Dr Bruce Banner (docbrucebanner) wrote in thedisplaced, @ 2018-03-05 13:01:00 |
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Entry tags: | !log/thread, amadeus cho / hulk (616), bruce banner / hulk (mcu) |
Who: Amadeus Cho, Bruce Banner
When: During their trip to Middle Earth
Where: A field somewhere in Rohan
What: Amadeus has something he'd like to show Bruce
Warnings: Mild swearing, discussion of character death, grief,
Status: Complete in gdocs
It hadn't been hard to find a less populated area of Middle Earth. The landscape was vast and varied, filled with dense forests and rolling plains. A portal hop and a brisk walk was all it took for the pair to reach a relatively uninhabited landscape. There was a tower in the distance and a well traveled path along the crest of the hill but otherwise it was all grassy fields as far as the eye could see.
Amadeus wasn't really too worried about any witnesses. Middle Earth, it seemed, was used to tourism. Besides, this world had orcs and wargs and giant trolls. It was probably one of the few places–besides New York–were the Hulk wouldn't stand out terribly. Although Tolkien's trolls weren't exactly green, but that was a minor issue. Amadeus was more concerned about how Banner would react.
Bruce Banner and stress never did go well together.
Amadeus continued to make small talk as they walked. Banner had gotten the deets about alternate dimensions and other versions of people and places. Someone had even told him about the last Banner that had shown up in Texas. It was all a bit unbelievable but, to a scientist, also not impossible.
"Alternate earths are a trip, right?" Amadeus said. "My world apparently got a head start on the hero game compared to yours. You can't go to a major city without getting some type of superhero sighting."
Bruce had ‘gone native’ in a set of local clothes - loose trousers and a simple tunic. He could’ve purchased something fancier, but he was conditioned to select clothes which he might end up ripping apart at any given moment. That was why when he was back home, his wardrobe consisted of thrift store finds. Oh, but the view was amazing, and Bruce jokingly commented on how it reminded him of New Zealand. After the initial shock of his arrival, being here wasn’t so bad after all.
Discussing alternative universes was one thing - on a couple of occasions, Bruce and Tony discussed the probability of the multiverse theory, that was nothing. But being faced with the truth of alternative realities by being unexpectedly thrust in the middle of one, and talking to somebody who was actually from an alternative universe was a whole other topic. If Bruce hadn’t already found himself on another planet with Thor, and actually interacted with alien races, then he might’ve freaked out more. As it was, Bruce thought he was dealing with his new circumstances very well. A day of adjustment, and Bruce felt like he had a pretty good handle on things, and could now start to enjoy himself, and the company he kept.
“No kidding, but my place seems to be catching up,” Bruce said with a smirk. “You’ve got the advantage, with all those other people - X-Men, Fantastic Four. And it sounds like your technology is also more advanced. I wouldn’t mind taking a peek at that.” The only topic Bruce purposely avoided was talking about his alternate self - something about learning what he did in another universe didn’t sit well with him, and while he wanted to avoid it, he also knew he’d eventually need to know; it was inevitable.
"We can do that. I haven't recreated everything," Amadeus explained, "but a lot of the tech I was using back home was based on your stuff. Well, not your stuff. The version of Banner from my world."
Now that was a loaded topic but not one Amadeus really wanted to rush into. They'd have to discuss it eventually, if only because Amadeus was pretty sure he'd refer to Banner in the past tense at some point in time. Subtlety and hedging wasn't really his thing but there were better ways to break the news to someone than being all 'welcome back, glad some version of you isn't dead.'
The sharpness of it all had dulled a little after knowing the previous version of Banner who had been hanging in Tumbleweed. It was also reassuring to know that not all realities had to follow the same script. For example, this Banner's version of Sakaar seemed to have an unlikely detour through Asgard. And now they were walking the meadows of Middle Earth. Reality was weird.
Amadeus looked back at the tower then turned slightly, easily leading them both down one of the dips of in the field. "Two words, man: clothing teleporter."
Two years of having Hulk in the driver seat, Bruce was itching to do science again, and some of the technology Amadeus described sounded really cool and listened with rapt attention. If Tony were here, he’d react the same way, Bruce was sure of it. “Your Bruce, huh? Uhhhh...you two were friends?” He’d been wondering about what the other version of him was like, and curiosity won out over discretion. MIght Bruce hear something disturbing? Probably. But his inquisitive mind wouldn’t be satisfied until he knew.
“Do you mean clothes that act like a teleportation device when worn? Is that one of the projects you’re working on in this universe?”
"All of the above," Amadeus explained. "A stand alone teleporter, clothes that will teleport the user, and teleporting clothes." For all those moments when you just needed to Hulk out. "I'm not working on it on the ship but I've been recreating it back in Texas. It's based off Banner's tech."
Back home, Bruce Banner had been serious and grumpy when Amadeus had first met him. Over time, he'd gotten a bit less cranky but no one really had him beat in constant exasperation. In contrast…
"The Hulk saved my life before. I'm kind of a big fan."
“That would be handy,” Bruce said with a chuckle to lighten his mood, thinking about the times he’d found himself naked after he’d transformed back into the Hulk. “Tony’s clothes solution was to come up with a super stretchy material, which he had made into trousers. He also did a shirt, but the Other Guy didn’t like wearing it, so that part was scrapped. But teleportation in general? Man, that’s the best. Makes getting around a breeze. But how do you prevent people from teleporting into places you don’t want them to go?”
Bruce glanced over at Amadeus. “A fan huh?” Between Sokovia and South Africa, he figured that Hulk didn’t have many fans on Earth, though Sakaar was a different story.. “How’d he do it? Save your life, I mean?”
"He punched out a military warhead," Amadeus replied casually. He didn't feel like elaborating since it had somewhat been his fault. Extenuating circumstances, really. Even so, it was a pretty memorable first impression. In contrast, Amadeus's first talk with Banner had been… less awe inspiring. It really was easier to think about them as two different people. It usually unsettled Banner but, in Amadeus's opinion, he never really gave the big guy all the credit he was due. "We can get to the details later and, man, you seriously need to stop talking about Tony Stark's pants."
Between the comments on the network and now, there really was such a thing as too much information. And considering what Amadeus was about to show him, this Bruce probably would agree.
“I’m not talking about Tony’s pants!” Bruce playfully defended himself, feeling comfortable to do so in Amadeus’ company. “I’m talking about my pants, which Tony happened to make! Sheesh! Okay, fine. No more trouser talk, I promise.” When he heard what Hulk had done to save Amadeus, Bruce actually laughed, but it was a nervous, embarrassed sort of laugh. There seemed to be no limit to the Hulk’s strength. While Bruce had more control over him than ever before, and it seemed like that even the Hulk was even more agreeable while he was transformed, it always made Bruce apprehensive. He didn’t fully trust the Hulk, and doubted he ever would. “Good to know,” he tried to joke about the warhead, pretending to brush it off. “I’m fine without knowing the details. But I am curious why you brought us all the way out here. What were you going to show me?”
Time to pull off the proverbial band-aid.
Amadeus took a deep breath and backed up a few deliberate steps. "Okay, so, a while ago back home, the Hulk ended up absorbing the power from a nuclear facility going into meltdown but when he did that his gamma radiation went off the charts."
There was another pause as Amadeus tried to gauge Bruce's reaction. "Everyone was trying to figure out a solution and I had one. We couldn't contain all that gamma radiation but we could transfer it… and you've got to promise to stay cool about this…"
There was a slight pause, just to the count of five, and then Amadeus transformed. Without a working teleporter in Middle Earth, clothes ripped, leaving Amadeus two feet taller, in board shorts, and green. "It's cool. I promise."
“Nnnnnargh!” Bruce stumbled back and nearly lost his footing, eyes open wide. This was completely unexpected, being suddenly faced by another Hulk, and Bruce felt a familiar surge of adrenaline spike which usually triggered the gamma radiation in his blood. He was dangerously close to a transformation, and faced with such a massive threat, Bruce almost let the Other Guy loose. It was Amadeus’ confident and calming voice that told him it was cool that made him have second thoughts.
That didn’t stop Bruce from hyperventilating. Covering his face with his hands, he repeated, “Oh shit, oh shit, what the HELL?! Oh fuck, what… what… HOW?” Bruce lowered his hands to look at Amadeus-Hulk in a horrified manner, and the Other Guy inside him demanded to be released so he could fight. However, while physical strength was strength was Hulk’s department, when it came to willpower, there was no contest - Bruce was the stronger of the two, and managed to keep under control. But only just.
Amadeus had tensed for just a moment. The familiar flash of green had passed over Banner's eyes and that was a look he knew well. It wouldn't quite make sense to transform back if the O.G. Hulk was ready to get his smash on. Even so, Cho wasn't overly concerned. He'd been there, done that around angry Hulk plenty of times but Middle Earth didn't need another giant crater.
When he was certain Banner wasn't going anywhere, Amadeus transformed back leaving him topless, however, the garish board shorts had shrunk to fit him. He had the good grace to look a little sheepish about it all. "Okay, that could have gone better. Do you need a paper bag? No rush, man. Just breathe."
Bruce needed to lower himself onto the soft grass, and sitting here he wrapped his arms around himself, as if that was the only thing holding him together. Breath. Calm. Concentrate. He looked up and watched Amadeus effortless transform back, and only then did he snap in anger, “Don’t EVER pull a stunt like that again! Give a guy a warning! I don’t do surprises.” He then scrubbed his face with his hand.
After a few more moments, Bruce looked at Amadeus again, but this time instead of being angry, he was worried. “I transferred the extra gamma radiation to you and changed you into a Hulk?” His forehead creased out of distress. “I’m sorry.” It didn’t make sense to apologize for something he didn’t do - it was the other universe Bruce who was responsible - but even so, Bruce’s experience with being the Hulk was almost exclusively negative, and he wouldn’t want anybody else to suffer the way he did. But here Amadeus was, the poor bastard. “I’m so sorry.”
"No, that's..." Amadeus sucked in a breath then exhaled slowly. He'd already had this conversation before and it was right there swimming in the middle of the ocean separated by metal and glass with Bruce Banner with tears in his eyes saying 'Ah, kid… I'm not crying for me.' and then everything that had come after.
All of it.
"You didn't– The other Banner… he didn't." There was another pause. Too many emotions to unpack. Just too many actions and consequences with a few "what if's" thrown in as well. But none of it was because of what Banner had done. "It was my choice," Amadeus explained. "None of this is on you. Or him. And it worked. I cured him. Completely gamma free."
This time, Bruce was floored. “I was…. I mean, he was... cured?” Automatically, Bruce began wondering what sort of procedure did they use to make the transfer, and if it worked in their universe, could it help with his condition? It was on the tip of his tongue to ask, but first, he told Amadeus, “That was either very brave of you, or very stupid.” A pause. “You must be really close friends with your Bruce to have done that for him, to sacrifice yourself. Taking on all those gamma rays… it’s usually fatal.” Something else then occurred to him. “When you… when you were in Hulk mode just a minute ago… you spoke in your own voice. It wasn’t all Neanderthalic at all.”
"Hulk learn how to conjugate," Amadeus replied in the classic Hulk cadence then stopped. "It's still me, even when I'm the Hulk." By all rights, Banner was the outlier. Everyone had their quirks but most of them retained some semblance of themselves even when they were gamma powered up. "Same intelligence, maybe a little bit less inhibitions. Really. I swear. I'm good with this."
The only thing that was on Bruce’s mind was blurted out with one syllable: “How?” He wanted to know, “How did that happen?” The unspoken reason should’ve been obvious - could his Jekyll and Hyde natures be rectified? Maybe his body was permanently messed up, but having the same consciousness when transformed would make it a lot better to deal with.
"It was something I'd been working on for a while," Amadeus explained, then added, "the radiation still has go somewhere." He didn't want to rain on Banner's parade but he also didn't want to get the man's hopes up. "We can sit down and get our science on."
Bruce rapidly nodded while a host of questions rapidly ran through his head. “Yeah. Yeah, that would be good. Let’s do that.” As much as he thought Middle Earth was a fun place to explore, he found himself really wishing he was in a laboratory, so he could get some answers.