Upside-Down

Chapter 20

Peter is putting on his now-less-smelly suit, weighing his options. He could go back to the Lizard's lair. He didn't want to. The creature had haunted his nightmares the last night. He could-

"Hello Peter." The AI's voice thrums in his head.

"Hey..." he hesitates.

"What's up?"

"I've been thinking about what to call you... would Karen be okay?"

"I like the sound of that, Peter."

"Awesome Karen." Peter opens his window. Even if he isn't going to the Lizard's hideout, he could use some fresh air. His run in with Mr. Stark had been embarrassing, and he wants to clear his head.

"I've been running possible translations of that code we saw last night."

"What code? Oh, the papers!" Peter leans out of the window, sticking to the smooth metal on the outer wall of the tower. "You got a picture of that?"

"I record everything Peter."

"Cool. What'd you figure out?"

"It seems the creature is making a new kind of addictive substance, one that simulations show may lead to the growing of reptilian features over several doses. Recent news posts have shown that some people have been found with traces of a substance similar to this in their blood, arrested for being overly aggressive and violent." Photos depicting these events appear in Peter's peripheral.

"Wow... how widespread?"

"Some of it has been found in Alaska."

"Man... Karen, this is big. Bigger than a monster hiding in the sewers."

"It seems it all stems from that monster."

Peter lands on top of a building, surveying the ground around him. No evil doers. Nothing bad going on. He yawns.

"You seem tired, Peter."

"It's nothing Karen. I'm all set for..." he yawns again.

"Your melatonin levels have increased drastically in the last few minutes. I suggest we go back to the tower, otherwise you may fall asleep. You still haven't recovered from—"

"What time is it?"

"Nearly eleven."

"Dang... Time flies. I guess you're right, we should go back." Peter swings back for the tower, still peaking into alleys and down streets, just incase anyone was up to something shady. Nothing. Nada. Ugh... He lands by his window and crawls back into his room, pulling off his suit and creeping into bed. Fish meows at him, looking scolding.

"I know, I know." Peter pets the cats head as he crawls into bed. "I was out later then I should've been. I've got school tomorrow. I'll go to sleep Fish, I promise." The cat curls up next to his head on his pillow, and he begins to drift off.

Peter wakes up to a knock on his door. "Hey, Pete." It's Mr. Stark. He quickly pulls on a shirt and tumbles off his mattress, shoving his suit into a corner.

He opens the door, smiling cautiously. "Hey—Hey, Mr. Stark."

"Sorry, did I wake you up?" Tony asks questioningly.

"Need to pick a new alarm sound. That one didn't work," Peter sighs. Fish brushes against his ankles, glaring at Mr. Stark.

"I was wondering if I could drop you off at school today," Mr. Stark looks like he's trying to see around the corner.

Peter glances around to check for anything off and then opens his door wider. "What time is it? I haven't eaten yet—"

"Don't worry kid. I'll take you to a café or something. Your teachers will understand."