The Next Day.
Coastal Villa.
The laboratory was temporarily sealed off, and Dr. Octavius was warmly greeting the scientists who had come to observe the experiment.
He didn't neglect the business tycoons who had shown up either.
Under the flashing cameras of reporters, Dr. Octavius spoke confidently about his artificial sun experiment, unfazed by the attention.
Outside the crowd, Charlie crossed his arms and chuckled, "If Dr. Octavius wasn't a scientist, he'd definitely make a killer businessman."
Harry, standing beside him, nodded. "Yeah, not many scientists can handle a scene like this."
After last night's events, Carter had pieced together Adrian's true goal. Now, S.H.I.E.L.D. agents were lying in wait nearby, ready to spring a trap when Adrian made his move.
"Hey, you guys are here too."
A youthful and radiant Gwen, dressed in a formal gown, approached. Her appearance made Charlie's eyes light up.
"Whoa, is that gemstone necklace real?" he asked, leaning in to inspect her neck.
Harry covered his face in embarrassment.
So humiliating.
"I know that necklace. Saw it at an auction," Harry said.
Charlie gave Gwen a strange look. "Gwen, your dad's okay, right?"
Gwen: "???"
"What?"
"I mean, your dad didn't take any money he shouldn't have, did he?"
"Charlie, you think that's funny?"
Gwen rolled her eyes. "I bought this with my own patent money. It's got nothing to do with my dad."
"Patent money?"
Charlie's mind flashed to the Gwen from the Lizard-Parker universe.
"What's the patent?"
"Artificial webbing. When I became Spider-Woman, I developed a synthetic webbing material and sold it to—oh, there's the buyer."
Gwen's gaze landed on Tony, sharply dressed in a suit. "Mr. Stark bought my patent."
"What?"
Charlie's face darkened. "That guy said the artificial webbing was his invention."
Harry shrugged. "Once you buy the patent, it's yours."
Harry knew Spider-Man had been trying to cash in on artificial webbing.
As Spider-Man's close friend and liaison, Harry felt bad for Charlie. Spider-Man making money meant Charlie, as his contact, would've gotten a nice cut.
But Tony and Gwen had swooped in and snatched that opportunity.
Just bad luck.
Charlie gritted his teeth, glaring at Tony's back.
"That jerk! I'm at war with Iron Man!!"
Harry leaned in. "And Gwen."
Charlie: "."
He shot Gwen a sidelong glance. "It's not a ball. Why're you dressed so fancy?"
Gwen smiled. "Once Dr. Octavius's experiment succeeds, this place will turn into a celebration party. I didn't feel like changing."
Charlie glanced down at his casual outfit, then quietly pulled a black bow tie from his pocket.
"I came prepared too," he said.
Gwen's mouth twitched. "You're getting more ridiculous by the day."
Suddenly, a gasp rippled through the crowd as a tall figure in a striking red dress appeared, capturing everyone's attention.
"My God! Is that Captain Carter?"
"Such a noble aura!"
"What a captivating woman."
"I've never seen this side of Captain Carter. It's unreal."
The men were in awe, glancing at their companions, who suddenly seemed lackluster in comparison.
The crowd swarmed to greet Carter.
With a faint smile, Carter handled the attention gracefully before approaching Dr. Octavius.
"Congratulations, Dr. Octavius. You're about to become the world's most dazzling scientist. No competition," Carter said with a smile.
Dr. Octavius hadn't expected S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Carter to show up. He blinked, then grinned. "Captain Carter, it's my honor to have you here for my experiment."
After some pleasantries, Carter made her way to Charlie and the others.
"What, don't recognize me?" she teased, smiling at a stunned Harry.
Hearing her familiar voice, Harry snapped out of it. "No, of course I do."
Yup, that's definitely the terrifying Captain who tortured me in training.
Charlie, meanwhile, rubbed his chin, sizing up Carter.
Long legs, wavy hair, bold red lips, and… a massive gemstone!
His eyes locked onto the necklace around her neck.
"Whose gem is pricier?" he whispered to Harry.
Harry sighed. "If I'm not mistaken, that's the Eye of Poseidon from last century. One of those could buy a few buildings in New York."
Charlie wiped a tear from his eye.
They're all so rich!
He looked at Carter, dead serious. "If you die, can I inherit your fortune?"
Carter: "."
She gave him a flat look. "You're not in line for my inheritance."
"Aren't we cousins?"
"Distant cousins. Very distant."
On the other side, Tony noticed the radiant Carter and pushed through the crowd toward her.
"Hey, Captain Carter, you look stunning today. Planning to stop that Vulture in that outfit?" Tony grinned.
Though unaware of her full plan, he figured there'd be action today.
Carter kept her smile. "Thanks for the compliment, but I'm not the star today. What I wear doesn't matter."
"Oh?"
Tony stroked his goatee. "I get it. I'm the star today. I'll show that Vulture who's boss."
Charlie scoffed. "Sir, are you awake? The star is Spider-Man."
Tony finally noticed Charlie. "I know you. You're Spider-Man's liaison. But your info's outdated. Spider-Man's dead. Even if he comes back, it won't be today." He sounded smug.
Charlie just smirked. "Your anti-Spider-Man suit is really impressive," he whispered.
Tony's grin froze.
"Kid, I see why Spider-Man picked you as his liaison."
Tony patted Charlie's shoulder, his gaze appreciative. "You're just like him."
"Like him how?"
"Make me want to strangle you."
"Rule of law, sir. Stay calm."
"Thanks for the reminder."
At that moment, the lab doors slowly opened.
Dr. Octavius clapped and smiled. "Alright, it's time. The final phase of the artificial sun experiment is about to begin."
Under curious gazes, he led the crowd into the lab.
On the experiment platform, octopus-like mechanical arms caught everyone's eyes, eliciting gasps.
"That's the device for the final fusion phase of the artificial sun. Dr. Octavius mentioned it in his autobiography."
"So exciting!"
"Once the artificial sun is born, it'll shake the world."
"I wonder if we'll get a chance to collaborate with Dr. Octavius."
"With Tony Stark here, we don't stand a chance."
"Osborn's heir is here too, but he's no match for Stark."
"Of course. If we want a piece of the artificial sun, we'll have to go through Stark."
The crowd whispered, but Dr. Octavius didn't interrupt.
After the room quieted, he stepped forward with a smile.
"You all recognize the device behind me. Yes, it's essential for the final phase of the experiment. It'll become part of history."
"But first, let me introduce another auxiliary tool."
An assistant wheeled in the octopus-like mechanical arms, prompting more gasps.
"What's that?"
"Looks like Spider-Man's tentacle arms."
"So similar! Did Dr. Octavius make Spider-Man's suit too?"
Amid the confusion, Dr. Octavius explained, "You've seen this before. Spider-Man stole my prototype—a despicable act. I despise that guy, and I'm sure some of you feel the same.
Today, I'll prove that thief used my creation wrong.
This is a mechanical assist device I developed to ensure the artificial sun experiment's success. It connects to my nervous system, following my every command to complete the final steps."
He held up a fingernail-sized chip. "All commands are executed through this."
As Dr. Octavius spoke, Harry frowned. "Is he promoting another project?"
Gwen nodded. "He's a scientist, but also a businessman. If Professor Connors had half his savvy, he wouldn't be struggling for funding."
Before she finished, Tony raised his hand with a grin. "I'm investing in this project."
Charlie: "."
Is this how billionaires roll?
Carter raised her hand too. "On behalf of the Carter family, I hope Dr. Octavius will consider us for collaboration."
The Carter family had some wealth but couldn't compete with Tony Stark for the artificial sun project.
But the mechanical arms? Tony might not care as much, being an expert in that field himself. His offer was likely just to give Dr. Octavius face.
With their lead, other businesspeople chimed in, expressing interest, much to Dr. Octavius's satisfaction.
He glanced at the crowd, locking eyes with Ruth, who looked at him with admiration.
Their shared smile reflected years of hard work finally paying off.
This was Otto's dream—and Ruth's wish.
As the assistant attached the mechanical arms to Dr. Octavius's spine, connecting the chip to his nervous system, four dark-gold tentacles moved freely amid gasps.
"Now, witness a miracle!"
Dr. Octavius turned, the four tentacles working in sync as preparations completed.
Zzzzt~
The horn-like device powered up, a pea-sized golden glow expanding rapidly with controlled energy output.
The blazing energy sphere grew, yet the room's temperature barely changed. No heat radiation was detected, shocking the scientists.
Has Otto's technology reached this level?
The businesspeople, less focused on the science, stared breathlessly at the swelling mini-sun.
Carter and the others, though impressed, stayed vigilant for Adrian's potential appearance.
That was their mission.
Unnoticed, Charlie had vanished.
No one cared, as the artificial sun's glow overshadowed everything.
Even Spider-Man.
Zzzzt~
Suddenly, a spark arced across the horn-like device, and the rapidly expanding sun became unstable.
As it shrank and swelled erratically, the crowd gasped.
Dr. Octavius frantically typed at the computer, trying to stabilize the energy output.
"Damn it, how could there be such a basic error…"
A stranger in the crowd paled. "Damn, the artificial sun's losing control. No time to wait."
He hurled a briefcase at the sun.
Buzz~
Boom~
The briefcase melted on contact, revealing a Time Tablet floating on the sun's surface, absorbing its chaotic energy and temporarily stabilizing it.
The sudden anomaly prompted Carter to lift her dress, drawing a pistol strapped to her thigh.
"It's him! Move!"
Bang bang bang!
Gunshots rang out, the crowd screaming and scattering. The stranger leaped to the ceiling.
Bang~
His clothes tore, green wings whipping up a gust.
"Quack quack quack! Without Spider-Man, I don't even see you guys as a threat."
Adrian ripped off his disguise, laughing wildly before diving down like a green arrow.
"Watch out!!"
A shield flew in from the window.
Carter, reacting on instinct, raised her shield.
Clang!!
The shield trembled, and Carter staggered slightly.
Heart pounding, she watched the green Vulture soar back up, her face pale.
"So close. Too close."
Adrian looked regretful. "Not bad, Captain Carter. Lucky break."
He smashed through the ceiling, vanishing from sight.
The Time Tablet he left behind continued absorbing the sun's immense energy.
Dr. Octavius, too focused to care about the Vulture, tried to knock the Time Tablet away with his mechanical arms, but the sun's extreme heat was too much for them.
"Damn it, what is this thing? As long as it's here, my experiment will never succeed!"
"Dr. Octavius, stop the experiment. It's too dangerous," Carter urged.
"No way!"
Dr. Octavius was stubborn. "Do you know how much funding this experiment cost? I don't get a second shot."
"I've got money."
Tony grabbed a metal briefcase from Happy, donning a portable suit in seconds.
"That guy's after the artificial sun. You know how bad this could get. I'll cover the funding."
"No, I'm not giving up," Dr. Octavius gritted his teeth.
Tony paused. "I'll pay more."
Dr. Octavius hesitated. "Fine, deal."
He moved the tentacles to shut off the power, but before they reached the switch, the ceiling shattered. A green arrow flashed, slicing through the dark-gold tentacles with its wings.
"What?"
The crowd gasped. Before they could react, the green arrow darted through, knocking people aside.
"No~"
Bang bang…
Carter's shield hit the ground, her body crashing into lab equipment.
"So fast. I couldn't even react," she said, face grim.
Nearby, Tony's portable suit sparked, its flight systems damaged.
"He targeted my thrusters first. He came prepared."
"My ribs are broken," Harry groaned, clutching his abdomen, sweating.
Dr. Octavius's three remaining tentacles were severed. He held Ruth, cold sweat on his brow.
"Captain Carter, where are your agents?" he shouted.
Carter shook her head. "Probably taken out already."
Gwen gripped a small pistol in one hand, the other pressing a wound at her side.
"Without Spider-Man's powers, we can't win."
She longed for the days when she had superpowers.
At least she wouldn't feel so helpless.
This guy's speed was despair-inducing.
From the ceiling, Adrian smirked at the battered group.
"Too slow, too slow! You're all way too slow.
Now you get it—speed is the key to victory.
With speed, you have everything!"
A red-and-blue figure swung in from the window.
"I don't entirely agree, but I'll use the speed you're so proud of to send you straight to hell."
Adrian's face fell at the sight of Charlie.
"What?!"