Chapter Nineteen: The Canary Device

"Hey."
Seeing the Lizard Doctor leave, George immediately ran over to Gwen.
But a police officer reported, "Captain George, our men have turned into monsters?"
"What?"
Right after, George saw a large number of lizard-like people rising to their feet.
It was their first transformation, and their minds hadn’t yet been overtaken by animal instincts. Unable to cope with their own changes, they clutched their heads and wailed helplessly.
Gwen seized the opportunity to tie them up and said, "I’ll get you the antidote."
With that, she departed.
Yet she was puzzled—how could the Lizard turn people into his kind?
Suddenly, she remembered Dr. Connors’ experiment. He once said that when someone receives animal gene transplants, there’s no guarantee how many animal traits will be inherited.
The ideal outcome was what Gwen herself now experienced—gaining the powers and abilities, yet without any external mutation.
But experiments don’t always yield perfection. As Connors said, without experimentation, there’s no authority to speak.
"I need to consult an expert, maybe he can help."
Gwen quickly arrived at Michael’s house, climbing through the window and finding his bedroom with precision.
Knock knock knock—
A crisp tapping on the glass caught Michael’s attention. He looked up to see the alluring Spider-Woman.
He opened the window and let her in, saying, "Maybe the skintight suit isn’t the best idea."
Gwen stretched and laughed. "I think it’s great—comfortable and doesn’t restrict movement."
Michael rubbed his nose, as if he was about to have another nosebleed.
"Tell me—could the Lizard have something to do with Dr. Connors? The cross-species gene experiment."
Gwen got straight to the point.
"Why don’t you just say the Lizard is Dr. Connors?"
"I’m serious, Michael."
Michael smiled. "So am I. Maybe you should reflect on this—a serum like that could only be made by someone on the inside."
He opened his computer. On the screen was footage of the Lizard releasing the serum; police officers inhaled it and rapidly mutated.

Michael had already asked someone to obtain their blood samples, so there was no need to specifically look for Connors to get the lizard genes.
Thanks to Connors, Michael now had several control groups for his experiments, letting him quickly identify the mutated genomes.
Gwen began to reflect. Indeed, only someone on the inside could create such a serum, and only few people had the capability to produce and acquire the antidote.
There weren’t many such individuals, and the list of suspects was short.
"Is it really Dr. Connors? What is he trying to achieve?"
Gwen found it hard to accept. Her mentor had always been such a gentle man—how could he have become this?
"It’s the lizard genes."
Michael analyzed calmly, "At first, he attacked the general on the bridge because the general wanted to use disabled soldiers from the veterans’ hospital for human experimentation. Dr. Connors, to prevent an irreversible mistake, injected himself with the serum as a precaution."
"Unfortunately, he underestimated the invasive power of the genes. If not for a one-in-a-million coincidence, one gene is destined to devour another, just like a biological invasion. Rabbits, for instance, can overrun a continent when left without natural enemies."
"By the time he reached the bridge, Connors was transforming into a monster and losing his mind. He meant to stop the general’s experiments, but went too far."
"When he regained his senses, he realized he’d made an irreversible mistake and didn’t dare show his face, missing the window for optimal treatment. Now, the cold-blooded, bestial instincts of the lizard dominate him. He must be trying to increase his numbers."
"Increase his numbers?"
Gwen was puzzled. Aren’t lizards solitary creatures?
"They are, but lizards also have a reproductive instinct. It’s summer—their egg-laying season. Connors’ animal instincts have been triggered, so he desperately wants to create more of his kind."
Gwen understood.
"Is there a way to cure them—and Dr. Connors? I don’t want him to make another mistake."
"It’s simple. Just make an anti-gene serum—remove the abnormal genes from their bodies and they’ll return to normal."
"Michael, can you help me?"
Gwen gripped Michael’s shoulders, looking at him pleadingly.
"Of course. Creating the anti-gene serum isn’t difficult."
Gwen didn’t even question how Michael knew how to make it. Recently, she felt he could do anything and had grown used to it.
"What will he do next? Where will he appear? Will he keep attacking civilians, or stay in hiding? Maybe we should analyze where he’s shown up—the locations, the nearby busy districts."
Gwen was troubled. New York’s underground pipelines were endless; Connors could emerge from any one of them—even a toilet.
"Maybe here."
Gwen followed Michael’s finger to a map. He was pointing at Oscorp.

"He wants to make more of the lizard serum?"
"No, the Canali Device."
At the mention of that name, Gwen instantly realized how serious things were.
"The doctor told me that with just one vial of the serum, it can create a cloud that covers the entire city. In theory, it would only take an hour to spread everywhere."
"If someone filled it with poison, or if someone refused treatment, the device would give them no chance. Because of these potential dangers, it was never widely implemented."
Gwen immediately grasped Michael’s meaning. With Dr. Connors’ intellect, he might indeed do something like this.
"Actually, that’s not the real reason it wasn’t adopted. Nuclear bombs and hydrogen bombs are even more dangerous—yet people keep making them, bigger and bigger."
Michael sighed and continued, "It’s just a machine. With proper management, it could benefit the public."
"Then why wasn’t it mass-produced?"
Gwen couldn’t help but ask.
"The reason is simple. If it were mass-produced, the drug dealers would starve. Who knows how many would lose their jobs at pharmaceutical factories, or how many expensive patented medicines would become worthless."
After hearing Michael’s explanation, Gwen fell silent.
"So, when do we act? Tomorrow afternoon, I think. Dr. Connors will give us time—he’ll need time to recover."
"Alright."
Gwen climbed onto the window ledge, looking back at Michael.
"See you at school tomorrow morning."
"Okay."
Goodness, another nosebleed coming. No wonder everyone likes climbing through windows—the view is really something.
Because of his blood condition, Michael’s recovery was slow; this kind of excitement was just too much for him.
"Wait, your clothes are still here, aren’t they?"
Looking at the spot where Gwen had vanished, Michael couldn’t help but shake his head.
"Never mind, tomorrow then."