Chapter 36: The Transformation Begins
Jarvis had learned a bit about Hodge from Howard, knowing this guy was an enhanced super soldier, and that ordinary security personnel would be mostly useless against him.
To avoid further escalation, he had no choice but to try and calm things down first.
"Mr. Howard is upstairs, please follow me!" Jarvis led Hodge upstairs.
"You got lucky!"
Hodge coldly glanced at the security personnel surrounding him, a sinister smile playing on his lips.
Jarvis approached the door and listened, and hearing no suspicious sounds coming from inside, he knocked.
"Mr. Stark, Mr. Hodge is here..."
"Bang!"
Before he could finish speaking, Hodge kicked the door open and barged inside.
The room was empty.
"You dare lie to me?!"
Hodge turned around, his eyes, like those of a viper, fixed on Jarvis.
"That's impossible! I clearly heard Mr. Stark and Miss Carter inside...!" Jarvis's expression changed as he exclaimed in surprise.
"Miss Carter, which Carter?" A bad feeling crept into Hodge's mind.
"The female agent from the Strategic Scientific Reserve, Miss Peggy Carter."
Ten minutes later, Jarvis finally pieced together what had happened.
Connecting Steve's disappearance from the hospital with Howard's abduction by Carter, Hodge felt a massive conspiracy was unfolding, a conspiracy directed against him.
"No matter what you try, trash is always trash. In the face of absolute power, everything is futile!" Hodge was thinking when his expression suddenly changed.
Although he'd killed the professor, could they still have super-soldier serum that the professor had created beforehand? Thinking of Howard being taken away, Hodge was horrified!
If things were really as he imagined, the consequences would be catastrophic. What if Mason also became a super soldier...
Thinking of this, Hodge grabbed Jarvis by the collar. "Does Howard still have any super soldier enhancement chambers?"
"Cough cough!" Jarvis, his throat constricted, struggled to breathe. "What are you talking about? I don't understand!"
The more Hodge thought about it, the more likely it seemed. He loosened his grip slightly. "A super soldier enhancement chamber—a sealed metal pod nearly ten feet high. Have you seen one in Howard's possession?"
"I... I don't recall." Jarvis's eyes flickered as he answered hesitantly.
Hodge's pupils turned into eerie vertical slits. He stared intently at Jarvis. "You're lying to me!" He took a deep breath, forcing himself to stay calm.
"Someone has kidnapped Howard. They're very likely planning to harm him. Only I can save him. Tell me, does Howard have an enhancement chamber? Where is it?"
Jarvis, though he thought Hodge looked more like a thug than a hero, knew Howard had been taken. He gritted his teeth and answered truthfully, "I've seen it. Come with me!"
Just then, in a hidden warehouse in Brooklyn, several figures were whispering.
"Report! Target location detected."
"Send them to execute the order. This time, failure is not an option!" A cold voice commanded.
Darkness descended, and the night grew deeper.
Stark Industries.
As a manufacturing facility, it wasn't located in downtown Brooklyn, but on vacant land in the nearby industrial district.
With Howard's cooperation, the journey was smooth, and they soon arrived at a separate laboratory—Howard's private research facility. The gate opened, revealing tools scattered across the floor and a heavily modified enhancement chamber.
"After the last experiment, I discovered flaws in the entire enhancement system, so I redesigned the experimental approach. The new enhancement chamber consumes less power but is also more stable."
"Give me a moment—I'll reassemble it and it'll be ready to use." Howard removed his jacket and quickly began working. Mason originally intended to help, but seeing how efficiently Howard worked, he figured an amateur would just slow things down.
Before long, the prototype enhancement chamber was assembled. Mason retrieved the hidden super soldier serum and placed six vials inside.
"Steve, are you ready?"
"Mason, this is the only serum left in the world. Are you sure you want to use it on me?" Steve asked hesitantly.
"Remember our agreement? When we became true friends, I promised I'd give you that shield. Go ahead, and I'll personally hand it to you once you've completed the enhancement."
"You're the right choice—only you deserve the title of Captain America!" Mason encouraged. Just then, a loud crash came from the distant gate. Mason was startled and looked out the window, only to see Hodge driving a military vehicle recklessly through!
"How the hell did this guy find this place?"
Mason shoved Steve toward the enhancement chamber. "Close the door, hurry up and complete the enhancement—leave him to me!"
He loaded a fresh magazine and rushed out.
Bang!
Mason, hiding behind cover, fired a shot, blowing out one of Hodge's tires. The speeding vehicle spun out of control like a wild bronco and crashed into a nearby low building.
The impact wouldn't kill Hodge. Mason waited patiently, and sure enough, moments later, Hodge kicked open the car door and jumped out.
Crack! Crack!
Mason fired two shots, both missing their mark. Hodge ripped off the car door, held it as a shield, and charged toward Mason's position like a raging bull!
"What a goddamn freak!"
Mason cursed under his breath, turning to flee.
"Mason, I've finally got you!" Hodge grinned maliciously. "Tell me, did that old bastard Erskine give you the Super Soldier Serum?"
"If you hand over the serum right now, I'll spare your life!"
"So it was you who killed the Professor!" Mason's anger surged, but he suppressed the urge to fight to the death and slipped into the factory behind him.
"Only I, Hodge, am qualified to be the sole Super Soldier. I will not allow another Super Soldier to be born into this world. No one can replace me. I am the one and only!"
In the pitch-black factory with minimal lighting, Hodge held the car door to his chest, cautiously surveying his surroundings. He narrowed his eyes slightly—his enhanced physique allowed him to quickly adapt to the darkness.
"Is the serum in your hands? Give it to me, and I promise I'll let you walk away." Now that he'd found Mason, Hodge was no longer in a hurry. It seemed Mason hadn't undergone any enhancements yet. With his current physical condition, capturing Mason was only a matter of time.
"Ha! Mighty Black Serpent Captain, do you know there's a flaw in your serum? Over time, your physical abilities will gradually decline, eventually turning you into nothing more than an ordinary man." Mason's voice echoed from the shadows in the distance. Hodge rushed over, but found no one.
"That old bastard did this! Damn kraut!" Hodge cursed angrily.
"Killing the professor means you'll never have another chance. You can only watch helplessly as you become ordinary, falling from heaven to hell. That's your curse!"
"Bang!"
Hodge kicked aside a wooden crate blocking his path. The violent force shattered the crate, but his expression suddenly changed—his strength had decreased once again!