Author's Note: Just like to mention that, even though I forgot to mention it in Issue 1, the Wasp's in fact wearing a mask to conceal her identity as they don't know each other's identities except for the Wasp and Giant-Man. Just like to point that out if anyone had noticed. Okay, now that's sorted, I let you get back to reading and please review. I like to read what you think! Chow for now! b(^-^)d
Issue 2
721 Fifth Avenue, New York City, New York
In one of the two subbasements built underneath one of many townhouses belonging to Tony Stark, the man himself, guised as Iron Man, was tapping furiously away at the keyboard to the main console. His sole objective: to find the Incredible Hulk.
A few days ago, after dealing with a revenge-hungry Loki, Thor's foster brother and Asgardian God of Evil and Mischief, literally (see last issue), Iron Man got to work on upgrading his computer he had installed down there, along with various other machines and gadgets that had other uses, in order for them to locate the Hulk's current position.
When they'd tussled, Iron Man's armour detected small amounts of gamma radiation secreting from the Hulk's body, and was using that now to help him track down the green behemoth. Unfortunately, luck wasn't on his side as he hadn't yet acquired no leads.
Before his fellow Avenger even entered the room, his armour's senses intuited the overwhelming presence of the Asgardian God of Thunder, Thor, who stood beside him at the console, his muscular body casting a shadow upon it.
"Hello Thor, swift as always I see. Did you happen to see Giant-Man and Wasp on your travels?" Iron Man asked, eyes fixed on the screen as he continued to search for the Hulk, now in the Nevada desert area.
Thor, with Mjolnir's thong wrapped around his wrist, shook his head, "Nay, friend and nor hath I seen the Hulk on my way here from Asgard. 'Tis like he hath vanished from the face of Midgard."
Midgard, in Asgardian tongue, meant Earth, and the God of Thunder wasn't wrong there. Even with today's high-tech technology, Iron Man couldn't get an exact location on Hulk, but he felt like he couldn't give up…he wouldn't. To Iron Man, the Incredible Hulk was dangerous, he was a threat that needed to be contained before he caused something catastrophic.
Rapidly, Iron Man's armour sensed two more presences entering the room and, looking to face the door, the two heroes saw Ant-Man, who was now calling himself Giant-Man and wearing a new costume that was similar to his old one but with several differences, and the Wasp entering the room, though she was still wearing her previous costume she'd worn when they first tussled with the Hulk.
"Glad you two could finally join us. I called you about half an hour ago. What took you two so long anyway? Iron Man enquired inquisitively, his attention once again back on the screen, his fingertips tapping furiously on the keyboard, now trying a different tactic in finding the Hulk's whereabouts.
Giant-Man took a seat at the large, round table, and beamed brightly, "We were both indulged in my latest experiment to allow myself to grow to great heights, if you must know Iron Man." The Wasp also joined him at the table, taking the seat directly opposite to him, one leg over the other.
"Any hits yet, Iron Man?" She asked, resting on her palm, watching the iron-clad Avenger working energetically at the console with Thor watching by his side.
"Nothing solid yet, Wasp. I keep getting small traces here and there but not enough to pinpoint his actual location."
The Wasp stood up from her chair, left arm wrapped around her waist while the other was pointing its forefinger to the ceiling, an idea having just popped into her head, "Have you checked with Rick Jones? He's the Hulk's closest chum, right? Maybe he knows where the big guy is?"
"Already have," Iron Man uttered, his fingertips having stopped tapping on the keyboard, watching the computer screen as the crosshair danced all over it in its search for any signs of the Hulk, "Says he hasn't seen the Hulk since we last tussled with him and that he's going to help us search for him in his old "stomping grounds"…He'll notify us if he finds anything useful."
Fortunately, the quartet of heroes didn't have to wait long for the results as the console's screen start bleeping red, Iron Man leaning forward to get a closer look to make sure he wasn't hallucinating.
"Got him. It's only a small trace, but he's somewhere in the Grand Canyon. The computer's picking up small traces of gamma radiation in the area and for the moment, it doesn't seem like he's planning to move. Probably found himself a safe place to hide. We'll need to get there fast if we want any chance of taking him down swiftly."
Thor's ears perked at the last sentence and gave his fellow team-mates a smile that could blind anyone in its path, "Then look no farther for with Mjolnir," he held it up for all to see, "I can get thee there in a moment's breath."
Giant-Man suddenly perked up, "Well that's a blessed relief, Thor! Now I can test my newly-enhanced size-shifting powers as "Giant-Man" against the Hulk!" He stood up from his chair, a big smile on his face as he joined the others in front of the console.
"I shall notify Rick that we've found the Hulk once we get there. Thor, when you're ready." Iron Man informed, making a last-minute check on his armour, which replied with positive feedback in its synthesized, masculine voice before Thor started swinging the mighty Mjolnir above his head, lightning and energy crackling and dancing around them.
Subsequently, as Thor swirled Mjolnir, the energies surrounded them and before they could even blink, a flash of light illuminated the entire room and when it was gone so were the Avengers…
The Grand Canyon, Arizona
As soon as they teleported away from their current H.Q. in New York City via Thor's Mjolnir, they arrived at their destination mere moments later, appearing out of nowhere in a flash of bright light. As soon as they'd touched ground, everyone felt queasy. Giant-Man thought he was going to vomit right on Wasp's boots, but thankfully he didn't because if he did, he'd surely know about it.
After the nausea passed, Iron Man contacted Rick's cell via the PAN interconnect in his helmet, notifying him that they'd located the Hulk somewhere in the Grand Canyon and were now on pursuit. Once he'd hung up, he was back in "leader" mode, "Alright, Avengers…we'll fan out to cover more ground. The faster we find the Hulk, the less damage he's gonna cause to his surrounding environment. Take these as well. They'll help us to communicate with each other if we're at a distance." He added, passing to his fellow team-mates small earpieces which they fixed inside one ear. Wasp had to help Thor out with his, the mighty Thunder God still not accustomed to humanity's ultra-modern technology.
Once they all agreed on Iron Man's plan, they each picked a direction to search in; Iron Man, Thor and the Wasp took to the skies going North, South and West, while Giant-Man tested out his additional power to grow to 20ft, the earth trembling, his large feet creating small craters as he stomped in an eastward direction.
As he flew through the air, his rocket thrusters roaring behind him, Iron Man didn't see it coming…even his armour's senses didn't see it coming until it was too late. The Incredible Hulk had managed to get the drop on him, jumping up from behind a small precipice big enough to hide him, as he used his massive arms to wrap himself around Iron Man's body in a tight bear-hug. Using the momentum of their immediate descent, Hulk speared Iron Man hard into the ground, creating a small crater beneath them. If it wasn't for his near-invulnerable armour, Tony knew his body would've been crushed into mush, literally. He also knew that he had to get the Hulk off of him or he'd soon become mush.
With a quick press of a button on one of his gauntlets, he switched its setting to manipulate magnetism, aiming them at the Hulk before unleashing a powerful enough blast to send him flying across the way, smashing into the nearby cliff wall. It wasn't enough to stagger the Hulk, but it gave Iron Man the time to climb to his feet and recuperate from the previous attack.
"Hulk!" Iron Man called out, taking a breath before continuing, "We don't have to fight each other. Just let me talk to you!" He knew it was a long shot, but he at least had to try and reason with the green giant.
Unfortunately, the Hulk wasn't in the mood to just sit down and talk, "DON'T WANT TALK! HULK JUST WANTS TO BE LEFT ALONE!" Climbing out from his encasement in the cliff wall, he knelt down, dug his fingers into the hard, dusty earth and lifted a segment of it into the air. His intentions with it fairly obvious. To Iron Man, it looked to be the size of a normal pick-up truck, and he didn't want to take another hit like the one just seconds before.
So, setting his gauntlets to discharge repulsor rays, Iron Man was just in time to see Hulk bringing his arms back for added impetus, before using his immense strength to hurl it in his direction. With his quick reflexes, the Avenger raised his gauntlets again and released the repulsors in a wide-field dispersal, successfully shattering the rock into tiny pieces which rained down upon the two.
"Listen to me Hulk! Why don't you stop fighting and let me talk to you!" Iron Man tried to reason with him again, but the Hulk still wasn't having none of it and now his patience was growing incredibly thin.
"NO! HULK SMASH!" With tightly clenched fists, the Hulk lifted them high into the air before slamming them back down to the ground, sending a massive tremor that managed to knock Iron Man off his feet, landing in a heap on the floor.
Wasting no time, Hulk leaped into the air, ready to crush his pursuer with his very feet when a giant hand grabbed him from mid-air. It was Giant-Man, who coiled his enormous fingers around the Hulk in an attempt to keep him immobile, much like a snake when it seized its prey. Nevertheless, even Giant-Man's enhanced strength couldn't keep the Hulk at bay for long.
Pushing outwards, the Hulk managed to pry open the fingers that bind him, and released a loud roar before leaping up to Giant-Man's face and punching it with a right hook to the jaw. The gargantuan Avenger let out a pained grunt as he fell backward, landing with an almighty boom that rocked the very Earth beneath him.
Just as speedily, the Wasp entered the fray, her high-pitched war-cry escaping her lips as she'd witnessed Hulk's brutal attack on her boyfriend. Zooming straight for the Hulk's head, she fired a bio-electric blast straight into both eyes, the same attack she'd used before on their first mission as "Avengers". And like before, her tactic proved to be effective, temporarily blinding the Hulk and forcing him to cover his eyes with one arm whilst swinging at her with the other.
However, thanks to Hank's training regime when they were just "Ant-Man and the Wasp", the tiny heroine managed to elude the Hulk's swings, angling her body left and right as she released another blast, this time hitting him on the side of the head, the attack disorienting him for a few more seconds.
Having heard enough of the buzzing around his head, Hulk pulled his arms back and just as quickly clapped them together, the shockwave from such an powerful attack propelling Wasp across the air, her screams silenced once she hit the cliff wall, which knocked her unconscious.
"Halt thy attack, Green Goliath or suffer the wrath of Thor!" The Thunder God's voice boomed as he descended from the sky, Mjolnir clenched tightly in his hand, his cape flowing vigorously, lightning and energy crackled in the air around him.
Nevertheless, the Hulk wasn't intimidated in the slightest by the mighty god's entrance. Instead, he clenched one of his fists and charged, the anger in his eyes, his rage pulsating in his veins. Before Thor even knew it, Hulk retaliated with a haymaker right to the god's stomach with such tremendous strength and speed that it hurled his hovering opponent backward at an alarming velocity. Thor's body skimmed across the ground a couple of times, creating large potholes, before crashing through the cliff wall on the opposite side of the canyon.
"YOU CAN'T SCARE HULK! I STRONGER THAN YOU, YELLOW HAIR!" The Hulk bellowed, releasing an almighty roar that appeared to make even the heavens tremble by its ferocity.
By now, the other Avengers were now regaining consciousness (Iron Man, Giant-Man and Wasp) and watched as the Hulk pumped his arms in triumph. Suddenly the hole that Thor's body had created when he'd crashed through it, began to glow brightly in a light-blue colour. The other heroes knew that this was the colour of Thor's lightning.
Thor appeared from within the hole, his skin and outfit slightly dotted with dust, his cape slightly ripped at it edges, an incensed look on the Thunder God's face as he hollered back, "You dare strike the son of Odin!" He then hovered back into the air, and flew in the Hulk's direction near enough at the speed of light with the aid of Mjolnir.
As he neared the Green Goliath, he held the weapon back as far as humanly possible and, when the timing was just right, he swung it underarm like in an uppercut kind of motion, hitting the Hulk right under the chin, batting him high into the sky. The colossal hit knocked the Hulk for six, assaulting his senses and preventing him to recover from such an awesome attack.
A mile or so later, he struck the ground like an asteroid, forming a substantial hole big enough to fit half a football stadium, maybe more, and the shockwave afterward caused the very cliffs nearby to shake, threatening to collapse on top of him, but fortunately they didn't.
Back with the Avengers, Thor was helping Iron Man to his feet whilst Wasp was attending to her boyfriend, softly caressing his cheek, hoping it was enough to wake him. Luckily it did, the "giant" avenger blinking his eyes open, the quick action helping him to focus on the woman that was looking over him.
"Hank? Hank, are you okay?" She asked anxiously, her apprehension disappearing once he was smiling back at her.
"Never better darling, but I feel like I've been hit by a juggernaut." He uttered whilst rubbing his chin where Hulk had punched him just moments ago, as though that might help soothe it, if only a little. A few feet away, Iron Man began to speak, their attention on him as well as Thor's.
"I don't think that attack will hinder the Hulk for long, Thor, but it'll give us some time to plan our next move." Iron Man pronounced, his highly-intellectual mind already trying to find a solution to their problem. A few moments later, Giant-Man's voice interrupted, "Well, you better think of it fast because I think he's coming back for more!" And he couldn't have been more right. Stood atop the cliff behind them, the Hulk seemed madder than ever as he let out an almighty roar, that must of echoed for miles around.
"Ready yourselves, Avengers. I don't think this fight's quite over yet," Iron Man informed the team, as they all turned to face the Hulk; Wasp returning to her shrunken size, Giant-Man growing an extra 5 feet, Iron Man setting his repulsors to maximum power whilst Thor hovered a little into the air, his eyes and body crackling with lightning.
Strangely, the Hulk didn't advance on his attack. Instead, he bent his knees as far as they could, and leaped into the air. In one single bound, he cleared over the Avengers and reached halfway across the canyon before his feet touched the ground, launching himself into the air once again. Soon, he would be long gone.
"Shouldn't we be perhaps, I don't know, going after him? He is getting away after all," Giant-Man asked, returning to his normal height. Wasp did the same a few seconds later.
Iron Man shook his head in defeat, "No Giant-Man. We'll let him go…for now. Besides, during the fight, I managed to pin a tracking device on his lower back, so it's not like we won't know where he's heading. Also, I'm getting the feeling that every time we fight the Hulk, we're only making him angrier, thus making him a lot stronger. So we'll need to think up another strategy, but first we need to rest and regain our strength." He then turned to Thor, who was standing quite proudly, his arms crossed over his chest, gazing in the direction that Hulk had bounded in. Although the others had several bumps and bruises, Iron Man's armour slightly dented from Hulk's physical assault, Thor on the other hand didn't have a scratch on him. His cape was somewhat torn at the edges and he was covered in dust from his scuffle with the Green Giant, but other than that he seemed perfectly fine.
"Thor? Thor, are you okay?" The Wasp asked with evident concern in her voice, walking up to him and placing a hand on his shoulder to gently coax him out of his pondering.
The Thunder God turned his head to face her, his lips forming a somewhat jovial smile, a feat the Wasp had come to suspect that Thor was trying to hide something, "I am fine, Wasp. 'Tis something on thy mind, that's all. Nothing to worry thine self with." He then joined the others, readying himself to teleport them back to New York City to convalesce from Hulk's vicious assault and plan their next move.
Wasp, however, wasn't convinced by his answer, but followed nevertheless, telling herself that she won't pressure the issue.
A beach on the Atlantic side of Florida
The Hulk didn't know how long he had been bounding for in this particular direction, but when he finally stopped when he knew he was far enough away from the Avengers, he found himself at the coast, looking down at the sky-blue sea and finally feeling calm, collected.
Sitting himself down upon the sandy shores, clearing disregarding the crowds of people who'd come down to enjoy a nice sunny day at the beach, running and screaming things like, "Agh! It's the Hulk!" and "Let's get out of here before he kills us all!"
That last cry hurt him. Why did people think that all he did all day was cause destruction and wanting to hurt people? It wasn't his fault that he was blessed with incredible strength and invulnerability. That most of the villains he'd faced liked to throw him about like a rag-doll because of that fact and that he answered them with the same treatment, but it was always him that ended up getting the blame. Therefore being hated more and more.
He was getting sick of it. Sick of all the blame, the hatred toward him, the hounding and the hunting. Maybe he should pack up this superhero lark and become a villain instead. Heck, most of America, and probably the world, thought of him as a villain so why shouldn't he be one?
As he was too busy thinking to himself, the Hulk didn't even know that he was about to have company. Company in the form of Prince Namor, who walked proudly from out of the very sea, garbed in nothing but a pair of green trunks that were made from an unknown material, bordered with a gold belt. He had nothing on his feet, but protruding from both ankles were small, white-feathered wings which were clearly not big enough to be used for flight…surely.
"I am Namor," The Atlantean introduced proudly, his hands firmly on his hips as he continued, "And it would be wise in your behalf to look at me when I'm speaking to you!" His voice angrier by the time he'd finished.
Hulk didn't stir, didn't even look Namor's way. He didn't want to listen, was sick of listening to people either bad-mouthing him or trying to "help" him, whatever that meant. He just looked out into the horizon, knees near enough to his chest, his arms resting upon them as he watched the salt glittering on the surface of the sea from the effect of the Sun's intense light.
Namor's grey-blue eyes narrowed, face flushed an angry-red at the ignorance of this creature that was clearly not all human, pointing at him as he shouted furiously, "How dare you ignore the Prince of Atlantis! I have the right mind to teach you some manners when in the presence of royalty!"
Namor went to strike at the Hulk, but was blocked when the behemoth caught it in mid-air, his giant green hand wrapped around Namor's wrist before tossing it aside lightly, causing the Prince to double back, having to dig his heels into the sand to stop him from moving further.
This creature, whatever it might be, is just as strong as me. Maybe even more, but strength isn't the only weapon I wield, Namor pondered as he approached the Hulk once again, "Now you dare lay a hand on my royal personage? Now I have no choice, but to teach you a lesson!"
Hulk had had enough by now, sick of hearing the Prince going on about his so-called royal status. He just wanted to be left alone. Why couldn't anyone understand that without trying to take him on.
Hulk stood up then, facing Namor and catching his wrist again when the Prince tried for the same move twice, before swinging him around, arm fixed tightly behind his back and Hulk's free arm wrapped securely around Namor's neck, holding him in a tight embrace.
"HULK DON'T CARE! HULK JUST WANT TO BE LEFT ALONE! SICK OF PUNY HUMANS HOUNDING HIM ALL THE TIME!" He roared into Namor's ears who scoffed and started to struggle out of Hulk's hold on him.
"Brainless green oaf! You still think you're dealing with a "puny human"? Well, we shall soon see!" He then reached up to grab Hulk's arm that was tightly swathed around his neck, and flipped him over judo-style, with the benefit of his immense strength.
The Hulk landed with an almighty thump on the sand, but it didn't fall him for long as he was back on his feet and roaring in sheer anger. He charged at Namor, taking him by surprise, his hand swathed around the monarch's neck, choke-slamming him to the ground, pinning him there.
"LITTLE MAN TALK TOO MUCH! HULK WILL SHUT YOU UP!" Hulk continued to tighten his grip, drawing the very breath away from Namor, who needed to think of something quick before the behemoth choked him to death. Namor found his answer a second later, cussing himself for not thinking it in the first place.
Reaching deep within himself, Namor grabbed the Hulk by the arms, making sure that he had a secure grip on him, and released his own bio-electricity, similar to that of the electric eel, in an outward burst. He was successful in electrocuting the Hulk for only a few seconds, thanks to the Hulk's superior invulnerability to most attacks, but it was enough for the Prince of Atlantis to move in for the offensive.
Reeling his fist back, Namor socked the Hulk right in the jaw with the remainder of his super-strength behind the punch. His attack was successful enough to force Hulk onto his back, the sound of what Namor would've mistaken for thunder accompanying it.
Must return to the sea…regain my already waned strength. For it will be the death of me if I don't, Namor mused as he staggered in the direction of the sea, truly exhausted from the ongoing battle with such an immensely powerful creature.
He may have the advantage upon land, but once I get him into the sea, he shall be the one to fall to the sheer might of Namor, Prince of Atlantis!
As the cooling waves lashed upon his feet as he stepped onto the shore, Namor could already feel his waning strength returning. Now he just needed to get the overgrown clod into its waters and victory will be his.
And his answer couldn't have come sooner as he turned just in time to see the Hulk charging toward him, rage expressed on his face and with the intention of "spearing" him into the thrashing water that seemed to mirror what the Hulk was feeling. He didn't even know that Namor would have the upper hand once they were submerged in it.
As the water lashed around the two powerhouses, Namor could feel his strength returning rather speedily, using it to drive the Hulk deeper into the depths. Thanks to his Atlantean physiology, Namor was able to breathe underwater with ease in the same fashion as humans breathe in air, thanks to the gills that were located behind his ears.
Hulk wasn't so lucky in that department. He had to rely on his enhanced lung capacity which, thankfully, enabled him to hold his breath for many hours. So not a total loss, but he was still at an disadvantage under the water nonetheless.
"You are now at my mercy Hulk!" Namor informed as he started to swim around the green giant with incredible speed, soon creating a whirlpool so intense that it affected the Hulk's consciousness, making him feel light-headed, and somehow sapping him of some of his strength.
Once Namor knew that the Hulk had ceased in his attack against him, he immediately stopped and swam to the green giant's side, hooking him under the arms and pulling him back to the surface. They were quite a way from the shore, but with the help of Namor's super-strength and speed, he managed to get them there in no time at all.
"I trust I have made my point quite clear, Hulk. That you are the most powerful on land, but I am completely invincible when submerged in the sea," Namor pointed out as he watched the Hulk climb to his feet, shaking his head as though it might relieve him of the light-headedness that still plagued his mind, but had found that his strength had been returned to him.
"Now to business," Namor started, hands firmly placed on his hips once again, "Judging from your hatred for the humans, it appears we both share a common enemy. Because of them, they have cost me my birthright, my people, everything that I hold close to my heart! I propose we band together and bring humanity to its knees!" He finished with a clench of his fist, certainty in his voice and in his facial expression.
"LITTLE MAN SUGGEST HULK TEAM UP? NOT BAD IDEA…AS YOU ARE STRONG LIKE HULK, BUT HULK STILL STRONGEST!" He announced in his usual manner, Namor not really caring who was the strongest as long as they were in an agreement.
"Then it is settled," Namor pronounced, "Our first mission shall be to deliver a smashing defeat to those accursed Avengers I have been hearing about as of late!"
The Hulk had snarled like an enraged animal when Namor uttered the super-group's name, remembering instantly the battle he'd had with them only a hour ago at the Grand Canyon. The desire to fight them once again burning inside him, wanting to be let out.
"Come! We shall travel to a remote location where we will engage the Avengers into battle! Somewhere that'll value both our strengths so we shall be the victors." Afterward, Namor pressed a button that was situated on his gold belt, which sent an invisible signal to his submarine that emerged from under the surface a few seconds later.
Baring the noble crest of Atlantis on its front and gold in colour, the two super-powered beings entered the vessel, Namor leading in first, as he sat at the front with the controls while the Hulk stood behind, his colossal frame mostly taking up the space he was occupying.
Little did they know that they were both mentally plotting the other's demise.
HULK TAG ALONG, SMASH FISH-MAN WHEN OFF-GUARD, the Hulk mused as he watched the proud monarch steer the ship onto its course, not knowing where he was being taken, but then not really caring just as long as they were getting back at the Avengers.
He's too strong, even for me. Luck was on my side when we battled, but that luck will soon run out if I'm not careful. He's also untrustworthy, unpredictable which is incredibly dangerous on my part. Once he's served his purpose, I shall have to destroy him quickly, Namor spoke in thought, a smirk on his face, hidden from the Hulk as he continued to mull it over in addition to steering the ship to the desired location.
An island situated off the south coast of Gibraltar
Hours later, after spending it mostly in total silence, accompanied by the sound of the ship's engine humming gently, they'd reached their destination, the ship breaking the surface. Namor immediately shut off the engine, passing Hulk as he made his way over to the ladder, stopping for the moment to utter, "We have arrived," before disappearing up into the outside.
Hulk followed momentarily, the ship being large enough to allow him to climb up without discomfort, and when climbing out, found himself to be on the shore of a small island, facing a large cliff-face the same size as though back home.
"This is where we shall do battle with the Avengers. It harbours both our strengths, leaving us with no weaknesses," Namor made clear as he jumped off the ship into the shallow shore below, the Hulk continuing to follow.
"HULK DON'T CARE! HULK JUST WANT REMATCH WITH AVENGERS! PROVE TO THEM ONCE AND FOR ALL THAT HULK IS STRONGEST!" The Hulk declared, even though to Namor it sounded more like he was shouting it, claiming it to anyone who could hear him, but only fell on the Atlantean monarch's pointed ears.
"Come, we must prepare for the upcoming battle."
Back at Avengers H.Q, New York City
Tony Stark, or rather Iron Man, was back in front of his console, furiously tapping away, concentrating in finding the Hulk before he caused any more dilemmas. Those of a "exploding and destructive" kind. Since they'd returned from their scuffle with the Hulk at the Grand Canyon, he'd been meaning to recharge his armour's battery, as it took a hell of a drainage, but he hadn't had time. The need to find the Hulk seeming to be the more important.
"Iron Man?" A soft, feminine voice emerged from the entrance into the Assembly Room, which they were now calling it, but it didn't stir the armoured Avenger away from the screen. "Iron Man, even you need to rest. I don't like to say it," Wasp continued, her heels clicking against the polished floor as she made her way over to the console, her hand resting on Iron Man's shoulder, "but you took the worst beating out of all of us against the Hulk, if you don't mind me saying," she added softly at the end.
Iron Man tensed, not because of Wasp, but rather at the fact that, even with his suit, he wasn't able to take down the Hulk, "I know what you're trying to say Wasp and I appreciate it, but I'm fine. Really. This armour can take quite a punch, if you haven't noticed. So don't worry about me."
Nevertheless Wasp shook her head, "No, that's not what I meant and you know it. I'm more worried about the person inside the armour than the armour itself. Whoever you are in there, you need to respite just as much as the rest of us. So please, for me at least, could you try taking a time-out, if only for a little while?"
In a way, Wasp was right. He was exhausted. He must've been searching for the Hulk's whereabouts for a few hours now, non-stop. It couldn't hurt to take a break for half-an-hour, maybe a little more. He hadn't "scored" any hits so far anyway and it'll be nice to escape into one of the rooms upstairs and getting out of the suit. Take a nice, long relaxing bath to soothe the aching muscles that were starting to play on him now.
"Okay, Wasp," Iron Man replied, his synthesizer always in effect to hide his true voice so as to not reveal his identity, "You've convinced me." He laughed behind his mask, tapping a few buttons and getting up from his seat, "I shall turn this off and try again when I've truly rested."
The Wasp gave him a smile and pat on the shoulder before disappearing out of the Assembly Room, probably to join Giant-Man in the labs located on level B-1.
When he'd bought the townhouse a few months back, he'd bought it simply because it had lower levels as well as those above, and had his associates construct them into a variety of laboratories, as he knew he'd need them in the not-too-distant future. Guess he was right.
He was just about to press the ENTER button to put it to "sleep", in order for it to continue searching for the Hulk while it was powered down, when the alarms he'd installed to signal the team of any kind of disturbance happening in the world started to sing their song.
The Wasp returned, with Giant-Man and Thor in tow, all gathering around Iron Man as he punched in a few keys to bring up where his computer was detecting the disturbance. His relaxing will just have to wait until later. This was obviously more important.
On the screen it revealed the map of the world to the heroes and, blinking in the area at the entrance to the Mediterranean, a red dot pinpointed where the disturbance was coming from.
"It seems like some kind of beacon's been activated on that small island off the south coast of Gibraltar." Iron Man surmised, pointing at the screen as he did, "But what is its purpose? An SOS? A trap?"
"I hate to say it, Iron Man, but we won't know unless we find out for ourselves. Our finding of the Hulk will just have to wait until we've dealt with this crisis first." Giant-Man added, the Wasp and Thor agreeing simultaneously.
Iron Man nodded in agreement, "You're right, Giant-Man. It will also give me the perfect opportunity to test-drive one of Stark's newest creations and you three get the thrill of being the first to experience it." He added just a little too excitedly while the others just looked at each other, not having the slightest inkling what Iron Man was talking about…
On the shores of an island south of Gibraltar
It had only taken a hour to get to their desired location via underwater transportation in the shape of a deep-sea jet bathyscaphe which was actually an experimental prototype that Tony Stark's workers had just finished constructing and thus, hadn't been tested yet…until now.
It suddenly broke the surface of the sea and the Avengers emerged one-by-one from within until Iron Man was the last to climb out. Seeing how far they were from shore, they each used their unique powers to travel from the ship, not really wanting their costumes wet before they headed into whatever awaited them here.
As they gathered on the shore, Iron Man held up an arm and pressed one of the buttons on his gauntlet, it opening out and revealing a small screen with the map of the island on it, complete with a scanner which was already scrutinizing the area for any signs of anything really.
A few minutes later, it bleeped, drawing Iron Man's attention to it, "According to my wrist scanner, apart from us, there are only two others occupying this island and one of them is emitting low levels of radiation. That way," he pointed toward a cave that stood beneath a large enough cliff with trees at its peak.
Then Wasp basically said what everyone else was thinking, "It couldn't be the Hulk, could it? It couldn't be possible. He's thousands of miles that way," she added, her gloved finger pointing out to sea in the direction that they'd arrived in.
Iron Man shook his head, "You're right, Wasp. It couldn't be possible, unless Hulk can bound over entire oceans. Can he?" He even doubted himself about what the Hulk was capable of, but surely he couldn't perform such a feat. That would truly be…incredible, to say the least.
The sound of Giant-Man's voice effectively coerced Iron Man away from his thoughts, "We can worry about what the Hulk can do later. First, shouldn't we be busy exploring this place and finding out who or what sent that beacon?" He was right after all. What is up with me today? Am I too hung-up on the Hulk that it's causing me to not think rationally? Iron Man thought as he lead them onward, into the mouth of the cave that could've held a single skyscraper inside it was that big.
"It's so dark in here I can't see where I'm going," the Wasp muttered under her breath once they'd gotten further inside, the darkness seeming to close in from all around them until it receded from the blue lightning that crackled around Thor's hammer, Mjolnir. The Thunder God using it exactly like you would a wooden torch.
"Doth this help, milady?" Thor asked with surprising softness in his voice, bringing a slight flush to Wasp's cheeks, who answered back just as softly with a, "Thank you, Thor," hoping it didn't attract Giant-Man's attention, but luckily it didn't. He was too busy watching out for stalactites to notice what was going on within the small group and, being with him for a year now, Wasp knew all about his "little" jealous streak.
After about 10, 15 minutes of seemingly endless walking through the darkness, with only the lightning projected from Mjolnir as guidance, the Avengers could see that they were coming up to the exit. The Sun's bright light shining like a beacon.
"Hey! I see light up ahead!" She cried jubilantly as Iron Man held up his hand, "Now we must tread carefully. We have no idea what could be waiting for us on the other side. Be on your guard." At the mention of this, Wasp promptly shrunk to the size of her namesake, Thor's hammer continued to crackle with lightning and Giant-Man clenched both fists, ready for anything that awaited them on the outside.
As they stepped out into the light, they found themselves in the entrance to a jungle and beside them, to their left to be precise, they saw a wide path that lead up the cliff, probably to its peak.
"Prepare to meet thy doom, Avengers!" They heard someone cry, distinguishing their voice to be of someone of noble blood or something similar.
Looking in the direction from where it originated from, the Avengers could see a half-naked, burly man with jet black hair that was slicked back, wearing what appeared to be green trunks with a gold belt and was bare-footed. Protruding from his ankles, they could see small, white-feathered wings and above his head, he held up a boulder the size of a car.
What surprised them the most was the fact that his ally, who was standing beside him with a boulder over his head also, was in fact…the Incredible Hulk! He was supposed to be back in the US of A, causing no end of havoc and destruction. Not here teaming up with a scantily-clad swimsuit model who seemed to possess superhuman strength, but to what extent?
"Now, Hulk!" The Sub-Mariner instructed, throwing his boulder first while the Green Giant followed swiftly afterward.
As one of them was heading straight for Giant-Man and the Wasp, the stronger of the two acted instantly, growing an extra 10 feet (now standing at a height of 25 feet), and grabbing the boulder in the palm of his hand, crushing it into dust thanks to his increased strength. He returned to his normal height of 6 foot once he was sure that the coast was clear.
The other was heading straight for Iron Man, but he obliterated it with a repulsor blast from one of his gauntlets, the remainder of its debris flying at both he and Thor, but they are unaffected. Being invulnerable and all.
Thor held out Mjonir in front of him and bellowed, "Halt thy attack, villains or suffer the wrath of Thor!" And just to make sure they got the point he was making, his body crackled in an aura of lightning whilst floating a few feet into the air.
Namor scoffed at the God of Thunder, hands firmly on his naked hips, "Huh! Villains?" He asked with disdain in his voice, "We are not the villains here, Thunder God!" He pointed at the Avengers before pointing back at himself and the Hulk, "It was not us who destroyed my home of Atlantis! Because of you now I have to rebuild my empire from scratch and find and return my people to the place they'd once called "home"!"
Namor's face was flushed with anger, the muscles in his body tensing (which Wasp couldn't help noticing), his veins pulsing, becoming more visible. He was truly an intimidating sight, even if he was a super-strong human. Nothing the Avengers can't handle…until…
"Wait a minute!" Iron Man suddenly exclaimed, pointing at the half-naked man with a penchant for swimming trunks, "Your home is Atlantis? By any chance, could you be the Prince of Atlantis? Namor, the Sub-Mariner?"
At the mention of his name and stature, Namor stood proud, fists against his hips as he answered, "You are right to think so, armoured one, for I am Namor, Prince of Atlantis."
"It's Iron Man," he added before continuing,"And how can that be possible? You disappeared shortly before the ending of World War II? You've been missing for over 50 years?"
At hearing this surprising revelation, Wasp, who was at the moment sitting on Giant-Man's shoulder, looked at Namor in a totally different light, "What? Is Iron Man saying that he's over 50 years old? But he looks so…young…" she would've said something else, but with her lover being within ear-shot, she wittily decided against it.
"It appears, my dear, that we're dealing with someone who's no mere human," Giant-Man answered her, peering at Namor who'd heard his part of the conversation.
Namor smirked, "You are not wrong, giant man," not realizing that he'd just said his codename, "For it is because I am also half-Atlantean, therefore I age much slower and live much longer than you mere humans. I also acquire several abilities that differentiates me from both Atlanteans and humans…as you shall soon see," Namor added, turning to once again face the Hulk who, he could tell, was getting restless because they were too busy talking and not fighting.
"ENOUGH TALK! HULK SMASH!" Hulk bellowed, proving Namor's assumption as he dug his fingers into the very earth and lifted up a section of it with his vast super-strength. He was making another attempt at crushing the Avengers, but they were ready for the offence as usual.
"Your attempts are futile, Hulk." Iron Man pronounced as he lifted one of his gauntlets and fired another repulsor blast, effectively demolishing the ball of hardened earth. "Stop this and we can help you both. Please Namor, we can help you restore Atlantis to its former glory and find your people wherever they might be. We don't need to fight each other to achieve it." He urged, trying ever so hard not to lead this into another epic battle. He didn't think his armour could take another beating like back in Arizona. He still hadn't recharged it because he didn't have the time to.
However, Namor was unconvinced, pointing once again at the Avengers, "You cannot sway me, Iron Man. My home's been destroyed and you, humanity, is the cause of it. I vowed I'd take revenge and take it I shall. Hulk, attack!"
Uh-oh. This was it. This was the epic battle that Iron Man was trying to avoid but ah well, at the end of the day it always ended in violence. Quickly, he turned to his fellow Avengers, "Alright, if it's a fight they want, it's a fight they shall have. Giant-Man, you and Wasp take care of Namor, but don't underestimate him. He looks like trouble. Me and Thor shall take down the Hulk."
Giant-Man clapped his hands and rubbed them together, "Alright, now I get to show what Giant-Man's capable of." Growing up to 15 feet, thinking that his strength and durability would be enough at that height to deal with Namor, he charged forward, the ground trembling beneath his feet as he did. Wasp followed after him, zipping through the air fast in her shrunken form.
The Hulk leapt into the air, clearing over Giant-Man as he plummeted back down, his feet right above Thor in an attempt to crush him beneath his feet, but the Thunder God saw through the attack and moved out of the way with time to spare. Thor turned on the spot, Mjolnir clenched tightly in his palm as he swung it at the Hulk's jaw, sending him flying across the air and encasing him into the cliff wall.
It was a predictable move, but highly effective.
After urging himself out of the hole he just made, the Hulk howled his battle cry, 'HULK SMASH!' and, with fists tightly compressed, he slammed them against the ground, causing a massive shockwave that travelled swiftly toward Thor and Iron Man.
Both wielding the power of flight, they both soared into the air to avoid the attack, but couldn't have anticipated Hulk's next move. While the two Avengers were busy dodging the attack by flying into the air, Hulk used his surprising speed to charge forward, gaining momentum, before bounding into the air, directly at Thor.
Even for the Thunder God, he didn't see it coming. In the air, Hulk covered Thor's head with his entire hand and, like his fight with Iron Man earlier, used the force of the fall to slam him into the ground, Thor's invulnerable body creating a small crater beneath him.
In retaliation, Iron Man lifted his gauntlets, aiming them at the Hulk before releasing several repulsor blasts from its palms. The energy beams, however, bounced off Hulk's back, which did nothing, but make him angrier and Iron Man knew what that meant.
Leaving Thor for the moment, Hulk spun around to face Iron Man, his face full of pure anger and rage, his veins bulging as he tensed his humongous muscles, roaring, "HULK CRUSH IRON MAN LIKE TIN CAN!"
As the Hulk came charging towards the red-and-gold Avenger, Iron Man uttered to himself, "Uh oh, this can't be good!" and flew back up into the air, giving him enough space to breathe and plan his next move wisely.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the rocky clearing, Namor was proving to be quite the battler as he tussled with Giant-Man, despite his great size, whilst dodging Wasp's "stingers". And he should be, for one such as he has tackled sea monsters twice the size of Giant-Man and lived to tell the tale.
"You had best surrender now, Avengers! You can't possibly win against the might of Namor!" He boasted as he managed to throw Giant-Man over his shoulder with ease, the earth rumbling like an earthquake when he connected with it. Wasp couldn't help, but marvel at the Sub-Mariner's amazing strength.
"Don't be too hasty, Namor! We're not going to give up easily!" She retorted, skimming through the air as fast as her wings could carry her and aimed her palms at Namor's head, firing off several "stinger" blasts to try and distract him, giving Giant-Man the time to recover and maybe catch this guy off-guard.
The feat worked like before with the Hulk, disorientating the prince and giving Giant-Man the chance to grab him within his gigantic hand and slam him hard against the sandy floor, Namor's invulnerable body creating a small crater underneath him.
"I suggest you stay down mister, if you know what's good for ya," Giant-Man cautioned the Prince of Atlantis who, due to lack of water, was slowly beginning to feel rather weak, struggling even to lift the giant hand that was currently pinning him down.
"I…shall…not," Namor strained as he gripped the giant finger nearest to him with both hands and forced it up with all his remaining might. It seemed to be working for a second, but Giant-Man increased more strength, successfully pinning the Prince of Atlantis for good.
"I wasn't kidding, Prince Namor." Giant-Man informed with added venom, even making the Wasp shudder as she'd not seen him like this before. She grew back to her normal height and placed her hands on her hips, looking down at Namor who was still struggling, even after Hank's warning.
"Hulk! Help me, you thick-headed buffoon!" Namor cried out, the Hulk hearing the insult toward him and huffed, backhanding both Thor and Iron Man away before charging toward Giant-Man.
"Giant-Man, look out!" Wasp warned, but it was too late. The Hulk was too fast, shoulder-barging the giant Avenger with all of his natural strength, sending his costumed foe crashing onto his side, inevitably letting go of Namor.
The Wasp quickly shrunk back to wasp size and began firing her stinger blasts while retreating back to Thor and Iron Man, but Hulk was shaking them off with the bat of his hand. He then clapped his hands together, generating enough force to blast Wasp away, her minuscule body falling upon that of her fallen boyfriend, returning back to her normal height once again.
Thor and Iron Man, in the meantime, had recovered from Hulk's super-powered backhand and were now flying to Giant-Man and Wasp's aid as the Hulk and Namor retreating into the forest, probably to give themselves some space to recuperate.
"Okay Giant-Man, Wasp. Up and at 'em!" Iron Man coaxed, gently easing them from unconsciousness whilst Thor kept his eyes on the retreating duo, noting which direction they'd taken.
Once Wasp had recovered, she slid off of her boyfriend's giant body, her palm placed upon the side of her head as a small headache was beginning to form, "Whoa…I'm starting to get pretty sick of being clapped by that green lug." She uttered, as her boyfriend was coming around also, "Wow, it never ceases to amaze me that, even at my great height, I still feel like I've been hit by a bus." He stretched his back and a few seconds later heard a satisfying click.
"We hath no time to waste. Hulk and Namor art retreating into the forest. We must hurry if we're not to lose them," Thor pointed out, indicating their foes' retreat with an outstretched arm, Mjolnir held in his palm.
"You're not wrong there, Thor. Come on Avengers, we've got them by the ropes…now let's reel them in so we can go home." Iron Man flew up in front, with Thor, Wasp and Giant-Man flying and stomping behind him, the sense of victory in the air as they descended deep into the forest…
Up in front, Hulk was stampeding through the trees, knocking them away as he passed while Namor flew overhead, his ankle wings helping him to steer out of the way of the flying trees, the need for water now clearly evident. If he remembered correctly, the direction they were currently heading in would lead them to a small lagoon, perfect to help regain his superior strength. Now, he only had to keep the Hulk under check until his plan was complete and then, he shall rid himself of the Hulk. No use having him around when all he seemed to do was destroy everything that got in his way, like he was doing at the moment with the trees.
A few moments later, they'd reached the lagoon and it was the perfect place for their final showdown with the Avengers.
As he descended back down to earth, Namor approached the Hulk and replied nobly, "Hulk, watch the entrance for the Avengers and notify me the second they arrive. I need to take this moment to recuperate in the lagoon's waters and regain my strength. Your super strength alone can't defeat the Avengers." He then turned his back on the Hulk before diving into the lagoon, leaving the green giant to contemplate his own plan to rid himself of the revenge-hungry prince.
The waters felt cool against his sun-soaked skin as he delved deeper, felt his strength returning once more as he swam back up to the lagoon's surface, soaring back into the air once he'd broken through it. Now filled with dynamic vitality, he returned to the shore to find that the Hulk was no-where in sight.
"Hulk? Where the devil has that simple-minded lout gotten to? Has he retreated? Deserted me when we're so close to victory?" Namor spoke out loud yet no-one seemed to answer his questions until…
"Deserted…most likely, but you being close to victory? Not even close," uttered Iron Man, hovering in front of his assembled team with Giant-Man directly behind him, back to his 15ft stature, Wasp in her shrunken form flittering on his right side while Thor floated on his left, arms crossed over his large chest with Mjolnir held tightly in hand, pale-blue lightning crackling around his body.
Namor was at a loss for words. He knew in his heart that he wasn't going to win this fight this day, but he hated the fact that he must retreat and, if there was one thing the Prince of Atlantis hated more than humanity itself, it was retreating.
He pointed at the Avengers, anger apparently being a natural expression for Namor, "Mark my words, Avengers, I will have my revenge against humanity! So decrees Namor!" And with that said, he turned his back on them and dove back into the lagoon, using its underwater tunnels to return to his sub-aqua home.
Revolving around so he was back to facing his team, Iron Man quipped, "Well, I have to say that went better than expected, wouldn't you say?"
Elsewhere, on the other side of the island, beyond the edges of the forest, a half-naked figure, wearing tattered navy-blue trousers and barefooted, seemed to be running for his very life. He was panting, out of breath, lungs burning, but he didn't seem to care. All he wanted was to get out of there and away from such violence he always seemed to be mixed up in. Ever since he could transform into the super-strong and rampaging Hulk whenever he felt emotionally stressed or incredibly angry.
Got to find a way off this island or at least a phone. I need to phone Betty and tell her of my situation. I haven't told her I'm the Hulk yet so I'll need to think of a white lie to tell her so she can get her father to send someone for me. I vaguely remember how I even got here as the Hulk. The only other thing I remember is battling against the Avengers and being in the presence of an Atlantean royal, but that's about it. My mind's a total blank on anything else, thought Dr. Bruce Banner, jumping over a fallen tree trunk as, luck would have it, he saw a small village that looked to have some technological support and a small port situated on the coast.
He was saved.
Eventually finding his way out through the underwater tunnels, Namor carried on swimming in the direction of Atlantis, pressing a button on the belt of his swimming trunks to summon his submarine back home, not wanting the Avengers to find and utilize it for their own purposes. As he swam through the depths of the Atlantic Ocean, all he could feel was rage and frustration towards failing to exact his revenge on the humans this day, but, at the same time, feeling extremely ashamed, imagining the looks from his people's faces and especially from his cousin's, the Lady Dorma, who taught him that revenge was never the answer and that it never looked good on him.
Before all this had happened, Prince Namor was known to be a caring and selfless monarch who thought of nothing, but for the wellbeing of his people. He fought Hitler and the Third Reich in World War II alongside a team of Allied heroes that called themselves "The Invaders", namely Captain America, his sidekick Bucky and the original Human Torch, among others. A few days before the war finally ended, he was struck by an unexpected explosion, which knocked him unconscious. When he awoke, he found himself on the shores of France and suffering from amnesia. There, for the next 50 years or so, he lived in a small village and had built himself a life around it. Only recently did his memory return to him, ironically by him accidentally falling into the sea, and he soon set off to find Atlantis, but what he found was not what he was expecting. He found Atlantis, his kingdom, in ruin and his people were gone. That was only a few days ago.
Bask in your victory for now, Avengers, for soon I shall have mine! I promise you that! he contemplated to himself as he delve deeper, his mind busy thinking of a plan that will finally have the Avengers on the knees…
The End of Issue 2
Enemies:
Namor, the Sub-Mariner - Due to his unusual heritage, Namor's unique among both ordinary humans and Atlanteans from the fact that he's a hybrid of both species. Because of that, Namor possesses a fully amphibious physiology, but retaining the body of a physically fit human male, perfectly suited for extreme undersea pressures, superhuman strength that's dependent upon his physical contact with water, speed, agility, durability, flight by unknown means, and longevity. It's also rumoured that he may be well over 80 years old, but has the appearance of a male of his prime.
The Hulk AKA Bruce Banner - Possesses near-limitless physical strength depending directly on his emotional state, particularly his anger, he also possesses vast superhuman durability, healing and endurance. He can also leap vast distances and has displayed sufficient superhuman speed to match even Thor.
Issue 2