XVIII. Termination

"Ohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygod—" Mary Jane couldn't string two coherent thoughts together as she sailed behind the Green Goblin's glider like a kite. Did the Goblin know that she was clinging to his glider like this? Why wasn't he trying to shake her off? Where was he taking her mom, anyway? MJ was only vaguely aware of these questions floating on the edge of her mind.

How long had they been flying like this? It must have felt longer than it really was, because they hadn't flown all that far. Something big was coming into view… it was the Queensboro Bridge. Now the Goblin was turning in the air. He was making for the top of one of the bridge's towers… which meant that MJ was about to be splattered on the side of it! She let go of the web, and now she was plummeting down toward the East River, in freefall. She threw another web-line up; it stuck, but it pulled back so hard that it felt as if her arms might be yanked from their sockets. MJ swung in a wide, low arc right under the whole bridge and back up the other side, where she was finally able to cling to the opposite wall.

Finally, at long last, she wasn't moving anymore. Well, except for her stomach. Oh God. I think I'm gonna spew in my mask. Scarlet Spider started crawling up the wall, toward the very top of the bridge.

The Green Goblin leapt off his glider and unceremoniously tossed MJ's mother down onto the tower-top. She had fainted some time ago; the shock of everything had simply been too much for her to handle. A blade extended from the purple armor on the Goblin's forearm; he kept it pointed at Maddie.

"Let her go, Goblin!" shouted MJ, leaping up to face her foe. "I won't let you kill her too!"

"As if you could stop me," sneered Gobby. "It was time you learned a valuable lesson: you're either going to learn obedience… or suffer loss after loss after loss until you have nobody left to care about."

"What do you want?!"

"It's very simple," said Goblin. "I want you to do whatever I tell you. If you refuse, you'll be punished. I'll start by killing mommy dearest. If that doesn't make my point, then I'll move onto your little friends from school. I know who you are; so I own you."

MJ took one step toward the Goblin, but he stopped her. "Ah-ah," he said, bringing the blade down to touch her mother's neck. "Not yet. We're still one guest short of a party."

A long, tense moment passed.

"Ah," said Goblin, pointing to the southeastern side of the bridge. "Here we are; right on time." Spider-Man was coming from that direction, web-slinging along from the bridge's support cables. When he arrived at the tower-top, he saw the Green Goblin and the Scarlet Spider standing there, staring each other down. Mrs. Watson was lying in a motionless heap at the Goblin's feet.

"Welcome, Spider-Man," said the Goblin. "Hehehehe… welcome to your last day on earth!"

"Goblin, you are a complete and utter nutball!" shouted Spidey. "We aren't going to let you get away with this!"

"You don't have a choice! I'm the one with the hostage! Now, Miss Scarlet, if you would be so kind as to beat Spider-Man to death, I might just let your mother live."

MJ froze. "I… what? You can't make me−!"

"Do it!" shouted the Goblin. He picked up Maddie with one arm and dangled her over the side of the bridge. "Attack him now, or I let go!"

MJ faced Peter and put up her fists. "I'm so sorry," she whispered.

"MJ," said Peter, taking a defensive stance. "You don't have to do this."

"I think I do," she replied, her voice quavering. She lunged at Peter, throwing a wide punch that he easily dodged.

"No, no, no!" criticized the Goblin. "Put some 'oomph' into it. Really get in there, smack him!"

MJ wasn't much of a fighter, at least not right now. But Peter needed to have her on his side, or there was no stopping the Goblin. So he caught her arm and pulled her close. "There's two of us!" he whispered. "So you go high, I'll go low. Got it?"

"Yeah," said MJ.

And then they were both in motion. MJ sprang into the air and dove at the Green Goblin, while Peter sprinted for the edge of the tower. The Goblin jumped back and onto his glider, releasing his grip on Mrs. Watson at the same time. While MJ turned a handspring, righted herself, and fired a web at the Goblin, Peter dove over the edge of the precipice and shot two web-lines, one down at MJ's mother and the other back up at the top of the bridge. Thwip-hisssss-spack-SNAP. The web-line pulled taut, and Peter was left hanging there, holding himself up with one web and clinging to the other strand that supported Maddie's limp form. MJ's mom was now dangling over the waters of the East River like a worm on a fishhook.

At this point, the Green Goblin was too occupied to care about Spider-Man or Maddie Watson. MJ had once again caught his glider with a web-line, and she was pulling herself arm-over-arm ever closer to him, while the Goblin flew in spirals and loops, trying to shake her off. But Mary Jane was enraged, and she was relentless. She was not going to let the Goblin get away with the ever-growing list of atrocities that he'd inflicted on her life. He flung grenades and razor-bats back over his shoulder, but still she hung on, and still she closed the distance.

Then MJ was on top of him. She clung to his back and started punching at his head, while the Goblin held up his arms to defend. "Ggr… get off!" he shouted.

But MJ wasn't listening. She was just trying to batter him with everything she had. She punched, she sprayed webs in his face, and she shouted with each hit, "I… want… you… to just… go AWAY!" Finally, with a spectacular two-fisted blow, she connected with just the right spot on the Goblin's glove, shorting out the wrist-mounted control device he used when piloting the glider remotely.

"What have you done?" shouted Gobby. The glider was out of control now and spiraling back in the direction of the bridge. As they passed beneath it, Scarlet Spider fired a web-line and swung clear. The Green Goblin, his glider sputtering and occasionally losing all power long enough to drop a few feet before it switched on again, aimed for open skies and fled.

"We'll meet again, Spider-Brats!" he shouted over his shoulder. And then he was gone.

Mary Jane crawled up to the top of the tower again. In all that time, Peter had only just now managed to haul himself up to the top, and now he was very gently pulling the other web-line up, hand-over-hand, drawing Mrs. Watson up after him. "I… caught her…" said Peter. He was breathing heavily, partly from the adrenaline and partly from the injuries he'd earlier sustained in his fight with Doc Ock.

"Mom!" shouted MJ, rushing over to Peter and kneeling down at her mother's side. "Mom, wake up!"

Only, she didn't.

Peter and Mary Jane later found out that Maddie Watson had died of a broken neck, most likely sustained in the very instant that Peter had caught her with his web-line.

• • •

The following day, May Parker woke up in a hospital bed. She was surrounded by Gwen Stacy, her nephew Peter, and a very puffy-eyed, dog-tired Mary Jane Watson. The girl looked like she'd spent hours crying when she ought to have been sleeping.

"Aunt May!" said Peter, jumping up and rushing to her bedside. "Gwen, go get the doctor!"

"On it," said Gwen, who ran out into the hallway.

"Peter… Mary Jane…" said May weakly. "What happened?"

"That's a really long story," said Peter. "You should rest, Aunt May. You've had another heart attack. We'll talk about what happened when you're feeling better."

"No, I… the Green Goblin! I saw that madman take Maddie away, just like he did to Mary Jane that one time!" May tried to sit up in the bed. Peter helped her by putting a few extra pillows behind her head. "Are Maddie and Philip okay?"

Mary Jane looked down at the floor and shook her head. "He killed them," she said. "The Green Goblin killed my parents."

May was already pale from her recent ordeal. MJ's words turned her face ashen. At that moment, though, the doctor came in and began to examine May. They had a brief chat about the dangers that May faced from sudden shocks and surprises, given that that this was her second heart attack. But he also informed May that the danger had passed for now; she would have to stay in the hospital another night for observation, but then she would be released tomorrow.

Once the doctor had left them alone again, May said to MJ, "I saw your house get, um, blown up last night. Where did you sleep?"

"On your couch," said MJ.

"Well, it isn't much, but you're welcome to stay there until you decide what you're going to do. Have you talked to Gayle or Anna yet?" May was referring to MJ's older sister (presently away at college in another state) and aunt (who lived in Brooklyn).

MJ nodded. "Aunt Anna's offered to take me in until I finish high school." With a rueful smile, she added, "I guess that means I'll be moving away. New home, new school…"

Peter put his arm around Mary Jane. "We'll still see each other."

"It won't be like it used to," said MJ sadly. She walked over to the bedside, leaned over May, and kissed her on the forehead. "I'm glad you're doing better, Aunt May." Then she walked over to the door. "But if you don't mind, I'd like to go be alone for a while."

"Of course," said May. "I'm so sorry about what's happened."

"We'll catch up with you later?" asked Peter.

MJ nodded; then she left.

Gwen folded her arms and sat back down on one of the hospital room's uncomfortable little chairs. "Well, this sucks."

• • •

L. Thompson Lincoln rode the elevator to the top office of Fisk Tower. The arrogance of some people astounded even him; this bastard kept his main office in a building that he'd named after himself. Now that was some real chutzpah. When the elevator finally, finally came to a stop, he stepped out into one of the largest, most lavishly appointed offices he'd ever seen. Every decoration, every piece of furniture was an ostentatious display of wealth. Two bodyguards stood on either side of the elevator door; they immediately frisked him. Tombstone glanced at the pair of goons; they openly carried submachine-guns. But bullets didn't frighten him.

An enormous leather chair turned around behind the wide mahogany desk, and the man himself appeared: Wilson Fisk. The Kingpin of Crime. He was tall, broad, and bald. He wore the finest Italian suits that money could buy. His cane, cuff-links, and shirt buttons were studded with diamonds. Clearly, "subtle" was not in this man's vocabulary. But it wasn't just his legendary girth that gave Wilson Fisk his quality of presence: every look on his face, every movement that he made, every word that he uttered was calculated to exude command. He was the sort of person who would have been a dictator in another day and age, with a cult of personality hanging off of his every word and itching to carry out his least instruction.

"Lonnie," he said, addressing Tombstone by his first name. Fisk's voice was gruff and unsettling. "To what do I owe the pleasure?" He walked around his desk to face his visitor, hands clasped behind his back.

"I have a message from the Big Man."

Wilson Fisk smirked. "Indeed. How the mighty have fallen. There was a time, Tombstone, when you were only one step away from that title. You held it in name, but not in fact. And now Frederick Foswell is in federal custody, and he will likely turn and implicate you."

Fisk walked back over to his desk and pressed the button on the intercom. "Hammerhead. Come here."

A side door concealed in the office wall swung open silently. Hammerhead walked into the room, looking just as smug as the Kingpin.

"What are you doing here?" asked Tombstone.

"I," said Hammerhead, pointing a thumb at his own chest, "am here out of loyalty to my boss."

"Hammerhead has told me everything that transpired the night of the super-mercenary auction," said Fisk. "I know that you're being blackmailed by the Green Goblin. I know that he's sent you here to kill me. You will not succeed."

Now Tombstone was starting to sweat. "I had no choice. The Goblin threatened my family—"

"That is not my concern!" snapped Kingpin. "You have allowed your sentiment to become your weakness. The Goblin was able to use that to put you in his power. But… I am not a heartless man. I understand what it's like to be placed in an impossible situation. Take Hammerhead here… while I demand absolute loyalty from my employees, I do not fault him for his momentary lapse. After all, his betrayal is of no consequence to me."

"No consequence…?" began Tombstone, surprised.

"None whatsoever!" said Fisk, slapping a meaty fist on his desk. "Look around you! The Green Goblin is nothing more than an unhinged buffoon with a set of powerful toys! His empire is crumbling faster than he can build it up! Doctor Octopus: jailed. The Jackal: unmasked and hospitalized. The Scarlet Spider," he spat the name with such thorough disdain, "turned against him. You're all he has left… unless you agree to come work for me."

"But… my daughter…"

"As we speak, I have men poised to take her into protective custody," said Fisk. "Now do you see, Lonnie? You have no choice but to accept my terms, as offered."

Tombstone closed his eyes and nodded his assent. He'd been outplayed from all sides, and now his defeat was entire. "Very well. I accept. What do you need me to do?"

Wilson Fisk walked over to Tombstone, reached out one massive hand, and wrapped it around his throat. He picked up Tombstone with one arm, while the granite-skinned albino grasped and struggled in utter futility against the Kingpin's raw physical strength. "My first order is simplicity itself. I need you to die."

Tombstone gasped for breath in the Kingpin's grip. "What… but… I agreed…" he choked.

"You're far too ambitious a man to serve as a lieutenant of mine," said the Kingpin. "I'm not so stupid as to put the likes of you within reach of my empire!" He walked over to the window, opened it, and thrust Tombstone outside, dangling him out over the street, eighty-seven stories below. "But," continued Fisk, "I am not a heartless man. I've done you this great favor. With you out of the picture, the Green Goblin will have no reason to come after your loved ones. Don't worry about Janice, Lonnie: I'll see that she's well-treated." Then he let go.

Tombstone felt himself falling. As he fell, he saw his life flash before his eyes. It had at first been a life of ridicule and torment, early on for his albino appearance, later for the after-effects of the chemical accident which had given him his superhuman strength and constitution. But he had worked himself up in the ranks of the Maggia, the crime syndicate under Silvermane. Eventually, Silvermane had been brought down by the Big Man, and in those days, Tombstone was Foswell's right-hand man. It looked like he would have been Foswell's successor, too, but then… well, then Tombstone hit the ground, punched right through a parked car, and went several feet down into the pavement. And that was the end of Lonnie Thompson Lincoln.

Up on the eighty-seventh floor of Fisk Tower, Hammerhead smirked; but the Kingpin just stared down at the street below. The Daily Bugle would likely run an article tomorrow on Lincoln's "unfortunate accident". That would be easy enough to arrange. But the Green Goblin had gotten uncomfortably close to building a coalition against him. The primary danger he posed came from his ability to assemble a team of super-powered individuals. That was a problem that required an immediate solution. "Hammerhead," he said, turning to his lieutenant. "I want you to find the roboticist, Spencer Smythe. Have him brought to me, at once."

"Uh, sure thing, boss," said Hammerhead. "You want him roughed up a little first?"

Kingpin shot Hammerhead a queer look that somehow managed to mix contempt with appreciation. "Eh… no. Undamaged, thank you."

• • •

The day after that, May Parker came home from the hospital. Peter and Gwen helped her to the couch, but she waved them off. "I'm not an invalid," she insisted. "Honestly, I'm feeling much better now."

Once she was settled in, May asked, "Is Mary Jane around?"

Peter and Gwen both shook their heads. "I haven't seen her since yesterday," said Peter.

"Me either," said Gwen.

"Well, I just wanted to make it clear, Peter, that while MJ's staying with us, I don't want the two of you sneaking around in the basement, getting involved in any hanky-panky…"

"We don't—!" Peter began. Then he sobered and said, "I really don't think either of us would be… uh… in the mood for what you call 'hanky-panky'."

"Take it from me," said May. "This is an emotional time for the girl. Grief, guilt… they can cloud your judgment, stop you from thinking."

"What are you, uh, saying, Aunt May?"

"Oh… never mind. But if you've got a minute, I'd like to talk about something else, in private. Gwen, would you mind excusing us for a bit?"

"Yeah, sure," said Gwen quietly. She went up to her room without another word.

"What do you want to talk about?" asked Peter.

"Spider-Man," said Aunt May.

Peter felt a lump solidify in his throat. "Spider-Man?"

"Mm-hm. I saw him, the other night, on the Watsons' front lawn." May looked Peter in the eye. "For some reason, I can't stop thinking about this Spider-Man character. Trying to piece together why he always seems so… I don't know, so close to us, so involved in our lives. And then it just… hit me."

While May spoke, Peter's mind was racing at a million thoughts per second. Explanations, excuses, just coming clean, every possibility presented itself; none of it was appealing.

"Peter, is there anything that you want to tell me… about Spider-Man?"

Oh, thought Peter. So she knows, then. "Aunt May… the doctor said you can't take any sudden—"

"Don't give me that!" snapped May, suddenly angry. "You can play games with me, Peter, right up until they start coming to our houses and putting us in the hospital—or in the ground. Then it's time to start telling the truth!"

"All right," said Peter. "But I don't want to talk about this until I'm sure that you're feeling better. Just give it a couple of days, all right?"

"Okay," said May. "But then we're going to sit down, and we're going to have a long discussion about this."

Peter nodded. An awkward silence fell between them. Then he said, "I need to go find Mary Jane."

"Yes, I think you do," said May. "Both of you had better be back here by dinnertime."

• • •

MJ didn't answer her cell phone, but it didn't take Peter very long to find her. She was next door, going through the ruins of her lately blasted bedroom. Peter found her sitting on her bed, looking at a photograph in a broken frame. A picture of her family.

Peter looked around at the aftermath of the explosion. "What a mess," he said.

After a beat, Mary Jane said, "We couldn't save them. We failed so completely…"

"MJ, I—"

"Don't talk," said MJ. "I keep going over that night in my head. Thinking about what we could have done differently. How it would have gone if we'd gotten help from Johnny Storm, or Tony Stark. Maybe it would have made a difference; maybe not, I don't know. But I know we screwed up. We were arrogant. And now I'm paying for it."

"Where did you go last night?" asked Peter quietly.

"Web-slinging. Doing what you do. Patrolling around, beating up muggers." MJ threw the framed picture onto the bed, stood up, and started to pace around the room. Broken glass crunched under the soles of her shoes. With a roll of her eyes, she said, "I thought it might make me feel better. I don't know, make this gnawing guilt go away—Peter, my parents died because of me. Because of us."

"Because of the Goblin!" retorted Peter. "He's the one who did this! We tried—" Peter's voice caught in his throat, and his eyes filled with tears. "My web—but I couldn't—I tried."

"Yeah, Tiger. You tried. I tried. We both tried our very best, and it still wasn't good enough." She took Peter into her arms and looked into his eyes. "Listen, I… I don't blame you for all of this. But I can't forgive myself. I get why you have to be Spider-Man, I really do… but it doesn't work for me."

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying… I can't do what you do. The whole 'power, responsibility' thing. It just isn't me."

Peter nodded. He thought he understood where MJ was coming from, how she must have been feeling right now. "So… Scarlet Spider no more?"

"No more," said Mary Jane.