A/N: I again apologize for the shortness of the last chapter. I'm also sorry if some of you feel that Spider-Man's involvement in the story is forced. It's not like I'll make him a main character. I'd just thought it would be fun considering how dark I made Jack in this series. Foxbear hit the nail on the head with how their contrasting, yet similar, personalities would complement each other. And no, I won't be bringing Batman into the story because that would make no sense. On that note, The Dark Knight Rises will be the superhero movie of the summer (just sayin'). As for the villain, I've decided to it will be Tombstone as a reference to Spectacular Spider-Man, a TV series cancelled well before its time. I also apologize if Spider-Man is OOC; any suggestions on his character for future appearances would be appreciated.
Chapter 5
In the Autobot base, Arcee finally emerged from her quarters, deep in thought as to yesterday's startling development in the war. After centuries apart, the femme was reunited with her adopted youngling, Sky Flash. But she could tell from his body language that he was still buying into Megatron's lies; still serving him as Terra Breaker. The thought left her spark in agony, knowing the Lord of the Decepticons wouldn't waste any time in putting his newest resource to use. What a perfect plan to; he would be making Arcee suffer without even trying.
She knew very well that he wanted to carve out her spark for her role in restoring Optimus' memory and he thought he gained retribution by shooting her in the stomach with the Requiem Blaster. Thankfully, her life was saved and she was back in the fight, but how could she fight against someone she thought of has her own. Sure, she'd been hard on Sky Flash due to her being lost in depression at the time, but she grew to love him like any carrier would her sparkling. She couldn't imagine having to fight him in battle, but she knew she might have to. Once Megatron set him loose on the Earth, she knew Optimus would at first try to reason with him but once he became a threat to humanity, he would have to be dealt with.
But she had faith in Sky Flash, knowing that once he saw Megatron for what he really was, he would abandon the Decepticon cause. But that did not mean he would return to the Autobots; they still had to answer for what Sentinel Zeta Prime did to him. She knew that would be a key factor in all of this once it all came full circle. Right now, she was looking forward to a slightly relaxing morning of getting her thoughts together. Upon entering the command center, she was met by the others; June conversed with Fowler and Mizuki while the former was switching on the news.
"What are you doing?" June asked.
"Switching on the Daily Bugle News report," he replied. "Wanna see if they got anything on this 'Spider-Man'."
'Spider-Man?' Arcee thought, her mind's focus shifting to Airachnid. The very thought of the spider-bot was enough to make her energon boil, but she had more important matters to worry over at the moment. Everyone else emerged from their rooms just as the screens were taken over by a human male. He had black hair with grey on the sides and small amount of facial hair on his upper lip.
"People of New York!" he shouted as if they couldn't hear him. "For months now, the Daily Bugle has been keeping you up to date with the news; from the recent attack on the city to that wall-crawling menace himself; Spider-Man!"
"What is this nonsense?" Ratchet asked, clearly annoyed.
"That's J. Jonah Jameson," Fowler explained. "He owns the Daily Bugle, a newspaper company in New York. For months now, he's been the only source of information regarding the masked vigilante known as Spider-Man."
"I've heard of him," Raf said. "He's supposed to be a hero, right?"
"That's what some people say," the agent shrugged. "Others, not so much. He supposed to, as his name suggest, have just about every ability a spider has, save for the poison."
"But he's an apparent 'menace'?" June asked.
"As far as Jameson's concerned," Mizuki replied. "Still, the powers that be are keeping an eye out for him, hoping to get some information."
"It's bad enough that our city is forced to endure this masked freak's terrorizing day in and day out, but today, we have discovered that he has an accomplice." Jameson continued. The video feed switched from the studio he was broadcasting from to the streets of New York, where two men were hanging from a flag pole, covered in webbing. The sight sent shivers down Arcee's spine, thoughts shifting back to Airachnid. The camera went from the two men to the figure they presumed was Spider-Man, clad in red and blue, much like their Prime.
"Gotta hand to the guy for choosing cool colors, eh Optimus," Miko grinned at the 'Bot leader, who watched the screen intently. Camera moved slightly to the side to reveal none other than Jack, clad in his ShadowStrike attire. All optics and eyes were now glued to the screen, Ratchet muttering several curses.
"Our sources indicate that this new masked menace was present during the attack on New York," Jameson continued to rant. "His association with Spider-Man is sufficient evidence that he is in fact, a menace. One the Bugle will amply call… 'Ninja Dave'!" Despite the severity of the situation, Miko burst out laughing at the name afforded to Jack by the media.
"Ninja Dave," she giggled. "I'm so gonna give him grief about that one later!"
ShadowStrike: Terra Breaker
Just when it seemed like Jack's day couldn't get any worse, he felt Zangetsu alert him to discovery of another relic. Focusing, he determined that it was inside of an office building; one of the tallest in New York. Before he could get to that, he had to ditch the paparazzi and this "Spider-Man". One of the reporters walked up to him, "Excuse me, but do you have any statement for the public, Ninja Dave." He was about to make a run for it before he heard that name; what kind of a name was "Ninja Dave"?
"Dave, huh?" Spider-Man asked. "You look more like a Dan to me." Uttering a low growl, ShadowStrike pulled out two smoke bombs and threw them on the ground. Disappearing in the smoke, he quickly jumped up to the nearest rooftop. Before, he was irritated; now, he was just annoyed. He didn't care what they thought of him, but they could at least come up with something other than "Ninja Dave".
"Enjoying life as a celeb, yet?" Spider-Man asked from behind.
"Get lost," was the ninja's reply.
"Come on, Dave," he urged. "The Bugle already thinks were in cahoots together; we might as well try out being partners." ShadowStrike felt a wave of anger surge through him at the use of that ridiculous name.
Taking a deep breath, he replied, "My name's not Dave, alright. And I already have a partner; and they're definitely better company than you."
"Are their people skills as astounding as yours," the man bit back, somewhat offended.
"I came here to clear my head, but now I've got something to do," the ninja glared at the man in red and blue. "Do yourself a favor and stay out of my way or you'll end up in worse shape than those two punks down there."
"What? Marko and O'Hirn? Can't get any worse than that."
"How 'bout being dead?"
Spider-Man looked somewhat surprised, "Are you saying you would have killed them?"
"No, not unless they hurt someone or worse," the ninja replied, still wanting to be rid of this guy. "Are you saying you would have let them go if they did?"
"Well… not let them go per say, but I would've handed them over to the police!" For a moment, it looked like the man's previously cartoonish persona vanished, but ShadowStrike didn't really care at the moment. He had to find the relic before whoever was in possession of it discovered its abilities.
"As 'fun' as it was getting to know the "Spectacular" Spider-Man," ShadowStrike said dryly. "I've gotta go." With that, he leapt from the roof to the next building, leaving Spider-Man in shock.
ShadowStrike: Terra Breaker
As the ninja made his way across town, he couldn't help but think about Spider-Man; the man was the definition of a Troll from what he could tell. He'd hoped that he didn't come into contact with him again anytime soon. The communicator in his mask told him that he was receiving a call from his mother. He answered it and was met with, "Jackson Darby!" The volume of her voice was enough to knock him off balance as he leapt from the next building, smashing in to the ledge.
Falling from the tall building to the alley below (another reason why he hated big cities), he managed to regain his balance and hold on to a fire escape. Finally over his brief shock, he answered, "Mom, what's wrong?"
"What's wrong is that you were on the news!" another female voice shouted; Miko. "By the way, nice name there 'Ninja Dave'." Jack groaned, looking up to the sky and wondering what he did to bring about this kind of suffering. Did he and his mother cut off a voodoo priest in traffic or something? "You so need a PR agent."
"Thanks for the advice," he replied sarcastically. "Anything else you'd like to add before I hang up?"
"Jack," came the deep voice of Optimus Prime. "While I commend you on stopping those men, even more so considering you showed them mercy, I question allowing yourself to be seen so easily."
"I got distracted when Spider-Man showed up," he said. "Believe me, I don't care much for screen time right now. I just sensed another relic nearby. It's in an office building, so I have to sneak in and out without anyone noticing."
"Very well," the Prime replied. "Proceed with caution. Now that the public is aware of you, they will likely seek answers as to the origins of your abilities."
"So stay frosty, got it."
"Jack," Sunny entered the conversation. "I think you and Spider-Man would make a cool team." At the sound of admiration in the girl's voice, Jack felt that warm and fuzzy feeling being her adopted father awarded him. He was really starting to hate that feeling, but accepted nonetheless.
"Yeah, thanks Sunny," he said, ending the call. He sighed, knowing that he might need help, but couldn't tell rely on the Autobots without the risk they might be revealed. Deciding it would be better to blend in than stick out, Jack returned to normal and decided to look around the city, a triangle shaped building catching his eye. The sigh on top said "Daily Bugle", so he decided to check there.
ShadowStrike: Terra Breaker
Exiting the elevator, Jack saw the entire office building in chaos; people were moving like clockwork. Sorting himself through the chaos, he was met by J. Jonah Jameson, "Parker! Where's my front page cover for today's story!" Before Jack could reply, he was being pulled into an office, being met by a young woman with brown hair and wearing a blue dress. "Brant! Get the pictures off Parker and where's my coffee."
"1) Your wife told us to start making you decaf. 2) That's not Peter." Jameson turned to look at Jack, finally taking in the boy's appearance.
"You've 5.2 seconds to tell me why you're before I call security!" he bellowed.
Thinking fast, Jack decided to lie, "I was hoping to learn about photography and I heard that the Daily Bugle was the place to come to." The man's face changed from angry to appeased.
"Well, you heard right! We're the best in the business in reporting the truth and getting the best pictures. PARKER!" From the crowd, a boy dressed in a blue shirt and grey long-sleeved under shit and brown jeans approached. He had short brown hair and brown eyes.
"Yes, Mr. Jameson?"
"Show this kid how photography is done since I can't find anyone else at the moment," Jameson barked, returning to his office. "AND SOMEONE GET ME MY COFFEE!"
ShadowStrike: Terra Breaker
A/N: I hope you enjoyed. I'm still indecisive on the whole Tombstone thing, but any suggestions would be helpful and appreciated. Trivia time (I think this will be regular theme with me): I mentioned Tombstone and I have J. Jonah Jameson in this chapter. What two voice actors voice which characters in Prime?