rose onto the stage.

The robots were pure white, bulky, and large enough to fit human pilots inside. Liam's eyebrows rose in surprise. 'It was Ivan's idea to make them drones. These must be Hammer's original designs. Makes sense,' he thought. 'But how well will these robots actually do?'

Hammer rambled on about the robots before revealing his "finest creation"—the War Machine, piloted by James Rhodes.

As Hammer continued on about features and capabilities, the anticipation in the crowd grew. Then, right on cue, the sound of jet thrusters filled the air as Tony Stark flew into view.

Tony landed on the stage in his usual style, standing up to a wave of applause and cheers.

"Jarvis, scan the crowd," Tony said inside his suit.

"Yes, sir."

Meanwhile, Hammer tried to play it off like Tony's appearance was part of the plan. "Hey, all right! Yeah, Iron Man, everyone! How about that?"

Tony walked closer to Hammer, addressing the audience.

"So, how's everyone enjoying tonight? Are we all having fun?" Tony asked. The crowd responded with more cheers.

"Those cheers are a little soft," Tony teased. "I guess you're all still trying to wake up after this guy's speech."

"What are you doing here, man?" Hammer asked, trying to maintain composure.

"Just stopping by to check on some pirated tech," Tony replied casually.

"Hey—" Hammer started but was cut off as Tony turned back to the audience.

"I'm here for the exciting part," Tony continued. "Justin here promised us a demonstration of his robots' abilities."

The crowd's excitement grew, and they began to cheer again, eager to see the show.

"What are you doing, Tony?" Rhodes asked through the comms.

"Just here for a little fun," Tony replied.

"I'm here on orders. Let's not do this right now," Rhodes said.

"Come on, give these people a little wave," Tony joked. "By the way, did I mention I'm also looking for a potential serial murderer in an armored suit?"

"What?" Rhodes asked, confused.

"Jarvis, have you found our target yet?" Tony asked.

"Scan is almost complete, sir. Two more minutes," Jarvis replied.

Tony smirked, his plan forming. "Come on, Hammer, show us what these robots can do."

Hammer hesitated, stammering. "Due to safety precautions, we'll only let them fly briefly."

He gestured backstage, where a military officer walked onto the stage. "Everyone, give a round of applause for Air Force TSgt Rob Bowles!"

The audience erupted in applause as the pilot walked onto the stage.

Tony approached the Technical Sergeant. "Ready to be one of the big guys?" he teased.

The nervous pilot ignored Tony, stepping into the suit which was brought forward and lowered to stage level. The front plates shifted open, allowing him inside, and then sealed shut behind him.

"All right, everyone, are you ready?" Hammer hyped up the audience. The robot suit powered up, hovering slightly before rising a meter and a half above the stage.

The crowd cheered, and the man inside felt like he was on top of the world—that was until Tony approached him atleast.

"It's so impressive," Tony said, addressing the audience. "Feels like just yesterday when I debuted my suit, and now look at this—a perfect copy!"

Tony clapped mockingly. "Congratulations, Hammer. And you too, Rob."

Tony suddenly patted the robot's feet, causing the suit to jerk wildly. It flew off, straight into a wall before changing direction again due to the impact and flew for the ceiling.

Onstage, Hammer panicked. "Cut the power! Cut the power!"

Hearing the command, the pilot powered down the suit, but it began plummeting directly above the audience. Screams erupted as people scattered. Tony arrived just in time, catching the falling robot suit.

"Scan complete, sir. Target located," Jarvis informed Tony, highlighting a specific individual in the crowd.

The audience roared with applause, completely drowning out Hammer's flustered excuses.

Tony landed back on stage, raising his hand to quiet the crowd.

"I stand corrected," Tony said, voice filled with sarcasm. "This isn't a perfect copy. But let's give Hammer a round of applause for almost killing you all!"

The audience booed, their hostility directed at Hammer, whose face turned beet red. ''Rob...Rob is inexperienced. That's why he couldn't properly use the suit!'' Hammer made up an excuse on the spot.

The booing grew louder, with people screaming out things like "Get off the stage!" and "Iron Man is better!" echoing through the stadium. Hammer got frustrated as he realized the crowd was turning entirely against him.

Seeing there was no way to win them back, Hammer muttered something no one could hear and shuffled offstage, his shoulders dropped in defeat, feeling completely humiliated.

"What's your plan now, Tony?" Rhodes asked over comms.

"I got a scan on him. We wait until everyone starts leaving, then we follow our target," Tony replied, returning his attention to the audience.

'Leadership isn't going to like Tony's jokes this time,' Rhodes thought with a sigh.