"Are you even hearing yourself right now? This is why we believe you're fully competent for this initiative. Whatever you've gone through has been training you for these moments. You don't ever stop fighting, there's always another threat. A threat...
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The streets of Sakaar are not ones of peace and quiet. You wouldn't expect to be able to settle next to a glistening water fountain and read some poetry with a glass of white under a graciously clear sky. Despite its general ambiance being boisterous and grubby, it doesn't prepare you for the vibrant swarms full of excitable energy and enthusiasm. The people of Sakaar were loyal to their leader as within minutes, the streets were ridden with costumes and music all in celebration of the Hulk.
This didn't help Bruce's anxious mood in the slightest, Thor and I were nervous that at any moment he could burst into Hulk and punch the both of us into the prisons to the will of the Grandmaster.
"The sun's going down. The sun's going down. The sun's going down," Thor repeated as I rubbed Bruce's arm vigorously as we walked through the crowded streets full of green.
We led Bruce to a small corner pained red, much like the majority of this planet and sat him down on the ledge. Thor took over rubbing his shoulders as I glanced around to check if any of the Grandmaster's guards were nearby. Satisfied that we were pretty safe, I crouched down in front of them both.
"It's getting real low," Thor continued relentlessly.
"Oh, shoot," Bruce exclaimed putting his face in his hands and rocking backwards and forwards slightly.
I touched his knee and patted it in a comforting manner as Thor continued chanting those words.
"Would you stop saying that?" Bruce hissed, rubbing his hands.
"We just need you to stay calm."
"Calm? I'm on an alien planet!"
"It's just a planet. You've been on a planet before," Thor said causing me to deadpan at his stupidity.
"Yeah, one," stressed Bruce.
"It's okay, Bruce. You're not alone, we're with you. We'll get you out of this. We just need you to keep calm," I ushered, keeping my hand on his knee as I glanced at our surroundings.
"My neurons," Bruce complained, running his hands on his head. "They're firing faster than my brain can handle the information. The whole thing is totally different this time. In the past," Bruce started, expressing his words with his hands but I only cringed as a swarm of people paraded past us. "I always felt like Hulk and I each had a hand on the wheel. But this time, it's like he had the keys to the car and I was locked in the trunk."
"Well now you've got those keys back from Hulk and you're sitting in that driver's seat. That's all that matters," I said quickly, looking back at him.
"No, that's not what matters," he argued causing me to widen my eyes at his change of tone. "What I'm trying to tell you, is that if I turn into the Hulk again...Banner may never come back. And we're stranded on a planet that is designed to stress me out."
