It was deep night in New York.
Across the ocean, in Mumbai, the afternoon sun hung low over Dharavi.
Dharavi was one of the largest slums in the world — a dense maze of corrugated metal roofs, patched walls, hanging wires, and narrow alleyways barely wide enough for a thin adult to pass through. In some paths, even that was impossible. Only stray dogs could weave through the gaps.
Inside a dim shack made of rusted iron sheets and wooden poles, a thin man with glasses carefully cleaned a young girl's infected wound.
"Dr. Banu," a small boy asked anxiously, clutching two crumpled banknotes in his hand, "is my sister badly hurt?"
The man smiled gently.
"It's not serious," he said in the local language. "I'll leave medicine. Give it to her on time. She'll recover."
The boy's eyes filled with relief. He held out the money.
Dr. Banu looked at the notes for a moment — then gently pushed the boy's hand back.
"Use it for food. She needs strength."
He packed up his medical kit and stepped outside.
Dr. Banu was not truly Dr. Banu.
He was Bruce Banner.
And he was hiding.
Banner walked calmly through narrow paths until he reached a garbage dump. The smell was suffocating. People searched through trash for scraps.
He clapped loudly three times.
The people looked at him.
He spoke briefly.
One by one, they quickly left. Fear was visible on their faces. They understood something was about to happen.
When the dump was empty, Banner spoke quietly.
"You've been following me for a long time. Are you General Ross's people… or someone else?"
From behind a stack of discarded metal sheets, a red-haired woman stepped into view.
She wore a tight black combat suit. Calm. Focused.
"Dr. Banner," she said smoothly, "Dharavi is a good place to hide."
Banner studied her carefully.
"I appreciate that you call me Doctor," he replied. "Not monster."
She nodded slightly.
"I'm Natasha."
She was Black Widow, sent by S.H.I.E.L.D..
"We need you," she said.
Banner gave a faint, bitter laugh.
"Need me? Or need the other guy?"
His expression hardened.
"You want to cage me until you need something smashed. Or strap me down in a lab for research in the name of 'saving the world.'"
"No," Natasha said carefully. "We want to help you."
Banner tilted his head slightly.
"First you need me. Now you want to help me. Which one is true?"
A sudden beeping sound interrupted the conversation.
Banner glanced at his wrist. His watch was modified as a heart rate monitor.
The numbers were rising.
He stepped back slowly.
"The other guy doesn't like cages," Banner said quietly. "And I don't like being used."
The beeping grew faster.
"Leave," he warned. "Before he comes out."
Natasha held her position, not moving closer.
"We're not here to cage you," she said. "We're here because of something called the Tesseract. It emits gamma rays. No one understands gamma radiation better than you."
Banner's eyes flickered.
"I don't know anything about your cube," he said sharply. "And I'm not helping you."
The heart monitor screamed louder.
Green light flashed in his eyes.
He inhaled deeply.
Exhaled.
"Inhale. Exhale."
His muscles tensed visibly.
"Tell me why you're really here."
Natasha swallowed.
"We believe you can help us control gamma radiation. And maybe… find a cure for yourself."
Banner's jaw tightened.
"I've lived like this for three years," he said quietly. "If you hadn't found me, I could have continued."
Suddenly —
Whoosh.
An arrow shot from behind him and embedded deep into his shoulder.
Banner's eyes widened.
The beeping became frantic.
Green veins pulsed beneath his skin.
But the arrowhead was already injecting a sedative.
Within seconds, his body weakened.
He collapsed to the ground.
Natasha exhaled slowly, wiping sweat from her forehead.
From behind stacked containers, Clint Barton stepped forward calmly, retrieving the arrow.
"Simple task," he said flatly.
Natasha glared at him.
"Decoy work next time is yours."
Clint folded his bow into a compact stick and tucked it away.
"If he transformed, it would be complicated," he said. "Without transforming, he's just a man."
Natasha shook her head slightly. She knew that was not entirely true.
---
While Mumbai descended into evening…
New York approached dawn.
Inside the sealed basement of Osborn Group, Batman stood alone.
He had spent the entire night combing through data.
Gamma rays.
Short wavelength.
Extremely high energy.
Deep penetration.
The experimental logs showed that Norman Osborn's serum incorporated gamma radiation in an attempt to replicate the Super Soldier formula.
The results were clear.
Physical enhancement.
Personality splitting.
Batman spoke quietly to himself.
"If I destroy Norman's evil personality, the serum may trigger another one."
The serum was unstable.
The radiation was the catalyst.
To cure Norman completely, he needed an antidote — not a temporary suppression.
And that meant one thing.
Dr. Banner.
Banner was both a nuclear physicist and the Hulk — the most successful gamma mutation in history.
Understanding him meant understanding gamma radiation.
Understanding gamma radiation meant curing Norman.
At the same time, Hulk himself required contingency planning.
Batman needed proximity. Observation. Analysis.
He moved quickly through the building, destroying every file and sample related to the serum. Hard drives shattered. Backup drives wiped. Physical notes burned.
He could not allow General Ross to seize this data.
"If I were Ross," Batman thought, "I would militarize Osborn Group immediately."
And as if summoned by that thought —
Outside the building, armored vehicles rolled into position.
Dark green camouflage trucks sealed every exit.
Armed soldiers stormed the building floor by floor.
On the roof of Osborn Manor, a helicopter descended.
Thaddeus Ross stepped out, wind whipping his hair.
He grabbed a radio.
"Seal off Osborn Group completely."
His voice was cold and satisfied.
"Tomorrow morning, announce military supervision and technical blockade."
"And the reason?" a soldier asked.
Ross smiled slightly.
"To prevent the proliferation of dangerous Osborn technologies."
Inside the building, Batman paused briefly.
The board was shifting.
Banner was captured.
Norman was mutating.
Ross was moving.
The gamma problem had just expanded from one man…
To a global threat.
And Batman would have to act fast.
The next move would determine whether New York gained a cure — or a new war.
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