Hands of Fate

by RGM-96S Stark Jegan

Spider-man has to make and live with his choices in a new world. The curse of power consumes all.

8. Nothing is Absolute

A/N: I do not own Spider-Man or Legend of Korra

XXXxxx Police Headquarters: Front Courtyard xxxXXX

It was a sunny afternoon at the precinct. The reporters and their camera crews were speaking in an unrecognizable murmur across the courtyard. The winter chill was coming to Republic City as was the thicker clothing outside. Their attention was all on the podium placed on the front steps of the building. Chief Beifong made her way to the podium and the press got jittery as she walked over to the podium and started the press conference. The people deserved answers for all the craziness these past few weeks. She wondered how her mother would have handed the situation. It was hard to believe that her mother dealt with worse things than Amon and Spider-Man. She cleared her mind and prepared to take questions. "Yes you." She pointed to an older reporter.

"What steps are going to use to apprehend Amon? And is it true that he has the ability to take a person's bending away?" He asked.

"The hunt for Amon will be spear headed by Councilmen Tarrlok's taskforce." The tried her best not to grimes. The thought of leaving public enemy number one to that glory hound unsettled her, but orders were orders. "Several eye witnesses' accounts, including the Avatar, confirm Amon's abilities." Beifong kept her face stone cold as he uttered that truth. Their fears were proven to be fact. She pointed to another reporter. "Go ahead."

"Are the stories on the Spider-Man's antics true? And what is the police's stance on the vigilante?" The woman in torques asked.

Lin frowned at the mention of the Spider-Man. His mention was expected but still irritating. She wanted to end the press conference with the would-be hero but sooner was better than later. "The vigilante who calls himself 'Spider-Man' is regretfully true. Our stance with him and his actions are the same as any other citizen who takes the law into his own hands. I am issuing an arrest warrant for Spider-Man. We urge anyone with any information to come forward and report it to us." The group of officials erupted with a volley of questions. She knew only a handful of witnesses would come forward with helpful information. People tend to side with the 'celebrities' plus no one likes cops unless they're needed. It still felt good to get the word out on the web-head once and for all. The council green lit the warrant in a hart beat. She enjoyed seeing Tenzin bend to her impressive argument.

"But Chief Beifong, the man's a hero right? Why arrest a guy like that?" The reporter didn't wait to be called upon. He was clearly a fan.

Beifong heard him through all the noise and silenced the crowed. She looked at him with scary conviction. "Innocent people don't run from the law or traps around in a mask! This press conference is over." She was a hair away from storming off the podium but years of discipline prevented it. She walked back into the building and finally start going after Spider-Man. The conference was a condition the terms for her request for a warrant. She wanted to go after Amon but Tarrlok tied her hands. Saikon was waiting for his commanding officer at the entrance.

"That went better than I thought." Saikhan said.

She sighed and addressed her subordinate. "Yeah, I'm just happy that we got the formalities over with and now we can focus on the matter at hand." The two walked into a large meeting room with a few of the desk jockeys piling up and sorting files. Lin walked over to a stack and picked up a rough artist rendering of Spider-Man. "This is all the information we have on Spider-Man and Amon?"

"Yes ma'am. We dug up a few things on Spider-Man and less on Amon. It's like we're trying to catch a couple of ghosts Chief." The female staffer said.

"What do we have on Spider-Man so far? Prioritize the newer information." Beifong ordered.

"Not much outside of Captain Saikhan original report….wait something did come up a few days ago." He sifted through the police reports and pulled out a police report of a mugging. He handed Beifong a picture of two muggers being cut down from an alleyway.

"What's new about this?" Saikon asked while taking a look at the police photo. "Looks like the same M.O and tactics to me."

"The difference is that our perps weren't benders captain. This rules out any chi-blocker claims followed by these anonym's tips we got." The desk worker handed Chief Beifong the notes from that conversation. "Couple of equalist sympathizers had a change of heart after Amon's demonstration last week." She preemptively answered Beifong.

"Anything else from theses converts?"

"Yes. Apparently the Spider-Man engaged Amon that night."

"The Avatar left that little bit get past the report. Who won?" Lin asked.

"Amon, they say Spider-Man couldn't lay a finger on him ma'am." The desk jockey said. Her words were followed by disbelief and shock. Chief Beifong and Captain Saikhan saw Spider-Man's handy work first hand. To hear that a non-bender got the better of him in hand to hand combat was improbable to say the least.

Lin already put two and two together. The people who saw this display from Amon would get emboldened and join Amon's ranks. This would definitely make her job harder. Spider-Man's work was sloppy and it left them plenty of evidence to work with. But the more they knew the scarier it got. He ripped doors off their hinges and regularly overpowered benders with brute force. He has the agility of a mongoose dragon and the strength of a goat gorilla. "What do we got on Amon?"

"We got his origin story, though we don't know if it's legitimate. He says that he was born on a small farm and his family was killed by some fire benders for extortion." He read the document off to his boss.

"Look into it and see if it's true. Listen up people!" The group of investigators and office workers dropped what they were doing and gave Chief Beifong their full attention. "I know that we have a lot on our plate these days but I have faith in all of your abilities. These are trying times and the people are looking to use to bring order to all of the madness. We'll put together a team to investigate the equalists and help Tarrlok's vanity project."

"Excuse me chief, but I thought Amon was off limits."

"The council didn't say anything about investigating the madman. Make no mistake people, when the fight gets serious we'll be the ones called in to take down Amon. We'll just have to settle with Spider-Man for now. Get to it!" Beifong's words electrified the room. Everyone moved with a purpose as their spirits were lifted. One of the office staffers walked up to the chief. "What's up?"

"All this call to action stuff is great and all boss but protocol dictates that any major law enforcement move has to have an official name attached to it." The guy was mousey in front of Beifong, especially after such a rousing speech. But he was right to tell her.

"Alright then, we'll call it…operation spider slayer. That should please the pencil pushers." Lin just pulled the name out of the hat. It didn't really matter to her.

"Very good Chief." He wrote the name down for the records and archives.

The desk jockey ran the names to records and Beifong turned to Saikhan. "Captain, let's go we're going for a little field trip." She told him. "And your driving."

"O.K. where to?" Saikhan adjusted his service cap.

"I'll tell you when we're in the car."

XXXxxx Triple Threat Triad Headquarters xxxXXX

"I can't believe you're going through with this. We're walking into a viper bat pit." Saikhan head was on a swivel as he parked at the shady block.

"Their organization is crippled and they have info as Spider-Man that we need." Beifong said. The fear of the Triple Threats was in the farthest reaches of her mind. The thugs had valuable intel and the wall crawler and no wanna be tuff guy in a cheap suit was going to stop her from getting it. She hopped out of the police cruiser and made her way to the kicked in front door. "Let's go."

"Right behind you." He walked one pace away from Beifong.

The door was wide open and the tow cops walked in. They snapped into fighting stances when they saw a group of Triple Threats lounging about. The impromptu visit caught the thugs off guard and the sloppily got into fighting stances. A house but loud voice stopped theim in their tracks. "Easy boys show the lady and her pet some respect." Zolt's back was turned to the window. His attire was a far cry from what he usually wore. His trademark suit was replaced by a simple brown trench coat with a matching fedora and sun glasses.

"But boss!" The Water bender in white protested but he was quickly shot down.

"Snake, take your boys and wait outside." Zolt ordered.

"Right boss, let's go." Snake and his team just got an early release for good behavior. The Triple Threat waterbender. Wonds have healed for the most part except for a large gash that cut too deep. The Spider-Man's work would always be plastered on his mug. He obayed his boss even after Zolt lost his bending he still respected him enough to follow the guy who made him. It was the least he could do was see Zolt out of the city.

"Shin, keep getting that thing we were talking about and don't mess it up!" Zolt ordered his lacky. He nodded his head and walked out with the rest of the remaining triad goons. He spoke to his guests. "I was wondering when you'd show up. Come to dance on my empires grave?"

"No, I've come to ask you about your run-ins with the Spider-Man. I know you've fought him to some extent. And I'd hardly call what you had an empire Zolt." Beifong went straight to the point.

"I don't know any about some Spider guy Ms. Beifong." Zolt played coy. "I got nothing to say to police chief Beifong but I may have a few words for Lin though."

Beifong knew where this was going. "Captain, go outside and watch the car."

"You sure about that chief?" Bender or not he didn't want to leave her alone with Zolt.

"Are you going deaf, go!" She yelled at the captain and he double timed it out to the car. They were the only ones in the building. "Happy."

"I'm not actually." Zolt grabbed an overturned chair and sat down. "You want to get a statement on that Amon guy right? All I can tell you is that guy is trouble. He's going to make the bug look like yesterday's news." He turned away in shame as he continued. "And the answers yes, he cant take anyone's bending away."

Lin got agitated by the washed up mob boss as he regurgitated facts she already knew. "I don't come to this dump so you could sulk and give me stuff I already know!" Her face hid most her frustrations.

Zolt cocked an eyebrow. "So you're after the bug then?" A smile cracked through his downtrodden face for the first time in days. A bought of laughter come next. Lin couldn't tell if it was humorous or insane cackling. The laughter died downed and Zolt continued. "What, you and the rest of the coppers jealous of him or something?"

"Stop screwing around and start talking." Lin's tone was dead serious and it unnerved Zolt a bit.

Zolt got up and walked over to his old desk and picked something up. "You know I've been at this…occupation since your mom was running the show right? I've been on top for twenty years and there wasn't a dang thing any of you at the council of the police could do to stop my operations."

"Does this walk down memory lane have a point?" Beifong inwardly cursed to herself. Everything Zolt said was true. She wanted to bust this guy for years but there was never enough evidence to pin any charges on him.

"My point Ms. Beifong is that some freak in a costume did more damage to my organization then twenty odd years of Police work ever did."

Beifong openly scowled at Zolt. She didn't like anyone bad mouthing her people. She could have slapped the cuffs on him and put him in a holding cell to teach him some manners. But she had to hold her side of the unspoken agreement. "And how in the world did he do that? What are his motives?"

"I don't know why he does it but I got a good idea on how he does it. I assume your lackey told you about the Spider's debut right? Snake tells me he was there."

"Yeah, they said a couple of your guys were hustling a shop and Spider-Man swapped down and kicked the ever loving snot out of them. I'm guessing the guy with the scar was the one who took a trip through that front window." Beifong smirked

"I don't have 'boys' Beifong. I'm an honest business man who gives the so called bad apples a second chance. I just heard all of these stories from reliable sources is all." Zolt made sure to cover his tracks just to be safe.

"Can those reliable sources give me something I don't know?" Beifong felt dirty talking to a known felon like this but it had to be done. "Maybe they can tell me what went down at that little warehouse of yours. I've gotten reports of bunch of knocked out triad enforcers."

Zolt pondered his answer and wondered if Beifong would go back on her wards. He was confident in his lawyer and Beifong's got bigger problems at the moment. He gave her a straight answer. "That masked punk was bad for business. So I managed to get the Red Monsoon's and the Agni Kai's on the same page."

"How did you manage that?" Lin wasn't expecting that. They couldn't hold the gangsters for long and they were all tight lipped so got nothing from them. Forensics thought the three gangs got into some kind of fight and the equalists came in and subdued them.

"I don't know, I must've got lucky. So anyway, I come up with to get the drop on the Spider. I lure him in with your typical damsel in distress into the warehouse. A few of my sources tell me they had the Spider dead to rights but then the equalist showed up and spoiled the whole plan." Zolt didn't take any pride in his story. After all he gambled and lost big.

"So that's what happened that night." Lin was astonished by Zolt's story. This house call was proving to be more fruitful then she ever hoped. The whole exchange was very telling on the Spider-Man. "Can you elaborate on the damsel in distress move."

"Oh that broad, I just picked her up from some classified on the paper, her name was Minger or Anger or something like that. I can't remember her name to be honest with you. So she pretended to be chased by some Agni-Kai jerk and the Spider swooped down and saved her. She lured the Spider into the trap and you know the rest." He got up and fixed his cap. " I gotta get going if I'm going to catch the next boat to Ember Island."

"Can you give me anything else, anything at all?" Beifong asked for good measure.

"Yeah actually, the bug likes to get perched on the rooftops and ambush his prey. He tried to pull that crap in the warehouse, didn't work out so well in close quarters." He took out his gold pocket watch and walked to the back door. "Here's some free advice Beifong. Don't pull that good cop garbage on Amon. If you ever get in his sights go for the jugular." He walked out of his old command center and the city. He yelled for his boys and they promptly rolled the car and left the premises.

Zolt cooperation gaver her valuable information on the Spider-Man. His tactics and exploits were clear but there was still question that tugged on her curiosity. Why was he doing this? He is human, for the most part, so why was he doing this? He had nothing to gain from attacking the triads or the equalist, so why was he doing this? She put the question aside and focused on the task at hand. She had to relay the information to the investigation team pronto. She walked out of the former den of thieves with hast and slammed the car door open; much to Saikhan's shock. "Let's go Saikhan!"

"Yes ma'am." He started the car and started driving back to head quarters. "Did you get anything out of the old man?"

"Yeah, the info was good. I'll fill you in with the rest of the group." Beifong turned back to the window watching the city passing her by. She questioned her ability to protect the city her mother helped build. There was the superhuman Spider-Man on one corner and Amon on the other. It was hard to believe but this was her reality. Busting triad thugs would be child's play compared to this side show.

XXXxxx Unknown Space (May use this later) xxxXXX

Peter awoke in an empty stone city. The architecture was completely different from Republic City. It was clearly a city built well before this world's industrial age. He stood at the foot of a large public stair case leading to a large centralized building at the end of it. Its lights were on and smoke was puffing out of its chimney. The fountain at the building's front face was still active even though no one was around. The world was quite and the only thing audible was the sound of his footsteps on the cobble stone steps. He sighed and held his head in a slump. "I'm getting real tired of these wild dreams." He complained as he came to the building's large decorative doors. A small bell rang as he walked into some kind of café. "Hello! Is anybody here?" He called out through the empty building.

He was surprised that someone answered back. "Yes young man I'm here. I'll be right with you." He laughed behind the small bar area and he was out of peters view. "This tea isn't going to make itself you know."

"I suppose it can't hurt." Peter absently said while making his way to one of the bar stools. He was careful to avoid the fancy green and golden dragon rug. Dream or not Aunt May's ediquite lessons would not be ignored; it was burned in his brain after all. He took his seat and leaned on the bar."Slow day huh?"

"Not really, you are the guest of honor after all. I closed the shop to everyone else Do you wan't a particular flavor of tea?" The old man asked while still fiddling in the kitchen.

"Guest of honor?" Peter repeated the puzzling title but quickly dismissed them. "Actually, I wouldn't mind a cup of coffee. It'll help me wake up.

"Coffee? I'm sorry young man but I'm not familiar with the beverage. I only have water and tea so take your pick."

"Cripes, not really a fan of tea…" That was all Peter got out before the old man stormed to the bar in a comedic fashion. The old man had to confront the blasphemous words.

His robes were an elegant mix of green and gold and had the tell tale signs of advance male pattern baldness. A tight top knot rested on top of his head. His beard and large side burns framed the face of disbelief. "Not a fan of tea? That's like not being a fan of breathing!"

Peter couldn't say much to the tea induced outburst. He waved his gloved hand in an attempt to calm the figment of his overactive imagination. "Calm down old man. I didn't mean anything by it. I just never was much of a tea drinker." Peter would later question his sanity for trying to reason with a fictitious man.

"I don't know what this so called coffee tastes like but I know it doesn't compare to the wonders of my tea. Now what flavor would you like?"

Peter rested his head on his left hand. "Surprise me."

"Alright then, one jasmine special coming right up." He boasted to his lone customer. He rushed back to bring the tea to the bar.

"Hurray…" Peter sat and waited to return to his hole in the wall apartment. The jolly old man returned with a steaming pot of his best tea brew he could muster. He proudly laid down a small cup and poured his pride and joy out. He handed it to Peter without spilling a drop.

Peter eyed the porcelain cup for a moment and pulled off his black Spider-Man's gloves. Just before he took a sip of the drink he looked up and saw the old man wearing a kind smile and watching him. "Do you mind old timer." Peter didn't like it when people hovered around him.

"Oh sorry about that, I just really seeing my tea do its stuff. My tea can melt the iciest of hearts and the sorest of bones." There was a certain glow in the old man's eyes.

'No one should be that giddy over tea' He thought as he took a swig from of the cup. Peter's eyes got wide as his taste buds reacted to the heavenly leaf water. The feeling of bliss was akin to when he finally memorized the periodic table or eating one of Aunt May's fresh pies on a cold winter day.

"Well, what do you think?" The old man asked. He already knew the answer.

Peter put the piping hot cup down and answered. "It's alright I guess." He lied through his teeth. His pet peeve got the better of him.

"Oh. I guess marginal satisfaction will have to do for now. Maybe a game of pai sho will help ease your nerves. Heck it might make the tea taste better." The old man suggested.

Peter took another sip and fought the urge to smile. "Sure, though you're going to have to teach me how to play."

The old man gave Peter a hearty laugh. "That's not a problem at all. The game is simple to learn but it's hard to master." He said while stroking his white beard. "I'll set up the board." He went in the back of the kitchen to retrieve his vintage pai sho pieces.

Peter finished his tea and waited for his host. The old man walked through the service door with a rickety old box under his arm. "Let's have our little game over here. Could you please bring the tea pot with you, I could use a cup myself."

He complied and brought over the pot. As soon as he made it to the small two seat lunch table. The old server finished setting up his prized pai sho set. Peter sat down and kept his ears opened as he went over the basics. It only took him a few minutes to understand the basics. The game wasn't hard to grasp. It was like a more sophisticated form of checkers. Peter remembered watching a few games during his commute to work. "O.K I think I got this, ready to lose old timer." He leaned forward in his chair grinning.

The tea fanatic simply drank his tea and calmly set his cup aside. "You're being awfully competitive for a friendly little game aren't you?" He moved his first piece on the board. "No worry's though. I'm sure this will be an enlightening experience for both of us."

"Oh it's still friendly. I'm just a competitive kind of guy." Peter moved his first piece.

The two played for a good half hour. Peter tired to get the better of his opponent buy the sly old man saw his moves coming before he did. Each piece Peter won was a hard boiled battle that cost him tow of his own pieces. It didn't take long for the old man to gain most of the board's real estate. Needless to say Peter's defenses were erased and any attempt to counter attack was meat with an impenetrable defense of his own. The friendly game ended with an undisputable victory for the tea fanatic.

"It looks like this old man still has a few tricks up his sleeve eh Peter." He laughed while Peter quietly fumed in his chair.

"I never told you my…wait it is a dram. Of course you knew my name. This is all in my head after all."

"That's an interesting theory. Never mind that. How did I beat you?"

"The tea threw me off. If it was coffee I would've won." His dry sense of humor was on full showing after that jab on the chin. He shook off his personal storm cloud and gave the old man a straight answer. "You won because you have more experience in this game that's all. You had the advantage all along."

"That's not how the game works Peter. In this game each player, despite creed or history, enters as equals. None of my game pieces were superior to yours in any way. I was bound by the same rules and regulations that you were. Young man you lost because you were too aggressive."

"Too aggressive?" The bewildered look written on Pete's face said it all. "I saw an opening so I took a shot. You have to attack hard and fast if you want to win." His eyes were stern as he spoke. He wasn't giving the old man a tongue lashing so much as he was his battle strategy. "You'd get an early dirt nap with that kind of thinking."

"Yeah, jumping in the fray and attacking with speed and anger is a fare better than keeping your cool and waiting for a prime time to strike. That is not a wise strategy Peter. It didn't work in this game and it didn't work with Amon." He stroked his beard in thought.

Peter got so absorbed in the game and atmosphere that he forgot about his troubles. A reminder wasn't expected from such a strange character. He rocked the chair on its hind legs. "You're probably just my guilt personified from that night. Don't know where the goofy old tea guy gimmick came from. The human subconscious truly is a mystery." His mind weaved several different hypotheses before he went back on topic. "O.K wise guy what should I have done that night? Let poor Bolin get is bending ripped out of him."

He ignored the dream remarks and answered. "You should've grabbed him and got out of there. You didn't have to pick a fight with Amon to do that."

The old man's logic was sound and he did have a point. "You're right. I bit off more than I could chew with that one. I thought I could derail the whole equalist thing and save Bolin at the same time. I saw what he could do and I knew I could beat him. I didn't underestimate Amon." That night replayed in his head. He knew Amon would be a challenge but he couldn't lay a finger on the guy. The whole thing didn't make any sense. He buried his head in his hands as he thought about it again.

"Don't beat yourself up Peter. It takes a big man to admit faults." He took a sip of his heavenly brew and continued. "I know defeat can be bitter and unwelcomed but it also leaves behind a valuable lesson. So what have you learned from your altercation with him?"

His thoughts went back to that night and tried his best to recall every minute detail. "My powers allow me to see and notice things that others cannot. I've only had it for a few months now but I know my reflexes are far above average. Every goon dumb enough to get into a fist fight with me always hesitates. They see what I do to their friends and there's always that little delay between punches. Long story short, I didn't get any of that fighting Amon. He wasn't afraid of me or any of the Triple Threats." This weighed heavily on Peter. He only saw that level of confidence with Osborn. "And here's the crazy thing. Before we started I got light headed and dizzy. It was only there for a second but, like I said earlier, my heightened senses picked it up. There was to be something else besides his magic touch. There's something more to his ability that he wasn't telling his followers." For a moment Peter was lost in thought before the old man spoke up.

"You are n the right path Peter. There is more that meets the eye with Amon … and with you."

"With me? The hell is that supposed to mean?"

"You're going to be late again."

"Work? Work!" His eyes shot open and he darted out his hammock and snatched his factory uniform off the rack.

XXXxxx Future Industries: Manufacturing Wing xxxXXX

'What the heck is wrong with me?' Peter air ratcheted service panels on countless Satomobiles. Of course his mind was light years away as he questioned his sanity. 'Maybe I'm suffering from some kind of latent psychosis when I landed on this rock. Between the vivid dreams and the freaky British twins that might be the case.' He desperately racked his mind for a feasible reason for the madness. One theory was that that fateful spider bite altered his brain chemistry and the dreams were just a symptom of his slow decent into madness. The theory wasn't too farfetched. Fancy Dan got bitten and he was rotting in the Hudson River or wherever The Enforcers dumped his sorry hide. His second theory was way out in left field but he entertained it anyway. 'Maybe this reality is just rejecting me like a foreign virus and driving the target insane was just its immune system at work.' Such a ludicrous idea would never have found its way in his head but after seeing Mysterio play hopscotch with the laws of physics right before his eyes nothing was off the table. Further deductions were cut short when a hand tapped his shoulder. He hiked up his safety goggles and turned to see Mr. Sato greet him.

"Takuya, take a break, there's a few people I want you to meet." His happy demeanor shined through Peter bleak theories. "And we need to that that thing we discussed a few days ago."

Peter whipped some grease from his hands on his work uniform. "Yes sir." The two walked down to the end of the assembly line with a fleet of freshly built Satomobiles. "I thought you forgot about that little test you planed for me sir." At least he hoped he did. The extra attention wouldn't be good for his duel life.

"Nonsense Takuya, I just got caught up in my workshop for a bit." He tapped on his temple. "These ideas don't build themselves you know." He said with a fake smile and a half truth. "Don't let the expensive suit fool you. I'm an inventor first and foremost."

Peter smiled at Sato's passion for innovation. If there were more people like him back home then the depression might not have reared its ugly head. "I'll be sure to remember that sir."

"See that you do. Ah, here we are." He waved t a young woman and a familiar looking boy with a red scarf.

'Is that …can't be.' He approached the two and his fears were realized.

"I'm back. Sorry about the wait this young man was hard to find. This is Takuya, the prospect I was telling you about. Takuya, this is my daughter Asami and her friend Mako. He's a pro-bender who just so happened to get his team a lucrative sponsorship from us.

Mako was still skittish over the sudden boon Mr. Sato dropped a few minutes ago. "I'll say, nice to meet you Takuya." He reached for a handshake.

Peter grasped his hand, making sure it was limp, and shook. "Like wise." He hopped his mask muffled his voice enough his so the firebender wouldn't recognize him. Thankfully the similar voice went unnoticed.

Asami shock his hand next. "My father can be a little out there some times so sorry in advance." She joked. Peter forgot about masking his identity as Asami's beauty took him for a loop.

"Oh he's no trouble miss." He said as he mentally stopped himself from outright leering at Asami. He couldn't see how such a beautiful girl could be Heroshi's offspring. "I don't mind. It's motivating at times." He smiled at Sato's gorgeous daughter.

"What can I say, I can't help it. Especially when I have a new prospect I'm about to test." He turned his attention to Peter. The industry mogul walked up to a freshly built satomobile ready to be shipped out to the Fire Nation.

"So you're going to test him now dad?" Asami asked.

"No time like the present my dear." Her father answered.

Asami grabbed Mako's arm and pulled him close to the satomobile. "Come on this should be good. Dad says he's a prodigy."

"Geez Mr. Sato a prospect." Peter tried his best to downplay his genius. "I'm pretty sharp but I wouldn't go that far."

Sato grinned at Peter's modesty. "Well we'll see about that now wont we." He tapped the hood of the car. "Takuya, what's your opinion of my pride and joy here." That remark earned him a mean look from Asami and a chuckle from Mako. "Besides my lovely daughter of course."

In a last ditch effort to get out of Heroshi's sights and played dumb. "It's a nice machine Mr. Sato. It's definitely going to make the next buyer real happy." He smiled.

That little stunt whipped the smile off of Sato's face. He knew what he was doing and he wasn't amused one bit. "Son… I'll ask you again. What do you thing about this machine." His tone lost its playfulness and was replaced with an authoritarian tone he used to discipline unruly employees. This voice was seldom used.

The implied hostility was loud and clear to Peter. If he didn't provide a satisfactory answer he'd be given his walking papers by lunch time. 'It was worth a shot.' He inwardly conceded to Heroshi's will. "Well for starters, the rear view window cuts down on visibility, the aerodynamics are convoluted and flawed, and the weak suspension means it can only be used effectively on paved streets. The exposed struts increased the likelihood of them being damaged. The roofs strange shape combined with the overall flat facing windshield and causes unnecessary strain to the engine. Speaking of the engine, an exposed power plant might give a small boost in performance but since it's exposed to the elements it needs more maintenance to maintain optimal efficiency. A simple modification to the fuel injection system and prioritized placement of the Air intakes would be more beneficial then leaving the entire engine exposed. Furthermore, I believe the chemical make up for the fuel could be improved by simply…" He stopped as a twinge of his spider-sense and a hand on his shoulder brought him back to reality. "Oh is the test over?"

"Yes Takuya it's over." Mr. Sato fought down an evil grin from forming. He knew this kid was something special when he reviewed his journal cover to cover. He wasn't sure if he simply regurgitated facts from some text book but this little demonstration proved that the knowledge came from Takuya alone. "And you passed with flying colors son."

"I'll say." Mako said still scratching his head at all of the big words. "You lost me at aerodynamics." He worded the unfamiliar word.

"Wow dad you weren't exaggerating this time. I could barely keep up." Asami was wide eyed. She hadn't believed her father back home but for once she would owe him some slack."

"Can I pick them or what?" He warmly smiled at his daughter. He had big plans for Peter.

"Doesn't take much to impress you huh Mr. Sato. I barely got started." Peter's scientific expertise focused on chemistry and machines. He only dabbled with the automotive field.

"We have quite the joker here. I had to cut you short son, the two love birds have a date and we'd be here all day if I didn't stop you." Hiroshi reasoned. It stung him greatly whenever his daughter's relationship status entered his mind. At least he could use this pitfall to his advantage lager on. "Now that I know you're the genuine article Takuya I can offer you this great opportunity. How would you like to be my aperients? You would work directly under me and the compensation would be better than your current salary."

"Your apprentice I …wow, it would be an honor sir. Yes." Peter couldn't help but feel excited at Hiroshi's proposal. Sure this status update would undoubtedly complicate things but he already opened Pandora's Box, might as well see what's inside.

"Glad to hear it Takuya. I can't wait to get you to the research and development. Clock out and take the rest of the day off. This is your last day as a simple laborer Takuya. We'll get you started bright and early tomorrow morning." Sato couldn't conceal his zeal to well. Everything was going according to plan. He didn't know if he should have Takuya start on the macha tanks or the stun devices. Either way he needed to report into Amon and tell him the good news.

Asami clapped for Peter. "Congratulations Takuya and good luck with my crazy father."

"Asami we talked about this. I'm not crazy I'm eccentric." Hiroshi little joke scored him a round of laughter from the three teens. "Alright you'll have to excuse me I still have a mountain of paper work to sign off on. Have fun sweetie. Be home by a reasonable hour this time."

"I will dad." She held Mako's arm like any girlfriend would. "Let's go Mako. I picked last time it's your turn to pick the restaurant." The two walked off to their second date. "It was nice meeting you Takuya."

"Yeah congrats man." Mako half waved at Peter on their way out.

"Try not to have a daughter Takuya. They'll drive you bonkers, especially when the boys start rolling in…" He sighed and patted his new apprentice on the shoulder. "Remember, bright and early young man."

Peter found it strange that he detected a hint of venom in his words. He ignored it. "Yes sir."

The industrialist walked off the floor and back to his office and Peter went to clock out for the last time.

XXXxxx Future Industries: Employee Locker Room xxxXXX

He grabbed his things out of his locker and made sure his journal was in the proper position. He considered throwing it out since it caused him so much trouble. He rejected the urge and shouldered his satchel. He now debated whether he should go out on patrol tonight. The Triple Threats and the rest of the major players were out of commission for now. The only thing he has to worry about now was small time hoods, the equalists, and Beifong. To the best of his knowledge, the equalists wouldn't actively seek him out and he could handle a mugger, bender or not, in his sleep. This left the coppers as his most upfront threat at the moment. He read about Beifong's decloration a while ago. No doubt she was pulling out all the stops for him but why not focus on Amon? Did the council not consider the equalists a threat? They should have used every resource they had on Amon. And to top it off some gung-ho councilmen is leading the charge on Amon of all people. What Peter did at night was jay walking compared to Amon's exploits. He was trying to overthrow the government for crying out loud. 'I'll patrol real quietly tonight and turn in early. Yeah that sounds like a plan.' He walked out of the locker room but just before he went on his way he was stopped by his favorite foreman.

Aki's brows were knit and he looked livid. News of Peter's ascension in the company traveled fast and he made sure to tell him exactly what he thought about that. "Hello Takuya, I heard some interesting news about you today." His voice was low and clear.

"You heard about that already?" He loosened his collar as he fell under Aki ocular spell. "Well it's true. Mr. Sato put me through some paces and he was so impressed that he offered me a chance to work in R&D." Peter's told his old boss. Aki appeared to fume.

"Oh I know Takuya, believe me I know. And you want to know what I have to say about that!" He dug his finger into Peter's chest with the last word. Aki thought his charade was getting old so he shattered it with a wide smile. The boisterous laugh scared Peter more the mock aggression did. His spider-sense told him he was kidding around. He didn't think the hard boiled foreman was capable of such an expression. "Oh I'm sorry kid. I just had to yank your chain one last time!"

Peter pretended to be relieved. "Aki man you're too big for that kind of humor."

The alien fit of laughter faded and Aki continued. "Seriously Takuya I'm happy for you. You been here for a month and a half and you're already getting paid more than me. I knew you were too good for day labor kid."

"Thanks Aki, you should've gotten a raise just for putting up with me. I wouldn't be here without you."

Aki chuckled and gave Peter a heavy pat on the back. It was strong enough to dislodge his glasses. "Well kid you came in here looking so pitiful. I had to do something about that."

Peter returned his old show glasses. He didn't need to wear them for a long time. They did wonders to hide his second life. "I didn't look that pitiful did I?"

"Don't worry about it kid. Look I just wanted to catch you before you left." He grinned and presented his hand.

Peter was puzzled at first but then it hit him. The day Aki begrudgingly hired him. He made it clear that a hand shake from him would have to be earned. The symbolism of such a simple thing as a handshake proved how far he has come in this unfamiliar land. He quickly clinched his hand and shook. He made sure to keep his gripe in check, making sure not to ruin such a moment. "Thanks for everything Aki."

"Don't mention it kid." He broke away from the surprisingly strong hand. "Don't be a stranger."

"Sure thing." He walked out of the factory and went for a walk. He didn't know if this would be more trouble than it's worth. Being right under Hiroshi would shine the accursed spot light on him but he ignored it as he walked down the busy street. 'This is a good thing Parker.' He told himself. 'I just wish Aunt May could be here for this.' An unintentional homesickness washed over Peter. He really wanted to see his Aunt again to know she was ok

XXXxxx Air Temple Island xxxXXX

The withered Airbending master strode through his home after a long council meeting in city hall. He had to hear how Lin would handle the Spider-Man. It was always tough when he had to speak with his old flame. Never the less the council gave their approval for Lin's spider slayer operation. Tarrlok was also difficult. He insisted that some of his people be installed into Beifong's team. They got into a lengthy argument for the other council members. Ultimately Lin agreed to Tarrlok's term and five taskforce members would participate. He saw his two youngest playing with yet another one of Tarrloks 'gifts'. This time it was a flashy satomboile parked in his driveway. Tenzin marveled at how far Tarrlok would go to get Korra on his taskforce.

"Out of the way daddy, we're driving here!" Ikki yelled past the imaginary traffic.

"Yeah were going to find Spider-Man and play with him! And then were going to get ice cream!" Meelo's gaped smile was wide and proud.

Tenzin just walked past them and let them play. He cursed at himself that his kids caught wind of the Spider-Man delinquent. He'd have a serious talk with them later but right now that talk was reserved for Korra. She circled the practice ground drilling her airbending forms and techniques. She tried her best to forget that night at the really. "I see Tarrlok's gifts are becoming more and more extravagant."

"Yeah, that guy doesn't know how to take no for an answer." Korra replied, still facing off with her imaginary opponent.

Tenzin went on with the uncomfortable question. "Korra are you doing alright?" She never practiced this much on her own. Korra's flat out refusal to join Tarrlok's taskforce was shocking and not something she would do.

"Yeah I'm fine." She tried to convince her mentor. She was wrestling with the very thought that someone like Amon had it out for benders. She never expected to see such a threat this early in her tenure as the Avatar. She never experienced true fear in her life. Korra always found solace that she was the strongest power on the planet but Amon could take it all away with a single touch. Of course she was too proud to admit it to anyone.

Tenzin took a seat on the stone steps. "Why don't you take a break." Korra obliged his wishes and sat down with him. "I'm glad you turned down Tarrlok but I just wanted to make sure that your decision was for the right reason."

"I'm just really focused on my airbending right now." Her excuse sounded as hollow as it was.

"Right that's what you said." Tenzen would have confronted her about her troubles but he chose not to. Last time he pressed too hard and she ended up lashing out. "You know its O.K to be scared. The whole city is frightened from what's been going on. Are you sure Amon or that Spider fellow hasn't gotten to you?"

Korra got irritated at the mention of the wall crawler. "That spider guy is as scary as a runny nose Tenzin. Baifong's wasting her time on with him."

"O.K Then. Anyway I just wanted to tell you that it's O.K to talk about our fears, because if we don't it can throw us out of balance." He got up from his step. He knew his words hit home. "I'm always here for you if you want to talk." He walked off the practice ground and left. Only time would tell when Korra would get past her pride and come forward and talk about it.

Korra sat there and thought about what her teacher said to her. 'I'm not scared. You're the Avatar you don't get afraid. I'm just a little nervous that's all.' Her logic held her fear at bay for now though one thing confused her. Why did she get so defensive over the wall crawler? She threw up her hands in frustration as the cocky hero swam into her mind again. She leaned back and looked up towards the cloudy afternoon sky. Maybe his overconfidence in such a delicate rescue rubbed her the wrong way. The fact the Beifong knew that he helped them that night and she still chose to go after him. 'Whatever, I just hope they don't slap the cuffs on him too hard." Her iota of concern for the vigilante she hated went unnoticed.

XXXxxx Future Industries R&D Lab xxxXXX

"How does it feel being in the big leagues Takuya?" Hiroshi asked his new protégé on a guided tour of the wing. Peter and Sato walked through a hall of previous achievements. Peter saw Sato's first working engine, some photo's, and a large electrical capacitor were all in glass cases all over the large office space. He liked the atmosphere. Other industrialist would furnish their offices with premium carpets and gold trimmed furniture but not Sato. He gained some points for that. "I wouldn't say I was there yet Mr. Sato. So what do you want me to work on first?"

Sato stopped at a blank desk next to a few engineers and designers hard at work on the next big thing. "Will start you on something we're close to cracking. You'll start out nice and slow my boy. You'll get a list of our current projects from Kazuhara over there. Now I have to take care of a few things with a partner. I'll swing by to check on you when I'm done." He had supply and resource procurement to worry about.

Peter took a seat, leaned back and looked over the list Kaz gave him. Ideas flooded in his mind before he finished reading over the list.

"Alright then Takuya I'll leave you to it."

Peter didn't answer. He was already in his own world at the moment. These were all good ideas and they only needed a little nudge to come to fruition and Peter was all too willing to oblige. The defibulators looked promising but they couldn't get a sufficient charge to be use full without a large energy supply. He was surprised how small surprised how small the team got the capacitors and the resistor placement was a stroke of genius. He wrote down some suggestions for a higher along with equations and a circuit diagram. 'Copper wires and extra insulation should increase voltage by forty percent give or take.' He thought as he sifted through the projects. "Mr. Kazuhara"

"Yes." The engineer didn't even look at Peter. He just continued working with his straight rule.

"Can you take a look at this? I just wanted to get a second opinion on this." He handed his work to the tired man. Sato must have been working him hard.

The bags under his eyes stretched as he viewed the crewed schematics. His team was working to refine Mr. Sato's design for designs and this kid stroll in and did it in a few hours. His design team had been working on this particular case for a month. "This is amazing, spectacular! How did you come up with this kid?" The overworked engineer made a small scene with the other team members.

"Oh you know. I just put two and two together that's all." He explained. This electrical work was a common practice back in his home reality. If he wanted to be amazed he should see Anthony Stark work his magic.

"Well Takuya keep up the good work. Keeps this up and we might get home at a decent hour for a change." Kaz gave his work back.

"Thanks." He didn't let the praise inflate his ego. He sat down and got to work on Mr. Sato's new forklift designs.

The day went by and the hours passed by as Peter continued to work on Sato laundry list of inventions. He stopped when Mr. Sato entered. "Hey Mr. Sato you're back already?"

"Already, Son it's been five hours." Sato was perplexed by his protégé's serious time lapse. "You must've really getting in the swing of things. Kazuhara tells me you got something for me?" He asked.

"I got more than something Mr. Sato but I think this will tickle your fancy." He sifted through his stack of paper work he didn't notice until now. Time really did get away from him.

Hiroshi almost snatched the papers out of his hand. He looked over the crude schematic. Sato openly gawked at the insignificant scrap paper. This guy came out of nowhere and turned into a golden goose. Again he exceeded his expectations. His work with the disguised shock glove was impressive to say the least. The mogul thought he would just solve the voltage problem but he made extensive deviations from his original concepts. "This is too good to be true." He could see why Kazuhara had that look on his face. "Interesting, what's this gauge for?"

"That's a little something to limit the current from the battery. I thought I may have added too much power so I added a gauge to limit it. That way a first responder or whoever needed to use it could adjust the power level to the desired limit." Peter spoke with gusto. He wasn't the type to toot his own horn but he was proud of his work.

"That is a useful addition Takuya. I'm surprised I didn't think of it. How did you come up with it?" He already knew his weapon didn't need a limiter but Amon might have it installed. It was something about not being executioners but liberators.

"Well sir I can't really say. I surprise myself sometimes." He stretched night's patrol was catching up to him. "Besides you did most of the leg work. You just needed stronger insulators and better conductive wires."

"You're being modest young man. You did a great thing today." His claim was valid. It took him months to make a proof of concept. Amon's Lieutenant weapon of choice. It was a blessing that he stumbled into his factory. His face twisted at the thought of Takuya working for Lau Gan-Lan on a new cabbage invention. "How you started out a factory worker is beyond me."

Peter chuckled. "Mr. Sato you were my age once right. Being the smartest guy in the room gets you a lot of attention and not the fun kind if you catch my drift." He recalled the countless swirlys and 'kick me' signs he caught back at Midtown High.

"I know what you mean. I had my fair share of …experiences in the past." He hand was in his pocket, clenching the locket his late wife gave him. "Believe me I know."

The pain on his face was evident and Peter didn't press the issue. "Do you need me for anything else?"

"No actually I have some good news for you. Councilmen Tarrlok is throwing a gala for the Avatar. And since I was invited you are invited."

"That's really not my scene Mr. Sato." His nose wrinkled at the thought of attending some high society party with this city's elite. He never was much of a social animal and a wasteful party went against Aunt May's socialist teachings, though they were slowly being abandoned with his tenure as Spider-Man. "Besides I don't even own a fancy gala suit."

"I see." He reached into his suit pocket and pulled out his check book and filled it out. "Here you go. This should help you with your wardrobe problem along with any other financial issues for the time being. Consider it a pay advance."

'Damn it.' He was hoping he could worm his way out of it. The check was reluctantly accepted. He took a double take at the dollar amount. "Mr. Sato I think you added an extra zero by mistake."

"I didn't make a mistake. You earned every cent son. My team was stuck on the device for weeks now and you demolished that road block. That yuan amount is indeed correct." He pulled a card from his suit pocket. "Here's the address for my tailor. Yuki is a little bit out there but she'll take good care of you. I need you looking sharp if you're going to be seen with me."

"What do you mean by 'out there' Mr. Sato."

"Sorry Takuya I got to run. Drop by her store on your way home. She works fast so it should be ready before the gala." He left no room for debate as he rushed out of the office. He had to put some time into the workshop.

Peter glanced at the flashy business card with a swath of colors. He wondered if Sato meant to say she was crazy. "At least I can get that bed now."

XXXxxx Republic City: Shopping District xxxXXX

Peter walked through the city's busy streets looking for the tailory. He dropped by a small bank and made an account. Thankfully the bank wasn't as strict as the ones back home. All they needed was a name and an address. The teller got a surprise at how big the check was from his humble appearance. So he walked the streets looking for his destination. As he walked he saw a familiar white mask sticking on the wall. Seeing Amon's face made him feel unclean. 'Equality Now!' was printed in bold text below the face. He was out there plotting his next move and he was playing dress up for a fancy party. He kicked himself for his carless handling of his volatile notebook. He was cooked up in his apartment waiting for nightfall so he wrote in the thing. That along with the radio remedied his boredom and kept his skill sharp. 'It's so much easier being Spider-Man then Peter Parker. Scratch that Takuya. Hope Madam Web is working on getting me out of here. If she even knows I'm not home that is. I don't know how much longer I can lie like this.' He frowned at the Amon poster and ripped it down in frustration. His predicament was temporally forgotten as the search continued.

The tailor shop stood out like a sore thumb. The place had red tented windows and a colorful paint. Red, gold, and blue adorned the store for all to see. "This looks interesting." The bell rang as he opened the door. The inside was as flashy as the outside. A few people waited to be serviced and they all looked like high rollers. Mannequins were wearing fancy clothes standing all over the store. He patiently waited to be served. The clerk was quite and to the point. "Hello good sir how may I be of service?" The guy looked utterly board being in such a flashy upbeat place. Maybe he was trying to look regal.

"I need a suit for this party that's coming up. Can you help me out?" Peter matched his board look.

The clerk sized him up and got a rough estiment of his measurements. He opened the books to see if any of their tailors could help him. Unfortunately they were all busy with other appointments. "So sorry sir but we don't have anyone that can help you at this time. May I interest with some of our pre-made suits?"

Peter shrugged at the clerk. "Whatever, this was Mr. Sato idea anyway."

"Did you say Sato, as in Hiroshi Sato!?" A feminine voice yelled out behind a curtain.

"I believe he did madam." The clerk looked indifferent as he answered, despite the odd looks from the other customers.

Yuki stormed in from her work station into the front of the store. To say she was ostentatious was an understatement. He make up was glamorous and her black hair was big. A silver headband was wrapped around her head. The oriental dress was dark green with silver flowers embroidered onto it. She wore her make up with a cat eye styling with the same color as her dress along with a silver outline. "I thought so. How do you know him?"

Peter was taken aback with the flashy clothes. "Yeah I know him he's my boss."

"What's your name darling?" She asked sounding like a big time actress.

"Takuya." He answered. 'What's she getting at?'

"Takuya darling if it wasn't for that man I wouldn't be in business. She smiled and gave Peter the classic high society greeting with the hug and kisses on the cheeks. This put Peter in an odd place. "Any friend of Hiroshi is a friend of mine. Now am I to assume you need something to wear?"

Peter coked an eyebrow. He didn't remember calling Sato his friend. "Well yeah I'm in a tailor shop…I." She cut in before he finished.

"Oh what am I saying of course you do what am I saying? Just look at those rags your wearing."

The barrage of unintentional insults left him more confused than angry. "What's wrong with my, HEY!" She yanked his arm and dragged him past the other customers to her personal work space.

"No time like the present darling. Now get back here and don't make a fuss, I got a lot on my plate with you. Hiroshi dropped a terrific little mess on me this time." She rushed past her indifferent clerk.

"What do you want to do with the other contracts madam?" He asked clearly and calmly despite the scene that Yuki made.

She stopped to answer. "Drop them! This young man is in dire need of taste!" Her march to the back continued.

Peter didn't fight the mad woman's will. He waited for the crazy ride to end.

She pushed him behind three full length mirrors. She had a full view of his body. "Hmm, Now what will I do with you?"

"Aren't you going to ask me what I want?" The incredulous look and question was overlooked as she continued her assessment.

"Um hum um hmm… I see." She clapped and two assistants came at her call. "Get those clothes off. I want a clean slate to work with."

The two women moved and obliged her. They moved like surgeons as they removed each article of clothing. Peter's cries of protest fell on deaf ears. "Hey! Get off! What are you doing there!?" Again the fashionista's shock and awe campaign kept Peter's wraith in check.

"Calm down Darling. We're not daubing your birthday suit." Yuki said.

She kept her word and left Peter in his undershirt and underwear. The assistant proceeded to get measurements off of Peter. "Oh my, Takuya darling you have quite the build or a pencil pusher." She teased.

Peter couldn't hide his red checks at the awkward situation. He didn't feel this embarrassed since that one time Flash pantsed him during lunch time. "I did some factory work before hand. Can you hurry it up?" He still covered his tracks and she didn't mention the scars.

"Now now darling we all have to make sacrifices to look good. Now what's your favorite color?"

"My favorite…? Black! My favorite color is black." He wondered if Sato was putting him through some kind of corporate hazing ritual. This chick is something else.

"I'll keep that in mind darling but we must add some color to your dull preference love. You're going to a party not a funeral." She grinned.

They went through several styles in her extensive stock of clothing. He needed one so quickly that she didn't have time to make one from scratch. So she would get one suit and put her spin to it. She told Peter not to worry about the cost. This was all on Sato's dime. She worked fast but it felt like forever before they found something suitable to wear. The clothing was mostly dark with red and blue overtones. He couldn't help but think of his Amazing counterpart. Strangely he liked her choice. "I think we have a winner Mrs. Yuki." He got a better look in the mirror.

"I agree darling. You wear it well." One of her assistants tapped whispered something in Yuki's ear and handed her something. "I'm glad we found something for you darling." Her assistant handed her an envelope. "Here, make sure old Hiroshi gets this."

He grabbed the receipt and nearly fainted at the total. This amount of dough could feed ten shanty towns back in Queens. 'Thank god Sato covering this.'

XXXxxx City Hall: Gala Event xxxXXX

The Avatar appreciation gala was going down without a hitch. The cameras were clicking for all the major players in Republic City. Company men and trend setters showed up in droves for the Avatar's official debut to the city. Korra grimaced and moaned as Tenzin steered his sky bison to City hall. "Why did I agree to this again?"

"You agreed to come so you could show the people of this city that you are here to help and as a sign of good will." Tenzin said in a monotone. He wasn't happy about the party either. Tarrlok was not his favorite person at the moment. It didn't help that his family was tagging around. Ikki and Meelo were tugging on his formal robe to boot.

"Come on daddy fly over there! We might see Spider-Man over there. We could meet him and he can get us ice-cream and we can fight bad guys!" Ikki said with her rapid fire speech pattern.

Korra started off into space at the mention of Spider-Man. She wondered if he was actually out there.

"Uhh! Uhh! Me to daddy I want to see him too!" Meelo shared his older sister's sentiments.

"So what was he like Korra? You did talk to him right?" Jinora asked. She had a quiet admiration for the vigilante. He reminded her of one of her novel's hero. She was dying to ask Korra about the whole affair and this felt like a time to finally ask.

"Oh that guy. Well he's real arrogant and immature. He wears a creepy mask and the wall crawling…" She shivered when the inhuman action came to mind. "It's just plain weird."

"Jinora stop pestering Korra. She's going to get enough of that tonight." Pema lightly reprimanded her eldest child.

"Don't worry, I'll tell you the rest later." Korra whispered to Jinora.

"We're here thank goodness." He was relieved that Meelo would have to stop biting his shaved head for the millionth time.

The atmosphere was festive as the Party was in full swing. Tarrlok pulled all of the stops for this gala event. The band played a catchy tune and the refreshments were top of the line. Everybody was enjoying themselves except Peter Parker. He mopped around with a guilty conscious. He stared at a fancy ice sculpture of an exotic animal. They all were to him anyway. The only thing he could think of was home.

'I'm eating hors d'oeuvre and everybody else is in a damn bread line. Wonder if Aunt May would slap me if she could see me now?' He took a sip of his water thinking if he would be stuck here for the rest of his life. 'God I'd give a million clams to see that old bird again. A million and two to know she's safe.' He was so lost in his own guilt and home sickness that he didn't notice that the room shifted followed by a round of applause.

"Takuya there you are, I've been looking for you." Hiroshi greeting went unnoticed. "Takuya can you hear me?"

"Hmm? Oh! Takuya, that's me that is absolutely me. Mr. Sato I didn't see you come in." He wondered how long he could maintain his fake name. He'd forget his real one if he wasn't carful.

"Yes, I didn't see you come in either. I'm surprised you didn't ride with the rest of us. I could've kept an eye on you. You're really quite slippery son."

"What can I say. I like late night walks." He lied. He actually squeezed in a little patrol time before coming. It was an easy night. Only two muggings and a convenience store robbery. Thankfully the police airships weren't covering this area tonight.

"You didn't have any trouble getting in did you? You know what, never mind about that. There's someone I want you to meet."

"Ah, here she is. Takuya this is Avatar Korra and our host Councilmen Tarrlok." Hiroshi presented Peter.

"Nice to meet you." Korra bowed her head to the two and they returned the gesture. She seemed to focus on Peter's face. She seen him before but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. This would bug her for the rest of the night, among other things.

"Like wise Avatar korra." Peter was surprised to see how well the rough around the edges Avatar cleaned up. He turned to the party's host. "Heck of a shin dig you got here Councilmen Tarrlok." He went into shake but the politician left him hanging.

"Sorry I just washed my hands." He snaked his way out of a handshake.

"Oh I understand sir." Peter didn't take it personal but he did get a strange vibe off of Tarrlok. His spider-sence wasn't tripped. His gut was the only indicator of this. He would make sure to avoid the councilmen if he could.

"Good. Korra this is Republic City's most famous industrialist Hiroshi Sato." He brushed Peter aside like he wasn't even there.

"Nice to meet you." Korra greeted.

'Was I supposed to bow at these things?' This world's customs and cortices still eluded Peter at times.

"Were all expecting great things from you." Heroshi put his fake smile on for the brief discomfort.

"Yeah…greatness." She looked away for some reason.

Peter saw this and was about to ask about it but he was interrupted.

"Hey Korra!" The unexpected voice rang in Korra's ear.

Peter turned to see Asami being escorted by Mako along with Bolin. 'Hopefully Bolin is as oblivious as Mako.'

"This is my daughter Asami." Hiroshi introduced his only child.

"It's lovely to meet you. Mako told me so much about you." She said with poise and grace. She was well versed in the high society etiquette.

"Really, because he hasn't mentioned you at all, how did you two meet?" Korra shifted back to her normal competitive self. To Peter's amazement she didn't look any less becoming.

"Asami crashed into him on her moped." Bolin answered and rushed back to his brother's side.

"What!? Are you O.K?" She asked her crush.

"I'm fine, more than fine. Mr. Sato agreed to sponsor our team. We're back in the tournament." Mako help back his excitement and kept his inside voice.

Bolin was just as excited with less control then his brother. "Isn't that great!"

"Yeah…Terrific." She looked away again lost in her own doubt. It was clear that something was bothering her.

"Ah Chief Baifong!" Tarrlok motioned for the chief of police to come over. She got the hint and gave a fraction of her time to the councilmen. "I believe you and Avatar Korra have already met."

Beifong was cranky and she truly didn't want to show up to the party. She was in the middle of her Spider-Man investigation when she was told she had to attend. She didn't even change out of her command armor. Seeing Korra only worsened her already sour mood. The Avatar's frown told her the feeling was mutual. "Just because this city is throwing you this big to do don't think you're anything special. You've done absolutely nothing to deserve this." The venom in her voice stunned all who heard it and tipped Peter's breaking point.

"She's doing a hell of a lot more then you chief!" Once again Peter's mouth went faster than his brain. Honestly he didn't care. Korra can be annoying at times but she didn't deserve that.

"What did you say…" Beifong held back from yelling at the mystery man. She was so mad that she didn't even question the odd word he used.

"You heard me. She may not deserve a party but at least she did something against the equalists. At least she's not wasting valuable time hunting down some spider guy who's only trying to help people!" He would thoroughly kick himself kick himself for his outburst later. Korra and the others were speechless. Tarrlok didn't even talk to Chief Beifong like that. Peter didn't care at the moment; someone had to stick up for Korra.

"What does some snot nosed scrawny punk know about the rule of law or the sacrifices we make!? My people are out there day in and day out patrolling the streets keeping you and the rest of the city safe. And your little 'hero' of yours is nothing but a goon behind a flimsy excuse to pick fights with other goons. So what does that say about the bottom feeding vigilante, what does that say about you!?" She assaulted the kid with her words. Years of experience with hecklers helped temper her from harming him. If she was his age she would've slugged him on the spot. She did get the desired effort as Peter went silent. He simply stared angrily at her. She was marginally impressed by the kid resolve. Usually the barb in her voice would cause people to back off or just plain cower away from her. But this kid was fine relatively calm.

Tarrlok diffused the stare down before it turned into anything else. "Chief Beifong please, you two are making a scene. His efforts were successful.

"Stupid brat. I'm out of here Tarrlok, I have better things to do with my time." She stormed out of the party to continue her investigation. A mental note was made on that kids face.

"That woman is responsible for this city's safety. How dare you talk to her in such a fashion." Tarrlok scolded.

"What, we were just having a friendly disagreement with a public official is all. I didn't mean anything my it councilmen." Peter would say he was being coy Uncle Ben would call it being a smartass. He didn't really have a high view of the police, in this world or the next.

Tarrlok's agitated face was on full display up until he saw the press start to roll in. He composed himself with lightning speed. "If you'll excuse me I have to give the press a statement. Mr. Sato, keep an eye on your underling. That mouth of his could get him in a lot of trouble." He shot Peter on last ugly look before leaving. The others were just shocked by the whole exchange. Bolin even shivered behind his brother.

"What were you thinking Takuya!" Mr. Sato pretended to be mad. He always liked to see a bender taken down a few pegs now and then. A few whispers and stares flew towards the group.

"Sorry Mr. Sato, to tell you the truth I wasn't thinking. You know it was a heat of the moment kind of thing." Peter gave him the half truth run around. It worked all the time with JJ.

"Make sure it doesn't happen again Takuya. Remember you aren't just talking for yourself anymore. You're speaking for Future Industries as well." Hiroshi said.

Peter didn't take that into consideration and a real apology came in. "Sorry Mr. Sato, I'll keep that in mind from now on."

"See that you do." He turned and saw a familiar face in his peripheral vision. "I'll let you kids talk amongst yourself for a bit. Try to stay out of trouble." He walked off to meet with his colleague.

"Wow thanks for the assist Takuya. I so wasn't in the mood for her bull tonight." Korra said. Her spirits were high for the first time all week.

"Eh it was nothing really. You just looked a little down on the dumps is all." Peter responded.

"Nothing! I thought she was going to deck you there for a second." Asami jumped in. The tension died down enough for the others to talk.

"She wouldn't hit me. Besides if she did you would back me up with that vicious moped of yours." Peter joked.

Asami blushed at the quip. She was still a little embarrassed by that fateful accident. Mako laughed at her expense. That earned him a sharp elbow in his rib. "It's not that funny."

"It was pretty funny." He smiled at his girlfriend playful jab.

"Humph you're lucky you're cuter when you laugh." Amami said. The couple went in and Eskimo kissed as the onlookers grimaced.

"Sooo Takuya, can I call you Takuya, I see you have a certain appreciation for a particular man that dresses like a spider." Bolin said

"No way, the guys some kind of monster or something right? I only said that because I heard he likes to smack around thugs at night. Anyone who does that for free is square with me." Peter tried his best to cover his dual life. He did lay it on pretty thick for his taste. 'Geez Parker, walk around with an I'm Spider-Man sign why don't you.'

"Well me and the web head go way back. You see Spider-Man saved my life! And I'll have you know he is a personal friend of mine."

"You don't say?" Peter tried to sound surprised.

"You know it was a team effort right Bolin. Besides he's not that great. He did lose to Amon." Korra said.

"That's not fair Korra. Amon beat Zolt like he was nothing. At least he held him off so we could spring Bo out." Mako said. "And you saw what he is capable of the night before. If Amon could beat a guy like that … gives me goose bumps every time I think about it."

"Korra it's the thought that counts right. And he's totally not whatever Beifong said he was. The guys a hero, a creepy, dark, wall crawling hero but he's still hero you know." Bolin's elegant speech put a smile on Peter's face.

"So whats he's like?" Peter decided to have a little fun with an obvious fan of his. He couldn't help himself, it was too much fun.

"Oh he was all dark and mysterious right, and he does these weird poses all the time. Like this." Bolin poorly imitated Peter's freestyle stance. His brother face palmed and Asami and Korra quietly laughed at the spectacle he was making of himself. "Oh and he shoots these webs out of his wrists like this." He did a better job with his the web hand. "And I still owe him some noodles next time I see him. Yeah me and Spider-Man are pretty tight man. I mean not as tight as me and Mako but still pretty close."

"Really? Get out of town, he can shoot webs and you owe him noodles." Peter was having more fun than a human being should have. He was actually glad he came to this thing.

"Umm, yes he does, yes I do, and why would I get out of town? I live here. Plus I got a big tournament coming up in a few weeks and I have to stick around for that." Bolin said with blissful ignorance.

"It's just a saying bro." Mako told his naive brother.

"Right I knew that. Anyway, any friend of Spider-Man is a friend of mine!" He wrapped his arm around Peter's shoulder.

"I'm honored." Bolins reasoning confused him. The friendship would be welcomed as long as he was marooned here. "Sounds like you three had a crazy night, especially you Bolin. Weren't you scared with all the kidnapping and facing down Amon."

"No man I wasn't scared. I was real cool man." Bolin lied.

"So all the screaming and cries for help when he did that web thing was you being cool?" Korra said. Her spirits were doing better. She almost forgot about Amon for a while.

"That was something else. Like excitement, yeah that it I was excited that all." Bolin explained.

"Yeah bro, whatever you say." Mako said.

After taking care of Meelo's bathroom problem Tenzin went looking for Korra. He had to make sure Tarrlok didn't try any of his antics. He found her talking amongst her teammates and some unfamiliar faces. He saw his old flame storm out of city hall and wondered what got her so worked up. He walked over to the group and made his presence known. "Hello Korra, is everything alright?" The lanky airbending master asked her student. "Tarrlok didn't try anything has he?"

"No, he just introduced me to Hiroshi Sato and sourpuss Beifong. She backed off when Takuya here told her off." She pointed at the glasses wearing boy who was in her age group.

"Ah huh." He turned to Peter. "Young man there are smarter things to do then argue with a police chief." He defended his childhood friend.

"I'm aware of that sir but you know heat of the moment kind of thing." Peter said. He was distracted for by the councilmen's voice. It was a dead ringer for old JJ. "Excuse me sir but would you describe yourself as a loud person?" Peter wanted to see if he was a strange version of his boss.

Tenzin cocked an eyebrow at the strange question. "…No I'm not."

"Ha! Get him worked up enough and he is." Korra teased her mentor. It was fun seeing the stoic man blindsided with the oddball apprentice.

"Providing guidance for you is challenging Korra and that challenge can wear my patience at times." He shot a glance at Korra. She just grinned at the bending master.

"I see. Now have you ever wanted pictures of that Spider guy by chance?" He was having too much fun talking to the faux JJ like this. If he had pulled this with the genuine article he might have thrown him out of his office window.

"What? Why would I want a photograph of that menace?" His confusion caused a quit snicker from the others. "Do your asinine questions have a point young man?"

"Not really. I just wanted to pick your brain a bit councilman. I would have done it with Tarrlok but he rushed off to do fancy gala stuff. Its rare to get an audience with one of the city's leaders you know." Peter almost believed his own words. If this science thing didn't work out he would be a hit in the courtroom.

"I see. Are you done with this brain picking session of yours?" Tenzin frowned at Peter. He felt like the butt of an inside joke.

"Yeah I'm done. My I need a drink after all the talking anyway." He bowed at the councilmen as a sign of respect. "Thank you for your time Councilmen Tenzin. I'll be right back guys." He told the others. He thought the whole thing went fairly well as he made his way to the concession stand.

"Strange guy huh." Mako said.

"Yeah, he's got a warped mind like dad. Guess that's why he discovered him." Asami agreed with her boyfriend. "But I think he's better for it."

Peter sailed through the ritzy crowed without so much a brushing against one of the high rollers. The refreshment table was surprisingly empty so he helped himself to some punch.

"Looks like some one's getting well acclimated to high society sister." A familiar voice with a familiar English twang rang in Peter's ear. He turned and saw the Lutece Twins calmly sipping drinks. Parker thought they were done messing around with him.

"You two again!?" The twins didn't return the reaction. As always they were completely indifferent on their sudden intrusion or anything for that matter.

"Yes it is us again. You seem well Mr. Parker. Your powers of deduction are still intact." Rosalind said as she sipped her orange colored beverage.

"Better then well sister. He's a regular little socialite. A far cry from the street urchin he was before." Robert didn't even regard the crazy look on Peter's face. If he had a since of hummer he'd be grinning right about now.

Peter glanced around to make sure no one was privy to their conversation. "What are doing here? You don't seem like the party type." He whispered to the walking anomalies.

"We're not." Robert said.

"Parties are for those who think there important. It's one big farce Mr. Parker and we only deal with fact." Rosalind said in her usual monotone.

"One thing still eludes me sister?"

"And that is?"

"Who can a society survive without alcohol?"

"Not sure. Maybe they'll come around in a few years. They've already begun industrialization so it might roll around in the near future."

"One should hope so sister. A non-alcoholic society is truly a damned one." Again the twins went into a tangent that was nowhere near the point. Robert looked at his drink with sheer disappointment. Peter frowned at the two talked as if he wasn't there.

"Can you jump to the part where you tell me why you showed up?" He steered them back to the actual point.

"We're here to give you a progress report if you will." Robert said.

"And some friendly advice to boot." Rosalind finished her brothers sentence.

Peter sighed and took a swing of his water. "You two always come at the worst time. So how am I doing in this fine little mess I fell in?"

The two didn't jack around with him this time. There were some things that needed to be addressed. "Your elevated status isn't doing this world any favors." Robert said. "You relies you don't belong here right Mr. Parker."

"Changing the way things went about was inevitable though. So much as breathing the air in this world has fundamentally changed it. The best course of action would have been to mitigate your influence in this world. But we all know you did the inverse Mr. Parker."

Peter tired his best to keep to himself during his stay on this foreign rock. But there were some things he couldn't avoid. He could not stand by and let innocent bystanders get hut when he had the power to make a difference. "So what should I have then, hide away in a deep dark hole and wait for my ticket home; if that ticket even exists that is."

"That would have been a fine solution Mr. Parker but you're far too hot blooded to for that. And that business with Mr. Sato was just a blatant violation to the 'low profile' stance. Honestly do you have any neurons rubbing together up there?" Robert words were harsh but his face was as blank as ever.

"Why is that a problem again? The way I see it I'm helping a lot of people out here and last time I checked that was a good thing." Peter shot back.

"You sound like us you know. We too thought we could 'change things for the better' as well. Do you know what we got for our good intentions Mr. Parker?" Rosalind stony face shifted ever so slightly as she relived that faithful day.

"We were placed in a state of existence and non-existence." Robert face didn't stir like his sister's. He remembered Comstock's treachery that day.

"I believe the priests call it Limbo." Rosalind.

"Your intentions may be just Mr. Parker but believe us when we say that they can destroy you as well."

"I I'm sorry to hear that." Peter said. It never accrued to him that these two have been human at one point.

"Don't fret Mr. Parker. What's done is done." Rosalind said.

Peter was silent as he processed the twin's vague origins. There omitted a lot of details. Truthfully he didn't want to know any more. "The guy backed me into a corner. I bumped into him and he got a hold of my idea journal. He knew what I could do. Besides I needed a job." He hopped his words didn't sound as hollow as he thought they were. There were more options out there but it was his dream to work with the sciences. He tried to veer away but the proved to be stronger then he thought.

"You could've quite." Rosalind jabbed at Peter's pride.

Peter didn't feel like getting in a hushed shouting match with the two. "Alright you got me there. It wasn't one of my better decisions."

"Well we certainly can't make you do anything Mr. Parker. We have no say in any of your actions. Again we are only conveying our advice to you." Robert said.

"Right so you don't know what the right or wrong move is then do you." Peter said.

"There is no true right or wrong Mr. Parker. Morality is all subjective after all. We could be right." Robert stated to Peter.

"…Or wrong. There is no definite answer." Rosalind finished her brother's sentence.

"Hey I don't mean to change the subject on you but I do need your input on this." Peter asked the twins.

"Mr. Parker we made ourselves quite clear already."

"We will not intervene in your situation. Not to your detriment…"

"… Or your salvation." Rosalind finished the collective thought. "We are mostly here to observe you and advice when needed."

"I'm not asking for that. I just wanted to add something to your observations is all." He hoped this would keep them for a little while longer. He trained his eyes on them and hopped doing so would fend off their disappearing act.

The twins were amused by Peter's claim. "This should be entertaining sister."

"Yes a regular dog and pony show. He's going to tell us something that we don't already know."

The twins fell back to their antics and Peter had to bear with it. After all they might be the only ones with an answer to his dilemma.

"Excuse our skepticism Mr. Parker. By all means ask away." Robert said with an indifferent shrug.

Peter's patience finally paid off. "I've been having these strange dreams. At first I thought nothing of it but they keep coming back stronger and more lucid. Do you think my trip here and the dreams are connected in some way?"

His words, to their amazement, tickled the twins famished curiosity. "Strange dreams you say. Sounds like a traumatized psyche. You have seen things that very few people in your short life. It just sounds like latent horrors are finally taking its toll Mr. Parker." Rosalind voiced her take on the dreams. But Robert didn't agree with it.

"I don't think it's that simple sister. Mr. Parker please elaborate further. What were the dreams about?" Robert dug deeper.

"The dreams are extremely lucid. I'm having full on conversations with my late uncle and some old guy in a tea shop. The places in the dreams are all wrong. I've never been to an arctic battlefield or this huge tea shop before in my life. I just…Look I can't but it all into words. It's like I'm being transported to these places instead of dreaming of them. So have you seen this kind of thing before? I've gone through so many theories that I lost count. So please tell me you have an answer for me." Every free moment the wall crawler had was devoted to explaining the dreams among other things. He stood there waited for an answer.

For the first time since meeting the two the twin's blank face was replaced with confused demeanor. This wasn't a good sign. "Mr. Parker, for the first time in a long time we don't have answer. It's true that the mind has adapts when it's put in a reality where it doesn't belong but this is simply beyond us." Robert didn't play around with Peter like he usually did.

"We have learned so many things in our travels but we can't give an answer. There's not outside influences or harmful toxins in the air. Even then your unique physiology would neutralize them if they were introduced to your system." Rosalind clasped her chin and went into an analytical fit. "Truly on odd occurrence."

"You don't know? Are you serious!? I thought you two know everything about this reality hopping. How long have you been in this limbo anyway?" Peter couldn't quite hold back his frustration.

"Several lifetimes Mr. Parker, we've lost count honestly." Rosalind answered bluntly. Her mind was still focused on the dreams.

"There is one thing that may be related sister." Robert words brought back some hope in Peter's eyes.

"You don't think it was that do you? They're dreams brother it has nothing to do with the Tablet."

Peter's veins went cold. The thought that the Tablet of Order and Chaos was still in play unnerved Peter. He saw the damage that thing was capable of. "The Tablet…Me and the rest of the Spider-Men took care of it. How could it be a problem now? What does it have to do with the dreams?" Doom and worry dawned onto Peter. The Tablet was a dangerous tool and it's mention struck a chord in Peter.

"It isn't so much the Tablet but it's the events surrounding it. When Mr. Beck foolishly unleashed its power and created a pocket reality in his own twisted image. He effectively shattered a dimension by creating his own." Rosalind face was twisted with worry and astonishment. The sudden rush of emotion from the normally indifferent twins took Peter off guard.

"And in doing so he got someone or rather something's attention." Robert again finished for his sister. His face was a mirror of his twin's.

"And what does that mean exactly?" Peter asked.

"It means that you and the rest of the spiders have gotten popular." Rosalind answered.

Peter was stuck in a strange world. He always took solace that the major problems were behind him and the rest of the Spider-Men. He was wrong. "So whose attention did I get? Does it have a name?" Peter's brows were knit and his eyes were focused.

"Unfortunately this brings us back where we started Mr. Parker. We don't know. We don't know if its good or malevolent or even if it has a name. All we know is that there is an unknown party watching and waiting." Rosalind ominous words almost overwhelmed down trodden face wasn't doing him any favors.

"This matter requires our full attention at the moment Mr. Parker. We'll let you know if anything something substantial comes up." Robert was the one to leave Peter with some parting words before leaving the scene.

"Wait don't go! I need to know more!" Peter pleaded with them. A twinge from his spider-sense broke his gaze on the twins. He turned quickly to meet the danger behind him. "…Mr. Sato."

"Takuya, forgive me I didn't mean to startle you my boy. I could've sworn I heard you speaking with someone." He was taken aback by the look on Peter's face. "Are you feeling alright son? You look like you've seen a ghost."

"Saw a few." He mumbled under his breath.

"Come again."

"It's nothing Mr. Sato it's just a guilty conscious for dragging your good name through the mud. I guess I'm still beating myself up for it." Peter's lied sounded believable. He really was getting too good at it.

Sato only smiled and gave Peter a reassuring pat on the back. "Don't worry about that Takuya. It's a dirty business mud comes with the territory." He directed him towards a large stair well. "Come on. A little bird told me the Avatar is going to make a statement."

"O.K. This should be interesting." Peter put on a false smile as he walked with his employer to the press junket. He couldn't shake the bad feeling he had about it. The twin's dire words weren't helping either. Peter knew the ins and outs of the fifth estate and Korra was about to find out how ugly it could get.

Korra was accompanied by Councilmen Tarrlok as they made their way to the stair well. The reporters and photographers rushed in like a pack of hyenas on a lion carcass. The cameras clicked and flashed while the marbled words of the reporters asked different questions.

"If you'd be so kind they just have a couple of questions." Tarrlok said with a smug smile. He pushed her to the vultures. If this didn't get Korra on board nothing will. This party was his last card he had.

"Avatar Korra, you witnessed Amon taking away people's bending first hand. How serious of a threat does he pose to the innocent citizens of Republic City?" One of the reporters asked Korra.

It was clear that Korra was lacking in her public speaking skills. She cleared her throat and answered. "I think he presents a real problem."

"Then why have you refused to join Tarrlok's Task Force. As the Avatar, shouldn't you be going after Amon?" Another reporter shot back.

Tarrlok was having a hard time containing his zeal. His plan was working better then he hopped.

"Well…I." A camera Flash winked in her eyes.

"Why are you backing away from this fight?"

"What, no I've never backed away from anything in my life!" More cameras captured her disgruntled face.

"You promised to serve the city. Aren't you going back on that promise now?"

"Do you think pro-bending is more important than fighting the revolution?"

"How do you think Avatar Aang would've handeld this? Do you think he would approve Spider-Man prowling the streets?"

"What does that guy have to do with this?" Korra tried to answer the flurry of questions. Spider-Man's mention started to unravel her already shaky patience.

"Are you leaving Amon and the equalist for the Spider-Man to handle?"

"Are you afraid of Amon?"

"I'm not afraid of ANYONE!" The anger and confusion finally took its toll on Korra. She didn't care what came out of her mouth now. "If the city needs me then I'll join Tarrlok's Taskforce and help fight Amon!"

The underhanded politician smiled ear to ear when he heard the magic words. "There's you headline folks!" He posed for the camera just to sweeten the deal.

The camera flashed and the stamped of reporters all tried to squeeze in another statement. They didn't need one. It was like Tarrlok said, they had their headline. The shakedown was all too familiar to Peter. Jonah gave him plenty of assignments to do such a thing. They were usually reserved for disgraced pollutions, criminals who got acquitted, or Hollywood starlets. Korra didn't fit in any of those categories and thus didn't deserve any of it. "Gotta make 'em weep." He repeated JJ old saying absently. It was obvious that Tarrlok wanted her in the fold and he got it thanks to Korra impulsiveness. He didn't have the context of the situation but he got the gist of it.

The party was winding down now and people started to leave the little publicity trap moonlighting as a social event. Peter stuck around to see if he could get a word with Korra. He knew the police was gunning for him but Tarrlok's Taskforce was another story and Korra might be able to shed some light on their intentions. He hung around the bending brothers and Asami for the time being.

"Hey Takuya were you listening?" Bolin regained Peter's attention.

"Sorry Bolin what were you saying again?" Peter said much to Bolin's annoyance. Thankfully Mako and Asami weren't in on the conversation.

"Uh! Come on dude. I was saying Spider-Man could be the Fire Ferret's official team mascot. I know he's a little shy around crowds, you know since he's my friend and all, but I think I can make it work. So what do you think?" Bolin voiced his asinine scheme in an animated manor.

He understood every word but it still sounded like gibberish. Bolin had gravitated towards Peter since he stuck up for Korra and himself. He still wondered when the young earthbender got around to talking about him. "Isn't your mascot a fire ferret?"

"Yeah but I was thinking could get a Pabu get up and he would do those crazy flips and swing around the arena a few times to get the fans pumped up." Bolin voiced his strange plan without missing a beat.

"I wouldn't hold my breath on that Bolin. He's not going to show up in a packed arena and he's definitely not going to play dress up for you. Trust me on that. And that's if you manage to get a hold of him. You got a better chance of getting hit by lighting." Peter hopped he dashed his odd hopes. He didn't want him to set himself up for failure.

Bolin ignored reason and went on. "Yeah you got me there. Me and Spidy do have a communication problem." Bolin searched for a solution for second before his hit him. "I got it! Maybe I could get one of the arena's flood lights and put a little spider sign in front of it and BAM! Spider-signal. Huh huh, I think that solves that little issue." Bolin's solution earned him a blank stare from Peter.

"Did you miss the part where I said he wouldn't dress up as a giant ferret?" Peter had to admit that that was a good idea for a hypothetical situation.

Thankfully Korra and Tenzin's family were walking to the building's exit. Tenzin gave her an ear full before she saw her teammates. She broke off the hushed dialogue to say goodbye to her teammates. "Hey guys." Her greeting sounded drained and distracted.

"Hey Korra, glad you're here. We need to talk about the team. Is this taskforce business going to interfere with the championship tournament is it? Please tell me it isn't." Mako asked.

"I don't know Mako. I'm meeting up with them tomorrow so I'll know by then." Korra answered.

Bolin didn't have his brother's grace. "What! Korra you joined us before that council guy! Come on Korra this is the championship were talking about. Don't leave us like Hasook."

"I know Bolin and don't worry. I'm abandoning you guys like that loser did." You have my word on that." Korra regained some of its glow. She meant every word.

"Well that's good to hear, can't wait for the tournament." Asami chimed in.

Peter could've sworn he saw Korra grimace when Asami spoke. He ignored the underlying resentment and spoke up. "So Avatar Korra, is the taskforce going after the Spider-Man along with Amon?" He bluntly asked Korra.

She frowned at the new and yet familiar face. It drove her crazy but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. "You sound like those reporters." She flashed him a dirty look.

"Sorry I didn't mean to pray." He caught himself before he got on her bad side. "My curiosity gets the better of me sometimes."

"Your just full of strange questions aren't you Takuya." She sighed and continued. "Not that it's any of your business, but Tarrlok's only got his eye on Amon right now." She answered. Her mind was a million miles away at the moment.

Peter let out a sigh of relief. He had finally caught a break. "Thanks Avatar Korra."

"Yeah whatever." Korra absently said. She talked with her team mates for a while before leaving with Tenzin. His family went to fetch their ride home.

Peter let Asami and the bending brothers talk pro-bending before Mr. Sato stepped in. "Alright kids the limo's ready to go."

"Good. We've got to turn in. Me and Bo got practice in the morning." Mako said to Mr. Sato.

"Did you talk to Toza about those guy times? I need my beauty sleep bro." Bolin said.

"No luck Bo five-thirty sharp." Mako wasn't happy about the practice times either.

"You guys go ahead without me. I'll catch a trolley home tonight." Peter said to the group.

"Are you sure Takuya? We'd be happy to have you. The car has plenty of space." Asami offered.

"Thanks but no thanks. I just need to get a little fresh air. Can't get that in a limo." He smiled at her. He needed time to process and decompress and he couldn't do that in his small apartment.

"Well Takuya I won't force you. Get home safely. I still need your talents at the company son." Mr. Sato told his apprentice.

"Sure thing boss." He turned to others. "It was nice talking to you guys and it was nice to meet you Bolin." Be bid them farewell and he walked out of the government building. He made sure he was out of site before web swinging home. Of course he took the scenic route. He had a lot to think about.

The shoufer came by and told them the satomobile was ready for them. The group followed him and piled into the back seat. Bolin and Mako talked about strategies and speculated on the other teams in the tournament. This effectively left Asami and her father talk amongst themselves. "Your prospect is real distant dad. You know that right?" Asami told her father. "I've never seen anyone refuse a free limo ride before."

"Geniouses usually are Asami." Hiroshi said to her daughter.

"Why?"

"Because they're usually catch so much grief for it. So they close themselves off in their own little world until they feel safe enough to join the rest of us." He held reached for his pocket watch with a picture of his late wife.

"I get it. He must've had it rough before he walked into your factory." Asami deduced. "Your just giving him some space."

"Right, he'll open up when he's ready. We all have to come back into the light eventually. I didn't think see it again after your mother…" Hiroshi couldn't finish his thought.

Asami held his hand tightly. "I know dad."

The two didn't utter a word for the rest of the trip. The fond memories of a loving wife and mother occupied their minds for the time being. Hiroshi had locked himself in his work when his wife was murdered all those years ago. He grew so cold and distant that Asami hardly recognized her father. But then the equalist breathed new life in him. They gave him a purpose again and gave him the strength to bring the fight to the corrupt benders of the world. He only hoped his beloved daughter and his protégé could see the light and accept it.

XXXxxx Future Industries: 2 days later xxxXXX

The office was unusually quite. The engineers weren't arguing with the technicians and the lab guys were effectively twiddling their thumbs with quality control. Peter surmised that it was just a slow work week. Everything was devoted to the usual satomobile production, circuit analysis, and platinum grafting research. The walk to Mr. Sato's office was a somber one. The Lutecee's bombshell revelations coupled with his duties as Spider-Man weighed heavily on his mind. 'I thought this mess was over.' He thought as he passed through legions of desks. His wish to go home was trumped with the need to worn the other Spider-Men of their unknown spectator. His affairs in this world also clouded his mind as well. Amon had to be dealt with but he didn't know if he could. The guy read him like a book and none of his bag of tricks worked against him. A sliver of worry was then devoted to Korra. He knew she wasn't ready to face Amon. He couldn't explain it he just knew it. She reminded Peter of himself in many ways. He was brash like her and on several occasions was severely humbled for it. The first thing he did after that faithful bite was to head over to Oscorp Industries and face his uncle's killer. The heavy thoughts were dropped as he walked into Hiroshi's office.

"Takuya came on in and take a seat. Just give me a minute to take care of these forms." He only regarded Peer for a second before returning to the materials requisition form. The platinum should be here next week he had already started pre-production on the mecha tanks inner workings and control modules. He signed off on the platinum without batting an eyelash at the substantial price tag. "Alright Takuya what do you have for me?"

The work he was doing truly was a godsend. It kept his mind off all the crazy Spider-Man antics and the 'marooned on an alien world' thing well. "I think I've solved the platinum graft problem we've ran into." He slid a file across Sato's desk. "And I found a better way to o it with half the cost." He grinned. He was proud of his work and he was confident it would solve many of the company's woes with the platinum.

His confidence intrigued Mr. Sato. "Do tell Takuya." He took off his glasses and started scanning through Peter's work.

"Well as you know Platinum is hard to work with and is fairly rare. It's a miracle there's so much of it in the Earth Kingdom." Peter couldn't quite hold it all in. He had to fight himself not to blurt out the whole thing in an unrecognizable ramble. "The metal gets brittle and falls apart when the temperatures aren't properly regulated. And it's not very malleable if it's not hot enough. So that throws out our usual metal working methods. Not even a metal bender could mess with the stuff."

Hiroshi smiled at the benders shortcomings. "Please go on. I'm on the edge of my seat here."

"O.K so the trick is to split it up into panels and put it on piece by piece on the satomobiles. We save up on man power and we can cut down on production times to boot. I call it the movable frame process. Theoretically it could be applied to anything with a frame foundation or transport vehicles. Though I wouldn't try it with boats yet."

Hiroshi leaned back in his chair. He wouldn't believe him but his notes and quick sketch schematics backed up everything Peter just said. "Amazing Takuya, this is simply amazing. How long did it take you to come up with this?"

"A few days ago, I came up with it on my walk home. Of course proving it was the hard part." Peter explained.

"Is this everything you have on this movable frame method Takuya?"

"Besides the scrap paper lying around my desk, that's everything in the file."

"Right, make sure you destroy those. We'll put together some prototypes together. If we play our cards right we could start full on production in a few months."

"Really, just like that? Don't you think we're going a little too fast? This isn't something we rush sir." Peter was concerned with Hiroshi eagerness. He was impatient at times to but this was a major project. There was a laundry list of procedures to go through before full on production could even begin.

"My boy there is no time like the present. We have to act if we're going to keep our hold on this technology. I didn't have a lot of time when I created the satomobiles. I went from prototype to full on production in six months and that was a brand new mode of transportation in the world. Trust me Takuya I know what I'm doing." Hiroshi said. Of course it was a different time now but he had to tell him something up at least until he could trust him with the truth.

"If you say so sir, you've been at this thing longer then I have right." Takuya dropped the subject and his bosses' strange behavior.

"Right then, now is there anything else you wanted to talk about?"

"Yeah actually I do. Since I'm done with all of your projects I was wondering if I could start working on some of my ideas."

"Hmm. I don't see anything wrong with that. I just would've had you working on quality control with the rest of the lab boys and girls. Go ahead. You've already done so much for me you should pursue some of your interests. Who know you might have more surprises for me, heck the world."

"I just might. Thanks again Mr. Sato." He eyed his desk and saw a news paper. "Is that today's paper?"

"Yes it is. There's a real interesting story on that taskforce the Avatar is on." He handed him the news paper. "Here you go I already went through it this morning."

"Thanks." He grabbed the paper and turned to the stories page. The picture attached to the article had Korra looking regal and heroic with the slimy Tarrlok by her side. The picture was pretty good quality but the councilmen dropped it down to a c-. "Huh I guess that Tarrlok wasn't blowing smoke about that taskforce of his after all." Truthfully the airship patrols increased and it limited his mobility. Plus there were a few run of the mill crooks he had to attend to that night. Sometimes he wonders if his powers were responsible for the extra energy.

"Did you know the council just outlawed teaching and practicing chi-blocking? Seems a little extreme if you ask me." Sato probed Peter. He wanted to know if Peter could one day be included in the revolution.

"It does. You don't hear that king of talk when the triads were running wild. Besides I'm sure the art predates this equalist thing hit the scene. It's not the right way to go about it anyways." Peter quickly assessed the politics in the situation. "Either way it won't get them very fare." He shrugged and concluded.

His answer pleased the industrialist. He has the right idea but he isn't ready for the truth. But once he's seen how low the benders will go and the corrupt city council will to with the coming events. "As always Takuya, you're full of surprises. People your age don't really pay attention to political matters."

"Yeah well you know me. Everything has to have logic to it. I just try to follow it." He thought how hypocritical he sounded. There wasn't much logic to throwing on a costume and picking fights with mobsters.

"I see. Well you can go now Takuya. I don't need anything else from you today."

"Thanks Mr. Sato. You have a nice day."

"You too." He half waved to Peter as he left the office. He flipped through the math and it was all sound. His addition would lighten up the load on the mecha tanks for further additions. He already had ideas for the four arms of the tanks now.

XXXxxx Peter's Apartment xxxXXX

Jazz music played in the cramped room. The window was opened and the cool winds were blowing in. It wasn't bitter cold of winter nor was it the dry summer like winds. It was a nice late afternoon day. Peter lay in his newly furnished bed, thinking about the revolutions operations. His mind was transfixed on Amon and the twins warning. "Think Parker, just relax and think. Forget about the stakes and focus on the solution." He said to himself. Amon and the equalists were the more immediate threat so he focused on that. "The chi-blockers and Lieutenant Mustache had some fancy equipment at their disposal. They've got enough green, or red, to fund a full fledge motor pool and money to fund hidden training camps. And you know they have an impressive information network at their disposal. The question is who's the movement's financial backer?" He couldn't come up with an answer. Some wealth business heads came to mind but the money could be coming from anywhere. This world's banking system was very loose compared to his world. There were so many currencies and there was bound to be loop holes a rookie banker could exploit to get money. This land was far away from money transfers and a credit system. He moved on to the chi-blockers themselves. "They put up a better fight then those dime store benders and they were far more disciplined to boot." His first chi-blockers opponent came to mind. He had the chi-blocker's arm close to breaking and he didn't say anything that would put Amon or 'the revolution' at risk. A twinge of advisement fell in his head at the chi-blockers will power but it was quickly extinguished at the damage it would cause. "And finally we have the x factor. What makes you tick Amon? You're hiding something but what?"

The radio's fast passed jazz was halted abruptly. / This is a special news bulletin coming to you live from city hall./ The female radio dj announced.

Peter rose up and eyed the radio. He moved his messey hair out of his eyes and turned up the radio.

/ Avatar korra has bravely answered the call to action./ Councilmen Tarrlok voice answered one of the reporters.

The political chest thumping was no doubt a ploy to boost morale. Parker would have spent more time and energy trying to catch Amon then taking a premature victory lap. But hey, people were scared and they needed something to put their mind at ease.

/With the two of us leading the charge, Republic city has nothing to fear from Amon and the equalists./ Tarrlok finished his statement.

"If only." Peter wasn't convinced by the councilmen's bravado on bit.

/Question for the Avatar: Amon remains at large, why have you failed to locate him?/ A reporter asked.

/ You want to know why, because Amon is hiding in the shadows like a coward. Amon, I challenge you to a duel. No taskforce, no chi-blockers, just the two of us tonight at mid-night on Avatar Aang Memorial Island. Let's cut to the chase and settle this thing. If your man enough to face me./ Korra's words hung in the air in the small apartment.

Peter couldn't believe Korra just did that. He just stared at the small wooden radio blankly before reacting. "And you call me reckless!" The sun was setting as he went for his costume. "Damn it Korra what the hell's the matter with you?" He pushed in his vintage airmen boots and continued his rant. "Of all the crazy stunts you could pull you drop this load of crap." He buttened up his vest as fast as he could. "And know I've got to find a way on that island and pull your keister out of the fire." His mask was Ajar and his face felt the ocean breeze hit his face before sighing. "Or at least tell you what you're up against." He shoved the mask and goggles in to their proper position. The sun had set and the street lights began to come to life. He shook his head as Korr's words replayed in his head. "And now I got to figure out how I'm going to get to the island in the first place." He launched his way out of the building and began his patrol. "Terrific."

XXXxxx Republic City West Pier xxxXXX

Ships came in and out of the small port. A few recreational sail boats along with several shipping boats crossed the harbor. The full moon reflected off the water while oceanic fog danced across the water. Aanil prepared to take his small junk boat out for a late night voyage. Ever since he retired from the restaurant business most of his time was spent with his family and the boat. Seeing the city lights and the calm ocean waves always gave him a perfect setting to reflect on his life. He positioned his sail and untied the dock rope then proceeded to ease his way out to the bay. He wondered what his son was doing right now. Just before the ship taxied out to the open water the boat rocked back with a small but noticeable sway. A novice sailor would have missed it but not Aanil. The old wooden ship whined as if footsteps had landed on the aft section on the boat. "Who's there?" Aanil didn't get an answer. He grabbed his emergency oar to defend himself. "I'm warning you, come out or I'll call the coast patrol!" He lied to the possible assailant. His ship had no means of communication. Clouds rolled over the moon and doused the small vessel in darkness. The only illumination came from a few service lights over the instruments and some dim navigation lights. He almost jumped out of the boat when heard a voice.

"Relax old timer, I was just trying to hitch a ride that's all." The owner of the voice walked under the aft navigation lights with his hands up. The light reflected off the Spider-Man's 'eyes'. He didn't need his spider-sense to tell him the old man was bluffing. His intrusion may have gone unnoticed but the old wooden hull gave him away. Cursing his rotten luck took a back seat to calming the old man down. "Sorry if I scared you there. I just need to barrow your boat to get to the memorial island."

Aanil had heard of Spider-Man and his exploits. His grand kids couldn't stop talking about him. "Why don't you just swim there? From what I heard you're a strapping young man it wouldn't be a problem for you." Aanil asked.

Spider-Man shifted and rubbed one of his hands across the back of his mask. He searched for a romantic way to say he couldn't swim. "Water doesn't agree with me." He shrugged and put his hands back up. He didn't want the old man to keel over. He knew how scary he looked in his costume.

A smile crept onto his face and a conservative laugh came next. "The spider doesn't like water. Oh this is quite humorous." He continued to laugh at the wall crawler's expense.

"Yeah yeah it hilarious, now please I need your help. It's urgent." He was thankful his mask covered his rosy checks.

The retiree casually threw deadly oar to the side and returned to the helm. "Sure I'll help the wall-crawling do-gooder. Take a loud off. Don't worry this old thing will take you where you want to go."

"Thanks old timer." He dropped into one of the sunken in seats. The old man had saved him a lot of grief.

"So why do you need to go to the memorial island?" Aanil asked his unexpected passenger.

"I'm trying to stop the Avatar from making a huge mistake." He spoke the truth for a change.

"Oh you're talking about that duel nonsense. I say let her go at him. If anybody can bead Amon it's the Avatar. I don't even know why you're bothering to show up." He spoke back since his eyes were focused on steering at the moment. "Honestly I thought you were going to be the one to take him down."

"I'm working on it." Was all the wall-crawler told his ride. His voice had a venomous tone to it.

"So why are you trying to help the strongest bender in the world?"

"She doesn't know what she's getting into and I figure I'm the best one to tell her."

"So you like her then?" Aanil flashed a sly smile.

"What no that's ridicules!" Peter snapped.

"It's not really. Trust me I know how these things work. I've been around block more times than I can count."

"Where not exactly close old man. To be honest I can hardly stand her." Peter told him.

"I couldn't stand my wife when I first met her. Then one thing turned into another and bam forty five years of marriage." This night was turning out better than he ever hopped it would. He talked to his son like this until he finally got married. The Spider-Man maybe a superhero but he was still a kid.

"What is it with you geezers tying to be matchmaker? Lord you sound like my old aunt." He wished the boat would move faster but the winds weren't strong tonight. He should've risked it all and 'barrowed' a speed boat.

"We like to see things go full circle before we leave for the next world young man. And its fun seeing an urban legend get flustered for a girl."

Spider-Man sighed. "It's not like that old man. You're getting the wrong idea."

"Fine fine." Aanil didn't press any further. "So why did you pick my boat. The western shipping port would've saved you some time."

"Your boat was too old and small to be used for intercontinental trips so I guessed you would take a leisurely cruise. You would've hit the island eventually." His response was robotic and distracted as he got closer to the island. He didn't know how this would end.

"You got all that from a quick glance. You're pretty smart for a guy in a costume." His quip fell on deaf ears. The old man got close enough for web swinging.

"So they keep telling me." He got up and prepared to leap from the ship.

"Wait Spider-Man." He caught the web-slinger in the nick of time. "I've got a few grandkids that are crazy about you and it it's not too much trouble; could I get an autograph from you?"

Peter never stepped into this expecting he would be loved and admired by others. He paused. The only thing he got for these powers and the costume were enemies and .38 specials. "Sure. Got a pen and paper?"

"Yes right here." He grabbed his maintenance checklist and flipped it over. The stationary was handed to his strange passenger.

Peter wrote down a little message to the kids. He made sure to write sloppily but legible as he could. He handed Aanil the autograph. "Here you go. Make sure you clear out as soon as I'm gone. Thanks again." He hopped on the mast and jumped to and shot a web to a rock formation. He cleared the boat and dispersed in the island.

Aanil looked down at the autograph. 'Your gramps is a swell guy. Regards from your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man.' He drew in a little spider next to his signature. "The wife's not going to believe this."

XXXxxx Avatar Aang Memorial Island xxxXXX

Peter calmly waited in a tidy hideaway in the visitors section of the statue. He had a good three-hundred and sixty degree view of the surrounding body of water. He sat back and tired to think why Korra would pick a fight with Amon. 'Maybe she just wants to nip this in the bud before this went out of hand.' He thought the same way ended up embarrassing himself. "No it's got to be something else." He told himself under his breath. He dug deep in his spider-sense and the world went black and white. There were no outright threats on the island yet but then there were limits to his advance awareness. He could only detect threats directed at him. Sometimes it was too sensitive and other times it was lax on other occasions. Either way it didn't guarantee his safety. He still had the scars from that brush with the bending triads.

No threats detected in the area. His mind went back to the Avatar's reasoning for the unreasonable. The reporters did wear Korra out and egged her on to fight. JJ would certainly condone the move. It would sell a hell of a lot of papers that's for sure. Then a relevant memory pinged in his head.

He was walking down Brookline running aarons with his Uncle Ben. He couldn't remember the reason, he was nine at the time, it was something for Aunt May's shelter of it was a simple walk to the fish market. Either way the two of them were walking down 4th street with a few boxes. Ben stopped to talk to an old friend of his. He was a war vet as well. He remembered because he wore an eye patch. Their short conversation turned into a long one and Peter wondered off to an alley on the other end of the street. Even back then he was stealthy. He walked and walked until a loud bark scared the life out of him. His coordination was effectively non-existent and he fell on his butt as the Rottweiler charged at him. He shielded his eyes in hopes the vicious beast would diaper. His salvation came in the form of a thick chain halting the dog's hasty advance. It tugged at the chain and a fit of barking came next. Ben heard his nephew's cries and rushed to his aid. "I'm here Kiddo. Don't worry I'm here." He said to calm down his flailing nephew.

"Uncle Ben the dog, it's trying to eat me!" Tears welled down his face as he pleaded to his uncle.

Ben looked at the dog and laughed at Peter's misplaced fears. "It that all you're whaling about? Jesus kiddo don't scare me like that." He helped his frail nephew and dusted him off. The dogs barking was still going strong. "There's nothing to be scared of Peter."

"But the dog…" Peter pointed at the dog who went from barking to growling at the Parker clan.

Ben grinned at his naïve nephew. He patted him on the back. "Watch this." He nonchalantly walked closer to the vicious beast. He got within arm's length and held his hand out. To Peter's surprise the dog didn't bite off his uncle's left arm but instead started sniffing Ben's hand. Licking came next and Ben started to pet the dog. Ben turned back to his confused nephew. "Come here kiddo."

Peter walked over to the dog slowly, its panting revealed a mouth full of sharp teeth, and stopped next to his uncle. He stood there and looked away from the large dog.

"Come on kiddo pet him. He won't bite you I swear." Ben said.

Peter reached in and petted the dog. In kind came closer to started to lick his face. Fear was replaced with disgust as dog slobber smeared his glasses. "Gross!"

The two left the dog on good terms and they returned to the task at hand. "Peter do you know why that dog raised all kinds of hell when he saw you?"

"No sir. Why?"

"That dog was afraid of you."

"He didn't look scared Uncle Ben."

"Look kiddo, all that noise and what not was its way of hiding its fears. It just saw you as a threat and started barking. What I did back there was show it we weren't threatening. Remember boy, the loudest dog is the most afraid. Now if it was quite and growling then you'd have something to cry about."

The world shifted back to the late Avatar's monument. His spider-sense triggered to an approaching boat. He already knew who it was. He scrambled to a more concealed position. 'Is she scared of Amon? That's nuts. She's a walking deterrent why would that guy scare…oh.' Peter answered his own question. Korra was a force of nature that very few people could face and Amon could take it all away from a single touch. She had every reason to be afraid but that didn't excuse the recklessness.

Korra landed on the island and made her way up to the Avatar Aang feet. She stood there and waited for her fated duel with Amon. Spider-Man kept his distance and watched over her. He did this for twenty or so minutes until his spider-sense buzzed slightly as the clock was about to hit mid-night.

The large bells shocked Korra. The scene would be mildly comedic if it wasn't for the situation. She quickly regained her composure.

Peter scanned the area gain to see if Amon would take Korra's challenge or take this opportunity to ambush her. Nothing happened. Korra quickly regained her composure and continued to wait for her adversary. Fifteen minutes went by and she relaxed and took a seat as it started to look like Amon wouldn't show up. Spider-Man's defensive also went lax as time went by. He took another good look around the island and again no sign of Amon or his underlings. He looked at Korra gain. She was fighting the urge to fall asleep. Peter was in the same boat. Boredom and drowsiness was getting to him. Normally the constant movement and free running helped him stay awake in the wee hours in the night. Standing still on a wall for an hour and a half wasn't helping at all. It was then that he decided to go out on a limb and try to talk to her. He detached from the wall and quietly closed in on Korra. "Evening princess."

Life jolted back into Korra. The lethargic bender was replaced with the well trained prodigy. Her firebending form was flawless as she attacked from a seated position. She flipped to her feet and punched a concentrated fire ball to the unknown target. The black and sepia blob evaded the attack with ease. A familiar voice cut her follow up volley short. "Relax Korra it's me!" The wall crawler told her.

"Spider-Man what are you doing here!?" Korra forcibly asked. Adrenaline was still pumping in her veins.

She was still jittery form all the excitement and he tried to talk her down. "I'm here to talk you out of this little snafu." He answered.

She dropped her firebending stance and flashed the wall crawler a dirty look. "I don't need your help Spidy. And I sure as heck don't need anyone talking me out of this duel."

"You're making a big mistake Korra. You can't just step up to Amon and expect to win so easily. There are things you don't know about him. Take it from a guy who actually fought him." Peter was never any good at talking anyone out of anything. He tried his best anyway.

"O.K then Spidy spill it. Tell me something I don't know about Amon." She folded her arms and opened her ears. The wall-crawler wasn't her favorite person but he did have valuable information on Amon and he did trade blows with the revolutionary.

"He's hiding something with that power of his. There's more to it than simply taking a person's bending. I don't know what it is but I think it's how he got the upper hand with me and those triad goons."

"You're just making excuses for him mopping the floor with you Spidy. Mako filled me in on the details. Besides were not exactly on the same league. You're good but I'm the Avatar, Amon doesn't stand a chance against me." Korra proudly told the wall-crawler.

Her arrogance almost got a rise out of Peter. Her mask of confidence didn't fool him. "These aren't excuse Korra. This guy is bad news and you're not going to beat him by underestimating him. I didn't and he still had me on the ropes." He tried not to shout at her. An open argument wouldn't them anywhere. "You really are afraid of him aren't you?"

Korra defended her irrational stance. "The Avatar's before me saved the world countless times. I've been trained in the bending and martial arts since I was six years old. So why would I be afraid of some guy in a cheap mask?"

"Because he's the only one who could take that all away." Peter's retort hit Korra at her core.

"You a shrink now Spidy, what do you know. You run around all night knocking heads pretending to care about all the strangers you save. Beifong was right about you. You're just some superhuman thug looking for cheap thrills!" Korra left cracks on the floor, she subconsciously earthbent the ground during her rant.

Korra could tell she got under the wall-crawler's skin. He didn't have any facial features to go by. His demeanor did change. It went from relaxed to rigid. The pocket earthquake didn't faze him at all. "You don't know a thing about me princess." He stared right at her and saw her reflection off of his lenses. His voice had a quite furry about it and it unnerved her for a split second. He walked over to the ledge and sat cross-legged facing the city. "If you want to hide behind those paper thin reason then you go right ahead and do it. I won't stop you." He rested his head on his left hand watching the waves clap on the island.

Korra wasn't ready for the indifference from the vigilante. "So you're just going to sit there and watch the water? You could just leave I don't need saving from you."

"I'm just sightseeing princess." Spider-Man lied. She wouldn't listen to reason so he acted as a deterrent. Just in case Amon decided to swing by.

"So go sightseeing somewhere else!"

"No can do. You could always go back with that Tenzin guy if I'm bothering you." He didn't take his eyes off the sky line. It reminded him so much of home, before everything went to hell. Korra wouldn't get out of the death trap then he would spring it with her. She glared at him with deep annoyance. "It's not polite to stare princess." He didn't even look at her.

"Knock it off with the princess garbage! Just go home to your spider cave or wherever you live!" Korra fumed and he wouldn't budge. She threw up her hands and gave up trying to get him to leave. She begrudgingly sat a fare distance away from the annoying hero.

"Touchy." Peter said.

Seconds quickly turned into minutes as the two sat and waited for Amon to show up for the duel. It wasn't looking like he would show up. Korra couldn't take the silence anymore and broke the silence. "You said I didn't know anything about you right? So how did you get like this?"

Peter considered staying quite but he chose not to. "Could you be more specific?" His voice was flat and cold. He was still steamed by her remarks.

"How did you get your abilities? I never heard of anyone who could stick to wall and throw people around like rag dolls. So how do you do it all?" Korra rephrased her question.

He broke his gaze from the city and regarded Korra before speaking. "I'll answer you if you promise to answer my question honestly."

"Fine whatever tell me."

Peter knew she wasn't entirely straight with him but he answered anyway. "A spider bite me one night and the next thing I know I'm like this."

"I thought we were being honest with each other here. Do you expect me to believe a spider bite did all that?" Korra waved her hand at Spider-Man's form.

"I'm telling you the truth Korra. You can believe it or not. Now it's your turn." Peter turned his head to Korra. "Why are you itching to fight Amon so badly?"

Korra winced at the question as it rocked her weak spot again. "I do it because I have to. It is the Avatar's duty to maintain balance to the world and taking Amon down is the fastest way to do it." Korra sounded confident but she was far from it.

"And you're calling me a liar."

"I'm telling the truth web-head. I don't run away from anything." She turned away. "I would have to fight Amon sooner or later so I going with sooner that's all."

Peter stayed quiet for a moment. He could tell she wasn't being honest with herself. He had one card left to play. Spider-Man got up from his spot and crouched next to Korra.

"You're in my personal space because?" She said.

"Testing a theory." He hiked up his goggles and meat the Avatar's sight line. "Look me in the eye and tell me you aren't afraid of Amon."

She was surprised to see that the man with the inhuman abilities had a normal set of eyes. His piercing light blue eyes meat hers. They told a tale of sorrow, regret, pain, and a quite furry. She saw this with a few of the 100 year war veterans back home. And yet she the eyes belonged to someone in her age group. She looked into the abyss and turned away. "It's like I said Spidy. I'm not afraid of Amon and I won't back down from this." Her voice was tainted with worry and slightly shaken. The Spider-Man bared a piece of his humanity to her but she couldn't return the favor. "And I don't need to prove myself to you or anyone!"

Peter closed his eyes and shook his head. He couldn't look at Korra right now. He slid his goggles back in place and stood up. "Its human nature to be scared sometimes Korra. We all have to live with that fact, even Avatars. I'm done Korra. Try to get home in one piece." He turned and started to walk into the shadows.

Korra shot his fading form a scowl and then it quickly evaporated. Regret for her harsh treatment of the wall-crawler started to sink in. He was only trying to help. He went out of his way to back her up twice, three times tonight, when he could've easily turned a blind eye. She turned in shame. Korra spent so much time and energy protecting her insecurities that she couldn't appreciate his efforts. He stuck his neck out for her three times now and she treated him like crap tonight. She got up and dusted herself off. She gave Amon enough time to show himself and she wouldn't give him another second. It was time to go and she walked to the boat. "Congrats Korra, you acted like a grade a hog monkey." She told herself. She folded her arms behind her head. Spider-Man's gaze flashed through her head. It was clear that he had a hard life coming up. Mako had a similar look. He saw his parents murdered right in front of him. It was a miracle Bolin was so care free after seeing that. Even after all that grief her teammate suffered, Spider-Man's seemed colder and far more serious. They didn't match at all with that trademark charm of his. "Was it all a front?" She asked herself as she passed a large dark opening in one of the monuments auditoriums. A faint whipping sound whispered in the dark and quickly gained volume. Before Korra could even register what the noise was a bola snaked around her ankles and pulled her into the darkness.

Spider-Man calmly walked on the shore and waited for a stray barge or ship heading back to port. He was bummed that he couldn't get through to Korra. She was acting the same way at the gala. He guessed her fear came to be after seeing that Amon could negate bending. The eye contact thing was his last gambit and it didn't work out. He didn't know why she was so adamant about being afraid. He could lift a Duesenberg and he still got scared when the tommy guns came out. She was like those kids who would touch a hot stove even after their parents told them it would burn them. Some people just needed to experience that burn to lean to heed warnings. Just as a suitable ship got close enough he felt a faint rumble in his boots. His spider-sense told him which direction it was coming from the monument. He expanded his consciousness and saw no watercrafts or boats. That didn't matter right now. The only thing that mattered was Korra and whatever made her earthbend. He pumped his feet and jumped. He was on the building in seconds and ran to the disturbance. He was forced to run there since the wide open spaces didn't complement his heightened agility. He was closing in on a large opening on the east side of the complex. It was pitch black save for a faint glow from a lantern. He activated his night vision and the world lost its color. The chi-blocker surrounded Korra as she slipped into unconsciousness. The last thing she saw was Spider-Man rushing in like an olympic sprinter.

A few chi-blockers formed a diamond formation around Amon. The others readied their bolas and spread their numbers. One of the bolas tried to sweep Spider-Man's legs but he jumped and they missed their mark. Another set shot for his torso but the wall-crawler's enhanced reflexes enabled him to catch the two weights and snap the thick leather like a rubber band. The equalists quickly changed tactics and went with close quarters combat with the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. It was a vicious display of hand to hand combat. Brute force and superhuman agility went up against methodically placed strikes and elegant movement. The chi-blockers moved like acrobats. Parker might not have the grace of a chi-blocker but he always adapted to all of his opponents. He made full use of his agility and avoided the brunt of their jabs. A few did hit him but they missed his vital pressure points. The web head went on the offensive. It would be a herculean feat to land a blow on any of his chi paths. He started by webbing a chi-blocker and waived him around like a wrecking ball. He incapacitated a few of them. Another one acme at the web-head left side and tried to land a jumping round house kick to his dome. Spider-Man snapped his hand and grabbed his leg. He proceeded to swing the equalists like a baseball bat to a few advancing equalist. He shot a web line and yanked a chi-blocker towards him. He caught her and proceeded to slam her to the ground, knocking her out cold.

Amon saw the writing on the wall. If this continued his escort team would be in hand cuffs by morning. The crackdown on the training camps made these men and woman more valuable now more than ever. "Enough!" With that the chi-blockers ceased their assault and they backed away from the Spider-Man. Some walked, some limped, and some didn't get up at all. Amon walked away from his security detail. Amon was grateful the lamp still left some light in the room.

"Didn't expect you here tonight Spider, did you want to finish our finish our duel so badly that you would interrupt another." As usual Amon was cool even after seeing his well trained soldiers dropped like flies.

"I'd hardly call this a duel. Had a feeling you wouldn't fight clean. Rolling in with a pack of followers isn't very equal Amon." He looked back at Korra. He had steered the fight away from her and no one stepped on her.

"This wasn't a duel Spider. I was simply delivering a message. I just brought them along to properly convey my message. Now Spider-Man, I believe we have some unfinished business. Don't you want to finish what you started?" Amon goaded the young hero. He was gifted but still young. And with youth comes impatience.

Peter felt his blood boil. Did Amon think so lowly of him after that fight? The spike of rage subsided. He could win this." The opponent was the same but the surroundings were different. He wasn't fighting on a cramped stage. This was a wide open arena so he had room to move and work his magic on Amon. The darkness also worked in his favor. He was positive wouldn't have a hard time here. But then a cold bead of sweat streamed down his temple. He had all the advantages so why did he challenge him? "How do I know your chi-blocker flunkies won't jump in and try to save you?"

"That's simple." He turned to his subordinates. "Leave us and prepare our exit. This won't take long." Amon ordered.

The chi-blocker didn't debate their leader and obeyed. They helped each other up and the unconscious underlings were carried out.

Peter took the time to scoop up Korra and sat her up on a pillar facing the door. Amon was in his court now and the terrain would stave off his touch of destiny. He took solace that he couldn't take anything away from him…hopefully. "Alright then, you're funeral." The only thing left in the room was him, Amon, and Korra. The small lantern light quietly danced in the shadows as the combatants regarded one another. They waited for what felt like an eternity before Peter jumped into action. But to Amon's surprise he didn't come right at him. The wall-crawler instead jumped into the black void. Amon stood there and waited. Peter stuck to a pillar and watched his prey. He waited for the right moment to strike. As the lantern's flame dipped to the left Spidy launched himself at Amon's back. He didn't know if his plan would work but it was too late now. Just as he expected the vertigo invaded his equilibrium. That didn't matter. He threw himself so hard that his since of balance wouldn't affect his trajectory. Again his prediction was confirmed when Amon side stepped and avoided Parker's mass. His plan was still in play though. He rolled and grabbed the lantern. His clinging ability helped stop and stabilize him. He was still in range to attack. He turned and threw the lantern Amon's head. Years of training in the martial arts saved Amon from a world of hurt. He dipped his head and bent his torso as hard as he could. The lantern sailed past him and shattered on something. Now that that problem was solved he could focus on Spider-Man. He blinked and saw a fist coming for his cheek. Amon focused hard on the fist.

Peter's arm went heavy and it was fare slower than it should have been. But that didn't matter. The only thing that did was his punch connecting. He felt the strain increase but it was too late. Amon was only partially successful in avoiding the punch. The fist scrapped and splintered Amon's porcelain face from the cheek to left side of his forehead. The open shock in his exposed eye was all Spidy needed to see. Amon's little trump card wasn't as absolute as he thought. Spider-Man found a chink in Amon's abilities. Whatever his power was, it had no effect on inanimate objects. His enhanced vision now came into play at the make shift arena was doused in darkness except for the lunar light shining through the auditoriums entrance.

Amon staggered back and quickly regained his composure. Spider-Man punch was more psychological than physical. The shock of someone actually landing a blow on him was simply astonishing. "That was…unexpected." His voice was a little shaky. His adrenaline betrayed his usual cool demeanor.

Spider-Man retreated back into the darkness. "I surprise myself sometimes." His voice echoed throughout the area. The light was gone but he could see Amon standing still in neutral fighting stance. Ready to attack and defend. He rushed to continue his assault. He didn't get cocky from a glancing shot. The ringing spider-sense wouldn't let him. 'If I attack his center of mass this time he won't be able to dodge me a second time.' He thought as he zipped into range and went for a dive kick. If he managed to dodge again then he would hide away and continue his hit and run tactics. The vertigo returned and his body got heavy.

Amon had an idea of what Spider-Man was planning. The lantern threw him off and he barely got out of that with a scratch. He felt the wall-crawler to his front. He didn't know what he was doing but he quickly sidestepped his kick. He felt the wind come off his boot.

Spider-Man missed and he prepared to retreat back into darkness when he felt several pin pricks along his spinal cord and dropped. 'Why didn't I jump!?' He thought as he struggled to return to his feet but his limbs didn't obey him.

"That was very resourceful Spider-Man but it'll take more than that to defeat me." Amon basted to the struggling wall-crawler. "You really are something else. That was an advanced chi-blocking technique and you're still moving. A normal person would be paralyzed for several hours." He adjusted his hood to its proper place and turned to the exit. "You should tell the police all about it."

Peter fought hard to get to his feet but his limbs wouldn't come through. Another problem arose. His spider-sense pounded in the back of his head. The usual buzz wasn't there. In its place was a deafening migraine. He couldn't take it anymore and his world finally faded to black. No one could explain what happened next.

Amon quietly walked back to his comrads when an insane yelling banged on his ear drums. "Impossible." He felt Spider-Man rushing him at full speed. He turned sharply and saw the white lights closing in. There wasn't a shred of humanity left in his movements anymore. It was just him running at full speed at Amon. Amon panicked and went into his father's classic blood bending technique. He pushed with all his might on Spider-Man. His momentum took a huge dip but he kept coming. Animalistic howls escaped Spider-Man's mask. His mad dash moved to a crawl but he still kept coming. Amon was horrified by the sight. Spidy's eyes adjusted to the darkness and he could just make out Spider-Man as he continued his march. Amon struggled with his immense strength. His struggle changed to shock when he got close enough to see Spider-Man's eyes. They were his usual white but his actual eyes were glowing blood red. "WHAT…ARE…YOU!"

Spider-Man didn't answer. The only thing saving Amon was his blood bending. If he had practiced what he preached the Spider-Man would have torn him limb from limb. This same blood bending technique stopped a small herd of yaks in their tracks. Amon would have to blood bend his mind if he was going to survive this predicament. The danger in this move was that he would have to free him for a second. He released his hold on the web-head's muscles and prayed this would work. Spider-Man quickly closed the gap and grabbed him by his collar. He then slammed him into a column and began to squeeze his windpipe. Amon worked feverishly with his psychic grip on the web heads brain. He doubled his efforts and the vigilante's grip loosened. The crazed Spider-Man slowly but surely dropped Amon and again laid on the ground. Tiles of ceramic tile fell with Amon. He was on his knees heaving and rubbing his bruised neck. A phenomenon scientist would call g-loc would save Amon tonight. He got up and took a long hard look at the wall-crawler. It would appear that Amon was the spiritual fraud while Spider-Man was the genuine article. For the most part he was fine so he rushed back to the stealth boat. He kept his followers waiting long enough.

All of Peter's horrors played thought his mind. Ben's mutilation from a monster pretending to be a man, the built ridden Ben Urich laying in his own blood, then a new one came into existence. Everyone he meat in this world were all trapped in a giant web. Then the monster he hallucinated that fateful night at pier 57 descended on the web. /*What's wrong little man?*/. The monster didn't need to speak. It's words resonated to his very core. /*Is the power too much for you? Pathetic!*/. It moved across the cacooned Aki and Hiroshi and moved straight for Korra. /*You'll lose them all at this rate. This is only the beginning of your torment*/. It bared its fangs went for the Avatar's head. "NO!" The shock brought him back to the real world. He ignored his wellbeing yet again. He didn't even question how he recovered from a chi-blocked spinal cord.

"Korra! Korra where are you!?" Tenzin yelled as he searched through his father's moment.

Peter considered staying and explaining the situation to the airbending master. He decided against it and web zipped to the ceiling. He began to crawl out of the auditorium. He cut his escape short when he heard Korra crying.

"…I was so terrified! I felt so helpless." She confessed to her mentor.

"It's alright, the night mare is over."

"You were right…he was right…I've been cared this whole time. I've never felt like this before and…I don't know what to do." She said in between sobs.

"Admitting our fears is the first and most difficult step in overcoming them." Tenzin let Korra get it all out of her system. He would have a fit later when she told him about Spider-Man's involvement.

Peter just went on his way to find a ride off the island. He felt for Korrra and he tried to steer her away from this but some lessons could only be learned firsthand. He wouldn't bring this up with Korra if they ever crossed paths again. She never experienced real fear but he was well acquainted. He hopped she would grow from this.

XXXxxx Stealth Boat xxxXXX

Amon sat in the craft silently recalling what he saw. Their boat was a technological marvel. It was an enclosed ship with visible areas the driver could use to steer. It was painted in s color scheme Hiroshi dubbed dazzle camouflage. Red low lights illuminated its interior letting everyone see Amon's cracked mask. No one pushed the subject though. Spider-Man's humanity was up for debate. Of course he had to omit the details of their duel with the others. He had told them that he got a lucky shot on their leader but he handedly defeated Spider-Man. He covered his tracks with the blood bending and the broken mask but he couldn't cover his worry. He thought he had the Spider-Man all figured out but there was far more than meets the eye. The thorn in his side turned into a stake and the next time he might end Amon before he knows it.

"…amon…Amon sir!" A female chi-blocker finally broke through his shock.

"What is it?" He only turned an eye at her.

"Excuse my insolence, but are you sure you're alright? You seem worse for wear sir."

"I'm fine." He went back to these glowing red eyes.

A/N: Holy mother of god this was crazy hard to publish. So many things happened Uhh. I can't tell you much but it involves getting a job, losing a job, mentoring inner city youths( not kidding by the way) and the police. But hey this stories updates may move as slow as malaises but dang it it's moving people. Now for the story. Is it convoluted…maybe I'm not sure. But I don't think I jumped the shark quite yet. Is it fun to write DEFINETLY. So we revealed that there was more to that spider bite then we thought there was. They didn't really have time to explore it in the comics since it was a mini-series but I am excited to explore this side of Peter. If you paid attention to the last chapter I alluded to this during the rally fight. I actually got the movable frame idea from zeta gundam and the dazzle navy paint from the history channel program I saw a few years back. I'm going to try to up the chapter updates later on. I couldn't even print this chapter and edit like a usually do. A stapler wouldn't go thorugh 88 pages. Anyway I'm here and I've been working on the story the entire time. Thanks for your readership in my absence. Big shout out to anonymus01 He/She was a great help with smoothing out this story.

Glittering Turquoise: I think I delivered on everything you said dude.

Guest 1: You had to wait…sorry about that it couldn't be helped.

Hyper Peter: I try to color in the lines when I'm writing the story. I was actually thinking about you when I was writing the tailor scene. I didn't someone liked my OCs. I just made them as walking literary devices but hey I guess I've given them life. I like making them well rounded and I got carried away with Aki. And thanks for the last review man. It was a shot in the arm I needed.

Aztec 13: Yeah I couldn't do much with them this chapter. I felt that it would take away from the overall theme of this chapter. Besides I think Bolin handled the comedic side of things pretty well this chapter. The kids will be more prominent down the line.

Fantasy-Mania31: Never before have I heard a chapter referred to as a 'chappie'. My vocab was expanded today or the months when you last reviewed anyway.

SpartanWarrior: Don't apologize for anything overdue man. I am the king of overdue if you know what I mean. I'm primarily using the game version of SM Noir. It's a fun little game. It is repetitive but I still had a lot of fun with it. It reminded me of the old school psx spider-man game back when I was 12. Rushing the character's meeting wouldn't have messed with the flow of the story. It gets a little hard to write just because it felt like Peter was really isolated in the beginning but I believe the payoff was worth it in the end. Honestly any iteration of Madame Webb would do for this story but I'm leaning towards the cosmic entity/proxy. It fits more with the whole shattered dimension thing. How did I feel about one of the biggest troll moments in televised history…I can't tell you every word I used but there was laughing( I was a good sport about it) and lots of cursing. Look for my deviant art page. I'll upload a picture of my writing set up. A link is on my author's page. Keep an eye on that.

anonymus01: Thanks for your input and the free beta reading/editing. It's 9:00 over here and I've been going since 3:00 am so I'll finally work in those edits after some shut eye.

Kyugan: You got your wish and then some I think.

White Lantern Oath 009: Hmmm that's an interesting idea. I don't know squat about red alert man rts aren't really my type of games.

gamelover41592: I just picture you sitting at your computer and rubbing your hands saying, "This has potential" Lol. I got a dark lord reading my stuff. I'm moving up in the world.

Hide me: That did cross my mind thought I'm debating whether I should import the villains for the second part of the story or make counterparts of them here. I don't know I just feel like I would be making knock offs if I went that route. Well nothing's in concrete yet so that might happen and it might not.