Mr. Fix's mysterious new boss orders the abduction of 21-year-old multibillionaire Justin Hammer. But when Iron Man fights the new and improved Whiplash to prevent this, Tony's heart ends up critically damaged in the process.

When Mr. Fix rematerializes the Living Laser on Justin Hammer's orders, unexpected complications split him into two separate halves. The evil and dark half seeks to destroy Iron Man and conquer the world while the good and light half tries to warn Tony and help him.