Two years ago, Curt Connors, in an attempt to regrow his arm that he had long ago lost, created a serum that used reptile DNA, particularly that belonging to lizards. Although he was successful at growing his arm back, the serum had an unintended side effect. While under the influence of this lizard formula, the good doctor would morph into a giant man-lizard. Through the intervention of Spider-Man, along with an antidote for Connor’s serum, the Lizard was successfully reverted back into his regular human form.
However, even with this incident, research into this type of medical technology. Some saw the potential for curing countless diseases, while others could see an army of super-soldiers. Scientists at the University of Chicago were carrying out one such research. Headed by Doctor Joanne Tumolo, these University of Chicago researchers took precautions that were learned from the ‘Lizard Incident’. Their main concern was to find out a way to prevent the instincts of the donor DNA from overwriting the personality of the recipient of the treatment.
So far, Doctor Tumolo’s team of research assistants have only been testing their version of the serum on laboratory mice and only with the DNA of less dangerous animals, particularly herbivores so that they would not create some sort of dangerous predator that could wipe out the entire lab. From the recent tests, animal behavior, on average, seemed to not have been overwritten, as they were with the original Lizard formula. However, characteristics of the donor would manifest themselves in the test subject.
Greer Grant happened to be one of the research assistants who worked under Doctor Tumolo. However, Ms. Grant noticed that something fishy was going on ever since Doctor Tumolo began to accept a private grant from a certain Mr. Malcolm Donalbain. Then, on their benefactor’s request, the researchers added another member to their staff, Shirlee Bryant. Over the next couple weeks, Greer kept noticing that the inventory was not adding up. However, Greer did not have any evidence that could determine who was stealing inventory and research that had been conducted at the University of Chicago.
Or at least she did not have any proof until this one fateful day. When she had gone into the laboratory early on that day in order to get a head start on her daily research, Greer discovered that their recently hired assistant was the thief. Shirlee had been sneaking out research data, reports, and even serum samples ever since she had been hired. On that day, Greer caught Shirlee copying their recent findings from one of the lab computers onto a flash drive. Now that she had the proof, Greer intended to report this scientific theft.
However, Greer Grant never had the chance. Before she could leave, Shirlee grabbed whatever she could find within arm’s reach and smacked Greer in the back of the head, knocking her out cold. Now Shirlee had a dilemma on her hands. Even though she had knocked out her fellow lab assistant, Shirlee knew that Greer would eventually reveal the truth once she recovers from that blow to the head. Therefore, there was one option left: frame Greer as the thief. Not only did she plant evidence, such as paper files and a flash drive on and around Greer, but she also took several vials of experimental serum, made with tiger DNA, and injected the poor lab assistant with it. Even after minutes after she had injected Greer with the formula, Shirlee could already see the formula changing Greer. And to finish her cover-up, Shirlee made sure that she was nowhere to be found when the other researchers found Greer, who then appeared as if she lost consciousness from taking the tiger serum.
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