In the dimly lit research base, the researchers in uniforms were leaving, one after the other.
Doctor Dora pushed open the glass door of her office and said to the last person inside, "Betty, I'm leaving first. The data on the orbit of the Mercury Base, give it to me tomorrow morning."
"Understood, Doctor Dora." The female researcher named Betty nodded and said, "Also, the information about the cruise robot for the Mercury Base that the United Nations space commissioner sent yesterday, I'll give it to you tomorrow as well. You can pass it on."
"Thank you." Dora smiled, closed the door and left.
Walking down the corridor, she touched her hair, shook her head, and felt as if it were another lifetime ago. It felt like just yesterday when she had betrayed the Life Foundation, sought out the journalist Eddie, and together they had exposed the conspiracy of the foundation's boss.
Now, Doctor Dora had become a researcher in the oxygen circulation system project team for the Mercury Base. She was mainly responsible for researching the habitability direction for humans within the solar system. Over the course of just a year, she had handled three or four top-tier projects. Without any unforeseen incidents, she would become the person primarily responsible for this base within the year.
Just as she was thinking about this, her phone rang. Dora picked it up and realized the caller was Eddie Brock. She answered, "Hello? Mr. Eddie, what's up?"
"What?!! Someone wants to steal information related to the orbit of the Mercury Base?!! Why? What do they want this information for?!"
"They want to launch a special device close to the Sun? Then just launch it, what do they need us for?...What did you say? They aren't personnel from the solar system development plan? They want to launch it secretly??"
"Don't worry, our technology and research data are strictly confidential. It's absolutely impossible for anyone to get their hands on the information!"
Dora's expression was resolute, she said, "You should understand my character, I absolutely won't allow despicable individuals to ruin the future of mankind, I will definitely protect the safety of the information and data, just like what we did at the Life Foundation's base!"
Suddenly, her expression became a little strange again, she paused and said, "…What did you say? Eddie, you... Are you drunk? You want us to deliberately leak the data??"
"Oh, I see!" Dora had a look of sudden realization and said, "You want me to modify the data a bit, to give them false information, right? If we do that, they'll surely fail!"
"What? Provide the real data?!...Ah?! There's also this?!...Oh, I see, it's a top-secret project, isn't it?"
"They really do look for trouble! What's wrong with mutants? Several of my colleagues are mutants, I'm not some kind of mutant hater..."
"Jesus, so that's it, it really is something those military guys would do... Tell me the details, how should I cooperate with you?"
As Dora was on the phone, she rounded a corner in the corridor and disappeared into the base. But the corridor did not stay quiet for long. Soon, another female voice came from the office at the end of it.
"No! You madman! I could never give you the data!!!" Inside the office, Betty gritted her teeth and said, "Ross! You bastard! Don't ever think about forcing me to do your bidding!...Father?? You dare to speak of the word father?!"
"In any case, I absolutely will not hand over the data that I have to you! You can never use me to realize your wicked plans!!!"
Betty angrily hung up the phone. Afterwards, her hands fell limply by her sides, and the phone fell onto her desk. She leaned against her desk, her hands supporting her, and started to sob quietly.
In the dark office, only her lone silhouette could be seen. Betty's shoulders were shaking uncontrollably. In the end, she covered her mouth with her hand, sat down on the chair, leaned on the desk and started to cry.
With a "buzz" sound, the screen of the mobile phone lit up. Among her tears, Betty lifted her head, wiped her tears with the back of her hand and picked up the phone. A new message was displayed: "Dear, I have made a reservation at the restaurant. Shall we have dinner together tonight?"
The sender's name was "Bruce Banner". Upon seeing this familiar name, Betty's mood didn't lighten up. Instead, she started sobbing uncontrollably again.
Half a minute later, the phone rang again. Betty pressed the answer key, and Banner's warm voice came through, "Dear, what's wrong? Why didn't you reply to my message?"
"I heard that there is a new Belgian restaurant in Manhattan, it has great reviews. It took me a lot of effort to get a reservation. What do you want to eat, I can order in advance."
Betty swallowed hard and tried to control her voice to avoid sobbing. She said, "I'm not feeling well, I...let's do it another time..."
Banner fell silent for a moment. Betty hurriedly added, "Dear, I know you're eager to see me. I know that reservations at popular restaurants are precious, but I've been really busy with work lately. You know about the situation with the Mercury Base..."
"I understand, dear." Banner's voice always carried a gentle and resolute strength. He said, "Don't worry, no reservation is more valuable than you. You take a good rest, we'll talk another day."
After hanging up the phone, Betty was unable to hold back her tears.
Just then, her phone rang again, and it didn't stop. It was a continuous "buzzing" sound. Several messages were displayed on the screen.
"Betty Ross! Why did you block my phone number?!"
"Do you think doing this will help?!!"
"I am your father!! You're defying your father!!"
"Aren't you my daughter? Why do you refuse to listen to me?! Your last name is Ross!!!"
Why won't you think about the future of the human race?! Don't you understand, what I'm doing right now is solely for the safety of our species?!!"
Overwhelmed by the sound of incoming messages, Betty felt as if she had gone insane. She retreated, clenching her hair, fell to the ground and began to sob uncontrollably. It wasn't unlike experiencing a hallucination, as she flailed her arms around.
Papers and files on the table were scattered, flying around as a symbolic shackle, binding Betty's hands, forcing her into a hunched position on the floor, whimpering quietly.
When Bruce Banner arrived, this was the scene he was met with.
He rushed in straightaway, helped his lover up, continuously patting Betty's back to soothe her. However, she seemed to have choked on her sobs, and began to cough violently. The onsets of hiccuping sobs led her to kneel back down on the floor, retching.'
Banner, who didn't understand what was happening, was exceedingly anxious. He kneeled down, holding Betty close and said, "It's alright. It's alright, my love. I'm here, don't be scared..."
Betty stopped retching, but her body was still trembling. Banner was utterly clueless about what was going on, all he knew was that he couldn't agitate Betty any further. He then took out his phone and dialed a number.
About ten minutes later, Shiller appeared at the doorway to the office. He saw Banner holding his girlfriend, both huddled together. Shiller widened his eyes and asked, "What happened? Why did Miss Ross suddenly..."
Banner turned to Shiller and said, "I don't know what happened either. When I called her earlier, something in her voice sounded off. So, I hurried over here, but to my surprise, she wouldn't stop crying and she was trembling…"
Just then, the phone screen lit up again. Shiller, standing beside the office desk, glanced at the screen that was filled with a slew of messages.
Shiller picked up the phone. Without unlocking it, he could only see a few of the messages on the display. From these few messages however, he could grasp the situation.
He approached them, patted Banner's shoulder, and said, "Lay Miss Ross down flat. Holding her like this might make it difficult for her to breathe."
Then, Shiller pulled out a stethoscope to listen to Betty's heartbeat, then checked her pupils. He turned to Banner and said, "Now, I'm going to give you this phone. But when you read what is on here, you might become extremely angry…"
"You should know, your mental state is also unstable. I can't manage two patients with mental issues simultaneously, especially when one of them is inexhaustibly strong."
Banner took a deep breath and said, "Ever since the Hulk's last outburst of anger, he's been relatively stable. I'll try to control my emotions. If I can't, just contact Professor X, have him knock me out before I can fully unleash my abilities…"
Shiller hesitated for a moment, but still handed over the phone to Banner. Not long after, Shiller saw Banner's chest heaving as if it was a high-speed fan, it was clear that he was extremely angered.
The screen was filled with messages from Betty's father, General Ross, scolding his daughter, continuously pressuring and demanding her to surrender some forms of data.
Banner slammed the phone onto the ground. At that moment, Betty reached out to grab the phone. Banner hastily stopped her. As she lay in his arms crying, she said,"If I don't respond to him, he'll send people after me. He might come to my place, my landlord will kick me out…"
Shiller looked at Banner and said, "Miss Ross's father's actions are now bordering on mental abuse. It seems that he has been pressuring Miss Ross to turn over something, and he has been using many forms of harassment."
"From what I can see now, Miss Ross might be suffering from panic disorder. If it's left untreated, it may lead to a long-term state of anxiety. To solve this problem, we must address her torment."
Banner held Betty tightly, his lips pursed as he said, "I'll talk to her father. He can't treat his own daughter like this!"
"No, don't, Bruce…" Betty latched onto Banner's arm and said, "He'll hurt you. He's always disliked you…"
Betty closed her eyes in despair, she said, "He's aligned with members of the Talto faction. The faction has significant influence in the military, there are many high-ranking generals in the army and navy who belong to them, Bruce, they're too big for you to contend with…"
Seeing Banner's fists clench tighter and tighter, Shiller advised him, "relax, Bruce, you can't let Miss Ross lie on the ground all the time. Take her to the resting room to rest a bit, then we can return to my sanitarium together. She might need some time off."
"No!" Betty yelled, "I have to watch the documents...They absolutely cannot succeed! Many people will be hurt! I understand… cough, cough…I understand Ross, he cannot succeed…"
"My love!" Banner raised his voice and said, "Didn't you hear what the doctor just said? You are suffering from panic disorder. If not treated promptly, it may develop into chronic symptoms. That will impact you for life, you must come with me. My love, please listen..."
Banner gently lifted his girlfriend up, while Shiller opened the door. Before he left, he looked back at the scattered documents on the floor, shaking his head as he took out his phone.
After the three had left, Dora, who had just left, returned to the office.
In the dark office, she put down her phone, looked around and took out her high-privilege employee card. She swiped it on Betty's computer. Then, with a special storage device, she copied all the data,
Dora then walked over to the chair, picked up the phone that had been left behind. She squinted her eyes and looked at the messages on the screen, scoffed, then plugged the storage device into the phone, transferring all the data over.
In the operations office of the military base, General Ross heard his phone ring.
He pulled out his phone, looked at the incoming reply filled with data, and a triumphant smile spread across his face.