I’m Not Becoming Spider-Man - Chapter 78: Dr. Lizard (Patreon)

Peter handed Gwen a comb, started the car, and headed toward the school.

"Fix your hair. Breakfast's beside you, so try not to sit on it."

"Uh, okay."

"Hmm. I didn't know rock bands wore slippers onstage," Harley observed.

"Oh..." Gwen looked down and realized she had forgotten to change her shoes. She was still wearing her indoor slippers. Her toes curled in embarrassment. "Uh... yeah."

"It's fine," Peter said. "You could go onstage in a bathrobe and pajamas and the audience probably wouldn't care. But if you want, I've got a spare pair of shoes in my school locker. They'll be a little big on you, though. Tighten the laces and you should be okay."

"Um... I'll try them."

"By the way, I spoke to George. He said he'd come if he had time."

"What? Peter, I never asked you to call him!" Gwen protested. Privately, though, she felt a little flicker of anticipation. If her father really came, she would make sure to put on a great performance.

WHOOSH!

A dark green figure shot across the sky at the speed of a passing aircraft.

"Whoa... what's that?" Harley asked, sticking her head out. "Some kind of flying robot?"

"With all that equipment, I'd say it looks like a vulture," Peter replied. Honestly, the supervillains were practically lining up now. They'd only just finished dealing with Connors, and here came some new guy dressed like a vulture.

"Actually, I'd better go back and change my shoes!" Gwen announced.

Peter and Harley turned around, only to discover she'd already disappeared. They looked at each other, and Peter shrugged.

"Well, it's only two blocks away. She can run over here with plenty of time to spare. Let's get her drums to the school first."

"But that thing we just saw..." Harley began.

"Probably another new supervillain," Peter said.

"That's so cool!"

"I wouldn't say that..."

Gwen shared his opinion. Swinging between the skyscrapers, she could barely keep up with the flying figure. His speed was in a completely different league.

"All right, what's in that direction? The Twin Towers, the Empire State Building... and Oscorp Tower?" She surveyed the distant skyline and watched the figure land. "Of course. With equipment like that, I should've known he'd head for Oscorp Tower. I hope I can get there and back in time."

...

"Norma! Why did you take those experimental serums without consulting me?" Curt Connors demanded angrily.

Norma was as cold as ice. "They belong to the company, Connors. I have every right to decide what to do with them."

"They haven't undergone proper follow-up testing! They're extremely dangerous!"

"The worst that can happen is someone turning into a giant lizard, just like you," Norma replied.

Connors clenched his fists. "Taking them away is going to delay my research."

"That's fine. We have plenty of time now. And if you can't even reproduce your own work, I'd suggest burning your doctoral cap," she said. "Now get back to work. Don't forget who allowed you to stay here."

"..."

Connors turned to leave.

At that instant, glass exploded inward. The thunderous roar of turbines filled the room as Vulture burst into Norma's office.

"We meet again, Norma."

BANG!

A bullet struck his faceplate. Vulture looked at Norma, who was holding a gun.

"Well, I guess you're not happy to see me."

He lunged at her, but someone else in the room intercepted him.

"Run!" Connors threw himself onto Vulture. Norma needed no further encouragement and immediately tried to escape.

Vulture seized Connors by the throat. His powered suit gave him strength far beyond that of an ordinary man.

"You're not getting away that easi..."

He reached toward Norma again, only to stop when a sudden force pushed back against the hand gripping Connors.

Green scales were spreading across the doctor's body. His frame began to swell.

The slow-release inhibitor device on his wrist had stopped administering the drug. Connors had deliberately kept his internal balance at a dangerous threshold, so he could transform if an emergency arose.

He's the enemy. He's the enemy... Connors repeated to himself, staring at Vulture. His vision shifted, and his growing hands lunged for the armored attacker.

"Damn it!"

Vulture realized something was wrong and tried to pull away, but the Lizard already had him in his grip.

Without counting the wings, the Lizard was much larger than Vulture. His sheer mass gave him the advantage. He drove Vulture straight out of the office, and together they smashed through a railing and plunged down the side of the building.

They grappled and traded punches as the ground rushed closer. At the last moment, Vulture twisted himself around so the Lizard was below him, then fired his engines and pulled upward just before impact.

He released his grip, hurling the Lizard away.

The giant reptile hit a car by the roadside like a bowling ball. Pedestrians screamed and scattered.

The impact threw the roadway into chaos. Vehicles collided, and one driver swerved to avoid a car ahead, sending his vehicle onto the sidewalk. A child stood in its blind spot, directly in its path.

Gwen dropped into the street and snatched the child out of danger. Then she shot a web at the car and pulled back. It dragged her along the road for a short distance before she finally brought it to a stop.

She set the child down. "Get out of here! Somebody call the police! Everyone move away from the building! Stay clear of Oscorp Tower!"

Gwen began directing people away from the scene. Looking up, she spotted Vulture circling Oscorp Tower like a predator searching for prey.

The Lizard was climbing the building, too, looking every bit as predatory. Only his intended prey was Vulture.

"What is even happening...? Wait. How long has Dr. Connors been transformed?"

Vulture was getting frustrated. With Norma hiding inside the tower, tracking her down was like trying to find someone in a fortress. Searching from the outside was almost impossible, especially with a giant lizard waiting to grab him if he came too close.

Then he saw a flash of white. It was Spider-Woman, the same girl who had stopped him the previous night.

"Damn it."

Continuing to hunt Norma here would be too dangerous. The risk wasn't worth it.

Vulture spread his wings and flew away.

"God, wouldn't it be nice if spiders could fly?" Gwen muttered enviously, watching him disappear. But she still had work to do.

She swung toward the tower and kicked the Lizard straight through its glass curtain wall. Inside the building, he roared and prepared to attack her.

"Curt!" Instead of fighting back, Gwen shouted his name. It didn't seem to help.

Think, Gwen, think. What would Dr. Connors want to hear? she asked herself, dodging another blow.

She ducked beneath his next swing and shouted, "Martha!"

"Guh... Mar... tha... ROAAAR!"

The Lizard clutched his head, struggling against the urge to attack. He staggered out through a doorway, and Gwen hurried after him. Fortunately, the building's employees had already been evacuated to safety. The corridor was deserted.

Still gripping his head, the Lizard slowly shrank. At last, he collapsed weakly to the floor.

"Hah... hah..." Connors lay there in his tattered clothes, looking up at Spider-Woman. "Looks like the capsule worked. I was transformed for fifteen minutes, and then, just as I'd calculated, my enhanced stomach acid dissolved the inhibitor capsule's coating and released the drug..."

"Okay, but I think you should adjust the dosage so it kicks in a little sooner... Hang on. How long did you say?"

"Uh, fifteen minutes?"

"Oh my God! It's already been fifteen minutes?"

And that didn't even include the time it had taken her to get here! How long did she have before the band's performance?

"Damn it!"

Gwen bolted through the opening they'd smashed in the building and swung back toward the school as fast as she could.

...

Ten minutes earlier.

George had arrived at the school in his police car well ahead of time. The student social wasn't an especially important event, and in fact he seemed to be the only parent in attendance. Peter came over to chat and spare him the awkwardness of standing there alone.

"It's almost time for Gwen to go on, isn't it?" George asked. As New York City's police commissioner, his days were packed with responsibilities. He'd squeezed this visit into a brief gap in his patrol schedule.

"Oh, I think so," Peter replied.

He watched Thompson help carry the instruments onto the stage. The other three members of the band were already there, waiting below for the host to finish his comedy routine and introduce them. Gwen alone was nowhere to be seen.

Just then, George's phone rang. He answered it without bothering to step away.

"A terrorist attack at Oscorp Tower? Oh... all right, I'll make arrangements immediately."

He didn't leave right away. Instead, he used his phone to coordinate the evacuation.

As the minutes passed, Mary Jane texted Peter and asked him to come help.

When he reached her, she looked ready to explode. "I don't know what's wrong with Gwen this time! We agreed on everything! You're coming onstage with us, Peter. You're playing the drums!"

"Oh, come on! I don't know how to play!"

"Just hit the small one and follow the beat. Don't play too loudly," Mary Jane instructed.

She'd already abandoned any hope that Gwen would come racing in at the last minute. There was no point counting on that.

"Uh... fine."

Sure enough, when it was time for their performance, Gwen still hadn't appeared. Peter tied a red towel around his head like a makeshift mask and went onstage with the other three girls.

Fortunately, they were already used to playing without a drummer. The opening went well, and Peter obediently served as a mostly decorative stand-in at the drum kit. There were no problems so far.

From the stage, Peter could see the entire audience, including Gwen's father. George received another call, glanced up at the performers, and walked toward the exit while talking on the phone.

The song built gradually toward its climax, and Peter was feeling pretty pleased with himself. After all, he was only there to make up the numbers.

Then someone tugged at his pant leg.

He looked down. Gwen was lying flat on the floor, a coat draped over her.

"Oh my God! You finally made it!"

"Looks like I'm still in time!" Gwen gasped. She had sprinted all the way to the venue.

"Quick, quick! Get up here!" Peter moved aside immediately.

Gwen slid onto the stool and seized the drumsticks. The song had reached its peak, and Mary Jane's voice was climbing into a high note.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

Gwen's rapid, crisp cymbal strikes and steady drumbeat caught Mary Jane's soaring vocals and drove the performance to a new high. The audience erupted in cheers.

As the music settled into its rhythm, Gwen couldn't help scanning the crowd.

She was looking for the one person she'd hoped would be there.

Not on the left. Not on the right, either.

She was certain Peter had said he would tell her father about the performance.

So he hadn't come after all?

Hah. Of course not. She should have known better than to get her hopes up.

Gwen poured her frustration into the drums. The ferocious heavy metal rhythm seemed ready to tear through the audience's eardrums, drawing one excited scream after another.

When the final beat faded, she let out a sigh.

She packed up her equipment with the others, and they left the stage to a round of applause.

"Good job, girls." Peter was waiting below the stage. He tossed each of them a bottle of ice-cold water.

Everyone caught hers except Cindy, whose bottle smacked her right in the forehead. She flailed wildly and just barely managed to keep it from hitting the floor.

"Oh. Sorry," Peter said.

"It's fine!" Cindy twisted off the cap and gulped down some water.

He'd definitely done that on purpose! He must have realized she was about to surpass him and decided to strike first. What a rotten guy!

Then Cindy watched Gwen and Mary Jane gather around Peter, and her opinion of him sank even lower. What a jerk! How on earth had Mary Jane fallen for someone like that?

He wasn't even cool!

Whatever. Cindy certainly wasn't interested in a guy like Peter.

"Anything you'd like to say, our substitute drummer?" Mary Jane asked.

"You sounded great. Did you write that song yourselves?"

"Mm-hmm. Hardy composed the music, and I wrote the lyrics," Mary Jane replied. "I hope you haven't forgotten about our celebration later."

"Cake, nuts, snacks, bread, fruit, and cheese," Peter recited. "If you want a few surprises, come back a little later."

"That's so sweet of you." Mary Jane narrowed her eyes playfully and leaned in for a kiss, but Peter dodged her.

"Hmm? What's wrong? Or would you rather have one from Gwen?"

"Leave me out of this, Mary Jane," Gwen said. "I've already got enough to deal with."

"Please. I think I'm the one who should be complaining." Mary Jane turned to Gwen. "You're late again. I don't want to hear excuses. I'm sick of your promises. I've given you chance after chance, and now..."

Gwen grew nervous and couldn't bring herself to meet her eyes.

Mary Jane leaned closer to her face. "Promise me you won't be late next time. If it happens again, you're carrying your own drums onto the stage. Got it?"

"Um... okay... I definitely won't be late next time..." Gwen muttered.