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Language:
English
Series:
Part 2 of The Incredible Challenges (of Tony Stark)
Collections:
The Quantum Bang, Crossroads writings
Stats:
Published:
2020-08-12
Completed:
2020-08-30
Words:
74,855
Chapters:
16/16
Comments:
19
Kudos:
65
Bookmarks:
20
Hits:
1,931

The Peculiar Nature (of Identity)

Summary:

What truly defines a man, the scope of his tragedies, the strength of his convictions, or perhaps, the impact that he has on the lives of others? As Tony Stark faces life after an escape from unjust betrayal, he must find the answer to this question. Will his need for vengeance color everything in his life, or will new passions, new allies, and even new love help him grow into a better man?

Notes:

This story was originally posted as part of the 2020 Quantum Bang (http://quantumbang.org/) and completed as part of that challenge's structure.
As such, it is considered to be a Fix-It fic, with the focus for this part of the overall series wrapped around certain characters from Doctor Strange and Black Panther.

Chapter 1: Story Art & a reminder of "What Came Before"

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Story Art

Provided by the fabulous KliqzAngel (SpencnerTibbsLuvr) as part of the Quantum Bang 2020 challenge. - Available on the Quantum Bang website: https://quantumbang.org/

What Came Before:

This is a direct sequel to The Insidious Growth (of Betrayal). As a result, there are a few things to keep in mind if you are jumping in without reading that story or haven't read it in a while and want to remind yourself of where we stand. 


1. The Insidious Growth (of Betrayal) starts with Tony's escape from the Ten Rings (mostly matched to canon).

2. It takes a dramatic swing into an extreme AU when, instead of attacking Tony as he does at the end of Iron Man, Obadiah Stane instead arranges for him to be imprisoned by SHIELD. He tells the world that the Stark CEO had a nervous breakdown, which allows Stane to reclaim the control of Stark Industries that he had lost when Tony came of age.

3. As part of the cover-up, both Pepper and Happy were killed on HYDRA's orders by the Winter Soldier, just like Tony’s parents had been over a decade before.

4. James Rhodes, who is unaware of what really happened to Tony and the others, becomes the Iron Soldier under Obadiah Stane's management, and thus takes on Iron Man's canon role within the Avengers.

4. Also, the nation of Wakanda, and specifically Nakia of the River Tribe, are established as Tony's allies before his imprisonment. They are kept in the dark about what really happened to our hero, though they have their suspicions.

5. Once inside SHIELD's prison, the Sandbox, Loki is revealed as Tony’s fellow prisoner. He had been in the covert organization's custody, without full access to his magic, since the 90s.

6. During their years of shared imprisonment, Loki began to train Tony in the arts of Magic, taking him on as an Apprentice Sorcerer.

7. Now, the new story picks right where the first one left off, with Master Sorcerer Loki and his Apprentice Tony escaping from SHIELD’s unlawful custody during the chaos of HYDRA's big reveal.

 

Notes:

TW: Due to the fact that half of this story is based in the African nation of Wakanda, parts of it may reflect certain current events in our world today. This includes references to the Los Angeles, California race riots in the early 1990s as part of a character’s backstory. Such references may be triggering for some readers, so please read responsibly.