[98] A Green Situation

Chapter 98: A Green Situation

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The Green Goblin circled overhead, his glider humming with sinister energy as debris from the destroyed wall settled around us. His mask caught the emergency lights, transforming his already grotesque features into something truly nightmarish.

"Spider-Man himself is gracing us with his presence!" He cackled, voice modulated to an inhuman pitch. "Or should I say, sneaking around my property like common thieves? Who are these around you…? Tsk, tsk, Spider-Man. I expected better company from New York's favorite wall-crawler!"

I floated sideways, my Ghostfreak form's single eye watching the Goblin carefully. His attention seemed fixed on Spider-Man rather than our group. I knew that wasn't random. The two of them had history, antagonism that went beyond our current situation.

"We need to move," I whispered to the others. "He's focused on Spider-Man."

Spider-Man shot a quick glance our way before dodging a small pumpkin bomb that exploded against a nearby console, showering the room with sparks.

"Casper’s right, go! Find the patient!" Spidey called, flipping over the Goblin's glider. "I'll keep Halloween-man busy!"

I didn’t argue, I knew Spider would be fine. The Goblin's attention snapped in our direction. "Leaving so soon? But the party's just started!"

He pulled something from his belt – more bombs, glinting metallic in the red emergency lights. Before he could throw them, Spider-Man launched a barrage of webbing, temporarily gumming up the Goblin's arm.

"Your beef's with me, Gobby!" Spider-Man taunted. "Or are you suddenly interested in playing with ghosts? That’s making me jealous."

The Goblin snarled, his glider banking sharply as he pursued Spider-Man toward the opposite end of the lab. "Always the comedian, Spider-Man! Let's see if you're still laughing when I peel that mask from your corpse!"

Jessica grabbed Felicia's arm. "We need to move already."

"Wait," Madelyne stepped forward, her eyes narrowing as she watched the Goblin. "I could stop him."

That was true, but… I hesitated. Something about the connection nagged at me. Green Goblin. Goblin Queen. I didn't read many comics, but didn’t Norman have something pretty similar to the Joker Toxin from DC? Goblin Gas, I think. If so, it would be unwise to make Madelyne fight him, even as an Omega-level mutant.

"Not worth the risk," I decided. "We’re not here to fight, Maddy. Spider-Man knows how to handle him. Our priority is Walter Hardy."

A pumpkin bomb detonated against a support column, sending cracks spiderwebbing through the ceiling. Concrete dust rained down as the structure groaned ominously.

"Time for a wardrobe change," I muttered, hitting the Omnitrix symbol on my chest.

I returned to my human form and then switched once again. The familiar green light enveloped me as my form shifted from ghostly to crystalline. "Diamondhead!" My body now stood tall and solid, composed entirely of impenetrable green crystal.

Just in time too. A massive section of the ceiling came loose, plummeting toward us. I raised my arms, forming a crystalline shield that expanded outward, catching the debris before it could crush us.

"Move!" I shouted, straining under the weight.

Jessica didn't need to be told twice. She positioned herself under a particularly unstable section, her superhuman strength allowing her to hold up what my shield couldn't catch.

"This way!" Felicia called, having found an emergency exit route while we were playing Atlas.

Madelyne's eyes glowed faintly as she extended her hands. Smaller pieces of debris lifted away telekinetically, clearing our path. The sheer control she demonstrated was impressive. There was no wasted motion nor any unnecessary flourish. Very efficient.

We pushed forward, leaving the sounds of battle behind us. The Green Goblin's maniacal laughter echoed through the corridors, punctuated by explosions and Spider-Man's occasional quips.

"The distraction's working," Jessica observed as we navigated through the increasingly damaged facility. "Security's focused on the Goblin. And they're evacuating non-essential personnel."

Madelyne nodded, her expression distant. "I can sense their minds. Most researchers are congregating on floors 20 through 25. But there's a cluster still active two sections over."

"That's where my father will be," Felicia said with certainty, pulling up a security terminal. Her fingers flew over the keyboard. "The emergency protocols have opened access to systems that were previously locked down."

The screen flickered with rapidly changing code as Felicia bypassed security measure after security measure. "Got it," she announced after a moment. "There's a research wing not shown on any official blueprints. Access is through a hidden elevator shaft behind the main lab."

"Hidden illegal labs. How original," Jessica muttered.

I turned back to human form, then quickly transformed into XLR8. Speed would be our friend now. "Lead the way, Cat. I've got point."

We moved swiftly through the labyrinthine corridors, our strange team functioning with surprising cohesion. Jessica and I took the lead, clearing obstacles. Felicia navigated, and Madelyne guarded our rear, her telekinesis sealing doors behind us to slow any pursuers.

The hidden elevator revealed itself as a maintenance closet with a false back wall. Felicia opened it using codes stolen from the security system, exposing a sleek elevator with no markings.

"No cameras inside," she noted as we entered. "They didn't want any record of who comes and goes."

The elevator descended smoothly, taking us deeper than the building's official blueprints suggested possible. When the doors opened, we found ourselves in a stark white corridor that branched in three directions. The sterility was quite oppressive. There were no windows or decorations, and merely harsh fluorescent lighting and sealed doors.

"This is serious Resident Evil vibes," I commented.

Felicia moved to a nearby terminal, connecting a small device from her belt. "They've got a separate security system down here. Give me a minute."

“Need help? I can go Upgrade.”

“I can handle this.”

While she worked, Madelyne closed her eyes. "There are minds here. Confused. In pain." Her brow furrowed. "At least a dozen."

"More test subjects," Jessica's voice hardened with anger.

Felicia's device beeped softly. "I'm in." The screen before her changed to show multiple camera feeds. She cycled through them rapidly before freezing on one particular image.

The blood drained from her face.

On the screen, a man lay strapped to a medical bed. IV lines ran into his arms, and monitoring equipment surrounded him. But it wasn't a normal man anymore. His skin had a strange, mottled appearance, patches of what looked like reptilian scales emerging in places. One arm was noticeably larger than the other, the fingers elongated into claw-like appendages.

"D-dad…" Felicia whispered, her composed facade cracking for the first time since I'd met her.

The man on the screen thrashed suddenly, his back arching in pain. The monitoring equipment showed spiking vital signs.

"They're doing it," Felicia said, horror creeping into her voice. "They're injecting him with the final serum. We need to move now!"

****

The isolation wing looked like something from a sci-fi horror movie. It was hard to watch. Clear containment cells lined both sides of a central corridor, each one housing a person in various stages of mutation. Some were barely changed, with perhaps a patch of unusual skin or slightly altered limbs. Others were hardly recognizable as human anymore.

I felt sick to my stomach. This wasn't just unethical science. It was torture disguised as medical research.

"My God," Jessica murmured, taking in the nightmare around us.

Felicia spotted her father immediately, rushing to the furthest cell. Walter Hardy's condition was even worse in person than on the surveillance feed. The mutation had progressed, spreading across his torso. Monitoring equipment beeped with increasing urgency, indicating his vitals were growing unstable.

"Get him out!" Felicia demanded, searching for controls to open the cell.

Madelyne stepped forward, extending a hand. The door to Walter's cell shuddered, then tore free from its frame entirely, clattering to the floor.

"Jessica, help me with the others," Madelyne said, already moving to the next cell. "We can't leave them here."

Jessica nodded grimly, following Madelyne's lead while Felicia and I focused on Walter Hardy.

I couldn’t help but frown. Up close, the horror of what had been done to him was even more apparent. The reptilian scales covered nearly half his body now, and his facial features were beginning to distort. His eyes, when they fluttered open briefly, showed vertical pupils like a snake's.

"Dad? Dad, it's me," Felicia said, taking his less-mutated hand in hers. The tough, confident cat burglar was gone, replaced by a frightened daughter. "We're getting you out of here."

Walter made a guttural sound, words beyond him now as the mutation accelerated. The machines monitoring him began to alarm, indicating critical deterioration.

"Ben, do something!" Felicia pleaded, her usual composure completely shattered. "He's dying!"

I returned to human and activated the Omnitrix, cycling through alien forms. "I'll try Upgrade first. Maybe I can interface with the equipment, understand what they've done."

The transformation was quick, my body becoming living technology. I merged with the monitoring systems, my consciousness spreading through the medical equipment. The data I found was disturbing – Walter's DNA was unraveling, the forced mutations creating genetic instabilities that his body couldn't reconcile.

I detached, shifting immediately to Grey Matter. My tiny form scrambled up the bed, examining Walter with enhanced intelligence.

"The cross-species genetics are fundamentally flawed," I explained, my voice higher in this form. "They've spliced reptilian DNA at key junctures, but without proper stabilizing agents. His body is rejecting the changes, but the changes are already too integrated to simply remove."

I tried Wildvine next, producing natural compounds that might slow the deterioration. Nothing worked. Walter's condition continued to worsen, his body convulsing as scales spread further across his skin.

"B-Ben… You have to have something! Please!" Felicia's voice broke with desperation. "All these powers... there has to be something you can do!"

I reverted to human form, feeling helpless as I stared at the dying man. Walter Hardy had been used as a guinea pig, his illness exploited by people who saw him as nothing more than experimental material.

Were things simply going to end like this? Even though we made it in time?

Then, a half-remembered scene played through my mind. From Ben 10 Alien Force. I recalled the Omnitrix's original purpose. It was a preservation tool, a way to store and protect genetic information. Not just for aliens, but for any DNA-based life form.

But that was the recalibrated Omnitrix. The one on my wrist can’t even scan DNA from a distance. Regardless, it wouldn’t hurt to try. Acting on instinct, I placed my hand on Walter's chest, directly over his heart.

"Omnitrix," I said firmly, "scan and repair damaged DNA."

For a moment, nothing happened. I sighed, having expected this somewhat. Felicia’s face fell. Then the watch flashed, not the familiar green but a brilliant yellow. The device spoke in its mechanical voice.

[UNSTABLE DNA DETECTED.]

[GENETIC REPAIR SEQUENCE INITIATED.]

Yellow energy flowed from the Omnitrix into Walter Hardy, creating a network of light that spread across his body. I gasped as pain shot up my arm – not like anything I'd felt before. It was as if the Omnitrix was using the Human genetic material as a baseline, a template to help rebuild Walter's unraveling DNA.

"What's happening?" Felicia asked, wide-eyed.

"It's... repairing him," I managed through gritted teeth. "Rewriting the damaged sections."

The process was excruciating, but I refused to let go. The yellow energy pulsed brighter, surrounding Walter completely. Before our eyes, the reptilian scales began to recede. His distorted limb contracted, fingers returning to human proportions. His breathing steadied as the machines registered improving vital signs.

Sweat poured down my face as the Omnitrix drew more and more of my energy. My vision blurred, darkness creeping at the edges, but I held on. This was what heroes did – they endured pain to save others.

Finally, the yellow light began to fade.

Walter Hardy lay before us, still unconscious but recognizably human again. The worst mutations had reversed, though faint scale patterns remained visible on his skin like unusual tattoos.

The Omnitrix beeped weakly, then flashed red – entering a recharge mode I hadn't seen since I'd modified it to remove the timeout function.

I staggered back, grinning despite my exhaustion. "It worked."

Felicia stared at her father, then at me, tears streaming down her face. "Thank you," she whispered, squeezing my hand with surprising gentleness.

The moment of triumph was short-lived. The wall behind us exploded inward, and Spider-Man came crashing through, tumbling across the floor before coming to a stop against an empty containment cell. His costume was torn in places, revealing cuts and bruises beneath.

He struggled to his feet as the Green Goblin followed on his glider, silhouetted in the dust and debris.

"You can't save them all, Spider-Man!" Goblin cackled, readying another pumpkin bomb. "Some monsters are already too far gone!"

Behind me, I heard Madelyne sigh. She stepped forward, hand raised casually.

"Alright, this is getting a bit too dramatic for me. Enough," she said quietly.

She made a simple clenching gesture with her fingers. Instantly, the Goblin's armor and glider crumpled like tin foil, circuits shorting out in a shower of sparks. Norman Osborn dropped from the air, landing hard on the ground, his precious technology crushed around him by invisible force.

Oh.

Oh, wow.

It was that easy for her. All this time.

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