Nightmare Descends on New York City

"No need, I know her—she's Olivia Octavius, a nuclear physicist."

When Nick Fury's voice came from behind her, Miss Stark slowly turned around.

In the stories from unknown sources in her mind, there was indeed an Octavius, but it was a short, fat man. Although both wielded four giant metal mechanical arms, the one standing in front of the Iron Spider suit was clearly a woman.

Whether Doctor Octopus was male or female didn't really matter—what surprised Stark was that Fury seemed to know this Octopus woman.

Or to put it more precisely, how did Nick Fury come to know this Doctor Olivia Octavius?

As the director of S.H.I.E.L.D., Nick Fury had unparalleled experience in reading people and analyzing their expressions. He could tell that Stark's face was filled with an intense desire for knowledge—something quite rare for her.

Usually, it was her teaching others and setting traps for them, but now, it seemed it was finally her turn.

A rare, slightly sarcastic smile appeared on Fury's face, but he didn't hide anything from her.

"So, you want to hear a story, little lady?"

"Alright, but this is a very, very long story..."

With that, he pulled out one of the white circular chairs from the nearby rest area and sat down.

"Long, is it? Then make it short, please, thanks."

Miss Stark's blunt response almost caused Fury to fall off his chair.

What's wrong with this woman? She asks for a story, and she's impatient while I tell it?!

"Your father recovered the Tesseract from the depths of the Arctic Ocean. You know that much, right?"

Fury didn't dwell on her impatience and continued after a brief pause.

"Yes, of course, I know—better than anyone," she replied.

The Tesseract, or the Space Stone, was sitting right inside her body at this very moment. As far as Miss Stark was concerned, no one in the universe understood the Tesseract better than she did.

"Then you must have heard of Project Pegasus, the research project on the Tesseract."

"It sounds familiar... I've seen that name somewhere before. Pegasus?"

Fury's words struck a chord in her memory. She recalled something she hadn't paid much attention to before.

When she discovered the energy crystal extracted from the Tesseract, stored in a box by Howard Stark, the word "P.E.G.A.S.U.S" had been labeled on it. The same term appeared on the case Agent Phil Coulson had when he handed over the Tesseract to her.

So, the appearance of the word "Pegasus" wasn't a coincidence—it seemed to carry deeper significance.

Through Fury's explanation, Stark gradually pieced together the story of his connection with Olivia Octavius.

Project Pegasus was initiated by Howard Stark, designed to study the limitless energy of the Tesseract. The project had three major phases.

Due to the scientific limitations of the time, Howard Stark's research remained largely theoretical.

In the 1980s, responsibility for the project was transferred from Howard to Wendy Lawson. After Wendy was reported dead in an accident, the project was shelved for a while.

It wasn't until after the millennium that Olivia Octavius, a leading nuclear physicist in her field, was brought on board with a group of other S.H.I.E.L.D. scientists and consultants to resume the project.

S.H.I.E.L.D. never gave up on the Tesseract. Even though it was locked away, it was never forgotten.

On the other hand, Olivia Octavius was truly one of the top experts in atomic energy physics. Her talents earned her the role of lead researcher on the project to unlock the Tesseract's potential as a power source.

Her breakthroughs brought revolutionary technology to S.H.I.E.L.D., placing them decades ahead of the rest of the world.

Back then, as the head of the Pegasus Project, Olivia Octavius's life was fulfilling—much more so than her time as a researcher at Oscorp Industries.

Norman Osborn, that old fool, had never appreciated real talent or understood the value of true innovation.

But everything changed with the arrival of one person—Antonia Natasha Stark.

Through a special agreement with S.H.I.E.L.D. Director Nick Fury, Miss Stark had struck a deal.

Soon after, Agent Phil Coulson led a team to take the Tesseract from the Pegasus research facility.

This marked the abrupt end of Dr. Octavius's project. Miss Stark had severed the work Olivia had led.

Although S.H.I.E.L.D. tried to convince her to stay, Octavius left, disillusioned. She returned to New York to continue her research at Empire University.

This was the story that Miss Stark learned from Nick Fury. The truth behind the events that had unfolded.

A clever barista, noticing the serious conversation, quietly brought them fresh coffee.

But Miss Stark sat in silence, staring at the coffee cup in front of her, lost in thought.

The swirling steam rising from the white ceramic cup twisted and danced in the airflow of the room.

It wasn't just about the Pegasus Project or the hidden Kree scientist who had succeeded her father as lead researcher.

Even more unsettling was the way she had forcibly taken the Tesseract for herself—it was, in hindsight, rather excessive.

Stark knew what it was like to have one's research interrupted, and the thought left her conflicted.

Undoubtedly, there was now a rift between her and Olivia—one that might affect others as well.

The reason Peter Parker had gotten involved with these people was a direct consequence of her actions.

It was like the chain reactions discussed in topology or chaos theory.

A butterfly flapping its wings in the Amazon rainforest could eventually cause a tornado in Texas.

If even a butterfly could cause such chaos, what might her actions—her melding with the Infinity Stone—trigger?

Miss Stark sat silently in her seat, staring at the white ceramic coffee mug as turmoil churned inside her.

She shouldn't care. After all, she'd made many enemies before, and she'd survived.

Besides, she already possessed both the Space and Reality Stones. No one could pose a threat to her.

That's how it should be. But despite her outward indifference, something deep inside her was unsettled.

What if—just what if—her actions had already changed the future she knew?

She didn't want to imagine it, and she didn't want to take the risk. Destiny was far too chaotic to predict.

"S.H.I.E.L.D.'s rapid response team is on its way to secure the prisoners," Fury said, standing up.

"You'll switch to the 17-A armor and hand the prisoners over once the team arrives."

The coffee had gone cold, and Fury had already left, but Miss Stark didn't care.

She pulled out her phone and connected to Peter Parker's suit via his built-in Bluetooth earpiece.

Peter was always an obedient kid—if an adult told him to do something, he would do it.

Since Miss Stark had asked, he switched to the Iron Spider suit and secured the prisoners.

Soon, the night sky was pierced by several streaks of light—S.H.I.E.L.D. Quinjet transports arriving on the scene.

Meanwhile, Olivia Octavius had already reached Oscorp Tower.

Her visit to the Raft prison had been for one reason: to gather those individuals.

Scorpion, Rhino, Shocker, Electro—and even Vulture and Mr. Negative.

They were, like her, victims of Norman Osborn, all hurt by his ambitions.

Olivia hadn't found Vulture, who wasn't there, and Mr. Negative had already been taken by S.H.I.E.L.D.

The reason she sought out these criminals and freed the prisoners was merely to create a distraction for her own plan.

In return, she had provided them with new weapons and gear to use.

But in the end, while she was searching for Vulture, Spider-Man's new suit had defeated them all.

She could only express her disappointment—these guys really were useless.

Using her mechanical arms, Olivia moved swiftly along the Brooklyn Bridge, making her way to Manhattan.

In a matter of minutes, she arrived at Oscorp Tower.

The enormous LED screens on the building's exterior displayed a massive image of Norman Osborn's beaming face.

Under Miss Stark's suggestion, Norman had stepped down as CEO and begun his political career, running for mayor of New York City.

The towering LED screens covered every corner of Oscorp's territory.

"How many years have you deceived me, Norman? I've lost count," she muttered.

No one noticed the figure moving through the night sky, clutching a small red vial in her hand.

Inside the vial, the GR-27 Devil's Breath swirled, emitting a dark, ominous glow.

"You promised me we could create a cure for us both. But in the end..."

Her grip on the vial tightened as her face twisted with rage. Her once gentle and graceful demeanor had been replaced by a ferocious expression.

No one wants to die—neither Norman Osborn nor Olivia Octavius, who was suffering from ALS.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis—just like its name implied—would freeze her body until death claimed her.

Olivia knew that death was closing in on her. Soon, her body would give out.

Maybe her lungs would stop first, leading to respiratory failure. Or maybe her heart. Either way, death was inevitable.

Standing atop the building, she felt the wind of New York's night, gazing at the bustling city below.

The gentle breeze was the perfect conduit for Devil's Breath to spread across the city.

Olivia knew what she was doing—she was exacting revenge on society. Yes, that's right.

This was the final act of a brilliant scientist, betrayed and left to die alone.

Why should Norman Osborn escape his family's genetic curse and rise to become the city's ruler?

Why should she, Olivia, die quietly in some corner of the city, forgotten and unrecognized?

The bitterness and imbalance in her heart fueled her decision. Olivia had made up her mind—

If she had to die, she would die with a bang. She would take this entire city down with her.

Her teeth clenched as her eyes burned with hatred, glaring at Norman Osborn's smiling face on the LED screen.

At that moment, Olivia felt both anger and an intoxicating sense of release from her plan of vengeance.

Behind her, the mechanical arms unfolded, raising the vial of GR-27 high into the air, extending as far as they could reach.

She lifted her head proudly, her gaze never leaving the crimson vial in her hand.

"Now then—welcome to this beautiful, twisted hell."

The words slipped from her lips like the final lines of a play, and with a swift motion, her steel claws crushed the vial of GR-27.

Although it appeared liquid, GR-27 was actually made of micro-crystalline particles. The moment the vial shattered, it exploded into a red mist.

In the darkness, the crimson dust expanded rapidly, carried by the night wind toward every corner of the city.

As Olivia watched the red mist descend, she slowly closed her eyes, waiting for death to come.

She had seen the results of GR-27 experiments herself—the horrific aftermath still haunted her.

Soon, one minute passed. Then two, three, five, ten...

Time moved quickly, yet nothing happened.

If anything were to occur, it would have already started by now.

Olivia stood there like a fool, eyes closed, taking in the night breeze.

"Damn it! I knew it! Norman, you worthless fool, you can't do anything right!!!"

At that moment, Olivia had no idea that someone else had already perfected the GR-27 formula without her knowing.

She had prepared herself for the end, done so much, only to find herself standing there, alive, like a fool, as if the universe itself had mocked her.

Everything that had transpired left Olivia Octavius—brilliant scientist though she was—unable to accept the cruel twist of fate.

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