Ivan Vanko stared coldly at Stark Tower before him, his heart filled with fury. He had been preparing for this moment for a long time. Today was the day he would get his revenge.
He ran a hand over the advanced gear he wore, the culmination of years of hard work and a burning desire for revenge. Every piece had been tailor-made for Tony Stark.
His father had been persecuted by Howard Stark. But Howard Stark was already dead, so Tony Stark, his son, would have to answer for it.
Ivan Vanko had planned to wait a little longer before seeking revenge. His preparations weren't quite complete; he'd intended to get everything in better order before going after Tony Stark.
But while sorting through his father's belongings, he had come across a strange book called The Gh'gth Revelations.
The book had predicted many recent events, all of which had come true, much to Ivan Vanko's amazement.
But when he saw the prediction that Tony Stark might die of palladium poisoning, Ivan Vanko couldn't feel happy about it.
He was on the verge of mastering his craft and was just about to go after his enemy for revenge, and now he was being told that his enemy was about to die?
No way!
So Ivan Vanko hurried to Manhattan, determined to find Tony before the poison killed him, then kill him himself.
Tony Stark had to die by his hand—not from poisoning!
His suit might not have been fully calibrated, but it was good enough. At the very least, it was better than Tony Stark's!
Tony had been staying in Stark Tower for days—not because he truly believed the Magic Conch's nonsense.
He was making one last attempt to find a way to solve his palladium poisoning.
"Let's try again."
Tony muttered to himself, his fingers flying over the keyboard as complicated data and models flashed across the screen.
Time was precious to him. Every attempt could be his last hope of survival.
Tony focused intently on the data and models on the screen, trying to find a breakthrough in treating the palladium poisoning. But after countless calculations and attempts, he had to admit that this one had failed too.
The results on the screen offered no glimmer of hope. Instead, they seemed to pronounce his fate.
Tony sighed and slowly rose from his chair, exhaustion and disappointment plain in his eyes.
He looked out at Manhattan's bustling nighttime streets, his feelings in turmoil. He knew that time was slipping away, second by second, while the cure seemed to grow further out of reach.
He left the lab and went up to the top floor, where he gazed at his Iron Man suit.
Tony gently stroked the suit's shell, feeling its cold, solid strength, as if silently conversing with it.
Perhaps he didn't have much longer to live like this.
Just then, the unexpected happened. A sudden tremor shattered the silence, and Tony lost his balance.
He instinctively reached out to steady himself, but accidentally pressed the repulsor button in the suit's palm.
A brilliant beam of light burst from the repulsor and shot forward.
At that very moment, a figure dropped from the sky. Ivan Vanko made his grand entrance.
"Tony Stark, prepare to die! Today, I'll avenge—ah!"
Before Ivan Vanko's hate-filled cry had even faded, Tony's accidentally triggered repulsor struck him with the precision of a death sentence, hitting him squarely as he charged forward.
Though the suit had been carefully designed, perhaps it hadn't been tested thoroughly enough. The repulsor's force punched straight through its armor and struck its internal components, triggering a chain reaction.
The suit's delicate parts broke apart under the explosive impact. Circuits shorted, its power system went haywire, and the whole suit became an unstable bomb on the verge of detonation.
BOOM! A deafening explosion erupted outside Stark Tower, sending flames skyward and smoke billowing everywhere.
The force hurled Ivan Vanko into the air. Shards of his suit scattered like a meteor shower, streaking across the night sky.
A book flew from his chest toward Tony. Tony froze for a moment, then reached out and caught it. Looking closely, he saw that it was The Gh'gth Revelations.
Meanwhile, Ivan Vanko struggled in midair, trying to steady himself, but the suit had become an uncontrollable burden. In the end, he could only watch helplessly as he plummeted toward the ground.
Tony stood frozen, staring at The Gh'gth Revelations in his hands in disbelief. He couldn't understand how the book of prophecies he had been searching for had suddenly fallen into his possession.
Had the Magic Conch really been right? All he had to do was nothing?
No, that wasn't the point. What was with that guy just now? Why was he wearing a suit so similar to his?
Tony's thoughts surged like a tide, but he quickly recovered from his shock. He looked toward the explosion. The flames were dying down and the smoke slowly clearing, but Ivan Vanko was nowhere to be seen.
Tony quickly put on his Iron Man suit and headed to the scene of the explosion to check what had happened.
He silently prayed that Ivan Vanko had survived. Only someone alive could give him an explanation. If he was dead, all those secrets he carried would be buried with him.
After flying down to the ground floor, Tony found a clear impact crater, with even more suit fragments and metal wreckage scattered around it.
At the edge of the crater, he spotted Ivan Vanko lying there. His suit was shattered, and he looked extremely weak.
Tony immediately activated the suit's medical-assistance function and ran an initial check of Ivan Vanko's vital signs.
Fortunately, despite his severe injuries, the burly man was still alive—for now. If he got medical attention in time, he might make it.
Tony breathed a sigh of relief. At least now he had a chance to unravel all the mysteries.
Tony activated the suit's emergency rescue system and summoned a rescue helicopter.
Just then, the burly man struggled to get up.
"Hey, buddy, you're badly hurt. Don't get up. Suicide's a serious crime, so don't think you can fool Yahweh like this."
Naturally, Ivan Vanko, who had nearly lost half his life, didn't respond to the teasing.
"Tony Stark..." Ivan Vanko said with difficulty, his voice weak and hoarse. "You won... But this isn't over... My father's name... will be cleared one day..."
Judging by how half-paralyzed he was and how close he seemed to death, it was hard to tell how deep his grudge ran.
"I don't think you'll get that chance, buddy."
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