Back to GatefoldIssue #14 by Mike Exner III
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"PULLING STRINGS - Part One - Stone Cold Stunner"
Previously in the Amazing Spider-Man: Peter, searching for a job, dropped by the Daily Bugle where he found not only a steady paycheck, but a place to stay as well, courtesy of Robbie's troublesome son Randy. After a tussle with the Rhino that involved Daredevil and Spidey's friend Eugene, also known as the fabulous Frogman, Spidey confessed his greatest secret to Eugene, that he is in fact really Peter Parker. Pete headed on back to the Bugle to collect his check and ran into his Aunt May, Jill Stacey, and Angela Yin, a new photographer hired by the Bugle, on his way to Randy's place.
"Welcome to paradise, Pete," said Randy Robertson as he opened the door before Peter could even raise his hand to knock. A strong hint of incense wafted from the apartment into the hallway and hit Peter like a brick making his headache even worse than it already was. Even though it had been hours since he and Daredevil had tangled with the Rhino, it seemed like the villain was still playing the drums on his skull. Still, he couldn't help but smile at the memory of Rhino wailing as the police carted him off when he'd been defeated by none other than Spidey's friend Eugene, more commonly known as Frogman.* Peter doubted Rhino would ever live that one down. Randy interpreted the smile as his cue to pat Peter on the back and usher him inside. Neither of which helped his head to stop pounding.
[*Issue #13 - Will]
Once inside, Randy took a long hard look at Peter, and the overnight bag he was carrying, and then pushed by him to peer outside into the hall. Peter looked after him and when Randy came back inside looking perplexed, Peter understood immediately.
"No more luggage, Randy. This is all I have," said Peter and he felt a bit of anger swell up into his body, drowning the smile on his face. His penthouse apartment and everything he and his wife had owned had gone up in smoke. All of Peter's clothes, photo equipment, and countless other items that could never be replaced as easily. Possessions that helped fuel memories of what had gone on in Peter's life before all the recent tragedy. Sometimes Peter wished he could just forget and start over. Randy seemed to understand this concept perfectly.
"It's cool, Pete. I know how it is sometimes," was all Randy said but Peter found that his smile was infectious. Even though Peter didn't know him that well, Randy seemed like such a good guy. He was genuinely trying to help Peter to forget his troubles for no other reason than that Peter had lost his smile.
"Ok, I suppose I should take you on the grand tour now. Trust me, this is the cream of the bachelor pad crop, my man. We are gonna have a blast," said Randy and snatched Peter's overnight bag from him. He grabbed Peter by the arm and took him from one corner of the apartment to the next. Briefly describing each room in detail from the kitchen, to the bathroom, to Randy's own room. Finally they made their way to Peter's room and Randy kicked at the door to open it.
"And here's your room," Randy said and as the door opened and the room became visible, Peter winced. There had to be at least a hundred posters of punk metal thrasher bands clinging to the walls. Open pizza boxes and Chinese food containers littered the floor surrounding what appeared to be a dead animal all curled up in a ball. Randy noticed Peter's flinch but took no real note of it, just threw his bag into one corner of the room and patted Peter on the back yet again. A spike of pain shot through Peter's head and made him grit his teeth.
"What the hell is this, Randy?" Peter asked and took a hold of one of Randy's shoulders, squeezing down harder than he should have. Randy got the message.
"I know. Believe me when I say I know what you're thinking, Pete. The guy who lived here before me, well, I didn't really know him and he sort of trashed the place. I just haven't had a chance to clean up for you," said Randy, trying to maneuver himself out of Peter's grasp.
"Didn't have a chance to clean it up?" Peter argued as Randy started to move away. "You must have had nearly ten hours to do something."
"I know, and to tell you the truth, it was even worse off before than it is now. I threw a lot of the garbage out already. There's really not that much left to do when you think about it," Randy said as he grabbed his coat and slid his arm through it.
"Where do you think you're going?" Peter asked as he moved to intercept Randy before he could scuttle out the door.
"One of my jobs is working as a bartender at one of those Coyote Ugly type places downtown, Pete. Only there ain't no babes behind the bar… just us guys. I'm kind of late as it is after spending all this time showing you around and I really need the check, you know?" said Randy and Peter cracked a grin. This was how he used to act around Aunt May when he wanted to get out of a chore and it was kind of fun playing the part of the annoyed parent.
"All this time showing me around? I've only been here like five minutes, Randy. You just don't want to help me clean up all that crap in my room. And what the heck is that thing lying in the middle of the floor?" Peter was advancing on Randy now who was backpedaling frantically towards the middle of the living room.
"I don't know and I don't wanna know. That's your department, amigo," said Randy with a grin firmly planted on his face as well. Suddenly Randy spread his legs out and performed a juke move that would of made Barry Sanders envious, twirling around Peter and heading for the door.
"Get back here, Randy," Peter said and gave chase. He wasn't going to seriously injure Randy. Just give him a couple of quality bruises. A good old-fashioned roommate tussle was something he'd always missed from his bachelor pad days with Harry and he fully intended to milk this opportunity to the fullest. Randy was a quick little devil though as he already had his hand on the knob. Still, Peter grabbed the collar of Randy's coat and yanked on it, pulling Randy backwards and the door swung open with him.
"Cut it out, Pete. I seriously have to go," said Randy, but he was laughing openly now and so was Peter. Randy whipped his arm around his back to try and pry Peter's fingers from his jacket but to no avail. Randy was amazed that such a little guy had such a viselike grip.
"Am I interrupting anything, boys?" came a decidedly feminine voice from the open doorway and both men peered up to see who it was. Neither of them stopped smiling, although they dropped their hands to their sides as if they'd been caught by a scolding parent. Randy's smile was particularly bright as his eyes swept over the lithe beauty with the raven hair standing before him.
"I could always come back later after the wrestling match is over," she said, eyeing both men.
"No, no, no, don't you go anywhere, baby girl," Randy said and Peter nearly slapped him in the back of the head. Randy was hilarious and definitely a good guy, but his suave, smooth player attitude was a bit annoying. Jill seemed to take it in stride though as Randy took a hold of her hand and kissed it lightly.
"I wouldn't dream of going anywhere with two hunky guys like you sweating all over the place," said Jill as she turned her attention to Peter. Peter couldn't help but laugh despite himself. Randy looked down at his keeled over roommate and shrugged.
"Don't mind him, babe. He's got some kind of rare condition where he can't look straight into the eyes of any pretty young thing and possibly keep his composure," said Randy as he strove for Jill's attention once again. "Maybe you'd like to take a walk with me. I'm on my way to work but I promise a free drink or two if you tag along."
Jill eyed the tag on Randy's outfit closely and then spoke in a seductive voice that even made Peter stop laughing and pay attention.
"Oh, you work at the Empire Heat? That's got to be the hottest club in the city," Jill purred as she traced the outline of the tag pinned to Randy's shirt. Randy was nodding and visibly sweating now. Pete just grinned.
"But considering its ladies night and I could get in for free and drink until I drop anyway, I think I'll pass," said Jill, taking her hands off of Randy's shirt and looking at him coldly. Randy stuttered some unintelligible reply as Jill pushed past him and embraced Peter who was laughing again.
"Randy, this is my friend Jill. I asked her to drop by and check up on me just in case you were a serial killer or something," said Peter and Randy and Jill shook hands, this time without the kiss. Peter was half expecting the kiss again anyway.
"Sorry, Jill. It's nice to meet you. Any friend of this guy is a friend of mine," said Randy and started to move slowly towards the door.
"Randy… what are you doing?" said Peter who was trying to get past Jill.
"Well, I hate to make a fool of myself and then run, but it looks like you got all the help you need to clean up that mess, Pete. Later," said Randy and bolted out the door.
"Randy… wait!" Peter yelled and nearly knocked Jill over in an effort to make a grab for Randy before he could hit the hallway. By the time Peter got to the doorway though, Randy was nearly to the door of the stairwell, looking back with a huge grin on his face.
"You're just too slow for me, Pete. I'll be back sometime later tonight and I'll help out some more then, ok?" Randy hollered down the hall and then he was gone. Peter turned around and Jill was glowering at him and rubbing her sore hip.
"What mess?" Jill asked and all Peter could do was smile.
"You have any idea where Peter or that new photographer Angela Yin are, Robbie?" asked Ben Urich as he practically ran into Robbie Robertson's office and placed his hands on his desk. Robbie took his pipe out of his mouth and gazed up through the smoke at Ben quizzically.
"Weren't you supposed to have been at the Museum of Natural Art an hour ago to cover the story on that artifact being donated, Ben?" Robbie asked patiently and Ben felt like choking the man.
"Of course I was supposed to be there an hour ago but this isn't exactly my type of assignment and you did throw it to me out of the blue, Robbie," said Ben as he mildly scratched at the stubble underneath his chin… a habit that Ben knew annoyed Robbie to no end.
"This is not my problem, Ben," said Robbie as he thumbed quickly through his rolodex. He plucked a card from it and held it out to Ben. "I sent Angela on assignment earlier and she should be back pretty soon but that probably won't help. Here's my son's apartment number. Peter was headed over there the last I heard so you might be able to reach him there."
Ben snatched the card from Robbie's fingers and made to dart back out of the office but Robbie stopped him.
"If you can't contact Peter or Angela for this assignment I'll expect you to take pictures of that piece yourself, Ben. Understood?" said Robbie as he clutched his pipe and placed it back between his teeth.
"Perfectly understood, boss," replied Ben sarcastically and then rushed out of the office, knocking over a stack of papers Robbie had balanced shakily near the door. Robbie sighed. He wished Jonah would hurry up and get back. Nobody took any of Robbie's threats seriously.
"What the hell is that?" Jill asked for what seemed like the hundredth time, her hand covered over her mouth and nose to block out the stench emanating from Peter's new room. The other hand was pointing at the lump of gray fur lying still amidst the rest of the garbage. Peter had actually stepped into the room, but Jill didn't seem anxious to follow suit. She lingered outside the doorway pointing to one thing or another that shocked and disgusted her, urging Peter to pick it up.
"I don't know. And if you'd been paying attention at all, Miss Stacy, you would of noted that my foray into this place has taken me to every corner of this room, specifically to avoid answering exactly that question," said Peter in a voice muffled by the t-shirt he had tied around his face. The stench was truly repugnant but it had lessened once the pizza boxes and Chinese food cartons had been disposed of. Now Peter was stripping the walls of posters and he was surprised to see that most of the wall was relatively clean underneath. He actually had hope for this place.
"Well, you're going to have to do something about it eventually, Peter," Jill said and took two tentative steps into the room before backing right back out with a screech. Peter turned her way with posters literally filling his arms.
"What? What is it now?" Peter asked. Jill's face was a mask of horror and she spoke shakily.
"It m-moved, Peter. It moved towards me when I tried to come in," Jill said making wild gestures in the general direction of the mass of fur lying on the ground.
"Oh for crying out loud. This is getting ridiculous," said Peter and walked towards the gray creature after placing the ripped posters in various garbage bags.
"Careful, Peter," Jill said with true concern on her face and Peter would have laughed if her expression hadn't been so full of evident compassion. It was just a little furry 'thing', probably dead, there was no way it could hurt a guy who went up against super-villains on a regular basis.
"Here goes nothing," said Peter and flashes of rabies and sharp teeth streamed through his head as he kicked the furry thing over. Jill screeched again and this time Peter did laugh as he finally realized what it was. He picked it up off the ground and waved it towards Jill's direction.
"It's a fur hat, Jill. Just a fur hat, nothing dangerous at all about thi…" but Peter was cut off as Jill once again screeched, this time at the top of her lungs and then began to fall backwards. Peter leaped quickly to catch her before she could fall and Jill clung madly to his clothes in an effort to steady herself.
"Jill, are you ok? What happened?" Peter asked and as Jill held on to him, Peter became aware of the lack of comfort that was slowly bringing itself to bear. Jill was looking at Peter like he was her personal savior and also with something else in her eyes that made Peter nervous. He hoisted her back up to her feet easily and she stumbled over to the couch and sat on the arm.
"S-something brushed by my leg and I just freaked out and tripped, that's all," said Jill and Peter shook his head and chuckled. Suddenly though, Peter felt it too, something warm pressing itself to his leg and he jumped himself, nearly falling over.
"Peter, look," said Jill but Peter already was and when he saw it he smiled. He reached down and picked it up and brought it over to Jill. She wasn't as pleased as Peter seemed to be and it showed.
"Oh, it smells horrible, Peter. Get that away from me," Jill said blocking Peter's approach with her hands.
"C'mon, Jill. After being in that room as long as we have, you think this guy smells bad?" said Peter and stroked the cat he held in his hands. He took a hold of the collar and twisted it around so he could see the tag and his suspicions were confirmed when he saw the name etched there. Smoke. He couldn't believe that the cat who had shown up at his penthouse right before it had been destroyed had survived and then found its way to his new apartment.* It had to be some kind of sign.
[*Smoke debuted in issue #2 - Pet Friendly Will]
"You're not actually thinking about keeping that thing are you, Peter?" Jill asked and the cat hissed at her. Peter stroked the cat to help it calm down.
"His name is Smoke, not Thing, and of course I'm going to keep him. This little guy and I go way back. I hope Randy doesn't mind," said Peter and dropped the cat at his feet. Jill brought her feet up off the floor and completely onto the couch to avoid the cat.
"Yeah, well I hope he's allergic to cats and makes you get rid of it," Jill said menacingly.
"Now that I think about it, I hope he's allergic too. It'd be the perfect revenge on him for making me clean up that pigsty of a room by myself."
"Hey, you had me," said Jill with sugar in her voice.
"I rest my case," Peter responded and Jill playfully hit him on the shoulder. The ringing of the phone stopped them both short.
"Should you answer it?" Jill asked as Peter walked towards the phone.
"I don't see why not, this is my place too after all," said Peter as he placed his hand on the phone. He hesitated for a second but then saw that Randy owned a caller identification box that proclaimed the name and number of whoever was calling. In this case it was the number of the Daily Bugle and Peter picked up the phone. After a brief conversation he hung up and headed back into his room. Jill watched as he grabbed his jacket and camera from the overnight bag and opened all the windows in the room, closing the door on his way out.
"What's up?" Jill asked as Peter zipped his jacket halfway up.
"That was Ben Urich from the Bugle, you met him earlier remember?" said Peter and Jill nodded. "He wants me to head on over to the Museum of Natural Art and take some pictures of a piece being displayed there tonight. Apparently it was donated by some famous archeologist and it's a really big deal. Lucky me… I get to take the pics."
"Why don't you just pass it on to somebody else?" Jill asked as Peter opened the front door and stepped out into the hallway.
"Nah, Ben Urich is a good friend of mine and I'm not about to leave him hanging. Besides… I need the money," said Peter and Jill got up to follow him but Peter waved her back down. "No, stay here. I'll be back in a couple hours at the most and then we'll go out to get something to eat ok? Just watch TV for a while and play with Smoke."
Peter left, closing the door behind him and Jill slumped back down onto the couch, grabbing the remote and flicking through the channels on TV. Smoke plunked down directly in her line of sight and Jill frowned.
"Play with Smoke. Oh yeah, we're gonna have a blast," muttered Jill to herself and sighed.
Ben Urich arrived at the museum and immediately joined the flock of reporters, both television and newspaper, who were gathered near the entrance of the museum. It was a chilly night but it didn't seem to deter the press conference at all. Urich pushed through most of the men and women assembled there and upon reaching the front, saw the reason everyone was flinging questions so wildly.
There, standing with the proud caretaker of the museum, was Sekmeht Conoway. Conoway was, quite frankly, a real life incarnation of Indiana Jones. Urich doubted that many men would shy away from her use of the whip though. She was known worldwide for her daring explorations that almost always yielded high results. The most recent of these expeditions had taken her into China, where she'd discovered the relic on display at the museum tonight. The Eye of the Sun.
Apparently it was a mysterious piece that scientists had been dying to get their hands on ever since it had been found. It had a strange luminescence that seemed to come from directly within itself. Nothing like it had ever been found before but Conway had simply donated it to the museum for public viewing, rather than have it prodded and probed in a lab somewhere for years. Therefore, there was a lot of controversy surrounding this event and the Bugle needed one of their top reporters there to cover it. Urich still wasn't happy about the assignment, but when he raised his hand and Sek placed that lovely dark gaze on him, her face with its olive skin framed by raven colored hair, Urich couldn't think of anywhere else he'd rather be.
There were at least a hundred other places she'd rather be. This was the thought echoing in the mind of the statuesque woman watching the media circus from across the street. Even decked out in an oversized trench coat, the woman caught stares from people passing by. She was nearly seven feet tall with long blonde hair spilling down her back. She ignored their gawking. In a few seconds she would shed this coat and make her move. Her precious needed this 'Eye of the Sun' or whatever it was called, and what her lover wanted, her lover got, no matter what.
She started walking across the street, looking both ways for traffic first, and unwrapped the strap tying the trench coat around her waist. The trench coat fluttered open, revealing a skin-tight, red, black and silver outfit that was really nothing more than a decorated bathing suit with large titanium spikes and armor plating smoothed out over it. She left the coat in the middle of the street as she leapt into the air, the direction of her descent carrying her directly towards the huddle of reporters surrounding archeologist chick and the Eye of the Sun.
It didn't take long for Peter to get to the museum as the Amazing Spider-Man. Travel by webs was definitely the way to go if you needed to get anywhere in the city in a hurry. He landed on top of the museum and noticed all the reporters below. Ben had told Peter that the story was a big deal but he still hadn't imagined there'd be this much of a fuss over some rock being donated to the city.
He tucked his thumbs under his mask, trusting his spider-sense to warn him of anyone peeking at him from one of the buildings across the street. Suddenly his spider-sense did go off but it directed his attention back down towards the street. He let his mask slide back down over his face but all he saw was somebody in a trench coat making their way across the street. The intensity of the warning increased as the person Spidey had first mistaken as a large man shed the coat and jumped into the air. Those curves and the sheer size of the woman were familiar to Spidey and he fired a web-line and swung off the roof on an intercept course.
The woman sailed up through the air and then gravity forced her back down. She'd set up her leap perfectly and would land right in between the reporters and the archeologist. All she had to do was grab the girl by her pretty black hair and threaten to snap her neck if someone didn't hand over the artifact. No problem. Suddenly a shadow passed over her face and she glanced up just in time to see a red fist slam into her face. Her trajectory was thrown off and she crashed hard into the concrete steps of the museum. Amazingly she jumped up to her feet immediately and scanned the sky for her attacker.
Sekmeht Conoway answered another of a seemingly endless line of questions asked by the congregation of reporters. She was becoming seriously annoyed. Her place wasn't in the city at a press conference but she knew this was just another of the things she'd agreed to take part in on her trip to New York. The first had been an archaeological excavation of a Viking homestead for Empire State University. That had been a huge disaster, but luckily Iron Man had kept it from turning into a much larger one.* Still, even with all the excitement of the past few days, this wasn't where she belonged. She belonged in the wilds of the ancient ruins searching for treasure.
[See the "Black Mist" storyline in Iron Man #10-13 - Will]
When she was a young girl her father had come to her almost every night with a story to read to her before bedtime. Her favorites were always tales where pirates and adventurers took long journeys to far off places searching for gold, or lamps with a genie inside that could grant your every wish. She would urge her father to read books like that long into the night and her father never denied her. She told him that one day she would be just like the people she loved so much in her books and he never doubted her.
Her father had worked at a museum in Libya all the days of his life and he would often campaign for items found throughout the world to be showcased there. Items such as the Eye of the Sun belonged in museums. The prize of the Hsien Temple excavation had been taken from her and she'd be damned if that would happen to the Eye. New York and its press seemed grateful enough of the gesture. Now if only their gratitude would taper off so she could get on with the display. The Eye was in a glass case sitting between the museum caretaker and herself. They'd lift the black velvet cover on top of it, photographers would take their pictures, and then Sek could get the hell out of here and on the next plane to…wherever.
Suddenly there was a crash and the reporters all turned in unison. A few of the photographers started taking pictures frantically and Sek peered through the mass of bodies at what had grabbed their attention. There, standing not twenty feet away was Spider-Man. About twenty feet farther down the steps of the museum was a woman Sek had never seen before, a woman nearly the size of a truck. Sek frowned a deep crease into her brow. The woman was blonde and beautiful, similar in appearance to the Encantare woman who had ruined the Viking excavation.* There was no doubt in Sekmeht Conoway's mind that the woman was after the Eye of the Sun. She was beginning to really hate blondes.
[*It was actually the Enchantress in a "clever" disguise in Iron Man #10-13 again - Will]
"Yoo-hoo, Miss Muscles! I'm over here," said Spider-Man who was standing about twenty steps above, blocking the super-strong woman's path to the press and the archeologist chick. Spider-Man was a pain, but she'd taken him out before, she could do it again. She grabbed a chunk of the steps she'd hit and held it like a crude baseball bat. Then she started running up the steps towards Spider-Man.
"Let's see, stands seven feet tall, long flowing hair, muscles that would make a professional wrestler green with envy. You're not She-Hulk in disguise are you?" said Spider-Man as he effortlessly leaped over the woman's clumsy swing. He bounded down twenty steps in one leap and shot a strand of webbing that attached itself firmly to the woman's butt. "No, of course you're not. I hear she's hanging on the west coast now with the Thunderbolts, but if they ever make a She-Hulk movie, I bet you'd be a shoe-in for the part."
Spider-Man tugged on the strand of webbing and whipped the woman back out into the street. Museum security rushed out of the building but held their distance from the battle. Spider-Man blessed them as they rushed into the street to stop any oncoming traffic.
"Just me and you now, pretty lady," said Spidey as he made his way down to the pavement. The woman had gotten up and she was actually smiling flirtatiously at Spider-Man.
"What's wrong, Spidey? You don't remember me?" said the woman as she dusted herself off. She still had the length of concrete step gripped in one of her hands. "Surely you couldn't have forgotten the girl that rocked your world the first time we met. It's not often that Stunner doesn't leave a lasting impression on a man."
Stunner crushed the block of concrete in her hand and tossed a piece of it at Spider-Man. He moved to the side and it hit the street, leaving a pothole in its wake.
"Sorry, I have so many flings with so many super-powered, female powerhouses that it's tough to keep up. Maybe if you showed me some pictures of our time together it'd jog my memory," said Spidey and jumped to within reach of Stunner. He reared back his fist and punched her square in the jaw. Stunner's head was rocked back, but the punch didn't seem to take any effect other than that. Stunner reached out and took hold of Spidey in a headlock that immediately cut off the flow of air to his lungs.
"Does this jog any memories, wall-crawler?" said Stunner and Spidey knew he was in trouble. Stunner was definitely stronger and more invulnerable than he was and if she could take a direct blow to her jaw and not even flinch, there was no way he'd be able to muscle out of her hold on him.
"You're so cute, Spidey. I just want to squeeze you to death," said Stunner as she squeezed tighter.
"Oh, now I remember you," Spidey gasped as he struggled for breath. He planted his feet and crouched low to the ground. Stunner tried to keep him upright but his ability to cling to surfaces brought them both down anyway. Using all of his strength, Spidey leaped into the air, bringing Stunner with him. Once in the air, the advantage went to Spidey who twisted out of Stunner's grip and kicked her away. He landed lithely on his feet and Stunner landed right on her butt.
"The hug is much appreciated, Stunner. But I don't think the city's work crews are going to appreciate all the potholes you're putting in the street," said Spidey as Stunner got up from the small crater she'd made when she hit the ground. Every time Spidey had faced Stunner before he'd either lost the fight, or she'd disappeared before the fight was finished. He didn't plan on losing or letting her escape this time.
"You're not trying to make cracks about my butt are you Spidey?" Stunner said and her smile and suggestive looks were really starting to bug Spidey. His own style of fighting with villains included rattling them with his banter but Stunner seemed ready to go toe to toe with him on not only the physical front, but the verbal one as well.
"Well, I've got to admit it is kind of nice. But the webbing thong is definitely out of style," said Spidey, determined not to let her out do him. Stunner reached around behind her to take hold of the webbing still clinging to her suit and Spider-Man made his move.
Stunner easily ripped the webbing off of her and turned back around to make a crack about how sticky it was, but Spider-man was nowhere in sight. She turned around in a circle with a puzzled look on her face and just as she decided that Spider-Man might have retreated, she was greeted with a face full of webbing. Stunner reached up and tore at the webbing. It felt weird on her face and she didn't like it.
"Blindfolds are out too, wall-crawler. If you want to impress this lady you're going to have to think of something a little better," said Stunner and tried to take a step, nearly falling flat on her face. Her feet were webbed to the ground.
"Well, how about bondage then?" Spider-Man asked as he unloaded cartridge after cartridge of webbing around Stunner, encapsulating her in a thick cocoon of webbing that even she couldn't break out of. Heck, Spidey doubted the Hulk could of broken out of it. "A bit much for so early in our relationship, I know. But what can I say. I'm a freak."
Stunner slumped down slowly to the ground and Spider-Man hoisted her over his shoulder. There wasn't that much damage done to the street and if the cops showed up pretty quickly then he'd have plenty of time to make the change to Peter Parker and meet up with Ben, who Spidey could see was frantically scribbling notes, so he could take pictures of the piece on display. Spidey's automatic camera was already snapping pictures of his capture of Stunner. Luckily, all the pictures would be sold to the Bugle and Peter would pull down a really fat check. All in all, Spider-Man was having a pretty good night.
"Put her down, Spider-Man. Put her down right now and I may not disembowel you where you stand" said a menacing voice from behind Spidey and he kicked himself for forgetting to knock on wood. He turned even though he didn't need to see who it was to place a face to the all to familiar voice. Spidey let the struggling Stunner fall to the ground as his spider-sense danced forcefully through his brain.
Standing in front of him on two flexible metal legs was one of the deadliest men on the planet. Two other metal arms snaked near his upper body and seemed to beckon Spider-Man to attack. The man wore a white suit with a black dress shirt and bright black dress shoes. If it wasn't for the fact that he was a cold-blooded killer with mechanical arms capable of crushing a man's bones, he might have seemed like another dignified member of the public desiring to witness the unveiling of the artifact himself.
When he spoke again, he shattered that assumption and Spider-man knew the time for talk was over. "I need the Eye of the Sun, Spider-Man. Treading over your broken body to acquire it will be a pleasure that has long evaded Doctor Octopus."
Next Issue: Spider-Man battles for his life in our main event with the deadly Doctor Octopus. Why is Doc Ock so obsessed with the Eye of the Sun and will Spidey be able to figure it out before it's too late? Also in the under card bouts, Randy tangles with Smoke the cat, and Frog Man battles Aunt May? I wouldn't write it unless it happens folks. Be here for part two of "Pulling Strings".
"Welcome to paradise, Pete," said Randy Robertson as he opened the door before Peter could even raise his hand to knock. A strong hint of incense wafted from the apartment into the hallway and hit Peter like a brick making his headache even worse than it already was. Even though it had been hours since he and Daredevil had tangled with the Rhino, it seemed like the villain was still playing the drums on his skull. Still, he couldn't help but smile at the memory of Rhino wailing as the police carted him off when he'd been defeated by none other than Spidey's friend Eugene, more commonly known as Frogman.* Peter doubted Rhino would ever live that one down. Randy interpreted the smile as his cue to pat Peter on the back and usher him inside. Neither of which helped his head to stop pounding.
[*Issue #13 - Will]
Once inside, Randy took a long hard look at Peter, and the overnight bag he was carrying, and then pushed by him to peer outside into the hall. Peter looked after him and when Randy came back inside looking perplexed, Peter understood immediately.
"No more luggage, Randy. This is all I have," said Peter and he felt a bit of anger swell up into his body, drowning the smile on his face. His penthouse apartment and everything he and his wife had owned had gone up in smoke. All of Peter's clothes, photo equipment, and countless other items that could never be replaced as easily. Possessions that helped fuel memories of what had gone on in Peter's life before all the recent tragedy. Sometimes Peter wished he could just forget and start over. Randy seemed to understand this concept perfectly.
"It's cool, Pete. I know how it is sometimes," was all Randy said but Peter found that his smile was infectious. Even though Peter didn't know him that well, Randy seemed like such a good guy. He was genuinely trying to help Peter to forget his troubles for no other reason than that Peter had lost his smile.
"Ok, I suppose I should take you on the grand tour now. Trust me, this is the cream of the bachelor pad crop, my man. We are gonna have a blast," said Randy and snatched Peter's overnight bag from him. He grabbed Peter by the arm and took him from one corner of the apartment to the next. Briefly describing each room in detail from the kitchen, to the bathroom, to Randy's own room. Finally they made their way to Peter's room and Randy kicked at the door to open it.
"And here's your room," Randy said and as the door opened and the room became visible, Peter winced. There had to be at least a hundred posters of punk metal thrasher bands clinging to the walls. Open pizza boxes and Chinese food containers littered the floor surrounding what appeared to be a dead animal all curled up in a ball. Randy noticed Peter's flinch but took no real note of it, just threw his bag into one corner of the room and patted Peter on the back yet again. A spike of pain shot through Peter's head and made him grit his teeth.
"What the hell is this, Randy?" Peter asked and took a hold of one of Randy's shoulders, squeezing down harder than he should have. Randy got the message.
"I know. Believe me when I say I know what you're thinking, Pete. The guy who lived here before me, well, I didn't really know him and he sort of trashed the place. I just haven't had a chance to clean up for you," said Randy, trying to maneuver himself out of Peter's grasp.
"Didn't have a chance to clean it up?" Peter argued as Randy started to move away. "You must have had nearly ten hours to do something."
"I know, and to tell you the truth, it was even worse off before than it is now. I threw a lot of the garbage out already. There's really not that much left to do when you think about it," Randy said as he grabbed his coat and slid his arm through it.
"Where do you think you're going?" Peter asked as he moved to intercept Randy before he could scuttle out the door.
"One of my jobs is working as a bartender at one of those Coyote Ugly type places downtown, Pete. Only there ain't no babes behind the bar… just us guys. I'm kind of late as it is after spending all this time showing you around and I really need the check, you know?" said Randy and Peter cracked a grin. This was how he used to act around Aunt May when he wanted to get out of a chore and it was kind of fun playing the part of the annoyed parent.
"All this time showing me around? I've only been here like five minutes, Randy. You just don't want to help me clean up all that crap in my room. And what the heck is that thing lying in the middle of the floor?" Peter was advancing on Randy now who was backpedaling frantically towards the middle of the living room.
"I don't know and I don't wanna know. That's your department, amigo," said Randy with a grin firmly planted on his face as well. Suddenly Randy spread his legs out and performed a juke move that would of made Barry Sanders envious, twirling around Peter and heading for the door.
"Get back here, Randy," Peter said and gave chase. He wasn't going to seriously injure Randy. Just give him a couple of quality bruises. A good old-fashioned roommate tussle was something he'd always missed from his bachelor pad days with Harry and he fully intended to milk this opportunity to the fullest. Randy was a quick little devil though as he already had his hand on the knob. Still, Peter grabbed the collar of Randy's coat and yanked on it, pulling Randy backwards and the door swung open with him.
"Cut it out, Pete. I seriously have to go," said Randy, but he was laughing openly now and so was Peter. Randy whipped his arm around his back to try and pry Peter's fingers from his jacket but to no avail. Randy was amazed that such a little guy had such a viselike grip.
"Am I interrupting anything, boys?" came a decidedly feminine voice from the open doorway and both men peered up to see who it was. Neither of them stopped smiling, although they dropped their hands to their sides as if they'd been caught by a scolding parent. Randy's smile was particularly bright as his eyes swept over the lithe beauty with the raven hair standing before him.
"I could always come back later after the wrestling match is over," she said, eyeing both men.
"No, no, no, don't you go anywhere, baby girl," Randy said and Peter nearly slapped him in the back of the head. Randy was hilarious and definitely a good guy, but his suave, smooth player attitude was a bit annoying. Jill seemed to take it in stride though as Randy took a hold of her hand and kissed it lightly.
"I wouldn't dream of going anywhere with two hunky guys like you sweating all over the place," said Jill as she turned her attention to Peter. Peter couldn't help but laugh despite himself. Randy looked down at his keeled over roommate and shrugged.
"Don't mind him, babe. He's got some kind of rare condition where he can't look straight into the eyes of any pretty young thing and possibly keep his composure," said Randy as he strove for Jill's attention once again. "Maybe you'd like to take a walk with me. I'm on my way to work but I promise a free drink or two if you tag along."
Jill eyed the tag on Randy's outfit closely and then spoke in a seductive voice that even made Peter stop laughing and pay attention.
"Oh, you work at the Empire Heat? That's got to be the hottest club in the city," Jill purred as she traced the outline of the tag pinned to Randy's shirt. Randy was nodding and visibly sweating now. Pete just grinned.
"But considering its ladies night and I could get in for free and drink until I drop anyway, I think I'll pass," said Jill, taking her hands off of Randy's shirt and looking at him coldly. Randy stuttered some unintelligible reply as Jill pushed past him and embraced Peter who was laughing again.
"Randy, this is my friend Jill. I asked her to drop by and check up on me just in case you were a serial killer or something," said Peter and Randy and Jill shook hands, this time without the kiss. Peter was half expecting the kiss again anyway.
"Sorry, Jill. It's nice to meet you. Any friend of this guy is a friend of mine," said Randy and started to move slowly towards the door.
"Randy… what are you doing?" said Peter who was trying to get past Jill.
"Well, I hate to make a fool of myself and then run, but it looks like you got all the help you need to clean up that mess, Pete. Later," said Randy and bolted out the door.
"Randy… wait!" Peter yelled and nearly knocked Jill over in an effort to make a grab for Randy before he could hit the hallway. By the time Peter got to the doorway though, Randy was nearly to the door of the stairwell, looking back with a huge grin on his face.
"You're just too slow for me, Pete. I'll be back sometime later tonight and I'll help out some more then, ok?" Randy hollered down the hall and then he was gone. Peter turned around and Jill was glowering at him and rubbing her sore hip.
"What mess?" Jill asked and all Peter could do was smile.
"You have any idea where Peter or that new photographer Angela Yin are, Robbie?" asked Ben Urich as he practically ran into Robbie Robertson's office and placed his hands on his desk. Robbie took his pipe out of his mouth and gazed up through the smoke at Ben quizzically.
"Weren't you supposed to have been at the Museum of Natural Art an hour ago to cover the story on that artifact being donated, Ben?" Robbie asked patiently and Ben felt like choking the man.
"Of course I was supposed to be there an hour ago but this isn't exactly my type of assignment and you did throw it to me out of the blue, Robbie," said Ben as he mildly scratched at the stubble underneath his chin… a habit that Ben knew annoyed Robbie to no end.
"This is not my problem, Ben," said Robbie as he thumbed quickly through his rolodex. He plucked a card from it and held it out to Ben. "I sent Angela on assignment earlier and she should be back pretty soon but that probably won't help. Here's my son's apartment number. Peter was headed over there the last I heard so you might be able to reach him there."
Ben snatched the card from Robbie's fingers and made to dart back out of the office but Robbie stopped him.
"If you can't contact Peter or Angela for this assignment I'll expect you to take pictures of that piece yourself, Ben. Understood?" said Robbie as he clutched his pipe and placed it back between his teeth.
"Perfectly understood, boss," replied Ben sarcastically and then rushed out of the office, knocking over a stack of papers Robbie had balanced shakily near the door. Robbie sighed. He wished Jonah would hurry up and get back. Nobody took any of Robbie's threats seriously.
"What the hell is that?" Jill asked for what seemed like the hundredth time, her hand covered over her mouth and nose to block out the stench emanating from Peter's new room. The other hand was pointing at the lump of gray fur lying still amidst the rest of the garbage. Peter had actually stepped into the room, but Jill didn't seem anxious to follow suit. She lingered outside the doorway pointing to one thing or another that shocked and disgusted her, urging Peter to pick it up.
"I don't know. And if you'd been paying attention at all, Miss Stacy, you would of noted that my foray into this place has taken me to every corner of this room, specifically to avoid answering exactly that question," said Peter in a voice muffled by the t-shirt he had tied around his face. The stench was truly repugnant but it had lessened once the pizza boxes and Chinese food cartons had been disposed of. Now Peter was stripping the walls of posters and he was surprised to see that most of the wall was relatively clean underneath. He actually had hope for this place.
"Well, you're going to have to do something about it eventually, Peter," Jill said and took two tentative steps into the room before backing right back out with a screech. Peter turned her way with posters literally filling his arms.
"What? What is it now?" Peter asked. Jill's face was a mask of horror and she spoke shakily.
"It m-moved, Peter. It moved towards me when I tried to come in," Jill said making wild gestures in the general direction of the mass of fur lying on the ground.
"Oh for crying out loud. This is getting ridiculous," said Peter and walked towards the gray creature after placing the ripped posters in various garbage bags.
"Careful, Peter," Jill said with true concern on her face and Peter would have laughed if her expression hadn't been so full of evident compassion. It was just a little furry 'thing', probably dead, there was no way it could hurt a guy who went up against super-villains on a regular basis.
"Here goes nothing," said Peter and flashes of rabies and sharp teeth streamed through his head as he kicked the furry thing over. Jill screeched again and this time Peter did laugh as he finally realized what it was. He picked it up off the ground and waved it towards Jill's direction.
"It's a fur hat, Jill. Just a fur hat, nothing dangerous at all about thi…" but Peter was cut off as Jill once again screeched, this time at the top of her lungs and then began to fall backwards. Peter leaped quickly to catch her before she could fall and Jill clung madly to his clothes in an effort to steady herself.
"Jill, are you ok? What happened?" Peter asked and as Jill held on to him, Peter became aware of the lack of comfort that was slowly bringing itself to bear. Jill was looking at Peter like he was her personal savior and also with something else in her eyes that made Peter nervous. He hoisted her back up to her feet easily and she stumbled over to the couch and sat on the arm.
"S-something brushed by my leg and I just freaked out and tripped, that's all," said Jill and Peter shook his head and chuckled. Suddenly though, Peter felt it too, something warm pressing itself to his leg and he jumped himself, nearly falling over.
"Peter, look," said Jill but Peter already was and when he saw it he smiled. He reached down and picked it up and brought it over to Jill. She wasn't as pleased as Peter seemed to be and it showed.
"Oh, it smells horrible, Peter. Get that away from me," Jill said blocking Peter's approach with her hands.
"C'mon, Jill. After being in that room as long as we have, you think this guy smells bad?" said Peter and stroked the cat he held in his hands. He took a hold of the collar and twisted it around so he could see the tag and his suspicions were confirmed when he saw the name etched there. Smoke. He couldn't believe that the cat who had shown up at his penthouse right before it had been destroyed had survived and then found its way to his new apartment.* It had to be some kind of sign.
[*Smoke debuted in issue #2 - Pet Friendly Will]
"You're not actually thinking about keeping that thing are you, Peter?" Jill asked and the cat hissed at her. Peter stroked the cat to help it calm down.
"His name is Smoke, not Thing, and of course I'm going to keep him. This little guy and I go way back. I hope Randy doesn't mind," said Peter and dropped the cat at his feet. Jill brought her feet up off the floor and completely onto the couch to avoid the cat.
"Yeah, well I hope he's allergic to cats and makes you get rid of it," Jill said menacingly.
"Now that I think about it, I hope he's allergic too. It'd be the perfect revenge on him for making me clean up that pigsty of a room by myself."
"Hey, you had me," said Jill with sugar in her voice.
"I rest my case," Peter responded and Jill playfully hit him on the shoulder. The ringing of the phone stopped them both short.
"Should you answer it?" Jill asked as Peter walked towards the phone.
"I don't see why not, this is my place too after all," said Peter as he placed his hand on the phone. He hesitated for a second but then saw that Randy owned a caller identification box that proclaimed the name and number of whoever was calling. In this case it was the number of the Daily Bugle and Peter picked up the phone. After a brief conversation he hung up and headed back into his room. Jill watched as he grabbed his jacket and camera from the overnight bag and opened all the windows in the room, closing the door on his way out.
"What's up?" Jill asked as Peter zipped his jacket halfway up.
"That was Ben Urich from the Bugle, you met him earlier remember?" said Peter and Jill nodded. "He wants me to head on over to the Museum of Natural Art and take some pictures of a piece being displayed there tonight. Apparently it was donated by some famous archeologist and it's a really big deal. Lucky me… I get to take the pics."
"Why don't you just pass it on to somebody else?" Jill asked as Peter opened the front door and stepped out into the hallway.
"Nah, Ben Urich is a good friend of mine and I'm not about to leave him hanging. Besides… I need the money," said Peter and Jill got up to follow him but Peter waved her back down. "No, stay here. I'll be back in a couple hours at the most and then we'll go out to get something to eat ok? Just watch TV for a while and play with Smoke."
Peter left, closing the door behind him and Jill slumped back down onto the couch, grabbing the remote and flicking through the channels on TV. Smoke plunked down directly in her line of sight and Jill frowned.
"Play with Smoke. Oh yeah, we're gonna have a blast," muttered Jill to herself and sighed.
Ben Urich arrived at the museum and immediately joined the flock of reporters, both television and newspaper, who were gathered near the entrance of the museum. It was a chilly night but it didn't seem to deter the press conference at all. Urich pushed through most of the men and women assembled there and upon reaching the front, saw the reason everyone was flinging questions so wildly.
There, standing with the proud caretaker of the museum, was Sekmeht Conoway. Conoway was, quite frankly, a real life incarnation of Indiana Jones. Urich doubted that many men would shy away from her use of the whip though. She was known worldwide for her daring explorations that almost always yielded high results. The most recent of these expeditions had taken her into China, where she'd discovered the relic on display at the museum tonight. The Eye of the Sun.
Apparently it was a mysterious piece that scientists had been dying to get their hands on ever since it had been found. It had a strange luminescence that seemed to come from directly within itself. Nothing like it had ever been found before but Conway had simply donated it to the museum for public viewing, rather than have it prodded and probed in a lab somewhere for years. Therefore, there was a lot of controversy surrounding this event and the Bugle needed one of their top reporters there to cover it. Urich still wasn't happy about the assignment, but when he raised his hand and Sek placed that lovely dark gaze on him, her face with its olive skin framed by raven colored hair, Urich couldn't think of anywhere else he'd rather be.
There were at least a hundred other places she'd rather be. This was the thought echoing in the mind of the statuesque woman watching the media circus from across the street. Even decked out in an oversized trench coat, the woman caught stares from people passing by. She was nearly seven feet tall with long blonde hair spilling down her back. She ignored their gawking. In a few seconds she would shed this coat and make her move. Her precious needed this 'Eye of the Sun' or whatever it was called, and what her lover wanted, her lover got, no matter what.
She started walking across the street, looking both ways for traffic first, and unwrapped the strap tying the trench coat around her waist. The trench coat fluttered open, revealing a skin-tight, red, black and silver outfit that was really nothing more than a decorated bathing suit with large titanium spikes and armor plating smoothed out over it. She left the coat in the middle of the street as she leapt into the air, the direction of her descent carrying her directly towards the huddle of reporters surrounding archeologist chick and the Eye of the Sun.
It didn't take long for Peter to get to the museum as the Amazing Spider-Man. Travel by webs was definitely the way to go if you needed to get anywhere in the city in a hurry. He landed on top of the museum and noticed all the reporters below. Ben had told Peter that the story was a big deal but he still hadn't imagined there'd be this much of a fuss over some rock being donated to the city.
He tucked his thumbs under his mask, trusting his spider-sense to warn him of anyone peeking at him from one of the buildings across the street. Suddenly his spider-sense did go off but it directed his attention back down towards the street. He let his mask slide back down over his face but all he saw was somebody in a trench coat making their way across the street. The intensity of the warning increased as the person Spidey had first mistaken as a large man shed the coat and jumped into the air. Those curves and the sheer size of the woman were familiar to Spidey and he fired a web-line and swung off the roof on an intercept course.
The woman sailed up through the air and then gravity forced her back down. She'd set up her leap perfectly and would land right in between the reporters and the archeologist. All she had to do was grab the girl by her pretty black hair and threaten to snap her neck if someone didn't hand over the artifact. No problem. Suddenly a shadow passed over her face and she glanced up just in time to see a red fist slam into her face. Her trajectory was thrown off and she crashed hard into the concrete steps of the museum. Amazingly she jumped up to her feet immediately and scanned the sky for her attacker.
Sekmeht Conoway answered another of a seemingly endless line of questions asked by the congregation of reporters. She was becoming seriously annoyed. Her place wasn't in the city at a press conference but she knew this was just another of the things she'd agreed to take part in on her trip to New York. The first had been an archaeological excavation of a Viking homestead for Empire State University. That had been a huge disaster, but luckily Iron Man had kept it from turning into a much larger one.* Still, even with all the excitement of the past few days, this wasn't where she belonged. She belonged in the wilds of the ancient ruins searching for treasure.
[See the "Black Mist" storyline in Iron Man #10-13 - Will]
When she was a young girl her father had come to her almost every night with a story to read to her before bedtime. Her favorites were always tales where pirates and adventurers took long journeys to far off places searching for gold, or lamps with a genie inside that could grant your every wish. She would urge her father to read books like that long into the night and her father never denied her. She told him that one day she would be just like the people she loved so much in her books and he never doubted her.
Her father had worked at a museum in Libya all the days of his life and he would often campaign for items found throughout the world to be showcased there. Items such as the Eye of the Sun belonged in museums. The prize of the Hsien Temple excavation had been taken from her and she'd be damned if that would happen to the Eye. New York and its press seemed grateful enough of the gesture. Now if only their gratitude would taper off so she could get on with the display. The Eye was in a glass case sitting between the museum caretaker and herself. They'd lift the black velvet cover on top of it, photographers would take their pictures, and then Sek could get the hell out of here and on the next plane to…wherever.
Suddenly there was a crash and the reporters all turned in unison. A few of the photographers started taking pictures frantically and Sek peered through the mass of bodies at what had grabbed their attention. There, standing not twenty feet away was Spider-Man. About twenty feet farther down the steps of the museum was a woman Sek had never seen before, a woman nearly the size of a truck. Sek frowned a deep crease into her brow. The woman was blonde and beautiful, similar in appearance to the Encantare woman who had ruined the Viking excavation.* There was no doubt in Sekmeht Conoway's mind that the woman was after the Eye of the Sun. She was beginning to really hate blondes.
[*It was actually the Enchantress in a "clever" disguise in Iron Man #10-13 again - Will]
"Yoo-hoo, Miss Muscles! I'm over here," said Spider-Man who was standing about twenty steps above, blocking the super-strong woman's path to the press and the archeologist chick. Spider-Man was a pain, but she'd taken him out before, she could do it again. She grabbed a chunk of the steps she'd hit and held it like a crude baseball bat. Then she started running up the steps towards Spider-Man.
"Let's see, stands seven feet tall, long flowing hair, muscles that would make a professional wrestler green with envy. You're not She-Hulk in disguise are you?" said Spider-Man as he effortlessly leaped over the woman's clumsy swing. He bounded down twenty steps in one leap and shot a strand of webbing that attached itself firmly to the woman's butt. "No, of course you're not. I hear she's hanging on the west coast now with the Thunderbolts, but if they ever make a She-Hulk movie, I bet you'd be a shoe-in for the part."
Spider-Man tugged on the strand of webbing and whipped the woman back out into the street. Museum security rushed out of the building but held their distance from the battle. Spider-Man blessed them as they rushed into the street to stop any oncoming traffic.
"Just me and you now, pretty lady," said Spidey as he made his way down to the pavement. The woman had gotten up and she was actually smiling flirtatiously at Spider-Man.
"What's wrong, Spidey? You don't remember me?" said the woman as she dusted herself off. She still had the length of concrete step gripped in one of her hands. "Surely you couldn't have forgotten the girl that rocked your world the first time we met. It's not often that Stunner doesn't leave a lasting impression on a man."
Stunner crushed the block of concrete in her hand and tossed a piece of it at Spider-Man. He moved to the side and it hit the street, leaving a pothole in its wake.
"Sorry, I have so many flings with so many super-powered, female powerhouses that it's tough to keep up. Maybe if you showed me some pictures of our time together it'd jog my memory," said Spidey and jumped to within reach of Stunner. He reared back his fist and punched her square in the jaw. Stunner's head was rocked back, but the punch didn't seem to take any effect other than that. Stunner reached out and took hold of Spidey in a headlock that immediately cut off the flow of air to his lungs.
"Does this jog any memories, wall-crawler?" said Stunner and Spidey knew he was in trouble. Stunner was definitely stronger and more invulnerable than he was and if she could take a direct blow to her jaw and not even flinch, there was no way he'd be able to muscle out of her hold on him.
"You're so cute, Spidey. I just want to squeeze you to death," said Stunner as she squeezed tighter.
"Oh, now I remember you," Spidey gasped as he struggled for breath. He planted his feet and crouched low to the ground. Stunner tried to keep him upright but his ability to cling to surfaces brought them both down anyway. Using all of his strength, Spidey leaped into the air, bringing Stunner with him. Once in the air, the advantage went to Spidey who twisted out of Stunner's grip and kicked her away. He landed lithely on his feet and Stunner landed right on her butt.
"The hug is much appreciated, Stunner. But I don't think the city's work crews are going to appreciate all the potholes you're putting in the street," said Spidey as Stunner got up from the small crater she'd made when she hit the ground. Every time Spidey had faced Stunner before he'd either lost the fight, or she'd disappeared before the fight was finished. He didn't plan on losing or letting her escape this time.
"You're not trying to make cracks about my butt are you Spidey?" Stunner said and her smile and suggestive looks were really starting to bug Spidey. His own style of fighting with villains included rattling them with his banter but Stunner seemed ready to go toe to toe with him on not only the physical front, but the verbal one as well.
"Well, I've got to admit it is kind of nice. But the webbing thong is definitely out of style," said Spidey, determined not to let her out do him. Stunner reached around behind her to take hold of the webbing still clinging to her suit and Spider-Man made his move.
Stunner easily ripped the webbing off of her and turned back around to make a crack about how sticky it was, but Spider-man was nowhere in sight. She turned around in a circle with a puzzled look on her face and just as she decided that Spider-Man might have retreated, she was greeted with a face full of webbing. Stunner reached up and tore at the webbing. It felt weird on her face and she didn't like it.
"Blindfolds are out too, wall-crawler. If you want to impress this lady you're going to have to think of something a little better," said Stunner and tried to take a step, nearly falling flat on her face. Her feet were webbed to the ground.
"Well, how about bondage then?" Spider-Man asked as he unloaded cartridge after cartridge of webbing around Stunner, encapsulating her in a thick cocoon of webbing that even she couldn't break out of. Heck, Spidey doubted the Hulk could of broken out of it. "A bit much for so early in our relationship, I know. But what can I say. I'm a freak."
Stunner slumped down slowly to the ground and Spider-Man hoisted her over his shoulder. There wasn't that much damage done to the street and if the cops showed up pretty quickly then he'd have plenty of time to make the change to Peter Parker and meet up with Ben, who Spidey could see was frantically scribbling notes, so he could take pictures of the piece on display. Spidey's automatic camera was already snapping pictures of his capture of Stunner. Luckily, all the pictures would be sold to the Bugle and Peter would pull down a really fat check. All in all, Spider-Man was having a pretty good night.
"Put her down, Spider-Man. Put her down right now and I may not disembowel you where you stand" said a menacing voice from behind Spidey and he kicked himself for forgetting to knock on wood. He turned even though he didn't need to see who it was to place a face to the all to familiar voice. Spidey let the struggling Stunner fall to the ground as his spider-sense danced forcefully through his brain.
Standing in front of him on two flexible metal legs was one of the deadliest men on the planet. Two other metal arms snaked near his upper body and seemed to beckon Spider-Man to attack. The man wore a white suit with a black dress shirt and bright black dress shoes. If it wasn't for the fact that he was a cold-blooded killer with mechanical arms capable of crushing a man's bones, he might have seemed like another dignified member of the public desiring to witness the unveiling of the artifact himself.
When he spoke again, he shattered that assumption and Spider-man knew the time for talk was over. "I need the Eye of the Sun, Spider-Man. Treading over your broken body to acquire it will be a pleasure that has long evaded Doctor Octopus."
Next Issue: Spider-Man battles for his life in our main event with the deadly Doctor Octopus. Why is Doc Ock so obsessed with the Eye of the Sun and will Spidey be able to figure it out before it's too late? Also in the under card bouts, Randy tangles with Smoke the cat, and Frog Man battles Aunt May? I wouldn't write it unless it happens folks. Be here for part two of "Pulling Strings".