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  With Banner secured and taken to a separate hide-out by he rest of the crew returo the base, blending into the dark streets as Maria’s illusions cloaked their movements. They filed into their usual room, a low-lit, underground space outfitted with rows of ss, maps, and a series of plex boards covered in Sofia’s sprawling web of es and data.

  Nero settled into his chair at the head of the table, gng over the room before turning to Sofia. “What’s the situation?” he asked.

  Sofia, who was already at her setup, swiveled in her chair to face him, a small grin fshing across her face. “General Ross is done,” she started, crossing her arms. “I’ve got him on multiple els, and it’s not pretty. During the fight, I hacked his s and recorded everything. Let’s just say, his talk was as dirty as his tactics.”

  Diego leaned against the wall, eyebrows raised. “You caught Ross on record? The guy’s practically a fossil—thought he’d be too careful for that.”

  “Please,” Sofia said, smirking. “The old man was fident he’d covered his tracks, so he didn’t bother being careful. And he didn’t realize that someone might be listening in. He practically broadcasted his iions on Hulk, Abomination, and his ‘official cover-up’ pn to anyone who could hack his signal.”

  Donald chuckled, shaking his head. “Wouldn’t surprise me if half his operations are just him talking to himself, thinking no one’s watg.”

  Nero nodded. “Give me the highlights. What exactly are we sitting on here?”

  Sofia’s fingers danced over her keyboard, pulling up audio files and transcriptions. “Alright, so here’s the juicy part. First, Ross wanted Hulk to do as much damage as possible to justify his own team’s intervention. It was supposed to look like the military swooping in to ‘save’ the city, all part of his agenda to get bigger, better toys from gress. He’s pushing hard for a line of experimental tech—he called them ‘Titan Killers’—in respoo Hulk and other meta threats. And he’s been trying to manipute SHIELD into bag him up.”

  Diego whistled, impressed. “So he wanted Hulk on a rampage to make himself look like the hero? That’s cssic.”

  “Yep,” Sofia replied, sing the transcript. “And here’s where it gets real good. I pulled his ret financial records and found a few iing ats. Let’s just say, he’s been funneling a signifit amount of funds into ‘bck projects’ that gress doesn’t know about. His Pentagon budget ’t at for all his spending. I’ve got trails going to private bs and even some panies outside the U.S., each with enough money moving around to fund a small army.”

  Anthony leaned in, ied. “Anything specific about those bs? Or is he just throwing moo keep them quiet?”

  “Specifics, yeah,” Sofia replied. “One of these bs—big, privately owned—has been running experiments on captured mutants. Humaing, geic modifications, you . All buried under generiames, so no one blinks twice. I traced a feles, and it’s ugly. The subjects are disposable to him; he refers to them as ‘assets to the cause.’” She clicked through her files. “In another call, he ht mentioned needing more ‘samples’ to perfect his test ‘onized response unit.’ Not just Hulk he’s after; he wants ah abilities.”

  “Charming guy,” Donald muttered, scowling. “That’s a mess waiting to blow up in his face.”

  Nero’s gaze didn’t waver. “Did you get the names of these bs?”

  “Got ‘em all, boss. Three of them are even ected to his Titan Killer projects,” Sofia said, bringing up more data on the main s. “Here, each loarked in red is one of Ross’s primary research sites. All under different names but lihrough offshore ats.”

  Diego grinned, looking at Nero. “And you’ve got a pn for this, right? Because it sounds like it’s begging for a little… exposure.”

  Nero nodded. “Timing is everything. We’re not dropping this just yet. We’ll wait until he’s on the verge of a major presentation, probably right before he pitches gress. That’s when we’ll drop everything we have. The timing will make it impossible for him to recover. Sofia, we’ll hit all three ptforms—Squeak, Faote, and Instaroll. When the public backsh hits, Ross won’t have a shred of credibility left.”

  Sofia’s eyes gleamed with enthusiasm. “Oh, I’ve got it covered. His profile will go from hero to vilin faster than he say ‘cssified.’ The videos, the dots—everything’s prepped. And thanks to my backdoor access, it’ll look like an inside leak, not some outside attack.”

  “Perfect,” Nero replied, gng around the room. “The more noise we make, the less Ross fight it. By the time he tries to cover this, he’ll be too deep in his owo breathe.”

  Anthony cracked his knuckles. “So, what are we waiting for?”

  “Not much longer,” Sofia said. “If my timing’s right, Ross is scheduled to meet with a few big names in D. the week. Once he’s out in publid under scrutiny, we hit him where it hurts.”

  Diego nodded. “While he’s busy sweet-talking the suits, we’ll be feeding the public his darkest secrets. ’t think of a better stage for this kind of takedown.”

  apped his fingers against the armrest, gng around the room. “Anthony, gather our men and prepare to hit those bs during Ross’s gress meeting. We’ll reveal everything once we’ve secured the ‘assets’ he’s been stashing away in those pces.”

  Anthony nodded, already reag for his s. “Got it. I’ll coordih our usuals and make sure the right people are ready. Nothing’s getting missed on this run.”

  “Good.” uro Diego. “Press is your domain, again. And this time, we’re taking it beyond national. I want every er of the globe talking about what we find.”

  Diego’s grin grew wider. “Oh, don’t worry. By the time I’m dohey’ll be begging for even more dirt on Ross. I’ll make sure the whole stoes viral in a dozen nguages.”

  Satisfied, Nero leaned ba his chair, but his gaze shifted to Donald, who had been quietly watg from his p the shadows. “Donald,” he began, “I need you to step back from the crew for a bit.”

  Donald’s head jerked up, eyes narrowing. “What do you mean?” The tension in his voice was unmistakable. “Since when do I get benched?”

  Nero sighed, his fingers steepling in front of him. “This isn’t a beng. It’s... let’s call it ‘destiny intervention.’ Something about your true identity—or at least a part of it—is starting to e up.”

  Donald held Nero’s gaze, struggling to process what he was hearing. “Destiny? True identity?” He let out a shh, though it held no humor. “What is this, a mystic prophecy?”

  “It’s not a prophecy, but it’s real.” Nero’s tone was firm, leaving no room for doubt. “There’s a pull on you, Donald. You felt it in that st fight in Harlem, didn’t you?”

  Donald’s face grew taut, and he looked away, jaw ched. “I felt… something,” he admitted relutly. “But it didn’t seem like the time to stop and question it.”

  Nero leaned forward, voice lowered. “Well, now is the time. This isn’t something you ignore. You’ve wanted answers for years—about your past, your dreams, your identity. It’s time to face it.”

  Donald met Nero’s gaze, the weight of the words nding, but he didn’t hesitate. “I’ve been ready for a long time,” he said quietly. Then, without a trace of doubt, he stepped forward, e tapping rhythmically as he approached Nero. They stood in silence for a beat before Nero rose, g Donald in a brotherly embrace.

  “I’ll be back,” Donald said, his voishakeable.

  Nero let out a chuckle. “I knorobably even more handsome, buffed, and charismatic—but I know you’ll be back.”

  Donald pulled away, brow furrowed, and tilted his head. “I like the sound of that,” he said, fshing a faint smile before he turned, leaving the room without looking back.

  The rest of the team watched in silence as he disappeared through the doorway, the weight of his departure settling in the room. After a moment, Maria stepped closer to Nero, her voice just above a whisper. “So what’s the deal? Since when do you send him off aloh a mystery like that hanging over him?”

  Nero leaned back, hands folded. “It’s something he has to uncover himself,” he replied, his tone nont. “I don’t keep secrets from you all, you know that. But this—this isn’t mio tell.”

  Sofia leaned ba her chair, her gaze fixed on Nero. “If he’s off chasing ghosts, that’s fine. But if it’s going to mess with our timing on Ross, you’d better tell us now.”

  “Nothing’s ging with Ross,” Nero assured her. “Donald’s path won’t interfere. The crew is ready, and this timing couldn’t be more ideal.” He gestured at the ss, the tless feeds streaming data and chatter that Sofia had set up, eae primed to deliver Ross’s immi downfall. “When Ross takes the podium, we’ll be three steps ahead.”

  Diego rubbed his hands together, grinning as he g the data Sofia had pulled up on one of the ss. “Just say the word, boss. ’t wait to see that fossil scramble when this all goes live. Might make me start liking politics.”

  A week slipped by in a whirl of pnning, data-cheg, and careful arras. Ross’s presentation to gress was set, and so was Nero’s team, each of them poised like gears in a clock about to strike. In the underground room, the team gathered around as Sofia made the final checks, her ss lit up with trag feeds, financial records, and the schematics of Ross’s “Titan Killer” projects, all stolen from his own files. They had everything—proof of illegal testing, covert financial els, details on b locations—all queued for release.

  “Any st-minute hiccups?” Nero asked, not looking away from Sofia’s ss.

  “Smooth as butter,” Sofia replied. “Our friends in the media have everything loaded on a timed release. The sed Ross gets rolling, we’ll drop the first file.” She tapped a s. “And our dear old general is already nervous. They’re whispering around Capitol Hill, but he’s pushing through. He thinks he’s untouchable.”

  Diego grinned, watg the dispy with barely cealed excitement. “He’ll wish he stayed home. You got the distribution lined up?”

  “Lined up and primed,” Sofia answered, her fingers flying over the keys. “Squeak, Faote, and Instaroll are primed to bst out all the dirt the sed it goes live. We’re doing this from every angle.”

  Nero gave a nod, looking over to Anthony. “And the sites?”

  Anthony straightened, adjusting his leather gloves. “Prepped and waiting. We’re going in the sed the first leak drops. All we need is the word.”

  Maria adjusted her ring, gng over at Nero. “Ross has no clue, does he?”

  “Not one,” Nero replied, a glint in his eye. “He’s about to walk into a cage match he doesn’t even know he signed up for.”

  A light fshed on Sofia’s sole, and she looked up, her grin widening. “And that’s our cue. His meeting just started.” She hit a key, and the first batch of files went live, spreading aedia ptforms with an explosion of alerts and headlines.

  As soon as Ross started his speech to gress, Anthony’s team moved into a. All three of Ross’s bs lit up with red alerts as masked figures swept through eae, taking out guards and seg the bs’ data. Anthohe charge, his movements precise, taking down aah a speed and silehat left no time for arms. In the far er of the main b, rows of tai units held their “assets”—captured mutants and subjects forced into geic experiments. Anthony motioo his team, and they began unsealing the pods, helping the weakeest subjects out of their fines.

  “Move fast,” Anthony ordered, his voice low. “We’ve got twenty minutes max before reinforts show up.”

  From behind him, one of his crew muttered, “Didn’t realize we’d be hitting a sci-fi horror show. These are actual people, damn it.”

  Anthony didn’t pause. “No time for entary. Just get them out. We’re blowing this pce when we’re done.”

  Across the globe, social media ptforms lit up like fireworks as Sofia’s files dropped. All at once, Squeak, Faote, and Instaroll filled with posts, images, videos, and dots, each exposing Ross’s hidden agendas. The first wave was damning enough: leaked audio of Ross speaking didly about the “y” of colteral damage to justify increased military spending. Posts showed Ross’s bank statements, detailing the unapproved funding trails to bck-market bs, the experiments, and the uhical handling of mutant subjects.

  Diego had ehat each release hit with the maximum impact, his es in the press making sure every media outlet covered it within minutes. In the Uates alorending topics exploded: #RossGate, #UnmaskedAgenda, and #MutantTruth. The posts rolled out in waves, hitting the publi all angles.

  In the underground room, Sofia monitored the feeds with a satisfied grin. “It’s goily as pnned."

  General Ross stood behind the podium, his gaze sweeping over the room filled with politis, military officials, and press members all focused on him with an iy that felt almost too fortable. The ss behind him dispyed images of ret cityscapes reduced to rubble, each image framed by a red border, highlighting the chaos left in the wake of what he called “non-human hazards.”

  Ross cleared his throat and leaned into the microphohe room falling silent. "Ladies alemen, these images aren't from some distant war zone. No, this is our home, our cities. What you’re seeing here is the result of unchecked mutants and rogue metas. And I ask you—are we just going to sit by ahis destru tinue?"

  The urmured, the unease in the room as clear as the images on the s.

  Ross pressed on, each word calcuted, each image on the s ging in sync with his speech. "We’re seeing an arming increase in is involving both mutants and non-human threats. Each time one of these beings gue, it's not just a few buildings that pay the price; it's entire neighborhoods, lives torn apart, safety shattered." He paused, letting the weight of his words sink in before tinuing. "This isn’t just a national issue. This is a global crisis.”

  A senator he front leaned forward, nodding as if already on board. Ross caught the motion and focused his gaze in that dire, feeding off the support. “We ’t just wait for the disaster. We need a proactive response, ohat meets these threats head-on, with strength and precision.”

  He motioo the s, whiow dispyed a new image—blueprints of heavily armored suits, an array of advanced onry, each piece beled with specifications and stats. A logo in the er dispyed the words "Titan Killer" in bold red letters. “That’s where the Titan Killer initiative es in. These units are desigo teract the power of even the most destructive threats. This isn’t just a show of strength; it’s a itment to proteg our cities, our people, from the damage that these superhuman hazards tio cause.”

  The crowd’s murmurs grew louder, some ihers in cautious agreement. Ross gave them a tight, trolled smile, pushing forward. “Imagine a world where is like the one we saw st week in Harlem are no longer possible. Where our forces have the tools to intervene before these monsters y waste to entire neighborhoods.” He leaned in slightly, l his voice but amplifying its impact. “That’s the world I’m fighting for, the world these Titan Killers are desigo protect.”

  He stood back, letting the blueprints fade as the image shifted to a still frame of the Hulk in mid-rampage, frozen on s as he smashed through a car. “This,” Ross tinued, gesturing to the image, “is what we’re up against. No w, n, just raw, unfiltered power tearing through our unities. We ’t afford to stand by and hope for the best anymore.”

  There ause as he let that sink in, his expression grave. Then, with a slight shift in tone, he added, “Now, I uand there may be s about cost, about ht. Let me assure you, every dolr ied in this proes directly to ensuring our cities are safe from threats the likes of which our traditional forces simply ’t handle.”

  As Ross spoke, pressing his agenda with every carefully chosen word, a loud buzz spread through the room. Phones buzzed, ss lit up, and suddenly, the crowd of reporters and politis shifted, eyes widening as they scrolled through notifications with incredulous looks.

  Ross paused, notig the ge in the room’s energy. “Ladies alemen, as I was saying—”

  A reporter in the back called out, cutting him off. “General Ross, care to ent on the leaked recs where you explicitly say that colteral damage is ‘necessary to secure funding’?”

  The murmur grew louder, turning into a wave of whispers and gasps. Another voice rang out from across the room, this one sharper. “General, what about the footage of the geic bs—humaing on captured mutants? Did gress approve this?”

  Ross’s face tightened, but he maintained his piving a small, forced smile. “If we could all stay on topic—”

  A third reporter wasn’t having it. “On topic? General, the news says your Titan Killer project is fuhrough off-the-books ats, bck money funneled from unauthorized els. Is that on topiough?”

  Ross ched the podium, his jaw tight as he sed the crowd. Senators exged uneasy gnces, while the press scrambled, their questions growing louder and more pointed. How did all go out?

  “Is it true your initiative targets both metahumans and mutants, regardless of their threat level?” a reporter yelled from the front row.

  Another chimed in, “How do you justify endangering civilians just to push yenda?”

  Ross’s forced calm began to crack. He stepped back, clearing his throat, but the questio ing, b him from every dire.

  “General, these files—hundreds of them—are going viral as we speak! Isn’t it true you’ve been involved in illegal experiments for years?”

  “Are the ‘Titan Killers’ just another way for you to py God with people’s lives?”

  “How many lives have beeroyed because of your ‘necessary colteral’? you tell us that?”

  A ripple of panic crossed Ross’s face as he sed the room, seeing the phones in everyone’s hands, reporters streaming the chaos live, camera fshes going off in rapid succession. He raised his hand, attempting tain trol. “If you could all just wait—”

  A senator’s voice cut through the otion. “General Ross, as aed official, I demand an answer! Did you knowingly authorize human experimentation uhe guise of public safety?”

  Ross hesitated, the pressure mounting. “Senator, I assure you, any as taken were strictly within the realm of national defehe files you’re referring to have been doctored and misinterpreted by those who don’t uand the stakes involved here.”

  From the back of the room, a sharp ugh cut through his response. Diego, blending into the crowd, shook his head as he held up his own phone. “Really, General? You’re saying they’re doctored? Because these transcripts sound pretty damo me.” He tapped the s, pying a segment of Ross’s recorded call, loud enough for the whole room to hear.

  On the rec, Ross’s voice rang out: “…if a few neighborhoods get fttened in the process, so be it. These things don’t ao anythihan overwhelming force, and that’s the point.”

  The room exploded in gasps and indignant shouts. A senator leaned fring at Ross. “Are you admitting you’d let i people suffer just to justify your projects?”

  Ross shot Diego a dark look, his voice ced with irritation as he stammered, “Who are you, and what are you doing with that—”

  “Just a ed citizen,” Diego replied, grinning. “Here to ask a few questions on behalf of everyone who doesn’t want their neighborhood turned into a battlefield for your little experiments.”

  Another senator wasn’t buying Ross’s excuses. “This is uable. General, are you seriously denying these tapes, despite everyone here listening to your own words?”

  Ross’s expression turned desperate, his fingers gripping the edges of the podium. “Senators, representatives, these accusations are baseless and orchestrated by individuals trying to sabotage our national security efforts. You all know the threat we face. The people in this room know what’s at stake.”

  A rephed. “At stake? Or is it just yo, General? You’re talking about ‘sabotage,’ but it seems like the only sabotage here is what you’re doing to your own credibility.”

  Ross gred at the reporter, then at Diego, as if he could will them into silence. But more voices kept piling on.

  “Is it true you pn to roll out ‘Titan Killers’ to other major cities, regardless of colteral?”

  “What about the bs—where are those located? Hoeople are currently in them?”

  “And are we supposed to believe gress knows nothing about this?”

  Ross looked around, ered, his usual fidence crumbling. His voice faltered as he forced out a response. “Our projects are desigo keep people safe. What you’re all seeing has been twisted beynition to serve the agendas of those who don’t uand the threat we’re fag.”

  The room erupted again, the press hammering him with questions while the senators exged wary looks. No one was buying it.

  In the back, Diego held up his phone, fshing a video he’d just shared to the entire press gallery. “Oh, here’s a fun one,” he called out. “The b where Ross’s team captured mutants and stuck them in cells like b rats. These were people, General—people who had families. What’s your take on that?”

  Ross’s mask cracked pletely. “Enough!” he shouted, voice filled with anger as he pounded his fist on the podium. “This is not a trial. We’re dealing with national security here. None of you uand what we’re up against!”

  A cold silence filled the room. A senator stood up, folding his arms. “On the trary, General, we uand all too well. What we’re seeing is a power-hungry military official willing to cross every ethical boundary in the name of personal glory.”

  Ross’s face flushed red. “This is for the safety of this try—every decision I’ve made has been with that in mind.”

  Another senator scoffed. “You holy expect us to believe that? It looks like you’ve used the nation’s fears to line your pockets and experiment on its citizens. Tell me, General, what ‘safety’ involves t is?”

  Reporters tio push forward, their questions blending into one loud, damning roar. Ross tried to cut them off, tain trol, but the damage was dohe recs, videos, and files had spread too quickly, eaew piece further implig him, each damniail a nail in his reputation’s coffin.

  In the shadows, Diego watched, a satisfied grin on his face as the room desded into chaos. He tapped his phone, messaging Sofia.

  Diego: “Showtime, Sofia. He’s going dowly as pnned.”

  Sofia: “Perfect. Let me know if they throw him in cuffs on live TV.”

  Ba the room, Ross sed the crowd, desperation clear on his face. He straightened, a st-ditch attempt at authority, though his voice shook. “Enough. I won’t stand here and be sndered by false evidend biased media vultures. I have the full bag of this try’s most powerful leaders—”

  A senator’s voice cut him off. “General Ross, you’re finished here. Expect a full iigation, and if I were you, I’d get yourself a wyer.”

  --

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