Along Came A Spider

by Onomonopia

Tough Crowd

The crowd buzzed with an excited hum as the lights in the building dimmed, leaving only the spotlights that shone onto the large catwalk before them to illuminate the area. Off to the side at a table sat a panel of judges that each held their noses high, awaiting the dresses that they hoped would impress them. And in the back dozens of hopeful dress makers each awaited their turn to show off their dresses, while applying the finishing touches to their designs.

"Oh this is just fabulous, Coco," Sapphire Shores said with an amazed look as she gazed down at the pinkish sapphire outfit that Coco had fitted onto her. "Though I am not one hundred percent on the color. In the past a majority of my tailors have made a dress that matches my blue. Pink is a rare choice."

"Well, not all sapphires are blue, actually," Coco informed Sapphire while measuring the bottom of the dress to make sure that it would fit perfectly. "And I've seen all of those dresses, so I'm betting that the judges have as well. So I'm better off trying something new than reusing a technique that many others have done."

"Well aren't you the interesting one," Sapphire said in a tone of approval as she glanced over at Otto, who was leaning against all wall with a look upon his face that was impossible to read. "I knew there was a reason I picked her. She is far more clever than I am certain anybody would give her credit for."

"Trust me Shores, you have no idea," Otto agreed before lowing his chin onto his chest. Sapphire raised an eyebrow at his response right before Coco finished up her finishing touches on the dress. Coco then raced off while saying something about having to check on someone, leaving Sapphire to walk over to Otto and shake the dress a few times. "If you are trying to seduce me, it will not work. Coco's dresses are hardly what I would call attractive."

"Actually, just trying to get your attention. I've been to a few of these before and I can say for certain you're a new face," Sapphire said with a bat of her eyelashes, yet Otto's face didn't change from a hard stare. "Coco's been here before with that massive pegasi, but not with you. And from the way I've seen you looking around, I can tell that fashion isn't really your thing. So why are you here?"

"Because I owe Coco my life and seek to pay off that debt," Otto replied bluntly, trying to make it as painfully clear to the mare that he did not wish to talk with her. Whether or not she understood his hidden meaning he could not say, but a moment later a smile broke out across her face and she continued speaking.

"Is that how it is? I thought for a moment you were her stallion friend or something, but you owe a debt to her...that seems about right for her business." The words of the mare intrigued Otto and he motioned for her to continue speaking, getting a coy smile out of Sapphire. "Oh? A moment ago you wished for me to be quiet, yet here you are wanting me to continue speaking. You are a fickly stallion, aren't you."

"Out with it already."

"And you lack manners. Well, if you must know, Coco has a reputation in the fashion industry of taking in the poor and down trod to help her with her business instead of hiring ponies that actually know how to do the work," Sapphire revealed to Otto, who wasn't that shocked by the revelation. "That's how she ended up in trouble with the spies for other fashionistas taking her ideas. I thought that she had become a little more cautious, but it seems that she can't help herself."

"Coco is a kindhearted pony who care for others. I have come across many more successful who should be in prison," Otto said in a cold tone that caused the star to slightly back away from him. "There is no shame in being kind. A lesson that took me a long time to learn."

Their conversation was cut off when Coco returned with Stonewall trailing behind her. Both Sapphire and Otto could see the annoyance upon Coco's face, but when she reached the two she smiled up at them while trying to hide her emotions.

"So I've talked with a few of the ponies and it seems that, since Sapphire is wearing my dress, we'll be on last," she informed the two before the look of annoyance took over her face. "But I still can't find out what kind of dress Cherry made, if she made one at all. She's doing everything she can to keep it hidden and it's seriously ticking me off."

"Why is that? Believe it will be better than yours? That's not how a winner should think," Sapphire interjected, turning Coco towards her. "Even if her outfit is better than yours, you should never admit it. Always believe that your idea will be the best while also keeping an eye out so you can learn from your competitors. That's how it is in the business."

Coco seemed to take what Sapphire had said to heart, but their conversation was ended when a voice came on over the speakers telling the ponies backstage that the competition was about to start. Stonewall wished Coco luck, while Otto simply nodded, before the two of them walked out into the crowd to enjoy the show.

"Think she'll win?" Stonewall asked once the two of them found their seats amongst the crowd of ponies.

"Doubtful. She will do well, but with Cherry here her chances of winning have gone down," Otto said with a more calculated voice, gaining him a look from Stonewall. "I speak the truth. As good as we believe Coco to be, it is clear that Cherry is far more driven than Coco is. If there is anyone that will be her roadblock, it is Cherry."

The two of them ceased their talking as the lights dimmed down even further and a pony came out to edge of the catwalk, beginning to tell the crowd what they were to expect. Yet while most of the ponies were invested in what was about to happen, Otto already found his mind drifting off into his own thoughts.

'Why can I not shake this feeling of unease?' he asked himself as the show began and a tall mare walked out onstage in a dress that made Otto's eyes hurt. 'There is nothing triggering my spider sense, but there is still that feeling. Like there is something that I missed, a crucial detail, that has eluded me. But what could it be?'

Otto was broken out of his thoughts for a moment when he looked up at the catwalk to see a pony wearing a dress that was entirely made out of lettuce. For a brief moment Otto wondered what the hell the creator was thinking, before the crowd cheered around him and he simply decided that everyone there was stupid.

'Perhaps I should do a sweep of the building, just to be safe,' Otto mused to himself as he retreated back into his mind. 'Just to be certain. In this large of an environment I cannot be allowed to be caught-'

"And now, for our next outfit, coming from the notorious Cherry Bomb..."

Otto snapped his eyes up towards the catwalk, ready to see once and for all whether or not Cherry had been the one to steal the dress. He glanced over at Stonewall, who had the same look of anticipation on his face, before the curtain was pulled back and the mare walked out onto the catwalk. Otto and Stonewall held their breath as she walked into the spotlights...only for confusion to cross their faces when they found she wasn't wearing anything remotely close to the dress Coco had lost.

"That doesn't make sense," Stonewall whispered to Otto, who was racing through his mind trying to figure out where he had gone awry. "The only pony with the stones to steal an idea from Coco would be Cherry Bomb, but that dress looks nothing like the one Coco had. She couldn't have simply destroyed the dress out of spite, could she?"

Otto found that he had no reply to the words of the stallion, so he simply stared ahead as the mare walked back across the catwalk and moved into the back. A moment later the crowd seemed to go into a sacred hush as all eyes turned towards the curtain, everypony in the room knowing what was about to happen.

Then the curtain was hurled back and Sapphire Shores strutted out, causing every single one of the spotlights to shine upon her and the dress. The crowd all gasped in awe at how the mare and the dress seemed to mix perfectly, though to little flourishes and movements Sapphire did helped show off the dresses design. As Sapphire reached the very front of the catwalk, the crowd began to applaud her with the force of an avalanche. Otto rolled his eyes at the ponies that were applauding for a piece of clothe, but he couldn't help but smirk at the idea of how crushed Cherry would be.

'But again, who is the one that destroyed the boutique? If not Cherry, then-'

The spider sense roared in the back of Otto's mind, causing him to curse as he held a hoof to his head. But a brief second later he was racing towards the back, pulling the spider suit out of the bag he was carrying while he prepared himself for a fight. While his spider sense had indeed been triggered, it was not because there was a danger to him that had triggered it.

'That was from my spiderbot! Meaning that Coco is in danger!' Otto realized as he slipped his suit over him, pulling down the mask as he raced through the hallway. He reached the doors to the backstage and kicked them off of their hinges, sending them flying to the other end of the room before he leapt in after them.

His eyes narrowed as he spied what had triggered his bot, a massive creature that looked like a mix between an alligator and a turtle. It had a massive pair of jaws that looked like they could crush cars as well as an armored body that Spiderman hoped he could punch through, along with an assortment of sharp parts that Spiderman knew were going to hurt.

The beast had cornered not just Coco, but a majority of the fashionistas as well. Two of them laid on the ground already, weakly crying out in pain, but alive. The beast slowly turned its head to face the Spiderman, who wasted no time in going on the attack. Faster than any of the ponies could have reacted, Spiderman threw himself forward and slammed his hoof into the bridge of the monsters nose. He kicked off of its face and flipped in the air, firing multiple shots of webbing at the beast as he did so. But the moment the webbing came out, the beast pulled its arms and legs into its shell, which close up after it.

"I don't know how long it's going to be in there, so no is your chance to run!" Spiderman roared at the fashionistas before he began to herd them out of the room. He grabbed the first of them and hurled her towards the door before grabbing the next one, pushing her towards the door as well. Three more made it to the exit before Spiderman got to Cherry Bomb, causing him to halt for just a moment as he glared at her with uncertainty. That was the moment when the beast struck.

The alligator head erupted from the shell and took aim at Cherry, who had just enough time to realize she was dead before the jaws bit down. She let out a cry and threw her arms over her head, but before the jaws could kill her, Spiderman grabbed hold of the jaws and pushed them back before they could claim the mares life.

"What are you waiting for you fool?! Run!" Spiderman roared at her before he slammed one of his hooves into the roof of the alligators mouth, causing the beast to roar as it began to shake back and forth. Spiderman slipped out of the creatures mouth and slipped around behind it, grabbing hold of the beast tail and swinging it for all he was worth. With all of his spider strength he managed to lift the monster and hurled it at the wall, shattering the wood and causing he beast to fall out into the main area.

"Damn me to hell," Spiderman snarled when he realized what he had done, which was quickly made abundantly clear to him when the crowd of ponies began to scream as the alligator monster rose back to its feet. He let webbing fly from his wrist and once it had grabbed hold of the shell he pulled himself towards the beast, winding up a punch as he did so.

But faster than he thought possible, the monster spun around and swatted him out of the air, sending the Spiderman crashing into the seats. He growled at himself for allowing himself to get caught before his spider sense blared, causing him to flip back as a clawed fist crashed through the floor. Spiderman did a spin kick into the maw of the beast, sending it staggering before he lunged forward.

"Enough of you monsters! I am tired of fighting you! Bring me your master!" Spiderman roared in fury as he slammed his fist into the face of the alligator, drawing blood as he struck it again and again. "Tell me where he is! Or you will face my-!"

The spider sense blared once more and Spiderman swung around to take a reptile like tail to the face. He crashed into the wall and fell to the ground with a grunt of pain, pushing himself back up a moment later with pain flooding through his body. He looked up to see that the chameleon monster from the island was tearing the webbing off of the alligator turtle. The two then turned to face Spiderman, who rose back up to his hooves with an expression of rage beneath his mask.

"Bring as many as you want. I will still crush you all," Spiderman informed the two. The beast shared a look before the chameleon raced off towards the mares in the back while the alligator raced at Spiderman with maw wide. Spiderman roared as he shot webbing at the ceiling and vaulted himself over the chameleon. He took aim at the back of its skull and prepared to strike, but without warning the beast spun around and whipped Spiderman across the face with its tongue, sending him crashing into the ground.

'It didn't trigger my spider sense?' Spiderman asked himself in confusion before he felt a limb slam into his gut, knocking the air out of him as he was hurled into the side of the catwalk. The chameleon and alligator marched up to him, snarling at him as he began to push himself back up. The chameleon shot out its tongue and entangled Spiderman with it, leaving him to struggle as the alligator opened its maw and moved its teeth around Spiderman's head.

'Not here! I will not die like this!' Spiderman roared as he began to push with all of his might, straining against the tongue with all of his might. He felt the grip loosen and he prepared to make his move, but before he could something slammed into the back of the alligator and sent it crashing into the chameleon, freeing Spiderman from its tongue. Spiderman stared at the staggered beast before he looked to his savior, his eyes going wide when he saw who it was.

"You have got to be kidding me," Spiderman said in sheer disbelief when he found his savior to be Stonewall.

Comments

[badninja]

Now he gets to deal with his Venom analog. Let's see how Otto handles this development.

On a side note I think Stonewall was behind the theft. So who is he working for I wonder? Hopefully Coco can get some advice on who to trust from Rarity.

[Marvelsoldier]

Jeez. How on earth are the mane 6 still alive if these things can give Spidey a run for his money?

[Mesiagamer]

7545463 six on one most of the time.

[Chadbane]

Another chapter that leaves you wanting more... I like it. Keep 'em coming!

[Marvelsoldier]

7545747 Now that makes more sense.