Act 2, Scene 27

Connors lab. Connors jingles a set of keys in his hand before opening up a locked cupboard. He extracts a vial of the Goblin's serum carefully, holding it as if were high explosive. Spiderman, meanwhile, is hooked up to an expensive-looking machine.

CONNORS: He came to me and demanded that I take this apart chemically. When I refused him, he...well, he made it clear that wasn't an option.

SPIDERMAN: You improved it.

CONNORS: Yes. He wanted the physical and mental effects enhanced. I warned him it could be done, but that it would come at a price.

SPIDERMAN: Price?

CONNORS: His sanity. The original serum had destablising mental effects, yes, but they could take time to build and manifest. This...(he brandishes the vial) this is a one-way ticket to permanent psychosis.

SPIDERMAN: You'd never guess to look at him.

Connors walks to the machine Spiderman is connected to and works the controls. We see a virtual display of Spiderman's body on a screen. Connors whistles.

CONNORS: I have never seen anything like this...

SPIDERMAN: Let me guess. It's an extra-terrestrial symbiotic life-form, dependent on me to survive.

CONNORS: (surprised) You have a keen mind. Ever thought of enrolling?

SPIDERMAN: I'll bear it in mind.

CONNORS: Largely, you're correct...it's bonded to you on a microcellular level, and it seems to be influencing your musculature...

Spiderman flexes his hand, clenching a fist and relaxing it. When he speaks it's with quiet satisfaction.

SPIDERMAN: I noticed.

CONNORS: ...this really is the most astonishing thing...the life-form requires tremendous amounts of energy to sustain. Probably why the astronauts were insufficient as a host body. But you...you're perfect. You can feed it. And it produces even greater amounts of energy in return.

SPIDERMAN: It creates more energy than it consumes?

CONNORS: Yes. Pity we can't hook it up to the National Grid. I'm running a nanocellular scan on it now to determine our retrieval options.

SPIDERMAN: Retrieval?

CONNORS: Well, yes...you are wanting to be separated from this, I assume?

Spiderman stands up and begins taking off the probes.

SPIDERMAN: Not part of the plan.

CONNORS: But...you can't seriously be thinking of allowing an alien life-form to bond with you! Look at this! (he taps a section of the screen displaying Spiderman's body) It's connected to your cerebral cortex! This thing is aware of what you do...don't you understand that? It may even be able to exert an influence over your actions!

SPIDERMAN: I doubt it, Doc. Besides, if I'm gonna beat the Goblin, I need this thing giving me a boost.

CONNORS: And after the Goblin?

SPIDERMAN: We'll talk then. Thanks for your help.

Connors clearly doesn't believe Spiderman will come back. As he prepares to web off, the scientist grabs another serum from the locked cupboard.

CONNORS: Wait!

He hands the serum to Spiderman.

SPIDERMAN: What's this?

CONNORS: You didn't think I'd take that serum apart chemically and erase the data afterward, did you? I've been working on this for two days.

SPIDERMAN: (incredulously)An antidote?

CONNORS: Maybe. There's only one living subject I could test it on to find out and I feared he might have been...reluctant. But you...if you can get close enough, one shot of this to his sytem and it might just flush out enough of the serum. But if it's not administered within the next twenty-four hours...it'll be too late.

SPIDERMAN: I don't think within twenty-four hours will be a problem.

He leaps twenty feet up and out a small window near the ceiling. Connors watches him go.