Hulk (Vol. 2) #17 — Nick Peron

Mar 16

Mar 16 Hulk (Vol. 2) #17

The Man in The Mirror

The Red Hulk had formed Code Red to try and determine if Domino of X-Force discovered his secret identity. Blinded, the Red Hulk was lured into the New York subway system by the mysterious new Red She-Hulk. Unfortunately, this was a trap, as by the time the Red Hulk's vision had healed, he was attacked by the team he gathered, thanks to a double-cross by his ally Doc Samson. With a sai stabbed into his neck, the Red Hulk points out to Deadpool, Thundra and the Punisher that Samson is a psychologist who could easily get into their heads and tell them exactly what they wanted to hear to make them turn on him. Samson explains how he has already delivered on his promises to Deadpool and Punisher, they will get the passwords when the Red Hulk is dead. However, Samson did not account for the fact that Thundra was still loyal to the Red Hulk. She then attacks Samson, while the Hulk convinces the Punisher and Deadpool to side with him again. When Red She-Hulk tries to stop him, he slams into her.

In the ensuing confusion, a subway train passes by allowing the Red Hulk time to pull the sai out of his neck and escape. Samson, still fighting with Thundra, tells the Red She-Hulk to go after her male counterpart. The Red Hulk had forced his way aboard the passing subway train. As he is trying to calm everyone done, the Red She-Hulk catches up and pulls him up through the ceiling. As she battles it out with him, she points out that he deviated from his plans, becoming too focused on getting revenge against the green Hulk instead of the mission. The Red Hulk gains the advantage and grabs the woman by the hair and pulls her up to the surface. From there, he scales his way up to the top of the Empire State Building. He demands that the Red She-Hulk give him answers or he will drop her to her death. He once more demands to know who she is and how she was created. The Red She-Hulk refuses to talk, but when the Red Hulk tries to throw her off the building, he finds he cannot do it as it is something the old Hulk would have done. He puts her down and she responds by kicking him off the Empire State Building instead. The force of the Red Hulk's impact on the street is enough to shake the Thing out of his bed in the Baxter Building.

The Red Hulk is found by Elektra who tells him that her and Domino's battle with the Red She-Hulk was messy, hence why their foe had their weapons and was wearing the tatters of Domino's costume. She then informs the Hulk that she managed to find where Domino is. They go to a nearby penthouse where Domino and her teammates in X-Force have the mercenary known as Silver Sable as their prisoner. As it turns out, Silver Sable was hired by Samson to deliver a message to Domino about AIM that would get her in a position to potentially see the Red Hulk's true identity and instigate the ensuing battle between X-Force and Code Red. With the truth of what Domino saw being used as a gambling card, Red Hulk warns them that he has seen government plans to eliminate mutants and if they knew that Wolverine -- a member of the Avengers -- as part of a mutant wetworks team, they will assuredly initiate the program.

Agreeing that they are at a stalemate, the Red Hulk tells Wolverine and Domino to send their teammates away as he has noticed them in their various hiding spots. Once they are gone, the Red Hulk asks for them to turn Silver Sable over to him. They agree and soon X-Force departs. The Red Hulk then demands that Sable give him the money that Samson paid him. While she is going to retrieve it, Elektra points out that everyone selected for Code Red was the type to reveal the Red Hulk's identity in the event that Domino said who he really was and that these individuals were selected on purpose. She then warns him that if his employers have decided he is expendable, he is in great trouble. With allies in short supply, she suggests that the Red Hulk make good on the promises he made to the other members of his team. Soon, the Red Hulk equips the Crimson Dynamo with Stark tech, he pays Deadpool and gives the Punisher the location of an abandoned SHIELD armory. Later he meets Thundra and informs her that the situation has been contained for now. When she asks him if he is ready for what is to come next, he tells her that they will never know what hit them.

Recurring Characters

Red Hulk, Code Red (Thundra, Punisher, Deadpool, Elektra, Crimson Dynamo), X-Force (Wolverine, Domino, Archangel, Warpath, Elixir, X-23), Red She-Hulk, Doc Samson, Thing, Silver Sable