Bruce Wayne and Tony Stark were both attending a private party for the wealthiest of the wealthy; it was a special charity event. He had twice as much wealth at Stark and Wayne combined, and his manor was jammed packed with the rich. People such as Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, Jeff Bezos, and Mark Zuckerberg were all visible to Stark and Wayne. Stark and Wayne were surrounded by glistening white walls and all kinds of portraits, and the former had a glass of white wine in his hand. A group of four men by the two billionaires were discussing the disappearances of a kid named 'Billy Batson' and another man known simply as 'Logan', both of which occurred in Pittsburgh on the same day.
"Where do you think Lex Luthor's at this time?" Stark asked as he looked around, checking out the ladies.
"Probably in the restroom trying to collect himself so he can talk around those he sees as inferior savages," Wayne answered, his arms crossed.
Stark took a sip of his drink. "Well, in any event, I do intend to score more gals than you today, Mr. Wayne."
Bruce rolled his eyes. "Trying to pick up so many ladies is honestly exhausting."
"Oh, we both know that, but we also both know it's part of the play," Stark replied, noticeably lowering his voice. "Helps dissuade the notion that us pompous rich jackasses could ever possibly be…you know…"
"Well, we shouldn't even hint at it here, Tony."
"These people are too full of it to pay attention to what we're saying."
Tony then looked out the window. "Hey, do you think that 'Spider-Man' kid is swinging around somewhere right? Queens is his domain, after all."
Bruce gritted his teeth. "What have I said about even referring to anything that is tangentially related to our other lives?"
"Okay, fine, Jesus. Let's just get to the flirting – there is some fun to be had in that."
"Whatever you say," Bruce replied with, just as a couple of ladies did approach them. One was short and pale, and had black hair, a small nose, and a thick amount of eyeliner, along with a green dress; one was tall and also had black hair, with green eyes and blue lipstick on; and she sported a blue dress; the third lady was also short, and she was a brunette and tan skinned, and had on a red dress.
"Well, well, well, hello ladies," said Bruce, to which Stark let out a slight glare.
"Oh, um…hello, Mr. Wayne. A-and Mr. Stark…" one of the ladies. She was highly flustered, but her two friends were flustered enough to where they could barely speak.
Stark rolled his eyes. He tried to think of a good line on the spot. As far as he was concerned 'A tall drink of water' was one of the stupidest lines in history. But he knew exactly what to do when he was with Bruce Wayne at these events.
"Ladies, ladies, isn't this event just a bore?" he said, as his way of initiating conversation.
They all looked at each other and shrugged. "Yeah, I only go to these events because I have to," the black-haired lady said.
"Yeah, that's the same thing with me," the redhead added on.
Bruce smirked. "Well, how about we spice things up a bit," he said, before turning his attention to the blonde chick. "Say there, gorgeous, whenever this event truly gets rolling, would you care for a dance?"
The lady blushed even harder than before and smiled.
Stark had his eyes on the other two ladies. "I'll do you two ladies one better and take you both out for a dance," he said with a grin.
But then, out of nowhere, Bruce's smile vanished. Stark didn't notice for a moment, and he was confused when he turned his head to face his fellow billionaire.
"Um, Bruce, you're kind of killing the mood here."
Bruce's attention had seemingly been towards space, and then he returned that attention towards Stark and the ladies that were in front of the two. "I'm sorry, ladies, but something last-minute just came up. Last-second, actually. Stark, we have matter to attend to right now. We'll have to get back to you. You all look ravishing! I love those dresses!"
Bruce laughed his way out, pulling Stark by his arm.
Tony scowled. "What the hell was that, Bruce? Those ladies were so gonna –"
"Shut up for just one second of your life, Stark. Something unpleasant is about to go down."
"What do you mean, something unpleasant is gonna go down?"
"Do you remember me ever bringing up the name John Corben?"
Tony raised an eyebrow at the mention of that name. "It sounds vaguely familiar."
Bruce then nudged his head to the right, and Stark took the hint and looked in that direction, and he saw a man with short blonde hair, green eyes, a large nose, and a muscular physique. He was not going out of his way to talk to anyone. Rather, he was simply walking around, and accompanying him was a redhaired lady in a black dress with tanned skin and brown eyes, and a blonde lady in a white dress.
"That man over there would be John Corben," Bruce said, and then Tony nodded.
"Yeah, I remember him now," Tony replied as the two looked at Corben.
Ever since Hydra resurfaced right after Captain America was freed from the ice, John Corben had been linked to a series of small-level crimes and acts that took place whenever Hydra struck. The only times he would ever show up in the news would be right around any moment that Hydra made their move, which Bruce found suspicious. And now, Stark was feeling a little bit of suspicion himself.
"So…it seems, from the looks of it, that Hydra might be preparing another attack if Corben is indeed connected to them," Bruce said, his arms now crossed.
"Indeed. We gotta contact the rest of the Vanguard right away."
"Just get yourself ready, Tony. At any moment –"
But it was too late. Before Bruce could finish his sentence, Corben let out a green blast towards the ceiling, coming from his chest. Bits of the ceiling came down and everyone scrambled away as fast as they could to avoid being crushed by them. Corben smirked, and the redheaded lady pulled out a revolver gun.
"Okay, we gotta go get…dressed up…." Stark whispered to Bruce, before the two left the scene.
While the two swiftly left, Corben, the redheaded lady, and the blonde lady looked around at everyone, who were beginning to panic majorly at what was happening.
"Alright, Sinthea. Moonstone. You two take it from here," Corben said to the lady.
Sinthea grinned at this, but she only grinned for a few moments. Afterwards, she put on a serious face. "Alright, everyone down to the ground! NOW!" she shouted at the top of her lungs, to which everyone obliged to, while Moonstone emitted energy out from her hands.
As everyone went kneeling down to the ground, a smile returned to Sinthea's face. "Good, good…now take out those fancy wallets of yours! And trust me, we're not the only two people here. And even then…well, you saw what my friend here just did!"
Now Corben was the one smiling, and he let out another green blast. This had burnt a hole through his suit, revealing a gray circular object at the center of his chest that was glowing green at the center. His smirk remained on his face as he blasted towards the chandeleire at the top of the ceiling, causing more scrambling as those directly underneath it fled before the object could crush them. Once it shattered, though, glass still fired its way everywhere, and several people yelled in agony. Moonstone began blasting energy around in various directions.
"There's more where that, came from," Sinthea said as more men and women came by Corben and Sinthea's side, wielding revolvers and rifles of their own. "That is…unless every single one of you pays up. Cash, debit cards, credit cards, we'll be taking all of that; we already know how to compromise your cards."
Corben then decided it was his turn to speak. "Starting right now, anyone who does not pay up within the next three minutes will meet a horrible death, courtesy of me. So I suggest you pay up. Clock's ticking."
"And you don't have much time left," Moonstone added on.
Just then, the Vanguardians' teleporter activated and a burst of energy shot its way through the room. Three figures stood there, facing Corben and Sinthea, and it didn't take anyone long to realize that it was Superman, Zatanna, and Wasp who had teleported their way here from New York. Superman had sent out a signal to the other Vanguardians, and it was Black Panther who had answered the call this time, teleporting his way in first from Wakanda to the Vanguard Tower, and then from there to here at the charity event.
And a few moments after that, Tony and Bruce returned to the scene, now clad as Iron Man and Batman.
"Well, well, well, King T'Challa…" Corben said with a smirk. "You and King Orin haven't with the Vanguardians much lately. This is a surprise."
"Stand down, now. It's in your best interests to do so," Black Panther replied.
"The King is right," Zatanna replied, adjusting her hat. "You are outgunned, powewise, You really can't win this,"
Moonstone smirked. "Giganta and Abomination held their own against you just fine. And besides, we got something else…"
Corben grinned, and let out another blast, and this one struck Superman. He yelled in agony, and his blood veins turned dark green while his skin turned a lighter green. Everyone stood there, confused and baffled by what was going on.
And then Superman kneeled down to the ground, and then Corben began blasting at him again.
Steve sat at a booth with Sharon on the other side of the table. He had dressed up in a gray suit with a white collared shit and a blue tie underneath. It was actually Hal's suit; Steve hadn't had time to buy a suit, so Hal gave him one a while back because they were around the same size. Sharon, meanwhile, donned a red dress, red lipstick, and black boots.
Steve actually remembered eating at DeCarlo's back in the 1940s. It was the last meal he ever had before Dr. Abraham Erskine tested out the Super Soldier Serum on him. It was his last meal as his frail, normal self. It felt odd coming back here after all this time, especially since the restaurant had changed completely. The once tan walls had turned into a navy blue, the seats and chairs had been updated for the times, and Steve couldn't be sure if someone of the DeCarlo lineage even owned the place anymore.
The food, at least, was the same. The garlic bread was his favorite appetizer back in the day, and he liked the polpette best, and he found that they were still there. He smiled at this.
"What an odd coincidence that I'd bring you here of all places," Sharon said, Steve having told her of his connection to this place.
He chuckled. "Yeah, yeah…I remember coming here after the fourth time I was rejected from the army. The owner was a very nice guy. One of the few people who treated me with any sort of decency."
Sharon ate a piece of the garlic bread. "Just imagine how all the people who picked on you felt when they saw you in that patriotic outfit, holding that shield and sporting such ripped abs."
Steve chuckled again, this time louder. "Ripped abs…yeah. Yeah…well, I was just happy to finally be able to help. I never imagined I would fight alongside the Flash and the Green Lantern, and then you have Namor, the King of Atlantis, offering his help as well…it was honestly overwhelming."
"Yeah, I remember Aunt Peggy talking about how overwhelmed she was to meet the great 'mystery men' of America. She had many stories about the war."
"I guarantee you, most of them are true."
Sharon smiled at this. There was a few seconds of silence before Sharon said, "So, how has adjusting to the modern world been? Have you actually been able to spend any time outside the Vanguard?"
"Not really. They're on a mission right now, actually. It's odd, being here right now. I mean, don't get me wrong, I've been wanting to go out with you for a while, but…you know…"
"I understand, Steve. I'm sure they're just fine."
"What the hell?!" Wasp shouted as Superman coughed, his skin still green.
In the moment, Sinthea aimed her gun at the Wasp, with the intent to shoot, but Batman threw one of his batarangs towards the gun, and it fell out of her hand. She yelled in pain, for the batarang had slashed her hand and now blood was dripping.
"Attack them!" Sinthea commanded, and the goons that were by her and Corden's side began firing towards the Vanguardians. To the surprise of the Vanguard, more and more goons began joining in on the fun, and they were all firing towards them.
Zatanna let out a force field that shielded her from the gunshots, while Wasp shrunk down in size and began flying around in order to dodge the bullets easier. Moonstone began blasting at Zatanna.
Black Panther needed no such abilities, and he dodged them with ease, as did Batman. Black Panther decked a man in the face, kneed a woman, and then kicked another man in the stomach and slashed at him with the sharpened fingertips of his gloves. Batman flipped a guy over a table, used a Batarang to disarm another man before grabbing that man's hand and breaking it.
A woman tried to shoot at Iron Man's armor, but it bounced back and struck her right in the leg. "I shouldn't laugh, but you honestly thought that would work?" Iron Man said before blasting at a guy who charged at him, knocking him out instantly, and then he did the same to another dude. "Wow, this is almost sad."
But then Corben bashed the back of Iron Man's helmet, and this time, the billionaire actually felt something. He turned around, and Corben grinned before punching him in the face. And once more, Iron Man felt something.
"How is this…" Iron Man asked.
"I'm not just a mere man," Corben interrupted and prematurely answered. "You may call me Metallo."
He blasted at Iron Man's arc, and his armor began shorting out. And then, as Superman laid there, Metallo began blasting at the Man of Steel again. Zatanna tried to intervene, but in her distracted moment, Sinthea shot her in the leg, and then Moonstone grabbed Zatanna by her neck and threw her towards the wall.
While Zatanna could easily heel her leg with a spell, it bought Metallo time. Time he used to swiftly try and finish off Superman, grinning as he did so.
"That's right. Die, you false god."