Ch: 31-40
Chapter 31 – Obadiah Offers Tenfold, Tony Seeks Revenge!
Obadiah's heart skipped a beat; he yanked out his phone and, sure enough, there was no signal at all.
Damn it! I've been set up!
The thought had barely surfaced when—bang!—a body slammed onto the windshield right in front of him.
A closer look revealed it was none other than Franklin, the Captain of the guard he'd just summoned.
And only half of Franklin at that.
His lower body was gone; the mangled torso smacked against the glass, eyes wide with terror, blood frothing from his lips—clearly on the verge of death.
'Save… me…'
The lone remaining arm reached toward the driver and Obadiah inside the car.
'Aaaargh!'
The driver shrieked, drowning out Franklin's plea.
Only Obadiah kept his head, though his breathing quickened. 'Damn it—shut up and drive!'
He cursed himself for hiring a cheap coward—good wheelman, zero nerve.
Obadiah's roar worked: the driver fell silent… and so did Franklin.
Was it Obadiah's authority?
Of course not.
They simply couldn't scream anymore—shluck!
A glimmering longsword pierced through Franklin's skull, through the driver's gaping mouth, and out the seatback, stopping one finger from Obadiah's eye.
Obadiah stopped breathing; he had never felt death so close.
Through the cracked windshield he saw a cyan-skinned, crimson-eyed, ninja-shaped thing crouched on the hood.
He called it a 'thing' because, though human in outline, it clearly wasn't human—
the same species as those pincer-monsters, just a different form.
Perhaps… not even alive.
Yet Obadiah stayed calm, locking the doors and sliding away from the windows to avoid his guards' fate.
Running was suicide; unknown numbers of those creatures waited outside.
Only inside this armored car, until Police noticed something wrong, did he stand a chance.
Against ordinary attackers—or even most super-humans—he'd be right.
Unfortunately, these assailants were anything but ordinary.
And… you forgot to turn on the cabin light, Mr. Obadiah Stane~
Whoosh—
A cold draft swept the interior, making Obadiah shiver.
Not the AC—luckily the system was fine.
Unluckily, a razor-short blade now lay across his throat.
Its owner's hand rested on his shoulder; he dared not move.
On his right, a black-haired man in dark clothes had appeared.
Obadiah swallowed. 'Double whatever you're being paid—just spare me.'
Karl pressed the edge deeper, drawing blood.
'Why do targets always insult my profession with that line?'
Obadiah froze, then upped the ante: 'Tenfold. Name your figure—I'll wire it right now.'
'Tenfold? Generous—for once. Too bad your buyer's price is one you could never match…'
'…don't you agree, Mr. Tony Stark?'
'Yeah…' The low, familiar voice came from his left.
Obadiah's eyes snapped over, blade be damned—
and saw the face he'd thought sent to hell.
'Tony?!'
Bang—
Tony drove an elbow into Obadiah's gut, palmed his bald head, and grinned:
'Surprise, Stane. I crawled out of hell for payback.'
Caught, Obadiah snarled, 'Impossible. I paid the Ten Rings Gang extra—how are you alive?'
After realizing their target was Tony Stark, the Ten Rings Gang had sent Obadiah a ransom clip demanding more money.
To finish it cleanly, he'd paid, certain they'd kill Tony.
They'd sworn they would.
He'd expected Tony's grave to be three feet in weeds—yet here he sat, very much alive…
and vengeful.
Tony patted Obadiah's bald scalp. 'Old fox, you love lies—fooled my father, fooled me, even tried to fool Terrorists. But the eagle you hunted just pecked your eyes out.'
'You lied about the real target; they lied about killing me. They took your cash, kept me alive to build them free missiles—until Karl broke me out.'
'Now the ledger closes, and someone dies. Won't be me—so who does that leave?'
Chapter 32: The Real Cause of Tony's Parents' Death—Karl's Murderous Intent
As Tony's voice grew colder, Karl obliged by pressing the short blade deeper into Obadiah's throat, letting the edge sink millimeter by millimeter into the man's flesh.
It wasn't instantly fatal, but the viper-cold steel resting against his larynx put Obadiah through agony in both body and mind.
Tony secretly gave Karl a thumbs-up: This, he signalled, is what you call professionalism.
Karl answered with a wink: You keep acting cool; leave the rest to me.
Under that living hell of slow torture, Obadiah's bravado crumbled fast, his voice turning shrill with terror.
'Stop—Tony, please, make him stop! Remember when you were little? I held you in my arms. I pulled you out of the abyss and put you back in control of Stark Industries!'
Tony lifted a hand at the words, and Karl froze instantly.
The chill left Tony's face; he slipped the blade away from Obadiah's neck and smiled thinly.
'True, that does remind me—you've been the good uncle who built everything alongside my father since I was a kid...'
Seeing the softened tone, Obadiah hid a flash of malice and nodded eagerly.
'Yes, yes! I was your father's best friend, your uncle. I just made one mistake—I'll never—AHHH!'
Squelch—
Before he could finish, Tony rammed the knife into Obadiah's thigh and twisted the handle viciously back and forth.
Eyes blazing with a killer's aura, Tony snarled, 'Stane, last chance: tell the truth and I won't kill you.'
Obadiah, deathly pale, nodded frantically.
Tony's knife-hand trembled as he spoke, voice leaden.
'This time you leaked my travel route, wanting me dead in Afghanistan so you could grab Stark Industries—but that plan didn't hatch yesterday, did it?'
'Back in '91, the year my parents died—did you sell out their route too, setting them up for the hit?'
Obadiah's breath caught; pupils shrinking, he instinctively looked away.
'I don't know what you're talking about. The police report you saw said it was an accident. Their crash had nothing to do with me...'
'Heh.'
Shhhk—Squelch—
With a cold laugh Tony yanked the blade free and plunged it into Obadiah's other good leg.
'You think I'm still three years old? I never suspected you, so I missed the stink—now you're feeding me the same shit!'
'Do you even believe that police report yourself?'
'I won't ask again: did you leak their route and arrange the crash that killed my parents? Answer me!'
Tony twisted the knife once more; Obadiah screamed like a stuck pig.
'AHHH—motherf—! Yes! I leaked their route, but I swear I didn't order the kill! On my life! God!'
Broken by the torture, Obadiah admitted his part in their deaths.
Yet he insisted he hadn't sent the actual killers.
Tony drew a ragged breath, fighting the urge to slit his throat. 'Then who murdered them—and to whom did you give that route?'
Karl, watching coldly, felt a murderous glint flash in his eyes.
Every patch of shadow inside the car stirred, ready to swallow everything within.
The darkness threatened not only Obadiah but Tony—for the coming answer was one Karl might dislike. From the exchange Karl realized HYDRA had likely used Obadiah's leak to send the Winter Soldier after Howard and Maria.
The film had never spelled it out, so it hadn't stuck in his memory.
If Obadiah spoke HYDRA's name, Karl would have to silence not just him but Tony as well.
Tony could bring endless wealth, yet HYDRA could deliver power and influence beyond compare.
Throughout history power has always trumped money.
Intent on the answer, Tony never noticed the lethal shadows; nor did the half-conscious Obadiah realize their next words would decide their fates—Tony's fate, really.
Obadiah's had long been sealed.
Still, today luck favored Tony.
Obadiah shook his head weakly. 'I don't know who they are. I didn't even seek them out—they came to me...'
'They forced the route out of me. I had no choice. I'm sorry, Tony, truly...'
Tony ripped the knife free and shook his head in disgust. 'No—you owe that apology to my father, who trusted you.
'And now, Obadiah, you're nothing but poison to Stark Industries.'
Realization struck; Obadiah grabbed Tony's collar in a last surge of panic. 'No! You promised—tell the truth and you wouldn't kill me—you swore!'
Tony slapped away the blood-weak hand, tossed the knife back to Karl, and said flatly.
'Right, I promised I wouldn't kill you. I never said no one else would. Grow a better brain next life, Stane.'
Without another glance he stepped out and slammed the door shut.
Shhhhk—
A blade sliced flesh; blood sprayed the window.
Thud.
After finishing Obadiah with a single cut, Karl climbed out, offered Tony a cigarette.
A smoke after the deed: better than paradise.
Side by side they leaned against the car, smoking in silence.
Chapter 33: Stark Industries on the Decline? Classic Tony Giving Money Scene~
Inside the car, and in the other escort vehicles, countless Ghost Shadow Ninjas were cleaning up the aftermath.
The Ghost Shadow Ninjas inside the car were erasing all traces left by Karl and Tony, while those outside were raising their AKs to deliver additional shots to the bodies of the guards.
Then, they dragged out bodies from the shadows, haphazardly throwing them around the guards to simulate a scene where both sides were wiped out after a firefight.
These bodies, of course, belonged to some of the Ten Rings Gang members from two days ago when Karl rescued Tony.
He had specifically instructed the Ghost Shadow Ninjas to store them in the Shadow World for this very purpose.
When Tony announces his return tomorrow, Karl will naturally arrange for news to expose Obadiah and the Ten Rings Gang's dirty dealings, and reveal that Obadiah didn't fully pay the Ten Rings Gang, leading to his death in retaliation.
Isn't this arrangement very reasonable?
Well, Karl thought it was quite reasonable anyway.
There were also loopholes, such as fatal knife wounds on the necks of every corpse, but it wasn't a big problem.
Karl would just have HYDRA's people in the judiciary secretly manipulate things, and no one would suspect anything~
By the time the two finished their cigarettes, the Ghost Shadow Ninjas had almost finished setting up the scene and were raising several RPGs towards the cars, preparing for the final cleanup.
In the distance, Police sirens could also be heard.
U.S. drama trope: Police always arrive late +1
Hearing the sound, Karl placed his hand on Tony's shoulder: "Time to go, brother~"
Tony said nothing, merely flicking his cigarette butt onto the ground.
The next second, the two sank into the shadows beneath their feet.
The Ghost Shadow Ninjas also pulled the trigger before the Police arrived.
Boom, boom, boom——————————
After several violent explosions, the Ghost Shadow Ninjas erased the last suspicious traces from the scene, ensuring that this death was completely defined as an act of terrorist retaliation~
The next day, the news of Obadiah's attack and death naturally made the front page.
But this headline didn't last until noon, as it was overshadowed by another explosive piece of news!
That was the return of Tony Stark, CEO of Stark Industries, to Stark Industries today!
And he held a press conference at noon, announcing another major piece of news that shocked all of America, and even the World!
That is, effective immediately, Stark Industries would indefinitely close its weapons division!
As soon as this news broke, the impact was undoubtedly immense.
Not only was the external impact huge, but internally it was a devastating blow!
It's important to know that while Stark Industries was involved in various industries, the bulk of the company's profits, even 90% of its revenue, came from the highly lucrative arms trade!
Furthermore, Stark Industries started with arms dealing. Now, for Tony to close the weapons division, wasn't that equivalent to castrating himself and cutting off his own retreat?
Therefore, the directors of Stark Industries all entered emergency escape mode, dumping their shares at low prices to minimize their losses.
Even the U.S. Military, which had always considered Stark Industries its top choice, withdrew its investment from Stark Industries, unhesitatingly kicking Stark Industries off the Military's arms supplier list.
Everyone believed that Tony Stark had been tortured to madness during the two months he was kidnapped by Terrorists, abandoning even the most crucial lifeline of Stark Industries!
For a time, Tony was met with a chorus of curses and ridicule, both internally and externally.
Justin Hammer, the CEO of Stark Industries' old rival, Hammer Industries, dramatically announced the day after Tony closed the weapons division that Hammer Industries would replace Stark Industries as the Military's primary arms supplier!
It seemed that, all of a sudden, Stark Industries, once the World's leading arms company, was in decline and rapidly heading towards ruin.
But was that truly the case?
Half a month later... in Stark Tower, where the number of employees had already been halved, Tonyand Karl were raising their glasses in Tony's exclusive penthouse bar, looking completely relaxed, as if unaffected by the negative news from the outside World over the past half-month.
And that was indeed the truth.
Neither Tony, the CEO, nor Karl, the sole current shareholder of Stark Industries, paid any attention to the plummeting Stark stock price.
Or rather, the more it crashed, the happier the two of them became!
Crash! Crash! For them, the more it crashed now, the greater the returns would be in the future!
Ding——————
Tony's private elevator opened, and a tall, elegant blonde woman with a capable demeanor stepped out.
This person was naturally Pepper Potts, the'sharpest' sword in Tony's hand, who had the strongest backing in Marvel!
Pepper walked up to Tony, glanced at the laptop in her hand, and reported:
"Boss, as you requested, I've been buying back all the Stark shares being dumped on the market over the past half-month..."
"Just now, the last shareholder of Stark Industries also divested, and I've acquired his shares. Now, apart from the 15% shares held by Director Fisk, all other 85% shares are under your name..."
Tony nodded faintly: "Very good. Have you prepared what I asked you to?"
Pepper nodded, placed the laptop on the bar, and handed a contract to Karl.
Why am I involved?
Karl, who was only invited by Tony to witness the launch of the new energy project today, was surprised and took the contract.
After flipping through it for a couple of glances, Karl raised an eyebrow: "Transfer of 25% of Stark Industries shares?"
Has it finally arrived?
The most classic Tony giving money scene in Marvel transmigration novels!
Almost 90% of protagonists in Marvel transmigration novels earn their first large sum of money from Tony.
Although Karl, born into the Fisk Family, certainly didn't get his first large sum of money from Tony.
But it seems he still couldn't escape this money-giving segment~
Karl's lips curved into a smile as he looked up at Tony opposite him, teasing:
"Tsk tsk, a full 25% of the shares. Even based on Stark Industries' previous market value, that would be hundreds of billions of U.S. dollars, not to mention the inestimable value after developing the new energy market. Why are you suddenly so generous?"
You know, even if Kingpin took out all of the Fisk Family's liquid assets, he could only buy 15% of Stark Industries shares, which had already fallen in price.
To acquire 25% of the shares, even Kingpin would have to pay a considerable price~
Tony drained the wine in his glass, a rebellious smile playing on his lips: "Tsk, you brat, what do you mean, 'when did I become so generous?'"
"This genius has always been this generous, alright? It's just that my generosity is only for friends and fellow geniuses!"
"And you, my friend, you are not only the smartest genius besides me, but also my good friend. What's wrong with sharing a little bit of my wealth with a good friend?"
Chapter 34: book of ages? A Moment of Terror!
Clap, clap, clap—
Karl clapped his hands and gave Tony a thumbs up: "What a fine 'billion bit.' I, Karl Fisk, am willing to call you, Tony Stark, the World's number one King of Flexing!"
Tony poured another glass of wine for himself and Karl respectively, stood up, and raised his glass to Karl:
"Let's stop flattering each other. This 25% is actually Obadiah Stane's shares. After his crimes were established, I reclaimed the shares he held. But no matter what, you deserve this, so sign it, brother!"
Whether it was because Karl had saved him, helped him take revenge, or indirectly saved Pepper and Happy, in Tony's heart, Karl deserved this 25%.
"Hey, since you've called me brother, what else can I say? I'll sign it!"
Karl spoke as he signed and sealed the contract in one smooth motion, increasing his 15% stake in Stark Industries to a terrifying 40%!
It was no exaggeration to say that with this 40% stake, as long as Karl didn't lose his mind in the future and do something stupid like donating it all to a charity like BLM, he wouldn't be able to squander it all even if he spent his whole life trying!
Even by the time he died, this wealth might even have increased the more he spent!
After all, Stark Industries was famous in Marvel for making money faster than it could be spent~
Seeing Karl sign the contract so decisively, Tony also showed a Happy smile:
"Now that all the parasites in Stark Industries have been rooted out, it's time. Karl, raise your glass now. Let's officially launch Stark's Counterattack Plan and sweep the energy market!"
Karl also stood up, raised his glass, and smiled:
"Go for it, Tony. As I said before, you're in charge of making money, and I'm in charge of cleaning up. No one can block our path to wealth~"
Tony shook his finger: "No, no, no, broaden your horizons, Karl. We're not just making money; we're changing the World!"
Karl shrugged: "Right, changing the World while making money~"
"I really don't know why anyone would care about a string of meaningless numbers compared to changing the World~"
Tony rolled his eyes speechlessly and clinked glasses with Karl.
Clink——————
This was just a light clink of two wine glasses, but it was destined to cause an earth-shattering sensation in this World!
After clinking glasses, Karl didn't drink the wine immediately but was slightly dazed for a moment.
Seeing this, Tony, who had already drained his glass, couldn't help but be puzzled: "What's wrong? Don't tell me that at a time like this, you've suddenly realized you haven't reached the legal drinking age yet~"
Facing Tony's teasing, Karl snapped out of it, also drained his glass, and his expression returned to normal as he smiled:
"Of course not. I just suddenly remembered I have a date tonight. It's getting late, so I should probably head off to keep it~"
"After all, making a lady wait isn't the behavior of a gentleman~"
Hearing this, Tony gave a wicked grin and slapped Karl's firm buttocks hard: "If you're talking about that, then I understand perfectly. When I was your age, my lower body was more energetic than my upper body too~"
"I get you, bro. Go and put the performance of those buttocks to use, you electric little motor~"
Karl said nothing, only raising his middle finger at Tony. Then, under Pepper's surprised gaze, he sank into his shadow and disappeared.
The reason Karl was in such a hurry to leave was naturally not because he really had a date with Gwen, but because something more important than the new energy launch or Gwen had happened... Just now, at the moment he clinked glasses with Tony, he suddenly felt something unknown added to his Shadow World.
One must know that the Shadow World in Marvel was equivalent to an independent dimension, a dimension belonging solely to Karl.
Logically, without Karl's permission, no one should be able to break into the Shadow Dimensionprivately.
But unexpectedly, just now, without any permission from him, something that wasn't there before suddenly appeared in the Shadow World!
And Karl was now going to see for himself exactly what this suddenly appeared thing was.
The Shadow World was Karl's most important trump card; he would never allow any accidents to occur!
Sinking into the shadow, Karl didn't transfer to another location but appeared within the Shadow World.
Unlike the colorful reality, the Shadow World's art style was more like ink wash painting.
Everything here—mountains, water, buildings, and creatures—was in black and white.
Karl appeared inside the only building in the Shadow World.
This was also Karl's palace, a palace only he had ever entered.
But in the main hall of this palace today, there was an object that was completely out of place in this black-and-white World!
Karl strode into the hall. The Ghost Shadow Ninja and Pincer Shadow who had already surrounded the object stepped aside to clear a path, kneeling on one knee to show their respect to Karl.
Karl ignored them, staring fixedly at the object in the center of the hall, his breathing becoming rapid!
It was a book—a massive ancient book placed on a Golden Dragon Stand, over two meters high and over three meters wide when unfolded!
And it had a name that no Chinese person could ignore... the book of ages!
That is, the heaven-defying divine book that could rewrite history in jackie chan adventures!
With this, why would he need to spend any effort planning, taking things step by step for a chance to stand at the top of the World? It would just be a matter of moving a pen!
With a stroke of a pen, this World, and even this Universe, would be his, and everyone would have to listen to him!
Karl's eyes were burning with fervor. He walked step by step to the book of ages, picked up the Golden Brush beside the book without hesitation, and prepared to write.
But just as the tip of his brush was only a finger's width from the page, a sudden and intense feeling of palpitations spread from Karl's heart to his entire body!
At the same time, it felt as if a pair of eyes were watching him from behind, making Karl feel like thorns were at his back!
Danger!!!
He would die! He would definitely die!
A voice originating from his subconscious kept echoing in Karl's mind, making him snap back to his senses instantly!
Snap————
It wasn't until he threw the brush in his hand onto the ground that the inexplicable feeling of palpitations and the sensation of being watched from behind disappeared together.
Karl let out a long breath and sat on the ground without any regard for his image, his back already soaked with cold sweat.
Closing his eyes and sensing that there was no one else in the Shadow World besides himself, Karlreopened his eyes.
"What on earth was that 'thing'..."
Karl's expression was grave. He was certain that his sensation just now was definitely not wrong!
At the moment he was about to write and change history,'someone' had been to his Shadow World—someone strong enough to enter and leave his dimension at will and kill him!
But 'He' didn't do that; He just watched quietly, seemingly waiting for him to make a choice before deciding whether to interfere, just like... an Enforcer of Order?
Chapter 35: The book of ages Drops Gold, the rooster talisman!
After calming down, Karl looked at the book of ages before him, lost in thought.
It seemed that in the Marvel Universe, he couldn't just modify history at will on the book of ages like Shendu did in the jackie chan adventures Universe.
The rules of the Marvel Universe were far more complex than those of the jackie chan adventuresUniverse, and there were many powerful entities maintaining the timeline.
Karl estimated that even if he had successfully written a new history into the book of ages just now, turning the World into his personal playground, the modified World would surely attract various powerful beings who safeguard the timeline.
Entities like the TVA, He Who Remains, The Watcher, or even OAA... Aside from the ordinary TVAagents, the others were not beings he could face right now... So... did I just get a useless piece of junk book?
Dammit, all that excitement for nothing. Giving me an unusable book of ages is less practical than giving me the twelve talismans!
The more Karl thought about it, the angrier he got. He stood up, wanting to throw the damn book into the palace toilet and let this 'book of ages' taste some real age-old filth!
But just as his hand touched the book of ages, the blank pages lit up with a blinding glare comparable to a flashbang!
Watch your eyes!
The flash was so bright that Karl felt as if he could hear Fire-Man's shout from the void!
Holy shit! What's going on now?
Was it because he played Fire-Man too much in his past life and shouted 'Burn!' at everyone, and now karma was coming for him?
After a good while, the blinding light finally faded, allowing Karl to lower the hand shielding his eyes.
When he looked at the book of ages again, he was surprised to find that the previously blank pages were now being filled with lines of text!
And these records were nothing else but the entire process starting from his rescue of Tony, up until he and Tony raised their glasses to officially announce Stark Industries' entry into the energy market!
Karl watched with a face full of confusion, wondering if the book was trying to write a novel or just take notes for him.
Do I really need a 'previously on' recap from you?
What's the point of recording things that have already happened?
Should I pay you some royalties while I'm at it?
Just as Karl was speechless, before he could pay any royalties, the book of ages actually dropped some loot for him!
The words recorded in the book of ages suddenly emitted a golden light. This light gathered in front of Karl and actually materialized!
What the golden light materialized into was an octagonal stone talisman that Karl was incredibly familiar with, engraved with a proud red rooster!
This is... the rooster talisman from the twelve talismans!
"Holy shit! Holy shit! Holy shit!"
Three consecutive exclamations were enough to express Karl's shock!
Karl grabbed the rooster talisman floating in front of him and gripped it tightly. His previously disgusted expression instantly shifted to one of devotion, and he bowed deeply to the book of ageswithout hesitation:
"Brother Book, my thoughts were a bit too loud just now. This isn't a piece of junk; this is an epic divine tome!"
"How could I say you're useless? You're incredibly useful!"
"Look, I have eighteen years of past events that haven't been recorded yet. Why don't you record a bit more, put it all in the book, and while you're at it, drop another eight or ten talismans for me? That'd be great~"
book of ages:...Clearly, the book of ages ignored Karl's greedy and unreasonable request.
Or rather, it didn't have a consciousness at all... Seeing the unresponsive book of ages, Karl wasn't too disappointed. Instead, he looked down at the rooster talisman in his palm and began to ponder.
For the past seventeen years, he had always thought that the Shadow World and the Shadow Legionwere his only cheats after transmigrating.
Although the speed of awakening a new type of Shadow Legion every ten years was a bit slow, Karlwas actually quite satisfied with this cheat.
After all, ordinary people only had one superpower, while he would automatically gain a new one every ten years, completing another piece of his Shadow World.
Once he collected all nine types of the Shadow Legion and fully completed the Shadow World, he would directly ascend to become a Lord of the Dimension, surpassing 99% of the powerhouses in the Marvel Universe!
Besides, Karl didn't plan to actually wait eighty years to become a top powerhouse in the Universe after gathering all nine legions.
He also had plans to seize treasures from this Universe, such as the popular six Infinity Stones, the real Mandarin's Ten Magic Rings, the wondrous Ten Rings in Wenwu's hands, the artifacts of Asgard, and so on... But now, it seemed he didn't need to be in such a hurry to snatch these local Marvel treasures.
He himself was holding a 'mountain of treasure'!
That treasure mountain was the book of ages in front of him!
Although the book of ages couldn't modify history to make Karl reach the top in one step, it had the ability to materialize treasures like the rooster talisman, allowing Karl to grow stronger step by step!
As for the method of materializing talismans, Karl had a rough guess.
In his first eighteen years, the book of ages never appeared. Why did it show up exactly at this time?
And why did it ignore his first eighteen years of history, yet specifically record the entire process from his rescue of Tony to its conclusion?
There was only one reason... and that was 'change'!
He had changed what was supposed to happen on the original timeline, which triggered the book of ages and allowed him to obtain materialized items from it.
Now, some might ask... didn't you previously change the timeline where Peter was bullied, the timeline where Gwen became Peter's girlfriend, and even the timeline where Peter's Uncle Ben died?
That involves two other key points regarding 'change'.
The starting point of the timeline and narrative integrity.
First, the starting point of the timeline. As everyone knows, Iron Man, as the work that revived Marvel, is a pivotal moment in the MCU Universe and the most important one.
It's fair to say that without this first Iron Man movie, it's uncertain if there would even be a subsequent Marvel MCU, or perhaps Marvel would be like DC, constantly rebooting its cinematic Universe~
According to Karl's observations, although this Universe was slightly different from the MCU, it generally fell within the scope of the cinematic Universe.
So it was very likely that Iron Man was still the pivotal moment that officially kicked off this Universe... and the book of ages might have appeared because of this critical point in time.
Secondly, it's about narrative integrity.
Over the past eighteen years, Karl had indeed made many changes.
For example, the series of events involving Peter mentioned earlier, the important connection between Kingpin and Pierce, or the various assassination missions Karl himself performed for HYDRA—events that did not exist in the original timeline...
Chapter 36: Me Fighting Hulk? Flight!
But there's a common thread in all of this: Karl hasn't fully changed or participated in an entire'story' yet!
The incident with Tony was the first complete'story' he participated in; from Tony's initial escape to him completing his revenge, Karl was involved throughout!
And this is very likely the reason for the appearance of the book of ages.
Because he changed a very, very important piece of 'history'!
The most significant evidence for this is that the book of ages only recorded this one event regarding Tony, and nothing else.
However, this was all just Karl's speculation; he couldn't be entirely certain.
After all, the book of ages isn't a system; it won't tell you if your guesses are correct~
As for why the book of ages could drop talismans, that wasn't as worth looking into for Karl.
After all, he was born with the Shadowkhan Army; so what if the book of ages came with the twelve talismans?
It's perfectly reasonable!
Now, only one thing mattered to Karl... and that was to figure out the rules of the book of ages so it would drop more equipment for him!
Hmm, starting with experiencing and changing another complete plotline!
And at this point in time, what plotlines could he fully participate in and change?
In the MCU in 2008, there seemed to be only one Iron Man movie... wait, no!
A flash of inspiration struck Karl—wasn't "The Incredible Hulk" also a story that took place in 2008?
Although he didn't remember the exact timeline of "The Incredible Hulk," he remembered the post-credits scene where General Ross met with Tony!
Holy crap, was his first experimental target going to be such a heavyweight?
With his current strength, could he take on Hulk and the potentially appearing Abomination?
While Pincer Shadows could handle power-type opponents on the level of Rhino, they might still be a bit lacking against someone like Hulk, the absolute representative of power in Marvel.
Unless he could now summon the Troll Clan's Giant Shadows, which represent absolute power among the nine Shadow Legions.
Unfortunately, he currently only had two legions: the Ninja Shadows and the Pincer Shadows... the third Shadow Legion would normally awaken two years later, when he turned twenty.
And it wasn't guaranteed that the Troll Clan would be the one to awaken; it could be another Shadow Legion... however, even though he didn't have the Troll Clan yet, Karl wasn't actually too worried about being unable to change the events of "The Incredible Hulk."
After all, even if he couldn't beat them in a head-on fight, he could still hide!
Whether he slipped into the shadows or used the newly acquired rooster talisman to fly into the air, Hulk and Abomination wouldn't be able to do anything to him~
After all, those two could neither fly nor use magic attacks; they were purely physical fighters~
And physical attacks were what Karl feared the least~
He could wear down those two brutes until they died!
Alright, enough about that for now; it's time to test out the new 'toy'!
Karl looked down at the rooster talisman in his hand, his eyes burning even more intensely than when Gwen was 'tutoring' him!
Because this talisman could fulfill one of humanity's greatest dreams: flight!
Everyone has dreamed of being able to fly freely, and Karl was naturally no exception!
Although he possessed magical powers beyond the imagination of ordinary people before, he had always regretted being unable to fly, having to wait for the day the Bat Legion awakened so the flying shadows could carry him.
But now, not only could he achieve his dream of flight early, but he didn't have to rely on anyone else—he could fly on his own!
Karl took a deep breath, and with a thought, the rooster talisman in his hand flashed with a faint light, and his body actually began to float slowly!
Wahoo! Taking off!!!
With a roar like a dragon, Karl's body soared straight into the sky!
Hahahahahaha!
Karl flew with abandon, soaring upward until he hit the air wall at the top of the Shadow World—the very edge—before stopping!
Looking down, everything in the Shadow World had become tiny; he could even see the entire Shadow World now.
This was also the first time he had seen the Shadow World from this perspective!
It's beautiful, but unfortunately, it's not complete yet...
Karl shook his head regretfully.
If it were the complete Shadow World, it wouldn't be limited to this height of about ten thousand meters and an area he could see the end of in a single glance.
He had just used his watch to record it when he took off; the ten-thousand-meter distance from the ground to the top took exactly one hundred seconds.
In other words, the speed of the rooster talisman was roughly one hundred meters per second.
To be honest, this speed isn't particularly fast for a superhuman.
It's about the same as Karl's physical limit for sprinting.
In terms of speed alone, the rooster talisman didn't give Karl much of an advantage.
But you couldn't really blame the rooster talisman, because while it could make someone fly, its primary ability wasn't actually flight... it was levitation, or rather, telekinesis.
The flight of the rooster talisman was actually just using telekinesis to control one's own body to levitate; it couldn't really be considered true flight.
Only when combined with the super speed of the rabbit talisman can true high-speed flight be achieved!
Obviously, Karl didn't have the rabbit talisman right now, only the rooster talisman, so he couldn't achieve high-speed flight... but that didn't mean the rooster talisman was that weak without the rabbit talisman's help. In fact, using it for flight was its weakest function!
The true way to use the rooster talisman isn't on oneself, but on external targets.
Controlling people, controlling objects, controlling everything!
It could be said that the ability of telekinetic control provided a massive boost for Karl, whose side job was an assassin!
From now on, even if he didn't summon the Shadow Legion, he wouldn't have to lift a finger; with just a thought, he could use any object around him to eliminate his enemies!
He could even snap someone's neck directly with telekinesis without controlling other objects, killing invisibly~
This greatly increased his offensive and defensive methods, diversifying his own abilities.
Versatile in both offense and defense, catching enemies off guard!
Who said this rooster talisman was weak? This rooster talisman is awesome!
Karl spread his arms and looked down at the tiny Shadow World beneath his feet, enjoying the feeling of looking down upon all living things~
He enjoyed it so much that... Karl simply closed his eyes and let his body free-fall, enveloped in the howling wind.
Karl didn't open his eyes or reuse the rooster talisman's ability until he hit the ground, crashing directly into the pitch-black earth!
Falling from this height, let alone Karl, even the Hulk would be dazed for a while, and Spider-Manwould be smashed into a pulp.
But Karl was perfectly fine~
It wasn't that Karl's physical fitness surpassed that of the Hulk or Spider-Man, but rather that the Shadow World was his dimension and under his control; naturally, he couldn't fall to his death in his own dimension.
Chapter 37: Angry Gwen? Little Sidekick Harry?
And I believe no idiot would fall to death in their own dimension, right?
So Karl seemed to smash into the hard ground, but the ground he sank into was more like soft jelly, a pure black jelly, a pure black that New York, the city that never sleeps, would never have... Unfortunately, this beautiful black was after all flawed, unable to last forever, and was soon contaminated by other colors~
When he opened his eyes again, Karl was no longer in the Shadow World, that black-and-white, pure and quiet utopia.
Instead, he had returned to New York, this noisy and unclean city that never sleeps, sitting in his ford raptor parked by the roadside.
Karl sighed: "Sigh, this sense of gap from utopia back to reality is hard to accept every time~"
In the Shadow World, he was the absolute ruler; he could be himself and do everything he wanted.
But back in the real World, he had to strive for his future again~
Vroom, vroom, vroom——————
With the roar of the engine, the ford raptor drove away from Stark Tower and headed towards Midtown School.
Although he didn't have a date with Gwen today, he had already told Tony he was going on a date, so how could he lie~?
Hmm, it's definitely not because he wanted 'extra lessons' again~
"What? Gwen isn't in class at school and went to Oscorp for an internship again?"
Looking at the displeased Karl, Thompson quickly explained: "Big Brother Karl, you finally came back two weeks ago, but you've been missing all day for this past half month. Honestly, I can see that my cousin is already a bit angry..."
"Starting from last week, she also often doesn't come to school, saying she's following Dr. Connors in some important research!"
"But in my opinion, she's just angry with you. Women are like that; they never tell you directly when they're unhappy and always make you guess!"
"I think my cousin is just like that, using some crappy research as an excuse to hide and sulk. If you buy a bouquet of flowers and take her out for a nice meal, you can definitely coax her!"
Thompson was still here talking incessantly, sharing his experience, but Karl was no longer in the mood to listen because Thompson's words suddenly reminded him of something.
That's right!
Dr. Connors' research!
Combining the part about changing Peter's Uncle Ben's fate half a month ago, and the appearance of the 'Good Citizen of New York' over this half month.
It seems the 'Spider-Man vs. Lizardman' plot is about to begin!
A smile curled at the corners of Karl's mouth.
It seems his first experimental target doesn't need to be Hulk; there's a more suitable ready-made 'plot' here~
The nagging Thompson saw Karl smiling and thought Karl was very satisfied with his suggestion.
His eyes darted around, and he scratched his head with a somewhat embarrassed expression:
"Hehe, Big Brother Karl, you also think my suggestion is pretty good, right?"
"But you don't have to thank me too much for it. However, if you really want to thank me, I actually happen to have something I want to ask for your help with..."
"It's just that I heard Uncle Fisk is quite influential in the Hells Kitchen area. Do you think you could have Uncle Fisk recommend me to the Hells Kitchen mafia? It doesn't have to be a top-tier mafia, just a regular one, like Hellfire or something~"
"Hellfire?" Karl looked at Thompson with an inexplicable gaze and patted his shoulder: "You kid are ugly, but you sure think beautiful thoughts~"
"The Hellfire Club isn't some mafia; even my old man is currently only a regular member, and they don't accept ordinary people. Stop dreaming, go wash up and sleep~"
Hearing this, Thompson was a bit disappointed, but he immediately cheered up again: "What about other mafias then? I'm not picky; just let me join one!"
Seeing Thompson's persistence, Karl became a bit curious: "Why do you insist on joining a mafia? You should know that's not exactly a good place, right?"
"Are you in some kind of trouble? If there's trouble, just say it. For Gwen's sake, I'll directly arrange for someone to solve it for you."
Thompson's face hesitated for a moment, but in the end, he shook his head: "No, it's nothing. I just think joining a mafia is cool..."
Looking at Thompson, who was clearly hiding something from him, Karl's eyes narrowed slightly, but he didn't continue to press him.
He wasn't the type who liked to get to the bottom of things, especially when the other person was being a riddler.
After taking a deep look at Thompson, Karl squeezed Thompson's shoulder a bit harder, his voice dropping a few degrees:
"If you don't say it, I'm too lazy to ask. But remember, if I find out later that you've joined some mafia or gang, I'll break your legs on Gwen's behalf and make you spend the rest of your life in a wheelchair!"
"Understand?"
Thinking back to the feeling of powerlessness when Karl lifted him with one hand last time, Thompsonswallowed hard and nodded vigorously: "Understood! I understand! Big Brother Fisk!"
"Mhm."
After Thompson backed down, Karl nodded and turned to leave.
Just as he said, he was too lazy to care what Thompson's secret was.
For Karl, experimenting with the Spider-Man plot was the top priority right now.
As for Thompson, at worst, his legs really get broken, and he can wait to become Agent Venom later~
Although it seems Venom hasn't arrived on Earth yet~
Soon, Karl arrived at one of New York's landmark buildings, the Oscorp Tower, which was only slightly more low-key than Stark Tower.
After getting out of the car, Karl was just about to enter Oscorp Tower to find Gwen and ask how Dr. Connors' lizard research was progressing, but he encountered an unexpected person at the building's entrance.
"Hey, Karl? It really is you!"
Karl looked in the direction of the voice and saw a handsome young man in a black suit with sharp features walking quickly toward him with open arms.
Karl recognized the newcomer at a glance, his eyebrows arching slightly: "Harry, when did you get back? Weren't you studying abroad in Britain?"
After the two hugged, Harry's smile was a bit forced as he replied: "I didn't want to go there at all. I couldn't get used to that aristocratic school in Britain!"
Then Harry looked at Karl, and his smile brightened again:
"But it's fine now. After my protests these past few years, my father finally agreed to let me come back to New York for university. I think we can finally be schoolmates again, and you can protect me just like before!"
Hearing this, Karl laughed and shook his head, teasing: "What, were you bullied on campus again in England without my protection?"
Hearing this, Harry immediately puffed out his chest and showed off a few dirty moves—the upper-body Dragon Claw and the lower-body Monkey Steals the Peach—saying proudly:
"How could that be? Although that aristocratic school in England had its own little cliques, their bullying methods were far inferior to those in our great U.S. campuses. Those few moves I learned from you before were enough to knock them all down!"
"But I really dislike that aristocratic complex of those English people, who clearly have no real ability themselves but always maintain a high-and-mighty attitude toward others. It's fucking disgusting!"
Chapter 38: Harry and Dr. Connors Clash!
"Mm, indeed, they really are disgusting~" Karl nodded in agreement, feeling the same way.
He also didn't like those British guys who looked down on everyone from the bottom of their hearts... Seeing Karl agree with him, Harry's expression immediately became excited.
The slight sense of distance that had developed from not seeing Karl for a few years vanished in an instant. He put his arm around Karl's shoulders and joked:
"Hehe, Brother Karl, you also think they're disgusting? Does that mean Midtown School also has transfer students from England? I bet you definitely taught them a lesson on how to behave, right?"
Karl thought about it. He didn't know if there were any English transfer students at school; after all, he hadn't been the school bully for a long time.
Usually, no blind transfer student dared to provoke him.
Even if some individuals had such thoughts, they were handled by Flash Thompson, his local school bully lackey.
But not encountering them in school didn't mean they didn't exist outside of school.
During HYDRA missions, he had indeed encountered several British targets and taught them how to 'behave' again~
Karl gave a dangerous smile:
"Well, if things went smoothly, they might indeed have 'restarted' their lives by now~"
Harry didn't think too deeply about the meaning behind Karl's words, assuming Karl meant a psychological reform, not realizing it was a physical one~
He looked proud, as if he were the one who taught those British guys a lesson, and tilted his chin up:
"I knew it! In front of Brother Karl, whether it's bullies or thugs, they all have to kneel and sing 'Conquered'!"
Harry had no doubt about this.
He recalled when he transitioned from elementary to middle school; because of his wealthy family background, he was extorted every day by school bullies and even thugs from outside!
When Harry mentioned it to his father, Norman Osborn, his father merely told him to be strong, offering no help during those suffocating days.
But at that moment of despair for Harry, Karl, who had also transferred in, was like a ray of light shining into his life!
One person, two iron fists, fighting from inside the school to the outside. In just one day, he not only made the school bullies as well-behaved as kittens in front of Karl, but even the thugs outside had to kneel and beg for mercy!
From that day on, Harry deeply admired Karl and became Karl's first 'underling'!
Moreover, Karl wasn't like his father, who was indifferent to his plight and only knew how to tell him to be strong without actually doing anything.
Although Karl also told him to be strong, he taught him the means to become strong, helping him grow step by step to learn self-protection and even how to fight back, rather than just talking!
Compared to Norman Osborn, in Harry's heart, Karl was more like a father to him!
At least, during his most difficult period, he was... Of course, Karl didn't know Harry had this 'twisted' sense of admiration for him... The memory flashed by, and the excitement on Harry's face faded slightly as he asked, "By the way, Brother Karl, why did you come to Oscorp Tower this time?"
"Is it some business cooperation between Uncle Fisk and my father?"
Karl shook his head: "No, your Osborn family focuses on biological research, which doesn't have much connection with my father's industries. There are no cooperation projects at the moment."
"I came this time to find my girlfriend, Gwen. She's an intern at your company~"
Hearing this, Harry was a bit surprised: "Wow, you have a girlfriend?"
"Back when you beat everyone from the high and low grades at Midtown School, so many girls chased you, and you didn't like any of them. Now someone actually managed to take you down?"
"Quick, take me with you. I must see what kind of sacred being she is. Could she be the Goddess of Love descended to earth?"
Karl shrugged speechlessly:
"Please, Harry, we were only 11 then, our parts hadn't even fully developed. What could I have done after accepting them, play house with them? I didn't have the patience for that~"
"But if you want to follow, then let's go. It's just as well with the Young Master of Osborn here; it saves me from having to register~"
Harry laughed confidently: "Haha, of course! In my company, just act like it's your own family's company!"
With Harry there, it was indeed much more convenient.
Not only did he not have to register, but Harry was also familiar with the way, quickly leading him to the laboratory where Dr. Connors was located.
They entered the laboratory directly, without even needing to announce themselves or verify their identities.
But obviously, their rude behavior made the Master of the lab a bit unhappy.
Dr. Connors, who had only one arm while the other sleeve hung empty, turned back to look at the open lab door, his brow furrowed:
"Mr. Harry Osborn, and this gentleman, don't you two know that before entering someone else's laboratory, you should first announce yourselves and only enter after receiving permission and undergoing disinfection?"
"Your behavior is irresponsible toward science and my research results!"
Harry looked indifferent and chuckled, "What does it matter? Anyway, Dr. Connors, your research has never succeeded. It's just one more failure, isn't it?"
"What did you say?!" Hearing this, Dr. Connors was like a giant lizard whose reverse scale had been touched, instantly becoming irritable!
Dr. Connors rushed over in a few steps and grabbed Harry's collar, his face twitching with rage:
"You playboy don't even understand what science is! You have no idea how much effort I've put into this, or how great an achievement it will be once the research is successful. You bastard know nothing, what right do you have to judge my research?!"
Harry unceremoniously slapped Dr. Connors' hand away and said calmly:
"Based on the fact that this is Oscorp, based on the fact that my last name is Osborn, and based on the fact that all your research is funded by Osborn. Are these three reasons enough?"
Lies don't hurt, the truth is the sharp blade. Harry's three light sentences made Dr. Connors retreat repeatedly, pointing at Harry, unable to speak:
"You, you, you..."
Just as Dr. Connors was rendered speechless by Harry's retort, the laboratory door opened again.
A pretty figure in a white lab coat rushed in, pushed Harry aside, and stood protectively in front of Dr. Connors with anger:
"Hey, what are you doing? You can't be so rude to my teacher!"
Hearing Gwen's voice, Karl, who was at Dr. Connors' lab bench looking with interest at a hideously dead mouse in an isolation box, looked up and called out:
"Gwen."
Looking toward the sound, Gwen finally saw Karl leaning to the side. Her large eyes flashed with excitement and a hint of resentment:
"Karl, why are you here too? Is this rude idiot your friend?"
"Huh? You're calling me an idiot? I'm Harry Osborn, I think you're the one who looks like a..."
With his big brother Karl by his side, Harry's confidence automatically doubled. He opened his mouth to snap back, but before the words could come out, he was interrupted by a large palm.
Karl placed his hand on Harry's face and pushed him aside.
Then he gave Gwen a gentlemanly bow, pulling a bouquet of flowers from the shadow behind him: "I've come to apologize to you, Gwen. I'm sorry for neglecting your feelings for the past half month~"
"Will you forgive me?~"
Chapter 39: Back when they poached Harry's corner, these people who shared a bit of history… As Tony's 'guardian,' Karl had been run off his feet this past fortnight.
The shareholders scheming to oust Tony for harming company interests all died at home within the fortnight—eighteen stab wounds in the back, ruled suicide.
So Karl took another two weeks off school and hadn't seen Gwen more than twice.
A trace of resentment from Gwen was only natural.
But as Thompson says, no girl can resist flowers—especially from the boy she loves.
The little anger in Gwen's heart melted instantly; she leapt into Karl's arms, took the bouquet, and smiled up at him like a blooming flower.
"All right—this is the last time I forgive you, and I mean it!"
Mm, the last hundred-millionth time.
Watching Gwen so easily soothed, Karl's lips curved in a smile.
Realizing he'd just offended Karl's girlfriend, Harry—knowing Karl's protective streak—thought, I'm screwed.
Instead of apologizing to Gwen, Harry turned with a bright smile to the equally bewildered Dr. Connorsand offered his hand.
"Dr. Connors, my apologies—I was rude. I sincerely apologize."
"I've always admired scientists like you who keep fighting despite setbacks."
"Tell you what: I heard my father's deadline for your project is tight. I'll ask him to extend it and increase the funding. How does that sound?"
Honestly, Dr. Connors didn't want to forgive the impudent kid.
But… the offer was just too good.
Harry had dangled something he couldn't refuse.
He'd poured heart and hope into this project; he couldn't bear to see it shut down.
Especially now, when success was so close.
Face stiff, Connors shook Harry's hand. "F-fine, I accept your apology. After all… what you say is true."
The moment forgiveness was granted, Harry—never mind if it was sincere—turned to Gwen with an outstretched hand.
"You must be my big sister-in-law. I'm Harry—Harry Osborn, Karl's best pal."
Gwen glanced at him, sniffed, and looked away, ignoring the overture.
She'd never liked slick hypocrites.
Karl could only shake his head.
He knew Harry wasn't usually this arrogant; for a rich kid he was downright low-key.
Today's swagger was partly giddiness at escaping England and partly the comfort of having his big brother here for backup.
And as Karl suspected, once the high wore off…
Seeing Gwen ignore him, Harry grew awkward and shot Karl a silent plea for help.
Karl smiled, slipped an arm around Gwen, and extended his other hand to Dr. Connors.
"Dr. Connors, I've long admired your work. Your regenerative-biology project could benefit all humanity; I'd love to collaborate if the chance arises."
Flattery works on everyone. Hearing his research hailed as world-saving, Connors brightened and shook Karl's hand. "And you are?"
"Karl Fisk of Fisk Group—just call me Karl."
Surprise flickered in Connors's eyes.
The heir to one of New York's top conglomerates was standing right in front of him.
Realizing that, and recalling Karl's offer, Connors smiled wider.
If Norman Osborn pulled the plug, he now had a lifeline.
Harry, equally business-savvy, stared at Karl in mock grievance.
"Big bro, you said we were just here to see sis—no shop talk. Now you're poaching my people?"
Karl shot him a look. "I merely offered the doctor another option."
"Besides, if you ever run Osborn into the ground, he'll need somewhere to land, right?"
Harry's face fell. "Am I that hopeless?"
"I may not be as awesome as you, but keeping Osborn afloat? Easy."
"Yeah, yeah." Karl nodded absently and turned back to Connors.
"Dr. Connors, it's late. I'm intrigued by your lizard project—how about dinner and a chat?"
Connors hesitated, then nodded. "Sure. I'll call a student and tell him not to come tonight."
Student?
Karl's brow lifted; he knew exactly who that was.
Gotcha, Failure-Man.
Peter must already be helping Connors finish the lizard serum.
Speak of the devil.
Connors had barely raised his phone when the lab door opened again.
A brown-haired kid walked in, shrugging on a white coat.
Connors lowered his phone. "Peter? You're early today."
Peter looked up, startled to find the lab full of people—Connors, Gwen, Karl, and Harry.
Harry's eyes widened; he strode over arms wide.
"Peter, is that really you? Long time no see!"
Peter blinked and hugged him back.
"Harry, it's been ages—six, seven years?"
"Yeah, ever since I changed schools. I missed you, even went to your place, but the neighbors said you'd moved and Dad wouldn't tell me where."
Peter's eyes dimmed. "Soon after you left, my parents died in a plane crash. I went to live with my uncle…"
Harry's smile faded; he squeezed Peter's shoulder.
"Sorry, bro… I didn't know."
Peter looked up, smiling. "It's okay. That's in the past. Lately I've learned that cherishing the people still here is what matters."
Chapter 40 – The Lizard Serum Succeeds; The Reckless Dr. Connors!
At the end, Peter looked at Karl and gave him a grateful smile. "Thank you, Karl. If it weren't for you, I'd regret it for the rest of my life!"
Karl waved it off. "Haven't I told you? The greater the power, the greater the responsibility."
"For me it was just a tap of the accelerator, and I saved a good man's life. If our places were swapped, you'd have done the same—right?"
"Besides, you and your uncle already thanked me last time, so don't keep dwelling on it."
"The greater the power, the greater the responsibility..." Peter murmured, then nodded firmly.
This time, hearing those words felt different from when he'd been just an ordinary kid.
Although Karl told him not to worry about it, Peter quietly filed the debt of gratitude away.
Harry, hearing that Karl had saved Peter's uncle, felt genuinely happy for his friend.
Peter had lost his parents as a child; if he'd then lost the uncle who raised him, Harry couldn't imagine how broken he'd be.
That made Harry admire Karl even more—truly the greatest big brother in his heart.
Grinning, Harry clapped his hands. "Hey, everyone—look how perfect this is!"
"Peter and I are best friends, Karl and I are best friends, Karl and Peter are classmates, and Karl's helped us both!"
"Dr. Connors is Peter and Gwen's teacher; we're all connected. Fate brought us together today!"
"So come on—my treat. Let's all head to the Waldorf for a get-together!"
Peter glanced at Dr. Connors, hesitant. "I'd love to go, but the doctor's research is at a critical stage..."
Dr. Connors chuckled. "It's fine, Peter. Harry Osborn says he'll secure more time and funding, so no rush now."
Peter exhaled in relief and turned to Harry.
"Great—thanks, Harry. This project matters to Dr. Connors and to me."
Harry threw an arm around Peter's shoulders, beaming.
"We're brothers; saying thanks just makes me feel like you don't see me as one!"
With no objections left, Connors, Gwen, and Peter—after shedding their lab coats—joined the others. Five figures left the lab together.
Yet none of them noticed that, the moment the glass door slid shut behind them, the automated algorithm flashed bright green letters announcing success.
[Gene-recombination algorithm attempt 120703 successful; preparing auto-injection into test subject...]
A green syringe delivered its contents into a white mouse in an isolation box—and something amazing happened.
The mouse, missing one front leg, began regrowing the limb before their eyes.
Moments later it went from limping and maimed to scampering about, whole again.
And seemingly more energetic than ever.
It meant Dr. Connors's lizard-gene regeneration project had succeeded.
But no one saw it. The three researchers had been whisked off to drink by Harry. Not until night blanketed the sky and city lights flickered did a tipsy Dr. Connors return alone.
He'd only meant to shut down the automated program he'd left running. But once he reached the monitor, he couldn't look away.
On-screen blazed: [Research algorithm successful; test subject status normal].
"S-succeeded?"
Dr. Connors stared, dazed and disbelieving.
Even with Peter's algorithm giving them a huge leap forward, the final biological-fusion step had failed day after day.
Yet while he was out for dinner, the experiment had simply—magically—worked?
Could it get any more surreal?
Could...Karl Fisk be his lucky star?
His arrival had not only won Harry's extension and extra funding but also pushed the research over the finish line.
What else could you call that but a lucky star?
Connors's heart pounded; he wondered if the alcohol had him dreaming.
But remembering the system's completed objective, he hurried to the isolation box.
Seeing the once-three-legged mouse now whole and lively, he knew it wasn't a dream.
"It really worked! My research actually succeeded!"
First came elation; then he looked at his own empty right sleeve, swallowed hard, and his breathing quickened.
"If today's my lucky day, maybe that luck can restore me too."
It wasn't that Connors lacked scientific rigor and would self-inject before human trials.
He simply couldn't wait any longer.
Osborne's board had given him a final ultimatum last week.
One week: succeed or pack up and leave.
Though Harry now promised an extension, his pride balked at owing Harry Osborn unless absolutely necessary.
Finishing within the deadline would be perfect.
And with all the luck Carl had brought today, maybe one more dose would tip the scales.
For once, the materialist Dr. Connors embraced pure belief.
Osborne's pressure, Carl's luck, liquid courage, and his own desperate yearning to be whole overrode the scientist's reason. He lifted the untested regenerative serum and plunged it into the shoulder of his severed arm.
Dong————
As he pushed the plunger, midnight struck and a new day began—meaning Carl's lucky buff had just expired.
"Ugh..."
As the green fluid entered him, Connors clutched his chest and collapsed. His blue eyes flickered eerie green, and searing pain tore through his body.
In agony his vision blurred, but just before he blacked out he saw his empty right sleeve twitch—as if something inside were growing.
Was that...my hand?
With that final thought, Dr. Connors slipped into unconsciousness on the cold lab floor.