Marvel's Iron Lady

Dr. Banner—no, that title is no longer quite right. Since he had successfully embarked on the mystical path of the Kamar-Taj sorcerers, technically, Dr. Banner could now be called—Master Banner.

Recently, Master Banner's days had been full. Each day, under the guidance of Master Mordo, who served as an instructor, he joined the other apprentices at Kamar-Taj in completing their daily training. Immersed in the library, he delved into the vast sea of over ten thousand secret arts accumulated by Kamar-Taj across the ages, reveling in the depths of knowledge.

Although he was only beginning his journey on this path toward the unknown, his intellect had allowed him to display extraordinary talent and an innate comprehension that made him feel entirely in his element. Even the Ancient One looked upon his progress with a hint of approval.

Most importantly—through an ancient and mysterious forbidden spell that the Ancient One had taught him, Banner had successfully resolved the issue of the Hulk. That was the true reason behind his lightened mood.

However, when he contacted some old friends using the new communicator Miss Stark had given him, he learned of recent actions taken by the U.S. military. These developments disturbed him enough that he could no longer stay calm. With the Ancient One's permission, he had used a portal to return to the United States alone.

The U.S. Department of Defense had new plans in motion, and Banner had heard from friends that General Ross was considering reviving the Super Soldier Program.

Master Banner found himself deeply frustrated by his complicated relationship with his "future father-in-law." It was because of Ross that he had gone through so much. Even though he had now resolved the problem of the Hulk and found a path to the mystical arts at Kamar-Taj, he couldn't simply stand by and watch as the Super Soldier Program was restarted and potentially exploited by the ambitious for hidden political purposes.

Especially if the program's revival meant creating new victims like himself, Master Banner refused to turn a blind eye.

Though aware that the Department of Defense had not lifted his warrant, Master Banner could not in good conscience remain at Kamar-Taj. Instead, he felt compelled to return to the United States, his homeland, and to the campus where he had graduated several times over.

Back at the California Institute of Technology, Banner planned to access the campus network and delete all records related to the Super Soldier Program and the Gamma experiments he'd left there. He also intended to find his ex-girlfriend, Betty Ross, and retrieve a backup copy of the data he'd left with her to completely eliminate any remaining risks.

Unfortunately, Master Banner had underestimated the intelligence capabilities of his home country. As soon as he appeared on a campus surveillance camera, the Department of Defense received the footage and forwarded it to General Ross.

To Ross, Banner remained the same: his daughter's ex-boyfriend, a former researcher in the Super Soldier Program, and—above all—Hulk.

To him, every inch of Banner's skin, every drop of his blood, every cell was the United States of America's property, sovereign and inviolable.

In less than an hour, while Master Banner was still busy deleting data, Caltech had been fully evacuated, surrounded, and placed under lockdown by the National Guard and the U.S. Army, forming a special containment zone.

It was at this tense moment that a gleaming silver Lamborghini burst through the military's perimeter around Caltech, speeding past American soldiers who attempted to block it, and breaking into this sealed-off, isolated place.

In the deserted campus, a heavy atmosphere lingered. It was evident that the U.S. military had no intention of letting Banner escape from this location.

After all the chances he had missed before, General Ross had come prepared this time. In the past, underestimating Banner had led to numerous failed attempts to capture him, with Banner easily breaking through each trap and perimeter when he transformed into the Hulk. But this time was different.

With his authority as a general, he had mobilized nearby military resources, bringing in a dozen or so light tanks, armored vehicles, and several armed helicopters. His trump card, however, was the infrasonic suppression system recently delivered by Stark Industries—a fully operational sonic weapon battalion.

But as General Ross continued deploying his encirclement of Caltech, Miss Stark had already exited her car, moving past the academic buildings and heading straight for where Banner was located—she could feel a distinct energy, filled with an unusual intensity, emanating from that spot.

A few minutes later, when Miss Stark finally found Banner in a room on the top floor of a research building, she couldn't help but burst into laughter at the sight before her; the scene was simply too absurd. Banner had completely changed his appearance.

For some reason, he had shaved off the graying curls on his head, leaving himself with a neat, fresh look. Dressed in the light brown linen robes typical of a Kamar-Taj sorcerer, with a pair of gold-rimmed glasses on his face, he was sitting at a computer with an intense, serious expression.

"You know, you look downright hilarious in that outfit, Dr. Banner—or should I call you Master Banner now?"

Upon hearing Miss Stark's voice, Banner's hands, which had been rapidly typing, came to an abrupt halt. Turning around slowly, he faced her with his usual awkward smile, then gave her a helpless shake of his head.

"What on earth are you doing? You've stirred up quite the commotion. Your future father-in-law has the place surrounded."

"I'm trying to find every piece of research data I left behind and delete it, but I seem to have underestimated myself. The files are scattered all over the database, making it impossible to retrieve them all in one go."

"It looks like our great Master Banner's sense of justice and compassion has kicked in again, bringing him all the way back here despite the risks to his own life."

Miss Stark shrugged casually, her posture relaxed, making light of the situation as though the U.S. military surrounding Caltech was of no concern to her. Naturally, she had never taken them seriously in the first place.

"They're not going to let you off easy. By now, they've probably already sent in a strike team. What's your plan?"

"At Kamar-Taj, I learned that the best way to avoid danger is not to be aware of it in the first place."

Banner responded without looking up, his eyes glued to the program interface on the computer screen and the slow-moving progress bar.

"For centuries, sorcerers have kept the mysterious, the dangerous, and the unknown separate from the ordinary world, allowing people to live in peace. In the realm of science, it's no different."

"This technology is too dangerous, something humanity isn't ready to possess at this stage. I've set up a program that will completely erase all records in the database."

He sighed, pushing the keyboard away and turning off the computer screen, camouflaging it to look unused in hopes of delaying detection long enough for the program to wipe the database.

"I know the data in there is valuable and that this will harm certain people's research, maybe even destroy their life's work. But I can't take that risk. Hopefully, they all have backups. I'm truly sorry."

Rising slowly, Banner adjusted his dark brown robe with a determined look, then turned, strolling right past Miss Stark as if she weren't there. She merely watched him with amused curiosity, wondering what he planned to do next.

A few minutes later, Banner emerged before the military forces surrounding the academic building. In that moment, as dozens of assault rifles aimed at him, the tension in the air grew thick enough to cut.

General Ross, buoyed by the infrasonic suppression system provided by Stark Industries, had gained renewed confidence.

Rather than ordering Banner tranquilized and captured immediately, Ross chose to employ an infantry-armor coordination tactic, directing soldiers and armored vehicles to advance and surround Banner completely at the entrance to the research building.

Watching Banner's calm expression, Ross felt a tightening in his previously injured arm, a legacy of his failed encounters with the Hulk years before.

"I've chased you for five years—five whole years across seven continents and eight oceans, only to finally have you cornered here, Banner. You've cost your country dearly, and now it's time for you to make your sacrifice for national progress."

Mindful of his past mistakes, he refrained from getting too close to Banner, choosing instead to shout his message from behind the protection of his soldiers and armored vehicles, using the loudspeaker atop one of the vehicles.

"Yes, five years. You've been after me for five years. Do you have any idea what those years were like for me?"

"To evade your agents, I was forced to evolve from an ordinary man into someone with extensive counter-surveillance experience, constantly hiding, running. For five years, I couldn't even use my own identity. This time, I won't run, because it's time we put an end to this."

Banner's expression grew grim as he looked at Ross, a face all too familiar. Some things were unforgettable, leaving not only fond memories of love but also deep-seated resentment. This time, he wasn't going to run, nor did he see the need to.

"Apparently, these five years haven't taught you any humility. Perhaps it's time for me to show you the true power of technological progress."

Hearing Banner's reply, Ross broke into a grin, as though he had just heard a joke. Once he had regained his composure, he picked up his radio again and spoke calmly.

"This time, I've come with Stark Industries' latest technological masterpiece. I don't think you'll stand a chance against it, not even the other 'you'."

With that, Ross patted the armored vehicles around him. These weren't ordinary troop carriers but had been stripped of weapon turrets and fitted instead with Stark Industries' large, prism-shaped infrasonic weapons.

Labeled as Stark Industries products, these sonic suppression systems looked somewhat like satellite antennas, though without the usual curves, and resembled more of a black mesh-covered loudspeaker.

Seeing the Stark Industries logo on the equipment, Banner frowned. Glancing briefly at the research building behind him, he sighed, shaking his head before refocusing his gaze on Ross.

"Is that so? Maybe you've acquired some powerful weapons, and that gives you confidence. But you know, I haven't been idle either—I've learned quite a few new things. So, how about a little surprise, General? A real surprise."

As he spoke, Banner closed his eyes slowly, bowing his head and folding his hands together, palms facing each other. In that instant, everyone sensed something unusual in the air.

A faint golden glow appeared in his palms. As he abruptly spread his hands apart, a golden blade of energy took form in his grasp. 

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