Groaning from the blow he was dealt, Spider-Man slowly began to regain consciousness. Looking around, he could see he was on another rooftop, and that it was later in the day, meaning he had been out for a while. He tried to get up, but he couldn't. He felt no sensation in his limbs, leaving him still and motionless.

"The gas…" Spidey realized. "Paralyzing agent…"

"Quite right," the Goblin confirmed, hovering himself down on his glider. "Should wear off in a few minutes. For any normal person, the results would be much worse," Goblin then leaped off his glider so he could be on ground level with Spider-Man. "You are an amazing creature, Spider-Man."

"Thanks…" Spider-Man replied, still groggy from the gas. "Who needs a five star review when you've got the approval of a maniac."

"Now, there's no need to be judgemental," Goblin insisted, holding his arms out. "In many ways, you and I are not so different."

"Except… I'm trying to save lives… not end them."

"Well, to each his own. I chose the path of profit and progress, you chose the way of the hero. And they found you amusing for a while, the people of this city. But you've seen how easy they discard you. Time and gain."

"Believe me… my PR people are working on it…"

Goblin chuckled in response.

"Amusing. Joke all you want, but I know the truth. The one thing the people of this world love more than a hero is to see a hero fail. Fall. Die try. Surely you've seen it. In spite of everything you've done for them, they will always hate you. Why bother?"

"Cause… it's right…"

Goblin chuckled again, walking over to him. "Your naivete would be charming if it wasn't so misguided."

"Better than…lobbing bombs at random people… for no reason."

""Those bureaucratic blowhards," Goblin remarked, standing next to him before leaning on the skylight he was resting on. "A diversion from my true target."

Spider-Man thought back, remembering who else was at the festival. "Fisk…"

"Bingo. You want to know how he got his power? He came to realize a single truth. That in this city, the teaming masses exist solely to to lift the few exceptional people onto their shoulders!"

"You're saying that Fisk…"

"Hardly. He's just deluded enough people to think he is one. People like us though? You and I? We're exceptional. Which is why I have a deal for you."

Spider-Man turned toward Goblin as he knelt down to meet him face to face.

"I want you to join me," Goblin continued. "Imagine what we could accomplish together. What we could create. With your powers and my vision… we could rule New York."

"We talking Manhattan… or all five?" Spider-Man remarked, trying to sound tough. "Still… what if I say… no?"

"Then we can destroy!" Green Goblin let out, getting back to his feet. "Causing the deaths of countless innocents in one selfish battle after another again, and again, and again, until we're both dead! Is that what you want?"

His glider then came flying down, prompting him to leap onto it.

"Think about it, 'hero'!" he declared before flying off.

After feeling returned to Spider-Man's body, he made his way to the top of the Chrysler Building. He perched himself on one of the Eagles poking out of the building, sitting there as he overlooked the city.

As I sat there, I began mulling over what the Goblin had said. Don't misunderstand, I knew he was insane and deranged… but he had a point. They thought I was a terrorist when Chameleon was framing me, they bought Beck's claims about me being a fake, and now they think I'm working with the Green Goblin. How many times would I have to prove myself before they could trust me? Petty? Probably. But there's only so much rejection a guy could take before he considers… drastic changes.

Meanwhile, Liz was sitting by herself, waiting for Harry to arrive. By this point, her drink was beginning to grow cold. Deciding she had waited long enough, she pulled out her cellphone and decided to try and call him.

Inside his room, Harry was passed out on the floor of his room, an empty vial of the green concoction laying next to him.

After waiting a few more rings, Liz hung up her phone, genuinely concerned about what was going on with Harry.

At Oscorp, Otto was working on the calculations for the neural interface for the arms. He quickly erased an equation that didn't add up before writing out a new one that seemed to line up a lot better. He smiled and nodded, satisfied with the result.

"Everything looking alright?" Rosie asked, walking up to him.

"I believe so, yes," Otto confirmed, looking up at her. "If all goes well, response time should be within three nanoseconds."

"I'm sure it will work flawlessly," she reassured, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Considering they have to handle the full power of a fusion star, they'd better," he looked toward the fusion reactor, which was nearing its final phases of construction. "It's almost ready, Rosie. You should be proud."

"I am. And you should be too. You're as much a party to this as I am."

Otto smiled in response. "I suppose."

"It will be magnificent. Nothing to fret over."

"Me? Fret? Hardly. Did Edison fret before turning on the light? Did Marcconi fret before turning on the radio? Did Betoven fret before writing the fifth?"

"Did Bernuli fret before finding the curves of quickest descent?" Peter remarked, walking into the lab, getting there attention.

"Ah, Parker, perfect timing," Otto greeted. "I need you to go over these calculations while I check the connections on the interface."

"I'm on it," Peter promised.

"Well, I need to check in on some final components for the reactor," Rosie told them. "I'll leave you two to it."

With that, she exited the lab, Otto smiling as she did.

"You two seem to be doing alright," Peter noted.

"Oh, I wouldn't know how to manage without Rosie. If I can give you one piece of advice Parker, when you find the woman for you, don't let her go."

"I'm still working on the 'finding' part," Peter replied, sitting down at the work table.

"I'm assuming things with the girl you mentioned before didn't work out."

"No it did not. I did meet someone new, but… she doesn't seem to be interested."

"Sorry to hear that."

"Yeah…" Peter lamented, trying to focus on his work, but finding it difficult. "How'd you and Mrs. Dr. Octavius get together?"

"We met in college. English Lit Class in fact."

"Seriously?"

"Seriously," Otto replied in an amused manner. "It was only later on that I came to learn about her other fields, and let's just say I had an easier time discerning Einstein's Theory of Relativity than I ever did T.S. Elliot."

"Well… sounds like you worked things out."

"Yes, but it wasn't easy. We had to work at it, with time and patience. Love isn't something you can force. It takes a lot of work," Otto then smirked a little. "But if you want a little help in that regard… feed her poetry."

Peter perked up. "Poetry?"

"Never fails."

The next day, Peter sealed himself in the Midtown High Library, locating every poetry book he could get his hands on. Once he had enough, he picked a corner and tried reading the material.

"A tall and slender maiden all alone upon a prairie. Brightest green were all her garments and her hair was like the sunshine. Day by day he gazed upon her…" he stopped for a moment. "Dr. Octavius was right… this doesn't make a lick of sense."

"Peter?" Gwen's voice let out, startling him.

"Gwen!" Peter let out, looking up at her. "Warn a guy before you sneak up on em."

"Sorry I-" Gwen then caught a look at what he was reading. "Are you… reading poetry?"

"I… well… trying to anyway."

"Since when do you read poetry? Last I checked, you got a C- in English."

"I'm just… trying to explore new avenues," Peter replied, standing up.

"Uh huh. And would one of those avenues be called Mary Jane Watson?"

Peter paused for a moment. "Maybe."

"Seems a little desperate, don't you think?" Gwen asked as they exited the library.

"It's worth a try," Peter replied before muttering to himself. "I need some success these days."

"What?"

"Uh, nothing. Just… something on my mind."

"Right," Gwen replied in a coy tone. "Look, I'm sorry about what happened with MJ, but that doesn't mean there isn't someone out there for you."

"Nice of you to say. But considering I've already struck out with Liz, Felicia, and now MJ…" Peter sighed in response. "Makes a guy feel a little discouraged."

"Maybe you just… haven't noticed her yet."

Peter just shrugged. "Maybe… I'd better get going."

"Later," Gwen replied as Peter went off.

Gwen went down the hallway, blissfully passing by Liz at her locker. Liz took notice of her and quickly ran to catch up.

"Gwen!" Liz called out, getting her attention.

"Liz?"

"Hey. I was wondering if you've heard from Harry lately. He bailed on our date last night, and I haven't seen him today."

"I… haven't seen him today myself. Why so worried?"

"Harry's never missed out on a date before. He's always been so… reliable."

"Compared to Peter, you mean."

That caught Liz off guard. "I…"

"Maybe it's… none of my business, but it feels like the only reason you're going out with Harry is to spite Peter. Which, I understand being hurt by what he did, is only going to hurt Harry in the long run."

"It's not like that!" Liz insisted. "I mean… maybe it was at first, but I'm just wondering if he's alright. If you see him today, can you… just check on him. Please?"

Gwen sighed in response.

"I'll see what I can do."

"Thanks, Gwen," Liz replied before walking off, leaving Gwen confused and concerned.

That day after school, Peter donned his Spider-Man persona and swung through the city, still feeling somber in regards to his previous conversation with Green Goblin.

I know I shouldn't have dwelled so much on Goblin's words, but there were times I wondered why I put up with it. I had saved who knows how many lives as Spider-Man on the regular and people were still quick to believe I was one of the bad guys. Was it so hard to accept that I might want to actually help people?

As Spider-Man continued to brood in private, he noticed a kid holding what looked like a cardboard box as he ran from a group of other kids following him. Curious, Spider-Man followed them into the alley and perched himself on a wall as he saw the kid cornered by the others as they took his box away, seeing that it was some kind of school science project, and throwing it to the ground to step on it. Having seen enough, Spider-Man dropped down to the ground behind them, clearing his throat and getting their attention.

"I'm just gonna go out on a limb and assume you guys have better things to do," Spidey noted.

Almost instantly, the other kids took off, allowing Spider-Man to walk over to the kid and check on him.

"You ok?" he asked, kneeling down to him.

"Yeah," the kid replied, adjusting his glasses. "Thanks."

Spider-Man took the chance to take a closer look at the kid, recognizing him from before.

"Hey, I remember you. Didn't I save you the other day?"

"Yeah, that was me. My mom says you're scary. I think you're pretty cool. Thanks for saving me."

"No problem," Spider-Man replied, picking up the kid's science project. "You made this?"

"Yeah. it was a project for school. The other kids thought it was lame."

"Seriously? This is a wind turbine. I don't know a lot of kids who can make their own wind turbine. It's pretty awesome."

The kid smiled as Spider-Man webbed the pieces back together.

"Not a permanent fix, but it should hold it together till you get home. Mind if I walk ya?"

"Sure," the kid replied as the two walked off.

"What's your name"

"Jorge."

"Jorge? I'm Spider-Man."

I was able to get the kid home no problem. It made me feel… good. Like I was doing something worthwhile. Goblin was wrong. Even if the world did hate Spider-Man, as long as I was doing what was right, making a difference for the Jorge's of the world, who cares.

Back at Midtown High, the football team was in the midst of practice, with Harry sprinting across the field to catch an oncoming pass.

"Good hustle, there, Osborn," the coach commended.

"Thanks coach," Harry replied, pulling his helmet off.

"Harry!" Gwen called out, walking up to the field.

"Gwen, hey. What brings you here?"

"Liz told me you missed a date with her last night. Never called her back. She sounded worried. Are things alright with you two?"

"Me and Liz? Oh yeah, we're just fine. I just got caught up with some stuff last night. I'll talk to her tonight."

"You're sure?"

"Absolutely," Harry reassured, heading off.

Gwen watched on, unsure if Harry's words were sincere.

That night at the Planetarium, Eddie Brock made his way inside, snapping pictures wherever he could. He caught sight of a blonde woman mingling with the crowds, prompting him to move in.

"Excuse me, miss," he spoke up, getting her attention. "Can I get a picture?"

The woman chuckled as he snapped the picture. "Hi, Eddie."

Eddie smiled as he walked up to the woman, kissing her on the lips.

"Hey Anne," he replied, pulling away. "What brings you here?"

"The firm's trying to broker a deal between Kingsley Apparel and Fisk. The big guy's been a bit obstinate."

"Eh, you'll get him to cooperate."

"I hope so."

"You will. You've got that persuasive charm about you. It's what drew me to you after all. You remember that amazing first date we had, right?"

Anne chuckled in response. "We had a coffee, Eddie."

"And look where that led," he replied, holding up her hand to point out the ring on her finger.

She smirked in response. "I suppose that's true."

"Brock!" Jameson called out, getting his attention.

"Right," Brock lamented. "Duty calls. See you later?"

"Count on it," Anne reassured, kissing him on the check before he left.

Brock then made his way through the crowd, finding Jameson amidst the people.

"You called?" Brock remarked.

"Bout time. I'm not paying you to slurp champagne and mingle with fat cats."

"No, that's what everyone else is here for."

"Guess that makes our work a little more worthwhile," a new voice commented.

The two turned to see a young man in a suit walking up to them, much to Jameson's delight.

"Right pop?" the man remarked.

Jameson chuckled in response before walking over to him. "Quite right, Jonny."

The two hugged, prompting Eddie to snap a picture.

"This ones a keeper."

"Eddie Brock," Jameson spoke up, pulling a way. "Meet my son, the astronaut."

"Colonel," Eddie greeted, shaking his hand.

"Nice to meet you," John replied. "Hope my dad isn't working you too hard."

"Eh, I can take it."

"Hey, come on," Jameson spoke up, grabbing John and pulling him over to someone else. "Get a picture with us and the minister," They lined up for the shot, allowing Eddie to take it. "Ooh, now get a shot with us and the DA," Jameson pulled John to an older woman, giving Eddie a chance to snap another picture. "Ooh, quick! Get a shot of us with the mayor and his girlfriend!" both the mayor and the woman with him gave him a side eye, forcing him to correct himself. "Wife."

On the roof of the planetarium, the thugs the Green Goblin had recruited were watching the guests arrive, keeping their eyes out for Wilson Fisk.

"Still nothing," the female goon lamented. "You sure he's gonna show?"

"Positive," the lead good confirmed. "He's the one hosting this whole thing."

"Wait," the second good let out. "Look."

The others looked down, seeing a limo pull up. The door opened, allowing Fisk to come out.

"We got him," the lead thug declared, pulling out a radio. "We got him, boss."

"Excellent," Green Goblin's voice declared. "Make sure our guests are secure, I'll be along shortly. The party's over for the Kingpin."

At Oscorp, Peter was working in the lab, casually looking around when he noted a green jumpsuit hanging on a shelf.

"Say, what's with the suit, doc?" Peter asked, causing Otto to perk up.

"Would you believe it's for welding? It's to provide magnetic insulation and reduce cross contamination between the neural interface and the arms."

"Handy."

"Quite.

With the demonstration next week, everything has to be ready."

"I've been wondering about that. Harnessing fusion energy is incredible and all, but how does Mrs. Octavius plan on controlling the reaction? I can imagine that's no small feat."

"Far from it. However, Rosie believes introducing crystalized Tridium in the core will stabilize the reaction."

"And that's gonna be enough?"

"She believes so, and I trust her judgment. This is something she's dedicated her life toward."

"I know, I know," Peter reassured, placing some wiring inside a headset. "Still, it's pretty cool being a part of all this."

"Indeed… even if it is only a small part."

Peter caught the tone of that last comment. "Is everything alright, doctor?"

"Fine, Parer. Just… a little inadequacy on my part."

"Inadequacy? But these arms are amazing."

"On their own, no doubt. In the face of what we're accomplishing here… little more than a footnote."

Peter noted the tone in Otto's voice, sympathizing with him. "I know how that feels. Wondering if the work we do means anything in the long term."

"And… What's your hypothesis on it."

"... focusing on the good we can do in the moment. Realizing that even if it doesn't seem like it… what we do matters. Even if it only matters to just one person… it still matters."

Otto took in Peter's words, smiling in response.

"Couldn't have said it better myself."
Peter smiled, watching as Otto placed the last chip inside the headset.

"That should do it."

"If all goes well, we should have processing speeds under three nanoseconds," Peter recalled. "Care to do the honors?"

Otto nodded, closing the panel on the headset before slipping it on. He then turned to the arms, focusing on them as best he could. One by one, the arms slowly rose from the table, much to the astonishment of the two. One by one, the arms reached over to a bucket of tennis balls nearby and pulled out a ball. The arms then began juggling the balls, catching and tossing them with incredible speed and precision. As they continued to work, Otto commanded the arms to grab more and more balls, adding them to the collection. The arms performed flawlessly as they kept the huge amount of balls in the air, much to the delight of the two scientifically minded. After a bit, Otto disengaged the arms, allowing the balls to fall onto the table and bounce onto the floor.

"Well… I'd call that a mild success," Otto remarked, removing the headset.

"I'd call that unbelievable!" Peter declared.

Just then, Otto's phone rang, prompting him to answer it.

"Hello?... yes… I'll be right there," he turned to Peter while hanging up. "It seems the last of the equipment for the reactor has arrived. Rosie's already collecting the Tridium needed for the experiment, so I need to take care of this. Think you can clean this up and run a few final diagnostics on the interface?"

"Sure, no problem," Peter reassured.

Otto then nodded before exiting the lab. Once he was gone, Peter waited until he was alone before slipping on his web shooters and webbing all the tennis balls off the ground and placing them back in the barrel. Once they were back in place, Peter whistled to himself as he got back to work.

Back at the Planetarium, Fisk walked through the crowds, mingling with various guests before getting the attention of Anne.

"Mr. Fisk!" she called out, trying to get closer to him. "Mr. Fisk! Anne Weying from the Fleischer Firm. I was hoping to speak with you in regards to the partnership deal between your foundation and Kingsley Apparel."

"Ah yes, Kingsley," Fisk replied. "Wasn't he involved in some kind of scandal involving that crime boss… what was his name… Silvio Manfredi?"

Anne was thrown for a moment. "Those allegations were never proven."

"Regardless, the Fisk Foundation prides itself on its public image. I cannot risk it collaborating with people with suspected ties to gangsters. If you'll excuse me."

With that, Fisk went toward the stage, leaving Anne in the dust. Once up on stage, Fisk took the mic and addressed the crowds.

"Ladies and gentlemen," he spoke. "I am your host for this evening, Wilson Fisk. Thank you all for coming out to support this momentous step forward in scientific advancement. Thanks to the contributions from both the Fisk and Baxter Building foundations, a next generation space shuttle will be launching from our own John F Kennedy Airport, and venturing out into the cosmos," a torrent of applause broke out for a moment in response to that. "And now, it is my esteemed pleasure to introduce the man who will pilot that new frontier, Colonel John Jameson!"

The audience applauded again as John went to the stage.

"Alright, Johnny!" Jameson yelled. "Brock, you getting this?"

"You know it," Eddie replied, snapping his camera.

John made his way onto the stage, shaking Fisk's hand before turning to the crowd.

"Thank you, Mr. Fisk," John spoke. "And thank you folks. Ever since I was a kid, I've always wanted to be something greater than myself. Inspired by people like my father, who dedicated his life into protecting the truth through journalism, I wanted to do my part protecting people. That's why I enlisted in the Air Force, and eventually the Space Program," He looked upward. "Now, I have a new opportunity. To venture and explore the unknown for a new generation of dreamers. And I'm ready for it, no matter what's out there."

At that moment, something crashed through one of the upper windows, causing everyone to look up and see the Green Goblin flying overhead, cackling with malicious glee as the crowds panicked.

"I'll tell you what's out there!" he called out. "Terror and despair!"

His flying around caused the patrons to cry out in horror. Some of them tried to make a break for the elevator, only for it to open and reveal one of Goblin's goons in a pumpkin mask.

"Sorry folks," he spoke. "Elevator's out."

The door to the stairs was then kicked open, revealing the other two goons also wearing pumpkin masks."

"Stairs too," the second one added.

"Course you could always try a window," the woman remarked.

"Greetings, ladies and gentlemen," the Goblin addressed, hovering down in front of the stage. "I am the Green Goblin! Thanks for the moniker by the way, Jameson. I humbly accept the honor."

"I don't need your approval, you maniac!" Jameson cried out.

"Now might not be the time to argue with the madman," Eddie commented, trying to snap a picture.

Before he could however, one of the Goblin goons smacked the camera out of his hands, causing it to smash to pieces on the ground.

"Hey!" he let out. "I got first amendment rights!"

"We just amended them," the goon replied, aiming his gun at him.

"There's no need to hurt anyone," John insisted. "Let them go and we can work something out."

"Oh but I'm not here for you, space man," Goblin remarked, grabbing John by the tie and throwing him into the crowd.

"Johnny!" Jameson let out, making his way through the crowd and over to his son.

"I'm fine, pop," John reassured, slowly getting up.

"I'm here for the Master of Ceremonies himself," Goblin continued, turning toward Fisk. "Wilson Fisk."

"Sir, I don't know who you are-" Fisk began to speak.

"Of course not!" Goblin remarked, pulling at his rubbery mask a bit. "That's the point of the mask, genius," he let go, causing the mask to snap back into place before leaning in close to whisper. "But I know who you are, crime king. So either give up your throne… or I start sharing secrets."

Fisk narrowed his eyes, noting security moving onto the stage and drawing their weapons. Goblin took note of Fisks face and quickly whipped around, throwing several razor edges at the guards, disarming them and even stabbing them in the arms. He then flew around and rammed his glider into them, knocking them off the stage as he flew above the ground and landed on a model of Saturn, standing on one of its rings as he looked down at them.

"Let this be a lesson kiddies!" he called out. "I can bring whole worlds down if I wanted! So if anyone else feels like being a hero… well, you get the idea."

"There's no need to threaten my guests," Fisks insisted as Goblin leaped back onto his glider.

"There is if I want witnesses, big guy," Goblin mused, flying back down to him.

While all that was going on, Jameson cautiously slipped his hand into his pocket and pulled out a bluetooth ear piece and slipped it on, calling the Bugle.

"The Green Goblin?" Robbie repeated as he sat in his office. "There?"

"In the flesh," Jameson replied over the phone. "Or whatever that suit is made out of. I got Brock here, so he can cover the story, I need you to get police and EMTs here ASAP. oh, and get Parker. This is right up his freak show alley."

Back at Oscorp, the computer had just finished the diagnostic for the neural interface, much to Peter's delight.

"Finally," he commented. "Let's see the damage."

He looked at the findings, seeing that there was a spike in the circuitry. Peter was shocked by this, trying to correct it. However, the spike seemed to be cascading.

"Oh no…" Peter realized. "If these readouts are right… the interface could affect several parts of Dr. Octavius' brain. Inhibitions, mood, maybe even… alter his personality. I gotta call him."

Just as he said that though, his cellphone started ringing.

"Really hope his ears were burning," Peter replied, answering the phone. "Doc, about the interface, I- … Robbie? Listen, now's not… wait, who? Where?... right… I'm on my way."

Peter hung up the phone, looking back at the computer before turning toward a window out at the city, left with an intense dilemma.

A few minutes later, Peter donned his Spider-Man suit and began swinging toward the Planetarium. As he did so, he tried calling Otto on his cell, but was only met with his voicemail.

"You've reached Dr. Otto Octavius. I'm presently unavailable right now. Please leave a message."

"Of course you're not there," Peter lamented. "Doc, it's Peter. Listen, I… had to step out for a bit but whatever you do, don't use the neural interface for the arms. There's some faulty equipment in there, it could affect several parts of your mind. Maybe… maybe even damage them. Just… hold off any more experiments until I can get back. Please…"

Peter then hung up, continuing his swing through the city, hoping to stop the Goblin in time.

"If you think you can intimidate me, you're mistaken," Fisk reassured.

"Now why would I want to do that?" Goblin mused. "All I want is to destroy you and take control of your empire. Is that a crime?"

"Only as much as everything else you've done!"

Upon hearing that, everyone looked up to see Spider-Man perched on a model of Earth above them.

"Hope you don't mind I came in this way," he quipped. "Wasn't sure if I had to break my own window."

"Spider-Man!" Jameson cried out. "I knew you two were in cahoots! I-"

Suddenly, a patch of web shot out and hit JJ on the mouth, silencing him.

"Wow, you know Pickle Puss, you have got to be the only person alive who still uses 'cahoots' in polite conversation."

"I must commend you on your timing, Spider-Man," Fisk commented. "I shudder to think what would happen if you were a second too late."

"Oh I'm sure you would've weaseled your way out of this, Willie. You always do."

"I had a feeling you'd show up here tonight," Goblin remarked, flying up to Spider-Man. "You're predictable. You flock to danger like a moth to the flame."

"What can I say? I never pass on a good party."

"Am I to also assume you've considered my generous proposal."

"Yeah, about that," Spidey confirmed. "You do have some good points. I'll never get Jameson's respect, and if it means sticking it to Fisk, I'd be all over it… except, you also have a habit of putting innocent people at risk. It's kinda a deal breaker for me."

"Disappointing," Goblin lamented. "But that's your loss… of life!"

Goblin then fired an electrical blast from his finger, forcing Spider-Man to dive out of the way. The Green Goblin veered his glider to avoid getting hit by Spider-Man, prompting the hero to fire two weblines for him to swing from, sailing over the crowds. He then swung toward the Goblin, who flipped in the air to avoid him. Spider-Man then landed on a model of Mars as Goblin chucked a bomb at him. He quickly dove down, allowing the bomb to hit the model and send chunks of debris raining down on the people. Thinking fast, Spider-Man used his webbing to form a large net that caught all the pieces before they hit. Goblin took advantage of this distraction and fired an electric blast at Spider-Man's chest, nailing him and sending him crashing out a window to the street below.