Work Text:
Tony's breath hitched, razor sharp claws encompassing and scraping at the suit, scratching and digging in, pieces of the alloy he wrapped himself in curling out into little shavings as the claws made grooves but never fully punctured.
All black titanium scales shined in the sun (and Tony had never seen a single toned dragon before - heard that that was an oddity), and an intimidating outline dwarfed Tony in a dark shadow as he laid on the ground. Intelligent, sun bright yellow stared into the cold blue eyes of the suit. Noise like crackling fire, popping and destroying, reached Tony’s ears. The words were something Tony hadn’t heard in ages; a reminder of his beginnings.
A reminder that Tony was never really fond of where he began.
The comms cracked to life, “Tony, hang on,” Steve urged, and Tony’s mind snapped back to the present. Tony knew what they were up against; was intimately familiar with it. Creatures of frost and flames, steel and magic, powerful enough to take down a god.
If the team got close, they’d die.
(If Tony survived they just might kill him instead)
A determined look crossed Tony’s face. The faceplate popped open, liquid gold replacing deep brown, and Tony pushed.
A popping hiss, a disassembled suit, and fire red scales fused with gold felt the rays of the sun for the first time in decades.
Roars and growls sounded in harmony as dark titanium moved towards rushing red. The Avengers were left stunned, slowing down before stopping all together, Loki himself standing among them as they all watched on. Black helicopters flew close overhead, watching and waiting like vultures. The order to get in there ringing in their ears as wings snapped open to help with maneuverability and fire shot into the air as razor sharp teeth bit into flesh.
Who knew that blood was hard to see on both red and black scales?
A painful roar sounded in the air, and Steve watched the dragon that was once Tony lash out as the other one dug teeth into him. He took a step forward, determined to help in any way he could, but an arm stopped him. Thor stood to his right, arm held tense and firm in front of Steve, a steeled look on his face as mjolnir was gripped tightly in his other hand. Steve could see that both Thor and Loki knew something the rest of them didn’t. Could tell in the way Thor’s fingers curled against Steve’s chest, straining to keep him still - could tell in the way Loki had eyes only for the two-toned dragon that fought its black scaled adversary.
Hot blue fire was misaimed, heading towards asphalt instead, sitting and remaining alight even after landing, the heat from the blue flames washing over the band of heroes and gods. The majority backing away at the feeling of the heat while the gods standing among them held their ground, muscles straining as they waited.
A grunt sounded near them, the Hulk standing behind all of them, jaw tense and hands fisted.
“Hulk, don’t-“ but Steve’s words weren’t enough. Hulk jumped into the fray, hands grabbing onto a black leg and pulling, unbalancing the dragon that faced against Tony. A growl of anger and needle point teeth dug into the Hulk’s arm, grabbing and easily tossing him away.
If gods didn’t stand a chance, how could the hulk?
A roar of rage, and a black body crashed against a building. Windows shattering and supports folding. Maw bared and razor teeth shining, red scaled wings snapped open, Tony’s claws piercing flesh as he dropped down onto his enemy. A black mouth wrapped around his gold flecked jaw instantly, jerking sideways and thrashing harshly once teeth were set. Red wings snapped open again, and magic shot outwards, digging and searing into the other dragons skin, making him release with a painful howl. An opening, and Tony returned the favor, sliding teeth into a long neck and crushing. Blood slipping into his mouth and dripping out as the other dragon fought to tear Tony off, sharp black claws scratching at his skin. Tony wouldn’t let him go though, wouldn’t let him get close to those he considered his, wouldn’t give him a chance to cause more damage. Tony continued to hold and crush when a loud snap broke through the air.
Tony had been around for a millennia, this dragon was newer, fresher; a sub-class. It stood no chance.
Black scales went limp, crashing onto the ground as Tony landed near, blood staining gold but blending in with red. The same blood dripping onto the ground as Tony released his hold, steps unsteady and body off balance.
Black helicopters came in closer.
Bright blue fire remained alive, blocking the two dragons off from everyone, but one tired and broken beat of red wings and it was all extinguished. One second more, and a pale faced god was racing forward as a red head lowered towards the ground, Tony supporting himself as much as he could while arms wrapped around his snout, holding him close as he tried to remain standing.
“You need to leave, Anthony, now.”
Liquid gold sluggishly opened to stare into emerald green. The sound of choppers drawing closer, the word SHIELD ringing inside Tony’s head as a pale and strong hand rubbed near one of his eyes.
..not without you..
Loki shook his head, anxiety and worry showing in how quickly he did so. “No, I’ll stay - keep them occupied.”
a weak growl, Loki..
“Anthony” Loki urged. Black vehicles rolled in, stopping around the wreckage of the fight, creating a circle around the pair and now dead dragon. Tony snapped his eyes at the sound of doors slamming, lips pulling back to show teeth as he growled, growing louder, and tensing up as SHIELD agents began to grow in numbers, but never once removing his snout from within Loki’s arms. The Avengers stood close by as Tony curled in closer towards Loki, wanting to protect and keep him safe - wanting to take Loki with him. Loki had just showed that he knew something the others didn’t, showed that he cared.
SHIELD now had a way to keep Loki on an even shorter leash.
“Go.” Loki implored once more, mouth close to Tony's brow, breathing the words onto his scales, never once moving his eyes to the agents drawing closer. A dejected whine followed as Tony conceded and withdrew, lifting his head as he looked around, blood now drying on him as the black scales of the other dragon he killed shined. Tony pushed Loki towards his tail with a gentle press of his snout, mouth then snapping and closing once more around the neck he had just crushed, his strength waning as he quickly gathered his magic. The agents around him seemed to pick up on what Tony was doing, but they had realized too late. Red wings flapped, and magic carried Tony and the black scaled body away.
Everyone stood still for a moment, but the harsh demand of detain him going through the comms pushed everyone back into motion. Loki remained still, blood from Tony staining his hands. He knew this development wouldn’t help him in the eyes of SHIELD, but Anthony was safe - he was safe. Hands going up in surrender as Loki kept his eyes on the spot Tony had just occupied, he glanced away as Thor approached a second later, sharing a look as Loki allowed them to take him away.
Bloodied red and shimmering gold scales landed in the middle of a grassy clearing, titanium black scales shined in the sun.