To say that Brian's initial statement was enough to boil over Hellboy's temper would be putting it lightly, but at the same time, it kindles a bit of hope that he didn't consciously realize he was harboring. It's not like Hellboy hasn't seen how life and what lies beyond isn't always so cut and dried. He himself had come back from the dead once. The conflict between blinding rage and uncertain hope leaves him simply stunned, slack-jawed and incredulous while the rest of Brian's explanation rattles around in his head hollowly. I am him. Re-incarnated, if you want.

In the moment of silence that follows, Hellboy's temper is sufficiently cooled that his reply, rather than coming from his fists, is instead a rather incredulous, "No way." With the tension broken, he lets out a gruff chuckle, that skepticism mixed with the hopeful and why not and the curiosity that makes him an investigator and not just a monster-killing thug. "Prove it."

It's a challenge, but it's also a chance.