“Ha!”
Felicia Hardy let out a cold, mocking laugh.
“I didn’t need Spider-Man to do my dirty work.”
Her blue eyes locked onto Norman Osborn.
“After I watched Jameson shoot Ben Urich in cold blood, I took a gun, walked into his office, and put a bullet through his head.”
A hint of confusion crossed her face.
“I was certain I didn’t miss.”
Slowly, she turned toward the battered figure trapped inside the cage.
“Then why is he still alive?”
Inside the cage, J.
Jonah Jameson gripped the bars and shouted furiously.
“Because the man you killed wasn’t me!”
His voice echoed through the factory.
“That bastard was an imposter!”
Felicia blinked.
“An imposter?”
“That’s right.”
A calm voice answered from behind her.
Norman Osborn.
The Green Goblin stepped forward with his hands in his pockets.
A twisted smile spread across his face.
“Unfortunately, that imposter happened to be one of my people.”
Nearby, Kraven the Hunter’s expression immediately darkened.
His fists clenched so tightly that his knuckles cracked.
“My idiot brother…”
His voice dripped with hatred.
“Killed by a woman.”
Felicia merely smirked.
The reaction only made Kraven angrier.
Norman sighed dramatically.
“You know, Felicia…”
He approached her slowly.
“I actually valued our relationship.”
His expression suddenly turned cold.
“But Chameleon belonged to us.”
The smile vanished.
“And when one of my people dies…
someone must answer for it.”
He reached toward her.
“Don’t touch me.”
SLAP!
The sharp sound echoed through the factory.
Felicia’s palm struck Norman’s face hard enough to turn his head.
For a brief moment, silence fell.
Even the gangsters nearby froze.
Norman slowly looked back.
A thin crack appeared across his skin.
Almost as though his face were a porcelain mask.
His expression became terrifying.
Before Felicia could react—
Kraven moved.
His hand shot forward and grabbed her hair.
“AAH!”
He slammed her to the ground.
“You killed my brother.”
Kraven’s eyes burned with murderous rage.
“How do you want to die?”
Felicia gritted her teeth but refused to scream.
Norman touched the crack on his face.
His annoyance was obvious.
“You’ve made me angry.”
His voice dropped dangerously.
“I was planning to make this quick.”
He crouched beside her.
“But you always seem determined to make things difficult.”
The Green Goblin’s smile returned.
Only now it looked monstrous.
“Do you know what happens to people who make me angry?”
Felicia glared at him.
Norman stood.
“Kraven.”
“Bring her.”
A few moments later, Felicia found herself dragged across the factory floor.
They stopped before a large glass container.
The moment she looked inside, her expression changed.
Spiders.
Hundreds of them.
Hideous black spiders crawled over one another in a horrifying mass.
Some were as large as a human hand.
Others possessed swollen venom sacs.
The entire container seemed alive.
Norman grabbed Felicia by the hair and forced her face toward the glass.
“You like spiders, don’t you?”
His grin widened.
“Ben Urich certainly did.”
Felicia’s eyes narrowed.
Norman continued.
“Then watch carefully.”
He pointed toward the container.
“When Vulture brings Peter Parker here…”
His voice became almost cheerful.
“I’ll make him watch as you become spider food.”
Felicia spat at him.
Norman’s expression darkened.
Then—
A voice echoed through the factory.
“I’m afraid Vulture sent his apologies instead.”
Everyone froze.
Norman’s eyes widened.
Kraven immediately spun around.
A shadow dropped from above.
Spider-Man Noir.
THWIP!
THWIP!
Two strands of webbing shot through the darkness.
Before the nearest gangsters could react, they were wrapped up completely and slammed into nearby machinery.
Spider-Man Noir landed gracefully between them.
His trench coat fluttered behind him.
The room instantly became tense.
Peter noticed another difference between himself and this version of Spider-Man.
Spider-Man Noir produced organic webbing directly from his wrists.
No web-shooters.
No cartridges.
No equipment.
Just instinct.
Peter couldn’t help thinking about the possibilities.
Perhaps after returning home, he could improve his own technology.
Maybe he could redesign his web-shooters entirely.
The thought lasted less than a second.
Because combat had already begun.
“Spider-Man!”
Kraven roared.
His rifle came up instantly.
BANG!
A bullet raced toward Peter’s head.
But Spider-Sense exploded in warning.
Time seemed to slow.
Peter twisted.
The bullet flew past his ear.
He landed lightly on the ground.
Almost automatically, his hand reached for his revolver.
His finger rested on the trigger.
One shot.
That’s all it would take.
Kraven would die.
The problem would disappear.
Simple.
Easy.
Permanent.
Yet Peter hesitated.
Aunt May’s words echoed through his mind.
“We shouldn’t live in a world where people slaughter one another.”
His finger loosened slightly.
That tiny hesitation didn’t escape Kraven’s notice.
The hunter laughed.
“Spider-Man showing mercy?”
Blood stained his teeth.
“That’s new.”
Even Jameson shouted from inside his cage.
“Stop being an idiot!”
“Shoot him!”
“That’s what the gun is for!”
Norman burst into laughter.
“Perhaps you’re the imposter after all.”
Peter ignored them.
Instead, he made a decision.
A compromise.
A middle ground.
Not mercy.
Not execution.
Something in between.
THWIP!
A strand of webbing shot forward.
Kraven barely had time to react before Peter yanked him forward violently.
The hunter flew through the air.
Straight toward him.
Then—
CRACK!
Peter’s fist smashed into Kraven’s face.
Blood exploded.
Teeth scattered across the floor.
Kraven’s nose shattered instantly.
Before he could recover—
CRACK!
Another punch.
Then another.
Peter grabbed him by the shoulders.
And drove both fists downward.
Crunch.
Crunch.
The sound was sickening.
Kraven screamed.
His shoulder blades shattered.
Both arms immediately went limp.
The damage was catastrophic.
For most people, it would be life-changing.
For Kraven?
It was worse than death.
A hunter unable to hunt.
A predator unable to fight.
Peter released him.
Kraven collapsed like a broken puppet.
Seconds later, unconsciousness mercifully claimed him.
The compromise was complete.
He hadn’t killed him.
But he would never threaten anyone again.
CLANG!
A metallic sound suddenly echoed nearby.
Peter’s head snapped around.
His eyes widened.
Norman Osborn had moved.
While Peter was dealing with Kraven, Green Goblin had opened another cage.
The tiger cage.
A massive albino tiger stepped out.
Nearly four meters long.
Four hundred kilograms of muscle and hunger.
Its yellow eyes locked onto a single target.
J.
Jonah Jameson.
Inside the neighboring cage.
Norman laughed.
“Feeding time.”
The tiger pounced.
Jameson’s face went white.
“AAAHHHHH!”
He stumbled backward.
Chains restricted his movement.
The cage offered nowhere to run.
Death was seconds away.
But Peter moved faster.
THWIP!
THWIP!
Two strands of webbing shot forward.
One wrapped around the tiger’s torso.
The other around its hind legs.
Peter pulled.
The enormous beast was yanked backward through the air.
The tiger roared furiously.
But Spider-Man’s strength was overwhelming.
The animal ended up hanging upside down from the cage frame.
Thrashing wildly.
Peter switched the web line to one hand.
Then drew his revolver.
The tiger froze.
For a brief second, predator and predator stared at each other.
Then—
BANG!
BANG!
Two shots.
Directly into the ear canal.
The bullets entered the skull.
Destroyed the brain.
And ended everything instantly.
The tiger let out one final cry.
Then went still.
Dead.
Jameson stared.
Speechless.
Finally, he managed:
“Thanks.”
Then he pointed frantically.
“Forget me!”
“Go save your girlfriend!”
Peter almost corrected him.
Felicia wasn’t his girlfriend.
But now wasn’t the time.
Because Green Goblin had vanished.
Peter spun around.
A hidden passage had opened.
Norman Osborn stood at the entrance.
One arm wrapped around Felicia.
The other held a pistol against her temple.
Felicia remained defiant.
But even she couldn’t hide the danger of the situation.
Norman smiled.
A cold, victorious smile.
“If you follow me…”
He pressed the gun harder against her head.
“I’ll blow her brains out.”
The threat wasn’t empty.
Peter could tell.
Norman meant every word.
Then, without waiting for a response, Green Goblin dragged Felicia backward into the darkness.
The hidden door slammed shut.
Silence followed.
Peter immediately moved forward.
But before he could take a single step—
His Spider-Sense exploded.
Danger.
Behind him.
Fast.
Violent.
Deadly.
A shadow launched itself from the darkness.
A savage roar echoed through the factory.
And Peter realized something horrifying.
Kraven wasn’t the only hunter Green Goblin had brought tonight.
Something far worse had been hiding in the shadows this entire time.
And now—
It was coming for Spider-Man.
To Be Continued…
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