Of Mind and Magic
Chapter 13
Slowly, Harry turned to Laura, "It will be your job to get them to the Institute safe now."
Sarah turned in her seat, "What are you going to be doing?"
"I'm going to go see if I can help our orange friend here."
"Why?"
"Can't you hear them?"
"Hear what?"
He gestured out the windshield, "The children, I can feel their fear, hear their screams even if they're not out loud. I know what it's like to be afraid of a monster, so I'm going to go see if I can help."
He placed a hand on both Laura and Sarah shoulders, letting the knowledge of Asclepius enhanced by the Morrigan's soul knowledge feel the differences in their DNA. "Both of you be safe," his lips twitched, "I've grown quite fond of you during our time together."
In a blue flash, he was gone. The group turned, finding the redhead standing in front of the car.
Harry looked around him, broken pieces of asphalt crunching under his feet as he shifted his weight. Bodies littered the street, some moaning, others silent forever. His ice blue eyes trailed up the buildings, taking in the people peeking out the shattered windows.
Cracks littered the surface of every building, some shifted dangerously.
People in tourist clothes clutched loved ones, or tried to comfort their children.
Releasing a breath, he stretched out his senses, "I'm sorry, but I'm going to need help, there's just too much damage for me to put it right on my own." Touching each of the conscious minds littering the street, he cast his mind back to how the street looked just before the orange Hulk impacted.
Once he had the image firmly in his mind, he pushed will into it, blue energy shone out of his body like a star.
–XX –
The group in the car cried out, turning away from the light.
When it faded, Sarah's eyes widened at what she saw out the window. The street was repaired there was no sign of the damage that had been there before. The injured got up, their bodies whole and undamaged. The wounds and the dead were gone, but it appeared even Hadrian had his limits.
The redhead waved his left arm, signaling them to go around him.
"Go," Sarah said to her sister.
"You actually think that things going to let us just drive around it?" Deborah asked turning to her sister.
"I guess we're just going to have to put our faith and Hadrian that he can distract the monster."
Turning to stare at the redhead one final time, Deborah put her car in drive, slowly pulling around the man her sister seemed to trust with their lives, and the orange monstrosity he was getting ready to face.
–XX –
Harry took a step forward swaying slightly. It was probably a bad idea using so much power before going into an unknown situation, but he had to help the people, he couldn't just leave them to die, he had to give them a little bit of protection, even if that protection was just a bit of glass.
He wiped the sweat from his brow, "Hey buddy, you okay."
The orange giant turned its blocky head towards him, its dark hair waving in the wind that swept the streets. Its trashcan lid sized hands clenched and unclenched, "I've got what you need, I won't go back," its voice a deep base that sent the water in his body quivering.
Harry raised his hands, slowly making his way forward, mentally wishing he had something besides his leather jacket for protection, while simultaneously wondering who the guy was talking to, "Okay, that's fine. You don't have to go back, but we need to get you out of the street before more people get hurt"
"I'm not going anywhere," he screamed, shaking the street and revealing white blocky teeth.
Pushing off the ground with his tree-trunk size legs, the giant leapt into the air, his fist cocked back ready to nail Harry into the ground.
"So much for ending this peacefully," placing his hands together, Harry spread them wide opening a glowing blue circular shaped portal before the monster. With a roar, the orange monstrosity disappeared.
Glancing around at the dead bodies littering the street, Harry turned back to the portal, "I'm sorry I couldn't save you." Leaning forward, he allowed himself to fall through the other side of the portal. With a hissing sizzle, it close shut behind him.
–XX–
Nicholas fury gripped the edges of a terminal and rose to his feet, sirens blaring in his ears and red light dancing over his dark skin. His single Brown eye swept over the stations where his subordinates sat at dead keyboards, the holographic screens that usually hovered above them gone, "Status report," he barked.
"The Orange Hulk escaped containment. He landed in one of the northern blocks of New York City." Maria Hill answered, her dark eyes staring down at a tablet that was miraculously still working.
Nicholas turned, watching Maria walk forward to stand beside him.
A grey leather body suit clung to her frame, accentuating her hips while showing just a bit of cleavage. White holsters containing two state-of-the-art rectangular guns balanced on each hip, along with a dagger sitting in a white sheath around her thigh.
Sharp fingernails brushed a strand of her short dark hair behind her ear.
"Shut off the alarms and bring me a visual on the Orange Hulk."
"Right away sir," Maria saluted, her 5'10" frame ramrod straight. Turning, she barked out orders, men and women in dark blue skintight suits ran around the deck of the massive flying ship, their weapons bouncing against their hips.
Before long, an image settled in the large window at the far end of the room showing the shattered remains of the city below.
Fury's gaze locked onto the dark blue SUV sitting untouched in the middle of the destruction. "Find out who that vehicle belongs too!" He barked, his eyes never leaving the screen.
Fury and Maria watched as a redheaded teen appeared in front of the car. A bright flash filled the screen, and when it faded the street was repaired, the injuries of the wounded were healed, but the dead remained laying on the ground their wounds gone. The redhead swayed on his feet.
"Well," Maria began, "it looks like we have a new player in town."
"Registry of the car, unknown sir," a technician called from the other end of the room.
Nicholas ran a hand over his bald head, "Like we needed another one of those. I want measurements and ID on the newcomer."
"Yes sir," the people scattered around the room shouted in unison.
Maria took a step forward, the pale skin of her forehead wrinkling as she watched the redhead approached the Orange Hulk, "He's either very brave, or very stupid."
Fury nodded at the screen as the redhead waved his left hand, "He's buying time for the people in the car to get around the monster."
A light flashed on Maria's tablet, "According to our scans, he is if you centimeters over six feet. Unfortunately, his face doesn't register in any database."
Everyone watched as the Hulk leapt into the air, its fist cocked back. Their eyes widened as he disappeared into a portal, soon followed by the redhead.
"Find them now."
"We're picking up concentrated high density ultraviolet rays near the bank of the Hudson River."
"What do you want to do sir?" Maria asked as the view on the screen shifted to show the Hulk landing a foot off the ground. The redhead emerged from the portal a few feet away.
"We'll watch and see how this plays out, but get ready to capture them both."
Saluting crisply, Maria spun on her heel and marched from the room, the high heels of her boots echoing with her exit.
–XX –
Harry stepped out of the portal, the sand giving beneath his shoes. He looked around him, the Hudson River lapped at its banks. Cars from the nearby bridge zoomed by the sound carried on a gust of musty air.
He was torn out of his reverie as the orange monstrosity rose to his feet, sand sticking to his skin.
"Listen buddy, I just want to…"
He was cut off as the musclebound male swung at him, "I won't go back," he roared, the sound sending ripples through the nearby water.
Harry leapt away, the wind from the Orange fist ruffling his clothes, "So much for talking this out."
Landing on the ground, he reached beneath the sand finding what he needed just as the creature charged. He thrust his hand forward, a wave of sand slamming into the brute, stalling him for a moment before he pushed through like it was nothing but a small wave in the ocean.
Cursing, he slammed his hands together, the ground beneath the Hulk's feet twisted, pulling him down.
Hulk roared, flailing around, only to sink deeper into the earth.
Panting lightly, Harry kept his hands together, eyes locked on the spinning earth.
How in the world was he supposed to take this thing down? He didn't have enough energy left after repairing the city to create a Psionic construct big enough to go toe to toe with it, he wasn't even sure that would work. Not to mention he would feel every blow as a sharp knife through his brain.
That only left him with one choice. Pulling on what he found beneath the sand vines burst up from the earth, sinking into his skin. Once the web of vines covered his entire body, sand began to crawl up him raising him an extra three feet into the air.
The sand hardened into a ten foot tall approximation of the human body. With his face replacing the approximations blank features, he felt more moss on the inside of his creation. Hopefully it would be able to cushion him from any blows this monstrosity landed.
Flexing his larger hands, he willed his body to move. This caused him to lose control of the spinning earth as it took a few halting steps forward.
The orange Hulk burst from the earth upper cutting him and sending him flying into the air.
He felt his brain bouncing inside his skull as he became airborne. With a force of will, his golem back flipped in midair, landing on the ground with its knees bent. World spinning, he forced his earth armor to take a boxers stance. Stretching out his senses he connected to the wind.
The world took a three dimensional view inside his mind, anything the air touched sending ripples out that gave him more detail.
The orange Hulk roared, stomping on the ground. A wave of sand rushed towards Harry, but he circled out of the way before sprinting forward. He launched a fist at his muscled opponent. The blow slammed into his chin sending him staggering back a step.
Capitalizing on this, he spun on his right foot, bringing his left around in a kick aimed towards Hulk's knee, just as a massive orange hand swatted his right side, sending him staggering to the left.
Harry blinked dark spots from his vision. Man this thing hit hard, even with his golem he wasn't able to produce enough force to really hurt the thing.
The ground trembled as the Hulk stomped towards him.
Turning to face him, Harry thrust his hands forward. They elongated splitting into four and grabbing a hold of a wrist and ankle before hoisting the giant into the air.
Looking up at the brute, a luminescent blue light filled his eyes as he was lowered to the ground, the mass of his earth armor being used to restrain his struggling foe.
The suspended musclebound monster struggled, his eyes locking onto the redhead. Slowly, he went slack, his eyes glowing a luminescent blue.
–XX –
Harry found himself in a land of destruction. Hot air scorched his skin as he rose to his feet, his hands sinking wrist deep into red mud. A shell of a city stood like a sketched outline against the pale red sky.
Shielding his eyes from the sun, he took in the dark orange orb, "Well I'm definitely not in Kansas anymore."
Pulling his foot free of the ground he took a step. Images rushed by him of a pale skinned man with a red diamond in the center of his forehead. Dark metal strips seem to make up some kind of formfitting armor.
Phantom pains flashed through his body as he stared into the man's eyes. There was a hunger there, not for food, or companionship, but for knowledge, an insatiable desire to know something.
He took another step more images rushed by, this time of a familiar red head. She was a little older, her green eyes a little colder, but it was definitely her, his aunt Jean.
He watched as a black seed entered her body, her green eyes changed to yellow her healthy pale skin became a metallic color and metal armor that was blue around the breast, hips, and stomach seemed to grow around her body.
He forced himself to take another step, this time putting up mental shields against the oncoming images, "This guy has to be from another world. The magical world may have been separated from the rest of the world, but I would've known of something like this happened. It's too big for someone not to have noticed."
Forcing his will, a white floor appeared beneath his feet, lifting him out of the dirt. With this change a hallway made of white walls grew up around him, gilded silver mirrors containing the images, or more likely memories lined either side of the passage before him.
Something's wrong, this guy should've had more of a defense against mental intrusion. I shouldn't be able to affect the world like this so easily. Stopping before a mirror with a green tinge to it, he placed his hands on the glass.
His body jerked as images conveying the history of this creature flashed through his mind.
The orange Hulk was created by the pale man, Mr. Sinister. As this information flowed through his mind, Mr. sinister came into view, his slick back dark hair reflecting the light of the tank. His muffled voice sounded from the other side of the glass.
"You my creation may actually get me out from underneath Apocalypse's thumb."
Harry's hands shook on the glass, the strain of the day catching up with him, but he needed more. Laying his hand flat against the glass, he pushed his will forward, sifting through later memories.
Hulk was fully grown within three years. Then Mr. Sinister sent him out against Apocalypse to carve out his own place in the world. He fought battle after battle, until one day a man in a golden helm appeared before him, blue outfit hugging his body, a golden cape billowing around him.
"Doctor Strange Fate," Harry murmured.
"You poor creature," The Doctor announced in his double layered voice.
Orange Hulk looked up; blood dripping from his large fist a growl reverberating in his throat. He took a step forward.
Strange fate raised his hands, "I mean you no harm."
Orange Hulk cocked his head to the side. He glanced around the muddied landscape, taking in the giant three eyed wolves that had been mutated by Apocalypse's energy. Shaking his head, he growled, taking another step forward.
Strange fate drifted forward, "You only know of fighting don't you, they never even taught you how to become your own person." Orange Hulk swung at him, but strange fate raised a hand, conjuring a golden outline around the creature that froze him in place.
"Don't worry my friend, I will help you." Reaching forward, he clamped his right hand on orange Hulk's head, his eyes shining like twin suns beneath his helm.
Golden energy exploded out from orange Hulk in waves, the shock of whatever was happening to him ejected Harry from his mind.
–XX –
Harry staggered backwards, his face pale, his eyes shifting from left to right as his brain sorted through the information. So, the orange Hulk was another one of Doctor strange fate's minions. It looks like he had been collecting useful talent from other worlds, but why? What was his end game, what was orange Hulk after?
A gunshot brought him out of his thoughts, Harry turned, just in time to see a thin metal projectile sliding between him and the Hulk.
It exploded releasing a blast of sound. Harry fell to his knees, hands clamped over his ears as darkness creeped in at the edges of his vision. As his vision shrank to pinpricks, a dark skinned bald man with an eyepatch dressed in dark clothes appeared in the distance.
Sweat poured down his face from the pain the sound was inducing, the very water and his body was vibrating.
He fell to the ground and darkness consumed him.
Nicholas Fury stepped down the bank, his Ebony dress shoes slipping in the river sand. He stared down at the redhead, taking in his high cheekbones and the dimple in his chin.
Maria sauntered up beside him, "What do you want us to do with him sir?"
Nicholas's gaze flicked over to the Orange Hulk before settling back on the redhead, "Take him up to headquarters, do a full workup and place him in one of the interrogation rooms."
Saluting stiffly, Maria turned barking out orders to other shield agents.