Even Iron Man's best friend isn't safe from his ego, as War Machine is now lying to the Avengers to cover up Tony Stark's worst crimes.

Warning: contains spoilers for Iron Man #22!

Marvel's Iron Man has always had a massive ego, but now that ego is actively controlling and influencing War Machine - and now Tony's best friend is at risk. Tony Stark and James Rhodes are well-known friends and comrades-in-arms; their history goes back many decades (years in comic book time) and both have saved each other's life numerous times. But Iron Man #22 shows that Tony is taking advantage of his friend, as the pilot of the War Machine armor is now lying to cover for Stark's most sinister crimes.

In current comics continuity, Iron Man is going back to his roots as an arms dealer - with a twist. Instead of manufacturing weapons, he seeks to buy them outright from a mysterious company called Source. Through Source, exotic and truly dangerous weapons are sold, including machines that can destroy buildings, armaments that can rip time apart, and even the Ten Rings of the Mandarin. Unfortunately, this must be a clandestine operation in order to work - and Iron Man can't tell anyone, even the members of the Avengers.

Related: Iron Man's 'Perfect' Armor Unleashed The Full Power Of Tony Stark's Ego

In Iron Man #22, written by Christopher Cantwell with art by Angel Unzueta, a fight between Iron Man and the Titanium Man leaves Tony bedridden, but recovering, after a near-fatal dose of Compound 13. Captain America visits Tony Stark in the hospital and offers War Machine a spot on the Avengers to fill Iron Man's role until he recovers. When Rhodes refuses, Captain America's suspicions are immediately raised. "Jim...is there anything else you want to tell me about?" Rhodes simply responds "No. No, I'm good" and Captain America leaves the hospital room without another word.

Captain America is widely considered the most morally-upstanding hero in the Marvel Universe, and heroes often confide in him while asking for advice. Not only does Rhodes fail to do this, he lies to Steve Rogers - he clearly wants to inform him of Tony's plan to pose as an arms buyer to scoop up Source's weapons (and eventually get his hands on the Ten Rings, which Stark knows Source is hiding). Clearly, spending time with Tony Stark has done a number on Rhodes' moral compass, and the hero's expression shows he has second thoughts about his behavior yet goes along with it anyway.

It was Tony himself who suggested to keep this information from the Avengers - but this is not necessarily a wise choice. If Tony simply told his teammates of his plan, they would in all likelihood have helped him (or at the very least, attempted to talk him out of it). Now the Avengers will almost certainly see Iron Man as regressing to his former weapons dealing self - and War Machine is unfortunately caught in the crossfire.

Next: Iron Man's Perfect Woman is Stuck With Spider-Man