Yuri's Third Transaction

"Uh..."

Tony glanced at Yuri, who had obligingly turned around. After a moment, he asked, "How did you get in? What do you want with me?"

"Oh, my dear nephew."

Obadiah sighed deeply on the other end of the phone. He swirled the amber liquor in his glass and took a deep drag on his cigar. "No matter which Jarvis it is, he'd never turn his master's uncle away."

"I'm in the living room. Hurry over."

"Beep!"

Tony slipped the phone into his pocket, turned to Yuri, and forced a smile. "Uh, I may need to go to the living room to take care of something else, so..."

Yuri nodded, secretly wondering if this was the final scene of Iron Man I: had Obadiah come to this mansion before he moved to steal the reactor from Tony's chest?

"Jarvis!"

"Ring, ring..."

Tony pulled out his phone and blurted, "Holy shit!" He glared furiously up at the camera. "Jarvis, why are you calling me?"

"Sir, this is what you asked me to do."

Yuri couldn't help laughing. To Tony, that laugh sounded especially mocking. He was so furious he couldn't even control his mustache: its two lively, upturned tufts twitched a few times. His lips parted and closed, but in the end, he still said gently, "Jarvis, show Yuri to the guest room first. We'll talk about our business later."

"As you wish, sir."

"This way, Mr. Ambrosius."

After Yuri turned the corner and disappeared from sight, Tony took out his phone again and checked the time—10:15 p.m.

"Fine."

He tidied his hair and casually tugged at his collar and lapels. "I'll keep this meeting under five minutes!"

Tony walked into the living room. It was pitch-black, with not a single light on. He reached for the switch, only to find the room completely empty.

"Obadiah?"

No answer.

Tony didn't mind. He shrugged, picked up the open bottle, and poured some amber liquor into a fresh glass. Then he dropped heavily onto the sofa. Between testing the armor and capturing the Lizard Monster, tonight had been exhausting.

"Ring, ring..."

Tony pulled out his phone. Why was Pepper calling so late?

He sniffed and answered. The next instant, a piercing sound wave hit him. The veins stood out on his face, and he instantly lost control of his body.

"Tony?"

"Tony, are you there? Hello?"

A large hand reached over the back of the sofa. Obadiah took the phone from him and decisively hung up.

"Deep breaths."

Obadiah's bald head gleamed in the firelight. Grinning smugly, he held up the little device in his right hand, making sure Tony could see it. "Remember this thing? The government never approved it back then, but temporary paralysis comes in handy more often than you'd think."

Obadiah removed his earpiece and came around the sofa. He bent down and pulled out a Reactor Stripper he had hidden inside it earlier. As he reached it toward Tony, he delivered his victory speech without a hint of haste.

"Bzzzt—!"

The heat set the clothes covering the Micro-Reactor on fire. The burning pain made Tony open his mouth, but the paralysis kept him from making a sound.

"Because you still have one last golden egg to lay."

Obadiah held the faintly glowing, pale blue reactor up in front of Tony, showing it off. "It's beautiful, Tony. This is the Ninth Symphony you created. It'll be your final work!"

Just as he was about to continue, Pepper's second call came through. Obadiah picked up the phone and hung up at once, then regretfully placed the reactor in a case. "It's a shame you dragged Pepper into this. I was planning to let her live."

Tony's breathing suddenly grew ragged. He strained with all his might, but only managed to move his eyes slightly. At that moment, he envied Spider-Boy, who could fight Mark I with nothing but his own body. If only he had that kind of strength...

The paralysis gradually wore off. After struggling a few times, Tony finally grabbed the phone within reach. "Yuri... Yuri... Yuri..."

"Found you!"

Tony's fingers trembled as he dialed. He could feel the shrapnel slowly closing in on his beating heart. "Come on!"

"Hello?"

Tony swore he had never heard a voice so beautiful. He held the phone beside his face and pleaded for help without hesitation. "Come to the living room, Yuri. I'm dying!"

"Wow!"

Yuri smiled faintly on the other end of the call. It seemed that today wasn't just the end of Dr. Lizard—it was also the day Tony Stark killed his uncle.

What a great day.

He leaped out of the soft bed, opened the door, and shouted down the hallway, "Jarvis! Take me to the living room! Tony says he's dying!"

"As you wish, sir."

Following Jarvis's voice prompts, he soon found Tony slumped on the sofa, "giving his last words" to Pepper. This time, the true protagonist of Marvel hadn't even tried to crawl. It was as if he wasn't worried Yuri might not come to save him.

"That's all, Pepper. We'll talk later."

Tony saw Yuri walk in through the living-room doorway and immediately hung up. He pointed his chin at the hole in his chest and stared at Yuri with absolute certainty. "You've got a way to fix this, right? Magic or something else?"

"Click!"

"Click!"

Yuri swiftly snapped two photos. By then, Tony no longer cared about his dignity. "If you can save me, I'll even give you nude photos!"

"NO! NO! NO!"

Yuri put his phone away and approached Tony. "Wounded Tony, I have two plans for you. Would you like plan one or plan two?"

"Both!"

Tony had certainly grown up. He grabbed Yuri's hand and, for once, didn't seem the slightest bit disgusted. "Save me now! Now!"

"How about we make a deal?"

Yuri raised his right hand. A vibrant golden ball of energy bobbed gently above his palm. "I'll heal your wound completely, and in exchange, you'll give me the reactor..."

"I agree!"

Tony didn't even wait for him to finish. He grabbed Yuri's right hand and pressed it against his chest.

The energy ball instantly dispersed into the flesh around the wound. Tony let out a low growl and clutched the sofa cover tightly. Itchy! So itchy! He was itching to death!

Thin strands of new flesh, finer than hair, rapidly grew. They forced the shrapnel and reactor fragments that didn't belong in his body out of the wound. It looked just like a constipated person straining to expel waste...

"Thump! Thump...!"

Yuri caught all the fragments in the glass that held the amber liquor. When he was done, he handed them to Tony, who was gasping for breath, and asked, "Obadiah?"

"It was Obadiah!"

Tony felt his smooth, flat chest. His face showed both shock and anger. "He betrayed me and my father. Now I'm going to pass judgment on him!"

"With what?"

Yuri looked curious. "A Tin Can without any power?"

"Well..."

Tony stood up from the sofa and patted Yuri on the shoulder. Striding ahead, he said, "We need to go to the garage first!"