Hello one and all! Welcome to my next Spider-Man story, Spider-Man: Survival of the Strongest! It's been long and coming but I've worked out all the kinks and planning and I'm ready to go! For those who read my first Spider-Man story, this is my gift to you! This new story picks up after Spider-Man 2, and has ties to my first story as well. SO it does help if you read my first story, but it isn't necessary. Anyways, here you are, the next chapter of Spider-Man: Survival of the Strongest!
I do NOT own these characters, they are owned by Marvel Comics!
Spider-Man: Survival of the Strongest: Issue 7: Battling
10 Minutes Ago…
A phone rings loudly shaking the bulletin board hung closely on the wall. Three workers race back and forth preparing coffee and other beverages for patrons. The strong aroma of Hazelnut fills the nostrils of New York lawyer Matthew Murdock.
He takes another deep breath, smiling as he sips his tea. The Coffee shop he was sitting in was nestled just under Northeastern University's gym, where dozens of students raced on treadmills facing the windows. The strong stench of body odor drifted into Murdock's heightened senses.
He coughs several times and then his acute hearing picks up a single gunshot.
It was time to go.
7 Minutes Ago…
The blind lawyer from hells kitchen leaves the small coffee shop, the speeding traffic on Huntington Avenue blazing by. He concentrates on his heightened hearing abilities. Several people are screaming at each other in their cars, one didn't make the yellow light in time. He purges further, toward the newly constructed stark center across the street.
He hears Killgrave's haunting voice talking to the crowd of people. Matthew quickly diverts his attention, as to not get pulled into the purple man's trance.
The sounds of engines revving bounce off of a nearby apartment building, creating a map towards the buildings fire escape, Matt heads toward the ladder.
4 Minutes Ago…
Wind pushes hard against the man without fear's body. His costume sticks to his skin, beads of sweat trickle down his face. The smells of the city invade his nostrils; he tastes concrete and cigarette.
"Hurry up Murdock." He tells himself, "Spider-Man won't last long."
His gloves slide on snugly over his fists, his mask is donned and he grips his Billy club tight in his palm. It was now or never, killgrave was already cashing in.
A Minute and twelve seconds ago…
"Enough is enough Killgrave hand over the glove!" Spider-Man screams, grabbing for his arm.
The purple man pulls away and then recoils slamming the metallic glove into Spider-Man's chest. The web slinger tumbles off of the stage and into the circle of people down below.
"Get Him." Killgrave commands.
The crowd snatches for him, grabbing every limb they can to hold him down. Among them are workers from the bugle. Jameson yells in his face as he grips his arm. Robbie gets the wall crawler in a chokehold.
57 Seconds Ago…
"He's here." Harry yells to the purple man.
The wall explodes, concrete and tiles raining down on the crowd. A large cloud of dust and smoke rises into the air. A large man moves into the room, his mass pushing through several people as he steps toward the stage, technological gears revving. With his sheer power he punches a pillar out of his way, leaving it in dozens of pieces. His eyes glow red, his suit is lined with spikes with one defining spike sitting atop his head.
"Ah He is. Welcome to the party, Rhino."
Now.
The overhead glass window of the Stark Science Center shatters into millions of pieces, raining down on the crowd below. A red clad figure emerges in the glass, his body majestically sailing down and into the crowd below.
Members of the audience release Spider-Man, shielding themselves from the glass. Daredevil hits the ground, rolling into the crowd and planting several powerful kicks. The web slinger is released from the chokehold he was in; he regroups as well.
The crowd surrounds both costumed heroes, still removing glass from their hair and clothing. The large mass of a man calling himself the rhino glares at the two, cracking his knuckles. The purple man looks less than thrilled, he revs up the armored glove he has on his arm, it glows with intensity.
"Nice of you to join me," Spider-Man scoffed.
"Said I'd be here." Daredevil retorts.
"Better late than never."
"ENOUGH!" Killgrave screams, aiming his hand at the two of them. "Kill them both!"
The crowd dives at the costume clad warriors, who in response try to block the hits. Fists and claws leave their markings all over the heroes' bodies, they desperately try to pry the audience from them. Jameson is again landing punches into the back of Spider-Man's head. Robbie knees him hard in the stomach, and Ben Urich elbows daredevil hard.
Hands wrap around the wall crawlers throat, strangling the life out of him. He kicks hard, trying to knock back a woman grabbing at his ribs.
"It's no use, we have to use force." Daredevil screams.
"We cant! They're innocents, I don't want to hurt them!" Spider-Man replies.
The man without fear acts, kicking urich hard in the stomach and slamming two older women into him. Daredevil reveals his billy club, and he begins blocking his attackers. The web slinger was having no such luck. His editor's hands were now tightly clenched on his face.
A loud energy blast erupts in the middle of the brawl, the purple man's haunting laughter ringing. Spider-sense screamed for the young hero to get out of the room. Finally he elbows Jameson and Robbie off of him and begins to web up every thing in sight.
"Enough is ENOUGH!" He yells, his webbing grouping people together and sticking them to the floor.
He finally stops, realizing the crowd isn't moving anymore and that he's just webbed up Daredevil as well. He rushes to the devils aid, trying to pry him out of the fluid.
"Sorry man, I was overwhelmed, I…"
"Beh…Behind YOU!"
A large hand grips the wall crawler's skull and lifts him into the air. He can feel the ends of the monsters fingers digging into his scalp. He's brought up to eye level with the Rhino. The behemoth was indeed fit for the part; his armor packed heavily large horns emerging from the top of his head and shoulders. His pair of glowing red eyes fixated on the hero.
Quickly, the arachnid brings both his hands slamming into either side of the rhino's head, a loud slapping noise echoing in the air. The giant growls and stumbles backward, rubbing his head. Spider-Man however is howling in agony.
The structure of the metallic suit was murder on his small hands, the impact left a stinging sensation flowing up his arm. He turns away from the rhino, clenching both of his hands together in pain.
"BAD IDEAA!!" He yelps.
"Pay attention!" Daredevil yells to him, as he pries free of the webbing.
His warning comes too late; rhino had slammed his massive shoulder into the back of the young hero sending him flying back towards the southern end of the room. The arachnid lands roughly, crashing through a glass casing that contained a large antenna. Glass covered the ground he was on, spider sense alerting him to the shard nestled into his thigh.
"You shoulda stayed home," Rhino chuckled, grabbing him by the back of the neck.
"Arrgh!! Let…Me…" Spider-Man squirms.
"GO?"
Suddenly he was airborne. The ground ceased to exist in the new environment of lines and color he was introduced. The sound of glass breaking was recognizable, so was the chuckling of the purple man. Daredevil's distant screams were lost, fading away into obscurity. His midsection hits something solid and hard, spider sense telling him to grab on. His hands miss it, grabbing at nothing in front of his eyes. Dust picks up, further alienating him from the rest of the world.
He finally stops moving, dumped out from his visit to the world of color and disorientation. His back burns in pain, vision-doubling trying to stabilize. Several screams fill his ears; a deafening explosion drowns the scream out.
"Where…" The wall crawler attempts to form words.
His vision settles, and he realizes that he's inside of someone's car. Well what used to be someone's car. The force of his landing had crushed the roof and he was now lying inside. Pain crawled its way down his back, coiling around his leg in an all-familiar burning fashion. Never had he been thrown like that in his life.
His blood decorates his leggings of the costume, the grid torn open with a large shiny glass shard smiling up at him. Sweat spills into his mouth, the web slinger needed to move.
The Arachnid moves his leg, attempting to slide off of the car but no such luck. The pain is unbearable, he screams in his attempt. Sliding his mask up to nose level, he spits out a small amount of blood and sweat. The stomping was now nearing closer; rhino would be there any second.
"He's…Strong but not fast. I'm faster than him. Gotta use that." He thinks to himself.
The behemoth finally makes it to he car, knocking aside a mailbox next to it. Letters rain down the street, a woman screams running from the rhino.
"So this is the amazing Spider-Man." Rhino scoffs, glaring at the unconscious web slinger. "Pathetic"
"Surprise!" Spider-Man screams, springing up and webbing the rhino's face.
The giant screams in irritation, thrashing and trying to remove the webbing. He slams his metallic fist down on the already damaged car, further denting the roof. The metal practically melts under his sheer ferocity, however he didn't hear any groans of pain. That arachnid was gone.
"C'MON YA WHIMP!" Rhino snarls prying the webbing from his eyes.
As if to answer the Rhino, a powerful kick found itself in the behemoth's face. Blood begins to spurt from the monsters nose, he groans angrily and blindly swings his fist. Spider-Man dodges the punch, perching on a nearby streetlamp.
"Aw c'mon chuckles don't be mad, if you need any real medical assistance the Beth Israel is just down the street."
The Rhino swings again, this time striking the street lamp and sending it crashing backward. The light shatters on the street, and the webbed wonder tumbles onto the street. Pain burned through his body like a four alarm fire. Every inch of his skin screamed for him to just lie still and let it end. Vision doubling he attempts to climb to his feet, his stomach begins to turn and he knows its no use. Police sirens cry throughout the city, the horn of a fire engine screams out into the air, this doesn't seem to bother the rhino. Again he starts toward Spider-Man, he kicks over a construction wheelbarrow, bricks littering the already destroyed street.
"Not so funny now are you? Let's see how hard you laugh when I snap that spine in half." Rhino snarled.
"Please, just do it, this glass hurts so bad. I'm going to hurl anyway." Spider-Man thinks.
Rhino was nearing closer, stomping craters in the street, he stops just a few feet of the wall crawler and lowers his head. That large horn was now gleaming in the sunlight, a perfect shining spike of death. The behemoth kicks a foot back and begins to charge, screaming while he runs.
"You've got to be kidding me!!" Spider-Man screams, rolling out of the way of the giant.
Rhino turns in one swift motion facing the webbed wonder again. He kicks a foot and charges. This was it; he was going to get run over by a guy in a giant rhino costume. The giant keeps splicing into two people, the rest of the city shifting into a hazy brown shade.
Why can't he focus?!
Spider sense breathes relief through his body, stopping time and examining his surroundings. The broken streetlamp, caved in car, broken mailbox and stop sign, and the tipped wheelbarrow, with bricks on the…
Spider-Man quickly releases a web line, it snags several bricks from the pile and he pulls them toward himself. Rhino is stomping toward him; the death spike pointed straight, its plan of destruction growing. The arachnid begins spinning his web lines, bricks whizzing by his head.
The first brick is released; it smashes hard into the top of rhino's large metallic head. This pauses the charge, stunning the Goliath. The second brick finds its home in the face of his attacker; it crashes into his left cheek, leaving brick dust and formations of a bruise.
"Aarrgh! You little bastard!" Rhino cries, clenching his face.
Last brick, he had to make this one count. It spins overhead; his web line is stretching from the weight and motion. Rhino glares at him, blood dripping from his anger stricken face. His red eyes flash to normal, their regular dark brown shining with hate.
"…Kill you." Rhino gnashes through his teeth.
With one final effort the goliath begins stomping toward Spider-Man again. The final brick is released; it connects into the rhino's head with a sickening crack. Finally the giant groans and goes down, crashing to the earth. It was over; he had defeated the rhino.
"Damn…" He groans, toppling over backwards.
He lands hard on his backside, examining the whole scene. The cops would be here any minute. For a minute he had forgotten about Daredevil and Killgrave inside the center and his stomach dropped. Why was he still sitting down?
Quickly he webbed the rhino to the road, sticking every inch of the giant to the street as possible. Spider-Man leaps into the air, scaling the side of the center and leaping into the smashed window. He lands lightly on the stage, looking around for the huge fight. There's a large amount of smoke pouring through the air, clouding everything else out. His spider sense began to yell at him.
"Daredevil!" He screams into the smoke.
Nothing. He waves his hands through the smoke, trying to see into the center. Suddenly a figure emerges through the smoke, his violet skin gleaming mysteriously in the dim light. He smiles wickedly, white teeth lighting up his face. The purple man placed a hand on Spider-Man's shoulder.
"Oh…not…Y…You…" the web slinger quivered.
"Hello Peter" Purple Man chimed hauntingly. "Let's have a nice long talk, shall we?"
TO BE CONTINUED…next chapter in Survival of the Strongest, the purple man. Zebediah Killgrave has decided to have a talk with spidey; this can't bode well for the wall crawler. Check out the next chapter of SOTS to find out! Thanks, please review! –Peechman.