Chapter 354: Hope for the Best

13th June 2013, Thaddeus Ross' Office

(Thaddeus Ross POV)

He asked the labs to somehow synthesize what made Banner into the Hulk, and they failed. The result was too unstable. Until, that is, one of the scientists had the bright idea to combine their failed batches with the Extremis virus from another company that the military acquired.

Of course, the result was explosive, and the batches destroyed, except for a single vial, where the two serums were able to counteract each other somehow and become stable. The science was above him, but he had on his hand, an untested serum filled with the powers of the Hulk and the Extremis virus. Honestly, he normally wouldn't have done anything this reckless, but he had no choice.

Ross gritted his teeth and plunged the serum into his leg. He did his best to stifle the scream as the power coursed through his blood. Oh, he could feel the power alright. As the man's eyes grew red, and his skin started to change, despite the agony, Thaddeus Ross let out a bloodthirsty smile.

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(Tony Stark POV)

Tony Stark was drinking again. It was a shame, he was sober for months, but lately, things have been driving him to drinking much more. The previous day, Cap, Bruce, and Sam, decided to foolishly fall to Ross' trap. And now, the Avengers were no more. If it wasn't for Grey and Maximoff, they would have still been in jail.

Oh, they also practically nuked the Accords, and the public opinion kept getting worse and worse with every leaked photo and video. Honestly, the media had a field day with the number of scandals. Tony himself had bit the bullet and posted the Avengers' debate about what to do with the Accords, and that was practically the final nail in the coffin. Even with the mess Cap had caused, people still listened to the Avengers, or at least, what used to be the Avengers.

Funnily enough, Reed Richards and his team weren't affected too heavily by the backlash of these reveals. How the hell were Jean and Wanda able to leak a video of their meeting weeks ago, still baffled and scared the Billionaire. It was obvious that Reed didn't approve of the Accords, and that he was only going along with it to start a governmental organization dealing with the Enhanced individuals all over the planet. The genius had wanted to change the Accords from the inside, while he, Tony Stark, wanted to oppose them outright, and only sign when they're agreeable.

As for the Avengers, well, the team was practically disbanded. Cap, Hulk, and Falcon were now in the outpost in Wakanda, living as outcasts, and considered to be fugitives in every country that had signed the Accords. Thor was off-world, Clint had retired, Rhodey was away dealing with the fallout with the military, and Natasha had disappeared, for some reason or another. That woman was still a mystery to him, even years later.

Currently, Tony was the only Avenger in the tower. Perhaps, he should name it back to 'Stark Tower'. After all, it was true now. Tony snorted at the thought, but it wasn't as if his teammates were coming back anytime soon.

Tony downed another shot of whiskey. Damn Ross for sacrificing hundreds of lives just to apprehend the Avengers. Damn Steve for falling for it so easily. Damn the two redhead mutants for using that to their advantage in the little worldwide chess game that they're playing. Oh, Tony could see it clearly. The Morrigan had manipulated history in ways that he could never imagine, and her underlings were doing the same with the mutant issue. Tony was used as a pawn in their little game, and he didn't like it. Oh, he benefitted from their trick with Ross, but they were betting on his failing, not succeeding. It just rubbed him the wrong way.

He wanted the world to be as simple as it used to be. Before New York, aliens, and mutant gods, before even Afghanistan. It was easier then, to ignore the innocents that kept dying at the hands of the people in power.

Tony's pondering was interrupted by Jarvis' voice, "Sir, it appears that the Secretary of State, Thaddeus Ross, is here to see you."

The billionaire groaned to himself, "What the hell does the bastard want now?"

"He did not specify, sir, but he is very insistent in wanting to see you."

Tony sighed in exasperation, "Just let him up. It's not like he could do anything, really."

"Right away, sir," the artificial intelligence responded.

A couple of minutes later, the elevator opened, revealing Ross in his usual military uniform. He did not look happy, not that Tony expected him to be after the public crucifixion he was still going through.

Tony didn't get up and just raised a glass to the former General, "Well if it isn't Thaddeus Ross. Why did you grace me with your presence?"

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

The Secretary of State gave him an incredulous look, "Are you seriously asking me what I'm doing here?"

"Well, yeah," Tony answered with a shrug.

"Do you have any idea of what you've done, what the consequences of your actions will be? Years of planning are now going down the drain, and you've all but made a war between humanity and mutants inevitable," the man yelled out.

Tony snorted, "you seriously think that I was the one to cause the leak? Oh, I will admit that the timing is suspect, but I honestly had nothing to do with it. The fact that my own systems were hacked, as well as Richards, is a huge security risk that we should all be taking more seriously. Plus, I agreed with Reed when it came to the fact that the Accords were necessary. It was why I wanted to protest it, not destroy it. It's like accusing a protestor of being a terrorist. Yeah, we might not like it and say that we don't, it doesn't mean that we're willing to destroy everything for no reason."

"Are you expecting me to believe that nonsense?" the former General answered while gritting his teeth.

"I'm being honest here. I'm not the one responsible for the leak. I was just as surprised as you were. If I had to guess, it would be that a technologically inclined mutant did it. Seriously, my security is ironclad, and so is Reed's. It's the only thing that makes sense. Plus, you knew that our plan was to wait you out, it was why you released the Abomination practically on our door, wasn't it? Believe me, it would have taken me at least a couple of days, maybe even a week to pull something like this off, and that's me talking. I know I'm arrogant and everything, but there are very few people who could surpass me in hacking, and whoever did it, is better than I am."

Ross seemed to pale in fear, then shook his head, "I didn't send the Abomination after you."

"I'm not an idiot Ross. Blonsky was under your supervision, under your lock and key. He was constantly sedated, and somehow, just after the Accords were signed, he mysteriously escaped your military base, without anyone knowing about it – which considering your fights with the Hulk, is very unlikely to say the least – and came to New York, in the middle of Manhattan, a few blocks away from my tower, just to wreck some stuff for no reason. Yeah, shoot me if I don't believe such an obvious lie." Tony answered with a smirk on his face.

The former General grinded his teeth until he huffed, "Fine, I don't care about the leak. It's done, and there's no going back. What I need from you is the location of your teammates."

Tony snorted, "You declared half of my team to be fugitives, two practically retired, and one is the liaison to the military. Congratulations, Ross, the Avengers are dead, and you're the one who pulled the trigger."

"Then tell me where they are?" Ross insisted.

"I honestly don't know. The only one whose location I know, is Rhodey, and he's with the Air Force for some meeting regarding the Accords."

The General glared at him, and Tony could swear that his eyes glowed slightly, "Don't joke with me, Stark. You're the one who got them out. Replacing them with stuffed toys of themselves was very funny and everything, but they broke the law. You broke the law. I'm willing to forgive your transgressions in honor of your father, but my patience is wearing thin. I do not appreciate the way you are hiding criminals from justice."

"Again, I'm not the one who got them out. You need to stop blaming me for everything you don't like, Ross." Tony answered him with a smug grin on his face.

"This is your final warning, Stark. I know that it was you. Stop pretending that I'm an idiot, and just tell me where they are, so that we could put all this behind us."

Was it getting hotter in the room? Tony certainly felt like it was. Maybe, the air conditioning was failing or something. Tony didn't care, he had to deal with Ross before he goes mad and tries to arrest him as well.

The man was practically foaming from the mouth by the end of his rant. It was disturbing on so many levels, and Tony didn't like it. The former General seriously looked deranged, and would probably try to arrest him just for the sake of it. He needed the man to see reason and not do something hasty.

Tony cleared his throat, "Look, Ross. I'm not the one who leaked the files. I'm not even the one who rescued my teammates. But since that doesn't seem to matter to you, let me tell it to you in another way. The fact is that you don't have a shred of proof that I did anything wrong, and you won't find anything because I am innocent. I'm not Enhanced so you can't arrest me just because you want to, and I didn't go out with my suit ever since the Accords were signed. If you want to try arresting me, you can speak with my legal team and do it through them, but you don't have the grounds to come here, threaten to arrest me for no reason other than you 'know' that it was me."

"I can do whatever the fuck I want, Stark," the Secretary of State yelled out.

"Yeah, just back off. You already said a lot of morally dubious crap in this meeting, which is also being recorded. Just leave me alone, and I won't post anything. It's not like it would be worth anything, really, your days are numbered anyway," the billionaire responded.

The former General, though, seemed to get angrier, and practically growled at the genius, "Is that what you think, Stark? That I'm powerless?"

"Well, aren't you? You're here as a last measure, where you're hoping to arrest the Avengers and put them back into your cells, to prove to the world that you're still capable. Well, you're wrong, and from what I'm seeing of you, you're barely stable as is. So, just accept your loss and move on, Thaddeus. It's better for everyone if you just do. I guarantee it."

"Guarantee it?" the former General asked himself, "GUARENTEE IT? YOU MISERABLE SON OF A BITCH! I HAVE DONE EVERYTHING I COULD TO PROTECT MY COUNTRY, AND THIS IS HOW YOU REPAY ME? YOU UNGRATEFUL BRAT!"

As he was talking, he was getting redder and redder, and oddly growing. His eyes started to glow red, and it looked like they were on fire. The process was slow, but it didn't take long for the General to turn into some odd red version of the Hulk. Although, for some reason, he was oddly burning. The ground seemed to melt slightly with every step.

Tony looked at the monster that used to be the Secretary of State, and only one word came to his mind, "Fuck!"

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