Tranquilizer darts sailed through the darkness. Two struck the creature's thick hide and simply bounced off, the tips barely penetrating the reptilian scales. Alex watched with clinical focus even as chaos erupted around him.
'Dermal thickness far exceeds projected estimates. Standard tranquilizer delivery won't work.'
The Lizard turned toward the gunfire, exposed teeth catching flashlight beams. It moved with terrifying speed for something so large, closing distance in a single bound.
Alex moved before conscious thought caught up with him. He grabbed the soldier who'd hit the wall, the one lying stunned and defenseless directly in the creature's path, and pulled him clear with a burst of enhanced strength that looked, to anyone watching, like simple luck and adrenaline.
"Move!" Alex shouted, dragging the man another ten feet before dropping him near the tunnel wall.
Torres fired again, this time aiming for the creature's eye. The Lizard shrieked, a sound that was part animal rage and part something almost human buried underneath it, and swiped a massive clawed hand through the air.
SLASH!
One soldier's rifle was torn clean in half. Another soldier scrambled backward into deeper water, disappearing beneath the surface momentarily before resurfacing, gasping.
"Fall back!" Torres called, his voice cracking with the first real fear Alex had heard from him. "Fall back to the junction!"
The unit retreated in a stumbling line, Alex helping the injured soldier limp along while keeping half his attention on the tunnel behind them. The Lizard didn't pursue immediately, instead pacing at the edge of their light, something almost calculating in the way it watched them retreat.
'It's not purely animal,' Alex thought. 'There's still strategy underneath the rage. Connors is still in there.'
That was when Spider-Man dropped from the tunnel's ceiling access point, landing in a crouch between the retreating unit and the creature.
"Whoa, big guy." Peter's voice carried that forced casualness he always used in fights, masking genuine fear underneath. "Curt Connors, right? I've read your papers. Big fan of the regeneration stuff. Less of a fan of the whole giant lizard situation."
The creature's head tilted, something flickering behind its reptilian eyes.
"Connors," Peter said again, softer this time. "I know you're in there. I know this isn't really you."
For a moment, just a moment, the Lizard's posture shifted. Shoulders dropping slightly. The predatory tension easing.
Then something else took over, some deeper instinct reasserting control, and it lunged.
Peter dodged sideways, webbing shooting out to catch the creature's arm mid-swing. The new formula held longer than his old webbing would have, giving him an extra half second to reposition before the Lizard tore free.
"Okay, that's new," Peter muttered, clearly noticing the upgrade already paying off. "Thanks, my friend."
THWIP! THWIP!
More webbing, this time targeting the creature's legs, trying to slow its movement. The Lizard roared and clawed through the strands, but the delay let Peter circle around, putting himself between the creature and the retreating unit.
"Torres, get your people out," Alex called, still supporting the injured soldier. "I can work with Spiderman. We'll handle containment from here."
"This is a federal operation, we're not just leaving to some vigilante—"
"Your man's got a broken collarbone and possibly internal bleeding, and this 'vigilante' is clearly more than enough to face this guy." Alex snapped, enhanced senses picking up the soldier's ragged breathing, the way he favored his left side. "Get him to a hospital. That's a direct call, Captain, and you know it."
Torres hesitated, then nodded sharply, gesturing for the remaining uninjured soldiers to help carry their wounded comrades back toward the junction exit.
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