Author's Note – I do not own any of the characters, Marvel and DC do.

.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

A Sinister Group

.

"Gentlemen, welcome." Kingpin said as he looked at the six Supervillains stood before him. "As I am sure that you have already guessed, I have a proposition for you."

Wilson Fisk paused for dramatic effect even as his gaze swept across the group. Doctor Otto Octavius looked unreadable behind his shades, but the twitching of his artificial tentacles made guessing his dominant emotions easy for those who had studied him. Beside him was Eddie Brock, almost unrecognisable as a human due to his symbiotic covering while Sandman loomed behind them. To one side, Aleksei Sytsevich (better known as Rhino) shifted impatiently in his stylised mech-armour, uncaring that Adrian Toomes, better known as the Vulture, was perched on his shoulder. The final member was even less readable than Otto due to the near-spherical helmet he wore atop his green armour, a helmet which Wilson knew was liberally festooned on the inside with datascreens and was controlled by eye-tracking and facial twitches.

"The six of you have capabilities that complement each others strengths while covering their weaknesses. In addition, you have all got something in common, the desire for money. Money that I can provide. As a show of faith, I have already placed a hundred thousand dollars each into your primary bank accounts."

"He's telling the truth." Mysterio said in an echoing voice. "I just checked my account and the money is there."

"Same here." Doctor Octopus said, returning a small computer tablet to his inner coat pocket. "You have our attention, Mr. Fisk. Who do you need taking down?"

"Eventually, Spider-Man." Fisk growled. "He has become… a nuisance. He has recently been revealed to be a student named Peter Parker…"

"Parker?" Octavius said in surprise. "I remember him from when I was teaching, he was a very bright young man."

"He has joined a new team, the New York Guardians, which is annoying." Fisk said. "A certain acquaintance of mine wishes to know the secret of Spider-Man's powers. Your mission is simple. Capture him if possible for a full medical analysis. If you cannot, then kill him and return with his body, or at least several DNA samples so that they can be analysed."

"Why not just shoot him?" Vulture asked and Fisk sighed.

"He has some kind of limited precognition. He dodged the bullets."

"That will complicate things." Otto mused. "I will need to work on the plan, but it would seem that a basic converging strategy would be for the best."

"Hey," Venom rumbled. "Would it help you if we told you that we were once linked to Spider-Man? It was while he still lived in Queens, but he rejected us and so we joined with Brock and became Venom. We know his powers, he cannot sense us when we attack."

Fisk's eyebrows shot up even as Otto smirked. "Yes, that does help. I think a hostage situation would be feasible. I will need to see your files on him, Mr Fisk, but I think he does indeed have a relative that we can target to get to him."

"I will have a copy of the files assembled by Smythe on Parker delivered to you within the hour." Fisk nodded and pressed a button to sommon one of is underlings. "I have prepared a temporary hideout for you you, this man will take you there. If you like it, then maybe we can make this arrangement more than a one-time thing."

"Much appreciated, Mr Fisk." Otto said. "Once we get there, we will certainly discuss our future prospects."

"Who made you leader?" Rhino grunted and Otto turned to face him.

"No-one, but when we get there, I believe that leadership will be one of the things that we should discuss, along with a general idea of our powers and abilities."

"Well, Octavius has my vote." Mysterio commented as he moved towards the door.

"We can work with him." Venom growled as he stalked out of the office. "For now."

"I'm in." Sandman grinned as he walked out, small grains of sand rolling after him.

"I believe that our newfound comrades have the right idea, Rhino." Vulture mused. "Come, let us hasten to inspect our newly acquired abode."

"Huh?"

Vulture sighed. "Dumb it down, Adrian, dumb it down. Rhino, let's go check our new digs."

"Why didn't you say that before?" Rhino rumbled as he quickly strode out of the office, Vulture ducking before he could be knocked off by the top of the doorframe.

.

"Whoah." Rhino muttered as he clambered out of the lorry and looked around the cavernous warehouse. "Nice."

"The Kingpin arranged for these three warehouses to be linked and refitted." Said the driver as he climbed out of his cab. "To the left is the living areas with the bedrooms, bathrooms, fully-stocked kitchen and recreational area including a gym. To the right is the work area, outfitted with the latest in technology should you need to upgrade or create anything new. There are several tunnels linking to the subways, the docks and other areas."

"My wings could use a bit of tweaking." Toomes noted as he started towards the right. "Otto?"

"I'll get my things put away first so that I don't forget to do it later." Otto said and Adrian paused, then turned round.

"Good point. Me too."

Rhino grunted and lumbered towards the archway through which the kitchen was visible.

"I'm hungry."

"Then after we have consumed our mid-day repasts, we shall confer." Otto said and Rhino gave him a confused look.

"He said we'll talk after lunch." Vulture supplied and Rhino nodded.

"Okay."

.

"Dammit!"

Five heads snapped round as Otto stalked into the main area of the base. "We may have a problem getting to Spider-Man's aunt, she is residing at the Xavier Institute."

"So we just smash our way in." Rhino shrugged, but Mysterio made a negating motion with his hands.

"I have seen the defences of the Institute while I was seeking new technology. Not even all of us together would be able to pass the walls, let alone get into the mansion. Even if we did, the Mansion is the home of the X-Men and they are not to be underestimated."

"I believe that Superman is linked to the place as well." Vulture noted.

A long silence fell, then Rhino bashed his metal fists together. "I smash him too!"

Toomes facepalmed, causing Rhino to give him a confused look.

"Rhino, Superman is so strong that he could rip your suit apart in seconds. Not even your missiles would hurt him."

"My what?"

Toomes slumped. "Dear lord! You mean you… you didn't even bother to read the instructions when you grabbed the suit?"

Otto tapped Rhino's shoulder with a tentacle. "I believe that I should examine this suit of yours at the earliest possible moment. It obviously has more functions than you believe."

"He wants to see if your suit is even more awesome than you think it is and then tell you how to use all the awesomeness." Toomes translated without bothering to look at Rhino's confused expression.

"I will research our adversaries." Msterio announced as he faded out of sight.

"I hate it when he does that." Sandman grumped.

.

"So." Otto Octavius said, looking round at the assembled villains. "Our original thought was to seize Parker's aunt and hold her to force him to come to us. Given what Mysterio has uncovered about how fast other teams can respond and how many favours Xavier can call in, I think that we can agree that the plan is a non-starter."

Rhino sulked as everyone else nodded.

"On the plus side," Otto continued, "We have managed to reconstruct the dozen or so favourite patrol routes that he has. Victor, I believe that you should take over now."

"Thank you, Otto." Victor said as he stood up and ran a hand over his bald head. "Using our enhanced mobility, Otto and I placed several remote cameras around Manhattan in strategic locations. These cameras coupled with the information that the Kingpin gave us means that we can predict where Parker will be with a high degree of confidence over the next few days. We have identified three routes that take Parker past a certain bank. We intend for Rhino to rob it."

The other villains looked confused and Otto smirked.

"Parker is used to working alone. Unless he thinks he's outmatched, he probably won't call for help. Once Rhino has engaged him, we can move in and herd him into a pre-positioned trap, allowing us to capture him. Once he is secure, we can throw him in a van and let the Kingpin's ally do whatever he wants with that damned wall-crawler."

"Do we know who this ally is?" Sandman asked and Mysterio bowed slightly.

"Yes. He goes by the name Jackal and is a gifted geneticist."

"Interesting, but not very germane to this conversation." Otto stated, catching their attention. "The map, please."

Mysterio gestured and the table seemed to shimmer before rising into a three-dimensional map of Manhatten with several buildings pulsing in blue, as well as several trails of golden light weaving between the towers.

"This is the Angel's Rest, the headquarters of the New York Guardians." Otto said, using one tentacle to point to it. "The light strings are the routes usually taken by Parker on his patrol. We will deploy near the bank and wait to see which route Parker takes. If he takes one of these three routes, we will continue the plan, otherwise we fall back for the day. Assuming that he sticks to the routes, Rhino will go in when Parker is less than a minute away from the bank…"

.

Galatea rose from her bed and stood still, the metal contacts on her forehead gleaming in the low light. As the lights rose, the bands of circuitry reaching from the contacts round the back of her head came into view, as did the contacts on the backs of her hands and the strips of circuitry extending from them to underneath her blue-and-purple bodysuit.

"She is prepared, My Lord." Sinister said with a deep bow as he stood aside to let Apocalypse enter. "The suicide device that Magneto had implanted into her has been removed and the control systems optimised for her physiology."

"Excellent." Apocalypse rumbled as he slowly circled the unmoving clone, examining her closely.

"The control systems have been reinforced against damage due to her powers being best for melee combat." Sinister continued. "I have also managed to slightly boost her strength and power. Although not at your level, she should be more than a match for any Kryptonian."

Apocalypse nodded as his gaze travelled down to Galatea's boots, then up again to her raised collar.

"And My other two Horsemen?"

Sinister bowed again. "They are waiting in the next chambers, My Lord."

.

Magneto rose from his bed and stood still, his cape rippling slightly and his helmet floating above his head. On his forehead were two contacts that had a line of circuitry extending round the back of his head.

"Magneto, My Lord." Sinister said from the door. "I did not need to do anything to his powers as he is an Omega-class mutant himself, although his mental issues mean that he rarely used more than a tithe of his power."

Apocalypse nodded thoughtfully as he looked at the white-haired figure.

"You have done well, My Seneschal. And what of those who followed him?"

"Mostly captured by the authorities, My Lord, with the rest in hiding. Once they see him by your side, they will re-appear and ask to serve you."

Apocalypse smirked. "As they should."

"Yes, My Lord."

.

The figure standing in the middle of the room seemed to ripple and flow as its surface contours kept changing. One moment, it was a tall, blond male, then a short, red-headed woman.

"Morph, formerly a member of X-Force until I managed to capture him." Sinister said unprompted. "His original powerset was rather uninspiring, he could transform himself to look like other people, just like Mystique can. I took that power and enhanced it. Now, he can absorb DNA samples and transform himself into a physical clone of that person, complete with any natural powers that they possess. Right now, he is integrating the looks and powers of every mutant who has been through the Cure process."

"A truly fascinating ability." Apocalypse finally stated.

"I have yet to work out how to let him use more than one powerset at a time without risking him destabilising." Sinister admitted ruefully.

"It matters not, My Seneschal." Apocalypse stated. "Know that I am pleased with your work."

"Thank you, My Lord."

Apocalypse started to turn, then paused. "With the new powers you have gifted him, he should have a new name also. From this day forth, he is… Apophis."

.

.

.

.

.

Author's Afternote – Yes, I upgraded Morph hugely.I always felt that he had too little screen time.