Alternate 1962. South Viet Nam.

Arno Stark had traveled through time to arrive at a point in time where the origin of the original Iron Man took place before his death at the hands of Onslaught. And before he was reborn by Franklin Richards as he created a pseudo-version of him to live and prosper in the twenty-first century.

Ahead of him, in his field of vision, was Tony Stark with his troop of inventors and army privates to fight the Viet Nam Conflict. Stark was talking to his associates and that sickened Arno.

The Iron Man of 2020 had to do something about this quick to expediate the process.

Without knowing what he was doing until it was too late, Tony Stark tripped a booby trap and a landmine exploded at his feet. Under normal circumstances, a piece of shrapnel would have been lodged within Tony's heart muscle. This would have forced him to have a serious heart condition that would have needed the added protection of a chest plate. In the present day, that heart condition would have been cured through the use of a pacemaker but Arno changed that little scenario.

Arno Stark fired a beam of laser light through one of his glove gauntlets to make the landmine that much more powerful and deadly.

One of the army lieutenants looked at Tony's fallen form and surveyed the situation. "I think Stark is dead. It looks like that without him, his little Transistors are no use to us at all."

"Right," an army general said. "He's the only man who knows how to operate them. We better drag his body back to the chopper and send him home. He'll get a hero's funeral."

"What a way for a genius to go. The world will miss him."

As the army officials began to do as the lieutenant instructed, the Iron Man of 2020 changed into the form of Arno Stark. He walked over to the army in plainclothes. He wore a black three piece suit and penny loafers.

"May I be of some assistance?" Arno asked, a she approached them.

"Who the hell are you?!"

"My name is Arno Stark. I'm Tony's older brother. He sent me here to operate the Transistors in case he couldn't make it. Now that he's dead, I think that I should take his place."

"I don't know. I-"

Suddenly, the army officials and Arno were surrounded by the Viet Cong. They had brandished weapons that they had pilfered from other American soldiers.

"You American pigs are now the property of Wong Chu. And you-" one Viet Cong said, pointing to Arno, "-will construct a suit of armor the likes of which the world have never seen."

Arno smiled. "That will be my pleasure."

Earth 616. Present Time.

Tony Stark felt a twinge in his heart muscle, like the times before when he would have a hart attack. He didn't know what it meant or what could have caused it. This was because he hadn't heart difficulties for several years now. The pacemaker in his heart helped soften matters.

Tony gripped his heart. As he massaged it, he felt that it was getting better.

"Mr. Stark," one man said in the large conference room, "Are you unwell?"

"No, I'm alright." Stark lowered his hand and sat up straight. "It will pass. You were saying?"

Senator Boyd pointed a finger at Stark accusingly. "For years, Stark, you have supplied weapons to the US Government. Recently, you have stopped that because you felt that it was inhumane. But you have always had Iron Man as your bodyguard. My father has asked you years ago who is Iron Man but you declined then as you had now. We live in a terror war where everyday the terror alert is raised on orange or high alert."

"What are you suggesting? That I am Iron Man?"

"No, Mr. Stark. But we feel that for the betterment of this country, it will be advantageous for us to know Iron Man's identity. You have twenty four years to reveal his identity to us or you will pay the consequences."

"Are you threatening me, Boyd?"

"That's Senator to you, Stark. No, do not think of this as a threat, just a caution. Since Iron Man has aided us in the past, we feel that to better serve this country he should reveal his identity to us. Not the world, just the US government."

"I'll have to think about this."

Stark stood up and turned his back to the group of senators and governmental aides. He didn't like how this going. This was just like what had happened in the sixties with the original Senator Boyd.

Stark's cell phone beeped. He took it out of his

pocket and answered it. "Stark here. What is it?"

"Tony, it's Pepper. Someone has broken in to Stark Solutions and particularly, the sub-basement."

"Who is it? Not Spymaster again?"

"No, it's agents of that vile scientific organization, Advanced Idea Mechanics."

"Hang in there, Pep. I'll be right there."

Stark hung up the phone and turned to the senators. "I would love to chat all night with you but there is an emergency at the plant. I have to go."

Boyd stood up and faced Stark. "Remember your deadline, Stark."

Tony smiled. "I don't take kindly to threats. Or ultimatums. Iron Man's identity is a privileged secret known only to me. You have no right to force to divulge that. Good-bye."

When Tony walked out of the room, he slammed the door closed to further his point.

Stark Solutions.

Tony Stark, in his guise as Iron Man, flew all the way from the New York City to the plant in Queens. It was a bright day filled with sunshine. When he got to Stark solutions, he saw a futuristic ship circling the smokestacks of the building. This was the message of A.I.M..

I wonder what A.I.M. wants with my plant, Iron Man wondered, as he made a left arc to land in the grassy plain at the entrance. But then, if they are in the sub-basement, then the only thing that he could want is my weapons.

Iron Man entered through the side entrance, because that is where A.I.M. would least expect it. He saw that the trail leading to the sub-basement was a gutted ruin.

He used his muscles to open the elevator door manually. There was a long, empty shaft leading to all the floors underneath him. He grabbed onto the pulley cables and rode it down. When he reached there, he again used his muscles to open the elevator door and saw a most peculiar sight.

A.I.M. was in the sub-basement room, rummaging and foraging for weapons of any kind. He had tangled with A.I.M. in the past but he didn't think that it would happen again so soon.

"A.I.M.! What are you doing here?" Iron Man upped his audio receptors so that the decibel levels of his voice were amplified to an incredible degree. "Petty theft is not your specialty."

An agent turned around and snarled underneath his breath. "Iron Man, fancy meeting you here. MODOK would like some of your armor. At least the ones that your staff wore a couple weeks ago."

The agents of A.I.M. had by now opened the glass compartment that had held the suits of armors and agents of Obadiah Stane had carried it to his headquarters.

Iron Man tried to stop him, but A.I.M. had fired their laser pistols at Iron Man, halting him in his tracks.

Iron Man collapsed on the ground in pain. He ripped off his faceplate, his eyes tearing.

As he saw the Scarecrow escape with his prizes, Pepper, Happy, and Rhodey entered the sub-basement area, only to find a debacle in their wake.

"What happened, boss?" Happy Hogan said.

Tony tried to catch his breath. "I fear this is only the beginning."

Stane Limited.

Obadiah Stane sat at his desk, surrounded by Arno Stark and agents of A.I.M.. To his side was the four suits of armor that Arno had given to the brainwashed members of Tony Stark's staff.

Without missing a beat, Stane turned to Arno. "So, Mr. Stark, how did your trip to 1962 go? Did you manage to kill Tony Stark?"

Arno took off his helmet and faced Obadiah. "Very well, Mr. Stane. But you have to take into account that I didn't kill the real Anthony Stark, but an alternate version of Stark. I will try to kill all the alternate Starks from different alternate timelines until the real Tony Stark is dead as well and I am the only Stark in existence."

"That is good," Obadiah said. A slight smile came across his face. "You have pleased me beyond measure. Find another timeline to alter. I would like to talk to A.I.M. alone, please."

"Whatever you desire, Mr. Stane." Arno Stark put on his helmet and left the room.

"Now, A.I.M.," Stane said. "I see your mission was a success. You have brought to me the suits of armor I requested. That is good. And you also avoided a direct assault with Iron Man. You have also pleased me."

"If my mission is complete, I would like to take my leave now. I hate to keep MODOK waiting."