Brazil – Rocinha Favela
In a bottling plant, one of the workers accidentally sliced his finger. A drop of blood fell onto the conveyor belt. The worker's face instantly turned pale as he shouted, "Stop! Stop the line!"
He rushed over, frantically wiped the blood off the belt with his sleeve, then glued his wound shut with a tube of super glue. Only then did he let out a sigh of relief.
What he didn't know was that while he was busy cleaning up his own drop, another tiny droplet of blood had already fallen into a bottle of Guaraná soda.
That contaminated bottle was exported from Brazil to the United States and eventually ended up on the shelf of a supermarket in Milwaukee. A customer bought it, took it home, opened the fridge, and took a swig.
The moment the soda hit his stomach, the man started convulsing violently before collapsing on the floor.
The medical examiner's report later concluded that the deceased had likely been infected with gamma radiation.
When the news reached General Ross, he immediately traced the contaminated soda back to its source — a bottling plant in Porto Velho, Brazil.
He ordered his team to head there and capture a specific white man alive. They were to use tranquilizer darts only. Under no circumstances were they to let the target notice them, or he would escape.
The soldiers went in expecting a simple snatch-and-grab operation.
They failed miserably.
Not only did they fail to capture the man General Ross had described as a traitor who stole military secrets, they came back with an unforgettable nightmare burned into their minds.
They had seen a green monster.
The creature possessed terrifying strength. Tranquilizer darts bounced off its skin like they had hit solid steel. Even real bullets couldn't penetrate it. It was like fighting a living tank.
Bruce Banner was cornered. The soldiers had taken his computer, so he couldn't contact Mr. Blue.
There was only one thing left to do: go to America, sneak into Betty Ross's office at Culver University, and copy the data.
Mr. Blue needed that research. With it, there was a very high chance he could completely purge the gamma-mutated cells from Banner's body. Then Banner could finally live a normal life instead of running forever.
For the sake of his future, Banner decided to take the risk.
Culver University, Virginia
Banner sat on a bench for a long time, steeling himself, before heading toward the lecture building. But when he saw that every student in the hallway had to show ID, he turned around and left.
That night, he went to Stanley's Pizza. The owner, Stan, was an old acquaintance. After spending the night there, Banner borrowed a delivery uniform, hopped on a bicycle, and rode to Culver University with a stack of pizzas.
He bribed the security guard with one pie and made it upstairs.
Once inside Betty's office, he sat at the computer and searched every keyword he could think of, but he couldn't find the file. He opened an encrypted remote chat and told Mr. Blue he had failed. Mr. Blue replied that without the data, there was nothing he could do.
When Banner returned to the pizza shop, he ran into his ex-girlfriend, Betty Ross. It turned out she had already transferred the data onto a USB drive long ago. Banner was overjoyed. With the data in hand, he could finally become normal again.
The next day, Banner decided to go find Mr. Blue.
On the grassy field in front of the university, Banner and Betty said a reluctant goodbye.
Suddenly, Banner spotted several soldiers. A convoy of Jeeps rolled in slowly, even bringing out sonic cannons — cutting-edge weaponry.
Banner ran into the university building with soldiers hot on his heels. He fled onto a pedestrian bridge, only to find both ends blocked. There was nowhere left to run.
On General Ross's orders, two soldiers below the bridge fired tear gas canisters upward.
Thick smoke enveloped the bridge. For a brief moment, everything was eerily quiet.
Then came the storm.
Sensing mortal danger, the Hulk inside Banner took over. A massive green monster appeared on the bridge.
The soldiers froze in shock.
But Emil Blonsky — the man who would later become Abomination — smiled.
The monster had finally shown itself. This time, he would wipe away his previous humiliation. Thanks to the serum General Ross had injected him with, his body had been greatly enhanced.
Betty stared at the monster on the bridge in disbelief. She couldn't accept that this was Bruce.
The Hulk smashed through the bridge's glass panels and leaped down, tanking heavy fire as he crushed the troop carriers into scrap metal. Even the supposedly indestructible tanks were smashed beyond repair with a single punch.
Two Culver University students happened to be walking by. They were stunned by the scene, quickly pulled out their phones, recorded everything, and uploaded it straight to YouTube.
At that moment, two vehicles equipped with sonic cannons rolled up. The powerful sound waves hit the Hulk, paralyzing his entire body and stopping him in his tracks.
Enraged, the Hulk grabbed two thick sheets of metal plating to block the sonic attack. With a furious swing, one sheet flew out and blew up one of the vehicles. He then leaped forward and smashed the second vehicle into a twisted wreck.
Seeing this, the soldiers broke and ran. This monster was beyond anything they could handle. Even the sonic weapons were useless. What else could possibly stop it?
While the other soldiers fled for their lives, only Emil Blonsky walked forward empty-handed.
"Blonsky, retreat! Get back here!"
Blonsky ignored his superior's order and removed his earpiece. He looked up at the Hulk with pure disdain and sneered, "That's it? This is all you've got?"
The serum-enhanced soldier had gotten cocky. Who gave him the confidence to face the Hulk head-on?
The Hulk kicked out with one massive foot.
Blonsky flew like a cannonball, tumbling through the air countless times before slamming into a tree. Blood covered his face.
The most lethal kind of flex is the one you don't even realize you're doing.
General Ross realized their current firepower couldn't handle this giant. He ordered a retreat.
But Betty walked toward the monster instead. She believed Bruce wouldn't hurt her. She hoped that seeing her would help him turn back into himself.
At that moment, a helicopter swooped in and opened fire on the ground.
The Hulk spread his arms wide, shielding Betty completely. Bullets rained down on his back. In a fit of extreme rage, he hurled the last piece of metal plating and knocked the helicopter out of the sky.
The helicopter crashed and exploded, creating a sea of roaring flames.
Seeing his daughter swallowed by the fire, General Ross was filled with regret and helplessness. If only he hadn't ordered the helicopter to open fire.
The clear sky suddenly darkened. Thunder rumbled as torrential rain poured down. The raging flames were quickly extinguished, revealing the scene beneath.
A few stubborn flames still flickered. The Hulk, his body charred black, held Betty in his arms. He glared at General Ross with extreme fury. His ferocious face and eyes reflecting the firelight looked as if he wanted to kill.
General Ross saw that his daughter was still alive — not burned to ashes — and felt a storm of complicated emotions. For a moment, he didn't know what to do.
Soaking wet in the pouring rain, he could only watch helplessly as the Hulk carried his daughter away.