Synopsis
With the help of Pepper Potts an AI in an old Iron Man armour has trapped Tony Stark without his Superior Iron Man armour in a sub-subbasement of Resilient HQ. The unconscious Teen Abomination, Stark's bodyguard, is down there with them.
Tony has remembered creating the AI 8 years ago after he almost went mad during the Black Lama affair. It is a backup of his mind in case something similar happened again. He asked Pepper and Happy Hogan to keep the secret and then erased it from his own brain with a mind-wipe, followed by going on a bender to explain the gap in his memory.
Now Pepper has activated the backup because of what Axis did to Tony's conscience.
The AI confirms that it's going to try to reverse the effect of Axis. And if it can't then it'll do what it was designed for - overwrite Tony's brain with its 8 years out-of-date version.
But the sound of distant blows indicates that the Superior armour is smashing its way in to rescue its master.
But the AI has a plan. It separates into pieces and reforms to encase Stark. Then it flies up the liftshaft (smashing through the lift roof) and meets the other armour on the way down. Repulsor blasts enable it to get past its foe, but the Superior suit soon recovers and gives chase.
The AI armour heads towards outer space. Stark complains that this Mark II suit wasn't built to fly in space, but the AI says it's made some improvements. The AI gambles that the other suit has limited intelligence and doesn't realise that its boot jets will fail when the atmosphere runs out of oxygen to support their burning. That happens just as the pursuer grabs the AI's boot. The AI turns and blasts the pursuer into bits.
Back on Earth Pepper is using a Iron Man glove to hold the awakened Teen Abomination in a forcefield. She calms Jamie down and sets him free. She says Tony has told her his story (being the son of her husband Happy [now dead], his mother dying and his transformation to TA). She assures him that they both want the best for Tony, which for her is getting the uncorrupted Tony back.
Pepper contacts a Stark satellite where the AI has taken Tony. Stark is out of the armour and in a chair with electrodes attached to his head. Before they begin Pepper wants to know where Tony got the money to try to take over the media empire last issue. Stark readily admits to selling a dangerous weapon, but points out that it was 1 of many designed by the 8 years ago version of him. He also tries to unsettle her by adding that the old version of his mind will still have the thoughts and feelings he had for her back then. But the AI cuts the link.
Stark continues his mind games with the AI. He refuses to say who he sold the weapon to, figuring out loud that this piece of information is the only thing keeping him alive. He guesses that the AI fully intends to copy itself into his brain and not tell Pepper - and the AI's stony reaction confirms it. But before that happens Tony suggests the AI enter his mind as it said was the plan, but to see what Superior Tony had planned for the benefit of the world.
The AI links minds, but doesn't realise a bit of the liquid silver armour it destroyed is snaking up out of its boot.
The AI sees the hedonistic lifestyle of the Superior Tony in San Francisco. But over that Tony explains how he's going to save humanity. Extremis 3.0 (I think) will give people the means to survive climate change (I think). He needs the media empire to spread his message to the world. Some will resist and many will die, but what-the-hey the world's overpopulated anyway.
The AI protests that Stark hasn't the right to play god. But then its mind starts to break up. The liquid silver fragment has disrupted its functioning.
The AI armour collapses and Tony is free. The liquid silver forms an armoured glove and blasts his bonds.
Now Tony will go after Pepper.