A Spider-Man fanfic — One More Day – The Right Way
Written by WDCain Man
Disclaimer: All these characters are owned by Marvel Comics. None of these characters were used with permission.
I'M ON TVTROPES! Check under the fanfic section of 'Large Ham' and you'll find NGE Theatre's own Count Shinjula is listed among the great ham'ers of fanfiction! I am so proud! Sure, my name isn't mentioned nor the title of my story but gosh darn it if it doesn't feel great! I love that website I feel great over being listed there!
Now to get back to topic. I've been a long time reader of Spider-Man. One ASM issue was actually the first comic I ever bought. So I know all about the rich history about the character and I must say that since the cosmic retcon of One More Day, the comics have never been better! Sure, it was badly done but nearly every Spidey book since then in my opinion has been a blast. It's like OMD was stinking manure and everything that spouted from it smelled like roses!
My only real problem with OMD is the sad fact that Peter made a deal with the devil. It really tarnishes his character with that decision. I guess Joe Quesada couldn't think of any other way to rewrite the history of the Marvel Universe. I'm not going to call Quesada a hack because it was just one bad decision. The guy is still great at his job. He just didn't see a way to redo reality without involving Mephisto.
Oh wait! There is a way. That was the thinking that started this fanfic. I really think that if OMD was written like this way then there would have been a ton of less flak from the fans. This is that attempt. Enjoy.
By the way, if anyone has any fault with this fanfic, please note that Norman Osborn is an extremely unreliable narrator.
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One More Day – The Right Way
By WDCain Man
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Norman Osborn hates Peter Parker. There's no denying that. He's hated him even before the boy got his driver's license. In his dreams, he strangles the brat till he's blue in the face and begging for his life only for Norman to let him go just so he could start choking him again. He makes him relive the day he killed Gwen Stacy over and over and over again. He does everything to make his existence miserable!
That's why Norman hates his day job now. Damn Stark, he and his SHIELD cronies for having a kill-switch to the nanites in him. He'd slit his wrists and bleed himself dry to die free but if he did die, he couldn't hurt Peter anymore.
How dare that brat spoil the game by unmasking on TV! Then he got a cushy nice job being Stark's human face in the Civil War! Peter Parker: Hero of the nation! Then that maggot had the gall to quit that job and become a hero to all the unregistered masks! There is no justice!
Then just when Norman couldn't think he could hate the bug anymore, Parker had the audacity to let a lowly mobster shoot his hag Aunt May! Damn bug! He knows that only his archenemy the Green Goblin is allowed to take away his love ones! Peter let his aunt get shot just to spit in his face!
If only he could hurt Peter half as much as he hurt him. If only he could take away that which gave Peter's life joy. He did do it once after all. Just ask Gwen Stacy.
Ah, good days.
Not like this one. Stark had sent him and his Thunderbolts into this A.I.M. base to sanction them. Oh sure, the golden boy of the government's super slaves must never stain his hands with blood but the prick doesn't have a problem sacrificing expendable flunkies to do his dirty work. If only the American people knew that a sick mind was in charge of their national security.
Norman snarled and tossed a pumpkin bomb at a cloister of A.I.M.'s bee-keeper soldiers. Even killing these jokers couldn't lighten his mood. Only hurting Parker the worst possible way could but unfortunately he didn't have Mary Jane dangling over the Brooklyn Bridge. If only there was some way…
Norman's internal ramblings distracted him long enough for one A.I.M. gunner to blast him with a force-cannon. The impact knocked him off his Goblin Glider and through a wall into another chamber, leaving him bleeding with forty broken bones. Normally this would provoke Norman's typical response for any problem, i.e. murdering the man, but that annoying voice in his head stopped him.
"Osborn, report!" Stark snapped from across the country, his 'conscious' for this mission.
"Momentary delayed," the Goblin hissed, now killing the A.I.M.'er with a pumpkin bomb. "This base is finished. All we need to do is hack off a few more heads." Norman electrocuted multiple A.I.M. soldiers with his finger zaps. "Nothing like the smell of crispy stooge! Smells like… victory!"
"Listen sicko, just get this over with!" Stark hissed, hating dealing with Norman.
"Don't act so saintly," he hissed back. "I remember what you made me do to the Atlantian ambassador. Did you enjoy it, Stark? Ordering your first murder of a noncom? I remember mine. It gave me an erection. A real hard one too. Just like the one offing Gwen Stacy did. I bet you got a woody too. Riiiiiight, Stark? I think, I-eh… RAAAHHHH!"
Norman fell off his Goblin Glider into a pitiful heap as Stark's nanomachines shocked his brainstem. "Don't. Don't ever compare us again, Osborn." Stark warned. "Now get back to your mission."
"Yes sir!" Norman hissed in a way that it sounded like 'F you'. It was a little trick he learned from boarding school with his roommate Sebastian Shaw.
A dozen A.I.M. troopers were cut in half from a hail of his razor-wings. Another division went down after he barreled through them with his super strength. The Green Goblin was doing his best Juggernaut impression as he tore through the terrorists like wet toilet paper.
If only it was Parker. That was the maddening mantra that ran through Norman's mind. Peter dying was the first thing he thought when he woke and the last one before he went to bed. He would sell his soul if he could just make it real. It would all be worth it if he could only hurt Parker more than he ever did before.
The fact that Stark kept it from happening infuriated him to no end. Once the Spider joined the anti-reg side, Norman asked, threatened, and even pleaded to head the squad to hunt him down. Stark, that animal, refused! Just how evil was he!
Osborn was so angry that he grabbed the last A.I.M. guy and used his head to knock down a security door. Then he saw something that made him squeal like a happy hog. Something that made his heart skip a beat as it could make all his dreams come true.
A Cosmic Cube.
Alone in a room with Norman Osborn.
In short, Tony Stark's worst nightmare.
"Oh god no!"
"Oh god yes!"
The smile Norman had was just as manic as the one on his Goblin mask. He laughed like a loon and lunged for the tiny cosmic charm. Back in the SHIELD helicarrier, Tony was pounding the button for Norman's nanomachines. The override hit the maniac hard. Every nerve lit up, electric fire scorching his cells.
Every time Tony used it, it stopped Norman cold. Reed's nanos worked on every villain they infected them with. The pain overload shut them down on the spot. Not even the Punisher's pain threshold could keep him awake. Sabertooth couldn't even stay awake. It worked every single time.
This was why Tony was nearing a heart attack as Norman kept pushing forward. Infinite power in the hands of a raving maniac, it was the worst case scenario and Tony's contingency plan wasn't working.
Norman was crawling towards the Cube, like a jackal after its meal. He didn't stop, he would not stop. All the Green Goblin was thinking was Parker's heart being ripped apart by his teeth.
Stealing his happiness and tearing it to shred right in front of him, it was ringing in Norman's ears. It was his dreams. Norman would gladly burn in hell if he could realize it, which was what it felt like now. "Squirm, Spider…" he hissed through bleeding gums. "It's going to end here!"
"Oh heaven's no," Tony prayed, watching the Goblin's trembling hands cup the Cosmic Cube. "Don't let Norman win. Please."
"NOW!" Norman spat globs of blood. "LET ME HURT PARKER!" With that hateful cry, he touched the Cosmic Cube and called forth the universal power.
Thus Norman's will was done.
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Peter Parker and his wife held each other for comfort, understanding, and resilience over the turmoil that plagued them. Each was the pillar for the other, offering their strength freely and asking only for love in return. Husband and wife.
It was enough. It was more than enough. This was what marriage was, being there for each other. Two parts of a whole. In the horrible time that plagued them, it was enough to keep them going. They had love. They had each other.
This was why Norman destroyed it. He didn't want to kill the Spider. He wanted to hurt the man.
Golden fire erupted around them. Though cool the senses, it burnt away their engagement, their wedding, their marriage, and their future. The wonderful daughter they would create burned away till only the ashes of shattered dreams were left. Their child, their legacy, was gone like a snuffed out candle flame.
It did not end there. All the sunsets they watched, all the meals they shared, all the tragedies they endured, all the moments that made their marriage disappeared in smoke. Norman was stealing that which made their lives worth living.
But they fought it. They fought it with all the strength of two joined by love and even the gods would bow before such strength. But it was not the gods that were killing their happiness, nay it was a devil, a sick evil green devil that always smiled as children die.
Peter stroked his wife's angelic cheek to brush away her tears. He didn't want their last moment together to be stained by sobs. Mary Jane nodded and swallowed her sadness and embraced her husband for the last time. "Face it, Tiger. You've just hit the jackpot."
Their lips touched. Her husband drew her in closer as his hand shifted through her hair. Passionate and tender, they gave their all for the other.
With that, the fire consumed them.
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Across the world, reality resets itself. No one remembers that Peter Parker unmasked himself. No one, not his loved ones, not his friends, and not his enemies, know who he is. Spider-Man has regained his anonymity. He is alone once more.
SHIELD agents found the Green Goblin passed out in the A.I.M. facility with a smile. His mindread showed that he couldn't even recall what he had done. All he knew was that it made him feel warm in a way he hadn't felt in a long time. Though he knows not what he did, every night he dreams wonderful images of the Spider crying as fire consumes his love.
The President forbids Director Stark from using the Cosmic Cube to undo whatever Norman did for fear of unraveling space and time. Tony is left with the guilt that he is now responsible for whatever atrocity Norman committed. Every night he dreams nightmares of a broken hearts that condemn him for all his sins. They plague him for the rest of his life.
The international supermodel Mary Jane Watson sleeps with actors, aristocrats, and millionaire playboys and it is empty and hallow as the vapid and false persona she adopts. She dreams of a kind and gentle man who loves her with all his heart. When she wakes, all she has is a sense of yearning she can never explain.
Peter Parker sleeps alone. He has always slept alone. His dreams for a family, for a wife, for a child, are just that. Empty dreams.
The alarm rings. Peter gets out of his bed and gets dressed. He doesn't have time for dreams now.
Because it's a brand new day.
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The End
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I made this in response of all the intense hatred fans are flinging at OMD. Now I'll be honest, except for the whole 'deal with the devil' thing, I really don't have a problem with the comic. The abolishing of past continuity doesn't really bother me like it used too. Maybe I'm maturing as a comic geek but now I don't mind the writers ditching the status quo in favor of bold new stories anymore. I mean I thought I would really hate DC bringing back Jason Todd and Marvel Bucky, but I found both the Under the Hood and Winter Soldier stories to be brilliant. Heck, I'm looking forward to the upcoming DC reboot. Just imagine Grant Morrison on Action Comics. It makes my heart shuttle.
The hate OMD is receiving is, quite frankly, preposterous. Most readers are saying that it is the worst Spider-Man story ever, surpassing the Clone Saga. Worst than the Clone Saga? Really? Okay, I read the original Clone Saga went it first happened on a month by month basis. I bought and read every issue the week it came out. I didn't miss a single issue. And boy do I wish I had. The Clone Saga was awful, plain and simple. It lasted just under two years with about 4-5 comics a month. That's over 70 issues! And they were terrible! OMD was just three issues. It boggles my mind that anyone, anyone, would say that OMD is the lowest point in the comic!
Sure, the concept of OMD was kind of dopy. Between Dr. Strange's magic, Reed Richard's doorway to Heaven-tech, Tony Stark's healing tech, and X-Men's healer Elixir, there should be no reason why Peter would need to sell his marriage to the devil. It was dumb, pure and simple; but not terrible, and the comic now is just incredible. ASM is better than I've ever remembered it being. The Gauntlet, The Grim Hunt, Big Time, and Road to Spider-Island, are amazing. ASM #655, part one of No One Dies, in easily in my top ten all time favorite Spider-Man comics of all time. Dan Slott is nothing less than a genius. His work on Spider-Man is easily a 10 out of 10 in my humble opinion. Hell, I'm actually excited over the Jackal's return! Until Dan Slott, I didn't think that was possible!
Marvel has even turned Dr. Octopus into a memetic badass! In three short months, Doc Ock has made Tony Stark his bitch, out-thought Mr. Fantastic, and mopped the floor with the kids of Avenger's Academy! He's been kicking ass left to right! Marvel Comics is making Doc Ock into one of their heavy hitters and I don't want it to stop. Seriously, I want Otto to lead the Sinister Six to victory and stomp the X-Men into the pavement. I want him to bitch-slap the Hulks! All of them! Really, I want all this to happen and the way he's knocking them out of the stadium, I say he could really do it!
Marvel's handling of the webbed wonder in the other books is fantastic. I love it all: The love/hate relationship between Spidey and Ms. Marvel, his role with the new Future Foundation, and the new Venom comic. Buy Venom. Flash Thompson has never been cooler. Between Rick Remender's writing and Tony Moore's fantastic artwork make it one of my Must-Reads. I'm currently saving up for the Carnage and Anti-Venom minis. Even if they're only half as cool as the Venom book, it'll be totally worth it! Venom is that good! It's all good! Marvel has made Spider-Man awesome again!
By the way, what does it say about me that I really wished Peter hooked up with psycho roommate Michele Gonzales?
Read and review, everyone!