AN: I read every review that is posted. I know a lot of you may have questions; and I think it's only fair that I answer some of those questions.
Bluerose160 - Of course he will; it wouldn't be much of a TFP crossover if he didn't meet the Autobots. I agree with you that it's such a basic crossover idea for Jack to be Spider-Man. I mean, Josh Keaton has voiced both Green Lantern and Spider-Man; and other writers have made him Green Lantern, on more than one occasion. But they have never made him Spider-Man, not even once; and that feels like a great injustice to me. I also wanted to say that I don't have a script written out for this story. I jotted a few ideas down on a piece of paper, but I don't really have a plan. So as far as updates go, I'm actually flaying by the seat of my pants.
Now I want to address all of my readers on a few subjects. First off, I think the hardest thing about this story for me, is going to be able to nail the Spidey quips. Because I'm one of those guys who thinks he's real funny; but in actuality, I'm really not. Lastly, I know this is going to upset a lot of the Spidey fans, but there are certain characters that you just won't see in this fanfic; simply because the TFP characters take the place of those people. For example, you won't see Peter Parker, Gwen Stacy, Captain Stacy or Mary Jane Watson. Jack takes the place of Peter, Miko takes the place of Gwen, Raf's dad takes the place Captain Stacy and Sierra takes the place of Mary Jane. That's how I chose to organize this story; hopefully it doesn't anger you all too much.
It had been almost a week since Uncle Ben was murdered; and things weren't getting any easier for Jack and his family. A lot has happened to Jack over the course of the last few days; things that he thought wouldn't happen for a very long time. Raf, being his best friend, tried to be there for him as much as he could. Raf's dad had promised as the Sheriff, that he would catch the man who killed his uncle. He already put an APB out on the man responsible. He thought that if he spread the net as far as he could, he might get lucky and get a hit.
Jack's time at school wasn't much better. Everywhere he went, people kept telling him how sorry they were for his loss. As if it was supposed to be some sort of cure all that made everything better. None of them knew what he lost, or how he felt at that moment. They weren't him, and they never would be. At least that's what he liked to tell himself. "Hey Darby, I want to talk to you" Vince said as he approached him. Vince hasn't really bothered Jack since their last confrontation; maybe he didn't want to take the chance of repeating that encounter. But for some reason, he was brave enough to be around Jack now. "Not today, Vince" Jack murmured in obvious annoyance. "Come on, it'll only take a second" Vince explained. He placed his hand on Jack's shoulder, to which he responded to by slamming Vince against the lockers. "Seriously, I'm not in the mood; or haven't you heard what's happened" Jack said sternly. "I'm not that much of a jerk. Your uncle died, and it sucks. That's all I wanted to say." Jack let Vince go as he realized that this was his lame attempt at an apology.
When he turned around, he noticed that Miko was standing in front of him; and she was now facing him directly. She saw the whole exchange between him and Vince; and she understood that whatever Jack did, he only did because he was hurting. So she walked up to him, put her arms around him in a hug, and said "I'm so sorry." Unlike everyone else who said that today, he could feel Miko's sincerity. Despite not knowing her for very long, he could tell that she really did want to comfort him. Jack then returned her hug, and felt the beginnings of tears in his eyes.
After school ended, Jack and his mom were at home packing their bags. It had been decided that Uncle Ben's funeral would be held in New York. It was where he and his family were from, it was where his friends and loved ones resided. New York was where his life was at; but most importantly, it was his home. It didn't feel right to put him to rest anywhere else. When they were done packing, they got into June's car and drove to the nearest airport. They boarded the plain, found their seats, and waited for the plain to take off. June let her son sit next to the window, because she knew how much he enjoyed it. It was meant to be a good gesture with the intent to make him feel better, even if it was only by a little bit. But ultimately, it just ended up being a failed attempt to cheer him up. He used to enjoy looking at the scenery whenever they flew. But now, all he could think about was where he was going, and how he was going to say goodbye to one of the best people he ever knew.
For Jack and June, the flight was long and eventful. Completely different from anyone else on board. None of them were going to New York for the same reason they were; to say goodbye to family. New York was a city that everyone loved going to; but not them, not now. A few hours passed, and their plain arrived at it's destination. They exited into the airport parking lot, got in a cab, and drove to Aunt May and Uncle Ben's house. It was the middle of the day in the most busiest city in the world, so traffic was a pain. When Jack was younger, he loved coming to New York. Sometimes on family gatherings, he would visit his aunt and uncle. He would take pictures of all the cool sites, ride the subway, he went into a couple of nice stores, and he tried the good food that the street venders served. Some of the best times he had in the city was the ones he spent with Uncle Ben. Jack and him would go to places like baseball games, museums; he even once took Jack to comic con. Those were good times to be sure. But Jack just couldn't be happy right now, even in a city as great as New York.
His train of thought soon reached the end of it's tracks as the cab came to a stop at a small house in Queens. June paid the driver before they went inside. When entering the house, they were instantly flooded with good memories. Aside from the house in Jasper, this is the only other home that Jack has ever known. But it didn't feel the same without Uncle Ben. The funeral was in a few hours, so they would have some time to unpack and rest before they went. The plan was to go to the funeral, spend the rest of the night in New York with Aunt May, and get on a plain back to Nevada the first thing in the morning. May helped them settle in; and after that they spent most of their time talking. They were all sitting on a couch in the living room; but when June got up and left the room, Jack chose to talk to May about something that had been bothering him. "Aunt May, I'm sorry. Uncle Ben was in Jasper that night because he was out looking for me. If I hadn't walked out on him, then-"
"Don't you ever say that. It wasn't your fault, it wasn't anyone's fault. No one could have known what was going to happen that night, especially you. You didn't kill Uncle Ben, that man with the gun did. And someday he'll have to answer for it. Ben loved you, and that's why he was out looking for you. Don't ever forget that." Jack knew that she was right; and by telling him that, she did make him feel a little bit better. Once again he told her that he was sorry; then she hugged him and told him it was alright.
At the funeral, there were a lot of people in attendence. They all knew Uncle Ben in one way or another. He was a good man, and he had many friends. There were some that Jack didn't recognize, but then there were some that he did. Chief among those familiar faces, was Stan. Stan had been a friend of Uncle Ben's for a long time. His friendship almost rivaled that of even Jack's father. Stan ran a comic book shop in New York called The Comic Stand. Jack used to love going there as a kid with Uncle Ben. Stan had gray hair that was starting to turn white, and he wore glasses. Jack hasn't seen Stan in a while; so he thought it would be a good idea to talk to him now. "Hey Stan, long time no see." "Jack, is that you? You look all grown up. It's been ages; I mean, how long has it been since we last saw each other?" "Almost three years now. With my dad being gone, I got a job when I was around fourteen. I just wanted to do something that made me feel useful. But unfortunately, that didn't leave me with a lot of free time to visit; I'm sorry" Jack said.
"Oh, water under the bridge kiddo. I know it couldn't have been easy not having a father when you needed one the most. And I'm sorry you felt like you had to grow up so fast. I know you've probably heard this a lot by now, but I'm so sorry for your loss. When I was first told what had happened, all I can remember feeling was sad. Everyone is here today because thay all loved your uncle, me included. He was a good man, but he was an even better friend; he was the best. And if I know anything about Ben Parker, it's that he wouldn't want us to focus solely on what's been taken from us. He would also want us to think about what's good in life. So...what's new with you? What's this job you were talking about? Are you still taking pictures?" "Uh...things were pretty good for me actually. I got a job at a fast food restaurant, my grades are pretty good; and I recently started taking pictures for the school's newspaper. So what about you? How are things at the shop going?" Jack asked. "Oh, couldn't be better; a lot of people still read comics. But the d at the end of stand is still burnt out; so the sign just keeps saying Comic Stan." "What, you still haven't gotten that fixed yet? I don't get it; I mean, what are you waiting for? Jack questioned. "Well, I meant to; but as time went by, it kinda became the brand that defined me. I think it makes me unique from all the other comic stores."
Jack and Stan laughed at some of the fond memories they had of being in the shop. "Hey, how about you come by the shop for old time sake?" Stan asked. "I'd like to Stan; but I'm only going to be in town for the rest of today. Then I got to get on a plain to Jasper tomorrow morning. I really think I need to spend the time I have with my family." "I can understand that; but if you change your mind, you know where to find me." They then shook hands, hugged, and then returned to what they were previously doing. The rest of the ceremony went off without a hitch. A priest spoke from the bible, Jack was allowed to drop a hand full of dirt on his uncle's casket, and his uncle was finally lowered into the ground.
After the funeral was over, Jack and his family went back to Aunt May's house. They had dinner later that night; and it was one of the quietest and most awkwardest dinners of their lives. Everyone was afraid to say even one word. When they were done eating, they decided that they had enough of the awkward silence. Everyone began talking and laughing at the fun memories they had with Ben. Jack then brought up one of his favorite memories of him and Uncle Ben. He was a child at the time, no older than ten years old. He and Ben were at a convention in town; and he wandered off when Ben wasn't paying attention. As soon as Jack noticed he was lost, he became really scared. When Uncle Ben found him, he thought that he was going to yell at him for wandering off; but he didn't. Instead, he scooped Jack up in a tight hug. He said that it wasn't his fault. Ben should of known that kids wander off. He should have been watching him. He told Jack that he loved him, and he was glad that he was safe. Then they got ice cream before heading home. That was probably Uncle Ben's attempt to cheer him up. It was getting late; and when they were done reminiscing, Jack and his family went to bed. He kept thinking about today's events, before he fell asleep in one of the guest bedrooms. It was the same room he always stayed in when he was at Aunt May and Uncle Ben's house.
Jack and his mom got home to Jasper at a relatively late hour in the afternoon. Their morning was filled with having breakfast with May. She made her famous wheat cakes. They told Aunt May that she could stay with them in Jasper, if she wanted. They didn't want her to be alone with her grief. But she turned them down. The house that she and Ben shared in Queens was her home; and she had no intention of leaving it. So Jack and June told her that they would come visit her soon. Then with only one long plain ride later, they were finally back home. June offered to make dinner, but Jack said he wasn't hungry. So he waited upstairs in his room for a while; until she decided to check on him. She found him sitting on his bed, turned away from her. With nothing but the silence as his companion.
She sat down next to him, put her arm around him, and waited for him to speak. "I really missed him these past couple days" he said. "I know; so do I" she responded. "I can't help but feel like this is all my fault. There were so many things that I could have done differently that night. If I had stayed home, or if I'd stopped that man with the gun. Then Uncle Ben might still be alive." "What could you have done? You didn't know what was going to happen that night. And if you had tried to stop him, then it might be you who is dead right now."
"I could've done something to stop him. I saw him while he was robbing the store. At the very least, I could have said something. But that's not what upsets me the most. I hate how I behaved around Uncle Ben. The last time I saw him; he tried to tell me something important, and I completely blew him off. He wasn't my father; but when dad left, he was a pretty good substitute. He was always there for me when I needed him. And now I can never apologize to him. He'll never be able to hear me tell him how much I love him." "He knows that you didn't mean those things you said to him. And he knew how much you loved him. Remember that story you told us about last night? About how you got lost at a convention as a child. Well, what you don't know is that your Uncle Ben came to talk to me later that day. He said that he wasn't mad at you. In fact, he blamed himself. He told me that when he lost you, that it was the scaredest he's ever been. If something had happened to you, he would've never been able to forgive himself. So believe me when I tell you, he loved you just as much as you loved him. He wouldn't blame you for what's happened. It's not your fault; and it never will be. They're going to catch the man who did this; you'll see."
Jack knew that his mom was just trying to make him feel better by telling him that it wasn't his fault. But he also knew that wasn't how guilt worked. Try as you might, you can't just rationalize it away. You can't defeat it with logic. It sticks with you, sometimes forever. "It's been almost two weeks, mom. Everyday that they don't catch him, is another day that he gets to walk free. A day that should've belonged to Uncle Ben. I just want him to be caught already." "I know you're frustrated; but I want you to try to relax. Someone will catch this guy. Just not you; that's not your job" she said before she gave him a pat on the back and left. Jack kept feeling like she was wrong. Maybe it was his job. He was the one who let that guy go. So maybe it was up to him to catch him. But either way, he knew he had a choice to make. He could do nothing, and maybe the cops would get him. Or he could man up and do it himself. He decided to go with the ladder. He remembered the police said that the guy was a resident of Las Vegas. So tomorrow after school and work, he would go to Vegas and try to find him. He owed Uncle Ben that much.
Jack woke up the next morning, with the intent of getting through all the tedious events as quickly as he could. He got up from bed, got dressed and walked over to the door. But when he reached for the door knob, he accidentally yanked it right out of it's socket. He didn't even think he was pulling on it that hard. But then he remembered the spider that bit him. Somehow, when that spider bit him, he gained the proportionate speed, strength and agility of a spider. He also had the ability to stick to any surface, much like a spider could. Jack had planned to use these abilities to catch the man who killed his uncle; and if nothing else, they would certainly make that task more easier to accomplish. "Spider strength, right; almost forgot about that one. Well, I'll fix it later" he murmured to himself as he placed the door knob on his nightstand. From then on, he made a mental note to remember to be gentle whenever he grabbed things. After that, he brushed his teeth, got breakfast, and went to school.
When he was at school, Jack couldn't wait for the rest of the day to be over already. All he could think about was searching for his uncle's killer. It was pretty much the only thing that kept him going. Sure enough, school came to an end; and then it was off to work. When his shift at The KO Burger was up, Jack went home for a change of clothes. He threw on a jacket and a beanie hat; and he went to the bus stop in town. He boarded the bus bound for Vegas. It took an hour, but Jack finally arrived at his destination. When he got off the bus, it was starting to get dark. Which meant he only had a few hours until curfew. While realizing that it wouldn't be hard to find a dirtbag in one of the most questionable cities in the world; it was sin city after all. Jack also knew that finding one man would be a lot more difficult than a whole group of them. So he'd better get started. He looked for a while; and he did see quite a few shady characters. But none of them fit the description of the killer. He eventually came to an alleyway, where he saw a man with shoulder length blond hair, beating on a woman. This might be the guy Jack was looking for. He did look a lot like how the cops described him. With that all in mind, Jack knew that he had to confront him.
"HEY, you like hurting girls? You like hurting old men?" Jack said as he walked up to the guy. "Hey man; this has got nothing to do with you. Just walk away" the man said to Jack. When they were close enough to each other, a struggle broke out. Jack threw the man on the ground and repeatedly punched him in the face. He kept wailing on the guy until his friends showed up to help him. Knowing that he was outnumbered, Jack made a run for it as the man and his friends chased him through the alleyways. He used his spider agility to outmaneuver them. He leaped over fences and other objects in his way. Then Jack crawled up the wall of a building to get away. Strangely enough, none of the men who were chasing him seemed to question this. They just continued to pursue him. They caught up to him on a rooftop, and proceeded to chase him across the other rooftops. Jack came to a stop when he saw the man he was fighting with earlier, on the adjacent rooftop.
He jumped to where the man was; but when the guy tried to hit him, Jack tripped him before he could even land a hit. The man slipped, and was now hanging on the ledge of the building. He would have fell, but Jack manged to catch him by the wrists. Then he remembered that the cops said that the killer had a star tattooed on his left wrist. But this guy didn't. Jack thought back to that day, he didn't really get a good look at the killer's face; on account of him wearing sunglasses at the time. All of this led him to believe one thing. This wasn't the guy he was looking for. So he pulled the man's hands up to the ledge so he could get a better grip.
Jack started to walk away; but then the floor gave way, and he fell through the ceiling. He bounced off of some sort of shelf before he hit the ground. "I KNOW WHAT YOU LOOK LIKE, YOU HEAR ME? I'VE SEEN YOUR FACE" the man shouted in hopes that Jack would hear. After Jack got up, he noticed various comic books scattered on the floor. It was clear to him that he landed in a comic book store. He spotted a Batman comic on the ground, and he kept thinking about what that guy said about seeing his face. Then he got an idea on how he could remedy that situation. So he gathered up some of the comics, found a bag to carry them in, and left some money on the counter. Before he left, he also left a note on the counter that said "Sorry about your roof." Jack got halfway to the nearest bus stop before he realized that he didn't have enough money for a ride home.
After paying for the comics and the damages, which still wasn't enough by the way; he had almost no cash left in his wallet. He was starting to panic until he noticed a familiar face on the same sidewalk as him. It was the same guy he met on the field trip to that Oscorp lab; and he was standing by a nice black limo. Jack went over to talk to him. "Excuse me, didn't I see you at the Oscorp field trip last week?" The guy started thinking about that day before it all came back to him. "Oh yeah, I remember you. Uh...Jack, right?" the guy asked. "Yeah that's me, Jack Darby. And I guess that would make you...Harry." "Yep, Harry Osborn, at your service" he said before shaking Jack's hand.
"Is this yours?" Jack gestured to the limo. "Yes it is. I know not a lot of kids my age have there own limo. But being Norman Osborn's son does have it's perks." "Oh, cool; so what brings you out and about tonight? What were your plans?"Jack asked in an effort to make small talk. "I was actually trying to get the lay of the land. You know, getting to know my new home. So how about you; what brings you to Vegas? If I'm not mistaken, your home is quite a ways away from here." "I...uh...I'm-" Jack was trying to think of an excuse. Luckily, his mind quickly drifted to the comics he was still holding. "I...uh...I was just picking up some comics." "Isn't it kinda late to be doing that?" Harry asked. "Um...actually, there was a place that was open a little later than the others." Jack then started to panic as he checked his phone for the time. "Oh shoot, it's almost ten PM. If I don't get home in an hour, I'm going to miss curfew. But I don't have any money for bus fair." Harry felt kinda bad for Jack, so he thought about offering him a ride. "Well...if you'd like, I could give you a ride." "Oh no, I couldn't ask you to do that" Jack said. "Believe me, it's okay. I don't mind; and by the sound of it, it seems like you really need to get home soon." After taking a minute to think about it, Jack saw the merit to his words. He did need to get home soon. So he accepted his offer, and they both got in the limo.
While they were driving, Jack gave Harry and his driver directions on how to get to Jasper. "So, you didn't just come to Vegas to get comic books, did you? I have a feeling there's more to the story than that" Harry murmured. Jack felt bad about not telling him the truth; and he thought it would be ok to tell him at least some of it. "The truth is that my uncle was murdered last week. It happened the day after I met you." "Ah man, that sucks. I'm sorry to hear that." "Thanks; anyway, the cops said the guy who did it lives in Las Vegas." Harry wasn't sure he liked were this story was going, but he had to ask. "So then what are you doing in Vegas?" "I came here to try and find the man who's responsible. I thought I needed to face him myself" Jack answered. "That's crazy; you could get yourself killed. Why would you do something like that?" "Because he might have been some random guy to the killer; but he wasn't to me. He had a name. His name was Ben Parker; and he was one of the greatest people you'll ever meet in this life." "Even so, it's dangerous to hunt down a killer. That's why you should leave it to the police" Harry lectured. "It's been almost two weeks; and every second he isn't caught runs the risk that he'll get away with it" Jack fired back.
As they continued to drive, Jack told Harry about his Uncle Ben and how he died. He told him about the guilt that surrounded his death; the guilt that was now eating Jack alive. Harry knew all to well what it was like to lose someone he loved. So he could understand Jack's guilt, and his pain. Soon they made it to Jasper; and Jack started pointing out the sights to Harry. Then they arrived at Jack's house. After he was dropped off, Jack asked Harry if he wanted to come inside for a bit to meet his mom. Harry knew he couldn't stay long; but he thought it would be a good idea to meet Jack's mom. At least then she wouldn't have to worry about the suspicious looking people who were dropping her son off. Before they went in, Jack asked Harry not to tell his mom about the real reason he went to Vegas. He agreed not to; and then they went inside. June was not to happy that Jack just barely made it back before curfew. He introduced Harry to her, and told her what happened, minus why he was in Vegas. Knowing that it was getting late, and that neither of them probably ate anything before now; June decided to treat them to a home cooked dinner.
They all sat down and ate, and laughed at the good stories they told. June was glad to know that Harry and her son got along so well. He seemed like a nice boy. Soon it was time for Harry to go, so he got up and started to leave. But before he left, Jack told him that he was glad he ran into him; and Harry said that he would definitely come back to Jasper to hang out sometime.
After Harry was gone, Jack spent the remainder of the night in his room reviewing the comic books he took. He was reading a Batman comic, and he started to wonder what separated him from Batman. What was the thing that divided them? There were differences to be sure. Obviously, Jack didn't possess any of the money, resources or skills that Batman had access to. But they did share in their pain of loss. They both lost members of their family to crime; and they both wanted to get justice for their deaths. But Batman also had cool gadgets, and wore a mask. It was then that Jack realized that, maybe that was it. Maybe Batman had the right idea in hiding his face. He was a pretty successful crime fighter after all. Odds are that if Jack kept looking for his uncle's killer, he would cross paths with some real dangerous people. His loved ones shouldn't have to pay for his choices. So he figured it might be a good idea to take a page from Batman, and wear a mask.
The next day, Jack was hard at work creating his disguise. He learned all he could about sewing from the internet. He sketched what he wanted his mask to look like on a piece of paper. When he was done with that, he began sewing the materials together. Soon after all that was done, his mask was complete. It was a simple mask, made out of a light breathable red cloth; with two eye holes cut into the face. Then he put on the mask, and walked over to the mirror to inspect himself. He looked at himself up and down in the mirror; and while the mask did keep his identity a secret, something kept nagging him in the back of his mind. "Not bad; but it's still missing something." Then Jack had an idea. In addition to the mask, Jack threw on the jacket and hat he wore last night, and a pair of sunglasses to finish the look. "Now that's more like it." All in all, it was a rather simple outfit. Although he had to admit, the sunglasses over the mask was a nice touch. Now no one could see the colors of his eyes. The outfit kinda looked like something a thug would wear. But he wasn't wearing it for people's approval. He was wearing it to get justice.
Later in the day, Jack was once again in Vegas, looking for his uncle's killer. He was currently wearing his makeshift costume while sticking to a wall in an alleyway. Down below him, he could see some punk trying to rob a guy in the alley. So he jumped down, grabbed the man, and threw him against the wall. He checked for the star tattoo on his left wrist, but the punk didn't have it. Then Jack dropped him on the ground and ran off. Jack spent the rest of his time in Vegas patrolling for the killer. He managed to catch a few punks who fit the description. But unfortunately, none of them had the tattoo he was looking for. He wasn't giving up, but it was clear that he was done for the day.
Once Jack got home, he realized that he had two problems to address. He needed a better way to find the bad guys, and he needed a better way to catch them once he did. Finding them when he did was all well and good. But if you could hear about crimes as they happen, it would get rid of a lot of the guess work. He was much stronger than the average person. But if he had a way to neutralize a threat on the spot, it could end the fight before it has a chance to start. He knew that Batman never had those kind of problems. He always knew where to find bad guys; and he always had just the right gadget to stop them. It was then that Jack remembered, that much like Batman, he too had some handy gadgets that he could call upon. The Web-Shooters that Raf made. They would be perfect for restraining criminals; and quite possibly, a good way to travel. That solved his equipment problem. After thinking about it for a bit, Jack also thought of a solution for locating crimes in real time.
The next night, Jack was standing on a rooftop in Las Vegas. He was listening to a jerry-rigged police scanner that he made. He figured that every police radio runs on a certain frequency. So he made a device to monitor and access those frequencies. Now he was getting the locations of crimes as they were happening. No one outside of Jack's family knew this, but he was very intelligent for his age. When he was little, he loved to learn; especially when it came to the field of science. As a child, he was given an IQ test. The doctors said that not only was Jack smart, but he also had an increased learning capability. Meaning that it was much easier for Jack to learn something than it would be for other people. Due to this fact, Jack was a straight A student. He asked his teachers to never reveal that to the other kids at school; because he didn't want to be thought of as a nerd, especially when he was dealing with his dad leaving him and his mother. He didn't even tell Raf about him being smart.
Then he heard a report of a man who was committing a crime. A man who matched the description of his uncle's killer. That was the only thing he bothered to listen to on his scanner. Then he put away his scanner and prepared to jump off the roof. He was a little nervous, because the buildings in Vegas were way bigger than the ones in Jasper. He had never jumped off of anything that high before. But after a moment of hesitation, he jumped and fired off a web-line. The line connected to a building, and he swung with great speed. He eventually found the man the reports mentioned. He trapped him in some webbing; but even that wasn't the guy he was looking for. As time went on, that was the way of things. Jack would catch a bad guy and leave them tied up for the cops to do with as they pleased. A lot of the guys he caught had serious rap sheets. He became somewhat famous with both the cops, and the people. They were calling him a vigilante.
Jack kept thinking about how he could improve upon his secret escapades. Thinking practically, he believed it was a good idea to have a proper outfit. The one he had now was kind of loose and baggy. He needed one that was form fitting, as well as something that could cut down on wind resistance. He was also going to need to get more cartridges for his Web-Shooters. Otherwise, he was going to run out of webbing pretty soon. Although, having to keep buying web pellets from Oscorp could get pretty expensive and suspicious. He suspected that it would probably be more practical to reverse engineer a synthetic spider web. Then he wouldn't have to order anything from Oscorp; he could just make more. But in order to do that, he would have to go home and run some tests. He and Raf were currently sitting at a table in the high school cafeteria. "So did you hear about that new vigilante in Vegas?" Raf asked. "Yeah I did. So what are your thoughts on him?" Jack responded.
"Well first off, I think he needs a better outfit. His current one is causing his momentum to become a little sluggish. And it doesn't look very heroic either." "You know, I was just thinking myself that he could use a cooler outfit" Jack said. "Second, the reports say that he ties people up in spider webs. The only things I know that can do that are the Web-Shooters I made. And you were the last person to have them. So I gotta ask Jack, what happened to our Web-Shooters?" Jack didn't like lying to Raf, but he also knew that he couldn't tell him the truth. "I don't know; I...uh...lost them."
"You lost them?" Raf said in surprise. "I'm sorry; I had them one day, but I lost them the next. Maybe that spider guy found them and is currently using them. Or failing that, maybe he made his own. You made ours, and you're only twelve. Don't you think it's possible that whoever this vigilante is, he's smart enough to make his own" Jack reasoned. "Spider-Man" a new voice said offhandedly. Jack and Raf turned to see Miko approaching their table. "Huh?" Jack murmured. "His name is Spider-Man" she repeated. "How do you know what his name is?" Jack questioned. "I don't; that's just what I like to call him. I mean, he shoots people with webs, and runs up the sides buildings. It just seemed kind of obvious to me. But in all seriousness, he is awesome" she said. Jack looked between Raf and Miko, and realized that he didn't introduce them yet. "Oh...right, Raf, this is Miko, Miko, this is Raf." "Yeah, we've met. So, can I sit with you guys or what?" Miko asked. "Oh, of course" Jack said politely. She sat down, and the three of them proceeded to talk. They really enjoyed each others company. This went on until it was time for them to leave.
When he got home, Jack got straight to work. He went into his closet and broke out his old chemistry set. The one Uncle Ben got him when he was a kid. Uncle Ben was always so supportive of his fascination with science; and that just made Jack miss him even more. He then began to examine the molecular structure of the webbing in the pellets. He broke everything down piece by piece. He eventually had a working formula; in theory at least. He still had to test it. But he decided to table it until he finished his new costume. When it came to the costume, Jack wanted a mix of comfort and function. So he used the souls of his old tennis shoes for the bottom of the boots. He used a red and blue material for the body. He cut holes in the gloves for the Web-Shooters to stick out of. Since he had spider themed powers, he added two big spider emblems to the front and back of the suit. He included a web pattern design on the red parts of the suit. The last thing he had to work on was the mask. He took the lenses off of the sunglasses he wore, and placed them over the eye holes of the mask. It took him half the night; but by the end of it, he was finally done. His suit was finished, and the web fluid was ready.
Much like any good scientist, he recorded his scientific process and findings. Now if he made any mistakes, he could go back and fix them. He loaded the web fluid into the cartridges and placed them into the Web-Shooters. He pressed the triggers and a thick line of webbing came out. "I DID IT!" Jack shouted in excitement. He tugged on the webbing and saw that it was sturdy. Upon further research, he discovered that the formula can be altered in many ways. He can make it so that the webbing lasts longer, or less. He can make it stronger or weaker, depending on his needs. The last thing he did was put on the suit and the Web-Shooters, and look at himself in the mirror. He not only felt good, he looked good.
An hour later in Vegas, a thief broke into a car with the intent to steal it. But what he failed to notice, was that Jack was in the backseat, now wearing his new suit. He waited for a minute, and then decided to get the thief's attention. "You know, if you're going to seal cars; don't dress like a car thief, man." The thief then turned around in shock. "What are you, a cop?" "Really; you seriously think I'm a cop? A cop in a skin tight red and blue suit? You know, you have the mind of a true scholar" Jack said sarcastically as he blasted him in the face with webbing. "I was actually going for something more along the lines of athletic wear" he said while webbing the door shut. The thief knew he wasn't getting out through the door; so he rolled down the window and crawled out. "Good thinking, use the window" Jack mocked. When the thief looked back in the car, Jack was gone. "Heads up" Jack announced before he threw the guy to the ground. The thief got to his feet and pulled out a knife. "Just let me go" the thief demanded. "Is that a knife?" Jack questioned. "Yes it's a knife" the thief answered. "Oh no, not the knife. Please for all that's good in the world, anything but the knife" Jack said while pretending to be scared. He then stuck the thief's hand to a wall with a glob of webbing. "Oh that's right, I forgot. Webs beats mook with a knife everytime."
"What is this stuff?" the thief panicked. "It's webbing that I developed myself. I don't think you really want to know how hard it was to make. You'd have to be a chemistry major; or at least know your way around a Bunsen burner" he joked. He then proceeded to continue to web the thief up. "That isn't funny" the thief commented. "It is kinda funny. Relax, the webbing only lasts for one hour. Here's hoping that you don't have to go to the bathroom anytime soon" Jack quipped. The thief started yelling for help, so Jack webbed his mouth shut. He then rolled down the thief's sleeve to check for the star tattoo; he didn't have it. "Well lucky you; looks like you're not the one I'm looking for. Now hold still" he said as he poked holes in the webbing on his face so he could breath. Then a cop on a motorcycle showed up. Jack thought he was there to help; but he was suddenly surprised to see him pointing a gun at him. "FREEZE; you in the tights. Don't move" the officer ordered. "Are you serious?" Jack asked disbelievingly while raising his hands in the air. "Who are you?" the cop demanded to know. "It's called a mask for a reason" Jack said as he lowered his arms in annoyance.
Then there was a familiar tingling sensation in the back of Jack's head. He remembered that the researcher at Oscorp described it as an early warning system. Something that could sense imminent or potential danger. She had referred to it as a spider sense. So Jack thought about calling it his Spider-Sense. It sounded like a good a name as any. It was because of this that he had the foresight to dodge every bullet that the cop shot at him. Jack flipped over the cop's head, and then swiped his gun from him. "Well that's gratitude for ya. After all I've done for you guys; and that's how you repay me?" Jack said in an offended tone before he threw the gun away. There were more cops that appeared on the scene. So Jack took off running. He ran and swung through the streets; before he ran into a bus and fell to the ground. He got back up and continued to make his escape. Swinging from multiple web-lines until he was gone.
Jack got home a few minutes before curfew, sporting a black eye. His mother didn't like that very much. "Oh Jack; something's changed in you recently. Where do you go at night. Who does this to you; please tell me." "I'm okay, mom, really. Just please go to sleep" Jack pleaded with her. "NO YOU'RE NOT OKAY. AND I CAN'T SLEEP! Not when my baby is hurting. You haven't been the same since Uncle Ben died. And that's a completely normal reaction. But whatever you're going through; you have to talk about it. If not with me, then with somebody. Because secrets have a cost, Jack. There not for free. Not now, not ever" she said. Then they embrace each other in a long overdue hug, before they went to bed.
Jack was currently sitting at a table, eating dinner with Raf and his family. The next day he saw him, Raf asked Jack if he wanted to have dinner with his family. So now here Jack was, breaking bread with them. The dinner was kinda awkward though; because before Jack went to Uncle Ben's funeral, he had convinced Raf to tell his parents about him taking their credit card. Jack knew that telling them the truth was the right thing to do; and he even offered to pay them back. Raf's dad initially refused. But when Jack insisted, he didn't refuse for a second time. Thankfully, Raf didn't take that much money. So Jack was able to pay them back in one go. "It's nice that you could join us for dinner, Jack. Wouldn't you say so, dad" Raf said sheepishly. "Yes I would; but don't think that gets you off the hook young man. You're still grounded. You're just lucky that you have such a good friend who was willing to pay for your bad choices" Miguel said.
"With respect, Mr. Esquivel. There is a fine line between an error in judgment, and willfully and knowingly making a choice that hurts others. With Raf, I think it was more of an error rather than a choice. I'm not excusing what he did; stealing is wrong. He made a bad call; and he should have known better. I know that, you know that, and most importantly; I'm pretty sure he knows that now. But I also know that he would never do anything to intentionally hurt you. He would never do anything to hurt anyone. Maybe he didn't consider the consequences of his actions. Or maybe he thought he could make it up to you somehow. But just because he did something bad, that doesn't necessarily mean he'll do it again. And he did tell you the truth. If he was truly guilty, then he wouldn't have done that. Raf's a good kid; and you did a great job raising him. You should be proud. And Raf, in the future, if you want something. Don't be afraid to just ask for it. I know you don't have a job yet, but you don't have to steal from people either. If you need money for something, then you can ask your parents for help. Or failing that, you can always come to me, ok?" "Ok Jack" Raf answered.
After that big speech, Mr. Esquivel finally understood the depths of Jack and Raf's friendship. He knew that Jack was a loyal friend who would do anything to help Raf. But he also saw that Jack was a good influence on Raf. "I love this kid. I just fell in love with this kid" Miguel said as he pointed offhandedly at Jack. "Get in line" one of Raf's older sisters said In a flirtatious manner. Jack got nervous as he felt Raf's sister's foot Underneath the table, rubbing up and down on his pant leg. "Hey dad; did they catch that spider guy yet?" one of Raf's brothers asked. "Not yet, but they will. He's an amateur who is assaulting people in the dead of night. He's clumsy, and he leaves clues. But he's still dangerous. It's only a matter of time until he's caught." Jack knew that wasn't true, and he wanted to set the record straight. "He's assaulting people? I don't know about that. I saw the video of him and the car thief; and I think that most people would say that he was...just trying to help out." "Most people would be wrong. If the police wanted the car thief off the streets, he would have been" Miguel said. "So why wasn't he?" Jack asked. Then the room got quiet. No one knew how Miguel would react to Jack's question.
"You're not in law enforcement, so I don't expect you to understand. But either way, I'll enlighten you. You see, the car thief was leading them to the people who run the whole operation. It was Vegas PD's strategy to let the little fish go, so they could catch the big fish. Do you understand now?" "Yes sir. But now that I've heard all this; I think it's pretty obvious that he didn't know that they had a plan. Maybe he just saw a guy who was doing bad, and he wanted to stop him" Jack stated. "You seem to know an awful lot about this. Is there something you're not telling me?"Miguel asked. "No sir; I've just been doing some research. I read about him on the internet, and I think-" "I'm sure that people on the internet have painted him as some sort of hero. But that couldn't be further from the truth" Miguel said while interrupting Jack. "No, I'm not saying he's a hero at all." "Then what are you saying?" Miguel demanded. "I'm saying that I think he stands for what you stand for, sir. Protecting innocent people from bad guys" Jack defended.
"I stand for law and order, for due process. That's justice done the right way. I wear a badge, and this guy wears a mask. He's acting like an outlaw; going after thugs that all look alike, like he's got some kind of vendetta against them. A real hero is someone that others can trust. Someone who can be held accountable for their actions. Now I welcome your appreciation for justice. But he's not a hero, Mr. Darby. And he is not protecting innocent people." Jack could see that there was no way to change the sheriff's mind. So he chose to let it go and stop arguing with him. "I'm sorry if I have offended you, Mr. Esquivel. That was not my intent. Would this be a bad time to ask about my uncle's case?" Jack asked in a sheepish way. "Apology accepted; and not at all. You'll be happy to know that Vegas PD has been making good progress on your uncle's case. They'll catch the killer soon. It'll be okay, son; you'll see." That did little to comfort Jack. Although, hearing what the Sheriff said, did put his mind somewhat at ease.
"You know, if you're interested; I hope you seriously consider a career in law enforcement. I could always use another good deputy" Sheriff Esquivel said. Miguel knew that Jack was a responsible and loyal person. He also knew that it was those same qualities that would make him a fine deputy. "Thanks Mr. Esquivel; but that's not really my thing. I have to go; I have a lot of things to do tonight. Thank you all for having me. It was a lovely dinner" Jack said before he got up to leave. "You're welcome; and let me know if you change your mind." Miguel said that last part as a reference to Jack becoming his deputy.
It was night time; and Jack was now back in Vegas, standing on a rooftop while wearing his suit. No matter what anyone said about him, he would never stop looking for the man who killed Uncle Ben, never. Then he heard a report on his scanner about an armed assailant who was causing trouble at the High Roller ferris wheel. The description of the assailant matched that of the man Jack was looking for. So he swung towards the High Roller, at his fastest speed. Lots of people gathered in front of the ferris wheel. To those people, the source of the commotion could be seen as a man with a gun who was holding a woman hostage. The man was trying to hold the police at bay. He had the gun pressed firmly to the woman's head, and said he was going to kill her if they didn't let him go. The woman in his arms began to cry. She was so afraid that she was going to die; that this would be the last day of her life. Then suddenly, a strand of webbing attached itself to the gun, and yanked it out of the man's hand. "INCOMING!" Jack shouted as he swung in and kicked the man in the head.
The man fell to the ground, and Jack quickly went to restrain him. Before he handed him over to the cops, Jack checked to see if he had the tattoo. He didn't; which meant that this wasn't who he was looking for either. The cops slapped handcuffs on the creep and took him away. They were about to arrest Jack as well. But before they could, another problem arose. "SOMEONE HELP, OUR SON IS TRAPPED!" yelled a woman who was standing next to her husband. Apparently, their son was trapped alone in one of the baskets at the top of the High Roller. They were all supposed to get on together as a family. But when all the commotion started, they were separated; and the basket was now stuck at the top. The operator tried to bring him down, but he couldn't because the controls weren't responding. Then the ferris wheel started to shake violently; forcing the operator to shut off the power.
Jack wasted no time in trying to reach the boy. He jumped from basket to basket until he got to the one the kid was in. He broke the window and entered the basket. The boy he was trying to save, couldn't have been any older than at least ten years old. He had blond hair, blue eyes and he had a backpack with him. "GET AWAY FROM ME!" The boy shouted as he stepped backwards in fear. "Hey, hey, buddy, look" Jack said before he took off his mask. If he was going to save the boy, then he needed him to trust him. "I'm just a normal guy" Jack said. He noticed that the boy was eyeing his mask. "Do you want to hold onto this?" Jack asked. The kid just nodded his head at this question. "Hold my mask" Jack said before he tossed it to the boy. "What's your name?" he asked before he read the name on the boy's backpack. "Mike?" he asked in confirmation. "Yes" the boy answered. "Let's get you back to your parents, Mike" Jack murmured.
Jack's plan was to crawl out the window with Mike; and put him safely back on the ground. He made it out the window. But before he could pull Mike out, the farris wheel began to shake again. Jack could sense that something bad was going to happen. "Mike, hold on to something." Not even one minute after Jack said that, the bolts on the basket came loose, and it started to fall. Jack attached a web-line to another basket, and held onto the falling one. He had managed to stop the basket from falling; but it was taking all of his strength just to hold it, and his arm muscles were begining to burn. Weather from the sheer weight of the object, or from the web-line possibly breaking; Jack knew that sooner or later, he was going to have to let the basket go. "Mike, climb, now" Jack ordered. Mike was hanging on to one of the railings and was to scared to move. "I can't" whimpered. "Yes you can" Jack reassured. They were running out of time, but Jack had an idea that might do the trick. "Put...put it on; the mask. It's gonna make you strong" Jack instructed. Mike got a better grip on the railing before he put the mask on. With a new found sense of courage, Mike climbed up the side of the basket to get to Jack. Just as he was making good progress, Jack started to lose his grip. "Do me a favor; move a little faster, okay bud" Jack said.
Mike finally got to the point where he could reach Jack. But before he could grab onto him; Jack lost his grip and the basket fell. "NO!" Jack shouted before he fired a web-line at Mike. The web-line connected to Mike's torso, and Jack yanked him out of the basket. Knowing that Mike was safe, Jack breathed a sigh of relief. Not long after that, the basket hit the ground with a loud crash. The basket's metal was now dented, and glass went flying everywhere. Thankfully, the police cleared the area before it hit the ground. So no one was hurt. Not only did Jack manage to get his mask back from Mike; but he also made him promise to keep what he saw to him self. Once he knew his secret was safe, he returned Mike to his parents. His mother scooped him up in her arms and hugged him with all her might, while the dad held onto them both. As Jack watched the exchange between parents and child; he thought about his old family dynamic. He missed having both a mom and a dad. Then the mother looked at him and said "Thank you." "Who are you?" the dad asked. Jack didn't know what to say. He never thought about how other people would address him. But it was in this time, that all Jack could think about was the name that Miko called him in the cafeteria. "Spider-Man" Jack said before he swung away.
Sometime later, Jack had made it back to his house. He was currently sitting on his bed while still in his costume, and holding his mask in his hands. He had saved a life today. That boy got to go home with his parents, alive; because Jack had the courage to take action. It was during this realization that he remembered what Uncle Ben tried to teach him. "Your father had a philosophy, a principal really. He believed that if you could do good things for other people, then you had a moral obligation to do those things. That's what's at stake here; not choice, responsibility." With that thought finished, Jack stood up and clutched his mask tighter in his right fist. "I understand now, Uncle Ben. I was selfish, so selfish. And you payed the price. You did, I did, Aunt May did. I will never ever forgive myself for that. I will never ever forget that I could have stopped it. It's all so clear to me now, Uncle Ben. It's like I've been wearing a blindfold and earmuffs all my life; and someone just ripped them off me. I see the world clearly now; and I see what my place is in it. You were right; with power comes responsibility, absolutely. For some reason, I've been given great power; and with great power, then must come great responsibility. I will never let you down again, Uncle Ben."
A week had passed since Jack embraced his destiny as Spider-Man. In that week, quite a few things have happened. Harry started visiting Jasper more frequently. He and Jack hung out a lot. After some time, Jack even introduced him to Raf and Miko. The four of them became fast friends. Because of this, Harry found something in Jasper that he has been looking for; for a long time now. A place to belong; a place with friends. A place where he can feel like everyone else. It took some effort on his part; but he was eventually able to convince his dad to let him go to school in Jasper. Now he could spend most of his days with his new friends. Another thing that changed, was Jack's approach to being a superhero. He wasn't solely focused on catching his uncle's killer anymore. Instead, he was now interested in saving as many lives as he could; and stopping all the bad guys he saw. Protect the innocent and punish the wicked; that sort of thing. Whenever he had free time, he would go to Vegas to do good deeds and thwart crime. This gave him somewhat of a reputation. The people that Spider-Man helped were grateful to him. But he still didn't have the best luck with the cops.
Currently in Vegas, an armored car robbery was taking place. The robber was wearing a blue jacket, sunglasses, and had two metal gauntlets attached to his wrists. Those gauntlets could be used to emit a powerful shockwave. As a result of this, the guards who were driving the truck, were experiencing a lot of pain. Some got knocked down, and some were even bleeding from their noses. "You rent a cops think you make enough an hour to take another hit of that?" The thug said. "Then hand over a couple of bags, and make it snappy. I have a full plate today." "Please just take the money. Take whatever you what." One of the guards said in fear. He just wanted this to be over; and he also knew that dying to protect someone else's money, wasn't worth it. "No; I want you to crawl over here and hand it to me. I want you to give it to me." "Well if you insist" said an unknown voice.
The next thing anyone saw was Spider-Man swing in and punch the thug in the face. "But you walked right into that one" Spidey said. "My nose...you son of a-" the thug said as he clutched his now bloody, and probably broken nose. "Ah ah, language; there could be ladies present. By the way; who are you supposed to be, The Vibrator?" Spidey quipped. The thug slowly got to his feet and got into a fighting position. "You little punk; I'll teach you to make a fool of The Shocker."
Shocker charged up his gauntlets; which triggered Spider-Man's Spider-Sense. "Sorry, but you're not the only one who's busy today, pal. I gotta wrap this up before I'm late for work." So he shot two globs of webbing at the gauntlets. The webbing then caused a feedback loop that made the gauntlets electrocute The Shocker. Shocker fell to the ground, unconscious. "Well that was kinda a let down. My first supervillain fight; and the guy ends up being just some average Joe with souped up bracelets. But I gotta hand it to The Vibrator. If anyone else had fought him, he'd probably come off as pretty tough. Oh no wait; that's right, he called himself The Shocker. But like that's any better. Kind of ironic actually. But either way; I guess the end results left him a bit...shocked. See; now that's funny and also not ironic" Spider-Man said with a snicker. But all joking aside; Spider-Man knew that he should have handled that situation better. Shocker could have really hurt the guards; or any number of the innocent bystanders that were watching from the street.
He should have disarmed Shocker before he knew what hit him. Spidey then chose to turn his attention to the guards. "How are you guys doing? If any of you have a cell phone; now would be the time to call the-" "Just take it" one of the guards said. "What?" Spidey asked. "Just take what you want; take it" the guard said in fear. "What?" Spidey repeated. The guards remained scared out of their minds. He couldn't believe this. He just saved their lives, and they thought that he wanted to rob them. "Thanks, but I don't have any pockets. Call the cops, will ya?" Spider-Man said while he was swinging away.
Jack got back to Jasper just nearly in time to start his shift at KO Burger. His boss wasn't too happy about him showing up with only a minute to spare until his shift began. After that unpleasant exchange between them was done; Jack went to the kitchen and got to work. The day progressed as it usually did. Although, there was this one rather rude customer at the drive thru. "Welcome to KO drive in; where every patty's a knockout. May I take your order?" Jack said. "Two super combos, extra fries" the customer ordered. "Ok, anything else?" Jack asked as he prepared their meal. "Yeah, some advice. How do I get an awesome job like yours?" The customer said before he and his friends started laughing. "So that's two we're not as funny as we think we are combos; with a side of bite me" Jack fought back. Then the laughing stopped. "What'd you say?" the customer replied in anger. "Five fifty nine, sir; at the window" Jack said into the microphone. The customer drove up to the window and swiped the food when Jack wasn't looking.
"Hey, now I have to pay for that" Jack huffed in annoyance. After that encounter, his shift ended relatively the same as it always did. When work ended, he got a call from his mom. "Hey mom; I just got off. No, I'm not going to the dance. Experience suggests I should never cut a rug. Unless I'm installing carpet. Be careful; seriously, this is Jasper." Just then, Jack caught a glimpse of a beautiful motorcycle that was sitting in the parking lot. The main color of the motorcycle was blue with a touch of pink. "I love you" Jack said in appreciation; while forgetting that he was still on the phone with his mom. "Uh, I love you too mom; I gotta run." Then Jack hung up his phone and approached the motorcycle.
"Hello beautiful. Where have you been all my life. Nice." Jack said while caressed the bike. He then straddled it "It may take a few KO paychecks. But I am going to own a ride like you someday. After I pay off the rest of my debts, of course. I'm still sending money to that guy with the hole in his roof. Web fluid is getting pretty expensive. And then there's the bus fair. Between all that, it's a wonder I'm not broke already" Jack said with a sigh. "Are you talking to your motorcycle?" an unknown voice said. Jack looked up to see that it was Sierra and one of her friends. "My motorcycle, no. I mean...yes, yes it's mine. But no I'm not talking to- Well to you I...I am. How's it going, Sierra. I hope you don't take this the wrong way. But if you didn't have a boyfriend, then I might have offered to take you for a spin sometime." "Do you know this guy?" Sierra's friend asked. "Yes she knows me. We've gone to the same school since we were children. And we have homeroom together. I'm Jack, Jack Darby." Not two seconds after saying that, Jack's Spider-Sense went off. He turned his head to see the blinding headlights of two purple cars. The cars drove towards Jack. But then the motorcycle started to move and jerk around on it's own; like it was possessed or something. It drove on one wheel towards the two cars; with Jack screaming and holding on for dear life. It was all he could think of doing in the moment.
The motorcycle drove in between the cars before it returned to two wheels and raced down the road. The two cars gave chase. "Do not let go" a feminine voice said. "Who said that?" Jack questioned. The motorcycle found its way to an ally; where it came to a stop. Jack got off and said "What are you?" The motorcycle turned to face him. "I don't exist. Tell anyone about me, and I will hunt you do." Taking the hint; Jack was now running down the ally. Then the two cars split up; with on chasing the motorcycle, and the other chasing Jack. "I don't even know her" Jack said while running from the car. Although looking back on it; if he really wanted to get away, he could have just crawled up the side of a building. Or maybe he could have just as easily swung away. But instead, here he was; trying his best to outrun a car. The motorcycle jumped over the car; and was now driving alongside Jack. "Hop on" she said. Jack did so; and they continued to evade their pursuers. The cars popped out some weird looking guns; and opened fire on them. They then chased them onto a freeway. "Why are those guys shooting at us?" Jack questioned. "There's no us, kid. And there no guys."
A yellow and black muscle car made it's way onto the scene. It gave aid by slamming the other two cars into the wall. "Friend of yours?" Jack asked. "Family" she answered. Jack and the motorcycle kept driving until they came to a roadblock. So they jumped the railing; and drove downhill until they landed in an empty water canal. Jack wasn't aware of this at first; but he later noticed that Raf was also in the canal, playing with his RC car. "Whoa" Raf said in amazement. "You have no idea" Jack responded before he got off the motorcycle. The two cars entered the canal; and transformed into two giant robots with purple and black armor, and one red visor that went across both their respective heads. Raf and Jack could hear the sound of what sounded like shifting metal behind them. So they turned around to find that the motorcycle had transformed into a female looking giant robot.
"This ends here, cons" she said before she charged them. The three robots engaged each other in mortal combat; while Jack and Raf watched. "What are they?" Raf inquired. "Talking cars that turn into robots. Or the other way around" Jack answered the best he could. "This...is...for...Cliff" she said in between each punch she delivered to one of the con's faces. The con recovered; and when she tried to create distance between them, one of the cons hit her in the chest with laser fire. She landed on her back, hard; and then skidded to an eventual stop.
Jack thought about helping her. But he had no experience fighting giant robots. Plus, he didn't think he could slip into his costume without anyone noticing. Thankfully, the yellow and black muscle car from before, showed up to help. It jumped from a bridge above, transformed into another giant robot, and landed in the canal. He then delivered a powerful punch to one con's faces. The yellow and black robot then took a step back. He then heard a crunching sound. When he lifted his foot, he saw that he stepped on Raf's toy car. But what made this robot different from all the others, is that he couldn't communicate with words. Instead, he Spoke with beeps. He gave a few beeps that meant he was sorry for crushing Raf's car. "No problem, really" Raf reassured him. Then the robot was shot to the ground, with blasters pointed at him. "LEAVE HIM ALONE!" Raf yelled.
This caused the cons to turn their attention to him and Jack. That made Raf immediately regret what he said. "Please" Raf said in fear. "Bad call, Raf" Jack stated. One of the cons chased them until they reached a storm drain. They ran through the big pipe, in an attempt to escape. The con tried to reach for them. But when Raf wasn't looking, Jack fired a glob of webbing at the con's visor. It slowed him down; but what ultimately stopped the con, was when the yellow and black robot yanked him out off the way. "Thank you" Raf said to the robot. "Don't look back" Jack instructed. "Jack, what did we just see?" Raf asked as they started running again. "No idea, and I'm not sure I want to find out" Jack replied.
The next day at school; Jack and Raf met up in the parking lot. "Raf, hey. Look, let's just keep this between us and forget anything ever happened, ok?" They heard a horn honk; which signaled the approach of the same yellow and black muscle car that they saw yesterday. "Oh, not again" Jack murmured. Then the car opened its passenger door. The car gave off a few beeps. "It wants us to get in?" Jack guessed. "No, just me" Raf said. "How do you know that?" Jack asked. "It said so." "What?" Jack asked. To find out that his friend could suddenly speak in beeps, was surprising to say the least. "Yours is over there" Raf gestured to the motorcycle behind Jack. The same motorcycle from before. Jack tried to protest to this. But before he could say much of anything; Raf had already gotten in the car and drove away. Jack just wanted to walk away from all of this. So that's what he did. He walked to the ally behind the school. It didn't take long for the motorcycle to catch up with him. The motorcycle was now facing him. But this time, she had a rider with her. "Relax; I just want to talk to you" she said. "Don't you mean you and your new friend?" Jack asked. Then the rider just disappeared, like a hologram. "Kid, there's a lot you don't understand."
"Oh no; I get it. The first rule of robot fight club, is you don't talk about robot fight club. What you need to understand, is that I don't want a bunch of crazy talking vehicles following me around, trying to get me killed. I've got enough responsibilities to deal with as is." She then transformed and kneeled down to the eye level with him. "Look, Jack, is it?" "That's right; and you are?" he asked. "Arcee. And your personal safety is exactly why Optimus Prime has requested your presence." "Optimus who?" Jack questioned. "You may be in danger because you are one of the few. One of the only who have ever seen us" Arcee said. "Dude; what are you waiting for. Go with" a new voice said. The new voice was revealed to belong to none other than Miko. She had seen everything. "Scrap" Arcee said in annoyance.
Raf, Jack and Miko were all being driven down a desert highway by the respective vehicles that picked them up. Miko was riding on the back of Arcee. "WOOHOO!" Miko screamed while holding onto Jack. "And why exactly are we taking her?" Jack inquired. It wasn't that Jack disliked being around Miko. It was quite the opposite, in fact. He really cared about her; and he enjoyed spending time with her. He just didn't feel comfortable about putting her in danger, not if it could be avoided. "Rules" Arcee replied. They were all driving towards a huge rock formation. Jack was a bit worried. But then the rocks moved to reveal a secret door to a hidden passage. Jack wasn't gonna lie; that was some real Batman stuff. After they went through the Batcave like entrance; they ended up in a command center of an abandoned missile silo. Where they were then greeted by two other giant robots. One had green and black armor; and was a bit bulkier than the other robots that have been seen so far. The other one was a mix of orange and white armor. They got off/out of their vehicles; and let them return to their alt forms. "I thought there were two?" the orange and white one said. "Haven't you heard; humans multiply" Arcee said offhandedly.
The kids introduced themselves; and so did the robots. The green and black one's name was Bulkhead. The yellow and black one was Bumblebee. Which left the orange and white one for last. His name was Ratchet. Miko instantly took a liking to Bulkhead. She asked him question after question. Those questions ranged from, what kind of vehicle he turns into. What kind of music he liked. How much he weighed. She also wanted to know how much damage he could do. Bulkhead was a little overwhelmed. She asked him multiple questions before he could even answer the first one. Raf also had a question. He wanted to know who built them. But Ratchet just scoffed at this. He found it to be a rather tediously annoying question. The kids heard thundering footsteps behind them. This made them turn around; only to find the biggest robot of them all. His armor was a mix of both red and blue. This was none other than Optimus Prime himself. The heroic leader of the robots. "We are autonomous robotic organisms, from the planet Cybertron. Also known as Autobots" Optimus stated.
The scientists in both Jack and Raf, were currently geeking out. It's not every day that you get to meet alien robots from another world. This was really cool. "Why are you here?" Jack asked. "To protect your planet from the Decepticons" Optimus answered. "The jokers who tried to bump us off last night" Arcee clarified. "Ok...why are they here" Jack questioned. Optimus then kneeled down to be eye level with the humans. "A fair question, Jack. In part, they are here because our planet is uninhabitable. Ravaged centuries by civil war" said Optimus. "Why were you fighting a war?" Raf wondered out loud. "Foremost, over control of our world's supply of energon. The fuel and lifeblood of all Autobots and Decepticons alike." Then Optimus began to tell them the story behind the war. "The combat was fierce, and endured for centuries. in the beginning, I fought alongside one whom I considered a brother. But in war, ideals can be corrupted. And it was thus, that Megatron lost his way."
"Is there going to be a quiz?" Miko asked in a bored yet rude fashion. "So what does Megatron, or any of this, have to do with us?" asked Jack. "Megatron has not been seen or heard from in some time. But if his return is imminent, as I fear. It could be catastrophic" Optimus responded. Jack thought he had enough to deal with by just being Spider-Man. But now it turns out that he has to face evil giant alien robots who want to turn earth into a battlefield. Too bad all of this was happening just when he was starting to get good at this whole superhero thing.
AN: This may be one of the longest, if not the longest chapter I've ever written. I wanted to cover Spider-Man's origins. But I also had to find a way to incorporate it into episode one of Transformers Prime. I gave Jack the suit from the first Amazing Spider-Man movie, because I always really liked that suit. But he will get other suits, and upgrade his equipment as the story progresses. There were also a lot of things I didn't do in this chapter. The ideas I had in my head, were a lot different than what I actually did. For instance, the original idea was for Raf to be the one to make all of Jack's gadgets, and crack the web fluid formula. The dinner scene at Raf's house was supposed to play out with Raf mentioning to Jack that he figured out the formula for web fluid. Then Jack would have gone to Raf's lab and taken pictures of/memorized it. But then I had a different idea.
I couldn't decide if I wanted to make Jack smart, or if I just wanted to make it easier for him to learn things. So I just decided to do both. Because the thought of an unintelligent Spider-Man, didn't appeal to me. That's part of what makes him so cool. I wish I was that smart. I read on Wikipedia that Jack Darby was smart. But they never specified weather it was book smarts, or street smarts. So I took some liberties. You may have noticed a bunch of Batman references In this chapter. Well there's a reason for that. I once told a fellow author that the one hero that I would never make Jack, was Batman. Because I'm not that good of a writer; and I have no desire to make Jack suffer like that. He's too good of a person to have to go through something like that. There are differences between Batman and Spider-Man, to be sure. He doesn't have Batman's resources, discipline, money; and their approach is completely different.
Spidey is more of a friendly, working class hero. But there are more than a few similarities between the two, as well. They're both motivated by the loss of a loved one. They both have cool gadgets. Both of them also feel a responsibility to do good. I thought it would be cool if Jack learned from Batman. He is one of my favorite heroes. It also won't be the last Batman reference in this story.
I also thought it would be a good idea to immortalized Stan Lee in this story. So I added him in as the wise old man that Jack and his family share a connection with. Also, just a friendly reminder; don't go out of your way to be cruel in the reviews. If you don't like something, then that's all you have to say. Be honest, but fair.
STAY AWESOME!