The Amazing Spider-Mare: A Long Way From Home

by SuperPinkBrony12

Mutant Monstrosity!

By now, all eyes both good and evil were drawn to a figure that commanded attention. Where Spider Mare had stood but a moment or two before, now stood a creature that made even the bravest of hearts tremble with fear. A gigantic cross between a pony and a spider, and without the ability to speak in anything other than grunts, growls and shrieks. A mare spider monster!

Quickly, the mare spider made a move. It leaped down from atop the Statue of Freedom and stood before The Chameleon and The Vulture as it roared in their faces!

The Vulture gulped and swallowed hard, turning to The Chameleon! "This wasn't part of the plan! You never told Spider Mare could turn into... that!"

The Chameleon could only reply. "I didn't know either! Clearly, Spider Mare is full of surprises."

Meanwhile, Black Cat was looking on in disbelief. "How am I supposed to stop that thing?" He thought to himself as he briefly looked to himself. Hesitantly, he thought. "Can I stop it?" After all, somewhere deep within the monster was the love of his life (at least, he hoped so. The alternative was something he couldn't bring himself to think about).

"Well, it's been fun but we've gotta run," The Chameleon insisted as he looked to Black Cat. "Sorry to leave you like this. But, better you than us."

Frantically, Black Cat called out as he tried to give chase! "Wait! Come back! You've gotta release that pony you took prisoner!"

"Fat chance!" The Vulture coldly hissed as she grabbed hold of The Chameleon and began to flap her wings repeatedly. "We'll hold onto her as an insurance policy. I'm sure the big man will find a good use for her."

Yet before either supervillain could get very far, the monster spider suddenly and unexpectedly swung one of her massive arms around! It quickly swiped The Vulture and The Chameleon in mid air, then promptly flung them as far and as hard as it could!

Screaming at the top of their lungs, the two villains were flung far over the horizon towards the Manehattan city skyline! It seemed they wouldn't be posing a threat to anyone anytime soon.

Indeed, the two supervillains ended up crashing into a dumpster in one of Manehattan's alleys. The Vulture landing on top of The Chameleon before the dumpster lid slammed shut and trapped them both. "Let us out!" They cried at the top of their lungs, hoping to be overheard. And their pleas for help would soon be answered, by the Manehattan police department (whose officers were all too thrilled to arrest The Chameleon and his accomplice).

Black Cat was unable to see any of this. All he saw was The Chameleon and The Vulture disappear in the blink of an eye. And then the mare spider turned its full attention to him. "Uh-oh!" He forced back a gulp and took a few steps backward. "Pinkie!" He tried to plea. "If you can hear me, you've got to stop this! Fight it off! Don't let yourself be controlled!"

The monster spider stopped for a brief moment, staring at Black Cat as though something about him was vaguely familiar.

Hopefully, Black Cat asked. "Pinkie?"

Alas, the moment faded all too soon. And any hesitation that the monster spider might have had also faded. It brought down another one of its arms, proceeding to do the same thing to Black Cat that it had done to The Vulture and The Chameleon!

Although he wasn't being flung as high into the air, Black Cat knew the inevitable impact would still hurt like crazy. And in his case, all he could see approaching him was the uninviting, murky darkness of the Manehattan coastline. He braced himself as best he could, the stallion anticipating a watery plunge.

---

Yet suddenly, just as Black Cat had shut his eyes and prepared for the worst, he felt himself being snatched up in midair as a voice he didn't recognize called out. "Gotcha! Score one for the g gal!"

The stallion opened his eyes, seeing a sight he had never seen before! He was now within the grasp of some sort of griffon creature, the beak and claws were a dead giveaway. But this griffon seemed to have bright green (almost a sickly shade in fact) feathers, except for a small patch of light purple on the tip of its head. And its eyes seemed to be hidden behind a bright yellow glow, almost as if it were wearing some kind of mask. Beneath the griffon was a hi-tech hovering device that could best be described as a glider.

Why did all of that sound vaguely familiar?

Well, Black Cat didn't have long to dwell on it as he was carried up to the tip of the torch of the Statue of Freedom. Then and only then was he set carefully down by this griffon savior. Then he watched as the griffon disembarked from its glider and stepped down right next to him. "Uh, thank you for the save, whoever you are," He blinked slowly. "Do I know you from somewhere? I feel like I've seen you before somewhere, although I can't quite put my hoof on it."

The masked griffon promptly identified itself. "The name's Gilda. But you can call me The Green Griffon," She promptly rolled her eyes. "Ugh, that is so lame!"

Upon hearing the words "Green Griffon" Black Cat jumped back and brandished his baton, ready for action! "You!" He snarled! "Can't believe you'd show up now! I've got enough problems as it is without having to deal with you! Give me one good reason why I shouldn't tie you up with my webs this instant!"

The Green Griffon was quick to defend herself. "Take it easy, dweeb. I'm on your side. I'm not here to destroy you, or Spider Mare for that matter."

"You expect me to believe that after what you did to Pokey Pierce?!" Black Cat questioned!

"Look, I know what you're thinking. But I'm not the same Green Griffon who once terrorized Equestria," The Green Griffon explained in what sounded like a sincere and innocent tone of voice. "Can't believe you don't know yet. The Green Griffon who shares my name was a clone. The real me never did any of those horrible things you must've heard about from Spider Mare. I'm a new and improved Green Griffon, a Green Griffon 2.0 you might say."

Black Cat was still far from convinced. "Then why do you look just like her? Why dress up like her instead of creating your own costume or something?"

The Green Griffon retorted. "Hey, I'm not great with costumes! All I know is, I found all this stuff in The Abysmal Abyss one day. Looks like my clone crashed there at some point. And nothing that ever goes into that abyss comes out alive, or so I've been told. Figured the least I could do was put all of her stuff to good use and start clearing my name."

"But why come all the way out here?" Black Cat questioned.

The Green Griffon had to resist the urge to roll her eyes. "Duh. Out here was where my impostor and good for nothing clone committed her greatest atrocity, killing that Pokey Pierce pony that Pinkie Pie was so in love with. Figured Manehattan was as good a place as any to start making a name for myself," She then shot off a question of her own. "Now, you mind telling me just what in the heck that thing is supposed to be?!" And the griffon gestured a claw to the monster spider that was now thrashing about the harbor, stirring up waves and causing frightened ponies on the shoreline to run and scream!

Black Cat let out an unhappy sigh. "That's Spider Mare. Or at least, that was Spider Mare. But now," His lips quivered and trembled. "Now, the love of my life is nothing but a mutated nightmare! A radioactive monster bent on destruction!" He then lamented. "I knew something like this would happen. Why didn't Pinkie listen when I pleaded with her not to go?"

"Wait? Pinkie? As in Pinkie Pie? That pony dweeb who came to Griffonstone with Rainbow Dash?" The Green Griffon all but gasped! "You gotta be joshing me, pal! I know what Pinkie Pie looks like, and she doesn't look anything like that."

"I'm telling you, that's who she is. Or at least, who she was," Black Cat unhappily remarked. "I have to change her back somehow! I can't let it end like this!"

The Green Griffon gulped. "How do you even propose getting close to that thing, let alone stopping it? Assuming it is Pinkie Pie, she's out of control! She'll squash you like a bug or swat you like a fly before you get close! And even if you could, what good would that do you?!"

Black Cat responded by producing a small vial, and a device that looked like a cross between a tube and a scanner that seemed like you could inject something into a vein by using it. "You must understand, Pinkie wasn't completely foolish. Even she was aware that this could happen. She had a plan. Not much of a plan, but a plan nevertheless."

---

Black Cat's mind began to recall a conversation he'd had with Spider Mare while the two were enroute to Manehattan not too long ago.

"Listen, Cheese," Spider Mare spoke up in an unusually serious tone of voice, even considering the circumstances she was in. "I know you're worried about what Twilight said. About what I could become."

Black Cat called back. "Please, Pinkie, reconsider this. You don't have to risk yourself for your Aunt Suzanne."

Spider Mare just shook her head. "My decision has been made. Regardless of what Twilight says, I have to do this! Aunt Suzanne is counting on me, and I vowed long ago to put others before myself no matter the cost," Then she added. "But, I decided that it wouldn't hurt to be prepared in case the worst does happen." She promptly launched a small ball of webbing towards her partner.

Black Cat caught the ball and opened it, surprised to see a vial containing a clear blue liquid, and the injector device recovered from Starlight's wrecked lab. "Pinkie! Did you take those things from Twilight and Starlight?!"

"'Borrowed' is the term you're looking for," Spider Mare pointed out. "And I want you to keep them somewhere safe. If I do end up turning into a monster spider like Twilight says, I want you to use these to cure me. Or at least try to. And if it does come to that, don't hesitate! Do whatever it takes to stop me!"

The memory ended just as quickly as it had been recalled, and Black Cat was now eyeing the rampaging mare spider as it continued to attack anything and everything in its sight. All the while it was slowly but surely making its way towards Manehattan proper. If she wasn't stopped soon, who knew if anything or anyone would truly be able to stop her?

"Okay, so the dweeb had a plan in case she went all berserk and started attacking the city," The Green Griffon remarked. "Guess she's smarter than I thought. Seems like she's always a step ahead of everyone, even herself," But she saw fit to ask. "So, how are you supposed to cure her without her catching onto you?"

Black Cat turned to The Green Griffon's glider. "Well, I guess you'll have to carry me there. Just get me close enough so I can inject this serum into a vein. The rest is up to fate." He promptly inserted the vial into the injector device and clutched it tightly in his hooves.

The Green Griffon gulped! "Are you crazy?! She'll crush us both!"

"Not if you create a distraction," Black Cat proposed. "You still got those pumpkin bombs?"

The Green Griffon nodded. "Yeah. Figured it couldn't hurt to have them in case of an emergency. Besides, they make good fireworks."

"Then fireworks is exactly what Spider Mare and Manehattan are gonna see!" Black Cat vowed! "Toss those bombs when we get close, and while she's distracted I'll jump down and make the injection. We won't get another shot at this, so we can't afford to miss!"

"It's way too risky!" The Green Griffon protested.

Black Cat only narrowed his eyes and remarked. "Unless you've got a better plan, I suggest you stop grumbling and start helping me."

Reluctantly, The Green Griffon relented with a sigh. "Fine, but it's your funeral. Don't say I didn't warn you."

Author's Note:

The real Gilda becoming The Green Griffon is based on the fact that in most continuities, Harry Osborn becomes The Green Goblin after his father's death. And while initially antagonistic towards Spider Man and Peter Parker, Harry usually ends turning to the side of good and becomes an ally to Spider Man.

Comments

[Comickook]

Whoa. Excellent job on the exchanges, characterizations, action and future chapter set-up in this latest installment. Yeah, figured Chameleon and Vulture would book the instant they saw the Mare-Spider, though I appreciated Black Cat trying to reason with Pinkie (as well as the flashback to Pinkie thinking to bring the antidote just in case something like this happened). Also loved the real Gilda showing up to help as a Redeeming Replacement for the original Green Griffon. Hopefully, Green Griffon II and Black Cat will be able to get Spider-Man back to normal then ALL THREE of them can go rescue Aunt Suzanne from Chameleon, Vulture and the soon-to-be revealed Big Man (almost definitely this universe's answer to the Kingpin, Tombstone or a combination of both).

And, maybe, after Aunt Suzanne has been rescued, Green Griffon II and Trixie (back in the Mysterio role, but this time as a legit hero) could fill in for Spider-Mare and Black Cat while the former's recovering from her illness (and possibly pregnancy later on). That would certainly be an entertaining potential spin-off mini-series.

And, a possible future (in more ways than one) Spider-Mare adventure could have Spider-Mare and Black Cat (backed up by the Fantastic Four) time-travelling more than 1000 years into the future (chasing a villain who stole an experimental time machine) and teaming up with the Spider-Mare of G5 (since it would be pretty easy to visualize one of the new Mane Five [though most likely either Sunny or Izzy] becoming an analogue to the Miquel O'Hara Spider-Man working to reunify the divided pony tribes through hope and trust inspiring heroics).

But, well, I'll admit that those are just wild guesses and more likely to be wrong than right.

But, anyway, definitely looking forward to more of this.