Meanwhile, the stage at the main venue of the Stark Industries Expo blazed with lights, while deafening music thundered through the air.
Justin Hammer, dressed in a well-tailored gray suit, bounced in from the side of the stage with dance moves he clearly thought were cool but were actually rather ridiculous.
Below the stage, Pepper and Natasha exchanged a look. Each saw the other's speechless expression.
Tony might have been flashy and loved showing off, but at least he knew what he should be doing on formal occasions like this.
At most, he would descend from the sky in his armor and strike a few cool poses. He had never danced some inexplicable routine onstage like the clown up there.
Once Hammer stopped in the center of the stage, he began his speech for the day, until he announced, "Ladies and gentlemen, today I will introduce the new face of the United States military—the Hammer Iron Soldiers!"
Most of the stage lights went out. A few seconds later, lights came on at the rear left of the stage.
"Army Iron Soldiers!" Hammer's voice rang throughout the venue.
At Hammer's announcement, two rows of eight Iron Soldiers rose from beneath the stage, their armor painted in brown camouflage.
"Navy Iron Soldiers!"
At the rear right of the stage, another two rows of eight Iron Soldiers painted in gray-blue camouflage appeared before the audience. Their designs were identical to the Army models, aside from a few differences in certain areas.
Immediately afterward, Air Force Iron Soldiers in gray paint rose at the front left of the stage. Finally, Marine Corps Iron Soldiers in army-green paint rose at the front right.
Four formations, thirty-two Iron Soldiers, stood in neat ranks onstage. They did look fairly imposing.
The audience erupted into enthusiastic applause and