The Superhero Association was currently holding a fan et-and-greet event when a large truck slowly approached the building.
"Sir, this is a restricted area. Please turn around."
The Association's security personnel imdiately stepped forward to stop the vehicle from getting any closer.
Every guard present was equipped with War Machine armor, which naturally made them far bolder than ordinary security guards.
These were Blade Tech Industries' War Machines, superior even to the military's versions. They were not built from ordinary steel alloy plating alone. Their armor was coated with Secondary Kryptonite, giving them defensive capabilities strong enough to resist armor-piercing weapons like depleted uranium rounds.
Without warning, the truck suddenly appeared to lose control.
The driver slamd the accelerator to the floor.
The massive vehicle roared forward and crashed directly into two War Machines. The armored guards were instantly dragged beneath the wheels as the truck thundered over them.
The ground cracked violently beneath the crushing weight.
Yet monts later, both War Machines rose back to their feet completely unhard.
"There's a problem!"
"Stop that truck imdiately!"
The two War Machines instantly activated their weapon systems, dozens of firearms and targeting systems locking onto the vehicle.
But it was already too late.
To the sound of terrified screams from nearby fans, the truck smashed directly into the Superhero Association Headquarters Tower.
BOOOOOOM!!!
In what felt like slow motion, the truck's body began swelling outward before splitting apart.
Flas erupted from within like giant serpents escaping a cage.
Then ca the explosion.
A catastrophic explosion.
The blast swallowed the entire Superhero Association building and spread outward into the surrounding streets, instantly causing hundreds of casualties.
Many people genuinely believed terrorists had detonated a nuclear bomb.
The deafening roar, the gigantic fireball, and the rising mushroom cloud looked horrifyingly similar to every nuclear detonation shown in military docuntaries and public safety broadcasts.
Within several kiloters, every glass surface shattered simultaneously.
People across the area first felt the ground violently tremble beneath their feet.
Then ca the wave of exploding glass.
Then the thunderous sound.
The shockwave physically shoved countless pedestrians backward several steps.
Trees were uprooted.
Secondary explosions erupted throughout the streets.
Cars parked nearby all triggered their alarms at once after being battered by the sweeping pressure wave.
Only several monts later did people finally react.
As they stared at the rising mushroom cloud, panic exploded through the crowd.
Everyone desperately tried to flee.
They believed radiation would co next.
The massive explosion imdiately drew nationwide attention.
The Arican military deployed reconnaissance drones to investigate the scene, but radiation scanners soon confird sothing unexpected:
All readings were completely normal.
This was not a nuclear detonation.
In reality, Drex Valen had already received a report from the Black Queen the mont the explosion occurred.
Unfortunately, by the ti he returned, it was already too late.
Luckily, the exterior of the Superhero Association headquarters had been coated with Secondary Kryptonite from top to bottom. Originally, the reinforcent had been intended to defend against possible Chitauri attacks.
No one expected it would instead save the lives of the staff and superheroes inside the building during this incident.
After the explosion, the headquarters tower stood there almost completely intact.
The only visible damage was a layer of black scorch marks across its surface.
The masterminds behind the attack were utterly dumbfounded.
What the hell?
A bomb with that level of destructive power had only blackened the outside walls?
Before the Arican military could fully secure the area, Blade Tech Industries' War Machines had already established a complete lockdown periter.
They imdiately began searching for clues throughout the blast zone.
Though after an explosion of that magnitude, nobody knew how much evidence could realistically remain.
"A suicide truck bombing, huh? No idea who could've pulled sothing like this off."
Tony Stark looked furious.
The attack had directly caused hundreds of casualties, most of them fans gathered outside the building during the event. When the explosion occurred, they had not even been given ti to run.
"What do you think?"
Drex Valen stood nearby, speaking calmly.
"Probably soone we pissed off."
Tony shook his head.
"There are too many possibilities. Superheroes naturally make enemies. And with this many heroes gathered together in one place, the building basically beca the perfect target."
Tony Stark did not know who was responsible.
But Drex Valen already had a pri suspect.
HYDRA.
An attack this extre required coordination on a massive scale. No lone supervillain could accomplish sothing like this unless the truck itself contained soone like Nitro.
But Nitro was a mutant.
And in this world, mutants with naturally awakened X-Genes did not yet exist. The genes themselves remained dormant.
Which ant it could not have been him.
"Looks like it's ti to speed things up with HYDRA in North Arica."
Drex Valen's expression darkened.
Thanks to the Symbiote Combat Suits, World Serpent had recently absorbed huge numbers of rcenaries. At this point, their Arican branch alone already had over ten thousand mbers.
More than a thousand of them were Zoanoids originally created by Dr. Connors during the organization's early stages.
The Arican governnt attempted to interfere in the investigation, but Drex Valen and Tony Stark together represented overwhelming corporate influence. Official political power simply could not compete against the combined weight of Blade Tech Industries and Stark Industries.
At the sa ti, Drex Valen significantly strengthened security around the Superhero Association headquarters.
"Blonsky. Take Bucky with you and bring every HYDRA branch in the Aricas under our control as quickly as possible."
Drex Valen directly contacted Blonsky and Bucky through psychic communication.
The head of HYDRA in the Aricas was Alexander Pierce.
For now, there was no need to touch him.
All they needed to do was quietly seize control of the organization beneath him while allowing everyone to continue pretending they still followed his orders.
Once the takeover was complete, Drex Valen could replace Alexander Pierce at any mont without anyone realizing what had happened.
Blonsky imdiately sensed the fury in his boss's voice, even if he did not fully understand the reason behind it.
Still, he considered it good news.
If World Serpent stayed inactive much longer, the organization was going to rust from disuse.
As for Bucky, he remained in deep-cover infiltration status.
Most of his ti inside HYDRA had previously been spent frozen in cryogenic storage, which severely limited his activity.
But that had been before.
Now that large portions of HYDRA had already been brainwashed and infiltrated, Bucky could casually walk through their facilities without anyone questioning him.
The mont World Serpent accelerated its operations, countless HYDRA cells switched allegiance almost overnight.
In truth, World Serpent had already identified many HYDRA bases long ago. They had simply advanced cautiously because Drex Valen originally wanted a slow and steady infiltration.
But now that he had ordered them to increase the pace, HYDRA's collapse beca absurdly fast.
Most importantly...
HYDRA itself never even realized it was being consud from within.
Not long afterward, Drex Valen learned the identity of the person behind the bombing.
The order had co from the commander of HYDRA's Boston branch.
As for why it ca from Boston rather than San Francisco or Chicago...
Most likely because those branches had already fallen under World Serpent's control.
The commander also confessed that he had received direct orders from one of HYDRA's heads.
Even so, Drex Valen still filled the man's body with molten steel alloy, turned him into a human tal pillar...
And dumped him into the Pacific off the western coast.
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