"You're awake, Tony Stark."

"Are you...... Nick Fury? I'm sorry if I'm mistaken, because I seem to have a bit of a hangover...... In my eyes, your egghead and blindfold have split into several. ”

"In fact, it's not just hangovers that keep your mind awake, in the past 72 hours, your incredibly intelligent brain has experienced the shock of high-voltage electric currents, the rupture of capillaries, and the shock wave of unknown energy. Of course, there are also the sequelae of palladium poisoning. ”

"That's really ...... A birthday party that is overly exciting. ”

Tony endured the sharp pain in his brain and sat up from his hospital bed, where a black bald man wearing an eye patch sat next to him, his only remaining one-eyed staring at the Iron Man.

At that moment, Tony suddenly remembered something, and he looked nervously at his chest. After all, if he hadn't drunk that disgusting-tasting suppressant for a few days, it stands to reason that his blood toxin level would have completely exploded-

But at that moment, Tony felt a tingling sensation in the side of his neck that had been pricked by a needle.

"Lithium dioxide can temporarily relieve your symptoms, but if you want to cure it, you need to find a way to do it yourself. And Agent Natasha Romanoff injects you with this potion every day, and the people around you don't know it yet. ”

Before Tony could speak, Nick Fury preemptively explained that it was not the nurse who had just given Tony the injection, but a red-haired beauty that Tony also knew, but now her delicate figure was wrapped in a black bodysuit.

Tony glanced at his "new secretary" and then at Fury, immediately understanding something.

"You've been fired—so you've been playing me around? I'm the only one who was kept in the dark from start to finish? ”

"No, in fact, we don't know why things are the way they are. At first we just wanted to find out what you were doing and see what we could do to help you. You're not the center of my universe after all, and I have bigger trouble in the Southwest—until that damn birthday party of yours, where two troubles turned into one bigger trouble......"

"Wait, wait!"

Tony rubbed his temples hard, trying to get his clever brain back to normal functioning as much as possible.

"You know Ivan Vanko...... And what's going on with that can-headed guy who attacked me and Rod? ”

"Calm down, we have something to ask you, do you remember what happened at the end of the birthday party?"

Fury narrowed his eyes and crossed his fingers closer to Tony, asking in a low voice.

"I remember after Rod and I beat Ivan...... The jar-headed bastard pops up with a hammer and ...... Wait, How's Rod, How's Root? ”

However, for Tony's question, both Fury and Natasha behind him kept silent with solemn faces.

Tony immediately had an ominous premonition in his mind, and he struggled to move his frail body to get out of the hospital bed.

"I want to see Rod, where the hell is Rod?"

Natasha and Fury hurriedly stepped forward and teamed up to press Tony back onto the hospital bed, and after the two of them exchanged glances, it was Nick Fury who finally sighed lightly.

"Colonel James Rhodes is out of danger."

Tony breathed a sigh of relief when he heard Fury's words, but he soon realized that what he said was usually followed by a "but".

"But...... I'm afraid he will spend the rest of his life in a wheelchair. ”

——

"Hahaha...... Hahahahaha......ha

On the couch in the basement, Ivan Vanko was holding a vodka bottle in one hand and laughing very tastelessly.

Red sat across from him, gently stroking the snoring star on his thigh.

"Are you satisfied, for venting your anger...... I've already given you a chance to do it. ”

In that battle three days ago, the moment Red saw the glow on Iron Man's chest, he immediately withdrew Thor's hammer and grabbed Ivan to fly in the air, and Iron Man's 400% charged super shot missed.

To be precise, it didn't miss either, and the cannon unbiased the Mark2 armor directly in front of him, while Rhodes was temporarily unable to move due to the impact of the landslide when Red's landing.

For this Marine Corps colonel, Red has no particular malice, but he will not feel pity for him, after all, as a soldier of the United States, he does not necessarily have a clean hand when he maintains "order" on behalf of the United States around the world.

Casualties in war are inevitable.

Iron Man also stopped his actions after the blast, and just as Red considered whether to let Ivan complete his revenge, the latter muttered in a voice of reason.

"That's all for today...... Hahaha...... Let him live...... More desperate than letting him die...... Hahahaha......"

It seems that Red finally got the bet right, and although it was a little out of control at first, Ivan Vanko finally managed to control the anger in his heart and regain his senses.

I saw Ivan pour vodka into his mouth like tap water, and then wiped his mouth and burped in satisfaction, which, by the way, was all brought back from Stark's house.

"I'm afraid he'll spend the rest of his life in a nightmare of beating his best friend with his own hands, it's amazing. Hey, Red, I'm going to add a video feature to the light ring, and you can record Tony's annoyed and pained expression back for me...... No, add a live streaming function, I'm going to watch him drink in despair. ”

Revenge takes different forms for everyone. Red is one of the gentler factions, killing people is not enough, happy and enmity are decided, at most the enemy suffers a little more before death, but he will still send the other party away happily and neatly.

But it is clear that Ivan Vanko's anger against Tony Stark cannot be solved so simply.

"Let him die like this, it's too cheap for him to die as a hero. I'm going to let him watch him lose everything, his friends, his lovers, his wealth, his reputation...... Even faith collapsed completely. ”

Don't persuade others to be kind without others suffering. Naturally, Red, as a person who has come before, will not stop Ivan's revenge, and only he can guess how Ivan felt when he watched his father, who was supposed to be as talented and revered as Howard Stark, die in the slums.

Importantly, Ivan Vanko is now a partner of Rader.

"What you want to do is your freedom, and I am not going to interfere - but I leave you with the task...... You can do it, right? ”

"Don't worry, I'm not stupid, I know you're going to help me because you want me to program this thing, a whole AI system that's better than Tony Stark'......"

Ivan Vanko's battered face grinned, he picked up a toothpick and stroked the lamp ring in his hand.

"But actually, I can't."

Alas?

Red's eyes narrowed, but Ivan seemed to see through Red's thoughts and continued.

"You're right, even if Tony Stark is an out-and-out bastard, he does have resources that I can't reach, and I was in prison fighting my fellow inmates when he was learning the best technology in the world - I'm not as good as him now, and I have to admit it."

Now Red's opinion of this Soviet uncle has changed a little, but he didn't expect him to dare to take the initiative to admit the gap between himself and the enemy, which seems to be a little different from the old man who plays with birds all day long in the original movie.

Or rather, the possibility of a red light ring changed him.

"But if you can help me get Tony Stark's technology back...... It's always easier to retrofit than to build from scratch. ”

After listening to Ivan's words, Red lowered his head and thought for a moment, and soon he had an idea.

"I'll figure this out, and then again, it might be a little late now, but I'll add—"

"Welcome to the Red Lantern Corps, Ivan Vanko."