An army of nanobots capable of teleportation, scanning, and death. From the perspective of an outsider, the Big Man appeared capable of horrific magic. A snap—and no matter where a target ran, he could bring them back. No matter what digital world they attempted to live in, he could hack it.
Poisons were dissolved before they could touch his tongue. Men could be teleported to the skies.
Nothing worked. The Big Man could see all and do all.
'Except noticing me hiding in plain sight.'
Sometimes, invisibility was not the solution. Sometimes, a good ol' disguise could fool even the smartest. Felix Faeth was pretending to be a server and the Big Man didn't suspect him in the slightest.
"Don't worry about it, I'm making a science-fiction joke. Oh, and…" The Big Man brought out the menu and pointed. "I want Biang Biang noodles. Please and thank you."
"Of course, sir."
Felix bowed and left. He acted as the server. He acted as a normal unassuming man. He went behind the cash register, glancing between the kitchen and the Big Man.
THAT was when he saw it.
When he saw Miguel O'Hara suddenly appearing at the table, Felix's eyes went wide.
'Miguel!? He...that red light! T-the nanobots...! Teleportation…!?'
No massive pad necessary, the Big Man could snap his fingers and bring people to him at will. This freaky level of tech, Felix expected it. As always though, seeing it and believing it were two separate matters. How did seven teeny-tiny nanobots have enough power to do what the Red Goblin required nuclear fusion?
The neural connection necessary to obey his orders, the autonomy to not overwhelm him, the asinine efficiency…! It was a scale of tech Felix struggled to make heads and tails of.
It also ruined Plan A—which was to have Miguel call Abraham and inform him that he was going to pick them up for a tour of Oscorp Tower. To show the Big Man the progress they had climbed so far in Earth 65. On their way to Oscorp Tower in Miguel's car, a special nuclear-based C4 in the car's engine would explode and kill them all. Fitted with special radiation, it would negate his stretchyness while limiting the AOE to the car itself.
Except with this act of god, the Big Man ruined this plan, he ruined Felix adding sedatives to his food, and a couple other plans.
"Wasps! Oh my god—waiter, there's wasps!"
The appearance of Miguel O'Hara caused little public commotion, for his presence was outshone by the wasps. This was a restaurant, the appearance of literal wasps could not be ignored. Immediately, customers shrieked and stood up.
"Wasps!"
"Oh my god!"
"Kill them, kill them!"
Playing his part as the friendly neighbourhood water, Felix ran over to the Big Man and Abraham with bug spray. "Sirs! Sirs! I'm sorry!" He began spraying the seven wasps above them.
The bug spray did nothing except cover the wasps in white and agitate them. They did not attack, fortunately, The wasps scattered and rapidly reemerged in a single line. The door, by coincidence, had opened due to a customer. "Oh my god!" the middle-aged lady yelped and backed off as the seven wasps flew out of Genghis Connie Too.
Felix chased them out and watched them take to the skies. He continued to play his part, "Yeah, I don't know how you got in here, but leave! Shoo! Shoo!"
Internally, he was thinking: 'A weakness. Look at that, this nanobot army, once they expand, they can't shrink immediately. Otherwise, they would have done that.' He shook the bug spray. 'I should have put something in this. Oh well. I can only plan and make so many back-ups.'
He shook and shook the spray and sighed at length.
'I wish I could just attack him. Put my hand on his shoulder and use my bio-electricity…'
According to Hobie, however, bioelectricity did not work on the Big Man. Previously, Hobie could not figure out why. He presumed the Big Man was just that powerful. But ever since they saw that memory recording of the Big Man's stretchy abilities and its scale, they came to another conclusion: not only could he stretch like rubber, but he imitated its properties too. His body was essentially an electrical insulator with. To put it another way, the universe dictated that he blocked the flow of electric current.
Felix's bioelectricity was special though. Could it overpower the rubber-stretchy insulator that was the Big Man? Maybe. Maybe not. It was a gamble. And with those nanobots and their unknown abilities, it was a gamble he didn't want to take.
'If I use my bioelectricity and he shrugs it off, or if his nanobots come and absorb it...this will all be for nothing. I guess we're dropping down from an ambush to Plan I.'
Plan I; he didn't think he'd have to go this far.
'But a plan is a plan.'
The wasps disappeared into New York. Not that it mattered, he suspected they would return to the Big Man soon. Felix started counting in his head. However long it took for them to return indicated the time to return to their normal nanosize. An important weakness, perhaps, to exploit later.
He rolled his shoulders and plastered his server smile again. He jogged back to the table. "Hello, sir!"
'Hello, Reed.'
Felix's smile was fake. His emotions were suppressed. He continued to be the waitress he was supposed to be: "I am SO sorry about all this. We have no idea how those wasps got in!"
"It's fine." The unfazed Big Man flashed him a smile. "My Biang Biang noodles?"
That smile…damn. He told himself not to be affected. Face to face with this Reed Richards, Felix's heart twisted in itself. His complexion and ethnicity was different, and pointing them out calmed him. This was not Reed Richards. But still. That smile and the creases of his forehead, that witty intelligence, it was what he beheld oh-so long ago.
His old friend, reincarnated as an enemy. It was as though fate enjoyed toying with him.
'But you're not Reed.' His mind lasered off the empathy. His emotions became aware that this was an enemy and nothing more.
Felix's eyes drifted to Miguel O'Hara. "A new guest? I apologize to you too. Let me get you a menu." He fetched one from a nearby empty table and put it in front of Miguel.
"I'll have honey hoisin noodles…and a side of honey bun." Miguel's grunted response earned a satisfied smile out of the Big Man.
"Look at you, developing taste! Good, good!" The Big Man saluted Felix. "Be sure to put double the effort into making everything, okay?"
"Please don't. I like my honeybun lightly toasted and casual."
"Oh-ho! Miguel, I like this!"
Miguel grunted. The dark-slicked-back male did not make eye-contact with Felix. His arms were crossed and he was waiting for the waiter to leave to continue his conversation with the Big Man.
'Good.' Felix smiled, in and out. 'Everything is going according to plan.'
Turning around and walking off, his pupils momentarily prickled with the digital green. The Advanced Lens were doing what they were supposed to do. He did not need it, of course, to overhear their conversation. His ears were sufficient spying tools.
"Miguel, Miguel. Found a girl yet?"
"I focus on work."
"Excellent! Really, I don't disparage you. But as a young man in his prime, you should be going out and having fun!"
"Girls are far too much trouble than they are worth."
"Agree to disagree. Trust me, the pleasure they give us is…insurmountable."
"Agree to disagree then," Miguel said.
There was a lengthy pause. They ate. Felix wanted to lean in and listen when Mr. Line walked up to him and flung an arm around him. "Ah, Feenie. How is it going with Mr. Big?"
It was a conversation meant to be on the down-low.
"Oh, it's going great, sir."
"Yes, remember, VIP! V, I, P!"
Felix nodded like a good little employee. "Yes, yes."
He was released. Minutes later, Felix returned to the table with steaming food. "Biang Biang noodles," Felix said as he put the bowl down. "And honey hoisin noodles with a side of honey bun."
"God, these authentic Chinese smells…! I love it!"
The Big Man's nose went left and right, following the smoke. Miguel's shaded glance at Felix went unnoticed by the Big Man. He was too in-love with the smokey food to notice that Miguel was also controlled by him.
The Big Man was a cautious man. He ran a quick diagnosis to see if anything had been changed or altered on his creation. A rightful precaution, genuinely, and one Felix and Hobie anticipated when they re-coded the androids.
'You're regarded as an administrator by the androids, hence why they obey you. But how do they actually know if it's you? If someone takes on your appearance, would they listen?' The answer was no. 'What the androids do to confirm your identity is a key. You have a key on your person.'
Secretly, Felix's Advances Lens flickered.
'It took us a while but we were able to crack the Big Man identification key. I have it installed in my Advanced Lens. Right now, it's dormant but if I turn it on, I can act as an administrator and make them obey me…just like you.'
So the androids themselves were the exact same as before. Their memories concerning their fights with Felix were wiped, naturally. Other than that though…nothing. There was nothing for the Big Man to notice. Not unless he laid the androids down and pulled out their memory chips, as Felix did.
Felix left as a waiter should. He worked as a waiter should. The Big Man was quite strange. He asked ordinary questions. He asked about Miguel's hobbies. It was a little uncomfortable how ordinary he seemed.
'Focus, Felix. Keep listening in.' He carried two plates back to the kitchen. He put them in the sink and slipped past a working chef.
That was when he heard it:
"I've made up my mind. You're coming with me, Miguel," the Big Man declared.
"Big Man—?"
"No ifs or butts. I like this. I like this new personality. And everything you've done here can be done by Abraham and Anderthorp. This development of yours, it'll be perfect for those Spider-Men. Ryahaha, they won't even know what hit them."
Felix heard a loud slurp, followed by a bang of a hand. The Big Man was standing up and Miguel stood. Felix watched as the Big Man…headed toward him. "Sir?" Felix asked, being the good waiter he was.
"I'm a friend of the owner." The Big Man put a hand on his shoulder, smiling. "I'll see you next time."
"O-okay…"
He watched them disappear into the kitchen. He listened to their footsteps go down to the basement.
'They're going through the portal. He wants Miguel to get close to Miles Morales and Peter Parker. Two fellow Spider-Men...'
At this point, Plan I was the best plan of attack here.
Felix checked his watch and nonchalantly jogged up Mr. Line. "I'm going for my break, sir." After a nod of affirmation from the old man, he excused himself for a smoke break and darted out of the store. As he took in the fresh air, he swung his legs forward and headed into an alleyway. He walked deep till he was near the back of the building.
'It's time.'
Felix turned invisible.
He jumped onto the wall and slipped through the small rectangular-window. Right underneath was a pot of noodles being cooked on a stove top. Felix was back in the kitchen of Genghis Connie Too. He crawled across on the ceiling, eyes down on the people he once worked with. Getting a job here was a simple matter. Mr. and Mrs. Line were old and their memories of a customer from years back was dim. Felix? Felipe? Feenie? Their old brains were like flickering light bulbs when he introduced himself and handed in his false resume. Lying about his experience was easy work and nine days prior, he was hired to work part-time.
And since Abraham and Miguel were under his thumb, getting explicit permission was easier than it should have been.
It was a booming business and "Feenie" was just one of many part-timers. As he crawled across the room, he enjoyed the professionalism and great hot spicy smells.
"Come on, stir, stir!"
"I'm trying sir!"
He chuckled in his head. As mentioned, "Feenie" wasn't the only new employee. The kitchen was busy. The spider kept crawling across the ceiling, weaving around or through the hanging pots and pans stuff.
Felix dropped down to the locked basement door. Behind him, the chaos of the kitchen continued. 'The Big Man and Abraham should be through this.'
He pressed an ear to the door first. He listened.
VROOOM!
There! The portal was open! At this point, the Big Man HAD to bring all his nanobots back!
'That means I can do this.' Discreetly, the tip of his index finger turned gooey and liquid-y. It slipped inside the lock and opened it. He admittedly wasn't very good at unlocking practical locks. However, for this particular lock, Felix had practiced.
CLICK. He quietly opened the door and slipped through. Not a soul noticed, too busy in their own work.
He flung himself down the stairs. This normal basement, so to speak, stored old furniture and emergency tools. He landed on all fours in the basement and once again threw himself forward to where the trap door. He pressed the button, opened the trap door, and dropped down to the secret basement.
'Found ya!'
Felix had been fast as a man or spider could be. He arrived to see the refrigerator bright and blue, and with the Big Man stepping through it.
VROOOM!
The great man disappeared into the blue light. Felix, still invisible, sprinted forward as Abraham put a leg on the refrigerator. He hoisted himself and pulled himself into open-blue-light.
With Felix unknowingly right behind him.
VROOOM!
The world went blue for Felix Faeth and for the first time in his life, he stepped off from Earth 65.
This was Plan I: Planned Infiltration.