The Invincible Spider-Man
Chapter 14: Lab Explosion
May and Peter reached home, after returning from the hospital.
"You sure you're okay?" Asked Peter.
"Don't worry Peter, other than occasional headaches, I'm fine." Replied May.
Both of them entered the house, as they sat on the old couch. May seemed stressed.
"What's wrong, Aunt May?"
"Oh, it's just everything that has happened these past two weeks. After that terrorist attack. Thank God for Spider-Man, if it weren't for him then I…probably wouldn't be here." Sighed May.
"Well, you are here right now. And something tells me you need to relax. How about some tv?" Suggested Peter, as he handed her the remote.
May started to browse past channels, but all of a sudden, her hand started to tremble, as her finger twitched and she dropped the remote.
"Oh dear!" Exclaimed May. "I'm so clumsy." She chuckled.
"It'll get better. Anyways, I'd better get to The Bugle, and then I've got a date with Gwen. Bye Aunt May!" Said Peter, as he walked out of the door.
Peter entered the office, and walked up to Jameson's assistant: Betty Brant.
"Hey Betty!" Peter said.
"Hey Pete! You're back." Greeted Betty.
"Yeah, I had to take a break to take care of my aunt. So, where's James-"
Before Peter could even finish his sentence, he heard shouting from inside Jonah's office.
"WHAT ARE THESE SUPPOSED TO BE, HAPPY BIRTHDAY ARTICLES?! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO THE GROUND!" Shouted Jameson, as he drove a man out of the office. The man was tall and blonde, short hair, wearing an orange shirt over his coat.
"Jameson's not in the mood today. Hell, he's never in the mood." Chuckled the man.
"Oh, Ned! Meet Peter Parker. Peter, this is Ned Leeds, one of the best journalists we have." Said Betty, as she blushed.
"Hey Parker! Great to see you." Said Ned.
"Hold on, you're Ned Leeds? The kid who was expelled from Midtown High for doing drugs?" Asked Peter.
"Yeahhhh…those days are behind me, though. I'm 6 years drugs-free!" Chuckled Ned.
"That's cool! Anyways, I'm gonna go see Jameson. Can you tell me how these photos are?" Asked Peter, handing Spider-Man photos to Ned, so he could take a look.
"These are really well taken! Nice Job, Peter." Said Ned.
"Crap, crap, crap. Oh, wait! No, crap." Said Jameson, as he looked at the Spider-Man photos.
Jameson sighed. "I'll give you 300 for these."
"500, please Mr Jameson." Asked Peter.
"You crazy?"
"400?"
"Done." Said Jameson, as he gave Peter 400 dollars.
Norman walked back to his apartment, except something felt a little…odd. He could tell that the sofa had miniscule specks of dust on them, and the green colour seemed to pop out more. When he touched the cold marble floor, chills ran up his fingers, and somehow, he heard Harry close his bedroom door and walk out, before his eyes could perceive him.
"Dad, you're here." Said Harry. For some reason, Harry's voice stung Norman's ears, as if they were on a very high frequency.
"Harry. Yes, I'm here." Said Norman, as he walked to the couch.
"Harry, get me a glass of water, please?" Asked Norman. Harry was surprised, Norman rarely ever said "please."
Harry offered him the glass of water. Norman drank the cold water, and was able to feel the cold liquid surging down his oesophagus, feeling like it was freezing it. He felt relieved however, as he lay down on the couch, and drifted off to sleep.
Peter quickly reached the café, where Gwen was eagerly waiting for him.
"Hey, I'm so sorry I'm late!" Said Peter, smiling as he took a seat.
"Oh, that's fine, at least you're here!" Chuckled Gwen, who had already ordered two chocolate smoothies.
"So, what's up?" Asked Gwen.
"Too much, honestly. Aunt May, seems to be doing well, but I'm not sure. Plus, Jameson gives quite a lousy pay." Lamented Peter.
Gwen held his hand across the table. "I'm here for you if you need anything. We all are. Even Flash." Reassured Gwen.
"Flash, seriously?" Chuckled Peter.
"Well, he seems to have changed. God knows why." Laughed Gwen.
Peter smiled. "So, how are things going for you? I know we haven't really talked much for the last two weeks." Said Peter.
"Ah, nothing much. Since school was out, I've been reading quite a bit."
"Oh really? Opening the occasional science textbook?" Chuckled Peter.
Gwen laughed. "Yeah. But also other books too. What about you? What have you been doing?"
Peter couldn't tell her that he was Spider-Man, so he quickly came up with an excuse.
"I've been…studying. Burying my head in my books." Joked Peter.
"Of course you are." Laughed Gwen.
Gwen tucked her hair behind her ears. "So, you wanna, go for a walk or something? Central Park is nearby." Said Gwen.
Before Peter could answer, he got a call from Dr Connors.
'It can wait.' Thought Peter, as he turned back to Gwen. "Yeah, I'd love to!" Said Peter, enthusiastically.
10 MINUTES AGO
"Max! How are we with the energy capacitors?" Asked Curt.
"Oh, nearly ready! If only these eels would behave." Chuckled Max.
"Well, all right. Let me see if we can try a test run with this." Suggested Curt. "If we can harness the eels' bio-electricity, it would be amazing for our limb regeneration project." Said Curt.
"Hold on, doc. Are you sure about this? Shouldn't we wait for Peter?" Asked Max.
"Oh right! Hold on, let me give him a call." Said Curt as he called Peter, who did not pick up.
"He's probably busy with his aunt. Let's try this out for now." Said Curt, as he flipped the switch.
The machine started to vibrate and work, harnessing the bio-electricity.
That's when Max noticed a fault in the machine.
"Oh shit! Doc, shut it down!" Shouted Max, but Curt could barely hear him.
"Shit!" Muttered Max, as he ran to the machine and pulled out a part of it, exposing the wiring. Max realized the error he had made.
"Oh shi-"
Before Max could finish, the machine burst, sending Max flying into the tank of eels, with the machine, severely electrocuting him.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAGHHHHHHHH!" Shouted Max, in excruciating pain, before he suddenly stopped.
Curt was also knocked into a wall, but luckily, he wasn't knocked out.
"Oh my god, Max!" Shouted Curt, as he ran to Max, only to see Max's severely burned body, electricity seething through his barely visible veins.
"And that's why, I say, the chicken came before the egg!" Said Gwen, as she and Peter strolled through Central Park.
"Interesting. You managed to debunk a hundred year old riddle in one evening." Joked Peter.
"Well, it is a matter of perspective." Continued Gwen, as they held hands and walked down the path.
The Sun had set and the Moon was rising, the sky getting darker.
"Hey, it's getting late. Should we head home?" Asked Peter.
"Yeah, I guess. But you forgot something." Replied Gwen.
"Really, what?" Asked Peter, a little confused.
Gwen went closer to Peter, and kissed him.
Both of them pulled apart after a while, as Peter smiled.
"Now you can head home." Laughed Gwen.
Peter laughed. All of a sudden, Peter got an alert on his phone, from Captain Stacy.
"Explosion just occurred. Sending you the address." Said George, through the message. As soon as Peter read the address, his eyes went wide. The address was the one for Doctor Connors' lab.
"What's wrong?" Asked Gwen.
"Oh nothing, just realized I have homework to do. I gotta go."
"Oh okay. See you tomorrow?" Asked Gwen, smiling shyly.
"Yeah, definitely! Bye!" Said Peter, as he ran off into a nearby alleyway and quickly changed into his outfit.
By the time Peter got to the lab, EMTs were already at the scene.
Max had already been wheeled away to a hospital, while Doctor Connors was talking to a doctor.
"Dammit! If I was here I could've stopped this!" Scolded Peter, to himself. "If only I'd have picked up Doc's call." He thought.
Meanwhile, halfway across the city, Mendel Stromm sat in a lab, working on his huge computer. The man had a bionic body, as he tried to track down Norman Osborn's penthouse.
"Upper West Side. But how do I get there?" Thought Stromm. That's when he looked down at his feet.
"If I could upgrade the bionics, I could create hover-boots, allowing me to at least fly short distances. Then, I have to go talk to Osborn, only he can save me right now." Said Mendel, to himself. "But I can't do this myself. I need help from an old friend, who specializes in this." Said Mendel, as he dialed a number on his phone.
"Otto Octavius? This is Mendel Stromm. I need your help."
Thanks for reading this chapter! I guess you can tell what's happening to Norman, and also Max. I also have big plans for Mendel Stromm, and how Otto Octavius fits into this narrative. Stay tuned for new chapters about every few days. Once again, reviews are greatly appreciated!