Synopsis
The Incredible Hulk Annual #13 synopsis by
John Hoffman
Rating:
After being defeated by a giant hervibore saurian in a hostile planet, the Hulk returns to the Crossroads and chooses another planet where he could find food. Unfortunately all that he eats is poisonous to him until the spinal cord of an animal the Hulk just killed attaches to his back. The parasite called Sym allows its new host, the Hulk to eat the food without problems.
Sym and the Hulk become linked telepathically and eventually friends. Sym taps into the deepest areas of the Hulk's mind, and enables him to speak. They enjoy each others friendship and travel all over the planet.
There are other creatures like Sym who live on the planet and they tell them that they cannot stay together since there is no future with the Hulk. Sym and the Hulk flee towards the planet's highest mountain, a place where Sym had always wanted to go and see the stars, which are always covered by clouds. Just before the summit, they stop to rest.
When the Hulk awakens and sees the stars, he realizes that Sym is no longer attached to him. The Hulk finds it nearby very ill. Sym tells the Hulk that he detached from him because the Hulk could not survive the trip back down the mountain with the little energy Sym had left in the Hulk. Sym thanks the Hulk for helping him be the first of his species to ever see the stars; Sym dies soon after.
The Hulk cries for his friend's demise, and returns to the Crossroads sad and alone. The Puffball Collectible senses Jade Giant's pain and creates a bed for him to rest. They want to be his friend too.