chapter 167 part 2
Hearing this, The Punisher raised his weapon and aimed it at the side of the building in front of him.
"...3, 2, 1!"
As Scott's countdown finished over the communicator,
the brightly lit Hydra Tower was instantly plunged into darkness.
"What's going on?!"
In his office, Helmut frowned as he looked at the suddenly darkened lights.
"There's a problem with the building's power. The electrical maintenance crew has already begun emergency repairs, and the backup power has been connected."
Beside him, his secretary, Pepper, quickly reported the situation to Helmut.
Following Pepper's report, the office lights, which had gone dark, came back on.
Evidently, the building's backup power had kicked in.
"Tell the engineering team to hurry up. Also, I want a report from the supervisor about this incident afterward..."
Hydra was conducting numerous experiments internally and had professional personnel protecting the electrical equipment twenty-four hours a day. Helmut never imagined Hydra would experience such a low-level power failure.
However, before Helmut could finish his sentence.
The office lights, which had come back on with the backup power, went out again.
"Apologies, sir, I'll immediately..."
Seeing this, the secretary immediately started to issue instructions.
"Don't bother."
Helmut stopped her, however. He had clearly realized that this power failure at Hydra might not be as simple as it seemed.
*RUMBLE—*
Sure enough, not long after Helmut finished speaking.
A massive explosion rang out. The shockwave was so powerful it even caused Pepper to stumble in the office.
...
Luke Cage's gaze swept over Jessica's furious face before quickly landing on Colin, his expression complicated.
Strictly speaking, he was the first member of the Thunderbolts to have come into contact with him.
It was just that, back then, Colin was still an ordinary person.
He had even been shot and hospitalized because of a robbery by a couple of thugs.
Afterward, after taking Colin to the hospital, Luke Cage hadn't paid any more attention to what happened next.
Now, it seemed that Colin had obviously encountered something to have become what he was today.
"Long time no see, Luke Cage."
Compared to Luke Cage's complex emotions, Colin's reaction was much more relaxed.
Although one of his wrists was gripped by Crossbones, his face showed no hint of worry. Even the force Crossbones was applying to his wrist couldn't make him show any sign of discomfort.
"I never had the chance to thank you for what you did back then."
"Is this your way of saying thank you?"
Luke Cage said in a deep voice, his eyes sweeping over the ruined prison around them.
"By breaking into a prison and freeing criminals?"
"I'm not a criminal! I haven't even committed a crime!"
Faced with Luke Cage's question, before Colin could answer, Jessica shot back furiously.
"What right do you have to arrest me? Just because I used to be a Superhero? Damn it, I haven't been a Superhero for ages!"
"Any unregistered superhuman operating without government permission is a potential criminal. We are merely taking preventative measures."
"Bullshit! What right do you have to define us as criminals..."
Jessica couldn't help but curse at Luke Cage's response.
Watching the confrontational Luke Cage and Jessica, Colin's expression was a bit strange.
If he remembered correctly, the original Luke Cage and Jessica were supposed to be members of the same Superhero team, the Defenders. They even got married.
But now, in the Anti-World.
The two of them had ended up on opposing sides, one with the Thunderbolts and the other with the Anti-Registration Faction. Their relationship had changed from comrades-in-arms and husband and wife to that of adversaries.
So, this was another pair of victims of the [Twisted Time Node].
Silently pushing the thought aside, and seeing the hostile and confrontational attitude between Jessica and Luke Cage, Colin felt it would be impossible for them to even sit down and talk peacefully, let alone be a couple.
Of course, he had no intention of mediating between them.
With a casual tug of his arm, he easily broke free from Crossbones' grip.
Colin ignored the other's shocked expression and interrupted the fruitless argument between Luke Cage and Jessica.
"I've never believed that mere words can persuade an opponent. So, ma'am, there's no need to waste any more energy on this."
After saying this to Jessica behind him, Colin turned back to face Luke Cage and the others. He spoke slowly, "So, are you planning to come at me one by one, or all at once?"
"Although, personally, it makes no great difference to me either way."
Despite Colin's casual tone, the expressions on Luke Cage and the others didn't change at all.
As members of the Thunderbolts, they were no fools.
In the silence, Mister Hyde, standing beside Luke Cage, pulled a serum hormone from his pocket and injected it into his arm. As the serum entered his body, Mister Hyde's complexion began to change. Gritting his teeth against the agonizing pain of his bones and muscles twisting, he said in a hoarse voice, "I don't have time to waste here. Since he came looking for a fight, we should just tear him to pieces..."
Having used the serum to modify his body for years, Mister Hyde's will had clearly been affected by the hormones.
He had transformed from what should have been a cautious researcher into a raging monster.
*ROAR—*
With a suppressed roar, Mister Hyde's body rapidly expanded under the stimulation of the serum.
In just a few seconds, he transformed from a normal-sized man into a giant monster.
"Shit!"
Looking up at Mister Hyde's monstrous form after his transformation, Jessica couldn't help but curse.
"You're telling me a monster like this is legal and can walk around freely, while I have to be locked up in prison?"
Although it wasn't the first time she had seen his transformed state, witnessing Mister Hyde's complete transformation firsthand was an entirely different experience. She looked up, staring at the huge monster before her, who stood over three meters tall, his entire body covered in twisted, deformed muscles.
If one hadn't seen it with their own eyes, it would be hard to connect this creature with the Mister Hyde who had been speaking normally just moments ago.
The distorted muscle growth caused Mister Hyde's arms to hang low, his thick limbs supporting his massive body. On his face, which was also encased in muscle, one could clearly see the struggle between reason and madness.
*Hah, hah, hah!*
Mister Hyde's mouth was wide open, and he gasped for air from beneath his long brown hair.
It was clear that moving such a massive body required a great deal of oxygen, and the hormonal serum developed from the 'Hyde Formula' still had certain defects in this regard. It couldn't sustain Mister Hyde in prolonged combat after his transformation; if he remained transformed for too long, he would descend into a state of frenzy.
His mouth opened and closed repeatedly, revealing strands of saliva mixed with bright red blood.
*ROAR—*
Knowing his time with a clear mind was limited after transforming, Mister Hyde didn't hesitate.
He let out a deafening roar, then slammed his thick arms onto the ground, creating craters of varying depths. His massive body, like a rampaging behemoth, charged viciously toward Colin.
(end of chapter)