[open] work it harder, make it better

[buildsomething]

who: Tony and open
what: Working in the Abandoned City and various other things
when: Late January through February
where: Around
warnings: None yet

i. power source

[Between gathering all the supplies he needs, getting them into the Abandoned City in one piece and then getting the things built, it takes a little while for Tony to get everything how he wants it. He's still a little cagey about the exact inner workings of the arc reactors, but considering the scope of the project, he doesn't turn down what help that's offered.

And then it's time to set them up, and it's definitely all hands on deck. He sends out messages to everyone who had mentioned an interest, rolls up his sleeves, and gets to work. The trick to it is getting the reactors set up so that they can be hooked into the plants proper, while also keeping them out of the way of any creepy-crawlies that decide to wander through. And speaking of, once he has the reactor mostly in place, he takes occasional breaks to circle the perimeter and make sure nothing's coming to visit. He might send others to do the same if they need a break or don't feel up to the heavy engineering.

But eventually everything is humming away as it should be, full power ahead. Tony being Tony, actually manages to produce a couple bottles of fairly nice alcohol and a whole bunch of cups as thanks for anyone who came along to help. Hey, he's not going to skimp on rewarding this kind of thing.

After that, it's just a matter of wandering by the power plants every so often to make sure everything is still running smoothly and the arc reactors are doing okay. And that nothing's tried to eat them. He'll be extremely displeased if that happens.]

ii. bug report

[Honestly, having something that Tony can go full-out against makes for pretty good stress relief. He hasn't gotten a chance to really take the armor for a spin in a while, and he's missed it. Not that he's exactly happy about the invasion, especially considering all the installations he's just spent a ton of time on, but he'll take his little bits of enjoyment where he can.

He mostly keeps to the air, taking pot shots to herd as many of the bugs as he can into a small, out of the way area, and then lands so that he can tear into them. He won't pull out the missiles, too much of a chance for them to go places he doesn't want, but his repulsors do a plenty good job of punching through the beetles' shells.

It's a good thing too, considering that being bright and shiny seems to do wonders for catching the bugs' attention. If he wasn't having so much fun, he might object to that.]

iii. hard reset

[So suddenly there are giant, slightly glitchy robots? Tony's not sure exactly when that happened, but they seem to be helpful, so hey. He won't get in one - he's got his own suit, thanks - but he does make himself available for repairs. At least enough to try to get a few more uses out of the things.

It does keep him running a little ragged, but it's for a good cause, and Tony's got the skills, so he won't complain too much. And, let's be honest, he's enough of a nerd to get some weird enjoyment about working on the things. He might do a little bit of muttering about how exactly people are managing to break the machines so hard, but it's not sharp enough to be anything pointed. Mostly just Tony talking to himself as he works like the slightly deranged engineer he is.

And he still startles a little when he finally notices that someone's come up next to him.]

Oh, hey. Is this one yours?

iv. in the cloud

[With everything going on, Tony's actually sleeping for once. He can't help it, getting anywhere near horizontal generally means he's unconscious before too long.

Which is how you might end up in a dream of his, and it may not be hard to tell. What you see is definitely the streets of New York, but it's like a slide someone's made notations on. There are formulas and equations scrawled over everything, mapping angles and lengths, stress limits and tensile strengths. They change every so often, like what's being measured is constantly varying.

And standing in the middle of all of it is Tony Stark, wearing a very nice, well fitting three piece suit and giving you a slightly confused look over the tops of a pair of tinted glasses.]

Did you need something?

[It doesn't sound aggressive or combative. It sounds like he genuinely wants to know.]

v. wildcard

[Something else? Hit me or come poke me at talkincodes to plan something specific.]

Comments

[thisisamazing]

[Hiccup shrugs broadly, but he is hanging tight to the canister.] I was just checking! I won't drop it either way.

Is this really all of the palladium?

[buildsomething]

Most of what I have at the moment, anyway.

[He's got some spare just in case. Never hurts to have redundancies. Just not enough to completely redo everything if that particular container goes missing, which Tony tries to make clear with the stare he gives Hiccup.]

The reactors don't need to much, honestly. It will be enough.

[thisisamazing]

[Look, he just has questions! He's too earnest and happy to help to want to sabotage anything.]

Sorry. It just seems like so little stuff to power up an entire reactor. It's amazing. I mean, everything here is, I'm not even used to electricity, so this is all really interesting.

[buildsomething]

[Tony just huffs a laugh. He's not actually worried and it's hard to fake it in the face of that much genuine enthusiasm.]

There doesn't have to be much of it, just enough to be a catalyst for the reaction. I'll show you how it works when we get there.

[thisisamazing]

So this stuff is what kickstarts it. [He's taking a basic chemistry class, he knows what a catalyst is!] I'd love that. Is there anything else we need to carry over there?

[buildsomething]

Something like that, yeah.

[It's a whole lot more complicated, but it's probably easier to just show him than try to explain. He gives a thoughtful little hum as he quickly runs over the list, then shakes his head.]

Nah, I can probably get the rest. Wouldn't want to overload your ride, there.

[thisisamazing]

You're nowhere near overloading him. [Hiccup laughs, bumping his forehead against Toothless as the dragon pushes against his side.] This is nothing compared to carrying Hookfang around, right, bud? [The dragon purrs in agreement.]

[buildsomething]

Good to know.

[He can't help smiling at the two of them a little. Jesus, they're cute.]

But for the moment, I think we're set. You know where you're going, or you want to follow me?

[thisisamazing]

[Hiccup is all smiles too, as he turns to strap the palladium container to the back of the saddle, tightening and buckling leather straps to keep it in place. It should be sturdy enough to keep the container in place while they fly, and he's careful to check how the extra weight sits on the dragon's back. The two of them almost seem to communicate without words to decide how to shift it.]

Oh, we can follow you, that's no problem. Uh, you don't need a ride there?

[buildsomething]

Nah, I've got my own wheels.

[Or, well, rockets but the idea is the same. He watches Hiccup for a second to make sure everything is settled, then turns to head back into the workroom

When he reappears a bit later, it's in full armor with a fairly large duffel bag strapped over his shoulder as tightly as he can get. It shouldn't throw him off too badly. He hopes.]

Ready to go?

[thisisamazing]

[He's curious about where this is going. Tony heads out in armor, when he was sort of expecting a car or something, and he can't wait to see what Tony means.]

Ready when you are! [He slides into the saddle easily, hooking his metal foot into the pedal that works the tail fin, and rubs Toothless' side. The dragon stretches his wings out, stamping the ground a couple times.] Let's go, bud, nice and easy with the cargo. [Toothless roars in acknowledgement and takes off into the air, not too thrown off by the extra weight, keeping to a lazy pace and widely circling for now, until they know how Tony is going to keep up.]

[buildsomething]

[Tony waits a moment, mostly so that he can make sure the flaring repulsors aren't going to startle the dragon. Once they've got a bit of distance on him, Tony takes off after them, falling easily into pace nearby.

It occurs that he probably should have asked exactly how fast Toothless can go. Oh well, he's probably going to find out now.]

This way.

[He has to turn the volume up on the helmet's speakers a little to be heard over the wind, but he banks slowly enough that they'll probably be able to catch on even if they don't hear everything.]

[thisisamazing]

[Hiccup has never seen armor fly before. Needless to say, his eyes go almost childishly wide with excitement as he watches Tony take off. The technology is a far cry from his own flight suit, which is really just good for gliding.] That's amazing! [He shouts to be heard over the wind, eyes alight.

And since he's not worried about Tony keeping up anymore, he wordlessly urges Toothless faster, leaning forward in the saddle, almost one with the pitch black dragon as they shoot through the air. Maybe he's a little eager to show off, too. Night Furies are the fastest known species of dragon in the archipelago, able to reach 400 mph or better.]

[buildsomething]

[The laugh he gives is lost to the air as man and dragon pull ahead, but with a bright flash Tony guns it after them.

At this speed they could probably circumnavigate the whole damn moon without too much trouble, and before too long they're quickly approaching the power plant. Tony slows a little as they get close, mostly to signal to Hiccup, and drifts his way downwards towards the building.

The temptation is there to just slam straight into the ground. He manages to resist it, if only for the sake of the gear he's carrying.]

[thisisamazing]

[They come up on the right place pretty soon, Toothless spots the signal the same time Hiccup does; his wings extend and catch the air, almost resembling a parachute for a moment, to slow their pace, and they make an easy landing on the ground.]

So this is what a power plant looks like, wow.

[buildsomething]

They vary.

[Tony watches him for a second, only starting to head inside once he's sure Hiccup is all settled. He gives the inside of the plant a quick but thorough search, once satisfied that there's nothing unpleasant in residence he lets the armor unfold from around him.]

Okay, so. Let me show you where we're setting up.

[thisisamazing]

[Hiccup busies himself unhooking the palladium canister from the back of Toothless' saddle, and settling him after the flight.] Keep an eye out for us, okay bud? [He asks the dragon, scratching behind his ear vigorously, and Toothless lets out a little purr of agreement.

He hauls up the container and catches up to Tony, nodding.] Just tell me what to do. Toothless will watch the perimeter unless we need him.

[buildsomething]

Thank you, luggage.

[It's addressed teasingly towards Toothless but he gives the dragon a quick, very gentle pat as he passes.]

Come on.

[He tips his head towards the door and heads inside, stepping out of the armor as he does. He gives the suit just as absent a pat as it straightens up, eyes glowing a slightly brighter blue. Not that he doesn't trust Toothless, he just likes to have all his avenues covered.]

[thisisamazing]

[Toothless apparently understands enough of the joke to roll his eyes long-sufferingly, letting out a huff through his nose as Tony passes. Or maybe he just knows that's not his name. It's hard to tell with dragons.

Hiccup shoots his dragon another fond smile before he follows, carting the canister with him. He can't help but cast a curious glance back at the armor, too, but he doesn't ask for the moment.] This should be interesting.