Monday - March 7, 2016

Parker Residence - Third Floor

11:34 p.m.

The sound of his door slamming shut behind him echoed out around the darkened room, mingling with the sound of Peter's harsh, ragged breathing. The teen pressed his back against the solid wood and shut his eyes tightly, willing his heart to stop pounding as his body shook.

After a moment of tense silence, Peter slowly felt his lungs unclench, his chest evenly expanding in and out once again. The teen let out a small sigh and pressed his hands against his face, wincing as his palms brushed up against the numerous bruises and scratched now marring the pale surface.

At least they were quick tonight. The boy murmured to himself, though that didn't change the fact that the tests had, in turn, been that much more excruciating. The teen simply tried to shrug off the fact as best he could.

He was used to it by now.

Gingerly wiping the blood off of his face and arms, Peter glanced over at his bedside table, the digital clock on the table telling him it was finally time to get the hell out of there. Letting a smile fall onto his face, the teen rushed over to his bed and undid the small side panel on his headboard.

Reaching inside, his fingers wrapped around the smooth, strong fabric of his suit. Pulling out the uniform, Peter paused for a moment and stared at the vivid red and blue design. The bright red contrasted the dark blue perfectly, the sleek black lines stretching out around the entire piece tying the two together. He ran his finger against the smooth eyepieces, blinking down in awe at the suit in his hands.

The fact still amazed him that this incredible suit was actually his. He had made do with his old suit, sure, but it didn't hold a candle to Tony's design. Of course, Peter had taken the liberty of transferring his web-shooters and incorporating them into the suit itself, combining it with the already present web-tech that had been included.

It wasn't that he didn't trust Tony's engineering, it's just that Peter had already worked so hard on those specific designs. Plus, it was nice to have something that truly felt like him incorporated into the high-tech multi-million dollar suit.

It was comforting.

Shaking away the distracting thoughts, Peter quickly changed into his suit, fingers brushing against the spider emblem in the center of his chest, the material conforming to perfectly coil around his muscles in a skin-tight suit.

The teen let out a small breath as he paused for a moment, turning his head to glance at himself in the mirror.

Peter Parker was nowhere in sight.

The person standing in his room was nothing like Peter. He wasn't weak and nervous. He wasn't cowardly and shy around everybody he met. He wasn't afraid to open his mouth and stand up for himself.

No, this was Spider-Man.

This was the protector of New York City. This was the guy that wouldn't hesitate to jump into the line of fire to do the job most others couldn't do. This was the guy that stood up for the people that couldn't stand up for themselves. This was the guy worth knowing. This was the guy worth being.

Peter felt a smirk form on his face as he stole one last glance towards his closed bedroom door before yanking the mask down over his head. Skittering over to the balcony, Spider-man yanked open the doors and jumped onto the railing, balancing perfectly on the thin metal pole. He stared out at the bright lights of Manhattan farther in the distance, a large smile forming underneath the mask.

Time to go to work.

 

---

 

Tuesday - March 8, 2016

Upper Manhattan - East Harlem

12:56 a.m.

"Would you fucking GET THEM already?!" The man snarled as he pressed his foot as hard as he could into the gas pedal.

His partner reloaded the gun before sticking his head back out the car window, a hail of bullets shooting out of the machine. The cop cars speeding behind them swerved to avoid the oncoming attack as best they could. "What the hell does it look like I'm doing?!" He shouted back as he grit his teeth and aimed towards the windshield.

"Well I don't know about you, but to me, it sure looks like you're doing a real good job of missing."

The strange new voice as well as the sudden screech of shock from his partner had the man turning to glare, only for his eyes to widen as he caught sight of a red and blue-clad figure now crouching on the hood of the car casually. Spidey gave a small wave. "Sup?"

The two men stared at the figure for a moment longer before the driver whipped his head to stare at his partner. "Well don't just sit there, idiot! SHOOT HIM!"

"Ooo! There we go! Thinking on our toes aren't we?" Spider-Man quipped as he flipped up onto the top of the car. "No wonder you geniuses haven't been caught yet!"

Leaning towards the side to avoid the stream of bullets that shot out of the top of the car, Spidey let out a laugh as he glanced behind him at the cops still chasing. By this point, they were sticking their head out the window to get a clear view of just what the heck was going on.

He gave another wave.

. . .

They tentatively waved back.

Turning back towards the cars, he ducked underneath another wave of bullets and scooted closer towards the front. Rearing his fist back, the teen punched through the glass, eliciting another bout of shrieks from the thugs. "Oh, your war cries! Terrifying!"

His hand wrapped around the barrel of the gun, where he promptly crushed the metal underneath his grip, smoke sprouting from the end. The man yelped in shock and threw the smoking device to the ground as he whipped his head back up, only to scream as Spidey grabbed the front of his collar and lifted him out of his seat, literally throwing him from the car.

The man shrieked loudly as he prepared himself to splat against the asphalt underneath, only to balk as he landed in something sticky and bouncy. Opening his eyes, he found he was now trapped in a large web suspended in the air between two light posts.

Not five seconds later, the man saw his partner be ejected from the speeding car in the exact same fashion. Suddenly, bright flashing red and blue lights entered his vision as he caught sight of the approaching cops.

"Shit..."

 

---

 

Tuesday - March 8, 2016

Central Manhattan - East  Midtown

01:13 a.m.

"Hurry up and put it in!" The woman growled as she fired off another round of bullets. The employees all whimpered in fear as they pulled their hands up over their heads from their positions on the ground.

The man behind the bank counter shakily grabbed another handful of cash before stuffing it into the brown bag being thrust into his chest. The masked woman held the gun close to her body as her two male partners watched the hostages closely to make sure none of them tried to press any emergency buttons.

"Huh...they're really cracking down on security checks in these places haven't they?" Spider-Man called as he crawled in through one of the windows before promptly taking a seat on the ledge. "You gonna try and pat me down, ma'am? Cause I gotta say, I will not tolerate you getting frisky." He muttered before jumping down to land next to the armed woman.

He suddenly found the barrel of a gun being pointed at his chest. "Get on the ground, you freak!" The woman shouted.

Spidey stared back at her, glanced down at the gun pointed at his chest and then lifted his head once again. "Can't these people ever get more creative with their weapons?" He turned to ask one of the hostages currently cowering near his feet. "I mean, seriously? I know it's efficient and whatever, but you could at least try to be a little more original. Like, nobody's ever been held at laser-point before."

The man gave him an incredulous look before wondering whether or not the hero wanted him to actually answer. The woman holding the gun held a similar look of bewilderment, Spider-Man taking the opportunity to grab the barrel of the gun and yank it out of the woman's hands before decking her in the chin, sending her sprawling to the ground. "See? That never would have happened with a laser."

Leaping over her, Spidey quickly slid underneath the legs of one of the two men and grabbed his ankles, yanking him to the ground as he did so. The other man charged over, only for Spidey to shoot out a low-lying web string, tripping the man before he could even get within range of him.

The teen watched with a bored eye as the two crooks slammed into each other before falling to the floor, groaning loudly. Shaking his head, Spidey noticed the numerous bills currently strewn about the room from when the woman dropped her bag.

Next to him, one hostage eyed a stack of bills next to him. He tentatively reached a hand out towards them only for Spidey to slap his hand and wiggle a finger in his face.

 

---

 

Tuesday - March 8, 2016

Upper West Side - West 59th Street

01:35 a.m.

The man let out a harsh breath as he gripped the purse in his hand tighter and continued to sprint, the woman's indignant cries sounding off behind him as he ran.

He felt a malicious grin form on his face as he glanced over his shoulder and found that nobody was giving chase after him, only to turn back forward and shout in shock, skidding to a stop in front of Spider-Man, who was slowly clapping. "Mmm...congrats, man. You have officially become the most unoriginal crook in the history of ever." He snickered.

The man blinked in shock for a moment before balling his fist and swinging it towards the masked vigilante. Spidey barely even moved, simply leaning back to avoid the hit before crossing his arms behind his back as he gave a small sigh. "You know, it's guys like you that give crooks and robbers a bad name." He scolded before taking another step back as the man threw another punch.

Spidey quickly caught the man's third punch and fired a web at the robber's chest, flipping him backward as he proceeded to wrap the man entirely in the sticky fluid. "What the hell, man?!' The crook shouted as he fell to the ground in a cocoon of webbing.

The teen casually grabbed the purse off of the ground and pulled out a stick of gum. Leaning down towards the downed crook, the hero quickly stuck the candy into the man's mouth, much to the robber's shock.

"See? It's much easier to chew that when you're not walking at the same time, isn't it?" He called before leaping back into the air.

 

---

 

Tuesday - March 8, 2016

Lower Manhattan - East Village

01:54 a.m.

"I thought you said he was a cat!"

The teen's eyes widened behind the mask as he caught sight of a large white and orange snake that was currently curled around one of the tree's higher branches and...was it glaring at him?!

Oh, it totally was.

Spider-Man stole one last glance at the little girl currently staring up nervously at him before he let out a small sigh and crept closer to the reptile. A loud hiss sounded out through the air, to which the teen reared back, arms flailing in shock.

"Jesus, this is the scariest thing of the night!" The vigilante grimaced, ignoring the sad fact that he'd been held at gun-point not even half an hour ago.

Exhaling loudly through his nose, the teen wrapped a hand around the snake's body and carefully unhooked it from the branch. "Ew, ew, ew, ew..." He breathed softly before letting out a high-pitch, almost inaudible cry as the snake began to coil around his arm instead.

Carefully jumping back down to the ground, the teen quickly rushed over to the little girl and thrust the reptile into her open arms. "Fluffy" She called as the snake wrapped around her.

"Fluffy? Seriously?"

The girl gave him a deadpanned look. "Give me a break. This is the closest thing I'm ever getting to a cat, alright?"

 

---

 

Tuesday - March 8, 2016

Central Manhattan - Upper East Side

02:07 a.m.

Peter stared out over the bright lights of the city, legs swinging happily as he sat on the roof ledge of the tall building. His mask lay next to him as he took in the sight of the bright lights and flickering neon signs. The sound of honking horns and wailing broadcasts met his ears as the teen let a content smile fall onto his face.

Lifting his hand to his mouth, he took another bite of his churro.

He'd have to remember where that lady lived so he could bring her some pastries later.

The teen finished off his latest form of repayment and stepped away from the ledge, jumping back down onto the main rooftop. Peter had been coming to this exact building for as long as he could remember; before he'd ever even considered the idea of Spider-Man.

Blue Booth Theatre had never really been a booming tourist spot, not even in its hay day. A small little one-screen theater that could only hold seventy on a good day. Now it was abandoned, the screens blank, the popcorn booths empty and the seats torn, shredded, and dusty. It had been closed for about ten years now and the building seemed to grow more and more decrepit with each passing day.

Peter still came here, though. He didn't know why. Something about it just felt...comforting.

("Where do wanna sit, baby? Careful, don't spill the popcorn.")

Before Spider-Man, Blue Booth was usually where Peter would go to escape. The building was condemned so there was nobody ever around. The interior was falling apart, sure, but it suited his needs as best it could. After all, it still had a roof, semi-sturdy floors, and most importantly, it wasn't home.

The empty manager's office served as a functional bedroom whenever Peter wanted a night away, complete with pillows and blankets stashed underneath the desk that he'd stolen from home. Peter didn't sleep there often anymore, but the option was always open, which made him feel a little better.

But tonight, he didn't go inside. Instead, he sat on the rooftop overlooking Central Park and the farther-distanced Town Square, the bright lights and loud sounds acting as a sort of beacon for the bustling center.

The teen leaned forward and placed his elbows on the ledge, resting his cheeks on his clenched fists as he felt the cooling breeze wrap around him, blowing his hair in all directions. As usual, the sky was a mixture of deep blues and dark blacks, harsh grey clouds of smog and smoke scattered throughout. The bright lights of the city below shone throughout the sky, breaking any chance of the stars to be seen. The small pinpricks of twinkling light simply couldn't compete with the sheer magnitude of NYC.

However, Peter couldn't help but smile softly as he caught sight of the moon peeking through the thick clouds, its pale white glow illuminating the rolling grey hills in the sky a painted silver. As his eyes trailed over the moon's glow, they caught sight of another, equally bright symbol in the distance.

Stark Tower shone brightly despite the numerous other lights surrounding it, acting as a sort of beacon in the distance. Peter's smile faltered slightly as he caught sight of the building, his mind running through everything it represented and reminded him of.

This is a horrible idea... Peter mumbled to himself. You know this is only going to end badly, Peter. You know it. So why the hell are you even debating this?

It was true. He knew this tie with Tony Stark could only end disastrously, his interaction with the Cons earlier tonight simply confirming that. Despite what his father and the others assumed, Peter wasn't stupid. In fact, he was quite the opposite. He knew exactly why his father had agreed to the internship.

He was using him...again.

Peter had known it the second Mr. Stark had come up to his room that night. He'd known it the second he'd heard that his father had agreed. He'd known it the second Mr. Stark left and he was left alone with them...

I never should have agreed to this...

He should have just refused Mr. Stark's offer. He should have just made up a lie to his father saying the billionaire had retracted his offer. He should have lied. He should have simply shaken the man's hand and forgotten about him. He had enough he already had to deal with. This was not going to make things better.

. . .

And yet...

Peter's eyes flitted back over to Stark Tower. The teen would be lying if he said today hadn't been one of the best he'd had in...forever. Sure it'd had its ups and downs, but the teen knew if given the choice, he wouldn't hesitate in doing it all over again. Despite the numerous people, despite the uncertainty of unfamiliar territory, despite the nervousness that ate at his stomach...

With the robots, with FRIDAY, with the inventions, with Mr. Stark...he'd actually been...happy.

Peter honestly couldn't remember when he'd last felt comfortable around someone he'd only recently met. Sure Mr. Stark could be intimidating, but Peter got a strange feeling that the man simply put up a façade to deal with the kinds of people he had to on a daily basis.

He couldn't be too sure, but the teen wondered if maybe he'd seen something in the man that not many others had seen before. After all, it wasn't often someone was concerned enough to pry into his life.

He quickly disregarded the notion with a scoff, berating himself with the fact that someone like Tony Stark wouldn't actually be concerned about him. The realization of said fact made the teen's hands clench slightly. Just what was Stark playing at? What did he hope to accomplish in offering him an internship? What was he planning?

The teen relayed over the man's words from the previous night.

("...he was a little hesitant at first, but I was able to convince him to go along with it.")

Peter tried to settle the queasy feeling forming in his stomach. Did you convince him...or did he convince you? he wondered to himself, knowing better than anyone that when his father wanted something, nothing could stand in his way. Nothing.

As the thought swirled around his head, a worse one appeared. Are you working with him?

Peter felt himself shaking at the thought that Mr. Stark was actually working alongside his father, that maybe this was all a great big ploy. Nothing more than another one of his tricks, another one of his tests.

And yet...as Peter recalled his talk with Tony from a few hours back, he couldn't help but linger on the expressions on the man's face whenever his father was brought up. They weren't tense. They weren't afraid.

They were...disgusted.

Peter couldn't help but hum in thought. It was strange, he had to admit. Seeing someone react to his father's name in disdain rather than spewing out compliments and appraisals.

As he recalled the man, Peter found himself dwelling back to their conversations. They had been...interesting to say the least. It'd been a while since Peter had blown up like that. The teen was still berating himself for slipping like he did. But there was something...strange he'd felt when he'd done it back there. It was different from all the other times he had slipped up in a lie or an excuse.

For the first time in a long time, Peter had felt...hopeful? He couldn't be too sure of what it was he felt exactly, but the teen knew it was strange. It was the same feeling he got whenever someone else other than Ned noticed his bruises or the fact that he was limping down the hallways. It was the same feeling he got whenever he was out with his father or the Cons in public.

It was the feeling of freedom, of salvation. It was the hope that someone...anyone would finally stop being so blind and help him mingled with the fear of that exact same thing happening, a constant battle between hoping for someone to notice and dreading the idea of anybody actually finding out.

But something had changed that day. Something had caused that hope to somehow spark just a little stronger, washing out the dread for a fraction of a second.

...You're an idiot, Parker.

Just as it had before, just as it always did, the feeling vanished. It was an unwarranted feeling. Freedom? Freedom from what? His father was a good man, he'd said so himself earlier that day. Sure, he made mistakes, but who didn't? The fact of the matter was that his dad was his last piece of family left and he couldn't afford to be picky or whiny or dramatic or whatever else Richard would tell him he was being whenever he cried or complained.

He'd made his peace with it long ago, and he had promised himself to never let himself feel those ungrateful feelings ever again!

. . .

. . .

So what happened?

What exactly caused him to lash out like that?

("It's alright, Peter. I promise it is.")

Peter felt a small smile spread on his lips. He knew he couldn't trust Mr. Stark. He could idolize him. He could adore him. But he couldn't trust him. He couldn't trust anyone but his father, childhood hero or not. And nothing, not internships, not jokes, not even kind words would ever get him to trust the man. He just...couldn't, for Tony's sake.

. . .

. . .

But still...it had felt nice to have someone to sit with.

Peter held his gaze on Stark Tower for a moment longer before lowering his head with a tired sigh. "Uhh...what have you gotten yourself into, Pete?" He muttered to himself.

Suddenly, his ears picked up a small, low-sounding boom that resonated through the air. Whipping his head up, his eyes could make out a flashing light farther up in the distance, near the center of the city. One that stood out from the others.

Rising up from his seat, Peter leapt up onto the edge and crouched down, narrowing his eyes as he strained to get a better visual. Judging from how far the boom had sounded as well as where the light was flashing, Peter lined it up with being right near. . .

"Oscorp? But what's-" He paused mid-sentence as his eyes widened. "Shit..." He gaped out before quickly seizing his mask and yanking it over his head. There's a hit tonight?! How the hell did I not realize? The teen mentally screamed at himself as he leapt from the ledge, shooting out a line as he began to swing through the air. God, this is what happens when you don't pay attention to them when they're planning, you idiot! He snarled as he swung as fast as he could towards the lab.

Sure, his father was a good man who made mistakes. But that didn't mean Peter couldn't clean up those mistakes.

"Alright...correction: what are you getting yourself into, Peter?"

 

---

 

Tuesday - March 8, 2016

Midtown West - Oscorp Central Labs

02:15 a.m.

His feet made no sound as he landed on the rooftop. He slowly crouched down and began to move along the edge as he craned his neck to gain a view of what was happening below.

The bright lights that lined the outer edge of the Oscorp building shone brightly, though even their luminescence did little to light the alleyway with which one of the building's back doors was connected. But Peter could see all too clearly.

There were three of them, two men and a woman. They were dressed in all black, including the masks adorning their faces. Narrowing his eyes, Spidey couldn't help the grimace that formed as he saw the insignia etched into the left cheek of each of the masks.

A small butterfly.

Yep, should have known. Oh, Dad... the teen sighed to himself, the light of hope that this little heist wasn't what he thought it was quickly dying.

He noticed a hidden van deeper into the alleyway, concealed by the numerous shadows. The masked people were exiting out of a perfectly clean hole in the building wall, hauling case after case of what Spidey could assume to be worth millions out towards the truck.

He could just make out the sound of hushed yelling, watching as the woman turned to glare at one of the two men. She then marched over towards the wall and pulled something Peter couldn't make out from her belt. Holding the unidentifiable object in her hand, Peter watched as four small metallic devices shot away from the corners of the hole in the wall and attached to the device. As they were ripped away from the wall, the hole sealed up perfectly, leaving no trace of it ever having existed.

Quickly realizing the group was soon to make their escape, Spider-Man narrowed his eyes and raised himself up, firing a web at the wall before him as he leapt from the building, swinging down towards the group.

A shout of shock escaped one of the man's lips as Spidey slammed his feet into his side, sending him flying as the teen landed on the ground. The other two remaining thugs stared at him as he did so, the teen giving a small wave. "Hey, you guys. Out for a midnight stroll? Man, I love those too. Mind if I tag along?!" He shot his fist forward, ramming it into the masked face of the second man, who fell backwards.

"Ugg! It's the Spider-brat the boss told us about!" The woman snarled, eyes narrowing as she dodged the teen's next punch. "So now what?" The first man asked as he rose back up to his feet from farther down the alley.

Spider-Man narrowed his eyes as he met the gaze of the woman. Despite the fact that she was wearing a mask, the teen was almost certain a smile was growing on her face. "What he ordered..." She answered slowly as she clenched her fists, eyes glowing a pale green.

Spidey faltered at this. Shit...

Without warning, the woman's palm whirred and opened up as she raised her hand, a bright green blast shooting out of the newly formed gun. Spidey narrowly dodged the blast as he leapt out of the way, rolling along the ground as he heard the blast slam into the wall behind him. A spray of shattered pieces of brick and stone pelleted his back as he whipped his head back up, only to see a huge boulder hurtling towards his face.

"CRAP!" Spidey shouted as he flattened himself to the ground, the boulder sailing over his head. Leaping up to his feet, he shot a web towards the woman, the fluid catching on her arm...gun...whatever. However, the first man jumped forward, thrusting his hands out as an onslaught of large rocks followed his movements, shooting down towards the teen.

Flipping back, Spidey landed on the ground and fired another two webs, sticking them to the man's feet before yanking hard. The man shouted out as he fell to the ground, where the teen fired another round of webs, trapping him to the dirty concrete.

Suddenly, Spider-Man shouted out in pain as he felt metal connect with his side, sending him skidding backward. Letting out a hiss of pain, the teen lifted his head to see the second man glaring at him through the mask. However, Spidey's eyes were trailed to the man's arm - more specifically, his skin.

It was solid steel.

The teen sighed. "I knew it was gonna be a bad day today." He muttered to himself as he slowly rose back up to his feet, narrowed eyes trailing on the three enhanced forms before him.

"Our boss is getting real tired of you interfering with our jobs, you brat." Peter heard the first man say. He was just gonna call him Rocky.

"And I'm sure he'd love to hear we were finally able to take you down." The cyborg woman grinned while the last metal man - Steel - clenched his fingers, the hard steel grating against each other. "Guess it's about time we remedy that little problem."

Spidey smirked. "Bring it on, stooges."

Two boulders were instantly carved out of the ground, hurtling towards him at bone-breaking speeds. Leaping into the air, Spider-Man leapt on top of one boulder, flipped onto the other, and finally landed on the shoulders of Rocky, swinging around the man to kick Cyborg's side, the woman shouting out as she was sent hurtling backwards.

Feeling a large hand wrap around his arm, Spidey watched as Steel charged for him, only to drag Rocky down to the ground with him, allowing the two men to trip over each other.

Suddenly, the teen felt a white-hot searing pain flare up in his shoulder as he let out a shout of pain. Ducking towards the ground, the teen glanced over his back and noticed his shoulder was now smoking along with the barrel of the woman's arm.

Narrowing his eyes, Spidey fired a web at one of the large smashed rock pieces around him and flung it towards the woman, who fired another beam at the projectile, blasting it into dust. However, it was enough of a distraction for Spidey to surge forward, ramming a punch against the woman's side.

The cyborg grunted but didn't back down as she threw a punch of her own. Spider-Man ducked below it and kicked his leg out, sweeping her feet out from under her. A sudden tingling in the back of his head caused him to flip out of the way as three more boulders shot past his head, only for the teen to groan as they swung back around and began to gun for him once again.

Turning on his heel, he noticed Rocky maneuvering the rocks with his hands while Steel reared his arm back, connecting a punch with the ground beneath him.

A large shockwave rolled through the concrete, rock, and asphalt waves unbalancing the teen, who grunted as large boulders slammed into his back.

"Ugg, come on, guys! It's a school night!" He shouted before firing a web at Steel, who grunted as the fluid slapped over his eyes, effectively blinding him.

Swinging forward, Spidey landed a hard kick on Rocky, the man flying back into Steel. The two collapsed in a jungle of limbs

A sudden humming behind him made him whip around, only to mutter another string of curses as he watched a handful of missiles fire off from the woman's shoulder. "You have missiles too?!" He growled before firing off numerous small bundles of web.

The small blasts connected with the tips of the missiles, driving them off course, where they exploded against the walls, the ground, the...the fire escape above...crap.

"Shit…" Peter muttered as he heard the tell-tale creak of metal snapping. The melting material began to separate from its binding as the entire metal structure began to fall to the ground.

Diving backward, the teen was barely able to avoid being crushed by the tangled metal as it crushed the van below it, effectively destroying the vehicle and shrouding the alley in a plume of dust and smoke. Taking a second to catch his breath, the hero slowly rose back up to his feet.

"GAH!" He shouted as he felt another hot blast slam into his chest, sending him flying out of the alley and into the street. Whipping his head up, he watched as the three enhanced charged for him, now looking even angrier than before. Perhaps it had something to do with the fact that he'd just crushed their escape vehicle and most likely whatever it was they had inside.

"So...I'm guessing you guys don't have car insurance…?" He tried, only for them to completely ignore his words. "Right…"

Lifting his arms, the teen blocked the aerial kick the woman threw, pushing her back just in time to duck and counter a punch by Rocky before throwing him into Steel. Now that they were out of the confines of the small, compact alleyway, they had much more room to space out.

Taking advantage of the spaced surroundings, Spidey fired a web at one of the nearby buildings and propelled himself forward, ramming his feet into the faces of both the cyborg and the metal man.

Safe to say, Peter assumed the move had hurt him much more than it'd hurt them.

Letting out a hiss of pain as he dropped back to the ground, Spidey fired another bout of webbing at the woman, only to have her blast right through them before hitting him in the shoulder. Shouting out in pain as he was flung backward, Spidey let out a yelp and rolled away right as a metal fist connected with the cement where his head had been moments ago.

The teen lifted his head, only to feel another boulder slam into his chest, sending him skidding backward against the asphalt. Letting out a shaky breath, the teen placed a tentative hand on his chest, wincing as he felt his ribs shift slightly.

The teen groaned in pain as he lay on the asphalt, the tree slowly approaching with harsh glowing eyes.

Turning his gaze towards the side, Spider-Man took notice of the fact that there were people on the street either watching or filming what was happening with tentative faces and nervous expressions.

Alright, Pete. No more fooling around. He growled to himself. There were too many people here to continue fighting. They had to end this now.

Narrowing his eyes, the teen slowly rose back up to his feet as he glared back at the three in front of him. The woman let out a chuckle. "Aww...would you look at that? Little baby's still trying."

Rocky scoffed. "Welp, we've already lost our score. Might as well have a little fun with him, now."

Clenching his fists, Spidey flashed them a grin he knew they couldn't see. But he was sure they could hear his smile in the way he said his next words. "I'm pretty sure I'll be the one having all the fun from here on out."

Steel smirked. "Oh really? Well, let's just see about that."

Cyborg raised up her arm once more, firing another blast at the teen. Spidey barely moved as he twisted his body to the side, narrowly missing the beam. Lifting his hands, Rocky shot three more boulders towards the teen while Steel charged him once again.

Spidey jumped into the air as he landed on each boulder as they flew past, leaping off as he fired a web at the last passing rock, swinging it forward with his momentum. The rock slammed into Steel's side, sending him barreling through the glass front doors of Oscorp, a loud alarm sounding out through the air.

The two remaining thugs blinked in mild shock at the display before refocusing back on their prey. Cyborg lifted both of her arms this time, however, her other arm didn't simply open up. Instead, the skin around it began to separate, pulling backwards as a large blaster appeared from the metal underneath her pale skin.

Letting out a growl, the woman began to fire a barrage of blasts at the teen while Rocky continued to hurl boulder after boulder at him.

Spidey clenched his fists as he tensed his muscles. Skirting past the boulders, the teen ducked and leapt over the blasts as they whizzed by, feeling their heat through his suit as he did so.

As he continued to duck and dodge the projectiles and blasts, he began to make his way towards the two until he was a mere few feet from them. Leaping up, the teen tackled Rocky to the ground, the boulders falling to the floor as the man lost his concentration.

Letting out a furious roar, the man wrapped his hands around the teen's wrists as he tried to overpower him, only to find he was not the strongest one out of the two.

Spidey growled as he threw a hard punch towards the man's face, effectively disorienting him enough to pick him up and hurl him towards the woman, who gasped and leapt out of the way before her partner slammed into the ground. He didn't get back up.

Letting out a snarl, the woman raised u her arms once again, only to gape in shock as Spidey shot forward, clenching her forearms in his grasp.

She narrowed her eyes and lifted her leg to kick out at him, only for the teen to twist her around and flip her onto the ground. Before she could retaliate, she screamed out as she felt circuits and wires snap as the teen squeezed her arms, the guns whirring and screeching as they died. "Sorry, sorry, sorry!" The teen cried as he continued to squeeze before finally letting go, leaping away from the fuming woman as she glared down at her arms before throwing the teen a deathly look. "Oh come on! You so asked for it!"

The woman had no time to utter a retort before a large metal fist was slamming into the teen's chest, sending him skidding backward into one of the nearby stores. Spidey felt something crack as he crashed into the wall, falling down to the floor with a groan where he let out a harsh cough of pain. "Shit…" He uttered for about the seventeenth time that night. "I forgot how much that hurts." He whined softly as he fought to blink back the dots blazing in front of his face at the pain in his chest, which felt like he'd just stabbed white-hot knives into his ribs.

Quickly remembering where he was and what was happening around him, the teen slowly - very slowly began to sit back up, arms shaking as he did so. He could feel glass shards poking into the suit, thankful that the strong material didn't allow the sharp edges to nick his skin as he pushed the wooden beams and brick pieces off of him. He painfully pushed through the debris and leapt back onto the street, only to let out a groan of frustration as he realized the only people on the street were him and the shocked bystanders.

Crap… He muttered to himself, the sound of approaching police sirens reaching his ears. Taking a moment to run back into the alleyway, Spider-Man cautiously moved through the mess of tangled metal that had once been the fire escape. Careful to avoid the small fires that burned around the mess, the teen moved over toward the back of the crushed truck, the doors bent and crushed together.

The fact did little to phase him, however, as he gripped the door handle and yanked the doors clean off their hinges. Inside, the teen saw numerous metal cases lining the crushed walls of the van. Yanking them out of the back, the teen carefully stacked them up against the alleyway wall before sticking them together with webbing, making sure nobody else could stumble upon the little goldmine.

As he heard the sound of cars pulling up, the teen knew he had to take his leave. Leaping up towards the wall, the teen quickly began to scale the brick structure before flipping over onto the roof of the building right next to Oscorp.

Fumbling for his mask, Spidey yanked it off the second he was out of sight, allowing a relieved breath to pass through his lips as he took a second to relax. Peter let out a small groan as he rested the back of his head against the ledge, the injuries sustained in the fight now beginning to show through as his adrenaline wore off.

Peter opened his tired eyes as voices met his ears. Blinking back his exhaustion, the teen strained to make out what was being said, though with his advanced hearing he could pretty much make out every single word.

"It's over here! . . . Shit, what the hell is this stuff made out of anyway?!"

"I don't know. Just be grateful this crap's even here at all. This is - what - the fifth tech robbery in the past three weeks?"

Actually, it's the seventh, but who's counting? Peter muttered to himself.

"What's the word from the civilians?"

"Apparently there were three suspects dressed in all black with...I think they said masks...Anyway, they were apparently fighting Spider-Man before all four fled the scene."

"Well, they made one hell of a mess."

"Like I said, Morgan. Just be grateful this tech is still here. These psychos could make a shitload of money selling this crap to god-knows-who."

"They said a group, right?"

"Mm-hmm."

"You know, every report we've gotten on these robberies describes a group of people in all black with strange masks. You think maybe we're dealing with a gang or something?"

"I don't know...I guess it'd make sense. But all anyone's been able to get on these guys is that they all wear these weird masks with some sort of symbol on them. Every robbery they conduct is either identified the next morning or broken up by this Spider-guy. For some reason, they never trip any alarms, security protocols, nothing!"

"So they're smart..."

Peter clicked his tongue. No...their boss is smart.

"Well that at least separates them from most of the criminal gangs around here, so that's a start."

The two cops chuckled slightly before falling silent, Peter taking it as a sign of their departure. The sound of more engines revving told him that more officers were now arriving on the scene, meaning they could handle everything from here.

Pulling his mask back on, Peter slowly rose back up to his feet, letting out a barely audible groan as he did so. Could be worse, Parker. He muttered to himself. Just be grateful he didn't send out the elite squad tonight or you'd be more than just sore. He grumbled.

Still, it was hard to ignore the way his shoulder and chest shrieked in protest as he fired off a web at one of the taller buildings in the distance, nor the fiery pain coursing through his abdomen as he swung through the air.

That's enough for tonight, Spidey...

 

---

 

Tuesday - March 8, 2016

Stark Tower - Private Lab 1

06:47 p.m.

Tony hissed in pain as he ripped his hand away from the device, glaring down at the circuits that had shocked him.

The man let out an annoyed sigh as he forcefully slammed the screwdriver in his other hand down on the metal table in his lab. He ran a hand through his hair before dragging it down his face. He could feel his exhaustion pulling at his muscles as if trying to drag him towards his bed, but the man knew there was no point. He wouldn't be able to sleep anyway.

The sound of whirring off to the side as well as a soft banging made his lift his head. DUM-E was currently running back and forth into one of the other nearby tables. Thankfully, the only thing on top of the metal surfaces were papers and blueprints. Nothing breakable.

Rolling his eyes at the antics of his malfunctioning robot, Tony was about to delve back into working on the piece for his new suit when his eyes caught a glimpse of the TV hanging above DUM-E's head.

"FRIDAY, turn up the volume."

"-and we're now getting confirmation that Oscorp has now been the the seventh of a numerous string of different robberies plaguing the technologies manufacturing companies of New York. Live at the scene is Robert Malshaw. Robert?"

"Jen, we are here at Oscorp, where earlier this morning, an exciting battle took place here with different eyewitnesses placing local hero, Spider-Man at the scene. Reports describe the masked vigilante fighting off against three masked individuals. But, Jen, one of the most shocking developments is that many people are now saying the suspects were perhaps...enhanced individuals.

However, despite the fact that the suspects were able to flee the scene of the crime, police have confirmed that all the stolen tech was accounted for behind the back alley of Oscorp, secured in a web-like substance that many around here can safely assume came from our local hero.

At the moment, police have still been unable to crack down any key points or suspects in the robberies, there are rumors that each of these cases are somehow connected. But one thing is for certain, the people around here are pretty certain the police won't be alone in this little endeavor, if those webs have any indication. Jen?"

Tony lowered his gaze, running his fingers over the screwdriver in his hand before lightly tapping the handle on the table. "Not bad, kid." He murmured as he glanced back down at the new suit piece before him. He'd have to make sure to check up on the kid on Wednesday. Make sure he didn't do anything stupid to get himself hurt.

He checked his watch. There weren't any notifications or alarms coming in from the kid's suit, so he had to be alright.

Shaking his head, Tony tried to push the kid out of his mind. He'd wasted enough time today thinking about the teen. He didn't need to use up any more.

He was about to ask FRIDAY to turn the volume back down, only to freeze at the next words he heard.

"In other news, it has now been a little more than two weeks since it was officially declared that Captain Steve Rogers, Sam Wilson, James Barnes, Natasha Romanoff, Scott Lang, Clint Barton, and Wanda Maximoff were fugitives of the nation and wanted criminals."

Tony hesitantly lifted his head back up.

This development sparked after the controversial signing of the Sokovia Accords. After refusing to sign the new laws, Captain America aided in the escape of wanted fugitive James Barnes as well as resisting arrest with the aid of numerous other Avengers.

Not long after their imprisonment in an undisclosed location, Steve Rogers was responsible for the escape of his allies before their disappearance."

Tony felt his grip on the screwdriver in his hand tightening.

"This situation has been the center of many bouts of controversy among people of the world, including our own New York. Here with you now, we have several local statements about the unfolding situation."

The screen changed to a new person - a woman - on the streets, a large microphone being held up to her. "If you ask me, I say this whole thing is a load of shit. The Avengers were designed to protect us, not squabble like children. I say you just throw them in a room together and force them to make up or something. I mean, like...come on!"

A new person appeared. Male.

"If you ask me, I'd say it was about damn time. You know, I lost my house in that damn alien invasion a few years back. Who do you think had to work two jobs after that, huh? Definitely not that Tony Stark I'll tell you that! So if these Accord things drive a little responsibility into that damn group, then I say go for it."

One by one, more people popped up on the screen.

"This has to be some sort of misunderstanding. The Avengers are heroes. They're not the bad guy. They FIGHT the bad guys!"

. . .

"I say they finally got what they deserve. Those freaks had it coming. All they do is stir up trouble and act without any consequences! It's about time someone put them in their place."

. . .

"This is definitely that Tony Stark's fault! He's always been a pompous douchebag and now he's gone and dragged the rest of those heroes down with him! Why doesn't he get thrown in jail? He causes just as much damage as the rest of them! If you ask me, he's the worst out of all of them."

. . .

"I just want to say...Captain America saved my life once. I wouldn't be standing here if it wasn't for him. So I don't care what the news says. I don't care what anybody says. He'll always be a hero to me. They all will."

. . .

"You know what? Tony Stark can go and-"

"Turn it off."

The furious man's words were cut off before he could finish his thought, but the fact didn't make Tony feel any better.

The man fiddled with the screwdriver for a moment before taking notice of the fact that it was now bent slightly. Letting out a sigh, the man carelessly tossed the tool over his shoulder, a soft clatter reaching his ears.

He'd known it was a bad idea from the start.

Bring together a group of extraordinary people to do extraordinary things. On paper, sure. Maybe it could work out. Maybe things would go as planned.

But they never did. With people, there were always one too many variables. Now add a superhuman element to those people and you're looking at a real problem. Add an attitude issue and internal squabbling and you're looking at a disaster waiting to happen.

Well...guess they weren't really waiting anymore.

He knew it never would have worked. But...for a while there, things had looked as if they actually...might.

After New York, after people saw what they could do together, things had looked up. Sure, they hadn't exactly liked each other during that little situation, but even with their fighting, they'd still been able to come together to do something amazing.

Sokovia had done even more so. Once again, they had fought. But just as before, they'd moved past it and came together to do something great.

Well, here they were now.

As he'd said before, on paper...sure. Maybe they could have found a way to work through it. Maybe they could have compromised to find a solution to the Accords. Maybe they could have moved past it.

Maybe things would have gone as planned.

But they never did.

They had fought. But this time, there was no moving past it. There was no coming together. There was nothing great, nothing amazing, nothing...extraordinary.

No, this time it was just...broken.

Tony had known it was a bad idea. But he'd still found a family in the group. He'd found a family in those new friends, in those...extraordinary people.

He'd found confidants in Natasha and Bruce. He'd found friends in Clint, Sam, and Thor. And he'd almost found a brother in Steve, something he'd only ever seen in one other man, and that was because he'd known Rhodes for most of his teenage and adult life.

He'd trusted them.

The man glared down at the machine in his hands, picking it up as he traced his fingers over the metal and wires.

And then, the one time he'd actually been a hundred percent sure of his actions...the one time he'd needed his friends...his family behind him… they turned their backs on him.

His grip on the device tightened.

They betrayed him. He betrayed him! The one person he'd begun to count on to always have his back. The one person he'd finally begun to enjoy having around...talking to. The one person he'd valued as a friend the most.

The billionaire clenched his eyes and grit his teeth tightly as he fought to gain control over the erratic beating of his heart. But even the sound of blood rushing through his ears as well as the piercing whine shooting through his skull wasn't enough to drown out the words swirling around his head.

(You did this.)

Tony could feel the metal beginning to dig into his skin as he clenched his fist around it.

(You drove them away. You drive everyone away.)

Steve had simply thrown it all away. And for what? For an askew moral compass? For a secret he had no right to keep?

(Of course they left you.)

This was all Roger's fault. All of it! The Avengers falling apart. Rhodey's legs. Ross's insistence on making his life hell. His nightmares of one of his closest friends driving a shield through his heart!

(Everyone does.)

With a roar of rage, Tony reared his arm back and chuckled the metal device as hard as he could at the nearest wall. The piece exploded on impact, sparks, and wires flying everywhere as the shattered pieces fell to the floor.

The man heard his ragged breathing more than he felt it. He lifted a shaking hand towards his chest, rubbing at the faint scars his old reactor had left him. Slowly, the rage left his body like air from a balloon. His exhaustion and grief made him literally fall back into his chair out of his lack of energy. The man rested his arms on the table and placed his head on top of them as he let out a sigh. Fuck the nightmares. Let them come. His refrigerator was stocked and loaded for them anyway with those cure-all bottles.

Tony had known it was a bad idea.

So why did it hurt so much to be proven right?

 

---

 

Tuesday - March 8, 2016

Parker Residence - Second Floor Kitchen

07:45 p.m.

Peter fought to keep his gaze locked on the bubbling pot in front of him. Dinner had to be ready in fifteen minutes. He didn't have any time for distractions.

The teen cast a small glance over towards his math textbook currently lying on the kitchen table, waves of gratitude rolling off him at the fact that they'd had time after Decathlon practice to finish up their homework that day.

God knew he wouldn't have time for it tonight.

"Jesus! How the hell did you let him damage you this badly?"

"I didn't let him do anything! The little shit was stronger than we thought he was!"

The teen kept his gaze locked on the frothing pot as he shakily reached a hand towards the box of noodles on the side. He watched as the long thin strands pooled out of the box before disappearing beneath the water.

"We told you. We fucking told you, Tonya!" Max snarled from the doorway. "We needed those cases. Now we're going to have to send another team out to retrieve them. But of course, now we're going to have to wait until this dies down because you fuck-ups managed to almost get caught!" The man roared out in fury.

Despite his better judgment, Peter hesitantly glanced upwards at the counter where Curt was currently sitting. The man was unscrewing one of the plates on Tonya's arm as the woman glared elsewhere. Farther into the room, Max stood off against Rocky and Steel.

Peter had never bothered to learn their actual names. They never stuck around long enough.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Who the hell do you think you are, huh?" Steel snarled as he stepped closer. Now that his skin wasn't metallic anymore, the man looked much less intimidating. That, however, didn't stop him from getting defensive.

"We didn't sign up for fighting superheroes, alright? You said it would just be a simple mission in return for the upgrades you gave us!" He countered, morphing the skin on his hands in emphasis.

Max glared down at him. "That's because it was a simple mission." He snarled. "I just shouldn't be surprised you three somehow found a way to fuck it up!"

"Hey!" Steel barked. "We're the ones that were out there risking our necks. We're the ones who had to face off against that little freak. We're the ones that-"

"Failed. You're the ones that failed."

All heads - even Peter's - turned to watch as Richard emerged from the elevator. Peter was the only one to quickly turn away as he concentrated on stirring the pot.

(Head down. Mouth shut. Head down. Mouth shut.)

The man stalked into the room with a disgusted expression as he stopped next to Max. "We gave you one simple job. And you couldn't even do that."

Rocky and Steel exchanged glances before the latter stepped forward, getting right into Richard's face.

That's a mistake. Peter murmured to himself as he watched the noodles spin in the pot.

"Alright. Listen here, you stuck-up, rich boy. I don't need this. None of us do. We were perfectly fine without you and your little…" He paused to glance down at his hands, watching as they turned to steel before flickering back to normal. "...upgrades. And we'll be fine without you! In fact, I'd say you need to watch what you're saying and how you're saying it. Hate for someone out there to grow wise and get a little suspicious of you"

Richard leveled him a cold stare. "And just what are you saying exactly?"

Steel smirked at him. "I'm saying I think you should treat me with a little more respect. The things I know about you...about this place. Well…" He paused and glanced down at his fingernails before smirking. "I'd hate for somebody to...hear something."

Richard stared at the man for a moment longer before he let a small smirk fall onto his face as well. "Yes. I suppose you're right."

Faster than anyone could react, Richard whisked a gun out from behind his back and fired two shots at the man's chest. Steel barely had any time to gape in shock before another bullet was fired right in between his eyes.

Peter jerked at the noise, biting the inside of his cheek as he screamed at himself to keep his gaze locked on the pot before him.

Tonya's stared with wide eyes as the man fell to the ground with a thud, only to whisk back around as she felt a strong hand - one that hadn't been that strong a second ago - latch onto her already damaged wrist.

Whisking back around, she noticed a large scaly green hand was now wrapped around her arm, long black claws digging into the circuits. Lifting her head, she met Curt's now black eyes as the man grinned at her. "You might wanna sit down, honey." He said sweetly. "Cause you're not getting out of this now."

Richard glanced down at the body at his feet in disdain before glancing back up to Rocky, who was now being held against the wall by Max. "Now...do you share in your friend's sentiment?" the man asked as he leisurely twirled the gun back and forth.

Rocky was quick to shake his head back and forth.

Richard gave a smile. "Good. Now go join the others downstairs and I don't want to hear a word about this anymore. Do you understand me?" He asked darkly as Max lifted his free hand toward the captive man's face.

Rocky watched with wide eyes as Max's fingers sparked with electricity, dancing dangerously close to his eyes. "I...I-I understand...s-sir."

Max released his hold on him and the man floundered towards the elevator.

Curt's hand slowly transformed back as he stood up, Tonya doing the same as she watched the man cautiously. "Come on. I'm going to have to fix this down in the lab." He muttered, gesturing toward the woman's crushed arms.

She obeyed without complaint. They all did eventually.

Richard gazed down at the body for a moment longer before he glanced over at Max. "Deal with this, will you?"

The man nodded his head as Richard walked back over toward the elevator.

The dark-skinned man glanced down at the mess by his feet before letting out an annoyed huff. "Peter, get over here!"

The teen felt his grip on the spoon tighten for a moment before he released it, slowly and hesitantly walking over towards Max. He was careful to keep his eyes away from the steadily growing pool of blood.

The man gripped the back of Peter's neck. "Clean this up." He growled out before shoving the boy closer towards the mess. The teen caught a glimpse of the crimson pool and thrust his head away. He could feel his stomach churning. "B-but I have to...have t...d-dinner and-"

He gasped as Max lifted him up by the front of his shirt. The hold jostled Peter's still sore ribs as the teen floundered in the man's grasp. "Did you just talk back to me?"

The teen clenched his eyes shut as he turned away. "N...no sir." He sputtered out. A shocked gasp fell from his lips as Max tossed him to the ground, the teen landing on his side in the pool of blood, warm liquid splattering up against his cheek. "I don't want to see a single speck of blood on this floor when I get back." Max snarled darkly as he grabbed one of Steel's legs, dragging him over towards the elevator. A thick smear of blood followed after him, but Peter wasn't even paying attention anymore. His gaze was locked on his shaking, blood-covered hands.

"Oh...and you have ten minutes till dinner," Max called back with a sadistic smirk adorning his face. "Make sure that's ready." The elevator doors closed around him, leaving Peter alone in the room.

The teen stared down at his red hands before his resolve shattered as he struggled to smear the blood off of his hands, terrified sobs escaping his lips as he haphazardly wiped the blood off of his cheek with the back of his sleeve, panicked tears rolling down his face as the red liquid refused to come off of his fingers.

Peter didn't even notice when the pot of noodles boiled over.