Faraway Home Chapter 3
Disclaimer: All recognizable characters are property of Marvel. I do not make any claims to them outside of the ideas of my stories. Please do not sue for an overactive imagination (comics are partly to blame)!
I have it it mind to continue this idea into a new story, bringing the family home to Earth. There's more involved, but this is the basic idea. If you think you are interested, drop me a line?
AN: Warnings for canon typical violence, an angry Hulk, racial genocide heavily implied, but with a potential fix-it.
Hulk went on a rampage.
After leaving the castle, he quickly crossed out into Crown City, heading straight for the ghetto of partially underground living tunnels inhabited by the remnants of the Bug People.
Korg the Kronan had seen the green behemoth moving and went after him, though he had no hope of bringing the massacre to an end. Stoically, he bore witness.
Hiroim appeared, running towards him, shock evident on his face, eyes bulging and nearly wild, mouth open, forming words that Korg couldn't understand.
The Shadow was shouting, "Korg! Stop him!"
Surprised, Korg started forward, calling for the Hulk's attention. Hiroim joined him, breathing hard from the run down from the palace.
"He must...be stopped," the Shadow panted, hands on his knees as he gulped in air, "All is not lost."
"Hulk! Hear us!" Korg called, voice like a rockfall. The sound rose above the screams of the injured and dying, echoing through the tunnels like a benediction.
Hiroim caught his breath, and then went after his King, moving carefully among the dead, dying and surviving beings. He murmured prayers over the dead as he walked, granting peace to the unfortunate.
He caught up to the Hulk in the depths of one of the tunnels, torchlight flickering and casting horrific shadows against the walls.
"Holku*! Please, hear me! Oldstrong lives! Your queen will survive this heinous attack. Please, cease your rampage and calm your anger," Hiroim called, repeating himself in the attempt to bring the Sakaarson* back to himself.
Hulk slowed his forward progress, the words hurled at him penetrating the red, murderous haze.
"What is this, Shadow Man?" Hulk growled, one fist raised as he turned to darkly eye Hiroim, to see if this one too, would plunge a dagger of betrayal into what was left of his heart. Gore dripped from his clenched fingers as he stared at the Shadow. Bugs took the opportunity to flee when Hulk ceased his forward movement.
The gray man stood unflinchingly tall before his King and offered a small, meaningful smile, and open, raised hands. "Peace, my liege. I speak true. The Oldstrong survives. She heals within the stone skin. And, of great import," he paused, the tiny smile growing beatific and large. "There is a new life spark!" He practically crowed the last, knowing it was exactly the news Hulk needed to hear.
In the darker days of the rebellion, on late watches, the two of them had discussed what life had offered them thus far. One thing had always come up in Hulk's personal narrative. "I do not always get what I want, and that is a family, and peace. I have never been left alone long enough to find if such things are for me. And I crave it so," he had informed his trusted lieutenant. This news would be the balm he so desperately needed.
Hulk was indeed shocked. He staggered, jaw going slack, the rage abruptly draining from him, leaving that unknown feeling, hope, to surge to the fore. He was not this lucky. He sagged against the wall, making the carved rock crumble under his weight.
"Truly? Hiroim, please," his voice trembled. He slumped forward, lacking the strength to stay upright, even against the rock wall. He shuddered with the release of adrenaline.
"Yes, Hulk. The Oldpower cannot lie. Come, let us return to the palace and let these people alone," Hiroim said, offering the Hulk his hand. He cast no judgment, knowing the reach of rage in his King's mighty form.
"I have committed a great wrong here, Hiroim," Hulk whispered, reaching for the lifeline offered to him. That Hiroim did not shrink back or flinch away was important to the Earthling. His rages were legendary, in terms of sheer destruction. Fortunately, since winning free of the Red King, they'd been fewer. Especially with Caiera's love and calming presence. Hulk knew he'd hastened the demise of the Bug people. Without a Queen, the population would not be renewed. Banner woke long enough in the back of his mind and latched onto the problem to gnaw on for a diversion. Hulk knew if an answer was to be found, Banner would find it.
"I know. Korg will deal with it. No one blames you for the berserker rage*. Come," Hiroim gently tugged on the large, leathery green hand, simultaneously pulling Hulk upright and out of his fugue, into the light. They slowly made their way back to the surface. The horror of Hulk's rampage was beginning to sink into his mind. At one point, he had to turn from Hiroim to vomit the contents of his stomach. The nausea didn't really subside, but left him unsettled and uneasy.
Korg had begun to bring the survivors assistance from the rest of the city. Reds and Shadows moved among the resting Bugs, lending aid where necessary. Healers had arrived, and moved among the injured and dying, offering respite as they could, and occasionally giving mercy as necessary.
"Get them whatever they need, Korg. Anything. I," Hulk told the large rock man. He didn't know how to apologize and Banner was silent in his head. Both were horrified that their anger was still so easily triggered to an all consuming tsunami.
Korg just smiled grimly and offered a tiny bit of peace, "I will see to it all, Green One. Go with Hiroim now."
Hiroim led Hulk back to the palace, taking less crowded avenues so they were unimpeded by other citizens.
"Hiroim, how do I even begin to fix this? Should I even remain King?" Hulk asked softly, his eyes glazed over, brows drawn low. He did not fear being overheard, but he spoke quietly from lack of heart.
"I am sure there's a way to repair the damage done. Are you not the one who improved the filtration of our water? Are you not the one who opened the primary school to all beings?"
"That was..."
"You are the same person, whether large and green, or small and pink. The mystics are fascinated."
Hulk smiled a little. "I still don't know why I survived that bomb."
"Perhaps you just don't see it yet, my friend. We here know why, and praise the Ancestors and the Prophet for your coming, every day."
They reached the baths under the palace, where Hiroim dismissed all the servants, wishing to serve this great being who had fought so hard for such a simple thing as a home. He quickly stripped away the leather armor from Hulk's body and nudged him into the large, steaming pool of water. Hulk went without complaint. Hiroim washed his King, gently removing the gore from his body and some of the pain from his soul.
He left Hulk to soak and find a new equilibrium, and checked in with Korg, who was just returning to the palace.
"Well?" Hiroim asked, directing Korg to another bathing chamber, well away from Hulk. He did not need this additional burden, yet.
"It is not as bad as we thought," the Kronan rumbled, divesting himself of his loincloth to slip into the warm water.
"Oh?" Hiroim prompted, joining his new lover* in the pool. They washed each other, reconnecting after the horrific day.
"Mhm. There were only 300 of Miek's people in those tunnels. And our Green Scar managed some restraint. Only half that number is injured or dead. The healers believe they won't lose anyone else tonight," Korg explained, working stubby fingers over Hiroim's shoulders and back.
"Oh that's good," the Shadow murmured, but whether for the news, or Korg's ministrations, Korg didn't know.
A few hours later, Hiroim gathered Hulk, dressed him in flowing red fabrics, and escorted him back to his Queen.
Outside the carved doors, Hulk balked, the horrors of the day flashing before him once more.
"I can't," he groaned, despondent, placing his head in his hands.
"We needs must see her. If only to give you proof of my words," Hiroim said, opening one leaf, and waiting.
The statue like, recumbent form of the beautiful Caiera had Hulk stop yards away, suddenly afraid, and deeply ashamed. She had done so much for him in the short time they'd been together. He credited her influence as a balm to his rage, and the help she gave in figuring out what he truly wanted from life. To see her like this, still as death, was heartbreaking. He could feel the rage surge, like a tide. Knowing she somehow lived, confused the green man.
Hiroim watched quietly, letting Hulk set the pace of this encounter.
"Oh my queen, light of my life," Hulk moaned, pained. He shook his head, as though trying to dispel the vision, the reality before him. He moved slowly closer to the bed where she lay in state, and collapsed to his knees. With a trembling hand, he touched her cheek and forehead. She was cold, and rock hard. This stone form would take getting used to.
"Hiroim, can she forgive me?" His voice, normally deep and loud enough to rattle windows, was weakened, and quiet.
"Yes, Great One, I believe she will. There is a linking I can create, bonding your thoughts to one another for a brief time. It takes much strength, but this I would do." And in a series of movements that reminded a certain physicist of a Star Trek reference, Hiroim reached out to both beings and cupped their heads at eye level. The connection formed, sending Hulk's awareness into a gray tinted dreamscape wholly different from the mindscape he used to interact with Banner. Here, he was alone in an oppressive, cave like place, beginning to feel trapped until a warmth stole over him, one he knew very well.
"Caiera," he sighed, a wealth of conflicting emotions flooding him, tinting the gray-scape in a dull rainbow of colors. The warmth tightened around him, and to his mind, it felt like nothing more than a hug.
"Beloved?" The response was less a spoken word, and more a cascade of imagery, from the first moment they met, until just before the attack. The emotions that both buffeted and buffered the Hulk were immense as a star, and enveloped his whole being, serving to relax him, and remind him of home.
He groaned, soul wounded. "My heart, my all. When?"
"Not long. Look," and the sensation of movement startled his senses. "Look at what we have created."
Tiny, infinitesimal motes of energy danced around the connected consciousness. Just a pair orbited, like electrons in an atom. These blends of himself and his Queen shone with the light of the sun, and filled him with such joy that he thought his heart might explode, and his feet never touch the ground again.
"Caiera, I..."
"Hush, husband. The only stigma lies on those already dealt with. We will discuss it more after I return."
Hulk had to be content with that as Hiroim dissolved the connection. He leaned forward and gently kissed Caiera's forehead.
"Once you've recovered, go help Korg. Resettle the Bugs on the border of the wastelands. There's a cave system they can turn into their own village," Hulk told an exhausted Shadow. Hiroim nodded and left him alone as soon as he was able.
"Heal quickly Caiera. You are the only thing that stays the rage," Hulk murmured to the still figure of his wife as he settled on the floor beside the bed and bowed his head to rest.
Weeks passed mostly uneventfully. Hulk kept working on a few problems outstanding from before the attack. Hiroim and Korg moved the Bugs to the edge of the wastelands, using Crown resources to settle them comfortably in a new town.
Several Shadow clerics kept vigil over Caiera, monitoring how fast the wounds closed, as well as the health of the twins. They allowed the communion between King and Queen every 4 days. Any less was too stressful on Caiera, and too draining on the clerics. Any more, and Hulk's temper became noticeably shorter.
The weeks turned into months, with Hulk having to find an outlet for his increasing rage. Hunts against the Wildebots* and some of the larger wildlife Sakaar boasted. The palace, and even the Bugs, never ate so well. Hulk also made sure the Bugs were easily able to cultivate their new lands, even going out to pull a large, double plow for a few days. He knew Banner was still working on how to prevent their extinction, but the limited matching sciences strained the genius' ability to perform a miracle. Hulk spent time at his shuttle, allowing Banner free rein to try and solve the problem.
Hulk had another session with Caiera one evening, four months after the attack. Hiroim was responsible for maintaining the connection once again. He settled on his knees on the mattress between the recumbent forms of his friends.
"Hiroim, if I have not said it, thank you," Hulk said, emerald eyes looking up into the worn, gray face above him.
"It is my solemn duty," the Shadow replied, placing each of his hands on their foreheads.
The gray dreamscape enveloped Hulk's consciousness once more.
"Beloved" The emotions surrounded him in the now expected, but no less needed, warmth and lessened his temper.
"Caiera" They shared their love and attempted to make contact with the twins, reassuring them of the love felt by their overjoyed parents, and that they were not stressed by the continuation of the stone sleep.
An hour later, Hiroim pulled back, slumping over in exhaustion. Hulk blinked open his eyes, relaxed for the first time in weeks.
"Hiroim?"
"I am well, my liege. Tired. Good news from the Oldstrong?"
"Yes! She should come out of the stone sleep today. Call Korg, I want to stay with her."
"I will call the clerics as well." And Hiroim slowly levered himself off the bed, and made his way out of the room.
Hulk shifted into a sitting position, and prepared to wait.
A serving girl came in during the vigil, bringing food and drink. She quietly left everything on a short, stone plinth beside the bed, and retreated.
Four hours after his communion, Hulk noticed the first signs of recovered life. The stone skin had paled and was cracking as Caiera started breathing again, with deep slow movements of her ribs.
A few clerics entered the room, on their usual half hour check. Hulk pointed out the progress of Caiera's return and watched the clerics as they moved to assist. Twenty minutes after they began, Caiera was blinking black eyes at her beloved husband.
"Holku," she whispered, voice grating and catching after so long unused.
"Caiera." He reached out and gathered her into his arms, finally getting to hold her safe. He was overwhelmed, and quietly cried into her hair. She reached up and pulled him down to gently press her lips to his. His arms tightened around her.
Hiroim came in, and dismissed the clerics with gracious thanks. He requested a midwife to attend the Queen from then on.
"Sakaarson," the clerics murmured to Hulk before bowing and leaving. Hulk didn't pay them any mind, focused solely on his beloved.
Crown City celebrated the return of the Queen, and the news of the imminent births of the heirs. The palace itself relaxed, knowing the Green Scar had his guiding star beside him again. Korg and Hiroim had done all they could to ferret out any remaining pockets of rebellion. The Warbound finally grieved at their diminishment.
The assistance given to the Bugs helped them regain a level of stability, even as Banner worked as often as allowed to solve the problem of their extinction. Neither Banner nor Hulk wanted to be separated from Caiera for long, but she refused to be coddled.
She regained her strength, but refrained from martial training until after the children were born.
They had another 5 years of peace before the wormhole above the planet became active again.
AN: 1st & 2nd asterisk – Holku is one of several variants on Hulk's name, and Sakaarson is one of the titles.
3rd asterisk – Well, he should be. But this is the world I have given him, and it will bother him for awhile. He is an honorable being, under the rage, and knows what he did was wrong.
4thasterisk – Yes, Korg and Hiroim fell in love. Comic "Incredible Hulk" #619, the Chaos War, Feb 2011. I moved the time table up, to suit the story. (And yes, it's a throwaway moment)
5th asterisk – Wildebots are a race(?) of beings, robots, that roam the desert wastelands of Sakaar. Don't know much more than this.
I've BS-ed my way through the powers attributable to the Old Power, which appears to be an earth type magic, or at least, that is how it reads to me.
As to the violence, it needed to occur, being a moment to show that Hulk is still quite capable of the rage he's canonically known for. But in the previous version of this chapter, I didn't have a solution on offer, to keep the race from extinction. I believe it to be possible, just don't know how, short of 'tossing estrogen on it' like gas on a fire. I'm not an entomologist, so I can't even speculate. I'll probably gloss over the fix in another chapter, or another time. Points to anyone who noticed some other throwaways.
