Regrettably, the Sinister Six failed to find Spider-Man. After a brief search, Otto revised his strategy: "Max, proceed with the original plan to take over New York's entire power grid. Then, mobilize the surveillance systems to find Spider-Man."
"Do we really need to waste time looking for him? Didn't you already find a solution to deal with that guy?" Electro appeared relaxed and unhurried. "Besides, didn't you say you've found allies who can help us take care of the others? There's no need to be in such a rush, is there?"
"These two objectives are not contradictory. You will take over the power grid and use the surveillance system to find Spider-Man, while we simultaneously take control of the city."
Otto deployed his forces with cautious precision. Electro nodded happily and, rapidly dispersing his essence, took control of the entire city. It took him only a small effort to completely breach the defenses of Avengers Tower and begin integrating with its internal systems.
After all, he was pure electricity; he only needed to bypass the obstacles previously designed by the Avengers. As for artificial intelligence, did it not also require electrical energy to function?
Thus, Otto and his team arrived within Avengers Tower. As expected, it housed the broadcasting equipment Tony Stark used to address the entire city.
Soon, as Electro restored—and took control of—power throughout Manhattan, the giant screens across the borough flickered back to life. Simultaneously, the entire globe began receiving their signal.
"Esteemed humans of the 21st century."
From S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters in Washington to the Avengers on duty in Europe, everyone received the signal.
But unexpectedly, the sender of this signal was not the Sinister Six who had just defeated Spider-Man, but a man sitting in a chair, clad in purple high-tech armor.
Kang the Conqueror stood up.
"I am the ruler of Earth from the 31st century. My name is Kang the Conqueror. I come for the safety and peace of Earth. In the near future, in the year 2015, a powerful spatial rift will utterly tear apart the entire structure of space-time, completely destroying the world itself."
"To prevent the destruction of Earth, and subsequently the destruction of my own timeline, I, Kang the Conqueror, shall provide Earth with assistance in technology, culture, and defense."
"The method shall be this: Kang the Conqueror will lead you! I hereby order the dissolution of all national governments. Kang the Conqueror shall lead your primitive era to confront an enemy you cannot defeat!"
Kang spoke with cold detachment. Simultaneously, he displayed his military might to the world—a massive, sword-shaped starship appeared out of thin air in Earth's low orbit, followed by a vast fleet of vessels appearing alongside it.
He did not attack immediately. He simply let the warships loom there, then cut the broadcast. Following this, Doctor Octopus, who had known of this all along, opened the New York City broadcast.
"Hello, citizens of New York. Perhaps some of you have already realized—the last Avenger in this city, Spider-Man, has been dealt with by us."
"Starting today, the Sinister Six will take over Manhattan Island. Rest assured, we have a very formal vetting process. One of our members, Electro, will set up an electromagnetic grid across all of New York. Anyone attempting to enter or leave through non-designated channels will be incinerated by the grid."
"Furthermore, I hope you will refrain from futile resistance. After all, you are utterly powerless."
The Avengers had an entire world to save, and the X-Men had already been sent to the past by Kang the Conqueror, leaving behind only a few stragglers. The Fantastic Four had also been dealt with by Kang through other means.
All that remained was a Spider-Man who had lost his superpowers and was barely surviving thanks to the Symbiote suit, and the relatively unthreatening Defenders.
"Rest assured, I have no interest in disrupting the normal lives of New York's citizens. However, we do need to apprehend certain dangerous individuals."
With a smirk, Doctor Octopus cut the broadcast. Simultaneously, in Manhattan, outside an apartment building, Dr. Jonathan Drew, realizing things had taken a turn for the worse, was intercepted by Sandman and Scorpion as he attempted to flee with Jessica.
"My apologies, Dr. Jonathan, but we hope you won't do anything irrational."
Scorpion bared a hideous grin, his mechanical tail menacing the scientist. Originally, Jonathan should have been evacuated under the emergency plan, but as a primary target of Otto's attention, he had been unable to leave.
He held his daughter close, questioning the ruthless thugs.
"What do you want?"
"Our boss simply wishes to see you cure your precious daughter," Sandman explained bluntly. "Of course, he intends to observe the entire treatment process personally. Is that a problem?"
"Those spiders are still highly unstable! There is no way to be certain of their effect on the genetic structure!"
"That's your problem." Scorpion didn't care about the details. "I trust you won't refuse, right?"
In the distance, Silver Sable, Silvija Sablinova, monitored the scene through a sniper scope. She couldn't guarantee the hostages' safety, but according to the mission parameters, the hostages wouldn't be in immediate danger for a short while.
This gave her time to think about the others. For instance, that unlucky spider.
With a helpless sigh, Silver Sable packed away her weapon and looked toward the city limits. Towering pillars of lightning now shrouded Manhattan; no one could enter or leave freely. By that count, there were very few people left who could oppose the entire Sinister Six.
As for those who remained...
Silvija frowned, wondering where they were.
Cindy Moon was on her way to Manhattan. She had been at S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters that day, but she suddenly sensed Peter's physical condition plummeting and immediately demanded to return to New York. On the way, she felt Peter's vitals drop to their lowest point.
Peter needs my help, she thought. She saw the city-wide ultimatum issued by Doctor Octopus and received a transmission from Nick Fury.
"I am calm, sir," Cindy replied to Fury. After a moment of silence, she offered her plan: "Sir, I need to contact two people. They can help me get inside, and I know they will help."
"Please put me in contact with Gwen Stacy and Kitty Pryde of the X-Men."
"Additionally, I need Pym Particles. I am requesting a resource allocation."
There was a long silence on the other end of the line from Nick Fury.
"Bring him back."
"I will, sir."
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