Chapter Twenty-Four: Doctor Lizard

Friday, Arthur and Peter walked down the school corridor. Peter looked around conspiratorially and whispered to Arthur, "Arthur, do you know what I just found out?"

Arthur, busy at his locker, asked, "What is it?"

Peter lowered his voice. "You were right, Arthur. Dr. O'Connor really experimented on himself. That lizard creature from last time—it was him."

Arthur was not surprised by the news, replying calmly, "I expected it. He couldn't resist the temptation of the decay rate formula."

Peter could only marvel at Arthur's sharp judgment. Just then, with a thunderous crash, the corridor wall was smashed open by a massive creature—a giant lizard, over two meters tall, burst through and roared at the students.

Peter shouted, "Run!"

Students screamed and fled toward the main entrance in panic. Gwen saw the monster, glanced at Peter, and joined the crowd in their escape.

"Go, Arthur! I'll handle him!" Peter said anxiously.

Arthur laughed heartily, advancing toward the lizardman. "Perfect timing. I haven't had a chance to stretch my muscles lately."

"Arthur, it's dangerous! You're no match for him!" Peter knew Arthur was tough, but he doubted Arthur could take on the lizardman. In the next moment, however, Peter was stunned by what he saw.

Arthur strode up to the towering lizardman. The creature swiped a claw at him, but Arthur moved faster, punching the lizardman square in the chest. The monster was sent flying, smashing another hole in the wall behind him.

"Oh my god!" Peter was shocked by Arthur's strength. He had felt a bit proud after gaining superpowers, but now he realized he still couldn't compare to Arthur.

Arthur charged at the lizardman, landing an uppercut that sent the creature crashing into the ceiling. As the lizardman fell, Arthur delivered a side kick, hurling him into the laboratory.

"Too weak. I'll take my time playing with you," Arthur said, advancing step by step. Suddenly, a desk flew out of the lab, aimed at Arthur, who shattered it with a punch.

The lizardman swung at Arthur, but Arthur caught the blow with one hand. The creature spun and whipped his tail at Arthur, who seized it, gripping it with both hands and repeatedly smashing the lizardman into the ground, much like the Hulk beating Loki.

Peter watched this bizarre scene: a six-foot-tall young man pummeling a nearly ten-foot lizard beast into the ground. He could only stand aside, cheering, even tempted to snap a photo of the spectacle.

The lizardman, dizzy from Arthur's relentless assault, was thrown to the floor. Arthur planted his foot on the creature's chest and smashed his fist into its head. "Die!"

At that moment, Arthur felt his fist restrained—Peter's webbing had latched onto him.

"Arthur, don't kill him," Peter pleaded. "The doctor’s brain is under the control of the bio-genetic serum. Let's capture him and hand him over to the police."

Suddenly, the lizardman sprang up, elbowing Arthur and sending him crashing into the lockers, then fled at high speed toward the restrooms.

Arthur got to his feet and said to Peter, "You're too soft-hearted. He's completely lost his mind!"

They rushed to the restroom but found no trace of the lizardman. Only a massive hole remained, opening into the sewers.

Arthur spread his fingers, unleashing energy into the foul water below. The sewage in the pipes surged violently...

In the sewers, the lizardman fled desperately. He was heading for OsCorp, where a device could release biochemical agents throughout the city, transforming everyone into lizardmen like him.

Suddenly, he heard a tremendous rush of water behind him—a torrent surging through the pipes. He turned and fled, but the flood was too fast, smashing into him and carrying him forward. The water pressure threw him off balance, slamming him against the pipe walls repeatedly.

Finally, seeing an exit, the lizardman kicked off and shot out through a manhole on a New York street. With a loud clang, the cover flew off and a green, humanoid creature was blasted thirty meters into the air by the water before crashing heavily onto the pavement.

Back in the school restroom, Arthur withdrew his hand. "He still escaped. There wasn’t enough water down there..."

Peter watched curiously. "What did you just do?"

"It's your fault the lizardman got away. He’s planning to release biochemical weapons across the city and turn everyone into lizards!" Arthur scolded him bitterly.

"What? What do we do? We have to stop him, quickly!" Peter was genuinely alarmed now.

"Now you realize? Come on, I know where he's headed." Arthur led Peter to the car, and they sped toward the OsCorp tower.

...

Chaos erupted in New York City. A giant lizard monster rampaged through the streets, leaving destruction wherever it went.

The NYPD, upon learning the situation, dispatched all armed units to eliminate the creature.

Outside a bank, a SWAT team encountered the lizardman. A fierce firefight broke out, and the monster, overwhelmed by the barrage, was forced to retreat. Desperate, he hurled a canister of biochemical agent at the officers. Green smoke filled the block; those who inhaled collapsed, and some began to transform into lizards. The lizardman slipped away in the confusion.

He finally reached the OsCorp building, climbing its exterior walls. Traffic was paralyzed, crowds screamed and scattered.

Inside OsCorp, people rushed downstairs in panic, the scene descending into chaos.

Arthur and Peter arrived by car, but the streets were gridlocked, blocked by endless lines of vehicles.

"Suit up and get out!" Arthur exited, darted into a deserted alley, and leapt onto the roof, bounding forward across the buildings.

Peter donned his Spider-Man costume, swinging through the air on web lines.

Meanwhile, in a helicopter overhead, an officer reported to headquarters, "There's a monster climbing the outside of OsCorp Tower. If I hadn't seen it myself, I'd never believe it. It's not human, incredibly strong, scaling the building."

"Oh! Spider-Man is here too, approaching OsCorp!"

"Oh my god! What am I seeing? A man is leaping across rooftops at incredible speed, covering huge distances. I can't believe my eyes—is he a superhero?" the officer exclaimed.