Gray.

It was just before sunrise when the army tracked them down. An edge of the sky was turning purple in the black, a thin line of yellow just below. 

Rick awoke to the sounds of engines. He jumped, and looked around - there were no new footsteps in the dirt outside the cave. The thing hadn’t left.

“Uh, Doc?” Rick said, knocking on the outside wall of the cave. “We might have to start thinking of that plan sometime soon.”

There was no response.

“...Bruce?”

The army convoy pulled up, and soldiers got out of the heavyweight vehicles. Each one had a machine gun, and they were all pointed at the cave. 

All except two, which were pointed at Rick. He put his hands up.

“Hey, woah, woah, easy! I’m just a kid!” 

The two soldiers didn’t move. The others began to slowly approach the cave.

“Take it easy, fellas,” Rick said to them. “We’re all friends here…”

The men still approached.

A car door slammed, and out stepped General Ross. Betty was behind him, talking non-stop. He spoke over her, addressing his words to Rick.

“Nice work, kid,” he said. “You keep it up there might be a place for you in the military.”

Rick raised an eyebrow. “Sorry, boss,” he said dryly, “I never got along with authority.”

“Well then,” Ross said, his moustache bristling, “count yourself lucky I don’t place you under arrest.”

Rick said nothing, but kept his hands up.

“-Dad, you can’t do this, you don’t know he’s not in there. It could still be Bruce, you’re talking like he’s a monster,” Betty kept saying behind the General.

Finally, he wheeled round and addressed her. “Elizabeth T. Ross, even if that thing hadn’t destroyed government property, we cannot allow it to get near civilians. It is dangerous, and needs to be neutralised, Banner or not.”

Betty held firm, and stared her father down. “This is just like you,” she said. “Always trying to cover up your mistakes.”

The General said nothing. Without breaking his daughter’s gaze, he spoke to the soldiers. 

“Gentlemen,” he said, ignoring the fact that there were female soldiers in the party, “take aim.”

The soldiers' guns clicked as the safety latches were switched off, and the guns were repositioned.

Betty’s eyes turned pleading. “Please, dad. You know this isn’t right.”

The General put a hand to his daughter’s face. “I’m sorry,” he said. “But I have to protect people. You don’t know what almost happened, last time.”

He sighed, and looked at the ground. “I have to,” he said again.

The soldiers waited for the order.

Before Ross could give it, a voice came from inside the cave.

“Ffffrriighhhnnn…” it said, like it wasn’t used to the weight of its own voicebox.

Everyone froze, even the General. The voice spoke again.

“Fff.. Fff… Frrriiiiiddd…”

“Oh my god,” Betty said, stepping out from behind her father. She walked closer to the cave. Her father reached to stop her, but she brushed him off.

The voice tried again.

“Frriiidddgge… www… wwwwooorkkkksss… ff… fffiiiine…” it said, as if every word required effort.

Betty put her hand to her mouth. The ground shook with giant footsteps, and a giant, grey-skinned man emerged from the shadows.

“Bruce…” Betty breathed out quietly.

“Oh my god!” cried one of the soldiers. “It’s like a… it’s some kinda Hul-kgh!”

He was interrupted by a giant, grey hand covering his face. The creature was holding him, its face looking bored.

“Bruce, put him down,” Betty said, shaking her head. The thing looked at her, and recognition crossed its face. It blinked, sadly, and did as she asked.

The soldier collapsed to the ground, catching his breath.

“Bet..ty…” the creature said, and took a step towards her.

The sun breached the horizon. Dawn had come, and light spilled over the desert, hiding away the shadow of the Earth.

The creature took a step toward Elizabeth Ross, but seemed to get further away.

With each step, his body got smaller. 

Bruce Banner stumbled forward, tripping over his own stretched clothes, and reached out to the love of his life.

She reached her arm out to catch him, and she would’ve been able to, if it wasn’t for the hail of gunfire that shunted his body to the side, and riddled it with bullets.