Chapter 109: The Hulk (Part 1)

"In this world, even Norse mythology has been proven to be about aliens. So what's impossible?" Davis mused aloud. "The origins of Hydra itself are extraterrestrial. You're chasing after some 'blue angels', while Malick's faction is obsessed with resurrecting the so-called 'Hive', the original Hydra leader, to rule Earth. What a joke. Hive is just another Inhuman created by the Kree."

Davis shook his head slightly. The Malick family, immensely wealthy and powerful in the USA, had an influence that translated into significant political clout. Gideon Malick, a former member of the World Security Council, was a prime example of their reach. Yet, this powerful lineage had spent centuries chasing the phantom of Hive. It was baffling.

"I have to admit, sometimes effort does pay off. Malick did manage to bring Hive back. But he probably didn't expect Hive's first act would be to kill his daughter and then control the entire Malick family. Hydra's various schemes often seem like they're just setting themselves up for failure."

"Enough talk. It's time for you to go, Mr. Whitehall." Davis rose from his chair. At his gesture, Sunil Bakshi drew his pistol and aimed it at Whitehall.

"Wait, I can still be useful! You've seen my research." Whitehall panicked. While he could be ruthlessly cold in killing others, facing his own death was a different story. His fear of death was a primary driver behind his lifelong pursuit of immortality.

"I've seen it, indeed," Davis replied with a bemused smile. "But it's useless to me. Your research doesn't grant true immortality. It merely extends life slightly, something I can achieve without the need for Inhuman abilities."

Whitehall's panic deepened. He quickly offered, "I can work for you. With my help, you could control Hydra, even S.H.I.E.L.D."

"How amusing," Davis chuckled. "You seem to have forgotten what I said earlier. Controlling Hydra is trivial for me. If I wanted that, I wouldn't be here in this room right now. You were once the second-in-command of Hydra, and now look at you. Oh, I almost forgot to mention: your leader, the Red Skull, isn't dead."

"What?" The revelation that Red Skull was still alive shocked Whitehall more than his fear of death.

"Executing you now would be too easy," Davis said, approaching Whitehall and roughly yanking a clump of hair from his head. "Let me think... what's a fitting way to end your miserable life?"

Davis rummaged through his bag, pulling out a vial of potion. He poured some into a glass from the nearby liquor cabinet and added Whitehall's hair. Then, he handed the concoction to Sunil.

Polyjuice Potion, a magical brew from the Harry Potter universe, transformed the drinker into another person. Although Davis disliked its taste and rarely used it, he kept a bottle for emergencies.

In the wizarding world, this potion was essential for Aurors and dark wizards alike. Properly prepared, Polyjuice Potion could last indefinitely and transform the drinker using a sample from the target, such as hair.

As Sunil drank the potion, Whitehall watched in horror as his assistant's appearance morphed into an exact replica of his own.

"The rest is up to you," Davis instructed.

"Yes, Master," Sunil replied, now a perfect double of Whitehall.

Davis then dragged the real Whitehall through a portal back to his underground laboratory. While he had initially planned for Sunil to take over after Whitehall's demise, the idea of using Polyjuice Potion presented a more immediate and effective plan. Sunil, equipped with intimate knowledge of Whitehall's operations, could impersonate him flawlessly for years. By then, Hydra's fate would likely be sealed.

"What are you doing?" Whitehall's voice quivered with terror. Strapped to an extended surgical table in Davis's lab, he watched as Davis, now donning a white lab coat and mask, prepared a syringe. Many times, Whitehall had stood where Davis stood now, conducting experiments on others. Now, he was the subject. The irony was not lost on him.

"Don't worry. I'm not as cruel as you," Davis said, drawing several vials of blood from Whitehall. He set about analyzing them with a combination of modern instruments and the powers of the Ope Ope no Mi, the Devil Fruit from the One Piece universe that granted him control over spatial manipulation and surgical precision.

"No wonder Whitehall looks so youthful. It's all because of this," Davis murmured as he deciphered Whitehall's modified physiology. Within a few days, he synthesized a new serum.

"Time to enjoy the fruits of your labor," Davis said, injecting the serum into Whitehall. A large mirror was positioned above the table, allowing Whitehall to witness the effects firsthand.

"What did you do to me? No, this isn't me! This can't be me!" Whitehall's screams filled the room as his body rapidly aged. His once youthful visage crumbled into that of an ancient, decrepit man. His hair fell out, and his teeth loosened and dropped.

"How does it feel to be your real age again?" Davis asked, his voice cold. Whitehall's eyes, now cloudy with age, could barely move to focus on him.

"This is your well-deserved fate. Goodbye, Mr. Whitehall." Davis activated the Mirror Dimension, isolating the section of the lab containing the now geriatric Whitehall. Using the powers of the Ope Ope no Mi, he severed the space around Whitehall's body and sent it into the Mirror Dimension, where he then incinerated him with Fiendfyre, a magical fire that consumed all in its path.

"I wonder how things are at S.H.I.E.L.D. now," Davis mused a few days later. Sunil, still undiscovered, had fled the USA to lay low in another country. Without direct agents inside S.H.I.E.L.D., Davis had no immediate updates on their internal situation.

However, the fact that Alexander Pierce remained unscathed suggested that even this significant disruption hadn't toppled him. Fury might harbor suspicions, but without solid evidence, he had little recourse.

It wasn't surprising, really. Few would suspect someone like Pierce, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, to be a Hydra operative, let alone that most of S.H.I.E.L.D. was infiltrated by Hydra. Had Pierce not feared arousing Fury's suspicion, he could have replaced every S.H.I.E.L.D. member with Hydra agents.

Ultimately, Davis lost interest in S.H.I.E.L.D.'s plight. Even Fury, with all his cunning, couldn't reverse S.H.I.E.L.D.'s fate at this point. The best outcome would be for both S.H.I.E.L.D. and Hydra to collapse together. S.H.I.E.L.D. had rotted to its core and needed to be dismantled to allow for a fresh start. Any reformation would likely be very different from the original agency.

In the original storyline, S.H.I.E.L.D. split into factions post-collapse: one led by Coulson and another co-opted by the US government, turning S.H.I.E.L.D. into a national, rather than international, intelligence entity similar to the FBI or CIA.

"You go back and wait. I'll notify you as soon as the analysis is complete." On a brighter note, Davis had recently received samples of the Veronica Virus from Krauser, who had managed to acquire them with help from Leon and his romantic escapades.

"So, this is the Veronica Virus? Quite different from the G-virus, but with a similar end result," Davis noted. All these viruses aimed to enhance human physical capabilities: strength, speed, reflexes, and regeneration. Compared to the G-virus, the Veronica Virus had more dramatic effects, such as using blood to ignite flames. For a normal person, burning blood would be fatal due to blood loss, but those enhanced by the Veronica Virus could quickly regenerate their blood supply, surviving even significant blood expenditure.

The Veronica Virus also granted the ability to control others infected by the virus, a trait derived from its ancient queen ant DNA.

While powerful, this control was practically useless in human society unless one chose to live among infected creatures. In essence, it was a tool for commanding zombies.

"The fifteen-year incubation is to eliminate the queen ant's consciousness. Marcus's work with the Queen Leech Virus seems quite advanced compared to this." Davis reflected on Marcus's revival, which involved the Queen Leech assimilating Marcus's memories. The Veronica Virus, if not fully integrated, would have a similar effect.

"This is like the tale of Zhuangzi dreaming of a butterfly, uncertain whether he was a man dreaming of a butterfly or a butterfly dreaming of a man."

"Too bad it's of no use to me." Being already enhanced by the T-virus, the Veronica Virus offered no additional benefits to Davis.

"Oh, the Hulk is out," Red Queen's voice interrupted Davis's musings with news footage showing a green monster rampaging through a university campus.

"Wonder if my Ope Ope no Mi powers can cut through the Hulk," Davis pondered. Watching tanks and helicopters being turned into scrap metal by the Hulk made him curious. 

So far, Davis had only encountered one instance where his Ope Ope no Mi abilities were ineffective—against the Ghost. And, if considering beings like the Ancient One or Thor's Mjolnir, there were indeed others who might resist his power.

In theory, the Ope Ope no Mi should be able to cut through the Hulk since his defenses were physical. However, given that Hulk's transformation involved the Space Stone's

 energies, it was possible that he might have an inherent resistance, akin to Haki's properties from the One Piece world.

Over the years, Davis had tried to develop Haki, considering its potential existence alongside Devil Fruits. Yet, he had made no progress, not even with basic Observation Haki.

"Perhaps someday I'll visit the One Piece world and see if there can be two Ope Ope no Mi fruits." Davis often pondered this question due to the presence of the Devil Fruits and his dimensional travels. He also wondered if his powers would be affected by the seawater from that world. He had tested them in various oceans, including those in Marvel, Harry Potter, and the world of giants, with no adverse effects.

"General Ross is such an idiot. Given a winning hand, he managed to turn it into a disaster." Davis thought. The Hulk was Ross's creation, yet he hunted him. This scenario reminded Davis of countless movies where labs created monsters only to end up battling them, skipping negotiations altogether. It puzzled him why they created these beings if they were just going to destroy them.

If Ross had opted to negotiate, Bruce Banner, given his relationship with Ross's daughter, Betty, would have likely cooperated. Instead, Ross's relentless pursuit handed Fury an opportunity. The Hulk's strength was immense, capable of pummeling Loki, the God of Mischief, into submission.

Among the Avengers, only Thor could match the Hulk in a fight. Iron Man and even the super-soldier Captain America were outclassed. Though the original Avengers lineup featured Iron Man, Captain America, and Thor, the true powerhouses were the Hulk, Thor, and Captain Marvel.

Yet even the Hulk eventually found himself overpowered by Thanos, leading to a crisis of confidence that kept him from reemerging.

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