A massive mechanical tentacle suddenly hurled a car straight into the restaurant.
Relying on his spider-sense and agility, Peter grabbed Mary Jane and dodged the impact, while Renzo blurred into motion, impossible to hit.
People on the street scattered in panic. Faced with the chaos, Mary Jane had no idea what was happening. She could only cling to Peter, watching in horror as events unfolded.
"Peter!" Dr. Otto Octavius stepped forward slowly, a twisted smile on his face. "And your girlfriend."
"What do you want?" Peter stared at him, his expression tense, as if facing a ferocious beast.
Peter respected him deeply as a mentor, and at the same time mourned his fall into madness. But no matter what, he could never forgive Otto for kidnapping Aunt May—his only family.
Otto didn't waste time. A tentacle shot out from behind him, wrapping around Peter's throat. Peter tried to dodge, but with Mary Jane beside him, he couldn't risk her getting hurt.
"I want you to find Spider-Man," Otto said coldly, pulling Peter close. There was nothing human left in his expression—only something monstrous.
Boom!
Otto flung Peter aside, sending him crashing hard into the restaurant wall. Fortunately, he hadn't used full force. An ordinary person would have died from that impact.
But Peter wasn't ordinary. After a brief daze, he pushed himself up—just in time to see Otto reaching for Mary Jane.
"Let her go!" Peter shouted, fear and anger surging as he prepared to charge forward. At that moment, he didn't care if his identity was exposed. There was only one thought in his mind—save her.
"Hey! Doctor Octopus—why do you only have four tentacles? Aren't octopuses supposed to have eight?"
A teasing voice cut through the tension.
Otto's expression shifted. He hadn't expected anyone to approach him—let alone mock him so casually.
He turned his head—only to be met with a hard, metallic fist smashing into his face. His sunglasses shattered, and blood splattered as he was sent staggering.
"Dr. Octavius, they say an octopus has three hearts. I wonder if that's true," Renzo said, floating in the air as he withdrew his fist, his tone calm but cold. "Maybe you can enlighten me."
"Bastard!" Otto roared, furious. He hadn't expected interference.
"Baboon! I remember you! You almost ruined my plans last time!" Otto snarled.
Renzo's expression darkened instantly.
"My name is Vision! Don't go around giving people stupid nicknames—especially ones that ugly!"
He truly couldn't understand how anyone could associate him with a baboon. Even if his face had a reddish tint, how did that lead to… that?
Grinding his teeth, Renzo silently swore he would have a "talk" with J. Jonah Jameson one day.
Otto's tentacles lashed out again, striking with full force.
Renzo didn't dodge. He stood still, meeting the attack head-on.
"Idiot!" Otto sneered. Even Spider-Man would be knocked down by this—let alone—
With a sharp snap, a spike extended from the end of the tentacle, gleaming dangerously. It was Otto's favorite weapon—deadly and precise. Anyone pierced by it wouldn't survive.
In his mind, he could already see Renzo skewered, writhing on the ground and begging for mercy.
Crack!
"Haha!" Otto burst into laughter, certain he had crushed Renzo's bones.
"What are you laughing at?"
"…What?" Otto froze.
The calm, indifferent voice snapped him back to reality. His eyes widened in disbelief as he stared at Renzo—completely unharmed.
"That's impossible… My spike clearly pierced you… I even heard your ribs break…" Otto muttered, shaken.
"Take a closer look," Renzo said flatly, pointing at the ground.
The broken metal spike lay there, snapped cleanly in two.
"Your equipment quality really isn't great."
To be fair, it wasn't entirely Otto's fault. After all, there was no vibranium in this world.
Otto stared at the shattered spike, his mind reeling. A human body couldn't possibly be that durable.
"…You're not human," he realized suddenly, recalling Renzo's earlier displays.
Renzo's face darkened further. Even if it wasn't meant as an insult, it still sounded unpleasant.
Realizing he was outmatched, Otto abandoned any thought of taking Mary Jane. He turned and fled without hesitation.
"We can't let him get away!" Peter—now in his Spider-Man disguise—arrived just in time, shouting as he rushed after Otto.
The two clashed immediately, trading blows as they moved, their fight spilling across the area—eventually crashing through a bell tower.
Renzo watched the destruction with a twitch of his eye.
That was all money.
At that moment, he couldn't help but think that Tony Stark's idea of a Damage Control Department had been absolutely correct.
The battle continued, carrying them onto a speeding train. Inside, the passengers felt the violent vibrations from above, confusion written across their faces.
Peter and Otto fought from the roof to the side of the train, then onto the windows themselves, grappling under the stunned gaze of the passengers. Both were relentless, determined to take the other down.
At one point, Peter was caught by Otto's tentacles and dragged into the carriage. The metal limbs wrapped around his waist, swinging him like a ragdoll.
But Peter quickly reacted, breaking free and shooting a web to pull himself back outside. Just then, Otto struck from a blind angle, knocking him clean off the train.
"Ah—!"
Peter cried out—only to feel himself caught midair.
"You should thank me," Renzo said, catching him effortlessly. Accelerating forward, he tossed Peter back onto the train before turning to face Otto himself.
One-on-one, Peter might struggle—but two against one?
That was a different story.
Renzo fired a laser blast, knocking Otto backward and nearly sending him off balance.
"Damn it!" Otto cursed. He hadn't expected them to team up so effectively.
Then, a wicked smile crept across his face.
His tentacles shot into the carriage, grabbing two random passengers and hurling them out.
"I've got them!" Peter reacted instantly, shooting webs and diving off the train to save the falling civilians.
"That's his weakness—he's too merciful!" Otto shouted triumphantly.
At the same time, his hidden tentacle slipped into the driver's cab, aiming to destroy the controls and send the train into disaster.
But Renzo had anticipated this. This time, he wouldn't allow a repeat of Sokovia.
__________________________________________
You can read early chapters on Patr*on. If you enjoy my work and would like to support me, consider becoming a patron. My Patr*on username is Renzo28557.