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When a Spider comes calling	By : Revenaught Category: Marvel Verse Comics > Spiderman Views: 13339 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own Spider-Man or the associated characters, places, or ideas. This is a work of FanFiction and I am making no money from it.

Chapter List
- 11
- 12
- 13
When a Spider comes calling.
Ch. 12 Electro
            Maxwell Dillon AKA Electro was on top of the world. Since he had participated in the rape, torture, and murder of Mary Jane and May Parker he felt as if he had truly achieved a victory over Spiderman. It galled him that he had to share it with the others but a victory was a victory and was to be savored no matter how it had been achieved. He had gone on a short crime spree right after the killing and had been living in luxury on the proceeds ever since. He had seen the headlines about the deaths of the others. He knew he ought to be worried that he might share their fate but he just couldn’t seem to dredge up any concern about it and to be honest he hadn’t really tried. The money he had stolen after the murders had been enough to buy some very credible forged IDs and set him up in a luxury penthouse where he was waited on hand and foot. He delighted in the outward shows of respect his new wealth acquired for him. He only had one problem. His new lifestyle had burned through the recently acquired money. He would simply have to go and steal some more. It was ridiculously easy now. He had stopped going for the big flashy crimes in broad daylight. Instead he had discovered that the right current shot through an ATM machine would not only knock out its camera but would also trigger its dispensing mechanism and empty all its cash into his greedy hands. Three of four machines hit in a random pattern across the city gave him more than enough money to live on for another month or so and was incredibly risk free. He no longer ran around in his Electro costume. It just didn’t make sense to try and commit crimes while screaming hey look at me and notice what I’m doing! He now wore plain clothes, a large black trench coat, special leather gloves designed to allow his powers to be used without destroying them, and a ski mask that only left his eyes visible to protect his identity when he was at the ATMs.
It was sheer bad luck on Electro’s part that Spider ran across him as he walked the streets on his way to his next stop. Spider had not given up on tracking down Electro but like Electro he had run out of ready cash. He no longer lived at Parker’s house. He didn’t want to be found until his work was done. In fact he didn’t ‘live’ anywhere. He would find safe secluded niches in empty buildings to sleep in only because even after his merger with the symbiote sleep was still a physical necessity. He only ate because it too was a physical requirement. However since he refused to steal his food he also required money to buy it if he was going to live to complete his work. Like Electro Spider did not have a current source of legal income so he resorted to theft. Unlike Electro he did care who he stole from. Spider had taken to following drug pushers working the streets back to their suppliers and their suppliers until he found a storage house with plenty of drugs, money, and drug pushers inside. He would carefully work his way into the site rendering the drug dealers inside unconscious before they could recognize him and leave them bound with the drugs and just enough money so it was obvious they were sellers and then dial 911 and leave. The police investigating the unusual 911 calls found them and removed them from the streets but were uneasy not knowing who was leaving them gifts. Spider took the rest of the money and used it to fund his work. He was in the process of trailing another street pusher when, thanks to the senses he had gained from his merger with the symbiote, he detected a faint whiff of ozone he associated with Electro. He looked around quickly for the flash of Electro’s green and gold costume but could see nothing like it from his perch on a wall where he could follow the drug dealer without risk of detection. Spider tracked the scent but it soon faded. Reversing course he followed it the other way until he saw the figure in the long dark trench coat. Spider’s first impulse was to jump on him and take him down hard. But, in addition to the risk this would put nearby people in he also didn’t want anyone to see him attack and carry off an innocent appearing man. So he followed him. Staying camouflaged through the symbiote that was now a part of him he was still undetected when Electro returned to the high rise building where he rented rooms that he paid for with his stolen cash. Spider considered his prey and the potential for innocent casualties from a head on confrontation with him. While he was no longer Spiderman he still would not deliberately endanger innocent lives in the furtherance of his work. As much as he would enjoy pummeling Electro he would have to refrain. Spider knew where Electro was holed up now so he could leave and make some preparations and come back later. Electro was living on borrowed time and Spider would collect his due when the time was right.
A few days later Spider was back only to find that Electro had thrown another wrench in his plans. Instead of being alone he had a very young prostitute with him. Spider could tell that even though she made all the right motions and noises this was not a prostitute who enjoyed her work at all. In fact he rather got the feeling that she would rather be just about anywhere else. Electro was not a gentle bed mate and he used the girl roughly for a solid half hour before collapsing spent. Once she was sure he had drifted off to sleep she curled up on her side and cried. After she was done she carefully left the bed and gathered up her clothing. Dressed she turned to leave and froze at the sight of Spider standing in front of the door a finger raised in the classic motion for silence. She had been so intent on moving quietly, so as to make her own escape, that she hadn’t seen Spider leave the air vent he had used to gain entrance, and as a hiding place until Electro drifted off, and crawl down the wall by the door. Spider pointed at one of the chairs and motioned her to sit down. Quivering in fear she did so and watched as the figure clad in solid black moved like a shadow over to the bed where Electro lay snoring lightly. He pulled a small bottle and a cloth from a pack on his back and dampened the cloth with the liquid in the bottle. He leaned over the bed and held the damp cloth as close to Electro’s mouth and nose as he could without actually touching him. Electro’s snores faded until he seemed to be barely breathing. Now Spider came over and knelt in front of the terrified girl and said in a very low voice.
            “It’s ok. I’m not going to hurt you.”
            “I have to go or my handler will be up here to retrieve me. If I’m late for any other reason than spending extra time with the ‘client’ he’ll beat me!” She said praying this person was not going to be responsible for her getting another beating. Or killing her to keep her from speaking about him depending on why he was here.
            “Wait a minute! You mean you’re not doing this by choice?” Spider was stunned.
            “No! The bitch who rents me out nabbed me straight off the bus. I was too stupid to run then and it’s too late now. The ones who try are beaten, bad. Those who try again are killed! Please let me go now!” Spider’s eyes and spider emblems flared red as she told him this.
            “If I guaranteed you that they could never track you down would you escape?”
            “In a heartbeat but you can’t guarantee that! They always track them down sooner or later. They make us watch what they do before they die! You can’t keep them from finding me!”
            “I can.”
            “How?”
            “Kill them first. They can’t track you down if they are already dead.”
            “But aren’t you Spiderman? You don’t kill. Do you?”
            “The man I was didn’t. If I had been stronger…well I wasn’t then but I am now. You can call me Spider. Now do you want to be free?”
            “Oh God yes! Can you get the others out too? I’m not the only one they are using.”
            “Hold on a moment.” Spider looked at Electro in his bed debating between the work he had to do and this poor girl who needed help so badly. The words Power and Responsibility floated through his head sounding exactly like his Uncle Bens voice. He sighed and pulled a syringe out of his pack and went over to the bed. He plunged the needle into Electro’s neck and emptied its contents into him. Returning to the girl he said with more volume, “Ok. He’ll be out for at least twenty-four hours. Now do you know where your captors are based at?”
            “No! They have a basement garage and never let us see anything when we are driven to and from our appointments.”
“Ok, that’s gonna make it tougher on you in the short run but you will be just as free in the long run. I can place a tracer on you they will not find and follow you there. But, that means you will have to go back down to your handler like you normally would.”
            “I can do that. Do you promise to follow and set us free?” With the terrified hope rising in her eyes Spider pulled the mask away from his face and looked into her eyes. His eyes were very hard and determined, but not cold.
            “I give you my solemn vow to do whatever is necessary to free you and the others.” She searched his eyes for a moment and then sighed herself.
            “Ok. Let’s get this over with.” She said. Spider nodded and pulled out one of the new line of spider tracers he had devised and gently placed it on the upper curve of her ear. It sat there a second and then almost seemed to melt into her as it formed into a match for the contours of her ear and then matched her skin tone so perfectly it practically became invisible.
            “Done, they will never find that and only I can sense where it’s at. Go back and follow your normal routines with them. Act like you always do! I will get you back out but I will have to do a thorough search of the building before I act so I can free you without causing the wrong people to be hurt. By the way what’s your name?”
            “Melissa. No, I’m not her anymore. I can’t be her anymore. From now on I’m what you have given me. Call me Hope.”
            “Ok Hope. Just remember they have to believe you’re Melissa for one more night. Now go.” Hope pulled a cloak of Melissa around her and left the suite. Spider watched from the roof as she exited the building and met a man waiting across the street. They got in his car and left. Spider went back inside and picked up Electro and slung him over a shoulder. “Well Max we can’t start right away. I have something else to attend to first. But don’t worry, that sedative will keep you out long enough for me to take care of this other matter before you ever even realize you’re not in your own bed anymore.” Spider then carefully carried Maxwell Dillon out of the building making sure to grab his stolen ATM money as well and left to stash the sleeping form of Electro in a more secure spot.
            Spider had followed the tracer he had put on Hope away from the city, through the suburbs, and into the country to a large estate. Fortunately the estate wasn’t too far from a nearby Interstate Highway otherwise he would never have made it there in time to keep his promise of freeing her tonight. Web slinging was great until you left the areas with taller buildings. Spider had managed to hitch a ride on a semi and remain undetected during the trip. Still he had precious little time left to scope out the place and figure out how to do what needed to be done without endangering those he had come to rescue. However he soon realized that whoever was behind this operation was counting on the remote location protecting them from prying eyes rather than electronics or physical security. He had no problem sneaking onto the property and making his way around to the back of the four story mansion centered on the grounds. He found the entrance to the underground garage Hope had told him about and looked inside. Inside the garage he found a man sitting on the hood of one of the parked cars smoking a cigarette. Spider easily snuck up on the man and in no time had him bound, gagged, and blindfolded before he even had a chance to think about sounding the alarm. Spider formed the fingers of his right hand into claws and grasped the throat of his captive who froze completely, afraid any movement on his part would result in his death.
            “I am about to remove the gag. You do understand what will happen if you misbehave?” The man very carefully nodded his head once. Spider placed his left hand over the webbing of the gag and re-absorbed it. His captive remained absolutely silent. “Now then, I believe this is where several young women are being held and forced to act as prostitutes am I correct? Think before you answer! Your truthfulness has a direct relation on how long you live.”
            “Yes, it is.” The man answered quickly.
            “How many are held captive here?”
            “Fifteen girls and ten boys.”
            “Boys?”
            “Yes. The clients who pay Madam Scarlet aren’t always heterosexual.”
            “Madame Scarlet?”
            “Her choice and she kills anyone who calls her anything else. No one here knows what her real name is. She’s a mutant or something, freaky fast and really strong.”
            “I understand it’s also practically impossible to escape. Why?”
            “Not practically, it is impossible to escape. Scarlet is also a tracker. Once she tastes your blood there is nowhere on the planet she can’t find you and anyone related to you.”
            “Is she the one who tortures and kills the ones who try to escape?”
            “The other handlers help. They’re all as sick and twisted as she is.”
            “But you’re not?” sarcasm dripped from Spider’s voice.
            “No I’m not. I’m as much a captive as any of the others. One of the girls is my sister. Scarlet will kill her and our parents if we don’t co-operate. So I take one of the girls to her appointments and my sister…well she does what she has to as well.”
            “How many other handlers are in your situation?”
            “None. There are twenty four handlers on floors one through three West wing. The captives are on one through three East wing. Scarlet has the entire fourth floor for her personal use. Her main office is in the center, sleeping area on the West wing and everything else on the East side.”
            “Is this all part of a larger operation?”
            “No. Scarlet is trying to figure out how to expand but it all hinges on her abilities and she doesn’t trust anyone else anyway.”
            “Are any of the interior doors locked?”
            “No. The handlers are free to use any of the slaves at their whim so long as it doesn’t interfere with an appointment. Scarlet doesn’t trust the handlers behind locked doors and no one dares enter her area uninvited.”
            “So how do I know you have told me the truth about any of this?” Spider knew because he could sense it through his symbiote covering that was touching the man but he wanted to hear what he would say.
            “Simple. My failure to sound the alarm and not remaining silent and dying when you caught me have sentenced my sister and parents to death. My only hope is that you take out Scarlet and you have to have accurate information to do that. Plus if you win I want something.”
            “What makes you think I’m here to kill her?”
            “Judging by the way you snuck in here, you're here to end this horror or you're going to take it over for yourself or for someone else. Either way she will kill me for the reasons I already mentioned. You can’t save anyone here while she is alive and able to track them down eventually and she will not accept anyone else taking control of this operation so you will have to kill her.”
            “And what is it you want if I win”
            “The handler in the room farthest down the third floor hall right hand side, don’t kill him.”
            “Why?”
            “He’s made it his personal mission to take my sister every chance he can just to drive a knife in my gut. I want to be the one to kill him.”
            “If you’re lying to me you will die far worse than any of the escapees. If you are telling me the truth then you and your sister will have your freedom and your revenge.”
            Spider webbed the gag back in place and entered the building. He wasted no time. Moving quickly and silently through the first three floors on the west wing he quietly entered each room and silently crushed the sleeping occupant’s throat and making sure their dying thrashing didn’t wake anyone else. The final handler at the end of the third floor he webbed up just like he had the man in the underground garage. As he climbed the central stair case to the fourth floor he felt his Spider sense flare. Instead of walking to the top of the stairs he leapt up through their opening to the ceiling above. A knife flew through the air he had just leapt through with such force that it went through the wall and disappeared from sight. Spider looked at the woman who had thrown it. Tall and athletic with another knife in hand she stood loose and ready to move, looking at him speculatively
            “I can sense those whose blood I’ve tasted you know?” she said.
            “It would only make sense. How else could you so accurately track down escapees?” answered Spider.
            “I could feel my men fade out as you killed them. You missed a couple you know.”
            “Don’t worry about them. They are no longer your concern. I don’t suppose you’re being forced to do what you’re doing here are you?” Spider dropped down.
            “No one forces me to do anything! I’ve killed all those who have tried to use me and now I'm the user. I’m in charge here!”
            “I believe you.”
            “Then walk away now while you can.” She demanded.
            “I don’t think so. I’m here to free those kids and make sure you can’t hurt them ever again.”
            “Even if you could take them you can’t hide them from me. There’s nothing you can do to prevent me from tracking them down.”
            “There is one thing.”
            “This means I’ve already won! You heroes don’t have the strength to do that.” Madame Scarlet, tired of the useless word play, rushed Spider planning on putting a quick end to her intruder. Spider simply side stepped her thrusting knife and blocked her follow up kick. She probably would have wiped the floor with him before his return from Asgard and everything that had happened since. Now however she was neither fast nor strong enough to prevail against him. He let the fight drag on for a few minutes until she fully realized this as well. Soon he could tell her focus had shifted from kill to flee. As soon as it had he wrenched the knife from her hand. Desperate she turned to run. Spider’s web line caught her right arm stopping her forward momentum and swung her around facing Spider. Before she could try to run again he slammed the knife, up to its hilt, low in her abdomen. She gasped as the shock and pain of the intrusion coursed through her body.
            “I’m not a hero anymore.” Spider said softly and ripped the knife up through her body until it was buried in her heart. “But, I will no longer avoid my responsibility.” He watched the light fade from her eyes and let her body drop and started to walk away. Then remembering all the times a villain had evaded death one way or another he went back, pulled out the knife and coolly used it to remove her head. Spider returned to the final handler and slung him over a shoulder and carried him easily while he roused the captives and finally managed to herd them all into the underground garage. One of the girls saw the man webbed up and ran over to him.
            “Kevin!” Quickly seeing he hadn’t been physically hurt she begged. “Please don’t hurt him! He’s only been working for them to keep me alive!”
            “Does anyone else care to speak for or against him?” Spider asked the group.
            “He was my handler.” Said one of the oldest girls. “He wasn’t a willing one though.”
            “So you want him punished I suppose?” Spider asked the girl.
            “No!” she gasped.
            “Why? He took you time after time to be the sexual slave to people who had paid for it.?
            “Yes he did. If he hadn’t Madam Scarlet would have killed; him, his sister, their parents, and me. I heard her tell him exactly that. I don’t like this life but I’m not ready to die. Not only that, he took care of me as best as he could. When a client got rough with me he went out of his way to care for me while I recovered. He did everything he could to keep the rest of the handlers off of me like he couldn’t do for his sister although he tried. I…I love him.” The last part she said barely louder than a whisper.
            “I can understand not wanting him hurt but love?”
            “Yes Love.” She answered more firmly. “I offered myself to him. It was the only way I had to thank him for everything he did for me. He said no. He told me that if we ever got out totally free and I made the same offer because I wanted to do so from desire not a feeling of obligation he wouldn’t hesitate, but here and now like this no. I think I loved him before that, I know i did from that second on.”
            “Fair enough. Does anyone else have a reason why he shouldn’t live?” No one spoke up to give a reason to justify his death. “Ok, he lives.” Spider said and he absorbed the webbing holding Kevin and set him free. Kevin’s sister and the older girl clung to him in relief while Spider picked up the last handler and pulled the webbing from his head.
            “What the hell is goin on down here?” the last handler demanded as he saw all the captives gathered in the garage. “Every last one of you get back to your rooms!” he ordered. The captives slowly started moving to obey when Spider opened a web pouch on the handlers back and pulled Scarlet’s severed head from it and held it up for everyone to see.
            “You no longer have any authority here. In fact I would say you’re in a very bad spot just about now.” The looks of sullen obedience on the captive faces had flashed to shocked disbelief at the site of Scarlet’s head. Then they shifted to burning anger as they looked at the handler. “Is there anyone who will speak up for him like these two spoke up for Kevin?” Spider asked. Hope looked at him from her spot in the group.
            “It won’t happen Spider.” She said in a clear strong voice. “Reginald here was the closest thing Scarlet had to a second in command. He took great pleasure in causing pain of all types. The only person here he hasn’t raped at one time or another is Kevin. He couldn’t touch him physically so he hurt him mentally by hurting his sister every chance he got.”
            “That’s a lie!” yelled Reginald. “I only did what I had to, to survive. Scarlet threatened to kill me if I didn’t!” he said desperately.
            “You lie,” Spider said in his ice cold voice, “so long as I’m touching my webbing on you I can tell when you lie.” Spider said as he absorbed the webbing from Reginald’s body. “Kevin you asked me for a favor. It’s yours.” Spider said and stepped away from Reginald. Kevin’s charge picked up Reginald and slammed him to the ground. Reginald lay there stunned as Kevin started venting his pent up rage and fury. Kevin finally stopped exhausted, long after Reginald had become nothing more than a bloody corpse on the floor. Spider said, “Ok that takes care of that. Now let’s call the authorities and get you all back to your families.”
            “No!” Hope said.
            “What? Why not?” Spider said in shock.
            “A few will want to go home but most of us got snagged by Scarlet because we were running from bad home situations. Some just as bad as or worse than what was happening here.”
            “Hmf. Wasn’t expecting that. All right give me a moment.” Spider moved a bit away and pulled the cell phone he had lifted off of Kevin earlier and made a call. When someone picked up on the other end he said, “Logan I need a favor…”
            An hour later all the captives were waiting in the garage with pillow cases stuffed with the bits of clothing they felt like keeping when a motorcycle was heard approaching. When it entered the garage its rider was revealed to be a short man with thick muscles and a sour looking attitude. He got off the bike and looked over the situation in the garage taking in everything including the dead man on the floor and the severed woman’s head on the hood of a car. He calmly lit a cigar and took a couple of puffs before saying.
            “What’s goin on Web-head?”
            “Prostitution slash Slavery ring. Run by the owner of the head over there. Her ‘workers’ were forced into it and any escapees were tracked down and tortured to death by her and her goons. Dead guy on the floor was the worst of the goons.”
            “Where are the rest of the goons?”
            “Up in their rooms. All just as dead at these two.”
            “Really? Not your usual style.”
            “Yeah, well my usual style…wouldn't have worked here. I couldn’t take the chance the goons would use them as shields so I made sure they couldn’t and she was a tracker. Far more than human, fast and strong she could track down anyone whose blood she had tasted. The moment she either escaped or was released they would have been at risk no matter how well they were hidden.”
            “So why did you call me? Looks like you’ve got things well in hand.”
            “Most of them can’t go back home for one reason or another and throwing them in the system won’t help heal the trauma they’ve been put through. There’s almost always a person in your group who can help with the trauma and I’m hoping either you or one of the others can use the money found here to help set those who can’t go home up in a new life.”
            “Yeah, Chuck has done both on occasion before. We have enough room at the school to board em while things get sorted out. But Peter, you know he won’t be easy with what happened here.”
            “Yeah, I know. That’s why I called you direct. I finally understand what he doesn’t yet. When you have no choices left you do what you have to. I've accepted the responsibility that comes with my power. But he can disapprove of me all he wants. I know he won’t refuse to help these people just because of how I freed them.”
            “So, you goin all Castle on us then?”
            “Hardly. What was done here had to be to make sure they were safe but, this was a fluke. I ran across one of the girls while I was taking care of some other business. This is taking me away from that, but enough of the man I was remains that I couldn’t refuse to help.”
            “Uh huh. Speakin of that other business, I’ve been following the news lately. A lot of your old foes are turnin up with a bad case of dead. Where they all part of…?”
            “Yes.”
            “Look Peter I’m sorry. I’ve been in those shoes. Too damn many times!”
            “Logan it’s just Spider now. Peter’s dead with his Wife and Aunt. Don’t try and talk me out of this. I’m almost done. I’m not about to stop now. I’m being careful no one is getting caught in the crossfire.”
            “Peter..Spider whatever, I’m not tryin to stop ya!”
            “I said don’t… Huh?”
            “Damn it! I’m no flammin good at this. Look I’m sayin I’m here for ya if you need a friend, or a drinkin buddy, or just someone to talk to who’s been there. Most importantly if you need help with your business you can count on me.”
            “Logan I…You know I hated you after that trip to Russia.”
            “Yeah kid. I know.”
            “I didn’t understand then. I do now. You know I need to do this solo.”
            “Yeah I reckon so. I also know there comes a time when you don’t want to be solo anymore. If you get there and need anything let me know.”
            “Thank you. Come visit me in whatever cage I end up in. If I didn’t finish I just might ask you to do it for me.”
“Gonna turn yourself in?”
            “When I’m done. If I’m not taken down first. You can’t be the only hero who’s put two and two together. I’m surprised I haven’t been tracked down already.”
            “What are ya gonna do if the good guys do come after ya?”
            “If I can’t escape I’ll surrender. I’m not gonna hurt them.” There was silence between them and then Spider continued. “I’m walkin a thin line aren’t I Logan?”
            “Not as thin as I was afraid of for a while.”
            “If I cross it will you stop me?”
            “I swear if you cross that line and I can’t pull ya back, I’ll stop ya whatever it takes.”
            “Thank you again. Now back to the job at hand.”
            “Leave this to me. I’ll get these folks to the school and I know someone who owes me a favor who can erase this place like it never existed. These kids don’t need a police investigation into it tracking them down.”
            “Good. I’m going to take one of these cars and get back to work. See you Logan.”
            “Take care Spider.” The two men shook hands and split up. Spider headed toward a car and Logan toward the others. Hope saw Spider walking away and ran to him.
            “Spider wait! Don’t leave us?” she called as she approached.
            “It’s ok Hope. Logan will help all of you. He knows some really good people and they are going to help you get back to living in the real world. Free of the monsters.”
            I’m sure they’re really great people but they didn’t free me from this place, you did. I want to go with you.”
            “You can’t.”
            “Look they did let us watch T.V. here. I know who you are and what was done to you and your family. I’m not trying to replace them, not that I could, but I really think you shouldn’t be alone right now. Like that guy Logan I can be your friend if you let me.”
            “No you can’t do that, not yet. I still have some work to do that you can’t be a part of.”
            “Yeah I figured out that bit too.” She paused for thought, “You did what you did here to keep us from getting hurt didn’t you?”
            “Yes.”
            “And if I went with you, with what you’re doin it would put me at risk wouldn’t it?”
            “Yes it would and I can’t allow that. But, like I told Logan you can visit me wherever they end up putting me.”
            “I will.”
            “Good. Now rejoin the group and put this place behind you.”
            “I’ll see you Spider.” Hope told him as she rejoined the group. Spider looked, for a minute, at the group of people who were about to get their lives back, then turned away and got in a car to drive back to the city and the work that needed to be completed.

Maxwell Dillon came to slowly. His head felt fuzzy and he couldn’t focus well at all. His mouth felt vile and his tongue seemed so thick and swollen he was mildly surprised it wasn’t choking him. He didn’t realize his hands were bound until he tried to raise a hand to scratch his face. In trying to discover why he couldn’t move his hands, he found that his entire body except his head was restrained in some type of metal harness that had bands about his; ankles, knees, waist, elbows, chest, and upper arms just under the shoulder. His hands were encased in large metal gauntlets that were firmly attached to the framework around him. He was dismayed to realize he was also very nude. Embarrassing as the situation was it was stupid of his captor to bind him in metal. He could generate more than enough current to melt the metal holding him. He wasn’t burn proof though and he knew that getting his hands free was going to involve a lot of pain. He put off drastic action for the moment to further inspect his surroundings. Now that he was paying attention, and his head was clearing some more, he realized that what had seemed like a very small room was actually a large cylindrical tank made of smoky glass that was impossible to see through. It was when he was scanning the top of the tank that he saw the figure of Spider squatting on the rim, staring intently down at him with blazing red eyes in his mask.
            “I see you’re finally awake Max.” Spider said his voice again returned to its glacial coolness.
            “Parker! How the hell did you find me? And just what the hell is this contraption supposed to be? Why am I naked? Are you turning gay on me?” Electro asked the last with an insulting slyness.
            “I’ll be honest with you. You weren’t first on my list because it took a while to get this set up for you. By the time I was ready you had gone to ground very well. If you had shown that kind of care and caution from the first we might never have tangled in the first place and you never would have gone to jail. Oh well you didn’t and I happened across you the other night by pure chance. Trailing you back to your rooms was easy. I took you while you slept to keep you from putting innocent people at risk. As for this contraption, it’s your death.”
            “Ok burns or no I need out of here.” Electro thought and channeled a massive surge of electrical power through his hands. The surge of the framework rising up until he was almost even with Spider standing on the tanks rim caused him to lose focus on his power and as it failed he sank back to the bottom of the tank. “What the Hell?!?” he exclaimed.
            “The metal harness your in is wired into electro magnets beneath you. They are set up so that when you charge them they repel each other causing you to rise up in the air.”
            “And just how is that supposed to kill me?” Maxwell just couldn’t help sneering.
            “It doesn’t. It allows you to live a little longer.” Spider threw a lever on a panel behind him and a small stream of liquid poured from a spigot set in the rim and poured down the side of the tank. “This is why you’re naked and what will kill you.”
            “What? You’re giving me a bath? Or are you gonna drown me?”
            “No drowning is tempting but would be over way too fast.”
            “So the high and mighty Spiderman is finally getting his hands dirty?” Electro sneered again.
            “Spiderman is dead, thanks in part to you. Spider is all that’s left now.”
            “That was your fault! It never would have happened if you would have just minded your own business!”
            “Yes. It was my fault. Had I been strong enough to do what needed doing in the first place you wouldn’t have been alive to hurt them. Spiderman wasn’t that strong. Spider is.”
            “What is that you’re pouring in here?” Electro asked peering down at the liquid slowly filling the tank gradually approaching the level of his feet as it covered the powerful electro magnets under him.
            “It’s a mild acid that will slowly eat flesh. Metal and bone will take much longer.”
            “No! That’s…Oh God please don’t!” fear thick in his voice now Maxwell Dillon begged the man looking down at him.
            “Considering the joy you took in using your powers on my Wife and Aunt did you really expect a quick or peaceful end from me? After all that’s not the lesson you taught me was it?” The acid reached the bottom of Maxwell’s feet and the caustic liquid started its work. With a cry of pain he triggered his power charging the magnets and raising his harness and himself above the acid. “I see you have realized the out I left you. It is also the reason you are naked. It wouldn’t do to have the acid kept close to you when you are above it by having it soak into your clothes.”
            “ What out? This cage won’t go above the tank. It will get me regardless!” Maxwell snarled.
            “The acid will stop at the level of your shoulders when you are fully submerged in it. When your cage is up as far as it can go your feet will be just above it. If you can stay above it long enough it will finally damage the magnets enough and they will fail. At that time you will fall but a drain will also open. It is possible that you might still be alive when it all drains out. If you are I will set you free and you can try to get medical attention. While that’s a possibility, personally I think you’ll run out of juice long before the magnets go and the acid will finish you long before it starts to drain.”
            “Damn you, you son of a AHHH!” Maxwell broke off as the acid flowed up to his feet again and he had to up his power output to rise above it. “I told you, what happened wasn’t my fault! If you had just minded your own business they would have never been hurt! You can’t hold it against me. It was Goblin’s doing anyway! I was just along for the ride! It wasn’t my idea! Damn you Spider it was your fault!”
            “I would focus on the acid and not me now Max.” Spider urged Maxwell and after having to pull his feet out of the acid again Maxwell did. He kept his feet out of the acid by slowly increasing his power until finally the spigot stopped adding more. Maxwell realized he was only at about half the power he could generate but it was a constant drain not short bursts like he was used to. He had never used his power like this before so he had no idea how long he could keep it up but he was deathly afraid it wouldn’t be long enough. He was right, after about four hours he started to run down and would suddenly drop a bit and the acid would start to burn his feet again. Each time would spark a renewed effort on his part and he would drag himself back up and out of the acid. Each time however, he would stay above it for less and less time. Finally the time came when despite his best efforts he couldn’t fully raise his feet clear of the acid. He started screaming then. The more of his legs that sunk into the acid the louder he howled. His cries stopped suddenly when the acid suddenly rose to cover his genitals. The pain of the acid on these most ender of areas galvanized him as it froze his lungs. With an enormous effort he forced himself back above the surface of the acid but the pain didn’t lessen. When his lungs finally unlocked he no longer howled but screeched in agony. So loud and hard were his cries that he actually shredded his vocal cords and his bloody wails were soundless from that point on. Shortly, his renewed effort expended the last of his power and he sank up to his shoulders in acid. His head thrown back he wailed in soundless agony! He lived until the acid ate through his skin and entered his bloodstream and attacked him from the inside as well. Spider waited until the acid had finally stripped the bones clean before he drained the acid away. He then carefully rinsed them off and took them back to the rooms Maxwell had been using when Spider took him and placed them in the middle of the bed with the still fleshed head resting on the pillow. The words, “Only two left Mary Jane”, floated softly across the room as he turned and walked away.

DAILY BUGLE HEADLINE
ELECTRO FOUND DEAD IN OLTARN HOTEL PENTHOUSE
            Police have no leads explaining how this grisly murder was accomplished.

To be continued. Next chapter Chameleon
- 11
- 12
- 13
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When a Spider comes calling