NOTE! I AM NOT ACCEPTING, NOR AM I FINACIALLY STABLE ENOUGH TO ENTERTAIN THE IDEA OF ART COMISSIONS. DO NOT OFFER THEM TO ME. I WILL NOT RESPOND. IF YOU LEAVE A REVIEW, EXPLAIN WHAT YOU LIKED IN WHAT YOU READ, OTHERWISE THE REVIEW WILL BE DELTED!
Okay, onto the story!
NIGHT OF THE LIZARD
"Ah, the big city. If only everything down there was as peaceful as everything looks from up here."
Spider-Man, Batman, Ladybug, and Chat Noir were hanging by the rooftops. It was a busy day of stopping crime but all in all, things seemed to be on the down-low.
"I've been getting offers from other fashion companies since the hat design contest." Ladybug mused, sorting through a slew of new email offers. Chat read some over her shoulder, frowning and even hissing at some of the names he saw.
"…Should we be worried about him?" Spidey asked.
"No worries, I got the spray." Batman said, spritzing the cat hero with some water. "Calm down."
"Okay, is there anything you DON'T have in that belt?" Chat asked. "And how the heck do you even keep track of it all?"
"Practice." Was all Bruce said.
"Oh, don't worry kitty." Ladybug cooed, patting Chat's cheek and making him smile. "I'm sticking with Agreste Threads for now. How was your birthday party? I only caught the second half."
Chat Noir smiled, recalling how Nino had begged Gabriel and Emile to let him thow Adrien a birthday party. Gabriel had been wary but ended up having a great time…and NO supervillain or paparazzi ruined it!
"Your scarf was the best gift of all."
"Awww. Kitty…"
"JUST DATE ALREADY!" Spider-Man teased the two, who blushed and looked away.
"We will…when you and MJ do." Marinette smirked, making the webhead tense, grumble and blush under his mask. Batman patted him on the shoulder, a knowing smile on his face.
"…How's Selina?" Spidey inquired, disappointed when all Bruce did was smile like a fool in love.
The four then returned to observing the city they loved and protected; grateful for this lull.
Unknown to our heroes, something was happening down below.
"Yeah, hold it right there."
Underground in the sewer system, a powerline had gone out and the repair crew had been sent to fix it.
"You're gonna love working down here. It's cool in the Summer and warm in the Winter. And best of all, no office politics."
"Sounds better than my last job. I was in the television business."
"TV, really? My old TV gets these double images, know what I mean?"
"No, I was a TV Executive."
"Ooooh! Yeah, you're better off working down here."
However, as the two workers were chatting, a large shadow loomed over them, red reptilian eyes glowing brightly before one of the workers gasped, causing his colleague to notice as well.
"HOLY-!"
The two quickly climbed out of the sewers and rushed for their trick, only for a sewer grate to be burst open as a green-scaled claw grabbed one of them. The other worker tried to save his buddy but wasn't strong enough as he watched helplessly as he was pulled down.
"Help! Someone!" The remaining worker cried helplessly as he got in his truck and drove off. "The eyes...!"
The red glaring eyes of the monster that had attacked began flashing in his head, almost as if he was being hypnotized. Needless to say, he was driving out of control in his panic, catching the attention of our four heroes.
"Seems like someone isn't obeying traffic laws," Batman noted.
"Drunk driver?" Spider-Man suggested. "Or perhaps another satisfied graduate of the NYC Cab Driving Academy."
Ladybug snorted. "Very clever."
Batman typed some coordinates into his wrist computer before leaping off the roof and gliding after the truck, doing a dive before gliding again to gain extra speed while Spider-Man and Ladybug swung on their webs and yo-yo respectively, Chat Noir following on the rooftops with his cat-like speed and agility.
Batman managed to land on the truck as Spider-Man climbed into the passenger seat of the truck.
"Hit the brakes, pal!"
Batman pulled out a bat-shaped device and slammed it on the truck before jumping off. This caused an EMP to go off, causing the truck to stop, and allowing Ladybug to swing in.
"LUCKY CHARM!"
Spider-Man pulled the worker out of the truck as Ladybug created a ladybug-colored brick wall, which the truck crashed into and stopped dead in its tracks. Chat Noir then jumped down after making sure people had been moved to safety from the out-of-control vehicle.
"The red eyes...the red eyes..." The worker mumbled fearfully. "They got Johnny...!"
"Red eyes, huh?" Spider-Man asked as he set the worker down gently. "And did they belong to Pink Elephants on Parade?"
"N-No, Mr. Spider-Man, i-it was real, I swear!"
"I think he might be telling the truth," Batman said. "That level of fear can't be made up."
"You're an electrical engineer, right? Working a sewer job?" Ladybug asked as the worker nodded numbly. "Are we getting monsters in the sewers now?"
"Doubtful. That Killer Croc guy is still in Arkham Asylum, isn't he?" Chat Noir asked.
Batman nodded. "Yes...so we don't have any leads on what this new creature is."
MIRACULOUS
Later that day, Peter and Alya rode an elevator to the top floor of the Daily Bugle.
"I can't believe you waited this long to tell me you worked here!" Alya pouted for the umpteenth time. "AND that you won the Spider-Man photo contest!"
"Sorry, Alya." Peter winced. "Life's been busy. But hey, you're here now, right?"
Alya relented at that as they reached their destination.
"Hey there Betty. Gloria." Peter waved to the two women at the reception desk; Betty a cute brunette who was moving the boss' appointments around and Gloria a lovely African-American girl who spied Alya.
"You must be Alya. Welcome aboard." Gloria said as she left her desk and shook Alya's hand, stretching her legs as she did so. "Gotta say I'm almost jealous; Betty and mine's legs are going to jelly while you'll be running around."
Alya chuckled at that.
"I have a few kid sibs, so I think I'll adjust."
"She IS a highly in demaind babysitter." Peter said as a tall, African American man entered the room. "Afternoon, Mr. Robertson."
Robbie Robertson. The co-editor of the Daily Bugle and one of Spider-Man and Batman;'s most vocal defenders, which instantly earned him Peter's loyalty. He gave Peter a smile and nod before handing Gloria some files and shaking Alya's hand.
"Did he call back yet?"
"He should be here any…." Betty noted, tyhen smiled as the elevator opened. "Ah, here he is!"
In strode a tall, well bulit man with dark black hair and a grizzled beard. Despite this, he oozed a friendly demeanour and gave Robbie, Betty and Gloria a nod as he went to his office, only to pause when he saw Peter with someone knew.
"Hey there, Pete." The man beamed, messing with Peter's hair. "School okay?"
"Just fine, Eddie." Peter smiled.
"Good, no more Mr. Brock." Eddie smiled. "I like that. And…is this the new intern? Alya, right?"
"You're Eddie Brock!" Alya smiled, fighting the urge to fangirl. Eddie took it in good stride
"I take it you've watched a few of my stories?"
"A few? Mr. Brock, if Vicky Vale is a superheroine of reporters…"
"She is not." Peter and Eddie grumbled together under their breaths.
"…Then you're like…like…Tintin! And I mean that in the bringing down corruption and getting the truth sense, not the globetrotting sense."
Eddie chuckled at that.
"That's a new once and I'll gladly take it. I've seen some of your work too; nice work on the vlog.
"Hey Peter, you've gotten good shots of Spider-Man before, right?" Robbie called in suddenly. "Let's see what you can get on the Lizard."
"The who?" Peter and Alya asked.
"The Lizard!"
The familiar gruff voice belonged to none other than J. Jonah Jameson, CEO and founder of the Daily Bugle as well as Spider-Man's #1 critic. He didn't give much on Batman since it seemed he had a close relationship with the police, leading Jameson to believe Batman was some kind of personal private investigator they had on hand.
"If you ever get here on time, you'd figure out what was going on," Jameson told Peter.
"Hey, he's gotta juggle schoolwork and helping his aunt. Cut him some slack, okay?" Alya huffed, fists on her hips.
"Ah, right, you're the new intern." Jameson addressed the teen. "This kind of job is more Parker's speed if anything. Can't exactly have you do it on your first day, now."
"I dunno, my Ladyblog is pretty big on the exploits of Ladybug and Chat Noir," Alya smirked. "I think I can handle it. So what's the news?"
"There's been reports of a giant lizard roaming around in the subway sewer system," Robbie explained. "And it's not like that Killer Croc guy from a few months back either."
"The red eyes..."Peter privately noted to himself."So that freaked-out engineer from yesterday wasn't just spouting hooey!"
"Hey, JJ, I got the name of someone who worked with reptiles who might help us," Brock said as he came in with some papers that he handed to Jameson.
"Dr. Curt Connors, huh?"
"Dr. Connors?" Peter and Alya both exclaimed in surprise.
"You kids know him?" Robbie asked.
"He's the science teacher for the college age group at College Francoise Dupont," Alya explained. "Peter and Bruce attend his class. He's a genius! Sure, Miss Mendeleiev is good too, but Connors is on a whole other level!"
"He was also a very close friend of my father before he died." Peter smiled, thinking back to his younger years. "He's an expert in reptile mutagenics and recombinant DNA analysis."
"Wonder how he's been holding up since the Electro incident..." Alya frowned, recalling the tragic fate of Max Dillon a few months back.
"Well, since you kids already know him, he'll be your first assignment," Jameson said. "And make sure to get some pictures of Spider-Man on the side."
Alya rolled her eyes. "Sure, Mr. Jameson, we'll get pictures of Spider-Man stealing candy from babies and pushing old ladies down for you."
"Don't go getting snippy with me, young lady! Remember you're only an intern here!" Jameson demanded as he stromed back to his office….only to retrace his steps. "But if you do happen to…."
"Boss, I have your wife on speed-dial." Robbie reminded him.
MIRACULOUS
"Are you sure we can't trust Alya with our secret identities?" Ladybug asked as she and Batman explored the subway sewer system where the engineer's friend had been reportedly taken.
"We don't know if she won't just blab to the Ladyblog, Marinette. Besides, we need to get some pictures for Peter to send to Dr. Connors for analysis."
Ladybug nodded. "Sometimes it pays to be a team."
Batman soon saw a large reptile footprint left behind and tapped his cowl to use Detective Vision to scan it.
"Intriguing...this doesn't match any known reptile in the animal kingdom."
"Really? What kind of lizard are we even dealing with?" Ladybug asked in surprise.
"Not a normal one, that's for sure. I'll send the evidence to Peter right away."
MIRACULOUS
Peter and Alya were heading to Dr. Connor's laboratory to talk with him about the footprint evidence they had been given by Bruce.
"Huh...if I didn't know any better, I'd say this footprint belongs to a lizard that walks on two legs!" Alya noted as she studied the footprint closer.
"Either that or a very fat Squamata." Peter joked.
Alya rolled her eyes. "Hey, I pay attention in biology class, you know!"
Suddenly, the two heard crashing sounds as Peter quickly pulled Alya close, not wanting her to wander off and potentially stumble into danger.
"What's going on?"
Peter simply shushed her as they slowly snuck toward the source of the noise. Peter looked worried as he felt his Spider-Sense tingling while Alya got her phone ready in case a picture needed to be taken.
They traced the noise to Dr. Connor's administrative office. Everything was pitch-black inside and Alya turned on the flashlight on her phone to better look around, soon seeing a large shape hunched over, seemingly in pain.
"Hello? Dr. Connors?"
"Stay...stay away...!"
The voice sounded deep with a hissing pitch yet Peter and Alya could distinctly make out Dr. Connor's voice.
"Dr. Connors? Dr. Connors!" Peter worriedly called out to his mentor as he and Alya stepped in.
"Peter...? No...don't come any closer...!"
The large figure suddenly got up and rushed for the open window, jumping out while carrying something on its back. Peter turned on the lights but saw they were broken yet he and Alya could see the room was a mess.
"What the heck happened?" Alya asked.
Peter then noticed a video camera lying prone on the ground. The lens was broken but whatever footage was on it may yet provide a clue as to what was going on.
MIRACULOUS
After sending Alya home for the evening, Peter regrouped with Bruce. Marinette and Adrien had gone to hang out with Alya and listen to what she had to say while the two veteran heroes worked on what they had found.
"The footage on this camera is recoverable," Bruce said as he made sure to take it apart and hook up what he could to the Batcomputer. "Let's see what comes up."
The footage showed Dr. Connors sitting at his desk, writing down some notes with a syringe by his side.
"My name is Dr. Curtis Connors. I pray that this will be a breakthrough for all humanity."The man said."Thanks to my studies in reptile neogenic pathogens and recombinant DNA analysis, I have concocted a serum that should be able to provide a reptile's ability to regenerate lost limbs in a mammal."
"I remember this!" Peter realized. "Dr. Connors was showing me the fruits of his research on a mouse with only three limbs. I helped with the neogenic recombination process."
"While tests on smaller mammals like mice have proven successful, I am somewhat worried about the effects it might have on humans."Dr. Connors continued."So...what better guinea pig than myself, the creator of this concoction."
"Dr. Connors always wanted to help people." Peter smiled softly. "To help heal people who had been in accidents or who lost limbs during wars."
Bruce nodded. "He did good work. But it's true he also wished to find a way to heal himself, so that he could hold his child in both hands and properly embrace his wife."
"If this test is a failure and...the unthinkable happens..."Dr. Connors sadly said as he showed a note."Please make sure my wife and son get this letter..."
Peter and Bruce watched as the footage showed Dr. Connors injecting himself with the serum in the area of his missing arm. He then hunched over in pain, coughing as his arm stump began bulging and twitching. He then let out a loud gasp before collapsing.
"Oh no..." Peter gasped, fearing the worst.
Suddenly, the sounds of a body shifting, bones realigning, and muscles morphing were heard before a giant clawed scaley hand reached out and slammed on the table, breaking it as Dr. Connors got up, scales growing on his body as his eyes became red with slit pupils, his teeth sharpening and him now screaming in agony as he smacked the camera, causing everything to go to static.
"My god..." Bruce whispered.
"Connors...is the LIZARD!" Peter finished.
MIRACULOUS
"Wait, so Dr. Connors turned himself into a giant lizard?!" Alya asked after Peter and Bruce told her, Marinette, and Adrien after school the next day.
"He was trying to work on a formula that could help humans regrow lost limbs like reptiles could," Bruce said. "But it seems the process was too unstable for humans."
"This is big! We gotta tell the Daily Bugle!" Alya said.
"No, Alya!" Marinette said. "Do you realize what this means?! They'll hunt him down like some animal!"
Alya winced, realizing her best friend had a point.
"So what can we do?" Adrien asked.
"First we'll have to find him before he hurts himself," Peter said worriedly. "Or anyone else, for that matter."
"But Jameson wanted us to get pictures of the Lizard." Alya pointed out. "How should we go about this?"
"I think some super friends of ours might be able to help..." Adrien said, giving a wink to Marinette, Peter, and Bruce.
MIRACULOUS
"Thank you for your time." Eddie Brock said as he left the Connors house. "Again, I am so sorry to intrude."
"As long as people know Curt didn't mean any harm." Margaret Connors said.
"Well no need to worry." Eddie assured her. "This story is one that is NOT getting out."
As he turned to leave, he spied the four heroes coming his way.
"Mr. Brock, what're you?" Batman began, only to see Eddie lift up his recorder and show them all as he deleted what Mrs. Connors had told him.
"I take it you heard?" Chat guessed.
"Yeah, got the gist from Mrs. Connors." Eddie explained. "Apparently, her husband did something to himself. Was supposed to heal folks who lost limbs but….he went and got himself in trouble"
"Yeah, big trouble." Spider-Man frowned before feeling his Spider-Sense tingle. "And I think it just found us!"
Brock was the one to notice the danger first as he cried out in alarm. Everyone spun around to see the Lizard himself looming over them, hissing as he moved to strike, only for Chat Noir to hit him in the throat with his baton.
"Back off, Notzilla!"
The Lizard snarled before spinning around and smacking the Black Cat Hero with his tail, sending him into some nearby bushes. Meanwhile, Alya was waiting for the right moment to get a photo of Ladybug and the other heroes in action.
"Okay...just remember what they told you..."
"Brock! Get out of here!" Batman ordered as he dodged the Lizard's claws.
"Don't have to tell me twice!" The journalist grunted as he made a break for it. "Oh, why did I ever get into this line of work?!"
Batarangs where thrown but dodged and staffs were crushed in the monster's teeth as they heroes tried to calm him down. Spider-Man managed to leap onto the creature's back and tried to web his jaw shut, only to be swatted away.
"Word of advice?" The web-head managed. "Tail attack? EXTREMELY painful!"
"I think I've got this!" Ladybug called out, spinning her yo-yo and calling out. "LUCKY CHAR…!"
That was as far as she got, as the Lizard leapt onto her and roared, lowering his teeth close to the heroine's face, only for his jaws to be wrapped up by the yo-yo
"Four words: Breath. Mint. Get. One!" Ladybug grimaced, smiling even as the Lizard broke free, only for a black blur to push him off and block his path to Ladybug.
"…Maybe not my smartest move." Chat grimaced as the realised the Lizard was now focused on him, at least until Batman flipped him away.
"Why aren't you using Cataclysm?" Batman asked the younger dark hero as Spider-Man took another crack at the Lizard. "We could end this right here and…"
"I can't! I might KILL Dr. Connors!" Chat Noir snapped, memories of Clayface filling his head.
Before anything else could be done, a cry was heard:
"DADDY!"
The Lizard paused and turned to see his wife and son there, his sharp gaze softening weakly.
"B-Billy...?"
"Curt, please, this isn't you!" Margaret Connors begged.
"Margaret..."The Lizard hissed softly."I'm doing this...for all of us...!"
"All of us? What the heck are you talking about?"
"The Neogenic Recombinator I used to create my serum...that engineer I took...got weak..."The Lizard explained."All these souls...lost and alone...I can save them, I can CURE them...!"
"So that's why he kidnapped that engineer!" Ladybug realized. "If you try going through with this plan, everyone will turn into giant lizards like you!"
"Yes...!"The Lizard affirmed."Humanity will become better...stronger...!"
"But look at yourself, Doctor!" Batman said. "You can barely hold on to your humanity! If you keep going this route, you'll lose yourself!"
"No...! You're...twisting things...!"The Lizard growled.
"Your brain is what's getting twisted, Doc!" Spider-Man said as he jumped on Lizard from behind. "And it's time you needed to take your medicine!"
In the Wall-Crawler's hand was a serum Bruce had managed to concot after visiting Dr. Connors' lab earlier. It was a "Gene-Cleanser" that could undo the mutations Dr. Connor had inflicted upon himself.
Struggling and growling, the Lizard tried to throw Spider-Man off, only for them to fall into the open manhole the former had come from. Everyone gasped as they looked to see them plunge into the dark abyss.
"HOLD ON!" Batman said as he jumped in, leaving Ladybug and Chat Noir to handle things with the Connors.
"I got some photos. Man, you guys kicked butt!" Alya said as she came over.
"Don't let Jameson know about who the Lizard is." Ladybug pleaded. "If things work out, we can just say the Lizard was taken out."
MIRACULOUS
As Batman dove through the sewers, looking for Lizard and Spider-Man, he turned on his Detective Vision to get a better map of the area, soon finding a life sign nearby and making his way over.
"Save me...!"
Batman saw the engineer that Lizard had kidnapped a few days ago and busted him up, helping him to his feet.
"He needed my help...some kind of device...couldn't do it himself..." The man weakly said. "But...I got weak...no food, no sleep..."
"Don't worry, I'm getting you to a hospital." The Dark Knight said as he moved back to the entrance before looking behind himself. "It's all on you, Peter..."
MIRACULOUS
"Hey! Wall-Crawling is MY schtick!" Spider-Man snapped as he and his foe battled amidst the sewers, the Lizard currently using the walls for trajectory leaps. "You start spinning a web and I'll sue!"
Despite the jokes, Spider-Man was scared out of his mind. Right now he was fighting a monster who not too long ago was like a father-figure to him, a man who helped him realize he could use science to help people.
The Lizard roared as he pounced on Spider-Man, the two struggling as the beast's jaws were close to snapping the webhead's face off.
'His mind's all reptile now!' Spidey realized, barely dodging a tail swing as he realized he had only one shot of webbing left. He steeled his resolve, waited for the lizard to pounce…
And then leapt out of the way at the literal last second; his mask being slashed by claws as he emptied huis webs to ensnare the Lizard and pin him down.
"Alright, Doc! TIME TO TAKE YOUR MEDICINE!"
Taking the vial containing the Gene-Cleanser, Spider-Man shoved the whole thing into the Lizard's gaping maw and poured the entire contents down his throat. The beast screamed in pain as the serum took effect, his body regressing back into that of Dr. Connors, his arm falling off and withering away instantly as he collapsed in a heap.
"Dr. Connors!" Spider-Man gasped as he helped the good doctor up. "Don't worry, Doc...everything will be okay."
As they webswung away, the young hero missed the relieved smile and thanks on Curt's face.
MIRACULOUS
Thanks to the Lizard photos, Alya managed to get the job at the Daily Bugle, with Peter being assigned as her mentor and aid until she got used to the swing of things. The Lizard was soon forgotten, brushed off as a gas induced hallucination or a movie plug, maybe just another mutant and nothing more.
That last one had led to JJJ making a heartfelt announcement/request that if the Lizard was still in New York, he make his way to the Xaiver Instutite for aid; claiming Charles Xaiver was a good man who'd help him.
"He has his moments of kindness."
Alya tensed as she and Mairnette, currently hanging out, spied Spider-Man, Batman and Chat Noir outside her window. Before she could say anything, Marinette let them in and tapped on her earnings, from which Tikki awoke.
"Oh? Oh!" The Kwami noted as she awoke as with a smirk, Marinette called out:
"TIKKI, SPOTS ON!"
And soon, Alya was living the dream of many a youth; having four superheroes in her room, one of which was her best friend…and as the masks came off…
"YOU GUYS ARE SPIDER-MAN, BATMAN, LADYBUG, AND CHAT NOIR?!" Alya gawked before pausing. "Actually...that makes way too much sense."
"…How, exactly?" Adrien asked. But before Alya could answer, the unmasked Batman walked up to her.
"You cannot tell ANYONE about this unless that is someone who can absolutely be trusted," Bruce said warningly.
Alya nodded. "Does Nino count?"
Adrien shrugged. "Why not? I can trust him."
"More importantly, don't let Ol' JJJ learn about my identity," Peter said.
"Don't worry, Petey. These lips are sealed!" Alya nodded, making a zipping motion over her mouth for emphasis.
"Well...it'd help to have a girl in the chair for us." Marinette giggled awkwardly. "Of course, Alfred already fills that role, kinda..."
The five friends decided to unwind after the whole experience at the local cafe, Alya looking forward to what crazy new adventures awaited now that she was part of the fold...
Knightmare Lord A/N:
To celebrate Season 6 of Miraculous Ladybug coming out, let's kick off this new year with some brand-new adventures!
Alya has been entrusted with knowing our heroes' secret identities and has gotten a job at the Daily Bugle on top of her running the Ladyblog. We got a confrontation with the Lizard and we also got to meet Eddie Brock, who is a much nicer guy here; similar to Tom Hardy in the Venom movies.
Will our favorite Lethal Protector show up soon? Well...that remains to be seen, doesn't it?
Care to share your thoughts on things, buddy ol' pal?
Mrotrax A/N:
A wonderful rendition of the Lizard story…and so happy we have an actually decent human Eddie in this story.
Added a little nod to Jamesone being a mutant supporter last second.
Until we meet again? Stay warm, safe and happy!