Traffic jammed from the East River to Northern Boulevard. Brake lights painted the Queensboro Bridge red. People spilled out of cars, shouting, pointing, filming with shaky phones. Some cried, others prayed, their voices mixing with the wind.
Iron Man soared above the bridge, his suit's scanners buzzing. "This is bad, folks," Tony said over the comms. "Nanite density's through the roof inside the tower's box sections. They're chewing through welds and crawling into the cable housings like roaches."
Cap and Natasha leaped from a commandeered NYPD SUV at the Manhattan approach. Cap grabbed a cop's radio. "NYPD, get cars off the Manhattan side now. Keep pedestrians away from midspan. Move!"
"Copy that," the sergeant replied, eyes wide, already waving drivers back.
Spider-Man and Rex sprinted along the lower maintenance catwalk, the dark river glinting below. Wind tugged at their clothes. The steel tower loomed ahead like a fortress wall.
Rex skidded to a stop, staring at the tower's base. Black threads, thin as spider silk, crawled over the steel, pulsing faintly, then dimming, then pulsing again. "They've got orders," Rex said, voice low. "Van Kleiss programmed them."
"Can you shut 'em down?" Spider-Man asked, catching his breath, one hand gripping a cable for balance.
"Only if I touch the metal," Rex said.
"Then touch it already!" Spidey urged, his voice sharp but teasing. "Unless you're waiting for an invitation."
Rex didn't smile. He slapped his palm against the tower. A jolt of pain shot up his arm, like grabbing a live wire. He gritted his teeth and held on. "This hurts like hell."
Orange light spread from his hand, glowing like a sunset over the steel. The black threads froze, twitched, and pulled back an inch.
"Talk to me, kid," Tony said, circling above, his suit's repulsors humming. "What's happening down there?"
"I can feel where they've hooked into the structure," Rex said, jaw tight. "It's like they're fused to the steel. I'm pushing them out, but it's slow—like peeling glass."
"Gross," Spider-Man said, bracing his feet, one arm looped through a cable, ready to web Rex back if the tower turned ugly. "Keep going. You got this."
Natasha moved fast along the bridge deck, her voice calm but firm as she guided people to safety. "Keep moving, stay to the left, don't stop." She pulled a kid away from a stalled car. Cap blocked a panicked driver trying to ram through the gridlock. "Back off," Cap said, voice steady. "You're gonna hurt someone."
Rex's light hit a seam in the tower. The black threads bunched up and lunged, trying to surge down his arm. He pushed harder, sweat beading on his face. "You're mine," he muttered. "Not his."
The threads snapped and crumbled to dust.
"Nice work," Tony said, his HUD flashing. "That section's clean. But—bad news, team. He's seeded the Queens anchorages now. He's trying to pop the main cable."
The tower groaned, a sound that vibrated in their chests. A main support cable high above bulged and snapped with a crack like a gunshot. The loose end whipped through the air, slicing the roof off a city bus. The driver cursed, yanking the wheel. The bus slammed into the guardrail, its front end dangling over the river.
Kids screamed inside.
Spider-Man shot a web to the bus and another to the tower, leaping to the front bumper. His arms strained as the lines went taut. "I got you!" The bus slid an inch. "Okay, I almost got you!"
Rex tore his hand from the tower and sprinted over. "Don't move!" he shouted.
"I'm trying not to!" Spidey's voice cracked, his legs shaking. "This thing weighs a ton!"
Rex vaulted the rail, grabbing the bus's back corner with one hand. He slammed his other palm against the torn metal frame. Nanites surged from his touch, hardening the bus's body into a single, solid plate. The shell locked in place.
The bus stopped—for a second.
Another cable snapped.
The bridge dropped a foot. Cars bounced. People hit the deck hard. The bus lurched again. Spider-Man's knees buckled, his webs creaking. "This is not my favorite day!"
"Tony!" Cap shouted, sprinting toward midspan. "Get up there!"
"I'm on it!" Iron Man rocketed higher, bracing his suit against a crossbeam. Thrusters roared, glowing white-hot. "This better work, or I'm billing the city for a new suit."
Rex glanced at the river, then at the kids' scared faces through the bus windows, then at Spider-Man's trembling grip. "I can hold the bus," he said. "But the bridge is too much."
"Not asking you to," Cap said, his voice steady despite the chaos. "Just keep that bus steady."
Spider-Man let out a shaky laugh. "Yeah, great plan, Cap. Love the optimism."
Natasha slid onto the bus roof from a cable. "I'm going in," she said, smashing the rear window with her baton. She climbed inside, her voice calm but commanding. "Kids, listen up. One at a time, hands on the seats, eyes on me. Move."
"Good call," Cap said, helping a stranded driver to safety. "Keep them calm, Nat."
Rex grunted, sweat dripping down his neck. "This is taking everything I've got." His arms shook as he poured more nanites into the bus, reinforcing it against the bridge's sway.
"Hey, you're doing great, Rex," Spider-Man said, straining to hold his webs. "But, like, maybe hurry? My arms are about to file for divorce."
The third cable twitched, straining under the nanite attack.
Across the bridge, on the far tower's catwalk, Van Kleiss appeared. His long coat fluttered, and he raised a hand, fingers curling like he was pulling an invisible string. He locked eyes with Rex and smiled, cold and sharp.
"Rex, you seeing this?" Spider-Man asked, voice tight. "Your creepy friend's back."
"He's not my friend," Rex snapped. "He's playing with us."
Van Kleiss closed his fist.
The tower buckled with a sickening crunch. The bridge shuddered, cables screaming as they stretched to their limit. The deck tilted, and the bus slid another inch toward the void.
"Hold on!" Cap yelled, grabbing a railing to steady himself. "We're losing it!"
Rex's heart pounded. He pushed harder, nanites flooding the bus, but the bridge was giving way beneath them. "I can't stop it!" he shouted, voice breaking.
The bridge began to collapse, steel groaning as it tore apart.