Here's an early New Years gift :D We're back to focusing on Gwen for this chapter and the next. Then maybe I can cycle back to Cindy since she's been seriously lacking in screentime lately.
Anyway, I thought about MJ's characters and came up with a tentative list:
- Matt Murdock
- Felicia Hardy
- Shadowcat or Logan. Leaning towards the former.
- Frog-Man (for some much needed comic relief)
This does mean she doesn't have much unique characters of her own but this helps prevent bloating. Unlike the others groups she's also more focused on one on one interactions with the characters rather than working as a team like the Defenders or Avengers. They're more there for her to bounce off of and have varied interactions.
Also, I'm considering writing more pure film noir chapters again in the future with either Noir (duh) or Cindy as the POV character. Seeing Bioshock Burial at Sea again really re-ignited my film noir flair.
WhiteknightandProud: So between Spider-Man and the Defenders and Spider-Woman and the Defenders, who had the more epic fight last year?
Reply from singing-bombshell: Spider-Woman defo. She was fighting Ms. Negative off the side of a building! That shit was epic!
Reply from HealingIvy: Really? I think Spider-Man takes this easily. He and a bunch of ninjas were fighting a freaking DEMON and a bunch of other ninjas in the middle of Times Square. Awesome is a massive understatement.
Reply from EpicNPCMan: Off topic but why does everyone say 'Spider-Woman and the Avengers' fought Ms. Negative? Half the Avengers were MIA!
Reply from WhiteWidow: Yeah at least in Spider-Man's case it was only Bullseye missing. Spider-Woman's group didn't have Captain America, Wasp, Hawkeyeor She-Hulk.
Reply from singing-bombshell: Sounds better than 'Spider-Woman and those randos she was with'. One of them was a freaking 10 year old with claws!
Reply from EpicNPCMan: Speaking of villains, who are Spider-Man and Spider-Woman's arch-enemies? I don't think I've seen one.
Reply from HealingIvy: Doesn't Ms. Negative count for Spider-Woman?
Reply from EpicNPCMan: Nah, she always seemed more Spinerette's arch-enemy. They're literally the same person from alternate dimensions! That rivalry just writes itself.
Reply from BodegaBandit: Obviously I'm her arch-enemy.
Reply from WhiteWidow: Get out of here bandit. You're The Worst.
Reply from WhiteknightandProud: Then I guess Spider-Man's is that demon he was fighting. Don't think he has one now.
Reply from CHOCOLLLAATTTEE: For Spider-Man it's definitely Jack-o-Lantern. He was the one who exposed his identity and tore the city apart. Hell his gangs stirring shit up again so Im guessing he's gonna smack them down when they get too big.
Reply from SpiderWomanMadeMeDoThis: Could you all stop acting like our lives are comic books? Jack is a psychopath and the only thing I regret is I didn't kill him a year ago. Stop trying to read things and pretend this was some battle for the ages. Same goes for Cindy's reflection. People died and we made them pay for it. Grow up.
Reply from WhiteKnightandProud: ...That was rude.
Gwen, as was far too common nowadays, woke up alone.
The blond sat up with a yawn and dropped her legs over the side of the bed lazily. Ever since her disastrous talk with MJ almost a week ago she'd been by herself in the apartment. Even Peter didn't stay - as soon as she told him about Lana being attacked by that asshole Bullseye he left before she could even suggest getting at least a power nap to get some of those cuts healed he was out the door and out of sight.
Rubbing her eyes tiredly, she trudged outside and opened the door to MJ's room. Empty, as expected, "Damn it, MJ..." She shut the door slowly and pressed her forehead against the wood. She knew where she was; she always went to Norah's place whenever she had an argument with someone. Problem was she had no idea where Norah's new place was. Peter knew, but she didn't get a chance to ask.
And even then what would be the point? Would she go there and force MJ back against her will? Yeah, that'd go over really well, "...Hey Webs?"
"Yes?" Gwen smiled. At least with her she wasn't really alone.
"You ever feel like the world's just taking a dump on your cereal?"
'Yes. Every time you deny my very reasonable requests for chocolate.'
"You wanted me to buy stocks on Herschels and even begged me to buy a factory! You are far from reasonable!" They really needed to give her an intervention. Gabby (current name pending for Chocolate) so far hadn't done anything similar. Heck, she was even coaxing Laura to eat her veggies! She couldn't have been more proud, "Maybe we should put you on a diet..."
'Try it and you shall suffer the dire consequences of your foolish actions.'
"...Probably need to cut back on your Webflicks too." Sighing with a smile, she made her way to the dining room and laughed under her breath when she saw the fully prepared breakfast covered in plastic wrap with a note on top, "Hey, got back early and saw you were sleeping. I'm gonna go out for a bit but I cooked something up. Make sure to eat it all. There's a treat for the kid on the fridge," she read aloud.
'...Seriously, Gwen, please marry him. He is the best thing to happen in your life besides me.'
"Yeah, I don't wanna give my dad a heart attack, thanks." She rolled her eyes and sat down while Webster grabbed the chocolate confection from the fridge. It wasn't that she didn't think about marriage or anything. She and Peter talked about a year ago after her dad and Jess got hitched and...well, honestly the thought kinda weirded her out. She loved Peter and everything but the thought of moving into a house, picket fence and kids and all, was just...off. The kind of lives they led weren't exactly built for it.
That and there was Webster to consider. Right now she had a mental image of her wearing a ring around her small head and making vows alongside them and she didn't know whether to laugh or cringe.
"You're aware I can feel your thoughts, Gwen. And for the record I think I'd look good with a ring."
"Sure, sure..." She took a bite of the eggs (delish as always) and hummed, "Hey...could I ask you a kinda awkward question?"
"I've seen you naked before, so I doubt you can surprise me."
"We really need to tone down your snark scale." She huffed, "But being serious for a bit. Gabby's really got me thinking about kids..."
"If you're wondering if we will give birth to any new symbiotes then I don't know. Wasp said-"
"That's not what I mean!" She took a deep breath and tried to find the right words, "I just...I know this is weird to think about now, but...say, hypothetically, that I ever decide to have kids with someone-
"You mean Peter."
"-then how would the kid be...you know." She gestured awkwardly, "Like my blood's radioactive, our partnership's about as tight as actual marriage and we might or might not give birth to more Gabbies. Assuming I ever get something cooking in the oven how's it going to...uh..."
"I don't know, Gwen." Webster nudged the plate of chocolate away (that was serious) and nuzzled her cheek. She did that a lot, "I was the first of my kind and even Chocolate's birth came as a shock to me. If you were ever to have a child with Peter then I am unsure of what will happen. Perhaps nothing, or perhaps they will also be Gifted like you have become. We cannot know for certain until it comes to pass."
"Not really building my confidence here, Webs." She sighed and finished off the rest of her meal in silence. Why was she even worrying about this? It'd be years before she could even think about that kind of thing. Same way with Wasp telling her she was (maybe) immortal. Right now she just didn't wanna think about the idea that she might outlive everyone she ever loved till only she and a few other 'lucky' ones were left.
So yeah, fun thoughts.
Her musings were cut off when she got a call, "Hey Jess. What's up?"
"Could use your help with something."
"New case?" She picked up the plate and began washing it. She felt guilty enough having her de-aged boyfriend cooking for her, she had to at least do some of the other chores
"Yeah. It's about this new gang of Pumpkin assholes running around. You heard about em?"
Her hands paused on the rim of the plate and she lowered it down to the sink. Even a full year later hearing a reminder of him (and Murderdock...and Moon...and Skrulls) pissed her off to no end, "Uh...yeah. Ran into them once." When Peter snuck out with Norah. No, she wasn't bitter about that. It was kinda her fault for grounding him (even if she totally had a good reason), "What about em?"
"Got a new client who thinks her kid ran off to join the gang. Wants me to find him and make sure he doesn't get caught up in another fucked up cult." Another one? She had a bad feeling already, "Anyway I figured you might be a better fit for this since I try to stay away from the whole Costume thing."
"I'll help if I can, but Peter was really the one that dealt with them. Norah too now that I think about it."
"Well blondie's not answering her phone and your boyfriend's a midget. Even more one than usual, I mean." Gwen snorted, "But if you think he can help then go for it. Pay's big enough that I can split it three ways."
"Just take my share and give it to Helena's college fund. I'll call Peter and see if he's down for a teamup. Pretty sure he can still help out even if he's like this now."
"Right. Oh, and there's another reason I called you." Webster grabbed her own plate and began washing it, "I've been doing some investigation on that Roxxon guy you're 'dating' and I got some rumors that he might be funding these assholes. Might just be bullshit but it's worth checking out."
"Right...good to know." Her dad wasn't happy when she told them about her plan. As much as he and Peter butted heads sometimes at least dad trusted him not to hurt her and knew she loved him. Roxxon was another story.
She called Peter's cell and he picked up on the second ring, "Hey. Something wrong?"
"Why do you always ask that whenever I call?"
"Cause nine out of ten times it's true." He grunted, "So what's the situation?"
"Jess has a new case. The...Lantern gang." Ugh, even their names sounded dumb. And she knew dumb; she 'fought' the Bodega Banditos! "Figured you might want in." And she much preferred the idea of him investigating while she could back him up over going solo again.
"Damn it, they're like cockroaches..." He sighed, "Alright, gimme the address and I'll head over."
Gwen forwarded Jess' text then jumped out the window. A part of her wondered if she might run into MJ swinging around on the way before she quashed it down. Apart from a few blurry pictures and some witness reports - half of which she was sure were fake - MJ'd been a complete ghost for the past few days. Even going to her workplace didn't help - she was always conveniently 'out on an errand' every time she got there. Gwen was pretty sure her boss was covering for her.
Jess and Peter were already on a nearby construction site when she arrived. Jess took pictures of the building from atop high beam with her beat up old camera while Peter talked with someone on the phone, "Hey-o!" She clung to a nearby beam and pouted slightly when neither even bothered to look at her, "Sure, just ignore me. That's not offensive or anything."
"Should probably change out of that outfit. We don't want anyone to know Spider-Woman's helping us," Jess said, eyes still glued to the office building. Odd, she was expecting another warehouse.
"Don't wanna be seen with me, Jess? Am I that uncool?" She hopped over to the beam next to her and crouched down.
"People already find it suspicious that Kate's my old intern-"
"I think she prefers the term protege detective."
"Whatever she calls it. Your dad was one of Spider-Woman's first supporters in the cops, Kate's one of your Avengers buddies and Parker over there is Spider-Woman's ex boyfriend. If people see Spider-Woman helping me out there's gonna be a lot of odd looks at Gwen Stacy soon enough. At some point someone's gonna catch on that one of your friends, your stepmom and your dad just so happen to be close to one of the Avengers and wonder where you fall under."
"No one's figured it out so far."
"...You don't look online much, do you?"
"Kinda busy with college and patrols to go giigling myself, Jess." And for some reason she always got directed to porn whenever she did. She blamed Betty.
"You do know that some people think you're Spider-Woman? Have been ever since Parker got outed." From below them Peter grunted but said nothing, "No one really takes it seriously since everyone thinks you're some heiress like Kate is, but you really don't wanna push it. Last thing we need is you getting your face plastered on those damn ads."
"Still can't believe you let em use you for those damn energy drinks."
"Money goes to charity, Peter. Being a 'sellout' and getting snide comments from hipsters is worth it."
"Whatever you say." He shot a line of white webbing and pulled himself up on Jess' other side. He was dressed differently now. A black jacket with the hood over his head and a mask that looked like something Moon Knight wore, "Any intel for us, Jones?"
"Not much. One of the old Lantern crew who wussed out told me they hold some meetings here. Apparently its where they do the introductions and give em everything. Jackets, those masks..." She snapped another picture, "But if the info's right then they're getting a little something extra today." She showed them the screen and Gwen flinched at the crate of guns on display, "Snagged this from a warehouse down in fifth street. They're getting armed."
"Just what we need: a psycho cult with guns." Gwen huffed.
"Least they don't have Mason's tech this time," Peter muttered, "Hmm, I'll go ahead alone. See if I can find a entrance."
"No way. We're doing this together," Gwen said.
"Relax, I'm not planning to sneak in myself. I'll just see about finding us somewhere to go in besides the front door. I'll be back."
Before she could say anything else he let himself drop and disappeared into smoke mid-fall, "Dunno how you deal with that. That'd piss me off," Jess said. Gwen shrugged and shifted into another outfit. A dark jacket just like Peter's, yoga pants, sneakers, gloves and an old luchador mask. Same outfit she wore on her would-be debut during She-Hulk's charity event.
She even avoided putting a hood on it now, which felt like a betrayal of some kind.
The wait was quiet, broken only by Jessica occasionally taking another picture or writing down something on her notepad. Gwen hugged her right leg close while the other dangled free past the beam. If she had her way she would've kicked down the front door and webbed down every single crazy wearing a pumpkin mask. She didn't care what your reason was - trying to associate with that psycho mass murderer couldn't be justified no matter how hard you tried to pull the bad parents excuse.
Jessica snapped another pic then put her camera down, "You alright?" she asked, finally turning to look at her.
"Yeah. Why wouldn't I be?"
"Cause you look like you've got a stick up your ass."
Gwen snorted. That was Jess for you, "I'm fine. I'm just..." She brought a hand through the top of her head and sighed, "Just dealing with some shit right now."
"Wanna talk about it? I'm not really your mom or anything but we're...uh, shit I'm not good at this kind of thing." She sighed in turn and leaned back on the beam, "Look, I promised George I'd help look out for you."
"I can take care of myself."
"Don't doubt it. Doesn't mean he's not gonna worry."
"That's dad for you." Gwen smiled wryly, "It's just...you know the thing me and MJ were dealing with? It just got worse." Jess waited patiently for her to continue, "She just told me she went around at night playing the killer vigilante with Matt freaking Murdock, of all people. And when I tried to talk to her about it she just..." She bit her lower lip, "She told me she didn't regret it at all. That the people she killed...she killed them and she's going to keep killing people."
"Shit..." Jessica oh so eloquently said.
"Yeah." She grit her teeth, "I don't know what I'm supposed to do here, Jess. I'm not going to arrest her, and MJ knows that, but do I just let her keep doing this? And if I stop her does that mean I have to stop Peter too? He kills people- hell, he's killed more than MJ! If I turn up the news right now I'd probably hear a report about a bunch of dead ninjas or see one of his 'friends' up to something I really should go after them for."
"Let's turn this around a bit: what do you want to do? And I'm not asking what Spider-Woman should do. I wanna know what Gwen Stacy wants to do."
"That's...complicated." She chewed her lip thoughtfully, "I want MJ safe and that little monster dead along with Kasady, but that's not gonna happen. I tried to...wean her off killing people. Didn't work." How long after their patrols did she wait before killing people? "And honestly? I don't even know how I really feel about this. I hate the fact that she's killing people, but I dunno if that's because of the killing itself or because I'm scared the more she does it the more that thing will turn her."
"That the reason you're not stressing so much about Parker?"
"Peter's another can of spiders." She waved a hand through the air, "He promised me he's gonna try not to do it as much, but I don't know if it's because of the Hand or Murderdock and his 'team' but it feels like he's slipping back into old habits. And that's when he isn't going undercover in cult recruitment centers."
"I thought you'd be more worried about the fountain of youth bullshit he's got going on."
"I thought I so too, but it's about on par with the rest of the BS we deal with. Besides, reminds me of when we were kids..." Except now her childhood friend was sneaking around a compound full of psychopaths. 7 year old her's head would've exploded if she knew even a fraction of the shit she'd be going through, "Hopefully Teresa gets here soon. She's the only one who can help him and Lana."
"God, this family tree's fucked..."
"Speaking of, how are dad and 'Lena? I've been kinda busy these past few days and haven't had time to check in."
"They're fine. George is with Kate back home looking after Helli and..." She paused and briefly mussed a hand through her hair, "Just dealing with some shit. Dunno if you know this but your neighborhood has some real assholes in it. This bitch in the HOA's been on my ass since last month when she saw me lifting George's car to get something under it. Guess she doesn't like a freak living in the same street."
"You know we could probably sue for discrimination." She-Hulk's new firm specialized in it.
"What, and turn this whole thing into a circus? Fuck that. I'll just-"
"Hey." The two of them jumped as Peter de-cloaked next to them, "Got the photos."
"Jesus, would you stop doing that!" Jessica snarled.
"No." He slipped past Gwen and she scooted so he could sit between them, "Found a few places we could get in through." He shifted to the first picture, "Front gate's pretty heavily guarded inside but with the three of us it shouldn't be that much of an issue."
"Really don't wanna do that. They've got hostages in there if my client's right," Jessica said.
"Last resort then. Speaking of hostages." Next picture, this time of a window with tied up figures inside, "Guessing that's them. Didn't see any guards inside the room, but we should still be careful."
"Hmm...don't see the guy I'm looking for. Then again he might be one of the ones wearing a mask..."
"We'll save everyone then cherry pick later," Gwen said, "What's next?"
"There's more than one entrance so can probably split up."
"Famous last words there, Pete. What next, it's too quiet and you're three weeks from retirement?"
"Very funny." He rolled his eyes (though she didn't miss the slight smile) and went to the next picture, "Found two places we can sneak through. First one leads to the basement. Lightly guarded - just a couple of yahoos, ain't even armed." Next picture, "This one's a vent that should allow us to get around without drawing attention. Something tells me Jones doesn't wanna crawl around."
"Got that right." She scoffed, "I'll take the backdoor while you two go around the vents. Keep your phones on and in headphones to make sure we can hear each other."
Soon enough she and Peter were at the side looking up at the slightly ajar vent, "I'll go first." He nodded and she hopped up the wall. She (quietly) pulled the vent loose and crawled inside, Peter coming in right after, "This seems familiar." She swatted at a cobweb in her way and coughed at the dust that wafted up to her face. Would it kill people to keep their vents clean? A little consideration went a long way.
"A year ago it was Hammerhead's goons and now it's Jack's cult. What the hell's with this city and following madmen?"
"We actually did a paper on that last term. Something about Type A personalities drawing those who seek leadership and purpose." She turned the corner and grimaced when her hand landed on something sticky.
'You don't wanna know what this is, Gwen...'
'Thanks for that, Webs.' She shuddered and looked back to Peter. His mask was on now, blocking his face from view, "...How's Lana?" she asked quietly.
"Still unconscious." He grunted and wiped some dust off his mask, "Had to sneak into the hospital last night, couldn't exactly explain why a 7 year old was visiting an Initiative Hero."
"Are you okay?"
"Not really. I feel like I should've been here instead of playing spy." She reached back and tapped his hand, "You don't need to worry about me. Lana's alive, that means she'll be okay. Right now all I can do is make sure she won't be hurt again."
"And how do you plan to do that?"
"I'm going to kill every single one of the Hand starting with Bullseye."
She didn't get a chance to comment before he stopped and looked through one of the slim grates to his left. Peter put a finger in front of his lips and gestured for her to stop just as two pairs of boots stopped right in front of the grate, "Man, why the fuck are we even here?" The voice was distorted by the mask but it was still obviously female, "We've got guns and we've got guys! We should be tearing shit up!"
"You heard what that old bitch said. You wanna get her triad guys on you? Go ahead," another, this time a guy, replied.
"Why we even working for her? We should be trying to bust out bossman Jack!"
"We try to break into the Raft now we're gonna get our asses shrunk, dumbass! Think! Ain't gonna do anyone any good if we're ant sized!"
They devolved into a curse-filled argument. Peter tapped her leg and silently urged her to move. It was only when they were a far enough distance that he spoke again, "Should've known she'd be involved."
"Who?"
"Gao. Aren't that many old ladies with Triad connections who can funnel this many guns into the city." They got into a fork in the vents. He pointed left, "Might explain the bounty from Roxxon too. Didn't give that guy much of a reason to spend so much long green on my head and I know for a fact the Hand have their hands in Roxxon oil. If Gao got into his head then I can see him forking over the dough."
"I doubt it." Jessica's voice chimed in, "What I heard from Gwen this Roxxon guy's obsessed with her. Bet that's enough for him to spend money to make sure you're not in the way."
"Uh...you sure about that?" Gwen asked, "I mean I get this guy has a crush on Spider-Woman but..." But was it worth 30 million dollars? And even if it was she didn't like the idea that Peter was in danger because of her.
"You honestly asking that? I've had clients who've done stupider- hold on a second." There was a brief pause then the sound of someone getting hit, "Sorry about that. Like I was saying I've seen dumber shit. A couple weeks ago there was a woman who left her 10 year marriage cause, and I quote, 'I felt a connection between myself and Spider-Woman when she saved me from that burning building'. Apparently you two shared a really intense hug."
"She's gonna have to be more specific. I save a lot of people from burning buildings." Which said a lot about New York infrastructure. At least it was good exercise on getting Webster used to fire.
"There's also that guy trying to sue you cause you swung over his general direction and he was so busy trying to snap pictures he tailgated the guy in front of him. No idea how that's going."
"I think She-Hulk mentioned it..."
"Point is people do stupid, petty shit all the time and you don't need some old bitch from a secret society of ninjas to make you."
"Whatever the case she's definitely part of the funding these clowns have," Peter said, "Your client care much about the state her kid is in?"
"She doesn't want him dead, if that's what you're thinking."
"How about breathing through a tube?"
"No."
"You love to make things hard, don't you?"
"Could we not casually discuss putting people in the hospital?" Gwen looked back with slight annoyance, "We can just knock them out and leave them for the cops." Though she'd have to get creative considering she couldn't use her webs. Stupid disguise.
Eventually they ended up right above the hostage room. Gwen counted ten people handcuffed on the ground and, just as Peter said, no guards in sight, "Two people outside the door." He pointed to the bright red doorway, "You take left and I take right?"
"You know it."
She pulled the grate back and they both dropped inside. The gagged hostages tried to scream through the cloth and Peter shook his head, "We're friends. Stay calm and we'll get you all out." He took up position on the right side and she stood opposite him in a slight crouch.
She banged hard on the door and mimicked a muffled scream, "Of for fuck's..." The lock clicked open loudly and the door swung open, "Hey, you assholes better-"
Gwen grabbed the guy by the scruff of his neck, pinned him to the wall and knocked him out with one punch to the face. Across from her Peter jumped on the pumpkin goon's back then smashed his head against the unforgiving brick three times. The mask shattered on the third hit and she frowned at how young the face underneath was. Guy looked 19, if that, and after this he'd be in jail for the next decade at least.
She didn't feel too sorry, though. He made his choice.
Peter slammed him down to the ground and searched through his pockets for the key, "Jess, how you doing?" Gwen asked.
"Found something down here. Not gonna like it." Great, she was playing the pronoun game. Never a good sign.
"Any worse than the hostages?" Peter began unlocking the cuffs while she just ripped through the chains. Hey, no one said she had to be neat, "Cause I gotta tell you I think we got ya beat on the fucked up front."
"See for yourself."
Two pictures sent. Gwen looked down at the screen and frowned at the first image that popped up. A crate full of guns and explosives, "Cheap guns," Peter said, "AK-47's, pipe bombs, molotovs...looks like Gao can't afford too much. Or she doesn't think these clowns are worth the investment." He unlocked the last cuff and pulled the woman up to her feet.
Gwen lowered the gag and raised both hands to calm her, "Shh, its okay! We're here to-"
"Y-You need to run!" She whispered in a panic, "Th-They've been injecting people with something and they're-"
"Shit." Peter raised his phone to show her the next image and her blood ran cold when she saw the all too familiar syringe on the screen. Her spider-sense tingled weakly just before something swiped at her back. Gwen pushed the woman away and hissed when claws cut through her back before the wound quickly healed.
Two Lizards were behind them. The hostages backed themselves into a corner while Gwen and Peter stood in front of them protectively. It was the two Lanterns, though they hadn't fully changed just yet. Their arms were scaly and swollen and their faces were equally monstrous but she still saw the human features underneath, "Are you fucking kidding me?! More of these guys?!" Gwen hissed.
"What's wrong?" Jess asked, "Are they- shit, I think I see what you mean. Call you back in a bit."
"Jess! Are you-"
"Focus on ourselves first, partner." Peter took the one on the right while she took the other. Gwen grabbed the claw mid-swipe and blocked the other that tried to go for her side before headbutting the Lantern on his forming snout. Next to her Peter slipped between the would-be Lizards legs and pinned his feet to the ground with two nets of webbing.
'Webs, can you heal them?' Peter clambered up the guy's back and started wailing on his head.
'I can try. Hold them down.' Gwen flipped over the snarling lantern, grabbed waist and slammed him down in a painful suplex - She-Hulk's lessons were really paying off. Peter looked at her briefly then jumped off the Lizard's back as it fell to the ground, paralyzed.
Gwen straddled the struggling Lizard and smashed his head to the ground with her right palm. Black tendrils snaked from her fingers and covered his jaw, 'Hmm...it appears similar to the serum from a year ago but it is imperfect. Diluted.'
'We can play scientist later! Can you get rid of it?'
'Yes. Keep him holding him down.'
Gwen kept the struggling reptile pinned and let Webster get to work. The symbiotic mass spread from his jaw to the rest of his body till it was covered in a dark blanket. The Lizard struggled, trying to tear and bite through the sheet, but eventually its movements slowed and Gwen felt an all too familiar rage bubbling in her, 'Webster...?'
'Don't worry. You won't let us go out of control again.'
She nodded and took deep, calming breaths till the feeling passed. Gwen stepped off the healed Lantern and looked to the one Peter left paralyzed, "...Can you get the people out of here? I'll deal with this one." He nodded and she got to work. From behind her Peter opened the window and created a net close to the ground along with a length of rope from her loaned webshooter.
Eventually both were healed and the hostages were safely far away. Gwen called Jess back, "Hey, you okay?"
"Yeah, but these assholes wrecked my jacket." Jess sighed, loud and slow, "We gotta get the cops in here. This is bigger than some dumbass teenagers trying to join a gang."
"You call them. Me and Peter'll deal with the rest of the Lizards."
ISpeaktoALIENS: So if Spinerette's from another dimension doesn't that make her an illegal immigrant?
Reply from Nearlaugh: This man right here asking the real questions.
Reply from ISpeaktoAliens: Seriously tho. If she's from another dimension then doesn't that mean she has no ID here? Is she a citizen or what? Could she vote or buy drinks?
Reply from Spinerette: I gotta admit this wasn't what I expected when I checked my feed.
Reply from ISpeaktoAliens: Just making sure our heroes have proper documentation.
Reply from Spinerette: Might as well ask how the Asgardians are categorized considering they're from space.
Reply from SoDONEwiththis: He did. He's been spamming threads Asgiardians frequent and trying to get answers.
Reply from Spinerette: Then I guess he'll be happy to know I have proper documentation, ID and all.
Reply from ISpeaktoAliens: Wait how? The you from this dimension is in prison!
Reply from Spinerette: Sorry, that's classified.
Reply from ISpeaktoAliens: Hey! We deserve to know!
Reply from ISpeaktoAliens: ?
Reply from ISpeaktoAliens: Hey!
Reply from SoDONEwiththis: Think she's gone dude. Better luck stalking next time.
15 minutes and a building full of incapacitated Lanterns later and the police finally arrived. Gwen sat down at the edge of the rooftop next to Peter and watched Jess talk to Cindy and the rest of the cops. She'd volunteered to stay behind and explain to the cops, leaving the two of them as her silent partners. Gwen preferred it this way - she really didn't want to explain why her 'ex'-boyfriend was a 7 year old now.
Cindy turned to look at them when the other officers weren't looking and gave them a wave and a wink. They both returned the gesture before swinging away out of sight. All was quiet between the pair till they both landed on a far off alley, "Damn it..." Peter pulled off his mask and punched the wall, a scowl on his face.
"What's wrong?" She shifted back into some casuals.
"What's wrong? How about the fact that the damn serum is still going around despite everything you did last year?" He breathed out slowly in a growl, "Feels like no matter what we do the mistakes that kid - that I - made keep coming back. I'm guessing Roxxon's the one making this new juice, but it's still that old base he's using."
"Peter..." She reached a hand out to touch him when he suddenly turned towards her and she froze. It was just for a split second, but she definitely saw a blood red, see-through mask covering his face and what looked like 4 tendrils draped over him.
And just as quick as they appeared they were gone.
"Peter." He didn't look at her, "Peter, what was that?"
"A deal I made." He sat with his back against the wall and looked down at the ground, "My...boss gave me an offer so I could save someone. Told me I belonged to him even more than I already did. This is what I got."
"So what does it mean?"
"I have no idea. He said that...something's coming and he needs me strong for it. Could come tomorrow, could come in a 100 years. He wasn't too keen on the details." He shook his head, "It's fine. Ain't any worse than me disappearing into smoke. Far as I can tell the Spider-God wants me alive."
"If you say so..." Why did they always have to deal with magical BS? She almost missed the days when she worried if the spider bite gave her or anyone she slept with cancer.
"Trust me, Gwen. A lot of things in this city want me dead but it ain't one of em." He pulled himself up, "Come on, I gotta go meet Page and talk about something. You can come if you want."
She did, of course. The library he took her to felt...off. No people around and it looked way too ornate - expensive - for how it looked on the outside. She followed behind him warily and her mouth lowered to a frown when she saw Murdock and Page sitting across one another on a small table having tea, of all things.
"Good afternoon, Peter. I trust you're here to discuss your new wards?" Page gave them an unreadable smile and took a dainty sip of her tea. Gwen suddenly felt nervous. According to Moon Knight she was possessed by some kind of angel. After what she saw in that club that wasn't much of a relief.
"Yeah..." His eyes flicked to Murdock, "Thanks for the help, by the way. Knew I could count on you."
"Your sarcasm is palpable enough even for a blind man to see it." Murdock hummed, "Apologies, Peter, but me and Echo were preoccupied by your old friend Murakami. Apparently he became impatient at your lack of action and sought you out."
"Of course he did. Did you at least kill him?"
"No, thought I'd leave that for you."
"Meaning you weren't good enough and have nothing to show for it. Go to hell."
Page laughed under her breath and walked away with Peter in tow. Gwen stood in complete silence for minutes and glared at the room's only other occupant, "I can feel the heat from your gaze, Ms. Stacy. Would some tea calm you down?" He gestured to the still steaming cup, "Ruth makes the most delectable blends."
"No thanks." It took all she had not to say something ruder, "...What's MJ been doing the past few days?"
"How would I kn-"
"Don't lie to me." She mashed her hand on the table and broke it in half. Cups, utensils and piping hot tea spilled onto the ground.
"...That was rather rude."
"For some reason MJ trusts you. So I'll ask again..." She grabbed him by the scruff of his nick and pulled him up into a rough stand, "Tell me what she's been doing."
"Believe it or not, Ms. Stacy, but I don't know. She hasn't contacted me since that altercation 5 days prior." She narrowed her eyes and tightened her grip, nearly ripping off the fabric of his expensive suit, "If you wish to pop my head like a grape then feel free. I can't give you answers that I don't have."
Her free hand balled into a fist and she grit her teeth till, eventually, she let him, "...You're sure she hasn't contacted you?"
"Yes, I'm sure. Believe it or not we aren't exactly friends. If she's continued her crusade then she has done so without my help." He rubbed his neck, "And even if she had I wouldn't have been able to accommodate her. I and the rest of our little ragtag group have spent the past few days in conflict with the Hand. It's why I sent you to rescue Peter in my stead."
"Yeah, well...that guy didn't seem so tough." She crossed her arms.
"We can't all be demigods, Gwen." She grimaced when he said her name. Even hearing him act so familiar made her skin crawl, "Still, I doubt even you could permanently kill Bakuto as he is now. That is if you're even willing to take a life again. Was Kasady the last one you took?"
"You fucking-"
"Don't listen to him. He's just baiting you." She looked back and found Peter walking back with Page behind him.
"Are you done here?" Gwen asked.
"With me, yes. Peter here has convinced me to give just a bit more to his personal charities." Again with that unreadable smile, "I suppose now he and Matthew would like to converse about their plans for the Hand. You can stay here with me, Gwnedolyne. Perhaps help me in cleaning up the mess you created."
She bit her tongue and began to pick up the scattered ceramic while Peter and Murderdock left. Page knelt next to her, "You don't have to-"
"Please. I should've known leaving you alone with Matthew would lead to this." She sighed softly and picked up the shattered teacup, "I was quite fond of this one..."
"I could pay for that..." Gwen said awkwardly.
"Money is no object to me. Don't about it." She deposited the fine china to the side, "That being said I would like to talk with you. Think of it as repayment for my tea and table."
"Uh...sure."
"How goes your investigation into the esteemed Donald Roxxon?"
"You...You know about that?" Of course she did. She seemed to know everything. Probably knew where her missing left socks were.
"I was present when you had your...'date' with him." Gwen stopped cleaning, "Don't worry, it was merely a coincidence."
"Somehow I don't believe that..."
"Believe what you wish then." She gestured to the nearby table cloth and they dumped the mess inside, "I'm surprised you could stomach the man."
"No offense, but that doesn't mean a lot considering what you're doing with Murderdock."
"Matt has his sins, but he is capable of virtue. The same cannot be said for the one you forced yourself to smile for." She stood and Gwen awkwardly joined her. A part her of just wanted to turn and walk away right now, "Similar to Peter in some ways."
"Don't even try to compare the two. Last I checked Peter didn't run a citywide criminal empire for the past decade."
"My apologies then, it was a poor comparison." She smiled again.
"...You know about what Roxxon's doing, don't you?"
"I have an inkling, yes."
"Then why aren't you doing anything? Dozens of people at least are being taken and experimented on."
"To what end? Say I stop him, would I continue to stop every perceived person who has committed sin till there's only the virtuous left? Let me as you a question, Gwendolyne. If you ran into conflict would you come crying to your father to solve your problems for you?"
"That's different-"
"Is it? When a child leaves their home it cannot expect to run back to their parents at any little sign of adversity. Roxxon is human and it's up to humans to stop his sins. You cannot simply turn to those whose garden you left for aid whenever another exercises their free will; as evil and morally deprived as it may be. Freedom comes with many prizes, but it also has its costs."
"So you're no help. Great..."
"If you find evidence against him then I will certainly prosecute him to the best of my abilities, but I cannot place him in jail based on a gut feeling and circumstantial evidence. By that logic Jameson would be well within his rights to keep you confined as the 'menace' you are."
"Is comparing things all you can do?" Yes, she was well aware that she was talking smack to someone who cowed Murdock, of all people. She didn't care.
"It's an easy form of conversation." She shrugged, "Speaking of, I heard your talk with Mr. Roxxon out in that balcony. Seemed heavy handed, but I suppose a bit of honesty makes it seem more genuine."
"Honesty? What are you talking about?"
"Your frustrations in dealing with the ungratefulness in this city, your desire to go back to the days before heroism became your priority and your desire for more power. Many facets that all contained a hint of truth."
"I don't...I don't want more power." She couldn't deny the other two, but the last one? Definitely not. She wasn't like Roxxon.
"Everyone desires power. To deny it is to deny human nature."
"What do you know? You aren't human, remember?"
And then she laughed. It was loud and unrestrained and it creeped Gwen out more than anything else she'd done today, "A good point, but I've seen enough of them to make an accurate gauge. Tell me, wouldn't you prefer it if criminals didn't fight? That the second they saw you they simply surrendered and saved you and them the headache of a fight?"
"I...guess?"
"And how do you think that could be? Respect, intimidation, fear...there are many ways, but power's the easiest. Why fight back against something that you have no hope, not even the smallest chance, of overpowering? Policemen use guns, you use your abilities. And yet criminals still fight you, holding on to the vain hope that perhaps they can score a lucky win."
"So because I don't want to hurt people if I don't have to that means I'm a power hungry asshole? Great logic there."
"Desiring power and being an 'asshole', to use your words, aren't tied hand in hand. Many desire power for the sake of helping others. Karen desired the power to save Matthew and help this city. If you could gain enough power to make it so that criminals no longer considered fighting you, to make it that much easier for you to save the innocent, would you not take it?"
"..." Gwen crossed her arms and looked away.
"The same comes from your desire to control your friend. Because you believe know better."
"What the- I don't want to control them!"
"And yet you spent the past year trying to control Peter's morality and now you're attempting the same with Mary Jane. If you had your way they wouldn't make their own choices and would simply follow what you say."
Gwen punched her. The inhuman D.A took the hit to the jaw without a word and showed no signs that it even hurt, "...Forgive me, I was being presumptuous." Page rubbed her jaw tentatively.
"...Why are you telling me this?"
"Because I understand hpw it is to wish individuals would change and follow your will. It never ends in a good manner." She smiled wryly, "I'm well aware I'm only delaying Matthew's inevitable fate and the same can be said of you if you continue down this path. If you wish to retain your friendship with Mary Jane then I suggest you try to understand her rather than letting your view color what she should do."
She didn't say anything and just walked out as soon as she saw Peter close by. Peter looked between her and Page warily before following after her, "Gwen, are you alright?" No response. She kept walking till she was far away from the library and close to a wide park, "Hey, whatever she said to you just ignore it. Sometimes she can be worse than Matt."
"Am I wrong, Peter?"
"What are you talking about?"
"Am I wrong for not wanting MJ to turn into some fucked up serial killer? Am I wrong to not want you to get caught in cult torture cellars?"
"...What did Page tell you?"
"Just tell me."
He sighed and sat her down on a nearby bench then grabbed two scoops of ice cream from the milling vendor, "You're not wrong." She took the offered sweet and he sat next to her, "But I do wish you'd trust us more. I know that what happened three years ago scared you. You're afraid of losing your friends after what happened that night at prom and you think you have to protect us so you don't lose us."
"Could you blame me? The things you've told me about your trip, what you've been doing since you got back here, feels like you're balancing on a wire and there's no net underneath."
"Believe me, I know." He took a small bite of his vanilla cone. If it were any other situation she would've found it cute, "But that doesn't mean you shouldn't trust us. We know what we can do and if we really needed help we'd tell you."
"I do trust you and MJ. It's that monster she's attached to that I don't."
'It's been a year, Gwen. The chances of the red one taking over Mary Jane are unlikely.'
"She's lived with for over a year now, don't see that changing anytime soon. Point is if you really want to to make up with her then talk to her and just...let her speak. You might not like what you hear and you might not be able to convince her to see things the way you do, but it's better than trying to force her and losing your best friend."
"But if she is just playing judge, jury and executioner? Just...killing people the second they commit a crime? What if every person she kills just makes that monster stronger?"
"Then we'll deal with it when it comes to that, but I don't think that's it. From what I've seen she gives them one chance to take their punishment the way you do. Maybe she should give them more than one chance, but that's something we'll have to talk about face to face."
"Yeah..." Gwen nodded. She didn't want to lose MJ, "...Changing the subject a bit, the next semester's coming up. Any chance you're coming in?" she asked hopefully.
"Still don't have a job."
"You know I can pay for it." She held up a hand before he could interrupt, "And by that I mean I can pay for it first and then you pay me back. Like a loan. Cause if you're really going to try and make everything yourself then I'll probably graduate by the time you enroll."
"Hm...point." He brought a hand through his hair, "Fine then. First we deal with Mary then my future education aspirations."
Their phones suddenly rang. Both of them answered and saw Cindy on the other end of a group call, "Guys, uh...you near a TV by any chance?"
"No. Why?" Gwen asked.
"Better if I show you."
She twisted the phone to a jumbotron and Gwen immediately groaned when she saw Boomerang on the screen, "-ernoon, ladies and gentlemen! I'm sorry for the interruption of your mindless sitcoms and reality TV shows, but I have an announcement to make. We here of the Sinister Six-" Gwen rolled her eyes, "Feel like we're not being taken as seriously as we should be."
"How do they keep hijacking those damn TV's..." Peter muttered.
"So I feel like I should do something about that." Boomerang moved the handheld camera to a captive audience bound by their arms to their seats, "See I figured that making small scores wasn't getting us anywhere so here's what we're going to do. Spider-Man, I know you're watching."
"Fuck..." Gwen scowled.
"And I know you've got a big price on your head! 30 million dollaroonies! Man, I don't know who you pissed off to get that much and really I don't care! Point is you're a big payday and I wanna be paid. So here's what we're gonna do. You come here in the next 60 minutes and have us a good old proper showdown. Just you and me mano-e-spider. If you don't, well..." He turned back to the 'audience' and waved a detonator in his hands, "Then people are gonna start flying. You get me?"
"Oh, and don't even think about coming in with your Defenders buddies. I see anyone else but you and this whole place goes boom!"
Cindy twisted the phone back, "That's been on loop for the past 10 minutes. Cops are on their way to the studio but we can't exactly bust in when he has hostages. We think he has bombs in the basement. It should give him enough time to detonate and make his escape in case we try anything." She shook her head, "This doesn't make any sense. This Boomerang guy's supposed to be a joke, how the hell did he take over a studio?"
"Probably Hobgoblin. According to Shocker that's how people are getting busted out," Gwen said, "Point is we gotta do something."
"I'll go. I'll disable the bombs in the basement first then get that clown's detonator," Peter said.
"You really gonna do this by yourself? And while you look like that?" Cindy asked.
"He's not the worst psychopath I've dealt with. And the Hand already know I'm a kid again so there's no point in hiding it."
"I'm coming with you then," Gwen said, "You disable the bombs first and when you get the detonator I'll help you deal with them. There's no way Boomerang's alone."
"I know." He stood up and pulled the hood over his head, "Come on, let's make him wish he didn't crawl his way out of his cell."
InitiativeBro: So...5 bucks says Boomerang's gonna get executed on live TV.
Reply from WonderSiblings: Yeah I have no idea what this guy's thinking. Spider-Woman won't kill him but you sure as shit Spider-Man will.
Reply from Tethys: Maybe this is suicide by super? I've seen stupider.
Reply from InitiativeHopeful: Just heard from the grapevine that some Initiative Heroes are heading over there too in case Spider-Man fails.
Reply from InitiativeBro: Sure they don't wanna arrest Spidey too? I've heard some whispers that they think he's free game now that Spider-Woman's not protecting him anymore.
Reply from Tethys: A bunch of guys playing weekend heroes vs a guy who fought a demon and took down the Kingpin? This I gotta see...
Last chapter of the new year out. Hope you guys'll keep reading up to the next :) I really need to update Two Spiders on a Web, by the by. It's been months since the last chapter. Maybe after this.
Anyway, next chapter will have full on Battle Couple moments since it'll be Peter and Gwen against the Sinister Six. Hopefully it'll satisfy those who wanted to see the two main leads cooperating more.
Questions:
1. Would you guys have preferred it if Mary Jane didn't become a protagonist? It's too late to change it now but I'm curious all the same.
2. Do you guys think Matt's a decent enough replacement to Bullseye? Readers seem to like him well enough but I wonder how he compares.
3. Do you agree with Karen that Gwen's too controlling and desires power or is she just projecting super hard/Gwen is justified to feel this way considering what her friends get up to?
Review Answers:
G. Ward - Bullseye? Probably not. Not much a fan of Matt?
Ch4os4Ever - And a happy holidays to you too :)
rc48177 - A 'Nice Guy'? Not sure. He can be annoyingly pushy, true, but he doesn't act like Gwen belongs to him or that he's owed sex. That's more Roxxon.
ToasyIce - You as well :)
ArkT - Why exactly does she struggle to carry the show, so to speak? Feels like she has as much character as Cindy or Lana.
Hardlight - Peter/MJ? They aren't a viable pairing since by the time MJ got feelings for him he and Gwen are already together.
Dr. Sugarcakes - Initiative's coming back? Huh, that's new.
