Marvel - The Blood God

"Our Vanko family is different from your Stark family—we're not liars."

Hearing Tony's words, Ivan sneered, "Be grateful I'm teaching you this method because I want to defeat you fair and square. I want everyone to know the Vanko family is the strongest."

Tony tilted his head, looking puzzled. "Vanko family? Never heard of it."

"Tony Stark." Ivan clenched his fists, feeling it might be better to just hack this guy directly.

Facing Ivan's anger, Tony swallowed hard but outwardly remained unfazed. He sneered, "What, you want to kill me now? Seems like your Vanko family isn't above taking advantage when someone's down."

"I'll make sure you remember the name Vanko, Tony Stark." Ivan released his fists, turned, and flew down the building.

Tony breathed a sigh of relief. Natasha smirked beside him. "I thought you weren't afraid of death?"

Tony turned to her. "Who are you? Do I know you?"

Natasha took a deep breath to calm herself. This guy was really irritating. She thought for a moment, then walked over, pinched Tony's cheek, and said to Trish, "Take a picture of us. I want to post it anonymously on Twitter. Tony, don't move, or the poison needle in my ring might prick you."

"Poison needle?" Tony, who was about to push her hand away, froze. He quickly asked Jarvis to scan her ring, and sure enough, there was a needle hidden in it.

His heart raced. He wanted to say something, but Natasha ignored him entirely.

"Picture?" Trish and Jessica were delighted. Not only did they help Natasha take photos, but they also asked her to take pictures of them with Tony. Opportunities to tease Iron Man didn't come often.

Tony was both embarrassed and angry, but he couldn't resist. He nearly fainted from frustration.

"The more beautiful a woman is, the more dangerous she is. Damn, I'm going to buy Twitter so these photos don't get out. Wait, didn't Maverick forcefully buy Twitter at twice the market price? That bastard."

As Tony was stewing, General Ross's helicopter finally landed. He angrily walked up to Maverick and shouted, "Vampire, I told you, Emil is military property. How dare you kill him?"

Maverick sneered, "So what if I killed him? I'm taking him away. Got a problem with that?"

General Ross's face turned red with fury. "Vampire, are you declaring war on the military?"

"You represent the military? Did they agree to that?" Maverick looked at him disdainfully. He pulled out his phone, turned off airplane mode, and it immediately started ringing. He pressed the speaker button, and Senator Stern's voice came through, "Thank goodness, Maverick, you finally answered."

"Senator, we just wrapped up here," Maverick said with a smile. As they spoke, his phone kept indicating incoming calls. For Senator Stern to get through immediately meant he'd been dialing nonstop.

"That monster was terrifying." Senator Stern exclaimed. "Maverick, I'll get straight to the point. Are your suits for sale?"

"Of course, Senator. Come to Oscorp tomorrow to discuss the details. I'll personally welcome you."

"Excellent, I'll be there tomorrow." Senator Stern sounded satisfied. Maverick then answered the next call, "General Slocum, what a surprise... Yes, the suits are for sale. See you tomorrow."

"General Parsons..."

"Senator Little..."

Maverick took over a dozen calls in a row. General Ross's face shifted from red to purple to black; he was livid. He realized he couldn't touch Maverick. The people calling him outranked Ross significantly.

Ross shot Maverick a fierce glare, then turned to leave. On his way out, he saw his daughter Betty standing beside Banner, tears in her eyes. His mood worsened.

"Damn vampire, damn Hulk—I won't let this go." General Ross boarded the helicopter and ordered the pilot to return to the Pentagon. He planned to persuade the higher-ups to help him reclaim the Hulk and Abomination.

Wait, maybe this was an opportunity. Surely, some in the military wouldn't want a vampire controlling battle suits. He could rally them against Maverick.

After over ten minutes, Maverick's phone finally stopped ringing. The last call was from Chief George. He got straight to the point, "Are you selling the suits? The NYPD wants to buy one."

"Five hundred million dollars," Maverick replied. "But if you're willing to let the suit's user join the Watchmen, I'll give you a 50% discount."

"Let me think about it," Chief George said. He had to get a suit, even if it meant scraping together every penny. But joining the Watchmen? He'd need to discuss that with the city government.

"Five hundred million dollars." Chief George rubbed his chin, contemplating. That guy seemed to value his daughter a lot. Maybe she could help negotiate a discount. When faced with that amount, principles and integrity seemed negotiable.

"This phone's battery life is terrible. I need to get Ivan to design an Arc Reactor battery. Charging every day is beneath me as a billionaire.

Also, smartphones are becoming mainstream. I need to accelerate investments in that area. Money isn't the issue; it's about influence. Those folks in Congress are slow to grasp the potential of smartphones."

Maverick mused. Just then, Frank approached. "I've retrieved all the Vibranium bullets. They're fantastic, but collecting them every time is a hassle."

"Isn't Cap's shield the same?" Maverick chuckled. "Frank, you and Ivan take that monster back to Oscorp."

"Got it. We're heading back," Frank and Ivan nodded. They left with the unconscious Abomination. Reporters arriving at the scene saw something flying away and snapped photos frantically.

"Is that the Iron Man suit? No, the design and color are different."

"Look, it has the Oscorp logo. My God, that's Oscorp's battle suit."

"Oscorp developed a battle suit? This is huge news. Their stock price will skyrocket tomorrow."

"Did you see the monster they were carrying? It's terrifying. Is it responsible for all this?"

The reporters were ecstatic, eager to rush in for more pictures. Unfortunately, the police had cordoned off the area.

After Ivan and Frank departed, Maverick approached Betty. "Miss Ross, I'd like to invite you and Dr. Banner to Oscorp as our guests."

Betty looked up cautiously. "What do you plan to do with Bruce?"

"Don't worry; I'm not a bad guy," Maverick assured her with a smile. "You know that without my protection, Dr. Banner's situation could become dire."

Betty knew he was right. She sighed, "I want to stay by Bruce's side."

"Of course," Maverick agreed. He looked up and called out, "Hellcat, you and Jessica escort Dr. Banner and Miss Ross back. Also, read the material I gave you."

Trish realized Maverick had prepared a special report for her. Overjoyed, she flew down and said, "Got it, boss."

Jessica joined them. Though she felt a bit annoyed, she didn't dare act out in front of Maverick. The earlier events had shaken her.

"Mercury." After Trish and Jessica led Banner and Betty away, Maverick contacted Mercury via his phone. "Go to Grayburn College and retrieve the unconscious Dr. Stern. I'll send you his location and photo."

"On it." Mercury didn't waste time, speeding off toward Grayburn College.

Meanwhile, Ethan finally arrived in a helicopter. Natasha released Tony and said, "Official introduction: Natasha Romanoff, S.H.I.E.L.D. agent. If you have any complaints, take it up with our director."

Tony replied bitterly, "Don't worry, I will."

"Feel free," Natasha smirked. She leaned in and whispered, "Next time, don't hack into S.H.I.E.L.D.'s computers. We're not as defenseless as you think."

Tony felt a chill. S.H.I.E.L.D. knew he'd hacked them—which meant Hydra might know too.

"Good thing I was just looking for info about my dad. I've been careless lately," Tony thought, feeling a pang of guilt. Natasha saw he'd gotten the message, smiled smugly, and walked away.

Tony sighed, activated his suit's thrusters, and awkwardly flew into the helicopter.

Ethan glanced back, surprised. "Tony, you look like you've taken a hit."

"I just want to get out of here," Tony replied, deflated. Ethan was puzzled but didn't press further, piloting the helicopter away.

"After this, Tony might finally be a bit more grounded," Maverick mused as he watched the helicopter depart. He then called over Electro, who had been helping with the aftermath. Electro approached respectfully, "Mr. Maverick."

"No need for formalities," Maverick waved a hand. "Max, you'll be speaking on behalf of the Watchmen shortly. Here's what you need to say..."

After listening, Electro nodded. "Understood, Mr. Maverick. This is on the military."

"It's their mess. It's a shame about those brave soldiers—their superiors didn't even bother to recover their bodies," Maverick shook his head. He then turned to Lilith, who had appeared beside him. "Gather the spears. Let's go."

Lilith, expressionless as always, picked up the Vibranium spears. "Understood. The helicopter is parked nearby."

By the way, Lilith could fly a helicopter. As an assistant, she was incredibly resourceful, even if she rarely showed emotion.

Maverick nodded to Electro and began to leave. Seeing the situation winding down, Chief George sent in officers to handle the aftermath and allowed reporters to approach the perimeter.

The reporters rushed in eagerly, shocked by the devastation. What kind of battle had destroyed an entire street?

They soon spotted Electro and swarmed him. Relishing the attention, Electro smiled, "In short, a monster was wreaking havoc, and we worked together to stop it."

The reporters were left wanting more. One asked, "Electro, was that suit we saw from Oscorp?"

Electro nodded, "Yes, Oscorp will be holding a press conference soon to introduce their battle suits."

Confirmation sent the reporters into a frenzy. Oscorp had developed a battle suit. Shareholders were going to be thrilled.

A female reporter asked pointedly, "Electro, the entire commercial district is in ruins. Will the Watchmen Company be compensating for the damages?"

"No, not this time," Electro replied calmly.

"Why not?"

"Because most of the destruction was caused by the monster. We were there to stop it," Electro explained. "According to our company's policy, the responsible party for damages is the monster or those accountable for it."

"Those accountable for the monster?" The reporters sensed a big story.

Electro didn't elaborate. He pulled out a phone and played a video showing a general shouting, "...He's military property. You're not allowed to touch him."

"Military? The monster was created by the military?" The reporters were ecstatic. This was headline news—the military creating a monster that destroyed part of Manhattan.

"The full story will be covered in Trish Walker's interview tomorrow. Be sure to tune in." Electro smiled slyly, then transformed into electricity and vanished. Many reporters groaned in frustration. Trish again. How did she always land the exclusives?

"She must have connections in high places," some female reporters grumbled enviously.

After Electro left, reporters scrambled to call their editors, while others tried to gather more information from the scene. They knew that by tomorrow, New York—and possibly the entire world—would be buzzing.

Aboard his helicopter, Maverick received a call from Ms. Carter. She sounded exasperated, "Blood God, why didn't you tell me about something as big as the battle suits? I've had hundreds of calls—I nearly had a heart attack."

"You're not old at all," Maverick chuckled. "By the way, Ms. Carter, please bring Anton and Ivan Vanko to Stark Industries tomorrow for a meeting with Tony."

Carter was surprised. "Anton Vanko? You found him? No wonder you could develop battle suits."

"There are only a few people capable of making them," Maverick noted. "The Vankos have a deep grudge against Stark Industries. Please mediate tomorrow—don't let things escalate. But if they do, hold back security and let them settle it one-on-one."

"You really have it in for Tony, don't you?" Carter laughed. "Don't worry; I think they'll both listen to me."

She added, "By the way, the search in the Arctic has begun. I'm planning to go personally."

Her voice brimmed with excitement. After decades, she might finally see Steve again. Even she couldn't contain her anticipation.

"Looks like the team is working hard. I approve your leave. Feel free to use my private jet and hospital," Maverick offered. He'd requested Captain America's blood from S.H.I.E.L.D. earlier to locate him—vampires had secret methods of tracking people through blood, even if only to a general area.

"Thank you." Carter hung up. Maverick gazed out over New York, his eyes narrowing.

"In a few months, aliens will invade New York. Real-world wars won't be as simple as in the movies. I need to plan carefully."

"Those fools at S.H.I.E.L.D. have no idea. I'm the one who doesn't want humanity destroyed. If humans are gone, what happens to my billions?"

"I'm so selfless; I deserve to treat myself to a few Victoria's Secret models," he mused with a smirk.

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