Peter Parker

After about thirty minutes, Carmilla returned to her room. I looked at her as she re-entered. I noticed a bit of color in her cheeks. She didn't look pleased. I stood up.

"Carmilla, are you okay?" I asked.

"No, I'm not," she said gruffly. "Sit down, Peter. We need to talk."

I raised an eyebrow in confusion. I had a feeling that I wasn't going to like how this conversation was going to go. I swallowed as I slowly sat down. "Why do I feel like I'm not going to be happy about what we're going to talk about?"

"That's because you're not." As she said this, Carmilla walked over and took a seat next to me. "Scott brought something to my attention. He told me to keep quiet about it, but I told him… in a not-so-kind way… that I can't keep this from you, even if it's not confirmed. So, you want the good news or the bad news?"

I cringed. "That depends."

"On what?"

"How mad am I going to be?"

Carmilla took in a breath. "Let's just say… I'm going to need you to fight off any urge you may have to put a fist through the wall."

I closed my eyes and bowed my head as I rubbed the bridge of my nose with the thumb and index finger of my right hand. Carmilla didn't even explain yet and I was already feeling myself getting annoyed. "Tell me the bad news, please." I opened my eyes and lowered my hand as I looked at her. "We might as well get it out of the way."

She nodded slowly. "Okay." She took in a breath. "So we may or may not have found out the identity of Firestar."

I tilted my head. "Who?"

"Oh, yeah, about that. Betty decided to call the fiery woman 'Firestar' since it's lot easier to say than 'the fiery woman'."

I scoffed. "Oh great, just what I need – for the person who almost ended my life to be given a kickass name. Thank you, Betty." I rolled my eyes. "…Okay, so who might Firestar be?"

"…Apparently it's someone that all of the American Idiots – Craig and Kitty aside – are familiar with. Does the name Liz Allan rings a bell?"

I narrowed my eyes. "…Yeah… she does."

Carmilla nodded towards me. "Who is she?"

"Remember when I told you I had to ditch my Homecoming date to fight a bad guy who was her father?" Carmilla nodded once. "Well, Liz was the date. And her father is The Vulture." Carmilla nodded once more. This is time she did it slowly. Maybe I was just reading too much into it, but it seemed like she was trying to come to grips with something she didn't want to accept. I shook my head in confusion. "What does she have to with…?" I trailed off. I blinked a few times. "…Oh don't tell me - !"

"Nothing is confirmed," Carmilla interrupted as she held her hands up. "But it's looking that way. MJ and Buford were able to get a lead on who Firestar is after they figured out that coded text Craig sent, and the evidence is painting a picture."

I thought about it. It made sense. The last time Liz and I talked face to face, we didn't end things on a good note. And when I got exposed by Beck, she had some really awful things to say about me. I didn't know what hurt more, the words themselves or the fact that I couldn't blame her. Anyway, the fiery woman… Firestar… said she wanted to make me suffer for what I did to her and Liz all but said she hated me. So, it would make sense that she could be Firestar. But now I had questions. Did she just hate Spider-Man? Or did she hate Peter Parker as well? Wait, does she even have memories from the pre-Spell days? And if so, how did that happen?

I suddenly stood up. "So why are we still here?" I demanded. "Shouldn't we be doing something?"

Carmilla shook her head. "We have to wait on that one."

I started to get agitated. "Like hell we do!" I started to pace. "We should be going after Liz right now! We should – !"

"Do what?" Carmilla interjected as she stood up. "What do you expect us to do, huh?"

I scoffed. "We should get the drop on her! What's stopping us from doing that?"

Carmilla tilted her head as she looked at me as if I was acting stupid – which, in fairness, I was. "You know what? I'm starting to realize why Scott didn't want me to tell you. Like seriously, do I have to spell it out to you?"

I glared at her. "Enlighten me."

"Okay, let's see." Carmilla raised her hands and used the index finger of her right hand to count the fingers of her left as she started to list off reasons. "First of all, Firestar folded you twice, and the second time she did, she hurt you so bad that you had to be put in a coma for your sake. Second of all, we still don't know what she's fully capable of. Third of all, you still haven't rebuilt your suit. Fourth of all, we don't have definitive proof that Liz is Firestar, so there's a chance we'd be targeting someone who is innocent. And fifth of all, we still need to find Craig. And those are just the tip of the iceberg." Carmilla stepped up to me and placed a hand on my shoulder. "I get it. You want payback. So do I and everyone else. But we have to be careful about how we move, especially since Beck and Firestar has us by the balls. We need to move carefully."

I sneered. "This is bullshit."

Carmilla raised her eyebrows and tilted her head briefly. "Welcome to life as an X-Men. The capacity to deal with bullshit is a requirement." Carmilla withdrew her hand. "Let's just focus on seeing what that message is about. That said, we do have do news. We got clearance to stretch our legs a bit. So, come with me. We need to get you suited up before we head out."

About five hours later, Carmilla and I were in an SUV, driving down a highway in Connecticut. I was given a SHIELD uniform of sorts. It wasn't anything fancy. It was a black tactical suit with matching gloves, boots, and vest, with the latter being bulletproof. I also had a black ski mask and goggles that covered my whole face but left my hair exposed. When I put on the mask, I realized how long my hair has gotten – it was actually reaching past my ears.

Jeez, I let myself go.

Anyway, after I was blindfolded, Carmilla and I were taken to a Quinjet and dropped off in Massachusetts. Waiting for us was a black SUV that was heavily tinted. From there, we were on our way.

"So where are we headed, exactly?" I asked. While I was curious about the destination, I was really getting tired of the silence.

"We're heading to the Milford Southbound Service Plaza," Carmilla explained. "The text from earlier had coordinates. After punching the coordinates in, it turns out the location they lead to is a small forested area near the rest stop. It would certainly explain a lot."

I looked at her. "Why is that?"

"After figuring out the location, I was looking at the local news reports for anything out of the ordinary happening. Reportedly, there's been a string of occurrences in the area. A wanted carjacker was left on the side of the street tied up. A police car was set ablaze, which I thought was unrelated until I read that said car belonged to an officer that has a lot of strikes on their record. A robbery of a liquor store was stopped. And, at one point, someone who was stranded on the side of the road was given a bag of food and water for their kid while they were waiting on a tow truck. One thing these stories have in common is that it involves a person wearing a hoodie and having their face bandaged up to the point where they're looking like a mummy."

Under my mask, I raised my eyebrows. "And you think that's Craig?"

Carmilla shrugged a bit. "I hope so. Either that, or there's some living mummy doing vigilante work out there."

I looked forward. "What are the odds of that?"

Carmilla chuckled. "In a universe where Norse Gods exist among us, the odds are probably a lot higher than we think."

I didn't respond. She was right.

After some time, we arrived at the rest stop. We didn't park next to the building. Instead, we parked at a spot near the outer fence. Out beyond the fence were a whole lot of trees. As I looked out towards them, I wondered if Craig was really out there, and if he was, what happened to him and if he was okay. I still felt a bit bad that David and I wasn't able to save him when he got abducted. I frowned. Between what happened to Carmilla and what happened to Craig, I couldn't help but feel like a fuck up. I bowed my head and took in a breath.

"What do we do now?" I asked.

"We wait until about midnight," Carmilla replied. I looked over at her. She looked over at me. "Once it is midnight, we'll jump the gate and move through the trees. And then we'll find Craig so you can stop moping."

I tilted my head. "I'm not moping."

"Little Arachnid, you're talking to someone who's a SHIELD agent, an X-Man, and, for all intents and purposes, one of your big sisters."

I scoffed. "Only by a year."

"Be that as it may, I'm still older. And as your older sister, I feel like it's my duty to tell you that I know you're full of shit. You literally give off physical signs."

I went silent for a moment. "…I really do hate you."

"I love you too, Peter. Now stay here while I grab something from the rest stop."

"Okay." Something then occurred to me. "…You're not uncomfortable driving?"

Carmilla gave me a look as she unbuckled her seatbelt. "Why would I…?" She tailed off when it dawned on her. "Oh, right, the tail. You know, surprisingly not." She then paused. "…Tucking in my tail is going to be a bitch, though."

Midnight rolled around. After Carmilla made sure her Beretta was loaded and fitted with a suppressor and a flashlight, we made our way out of the vehicle. After taking a quick look around, she looked at me.

"I would say codenames from here on out, but I'm not sure I want to call you by your codename out in the open," Carmilla stated before she pulled up her mask over the bottom half of her face.

I looked at her curiously as I adjusted my gloves. "Why not?" I asked.

"I think it's best to let the world continue to believe that you're MIA." She looked me up and down. "For the sake of tonight, I'll call you Dusk."

I nodded. "Okay."

Somehow, the name felt fitting.

We both hopped the fence. After that, Scorpion took the lead. Using the flashlight on her gun, she lit up the area in front of us. I kept my head on swivel, bent on making sure a repeat of Phoenix didn't happen. I focused on my hearing. At first, the search was uneventful. We saw leaves on the ground, some litter, even a shoe. We thought we found something when I thought I saw a tent. When we got closer, we realized it was an old jacket. Ignoring the urge to punch a nearby tree, I followed Scorpion as she kept on moving through the forest. I started to wonder if we were led astray. Then I started hearing a faint sound. It sounds like… static?

"I think I hear something," I whispered. I turned my head slowly until I was sure of the direction it was coming from. "It's coming from that way."

I walked after Scorpion as she moved in the direction I indicated. As we continued on, I started to get the feeling we were being watching. I looked around, trying my best to keep an eye out. After a few minutes of slow trekking, we came across what looked like a small campsite. There was a small black tent that looked just big enough for one person. It didn't look like anything special. It looked like it was something that could be bought for cheap from the outdoor section of some chain department store. As Scorpion swept with her flashlight, I took in the other items that were littered around the campsite. There were empty water bottles. There were wrappers that looked rather familiar. I walked up to one of them, kneeled down, and picked up one of them. I turned it around until I saw the logo.

"Quest," I said. "Someone likes their protein bars."

"Craig does eat Quest protein bars more than any other brand," Scorpion commented. She then moved her beam of light a couple of feet in front of me. "This concerns me more, though."

I looked at where her beam was lighting up. It took me a moment to realize I was looking at a pile of gauze – and from the looks and scent of it, they were kind of fresh. They were stained with pale brown color. I cringed.

"What the hell?" I whispered.

"Craig was in pretty bad shape when Buford found him," Scorpion noted. "I'm not so sure Claire was able to do much for Craig yet before Chameleon got the drop on her." I looked at her. There was a certain sound to her tone and a certain look in her eyes. She was definitely worried. I didn't blame her. I wanted to apologize once again for not saving Craig, but something told me she didn't want to hear that. She took in a breath before she turned away. "Let's check this tent."

I stood up and watched her. Underneath my mask, I frowned. Not knowing what else to do, I stood there and watched her back, taking glances around every now and again. Scorpion kneeled down and slowly unzipped the tent. Once the tent was open, she aimed her pistol inside of it. After some moments, she reached inside and pulled out something. She stood up and faced me, holding up a handheld transceiver.

"I think I found the source of the static you heard," she declared. I walked up to her and looked at the black device. I heard the static coming from it. "This campsite is still definitely being used."

"Yeah it is," a voice said.

Quickly, Scorpion and I turned to the direction of that voice. That was when Scorpion aimed her gun.

Standing about ten feet in front of us was a figure in black sweats – including a hooded sweatshirt – with matching shoes. Their face was wrapped with bandages. I could barely make out their black eyes. In their hands was a shotgun – a Mossberg 500, if I remembered correctly. I knew that was Craig's usual go to during the rare times he did tote a gun, though it was usually the modified Taser X12. He had it aimed at both of us.

"Frictor, is that you?" I called out.

"Who wants to know?" the person replied gruffly. I could hear the agony in his tone. The burns were still hurting badly.

"Don't you recognize us?" Scorpion cut in. From my peripheral, I saw her lower her gun slowly. "It's me, Scorpion, and this is Spider-Man."

Who I assumed to be a Frictor made a noise that sounded like a scoff. "And I'm the son of Imhotep."

"We're telling the truth!" I insisted.

"Really? See, I know Spider-Man and I know Scorpion. Last time I checked, Spider-Man is not going around dressed like Temu Bucky…" I had to hold back my urge to laugh at that despite the circumstances. "…and I would be well aware if Scorpion had a fifth extremity. Now, since I've been MIA for a while, maybe I can buy Spider-Man growing his hair out. And MAYBE I can buy Spider-Man having access to SHIELD gear. But I'm not buying that Scorpion has a literal scorpion tail!"

"It's a long story." I shook my head. "A lot happened over the last several weeks, and quite a bit of it has to do with Firestar."

Frictor tilted his head. "Who?"

"That's what we've been calling the fiery woman that took you down," Scorpion explained.

"And who the hell decided to give her a kickass name?"

"…Betty."

Frictor paused for a moment. "…Okay, that does sound like her."

"Now do you believe us?" I asked.

"No I don't."

"Okay, so what do we have to do for you to finally believe us?" Scorpion demanded.

Frictor was quiet at first – I guess he was thinking over the question. "…You're going to tell me something that only the two of us know."

I glanced at Scorpion, who shook her head in annoyance. "You know what, fine, but only because I'd be just as paranoid in your shoes, if not more so." She took in a breath. "…After about a couple of weeks in our relationship, you and I were making out in your room. And it seemed like we were about to go all the way." I turned my head away. My face was warming up. "But then I stopped you and said I wasn't ready for that since it was my first time. You were so relieved. I was offended at first. But then you explained to me that you never done it before either." I heard Scorpion chuckle. I looked at her. I could see the fondness in her eyes. "I told you I was surprised since you… were… a star football player in high school. I figured you had to have had done it with four people prior to me. You then pointed out that I was stereotyping and that that would be like you saying I bedded a lot of people since I'm a government agent who does undercover work. I was mad at how right you were. So… I hit you with one of your pillows. We had a pillow fight. Once we were tired, we went to bed, but not before we promised each other not to be pushy about… that."

I looked at Frictor as he stood there quietly for some seconds. He then lowered his gun. "…Checks out."

"Good." Scorpion huffed out a breath. "Now come with us. We need to get you back to New York."

Frictor shook his head. "Not yet. I need to get to Hartford and I need you two to be with me."

"…Frictor, I could smell the ooze coming from your burns and hear the pain in your voice," I pointed out. "What in Hartford is so important that you're willing to bear the agony you're going through any longer?"

"…It's simple, Spidey. I need to make sure me and a… 'singer'… are still reading from the same sheet music… for all our sake."