vanko arc reactor
The screen that wasn’t there a minute ago lights up in dark color but some sounds start so all three Starks listen carefully.
(V.O.): “Been a while since I was up here in front of you. Maybe I’ll do us all a favor and just stick to the cards. There’s been some speculation that I was somehow involved in the events that occurred on the freeway and on the rooftop…”
“Wait, is that my voice?” Tony narrows his eyes. “I really sound old.”
Woman’s voice (V.O.): “Sorry, Mr. Stark, do you honestly expect us to believe that that was a bodyguard in a suit that conveniently appeared despite the fact that you sorely despise bodyguards?”
Tony (V.O.): “Yes.”
“Can we get some context here?” Tony looks at the ceiling, but the Watcher stays quiet.
“Be patient, dear.” his mother answers then instead.
Woman’s voice (V.O.): “And this mysterious bodyguard was somehow equipped with an undisclosed Stark high-tech powered battle…”
The city, Moscow, appears on the screen, finally something to look at instead of just black.
Tony (V.O.): “I know that it’s confusing. It is one thing to question the official story and another thing entirely to make wild accusations, or insinuate that I’m a superhero.”
“A superhero?” Howard snorts.
Inside a darkened apartment within a dilapidated building, older-Tony Stark’s face appears on TV. “I mean, let’s face it, I’m not the heroic type.”
“I’d say,” Tony muttered.
“Oh, you look so grown up.” Maria smiles.
“Is that supposed to be the future? We have more futuristic TVs now.” Howard sounds disappointed.
“Maybe it’s a Russian thing.” Tony shrugs, but he also feels disappointed. He wants to see some real tech, please.
Tony (on TV): “A laundry list of character defects, all the mistakes I’ve made, largely public.”
Tony (on TV): “The truth is… I am Iron Man.”
“What the hell is Iron Man though?” Tony frowns.
The camera pans back to an older man lying on his back in bed. As Tony declares himself Iron Man, the man calls for Ivan. Said Ivan leans against the front door, bottle in his left hand. He turns as the older man coughs. Ivan is middle-aged, hair past his chin and a beard and mustache decorated his face.
“Who is that?” Tony wonders, but he only murmurs it, more to himself than anything else.
“Howard? Do you know this man?” Tony hears his mom and lifts his head up to look at his parents. Howard, in fact, looks a little guilty and a little like he just sees a ghost.
“Anton Vanko. I’ve... worked with him.” Howard answers. “But he wasn’t a good man, so we parted ways.”
Tony shrugs then and lies back down, but he can’t shake off the feeling that they see the man right now for a reason, and that the reason must not be good.
Ivan approaches the bed. The man - his father - struggling to breathe begins speaking in Russian, but on the screen, translation appears for the three Starks.
Anton Vanko [Russian]: “Ivan. Vanya. That should be you.”
Ivan Vanko [Russian]: “Don’t listen to that crap.”
Anton Vanko [Russian]: “I’m sorry. All I can give you is my knowledge.”
“You didn’t agree to work together on something and then he ended up like that?” Maria accuses her husband.
“He wanted to sell plans to-- He wanted to profit, to make bad deals. He was deported for that, I didn’t know what happened with him later.” Howard answers defensively, but there’s slight regret in his voice too, probably because he sees how bad the man and his son are living.
Anton coughs again and that’s his last breath. Ivan is naturally distraught. Takes a swig of vodka as tears fall down his face. Then, the man pulls out some blueprints, looking very determined. The blueprints are for an Arc Reactor, and the project designers are listed as Howard Stark and Anton Vanko. Next is a montage of the man building something with quite standard-looking engineering equipment.As Vanko begins to cut through metal with sparks flying left and right, the camera pans over a wall of news articles about Tony Stark throughout his life, following him from his MIT years until his latest announcement of 'I am Iron Man'.
“Oh no, please tell me he won’t...” Maria starts but then lies a hand over her mouth instead of finishing her sentence. Tony agrees, it seems like the guy plans his assassination or something.
“Why is he obsessed with me? I wasn’t the one who destroyed his father’s life!” Tony throws his hands up in the air.
Howard just looks guilty and worried but stays silent.
“And can someone finally explain what’s up with this Iron Man thing and why it’s such a big deal?”
“All in its time, Tony.” the Watcher finally speaks up, and Tony scoffs.
Ivan takes the heated piece to the table and starts to hammer it, the noise continuing as the camera pans over the blueprints.
Sitting at a desk, and surrounded by dozens of ancient computers all running coding at once, Vanko fiddles with wiring as a white bird hops within the workspace. More shots of the Arc Reactor on magazine covers appear, followed by Vanko feeding his bird from a glass.
“Hi, birdie.”
“He’s building the Arc Reactor,” Howard says to himself and his voice shudders slightly which actually fucking worries Tony now.
“That’s bad, right?” Tony lifts his body again, supporting himself on his elbows. “So we’ll be watching my assassination?”
“Don’t even think like that, dear.” his mom is quick to answer. “I will personally kick him into prison if he so much as touches a hair on your head.”
Vanko flicks a switch and the lights go out as the Reactor lits up. Vanko's smile of triumph gleams in its light. He laughs in glee as he lifts up the completed Arc Reactor.
“Well, now we’re fucked Tony.” the sixteen-year-old says to his future self, but keeps his voice low not to worry his mother any more than she already is.