After completing all this, Peter reprogrammed the mixture timing and optimized the solution with his own methods. He estimated it would complete the antidote mixing more quickly, allowing it to disperse throughout Manhattan. Only after finishing all these preparations did he turn around.
"Connors?"
Clearly, Connors was no longer there. There was only white webbing covering a large hole. Connors hadn't stopped Peter from dispersing the antidote—he apparently remembered something more important.
"I can't let my work remain at Osborn. To destroy them, I won't leave anything behind for Osborn."
Connors knew the mixing would take about ten minutes. That was enough time for him to destroy the data and leave Manhattan, ensuring the antidote would no longer affect him.
Connors had to exert considerable effort to break through the concrete ceiling. Now he was rapidly moving through the stairwells of Osborn Tower, each movement causing violent vibrations in the nearby stairs.
Within minutes, he found his former laboratory at Osborn Industries. At the same time, he spotted one of the people he most wanted to see.
"Modick Corns, you bastard..."
"Connors?"
The Osborn Industries executive clearly hadn't expected Connors to appear here while supposedly fighting Spider-Man elsewhere. He was holding a briefcase, with a USB drive in his free hand, apparently preparing to leave.
"Looks like your luck has run out this time."
As soon as he finished speaking, Connors lunged forward. The executive quickly ran backward while pressing the laboratory's lockdown button.
Osborn Industries' high-strength security saved his life. Connors, who could easily shatter concrete, only managed to create a small crack in the reinforced glass. It seemed the barrier would hold him off for a while.
Meanwhile, the executive pulled out his phone and made a call.
"Send security forces here! I'm on the 21st floor. Hurry, bring heavy weapons. Connors is here. Kill him, kill him!"
After hanging up, the Osborn Industries security personnel waiting downstairs looked at each other.
"Should we go up?"
"Forget it. Haven't you seen the news? Connors isn't like those little lizards downstairs. He can shatter concrete with one punch. I don't want to die."
"But what if he dies?"
"The security office is on this floor. Go delete the security data first. We'll wait ten minutes before going up. If he's dead by then, we'll bring down his body. No one will find fault with that."
The two security team leaders decided Corns' fate in just a few words, and the executive likely had no idea. Corns was now curled up in a corner of the lab like a terrified woman, waiting for Connors to break through the glass and kill him.
With Connors' strength, breaching the protection didn't take long. Tearing through the lab's thin barrier was hardly more difficult than breaking a cookie.
With a crisp sound, the barrier gave way.
Connors approached Corns, his massive frame blocking the light. In the shadow, Connors' lizard form looked particularly menacing.
"Goodbye."
With that, he raised his claw to send the Osborn Industries executive to hell.
As Connors raised his arm, the sound of shattering glass rang out. Peter broke through the thick glass exterior wall and kicked Connors. Despite the glass wall absorbing some of the impact, the tremendous force still sent Connors flying, overturning much of the surrounding lab equipment.
Peter had repelled Connors and wasn't planning to let him escape. The antidote was already mixing and would be ready to deploy in just two or three minutes. Peter only needed to keep Connors occupied during this time.
"Peter, get out of my way!"
Connors charged again without hesitation. Killing Corns seemed important to him—such deep hatred made it difficult to imagine what had happened between them.
But considering Connors' current mindset was far from normal, perhaps this wasn't so strange.
"Damn it, damn it, don't let him through. Yes, yes, keep him busy."
Corns was screeching from behind a lab bench while Peter fought Connors to protect him. Corns' words clearly annoyed Peter.
"Hey, I'm risking my life to save you. Couldn't you at least say thank you?"
Clearly Corns had no time to consider this—Connors had terrified him completely. He could only cower behind the lab bench, muttering. Fortunately, time was passing quickly. The nebulizer atop Osborn Tower had activated, and large amounts of blue mist began to spread.
The dense, fog-like blue antidote began spreading from the Osborn Industries building as its center. Within seconds, it reached the laboratory where Peter and Connors were fighting.
"What did you do? The nebulizer mixing should take at least ten minutes! It can't be this fast."
Connors instinctively covered his nostrils, but the mutagen antidote clearly didn't affect him through respiration.
"I made some minor adjustments. After all, I don't actually need to spread it throughout New York, and I increased the dosage, Connors."
It would still take some time for the antidote to take effect. Connors seemed to be regaining some of his former consciousness. His eyes gradually softened, and he looked at Peter apologetically.
"Peter, I..."
He seemed about to say something.
"Target spotted! Prepare to fire!"
"No, what are you doing? Stop! I'm still in here!"
"Connors, what are you doing?"
Ignoring Corns' shouting, the Osborn special forces outside pulled their triggers. Bullets mercilessly tore through Connors, who was in the process of reverting to human form.
Connors didn't try to dodge. He stood directly in front of Peter, his not-yet-fully-reverted body shielding Peter from the bullets.
Clearly, he didn't know Peter had his spider-sense.
Connors collapsed in a pool of blood, coughing blood. As the antidote continued working on his body, his regenerative abilities were steadily disappearing.
"Peter, don't let Osborn get the mutagen..."
Connors only managed to say these final words before his life signs faded. His pupils slowly dilated, and eventually, he stopped breathing. His chest no longer moved.
Peter glanced at the growing number of Osborn security personnel. He shot out a web, grabbed the data and the small USB drive from Corns' hand, and quickly escaped through the broken glass window.
Swinging away on his web, he disappeared.
"Fire! Fire! Don't just stand there! He's taking company property!"
But when the Osborn security personnel reached the broken window and tried to aim at Peter, Spider-Man had already vanished without a trace.
As the blue antidote spread outward from Osborn Tower, the citizens and police officers affected by Connors' mutagen returned to normal. They showed no visible wounds, though some retained barely noticeable patches of soft skin—apparently some kind of aftereffect.
"Someone dispersed an antidote? Did headquarters mention this?" a SHIELD tactical team member asked his colleague.
"We were initially warned we might face strong resistance, but these lizard people don't seem that aggressive."
"Did something just flash by overhead?"
"What thing?"
The two SHIELD operatives looked skyward, but could see nothing except the thick blue mist.
________________________________________
The time was approaching sunset. The sun gradually sank into the waters near Manhattan. Peter sat on a scaffold by the shore, opening the files.
Connors had been meticulous about his research, organizing both the paper documents and electronic backups thoroughly.
"Corns planned to recruit unwitting volunteers for direct human experimentation. I can't let them do this, but I can't give up my work here either...
To achieve results before they do, I must complete this alone..."
Connors' notes revealed that to develop a complete mutagen before Osborn, he had experimented on himself.
Clearly, he hadn't anticipated that the mutagen would not only change his body but also distort his consciousness and thought patterns.
"Osborn was planning direct human experimentation when even regular animal testing still had such major flaws."
Peter closed the file box and placed the USB drive inside. Then, with a swing of his arm, the box spun through the sunset air, tracing an arc.
It landed solidly in the waters near Manhattan.
Peter said nothing more. The sunset's light shone on his mask, and no one could see his expression. But most people could guess what his face might show.
The situation in Manhattan gradually came under control. Victims were slowly evacuated, and reporters entered the scene.
________________________________________
Lynn was watching television in Deacon Tower, with Kara behind him.
"According to on-site reporters, a serious chemical agent leak centered at Osborn Industries has caused extreme mass hallucinations and loss of consciousness.
The area remains under lockdown. Citizens are advised to avoid Manhattan's restricted zone when traveling."
Following the reporter's camera, the extent of Manhattan's damage appeared on screen: damaged vehicles, weeping pedestrians.
The incident hadn't caused extremely serious casualties, but it had left a deep impression on many people's minds.
"Dr. Connors, how are you feeling now?"
Curt Connors was sitting across from Lynn, with two security guards standing behind him. The dim lighting and slightly dark environment, combined with Lynn's sinister demeanor, made Connors feel his situation was precarious—or rather, very precarious.
"Who are you? Shouldn't we introduce ourselves first?"
Connors was worldly enough not to be intimidated by the situation, though he knew he was probably caught up in some unspeakable major event.
"Just call me Doctor, Mr. Connors."
Connors couldn't clearly see Lynn's face or hear his voice distinctly. A seemingly intangible force numbed his senses. The feeling was quite unpleasant.
It was like staring at the sun on a blazing day, causing Connors to involuntarily close his eyes and look away.
This was starkly incongruous with the dark environment.
"What do you want from me? As you can see, I'm just a destitute scholar with nothing of value now."
"A person's value isn't measured by social status, Mr. Connors. You can continue watching what the news is saying."
Connors certainly knew what the news was saying. He only felt relieved that his thoughts had been completely abnormal while he was the Lizard. He had originally planned to attack Osborn Tower.
Though he couldn't remember how he'd been captured and brought here, clearly someone else had done what he had intended to do.
He had finally avoided committing a grave mistake.
"You're thinking someone else attacked Osborn Industries, aren't you?"
Lynn's words made Connors look up. Then, the reporter on television began broadcasting the latest information.
"Under investigation by the New York Police, the preliminary cause of the incident has been determined. It was Osborn Industries' research director, Curt Connors, who used Osborn Industries' property without authorization.
According to insiders, Curt Connors appears to have developed serious psychological problems due to failures and setbacks in his research field. Three Osborn Industries executives have resigned to take responsibility..."
After this, Connors' photo appeared on the television—one showing his former appearance, and another showing him after being killed by Osborn Industries security.
"Fortunately, Curt Connors has been killed by Osborn Industries security, but the damage caused by this accidental leak cannot be avoided."
"I..."
"You're theoretically a dead man now, Dr. Connors."
Lynn then handed Connors a photograph showing Maria and Nancy Connors together.
"Lovely child. Of course, she inherited her mother's family disease. She's unlikely to live past thirteen."
Connors remained silent. He didn't know what Lynn wanted to say or why he was bringing up his daughter. If the mutagen hadn't altered his consciousness, he wouldn't have been particularly good with words anyway.
"Interestingly, although your mutagen changed your consciousness, you didn't immediately inject your daughter with it. You knew the mutagen's flaws, didn't you? Paternal love is truly remarkable."
"No, if I'm dead, the hospital will stop Nancy's treatment. Damn it, I..."
"Don't worry, Maria will arrange her subsequent treatment. But you know, technology might continue to develop, but she certainly won't last until then."
Lynn then handed Connors a document.
"I'm offering you a job. The key is in the materials I just gave you."
"I'm not interested in any job."
He believed the man before him was even more frightening than Osborn Industries and didn't want to repeat his mistakes.
"Then I can only terminate your daughter's medical support. Believe me, if you walk the streets now, you'll only be arrested and thrown into Rikers Island or somewhere worse.
Then Nancy will be expelled from the hospital and die in some orphanage or wherever.
All this would happen naturally without my intervention, and if I didn't intervene, it would already be reality.
I'm practically your savior, aren't I, Curt Connors?"
Lynn offered the materials again.
"Take a look. Perhaps you'll change your mind?"
"..."
Connors finally realized he had no choice. For his daughter's sake, he had to take the materials.
However, as he turned the pages, his expression became increasingly incredulous. Then he looked at Lynn with astonishment.
About two hours later, Connors finally spoke.
"Why me? This technology could go to Stark, or Osborn, or..."
"Hmm, good question. What do you think?"
Connors remained silent.
"Think carefully. If you agree, Kara will arrange a new identity for you. Your daughter can be the first patient at the facility once construction is complete.
Just three treatment cycles will permanently solve her genetic disease, making her life better than before.
I look forward to your correct choice. Isn't this the life you've always dreamed of, Curt Connors?"
With that, Lynn left the room.