"You can abbreviate it as H.S.D.A.L.B.," Drex Valen said.
Seeing the blank looks around him, he added, "Or just call it the Superhuman Bureau."
Ross nodded slowly.
Drex continued.
"The Superhuman Bureau will handle mutants, Inhumans, superpowered criminals, supernatural phenomena, and any other threats that could endanger humanity. If you want a simpler name, think of it as a Bureau of Supernatural Crisis Management."
After all, mutants already existed in this world. The Inhumans hadn't fully emerged into public view yet, but that was only a matter of time.
Ross frowned.
"Isn't maintaining world security already SHIELD's job?"
Was this new organization competing with SHIELD?
Or was it simply another agency sharing the same authority?
"Not anymore," Drex replied. "From today forward, SHIELD handles its affairs, and we handle ours. We stay out of each other's territory, and neither side crosses the line."
With a few words, he established a new standard.
Any incident involving supernatural phenomena, superhumans, or anomalous threats now fell outside SHIELD's jurisdiction.
Those cases belonged to the Superhuman Bureau.
At present, the Human Supernatural Strategic Defense, Attack, and Logistics Bureau consisted of exactly three people.
Drex.
Ross.
Blonsky.
That was enough.
Quality mattered more than quantity.
Drex immediately assigned Ross a mission.
Find a pilot.
They were going to dig up a popsicle.
Ross had initially assumed this brand-new agency would face endless bureaucratic resistance.
Instead, every request was approved immediately.
Military assets were assigned.
Personnel were transferred.
Entire excavation teams were placed under their command.
The amount of authority behind the organization was staggering.
As Ross boarded the transport aircraft with Blonsky, accompanied by an entire support fleet, he finally voiced the question that had been bothering him.
"Just how much authority does this organization actually have?"
Neither he nor Blonsky had been told what exactly they were digging up.
Only that it was important.
Meanwhile, Drex headed elsewhere.
He had someone else to recruit.
Bruce Banner stared at the video in disbelief.
The footage showed Ross, transformed into Red Hulk, fighting Abomination.
What looked like a brutal battle was actually little more than a training session, both men learning to control their new forms.
For Banner, however, the video represented something far more important.
Hope.
A possibility he had almost given up on.
"That's... General Ross?"
"It is."
Drex sat across from him.
"Dr. Banner, I'd like to invite you to join the Human Supernatural Strategic Defense, Attack, and Logistics Bureau."
Banner blinked.
Drex continued calmly.
"You won't be expected to fight. Nobody will be hunting you anymore. No military pursuit. No government manhunts. All I need from you is research. Study supernatural phenomena and help us understand them."
The Bureau had already inherited a massive amount of SHIELD's secured inventory.
Dangerous artifacts.
Anomalous technology.
Even the mysterious Obelisk had been transferred into Bureau custody.
Publicly, Drex classified such objects and entities as Containment Assets.
The Bureau's responsibility was to secure and manage them.
Banner hesitated.
Then he asked the question that mattered most.
"Can you help me control the Hulk?"
There was genuine hope in his voice.
Drex shook his head.
"No."
Banner's expression fell.
"The Hulk is something only you can understand and control. Nobody else can do that for you."
Drex stood.
"Think it over. Let me know your answer."
Technically speaking, Banner himself was one of the Bureau's containment subjects.
Banner stared at the floor for several seconds.
Then he sighed.
"...No need. I'll join."
Living in a cage while waiting for the next disaster wasn't much of a life.
At least here he might find answers.
At least here he could keep searching for a solution.
Drex smiled.
"A wise decision, Dr. Banner."
Then his smile widened slightly.
"Who knows? You might master the Hulk sooner than you think."
Several days later, Drex finally met the man they had dug out of the ice.
Captain America.
Freshly thawed from decades of frozen sleep.
This version of Captain America looked different from the one Drex remembered from his original universe.
Even unconscious, Steve Rogers possessed the kind of face that practically radiated integrity.
Strong features.
Clear eyes.
The sort of person who looked trustworthy at first glance.
Like Superman.
One look and most people would immediately assume he was a good man.
Ross and Blonsky stood nearby.
Both had become remarkably cooperative after experiencing the Bureau's privileges firsthand.
The identification credentials Drex had provided worked everywhere.
CIA.
FBI.
Military facilities.
Foreign intelligence organizations.
Every clearance level checked out.
Every authorization was genuine.
The authority of the Superhuman Bureau was almost absurd.
To Ross and Blonsky, Drex now appeared to stand at the very peak of both power and influence.
"Director," Ross asked, "what's the plan?"
Drex glanced at the sleeping super soldier.
"Super soldiers like Captain America became obsolete the moment we gained the power of the Hulk."
Ross nodded.
Hard to argue with that.
Then Drex smiled.
"But that doesn't mean Captain America is useless."
Ross frowned.
"What do you mean?"
"We'll make Captain America a Hulk."
Both Ross and Blonsky froze.
"You're turning Captain America into a Hulk?" Ross asked.
Blonsky said nothing, but a trace of dissatisfaction flickered across his face.
Part of him disliked seeing such power handed out so freely.
Even after his conditioning, his instinctive belief in strength above all else remained.
Drex ignored both reactions.
Steve Rogers was thawed from the ice and brought back to stable condition.
Then Drex immediately began the procedure.
Hulk serum.
Massive gamma-ray exposure.
The entire process unfolded right in front of Bruce Banner.
Watching it, Banner became increasingly convinced that the Bureau's director was a very dangerous man.
Still, the results spoke for themselves.
Steve's eyes snapped open.
His body rapidly expanded.
Muscles swelled.
Bone and tissue grew at explosive speed.
Within moments, a towering blue giant stood where Captain America had been.
A Blue Hulk.
Captain America Hulk.
"I... I'm..."
The giant looked down at his hands.
"...Steve Rogers?"
Unlike Banner, Steve didn't lose control.
His willpower was extraordinary.
Unshakable.
Rather than struggling against the transformation, he instinctively mastered it.
The power of the Hulk responded to him almost immediately.
Drex applauded.
"Congratulations, Steve."
The blue giant looked up.
"You've just become America's next-generation super soldier."
Steve blinked.
"Next-generation super soldier?"
Only then did he start noticing his surroundings.
The advanced equipment.
The unfamiliar technology.
The sleek facilities.
Everything felt impossibly futuristic.
For a brief moment, he was reminded of HYDRA.
Had he been captured?
Was this some elaborate experiment?
Drex spent the next hour explaining everything.
The seventy years he had missed.
Mutants.
Inhumans.
Supernatural threats.
The modern world.
Steve listened quietly.
By the end, he had partially recovered from the shock of learning he'd slept through seven decades of history.
The world had become far more complicated than he remembered.
And modern super-soldier technology was apparently insane.
Eventually, Steve asked the obvious question.
"So you're asking me to join the Human Supernatural Strategic Defense, Attack, and Logistics Bureau?"
"Of course."
Drex nodded seriously.
"Excellent benefits package, too."
Steve raised an eyebrow.
Drex continued without missing a beat.
"Full medical coverage. Retirement benefits. Premium housing. A luxury villa in an upscale district comes with employment, and you get permanent ownership."
Steve stared at him.
"...Can I visit Peggy Carter?"
Money meant nothing to him.
Seventy years had passed.
Almost everyone he knew was gone.
Peggy was one of the few people left.
Drex's expression softened slightly.
"Any time."
He stood.
"I'll arrange transportation and have someone accompany you."
The moment Steve saw Peggy Carter, all of his composure shattered.
He slowly approached her bedside.
No words were needed.
The room fell silent.
Everyone present quietly withdrew, giving them privacy.
Some reunions deserved that much.
When Steve finally emerged sometime later, he looked different.
Older.
Not physically.
Emotionally.
The doctors had informed him of Peggy's condition.
Her health was failing.
She didn't have much time left.
And for the first time since awakening in the future, Steve Rogers looked completely lost.