The underground HYDRA base in Sokovia was still smoldering from Kai and Tony's raid. But deep below the main compound—beyond even the servers and weapons caches—there was something worse.
Unmarked. Contained. Forgotten.
Until now.
---
Later That Night – Stark Tower Lab
Tony Stark stood in front of a massive digital display, reviewing data JARVIS had decrypted from the Sokovia base. Kai sat nearby, absently spinning a screwdriver between his fingers, but his eyes were glued to the screen.
"Project: Genesis Protocol," Tony read aloud. "Classified under highest clearance. All references scrubbed from SHIELD archives. HYDRA's been busy."
Kai leaned forward. "They were experimenting with alien DNA?"
"More like forcing it," Tony replied grimly. "They tried to simulate the Omnitrix. No watch, no safeguards. Just raw DNA samples, spliced into human test subjects."
He pulled up an image. Kai felt his stomach turn.
On the screen was a human body—partially human. Its limbs had mutated into thick green armor plating, almost like Humungousaur's skin. One eye glowed orange while the other was human and terrified. Its mouth was warped, filled with jagged teeth, and it had no nose.
Tony's voice was flat. "They tried to recreate Humungousaur's genome using black-market scans from old tech… and they failed."
Kai whispered, "Did it survive?"
JARVIS responded. "Subject designated as G-03. Last recorded location: HYDRA Biovault Site-7. Siberia. Status: Unknown."
Tony's eyes met Kai's. "You up for another field trip?"
---
Siberia – Site-7
The jet descended into the frozen white wastes of rural Siberia. The wind howled. Snow sliced sideways. Barely visible beneath the storm was a cracked concrete structure built into a mountain's side — no lights, no security, just silence.
Kai and Tony stepped into the compound, suits armed and senses high. The entrance groaned open with a rusty hiss. Inside was darkness and the metallic tang of rot.
"I don't like this," Kai muttered.
"You're not supposed to," Tony replied.
As they advanced, Tony illuminated the path with a drone light. Frost covered the walls. Broken cameras hung loose. Biohazard signs were slashed with claw marks. And down the main corridor…
Cages.
Rows of them. Some still locked. Others… empty. Bent outward.
JARVIS scanned ahead. "Life sign detected. Faint. Non-human."
They reached a central chamber—a lab hybridized with a prison. In the center was a shattered glass tank filled with greenish fluid, long evaporated.
Suddenly, a flicker. Movement in the corner.
Then a roar.
The Hybrid
It burst out of the shadows—G-03, the failed clone of Humungousaur. At nearly 12 feet tall, its body was a horrifying fusion of human musculature and alien bone armor. Its skin was patchy, with some parts shifting unnaturally as if it couldn't maintain a stable form. Its face was a misshapen horror: one eye black and sunken, the other glowing bright yellow with rage.
And yet… it cried out in pain.
"GRAAAAAGHH—"
Tony raised his repulsors. "Kid, we got movement—!"
But Kai stepped forward. His eyes softened.
"It's in pain," he said. "It's not just a monster. It's someone."
The creature hesitated. For a brief second, it looked directly at Kai… and its voice cracked.
"…kill… me…"
Kai froze.
Tony lowered his repulsors slightly. "JARVIS, analyze vitals."
"Mutated cellular decay. Rapid rejection of hybrid DNA. Nervous system collapsing. Subject has minutes left."
Kai looked at his wrist. The Omnitrix glowed faintly—reacting not in aggression… but in mourning.
He whispered, "He's dying… because they tried to make me."
The hybrid lashed out, not with rage—but confusion. Its claws smashed a containment pillar, and rubble fell around them.
Tony moved fast. "Kid! You take the high ground—don't fight it unless it forces your hand!"
Kai ran up a collapsed stairwell and activated the Omnitrix. He hesitated.
This time, not Big Chill.
Not for freezing or phasing.
He turned the dial and selected Swampfire — the regenerative, plant-based alien with empathy and power.
SLAM!
Green flames erupted as Kai's body morphed. Bark-like skin emerged over muscle, vines coiled from his arms, and his face became a glowing, flame-eyed mask.
"Let's try something new," Swampfire growled.
He leapt down and faced the hybrid.
"Easy," he said gently, vines extending from his arms, pulsing with bio-energy. "I can stabilize you for a few seconds. You don't have to be in pain."
But the hybrid screeched and charged.
Tony swooped in, firing a precise beam at the ground to stop its advance. "We don't have long!"
Kai lunged forward, wrapped the hybrid in glowing vines, and began pushing healing energy into the creature's cells.
"I can't fix you," he whispered. "But I can let you go… peacefully."
The creature's snarling faded. Its limbs relaxed. Its eyes dimmed.
And it spoke, barely a whisper.
"…thank… you…"
Then it crumbled—its mutated cells disintegrating into ash and dust.
---
Aftermath
They stood in silence.
The only sound was the low wind moaning through the corridor.
Back on the jet, Kai sat motionless, his hoodie drawn up. The Omnitrix was silent. Dormant.
Tony joined him, placing a mug of cocoa beside him.
"They tried to be gods," Kai said. "And they made monsters."
Tony nodded. "That's the difference between you and them. You didn't turn away. You gave him dignity."
Kai looked at his arm. "This watch… it's a gift. But it's also a curse if it ends up in the wrong hands."
Tony gave a rare, solemn nod. "Then we'll keep it out of their hands. Together."