Chapter 11: Investigation

"So who do you think the Hobgoblin might be?"

Spider-Man didn't respond. He was suddenly being hit with the realization that the whole time the Hobgoblin had been relentlessly crusading against his life and threatening to take it apart piece by piece, he had never actually stopped to wonder who it was exactly behind the mask. Unlike Norman Osborn, whose title as the Green Goblin was solely his own, the Hobgoblin identity had traded faces and exchanged identities, and it was only after his last defeat was Spidey sure that he had finally nailed the one true mastermind behind the others, as what other Hobgoblins there had been were little more than pretenders, frauds, and flunkies for the original. But apparently he was wrong.

Roderick Kingsly had been exposed as the Hobgoblin and had disappeared off the face of the Earth as a result. Now that he was taking the time to actually think about it, Kingsly having come back for blood seemed like the most likely scenario. And apparently he had also somehow figured out who he was.

But if it was Kingsly, how would he find him? Peter had no idea where the Hobgoblin's base of operations was, but then he figured that if Kingsly was back, then he would be lying low. Any old contacts he had with the criminal underworld he had fought so hard to seize control of would either be retained, or more likely replaced with new ones. So sweeping through New York's criminal network looking for flunkies and informants was definitely a possible strategy, and with both the Marvel Knights and Felicia's "Cat's Eye" organization as his allies, Spider-Man could cover more ground more quickly. There were problems with that though. One, Spider-Man didn't know where to start, there would still be a lot of ground to cover, and most importantly, such an aggressive sweep could easily alert Hobgoblin and whatever stooges he did have to what was going on, and both Kingsly and his allies would disappear again.

But what other strategies where there? Spider-Man thought about it. If Kingsly had come back, he had done it anonymously, probably under an alias. He could try and get "Cat's Eye" to be on the look-out for anyone matching Kingsly's description, but that plan became another no when he realized that one, Kingsly would not likely be out and about, instead keeping a low profile, and two, even if they had a good reference, it was unlikely that they would find one man in a city of over 8 million.

So what was there to do? Spider-Man thought about it, his mind drawing upon long stored away memories of his previous conflicts with the Hobgoblin in the hope that they would offer some kind of solution. Then he hit upon a plan. It was a desperate plan to be sure, but it was all he could come up with at the moment. Hobgoblin, whoever he was, was covering his tracks pretty well.

Spider-Man finally gave Black Cat his answer:

"I think its Roderick Kingsly. Same as before. Either that or another flunky, but either way, Kingsly's the one behind all this. I'm sure of it."

"Kingsly? And how do you think we can find him?"

"It's a big city. Kingsly's going to be lying low. But I think I may know a way to find him. Tell your Cat's Eye people to go find a man named Daniel Kingsly. He's Roderick's brother. He might know something."

"And where are you going?"

"I'm going to be checking a different lead"

-X-

It seemed like it had been forever since Peter had last been to the Daily Bugle. The hectic office building and its colorful assortment of employees now felt almost alien to him, or at the very least, imports from the life he used to have.

And indeed, everyone was quite surprised to see him again, offering consolations and assurance that they were there for him. It touched Peter a little to see that there were so many people here who cared for him, and for a brief moment he almost felt a twitch of hope pushing past the cynical and withdrawn shell he had made for himself, before the reminder that what he did have left was in danger of being brutally taken from him the same way his wife was put him back into his darker mindset. As it was, he had only one real goal for being there. And that was to look up the old file of Ned Lee.

Lee was a journalist at the Daily Bugle, and as such was an acquaintance of Peters. The two had stayed out of each other's way during Peter's early years, but after he started dating, and later marrying, Betty Brant, he and Peter grew closer, although there was always something between the two that kept them from truly being friends. And any chance of getting closer that they may have had was taken from them the moment Lee became involved in the original Hobgoblin, Roderick Kingsly's game of lies and tricks. And Lee, dressed up and drugged up as a stand-in Hobgoblin, had become Kingsly's biggest trick of all. Now that Hobgoblin was back, Peter hoped that maybe there was some clue or hint to be found in Lee's back-story and what was known of his experiences as the Hobgoblin. There wasn't an awful lot, and his chances of finding something relevant weren't high, but Peter figured that it was worth a look anyway. He had to be sure. He couldn't afford to leave any stone unturned.

He drew up Lee's file on the computer and also re-examined his story as it was reported in the Daily Bugle, gathering up and poring over what few copies of past articles remained in existence. The early articles were no help, as most of them were just the Bugle doing its best to salvage their reputation in the face of one of their journalists being a supervillain, but the final one amidst the clutter, a complete story on Lee's tragic tale following his murder, was of interest. It included an interview with Lee that had been taken shortly before his murder, and in it, he mentioned that when he was under Kingsly's sway, including when he was first transformed into the Hobgoblin, he would wake up in a darkened room, that was filled with weapons, gadgets, the serum…he described it almost as a safehouse. A place where the Hobgoblin hid, perpetually concealed from the rest of the city where he could keep plotting.

But why hadn't the police searched for that? Apparently they had no idea where to look. As Lee's vague descriptions of his surroundings had clearly shown, Hobgoblin had always gone to great lengths to conceal his identity and whereabouts at all times. He was either a complete neurotic or extremely careful, or both. There was no way to tell where it could possibly be…

Peter thought about it himself. It had to be somewhere that Kingsly would feel most secure…Peter came up with nothing. He looked up an article on Kingsly to try and re-acquaint himself with Kingsly's background. It listed him as a fashion designer, but would Kingsly really keep his secret safe-house behind his shop? It seemed like a ridiculously cartoony move that only a Saturday morning antagonist would make. But then Peter suddenly thought for a moment: what if that was it? There was, after all, such a thing as hiding in plain sight…

Peter thought about it. His list of options and theories was not particularly long, or at the very least his list of feasible options and relevant theories was not particularly long, so he figured that he may as well give it a shot. Felicia and the Cat's Eye were already doing their part, he might as well try and do something himself…

And so, leaving with the semi-truthful promise of pictures for the next day's paper, Peter left the Daily Bugle and set out for what he hoped was the lair of the Hobgoblin…

-X-

"Daniel Kingsly?"

Daniel Kingsly, a quiet, withdrawn, and now moderately neurotic man in his late fifties, nervously opened the door to see who it was and was greeted with an attractive young woman with piercing green eyes and white hair. Kingsly suppressed his paranoia and asked in as neutral a tone as he could manage:

"Who are you?"

"My name is…Lydia. Just Lydia. I'm here to ask you a few questions…"

Kingsly's heart threatened to stop on him as he gave his nervous response:

"Oh no. I know why you're here. You're here to ask about my brother aren't you? Well, I've already talked to the police, and the journalists, and the reporters, and those shady men from "SHIELDS" or whatever the hell it was. And I'm telling you what I told them: I had nothing to do with any of it. I never knew my brother was a criminal, and as it stands, he's not my brother anymore. Now get out. Before I call the police…"

"Mr. Kingsly please. I'm not here to arrest you or accuse you. Calm down. I just want to ask you a few questions."

"I just told you that I'm through with answering any damn questions—"

"Mr. Kingsly the lives of several innocent people are at risk. If you help me, I may be able to save them"

Kingsly wasn't sure he heard that last bit right. He wondered for a moment if maybe his mother was right about him needing a hearing aid before responding:

"What are you talking about?"

"Mr. Kingsly, we believe that your brother may have come back. And he's targeting innocent people. One of his flunkies has already murdered a woman"

Kingsly paused. He couldn't believe his ears but this time he knew he was hearing right. He just didn't want to believe it. His brother was back and hurting people again. And now this woman was telling him that another woman was dead because of him. Kingsly strained to keep his rising anxiety at a controllable level as he gave his response:

"I…I…lady please. I'm not a crook like him. I don't know anything, I…"

Kingsly trailed off. He wasn't sure if this woman's piercing green eyes or his own guilt or both was compelling him to speak, but it was then that he chose to come clean with what precious little he did know:

"He…came here. He came here in that blue and orange costume of his. He was cackling like a madman, telling me how happy he was to see me again, but also told me to stay out of his way…that he had plans now that he was back and that no one was going to be able to get in his way…"

"Did he say anything about any super-heroes?"

"Uh…yeah. Yeah he did…he said…he said that he was going to bring about Spider-Man's downfall"

"Did he say how?"

"No…he just said that, then started laughing like mad. Then he flies out, and I've got a hole in my roof. And now here I am wearing a pacemaker. The evil son of a bitch. I can't believe we share the same face…"

The woman's green eyes lit up like an emerald fireworks display. Kingsly asked:

"Is something wrong?"

The woman snapped back to it and asked:

"Mr. Kingsly did you ever leave New York? Recently I mean?"

"Well not "recently" but I mean, I had taken a long trip to Florida a while back…it was after Roderick got ousted as the Hobgoblin. It was not a good time to be the guy's twin brother. I had to get away for a while, you know? Spare myself the stress. But because I look so much like my brother, the stupid cops think I'm Roderick hiding out. Do you know how much the damned police pestered me while I was trying to enjoy the sun?"

"Well why were they after you?"

"Because they thought I was Roderick! I told them I wasn't, and they still finger-printed me. Talk about identity theft…as if he hasn't stolen enough from me."

He could see the woman's eyes light up again. It was as if she had been struck with some sudden realization.

"Mr. Kingsly…thank you"

"For what?"

"For the answers"

-X-

Spider-Man swung towards the building where Kingsly had once reigned as the Rupert Murdoch of the fashion world, now long abandoned. He made his way in, and navigated the hallways and corridors, finally reaching the main room, and desperately looking around for anything so much as hinting at a hidden room, or a back door, or even a special switch. After everything else he'd seen and been through, Spider-Man wasn't one to play the skeptic.

Spider-Man backtracked a bit, navigating the halls when he found a doorway leading to a hallway that itself led to the rooms where the "behind-the-scenes stuff" as it was known by those not well-versed in the fashion world called it would likely have taken place. But through these corridors, there was another door. It was an inconspicuous one, looked the same as all the others, but Spider-Man remembered the hiding in plain sight bit, and then also realized that the sheer number of doors seemed unrealistic. So he went to the door that struck him as out of place and unnecessary. Predictably, it was locked, they all were.

Not in the mood to be subtle, Spider-Man hit the door as hard as he could, and sure enough, in just two punches that Spidey's hands were left sore by, the metal door went crashing down.

Spider-Man made his way through the room. It was pitch-dark, and there was no light switch on the wall on either side of the door. Spidey wasn't keen on the idea of wandering around through a dark room alone, but then he realized that if anyone was there, they would have heard him punch down the door. Aside from that, this dark room's existence did strengthen his suspicions. So he would press on.

Entering the darkness, and making his way through it as best he could, Spider-Man moved at a slow, methodical pace, hands reaching out for anything of import while simultaneously grateful that his black costume helped him blend into the darkness better. After a few moments, his eyes began to adjust to the darkness and he felt less like a blind man stumbling about as he could make out what was another door. Finding it to be another hard iron slab of metal that was locked in place, Spider-Man braced himself and hammered his fist into the door as he had the last one. It shuddered and tore from its hinges, then fell inward with a horrendous crash a thick plume of disturbed dust.

Spider-Man's eyes refocused themselves on the considerably less dark room. It fit the description of a storage room, Spider-Man could see that, but nothing was there. Nothing that was, except for what looked like a mess of incomplete and disassembled weapons and gadgets and other unidentifiable junk strewn on a table. There were also a few computer monitors whose eerie green and black screens were the main source of illumination. Beyond that, Spider-Man could see several more screens, all turned off, and a black laptop at the foot of the table with the gadgets. Walking over to it, Spider-Man lifted the laptop screen up ever so cautiously…

The computer screen suddenly flickered to life. Spider-Man's spider-sense started to buzz rapidly as he was greeted with an obnoxious cartoonized version of the Hobgoblin's face laughing at him and mocking him with jeering faces as the following text appeared below in blood red letters:

To Spidey: We're not ALL morons. HAHAHAHAHA

Running as fast as his legs could carry him, Spider-Man sprinted out of the room as his ears picked up a beeping noise that steadily grew louder, and more rapid. Taking that as his cue to run even faster, Spider-Man kept up his sprint as he made his way to the nearest window and burst through it, swinging away just as the sound of a massive explosion tore through the air, ringing in his ears as he escaped the ensuing shockwave and felt the air grow hotter from the blast. When Spider-Man turned and looked back, he could see the fires raging from where that part of the building used to be.

-X-

Hobgoblin watched the explosion unfold from the safety of his new hideaway with nodding approval, immensely pleased that Spider-Man had taken the bait. He was unconcerned about the wall-crawler possibly being killed by his trap, as he knew Spider-Man was fast enough to get out in time.

But as it stood, Spider-Man had known where to look for him. He was actively seeking him out now. Was trying to find him. He and the white haired femme fatale had become too nosey for their own good. It was time to fix that.

Hobgoblin turned to his lackey:

"Come Ryan. I think its time we pay a naughty little girl a visit…"

-X-

Spider-Man made his way back to the Cat's Eye building as fast as his web-swinging would take him. Hobgoblin was on to him. He knew that Spidey was looking for him, and that meant that Felicia was in danger.

Spider-Man felt a rising sense of frustration and anger. He was still no closer to finding the Hobgoblin, and now his snooping around had attracted Hobgoblin's attention again.

Finally, he neared the building and was relieved to see that it bore no signs of an attack. Swinging in, he rushed to where Felicia would be if she was back and went straight to her right-hand man, "Lippy".

"Lippy, where's Felicia?"

"Just came back actually. And she's been looking for you…"

His heart racing with a mix of relief, anxiousness, and desperation, Spider-Man ran back through the hall looking for her when he ran headlong into an approaching woman.

"Oh my G-d! I'm sorry, I didn't—"

Spider-Man's eyes adjusted themselves fully to the face of the person he had run into and found himself staring at a familiar set of green eyes.

"Felicia! Sorry, I…I was just looking for you…"

Felicia re-centered herself and pushed the locks of white hair out of her eyes as she gave her response. As she did, Spidey, who had, he noticed, become a bit lost on her face for a moment, realized how close he was to her and took a few steps back.

"So you found something to tell me I take it?"

"Yeah, but what about you? Did you have something you wanted to tell me?"

"Yes, I do: I don't think Roderick Kingsly ever left New York"

Spider-Man couldn't believe his ears. "What? Felicia that's crazy, the police said he'd fled to Florida..."

"That was Daniel Kingsly. Peter I talked with Daniel Kingsly, and he said that he'd gone to Florida shortly after his brother was exposed as the Hobgoblin. And they're twins. The police went after the wrong man, and my guess is, Roderick used that as a chance to lie low"

Spider-Man stood silent for a moment after, letting the revelation sink in. So it had been Daniel Kingsly, not Roderick Kingsly who had fled for sanctuary in Florida. And not to escape justice, but the bad publicity of being a supervillain's brother. And all that time Kingsly had been hiding out in the city, scheming, plotting…salvaging his position before launching a vicious comeback. It made sense. Peter couldn't believe how stupid they all were. Mistaking one twin brother for another. And that mistake had cost his wife her life. A part of Spider-Man almost felt like going berserk but he held it in, slowly relaxing his tightening fists and forcing his tone to stay as calm as possible as he gave his reply:

"Well…that makes sense given what I know, because Hobgoblin is, was…operating out of a safe-house hidden at the fashion place Kingsly used to work at. By the time I found it though, he'd cleared out, and rigged the place to blow. I got out right before he blasted a small crater in the building"

"Well, then it looks we have our Hobgoblin. It is Kingsly back with a vengeance"

"Yeah, but how do we find him? He could be anywhere in the city now…"

"Well I hate to say it, but I don't think that there's much either of us can do today. Its night already, and some of my boys do actually have lives to live. I'm not going to send them around searching aimlessly for one guy who can be anywhere…I'm sorry Peter. But I just can't do that"

"No…no its OK…you've done a lot for me already Felicia, and I appreciate that. Its just that I feel so helpless right now…Hobgoblin's out there somewhere, and until I find him and stop him its like everyone I still loves got a bullseye painted on their chests…"

"I know…"

Black Cat put a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry: we'll stop this bastard. He won't kill anyone you love I promise. I'll at least ask Lippy to look after your aunt tonight"

"Thanks…"

He could see a smile appear on Black Cat's face, which made her look prettier.

"Don't mention it. Now go home and get some rest. You could really use it. And a bath wouldn't kill you either"

Spider-Man felt a small smile underneath his mask.

-X-

Spider-Man was swinging through the city with a considerably lessened amount of anxiety and brooding then usual. He actually took the time to admire his surroundings again, something he had ceased to since his return to the costume. All of the joy he had derived from every facet of the job, including the sheer exhilaration of swinging through the city, especially on nice nights like this one, had disappeared, but now he was actually admiring the scenery again. He almost felt more…at ease.

Why was that? By all rights he should still be ever on the alert, ever wary of the possibility of Hobgoblin or some supervillain in his employ brutally murdering someone else that he loved.

And yet for one moment, he felt almost calm again, assured that for a moment, he could relax…his thoughts drifted to other things, things he wanted to think about for a change…he thought about different things, memories, thoughts on the Daily Bugle and how even Jonah had shown him support, thoughts on the Connors, wondering whether or not Curt Connors had fully bounced back from his time as the Lizard, thoughts on the Marvel Knights and the work he had done with them, and thoughts about…Felicia.

That last one caught him off guard a little because it had come so suddenly, he had to check himself. But then he really did start thinking about her…she had really helped him so much, from stopping him from killing Scorpion, saving his life against the Hobgoblin, using the Cat's Eye organization to keep his Aunt safe and help him figure out Hoboblin's identity…it was really quite amazing when he thought about it. She had been totally selfless, come so far from who she once was…she definitely wasn't the same flirty and inconsiderate rogue she had been when they'd first met so many years ago…

"Parker"

The sound of a familiar dark voice shook Spider-Man out of his thoughts and caused him to instinctively look over his shoulder as he swung onto a nearby rooftop. Sure enough, there was Venom, watching him, and now staring him down on the same rooftop.

"We can see that you're still wearing our colors. We're not happy that you came back Parker. You promised us that this city was ours to protect now"

"I don't need to explain myself to you Brock" Spider-Man replied sharply. "Are you here to just rail on me, or do you actually have something important to tell me?"

"Grr…you make it so hard to not want us to kill you. But we feel we must give you a warning sense it involves those you care about…do you remember when we reabsorbed the spawn?"

"You mean Carnage's symbiote? Yeah, what of it?"

"Well, its…possible that a small part of it may have broken free…"

Spider-Man hoped that Venom wasn't trying to mess with him. "What?"

"Yesss…when we attacked the scum who tried to kill your Aunt, he had stabbed us with a knife. Its possible that some of us may have latched onto him when he was in our grasp…"

"And you've waited until just now to tell me this?"

Venom growled. "Shut up Parker. You said that you were done with the wearing the costume, so we assumed that it didn't matter to you anymore. And besides, we haven't been sure that there was a separation until recently. The rogue portion of us…its become stronger now. We can sense its presence, and now we know that its out there. Its attached itself to a host…consuming him, exerting control…its only a matter of time before it envelops the poor fool now"

"Whoa, whoa, wait a minute: do you mean another Carnage? Or another you?"

The look of Venom's mask did not change at all as he looked at Spider-Man but the web-head could almost sense the graveness on the face of Eddie Brock as he gave his answer:

"No. Neither one. Something much worse"

-X-

Black Cat returned to her penthouse floor and opened the double doors leading in. She was busy thinking of Spider-Man, and how all of this was clearly taking a toll on him. She didn't like seeing him this way, and was also beginning to get the gut fear that the man she used to know was long gone…

She shook her head. No. He wasn't gone. He was still there, she could see it in how much he still cared. No, he was just buried underneath a mountain of tragedy and grief. He was a man who had lost a major part of his world and was in danger of losing the rest. Who wouldn't let that tear them up inside…?

"Welcome home miss Hardy"

Black Cat's heart pounded in her chest and her blood went icy cold. She turned around rapidly and could see the shadow of a man sitting in a comfortable chair in the room. One foot was resting on the opposite leg, and he held in his hand a glass of champagne from a bottle he had helped himself to. Felicia recognized the orange of the feet and hand anywhere.

"Not you…"

"Oh so you recognize me? I'm flattered, really…" At this, Hobgoblin leaned forward a bit, making his face visible. His usual sadistic grin was there only now it was particularly unnerving. She could feel it. There was no humanity in him.

"You've been a very naughty little kitten my dear. Snooping around for answers, getting information out of my idiot brother…I'm afraid I can't have you doing any of that…"

Black Cat readied herself. She knew what Hobgoblin was capable of, but that didn't mean she would just lie down and die. She got into a ju-jitsu stance and readied her clawed gloves. But Hobgoblin didn't move. He just sat there, still sipping his champagne.

"…Why do you do these things anyway? I mean, you're being awfully altruistic for a cat burglar…how curious."

Hobgoblin took another sip. Black Cat's mind was racing with fear and doubt as a million possible scenarios raced through her mind, with very few of them being to her favor. But she held her ground as best she could.

"First of all, its ex-cat burglar actually, and second what I do is none of your business"

"Oh? Actually my dear, you became by business the second you left a deep, nasty cut on my leg. I've been watching you, same as all of his other loved ones, and I must say I really am curious as to why you care so much. I mean, Spider-Man seems like such a more interesting person to throw a birthday party for then Peter Parker…"

He knew that too. Who knows how long that monster had been watching them? Black Cat did her best to retain her composure. He was toying with her, he could tell. Trying to get under her skin. And it was working.

"…But of course, Peter Parker and Spider-Man are one in the same, two very different halves of the same man yes? A married man" Hobgoblin said that last part with extra emphasis, and was clearly enjoying doing so. Black Cat fought the urge to lunge at him and tear into him with the full force of her claws. It was only the common sense of letting him make the first move and also possibly fear that stayed her hand. Hobgoblin continued:

"So is that why you do it? Yes, I think it is. To win his approval. That's what you've always wanted isn't it? To get his approval, his attention, his love. And now that his poor wife's dead, you figure now is as good a time as any to move in and claim your man. Am I right…?"

At this, something in Black Cat snapped. She lost all sense of restraint and common sense and lunged at Hobgoblin with all of the fury that she had in her. She would tear him to pieces for the things he'd said and done. She didn't care who it was under the mask, who it was pulling the strings, she would hurt him.

But as she went at him, Black Cat felt a strong gloved hand grab her ankle and pull her back down to the floor. Not having time to analyze who her attacker was or figure anything else out, she just instinctively shook off her assailant's grip and kicked him back. Rising to her feet, she quickly entered a defensive stance and readied herself for the man's assault.

He came at her with force and fury, and he clearly demonstrated some skills in the martial arts arena, but nothing on her level. Se blocked each of his blows and deftly and viciously replied with strikes of her own, that hit home more often then not. But the man was more durable then his average build suggested. He kept up his assault, often being punished for his efforts. The whole time, the Hobgoblin just watched intently, never once commenting as the exchange continued, instead silently finishing his champagne.

Black Cat ducked under another punch, grabbed the arm, and dislocated it. The man howled in pain as he tried to kick Black Cat. She dodged the kick and slashed at him with her claws. With her other hand she grabbed his black ski mask and tore it off before kicking him to the ground.

She watched him struggle to stay conscious as he supported himself back up on his one still working arm. But there was something else about him. His body was shaking violently, and her green eyes could almost see what looked like strands of black and red snaking across his body.

The man shook and groaned in agony as he slowly but surely turned to look at Black Cat again. As he did, the strands of black and red became more clear, and gradually began to cover his arms and legs completely, with the legs becoming all black and the arms turning blood red. When his face turned, Black Cat was greeted with a mask that eerily resembled Venom's "face" only a mess of black and red instead of just black.

"You really shouldn't have done that…"

Author's Note: Oh dear…dark cliffhanger. Man, this chapter turned out WAY longer then I had expected (and hoped) it to, but, ah well.

And now for the usual tidbits of info…

Yes, Ned Leeds here is turned into Ned Lee like in the Spectacular Spider-Man show, as I like how that added some diversity to the mix. And don't we all want to see that?

Daniel Kingsly is an actual Marvel Character. There is actually some evidence that he appeared in the Spectacular Spider-Man TV show alongside his brother.

The name Felicia gives here as an alias is actually her mother's name in the comics.

Special thanks to my Dad for helping me with the Daniel Kingsly scene. He really helped make it a lot more believable.