Welcome back! So the last chapter ended with a reveal that will shape the entire story as it moves forward, possibly more so than Ben's arrival. The next two, maybe three chapters will be focusing on the heroics of the more reserved Avengers, Hank Pym, and Bruce Banner as they investigate the goings-on in Central City alongside Coulson's Team. Yes, it's that Central City. I don't own Ben 10, Marvel or DC, let's get this going.
Infinity Chapter XI
Storm Chasers Part I
The Bus, Central City Airspace, October 11th, 1:33 PM EDT
Banner fidgeted slightly as the carrier plane he was seated in shook with a shock of turbulence. He focused on slowing his breathing, focusing on the faces around him. Coulson smiled placidly, seemingly unmoved by the plane's sudden jittering. He was dressed in his usual three-piece business suit, a pair of sunglasses over his eyes, and an immaculate black tie around his neck. Across from Banner the familiar faces of Leopold Fitz and Jemma Simmons were scrunched in concentration. The former was tinkering with a small drone, pausing with every shake of the plane before going back to work, Jemma meanwhile was watching Bruce. There was a bit of tension in her face, but he did his best to break the tension with a nervous smile of his own.
He'd known the two of them the longest, in fact, they'd recruited him to the Avengers several years back, the first iteration.
His eyes tracked over to the last of Coulson's team members excluding the Bus's pilot, Agent May. Grant Ward, stared back at him with hard eyes that clearly read that the brusque martially minded Agent didn't trust Banner. He was used to those kinds of looks, they didn't bother him much anymore, but there was something darker in Ward's expression that uneased him.
Hank meanwhile was oblivious to it all, tinkering with his helmet and muttering to himself softly.
Tiring of the quiet Bruce turned to Coulson, "So can we get a rundown of what we need to expect?"
"May's bringing us down, once we land I'll brief everyone." the senior agent responded.
"Personal opinion on what to expect then?" Banner pressed.
"I don't believe in coincidence." Coulson stated, "Central City is connected to the Dome somehow, and it might be more dangerous."
"How?" Hank spoke up, looking up from his helmet for the first time since they'd boarded the Bus.
"The Dome for all the mess it's caused is visible, we have an area that can be observed, contained. Whatever might be happening here in Central City doesn't have that leisure." Coulson stated, as with one final rumble the Bus came to a stop.
Several moments later, the severe second command of Coulson's team appeared, "I've put us down at the main air-field, the CCPD has been informed of our arrival and are willing to cooperate as required with our investigation."
"Very good, alright people, three months ago the Dome emerged consuming much of the Bronx in a wave of permeable energy and captured the attention of much of the world," Coulson said as he stood up, the table in the center of the room revealing several holographic images.
"That same night the STAR Labs Particle Accelerator malfunctioned." he continued, a video showing a vibrant mushroom cloud bursting from within the heart of the circular STAR Labs building.
"An energy wave encompassed the entirety of Central City, knocking out power through much of the city." May picked up, gesturing to several other screens, "Reports claim numerous citizens received minor injuries, as well as the mysterious disappearances of a number of individuals including master physicist Martin Stein, who is believed to have been visiting the Lab during the detonation. Only one death has been reported, Ronald Raymond, the accelerator's structural engineer. He was reportedly killed trying to contain the blast."
"Other anomalies seemingly tied to the Particle Accelerator Explosion include the crash of a small two-person plane, though no bodies were recovered and a lightning bolt striking CCPD's own Barry Allen, who was in a coma for the last few months before waking up around a week ago," Coulson stated.
"We, with the help of Doctors Banner and Pym will be investigating Star Labs, as well as interviewing the CCPD, the remaining Star Labs employees, and Barry Allen about the events of that night." May finished.
"What are we expecting to find?" Banner asked.
"The cause of the blast, if there is any connection with the Dome, and if we have to worry about another Meta Emergence Event," Coulson informed.
A roar of thunder punctuated his sentence, causing the assembled heroes to look upward.
"Another clue that things have gone sideways since the explosion is the weather." Simmons stated, "Flooding has been to a minimum, but the weather has remained in a constant state of rain and thunderstorms since the event."
"If we do find an Enhanced to be to blame sir, what are the terms of engagement?" Ward asked, sitting forward.
"Same as the Dome, we approach peacefully, try and build rapport, calm them down and aid them as is necessary or possible, if they become hostile, ICERS only," Coulson stated.
"I would rather weapons weren't required at all," Hank noted, his face contorting slightly at the mention of the modified fire-arms.
"As do I Doctor, but we must be prepared for the possibility." Coulson returned.
"Is that why I'm here Agent?" Banner asked, watching Ward tense slightly even as his eyes burrowed into Coulson.
"No Bruce, you're here because we need someone who is familiar with mutagenic compounds and the effects of latent radiation." Fitz offered, tossing him a gadget, "I'm a tech whiz and Jemma is a wonder at biochemistry, but very few people understand radiation like you do."
Banner smirked softly as he turned the small scanner over in his hands, "Well if we're dealing with a particle accelerator explosion it is likely that the energy signature left behind would be tied to dark matter exposure."
He fiddled with the machine for a moment, and the machine immediately began to beep a frantic staccato, "I'm guessing that's bad?"
Fitz blanched, "Well it's certainly not good."
Following the discovery of the dark matter that seemed to have seeped through every crack of Central City the party had headed straight for Star Labs. The circular building vaguely resembled a football stadium, with three glass towers rose from it. Roof panels, sides of the building, and a portion of one of the towers had been ripped away exposing the metal superstructure underneath.
Hank stared up at the damage with a bit of surprise, "You'd think they would have started on fixing the damage at this point, it's been several months."
"Most contractors are too afraid of becoming 'Muties' it would seem." a calm, but snarky voice stated. Hank turned, spotting the speaker, a dark-haired man with piercing blue eyes behind thick-rimmed glasses. He dressed in dark clothing and looked up at the party from his motorized wheelchair, which weaved towards them across the crack-ridden parking lot.
"But there have been no reported instances of Mutation, and if the accelerator had effected the city they would be Metahumans." Simmons rattled off absentmindedly, at which the man smiled.
"Correct, but bigotry is powerful if utterly idiotic motivator for some individuals," he stated, reaching out a hand for Coulson to shake, "But we've skipped past introductions, my name is Professor Harrison Wells, welcome to STAR Labs or what remains of it at least."
"Agent Phil Coulson," the Agent stated, taking the other man's hand with his usual disarming smile, "The others are Agents Melinda May, Jemma Simmons, Leopold Fitz, and Grant Ward. Thank you for cooperating with our investigation."
"Of course," Wells stated, nodding to the others as he turned to look at Hank and Bruce, "Good to see you again Dr. Pym."
Hank smiled slightly, he'd worked alongside Wells in the past, endeavoring to discover new sources of clean energy production, though he had not seen the man since the car crash that had left him crippled and taken his wife several years ago.
"Good to see you as well," Hank stated, taking the man's outstretched hand with gusto.
Wells turned to look at Banner who sheepishly extended his own hand, "And you are…"
"Uh, Bruce Banner." the curly-haired man muttered, with a shy smile as Wells' eyes widened.
"They're both here to study any radiation left over from the explosion Doctor." Coulson offered, "Nothing more."
"You've got your work cut out for you then." Wells noted, turning around, "Come with me, my Team is currently working on that exact mystery."
He led the party inside the building, which was much more pristine on the inside. They weaved down several hallways until reaching a central room, a large set of computer consuls sat before the door, while several more monitors covered the walls, off to the one-side sat a small medical lab, while a small lounge area was set up on the other side.
Hank noted that several papers had been kicked up by an anomalous wind as they entered the room, a young woman with bright auburn hair and pale skin moved about picking them up while a shorter young man with long flowing black hair and tanned skin looked up with a hint of nervousness in his deep brown eyes. The woman looked up, revealing similarly shaded eyes and a bright smile as she placed the papers back on the desk.
"Let me introduce you to Caitlin Snow, and Cisco Ramon." Wells stated, "My assistants, chief bioengineer and mechanical engineer respectively."
"Hello." Caitlin said, with an even more vibrant smile, while Cisco simply gave them all a lazy wave, "Yo."
"Wonderful to meet you," Hank stated, cutting across Wells as he jutted his hand out to shake Caitlin's, "I believe I read your dissertation, The Different Causes, and Biologies of Mutants vs Metahumans. It was a compelling read, amazingly well informed and objective."
Caitlin looked slightly taken aback, blinking several times before taking his hand, "I-thank you, Dr. Pym, that means quite a bit coming from you."
"So a couple of SHIELD agents, the Ant-Guy, and Bruce Banner," Cisco stated, eying the assembled group suspiciously, "What can we do you for?"
"We're here to study the particle accelerator, Ramon," Fitz stated, cutting across Coulson this time to the latter's confusion.
"Well, that's pretty clear, Leo." Cisco fired back, "I was wondering what you were looking for exactly."
Hank shared a surprised look with Bruce, who sighed softly and moved around the assembled agents and began looking about the room.
"Ramon, what's with the hostility?" Wells asked, looking over his glasses at the young engineer.
"Took the words right out of my mouth," Coulson asked, looking at Fitz with raised eyebrows.
The two younger men continued to glare at each other before Simmons spoke up, "They're PRF rivals sir."
"What rivals?" Coulson asked.
"Professional Robot Fighters." Simmons supplied.
"Really, we're doing ego-drama about something you two did in High School." May deadpanned.
"We were in the SHIELD Academy, thank you," Fitz stated, opening his mouth only to be cowed by the sharp look May sent his way. She then turned her eyes on Cisco who writhed in his seat a little bit.
"I was a SHIELD recruit, but I decided working for big government wasn't my thing," Cisco muttered, "Joined up with STAR Labs not long."
"Right so this little history lesson has been all well and good, but I feel like we've gotten off track." Banner stated, standing in the center of the room, rubbing the back of his neck as all eyes turned to look at him.
"Correct, so can the three of you tell us what happened that night?" Coulson asked, looking between Wells and his employees.
Hank watched each of their reactions closely, hunting for micro-expressions. Cisco's eye twitched slightly, as he turned to face the computers, Well's lips pursed close though an odd light filled his eyes, and Caitlin seemed to fold in herself, her bright smile fading slightly.
"Everything was going according to plan." Cisco began, pulling up several images that showed the energy build-up of the accelerator, "And then out of nowhere it wasn't."
"The energy began to cascade, building to levels that shouldn't even be possible." he continued, as the bars began to frantically peek, and a graph showing the build-up plateaued and then went off the chart."
"The building should have exploded, but the structural engineer, Ronnie, was able to vent the excess energy out of the building." Cisco finished, though Hank noted that at the mention of the deceased individual's name, the young engineer bent into himself, while Caitlin began rubbing what appeared to be an engagement ring.
"We knew that there was likely going to be consequences, but it was better than the building exploding and likely taking a few blocks with it," Wells stated, shame written across his face, though it didn't seem to reach his eyes.
"The release of the energy cascade has saturated the city with dark matter, but I'm sure you are aware of that fact." Banner noted.
"We're aware yes, we're just not sure what effects it could have overall." Caitlin stated, "I've collected biological samples from across the city, after hearing about the Dome we began to worry that something similar could begin to manifest."
"Would you mind if I took a look?" Simmons offered, "I don't doubt your ability but two heads are always better than one."
"Of course." Ms. Snow stated, walking towards the medical lab with Agent Simmons in tow.
"I've set up scanners to monitor any anomalies in the spread of dark matter, but it seems like it's bleeding off at a relatively regular rate." Cisco offered Fitz, coming forward wordlessly, plugging his drone into the console, a similar series of graphs and calculations appearing.
"It seems to be on a steady decline." the latter noted, "Unlike the Dome, though the composition of the energy dispersed across the city actually matches one of the anomalous energy readings we've been getting from anomaly's composition."
"I thought the Dome wasn't decaying?" Cisco asked, looking over at the graphs Fitz had brought up.
"It isn't, but if the energy dispersed here is the same as one of the Dome's building blocks, then it should be," Fitz stated.
"There's Gamma and Terrigen mixed in as well, right?" Cisco muttered aloud.
"Yes, Simmons is at the forefront of research into the latter, and it dissipates the quickest according to previous interactions and Dr. Banner here has agreed that Gamma has a bleed off as well." Fitz stated, "Which means…"
"There's still a missing piece." Cisco finished, "Well if that is the case then maybe we could devise some kind of siphon or scanner to pick out whatever remains."
Cisco and Fitz began to go back and forth, while Banner had wandered off to listen to Caitlin speak about the biological samples recovered leaving Hank with Wells, Coulson, and the brusque May and disinterested Agent Ward.
"Has anyone been inside the accelerator since the explosion?" Hank asked, turning to Wells.
"No, the radiation levels inside read much too high for someone to safely approach let alone enter." Wells stated, "But I welcome you to look around the rest of the facility."
"Right, Hank stay here with Fitzsimmons and search the building for anything of note." Coulson stated, "Doctor Banner!"
"Hmm?" the man asked, poking his head around the corner.
"Would you be willing to come with us to interview Mr. Allen at CCPD?" Coulson asked.
Hank watched as Cisco and Wells tensed slightly at the mention of the young man's name, while out of the corner of his eye he watched Ms. Snow do the same. It was the briefest of pauses, but Hank knew that if he caught them Coulson, and May likely would have as well.
Banner sighed softly, "Alright, just for the record, the police and the Big Guy don't exactly get along well."
"Noted, but you are one of the view people that we have access to that comes close to the experience Mr. Allen went through. Outside of Mr. Tennyson."
"Doubt he'd have come along even if they'd asked," Banner muttered, as he walked past Hank.
Pym nodded in agreement with those words, before taking one final look around the room. Nothing, in particular, stood out, but as he slipped his helmet onto his head he began to pick up the faintest of signals, coming from deeper in the facility. As Wells turned to listen to Fitz and Cisco bounce off each other he shrunk down and leaped for the nearest air-vent, the signal growing stronger as he slid down the metallic shaft.
CCPD was abuzz with frantic activity, police officers of all stripes going about their business, pulling in perps, heading out into the city, or taking statements from numerous individuals. Banner was ill-at-ease in this place, but for the moment no one seemed to be focusing on him, instead, their eyes were all trained on the three SHIELD agents, two of whom had visible weapons on their person.
They'd been brought aside to speak with Detective Joe West, who had something of a familial connection with Allen, and who had been the first to find him following the incident.
Joe West was an African-American man around Coulson's age, with a deep combination of worry and laugh lines crossing his goateed face. He had a friendly, but commanding demeanor that Banner recognized as the persona Ross had tried to portray, but West was the real deal.
His younger partner Eddie Thawne sat off to the side, looking more than a little excited at the prospect of several SHIELD agents visiting his partner.
"Thank you for taking the time to sit down and talk with us, Detective West," Coulson stated, sitting down in a seat across from West, who was leaning back in the chair behind his desk. Ward was leaning against the back wall, while Banner had taken a seat at the side table with Eddie. May was seated next to Coulson, a critical eye scanning over every inch of the room.
"Of course, it's not every day that SHIELD comes calling." West said with a smile, "Anyway I can help I will."
"Would you mind telling us anything you remember from the night of the Particle Accelerator Explosion?" Coulson asked.
West let out a low whistle, rubbing the back of his head, "Well, it was pouring down ran, even harder than it is now honestly, but a calm night regardless. I was doing paper-work when suddenly I felt the ground beneath my feet shake, followed by an immense explosion. Then every light in the precinct went out. I got up to go outside, see what was going on, just like Eddie and several other officers were moving to do when I heard glass shatter upstairs followed by the loudest crack of thunder I've ever heard in my entire life. I raced upstairs and found Barry lying on one of his chemical wracks, glass covering his body, some pieces embedded in his neck and chest, barely breathing, rain pouring down from a hole in the roof."
"What was Barry doing that night?" May asked.
"He'd just gotten back from Gotham, had been visiting his friends." Joe stated, "Came back to the precinct and went up to his office. Nothing out of the ordinary, and then he gets struck by lightning! I thought he was a goner, he was so unresponsive, but some of the folks working at Star Labs came by and asked for him to be moved to their Lab."
That drew Banner's interest, while Coulson and May shared a look.
"Do you have any idea why they would do that?" Coulson asked.
"Wells, the head of the Lab, said he felt guilty about what had happened, thought his folks' equipment could bring him back." West stated, "Turned out he was right."
"Is Mr. Allen here?" Coulson asked.
"He went out for lunch not that long ago, but he should be back soon," West noted.
"Has he been acting any different?" Banner asked, sitting forward, "Since waking up from the accident?"
West gave him a look that said he almost recognized him, but shrugged it off and answered the question, "Nothing major, bit more fidgety, hungrier, the most startling change is he's actually been showing up to work and other places on time. Like he's got some new pep in his step."
"Would you mind if we looked around his office?" Coulson asked.
"What for?" West asked, his eyes narrowingly slightly.
"He's not in any trouble." Coulson stated, raising his hands placatingly, "We just need to cover all our bases."
"All right," West stated, leading them upstairs. Banner stood up, Eddie gesturing for him to hold on a moment.
"I know who you are," Eddie stated, looking Banner over. Bruce looked back at him, slightly anxious at what direction this conversation could go.
"Oh?" he queried.
"Yeah, Bruce Banner." Eddie affirmed, reaching behind his back, "Could I get your autograph?"
Ward cracked a smile as he left the room, while Coulson chuckled slightly at the befuddled expression that crossed Bruce's face.
"Uh, sure."
Several moments later Joe had led Banner and the Agents upstairs and opened a sliding metal door to reveal a forensics lab. Several shelves were haphazardly stocked with different chemical beakers, overly stuffed filing cabinets were strewn about the room, while a worn desk with a relatively new computer sat before the slightly grimy windows that looked out across the cityscape. A large whiteboard stood next to the desk, a map of Central City hanging down over it.
"He should be back soon, just try not to move stuff around too much." West advised, "He's kind of particular about his space."
With that he walked away, leaving Banner standing with the Agents that immediately spread about the room. Coulson began examining the map, Ward thumbed through several files, while May walked over to the computer and began tapping away at the keys.
Banner looked at the beakers, wincing at the haphazard and arguably unsafe storage system.
"His desktop is open, nothing overtly suspicious, but there are files here that are password locked," May stated.
"Let me." Banner stated, walking up, and quickly taking in the situation.
"You're a hacker?" Ward asked, looking up from the file he was thumbing through.
"Not as good as Stark, probably not even as good as Agent Johnson," Banner muttered, as he typed away at the keys, "But a person can pick up a few unusual skills when they're on the run."
He cracked his way into the files a few seconds later, revealing a series of investigations into something called the 'Centipede Link'.
"Centipede," May stated, shooting Coulson a knowing look, the lead agent winced, before pulling on a drawstring to reveal that the whiteboard was covered in newspaper clippings, blurry images of locations around the city, anonymous photos of numerous individuals, and police reports. Thumb-tacks linked with string joined several pieces of the collected evidence back to a single aged newspaper clipping.
It read, 'Nora Allen found murdered in her own home, husband convicted of first-degree murder."
"Looks like Mr. Allen never gave up on the investigation of his Mother's death," Coulson stated, his eyes darting across the cobbled-together canvas.
"This isn't an investigation," Banner muttered, walking towards the board, "It's an obsession."
Hank emerged air-ducts deep within the basement of Star Labs, taking a look around he realized that he was within spitting distance of the door that appeared to lead within the Particle Accelerator. Quickly activating his suit's protections against Radiation, he pulled out Fitz's scanning device and tested their air, the machine began to ping frantically, though Pym noticed that the readings appeared to be slightly off. However, the signal he had been picking up, drew him away from the door, deeper into the basement. Staring about he began to notice a series of scorch marks marring the walls as he continued, looking closer he found a water pipe that appeared to have been sheared open, though where it had been broken into looked as though it had been melted. He continued walking his feet splashing through the stagnant water, growing further and further on edge as the damage continued to worsen. He saw a flash of movement and whirled, shrinking as he did so, only to realize it was nothing but a door teetering on its hinges as if someone had just brushed by it.
Walking cautiously, Pym shrunk down and darted beneath the door. Looking around he didn't spot anyone but what he did see confused him. Several small cages lined the walls, all of them empty, some with the doors ripped fully off the hinges, others looking like they were slightly ajar.
The true eye-grabber was the large paddock at the back of the room, a tire-swing, climbing wall, and a small pool set into the concrete walls, and floor the latter of which was covered in straw. Three large glass partitions separated it from the rest of this small lab, though the central panel was shattered into hundreds of glass shards that were sprinkled across the floor, lab tables, and several broken computer monitors.
Hank increased in size, taking several steps towards the enclosure, and looked down as he stepped on something metallic. It was a metal name-plate that read, "Grodd".
Hank bent to pick it up and looked around to find the source of the weak signal, his eyes falling on an ant-farm resting on one of the upper shelves.
Peering inside he noticed the top had been pried off by something, all of the ants missing except one, a black ant about the size of a hissing cockroach, that looked up at him as he got closer.
The source of the signal.
"Hello." Ant-Man thought, sending out a greeting to the ant using his helmet. The Ant returned his greeting, though he could tell the little creature was on the verge of starvation.
Reaching up Hank removed the farm from its perch, holding up his hand for the ant to squeeze it's way out and into his palm. Reaching into a pouch on his side he pulled out two small bottles, one filled with properly sized food pellets, the other filled with water. Setting the overly-large ant down, he poured a bit of food onto the table, and then filled the cap of the food bottle with water and set it down before the creature.
It trilled with joy, and began to eat, drawing a soft smile from Hank as he set the now empty ant farm back where it was. As he did so however he heard a click, and the entire self swung open as if on a hinge.
Covering the still eating ant with his hand in an effort to protect it if something went awry he reached up with his other hand to open the panel. Inside he found a small journal and an eerie mechanical mechanism that resembled a centipede filled with glowing orange liquid.
"Well this is troubling, isn't it, my little friend," Pym muttered to himself, as he reached in to draw out the mechanism.
"Dr. Pym?" a voice asked causing him to freeze. He turned and spotted Ms. Snow peering at him cagily, "What are you doing down here?"
Pym noticed the nervousness in her voice and saw her once more begin rubbing her fingers along her engagement ring.
"Bit of investigative exploration." Pym stated flatly, "Though I didn't expect to find this, after all, I didn't know STAR Labs approved of animal experimentation."
He held up the oversized ant, which turned to look at Caitlin with a curious chitter. Caitlin looked at it surprised, allowing him to slide the journal out from behind the open-backed cabinet, and slide it behind his back.
"So, would you like to tell me exactly what was going on down her Caitlin?" Hank asked seriously, watching her deflate slightly.
"That's a bit of a long story," she muttered, staring around the room slightly crest-fallen.
And so ends the first part of Storm Chasers, sorry this was a bit slow, but I can inform you that it will pick up in the next several chapters. I felt like the slow investigative start would be a bit better than just jumping directly into the action. I hope you all are enjoying the story so far, as always any comments, questions, and concerns are appreciated. This has been VerBeeker, signing off!