SPIDER-MAN: THE GREAT RESPONSIBILITY (CHAPTER 11)
9:40 pm Flushing Chinatown…
Early on, Peter had made his way to Flushing under both Deputy George Stacy's as well as Phillip Chang's request to investigate the mystery in Chinatown. The demonic masked men who had possessed him beforehand were no doubt new players in the whole struggle, even if Hammerhead was the one who hired them.
"Seems like Mr. H really likes inviting the wrong kinds of people." Peter thought to himself as he swung near the area. He remembered a time where he, Harry and Mary Jane have come to the Chinatown for a night out. There was hardly a time to worry about criminal activity.
As of this time, shady business has its place. The triad gangs that plague New York are usually on the move carrying out narcotics business and such with the police being outgunned against them. Peter perched on top of a building where he observed restaurants and other stores closing down.
He then called Phillip and Ned on the earpiece for further information. "So…What's the place you guys walked into when looking for answers, huh?" Peter asked. "It's a place called Golden Fujian. You'll know the place when you see the big fake gold Chinese characters. It's a good restaurant for the most part…" Phillip replied through the earpiece.
"Thanks Phil…" Peter said turning the earpiece off. Peter then looked around the street noting the pedestrians walking by as well as the vehicles driving. "I kinda want to see Martin Li's new office first…" Peter thought to himself, "Need to know if that place is okay…"
Peter travelled to an old narrow soup kitchen first where the F.E.A.S.T. banner was placed above the building entrance. On top of the first floor was the office floor with one of the lights in the window shining. The other was just a dark empty room that had nothing as soon as Peter used his flashlight lens to examine the place.
Peter crawled towards the other window with the lights on. The office had pretty much all the things Peter expected. A desk with a laptop; stacks of paperwork as well as furniture. A family picture could also be seen with two Chinese parents and a little boy. "Looks pretty swell…Wonder if the soup kitchen is going to open soon."
Peter then pulled himself away as soon as he saw Martin Li walk into the room with a plastic bag carrying Chinese takeaway. Afterwards he looked into the office again as he watched Martin turn on his laptop from behind. As soon as the laptop was on, Peter saw that Martin was currently looking through his emails.
Martin opened up an email to which Peter noted was titled 'Redevelopment plans'. Peter carefully observed Martin go through the email and made note of what was written. "What the hell?" Peter whispered to himself.
Subject: Redevelopment plans
Dear Mr. Li,
We hear from you. Our organisation understands your concerns regarding criminal activity in your area. At this moment, we are busy dealing with other enquiries made against our company. Thank you for your patience.
Sincerely,
Fisk Corporations
"Always a choice between Oscorp and Fisk, eh? That sure is another battle going on in New York. Not one I want to be involved with right now." Peter said to himself as he attempted to take a photo of the email. In the attempt to capture the moment, Peter's hand were not exactly tight and the camera slipped.
Panicking, Peter dropped down a little catching the falling camera with a string of web. He then quickly scurried to another side of the building with the camera dangling as he heard Martin open up the window. "Much better…" He heard Martin say before he went back to work.
"Seems like Mr. Li is pretty hard at work. Doesn't seem like anything is out of the usual…" Peter said, "I better check the place I'm supposed to go for proper answers." After putting the camera back inside the belt buckle, Peter made the swing for Golden Fujian ready to take on the triad gangs.
9:43 pm Chameleon's hideout…
Arriving at the quiet suburban area of Jamaica, Hammerhead's men received notice of the news regarding the capture of both Abner Jenkins and André Gerard. With no one else to worry about, it was time to launch a big assault at Chameleon.
Eel, who had been working under Chameleon's nose the entire time was ready to lead a number of Hammerhead's men into the little penthouse Chameleon likes to hide in. A red and white sedan stopped in front of the house with Eel coming out of the red one and not in costume.
Four men were tasked with carrying two timer bomb explosive boxes to bring down the house. Eel, who was in his civilian identity of Edward Lavell had the authoritative charisma of command as he watched the men break down the front gate and knock down the front door.
The men marched forward like worker ants ready to place down the boxes in specific places for the whole house to come down. Eel watched the front of the house with the rest of the men as he listened for the sounds of mumbling.
"God, this thing is heavy…" A voice complained. "It's why these things pack a lot of punch…" Another said as they talked about the explosives. "They better be experts in this…" Eel said snickering as he telling the men around him.
After a few seconds went by, another man's voice was heard. "Hey, there's something stuck in this oven!" The voice cried out. "Is that another timer bomb?" The voice asked, "Who got here first?" "What are you doing?! You just triggered it!" Another voice yelled.
An orange explosion of fire quickly engulfed the house with one man being lifted in the air as the explosion got to him. Landing on the ground with a thud, the man attempted to stand up but was too injured. Eel approached him in front of the house gate and watched as the man begged for help.
"Help me…" The man said before Eel ordered one of the men to put a bullet in him. In an instance, the man was shot in the head by a handgun and laid head down on the ground. Eel watched as the house burned down and also noted that the neighbours may be disturbed.
"Let's go…" Eel instructed as they got back inside their cars and drove away. Eel then got out his phone and made a call to his superior. "We've taken care of the penthouse… But four of your guys paid the price. To be fair though, they were guys who sided with him." Eel said to Hammerhead.
"Pat yourself on the back, Mr. Lavell. I owe you one for the intel." Hammerhead replied on the phone, "It's time to deal with our other friends…" "Yes, sir…" Eel said as he ended the call.
9:49 pm Golden Fujian…
White Dragon and his gang were prepared to close down the restaurant at 10 pm. Behind closed doors, the gang could discreetly pull off some of their shady dealings. Today, the gang was counting the amount of revenue they made from tax payments given to them from New York citizens terrorised.
Sitting around an encircled table with at least seven other men, White Dragon's beady eyes shuffled through the tax papers as the men passed them along after writing a few notes on them with pen. "This house isn't meeting the demands…" One gang member said in Hakka passing forward a paper.
White Dragon hastily grabbed the paper and read through it before scrunching the paper up. The triad crime lord got up from his seat and licked his razor sharp teeth. "Could it be the young boy's family?" White Dragon said referring to Phillip.
"It's an old lady and her son's. Should we give them an extension?" The gang member asked. "I'll think of something better…" White Dragon said smiling maliciously. The doors in the room suddenly opened with one of White Dragon's men being pushed forward by men wearing black and white demonic masks and carrying rifles.
One of the men spoke in Mandarin demanding an update on the progress of a drug's manufacture. "Your medicine can wait…" White Dragon snarled upon being interrupted. "Not anymore, he wants the new formula finalised…" The man informed pointing his rifle.
Meanwhile, Peter was making his way through the ventilation system which happened to be tighter than others he's been through. "Ugh…The stench in this place and the length of it…" Peter said as he crawled through. While he was making his way through the winding ventilation system, Peter contacted Phillip and Ned via the earpiece.
"So what can I expect from our dragon friend?" Peter asked wondering about his upcoming foe. "Bad breath. Bad teeth… A wierdo in a white suit and get this… He may actually be a 'mutant'." Phillip answered. "A mutant? You mean like a guy who was born with…" But before Peter could say a thing, Phillip corrected him. "Okay, probably not the right term. More like a guy who's been modified to uh… Do things hence his name."
"Okay, so he breathes fire…" Peter said leading to Phillip staying silent for a moment. "It's… Not quite fire. Just stay out of range." Phillip advised, "You know… It's like you're a level 5 player going against a level 20 boss enemy. Don't underestimate this dude."
Phillip turned off leaving Peter to wonder about things. "That video game analogy sure makes me uncomfortable. And it sure worked its way into Phil." Peter thought to himself. As Peter continued crawling, a rat came darting towards him before it turned its back away from him. "Oh gross…" Peter said as he worried about running into a swarm of rats.
Meanwhile the situation started to escalate inside the room. "Your resistance will not bode well…" The man in the demon mask insisted in Mandarin. "You answer to me…" White Dragon said, "I keep the community running and when they ask me for help, they give me their loyalty…" The masked men looked at each other before coming to a decision.
"Very well…" The masked man said pointing his rifle but before he could fire, one of White Dragon's men opened fire gunning him down. "We won't ever bow to the Demon…" White Dragon insisted before shouting 'attack' in Hakka. The place turned into a small warzone with White Dragon's men shooting down the demon masked men like flies.
Peter could hear the violence from a certain distance as he crawled his way towards the danger. Upon reaching the ventilation grating, he watched the last bit of gunfire being traded. The masked men who entered the room had been shot down. "Such a petty threat…" White Dragon said spitting on one of the corpses.
One man from White Dragon's crew who had been shot crawled on the ground as he tried to resist the pain. White Dragon picked him up and changed his skin colour to bright red. Peter watched as the crime lord's eyes turned yellow and at that moment, he saw what he was up against.
Fumes came out of his mouth causing the White Dragon's victim to gag. In a flash, Peter watched in horror as White Dragon breathed out fire onto the man. The instance reminded him of the Godzilla movies where Godzilla would breath out his atomic breath.
The man's remain were nothing but a pile of blackened ash as White Dragon's hand began to feel nothing but the air. "I'm afraid I can't afford the medical bills anymore…" White Dragon said in Hakka while his other men were looking away.
In a hurry, Peter came out the ventilation system and landed in the middle of the table. The triad gang were caught by surprise at the web-slinger's appearance. "Sorry to come in here… Chomposarus Rex. But there's quite a bit of stuff you're involved in." Peter said as the gang turned their attention.
"The Spider-Man…" White Dragon growled, "A nuisance in this city and the Demon's latest servant…" "The Demon's servant? Uh, can we backtrack to that part for a sec?" Peter asked. Instead of being annoyed, the White Dragon laughed.
"You can't escape his grasp that easily once you takes a hold of you. He holds a hand into every beating heart as he pleases…" White Dragon replied. Peter then felt a little dread as he thought about how the negative influence may still be in him.
"You look scared…" White Dragon said as he began to circle the table while his men were ready to open fire. "You're bluffing…" Peter laughed nervously, "I mean sure… You might know a thing about something but… I mean you literally are a dragon!"
"My powers are a special gift bestowed to me as I control this clan…" White Dragon boasted, "It is an inseparable gift of leadership." "Well whatever it is… I hope it's some kind of chilli powder." Peter said before realising that he should be interrogating for answers.
"Petty witticisms won't save you, I'm afraid." White Dragon said as he ordered his men to open fire. Peter leaped away as the table broke into pieces, once he was on the ground he kicked one of the men on the back. The men attempted to keep track with the agility but were no match.
Peter managed to swing back bits of broken table with one quip being, "Here's your takeaway." As this happened, White Dragon caught all the pieces of the broken table as Peter continued swinging them at him for as long as he could.
Alone in the room with unconscious and dead bodies, Peter faced the White Dragon as he took on his fighting stance. As White Dragon's skin turned red and eyes became yellow, Peter prepared as he fired a sizzling and smelly beam which created a gaping hole on the wall.
"I think you're better off using your fists…" Peter commented. "I can afford repairing this place anytime I want…" White Dragon said remaining in his mutated form. Peter tried webbing the crime lord but found that he could chew through the web with just his teeth as well as claw through with his nails.
"How does it taste?" Peter asked noting White Dragon's gnawing habits. "A fine dish for this place's main menu…" White Dragon said as he stomped his way towards Peter while a string of web hanged from his mouth. As the fight continued, another wave of similar demonic masked men made their way in carrying scythes, batons, katanas and even whips. All of which beamed with black electrical energy.
The men stopped with Peter addressing them. "I got this guys, don't worry…" Peter said pretending that they were still his allies. White Dragon felt more like a bumbling fool the moment he had crowd watching him. White Dragon opened his mouth wide open which gave Peter the chance to shoot balls of web into it.
The last shot had Peter hang onto the web string before sending forward an electrical current. Shocking White Dragon's tongue, the crime lord went down with Peter kicking him on the chin knocking him down. The White Dragon changed back to his human appearance after this.
Peter stood triumphantly while the masked men behind him started walking forward and enclosed around White Dragon. "Hey… Uh, what are you guys doing?" Peter asked seeing them surround the crime lord. The White Dragon groaned before one of the men kicked him and attempted to slice him down with a scythe.
In an instance, Peter shot out a web to stop the masked man from delivering a killing blow. "Can't you see he's beaten?" Peter asked holding on the web. Without a hesitation, Peter was knocked down by a man with a baton before other men jumped him and held him on the ground.
"What are you doing?!" Peter asked as he was pinned down by the strength of three men. Peter watched as the man with a scythe slashed White Dragon across the body causing him to scream in pain as the black energy accompanied the blow.
"Wait!" A voice called before anymore damage can be dealt to White Dragon. As the voice called out, Peter turned a little to see the men move aside for the leader or as White Dragon calls him, 'The Demon'. Unlike the rest of the men who wore standard black and white attire, the leader was a man wearing a black and white demonic mask that encased his entire head rather than a simple face mask.
The leader also wore a photonegative/monochromic suit and tie with the white colour forming the jacket, the trousers and the tie. The shirt was the one thing which was black. Peter also noted the black hands as well. He watched as the leader carried a katana sword sheathing with black electrical energy.
In the Demon's presence, Peter felt a sense of weakness and knew that this was the man who took control of him. The leader of the demon gang stopped in front of the helpless White Dragon and turned around to look at Peter as he watched helplessly while being pinned down.
"Today will be the day where I teach you something, Spider-Man." The Demon said in his distorted voice, "You've done a great service bringing him down." Peter attempted to speak before a baton struck across his face.
The Demon picked White Dragon by the head and dragged him with his sword on his opposite hand. "Do you know who this man is?" The Demon asked, "The suffering he has caused for many people?" Peter could not answer as he watched helplessly as the Demon smacked White Dragon across the face with his right hand.
White Dragon fell over before the Demon pinned him against the wall by shoving the katana sword onto his left shoulder. "This is scum… City filth. Who manipulates the system of justice to prey on the weak." The Demon said, "And starting today, we will establish a new order."
"Please…" Peter pleaded as he felt his body pressed down by the heel of one masked man. "Before I finish his sentence… I need you to understand one thing." The Demon requested, "If we must save everyone…We must be willing to sacrifice one thing for the greater good…"
Turning his attention away from Peter for a moment, the Demon took out the katana sword from the left shoulder of White Dragon before kicking him onto the ground face down. To Peter's horror, the Demon plunged his katana sword down onto White Dragon's spine.
White Dragon briefly changed to his mutated form before the Demon took out the katana and stabbed the blade onto the back of his head killing him. "No!" Peter let out for a split second before the men on him pressed him onto the ground harder.
The Demon walked away from the dead body and ordered his men to let go of Spider-Man before holding him on the chin. Pushing the katana blade close to his mask, Peter stared into the emotionless expression of the Demon's mask. "We want you on our side, Spider-Man…" The Demon insisted, "We benefit each other so much from our alliance."
"Not with these extreme methods and not when I can't do the things I want to do." Peter said in defiance. The Demon then smacked Peter onto the ground in disappointment. "Such a waste of an ally…" The Demon said as he raised his blade before he stopped, "No, this is a lesson after all."
The Demon stopped what he was doing before walking up to one of White Dragon's unconscious men. Using the palm of his hand, the Demon brought the man back to his feet changing his skin tone to a monochromic grey colour as he stood up.
From that moment on, the Demon possessed him to obey his words. "Recruit the others…" The Demon ordered as the rest of the masked men possessed the rest of White Dragon's men. "Yes, master…" The possessed man answered and did the same thing as the Demon. Peter laid on the ground as he watched every single one of White Dragon's men be converted until White Dragon's corpse as well as the dead masked men were all that was left.
"Watch what a real hero does to save people…" The Demon said leaving Peter by himself. Hearing the sirens close by afterwards, Peter muttered the strength to get up quickly and took the exit through the same ventilation system he used to enter.
11:55 pm Parker residence…
After failing the investigation for George Stacy as well as failing to find answers for Ned and Phillip, Peter just wanted to rest. His suit smelt terrible as a result of climbing through the Golden Fujian's vents which caused Peter to hide the suit in his own bathroom. Peter pulled the plug off the walkie talkie given to him by George as he set it onto the desk in his room.
He didn't bother with messaging or communicating with his two eyes and ears as he laid onto the bed with a grey shirt and boxers. Slowly drifting away, Peter's eyes drooped as he went to sleep and hoped he can just relax.
However the sleep was interrupted at around 2:30 am when Peter heard a noise from downstairs. Rubbing his eyes and getting up quickly, Peter put on his web shooter wrist bands before quietly opening his room door.
He tiptoed all the way to the staircase as he made his way down to the dining room. Turning on the lights silently, Peter startled both himself and the person in the dark. "Aunt May?!" Peter said breathing heavily. "Peter, my god…" May said putting a hand over his heart, "At least say a word before you come down."
"You're out of the hospital…" Peter commented. "Well, I wanted to be better as soon as possible." May replied, "I'm sorry I woke you up." Peter then ran up to May and embraced her, "Is it really you?" "Peter? What's gotten into you?" May asked as she held onto her nephew hugging him.
"Nothing…" Peter said letting go, "I'm just glad it's really you. A part of me was thinking that…Uh…You were the Chameleon." Aunt May sighed, "Everywhere around the neighbourhood does feel dangerous lately." "Did you walk home all by yourself? Late at night?" Peter asked worryingly.
"I did…" Aunt May admitted, "Although I should have waited till morning. It's just that I'm fine now." May then touched the area located near her abdomen. "You better be right about this…" Peter insisted. "The doctor who looked after me did a tremendous job. He worked his hours getting me fixed." May replied.
Peter blinked before yawning a little. "We should both rest up… Although I won't be working tomorrow. There's no job for me now." May said, "Sorry for all the ruckus." Peter nodded before walking back upstairs relieved that Aunt May was alright.
8:05 am Midtown High School…
Peter did not get enough sleep as he hoped last night leaving him in a terrible hangover as he walked to school. As he walked to the entrance, he saw Ned and Phillip and caught up with them. "You didn't talk after the whole thing…" Ned said. "Thank god, you're alive…" Phillip added.
"Sorry guys…Last night was another wild ride." Peter said raising his hand up. "Don't worry… I heard the news." Phillip said pulling up a Daily Globe article on his phone.
TRIAD GANG WAR SHAKES UNDERWORLD LEADERSHIP
By Edward Brock
Last night, a fight erupted at the Golden Fujian restaurant in Flushing Chinatown. Tsui Fong, the White Dragon and leader of the Dragon-Lord gang was involved in a fight with the demonic masked men who are officially known as the 'Inner Demons'.
This name comes evidence gathered from surviving triad members who shared this information to police in the Flushing precinct. "I don't know what happens next. They're claiming that we don't know what we're dealing with. So I, myself am weary…"Captain Liza Sanderberg of Flushing commented.
The origin of the Inner Demons is relatively unknown with many of the triad members questioned refusing to spell out the details. "It's like a real evil spirit watching us," An anonymous member from the Dragon-Lord gang stated. The evidence of the organisation's identity also brings light to the people Joseph Cavallaro (Hammerhead) has hired as part of his gang war against the Chameleon.
The conflict between the Dragon-Lords and the Inner Demons ended with the death of Tsui in what appears to be two stab wounds on both the spinal cord and the back of the skull. Though he was a notorious crime lord, Tsui Fong did have mourners who claim that he did care for his Asian community members.
Some argued that his death was warranted and that they are liberated from his oppressive control. The current status of the Dragon-Lord gang being leaderless begs the question on the uncertain future on the motive of the Inner Demons. As of now, we are left with vague interpretations and questions of this new organisation.
"Well, a part of me is glad he's gone… But without a trial, it's pretty messed up." Phillip commented being glad that his family does not have to put up with his troubles. "That may be the case but these 'Inner Demon' guys could mean worse if we don't understand their motives any faster." Peter added, "Funny how I'm not mentioned."
Jason Ionello, the guy who edits the 'Midtown Special' magazine for school approached the trio with several copies of the magazine. "Sup guys? You guys want to read the latest?" Jason asked handing a book out. Ned then grabbed three copies from Jason before saying "Thanks."
"By the way, Mr. Kerrington… The English teacher who worked around here for a couple of days. He's not around anymore." Jason informed as he walked off. Peter was relieved a little after hearing that. "Man I miss Mrs. Winterhalter. She literally made English almost as fun as science…" Peter said, "I wonder what he's up to next."
After worrying a little about Chameleon, Peter then noticed Gwen walk and decided to approach her after remembering the cold shoulder he gave her when Aunt May was hospitalised. "Uh…I'll catch you guys later…" Peter said as he walked up to Gwen. "I'm sorry but did Peter ever tell you that he was seeing someone?" Ned asked Phillip before he gave Ned a funny look.
Walking up to Gwen, Peter surprised her a little. "Oh, hey Peter…" Gwen said. "Gwen… I just want to say…I'm sorry for brushing you off at that time." Peter said, "I…I was just in a bad state of mind." "You look as if you didn't sleep well last night by the way…." Gwen noted looking at Peter's eyes.
"Well… Aunt May came out of hospital at around 2:30 am. It was a little jarring but I'm glad she's okay…" Peter said. "I'm glad too…" Gwen said lighting up a little, "How are you now?" "Aside from the lack of sleep, I'm fine now." Peter said, "Anyway… We're still on with graduation right?"
"Yeah… Yeah, we are. Gotta pick someone." Gwen said laughing a little. "That's great… It's really that special time of the year when we're dealing with exams." Peter replied. "Hey Peter, we've got class now!" Ned called out interrupting any further moment between the two.
"Right…" Peter said, "Let's go then." Together Peter and Gwen walked together almost hand to hand as they made their way to the school entrance.
9:05 am Elsewhere in Queens, NY…
With most of his allies gone as well as one of them being a turnout, Chameleon had to hide out. He was not giving up on his dreams and ambitions. Using the last prosthetic mask with him ever since his base was destroyed, Chameleon sought to find a way to focus on to improve the holographic technology he had with him.
Disguised as a homeless man in the alleyway tinkering the wrist-watch looking device on his arm, Chameleon wanted to figure out a way in which he could fit a database of identities into the device with every attempt leaving him frustrated.
Soon after, Chameleon felt an unsettling presence upon him and looked up to see two Inner Demon masked men standing on both ways of the alleyway. Paranoid, Chameleon grabbed out his plasma knife from his pockets and waved it.
However Chameleon dropped the knife as his head began to hurt. His worldview turned dark and bleak and the masked men began to look like tall disorienting demonic figures.
"Do not be afraid, Dmitri…" A distorted voice said in his head as soon as Chameleon closed his eyes. Chameleon opened his eyes again to find that the world went back to normal. However while the four men who approached from both alleyway ends were still there surrounding him; Chameleon also saw the Demon behind them.
"What are you?" Chameleon asked the Demon puzzled. "I followed your mind… I know you tapped into my powers." The Demon answered. Chameleon then remembered the moment he looked into the demonic mask back at his hideout.
"Whatever Hammerhead has hired, I hope he knows what he's doing…" Chameleon said feeling uneasy. "Oh no… Like you, we're very much against him." The Demon said. "Just who the hell are you?" Chameleon asked again.
The Demon then took off his mask surprising Chameleon very much. It was none other than Martin Li in his photonegative form. "You…But…I…" Chameleon stammered remembering that he was responsible for the destruction of the Queens F.E.A.S.T. centre.
"Their deaths will not be in vain…Don't worry, Dmitri." Martin said placing a hand on Chameleon's shoulder assuring that the deaths at F.E.A.S.T. are forgivable, "At first, I wanted to go after you. But the truth is that you're a very much victim of unfortunate circumstances. I understand why this all happened."
"Then what do you want?" Chameleon asked. "I want you to help me bring down Hammerhead. The true cancer in this neighbourhood. The one who caused us most of the pain." Martin informed, "And you my new friend can succeed where areas Spider-Man failed."
"I am no slave." Chameleon retorted. "I don't need you to be one. You alone can judge for yourself…" Martin insisted, "All I want is to help people through my organisation as well as in this state. You on the other hand, can dream a happy life… And I promise not only is Hammerhead on the list. But I will give you Spider-Man."
Chameleon attempted to process the request but not much thought could be given when Martin Li has the power of persuasion as well. "It's not an easy offer to refuse…" Martin said with his eyes glowing white.
TO BE CONTINUED…