"What... happened here?"
Peter was dumbfounded as he entered the lab after repeatedly calling for Dr. Connors but getting no response.
The lab before him was a complete mess! It looked nothing like the clean and orderly space it had been when he left the previous night...
What could have possibly occurred during the time he was away?
Peter's first thought was about the gene serum! He quickly opened the fridge and found the small box containing the serum intact.
He sighed in relief. But when he opened the box, his heart sank—there should have been two vials of serum left, but now there was only one.
A bad feeling began to gnaw at Peter. "Could it be... the Doctor...?"
"No... no way. The gene serum was a success," Peter reassured himself. "The Doctor wouldn't have done the experiment alone..."
Although he feared the worst, Peter still didn't want to believe it! He shut the box containing the gene serum and started looking for clues around the lab.
Soon, Peter found a fallen camcorder on the floor. He picked it up and fiddled with it, discovering that it wasn't broken—just out of battery.
"If the Doctor conducted the experiment last night, he would've recorded it," Peter said, knowing Dr. Connors' meticulous habits. However, the power in the lab had been completely cut off; the wiring was entirely destroyed.
Taking the camcorder and the remaining vial of gene serum, Peter left the lab. "Doctor, I believe you'll be alright."
Peter had no friends at school who could help him with this, so he decided to head home and check what had been recorded on the camcorder.
Not long after Peter left the lab, Alan and Gwen arrived hand in hand at the door. The lab was locked, and Alan could sense that something was off inside.
Gwen noticed it too and said, puzzled, "Strange, could it be that both the Doctor and Peter aren't here today?"
"Usually, at least one of them is always in the lab, right?" Gwen's observation triggered a realization in Alan. "I think something's happened."
"Gwen, break the door open!"
Without questioning him, Gwen grabbed the lock and yanked it off with brute force. They both stepped into the lab together.
The sight inside left Gwen in disbelief. "Oh my God, what happened here?"
Only Alan knew the truth: Dr. Connors had already transformed into the Lizard. As for Peter... whether he was still okay remained unclear.
Gwen immediately pulled out her phone and called Peter.
Peter, on his way home, felt conflicted when he saw Gwen's call coming in. After some hesitation, he finally answered.
"Hello, Gwen."
Hearing his voice, Gwen breathed a deep sigh of relief. "Thank God, Peter, you're okay."
As one of her few close friends, Gwen had been really worried about Peter's safety.
"We're at the lab. What on earth happened here?"
Peter replied honestly, "I don't know either, but I have a bad feeling... Something happened to the Doctor."
"I'm heading home to watch the footage of his last experiment, to figure out what really went down."
"Alright, Alan and I will come over to your house to check it out with you," Gwen said.
After a brief silence, Peter responded, "Okay..."
Once the call ended, Gwen turned to Alan. "Let's go to Peter's house and see what happened."
Alan nodded in agreement.
If Peter were Spider-Man, Alan would naturally prefer to avoid unnecessary trouble. He didn't care for Peter's overly merciful tendencies, which could lead to fatal consequences.
But now, Gwen was the one who had taken up the mantle of Spider-Man/Woman, and the Lizard would become her nemesis.
Given their deepening relationship—one that had already surpassed mere friendship and was moving in another direction—Alan had no intention of letting Gwen face such dangers alone.
The two set off toward Peter's house.
Meanwhile, at New York Airport, a private jet bearing the Stark Industries logo landed. Dressed in a suit, Tony Stark stepped off the plane with Colonel Rhodes helping him. Behind them was Yinsen. The two had returned to New York together.
As soon as they disembarked, Pepper Potts, who had been waiting with tearful eyes, approached them, accompanied by medical staff with a stretcher at the ready.
Tony frowned. "What kind of joke is this? What's with the stretcher? Get rid of it..."
He then walked straight toward Pepper, teasing her, "Red eyes? Were you heartbroken over your missing boss?"
Pepper replied, "I'm relieved! Saved me from having to find a new job."
"Well, now that I'm back, let's get back to work!"
They both got into the car driven by Happy. Tony and Pepper sat in the back, while Yinsen, quite at ease, took the front passenger seat.
Not knowing Yinsen, Happy asked, "Hey, who are you? You sure you're in the right car?"
"No mistake," Tony answered. "He's my friend, Yinsen!"
With Tony's response, Yinsen smiled lightly and buckled his seatbelt.
"Where to, sir?" Happy asked, maintaining his professional driver's demeanor.
Pepper was about to suggest going to the hospital, but Tony quickly interrupted, "I've been locked up for so long. Now there are only two things I want to do."
"One, eat a burger."
"And two..."
Before Tony could finish, Pepper cut in, "Yeah, you're such a flirt."
Her remark made Yinsen laugh out loud from the front seat.
Tony rolled his eyes at him before adding, "Hold a press conference..."
Pepper suddenly sensed something different about Tony—something had changed—but she couldn't quite put her finger on what it was.
"Let's go, Happy. Grab some burgers."
"And notify everyone about the press conference."
"Yes, sir," Happy replied.
...
Soon, the news of Tony's safe return and his upcoming press conference spread throughout New York.
At the NYPD headquarters, George Stacy sat at his desk listening to a report from his subordinates. He let out a dissatisfied sigh, "Damn it, more security detail."
"These filthy rich people!"
On the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier, Nick Fury, with stitches on his face, wore an expressionless look that revealed no emotion.
"You're saying Tony Stark is back?" he asked.
Agent Hill nodded. "Yes, sir! And he's holding a press conference."
"That golden armor went missing yesterday, and today he's back. Could that armor really have something to do with him?"
After thinking for a moment, Fury ordered, "Send Coulson. Find out how Tony managed to survive."
...