Chapter 19 - Incident at Culver University in Virginia

"So, this is a college..."

Sara said in a thoughtful tone as she looked at the massive building in front of her. It was the first time Sara had visited or even seen a college, so it was quite an interesting sight for her.

(The standard here seems quite high)

Prime commented as he looked around. All the people passing by seemed to be discussing relatively challenging subjects. Not that Prime was dumb or anything, but biology, science, and math simply weren't much in his college curriculum days.

Well, that wasn't really true for math, but that doesn't mean Prime was good at it. At most, he got enough to pass. Prime was glad to be able to reminisce about those days, although he wasn't sure what those days meant to him.

After both of their first impressions of the place, Sara walked up to a bulletin board with a name written on top. "Biological Sciences Unit." She began to look at the names of the people listed there. After examining the names for a few seconds, her eyes stopped at two specific names.

"Doctor Elizabeth Ross and Doctor Bruce Banner"

Hearing Sara's words, Prime drew a small smile on his imaginary face. Speaking of which, he wasn't exactly sure who Dr. Elizabeth was, but she was also in the newspaper photo with Dr. Bruce, so he assumed they were either siblings or in a relationship.

(Looks like we're in the right place)

After that, Sara and Prime entered the college building, navigating the corridors in an attempt to find the office where Dr. Bruce and Dr. Elizabeth were working. After asking a few people along the way, they finally got a direction to follow.

***

As Sara and Prime approached Bruce's office, he was immersed in a test using concentrated gamma radiation. The purpose of this experiment was to determine its viability for future treatments aimed at curing people with tumors and other diseases.

Bruce was absolutely convinced that his work would be successful, to the point of volunteering as a guinea pig, such was his confidence in the results that would later be revealed.

"Bruce, are you sure about this? It could be dangerous. We haven't conducted more advanced tests yet. What if something happens to you?"

The person asking this question was Dr. Elizabeth, who looked at Bruce with a concerned expression on her face. Noticing this, Bruce put a small smile on his face in an attempt to reassure her.

"It'll be fine. Previous tests were successful, I'm sure nothing will happen this time either. Trust me"

Bruce put his hand on Elizabeth's face as he said this. Although she was still undecided about Bruce's decision, she closed her eyes and nodded. Then, she turned and walked out of the testing room. Looking at the scientist waiting for her there, Elizabeth nodded, indicating that they could proceed with the tests.

By pressing one of the buttons, a machine started emitting a strong green light, moving slowly toward Bruce. Elizabeth, all the while, checked for any possible signs that something could go wrong. She was completely apprehensive about the situation, but still decided to trust Bruce.

Previous tests had been entirely safe and, for the most part, marked by successes. Unfortunately, Elizabeth could do nothing but pray for another one of those successes to happen today.

But that's not what happened. As the green rays made contact with Bruce, he began to tremble, his eyes turned green, and his breathing became completely uncontrolled. His veins pulsed with green liquid, and then, this green "blood" started spreading throughout his body.

"ROOAAARR"

At Bruce's agonizing screams, his body underwent a drastic transformation, growing to a tremendous size, reaching almost three meters in height. A monster had been created.

***

"Guess this is the biology section" 

Sara remarked as she strolled through the college hallways. Her eyes roamed the surroundings with admiration, closely observing the people crossing her path. Despite not attending school, Sara held great respect for those who were intellectually dedicated.

(Let's stay focused on our goal, Sara. Later, if you want, we can explore more of the college)

Upon hearing Prime's response, Sara puffed her cheeks and replied in a grumpy tone while crossing her arms.

"I know..."

At the same time Sara said this, a loud explosion occurred near where Sara and Prime were, causing the entire college building to shake.

"Wow, something exploded?" 

Sara said, looking around trying to understand what happened. Prime, on the other hand, felt intense anger emanating from somewhere. He had felt something similar before, but on a smaller scale; in fact, it wouldn't even compare.

If the anger Prime felt before was like a cup of water, rarely reaching a small lake, this time it was as if they were facing an ocean, something so vast that Prime couldn't visualize its end.

(Sara, we need to go up to the second floor, the intensity of the anger I'm feeling is coming from there)

Upon hearing Prime's words, Sara didn't hesitate to start running down the college corridor, passing by several confused students and professors due to the sudden explosion. Upon reaching the staircase leading to the second floor, Sara sighed in relief, and then tentacles emerged from her back, clinging to the wall to help her climb.

As they approached the explosion site, gunshots echoed, increasing Sara's apprehension. The place was completely destroyed, and she couldn't comprehend what had happened. Was it a terrorist attack? Sara found it hard to believe, especially because Prime would have normally alerted her.

Thus, Sara took Prime's warning seriously, quickly realizing that she was in a dangerous situation, as he had warned earlier.