Chapter 13 Sandstorm
The first national back of Vale was one of the many heavily secured places in the kingdom. With several armed guards on watch every hour on the hour both outside and inside the building, over a hundred cameras placed in every angle to spot any dangers lurking, finger print encrypted locks to open the safe, sum it up with a 10in thick solid steel door protecting the money no one in their right mind would try and steal from a place like this.
Another added security to transfer Lien to the bank is the use of heavily armored cars, also armed to the teeth with trained guards in case thieves had the guts to try and steal from the van then the actual bank. It was normal for security to see the van arrive around late in the afternoon to drop off another load of Lien to the vault with double the security from the bank to help load it out.
"Hey, check this out." One of the surveillance workers said to his friend watching his side off the cameras. "Are you seeing this?"
Taking his eyes off the cameras showing the front entrance, the man looked at the camera his friends was showing him to see the usual armored van arrive to the back of the bank.
What made it even weirder was that said van already dropped of this week's pay load two hours ago. Both men used their radio to get security to check outside and investigate why it came back again.
"We should call this in." The first guard who spotted this problem said. "Get some police down here just in c-"
The man couldn't finish his sentence when a foreign object lodged itself in his head, killing him instantly. Seeing the death of his fellow co-worker, the second surveillance watcher turned around in time to see the person who fired was one of their own.
"What are you doing!?" He shouted, trying to distract the attacker while slowly reaching for the alarm button underneath the control board.
The button was just a few centimeters from his finger, but when he was about to press it he stopped when three more guards came in the room. He tried, no longer caring if he was going to die, but stopped when he felt an invisible force stopping him.
That invisible force soon showed to be a hand from a young girl with green hair making the man look in surprise that she appeared out of thin air. Turning his head, he saw that the security guards that were dressed like him changed appearance revealing the White Fang.
Looking back at his hand he was greeted to see a barrel of a gun pointed point blank to the center of his face.
"If this wasn't clear to you." Emerald told the guard who was sweating profusely. "This is a robbery."
When they heard that the usual armored cargo came back the guards who got word through the camera room double timed to the back of the bank to check out the situation.
Half a dozen showed up to the scene, their weapons pointed directly at the van, and waited for the driver to get out to answer as to why they came back.
"Get out of the van." The guard in front said in an even tone. "Come out with your hands up."
No response came from the driver making them worried that it really could be an attempted robbery. The guard who was leading the group raised his non-firing hand to signal one of them to check the driver, followed by the rest of the men open the back of the van.
Walking closer to the front of the car, the armed man pointed his rifle on the driver and was going to order the intruder to get of the vehicle but looked in confusion at who was driving.
"Yes, I'm here to make a deposit." Mercury, who was wearing the same uniform was them, said in a mocking tone.
"Who the- Get out of the v-" As he was about to shout his demand, Mercury saw the opportunity to reach for the weapon, pulled it closer to him, and punch the lights out of the man before he could speak.
At Mercury was springing his surprise attack, the rest of the guards tried to reach for the back door when suddenly it opened by itself with a wave of sand bursting out and covering them in darkness.
"I didn't get to finish what I said." Mercury looked at the rear-view mirror seeing Sandman finish off the rest of security. "But I'm here to make a deposit and a withdrawal."
After the phone call Mr. Jonah received from one of his employees about his most hated celebrity, Spider-Man, being seen heading to the docks.
'No doubt covering his friends tracks from his latest heist!'
The office was receiving phone calls from several more of his reporters, including some freelancers trying to earn a quick Lien, with the same news Hoffman gave him.
'Spider-Man! How far will you go to make everyone think you're a hero?!'
"Grrrr! Betty!" Forcefully opening his office door loud enough for everyone close enough to hear, Mr. Jameson looked over at his secretary's desk to see a Betty on her Scroll. "Did he pick up!?"
"No." She hanged up the call and started to text. "I tried calling over a hundred times and he's still not answering! I'm going to try and leave a text, so he knows where to go."
As soon as word spread that the hero was seen heading to the docks of where Sandman attacked this morning, Betty made several attempts to tell Jaune, so he'd be the first to arrive and take pictures. No one could get good photos of Spider-Man since he moves too fast for anyone to get a good shot of him, so it was imperative to the Bugle to send their best reporter to get photos before anyone else could.
That was until Jaune decided not to answer his Scroll for the many messages left by Betty telling him about what's going down at the pier. At first she thought that he was still at school, but last she checked his school already ended making her worry why he isn't answering. It was even worse with how her boss is getting crankier and crankier at Jaune's rebellious act at not answering leaving Jonah furious that his own employee was ignoring him.
"Can't believe he's doing this now!" Jaune's boss grabbed his scroll in his pocket. "It's already been an hour since Hoffman told us about the Web head being at the docks."
"I'm sure Jaune's on his way." Betty tried to reason with him. "Remember, J.J, he's still a teenager. He can't get far on foot, he must be trying to get there as fast as he can. Maybe that's why he's not answering his scroll."
"Or he could be blowing us off!" Jonah screamed and swung both arms above his head. "Can't believe I hired him! He's still too young to know the responsibilities of having a job!"
"I'm sure he knows, he's probably running to where Spider-Man is." She tried to make her boss understand. "After all, he usually gives us great photos of Spider-Man."
"Only when Spider-Man's tricking the people when he "helps" them!" Jonah made sure to put air quotes on the word 'helps'. "This time it's different! This time I want to have photos of Spider-Man caught in the act!"
"Act?" Jonah's secretary gave him a look of confusion. "What are you talking about?"
"What I'm talking about? I'm talking about Spider-Man pretending to be a hero!" Jonah proclaimed making Betty groan at her boss's usual antics of painting Spider-Man look like the bad guy. "Do you ever wonder why no one could get good photos of him and only Jaune?"
Betty had to take a moment to think about the question but answered with no hesitation at what she said.
"It's cause most of them are complete morons who try and make lien from a quick pic of Spider-Man, while Jaune makes sure he gets high quality photos to the Bugle. Have you seen most of the photos other people give us? They're terrible and unfocused pieces of trash."
And she was right. With the increasing craze of Spider-Man growing more and more in the kingdom, many people tried to cash in on his fame by trying to take photos of him when they have the chance. But when they do they always use their Scrolls to do it, making the photos blurry and unrecognizable. Jaune on the other hand, never liked using his Scroll for that and prefers to use an actual camera instead. With how many people using their Scrolls nowadays as their main tool of electronics, people have lost sight of other technologies that have the same function as their Scroll. That also includes the news. No longer did they use actual recording devices to show the news, making them look like their posting an updated vlog rather than professional news recordings.
People who have a Scroll and take moderate photos think they can be a photographer now, making it hard for the Bugle to hire people with so many people thinking that they can cut it. Scrolls are a more convenient way to carry and is a well-rounded electronic tool, but that's it. They can't do everything other devices can do, they aren't bright enough to be a flash light, or get better long range reception like a radio, but above all else they can't take good picture like an actual camera.
Most think it's outdated to use a camera nowadays, but Jaune made the extra mile to even buy one to look more professional when he goes out there to take photos. It makes him a better candidate to be hired then all the other hacks thinking they could be part of the Bugle.
"You know why we hired him. He uses an actual camera and takes good pictures of Spider-Man."
"Wrong!" Jonah said to Betty. "Spider-Man is just using Arc so he can take his popularity even higher, so he can make Vale see him as a hero and not wonder why he's doing these things. I mean, what better way to make you even more well known then Bugle!?"
"Riiight." Betty said while rolling her eyes at her boss. "But why Jaune and not any of our other photographers?"
"Because Jaune is our youngest worker. Spider-Man needs a young, impressionable, and gullible kid so he can trick him into helping his evil plans. But I can see it a mile away!" Jonah babbled on.
From the corner of her eye she can see one of her co-workers behind her boss, one of them decided to twirl his finger's next to his head to show what he thinks about Jonah. Hiding a snicker, she quickly went back to look at her boss when he started talking.
"You just wait, Betty. Sooner or later Spider-Man will slip up and show everyone his true colors!" Jonah's voice became louder for the rest of the office to hear. "And when that happens I'll make sure the Bugle will be the first one to reveal him caught in the act!"
At this point Betty and the rest of the people listening to their boss finally heard him quite down and go back to his office. But, as if proving them wrong, Jonah's voice became louder when he changed his rage to the masked vigilante to a certain blonde boy still not answering his scroll.
"That's why we need Jaune to be at the docks!" Jonah shouted and went back to the main topic of his rant. "And if I don't see any pictures of Spider-Man from Jaune today, then I'm gonna fire him!"
"I'm so fired~" Spider-Man groaned in his hands. Not even caring with Sun and Neptune were looking awkwardly at him while he paces back in forth in a nervous manner.
"This can't get any worse. This can't possibly get any worse." Spider-Man groaned, his hands still not leaving his face as he kept muttering to himself through his webbed hands making anyone who can hear him sound muffled.
After arriving to the docks, he thought that he could just do a simple investigation where Sandman was spotted, hoping to find a clue to where he can find him before he could do another robbery. What he found was helpful to him, but it soon went straight down the drain as Blake's friend, Sun Wukong, and his partner Neptune followed him. Spider-Man now had to deal with two tag alongs and at the same time thinking different ways to lose them and get back to his main objective.
That plan became derailed when the Atlas military spotted him. Spider-Man now had to deal with two tag alongs and Atlas. Who apparently wanted to bring him to their kingdom for whatever reason without the consent of the Council making him re-think another way to lose two Huntsmen and the military.
And once again the plan was torn up, burned, and thrown out the window after OsCorp security showed up and wiped the floor with said soldiers like they were nothing. Now, he had to make another plan to lose his new companions and leave without getting into a scuffle with OsCorp and his hired muscle.
Luckily enough after dealing with all of that, Spider-Man was still able to get away from that little war zone and go back to finding a safe place to drop of Sun and Neptune.
That thought too became a fleeting dream when he saw a massive crowd of people, news crews, and an alarmingly number of officers at the entrance of the docks waiting for him.
'How did today become so out of control?! Wait. I know why.'
It was thanks to his two new sidekicks that told him they were the reason so many knew where he was. Said two sidekicks were standing in place looking at Spider-Man in guilt as they watched the hero get through his small panic attack.
"Psst, Sun." Neptune said in a hushed tone. "Did he do this when you saw him at the docks?"
"No." Prying his eyes away from Spider-Man, Sun talked to his friend in the same quiet tone, so the hero wouldn't hear them talking. "When I saw him at the docks he was more awesome and badass. He wasn't like... this."
Neptune looked back at Spider-Man who was still pacing back and forth, not even caring the two were talking behind his back.
"Today really isn't my day…" Spider-Man muttered to himself.
Last time Sun saw Spider-Man he was at the docks a couple of months ago kicking butt and taking names. The same said hero was no longer emanating a wave of confidence, but instead showing anxiety and nervousness making him wonder how Blake would react if he told her what the other side of Spider-Man was like.
'Who am I kidding? The reason he's like this is because of me and my big mouth! I really should know how to keep my mouth shut sometimes.'
After the two confessed that they were the cause of so many people gathering in one place to see Spider-Man, Sun couldn't help but feel sorry for ruining the heroes' idea of just trying to stay unnoticed to the public.
What made the situation even worse is that if so many people are here then that means that Blake and her team will catch wind of this. Sun could already see how the situation will look like, Blake would probably arrive before her team and see Spider-Man like this with him and Neptune being the culprits for the hero being so nervous.
After all, with so many Huntsmen having negative thoughts on the wall crawler and with the Council wanting to put him behind bars it was understandable for her to be angry at him.
"Hey Sun." Neptune nudged Sun's arm to get his attention. "Shouldn't he, you know, just web swing out of this problem? I mean, yeah people now know he's here, but he can just get away."
"It's not that easy, dude." Sun gave Neptune a solemn look. "He told us he was trying to track some really strong evil guy with that thing."
The monkey Faunus pointed at the still frozen sand sculpture hanging over the hero's shoulders.
"He wanted to find him before the guy from the news strikes again. "
"Shouldn't that Sandman guy be laying low?" Neptune questioned. "I mean, he just stole from the SDC and Hammer industries. A haul like that should make him top of the wanted list, I think."
"Dude, you saw what they said on the news! He turned in to a giant sand monster! Pretty sure he doesn't care if he should be laying low." Sun answered. "I think that's why he's acting all…. Worried. He doesn't want people to follow him when he finds the Sand dude."
"Oh~ I see why." Neptune slammed his fist into his open palm. "People want to see him in action! Like how some people watch us fight in tournaments on TV." As soon as he said that, Neptune put two and two together making his face turn horrified. "Oh snap! That's bad!"
"Right!? Spider-Man doesn't want people to get hurt when he fights a sand monster the size of a building! What's worse is that normal weapons have no effect on him."
"Then what about that?" Neptune motioned to the frozen sand piece. "He froze that thing. So, he must have used ice dust to freeze it."
"Yeah, pretty sure every Huntsmen will probably use ice dust when he finds Sandman. Problem is, no one knows when he'll attack. Which brings us to why Spider-Man's stuck here."
"And us with him. Which brings us to now." Neptune didn't have to say more since the noise of so many people wanting to see the web head gave it away. Standing in silence a second time with the nervous hero still walking back and forth to fill the silence. "You think he's going to keep doing that?"
"Can you blame the guy? We kinda ruined his whole stealth/investigation thing. You know, things heroes do before fighting a super villain." Sun explained the usual hero dynamic he learned from reading comic books.
"Speaking of supervillains, what is that thing doing?" Pointing his finger at what he was talking about, Sun looked at where is partner was talking about and the saw the ice sculpture starting to shake more and more wildly. "Think we should tell him?"
Since he was partially the one responsible for ruining his cover, Sun walked close to the masked hero and placed his hand over Spider-Man's shoulder to stop him from pacing.
"Dude. I mean, Spider-Man, Neptune and I are sorry for ruining whatever you were doing. But you're thing is going crazy."
'Thing? Sandman! Getting fired from the Bugle can come second! First thing first is tracking Sandman!'
Shaking his head to get himself out of his funk, Spider-Man looked at the now shaking sand piece and raised it in front of him to show him where Sandman is. As soon as the piece was facing a specific part of the city the sand began to shake even more.
'That location…. The bank! He's not planning to steal anymore Dust he's planning to steal lien too!'
"I have to go." Spider-Man told them. "The ice won't hold this thing for long and Sandman's already taking another heist."
"So, what are we waiting for? Let's go and stop him.!" Sun said in an exited tone. As soon as he heard about another attempt to rob Vale the blonde Huntsman was already stepping off before Spider-Man grabbed his arm. "Huh? What's the matter?"
"Did I not say that you guys can't go with me?" The hero told him. "I'll drop you guys off somewhere safe and go hold Sandman off so you two can call for some backup."
"But-" The Faunus was going to speak more when Neptune decided to interrupt him.
"I think we really should sit this one out, man." Neptune told him, no longer speaking in his usual bravado. This time, he spoke in a humorless tone that Sun hasn't heard since their first time in initiation.
"You too, Neptune? But we-"
"Are going to get in his way. I mean, Atlas soldiers, highly skilled body guards, and a huge gaggle of fans that even I'm scared of facing are all on Spider-Man's plate." Neptune counted all the problems at hand. "And this was all in a few hours I met the guy. Sun, this is way bigger than I thought it'd be. We're just students, and this guy's a professional hero."
'Ok, that last part made this day a bit worth it.'
"I think It's in our best interest to get out of his way and call for real help." Taking a moment to look at Spider-Man, Neptune gave him a nod to show he agreed to the wall crawler's suggestion.
"You go on and do what heroes do. You can leave us here, we may be students, but we're still trained Huntsmen."
Not wanting to argue with them any longer, Spider-Man took one last look at the two before looking back at the city, shot a long string of webbing, and looked back to speak his final words.
"I'll trust you on that part. But you two must call for back up. Even I'm not sure I can take him on by myself."
'I'm lying. I totally got my butt kicked the first time, I have no doubt I can't take him on with just myself.'
"We'll get on that. Now go, do what a spider does." The blue haired teen said and was given a nod of thanks to the spider Faunus.
"Thanks, wish me luck guys." Getting a running start, Spider-Man jumped high in the air and started his web swing leaving only the two teens alone at the docks.
Now with the hero gone Neptune took a sigh of relief but was shoved roughly by Sun who was giving him a look of betrayal.
"Dude! Why didn't you take my side! That's so uncool man!" Sun looked away from his partner and crossed his arms in frustration.
"Come on, Sun." Neptune said in his normal voice. "You really think I meant all that? Your talking to the guy who's able to talk to the senior girls back in our school remember?"
Placing an arm over Sun's shoulder, Neptune reached in his pocket and showed it to his partner who was looking at what was in front of his face in surprise.
"How did you get this?" He asked while looking at a small fragment from the sand prison Spider-Man hanged over his shoulder.
"While you were telling him about why his fan club arrived I grabbed a piece when he was talking to himself." Taking the fragment away from Sun, the goggle wearing teen pointed it at the same location Spider-Man was heading made the small piece shake like it's larger counterpart did.
"Let's go, Sun. A hero always gets help wither he likes it or not."
"This doesn't make any sense. First, he stole dust, now he's also taking Lien? What does this mean?" Spider-Man asked himself while at the same time landing safely on top of the roof of one of the huge warehouses that was between the docks and the normal buildings.
'Unless he decided to go solo and leave whatever group he joined, I seriously doubt he would do this on his own.'
The masked spider also didn't think that Sandman is arrogant enough to think he would be able to escape with such a valuable haul with him. The national bank of Vale was the most used, and most guarded place in the kingdom. Almost everyone uses that bank to deposit or withdraw their finances there, including celebrities, people who work with the council, and even rich people like Harry's father.
'Of course, I don't use that place. I mean, as soon as I get my paycheck in my hands it immediately vanishes. That and I usually put the rest under my bed.'
Lifting the ice incased sand in front of him, Spider-Man made sure he was going to right way and continued his pursuit for the Sandman. Taking a few steps forward, he jumped of the warehouse, swung his arm forward to eject a long web string to a nearby apartment complex, and used his momentum to swing himself forward.
He was lucky that where he was going didn't involve to many people able to see him. The bank was located just far way enough that he can slip away undetected, he was even more relieved that the sky didn't have any news choppers yet making the web head breathe easy that he didn't have to do another disappearing act.
What he thought the large group from before was big, he didn't expect more to be coming just a few blocks away. The hero expected that enough people was already waiting to see him at the docks, but he didn't know that even more was right around the corner. The side walk leading to where he was had people pushing and shoving to get to have the chance to see him, with some even bring folding chairs just in case they might wait a long time just to catch a glimpse.
'So many people. All just to see me being Spider-Man?'
Not wanting to have a chance of being seen, Spider-Man was planning to take another detour when he suddenly felt the side of leg feel damp.
'Ok, now I really don't want to be seen by people! Unless I regressed back to be a child, I'm pretty sure I didn't pee my pants.'
With the help of his Spidey sense to automatically move his body to avoid danger, Spider-Man looked away from where he was swinging to see the problem with his costume. Just as Spider-Man expected, the sand that was trapped within his ice web was slowly melting making his deadline to reach Sandman even more urgent. He knew that his web formula was a prototype, so he expected some problems, what he didn't expect was that his formula would dissolve this quickly making it even more worrisome that by the time he did show up he would have to fight Sandman while also trying to explain that he in fact did nor wet himself.
'I can't worry about people seeing me now! If I do try, then the sand will break free and I'll lose my chance to get Sandman if he already left the bank!'
Letting out a sigh of regret, the wall crawler focused ahead of him and kept his course. Hoping that he was high enough for people not to see him.
"I just need to go a little bit faster. Man, I really hope if people do see me they won't be able to see the little accident I made."
Taking the chance that he will be seen, Spider-Man let go of his security line and placed both his arms to the side for a small moment to glide in the air. Letting the wind carry him for a short time he instantly extended his arms out, placed two web lines on two structures facing each other, used his super strength to pull, and like a sling shot he launched himself even faster in the air.
"Look! It's Spider-Man!" A random man who was sitting on his folding chair on the side walk said. Most people who caught side of the hero doing such an amazing feat of acrobatics also looked up in awe, but some also tried to take a picture of Spider-Man in hopes of selling it off to whoever is willing the pay for them. Now that the hero was seen speeding across the streets, the people who could see him before he passed them started to shout his name causing everyone to increase in volume as they speak to one another like wild fire about the web hero.
"Where's he going?"
"He must be going somewhere that needs his help. Go Get'em Spider-Man!"
"You rule Spider-Man!"
"You're the real hero in Vale, dude!"
But just as the shouting of cheers and positive words were being spoken, so too did the insults coming from people who didn't like the web head were being mixed as well.
"Show us your face, weirdo!"
"Leave it to the Huntsmen to clean this mess up!"
"Get out of Vale, you clown!"
"Spider-Man sucks!" One man screamed, this one was wearing a T-shirt with Spider-Man's signature arachnid logo in the center, but what made it different was that it had a large 'NO!' on it written in bold red letter. "You're a menace to the kingdom!"
His loud jeering at the hero didn't go unnoticed as one of the Spider fans nearby heard the man making the fan boy grab the man by the shoulder.
"Hey, man, what's your problem? You can't say that to him, he's a hero!" The Spider fan defended his idol.
"Oh please, don't be naïve. The guy is a fool to do what he does and a criminal to do things without the law on his side." The Spider-Man hater countered.
The small argument soon became even worse when more people started to join them in their argument about Spider-Man being helpful or not.
"The guy is a true hero to this kingdom!"
"That man is no better than the White Fang hiding behind a mask!
"If the Faunus really wants an Icon to follow, then the one to lead them is Spider-Man!"
"He's just a menace to society! J. Jonah. Jameson says so on the Bugle!"
"That man is just some idiot spouting nonsense. If he saw what Spider-Man does for us then he would be praising the hero rather than make him sound like the bad guy!"
With both sides gaining more people followers and with no one backing down from their point of view on the web head. It was dust keg waiting to explode, and it was soon ignited when a person who was in the outskirts of the huge two opposing groups picked up a rock on the ground and threw it.
The small projectile hit one of them who was on the Spider fan side causing the rest of them to retaliate in anger that one of their own got struck for no reason. The fight soon became the center of attention making everyone who was present no longer be remembering why they were and instead either run, record, or join in the brawl.
What was just a simple reason to see their hero web swing over their heads now turned full on riot, the police that was ready to apprehend the spider soon changed priorities when they caught wind on their radio telling them that a full-scale fight that needed to be stopped.
"I knew this would happen eventually!" A police officer wearing a bright long sleeve shirt with Kevlar vest said. "Alright boys, change of plans! We need to break up that fight! Get the medics down here too, we should be expecting some injured."
"But, sir! We we're supposed to catch Spider-Man." One of the officers fully dressed in heavy police gear said.
"We haven't seen the wall crawler since we arrived and by now he's already long gone. Now hurry up! I care more about saving people from something like this then catch a guy dressed as a bug!"
With no one asking any more questions, the officers who were stationed close to the docks soon went back in their squad cars and started to drive to where the fighting was being taken place. The same man who ordered them to abandon the arrest of Spider-Man was also driving his personal cop car, with one hand on the wheel and the other texting a message to his daughter telling her that he would probably be late going home.
"Got a message from your daughter, Captain Stacey?" An officer who was riding next to him asked.
"It's from my daughter." He answered. "Just telling her that I won't be home to congratulate her for her new job."
As he was talking, Captain Stacey stopped his car just a few feet from the riot seeing many people running away from the scene when they caught sight of the police.
"So many people." The cop sitting next to his Captain said. "All of this just to see the web guy?"
Mr. Stacey didn't answer his question, instead he looked ahead to see the large fight, both Spider Fans and those against the spider hero duking it out, then opened his door to get started another full day of arrests and paper work.
"Why my daughter likes this spider guy I'll never know."
The business district was always a symbol of the concrete jungle. Never stopping its progress of making better and bigger buildings. The national bank of Vale was one of many examples of progress in the kingdom. Other examples were fancy restaurants for people who could afford to eat there and even fancier hotels for people who could even spend a single night to enjoy the day of luxury. With many other large construction sights just around the corner to match or even surpass their betters, it was a breath-taking sight to see in a birds-eye-view.
Buy when you're the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man you not only see the beautiful sights above, but also see the terrible lies it hides from underneath it's gold and glamor.
Just as more places were being built for better and expensive places it also needs to buyout existing buildings. Said buildings range from small businesses that was just getting started to cheap, affordable apartments for people who moved out of their village or from the other kingdoms to start a new life here in Vale.
All those people now are either moving back to their original home or on the streets begging for change from people who are richer than them. This place was always like this, Jaune knew this since he was like them when he arrived in Vale in hopes to be in Beacon. He didn't bring anything but his families old hand-me-down and a bag with his sleeping gear. The blonde teen didn't have a backup plan like most people who didn't cut it, or able to do a do-over like others who had the chance. Instead he was like the people he was seeing below the streets, alone and down on their luck.
But what made him what he is today was the help of the Parker's and their endless kindness decided to take him under their wing and help him get back on his feet. It was that reason alone that whenever he donned his costume he would always spend more time in this part of the kingdom doing his daily night patrols. Spider-Man knew that the biggest time he had to deal with a high rate of crime was here with things like robbery, arson, murder, and even things he wishes to forget Spider-Man was there to stop it before it became worse. It would have been easier to just clean up the other areas of the kingdom since they didn't have so much crime happening, but this place was what birthed him to be who he was, so it was only right to come back to where it began and repay it with the same thing Ben and May parker did for him.
Kindness.
Spider-Man made sure to do what can and it did show in some parts of this district. It didn't take him over night to clean up some parts, but he didn't have to do it alone thanks to some people who he did help decided to finally help others who are struggling. There has been an increase in help in soup kitchens, more police cars are finally doing more patrols thanks to his effort in taking down Roman who had some cops under his pay roll, and sometimes he would see people who were once homeless now living under a roof. He may only be helping those he could save in front of him, but those he did save are doing the same to others and so forth.
It made him feel a small sense of pride well up inside of him knowing the fact that his personal quest to help the kingdom was holding weight. When he was a kid he was always told from his sisters who were Huntsmen how they protect people from threats like the Grimm and other dangers. He thought being Spider-Man he can only do minimal tasks such as stop fights or help someone lift their car up, so they can change a tire. But now he knows that you don't need to be a Huntsmen to do those amazing tricks they do with their weapons or go to schools to learn more about being a Huntsmen.
You just need to help those who need helping, it doesn't have to involve fighting big monsters, just give a helping hand to small problems when your able. It may not give you recognition Huntsmen get, but it was never the reason to help people in the first place. If you saw someone in trouble it's not just your choice, but your responsibility to help those in need. And for Spider-Man that responsibility is why he's racing down to the bank to stop Sandman from putting more people in danger.
'There it is!'
Letting go of his web line mid swing, the hooded spider was in the air before he used his adhesive ability to stick to a wall of an unknown hotel that was facing the bank that showed no signs of a break in from Flint.
Spider-Man expected to see it in some disarray, but what he saw made him think that Sandman may not be here. The bank itself was still in mint condition, there was the usual guards posted all over the bank, and even the people walking by didn't seem to take note of anything suspicious.
"So why does my spider sense keep telling me that danger is nearby?" He asked out loud.
'The ice is already melting, and I can feel the sand shaking free, Flint must be here.'
Never doubting his spider sense, Spider-Man jumped off the tall structure and shot his organic web lines, so he could circle the bank to see if anything is out of the ordinary. The building seemed to be the same at first glance, but thanks to Spider-Man's danger sense and his photographer side knowing small details the hero found something odd with how the guards were acting.
The guards at the front never seemed to move, not even to stretch their limbs, it was even more weird that when people did try to enter they were turned away when they saw the doors were locked signaling that the bank was closed early.
"Ok, usually the guards I see in the front aren't this stoic." The hero said while swinging to see what the back of the bank was any different.
The back showed differently than the front. One of the big signs that something was up was that there were more guards at the back then usual. It tipped him off that it was weird, since whenever he does his midnight patrols he always made time to make sure places that could be targeted get a few minutes of a stake out to make sure nothing bad happens.
The bank was the few that needed to have a careful eye on since it was where most people go to deposit their money. It was normal to have extra security at night, but the amount at the back was doubled and during broad daylight too.
"Ok, this is weird." The web head said. "These guys aren't the usual day shift security."
How Spider-Man knew this was that when he does his small stake outs at night he used that time to remember faces that worked at the bank. Some of the faces he knew were standing guard which was strange since they are supposed to be at home resting.
'It's a slim and poor excuse to break in to investigate, but if the sand and his spider sense was telling him that Flint was here the Spider-Man had to take it.'
The roof was his best way to sneak in without being seen. Of course, there will be guards on the roof, but with his ability to sense danger Spider-Man was able to avoid them and use the bank's giant air vents to enter the building.
Before he was bitten by the spider that made him have these amazing powers he would have been stuck in those vents shouting for someone to help him. But just like a spider he was gifted with incredible flexibility that helped him squeeze his body and crawl in the vents to see what is happening in the bank.
"Brrrr!" Spider-Man's body shivered from the cold wind blowing in every direction. "Can't these guys turn the A/C down?" Even though he was complaining how cold the vents are he was also thankful of the noise it was producing. With the help of how loud the wind was blowing in the vents he could crawl without worry about making noise that could blow his stealth making it easier for him to be undetected.
The wind that was blowing was also leading him to one of the grates used for the cold air to exit out and cool the inside of the bank it also gave Spidey a way to see if everything was indeed normal.
"Oh, how I hate my spider sense for being right sometimes."
Right underneath the hero, was hostages tied up and in a corner of the bank with the security guards aiming the guns at them with the intent to shoot if one of the hostages decided to stand up.
"1… 3…. 9…. 25! 25 people that need to get out of here safely. But how come people from the outside didn't see them tied up?" The blonde spider asked himself. "Unless that girl with the illusion semblance made it seem it was normal outside!"
'And I can also guess those people guarding outside and the people with the guards aren't real security, but the White Fang! The people I also know guarding the back are probably an illusion too.'
Now the situation became even more problematic with people getting caught in this mix up. But with stealth under his belt Spider-Man continued to crawl in through the vents and used the multiple grates to get a good view of where all the fake guard were stationed so he could make his plan of attack.
The first to be taken down was the two guards walking away from the rest of the group to take a smoke break. With them away it was easy pickings for the web warrior to open the rate and descend upside down with a single web line to lower him close enough to catch them by surprise. Just as the two were about to light their cigarettes, Spider-Man hanged upside down behind them and whispered.
"Smoking can kill you know."
TWIP! TWIP!
Before the disguised White Fang could raise their firearms and shout that Spider Man was here, their faces were covered in webbing muffling their voices so no one can hear them.
Pulling the two webs across Spider-Man's body, the two guard were pulled close to each other with enough force that they knocked each other out. Not wanting to leave them for everyone to see he picked them both up over his shoulder and climbed back in the vents and webbed them up on the ceiling. The same process was used again when some of the White Fang wondered where their friends were making it easier for the hero to pick them off one by one. It went so well that some that only three fake security guards were still near the hostages became frantic at how less and less of their friends weren't returning.
"It's Spider-Man!" One of them shouted in fear. "He found us!"
"Stop waving that gun around man!" His friend told him. "Point it at the hostages and not us!"
"If he is here." The third member of the armed group said in a cold tone. "Then it doesn't matter if we get caught."
With a quick stride, the third armed man forcibly grabbed one of the hostages by the color and dragged her away from her group and out in the open for the three-armed men to do whatever they want.
"If he is here," All three men pointed at the crying, defenseless woman. "Then he knows what we will do to every single one of these people if he doesn't show his face."
Seconds ticked by with the woman crying to fill the void and with Spider-Man not showing up it was decided to prove they were serious.
"Please God…. don't do this." She begged weakly.
"Nothing personal." The man who dragged her said then placed the gun on her forehead.
His finger was already pressing done on the trigger and just as the bullet was about to leave the chamber a web string latched on to it and changed its trajectory.
"AAUGH!" The bullet didn't hit the woman and instead shot his friend who was the first to panic now on the ground clutching his bullet wound.
"Hey, your friend left this at the docks, can you give it back to him?" Spider-Man jumps off the ceiling, threw the melting ice at the man's head, and landed feet first on the shooter's back making him fall face first hard on the tile floor. "Sorry. Nothing personal."
With two out of commission he faced the last robber but stopped moving when the man grabbed the crying woman and placed his gun at the side of her head.
"YOU! QUIT! LEAVE! RIGHT NOW!" He screamed and pressed the gun even harder on her head. "This gun holds over thirty rounds. And I'll tag this girl with every last one of them unless you-"
"The spiders."
"Uh, What?" The White Fang member stopped his demands and looked at Spider-Man in confusion when he saw the masked hero crouch down and placed his hands on the floor.
"I'm summoning the spiders." Spider-Man said to the armed man in an eerie voice.
"What are you-"
"I'm Spider-Man. And your making me mad. I'm summoning spiders. They will come to my call."
To show he meant business, Spider-Man walked a step closer to the scared criminal no longer noticing that he had a gun in his hand.
"Hundreds of them. Thousands. And all of them at my command." Taking another step closer, Spider-Man was now face to face with the criminal now losing his grip of his gun that was aimed away at the girl.
"Because I'm Spider-Man!" The hero shouted causing the scared robber to drop his gun, let the woman go, and raised his arms in the air.
"I give dude, I give!" The last White Fang member said, not wanting the hero to use his semblance to summon a swarm of spiders to kill him.
"Glad to hear it!" The young hero dropped his acting and shot a web to the shooter's face then pulled hard to make the man fall to the ground and used the floor to knock him unconscious.
With the threat clear, Spider-Man helped the woman from her bonds and gave her a pat on the shoulder to assure her the worst is over.
"Help the rest and call for help." The spider hero told her.
"Ok, but what about the fake guards outside?" Her questions were followed by the guards from the front to barge in to find out why one of their own fired indoors.
"Um," Spider-Man looked at the new arrivals who were about to shoot him then moved his head back at the freed hostage. "You handle the rest of the hostages and I'll deal with them!"
The hooded spider didn't waste any more time when the guards from the front finally fired their guns at the hero. Thanks to his enhanced speed and spider sense the hooded hero evaded each bullet with ease. The shooters looked in awe as the hero became nothing but a swift blur of red and blue as the hero dodged automatic fire making their weapons useless to them. With the hero running around the bank some of the walls and windows became impacted with bullet holes loud enough for people outside to notice and scream in panic. One of the wall Spider-Man ran past had a water fountain that was punctured by a few rounds causing the water pipes to burst like a fountain and made half of the bank to be soaked in water.
'Well, now people won't think I wet myself now that my entire costume is drenched in water.'
The hail of bullets soon ended telling Spider-Man they used up all the round allowing him to make his move. Shooting webs at their weapons, Spider-Man pulled them away from the fake guards, leaving them defenseless. The weaponless men now had plans of running away but before they could turn around the hero already attached webs to them and pulled. Their sights were no longer seeing the exit but was replaced by Spider-Man getting closer and closer before their faces met the hero's fists then blackness soon followed.
After the shootout ended, the hostages were freed from their restraints and ran out the front door with the only one left was the woman Spider-Man saved first staying behind.
"With how loud the shots were people from outside are already calling the police." She told the hero. "Thank you, Spider-Man. This kingdom would be less safe if it wasn't for you."
"Don't thank me yet." Spider-Man looked around the ruined bank, his spider sense still telling him trouble is still near. "I still saw more at the back of the bank. Not sure if some are real or not, but right now you need to-"
Before Spider-Man could finish speaking, a large hand made from sand emerged from the doors leading to the other half of the bank, grabbed the hero, and dragged him away. The hand may have caught the hero by surprise, but Spider-Man used the strength in his legs and his adhesive ability to plant himself in one spot. But the floor underneath his feet started to break giving him only a few seconds left before the tiles underneath him breaks.
"RUN NOW!" Those were his last words before the hand made another tug, causing the tiles to break. Spider-Man tried to apply more pressure in his legs, but it did nothing but make a trench with the blond hero being drawn to the doors leading to the vault then closed shut leaving the distraught woman all alone.
Once again. I am a terrible person for leaving another cliff hanger, but I want to make the next chapter the second to last part of the Sandman VS. Spider-Man fight. This was chapter is where Sandman was and how Spider-Man deals with taking care of people who are caught in this type of situation.
I also wanted to add Gwen's dad in the mix too. I knew in the comics he is retired and others he is dead, but for now he is alive and well. This chapter also shows what the effects Spider-Man has on the public with many people love him for his acts of heroism and the other half hating him for going against the norm and being untrustworthy for wearing a mask since people still think of the White Fang when it comes to people wearing masks. Seriously, they wear a mask all the time! I know Raven wears one, but the majority is White Fang.
This chapter also showed how the Kingdom is in some parts of the city. After all, a young teen who ran away from home can't possibly live on his own for long, especially when you have no where else to go. So this chapter was another way to show how Jaune lived when he was rejected from Beacon and how he was saved thanks to Ben and May Parker.
Anyway, to sum it up, this chapter is about how the bad guys are at the bank, the people having a flame war about Spider-Man, plus Sun and Neptune following him and not even calling for more help. Hope you all enjoy this chapter and the next one will of course have Spider-Man deal with Sandman, Mercury and Emerald. I promise!
Please comment to let me know your thoughts are on this chapter and like and fav if you think it rocks. Check out my Beta- Reader and his stories too and give him the same love! Thank you!