Chapter 88: Norman's Thoughts and a Vibranium Arm

At the Osborn Industries building, Norman sat at his desk, watching a reporter's interview with George on the TV.

"Fisk has been apprehended."

"Next, he will face legal consequences…"

"We urge all citizens to remain calm and trust in the fairness and justice of the law," George said to a crowd of reporters at the NYPD headquarters. He didn't forget to thank Spider-Woman and Daredevil for their contribution in capturing Fisk.

As Norman watched the interview, his expression darkened. He picked up the remote and turned off the TV.

"Fisk! You worthless piece of trash!" he cursed quietly, loosening his tie in frustration.

He had hoped to use Fisk's human trafficking gang to acquire subjects for his experiments, but now…

Everything was falling apart. Without test subjects, his experiments couldn't move forward. The more Norman thought about it, the more agitated he became.

Just as he was about to smash something in a fit of rage, his secretary walked in, holding a phone.

With a cold expression, Norman asked in a restrained voice, "Didn't I say not to disturb me unless it's important?"

Looking troubled, the secretary pointed to the phone in her hand and said, "Mr. Osborn, it's the General on the line…"

At the mention of the General, Norman immediately took the phone from her. "General, it's me, Norman Osborn…"

On the other end, the General's voice was laced with displeasure. "Mr. Osborn, I assume you've seen Tony Stark's performance at the Senate hearing today?"

"Of course, General," Norman replied quickly. Almost everyone in the country knew about it by now. Tomorrow's headlines would surely be dominated by the news.

Even though Norman spent most of his time in the lab, it didn't mean he wasn't well-informed.

"Tony Stark's refusal to hand over the Iron Man armor technology was expected, but it's something we must be prepared for," the General said sternly.

Norman's face grew grim as he instantly grasped where the conversation was heading.

As expected, the General continued, "So, how is your experiment progressing, Dr. Osborn?"

Even the way he addressed Norman had changed, showing the increasing importance of the matter.

Norman, though feeling the pressure, forced a smile and said, "Of course, General. Our experiments are going very smoothly."

"However…"

"However, what?" the General pressed.

Norman took a deep breath before continuing, "However, there's a problem with the human trials. General, is there any chance you could… perhaps provide some subjects from the prison…?"

"Dr. Osborn, I want to remind you of something. This experiment is your private endeavor. It has little to do with us," the General said, with a mocking laugh on the other end of the line.

Norman's frustration surged, but he suppressed it. This was typical of how the military operated. They secretly supported these experiments, but until there were tangible results, they kept a distance. That way, if anything went wrong, they could disassociate themselves quickly.

Conversely, if the experiment succeeded, the military would claim most of the credit. It was a well-worn tactic of the government.

"I understand, General," Norman said, his tone calm, though inside he was seething. "I'll handle the human trial issue myself."

After a few more polite exchanges, the call ended.

As soon as the phone clicked off, Norman's barely-contained anger exploded. "Damn it!"

"You're going to take all the benefits!"

He considered calling Peter to continue the research but paused after dialing a few digits. Human trials were necessary to determine the final side effects of the drug, but Peter was adamantly against them.

With his frustration mounting, Norman poured himself a drink and walked over to the window, staring down from Osborn Industries, the company he had built with his own hands.

"People… Where can I find people…" he muttered, feeling lost.

Just then, his eyes caught sight of a homeless man lying asleep by the corner of the building, wrapped in a black trench coat.

An idea slowly formed in Norman's mind. He grabbed his phone and dialed another number.

"Old friend, I need a favor…"

...

New York City.

Inside a restaurant, Peter and Harry were enjoying dinner together.

"Peter, I'm surprised. You're working with my father, yet you still have time to take me out for dinner," Harry said, his tone filled with disbelief.

Growing up, his impression of Norman had always been that of a workaholic, a man whose obsession with work influenced all of Osborn Industries.

Peter smiled but didn't mention his current fallout with Norman. Harry, oblivious to anything being wrong, continued, "You know, ever since I was a kid, he was always too busy with his experiments to even notice me."

"To him, maybe the experiments are more important," Harry added.

Peter paused for a moment while cutting his steak, then asked, "Harry, what kind of person do you think your father is?"

"A workaholic, inventor, scientist… entrepreneur," Harry listed. "He's got a lot of titles and accolades, but you can't deny that he's also a good father."

Harry smiled and went on, "Even as busy as he is, he never forgets my birthday or other important days each year. My gifts have always been right on time."

As he spoke, Harry's tone grew more melancholic. "I guess I'm the one who's an unworthy son."

"I'm not very smart, not like him. I'll never be a scientist like he is, and I can't help him with his work."

"In fact, I've always idolized him, wanting to become someone like him," Harry admitted, glancing at Peter after a while. "So, tell me, how's your collaboration with my father going?"

"It's going well. Uncle Norman is a brilliant scientist. He's helped me a lot in so many ways. It's truly an honor to work with him," Peter replied.

Hearing Peter's praise of Norman, Harry smiled in satisfaction.

"I thought it would be hard for the two of you to get along, but it seems I was wrong."

"We're getting along just fine," Peter said.

At least before everything happened, Peter and Norman had worked together quite well.

After dinner, the two parted ways, and Peter walked home alone. He couldn't help but shake his head as he thought about how much Harry idolized Norman.

"Dr. Connors, what should I do now…"

Peter's thoughts drifted to Dr. Connors, the man who had injected himself with the experimental serum. But he hadn't heard anything from Connors in a long time.

Peter had visited the police station several times to ask George about him, but they only said that Connors was locked up in a special prison, likely for life. Due to the nature of the prison, no visitation rights were allowed.

Peter hadn't seen Connors since that night, but in his heart, Connors remained a mentor to him.

Meanwhile…

In a secret lab somewhere in the U.S., Connors slowly opened his eyes from a hospital bed. Standing beside him was a man with Mediterranean features, dressed in a black suit.

"Well? Did it work?" Connors asked.

The man smiled. "Of course, Dr. Connors. You can try moving your right hand now."

"You're only the second person to undergo this type of procedure."

"This… is a Vibranium arm?" Connors tested his right hand, lifting it in front of his face.

A sleek, black metal arm appeared in his vision. There was almost no difference between it and his original arm.

The Mediterranean man smiled, "See? We didn't deceive you."

"Incredible. I never thought such technology existed in this world," Connors marveled.

According to the man's explanation, the technology had been around for quite some time.

Watching Connors' reaction, the man seemed pleased and continued, "Compared to your regeneration technology, Dr. Connors, this is merely a clever workaround."

"All we ask is that you keep your end of the bargain and continue researching regenerative gene therapy in Hydra's labs."

Connors felt a deep sense of shame as he remembered the things he'd done after injecting himself with the gene serum.

"My experiment was a failure!" he exclaimed.

"No, Dr. Connors. You just didn't have the proper environment to conduct your research," the man countered. "And Hydra can provide exactly that."

The man's tone shifted, "Of course, you could choose not to work with Hydra."

"But we'll be taking back what's ours."

The meaning was clear—they would take back the Vibranium arm.

It wasn't much of a partnership; it felt more like a threat.

Connors instinctively gripped his right hand upon hearing the man's veiled threat. After a moment of thought, he said, "Fine, I'll agree to work with you, but only if you don't interfere with my experiments."

"Of course," the man replied, smiling. "Hydra welcomes you, Dr. Connors."

He opened his arms wide and embraced Connors warmly.

Connors returned the hug, whispering to himself, "Peter, I hope you won't hate me for this."

"I just can't bear to go back to being disabled again…"

...

At Oscorp Industries.

By a small side door, Norman stood, watching a group of people slowly approach in the darkness of the night.

The group was dressed entirely in black, but it wasn't hard to notice that they were all carrying something resembling a large, heavy sack.

Behind them was a middle-aged man with a scruffy beard. When he saw Norman waiting at the door, they exchanged a smile.

The man walked up and warmly greeted, "Norman, long time no see."

"Long time no see, Jack," Norman replied. "I thought after Kingpin was caught, you might be in trouble too."

The man, known as Jack, smirked, "Luckily, I was just an intermediary for him. Although the cops did track things back to me, I laid low for a while, and everything blew over."

Norman gestured toward the door behind him. "I've prepared a place for you to rest."

Jack waved to his men behind him, and they followed him into Oscorp Industries.

As they walked, Norman said, "Just like we agreed, from now on, you'll be my experiment assistant. The dorms are over there."

"Did you bring the rent payment?" Norman asked, glancing at the black sack they were carrying.

Jack flashed a sinister smile. "Of course."

At Jack's signal, his men set the sack down and opened it. Inside was a homeless man, bound and unconscious, wearing tattered clothes.

Norman crouched down, inspecting the man's body. He nodded with satisfaction. "Good. Clean him up and take him to my lab."

Jack chuckled, "That's going to cost extra."

Norman didn't get angry at Jack's opportunism. Solving the issue of test subjects was far more important to him, and money was no concern.

"No problem. I look forward to a smooth partnership. But make sure your men keep their mouths shut."

Jack waved it off. "Don't worry. We won't leave Oscorp until your experiments are done."

Norman smiled in satisfaction. "Your payment will be in your account tomorrow."

He then ordered, "You guys, go wash him up."

Once everyone had left, only Jack and Norman remained.

Norman turned to Jack and asked, "Now that Kingpin's dead, what are your plans?"

Jack shrugged, "I don't know. I'll lay low for a while. After all, I was just an intermediary for Kingpin."

He smiled slyly, "What about you? Isn't Oscorp Industries enough for you? Are you interested in taking over Kingpin's empire too?"

"No interest," Norman replied. "I'm just curious who'll take his place."

"That depends on who the people who allowed Kingpin to rise will choose to back next."

Both men chuckled and walked deeper into Oscorp Industries.

---

At Tony's workshop.

After some rummaging, Tony finally found the remaining pieces of the "City of the Future" model that Howard had left behind and put them together.

Looking at the dusty miniature city, Yinsen blew on it hard, causing a cloud of dust to rise.

Tony immediately frowned. "Next time, give me a heads-up before you do that. I could've stood farther away."

"See anything yet, Tony?" Yinsen ignored Tony's complaint, carefully examining the miniature city. "Nothing so far."

"But I gotta say, the concept is pretty cool," Yinsen remarked. "A whole new city layout, with a big central sphere… Every road… Every building…"

Tony, mid-thought, suddenly crouched down, as if he had realized something.

"Yinsen, help me move this over there. Jarvis needs to build a digital model."

Yinsen could tell Tony had noticed something important, so he quickly helped him move the model.

"Jarvis, create a 3D projection. I need to work with it," Tony instructed.

"No problem, sir," Jarvis replied.

After scanning the model, a blue holographic image appeared in front of Tony.

With a wave of his hand, Tony rotated the entire model. As the buildings moved, they seemed to form some kind of unique pattern.

"This is incredible…" Yinsen couldn't help but exclaim.

...

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