Tandy Bowen crouched on the old apartment building's rooftop water tower like a white dove with folded wings.
The cold wind made her exposed neck tingle.
Her target was the 'Green Nightcrawler' who caused a riot in the neighborhood last time.
A man named Jackson Awad.
The file said this guy was just a street thug, but Tandy didn't believe a word of it.
What kind of thug could wear a fluorescent green bodysuit and leap more than ten meters between buildings?
With that athletic ability, he could win three gold medals at the Olympics.
Her tracking skills were still very rudimentary.
She relied solely on an unyielding spirit and the corporate culture of 'proactive attack, risk control' instilled by her boss, William.
However, she soon realized that she was the mouse being toyed with by the cat.
On the street below, the figure of her target, wearing a bodysuit, suddenly turned into a dark alley and disappeared.
Tandy's heart skipped a beat, and an ominous premonition surged within her.
She held her breath, silently moved to the edge of the rooftop, and looked down.
The alley was empty.
The next second, a scorching wave of heat rushed at her from behind!
Tandy's hair stood on end instantly.
Her body's instinct was faster than her brain's reaction.
A clumsy roll allowed her to dodge the fatal sneak attack.
She looked back, her heart almost leaping out of her throat.
Her target had appeared behind her at some point, and his body was even emitting tiny specks of starlight.
"Little girl, following me for three blocks, aren't you tired?"
Jackson's voice carried a morbid excitement.
He took a deep breath, a look of intoxication on his face.
"The smell of you... it's so fragrant. Like a freshly baked, steaming cream dessert."
Tandy was both startled and enraged. She quickly steadied herself, crossed her hands, and two solidified Daggers, emitting a soft glow, appeared in her hands.
"Stay away from me! Monster!"
"Monster?"
The man laughed, and the eerie starlight flickered more intensely with his laughter.
"Soon, you'll come to like this 'monster' of mine."
With that, he suddenly rushed forward.
Tandy gritted her teeth and fiercely threw the Dagger light blades in her hands.
This was her proud power, her holy light that purified evil, enough to make any villain with ill intentions repent in pain.
A bizarre scene unfolded.
The two light blade Daggers, capable of cutting through steel plates, seemed to encounter an invisible black hole when they flew to within half a meter of Jackson.
Without even a ripple, they were silently swallowed and dissolved by the flickering starlight around him.
Tandy's face instantly turned ashen.
How could this be?
Her abilities, had they failed?
Jackson moved; his attacks were wild and deadly.
It wasn't like fighting; it was more like preying.
Each time he swung his arm, the starlight he generated precisely grazed Tandy's body, as if deliberately savoring the light energy emanating from her.
Tandy retreated steadily, light blades constantly forming in her hands only to be devoured, her internal energy rapidly depleting.
For the first time, she realized how vulnerable she was without the protection of Tyrone's Shadow, which allowed her to move freely.
This enemy was simply not someone she could handle!
In a moment of crisis, Tandy unleashed all of her remaining light energy, and a blinding flash temporarily made her disappear from Jackson's sight.
Using this gap, she scrambled down the stairs and hid in an abandoned alley filled with trash cans.
Her back pressed tightly against the cold brick wall, she gasped for breath.
Her trembling hand reached into her pocket and found the cold, metallic little object.
It was the 'Employee Emergency Help Button' William had given her.
She pressed it without hesitation... North Brother Island, William's office.
A piercing alarm suddenly blared, breaking the deep night's tranquility.
"Sir, employee Tandy Bowen's personal terminal has emitted a highest-level distress signal."
Jarvis's voice appeared.
"Life sign monitoring shows her heart rate exceeds 180, and adrenaline levels are soaring. On-site audio detected violent energy collision sounds."
William's brows furrowed.
He pulled out his tablet; the blue light dot representing Tandy was flashing frantically next to a small red dot in Brooklyn, the signal extremely unstable.
The little girl was under attack.
Who should he send?
Tyrone?
No.
That unlucky guy had just been 'fed' too much by the prehistoric power bank.
He was currently in the 'energy overload' sage mode.
His spirit was so weak that even summoning a Shadow was difficult.
Emil?
He was the core defense of the Base, the last resort, and could not be easily deployed.
Nick Fury, that old fox, probably had satellites monitoring this island twenty-four hours a day.
Once he let Abomination leave North Brother Island and enter the city, Fury would have enough excuses to use 'maintaining public safety' as a pretext to 'reclaim' this high-risk asset.
He was careless, he shouldn't have let them act separately.
William's mind raced, and a thought flashed through.
Perhaps, he could try that 'friendly neighbor'?
William picked up the encrypted phone on his desk and dialed a number.
"Hello, Mr. Rodriguez?"
"Peter, good evening. Sorry to bother you so late, I hope you can do me a small favor."
"No problem, what do you need me to do?"
"Tandy, you met her last time, the girl who uses light energy Daggers. She's run into a bit of trouble in Brooklyn and needs a friendly neighbor to provide her with a professional 'risk intervention' service."
"Five hundred U.S. dollars per hour."
William directly threw out an irresistible price.
"Five... five hundred?!"
Peter's voice changed pitch.
The temptation of money instantly shattered all hesitation and wariness in his mind.
Aunt May's rent, his tuition, and that old camera... God, this wasn't a job, it was welfare!
"I'll do it! I'll do it!"
Peter Parker sprang up from the rooftop with a carp-like flip.
"Send me the coordinates! I'll be right there!"
"Pleasure working with you."
...Meanwhile, in the alley.
Tandy had exhausted her last ounce of strength, leaning desperately against the corner of the wall.
Jackson Awad blocked the only exit.
He sneered, approaching step by step, as if savoring his soon-to-be dinner.
"Don't struggle, little dessert. Your light will make me stronger."
Tandy closed her eyes, awaiting her final fate.
Just then.
"Whoosh—"
A familiar sound of web-slinging cutting through the night sky rang out.
Immediately after, a red and blue figure descended from the sky, performing an extremely flashy 720-degree aerial spin, landing steadily between Tandy and Jackson Awad.
"Hey! Good evening! Is this where the 'risk intervention' delivery service was called?"
The figure half-crouched on the ground, tilting his head, the large White eye frames on his mask blinking playfully, full of vitality.
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