What if…The CEO Defeated Spider-Man 2099? – 1
(a Spider-Man fan fic)
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2099
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The CEO's Tower was a sole, lofty spire of glass and green-tinted titanium branching off Alchemax's head office in downtown Manhattan; a frightening reminder of Alchemax's authority over the Eastern Seaboard. At the summit of the tower, the CEO's personal office – an ominous, empty, circular chamber with three convex floor-to-ceiling windows of reinforced glass, a thirty-foot LED monitor cycling security footage, and a holographic transmitter in the center of the room for long range communication – overlooked Nueva York's skyline of immense silhouettes and speckled lights and the steady stream of vehicular traffic through the chilled, evening air.
Standing behind a fifteen-foot desk at the far end of the room, Alchemax CEO, Peter Parker, opened one of the drawers, where he kept a short, wide glass, a decanter of scotch and a small cooler of ice. He dropped three perfectly square cubes of ice into the glass with a pair of silver tongs, and filled the glass partway with scotch before closing the drawer again and sitting down in an oversized leather office chair.
He turned the chair to face the window and crossed one knee over the other, watching as vehicles darted by in the night. He brought the glass to his lips; the alcohol burned. He didn't much care for the taste – he never had.
As a teenager – before the fated spider bite – his pre-pubescent form was too frail; he'd vomited the Communion wine and it took Uncle Ben the better half of the afternoon to convince Aunt May that it had nothing to do with demonic possession. Even as a young man – with the agility and strength of a spider – he'd only ever had a glass of champagne on his wedding day and the rare occasions the mood struck him. He didn't like the way the alcohol impaired his spider sense – especially when he had to be alert to protect Aunt May and MJ against any super villains.
But now – in the year 2099 – he didn't need to concern himself with super villains. He was the most powerful man in Nueva York. And after tonight, he would be the most powerful man in the United States of America – No; he would be the most powerful man in the world! Who needed spider sense – who needed any super power – when you could control time itself?
In the center of the room, the transmitter hummed to life. A ring of small, green lights switched on and a translucent image of Alchemax's Chief Security Officer appeared, decked in armour plating and packing the latest standard issue assault rifle.
"Sir."
Peter spun the chair around. He put down the glass and folded his hands on the desk. "Have you succeeded in apprehending Miguel O'Hara yet?"
The security officer shuffled his weight from one foot to the other and massaged his neck uneasily. "No, sir."
Peter pinched the bridge of his nose between his finger and thumb. Of course not; lackeys never got the job done properly. Why have a dog when you can bark yourself?
He did not hide his frustration. "What is it, then?"
"We've detected activity in the Portal Room on the 66th floor," the security officer stated with renewed confidence.
"O'Hara?"
"No, sir. It's someone else."
Peter glanced up at the large LED screen above him. In the largest section of the monitor, the camera switched to live feed from cameras on the 66th floor.
Initially, Peter saw nothing. He'd been monitoring the quantum storm for hours as his past self and Miguel O'Hara – the Spider-Man of 2099 – worked together to stop Anti-Venom and Atrocity; all according to his original plan. As the storm grew, the fabric of reality was beginning to unravel - air vents became closets and solid walls became glass windows; soon he would have the power to weave it as he saw fit.
The camera switched again. This time it displayed a wide-angle shot of the hallway outside the Portal Room. Then, Peter saw it - saw her. "Mary Jane!"
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Disclaimer: Spider-Man and all its related characters belong to Stan Lee, Steve Dikto, Marvel and all other respected creators.
