Holocaust in the Heartland!

The peaceful town of Faulkner has been rocked by an attack by the Hulk. However, unlike past rampages, this one seems unprovoked and this time the Hulk doesn't seem to care who gets hurt in the process. He smashes a farm and derails a passing train. He then lands in the middle of the town, where he went on a rampage the night before and begins throwing construction equipment at the police cars that are on the scene, sending everyone scattering for cover. With a massive grin on his face, the Hulk leaps out to the nearby highway. There he happens upon a fuel truck and grabs it. As the driver bails out, the Hulk tosses it at the home owned by Sheriff Jonas Tolliver, the man who graciously gave lodging to his alter-ego, Bruce Banner, who has been laying low in town since his rampage and helping with the relief effort.

Spotting the truck driver, the Hulk chases after the man who tries to find refuge in a drainage pipe. The Hulk rips the pipe out of the ground and begins whipping it around. But he loses interest when the fuel truck explodes and drops the pipe and leaps away, much to the relief of the man trapped inside. The Hulk lands just as Emma Tolliver tries to get the horses out of the family farm and finds herself surrounded by burning fuel.

Seeing the Hulk arrive, her father rushes to his daughter's rescue. Snatching her up, the Sheriff begins to flee from the Hulk as he draws his gun. Getting a distance away from the Hulk, Sheriff Tolliver contemplates shooting his daughter in the head to spare her a painful death at the hands of the Hulk. He decides against it and points the gun at the Hulk, even though he knows it will have no effect on the gamma-spawned monster. The Hulk sees this and merely laughs. The Hulk then raises his fist to smash the two puny humans but can't bring his arm down. The Hulk struggles with himself, as though something inside him is trying to stop him from committing this unspeakable act.

The struggle ultimately ends with the Hulk becoming so exhausted that he reverts back to Bruce Banner. Because he changes back to human form in front of the Tolliver's Bruce has blown his cover of "Bruce Roberts", and as he struggles to his feet, Jonas Tolliver approaches Banner with gun drawn.

Recurring Characters

Hulk, Jonas Tolliver, Emma Tolliver

Continuity Notes

• The first half of this story runs concurrently with the last half of last issue.

• The Hulk's rampage is thanks to the machinations of Tyrannus as revealed next issue.