Chapter 56: A New Era Begins

Peggy Carter stood at the door of Betty Ross's apartment, staring in confusion at the empty room. Who was this? Why was she here?

Betty Ross looked up at her visitor, sensing an odd familiarity, though she couldn't quite place her. Finally, with a cautious tone, she asked, "Um… are you Agent Carter? I think I've seen your picture in the S.H.I.E.L.D. files."

Peggy nodded. "Yes, that's me…"

Betty's expression shifted from confusion to irritation. "Senior Agent Carter, then, do you mind telling me where you took my boyfriend?"

Peggy could only sigh and rub her forehead. Thor, you absolute scoundrel. You disappear without a word, and now it's on me to deal with the aftermath.

...

After reassuring Betty and offering a suitable explanation, Peggy gathered some information from S.H.I.E.L.D. contacts and tracked down Maya Hansen. They exchanged knowledge and resources, and though no one knew when Thor might return, Peggy found purpose in helping Maya establish a small research center. Maya's research on Extremis had hit a bottleneck, so she branched into other fields with Peggy's support.

Betty Ross, meanwhile, returned to her work at a military lab, grudgingly accepting that her boyfriend had left on a world-saving mission. However, shaken by the mysteries around Thor and thrown together with Bruce Banner—a man of few words—no romance took root between them.

A few months later, a tragic accident changed everything. During a gamma radiation experiment, Bruce Banner's exposure led to the birth of the Hulk.

The newly created Hulk was a creature of pure rage, with only one thought: destroy everything in sight.

The green giant burst out of the lab and vanished into the night, leaving behind severe casualties and wrecked equipment. In the chaos, Betty Ross was gravely injured, left paralyzed from the attack.

Her injuries would have condemned her to a wheelchair for life, but fortunately, with a dose of Extremis, she began a slow but steady recovery. Though she hadn't received the pre-injection, it offered enough healing potential to make a full recovery plausible over time.

When she regained her strength, Betty left the military's labs for Maya Hansen's research facility, disillusioned with the military's reckless experiments. General Ross, consumed by guilt for his daughter's suffering, did not protest her decision. But elsewhere, his anger only grew as he dispatched task forces to hunt down Hulk.

However, Bruce Banner was clever, knowing how to evade detection in his human form and unstoppable when transformed. Years passed without progress, and the search for Hulk eventually stagnated, as if he'd vanished from existence.

In the meantime, with Thor's previous approval, Maya Hansen sold a limited amount of Extremis to General Ross for a hefty sum, providing her with ample research funds. While this modified Extremis offered only a minor strength boost, its restorative properties proved invaluable. Although Ross was intrigued by the original Extremis virus, the high risk of explosive side effects kept him from testing it further.

Time passed quietly, and before long, it was 2010.

Then came a shockwave that rippled across America: Tony Stark, the brilliant inventor and young, brash CEO, had been kidnapped by terrorists while attending a weapons demonstration in Afghanistan.

The nation was in an uproar. Given Stark's influence and the might of Stark Industries, the impact of his disappearance could be monumental.

No one could have predicted that this kidnapping would mark the dawn of a new era. This once-arrogant playboy would emerge from this ordeal transformed—a hero clad in iron.

...

Elsewhere, in a dark, boundless void, Thor was lost in thought, contemplating where he was and how he might leave.

Kamar-Taj's sorcerers, always unreliable at the worst moments, he thought grimly. I wonder what's happening back on Earth...

Suddenly, a deep, ominous voice echoed around him.

"Kneel."

"What?" Thor snapped, glancing around, trying to locate the source of the voice.

[Read up to 80+ chapter more on p@treon.com/goldengaruda]