(The Hobgoblin)

Spectacular Webhead 11: Thanks, I'm glad to see you liked it. I figured Spectacular appearing in Across the Spider verse would get a lot of excitement. You'll see who it is in due time.

Gamelover41592: Thanks, I'm glad to see you liked it, and you have a Merry Christmas too, and a Happy New Year.

Superjoeyf721: The same to you.

Vfc15650: I appreciate the feedback. Yeah, not a lot of different characters appeared in this one, but it gave me the chance to put more focus on them instead of dividing it up. I won't confirm anything just yet as to which villain we're going to be getting, so you'll have to read for yourself to find out. I can imagine that Spectacular appearing in Across the Spider Verse is going to get a lot of positive feedback. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you too.

Guest: Thanks, I'm glad to see you liked it. I thought it was important to point out that while this is a Spider-Man story, it's also a Ninja Turtle story. I wasn't really sure if I was going to include anything from the Clone Saga, but I will say that your ideas are pretty interesting. I'll have to keep them in mind.

Althea Sirius: I share your opinion, though all things considered, I don't think it's the grossest episode of the series. Granted there are at least a few contenders for that spot, but still. Plus it's an important part of Raph's character arc. I won't say anything as to who that villain is, at least who their true identity is, but one thing is for sure, Peter and Harry will have a confrontation to remember soon enough. I've been giving a lot of thought to the Invasion, and how to handle the appearances of other heroes. All I can say is that I'm going to play this one very carefully, to make sure that I make this the best it can be.

TheIrishman1999: Agree to disagree about the Ultimate Spider-Man series, but I'm glad that you like the inclusion of the Spider Cycle.

Guest: You definitely know how to think outside of the box, I'll give you that. You never know, I might end up doing that at some point.

Guest: Does right now work for you?

TheIrishman1999: I won't forget about your idea, and I do have some plans for Karai, which you're going to see later on.

Zamanfarhan2002: A mix between a reference and a jab. I'm not fond of that plotline, and you can be sure it's not going to happen here.

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Another night, another stakeout to stop the Kraang from robbing another lab.

"Oh crap." Spider-Man pulled out a pair of binoculars from where he, the Turtles and Daredevil were watching the Kraang attempt to rob another lab, until his gaze caught sight of a certain piece of tech they were loading into their van "Okay it's official, that's an entirely new level of bad."

"Where are we talking about here?" asked Leo.

"The Kraang are getting their hands on a sub-spacial endoparticle disruptor."

"You're gonna have to explain if that means"yay " or"oh no" for us."

"What part of an entirely new level of bad didn't go through your shell?"

"Why? What does it do?" asked Mikey.

"A disrupter like that can de-synchronize subatomic resonances, which invert polymolecular structures and make them implode." he was met with blank stares "It's a big-ass laser gun that makes things go boom."

"Technically it makes things light up, shrink down and then pop out of existence." Donnie was met with a series of blank stares from the others "What? It's important to be accurate."

"Yeah, but that's like trying to explain anime to a normal person. Anyway with a weapon like that in their slimy tentacles, the Kraang can do some serious damage."

"Which means that we have to stop them from escaping with it." Daredevil's demeanor grew hard as he pulled out a set of nunchucks "Remind me to thank your sensei for lending these to me for the time being."

"Thank him after we keep the particle weapon out of the hands of the Kraang. Right now we've got brain squids to beat the crap out of."

"No arguments here." Leo stepped forward in order to lead the charge "Alright guys, get into position and be ready to move on my mark. Ready, set…"

"Enough with the squawking already, let's just do this!" Raph was the first one to leap down into the fray, with the Turtles, Spider-Man and Daredevil following suit… only to find a certain set of unexpected company joining in.

"Now!" as it turns out, it was Dogpound and Fishface leading a squad of Foot ninja down onto the scene, only to end up spotting the Turtles at the other end of the street "What the-"

"So let me see if I've got this. We get the Kraang, Fishface and Dogpound?" Raph's face lit up like a Christmas tree "I must be pinching, somebody pinch me."

"Okay." so Mikey promptly pinched him on the face, only to get a smack upside the head "Hey, you're the one who said!"

"It's an expression!"

"An expression of you not keeping your mouth shut." Spider-Man dryly, dodging a fist aimed at the back of his head with ease.

"Save the rest of the banter for after the fight guys, we've got work to do. I'll grab the particle thing, you take care of the rest!" Leo made the call, and so the six of them charged into the three way battle between them, the Foot soldiers and the Kraang, during which he tried to make a grab for the particle disruptor, only to quickly find himself fighting Dogpound over it.

"Not gonna lie, this is one part of the job I never stop enjoying." Spider-Man ducked underneath a katana and kicked a Foot ninja square in the jaw, followed by him latching onto a Kraangdroid with a webline and hurling him into another Foot ninja "You can't tell me you don't enjoy this at least a little."

"I normally don't consider enjoyment when I come across thugs and lowlives that go out of their way to hurt others." Daredevil used his nunchucks to bash a Foot ninja over the head and punched a hole straight through the torso of a Kraangdroid, then dodged a knife aimed at his back via another Foot ninja, leaving him back to back with Spider-Man "But at the same time, I will admit that there is a certain sense of catharsis that comes with it. I have my teacher to thank for that."

"Who did you say taught you to fight again?"

"An old blind man."

"Oh. I learned from cartoons and movies. You know, the classics."

"We clearly have different definitions of what makes a classic."

"To make a long story short, it's subjective, just like humor."

"The same can be said for-" Daredevil cut himself short as he turned his head slightly, and his gaze hardened "I believe we have some more unwanted company heading our way."

"The good kind or the bad king?"

"The kind that's wearing a skin-tight suit with a set of retractable claws."

"...Oh god dammit." Spider-Man looked up to see a certain shadowy figure making their way across the nearby rooftops 'Why do I get the feeling she's not just going sightseeing?'

"Booyakasha!" Mikey on the other hand was in the middle of taking out several Kraangdroids via his nunchucks, only to look over and see one grab the disrupter out of the van and prepare to fire it at him "Aw shell."

"Nope." it was then that a new figure dropped down onto the scene, crushing the Kraangdroid underneath her foot and sending the blast from the disruptor to hit a nearby lamppost, which caused it to glow, then shrink down and disappear with an audible popping sound "Huh. So that's what it sounds like."

"No kidding, my bro totally called it." Mikey then turned back to the figure, only to find himself pinned to the ground in one swift movement, though he did manage to get a good look at her during this 'Wait a sec… white hair, purple suit and the mask… is she…?' that thought was more than enough motivation for him to free himself of her hold and brandish his nunchucks as he turned to face her "You the Black Cat?"

"I'm getting a rep, I guess I should be flattered." she shot him a smirk as she threw a few small projectiles at the van as it tried to drive away, causing it to tumble to the ground and land on its side "Gotta be honest though, man-sized turtles with ninja gear. That's a new one, even for this dumpster fire of a town."

"Hey trust me, me and my bros got all sorts of surprises up our shells, stuff you're never gonna believe. Booyakasha!" Mikey charged at Black Cat and let his nunchucks fly, only for her to maneuver her way around him and throw him to the ground in one swift move.

"Figures you'd be buddying up with the enemy of fun over there." she jerked a thumb towards where the others were still fighting through a group of Foot ninja, and then she made her way over towards the van and opened up the back, only to find herself being held back by Mikey via nunchucks and yanked backwards, but she was quick to rebound and deal him a roundhouse kick to the face, sending him crashing into Donnie and knocking them both to the ground "Yeah word to the wise turtle boy, cats always land on their feet. Take notes." she then turned her attention back to what was in the back of the van: the endoparticle disruptor, and moved to grab it, only to be met with a stream of webs binding one arm and one leg, though she was more annoyed by this than shocked "Typical, once again the enemy of fun shows up where he's wanted the least."

"I have a habit of that." Spider-Man swooped in next to her and left Daredevil to fight off the group of Foot ninja "And apparently you're already back into your old habits. Here I thought you were gonna prove yourself better than daddy dearest."

"Like you have the right to talk about him, you're the reason I lost my father!" Cat promptly freed herself of the webs with a quick snap of her claws and wrestled Spider-Man to the ground, catching him in a full nelson in the process "It's because of you he's spending the rest of his life in that hole!"

"And so long as I have a say in it, that's where he's gonna stay!" Spider-Man gritted his teeth as he broke free of Cat's hold and threw her over his shoulders, only for her to land on her feet with ease.

"Didn't you listen to what I told your turtle pal Spider? Cats land on their feet, one of those facts of life stupid people don't bother to remember." Black Cat charged at Spider-Man again with her claws barred, only to be caught in a stream of webbing and hit the ground "Dammit!"

"So much for a cat always landing on their feet, I guess sometimes they just land flat on their backs."

"Spare me the snark Spider, you lost the right to be funny with me when you left my father in that pit!" Black Cat let out a snarl.

"And I'd do it again, he needs to pay for what he's done and he will."

"Easy for you to say! You don't know what it's like to lose the person you love the most! You don't-" Cat was cut off by another stream of webbing binding her mouth shut.

"That one was a long time coming." Spider-Man turned to face her, his expression filled with calm fury that was clearly visible despite his mask "Don't act like you're the victim here. You don't have a single clue what you're talking about."

"Maybe, maybe not. One thing I do know is, you won't be able to keep me down with something like this!" Black Cat ripped through the claws and dealt Spider-Man a swift kick… right to the crotch, leaving him to fall to his knees, and then she threw down a small sphere that created a cloud of smoke. When it was gone, so was she.

"Dammit…" Spider-Man let out a pained groan as he shakily pulled himself to his feet, then took a look at the van, or rather where it was supposed to be 'She's gone, and so are the Kraang with a particle weapon. Just freaking perfect.'

"Spidey come on dude, we've gotta go!" Mikey got his attention, prompting Spider-Man to join the Turtles and Daredevil on a nearby rooftop just as the police arrived on the scene. Once they were out of sight, Mikey turned towards Spidey "You okay man?"

"Honestly, not really no.." Spider-Man breathed a heavy sigh and looked away "Putting aside the fact that every time I see Black Cat now is like pouring a gallon of salt into an open wound, there's the fact that the Kraang got away with a dangerous particle weapon, and god only knows what they plan to do with it. Plus there's the fact that I've been searching for new goblin-based leads for almost two weeks now and I haven't found a thing."

"Are you even sure that there's a new Goblin running around somewhere?" asked Leo.

"I know the weapon that Daredevil brought me the other night, I know a Goblin's arsenal of weapons when I see it. If there's another Goblin running around out there then I have to find him, before anyone else gets hurt."

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(the scene opens up to Peter Parker as Spiderman standing one top of one of the buildings in New York. The scene shifts to the same scene as before but now it shows the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael, and Michelangelo standing next to Spiderman. Spiderman turns to the audience as he raises his right arm before he shoots out his web from his wrist towards another direction off-screen and begins to web-sling as the TMNT begin to follow him as the title of the fanfic: Along Came Some Turtles appeared.)

Whoa Whoa Whoa...

(The next scene shows Peter Parker standing alone on top of a building, but then he looks back to see the Turtles standing behind him, and he smiles. The scene then transitions to the five of them spending time with their friends and family, all of them having a good time with each other)

Daijoubu ore ga nanman kai mo sakende yaru

Kimi no ashita ga subete kagayaite iru to shinjiteru

(The ext scene shows a past events involving Spiderman's origins (getting bitten by the spider and losing his Uncle Ben) and the TMNT origins (them and Splinter getting mutated, along with flashes of their training to become ninjas) as well with all the important details for each one shown and how they come to be who they are now.)

Yume o kanaeta subete no hito ni kasanariau kyoutsuuten

Akirame nakattatte koto soredake sa maken nayo

(The next scene shows the rooftops of New York city as Spiderman and the TMNT were having a stand off towards the Foot Clan ninjas and mutants. They all stood there in silence as the heroes charged forwards to face their foes)

Mukaikaze ni nagasare kujike sou na toki wa

Kono te nigire TRY TO TAKE A CHANCE mou

Kimi wa hitori nanka ja naize?

(the next scene shows the villains of Spiderman and the TMNT have delt with over the years as the Shredder takes the top of this pyramid of villains.)

Motto motto mae e mae e kimi no ikashita yume akiramenaide (Whoa Whoa Whoa)

Sou naite nai de susume MY WAY ima (Whoa Whoa Whoa)

Kimi o terashiten da hikari (Whoa Whoa Whoa)

Akirame nanka zenbu sutete tsuyosa to hikikae ni mata kizutsuite (Whoa Whoa Whoa)

(The next scene shows the heroes fighting their respective villains with Spiderman handling The Rhino, Doc Ock, Green Goblin, and Venom while the TMNT dealing with Stockman-Fly, Bebop, Rocksteady, Tiger Claw, and the Shredder.)

Demo kimi no massugu na hitomi ni wa

Ima mieru daro hikari

(The next scene shows that the heroes looking battered and defeated but they begin to rise back up as Raphael stood up with a roar as Spiderman shot some webbing towards screen.)

Whoa Whoa Whoa...

(The final scene shows a still image of Spider Man and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles ready to face off against their villains once again)

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Another day came, and another training session was well underway.

'Okay, just gotta focus on his presence and- Dammit!' Peter let out a pained groan as he rubbed his head on the spot where Splinter's bokken had struck him "Okay, I'm pretty sure that you did this already with the Turtles?"

"A lesson that you did not attend." Splinter told him flatly.

"I had to take pictures at a press conference for the Bugle."

"I am not accusing you. I am aware you have other responsibilities, I am merely stating a fact in this case."

"Fair enough. So what is the point of this training exercise anyway?"

"Evading a sword that you cannot see is meant to serve as a demonstration of your ability to sense the intentions of your enemy."

"Yeah I hate to be that guy, but when most of the supervillains I fight are trying to shoot my head off, I'm pretty sure that their intentions are pretty clear."

"And how are you first alerted when these villains attack you?"

"Well my Spider Sense goes off and-" Peter was met with Splinter's tail smacking him upside the head, and then getting knocked to the ground "-and then that happens."

"That is precisely why I wished to impart this lesson to you. I have heard you complain on more than one occasion that while your Spider Sense does tell you that your enemy will strike, but fails to tell you when, where and how. Being able to sense these factors can mean the difference between victory and defeat in battle. Or in terms of the superhero vernacular, it can mean the difference between innocent lives being saved or lost."

"I… hadn't thought about that."

"The principle is to hone and have trust in all of your senses. Complete mastery of one's own self is crucial to one growing stronger."

"Right. I'll keep that in mind, thanks." Peter paused as the sound of ringing got his attention, and he pulled his phone out from within his suit "Oh finally, an obligation in my life that hasn't given me a migraine."

"Your aunt?"

"Gwen actually, she wants to meet up for lunch before I have to cover something else for the Bugle. So um…"

"The point of the lesson has been made, but keep it in mind as you go about your business. That is all I ask."

"Good enough for me, thanks." so Peter promptly made his way out of the dojo, his thoughts drifting as he moved to collect his stuff and put his clothes on over his suit 'Getting a tail to the head aside, Splinter isn't wrong about my Spider Sense. Most of the time it involves that pinging banging against my head like a freaking drum, and then I get punched or stabbed or blown up or something. That happening to me is one thing, but I can't risk it happening to any bystanders that may get caught in the crossfire… like Gwen. Wow, my mind goes to her a lot lately. Not really hard to see why though, at least now that we're back on speaking terms. Plus there's the fact that ever since she found out I'm supposedly Spider-Man's equipment manager, she's been helping me stay on top of some of the smaller things like class stuff. But that's as far as I'm willing to let her go with stuff like this. Her track record with supervillains pretty much speaks for itself, and if she ends up getting targeted or captured again, I'm gonna need to be ready to keep her safe. That especially goes if that new Goblin figure ever shows themselves. One way or another, there's no chance in hell I'm gonna let another one of those run around on the loose.'

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Meanwhile, in an undisclosed location…

"Attention." after escaping the attacks from our heroes and the Foot (and Black Cat), the Kraang made their way to one of their facilities located at an abandoned warehouse, and they made their way inside "Engage in that which is known as revealing that which is known as yourself."

"No need for the constant redundancies, I'm just preparing my gear." a set of doors swung open, and from the shadows stepped a tall figure clad in an orange one piece suit with blue arms and legs, orange gloves and boots, and an orange hood and cape, as well as a yellow mask with red eyes and pointed ears "So do you have it?"

"Affirmative. That which is known as the objective has been achieved." the Kraangdroid then presented the endoparticle disruptor to the figure.

"Excellent." the figure gave a smirk as he accepted the weapon and pressed a button on one of his gloves, causing a silver-colored glider to emerge from the warehouse "This is going to do very nicely."

"Is that which is known as the target known?"

"I already know of the objective, and with this in my possession, one clean shot is all that I'm going to need to do the job." the figure's smirk widened as he stepped onto the glider, which then took off into the night sky "The time has finally come for this city to see what the Hobgoblin is capable of!"

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Meanwhile, with a certain target to be…

"It shouldn't be long until we get there now." at the same time, Emily Osborn was making her way through the streets of New York in the back of a limo "I take it you have issues with my current schedule?"

"More out of concern than anything else. Given recent events, is it wise to put yourself out into the open so soon?"

"You mean for the press to interrogate me about my husband's actions?" Emily breathed a sigh and rubbed her temples in frustrations "Believe me Donald, I'm well aware of what they intend to do when they see me there.

"Then why run the risk so soon?"

"Because now more than ever, the people need to know that Oscorp has the public spirit and the intent to do right by the people of this city, especially given my family's recent history. They need to know that they can trust us again, otherwise-" Emily cut herself short when she noticed a shadow looming over her limo, and she took a look through the sunroof, only to find that there was nothing there "Hmm…"

"Is something wrong ma'am?"

"...No. It's nothing."

"Very well then." and so the line was cut off.

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Meanwhile, with the main protagonist…

"So that's about the sum of it." by this point, Peter was making his way along a sidewalk while engaged in a conversation with Hobie "The Kraang got away again, and now they've got their tentacles on a crazy dangerous particle weapon."

"Not to mention that apparently the Black Cat is getting involved in this." Hobie muttered "And knowing what she's like, this can't end well."

"You say that like it's a surprise. I think we've established pretty clearly by now that she's got a habit of sticking her whiskers into situations that already suck."

"Such as?"

"Stealing the symbiote from the ESU lab, trying to break her dad out of prison in the middle of a riot that got caused by the Green Goblin. The only good thing about that is that she stopped pining after me. Did you know she was my first kiss?"

"I thought that was Gwen."

"Yes and no. She was the first kiss for Peter Parker, but Spider-Man? Black Cat caught me by surprise and landed one on me. I was too shocked to really be able to enjoy it."

"With Cat or Gwen?"

"Both of them actually. Seriously, I never even got a chance to reciprocate. But anyway, she has caused me more than a few migraines since I've known her." Peter stopped walking, which prompted Hobie to do the same, and he let out a sigh "But at the same time, I do know that she isn't all bad."

"Because she helped clear your name when the Chameleon was framing you, and saved you from the Green Goblin during the breakout at the Raft."

"And one of those was after she started hating me for what happened with her dad. Truth be told, if it wasn't for that and her pretty obvious kleptomania, she'd be a pretty big help to have in the field. Of course the first one is a pretty big deal breaker for obvious reasons."

"Believe me, I get that. I also get why you feel the way you do."

"To be fair, I'm pretty sure a good chunk of that comes from you knowing my secret."

"Which raises another question." Hobie took a breath and looked Peter in the eye "Have you ever considered telling her?"

"...You're kidding right?"

"Not the whole secret identity thing, I mean the fact that her dad killed your uncle, or at least someone close to you. Knowing her, she probably thinks you're letting him rot just for the sake of principle, or something along those lines."

"Even if I did agree with that, I doubt it would really make much of a difference. It's not going to change the fact that her dad killed my uncle, and I wouldn't let her break him out. Call it a hunch or whatever you like, but I doubt she'd be willing to see past that."

"I would object to that, but knowing her, you're probably right. I had to broach the idea and see what you thought."

"I get it, I do. But yeah, despite everything… she does have good in her. I just hope the day comes where I don't have to deal with her hating me for one reason or another. Speaking of which, I have to cover the big reopening of the lab at ESU, and I'll give you one guess who's been funding the whole thing."

"Oscorp?"

"Yep."

"Ah, gotcha. Well as… interesting as it sounds to be there for that, I've got some family stuff to take care of at home, so I'm gonna have to take a reign check on that. See you later Parker, and good luck with… all of that." so Hobie gave him a simple wave, and then he took off in another direction.

'Even with the gigantic debt and whatever family drama he has going on at home, I still say he's the lucky one for being able to get the hell away from this.' Peter breathed a sigh as he made his way across the street, coming to a stop when he spotted a large crowd outside of a building at the ESU campus 'On the plus side, at least the genetics lab at ESU is being rebuilt after the whole thing with Miles Warren sicking Kraven on Gwen, and once that happens the Connors will come back from Florida. That raises a few questions like whether or not they know about the Kraang, or if the Kraang will target them. But then again, if there is anyone that could help find a way to undo the effects of the Kraang's Mutagen, it would be Dr Connors. Of course I don't want to get them involved if I don't have to. Anyway I'd better get to work before Jameson starts being him, or even worse-'

"Hey Pete."

'...Something like this happens.' Peter turned around and found a certain redheaded young man standing before him, and he was quick to compose himself "Harry, hey. Kind of a surprise to run into you here. I'm not complaining or anything, I'm just…"

"Yeah, I know what you meant. Are you here to take pictures?"

"Yep." Peter held up his camera to emphasize "The Bugle has me covering all sorts of events these days, part of my freelance contract."

"Right… like pictures of anyone else?" Harry leaned in a little closer as his gaze hardened "You know, like Spider-Man?"

"Oddly enough Jameson doesn't even like those that much anymore, but apparently he goes nuts for the pictures I get of Sandman."

"I knew that you- Wait, Sandman? Are you serious?"

"Yeah, I don't really get it either. He said something about liking Sandman because he shows how people can change, and how he doesn't hide behind a mask like Spider-Man."

"Huh. Weird. Anyway, what was I saying?"

"You were about to grill me for still taking pictures of Spider-Man despite what happened to your dad?"

"...Oh. You saw through that?"

"Even I could figure it out, and that's saying something." Peter breathed a sigh "I'm guessing this is the part where you yell at me about that?"

"Well I…" Harry cut himself short when he noticed a blond girl on the stand giving him a certain look, and he was quick to change his tone "Nope, nothing like that. At all."

"Really?"

"Yes, absolutely. I know you're doing it because you need the job to support your family, and I can't hold that against you, even if it means taking pictures of the guy that I blame for killing my dad."

"...Gwen's up there giving you the Look right now isn't she?"

"Would you be surprised if I said yes?"

"I would be surprised if you said no."

"Fair enough. Anyway I gotta go, my mom is here for the dedication and I want to be there for the big moment. Plus Gwen is up there to support me, being my girlfriend and all." and so he walked off with a grin on his face.

'Okay, that doesn't sound smug or possessive in the slightest.' and yet Peter pushed those thoughts to the side as got into position and started taking pictures of those on the stage 'On the plus side, at least he's not trying to tear into me over taking pictures of myself. I have Gwen to thank for that I'm guessing. Anyway enough brooding over the dumpster fire that is my personal life, I've got work to focus on. Let's see if I can get a shot of everyone on stage.'

"Where the hell is Parker?!" one of the people on stage was Jameson himself, along with Robbie Robertson, and the former was… about as even tempered as usual "I swear if he misses a good shot then he's got two-point-three seconds before I staple him to a flagpole!"

'And that answers the question of where Jameson is. The same with my migraine. Hey check it out, I think that's the president of ESU and the board of directors.'

"Ladies and gentlemen, may I have your attention?" this was when the aforementioned woman herself, Lisa Vollendorf (the current president of ESU in real life, I looked it up) made her way up to the stand "All of us are gathered here today to do a great service to ESU, and to many select people that have been done a great disservice in recent history. We shall regain a great asset with the reopening of our university's biogenetics lab, and in a few weeks time, the return of our own resident and brilliant biogeneticist in Dr Curt Connors. We owe this new development to one of the newest leading philanthropists."

'Right I forgot about that. Given what happened with Miles Warren during that whole incident with Kraven a few months back, it's not like anyone would want to go near the lab. But at least it's getting restored for when the Conners get back. Then that just circles back to my concerns about the Kraang, but I guess I'll have to cross that bridge when I come to it.'

"Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to welcome ESU's newest benefactor, the new CEO of Oscorp, none other than Miss Emily Osborn."

'And then there's that.'

"Thank you for this privilege President Vollendorf." Emily stepped forward and shook hands with the president, then made her way to the doors to the lab, complete with a red ribbon that she prepared to cut as she was handed a pair of ceremonial giant scissors "It is a great honor for me to reopen this university's biogenetics lab, which serves as a symbol of new beginnings, for the Connors, for this university, and perhaps for all of us."

'New beginnings… that does sound kind of nice, all things considered.' Peter gave a small smile as he continued snapping pictures… only for his expression to harden as a familiar sensation began ringing through his head 'Great, of all the times for my Spider Sense to go off. No time for brooding though Pete, remember what Splinter said and use all your senses. Sense when, where and how they're going to attack.' he looked up and got a good view of the incoming figure.

"Quite the turnout for this little event." it was at this moment that the Hobgoblin flew into view high above the crowd, holding the endoparticle disruptor, which was fully charged and ready to figure "At least now I have the opportunity to see what this beauty is capable of." and then he prepared to fire the disruptor.

'An ugly guy in a colorful suit on a glider, and is that the endoparticle disruptor the Kraang stole last night? I think I just found the new Goblin, and the Kraang's new ally. Oh crap, he's gonna fire!' and that was all the thought process Peter needed to make him take off running.

"And I'm proud to announce that Oscorp will be providing full funding to the ESU lab once its operations begin anew-" Emily was cut off by Peter tackling her out of the way just before the blast struck, causing the stand she was on, as well as the lab's doors and a large chunk of the front wall, to glow, then shrink down and disappear with an audible popping sound.

"Dammit, that kid had to get in the way!" the Hobgoblin descended onto the scene and made his presence fully known, which sent the spectators running away screaming in terror.

'I've already gone through hell because of one lunatic dressed up like a goblin, I'm not dealing with another one of those!' Peter took a look at Emily to make sure she was alright, and then he took off running around a corner where nobody could see him.

"Robbie!" Jameson on the other hand bolted to his feet among the pandemonium "Robbie did you get a look at what Parker just did?! That's front page material right there, I swear if someone doesn't get a picture of that I swear I'm gonna fire them, rehire them and fire them again because I can!"

"Hate to break it to you Jonah, but you can't do that if your head gets blown off!" Robbie was quick to grab Jonah by the tie and yanked him to the ground… just in time to avoid an oncoming razor bat slicing the podium in two.

"That oughta teach these peons to stay out of my business." the Hobgoblin's smirk widened as he began to charge the endoparticle disruptor, and aimed it at Emily once more "Now that I know this thing works as advertised, it's about time for me to put it to good use." he was about to fire the disruptor, only to be stopped by a shot of webbing coating it, along with his face "What the hell?!"

"Here's a good way to use that thing. Get rid of that ugly mask of yours!" it was at this moment that Spider-Man swung his way onto the scene, kicking the Hobgoblin square in the chest and sending him flying right off his glider "But if I had to guess, I'd say it's still an improvement over whatever you've got underneath the mask."

"Spider-Man. Typical." Hobgoblin gave a scowl as he pressed a button on his wrist, causing his glider to circle back around and catch him in mid air "You always show up where and when nobody wants you around."

"It's a gift, and it's getting easier by the day. Plus it's fun to piss off the guys that try to blow my head off. So tell me Gobbie Jr, what's your deal?"

"First off, you can call me the Hobgoblin. Second of all, I was hoping to get the opportunity to try this out on you!" he fired the endoparticle disruptor once more.

"You're not the first one to try!" Spider-Man quickly unleashed a series of webs that intertwined and formed a makeshift shield in front of him, only for the blast to cause them to glow, shrink and then pop out of existence 'Well at least I know that the new webbing shield works, eat your heart out Captain America and Naofumi Iwatani. I gotta lure this guy away so nobody down there gets hurt. Too bad though, I don't want to leave my adoring audience.'

"Look at that, he almost blasted Spider-Man's face off!"

"Oh please, that clown isn't gonna be a match for Spidey!"

"Yeah well, I just hope they end up taking each other out."

'Ah, good old controversial New Yorkers.' Spider-Man cast a glance down at the spectators in the crowd watching the battle 'Then again, controversy does seem like an improvement over just flat out chanting for my head on a pike, so I'll call that a win. Still though I have to wonder, I know for a fact that Norman Osborn is dead, so who's this guy?' he took another look at the crowd… until his gaze rested on Harry Osborn 'Don't tell me… Note to self, make sure that he's not the Chameleon in disguise.'

"You know you really should pay attention during a fight. You never know when your opponent might try something like this!" the Hobgoblin quickly drew Spider-Man's attention back to him by unleashing a barrage of razor bats, forcing him to go on the evasive "Honestly you really are pathetic, and I'm supposed to believe you're the one that killed the Green Goblin?"

'And just like that I'm done screwing around with this guy.' Spider-Man promptly swung his way towards the Hobgoblin and used a web line to latch onto the bottom of the glider, resulting in him being dragged along as they ascended high above the city skyline 'Aw crap, here I thought I got over the whole fear of heights thing. I really have to stop getting myself into stuff like this. Of course that's assuming I would or could give up the whole great power and great responsibility thing.'

"I'm starting to understand why so many people in this city find you to be such a pest. You really don't know when to butt the hell out do you?"

"What can I say, I get my jollies out of sticking it to freaks in costumes that run around blowing stuff up for fun."

"Keep it up while you can, because I'm about to do what the original Goblin couldn't. Squash you like the vermin you are!"

"Go ahead and try, but there's one thing you should know."

"And what would that be?"

"Since that Goblin's been gone, I've learned a few things. For starters, I learned that my webs can make one hell of a conductor!" Spider-Man then unleashed a surge of electricity along his webline, which carried over to the glider, unleashing a series of sparks and causing it to short circuit

"Dammit, you have electric webbing?!"

"I'm just full of surprises Gobby Jr, and I've got plenty more tricks up my sleeve." Spider-Man then moved to launch another webline, only for one of the glider's jets to burst into flames, the force sending him hurtling down towards the streets, forcing him to use his webs to create a makeshift parachute to lower himself safely to the ground, until he landed on a sidewalk, only to scowl underneath his mask as he watched the Hobgoblin rocket out of sight 'Okay, time for a little good news bad news recap. Good news, the electric webs work on the glider. Bad news, I didn't consider the possible explosive backlash. Still though, having a new Goblin on the loose is gonna be a problem, especially if the man under the mask is who I think he is. God, I really hope I'm wrong about this.'

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Meanwhile, at the reopening site…

"Harry!" once she had recovered from the shock of the initial attack, Gwen was quick to rush over to find Harry and Emily "Are you alright?"

"Yes, yes, we're both okay." Emily breathed a sigh of relief "I'm just glad to see that you're not hurt either. But what about the Parker boy?"

"Peter? He must still be fighting that guy on the glider.' Gwen was quick to try and come up with a cover story "I couldn't find him anywhere in the rubble, but if something happened then we can't just-"

"Forget about him, we gotta get out of here!" Harry grabbed Gwen by the wrist and tried to make a break for it, only to find that she wouldn't budge "Gwen come on, we've gotta go!"

"Are you kidding me?" Gwen was quick to shut him up with the Look "Peter is our friend, not to mention the fact that he just saved your mom's life! We can't just abandon him, and I refuse to do that. Not again."

"But Gwen, that guy on the glider is-"

"Enough Harry. She's right." Emily's tone was sharp "Peter has been your friend for years, and considering how much we owe him, to abandon him now would be downright cruel."

"...Fine."

"Good, now let's go find him."

"Don't bother with that." this was when Spider-Man swung his way down onto the scene "The Parker kid flagged me down and told me what was going on."

"So did you get that guy on the glider?" asked Gwen.

"He called himself the Hobgoblin, but no, he got away."

"If he's not here then you might as well get lost." Harry shot a scowl at him, earning an elbow in the ribs from Gwen.

"Yeah I've got stuff to do, but first things first." Spider-Man then made his way over to Harry and started pinching and pulling on his face.

"Ow, ow, hey! What the hell are you doing?"

"Just making sure that you're really you."

"Of course it's me, who were you expecting?"

"Honestly, the Chameleon." that shut Harry up "It wouldn't be the first time he's been in league with a Goblin, and I'll be damned if I go down that path again." then he turned to Emily "So I know this might make it kind of awkward, but…"

"Go ahead." Emily resigned herself and let Spider-Man tug on her face for a moment "Are you satisfied now?"

"Not as long as he's out there, but thanks for playing." then he turned to Gwen "So, not to be that guy, but…"

"I'm the real one." Gwen gave him a scowl and a raised eyebrow as she crossed her arms, which caused him to freeze on the spot.

'Oh yeah, she's the real deal. No chance in hell the Chameleon would ever be able to replicate the Look.' Spider-Man recomposed himself and looked in the direction the Hobgoblin had gone, and his gaze hardened underneath his mask 'But now there's another Goblin running around the city, and god only knows what he's going to try next.'

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Meanwhile, with the supervillain in question…

"Well that could've gone better." the Hobgoblin let out a sigh of frustration as he made his way through the window of an abandoned warehouse and stepped off his glider, then pulled a cell phone out of his suit once it started ringing "I'm here."

"That could've gone better."

"Great minds think alike I suppose, but I will admit that I didn't anticipate Spider-Man showing up where he wasn't wanted. Nothing more than a minor setback, but I think we'll have to tell our benefactor that it raises our rates in this little business scheme."

"I already informed him of that. He wasn't thrilled about that, but he did agree."

"Excellent, I'll just need to make a few repairs and then I'll take another shot at the Osborn woman."

"Actually there's been a change of plans in that regard. Given that she's going to be on her guard now, he thinks it's too risky to try and take her out. You ever wonder why he wants to take her out anyway?"

"It's not that hard of a guess. The new head of Oscorp wanting to turn over a new leaf as she put it, focus more on altruism instead of making a profit, and naturally that wouldn't sit well with someone like him. Of course he can't reveal himself right now for obvious reasons, so he has to bring in someone else to do the job, someone who has no problem wearing the mask and riding a set of wings like this."

"I understand that much, but what's stopping us from just ratting him out and revealing all of his plans, hanging him out to dry and taking everything for ourselves?"

"Trust me, if I thought we could do that I would in a heartbeat. But the problem is that while we know about him, he knows about both of us in turn. One wrong move and everything we have, all that we've built up until now, will be gone in a heartbeat."

"So we're at an impasse with him then."

"Essentially. One positive to this situation though, getting the chance to make a name for ourselves among the criminals of this city. That and the glider has quite a few perks as well." his smirk only grew wider "So for now I make repairs, and then we make our move when the time is right for us to strike."

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Meanwhile, with the main protagonist…

"No Aunt May, you don't have to worry about me, I'm fine." by this point, Peter was back at home, albeit with some company, and was talking on the phone as he looked at the news report on the screen "Okay to be fair, I couldn't just stand around and do nothing. But I get it, I don't want to make you worry. No unnecessary risk taking, aside from… you know. Alright have a good time, and say hi to Mrs Watson for me. Yeah, love you too. Bye." so he hung up, then pulled a few cans of soda out of the fridge and brought them to where Hobie and MJ were sitting in the living room "Here."

"Thanks." Hobie was quick to start downing his "I'm guessing your aunt wasn't thrilled about you playing hero today?"

"She applauds the intention but isn't fond of the idea of me getting blown up. I can't really fault her for that. Still though, part of me is glad she's out of town."

"Doing what exactly?"

"Something called extreme bingo. Still not entirely clear on what that means."

"I know what it is, I've been to one of those before." MJ took a few gulps of soda "To give you the short version, it's bingo with a way bigger crowd, better prizes and a crapton of loud music that'll blow out your eardrums if you stay too long. It's not as fun as people think it is."

"And yet I'm pretty sure I'd still take that over nearly getting my head blown off by lunatics in costumes." Peter then frowned as he looked at the news footage showing the attack on the ceremony earlier "And that's a lot bigger problem with this Hobgoblin running around on the loose."

"Which makes me realize you were right about your hunch." Hobie glanced over at him "But do you really think he's in league with these Kraang you told me about?"

"Considering what Daredevil told me a few weeks back, and the fact that he was using the same endoparticle disruptor the Kraang stole last night, I'd say it's a safe bet. The guys are gonna want to know about this."

"Which raises another question." MJ spoke up "I get that I'm part of the Spider Support Squad and all, but why are you talking to us about this and not the Turtles themselves?"

"Because the Turtles are off tracking down the Foot Clan, April is training with Splinter, and this is one of the nights where Daredevil is on Kraang patrol while I catch up on homework. Also, the Spider Support Squad?"

"April and I came up with the name and I think it works."

"I'm not saying it doesn't, I'm just kind of surprised you bothered to name it."

"You get a cool name, why shouldn't the rest of us?"

"Fair enough. But getting back to the Hobgoblin, we gotta come up with some leads on the man under the mask."

"I hate to open an old wound, but what about Harry?" asked Hobie.

"I already checked him out, he's clear."

"Yeah I know he was there, but that wouldn't be the first time a Goblin was running around and had another guy use his face."

"Are you talking about the Chameleon?"

"The Green Goblin had him go out in public while he was free to do whatever, that way he could throw me off his trail. Anyway I already checked out both Harry and his mom, and both of them are clean."

"What about robotic doubles? I know Mysterio pulled that a few times."

"...God dammit, I forgot about that. Plus he's still out there too, so I'm gonna have to look into that at some point. But for now we've got a Goblin to unmask."

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Meanwhile, with the mercenary in question…

"There, that should be enough to fix it." the Hobgoblin gave a smirk as he finished work on the glider, then pulled out a cell phone "Put me through to our benefactor."

"...I take it repairs are complete?"

"They are. My apologies for the unexpected delay."

"Don't apologize. I never do. Now then, let's get back to business."

"The business of trying to assassinate the Osborn woman? You know you could've mentioned that Spider-Man was going to get involved."

"That is exactly what I was expecting. To be completely honest with you, I never expected you to actually assassinate the woman."

"Then why order me to go after her in the first place?"

"Two reasons mainly. One, I wanted to see if the sub-spacial endoparticle disruptor worked as well as the Kraang had led us to believe. Two, in the event that Spider-Man did intervene, I had hoped to view his current skill set and arsenal, to see if he had any new tricks up his sleeve. If your confrontation with him was any indication, it would seem this suspicion was justified."

"Which also means that you set me up for failure then."

"Admittedly yes."

"So you shouldn't be surprised that I'll be raising my rates even further."

"I'm rarely surprised, and this is no exception, though I will say that it is fairly audacious on your part."

"I take it you object then?"

"I never said that. I will say that I find your audacity to be fairly amusing. So what is it that you truly want then?"

"There are a multitude of things that would make me happy. Money, a chance to show the world what I really am capable of, but if I had to pick one desire above all… I would say Oscorp would suffice very nicely."

"Your entertainment value is enough for me to entrust you with… certain tasks, but be sure not to get too carried away. One who's overcome by overconfidence is doomed for failure. I learned that the hard way some time ago."

"I saw the news, I know what you're talking about."

"Fair enough. But getting back on topic, you said you completed the repairs to the glider?"

"I did."

"Very good. However, given Spider-Man's own enhancements, I believe that certain upgrades are in order."

"Such as?"

"Improvements to your weaponry, more in keeping with the overall persona that comes with your mask."

"You were the one who recommended it to me, and frankly I approve of it. The Hobgoblin has served as a symbol of fear and terror for centuries, and I intend to use it to bend this city to my will."

"Your goals are your own, so long as you hold up your end of our agreement. In the meantime, focus on the upgrades to your weaponry. Head over to the TCRI building in Brooklyn, and our partners will provide you with what you need."

"Understood." and so the Hobgoblin mounted his glider and flew out of the warehouse and into the night sky, laughing maniacally all the while.

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Meanwhile, with the main protagonist…

"Okay, so refresh my memory." MJ glanced over to where Hobie and Peter were both writing on a notepad "How exactly did we go from trying to figure out the identity of the Hobgoblin to writing a theme song for Spider-Man?"

"We ran out of leads." Peter gave a shrug "And truth be told I always wanted to have my own theme song, or at least a version that didn't involve people trying to crucify me."

"And why are you not the only one involved in this?"

"Because you said that I don't have any hobbies." Hobie told her dryly "This is partly to prove you wrong, and to see if I could make a decent song."

"And apparently you remix in your free time."

"Everybody needs a hobby and a way to deal with stress."

"And mine usually involves snarking at the guys that want to kill me." Peter noted dryly "It's both a coping mechanism and a way to get them to make their own mistakes."

"I thought you said that you were trying to be funny."

"I do more than try, but I understand that humor can be subjective." it was then that they heard the sound of knocking at the door, and Peter went over and opened it, only to be surprised by who he found.

As it turns out, it was Gwen standing at the doorway, with a disgruntled looking Harry standing behind her "Hey Pete."

"Gwen, Harry, hey. What are you guys doing here?"

"I- I mean we- got worried because we didn't see you after the Hobgoblin attacked the ceremony, so we came over here to make sure you're okay."

"Yeah, yeah I'm okay. I just had to get some pictures over to the Bugle before that vein Jameson has in his forehead finally exploded. Plus I've got a little bit of a study group going on at the moment."

"Hey guys." MJ and Hobie waved at them from their place on the couch.

"So, yeah. What about you guys, are you okay?"

"We're fine, really." Gwen gave him a reassuring smile, then frowned slightly "But Harry does have one thing he wants to say to you."

"Okay?"

"Harry, go ahead."

"Fine." Harry stepped forward slightly, though Gwen had to nudge him before he actually started to talk "Peter, thank you for saving my mother's life during the attack today."

"Oh, well uh… It's not that big of a deal really."

"Yeah you heard him Gwen it's not a big deal, let's just-" Harry tried to take his leave, only to be stopped by Gwen grabbing him by the arm and stopping him, so he breathed a sigh and turned back to Peter "And I'm sorry about trying to pick a fight with you before the ceremony started today."

"Uh… don't worry about it, really." Peter tried to contain his uneasy feeling, only for this to fail as a familiar sensation started going off in his head 'Okay that's not right, Harry never set off my Spider Sense before. Is something out there?'

"Peter, are you okay?" asked Gwen "What's the matter?"

"I'm not sure, I just have this feeling… I think something's out there."

"What sort of something?" asked Hobie.

"I'm not sure, but… GET DOWN!" Peter grabbed Gwen and Harry by the arms and yanked them inside the house as he and the others ducked behind the furniture, just as the glass on the door and windows shattered and sent shards flying all throughout the interior of the house.

It was only after a moment of silence passed before MJ stood back up, with everyone else doing the same "Everybody okay?"

"You mean aside from almost getting turned into swiss cheese? I've been worse." Peter let out a groan as he pulled himself to his feet, only for his Spider Sense to go off again, snapping his gaze back towards the window 'Please don't let this be what I think it is?'

"Well what do we have here?" it was at this moment that the Hobgoblin made himself known on the lawn in front of the house, his smirk growing even wider as he set his sights on both Harry and Peter "This is too perfect."

"Cool it with the wise guy act, what do you want?"

"To put it in simple terms I'm here on business, but now that I've found you, I've decided to take the chance to kill two birds with one stone!" then he pulled something out of the pouch around his waist: a pumpkin bomb, and he promptly hurled it forward.

"GET DOWN!" acting on instinct, Peter moved towards Gwen and the others and tried to shield them from the blast with his own body just as a powerful explosion went off, covering the room in a cloud of green gas in the process.

Another few moments passed before the others recovered, Hobie being the first one, and he scowled as he realized what had happened 'The Goblin is gone, and from the look of it, Osborn is too. But what about-'

"Peter!" a few feet away, Gwen had rushed over to Peter's side, finding him unconscious and one side covered in burns "Peter can you hear me? Peter!"

'Dammit! Watson."

"I'm already on it." MJ was quick to pull out her cell phone "We need an ambulance and make it fast!"

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Later, at Manhattan General Hospital…

"Well?" Gwen cast an anxious look at the doctor that was looking over Peter as he lay in a hospital bed "How is he?"

"All things considered, he's actually pretty lucky." the doctor, a middle-aged dark-skinned man in a sweater and white coat (Dr Bromwell) turned to face Gwen "Given what he went through, it's a miracle that his injuries aren't worse than they are."

"But he…"

"The burns will take some time, but he will be fine in a few days. For now though, he does need rest, but you're welcome to stay with him." and so Dr Bromwell turned and made his way out of the room.

'Is this what it's like? Gwen sat down next to Peter's bed and ran a hand through his hair 'To know that the people you love get hurt when you try to do the right thing. Is that what Peter has been dealing with all this time? He's been suffering so much, carrying this burden by himself for so long. And I didn't do much to help him up until now.' she wiped away a few tears 'I pushed him away for one reason or another, because I thought I was just his second choice or because I thought Harry needed me more. Well that ends now. You're not going to suffer alone like this any longer. I'm going to be there for you in every way I can… and once this is over, be with you by your side in the way I've always wanted. I know what I have to do now. As soon as I know Harry is safe… I'm going to free us both from this relationship, and we can be the way we were always meant to. But for now Harry is in danger, there has to be something we can do.'

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Meanwhile, with the main antagonist of this chapter…

"There we go." the Hobgoblin let out a chuckle as he rocketed across the skies of New York on his glider, Harry being slung over his shoulder blindfolded and gagged, until he closed in on his destination: the TCRI building "I guess the old saying is true, you can go home again."

"Wh-Where are you taking me?" Harry squirmed in the Hobgoblin's hold "What's all of this about? What do you want from me?"

"Well for starters I want you to quit squirming, it's hard enough to balance when I'm flying on this thing as it is. As for why you're here, you're the son of the CEO of one of the biggest industries in the country. You do the math. Assuming that my benefactors get what they want out of you, this could be the start of my ambitions becoming my new reality." so the Hobgoblin flew up to the side of the building as the hatch opened up, allowing him to enter and make his way into the main laboratory, complete with the interdimensional portal "So this is the place where the magic happens. Interesting."

"So you got the job done." it was at this moment that the figure of a young woman stepped out to greet the Hobgoblin, clad in gothic styled clothes with short black hair with purple streaks, and a pair of glasses, and she gave the Hobgoblin a smirk "I have to say I'm surprised you pulled this one off, considering how your first assignment turned out."

"You're a lot more articulate than most of the brainless drones I've seen around here. I take it that makes you the leader?"

"Just call me Subprime and leave it at that." Subprime pressed a button on a control panel and summoned a metal tank "Throw the hostage in one of those."

"Fair enough." so Hobgoblin promptly grabbed Harry off his shoulder and threw him into the metal tank, which promptly sealed itself shut "Guess what Junior, now you get to hang out in the low rent district."

"What is this place?" Harry started banging on the glass, to no avail "What the hell do you want from me?"

"We've already gone over this kid, your family is loaded, big industry, yada yada." with that in mind, the Hobgoblin turned back to Subprime "So?"

"All of the snark aside, I've gotta admit I'm pleased." Subprime's smirk widened as she gave a nod of approval "No problems encountered?"

"Far from it, I even got the chance to settle an old score. Now in the meantime, about getting the payment that I was promised."

"All in good time, we do have a schedule to keep to after all."

"Hey I earned my pay, now fork it over before things start getting messy."

"If you want the pay then take it up with the man who sent you to us. To put it bluntly, as far as I'm concerned, he's the only reason you're here, but you're here now and that means you work for us. You'd be wise to keep that in mind."

"...Fine girly, if that's the way you want to play it." the Hobgoblin gritted his teeth as he tried to compose himself 'I'll play ball for now, but I'm getting my pay one way or another, even if I have to pry it out from her corpse.'

"In the meantime, I have a call to make." Subprime turned to a nearby com system and promptly pushed a button "Connect me to Emily Osborn of Oscorp."

"...Hello?"

"Emily Osborn?"

"This is her."

"Excellent. Tell me, it must be very taxing running an entire company like Oscorp, isn't it?"

"Who is this and what do you want?"

"You must be very busy, but tell me, are you too busy to talk about your only son?"

"What?"

"Oh, you didn't know? Allow me to elaborate for you." he put the com on speaker "Listen and you'll understand."

"Let me out of here!" Harry continued banging against the wall of his prison, to no avail.

"Do you understand now?"

"Harry… what do you want?"

"I'll get to that in a moment. Just know that this is what happens when you get on the bad side of our… accomplice."

"I take it you're referring to the Goblin that tried to kill me earlier?"

"No, but he did use the name of our accomplice on his resume. Life really is full of surprises isn't it? I have to say that I'm surprised by your recent choices of the business variety, but our accomplice isn't, and that's why he chose to have you taken… out of the picture so to speak. In any case, there's only one thing that he and I want now."

"Quit beating around the bush and tell me what you want already."

"It's quite simple. What we want is Oscorp and all of its resources. You have 24 hours to hand them over to us, or your son will be considered… collateral damage."

"...Where do I go?"

"That's the fun part of this. You're the head of a huge corporation, so you should be able to figure this out. Have fun with that." Subprime's smirk widened as she signed off the call "Now comes the waiting game."

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Meanwhile, at the hospital…

'I hate this feeling.' Gwen watched as Peter continued to lay unconscious in a hospital bed, then let out a sigh as she glanced out the window 'Being so helpless when the people you care about are hurt or suffering, being powerless to stop it… Is this what Peter felt like?'

"Well if you're up for good news, at least Parker's got some decorations." Hobie made his way into the room with a vase of flowers and stuck it on the nightstand next to Peter's bed "But that being said, it's one of the only two pieces of good news I have right now."

"What's the other one?"

"Parker's aunt and Watson's aunt just came back into town, they're both freaking out but Watson has them taken care of. As for the bad news, I've been looking into various police channels to try and find a lead on Osborn's location, but I haven't found anything yet, and from the sound of it neither have they." Hobie breathed a sigh "So long story short, we've reached a stalemate of sorts for now."

"Just great, and that nutcase in the mask is still running around out there, and Harry is still kidnapped. I don't know how Peter does stuff like this all the time." Gwen suddenly slapped a hand over her mouth as she and Hobie locked eyes "Um… I mean…"

"So you know about his… other job?"

"Wait, you mean you know?"

"I've fought him a few times before." Hobie was met with a wide eyed look "I'm- I mean I was the Prowler. Long story. Anyway you're not wrong, the Hobgoblin running around is a pretty big problem. But there's the fact that he wanted Parker."

"Assuming that he did want Peter. He said something about killing two birds with one stone, and then he took Harry."

"He did come to Parker's house, maybe he thought about picking up a ransom for Osborn as a little bonus."

"Maybe… or maybe it was the other way around."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm saying that what if the Hobgoblin isn't so petty as to just seek Peter out for a petty grudge because he saved Emily? What if he actually was after Harry, or-" Gwen was cut off by a loud thud, and both looked to see the window open… and Peter nowhere to be seen.

"...Yeah, that really doesn't surprise me." Hobie was met with a frantic look from Gwen "Can you honestly tell me that you didn't think he was gonna sneak out and go after the Hobgoblin the first chance he got?"

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Meanwhile, with the mercenary in question…

"Well that got irritating fast." the Hobgoblin (with the endoparticle disruptor strapped onto his back) gritted his teeth as he made his way onto the roof of the TCRI building, and he pulled his cell phone out of his pocket "Connect me to the benefactor, I have a few choice words I'd like to share with him."

"...I take it you have more grievances you would like to air?"

"More than anything else it's with the representative of your partners."

"Ah, so you've met Subprime then. I will admit that he can be difficult at times, but such things are unavoidable in our line of work."

"I already know that, but that doesn't- Wait, did you say he? I thought Subprime was a teenage girl."

"Oh yes, he takes on that appearance. The details behind that are a bit more complicated, but we have more important matters to work through at the moment. When the time comes we can take everything he and his drones have, and they'll be yours to do with as you see fit, provided that you continue with your loyalty to me."

"That I like the sound of. So what's our first move?"

"To be discussed at a later date, right now it's far too soon for us to act. As for right now, you'll need even better weapons."

"I already have the entire Goblin arsenal, the glider and the endoparticle disruptor. What else could I need?"

"Do you truly believe that I've given you the extent of what I possess?"

"Of course not, I know you better than that by now. You genius types always make one thing and have a better one stowed away for your own use. So where do I go to get it?"

"There's no need for that, it's heading your way as we speak. I believe you'll know what it is when you see it."

"Really now?" the Hobgoblin took a look out into the night sky, then gave a wide smirk when he saw the asset in question come into view: a larger purple-colored glider "Okay, you officially have my attention."

"And so I should. This new and improved glider is able to achieve twice the altitude and four times the speed of the original model. Not only that, but there's a full arsenal of razor bats and new and improved pumpkin bombs."

"How do you approve of bombs shaped like pumpkins that shriek like banshees when you fire them?"

"These ones are programmed to track a target programmed into them, which you can program yourself via remote control, which is included with the glider."

"Really now? That does sound interesting." the Hobgoblin's smirk widened as his original glider attached itself to the new glider and he took hold of the remote control "I get the feeling that I'm going to enjoy this one, but just in case, do you have any objections to me taking this out for a little test drive?"

"I was expecting nothing less from you."

"Glad to see we're on the same page." the Hobgoblin let out a cackle as he departed the TCRI building and took off into the night sky 'Now that I have this new toy, I think I know exactly who I want to test it out on.'

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Meanwhile, with the soon to be target…

'Some superhero I'm turning out to be.' Spider-Man winced in pain as he found himself in the middle of web slinging through the streets of New York 'I'm supposed to be the one with the great power and great responsibility, then I can't even do anything to stop Harry from getting kidnapped by the Hobgoblin. Not only that, but I tried to call the Turtles for backup like three times and they still haven't picked up. Daredevil is still tracking the Kraang in Hell's Kitchen so he's gonna be a little while, I need some kind of lead or something until then.' it was then that he heard an alarm sounding from not too far away 'Not quite what I had in mind when I said a lead, but once again my conscious is getting the better of me.' and so he swung his way over to a nearby abandoned skyscraper, before a certain sensation went off in his head 'Okay, remember what Splinter told me, sense when and how they attack, like… NOW!' he leapt out of the way just as he noticed an attack coming, or tried to at least, but his wounded state led to him getting grabbed in the middle of the dodge and pinned to the ground.

"Oh you've gotta be kidding me." as it turns out, it was Black Cat pinning Spider-Man, shooting him a scowl as she did so "How do you keep showing up whenever I'm doing my thing? What, do you have some kind of Spider Sense or something?"

"That's actually pretty funny for a few different reasons." Spider-Man grabbed Cat by the shoulder and threw her off of him, only for her to land on her feet "As tempted as I am to go into detail on that, I don't have time to deal with you right now, so just hand over whatever you stole and we'll cut this thing short."

"Do you actually think that's going to happen?"

"No but I thought it was worth a shot and I'm already busy as it is, so I'm just gonna go ahead and skip the obligatory awkwardness and quips and just get this over with." so Spider-Man leapt out of the way of another one of Black Cat's attacks and nailed her with a single shot of electric webs, shocking her and sending her crashing into a wall, where he promptly encased her in a thick layer of webs "Now give it a rest already and quit stealing stuff. As much as you might want to deny it, actions have consequences and you're about to see yours."

"Spare me the high and mighty act already Spider." Cat let out a snarl that stopped him in his tracks "Don't act like you're the epitome of self-righteous justice after what you did."

"...What I did?" Spider-Man gritted his teeth as he turned back around to face her, his mask doing to hide the anger building in his expression "In case you didn't notice, I'm not the one that wound up behind bars for murdering an innocent man."

"Again with you acting so self-righteous, like you can do no wrong. Well guess what Spider, all I see is that you're the reason I lost my father!"

"And he's the reason why I lost mine!" that caught Black Cat off guard, along with the pure anger in his tone "You keep spewing on like you know everything and everyone in the world is out to get you! Well I've got some news for you Cat, you don't know the first thing about what your father took from me! People like him are why I do what I do, and why you're about to join him in jail." he turned and prepared to leave, but stopped as his Spider Sense began going off again, just in time for him to dodge an oncoming series of razor bats.

"I have to admit this isn't quite how I expected to find you." the Hobgoblin descended onto the scene, a smirk spreading across his face "But this works just as well, now I have more than one target to test out the new toy I just got my hands on. At least this saves me the trouble of having to hunt you down."

"If it helps, I would've come to you sooner or later." Spider-Man lifted the front park of his mask and spat out some blood as he pulled himself back to his feet "All I'd have to do is follow the stench of that cheap cologne you've got on."

"All the snark is just going to make it more enjoyable when I run you through like a hot knife through butter. Why don't we see what this baby can really do?"

"Go ahead and try it, I'll just throw all of it right back at you. Maybe it can do something about that ugly mug of yours. Oh wait, you're wearing a mask. I'm sure it's an improvement on whatever you have underneath it."

"Alright I'm officially at my limit of dealing with your snark. In the meantime, let's get to the testing phase." the Hobgoblin pulled out the remote control and pressed a button, which opened up a compartment in the glider and sent two pumpkin bombs flying out.

'Great, so now he's got new stuff even the old Goblin didn't put out.' Spider-Man was quick to swing away from the scene, though he quickly found them following him.

"Don't waste your time trying to dodge these pumpkin bombs, they can slice through just about anything in their path and follow you anywhere you go!"

"Then all I have to do is aim them back at your ugly mug!"

"And just for that little comeback, I'm going to try a little experiment!" the Hobgoblin detached the original glider from the new one and sent the new one hurtling forward.

'You've gotta be kidding me, now it can fly itself?!' Spider-Man was forced to go on the evasive, leaping from one rooftop to another as the new glider opened two new compartments and began shooting rapid barrages of razor bats at him, only for the Hobgoblin himself to close in on him from the other side and begin hurling pumpkin bombs at him, which he managed to dodge, but then the new glider suddenly rammed him and carried him high into the air.

"Well how about it Spider-Man, are you impressed?" the Hobgoblin let out a maniacal cackle as he reattached the old glider to the new one, but then he saw Black Cat trying to free herself from her webbing, and then an idea popped into his head "You know what the biggest weakness is for you hero types? You care way too much about other people. It makes you vulnerable to stuff like THIS!" he pulled the endoparticle disruptor off his back and aimed it… at Black Cat, still bound to the webs, and then he fired it.

"CAT GET DOWN!" thinking quickly, Spider-Man used the enhanced muscles in his legs to propel himself down toward Cat and ripped her out of the way of the blast… right before it went on to implode the top chunk of the building, sending the two of them sprawling onto another rooftop with a loud crash. Once they came to a stop, Spider-Man turned towards Black Cat "You good?"

"All things considered, I've been worse." Black Cat took a minute to shake off the disorientation, then slowly turned to Spider-Man "Why'd you do it?"

"Huh?"

"You heard me. You know that you're on my shit list, so why bother saving me?"

"What can I say?" Spider-Man spat out some blood and gave a weak chuckle "The only man I can call my father… I guess he infected me with his conscience."

"...Fine, you can be funny again. This time." Black Cat gave a small scowl and turned away from him, though she mostly did it to hide the fact that she was blushing slightly 'Focus Felicia, this is the jackass who kept your dad behind bars.'

"Cat listen-" Spider-Man cut himself short as the Spider Sense went off again "Crap, LOOK OUT!" he shoved Black Cat out of the way, leaving her to land on her feet on the other side of the rooftop, whereas he got hit by one of the homing pumpkin bombs on his left side, which exploded right as it hit his side and sent him spiraling into the wreckage of the abandoned building… and then the second homing pumpkin bomb followed him, resulting in a powerful explosion that sent him hurtling out the other side, crashing to the ground in a scorched heap.

"Now that's what I like to see!" the Hobgoblin's smirk grew wider as he descended onto the scene and took a look at Spider-Man, lying barely conscious with his costume singed and holes burned in it, and numerous burns across his torso "Glad to see my benefactor came through on his word. Now the question is, what to do with you?"

'So what, he's gonna kill him now?' Black Cat leapt down from the sky scraper onto a smaller building and watched the scene unfolding 'Big deal, what difference does it make to me? He's the one that left my dad in jail, infected him with his stupid conscience, making him care about other people and that crap. Why should he expect me to help him now? It's not like I really care about what happens to him. I mean why would I care? I shouldn't care. I don't care… even if he dies or gets blown to bits or… DAMMIT!' and despite her internal objections, she found herself hurtling down onto the scene.

"I think I know exactly what to do with you." the Hobgoblin drew the endoparticle disruptor off his back and prepared to fire it at the downed Spider-Man… only to be sent flying by a certain something, or rather someone, ramming into his back and sending him and his glider spiraling away, causing him to drop the endoparticle disruptor in the process "What the-"

"Get one thing straight you Halloween reject." Black Cat stood her ground as she got in between the Hobgoblin and Spider-Man "You're not getting your hands on the Spider."

"Well what do we have here, a little lost kitten too big for her britches. As annoying as I find the extra interference to be, at least it gives me an additional target to practice on." and so he fired a series of razor bats from the mouth of the glider.

'Why am I doing this?' Black Cat was quick to do a series of backflips to avoid the oncoming series of projectiles, her mind racing as she did so 'Why the hell am I doing this? It doesn't even make sense, I don't owe anything to the Spider! Why the hell am I fighting some Halloween reject for him? This is ridiculous, why should I care what happens to him after that? He's nothing but the self-righteous goody two shoes that infected my father with his stupid conscience and left him to rot in that hole! He knows exactly what I think of him, which begs the obvious question: Why the hell am I still here?!' she dodged the last of the razor bats and leapt onto a nearby lamp post to avoid a pumpkin bomb 'And seriously, where in the hell does he keep pulling all of this stuff out of?!'

"Why don't we find out if cats land on their feet even when they're dead!" the Hobgoblin closed in on the Black Cat and fired another pumpkin bomb, forcing her to dodge as the lamp post went up in flames, and then he fired another barrage of razor bats that forced her to take cover within a nearby alley "You think you're such a clever little kitten? Well I've got some news for you, curiosity isn't the only thing that killed the cat!" and so he fired another pumpkin bomb into the alley, causing it to go up in a sizable explosion "Well that should be the end of that. Happy trails to the little kitten, and now to deal with the bigger thorn in my side." he flew his way back over to find the greater priority.

As it turns out, Spider-Man was still somewhat conscious, albeit trying to crawl his way forward despite his injuries "I'm not done yet… I can still keep fighting… I have to…"

"Okay, I'm gonna go ahead and put a stop to this before it gets pathetic." the Hobgoblin leapt down from the glider and stomped down on Spider-Man's head and back hard, knocking him out cold "I have to admit I am somewhat surprised, I didn't think you would still be alive after that thrashing I gave you. If nothing else you're a hell of a tough guy. Then again if you weren't, you wouldn't have been such a thorn in the side of so many people in this city, and that makes you my ticket to climbing up the ladder with these peons. Now come on, let's see what they want to do with you." he slung Spider-Man over his shoulder, then stepped back onto his glider and took off into the skies, though as he did he received a call on his phone "Yes?"

"I take it you've made some progress."

"Yes and no, as in I've got some good news and bad news. The good news is that your new gear worked like a charm, I have the Spider in my grasp and I'm bringing him back to TCRI to see what they want to do with him."

"Actually that part won't be necessary, I'm sending you a set of coordinates for one of my own facilities. Bring him to that location and let the Kraang take it from there."

"Fair enough. Now comes the bad news."

"Meaning?"

"I got Spider-Man, but I lost the endoparticule disruptor."

"He destroyed it then?"

"Not exactly. There was someone else here in a confrontation with Spider-Man. White hair with a purple uniform. I think that's the one they call the Black Cat."

"I see. Yes, her reputation likely proceeds her. Best to be cautious with that one."

"Meaning?"

"Meaning that assuming you didn't finish her off, don't let her get in the way of our objectives if you encounter her again. I trust you know what that means."

"All too well." the Hobgoblin let out a cackle as he carried Spider-Man and flew away into the night sky.

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Meanwhile, with the other vigilante…

"Oh god, my head…" Black Cat let out a groan as she opened her eyes, only to look around and find herself half buried in debris and rubble. And the contents of what used to be a dumpster filled to the brim with trash bags "Just freaking perfect. The one time I let the Spider infect me with his stupid conscience, and then I get tossed around like a freaking rag doll and wind up smelling like an outhouse. Is this what it's like to be him? Because it sucks."

"It may not be the most glamorous lifestyle, but it's better than the alternative."

"Like dressing up like a Power Ranger and being such a-" Black Cat cut herself short as she looked up and found Daredevil looming over her "Oh. I was half expecting the Spider."

"I was expecting to find him here as well, except by the time I got here, I ended up finding you instead."

"So what, you're gonna haul me off to jail? Then just get it over with."

"On the one hand, given the crimes you've committed, that would be the proper course of action from a legal standpoint." Daredevil stepped closer to Black Cat… and promptly held out a hand to her "On the other hand, I think there are more pressing matters to attend to."

"Like what?" Cat accepted the hand and let herself get pulled out of the wreckage "Let me guess, you think you're gonna get me to help you go and rescue the Spider from that Goblin? You really think I'm going to just go and save him out of the goodness of my heart after what he did to my father?"

"I could go into further detail, but I brought someone that I believe would be better suited for explaining things in this situation."

"What the hell does that mean?"

"It means this is where I come in." it was at this moment that Hobie suddenly appeared before the two of them in the entrance to the alleyway "Hey."

"What are you doing here?"

"From what I can gather, teaching you about empathy."

"...Are you freaking kidding me?"

"Nope, and this is how I'm spending a Saturday night."

"I'm not a toddler Hobie, I know what empathy is. Putting yourself in someone else's shoes and feeling their pain and all that crap. Frankly I don't know why people want it."

"...Okay, this is gonna take awhile." Hobie pinched the bridge of his nose "Look, I know why you hate Spider-Man."

"Then why the hell are you trying to change my mind and get me to save him?"

"Because I know you're better than that."

"So what if I am? It doesn't change the fact that the Spider is the reason why my father is going to spend the rest of his life rotting in a cell!" by now Black Cat had a set of tears streaming down her face "Whatever the reason may be."

That was enough to actually catch Hobie off guard "You mean… you know? About what went down back then"

"I don't know what happened between him and my dad, but I can't forgive him for that, no matter what his reasons."

"And you think he doesn't feel the same way?"

"What?" Black Cat looked up at him as she wiped away her tears "What the hell are you going on about?"

"I brought up empathy for a reason, Felicia." the use of her real name made her stiffen "Yep, I'm that serious right now. He's probably going to hate me for telling you this, but the reason he hates your father as much as he does is because… the night your father got arrested, the house that he broke into… that was his home. And the man that was shot and killed… was his uncle, his father in all but name." that made Black Cat freeze on the spot "I doubt that's going to make you any less angry with him, but let me ask you this. If it were his uncle that killed your father, his uncle in jail, and he tried to break him out, what would you have done?"

"...God dammit." Black Cat lowered her head as her anger finally subsided "Maybe you're the one that infected me with that stupid conscience."

"I like to think I had a role, but we both know you always had one, even if most of the time you had it pinned underneath one of your claws." Hobie breathed a sigh "I'm not going to say you should feel ashamed for being angry at Spider-Man, because I know that blaming him for losing your dad again is a sign of grief. But now you know this, and you know the truth, so it begs the question: What are you going to do about it?"

"...Alright, cool it with the emotional wise guy act already." Black Cat dusted herself off and turned to face both Hobie and Daredevil as her gaze hardened "Let's just go already."

"To where?"

"Where do you think, we're gonna go beat the crap out of a Goblin and save Spider before I realize what the hell I'm doing."

"In that case, you'll be accompanying me." Daredevil told her "But before we go, we have a stop to make. At the Osborn family penthouse."

"Fine then let's get moving, I know a shortcut. It isn't the first time I've been there."

"So I've heard." Daredevil leapt onto the roof of a nearby building, with Black Cat doing the same, and the two of them took off as the former pulled a phone out of his pocket "Hopefully we won't be the only ones on this quest?"

"Those turtle guys from the other night?"

"They'll more than likely be joining us, assuming I can get a hold of them. I can only wonder what has them so occupied at the moment."

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Meanwhile, with the turtles in question…

"Oh god, I can feel my lungs trying to kill me…" Leo and the other Turtles were left panting with exhaustion as they made their way out of a certain warehouse, with Dogpound and Fishface right by their side "So… that's the end of it. Stockman's gone… Maze of Doom is done."

"And that means the truce… is over…" Dogpound pulled himself back to his feet and braced himself, with Xever doing the same, and the Turtles drawing their weapons in response "Now let's finish… this…"

"You got it, Dogpound… booyakasha…" Mikey brandished his nunchucks and tried to move in to attack, only to fall to his knees and let out a yawn.

"...You know what screw it, we'll finish this next time." and so Dogpound and Fishface turned on their heels and walked away from the scene.

"Okay… that works…"

"Come on little brother, let's go home." Raph pulled Mikey onto his feet, and then the four of them walked away from the scene as well.

"You know Raph it's kind of weird, but you and Fishface actually turned out to be a pretty good team back there."

"We only did it because there was a guy we hated more than each other Mikey. He's still our enemy, and he's gonna take us out the first chance he gets." then in one swift movement, he drew a sai and stabbed it through a Ball of Doom right before it could strike Leo, taking the other Turtles by surprise "It's like Master Splinter told us, trust your senses and you'll see it coming." he shot a glare at Fishface, only to receive a smirk in return as they walked away.

"Woah."

"Yep, I'm just gonna chalk that up as another point for me being awesome today." it was then that a certain ringtone got their attention, and he pulled out his phone "It's just Daredevil texting me"

"What's he saying?" asked Leo.

"Apparently Spider-Man got kidnapped by that Hobgoblin guy that's working with the Kraang now, he wants to mount a rescue mission. We gotta meet him at Oscorp."

"Got it, now let's move." Leo was about to take off, only to look back and notice Mikey passed out on the ground "We might have to do a coffee run first."

"Plus we need to make a stop at the Lair." Donnie told him "If we're meeting with Daredevil then there's something that Spidey and I have been working on for him."

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Meanwhile, at Oscorp…

"I don't care what it takes, find my son and bring him back to me safely." Emily slammed down the phone on her desk, then buried her face in her hands as she sat down "How did things turn out like this?"

"I would advise you not to ask such questions. They never have a satisfying answer."

Emily turned around and saw Daredevil standing at the door to the deck, with Black Cat sitting on the railing "I'm not in the mood for any sort of interrogation."

"I'm not here for interrogation Mrs Osborn. I'm here to help."

"...I'll believe that when I see it." Emily opened the door to her office and allowed Daredevil inside "So what do you want from me at the moment?"

"All I require of you at the moment is the answer to one question."

"Which is?"

"The Hobgoblin kidnapped your son. I know who he's working for, and I know the resources they have and what they're capable of. So my question is this: What did the Hobgoblin want from you?"

"What he wants… is to ruin my family. He took my son, and I'll lose him forever unless I can sign Oscorp over to him within 24 hours. Either way, he wants to take everything from my family. The company, all of our inventions, everything. Including my only son."

"...I don't intend to let that happen." Daredevil put a hand on her shoulder and gave her a small smile "I lost my father at a young age, and I don't intend to allow any more families to be torn apart by people like the Hobgoblin." and then he took his leave of the office, making his way back out to the deck and found Black Cat still waiting for him "It's as I expected."

"Trying to get a ransom off of the Osborns?" asked Black Cat.

"Worse, trying to get their hands on Oscorp itself. The Kraang don't care about money, to them it's just a means to an end to further their own goals. They want the technology that Oscorp has at its disposal, and given that the corporation was once run by the man who would become the Green Goblin, that could lead to catastrophe."

"So long story short, get the Spider and get the kid out of there before the big business deal goes down."

"It's not going to be easy. The Kraang are of… relatively low intellect and organization, but their technology and resources are extremely dangerous. But so long as we combine our efforts, the six of us will be able to pull this off without any significant issues."

"The six of us?"

"They should be coming in right about…"

"BOOYAKASHA!" this was when Mikey suddenly bolted past them, practically bouncing around all over the scene with a crazed look in his eyes.

"Now."

"Sorry about that." it was at this moment that Leo and the rest of the Turtles made themselves known on the scene "We were pretty wiped out after dealing with Stockman's Maze of Doom, long story, so we did a quick coffee run. Also as a quick note, we're never letting Mikey have caffeine again." he paused as he noticed Black Cat standing off to the side "Um…"

"Don't worry, she's on our side. At least for the moment."

"Uh huh." Leo paused as he shared a look with the other Turtles "Well it wouldn't be the first time tonight we teamed up with an enemy."

"Good enough for me. Right now we have work to do, such as figuring out where Spider-Man and the Osborn son were taken. We know that the Hobgoblin is working with the Kraang, so given his ties with them, he'll likely have taken them to their headquarters."

"And I take it you don't know where that is?" asked Black Cat.

"Actually we do, the TCRI headquarters located in Brooklyn. If the Hobgoblin were to take them anywhere, that would be the place to start."

"Already on it dude." Mikey got their attention once he finished bouncing around and pulled out his T-phone "Pe- I mean Spidey is actually in some warehouse up in Harlem."

"How do you know that?"

"They never got rid of his Spider Cell, and I just used my T-phone to triangulate the position of his by bouncing the locator signal off the satellites. Plus I punched it in for the Osborn kid and did the same, he's over at TCRI." Mikey was met with blank stares from the others "What, do I have something on my face?"

"I… didn't know you knew how to do that."

"It ain't that hard, and it's how I track pizza delivery guys."

"...Well I can't complain about the results." Daredevil turned back to the others "We're going to need two teams, one of them going to Harlem to rescue Spider-Man and the other going to save the Osborn boy at the TCRI headquarters. Who volunteers for which team?"

"I'll go for the Spider." Black Cat told him "I've got… a thing or two to say to him."

"Assuming those are positive things, who else?" he was met with two more hands "In that case it's settled. Black Cat, Leonardo and Michelangelo will go and rescue Spider-Man from the Kraang base in Harlem. I will go with Raphael and Donatello to save the Osborn boy at the TCRI building in Brooklyn. If the Hobgoblin reveals himself at either one of these locations, notify the other team immediately. Any further questions?" he was met with silence "In that case, let's get moving."

"Got it." so Leo and Mikey took their leave of the deck, with the Black Cat following close behind them.

"And then there's us." Daredevil turned his attention over to Raph and Donnie "We need a plan of action before we go to TCRI, otherwise we'll just be charging in blindly, and that can only lead to disaster."

"Perhaps I can help with that." this was when Emily made her way out onto the deck and paused as she got a look at the Turtles "Both you and your… friends here."

"You're not going to lose it and call us hideous freaks?" asked Raph.

"My husband flew around the city on a glider shaped like a bat and threw grenades shaped like pumpkins while he was dressed up as a flying green elf. What do you think?"

"...Okay, fair enough."

"Thank you." Emily turned back to Daredevil "I'm just going to say it. I highly doubt that the Hobgoblin or his benefactors can be trusted."

"You're right to believe this." Daredevil told her "You can't hand over your company to them, or else it would be catastrophic."

"Believe me, I know that very well. But even if I did, I have serious doubts that they would keep their word and give me back my son like they said."

"That is true. I have met many adversaries that are bound by a code of honor, but they are not among them. So what do you suggest?"

"Think of it this way: We all want the Hobgoblin brought down right?"

"Yes?"

"Then come with me."

"...Very well then."

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A few moments later…

"Good thing we got the Shellraiser when we stopped at the Lair." Leo sat behind the wheel of the Shellraiser as he and the others made their way towards Harlem "How's it look Mikey?"

"We'll be there in a few minutes, so take a left here." Mikey told him, then took a look at where the Black Cat sat at the weapons station "You don't like what you see?"

"I didn't figure the Spider's buddies were gonna ride around in a subway car." Black Cat took a look around, then let out a chuckle "Or one that has a giant ice cream lamp."

"It was a gift and I thought it'd look cool."

"Whatever helps you sleep at night." then she noticed him glaring at her "Look Shellback, if you have something to say to me then just say it."

"Fine." Mikey turned to face her "What's your deal here?"

"My deal? You're gonna have to be more specific."

"I know your story with Pe-Spidey, and I know what happened last time you guys ran into each other."

"Oh. You're talking about what happened during that prison breakout aren't you?"

"Yeah. Last I heard you saved him from the Green Goblin, but then you blamed him for what went down with your dad, said you'd never forgive him and all that."

"...Yeah. I did."

"So then why come and help us like this?"

"Because things have changed. I… learned a few things from a friend about him. About what really happened between him and my dad. I'm not gonna say I'm not mad at him anymore, I mean you would be?" she was met with silence "But truth be told, I can't say I blame him for it either, or that I wouldn't be pissed in his shoes. Maybe this is just… my way of making up for it on some level." she paused, then let out a bitter chuckle "It's kind of funny. During that whole prison thing I tore into him about infecting my dad with his conscience. I guess he did it to me too without me even realizing it."

"Ah. Gotcha." Mikey breathed a sigh and gave a sheepish grin "Sorry for grilling you so hard like that."

"Forget it. I kind of like it when the nice ones get assertive." she gave him a flirty smile that seemed to make him shrink back into his seat, and she let out a chuckle 'Unwanted conscience or not, it's still fun to make the goody goodies squirm a little bit.'

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Meanwhile, with the imprisoned protagonist…

"Initiate that which is known as torture." several Kraangdroids made their way into the cell where Spider-Man was being held and promptly began zapping him with a series of electric prods, causing him to scream in pain "The one who is known as Spider-Man has sabotaged Kraang's plans for the time which is known as the last."

"Kraang believes it is known as sabotage."

"And no longer will he be an irritant to Kraang's dorsal regions."

"That's just a perk that comes with the job." Spider-Man spat out some blood as he shot a glare up at the Kraangdroids "And for the record, I'm pretty sure the term is pain in the-" and then he got zapped again, earning more screams of agony.

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Meanwhile, with Rescue Team B…

"So this is the place." Emily led Daredevil, as well as Donnie and Raph, to the basement of her penthouse building and opened up the gate for them, then handed Daredevil a small device "That has directions and the passcode to an underground tunnel inside that leads you throughout the city underground."

"And you happened to have this on hand?" Donnie cast her a raised eyebrow.

"My husband had this built a few years ago, but I didn't actually discover it for myself until after he… left us, so to speak. I've been meaning to have it dismantled, but right now it works to our advantage. The coordinates I programmed into the device will lead you to TCRI."

"I see." Daredevil gave her a simple nod "Thank you for your assistance, and I give you my word, we will bring your son back safe."

"I'm grateful for that. Truly I am."

"Come on, let's go."

"Right." so Raph and Donnie followed Daredevil into the underground tunnel, though as they did the former glanced over at him "Hey tell me something."

"Yes?"

"That woman, her husband was the one that was the Green Goblin right?"

"That was him yes."

"So how do you know that she's not just screwing with us or leading us into a trap?"

"...I told you about my heightened senses, correct?"

"Yeah."

"Part of that includes being able to hear another person's heartbeat. It helps to anticipate another person's behavior, such as when someone is going to attack, or when they're lying. That's how I know with absolute certainty that she was telling the truth."

"Huh. Convenient."

"It does have its uses."

"So do underground tunnels apparently." Donnie took a look around as they made their way "I have to say though, this isn't what I expected when I pictured the secret entrance of a criminal stronghold or base of operations for an alien invasion."

"To be fair, it's my understanding that the Shredder and the Foot Clan operate in an abandoned church building."

"Fair enough." Raph bashed through a wooden door in front of them, revealing a more complex metal door, which he tried bashing through… only to find that it wouldn't budge, and he pulled back his arm in pain "Okay, I thought that was gonna go differently."

"Any suggestions? My suit grants me a certain degree of protection, but not enhanced levels of strength to that degree."

"Actually I think I have something for that." Donnie reached behind his shell and pulled out a certain object: a small baton "You know how Spidey and I have been working on a new weapon for after your billy club got wrecked?"

"And I take it this is that weapon?"

"It's a lot more than that." Donnie held it out, and then it suddenly extended "This is more than just a baton, Peter and I designed it to be a multi-purpose weapon, and a tool that contains up to 30 feet of aircraft-control cable connected to a case-hardened steel grappling hook."

"I see." Daredevil accepted the new weapon "I'm grateful for the assistance with designing this new weapon. Thank you."

"The only thing is that Peter wanted to give it a name. We settled on the Devil's Horn."

"Hm. That sounds quite catchy. Let's see if it works."

"What do you have in mind?"

"If we can't break the door itself, then perhaps we can at least rip it off its hinges." with that in mind, Daredevil launched the grapnel from the Devil's Horn and latched onto the door with it, and then in one swift movement he ripped the door off its hinges, clearing the way for them "It works well, you're a master of your craft Donatello. Now let's proceed."

"Right." and so the three of them continued on their way.

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Meanwhile, with Rescue Team A…

"Alright, we're here." Leo parked the Shellraiser, and then he, Mikey and Black Cat took the chance to take a hiding spot on a perch overlooking the warehouse, where several Kraangdroids were on lookout from numerous positions "That's our goal."

"Okay, so we have good news and bad news I take it?" Black Cat gave a raised eyebrow.

"More or less."

"What's the good news?"

"We're dealing with dozens of Kraangdroids in here." Mikey told her.

"I said good news."

"I know. The bad news is that they're probably packing god only knows what kind of crazy tech and weapons in there." Mikey was met with a large cannon appearing from a compartment in the roof of the warehouse "Like that."

"So do they know we're here?"

"Well if I had to guess-" and then the energy cannon started pointing at them "I'm gonna call that a yes." and then it unleashed a wave of energy aimed at them, forcing the three of them to go on the evasive "Yep, and it sucks about as much as the last time!"

"Spidey chucked a forklift into it. So yeah, probably ain't gonna work this time."

"No time to think about what-ifs. " Leo drew his katanas "I'll go for the right, Mikey you go for the left."

"Got it!" and so the two of them split up and moved to take the energy cannon from opposite sides… only to find that it could sprout mechanical arms that grabbed them faster than they were able to react "Crap! We got a new plan bro?"

"I'm working on it, I just- Wait, where's Black Cat?"

"Hey guys, get a load of this." it was at this moment that Black Cat came charing at the energy cannon… holding the endoparticle disruptor, which promptly fired at the energy cannon's base, blowing it right off and disarming it in a single go, freeing Leo and Mikey in the process "Word to the wise boys, a cat always has a few tricks stashed away with its claws."

"Definitely good to know." Leo breathed a quick sigh of relief, but it quickly subsided when they noticed a group of Kraangdroids closing in on them "So how are cats at fighting in teams?"

"Depends on how much they're getting shot at. Right now, pretty good I'd say." Black Cat leapt towards the Kraangdroids and started using her claws to rip through one after another, with Leo and Mikey quickly joining in, until they we droids were left in shambles and the Kraang brains themselves scurried away "Are they always so pathetic?"

"They usually have more strength in numbers and dangerous weapons, but yeah, they're usually pretty idiotic all things considered."

"Makes robbing them blind easier, gonna make a note on that for later. Now let's move."

"Hey keep in mind, I'm the one who says stuff like that." and yet the three of them made their way into the base regardless.

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Meanwhile, with Rescue Team B…

"Okay, I think it's time to broach the big question." Raph glanced over at Daredevil and Donnie as the three of them continued making their way through the underground tunnel "Do either of you have any idea where the hell we are right now?"

"As much as I'd like to say so, I don't have a clue." Donnie breathed a sigh "With all of these twists and turns, it's hard to gain a solid understanding of our current positioning."

"And that would make it more difficult for us to navigate to our destination, if not for the fact that we were provided with this." Daredevil held up the device that Emily gave him "According to this, we should be coming up on the end of the path any moment now."

"You mean because of that?" Raph jerked a thumb at where the path stopped and an elevator sat in front of them.

"That would be my theory, yes. Assuming this isn't a trap, the only place we have to go from here is in there. Let's proceed with caution."

"Right." and so the three of them made their way into the elevator and Raph pushed the button, taking them upwards "Nowhere to go but up. Any idea what we're gonna find?"

"Hopefully the kidnapped Osborn boy, but I would also assume a vigilante that's both heavily armed and incredibly dangerous. We have to stay sharp."

"Got it."

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Meanwhile, with Rescue Team A…

"Okay, we're in." Leo dropped into the entrance to the Kraang hideout, with Mikey and Black Cat dropping down right behind him, but he stopped when when he noticed two Kraangdroids on patrol around the corner "We have to take them out before we can go on, and we don't want to trip the alarm."

"That's where I come in." Black Cat suddenly whipped around the corner and took out each of the Kraangdroids with a single slash of her claws "And that's how it's done."

"Pretty impressive moves."

"What can I say, I know how to think like a thief and move like one. That means I know how to get into places like this without getting caught." Black Cat then paused and took a look through a door and noticed the Kraang blasting a tree with what appeared to be a Mutagen cannon… only for the tree to turn into a pile of goo upon the Mutagen making contact "Okay so what the hell is that, some kind of new weapon?"

"Nope, that's much worse. They're testing out the Mutagen. Have you ever heard anything about how people have been getting turned into monsters?"

"You mean like the giant dog and fish working for the Foot Clan, or a bunch of the lunatics and sadists the Spider has been dealing with?"

"Only the ones as of recently, but yes. This is how it happens."

"And they're just doing it to spread chaos or something?"

"Not exactly. The Kraang are aliens from another dimension."

"Of course they are."

"The Mutagen doesn't work the way they want it to in this dimension, so they've been working on modifying it. They've also been grabbing scientists from all over the city for that."

"And that's why a bunch of scientists all over the city have been disappearing over the past few months. Huh. Good to know."

"Not really, considering they plan to use the Mutagen to turn Earth into another version of their home so they can live here instead of us."

"And you guys and the Spider have been working to stop them. Figures. Alright, let's go get him already." and so the three of them took off just as a few more Kraangdroids showed up, and they darted into another hallway "So any sign of him?"

"The T-phone says he's pretty close." Mikey was immediately met with the sound of a loud surge of electricity, followed by screams of pain.

"So what, you actually want something from me?" Spider-Man shot a glare at the Kraang that was shocking him while he was still bound "Or are you just in for the lulz?"

"What Kraang wants is that which is known as screaming." the Kraangdroids moved in to electrocute him again, until…

"Booyakasha." Mikey swooped in from behind and took out each of the Kraangdroids with a single blow to his nunchucks, leaving them to clatter to the ground.

"...I totally could've done that." Spider-Man tried to pull himself to his feet, only to end up back on his knees "If I wasn't bleeding internally."

"Hey no need to act like the bigshot dude, it's just me." Mikey pulled Spider-Man onto his feet, just as the energy shackles dissipated and he slumped forward "You okay dude?"

"You remember what I said about bleeding internally? Take that as a no." Spider-Man let out a weak chuckle "But thanks for the rescue."

"It's what friends are for bro. But you oughta know, we uh… kinda had some help."

"From who?"

"He means me." this was when Black Cat stepped into Spider-Man's line of sight and eyed him for a moment "You look like crap."

"Not gonna say the whole internal bleeding thing again." he paused and looked up at her "But why did you…?"

"If you wanna talk about… personal issues, then save it for later. We gotta get out of here before those freaky brain things get us and douse us in that weird ooze."

"Sounds good to me. I'm just… gonna need a few minutes to get back a feeling in my legs that isn't searing pain."

"We gotcha dude." Mikey slung one of Spider-Man's arms over his shoulder, with Leo getting the other arm "Okay, let's move." and so the four of them started making their way out of the hideout.

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Meanwhile, with Rescue Team B…

"Here it is." once the elevator came to a stop, Daredevil opened the doors a crack, and he and the others poked their heads through the hidden compartment and got a look at what was waiting for them.

"So what are you looking for?" the Hobgoblin stood over at a control console talking on a phone, clearly not paying attention to his surroundings "If it's a high tech energy cannon you want then you can consider it done, of course I'm going to want double the commission. This is a way to make the big bucks after all."

"Evidently he's quite sure of himself."

"Or better yet, a stash of those pumpkin bombs and whatever these Balls of Doom are I've been hearing so much about from that one guy who got fired from this place because of some stupid thing with a copy machine."

"Any suggestions as to what our next move should be?"

"I've got one idea myself." Raph muttered "Maybe it's the whole thing with Stockman and the Foot we dealt with, but I swear if I hear the phrase "of doom" one more time tonight, someone is gonna get stabbed in the face."

"As much as I applaud the enthusiasm… if I find it questionable at times… what we need is a solid strategy. Any legitimate suggestions?"

"Actually I think I do." Donnie reached into his shell and pulled something out: a small metal red sphere "It's a prototype gadget that Peter and I have been working on. We settled on calling it the Web Bomb."

"And you're suggesting that we use it to bind the Hobgoblin?"

"Actually I was thinking that we take his mode of transportation out of the equation, such as when I do this." Donnie chucked the Web Bomb at where the glider was propped up against the wall, causing it to clatter to the floor with a loud bang and get stuck there.

"Spider-Man? But how could you have-" Hobgoblin took a frantic look around, but he was quick to compose himself and let out a chuckle "Not that it really matters. Wherever you might be, I'd like to welcome you to my new home. I know the custom is to bring a housewarming gift, but I think I've got you covered!" he pulled out a pumpkin bomb and threw it across the lab, covering it in a thick cloud of green smoke, and then he went over to get his glider, only to find that it wouldn't budge "What the-"

"An interesting strategy, blinding the area while you move to gain transportation. But there are some that aren't limited by the inability to see!" Daredevil blitzed through the smoke and was quick to deal the Hobgoblin a roundhouse kick to the face, dodging a series of razor bats as he did so.

"Typical. I have a good thing going and one of the cronies in a mask just has to come in and screw everything up. On the plus side, at least I have backup." the Hobgoblin pressed a button on a nearby wall, and at least a dozen Kraangdroids entered the room.

"Unfortunately for you, you're not the only one." Daredevil gestured to where Donnie and Raph were making quick work of the Kraangdroids.

"Yeah well I have something they don't, the element of surprise!" the Hobgoblin launched himself forward and fired a series of razor bats.

"As do I." Daredevil was quick to swat the razor bats aside as he morphed the Devil's Horn to form a staff 'Those razor bats of his are able to cut through most solid objects, but clearly this weapon is able to hold its own. I'll have to thank Donatello and Spider-Man for that when this is over. Raphael, Donatello, the Hobgoblin is trying to get away!"

"We got him!" Donnie and Raph finished off the last of the Kraangdroids and were quick to charge at the Hobgoblin.

"Backup isn't going to make a difference!" the Hobgoblin whipped out a stash of pumpkin bombs and threw them around him, blowing the others back and creating a cloud of smoke with the explosion that followed, and he threw a few more to cover himself as he grabbed hold of his glider.

"So what, you're just gonna run like a coward?!" Raph fought his way through the smoke and let out a snarl "Get the hell out here, face me already!"

"Remember the old saying… turtle ninja apparently. Be careful what you wish for, you never know if you're gonna get it!" the Hobgoblin blitzed out of the smoke and rammed Raph dead on with his glider, sending him tumbling across the lab 'So apparently the Devil of Hell's Kitchen is friends with a couple of man-sized turtles. Gonna have to look into that later. Anyway, got a turtle to de-shell.' he pulled out another pumpkin bomb from his suit and prepared to hurl it directly at Raph, until…

"Get the shell away from my brother!" Donnie swooped in and slammed his bo staff directly over the Hobgoblin's head, knocking the pumpkin bomb out of his grip, causing it to detonate as it hit the ground and blowing everyone back with the blast. It was only as the smoke began to clear that Donnie noticed something "You've gotta be kidding me, all of that and the portal is still standing?"

"Yeah good to know, apparently exploding pumpkins don't do the job." Raph noted dryly.

"I'm serious Raph, if a chain reaction like that isn't enough to even put a dent in the portal, then what can?"

"Give me a minute, I'll be sure to rectify that." the Hobgoblin pulled himself back onto his feet as he reached into his bag, only to run into a problem 'Typical, you run out of pumpkin bombs right when you need one the most. I've only got one razor bat left too. I'm gonna have to make the shot count.'

"I believe we have a few things to discuss in the meantime." Daredevil leapt through the smoke and landed in front of the Hobgoblin "Now where are you keeping Harry Osborn?"

"You want him? You're gonna have to get him, and catch him while you're at it!" the Hobgoblin then hurled his last razor bat upwards… cutting the rope being used to keep Harry's prison cell suspended in mid-air and leaving it to fall as the Hobgoblin took the chance to pull out the new glider and make his escape.

"Catch him!" Daredevil caught the cell before it could hit the ground, with Raph and Donnie joining in to keep it from crushing him "How is he?"

"Give me a second and we'll find out." Donnie knelt down and took a look at Harry "He's okay, just unconscious."

"Good, then let's get out of here. Grab the boy and let's move."

"Right." so Donnie slung Harry over his shoulder, and the three of them took off running towards the elevator.

It was only after this that the Hobgoblin flew back into the lab and breathed a sigh as he pulled out his cell phone "Connect me to the boss."

"...Report."

"Daredevil and his comrades are in the elevator with the Osborn boy. I'm sure you don't want them to escape with the captive."

"Agreed, but remember that the boy is not to be harmed."

"That makes it a little bit harder considering what you want me to do."

"Perhaps, but it's why I entrusted you with a task like this."

"Hm. Fair enough." Hobgoblin made his way over to a nearby control panel, and quickly got to work "Out of curiosity, what's our contingency plan if that doesn't work?"

"In the event they make it to the underground tunnel, I believe you know what it is that you have to do. If that should fail as well, you'll have to cover your tracks. In other words…"

"I pull a you and pull the old switcheroo."

"Not quite how I would put it, but essentially yes."

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Meanwhile, with the rescue team…

"Dammit, this is ridiculous!" Raph was quickly losing what little patience he had, and had resorted to banging on the elevator door "What the hell is taking so long?"

"All things considered, you shouldn't be banging against it like that." Daredevil told him "This elevator may be unstable or rigged with traps for all we know."

"Then why are we in the elevator to begin with?"

"Because assuming we can maneuver around or disable the traps in question, this underground passage may be what we need to launch a surprise attack on the Kraang, and shut their operations down once and for all."

"As cool as that sounds, it's assuming we even get out of here sometime this year. Seriously, can't this thing go any faster?" he received an answer in the form of the elevator plummeting down rapidly "Ask a stupid question."

"I suggest you both grab onto me." Daredevil slung Harry over his shoulder and climbed onto the roof of the elevator, then used the grapnel of Devil's Horn to latch onto the wall, with Raph and Donnie clinging onto him for dear life as the elevator plummeted to the ground and exploded upon impact "I have to commend you again for your ingenuity with this weapon. However, next time I believe we should take the stairs."

"Duly noted." Donnie was the first one to hit the ground and moved a few chunks of rubble out of the way of the elevator shaft, with Raph and Daredevil following swiftly, the latter still holding Harry over one shoulder, and they quickly took off running "You know you're not wrong about what you said, we could use this as a way to ambush the Kraang."

"Any tactical advantage over the Kraang would be a big help."

"Exactly, and once we get the Osborn kid out of here we can come back and map it out, maybe even rig it with a few traps in case the Kraang try to-" Donnie didn't get a chance to finish that thought before a series of explosions started going off behind them, forcing the three to move as fast as they could as the tunnel collapsed behind them. It was only after they were out of the blast radius that Donnie spoke up again "Well so much for a surprise attack on the Kraang."

"It's an unfortunate loss." Daredevil stood back up and helped Donnie and Raph get onto their feet "But it may as well be for the best."

"How do you figure?" asked Raph.

"If we were able to get into TCRI so easily, the Kraang may have been able to launch an ambush of their own the same way. Even if we lost a potential advantage, we stopped them from getting one over us."

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Meanwhile, with the main antagonist of the chapter…

"So much for the extra benefits." Hobgoblin breathed a sigh as he took a look around the lab, or what was left of it, and pulled his phone back out "Well that could've gone better."

"In some ways perhaps, but it still went how I had expected."

"Are you sure about that? Because the phrase "abysmal failure" comes to mind."

"In some cases, but at the moment I believe the phrase "pyrrhic victory" is more appropriate for the situation. The Kraang will need to rebuild, bigger and better than before. But right now we need to throw Spider-Man and his allies off of your trail, and I think you know what that should entail."

"Yep. Consider it done." the Hobgoblin ended the call and breathed a sigh of what sounded like remorse, then dialed another number "Hey, it's me. Listen, I'm sorry to have to do this to you, but… we have to go for the bait and switch option."

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Meanwhile, at Oscorp…

'There's still no word from them.' Emily stood on the deck of her penthouse overlooking the city, her thoughts drifting with each passing moment 'Whatever happens, please bring my son back to me.'

"Sorry to keep you waiting for so long."

Emil whipped around and found Daredevil and the two Turtles standing before him, the former holding Harry in his arms "Is he… alright?"

"He took a fall, but we already checked him over. He'll be fine."

"In any case, bring him inside." she led them into the living room of the penthouse and motioned for him to set Harry on the couch, which he did "What about the Hobgoblin?"

"Unfortunately he was able to escape."

"I see. So it's not over then." Emily sat down on the couch next to Harry and gently ran a hand through his hair "Maybe this is the universe's way of punishing me for my mistakes."

"Yeah… I'm not getting involved with any family drama. I'm gonna go ahead and wait out there for now." so Raph made his way out onto the deck, with Donnie right behind him.

"Do you plan to go with them?"

"I think I'm more equipped for situations like these than they are." Daredevil stowed away the Devil's Horn and relaxed himself slightly "Given that I have my own parenting issues."

"I doubt yours are anything like what my husband and I did to him. Seeing him like this, I can't help but think of the mistakes I've made in the past. I've made many of them."

"I think I know someone else who understands what that's like too."

"And who would that be?"

"I think he means me." the doors to the deck opened to reveal Spider-Man standing before them, covered in wounds and his suit torn in numerous places, with Black Cat, Leo and Mikey idling on the deck as he made his way into the living room "I get it better than you think, making one choice without thinking of the consequences."

"Try making the same choice over and over again." Emily let out a scoff, then a sigh "I know that he has done a lot of bad things, though I do take some of the blame myself. His father was never as affectionate as he should've been with Harry, and he became desperate to prove himself to him. Rather than address it or try to reassure him, I let the desperation and insecurities fester over time. It was inevitable it was going to lead to something bad happening, and it did. In the form of Globulin Green. Ever since then I've been working to try and undo some of the damage my husband caused. To put it in simple terms, I made the wrong choices for a long time, and now I'm trying to correct those mistakes."

"...I get how that feels better than you think." Spider-Man gave a small sympathetic smile from underneath his mask "You know a wise man told me not long ago that there really is no such thing as right or wrong. Just choices. You just have to make a decision and then live with the consequences that follow. No matter how much they might suck."

"Perhaps. But that doesn't make it easier."

"I never said it did." but then Spider-Man's gaze hardened as a familiar sensation went off in his head 'I'm really getting sick of the Spider Sense.'

"Get inside!" this was when Daredevil, Black Cat and the Turtles came rushing inside, just as a powerful explosion went off, blowing everyone present back and shattering the glass of the windows and covering the deck in a cloud of green gas.

'Great, now what?'

"I hate to break it to you Spider-Man, but you're in a particularly unfriendly neighborhood at the moment!" this was when the Hobgoblin came bursting out from within the smoke and hurled another pumpkin bomb at the group, causing the roof to cave in and a large chunk of concrete to fall… right over where Harry lay.

"Harry!" Emily dove in and moved to cover Harry, shutting her eyes as she waited for the impact of the concrete… but nothing happened, and she opened her eyes to see why.

As it turns out, Leo had maneuvered in front of her and cut the beam in half with his swords, and he cast a glance back at her "Are you okay?"

"So long as my son is."

"Fair enough. You know I heard what Spider-Man said to you, and he's right. But for what it's worth, I think you made the right choice just now."

"He's right. And I'm about to go make one of my own." Spider-Man leapt out onto the deck and onto the roof of the penthouse to find the Hobgoblin circling it in mid air "Bet you didn't expect to see me again?"

"I'd like to say that, but I'm not going to complain because having you and the Osborns in one place makes it easier for me to take you out!" the Hobgoblin fired a barrage of pumpkin bombs from the mouth of his new glider.

'Crap!' Spider-Man was quick to evade throughout the surrounding area, and he eventually landed on the side of a skyscraper a short distance away 'I'm not at full strength so I won't be able to out maneuver him, I'm gonna have to think of a plan. And hopefully one that doesn't involve moving around too much, because that hurts like hell. And I might be bleeding internally, so that's not fun.'

"Heads up Webhead!" the Hobgoblin suddenly swooped in and unleashed a pumpkin bomb from the new glider, resulting in an explosion.

'Dammit!' Spider-Man hurtling right off the side of the building and vulnerable to the barrage of razor bats that followed, which he was able to narrowly maneuver around… only for this to leave him open to another pumpkin bomb exploding against his right side, sending him crashing onto another nearby rooftop, spitting out a fair amount of blood as he did so 'This is bad… I'm pretty much running on fumes by now… and I can barely feel my legs…'

"Well this has been fun Spidey, but as the old saying goes, all good things have to come to an end!" the Hobgoblin fired one last pumpkin bomb from his glider, fully intent to finish off the downed form of Spider-Man, until…

"Hey!" this was when Black Cat suddenly blitzed onto the scene, grabbed the pumpkin bomb aimed at Spider-Man and threw it back at the Hobgoblin, knocking him off the glider and sending him hurtling towards the ground below "If you're gonna stop him from going splat, now would be the time!"

"I'm way ahead of you." and then Daredevil swooped onto the scene, catching the Hobgoblin in the middle of his freefall and using the Devil's Horn to pull them back up onto the same rooftop, where he was quick to pin him down "I don't suppose you have any more webs on you?"

"Give me one second and we'll find out." Spider-Man struggled to his feet, eventually being helped by Black Cat, and webbed the Hobgoblin's arms and legs to the rooftop "That's gonna have to do. At least this one doesn't seem to have enhanced strength."

"Which raises a question: Who's the man behind the mask? Would you care to do the honors in that regard?"

"I'm the one who got blown up and/or stabbed about a dozen times today, I think I've earned this one." so Spider-Man knelt down and pulled the Hobgoblin's hood down and his mask off… and revealed his true face to them "Roderick Kingsley?"

"Close but not quite." staring back at the group was a middle-aged man with dark skin and gray hair, and he shot a scowl at them "It's Daniel actually. Daniel Kingsley. The one you're thinking of is my twin brother. The things I do for that smug little-"

"You have a twin brother? That sounds like a ripoff if there ever was one." Spider-Man winced as he got down onto his knees "I'd be making a lot more wisecracks if breathing didn't hurt like hell right now."

"In that case you should rest." Daredevil told him "Dedicating yourself to protecting the city won't do much good if you don't take care of yourself."

"Come back to me on that one after we have him tied down in a cell in the Vault."

"I'll be taking care of that, if you're okay with that." Daredevil was promptly handed the Spider Cell "Thank you. I'll get in touch with your contact on the force and let them know where to find our enemy here. Also in case you were wondering, the Turtles are working on keeping damage to the Osborn's building from spreading any further. Emily Osborn already agreed to erase any evidence of their presence, including security footage."

"That's… a big relief…" Spidey breathed a sigh of relief as he laid flat on his back, gazing up at the moon in the skies above "It'd be a lot more if this didn't hurt so bad."

"Which reminds me. I received a call from Miss O'Neil. Apparently your friends and your aunt are less than thrilled to know that you snuck out of the hospital."

"Yeah well, they can yell at me when I get back there. I'm just gonna need a few minutes until I can move again."

"Very well. I'll give you a moment and then put the call the police." and so Daredevil took his leave of the rooftop, leaving Spider-Man alone. Well, almost alone.

"So… I guess that's it then." Spider-Man looked over to see Black Cat sitting on the edge of the rooftop "I'm kind of surprised you're still here. I figured you would've chucked a smoke bomb at my eyes and bolted."

"Don't think the thought didn't cross my mind." Black Cat gave a shrug "But I had a few things to get out into the open."

"Such as?"

"I talked to Ho- the Prowler after you got taken by that jackass." she jerked a thumb over to where the Hobgoblin lay.

"I know Hobie is, or was, the Prowler for the record."

"That makes it easier then. Anyway he told me about what really happened between you and my dad… what my dad did to your uncle."

"...Oh." Spidey's face went pale underneath his mask "You mean he… told you my identity? My real one?"

"No he didn't go there, and frankly I'm not interested in being told that. I'd rather earn that for myself than learn it as a handout."

"Uh huh. Fair enough I guess. So then…"

"Look, I'm not gonna pretend that things are all sunshine and rainbows between us, because I am still pissed about my dad being left in jail." Black Cat paused, then breathed a sigh "But at the same time, I can't say I wouldn't do the same thing in your shoes. I mean I'd probably try to run my claws through his skull in that case, but you get the idea."

"More or less."

"But anyway… look, I'm not good with the whole apology thing, so… yeah. That was pretty much it."

"That's more than I get from most of my enemies, so I'll take it."

"Good, I hate doing that sort of thing. Like I said, I'm still pissed, but I'm not gonna take it out on you anymore. Sound good?"

"Works for me." Spider-Man forced himself to sit up to look Black Cat in the eye "Thank you for helping the others to save me from the Kraang. And from the Hobgoblin just now. And from the Green Goblin that night at the Vault."

"You have yourself to thank for that one. I kept blaming you for infecting my dad with your stupid conscience, but I guess you did it to me too without realizing it."

"You say that, but I can imagine Hobie had a hand in that too. Don't forget that you tried to help him in that one heist."

"...Dammit, I hate when you make sense about stuff like that."

"What can I say, pissing people off is one of the more fun parts of the job." Spider-Man gave a shrug "So about the Turtles and the Kraang…"

"Relax, I won't say anything about the Shellbacks. I like making money and getting my hands on shiny stuff, not ruining lives just for the hell of it. And as for those Stormtrooper rejects with the freaky brains in their chests, go kick their asses and do whatever you want."

"Good enough for me." Spider-Man let out a chuckle "One last thing."

"Of course there is."

"Any chance you'd be willing to give up the whole thief thing? I'd hate to have to throw you in jail after you pulled my butt out of the fire a bunch of times."

"That depends. You know how to make some cash off of the whole hero thing? I'm not the kind of girl who does charity work just for anyone."

"...Actually, I might."

"Are you serious?"

"Probably. Have you ever heard of a few guys that call themselves the Heroes for Hire?"

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Meanwhile, in an undisclosed location…

"Well that could've gone better." a dark-skinned middle aged man with gray hair watched through a car window as the Hobgoblin was taken away in a police car, and then he pulled out his cell phone "Connect me to our benefactor."

"...Yes?"

"The contingency plan worked exactly as you said it would."

"So no one knows of you having any kind of connection to the Hobgoblin?"

"Nope, as far as everyone is concerned, Daniel was always the man behind the mask and the hood. On the downside, I'm pretty sure that means we lost all of the Hobgoblin equipment you gave us."

"That's a small price to pay, but it comes with a silver lining. Now we have the chance to make upgrades and improvements for the newer models to come."

"You always know how to think ahead."

"In this line of work, you have to think ahead in order to succeed. That will be all for now. I'll contact you with further instructions when I need you Roderick."

"Fair enough." so Roderick hung up and pocketed his cell phone, then leaned back in his seat as he began sipping on a glass of wine 'A mixed bag of a day, but at least I'm not going behind bars right now. Sorry about this brother, it's nothing personal, but it is business. Speaking of business, Spider-Man and his lackeys had better make sure they don't forget me. Because I don't intend to forget them…'

A/N:

I know this is about two months late, but Happy New Year everybody. Sorry this one took so long, I was finishing with another story, and now that it's done, I can devote my writing time to getting through this story, at least the first season of it anyway. When I'm not dealing with classes anyway.

With a new chapter comes a new member of Spider-Man's rogue gallery. In this case, the Hobgoblin, one that I've been looking forward to introducing for a long time. And we even learn of his identity, Daniel Kingsley, twin brother of Roderick Kingsley, the man seen in the episode Accomplices. Trust me, this isn't the last we've seen of the Hobgoblin, or the Kingsley brothers. That'll come later on.

On another note, we see the awaited return of the Black Cat, and a new chapter in her relationship with Spider-Man. I actually have to thank EdSonic for suggesting the idea to me on how to move forward with her character. Of course any chance that they get together is greatly diminished, if not gone entirely (though I should warn all of you that it's not going to happen, given that I think I already made the planned pairing for this story pretty clear by now), but at least they're on better terms than when they last parted.