----
Inside a black SUV speeding down a rural road, Connors sat behind the wheel while Nolan and Norman Osborn sat in the back, deep in discussion.
They were going over the final report on Jessica's dissection.
"When she initiates the thought of flying," Norman explained, "her pituitary gland secretes a unique hormone. It compresses her cellular structure by creating internal vacuoles within her cells basically making them lighter."
He paused.
"There's also something else. Her cells generate a localized magnetic field. It seems to envelop her entire body, but she can't manipulate it consciously."
"Her cells produce magnetism?" Nolan asked, intrigued. "They're forming closed-loop circuits internally?"
"So it appears."
"Once this mission is over," Nolan said, "we need to fully sequence her genome."
"Agreed."
Nolan shifted his attention to the file in his hand.
"General Ross…"
Thanks to Klaw's distribution of Phoenix 1.0, they'd finally caught the military's interest. Now, Nolan was here to give them a proper demonstration of Phoenix 2.0.
Soon, the SUV pulled up outside a heavily guarded facility in the middle of nowhere.
Armed soldiers patrolled the perimeter. As the vehicle approached the gate, a military truck rolled out to meet them.
A soldier stepped out. "Gentlemen, I'm Lieutenant Spahr. The General will see you now. Standard procedure please step out for inspection."
"That's fine. We won't be bringing the car in," Norman replied.
After a quick search, the three men were escorted through the compound and into an office building.
There, they came face-to-face with General Thaddeus 'Thunderbolt' Ross the man who had spent a lifetime hunting his own son-in-law, Bruce Banner.
Ross had already taken a strong interest in Phoenix 2.0. Klaw had leaked to him the Goblin Variant, which, though powerful, carried the risk of severe psychosis due to long-term use.
It wouldn't turn soldiers into Lizard mutants, at least. That was a start.
Phoenix 2.0 functioned by having two conflicting side effects cancel each other out. However, because the regenerative factor depleted over time, each variant had unique drawbacks.
Ross gave Norman a curt nod. "Mr. Osborn. It's been a while."
"General Ross."
The two men had worked together before. Ross had always favored biotech over mechanical enhancements whether it was the original Super Soldier Serum or the later Hulk experiments. He believed the human body held limitless potential.
Norman had been a valuable partner in the past. But with Oscorp's recent meltdown, most of his government contracts had dried up.
Military partnerships were cleaner. No politics. Just results.
Norman gestured to the others.
"This is Dr. Curt Connors my colleague and lead contributor to the Phoenix Program."
"And this…" he paused, with respectful emphasis, "is Nolan, my current employer. He's the chief architect and controller of Phoenix."
Ross turned his attention to Nolan. "You're the one I've heard about."
Always direct, Ross wasted no time.
"I've acquired samples of Phoenix 1.0 through unofficial channels. The regenerative effects are impressive but extended use leads to high fatality rates."
"I hear you're pushing Phoenix 2.0 now?"
"We are," Nolan said calmly. "We've brought a working sample."
Norman stepped back, letting Nolan take the lead. Connors placed a briefcase on the table and opened it.
Inside were two vials of glowing green liquid each like a bottle of liquified emerald.
Ross grimaced slightly at the color. After the Hulk, I've had enough green for a lifetime.
"This is Phoenix 2.0," Nolan said. "Its regenerative effects are slightly reduced compared to Version 1, but it's far more stable. Soldiers will live. The trade-off? Potential mild psychosis."
"Mild?" Ross asked coldly. "You're telling me the only way to stop my men from dying… is to make them insane?"
"You could administer follow-up doses," Nolan said, unfazed.
"Oh, sure," Ross scoffed. "So every time they go nuts, I pump them full of more mystery juice?"
He leaned forward, glaring. "Dr. Nolan, this is sounding more like a sales pitch for defective goods."
"You're right it has limitations," Nolan said, calm as ever. "But if your soldiers can survive long enough to complete a mission before the side effects kick in, you'll get results no other serum on Earth can deliver."
Ross narrowed his eyes.
"You expect me to pay top dollar for the flawed product?"
"No," Nolan replied. "I expect you to take advantage of a system."
"We'll provide psychological profiling kits for your soldiers. Routine tests will help you identify instability before it becomes a problem. Anyone who doesn't meet the threshold? Reassigned or re-dosed."
Truthfully, Nolan would've preferred to avoid the military altogether.
The U.S. Armed Forces was a political minefield of factions within factions, alliances, and rivalries. If you aligned with one, you instantly made enemies with another.
One wrong move, and he could find himself dragged into a military tribunal, accused of treason before he ever became a true superhuman.
But it was Ross. And Nolan wanted the Hulk Serum.
So a carefully controlled relationship would be acceptable.
Ross still looked unimpressed. "So what's the point of buying your product at all?"
"Because, General," Nolan said coolly, "after the Hulk incident, I know you're desperate for a solution."
"Working with Oscorp is that solution."
Ross scoffed. "Oscorp's in the gutter. How is this a solution?"
He tapped the desk and tossed a stack of documents toward Nolan's media reports, internal memos, and stock analysis. Claims of shareholder deaths, unsafe lab environments… scandal after scandal.
"Phoenix is only the beginning," Nolan said, ignoring the pile. "It's our rebirth. And we're not stopping at 2.0."
"We're already developing Phoenix 3.0. Minimal side effects. Maximum performance."
"You'll get first access. Priority supply."
"And I'm supposed to take your word for it?"
"You don't have to," Nolan said, pulling out a pre-signed contract. "Here's the deal. If we don't deliver a significantly improved version within six months we owe you twenty times your investment as a penalty."
Ross's eyes flicked to the document. Then back to Nolan.
He didn't trust easily but this kid had fire. He reminded him of a younger Tony Stark. Cocky. Brilliant. Dangerous.
He could work with that.
"Fine."
Norman pulled out a folder and passed it over. Ross signed.
Nolan smiled. "Would you like a demonstration?"
"You've already signed the penalty clause. If the product fails… I'll find you."
Ross turned to a nearby officer. "This is our quartermaster. He'll handle the pricing, quantities, and final agreements."
"Norman will handle those details," Nolan said. "Our business is done here."
This wasn't just a transaction. It was a trust exercise.
And Nolan didn't waste time with persuasion. The contract was the persuasion.
If he couldn't produce Phoenix 3.0 in six months?
He wasn't worthy of his own genius.
But he would.
He always did.
----
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