- Good afternoon, dear viewers, and here we are again, so that I, Maxim Pavlov, can tell you the most important and interesting things happening in the world. -
In a small studio where videos for a multi-million dollar internet channel were filmed , the presenter sat against a green screen while the camera filmed him, and nearby, several other people sat and watched, monitoring the results on their screens.
Today we'll be discussing a very important question. Who is this Alexander Ledov? A decent man who helps everyone, or a monster who pretends to be a good person?
The emphasis was placed on the second half of the sentence.
Many call him by different names, but it doesn't matter because we all know his name. I can't deny that many of his actions were for the greater good. Living a wealthy life, he could have stayed out of the New York invasion altogether. Everyone found out he wasn't even on the team and joined along the way. What drove him? Perhaps a thirst for glory? After all, he could have given the other members of the Avengers, who, unlike him, were willing to fight, a chance to help. Or better yet, let the military deal with what was happening around them.
The presenter's eccentricity was liked by many.
"So the question is: Why did he intervene? And luckily for you, I know the answer. He understood that if the Avengers lost, he wouldn't be able to continue his usual, luxurious lifestyle in the mansion he built."
Some photos taken away from Alex's home appeared in the background of the presenter .
"Not only does he live in his own mansion, but he also surrounds himself with security. Please explain why someone like that, who can protect himself, needs security? Is he afraid of anything? How can someone who survives a bullet be afraid of anything?"
In the background, a video began playing of the mansion's security guards forcibly driving away some people, and in the well-edited footage, the frame suddenly changed to the guards knocking out some people with tasers.
"Why all this aggression? People came simply to say thank you to the man they call their hero, and his security guards immediately started beating up these innocent people. Has "our" hero really become so arrogant that instead of meeting with the people, he simply sends his security guards to brutally chase everyone away."
The presenter said all this in a special tone to have a greater impact on people.
- I would also like to mention the people with whom he communicates.
Photos of various people Ledov had interacted with began to emerge. Businessmen and politicians whom Alex had previously helped. The presenter revealed some unflattering facts about each person that his editors had uncovered. Even the avengers weren't spared.
Tony is an arms dealer. Natasha is a traitorous spy. Bruce is a monster responsible for hundreds of lives and billions in damage. Steve is an American propagandist. Clint is an enemy intelligence agent. All of this was described in such a way as to paint them in an unfavorable light.
"None of these people inspire confidence. So I have a question: Can we trust someone with such friends?"
The footage that was shown was specially selected from the scene of military action, and most of it even included wounded civilians.
"What about those computer sessions? Instead of being a good citizen and using his abilities for the benefit of society, he's sitting there playing some games, when he could be spending that time doing something more useful for society. Or, in a pinch, he could come and conduct an interview, maybe even with us."
The presenter spread his arms, showing the studio.
- I would gladly accept an interview with him, and he would answer all the questions and show who he really is.
Next, I went through a series of photographs where Alex was sitting in a chair and talking to people. This series even included a photo of him kissing Natasha, as if hinting at the previous point.
- But all this is just the tip of the iceberg, dear viewers. I'll tell you all about the berries now.
Photographs began to appear, clearly from a closed scientific facility. Numerous people in lab coats were visible working in laboratories, but the most striking images were of people sitting in small rooms enclosed by glass for easy viewing.
"HE HAS HIS OWN PRISON WHERE HE KEEPS PEOPLE," the host tried to calm down. "Do you understand, dear viewers? He keeps people in his lab, and who knows what kind of experiments he conducts on them?" The host made a sad face. "I can only imagine the horrors that could be happening there. And what do the police do about it? I'll tell you. NOTHING."
The presenter adjusted his hair a little and continued
I hope, dear viewers, I've provided you with enough evidence that our "hero" isn't quite so heroic. We now have many questions for everyone involved, and we must unite to confront this threat.
Just before the end he gave a rather charming smile.
- Remember, we tell you only the real truth without any subtext or concealment of facts.
Few could truly appreciate the beauty of Asgard . An entire city built on the gold reserves of the conquests, with gardens located within the city limits to create a harmonious atmosphere.
Now the god of deception stood and looked at the beauty of the city from his chambers and for the first time since his imprisonment he was able to appreciate it.
Thoughts of escape haunted him, but now the only way to leave the palace was to jump out of the window.
His magic was sealed by his own mother after she held him in her arms for hours and refused to let him go.
He couldn't really blame her for that. The royal family would look bad to their subjects if he suddenly ran away, especially with his talents.
The peaceful viewing of the city views was interrupted by the opening of the door, into which Thor literally burst.
"What did they decide?" Loki, not paying much attention to his brother, wanted to continue watching, but he was grabbed and literally squeezed in a bear hug , without answering his question.
- Wait. Let me go.
And yet, no matter how much he resisted, he was pleased that they cared about him so much.
"Thank you, brother." Thor finally let go of his brother after hugging him and looked at him with a small smile. "I don't know what I would have done if my father had done what he was supposed to."
"It would be nothing for him to kill me," Loki clearly treated his adopted father with contempt.
"On the contrary," sadness was heard in the blond's words, "he considers himself responsible for your crimes and could not have done it any other way."
Loki didn't respond to this.
- The only thing I regret now is that you didn't tell me about all this earlier.
- Well, I'm sorry that I didn't really have any desire to help you in any way.
- Everything is fine, we are now checking what you said and if it turns out to be true, your punishment will not be very severe.
To which Loki merely waved his hand as if hinting that it didn't matter to him now.
- Come with me, Loki.
- You know that I can't leave my chambers.
"Yes, I know," he just smiled mysteriously, which caused a suspicious look from the god of deception. "Let's go."
After leaving the chambers, the guards who were standing outside did not react in any way, but only followed a little behind.
- Where are we going?
But he didn't receive an answer.
A few minutes later, they arrived at one of the rooms. When the crown prince opened it, Loki saw a multitude of scrolls and other miscellaneous documents piled on the table and scattered across the floor, literally blocking access to the desk.
"That's how I work," the thunder god admitted sheepishly.
He only received a questioning, mocking look.
"Here is the board," Thor began to explain, "a bunch of notes with requests from all over Asgard and from the worlds with which we are closely connected."
Thor shuffled papers around just to get to his desk. The shelves along the walls were also piled high with various papers.
- And why did you bring me here?
- To show what you fought for.
- If I became a ruler...
"You would have done this anyway," Thor said without any humor while reading one of the sheets of paper, "my father said that if I can't even handle this, then what kind of ruler would I be?"
" Pfft ." Loki lifted one of the scrolls with a hint of disdain, read it, and laughed. After all, it was a citizen's request to explain whose tree was located on the property.
Thor waited for his brother to finish.
"The great and mighty Thor is doing such important and necessary things. If I were ruler, I wouldn't be doing this."
- Then you would be a bad ruler.
- Pfff, yes, I'll do it faster than these old people can decide anything sensible at their meetings.
-Get out of here - Loki literally kicked his brother out from the table - you can't do anything anyway except swing your hammer.
Without further ado, Thor quietly left the room, unable to suppress a smile as he left. Fortunately, his brother didn't see it.
A contented red guard, humming a melody, entered one of the laboratories he had been told to visit.
Of course, there was a reason for his good mood. That reason was a small message from his eldest daughter with a single thumbs-up sign for what he was doing.
This was due to the fact that he had recently visited the shelter as part of an image-improvement campaign, where he told stories that were approved and played games he didn't particularly enjoy. At first, Alexey was reluctant to engage in all this, but one call from the water lord completely changed the Soviet hero's mind on the matter.
Literally the next day after the news broke, he received this short message, and it was very important to him. After all, the few times he'd actually encountered Natasha, she'd shown no signs of wanting any contact with him, and the thought that Ledov might have spoken to her didn't particularly irritate Alexey. Ledov hadn't forced her to go to the shelter, so if Natasha had written , she had done so of her own free will.
With such good thoughts in his head, he didn't notice how the doctors took the measurements they needed and left him alone in the center of a small testing ground.
- Wow, that's fucking amazing - the guard couldn't help but exclaim at what he saw.
A man entered the training ground wearing armor the supersoldier had never seen before. The dark exoskeleton gave the impression of a bodybuilder in a tight suit. He was nearly two meters tall. His eyes were covered with blue armored goggles reminiscent of a scuba diver's mask, clearly meant for more than just eye protection. His strong arms and legs made it clear he'd be better off avoiding his wearer's blows.
- Ha ha "Ha !" a loud laugh echoed throughout the complex, and even the suit's wearer's movements questioned the hero's sanity. "Let the fight begin."
And it truly began. The sparring began with a rapid series of strikes. The Guardian's blows were either blocked or dodged. Realizing he had no reason to worry about his opponent , the Guardian intensified his attack.
At first, everything was fine; using his strength, given by the serum , Alexei was able to suppress an opponent who was equal in strength, but not equal in experience, who tried to fight back, but was still pinned to the corner.
And just when the guard wanted to finish the fight with one blow, everything changed.
A sharp grab and throw knocked him back a bit, and then the super-soldier began to be beaten. His every move was intercepted by his opponent and used against him.
In just a couple of minutes, the guard himself was standing in the corner, trying to fight off the enemy , who seemed to be reading his every move.
- Stop - the voice from the speaker stopped the fight - thank you, Alexey, now go to the doctors, they will examine you.
to his senses a little, he watched as his opponent calmly walked away and the sky had only one question: "What the hell is this?"
- And now we'll get out what's in every fridge – the show's pretty host was preparing "ordinary dishes" – we have: foie gras , marbled beef, saffron, white truffles...
Alex, standing in the kitchen watching this show, couldn't understand how such products were in every refrigerator.
- I didn't think you were a fan of gourmet food.
A smile appeared on the cook's face when Natasha entered the kitchen with a charming smile.
- Don't pay attention, I don't have such products.
But her gaze was fixed on the table where Alex stood. There was flour, salt, sugar, eggs, and apples.
- But you still want to cook something.
"Yeah, I just needed a little break. After our little adventures, I still haven't had a chance to properly relax." Alex didn't waste any time and started kneading the dough. He'd been running around so much that he realized he needed a break, so here I am.
- Such a poor guy, so busy working - she put her hand on his shoulder and made a sad face - and I thought you were now working on those news stories that are discrediting you.
- Oh, you mean that – Alex thought for a moment – don't worry about it, I have everything under control.
-Well, whatever you say, she looked at the table with food, - it's a pity that I won't be able to taste your work of art.
- Why is that? You just arrived.
"I said I'd find your killer, and I did. Now he's with your security , and Fury's urgently bringing me back. He's saying something important."
"So you decided to come see me? Although you could have immediately flown away with your friends from the shield."
- Well, yes. To give you some of my precious time. On that particular weekend when you knew for sure that I would be nearby.
- Ohhhh, I'm so grateful for the honor. And the day off was just a coincidence.
- Well, well.
They both smiled at each other in understanding of their actions.
"I need to know something about this guy you brought?" Alex's expression turned thoughtful, bringing the conversation back to business.
Natasha spent some time talking about her mission while Alex prepared the pie and put it to bake.
- This means that he will sit quietly until tomorrow, but I will ask you, Agent Romanov, to stay.
- I'm telling you , Fury ...
Alex came close to her and looked closely into her eyes, while the girl herself did not show much denial.
- I said stay agent.
- Ohhhh – there was clearly feigned suffering in her voice – but my boss…
- One day will wait for you. You won't be able to leave the city today anyway!
- And why is that? - Both were pleased with the budding flirtation.
- Because one call from me and not a single plane will fly away from here, and any unidentified flying object in sight will be destroyed so that you won't be able to call anyone .
- Oh my God, you're just a dictator - she raised her arms and hugged his neck - using your powers to satisfy your personal goals.
"You do so much and you need some rest too," their faces came closer, "and I just don't want to let you go."
They spent the next ten minutes absorbed in each other, but a loud beep from the oven made them stop.
The water lord, who had just been so absorbed in one task, now didn't know what to do. The dilemma between a delicious-smelling and beautiful pie or a beauty with a hungry gaze made him pause and think for a moment.
Fortunately, this dilemma resolved itself. Her hungry look wasn't just due to her recent actions, so she came closer, simply grabbed a small piece, and popped it into her mouth.
" Mmm ... delicious." The red-haired beauty licked her fingers with great effect, which sent Alex's thoughts spinning in the wrong direction.
After a short break for a snack, the flirting continued. Natasha seemed to be mocking him, as every action she took was too sexual for his liking.
"Well, that's enough for me," she said, putting the plate aside after eating one piece. "It was delicious, but I need to watch my figure."
- No way, you won't get off with just one piece.
In an instant, her arms and legs were bound with water bracelets, preventing her from escaping. Realizing the situation she found herself in, a sly smile spread across her.
- Someone seems to have a fetish for bondage!
"What can I do?" the owner of the house didn't even deny. "It's one of the most effective methods of immobilization I have."
Her bound hands and feet didn't stop her from arching her back so that her tormentor's eyes didn't know where to turn. And at one point, she thought they might part. Which was very flattering.
"You want a piece, right?" She opened her mouth and the spoon with the pie fell inside.
- Despot... monster... manipulator... - with each new word she was fed small pieces.
For several minutes, the tied up girl, who clearly had no intention of getting out, arched so that her captor 's hands explored her body.
- Well, now it's time for another sweet!
He grabbed her bridal style and carried her, still tied up, into the bedroom.
The clink of glasses echoed throughout the room where two people sat at a table. The presenter , who had recorded the video a couple of days earlier, and his supervisor were now celebrating the new episode together.
"The video was a huge hit, Igor. Did you see it?" the host was clearly inspired.
Of course, Max saw it. We've already got several million views. If this keeps up, we might even get to ten.
It sounded like a toast.
"But you know what worries me, Igor?" the presenter looked at his boss in bewilderment. "We're not the only ones doing this. Some TV channels and many others online have started doing the same thing as us."
- Are we starting to destroy Ledov's reputation?
- What are you saying? - the boss's face twisted a little. - We're just giving people an alternative point of view, and the fact that they donated money to us at that moment is just a coincidence.
- Yeah, that was good material. Too bad I had to pay for it.
- Are you talking about those photos from the labs?
- Yes, I had to bargain a little for this informant.
- Ha ha Ha —Maxim even spilled a little liquid from his glass on his expensive suit—you paid for this information. I was sent a hefty envelope with these photos as a "gift."
-That is.
- Yes, you still have to work a lot to grow to that level.
- It's just strange how quickly it all started.
" I don't think there's anything strange about it," Igor said, abandoning his attempt to clean his suit and throwing down the napkin. "Someone up there just got fed up with him and took him on."
-That means you can still make some money on this.
- Sounds like a toast!
They sat for a while longer and discussed their plans until another important issue came up.
- What if Ledov decides to do something ?
- Ugh, what would he do? I'm sure he has a ton of other things to do besides go around explaining himself to every internet resource.
At that moment, one of Igor's subordinates ran into the office without knocking, which is unusual; he simply ran up and started showing a video that made him sweat a few drops.
- Greetings to all!
The video showed Ledov standing against the backdrop of a sunset with an unknown guy, and his voice was very pleased.
"A lot of people have been getting really upset and dissatisfied with me lately, so we"—he put his arm around the guy standing next to him , who clearly wanted to be somewhere else but bravely looked into the camera lens—"decided to hold a series of meetings to answer our questions. So expect us to visit."
After which both subordinates looked at their boss, expecting something unknown.
- Well... he won't actually come to us, will he?