-Billie POV-

"The darkness of the void is eternal for if you look at the stars, you find that they can only light up a small dot in the vast sky. The void of death is forever eternal than the light of the holy. Let the darkness lead your every step, for only the void knows the path to follow...." The sermon was definitely trying to brain wash me, it was filled with propoganda but I have to repeat it because if I don't it burns my soul as the void speaks to me "CHANT FOR ME OR DIE" I don't think the void would kill me because it needs me to give him my body willingly.

"Aarrrgg" Unimaginable pain shoots through my body I almost wanted to scream out but I held it in with an awkward cough. Even though it wouldn't kill me, it sure does love torturing me. I will hold on for as long as I can but I don't know how long.

"...Let into your hearts the shadow of the lord and you will forever be able to see in the darkness" I could hear the people shuffling around me in the shadows and knew that all of them were getting up to leave this horribly dark place. The doors and windows were opened by someone and unironically we were in an old abandoned church.

What was it that those Christian foster parents used to say "where the christ resides the demons hide?" The people go out of the church while covering themselves with veils to keep off the sunlight which I think is a step too far even for a cult. I mean come on tinted windows on your cars, even the void will call them idiots.

"Idiots" I raise an eyebrow at the voids words and tell him "Didnt know you had humour in you" He laughs as he replies "It's not humor, it's the truth. These idiots think that the void will give them a place to stay in but it only consumes and never gives" I grind my teeth and ask the void "What if I tell them about that?" He laughs once again, the laughter ringing through my heart like the bass of a horrible speaker before he asks me "Many before have tried, what makes you think they will believe you?"

I take a deep breath and walk out of the church with my head held down. The mother who calls herself that because she takes care of the holder of the void or something like that tells me "Do not worry about the followers, they will follow your word once the void accepts you" I try to explain the actual dynamic between me and the void to her "Once 'I' accept the void right?" She chuckles like those rich bastards when they hear something about the poor as she tells me with glee in her voice "After we have the gem he won't be needing your permission anymore?"

I turn to her in fear as I ask her "What?" I stop moving and she turns back to me with disapproval clear on her face as she orders "Move into the car" I step back and defy her "I won't move a single step unless you tell me what that ...." I collapse down as the void starts to fill my heart and I feel the pin pricks on my heart. I bite my cheek to avoid screaming out and giving him the satisfaction.

The void menacingly talks in my ear "I am in your mind girl, I can feel your screams. Rest easy, you need not know what the gem is just enjoy the last few precious moments of your life" I lost consciousness at that point and woke up back in my room. Tears threatened to fall out of my eyes but I wiped them off and called Peter. He picked up the call after two rings and I wanted to tell him about what is happening to me, about the void, about how much it hurts but the void always listens and he doesn't like it when I share.

-Osborn POV-

A few more tests, a few more tests is all I need to finish my masterpiece. I'll show them, I'll show all of them how much better I am. I will rule the world with this simple vile of serum but it needs testing and for testing you'll need subjects and for subjects you'll need the homeless.

Aarrgghhh fucking damn that mayor and damn that son of a bitch commisioner. They had to clean up the goons that brought me the homeless right at this critical moment. I have already used the last few shreds of that interns body for research. There is nothing left to test it on.

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I am so close to perfection. I will deal with that later, right now I have to deal with the shareholders panderings about this or that which aren't really important in the grand scheme of things except for getting on my ass about the most random bullshit.

One of the father shareholder starts the meeting with a grave tone in his voice, as if he was talking about something important "The biggest problem we are facing right now is the Sandman, nobody knows we are involved yet so the market wouldn't be affected but if they test the sand samples our downfall will be quick"

I quickly put that impossible notion out of their minds "I am sure the New York police would be uninterested in the sand grains across the city" but the board wasn't going to take such a weak layer of defense as they pointed out the main opposition we will face.

The only woman on board made sure to let me know "Who the fuck cares about the cops, we will have the secret services sniffing around soon enough?"

I wince and try to spin the story "They have always been sniffing around, nothing will change" but by the looks of it, no one was convinced.

I turn away and gaze out of the window as the Board talk about all the meaningless stuff but their final pausing statement gave me a pause "We will be selling the company to hammer industries"

"NO"

The board members turn to me at my sudden outburst so I calm down and tell them in a patronizing way with my charming smile "I just think a company with no prior experience in the chem field or any field other than weapons isn't suitable for the purchase"

One of the older shareholders with a bushy moustache and white hair slams his hand on the table and laughs as he says "That makes them the best buyers for the company because they are paying double the amount any other company would"

I grin and look the old shareholder in the eye as I plead "But they will ruin the company once they buy it. Don't you all want a lasting legacy atleast in name? Don't you want to say that you were part of a historic discovery?"

A gaunt old man who I considered my Mentor. who was silent till now, finally deigned to speak up "We are shareholders, none of what the company faces will stick to us except the profit. Don't be greedy son, don't be greedy for some tiny thing like legacy, be greedy for money which you will get plenty once we sell this sinking ship"

I hold the back of the chair to steady myself from falling and give them an easy smile while I all but beg them without any reason or logic in mind "I need a week more, I can turn this around"

The female shareholder once again sneered at me "I heard you went through all of your inventory of homeless people and started using interns. We will be selling the company before you can damage any of the more valuable assets"

My grip on the chair tightens as the shareholders stare at me with disdain, I screamed in my mind 'No, No, No don't please don't, I was doing research, this can advance science, it was a necessary sacrifice, it really was, they can't stare at me like that, they can't judge me, those were homeless people, they deserved to die, these people did much worse things, they don't deserve their chairs, they brought their way into the company, they didn't earn it like I did, why do they care about the homeless, these people are the greedy bastards, I will advance science and bring about the next stage of human evolution and then I will smother every last of one of them, starting with that skinny bitch putting out my dirty laundry like that.

My musings were interrupted by a creeking sound and I looked down to find that my hand has dug a groove into the iron chair.

An iron chair.

I look at the palm of my hand and find it unblemished, I don't remember having that much strength before. I hold the giant wooden table with a hand to try to lift it up and I did, I lifted up the giant wooden table that took 9 people to bring inside with a single hand. I grin and decide on a course of action that would put me at the top of the world.