first bit from “Heart of the Ocean”
“Leaving the party without goodie bags. I repeat, no goodie bags.”
Barton’s wry report indicating that there was nothing useful left behind in the suspected HYDRA lab made Maria’s lips twitch. Also in the cockpit of the grounded but concealed Quinjet, Banner smiled ruefully and quietly shook his head. Barton’s tone indicated boredom, but Maria thought any mission that involved Captain America, the Black Widow, and Hawkeye and ended in boring results was just fine by her.
“Copy that. Leaving in five.” Warning lights on the control panel flashed in alarm just as the Quinjet came under fire. Not wasting her breath to curse, Maria recognized a unit of extremely well-armed, well-trained HYDRA super soldiers.
“Lifting off NOW!” Maria shouted. Their guns would be more manageable at a better vantage point, and she watched Banner move swiftly towards the now-descending exit ramp. Deploying the Hulk was always risky, but they had considered the facility’s remote location in the distinctly inhospitable Caucasus Mountain Range. As they took off, he launched himself directly into the fray with a furious roar, changing in midair into the imposing Hulk.
“Stay back! Supernova is in play!”
Hearing Barton’s too-late warning, Maria Hill inhaled sharply, and the cold fist in her chest tightened.
Supernova was a twisted variant of the Extremis virus, worse since HYDRA scientists had embraced its instability. Its sole purpose was to transform anyone injected into an unwilling suicide bomber. Several agents had already died horribly, unwittingly inflicting considerable collateral damage since the effects had not been immediately apparent. Several areas in Medical still bore the destructive and bloody scars of Supernova.
Controlling the Hulk without the Hulk containment unit was bad enough, but Supernova Hulk? Maria shuddered, not wanting to consider it.