Sensational Comics#20
A Mighty Tale Told in the Mighty Marvel Manner!
The Incredible (She) Hulk VS Giant Girl!
The Avengers Mansion was quiet for once. No super villains had attacked the city recently, which was both a blessing and an annoyance. Due to the guidelines set up by the team, at least one member of the group had to stay on duty in case of emergencies. Janet drew the short straw.
The Van Dyne heir opted to spend her time in the private gym. As Giant Girl she was strong enough to rip a car in half, but one sparing session with Captain America convinced her to train as Janet Van Dyne.
She heard the door swing open. Grabbing a wooden practice sword, she spun around and dropped into a defensive stance.
"Impressive." Maria Pym nodded. Betty Ross slipped in behind her, her arms burdened with various bags.
"I could say the same." Janet eyed the packages with some jealousy. "Shopping without me? I'm crushed."
"Sorry, but we did pick you up a few things I thought you'd like." Maria picked up a bolt of cloth. "I had this fabric special made. In case you wanted another costume." Maria handed her the red and blue cloth.
"Thanks!" Janet took it and examined the material. "Does it have unstable molecules?"
"No, not quite. I've been experimenting with Pym Particles. Our costumes shrink or grow with us, but we've only used them with certain fabrics. I thought something more resilient might be better."
"It feels heavier, but I'll take a crack at the design later." Janet set the cloth down. "Betty, while you're here I had some things to ask you." Maria took the bundles from the beleaguered Hulk as Janet led her over to the center of the gym.
"Sure, what do you need?"
"Two things mostly. The first, would you mind trying on a costume I made for you?"
Betty blinked. "A costume? But I already have one…" Janet shook her head.
"No, I mean a proper costume, not some tattered GI greens."
"I guess?" Betty took the bundle Janet thrust into her hands. The fabric was white and purple. Unfolding it, Betty was surprised at the size. "It's so small!" she blushed.
Janet pressed on. "The second question is I want to fight you."
"What?" Betty almost dropped the clothes. "Why?"
"For training, of course. Maria's been saying I need more experience and who could give me more of a challenge than the Incredible Hulk?"
"I'm not sure about this Janet. Daddy's been wanting me to spend more time at the Gamma Base."
Another figure entered the room. Jennifer Ross gave a low whistle at the gym's sheer size. "Golly, I never figured any room could be so big!" Jennifer was decked out in a chic skirt and blouse. Betty leaned in closer to Janet.
"The real reason we went out. Mom didn't have anything to wear and I thought it might cheer her up."
Janet pouted. "A fashion related emergency and you didn't invite me? I'm even more offended…" ideas began to turn form in her mind. "How about her then?"
Betty paled. "What? No, no, no, no. A thousand times no!" She shook her head. "We finally have her back. I'm not going to let her go running around the desert again."
"It wouldn't be an all-day thing." Janet protested. "We'd be back well before night, if that's still an issue."
Jennifer walked over to them. "What's an issue?" Janet quickly explained her idea. Jennifer, much to everyone's collective shock, agreed.
"Why not? I'm not sure about the audience though, but a sparring session could help me get back in the swing of things."
"'Get back'?" Betty raised an eyebrow. "Get back to what?"
"Your mother was thinking about joining the Avengers. On a reserve status at least." Maria interjected.
"What?" Janet and Betty shouted.
"No! Mother, it's too dangerous!" Betty protested.
"Too dangerous? Elizabeth I'll have you know I spent a good decade fighting monsters and living nightmares. You could use my help." Betty flinched at the sound of her full name.
"Ma'am, it's not that we couldn't use your expertise," Janet tried to be diplomatic, "But you just got back to the real world, but your…other side?"
Jennifer snorted. "It's being worked on. Look, I can't sit around all day and do nothing. I have powers, skills…I punched Nazis for a living. I think I can handle a few costumed hoods." There was a green tint to her eyes as she spoke.
Janet noticed it first. "Let's put it before the other members first."
"What? Why?" Jennifer's voice grew louder. "I just found my daughter. I missed her whole childhood, I'm not going to sit on the sidelines while she risks everything!" Jennifer's skin grew paler, then greener.
"Mom?" Betty stepped towards her. "It's ok, really."
Jennifer's sleeves raced up her growing arms as her muscles thickened. "No, it isn't. I'm not going to sit at home and let you…" she trailed off as she noticed the floor's increasing distance. "I'm sorry." She slipped out of her stretched shoes and leaned against a pommel horse. Her skin resumed its normal shade.
"Jennifer," Janet was the first to speak. "I'm not sure about the membership, but how about just sparring? Giant Girl VS the She-Hulk? What do you say?"
"A match?" Jennifer's tone brightened. "Well, why not? You don't mean right here, do you?"
"No!" Janet shook her head. Her tone was louder than she meant. "I mean, no, not here. I doubt even Tony Stark could replace a mansion. Why not somewhere isolated? I know some empty buildings in Center City that are scheduled for demolition. We could make a charity event out of it."
"People would watch us wreck old buildings?" Jennifer seemed more baffled than the other three at the idea. "Why not?"
-W
David Cannon, better known as the Human Top, was annoyed. Getting arrested by Giant Girl had been a serious setback to his career. He managed to escape federal custody easily enough, but now the FBI was looking for him in force.
"I got to get out of here!" He didn't specify if he was talking about the fleabag motel room or the country. "If I could just get a big score, something that would put me on easy street for a while!"
The local rag that was called a paper didn't offer much. "'Giant Girl to perform charity gala at city'" he sneered at the headline. "Lousy dame, 'cause of her I'm in this mess." He thought about revenge, but he calmed down. "The heat's on plenty bad enough, no sense in adding more to it."
An idea struck as a heavy truck rolled past on the highway. "What a minute. That Madame X chick, yeah, I remember her mentioning something about the military sometimes carrying secret stuff through towns on disguised trucks. If I could steal something like that I'm sure I could get some quick cash. Heck, just knocking over any truck would get me something at least."
David rolled off the thin mattress and looked at himself in the cracked mirror. "Nothing for a budget, and the feds still have my costume, but I'll manage." He glared out through the ratty curtains. "Trucks come through here all the time. All I have to do is wait…"
-W
The plane trip over was quick. After explaining what they were going to do, Tony Stark himself let them borrow a new prototype Quinjet. The sleek aircraft screamed through the sky, landing them near Center City in a few hours.
"Amazing, it practically flies itself!" Maria stepped out of the cockpit.
"So, when exactly is the fight going to be?" Jennifer eyed the assembled crowd.
"Tomorrow morning. We've already cleared it with the city and they'll keep the people away."
"Good, I was always so scared of hurting someone." Jennifer seemed quieter. "I'll think I'll turn in, if that's ok."
Jennifer left the jet, leaving Janet and Maria alone. "Is the house ready?" Janet looked at the retreating form of the She-Hulk.
"Ready enough, I hope." Maria grabbed her bag and followed Jennifer onto the sun baked tarmac.
-W
Canyon scratched his face under his mask. Since he had to forgo a helmet, he had to make do with a pilfered stocking. "Once I pull this job I'll get a real costume!" His rumpled shirt and slacks weren't stylish, but he hoped to move fast enough to grab whatever was on the truck.
It had taken a few dimes, but he had managed to call the right number of people. A shipment of something big was passing through town. He didn't know what, but if it was important he didn't care. The convoy rumbled down the road. "Time to go to work."
Spinning himself, he raced down the road, ducking past the unmarked escort car and zipping around to the back of the truck. With his speed, it was easy to leap onto the back of the truck. A combination of super-fast vibrations and some acid loosened the lock enough to let him inside.
"What is this?" The inside of the truck was empty save for a large suitcase. "Some general's luggage?" He spun over to the case and yanked it up. It was heavier than he thought it would be, but that could mean it was valuable.
No sooner had the case left the floor than an alarm went off. Swearing, the Human Top spun faster than before, almost floating out of the truck as an armed guard rushed inside the rear.
He spun down the road at top speed as bullets whizzed by him. "Well, if Uncle Sam wants it that bad, he can pay top dollar for it!" Canyon laughed to himself as he imagined the riches coming his way.
Inside the truck, a special radio was activated. "Eagle's Nest, this is Chick Nine. Chicken hawk reported." A terse coded response came back over the receiver. The guards nodded in agreement. Switching to another frequency, they put out a desperate call. "Calling Dr. Banner, come in Dr. Banner…"
-W
"Are you sure about this?" Jennifer eyed the costume in the mirror. The fabric hung fairly loose on her in some spots, while somehow managing to be clingy in others. On the whole it looked like some of the modern swimsuits Jennifer had seen. Two pieces, both purple with white highlights down the front.
"It's supposed to stretch." Janet stepped outside of the warehouse. The area around them was cleared and blocked off from traffic.
"Alright, but I do feel a bit silly wearing this getup." Jennifer closed her eyes and concentrated. Her skin grew green almost at once as her body swelled with muscle. The costume filled out almost to its limit, but it didn't rip or tear.
Looking over the costume with her added dimensions, Jennifer slapped her thigh. "It beats a ripped pair of pants at least."
Joining Janet, the She-Hulk grinned. Her white teeth contrasted with her emerald skin. "Ok kid, let's do this. Should warn you though I used to wrestle Captain America."
"So did I." Janet popped a pill from her belt and the She-Hulk quickly shrunk from her sight.
The small green figure rushed forward. Giant Girl brought her foot down, but the She-Hulk side stepped it and punched her ankle. "Ow!"
"Give up already?" the She-Hulk leapt to a nearby rooftop. Ripping a door free she tossed the wooden door at Giant Girl's back. It splintered off her hide.
"Not on your life!" Giant Girl tore a roof off of a nearby office building and dropped it over the emerald amazon. The She-Hulk punched her way free in seconds.
"Not bad, but you can't let up in a fight!" Picking up a girder, she slammed the heavy metal beam across the back of Giant Girl's thighs.
Ignoring the stinging, Giant Girl lunged forward and picked the She-Hulk up with both hands. "Give up or do I have to shake you?"
"Not bad, but what if I wanted you to catch me?" the She-Hulk smirked.
"What?" Giant Girl tried to process the statement when the She-Hulk slipped free of her hold and latched onto her face. With a few fell placed twists Janet's cowl was dragged over her eyes. Slipping free, the She-Hulk fell with a thud between the panicking giant's feet. With a well-timed shove she tipped the blinded Giant Girl over, sending her crashing into the warehouse.
Sputtering and choking on the dust, Janet adjusted her mask. "Ok, I give. Round one to you."
The She-Hulk laughed. "How about we make this interesting? Loser buys the drinks?"
Janet smiled none too sweetly. "You're on!"
-W
Canyon heard the commotion of the fight as he slipped down the back alleys. Stopping finally, he opened the case. "What on earth?"
It looked like an oversized football. It was clearly made of many movable parts and a small timer was set in the corner. The timer clicked on when the case opened. "That can't be good, but if those dogfaces want their toy back I guess I should give them a call…and those battling beauties just gave me a great idea."
-W
Bruce Banner wasn't in the best of moods. "Why does every gamma bomb I build end in disaster?"
He had been looking over the designs for the bomb prototype when he got the call. "Have they made any demands?"
General Morris shook his head. "At the moment no. Doctor, if they manage to activate the bomb what kind of death toll are we looking at?"
"Thankfully not much. This was just a proof of concept model after all, but if it exploded in a heavily populated area…"
Morris rubbed the bridge of his nose. "I get the picture." He pointed to a nearby map. "Don't you have a tracking device?"
"Yes, but that only works if the case has been opened…" a loud buzzing came from the row of monitors on the other side of the room.
"Sir, the bomb's homing signal has been activated!" One of the men rushed to them with a stack of papers in his hand.
"Where man, where?" Banner almost shook the younger officer.
"Center City, sir."
-W
"Give up?" Janet panted. Her red suit was dark stained with sweat. The She-Hulk just grinned. Her own costume was just as wet and grimy, although neither gals were up to complain about that.
"You got strength, honey, but you keep forgetting one thing," Jennifer leapt up and delivered a solid body blow to Janet's midsection, driving the giant down again. "More targets. Block more, or else you'll just get whittled down to size."
"Speaking of size," Janet wheezed. She shrank down to the normal Janet Van Dyne. "Time out, please!" she held her hands up.
"Ok, I guess we can take five." The She-Hulk slowly turned back into Jennifer Ross again.
-W
Canyon slowly placed the case behind a dumpster. "Alright, one phone call to the press and I should be sitting on Easy Street." He strolled out of the alley and ran headlong into Janet Van Dyne.
"You!" Janet started to grow, quickly towering over Canyon.
"You!" Canyon spun away, racing through the empty streets.
"Wait!" Jennifer called as Giant Girl sprinted after the Human Top. "I need to call the Avengers!" She cursed when she realized the radios were back at the warehouse. Unseen, but slowly felt, the prototype gamma bomb began to leak its radiation.
Jennifer turned and headed back to the wrecked buildings and radio for help when an all too familiar twitch went through her. "How?" Jennifer panicked as her muscles started to swell. "No, not her!" Jennifer doubled over as her nerves all screamed in unison. "Can't…stop…" She gripped a nearby lamppost to steady herself. She crushed the iron in her hand.
She looked down in horror as her skin paled and turned gray. Her vision swam as her body grew heavy with muscle. Jennifer Ross fell to the ground, but it was the She-Hulk who rose. "Day time?" The gray amazon marveled at the sun light. "Don't know, don't care, but I'm going to make sure no one locks me up again!"
She looked around the empty streets. She was vaguely aware that Jennifer wanted to go down one particular street, so naturally she turned and went the opposite direction. "I need a fight." There was no malice in her tone, or any particular emotion. She was just going to fight the next person she saw. That was a fact.
-W
"I wish I hadn't taken my radio out of my cowl." Giant Girl lost the Human Top. He darted down an alley and completely vanished from sight. "I hope Jennifer got to call some help, I'm going to need it!"
She saw the gray skinned figure leaping across the rooftops. "Betty!" Janet raced over to the figure. "Betty, when did you get here?"
The She-Hulk stopped and looked at the red clad giant. "Well, I was looking for a fight. Guess you'll do."
Without any warning, the She-Hulk tore a flagpole free from the side of the building and cracked it over Giant Girl's head. Dazed, she staggered back as the She-Hulk leapt from the building and slammed a pile-driver fist directly into the center of Giant Girl's chest.
Winded, Giant Girl slumped against an abandoned hotel, desperately trying to stay on her feet. "Betty, why?" she wheezed.
"Here's a hint, my name ain't Betty." The She-Hulk smirked and turned away. "You're not even worth the effort to finish off."
Janet saw red. With both hands she picked the gray giant up and spun around, slamming her through the building. A dust cloud of broken mortar and concrete filled the street as the She-Hulk struggled in her grasp. With one full shove, she slammed her into the street, driving the She-Hulk head first into the asphalt.
Struggling to breathe, Giant Girl let go and limped off. "Got to call for help!"
Behind her, the She-Hulk freed herself. "You're not walking away that easy high pockets!" Breaking into a run, she jumped. Her leap was intercepted by another gray skinned amazon.
"Giant Girl, get out of here, there's a bomb!" Betty shouted as she traded blows with her mother.
"A bomb?" Giant Girl clutched her chest. "Mrs. Ross may have broken a rib, feels like my chest is on fire!"
"That Human Top stole a gamma bomb and it might go off, we have to find it!" Betty ducked a roundhouse punch and countered with a knee to the stomach.
"Hold on, I might have just the thing!" Giant Girl moved as fast as she could back towards the warehouse.
-W
Shrinking down, Janet stumbled through the empty street. "I know Maria packed some extra gear." She found her bag where she left it. Tearing it open, she rooted through the assorted gadgets until she pulled out a small box. "This gamma tracker should be just the thing!"
"Well, hello darling…" An all too familiar voice came from behind her.
"The Human Top!" Giant Girl enlarged as the diabolical dervish zipped into the open.
"The one and only!" he laughed as he darted back and forth. "And right now I'm not going to let you cheat me out of another score! That hunk of junk is going to be my ticket to easy street!"
"'Junk'? Good Lord man, that was the bomb the Hulk was talking about!"
The Human Top stopped. "Bomb? That thing is a bomb?"
"Yes you fool, where did you put it?" Janet loomed over him.
"I stashed it behind a dumpster halfway up the block!" He pointed behind her. Without waiting, Giant Girl turned and ran down the street. The Human Top paled. "Great, ten million things to steal and I have to heist a h-bomb!" He spun off away from the fighting.
-W
Betty had expected a fight, but she hadn't quite expected one soon or as violent. Whatever skills she and her mother had started with had devolved to pure slugging by this point. The two of them were ankle deep in concrete, trading body blows that would have crumbled steel. Betty's right eye was swollen shut. She tasted a rich copper in her mouth.
Jennifer wasn't doing much better. Her left hand was nearly doubled in size and flopped around on her wrist. Her nose was flattened and the white on her costume was now a deep crimson bordering on brown.
"Give up?' Betty spat through shredded lips.
"To a punk like you?" Jennifer swung again, driving a right into Betty's midsection. There was an audible crunch and Betty folded around the fist.
Giant Girl raced back with the bomb in her hands. "Wait!" She waved the device around. The counter had seconds left on the clock. "This bomb is set to detonate!"
"What?" Jennifer stepped over Betty's prone form. "What are you jabbering about?"
"A bomb, the Human Top stole a gamma bomb and the fool set it off. We've got less then fifteen seconds!"
The She-Hulk looked around. The street, Betty's prone form…it was like she was seeing them for the first time. Without a word, she slammed her right into Giant Girl's knee. Janet howled in pain and fell. "Why?"
"Shut up!" The She-Hulk picked up the bomb. "I ain't done anything for anyone…but I can't let someone else get hurt like this." Janet thought she saw some green in the gray amazon's eyes. "You tell that kid the She-Hulk went out like a champ, you got me?" She turned and jumped.
"No!" Betty staggered to her feet. She saw her mother bound away and crash into a condemned building. Before she could move, there was a pillar of light. The air was silent for a second before she was struck blind. When her eyes stopped seeing whiteness she saw the building (and several adjacent ones as well) disappear. A column of smoke was rising from the crater, twisting and spreading in the air.
"Good Lord…" Betty rushed towards the scene as Giant Girl slowly shrank back to normal.
-W
The building, whatever it had been before, was gone. Inside the smoldering hole where it used to stand lay Jennifer Ross. Janet kept back due to the heat, but Betty rushed to her mother's side. She didn't say anything as she knelt down.
Seconds, or maybe minutes, dragged by. Betty stayed very still, not daring to move. Jennifer's eyes fluttered open. "Betty?" Her voice was cracked.
"Mom?" Betty waved to Janet, signaling for a radio. "Don't move, you might be hurt." Betty found her voice breaking. Her face grew hot and wet.
"Don't cry" Jennifer tried to reach her daughter's face, but shooting pain dropped her arm down. "Please, don't cry."
"Sorry." Betty wanted to pick her mother up and carry her out, but she didn't dare. Her own injuries were healing fast, but she didn't know how bad her mother was hurt. "Hurry up!" She didn't mean to scream at Janet, but she couldn't control her volume.
"It's ok, it's ok…" Jennifer passed out.
-W
"Well?" Betty, who hadn't changed back the entire time it had taken her mother to be transported to the nearest hospital, glowered at the team of doctors.
"Your mother is going to be fine." Dr. Kincaid stepped forward. "Her injuries, while numerous, are not life threatening and look to be healing. What concerns me though is her cells."
"What about them?" General Ross was the one to interrupt this time.
"Well, based on what we know, they should be saturated with gamma radiation. They're not."
"What the devil do you mean?" Ross found his anger growing.
"I mean, sir, is that your wife is apparently normal for lack of a better term. The gamma bomb explosion might have cancelled out the radiation, or drained her of it. Frankly this case is a first for everyone."
"Can we see her?" Betty slowly changed back to normal.
"Only for a few minutes. She needs rest, and there are plenty of tests I'd need to run."
-W
"Mom?" Betty approached her mother's bedside carefully.
Jennifer shifted onto her side. "My little angel."
The family closed the door to the hall, leaving Janet and Maria outside.
"Do you think Mrs. Ross will be alright?" Janet leaned on her crutch.
"I don't know, but we'll stand by her, no matter what."
The end
Based on the story "Enter: The Hulk" which was first published in Tales to Astonish I#59 (September 1964) with credits to Stan Lee (script), Dick Ayers (pencils), Paul Reinman (inks), and Art Simek (letters)
Sensational Lore
They Call Me Bruce
It's great that you're having fanfics last longer than one chapter. Keep 'em coming like that.
Wolvmbm
Ha, one of the first Spider-Man comics I read and enjoyed. Nice remake of it and who knows if this will lead into Amazing Spider-Man Annual#3 that had Spider-Man try to become an Avenger. Please do keep up the good work upon such a great tale like this.
Thanks! As for Spidey and Earth's Mightiest Heroes…maybe.
Darci (and a million thanks for proofreading this and all the previous stories)
Wow, that was an interesting variation of Amazing Spider-Man#14. Instead of the Green Goblin inserting himself as the go-between B.J. and Spider-Man, he's the power behind the throne. If he wasn't crazy, this setback would cause him to reexamine his ability to be a crime boss. It's difficult for us, after all these years of knowing his secret identity, to remember how much of a mystery man in the shadows he was.
Thanks! Yeah, that was a problem. Hindsight being was it is there was no way I keep the Goblin's identity secret, not unless I wanted someone else under the mask.
Next time, check out "Heavy Metal!"
Be on the lookout for the upcoming tales
The Avengers#7-VS the Masters of Evil!
Journey into Mystery#21-When Giants Walked the Earth!
Tales to Astonish#19-The Black Knight Strikes!
Amazing Fantasy#12-Game Over!
