CHAPTER 2: Nerves of Steel

In the city of New York, Stark Tower stands as the pillar to a great city. The tower itself serves as a reminder of man's dream to touch the sky. High above the office buildings and coffee shops the owner, Tony Stark has done just that and saved the world on many occasions as the invincible Iron Man.

One year passed since the Civil War ended and Captain America was assassinated. Tony was appointed director of S.H.I.E.L.D. to replace Maria Hill who wished to serve as his second in command. Pro-registration was passed, allowing heroes like Mr. Fantastic and Wonder Man to receive pay and benefits for doing what they always did, not that they really needed it. They would fight villains, and save the day but also look out for anti-registration heroes as well.

In this year, the balance between hero and villain was skewed to a point. People that wouldn't normally cooperate, helped each other to keep off the grid, hiding like the fugitives of the law they used to fight on a daily basis. The people felt safe again and that's all most really cared about. They cared that heroes were still there to save them and if anything went wrong they knew who to blame.

Since the reported death of May Parker there wasn't one sighting of Spider-Man or Peter Parker until now. This was the day both came out of hiding with a plan that would possibly break New York's foundation worse than the Civil War ever did.

A rugged faced Peter walked through a dark, dank tunnel wearing the blue jumpsuit of a maintenance worker. The tunnel itself was a bit small but this was no problem for him, he had been in too many uncomfortable places chasing villains in the past for this to bother him. He lowered the tool bag from his shoulder, laying it in front of a metal box on the wall and rummages through the bag for rubber gloves. With the pliers in hand, he grasped the cords in the metal box, looking carefully at them. He has been out of practice but attempted all the same. He striped the cords and twisted certain ones together. The sparks leap into the air as the wires make contact, springing forth and vanishing as quickly as they appeared.

There wouldn't be any security in such an isolated section of the city; it's not exactly a tourist attraction. The harsh smells of fesses and garbage invaded his nostrils, causing them to flare at first. Rats curry in every direction away from him as if he were a threatening predator. In a way, he was a predator but not to them. Using some electric tape, Peter wraps up the twisted wires, closed the box and was ready to rejoin the people on the surface.

To the world on the surface, Spider-Man is a villain but a bearded Peter Parker goes unnoticed as he claims out from a man hole with his hard hat and uniform. Walking down the sidewalk in broad daylight, crowded with citizens living their daily lives. In the distance a couple laughs, perhaps there was a funny joke that was said between them. He tried his best not to look in their direction, putting his head down, gritting his teeth and swallowed hard on his emotions as he approached a blue maintenance truck.

After entering through the back of the truck and changing the jumpsuit back to his old cloths and picked up a backpack. From the bag he pulls out a Yankees baseball cap, sunglasses, an old brown leather jacket, blue jeans and classic converse sneakers from his backpack. His muscles tensed up a bit as he exited the truck when a man wearing a blue jumpsuit approached.

"Hey what do you think you're doing in my truck?" Said the maintenance man.

"Uhh, sorry. This isn't where I parked." Said Peter in a witty voice. "I swear all these trucks are starting to look the same to me. Sorry about that."

"Even with all the heroes around here the cities still filled with jokers. Hope that nut didn't steal anything."

If the man had went looking for Peter it would be too late since he blended in with the crowds so well. He stayed close with the tourists groups, taking their time moving as they gazed high at the marvelous buildings. They would stop to take pictures, desperately trying to preserve the images of memories to be long remembered. One building in particular had that effect on people, the infamous Stark Tower stood with its wicked looking spikes on its top. People held their cameras up to the sky, hoping to get a shot of Tony Stark's avengers.

The sun beamed into their faces but the tourists faces were still arced upward as a figure soared through the sky toward the top of the tower. People flashed their cameras as quickly as they could until the figure was out of view. They all lowered their cameras in unison, sighing in disappointment.

"I got it, I got the picture! It's Thor!"

The Tourists crowded together the see the picture of the Asgardian god of thunder but Peter was worried. If Thor was here, how would his plan work when he could barely beat the Juggernaut? he attempted his best to hide his face under the hat as his heartbeat picked up. Should he try later? Was this the right choice? He contemplated leaving just as another voice broke out.

"There he is again!"

There was a sigh of relief and slowly Peter walked closer to Stark Tower as the crowd desperately tried to capture more pictures of the god as he flew away as quickly as he came. He stepped forward slowly like a cautious animal to food and slowly picked up speed till he passed the threshold into Stark Tower's lobby.

The lobby was covered in a brown marble tiles, a wide fountain in the shape of a star and a golden statue of Captain America which was accurate to every last detail. His strong square chin was that of a champion, the definition of was exact to the last bicep but it's height towered over everyone at eleven feet tall in the center of that fountain holding his shield toward the sky. In front of the fountain was a plaque that read "A champion of freedoms to the very end" it would be three minutes before Peter would look away.

The hall was crowded with fans, hoping to see Iron man and wearing t-shirts with his name on them in hot red and gold colors. Peter joined the crowd as the tour guide called everyone to attention. The room became hot very quickly with so many bodies close together and excited. The tour would begin and Peter could move forward to the next phase of his plan.

The horde of fans followed the guide down the long stretch of hallway; along the hall were hollowed-out models of past Iron Man armors. A fresh coating of polish shined the light right off the armored plating. The suits were also arranged with various shapes and sizes with plaques in front with their names and who they were used against. A crowd of children swarmed to on suit in particular, the Hulk Buster.

The children shouted uncontrollably at the suit towering at nine feet. Some said it could defeat the Hulk while others argued different. The adults were too busy attempting to quiet down the children, now was the time. Peter clenched his backpack tight and backed away from the crowd. Forcing open the nearest door with his strength and closed it behind him. After entering the office without wasting any time, tossing off his jacket, hat and shades, tucking them into a nearby desk drawer but keeping the backpack on his shoulder.

Crawling into the wall, Peter unscrewed the vent in a high corner with his fingernails. He knows that he can't be found yet, not when he is so close. Slowly, the screws swivel out of place and the path was opened to him. He enters the vent carefully, making sure to cover the vent up after he is inside.

As he skittered along the cool metal surface, the vents space gets tighter, making the bag harder to move. "Take your time" he thinks to himself because this is the tough part. Trying not to make too much noise to arouse suspicion takes time and had to be done right.

The various lefts and right turns would confuse anyone else but he's been here before, he knows the halls, the rooms and most importantly the labs. It was a better time then. Back when he Mary Jane and Aunt May moved in with the Avengers. Logan would hit on Mary Jane, Aunt May found a friend in Tony's Butler, Jarvis. Every now and then a vent would yield a view to a hallway covered in fine carpets and luxurious décor or a bedroom draped with the finest sheets and dressers. How could he not know where he was going?

At last Peter found the desired vent. His hands pressed hard on the cover, bending it slightly till it came loose. The cover fell only to be caught by a skinny but strong web-line and lowered to the ground.

He jumped down, landing into a room filled with shining machines. Each various sounds buzzed and beeped from each machine and had monitors connected to consoles with various charts and statistics but only one caught his eye. This machine had many thin needles hanging over a slab like an intricate sewing machine. Peter pulled out the tattered red and gold cloth that was the Iron Spider suit, laying it down on the slab. The lights from the monitors shined from the surface of the Iron Spider suit.

Peter took his place at the machines chair, accompanied with various buttons and knobs. He had seen Tony work from here before, bonding materials together to make it. Mesh webbing for glide capability heat resistant Kevlar to resist small-caliber bullets, a built-in Fire, police and Emergency scanner. For his eyes the suit also offered audio and visual amplification with infrared and ultra violet. Carbon filter mouth piece for toxins, GPS and three mechanical arms called Waldoes controlled through the titanium chest plate.

But before he can start, something must be done. He locates a power box in the far most cover of the room. The many switches control the flow of power to the room if not areas of the floor. With a careful flip of the bottom most switch, the right goes dark and do not come back on. Did he do something wrong? He flipped the switch again with the same result, maybe the line was fried from the sewer. One more time he flipped the switch with the same result.

Why wasn't it working? Without thinking, he struck the electrical box causing the lights to flicker back on. Success, now he could work without being noticed. Now he could take his Seat at the chair.

He turns the knobs and watches the machines insert their needles in the various ripped areas with almost no effort at all just as quickly as it started, Peter's work was finished. The torn areas were repaired with no sign of ever being ruptured from his battles from the Civil War. He lead out the suit on another table and sat at the largest console. This was the hardest part. The mathematic equations were far from fresh in his mind. Some changes were subtle and others not so much.

Hours had passed since that first tour left the building and Peter was still at work. The last thing to change were the three Waldoes, the Iron Spiders mechanical arms fitted with cameras. They were like extra arms and legs, something a spider was meant to have but he couldn't figure out why there were only three. Peter studied the wires under a microscope and moved things out of place to make room for the changes when a man with a lab coat stepped into the room.

His face coated in surprise at a haggard Peter Parker with bags under his eyes. He saw Peter standing over the suit and the bent vent cover on the floor. In that instant he tried to scream out but Peter was too fast for him. Webbing shot from his wrist and covering the scientist's mouth. He grabbed his suit and dashed into the hall with no regard for who might be on the other side. His elbow collided with at least three people as the alarms began to blare. Red lights flared from every which direction as armed guards in black helmets, goggles and vest aimed their rifles at him.

Peter didn't think as he turned into the nearest room and dashed for the nearest window, leaped through it. The tiny shards sliced his skin with the suit still clutched in his hand. The sun blazed its unwanted afternoon light into Peter's eyes. The air had invaded his nostrils making it hard to breath. The skyscraper that is Stark Tower dwarfed all surrounding buildings so there was nothing to catch onto but the building itself. Reaching out with his hand, Peter pressed his fingers together, forcing the web to make contact with a window, but he was still fell downward.

When the distance of the web line met its extent he began to swing into another window, smashing into another room full of office cubicles. The alarm began to pound at his ears again.

"Place cleared out pretty fast which can only mean…"

At that moment he heard it, the boom of a human sized rocket coming from several floors above. The tiny cuts were starting to sting but he didn't care as he unbuckled his pants and slipped into the scarlet suit.

It felt smooth on top of his skin like a second layer. Peter's hands began to shake, muscles tightened as the rocket boom drew closer. The air seemed to stiffen the more the booming sound approached and there he was. A metal man was in gold and crimson colors, hovering in the window. The afternoon sunlight glinted off his armor making him shine far better than any of the hollowed out models in the lower lobby.

"I didn't think you'd ever show your face here again, Peter." Said the Iron Man. "Did you change your mind? It's not too late you know?"

Peter didn't utter a word. He could only feel his anger swell within him at the sight of the man of iron. His golden spider eyes portrayed the perfect expression cold and empty. Usually his banter lightens the mood but without it the mask and silence spoke for themselves.

"You must really have nerve to come here and think you'd get away. Come quietly and I promise I'll go easy on you."

If Peter wanted to talk, he couldn't, the anger was too great to contain. The memories began to flood back to him again, Aunt May in a pool of her blood and Mary Jane…

"Pete… are you in there?" said Iron Man as he extended his crimson, metallic arm toward Peter with a glow emitting from his palm of his hand "Say something or I'll shoot." As the glow began to grow, a whining sound began to grow louder as well.

Like lightning, a web line shot from Peter's wrist and groped the Iron Man's arm. Peter instinctively yanked hard, Pulling Iron Man closer to him and forcing his enemy off balance through the space where Peter shattered the window. Peter cocked back his right arm and collide it with Iron Man's helmet, mildly denting it and sending Iron Man tumbled three times through another window before regaining balance just outside the building. Immediately he sprinted after Tony, leaping out of the window onto Iron Man, continuing his assault, lashing out with both fists like a wild animal.

Iron Man grasped Peter's arms, stopping the onslaught with a fierce response.

"Alright Pete, play times over. I was going to go easy on you for your Aunt's sake but…"

"Don't you dare! If it wasn't for you, she would still be alive!"

"Ahh! It takes two to tango and only one to make the decision. Get off of me!"

Iron man tossed the Wild Iron Spider off of him and into the air and followed up with a massive repulsor blast from his chest only to miss. The spider twisted his body, allowing the beam to stream through the sky and pass him by.

"Damn Reflexes" spat Iron Man. "Jarvis, signal the mighty Aven…"

Before he could finish his sentence, two web-lines latched onto him. They had stretched to their limit before snapping back like a rubber band. The spider was coming in fast with his feet first straight to Iron Man's chest. Iron Mans chest shot a repulsor blast, slamming into the spider, stunning him to free fall forty stories into a busy street.

The spider laid helpless in the center of a mini crater on the sidewalk smoking from the repulsor and dust from the cracked cement. A crowd of people stared from a distance. Parents held their children tightly as the rebel Spider-Man was merely 5 feet away. Their murmurs grew louder as more gathered to see just what the cause of the crash was.

"Mommy, its Spider-Man!"

"No James, don't go near him he's unregistered. He's just as bad as those villains."

The scene was tense and people found themselves stuck in place. They felt uneasy but naturally drawn to the area like a cat to a mouse.

"Hey there's Iron Man, now that is a hero" Said one of the spectators. Frightened faces had begun to uplift as their champion hovered down to the site of the spiders fall. The people cheered for Iron Man as if he had come to save them from any villain.

"I need all of you to clear the area, now!" yelled Iron Man. The people were frightened again. Some moved away while others looked like they had a bad taste in their mouths. Iron Man balled his fists. If they wouldn't listen then maybe they wound start running if he started shooting. There wasn't much time left before the spider would be back on his feet with another assault. "Fine, have it your way."

The triangle on his chest plate began to glow blue light and whining sound began to grow louder. The people had panicked, fleeing with their children in all directions. Some children were forced apart from their parents and left crying while others were stepped on by the heard. The blue light grew till it could no longer be contained in the form of a larger repulsor blast.

The people ran as fast as they could, some jumping over cars, others hit by cars and the rest simply ducked. The beam was heading straight for the unconscious spider but before it could touch him, four golden mechanical arms shot out from under his back and came together to form a prism. As the beam made contact it dispersed into the air as tiny blue specs like fireflies.

"No. What happened to my repulsor cannon?" said Iron Man in a disappointed tone. "Hmm, he must have modified the Waldoes to block my cannons. I still have the missl…"

But the fight was already over, the Waldoes opened at their pointed tips, revealing what looked like cannons. Each Waldoe shot repulsor blasts at the Iron Man. The spider leapt back on his feet and into the air before the man of iron could react with the four arms or "Waldoes" digging of his back. He griped tight onto Iron Mans wrists, so tight the metal began to buckle under the pressure. The Waldoes clawed into his suit, keeping him close to the spider.

"Jarvis, send in the mighty avengers NOW" screamed Tony Stark. "Jarvis? Answer me!" But there was not answer; Tony Stark could feel it as his body began to fall from the sky with the spiders grip tight as ever. Tony tried to break free but something was different, the suit was heavy. With no power, the armor might as well be a steel coffin.

He crashed in to the concrete road jammed with cars as the spider crouched on top of him still gripping his wrists.

"Looks like I underestimated you Pete. You've obviously been planning this. Just give up before the avengers get here."

"You think I'm scared of them? You people never understood what it meant to really fight crime. You selfishly put the lives of the people around you in danger, you're the criminals. I was stupid enough to play along and it cost me everything! My Aunt May, Mary Jane… Mary Jane."

Peters began to pull at the Iron Man's forearms and tore them clean off and leaving Tony's arms bare. The Waldoes began to whip wildly, clawing at the Iron Man and tearing the metal. Tony was at his mercy, he had no suit and no backup. Was this it? Was he about to die at the hands of a former ally who could be as twisted as the many villains they fought together?

"Good bye, Tony" said Spider-Man as he cocked back fist for the final blow.

Tony had closed his eyes, expecting the impact to crush his face but nothing happened. Slowly, he opened them again to find that there was no spider perched on top of him. Instead there stood a tall blond woman wearing a black outfit like a one piece swimsuit which had a yellow lightning bolt on her chest. Tony tried to arc his head to see more, a red headed woman wearing a black jumpsuit was shooting a rifle at a leaping Spider-Man. There was no mistake, the mighty avengers had come to Tony's rescue. Wonder man, Ares the god of war, Wasp and The sentry also joined in.

"Sorry we're late boss But don't worry, we got this" Assured Wonder Man. "What happened here?"

"War" growled Ares "and he's still here I can feel it."

"Damn, I can't see anything" shouted Black Widow with a certain disappointment. "He must have some kind of cloaking device"

"Forget Spider-Man, help the people in the area" said Tony with a certain direct tone in his voice.

In a nearby ally, the Spider watched the so called heroes help the injured. From that ally he watched as the Iron Man slipped from him. He was so close; victory was his on this day. Things would just take a little longer than planned. Slowly he backed further into the ally and out of view leaving giant glinting golden eyes fading from view.

He sat in his black business suite with a blue shirt. The desk was covered in papers with equations and graphs. The sunlight shines through the cracked shade of the window revealing tiny specs of dust float in the air. He sits quiet for twenty minutes before pressing a button on the intercom.

"Yes, Mister Stark?"

"Please send Black Widow into my office."

"Yes Sir"

The red head stepped in through the wooden door. Her hair was cut short barely passing her eyes. She wore a skin tight black leather suit in heels and red hourglass on her belt.

"Tony?"

"Did you know that spiders are very adaptable creatures? Some species even shed their skin once for new limbs, healing scar tissue. That's what Peter did. Not once but twice. You know he even accessed an old power line because he knew we monitor every kilowatt used in this building?"

"I'm sorry but what are you getting at Tony?"

"I thought I was ready for anything. Since the Civil War I tried to do the right thing but now this. Peter's gone too far, his aunts passing hit him harder than I thought. He's become a predator and a dangerous one at that, I mean he almost killed me. We're going to the thunderbolts base, now."

The two walked down a rusted flight of stairs. Armored commandos stood at attention as Tony and Black Widow walked past the cells with rusting cell bars. They walked as far back as they could till they met two guards with rifles outside the very last door, bolted shut. The guards were covered head to toe in armor and sonic grenades.

"Open it up" demanded Tony.

One of the guards turned a key to unlock the door but both were needed to swing the door open, creating a screech that offended their ears. From the other side of the door was a cry of pain, a screech was let out in the pitch black space. Tony stepped forward with the widow at his side. The guards were at attention, waiting for whatever was on the other side of the black void to strike with their rifles aimed but Tony dismissed them both.

"Sir?"

"It's fine. At ease, soldier" said Tony in a calm tone, completely confident in his decision. "Come out. There are some things we need to discuss."

From the dark doorway was the outline of a black figure with a white sinister looking spider covering its hulking chest. Its eyes were black and beady with a white outlines resembling Spider-Man's. It was about six feet tall with sharp, black claws and a smile that stretched from ear to ear. Its teeth were sharp and jagged like a shark, a predator made for the kill.

"It's about time. We've been so bored by ourselvesss."