"AAAAAAAH—!!!"
Lorelei finally snapped.
Antony's words weren't just insults.
They were critical hits. True damage. Armor-piercing humiliation.
For centuries, men had fallen at her feet in worship or fear.
And now this mortal had called her a "middle-aged aunt."
"I will kill you!" she shrieked.
"I'll cut out your tongue!"
She clawed at the air—
A gleaming Asgardian longsword materialized in her grasp.
With a scream more befitting a banshee than a queen, she lunged forward, blade flashing toward Antony's throat.
"Antony! Watch out!" Wanda cried.
He didn't move.
Not even half a step.
The instant the blade reached him—
He raised a single finger.
Clink.
A light, almost playful flick of his index finger struck the flat of the blade.
The sound was clear. Musical.
The force behind it?
Anything but.
Power rippled down the sword like a shockwave.
Lorelei felt it surge through the hilt, up her arm—unstoppable.
The weapon tore free from her grip, spinning wildly through the air before slamming into the ceiling with a thunderous bang, embedding itself deep into the reinforced concrete. Only the trembling hilt remained visible.
Lorelei stumbled backward and collapsed onto the floor in undignified shock.
"…That's it?" Antony asked casually.
He gestured behind him.
"Ladies."
"She's yours."
"Show her what Earth women are made of."
His smile sharpened.
"Especially you, Miss Foster. And Miss Potts."
"I imagine you both have a few things you'd like to discuss with the 'current girlfriend.'"
Jane was already stepping forward, Mjolnir spinning lazily in her hand, dangerous amusement dancing behind her silver helm.
Pepper didn't have powers.
But she did have a Stark Industries defensive gauntlet capable of firing repulsor pulses.
And she looked ready to use it.
Lorelei's confidence finally cracked.
"You—what are you doing?"
"Stay back! I am of Asgard—!"
"That's exactly why I'm hitting you," Jane replied, and brought the hammer down.
…
"Silas. With me."
Antony turned away from the unfolding chaos without a second glance.
Behind him came the distant, unmistakable sounds of a royal dismantling.
"Now?" Silas Lawton's voice floated through the air, faintly disappointed.
He'd been enjoying the show.
"Let them handle it," Antony said as he walked down the corridor. "That's women's business."
"We've got… unfinished business."
Silas followed, confused.
They reached Tony Stark's master bedroom.
The door was unlocked.
Antony pushed it open.
A thick, unpleasant scent hit them instantly.
"Ugh," Silas muttered, pinching his nose. "That's… something."
The room looked like a battlefield.
Expensive silk sheets shredded into ribbons.
Feathers from demolished pillows drifted across the floor.
And on the massive circular bed—
Pietro Maximoff lay sprawled out.
Completely naked.
Like a fish left out in the sun too long.
On the carpet beside the bed rested an empty syringe.
T-VEX.
Antony nudged it with his shoe and let out a low whistle.
"Well, well."
"Looks like the kid discovered a new application."
Silas blinked.
"He used T-VEX for… that?"
Antony folded his arms.
"Performance enhancement, apparently. Premium edition."
Silas stared at Pietro's utterly depleted form.
"…So that's the real Quicksilver."
"Reputation checks out."
He scratched his head.
"Though judging by the aftermath… did the enchantress even survive that?"
"Forget her," Antony said dryly. "He nearly wiped himself out."
He nudged Pietro's leg.
"Rise and shine."
No response.
"Pietro. Wanda's here."
Like an electric shock, Pietro jolted.
"WANDA?! WHERE?!"
He tried to sit up.
His body immediately betrayed him.
He flopped back onto the mattress.
"…Ugh."
His vision focused.
He saw Antony standing there.
Smirking.
Then he felt the air on his skin.
He looked down.
"AAAAAAAAAAH!!!"
The scream could've shattered glass.
He scrambled desperately for a scrap of fabric, barely managing to cover himself with a torn sheet fragment.
The shame hit like a meteor.
And in that moment—
The humiliation was so overwhelming it shattered Lorelei's enchantment.
His mind cleared instantly.
"…Boss?"
He looked at Antony in existential despair.
"Why are you here?"
"To rescue you," Antony replied smoothly. "Sorry to interrupt your… training session."
"No! It's not—!"
Memory flooded back.
Kneeling before Lorelei.
Calling her queen.
Injecting himself with T-VEX just to—
"Oh God."
He covered his face.
"Just kill me."
"Please. Quick and painless."
"Wanda didn't see anything, right?"
"She's downstairs fighting," Antony assured him. "Hasn't come up yet."
Pietro exhaled in profound relief.
"Thank God."
He looked up again, eyes pleading.
"Boss… only you know about this, right?"
"This goes to the grave."
Antony nodded solemnly.
"Of course."
Then he tilted his head slightly.
"Except… Silas is here too."
The air froze.
Pietro slowly turned toward the empty space beside the bed.
"…Hi, Pietro," Silas said cheerfully.
"Gotta say—impressive."
"Well. Slightly impressive."
"Not quite the 'legendary cannon' you bragged about, though."
"Silas…" Pietro's face cycled through red, white, then a sickly shade of green.
Finally, he looked at Antony with deadly seriousness.
"Boss."
"I think we should kill Silas."
"Clean solution. No witnesses."
"He's invisible anyway. No one would notice."
"HEY!!!" Silas yelped. "What kind of logic is that?!"
"You sold me out at the start of the mission!"
"And now you're trying to murder me?!"
"I'll kill you first!"
Antony pinched the bridge of his nose.
Children.
Absolute children.
"Relax," he said.
"Both of you."
He looked at Pietro.
"You used T-VEX voluntarily?"
Pietro nodded miserably.
"…Yeah."
Antony crouched, studying him.
"Good."
"What?"
"If you'd been forced, we'd have a bigger problem."
He stood again.
"You're lucky."
"Your ego saved your life."
Pietro blinked.
"…What?"
Antony smirked faintly.
"Embarrassment is stronger than enchantment."
He turned toward the doorway.
"Get dressed."
"And for the record?"
He glanced back.
"If Wanda ever finds out about this…"
He let the sentence hang.
Pietro turned pale.
"…Boss."
"Yes?"
"…You're not going to tell her. Right?"
Antony smiled pleasantly.
"I'm not cruel."
Silas coughed loudly from nowhere.
"Yeah, totally. Not cruel at all."
Antony shot a look at the empty air.
"Silas."
"Sir?"
"You breathe one word."
"I will personally test how invulnerable you really are."
"…Understood."
Pietro lay back against the pillow in exhausted relief.
For today—
He had survived.
Barely.
--------------
T/N:
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