Ivan walked slowly toward Table 20, a grotesque smile plastered on his face.
The other diners and waiters all stared. Who the hell is this guy? Why isn't he wearing a jacket?
One guest, visibly annoyed, flagged down a waiter to complain. The waiter bowed apologetically, then hurried over to intercept Ivan.
"Sir, my apologies, but this restaurant requires formal attire."
Ivan stopped, grabbed the waiter's collar with both hands, and threw him. The skinny waiter flew backward, his spine smashing hard against a dining table. CRACK! The table splintered, sending porcelain and glassware shattering to the floor. The waiter hit the ground and didn't move.
"AHH! He killed him! Murder!"
These pampered, high-society people couldn't handle seeing a real crime. They screamed, and the smart ones scrambled out of their seats, making a panicked dash for the elevator. The restaurant erupted into chaos.
Hearing the screams, Ivan's smile widened. He ripped off his work coat, revealing the arc reactor strapped to his chest.
Using his father's blueprints and his own years of experience in a machine shop, he'd finally built one.
He hit the switch. With a flick of his wrists, two long, heavy whips snapped out. The reactor whirred to life, and the whips were instantly wreathed in crackling, blue electricity.
Ivan advanced, cracking the whips as he walked. Anything they touched was instantly sliced apart, the cuts as smooth and clean as a water jet.
.........
Tony heard the screams and frowned. He grabbed a fleeing waiter. "Hey! What the fuck is going on over there?"
The waiter was hyperventilating. "Mr... Mr. Stark! There's a... a psycho! He's killing people!"
"A psycho?" Tony looked up and saw Ivan stalking toward him.
"AHH!" The waiter screamed again, ripped free from Tony's grip, and ran for his life.
Tony reacted instantly, yanking Pepper to her feet. "Get out of here! Run!"
"Tony..."
"GO! Find Happy! NOW!"
Pepper's eyes widened. She understood. She turned and ran.
"Sigh..." Tony looked at the wrecked restaurant and shook his head in disgust. "My first vacation in two years... and it's fucking ruined."
Ivan saw Tony and stopped, the two of them separated by a dozen meters of ruined tables.
"Tony... Stark!" Ivan snarled, his lips curling back in a cold, vicious grin.
The guy knew his name. This was personal.
Tony sized him up. "Who the hell are you?"
"Ivan Vanko!"
Tony searched his memory and came up blank. "Sorry, pal. Doesn't ring a bell."
That just poured gasoline on Ivan's rage. He let out a dark, self-mocking laugh. "Heh. Of course. You are great... billionaire... capitalist. Why would you know a no one like me?"
Tony's eyes fixed on the glowing reactor in Ivan's chest. He frowned. "Anyone who can build one of those... is not a no one."
Ivan's grip on his whips tightened. "No, I'm not! And if your father hadn't stolen the arc reactor... framed my father as a spy and had him deported... I would be just like you! A fucking playboy, drowning in money and pussy!"
"Your father?" Tony was confused.
"Anton Vanko. But that name means nothing to you, does it?" Ivan's eyes filled with a sudden sadness.
Tony nodded. He'd never heard the name.
"Of course not," Ivan sneered. "A piece of shit, backstabbing coward like Howard Stark would never tell his son about his own crimes."
Ivan's face twisted, and he cracked a whip against the floor. "Your father is dead. So the Vanko family's rage... it will all be spent on you!"
He lunged, swinging the whip right at Tony's face.
"Wait!" Tony tried to stall, but Ivan didn't even pause.
"Shit!" Tony cursed and dove backward, tumbling over a chair. The energized whip snapped where his head had been, blasting sparks off the floor.
Ivan attacked again. Tony scrambled away, grabbing a chair and hurling it.
The whip just cut it clean in half.
Tony was running, and Ivan was hunting. In seconds, Tony was trapped in a corner.
Ivan sneered, raising his whips. "Heh. The filthy Stark bloodline... it ends here."
Just as he was about to strike, Tony yelled, "WAIT! I'll pay you! Whatever you want!"
He fumbled at his collar, pulling out a pen.
"I have... I have Swiss bearer bonds! You can cash them at any bank in Switzerland! Name your price! Three hundred million? Five hundred? A billion? How much to let me walk?"
Ivan stopped, his expression turning to one of pure disgust and pity.
"Just like your father. Every problem... you just throw money at it. You don't deserve the arc reactor. You don't deserve to be Iron Man."
"You're right... I don't," Tony said, quickly twisting the pen apart. "But even if you kill me... you'll never be him."
He threw the pen's components at Ivan, spun, clamped his hands over his ears, and shut his eyes.
FWOOM!
The pen exploded in a blinding flash of magnesium, instantly robbing Ivan of his sight. It was immediately followed by a deafening BANG! that rattled his skull, leaving him dizzy and deafened by a high-pitched whine.
"AGHHH!" Ivan screamed, clutching his ears.
Now!
Ivan was blind and deaf. Tony vaulted onto a table and sprinted right past him.
Once he was a safe distance away, Tony grabbed a heavy vase off a service cart and hurled it, full-force, at the back of Ivan's head.
CRASH!
The vase shattered. Ivan's head snapped forward, blood flying. He staggered, nearly collapsing.
Heh. Concealed flash-bang. Works every time. Tony was impressed with his own goddamn genius.
"Tony!"
He heard Pepper's voice. He spun around. She and Happy were running toward him. Happy was carrying the black-and-gold briefcase.
"YES! Throw it! Throw me the case!" Tony yelled, waving his arms.
Happy got low, slid, and bowled the briefcase across the polished marble floor.
It glided perfectly. Tony stomped his foot down, stopping it cold.
Ivan shook his head, trying to clear the ringing. His vision was a white, blurry mess, but he could see. He turned, ready to finish the job...
...and was face-to-face with Iron Man.
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You can read advance chapters and view R-18 images of the characters on pat reon page.
pat reon.com/GreenBlue17
500 power stones.
Top 50. All time.