(A/N):
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<AUTHOR NOTE:->
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here…
….
Raja quietly looked away, giving Bruce and Betty a moment to themselves.
The two embraced each other tightly.
Although Bruce existed only as a translucent soul projection, inside this dimension physical interaction between soul and matter was possible.
Betty held him as though he were standing there in flesh and blood.
Neither of them wanted to let go.
Several minutes later…
Raja cleared his throat.
“Ahem.”
Bruce and Betty awkwardly separated.
“Sorry.”
Raja smiled seeing them who looked very embarrassed look on their face.
“No need.”
Then his expression became serious.
“There are a few things both of you need to understand.”
Bruce nodded hearing him.
“I’m listening.”
Even Hulk sat cross-legged on the black ground nearby.
“Hulk listen.”
Raja looked between Bruce and Hulk.
“The first thing we need to clear up…
is your relationship.”
Bruce frowned hearing it.
“Our relationship?”
Raja nodded.
“You keep thinking of Hulk as a disease.”
“A curse.
Something to suppress.”
Bruce lowered his head as he muttered in low voice.
“…Isn’t he?”
“HULK NOT CURSE!”
Hulk immediately protested.
“Hulk strong!”
Bruce sighed hearing it counter it with his argument.
“Hulk also destroys cities.”
“Hulk protect!”
The giant immediately argued back.
Raja raised one hand.
“Both of you.”
Silence returned.
Raja looked directly at Bruce.
“Hulk isn’t your illness.”
“He’s your child.”
Bruce blinked completely off guard by the response.
“…What?”
Raja calmly continued.
“If we put scientific terms aside…
Hulk was born from your own consciousness.”
“From your trauma.
From your emotions.
From your survival instinct.”
“In a sense…
You are his father.”
Bruce stood frozen as his brain stopped working.
Raja continued.
“Hulk is mentally still a child.”
“He doesn’t know how to regulate anger.
He doesn’t understand complicated emotions.”
“He only understands simple things.”
“Happy.
Sad.
Scared.
Protect.”
“Friend.
Enemy.”
“When a child cries…
does a good parent hate the child?”
Bruce remained silent.
“When a child throws a tantrum…
does the parent abandon them?”
“No.”
“They teach them.
They guide them.”
“They help them grow.”
Raja’s voice softened.
“But what happened instead?”
He looked toward Hulk.
“Every single time Hulk wakes up…
The first thing he sees…”
He pointed an imaginary rifle.
“…is soldiers aiming weapons at him.”
“People calling him…
‘Monster.’ ‘Freak.’ ‘Kill it.'”
“‘Shoot it.'”
He looked back at Bruce.
“And then…
The one person Hulk should have been able to rely on…”
“…also hated him.”
Bruce’s face stiffened.
“I…
I never…”
Raja gently interrupted him.
“You feared him.
You tried to erase him.”
“You wished he didn’t exist.”
“Hulk felt every bit of that.”
Bruce slowly turned toward Hulk.
The giant had lowered his head.
“Hulk…”
“…wake up…”
“Everyone hurt Hulk.”
He pointed toward Bruce.
“Banner…
hate Hulk.”
There wasn’t anger in Hulk’s voice.
Only sadness.
Bruce felt something tighten painfully inside his chest.
Seeing Bruce’s expression, Hulk suddenly crossed his arms with a smug grin.
“Hmph.”
“Hulk right.”
“Hulk tell.
Hulk complain.”
Raja couldn’t help smiling.
From his perspective…
It looked exactly like a little boy finally finding an adult willing to scold his father.
Almost as though Hulk had run to his grandparents complaining,
“Daddy is being mean to Hulk!”
And now Bruce was receiving the lecture.
Even Betty folded her arms.
She looked at Bruce with an expression that clearly said,
“You owe him an apology.”
Bruce rubbed his forehead.
“…This is somehow the strangest therapy session I’ve ever attended.”
“Hulk say…”
The giant proudly puffed out his chest.
“Banner bad.”
Betty failed to suppress a laugh.
“…He’s not entirely wrong.”
Bruce sighed dramatically.
“I can’t believe I’m being judged by my own alternate personality.”
“HULK NOT PERSONALITY!”
“Hulk Hulk!”
Raja nodded hearing him.
“And that’s exactly the point.”
He became serious again.
“Bruce.
Let’s imagine someone offered you a miracle.”
“They separate your soul and Hulk’s soul.”
“They give both of you completely independent bodies.”
Bruce slowly nodded with little excitement.
“I’d probably accept.”
“You shouldn’t.”
Bruce frowned hearing him.
“Why?”
“Because between the two of you…
the one who would eventually lose his mind…”
“…would be you.”
Silence.
“….”
“….”
“….”
Bruce blinked completely off guard.
“…Me?”
Raja nodded his head with a serious expression.
“Hulk is mentally a child.”
“Children grow.
They mature.
They heal.
They learn.”
He looked toward Bruce.
“But your trauma…
is already deeply rooted.”
“If the emotional burden that Hulk currently carries disappears overnight…
You’ll be left alone with every scar you’ve spent years avoiding.”
Bruce quietly thought about it.
It was uncomfortable.
Because…
He knew Raja wasn’t entirely wrong.
“So…”
Raja spread his arms.
“I have another proposal.”
Both Bruce and Betty looked at him.
“You can stay here.
In my dimension.”
“As my residents.”
The crimson sky stretched endlessly around them.
“It looks empty now.
But this place can change.”
“It can grow.
It can become a home.”
He looked at Hulk.
“Hulk stays here whenever Bruce wants to live outside.”
Then toward Bruce.
“When Hulk wants to go outside…”
“You stay here.”
“No more imprisoning each other.”
“No more endless running.”
“No more military chasing both of you every single day.”
Bruce looked around the barren landscape.
He had spent years running.
Years hiding.
Years fearing sleep.
Now…
For the first time…
Someone had offered him a home.
He smiled faintly.
“…I don’t exactly have many better options.”
“I accept.”
Inside Raja’s mind…
Zarathos suddenly spoke.
“Then mark him.”
Raja raised an eyebrow hearing the response.
‘Mark him?’
“My Seal.
Once branded…
Neither demons nor infernal entities may directly bargain for his soul.”
“He will lose the ability to unknowingly enter demonic contracts.”
“Any infernal being wishing to reach him must first go through you.”
Raja nodded slightly hearing the explanation. Follow the newest chapters on g.com.
‘That’s…
actually useful.’
He stepped toward Bruce.
“One more thing.”
Bruce looked up hearing him.
Raja extended his hand.
“Deal?”
Bruce smiled looking at the extended hand.
“Deal.”
The moment their hands clasped…
A faint warmth spread across the back of Bruce’s right hand.
Golden-orange light gathered beneath his skin before expanding into an intricate sigil.
The mark resembled a spectral beast emerging from swirling spiritual flames.
A fierce, black, wolf-like face with sharp ivory fangs formed the center, surrounded by curling streams of blue-white ethereal fire that flowed around it like living energy.
The design looked less like ink and more like a guardian spirit sleeping beneath the skin, its luminous edges pulsing once before settling into a subtle, glowing tattoo across the back of Bruce’s hand.
Bruce stared at it.
“…That’s …actually pretty cool.”
“It doesn’t hurt either.”
Raja smiled looking at Bruce who was examining the seal.
“It isn’t meant to.”
Then he turned toward Betty.
“And you?”
She looked toward Bruce.
Then toward Hulk.
“….”
Finally back at Raja.
“You don’t have to.”
Raja shrugged his shoulders.
“But…”
“I think someone with a PhD in cellular biology would be invaluable.”
He gestured around the empty dimension.
“It may look like barren land now.
But I plan to turn this place into something worth living in.”
“A world.
Not a prison.”
Betty smiled hearing him.
“I was hoping you’d ask.”
She extended her hand.
“I accept.”
Raja shook it.
A similar warm glow briefly appeared on the back of her hand before fading beneath the skin, leaving behind the same protective seal.
“So…”
Betty said, looking around the endless black plains beneath the crimson sky.
“When do we start building?”
Raja grinned at her.
“As soon as I bring back the supplies.”
Bruce chuckled little bit excited to start his new life.
“For the first time in a very long while…
that actually sounds exciting.”
Like them Raja gave Hulk one too.
Hulk looked down at the glowing seal that had appeared on the back of his massive green hand.
Unlike Bruce’s, the mark had expanded to fit Hulk’s enormous physique without losing any of its intricate details.
The glowing spiritual beast within the seal slowly faded beneath his skin.
“Hulk…”
The giant tilted his head curiously.
“…Got tattoo.”
Raja couldn’t help smiling.
“It’s more than a tattoo.”
“As long as you bear that seal, demons can’t casually approach you or tempt you with contracts.”
“If anyone wants your soul…
They’ll have to come through me first.”
Hulk grinned proudly.
“Hulk like.”
Bruce chuckled looking at the Hulk reaction.
“I never thought I’d hear someone get excited over supernatural insurance.”
“Hulk smarter.”
“Hulk get cool tattoo.”
Bruce simply sighed.
“I walked into that one.”
Raja laughed before stepping a few meters away from them.
He closed his eyes.
Orange-red hellfire erupted around his body once again.
Within seconds…
The sixteen-year-old teenager disappeared.
Standing there once more was the Ghost Rider.
The infernal chain materialized into his right hand.
Its burning links rattled softly.
Zarathos’ voice echoed within his mind.
“You are beginning to understand.”
The Ghost Rider answered while spinning the chain.
“I’m still learning.”
“Good.”
The chain accelerated.
Faster.
Faster.
Until every link became a blazing circle of fire.
The Ghost Rider focused on a single destination.
‘Near my apartment.
The alley behind the building.’
The chain sliced across empty space.
CRAAAAACK!
Reality split apart.
A burning circular portal slowly unfolded before them.
Through the gateway…
Bruce could clearly see a narrow alley in New York.
Garbage bins.
Fire escapes.
Brick buildings.
Exactly the place Raja had imagined.
Bruce looked genuinely impressed.
“So your portals aren’t random.”
The Ghost Rider nodded.
“I simply picture where I want to go.”
“The dimension connects the two spaces.”
Betty looked through the portal.
“…That’s incredibly useful.”
The Ghost Rider gave a slight shrug.
“I’ve barely scratched the surface of what this place can do.”
The infernal flames surrounding him gradually receded.
The burning skull became flesh.
Muscle.
Skin.
Hair.
Within moments…
The Ghost Rider disappeared.
Raja stood in his place once again.
Nearby…
The infernal Camaro also began changing.
The black armor dissolved.
The hellfire vanished.
The demonic headlights returned to normal.
Within seconds…
The vehicle once again became an ordinary yellow Chevrolet Camaro.
Pristine.
Polished.
As though the missile had never struck it.
Not a single scratch remained.
Bruce walked around the car in disbelief as he still has the memory when he was Hulk.
“There is no sign of any damage.”
Raja smiled even he was little surprised.
“So did I.”
He opened the driver’s door before looking back at the three of them.
“I’ll return soon.”
“If either of you needs anything…”
He pointed toward the empty landscape.
“Just make yourselves at home.”
Bruce nodded his head.
“We’ll probably start by figuring out where ‘home’ should actually be.”
Betty laughed looking at Bruce excited look.
“I suppose someone has to design the first house.”
“Hulk build!”
The giant proudly raised one hand.
Bruce looked at him.
“…Maybe we let you carry the building materials instead.”
“Hulk…”
He thought for a moment.
“…Okay.”
Raja climbed into the Camaro.
The engine started with its familiar rumble.
Unlike its infernal counterpart…
It now sounded like nothing more than a perfectly maintained sports car.
He shifted into gear.
The Camaro rolled through the portal.
As soon as all four tires touched the alley behind his apartment…
The dimensional gateway quietly folded shut behind him.
The alley once again appeared completely ordinary.
No evidence remained.
Raja calmly drove out onto the main street.
Traffic had already begun returning to normal after the Harlem evacuation.
Keeping within the speed limit, he blended naturally among the civilian vehicles before heading toward his apartment complex.
Meanwhile…
Stark Tower…
Tony remained inside his office with Pepper, Jagadish, and Grace.
The couples had been anxiously waiting.
Suddenly…
JARVIS spoke.
“Sir.”
Tony looked up hearing him.
“You found him?”
“Affirmative.”
A nearby holographic display activated.
Security camera footage appeared.
The video showed a quiet alley several blocks from Raja’s apartment.
Nothing happened for several seconds.
Then…
Without anyone entering the alley…
Raja’s yellow Chevrolet Camaro simply drove out from between the buildings.
Pepper blinked looking at it.
“…Where did that come from?”
JARVIS answered immediately.
“Analysis indicates the vehicle did not enter the alley from either recorded entrance.”
“It simply…
appeared.”
The footage continued.
Raja calmly drove away before arriving at his apartment building a few minutes later.
He parked in his usual space.
Locked the car.
Then casually entered the building carrying his school backpack.
As though nothing extraordinary had happened that day.
Grace’s trembling hands slowly covered her mouth.
“…He’s alive…”
Jagadish closed his eyes.
The unbearable weight crushing his chest finally lifted.
He let out a long breath he hadn’t realized he had been holding.
“…Thank God.”
Grace wiped away fresh tears.
This time…
They weren’t tears of grief.
They were tears of overwhelming relief.
Tony leaned back in his chair.
“…Well.”
“I’ve seen my fair chance of surprise.”
He looked at the frozen image of Raja walking into his apartment building.
“But a teenager whose car explodes…
turns into a flaming skeleton…”
“…disappears into another dimension…”
“…and still makes it home before dinner?”
He shook his head with a small smile.
“That’s definitely a first.”
Pepper folded her arms.
“So…
What now?”
Tony’s expression became thoughtful.
He looked once more at Jagadish and Grace.
He turned toward JARVIS.
“Flag every camera that catches Raja.”
“But don’t interfere unless someone starts connecting the dots.”
“I want the kid to have the chance to decide for himself when the world learns who he really is.”
“Understood, sir.”
Jagadish stood and bowed his head slightly.
“…Thank you, Tony.”
Tony simply waved it off.
“No.”
Looking through the window toward the New York skyline, he smiled faintly.
“Today…
your son saved a city.
The least I can do is help him keep one secret.
As he took out one worry out of my head.”
The following few days passed far more peacefully than Raja had expected.
No monsters.
No alien invasions.
No military missiles deciding his car looked particularly offensive.
For the first time since arriving in the Marvel Universe…
Life almost felt…
normal.
Almost.
Inside the Ramanathan apartment…
Breakfast had become strangely awkward.
Grace smiled at him.
Too much.
“Raj, have some more pancakes.”
“I already have three.”
“Take another.
Mom, I physically can’t.”
Jagadish looked up from his newspaper.
“So…
how was your day yesterday?”
“It was fine.”
“What did you do after school?”
“Homework.”
“…Only homework?”
Raja raised an eyebrow.
“…Yes?”
“Oh…”
Jagadish awkwardly returned to reading the newspaper.
Thirty seconds later…
“So…
did anything…
unusual happen?”
Raja slowly looked at him.
“…Dad.”
“Hm?”
“Are you interrogating me?”
Jagadish nearly choked on his coffee.
“N-No.
I’m just…
being a father.”
Across the table, Grace quickly nodded.
“Exactly.
We’re just worried about your school days.”
Raja looked between the two of them.
‘They know something…’
He couldn’t prove it.
But ever since Harlem…
Both of his parents had been acting…
Different.
They weren’t asking direct questions.
They weren’t suspicious enough to expose themselves.
Yet every time Raja left the apartment…
They somehow knew exactly when he’d be back.
Grace checked on him far more often.
Jagadish casually asked questions that were anything but casual.
They tried acting normal.
Unfortunately…
They weren’t very good actors.
‘Did someone tell them…?
No…
Impossible.
Unless…’
He immediately discarded the thought.
Tony Stark had no reason to expose him somehow finding his identity.
‘Then why…?
They haven’t asked any thing yet…’
Unable to find an answer, Raja simply decided to stay cautious.
If his parents had become unusually gentle…
Someone else had become unusually loud.
Namely…
His grandfather.
The old military veteran had somehow reached a completely different conclusion regarding Harlem.
Which resulted in…
“Jagadish!”
The old man’s booming voice echoed through the apartment.
“When was the last time you actually spent time with your son?”
Jagadish blinked looking at his father who was angry.
“…Dad?”
“Don’t ‘Dad’ me!”
The old man pointed accusingingly.
“The boy hugged me at the airport!”
“…Yes?”
“He never does that!”
“…”
“…That’s because I wanted to hug you?”
Raja tried explaining.
His grandfather ignored him completely.
“He looked lonely!”
Grace quietly covered her smile with her hand.
Jagadish rubbed his forehead.
“Dad…
I’m literally home every evening.”
“And where are you mentally?”
Jagadish opened his mouth.
Then closed it again.
“…Working.”
“Exactly!”
The old man crossed his arms triumphantly.
“I knew it!
You spend too much time with Stark Industries.”
“Less engineering.
More family.”
Raja sighed looking at the scolding unfolding before him.
‘Grandpa…
You’ve completely misunderstood the situation.’
His grandmother simply giggled while serving everyone more idlis.
“I told you this would happen.”
The old man nodded proudly.
“Hmph.”
“I’m only correcting my son’s priorities.”
Jagadish looked helplessly toward Raja.
“….”
Raja merely shrugged.
‘Sorry, Dad.
You’re on your own.’
Days passed.
News channels continued discussing the mysterious Ghost Rider.
Conspiracy theories flooded the internet.
Some claimed he was a demon.
Others insisted he was an experimental super soldier.
One particularly enthusiastic podcast claimed Ghost Rider was secretly Elvis Presley.
Raja wisely chose not to read the comments anymore.
Finally…
Saturday arrived.
No school.
No homework.
Just one small event.
Peter Parker’s birthday.
Raja checked the clock.
“If I leave now…
I’ll get there before everyone else.”
Truthfully…
He also wanted to escape the apartment for a few hours.
His parents’ increasingly watchful eyes were beginning to make him nervous.
‘At this rate…
Mom’s going to ask if I secretly became a superhero.’
‘Actually…
please don’t.’
He quickly showered before changing into a simple outfit.
A fitted white T-shirt.
A black leather jacket.
Black jeans.
Comfortable sneakers.
Nothing flashy.
Just enough to look presentable without attracting attention.
Standing before the mirror, he adjusted the jacket collar.
“Good enough.”
As he grabbed his wallet, keys, and phone, his grandmother called from the kitchen.
“Raj!
Leaving already?”
“Yeah.”
“My classmate invited me to his birthday.”
She smiled warmly.
“Have fun.
And don’t forget to eat.”
“I won’t.”
His grandfather looked up from the television.
“What kind of boy hosts a birthday party in the afternoon?”
“The normal kind, Grandpa.”
“Hmph.”
His grandma came in support for her grandson.
“When I was sixteen…
You were in military school.”
“I know.”
“And?
That explains everything.”
His grandmother burst into laughter.
Even the old veteran couldn’t suppress a smile.
Just as Raja reached the front door…
Grace appeared from the hallway.
“You’re leaving?”
“Yeah mom.
Peter’s birthday.”
For a brief moment…
She hesitated for a second.
Almost as though she wanted to ask something.
Instead…
She simply smiled.
“Be careful.”
Raja nodded his head.
“I will.”
Jagadish also looked up from the living room.
“Drive safely.
Always.”
Raja noticed it again.
That look.
The one both of them had been giving him ever since Harlem.
A mixture of relief…
Pride…
And worry.
‘Seriously…
What’s gotten into them?’
Unable to solve the mystery, Raja slipped on his shoes and stepped outside.
A few moments later…
The familiar yellow Chevrolet Camaro rolled out of the apartment parking lot.
Its engine purred smoothly.
Completely hiding the fact that it had once transformed into an infernal machine capable of driving through dimensions.
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