Chapter 95: Break Out
Both Eren and Cindy lay holding each other in the small, twin-sized bed inside what was now their apartment. It was far too small for two people, but they didn't mind having to smother each other just to sleep comfortably. It was actually the first time the two of them slept together in the same bed.
They both woke up at about the same time, prompting Cindy to snuggle up into her lover's chest and greet him. "Good morning..." she said cutely and sleepily.
Eren smiled down at her, greeting her in the same way. "Good morning." he told her, hugging her tightly. "We should probably save up for a new bed, huh?"
Cindy exhaled humorously. "Yeah, probably. I can do a few extra shifts. I don't mind being this close, though." Cindy smiled as she buried her face into his warm chest. She truly didn't mind it at all.
"Are you sure you wanna do this? Living here like this with me on a freelance photographer's salary?" Eren felt a bit embarrassed. If he knew Cindy was going to try and move in, he would've just taken that job at Oscorp despite how he felt about having a job given to him by his best friend.
Cindy giggled to herself. "Eren, I don't care if I had to live in a box with you. As long as I get to be with you, for whatever time we have left, I'm happy."
Eren's heart sunk, 'Whatever time we have left?' he thought. "What do you mean?" he asked her, wondering if she had been seeing through his entire facade this whole time.
"You never know how much longer we're going to have each other. I thought you died, Eren. I had to live with the thought that you might not ever come back. When you were gone, Harry, Lily, and I told anyone who asked that you went to study abroad in your mother's home country since there wasn't a body to confirm you were dead... No one really questioned it, so no one thought Eren Parker was possibly dead but us.
We held out hope for a long time, we searched for months. Even the government was searching for you so they can use your body for testing but no one found a thing. We came up with a lot of theories, thinking maybe you ran so fast you ended up lost somewhere, but we never thought you were lost through time.
Once we started to come to terms with losing you, Harry left and trained in Russia and I got therapy to try and cope with it all. It's funny, you know I had to fight my therapist? He tried to gas the entire city and force them to dream about a false reality. It made me realize that I don't want to experience any life without you experiencing it with me, I didn't want to live a life without you, and I took you for granted.
But I moved on, I started doing this hero stuff alone until Harry came back and we started being heroes together. Lily joined in soon after, being our Seer. Then you came back and I was so happy. I told myself that I would never take you for granted ever again. I told myself that if I was given the chance, I'd spend every single breathing moment of my life to be with you.
I might not be lucky enough to have you tomorrow, so I should enjoy today. you know?" Cindy said softly, rubbing Eren's chest with her hand. She truly did mean all of that, she loved him so dearly, that she would endure anything just so they could be together, even if it meant living uncomfortably.
She could have just visited his apartment daily, but that wasn't enough for her. She wanted to make up for the lost time.
Eren was shocked. He didn't realize that her feelings toward him were so substantial. Of course, he felt the exact same about her, despite not being able to come up with the words to show it. However, he didn't need to say anything. He didn't need to tell her that he loved her more than anything on Earth. Their link, the one that Cindy could sense, told her everything she needed to know.
"I feel the same way about you." Eren told her.
"I know you do. I can feel everything you feel, Eren. You can't hide any feelings from me." Cindy teased, though this had multiple meanings.
"Right. I'm sorry, again. I didn't want to leave you guys like that. I just wanted to save everyone." Eren said softly, feeling a bit guilty that he put his friends through so much.
"It's okay. You did save everyone, so it's okay. I love you for that." as those words left her lips, the two of them received a message from Harry in the hero group chat.
𝙃𝙖𝙧𝙧𝙮: I know where Conrad Marcus is gonna be tonight. The bastard is taking a vacation at one of his other homes. I think now's the best time to try and squeeze some information out of him. Silk? Spider-Man? Seer? Y'all in or what?
𝙇𝙞𝙡𝙮: I'm in.
𝙀𝙧𝙚𝙣: I guess I'm down. lmk what time.
As soon as Eren sent the text, Cindy frowned at him. "You're not going to encourage his crazy idea to interrogate or kidnap a whole government official, are you? He's being impulsive and dumb right now, he's grown too obsessed with the idea of wiping everything bad Norman has done from existence." Cindy began typing her own message in the chat before hitting send.
𝘾𝙞𝙣𝙙𝙮: Are you guys seriously going to kidnap him?
𝙃𝙖𝙧𝙧𝙮: Did you not hear Eren? Project V is still out there. Did you not see what it was capable of? I don't want anyone getting their hands on that stuff. We need to find it NOW. Besides, I'm not kidnapping him unless he won't cooperate. I'm just going to beat some answers out of him since he won't answer my calls or emails.
𝘾𝙞𝙣𝙙𝙮: We don't do that, Harry. That's crossing a line.
𝙃𝙖𝙧𝙧𝙮: YOU don't do that. I do whatever it takes. And you ripped my father's face off and you're talking about crossing lines? You go ahead and stay home then. Eren and I will do what needs to be done.
𝙀𝙧𝙚𝙣: Actually, I think Cindy is right. We shouldn't stoop that low and also you aren't thinking about this logically. This is very illegal and you have a very, very public identity. Getting away with vigilante work is one thing but beating up the future mayor... Idk man.
𝙀𝙧𝙚𝙣: We should just follow him around until he gives us leads.
𝙃𝙖𝙧𝙧𝙮: No way...
𝙃𝙖𝙧𝙧𝙮: You realize that following him could lead to nothing? Asking nicely isn't working and he's the only one who has a decent chance of being involved in the whole situation.
𝙀𝙧𝙚𝙣: I don't care. You're taking this too far. You're becoming how I was back when I used to call myself the Phantom Spider. I was fueled by rage, I was bitter, and I thought doing things like that would make it feel better but it doesn't.
𝙀𝙧𝙚𝙣: Besides, they don't do anything with Project V until a year from now. We have plenty of time.
𝙃𝙖𝙧𝙧𝙮: Wait are you serious? You're gonna side with her? What happened to the whole doing whatever it takes to save people? What if they move sooner? You said things are different in this timeline already.
𝙀𝙧𝙚𝙣: ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ she's my gf bro. Sorry, I have to agree with her.
𝙃𝙖𝙧𝙧𝙮: Since when did Cindy have you in a collar and leash?
𝙇𝙞𝙡𝙮: I think they might be right, Harry. I think we should come up with a different idea that doesn't involve beating up a politician.
𝙃𝙖𝙧𝙧𝙮: You too? Alright, I'll do it myself. I'll message you guys when I actually do something with my abilities.
Cindy looked up at Eren as they were still in bed together. "Should we stop him?" she asked him.
Eren shook his head. "Just let him do what he wants. It'll be fine."
Eren already foresaw this coming for a while. In fact, he was surprised that it took Harry this long to take action. He needed to let Harry do what he wanted to do, to let him continue on this journey of atoning for being his father's son. If he tried to stop him, it would ruin their friendship, he had seen it happen time and time again.
So Eren let Harry do whatever he wanted, waiting for Harry to give him the call that the information had been extracted.
Hours later, Conrad Marcus was working on some paperwork in the office of his vacation home as his wife and son were elsewhere within the estate. As he was signing documents, he could hear the sound of boots getting closer from down the hall, prompting the middle-aged politician to look up with his eyebrows furrowed.
"Meredith?" he asked, assuming it was his wife walking with an unusual amount of force with each step.
"Zachary?" this time he assumed it was his son trying to pull a fast one on him.
However, to his dismay, neither of them would be answering his call as the door crept open, revealing the all-black-wearing New Goblin behind it. As soon as his boot took a step into the room, Conrad Marcus got up on both feet. "Osborn!?" he asked, stumbling backward until his back hit the wall.
"I've been looking for you, Mr. Marcus. You haven't been answering my calls." Harry took another furious step forward with his earth-shattering boot, clenching both fists. "Remember when I saved your life all those months ago? It's time you repay me for that."
"R- repay you!?" Conrad Marcus could barely speak as the young man continued to get closer. He'd seen what the New Goblin does to criminals whenever he was solo, he didn't want any part of that.
"Project V. Tell me where it's being held, tell me how to get in, and I won't harm you or your family. Your wife and son are asleep right now, so let's do what's necessary to make sure they get to wake up, alright?" Harry was bluffing here, he'd never hurt an innocent person, especially a child.
"I wish I could tell you-" Before Conrad could continue to mutter words, Harry pushed him against the wall and placed one of his wrist blades against his throat. "I am not Spider-Man. I will extinguish you if you don't give me what I want. No one will hear you scream, no one will hear you cry. Your entire surveillance system has been dealt with too, there will be no evidence of who struck you down here tonight." Unlike with the wife and child, this may or may not have been a bluff. Harry had seen his father's deals with Conrad Marcus, he was just as despicable as the Green Goblin and would be better off six feet under.
"Aren't you afraid that you'll be a prime suspect? Of all people, you'd be at the top of the list." Conrad truly thought this would phase Harry, but it did nothing more than piss him off.
"I am the most powerful man in this God damned state. One of the most powerful men in the country, all thanks to that piece of shit father of mine. I don't give a fuck what list I'm a part of, I'll wipe it clean like I always have, using my father's dishonest dollars." Once Harry officially revealed himself to be the New Goblin, the law didn't touch him. He was their main funding source, he funded them for this sole reason. With the police in his pocket, he could do whatever the hell he wanted. Something he picked up upon researching Wilson Fisk.
Harry, of course, used this power for good, but he wasn't afraid to bend the moral compass if it meant helping people in the long run. Getting this information was part of that.
"You're a monster. Just like your father." Conrad was rewarded for saying this by receiving a punch to the stomach, one so powerful he nearly began to vomit as he hunched over Harry's fist.
"I am. You're right. I'm giving you one last chance to tell me what I want to know." Harry saying this triggered Conrad Marcus to sigh, signaling defeat. "Fine. Check the laptop over there. You'll see a file in my emails mentioning something about an urgent situation. Go ahead and click on it."
Harry looked at the man with reluctant eyes before throwing him to the ground and placing his foot on Conrad's back as he began using the laptop. He searched through the man's emails until he found one with a video attached titled, 'urgent'. Harry clicked on it, only to be shocked at what he saw before him.
The video was choppy and showed the view of about ten surveillance cameras at once. At first, he saw people running past every single camera, running as if there was something horrifying behind them, running as if they were trying to escape a monster.
As one of the scientists, wearing a lab coat, turned the corner of one of the halls, he was impaled by a black tendril, though he was still alive as his eyes widened and he was pulled back out of frame. "What?" Harry muttered with a shuddering voice as he continued to watch the screen closely.
His eyes began frantically looking around the screen before one of the cameras showed more people running. A tendril grabbed one of the scientists by the ankle before lifting her up in the air and slamming her onto the ground like a whip. She died instantly before the tendril threw her at her colleagues with such force, they were killed upon impact.
Slowly, the monster started to show itself, stepping forward with its foot that was shrouded in black before its entire body was visible. Harry's eyes winced as he looked at the monstrosity on the screen. Its entire human-like silhouette was covered in Project V. Its eyes were massive and white, covering almost its entire face. The rest of its face was covered by a grotesque grin, one showing all of its sharp teeth that could shred through flesh with ease.
There were dozens of tendrils flowing from its back, wriggling around as if they were alive. Suddenly, one of those tendrils lunged at the camera, destroying it as if it wanted to get rid of any evidence.
One by one, the monster began entering rooms, killing anyone it could find before destroying every last surveillance camera.
Once the video was over, Harry was dumbfounded. As he stared blankly at the screen, Conrad Marcus spoke to him. "That video is a week old. Haven't seen the monster since. As far as we know, it could be out there making offspring in some nest. That's why my family and I are here, away from it all when it goes to shit."
Harry didn't say anything. He grabbed a flash drive from his utility belt and plugged it into the computer before transferring the video onto it. He let his foot off the politician and left the room without saying a word.
Not too long after, every single member of the team was inside the Spider-Cave, all anxious to see what Harry had to show them. With his flash drive in hand, Harry plugged it into their main computer and showed it to the team.
Their faces varied from horrified to blank, the girls' being the former while Eren's being the latter. When the clip ended, Harry looked directly at Eren for answers. "What is that?" he asked, knowing that Eren knew the answer.
"I have no clue." Eren said, shrugging as if he was clueless.
"What do you mean 'I have no clue'? You're telling me no other Eren saw this? This isn't in any of your memories?"
"Nope." Eren shook his head.
"What are you planning, Eren?"
"What do you mean? I'm not planning anything. I'm just trying to understand this timeline stuff just like you." Eren actually started to seem offended that Harry believed that he was somehow in on this whole situation.
"Cut the bullshit, dude. Cindy, Lily, and I all know you're lying about something." This was entirely true as the three of them talked amongst each other about the fact that Eren was definitely keeping something away from them. Cindy, however, didn't include the fact that she could sense his guilt. "Do you think we can't tell? What happened to no more secrets? No more lies? Do you not trust us?"
"I trust all three of you with my life." Eren once again spoke with sincerity.
"You sure don't act like it." Harry said coldly.
"Well, all I can say is I have no clue what's happening, I'm sorry." Eren looked a bit hurt by these accusations, prompting Cindy to hold his hand to comfort him, despite feeling his overwhelming guilt resonating off of him.
Harry's eyebrows furrowed upon seeing Cindy suddenly switch up. Not too many days ago, she was acting as if Eren was a liar, but now her body language showed that she was siding with him.
Lily had no clue what to even do or say, all she could do was watch as the heroes gave each other various looks.
The three heroes all had different motives at this point.
Harry wanted to save the world and get to the bottom of the mysteries involving Project V and Eren's odd behavior.
Cindy, knowing something was off, wanted to continue to lie to herself and remain oblivious. Eren was lying to all of them and she knew it. However, she knew that he had to be lying for good reason. Even in the past, the only time he ever lied was to protect her, so he had to have been doing the same thing.
Eren wanted to protect everyone, the entire world, the entire timeline. To do that, he needed to continue his falsehoods and put things in his own hands. He knew that what he had planned wouldn't sit right with his friends, they'd call him crazy. On top of that, he refused to share the burden and the knowledge of the world ending very soon with his friends.
And so, he continued to lie.
For their sake.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone