//------------------------------// // Ch. 4: Birds of Prey // Story: Ultimate Spiders and Magic: Episode I "New Beginnings" // by Maximus_Reborn //------------------------------// Chapter Four “Birds of Prey” The sun had fallen under the horizon, allowing night to take hold of the city. Spider-Man sat on the edge of a rooftop, alternating his sight between Oscorp Incorporated across the street and the phone in his hand. A frustrated groan escaped from his mouth before he closed the phone’s screen, tossing the device into the confines of his backpack. Spider-Man could only shake his head as he stared down the skyscraper. Security had been deepened considerably, with dozens of officers positioned around the building and inside the main lobby. Peter hummed, retrieving a device from the side. “I sure hope the police don’t mind me borrowing this for a bit. If I’m going to catch the Vulture, I’ll need access to the police feed and network.” A map materialized on the device’s screen with several key points being highlighted by a blinking red indicator. Spidey’s masked lenses furrowed as he nodded, his thumbs pecking away at the screen. “Now to create a firewall and dummy account. That way, the only thing anyone can hope to find on my trail are cat meme videos.” Leaping to the ground, Spider-Man managed to reach the side of a stationary police vehicle. He placed the handheld device back within the glove department before slipping into an alleyway. As the local law enforcement continued their patrol, Spider-Man climbed onto the nearest rooftop and jumped high into the air. He soared effortlessly for many meters before landing on the tip of a water tower, halting his momentum and holding a knelt perched stance. “Good thing there’s a lot less cameras in this city compared to New York,” he murmured, glancing to the side. Pressing a finger against the black outline on his white lenses, Peter inhaled sharply as the environment brightened from his viewpoint. Several buildings emitted a bright light while numbers scrolled down the side. A map of the city spread out, doing the same. Peter’s eyes scrolled through everything available, almost failing to blink for what seemed like minutes. Eventually, Peter closed the application and returned his sight to the city underneath him. “I’ll have to thank Fury for the mask upgrade. The schematics for holding the map information are way more intricate and expansive. Plus, hacking into the police network was way easier with this tech,” Peter whispered, lifting his gaze momentarily. “Now, I can listen to police reports and silent alarms and get the jump on the bad guys. Hopefully, he won’t be too upset about me hacking into the city mainframe. At least I’m not reading people’s emails. An invasion of privacy is not cool.” Spider-Man paused, scrolling through the map with a furrowed glare. “Silent alarm. Sounds like there’s a break-in at the edge of town at the Oscorp Chemical Facility.” He stood upright, folding his arms. “It’s got to be the Vulture, but what is she possibly planning? I don’t even know what she’s stolen up until now.” Shrugging, Spider-Man dove over the side of the building before shooting out a strand of webbing. As he swung through the city, the young man huffed. “No time like the present. Time to ruffle this bird’s feathers.” Bodies laid spread across the floor of the vicinity, each guard moaning as they clutched at their bodies in pain. One last security personnel charged at Vulture from behind with a gun drawn, firing several shots in rapid succession. The woman raised her hand over the side of her head instinctively, managing to block each projectile effortlessly. All of the bullets fell to the ground, each destroyed upon impact. The officer’s jaw dropped as Vulture stood unfazed, unable to react as the woman slid a hand underneath the nearest desk and tossed it in his direction. The furniture landed roughly on top of his frame, pinning him to the ground. A pained groan fell from his mouth before he yielded to unconsciousness. A distorted huff escaped from Vulture as she alternated her gaze about, ensuring no other guard would attempt to stop her. Once certain she was alone, Vulture walked through the lab before reaching a small safe. The woman ripped the metallic door from its frame, flinging it to the side with enough force to imbed it into the stone wall behind her position. Several vials filled with a blue substance were inside, each glowing brightly. Vulture grabbed one before slipping it gently into a pocket pouch on her belt. “That’s all I need. Oscorp’s going down hard,” she whispered, sealing the pouch shut. With a nod, she turned to leave, but a small ball struck her hand, expanding upon impact. Webbing had engulfed her limb, latching it to the safe, and she strained, attempting to pull herself free. “What the hell--?!” Spider-Man leapt into the room, managing to land directly behind the woman. “Look, pal. I get it. Your job probably sucks, but it’s not worth breaking the law over. Just stick to your desk job. I’m sure it pays more than photography. Not that I’d know.” “You again? You didn’t learn your lesson last time?” Vulture growled, still attempting to free her hand from the webbing. Using her free talon, she slashed the gossamer away, but the second she turned, a second ball of webbing struck her limb, trapping her once more. Vulture alternated her gaze between her hand and Spider-Man. “Seriously?! Is this stuff coming out of you?” “Yes and no,” he nonchalantly replied, causing the woman to stare blankly in his direction. Raising his hands defensively, Spider-Man shook his head. “I don’t know why you are doing this, but you have to stop. You stole something really important from SHIELD, and I doubt you want any smoke from those guys.” Vulture continued to strain, pausing to inhale deeply. “I’m warning you, Spider-Guy. This has nothing to do with you. My problem is with Oscorp. Don’t get yourself killed trying to protect them.” “I’m not protecting them. You’re breaking the law, and I’m stopping you,” Spider-Man stated, edging closer to the woman. “Who are you? What did Oscorp do to upset you so much?” Slow to respond, Vulture glanced to the side. “You wouldn’t understand. I lost everything because of them.” The armor stirred to life, whirred loudly as Vulture roared. Freeing her hand, she lifted the large desk from the ground overhead before hurling it at the young man. Spider-Man jumped to the side, avoiding the furniture as it smashed into the ground where he previously stood. The woman raised her talons as she lowered into an attack stance. “And I’m the Vulture! That’s all you need to know!” “No! You are not the Vulture! She was about entertaining people! She wasn’t a two-bit thief like you!” Spider-Man declared, pointing a finger at the assailant. Vulture paused, clenching one of her talons into a tight fist. “I-- You…” she trailed off, lowering her gaze momentarily. Like lightning to a rod, she raised both hands and unsheathed an array of blades from her feathered cowl. “Shut your damn mouth!” That same moment, she jumped into the air and spun, unleashing the blades in Spider-Man’s direction. An alarm blared within Peter’s cranium, forcing him to react in response. He flipped accordingly, narrowly avoiding a trio of blades as they sped past. Once on his feet, Spider-Man jumped straight up before contorting his body, pulling his head near his groin. The last of the blades just missed their target, imbedding into the wall behind the young man. Vulture watched with a widened gaze behind her visor once Spider-Man finished dodging her attack. She scowled before thrusting forward, managing to tackle the young man to the ground. With her talons gripping tightly onto his wrists, she lifted her armored boot over his frame. Just as she lowered it in a stomp, Spider-Man rolled to the side out of its path before rolling back with a kick of his own. The blow deflected off the armor but still staggered the woman, forcing her to relinquish her hold. Faster than she could respond, a fist came crashing directly into her visor, and the guard cracked upon impact, falling to the ground. Vulture instinctively clutched at her face, groaning as she stood back to her feet. Spider-Man approached the woman with a narrowed gaze, but he paused, his masked eyes widening suddenly. A familiar orange iris stared back at him, blinking as she held out an open talon. “Coach Spitfire?” he blurted out, inhaling sharply as gas rushed out from an opening into the armored talon. The fumes seeped through his mask, and Peter’s vision grew hazy, causing him to collapse. Coughing wildly, he fought back against the grips of unconsciousness. “G-Gas...” Vulture blinked, as if a thought came to mind. “Wait. W-What was that?” She reached out, pulling Spider-Man’s mask free from his head. Spitfire gasped, dropping the mask upon recognizing the young man’s face. “P-Parker?!” Shaking the cobwebs free from his cranium, Peter reached out and swiftly pulled his mask back over his head. Both individuals stepped back, never averting their gazes from each other. As if the entire world came to a halt, they only stared in silence. Before one could utter a response, the sound of sirens could be heard in the distance approaching. Vulture turned, stealing a final glance, before taking flight through the nearest doorway. “We’ll talk later.” Spider-Man reached out, ready to pursue the woman, but a defeated sigh escaped from his mouth. He soon went in the opposite direction, shooting a strand of webbing into the air before swinging into the night. Local law enforcement soon arrived and spread through the vicinity, surveying the damage. Thoughts ran rampant through Peter’s mind, but one in particular stood above the rest, gnawing away at his psyche. “I’m so flunking gym class now.” To say sleep was an impossibility would be an understatement. Peter sat in Physics class with bags under his wild gaze while Dr. Octavious gave his lecture. He continually shifted his line of sight between the teacher and the door, half expecting the cops, FBI, or paparazzi to come barreling in at any moment. In spite of having a sixth sense for danger, the unknown still caused anxiety to overstimulate his mind. “Why are you twitching so?” Trixie questioned, frowning at her classmate. Peter managed to share a glance with the girl, simply blinking. Bemused, Trixie frowned. “While I appreciate your silence, you really should be taking notes. The good doctor is off on one of his tangents this morning, so I can’t be bothered, but we have a quiz coming Monday. If you are to help me, I need you to at least try.” Peter readied to respond, but Octavious stepped between the pair with a brow raised. “Help you, Miss Trixie? Are you incapable of solving the formula on your own?” Otto questioned, causing the young girl to stare at the chalkboard and the numbers spread across its surface. Eventually, Trixie cleared her throat and stood from her seat. “Of course I can!” She scrolled through the board after an awkward amount of time before nodding confidently. “The answer is pi over pi. See? This is trivial for one as great as--” “You are wrong. To say you are in a completely different stratosphere would be an understatement,” Otto bluntly stated, holding a bemused expression. Most of the other students snickered in response, but the doctor lifted his gaze, frowning. “Could any of you solve it?” Silence filled the room, causing the doctor to let out a defeated sigh. However, he arched a brow upon returning his sight to the student next to Trixie. “Peter Parker. What do you think?” Stammering, Peter simply blinked. “Uh…” he trailed off, glancing at the board before quickly returning his gaze to Dr. Octavious. “306 degrees equals 5.34 Radians.” The entire class stared at the young man, slack-jawed, but Octavious smiled widely, nodding. “Astute as always, Parker… in spite of your daydreaming.” He smirked, walking back to the front of the classroom. “If you are tutoring Miss Lulamoon, then there may be hope for her yet.” Trixie frowned, lowering her head as her cheeks flushed. “How degrading.” Once Octavious returned to his lecture, Peter turned to Trixie with a furrowed brow. “Lulamoon?” “Keep your insults to yourself,” Trixie grumbled, rolling her eyes. Suddenly, the school bell rang, prompting the students to free themselves from class. Peter grabbed his backpack before sharing a glance with the girl. “Your attitude sucks, but you do have a nice name.” Scoffing, Trixie waved a hand dismissively. “Of course it’s a nice name. Only the best fits the Greatest and Powerfulest.” Peter’s expression sunk, evident by his twitching brow and frown. “You ruined it. You ruined it, and I’m leaving.” He walked off, paying no mind as the girl held a hand over her mouth and laughed obnoxiously. Once Trixie left the room, he readied to do the same. “See ya, Doc.” “Parker. A word, if you may?” Octavious called out, prompting Peter to stop in his tracks. He approached the young man with an arched brow. “I won’t take up much of your time. I have only a proposition for you.” Tilting his head to the side, Peter blinked. “What’s that?” Otto straightened the glasses over his eyes with a finger. “I’ll be frank. I was watching you throughout class. You didn’t pay attention at all to what was presented, but you still managed to solve the equation without much effort. I’m beginning to understand why the reports from Crystal Prep stated you were brilliant but lazy. It seems what is presented to you just isn’t mentally stimulating.” He paused, waving a finger while clearing his throat. “Simply put… you are bored.” Peter rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. “I’m sorry.” “It’s nothing to apologize over. You are gifted with amazing intelligence. It can be a gift to be used for the benefit of mankind-- a privilege. If anything, I have a remedy,” Otto stated, folding his arms briefly. “How would you feel about working with me as my apprentice? I have a personal prosthetics lab nearby. You can work unrestricted and earn payment on the side. This isn’t connected to the school. You will be helping with my personal research.” Smiling, Peter nodded. “That’d be an honor. Thanks, Doc!” “Don’t thank me yet. I plan to really challenge you after hours,” Otto chuckled, extending his hand to the young man. Once the pair shook hands, the older man returned to his desk and took a seat. “Do get some sleep, Parker. You look like you haven’t slept in days.” Peter could only nod in response before waving to the teacher. “I’ll try, Doc.” He inhaled deeply before sighing, staring deeply down the hallway as he walked towards his next class. “I just hope this won’t be as awkward as it feels.” Gym class had begun, no different than usual. Coach Spitfire went over the day’s drills with her assistants. Yet, Peter felt as tiny as an ant whenever the woman’s fiery gaze even drifted in his direction. It didn’t help that she seemed visibly agitated, evident by the bags under her eyes, bass in her voice, and scowl on her face. Eventually, class was dismissed, and every student scattered for their respective positions. Just as Peter readied himself to do the same, Spitfire cleared her throat. “Parker. In my office.” She rolled off, pausing to steal a glance from the corner of her eye. “Now.” His heart sank into his stomach at the woman’s calm yet firm tone. This was not a time to tempt fate. Peter resisted the urge to reply, choosing only to follow the woman. The pair walked in silence for what seemed like an eternity before they reached her office. Once inside, Spitfire locked the door to the room and took her place by the desk. After an awkward amount of time, she inhaled deeply before exhaling. “I’m not going to lie. I didn’t sleep a lick. I was half expecting the cops to kick in my door at any moment.” Peter laughed nervously. “Same. I didn’t know what to think or expect. I was hoping we could talk.” Spitfire folded her arms, but her shoulders lowered, as if the muscles in her body relaxed. “I can’t say that was smart, but… thank you.” She huffed, managing a faint smirk. “So, you’re the Spider-Guy that blew up the school, huh?” “Spider-Man, actually…” Peter grumbled, glancing to the side. Shaking her head, Spitfire raised her hand defensively. “I’m not giving you a hard time for that. In your case, that was an accident. A sloppy mistake, but a mistake nonetheless. Not like last semester, where one of our students did it for kicks.” “That’s the second time you mentioned someone blowing up the school, and you still won’t tell me who it is,” he murmured, exasperated. Peter readied to press the topic, but he frowned, narrowing his gaze. “Time and place. Don’t change the subject.” Sobering, Spitfire scoffed before shrugging. “Right. Well, you got me. I’m the Vulture. It’s not like I made it that hard for you to figure out.” “It’s because I was giving you the benefit of the doubt,” Peter replied, his tone defensive. “Why are you doing this? You could help so many people with your flight suit, but you’re using it to steal. I don’t know what Oscorp did to you, but this won’t make it right.” Spitfire’s fist slammed into the desk, causing a pair of shades resting at the corner to crash to the floor. “Do you know what it’s like to have everything you want in the world taken away?” Pursing her lips, the woman closed her eyes and sighed. “I just wanted to prove I was the best showman, and I did. I created the flight suit from scratch, and with Oscorp’s tech, I perfected it. I just wanted to show the world that when it came to the air, no one could touch me.” “What happened?” Peter lightly questioned, his eyes softening. Spitfire lifted her gaze, never faltering. “Right before the Friendship Games, I was supposed to perform. Representatives from Oscorp came to talk. They wanted to weaponize my suit. I refused. I made it clear that my design would not be used in their propaganda.” The woman shifted her gaze, pausing as if to quell her building emotions. “Then, the accident happened. I lost use of my legs, and Oscorp lost their use of me. Just as they fired me, I came to find out they were keeping my schematics due to a clause in our contract.” Peter nodded. “I read about that. It's a big part of your documentary.” “If it had just ended there, I might have been able to move on, but I tinkered with my old model. I just had to know what went wrong, like how things could have been prevented,” Spitfire lowly stated, gripping at the handles of her chair. She furiously shook her head. “Came to find out, the circuits had been crossed. Oscorp sent their reps to sabotage me. I can never walk again because of them!” Inhaling deeply, Spitfire’s gaze narrowed into a glare. “So, you need to tell me why you are defending them!” “I’m not defending them. If anything, I sympathize with you. What happened to you was wrong,” Peter firmly declared, leaning forward in his chair. His demeanor softened momentarily. “You’re seeking revenge and breaking the law. No good is going to come out of that. You’ve got to let this go, or try things a different way. You can sue them.” Spitfire huffed, rolling her eyes before shaking her head. “You’re so naive. You don’t sue Oscorp. They have a habit of making people who disagree with them disappear.” Scoffing, the woman scowled. “If there comes a day you ever lose anything, come back to me about letting it go.” Peter winced at the comment, but he held out a hand. “I’m serious! You’ve already proven you don’t need Oscorp. They may have your schematics, but the flight suit you made is pretty gnarly. You’ve even found a way around your paralysis.” Peter poked a finger against the side of his head, holding it in place. “You still have your mind, intelligence, and ingenuity. Don’t waste it! Plus, it’s not too late. Enter rehab! With rehabilitation and prosthetics, you can ditch the wheelchair and walk under your own power again.” Spitfire inhaled sharply before her saddened gaze fell. “I gave up on rehab a long time ago. If I can’t move like I used to, then what’s the point? Even in the suit, I’m just a puppet on strings. I’m sorry, Peter, but taking down Oscorp is all I’ve got left.” Choking back a building sob, Spitfire furiously wiped away any tears before they had a chance to fall. With a determined gaze, she stared intently at the young man. “You’re not changing my mind. I’m destroying Oscorp tonight. If you want to try to stop me, meet me at Fourth and Third near midnight.” Before Peter could utter a response, Spitfire pulled back from the desk and rolled towards the door. They sat in silence for what seemed like an eternity before the young man opened the door, allowing the woman to exit the room first. Peter followed her out with an uncertain gaze, but he simply nodded inwardly, as if agreeing with her terms. Spitfire mirrored his actions, evident by the knowing gaze she shared with him. “If it’s any consolation,” she whispered, pausing as she turned around, “I think you’re a freak athlete. It really makes me wish that we met three years sooner. You would have made one heck of a sparring partner, or even...” Peter watched with a widened gaze as she trailed off, the corner of her lip curling into a small smile. Spitfire returned to class, leaving the young man. Peter clenched his hand into a fist, never wavering as a sense of right bloomed within. “There’s always a better way,” Peter whispered, narrowing his gaze, “but it looks like it’s going to be the hard way, after all.” To Be Continued...