The office fell silent after Coulson's invitation.
Clouds drifted past the massive windows of the Helicarrier, sunlight flashing across polished metal walls.
Li Jie set down his coffee.
"I won't join S.H.I.E.L.D.," he said calmly.
Coulson didn't look surprised.
"But I'm willing to cooperate."
That made Coulson's eyes sharpen slightly. "Go on."
"I act independently. You don't monitor me, you don't investigate my equipment, and you don't interfere with my movements."
Li Jie's tone remained steady.
"In exchange, when you encounter high-level threats you can't handle, you contact me. I'll decide whether to intervene."
Coulson folded his hands. "And what do you want from us?"
"Information. Mutation reports. Special zombie sightings. Updates about the captured heroes."
A brief pause.
"And progress on revival research."
Coulson considered him carefully. The young man sitting across from him wasn't reckless, wasn't arrogant. He was cautious. Controlled.
"Agreed," Coulson finally said, standing and extending his hand. "A strategic partnership."
Li Jie shook it.
"For now."
"For now," Coulson echoed.
Before either could speak further, an alert sounded in the office.
A holographic map of Manhattan flickered into existence between them. A red marker pulsed violently.
Coulson's expression turned serious.
"We just detected a large-scale movement near Midtown. Not a horde. Something singular."
The image zoomed in.
A towering shape moved between shattered skyscrapers. Each step left cracks spidering across the streets. Cars were tossed aside like toys.
Li Jie narrowed his eyes.
"That's not Steve."
"No," Coulson replied. "Our analysts believe it's Banner."
The name hung in the air.
Bruce Banner.
Which meant—
Hulk.
"If he's fully mutated," Coulson continued, "his regenerative ability combined with zombie traits makes him nearly unstoppable."
"Nearly?" Li Jie asked.
Coulson gave a faint smile. "We hope."
The Helicarrier shifted as it changed course.
"You said you'd cooperate," Coulson added. "This qualifies."
Li Jie exhaled slowly.
He hadn't fully recovered from his fight with Steve Rogers. The Bat Armor was nearly destroyed. Deploying the Mark 20 would expose more than he preferred.
But if Hulk was rampaging in Manhattan—
Every minute meant thousands dead.
"I'll handle containment," Li Jie said. "You provide aerial suppression and civilian evacuation."
Coulson nodded immediately. "Done."
Minutes later, a Quinjet roared out from the Helicarrier.
Li Jie stood at the open ramp, wind whipping against his clothes. Below, smoke rose from the city like funeral incense.
Then he saw it.
A massive green figure smashing through a collapsed overpass, dragging half a bus behind him.
His skin was torn in places, muscle exposed—but already regenerating. His eyes glowed with feral hunger.
Zombie Hulk.
A tank fired from a distant street.
The shell exploded against Hulk's shoulder.
He didn't even flinch.
Instead, he leapt.
The ground cratered beneath him as he soared several blocks in a single bound, crashing down onto an armored vehicle and flattening it completely.
"Evacuation teams are retreating," a voice crackled over comms. "We can't hold him."
Li Jie stepped forward.
The Mark 20 Python mech materialized around him in segmented flashes of light, armor plates locking into place with mechanical precision.
Energy hummed through the frame.
"Keep your distance," Li Jie said calmly.
He dropped.
The impact shattered asphalt as he landed directly in Hulk's path.
The zombie giant turned slowly.
For a moment, they simply stared at one another.
Then Hulk roared.
The sound shook windows for blocks.
He charged.
Li Jie boosted sideways just as Hulk's fist slammed into the street, leaving a crater three meters wide.
Shockwaves rippled outward.
Fast.
Even in this state, Hulk was terrifyingly fast.
Li Jie countered with a full-power repulsor blast to Hulk's chest.
The beam drove him backward through a storefront.
Debris exploded outward.
But before the dust even settled—
Hulk burst back out.
Regenerated.
Angrier.
"Strength increases with rage," Li Jie muttered. "And zombies don't feel fatigue."
Hulk leapt again.
This time Li Jie met him mid-air.
Metal fist collided with green flesh.
The shockwave shattered nearby glass for half a kilometer.
They crashed through a building together, floors collapsing beneath their weight.
Inside the rubble, Hulk grabbed the mech's arm and tore.
Armor screeched.
Warning alarms blared.
Li Jie fired a point-blank chest beam into Hulk's face.
For a brief second, bone showed through burned flesh.
Then muscle regrew over it.
Hulk roared and slammed Li Jie through another wall.
The Mark 20's systems flashed red.
Damage rising.
Below, soldiers could only watch in stunned silence.
"This is worse than Rogers," someone whispered.
Li Jie rocketed upward, dragging Hulk with him as the giant clung to the armor.
Higher.
Above the skyline.
Above the smoke.
Clouds swallowed them.
Hulk punched again, denting reinforced plating.
Li Jie locked both arms around him.
"If regeneration is the problem," he said quietly inside the helmet, "then total destruction is the solution."
Energy levels surged.
The Mark 20 began overloading its core.
Hulk sensed something and struggled violently.
Too late.
A blinding column of light erupted in the clouds.
The explosion was contained upward, a pillar piercing the sky.
When the light faded, something massive fell.
Hulk's body crashed into the Hudson River with a thunderous splash.
He did not rise immediately.
Seconds later, Li Jie descended, armor smoking but intact.
Below, rescue crews stared upward in disbelief.
Coulson's voice came through the comm.
"Status?"
Li Jie looked at the river's surface.
Still.
"For now," he replied calmly, "contained."
High above, the Helicarrier hovered in silence.
And for the first time since the apocalypse began—
Humanity had hope.
....
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