Silence enveloped the underground space, the air seemingly frozen.
Tony walked over to Henry's side.
He looked at his brother, who had toyed with the Winter Soldier like a mere plaything, and the corners of his mouth twitched uncontrollably beneath his armor.
"Alright."
After a long pause, he finally forced a few words through his teeth.
"I admit it… your brute strength is slightly more than I expected. But this combat style of yours, utterly devoid of any elegance, is an insult to the very word 'fight.' You're not fighting… you're demolishing."
Henry ignored his trash talk.
He walked slowly to the bottomless human-shaped hole, glanced down at Bucky, who had fainted, his body twisted like a lump of clay, and sneered.
"I have to say, Hydra's tech has really gone backward." He shook his head in disdain.
"I thought the modified Winter Soldier could give me a decent sparring session. Turns out, that wasn't even a warm-up. Honestly… his bones are too fragile."
As he said this, he even flexed his wrist, as if he had just swatted a buzzing fly.
"Hey! You bastard! That's the guy who killed our parents!" Tony's voice carried suppressed rage as he rushed forward.
"You knocked him out so easily?! I didn't even get the chance to properly 'communicate' with him through some painful lessons!"
"Oh? Really?" Henry glanced at him.
"So those 'communication methods' of yours… that included strapping him to a chair and delivering a personal lecture for hours, right? Not bad… not bad at all."
As their banter continued, chaos erupted deep within the base, in the central control room.
"General! Winter Soldier mission failed! Target has suppressed him!" a researcher in a white coat stammered, staring at Henry on the monitor like a god.
"Useless! All of you are useless!"
The leader kicked him aside, the glint of greed in his eyes vanishing.
"This… is true power! This… is the power of gods!"
"Activate the Final Protocol!"
He turned to the terrified researchers in the control room and roared:
"Let it out! Only it! Only our perfect creation can oppose… a god!"
In the circular underground space, Tony prepared to continue chatting with Henry.
Then, suddenly, the base shook violently without warning.
"Alert! Alert!"
"Underground power core detected, operating at overload! Energy index has surpassed safe thresholds!"
J.A.R.V.I.S.'s urgent warning rang sharply through their comm channels.
The ceiling and heavy walls began to crack inch by inch. Countless chunks of stone and ice tumbled down.
"What the hell?!" Tony's expression changed instantly.
"Self-destruct? Hydra can't accept losing this easily?!"
"No." Henry's interest was piqued.
He looked down at the bottomless abyss beneath the platform.
"Something's down there… it's coming out."
Before he finished, a sound as if from the depths of hell echoed from below.
RUMBLRRR!!!
The circular platform holding the cryo-pods split in two!
Molten red lava, mixed with the nauseating stench of sulfur, gushed from the cracks below.
Then, a massive metallic head, exuding sheer terror, slowly rose from the boiling lava!
It was a robot head, built entirely with Soviet-style brutal aesthetics!
Its size was larger than a building!
Its eyes—two red-beaming spotlights—locked coldly onto the two of them.
"I have to say…" Tony's expression turned serious as he stared at the steel giant crawling out of the ground.
"Hydra's secret weapon… really is straightforward and crude."
Henry's voice sounded lazily.
"They probably think making it bigger automatically makes it stronger. Such a foolish mindset… even more ridiculous than your armor design."
"That's art! Not ridiculous! You brute…"
Their banter was cut off by a deafening roar.
The robot opened its terrifyingly large mouth.
ROAR!!!!
A red energy cannon, thicker than any Hydra soldier's beam, shot straight out of its mouth!
Its target wasn't Tony or Henry.
It was the massive hole Henry had smashed into the base above!
BOOOOM!!!
The terrifying energy struck the dome of the base!
Triggering a chain of even more violent explosions!
Ice, snow, and debris cascaded downward like a bursting dam.
In an instant, their only exit was completely blocked!
"Alright," Tony said, looking at the fully sealed escape route, smirking.
"Looks like Hydra wants to bury us alive with this antique."
"Hospitality, huh?" Henry said, smiling.
He slowly turned toward the steel giant.
His eyes ignited with unprecedented fighting intent.
"Actually," his voice grew excited,
"The party… is just getting started."
The massive steel behemoth fully emerged, its enormous body almost breaking the underground space.
Every step made the base tremble violently. Reinforced concrete tore and fell from the ceiling.
Its red eyes locked coldly on Henry and Tony, radiating deadly intent.
"J.A.R.V.I.S., analyze its structure and weaknesses."
Tony gave the order calmly. Data instantly appeared on his armor's visor, scanning and modeling the colossal figure.
Henry chuckled.
"Let me guess… you're thinking we should keep our distance, then poke it with your buzzing little micro-missiles?"
"That's tactical harassment! To test its armor and reaction speed! You think with your fists only!" Tony retorted.
"Preliminary scan shows its shell is made of an ultra-high-strength alloy we've never seen before. While not on par with vibranium, conventional attacks…"
His words were cut off by an even louder roar.
The robot leaned forward, its steel fist slicing through the air, smashing toward them!
"Dodge!"
Tony's face changed instantly. His thrusters erupted, attempting a sideways dodge.
But Henry didn't move.
He slowly lifted his head, staring at the overwhelming shadow. His eyes burned with blazing fire.
"Dodge?"
"Tony… since when did you get so timid?"
Before finishing, he wasted no more time.
He transformed instantly into a black lightning strike moving upward.
He didn't dodge—he charged straight into the massive steel fist.
"You're insane?!" Tony yelled, rushing to stop him.
But it was too late.
To Tony's shocked and worried gaze, the black figure collided violently with the steel fist.
BOOOOM!!!!
A visible white shockwave radiated outward from the impact.
The ground cracked and collapsed under the force.
Molten lava surged upward, painting the entire underground space red.
"Henry!!!"
Tony's heart thumped. He frantically activated his thrusters, trying to reach the center of the destructive energy.
But the next second, the shout froze in his throat.
As the dust slowly cleared, Henry remained suspended midair.
Not a single scratch on his armor.
He reached out his right hand and casually supported the steel fist—larger than his entire body—with a palm.
The massive steel behemoth froze.
Its enormous body shook violently.
Cracks spread visibly across the steel fist that Henry held.
***
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