AN: Wow! This is a first. Two chapters for one story in a single day! Man, either I'm majorly on fire right now, or there's a very special occasion going on. No, wait, it's definitely the special occasion. What is this special occasion you may ask? Well, it's October 31st, and you know what that means.
Spidey: That it's Halloween?
AN: Well, yes that. But there's one other thing too.
Jess: What?
Ruby: [happily cheering with stars in her eyes] It's my birthday!
Spidey&Jess: What?! Your birthday?!
Yang: Yep. How do you guys not already know this? The RWBY Meetings preview for this story was literally posted on the exact same day for the exact same occasion.
Spidey: In fairness, we were only guest stars at the time. This is the first time either of us is being a full-fledged cast member in a RWBY story by lyoko Prime.
AN: And we're not going to get very far into it if we just sit here talking. It's not like we've got a lot to really cover since this chapter's getting posted right after the first one, so let's swing into the action.
Also, if you haven't already, please check out our YouTube channel "Studio Fandom". It's the best place to get updates as to what I'm doing with my writing stuff at the time along with various other content. And if you want to look at some pretty cool artwork, we've also got a DeviantArt page now "studiofandom", so check that out too, when you get the chance.
I do not own anything from any of the Spider-Man, Marvel, or RWBY franchises, or any other franchise mentioned in this story
Chapter 2: Welcome to the Kingdom
Dealing with the zoo of monsters ended up being easier than Spider-Man and Spider-Woman had expected. Sure, they had to contend with some new ones, and figure out the strengths and weaknesses of these new monsters, but in the end, they managed to hold their ground long enough to make their enemies think twice before messing with anyone in a colorful costume again. At least that would have been the case if any of the creatures had lived to tell the tale, but they all ended up disintegrating completely by the time the two Spiders were done. Regardless, the duo had cleared out the area of monsters and gained some breathing room in order to reacquire some sense of bearings.
Naturally the first thing they did was look for any signs of civilization nearby, and much to their relief, they did not have to look for very long. A fairly large city ended up being very close to where they were, and all it took to get into town was a couple of wide web-swings and an easy flight. It was only after they had arrived within the city limits when they finally realized night had fallen at some point during the fight, and it helped deliver the final piece of proof needed for them to know they really were not on Earth anymore. All they had to do was look up at the night sky and see the shattered moon shinning down from above.
Peter had so many questions after he saw the state of this world's moon, but he put a lid on his scientific curiosity for the time being. They had bigger concerns to address right now. "Okay, so we're stranded on an alien world, no supplies other than the clothes on our backs and whatever devices we happen to have on us, most of which are probably useless, and with absolutely no clue as to where Harry or Jameson could have ended up," Peter summarized as he lifted his mask up to his nose in order to breathe a little easier for a bit.
"I think our supply problem is a bit better than the clothes on our backs," Jessica corrected, indicating the backpack she was carrying with a small grin.
Peter rolled his eyes in response. "Yes, yes, I get it. You got lucky and ended up finding out your emergency SHIELD pack was pulled through with us. Hooray for you."
"You mean us, because I've got more than a few things in here that should help us out. Even if only to ensure we can better blend in with the locals," Jessica informed him as she pulled her mask off and started digging through the pack for something.
"Maybe you can, but unless you've got any men's clothes in that bag of yours, I'm just gonna stick with…" Peter's argument against wearing anything Jessica had in her pack was cut short when a pair of pants were suddenly thrown at his head, followed by a shirt and jacket. Upon better examining the items he had just been attacked with, he was a little surprised to find they were not meant for a girl. "Uh Jess? Why do you have men's clothes in your SHIELD bag?"
"Two reasons," Jessica answered as she fixed the shirt she had just pulled on over her suit. "First off, because I know how often you lose whatever bag you use to stow your own clothes in when you change to Spider-Man, and I'd rather we avoid having to spend any more money than we've already had to getting you a temporary wardrobe. Especially since I'm pretty sure Earth money isn't going to do us any good."
"Yeah, for once we're both equally broke. That'll be fun to deal with," Peter grumbled. Part of him was glad that Jessica could not tease him on his financial situation, even if only playfully, but the rest was too busy bemoaning the fact that neither of them had any money or any way to get jobs right now.
"And secondly, because Banner," Jessica finished, leaving it at simply that.
"Okay, that's fair," Peter conceded. Just about every Avenger had been glad when Tony developed a set of pants that would not tear when Bruce turned into Hulk, but both the team and anyone associated with them did still tend to try and do whatever they could to get some decent clothes or covering for whenever the big guy changed back into the scientist. Peter could still remember how he had to quickly spin up a web-blanket to cover Bruce with the first time they met, and he did not want to relive that experience.
Both Spider-Heroes decided to keep silent as they finished changing after that, so by the time they stepped out of the alley, they were able to do so as an ordinary pair of citizens. Peter was now wearing a dark red shirt, brown jeans, and black shoes, while Jess had slipped into an off-white top, black pants, a brown belt, and equally black shoes. Neither one of them saw fit to do much more with their appearances than that, but Peter did still make it a point to ensure his web-shooters were safely tucked away in his pants pockets before they went too far from their previous hiding spot.
"So we blend in with a crowd as far as appearances go, but who's to say we'll be able to keep that cover for long? We don't even know if these guys will understand our language," Peter pointed out.
"How about we just take stock of everything we've got to work with for now and worry about speaking with the locals later? I'm pretty sure there isn't going to be that many people around at this time of night. This doesn't seem anything like New York after all," Jessica pointed out.
"Don't remind me," Peter grumbled, already missing the City That Never Sleeps. He put his woes aside once again so he could help Jessica rummage through her pack to see what contents they could work with. "Let's see…Earth money, useless. Burner phone, also useless. Fake IDs…hmm, probably not entirely useless, but I wouldn't put too many bets on them being too helpful. Hold on," Peter stopped listing off the things in Jessica's bag when he pulled out what looked like a standard issue SHIELD pistol. "Jess, why do you have a blaster in your bag? You can shoot bio-energy from your hands, stick to walls, and you have the proportionate strength and agility of a spider."
"Hey, don't look at me. There's a reason why some SHIELD equipment is called standard issue. Just about every SHIELD agent carries some form of side arm, even if only for emergency situations," Jessica shrugged in her defense.
"What about Captain America?" Peter asked, knowing the Avengers leader had never been seen using a gun. Even before Jessica gave him a look that asked if he really just posed that question, he knew why it was a dumb one. "Yeah, I realized it as soon as I said it. So…what about Hawkeye then? Isn't he still technically a SHIELD agent too?"
"Part time, and you know how Clint is. Always prefers a bow or some other type of weapon for the olden days," Jessica replied.
As soon as she had said that, Peter had pulled out another weapon from the pack, only this one was not a gun. "So what's with this stick with a handle?"
"Tonfa. That's called a tonfa, Peter. I figured having an extra weapon for close-combat would be beneficial if I was on a mission that required me to keep my secret identity hidden," Jessica explained away. "It's not like I'm the only one either, or haven't you noticed Black Widow using a pair of her own sometimes?"
"I thought she was using stun batons."
"Only on really major missions. When it's something simpler, she prefers to use a set of tonfas," Jessica clarified for her friend. "Now are you gonna keep critiquing my choices of weaponry and supplies, are you gonna help finish checking what else I've got in here that could be helpful?"
"Alright, alright," Peter surrendered, letting the matter drop for the time being. The next items he pulled out ended up making him a little more surprised and confused. "Are these my old web-shooters?"
"Oh yeah. I forgot I put those in there so I could give them back next time we ran into each other," Jessica recalled. Her cheery face became a little sour when she added, "And insist that you never make me use them again."
"Make you? Ha! That's a laugh," Peter chuckled with a grin. "You practically begged me to let you try web-swinging that one time."
"I did not!"
"You so did!" Peter continued laughing, even as Jessica crossed her arms in huff. "Remember how many times you face-planted into buildings and billboards?"
"It wasn't that many," Jessica grumbled.
"Sure it wasn't, Jess," Peter semi-humored her. He then adopted a somewhat thoughtful pose as he recalled, "Come to think of it, I seem to recall that every time you hit a Bugle billboard, you always ended up crashing through it, right in the spot where Jameson's face had been. Something you care to share?"
"I have no idea what you're talking about. But assuming I did, well…I wouldn't say anything if you won't," Jessica responded as a cheeky grin worked its way onto her face, all but confirming she had in fact meant to crash through those billboards.
"My lips are sealed," Peter nodded in assurance. He was about to put the web-shooters back in the bag, thinking they could come in handy for a variety of reasons later, when a small sound caught his attention. "What was that?"
"What?" Jessica asked, only to pause when she noticed something moving amongst the items in her bag. "Oh no. Looks like we have a stowaway."
"What do you mean by stowaway?" Peter questioned in return. His question was answered quickly enough when Jessica's unexpected passenger poked her head out of the bag.
"Meow," the cute, tabby cat mewed once she had gotten her head free.
"Oh geez, Chewie! I thought I told you to stay home," Jessica moaned as she pat the cat on its head.
"Jessica, please tell me you did not actually bring your cat with you on an important SHIELD mission," Peter begged.
"Not exactly," Jessica hedged with a sheepish grin. "For one thing, she's not actually a cat, and for another…well, she's not mine. She's Carol's. I was just pet-sitting for her while she was off on a long-term mission in space."
The second he heard his friend say "Carol" and "space," Peter knew exactly what this could mean, and quickly jumped away from the bag Chewie was in. "You mean that's Captain Marvel's…Oh my god! No, no! Keep that thing away from me!"
"Jeez, what's with you, Pete? Chewie's not gonna bite," Jessica questioned with a teasing grin, holding the cat up a little closer to Peter. She did take a little pleasure in seeing him flinch away from Chewie.
"No! You can't trick me that easily! I have heard the stories of what that Flerken is capable of! I know what it did to Hawkeye, Falcon, and Tony," Peter insisted, doing his best to keep a safe distance between him in the space-cat without using his powers. He did not care if they did appear to be alone right now; he did not want to take any chances of potentially blowing his secret identity on another world after managing to keep it hidden for two years on Earth. "That thing hates men!"
"Now that's just ridiculous. She likes Steve just fine," Jessica argued.
"Because he's Captain America. It's hard for any sensible person to hate Captain America," Peter argued.
"And it can be pretty hard to hate you too….Sometimes," Jessica insisted before finally getting Chewie close enough to Peter, and at a point where he could not slip away without using his powers. "Besides, just look at her. Does this really look the face of a monster?"
Peter did not reply, but merely turned his face away as Chewie sniffed at him. Of all the stories he had heard about Captain Marvel's pet, the one thing that always stuck out in his mind was how it had once eaten an Infinity Stone and then hacked it up like a hairball a few days later. That alone was enough to make him weary of the thing, even without hearing what it nearly did to some of the other Avengers when they had to watch it for Carol. After a few tense seconds though, he felt something fuzzy rubbing against his cheek, and peeked an eye open to see the Flerken rubbing its head against him, purring affectionately as it did. The space-cat must have realized it was being watched, because it stopped rubbing and purring after Peter looked to it, and then just sat still as Peter raised his hand up to scratch it behind its ears.
When Chewie started purring happily again in response to Peter's actions, the boy had to smile and admit, "Okay, I guess she is pretty cute. Still doesn't explain why she was in your bag though."
"Like I said, she stowed away in the bag. Must have slipped in before I left for the mission," Jessica reasoned out. She let out a tired sigh as she pondered aloud, "How am I going to explain this to Carol?"
"More like how are the others going to explain it," Peter corrected as Chewie jumped out of the bag to start rubbing against his leg. "I don't suppose Carol got some alien version of a tracking chip for in case she got lost, did she?"
"Nope, not that I'm aware," Jessica denied as she scooped Chewie up into her arms. "Guess we're stuck with this little troublemaker for a while."
"Great, because we're totally in the best environment for taking care of a pet," Peter sarcastically remarked. He then shook his head in an attempt to get serious again. "So aside from the clothes on our backs, our hero gear, a couple of spare weapons, and the space-cat, we've got pretty much nothing."
"I wouldn't say we've got nothing. There's some camping supplies in here too," Jessica tried to argue.
"Yeah, I don't want to be camping out in some abandoned warehouse or in the monster-infested woods, do you?" Peter asked.
"No thanks. I'm good," Jess immediately agreed. "But it's not like we can just book a hotel room right now. Any money we have is only good on Earth."
Peter scratched his chin in thought for a little while, pondering both this and their other problems. "And we still need to find Harry and Jameson, along with figuring out a way to get back home. The latter of which being the harder problem."
"How is getting home the harder problem?" Jessica asked.
"Unless you've got a transceiver in that bag of yours, our only chance of getting home again is if we can somehow rebuild the OZ-Gate here, and I'm pretty sure most of its components are Earth-based. Even then, there's no telling if we'd be able to find a compatible power source for it, or that it would even work at all," Peter reminded her. "Sure, we could maybe try waiting for Doctor Strange or the Guardians of the Galaxy to come by and pick us up, but how likely do you think it is for that to happen?"
Jessica knew Peter had a point, but she wished he did not say it out loud. Somehow it just made their situation feel a little more real, if not dire. "Look, it's late, and we're both pretty exhausted after all that we just went through," Jessica finally sighed, cutting Peter off before he could start another rant. "How about we just focus on finding somewhere to sleep for the night and worry about all our other troubles in the morning."
Peter wanted to protest this idea, believing it would be better if they dealt with as many problems as possible right away, but when a strong yawn suddenly escaped his throat, he had to acknowledge that Jess might be onto something with her suggestion. "Alright, you win," Peter sleepily agreed. "We're just gonna have to figure out where we're gonna stay."
"How about the nearest homeless shelter?" Jessica suggested. "It's kind of the only thing a couple of broke teens can afford, you know."
Not seeing any valid reason to argue and feeling too tired to offer up any alternatives, joking or otherwise, Peter just nodded in agreement once again. The two then set out to find one such shelter, each of them relieved to see that if nothing else, the people of this world did at least use English for their written language after spotting a few signs to point the way to where they needed to go. They just had to hope the spoken language was the same way.
By the time the two heroes finally found a shelter, it had gotten very late into the night, and most places had already closed down. Thankfully, they did discover that everyone here spoke English, and Peter could not help celebrating that a little at the first chance he had. Jessica rolled her eyes a little at Peter's happiness over the lack of language barriers, but she was still pretty relieved they would not have to worry about standing out due to speaking in a way no one could understand.
"It'll certainly ensure we won't have too much trouble blending in, assuming we don't do anything Spidery while we're here," Jessica had commented.
"And it also means we won't have to play a game of charades every time we need to talk to someone! How can you not be more excited about this?" Peter added on right after in his excitement.
His excitement had all but died out by the time they finally found the shelter they were looking for, but it did return a little when they tried the door and discovered it unlocked. Upon stepping inside, they were reminded a little of the homeless shelter Peter's aunt worked at, but they barely paid too much attention to that. They just hurried over to the front desk so they could ask someone if there was room for them to stay here for the night, if not the foreseeable future. Luckily, the desk was being manned by someone, and she gave them both a quick smile when she noticed their approach.
"Hello there, and welcome to the Stan Ditko Shelter. Is there something I can help you two with today?" the woman asked of the teens.
"Hopefully, yes. Any chance you've got room to spare for a couple of broke kids with nowhere else to go?" Jessica inquired.
"Well, it's a bit of a tight squeeze right now, but I think we should have a couple of open cots for you two," the woman replied as she grabbed a clipboard and some papers. "How long do you two expect to be staying here?"
"We're uh…not sure about that right now," Peter sheepishly admitted. "We only just got into town after a very hazardous trip, and lost all of our belongings in the process, so I don't think we're going to have much luck finding jobs any time soon."
The woman did not seem too deterred, as she simply smiled in response. "Don't worry. Just about everyone who works here has some connection to a local business or two, and if you want, we can have someone help you guys out with getting everything you'll need for job hunting again."
"Thanks. Looks like we're going to owe you big time, Miss," Peter nodded to her.
"Oh please. Call me Naoko. Naoko Yamada-Jones," the woman introduced.
"Nice to meet you. My name's Jessica; Jessica Drew, and this is Peter Parker," Jessica replied on behalf of herself and Peter. A small meow reminded her that there was a third person in their party, and she quickly opened up her bag to make the last introduction while posing another question. "Oh, and this is Chewie. I hope its okay for us to have pets here, because we just can't leave her."
"Don't worry its fine," Naoko assured her, and she then handed the clipboard over to Jessica. "Now, I'm going to need you two to sign these papers so that we can log you into our system. It'll help us to keep track of how long you'll be here and what we need to do to help you out. Make sure you fill out the medical section as well so we can help you out with whatever you may need help with there too."
Peter and Jess both nodded in response and quickly filled out the specified information before signing their names in the appropriate blanks. After handing the clipboard back, Peter then asked, "One other thing. We got separated from a couple friends of ours before we got into town. Any chance you might have seen them?"
"I can't really say for sure, but then again, I see a lot of people coming in here. Usually victims of the recent White Fang rallies or survivors of Grimm attacks," Naoko shrugged. The two incidents and names she dropped went over Peter and Jessica's head, but thankfully they were able to hide it pretty well from Naoko. "What do they look like?"
"One of them is a boy about our age with reddish brown hair, and the other is an older guy in his…mid-twenties I think, and he looks like he'd be right at home in a military group," Peter attempted to describe. The only reason he paused part way through was because he did not know for certain how old Colonel Jameson might be, but going by the small nod Jessica gave him, he must have made a pretty good guess.
Naoko scratched her chin as she thought it over, before she ultimately gave up. "Sorry, but it doesn't really ring a bell. Do you maybe have a picture of either of them?"
"Yeah, just give me a second," Peter asked as he reached into his pocket to pull out his phone. He was so glad that he managed to keep that on him and it still worked after their trip here.
When Naoko saw the device Peter procured, she had to stare at it in surprise before she asked, "Is that really your Scroll? I don't think anyone's used a model like that in years."
"Huh?" Peter asked, momentarily forgetting these people probably had a different name for devices like cell phones. A sharp elbow from Jessica helped him to remember quickly enough. "Oh, uh, yeah it is. My family isn't all that well off, so I had to make do with this hand-me-down from my uncle. Jess's was actually among the items we lost, so…"
Naoko nodded in understanding. "Don't worry. First thing in the morning, I can take you guys out to get new Scrolls, no problem. Considering how much they get used for in everyday life now, you're definitely going to need them if you want to get anything done."
"Oh, you don't have to do that," Jessica tried to refuse, not wanting to take advantage of this nice lady and her shelter too much.
"No, really it's fine. Part of the shelter's services is supplying new arrivals with anything they might need, but don't think that means it's unlimited. If you end up losing the Scrolls we get for you, it'll be up to you guys to replace them," Naoko informed them.
"Got it. We'll just have to make sure we're extra careful with them once we've got 'em," Peter nodded as he finally found what he had been looking for on his phone. "Anyway, this is my friend here."
Naoko studied the picture of Harry for a minute before she finally shook her head. "Sorry, but I haven't seen anyone like that come in today."
Knowing that the chances of Jameson being with Harry were pretty good since they went through the OZ-Gate at the same time like the two of them had, Peter figured there was little point in showing Naoko a picture of the colonel as well. So he put his phone away and dejectedly sighed, "Well, it was worth a try anyway."
Naoko must have realized how much this bothered Peter, because she was quick to offer some bit of reassurance. "If you want, I can ask around to see if any of the other workers or really just anyone here at all might have seen them, and contact our other shelters so that they'll know to keep an eye out for them just in case they show up."
"We'd appreciate that, thanks," Jessica nodded.
With all of this settled, Naoko finished filing away the paperwork she just had the two fill out and then led them into the sleeping large, common area where every seemed to have started gathering up to turn in for the night. After helping them to set up a couple of cots for the night, she directed their attention over to where the center's bathrooms and showers would be, and then bade them goodnight as she left for an office up on the second floor. The two did not bother with changing before bed, seeing as they did not really have many other clothes aside from what they were currently wearing, and simply settled in for the night with one last quick exchange of words.
"Guess we'll find out for certain just how big of a mess we've landed ourselves in come tomorrow," Peter quietly whispered to Jessica from his cot.
"We already know how big of a mess we're in, Pete. Tomorrow's just going to be when we start figuring out how we'll adapt until we find a way back home," Jessica corrected him. A more depressing thought suddenly came to her mind, and prompted her to turn towards him as she asked, "You do think we'll be able to get back, right?"
"Yeah, we will," Peter answered without a second thought. "Somehow, some way, we'll find our way home again. Until then, guess we'll have to settle for being friendly interplanetary Spider-Heroes."
Jessica quietly laughed a little at the last bit, glad to have Peter's reassurance. More importantly, she was glad Peter seemed so confident in his belief they would find a way home, and that unfailing optimism of his was just what she needed to help her get to sleep. Then again, it would not be the first time his optimistic attitude had helped her through some tough times.
The following morning ended up being a bit of a blur for Jessica and Peter. Right after waking up, they had sped through breakfast and were then rushed out to the nearest store to get their new Scrolls. Upon receiving the devices, Peter immediately understood why Naoko mistook his phone for such a device, since that was essentially what a Scroll was. Or more accurately, it was one thing that a Scroll could be. From what Peter and Jessica could tell, Scrolls were highly-advanced versions of a smart device or tablet computer, depending on the size of the device, and all appeared to be comprised of a translucent, touch-sensitive panel between two solid end grips, which made the thing collapsible. Since it functioned like a smartphone, the two were able to use their Scrolls to look up a great deal of information on the internet, eliminating the need to go to the nearest library almost entirely, and they were both pretty surprised by some of the things they found online.
The basic, everyday information about the four kingdoms that made up this world and the structure of how things were done in the kingdom they currently resided in were the first things they looked into. As such, they quickly learned they were in the kingdom of Vale, located on the continent of Sanus, and from what they could tell it was one of the more relaxed kingdoms of the four, or at least one of the safer ones. Some even considered it to be like a beacon of safety against the dangerous monsters plaguing their world, which would explain where the name of its foremost school for training the next generation of world defenders might have come from. Along with all of that, they learned a few other basic details, such as about the Great War fought between the four kingdoms, how it led to the traditional Vytal Festival, and a few other details.
A few hours later, Jessica and Peter had finally managed to split off from Naoko on the grounds of looking around for possible jobs, when in reality, they were mainly just taking time to review what they had learned with each other. Of course, this did include some of the things they did not like as much as the others. "So aside from humans, there's another group of people living on this world called Faunus, who are basically like humans with stronger senses and a random animal feature," Jessica recalled aloud to Peter. "And yet, the Faunus are still persecuted for being different, often treated like animals even, which led to the Faunus Rights Revolution, and then later the creation of the Faunus nation, Menagerie, and the White Fang."
"Which went from a peaceful activist group to violent extremists," Peter continued on from there. "Or to put it another way, the White Fang is basically like the X-Men if Xavier started them alone, and then handed the reins over to Magneto after he joined up and wore the professor out with all their arguments."
"Seems like a pretty accurate comparison, given the attitude one of their most notable members appears to have," Jessica noted while looking over what little information there seemed to be on the White Fang member in question: a masked man by the name of Adam Taurus. Even the somewhat vague picture of the guy gave her a bad vibe. She shook it off to get them back on track. "Anyway, aside from the obvious regular crime, the biggest threat all kingdoms face is those weird monsters we fought at the OZ-Gate demonstration and in the forest after we got here."
"The Creatures of Grimm," Peter filled in, getting a few tingles up his spine just from saying the name. "Described as soulless abominations, even the locals don't really know too much about them aside from the most basic of information. They're drawn to negative emotions, and can take on the form of any kind of animal imaginable. A lot of them being similar to various Earth animals, living, extinct, or even fictional. Any attempts at studying the Grimm further have been for the most part unsuccessful."
"All they've really managed to do is drive them back or destroy the Grimm, thanks in large part to the primary defenders of this world, all of whom are trained at various academies located in each of the four kingdoms. Said defenders being the huntsmen and huntresses of the world," Jessica carried on from there. She paused a second later when she noticed Peter shiver a little at the end of her last sentence. "Pete? What's the matter?"
Peter shook off his little shiver and replied, "Sorry, but every time I hear the word huntsmen, or really just some variety of hunter, I still can't help but think of Kraven the Hunter, and the more I hear about these huntsmen and huntresses, the more I can't help but imagine the idea of an entire planet's worth of Kravens."
As ridiculous as the idea seemed, Jessica could understand why Peter would feel that way. She could well remember the first and so far only time she had encountered the crazy hunter, and needless to say, she hoped it would remain the only time. "I know Kraven has left a bad impression of hunters on you, and I'd be surprised if he hadn't. I mean, having a guy hunt you down like an animal all in an attempt to kill and mount you on a wall would leave a bad impression on anyone," Jessica told her friend. "But these people are completely different, so how about keeping those insecurities at bay if we ever run into one of these huntsmen or huntresses?"
"I can only promise to try, and nothing else," Peter informed her.
"Do or do not. There is no…"
"Don't even finish that sentence. Don't do it! I do not need you quoting Star Wars at me right now," Peter interrupted before she could get any further in. When Jessica just gave him a mischievous smile in response, Peter knew it was now his turn to get them back on track. "Okay, so aside from battling monsters, the huntsmen also fight regular crime and take on various other tasks, and they're all basically like superheroes in that they fight using special weaponry, equipment, and have their own special superpowers which are fueled by…"
"Aura, a special kind of energy that's supposedly tied to the soul," Jessica filled in. She then tapped her chin in thought before asking, "Do you think people might consider that as an explanation for our powers?"
"Maybe just in the case of things like your bio-energy blasts and flight, or my wall crawling and Spider-Sense. Things like enhanced reflexes, strength, and speed all seem to be a natural part of having your Aura unlocked if I'm understanding all of this right," Peter reasoned. "That said there's still the matter of how we're going to find Harry and Jameson, and then get back home."
"From what I gather, I think our best bet might be over in Atlas. It is supposed to be the most technologically advanced of all the kingdoms," Jessica determined.
"Maybe, but it doesn't look like Atlas is really much of a people's favorite if what we've read is any indication," Peter pointed out. "I know we might end up having to go there eventually, but maybe we shouldn't rush that into the position of our first solution just yet. Plus, the place isn't just another kingdom; it's an entire continent away from here. How would we even get there when we don't have a single penny to our names?"
"Lien. A single lien to our names. What's the point of studying up on all this information and basic terms if you don't even try to keep it straight, Pete?" Jessica questioned.
"Hey, gimme a break. It's only natural there would be an adjustment period. Not all of us are born and raised superspies you know," Peter argued in his defense.
"Technically I was more of a super assassin," Jessica quietly corrected.
"Hmm…Nah, I like superspy better. It sounds cooler," Peter playfully argued.
"How does that sound cooler?" Jessica asked.
Before Peter could explain, the familiar tingling in his head suddenly rang out, and made him turn towards the building they were just coming up on. The snowflake emblem on the side easily identified it as one belonging to the Schnee Dust Company, or at the very least the Schnee family, but the sounds of gunfire coming from inside, Peter had a sneaking suspicion they were not carrying on with their regular business right now. The sight of two suspicious characters prowling around outside only provided extra support to the theory.
Having known him for as long as she now has, Jessica easily recognized the signs of Peter reacting to his Spider-Sense going off, and a quick look up ahead at the building also helped her piece together what was likely going on. The difference between the two of them was that she also realized what Peter was more than likely planning to do in response, and while she would normally consider it admirable, Jessica felt right now was not the time for Peter to be pulling some of his more heroic stunts. She did not hesitate in saying so either.
"Peter, no," Jessica immediately told him. "I know what you're thinking, and I'm telling you right now, it's a bad idea."
"How? How is it a bad idea? There are bad guys attacking that place, which could mean there are probably people in trouble. We're already here, so we could help them," Peter argued with her.
"I'm not saying we couldn't, but right now it's more of a question as to whether or not we should," Jessica disputed without pause. "We've only just gotten a feel for some of the basics about this world, but that's all we've gotten: the basics. Who knows what kind of uproar we might cause if we start going into places and taking swings at bad guys like we would back home? For the time being, it would be better to keep our heads down and not draw attention to ourselves."
"Uh Jess, you do remember we wear colorful costumes that include masks for a reason, right? So we draw attention to our superhero selves and keep our civilian identities clear of trouble," Peter pointed out.
"Maybe, but who's to say someone won't still be able to figure us out? We don't have Stark or SHIELD around to help us with covering our tracks if we get sloppy," Jessica reminded him. "Just this once, maybe you should leave things to the local authorities. Heck, this may even be our chance to see how these huntsmen guys handle situations like this, assuming one happens to be in the area."
Peter knew Jessica had a point, but the mere idea of standing back and doing nothing to help just did not sit right with him. After all, he already made the mistake of ignoring a bad situation once before, and he had promised to never look the other way again. "Sorry Jess," he finally determined. "But you know why I can't do that."
Before Jessica could say anything more, Peter had already ducked away into the nearest alley, and she knew the next time he came out, he would do so as Spider-Man. Her point was proven when she looked up just in time to see the web-swinger flinging himself up into the SDC building without either of the two suspicious guards ever knowing, and at that moment she knew she could no longer just sit back either.
"The things you drag me into, Pete," Jessica bemoaned, but only half-seriously as she slipped into the same alleyway Peter had, and retrieved the web-sack he had left his civilian attire in so she could store them with her own civilian clothing. "But I guess my life wouldn't be as great as it is if you weren't in it, so I can't let you get yourself killed doing what you do best."
It was honestly a little unbelievable how easy it was for the White Fang to sneak in here and take over this SDC Dust storehouse, but then again, anything had to be easy compared to the botched train job Adam and his former partner had gone on a few days ago. Not that any of these guys were willing to say that out loud, even if Adam was not in the room right now. None of them had a death wish, so they just kept any comments about Blake's betrayal to themselves. Besides, they were about to score a lot more than they could have from the train, and help load up on whatever scheme that human slime ball Torchwick had in the works with that strange woman who torched their camp.
Speaking of those two, it still seemed pretty surprising to some of them that Adam would align the Vale faction of the White Fang with any humans, especially ones like Roman Torchwick or that woman in red. Then again, most of the members here had not been there to see what the lady had done to the camp, or even how she did it with only herself and two other people. The few who had been there understood very well why Adam agreed to this partnership, and frankly they felt like it was a smart move. If she was able to deliver on everything she had promised, then they would be able to truly prove why they deserved the humans' respect and fear. Maybe not in the way Sienna Khan would intend, but Adam's way of thinking did make a lot more sense than hers did.
It certainly seemed to be working on the pathetic fools they currently had tied up right now, but there was always going to be someone who thought they could play hero. The most recent attempt had ended with some random guy getting shot in the leg, much to his coworkers' horror, and when they saw the other White Fang members aiming their guns at them they all did everything they could to distance themselves from said members while tied up. Just when it seemed like things were completely hopeless, something unexpected happened.
While a couple of White Fang goons were busy discussing the idea of just killing the humans they had taken prisoner, the rest of their brothers in arms suddenly had their weapons pulled away by several strands of string. By the time the last two finally took notice, the person swiping the weapons had already snagged theirs and even took it a step further by flinging the last gun into its former holder's head, knocking him back a few paces so he could land before the very surprised and somewhat mystified groups.
"You know guys, if you have a problem with the customer service, you could just file a complaint with the manager like anyone else," quipped a man in a red and dark blue as he jumped up from the crouching position he had landed in so that he was standing up and ready to fight whoever came at him.
"And who the hell are you supposed to be? Some new huntsman that just graduated or something," one of the White Fang goons questioned as they started moving in on the intruder.
"Me? A huntsman? Nah, I'm just a concerned citizen doing his civic duty. Granted I'm doing so with a bit of style, but still," the man replied before lunging forward and decking one of the White Fang goons in the face. Much to everyone's surprise, the attack ended up sending said goon flying across the room, where he ended up being tied to the floor by a web the new arrival had shot out from his wrist.
The other White Fang members barely had that much time to process before the red and blue intruder turned his attention to them and proceeded to thoroughly trounce them just as easily. By the time the White Fang actually tried to counterattack, it already seemed to be too little too late, because the stranger had already taken down most of them, and restrained them in the same webs he had used on the first one. Soon enough, all of the White Fang had been dealt with, leaving only the stranger and the hostages either conscious or not caught in webs.
Once the stranger was sure everything was okay, he quickly moved to the hostage who had been shot, only for the man to flinch away in fear of what he might do. "Easy," the stranger calmly soothed him. "I just want to have a look at your injury. I think I might be able to do something to slow the bleeding a little until you can get to a doctor."
The man just looked at this masked individual like he had just heard the craziest thing ever, but did eventually find his voice. "Why…Why would you help me? Aren't you one of them?"
"Uh does it look like I'm one of them?" the stranger asked in return as he gestured to his costume, which had a very noticeable lack of the current White Fang emblem now that they were able to get a better look at him. In fact, the only emblems he seemed to wear were the ones on his chest and back, and they looked more like spiders than angry cats. "Just because I wear a mask doesn't mean I'm one of the bad guys."
"But…But you're a Faunus, aren't you?" the man questioned, even as the stranger finally got down next to him and began using his webs to create a crude bandage for his injury. "I mean, you've clearly got spinnerets in your arms or some other spider-like trait, so…"
"Oh, okay. I think I can see the confusion now," the stranger finally caught on. "First off, not a Faunus. I'm actually something else entirely. Second, they're not actual webs. They're really a chemical compound that looks and acts in a manner similar to spider webbing, but at the same time is…"
A loud punching sound suddenly grabbed the stranger and hostages' attention, and they all spun to the source to see the White Fang had called for backup. The only problem was said backup was currently dealing with a young woman clad in red and yellow, with only her raven hair and the lower half of her face being displayed to the world. "I think I'm starting to see why you normally just make all those jokes instead of trying for serious conversation," the woman quipped to the first stranger as she continued fighting other White Fang soldiers. "You start going into anything else and you end up too distracted to notice anything else going on around you."
"Only when it's related to science. Can I help it if I end up sounding like a teacher when discussing a matter related to my favorite subject?" the first man replied before sparing a quick blast of webs for another goon that had slipped into the room while he and the new woman were talking.
At this point, everyone was a little annoyed at not knowing who these two would-be heroes were, and both hostages and White Fang alike all asked at once, "Who are you?!"
"You mean he hasn't said the line already?" the woman asked in surprise before looking to her partner. "I thought you never missed a chance to say it."
"I was waiting to see if you were gonna catch up," the first stranger shrugged before addressing the room at large. "Ladies, gentlemen, and assorted crooks who are about to get beaten up, we are your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man and Spider-Woman."
To punctuate the declaration, Spider-Man landed a rapid series of spin kicks into at least three different White Fang goons, and then webbed them all up in quick succession. Spider-Woman on the other hand took a more explosive approach by firing a blast of bio-energy into the midst of a small group, only to accidentally hit a crate full of Dust when she did. The resulting explosion rocked everyone in the building a little bit, leaving them all pretty rattled, but thankfully, the two heroes managed to recover before the White Fang did, and soon knocked out several more members of the former pacifist group.
"Maybe you should avoid doing that again, partner," Spider-Man remarked as he webbed up the most recently knocked-out bad guys.
"Yeah, ya think?" Spider-Woman quipped in return. "I'll focus on getting the civilians clear. Think you can handle the rest of these guys?"
Spider-Man simply scoffed at the question. "Barely even a challenge."
With their new roles decided, the two sprang into action once more, each of them carrying out their designated jobs and leaving everyone else in awe as they became the first people to witness the beginning of something truly spectacular.
A few hours later, the police had finally arrived at the SDC facility, and were busy trying to keep the other civilians clear while they investigated the area and got statements from the former hostages. Right in the middle of all this, someone had managed to push past the barricade that had been set up, prompting one of the officers to respond. "Hey! Back behind the line, Miss," the officer in question ordered. "This is a crime scene!"
"Yes, a crime scene that took place at one of my family's company buildings. I think that entitles me to be here," the young woman with white hair tied into an off-side ponytail icily retorted while glaring back with icy blue eyes.
Upon getting another look at the girl and seeing both the scar she had over her left eye and the snowflake emblem on her jacket, the officer quickly realized just who it was he was speaking to, and immediately back-tracked. "Oh! My apologies, Miss Schnee. I didn't realize you were…"
"Well now you have," Weiss Schnee interrupted before he could grovel any further. "Now care to explain what happened here? I assure you, telling me about this will be a much more pleasant experience than telling my father would be."
"Not really much to tell, ma'am," the officer replied. "These White Fang guys broke in, took hostages, and started carting out whatever Dust they could. They didn't get everything, of course since someone stepped in to stop them."
"Of course," Weiss sighed in relief. "Glad to see that Vale's huntsmen were able to stop those awful bunch of degenerate animals before anyone got too hurt."
The police officer bristled at the slight, unspoken insult to Vale's finest, but it quickly died out when he ended up correcting the Atlesian rich girl. "Actually, it wasn't a huntsman who stopped them. Witnesses say it was…well, I'm not entirely sure I believe it myself."
"Believe what? Who stopped this from being a bigger attack on my family's company than it already was?" Weiss demanded.
In reply, the officer pulled out a card with a spider-emblem on one side and a small, printed message on the other as he said, "See for yourself. The people responsible took off before we could question them and only left this behind along with a number of webbed up White Fang members."
When she heard that the White Fang members had been tied up with webs, Weiss immediately assumed that a spider Faunus was responsible for this. It did not make any sense to her why a Faunus would go out of their way to help her family's company, or even just anyone unless they were hired or just a huntsman with a strong conscience of some kind. Thinking on all of this only made Weiss wary of whoever was responsible. Wary and a little suspicious, and her suspicion only grew along with a new desire to find the people responsible for this supposed act of good will as she read the message on the card aloud. "Courtesy of your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man and Spider-Woman."
Unknown to Weiss, the very two heroes she had just learned about were currently looking down on the scene from the nearby rooftops, studying the aftermath of their handiwork as they talked about this new development. "Well, I'd say we just blew any chance of keeping a low profile around here," Jessica noted as she studied the girl reading their calling card.
"Jess, come on. We both know it was never a matter of if but when we decided to step in and do what we do best," Peter informed her. "Besides, it's not like we're doing anything that wasn't already intended."
"Meaning what exactly?" Jessica asked, curious as to where Peter was driving this train of thought.
"The whole point behind Harry's OZ-Gate demonstration was to send help to this world, remember?" Peter reminded her, already feeling like he was having a bit of a Captain America moment. "Just because we aren't the team meant for the mission doesn't mean we can't still help this world. It's just going to be with a little more than their monster problem, and include figuring out a way to get back home after we track down Harry and John-Boy."
Now Jessica could see where Peter was going. "Are you really serious about this? You want to try and save a world that isn't even our own?"
"Maybe. For now though, I'll settle for just saving this one kingdom we happened to land in, but if we do end up getting that far while we're here, do you think anyone will complain?" Peter smirked in reply.
Jessica stared at her male counterpart in wonder until eventually she sighed and offered a smirk in return. "Maybe if this world has its own J. Jonah Jameson, but otherwise…"
Peter playfully groaned at the idea of there being another J.J. on this world, or even someone who could be his equivalent, and knew in that moment Jessica was on board with his plan. With that settled, the two set out to run a little patrol of the city. Sure, they did not think they would run into much more trouble tonight, and it was really more of a run to get themselves better accustomed to their new environment, but neither Spider-Hero could think of a better way to ensure Vale would be well acquainted with the new heroes in town by morning than this.
Merely two days later, and word of the supposed Spider-Heroes had already spread like wildfire, even going as far as the island of Patch. In one particular house out in the woods, a young girl in a red hood had eagerly started a small collection of news clippings and sighting reports centered around Vale's newest heroes, all with an excited sparkle in her silver eyes. Sure, huntsmen and huntresses were cool, but hearing about real-life superheroes being somewhere out there made her just as excited as her dream of becoming a huntress like her parents and uncle. It was too bad she was going to have to wait a couple more years before going to Beacon, but until then, she was more than content with hearing about how great the school was from her sister while expanding her scrapbook collection on great heroes and huntsmen. Then again, considering how many reports there seemed to be about these Spider-People, part of her could not help but think she might have to start a whole new scrapbook dedicated just to them.
A brief knock at the door pulled the young girl out of her musings, and she soon bounded over to the door to see her sister waiting outside. "Hey Ruby," the powerful blonde bombshell of a girl greeted. "You up for some quick combat practice? Might as well get in a few more sessions together before I head out to Beacon."
"Yeah, sure Yang," Ruby Rose agreed before starting towards another corner of her room. "Just let me grab-WAH!"
Ruby's path to her weapon got cut short by Yang grabbing onto the back of her hood, the elder sister grinning a little at what she was about to do next. "Nice try, but I'm not going to make it that easy for you," Yang informed her little sister. "I'm going to get you to improve your hand-to-hand combat skills at least a little bit before I go off to start living the dream. So guess what that means."
"Oh no," Ruby paled upon hearing Yang's words. She knew it could only mean one thing, but she still prayed to be wrong. "Yang please. Don't say it. Don't make me leave my beautiful baby."
"Sorry Sis, but that's the way it's gonna be. Crescent Rose needs to stay here. End of discussion," Yang stated in a tone of finality that did not fit with the smile on her face.
Ruby did not hesitate to make her displeasure over this known with a long, miserable groan, but it did nothing to deter Yang from her intended goal of training her sister up in hand-to-hand combat. Realizing this, Ruby crossed her arms in a bit of a huff and muttered, "I'll bet the Spider-Heroes never have to train without their weapons."
"I'm pretty sure they don't even use weapons. At least, that's what I've heard anyway," Yang told her. She then decided to forgo any further teasing or jokes and switched over to the caring big sister logic. "I know it's hard for you, but you're going to need to be ready in case there's ever a moment when you can't get to your weapon, or really just any weapon in general. Not everything's going to come as easily to you as learning how to wield a scythe, but if you put in the work, it will all be worth it in the end."
Seeing the point her sister was trying to make, Ruby finally accepted her fate, and grumbled, "Fine, but I'm not gonna like it. I already know I'm going to end up eating dirt the entire time."
"Hey, you never know. Maybe you'll actually land a hit on me for once," Yang tried to reassure her, but she was too confident in the difference between their skills to really make the little white lie that believable. Ruby did seem to appreciate the effort at least, since she was smiling again by the time they had headed out the door to a nearby field for their upcoming spar.
AN: Okay, not gonna lie, but when Spiderfan626 first suggested including Chewie the Space-Cat in here, I was a little skeptical on the idea. I mean, yeah, I can see Jessica pet-sitting for Captain Marvel, but having the space-cat appearing here because of that seemed like a bit of stretch. Then he offered up a few explanations as to why having Chewie around would add more to this story, and I just couldn't resist.
Spidey: Hey, what about the homeless shelter Jess and I ended up at? Where did that come from?
AN: That was an original idea. If you guys know where the name of the shelter comes from, good for you. I'd say you get a cookie, but...Ruby already ate them all.
Ruby: [with a mouth full of cookies] What? It's my birthday.
AN: We know, sweetie, but please, at least remember your manners and don't talk with your mouth full. Anyways, as for the person overseeing the shelter, well, she's actually a character who was first introduced way back in Spider-Man Unlimited. Unlike the show though, Naoko won't really be a huge part of the story. Like, I'm pretty sure this might be the only time I'll actually have her show up. Well, there might be at least one other time she'll appear, but beyond that, this may be one of her only appearances.
Now, I know this chapter probably seems a little rushed, or just shorter compared to the last one. Heck, you could even just say it's nothing more than mostly dialogue between Jess and Peter, but the whole point of this chapter was to showcase Peter and Jessica's initial efforts at adjusting to life on Remnant. Obviously that includes them getting Scrolls at the first available chance by some form of means, but would it really be a day in the life of a Spider-Hero if this adjustment period didn't include an encounter with the local baddies?
Yang: Not to mention you got to have some of us make our first debut in the story.
AN: Yes indeed, and already the pair seemed to have left an impression on all three of the Team RWBY members to have appeared here. Or at least two out of the three, any way. Yeah, I don't really think anyone should be too surprised by Weiss's initial assumptions about a couple of spider-themed vigilantes, but if anything, I think Ruby's reaction is probably less surprising. I mean, can we really say we should expect any less from either of them? And of course I was going to find some way to work Ruby into here, otherwise I'd feel lousy for posting this on her birthday. I mean, why do that and not get the birthday girl at least one scene in all of the two chapters that get posted today?
Weiss: Even I wouldn't be that cold, and that's saying something. My father on the other hand...
AN: Weiss, you didn't even need to start that sentence, let alone finish it.
Ruby: Don't you think it's a little too convenient that Spider-Woman's bag of supplies ended up on Remnant with them though?
AN: No, that would be if both Spider-Woman and Spider-Man had bags of supplies that made the trip with them. This on the other hand makes a lot more sense than you think, since it further plays up the curse of the Ol' Parker Luck. Plus, if I didn't have them get a bag of supplies, they would have had to hide out in any dark corner they could find or just steal someone's clothes, and we all know how Spidey can be about stealing, even if it is for a good reason. Also, I think Jess is completely justified in having an outfit ready for Banner just in case. After all, remember when Hulk changed back into him in Thor Ragnarok? Our favorite Asgardian prince had to scramble like crazy with trying to find Banner something to cover up with or just wear, and it was only by a stroke of luck that Tony happened to leave a set of clothes on that Quinjet.
Now, I think that should be everything we need to discuss this time. So let's finally wrap things up for this rapid-fire update/posting for this Halloween, shall we? Onto the Preview!...
Spider-Man and Spider-Woman continue to perform their acts of good deeds, and simultaneously gain more and more attention from various parties. From recent arrivals to men of great influence, there seems to be no shortage of people who want to know more about the mysterious web-swingers. Only one person ends up getting any answers though, and he'll soon wish he had remained clear of them soon after. The Spiders will face off with the biggest rogue in Vale next time in…Chapter 3: Burning the Torch.
Once again, be sure to check out my YouTube channel "Studio Fandom" and the DeviantArt page "studiofandom" if you haven't already. Always looking for more followers and subscribers on both. And as always...
Please read and review, and we'll see you next time, fellow true believers!