Incredible Hulk, The (1968 series) #312

Alone in the Crossroads, Bruce Banner enters a deep meditation, his mind unraveling the painful tapestry of his life.

He recalls his birth and the descent of his father, Brian Banner, into jealousy and madness. The trauma of childhood shadows him—marked by fear, isolation, and the murder of his mother, Rebecca, at Brian’s hands. The lonely years that followed shaped a brilliant but haunted scientist.

From this fractured psyche emerged the Triad—Goblin, Guardian, and Glow—manifestations of Bruce’s inner turmoil and resilience. He remembers meeting Betty Ross, whose compassion pierced his isolation, and her father, General Thunderbolt Ross, whose obsession with control mirrored Bruce’s own inner war.

Then came the bomb. The moment that split his life in two. The birth of the Hulk.

Now, in the silence of the Crossroads, Bruce reflects on all he’s endured. Unbeknownst to him, he is being watched—by the Beyonder, a cosmic entity whose gaze pierces time and soul.

Suddenly, an energy string appears in the dimension, seeking a living host. Moved by Bruce’s suffering, the Beyonder subtly redirects the string toward him, then vanishes.

The moment is quiet, but its implications are vast. Bruce Banner, shaped by trauma and transformation, is about to be touched by something beyond comprehension.