“Ross wants to take over the world?” Calvin genuinely thought he had misheard her.
That made absolutely no sense.
From what he remembered, General Ross was an extremely hard-line military hawk with an almost obsessive fixation on the Hulk and the Super Soldier Serum.
The old bastard could be ruthless, sure, but world domination?
That seemed excessive even for him.
Besides, trying to conquer the world in this universe was practically a speedrun toward getting yourself killed.
Natasha waited until the aircraft had taken off before explaining.
“Ross has been trying to perfectly reproduce a version of the Super Soldier Serum capable of drastically enhancing human performance.” “During one of those experiments, something went wrong.
Dr.
Bruce Banner underwent a genetic mutation that allows him to transform into a giant green creature.
Codename: Hulk.” “S.H.I.E.L.D.
has been trying to locate Banner for some time.
Our goal was to make contact and help him gain control over what’s happening to him.” She folded her arms.
“Not long ago, we learned that he had returned to Virginia, so Fury sent Barton to make contact.” Natasha’s expression tightened.
“That’s where things went wrong.” “Not long after Hawkeye arrived, he transmitted a single message and then disappeared.” Her voice became more serious.
“According to the message, Ross has successfully overcome the major technical problems with the serum.
He’s already created a large number of enhanced soldiers.” “And now Banner has returned at exactly the same time.” Natasha looked directly at Calvin.
“We suspect Ross intends to use Banner’s genetic material to improve the serum even further and create soldiers more powerful than the ones he already has.” Calvin finally understood.
So in this universe, Ross had not hit the same dead end with the Super Soldier Serum that he had in the original story.
He had actually developed a mature version.
Naturally, that still had not cured his obsession with the Hulk.
But Calvin still did not see how any of that automatically translated into “take over the world.” “So that’s enough for S.H.I.E.L.D.
to decide he’s planning world domination?” “Not by itself.” Natasha’s expression darkened.
Barton was one of her closest friends.
With his condition unknown, even someone as experienced as Natasha was finding it difficult to remain completely detached.
“Hawkeye is a Level Seven S.H.I.E.L.D.
agent.” “If the military detained him during an operation, there should have been formal communication with S.H.I.E.L.D.” “There wasn’t.” “Ross hasn’t even given us a meaningful response.
He’s brushed off every official inquiry.” She continued, “He’s also suppressing information, ignoring existing agreements, and mass-producing enhanced soldiers without authorization.
That’s well beyond experimental research.” “When you put everything together, saying Ross has ambitions far beyond his authority isn’t exactly unreasonable.” Calvin understood immediately.
‘Ah.’ So they were putting the biggest possible label on him first.
Declare him a threat to global security, seize the moral high ground, and from that point onward every action against him became easier to justify.
S.H.I.E.L.D.
was pretty good at this.
Still, something bothered Calvin.
Was Ross really stupid enough to provoke S.H.I.E.L.D.
this openly?
Whatever its internal corruption, S.H.I.E.L.D.
was still publicly an international security organization with enormous influence.
Why would Ross antagonize it so casually?
Did he seriously think a few enhanced soldiers made him untouchable?
Even if Calvin handed him several hundred Captain Americas, that still would not make him unbeatable in this universe.
Then something else occurred to him.
In the original timeline, Hulk and Abomination had fought through Harlem and devastated several blocks, causing enormous destruction and casualties.
And the entire disaster had ultimately grown out of Ross’s attempts to reproduce the Super Soldier Serum.
It was completely the military’s mess.
Yet Ross had not suffered any lasting political consequences.
If anything, years later he had somehow climbed even higher and become Secretary of State.
That meant the forces supporting him behind the scenes were anything but simple.
There could easily be more going on with Barton’s disappearance as well.
Maybe Ross was not even the only person directing the serum project.
But none of that was Calvin’s problem.
Fury issued the missions.
Calvin completed them.
Preferably with as much extra progress as possible.
If something exploded politically afterward, Fury could deal with it.
Calvin just had to fight.
Everything else belonged to management.
Having someone else available to take responsibility really was wonderful.
“So what exactly does Fury want us to do?” Natasha answered immediately.
“When we reach Culver University, our first priority is confirming whether Barton is still alive and getting him out.” “After that, Fury will issue additional objectives depending on what we find.” The system notification arrived at almost the same moment.
[Nick Fury has issued you a mission.] [Mission: Rescue Operation] [Current Objective: Rescue Hawkeye — Clint Barton.] [Rewards: EXP +2,000, Clint Barton Favorability +10, Natasha Romanoff Favorability +40, Random Items ×2.] …
Less than an hour later, the aircraft landed in Virginia.
Calvin and Natasha changed their appearance and headed toward Culver University.
By the time they reached the area around campus, they had already received some very bad news.
Culver University had suddenly announced a two-week closure due to laboratory equipment upgrades and renovations to several academic buildings.
Neither of them needed to ask who was responsible.
Ross had cleared the campus.
Natasha immediately became more tense.
That meant military personnel had effectively taken control of the university.
Gathering intelligence would now be difficult.
Infiltration would be even worse.
Under ordinary circumstances, Natasha would still have been confident.
She had infiltrated military facilities before.
But this was no longer a base guarded by ordinary soldiers.
Ross’s troops had been enhanced by the serum.
Super-soldier veterans.
If even Hawkeye had been captured, Natasha could not assume she would simply slip through unnoticed.
She eventually turned toward Calvin.
This man kept producing impossible solutions whenever a situation became difficult.
Maybe he had another one.
“Calvin, any ideas?” She glanced toward the sealed campus.
“Getting inside quietly is going to be difficult.” Calvin smiled.
“My idea’s simple.” “Walk straight in, beat everyone down, and drag Ross out by the neck.” Natasha rolled her eyes.
“Be serious.” “This place is practically a military base now.
They have automatic weapons, armored vehicles, probably tanks, and whatever other heavy equipment Ross brought in.” “And those aren’t ordinary soldiers anymore.” She shook her head.
“This isn’t the same as storming that criminal compound in Hell’s Kitchen.” “More importantly, if they realize we’re attacking, they might hurt Barton.” Calvin shrugged.
“Fair point.” Ross was already ignoring S.H.I.E.L.D.’s communications.
If pushed far enough, there was no guarantee he would continue treating Barton as leverage instead of a liability.
“Then we’ll do it another way.” Calvin rolled up his sleeve and checked his watch.
“Forty minutes until noon.” He nodded to himself.
“Plenty of time.
I should be ready for whatever happens afterward.” Natasha stared at him.
Ready for what?
Running away?
Calvin clearly had no intention of explaining yet, so she followed.
A few minutes later, the two reached a wooded area a little over a hundred meters from the university.
The trees were thick enough to provide excellent concealment.
Even in broad daylight, two college students could probably sneak off in here for some extremely hands-on biology practice without being noticed.
Calvin unfolded a map of Culver University and began comparing their current position with the estimated location of the underground laboratory.
If Barton had been imprisoned anywhere on campus, the underground facility was the most likely place.
And even if he was not there, Calvin was willing to bet Ross was conducting something deeply illegal below ground.
Sneaking in and recording the evidence would still give S.H.I.E.L.D.
a valuable bargaining chip.
Natasha looked around in confusion.
She still had no idea what Calvin was planning.
Knowing the direction and distance to the underground laboratory did not solve the problem of actually getting inside.
Unless…
Her expression changed.
Surely he was not planning to dig a tunnel.
By the time they finished digging, the entire operation would be over.
Natasha glanced away for barely a moment.
When she looked back, Calvin suddenly had a large pixelated pickaxe resting across one shoulder.
It appeared to be made entirely from diamond.
She stared at it.
Then at him.
“You’re not actually planning to dig a tunnel, are you?” Her tone made it clear she desperately wanted him to say no.
Calvin grinned.
“When there’s no road ahead…” He lifted the Diamond Pickaxe.
“Make one.”