Work Text:
Sleepless nights were no unusual occurrence in the life of the billionaire inventor and superhero - he had numerous reasons that he prefered his wakeful life over the time he spent asleep, both with connection to his neccesary tasks and various personal matters he had to attend to and the overall fact that being awake means being productive - and he thrived when he was of some use. Recurring nightmares didn’t make the nighttime anymore enticing, and so he simply spend as long as he could awake.
Chugging cup after cup, the coffee ran through his system; blood boiling and heart pumping, as he wasn’t even sure if it gave energy - he only knew that it meant he was less inclined to sleep. He was thankful for such an escape, but even when such a thing began to fail him, he turned to a few bits and pieces he had around just to keep him going - he had some sleep-suppressants from a while back, growing dusty on a shelf, and so he downed those. He tried to electrocute himself when he felt himself slipping unconscious mid-project - that worked, yet with Jarvis’ insistent pleas he reconsidered.
Night after night he seemed to be tinkering away, it didn’t come with his fair share of naps that seemed to finally catch up, but he went on as long as possible, each day full of some kind of purpose or any sort of distraction.
Friday he had been helping fix up Captain America’s suit, fixing up bits and pieces as he simply took some focus in the interest of caring for the armour of his team. Saturday he had dozens of meetings - all which seemed to eat away at him, yet he managed to later find some rest in looking over his own suit and doing a few upgrades, most the night having been spent on brainstorming and calculating. Sunday he felt like the world was in a blur, but he didn’t mind - in the evening he worked as hard as he could but on what he simply couldn’t recall. Monday was simple - fixing up a few appliances that Thor and Clint so giddily broke, which wasn’t too hard but he felt his hands almost burn with unsteady dread - the movements coming sluggish and yet rapid all the while. Tuesday he felt himself ready to take on the world, no surprise that he was thrown into a bunch of shitty paperwork he had to spend all day and night doing, but even then he took a pause now and again to look at his abandoned projects, trying to make the WIPs more coherent and manageable to progress. Wednesd- ah, what day was it?
He wearily glanced up at the clock, finding it to be 2am no surprise, before scowering his brain for answers and then eventually speaking up,
“Jarvis - what day is it?” He spoke up, rather absentmindedly yet quickly got his reply.
“It’s Tuesday the 18th, sir.”
Tony hummed. Strange. I suppose that’s it for the recall - but he could have sworn that the Sunday after fixing the toaster and replacing the coffee machine he had installed a few more upgrades around the place, which suddenly meddled with all the prior thought that it could still be Tuesday, but before he spoke up, he blinked in realisation.
“The eighteenth..” he mumbled under his breath, nodding, “alright.”
It was another wordless night, and quickly began to blur within the day and darkness - his internal rhythm was fucked up and time held no meaning, so when he once more found himself collapsed across his table, he just knew he had found the moment in a soft and precarious position.
He shuffled off his seat before being struck with a clear feeling of danger - the sort that you get when facing certain death or an enemy which has you in a chokehold you can’t wriggle out of, it came like a punch to his gut and he immediately snapped his head around to try spot who it was around that forced such a sorrowful feeling to attach to him.
He may not specifically have a “spidey sense” but he was certain that the feeling of terror while in the safety of his own home was not a fucking fluke, and he immediately began to demand Jarvis to do a scan of the lab, and report back to him the whereabouts of everyone in the stark tower.
It wasn’t enough, though, as it seemed wrong. He made Jarvis redo it again, then again.
“Sir, I must ask of you to ease your worries. I am certain that no protocol has been breached and the safety of your lab isn’t under any direct threat, ma-“
“Do a heat scan of the lab again. Properly this time, I- I know you’re not doing it. You’re just making me feel like a fool by trying to convince me you did. Do it again, and right this time.”
Jarvis tried to helplessly talk to Tony, but ended up simply pulling up the imagery of the lab along with the results- only the table Tony was sat upon had any sort of markings of heat, other than himself, and nothing seemed out of place.
Did he take him for some sort of fool!?
“Jarvis, lab on lockdown. Now.”
“Sir I don’t-“
“Now!”
The AI obliged begrudgingly as Stark began to pace, trying to keep his legs from snapping into a sprint - where would he even run to? And from who?
He spent that evening coming up with dozens of hastily constructed ideas of what it could be; perhaps a group of mind readers that infiltrated the space time continuum? Or maybe some invisible force that lingered and that a machine simply couldn’t find with its clunky cogs unable to process absolute minuscule shift of molecules? Maybe it was his memory too, and that Jarvis Did find something of danger - and now was just being hacked? Oh there’s so many viable options, and one after the other they fell into place.
He rushed around, trying to sort out his breathing as he collected the stuff he expected he might need for a psychological or spiritual attack - if brought down, he’d made sure Jarvis knew the protocol exactly, and-
Shit. If Jarvis was hacked, then the hacker would know the protocol now too. Oh shit, shit - shit!!!
How dumb was that idea!?
He quickly back tracked and began to shout commands at Jarvis to delete content from the past, what was it.. hour? Half an hour? To be safe he said 4 hours. Oh fuck it - let’s say five.
The AI desperately tried to convince him to reconsider, as much so as a model of a voice could, and begrudgingly began to assure Tony that all was done as he wanted.
Tony quickly began to think of something else, much less predictable but safe all the while. He couldn’t trust the helper he had made, it may be hacked at any point. Someone else? Oh absolutely not! It’s well know how easily someone can be tortured into speaking, forced through threats and hostages, intimidated, beaten down, tricked, bribed.. or, like hell, may just blabber on about it willingly! He couldn’t trust the others to know too, they’d surely only cause more suffering.
The team wanted the best for one another, but what if this force managed to inflict their minds too? Before he could get his hands on his suit, he felt that sinking feeling again. He doubled down as he came toppling to his knees, the blow feeling far more physical as some tender neurons snapped in his brain and made him realise this threat was even more serious than he initially thought and believed.
Wether it be through fear or certainty, he hastily scrambled to his feet - knocking over multiple bits of machinery, as the voiceless AI tried to reassure him time and time again. What’d that piece of junk know? Tony grabbed his phone and quickly began to meddle with it, making sure every and any function was fully turned off, while the source of his terror was undying. There flickered a notification of “4 missed calls” above the screen, he dismissed them as quickly as he did the entire gadget - shattered glass now in the corner of the workshop almost taunting him.
“Sir, I must advise you, if you continue to act sporad-“
“JARVIS, TURN OFF THE CAMERAS!” Tony yelped, snarling at no one in particular.
“Sir, please listen to what I am saying. You are not in your right state of min-“
“Out with it! PLeaSe..” his voice crackled and broke in desperation, such raw emotion that Jarvis didn’t have the heart to go against it.
“Ofcourse, Sir.”
The workshop went into lockdown as Jarvis begrudgingly sent out a warning to a few trusted members of the team, only Bruce and Natasha even getting a subtle message of warning from the AI as Tony continued to evade this invisible force. A reality of which reminded him that he was far too fragile. He must be more equipped. More powerful. More safe..
Time was a blur. No longer a factor. Everything seemed confusing, his body at times felt like a stranger’s, and he wasn’t even sure where he properly was. The signs that the world was caving in began to seem far too real as each corner felt like it held a hostile air, some form of watcher lying there, waiting like a panther ready to pounce.
He wasn’t going to play by their rules, he were no pawn! Stark quickly moved to make something he would be proud of, something the whole world would know to stay away from, and his eyes glistened sharply.
Floating above the workstation, his hands moved like bullets - not caring for the fact they were covered in any substance that the workshop kept and his face had the most vile expression known to man. To the currently unfamiliar and unknown presence, it was exactly enough to keep that dangerous essence at bay. Soon enough, he was on the finishing line.
It didn’t take long for him to now sit proudly, heart still banging against his ribs and yet the explosives on the table something truly to behold, a sight for sore eyes. Yet.. he quickly came around. Eventually eventually, oh how long was it until he suddenly frowned.
The feeling that had overcome him seemed to work from the inside, what if it wanted this exact reaction out of him? What if, like some virus, it took control and now fulfilled its own plan? Concocting up a way to destroy much more than a single host, and now both his life and dozens of others were at risk? Was it even his idea in the first place!? Was it all just a ploy?? Someone’s game to joke with him!??! This can’t be right, it couldn’t be! Never the same, never the old! Oh god, was it terrifying.
Thursday. It was about a week since they last saw the man, and the team began to grow worried.
“Oh no need to worry about that old man, he’s always in his reckless endeavours, his ways too beyond our understanding and such.” Clint chimed up to the incentive from the Captain to check up on him.
“Yeah, how come this so called ‘addict for attention’ then hasn’t even messaged us back or joined us for training once? He’s being a recluse, that’s what.” Steve chirped, mildly annoyed but worry more prevalent.
The room seemed tense with an air nobody could put a finger on until Bruce finally spoke up.
“I.. sigh. I didn’t want to break the trust yet- Jarvis contacted me, about two days ago. I didn’t initially get through the smart jargon he uses as bestowed by Tony to not mention any harm, but I’m pretty sure something’s not right. Jarvis wasn’t acting like himself and saying stuff that I usually wouldn’t associate Stark with.” His gaze flickered away nervously, hovering just a quarter of a second too long at the elevator.
“And what are you implying? That he’s gone ape-shit and gotten himself black out drunk?” Clint tilted his head, to the quick response of a very annoyed Natasha.
“Do not say that! We are well aware of his habits, but if Jarvis is trying to contact you even with all the walls in place, something just truly be wrong.” She now turned to Bruce again, nodding gently. “What exactly do you know?”
Being watched, it made Banner nervous still, yet the feeling of resolve overpowered the small shudder that wracked his frame. “Something about being ‘insistent on safety’ and ‘deeply idolising his work’.. yet the way it was worded, it clearly felt like there were words that were wanted to be said but simply weren’t permitted by the programming.. like the phrase “he’s been acting very indulgent and aware, something of which is a quality I hope you know the details of in which it is tainted.’ It just clearly screams ‘he’s agitated,’ does it not? And the reliance of me understanding being clearly mentioned is almost like there’s something only I can tell in those words.. something-“
“Destructive?” Natasha solemnly added. Bruce nodded.
“Yeah.. I was hoping it wouldn’t become something like this but- we definetely must check on him. It’s his safety on the line.”
Steve let out a hollow chuckle, arms tightly crossed as the elevator seemed like a third wheeler that was uninvited. “Yeah? And how do you plan to do that? We all know that what Mr. Stark says goes, and you plan just breaking into the elevator or something? It’s clearly off limits at the moment.”
Bruce sighed. “I know how to work around it, there’s just a little bit of time involved and I’ll be able to get us down no problem. It’s just wether we are able to handle whatever is truly happening is what’s neccesary. I didn’t want to jinx it, and yet..” silence wrapped the room for a few beats, causing Hawkeye to grow impatient.
“Yet what?” He tapped his foot slightly, waiting.
Bruce shook his head. “You never know. It’s just.. you never know. Never..” it was clear he had something burdening his mind, heavy and painful, yet he wouldn’t not speak of it. Maybe it was for the better.
Steve gently sighed, raising his hand. “I’d be more than glad to check on him if you don’t feel up for the task. What’s the worse that could happen? I’ve been practically devoured alive and puked on plenty of times, there’s little I’ve yet to seen that I couldn’t be prepared for.”
Bruce seemed nervous yet nodded gratefully. “It would be great of you.. yeah.”
With that, they all scattered once more to do their own thing. Yet Banner began to dismantle some of Jarvis’s coding, specifically to gain entrance the lab, all the while Steve hovered above.
To be continued.