Radioactive
A.N.: was listening to Imagine Dragons today and remembered hearing that Radioactive was supposed to be for Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark (though this seems to be false). Either way, it makes for a cool au. Full disclosure, I'm not a huge Spider-Man fan. I just thought this would be cool. Enjoy!
The first thing Peter noticed when he came to was the acrid smell in the air.
Then he saw the dust in it. And the ashes.
There was…an accident in the lab. Namely, a spider bit him, he bumped into something and, well…
He hazily heard something smash above him and soon felt a searing pain on the back of his neck and over his scalp. He struggled to move his arm and wipe it away from his eyes. Chemicals mixed with sweat and rusty particles on his hand.
There was an abandoned gym in a fancy old apartment building a few blocks from Aunt May's house. Technically, some landlord owned the building and was sitting on it, so it became more profitable. The gym still had the equipment, though.
It was perfect.
Peter broke one of the windows away from the street, heaving himself into the room. He'd noticed he was stronger when he grabbed a juice box at the hospital and squeezed nearly all of it out.
Now it was time to find out how much stronger.
Three months and a fine later, he stepped off the bus back to Aunt May's house. She gave him a big lecture, of course. She made it out like she thought it was the apocalypse.
This was the apocalypse. He woke up and could just feel it. Could feel it in his bones.
He felt like that in the ambulance, too. The doctors said it was caused by poisoning, but it kept happening. So, they had to keep administering iodide to stop his systems from slowly shutting down.
It would pass eventually, but that didn't make it fun.
Peter remembered apocalypse stories. He ate them up in middle school after his parents died. He remembered that a particularly invested English teacher told him the end of the world in stories wasn't just the end, but the start of a new age. That, if it helped to think of it like this, their deaths was an apocalypse for him, but Aunt May and Uncle Ben were the beginning of a new age.
Maybe this, too, was another new age for him.
A doctor entered with a lead vest. The Geiger meter in his hands clicked rapidly. He gave Peter more Iodide.
There was a knock on the door. When he answered it, he saw it was a cop and another man.
"You're Peter Parker, yes?" He nodded.
"My name is Officer Hickman, and this is Doctor Smith, a grief counselor. May we come in?" the cop asked. He nodded again, and she walked into the house with a sympathetic look on her face.
"Peter, your Uncle was a chaperone on the OsCorp field trip a week ago, as I'm sure you remember. I'm afraid he was caught when the building collapsed and did not survive. We've found his body and confirmed the identity." His throat constricted, but he didn't start crying just yet.
"Do you have any questions regarding the cause of death?" He shook his head. "Okay. Here's a card with mine and Doctor Smith's phone numbers. Feel free to call us at any time. I'm sorry for your loss."
He broke in again. He also managed to bench 1,000 pounds and stick to the ceiling for an hour before the cops found him.
This time it was six months in jail and a bigger fine. Once again, Aunt May acted like the world was ending.
Maybe it was. But his new age was just beginning.
He needed a symbol. He'd been going out for a couple night now, just in a black hoodie and black jeans. Calling an ambulance for overdoses, talking people down from suicide, getting between cops and their victim. But he needed a symbol if he wanted it all to mean something.
Superman had a symbol. The comic books said it was the Kryptonian symbol for hope. He'd seen flags with it online.
The people of Queens needed their own symbol. Their own flag. He needed an actual outfit, too.
That's what he'd thought a week ago, at least. He hadn't expected Queens to rally around him like they did.
It only took a few days for Etsy artists to start selling "Spider-Man" flags. He'd even bought one.
He pulled his clothes on, red with black lines, so it would blend into red-bricked houses. A few blue accents, here and there, sure. But mostly red.
The symbol on his chest was simple enough, if ironic. The spider that got him into this mess. That nearly killed him. That guy in Hell's Kitchen took on the name people called him. Why couldn't he turn the spider into something good?
The shining sun woke him up, and he smiled. His muscles ached from last night, but more so, he felt pride deep in his bones, and it almost made him want to dance. He was doing good for his city, and it was enough to make him want to explode.
He carried a Geiger with him, and it still clicked on his belt. A sound made even more terrifying to crooks and dirty cops alike.
Welcome to the new age.
The age of Spider-Man.
A.N.: This piece jumps around a little, so if you're confused, here's a timeline:
*Peter goes on a field trip to OsCorp. He is bitten by a spider, which leads to a chain of events resulting in an explosion, the collapse of the building, and the death of his uncle.
*in the ambulance and in the hospital, he experiences a "sense of impending doom," a symptom of poisoning (the chemicals dripping onto his head).
*a week later, Peter has just been discharged and is soon after informed of Ben's death.
*Peter has noticed that he is developing powers and breaks into the apartment building to test them out. The cops are called, he is charged with trespassing, and he goes to jail.
*Peter breaks in again and is sent back to jail.
*Peter begins to help his community, eventually giving himself a symbol. As he is still slightly radioactive from the accident, he still sets of Geiger meters. He keeps one with him, as he is not particularly concerned with stealth most of the time.
Thank you for your time!