Part Three - 'With Great Power…'


I

Officer Hainsworth flashed his badge to the clerk and they waved him past. A smile threatened to crawl across the corner of his lip, but he pushed it down and continued through the corridors of the police station.

Hainsworth reached the lockup and approached the masked hero standing guard. A red domino mask adorned his face and a shield hung from his left arm.

"Now, Aleksei," Hainsworth tapped the comms device in his ear before approaching the hero.

"Patriot?" Hainsworth asked. "I have an order to move these men to Rykers."

Patriot turned his head from the cells and to Hainsworth, an eyebrow raised.

"And where did you get this order from?" Patriot asked.

An explosion tore through the halls of the police station. A shockwave rocked the walls, trails of dust leaked from the ceiling. Officers began to run through the precinct, weapons drawn.

"What's happening?" Patriot stopped a nearby officer.

"It's the Rhino. Must be here for them," The officer tilted his head towards the prisoners.

"Patriot to all available Champions," Patriot stepped from his position in front of the cells and held his finger to his ear. "The precinct is under attack, I need backup."

Patriot turned to Hainsworth.

"Get these men to Ryker's, I'll hold Rhino off," Patriot turned and ran for the explosions, stepping over the thin piles of dust and rubble.

Hainsworth let the suppressed smile rise through his chest and stretch across his face. He walked up to the bars and pressed a small device against the lock. With a click, the bars slid open.

"Looks like you all made parole, boys," Hainsworth's smile stayed adamant. "Mr. Osborn sends his regards."

The men all filed out of the cell, following Hainsworth through the panicked station. The sounds of rumbles and explosions echoed through the precinct and shook the walls. Hainsworth led them through a door and into a stairwell.

"Hey, can you get us outta' these cuffs or what?"

"When we're on the quinjet, just run!" Hainsworth called to them.

He took the steps three at a time, using the bannister to swing around each landing and slingshotting up each set of steps. He came to a stop at a step before the final landing, the wall crumbling open as Patriot came flying through and getting lodged in concrete on the opposite side. His shield collapsed to the ground beside him. Hainsworth stood back with his eyes wide, trading glances with the criminals before turning back to Patriot.

"Uh," Hainsworth scratched his moustache. "Need a hand?"

Hainsworth extended his arm and helped Patriot out of the crater planted into the wall. Patriot breathed heavily and picked his shield up.

"Thanks, officer," Patriot nodded.

"Don't uh, don't mention it," Hainsworth smiled. "Say, you gettin' any backup or what? We're pretty pinned down here."

"More Champions are on the way," Patriot limped to the hole in the concrete, looking down at the calamity below. Rhino tossed chunks of debris and empty cars across the street, moving closer to the front of the precinct. "Get them away from here, we don't have much time."

Patriot jumped out the window, throwing his shield at the mechanized armour encasing Aleksei Sytsevich.

"Aleksei, more heroes on the way," Hainsworth radioed to him. "Be ready for a lift."
"Aye, aye," Aleksei replied.

Hainsworth continued up the stairs and burst through a door to the roof. The criminals filed out after him. The lights around the building and along the street kept the darkness of the night at bay.

"We're in position," Hainsworth relayed over his comm.

A few moments passed. Hainsworth cut free the first criminal and handed him a small pair of pliers to free the rest of the men. He walked over to the edge of the building, looking down at the destructive battle below.

He watched Rhino charg at Patriot, knocking a truck onto its side as he barrelled through. Patriot leapt at Rhino shield-first, bouncing off the chest of the armour and into the air. He threw the shield down, wedging it into a crack at the top of the armour and landed with a kick, wedging the shield down. Rhino launched himself backwards, slamming into the ground. Patriot kicked off the armour and landed with a roll. Rhino pulled the shield from his armour and tossed it straight back at Patriot. He slipped a half-step to the side, allowing the shield to zip past him and lodge itself into a wall behind him.

"Once the backup gets here, Aleksei is going to lose this," Hainsworth commented. "Where's that quinjet?"

Hainsworth spotted a large spanning set of wings in the distance, flying towards them.

"There!" One of the criminals pointed.

"Nope," Hainsworth sighed. "That's the Falcon."

Falcon came swooping in, landing a kick into the back of Rhino's armour, edging him off the centre of his balance slightly. Patriot charged in with the shield and knocked him back. As he fell, a tiny particle zipping across the road below grew until she was half the size of the police precinct, knocking Rhino into the air. She snatched the leg of the armour, slamming it straight back down.

"Patriot, Falcon and Stature are here," Hainsworth said. "I'm aborting this."

"Wait!" A voice retorted.

The quinjet came flying through moments later, hovering at the edge of the building. The back opened and a Russian man inside signalled them in.

"Brother!" Hainsworth said, smiling.

He took the Russian man's hand and came aboard

"Sergei!" Hainsworth called over the quinjet's turbulent engine to the man, his voice now suddenly Russian.

"What time do you call this, huh?"

"I call it just-in time," Sergei smiled, playfully punching Hainsworth.

Hainsworth pressed his hands to a band concealed beneath his police uniform around his wrist. The middle-aged face of the police officer slithered away, revealing a pale white, featureless face.

"Ah yes," Sergei laughed once more. "The chameleon."

"A better name than Kraven, huh, Sergei?" Dimitri turned and closed the back door as the last criminal hopped aboard.

"Kraven the hunter is a much more powerful name, brother." Sergei said. "Aleksei, prepare for pick-up," Sergei spoke into his comm.

"I'm a little busy," Aleksei replied. "Just go."

"We can't leave him," Dimitri told Sergei. "Osborn's orders."

Sergei's smile turned to a frown.

"Can't disobey Osborn, huh?" Sergei nodded to the pilot. "No matter. No Russian left behind!"

The quinjet swooped around the building, firing at the heroes. Patriot blocked the bullets with his shield, while Falcon propelled himself off the ground. Rhino reached out a hand and snatched the tip of a wing. He pulled Falcon back down and pried the wing off, tossing Falcon aside.

"Now!" Sergei called.

Dimitri pulled a lever beside the back door of the quinjet and heard a hook release from the underside of the jet. He looked out the window as a cable swung low, magnetising itself to Rhino's armour and pulling him off the ground. The quinjet struggled with the weight at first, but pulled up as the cable drew Rhino closer to the hull.

"Get us out of here," Sergei addressed the pilot once more.

The quinjet flew faster and higher into the night sky, pointing away from the city and towards the water on the horizon. They flew for almost 40 minutes before the pilot turned and spoke to Sergei

"We're clear, no pursuers."

Sergei nodded back and strolled past the criminals, sitting along the sides, keeping quiet. He came to the back of the quinjet and stood beside Dimitri who had removed the police uniform and wore a black dress-suit.

"You and your suits," Sergei smiled at Dimitri as they watched out of the window of the hull at the clouds and dark skies swooping by.

"You sound like you grow tired of following orders, brother." Dimitri spared Sergei a worried glance before turning back to the window.

"It's not the following orders that worries me, brother. It's who we follow."

"Why? Because he is American?"

"No," Sergei laughed. "Because he is mad man. He flew around on that hoverboard veshch', throwing bombs at people."

"You call that crazy?" Dimitri said. "You dedicated your life to killing a little boy in a mask while dressed like a tiger."

"I was not a tiger!" Sergei exclaimed before calming himself once more. "Besides, crazy or not, Osborn's reign is coming to an end."

Dimitri turned to Sergei, frowning. His arms folded against his chest.

"Because of this girl?"

"This girl is formidable," Sergei said. "And she will find Osborn."

"How?"

"Someone will talk," Sergei chuckled. "They always talk."

"The police, the Avengers, SHIELD," Dimitri started. "None of them could stop Osborn. None of them could make anyone talk."

"Ah, my sweet brother," Sergei placed a hand on Dimitri's shoulder. "It is because they are not convincing! This Laura killed a 90-year old man with cancer. Who won't she kill on this… on this path of vengeance? This girl will take what she wants and leave a vacuum."

"So you wish to be the next Kingpin, brother?"

"No," Sergei laughed. "We are the warriors, brother."

"Then who?"

Sergei turned to Dimitri and smiled. "We will see him in Madripoor."


II

Peter swung the door open. Miles leaned over on the spot, his weight supported by a crutch.

"Miles? You're here early." Peter stepped aside to let him in. "Why aren't you at the tower resting up?"

"I was going crazy in there, and, well…" Miles slid a suitcase over the kitchen tabletop.

"Tony?" Peter sat atop a stool.

"Yeah, Tony," Miles sat down opposite Peter in the kitchen. "He found out about our little mission last night and he flipped. Said we should've known better."

"I agree!" MJ called from the lounge, her eyes not drifting from the computer screen as she typed.

"So, she didn't take it too well?" Miles said softly.

"Actually," Peter smiled. "She's helping us look for more leads."

"Oh," Miles raised an eyebrow. "Well, I found us something."

Miles pulled a tablet from under his arm and laid it out on the counter, tapping the screen once. A video came up and started to play.

A grainy image of the side of a warehouse showed. It was afternoon, though the footage was black and white with the shadows standing out plainly against the well-lit areas of the image. A door on the warehouse swung open and Laura walked out, rocketing straight up into the sky and out of view of the camera. Miles tapped the screen, pausing the video once more.

"We found her," Miles smiled.

"It can't be that easy, can it?" Peter had his eyes trained on the tablet.

"I'll wait til we get there," Miles said. "They might have moved by now."

"We get there?" Peter repeated. "You're still hurt, Miles."

"I feel better, though!"

"Okay then, drop the crutch." Peter folded his arms, a smile spreading across his face as he watched.

"Um," Miles stuttered.

Miles stood up and began pushing the crutch away from himself, but groaned and pulled it back to his side.

"Yeah, okay," Miles sat down. "She really did a number on my ribs."

"Always with the ribs," Peter shook his head. "If I had a dollar for every time Rhino broke a rib, I would never be late on rent again."

Miles stayed silent, his eyebrows curving.

"What is it?"

"I forgot to tell you," Miles said. "Rhino attacked a precinct holding Sandman's crew last night."

"It's on the news right now!" MJ called, turning the TV up.

Peter turned, walking a few steps over to the lounge room. Miles hopped over, standing beside Peter.

"...leader of the Champions, Patriot was the only hero on the scene. He was soon followed by Stature and the new Falcon."

"Looks like Patriot kicked his ass," Peter admired, nodding.

"Rhino was just keeping Elijah distracted." Miles said. "Someone broke Sandman's crew out and got out with a stolen quinjet."

"A quinjet?" Peter remarked.

"Yeah. Tony's furious. They were using Stark nano-tech suits as well when Nathaniel fought them."

"Any leads on who broke them out?" MJ asked.

"Someone named John Hainsworth. He's a high ranking officer or something," Miles said. "Thing is, this guy hadn't been to work for a whole week and now they can't find him or his family."

"That's horrible," MJ gasped. "Does Tony have any leads?"

"Police are looking into it," Miles said.

Peter paced the room slightly, looking at the news footage. A bystander had been recording the quinjet as the criminals jumped in. Peter saw the cop take a man's hand and smile before hopping on board.

"Did Elijah say anything looked off about Hainsworth?" Peter asked.

"No," Miles said. "He was acting normally."

"And he seemed to be happy to see whoever was inside that Quinjet," Peter stroked his chin. "Maybe it wasn't him."

"A skrull?" MJ asked.

"Could be," Miles said. "Tony's intel thinks there's still a few living among us from the invasion a few years back."

"All that aside," Peter said. "We need to find Laura before she finds Osborn."

"Agreed. If she does take him out, there'll be gang wars all over the city," Miles replied. "And we don't have enough backup for something like that with the Avengers scattered across the globe."

"I'll go to the warehouse," Peter turned to MJ. "Any luck with finding out who's on Osborn's payroll?"

"Sandman and Rhino seem to be his top men," MJ told him. "But if we can find that quinjet, my guess is we'll find more of Osborn's guys."

"You should come to the tower," Miles hobbled across the room and stood beside the suitcase. "We have better facilities for you to work with."

"Sounds good," MJ said.

"This is for you, Peter," Miles touched the suitcase. "He said it's a gift."

"A gi- oh, I see what he's doing," Peter smirked and shook his head.

Peter approached the kitchen bench and unlocked the clips along the seam of the case. He looked over to MJ and she gave him a slight nod. He opened the briefcase. There were two web-shooters on either side, pressed into a soft felt interior. Spare web cartridges lined the bottom of the suitcase. Between the two web-shooters was a small cream note folded in half. Peter picked it up and unfolded the pale cream piece of paper, reading the message aloud.

"Just keep swinging."

Miles laughed and Peter just flicked the note away.

"You gonna swing around in a hoodie and a hat?" Miles asked.

"I haven't actually thought about that," Peter said.

MJ got up and walked into the back room.

"Is she mad?" Miles asked.

"No," Peter replied, pulling a confused face.

Miles tapped Peter after a few moments of him staring at the hallway. He snapped out of it and flung his head back to Miles.

"Try 'em on!" Miles bursted out.

"Okay, okay," Peter laughed.

He pulled each web-shooter out, reminiscent of his own previous designs. He slipped each one over his wrists, rotating the triggers around to the centre of his wrists.

"How's it feel?" Miles grinned.

"Weird…"

Peter was unsure how to feel. He stepped out of the kitchen and walked into the lounge room. He crossed past the TV and pulled the sliding door to the balcony open, a wind pressing through the apartment, blowing the curtains with it.

"You might wanna wear this."

Peter turned and saw MJ holding his Spider-Man costume in one hand and the mask in the other. His jaw dropped and he stood still on the spot.

"How did you…"

"I never threw it out," MJ smiled. "I fixed it and put it away."

Peter walked up to her, looking into her eyes as she took the red and blue suit from her hands.

"Why'd you keep it?" Peter asked.

"Because somehow I just knew you'd need it again," MJ said with a grin. "Everyone needs Spider-Man."

"I mean," Miles interjected and raised his hand. "I'm Spider-Man too."

Peter laughed and turned back to MJ.

"Thanks," Peter and MJ hugged.

"Talk to you soon…" MJ pulled away from Peter. "Spidey."

Peter walked past Miles, fist bumping him.

"You still got that earpiece?" Miles asked.

"Right here," Peter pulled it out of his pocket.

"Good luck, Pete," Miles said.

Peter nodded and turned his head to MJ.

"Go get 'em, Tiger."


III

The rain poured over the streets, beneath the intermittent cracks of lightning and thunder. Laura perched atop a lamp post, the bulb beneath a flickering and faded yellow. Across the street was a small white house. The front lawn was well kept, fenced off by white pickets and a small gate. The front window stretched across the front left face of the house and had the curtains drawn back. It revealed a well kept lounge room with a black leather sofa facing a large TV. A boy in his early-twenties sat beside a middle-aged woman with greying brown hair.

Laura jumped down from the lamp post, landing silently on the sidewalk below. The bottom of her black cloak skimmed against the shallow puddles collecting in the dips in the cement.

Laura took a moment, analysing the two figures in the house, standing just outside the light of the lamp. She stepped through the light, walking across the street and to the gate outside the house. She watched the boy laugh and the mother playfully punched him, laughing back. Laura felt her hand glide over the lock on the gate. She fiddled with the latch, but didn't pull it free. She watched the boy and his mother smiling and finally let go of the lock. A tear rolled from her eye as she strode to the right of the house, moving past a sedan in the driveway. She smashed a padlock at the side of the house and pushed the gate open. A dark pathway led down the side of the garage and into the backyard of the house. Laura crept along, staying out of the stretches of light sailing into the yard from inside.

She kept to the edges of the yard, making her way around to a tree beside a row of bushes. She slid under the bushes, rustling some leaves as she went, but finally slithering up behind the tree in a small clearing the size of a broom closet. The bushes fenced her in and kept her out of sight. Behind her was the curved, creamy white fence separating the yard from the next one.

As Laura began digging at a small section of soil beside the tree, she heard the back door into the yard swing open. The lights flickered on and illuminated the grass in front of the tree. Laura slowly swivelled her body around, using the trunk of the tree to hide herself.

"Hello?" A woman's voice called. "Is anybody there?"

Laura breathed heavily. Hearing that voice shook her and all she wanted to do was call back to it.

"Laura, is that you?"

Laura stopped shivering and stared blankly into the dirt she knelt on. She wanted to tell her mother it was her. She wanted to jump out and give her a hug. She waited there for a full minute before her mother went back inside. Laura fought back the tears, suppressing the sobs as she dug into the dirt. Droplets of water splashed against the soil with a gentle thud. The hole went down 5 inches until Laura found a small black box. She pulled it up as her tears came to a stop. She opened the box and rubbed her finger against the silvery-metal surface. She pocketed the key and placed the black box back in the dirt. She heaved the dirt back into the earth and left the way she had come.

As Laura walked away along the sidewalk, she stopped and looked into the window once more and saw her brother sitting there with her mother. She saw her mother glance from the TV and over to Laura. Laura's mouth slid open a touch, wanting to call her name. Her mother brought her hands to her mouth as the boy also noticed her, standing up from the couch. Laura turned to them, removing the mask from the lower half of her face. Her mouth opened to say something, but the words twisted and coiled around one another inside her mind. There was nothing she could say or do. She had chosen her path. She pulled the mask back over her face, turning away from her family.

Laura pulled her cloak aside, revealing the flight pack beneath. The front door opened and Martha stood in the frame, watching her in awe.

"Laura…" Martha started.

Laura turned away and launched into the air, her childhood home becoming a small blip in the distance behind her.


Laura pressed the key into the lock and the door squeaked open. The lab was dark and had a damp smell drifting through the air. Laura's eyes cut through the dark, allowing her to see the room as if it were fully lit. She passed by the tables lining the centre of the room, going around the chairs and equipment. She found a large red switch at the back of the lab and pulled it down. Cobwebs came apart and dust fell to the cracked ground beneath her.

The lights flickered on, emitting a low buzzing. The main computer towards the front of the lab whirred to life, with multiple screens all coming to life one at a time. Laura walked through the lab towards the computer, admiring the equipment as she went. A microscope riddled with old webs and grey dust sat beside a row of test tubes filled with green liquid. Loose papers lined with equations, notes and symbols were scattered across tabletops and along the floor. A large glass chamber lined the wall along the far side of the room.

Laura wiped the dust from the chair beside the computer and sat down. She cleaned the keyboard and turned the computer on. A password prompt came up on the screen. Laura typed a 7-digit word and the home screen popped up. A picture of the Connors family looked back at Laura. She took a moment, staring at the photo. She analysed the faces of her mother, Martha and her brother, Billy. She then turned to the smiling face of her father.

"This is for you, Dad."

Laura moved the cursor and a window popped up. A video started playing by itself. It showed Curt speaking to the camera in the lab with a teenaged boy in the background.

"...so theoretically, Peter, the mixture of DNA will allow the host to regrow any lost limb." Curt said to the boy.

"Couldn't there be a risk of the host gaining unwanted side effects from the donor's DNA?" Peter asked him.

"Exactly right, which is why we mix the serum with a counter agent and the patient's own DNA."

Laura clicked the video, pausing it on a frame of the boy named Peter. She read his name badge aloud.

"Peter Parker, Intern."

Laura closed the video and opened a separate application. A search database stretched across the screen, with a single search bar in the centre. Laura typed the name 'Flint Marko'.

A profile came up, with a picture of Marko and details of his previous arrests and current information. Laura scrolled to the bottom to a window titled 'Known Associates'.

Laura scrolled through the list of common names, landing on Aleksei Sytsevich. She scanned his profile, finding the same window at the bottom. She clicked on a link to 'Otto Octavius'.

The profile expanded across the screen. The headshot of Otto showed a slightly overweight man with a layer of unkempt facial hair. His hairline was receding from his baggy, tired eyes.

Laura scrolled past Otto's criminal record to his current place of imprisonment.

"Ravencroft," Laura mumbled under her breath.

Laura returned to the home screen of the search database and entered a search for 'Ravencroft'. The profile for the facility came up with information on staff and inmates. Laura scrolled to a section showing the schematics of the prison. Laura removed a gauntlet from her wrist and placed it on the table top, connecting a wire from the computer to it. She began downloading the Ravencroft schematics into the gauntlet, watching the map pop up on the gauntlet's screen.

While the schematics downloaded, Laura opened the folder of the computer, bringing up the video journal entries from years prior.

"The first test failed and I… I hurt people," Curt rubbed his eyes. "Luckily, Spider-Man stopped it before I killed anyone."

Laura skipped the video ahead.

"...simple miscalculation, it had to be! Maybe Peter added too much of the counter-serum, that's it! He won't need to call Spider-Man this time!"

"Call him?" Laura mumbled beneath her breath.

Laura skipped it ahead once more.

Curt injected himself with a green vial. Laura skipped ahead, seconds at a time, watching Curt slowly lose control. His skin began to tear as thick green scales took its place. His eyes turned from a hazel to a yellow, slitted stare; the same eyes as her own.

Laura ended the video and pulled up another.

"Laura's blood has finally balanced the serum," Curt said in a tired voice.

Curt moved back, showing both arms fully grown.

"There is only one drawback," Curt sat and rubbed his blonde hair. "I can't stop my Lizard transformations… they're erratic. But I don't lose control anymore. The Lizard and I are one."

Laura paused the video and stepped back, knocking the chair on its side. She revelled in the new information, waiting a few moments in silence. She reflected back to late nights at the lab where Curt would run tests on her blood to assure she wasn't being negatively affected by her inherent lizard DNA.

She slowly turned back to the video, hitting play once more.

"Once I deal with Osborn and can steal enough money, Laura and I can leave! We'll start a new life, just the two of us!"

The video cut short as a notification popped up on the screen. It read; 'Download Complete'.

Laura pulled her gauntlet from the table and fixed it to her wrist. She rubbed the cracked armour on her chest, taking one last look at the video of her father. She let the emotions built up within her become pushed back down. The look of despair was slowly swallowed by a twisted expression of rage.

Laura pulled the mask over her face and turned the computer monitor off. She walked to her right and left through the squeaky old door, locking it behind her.


IV

Peter stood at the edge of the building. He looked out over the city and drew in a deep breath. He looked down at the mask in his left hand, pondering whether or not to put it on. Peter let go of the air in his lungs.

"With great power…"

Peter heard Uncle Ben's voice ring through his ears. He thought of the faces of his late Uncle Ben and Aunt May, comforting him. He felt a semblance of their presence pressing him to take the leap.

Peter pulled the mask over his face and activated the comm-device in his ear. He dove off the building, sailing towards the street below.

"WOOOO-HOOOOOO!"

Peter fired a web to the building to the right of him. He swung low, flinging up into the air and turning over through the sky. He fired another web and kept swinging down the busy street.

"How's it feel?" Miles' voice chimed through the earpiece.

"I forgot how awesome this was," Peter replied.

"How are the web-shooters?"

"They're great! I didn't think Tony would've had them quite dialled right."

"That's 'cos he didn't do it," Miles said smugly.

"Good job, Miles," Peter laughed. "Where's this warehouse?"

"Not too far," Miles said. "Just keep going straight and take a right at the bodega."

"Wait…" Peter said. "Have you got a tracker on my suit?"

"Not exactly," Miles laughed. "I'm tracking the spider-tracers loaded into your web shooters."

"Wow," Peter admired. "I remember the days when the only configuration was web."

"Tony wanted to make everything tech, even my suit," Miles said. "But I said that's not how we do things."

Peter laughed as he swung around the bodega and saw the warehouse on the opposite side of it.

"I'm here," Peter told Miles.

Peter crawled in through a window on the side of the building. He crawled along the ceiling before dropping to the rafters above the middle of the warehouse. He saw a man laying on a couch at the end of the warehouse, snoring in ten second intervals.

"I think Mac Gargan's asleep on the couch," Peter whispered into his comm.

Peter turned to the office above the couch. The light was on and the door was open, but there was no one in the room. Peter jumped across the rafters and landed at the doorstep of the office. He walked through. The table in the corner had been broken in half and the TV was smashed. Papers lined the floor of the room.

"Looks like Laura and Gargan fell out," Peter said. "The office is trashed. Looks like a fight."

Peter's spider sense drifted through his head. He turned on the spot and saw someone coming up the stairs. He jumped to the ceiling of the room and crawled across to the corner.

Tombstone walked into the room talking on the phone.

"...we'll be leaving tonight. I-" Tombstone cut himself short. "I'll call you back."

Tombstone hung up the phone and put it in his pocket.

"I honestly thought you were dead," Tombstone turned to Peter.

"I'm not Spider-Man, I'm your conscience."

"The girl's gone," he said. "No clue where she is."

"Well that sucks," Peter dropped from the ceiling to the floor. "Well you're a criminal, so, you know…"

Peter fired two webs at Tombstone, sticking his arms to his sides. He launched forward and threw a punch, but Tombstone freed a hand and caught it. He kicked Peter back and he shot another web, but Tombstone caught it and used it to toss Peter out the window and down into the warehouse. Peter slowed his landing with a loose line of web. He landed against the floor, rolling with the impact and crashing into a crate, shattering it into splinters.

Mac Gargan slowly approached him, coming over from the couch.

"Well, look who it is," Gargan laughed. "You know I've been waiting for this moment for a long time."

"Sting right? That's kinda' on the nose don't you think?" Peter replied.

Peter stood from the snapped boards of wood, brushing his suit off.

"Well," Gargan powered up his gauntlets. "These do sting."

Gargan fired multiple darts and Peter maneuvered through the air, moving past them. He shot a web at one of the darts and flung it back to Gargan. He grossed his gauntlets across his face and the dart fell to the floor. Gargan ran for Peter and Peter dropped to the floor, sliding across the smooth patch of concrete. He used a web to trip Mac and pulled him to the ground as Peter flung back up. He shot more webs, sticking his hands and feet to the ground.

"You should really think about bringing the tail back," Peter said. "That was too easy."

Peter turned back to the office and jumped up off the ground, sticking to the wall outside the office window. Tombstone was gone. A dart landed in the wall right next to Peter's head.

"Hey!" Mac shouted. "We're not done."

Peter turned and saw Mac standing up, his limbs free.

"Is this for me?" Peter pulled the dart from the wall. "You shouldn't have!"

Peter threw the dart at Mac and jumped, shooting a web at the floor beside Gargan and zipping towards him with a foot raised. Mac rolled to the side avoiding it. Peter landed and ducked beneath a punch from Mac, springing his foot out once more in a sweeping motion. Mac stepped back from the swipe and shot a dart. Peter catapulted backwards and twisted around in the air, shooting a web at Mac's chest and launching back into him with a punch.

"Those darts are really something," Peter flipped back off Mac's chest. "Not as practical as a gun or your tail!"

"Shut it!"

Mac fired two more darts and Peter shot two webs at them both and tossed them at Mac. As Mac danced around the darts, Peter charged forward and threw two punches, cracking Mac's visor and landing a final kick as he flipped backwards. Mac collapsed into the floor and tore off his helmet, tossing it aside. His face was bleeding. Beneath the trickling drops of blood was a vile grimace.

"You're dead!" Mac stood back up, punching the concreted floor as he did.

Peter let Mac charge at him and shot two webs on either side of him. He pulled back before springing forward, his legs pointed at Gargan's chest. He landed into Mac with a huge thud, cracking the armour. Mac rolled along the floor, the air knocked out of him.
"I… hate… you…" Mac said between deep, heavy breaths.

Peter fired a web at Gargan's mouth and webbed him into a cocoon. He dangled him upside down beneath a rafter and spun his own web, hanging upside down across from him.

"Long time, no see, buddy!" Peter waved. "Where's Laura?"

Mac mumbled beneath the webbing.

"Oh right," Peter tore the web off.

"She's gone," Gargan said. "Even if I did know, I wouldn't tell you."

"Fair enough."

Peter pulled the dart out he had taken before, hovering it before Mac's face.

"Wha… what are you doing?" Mac stuttered.

"I'm gonna need more of these," Peter told him.

Peter tore Mac's gauntlet off, peering inside at a loaded dart. He clicked a dial on the side. Each small compartment rotated on the spot, showing some extra darts and some empty compartments.

"Thanks, Scorpion… uh… Sting!" Peter laughed, webbing his mouth up once more.

Peter dropped to the floor below and touched the comm in his ear.

"Miles, send someone in to collect Mac Gargan,"

"Already on it," Miles said. "Any news on Laura?"

"Nothing," Peter replied. "Tombstone was here though."

"Tombstone?" Miles blurted out. "He's been missing for years too!"

"Yeah and he's connected to all this," Peter said. "Have Tony keep an eye on airports, he said he was leaving tonight."

"You think he meant leaving the country?"

"I do," Peter said. "I'm gonna have a look around and see if I can find anything."

"Alright, I'll go speak to Tony," Miles said. "Welcome back, Spider-Man."

Peter laughed as the comms blinked out.


V

Laura smashed the window on the side of the building, high above the grass below. She drifted into the corridor of the Ravencroft institute and disabled her flight pack, landing with a soft thud. She brought the map of the facility up on her wrist and walked down the corridor. She entered a stairwell and looked down, checking for anyone below. She leapt over the railing, using the flight pack to slow her descent. She hopped back over the railing two floors below and left the stairwell onto a floor similar to the previous one. She checked the corridors for signs of people. She crept onwards, avoiding a security guard by taking a longer route around the facility. Speaking came from the corner she had just passed and she leapt to the ceiling, clinging to it. Two nurses passed below her, speaking about a patient. She waited for some distance to build between them before crawling onward.

Laura reached a blocked off corridor with armed guards standing at each door.

"Great," Laura mumbled.

She let her tail creep out of its harness beneath the flight pack. She counted to three beneath her breath, breathing heavily. She charged through the door swinging her tail into the first guard, crunching him against the wall before he saw her coming. She pushed off a wall and launched into the next guard, knocking the pistol from his hand and punching him to the ground. She brought her tail up to block a few gunshots before leaping forward. She swept two guards' legs and tossed their guns at the last two guards advancing on her. She delivered a kick to one of the fallen guards and a tail whip to the other. The final two guards backed away, raising their arms into the air in surrender.

"Drop the guns," Laura told them.

The guards dropped their guns with quivering arms. Laura brought her tail up, hovering over the guards, whirring and rotating at the tip as if it were toying with them.

"Where is Otto Octavius held?" She asked. "I know it's in this ward."

"He's-" the first guard was cut off by the second.

"Jerry, no!"

"Jerry, yes," Laura said.

Her tail whipped into the temple of the second guard, sprawling him across the floor between them. The tail whipped back around, taunting the other guard, Jerry.

"Where is Octavius?"

Jerry fumbled his words before pointing down the corridor.

"He's through that door, guarded by the warden. You'll n-need a clearance card."

Laura raised an eyebrow. The guard swallowed and reached to his belt, handing her his clearance card.

"Thank you, Jerry," Laura snapped her tail and Jerry was laying on the floor out cold.

Laura crossed through the double doors beyond the guarded cells and continued into the solemn silence of the ward. Up ahead was a large android standing at 7-foot tall, looking forward into the hallway, unmoving. Laura crept further on until she was standing right across from the android.

"Move aside," Laura said.

The robot didn't budge. She noticed it had the word 'Warden' painted in white on its right shoulder. It stood out against the black metal it was made of. Across the left gauntlet read another white logo marked 'Stark Industries'.

"So you're the warden," Laura frowned. "Great."

Laura tried to reach past the Warden before it grabbed her hand and shoved it back to her.

"Clearance code needed," the syllables in its words came out staggered and without inflection.

"Here's my clearance code," Laura's tail rose from behind her.

She stabbed her tail forward. The tip penetrated the warden's armour, but the android stopped the tail with a powerful grip and pulled it towards itself. Laura was tripped, but she coiled herself around the tail and used her flight pack to fly up and bring an elbow down on the android. A dent pushed down into the top of its head, but it stepped to its side, releasing the tail, unaffected by the blow. It raised a gauntlet and tried shocking Laura, but the sparks stopped short of her. Laura retracted her tail and began swiping at the android, using her superior speed to get around the androids shocks and jabs.

Laura moved from side to side, landing futile punches of her own. She tried to move their stances and get into the cell, but the android stayed steadfast in front of the cell door. The alarms started blaring as Laura used her thrusters to slide under the legs of the android and pull its legs from under itself. The left leg stayed planted firmly against the ground, but Laura managed to bring it to its right knee. She brought her tail out and coiled it around the fallen leg. The metals scraped against each other as the android tried to free its leg and stand up. Laura clawed at the back of its neck, but the metal was too thick from the rear-side. She stood against the fallen leg, pinning the android in place. She took the arm loaded with the taser gauntlet in right hand, holding it in place, while her tail took the clearance card from her hip.

Laura watched as the tail reached for the lock, swiping the card and opening the door. The android used its free arm to elbow back into Laura, hitting her in the chest where her armour was buckled. She was pushed back, forced to take in breaths of air. The robot stood and spun on the spot, aiming its taser once more. Laura brought her tail around to know the arm to the side, the prods of the taser firing aimlessly. She used the flight pack to fly over the android's head and kicked its head as she went. She brought down her talons, scraping large scratch marks across the warden's back. She flung around as she landed, sending the tail into the android's abdomen, impaling through the layers of metal and wire. The android fell to its side, flailing its arms. Its legs went limp, though it still tried shocking her.

Laura stepped over the android and into the cell. A bald man with a pair of spectacles sat atop the bunk in the corner. He was short and round, but sat patiently, watching Laura.

"And you might be?" Otto asked.

"I'm not here to save you," Laura replied. "I just want information."

"Well, you're in luck," Otto stood from his bed. "You need my help and I need yours. Get me out of here and I'll tell you what it is you want to know."

Laura screwed her face up in discontent. She knew there was no way to get any information like this; she was running against a clock.

"Fine," Laura told him. "Let's go."

"Back that way? No, they'll have an army waiting for you," Otto said.

"We just need to find a window."

Otto walked out of the cell, hopping around the android.

"I have an idea," Otto said. "Hold this thing in place."

Laura raised an eyebrow but did as instructed. She coiled the tail around the android's neck and held its two arms behind its back. The taser tried shocking her, but was just out of reach.

Otto pried open a hatch on its upper chest and used a loose piece of broken metal to tinker with the dials and wires. Footsteps echoed from beyond the double doors at the end of the hallway, drawing closer.

"Whatever it is you're doing, do it quicker," Laura grunted, struggling against the robot's resistance.

"You can't rush genius," Otto took a glance at Laura's tail. "You clearly did, trying to program that tail of yours."

Laura squinted in confusion and scepticism.

"Why, because it's better than your arms?"

"Dear, my arms are a technological marvel and are far superior to that monstrosity," Otto closed the hatch and the warden stopped struggling, its arms falling limp. "That should do it."

"Wow, great," Laura looked at the broken machine. "I could've just crushed it."

"I reprogrammed it to kill anything that moves," Otto said. "We have about 10 seconds before it tries to kill us."

Laura led the way back through the double doors and past the fallen guards. They ran down a corridor leading further into the facility, away from the coming battalion of guards.

"This way," Laura said as she glanced at the map on her wrist.

"Who are you?" Otto asked. "And where did you get that tech?"
Laura ignored him, taking a left into an unlit corridor and ducking behind a loose trolley to avoid a doctor. They waited for him to pass before continuing onward. They could hear gunfire echoing back from the way they had come.

"The warden won't last long against guns," Otto said. "Especially since you crippled it."

"If you don't shut up, I'll leave you here."

Otto cleared his throat but stayed quiet. Laura led them out of the darkened hallway into a main corridor, pushing past rushing nurses and doctors, who steered clear of Laura. She had her tail out, whipping by them, keeping them to the sides of the hallways. Up ahead was a large glass window.

"We aren't going to jump, are we?" Otto told her.

Laura picked up a small trolley full of medicine as they ran, tossing it at the window. The glass shattered as they approached it. In front of them was the ocean, stretching out beyond the walls of Ravencroft.

"Don't move!"

Laura turned, facing a group of guards.

"We jump or you stay here," Laura told Otto.

Otto looked between the guards and the smashed window, the view too high above ground to survive a fall. The guards inched closer, their guns raised. Laura whipped her tail out, snatching a nurse running by them and holding her out in front of the guards.

"Drop the guns," Laura said. "Or I'll kill her."

The guards stopped and gave each other hesitant glances before laying their weapons to the floor. Laura turned to Otto.

"Jump," she said. "I'll catch you."

"What?"

"Too late," Laura pushed Otto out the window and let the tail release the nurse. She dived out the window after Otto. Her tail retracted back beneath her flight pack as it powered up and propelled her downwards. She caught Otto by the lapel of his shirt and scooped upwards before hitting the grass below. They zoomed off into the night sky, Otto screaming as they flew. She saw news vans and bystanders below, their cameras flashing to take pictures as they sailed away through the air.


VI

Flint stood aside Herman Shultz as they approached the docks. A single lamp post lit the edge of the planks beside the calm, shimmering water. A small shack sat beneath the light with an old, rusty door.

"What is this?" Herman asked.

"You're finally seeing the big man face to face," Flint replied.

They walked up to the door and Flint rapped the door thrice, paused, and then another five knocks with a pause after the third tap.

"The big man's in there?" Dimitri replied.

The door flung open and Dimitri's pale white face stepped out of the shadows.

"Dimitri," Herman greeted him. "Been a while."

Dimitri didn't acknowledge him.

"When you're in there, don't talk unless Mr. Osborn addresses you," Flint told him. "And of course it goes without saying; if you tell anyone about this place, you're dead."

"Fine." Herman grunted. "Is he meeting us here, or…?"

Flint headed into the shack while Dimitri held the door. Herman stood on the dock, with a confused look on his face. Dimitri huffed and pointed into the shack. Herman raised an eyebrow and walked in after Marko. The floor was made of marble and reflected the slivers of light from the lamp post outside. Dimitri closed the door behind him and locked the door. The darkness enveloped them and Herman could only just see Flint Marko's outline in front of him.
"Is this a joke?" Herman asked.

There was a loud screech, metal grinding against metal. The floor began moving downwards and lights flickered on. The walls were made of rusted, old metal and the floor was covered in scratches and dirt. There was a large rectangular hole in the wall where the door had been, showing a wire outside connected to the large elevator.

"Underwater base huh? Nice." Herman laughed, clapping lightly.

Dimitri glanced at him with a scowl.

The elevator shuttered to a stop and the lights were cut out. A single door appeared at the cut out hole in the wall. Dimitri used a key with a small light beam and opened the door into a corridor. It was old, but polished clean. Pipes ran across the whole roof along the corridor. They reached the end and opened a pair of double doors into a single round room. There were two doors. Herman followed Dimitri and Marko to the door on the right.

"Where's that one go?" Herman asked, pointing at the other door.

"Further into the facility," Flint said. "Now shut it."

Flint opened the door. Dimitri stood beside the door while Herman and Flint walked through. Dimitri closed the door behind them as Herman looked around the office. It was mostly bare apart from a single desk in the middle. Two lights in the far corners were the only lights in the room. They cast a sinister shadow over Norman Osborn's face, where he sat behind the desk.

"Mr. Osborn," Flint greeted. "This is Herman Shultz."

"Good to finally-"

Flint and Norman glared at Herman, Flint shaking his head slightly in disapproval. The shadows on Norman's face cast an evil scowl at Herman before he turned to Flint. Herman swallowed and looked down.

"The girl?" He asked Flint.

"Well, she broke Otto outta' Ravencroft and one of my guys was there, snapped a video and a couple pictures."

"And what of these images?"

"All we could make out is that she has some sorta' jet pack. Oh- and her eyes look… uh…"

"Reptilian?" Osborn finished the sentence.
"Yeah… yeah, reptilian."

Norman paused for a moment, lost in thought.

"Otto cannot trace us here but he will lead the girl closer," Norman finally spoke. "We must draw her out."

"Find her before she finds us." Flint replied.

"Exactly," Norman said. "There are two plans in place. Either way, she will find her way to us."

"What will we do with her?" Flint asked.

"She will have the same choice all of you have had. Join us," Norman paused and turned to Herman. "Or die."

To Be Continued…


Next: Part 4, 'The Lizard Strikes' coming soon

The media dubs Laura as the new Lizard as she continues her trail of destruction across the city in search for Norman Osborn. Meanwhile, Peter draws closer to finding her, now having fully re-embraced his role as Spider-Man.