When the American team arrived ahead of the British agents in the small town of Itos, Peru, and made a few discreet inquiries, they were overjoyed to discover that Banner had indeed been staying there for over a month.
Eager to catch him before the Brits, the operation's lead made a risky decision: they bribed a local to pretend his family was ill and needed medicine, gaining entry to Banner's modest clinic.
But when they got inside—Banner was gone.
Fortunately, a neighbor mentioned that Banner would hire a guide every few days to enter the rainforest and collect rare plants for specimen study.
With no other choice, the Americans—and the newly arrived British agents—reported the situation and stayed behind, clinging to hope, waiting like fools for Banner to return.
Back in the U.S., Ross had just landed when he received the report—and instantly knew: Banner had escaped.
He cursed under his breath, then picked up his phone and dialed William.
But before he could even yell, the call rang three times and was declined. A few seconds later, a map appeared on his screen—Banner's location marked in red, moving steadily through the rainforest.
"I want an elite unit assembled and ready to move in three hours. We're going to bring Banner back," Ross ordered.
"But, sir..." his assistant hesitated.
"What?" Ross narrowed his eyes.
The assistant cautiously explained, "Sir, you previously instructed that the space shuttle launch should be prepared for immediately upon your return from London. The shuttle is now fully fueled and ready to fly to the moon.
The mission has already been greenlit by Director Benjamin Arthur and the Pentagon. The whole country is waiting for your order."
"They actually got it ready..."
Ross's face darkened. That urgent two-day launch window had originally been a test—a probe to see how responsive the system was. Space missions aren't something you snap your fingers and schedule.
But the fact that no one resisted, and that launch prep was already complete, rang alarm bells for Ross.
It made him believe William's warning even more—that Decepticons had infiltrated the upper ranks of the U.S. government.
"Are the pilots ours?"
"Yes, sir." The assistant took a file from his briefcase, but Ross waved him off—he wasn't in the mood to read any details.
After thinking for a moment, Ross asked, "Where's our new base located?"
The assistant's eyes lit up. "Coastal outskirts of New York. I went there myself. It was completed just last year—state-of-the-art."
"Hmph. How considerate—whatever I need, I get. Money, authorization... everything."
It was all going too smoothly—and that made Ross deeply uneasy.
Lately, every time he'd requested something related to the lunar mission, approvals that used to take a week were now returned the next day.
But even with his growing anxiety, Ross was still tempted by the prospect of the Decepticon ship rumored to be on the moon. Now, on the brink of giving the order, his resolve was starting to waver.
And just as he'd finally gotten a trace on Banner.
All this chaos left Ross—usually energetic and stubborn—feeling overwhelmed.
If only Blonsky were here, he thought. Then he could hand off the mission to capture Hulk and focus solely on the Decepticons.
Thinking of William and Britain's Prime Minister Richard, who were clearly waiting to gut him at the right moment, Ross suddenly smiled coldly. "Inform the higher-ups:
I need Blonsky to accompany the astronauts on the moon mission—to test the effectiveness of super soldiers in space operations."
"Understood," the assistant replied, recognizing his boss was now looking to offload the problem. And the reasoning sounded perfectly legitimate.
The assistant left to relay the message, and just like that, things were stalled for another week.
By the time Banner had made his way to a favela in Rio de Janeiro, Blonsky—after receiving some unknown benefit—was finally released back to the U.S. by the Brits.
Returning to the new base in New York, Blonsky knocked on Ross's office door amid confused stares from familiar faces.
When Ross saw the now six-foot-tall, powerfully built Blonsky, his vigor and fighting spirit renewed, he froze momentarily before calmly tossing him a file.
"Go to Rio. Bring Bruce Banner back."
"No problem, sir."
For Blonsky, catching Hulk was far more enticing than fighting the Decepticons. If he could obtain Hulk's blood, he'd become even stronger.
As for William's warning—that he might permanently remain in giant form after the transformation—Blonsky only pondered it for a second before dismissing the risk.
A bigger form meant greater strength. For someone obsessed with combat, that was an advantage, not a burden.
It would level the playing field against the towering Decepticons in future battles.
Full of anticipation, Blonsky took Ross's signed orders and boarded a plane to Rio with a six-man elite unit.
Meanwhile, Ross—his emotions in turmoil—entered the space center and, under the watchful eyes of the entire nation, officially issued the launch order.
As the rocket carrying the shuttle ignited, lifted off, broke through gravity, and entered a stable trajectory toward the moon, cheers erupted across the center and throughout America.
But the rest of the world wasn't impressed.
Given William's earlier Mars landing and superior spacecraft tech, people saw the U.S. lunar mission as laughably outdated.
Many Brits mocked the Americans online, saying it would take them at least fifty years to catch up.
Naturally, a fierce internet war broke out. The global media was all over the story, eager to hear what William had to say about it.
After Ross accepted congratulations from Director Benjamin Arthur and other bigwigs, he finally pulled his assistant aside and whispered:
"Prepare a classified research facility. Everything brought back from the moon must be stored there.
No one is to know the location. No one enters without my order. Understood?"
If it had been anyone else, they might've hesitated. But Ross's assistant merely paused for a few seconds, then nodded. "Understood, sir. I'll mobilize a secret team."
Ross patted his shoulder, satisfied. "Good."
Then, as if remembering something, he added, "Also, inform our people: a war may be coming. For the next month, cancel all leave for the Decepticon Rapid Response Force.
We don't have much time left."
The shuttle would enter lunar orbit in about three days, with nearly two more days needed to land and locate the Decepticon ship. If all went smoothly, it would return to Earth within eight days.
And so, with a growing sense of foreboding, Ross began issuing more orders after leaving the space center—secretly mobilizing personnel and equipment from bases around New York as a precaution.
Only after all that did he finally turn his attention to monitoring Blonsky's mission to capture the Hulk.
______
(≧◡≦) ♡ Support me and read 20 chapters ahead – patreon.com/Mutter
• Every 100 Power Stones = 1 extra chapter on Saturday.• Every 5 reviews = 1 extra chapter on Saturday.