C12: Reappear
"Have you pinpointed Hulk's location?"
Inside the SHIELD-modified Blackhawk helicopter, General Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross scowled as he surveyed the chaos unfolding below. Panicked civilians fled from the destructive wake of the green behemoth. Turning sharply, he addressed the communications officer beside him.
"Based on structural damage to the streets and the direction of civilian evacuation, all indicators suggest the target is heading north toward the Empire State Building," the soldier reported.
"Intercept immediately. Do not let him reach a civilian landmark. Deploy a Hellfire missile if necessary."
"But General, there are civilians on the ground!" the officer protested, visibly shaken.
"That's an order, soldier," Ross snapped, his voice like a loaded weapon. "Our mission is to neutralize the Hulk. Collateral damage is regrettable but acceptable. Or have you forgotten that Banner is responsible for this catastrophe?"
A hardliner forged in the crucible of Cold War military doctrine, Ross had spent decades attempting to replicate Project Rebirth—the super-soldier program that birthed Captain America. Hulk was the byproduct of that obsession: a gamma-radiated aberration, powerful yet uncontrollable. And Ross had no intention of letting his best chance at militarized superhumans slip away.
Below, driven by a primal fury, Hulk tore through Midtown like a force of nature. Pavement cracked beneath his feet. Lampposts, cars, even traffic lights were tossed aside like toys.
Roaring like a wounded titan, Hulk crushed a delivery van underfoot and beat his chest in defiance. Overhead, twin Apache gunships flanked him, missiles armed. Though devoid of Banner's intellect, the Hulk's instincts warned him of the threat they posed.
He hated being threatened.
With a thunderous growl, Hulk slammed both fists into the ground. The shockwave rippled through the asphalt, fracturing the concrete. Then, gripping a slab of broken street, he hurled it skyward toward the nearest chopper.
"Evasive maneuvers! Pull up now!" the pilot shouted, jerking the controls.
The stone narrowly missed the tail rotor, spiraling downward. But now gravity had claimed it, and the massive slab was falling fast toward a bustling plaza below.
"Look out!"
"Move! Get out of the way!"
Screams erupted. Citizens scattered like ants, but not everyone could react in time. Elderly pedestrians, distracted tourists, and frozen onlookers stood directly in its path.
"God, no…"
"This can't be happening!"
Just as the slab threatened to crush them, a blur burst from the crowd. A figure in street clothes, red undershirt, canvas pants sprinted forward and, in an impossible display of strength and timing, pivoted and launched a side-kick. His leg collided with the rock, redirecting it away from the civilians and straight into the side of a coffee shop.
Espresso machines exploded, shattering glass. But it was a far better fate than bloodied bodies.
"Who was that?!"
"Dude, you kicked a boulder?!"
"No way, you've gotta be a superhero!"
"Is he the same guy who fought those gangsters in Hell's Kitchen?"
"That's some next-level kung fu!"
> [Fame among New York citizens +0.4]
[Fame among New York citizens +0.2]
[Fame among New York citizens +0.5]
…
Standing calmly, Li Ran glanced at the floating system panel only visible to him. He casually rotated his ankle, trying to disguise the pain. While his "Diamond Vajra Kick", a D-rank martial skill from the character card "A Xing" was potent, it didn't make him invincible. The impact had left a dull ache in his foot.
Still, the pain was a fair trade for this bump in notoriety.
He subtly adjusted his posture, allowing the moment to breathe before jogging off toward the source of the earlier destruction.
Hulk.
Li Ran hadn't re-emerged in New York just for hero points. He had a target in mind. The Hulk was more than just a rampaging gamma beast he was Bruce Banner, future Avenger, a legend of the Marvel world. If Li Ran wanted to skyrocket his reputation, few options were better.
"General, someone's approaching Hulk's position!" a lookout reported inside the chopper.
"Who is it?" Ross demanded, his mind racing. Could it be a SHIELD agent? One of Stark's flunkies? Or worse another enhanced?
"Unconfirmed. No ID match. Civilian appearance. Fast. Possibly a vagrant."
Ross frowned. A homeless man? In this chaos?
Snatching a pair of high-zoom tactical binoculars, he trained them on the street. There, below, weaving through alleys and debris, was a man in a crimson shirt—moving far too quickly for a civilian. The precision in his movements made Ross uneasy.
Who the hell is this guy?
Down on the street, Li Ran had eyes on the Hulk who was now tearing a bus stop from its foundation. At this range, the gamma beast's immense scale was terrifying.
The raw power radiating off Hulk was almost oppressive. Compared to him, Li Ran's own strength though enhanced felt laughable. Sure, he could kick a car a dozen meters. But Hulk? Hulk bent tanks.
Quietly, Li Ran ducked behind a partially demolished newsstand. No way was he charging in blindly. He might be gutsy, but he wasn't suicidal.
He'd already noticed the U.S. Army positioning railguns, sonic cannons, and even what looked like StarkTech repulsor drones. Something big was coming.
And Li Ran?
He'd wait patiently.
Once Hulk and the military clashed, once the battlefield became a storm of missiles and rage, then he'd move.
In chaos, legends are born.
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