Spider-Man Beyond

Reptilian Madness Part 1

They say the foundation of science is built upon risk. How are we to discover something new if we don't risk the possibility of failure, or the risk of ruining oneself, or even risking our very sanity for the purpose of breaking barriers. To push the fundamentals of what science can truly achieve.

That's what Dr. Connors is hoping to achieve this day, as he stood in his basement's laboratory, where he conducted an experiment he's been working on for years. Pushing boundaries.

He took a vial out of a centrifuge that just got done spinning, gazing at the glowing green liquid within it, and placing it into a syringe. Ever since that incident with Octavius, the work he's been doing on his formula has yielded positive results. Everything appeared to be stable, and no signs of side effects through virtual simulations, whihc is more than he could say for past simulations.

Connors looked at the table and eyed a white-furred lab rat he's taken care of for awhile, with a key notable feature about the animal being it had one of its front legs missing.

"Okay...first live test." Connors mumbled to himself. He approached the cage and opened it, picking the rat up, before injecting it with the syrup. The little rodent screeched in pain, at first, but then he settled down, letting Connor's place it back in its cage. "Okay...now we just wait."

"Curt! Can you come up from under there!"

"Coming, honey!" Curt called out, taking off his lab coat and hanging it up.

He soon exited the basement and made his way to the living, but paused to look at some old photos hanging up along the wall. One particular photo showed him years ago holding his son, back when he had both his arms.

'I'm almost there. I can have those moments again.' Curt thought to himself, before he made his way into the living room. There, he saw his beautiful wife sitting on the couch, but what made his eyes widen in shock was that who was sitting across from her on the opposite chair.

This person was an elderly man with short grey hair, wearing a brown coat and had a cane to his side. He gave off a friendly demeanor, but the look in his eyes when he saw Curt was one of disappointment.

"Look who came to visit us." Martha Connors, a woman with short red hair and green eyes, said happily. "Our old college professor."

"Oh...I see." Curt said with surprise, but tried to give a friendly smile. "Doctor Langstrom, it's been a long time."

"Yes, it has." Langstrom said with a nod. "I hope you don't mind me dropping in."

"Absolutely not." Martha said happily. "I just wished you would have called us sooner. I could have prepared something for all of us to enjoy."

"Oh, there's no need to go so far." Langstrom said with a chuckle.

"Still, this is quite a surprise." Curt said as he sat down next to his wife. "I thought you said that you never wanted to come back to Gotham."

"Well, when you retire from teaching, you tend to have some free time on your hands." Langstrom said with a shrug. "So, I heard you two have a son. Where is the little guy?"

"He's over at a friends house, but he should be back soon." Martha said, before she stood up. "I think I might have some sandwiches for us, in the meantime, plus I'll get us some drinks."

As soon as left for the kitchen, Langstrom took on a hard stare and glared at Connors, causing the later to actually look a bit nervous. "Let's cut to the chase, Connors. You know why I'm here."

"Professor Langstrom, I can explain." Curt said nervously.

"Explain what? Explain how you stole my notes years ago? Stole the base composite for the serum I worked on decades?" Langstrom asked sarcastically, while still glaring at the nervous scientist. "No, I want you to explain to me why you want to dig up something I have tried to bury my entire life."