Issue #2: Writing the Tombstone

The Bar With No Name (An Hour Ago)

Sneaking around the alley of this low rundown bar was a familiar redhead, phone in hand. Mary Jane moved back, seeing a pale man walk out, holding a man with a boomerang cowl by the throat. This man was none other than Tombstone, and he wasn't too pleased with Boomerang, who was frightened beyond belief.

"Look Myers, I will be blunt, I know you have one of those fancy gems," Tombstone grunted at the villain who gulped.

"D-Do I?! L-Look man I want no part of whatever's going down between you big guys." Boomerang shouted.

Tombstone raised a fist, "I will ask one more time."

Boomerang turned his head, then said, "Y-Yes! I do! I DO! B-But… I-I don't have it right now!" he raised his hands, revealing that he was telling the truth and that the Chaos Emerald was not in his possession.

Sneering at him, Tombstone dropped the villain, saying, "Hmph. Meet me at my shop tonight. We're makin' a private trade. Your life for the emerald, can't have Fisk, Silvermane, or anyone catch onto this. Especially that new Zeti Gang…"

"R-Right…" Boomerang replied with a scared nod.

"Interesting…" Mary Jane muttered to herself, "Hm. The Daily Bugle would want nothing with this, but… I'm sure I can pass this off anyway." she smugly said, knowing exactly who to relay the information to.

Peter and Mary Jane's Apartment (Now)

"Honey we're home!" quipped Spider-Man, removing his mask as him and Sonic hopped through the window, avoiding being spotted by any bystanders.

At that moment, Mary Jane walked through the door herself, a smile on her face, "Oh hey Tiger, I could hear you in the hallway. How'd things go?" she wondered.

"Went well enough, nabbed us another emerald, so that's good," Peter told her, giving her a welcoming kiss.

"Ran into some burglar called the Black Cat, she was pretty annoying," Sonic muttered.

"Felicia again huh?" MJ joked.

Peter nodded, "Yeah. She wants to help us, says we're the safer side of the conflict, not sure how to feel about that."

Mary Jane replied, "You know her better than I do, Pete. She's helped you before, maybe another hand wouldn't hurt."

"I guess not," shrugged Peter, "So how about you? Did you find anything?"

"You bet! I snuck around, and caught a conversation between Tombstone and Boomerang," she revealed, "And before you say anything, I kept my distance."

Peter raised a finger to say something, but stopped himself, instead saying, "...Alright. So what did you learn?"

Mary Jane answered, "That Boomerang managed to find one of the emeralds and that Tombstone threatened to give it to him at his shop tonight. Also overheard him mention a new gang, so I went through the recent Daily Bugle archives and discovered…" she pulled up an article with a headline about a new Zeti Gang on her phone, "...This. Ever heard of these guys?"

Tapping his chin, Peter replied, "Nope. I've fought plenty of gangs before, but nothing about a Zeti Gang."

Sonic narrowed his eyes, "Something about the name is familiar. I think Tails mentioned it to me before, but I forget what it was for. Speaking of him, where is he?"

MJ put her phone down, saying, "He said something about testing that new radar."

Sonic pulled his glove cuff to reveal a watch, where he pressed a button, calling Tails, "Yo little bro. How's that radar working out?"

"It's great! I think I tracked an emerald to a warehouse in Brooklyn! I might need your help, it rumors have been saying the Zeti Gang tend to be around here." Tails explained.

"Zeti Gang huh? No problem, Tails," Sonic replied with a smirk, "You'll have to give me a rundown on things once I get there, that name just gives me a bad feeling," he added.

"I will, see you soon, Sonic." Tails said before ending the call.

Peter put his hands on his hips, saying, "So we're splitting up then."

Sonic shrugged, "Might as well. If we can get two more emeralds in one day, that'll be awesome!"

Spider-Man nodded, "Alright. Black Cat and I will get Tombstone and Boomerang's emerald, you can figure out who the Zeti Gang is."

"Got it, Pete!" Sonic gave Peter a fist-bump, running down the window to find Tails.

"And what about me, hm?" Mary Jane asked.

Peter said, "Keep digging around for any news, I got a bad feeling this will escalate to a full-blown gang war if we don't hurry up."

"I can do that, no problem. Beats writing another generic fluff story," MJ quipped, "But it's not for a bit. Gonna patrol again?"

Peter rubbed his neck, "Not quite. Harry just came back to New York today, I think I can fit some time to catch up with him before I bust up some gangs. Plus it wouldn't hurt to double check for any Oscorp secrets that Norman could've left behind."

"...Still think he'll come back?" Mary Jane wondered.

"...I don't know," Peter admitted, "I want him to just vanish forever after what he did… but I know Norman, he'll find a way back. He always does…" he sighed while rubbing his head.

MJ put a hand on Peter's shoulder, "If that day happens, Tiger, you'll stop him again. I know you will."

Peter replied, "But what if I fail again? What if I fail you?"

"You didn't fail, Peter," Mary Jane assured him, "If it'll make you feel better…" she revealed a red and gold watch strapped to her, "I got a little insurance, I promise you won't have to worry about me."

Peter managed a smile, "You're awesome, MJ."

"Kinda have to, being married to a superhero and all," MJ quipped back.

Putting on his mask, Peter put a foot on the windowsill ready to jump out, "Heh, well I feel a bit better after all that. I'll be back tonight, MJ. Love ya."

"Love you too, Tiger. I'll let you know if I get anything else." MJ replied, grabbing her belongings once more as Spider-Man swung to Oscorp.

Oscorp

Back in his civilian attire, Peter walked through the office doors of Oscorp. He was greeted by a guard at the door, "Hold up. You got an appointment with Mister Osborn?"

"Geez, a little tough entrance huh?" Peter raised his hands nervously.

"You must've not heard of the recent break-ins here by the former CEO." the guard elaborated, "We have to be sure you're not a threat."

'Oh right, that whole incedent. Thanks Zero…' Peter recalled the event in his head and the jackal involved, '...Then again I may have chipped into the entering part. For good reason of course.'

"Right right…" Peter casually replied, pretending to only just remember.

"Easy on him, Stromm. I didn't double your paycheck to get in my best friend's face," joked a man who looked like Norman, his features relatively younger and more innocent. Harry walked to the entrance, shaking Peter's hand, "Been a while, Pete."

"Ha, no kidding, Harry. How was Europe?" Peter replied to his best friend.

"Pretty good. Apparently I missed… a lot," Harry said with a sigh, then composed himself to gesture Peter to walk with him.

Peter put his hands in his pockets, saying, "So you've been caught up on what was happening then…?"

"How could I not? It was pretty clear my Dad was helping that Eggman nutcase, especially when those giant Goblins appeared out of nowhere. I had hoped he gave that up…" Harry shook his head.

"I'm sorry, Harry…" Peter spoke out, "...I really wish he could adjust himself. For your sake."

"And now he's just… gone. Nobody knows where he went, and I got a feeling next time he'll target me for disappointing him." Harry realized.

Peter said, "That's the Goblin talking, Harry, not your Father. I'm sure he doesn't hate you."

"And how do you know they haven't always been the same person?" Harry coldly asked.

"J-Just a hunch," Peter quickly lied, his attempt at comforting his friend failing because he knew the truth.

"Hm. I just hope you're right…" Harry said while rubbing his forehead, "But enough about that, I'm glad you're here, Pete. Been a while since I've seen a familiar face. How are you and MJ doing?"

"About as good as usual," Peter replied, changing the subject for his friend's sake.

"That's good. Sorry to uh… hear about May, by the way. We've been talking about me but you went through something horrible." Harry put a comforting hand on Peter's shoulder.

"Y-Yeah, it's been rough…" admitted Peter, "I'm holding on of course. I got MJ, you, and my friends keeping me going."

Harry nodded, "Well if you need anything, just say so."

"Thanks, Harry." Peter said.

"Say, how about I show you a little something to lighten the mood?" Harry offered his friend.

"Sure, bud. What do you got?" Peter accepted.

"Follow me," Harry replied, leading Peter to a lab, where he revealed a glowing green gem encased in glass, "We managed to find this weird gem, upon further inspection we noticed it was a near-limitless power source!"

'A Chaos Emerald?!' Peter realized with shock, 'Of course Oscorp would have one…'

"Pretty cool huh, Pete? We might have solved one of the biggest global issues ever with just one simple piece of jewelry." Harry boasted.

"...Harry are you sure having this is safe?" Peter asked.

"Of course. Why ask?"

Peter continued, "Uh… Well, MJ's been telling me about this brewing gang war over gems like these… I'm just afraid you'll attract the wrong kind of attention if the wrong person finds out you have one of these." he lied.

"I appreciate you looking out, Pete, but I think we got this covered." Harry assured him.

'Then why is my Spider-Sense going off…' Peter thought, feeling his head tingle. The feeling got worse, and instinctively, he tackled Harry, narrowly evading a sudden explosion.

"Hahahahaha!" cackled a screechy voice that sent shivers down Peter's spine the second he heard it.

"No…" Peter and Harry muttered at the same time, looking up to see none other than the Green Goblin.

"Well well well, if it isn't Parker and my son." Goblin laughed.

"Norman…" Peter growled under his breath. He wanted to fight but couldn't risk revealing himself to Harry.

Goblin shot a laser from his finger, breaking the glass holding the Chaos Emerald, "While I would love to stay and chat, I got emeralds to steal and a spider to squash!" he nabbed the emerald while moving on his glider, making a getaway through the hole he made.

"...What?" Peter replied about his choice of wording, "Harry! Call the authorities! I'll see if I can follow Goblin!" he told his friend.

"You better know what you're doing!" Harry said.

Peter nodded, then started bolting to the nearest exist, thinking, 'Norman's back just like that? How did he get back? I mean, I should've known he'd be back for the emerald but… he acted like he was gonna kill Spider-Man later instead of making an attempt on my life… and I doubt he'd keep it secret to Harry…' once he got to a clearing he put on his costume and climbed up the roof, finding no sign of Norman.

"Crap. Wish I brought a Spider-Tracer just in case…" Spider-Man shook his head in disappointment and anger, "Just what we need. A city-wide Chaos Emerald hunt, new villains and Green Goblin…"

The hero heard his phone ring and answered, "Hello?"

"Pete? Did you catch up?" Harry asked.

"Sorry, Harry. Lost track, should've realized chasing a flying man on foot was a bad idea." Spidey admitted.

"It's alright. Guess you were right about the gem. Look, we got a mess to clean up here and it'd be best if you went home, no need to get swept up in all this. This is my problem." Harry advised his friend, looking out for him.

'Believe me, I wish I could do that. But Norman is my problem too…' Peter thought before speaking, "R-Right, I'll get going. Maybe we can catch up without the chaos."

"Sure thing. I'll let you know how this investigation goes." Harry said before hanging up.

Spider-Man put his phone away and looked over the horizon, seeing the setting sun, "...Great. As much as I want to find Gobby, I got another emerald to steal. Hopefully Felicia's got the same news as us, I really don't feel like fighting a gang all by myself."

Brooklyn

The white-hooded Spider-Woman perched on the ledge of a building, seeing Spider-Man swing by unaware of her presence, "...Okay, is that him, weird talking ghost lady?"

"That is Spider-Man. Follow him, for he will require your aid." Madame Web told her.

Gwen looked down and muttered, "Still can't believe I'm doing all this cryptic crap. Fine, I'll play along if it means getting me home." she shot a web-line and followed Spider-Man, ensuring she stuck to the shadows in the meantime.

Brooklyn Bike Repair Shop

Spider-Man perched on a rooftop, where he saw Black Cat doing the same. Peter joked, "Huh. Guess we both follow the same news sources. I can see why Tomby picked this place, it's unfit for someone like him."

Blacl Cat smiled, "Always with the witty introductions, Spider. Yeah, heard from the Bar With No Name that Boomerang's showing up tonight to hand one of those Chaos Emeralds over."

"Got a plan?" Spider-Man asked.

"Go in, bash some heads, steal the emerald, go home." Felicia quipped.

"Sound just like Sonic," Peter said.

"Learnt it from you, first," Felicia replied.

"Well I am the master of that kind of plan," Spider-Man proudly boasted.

The vigilantes watched as Boomerang entered the building. Peter used his lenses to detect how many thugs were watching the trade, "Hm… full house tonight."

"Considering what's going down, I can't blame him." Black Cat said.

"Go time?" Peter asked.

"Of course," Felicia replied with a smirk, ready for action.

Meanwhile inside the shop, Boomerang slowly walked in, eyeing all the goons examining him. He gulped the moment he saw Tombstone and revealed the blue Chaos Emerald, pleasing the gangster.

"Good work, Myers." Tombstone complimented the villain.

"Look man, just take it, I don't want any part of this world-ending crap," Boomerang told him.

Tombstone huffed at that, snagging the emerald and proudly holding it up, "Yeah yeah, been hearing rumors that these things gave Norman Osborn gifts unlike any other. So you're still here no matter what."

"Oh no…" Boomerang muttered, wanting no part in this business.

"Sorry Lonnie, that doesn't belong to you!" shouted Spider-Man, kicking the window to pieces with Black Cat by his side.

"Spider-Man?! And the Cat?! What your new furry friend couldn't join us this time?!" Tombstone mocked in surprise.

Spider-Man quipped, "Nah, it'll already be embarassing enough for you once you get trounced by a spider and a cat!" he kicked a thug down to the ground in one fell swoop, grabbing Felicia's hand and throwing her so that she kicked another mook back, flipping a motorcyle in the process.

Boomerang looked around… and threw a boomerang at one of the thugs, knocking the gun out of his hand and giving Spider-Man an opening to attack, "Huh?! What are you doing, Myers?" Peter asked in confusion.

The villain armed himself and said, "Helping ya! I'm done with all this shit! Done with this supervillain helping bigger villains business!"

"We'll uh… discuss this later! For right now, you can help!" Spider-Man told the seemingly former villain, elbowing a goon through a door.

Black Cat hopped over one crook and was ready to strike Tombstone, but he swiftly grabbed a chain and hit her, slamming her down to the ground with ease, "Playing dirty already, Lonnie?" she snarled.

"Anything to keep you down," Tombstone replied, grabbing her by the throat. Black Cat mustered enough strength to kick his chest and bounce off him.

Spider-Man webbed up Tombstone's eyes and punched Tombstone's face, getting no response, "...Oh right, no pain. Crap." he muttered, his wrist getting grabbed and he was tossed aside.

Tombstone cracked his knuckles, "Any other takers?"

Boomerang smacked a guy with his boomerang, saying, "No thanks!" he went back to focusing on the thugs around him.

"Me." Black Cat grunted, going to fight him again.

Spider-Man jumped back towards Tombstone, ready to attack. He punched Spidey, knocking the wind out of him and he collapsed to his knees. Black Cat revealed her claws and slashed Tombstone, managing to make small cuts on his face, angering him, "You shouldn't have done that…"

"What? Did I upset the big bad gangster?" Felicia joked, wiping blood off her face.

Lincoln back-handed Felicia, launching her across the room. She got her bearings and slid on the wall, leaping back towards Tombstone. Her attack failed however as Tombstone grabbed her arm and slammed her face first to the ground, picked her up and tossed her again.

"Cat!" Spider-Man yelled, going after Tombstone once more but was met with an uppercut that actually launched him into the air. Tombstone swiftly used his chain to wrap Spider-Man in it and throw him around the room, his face slamming him into the wall multiple times.

"Oh no no…" Boomerang muttered, holding his own against the thugs still. He used a gas boomerang to put some of them to sleep, threw another to pin one to the wall and ran after Spider-Man and Black Cat.

Black Cat got up and punched Tombstone, distracting him from harming Spidey. She gritted her teeth and lashed out at him in an attempt to weaken him. It was fruitless however as Tombstone jabbed her stomach, almost knocking her unconscious, "Damn it…" she grunted, trying to get back up. The mob boss was ready to end her right there.

"No no no!" Spider-Man yelled, shattering the chains with ease and running towards Felicia, limping along the way, "Cat! Are you okay?!"

"I'm… fine… Spider… Tired though." Felicia muttered, exhausted and bruised.

Tombstone sneered, "Hmph. Guess you'll both be dyin' today." he mocked them, raising both of his fists. However, Boomerang jumped up from behind and wrapped a boomerang around his neck, choking him.

"M-Myers…?" Peter gasped out.

"G-Get the emerald! I can hold him!" Fred assured the heroes, trying to keep the gangster distracted. It proved fruitless however as Tombstone reached around and threw Myers down.

"Pathetic. You know Myers, I was hopin' you'd be a good listener, but I guess I was wrong." Lincoln mocked him. Boomerang threw a sleeping gas boomerang at him, causing the mob boss to cough and wheeze.

"No, shit…" Tombstone muttered, knowing the scent could get through to him and weaken him at the very least.

"J-Just as lame… as me…" Boomerang mocked

"Forget this…" Tombstone muttered, making an escape.

"Go after him…" Felicia told him.

"But you need help! You could die!" Peter yelled, freaking out over her current state.

"That emerald's… more important…" Felicia told him.

Boomerang got up and limped towards the heroes, "Go… I'll get her somewhere safe."

"You're… helping us? Why?" Peter asked, genuinely curious.

"I'll explain later… Just get that emerald…" Myers told him. Peter nodded and hurried out as fast as he could.

Meanwhile Tombstone leaned on a wall, worn out from Boomerang's gas, "Damn goon… Gotta get back to… home, emerald in hand…" a shadow loomed over him, getting his attention, "...Huh?" he muttered out.

THWIP!

THWIP!

"What the-? Webs…?" Peter asked, limping towards the source of the sound, "Kaine…? Ollie…? Are either of you there?" he saw Tombstone webbed up and unconscious.

"Yo, Spider-Man. Catch," called out a female voice, getting Peter's attention. He looked up and saw a woman clad in a white hoodie costume. She tossed the Chaos Emerald to Spider-Man, who was confused about this newcomer.

"Who… are you?" Peter asked.

"Call me, Spider-Woman. Come on, I think we're supposed to talk things out or something," Spider-Woman answered, gesturing Peter to follow her. Peter relunctantly followed, wanting answers on who this stranger is and what she wants.

A/N: Well a lot happened here. Peter and Gwen have finally met, Harry has made his debut, Tombstone is seemingly down for the count, and it appears Boomerang has become an ally. And the Green Goblin is back as well as Eggman? There's more to that than meets the eye, so stay tuned for a later chapter when that gets revealed. And as for Boomerang, I'm trying a new arc based off Nick Spencer's Spider-Man run involving him, I want him to be a recurring character so that'll be fun.

Next Time: Sonic and Tails vs the Deadly Six!