Gwen swung through the streets, already preparing for Captain America to give her a stink eye for what had happened.
Yeah she was meant to lay low but really it's not her fault some mad man likes setting off explosions and trying to kill people. She was trying but, when you're a super powered teen you get an itch that usually needs scratched, in the form of beating criminals black and blue and making bad jokes all day long.
Maybe MJ was right and she should try dating instead.
And she was here already. Landing on the rooftop, the white clad spider made her way over to the blue and red hero. The older masked woman not even turning towards her as she stared down the street with narrowed eyes.
"Ugh…I'm here cap, is it about mysterio because I didn't mean for it to go that way and no one got hurt!" Gwen spoke, stutting out anything to save face while the woman across her continued to give her the silent treatment.
"Honestly spider-woman, I told you to lay low but that wasn't ever going to happen was it" cap spoke, her tone sharp and Gwen barely stopped herself from flinching as the hero turned to her with a narrowed eyed look.
Only to shake her head as she regarded the spider with a softer expression.
"You did good out there, Mysterio has upped his game with this stunt and now has the attention of SHIELD for almost causing a massacre in the streets" Cap said as Gwen blinked at her words. Did she just get a compliment from Captain America.
Was the world ending?
"But while that can be sorted out later, we have to talk about something else involving the villain" she added, getting serious as Gwen listened to the older woman carefully. "Two days ago our agents found evidence of mysterio working with SILK on something, he's been laying low and stealing a lot of stuff around New York for a while now, this has been his biggest appearance since he disappeared from prison" she explained as Gwen narrowed her eyes.
"Why would he be working for SILK of all people, human experiments and weapons of mass destruction isn't his normal MO" she asked as she tried to remember any time the fish bowl wearing man tried to just cause mindless destruction before.
"We know, it's why we think SILK has offered him something or has some dirt on him to make him work for them, either way he's a target now and I have a mission that I need your help with" Cap said as she caught the young heroine by surprise.
"Wait what? Cap I don't work for SHIELD and I'm still considered a murder for….yeah" Gwen trailed off as the older woman nodded sadly towards her.
"This mission is underground for the most part, and while I'd love to have you join my team you made it clear last time that you were a solo act" Cap said as Gwen shrugged in response. There wasn't much else to it she didn't feel right working for SHIELD and their mission tented to get very…messy in regards to how they captured the villains in the end.
"But I need your help on this one, SHIELD agents are stretched thin around the world and SILK are gearing up for something, I'd owe you a favor for helping out this one time" she finished as Gwen looked at her carefully.
"Okay, you got a deal, when, where and what are we doing?" Gwen listed off as Cap smiled at the younger woman. She really was eager to help when the situation demanded it.
"I'll send the details tonight, we are hitting a base just outside of town by an abandoned mine, intel says it houses some of the more dangerous experiments and your assistance in keeping them controlled would give us enough time to gather info and destroy the place for good" Cap explained with a grin as Gwen nodded along with her.
"So…is that it? We hitting it now or can I go get some food?" Gwen asked, only half joking about grabbing a bite to eat. She was hungry after that fight with mysterio.
"Two more things, the first one is a bit more personal and the other has to do with your new…friend" Cap said as Gwen blinked, frowning at the woman's words, 'what kind of personal she talking about?'
"No easy way to say it, SHIELD did some digging in regards to the Lizard situation and found that someone had changed a lot of the information that was meant to be made public" she explained as Gwen felt a pit grow in her stomach. "Gwen, you didn't kill Peter Parker, he died due to the Lizard serum in his systems, as soon as he injected himself he was a dead man walking" she said as Gwen felt herself stumble at her revelation.
"What…what does that mean cap, what are you trying to say?" she asked, sitting herself down on the edge of the roof as cap stood beside her, kneeling down and looking the masked women in her eyes.
"It means that all the evidence we gathered can be made public, and spider-woman can absolved of all the charges placed on her…you wouldn't have to worry about being hunted down by the police Gwen" she explained slowly as Gwen narrowed her eyes at the women.
"In exchange for dragging Peter's memory through the mud and painting a target on my aunts and uncles backs" she all but snarled as Cap sighed in return.
"That won't happen, the moment the data is revealed we will be putting the Parkers under surveillance for their safety and will be watching how the information will be disrupted throughout the news networks" she explained as Gwen sighed. This was getting way too heavy for her.
"Can…can I think about it?" she asked softly, watching as Cap retrieved a small USB drive from her pocket.
"It was always going to be your choice Gwen, this is all of the data we have if you need to look through it and make your choice okay" she explained, handing the young woman the drive as she accepted it slowly.
"Now for the other issue" that made Gwen groan at the thought of more issues right now. Isn't this enough for her already? "Your new friend, I would like to meet him if possible" Cap said as Gwen raised an eyebrow at her. The only time people got to meet Cap was either the business end of her shield or being offered a shady job working for SHIELD.
She didn't like the thought of either happening to the dragon that helped save all those people back there.
"I don't really know how to help there, I know his name, its firewall by the way, and that's about it" Gwen explained as Cap regarded her with a look. " What? I was a bit busy fighting and then trying to see if he wouldn't bleed out on me instead of getting his number" she added as the older woman shook her head slightly.
"In my experience, you end up attracting some odd attention, so if you see him again extend an offer to meet me at a SHIELD base, I would like to get his story on why he is here and hopefully make sure he's not linked with any of our current issues with criminals" Cap explained as Gwen let her head fall into her hands.
Way too much going on right now for her to keep track of. But she would do her best, after she got some pizza and was allowed to go home and rest her feet for five minutes.
"Anyway, I'll get out of your hair now, I'll be in contact soon for a time to meet before we hit the base" Cap said, making her way towards the other end of the building as Gwen looked up towards the skies in wonder.
When did her life get this chaotic?
Down on street level, the dirty streets of hell's kitchen were in full swing. The bars were open the sunlight was fading and the woman and men were out and about, some looking to get lucky other looking to make a name for themselves and other looking to make money off of someone else.
Legally or not they didn't care, no one did in this side of the town that's for sure.
Down one of the alleyways, Blacks eyes fluttered up and he found himself lying in another pile of rubbish, his hand resting in a p[uddle of what he hoped was just water as he rolled off the pile of trash bags. Landing on the ground with a thud as the air escaped his lungs.
Pain erupted from his chest, the boy looking down to see a layer of blood having dried up on his chest no signs of anymore bleeding happening but damn it hurt a lot to move.
Rolling onto his knees, Black tried to climb to his feet, barely getting one foot up before he fell to the side, hitting the wall of the alleyway as he groaned in pain.
This really wasn't his day was it.
First the building falling on him, then the fight with that fish bowl wearing mad man. Meeting that woman in white that gave him horrible headaches when she spoke.
Nothing was making any sense and he really was getting tired of it.
Before he could think on any of this further a few voices made the boy grow silent, pressing himself against the wall to hide in the shadows further. Barely able to make out the few figures standing at the entrance to the alleyway, Black was half expecting them to walk over and attack him.
With how his day was going he wouldn't be surprised.
Instead they just stood there, looking like a bunch of thugs, smoking and drinking, unaware that he could overhear them.
"You wanna hit that place then" one of them spoke roughly, looking towards the other two as one of them laughed at his question.
"Of course, those bitches need a good listen in manners, I didn't even get to touch one of them" the second one spoke, pulling out a knife from his jacket pocket. "I'll enjoy cutting one of them up and making an example of them" he grumbled, as the other two nodded.
"Good, they didn't pay for their protection this week so…one woman for each of us should be enough don't you think" the first one added, Looking between the other two as they started talking about what they were going to do to the bitches they catch tonight.
With every word they spoke Black was getting more and more sick of the sight of them, barely biting back a growl when they talked about openly killing some girls and how much fun it was going to be to have fun with the rest of them.
Those fucking animals just made him want to rip their arms off.
Where did that come from?
Before he could think on it further the three thugs had left, leaving him in the alleyway as he tried to think of what to do. The police, could they help him? Did he have enough time? Would they even care? So many things to think about…before Black got more lost in his thoughts a familiar reflection caught his attention.
Looking down at the puddle in front of him, the teen was greeted by the sneering fangs of Homan, its red eyes narrowed back at him as a feeling of anger pulse through the back of his head.
Homan…wanted too help?
Another feeling came and went, the golden coloured beasts nodding slowly as its image shimmered in the water before disappearing, leaving Black to stare back at himself for once.
Could he do it though, the thing with firewall was a fluke, an accident, if he didn't do it so many people were going to get killed.
He…guessed it was kind of the same situation right now wasn't it?
Taking out the card with Hamon on it, Black pressed the card to his chest, the feeling of rage and lightning overtaking him as his body faded from view, disappearing into the alleyway as the sun set on hell kitchen.
Up above a golden figure faded into view, its bone like rib cage raising and falling slowly with each shallow breath it took. Its arms were curled in around itself, the large golden bone-like shields attached to them, the edges shaped enough to rip through steel like it was paper. A long thin bone like tail paid out behind it, curling slowly as the beast's horned head slowly turned.
Red eyes glowing in the low light as it found its prey. The three thugs plumbing down the street towards their targets for the night.
Unaware of the monster that unfurled its thin tattered wings, taking off after them with a fanged grin.
Hamon couldn't wait to hear them scream before he snuffed out their lives like the bugs they were.