Hi again. Got another chapter for you. Probably the only good thing that came out of fanfic.net's website problems has been me having almost unlimited time to write this. No pressure now! Don't forget to review and chew me out if need be or tell how great of a writer I am…(yeah right!) J

Disclaimer: I don't own Spiderman or any Spiderman characters so *raspberry* to all you legal types out there!

Rainfall pattered heavily down from the dark, early morning sky around the scowling faces of stone monsters and beasts. Eternally cursed to snarl menacingly out towards the rolling gray clouds that mercilessly poured water onto their stony hides, the carved gargoyles of the Osborn estate remained unaware of the darkened figure of a man, scurrying across their domain of precarious ledges and battlements that would snatch a soul away with the simple slip of the foot.

But the blank stares of the concrete monsters beheld the amazing sight of the figure hugging the wall as if the stranger was one with the structure, taunting gravity to try to pull him to the ground a hundred feet below. Heaving himself to the rooftop with considerable strain, Spiderman huddled tightly against one of the stony gargoyles in search of shelter from the drenching rain.

"Hey there," Spidey greeted tiredly to the concrete monster beside him with a turn of his scarlet head, "Now don't try getting fresh with me, I already have a girlfriend." Receiving no answer from behind the gnashing teeth of the beast, Spidey looked down to the street far below him.

There in front of the building, sat the hazy outline of a black stretched limo idling lazily in the rain. With no sign of movement from below, Spidey pulled himself tighter into his crouch to better utilize the scant protection the gothic decoration of Harry's penthouse mansion provided. Sighing weakly, Spidey pressed his hand tenderly against his heavily wrapped stomach as thunder rolled overhead. Sharp shots of pain throbbed under the bandage in consequence for web swinging his way all the way from his Manhattan apartment to Harry's residence.

He had managed to get a few hours of sleep the night before, but still felt spent from his infiltration of Oscorp's corporate office building. He had spent half the night searching through the company's records and even Harry's personal files, but had turned up no evidence of any suspicious activities; not even the hint of a stolen paperclip. The only hope now for finding a link to the terrorists was to coat-tail Harry and pray that the young CEO lead him to the enemy. There were only about ten hours left until the hundred billion dollar ransom was due and Spiderman had made little headway to resolving the threat.

Lingering behind the mask of Spiderman, Peter felt his two halves struggling with each other. One side of him still hoped for Harry's innocence in the whole matter while the other side tingled in anticipation for Harry to unwittingly take him to the terrorists and bombs that threatened the city and country.

Despite the uncomfortable position tinkering on the edge of the Osborn mansion created on his still badly wounded body, Spiderman hunkered down in preparation for a possibly long wait for his prey to show beneath the outspread stone wings of his gargoyle host. But before the wall crawler could settle himself, a black circle suddenly appeared against the overhead view of the gray pavement of the street.

Curious, Spiderman leaned out over the precipice, and identified the mysterious black object as being an opened umbrella. Gliding across the sidewalk, the umbrella glided in a straight line for the awaiting limo, in a brisk pace. Meeting the moving umbrella halfway, the limo driver slipped from the driver's side and jogged hastily through the downpour and swung open the passenger door. As the passenger lowered his umbrella to close it, Spiderman glimpsed the unmistakable face of his old friend, Harry Osborn, before it was swallowed by the cavernous interior of the limo as the young man sat himself inside.

"Well, got to be going," Spidey said in farewell to the growling gargoyle as the limo far below pulled away from the curb. Leaping off the building, Spiderman shot a line of webbing out in the direction the limo was headed. As the strand pulled taunt, his gritted his teeth pain as he felt the muscles spanning across his stomach and ribs pulled out as gravity grabbed for his body to pull downward.

Beneath the swinging arachnid, the limousine began to slowly pull away from its pursuer as it drove quickly through the deserted New York street, clear of any traffic to hamper its movements.

'Ugh, I can't keep up with them at this rate,' Spiderman though desperately as he threw one strand after another in the vain attempt of keeping up with the speeding vehicle below that sent sprays of water hurling to the sidewalk as it zoomed through the streets. It was becoming clear to Spiderman that he was going to lose Harry's limo and his only lead if he didn't think of something soon. The limo was already half a block ahead of him, and gaining ground fast. Frustration grew in the wall crawler as he thought of how easily he would have been able to keep up with it had he not been injured.

Suddenly, an idea flashed through the web swinger's head, 'If I could somehow land on it, I could just piggyback ride Harry to wherever he was going. Then I wouldn't have to hurt myself web swinging trying to keep up with it.'

But the reality of his idea still remained a problem; how could he catch up with Harry's car if it had, by now, gained a full block's lead on the wall crawler? Swiveling his head from side to side desperately, Spidey looked for anything he could use to help him catch up. Feeling his stomach sink with the thought of losing Harry, he suddenly noticed the limo's left turning light blinking through the rainy mist of water kicked up from the car's back tires.

"I just hope this works…" he muttered as he swiftly threw a line of gossamer webbing to snare the edge of tall building situated on the left side of the concrete canyon he currently was swinging through. Swerving into the adjacent street, Spidey rapidly shot a series of webs as he sped through the side street. Spraying another strand to the corner of a building on the right hand side of the end of the block, Spiderman held the end of the web line as his body snapped parallel to the ground around the corner and shot him into the next street.

Glancing beneath him, Spiderman spotted Harry's black limo speeding towards him. 'It worked,' he thought in relief. He had feared the vehicle would have turned onto yet another street, therefore losing Harry in the process while he had been web swinging on the other side of the block to increase his speed and momentum as he swung around the corners. But his tactic had worked and his target was now careening toward him as his body swung in a huge arc out above the intersection of the adjoining streets.

A moment of hesitation ensued as the wall crawler continued his wide arc above the nearing vehicle. He had to wait for the right moment to let go of his web in order to get in the right position to land atop the approaching limo, but he also had to worry about letting go before he manage to smash himself like a bug against the side of the building he had just swung around.

"Here goes," Spidey called out as he finally released his web line and plummeted to the approaching limousine below. Dropping quickly, Spidey steadied his body into an air-born crouch as the ground rushed up towards him. Twenty feet above the limo, with the vehicle still a good fifteen feet in front of him, Spiderman realized he was moving too fast to land on the moving vehicle without creating a loud crash that would alert all those inside the car to his presence. He was going to have to catch the limo in a slide.

Sucking in a deep lungful of air, Spiderman's reflexes sprang to life as double strands of webbing were expelled to snag separate street lights that hung straight out over the street on either side of the arachnid's falling body. Feeling the strands pull tight, Spiderman's momentum continued to pull the wall crawler horizontal to the slick, wet pavement beneath him as he felt his decent slow to a manageable speed.

Below Spiderman's body, the limo sped to meet him. Lessening his grip of the webbing, Spidey dropped to the roof of the limo on his tailbone to minimize the impact as a stifled grunt of air being knocked out of his lungs cut through the air. Keeping his weight from slamming into the thin metal roofing of the vehicle, Spiderman felt his butt skid against the slippery surface of the car towards the edge of the roof as the inertia of the vehicle swung his body from beneath him and toppled him to his back.

Instinctively, he released the strands of webbing he still held between his clenched fists and shot out his fingertips and feet to grip the slick metal of the car. Coming to a squeaking stop atop the careening limousine only inches away from the edge, Spidey lay flat against the cold metallic surface as the car sped on oblivious to its stowaway. Gasping air into his starved lungs, Spiderman's stomach and back exploded in pain from his violent escapade of catching up to the limo.

As the pain throbbed beneath the tight bandage, Spidey let the chilly rain cascade over him. Gazing upward, Spiderman passively watched the skyscrapers that lined both sides of the road and spiraled upward to the overcast sky speed by as wind whipped around his body. Knowing he could not spend the rest of the ride as he was on top of the car, Spidey rolled to his stomach and positioned himself in the center of the roof and gripped his toes and fingers to the slippery metal.

Feeling the icy chill of the wet metal seeping through his wounds' covering, Spiderman pressed his ear to the roof and strained his hearing for an noise from inside. Suddenly the muffled ringing of a phone sounded from the other side of the thin metal that separated Spiderman and the young Osborn inside.

Trying to block out the howling wind that flowed around him, the wall crawler listened intently as he heard Harry call out, "Hello? Osborn here."

"Yes….Yes, I understand your concern…I assure you there will be no more interruptions. I have already secured the detonation zone and have a team of men stationed near it assure there will be no interruptions…Don't worry. I've decided to give it my personal attention that I oversee the final stage of the plan. I don't want to see my investment go down the hole…"

Spiderman's interest peaked at the mention of Harry's overseeing of the final stage. This may mean he would lead him to the bomb itself. Still, he felt a pang of regret inside at the confirmation that his friend had stooped to such despicable things such as selling government intelligence to terrorists. Straining his ears, Spidey listened in on the one sided conversation between Harry and whoever he was talking to.

After an extended pause, a muffled laugh sounded from inside with a malicious undertone, "…Spiderman? We have the whole US government out looking for us and you're worried about that bug? Mr. Kathal, I assure you we have no fear of that pest…"

From there Harry's voice took a more defensive tone towards the man on the other side of the line after a pause, "…Yes, I realize that Spiderman escaped from the hospital and my men were unable to totally eliminate him, but I doubt he will be of any concern to us. And if he does show up, he won't live long to cause us any problems…"

The pit in Spiderman's stomach sank. So Harry had ordered for his assassination while he had been in the hospital. That meant Harry was probably also responsible for ordering the elimination of the man that had tried to shoot Collins and Jameson. It seemed his friend had changed more then what he had first suspected since Norman Osborn's death. Looks like the apple hadn't fallen far from the tree.

Breaking out of his nostalgic trace, Spiderman heard the last of the phone call,"…Yes, I will be there in less then twenty minutes…"

"And so will I…" Spidey mumbled as the limo sped him through the rainy side streets of New York towards its mysterious destination.

******

Spiderman's body was beginning to grow numb as the icy rain continued to pummel against his back and send waves of shivers across his skin. The limousine had finally begun to decelerate and slow down. The sound of crunching gravel beneath the car's tires filled the air over the rain and low thunder rolling in the distance. Swiveling his scarlet shrouded head from side to side, the wall crawler surveyed his surroundings.

It appeared he had been taken to an extensive warehousing complex that spanned along the long shoreline of the Hudson River. On signs above several of the low storage buildings read the logo of 'Oscorp Industries.'

Long, two story warehouses spanned on either side of the vehicle as the car drove slowly between the huge structures. The three hundred foot warehouses were built of thick metal paneling, attesting to Oscorp's built-to-last construction. Large shipping crates the size of moving vans sat stacked in the surrounding area of the largest of the warehouses under Oscorp's name.

Coming to a stop directly in front of the structure's huge docking doors, the limo's engine stuttered to a stop making the soft patter of rain more noticeable on the metal roof of the vehicle. Dragging his numbed legs beneath his body slowly to avoid making noise, Spiderman readied himself to move quickly.

"Wait here," Harry's commanding voice said to the driver as he moved to the door of the vehicle. Timing the 'thwip' of his webbing to the moment Harry opened the passenger door, Spiderman pulled himself with stiff awkwardness upward before anyone could notice his presence. Scuttling to the eves of the building, Spidey peered over the ledge as Harry's trench coat clad figure strided calmly to the doors of the warehouse.

As Harry disappeared into the warehouse, Spiderman turned on his heels and scurried across the slippery, water drenched rooftop of the building. Coming to the edge of a large skylight, Spidey narrowed his eyes, struggling to see anything within the darkened structure behind the water streaked glass.

Seeing no movement, he heaved one of the panels of glass upward and slipped through. Lowering the pane silently back into place, Spidey paused as his eyes adjusted to the darkness. As the darkness slowly became more clearer in the gloomy light, a sharp ache returned to the web swinger's bullet wounded belly. Wincing at his body's revolt, he swallowed the pain and tried to coax himself, "Come on, Spidey. You can do this. You should be able to do this with your eyes blindfolded."

Turning towards the interior of the building, Spiderman leapt awkwardly in his weakened state to a nearby catwalk. Bounding off the metal structure and jumping to a wide steel beam that spread across the width of the building thirty feet above the cement floor, Spidey surveyed the layout that lay littered with various sized crates and machinery.

Sneaking along the dusty and cobwebbed rafters of the warehouse that spanned and crisscrossed the entire length, Spiderman moved with agile grace to the opposite end of the building. Muffled voices vibrated through the humid air in the distance. There near the far end of the building, in the dim light, stood a group of shadowy figures.

Stealing nearer overhead, Spiderman took position above the gathered men below. Faint voices wafted up to the overseeing arachnid.

"Have the weapons been placed in each of the cities?" said Harry's familiar voice to another of the men. In the gloomy lighting of the warehouse, Spiderman could make out the appearance of several middle easterners among a small group of hardened looking thugs.

In answer to Osborn's question, one of the middle easterners with a bushy mustache, apparently the leader of the other group, answered, "They are in position and ready to be detonated at the appropriate time."

"Or when the US government pays the ransom," Harry pointed out.

Forcing a tight smile, the other man said, "Shall we go out to the weapon. It will take at least a forty five minutes for the boat to reach the island." Turning to leave, the group began to file out through a door that stood open ajar to the drizzle falling outside.

Spidey felt a moment of uncertainty. Should he let them go or follow them? If they were taking a boat to wherever they were going to, it was unlikely he would be able to go unnoticed on a small water faring vessel. But he couldn't let them go. That would totally defeat the whole purpose of being there in the first place.

The only apparent option was to subdue the group and then force them to tell him where the bomb was. It was a long shot but the only choice he had. Doing a quick head count, Spiderman numbered seven men; Harry, the Iranian leader, two other middle easterners, and then three of Harry's hired cronies. He knew he couldn't take all of them one on one in his condition, leaving only the elements of surprise and sneaky techniques to his disposal.

Aiming carefully, Spiderman shot a blast of silk webbing towards the backs of the retreating men. Grunts of surprise sounded as the two Iranian underlings connected with the wall as a giant web plastered them flat and muffled their mouths.

"Mind if I crash this party, gents?" Spidey called as he leap from his perch and swung to the floor below. Shouts of surprise were issued from the remaining men as they wheeled around in alarm.

"It's Spiderman!" the leader of the foreigners cried in disgust. Turning a cold stare at Harry who stood beside him he whispered dangerously, "I thought you said he wouldn't be causing us any problems, Mr. Osborn."

"He won't," Harry muttered back. Calling to his men, Harry ordered, "Stop him!"

Rushing forward, the three thugs made to overtake the outnumbered wall crawler.

"Red rover, red rover, let the goons from Oscorp come over," Spidey sang cheerily as he darted out of the charging path of the three. Caught off guard and wrapping their arms around thin air, the group stumbled to a stop where one was quickly taken to the ground by another shot of well aimed webbing.

"Never can find good help these days…" the web swinger said as he shook his head in mock disgust. Growling, one of the remaining two stepped forward as he swung a fist in a haymaker punch. Ducking beneath the blow, Spiderman caught the man's overextended arm and hoisted the man above his head. Pain shot through his back and stomach as the man's weight bore down on the weakened arachnid.

Clenching his teeth, Spidey tossed the body to the side of the room where the man crashed into the wall and slid to the floor in a heap. Before the wall crawler could check to see if the man had been knocked unconscious, an insistent humming vibrated the base of his skull. Spinning on his heels sharply, Spiderman had a moment of slow motion vision as the image of a gloved fist came in a direct path for his face.

Instinctively shooting out his hand to block the blow, Spidey caught the fist in the palm of his hand. Undaunted, the second man swung his other fist for the other side of the arachnid's head. Before his spider-sense could even tingle, Spiderman caught that punch too with his free hand. Hands interlocked, it was now a battle of brute strength as the two wrestled to dominate the other.

Feeling his weakened muscles straining under the other man's strength, Spidey planted his feet in the dusty concrete floor in determination not be overpowered. 'This guy wouldn't have stood a fighting chance against me if I wasn't so weak right now,' Spiderman growled to himself as the man struggled to force the wall crawler back and to the ground.

Feeling his foothold slipping, Spiderman shifted his weight quickly as he kicked his foot out to strike the man in his exposed ribs. But before his boot could connect, the man scissored his arms over top each other, pulling Spidey's weakened body off center. Startled by the man's manipulation of his own movements against him, Spiderman twisted his body to keep himself from falling. Blinding whiteness exploded before the wall crawler's eyes as he became aware of his mistake and collapsed to his knees with a rattled gasp of pain.

Seeing an opening to finish the pest, the man swung the stunned form violently into a nearby crate. Emitting a sharp yelp, Spiderman collided with the box. Falling to the ground, Spiderman doubled over as searing pain cascaded through his entire body. Nausea griped his insides as the room spun in a haze of distortion from where he lay. Moaning softly, Spidey struggled to get his bearings.

"You should have just stayed out of this, Spiderman," came a voice from off to the side of the vast room, "You would have saved yourself a lot of pain and effort." He instantly recognized it as Harry's.

"I'm not going to let you win," Spidey chocked out from behind the pain. Heaving himself to his hands and knees, the wall crawler gasped as his body reeled unsteadily on his supports. Gritting his teeth together to keep his pain from being voiced to his adversaries, Spiderman lurched himself onto his wobbly feet.

"Your very noble in your efforts. Stupid…but noble none the less," Harry stated coldly with crossed arms as the arachnid swayed on unsteady legs, "But being noble's not going to save your life this time. Finish him."

Stepping forward, the man who had thrown Spidey against the crate charged forward again with his head and shoulder lowered to battle ram the arachnid. Unable to mount a defensive quickly enough, the wall crawler was knocked backwards by the man's huge shoulder slamming into his chest. As the world swayed before dazed eyes, Spidey felt the sharp sting of his spider sense.

Knowing danger was somewhere nearby, Spidey bike-peddled his feet to stop his wild backward momentum. Suddenly, a paralyzing pain exploded through every nerve ending of his body as an unknown force imbedded itself into his side, halting the wall crawler with a jolt. Gasping in surprise, Spiderman's body writhed uncontrollably in pain as blue and white sparks flared themselves before his vision.

Desperately struggling to break away from the electrical pain, Spiderman's body felt paralyzed. Time seemed to stop as the searing torture froze his body and mind.

'Make it stop!' he frantically tried to cry from his paralyzed mouth. As if in obedience, the pain subsided suddenly, releasing the spider from the paralyzing pain.

His knees felt like putty as the gloomy warehouse dimmed in and out and darkness blotted his vision. Staggering a foot forward, Spiderman's muscles and joints locked abruptly as the floor rushed up swiftly to meet him.

Crashing heavily onto his stomach, Spiderman rolled his head sluggishly to the side in confusion, 'What happened…' His body refused to respond as he commanded it to stand. Every limb of his body felt like it was filled with lead balls and weighed a thousand pounds. Shadowy figures stood over his helpless body as distant voices sounded above him. Dark spots clouded his vision as the world swam around him.

"Good work, Smith." The voice sounded familiar…Harry's?

"Nothing we couldn't handle, Sir."

Managing to lift his scarlet head only a few inches off the ground, the image of An electric taser gun faded in and out between the black dots that clouded Spiderman's vision. Vibrant blue sparks jumped menacingly between the two metal prongs that topped the small black device gripped in the man's hand. Spiderman recognized him as the thug he had first fought. He must have snuck up on him while he had been fighting his partner.

"Do you want us to finish him, Mr. Osborn?" came another voice from the other side of the stunned superhero.

"No…I want him alive just a little bit longer. I just thought of a more fitting demise for our little friend here," Harry's fading voice came in response with twisted mirth, "Cut down the others from that webbing and then bring the bug with you. I have plans for him…"

Hearing no more then that, Spiderman's head sank slowly to the ground. His eyelids fluttered frantically behind his shimmering eyepieces. Succumbing to the pain, oblivion took him. The rest became darkness…

To be continued…..