Chapter 217: Peter Parker
"You're becoming more and more like an arms dealer."
Fury turned toward Lynn.
There was a complicated look in his one good eye.
Lynn opened the rear door for him.
"No."
"I'm a doctor."
"I sell medical services."
Fury stared at him for another second.
Then he stepped outside.
His figure disappeared into the New York night.
Lynn closed the door and returned to the reception desk.
He inserted Fury's encrypted storage device into the clinic computer.
A triple-layer authentication screen appeared.
Lynn entered the required credentials.
The interface unlocked.
A massive directory unfolded.
Mutant genetics.
Extraterrestrial biology.
Symbiote samples.
Super-Soldier research.
Archived S.H.I.E.L.D. experiments.
Lynn's eyes narrowed slightly.
This was much more useful than the directory Fury had initially described.
...
Queens.
Outside an aging apartment building.
Peter Parker had just finished webbing a thief to a brick wall.
The webbing stretched between two fire escapes, holding the criminal completely immobile.
Peter stood nearby in his homemade red-and-blue costume.
"So..."
He scratched the back of his head.
"You can call me Spider-Man."
"Or, you know, don't."
"The police will be here soon anyway."
The thief glared at him.
"You're a freak."
Peter smiled awkwardly.
"I get that a lot."
He turned toward the building.
Then stopped.
A black Audi was parked along the curb.
The car looked absurdly expensive compared with the surrounding neighborhood.
Peter stared at it.
"Okay."
"Either a billionaire is lost..."
"...or I've somehow ended up in the wrong neighborhood."
He slipped down the fire escape.
A moment later, he entered the apartment.
He stopped.
Aunt May was sitting in the living room.
And across from her...
Tony Stark.
Peter's eyes widened.
Tony turned.
A small smile appeared.
"Peter."
Peter nearly dropped his backpack.
"Mr. Stark?"
Aunt May stood.
"Peter, this is Mr. Stark."
"He said he's here about that internship opportunity."
Peter's mind raced.
Internship?
What internship?
He had never applied for an internship at Stark Industries.
Tony saw the confusion immediately.
"A youth science and engineering program."
"Very competitive."
"Extremely prestigious."
Peter nodded frantically.
"Oh."
"Right."
"That one."
Tony gestured toward the hallway.
"Mind if I speak with the young genius privately?"
Aunt May smiled.
"Of course."
The door closed.
Tony's pleasant expression disappeared.
"You've been busy."
Peter swallowed.
"Mr. Stark, what brings you here?"
Tony crossed his arms.
"And here I thought Spider-Man had no problem recognizing me."
Peter's face reddened.
"You know?"
Tony raised an eyebrow.
"Kid."
"I run a billion-dollar company."
"You've been jumping around Queens in a homemade costume for months."
"I figured it out."
Peter lowered his head.
"Oh."
Tony studied him.
"How's Dr. Lynn treating you?"
Peter immediately became nervous.
"Did he say something about me?"
"No."
Peter relaxed slightly.
"Then why are you asking?"
Tony reached into his coat.
"Because I paid his consultation bill."
Peter's eyes widened.
"Wait."
"You're the one paying?"
Tony pointed at him.
"Exactly."
"Not you."
"Me."
Peter nodded quickly.
"So..."
"Does that mean I still owe you?"
Tony's expression hardened.
"I've already spent enough money on people confusing me with a charitable foundation."
Peter shut his mouth.
Tony sighed.
"Relax."
"I came here because I need your help."
Peter looked up.
"Help with what?"
Tony opened a silver case.
The interior illuminated.
Inside lay a new Spider-Man suit.
Not merely cloth.
It was a sophisticated technological upgrade designed around Peter's existing abilities.
Peter stared.
His eyes widened.
"Whoa."
Tony almost smiled.
"I need you to join my side."
Peter looked up.
"The Avengers?"
"Temporarily."
Tony corrected himself.
"Think of it as an internship."
Peter blinked.
"An internship?"
"You're going to participate in a team exercise."
"And help us apprehend some people."
Peter's expression became uncertain.
"Bad people?"
Tony hesitated.
"That's complicated."
"They aren't necessarily villains."
"They're interfering with the apprehension of a man wanted in connection with a major terrorist attack."
Peter's eyes narrowed.
"The Winter Soldier?"
Tony nodded.
Peter immediately remembered the news.
"And Captain America is protecting him?"
"Captain Rogers made his choice."
Peter looked uncomfortable.
"But Captain America is a hero."
"I know."
Tony's voice became quieter.
"So did I."
Peter looked at the suit again.
Tony continued.
"I don't need you to hurt anyone."
"I need someone who can move quickly, improvise, and disable targets without killing them."
"You haven't spent your life arguing about treaties, politics, and responsibility."
Peter frowned.
"What does that mean?"
"It means you're still young enough to ask whether something is right instead of assuming you already know the answer."
Peter remained silent.
Tony leaned against the wall.
"The situation is becoming dangerous."
"I need another person who can help stop it from getting worse."
Peter finally looked at him.
"So..."
"You want Spider-Man?"
Tony nodded.
"Yes."
Peter swallowed.
"Okay."
Then his eyes returned to the suit.
"Can I keep it?"
Tony's mouth twitched.
"Depends on your performance."
Peter grinned.
That was enough.
...
While Tony was recruiting Peter in Queens, Lynn was sitting in the underground laboratory beneath the Miracle Clinic.
A live surveillance feed occupied the monitor.
He watched Tony speak.
He watched Peter's reactions.
He watched the moment the boy agreed.
Lynn took another sip of tea.
"Tony really does go to any length."
"Even recruiting a teenager by handing him expensive equipment."
He paused.
Then added:
"Although..."
"Peter is worth it."
His All-Seeing Eye had already analyzed the young hero.
Peter Parker's enhanced physiology was unusual even by the standards of the superhuman community.
Strength.
Agility.
Reflexes.
Enhanced balance.
Accelerated healing.
Adhesive contact.
And, most importantly...
Spider-Sense.
Lynn's analysis of Peter's Spider-Sense differed from the simple descriptions circulating among intelligence agencies.
It wasn't merely heightened reflexes.
Peter's precognitive warning system was tied to his unique spider-related power set and could alert him to danger before an attack physically occurred. Marvel's own character history describes Spider-Man's spider-sense as one of Peter's defining abilities, while comic storylines have repeatedly shown it functioning beyond ordinary sensory perception.
Peter's control of it also wasn't perfectly consistent.
Fear.
Stress.
Fatigue.
And unusually chaotic combat could alter how strongly it manifested.
But under genuine danger...
It became extraordinarily difficult to deceive.
Lynn filed the observation away.
Useful.
Very useful.
...
Inside the apartment, Peter opened the case fully.
The suit was sleek.
Red and blue.
Mechanical components were integrated without compromising the familiar Spider-Man silhouette.
Peter carefully lifted it.
"This is amazing."
Tony rubbed his forehead.
"Rule number one."
"Don't test the suit's strength indoors."
Peter nodded.
"Got it."
He put it on.
The fit was almost perfect.
Peter flexed his fingers.
He jumped.
Too hard.
His head nearly hit the ceiling.
Tony caught him by the shoulder.
"Rule number one-and-a-half."
"Gravity still exists."
Peter steadied himself.
"Sorry."
He looked down at the suit again.
"This is so cool."
Tony pointed at him.
"And rule number two."
"Don't call me Mr. Stark."
Peter blinked.
"Okay."
"What should I call you?"
"Tony."
Peter nodded.
"Okay, Mr. Tony."
Tony stared at him.
Peter immediately corrected himself.
"Sorry."
Tony sighed.
"Just Stark."
Peter smiled.
"Okay, Stark."
...
After Tony Stark left, Peter didn't sleep.
Not even for a few minutes.
His head was full of thoughts.
Captain America.
The Winter Soldier.
Tony Stark.
The Avengers.
A new suit.
A real mission.
A sense of responsibility that suddenly felt much larger than anything he had experienced while stopping muggers and car thieves in Queens.
He sat on the edge of his bed.
The suit was folded carefully beside him.
Peter stared at it.
Then toward the window.
Tomorrow...
He was going to fight alongside the Avengers.
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