"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to E!'s coverage of the Los Angeles Fireman's Ball, presented by Stark Enterprises," a reporter spoke over the TV. "Unfortunately, the ball is marred by the tragedy that has struck the company as most of the Board of Directors were struck in a terrorist attack that claimed over 45 lives this afternoon. The man responsible, who some claim to be 'The Mandarin', claimed responsibility in a YouTube video that was posted minutes before the attack, and named several landmarks, including the Baxter Building in New York City and the Xavier's School for the Gifted in Bayville, New York as possible targets."

Outside the camera's view, a Lamborghini Diablo pulled up to the red carpet of the Fireman's ball. The car was pretty ancient, an '01, but as one of the last cars that Tony Stark bought, it was valuable in the hot rod red of the Iron Man armor and gold trim package in the interior. The valet immediately turned his attention to the passenger side of the car and opened the door, standing on the side of the car like a dutiful butler.

After ten seconds, a cane was seen out on the lighted strip, followed by a pressed Armani pant suit of Shinji Ikari, followed by the rest of him. A security team immediately surrounded Shinji, courtesy of SHIELD, but kept a respectable distance, knowing that Shinji didn't want a monitoring service.

The celebrity press pounced, taking pictures of the Stark golden boy from a respectable distance as Shinji climbed the steps to the Disney Concert Hall.

As the final steps were reached, he immediately parted his security to try to make a statement. "Ladies and gentlemen," Shinji began, "Earlier this evening, a terrorist who calls himself The Mandarin struck the Stark Enterprises tower in an effort to reach me. I thank the first responders who this ball is supposed to represent for responding to the attack on my building. And as acting CEO, not only will the company match dollar for dollar for the first responders, but I, personally, will match dollar for dollar for the families that lost their loved ones today. On that somber note, I'll see you all inside."

Inside was a more casual tone. The band was playing slow music, but that didn't bother Shinji in the least. After today, the mood needed to be somber. Several members of the press are trying to get Shinji's attention for an interview, but he really didn't want to give one. With an earpiece in his ear, Shinji darted to an empty room and called out to TONY, "TONY, did you hack into the security cameras of the hall?"

TONY immediately responded, "Obviously. I checked that guest list, and outside of the fools who wished to get in for fame's sake, three are immediately red flagged by SHIELD, a Mr. Marlen Pavlov, A Ms. Susan White and a Ms. Mai Lee.

"Have the watch display the location of Ms. Lee. I'm in the mood for dancing."

"Right away, Shinji," Tony responded disapprovingly, but still displayed the location, right in the middle of the bar area, drinking a green tea, a drink reserved for Shinji.

The bar area wasn't crowded, manned by a four-man team behind it. Mai was sitting to the right side of the bar, her back to the band. As Shinji approached, she fixed her hair and took a sip of her tea. Shinji promptly ordered some tea and asked her, "I noticed that a beautiful person like yourself isn't dancing. May I ask why?"

Mai responded in perfect English, "Just waiting for the right partner, Shinji."

"What makes you think that I would dance with you?"

"The fact that you are not dancing either speaks volumes."

"Very well then, shall we dance?"

Shinji led her to the middle of the dance floor as a new song was playing. Slow, to fit the mood. "So, Miss Mystery Woman, what is your background?"

"I was a fighter in the underground circuit, fighting for my master who owned me at various spots throughout Thailand and Malaysia. He sold me after I won at a big event, but I had injured my spirit in the process," Mai stated.

"So you're a slave?"

"Unfortunately, yes."

"Do you want an escape from the man who bought you?"

"No one can escape 'The Mandarin'. No one."

"Is he here?"

"I… Said too much," she choked out, "I'm going to explode. Extremis…"

"TONY, prepare the Extremis vaccine, and be quiet about it."

As TONY prepared the vaccine, Shinji pulled the fire alarm to evacuate the building. 'No need to cause actual harm,' he thought as the others got out. Soon the watch was ready to inject the vaccine and he injected it into Mai. Her breathing evened out, and she's unconscious, but okay otherwise. Now to face Nick Fury again.

Author Notes and Statistics

I'm back for now, still determined to get this story finished. I personally think that the final arc is the toughest to write.

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This fic is on 7 c2's. Thank you for your support!