Chapter 3
The Pain
"I'm afraid that's the situation Mr Parker." The doctor said a she checked her medical notes. "Harry has taken an overdose of 50gram Vicodin painkiller tablets. His brain has over stimulated which has caused him to pass out in this manner. He is still breathing but we cannot be sure if there is any trace of damage to the brain."
"I can't believe this." Peter replied as he wiped the sweat off his forehead. "Harry would never take drugs let alone overdose on them. How did this happen?"
"Drug overdoses commonly cure stress in times like this." The doctor explained. "Did Harry ever suffer from stress and tension?"
"All the time." Gwen said as she answered the question confidently. "Just recently, he was stressed out and depressed because of the situation with his father."
"Then there's the reason for the overdose." The doctor continued. "We're currently prepping him for a CT scan but that won't be for another three hours yet. You're both welcome to see him but he won't respond."
"What do you mean?" Peter asked. "If he only passed out then surely he would've regained conscious by now to talk to us?"
"Well...I'm afraid we fear that he might not wake up for a while." The doctor replied as he tried to explain the situation. "We think that the overdose has shut down the systems in his brain, temporarily at least. The CT scan is just to confirm that so we can decide what our best course of action is. I'm afraid he's in a deep coma. I'm so sorry."
Within that slight moment, time began to slow down as Gwen wept in Peter's arms. How could this happen so fast to the Osborn family. He had been fully concentrated on protecting Norman Osborn that he was unprepared for such an event. He felt guilty for not having listening to his best friend. He felt like it was his fault. Leaving his initial thoughts behind, he looked at the doctor and ask asked her a brief and frank request.
"I want to see him." He said as he kept back the tears in his eyes. "Just for five minutes."
"Of course." The doctor complied as he escorted him into the ward.
Peter's heart stopped when he saw Harry's comatose state. The haunting beeps of the life support machine echoed in his ears along with sound of the tubes and respirators that were keeping him breathing. He sat down beside his bed and firmly grasped his hand.
"Harry." He whispered in his ear. "I'm going to get you the help. I promise."
Spider-Man took that evening to swing cross town where the cool city air could soothe his head. He loved to swing high in these situations so he headed downtown where the skyscrapers were. He knew he was supposed to be searching for the Shocker but his visit at the hospital was lodged in his mind. It was then he realised that for the first time in his life, he feared that he was going to lose Harry.
As he clung onto the lower half of the Empire State Building, his spider-sense began to tingle.
"Damn it!" he growled in his head. "Can't I just swing around in peace for once! Got the Osborn's on my mind and I don't need this!"
As he swung down towards the street, his spider-sense began to tingle again and a lot stronger too. It was alerting him towards a local store which was owned and financed by Oscorp. Spider-Man knew who he was going to encounter.
Inside, The Shocker was raiding the cash vaults as everyone inside, hit the deck. The power of his Gauntlets turned the entire store inside out. He wasn't after money; he wanted to lure Norman out.
"I figured you were craving for more Spidey time." Spider-Man mocked as he webbed the Shocker to the wall. "What, do I owe you a second dance?"
"You again!" Shocker replied as he freed himself as he hit the wall crawler in the jaw. "I want Osborn and instead I get you!"
"Yeah that's about right." Spider-Man joked as he leaped upwards, Kicking Shocker in the chest. "Look face it Shocky, you and Osborn, never going to happen so take it like a man and move on ok?"
"Your jokes are very tiring!" Shocker snarled as he fired a blast of energy at Spider-Man, narrowingley missing him.
"Geez, you think?" Spider-Man replied as he fired web balls at the Shockers face. "The Christmas Cracker Company doesn't seem to think so."
"Why do you do this to me?" Shocker moaned as he blasted a hole in a wall in order to escape. "Your tiresome remarks are too much for my ears to bear. I shall finish you at a more convenient spot."
"Cool, but could it be at a KFC or somewhere because I could use a streetwise meal right about now." Spider-Man replied as he followed the Shocker out into the street.
The chase led them down Times Square and towards the waterfront. The Shocker knew what he was doing as he hoped to lead the wall crawler into a trap of his own. As he leaped over car roofs and swung round lampposts, he was confident that he would the web heads life once and for all. Close behind, Spider-Man web-zipped amongst the traffic as he stayed hot on the mad mans tail.
As they approached the waterfront, the traffic became heavier which meant that Spider-Man had to swing higher. He watched on as the Shocker blasted his way through a chain link fence and into a nearby warehouse.
"Does he really think that he can hide in a dingy old warehouse?" he thought as he landed and scaled the wall up towards the roof. "I've played that card so many times that it has become a cliché of mine."
As he entered the warehouse via the upper window, his spider-sense tingled. He then knew that it was best to cling to the shadows as he knew that he could use them to his advantage. He didn't want to continue throwing his punches at the Shocker so he planned to pull a stealth move on him. He perched onto top of one of the high rise steel beams which overlooked the warehouse's main office. Inside, The Shocker was irritated as he turned up desks to use for cover. Suddenly, something rattled in his head as if he knew that the wall-crawler was up above him. He aimed for the ceiling and fired, hitting Spider-Man and knocking him from the beam.
"Nice try." He sneered as he watched the motionless web-head hit the ground with a mighty thud. "I've got to give you credit there. You were the first person who has ever tried to sneak up on me. Pity I found you eh?"
"So…what…ass…hole!" Spider-Man replied as he struggled to get his words out. "The…main thing…is…I won't…let you…kill…Norman Osborn!"
"Well I beg to differ." Shocker laughed as his voice carried across the warehouse. "How the hell can you stop me now? You look like an overturned pea bug!"
"I'll…always…find a…way!" Spider-Man answered as he raised his web-shooters and fired an accurate web blast at the Shocker's eyes. "And…now that…I've temporarily blinded you…I'm going to kick…your ass!"
With that, he leaped up onto his feet and used a series of punches to knock Shocker of guard. He mainly aimed for his chest and arms as he knew of his weak spots. His repeated punches sent Shocker to the floor, allowing the mad man to release the webbing off his eyes. Spider-Man has to act quickly as he jumped over Shocker and attached a web line to his back. As his feet touched the ground, he used his strength to swing his opponent around like a jack hammer. The immobilized Shocker bounced off the walls as his body was being pummelled from the inside out. It was then that he gave up. He had been defeated.
"Wow, for the first time ever, you actually co-operated and gave up." Spider-Man panted as he stopped to regain his breath. "Now before…I go, I want to ask you one last question. Did you plant anything explosive at Oscorp that I'll need to disarm?"
"I…was going to until you finished me." Shocker moaned as he looked down at his webbed up gauntlets. "Now my plans have been ruined. How could you do this? How could you allow Norman Osborn to go on living?"
"He's a civilian and a respected citizen of the city." Spider-Man replied. "Now granted he's no Barack Obama, but it doesn't mean to say that he should die. I would kill him myself if I knew he did something atrocious and life changing, but he didn't and I won't let you harm him."
"Osborn will ruin this city!" Shocker growled as he wriggled around in his webbed up cocoon. "I was going to do you and New York a favour by ridding the world with that menace! Are you prepared to let him continue his barbaric projects?"
"Until it breaks the law, it's a risk I'm willing to take." Spider-Man replied as he fired a web line and swung off into the city.
The police arrived at the scene just moments after and Spider-Man decided to stick around to see the arrest. As he hung onto a nearby cargo crane, he couldn't help but think about what the Shocker had said to him. Was he really trying to help the city? Or was it just a feeble excuse just so he could get away? He swung away from the area once he saw the Shocker being piled into the back of a squad car.
Later that evening, Peter decided to make a surprise visit to Oscorp tower. He wasn't sure of it at first but after having a discussion about it with Gwen; he knew that it was the right thing to do. An hour before, he had arrived at the hospital only to learn that Norman had not yet visited Harry. Gwen had tried to call him earlier by he was not picking up his phone. It left Peter thinking that his did truly didn't care for his own son's health and it didn't set well with him. So he decided to confront the man himself and get him to see his son.
He explained the situation to the guards and the main receptionist who then let him through to Norman's office. As he entered, he saw Norman behind his desk, pouring himself a glass of whiskey. The man was not surprised to see Peter at all as he rolled his eyes up and sighed.
"What are you doing here, Peter?" he asked with a huff.
"You need to go to the hospital right now!" Peter barked. "You need to see your son!"
To be continued in "The Incredible Spider-Man"
