----
"You're… the Superman?" Johnny landed beside Nolan, eyes wide. "You're real?"
He'd seen the viral footage: a lifeless man rising from death, exploding upward into the sky like a god. It was almost biblical.
"Wait, do you actually bring people back from the dead?" Johnny asked, half-joking, half-awestruck.
Nolan chuckled. "No. That man wasn't dead, not technically. Cardiac arrest, maybe. His brain still had electrical activity."
"And the resurrection part?"
"Let's just say… that's proprietary."
Johnny squinted. "You sound like Reed."
Nolan smirked. "Thanks. I'll take that as a compliment."
Then he turned toward the trembling figure slumped on the pavement, Flint Marko, a.k.a. Sandman.
"You have two options," Nolan said flatly. "Come with me, and I'll cure your daughter. Or I can hand you over to the authorities."
Marko froze.
"You… You can heal her?" he asked, still dazed from the frost trauma. His sand-core had barely survived the freezing.
"She's all I have."
Reed stepped in, arms folded. "You're talking to the mind behind Osborn's regeneration tech. The healing spray you see in every hospital? That was him."
Marko swallowed. "Okay. I'll go. Please just help her."
The towering figure from before had deflated. In his place was a desperate father, grasping at hope.
Nolan gave him a single nod.
Then turned to Reed.
"Mr. Richards, perhaps we can exchange contacts. I've read your work on quantum matter compression, brilliant, if a bit dense."
Reed's eyes lit up. "I'd be honored. Always happy to collaborate with someone who understands science above politics."
They exchanged contact info. Nolan then addressed the rest of the group.
"If any of you ever want to talk shop, my lab's open. I make a habit of befriending superhumans."
He turned to Peter.
"And of course… New York's very own Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man."
Peter stiffened under the mask. He gave a sheepish nod, saying nothing.
It wasn't paranoia. It was self-preservation.
Nolan already employed him at Osborn as a part-time lab assistant. If he knew Peter was Spider-Man, would he think Peter had ulterior motives?
Originally, Peter had joined OsCorp to spy for Stark. But now? Osborn's research had pulled him in. Biology over robotics. Progress over politics.
And Stark? Barely even answered his messages anymore.
The Fantastic Four left shortly after, each disappearing with their own flair.
Peter slung a web line and zipped away without a word.
Wanda waited until they were gone before speaking.
"You seemed happier seeing Reed than you were seeing me."
Nolan didn't hesitate. "I like smart people."
Wanda huffed through her nose, annoyed but not surprised.
"Marko," Nolan said, snapping his fingers. "Let's go."
—
Back at OsCorp HQ…
Marko sat nervously in front of a sleek glass desk. Norman Osborn slid a thick contract toward him.
"This is your employment agreement. You'll be joining our internal security unit officially. In exchange, we'll handle your daughter's treatment and provide monthly compensation. Look it over."
Marko skimmed the document. Most of it was legalese. But the key clause to cure the daughter's cancer was underlined in bold.
"My daughter has cancer. Can… can you really cure it?"
Norman arched an eyebrow. "You clearly don't know what kind of company you've walked into."
"If the boss says it can be cured, it'll be cured. Bring her in this afternoon for a preliminary scan."
To Osborn, cancer was just inefficient cell behavior. To Nolan, it was a solvable equation.
—
Back in the underground lab…
Wanda resumed her meditation, trading her combat gear for a more flexible outfit. Her form was impeccable. Her mind? Still scattered.
Nolan sat beside her, already in deep focus.
He was merging Iron Fist cultivation techniques with Sacred Order discipline, one drew from internal potential, the other controlled external energy. Wanda struggled with both.
Her powers, enhanced by Chaos Magic and rooted in an unstable X-gene, were wild. But under Nolan's direct, hands-on guidance, she had begun to make progress.
The first time she entered true meditative flow, she felt it: the chaos within her stilled. Like a storm finally finding its eye.
But whenever she tried to push deeper, her mind rebelled, dragging her out of the trance.
She glanced sideways at Nolan.
He remained motionless. Breathe even. Presence is utterly grounded.
How could he stay so calm, so composed, for hours?
"How do you do it?" she asked suddenly.
Nolan opened his eyes and met hers without blinking.
"You're just not very good at it."
Wanda frowned. "Rude."
Nolan smirked.
The past few days had been ironically the most peaceful stretch Nolan had experienced in weeks. Quiet meditation, focused training, and clinical work.
He'd even personally treated Marko's daughter. Within 48 hours, her vitals had stabilized.
Marko had officially joined OsCorp's enhanced operations team under Max Dillon's command. Now, the company's ranks included:
Electro (Max Dillon)
Sandman (Flint Marko)
Lizard (Dr. Connors)
Rhino (Alexei)
Green Goblin (Norman Osborn)
Doc Ock (Otto Octavius)
All former enemies of Spider-Man.
And Peter? Still just the lab intern.
The irony was delicious.
Every day, Peter passed them in the halls, trying not to make eye contact.
He was surrounded by villains.
And he was on the payroll.
----
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