Spider-Man: A New Spiral

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***

Two weeks later.

Midtown School.

Evening.

- Miles, don't fidget!

- Come on, Gwen, that bowtie is bloody uncomfortable!

The blonde tried her best to tie her date's tie for the dance, but to no avail.

- Hello, lovebirds! - Shouted Flash.

He was joined by Stacy and Morales, Kong and Gloria, and Randy and Sally.

- Hey guys," Miles ignored Thompson's comment.

- Hey," Robertson and Morales bumped fists.

- Where are the rest of your quartet?

- Harry and Liz are at the punch bowl, and Pete's...

- Yeah, where's Parker? - Eugene interrupts the girl, "I remember we argued that if he came with a pretty girl, our team would wear Halloween cheerleading uniforms.

- First of all, Pete wasn't around when you said that....

- But Osborne took the bet.

-...secondly, where's your girlfriend?

- Debra's in the ladies room," Flash blushed.

Harry and Liz approached the group.

- Guys," Allen greeted everyone, but defiantly turned away from Thompson.

Eugene didn't react either, though.

- What are you two discussing? - Osborne asked.

- The bet we made.

- Yeah, Richie Rich, where the hell is Parker? Didn't he find anyone and get cold feet?

- Oh, Flash, you'd be surprised," Harry smirked meaningfully.

-Guys," Kenny interrupted.

The group turned towards the entrance of the gym.

Standing in the doorway was Peter, wearing a beige dinner jacket that fit him perfectly.

- Wow," Gloria sighed, echoed by Gwen and Liz.

- Yeah, it's a nice suit, but clothes aren't girls," Eugene said, folding his arms across his chest.

Meanwhile, Peter, laughing slightly, stepped aside.

The doors swung open.

A beautiful girl in a stunning dark dress with thin translucent gloves on her hands, her eyes beaming with excitement, and a beautiful smile on her beautiful face, accentuated by scarlet lipstick.

***

Peter Parker.

There was no need to go along with MJ's idea of 'walking into the gym like a supermodel'.

"Come on, Tiger, I'm doing this for you!"

There goes the crowd of my classmates, seemingly broken.

- Hello, everyone," I say to the salt pillars of teenagers.

Randy's the first to wake up.

- "Hey, Pete," I say, shaking hands.

The rest of the guys are slowly thawing out.

- This is my girlfriend, Mary Jane Watson. She's joining us at school soon.

-Hello everyone," the girl says hello with a sweet smile.

Suddenly Flash starts laughing loudly.

- Congratulations Pete, you've won the bet! - Thompson continues laughing, putting his hand on my shoulder and hugging me tightly.

- A bet? - Mary clarifies.

- As I recall, Mr Osborne," I point to the slightly blushing boy, "made a bet on my behalf that if I went to the dance with a pretty girl, the school football team would wear Halloween cheerleading uniforms," I explain with a gloating grin.

Mary punched Flash lightly in the shoulder with her fist, but it was enough to make him let me go.

- Ready to put on your skirt, big boy? - She asked the redhead in a cheeky voice, causing a gasp of surprise, "Come on, Tiger, let's go blow up the dance floor! - Mary grabs my hand and pulls me towards the dancing couples.

We start twirling with MJ, but my thoughts persistently return to the past.

Flashback

- Run-Run, Osborne, I know where you live!

The pain in my wrist is throbbing, but the stifling anger keeps me moving forward, toward Ozborn's tower.

I fell for it and the Goblin escaped. But I couldn't help it, what if the bomb really was there.

Conflicting thoughts were tearing me apart.

Either way, there was still a chance of catching Osborne.

I land on the penthouse terrace and open the doors leading outside.

- Norman! I know you're in here!

- Spider-Man?! - I look up and see a shocked Harry standing on the stairs.

- Erm...bloke...

- Harry.

- Harry, do you know where your dad is?

- What do you want him for?

- I heard about the attack this afternoon. I'm checking out anyone the Goblin might be targeting.

- You think this maniac came after my father? - asks Osborne in shock.

"I wish."

- Just checking. So where is he?

- You're five hours late," Harry comes down and sits on the couch. - "As soon as that psycho elf attacked, my father said it could be bad for business and flew out to 'calm' his business partners. He's probably halfway to France. But thanks for checking.

I'm shocked.

How did he leave?

It can't be.

What if...

No, it's the Chameleon. Of course he hired the Chameleon to cover his tracks.

But.

What if Norman really wasn't involved?

- Thanks, have a good night, Harry.

I step outside and jump off the roof, breathing in the cool evening air.

My arm doesn't hurt so much anymore. The regeneration is doing its job.

I fly around the city, wondering what to do next.

Right, Felicia, I need to find out what's wrong with her.

If I'm not mistaken, she had a rather nervous reaction to a hotel in the city centre on one of her patrols.

Couldn't hurt to check it out.

Thirty minutes flying to the Grand Hotel Sparkling. It does have a lot of lights on it.

Knowing Cat's habits, she rented the Penthouse.

I crawl up the wall and get to the top.

I climb up to the balcony. The door's open. I can see blood on the handle.

"Is she more seriously hurt than I thought?!"

Accompanied by a panicked thought, I burst into the girl's room.

On the floor lies her costume. But not her.

I exhale.

What if she's passed out and there's a... somewhere.

- A spider?

I turn round and see Felicia standing there in a towel.

- Sorry, I just wanted to check if I was okay... I mean, sorry miss I was flying by and....

- My suit is on the floor, so don't pretend," Hardy grudgingly folds his arms under his chest. Considering the towel alone it looks pretty....hot.

Is it getting hot indoors or is it just me?

- Yeah, sorry," I swallow my saliva.

With a snicker, the girl bends down and picks up her costume from the floor, exposing, again, her ass wrapped in a single towel.

It's getting tight in my trousers.

- How long have you known who I am?" the girl asks without turning round.

- Practically since the day we met," I don't know what to make up.

- Have you been following me? - the girl asks unhappily, finally turning round.

- No. I mean, not really...

I don't think the blonde is interested in my answer, though, because Hardy has finally noticed the bump in my trousers.

Spandex doesn't hide much.

The anger and frustration in the girl's eyes is replaced with slyness, passion and lust.

- Aha, so it wasn't just me who felt the spark? - Felicia quickly shortened the distance between us.

She rested her breasts on my shoulder and placed her palm on my groin, beginning to stroke my cock through the suit.

- No, Cat, I just wanted to make sure you were okay! - I try to pull away, but my body won't listen.

- No, Spidey, after your identity is revealed, you definitely owe me compensation, - the girl growls unhappily, slightly intensifying her touch.

- I told you, I have a girlfriend and I'm not going to cheat on her! - A sober thought finally makes me pull the girl away from me at arm's length.

- Fine, call her! - the horny blonde just said what she wanted to say.

- What?! - I'm stunned.

- I'll tell you a secret, Spider, I'm bisexual, and if your heroic essence is against cheating, fine, but I'm not against gangbangs!

- I...she and I are still, Mary won't go for it," I don't even realise I'm dropping my girlfriend's name because of the total fucked upness.

- Mary? It's a pretty name, and I'm sure the girl's good too, so do you want to call her or..." Felicia unfurls the towel, throwing it on the carpet, leaving her completely naked, "do we wait?

The cat was gorgeous. Her costume left room for fantasy, but the reality was beyond all expectations. Felicia was trim, it was obvious that she had been working out for many years, her breasts of size four were firm and slightly rippling, I'm sure they were very soft to the touch. Long slender legs of a true gymnast, completed the image of sexuality in the flesh. The blonde was dishevelled after her shower, and a twinkle of trouble in her blue eyes.

Finding myself in a situation like this, I did what any normal guy would do in my shoes.

I ran away.

No, of course not.

- I'll tell Mary you want to meet her!

Just by saying that, I ran away in disgrace.

End of memory.

- Pete, are you okay?

MJ's concerned voice brought me out of my reverie.

- Em, what?

- You've been just standing there for a minute, is everything okay?

So how do I tell her what my thoughts are.

"Hey Carrot, my superhero alter ego has a sexy partner who likes to dress up in a latex cat suit. Oh, and I have a definite sexual attraction to her, but don't worry, because thanks to my past life memory, I'm ninety-nine per cent sure that you, like her, are bisexual, so here's the solution! With Felicia, there's a 100 per cent guarantee. Who's Felicia? That's my partner. So, will you get to know her so we can have a good threesome in the future?"

- Pete?

- I'll have something to tell you after tonight, but for now, let's enjoy the simple life of teenagers, shall we?

Gently I lift the girl's head by the chin.

- Whatever you say, Tiger.

*

The evening passed briskly enough. Mary had fun with new acquaintances, we danced and told funny stories about life.

Flash tried so hard to surprise everyone that he revealed the truth that he and I had been friends since kindergarten.

Everyone was shocked by the news.

But what really shocked everyone was that Mary and I had been elected king and queen of the school.

Even I wasn't expecting it.

When it was time to leave, the boys called us to continue the party at someone's house, but I refused, saying that I "promised to be a gentleman and bring the lady home by ten o'clock.

In fact, it didn't take long for my company to hook up with the school's Elite Group.

- So what did you want to talk about? - MJ asked, resting her head on my shoulder.

I was enjoying the feel of our intertwined fingers, stroking Mary's palm lightly and not knowing how to start such a sensitive conversation.

- Look MJ, we don't really discuss my life as a Spidey much, do we?

The girl presses her lips together slightly.

- There's a point.

- I'm worried it might sow unnecessary strife between us.

- Peter, that wouldn't happen," and though the redhead's eyes burn with sincerity, I know I have to be honest with her about it.

Especially after recent events.

- I don't want unnecessary secrets between us," I press our interlocked palms to my chest. - You know about my partner, Black Cat?

- I've seen the pictures," Mary nods.

- I want you to meet her.

- That's great Peter, but," the girl wonders, "isn't that a threat to the secrecy of your identity?

- There is a point," I sigh slightly, "but to be honest I've known who she is under the mask for a long time. I wasn't following, I just happened to know. And a while ago she found out that I knew and acted a little...inadequate. I'm sure it was just post-battle stress.

- Inappropriate?

- I think she'll tell you herself.

I'm stopping and taking Watson's hands in mine.

- Mary, you're my girlfriend and I love you, so you know Cat likes me, but I wouldn't even think about cheating on you.

- Why do you want us to meet? - Squinting her eyes, the redhead asked.

Probably didn't miss the 'liking' comment.

"Because I want you both."

- Because Felicia is actually a nice girl and she's had all sorts of struggles in her life too. Broken teenagers, remember?

The explanation and the phrase she'd just said put MJ in the right frame of mind.

- So you want her to know who you are?

- I don't mind. In the time I've been working with Cat, I've learnt that she's a good person, with a flighty temper and her own peculiarities, but a good person.

In the course of this discussion, we've made it to Forest Hills.

- First name Felicia, last name? - The redhead asks.

- Hardy. You can Google it, but don't be too surprised.

- All right, okay.

We're approaching our houses.

- So, you in?

- I'll think about it.

The girl kisses me passionately goodbye, biting her lip slightly at the end.

- Good night, Tiger.

- Good night, Carrot-top.

I look at the girl and turn to my place.

I'm going home.

- Hi, darling, you're early, - May comes out of the kitchen.

Auntie's been home since a week ago.

- Got MJ home before ten.

- Hungry?

- No, I'm going to the lab," I kiss the woman on the cheek, "I love you.

- Love you too, honey.

I go down to the basement. I change out of my suit and put on my house clothes.

I lie down on the couch and stare at the wall.

What am I doing?

How is my life going?

I've been Spider-Man for almost a year and a half and what have I accomplished? Grabbed a couple of street robbers and put a few supervillains in jail?

No, I've stayed the same as I was before. That's not a bad thing, but I have the opportunity to do better.

Take it to the next level.

I was hesitant before, but after the Goblin fiasco, I've made up my mind.

I grab my rucksack and head outside.

I habitually cover the distance to safety and put on my suit.

I fly to one of my hideouts.

I land on a roof with a dismantled water tower.

I get closer and, jumping onto the sash, pull down an object wrapped in a dense layer of durable webbing.

A Shield communicator.

I put the bracelet on my arm and press the button.

The response comes immediately.

- Yes?

Fury's face appears on the small screen.

- I've made a decision, when can we talk?

- I'll send you the coordinates on your watch and meet you there in an hour. Don't be late.

Transmission has ended.

A beeping sound meant the data had been updated.

I looked at the screen and moved to the designated location.

*

Central Park.

An hour later.

On a bench, away from the 'civilised' part of the park, a man in a black trenchcoat was waiting.

- Seriously, Nick, Central Park? - I questioned, hanging my head down right next to the spy.

- Did you think I'd give out the coordinates of the safe house or have a gunboat come to pick you up, smoothly delivering you to the aircraft carrier? - Fury sneers.

Well, I'm not going to admit that's what I thought, am I?

- Pfft, of course not.

- Well, well, well. You say you've made your decision?

- What do I get?

- You don't get it? - The Director answers the question with a frown.

- Recruitment in this "Team" means that I become something like a Shield employee, and that's a bondage.

- A lot of people in your position would think it's honourable.

- Those who like to follow orders, no doubt, but I'm a loner, Nick, and I have conditions.

- Tell me," the spy folded his hands in front of him with interest.

- Firstly, how many people are currently aware of the secret of my identity?

- Four.

It could be worse.

- Who are they?

- Me, Phil Coulson, my first assistant, Deputy Director Maria Hill, and the agent who was gathering information on you, Natasha Romanova, the Black Widow.

All right, everyone knows everyone I'd meet one way or another.

- Okay, I need to make sure no one else knows.

- No way. Your team members need to know their real names, just like you'll know their real names, otherwise teamwork won't work.

- OK, acceptable, but no-one else! Secondly, I'm at Shields' disposal three days a week, the rest is my time.

- What if there's a surprise invasion?

- Only in an emergency.

- Anything else?

- Recruitment pays, doesn't it?

- ...

- ...

- Are you serious?

- Isn't it?

- Okay, of course it pays.

- Cool!

-Is that it?

- Basically, yes, I'm up. I'm in.

- Great, welcome to the Shield Cadets, I hope you survive.

"What did I sign up for?"

========== Chapter 38. Perfect. Part 1 ==========

A year and a half later.

14 April 2013.

Spider-Man.

- Daredevil, look out!

Hearing his partner's warning, Man dodges the mutant ninja of the Ruki clan attacking him from behind without fear.

Making sure Matt understands me, I shoot webbing at my own opponents.

Yeah, how did it all get so twisted up?

A memory.

A year ago.

January 2012.

"Brrrr, it's freezing."

Note, spandex is a good fit, but it's not warm!

I land a block away from a familiar weaving workshop.

I'm about to change my clothes to make an order of insulation material, as I notice a strange movement on the roofs.

I crawl up and peer out carefully.

There are a dozen ninjas moving around the buildings in acrobatic silhouettes.

"Ninjas?!"

At first I just blurted out, but I still decided to follow this strange group.

It's not every day that ninjas jump around New York City.

Keeping my distance, I follow the masked guys. But when they stop at the very same weaving shop where I've ordered fabric several times, it's no laughing matter.

Okay, now, seriously. Red suits, are those the ninjas of the Ruki Clan?! Honestly, I don't know many ancient ninja orders that wear red suits.

Meanwhile, the last of the warriors disappeared into the building through the roof hatch.

Yeah, too bad, so my suppliers are a cover for the Hand Point? Eh, where am I supposed to buy such rare items so cheaply?!

While I was lamenting, a new character appeared on the roof.

And I think my eyes became the size of beetle lenses under the mask.

Daredevil had crept into the building, under the cover of shadows.

I'd been thinking about going to Hell's Kitchen to meet Matt for a while, but I'd been distracted. Now, it turns out, fate itself is giving me the chance to duet with another character for the first time?

While I was daydreaming, one of the fighters in red flew out of the workshop window. Thankfully it wasn't a member of the good guys' team.

All right, let's go!

I could have climbed up and watched from the roof, but in this situation it's clear enough.

I climb down on a spider web and jump through a broken window.

Inside the room, the Devil of Hell's Kitchen was successfully holding off the onslaught of several ninjas. The old saleswoman and her granddaughter were hiding behind the counter.

One of the warriors swung at Matt with a katana, attempting to stab him in the back.

- Not on my shift! - I shot a web at the ninja, grabbing him by the back, pulling the enemy towards me.

The warrior, who was not expecting the attack, finds himself next to me without resisting. With a fist strike to the torso, I knock the enemy to the floor.

Jumping across the room, I land next to Murdock, standing back to back with him.

- Hey, Horny!

- What?" Daredevil turns around in surprise, still monitoring the situation, "Spider-Man?

- The one and only," though that's a debatable statement, "what's going on here?

Finally, the ninjaks, who had come out of their stupor, continued to attack us.

They didn't stand much of a chance against Matt as it was, and now that I was here.

- These are Clan Hand soldiers, and I've been chasing them since Hell's Kitchen," Red brought me up to speed as he fought off another attack and knocked out one of the warriors with a club to the back of the head.

- Got it," I dodge the katanas and sai, "any other useful information? - I cross-fire my threads and knock the two attackers down.

One is unconscious, the other I hit in the jaw, also sending him to sleep.

- They're members of an ancient ninja order that practices necromancy," Murdock adds, blocking another lunge.

- Cool, so they're not alive?

- Kind of.

Then I guess I can stop holding back.

I hit another ninja in the head with a straight shot, and he falls like a dead man.

There's only four of them left, and they're not attacking so fiercely.

Two of them, apparently the smartest, decided to act like true arseholes. They approached the counter and pulled a woman and a girl out from under it, holding katanas to their necks.

- Now we're going to leave and you're going to stay," the hooded warrior mumbled quietly.

I glanced at my partner, who was concentrating on what was happening.

- Don't worry, everything will be fine," Matt says calmly, trying to soothe the trembling and crying women.

Meanwhile, the ninjas have begun to retreat.

The last of them that had been holding the women back moved back to the broken window.

- 'So you don't follow us,' the enemy slashed through the woman's neck and stabbed the girl's stomach.

- NO! - I rush towards the victims.

The ninja jumps out of the window. I'm thinking of rushing after him.

- Wait, we have to help them! - Daredevil calls out to me.

Damn right.

- We're with you. Keep your eyes open. - I'm clamping down on the girl's stomach wound. I need a first aid kit, where do you have it?

The girl convulsively points behind the counter.

- Hold this! - I guide Matt's hand. With the other he clamps the wound on the woman's neck.

I jump behind the counter and pull out a white box from the bottom. Taking all the medical supplies I need, I go back to the victims.

- You know what to do?

- I've been trained lately. First aid was part of my training," I explain, decontaminating the wound.

Shield takes a responsible approach to training its agents. Those months were not wasted.

Having finished treating the wounds, I check the general condition of the women.

- They seem fine.

- Thank you," the girl says weakly, thanking me.

- Why did they come to you? - It was important to me personally to find out.

- My grandmother, - the brunette began upset, - these people moved her to America, gave her funds to open a workshop, supplied many materials and now they came, saying that they use the shop as their transit point, - the Japanese woman explained with tears in her eyes.

Daredevil and Daredevil looked at each other.

- After what happened, I'm sure they won't bother you again, but if they don't, - I give the girl my card, - call me immediately.

- Thank you, Spider-Man.

- Call an ambulance just in case, have a good night.

We leave the building through the window, of course.

- After a long silence, Red suggests we talk on the roof.

Yeah, talking on the roof, the cost of the superhero profession.

- Thanks for your help," DD says first of all, "but how did you know they'd be in that building?

- I was flying nearby and saw a group of guys in hoodies jumping on the roofs, they didn't look like parkourists, so I decided to follow them, and then you know what happened.

- I see," Matt nodded, "I'm glad you helped anyway.

- You're welcome," I rubbed the back of my neck a little, "any idea where they escaped to?

- I've got a bloke I think he might have some ideas.

I wonder if he's about Stick.

Daredevil stepped to the edge, getting ready to leave.

- Wait!

The hero turned round perplexed.

- Maybe you could use a partner? Don't think I'm not asking for one, we've had some good fights together, there's not going to be a hundred of them when you find them, so you could use some help, right?

- Thanks, of course, but I work alone.

- I know you're a loner, so I know sometimes a partner to back you up is a good thing. I'm not asking you to join a squad of fifteen superheroes.

Daredevil's thinking.

- You know the warehouses in Hell's Kitchen?

- The industrial district on the border with downtown? I've flown by there once in a while.

- I'll meet you there in a week, and I'll have the information I need by then.

- Got it," I give Murdock my hand, which he shakes.

That's how I met Daredevil.

End of Flashback.

- Who are these freaks? - I ask, climbing to the ceiling.

- I guess we pissed off the top of the Hand, so they sent their mystical monsters after us," Matt replied.

For a year, Daredevil and I have been methodically finding and clearing out all the Hands' hideouts in New York. I think we even became good friends. For people who cross paths for five or six hours a night.

But we haven't been able to get to the head of the New York branch, and according to Stick (Matt did mention him a couple of months later), we haven't been able to get to him yet.

Going out hunting today, we were sure we'd finally found the leader's lair.

Unfortunately, it was a trap.

When we broke into that private house, we found no one, but there was a dead body in the kitchen, presumably the owner of the house, and on the table there was a sheet with the address of the warehouse written in blood.

Matt and I rushed there at once, and now we were trying to get out.

For there were seven ninjas waiting for us at the warehouse. At first I thought it was bad, but when these guys started convulsing, and a minute later rose up as four-metre tall monsters with eyes burning an unnatural green, I realised that it was no laughing matter.

And here we are, me and Red for half an hour trying to deal with these monstrodemona ghostly gandongs.

- Ideas, suggestions?

- Can you deal with them with that thing of yours? - Matt said, throwing his baton at one of the monsters.

Obviously, it had no effect.

- I could try," I fired a web, tangling the legs of the nearest monster, "but I've only recently learnt how to concentrate it, and there aren't that many charges, and I'm not sure it would be effective against them.

- It's worth a try," DD said confidently.

- Eh," I sigh heavily, "okay.

I jump up, pushing myself up with my arms. The horned man diverts attention to himself, hitting one of the mutants in the face. Pushing off the first monster, I land behind the back of the third, finding myself surrounded by five monsters.

- Okay, guys, I've seen this in a film, but let's not replay it yet, shall we?

In response, the monsters, growling menacingly, swarmed towards me.

"Let's try it."

I concentrate, remembering the sensation of the flowing bioelectric energy charge throughout my body. My palms begin to heat up, goosebumps running through my body.

I dodge a swinging fist and grab the monster's arm, releasing a stream of energy.

The discharge ripples across the immediate area.

The air begins to smell like ozone.

Three of the monsters convulse, falling to the warehouse floor, entering a state of complete unconsciousness. The others are disorientated.

- Whew! - I rest my palms on my knees, though I feel a surge of energy.

- How are you? - Matt asks.

- Cheerful.

- Can you do it again? - Daredevil nods at the recovering monsters.

- I'm just getting warmed up," though I'm good for two more shots at most.

- All right, you rest, and I'll try to knock them out!

The Devil of Hell's Kitchen approaches the monsters who have not fully recovered and hits them with his batons.

Their stunned state has had an effect and Red's blows to their pain points send another monster to sleep. With another, the exchange of blows dragged on.

I can see that Matt is beginning to be surrounded by all the monsters left on his feet.

Oh, no!

- Daredevil, step aside!

Murdoch understood and hurriedly retreated.

Charged, I hit the back of the enemy with my knee in flight, and grabbing a few more with my palms, I release a bioelectric discharge.

Lilac pulses hit the monsters' bodies. With a howl of pain, the mystical ninjas dissolve into dust.

By some miracle, the last mutant is still standing.

- Okay, I officially refuse to repeat that! - Looks like I put a lot of power into that explosion. - Do you have an orange? I could use some vitamins.

- Good job, Spider," Matt picks me up, putting an arm around my shoulder.

- Thanks, DD.

The last of the monsters, to our surprise, re-dresses as a human.

- Rolof will rise again," he wheezes.

- What?" I check with Matt.

- Looks like that's the name of the leader of the New York cell of the Hand.

- Should we grab this one and interrogate him?

- You're exhausted. I'll do it.

Although I wanted to see this case through to the end, Matt's right, I could use a lie down.

- Yeah, I think so. Good luck with the interrogation, DD

- Get some rest, Spidey," Murdoch waves goodbye, tying the ninja up with a cable.

Hopefully when he wakes up he won't turn back into a monster.

- Before you go," Matt calls out to me, "are you ready for our operation?

Oh, right.

- I'll let Luke and Danny know, get Jess on it?

- If she's sober.

- All right, I'll call you later.

I jump on the ceiling and climb up to the glass roof.

Once I'm up on the roof, I breathe in the fresh air. It feels better.

I grab onto a lamppost.

As much as I'd like to go home and rest, I have things to do.

Crossing the west side of Hell's Kitchen. Gliding along the centre, gently climbing towards my goal.

After some jumping and flying that cleared my head, I land on the roof of a small, seemingly abandoned gym.

I walk through the door. After a few metres I see a closed iron grate.

A holographic screen and a small microphone pops out of the right wall.

- Spider-Man, code 120800129, clearance level five, purpose of arrival - training.

- Clearance level, confirmed, code, confirmed, welcome Spider-Man," the door opened. - Your instructor is waiting.

"Oh, shit. She's going to eat me."

I walk into the gym. My executioner is already warming up in the ring.

- Hi, Spider, - Natasha Romanova greets me, - you're late.

- I'm sorry, Mummy, I was in as much of a hurry as I could.

Oh, you shouldn't have done that. The Widow's eyes are bloodshot. I'm sure she's going to beat me up for the whole training session.

But I can't help it. The moment Fury introduced us, I knew this was how I'd be messing with Romanova.

Why? I'm a spider, she's basically a spider too.

It's probably cruel, given the history of Black Widows training in the Red Room and the consequences that follow, but I've also made a promise to myself to address this, sooner rather than later. So we can.

Plus, you've got to make up for months of humiliation.

- Why do you keep calling me that? - Wrapping bandages around her hands, the girl asks.

- And why do we always communicate in Russian? - I ask a counter question.

During my time with the spy, I realised a simple truth. Never let you pull information out of yourself. Talk nonsense, don't shut up (well, I'm good at that), ask counter questions, but don't answer.

- How do you know him so well? - squinting, asks the redhead.

You see.

- Everyone has their secrets, - I climb into the ring, - shall we begin?

I'm going to stand.

- Change your clothes," the Widow snorts.

- What's wrong with the suit?

- You'll sweat. Shall I remind you how this "marvellous" fragrance is absorbed into the fabric of your suit? - my instructor sneers.

Brrr.

- No, thank you.

I retreat to the bench. I open my bag and pull out a standard Shield training suit. There's nothing to do, so we change.

I don't know what's more frightening, the Widow's scrutinising gaze as I change or the anticipation of the inevitable sparring?

Oh, please don't. Of course, it wouldn't cost me anything to break a limb or dodge attacks with agility and reaction. But ability alone is nothing compared to experience and skill. And Natasha has plenty of those, given how long she's lived. Even Wolverine trained her.

Eight out of ten sparring matches she's won is proof of that. And I'm only taking two of them because of weeks of fighting this Valkyrie.

- You ready?

- Do I have a choice? - I'm getting in the ring.

- No.

The Widow swiftly attacks with a leaping leg kick. I dodge, landing on four limbs. I jump up, adopting my signature Spider-style stance.

It took us a long time to develop a hand-to-hand strategy to suit my "dodge, bounce, kick" tactics, and it's far from perfect now, but Fury promised to recommend me to an Eastern specialist.

The Widow smirks. As he approaches me, the instructor throws a few straight punches, interspersed with hooks and footwork.

I dodge most of the blows, parry some, and take others as blocks. The ability to let the opponent get close and stay on his feet after a direct blow to the body is also important.

- By the way, while we have time, why do I only have a level 5 clearance? - I'm unholstering my main weapon.

- Breathing," Romanova said curtly.

- Come on, Nat, I can talk during sparring for hours, and I'm sure you have this skill, - I dodge the attempt to hit me in the head with my knee, - so what?

- Okay, convinced," the Widow sighs heavily, "you're still a cadet, no matter what your future tasks are, so your clearance level is appropriate.

Fair enough.

Flashback

When Fury and I had discussed all the details that unfortunate evening on the seventeenth of October, I had thought that the very next day I would be introduced to this rookie superhero team of our one-eyed eagle. I speculated who the squad might consist of, would it be similar to some cartoon versions or would the line-up be original?

Either way it didn't make sense.

The next day the coordinates came on my communicator. I flew to the building that had become my link to Shields, for apart from it, I had witnessed nothing pointing to this organisation. Not even an invitation to the Aircraft Carrier.

Inside, a sweetly smiling Phil Coulson was waiting for me. He explained that even though I was a "superhuman", I would not get special assignments from the organisation or work with the team until I had been properly trained. Then four specialists entered the room and Phil said that they would teach me everything that a standard Shield agent should be able to do. He wished me luck and left.

I was overjoyed at the prospect. Firstly, free training in necessary and useful skills from the masters. Others don't work for the Shield. Secondly, I won't have to come into contact with other heroes unprepared. Sure, I have street experience, but that's about it. What if one of Fury's pocket heroes is Captain America? I don't want to embarrass myself. It's unlikely, of course, but I don't have the Avengers formed yet, so who knows.

These four were ordinary specialists, if you compare them to the army, captain level in the organisation, no more. Mia was teaching me medicine, honestly, it was the most fascinating. And not because Stell was a hot thirty-four-year-old brunette with a size four. It wasn't because of that.

Rich had been working with my basic strength training. Not bad for keeping in shape, great for a newbie in the Shield. But for me? Useless.

Rupert paid attention to my skills with edged and firearms. Not only I was surprised by that, but the agents themselves. Still, many of them were tacitly accustomed to the fact that if you wear colourful pyjamas, then you don't use mere mortals' gadgets, because you have your own powers and gadgets.

I, however, was far from such prejudices, even though at first I didn't think about guns at all. So I instantly grabbed a Glock from the rack and unloaded the magazine into the target. For my first time with a gun in my hand was not bad, six hits in the centre out of ten. The technique is similar to shooting spider webs. But then the instructor properly drove on my brains, saying "don't grab the weapon without command", but I was so happy with success that I forgot even to resent the hit.

The last and for me the most unexpected way of learning was the teaching of tactics and strategy from Olivia Tolb.

I had assumed that I was the one Fury wanted to see as the formal leader of his squad, though it was unclear why, but the fact that they would seriously consider training me as a leader was surprising. Even though it shouldn't, in the real world, during the heat of the situation, everything is not reduced to pep talks about believing in yourself, the importance of cohesion and so on. Knowing how to manage a team, knowing the strengths and weaknesses of your allies, and so on, is the key to mission success.

Fury understood that.

And I've familiarised myself with the dossiers of those who will be on my team:

The first member, - Angel, Warren Warrington the third. 23 years old. When I saw his file, I almost fell off my chair. How he ended up in the Shield's prep programme and not one bald telepath, God only knows. But a fact is a fact. I reckon Warren's dad's been doing his bit. Maybe he decided to make him a hero and get rid of the "mutant" stigma, because, according to Warrington's medical records, the X-Gene was still present in him. It didn't matter to me at all. Mutant, alien, genetically modified human, good guy, whatever.

The second contestant, or rather contestant, is the White Tigress, Ava Ayala. 21 years old. The third to take up the mantle of the White Tiger, after her grandfather and father, as well as receiving the mysterious mystical Tiger amulet. Hector Ayala, the previous White Tiger, Ava's father was killed by the Tuskmaster. During an encounter with him, this fact may play a cruel joke. Based on the dossier, a very gifted and promising candidate, an application for my right hand in the team.

Third contestant, Iron Fist, Danny Rand. 22 years old. During the Rand family's trip to the mountains of Nepal, the boy's parents died. Danny's father failed to disclose that the purpose of their journey was to find Kun Lun, a legendary mystical city. The door between worlds that gives passage to Kun Lun opens once every ten years. Danny was nine when he was taken, the next time the door opened, he stood before the world as the Iron Fist. File states that he wished to discover secrets that his father had kept from him and is still in the process of doing so. He's been a hero on the streets for a while, along with another candidate.

The fourth contestant is Carl Lucas, a.k.a. Luke Cage, a.k.a. Strongman. 29 years old. He's the oldest guy on our team. Age may be the main criterion for deciding my role as leader. Luke's a very conflicted guy. Not surprising, given his past. He was in prison on false charges, agreed to participate in a superhuman experiment, the result, a success, albeit with an explosion. Carl escaped from prison after the confusion. On the outside, he took a new name, and so Luke Cage was born. As I understand it, the only reason he agreed to join the team was to clear his name. Nothing about his parents, so either they weren't Shield agents in this world, or the information is as classified as possible. Work well in a team with Iron Fist, they cleared Harlem together for a while. You could use Danny to influence him in a pinch.

Fifth member, Nova, Sam Alexander, 19 years old. My age. Found his father's old helmet at seventeen, a knight in the Nova Corps, went into space the same day. Worked with the Guardians of the Galaxy. But the long search for his father was unsuccessful, and the guy had to return to Earth to take care of his mother and sister who stayed here. He's a teenager, so he's hot-tempered and out of control. I understand, as I'm the same way, even though I try to control my impulses. He is an extremely important asset to Shield, as he is aware of the space situation.

The sixth participant, again a participant, is Flame Storm, Frankie Rhea, twenty years old. Her grandfather was one of the scientists who created the android Fakel Man, acting alongside Captain America during World War II. After Johnny Storm showed up, Frankie's father, also a famous scientist decided to repeat his own ancestor's experiment. Rhea became an unfortunate victim and gained the ability to ignite. A somewhat unwilling member of the team, as she has no choice. Shield is teaching Frankie how to use her newfound powers.

And me, the seventh candidate. How come I'm one of the youngest, I have absolutely no idea.

End of memory. 

- Don't get distracted!

A sharp shout from the widow jolts me out of my memories. Turns out I've been fending off attacks for about ten minutes now, on autopilot thanks to Spider Sense.

The Widow rolls over to my back, knocking me to the mat with an underhook.

- I won," Romanova said, giving me her hand.

- I admit defeat," I replied, accepting the outstretched limb.

We go to the benches and drink water.

- You were not concentrated at the end, what happened? - begins to inquire Widow.

Well, that information won't make it any worse.

- You see, Nat, I'm not sure I'm ready to lead the Team, - I explain with a heavy sigh, switching to English. - I mean, hello, a lot of people have experience comparable to mine, and some have more. Jesus, Nova spent years being a hero in space. In space! And Cage is a dozen years older than me.

- I'm not much of a counsellor, Pete," the Widow rarely addressed me by my first name, "but I can tell you that if Nick Fury thinks you should manage the candidates, then it's your responsibility," Romanova put her hand on my shoulder, "besides, didn't you start making contact with some of them yourself? - finished the spy slyly.

- Uela, - I agree with a sour expression on my face.

As soon as I found out that the Harlem-based Strongman (though Luke doesn't like nicknames much) and Iron Fist were future candidates for the Shield team, I decided to start building bridges.

The first pancake was a pancake.