bookbashuk Chapter 24: 192 Bones
Chapter 24: 192 Bones
The sound of bullets rang out, making Spider-Man and Connors' ears go numb. The former was somewhat better off, after all, his physical attributes were what they were.
The latter wanted to cover his ears, but couldn't free his hands, so he could only use his crippled, ugly, deformed arm.
So, from George Stacy's perspective, this is how the scene appears.
Spider-Man ran at top speed, and Connors bounced up and down on him. If you didn't know that Connors had a missing arm, you would have been surprised.
The way the other person covered their ears with that missing arm looked exactly like something strange plugging their ears.
This is... hellish, so disgusting!
With the police's cover fire, Spider-Man quickly and safely brought Dr. Connors to the police station.
The officers present were all experienced, so there was no chance of a bullet entering someone's body.
Their target from the very beginning was that lizardman.
"Phew, that was close."
Spider-Man puts Connors down, feels the gunfire around him, and can't help but think that the police are quite humane, not using him as a target.
As soon as Connors landed, he put his hand on Spider-Man's shoulder, his face showing a little awkwardness, as if the 'bump' he had just experienced had made him uncomfortable.
"Hey... Spider-Man, there's something I feel I need to tell you beforehand, so you don't make a big mistake later."
"What?" Spider-Man pricked up his ears and listened intently.
"That is..."
Connors released his hand from Spider-Man's shoulder, suddenly reached behind his back, then leaned back and straightened up, making a cracking sound from his waist.
"Don't you know what the consequences would be if an object moving at high speed suddenly stopped?"
"Emergency stop? The keyboard I used in my previous life was a Wooting, the mouse was a Razer Mini, and the monitor was a Zowie..."
Spider-Man promptly covered Oz's mouth to stop the keyword from being triggered.
Fortunately, Connors couldn't hear Oz's ramblings, and he continued:
"Have you ever imagined what it would be like if I didn't catch the spider silk? Or what it would be like if the spider silk was stuck to me? Do you know what that means?"
"This means your actions weren't rescue, but outright murder!"
Connors' words left Spider-Man speechless.
He hadn't considered this factor at all. Since becoming Spider-Man, he rarely encountered a situation like today. Most of the time, he would grab someone and swing away on his webs, or he would use his webs to stick the heels of criminals to him while they were running, making them eat dog shit.
Rescuing Connors in mid-air like today is a first for us.
This is probably the last time.
Having always been very knowledgeable in physics, it was impossible for him not to understand what Connors meant, especially since the other party had already made it very clear.
He felt a lingering fear.
"Wow, I never expected to hear that from him. Looks like someone needs to learn Newtonian mechanics before he can be a good Spider-Man. Poor Gwen Stacy, her fate has been taken by Dr. Lizard."
The moment the hand that had sealed the demon's whisper loosened, a lewd voice was heard.
Spider-Man decisively casts the seal once again!
"Hey, don't forget, besides my mouth, I can also speak inside your head!"
"Oz, shut up!"
"You sound like some kind of pearl boy. Forget it, I can't be bothered with you. You should deal with this mess first."
After Spider-Man finished communicating with Oz in his mind, he glanced at Dr. Connors, lowered his head, and spoke in a low voice, looking like a student who had made a mistake, with a sincere attitude.
"I'm sorry, Doctor, I didn't think of that. I was just too worried about your safety..."
"It's alright, kid. I understand you meant well. Just be more careful next time. If something really happens, you can just give me a shot of lizard serum."
Connors patted Spider-Man on the shoulder, knowing that the kid definitely had a kind and honest heart and didn't do it on purpose.
Instead of spending more time blaming the other person for not doing well enough, it's better to tell them how to do it next time and how to do it better.
"You know I've never been Spider-Man, so I can't offer any good advice, but I believe that with your intelligence, you'll definitely figure it out."
"I will!"
Spider-Man then caught a glimpse of a figure rushing towards them out of the corner of his eye, and immediately became uneasy.
To be honest, I had just shared dinner with them at the same table not long ago, but the argument that followed made their relationship a little awkward.
"Professor Connors!"
The figure that appeared was none other than Police Chief George Stacy.
George had a good impression of the man who had once written a college recommendation letter for his beloved daughter.
Despite the goodwill, the current events remain shrouded in mystery.
For example, why is he here? Why is he only wearing a white work uniform?
Surely this highly respected professor isn't actually an exhibitionist in private?
Where did the other lizard go?
And he seems to know Spider-Man?
Or is it simply gratitude for being saved?
The thoughts that came to mind didn't prompt George to ask questions immediately; these were merely thoughts that arose out of a sense of duty.
"Are you alright? Do you feel any discomfort?" George quickly checked Connors' condition with his eyes and found that he didn't seem to have been hurt.
"I'm fine, Spider-Man saved me." Connors shook his head, attributing the credit to Peter.
"So..."
George glanced at Spider-Man, who waved awkwardly.
"Where did the other lizard monster go? Is he still in the Osborne Building?" George asked.
Spider-Man glanced at Connors with concern.
Spider-Man is certain that no one else knows Dr. Connors has become the Lizard.
If the doctor were to say it out loud, it would definitely be widely publicized in the newspapers the next day, and he might even lose his job!
To his surprise, Connors responded readily, directly admitting that he was another lizard monster.
"In fact," Connors said, "I am another lizard monster."
"And over there..." He pointed to Dara, who had been hit by a volley of bullets from all the police officers.
"It's one of my colleagues, Dr. Dara Irfan."
"He accidentally ingested our lizard serum, which was still in the research stage, and turned into a lizard monster. His personality and other aspects can no longer be regarded as normal people."
George frowned. "So what about the Veterans Hospital incident this morning? Was that his doing too?"
Connors nodded, then tightened the white coat he was wearing; he wasn't wearing anything underneath, and it felt chilly.
"I watched your press conference this morning. You spoke very well, but..."
He glanced at his student, Spider-Man.
"But none of this has anything to do with Spider-Man. He was there to help with the rescue, not to cause trouble."
"Doctor!" Spider-Man was surprised by Dr. Connors's response.
In his view, this matter is related to him to some extent!
If he hadn't arrogantly provided the formula back then, things wouldn't be like this today.
"..."
Oz lazily lay on Spider-Man's head, a reaction that Connors had somewhat expected.
After all, many of Spider-Man's villains aren't exactly pure evil in the strictest sense.
Before becoming villains, most of them had established a significant bond with Peter Parker.
Whether it's a mentor, a friend, or a colleague.
They always got along well, almost like succubi.
There's also a succubus bat chef next door, but compared to Spider-Man's villainous gang, they seem incredibly kind and approachable.
Of course, the Green Goblin is an exception.
This guy is pure evil!
Oz glanced in the direction of Dr. Dara, who had transformed into a lizard.
The police had emptied all their magazines, as if venting some kind of anger, and fired a torrent of bullets into the person.
If Dara were a black-skinned lizard, the bullets would probably have spread even faster.
Oz, lost in thought, didn't forget to remind Peter:
Do you know what a wild animal does before it dies?
"What?"
"A cornered beast's struggle."
Spider-Man narrowed his eyes. He noticed that in the center of the scene not far away, the lizard monster was curled up like a hibernating snake, completely still.
Judging from their appearance, they seemed to have been rendered incapacitated by police firepower.
Just then, the spider-sense faintly activated.
Meanwhile, police officers were slowly approaching the center of the scene!
"No!"
"Okay... more details..." George felt a little annoyed when he realized that Spider-Man had interrupted him.
"Listen, even though someone has been cleared of suspicion against you, that doesn't mean..."
"No, Officer Stacy!" Spider-Man interrupted again, "You need to keep the other officers at a distance from Dara; he's still a threat!"
Upon hearing the sound, George immediately turned to look at the scene and found that many of his men were slowly approaching the curled-up monster.
He was about to shout when Spider-Man beside him acted first and shouted:
"Everyone, stand back!"
Spider-Man tightened his grip, attaching his webs to each officer who was about to approach Dara, and then pulled.
Dozens of police officers fell to the ground, and then, as they wondered why Spider-Man would do such a thing.
The next moment, Dara burst forth with astonishing vitality once again!
He opened his large hand, big enough to crush the head of any police officer, and quickly moved to the nearest officer, grabbing him sharply!
"No!"
Where have the police officers seen this scene before?
At that moment, he was so frightened that he instinctively closed his eyes and awaited death.
But contrary to his expectations, he did not feel any pain.
He barely managed to lift his eyelids and saw a red and blue figure blocking his way. He struggled to resist those huge hands!
The spider symbol on the other person's back became an image he would never forget that night.
"Let's go!" Spider-Man said through gritted teeth.
"Thank you!" The officer quickly got up and fled the scene.
"Why do you always stop me?!"
Dara exerted more force, and it looked like he was about to crush the insect completely, but the insect seemed to have inexhaustible strength and stubbornly resisted him.
"I'm not stopping you... I'm saving you... Dr. Dara, this isn't you... it's the serum that's warped your personality..."
Spider-Man knew that wrestling with the other party was not the right thing to do, but he had to wait until the police officers were far away!
"I don't need you to save me!"
Dara lashed out with her tail, slamming it hard against Spider-Man's small body, sending him flying backward.
Snapped!
Everyone heard the loud crackling sound.
It's like a whip lashing a fragile tree branch, snapping it in two!
Spider-Man!
Upon seeing this, Connors couldn't help but shout out.
The officers rescued by Spider-Man, upon witnessing this scene, couldn't help but wonder what it would be like if that whip were lashed at them.
It broke in two on the spot?
They didn't know that Spider-Man had taken the hit for them.
A beam of white light suddenly shone down from the sky.
It first glanced at the enormous lizard monster, then turned and shone the light on the wreckage where Spider-Man had flown.
Spider-Man was pulled into a dilapidated vehicle; the dents in the metal of the car door spoke volumes about the ferocity of his tail.
"Who let this newspaper's helicopter in?! Where are our Sky Team members?!"
George noticed the helicopter overhead and immediately started cursing.
"I'm sorry, sir, they came from another direction..."
"Be prepared to be suspended!"
"Everyone, fire!"
George then ordered another round of firing.
Gunshots rang out again and again.
This guy got injured while saving his men. Although he doesn't have a good impression of Spider-Man, that doesn't mean he doesn't know what's important!
The lizard monster seemed to be in a brief period of weakness due to the earlier outburst, and was now kneeling on the ground, protecting its head with its hands, patiently taking the bullets.
George felt that its body was a little smaller than before, though he wasn't sure if it was just his imagination.
"Get up, Spider-Man!"
Connors couldn't help but clench his fist and look at the red and blue figure.
Judging from what he just saw, he understood why Dara hadn't regressed to an ordinary person.
Dara is currently in a state of utter desperation, and the antidote serum couldn't have failed, even if it had been improved.
It's just a matter of time!
Using the power derived from serum excessively will only cause it to degenerate faster!
The intense white light shone continuously on Spider-Man.
Everyone watched this scene, both on-site and via the live webcast channel launched by the newspaper's helicopter hovering in the sky.
They were all shouting the same thing in their hearts.
Get up!
......
Amidst the chaotic gunfire, a faint voice rang out beside me.
"It's still a mix of good and bad news. Which do you want to hear?"
Oz gently patted Spider-Man's headgear with his wings.
The latter wanted to get up, but every bone and muscle in his body protested.
"Good news..." Spider-Man wanted to just lie down like that. He was a little tired and wanted to rest amidst the gunshots.
"The good news is that Dara is about to regress to an ordinary person."
"This is truly great news..."
Spider-Man seems to be complaining about the good and bad news Oz had previously mentioned.
"So, what's the bad news?"
"That tail lash broke 14 bones in your body. This is the worst injury you've ever suffered since your debut. Do you want me to log in and help you?"
Spider-Man paused for a moment, seemingly considering it.
Then he suddenly laughed again.
"I think this is good news."
"Oh?" Oz asked, surprised.
"At least I still have 192 bones that are still functioning."
"..."
After saying this, Spider-Man got up again, his movements slow and difficult, each small step causing him immense pain.
Spider-Man raised his arm to shield his head, the white beam of light above making it difficult for him to open his eyes.
"......"
The gunfire ceased as if by unspoken agreement.
Then, someone suddenly started clapping, and then a series of applause rang out.
George glanced around at the applause of his colleagues and sighed. Then he noticed Connors next to him patting his chest with one hand, also excited about Spider-Man's resurgence.
only......
"Your underwear is showing, Professor."
"Huh? Ah!"
George reluctantly clapped, apparently he was wrong about the guy.
......
Dara has noticed the changes in his body, but in a short while, he will return to his normal appearance.
Time was of the essence; he either had to escape now or kill the Spider-Man who had been blocking his way.
Regardless of the method, there will be an outcome.
That means returning to his original form and being imprisoned.
"I apologize, advanced genetic beings, but this competition is about to come to an end."
The witty remark rang out again.
The decision was made quietly.
"I'm going to kill you!!!"
In an instant, the two figures pounced on each other.
A lizard, a spider.
The lights focused at that moment, capturing the two figures forever.