Hero
Naoko Akagi heard an excited noise coming from her left.
She looked away from her clipboard to see a small boy peering closely through the glass. He was smiling, eager to see his beloved mother as she put together the final preparations for the contact experiment.
Naoko's eyes turned to a man sitting with his hands over his face. Gendo Ikari, the director of GEHRIN, was staring intensely through the glass as if he was waiting for something to happen.
Akagi wondered what it could be.
"What is a child doing here?!"
Ah yes, Kozou Fuyutsuki. Naoko could only sigh as the old college professor barged into the room unexpectedly.
"That's Director Ikari's son." Akagi stated plainly, going back to observing the project already in motion.
"Ikari, this isn't a daycare center. This is an important event." Fuyutski said with a disapproving tone.
A small chuckle came over the intercom. "Sorry professor, I was the one who let Shinji in here."
Fuyutski looked confused, "But this is your day Yui. Your experiment!"
"That's why I wanted to bring him." Yui said reassuringly. "I want to show him how bright the future will be!"
Naoko couldn't care less what her reasons were. The sooner this experiment is over with the sooner she wouldn't have to deal with Yui. How she would like to ruin that smiling face with every fiber of her being.
If only Naoko knew those would be the last words she'd ever hear from her hated person.
If only she knew the kind of person Gendo was at the time.
If only she knew this wouldn't be the last time she'd see the son…
A bright light enveloped the room as a loud scream was heard.
"Why don't you start Spider-Man… or should I say, Shinji Ikari?"
A gentle breeze was felt over the rooftop as Doctor Naoko Akagi towered over a beaten and unmasked Shinji Ikari. The 14 year old boy tried to move, but his arms wouldn't even nudge to the side. He felt his whole body was in complete and total pain. Shinji looked at the metallic tentacles writhing and slithering around Naoko Akagi, and wondered what they could possibly be made of to leave their marks on his bones.
"Well? Are you going to say something? I don't have all night to have you staring at me like a goldfish."
The boy realized his mouth had been hanging open the whole time. Closing it with a panicked instinct, he raised a fist towards the doctor-
"AUGH!"
But let out a shriek when his hand was instantly crushed by a metallic tentacle hand. Naoko let out a cruel smile.
"No no, don't even think about trying to fight. I got you backed against a wall, close enough that my arms will only take less than a second to intercept any punches or attacks you make. You're not going anywhere."
Shinji groaned, struggling against the pain. "W-where am I? Why am I-?!"
"Alive?" Naoko correctly guessed. "Well I couldn't help but be curious as to who might be underneath that mask. When I saw that it was you, well… I had questions. So I brought you here to get some answers."
"Y-you killed them!" Shinji stated. "Why did you kill those people?!"
The doctor shrugged. "They were in my way. Just low level extras who insulted me and payed the price. Nobody is going to miss them."
Naoko saw Shinji bite back a shriek when his hand was twisted by the metal arm.
"Now why don't you answer my question like a good boy, hm? Or-"
The boy was suddenly dragged by the mechanical hands, and found himself staring at the streets below.
"-I could throw you over this ledge and let the cars kill you." Naoko continued. "In fact, I think that's sounding pretty good right about now."
Without any recourse, especially with how slow the healing has been, the boy caved in. "Okay! I'll tell you!"
Then he was slammed back to the wall. Clutching his forehead, the boy looked up to a smirking Akagi. Now his hands and legs were wrapped up in the metal tentacles as the doctor held his chin with her fingers. "There there, was that so hard?"
Shinji tried to keep a defiant frown. He did. But under Akagi's gaze… his eyes went downcast.
"So… explain. NOW."
Will be busy tonight. Make sure to be home by 10:00.
Sent by T. Yamagishi.
Mayumi Yamagishi sighed. Another night like this, sitting alone at the Joho Café. She had surprised herself when she spent more time in this place, not even reading whatever book she happened to carry with her in the bag. Instead, her screen showed various tabs of news reports.
About Spider-Man.
If she had to pin point when this newfound obsession started, Mayumi guessed it was that night two weeks ago. Before then she thought of him as some creepy person, but somehow seeing him stabbed to hell and back by that knife wielding psycho, she still threw that cup to his defense. And when that maniac was about to kill her, he stepped in to save her life even when injured.
Her hands shuddered at the memory.
Spider-Man was everything she was not. The web swinger had amazing abilities beyond the human body was capable of and fought various super villains over the weeks. Mayumi was… well...
Perhaps that's how the media try to portray him as some sort of cowardly wimp. A sneaky little conniving liar who only caused problems. A menace… Mayumi had to agree with Kotei on one thing: Spider-Man was neither of those things.
He was a hero… he was brave.
"Someone turn up the volume, the news is on!"
The bookworm looked up from her laptop to look up at the tv screen. Her heart missed a beat.
"… hospital, renowned scientist Naoko Akagi can be seen carrying off the city's famous vigilante Spider-Man off in the mechanical harnessed she showed off at the Expo yesterday. The police had found dead bodies in her room, which has led to the speculation that Doctor Akagi may have violently murdered them."
Mayumi suddenly felt intense fear.
"Shinji!" She whispered yelled to herself. "I told him to go over there… Could he be-!"
With that thought in mind, a sickening sensation swept through her.
Naoko placed a hand underneath her chin.
"A genetically altered spider… one of Yashida's projects." She spoke. "But why keep it inside a school? An negligible decision at best, a completely moronic action at the worst. So this 'Shocker' was one of his men… thank you Ikari. Now I know exactly who I can get my revenge on."
The boy tried to speak, but his breath was heavy. "N-no you wo-"
He screamed when his hands were twisted again.
"Oh? You are going to stop me? You, a spineless little hedgehog desperate for his father?" Naoko smirked. "No I don't think so. Especially not if you want your little secret to be kept that way. Considering how the public turned on you so fast, who knows what they'd do if they knew who you really are."
Shinji's eyes widened at her words. "You… wouldn't…"
"I think I would." Akagi said in a mocking tone. "But that doesn't have to happen. All you have to do is stay out of my way and your little cosplay fun would continue, okay~"
She chuckled. "You know, I certainly didn't expect to ever see you again. Especially not at the party of my ruined triumph. When I saw you last you were just a small little brat, eagerly watching your mother work."
This information shocked the boy. "You knew my mother?"
For the briefest of moments, the doctor's expression changed. Shinji couldn't tell what she was thinking. Perhaps… an sense of nostalgia?
"I did… but that was a lifetime ago." Her voice taking on a somber tone. Almost immediately, Akagi's evil smile returned. "I always sort of wondered what happened to you after you were sent away. Gendo Ikari never mentioned you once in the entire time we were… together."
"You're lying…" The boy hissed from pain.
"Oh, but I'm not." Naoko scratched her chin. "I wonder how it feels, to know everyone hates you and wants nothing more than to see you gone."
"Shut up!" Shinji angrily growled, his eyes flickering with hate.
"Ohhh touched a nerve didn't I?" Naoko said in a sickeningly sweet tone. "Poor Shinji Ikari. Your mother gone, your father apathetic at best, your guardian gone. You're just desperate for any sort of validation or praise aren't you?"
At that, the boy said nothing.
"It's never going to come you know. No matter what you do, no matter how hard you try, in spite of everything you do… eventually they'll hate you. When they don't have a use for you they'll throw you away. Just like they did me."
"SHUT UP!" The boy shouted at her, raising a fist. Then it got caught and stuck to the wall by a tentacle.
"Temper temper, little insect. You should control yourself, or else you really want your bones to be reduced to dust?"
"You're… you're crazy…" he said gritting through his teeth. He felt his neck being swiftly grabbed and pulled. Coming face to face with Akagi, Shinji saw that Instead of the smug smile he had seen on her the whole while, Naoko had an angry and hateful expression.
"I am NOT crazy!" She screamed at him. "I've only begun seeing the world with a clear view than I did before. Tch, I don't know why I wasted my time with you to be honest. You're just a cowardly weak little brat desperately calling for whoever will listen. You're going to stay out of my way of killing Yashida, and I won't tell anyone who you are. That clear?"
She didn't even wait for him to finish. Naoko Akagi dropped a broken Shinji Ikari to the floor, before turning around and letting her mechanical arms carry her off.
For a while, Shinji didn't move… then he felt his eyes watering.
"She… she… just like that…" The boy stuttered quietly. "I don't know what to do… Yamashiro…"
He didn't even bother to try controlling the tears that streamed down his cheeks.
"Doctor Naoko Akagi is not dead. Explain."
Kenichiro Yashida stood in front of the holographic image of his "generous" benefactor. The man's disappointed gaze glared at him.
"I did exactly what you asked." Yashida plainly stated. "I had the doctor killed in a public manner that left her humiliated and disgraced just like you wanted. "
"Yes, but you apparently missed the incredibly essential key part is that she's supposed to be dead." The hologram said. "Bad enough that the explosion didn't kill her, did you even send someone to at least botch her recovery in the hospital?"
"I did." Yashida rubbed the thorns on his plant. "He had not checked back in. We presume he is dead."
"Most disturbing." The hologram shifted slightly. "Between your Sandwoman and Electro experiments escaping and the reduction of your organization in the past few months, one would question how competent you really are."
Yashida glared at the obvious insult. "You question me? After everything I've done for you?"
"Do not presume you can't be replaced, Yashida." The hologram dismissed. "You musn't forget, we were the ones who provided you and your family with the resources to rise to power. It was SEELE's generosity that gave you this office, that plant, your supposed 'garden city'. We can instantly take it away from you any time we wish. We cannot fulfill our end of the bargain if you do not cooperate."
The crime boss said nothing.
"You are going to find a way to fix the mess you made, Yashida. The Kuzuryu has plenty of thugs and criminals. Use them."
With that, the hologram petered out.
Slamming his fist down on the table, Kenichiro pinched the bridge of his nose. He gently caressed the thorns on his plant.
"I can't fail now… not when things are so close…"
Mayumi Yamagishi was worried.
Professor Kuruto Inumaru was explaining the assignment, but she couldn't focus on any part of it for a single reason. She turned to her left.
Shinji Ikari was not in his seat.
Two classes had past and not once had he shown up. This only increased her worry. 'The news didn't mention who was killed… Shinji… I really hope you're not dead.'
The door slid open.
"Ah, Mr. Ikari, I see you've arrived on time." Professor Inumaru said sarcastically. "Considering you've missed two classes today, you'll be staying to do cleaning duties."
The boy nodded and walked to his seat. Mayumi would have let out a sigh of relief if it weren't for how he looked.
Shinji was disheveled, his eyes blood shot and like he had been run over by a truck. Even his uniform didn't seem as adjusted as before. While he was always a quiet type, today it seemed as though he was a ghost, a presence no one can ever feel.
'What happened to him?' She asked herself.
Shinji Ikari was not well.
He spent a long time on that rooftop before he gathered up the energy to get home. Even then, the boy was not able to get much sleep that night.
Which of course meant he couldn't get out of bed in the morning.
Which of course meant he couldn't make it to classes on time.
Which of course meant that today he had clean up duty.
'Oh well, it was only fair.' Shinji thought. 'I failed as a student, so I need to pay for it. Not much I can do about that.'
Honestly those were just trivial things to the boy right about now. He knew those were just distractions from the whirlwind of issues going on inside his head.
There was no white lie he could tell himself, not for very long. Doctor Naoko Akagi shattered his bones, had him defenseless and at her mercy. She knew his secret and was willing to spill it any time she wanted to. Akagi preyed upon his deepest insecurities, pushing his buttons… and the scariest part was, Shinji knew she wasn't wrong.
GET AWAY FROM ME
He was cowardly.
HOW PATHETIC
He was dishonest.
I HATE YOU
He was sneaky… and weak.
He remembered drowning in his dream. Within them was a heavy sense that deep down, everyone resented him. That he was an anchor that kept everyone down. Spider-Man had been an escape from that. A chance to be liberated from that and be something else. Something more.
But when he felt the bricks coming down on his head, Shinji realized that wouldn't be true either. No matter if he was Shinji or Spider-Man, he was always alone. He would always be a weak person.
If Akagi told anyone of his true identity, then he'd face bricks not just when he swung on his webs, but all the time.
'Well Akagi said she was going after Yashida.' Shinji tried to justify, 'He's a criminal and he experimented on Shiraishi Rai and Sunako to be bad guys. Would letting Akagi do what she wanted be that bad?'
She was right. Everyone will turn on him, so why bother?
"Ikari!"
Shinji turned to face Mayumi, who then suddenly grabbed his hands and looked at him with a worried expression. "Are you okay? I was so worried!"
"Huh? What for?" Shinji asked.
Mayumi's face lit up in surprise. "Oh you weren't-" she breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank God you weren't there."
For this Shinji was even further confused. "Weren't where?"
"Well the news last night said that Akagi killed a bunch of people and escaped hospital with Spider-Man." Mayumi said. She smiled, "I was worried you might have gone there, but I'm glad that didn't happen right?"
'If only you knew…' Shinji pushed that thought out. "Yeah… good thing I wasn't."
Mayumi tilted her head. Worriedly, she asked "Did something happen? You weren't here for two whole classes."
The boy waved it off, "Don't worry Yamagishi, nothing happened. I had trouble sleeping that's all.."
Mayumi knew something was up. Even so, she decided not to push it any further.
Turning her head up, "I'm worried about Spider-Man though. Akagi carried him off to God knows where and nobody's seen him."
Ikari snorted, "Maybe Akagi killed him… maybe he gave up."
"NO HE CAN'T BE!" Mayumi shouted, surprising the boy. "He can't be dead! Spider-Man's too strong to go down like that!"
Utterly baffled, Shinji retorted, "What makes you so sure? He wears a mask! Spider-Man could be dishonest, maybe even a coward for all you know!"
Mayumi negatively nodded. "No! Someone who would risk his life to save people wouldn't give up like that. Absolutely not!"
"Maybe he got sick of how people treat him all the time!" Shinji started getting angry. "Maybe he's just up and decided it wasn't worth it!"
"I hate how everyone tries to blame him for everything, but someone like Spider-Man wouldn't let that take him down! He's going to get back up in no time just you wait!" The girl crossed her arms.
"How do you know?" Shinji asked, "How do you even know what kind of person he's like! He's just a stupid person in a mask!"
"BECAUSE HE'S NOTHING LIKE ME!"
The two stood in silence. Mayumi lowered her head, her eyes unable to be seen through the hair.
"I don't really know or understand why…" she calmly whispered. "When that crazy psycho was about to kill Spider-Man in the Café, I- I threw a cup at him to save Spider-Man's life. I've been wondering about that these weeks, where I got that from… Spider-Man's so amazing, he has all those powers, the cool mask… but I'm… I'm nothing! How was I strong enough to do that? And I- I think Spider-Man gave me that. He gives people courage- he gave me that. I-"
She placed hands over her face. "I don't want to think he's gone. I sound so stupid don't I?"
Shinji was completely shocked. He had no idea Mayumi felt that way about Spider-Man. He gave her strength? This had to be some kind of joke! If she knew the truth she'd be disgusted and hate him like everyone else does.
"… no it's not."
Mayumi looked at him.
"It's not stupid at all." Shinji said with a warm smile. "In fact, I think you might be on to something. Maybe he's just hiding, waiting to get up and fight later or something."
"You really think so?" Mayumi asked.
Shinji nodded. "Yeah… I have a feeling that might happen."
The decision was made. If Mayumi believed in him, then he has to believe in himself a little bit too.
"Damn it, how hard is it to track down a single middle aged woman with mechanical tentacles in this damned city?!"
Kenichiro Yashida was not pleased one bit.
He had his men sent to search for Naoko Akagi, but so far all he heard were excuses and failures. The Kuzuryu had eyes and ears all over the city, and yet no sign or clue was found. Frustrating as it is, Kenichiro could do nothing but wait.
He sipped the tea in his hands.
Yashida suspected Naoko would go after him. She may or may not know that SEELE wanted her gone, but she would definitely suspect a power play at hand. She might even question why a Kuzuryu thug would target her at her own presentation. The crime boss expected Akagi to come to him.
The only question would be when.
He placed the cup back down on the table, taking a handkerchief to wipe away the stains on his mouth. He proceeded to rub the thorns on his plant affectionately.
CRASH!
Yashida instinctively dodged out of the way. He noticed it was a car that smashed through his bulletproof window. He held onto his plant for dear life as a double pair of mechanical arms made their presence known.
"I honestly expected that car to kill you." Naoko said on her way to Yashida, "That would have been a little inconvenient to be honest."
"I agree." Yashida stood up from the floor glaring at the doctor. "It would have made your resignation even harder for SEELE."
"Resignation? A very fancy way of describing a plot to RUIN MY LIFE!" Akagi shouted. "Leaving MY LEGACY, TO BE MOCKED BY WORTHLESS PEONS FOREVER!"
Yashida dusted his suit, "It was nothing personal. Our mutual benefactors wanted you gone. I merely carried the shovel to do the task."
His neck was then held in a tight mechanical grip as his body was raised into the air.
"If my death was so impersonal," Akagi growled, "then you wouldn't mind letting me have my revenge would you?"
The grip tightened severely as the crime boss struggled for his life. He clawed for any piece of air, but it gradually became harder and harder to do so. His vision was being clouded by dozens of dark spots.
"Good bye, Mister Yashida."
Suddenly Yashida felt his shoulder being yanked.
"Hey! I'm not exactly that guy's biggest fan either, but murder is just a step too far in my book."
Kenichiro looked up to find Doctor Akagi turning around and facing Spider-Man hanging upside down on the broken window.
"So you've come after all?" Akagi said. "I don't quite understand what you think you'll accomplish here. Are you really going to stop me? Even if you do I'll just tell everyone who you really are."
Spider-Man's eyes narrowed.
"I know… but it's a risk I'm willing to take." Spider-Man stated. "I'm going to stop you."
Kenichiro realized that was not a threat. The tone of voice made it clear it was a promise.
"I see." Akagi smirked. "Then I guess you're just another insect in my way. PERISH!"
She launched a tentacle right at Spider-Man, but he let go of the web line and dodged it.
"Perishing doesn't sound good for my health, why not a game of cat and mouse?" He yelled out of view.
"Get back here you little twerp!" Akagi shouted.
The doctor chased him down, her lower tentacles supporting her moving through the broken window while the upper ones launched themselves after the boy.
When the two left, Kenichiro Yashida walked over to the broken table. He picked up the phone.
"Call off the search, Akagi attacked my office… get some Adamantium restraints and fire everyone involved in the search."
'Well she's no longer trying to kill Yashida… but that means she's now trying to kill me!'
Shinji Ikari ran down the building, shooting webs to propel himself forward to outrun Akagi's tentacles as they get closer and closer. Truth be told, the boy didn't have much of a plan beyond getting Akagi to chase him. As the chase began, the wall runner considered his options.
'The reason she was able to get me last time was because it was a small room and I was trapped. Now that we're out in the open, I have a much better chance of moving around her to get a hit in. Only problem is-'
The window shattered underneath his feet. He was about to launch a web line, but his leg was caught by a metallic hand and thrown into the building.
"If you think you're going to get away, think again!"
Spider-Man felt himself being pulled towards the doctor. 'Crap she's got me, what do I do?!'
He saw that Akagi's upper right tentacle wasn't moving. Instinctively, he raised a hand-
THWIP!
"GRAGH!" Akagi yelled, using her hands to try ripping off the webbing from her eyes. The arm let go of Shinji, plummeting him downwards. He quickly snapped into gear and launched a webline into a nearby building.
"That was close." he said as he swung away. "Still, I need to get her away from Yashida."
After a struggle, Akagi removed the webbing with her hands. She immediately spotted the boy running across the nearby rooftop.
"Oh no you don't." Naoko muttered.
She propelled herself forward, the mechanical arms safely breaking her fall as well as the floor.
"Shit!" Shinji cried out as he swung away just before Akagi landed.
Not willing to let the insect leave her sight, the doctor picked up a garbage can using an arm and threw it right at him.
"Oof!" Spider-Man said, the hit breaking his momentum and causing him to fall.
With a thud, he found himself rolling and rolling around the the floor. Shinji realized the surface must be moving, so he placed his hands down and stuck them. Sure enough it stopped him dead on.
That was when Ikari noticed he was on the top of a moving train. He started slipping slightly as Doctor Akagi landed right in front of him.
"Having a hard time sticking to this aren't you?" She yelled. "It IS going pretty fast. Can you even get up?"
Her words weren't unfounded, the fast moving train meant he couldn't move as much as he wanted to. On the other hand, Shinji also knew Akagi had to focus on making sure the arms supported her and made sure she didn't fall off. He had a chance.
"I don't know," Shinji responded. "Something tells me you're having just as much of a hard of a time as I am. Maybe this'll help you STICK!"
Spider-Man raised both hands and launched two web lines towards Akagi, who blocked both of them with her mechanical arms.
"No thanks, I think I'm good." Naoko said sardonically.
Then she pulled on the webs and sent Sider-Man flying off to the left.
"That was too easy." Akagi said to herself. "Now to get back on track-"
THWIP! THWIP!
Two webs landed to the front and back of her. Naoko quickly turned and saw Spider-Man had his legs outstretched and in her path!
'Shit!' She thought panicking. In a second, her right tentacle managed to hit Spider-Man causing to him to stick onto the side of the train.
'For a stupid kid, he's cleverer than I thought.' Naoko thought to herself. 'This is getting ridiculous. I want Yashida, not Ikari's spawn. Perhaps a distraction is in order.'
From there she got a wicked idea.
She commanded the tentacles to break into the windows of the train. From the cart the arms pulled out two screaming, desperate civilians with them.
"Help me!" screamed a brown haired middled aged woman struggling against the tentacles grip.
"What the hell's happening?!" yelled a punk teen with bleached blond hair terrified out of his skull.
"Oh little bug~" Akagi said in a sing song voice. "If you're so desperate to be a hero, why not try saving the people?"
With that, she tossed the two victims away from her.
'I can't believe she would do such a thing!' Shinji ignored Akagi and swiftly swung. Since he was closer, Spider-Man grabbed the punk teen first, then launched a web towards the woman. The webbing hit her stomach, with that Spider-Man pulled her up close. The costumed vigilante then landed on the ground.
"Stay here." Spider-Man commanded. "Call the police or something, I'm going to try stopping her!"
The two civilians nodded as Spider-Man swung back to the train.
The boy saw that the cars were slowing down/ Wondering what was up, he noticed that they were all disconnected from the first cart which Akagi was standing over. 'What is she up to?'
Spider-Man landed on said cart in front of Akagi. "Okay show's over Akagi. You killed those guys in the hospital, and now you threw those people off the train! I'm stopping this now!"
"Actually," Akagi smirked. "I think it's only just BEGUN!"
With that, the cart started getting faster. Shinji struggled to keep steady. "What did you do?!"
Naoko Akagi gleefully grinned when she showed a broken switch in the mechanical arm.
"Oh not much. I only broke something." Naoko laughed. "The train is getting faster and faster… You could try to do it yourself. Or you could try to stop me. What are you going to do, little hero? Let's find out."
With that, she commanded a tentacle to latch onto another building and ran off.
'This is bad!' Shinji thought. 'Wait no, calm down. Sure she destroyed the switch so stopping the train is going to be a problem, but that's still doable with enough time-'
That's when he noticed something and his entire body went cold.
Just a few ways into the track stopped at a sign that read "Under Construction."
'Wait, this is the track still being made? They haven't finished anything?!' Shinji found the situation ridiculous. His eyes narrowed. 'I have to do something quick or everyone is going to die!'
With that thought the boy didn't even hesitate. He crawled his way to the front of the train.
"Hey! What do you think you're doing?!" He heard someone shout. "Are you and that freak working together or something?"
Shinji didn't look back. He simply said, "Stay back!"
He then stared down the tracks. Shinji gulped. 'I mustn't run away…'
After a brief pause, he threw his feet onto tracks.
"OwowowowoOOOOOOWWWW!" Shinji screamed in pain. Turns out putting your feet forward on train tracks is ridiculously painful! He jumped back up, groaning as he clutched his legs.
'Ok, that definitely wasn't working.' Shinji thought to himself. He looked around and saw they were passing several buildings close by. 'Maybe…'
He raised both hands, launching several strings of webbing to his left and right. They attached themselves to the buildings, and immediately Shinji was pulled back, hitting the cart. He tried to pull at the webs but the speed of the train strained his efforts. Ultimately the webs broke against the momentum.
'The train is too fast!' Shinji panted heavily. 'Too few webs will break apart too quickly… I'll have to go beyond!'
He launched the webs again. This time he spend twice as many web lines compared to before, each larger and covering multiple buildings at once.
Spider-Man was pulled back again, but this time he concentrated and pulled the webs forward.
"What the hell are you doing?!" He heard over the strain.
"It's slowing down! He's pulling it off!" Another voice was heard.
Hearing that, Shinji felt encouraged. He struggled against the intense pressure and thought about everything that lead up to this point.
Make them pay… stop the Kuzuryu before they hurt anyone else alright?!
I was able to see those bright lights… and both Shinji and Spider-Man have the same brightness.
I- I think Spider-Man gave me that. He gives people courage- he gave me that.
…
…
…
Be responsible okay?
Spider-Man threw his feet back into the tracks
"NEEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGHHHHHHHHH!"
His screams were those of complete and utter agony. The battle against pain all over his body was making him lose consciousness, but he kept himself at it. If he failed here, then everyone on the track will die.
'This is too much… No! I can't give up now!
I mustn't run away
I mustn't run away
I mustn't run away
I mustn't run away
I mustn't run away
I mustn't run away
I mustn't run away
I musn't run away
I MUSTN'T RUN AAAAWWWWAAAAAAAAAYYY!'
…
…
…
…
….
…
….
Look at him… he's just a kid.
Should we wake him up?
I dunno- wait look at his eyes.
When the black spots cleared from his peripheral vision, Shinji felt a breeze on his face. He moved a hand towards it, feeling bare skin. His eyes widened in horror as he looked up and saw where he was.
He was inside the train cart. Civilians, adults and kids, were standing around and looking at him.
Without his mask.
"EEP!" Shinji let out a small squeal. He covered his face with his arms.
When he opened an eye, he saw the people. How they looked at him. There was no hatred in their eyes… if anything a sense of sadness. A man in a uniform (Shinji assumed it was the conductor) in particular looked ashamed. He walked over to the boy, and crouched down to took a hold of Shinji's shoulder.
"You alright kid?" said the conductor.
The boy lowered his arms a bit. He nodded very slowly flinching slightly from the touch.
"We had to take the mask off." The conductor explained. "You weren't breathing right. Spider-Man… kid… what you did over here was frankly a miracle if I've ever seen one. You saved everybody on here."
At that, the man handed Shinji something. "Thank you, my boy."
Shinji sniffed. He took the object into his hand. It was his mask. It had been torn up slightly, but the goggles were still intact. With a ghost of a smile on his face, he grabbed the mask and placed it over his head.
He felt much better having it on. Without it he was vulnerable… but with it he felt strong in a way.
"I have to admit… that was pretty impressive."
A familiar headache started kicking in.
Naoko Akagi stood in the entrance way of the cart. Everyone was shocked and afraid, backing away from her.
This suited the doctor just fine. "I was on my way to kill Yashida, but I decided to stick around to see you fail miserably. But then, you pulled through and stopped it all by yourself. Congratulations, you actually managed to earn my respect. You're not just a miserable coward after all… arachnid. Of course, this just means now I'll have to kill you. I promise to make it as painless as possible."
At that, Spider-Man got angry. He tried to get up, but he was still too tired from doing the heavy stuff from before. "Everyone get away! She'll hurt you"
To his utter shock, the conductor stood in front of him.
"No… you goddamn monster. If you want this kid you're gonna have to go through me."
Then someone else stood next to the conductor. "No way we're gonna let you kill him, that kid just saved our lives!"
Another followed, "Just try it lady!"
More and more people stood joined the conductor. They all stood in front of Shinji to defend him. To protect him.
Shinji was not used to the sensation he felt at this moment. The best he could describe it was… elation? Joy?
Akagi stared down at all the people in her way. "I see…"
Without a second thought two of her tentacles went in between the crowd and slammed them into the walls of the cart. With that, Shinji got back up.
"Let them go… You're not going to hurt any of them!" He shouted to the doctor.
She wore a proud grin. "Do you think you have a choice? What are you going to do, lecture me to death? I had given a few of those myself."
'She has everyone as a hostage!' The boy needed to come up with a plan. 'Options, options… wait…'
He remembered something in the encounter in the hospital. Something that made Akagi angry. It was a stupid idea, but he didn't have a choice.
"I can imagine, since you're a lot older than I am." Shinji said. "Kind of like… an old hag."
Naoko's eyes narrowed.
"Care to repeat that… Spider Man?"
Shinji pointed at her. "I said… kind of like. an. OLD. HAG!"
At that, the doctor's face twisted to one of pure and absolute rage.
"YOU DARE CALL ME THAT?!" She screamed at him. "I'LL SHOW YOU WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU INSULT ME!"
She threw out a tentacle right at Spider-Man.
In that split second, Shinji moved to the left just as it was about to make contact.
THWIP!
"MMMMHHHMMMMHMMMHM!"
Naoko Akagi's face was covered in webbing!
She tried desperately to pull off the web. The tentacles that kept the civilians in place loosened their grip, her lack of concentration making them move all over the place.
'Now's my chance!' Shinji had no time to waste. He jumped up into the ceiling, and raised his leg-
WHAM!
With a strong kick sent Naoko Akagi down to the ground. All mechanical movement ceased as the doctor slipped into unconsciousness, her nose bloody from the impact.
The boy stood over her breathing heavily. "I… I can't believe… that worked."
Silence enveloped the area. The boy looked around. The people looked at him with a mix of uncertainty, fear… but predominantly gratitude. One man gave him the thumbs up, another was holding their baby protectively, another singing good graces and praying. The conductor came to him.
"We won't tell anyone your secret. Go!"
With some reluctance, Shinji listened. He there Akagi over his own shoulder, wondering where the nearest police station was.
"Just yesterday, a disaster was averted when Naoko Akagi, recently dubbed Doctor Octopus by forums over the mechanical arms, sabotaged a train to cause an overshoot . It would have killed everyone on board if Spider-Man hadn't been there to stop it. That combined with Shocker's confirmation that he lied about Spider-Man's involvement in the science expo has led to public opinion on the web swinger shifting more towards the positive."
Kuruto Inumaru sipped his tea. He was having a perfectly nice evening with his wife when that piece of news came in.
'Spider-Man this, Spider-Man that!' Inumaru was tired of it. 'If only they knew he was just a stupid brat getting himself trouble for no reason.'
Maasa Inumaru raised a napkin to her lips. She smiled. "I'm really glad they're letting up on Spider-Man. He doesn't deserve that much hatred."
Kuruto stopped his fork right as it reached his mouth.
"What do you mean?" The professor said. "He's nothing more than a reckless vigilante, why would you be happy he's running around?"
Maasa shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know if I'd say he was just a reckless vigilante. The way he rescued that train… he's really brave. With all the crap happening i the world, I guess it's nice to have someone out there who's willing to risk his life for people. To do what's right."
Kuruto didn't respond to that.
"Well let me get the dishes," Maasa said, standing up from her chair. "You need to get to work soon! I'll take Taiten to school."
She smooched Kuruto's face as she disappeared to get Taiten. The news continued in the background.
"-questioned by interviewers about the potential secret identity of Spdier-Man, Akagi answered that she did not know, having this to say: 'Even if I did, I would not answer you. I'll tell you now, that man may be infuriating as hell, but he has earned my respect.' Which leads to all sorts of-"
"To do what's right…" The professor said to himself. He pondered those words.
He hadn't been to Mayonaka Park in a while. Not since the night where Yamashiro died.
Being able to see it during the sunset was something Shinji found nice. He had been told once or twice that he needed to get out more, and he could see why. He felt a tap on his shoulder, so he took off the earplugs.
"The lake here is really nice, Ikari."
Going to this park was especially great since Mayumi was right there with him. The two sat in front of a tree, Ikari with his S-DAT player, Mayumi with a stack of books she carried.
"Y-yeah…" He stuttered. "It seemed like a good place, so that's why I brought you here after ."
The girl smiled at him. "It is really neat. It's a nice place to read at least."
The two didn't really talk that much. Not that it was truly necessary. Each other's company was what the other wanted.
Mayumi shifted slightly.
"Umm, Shinji…"
The boy was surprised at the use of the first name. "What is it Yamagishi?"
She rubbed the cover of the book. "My father… it seemed like you made a good impression on him. He said he wanted to meet you tomorrow for dinner."
Author's Notes:
For some reason I had "You Say Run" from My Hero Academia on the mind while I was writing the Train scene. I guess it was because the song was used for big heroic moments like and the train scene is one for Shinji. Or maybe it's because of that video with the song placed over Spider-Man's 2's train scene I dunno.
One thing I definitely had in mind with Menace and Hero is the Raimi Spdier-Man movies. That scene where Green Goblin tries to convince Spider-Man to join him was one of the main inspirations/catalysts for writing this fanfic, since Green Goblin uses the argument that eventually everyone will hate him (Peter Parker), which was one of the big fears Shinji Ikari had in the series. Spider-Man 1 and 2 also both had this "city hates Spider-Man for a while but then love him when he proves himself" arc that I felt was appropriate for this story and Shinji in general.
I also watched Into the Spider-Verse, I must say it's a wonderful movie and I loved it a lot, especially love Miles he was great! It does give me an idea or two about a potential Spider-Verse story but like I said before I have a plan for this story so at best it might be a side story or an omake.
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the chapter!
Next Chapter: Honour thy father.