A loud crash came from Norman's office, loud enough that employees nearby could hear it.
Curiosity piqued, many wondered what could be happening in Norman's lab. Yet, no one dared to go near, remembering Norman's strict rule that only those personally invited by him were allowed in the lab. Even walking too close risked being reprimanded by Norman. So, despite their curiosity, most stayed where they were.
Peter, however, knew something serious had likely happened. He quickened his pace, racing toward the lab.
Inside Norman's lab, the impact had sent Norman flying into Jack, knocking them both to the ground. Several of Jack's men rushed over to help them up.
"Norman, what the hell are you doing now?" Jack, still dazed from the hit, was about to stand up and angrily confront Norman, but the scene before him instantly explained everything.
The curtain was slowly lifted, revealing the large homeless man walking out, a smile plastered on his face.
"Hello, there."
Jack glared at Norman furiously. "You said there wouldn't be any problems!"
Norman, being helped up by Jack's men, let out a bitter smile. "The gene serum didn't just enhance his strength; it also sped up his metabolism. In the short time since, the drugs have already broken down in his system. I didn't expect this to happen."
"Get out of the way!" Jack shouted as the homeless man suddenly picked up a cart and hurled it at them.
Fortunately, Jack's warning came just in time, and they narrowly dodged the flying cart. It smashed against the wall, shattering into pieces with a loud crash.
Jack's face darkened as he turned to Norman. "Now what do we do?"
"You need to stall him. The drugs haven't fully metabolized yet. He might not be able to take all of you on at once. I still have more of the suppressant—once he's subdued, we can inject him again," Norman said quickly.
Jack gritted his teeth. This was their only option now. "Come on, guys! Let's get him!"
With Jack leading the charge, the others followed suit and rushed toward the homeless man. Seeing them coming at him, the man's expression shifted.
The new personality, triggered by the gene serum, was far superior to the original in every way. He'd thrown the cart earlier because, as Norman had guessed, the drugs hadn't fully worn off. He was just trying to buy time and scare them off.
But now, with Norman having figured him out and the group rushing at him, the man had only one thought left: Escape!
He needed to flee, recover fully, and come back for revenge later. With that plan in mind, he acted immediately.
As Jack and his men closed in, the homeless man grabbed a metal pipe and charged at them. The force of his swings made the air whistle as the pipe cut through it.
The sight intimidated Jack's men, causing them to hesitate and stop in their tracks. Jack, seeing his men falter, also halted.
The homeless man, pleased by their fear, took the opportunity to dash forward, still swinging the pipe wildly.
"Get out of my way!" he roared.
Intimidated, Jack and his men immediately backed off, clearing a path for him. Norman, witnessing this, panicked. If the man escaped the lab, the consequences would be disastrous.
"He's bluffing! You can't let him escape!" Norman shouted frantically.
One of Jack's men, fed up with Norman's constant orders, yelled back, "Why don't you stop him yourself if you're so sure? You think just because you say he's weak, he actually is?"
Norman's face flushed with anger, but he couldn't argue. He was, after all, only guessing about the man's strength.
But one thing was certain: if the man got out of the lab, things would spiral out of control.
Determined, Norman grabbed a syringe and charged toward the homeless man. He was convinced that if he could inject the serum, he could neutralize the threat once and for all.
Seeing Norman rushing at him alone, the homeless man couldn't help but laugh. Using all his strength, he swung the pipe down toward Norman's head.
"Damn it!" Norman realized too late that he couldn't dodge in time. If the pipe connected, his head would likely end up smashed like a watermelon.
The metal pipe hurtled toward Norman's head, and the homeless man's face twisted into a cruel grin. Jack's expression changed as well.
Just as it seemed all hope was lost, a figure suddenly leaped toward Norman. The pipe swung past, narrowly missing the figure. Norman, now saved from the deadly strike, looked at the person who had tackled him to safety.
"Peter?"
Norman was surprised—he hadn't expected Peter to be the one to rescue him. Blood was trickling down from Peter's brow, a small but steady stream. The gash was minor, just a scratch, but the fact that Peter was bleeding so much showed how powerful that pipe strike had been.
Seeing his attack fail, the homeless man didn't linger. Without hesitation, he tossed the pipe aside and bolted toward the exit. Norman knew he couldn't stop him on his own. As the homeless man ran off, Jack and his men finally came over, helping Norman and Peter to their feet.
Peter, holding his hand to his bleeding forehead to staunch the flow, asked, "Dr. Norman, that guy just now... who was he?"
Although Peter had already deduced the truth from the man's size and strength, he wanted confirmation from Norman. Still feeling guilty about Peter's injury, Norman nodded. He regretted not heeding Peter's earlier warning about proceeding with the experiment before the data was fully analyzed.
But most of all, he regretted the fact that the homeless man had escaped from Oscorp. Had the man still been contained, Norman's regrets would have been far less significant.
Peter's face darkened as he looked at Norman, his anger ultimately condensed into a heavy sigh.
"So, what do we do now?"
Before Norman could answer, Jack chimed in, "Whatever happens, that's your problem. We're not sticking around for more of your crazy science experiments."
Jack stepped forward and gave Norman's chest a light tap. "The guy might've gotten away, but my payment isn't going anywhere, right?"
Norman's face darkened as well, and he was just about to scold Jack and his men for their inaction when a chorus of screams erupted from outside, throughout Oscorp.
Norman's expression shifted immediately. "Damn it!"
Ignoring Jack and Peter, he bolted from the lab. Peter, hearing the commotion, gritted his teeth through the pain in his head and followed him.
"Boss, what should we do now?" one of Jack's men asked.
Jack thought for a moment and replied, "Let's go check it out."
Inside Oscorp, chaos reigned as the homeless man rampaged through the facility. People screamed in terror at the sight of the hulking figure charging around, and the once orderly building descended into utter chaos.
With Oscorp's sprawling layout, the homeless man struggled to find his bearings, unable to locate the exit.
He grabbed a random researcher, intimidating him with his towering presence. "Tell me, how do I get out of this hellhole?"
Terrified out of his wits, the researcher had no idea where the exit was. Panicked, he pointed in a random direction. The homeless man tossed the researcher aside and sprinted off in the indicated direction.
As more time passed, the serum's effects in his body continued to diminish, and his speed increased. Soon enough, he reached the end of the hallway, only to find that it led to a tall wall, not an exit.
Narrowing his eyes, the homeless man gathered speed, then leapt up and grabbed the wall halfway up. With one final push, he vaulted over the wall, disappearing from Oscorp entirely.
By the time Norman made it outside, Oscorp was in complete disarray, and the homeless man was nowhere to be seen. Furious, Norman pounded the railing in frustration.
Peter, who had followed him outside, saw that the test subject had escaped. "Dr. Norman, the side effects of the enhancement serum—are they a secondary personality or just heightened emotions?"
Norman pondered for a moment. "It's a secondary personality. And judging by his behavior, the second personality is superior in every way to the original. It's also highly prone to violence."
"So, the second personality that develops after using the enhancement serum is dangerous?" Peter analyzed.
Norman nodded.
"Now that he's escaped Oscorp, we have to call the police immediately. If we don't, what if he hurts innocent people?"
With that, Peter, ignoring the pain in his head, pulled out his phone to make the call.
Peter was about to call the police when Norman grabbed his hand, stopping him. "Peter, what do you think you're doing?" Norman's voice was tense. "Do you have any idea what will happen to Oscorp, to me, if you call the police?"
Peter shoved Norman's hand away and snapped, "I only know that if I don't call, countless people will be in danger! A super-enhanced individual is on the loose, and you know what that means!"
Norman froze, taken aback by Peter's outburst, allowing Peter to go ahead and dial the number. However, it wasn't Peter's words that made Norman pause—it was the leftover serum still in his hand. He had initially planned to use it on the homeless man, but now...
"Hello, I need to—" Peter began, but before he could finish, Norman plunged a syringe into Peter's neck. Instantly, Peter felt dizzy, overwhelmed by a flood of negative effects. He turned his head weakly, disbelief in his eyes.
"N-Norman... Doctor..." Peter stammered.
With a smile, Norman took the phone from Peter's hand. "Sorry, my kid got hold of the phone by mistake," he said calmly to the operator.
Peter collapsed onto the ground, his vision fading as he saw Norman crouching beside him. "Peter, you can't blame me. You brought this on yourself by not cooperating with my research…"
Soon, everything went dark for Peter.
From behind, Jack walked up with a mocking tone, "He saved your life, you know. And this is how you repay him? You're that heartless?"
Norman stood up and replied coldly, "He was trying to ruin me. I had no choice." Then, turning to Jack's men, he ordered, "Take him inside."
Jack gave a sarcastic smile. "Norman, did you forget? I told you, our partnership is over."
"Over?" Norman looked at Jack intently and continued, "The modified human that's rampaging outside—that was your doing. You think you can wash your hands of it if things go south?"
Jack's face darkened, and he glared at Norman. "So, you were playing us from the start."
"No," Norman responded. "If you had listened to me and subdued him earlier, none of this would've happened. This is your own fault."
Norman glanced at Peter's unconscious body. "Now, take him inside. I'll deal with the rest of Oscorp's staff and make sure they keep quiet. Right now, all we can do is control the situation until we get that test subject back."
Jack growled, "You'd better not be lying to me!"
"Of course not," Norman said smoothly. "We're still partners, after all." He patted Jack on the shoulder and walked back to the lab.
Jack watched Norman's retreating figure and spat in disgust. "You two, carry him inside."
---
Meanwhile, aboard the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier, Nick Fury stood at the command center, watching footage of a large man leaping over the walls of Oscorp and disappearing into a nearby alley.
"Is this part of their 'New Captain America' project?" Fury asked, turning to Maria Hill, who was standing behind him.
Hill skimmed through some files and nodded. "Yes, it's a collaboration between the military and Norman Osborn. But so far, the military hasn't contributed much. They only promised that if Osborn's experiment succeeded, they'd announce a stable partnership."
Fury's expression shifted. He thought he was ruthless, but the military seemed even more cutthroat. It was clear they were hedging their bets: if the experiment worked, they'd reap all the benefits. If it failed, they'd distance themselves from the whole thing, risk-free. A clever plan.
"Norman's nothing like Howard," Fury muttered in disdain.
Hill, unfamiliar with Howard Stark, didn't comment and instead asked, "Do we need to keep an eye on the guy who escaped from Oscorp?"
"No," Fury replied. "Not worth wasting resources on a lowlife like him. Besides, we've got our friendly neighborhood Spider-Woman to handle things."
"What about Ivan Vanko and Justin Hammer?" Hill asked.
"Leave them be. They're just two clowns, along with that fool from the Defense Department. Tony will take care of it. We'll step in only if he can't handle it."
Fury's tone shifted as he added, "What I'm more interested in is that hammer."
Hill switched the screen to show a strong, blonde man fighting off several S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, making his way to a mysterious hammer embedded in the ground.
"Impressive," Fury remarked, noting the man's fighting skills. Though the agents were well-trained, this blonde man had effortlessly taken them down. Fury suspected he might even be able to lift the hammer, much like a certain armored Avenger.
But soon, Fury's expectations were dashed. In the pouring rain, the blonde man gave his all, but the hammer didn't budge, not even a little. Frustrated, the man roared at the sky in anguish.
In the final moments of the footage, Agent Coulson appeared, leading the defeated man away.
---
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