[center][img]http://i.imgur.com/ImsFWnw.jpg[/img]

[color=Goldenrod][u][b][h3]The Man of T.O.Morrow[/h3][/b][/u][/color][/center]

[sub][color=Goldenrod][b]Silicon Alley, Manhattan, New York
[/b][/color][/sub]

Cross-town New York traffic was a thing of the past for Tony Stark. When he was wearing the Iron Man armour he was the true man of tomorrow, and for the man of tomorrow taxi choked avenues and traffic light littered cross-sections were replaced by clear sky lanes. The trip from Coney Island to Manhattan's Silicon Alley barely took half a minute, and yet it still seemed to take an eternity to Tony. People were in trouble, and he was taking too long to get there.

The New York S.T.A.R Labs was in sight now though, the fifteen story glass fronted building looming large in front of him. The police had managed to set up a wide cordon around the laboratory, but spectators were already straining against the thin blue line that stood between them and calamity, eagerly ignorant of the dangers to them, all in the quest to catch even the barest glimpse of the action. 

That was New York, Tony mused, so desensitized to the superhuman scene that they treated situations like this as nothing more than an amusing distraction from their otherwise hum-drum lives. Don't treat the dangerous criminals who would as soon kill you as look at you as a threat though, oh no, regard them with the same respect you would a living-statue street performer.

He made one fly-by of the building, letting J.A.R.V.I.S scan the labs and the surrounding area, managing to identify the officer in charge in the process, an African-American female lieutenant with a wild bush of dark hair only partially stuffed under her cap, handing out orders to the other police present, yelling at the civilians, and really doing quite a commendable job of looking like she was still in her comfort zone. He was also quick to notice two twisted, burning hunks of metal that dimly resembled police cruisers, as well as several areas of scorched, blackened concrete along the surrounding buildings an streets. 

Tony ratcheted down the jet engines in his boots, hanging in the air in front of the lieutenant for a moment before dropping to the ground in the three-point landing that, thanks to some clever marketing, was now synonymous with Iron Man. At the sight of him the lieutenant's ice-cool composure disappeared for a heartbeat, eyes going wide with shock as she took an involuntary step back, but she quickly recovered before any one other than him noticed. The crowd gathered behind her were as equally impressed by his appearance, many turning Lexphone camera's in his direction, or calling out support for him. Unlike Superman or Spider-Man, Iron Man had a much easier time connecting with the general public. He liked to think that it was because he was a 'self-made' man, that his powers were all directly related to his own hard work and intelligence, or that he was willing to share his true identity with them, that he wouldn't hide behind a mask. In reality though he was pragmatic (read: cynical) enough to admit that it was probably because he could afford a much better PR team. 

[COLOR=Goldenrod]“Lieutenant. . . . Knight,”[/color] He got the name from her badge. [color=goldenrod]“What's the skinny?”[/color] She didn't answer at first, instead incredulously looking him up then down, not really sure what her next move should be. On the one hand she knew – like most people since President Kelly's inauguration – that inside that red and gold suit was none other than local billionaire Tony Stark, and that while he was a hero kitted out in the most advanced exo-suit on the planet, worth more than she could make in a lifetime, he was still technically a vigilante operating outside the law. She wasn't sure if legally she should tell him to get back and join the rest of the civilians, or to demand if he had a permit for the weapon he was [i]wearing[/i].

On the other hand the situation with S.T.A.R Labs was really over her pay grade. The yellow garbed   terrorists had been equipped with firepower that made mockery of the pistols and shotguns she and her fellow officers carried. If there was ever a need of a man like Iron Man, then this was it. Tony was used to law enforcement types constantly having this very struggle with him. New York might be getting used to Superheroes, but the NYPD still hadn't found a convenient place to slide them into the chain of command. That's why he'd stopped sliding the visor of his helmet up when speaking to people, like he had when he'd first started out at this [i]'job'[/i]. He'd found people we're more likely to defer to the grim, steely frown of Iron Man, than they were to the fleshy regular-person face underneath it, even if that face did belong to one of the richest men on the planet.

Thankfully that frowning face plate worked seemed to work it's magic again, as after a few moments indecision lieutenant Knight decided that teaming with Iron Man was really her best option.

"I doubt I have much to report that you don't already know, sir. Twenty minutes ago we got a call from a panicked scientist, claiming that unidentified armed assailants had stormed the building, and were going room to room, taking anyone they found prisoner. The call was cut-off when the scientist was discovered. We responded to the crisis as quickly as we could, but by the time we arrived the bad guys had the place locked down. That's two of our cruisers out there, burning in the street. We've set up the cordon, placed sharpshooters on the surrounding buildings, and SWAT's gearing up, but we just aren't trained to contend with that level of fire-power. . . " She fell silent then, her gaze misting over as she scanned the lab, her fists clenched tight. "Only two officers got out alive. One of those will be lucky to walk again." She murmured, more to herself than to the Golden Avenger standing before her. Tony felt for her, but he couldn't afford to let her have her moment though, not when those A.I.M goons were still running the show.

[color=Goldenrod]"Firepower? What kinda toys are we talking here?"[/COLOR] The lieutenant snapped back to attention, and looked momentarily embarrassed at her lapse. She coughed nervously before answering.

"They, uh, had laser guns. . . " 

[color=goldenrod]". . . Laser guns."[/color] The lieutenant colored at Iron Man's flat reaction, obviously feeling like she was being mocked. Which, if Tony was honest, she was.

"Well I don't know, they looked like props from Star Wars, shot light beams, and didn't go bang! You tell me what they were if they weren't laser guns, Mr scientist!" They way she spat out that last line made Tony think that she didn't think very highly of the more academically gifted. Back in grade school she probably beat them up for their lunch money. He decided not to press her any further.

[color=goldenrod]"Ok Lieutenant, I've got a good news/bad news type situation for you. Good news is your about to see a real, live hero in action. Bad news is that things are gonna get real messy, real quick, so you're gonna have to push this cordon waaay back."[/color] He bent his knees slightly, getting ready for take off before the Lieutenant spoke up.

“Wait, what are you going to do?” She'd taken another involuntary step back, as if whatever he was planning might go off in her face at any moment.

[color=goldenrod]"Shock and awe, miss Knight. Shock and awe. "[/color]