Ivan sat across from him, holding up one of the Twilight Forest materials Mario had placed on the desk. The Russian engineer's expression was complicated.
Mario tapped his fingers on the desk. "Well? Can you integrate it into the armor plating or not?"
Ivan turned the deep green steeleaf over in his hands, examining it from every angle. "This material... does it really have the properties you described?"
"That steeleaf? Make it into armor plating and you get Level II Fire Protection built in."
Seeing Ivan's confusion, he elaborated, "Each level of Fire Protection reduces fire damage by 8% and cuts burn duration by 15%."
Ivan froze. How could anything be quantified that precisely? If Mario was telling the truth, and one level reduced fire damage by 8%, this was an incredibly powerful heat-resistant material.
He made mental notes about the material's supposed properties, already planning tests.
Then another thought struck him. "Two nights ago there were reports of an unidentified flying object over Los Angeles. Humanoid shape. I think Tony Stark has completed his armor."
"I want to restore my father's honor. The world needs to know that Stark isn't the only one."
Mario studied Ivan carefully. On his mini-map, the Russian had already turned into a green dot, trustworthy, at least by the system's standards. After a moment's consideration, he made his decision.
"Alright. It's time you stepped into the spotlight too. How's your combat suit coming along? The whips and the other weapons?"
Ivan nodded. "The electric whips are functional. The chainsaw attachment you suggested is complete, though it's limited by material constraints. Against harder targets, the blades damage too easily."
"As for flight..." He shook his head. "Not yet. Right now it's strictly ground-based combat."
Mario wasn't surprised. Making a suit heavier than Obadiah's Iron Monger achieve sustained flight was no simple feat. Ivan was brilliant, but he wasn't quite at Tony Stark's level.
Not yet, anyway.
But Mario wasn't disappointed. His own people, flaws and all, were still his people. Someone else's genius was still someone else's.
If necessary, I can always pay Wakanda a visit. Acquire some knowledge, maybe arrange for Ivan to study their tech.
"Good work. Spend the next few days upgrading the armor. Priority one: add ranged attack capabilities. Your target profile is heavy armored units. Also, energy absorption. At minimum, you need electrical energy conversion and storage. Whatever you need, put in a requisition. Don't worry about the budget."
Ivan nodded, genuinely grateful. Working for a boss this generous was a rare privilege in his experience.
He gathered the materials Mario had given him and headed for the door. Just as he reached it, Mario's voice stopped him.
"Hey, Ivan."
He turned back.
"Just test those materials for now. Don't integrate them into the main build yet, it'll take too much time, and Tony's situation is about to get complicated. Once you finish the base armor, I'll add some special enhancements for you."
What Mario was thinking about was the enchanting table. If he could actually enchant Ivan's armor the way Minecraft allowed, the power boost would be great. But if the system treated the armor as a single piece of equipment, it could only be enchanted once.
On the other hand, using materials during construction might allow for stacking multiple attributes. Which method worked better would only become clear once Ivan completed the suit.
Ivan acknowledged this with a nod and left the office, heading back to the workshop.
---
The sound of footsteps made Anton look up from the blueprints he'd been studying. His son entered carrying an armload of unusual materials.
"What's all this?"
"Special materials from Mario." Ivan set them down on the workbench and dropped into a chair.
Anton studied his son's face. "What's wrong? Did something happen?"
Ivan looked up, and a smile crossed his features, though on his face, it came out more frightening than reassuring.
"Father, he has given me permission to go after Tony Stark."
Anton's expression darkened. Memories of unfair treatment and stolen recognition surfaced, old wounds that had never properly healed. For a moment, both father and son sat in silence.
Finally, he stood and walked over, pulling his son into an embrace.
"Ivan, I've been thinking about this. We shouldn't let ourselves drown in hatred. You are my greatest achievement, not that reactor, not any invention. You."
Ivan hugged his father back tightly. "I understand. But this time, I will prove that I'm better than him."
Years of listening to his father's resentment had built up resentment of his own. He felt that everything Tony had should have belonged to him. But with his father still alive, that hatred hadn't turned murderous.
Still, unless he could surpass Tony in achievement, the knot in his heart would never loosen.
"Just... be careful," Anton whispered.
Knock, knock, knock.
The interruption broke the moment. Ivan opened the door to find Mario standing there.
"Mario? Is there something else?"
Mario smiled apologetically. "Sorry, I just realized I forgot to mention something important."
He walked past Ivan into the lab, heading straight for one of the computers. A few keystrokes later, he'd pulled up the blueprint for the 1974 Stark Expo and projected it onto the wall.
Mario had arranged for every available piece of information about the Expo to be compiled from public records and archived footage. He didn't have J.A.R.V.I.S., but he had Ivan.
"Come take a look at this."
He guided Ivan to the holographic display. "Tell me what you see."
Ivan frowned at the Expo blueprint. But without having seen Howard Stark's recorded message to Tony, he had no context. The idea that this was a father's legacy to his son never occurred to him.
Anton approached as well. "This is... Howard's Expo design."
Mario nodded and dropped the pretense. He pointed to the center of the layout.
"Treat this central structure as an atomic nucleus. Remove all the roads, trees, parking entrances, the decorative elements. Then mark the protons and neutrons as a structured wireframe model..."
He shrugged. "That's all I know. This is Howard's clue to a new element, something far superior to palladium in both energy storage and output capacity. The rest is up to you. This requires specialists."
Anton's face went pale. He'd always believed Howard had stolen his research. But now, hearing this, he realized Howard had actually developed something beyond the palladium reactor, a completely new element.
Mario placed a hand on Anton's shoulder. "Losing to Howard doesn't define you. You still have Ivan."
Anton snapped out of his daze, looking at his son who was already absorbed in analyzing the blueprint. He nodded firmly.
My son will succeed where I failed.
---
Night had fallen over Los Angeles when Mario stepped off the plane. Ivan followed close behind, along with a tall woman in professional attire.
"The car's waiting outside. Should we head straight to the hotel?"
Anna, Mario's newly hired executive assistant, was everything he'd wanted in a secretary. Professional, competent, and easy on the eyes. She'd been managing his expanding business operations with impressive efficiency.
Why would he hire a male secretary? Please.
He adjusted his sunglasses and glanced around the sparse airport terminal. They'd been traveling for hours, and while he didn't need rest, Anna and Ivan certainly did.
"Let's hit the hotel first. Get some sleep. Tomorrow we'll pay a visit to Stark Industries."
"Understood."
The three of them exited the terminal and climbed into a Mercedes van waiting at the curb. Ivan took the passenger seat, staring out the window at the Los Angeles nightscape. Mario reclined in back, eyes closed as if resting.
But his mini-map was active, and his Vampire Awareness spread through the area.
Finally, some hunting grounds worth the effort. New York's bloodsuckers have gone to ground, but LA is practically crawling with them.
Since leveling up, his detection range had expanded significantly. In just ten minutes, he'd already sensed more than a dozen vampires, and that was only in the populated areas. The darker corners and vampire gathering spots would have far more.
The van pulled up to their hotel. After getting Anna and Ivan settled in their rooms, he left alone.
Los Angeles had fewer skyscrapers than New York, which made finding secluded spots easier. In a dark alley, he pulled a sleek sports car from his inventory and started cruising the streets, hunting.
Twenty minutes later, he pulled up to an apartment building. His mini-map showed at least a dozen vampires inside.
"Haven't run into a nest this size in weeks. Tonight's going to be productive."
He strode into the building and stopped in front of apartment 307. After a moment's consideration, he knocked.
An irritated voice came from inside, like someone had just been interrupted during something important.
"Who the fuck is it?"
Mario's smile remained perfectly pleasant. "Good evening! I'm here to discuss your vehicle's extended warranty."
The door opened.
---
Dawn was breaking when Mario drove back to the hotel. His mood was excellent. Last night's hunt had been incredibly productive, the vampire blood drop rate had been unusually high. He now had enough materials to push his Hunter class up two more levels.
He'd even obtained a bottle of Level 1 Pure Blood.
But back in his hotel room, his expression soured.
"These vampires have no taste whatsoever. How come Blade gets cool names like 'Daywalker' and 'Blade the Vampire Hunter,' but I end up with 'Butcher of the Night'? I'd even settle for 'Night Stalker' at this point!"
But there was nothing he could do about vampire gossip. The only thing within his control was making sure they never gossiped again.
With a sigh, he flopped back onto the hotel bed just as sunlight began streaming through the window. His phone rang.
"Yeah?"
There was a pause. "Mario, it's me. I heard you came to Los Angeles. Is that true?"
Mario sat up, suddenly more alert. "That's right, flew in last night. Your intelligence network's pretty good, Coulson. Should I be worried about surveillance?"
"Natasha contacted me last night and mentioned your arrival. What brings you to LA? Do you need assistance?"
"Actually, yeah. How's your mission going? I wanted to ask, since Tony Stark shut down his weapons manufacturing division, could you see if he might sell me some equipment? You know my operation's just getting started, and I'm short on everything."
Coulson considered this. "I can ask, but whether it happens or not is out of my hands."
"Fair enough. If it doesn't work out, he's not my only option. Where are you now? Want to grab breakfast?"
"I'm at Stark Industries actually, about to meet with Ms. Potts regarding Tony. Hold on..."
Coulson didn't hang up. Mario could clearly hear the conversation happening on the other end.
"Ms. Potts, we had an appointment. Did you forget?"
A woman's voice came through next. "I didn't forget. We can do it now, come with me."
"Now?"
"Yes, now! Follow me to your office. I think this conversation is going to be unforgettable."
Hearing the exchange, Mario's mind immediately supplied the scene from the movie. Ever since becoming gaining his Minecraft powers, his memory had been frighteningly accurate.
"Coulson, sounds like you're about to be busy. Forget about the equipment thing for now. Just remember to call if you need backup."
"Understood. I'll contact you when things settle down."
After hanging up, Mario lay back on the bed.
"Sometimes arriving early can't beat arriving at exactly the right moment."
The scientists who'd helped Obadiah develop the Iron Monger armor couldn't replicate a miniature arc reactor, but the battle suit they'd produced was still formidable. And Mario desperately needed talent who could perfect the flight systems for powered armor.
Once Obadiah was dead, he intended to secure both the research data and the scientists from sector-16. If possible, he'd take the equipment too.
I'm sure Tony won't mind trading some hardware for his precious life.
He glanced at the armor Ivan had developed, stored safely in his inventory. The outer shell shimmered faintly.
Knock, knock.
The soft knocking told him it was Anna before he even checked. Ivan would never knock that gently.
"Come in, it's unlocked."
The door opened and Anna stepped inside. "When are we leaving?"
Mario sprang up from the bed and straightened his shirt. Anna immediately moved to help him into his suit jacket.
"Right now. Tell Ivan it's showtime."
---
---
30 Advance Chapters!