Rage filled him as he paced like a wild animal in a cage. He had been so very close to watching him snap and rip those called "friends" of his apart! They didn't need anyone! The only friend they needed was their suit. The Spider would realize this soon. He would make sure of it...
This wasn't something he had ever thought he would experience in his time. When he volunteered for this mission, he knew it would be difficult. He was going to war with himself for god's sake!
He wouldn't let the rage win. He couldn't let him give into the darkness.
Spider shot up in surprise, almost falling out of his web hammock and plummeting to the water below. Displeasure shot through his head, and he took a breath to calm himself.
It had been two days since his attack on Tombstone. His rage had been tempered for the moment, and he kept moving from place to place, finally stopping under a bridge to get some sleep. It was... A restless sleep, plagued by the voices that were so similar to his own. Spider shook his head and refocused on the big city in front of him.
Spider was curious about everything in this city. Having no memories allowed him to enjoy things in a new way. Spider had watched the sun rise over the Empire State Building and felt a gentle breeze in Central Park...
His stomach gurgled, interrupting his train of thought.
And next on his list, he would hunt down the nearest hot dog vendor!
"With mustard and chocolate sauce!" Venom said joyfully, much to Spider's disgust. Venom had a weird taste that took some getting used to, especially his passion for chocolate.
Spider rolled out of his hammock and freefell for a moment, letting the wind whip past him until he shot a web to the bottom of the bridge and swung towards Manhattan. His feet almost touched the water, and a grin overtook Spider. This exhilarating feeling was exactly what he needed, and he flipped through the air.
"Whooo Hoooo!" Spider whooped as he let go of his web and sprinted along the side of the building. He jumped to the next one and kept his morning workout going.
As much fun as he was having, the scent of smoke filled his nostrils, and he slowed to a halt. A black cloud filtered by the buildings and curiosity got the better of him.
"Not our problem..."
"It could be bad guys." Spider shot back as he swung to the source of the smoke.
It was an apartment building completely engulfed in flames. The fire crews desperately worked to snuff the flames out, and even amongst the commotion, a man could be heard screaming.
"Please, you have to let me through my girlfriend's in there with her kid!" The man screamed as he tried to push past cops and firefighters.
"The place is a deathtrap! There is no one going in there!" A cop grunted.
Spider watched this from his high viewpoint and tilted his head. A sudden urge to interfere filled him, but he ignored it.
"Don't just stand there, kid! They need help!" The wise, older voice ordered as the cruel voice laughed.
"Why should we help them? This isn't our problem!" The angry voice pointed out snidely. It was like having an angel and a devil on his shoulder, except both were really fucking annoying.
"Both of you need to SHUT UP/SHUT UP!" Spider and Venom roared mentally as Spider launched forward and into the inferno. He crashed through a window, and smoke billowed around him. The heat was powerful, and the suit rippled in displeasure.
"Not a fan of fire," Venom muttered with distaste.
"Neither am I, buddy," Spider replied as he sprinted through the building. He avoided the flames as best as possible and focused his senses around him. Heartbeats were coming from above him, and he moved quickly. The fire was spreading quickly, and he would be damned if he failed now.
Spider crawled through a hole in the ceiling to the next level and looked around, trying to spot survivors amongst the flames.
"Help us!" A lady screamed from behind a door that was on fire. Spider launched his arm forward and released a black tendril that broke through the flaming wood. The flames snapped at him as he darted into the room and spotted the woman huddled by a window. By her side was a small child who gazed at him in wonder. A creaking noise could be heard coming from above them, and parts of the ceiling began to collapse
Spider ran to them and covered them with his body as tendrils shot out of his back and held the ceiling up.
"Grab a hold!" Spider ordered, and the woman ushered the child forward. Spider wrapped one arm around the child and the other around the woman. With both of them secured, Spider charged forward, jumping through the window and allowing the ceiling to fall. He used his body to shield them from the glass, and they fell toward the street. Spider twisted midair, and his feet landed firmly on the pavement.
"You two, alright?" Spider asked gruffly. The woman was shaking hysterically, a reaction Spider expected. The kid, however...
"That was awesome!" The kid screamed in excitement. Spider chuckled and shook his head. That reaction was certainly a first.
He finally got a good look at the both of them. The mother and son duo shared many of the same traits, like the red hair and the freckles. The mother had dark hazel eyes while the boy had light blue.
"Tabitha!" The man from earlier came running up to the woman with a couple of medics and hugged her. Spider narrowed his eyes and became lost in a memory...
Spider-Man ducked under the swing of a katana and fired a web into the face of Mr. Negative, better known as Martin Li. His body ached from the numerous fights, and he could barely hold his own in this fight.
A gun went off, and Spider-Man clutched his shoulder. His senses were in overdrive, and he couldn't avoid the bullet in time. Blood flowed through his fingers, and Mr. Negative took advantage of Spider-Man's unawareness.
The Chinese crime boss swung his sword and released a wave of negative energy that smashed into Spider-Man, sending him into a parked car.
A groan escaped the Webhead, and he looked up to see an Inner Demon with his gun still pointed at him. A part of the man's mask was broken, showing his eyes to Spider-Man...
"You!" Spider growled, grabbing the man by his arm and yanking him back. "You were there that night!" Fury threatened to overtake Spider, and his claw-like hands dug into the man's arm, drawing a cry of pain.
Tabitha went through a coughing fit but still heatedly glared at the man. "What is he talking about, Ronnie?"
"You were dead... The boss said you were dead!" Ronnie said with fear in his eyes. Spider growled before letting go of the man who collapsed to his hands and knees. "This is my fault..."
"You told me you quit working for -" Ronnie stopped her with a glare.
"Don't say his name, Tab! He's got eyes and ears everywhere in Midtown!" Ronnie muttered furiously. "No one stops working for guys like him..."
"Now's your chance! GUT HIM!" The angry voice roared.
Spider shook his head, trying to clear his mind of the voice and refocus on the criminal in front of him. Ronnie was sweating profusely and nervously glancing between Spider and Tabitha.
"Negative... Where is he?!" Spider demanded with narrowed eyes. The familiar rage had returned, backed up by whatever monster was plaguing his mind.
"I-I don't know!" Ronnie muttered in fear. "I failed a job for him the other day! This right here! This is what happens when you fail, Mr. Negative!"
SMACK!
"You bastard!" Tabitha screamed with her hand still shaking. A red handprint was already forming from where she slapped him, and Spider almost laughed at the dazed look on Ronnie's face. "He burned my apartment down, Ronnie! Almost killed Bailey!" She went to smack him again, but two of the medics restrained her.
"I'm sorry, Tabs." Ronnie pleaded as he tried to follow, but a hand grabbed his shirt.
"Leave..." Spider growled before pushing Ronnie back and causing the man to fall on his ass. "Now!" Every part of him wanted to rip Ronnie apart like a wild animal or at least string him up by a web, but he needed Ronnie. "And tell Negative I'm coming for him next!" Ronnie hadn't moved from the spot in the street he had landed in, so Spider felt it best to motivate him. "Move it!" A terrifying mix of Spider and Venom snarled at the gang member.
Ronnie fearfully bolted from the spot, and Spider clenched his fist as he watched the man scurry away like the rat he was.
"Follow him... Let him lead us to Negative!" The angry voice screeched, and Spider almost listened to it.
"No! We can deal with Mr. Negative later!" The second voice interrupted, cutting into his thoughts. "We have more important things to worry about..."
Spider turned his attention towards Tabitha and Bailey. The mother and son had stepped away from the medics, with a rather frustrated look on Tabtitha's face.
"It'll be ok, Mom. We'll think of something." Bailey comforted as he hugged Tabitha's side.
"I know, baby. I know..." Tabitha said with a sad smile. All of their things were in that apartment. Their clothes and possessions up and smoke and all because she had a terrible taste in boyfriends.
Spider sighed and scratched his neck until a thought came to his mind.
Miles felt nervous as he sat at the table with the gathered group. Julia and Jessica remained calm, but Miles almost wanted to throw up.
The Avengers were known as Earth's Mightiest Heroes for a good reason. They were also unintentionally some of the most intimidating people in the world. Tony Stark was on the shortlist for the smartest person ever, right up there with Reed Richards, Hank Pym, and Victor Von Doom. Carol Danvers, aka Captain Marvel, was a space-fairing intergalactic hero, and lastly, the one hero Miles respected the most.
Steve Rogers didn't have the powers of his fellow heroes, but he did have an air of authority and strength most heroes could only dream of. Captain America was a legend, and Miles strived to earn his respect. Hell, he wanted all their respect, but right now, all he felt was their scrutiny.
"So let me get this straight," Carol said in disbelief. "Spider-Man has some sort of amnesia after that Maggia ambush last week, and now he's going on a rampage through New York with the Venom symbiote..."
"You're missing a few minor details," Julia replied with a frown. "But that's the gist of everything."
"Christ's sake, Julia, this had gotten out of hand..." Tony sighed. "Why didn't you think to come to us about this?"
"Frankly, Tony, this doesn't concern you," Jessica said with an eye-roll. Tony might have been her friend, but his over-inflated sense of importance drove her insane at times.
"Doesn't concern me? I'm sorry, but did you forget that one of my exes is now running the New York Maggia?" Tony asked incredulously.
"Enough Tony." Steve cut in as he looked at the three spider heroes. "Miles, you've been quiet through this... You arguably know Peter better than most of us."
"Uh, well yeah..." Miles replied nervously as all eyes focused on him. "I would say I know Pete pretty well." Pretty well was Miles putting it lightly, to say the least. Peter Parker was the mentor to Miles that Peter wished he had at that age. The elder Spider-Man looked after Miles and guided him towards being a better hero.
"What was he acting like then? Venom is known to fight savagely. Even... Eat part of his victims." Steve asked with slight disgust. While Eddie Brock was supposedly a hero now, Steve would never accept how he acted as a hero. Venom was known as the Lethal Protector, a moniker the alien host had rightfully earned with his brutal tactics.
"Pete would never do that!" Miles defended his mentor fiercely.
"I know that Miles, but symbiotes are known for influencing their host." Steve shot back with a frown. Even though Steve and Spider-Man didn't have the most trust in each other at the time, he still considered the man to be a friend and ally. But symbiotes were dangerous. Cletus Cassidy and the Carnage Symbiote were a fine example of that.
"Miles the Klyntar are some the most dangerous aliens in the universe. Entire planets have emergency protocols to deal with the threat of a rogue Klyntar," Carol informed the stunned Miles.
"I don't think the symbiote was controlling Spider-Man," Jessica said as she looked at Tony. "I've seen Spider-Man and Venom fight enough times to know the difference. For one, he only spoke in singular, not plural as most hosts do. Secondly, he didn't fight to kill, only to escape."
"We shouldn't take any chances," Tony said. "News footage from thirty minutes ago shows Spider-Man in Mid-Town. We'll go in and get to the bottom of this. Then we'll stop this little "Gang-War" going o in the city."
"Peter is not your concern, Tony," Julia retorted with narrowed eyes. She didn't trust Stark, having seen what he was capable of when he thought he was in the right, and as the link to the Great Web, Peter was her responsibility.
"You obviously can't handle this by yourselves, Julia!" Tony argued, causing Julia to narrow her eyes behind her sunglasses.
"Think this will ever end?" Carol whispered to Jessica shrugged in response.
"Probably not..." Jessica muttered, shaking her head. "Let's go get a coffee and catch up while they discuss the plan," Jessica said with a smirk. "Any objections, Cap?"
"None here, Jessica. Miles, you're dismissed as well." Steve replied as he tried to stop the argument with Tony and Julia.
"Oh, thank god," Miles said with a sigh, and the teenage Spider-Man darted out of the room with a wave goodbye at Jessica and Carol, who chuckled.
The two beauties slipped out of the room unnoticed by Tony and Julia. The two were still loudly arguing, and Steve tried to get in the middle of the quarrel. Jessica and Carol made their way to Stark's state-of-the-art kitchen.
"So just out of curiosity, why are you so interested in Pete at the moment," Carol asked with a raised brow. She tried not to sound too curious, but when it came to the webhead, it was rather... Difficult to say the least.
"I owe Peter for something, Carol. The least I can do is help him now..." Jessica answered with a determined look.
"What could he have done that left such an impression on you?" Carol couldn't help but ask. The last time she checked, Peter and Jessica had an uneasy relationship with Jessica annoyed by Peter's unprofessional heroics and incessant need for joking.
"He saved my son, Carol," Jessica informed as she became lost in memories.
Jessica Drew loved her son like any good mother should. Gerry was her world, and she would do anything to protect him. But Jessica was a superhero, and it wasn't a job she could quit.
When she became pregnant, it was the happiest moment in her life. It had been a decision that she had thought over for a long time, and she loved being a mother. However, she underestimated her ability to juggle heroics and raise Gerry. She had struggled to find a balance between everything going on in her life, and Hydra also took advantage of that fact when they found out.
Jessica breathed frantically as she glided to the roof of her apartment. Blood trailed down the side of her face, but she ignored it and instead focused on her young son.
She had been ambushed on her way home by a group of Hydra soldiers, which wasn't anything she was unused to at this point. Only after a bit of persuasion did she find out what they were after.
Her son. They wanted to abduct Gerry and raise him as their perfect Hydra super soldier. Never had Jessica been so worried, enraged, and stressed all at the same time.
She rushed back to her apartment only for a surprise to greet her. The entire rooftop was covered in unconscious Hydra goons, and in the middle was Spider-Man, with Gerry held in his arms.
"Shh, you're all right, little guy," Spider-Man mumbled as he rocked Gerry to sleep. Gerry looked up at Peter and giggled in happiness. The toddler reached out with his tiny arms, and Spider-man waggled a finger at the boy.
"Gerry!" Spider-Woman cried as she ran to her son. Spider-Man and Gerry finally seemed to notice Spider-Woman. Gerry reached out for his mother and laughed with a toothless grin.
"Jess..." Spider-man greeted as he handed Gerry to her.
"What are you doing here, Spider-Man?" Confusion and suspicion filled her to the brim.
"I was just swinging by when I noticed our friends here..." Spider-Man answered quietly while motioning to the Hydra group. "I've dealt with Hydra enough times to know what they look like. And then I saw Gerry was with them and..." His fists were clenched tightly, and Spider-Man shook his head. "I lost my temper, but Gerry's safe and sound. I promise,"
"You saved him."
"What was I supposed to do? Leave him with Hydra? Please, they make terrible babysitters. Awful reviews on Yelp." Spider-Man joked lightly. He was well aware that Jess wasn't exactly a fan of his brand of humor, but at this point in his life, his humor was the only thing he could rely on...
The two Spider-totems and a baby stood there for a moment until Spider-Woman wrapped her arms around Spider-Man and hugged him tightly, Gerry being caught in the middle.
"Thank you..." Spider-Woman mumbled with tears seeping through her mask and trailing down her cheek. She had come this close to losing the one thing she never wanted to lose. Spider-Man stood there for a moment before finally returning the hug. It was a hug that Spider-Man desperately needed, even though Spider-Woman didn't know it.
"If anything ever happened to Gerry, I don't know what I would do, Carol," Jessica said with a sad smile.
"I had no idea, Jess," Carol replied with a worried frown. "Is Gerry ok?" Carol loved Jessica's son like he was her own, and the toddler loved her just the same. She was half tempted to go looking for the rest of the Hydra cell in New York and wipe them off the face of the map, but she had other priorities.
"Gerry is doing great! He's with Luke and Jessica until we get this mess settled." Jess said as she sipped her coffee with a smile. "I took a week off from crimefighting after that night Carol. Peter told me to take the time off. To make sure Gerry was safe." She didn't notice her hands shaking until coffee splashed on her.
"Jess!" Carol exclaimed, but Jess ignored her so lost in her words.
"It was during my break that he was ambushed Carol. Spider-Man was the only one fighting for this city..." Jessica frowned and then stood up from her chair. "And he needs all the help he can get..."
"...Even if he doesn't know it yet."
Maria Hill listened closely to the video and frowned. This was something that should have been told to her immediately, but in her experience, superheroes never liked to play nicely.
"I want all agents stationed in New York to be on the lookout for Spider-Man!" Hill ordered to her gathered agents. "Initiate Protocol: Venom, we have an infestation in New York ladies and gentlemen, and we need to wipe it out!"
Behind Hill, Teresea Parker stood quietly and watched all the screens in the helicarrier lit up with footage of her brother.
"Peter, what have you gotten yourself into?" Teresa asked quietly.
For most of their lives, Richard and Mary Parker's two children didn't know that the other existed. Forces beyond their control separated Peter and Teresa and they finally reunited after more than twenty years. Teresa loved her brother and would readily die for him, just as he almost did for her.
"Agent Durand!" Hill called out with a stern look. "Are we boring you?"
"Sorry ma'am." Teresa apologized. "I was distracted for a moment."
Operation: Save Spider-Man was about to be initiated, and SHIELD could not stop Teresa.
"This place..." Spider mumbled as he walked with Tabitha and Bailey into F.E.A.S.T, "It's not a permanent fix or anything, but it's a roof over your head."
He didn't know how he knew of this place, but it felt like he had been here before. This F.E.A.S.T. shelter was a place he was familiar with. He even felt pride as he stood next to the entrance.
"It's perfect," Tabitha replied. A small smile graced her as she watched Bailey play with a group of kids. "We were lucky compared to other people who lived in the building."
"I'm sorry I can't do more."
"Don't be. You saved me and my son, Spider-Man," Tabitha replied. "Just promise me you'll get the man who did this." Tabitha was still filled with so much anger, and the man who burnt her and Bailey's lives was still out there, causing havoc throughout Midtown.
"I'll get him, Tabitha," Spider-Man promised with a determined growl. "That you can count on." Spider shifted his gaze to Bailey. "Will he be okay?"
"Bailey? Of course! Bailey's stronger than I'll ever be." Tabitha answered.
"He's a good kid, but don't underestimate yourself. You did slap the fear of god into Ronnie Chin." Spider joked.
"Ha! I did didn't I?"
"I'll be back to check on you two," Spider said as he prepared to web swing away.
"Spider-Man, wait!" Bailey called out running up to join his Mom, but Spider was already in the air. His hunt for Mr. Negative was just getting started.
"C'mon, Bailey. We need to get settled in." Tabitha said as she grabbed Bailey by the hand and walked back into F.E.A.S.T. An older woman stood by the front desk and smiled in greeting.
"You must be the new arrivals!" the woman said as she walked with Tabitha and Bailey. "My name is May Parker, and I'll be helping you get acquainted with everyone."
Spider swung through New York on a mission to take down Mr. Negative, but before he did that, he needed to stop somewhere.
The apartment was just as he had left it, a mess.
"What are we even looking for?" Venom asked curiously as Spider tossed dirty clothes around.
"My Webwear."
"The hell is WebWear?"
"Something that I think I... I created." Spider answered hesitantly. His memories and mind were still fractured, but things slowly returned to him. "It'll help me track Ronnie."
"How?"
"I planted one of these on him." Spider held up a tiny spider-shaped object. "This device sends out a signal that WebWear can track. And Ronnie Chin is running back to Negative..."
"Smart. I knew there was a mind somewhere in here!" Venom teased with a fanged grin. Spider laughed before picking up a boomerang of all things. "Why do you have a boomerang?"
"I..." A face appeared in his memories. A man once an enemy turned friend. "It belonged to someone who wasn't always good. A crook... But I called him a friend. He's gone now."
Venom nodded in understanding before shifting his eyes to a picture on a wall. Venom recognized someone in it. "I want to see the picture over there!" Venom demand urgently. Spider obliged and walked over to the picture.
It was a much younger Spider standing with several other people. On one side of Spider was the redhead from the other night, a carefree yet beautiful smile on her lips. On the other side was a beautiful blonde hugging his arm between her breasts. Standing directly behind him was a young man with a goofy grin and brown hair his hand on Spider's shoulder. The last person in the picture Venom focused on intently. It was a tall blonde man wearing a football jersey, a cocky grin on his face and his hand was ruffling Spider's hair.
"Flash..." Venom remember.
"I knew him too." Spider realized as recognition filled him. "He... I think he's gone too."
"People tend to die around us," Venom muttered sadly.
"Then we'll just have to change that," Spider reassured before realizing what was on the table under the picture. "And look at what we have here!"
The doorknob turning broke them out of their conversation, and Spider moved to the window just as the door opened.
Mary Jane must have visited Peter's apartment at least three times in the last two days. It was foolish to think the rogue Spider-Man would show up here, but MJ wanted to carry hope. Things had also been rough between her and Paul. He was mad that she was looking so hard for her ex, and MJ was even madder that he was trying to stop her from looking for Peter.
Peter and MJ might not be together, but she still cared for him and Paul's inability to care about what was going on in the city and with Peter was destroying their relationship if you could even call it that.
'Why am I... Why am I still with him?' It was a question she kept asking herself, and yet she had no answer. Ever since the kids had... Disappeared, it had felt like a shroud had come over Mary Jane. Wayeb's chain should have been broken, but she felt more tied down than ever.
The door to Peter's apartment opened slowly, and Mary Jane saw the shadow before she saw the person, and a drop of hope filled her.
"Peter!" She called after him, but Spider-Man was already out the window and swinging away, and Mary Jane wouldn't lose him this time.
She didn't have her gauntlets at the moment, but that wouldn't stop her. Mary Jane had faith that no matter what state Peter was in, he was a hero. And the hero always saves the pretty girl.
Spider looked back only to see the red-haired woman from the other night jump out the open window. Surprise filled him as she started falling, and an annoyed growl escaped him.
"Let her fall! We don't even know her..." The angry voice whispered harshly.
"Speak for yourself, assassin! We have to catch her!" The wise voice ordered.
Spider ignored the two voices and made his decision. His body twisted around, and he shot two webs at nearby buildings. He pulled himself forward and increased his speed, effectively slingshotting him at the falling woman.
Time seemed to slow down for Mary Jane until she felt the strong arms of Spider-Man wrapping around her.
"I knew it!" Mary Jane cheered as Spider caught her and fired a web from his wrist.
"Zip it!" Spider ordered as they swung away from the apartment. He was kicking himself right now. "Of all the crazy ass stunts..." He landed on a nearby roof and pushed her away. "What the hell were you thinking?" How could anyone be that reckless?
"I was thinking I couldn't let you get away again, Peter." Mary Jane replied with a frown.
"Stop calling me that!" Spider demanded with narrowed eyes. He turned away in thought. That name brought up memories. Overwhelming memories. Memories that were his and yet weren't his. Memories of her!
"That's your name, Peter!" said Mary Jane as she grabbed him by his shoulder. Something inside snapped in Spider, and he turned on her, pressing her against a wall. Spider breathed heavily, and Mary Jane took on a red hue from the close contact. "You're Peter Parker, and I'm -"
"Jackpot." Spider interrupted as his mask slipped away. A gasp escaped Mary Jane as she took in the fresh scar on his face and his wild appearance.
"That's just my superhero name..." Mary Jane said as she tried to break free from his grasp, but Spider refused to let go.
"No... You're my Jackpot," Spider told her as he leaned closer. His lips captured hers softly before slowly becoming more aggressive. Mary Jane was taken by surprise before giving in. A fire erupted in her. A passion she only ever felt with Peter filled her, and she let herself fall for it. Spider slowly ended the kiss and pressed his fore against hers. "Your MJ and I think..." Spider looked at her strangely before finally realizing. "I know you. Hell, I think I love you..."
Spider wanted her more than he had ever wanted his memories back. She was fire, heat, and love. He was starved for it, a man left in the cold. Now that he had it, he never wanted to let go.
"Now, this is getting good!" The demented voice jeered, and Spider backed away in shock. He was at war with himself and what he was doing.
"Peter?" Mary Jane questioned at the retreating totem. Spider clutched his head in pain and looked at her in a daze.
"I'm sorry. I-I don't know what came over me." Spider mumbled nervously. He felt unsure about himself, so different compared to the last few days. It was easy to be confident when you didn't know any better. But this woman. This Mary Jane made him unsure of himself.
"It's okay, Peter." Mary Jane said as she stepped closer to him. "I'm just trying to help you."
Spider's eyes widened in surprise as a feeling went through his mind. His mask instantly covered his face just as a flurry of bullets struck the rooftop. Spider lunged forward and shielded Mary Jane with his body.
"Who's firing at us?"
"Probably the nut in the suit above us," Spider muttered as he got a good look at their attacker.
It was a woman wearing a strange green and purple skintight armored suit. A pair of wings protruded from her back, and a green helmet covered her head, the helmet resembling an insect.
"Pfff, finally found you bug, and here you are making out with some bimbo!" The woman screamed harshly.
"Who the hell is she?" Spider asked, confused.
"That's the Beetle, Pe- I mean Spider-Man..." Mary Jane answered only to draw a confused look from Spider. "You knocked out her father's teeth the other night."
"Wait, this is Tombstone's kid?" Spider said in realization before a laugh escaped him.
"Seems like we've got a daddy's girl here!" Venom added in, causing Spider to laugh even harder.
"Don't you dare laugh at me, you bastard!" Beetle screamed as she fired more bullets from her wrist. Spider grabbed Mary Jane and jumped off the roof, the Beetle hot on their trail.
"I'm going to set you on the street and then deal with our bug problem," Spider said as he dodged a beam of energy.
"You need to be careful, Peter." Mary Jane whispered as Spider landed on the ground much to the surprise of numerous people.
"I told you to stop calling me that," Spider said though there was no heat to his words. With a spring, he was back in the air and fighting with Beetle. Mary Jane slipped her hand into her pocket and pulled out her phone.
She quickly dialed the right numbers but hesitated to make the call.
"I need my gauntlets..." She pressed the button and brought it up to her ear.
"Hello?"
"Paul, it's me..."
"You'll pay for what you did to him!"
Spider almost rolled his eyes at the threat, but he was too busy trying not to get hit by an energy beam. Beetle fired angrily at him. If she had been in her right mind, she might have been able to hit him. Her mind, though, was clouded by anger. In a way, he understood why. When he had gone after her father, his mind had been a haze of rage and animal instinct. The difference here was that Beetle didn't have the fractured mind that he possessed that had prevented him from following through.
Spider dove at Beetle and began to grapple with her in mid-air. Her suit made her stronger, but so did his. His hands gripped her arms and he pushed her repulsors away from him.
"Let go damn it!" Beetle ordered as she tried to shake Spider off by flying erratically, but Spider refused to let go.
"I think you need to be grounded, young lady." Spider taunted before reaching up and grabbing one of her wings. He gripped it hard enough that she stopped moving, and the sudden loss of one of her wings sent both of them crashing down onto a rooftop.
"Seriously? That's the joke you're going to use?" Venom asked dryly.
"I'll get better material later!" Spider mumbled as he slowly stood up.
Beetle glared at him and raised her hands to fire another beam, but Spider shot a web that covered her helmet.
"Look, I don't want to fight you, lady..." Spider said with a sigh, scratching the back of his head. "Let's just call this a day. I'm tired, your pissed-"
"I have every right to be pissed, asshole!" Beetle snarled as she tried to rip the web off her face. "And my friends agreed with me!"
"Friends?" Spider questioned confused until his spider-sense went off, and he ducked under a bolt of electricity. "Whoa!"
The bolt came from a woman in a green jumpsuit with a yellow lightning bolt mask. She grinned at Spider and fired another lightning bolt at him, and Spider jumped to dodge it. His spider-sense went off again and narrowly caught a knife that was aimed at his head.
"It would seem I was right, and you were unable to handle it by yourself." A tall blonde woman said with a smirk as she casually ripped the web off Beetle. She was dressed in an outfit reminiscent of a hunter: A deep brown leather coat with the image of a snarling cat on it and fur around the collar and tight black pants. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail, and she eyed Spider like he was prey.
"I would have beaten him without your help!" Beetle denied as she readied her. "But I won't say no to it either."
"Good," A new voice said as Spider dodged a tail that tried to swipe him. The tail belonged to a woman in a light green armored suit with black accents on her. She had short dark hair and dark green eyes narrowed at Spider. "Because I really want to bring down the Spider."
What was once a one-on-one fight had turned into a four-on-one, and for once, the Spider and the many voices that resided in his head were in agreement.
"Well Fuck!/Well Fuck!/Well Fuck!/Well Fuck!"
And there we have it folks. The Spider vs the Syndicate is coming next chapter with more surprising events to come. Spider-Man worries and sanity will pushed to their limits next chapter and a full reveal of the voice will be explored. Some of you also might be wondering as to why Janice wants revenge for her father well you'll just have to wait and see. We also saw the introduction to this universe version of Bailey Briggs. I actually like Spider-Boy as a character I just hate how he was introduced.
We also saw the Avengers have gotten involved. It's somewhat hard for me to write Iron Man because I'm not the biggest fan of Tony Stark, but hey I'll get over it. The other Avengers are fun though.
In other news, The Eight Deaths of Spider-Man has started and I really can't judge it yet. I've read it and I like the new suit and magic abilities and the writing is far better than anything Wells dished out but that's not really saying anything. It's still too soon and I've had friends point out that any good thing that they do will probably be retconned later.
As always I own none of this. I only own my anger issues and an old, beat-up Chevy truck.
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.