[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/XV1PIyT.jpg?2[/img][/center] When I walk in the front door after returning from the Raft, I collapse, all my energy having been spent. I don’t hit the ground, though. Instead I find myself being carried to the couch by my dad. It feels good, if I’m being completely honest. If I wasn’t in the state I’m in, I’d probably hate it. But being babied a little after fighting an intergalactic god isn’t the worst thing in the world. [color=7bcdc8]“I got you, sweetheart,”[/color] he says as he lays me down on the couch. [color=7bcdc8]“You just rest up. You did so well.”[/color] I should just take the compliment, but of course I can’t. [color=ec008c]“Did I? Because I felt kind of useless.”[/color] [color=7bcdc8]“People made it home because of you,”[/color] he shrugs. [color=7bcdc8]“That’s all you can hope for in a situation like that. Now, I was thinking of going to pick up some ramen for dinner. Sound good.”[/color] [color=ec008c]“Dad,”[/color] I grimace as I sit up on the couch, parts of me hurting I didn’t even know could hurt, [color=ec008c]“you’re speaking my language.”[/color] [center]**********[/center] Peter Park sits, absentmindedly writing down his observations about the test rats. His mind is elsewhere, but of course how could it not be? Gwen had told him all about the fight with the Surfer. How he is, or was, a mind wiped slave of some galactic overlord. How the heroes from another dimensioned helped her, not to mention Wonder Woman and Thor. He will never tell Gwen how much he yearns to be a hero like her. All he wants is to be powerful, and to help people like Uncle Ben had taught him to do. He wants to make his aunt proud, and to fight alongside his best friend. [color=598527]“Peter!”[/color] a voice calls out, rousing him. He turns to find Doctor Curt Connors approaching, waving with his left hand at the young man. Connors’s other arm ends at the elbow, a birth defect he’s lived with his entire life. It’s why he started this project, and why he was so happy to have Doctor Octavius join it. [color=598527]“How are we coming?”[/color] [color=0054a6]“Good, doctor!”[/color] Peter beams. Connors is the leading expert on reptile biology and genealogy, and the main reason they’re as far as they are on the project. [color=0054a6]“I haven’t seen you in a while. The lecture circuit good this year?”[/color] [color=598527]“It’s always refreshing to speak to the young minds of tomorrow,”[/color] he smiles and takes off his glasses to clean them off. [color=598527]“But it’s time to get back to work. I...need to ask you a favor.”[/color] [color=0054a6]“Sure, Doc. Anything,”[/color] Peter beams. He still can’t believe how lucky he is. He gets to work every day with these great men. [color=598527]“Otto-er-Doctor Octavius will be leaving us,”[/color] Connors looks troubled, and over his shoulder as if someone would be following him. [color=598527]“Moving on to work on other projects elsewhere. I’m going to need more help if you’re interested.”[/color] [color=0054a6]“Well sure, yea. I can do that,”[/color] the news hits Peter like a ton of bricks. Doctor Octavius had been so invested in this project, almost taking every setback personally. Why he’s leaving now is a mystery to Peter, one that doesn’t make much sense. But he’s here to change the world, and that’s not going to change because someone leaves. [color=598527]“I knew I could count on you,”[/color] Connors smiles and pats the young man on the shoulder. [center]**********[/center] Norman Osborn watches coolly as Otto Octavius takes the seat in front of his desk. Norman’s eyes narrow at the scientist as the other simply stares back with indifference and pompous swagger. Norman knew when he hired Octavius that he was taking a gamble. The man’s history is whispered about across the scientific community. Otto is willing to sacrifice caution in order to achieve his results. There was a time where that may have been a possible avenue, but not in the new world they inhabited now. Now, when they are literally playing god, it means that all it takes is one slip up for the world to come crashing down on them. [color=a2d39c]“Norman,”[/color] Otto has a shit eating grin painted across his face, [color=a2d39c]“to what do I owe the pleasure of being called to your office?”[/color] Osborn rolls his eyes and throws a file across his desk, [color=39b54a]“You’re lucky one of my friends in the NYPD got to this before anyone else did. The autopsy of Black Tarantula revealed he had genetic mutations. I had one of the labs run it. It revealed he had been given a version of our lizard serum.”[/color] [color=a2d39c]“Well, it is good we found that before anyone else did,”[/color] Octavius smiles broadly. [color=a2d39c]“Clearly we still need to work on the serum, but his strength, speed, and endurance were greatly enhanced.”[/color] [color=39b54a]“Are you insane!?”[/color] Norman explodes. [color=39b54a]“Do you know what would have happened if someone would have traced it back to Oscorp? Everything I have worked for would be ruined. Right as I am so close to everything that I always wanted.”[/color] Otto laughs with a titter, [color=a2d39c]“Oh my good man. You know as well as I do your company means nothing to me. I have grander aspirations.”[/color] [color=39b54a]“Yes, Otto, I know,”[/color] Norman regains his composure and folds his hands on his desk. Octavius looks at him sideways, and the corner of Osborn’s lips curl in a slight smirk, [color=39b54a]“Did you really think I’d let one of AIM’s top scientists into my organization and not know it? Otto, who do you think allowed you your free reign? I had you here and used you until you became a problem. You’ve done wonders here. The Lizard Serum will lead to super soldiers on demand once we finish it. You’ll never get the credit or the recognition, but know that you will have helped the world protect itself against the superhuman scourge.”[/color] Octavius, beginning to lose his temper, seethes, [color=a2d39c]“You think AIM will allow this? We were keeping you afloat, Osborn. I was keeping you afloat.”[/color] [color=39b54a]“Don’t be so vain, Otto,”[/color] Norman rolls his eyes. [color=39b54a]“The sharks have been circling this company for years. And I have always survived. Besides, I’m not firing you from just Oscorp. I’ve been authorized to inform you that AIM no longer requires your service.”[/color] [color=a2d39c]“What!?”[/color] Octavius stands, slamming his palms onto the desk. [color=a2d39c]“I am their brightest mind! I am the one that will lead them into the world we desire! They will be lost without me!”[/color] [color=39b54a]“Please, Octavius,”[/color] Norman turns to look out of his penthouse office, [color=39b54a]“don’t make a scene. You align yourself with common criminals. You send your hussy to try and liaise with the police. You lie to Miles Warren and tell him AIM brass has approved his project for testing and create the so-called ‘Sandman’ from a common thug. And all for what? To test Spider-Woman? To capture her?”[/color] [color=a2d39c]“Yes!”[/color] Octavius exclaims. [color=a2d39c]“She was created here, Norman. You know that. I know that. The adaptive spiders. One of them somehow transferred their adaptive capabilities to a human! That is incredible! She’s the key to making the Lizard serum work. I’m sure of it. But I had to make sure her mutation wasn’t progressive like the lizard serum has been so far. Testing her was the only way to be sure.”[/color] [color=39b54a]“Yet you test her by seeding chaos in this city,”[/color] Osborn stands and walks over to the windows. [color=39b54a]“You risk bringing attention to AIM.”[/color] [color=a2d39c]“For the greater good!”[/color] [color=39b54a]“No, Otto. For your greater good,”[/color] Norman looks over his shoulder at the other man. [color=39b54a]“I know you have a personal angle to get this project to work. But that is no excuse. Neither of our organizations can abide by your recklessness. You, and everyone in your personal fiefdom, are gone.”[/color] [color=a2d39c]“You’ll pay for this,”[/color] Otto growls. [color=39b54a]“Maybe. If you live long enough.”[/color] Security surrounds Octavius, and he’s dragged out of the office. Norman, meanwhile, ponders the other scientist’s words. Spider-Woman being the key to unlock the Lizard Serum’s potential made sense. Osborn has wondered if she would end up being involved in all this. Catching her wouldn’t be easy. But he had plenty of ways to try. [center]**********[/center] [color=7ea7d8]“Ladies and gentlemen. Good people of New York, how long are we going to have to put up with this?”[/color] J Jonah Jameson sounds tired and fed up, not his normal uber aggressive self. [color=7ea7d8]“First, Spider-Woman starts infecting this city with her super powered antics. Then her blatant disregard for the law draws out more freaks and criminals like her. First the Firefly. Then the Black Tarantula and the Sandman. And now a giant woman and a silver-skinned wackjob! But we will put an end to this now!”[/color] Old Jonah’s really been giving it to me the past few weeks. I can’t blame him, either. Well, at least I can’t blame him from his position. The collateral damage that Giganta and the Silver Surfer have wrought is nothing short of catastrophic. Dozens of people died, mostly on the Raft, and the damage will still cripple parts of the city for months. Jonah isn’t the only one asking questions about the role I play in the city, either. Politicians have been roused. A challenge to the mayor, who has surprisingly been on my side, is forming in the shadows, if my Dad’s sources are right. Dad isn’t safe from the whispers either. [color=7ea7d8]“One man had the chance to stop all this in its tracks!”[/color] Jameson gets fired up again. [color=7ea7d8]“Captain George Stacy, one of the men who has sworn to protect this fair city, was alone with Spider-Woman and the Black Tarantula on the roof of Manhattan General that night. He killed one of them. But why not the other? Was he duped, like so many other people? Did she trick him into thinking she is here to help? Or does he just not have the guts to do what needs to be done?”[/color] The constant criticism has taken a toll on him. He’s considered resigning from his post, but stays in order to help me in my crusade. It weighs on him, as it does on me. I hate that he’s now wrapped up in all this. I hate that I’ve caused him this much stress. But at the same time, I love how supportive he’s been with me. He’s fed me intel left and right on the new gangs attempting to fill the massive new power vacuums across the city. He lets me know any time Sandman appears, even if I haven’t been able to stop the villain yet. But a reckoning is coming. I can feel it. [center]**********[/center] Mac Gargan’s eyes open for the first time in weeks. A blurry, orange glow clouds his vision as his eyes attempt to acclimate to his surroundings. He doesn’t remember where he is. The last time he was aware of what was going on, he was being led out of Stryker’s Island prison by AIM shock troopers. AIM...that’s where he is. They brought him here. Told him that they would give him the ability to take on Spider-Woman. That is all he wants. Spider-Woman is the first person to ever stop the Enforcers. Not only that, she is the first person to embarrass them. She made them look like a bunch of amateurs, and because of that Harkness and Delilah left them. Neither wanted to be part of whatever experiments AIM had in mind. Gargan is ready for anything however. At least he thinks he is. His eyes begin to acclimate, and he finds that the orange glow isn’t a light or something else floating in front of his eyes. It seems to be his eyes. Suddenly, computer script appears in his line of vision, running some sort of diagnostic. Behind the text, he sees he’s in some sort of operating room, and people on the other side of thick glass watch him and jot down notes on clipboards. [color=00a651][b]“Hey what is this?”[/b][/color] he says, his voice coming out horse, his vocal cords straining under disuse. “Can you move, Mr. Gargan?” a voice asks through a speaker. “Please take a few steps forward.” He usually doesn’t like to take orders, even Harkness knew to be more cagey than to order outright. But this time he doesn’t think there’s any choice. He puts his foot forward. But what slams onto the cold, clinical floor is not what he expected. A large, green talon clad in gleaming green metal scrapes against the floor, shocking Gargan. He stumbles back, finding his second leg covered in the same armor. But not just his legs. The green, cold metal covers his entire body, with what looks like carbon fiber panels between it. He looks at his hands, armored and clawed. The shock runs through him, but a tingle in the back of his mind draws his attention. He turns to see a tail looming over him. He panics, feels the same tingle in his mind, and sees the tail sway in response. [color=00a651][b]“What the hell did you do to me!?”[/b][/color] he shrieks at the men behind the glass. “We’ve given you what you want Mister Gargan. The ability to kill Spider-Woman.” Over his deep breaths, Mac can also hear Aleksi’s screams. [center]**********[/center] [color=ec008c]“Any idea what this is all about?”[/color] I ask as Peter and I walk hand-in-hand towards Central Park on a beautiful, early-Autumn day. The sun shines bright in the blue sky, and just the faintest chill runs through the air. While my life in Spider-Woman may be getting harder and harder, it is still nice that she can have moments like this with Pete. [color=0054a6]“No clue,”[/color] Pete shrugs. [color=0054a6]“Harry just sounded really excited on the phone. You know it takes something really big for him to show any kind of interest in anything. So I figured we could come.”[/color] “I mean I can think of worse ways to spend my Saturday,”[color=ec008c][/color] I smile at him and put my head on his shoulder. As we approach Columbus Circle, still half-wrecked from my fight with Giganta, we find a huge crowd gathered in front of the construction zone. A stage is set up, and I can see Norman standing in front of a podium, with a few other men sitting behind him. On each side of the stage are large, rectangular figures draped in black cloth. When we get closer, Harry and MJ burst from the crowd, Harry leading her by the hand. He looks like he won a million bucks. Well, maybe in his case a billion. Smile from ear-to-ear on that awkward face that only now has started to fill in. Behind him, MJ is trying her best to humor his puppy dog enthusiasm. [color=007236]“Yes!”[/color] he claps Peter on the shoulder. [color=007236]“I knew you guys would come! You’re not going to be disappointed. Dad’s new project is finally going to see the light of day.”[/color] [color=f26522]“He’s very excited,”[/color] MJ smiles and plants a kiss on Harry’s cheek. [color=f26522]“Unfortunately it comes with politics.”[/color] Me and Pete share a glance as we head to the front of the crowd. When we get there, my heart skips a beat when I see who is sitting with Norman. While it’s a face I haven’t seen in a long time, the flash of red hair that sits on his head, parted perfectly and neat is unmistakable. His smile is perfectly white and wide like a shark. His features are sharp. His blue suit pressed perfectly like the politician he always has been. [color=0054a6]“Is that-”[/color] Peter starts. [color=ec008c]“Calvin Cassidy,”[/color] I confirm. Cassidy used to be a cop rising quickly through the ranks. Every position he achieved he excelled in. The thought was he was destined to be the commissioner of the NYPD some day. Instead, Dad found out he was fudging his arrest numbers, and had a mean streak to boot. It was believed he would threaten confessions out of suspects, and there were whispers of excessive force being the norm in his precincts. Rather than bring the problems to light, the NYPD swept it under the rug and Cassidy started a political career. None of this is good. Norman stands to speak, and polite applause rolls through the crowd. He raises his hands, smiling to the crowd, [color=39b54a]“Thank you. Thank you. For those that don’t know me, my name is Norman Osborn. Some of you may have seen my name on a building or two.”[/color] A wave of laughter makes Old Man Osborn smile, [color=39b54a]“But we’re not here to talk about me. We’re here to talk about what’s happened in our great city. In the past year we’ve seen New York descend into a chaos the likes we have never seen. Super powered vigilantes have taken the law into their own hands, and have drawn dangerous criminals to challenge them, putting every citizen in the city in danger. We are now standing in a memorial to such chaos. A hideous scar running down the face of our beautiful Big Apple. Fixing it will cost billions. It will take months. The way the city works, possibly years.”[/color] Another small ripple of laughter, [color=39b54a]“But maybe it doesn’t have to.”[/color] Osborn picks up a small remote off the podium and presses a button. I look around for a few moments, before a slight twinge in my Spider Sense goes off, and the sound of an approaching whir begins to fill my ears. Suddenly, two figures zoom over the crowd and come to a stop six feet above Norman’s head. Their green, metal bodies shing in the sun, and the silver gliders they stand on do the same. They look like robots from Power Rangers, except for their heads, that look like metal versions of the Gremlins. [color=39b54a]“Allow me to introduce you to Oscorps newest product line,”[/color] Norman raises his arms like a ringleader in a circus, [color=39b54a]“the Goblin Autonomous Robot. These top of the line machines will be able to rebuild any damage from super powered battles in a matter of weeks, working day and night using proprietary solar charging and battery backups. They have the strength of ten men, and do not tire. I’m here to tell the world that these will be available, worldwide, next month. Municipalities, governments, and militaries will be able to rebuild the world superhumans destroy.”[/color] Another, larger round of applause explodes through the crowd, and I can see Harry beaming. I, on the other hand, wonder what the other shoe about to drop is. [color=39b54a]“But these are not merely tools for construction.”[/color] Here we go. Another press of the button, and energy claws extend from the hands of the Goblins, and they drop into an attack stance on the gliders. [color=ec008c]“They’re militarized?”[/color] I shoot Harry a dirty look, but even I can see Harry is surprised at the move. He didn’t know. Of course Norman wouldn’t tell him about this. [color=39b54a]“Not only can the Goblins be deployed to repair damage cause by superheroes and those they fight,”[/color] Norman’s smile takes on a more sinister look in the light, [color=39b54a]“they can also stop it before it happens. I would like to see any superhero escape a squadron of these.”[/color] The largest roar of approval comes from the crowd, and I can already tell I have anger painted across my face. Norman is coming after me now. There’s no reason to pretend otherwise. Spider-Woman is now on Norman Osborn’s hitlist. And that is not a good place to be. [color=39b54a]“Unfortunately,”[/color] Norman presses the button on the remote again, and the robots go back to ease, [color=39b54a]“I’ve been told both the mayor and the commissioner have decided that these cannot be deployed into the city, even though I’ve offered to supply the city their own squadron for free. They have decided that the NYPD is enough to take care of Spider-Woman and the rest of the super powered menace. Now, I have all the respect in the world for our boys in blue, but not having these in their arsenal puts our officers in harm’s way directly. Yet our current mayor and his police commissioner won’t support the men and women on the front line.”[/color] Boos rise up from the assembly, [color=39b54a]“But I have good news on that front. We have an election coming up. Which means we have the opportunity to elect someone who cares about the people of New York, and not about what the so-called super heroes do. Someone who isn’t afraid to stick up for our first responders. Someone like my friend, Councilman Calvin Cassidy!”[/color] The politician rises to thunderous applause, waving and still wearing that smarmy, Chesire-sized smile. He vigorously shakes hands with Norman and poses for the cameras situated right in front of me and my friends. As the shutters snap, the coverings on the rectangles fall off, revealing “Cassidy for Mayor” banners. He smooths his fiery hair back and takes the podium, [color=9e0b0f]“Thank you, Norman. People of New York, I’ll keep this short and sweet. For too long the people running this city have not had what’s best for the people who live here in mind when making decisions. They’ve allowed super powered individuals free reign. They’ve allowed the federal government to put an island of the most dangerous people on the planet right on our doorstep. And see what it’s done to our fair city! But no more! If you elect me mayor, we will take back our city. We will make it safe for normal people to live, work, and play! It’s time to take our city back from the superhumans, and tell them we’ve had enough!”[/color] As the crowd roars, Pete squeezes my hand. [center]**********[/center] He tries to run, but he doesn’t get far. A webline snags him by the ankle, and I yank him off the ground. He flails wildly as he hangs upside down, yelling for help that isn’t going to come. I already have the other guys in his crew webbed up hanging from a light pole a few blocks back. They’re new players in town running drugs. But not just any kind of drugs. These are high quality opioids that give people a high for days. Normally, that would also probably mean they’re as deadly as they come, but so far no one has ODed from them yet. That’s incredible, but it would also take a genius to come up with something this potent and this safe. With the right application they could save lives. But instead, they’re being pushed on the street, and they’re creating even more addicts in the city. I’m going to find out where they’re coming from. [color=ec008c][b]“So you’re a bit hung up there, huh?”[/b][/color] I ask him, spinning him slowly on the web. [color=ec008c][b]“Your friends aren’t coming by the way. But your night could get a whole lot better if you just tell me who you work for.”[/b][/color] “Get bent, Spider!” he yells back. “I’m no snitch.” I shake my head in surprise, [color=ec008c][b]“Okay, first off…’Get bent’? Really? How old are you. Secondly, I just fought a god a week or so ago. Do you *really* want to test me right now?”[/b][/color] He looks from side to side, before sighing, “I don’t know his name. We just get the shipments from the girl, then we give her the money when they’re sold.” [color=ec008c][b]“Girl?”[/b][/color] my eyebrows raise. [color=ec008c][b]“Got a name on her?”[/b][/color] “No,” he shakes her head. “Calls herself the Cat. Has white hair and has everything in the right place. Super hot.” An audible sound of disgust comes out of me, [color=ec008c][b]“Okay. Does she call the supplier anything?”[/b][/color] “Yea,” he nods. “She calls him the [b]Octopus[/b].”