[MAXIMUM CHRISTMAS] ARC
CHAPTER 40
The Year a Cyclops Ruined Christmas
The wind is rushing past you and, even with your thermals on, you feel the chill. New York is relatively quiet in comparison to normal and the snow is falling.
It's the afternoon, but as it's winter, the days turn to night much more quickly. Scanning the area- you see nor hear any major commotion, but you notice that as you get closer, there's people nearby- and you think you see helicopters incoming.
Keeping their distance, but ever watchful as they see something that is beyond belief.
There's no fires out of control, no giant damage, but you can see, clearly, Johnny's blonde hair as he fights fire with fire, literally, against a girl seemingly made of the stuff. There's a red haired girl that's looking around- probably looking for Sue. And then, intermittently appearing and disappearing in puffs of smoke to attack Johnny- a figure wrapped in heavy clothes, looking a bit singed.
Johnny's looking like he's on his last legs.
It'd best to land and intervene- if Johnny has to start going fire-man, things could get dangerous. Besides, what's the worst that can happen?
"Okay folks, break it up! If you kids don't stop endangering THE GENERAL PUBLIC, I swear I will turn this car right around!"
Landing in the middle of the street, you notice there's an immediate shift in everyone's actions- firstly- Johnny's face to turns to one of terror as the Red Haired girl turns towards you.
"What are you doing here?! That girl can read mind-"
He's interrupted as the girl who seems to be on fire sends out another, stronger burst of fire.
You heart speeds up as the redhead looks over at the cloaked figure, who vanishes into smoke with a loud 'bamf!' The girl's eyes narrow. "So, -who -"
Before you can even hear her words- you Spider-sense blares loudly- painfully- blocking out whatever she was saying as it becomes all-consuming overpowering you entirely.
taggering, you grab your head and force yourself to breath- pushing it back like a bad headache as you force yourself to focus-
Looking around- you see Johnny gritting his teeth, arm on fire, as he punches the girl, sending her flying back with a burst of flames. The redheaded girl is holding at her nose as blood pours down it profusely, as she looks like she's in pain.
It's about this point that you hear a 'BAMF'
As several figures, in a blue and yellow set of jumpsuits appear. One's got some sort of Geordi La Force visor, another's a large, blue furry-animal-man-thing. Another's a man that seems to be trying to be the fit version of frosty the snowman, and another's a girl with a fashion sense that reminds you of someone from the 80's with those pink sunglasses.
They don't look friendly.
You hear a voice whisper in your ear- Sue's voice- "Johnny and I aren't doing well. We can't get away with that teleported around, though. You have any ideas?"
You walk forward, arms raised up high- your voice, loud and clear.
"Look. I don't know what's going on, but this has gone too far! Everyone, please, stop trying to kill each other!"
Geordi's fan looks over at the redhead, then at the girl on fire, then at ,Johnny, and then at you.
"Look, I'm sure we can all just talk this-"
He then raises his hand to his visor as your Spider-sense blares.
A beam of crimson energy slams into you, slamming you against a building side. You let out a scream of pain as it lessens. As you get up, your vision is swimming and your ears are ringing, muting out everything else.
In the distance, you hear a scream of inarticulate rage as a noise not unlike that of explosions as you notice that the big, blue furry man goes down as the snowmn's chest bursts open with red as he collapses to the ground.
You stagger to your feet as the Visored man snarls and looks around ,alertly. He seems to be barking out orders pointing at you and Johnny.
You take a deep breath.
You clench your fists and teeth as you look at the Five-guys entrance you totaled. "What the HELL is wrong with you?! It's Christmas DAY, and you're starting crap when people just want to be with their families?!"
The man turns towards you, shocked, as you twitch you wrist and press the secondary lever, feeling the cylinders spin in your webshooter. No. you've had enough of this guy. Quickly tapping your webshooter, you blast him in the face with a bunch of strong webbing to cover up his visor before you extend you other hand and let out a bit of webbing and grab onto it, letting it pull you.
As you near him, you extend you leg into a kick and send him flying across the way and into the ground, sliding slowly against the building's side, causing no damage unlike that jackass.
The other members of this group seem to be in confusion- you see the snowman is getting back up as the big blue guy is clutching at his side
They all look at you uncertainly. Down the street, you see people watching as some police have them keep the distance.
Damn it, if that didn't just add another layer of problems to this. You've got aches everywhere, the mother of all headaches, and it's Christmas, which you should be spending with your Family.
Raising your voice, you look over at the people on the street. "Hey, You all need to get out of here! It's dangerous! These guys are not kidding around!"
Turning towards the uniformed bunch of super powered jerks, you shake your head. "What the hell are you all doing?! It's Chirstmas. I'm going to be nice! Get the hell out of my city and don't let me catch you here again. If I have to stop you from putting people in harm's way a second time, I won't be this nice!"
You clench your firsts and wait for something to happen. Some of them, the unharmed ones, seen confused and angry, but when the crowd starts up, they grow more unsettled.
"Yeah, we don't need freaks like you messing up our town!" "Look what they did to the five guys!" "You tell them, Spidey!"
The crowd seems to come to life and when the first rock is thrown, the all gather up and leave in a puff of blue smoke- the girl that had been on fire giving you a nasty look, leaving you and Johnny alone- Sue comes out from an alley seconds later to go check on Johnny.
People are cheering for you and the Storms are safe, but looking around- you don't feel like you've accomplished anything. You're sore, hurt, and so were they.
This whole thing strikes you as pointless and unnecessary. Why did they do that? What good is ANY of that do ANYONE?!
You turn towards Johnny and Sue, your voice low. "What do you want to do here? I can get you out of here, or Sue can get you out of here, if you want."
Sue looks indecisive as Johnny Narrows his eyes. "No. I'm not running. Look, these people attacked us because we're different, and they were only able to do it because we let ourselves be hidden away. You can go if you need to sis, but this is our one Chance to finally stop hiding, to finally have lives again."
Sue Storm looks over at the people before looking at Johnny. Letting out a sigh, she flicks his head. "You know, I miss the days when you were a goofy kid."
Looking at you, she quickly briefs you on the situation as you see the Media start to swarm in- the cops have kept their distance, but they don't seem to be trying anything.
Making your way towards a Daily Bugle reporter, you wave him over.
"Wow, Spider-man, what was that?! A word- and who are your companions here?"
You let Johnny and Sue introduce themselves as you hear the media burst into a frenzy even larger- as they're questioned on the quarantine, Sue stops them and briefs on a rough explanation- there were complications from being exposed to cosmic radiation, but the abilities these mutations caused are not life threatening, nor contagious. She gives a more scientific-y statement than that, but then again she is more educated at biology and physiology than you.
Eventually, the news switches back to being focused on you- "Who were those people?! What did they want?!"
"I don't know who they were or what they wanted. I'm not completely sure why this fight happened, but i hope no one was badly injured as a result of this. I don't know how many of these super humans there are out there or what that was even all about... but I do know one thing.
"If you have a great power, then you have a great responsibility to use those powers to help people. No matter what the situation was today- those gifts were not used responsibly by those people today. The world has seen that there's people with the ability to do things beyond normal human capability, and hopefully there won't be another situation like this again, hopefully things can be resolved with words instead of violence.
"So I will say this to these individuals- I don't know what happened today, but I implore you to exercise restraint and make a public apology. I'm sorry I couldn't have been more help and I'm sorry that things couldn't be resolved diplomatically.
"But violent and dangerously irresponsible actions and tactics like those that occurred today are something that I won't tolerate. I hope everyone can go back to their families and try to enjoy the rest of their Christmas.
"So, uh. Merry Christmas everyone. Bye."
The Storms wave you off as you head off- the news monitoring you websling off, but don't seem to be following you. From the rooftops, you can see there's not a single soul around other than you and the helicopters in the distance.
Making sure nobody is following you, you begin to head home- when you get back to where you left your normal clothes, you put them on and check your phone- there's several missed called from Gwen.
Checking your voice mail, you have her leaving several messages about how her father requested her to do several errands that would keep her at the house and how there wasn't any real reason why she could turn him down and that she was really, really sorry and if she could have been there to help should would have.
Asking you to call her to meet up and discuss things about your costumed identities when you're free, she wishes you a merry Christmas and hangs up.
Following that, you call Felicia, who seems a bit worried- when you ask if you can drop by to give her gift to her, she immediately tells you no- her voice tense- as she explains she's going to be busy looking into these matters and she's following a lead right now. Her voice drops to something cold and emotionless when she mentions following up on the lead before she hangs up, abruptly.
Something about what she said, and how she said it.. You're worried.
You detour to head over to Felicia's house- it isn't long, even with the snow and ice, and you arrive there as the sun has begun to set.
There's no lights on inside the house and the door's shut.
You knock at the door and ring the doorbell, but there's no answer, but the door seems unlocked.
Opening the door, you keep an ear open for any sort of noise- but you freeze at the sight of the living room. It seems like there's been a lot of changes here over the past few weeks you haven't been here. Computers- a large bulletin board with lots of pictures and threads connecting them pinned on it- and a metal trashcan.
There's also an overwhelming smell of smoke in here.
Looking around- there's no sign of Felicia or any struggle, and the bulletin board's got a lot fo images of people involved in Italy.
Finally, ni the trashcan, you see the burned remnants of paper- one of which somewhat intact. Only partos of it are intact, though.
"Cerning the matter of Silverma- Death-
-new infor-
A group-
-Passio-
-Gior- -nni
-isk"
Felicia… what have you gotten yourself into?
You send her a text to call you whenever she's free. Closing your phone, you let out a sigh as you watch the news.
Seems like what happened today's too big to just be shutdown. Superhumans are a thing now.
It's a bit interesting to watch and unnerving. Most interestingly, most people assessing you think you're some sort of athlete or acrobat with skill in parkour who has an inventor on the side- a Batman to the world's supermen, like Stark.
That in turn seems to bring up discussion of Iron Man and comparisons- people outside of New York seem to have an interest in Spider-man now, it seems. Interestingly, there's no comment from Stark on the matters- he's declined commentary so far.
Then, there's people who are pushing for testing of people to see if they're normal humans or not- which the rebuttals to are references to the Third Reich and its practices.
Turning off the monitor, you let out a sigh. On the upside, it seems like Johnny and Sue are basically celebrities- Sue's even being recognized as the foremost expert on superhumans to date.
And then there's pictures of the people who attacked Johnny and Sue- there's no pictures of anyone's faces, but they considered an emergent and incredibly dangerous extremist superhuman movement.
You think about doing some work, but you're sore and your head seems to be aching and you've got too much to think about to focus properly.
You head upstairs and decide to spend time with your family. Stella seems to be enjoying watching Star Wards (original trilogy only) with your Uncle, while your Aunt seems to be over at the Watsons' home. You lay out on the open couch and watch the last movie with them, throwing your own comments in when appropriate.
You notice that Stella seems to glance at you every so often, though.
You enjoy the time with your Uncle, but he nods off halfway through the movie- waking up at the end to head on up to bed early, leaving you and Stella alone.
"You want to go on a walk, Stella?"
She looks at you as you 'see' the gears rotating in her head. Eventually, she nods and heads over to get her coat along with you. The both of you are bundled up and on the way down the street. There's nothing open tonight, so the two of you head to the playground nearby.
You can see where people passed through and played on the equipment in the snow, but it's empty- sitting on a swing, you glance up at the sky and let out a sigh.
You see her sit on the swing next to you as she watches you before finally speaking, there's a note of disapproval in her voice.
"You shouldn't have let them get away. You could be in danger now."
You sit back and you think about it. Arguably, she right. But those people have families and lives of their own, too. If you had taken them down, there likely would have been only more pain and anger, which would likely lead to only more violence.
Furthermore, you're a role model. People look up to you as an example.
"I'm always in danger, I'm a hero, it comes with the job. What's more important is to set a good example for everyone else to follow, and show them that violence isn't always the answer. Besides, I wanted to believe in their better nature, even if my chest is going to be one huge bruise in the morning."
You give her a grin as you rub at your chest., wincing slightly. Stella looks at you as the disapproval fades away, as she turns away. Her voice is monotone, as she moves slightly on the swing.
"…You'll die with that kind of attitude."
You glance over at her, but she keeps her face turned away. "You'll keep up that attitude- letting them go and then you'll face another Carnage, or someone just as ruthless- someone who will use that kindness and they'll kill you, without a second thought."
Her voice remains flat, but you see her hands shake slightly on the chains.
"And even if you don't, you'll have to choose who's more important- Peter Parker or Spider-man. If you try to be the moral pillar that people look up to, you'll need to be there whenever there's trouble, so you'll have to drop everything and leave to put yourself in danger."
The chains of the swing are rattling as she refuses to look at you.
"I…"
You phone rings- as Stella cuts off what she was saying.
"Go on, answer it."
You pull out your phone, which is ringing and see the name "Gwen Stacy" on it, before after the forth ring ti cuts out, before ringing again- her name coming back up.
Seems like Gwen's trying to get ahold of you. Next to you, Stella lets out a sound that's somewhere between a sigh and a chuckle, her voice still monotone.
"I told you that you could answer it."
Letting out a sigh, you answer the phone. "Hello? Gwen, is this important? If not I'll have to ask you to-"
You hear Gwen, her voice sounds panicked and she sounds like she's in the middle of doing something- you can hear movement in the background. "YES! Peter- I know you're busy and you've done a lot today but this is big. BIG, big!"
"Look, most of the security for Osborn has apparently gone down except for a separate silent alarm. Somebody's broken into Oscorp without using any of the doors."
You hear her voice become more muffled. "Tonight's the only night we'll have a chance to look into Oscorp. We can't pass it up."
You glace over at Stella and chew on your lip. A second later you hear Gwen's voice over the phone, sounding concerned.
"Peter?"
"Yeah, I'll be there."
She gives you a location to meet her at before hanging up. You look over at Stella.
"Let me guess, Spider-man's needed?"
Her voice is still that monotone, as she still doesn't look at you.
"Yeah, I was curious if you wanted to come with me. The security in Oscorp's down, so Gwen and I need to look into it. Interested?"
Finally, her monotone breaks as Stella lets out a bitter chuckle. "So, I'm fine to come with you so long as there's nobody in trouble, huh?"
You look over at her as her body shakes, as her breath hitches. "Stella?"
"No."
You move you hand toward her as she jerks away violently. "No. You need to decide, here and now, who I am to you. No, more than that, you need to decide who you want to be. You've told me why you want to look into Oscorb before- why I should be careful of Norman Osborn."
"So are you Peter Parker, the teenage boy looking for answers about his life to the point of breaking into a major business while the security's down? Are you Spider-man, the role model who will take the higher moral ground despite the fact his friends were being attacked?!"
"And who am I to you? Am I a child who you need to shelter from danger and make your alibis for you, or am I your partner?! Am I not trustworthy enough?"
She sobs, making sure to not look at you as she wraps her arms around herself. "What exactly am I to you, Peter?!"
You look at Stella. And you actually look at her. This is what she's been feeling, beneath her cheerful façade?
As for her questions, they cut at you. They really do. It's hypocritical of you to say you're taking the higher moral route and not harm the people attacking your friends, while planning to break into this building. But, as Peter Parker, you need to know.
"I'm Peter Parker and Spider-Man. It's impossible for me to be one without the other. Even if I wanted to, I couldn't ignore my power. But, if I ignore Peter Parker, if I ignore who I am, what's the point? You know who I am, Stella. I make mistakes. I get confused. Trying to be a hero means making judgement calls, split-second decisions. And if they turn out to be wrong, you have to shoulder the burden and try as hard as you can to fix it. Power, responsibility."
You let out a sigh as you step forward and pull her into a hug as you kneel down, brushing the back of her hair. You remember the ruined land, the dead, deperate future. Of how you gave her a new chance at life.
"As for you, Stella… I-I thought you wanted to grow up in a world that had a future, where you didn't have to be a weapon. But, I guess that's more what /I/ wanted, isn't it?"
You smile bitterly.
"If you're looking for some big answer to solve everything, I don't have it. I'm just as lost as you are. I screwed up. I know I screwed up. I just... this was your first Christmas. I wanted today to be special, and I forgot to think about how it looked from your end.
Look, I... I'll probably never stop trying to protect you. I'm your brother. It's what I'm for. And sometimes, like now, that's stupid."
You grimace and pause, shaking your head.
"…You're family to me, Stella. I want to protect you, to keep you safe. I still don't know if it's right to put you in danger, but I realize you're not an ordinary girl, and I want to help you with that- To teach you, and I realize now that keeping you hidden away doesn't help with that."
You look down at Stella, her arms wrapped tightly around you as her head is buried into your chest, sobbing.
"I should have seen how you felt sooner, Stella. I'm sorry."
You don't know how long she cries into your chest, and you don't really care. You let her pour everything out. Eventually, though, her breathing steadies as she pulls away looking embarrassed.
Wiping her nose she smiles at you softly and sadly. "All I want to do is make sure you come home safe, big bro. That's all I want. And if I'm not there and something happens to you…"
You smile as you stand up, extending a hand to her. "I understand. I won't leave you behind again, Stella."
Her hand tightly grasps yours as the two of you hurry home- it doesn't take long for the two of you to head towards the meeting place. The Scarlet Spider- wearing a familiar blue Hoodie with a spider emblazed upon it lets out a sigh of relief.
"There you are. I'm not sure how much time we've got until surveillance kicks back on. I did some scouting- there's a open door on the roof- it's normally closed by the security system, but that's been messed with and it's since been opened. There's likely someone else in there though, so we'll need to be careful."
She glances over at Stella, who is presumably under an illusion, but doesn't say anything. "How should we do this?"
END of [Maximum Christmas Arc]
To Be Continued...
Publishers Note:
Gifts: Peter basically received mostly clothes, but he also got a new watch and some giftcards.
poor wording- they're those credit card things you can pick up at walmart or the like and put money on.
Equipment:
**Limited Police Information: Peter Parker now has access to police logistics and information (limitedly) through Gwen Stacy. If you need to find out anything the police know on minor matters, she can tell you. More classified subjects are above her level.
*-Assumed that Peter gets respectable gifts
STRONG WEBBING INVENTED. This thick substance is able to go through your webshooters, but just barely. It also requires more use per cartridge, meaning that you have less usable- not advisable for web slinging unless larger cartridges are in use.
(Fake) Glasses- Hides the fact that your sight is now perfect to the unaware.
Hard drive- a removed computer hard drive. Contains files left by your father.
Richard Parker's Bag - Has a lock on it. A bag that belonged to your father- holds blueprints and notes on his works, as well as a warning.
Web Shootersx2- Roughly made, but they do the job. Each one can fit six cartridges- has rotating cartridges that can change between webbing types.
Web fluid (6x)- Six cartridges worth of regular webfluid.
Strong-web-fluid- Six cartridges worth of strong webfluid.
Spider-man costume (Durable) - You can't wear it under your clothes, but it reduces both your agility bonus and the damage you take by one. It does, however, boost your fellowship bonus by one in the costume.
Spider-man costume (sonic-proofed/Agile)- It's too thick to wear under your clothes, but your agility isn't decreased. However, you can't hear anything while in this costume and it can be sweltering during warmer months, but it should protect you from the Hobgoblin's Sonic Laugh.
[Equipped]Spider-man Costume (Stylish/Agile)- It's a light, thin material that allows you full mobility. However, it offers you no extra protection. You're friendlier looking, so fellowship rolls to those not hostile increase by three. This costume also offers you no protection from the cold- better wear some thermals or you might get frostbite... everywhere!