In a cluttered room.
Dr. Sterns, or rather "The Leader," was curled up in a corner, his face contorted in pain. His head was swelling upwards, looking like a large gourd from afar, stained with blood. It kept expanding and contracting, like a balloon being squeezed.
This was the basement of his house. After the Abomination ran out of the lab, he realized he had also mutated due to exposure to gamma radiation. Not wanting to be captured by the government and more curious about the changes happening to his body, he hid in this secret basement during the chaos.
After several hours, he noticed unbelievable changes in himself. Unlike what he had expected, he hadn't transformed into a monster like the Hulk or the Abomination. Instead, his brain had evolved.
He felt his thinking speed increase exponentially. Problems that used to take hours to solve now required just a moment of thought to resolve. There were also other abilities he couldn't yet comprehend, but without the proper conditions for experimentation, he couldn't identify them.
However, this evolution came at a price. His head was irreversibly growing larger, and his skin was beginning to turn green like the Hulk and Abomination. At the same time, the accelerated thinking speed significantly increased his brain's energy consumption.
Whenever he started to think, his head would ache, and his body would grow weaker. So, he had no choice but to stop thinking, to clear his mind and force himself to sleep.
Once the police and others left his home, he would sneak back and figure out his next steps.
Squeak—
The sound of a door opening abruptly echoed in the quiet basement. He woke up, startled.
Then, he saw a young man standing there.
"Dr. Sterns, are you alright?"
Lynch observed him and greeted him casually.
"Who are you?"
Sterns, clutching his head, sat up against the wall, staring at Lynch. His mind quickly analyzed Lynch's appearance, clothing, demeanor, and movements, trying to deduce his identity and intent.
He concluded: Confident, cautious, non-governmental, knowledgeable about me…
Lynch, in turn, observed Sterns and made a guess.
This guy didn't seem to be in good shape. Was he still in the middle of mutating? Should he take him out now?
"Are you feeling any changes in your body?"
Sterns, holding his head, responded weakly, "My brain has mutated, my thinking speed has increased significantly."
He wasn't lying because he sensed that lying wouldn't end well for him. This guy clearly knew some things about him, and there had been a flash of killing intent before he even spoke!
There was an intuition that if he lied, things would end badly.
"What are your plans?" Lynch smiled.
Sterns hesitated for a moment, then quickly replied, "I want to hide and continue my research on gamma radiation."
Lynch frowned.
This didn't align with the comics' storyline. Was it because of the MCU's adaptation? Or was he lying?
"I'm not lying," Sterns quickly added, seeming to read Lynch's thoughts. "I just want to do some research. I don't want to be captured by the government and turned into their lab rat."
"Can you help me?"
Lynch leaned in closer, eyeing Sterns carefully, "Your abilities are too strong, and your thirst for knowledge is too great. How can you guarantee that you won't pose a threat to the world?"
Sterns quickly explained, "My mutation isn't that strong. I can only sustain my thinking for short periods before the pain forces me to stop."
He grimaced as he spoke, then added, "I'm not interested in this world. I only crave knowledge and the unknown. As long as I have something to study, I won't cause any harm!"
Lynch nodded slightly, without showing his thoughts.
This guy had a strong survival instinct, and he was smart. But the question remained—someone with such intelligence, if allowed to continue absorbing knowledge, might eventually reach a point where he could easily destroy the world.
Even if he had no intention of destruction, with advanced technology, the world was fragile enough that a simple oversight could lead to catastrophe.
"Are you wary of my evolved brain?" Sterns asked, breaking the silence.
"I don't have a choice. You can't just eliminate me because I might be a threat."
He looked at Lynch, suddenly recalling a key piece of information from his memory.
"Just like Superman, people may be suspicious of
his overwhelming power, but that would be foolish."
Lynch's eyes flickered dangerously as he looked at Sterns.
He knew Sterns had already figured out his identity. It wasn't surprising, given that Lynch had some prior exposure.
"So, what's your point?" Lynch asked, waiting to see how Sterns would try to convince him.
"Strength, excellence, and extraordinary abilities are not crimes," Sterns quickly responded, despite his visible pain. "Even though such beings may face misunderstandings and criticism from ordinary people."
"But ultimately, the truth and the fate of the world are always in the hands of a few. These are the ones who shape the world."
"It's understandable to put limits and precautions in place for people like me, but why must it end with elimination?"
After speaking, Sterns collapsed, clutching his head in pain.
Lynch stood there, frowning, deep in thought. After a moment, he slowly approached Sterns, lifted him up, and said:
"You make a good point. The future of humanity is indeed in the hands of a small group, but..."
"Greatness arises from the ordinary, and excellence stands out because of the commonplace. The common people are the backbone of this world."
"For their safety, you'll have to be restrained."
"And for the record... I used to be an ordinary person, too."
As Lynch spoke, his eyes began to glow red, radiating intense heat.
"No…"
Sterns, now filled with despair, clutched his oversized head like a pitiful child.
Twin beams of scorching heat vision shot out, burning through the walls of the basement…
Half an hour later, Lynch stood next to Natasha, looking at Sterns, now wearing a comically large hat. He could hardly contain his laughter but managed to hold it in, knowing it would be rude to laugh out loud.
Turning to the two, Lynch said matter-of-factly, "This guy, Sterns, has a mutated brain and an insatiable thirst for knowledge. You'd better keep a close eye on him."
Natasha glanced at Sterns, smiling slightly. "No problem. We've handled cases like this before. Besides, we're short on researchers anyway."
Lynch hesitated for a moment. He hadn't killed Sterns because, in this version, Sterns didn't seem to pose a major threat. His earlier actions had just been a test to see if Sterns was hiding any additional powers.
The result was clear: whether it was because Sterns wasn't in good condition or because his evolution in this universe was underwhelming, aside from his accelerated thinking, there were no other abilities. Even in his "dying" moments, he showed no significant reaction.
With Sterns' reduced threat level, Lynch decided to spare his life. However, there was nowhere else to place him, so he handed him over to S.H.I.E.L.D.
But…
The infamous "Hydra S.H.I.E.L.D."—if Hydra got their hands on Dr. Sterns…
What a match made in heaven.
Lynch hesitated, wondering if he should reveal that S.H.I.E.L.D. had already been infiltrated by Hydra.
After thinking for a while, he decided the timing wasn't right and simply said, "It's best to keep Sterns' situation between us, just like I have."
"Maybe you could mention to your director if there's room in your plans for someone like Dr. Sterns."