Author's Note(s): It's not a large update, but I wanted to let everyone know this story isn't dead. I've got more planned, but it may take a while since I'm working on several other projects.

Undisclosed Location: Two Hours before the assault on Stark International

His eyelids felt like they were so heavy. How long had it been since he had a decent night's rest? He shut his eyes hard for a few moments before bolting them open and taking a few deep breaths. He was doing his best to try and stay awake, but he was dozing off. He couldn't work like this much longer. He had drunk so much coffee that there was a horrible caffeine aftertaste in his mouth. He had also drunk so much soda that he could swear he was feeling his molars in the back of his jaw dissolving as he worked. He rubbed his eyes one more time as another long yawn escaped. It didn't help of course. Everything on the monitor in front of him was blurring together. Every other line of code he was typing was a mistake that he was barley catching. He couldn't take this much more.

"Drakken, mein old friend. How are ve?" Dementor asked in his usual thick German accent that got on the pale blue man's nerves. If he could, he would try to come up with a witty retort. However, the exhaustion that was looming over him wouldn't allow it. Ever since Dementor had him work on this project, he did feel like his old self again. He would be eternally grateful for that. But this constant work with hardly any breaks wasn't going to work.

"Sleep." Drakken moaned.

"Vas ist das?" Dementor asked him.

"I need sleep, Dementor. I need some rest. I can't keep working like this. I don't even know what in the world I'm working on." He said as he glanced as the vial of substance that was sitting in several test tubes on the table beside him. "If you want me to keep working, you're going to have to let me get some rest." The blue skin scientist complained as he tried to rub his eyes one more time. Right now, it even felt like his own neck was starting to loose strength in holding his head up. A few more minutes and he would be sliding out of the chair like a Bugs Bunny cartoon.

"Let's just have a look at your vork first, Heir Doctor." Dementor said as pushed Drakken aside.

He glanced at the data in front of him as Drakken began to droop lower and lower in his chair. A small smile appeared on his face as he looked through everything in front of him before he turned to Drakken one more time.

"I must say, I am impressed. This is some of your finest work." Dementor said as he heard Drakken mumble.

"Does this mean I can go to sleep now?" Drakken mumbled.

"More than that. It means your work is finally finished." Dementor said. If the poor blue mad scientist would have been paying attention, he would have noticed that Dementor's shape and physical features were starting to change as his accent disappeared.

"What I don't like is how you were trying to undermine my work. Trying to set up buyers for my data and my samples. Trying to lay your own plans behind my back." The German man said as his voice deepened.

Drakken then awoke again as he heard every other word that was said. Mainly about the plans Drakken had been making when he had thought Dementor wasn't looking. When Drakken forced his eyes open, his breathing accelerated as every muscle began to tremble on its own.

"What in the . ." Drakken said, but trailed off as he saw something that reminded him of all the old black and white monster movies he used to watch when he was a child and stayed up late at night.

"I'm afraid our arrangement has come to an end, Drakken. Thank you for sending that lunatic mercenary to keep an eye on Ronald and his friends. I may need them further. Good bye." Dementor said before a large alien's hand smacked Drakken upside the head.

The blow cracked open both skin and skull as it sent Drakken flying from his chair across the room and allowed the center of his back to strike the table that contained all the replicated samples. Drakken crumpled into a heap on the floor and lay motionless as everything on the now bent table began to fall to the floor and shatter and spill over the prone blue man. A sick smile, if it could be called that, formed on the shape shifting alien's face as he saw the motionless Drakken laying on the floor. He placed an elongated talon on an intercom that would allow him to talk to the entire facility as he made sure his vocal cords still sounded like his human self.

"This is Professor Dementor. All units, we are bugging out. Repeat, bug out! We shall relocate all materials and equipment to location Beta immediately." He said as he began to shift back into his human self. "Goodbye, Drew. You were truly an annoying pain in my backside." He said as he left the room.

After Dementor was gone, Drakken slowly turned his head as he struggled to stay awake. He most likely had a concussion from the blow he had been given. His back was in complete agony and hurt even more so with every breath he took. He could move his legs, but only slightly. Thankfully, that meant he wasn't paralyzed. But he couldn't go to sleep. If he did that, he might not ever wake up again. He could feel warm blood dripping down his head and even into his hair. He had to get up, but the exhaustion from hours of endless work wouldn't let him. What was worse, he was slipping into shock. Not a good combination. He still had to try. Drakken forced an arm upward and tried to grasp the deformed table. Once he was certain it was steady, he tried to lift himself up.

It was no use though. As soon as he tried to pull himself upward, he felt his grip slip as he fell back to the floor and more sample vials spilled. A small sob escaped from him as he grew more fearful of his fate. There was a strong chance he was going to die right now. Where was Shego when he needed him? Where was his mother when he wanted her? As he looked at the filthy smooth floor beneath him, he felt an odd burning sensation in his open wound. The single sensation then grew into several more burning sensations in fact. What was causing it? Drakken turned his head just enough so he could look up and saw a strange crimson liquid was dripping from the edge of the table. That was when realization started to sink in. It was the broken sample vials. Either when he crashed into the table or when his arm slipped, the vials broke and the samples were dripping all over the table. And now the samples were dripping into his wound.

His injury was now feeling strange. No, it wasn't just his wound. His head felt strange. Almost like there was a tingling in his brain. If he didn't know any better, he could almost swear that his entire mind and intelligence were expanding by leaps and bounds in mere seconds. In fact, his fear was leaving him. All feeling of pain in the wound was fading as he felt himself regain a second wind and new sense of strength. He could hear himself chuckle. It was as if some part of his mind knew that death was no longer an option. What ever was in those samples, it was helping him. It was saving his life. Yes, he would recover from these injuries. He would recover from this humiliation. Like the mythic bird, he would rise from his own ashes and emerge reborn. Kim Possible and Dementor truly meant nothing in the grand scheme that his mind was forming. Oh yes, there would be a reckoning. He would use the alias he had created to try and profit from the samples when Dementor wasn't looking. A new day would soon be at hand with him in control. So says the Leader.

Three Months Later

He hated being in this damn cell. If it were a cement cube with bars on the windows, that would be one thing. No, this was a special SHIELD cell that was driving him nuts. The cell that he was sitting in wasn't anything more than a large cylinder of some composite material that wasn't glass nor was it plastic. There was a bed, a small monitor, and a desk with paper and a set of cheap pens. The monitor was for whenever he had a visitor and rarely used for a television set. When it was used as a TV, it was allowed one channel per the prisoner's request that had been granted. The one station broadcasted nothing but news of what was happening all over the world. If he was going to stay in here, he might as well know what he was missing.

One of the only benefits about being held in a SHIELD prison was that he was allowed visitors once a month. The only visitor he wanted though was Betty. Ever since the attack and him being imprisoned for what he had done to Ron, Fury had her busy with other projects. Mainly the recovery of what was left of the alien ships and studying them. He knew Fury was doing this on purpose though. This was Fury's way to try and force home what he had done and to dwell on it.

"Bruce?"

He couldn't believe the voice he had just heard. After being confined in this cell for so many months and forced to being alone was starting to drive him over the edge. He was starting to hallucinate. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He went over various math equations, genetics formulas, even physics problems in his head to try and keep his mind intact. He had to hold himself together.

"Bruce?"

That wasn't an illusion. He was certain the voice was real. Slowly Bruce turned around was overjoyed to see Betty standing at the side of his polymer prison where the intercom was. Bruce rushed to the intercom, and tripped over his own feet doing so, and quickly pressed the button down so he could talk to the love of his life.

"Betty, thank God it's you! I thought I was going crazy!" Bruce said.

"I would have been here sooner. But you know how Fury is." Betty said.

"What's been happening? From what I've seen, Ron's still isn't in control of the Hulk."

"I wish I knew, Bruce. Without him here, I don't know what's wrong with him. But it's gotten worse. Dad's been charged with taking him down." Betty said. The look on Bruce's face spoke volumes. He knew it was one of their worst fears. The army wanted the Hulk so they could make soldiers like him. Bruce also knew Betty's father wouldn't stop until he had Ron in chains or on an autopsy table.

"Fury and Stark bought them some time though. For now, no one knows where he is."

"Not for long. You know your father will jump on any clue that suggests where he's hiding." Bruce said.

"I know that, Bruce. For now, Fury is doing everything he can to make sure Ron stays hidden. I don't even think he knows where Ron is heading."

"Twenty bucks says you're wrong." Bruce mumbled to himself.

"Bruce, we've discovered something strange with the alien ships."

"The ones that were destroyed in the attack? What about them?"

"Like we thought, they're composed of Vibranium. There are several sections that have become brittle almost to the touch."

"There's no reason for them to be brittle. It's a super strong alloy, almost stronger than Adamantium. Is there anyway you can bring me some data? Maybe schematics of which ships were destroyed?" Bruce asked her.

"Bruce, you know what Fury is like. I'm lucky I was able to visit you now. I'll try and see if I can get some data to you, but I can't promise anything." Betty said. "Try not to go crazy in here." Betty said before she pressed her hand to the glass and was forced to leave. As soon as she was gone, Bruce went to his cot and lay down. So many things were going through his head. How did the Vibranium become so brittle?

Japan

Slow deep breaths. That's all he took was slow deep breaths as he tried to clear his mind. For the past three months, Ron Stoppable and his friends had been laying low at the secret school of Monkey Kung Fu. Yamanuchi. It was here that he hoped his old sensi could help him learn how to control the beast that was dwelling within him. So far, the only thing Ron had learned was how to keep his cool and stop his transformations. There had been a few close calls during a few sparing matches, but Ron had been able to keep a cool head. As Ron sat and continued to breath, the old man next to him let out a deep sigh.

"You haven't fully cleared your mind, Stoppable-san." The old man said.

"What are you talking about? I'm not thinking of anything and I'm doing the breathing techniques you taught me." Ron said.

"You are forcing your mind to be clear. By doing so, you are not letting anything flow through you as you meditate. You are blocking what you need to truly become at peace with yourself." The old man said.

"No offence, Master Sensi, but some of the stuff you say can be confusing."

"So I have been told." The old man said. "Stoppable-san, I know for a fact that you know the proper way to meditate. It was one of the things you excelled at when you first arrived at Yamanuchi. Would I be incorrect to assume that you are blocking yourself on purpose?"

Ron Stoppable looked away for a moment before he closed his eyes so we wouldn't see the disappointment in his teacher's eyes. "Yes." Ron answered as he looked at the old man. "I'm terrified, Master Sensi. Whenever people teased me or poked fun, I was always able to let it roll off my back. But when I change into that thing whenever I get angry," Ron said.

"You think that all those insults never truly rolled off your back?" Sensi asked.

"Yes."

"Because of this, you doubt who you are. So you doubt what truth about yourself you may learn in meditation. Stoppable-san, no one is perfect. We are human and it is natural for us to feel hurt. Insults, like weapons, do inflict pain. But may I ask you a question? When was the first time the creature revealed itself?" Master Sensei asked.

"The first time? Let me think." Ron said as he searched his memories. "Drakken's lair. It was when KP was hurt."

"Were you mad because of what they had done to her or the insults they made toward you?"

"No. It was the fact they hurt Kim. She's my best friend and I just wasn't going to just stand there and let her get hurt." Ron said.

"I see. What about the next time?"

"Rufus. It was when he became what SHIELD calls 'the Abomination'. I hate that Fury called him that. I hated it even more that someone did that to him and forced him to become that."

"Not because he attacked you?"

"Of course not. I know he was being forced."

"What about at the hospital and in California?"

"That was because my friends were in danger. Why all the questions?"

"You do not see the pattern, Stoppable-san?" the old teacher asked.

"Not really."

"How many times has Kim saved you and the day?"

"Almost all the time. I'm the distraction, and she stops the bad guy."

"But all these incidents where the creature has emerged have something in common. Someone you cared about was in danger or in pain. The anger isn't repressed rage from the constant taunts you've suffered. The anger is because your friends are in danger. This creature wasn't born from pure rage, Stoppable-san. This creature is born from your need to help those you care about. This 'Hulk' as you call it is not a destroyer, but a protector."

"You've got to be kidding me." Ron said.

"I kid you not, Stoppable-san. When you realize this, you will find that you and the creature are truly the same person. Then you may be able to find balance." Sensei said and left Ron alone to think.

"The same person? I wish I was that buffed."