Somewhere in the Pacific Ocean, Hydrobase II floats undetected. Designed to function similarly to the original Hydrobase, this new Hydrobase was intended to be used by Dr. Walter Newell to study aquatic life in the Pacific. However, its new owners have very different plans for it....
In the control room, the Titanic Three meet. The Titanium Man. The Crimson Dynamo. The Radioactive Man. Three of the most powerful men on the planet. And three of the most brilliant.
The green armored form of the Titanium Man turns from the situation board and surveys his ally, the Radioactive Man. "All is ready?"
"Yes, the Gammatron is fully functional," Radioactive Man answers. "All it needs now is a power source."
"How convenient of you to choose a radiation source you apparently cannot supply yourself," Crimson Dynamo sneers.
"I am sick of your insolence," Radioactive Man snaps. "If you think you can accomplish this plan without me...!"
"Let us not bicker amongst ourselves," Titanium Man interjects. The Titanium Man glares at the Crimson Dynamo, and regrets his son's hotheadedness. But there is nothing to be done about that now. "Let us not forget our goal - total world of domination - is at last in our grasp. All we need is one man... Doctor Robert Bruce Banner!"
The great desert that spans the American Southwest....
The green goliath that men call the Hulk wanders the desert sands. Although his brutish brain does not fully comprehend why he often comes to this place, it was in this very desert that the test detonation of the Gamma Bomb transformed Bruce Banner into the Hulk.
"Why must puny men always hound Hulk?" the Jade Giant screams to the sky. "Hulk only wants peace... to be left alone."
"We can't always get what we want," an electronicized voice calls from above.
"Hunh?!" the puzzled Hulk turns and looks to the sky. "Who talks to Hulk?"
In the air above the Hulk the Crimson Dynamo floats, his posture a challenging one.
"I am the Crimson Dynamo, beast," the Dynamo announces. "I have come to claim you as my trophy."
"Hulk not sure Hulk understands Red Man's words," Hulk growls, "but if Red Man wants fight, Hulk will give him one!" With that, the most powerful legs in the world coil and release, sending a half-ton of gamma-irradiated fury at the Crimson Dynamo.
The Dynamo reacts instantly, unleashing barrage of electric blasts at his foe. The Hulk howls in pain, but his flight is undeterred as he slams into the Dynamo, and the two figures plunge to the ground.
"Unbelievable!" the Dynamo thinks. "I never imagined anyone could be this powerful!" The Dynamo grips the Hulk before the Hulk can begin to pound away, and unleashes a million volts directly into the Hulk's skin.
The Hulk lets out a scream that would wake the dead as he falls back. The Dynamo rises, thinking his foe defeated, but then he notices the Hulk's eyes glowing with rage....
"Red Man thinks he is strong. Red Man thinks he is stronger than Hulk! But no one is stronger than Hulk! Hulk is the strongest there is!! And now, Red Man, HULK WILL SMASH!!!"
Despite Crimson Dynamo's Communist upbringing, he finds himself offering up a prayer....
Central Park, New York. Two joggers continue along their morning workout, trying their best to stay in shape despite their otherwise sedentary lifestyle. But suddenly they stop, as they hear the whine of small jets in the air above them. They look up, and see the red and gold form of Iron Man streaking through the air, followed by none other than Thor. They watch the two Avengers streak across the sky, on their way to the Avengers' Fifth Avenue Mansion. The joggers comment to each other how great it is to live in a world with heroes like the Avengers to watch after them, and then continue on their way.
Iron Man and Thor arrive at Avengers Mansion momentarily. Upon entering the Mansion, they are greeted by the ever-present Jarvis faithful butler to Earth's Mightiest Heroes.
"Master Thor, Master Iron Man," Jarvis greets as the Avengers enter. "I'm afraid that most of the Avengers are out at the moment. Can I be of service in any way?"
"Thanks, Jarvis, but I don't think so," Iron Man asks. "I just need to use some of the equipment I left in the lab."
"Whilst thou prepares thy equipment," Thor says to Iron Man, "mayhaps I should attend to the appetite I seem to have developed upon our adventure. If I couldst trouble thee, Jarvis...?"
"Say no more, Master Thor," the ever-dutiful Jarvis replies. "Your meal shall be ready shortly."
"I'll meet you in the lab when you're finished," Iron Man and walks on the Avengers' laboratory. Inside this lab is some of the most sophisticated scientific equipment on Earth, which comes as no surprise considering most of it was contributed by the likes of Tony Stark, Henry Pym, and T'Challa.
Iron Man enters the lab and begins picking up various exotic looking pieces of equipment. "Let's see... I'll need this, this, that... where did I put the..."
"Iron Man! What brings you here?"
Iron Man looks up to see his longtime teammate, Yellowjacket, enter the lab.
"Just trying to whip up a little something," Iron Man says as he begins fiddling with the various components he has arrayed on the worktable in front of him.
"Need a hand?" Yellowjacket asks as he pulls off his mask, indicated that Henry Pym is ready to lend whatever assistance he can.
"Sure, Hank," Iron Man says as he removes his helmet. "I'm sure you remember hearing about Titanium Man, Crimson Dynamo, and Radioactive Man stealing Hydrobase II a few months ago."
"Of course," Hank answers. "They stole it from no less than Stingray and Sub-Mariner."
"Right," Tony Stark continues. "Well, the Titanium Man planned it very well. The first thing he did after he gained control of Hydrobase II was install a cloaking device, rendering the whole thing completely undetectable."
"And I'm sure he's been up to no good ever since," Pym shakes his head.
"No doubt," Tony agrees. "I've faced off with this new Titanium Man a few times. He's brilliant. Whatever he's got planned, it must be big. I've been working on a way to break his cloaking device whenever I've had a chance. I just had a brainstorm this morning but I haven't had a chance to test it out yet - Thor and I got tied up with something. That's why I brought him with me. I figured if I'm about to go up against those three I'll need as much help as I can get."
"Well, you can count on me," Hank states.
"Thanks, Hank. It's good to know you can rely on your friends."
The Crimson Dynamo activates his boot jets, rocketing into the air just inches ahead of the fury of the Hulk. "Where is that idiot?" the Dynamo curses to himself. "Can't he see I need help?"
The Dynamo raises his forearm across his chest in what would normally be considered a defensive act. Then a panel on his gauntlet slides open, and a half-dozen small black ball-shaped objects shoot out towards the Hulk.
"Red Man wants to throw balls at Hulk?" Hulk growls. But the Hulk's annoyance is soon replaced with rage as each ball explodes with the power of 100,000 pounds of TNT. "GRRARRGH!" the Hulk roars. "Prepare to die, Red Man!"
Without warning the Hulk is struck from behind. The Jade Giant recovers quickly and turns to face his new foe, the Radioactive Man.
"It's about time!" the incensced Crimson Dynamo chastises.
"Quiet, you idiot," Radioactive Man snaps. "I was merely awaiting the proper moment."
"Glowing Man has green skin like Hulk's," the Hulk observes. "Does Glowing Man think he is as strong as Hulk?"
"I'm stronger than you, you incompetent," Radioactive Man asserts. "I've gone head-to-head with Thor!"
"Thor! Hulk knows that name!" the Hulk snarls. "Hulk has beat Thor, just like Hulk will beat you!" The Hulk leaps at Radioactive Man, but Radioactive Man does not back down. The two green powerhouses trade blow after blow, and each powerful impact reverberates through the desert.
"Incredible!" the Crimson Dynamo thinks as he watches from a safe distance. "I knew Dr. Lu was powerful but I never suspected.... Even with the power of the Titanium Man and Crimson Dynamo armors, will my father and I be able to dispose of him once he has outlived his usefulness? And what if he should decide to turn against us?"
Meanwhile, as the Radioactive Man and the Hulk continue to batter each other, the Hulk grunts, "Glowing Man is strong, but not stronger than Hulk! Hulk is always stronger!" Then the Hulk's right fist smashes into the Radioactive Man's jaw, staggering the scientist turned supervillain. "And now, Glowing Man, Hulk will smash!"
Before the Hulk has a chance to carry out his promise, he is grabbed from behind by the Crimson Dynamo. "That will be enough, you beast!" The Dynamo then sends a million volts of electricity coursing through the Hulk.
The Hulk unleashes a howl of pain that chills the Dynamo to his very soul, but the Dynamo does not let go, and eventually the Hulk passes out. As he falls from the ground, he undergoes the most incredible change ever witnessed by man: the transformation that turns the Incredible Hulk into Bruce Banner.
"Well done, stripling," Radioactive Man congratulates. The Dynamo does not respond; he merely stands stock still. "Ah, I see your effort has cost you all your power. I would be content to leave you like this for your insolent attitude toward me but it would probably endager my alliance with your father. Here, allow my body's radioactive energy to recharge your cells."
The Radioactive Man's body glows even brighter, and the Crimson Dynamo's energy induction circuits drink deep of the power. Soon, the Dynamo is reenergized, and the duo depart with their prize.
"And so if we connect this here...."
"Right, Hank. There that should do it." Tony Stark and Hank Pym look at their completed project. "This should allow us to track Hydrobase II without any problems."
"There you are, Hank!"
Hank and Tony look towards the doorway, where they see Janet Van Dyne, a.k.a the winsome Wasp. "Jan!" Hank says, a look of surprise and disappointment on his face. "We were supposed to meet for lunch! I totally forgot!"
"I see you were too caught up playing with the boys," Jan smiles, dismissing the matter. "What's up, Tony?"
"Well, I've been trying to come up with a way to track down Hyrdrobase II, and with Hank's help I think I've finally got it," Tony replies as he puts his helmet back on. "Hank, Thor, and I were just about to test it out. We thought it was about time the Avengers took care of the Titanic Three before they became too much of a nuisance. There's always room for one more," Iron Man hints.
"Sounds like fun," Jan smiles. "It'll be just like old times, the four of us on a mission together."
"That's right," Yellowjacket agrees as he puts his mask back on. "Cap's the only one missing."
"Or the Hulk," Iron Man notes. "It's funny to think our original lineup was so short-lived. I still feel bad about the Hulk leaving us. Perhaps if he had stayed with us we could have really helped him. Maybe he didn't have to turn out the way he did."
"Come on, Iron Man," Yellowjacket says. "The Hulk was very unstable. There was no way we could have kept him there much longer than we did. I don't think there was anything we could have done."
"Still, it didn't help matters when I called him a 'brainless gargoyle' during our battle with the Space Phantom," Iron Man says.
"Enough of this," Jan says. "Here I thought we were going to have some fun like old times and you try to bring everybody down, Iron Man. Hank's right. The Avengers couldn't have stopped the Hulk from becoming the rampaging creature he did. Besides, there's no point in worrying about any mistakes we may have made in the past. Let's just take care of the problems we can in the here and now. Like the Titanic Three."
"You're right, Jan," Iron Man says.
"Of course I am," Jan smiles. "Now you boys go ahead and fetch Thor while I change into my costume. I'll join you in the meeting room."
On Hydrobase II, the Radioactive Man and the Crimson Dynamo return with their prize. "I see you have Dr. Banner," Titanium Man says as they arrive.
"Of course," Radioactive Man replies. "I never fail." Radioactive Man then carries Banner back into his lab.
"What now, father?" the Crimson Dynamo asks the Titanium Man.
"Now Dr. Lu will turn Dr. Banner into the living battery that fuels our Gammatron," Titanium man answers. "Once the Gammatron is fully powered, we will have the ability to detonate every nuclear warhead on this planet. The governments of the world will have no choice but to declare us their rulers, or we will turn this planet into a radioactive wasteland one country at a time." The Titanium Man then begins to laugh at the sheer brilliance of his plan. All these months of preparation, and now his dream is within his grasp. The world will be his.
In the meeting room at Avengers Mansion, four of the original Avengers gather as they prepare to depart on another mission together.
"Is everybody set?" Iron Man asks.
"Thor is always ready to crush the forces of evil," the Thunder God answers.
"Don't you just love how he talks?" Wasp says, and then adds, "The Wasp is ready too!"
"And so is Yellowjacket," Hank Pym smiles, thinking how silly he sounds.
"Then let's go," Iron Man nods. "Avengers Assemble!"
Next Issue: Yellowjacket and Wasp penetrate the defenses of Hydrobase II and learn the nature of the Titanic Three's sinister plan! Don't you dare miss this one!
Notes
Well, gang, here it is at long last. The story I've had bouncing around in the back of my mind almost since MV1 started. The roots of this one go back a ways, so if you're not caught up on the backstory don't worry. Here's where I fill you in.
The current Titanium Man (Nikolas Federov) made his debut in Iron Man #341. At that time, he was working under an alliance with Justin Hammer and using the Unicorn as his pawn. Iron Man defeated Unicorn and Titanium Man in Iron Man #342, but Titanium Man escaped capture and decided to find an ally with enough power to enable him to realize his dreams of global conquest.
The Titanium Man first tried to recruit the Mandarin in Iron Man #346, but after the Mandarin's apparent death in Iron Man #347, Titanium Man decided it would be better to get a partner he already knew and could trust. Enter Alexei Federov, Nikolas' son. Nikolas developed a new Crimson Dynamo armor for his son in Iron Man #350. However, a chance encounter with Iron Man illustrated to the Titanium Man that he would also need an ally with experience.
Meanwhile, the Radioactive Man had been operating as a member of the Thunderbolts under the name 'Core' since Thunderbolts #20. Following the defeat of Baron Zemo at the hands of the Avengers in Avengers #423, Radioactive Man was sent to the Vault. He escaped in The Vault #4 and was offered membership in the Crimson Cowl's new Masters of Evil. He declined, tired of serving as a lackey in someone else's organization, and struck out on his own.
However, Radioactive Man had no plan of his own, and was living without direction in San Francisco until Titanium Man tracked him down in Super Villain Team Up #29. The new Titanic Three was formed as a partnership in that issue, and they defeated Stingray and Namor to take possession of the all-new Hydrobase II in Super Villain Team Up #30.
Which brings us to this story. For the continuity minded, this story takes place in early Year Four, shortly after the second Iron Man - Thor crossover, which will probably run around Iron Man #369 and Thor #539.
Cheers,
Matt
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