24. A Sudden Turn of Events

Gently breaking it...

Pah!

The moment the stone, housed within the transparent control box, was shattered, a strange light—invisible to the naked eye of an ordinary person but clearly visible to Hawk—burst forth from within.

At that very instant, his Cosmo stirred.

It was clear. His Cosmo was telling him one thing.

Gammanium—

He had found it.

After absorbing the information transmitted by his Cosmo, Hawk understood exactly what Gammanium was, and he couldn't help but smile, feeling slightly speechless.

The reason was simple.

Gammanium, to put it plainly, was merely gamma radiation that had, for unknown reasons, transformed from its naturally uncontainable state into a storable form.

This... was Gammanium.

Well. It sounded ridiculous. But that didn't matter anymore. What mattered was that Hawk now knew exactly where to find the Gammanium he needed.

Quantico!

The laboratory where Bruce Banner had been exposed to the gamma radiation explosion.

After bringing Hawk inside, Gwen, who was temporarily acting as his guide, noticed Hawk staring intently at the shattered stone. She instinctively nudged him with her elbow.

Hawk snapped out of his trance and looked at Gwen. His eyes were clear.

"Hmm?"

"What are you thinking about?"

Gwen frowned. "You don't actually want to become a monster like Abomination, do you?"

Thinking of the obsessive look in his eyes just moments ago, she had the unsettling feeling that Hawk wasn't planning on remaining human.

Hawk momentarily pushed aside the idea of rushing off to Quantico and shook his head. "How could that be? I was just thinking about whether Dr. Connors' experiment is nearing success."

Gwen was about to speak, but just then, Dr. Connors, who had seen Gwen bring someone in, walked over. Hearing the remark, he chimed in, "Scientific research is a path of constant trial and error, but indeed, I feel we are on the road to success."

Gwen turned to greet him. "Doctor."

"Curtis. Curtis Connors."

Wearing a white lab coat, the one-armed Connors smiled and extended his left hand toward Hawk. "And you are..."

Hawk looked at the doctor's extended hand and smiled as he reached out his right. "Hawk, a classmate of Gwen's. I'm currently working a summer job in the electrical engineering department. By the way, I came in with Mr. Dillon; I asked Gwen if she could give me a tour. Sorry to bother you, Doctor."

Dr. Connors laughed. "I heard you talking with Gwen just now. Do you really believe my experiment will succeed?"

Hawk smiled. "I've read your papers, Doctor. It's clear that if your experiment succeeds, it will surely benefit humanity."

This wasn't flattery; it was a fact. If Dr. Connors' regeneration experiment succeeded, there would be no more disabled people in the world. Of course, he was referring to physical disabilities. That was why Hawk said it would benefit humanity, rather than all of mankind.

However, all of this presumed Dr. Connors would actually produce the regeneration serum, rather than concocting that lizard serum that turned one into a Lizard-man.

But... that seemed highly unlikely. The reason Dr. Connors became the Lizard was primarily due to the influence of the Amazing Spider-Man. Although the Dr. Connors before him looked just like the one from the movie, there was no Amazing Spider-Man here.

There was a spider-boy here, but he was working a summer job at the Daily Bugle and was unlikely to appear here.

Therefore... the probability of this Dr. Connors turning into the Lizard was truly lower than the probability of Max Dillon, who was repairing things outside, turning into Electro next year.

Regardless, Hawk's words were impeccable. He didn't state whether he believed it or not; he only said that if the experiment succeeded, it would benefit humanity.

Dr. Connors was pleased by this and laughed, though he didn't say anything more. As he left, he said to Gwen, "Gwen, feel free to show your classmate our current progress."

It was rare for someone to affirm his research, and since Gwen wasn't involved in any core technology and the progress was public, there was no risk of a leak.

Gwen acknowledged him. After Dr. Connors left, she stood beside Hawk again and whispered, "Do you really think Dr. Connors' experiment can succeed?"

Hawk was watching the lab technician who had shattered the gamma stone walk toward a centrifuge nearby. Hearing the question, he looked at Gwen.

Just as he was about to shake his head, he sensed something and looked up at the lightbulb overhead.

The bulb flickered rapidly.

The next moment, a loud *pop* echoed.

With the explosion of the bulb, the entire laboratory plunged into darkness.

"Thud!"

"Honey..."

"Pfft!"

Along with the sound of an explosion in the sudden darkness and the sharp cries of alarm, Hawk felt a wave of pressure surging toward...

Gwen!

Hawk didn't have time to think. Almost subconsciously, he thrust his right hand forward, blocking the space in front of Gwen.

"Pfft!"

"..."

Hawk felt a sharp pain in his palm and frowned. Meanwhile, the laboratory's emergency lights flickered to life.

The crimson emergency light cast a chilling, eerie glow over the laboratory.

The people in the room were horrified to see a body lying in a pool of blood.

A female technician was clutching her bleeding neck, slumped on the floor near the broken centrifuge. Blood bubbled out through the gaps in her fingers. Several laboratory mice scurried across the floor.

"Holy shit!"

"Mia?"

"Jesus Christ."

"Mia!"

Under the red emergency lights, everyone’s faces turned pale. Some ran out to call for help, while others rushed toward the fallen woman.

Gwen’s gaze landed on Hawk, who had retracted his right hand and placed it behind his back.

Her eyes flickered as she turned to face him.

"Show me your hand."

"What?"

Hawk was slightly stunned.

Gwen didn't speak; she reached out, grabbed his arm, and pulled his right hand from behind his back, forcing it open.

Coming into view, his right palm was completely unscathed, save for a spot in the center that looked remarkably like brand-new skin.

Gwen was stunned.

Hawk smiled and pulled his hand back. "My hand isn't as pretty as yours."

Gwen frowned but said nothing.

Just then, Oscorp’s medical staff and security rushed in to clear the area.

Taking advantage of the chaos, Hawk led a bewildered Max away.

Gwen remained outside the lab, her brow still furrowed.

She was certain she hadn't seen wrong. Just as the lights went out, she had clearly felt a wave of pressure as if the air were being squeezed. The sensation had come and gone in a flash, but she had seen it clearly—the moment that pressure vanished, several drops of blood had fallen into her line of sight.

But Hawk’s palm was perfectly fine.

Wait a moment.

Gwen seemed to realize something. Her eyes lit up, and she walked to the lab entrance, looking at the spot where she had been standing.

On the floor...

On the white tiles, several drops of blood were clearly visible!

A mouse with a severed tail scurried over, sniffed the floor, and, as if sensing something, began to lap up the drops of blood with its tongue.

Shit!

Gwen snapped back to reality and hurriedly ran inside.