MCU: Spider-Man: Rise of Saint

Langstrom sat in his MIT lab, staring at news footage of Spider-Man. Three days wasted in New York. Nothing to show for it.

He turned down his hearing aid. The high-pitched whine from his computer monitor was getting worse. Even with the device's settings maxed out, sounds kept fading.

The bat serum sat in its case. Six months of work. Countless tests. All the research from his Stark days refined and improved. But he'd waited, hoping to study Spider-Man first. Learn from a successful transformation.

"I can't wait anymore," he muttered, opening his research files. His latest hearing test results showed another 10% decline. Soon the aid wouldn't help at all.

Spider-Man was the proof he needed - cross-species genetics could work. Someone out there had merged with spider DNA and gained abilities. But without studying how...

Langstrom pulled out the serum case. The green liquid caught the lab's fluorescent light. All his tests showed it should work. Should restore his hearing by merging bat DNA with his own cells.

His hands shook as he loaded the injector. One dose. That's all it would take.

The needle pressed against his arm. Last chance to stop.

He pushed the plunger.

The serum burned going in. Langstrom dropped the injector, grabbing his desk as dizziness hit. His hearing aid shrieked with feedback. He yanked it out.

Then... silence.

No, not silence. Something else.

He could hear voices from the hallway, the hum of his computer, even the ventilation system three floors up - all crystal clear without his aid. Langstrom laughed as he realized it worked, he could hear everything.

His laughter cut short as nausea hit, his head pounding while the room spun violently.

"No..." He reached for his phone, trying to call for help. His fingers wouldn't work right.

The lab tilted sideways as he collapsed across his desk. Everything went black.

Morning light woke him. Langstrom lifted his head, wincing at stiff muscles with papers stuck to his face where he'd passed out.

His hearing aid lay on the floor where he'd dropped it, but he didn't need it - sounds came through clear, though muffled compared to last night. Along with his hearing, he noticed colors seemed sharper and his balance felt more precise.

Over the next few days, Langstrom documented everything. The improved hearing. The enhanced senses. They were small changes, but real ones.

Then on day four, his hearing started fading again. By day five, the aid was back in his ear. Day six, all the improvements gone.

Langstrom stared at his test results. The serum worked, but temporarily. Without understanding how Spider-Man's change became permanent...

He needed more data. More research.

He needed Spider-Man.

At his computer, Langstrom started tracking crime patterns in New York. Spider-Man had to appear eventually.

New York City

Langstrom sat in his hotel room, watching Spider-Man footage on his laptop. Same videos, same locations, but he couldn't risk missing a pattern. He hadn't come back to New York to fail again.

The morning brought another injection. His hands trembled less with each dose now, the needle sliding in smooth as he pushed the serum into his arm. Within minutes his hearing sharpened - car horns from streets away, pigeons on the roof, the TV in the next room.

He spent that first day tracking Spider-Man's usual spots. The enhanced hearing helped, letting him follow police radios and street chatter. Near sunset, he finally spotted the red and black suit swinging past - just a glimpse as Spider-Man caught a bike thief two blocks over.

Langstrom ran after them, but Spider-Man disappeared into the maze of buildings. The serum's effects faded before Langstrom could track him, leaving him standing alone in an alley with his hearing aid back in his ear.

Day two started with another dose. Each injection worked faster, hit harder. The sounds came crystal clear now, almost overwhelming. He popped aspirin to dull his growing headache while scanning news sites for Spider-Man sightings.

By evening, the effects weakened again. Langstrom's hands shook as he checked his remaining serum supply. One vial left.

He needed coffee. The 7-11 near his hotel was open, its lights harsh against the night sky. Walking in, he spotted two familiar faces by the snack aisle - Franklin Saint and his girlfriend, picking out movie snacks.

Franklin saw him first. "Professor Langstrom? You're back in New York?"

"Following up on research," Langstrom said, gripping a coffee cup to steady his trembling hands. "Seems we keep running into each other."

"Just getting snacks," MJ said, holding up chips. "Movie night."

The fluorescent lights buzzed in Langstrom's ears as the last dose wore off. Every sound began to dull, fade away. He needed another injection soon.

"How's MIT?" Franklin asked.

"Good. Very good. Some promising developments." Langstrom fought back a wave of dizziness. "Need to head back actually. Nice seeing you both."

He paid quickly and left. The night air helped clear his head, but he could barely hear the traffic now. His body was building resistance to the serum's effects.

Back in his room, Langstrom pulled out his last vial. The green liquid caught the lamplight as he measured a double dose. The math was simple - twice the amount should mean twice the strength, twice the duration.

"One last try," he whispered, filling the injector. The needle trembled against his arm as he pushed the plunger.

The serum burned worse than before. Langstrom stumbled to the bathroom as sound crashed over him - engines blocks away, voices from other floors, the building's pipes groaning in the walls. His reflection showed his eyes changing, pupils expanding in the mirror.

Pain shot through his face and arms. Something was different this time, something wrong. The transformation wasn't stopping.

"No," he gasped. "Not like this."

But his body wasn't listening anymore. The change had already begun.

*******

Franklin barely paid attention to the movie playing on his wall. MJ sat in his lap, her fingers running through his hair as they kissed. Gloria worked late tonight, giving them the house to themselves.

MJ pulled back, tugging at his shirt. "Should we move to your bed?"

Franklin nodded, lifting her up as she wrapped her legs around his waist. They fell onto his bed, MJ pulling him down into another kiss.

His window stood open, letting in the spring breeze. Through it came the first police siren, then another, then three more joining in.

Franklin broke the kiss. MJ groaned.

"Don't you dare."

"It sounds serious-"

"Franklin Fitzpatrick Saint, I swear to god." She grabbed his face with both hands. "For once, just ignore it."

More sirens wailed past his house, the sound growing louder. Something big was happening.

Franklin sat up, already reaching for his suit hidden in the closet. "I'll be quick."

"You always say that." MJ flopped back on his bed. "Go. But if I fall asleep before you get back, this is the last time I come over late."

She threw a pillow at his head as he grabbed his suit. He caught it, tossing it back while pulling his mask on.

"I mean it," she called after him. "Hurry back!"

Franklin swung from his window, the night air cool through his suit. Five police cars raced down the street below, lights flashing. He shot another web line, gaining height to track them better.

More patrol cars joined from side streets, all heading the same direction. Last time he saw this many cops was during that apartment fire months ago.

The cars turned toward the Williamsburg Bridge. Franklin swung higher, getting a better view of what waited ahead. Red and blue lights reflected off the East River, making the water look like it was on fire.

Then he heard the screech.

The sound cut through the night, unlike anything he'd heard before. Not human, not animal - something else entirely.

Traffic on the bridge had stopped. People abandoned their cars, running toward either end of the bridge. The screech came again, closer this time.

Franklin landed on one of the bridge's suspension cables. Police had set up blockades at both ends, trying to control the evacuation. Spotlights swept across the bridge's steel supports.

The lights caught something moving between the cables. Something big.

Wings spread against the night sky, wider than any bird should have. As the creature banked around one of the bridge towers, Franklin got his first clear look.

A bat. But wrong. Mutated.

The thing must have been twelve feet tall standing upright. Its wings stretched nearly twice that. A face that looked almost human twisted into something monstrous, with massive ears that turned toward every sound.

It landed on the bridge deck, concrete cracking under its claws. Cars sat abandoned around it, their headlights casting long shadows of its wings.

Franklin's mind raced. The size, the strength it must have, the advantage of flight - this wasn't like stopping a car theft or breaking up a fight.

The police shouted evacuation orders through megaphones. The creature's head snapped toward the sound, its entire body tensing.

Franklin checked his web shooters, making sure both were fully loaded. Below, officers helped people from their cars, trying to clear the bridge before the thing attacked.

He'd fought plenty of criminals since getting his powers. Learned to handle himself in a fight. But this? This was different.

The creature crouched, its wings spreading wide. Franklin knew what would happen next.

Police helicopters circled the bridge as SWAT teams moved into position. The creature perched on a steel beam, its massive wings casting shadows in the spotlights.

"Everyone off the bridge!" An officer shouted through a megaphone. "Clear the area now!"

The bat thing screeched, grabbing a nearby car in its hind legs. Franklin tensed, ready to move.

"Try not to scratch it," he called out. "Pretty sure their insurance doesn't cover giant bats."

The creature hurled the car straight at him. Franklin caught it with both hands, the impact forcing him back several feet. He set the vehicle down carefully, metal groaning under his grip.

A rush of wind - the thing dove at him, wings spread wide. Franklin jumped, but its wing caught him mid-air, sending him crashing into an abandoned taxi.

More cars backed up behind police barricades at both ends of the bridge. SWAT teams advanced with riot shields while snipers set up on nearby rooftops.

The creature circled overhead, then started grabbing vehicles and throwing them off the bridge. Franklin shot a web to the nearest tower, launching himself after a falling SUV. He caught it twenty feet above the water, muscles straining as he pulled it back up.

Screams erupted from the bridge. A minivan teetered on the edge, flames spreading from its engine. Through the back window, Franklin saw a kid maybe eight years old, struggling with his seatbelt while his mom tried to reach him from outside.

The bat creature landed on a support cable, watching. Like it was waiting to see what Franklin would do.

Franklin looked between the monster and the burning van. The choice was easy.

He swung to the van, ripping the door off. Smoke poured out as he climbed in, the heat intense even through his suit. The seatbelt release was jammed.

"Hold still," he told the kid, using his strength to tear through the belt. Outside, he heard the creature take flight.

Franklin grabbed the boy, jumping clear just as flames engulfed the van's interior. He handed the kid to a waiting paramedic, then turned to pursue the creature.

But it was gone.

SWAT teams swept the bridge while fire crews dealt with burning vehicles. News helicopters joined the police choppers, their cameras catching everything.

A black SUV pulled up to the police line. Captain George Stacy stepped out, back in uniform after coming out of retirement during the Battle of New York. He surveyed the scene, talking rapidly into his radio while pointing officers to different positions.

Franklin grabbed a tuft of fur the creature had shed before swinging away. In the distance, he heard Stacy ordering his men to search every building near the bridge.

They wouldn't find anything. That thing could be anywhere in the city by now.