Mission 002: The Ghost Protocol (January 2009)
The target was a highly secured, non-disclosed research depot maintained by a covert US military branch, deep inside a facility known only by its designation: Site Theta-7, located beneath an abandoned missile silo in rural Nevada. This was where the US government had stabilized and archived Dr. Bruce Banner's residual research and blood samples following the Abomination incident.
Lucian, observing from The Citadel, did not allow for kinetic action. A loud confrontation would draw the immediate attention of S.H.I.E.L.D., and he was not ready to engage them directly.
"Nine, the Phantoms will utilize the Quantum Phase-Shift Generators in their suits," Lucian instructed. "They must operate at a displacement frequency that causes them to briefly exist outside the normal electromagnetic spectrum. They will be literal ghosts."
The operation was conducted by a two-person team: Phantom-One (the master infiltration specialist) and Phantom-Two (the quantum slicer).
Aegis Pre-Hacking: Hours before insertion, MORPHEUS, via the Aegis platform, had already established a low-level quantum backdoor into Site Theta-7's primary security mainframe. It wasn't an aggressive hack; it was a subtle, almost undetectable data stream that convinced the system's AI that everything was normal.
Phase-Shift Insertion: Phantoms One and Two deployed from the Styx, parachuting silently into the Nevada desert. Upon reaching the perimeter, they activated their suits' Phase-Shift Generators. They didn't just become invisible; they became intangible to conventional security measures, allowing them to glide through reinforced concrete walls and laser grids without touching them.
Data Acquisition: Once inside the central server room, Phantom-Two deployed the Chronos Data Spike. This device didn't copy the data; it created a quantum entangled link between the facility's hard drives and MORPHEUS back on The Citadel. The entirety of Banner's research notes, blood analysis, and radiation signature data—terabytes of information—was transferred instantaneously and silently, leaving no trace in the system's access logs.
The crucial part was the physical sample: a vial of stabilized, highly active Gamma-irradiated blood.
Phantom-One located the cryo-vault and, using a custom-made laser cutter that operated silently at a specific, localized frequency, breached the container. The vial was secured in a specialized, lead-lined containment unit built into the suit.
Within two hours of insertion, the Phantoms were back at the extraction point. Site Theta-7 remained on high alert, secure, and completely oblivious to the fact that their most sensitive scientific archive had been entirely copied and a crucial sample stolen.
The Haul: Lucian now possessed the most comprehensive data on uncontrolled gamma mutation on the planet, allowing him to model the precise mechanisms of the Hulk's transformation.
Lucian's Directive to MORPHEUS:"Analyze the Banner data. Focus on suppressing the physiological catalysts for mutation while isolating the energy output mechanism. This is the blueprint for controlled, non-destructive bio-energy conversion."
(2009-2010)
With the Banner data providing key insights into high-energy biological conversion, Lucian pivoted Frontier's R&D toward the greatest economic and environmental challenge of the era: Global Energy.
He found the solution not in building new infrastructure, but in perfecting the use of the oldest energy source: coal.
Lucian reasoned that coal, as compressed biological matter, contained massive amounts of untapped solar energy locked in its chemical bonds. The problem was the messy, inefficient process of combustion.
His breakthrough, Project: Aether-Coal, was not about burning coal; it was about molecularly restructuring it using intense pressure and a catalyzed fusion process based on his earlier exotic matter research.
The Transmutation Process
The specialized Frontier facility (discreetly placed in a decommissioned coal mine in West Virginia, now fully automated and cloaked) housed the Aether-Catalytic Converter (ACC).
The ACC worked on the principle of Catalyzed Cold Fusion:
Coal Input: Standard, raw coal (1 ton) is fed into the ACC.
Quantum Disintegration: A minute amount of the exotic matter catalyst is introduced, destabilizing the coal's carbon bonds.
Pressure and Fusion: The material is then subjected to extreme, sustained pressure (P=10^7 atmospheres) and a localized, contained micro-fusion reaction that forces the carbon atoms to restructure into a new, complex hydrocarbon chain.
The result was a single ton of a dense, dark, low-viscosity liquid dubbed Aether-Fuel.
The Energy Breakthrough
The properties of Aether-Fuel were staggering:
Mass Preservation: The conversion process was nearly 100% efficient: 1 ton of coal yields 1 ton of Aether-Fuel.
Zero Emissions: The final hydrocarbon was chemically inert until activated by a Frontier-patented micro-converter. When used, it released its energy through a clean, catalyzed molecular breakdown with zero carbon output—the only byproducts were trace amounts of superheated water vapor.
Unrivaled Density: Due to its hyper-dense structure, the energy output was enormous.
Demonstration: Lucian calculated that 1 ton of Aether-Fuel, when fed through a scaled-up Aether-Fuel power plant, possessed enough latent energy to power a metropolis the size of New York City for 10 consecutive days.
This invention solved the global energy crisis overnight, eliminating the need for oil, gas, and nuclear power while simultaneously providing a clean, profitable, and politically defensible use for the world's existing coal infrastructure.
(2010)
Lucian didn't sell the fuel; he sold the ACC units and the proprietary power plants to governments and utility companies worldwide. The profit margins were obscene, but the environmental benefit and energy stability were so profound that no regulatory body could stop him. Frontier Industries secured contracts across North America, Europe, and Asia, cementing its status not just as a technology giant, but as the linchpin of the global energy grid.
By 2010, two years after the initial Iron Man flight, Lucian Rothschild, operating invisibly from The Citadel, had established:
Scientific Supremacy (Aether-Fuel, BFU-1, Quantum Tech).
Strategic Superiority (Aegis, The Citadel, The Phantoms).
Financial Dominance (Trillions in profit and control over global energy and medicine).
He was ready for the next phase: actively inserting Frontier Industries into the unfolding hero timeline, starting with the next major global event: Thor and the Destroyer.