A/N: Welcome, everyone! We know this has been one of the burning questions ever since we started, and while it's taken a little longer than we thought it would to get here, we're proud to finally present, after much waiting, the secret origin of the Scarlet Spider.

Before we begin, there is something I want to clear the air on. Since the stories beginning, many people have asked the question "why use an OC as Spider-Man's sidekick, rather than Miles Morales?" Well, the answer to that is a simple one: planning for this story, or rather the first version of it, began in 2014. Miles had only been around for a few years at this point, and he, as well as many other teenage Marvel characters who have come to prominence since then, hadn't quite taken shape yet. And when we began formulating this, all those years ago, we decided it would be easier (and more fun) to make our own characters, to have our own personal spins and connections. This is what lead to Carter, as well as Nolan, Francis, and other OC's who have appeared, or have yet to appear.

Now, that's not to say that Miles and other characters and storylines that have risen up and fill similar roles won't be appearing at some point. There's still a lot to come, and we can't wait to show what's coming. So sit back, relax, and enjoy. The final stage begins now.

Cowritten with Batmarcus. Editing done by Lord Zeppelin and Ghost Fire 6. Carter Alenko and the Alenko family created by Ghost Fire 6.

Brooklyn, New York, March 17th, 2017, 16:45 EST

The hiss of a spray can filled the air as aerosolized pink leaving the can's nozzle and decorating the image of J. Jonah Jameson. The young man holding it, dressed in a dark hoodie and covering his mouth and nose with a cloth, maneuvered it as he put the finishing touches on his art. When it was done, the young man removed the cloth from his face, 14 year old Carter Alenko smirking as he looked at his masterpiece: an advertisement for J. Jonah Jameson's new podcast, a crude pink pacifier flying from his mouth as a blue speech bubble read "Baby needs a nap!"

"Not bad, Carter. Getting better every time…" Carter muttered to himself, pulling out his phone and taking a picture. "Fleeter's gonna love this…"

WEE-WOO!

The chirp of a siren pulled the young man out of his posting, Carter looking over the edge of the roof he was on, seeing police cars pulling up. "Crap!" He ran to the other side, rapidly scrambling down the fire escape. It took him about five minutes to reach the bottom, the young man rapidly running down the alley. Hopefully, the cops would be going up the long way…

"Freeze!" Aaaaaand not anticipate the fire escape trick, like the officer waiting for him had done. Carter winced as he was surrounded, letting out a sigh as the man's partner approached him from the otherside. "Put your hands up and-"

"Yeah yeah, I know the drill…"

75th Precinct, 18:32 EST

Carter was sulking in a chair at a desk, handcuffed at the desk of the Sergeant. The elevator dinged, and Carter looked to see his brother, Roland, stepping out, disapproval evident on his face. He barely even looked at Carter, walking past him to shake the hand of the Sergeant. "Jeff. Thanks for the call."

"No problem, Roland. Figured I'd save us all some paperwork." The officer explained, Roland simply sighed.

"What'd he do this time?"

"This time it was that billboard by Prospect Park. Someone across the street called it in, my guys showed up after the fact." Sergeant Davis explained.

"You have my deepest apologies. If we need to pay for damages, I'll get him up there and-"

"It's all right, Roland. I spoke to my Captain, and I convinced him to let it slide. I, uh… I know he's been having a rough time since the accident." Jeff's voice was a little softer, but not soft enough, as Carter scowled at that mention, something that didn't go unnoticed by Roland. "The department does have grief counselors, you know. I'm sure one of them could-"

"Believe me, we tried that. But, well…"

"He's as stubborn as you?"

"More so."

"I had a feeling. It's just… I called around when my guys brought him in. This is the third time this year he's been caught doing something like this. You've made a lot of friends around town, so folks have been cutting him some slack, but I'm afraid he's about out of rope. He's a smart kid, and if he gets caught by the wrong person in the wrong place…"

"Trust me, I know. I appreciate it, Jeff. I really do. Trust me…" Roland looked right at Carter. "It won't happen again."

A short while later, after Carter had been uncuffed and got a very stern talking to from the Precinct's Captain, the Alenko brothers were walking out of the Precinct, Carter rubbing his wrists. "You know, you'd think he'd have loosened up the cuffs a little…"

"You're lucky he didn't put you in a cell." Roland bluntly stated, turning to face Carter. "You do know vandalism's a Class D felony, right? If Sergeant Davis hadn't been the desk sergeant tonight, you could've been in serious trouble."

"Relax, Ro'. It's a little paint, it'll wash right off. I can't even afford the good stuff." The younger of the two explained, earning a shake of the head from the older.

"You think I'm just pissed about the spray paint? Trust me, that's only the newest entry on the list. You've been skipping volleyball practice. Your grades are… beyond horrid, and that's when you even bother showing up to class." The detective recounted.

Only to get scoffed from his little brother. "Lay off, ok? The whole 'hard-faced cop' routine isn't nearly as charming as you think it is."

"Carter, I just… I'm trying to understand you."

"What's there to understand? I'm just trying to express myself a little. Life's too short to spend behind some desk. What's wrong with stretching my legs, getting creative?" Carter justified, earning a frown.

"Look, I… I know you're upset. I miss them too. But me and Sarah, we're worried about you-"

"Oh, my deepest apologies! I'm so sorry your kid brother's such a burden on the two of you! 'Woe is me, I have to actually worry about my baby brother for once.'" Carter declared. "You think I need you to act like mom and dad, be my role models or whatever? I don't. What I need from you is to piss off, and let me live my life instead of pretending you give a shit about me." Carter's words hung in the air, hurt evident on Roland's face.

"Carter, I-"

"Save it, ok? I don't need it." The young graffiti artist stated, brushing past his brother. "I can find my own way home."

19:56 EST

The bell chimed overhead as Carter pushed open the door to the bodega, approaching the college student behind the register who was lazily scrolling on her phone. "Hey. You guys got anything frozen?"

"Towards the back."

"Thanks." Carter stomped past the clerk, thinking on his argument with Roland. He was subtly kicking himself for what he said. Deep down, he knew that his older siblings didn't ask for this. Didn't ask to have Carter dumped on them after their parents' deaths in January. They were still mourning, too, and Carter knew he wasn't exactly making it easy. He just… he needed to express himself. He needed to try and leave his mark…

Carter was in the back of the store when he heard the bell over the door ring. He wouldn't have thought much of it, had it not been for the distinctive chik chik of a pistol being cocked. He ducked down behind a shelf, seeing a man who looked like it'd been way too long since his last fix pointing a gun at the clerk.

"Gimme all the money in the register. Now!" He yelled, slamming a bag on the counter. "Come on, hurry!"

Carter could hear his heart pounding a mile a minute, watching the pistol shake as his hand twitched. The clerk fumbled with the money, and the gunman slammed his hand on the counter. "Hurry up!"

This guy was unstable, that much was clear. All it would take is someone walking in, the clerk dropping the money, something falling over, the air conditioning kicking on… someone would have to do something soon…

And that was when Carter noticed his legs moving, slowly circling the store as he crept through the shelves. He was right by the man, and all it would take is just getting a little closer. All he would have to do was get closer…

He felt his foot brush a thing of chips, hearing them rustle. The rest happened in slow motion.

As the man began to turn, Carter ran forward, the finger began to squeeze, Carter reached the man, the hammer cocked back…

BANG!

March 30, 2017, Brooklyn General Hospital, 15:45 EST

The steady beep of the EKG filled the room, as two doctors stood over Carter, all sorts of tubes and apparatuses poking out of the comatose teenager. "What happened to him?"

"Uh, let's see…" The second doctor muttered, checking the chart. "Gunshot victim. Happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Bullet grazed his heart, went out through the left lung. Bodega clerk tried giving some medical attention, but by the time the paramedics got there… Well, it's a small miracle that the surgeons got him stabilized. Benefits of youth, I guess…"

"I see. His condition?"

"He's stable, but the doctor's aren't optimistic about his chances. Best case, he's going to end up a permanent resident of the coma ward. A waste, if you ask me. Such a young kid…" He explained, the other doctor simply stared at the comatose teenager, his face obscured in the darkened room. The man pulled out a wad of bills from his pocket, handing it to them.

"What we agreed upon. Leave us, and speak of this to no one."

"Uh, sure." The second doctor took the money, leaving the room and shutting the door behind him. The mystery man looked at Carter, almost as if he was analyzing him.

"He'll suffice." The doctor pulled out a small vial, shaking it vigorously. The man opened it, before emptying the contents: a small spider, blue body streaked with red. He watched the creature crawl around, aggravated by the shaking. A set of shrewd brown eyes narrowed as the spider crawled onto Carter's hand… and sunk its fangs in.

April 1st, 2017, 14:23 EST

"He's crashing! Get in there!" The doctor yelled, he and the nurses running into the room with 'Alenko' written on the tag. They pulled it open, expecting to see a convulsing teenager…

Only to be greeted with the sight of Carter sitting upright, coughing as he pulled his feeding tube out. "Ugh…" He rasped out, looking over at the doctors with a confused expression on his face. "Uh… hey?"

April 14th, 2017, 12:46 EST

"Carter, you can't be serious."

"Easy, Sarah. It's just a three block walk over to Leo's. I've been making it ever since I was a kid." Carter reassured, pulling his jacket on. Sarah Alenko, on the other hand, didn't seem reassured.

"You were just in a coma for two weeks. You shouldn't be pushing yourself too hard. Your body-"

"Is fine. It was only two weeks! Look, I've done the physical therapy, I've done the exercises. If I don't get out of this house soon, I am going to lose my mind." Carter protested, but Sarah just crossed her arms. "Look, I've got my phone on me. If I start feeling any chest pains or anything, I will call you. I will text you when I arrive, and when I leave. Promise." Sarah considered it for a moment, before she sighed.

"... Fine. Bring me back a large pepperoni." Carter smiled, clapping his hands together.

"You got it, sis."

A short while later, Carter was walking down the street, frowning to himself. He… hadn't been entirely honest with Sarah earlier. Ever since he had woken up from the coma, his body had felt… different. Like his muscles were all coiled up, ready to spring. Things that had once felt heavy had no heft at all, and he could swear that he was moving… oddly. He felt cramped in the Alenko family home, and sitting at home was killing him. It was almost like his body wanted to just start running, and never stop…

He was in the crosswalk when a buzzing in his head pulled him out of his thoughts. Carter looked up just in time to see a car brush past the redlight, ignoring what the crosswalk said. Without even thinking, Carter leapt to the side, narrowly avoiding being hit.

"Jackass!" He yelled, letting out a sigh. "Freakin' New York drivers…" He muttered out, about to reassess where he was… when he noticed one crucial detail. Carter was no longer in the crosswalk, nor was he on the sidewalk. Rather, he had leapt on to the side of a nearby building, about three stories from where he had been standing.

"Holy crap!" He exclaimed, flattening himself against the building. However, unlike what traditional laws of physics would indicate would happen, Carter did not fall. Rather, he appeared to be sticking to the building, held on by his hands and feet. Brow furrowing, he pulled his right hand off the wall, placed it elsewhere, and removed the left hand, holding on by his right.

"What the…" He repeated this movement, crawling along the side of the building to the side facing an alleyway, before climbing onto the roof.

It didn't seem real. Carter was convinced he was dreaming. How else could he explain how he had leapt three stories in the air? How he had stuck to the walls with almost no effort, and climbed? How…

How he could do whatever a spider could…

"No way. No freakin' way…" Carter mumbled to himself, staring at the buildings behind him. He quickly did the math, taking a deep breath. "Here goes nothing…" He shook his head, stretched his arm… and he started running. He leapt across the road, landing on the rooftop across the street. He kept running, leaping from building to building with very little effort. Maybe a little too little effort, as it felt as natural to Carter as it did to walk. He jumped and flipped over obstacles in his way, not stopping until he landed on a rooftop five blocks away from where he had started.

Carter panted, feeling the adrenaline coursing through his veins. He stared at his wrist, feeling a tingling there. He stared out at a nearby billboard, an idea sparking into his head. Carter approached it, wringing his hands, throwing them towards the billboard…

"Go web!" … nothing happened, and Carter frowned. "Uh… fly web fly?" Still nothing. "...it's webbin' time?" Surprise surprise, nothing happened. Carter sighed, before another idea sparked in his head. He pulled out his phone, quickly looking up a video of a certain webslinger. He watched the movements, focusing on the movements his hand made.

Carter pressed his middle and ring fingers together, pressing them into the palm of his hand. His index, pinkie, and thumb were extended, he flicked his wrist…

Thwip!

A thin line of webbing shot from his wrist, landing on the picture of Lex Luthor on the billboard and covering it in webbing. Carter stared at the billboard, his awestruck face slowly twisting into a grin. This… this was the start of a brand new day for him.

April 21st, 2017. 21:22 EST

Carter grunted as the fist collided with his face, knocking the lens of the red balaclava that made up his makeshift mask. "Think you can mess with me?! Think you can mess up my operation and get away with it!?" The voice yelled, Carter opening his eyes to look up at the man interrogating him. He was a man in a pinstripe suit, a rather large forehead framing a face that looked like a fist. Hammerhead's face was twisted into fury, looking down at Carter, wearing a red balaclava and black jacket, shirt, and pants.

"I've been in this town since before the capes. You think you're the first loser in a stupid mask I've put in the ground?"

This had gone wrong, fast. After discovering his powers, Carter decided to follow in the footsteps of his favorite hero, Spider-Man, and fight crime. He had done pretty well, until he came across a more challenging foe than the muggers and street thugs he had battled the last few days. He had worked his way up the arms dealers and extortionists he'd come across the past week, culminating in the location of their boss, Hammerhead. However, Carter had written off the mobster as just another thug, a miscalculation that sunk in as Hammerhead delivered another punch to his face.

"Ow…" Carter grunted out, glaring up at Hammerhead. "Hey, I've got a question. If you're here, where are they landing the planes? Didn't think they'd let you walk off with that giant landing strip of a forehead." He spat, the mobster sighed, pulling out a gun and cocking it.

"You know, normally I hate killin' kids. But the thing is, you remind me of some other jackhole who really gets under my skin. And since he's not here, well…" Hammerhead growled, holding the gun up to Carter's head. "Maybe you'll serve as an example to all the other punks trying to play hero."

"Aw, Hammy, you're making me blush!" A voice echoed throughout the warehouse, Hammerhead's head whipping around.

Thwip!

A thin line of webbing shot down and attached itself to the pistol, yanking it out of Hammerhead's hand. Hammerhead whirled to face it as a red and blue blur leapt out of the rafters, delivering a gloved punch to Hammerhead's face that knocked him back.

Carter's eyes widened as he recognized that red and blue costume, the black webbing running along the red parts. The red spider on his back, giving way as the Amazing Spider-Man turned to look at him.

"Hey, kid. You ok?"

"Uh…" Carter was awestruck, blinking twice to reset his brain. "Yeah, yeah I'm good."

"Good. I'll get you out of here, and-" Spider-Man started to say as he approached the bound teenager. He quickly untied the youngster, helping him up. However, as soon as contact was made, the two winced. They both felt a high pitched buzzing in their heads. "Grah… Spider-sense…" Spider-Man muttered, Carter wincing.

"My head… won't stop buzzing…" Spider-Man's eyes widened, looking directly at Carter as the buzzing eased away.

"You… you felt that too?"

"That… buzzing?"

"I call it my Spider-sense, but yeah. You… you're like me…" Spider-Man gasped out, as Carter's eyes widened as he saw Hammerhead stagger to his feet, picking up his gun.

"Look out!" Carter fired a webline out of his wrist, yanking it out of Hammerhead's hand. Spider-Man seized upon the moment, leaping forward to kick Hammerhead in the jaw and knock him out. The wall crawler looked at the webline coming out of Carter's wrist, taking note of the lack of web shooters.

"Okay… Not exactly like me…"

A short while later, Hammerhead had been tied up and left for the police, and Carter and Spider-Man observed from a nearby rooftop as Hammerhead was arrested. "Never taken down a super villain before. That's…that was pretty cool…"

"Don't go getting a big head just yet. You're lucky I happened to be in the neighborhood." Spider-Man stated, as Carter turned to face him.

"What are you doing here, anyway? I thought you stayed in Manhattan."

"Well… looking for you. Or, more accurately, trying to figure out why people seem to think I've been here in Brooklyn the past two weeks." Spider-Man explained, and Carter rubbed the back of his head.

"Uh, sorry about that. I didn't mean for people to think I was you."

"That's not the part I'm worried about. Muggers and purse snatchers are one thing. But guys like Hammerhead are a whole other ball game. If I hadn't spoken to the right person at the right time, if I'd been even a second slower, he would've killed you." Spider-Man explained.

"But it all worked out. You showed up, and we went all Brave and The Bold on him." Carter tried to write off, but Spider-Man didn't appear to be assured.

"This time. But I might not always be there to swoop in and save the day. This isn't a game." The wallcrawler stated, his lenses narrowing. "How old are you?"

"Uh…" Carter cleared his throat, deepening his voice. "I'm…uh, 19." Spider-Man just crossed his arms, and Carter sighed, pulling off his mask. "I'm 15." At this, Spider-Man's eyes widened, processing Carter's age.

"You're just a kid. You're as old as I was when…" He gasped out, like he'd seen a ghost. "How… how are you like me? How do you do that stuff with the webs, and the running on walls you did in the videos…"

"Beats me. I got shot like a month ago, and when I woke up from my coma, I could do… y'know, whatever a spider could. You know, climb walls, lift cars, shoot webs…"

"I, uh… I actually can't do that."

"What?"

"The webs. I don't make them myself, I have web-shooters." The older arachnid explained. "Why did you start this? You know, dressing up, beating guys up?" He asked, Carter thought for a moment.

"It just… it felt like the right thing to do, y'know? I mean, I've got these powers, so what else was I supposed to do? Following your example kinda felt… right."

"Well, you got that lesson faster than I did. But this has to be where it ends." Spider-Man stated, causing Carter's eyes to widen.

"What?"

"Like I said, this isn't a game. You don't get do overs, and you might not always get a lucky break when you need it. Hammerhead's just the tip of the iceberg. There's all sorts of guys out there who'll put you in the ground without tying you up and monologuing."

"You can't be serious."

"Like a heart attack. Look, I've been where you are. I wish I could've had someone to tell me to step back. It would've saved me a bunch of hurt in the long run."

"I can't. I can't just… walk away." Cater protested, and Spider-Man's frown was evident behind his mask.

"Why?"

"Because…" Carter struggled to verbalize, before he sighed. "Because… This is the first time I've felt alive since my parents died. For the past three months, I've felt like I'm in some sort of haze. No matter what I do, I don't feel… anything. Not school, not volleyball, not even tagging that loudmouth Jameson's billboard. And all I can do is be miserable, and make life harder for my brother and sister. But I enjoy helping people. I love feeling like I'm actually making a difference. And I don't care what you say, I'm going to keep doing this with or without you. And if my luck runs out… Well, then at least I'll go out making a difference."

The young arachnid's words hung in the air, Spider-Man seeming to… process it. It was about a minute later that Spider-Man let out a long sigh, beginning to pace.

"Ughhhhhhhhhhh I cannot believe I'm considering this. I can't tell if I think this is a good idea or if it's the years of repeated head trauma talking…" The older hero groaned out, turning to Carter. "Alright, look… uh, I didn't catch your name."

"It's Carter."

"Look, Carter. I get where you're coming from, I do. You've got these great powers, and you feel like you've got this great responsibility. And… and you're right, I can't exactly stop you from doing this. But…" Spider-Man took a deep breath. "But… if you insist on doing this… you won't… have to do it… alone."

"... What?"

"Look, I was about the same age you are now when I started this. And… sometimes I wish I'd had someone looking after me. You know, tell me what to do, what not to do, who could offer advice when I really needed it. And… I'm kinda offering to be that person for you."

"Are you… asking me to be your sidekick?"

"Hey, let's be careful with the 'S-word.' I don't want people thinking I'm like Batman and his whole army of sidekicks. But… if you wanted, you could be my intern. Shadow me, see how a pro does it."

To say Carter was speechless was an understatement. Since his parents' deaths, his life had been a whirlwind of chaos and change, with very little of it being for the better. But this… this was the chance to make a difference. A chance to actually be someone his parents, that his brother and sister, could be proud of.

"I'm in." Carter firmly declared, earning a nod from Spider-Man. Who, much to Carter's surprise, reached up to remove his mask, revealing a brown-haired young man who was maybe 22. The man extended his hand towards Carter, smiling.

"I'm Peter. Peter Parker. Nice to meet you." Peter stated, and Carter took his hand.

"Uh, Carter. Carter Alenko."

"Nice to meet you, Carter." Peter commented. "Now, if you're gonna hang out around me, you're gonna need something more than… what is all this?"

"Uh, it's a bunch of old stuff I got from a thrift store."

"Been there… Well, our first order of business is going to be getting you a decent name and a look. I've already got a good idea for the name, but as for a new look…"

"Actually…" Carter cut off, a smirk gracing his face. "I've got a few ideas on that."

November 10, 2019. Brooklyn, 14:42 EST

Tick. Tick. Tick.

The slow ticking of the clock was like it was digging in Carter's skull. His biology teacher was droning on, trying to cram a few extra minutes into the lecture of the day. As if covering the last two paragraphs in the textbook was going to make that much of a difference in the upcoming test.

His leg was bouncing, his pencil tapping against the desk as the seconds crawled by, feeling like hours. He really didn't care about the mitochondria right now…

BRIIIIIIIIIIING

The ringing of the bell was like a chorus of angels, as Carter sprang out of his desk. He quickly walked through the halls of his high school, giving quick nods and waves to his peers as he brushed past them. He pulled his phone out, firing off a quick message.

Spidey Jr: Just got out of school

Spider Jr: Usual spot?

Old Man Spider: Sorry bud, you're on your own today

Old Man Spider: Got the short straw. Stuck on monitor duty

Spider Jr: Why don't you just ask RT to do it again?

Old Man Spider: Called out too many times, I'm out of favors

Old Man Spider: Bats is not happy

Spidey Jr: lmao

Spidey Jr: Better you than me

Old Man Spider: If you keep talking to Batgirl it will be you

Carter winced at that, remembering the stern glares he'd gotten from Batman ever since he'd shown up in Gotham to give Cass a pep talk during the Taskmaster ordeal.

Spidey Jr: Eh, he'll get over it

Old Man Spider: HAHAHAHA

Old Man Spider: Good one

Old Man Spider: Save some of that wit for the bad guys

Carter rolled his eyes, smirking as he crossed the school. Once he crossed the track surrounding the practice field, he did a quick survey, making sure there was no one around. Satisfied with the lack of onlookers, he broke into a running sprint, leaping clear over the fence, heading towards an alley. He removed his beanie, his jacket, and his shirt, revealing the blue and red torso of the Scarlet Spider. He kicked off his shoes and his pants, balling them all up and cramming them into his bag, removing his mask. Once that was secured, he webbed his book bag to the side of a building, where no one could reach it and where he could easily retrieve it before his webbing dissolved. Humming as he pulled his mask on, his lenses contracted and widened as they adjusted to his face, and Carter rolled his neck, stretching his arms.

He leapt off the ground, running up the side of the building and web zipping off a chimney, landing on and running down an angled rooftop. He leapt off of that, swinging down the street before shooting up above the rooftops, doing a backflip before transitioning into a swing, launching himself onto the roof of an old J. Jonah Jameson billboard covered in faded graffiti.

"Alright. Let's get to work." Scarlet Spider remarked, leaping into action.

He had come to love the feeling of web swinging, something about it just felt so freeing and fun. He shot a webline out, swinging down between the cars, waiting until he had come to the highest point before detaching with a front flip and allowing himself to fall. As he did he heard a voice calling out;

"Hey! That's my bike! Stop that guy!" He shot a webline and took himself off to his right seeing a man quickly riding a bicycle away, several feet ahead of a woman chasing after him. He swung down landing in front of the thief. Before the man could stop, Scarlet Spider held out his hand, seizing the handle before punching the man in the side of the head, knocking him out and spinning the bike around himself and setting it back down.

'Why is it none of my friends are ever around when I do the coolest things?' He thought before handing the bike back to its owner, picking up the man and webbing him to the side of a building.

"If he wakes up and starts yelling, tell him not to worry, the police should be here shortly." Scarlet Spider said before jumping up and swinging off into the city.

A window washer was clearing a window on a skyscraper, cleaning the glass like he'd done a hundred times before. Unlike those other times, however, the cable suspending his platform snapped, and the man screamed as he began to plummet ten stories down to the pavement below. Fortunately for him, he was saved from becoming a smear on the pavement by the passing through arachnid, who swung by and got him, swinging the two down to the ground.

"You good?"

"Yeah. Freakin' budget cuts…"

"Yeah, well, maybe try a job where you don't have to suspend yourself over the street?"

"Hey, gotta pay the bills somehow. Besides, my union rep's gonna have a field day with this. Any excuse to get worker's comp."

"Hey man, whatever works best for you…"

Not long after that, Scarlet Spider was running down the street, chasing the man who'd just robbed a gas station. "Hey, slow down!"

"Screw you!" The man yelled, the two reaching a fruit stand. Scarlet Spider chased him around the stand, trying to figure out how to catch the man. The man grabbed a tomato, throwing it at the arachnid.

"Hey, what the hell!"

"Piss off!" He yelled, throwing tomato after tomato.

"Come on, man! This suit is not machine washable!"

"Then quit dressing like a jackass!"

"Says the guy throwing tomatoes over $200!" Scarlet Spider yelled, catching a tomato and throwing it at the man. The fruit exploded, blinding the man and allowing the young spider to web him up. Carter looked at the tomato stain on his suit, letting out a groan. "Ugh… hey, does anyone have one of those Tide pens?"

A man approached a car, metal slim jim in his hand. He inserted it into the window, slowly reaching the mechanism…

Thunk!

The man looked up, seeing Scarlet Spider landing on the roof. "Hey, this isn't your Uber!" Scarlet Spider webbed his face and pulled it so he hit his head on the car, before webbing his hand to the car as the alarm started to go off. "And that's why you don't steal cars."

"It's my car, jackass!"

"...huh?"

"I locked my keys in there!"

"How am I supposed to-"

"Hey!" A voice yelled, as the residents of the apartment complex were drawn out by the sound of the car alarm. "Keep the racket down!"

"Sorry, just doing my job!"

"What the hell are you doing that to Greg for? That's his car!"

"Uh, I didn't know that, so-"

"Hey, turn that shit off! I gotta work tonight, man!"

"Look, it's all a huge misunderstanding. Let's just-"

"Don't make me come down there, young man!"

"Oh crap…"

One apology and unlocked car later, Scarlet Spider stepped out of a sandwich shop, wrapped sandwich in hand. "Thanks, Gene!" He thanked, before swinging off the ground and landing on a rooftop. He let out a sigh as he sat down on the edge, pulling up his mask as he unwrapped the sandwich. "Oh, food has never looked so good before…" Carter remarked, as he went to take a bite of his meal…

Before his phone rang in his back pocket. He let out a sigh as it connected to the hands free headset in his mask, routing the caller ID to his mask lenses.

Incoming Call: Kaldur'ahm

"Oh boy, now what…" He sighed, tapping the side of his mask and answering the call. "Hey, Kaldur. What's up?"

"Is now a bad time?"

"Uh…" Carter looked at the sandwich in his hands, letting out a sigh. "No, it's not. What's up?"

"There is a mission that has come up at the last minute. Guarding a small transport. I was wondering if you would be interested." The Atlantean leader asked, and Carter sighed.

"Guard duty? Like the Amazo thing?"

"In a sense. It should be relatively routine."

"Since when is anything we do routine?"

"A fair point." Kaldur stated, earning a tired sigh.

"If you need a hand, I'll see if I can be there. When is it?"

"Tonight. It should be a relatively short ride from Metropolis to-"

BOOM!

Whatever Kaldur said next was cut off by a small explosion, a few blocks away. Carter's brow furrowed, as he sprung to his feet.

"Uh, actually, I'll have to take a raincheck. Call back later!" Before the Atlantean could ask anything else, Carter hung up, pulling his mask down and, regrettably, setting his sandwich down.

"Always at the worst times." He muttered as he swung towards the explosion. Hopefully it would be nothing too serious, maybe a gas line had just had a slight rupture or..

BOOM!

Another explosion rang through the air and he sighed. Of course it would never be that easy. As he neared the area he saw a familiar figure firing off into a building. The man had gotten a few upgrades, as evidenced by the more advanced look, but there was no mistaking that yellow quilt-like pattern over the armor, with the distinctive silver gauntlets he wore firing waves of compressed air at the building, shaking it.

Scarlet Spider landed on a lightpost, just above The Shocker. "Herman! It's been forever, man." Scarlet Spider yelled, getting Shocker's attention.

"Ugh, it's you…"

"Aw, don't be so glum, chum! I haven't seen you since that whole mess with the Sinister Six back in… What was that, August? Feels like years ago. How'd you get out of prison, anyway?"

"You didn't actually catch us doing anything wrong. That Bat-psycho almost breaking my jaw isn't probable cause, and I didn't have any warrants in Keystone."

"... And you decided to put that lucky break into… What exactly are you doing?"

"Mind your business!" The buzz of the Spider Sense precipitated the powering up of gauntlets, and Scarlet Spider backflipped off the lamppost as Shocker fired off a shockwave, breaking the lamppost in two where the blast hit it.

"Hoo, glad that didn't hit me…"

"Right? The new duds aren't just for show. I've been cranked up to a whole 'nother level."

"I'm sure you have, but attacking this poor building isn't exactly the best way to test the new upgrades. Ever think of turning over a new leaf? You could make one hell of a scientist for STAR Labs."

"Not a chance, bug, not my style!" The man retorted, firing two more shots at Scarlet Spider, who front flipped then twisted out of the way.

"Come on, Herman, I really don't want to fight you. Your suit always reminds me of those weird old quilts my grandparents used to collect. Brings up a lot of weird emotions!" Scarlet Spider taunted as he flipped over another blast, webbing a loose piece of rubble and throwing it at Shocker, who blasted it out of the air just before it hit him.

"Do you ever stop talking?!"

"You gotta know the answer to that by now, Herm." Scarlet Spider stated, leaping out of the way and leaping towards Shocker, planting his feet on the criminal's chest and knocking him to the ground. "Then again, I guess pattern recognition isn't really your strong suit…"

"Heh… I dunno…" Shocker grunted, Scarlet Spider's sense going off as Shocker's gauntlets powered up. "I think I've picked up a few new tricks!" Herman clenched both his hands into fist, generating a circular shockwave that knocked Scarlet Spider back, the young arachnid grunting as he hit a car.

"Okay…that was a neat trick." He groaned rolling onto his back as his Spider Sense went off again. He barely hopped up to avoid another blast from Shocker that left a sizable dent in the car where he'd been a second ago, before jumping to the side to avoid another blast.

Scarlet Spider leapt and swung around the street, Shocker's blast narrowly missing him. "Slow down so I can smear you like the insect you are!"

"First off: no! Second: spiders aren't insects! They're arachnids!" The wallcrawler declared, swinging low towards Herman.

"Who the hell cares!?" Shocker yelled, bringing both hands together for a massive blast that Carter easily avoided. However, he heard a scream, looking behind him to see that Shocker had hit a box truck that had been going down the wrong street at the wrong time, flipping it.

"Oh crap…"

"Gotta choose, bug boy. Me or the people?" Shocker mocked, Scarlet Spider could practically hear the man smirking beneath the helmet. He growled, before jumping back towards the box truck. If Shocker got away, he would catch him another day. He landed on top of the flipping truck bracing himself. His feet hit the ground and he clenched his teeth, as he took the brunt of the truck's weight.

"Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr…" He grunted, feeling all 20,000 pounds of the truck bearing down on him. He could feel sweat beading in his mask, kneeling down as he slowly, gently, started to set the truck down. Once he was satisfied with that, he fired out a webline, yanking himself out before he was crushed by the truck. He panted as he collapsed on his back, every muscle in his body on fire.

"Ow…" He heard footsteps approaching him, looking up to see boots approaching him. Scarlet Spider looked up, seeing Detective Roland Alenko approaching him.

"Scarlet Spider. We've got a lot we need to talk about."

Carter was seated on a rooftop, mask off as he heard the door behind him open. He turned, seeing Roland approaching him, energy drink in hand. "Here. Need to stay hydrated, right?" Roland stated, handing the energy drink which his brother graciously took.

"Appreciate it. It's been a busy day, even before old Herman decided to make a ruckus." Carter explained as he took a big swig of the energy drink. "Oh, that's the good stuff… So, Shocker got away?"

"Yeah. According to the eyewitnesses, he can now blast himself into the air. Kind of like a… controlled fall."

"Eh, he said the new look came with some new tricks, so that checks out." Carter remarked, as Roland sat next to him. "Anyone get hurt?"

"No. Driver's a little rattled, but he says it's as good an excuse for worker's comp as any."

"That is the second time I've heard that today…"

"As for the building, there was no one inside. Apparently the building was about to be fumigated, so they'd already cleared everyone out." Roland explained, and Carter's brow furrowed.

"What's in there? An apartment complex?"

"An insurance agency, a consulting agency, administrative for a car rental place. Nothing too remarkable."

"So why was Herman attacking it in the middle of the day?"

"Well, that's been the question I've been trying to figure out for the past two weeks." Roland stated. As a member of the NYPD's Meta Crime division, many cases that involved the city's costumed denizens crossed his desk, something that brought him into frequent contact with the city's heroes.

"Two weeks?"

"Yeah. Schultz has been attacking buildings all over New York for the past two weeks. And you're not the first one he's tangled with, either. He got into it with Luke Cage in Harlem, Daredevil in Hell's Kitchen, Wonder Woman in Midtown…"

"Wait, Herman tangled with Wonder Woman, and… he's not in jail? What kind of opposite world is this?"

"Well, like you said earlier, Shocker's new look isn't just aesthetic. He got a major upgrade, and he's been putting it to use. He knocked Luke Cage through an apartment complex, blasted Daredevil through a gym, and he almost took out the ice skaters at Rockefeller Plaza getting away from Wonder Woman."

"Ugh, Herman…" Carter sighed out, taking a big swig of his beverage. "Any idea why he's doing any of this?"

"Well, I did a bit of digging, called in a favor with the IRS. Turns out, all the buildings he's attacked are owned by the same holding company, and they've attempted to sell the buildings for years, tear them down and put up condos."

"Condos… in Brooklyn?"

"Hey, don't question the logic of gentrification. Point is, the company's been trying for years to sell the lots, but the businesses that rent out the spaces aren't so willing to give up commercial real estate in New York. So, best I can figure, the company was trying to get Shocker to demolish the building, claim the insurance, and sell the space." Roland explained, letting out a sigh. "Of course, having a theory is a lot different than evidence. I don't have anything that could hold up in court. Not without Schultz in cuffs, anyway."

"Any idea where he's holed up?"

"Nope. Checked his last known address, his known accomplices, his parents' house in Queens, his brother in Jersey, his ex-wife in Staten Island…"

"Ugh, Staten Island…"

"You're telling me. Three days and I still haven't gotten the stink out…" Roland remarked, letting out a sigh. "Point is, the Shocker's nowhere to be found. The combined might of New York's heroes and the NYPD, powerless to find one idiot who dresses like those quilts grandma used to collect…"

"So he reminds you of those too?"

"It's all I can think about whenever I see his picture."

"Everytime I fight him, I start smelling old ham and my cheeks feel sore."

"Swear to god, we pulled a hundred of those damn things out of there when she passed away…"

"Oh, whatever happened to that god awful wooden duck that grandpa said he'd had since the 70's?"

"First chance we got, dad and I tossed it off of the Brooklyn Bridge. Right now, it's creeping out all the little fish children."

"Better than it deserves…" Carter remarked. "So, no leads on Shocker?"

"Nope. I don't know where he's hiding, where he got the tech for his new suit, or why he's stumping for an insurance scheme. His MO's more bank robberies, not demolition."

"Eh, being a supervillain isn't cheap. Gotta afford new gear… somehow…" Carter trailed off, Roland looking over at him.

"What?"

"You know what people get wrong about Shocker?"

"No, what?"

"He's an idiot, but he's not stupid." Carter remarked, and Roland's brow furrowed as he nodded.

"That's right. Unlike the rest of these costumed idiots, he doesn't buy his stuff or steal it. Schultz designed and built his stuff all on his own. And the suit isn't just a horrible fashion statement-it's supposed to absorb the excess vibrations from his gauntlets."

"Right. Herman built all his stuff, but he's not a scientist or a PHD. That means it's not refined like Captain Cold's gun or Freeze's suit. Pete says his stuff is… brilliant, but crude." Carter explained, the older brother nodded as he thought.

"I talked with Peter about him once. He said that the first time Shocker managed to get away from him, Peter was able to track him down by searching for the energy signature from his gauntlets." Roland finished.

"Right! Because his gauntlets need a lot of juice to do what they do, Shocker's power source lets him be tracked. And since his little power up packs a punch, I'm gonna guess that needs a lot more power."

"Give me a moment. I can make a call, see if we can pull the signature and-"

"No need." Carter cut off, pulling out his phone. He opened an app with an icon of Spider-Man's mask on it, opening it up. "See, Pete whipped up this little app that syncs with our masks, let's us filter out all sorts of stuff."

"Not sure if that's legal. Sounds like it might be going in through a lot of programs' back doors." Roland pointed out, staring at his now masked little brother.

"I mean… we don't look into anything private. Plus, if you had any idea what Batman does, you'd have a stroke." Carter joked, awkwardly defensive as the program began to scan for large power sources and fluctuations.

"Justice League satellites are picking up a trail matching Shocker's energy profile heading from here to Bensonhurst."

"The company I was looking into has a building in Bensonhurst. Sending you the location now."

"Then we found Schultz's next target." Carter remarked, chugging the rest of his drink, before turning to Roland as he leapt off. "See you there?" Before Roland could answer, Carter swung off, causing the older brother to just sigh.

"He never could hold still…" Roland muttered, he was about to call for backup…

When he heard what sounded like stomping heading towards him. He spun around, barely pulling his side arm out as the presence barrelled towards him…

Bensonhurst, 17:38 EST

The sun was starting to set as Scarlet Spider landed on the rooftop, his mask telling him that he was nearing the address Roland had sent him. "Alright, if I was a jackass dressed like a quilt, where would I be plotting…"

He continued to scan around until his mask lenses took note of a small apartment building with a massive surge of energy nearby. "We have a winner." Scarlet Spider muttered, swinging towards the building, taking note of the fact that it was empty.

"Suppose if I couldn't even sell my crappy apartment in New York, I might also hire Herman to knock them down for me. Guy could have made a career doing demolition…" Scarlet muttered, swinging around to see Herman stepping out of a van. "Hey, Herman! If you wanted to go for a tour of Brooklyn, you should've just asked." He yelled as he landed on the van, and Shocker didn't even look up as he groaned.

"Always freakin' something in this freakin' city…"

"Well, Herm, if you didn't take jobs trying to knock over buildings, we wouldn't have to have these conversations, would we?" Scarlet Spider remarked, flipping off the van to land behind Shocker. "Now, come on, Herm. There's a lot of ways we can do this, and I'd like to avoid the painful ways if we can."

"Well…" Carter sighed as his head buzzed, Herman's gauntlet blowing as he balled his hand into a fist. "That makes one of us!" Shocker spun around as he unleashed his right hook, Scarlet Spider bringing his hands up to catch it. However, the shockwave knocked Carter into the van, and he barely rolled to the side as Shocker released a shock blast that knocked the van over.

"Come on, Herm. I keep trying to be nice!" He said firing a web and wrenching Shockers arm down before it could blast him again. This also had the knock on effect of the blast launching Shocker into the side of the building and allowing Scarlet Spider to spring to his feet.

He fired a few web balls into Shocker's face, trying to keep him blinded. He sprang towards Shocker, planting his feet into the man's gut, and then sprung up and uppercutted the man, staggering Shocker and actually hurting his hand.

'New and much harder mask. Noted.' Scarlet Spider thought, shaking out his hand as Shocker ripped the webs off his face. 'And he finally made it so the helmet helps absorb impact blows as well. Guess Herman does have pattern recognition…'

"Gotta say, I don't remember you being that hard headed. What is that thing made out of? Steel?"

"Try carbonadium. Lightweight, harder than steel."

"Where the hell did you even get that?"

"Pays to have friends, Bug!" Shocker's declaration was accompanied with yet another blast, which was met with a flip from the young man.

"Lemme guess, you're new landlord buddies?"

"Heh. Kid, you got no idea what's afoot here!" Carter landed on a wall, taking note of how the energy on Shocker's gauntlet seemed to waiver

"Ominous. Then why don't you enlighten me, you sound scared."

"Not a chance kid, just do us both a favor and stay out of my way, yeah?" Shocker insisted, surprising Scarlet Spider by seeming to offer some kind of odd truce.

"Tell you what, Herm. I'll leave you alone, if you just march on down to the police station and turn yourself in. Sound fair?"

"Don't say I didn't offer you a way out!" Shocker fired a blast, Scarlet Spider closing his eyes in thought as he assessed the situation.

Playing tag with Shocker wasn't going to get anyone anywhere. The longer the fight went on, the more likely it was that collateral damage would arise. Shocker would hit a building, Carter would land in the wrong place, some poor passerby would get hit by the blast… The longer this went on, the more likely it was that something would go wrong. He'd have to wrap this up, and fast. And he did have an idea: the right dose of bioelectricity would take Shocker, fancy new suit or no, and Carter would be home in time to work on the AP literature essay he'd been procrastinating.

But one small problem with that: even with all his training, Carter did not have full mastery of that aspect of his powers just yet. The last time he had used it on a tech-based villain like Shocker, the electricity had destabilized the power source for Beetle's armor. And there was no telling what it would do with Shocker's new power source just yet. But he was out of options, and so he'd have to take the risk.

He opened his eyes and grabbed a lamppost, swinging around and launching towards Shocker, red electricity crackling around his fist. The webslinger's fist smashed into Shocker's faceplate, red electricity surging through him as he rolled with the punch. Carter rolled to his feet and Shocker did the same.

"That hurt, ya little prick!" Shocker growled, charging up his gauntlet… only for the gauntlet to spark and fizzle out. Shocker's eyes widened, his other gauntlet sparking in a similar manner. "Ah, crap…"

No sooner did Herman say that did Scarlet Spider web up both Shocker's hands, binding them to the villain's chest. Scarlet Spider leapt up and fired two weblines on either side, slamming down onto Herman's chest and knocking him onto his back. "Ow…"

"Come on, Herm. I wanna hear you say it…"

"God damn…fine! I give up! Are you happy?!"

A short while later, a grumbling, webbed up Shocker was hanging upside down from a lamppost, a sticky note with a small drawing attached on his chest:

Courtesy of your Friendly Neighborhood Scarlet Spider.

"My best work yet." Scarlet Spider commented, before tapping his ear piece.

NOW CALLING: ROLAND ALENKO

Carter hummed to himself as the phone rang, expecting his brother to pick up and say he was on the way…

"You have reached the voicemail of Detective Roland Alenko. Please leave your name and number, and I'll call you back when I can. Thank you." Carter's brow furrowed as he connected to Roland's voicemail. That was weird. His brother wasn't one to ignore his calls, especially on the occasions when they worked a case together. In fact, Roland should have been here by now. Even in the worst New York traffic, people got out of the way for police vehicles.

A nervous feeling began to run through him. He hung up, not bothering with voicemail. If he missed a call, Roland was usually quick to call back. This was weird…

Approaching sirens pulled Carter out of his thoughts. Scarlet Spider leapt off of the streets and onto a rooftop before swinging off as the cops pulled up after noticing neither of them was Roland.

18:16 EST

"...call you back when I can. Thank you."

Carter's frown under his mask deepened as he reached Roland's voice mail for the sixteenth time since swinging away. This was very much unlike his brother, and he couldn't shake the feeling in his gut as he called another number.

"Carter? What's up?" Sarah's voice stated on the other side.

"Hey, have you heard from Roland? We were working a case together, and I can't reach him."

"Did you send him somewhere?"

"No, it's pretty much wrapped up. No secret lairs or anything like that."

"Well, he probably has it on silent, and it's probably somewhere in his car again. You know how busy he gets." Sarah reassured, but Carter frowned at his sister's words.

"Still…"

"Carter, you two not picking up your phones while working isn't exactly news. I'm sure he'll call you back whenever he can." Carter frowned, before he sighed.

"Alright. I'm gonna check on a few more things, then I'll be home soon."

"I'm pulling an all-nighter at the lab, so I should be home around midnight. I'll see you when I get home." And with that, Sarah hung up, but Carter wasn't exactly reassured. This behavior was unlike Roland, and he couldn't shake the feeling something was off.

Plus, something Shocker said was still bothering him. It was clear that someone had hired Shocker to attack the buildings around the city. Roland thought it was the landlords who owned the building, but something about that didn't sit right with Carter. It was too convoluted, and insurance scams weren't Shocker's bread and butter. Plus, Shocker's new suit was unlike anything he'd used in the past. The new power, the new armor, and the carbonadium face plate couldn't have come cheap. Would landlords trying to squeeze out a few bucks go to all that trouble…?

The buzzing of his spider sense and the hairs on the back of his head standing on end pulled him from his thoughts. Hearing stomping behind him, Scarlet Spider backflipped just in time to narrowly avoid a metal tentacle slamming into where he was standing a moment ago. A tentacle that looked awfully familiar as he landed on the rooftop.

Carter spun around, following the tendril back to its owner. He'd recognize him anywhere, having seen that navy blue outfit, white armored bits, red piping, and red eyes situated on his helmet in his nightmares. The tentacle recoiled back to its owner, Doctor Octopus glowering over Scarlet Spider in the moonlight.

"Good evening, Mr. Alenko. It's been quite a while." Doctor Octopus greeted, his tentacles depositing him on his feet.

"Fancy meeting you here, Ock. Haven't seen you since we kicked the crap out of your bosses. How're Sterns and the rest of the Masters enjoying prison?" Scarlet Spider taunted, only Doctor Octopus actually chuckled at that.

"Sterns and his compatriots were but a means to an end. An alliance that has already served its purpose. The data I gained from my experiments in India were more than satisfactory." Doc Ock stated, Carter watching his four metal tentacles coiling around him. "Besides, it put us back in each other's paths. All in all, I consider it a victory."

"And you decided to cash that in for a good ol' fashioned ass kicking?" Scarlet Spider taunted as the two circled each other, Ock's hands folded behind him. "You know, I hear Otto didn't know how to quit when he was ahead either. I gotta ask, you're not him in some sorta clone body, are you?" He asked, earning a scoff from the Doctor.

"Quite the entertaining idea. Unfortunately, the late Doctor Octavius couldn't envision failure so drastic he would perish, despite what history would indicate. My identity is of no concern to you at this moment."

"Aw, but you know so much about me. Didn't anyone tell you it's rude not to tell people about yourself?"

"Petty formalities do not interest me. What does interest me… is you."

"Uh… Thank you?"

"In fact, my research into you has proven quite fruitful." Doctor Octopus stated, looking directly at Carter. "Your brother has been quite the interesting source of information."

The reaction was immediate. Scarlet Spider leapt up, preparing to bring his foot down on Ock's head. The tentacles sprung towards him, Scarlet Spider twisting out of the way to avoid two. He sprung off and landed on his feet, before springing forward to plant a fist directly in Ock's face. However, in his anger, he ignored his spider sense, and one of the tentacles slammed into his chest, knocking him into the air conditioning unit on the next rooftop.

Groaning as he got to his feet, Scarlet Spider sprung towards Ock one more, only to be given another tentacle smack, this one knocking him into the alleyway between buildings. However, before he could fall, a tentacle grabbed him by the chest, slamming him into the wall. Ock's other tentacles crawled down the walls, until he and Carter were mask to mask, albeit Carter was upside down.

"Now that you've gotten that out of your system, do you feel better?" Ock asked, as Carter struggled against the tentacle binding him.

"What did you do to him?! What did you do to Roland?"

"Calm yourself, child. As I told you in India, I have no interest in harming your siblings out of some petty vendetta. However, it is simply pragmatic to have a bargaining chip in place." Doc Ock stated, one of his tentacles dispensing what looked like a phone. Carter looked over at it, seeing a video of Roland bound and gagged in a chair. He looked bruised and bloodied, but not too worse for wear, save for the collar around his neck.

"Roland…!"

"Is alive. This is a live feed, and if you need proof of that…" Ock pressed a button on the screen, Roland screaming out in pain as electricity surged from his collar. Carter's eyes widened, as he struggled against the tentacle.

"Stop it!"

"Then are you ready to settle down, or are you going to keep wasting time and energy?" Ock asked, and Carter reluctantly stopped his struggling.

"... What do you want?"

"I simply wish to have a conversation. One that is long overdue." Ock stated, being met with the narrowing of lenses.

"I don't have anything to say to you, and I don't owe you squat. So why don't you piss off, and shove these tentacles right up your-"

"March 17th, 2017. A convenience store robbery gone wrong results in the shooting of a 14 year old male of Caucasian and Native American descent. Paramedics administer first aid on site, but the bullet has grazed his heart and his left lung. After emergency surgery, the young man pulls through, but he is left in a coma. For two weeks, he lingers on the threshold between life and death. Stable, but doctors remain less than optimistic about his chances of recovery. Until one day, he miraculously wakes up, good as new." Ock recounted, unmoving red eyes glaring directly into Carter's.

"None can explain it, and many simply accept it as an act of God. A miracle, possibly some sort of mutation, a lucky break after the poor boy lost his parents just three months prior. None can explain his quick recovery and physical therapy completion, but stranger things have happened. But the boy has a secret. He feels stronger, faster, and finds himself able to stick to walls. Shoot webs. Generate a sort of bioelectricity. Things he couldn't do before." Carter's face was grim and unmoving, barely able to contain his shock and anger.

"And so he decided to put these new abilities to use. Put on a mask and follow in the footsteps of the hero he would soon come to be mentored by. And not once did he ever question how or why he can do these amazing and spectacular things." Ock finished, crossing one arm and tapping his chin. "Did I miss anything?"

"How… how do you know all that?"

"Because I have had my eye on you for quite a while. Ever since you laid in that hospital bed, all weak and pitiful, I have monitored you. You should still be in that hospital bed, little but a braindead collection of meat and tubes, fussed over by a meathead detective and a scatterbrained scientist." Ock got even closer, to the point that his glowing red eyes almost blinded Carter. "And the only reason you are not, the only reason you are little more than a footnote in a forgotten headline… is because of me."

"You… you can't be-"

"It is time to face facts, Mr. Alenko. The only reason you live, the only reason you amount to anything… is because I made you who you are, and now you're going to do something for me. Consider it repayment… for services rendered."

A/N: Hope you all enjoyed. Tune in next time, as Carter faces his greatest challenge yet. Until then...Excelsior.