"So, lemme get this straight... He's a Green Lantern who turns yellow at the sight of his ex?"

The girls laughed at Peter's joke. At the moment, they were walking through the streets of Metropolis, chatting and joking around. And the girls were loving it. They had already gotten a good impression of Peter back at the base and during their crime-fighting session, but it was pretty great getting to know him more. Definitely a pretty good guy, and pretty funny too.

"Yeah, pretty much," Jess said, shaking her head slightly. "And to think there are actual Yellow Lanterns..."

"Soooo..." Babs took Peter's hand. "How are you finding Metropolis?"

Peter smiled. "Pretty good, gotta say." He looked around himself. "And, considering the fact that the fact that this place seems to have a pretty big supervillain problem..." He feigned wiping a tear from his eye. "It's just like home." He burst out laughing, prompting the girls to follow suit.

"Well, we are happy to hear that!" Diana held his other hand. "Speaking of which, you simply must try the food of Sweet Justice. It is most-"

Peter's eyes suddenly widened as his smile grew larger. He raised a hand in the air. "MJ!"

Kara blinked. "MJ? Who's-"

She didn't get to finish her sentence before a redheaded teenager around Zee's age sauntered up to them. She was holding her phone in her hand and looked to have been snapping pictures before this.

"Tiger! I was wondering where you were," MJ said. "When I came to your room, you were just... gone."

Peter scratched the back of his head. "Yeah, well... I found some new friends and they wanted to show me around the city."

MJ looked a little confused, but her smile stayed in place. "Really?" She turned her attention to the girls themselves. "What are you guys' names?"

Babs stepped up, with a proud smile. "My name's Babs! And that's Kara, Diana, Karen, Zee, and Jess." She pointed to each friend as she named them. The others muttered a few 'hello's and the like. Karen, meanwhile, raised an eyebrow.

"Hey, I've seen you around town," she said. "Saw you getting off a bus - are you on a field trip?"

MJ just folded her arms. "Yeah, pretty much. Say, you know where to find any other theaters in this place?"

Karen perked up. "Oh yeah! There's one just past the city park. You just take a right at the entrance, then the second left and you should be there."

MJ's smile widened. "Nice. Thanks... you're Karen, right?"

Karen nodded. "Yeah."

This earned her a handshake from the redhead. "Cool." Then she blinked, her smile faltering slightly. "Wait. Where the heck is Peter?"

Diana blinked. "What are you talking about? Peter Parker is right..."

She trailed off when she realized she was not placing a hand on Peter's shoulders and was instead grabbing air.

"Somewhere that is not here."

Zee frowned. "Huh. He sure knows how to slip away unnoticed."

Babs nodded. "Yeah. Must be useful when-"

She was interrupted by Jess slamming a palm over her mouth. Babs's hyperactivity and talkative nature was one of the things the girls liked about her, but sometimes she needed to be quiet. Couldn't go revealing identities accidentally, after all.

"Hey!" Kara's voice got all their attention. "He's over there!" She pointed over to a soda machine on the other side of the road, which Peter was standing in front of. At the moment, Peter had just deposited a quarter, but was still waiting on his drink.

"Come on," he muttered, tapping his foot. Well, it appeared as though Metropolis had another thing in common with New York: really bad vending machine. He delivered a quick kick to the machine. Not too hard, though: didn't want to kick a hole through it with spider-strength.

That's when he heard a voice.

"Peter!"

Peter quickly turned to the source of the voice. He had to take a few steps back as well, considering how close the source was. It was Gwen again, smiling awkwardly at him. Next to her, arms linked, was Harry. Unlike Gwen, though, Harry looked annoyed, his mouth in a slight grimace.

Shaking his head slightly, Peter returned the smile. "Gwen! Good to see you again."

Gwen folded her arms. "Uh, yeah. Sorry, I guess just because we haven't talked too much in a while - well, aside from at the hotel - and you're alone-"

Harry groaned loudly. "Gwen." He sounded bored, yet still somewhat annoyed. "You said you were going to help me with my project."

This just made Gwen's brow furrow. "I thought you had decided on your topic on your own."

Harry huffed, crossing his own arms. "Yeah, but I could still do some help. Would be a better use of your time than trying to make googly-eyes at-"

Gwen didn't even seem to heed what he was saying as she walked up to Peter, taking him by the hands. Ignoring the way Harry stared at him like he was some weird literal spider-mutant, Peter looked into Gwen's eyes.

"...You okay?"

Blood rushed to Gwen's cheeks. "Oh, me? I'm fine! I guess..." She stepped back. "Again, I just wanted to talk with you more and-"

"Yo, Pete!"

Peter whipped his head around. The girls were approaching him, with Kara waving at him. "We were wondering where you were," she said, smiling slightly.

Peter just chuckled. "Hey, I wasn't far, was I?"

Diana just placed her hands on her hips. "No, but we would appreciate it if-"

"Um... Pete?"

Peter turned to Gwen and Harry, the former of whom had spoken. She was now frowning slightly, and her brow had furrowed further.

"Yeah?" Peter asked.

"Who are these girls?" Gwen pointed a finger at the group behind him. Peter was about to answer her when a purple hoodie stepped in front of him.

"We're Peter's friends!" Babs answered. "My name's Barbara Gordon, but you can call me Babs."

The smile returned to Gwen's face, but it seemed a bit more insincere. "...Cool." She backed away a little, not taking her gaze off his new friends. She didn't look too happy, though.

Harry, meanwhile, was more vocal about his confusion. "Seriously? We've been here for, like, a few days." She gestured to Babs. "How'd he find you and your... clique so soon?"

Babs's cheery demeanour didn't falter in the slightest. "We just met up. Say, did you know he's super good at Chemistry? And he's got a cool phone?"

The comment made Harry's face harden. "He's my friend... Barbara. I know all that." He raised an eyebrow at the other girls. "Is she always this... obvious?"

Jess folded her arms, her eyes narrowing. "Hey, she didn't know. No need to get prickly over it."

Harry rolled his eyes. "Yeah, whatever. Oh, and that phone? It was made by my dad's company. But Pete over here got it before it even came out."

Babs blinked. "And that's an issue how?"

Harry's eyes widened slightly. "I never said it was an issue."

Babs just clicked her tongue. "Yeah, but I inferred it." She started talking faster. "I mean, just judging by your tone and face, and also how you emphasized how Peter got it in such a way that you thought that you should have gotten it instead because of-"

Harry groaned, placing his hands on his ears. "Ugh, shut up." He grabbed Gwen's hand. "Come on, Gwen. Let's go get something to eat."

Gwen, however, didn't budge, instead keeping her gaze on Peter, who was looking pretty confused about the whole thing. She didn't even seem to heed how Babs looked a little miffed. Peter himself could have been mistaken, but did Gwen look a little... jealous?

Eventually, after a silence thick enough to cut with a knife, she reacted to Harry tugging at her arm. "Alright. I'm going." As they turned away, she mouthed a 'Sorry' at Peter, before walking off.

"...Well, that happened, I suppose." Zee sounded a little annoyed herself. "I take it that's Harry?"

"Yep." Peter placed his hands on his pockets. Currently, his mind was stuck on how pissed off Harry looked at him just being there. How Gwen looked also stuck in his mind. At this point, the idea of her still have feelings for him had come back to the forefront of his mind. It made sense, he guessed, and he'd be lying if he still had some feelings for her in turn, but...

Babs folded her arms. "Jerk." She faced the other girls, who didn't look much happier. "What's his deal?"

Karen sighed. "I don't know, but considering what Peter told us, he and Harry are on..." She trailed off. "Peter?"

Peter was still staring at the two walking away. With a roll of her eyes, Kara walked up to him, waving a hand on his face.

"Yo, Pete!"

Peter stiffened up a bit before turning around. "Uh... yeah?" He asked, plastering a grin on his face.

Kara raised an eyebrow. "What was with you..." Then she blinked. "Oh yeah. You still have feelings for her, don't you?"

This made Peter flush. "What?! I..." He shook his head. "Uh, is there anyplace we can get food?" It was clear that he was trying to change the subject, but Kara didn't care. She was starving.

"Oh, I know a place." Kara slung an arm over his shoulder. "Follow me." She walked off, the rest of the girls trailing behind.

"Wait a minute."

Babs turned to Diana. "Yeah?"

Diana folded her arms. "I noticed something with Harry Osborn. When Gwen was looking at Peter, he seemed... irritable."

Babs blinked. "That's a pretty good observation... Yeah, he did seem a little annoyed. But why?"

Diana's eyes narrowed slightly. "I am not sure. But something tells me it is something Gwen herself is not pleased with."

"...You think?"

"Possibly." Diana looked down at her. "But perhaps we should talk about it later. I'm very hungry myself."

Babs shrugged. "Whatever floats your boat." With that, they sped up the pace, with Babs having to explain how the 'boat' was metaphorical. Oh well, at least dealing with some seemingly pretty annoying rich kid would be the worst thing to happen today.


"So these are the so-called Super Hero Girls?"

Lex nodded, not even facing Norman. He knew he was re-watching the footage from last night in the Lexplorium. The footage that he himself had watched around five times.

"Yes." Lex placed the book he was reading back on the desk. "You think Spider-Man's bad? Try six of him."

Norman made a sound that sounded a little like a laugh. "Well, I've heard some people back in New York say that Spider-Man has the strength of six men. Though, I just think the Sinister Six are weak men led by a weaker man."

"Mm." Lex folded his arms. "I suppose I should thank those heroes this time. They stopped that stupid cat from stealing all the rare gems." He grimaced. "But times like this are the rare exception. Other then that?" He sighed. "They're more irritating than the EPA, SEC, and my mom combined."

Norman was silent for a bit. Then he spoke again.

"These... Super Hero Girls. Have you faced them more than once?"

Lex turned to Norman, who was still staring at the footage intently. "No," he answered. "They haven't tried to butt in on any of my plans. Mainly because I haven't had any plans recently. Shocker was the exception."

Norman turned to face him now. "Well, at least now we know what draws them out."

Lex rolled his eyes. "Oh, the heroes are drawn to moments of crisis. What a shock!" He folded his arms. "Come on, Osborn. My sister could tell you that."

Norman just raised an eyebrow. "Just an observation."

Lex just sighed again, walking back over to the window, looking down upon the town. To be fair to the man, Norman was right. Those girls were drawn to any crime like a moth to a flame. Whether it was that stupid space star with one eye or a kitten stuck up a tree (come to think of it, how bad was this town's cat owners), they were there, ready to 'save the day' and smile for the cameras.

"I know what to do."

Lex turned to his side. Like a ghost, Norman had appeared right next to him without a sound, staring down town.

"What? Start working on the villains?"

Norman turned to face him, a small smile on his face. "I don't mean to brag, but I'm quite... proficient in causing 'scenes', so to speak."

Lex blinked. "What? How can you..." He trailed off when a thought crossed his mind. "Oh yeah. You're-"

Norman cut him off. "Don't worry, my boy. I know what I'm doing. And besides, I've got a bit of help if I need it." He winked.

Lex just frowned. "Him? Oh come on, Norman. He's..." He sighed. "Whatever. Look just don't expose yourself as you're wrecking the place up."

Norman placed a hand on his shoulder. "You hardly think so little of me, do you?"

Lex was about to tell him No, but the chances of you falling off that dumb glider and exposing your mug to the world aren't zero when his wristwatch beeped. Tapping the screen, he saw a message that read:

You're needed for the experiment.

Lex looked up at Norman. "I have to go." And with that, he walked out of the office, the door slamming shut behind him.

Norman was alone. After looking around a bit, he walked up to the door and locked it. Then he pressed a button to activate the shutters on the windows. Perfect. He was alone. Just the way he liked it.

Walking up to the desk, he pulled out the bag he had brought to LexCorp. Unzipping it, he felt around. Stacks of dollars, spherical metal balls, vials, spare fuel...

There it was. He pulled out the mask. Thankfully, he had a spare costume in Oscorp's basement, so he didn't have to make a new one. He had seen himself in costume so many times in the news that the mask looked wrong without its trademark grin.

He felt the grin spread across his own face. "It's been a while since I've put this old thing on."


Lex stood in front of the glass box, arms behind his back.

"Is the subject ready?" He asked aloud.

Mercy nodded, one hand hovering over a red button. "Yes. He's awake and, while he was a little confused, we were able to talk him into staying calm."

"Good." Lex placed a hand on the glass: it was reinforced, so even if the subject got a bit... restless, he wouldn't be able to break out. "How are you feeling, Bane?"

Bane lifted his head up to stare at him, glaring at him through the eye-holes in his mask. "Fine," he spat. "Though I find my position... uncomfortable."

Lex couldn't help but agree with him. If he was strapped into a chair with leather straps digging into his arms, legs, and neck, and had a few tubes going into the back of his head, he'd be a little irritable too.

"Well, you won't be like that for too much longer." He gave him his best smile. "I'm sure my good men here told you what you're getting into."

This seemed to ease Bane, who allowed a smile to cross his own lips. "Yes. I have to say, if I had known you'd be generous enough to supply me with Venom, I wouldn't have gone to one of your facilities."

Lex chuckled. "Hey, it was no picnic for me either. Do you know how hard it is to bust you out of the back of the paddy-wagon while making sure it couldn't be traced back to yours truly?"

Bane laughed. Good, he had his trust. It would make this whole thing easier. Namely because he wouldn't be trying to bust out.

"So..." Bane's voice was quiet, yet expectant. "May I receive what you promised?"

Lex nodded. "Of course." He turned to his side. "Mercy!"

Mercy returned the nod and pushed the button. The hissing that signified a metal door opening filled his ears. Looking up, he saw the container slowly lowering down through the new hole in the ceiling. It touched down on the glass box, its holes lining up with the ones connecting it to the tubes.

"Alright," Lex said. "Now to-"

"What's going on?"

Bane sounded confused, but a little angry. "Excuse me?" Lex asked.

"I heard something... banging on something. What is..."

As he was speaking his eyes moved upward to see the container. Lex bit his lip. Dangit. He wasn't supposed to see it. Currently, Bane was staring, open-mouthed, at what was in the container as it thrashed and banged itself against the glass, letting out small squeals and shrieks.

"What the hell is that?!" Bane started thrashing around himself. "I didn't sign up for this! Let me out! You lied to me, you son of a-"

"Bane, came down!" Lex interrupted. "Look, I may have stretched the truth a tiny bit, but-"

"You promised me my Venom!" Bane's voice was vicious: he was obviously trying to intimidate him. But all it did was make Lex smile.

"And you shall receive it! After all, during my research, I think I saw something about your new friend calling itself that."

Bane blinked, his eyes growing even wider. "N-new friend?"

"Yep!" Lex placed his hands on his hips. "Found it crawling around in the sewers of Metropolis. My boys captured it and we ran some tests. And now..." His smile grew wider. "It needs a host." He turned to Mercy. "Let it in."

Mercy took out a key and placed it into a keyhole on the control pad, turning it. Almost instantly, the black ooze started crawling down the tubes, getting closer to the pleading man in it. And as soon as it got to his head, Bane started screaming. His thrashing reached a new level as his veins started to bulge out and turn black.

"Don't worry, Bane." Lex's cheerful voice was still audible, even over all the screaming. "We just need to get you some training. After that... you're going to be spectacular."