Season 4 Ch. 6: Femme Fetale Pt. 1
"Whooooooooo!" Spider-man yelled with excitement and relief while swinging around Manhattan's dimly lit streets, donning the Spider Armor for another spin.
"Whoa! Spidey! Slow down!" Screwball urged, skating and parkouring over the building rooftops.
"Geez, what's with the good mood all of a sudden?" Ghost Spider wondered while swinging along with Spider-man.
"I'm happy because…!" Spider-man trailed off before safely landing on a ledge with Screwball and Ghost Spider meeting beside him. "I got a huge headache cured once and for all!"
Who wouldn't be happy after taking down one of their worst enemies ever known? When he heard that Tombstone's getting a life sentence in prison, and Janice's management in reforming the company's operations around Manhattan, things are going to get better for a long time. However, what still bothers him is that he's unable to bring Norman to justice…
"Although, there still lurks another headache that I gotta deal with…" Spider-man glares at the sky before feeling taps on both of his shoulders.
"C'mon Spidey, you gotta chill. It's alright, he won't get far," Screwball assured.
"At the very least, if we catch him, we can fix things with Harry somehow, hopefully…" Ghost Spider assured.
"…thanks for the tip, and uh, thanks for joining on these patrols with me. Although, I already told you that I could handle things myself," Spider-man whined before getting hushed by Screwball.
"Sh, it's fine, we just wanna hang around for a while in tights and suits," Screwball playfully replied, catching Spider-man off guard.
"H-hey! Break it off you two!" Ghost Spider urged in a jealous tone, getting in between Screwball and Spider-man.
"Aw, killjoy. Fine, fine! Buuuut…how 'bout a little game," Screwball playfully suggests, pulling Spider-man close to her, further infuriating Ghost Spider. "The rule is simple: whoever gets to catch the most baddies tonight, gets to go on a "superhero date" with Spidey! How's that sound, Spider-gal?"
"Ah—wait, are you serious?" Ghost Spider demands for an answer.
"I'm dead serious, Spidey!" Screwball teased.
"Um—okay, deal, I'm going with whatever you got. Just don't cry when I do better than you!" Ghost Spider bets.
"Oh yeah?" Screwball raised an eyebrow.
"Hey hey wait, what about me?! What if I do catch more criminals than you two?" Spider-man demands for an answer.
"Hmmm, never thought about that," Screwball playfully shrugged. "Your call!"
"Okay, if I do win, let's call the game off as a draw, how about that?!" Spider-man nervously suggests.
"Mmmm, I'm good with that," Ghost Spider replied.
"Alrighty, that settles it then! We come back here to this building in an hour. Readysetgo!" Screwball quickly relayed before swinging away immediately with her grappling hook.
"Hey! No fair!" Both Spider-man and Ghost Spider exclaimed, making them exchange awkward looks before swinging away in different directions.
While the night's still kinda young for the three heroes, they swing, crawl, or even run around the city; eager to look for criminals to crash or baddies to beat as part of their game.
"Hahah! Gotcha!" Screwball screamed as she found a mugger in an alley and apprehends him after falling on his head with heel first before excitedly taking a quick picture. "One point for me!"
—
"Well hello neighbor! Love these flowers? Oh wait, you're not innit for the flowers, are you?" Spider-man quipped, surprising a trio of robbers that were trying to rob a flower shop with his signature belt light before webbing them up and hanging them on the nearby light posts. "Well that was an easy three-points for me. Wonder how they are doing…?"
—
"We are so gonna get dunced…!" Ghost Spider thought out loud while still desperately searching around for any crime in the area.
'Don't you mean "you" are going to get dunced,' Mania corrected.
"Haha, really funny, Mania," Ghost Spider deadpanned before hopping over an apartment building, unaware of a stranger watching from afar.
—
However, as the hour is about to end, Screwball and Spider-man meet up again at the building, but notices that Ghost Spider still hasn't made it back and is nowhere to be found nearby…
"Ghost Spider's still not here, something ain't right," Screwball pointed out and crossed her arms.
"I concur. It's almost time anyway, so wanna go search around for her?" Spider-man suggests.
"Seems okay to me, let's go! I go right, you go left," Screwball replied before heading right, with Spider-man going in the opposite direction.
—
Meanwhile for the anxious Ghost Spider, who's still searching around for criminals to crush…
"Oh man, aw geez, this is harder than I thought…!" Ghost Spider whined, desperately looking around while hanging upside down on a flagpole.
'Gwen! From above!' Mania warned, acting as her seventh sense.
With enhanced reflexes, Ghost Spider hops off from her line and swings over to the other building to dodge a kick from above before running up the glass wall and getting to the rooftop. But when she reaches the top, she confronts her pursuer, who manages to swing to the top with a grappling hook.
"W-who are you?! Well, not that I really need to know, but just for good measure when I introduce you to the police," Ghost Spider quipped as she got into a combative stance.
"Wow, you sure know how to talk—just like him…"
Standing confidently on the ledge was her alluring pursuer, clad in a black cat suit while letting her pristine platinum hair flow out in the nightly breeze and wearing a sly smirk on her eye-masked face…
"Wait what?" Ghost Spider wondered what her pursuer meant. "Who's "him"? Spider-man? You know Spider-man? Who are you really?!"
"The name's Black Cat, a great pleasure to meet another spider," Black Cat introduced with a smirk. "And I have to ask, just who is that stud to you in the first place?"
"Stud?!" Ghost Spider yelled with a hint of fury.
"C'mon, don't tell me you don't have a thing for the Webhead, do you?" Black Cat retorted with a sly smile on her face. "Ever tried kissing him?"
"Uh yeah, actually I did, on the lips," Ghost Spider quickly answered, vigilantly walking sideways while inching to Black Cat. "Why?"
"Oh it's just that he was quite stunning back then when he donned full black and gave me quite the entertainment working with him…until he broke my sad maiden heart…!" Black Cat lengthily answered.
'Wait, full black? When he's wearing the suit?' Ghost Spider thought to herself.
"Okay, that's enough chatter. You wish to hand me over to the police, girl scout?" Black Cat teased before getting into a passive combative stance. "Well—I'm warning you…"
"Oh really?" Ghost Spider huffed, slowly reforming her black-suited Gwenom outfit, back in black before transforming her hands into sharp talons. "Right now, you're messing with the wrong heroine, Black Kitty!"
Without hesitation, Gwenom lunges at Black Cat with her bare talons, only to miss by an inch because of her trained reflexes, much different compared to having enhanced reflexes. Not backing down, she then tries to catch and restrain Black Cat with a tendril, managing to catch arms before webbing her up to a wall.
"Hmph, not so tough now, are ya?" Gwenom mocked, walking up to the restrained Black Cat.
"You know, there's an obvious reason why I am called the Black Cat," Black Cat smirked, activating her retractable claws and ripping the webbing into shreds to free herself.
"Oh now this should be fun. Am I right, Screwball?" Gwenom smiled.
"I completely agree," Screwball agrees, standing on the ledge of the taller adjacent building with a smirk.
"Oooohh! My cat senses are purring!" Black Cat seductively exclaimed. "Lemme guess, you know him too?"
"Who is this "him" we're talking about exactly?" Screwball wondered, playing with her grappling hook.
"You know, Spider-man?" Black Cat casually replied before nimbly dodging Screwball's grappling hook.
"Hey wait, I remember you now! And I want to get you back for that humiliation back then!" Screwball hissed as she reels in her grappling hook again before popping her skates out and rushes to land a couple of swift kicks.
"My my, you're a feisty one! Where did you learn how to do those tricks?" Black Cat wondered with her usual confident smirk while dodging Screwball's strange fighting style that's combined with skating and parkour.
"From a gym of course! And self-discovery!" Screwball barked back before kicking Black Cat in the face with a swift backward roundhouse, pushing her against the wall. "Spidey!"
"Roger!" Gwenom responded before webbing up Black Cat to the wall again and then reverting her appearance back into her Ghost Spider outfit. "Thanks for the assist, but this still counts as my win for trapping her twice!"
"Twice huh? Fair enough. We just gotta wait for Spidey to arrive," Screwball thought out loud and was about to call Spider-man with her communicator—courtesy of Peter, Hobie, and a little hand from Kitty.
"Hey girls!" Spider-man called, swinging over to their spot before Screwball could call him. "Man, thankfully I made it just in the nick of time for whahah?!"
"Long time no see, Hotstuff," Black Cat smirked, trapped to the wall in webbing and catching his eyesight with her new appearance wearing a long metal utility belt and her collar exposing a bit of her chest.
"Uh—hi?" Spider-man nervously responded before seeing both Ghost Spider and Screwball angrily glaring at him.
"Spider-man—WHO IS THAT?!" Ghost Spider demanded with a menacing glare, pointing at Black Cat.
"Uhhh, look, she is uhm, just a burglar friend who helped clear my name when I was framed to be a criminal back then," Spider-man tried explaining briefly.
"Really? Do ordinary friends kiss each other out of nowhere?" Ghost Spider adds, making Screwball glare at him.
"What?! You guys kissed?!" Screwball screamed.
"Uh easy there! It was uh—I uhm—!"
"Awww c'mon Hotstuff, you really disliked me that much? Even after all the things you have done to hurt me?" Black Cat seductively adds with a smirk, making the heroines boil with jealous fury while being able to slowly free her hands with her retractable claws.
"Girls, girls! I can explain, really?!" Spider-man nervously assured, stepping back each time the two heroines get close to his face until he's cornered to the ledge of the building and looks down from the tall height. "Whoa!"
"Well Spider, you seem to have gotten your hands full. Till next time, Spidey's Angels!" Black Cat bade, completely free from Ghost Spider's webbing and backflipping off the building before running and swinging away with her grappling hook.
"Hey! Get back here!" Screwball screamed before being stopped by Ghost Spider.
"Forget about her, Screwball. She's not the main issue here…" Ghost Spider trailed off before glaring at Spider-man.
'Okay…going to jail may have been the least painful decision for me…' Spider-man thought to himself, having to justify or explain for himself to two jealous heroines.
—
Meanwhile, in the middle of the night at one of the girls' dormitory rooms…
'I already told you, Mr. Logan, I'm doing fine here! And my identity is still safe!' Kitty replied over the phone, still awake till near midnight.
'You sure, half-pint?' Logan wondered, seeing through her bluff. 'Hmmmm, well whatever the problem you got there, you better sort it out. It won't do you good. Should I—?"
'It's okay, I got this in the bag! Talk to you again, bye!' Kitty bade, quickly ending the call before Logan could respond and slumping on her bunk bed over Glory's bed. 'Sort things out…huh…'
—
Meanwhile, in the boys' dorm room beside Peter's room…
" 'Ey Johnny? You still up, man?" Bobby groaned, shielding his tired eyes from the bright laptop screen of his roomie Jonathan. "It's midnight, dude."
"I'll be done in a jiffy, don't worry," Jonathan assured, looking over his email inbox and receiving an emailed reply from an anonymous emailer, who accepted his registration. 'Yes…finally…!'
—
The next morning rises and another week of college fun starts. But not for Peter at the moment…
"So…Peter? Mind telling me who that cat burglar is?" Gwen demanded during lunchtime in a nearby cafe, giving him 'the look'.
"Uh to be honest, I also don't really know too much about her. All I know so far is that she is a frenemy who helped me a lot and messed with me a lot," Peter quickly explained, summarizing his bond with the elusive Black Cat.
"Well hello, future scientists of ESU. Enjoying your studies here I believe?"
Overhearing from nearby was their senior colleague Felicia, who halted on her way to get her lunch upon hearing the words "cat burglar".
"F-Felicia! Uh uhm, yeah! It's all good and fun, right guys!?" Peter stammered, making everyone in his table exchange awkward looks before nodding awkwardly in agreement.
"Not all of us…" Johnny groaned as he and Bobby slumped their heads on the table with tired looks on their faces.
"Oh, well, it's like a bed of roses! You get both the beauty and the thorns. You'll all get used to it," Felicia encourages with an assuring smile before feeling her ringing cellphone vibrate in her purse. "Sorry to cut our talk short, but I gotta take this call."
"Oh no! It's cool! See you then!" Peter kindly excuses Felicia, who responds with a nod and a cute wink before walking away discreetly.
"Hmmm. Do you know who that platinum girl reminds me of?" Liz commented while resting on her elbows standing upright on the table.
"Uhhh, no?" Peter shrugged.
"Well, in my opinion, she kinda acts like MJ in some respect," Gwen curiously answered.
"Hmmm, I don't know guys, she seemed kinda fishy to me," Kitty shrugged out of an uneasy feeling in her gut.
"Why? Got something on her? I mean, she's not that bad, right?" Janice nervously replied.
After glancing through the cafeteria door's window, Felicia looks at her smartphone to see an anonymous text message saying: "We accept you and your demands. Please proceed to rendezvous near the docks at 7 p.m. in two days for the task."
'Finally...Daddy, maybe this time, we can truly be together again! And no one can stop me…not even Spider-man...' Felicia hissed internally before putting her phone back into her purse and making her way back to her lecture hall.
—
In the infamous facility known as Ryker's Prison, where many of New York's most wanted or notoriously dangerous criminals are kept under heavy security…
"Hey, Bug Face, your time here is up, again," says one of the wardens in the facility facing the prison cell of the Scorpion, one of Spider-man's worst defeated foes.
"The name's Scorpion! Chump!" Scorpion roared as he rams and slams his cuffed fists to the tough glass of his cell.
"Well lookie here, another animal-costumed weirdo like me, eh?"
Walking out of his cell in cuffed hands and chained feet with a smirk under his half-masked face was the Wall-crawling criminal in red and black tights who calls himself as the Tarantula, formerly known as Blackie Gaxton.
"No talking, punk. Just keep walking," another warden ordered while escorting Tarantula on high alert.
"Whatchu say, chump!?" Scorpion barked.
"Easy there, Bug Face, you're getting out of here with a few other dudes like you. Someone generous to release you will be waiting outside," the warden assured as he opened Scorpion's cell.
As Scorpion leaves his cell, he meets a tall orange-scaled prisoner who's released with him and Tarantula…
"Hm? What? Issss there sssomething on my fasssssce?" Stegron the Dinosaur Man wondered, staring into Scorpion's eyes with his green reptilian eyes before being pushed around by the warden escorting behind him.
"Easy there, Dino Boy, just keep walking," the warden ordered, pushing the sophistically handcuffed Stegron with Scorpion and Tarantula, who were falling in line behind the Rhino.
"Well, if it isn't the little green bug! Bwaghahahahaha!" Rhino laughed while being handcuffed and escorted by a warden out of the heavy security section.
"Grrrrgh!" Scorpion growled before feeling a heavy tap on the shoulder from Tarantula.
"Easy boy, just keep it together. Let loose once we're outta here," Tarantula scolded.
As four of New York's most dangerous inmates obediently follow the wardens down the jail halls of Ryker's Prison, they also meet another familiar face who was widely known as the flying criminal Vulture, Adrian Toomes…
"Wait, you guys too?" Adrian questioned and raised his eyebrow before being pushed around by another warden who was escorting him.
"Wait, why are his hands free?!" Scorpion barked.
"He's not worth the trouble compared to you freaks. Get used to it," The warden scoffed.
Finally when they reach the front heavy steel gate, they meet a man in a dark bluish business suit standing beside a black limousine and a huge truck. The wardens quickly open the handcuffs of the released inmates before sending them off.
"Waitaminute, you again?!" Tarantula yelled out of shock.
"Long time no see, mook. C'mon, I'm here to bring you all in. As for you bigger mooks, the truck's your ride," Hammerhead smirked, making them exchange confused looks before following his orders.
—
After lunch time and afternoon classes are over, Peter and the two geekettes, Gwen and Kitty decide to pay another visit to the ESU Laboratory, where the Connors' just recently dismissed their last lecture for the day. However, they also meet another familiar face besides the Connors'…
"Long time no see, bro. How's it being a frosh for ya here in ESU?" Eddie greets with a smile on his face while sitting on a metal stool and leaning on a clean table.
"Eddie?! Oh man, bro!" Peter exclaimed as he and Eddie clasped their hands together and pulled each other into a side hug. "Dude! Since when did you—"
"Arrive? My dayoff's today, and with nothing much to do, I decided to just visit and chill here," Eddie playfully shrugged.
"Eddie! It's so good to see you again!" Gwen exclaimed as she embraced Eddie.
"Same here, Gwen," Eddie replied back before noticing Kitty behind Peter. "Well hellooo, so who's the new girl, Pete?"
"Oh, this is Kitty! Kitty Pryde! She enjoys staying here to help around the place too!" Peter briefly introduces.
"Hi! Nice to meet you! You can call me Kitty!" Kitty replied back with a smile as she aligned her glasses.
"Call me Eddie. Thanks for being good to my bro, but be careful not to get burnt around him," Eddie playfully warned while implying Peter's identity as Spider-man when he fought him as Venom.
"Aw bro, really? C'mon, I ain't that bad, right?" Peter differed, making both Kitty and Gwen laugh at his reaction before getting headlocked out of nowhere by Eddie.
"You girls stick around and chat. I got some stuff to chat with just my bro, please?" Eddie requested with Peter trapped under his arm.
"Sure! See you in a bit then," Gwen nodded in response with Kitty waving bye to them.
"…Okay bro, spill it: how's Gwen doing with…the "suit" so far…?" Eddie quietly demanded as he and Peter strolled a bit far from the two girls while staying away from Dr. Martha Connors, who is currently preoccupied from nearby.
"So far, no issues at all. They seem pretty in sync together, probably far better than the two of us ever did," Peter answered after witnessing Gwen's capability in using her symbiote.
"Good, better stay that way, or else it's gonna be on your head, bro. Got it?" Eddie lightly growled and pointed at Peter's forehead.
"Of course, bro. Believe me, that's the last thing I wanted to experience again," Peter answered.
"Wait, what do you mean "again"? Did something already happen to her without my knowing?…!" Eddie demanded, inching close to Peter's face as he glared at him in the eyes.
'It's all solved! Honest! Really!' Peter hysterically whispered.
"As it should be. Otherwise, I will find my own way, no matter how hard it takes," Eddie hissed at Peter as he tried to visit Dr. Curtis' office, giving him similar vibes when he once used to be Venom, until he bumps into someone big who just exited out of the office. "Ow-hey! Watch where you're-you're-youuuu…!"
"Eddie? Ahh, ssso nissce of you to drop by! How'sss working at Ravencroft?" Curtis, still in his Lizard form, casually asked after bumping into Eddie.
"D-Doc?! Oh no! Not again?!" Eddie exclaimed hysterically as he backed away and fell on his butt.
"Waiit! It'sss ssstill mee!" Lizard assures, trying to calm Eddie down.
—
Later somewhere around 6 p.m. at a luxurious building that gives a similar air like the Big Man's Headquarters…
"Hey! Hello?! Anybody?!" Jonathan tried to call by the gate, following most of the destination's instructions before checking his phone again to be sure. 'Wait, I think I missed something. Ah there! A code…for some keypad? "Concealed from the light"?'
He then notices a mounted nightlight lamp on the side of the gate post underneath a bigger fence lamp, which is odd for how useless the nightlight lamp is compared to the bigger ones…
'Is this it?' Jonathan doubted, creeping closer to the lamp and touching it, making the lamp automatically flip into a hidden keypad to enable his inputting of the received code from his email. "…nothing's happening…? Got hopes too high I gue—whaaaa?!"
In a matter of seconds, he drops down a triggered trap door that roughly leads him into a secret base without a chance to break his fall to the ground…
"Ogghhhh, owww…what in the…" Jonathan groaned, holding his aching face and head.
"Hey, who's the little rat scurrying in here, eh?"
Walking in Jonathan's direction was a hulky man who's as tall as the Rhino, wearing bulky brown-patterned segmented armor, making small tremors on the floor with every step…
"Whoa… uhhh, what huge muscles you got…?" Jonathan nervously complimented.
"Well, little boy. A bit far from home now, aren't you?" Black Cat seductively teases as she sips on a cocktail, laying on an office chair sideways with her legs swinging and stretching.
"Uhm, uhhh, I'm here to apply?" Jonathan nervously replied.
"Ahy, so you're another recruit? Why didn't 'cha say so!" The huge man barked with a smile, lightly nudging Jonathan's tricep. "Got no gear huh? Well, we can just stay here until—"
"Armadillo! Black Cat!"
Suddenly calling from the other end of the room by the main entrance was the current ruling head of the infamous Manfredi Gang of Manhattan, Sable Manfredi, donning her mantle as the ruthless mercenary called Silver Sable.
"Ma'am!" Black Cat responded as she placed her cocktail on the table and got up from the chair, with the huge man codenamed Armadillo responding by standing up straight.
"Y-yes ma'am!" Jonathan nervously responded and saluted.
"Hmmmm, quite the measly bunch we have here. Is this really all we could recruit? I thought you were supposed to be well-connected?!" Silver Sable scolded.
"Y-yes ma'am, I have tried! But I could only do so much!" Patch begged before having a thick bound folder shoved to his chest.
"Forget it, we don't have all the time. Beggars can't be choosers," Silver Sable brushed off her comments before facing her team of recruited oddities from various backgrounds, some of which are unknown to her. "So, Mr. Rodriguez, how are you managing with our experimental armor?"
"Señiora, I am enjoying the chance to use my passion once more! With this, I can unleash more of my strength tenfold! I owe you my life!" Armadillo exclaimed as he pounds his fists and cracks his knuckles.
"Thrilled to see you enjoy the armor. We were going to replicate you with the armor of the Rhino you've all heard and known, but this is the best by far that my small team of specialists could create," Silver Sable explained.
"Either way, for you and the Manfredi's, I would crush your foes with my whole body!" Armadillo vowed as he flexed his hulky structure.
"Whatever, as long as we could break both of our fathers out of jail, I could care less about the reward," Black Cat huffed and crossed her arms.
"…hm? And who are you supposed to be?" Silver Sable glares at Jonathan.
"M-My name is Jonathan, Jonathan Powers! I want to join you guys, please!" Jonathan begged, showing her his email of recognizing his registration.
"Hmmm, what qualifications do you have to be accepted anyway?" Silver Sable demanded.
"I'm a college student in the dramatic arts! I have tried being a part-time stuntman and took up a bit of martial art training! And I want to be accepted to do one thing!" Jonathan fully answered.
"Oh, really? For what purpose does a failing kid like you wanna join a team of crooks?" Silver Sable taunted with a smirk.
"I want… to destroy Spider-man…!" Jonathan hissed and growled as he clenched his fist.
'What? Destroy…Spider-man…?!' Black Cat thought to herself out of shock from his answer.
"Well that seemed like a good enough reason. But to do that, you need lots of work to do," Silver Sable replied, motioning her servants to reveal an armory of weapons that vary in shape, size, and use while holding a small wardrobe with uniforms and suits. "Feel free to choose what can suit your style. Welcome…to my Wild Pack."
—
"Well guys, anything on your radar?" Spider-man, wearing the Spider-Armor, asked over the communicator while swinging around the city and then landing atop a building.
'Nope! Nothin' here!' Human Torch replied while flying and hovering around near the Baxter Building's perimeter.
'Sorry Spidey, nothing unusual around here,' Ghost Spider replied while scouting around near the theater.
'All clear! Coney's all clear!' Iceman replied while he and Kitty traveled atop his ice slide around the beach, pier, and coastlines along Coney Island.
"Okay. Prowler, Screwball, anything on your end?" Spider-man asked again over the communicator.
—
"Negative, Spidey," Prowler replied as he looked down at the area surrounding the museum.
'Okay, but if something big happens, call on us and anyone nearby will come to assist,' Spider-man urged.
"Don't worry, Spidey! You can count on us!" Screwball gleefully replied over her communicator—personally given by her Webhead of a boyfriend.
Suddenly, a swift silhouette was moving by the corner of Prowler's eye, alerting both him and Screwball when they quickly noticed it…
"Oop, we got a bogie in the court. C'mon Screwball," Prowler quipped, making the both of them jump off the building and swing with their grappling hooks to quickly pursue the stranger running in the shadows.
"Haha! End of the line, punk! Nowhere to run, now let's play!" Screwball quipped with a smirk before popping her retractable roller skates and getting into a passive fighting stance.
"Oh, I so do wanna play. But…" The silhouette then steps out of the shadows, revealing herself to be the elusive and confident Black Cat. "Bring Spider-man with you, please?"
"Oh no, not you again! Prowl! I—"
"Need some help…over here…?!" Prowler whimpered deeply because of his active voice-disguiser after gazing upon a giant hulky man with a visored helmet in heavy brown armor. 'Spidey…respond, now!'
"Ey hombre, where do you think you're going?" Armadillo taunted, towering over the two young crimefighters and blocking their path.
"Hahaha! Have no fear, my bored audience! The Jester's here, taking center stage!" Exclaimed a man in a mask with a colorful spandex suit and a jester hat, dramatically introducing himself as the Jester, while descending down the wall with a sturdy line connected to his grappling hook and rope.
"Sheeesh, quite the lousy showoff," Black Cat scoffed.
"I could agreeably understand the pain…"
Suddenly a shiny silhouette reflects a white appearance under the moonlight, revealing to be the female mercenary clad all over in white, the Silver Sable…
"Whoa, now that's a cool suit! Cooler than mine!" Screwball geeked out from looking at Silver Sable's suit.
"Sh! Not helping!" Prowler urged her to keep quiet.
The two of them watch Silver Sable hop on the sides of the walls before dropping down on her nimble legs and equipping herself with her favorite customized rifle…
"Well, what kind of pair are you supposed to be?" Silver Sable demanded with a smirk.
"Easy, these two are Spider-friends. They're with the Wall-crawler!" Jester hissed with a grin.
"Hmmm, is that so?" Silver Sable wondered.
"Then we should take them down, right?" Armadillo retorted, raising his fists as he was about to flatten both Prowler and Screwball into the ground.
"No, that would be a waste. Instead…" Silver Sable then approaches the frightened duo before extending her hand to them. "Why don't the two of you join us?"
"Wait, come again?" Prowler asked, confused by the offer of the lady mercenary.
"You seem to be quite the professional, Prowler," Silver Sable commented.
"H-How'd you know about me? Spill the beans!" Prowler demanded as he pointed at her with his gas bomb-armed gauntlets, alerting Black Cat and Armadillo for any move he would make.
"I did my research, of course. Surely a guy like you wouldn't enjoy being reduced to a boy scout like your Webhead friend, helping others that don't help you in return," Silver Sable taunted.
"Hold it there, Prowl. Let's bail, these guys are coocoo-nuts," Screwball warned as she tried to take Prowler away, only to be tazed in the back by a chip shot onto her from Silver Sable and fall to the ground unconscious.
"Screwball, no!" Prowler roared as he charged forward at Silver Sable, only to be pinned to the wall after she shot giant wire staples to his gauntlets, boots, and his joints. "Urngh! Hrngh! Don't you dare hurt her!"
"Calm down, she just passed out, for now. You should choose: to help me and your friend; or ditch us and her life. What do you think?" Silver Sable smirked, motioning Armadillo to hold Screwball up by her arms.
"Grrrrgh, fine! I'll help you do your dirty work, but you gotta let my friend go!" Prowler demands as he lets Armadillo rip the staples off, quickly backing to the wall and quietly scratches the wall with his retractable claws.
"I think not. She's sticking with us. Besides, at least you won't be alone anyway," Silver Sable slyly suggests, cornering Prowler.
"Lady, we don't have all day. We need to go now, as we promised," Black Cat interrupts the conversation.
"Okay, then it's time we get going. Armadillo, Jester, keep an eye out for the two stowaways till we finish the job," Silver Sable ordered.
"Easy peasy!" Jester assured, letting Armadillo carry Screwball over his shoulder.
'Spidey, you better find us, and quick!' Prowler thought as he's ordered to follow Silver Sable's lead.
—
"Have you double-checked the area?" Spider-man asked while scouting the perimeter around the museum, worried about Prowler and Screwball's whereabouts.
"The GPS tracked them to this place, most especially the alley over there, but Shadowcat and Human Torch couldn't find anything there," Iceman shrugged.
"Show me," Spider-man demands, being led by Iceman to the designated alley.
He then examines the place for anything unusual like a desperate dog, weirding out Human Torch and Iceman while worrying Ghost Spider in the process…
"Spidey, please take it slow," Ghost Spider urged.
"How can I? It's my fault they got into another mess under my watch. I gotta find out where they are," Spider-man calmly replied while checking the partially wet floor.
"Nope, I don't see anything unusual. Sorry Spidey," Shadowcat apologizes, partially phasing through the wall.
"Don't worry, it's—wait," Spider-man thought out loud, noticing odd scratches on the wall Shadowcat's phasing through.
"What's wrong?" Shadowcat wondered.
"Mind uh, moving aside from the wall?" Spider-man kindly asked, letting Shadowcat phase out and expose the wall, spotting the weird scratches that seem to form out the word "Ryker's". 'Prowler, you're a genius…!'
—
Meanwhile, outside the gate of the infamous Ryker's prison…
"Well then, boys and girls, get ready to go in with a bang," Silver Sable quipped as she dismounted from the huge armored vehicle, wielding her rifle over her shoulders.
"Hate to be a downer, but how do we get in a prison that's heavily built for maximum security?" Prowler pointed out.
"Relax kid, Armadillo!" Silver Sable ordered.
"Hraaaaagh!" Armadillo roared as he went rushing to the gate with full force, ramming and flattening the steel obstacles with ease. "Hehehehe, I wanna do that again...!"
"C'mon, let's get in now that we got our huge keyholder opening the way," Silver Sable ordered, letting Jester, Black Cat and Prowler follow behind her while leaving Screwball in the vehicle with a handful of mercenaries that are under her command.
'Grrrgh, Spidey, please don't be late,' Prowler thought to himself, forced to follow Silver Sable's orders.
After Armadillo opened the way into the jail areas and all the alarms rang around the facilities, all security personnel were summoned to deal with them. However…
"We need backup!" One warden yelled, trying to fire tranquilizing darts at the nimble women in tights.
"They're too strong!" Another warden yelled after he and two other wardens tried zapping Armadillo with their strong tasers before being slammed to the wall from Armadillo's steel-plated medium-sized tail.
"Okay, that guy's really loaded," Prowler deadpanned before dodging a guard swinging his baton at him. "Dude wait, can't we talk about this?"
As the guard continues to swing his baton instead of listening to Prowler's plea, his feet get swept off the ground from Prowler's leg sweeping kick and falls on his back…
"Here," Prowler quipped as he fired a compact net to entrap the guard to the floor. "Stay down and you'll stay safe."
"C'mon! Maximum security is just around the corner!" Silver Sable rallied, ordering Armadillo to curl up into a giant armor-plated ball with his changeable armor and ram through the huge steel door before uncurling back up.
"Aye lady!" Jester playfully responds after knocking down a pair of wardens and follows them from behind.
However, Prowler notices Black Cat being unresponsive and looking through a jail cell, walking and watching her from a distance…
"Daddy, don't worry, after this job, I promise that we can be together again, I promise. While the Spider's gone—"
"No, I can't leave this place. Don't make me go through this farce again, please," Walter begged out of his selfless concern for his daughter behind bars.
"Daddy, I promised that I will get you out of here, whether you like it or not," Black Cat angrily replied.
"I don't think your friend will take that lightly," Walter differed.
"Oh please, don't bring up the Webhead," Black Cat groaned in disgust.
"I wasn't referring to Spider-man," Walter deadpanned, catching the slightly embarrassed Black Cat off guard before pointing towards Prowler behind her.
Out of defensive reflex, Black Cat attempted to lacerate Prowler with her claws, only to parry against his own retractable claws and engage into a momentary stalemate.
"Uhm, I promise I never heard anything, I swear," Prowler assured before sheathing his claws. "Come, the big lady's not gonna be happy if we fall behind."
Without saying another word, they both immediately follow the rest of the Wild Pack into the building of maximum security, where most of Spider-man's foes like the frozen Hydro-Man and the straitjacketed Tombstone…
"Hello, Daddy. Are you doing alright?" Silver Sable playfully replied.
"So far, just taking my time here as always with my good neighbor" Silvio playfully replied, referring to Tombstone's cell beside him before standing back as Armadillo attempts to open the cell, only to accidentally trigger a spray of knockout gas and make Armadillo activate his helmet's visor while smashing the tightly locked door down. "I must say, Daughter, you have quite outdone yourself with this "team" of yours."
"It runs in the family, now let's go!" Silver Sable orders as she and the rest of her Wild Pack escorts Silvio Manfredi out of Ryker's.
"Sorry guys, but you shouldn't take the animals out of the zoo. They're not pets, you know!"
Quipping by the center of the normal jailing facility, Spider-man along with Shadowcat, Ghost Spider, Human Torch, Iceman, and the freed Screwball greet the band of mercenaries while waiting for them to come out.
'Yes! Finally!' Prowler exclaimed internally.
"You!" Silver Sable and Jester barked angrily as she pointed her rifle at him while he pulled out a few of his party trick bombs from his belt.
"Hey, pointing a gun at others is kinda rude, you know!" Spider-man playfully replied.
"She doesn't seem to be like the lady-type, with how she just left me with her group of rugged dudes. Like, ewww," Screwball irked.
She then attempts to shoot her rifle, triggering the enhanced senses of both Spider-man and Ghost Spider.
"Scatter!" Spider-man and Ghost Spider exclaimed, making all of them spread out and avoid her giant flying wire staple.
"Whoa! Is that gun just a huge stapler?!" Shadowcat teased as the giant wire staples only phased through her body while dashing head on.
"Missed again! Jinx!" Spider-man and Ghost Spider exclaimed while nimbly dodging her rage-fueled rapid fire shots, all the while Human Torch and Iceman parry or block the projectiles with their elemental abilities.
"Oh heck yeah, it's payback time!" Screwball quipped as she engages in hand-to-hand combat with Black Cat, barely able to keep up with her pacing.
"Armadillo! Prowler! Jester!" Silver Sable ordered, letting the armored musclehead and the dramatic fighter enter into the fray.
"Hold your fire, or else I won't," Prowler urged as he pointed his gauntlet behind Silver Sable, before getting thrown back against the wall by Silvio. "Ugh, ow, that's some strength for an old guy."
"Old guy? I'll show you old, right after I get my suit back," Silvio answered back before slamming Prowler to the wall once more and dropping him to the ground after he's unconscious, patting dust off his hands. "Seems like you still need work on your people skills, daughter. Else snakes like him will bite back at you."
—
"I will make you into Spider-Taco!" Armadillo angrily roared while trying to squish the nimble duo Spider-man and Ghost Spider.
"No way, Rhino copycat! I'd taste better, with a raw spider-powered kick!" Spider-man quipped as he bungeed a double heel kick from below his chin, dazing him and making him fall into his knees.
"How 'bout another?!" Ghost Spider quips as she webs two lines to sling her fast towards Armadillo and lands another double heel kick to the back of his head to further incapacitate him. "Whoo! How'd I do?"
"Much like me," Spider-man shrugged before his Spider-sense reacted again from Silvio rushing behind Ghost Spider. "Ghost Spider—!"
Without even looking, white tendrils erupt from Ghost Spider's back and catch Silvio by his wrists and his ankles before slamming him hard against the wall.
"This is for Prowler. And you, get back to work. I got these guys," Ghost Spider replied.
"Well then, girly. What else can you do other than pass through things?" Jester teased, playing with a fragmentation bomb.
"Hmmm, I got a trick you should see," Shadowcat replied with a smile before rushing to phase through his whole body and his utility belt, short-circuiting his belt that it electrocutes him till he falls unconscious on his face. "Tada!"
"Grgh, Kitty, help!" Human Torch begged while trying to free his wrist that's trapped to the wall from a giant wire staple.
"Man, these school supplies are so impractical! Get this off of me!" Iceman yelled while trying to wriggle out of the wire staple that's holding his waist to the wall.
"I got them, Spidey. You go," Shadowcat replied, rushing over to Iceman and Human Torch.
"Looks like I'm back alone again—whoa!" Spider-man exclaimed and quickly parries or blocks the flying wires staples shot at him by Silver Sable with his gauntlets and knuckle dusters, slowly inching closer towards her. "Taste the might of my Spectacular Spider-Armor!"
As he kicks and destroys the rifle of Silver Sable's hands, he quickly fires a flurry of web bullets that make her quickly dodge out of reflex around the room. All of a sudden, a pair of hands caught Silver Sable by her arms, immobilizing her for a second.
"What the—"
"Spider-man! Now!" Walter ordered.
"Wha—oh!" Spider-man then quickly entraps and webs Silver Sable to the cell bars of Walter Hardy. "Whew, oh man. That was—whoa!"
When the fight is thought to be over and done, Black Cat, fueled with rage, tries to hit Spider-man in the face, alerting everyone and the waking Prowler…
"Cat! Wait!" Spider-man begged, dodging her angry fists and kicks.
"Why do you always have to show up?!" Black Cat barked while trying to land a hit on Spider-man.
"Cat! What are you doing with these guys?! This isn't like you?!" Spider-man interrogated while dodging herhitsfull of hate.
"They would do something that you wouldn't do. And you blew it, Spider!" Black Cat angrily replied and was able to land a strong fist to his cheek, but was unable to injure him or make him flinch because of his armor.
"Cat…I'm sorry I—"
Before Spider-man could say more, law enforcers storm into the jailing facility and both Jester and Black Cat are nowhere to be found, making Spider-man panic and look around to spot an opened vent in the corner. When Captain George Stacy entered the room…
"Spider-man, thank goodness you're here. A great backup for us they couldn't handle goons of their caliber," George joked.
"Oh no, all in a days' work, Cap'n!" Spider-man playfully saluted.
"Appreciate the optimism. We can take over things from here, unless you'd wanna lend a hand," George suggested, looking at several officers trying to move Armadillo in his heavy armored suit.
"Yeah, seems like you need the assist," Spider-man nervously pointed out, scratching his head.
"It's unnecessary, Webhead. Just leave this to the real heroes," Officer Jean DeWolff halted, handcuffing Silvio and dragging him away from Ghost Spider's hold.
"Some manners," Ghost Spider shook her head.
"Well guys, our job's done here. We gotta go, now!" Spider-man rallied before swinging out of the facility.
"Oh shoot, I still have an essay to finish! Shadowcat screamed, grabbing hold of Ghost Spider's neck as they swung out of the facility, followed by Prowler, Iceman, and a "flame off" Human Torch as they rode on Iceman's slide.
—
Hovering somewhere in the skies, in what appears to be a huge aerial carrier…
"Keep monitoring those kids longer. In less than a week, make contact with the Manfredi girl and her goons," Nick Fury ordered.
"Sir, are you sure with your decision? After all, they are just thugs with advanced tech. Why not just claim their tech?" Asked one SHIELD agent.
"Do you have questions?" Nick Fury subtly growled, silencing the young agent. "Another objective: make contact with the Connors' infive days."
"Affirmative, Colonel," the agent complied.
'Time to pay a visit, on behalf of a friend…' Nick Fury muttered, staring into the dark cloudy night sky.
—To be continued
A/N: Whoo! Finally! New month, new chapter!
Sorry for the long wait guys, I really took my time to finish this.
Thanks for being patient and sticking around!
Leave a comment, review, or complaint in the review box.
God bless and take care!
