The Sensational Scarlet Spider!
Chapter 9: Cabinet Man.
I wake up to the sound of my phone ringing, reaching for it and seeing it was Felicia. I was out for an entire week after the train rescue. But now since it was the weekend after a busy week, all I wanted to do was relax.
"Hello?" I groan.
"Wakey wakey, sleepyhead!" Felicia coos, "We're going to the beach and Coney Island with Gwendy and Eddie!"
"Really?" I yawn, "Lemme get ready, kay?"
"Okay," Felicia says, hanging up.
I guess relaxing also meant going to the beach with my best friend and girlfriend? Ah well, I need it after doing nothing for a whole week but homework and watching TV. I get out my swim trunks and get on a shirt, putting it on and-
Suddenly my Spider Sense goes off like a flash of lightning and I bound outside, pulling on my mask, which is still ragged but I'm still kicking. I bound over the buildings, using a couple of web lines here and there to help me get moving. Something's going on and I guess the Summer Spider will have to do it. I stop, seeing the trouble, a car careens down the street. It's a joyride. Screeching around tight corners and fishtailing like mad.
I sling after them with gusto, landing on the side of it, the window rolled down and everything.
"Hey! You have any idea how fast you're going?!" I yell, suddenly ducking out of the way of some gunfire. The guy inside is laughing at how I whirl around in the air, trying to throw me off the car.
Almost getting whipped off from the crazy steering I snatch it deep, forcing myself down onto the pavement and lifting it over my head.
"Gotcha!" I exclaim, "Now come out quietly and I won't total this car!" I hear the seatbelt come loose and I shake it lightly, "Let's go!" The guy stumbles out of the now opened driver's side door.
I web him up and smile under my mask, "Chill a while, 'kay?" I ask with a sling in the direction of Coney Island. Smiling and whirling through the air like an old pro already. Until I check the time.
"SHIT! I'm gonna be late!" I yell, swinging faster, "Come on, come on!" I skid into an alleyway near the wharf. Taking off my mask and stuffing it into my bag with my phone and wallet and a change of clothes in it. I smell the hotdogs (yuck.), the Cotton Candy (yum.), and the peanuts (so-so.). The warmth of the sun illuminates the classic sideshow attractions and fairground rides trundling along on their old set paths.
I get out my phone, shooting a text Eddie and Felicia's ways that I'm here. My trunks aren't beaten up and my mask still was holding strong despite the damage to the rest of the suit. I walk down the way, the carnival games and their hawkers calling.
"Step right up! Try the Shooting Gallery! First to a hundred wins this!"
"Test yer strength! Hit the hammer and ring the bell!"
The din of the crowd is somewhat comforting. A cacophony of excited kids and their buzzing parents, just enjoying a rare day in the late days of summer, last chance to sun themselves before the dark of fall.
Then, there's an arm around my shoulders, "Hey…" Eddie greets, "What's a guy like you doing in a place like this?" His dark eyes shine with humor as he squeezes me. I laugh and grin. Eddie always tries to make me laugh and most of the time it works.
"Oh you know, waiting for my best friend in the world!" I laugh, high fiving him. He smiles as Gwen follows up from behind him.
"Eddie, how do you even know where Jack is at any given time?" she asks.
"He's my best friend, that and he texted both me and-" he gets cut off by a low chuckle and her hands pry him away from me. Felicia stands there with her hair billowing from beneath a sunhat, her green eyes looking down at me from white cat's eye sunglasses. She's wearing a black and white jacket covering a two piece black and white swimsuit.
She wraps her arms around my front, chin buried in my messy brown hair, humming soft and low. Janet Jackson's Black Cat I think?
"How are you today, Jack?" she asks.
"Uhm… good. I'm good." I answer, my cheeks flushing as she whisks around me and leans down, kissing me softly on the lips.
"Mm, good." she coos, "I'm so happy you feel better!"
Gwen and Eddie both look at us with an expression I can only describe as a mix of awkwardness and maybe some happiness for us? We move onto the beach, the water almost pristine and the beachgoers all on their spots on the sandy shore, almost crowding the water. Wall to wall and back to back people were spotting the sands. Eddie angrily stomps his feet.
"Awww! No! We're too late to get a good spot!" Eddie yells, "Dammit!" he slings his bag back onto his shoulders, "Well! I guess we're going to the boardwalk!"
I cock my head as the old thrum of Spider Sense starts growing. Something is here and I don't like the signature. We walk through the midway, the crowds of families all darting around the place, the rides still trundling and the carnie music pumping through the speakers. But pulsing softly is my Sense. Almost like an overactive radar pinging out for dangers for me to dodge or to get away from. Or even avoid falling over.
What's here?
Arcades… Stands… Games… Rides.
Deeper.
Felicia holds my hand and Eddie sweeps ahead with Gwen, but I can't let go of the feeling in my gut. My Sense grows the minute we come across it. An old, rusted signed Arcade with once-glitzy letters dirtied up by age. Eddie has a gallery gun and is firing on targets nearby. Gwen doing the same next to him. Felicia notices my intensity and my stressed posture ramrod straight and walking stiffly. Arms locked and barely able to move.
She supports me, "Hey, what's wrong?" she asks.
"Something's not right…" I start, "My Sense is going insane." She shakes me just a bit and I just want to relax. Just for one second. But the old Arcade still looms as I try to play some games. There's a guy with red hair and blue eyes in a fancy white suit. His hair nestled under a hawker's hat and watching us with his cane passing between his hands.
He bops by us and bumps into me, "Oof! Sorry." he says.
"No no, I'm sorry." I answer sheepishly as he walks away calmly. Luckily I keep my money in my bag instead. Can't exactly trust anyone here. Not even in Coney Island.
The first game I try is the Ball Throw. The carnie working the booth passes me a ball and I sigh, shaking my head and clearing the Sense just a bit. I wind back and throw it, it pings off the bottles harmlessly.
"Damn…" I sigh.
"Here." Felicia takes the second, taking my arm, "Okay baby, wind back like this." she guides me the right way, almost like a major league baseball player would. Her hand holding my arm so gently, her body so close to me that I'm trying really hard not to get distracted. She grins and moves my arm upward.
"Then chuck that sonuvabitch!" she yells as I hock it out, with the ball whirling end over end towards the bottles. It slams hard into them, the bottles flying off their mounts and the Carnie actually being impressed.
I got a little stuffed worm for my troubles, wearing him like a scarf. Over near where Eddie and Gwen are she's taking out targets left and right. Eddie tries to keep up but he flinches at nearly every pop of the gun.
"Eddie, are you…?" she asks.
"W- I'm fine, Gwenny, don't worry! Just ah… a little overstimulated!" he laughs, heading over to me and Felicia and plucking me from her side.
"Dude, I'm bombing so hard with Gwen right now…" he sighs, "She hates this, doesn't she?"
I look back at Gwen who is just taking potshots, getting a higher and higher score. Eddie looks at her almost as if he's laying flowers at her grave. Miserable and far from the confident and friendly jock that I know.
"Eds, look at me." I urge his hands on my shoulders as he looks down at me, "You just try to have fun, be natural."
"Yeah, yeah I-" he suddenly pats his back pocket, "Hey, where the fuck is my wallet?" he whirls around, seeing the weird guy from earlier bopping past the shooting gallery where Gwen is. He hustles after him. Through the midway I follow them, hustling through the crowds like a ship in a bullet hell. Eddie rages towards the weird carnie like a bad driver in Grand Theft Autobahn. The carnie melds into the crowd, going towards an older part of Coney Island. No less popular however.
"Hey! Hey! Stop, ya LightBrite wannabe!" Eddie yells. My Sense roars through my mind when he's at the entrance to the old Arcade. I sprint after him, going as fast as my legs can carry me. I don't need him to be in there!
There it is! No no no! Eddie, that's a red flag! Get out! Get outta there! My sense screams when I finally catch up to him. I double over and gasp, trying to get my breath back. That's when there's a set of steps coming up from behind us.
No! Felicia, Gwen, get back!
"Eddie! Jack! Wait up!" Gwen yells, "C'mon Felicia!"
Felicia follows her and the carnie turns at the entrance, looking at me and Eddie with a bright smile on his face. He flicks out Eddie's wallet and Eddie does try to get it from him but his sleight of hand tricks make it hard. Tossing it from hand to hand, sliding it through his sleeves, all with a shit eating grin to back up the smarm. Eddie chases his motions as best as he could, getting angrier and angrier.
"Rrgh! Gimme!" he yells, "Give it to u- Me!"
"No no no, Mister…" he flicks open the wallet, seeing Eddie's learner's permit, "Brock. This is the starting stake."
"The what?" I sputter, "Look man, I'm not gonna play any games."
"I'm not asking…" he produces MY wallet from his pocket, "Mister Jackson Parker… oof, basic name."
"Oh come on…" I huff, "Give it back."
"Nope. Starting stake." he states, flicking it into his pocket with a greasy and over smarmy smile. Felicia and Gwen catch up and he perks up, putting my wallet into his pocket and whisking over to them.
"Ah! You must be the prestigious Felicia Hardy!" he exclaims, "Big fan of your aunt's little scheme, must be nice!"
Felicia's expression darkens, "We don't talk about that, greaseball."
He raises his hands, "Okay, okay, calm down…" he soothes, "Must be the weather."
Felicia stiffens and I grab her from behind, "Weather?! I'll show ya weather, asshole!" she yells, taking swipes in the air, "Lemme go! Lemme at him, baby! I'll get your wallet back after I pulverize him!"
The man shakes his head and turns to Gwen, "And you're… uh…" he snaps his fingers.
"Watson!" she blurts, flinching at the pungent BO he's emitting. He nods and whirls, his cane slamming down onto the floor end first. A heavy metal door suddenly deploys downward but I dart in to grab it.
I grip the edge, the engine on the door pushing hard against my strength. The grinding of gears rips through my ears and I try to keep it open but my arms scream in pain, forcing me to let go and the door slams shut with a resounding BAM. Garish circus music blares tinny from speakers and brightly colorful lights flash alive as Arcade swirls his cane. The music is like Primus had a baby with that amusement park song from Cowboy Bebop.
"Alright! Here's the rules…" he pulls out a notecard, "Abababa… oop! Doesn't look like there's much, just lemme take you on a ride through my sweet Murderworld!"
"I just pick the games and you play them! And first up is…" suddenly four strong robotic arms snatch me before my Spider Sense could react, strapping me to a wheel. I struggle and strain against the bindings but he tuts and gets out the darts. They're long, sharp, and sized like lawn darts. He grins and hands them to Felicia. Walking over to the side of the wheel and grabbing it with his white gloved hands.
"Ladies first, Miss Hardy." Arcade flicks the wheel and everything whirls around like mad. There's a whistle and a thwack near my leg, "I'm…" THWACK.
"Gonna!" THWACK.
"Hur-" There's a grazing pain against my cheek. Another near my hand, another near my waist. I try to keep myself calm but this entire thing is just horrible! I came here to have fun, not be in a death trapped arcade!
The rest of the arcade whirls in a blurred slurry. Bright and heavily colored with pain biting every now and then but not a single bit of dart punctures me, the wheel slows down and Arcade stops it, the points pinging on a screen above me. I fall to the floor, my arms and legs too weak to keep me up, my head whirling like mad. The stinging of the grazing throbbing through my mind. Felicia runs over and helps me up and I glare at Arcade.
"Alright! Good game! Now…" he whirls his cane through the air, slamming it down with a bunch of clicking all around us. A trap door opens up beneath Eddie, sending him falling into a room,
"Whoa!" he yells, looking around, "Where-?"
Arcade claps his hands, "Oooh! This is one of my newer ones! I love it! Ladies and gentlemen, performing for you all this feat of death, Eddie Brock! And well, it's a classic, stop me if you heard this one!"
He bangs his cane on the floor and the game lights up, "DEATH BY TETRIS!"
"Are you fucking kidding me?" he snarls, "So what? I gotta dodge Tetris blocks?"
"Yes! Also you gotta dodge dodge dodge!" he exclaims, "And your friends will drop the blocks, but be careful~! One tower EXPLODES!"
We get lowered down to see a big tank on the same level as almost a watertight bulkhead. Eddie is standing in it as the controls pop up in front of the three of us. Eddie looks at me and Felicia and Gwen.
"Now the only thing he has to do is survive, right?" Gwen asks Arcade.
He grins, "Correctamundo, Miss Watson!" He dances his cane over to the side and blaring from the inside of the tank is the Tetris theme. We see the controls turn on and flash bright colors showing us the next block coming down. A brightly painted pack of bombs slams down near Eddie and he waits for the second at the other end, dodging the third and fourth. Then the final row is right where he was standing! The heavy metal box filled with bombs shaped like an L falls towards him and he can't move in time.
But…
There's a heavy boom and he's standing underneath it, supporting it on his shoulders, black tendrils around his arms and legs making them swell with strength, he throws it to one of the smaller towers and clambers on top of it.
"Whoa…" Gwen breathes.
"What the fuck is that?!" Arcade screams, "Brock! You better not-"
Eddie kneels on top of the tower with the black tendrils fading into his body, "Hit me again, and that'll come out."
"You're cheating!" Arcade exclaims with Eddie laughing low and mocking.
"Now that's funny! 'Cause last I checked you've been trying to kill us." he snarls, "So try it again."
Another block came down on another column, Gwen making it have enough points to explode and Eddie dives for cover. Some of the blocks burst into smoke and flames plus shrapnel but the Tendrils came back out and took it for him.
"How… what?" Arcade warbles, whirling his cane, "FINE! You win! Miss Watson, get over here!"
He snatches Gwen as Eddie gets out of the tank and into the main area. We follow and Felicia looks at me, my nervous energy making me wanna punch him out but I don't know if he's got anything nasty in store but Felicia grabs my shoulders.
"Jack, look at me. Gwen's next and you right after her, if she's got an easy game then it's your turn, and I feel like yours is… not gonna be your forte."
I sigh and she kisses me on the forehead, "You'll get us outta this, Jack. Hell, I might try to, some of these machines look ready to die." she smiles and lingers close as we catch up to the others. Eddie is watching Gwen toting an arcade rifle and pointing it at targets on an almost astroturf platform that looks like sod. Arcade smiles and I notice there's a timer on the wall and almost steely determination in her face and expression.
The platform crumbles away as the time goes down, gun popping and the platform crumbling more and more as the time ticks down. She's good, and Eddie is tense nearby.
"Gwen, you got this! You got this!" he urges, "One more target!"
"I know, Eddie. I know." Gwen huffs softly, "Just watch!" One of the targets no matter how much she fired into it wouldn't go down as much as I thought it would. The last piece of astroturf starts to crumble away but Gwen gets the target down just in time.
Arcade doesn't freak out, but he does look like he's going to hit someone over the head with his cane just because he can. He shoves past a happy, almost crying Eddie as he's hugging Gwen, marching right towards me and Felicia. The look in his eyes is more than murderous, it's almost like if gazes would be able to kill he'd be standing over our dead bodies by now. Which is plenty scary. He loops his cane over my shoulder and drags me over to a rather dusty and old looking section of the arcade.
The machines and cabinets over this way are covered in cobwebs and dust, looking unused since the eighties and flaky paint with faded letters. It's a weird and decrepit section of the arcade. The cabinet we're standing in front of makes my hands shake, my eyes widen, and my breath catches in my throat.
Arcade looms over me, "Alright Mr. Parker, your turn." he growls, leading me and the others to one of my most dreaded adversaries in all arcades. His wild red hair and blistering blue eyes flashing with anger.
"Oh no…" I breathe, "Not that one."
"Ohohoho yes. Your friend's fucking CHEATS and your friend's knowledge carried her, but with your… lacking skills in accuracy, this should be fitting!" Standing before me is a simple machine. With a basketball hoop and slightly charred basketballs sitting primly in the bin with a cage over it. The lettering is bright and almost dreamy in the arcade's lighting.
It's Hoops.
Eddie almost dashes forward, "Hey! Lemme- GRAAAHHHHG!" he yells, electricity thrumming through him and knocking him to his backside. My Spider Sense rips open as I realize what exactly he connected to him…
"That's right! You try to interrupt him, or he misses a shot… BZZZZZZT!" he yells. My hands shake and sweat starts pouring out of me. I let out a low moan of 'I'm so fucked' as my friends all search themselves to find whatever they're connected to.
"Actually, let's up the ante!" he connected something to Felicia and Gwen too. My spider sense goes crazy as they're all strapped down to three brightly colored chairs with nodes on their heads but Eddie gets him and Gwen out, leaving Felicia still strapped because of the sheer voltage pulsing through him. The black tendrils scream and whine as Eddie falls to the floor with Gwen in his arms. He grins and whirls his cane.
"Alright! Let's get started!" he declares, "Take a ball from the rack and try to get it into the hoop! You have a maximum of three points! Five tries before your pretty little girlfriend rides the lightning!" I gulp, looking back at Felicia who sits there calmly, the metal clamps around her arms and legs too tough for her to cut through even if she had her claws. I turn back and breathe deep, grabbing a ball.
"Whew… okay, okay, easy…" I soothe myself, winding back and chucking the first ball, it goes in an arc through the air, dinging off the rim, the crackle of electricity thrums through the air and Felicia lets out a yelp, grunting through the pain and my body flinches hard. My Spider Sense crackles along with it, registering danger as I throw the second. It rolls around the rim and tips out, which clatters back towards me. The tingly feelings come back through my Spider Sense as I hear Felicia let out a scream and my body drops down, almost instinctively.
"Ah ah ah! Don't do that, Mr. Parker! Otherwise your girlfriend is gonna fr-" I spring up into an elaborate performance of BEEF and swishing it in there.
"You talk too much," I snarl, picking up my third and chucking it in, it tips off the ring and then…
"Ohohohoho! Down to the last two! Which means… SHE'S GONNA FRY!" he rips out an excited yowl and slams his cane down.
"You sick son of a-" Felicia starts before more electric shocks rip through her, causing her to scream. The sound ripping through the air with a vengeance. The sound chilling my bones and my blood running ice cold.
"Temper temper, Miss Hardy… you're going to break Mr. Parker's concentration!" Arcade laughs, the sound of the amping electricity ratcheting up my fear and anger.
I grit my teeth, rage coursing through my body as I close my eyes, trying to block out her whimpers and ragged breaths. I can't lose Felicia. Not when this smarmy jackass has got her strapped to a glorified electric chair.
"Now!" Arcade exclaims, "Try again, Jack!"
Eddie woozily gets up, "Dude… you got this…" he groans, "Just… ugh…" he falls back down. Even more anger pumps up my strength, I can't lose Eddie either! He's been my best friend for years! Gwen watches as I wind up another shot.
"Jack!" she calls, "If there's a miracle still in there, now's the best time to use it! He's got it set to maximum voltage!"
I tense, 'If I miss this shot, Felicia's toast.' I think, 'Please, please. Whoever's watching out for me, don't let me miss.' I toss it with all my strength, seeing it sail through the air on an arc, hurtling towards the hoop and…
*Swish!* It goes in! I got three points! I turn around and Felicia's on the floor, barely moving. I rush to her and help her to sit up. Her silvery hair all fluffed up and her eyes open, trying to find me.
"Babe?" she whispers, blinking, "Jack?"
"Yeah, yeah! I'm… I'm right here, Felicia." I grab her hand, "I gotcha…"
She smiles up at me, "Jacky…" she coos, landing a kiss on my lips and I happily return it, Eddie flops to the ground next to us and Arcade sighs.
"Well, rules are rules. You win, Ja-" I shoot over to him, my fist clobbering him into the nearby arcade cabinet.
"Fuck off, Cabinet Man." I growl, grabbing him by the shirt, "One other thing, tell me who hired you or-"
"Or what? You'll kill me? I thought the Scarlet Spider-"
I clench my hand into his shirt and tie, bringing him closer, "I'm not wearing my mask, am I?"
He looks almost like he's gonna piss his pants, "Okay! Okay! It was Tombstone! He paid me double my normal rate! I really, really didn't want to push you!"
"And look at that, buddy… you did." I snarl, "I want you to uninstall the Murderworld you made here, and I want it done RIGHT."
"And I'll turn myself in! I'll never bother you again, Mr. Parker!" he wails.
"Good." I state, dropping him with a big smile, looking at my friends. Felicia looks just about ready to kiss me again, her cheeks are bright red and she looks away with a shyness that looks wrong. Gwen and Eddie are both checking on each other but something still nags at me about earlier during the Death By Tetris game.
He lifted one of the blocks and tossed it away, and those things are thick enough to smush anyone. Eddie stands up and shakes it off, looking at me.
"Look, if I knew what the hell I just did back there, I would tell you." he sighs, "But seriously, I don't."
"That's cool." I wave him off, "I… I guess I'm over the hurdle with Felicia now."
"Yeah. Never saw you that angry before with anyone." he comments.
"I… I dunno what happened, one second I'm about to shoot hoops and the next I pummeled him silly. Then I threatened him. I…" I look down at my hands, "I don't know what came over me…"
"Still, you did what you had to do." Eddie claps his hand on my shoulder and Felicia comes closer, wrapping her arms around me.
"You did good, Jack." she says.
"I don't feel like I did." I sigh with her kissing me on the lips. The amber rays of the afternoon sun illuminate the boardwalk and the cop cars. Arcade gets dragged off, woozily mumbling the lyrics to Pure Imagination. I flip him off as they pass by. Just the absolute pettiness of it makes me chuckle a little. As soon as the statements are over and the business is winding down, I head home.
I slide down onto the floor of my room, shaking and sobbing. The worm dejected on the floor, the tears didn't stop. I came so close to losing both of my friends and somebody that Eddie cares about. That ear shattering scream, that sound of her ragged breathing and soft whimpers, it was worse than losing Dad because I wasn't there to see him get gunned down. It was worse than the train rescue because it was just another Tuesday for a Spider.
This time… I almost lost someone I cared about in front of my eyes. Powerless. That's how I felt at that moment, powerless and angry. There's a knock on my door. I dry my tears and get on my feet.
Mom opens my door slightly, "Hey sweetie, close your eyes real quick." I smile and nod, closing them. She shoves something into my hands. It's soft, lightweight, and…
I open them. Crimson, maroon actually and black fabric stare back at me, the white lenses the same jaggedness as my old mask but more solid. Made of some high quality material. The Spider symbol on the front long and black too. The legs going down my lower abdomen and the top ones going up my shoulders.
"No way…" I breathe.
"Yeah."
"You…?"
"Yep, I made it. No need to thank me."
"But… but your job…"
Mom kisses me on the forehead, "Oh please, Jack, I'd make a suit for you no matter what. I'm your mom and that 'Summer Spider' look wasn't working." she cuffs me on the shoulder playfully.
"Besides, you can't have your friend Felicia show you up in the hero costume department," she winks and I blush.
"C-Come on, Mom… Felicia and I… well…" I mumble.
"I know, honey, you can't hide that from me." she hugs me, "I know it's hard, Jacky. You have these powers, you're hormonal, and a pretty girl has you head over heels in love with her."
"Wait a sec, last I checked you didn't like her!" I accuse, pointing my finger at her, "I mean, seriously, where else would you get this high quality stuff?" Before my mom could answer all of a sudden my phone goes off. I look down and it's from someone I know well. Felicia.
Felicia: Hey Spider, Hope you liked your new suit, you can thank me and your mom later. This just in though, I'm sure you're gonna feel it soon.
Just as I read that part my Spider Sense blasts to life, including a video of Shocker in a brand new set of duds, blasting away at the cops. I turn towards Mom.
"Duty calls! I'll be back soon!" I yell, slinging out the window and into the night with a gusto that I haven't felt in a while, swinging with a lot of style and flips, my heart pounds and my slinging gets faster.
Deep down however, there's the cold talons of dread sinking into my skin and pulling out the single most horrible feeling in the world. What if I'm not enough to stop what's coming? What if I'm nowhere near strong enough to protect my friends and family? Then, I see him, not in front of a bank and just engaging some cops with… a detachment of suited men?! They looked like they had a lot of weapons and a lot of time on their hands as they kept the cops pinned down.
"Whoa, Shockie! Didn't know you had an entourage!" I exclaim, landing and seeing him look up at me with a grin underneath his mask.
"Like the new duds, kid? I like yours. Can't wait to blast 'em to shreds!" He motions to his now armored ensemble instead of the ratty quilted look and the BWOMP shotgun gauntlets. It's still got the quilted design to them which makes it look kinda cool actually.
"Where'd you get them, Supervillains 'R' Us?" I comment as he fires, dodging the incoming shockwaves, "Haha! Missed me!" I laugh, twirling through the air and landing on all fours. Just before his men could fire, a smoke bomb bursts from above me and descending is Felicia.
"Spider… always finding trouble." she sighs, shaking her head, "What am I going to do with you?"
"Maybe help me with the Shocker and his Beastie Boys and maybe we'll talk?" I ask.
"Oof, okay Mr. Scarlet Spider." she huffs.
"Right back at'cha, Miss Black Cat!" At that, we leap into action, together both in suit and out. Nothing could go wrong, right?
Tombstone sits, watching the city quietly from his penthouse, gently sharpening an ax against a grindstone with the sparks lighting up the room, Arcade sitting there shaking across from him. Haggard and eyes bagged, it was a simple matter of getting him here after all. Tombstone's crimson eyes lock with Arcade's teary-eyed blues. The tension in the air is thick and almost crushing. The pale man sharpens his ax, the soft grinding sound throwing small flares into the air.
The office was cold, tomb-like, but Arcade was feeling none of it watching the polished and well sharpened ax get sharper and sharper. His eyes filled with more and more tears and his breath came out faster and faster.
"Arcade, all I asked you to do was kill the Spider and his little merry band of friends. And what did you do? Hm?" he snarls.
"R-Ratted… you out?" Arcade squeaks with Tombstone rising from his chair. The ax gleaming in the city backlight, the moon reflecting in it. The walk of the tombed man was sedate, relaxed. As if he wasn't about to punish someone.
"That's right, and you know what I do with rats?" he asks, "Let me introduce you to my friend." he lifts his ax and smiles. Arcade doesn't notice Hammerhead grab his arm as Tombstone casually stuffs a bit of leather into the hitman's mouth.
"Bite down on this." Tombstone orders, his soft rumbling voice coos as Arcade grits his teeth and squeezes his eyes shut. His dominant hand and wrist were right where Tombstone's ax was going to go.
"Good boy." Tombstone says, "Now I will get to cutting!"
All that could be heard were the muffled screams as Tombstone did his work. Almost gently removing the leather from Arcade's mouth.
"I just want you to understand one simple truth about me, Arcade. I expect results." he looks up at Hammerhead, "Put this trash back where you found it, and make sure he's blacklisted."
As Hammerhead drags off the near unconscious Arcade, Tombstone looks at a picture on his desk. Sighing and pouring himself a drink. Scotch, Whiskey, Vodka, didn't matter. All he wanted was to forget the one thing he did wrong that started this mess.
He had killed a good man.