The failed pursuit at Culver University was like a thorn, deeply embedded in General Ross's heart, gnawing at him day and night. He stood before the massive screen in the command center, repeatedly watching the two blurry surveillance clips from Long Island, New York, and the edge of the Culver campus. The green giant's violent destructive power was chilling, but what concerned him more was that in both incidents, the monster had shown unplanned, almost irrational 'pauses' and 'deviations.'
"That time in New York, it was an unconfirmed mental interference. This time in Culver, it was precise electronic interference and path guidance." General Ross's voice echoed in the empty command room, cold and oppressive, "There is something, or rather, some 'person' helping that monster. Working against us."
His gaze swept over his subordinates and finally landed on a man standing in the corner's shadow, his posture as straight as a javelin. Emil Blonski, former British Royal Marine, current Captain in the U.S. Special Operations Command, an elite soldier brought in from Europe at any cost to hunt down Hulk, his eyes as sharp as a razor. His face still bore the not-yet-fully-faded abrasions from his brief clash with Hulk in the Brazilian slums, but his eyes burned with a light that was a mixture of humiliation, excitement, and a near-pathological craving.
"General," Blonski began, his voice hoarse with a heavy accent, yet exceptionally clear, "Conventional methods are ineffective against that thing. We can't catch him, we can't hurt him, and we can't contain him. We need to change the rules of the game."
General Ross stared at him: "Go on, Captain."
"We have seen his strength, his speed, his... near invincibility." Blonski took a step forward, the shadow receding slightly from his face, revealing that chiseled face filled with absolute worship of power, "Why are we still using the flesh and blood of soldiers to fill the bottomless pit of that green monster? Why not create our own 'power'? A power that can be controlled, commanded, and truly match or even surpass it?"
The command room was silent. This idea was too radical, even touching many forbidden red lines. But General Ross's eyes flickered, and he didn't rebuke him immediately. The shame of failure and the obsession with capturing Banner (and the power within him) were warping his judgment.
"The Super Soldier Program..." He muttered, recalling those dusty, blood-stained files of his father's generation, and the legendary shadow from a more distant era—Captain America. That program brought a legend, but also countless tragedies and unsolved mysteries. But wasn't the green monster before him a product of some kind of "Super Soldier" program (albeit an accidental one)? And an uncontrollable, catastrophic product at that.
"Banner's accident was due to gamma rays, but what about the principle? What is the root of that power within him?" General Ross seemed to be asking Blonski, or perhaps asking himself, "Is it possible... to replicate or even enhance that power in a more controllable way? To create perfect soldiers who obey orders?"
"We have some of Dr. Banner's early research materials, although the key parts were taken or destroyed by him." A technical officer spoke cautiously, "And... we have collected some blood samples and tissue fragments of that thing from the scenes in New York and Brazil. Although the activity is rapidly declining, perhaps..."
"Perhaps what?" General Ross turned his head sharply.
"Perhaps we could reverse-engineer something from it, and by combining it with our early theoretical reserves on the 'Rebirth Project' (a derivative branch of the Super Soldier Program), try to conduct..." The officer's voice lowered, "low-dose, controllable enhancement experiments."
This was Pandora's box. Everyone present knew it. But General Ross looked at the image of Hulk overturning cars on the screen, looked at the ruined greenhouse at Culver University, and thought of the complex and unspeakable look his daughter Betty had when she looked at that monster (he believed she was being deceived and coerced). A surge of evil fire, mixed with a desire for power, the anger of a frustrated patriarch, and a craving for "ultimate power," devoured his last bit of reason.
"Initiate Project 'Hammer'." General Ross's voice was resolute, "Highest security clearance. Utilize all our research resources in the field of biological enhancement, including those... 'non-public' partners. Captain Blonski," he looked at the soldier whose eyes were burning with flames, "Are you willing to become the subject for the first phase? You know, this could kill you, or... make you become someone other than yourself."
Blonski grinned, revealing a near-ferocious smile; it was not fear, but fanaticism. "General, I have seen what real power looks like. I crave it. As long as I can get the chance to match that power, or even control it, I am willing to pay any price. Rather than dying or running away helplessly in front of that kind of monster as a mortal, I would rather become a... more powerful monster that can tear it apart."
His answer was exactly what General Ross wanted to hear at this moment. A perfect vessel craving power, a sharp weapon willing to take risks.
"Very well." General Ross nodded, "Prepare yourself, Captain. Project 'Hammer' begins now."
Far from the bustle of the East Coast, deep in the Nevada desert, inside a deep underground facility belonging to a secret Military research institution, Project "Hammer" advanced at an astonishing speed. Thanks to General Ross's authority and the resources provided by "partners" (some biotech companies and arms dealers operating in the gray zone), a highly isolated laboratory was built in just a few weeks.
Inside the laboratory, Bruce Banner's surviving research notes, trace biological samples of Hulk, and the vague, dangerous, and hypothetical documents from the "Rebirth Project" decades ago were placed together. A group of scientists, who had signed death warrants, with eyes mixed with fear and ambition, frantically analyzed, pieced together, and deduced. The goal was not to replicate Hulk—that was too uncontrollable. The goal was to extract certain traits of that "power," combine them with known principles of enhancers like adrenaline, steroids, and nerve growth factors, and create an "enhancement serum" that could significantly and temporarily boost the subject's physical functions, resilience, pain threshold, and possess a certain resistance to gamma energy.
Blonski was stripped of his uniform, put into a sterile suit, and lay on the cold experimental table, covered in sensors. Through the reinforced glass of the observation window, he could see the grave faces of General Ross and the chief scientist outside. There was no flinching, only a pilgrimage-like fanaticism.
"Phase one, low-dose mixed serum injection, the main components are mutant stimulating factors extracted from Hulk samples, high-concentration anabolic steroid compounds, and nerve reflex accelerators." The chief scientist announced into the microphone, his voice echoing in the laboratory, "Prepare."
The cold needle pierced the vein on the side of Blonski's neck. The dark green, viscous liquid with a faint, eerie fluorescent glow was slowly pushed into his veins.
At first, it was icy cold, as if an ice thread was traveling through his veins. Then, a violent burning sensation erupted from the injection point, instantly sweeping through his entire body! Blonski gritted his teeth, the veins on his forehead bulging, and a repressed roar escaped his throat. He could feel his muscles twitching and expanding uncontrollably, his bones creaking under the unbearable pressure, and his heart pounding as if it were about to explode! The edges of his vision began to show a faint, ominous yellow-green.
"Vital signs rising sharply! Muscle density increased by 15%! Neural response speed increased by 40%! Pain perception threshold significantly increased!" The monitor reported quickly, his voice trembling with excitement.
The pain lasted for about ten minutes before it slowly receded like a receding tide. Blonski was soaked in sweat, lying on the experimental table panting heavily, but his eyes were shining with brilliance. He clenched his fist, clearly feeling the surging, far-greater-than-ever sense of power in his muscles. He sat up, his movements more agile than a cheetah.
"How do you feel, Captain?" General Ross asked through the communicator.
Blonski grinned, his smile twisted: "Never better, General. I feel... I could punch through tank armor." This was not a metaphor; he truly had that confidence.
The preliminary test results were "exciting." Blonski's strength, speed, endurance, and reaction had all been increased several times over. He could easily lift hundreds of kilograms of heavy objects, his sprinting speed approached World records, and his tolerance to pain was astonishingly high. More importantly, in subsequent confrontation tests, he showed significantly higher resistance than ordinary people to low-intensity irradiation simulating Hulk's gamma radiation energy.
General Ross saw the dawn of "success." He ordered an increase in the serum dosage to conduct the second phase of enhancement, with the goal of turning Blonski into a "Super Soldier" who could truly go head-to-head with Hulk.
However, science, especially in fields involving unknown biological energy and forced human modification, is never simple addition. As higher doses and more complex formulations of serum were injected into Blonski's body, uncontrollable side effects began to appear.
Blonski's emotions became extremely unstable, irritable, grumpy, and aggressive, his eyes often flickering with inhuman ferocity. His body began to show slight, irreversible mutations—his skin keratinized and thickened, the color became dull, and his spine seemed to have abnormal protrusions. He began to complain about hearing "whispers," feeling some kind of primitive, destructive "call."
The chief scientist warned Ross that the "Hulk factor" in the serum was undergoing an unpredictable deep integration with Blonski's body, the subject's mind was being eroded, and continuing the enhancement carried extremely high risks, potentially creating another "uncontrollable monster."
But General Ross had been blinded by the illusion of "power" and the obsession with capturing Banner. Blonski himself was addicted to this feeling of constantly getting stronger; he regarded those "whispers" as a gift of power and the mutations of his body as the price for moving towards "perfection." He craved more powerful strength, longed to fight Hulk again, and wanted to prove that he was the "ultimate soldier."
"Continue." General Ross said only one word after listening to a briefing full of warnings. "We need more powerful weapons. Captain Blonski is a soldier, he knows what he is doing, and he is willing to take the risk."
Blonski was indeed "willing." Before the third and final planned ultra-high-dose serum injection, he looked at the increasingly obvious yellow-green slit pupils in his eyes in the mirror and the irregular bulges faintly emerging under his skin. Not only was he not afraid, but he revealed an intoxicated smile instead.
"That's it... more powerful strength... surpass him..." He muttered to himself and voluntarily lay back on the experimental table.
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