Current votes for romance is 9 for both Black Cat and Frog-Man, 8 for Matt and 6 for Peter and Gwen (despite being told it's a joke option). All of the Matt votes came after the last update and I wonder if it's cause people liked their interactions or they were just made aware the poll even existed.
Anyway I know people voted Frog-Man as a joke but it's still weird how he's taking the lead alongside Felicia. Do people seriously want MJ to pair off with him? Or is it because, despite being a cringelord, he's the only one that doesn't come across as massively dysfunctional?
Also, when I asked before about Matt being redeemed I don't mean he escapes Hell or anything. I meant more the readers and/or characters forgiving him despite all he's done. One could argue him refusing Karen's offers of an out and trying to ensure he's punished for his actions is his own form of redemption. In refusing to redeem himself and escape his punishment he redeems himself in a different way.
This chapter is basically a Yakuza rip off and goes full anime. Don't worry, we won't ever go this far again.
MaxTurn101: Anyone have any thoughts on Electro II?
Carvan77 replied: Wait, there's another Electro?! WTF?!
MaxTurn101 replied: Didn't you see the update on the Avengers Most Wanted/Dangerous List?
Carvan77 replied: No. What the hell is the Avengers Most Dangerous List? I've never heard of that before.
YuRemMe replied: It's this brand-new thing the Avengers added to their website. It basically lists the current most dangerous super criminals/Inhumans in the country that people need to watch out for. Kind of like the show America's Most Dangerous.
Carvan77 replied: And it says there's another Electro now?!
MaxTurn101 replied: Yup. Francine Anastasia Frye, age 27. Apparently, she's a former member of the Initiative, but it seems she went nuts/rogue and killed two former fellow Initiative members and is now on the run. Her powers are electricity-based, similar to the original Electro, only Frye's lightning is yellow colored and she apparently is also super strong, can fly, and is bullet proof. So, she's basically a new, more powerful Electro.
BuVuVu replied: Heh, bullet proof huh? Guess that means Spider-Man can't shoot this one in the head. Lol.
Carvan77 replied: This isn't a joke dude. My sister's best friend was hurt in Electro's attack. She survived but ever since then she suffers from heart problems and seizures! The very last fucking thing we need is another crazy Electro showing up to slaughter and hurt more people!
BuVuVu replied: Not like you'd be able to miss her. She's a crazy blonde chick who can throw yellow lightning around.
Back here again...
Peter stamped his cigarette underfoot and looked up at the dilapidated temple with a withering glare. When he and and the rest of his motley crew came back after getting the Silver Matt - The Beast - made a temple and turned Hell's Kitchen to his own personal kingdom practically overnight. It was both a show of power and a sign of just how desperate he was to stave off oblivion.
Over a year later it was still here. All of them except Lana left the city soon after and it wasn't as if the city was gonna be happy with them sticking around to work construction. The city did try to get rid of it but certain...accidents put a stop to that. Equipment that suddenly broke or refused to work, employees that got into accidents that put them in the hospital...it was as if something didn't want the place taken down.
Page told him later that it was the Beast's lingering influence. He was dead and gone, soul erased and everything, but evil like his had a way of lingering. Like a fungus. Thankfully it was small enough that none of the poor saps trying to tear the place down actually died but it still put a stop to any plans on demolishing the place and replacing it with something less of an eyesore.
He always thought about taking out the last of the Beast's taint but he decided to put it off till the Hand was dealt with. The final nail in their coffin, if you wanted to be poetic. Right now it was harmless - worst it could do was give a fright to anyone dumb enough to sneak inside trying to make it big on the net. Way too many of those idiots wading into Supervillain fights with their phones out.
Now Murakami wanted to meet here for their, ugh, duel. He still couldn't believe he was doing this. Murakami was already inside. They could just use one of Spector's drones to blow the whole thing on top of him and cut off his head after. But no, he was going to go in there with nothing but a knife because some part of him wanted to play fair. Just cause Murakami's info was solid, as if that somehow erased all the other things he'd done over hundreds of lifetimes.
Maybe Matt was right. He was a sucker.
He looked up at the gray sky dully and winced as the first drop of rain hit his cheek. Barely a sprinkle now but it'd kick in soon enough. He was lucky that Gwen wasn't here. She deserved to have fun with the other heroes instead of watching him come back home reeking with blood.
Peter crossed the (barren, cause most people were smart enough to stay away from the haunted temple) street opened the door that led inside. The wood was caked with dust and creaked heavily with every inch it moved, "That's a good sign." He stepped inside and immediately felt the Beast's lingering signs. Felt like he took a dip in a vinegar bath. Was that why Murakami chose this place? Keep him unbalanced?
The place was abandoned. Peter stopped in front of an oni statue and sneered. Non-existence was too kind for something that caused so much hurt, but it wasn't like taking it to Hell would do any good. He sighed and turned around, barely paying attention to the grinning, demonic right by his face-
He looked back and saw nothing there, "...Fucking tick." He scowled and clenched his hands into tight fists. He needed to get out of here. Then once the Hand were dead and buried he'd tear this place down to the ground with his bare hands if he had to. Gwen'd be happy to help he was sure.
Murakami was at the throne room. Just like before he had his back to him and was kneeling at the center in a meditative pose. To his right was a sheated katana, its sheath covered in intricate markings and symbols. Again a part of him was tempted to pull out his gun and put a bullet at the back of his skull but he knew it wouldn't work. As much as Murakami was bound to his own warped view of honor he wasn't a complete idiot. Setting the fight in a place he knew he had bad memories in made that obvious.
"Feeling nostalgic for your old boss?" he asked in Japanese. The only sign the old man had that he even heard his face was a slight raise of the head, "For someone who says he never wanted to make a deal you picked a funny place to die."
"The Beast's physical body died elsewhere but this is where he truly passed. His seat of power where you wrenched him from his throne." Peter raised a brow. Made it sound like one of Cin's old video games, "For the first time in centuries the Hand felt fear. We had our little acts of rebellion, tugging at the strings that bound us, but we all knew that he could never be defied. And then you did, and we were given freedom."
"And death."
"Mmm." He looked up at the throne, his face a mix of contempt and, despite it all, longing, "I had stagnated for so long. What threat could there be if the Beast would return me to life despite my own wishes? What use in strength when you are always coddled like an infant the womb? In being given death once more I have felt more alive in this year than I have in centuries."
"You going to tell me you wanna thank me for killing your old boss?"
"No. Your intent was to free yourself, nothing more. You will not be given gratitude for self-preservation." Peter scoffed. Of course the old bastard would think he did it just for his own sake, "Or perhaps it is different. You feed on conflict and battle. Always seeking a fight where it can be avoided that. That I understand."
"I'm not like you, Murakami."
"And yet you continue to fight. Gao and the rest would have left you be had you not sought them out and continued this war. And if I should perish here you will continue this conflict even once Gao and Bakuto pass the threshold. You feed on conflict."
"Do you know how many times every clown in this city thinks we're reflections of one another?" Peter laughed sarcastically, "Big difference between us, Murakami? I don't kill innocent people. I don't sit in some temple brainwashing desperate bastards to die for me and then pat myself on the back about how honorable I am. So enough with the philosophy lesson and let's get this over with. You're not the only delusional bastard I have to deal with today."
To his credit the old bastard didn't react to the taunts. Instead he stood up and turned to face him, "You did not answer my question before: why did you choose to fight us if not a desire for conflict?"
"...How many innocent people have you hurt?" He didn't reply. It wasn't out of shame. Something else, "You don't even know, do you? The victims you trampled because you want more and more and more. When did you stop keeping count, I wonder. Or did you even count in the first place? Were they ever people to you or just something to step over?"
"That is the reason you fight, then? A belief in a concept? Your so-called justice?"
"Says the guy obsessed with honor and being the biggest kid in the playground." Peter smiled nastily, the gesture all teeth. Being unmasked made it feel more personal somehow, "Enough talking. You brought me here to fight so let's get this over with."
"Yes." He walked to the other side of the room and took off his suit jacket and dress shirt to expose the tattoo on his back. An Enma, the judge of the underworld in Japanese mythology. Did he see himself the same way, judging who was worthy of living or dying?
Peter took off his own jacket and set his pistols down on the floor. He wasn't going to unload them this time; last thing he needed was being unarmed in another interruption, "Not taking my shirt off if it's all the same to you," he said in English. He tugged on the collar of his turtleneck and double checked to make sure the hellfire knife was still at the sheath on his right side.
Time to finish this.
They stood in front of one another. For a moment there was nothing but the sound of creaking wood before Murakami suddenly rushed forward with a palm aimed straight for his face. Peter moved his head to the side, the hand almost grazing his cheek and displacing air. Peter lashed out and hit the old bastard in the chest. He winced. Felt like he was hitting a brick wall.
He flipped back and looked up just in time to see a falling kick. Peter twisted to avoid it and the impact on the stone floor caused cracks to form, "Got some upgrades, huh?" He was way faster than before. Stronger too. His eyes darted to the faint symbols on his arms and chest, "Thought you weren't a fan of cheats?"
"You did not pay a price for your gifts. I have."
"Nice glass house you've got there."
Murakami was a different kind of fight to what he was used to. Most criminals, whether they had powers or not, fought like thugs. Sure there were the professionals who prided themselves on training but when it came down to it they'd lash out like panicked dogs when they lost the advantage. It wasn't the same here. Murakami was calm and measured, every movement finely honed decades - centuries - of training.
Peter blocked the next two blows and grunted when a punch slipped past and impacted right at his forehead. His vision swam and it was only thanks to his spider-sense that he was able to deflect the next blow, 'Faster than Stick.' He blocked another blow and, remembering those month long sparring matches, side-stepped the next punch and grabbed the outstretched limb before snapping his elbow.
The loud crack echoed throughout the throne room. Murakami didn't scream and the only sign that he even felt the impact was his face contorting slightly. Without missing a beat his other hand lashed out and smacked the left side of his face strong enough to force him on his knees.
Murakami kneed him in the jaw and they both stumbled back. Peter wiped the blood from his lips while the old man quickly re-set the limb back like nothing happened, "Part of your new upgrades?" Peter's eyes narrowed as Murakami's right hand shook before he quickly clenched his fist, "...How long can you keep this up?"
"Long enough to finish this."
Peter attacked first this time. Murakami blocked all of his blows and countered with with a kick that swept him off his feet. He flipped back mid-fall and shot a line of webbing at his feet. Judging from before he knew it wouldn't stick to him long but the second-long touch was enough for him to yank and pull the honorable murderer off his feet to send him crashing on his back.
Peter scrambled on top of him and punched him in the face without holding back. Even if he wasn't as strong as Gwen or Cindy a full force blow would've been enough to break most people's skulls.
Murakami wasn't most people.
The old bastard's head snapped back from the force of the impact but it didn't stop him from grabbing Peter's wrist before he could go for his next strike. The curse he spat up at him was an old Japanese he couldn't translate but it was obvious he wasn't happy. Peter grit his teeth and wrenched his hand from the other man's grip to bring it down again-
The Beast's demented smile was inches from his face.
It was just another illusion but it was enough for Murakami to get him in the gut and push him off. Peter stumbled back and coughed, trying to ignore the burning pain in his gut, "I'm gonna burn this place to the ground...!" He snarled. Murakami charged forward and Peter struggled to block the next blows. Stick's training was harsh and oftentimes brutal for the sake of it but he always justified it at the end of every match. The Hand weren't going to let up and he needed every advantage he could get.
He hated to admit he was right.
Peter's understanding of chi was rudimentary. From what he'd seen of Rand at their peak someone could match that green amazon blow for blow. But neither of them were at their peaks. Stick barely considered him a student and Murakami for all his training couldn't match the likes of the Iron Fist or even some of the more overt powers of Gao. For all his wants of power he was still the same meathead who wanted to beat down everyone with his fists.
But one thing Stick did teach him was reading people.
Peter managed to push some distance between the two of them and took a deep breath. His spider-sense was more finely tuned than the rest of his friends and his temporary blindness only made that clearer, 'Focus...' He narrowed his eyes and studied Murakami's movements. His spider-sense warned him of danger but it didn't control his body, at least not all the time. It was why he couldn't just close his eyes and let his sixth sense do all the moving for him. If he relied on it too much eventually he'd slip.
Muscles were a funny thing, according to Stick. Learn to read them right and you can tell what someone's going to do the second they even think about it. That was why the Hand kept their ninjas covered up. Make them indistinct and harder to read.
Murakami was too prideful for that.
"...Enough of this." He walked back and unsheathed the katana with a wide flourish, "We fight as warriors."
"Fine." Peter unsheathed his own knife and held it in a reverse grip. Bringing a knife to a sword fight was hardly ideal but he'd made do with worse.
The muscles on Murakami's left side twitched and his spider-sense blared soon after. Peter dodged the blow and slipped behind the shirtless wonder, cutting his side as he did. Crimson ran down the tan skin before the wound slowly healed itself, "Hellfire. You use the tools of my former slaver." Murakami grit his teeth and stood up, ignoring the fresh blood at his side.
"Don't act so surprised. Besides, that blade of yours isn't normal either." He eyed the flawless steel. It didn't glow like the one Matt's lapdog had but the runes lining the metal weren't decorative, "You wanted to fight like warriors, right? Come on. Let's finish this."
Again his muscles told him all he needed to know. Peter side-stepped the rising slash and sliced his left wrist before pulling back. Drops of blood ran down the arm in droves and Murakami grit his teeth before the wound closed once again.
The next attack was even more obvious. Murakami charged ahead and brought the katana down with his right hand. Peter leaned back only for his spider-sense to scream when Murakami deftly switched hands and twisted the katana in a vertical slash.
"Shit...!" He brought the knife up and barely managed to block the longer blade. He still wasn't fast enough to keep the edge from grazing his waist and he bit his tongue to keep from screaming. It was like someone dipped the wound in sub-zero water.
Without missing a beat Murakami suddenly grabbed his shirt and pulled him into a rough headbutt. Peter stumbled back and, though shaking vision, saw the glint of metal rushing straight up towards his face.
He leaned back as quick as he could. It wasn't enough. The blade sliced clear through his right cheek and would've gotten his eye if he hadn't webbed the ground behind him and tugged himself down. Blood - his blood - flew up in an arc following the blade's swing and his right eye's vision was tainted red as Murakami raised the sword up with both hands ready to bring it down.
Peter let go of the knife and, with one last blare of his spider-sense, caught the blade between his hands. Murakami's eyes widened by just the smallest amount and that surprise was enough. Peter twisted the blade, nearly wrenching it from the old man's grip, and kicked him hard in the gut. Before he could recover Peter grabbed the knife and sliced him clean across the stomach.
The cut on his face pulsed and and he nearly dropped the knife again as the freezing pain made his face numb, 'Stupid magic blades...' He grit his teeth and focused what little chi know-how he had to heal the wound. Across from him Murakami did the same, kneeling on the ground while the bloody gash slowly stitched itself up. They were both flagging. Chi wasn't infinite; only so much your body could give.
Both their wounds healed and they stood up shakily. It was brief, but he could've sworn the old bastard actually smiled before he lowered himself back into a combat stance. Peter did the same and was about to charge ahead when his spider-sense blared.
He flipped back just in time to avoid the ball of ice that crashed through the roof down where he was just standing, "What the-" He flipped to the side multiple times to avoid the next few blasts of fire and a beam he didn't even know what.
Peter looked up and scowled when he saw the flyers that dropped. Two guys covered in fire and ice and a woman with almost translucent skin. He recognized them - two of the prisoners from the Raft. Echo and the rest of the team did their best to cull the recruitment but there was only so much less than half a dozen vigilantes could do in a prison filled with hundreds.
"An ambush, huh? Why am I not surprised?" He laughed wryly and sneered at the injured Murakami, "So much for your honor. You're just cockroach like the rest of them."
"This is not my doing." Murakami snarled. His spider-sense didn't ring.
"Spider-Man," Moon Knight said into his comms. He told him last night they'd keep an eye from outside and step in if he looked like he'd lose, "Gao is throwing their recruited prisoners to ambush you."
"Thanks, I got that."
"We will do our best to incapacitate as many as we can outside. Do your best to escape while we distract them."
"And lose our chance at Murakami? Not happening." He shifted his glare from the threesome to the katana wielding wonder, "Wait your turn, Murakami. Gotta deal with these clowns first."
He dodged the next stream of fire and grabbed both his guns and mask, "Hold still!" The dame throwing beams shouted. Peter ran up the wall and tossed the hellfire knife straight to her forehead. Her eyes widened just before the tip of the blade embedded itself through the flesh and she fell.
The ice thrower growled and shot a concentrated beam of ice that froze the very floor. Peter ran to avoid the freezing wave and shot him multiple times in the chest. He recognized the two. Blizzard and Firebrand, a couple of no-names who got lucky with an accident and got powers. Gwen stopped them from robbing a bank a few months ago and they were in prison.
The bullets hit his ice-covered chest. Not enough to take him down but enough to knock him out of the air down to the ground. Peter was about to shoot him in the head when a blade sliced through his neck and the head came off and landed on the ground with a dull thud.
"What are you doing?!" Firebrand shouted, voice distorted. Murakami said nothing and just flicked his blade to remove the remaining blood, "Your boss told us to kill Spider-Man! You should be helping us!"
"This fight is mine. I will not allow you to interfere."
"Well...that's something." Peter didn't bother to act too surprised. Pride made people do stupid things, "You want to help? Fine. Let's get rid of these clowns and we can get back to our fight."
"Agreed."
Firebrand shot multiple balls of flame at them both. Murakami nimbly dodged all of the blasts while Peter did the same and grabbed the impaled knife from the woman's forehead, "Spider-Man, what is happening?" Moon Knight asked. He heard the sounds of screams and fighting in the background.
"It's nothing. Focus on your own issues."
Even more jumpsuited clowns crashed through the roof and walls. He counted four of them, each packing their own powers, "Hey the old guy's working with Spider-Man! Kill him!" Firebrand shouted. One guy whose entire body was covered in stone charged to Murakami like a raging bull. He side-stepped the clumsy attempt and slashed his back. The sword easily cut through the rock cover and blood gushed out.
Peter jumped and swung through the air. Another malformed prisoner with spindly limbs jutting out of his back crawled up the ceiling and chased after him, "Bad choice." He flipped and activated his adhesive boots. Two of the spindly limbs shot forward to stab him. He ducked, grabbed the (disgustingly hairy...) appendages and tugged him close. The deformed face screamed in surprise before Peter shot him twice in the chest and once in the head.
Spider-sense.
Firebrand shot another fireball where they were. His shot up buddy caught fire all the way to the ground while Peter shot a line of webbing at his chest. The web was stronger than it looked and it lasted long enough for Peter to pull himself up to him, "You idiot! I'm gonna-" Firebrad raised his hands to blast him off but Peter was faster. He cut his throat with the knife and kicked him to the ground.
Down below Murakami tangled with another clown with what looked like porcupine quills jutting out of her skin. He dodged the needles she shot at him and stabbed her straight through the gut once he got close.
Peter landed next to him and watched as he kicked her off the blade, "Guess that's dealt with." He looked to the last one standing. Guy didn't even look like he had powers, "You give up now and we won't kill you," Peter said.
"Not happening. Rather than than end up back on the raft."
He shimmered for a second before he suddenly split apart into multiple copies of himself, easily over a dozen in number, "Of course..." Peter sighed and sheathed his knife, pulling out a pistol with each hand. Murakami's face knotted in distaste and he held the katana tightly, "Gao must be desperate if she's throwing you clowns at us all at once." It was almost flattering. A year ago Matt held all the cards. Not this time.
"Wouldn't know. All I was told was that if we bring her Spider-Man's head we're free to go."
"Fine then. Let's get this over with."
The copies charged all at once. Peter shot two of them in the head and Murakami cut down a three that were the closest, "Really didn't imagine this is how the day would go." He ducked another copy and shot it in the face. Another clone tackled his side and managed to push him to the ground. He twisted a hand to shoot it up the jaw when Murakami stabbed it through the back, the tip of the blade coming out through its agape mouth.
"Behind you." He aimed behind Murakami's back and got another charging copy between the eyes. Peter shoved the body off and stood while his 'partner' spun and cut two more copies right through their stomach.
The clown kept putting out more copies. Hoping to beat them by attrition, maybe, "Keep them distracted. I'm going after the source." Murakami nodded slightly and lowered himself into another combat stance.
Peter ran and jumped, using another copy's as a stepping stone, and shot another line of webbing. The source's eyes widened as Peter fired down and shot up at least half a dozen more copies. One of the bullets got the guy in his left knee and he fell, clutching the bleeding limb and screaming.
He landed on the ground again and shot the guy through his other knee, "Ahh! You son of a-"
"Quiet." Peter grabbed his neck and pressed the gun under his jaw. The copies halted mid-attack, freezing like someone hit pause, "You talked about your new boss earlier. Tell me where she is and I won't blow your brains out of your skull." He doubted Murakami knew. From what he was told once Fingers went underground - however long that was - the rest of the Hand didn't know where they were. Had to make sure you couldn't be stabbed in the back.
"I-I dunno! We were blindfolded and told we had to kill you! In exchange we'd go free and she wouldn't ask anything! That's all I know."
"He is a fool if he believes Gao would be so generous," Murakami said behind him.
"Oh God, oh God! Don't kill me! That's all I know, I swear!"
Peter was about to knock him out (some people were just too pathetic to kill) when his spider-sense thrummed. A blinking red light appeared on the blubbering bastard's chest...along with the rest of his copies.
"...Shit."
Murakami grabbed the back of his shirt and shoved him away roughly to avoid the guy exploding in front of his face. The rest of his copies followed soon after, showering them in a explosion of fire and blood. The heat rushed over him and through his swimming vision everything was tainted red.
By themselves the explosions weren't critical. Painful to be hit by, definitely, but hardly a death sentence. Over two dozen going off at almost the same time? That was another thing entirely. Both he and Murakami were batted around by the blasts by the time he regained got any sense of his bearings he was hit with an explosion strong enough to blast him through the air and smack his back against the wall.
Panting and wheezing, he opened his eyes and saw the foundations of the throne room crack and splinter. The building was coming down.
He didn't know how long he'd passed put. By the time he regained consciousness he felt a pair of arms dragging him out by his wrists, "Sometimes I think you're more trouble than your worth." An all too familiar voice muttered.
"Good to...see you too...Castle." Peter grunted. He looked up and accepted the offered hand to pull himself up. All around him he heard the sounds of fighting and through his shaky vision he just barely made out Matt swing through the air and smack another rent-a-clown up on the roof above them, "...You were the one that dug me out?"
He grunted and hefted his assault rifle, "We need to leave. You're not in any condition to fight."
"Not yet. Gotta make sure Murakami's dead." He brought a hand up to his mouth and coughed. He tasted blood, "This'll be pointless if he makes it out of here."
Castle looked like he wanted to argue when a roar reached their ears, "Damn it." He twisted and shot what looked like a zombie straight its right eye, "Fine, but you'll have to take care of yourself. I can't keep watch over you."
"Yeah..." His head was ringing - pulsing - and when he saw his reflection in a nearby puddle of blood the mask of Anansi was draped over his face. Spider-God was gonna make him pay for it later, "...Let's get rid of the guy summoning the dead."
More zombies, and they were definitely zombies, barreled towards them. Castle took down as many as he could with precise shots and the few that got too close found themselves impaled by the shadowy limbs that jutted from Peter's back. Castle gave him a sideways glance and raised a brow but didn't say anything, "...Don't ask. Just focus on dealing with these first."
Peter rushed ahead and jumped onto the closest zombie. He grabbed its head with both hands and twisted, ignoring the blood that hit his face. Four more zombies were impaled through the guts and tossed around the mercifully abandoned street. The rest of his team were doing a decent job at keeping the heat off them.
The guy leading the horde a jester wearing all black with glowing green eyes. He floated up in the middle of the street like Jesus came from on high and his mouth was split in a demented grin, "Come on then, you pathetic whelps! Death means nothing! For every one of my servants you kill another ten will rise! I am the power of necromancy! Death itself bows before me! And when you perish and I gain my freedom I shall add you to my ranks! I have waited long for the day of my revenge, the Avengers shall pay for-"
All four of Peter's shadowy extensions impaled him through the chest. His eyes widened and when he opened his mouth all that came were soft, bloody gurgles that ended after Castle emptied what was left of his magazine into his head. The rest of the zombies crumpled soon after.
Peter let him drop and looked down at his rapidly cooling body. The limbs at his back dissipated and he felt the ethereal mask go too, "...Guess the Avengers put him in prison before," Peter muttered. Castle didn't say anything and just reloaded his magazine, "...Gonna need to borrow a pistol. Lost mine in the wreck."
They waded through the wrecked remains of the building, shielded from the fighting outside. Peter pushed away a fallen pillar and found Murakami underneath, "...Huh." He wasn't in a good shape. A large piece of rebar was impaled through his gut and even besides that it looked like whatever upgrades he had finally run out. The wounds remained stubbornly open and the way his body shook it was obvious he wasn't gonna be standing up again.
For just a second their eyes met. Matt or Rand might have expected some final words, maybe a last respect considering he helped him fight. Instead Peter raised the gun and shot the struggling bastard between the eyes.
The only reason he got ambushed was cause he played along with the honor rules. And it was the reason Murakami was dead too. He wasn't going to fall on his own sword now trying to give a mass murderer last rites.
Castle watched without a word as he cut Murakami's head off with the hellfire knife. Even without the Beast they needed to be sure the Fingers couldn't come back, especially not with Bakuto's new deal with that damn Vampire.
"...You got a safehouse nearby? Feel like I'm gonna crash any second now."
"Follow me."
They left the rest of their ragtag group to mop up the rest of the clown brigade. Despite the numbers Moon Knight told them that Gao still had a little under half of the prisoners in her pocket. Meaning she still had a trump card in case they bore down on her. It made him angrier than he wanted to admit. Only reason those prisoners were out was because of Murakami. Gao gave the order but he was the one who pulled the trigger.
Castle's safehouse was as spartan as the man himself. Apart from a mattress on the corner and a bathroom with a sink, mirror, toilet and shower it was remarkably barren. The only thing that added personality, if you could call it that, was the table filled with guns and medical supplies and a duffel bag filled with a change of (black) clothes. It was obviously meant more as a passover than anything else.
Peter limped over to the mattress and sat down with a hissed breath, "Damn it..." He clumsily grabbed for his shirt and pulled it over his head. Even without a mirror he knew he looked terrible. His arms and chest were covered in bloody cuts and if he didn't sleep he'd look more like a giant talking bruise than a person. No chi either. Took everything he had to heal the wounds Murakami gave him.
"You need to patch yourself up." Castle dumped the first aid kit next to him on the bed.
"Just need some painkillers so I can pass out." He fumbled for the meds and took a little under double the recommended dose. He could take it. He swallowed the pills dry and set the nearly full bottle next to him. Castle didn't believe in medicating so Peter doubted he'd care if he took it with him.
Castle sat on the chair in front of the table and looked over his guns. Peter debated going to the bathroom to clean the blood off before deciding against it. He'd probably just trip and crack his head open, "...Thanks," Peter said. Castle gave no indication that he heard him, "I'm surprised you came back." They did talk before, but it was short and nothing more than a confirmation that he was back and here to stay, at least for the time being.
"Like I said before, Page made me a deal."
"Yeah..." Peter looked down and ignored the metallic taste that lingered, "...Met your old boss. Stark." His rifling stopped for just a second, "He said that he's willing to offer you work again. Figures that he can put the Punisher on his payroll."
"Hm." Coming from Castle something like that might as well have been a yes.
The next moment of silence lasted for only a couple of minutes before Peter said, "Surprised you didn't kill Matt. Makes me wonder what kind of deal Page offered you."
"Something worth more than bullet to Murdock's head. She made a deal with you and Hardy too." Yeah. Working with Matt in exchange for Bullseye escaping Hell. Or in this case not going back to it after he killed him again.
"...You know, I miss the days when I just had to deal with guys in suits shaking down stores for protection money. All this demons and immortal ninjas...can't wait to put it behind me." Rand suggested they go after the Maggia next. Still wasn't sure he liked the idea of teaming up on a more permanent basis but he liked his choice of targets. Mobsters were an easier tick to deal with than the literal giant one and his tagalongs.
"The sooner we finish this the sooner we can forget." He finished his inspection and set the gun down, "You shouldn't have gone in there alone. I couldn't taken him out at a distance. You put yourself at risk for no reason."
"Yeah..." Peter winced. Leave it to Castle to pick at the fresh wounds, "I should've killed him last night but...I guess I thought I owed him for the information he gave me on Sowande." Peter shook his head, "I was an idiot."
"You were." Tactful as always, Peter thought, "You don't owe people like them anything. A quick death's all they deserve."
"I get it. I messed up." He sighed and closed his eyes, "I'm gonna take a nap and make sure I don't bleed out. Thanks again."
He lied down on the bed and let himself drift off. His dreams were filled with the Spider-God's grinning face and more cryptic warnings of what was to come.
Kerg: Holy crap massive supervill attack at the Hell's Kitchen temple!
reply from LuaDoggo: WTF? What happened?
reply from Kerg: Dunno! Just saw it from my apartment and took a vid! -embedded video-
reply from DuolingoBird: Those are the guys who escaped the Raft not too long ago! Why are they all grouped together? They creating a Legion of Doom or something?
reply from CuteGlassesWaifu: Don't think so. Me and a friend snuck over for a closer look and saw the Defenders fighting them all! Check it out! -embedded video-
reply from LuaDoggo: Jesus Christ what's that on Spider-Man's back?!
reply from CuteGlassesWaifu: No clue! Looks really freaking cool though! And he killed zombies with it!
reply from Kerg: Wait is that Punisher?! I heard he was back in town but I guess that confirms it!
reply from lionzie: Yep. Criminals are gonna start pissing themselves once they see.
reply from DuolingoBird: Dude this is something the Avengers should be dealing with, not a bunch of vigilantes like the Defenders!
reply from CripyChriz: Well it looks like those vigilantes kicked major ass! And really fuck the Avengers. Just a bunch of people who got lucky or have rich friends and now they're lording it over us. I'll take Moon Knight or Daredevil over any Avenger.
This chapter was a pain in the ass to write cause it's basically a full fight scene update. Anyway, 2 out of 4 fingers down. I know some people were expecting some final words ala Yakuza or John Wick but I thought it was more in-character for Noir to just cap Murakami despite their short-lived team-up. He does justify why he doesn't do it as well.
Next chapter will be lighter and focused on Gwen in San Fransokyo attending Avengers con. We can also see some new characters like Thor, Rhodes and possibly even a cameo from Black Widow.
Questions:
1. Would you guys have preferred Noir if he was nicer like 616 Spidey? While he's generally nicer than he was in V1 he can still come across as a standoffish dick a lot of the time to people who aren't his friends. The way he treats Stark and Iron Fist is unnecessarily cold, for example.
And by nicer I don't mean Thou Shalt Not Kill. Characters like Cindy, Kate and Lana also kill people when doing hero work but are generally much kinder to people right off the bat rather than needing to be defrosted.
2. In the opposite way, would Gwen be preferable if she was more wary and careful with people rather than trying to be the archetypal nice girl. I had a friend who said it would've been better if she didn't play nice and just told Frog-Man to screw off for his behavior. Right now the only people she seems to be willing to be nasty to outside of villains is Matt.
Review answers:
x1923 - Like I said above redemption is more how the audience/characters view him than actually avoiding Hell :)
quarttzblade12 - It's meant to be rare. I wanted to avoid superpowered evil sides taking over the story.
Brave2000 - Endgame? Still writing but unlikely he escapes Hell.
CaesarKrest - Maybe. It's confirmed by Noir and his hatred of France that Miraculous Ladybug exists...
RedHood0001 - The Yakuza fight ended up interrupted by comic book genre, as expected. At least we got a bit of it.
rc48177 - MJ and Frog-Man allow each other to develop due to being opposites.
KasugaRomio - Who said MJ will even have a traditional relationship? Carnage pretty much ensures she'll never have a normal love life.
Cyclopz - Flat earthers and anti vaxxers prove that willing ignorance knows no bounds.
Krolikson - Thanks :D Matt as a protagonist was planned out but I worried that people would hate it since he spent all of V1 being an untouchable dick.
