-Co-creator Ghost Richard Wilson III
OH! And make sure to stick around after the issue for a special announcement!
Spider-Man and ALL related characters are owned by Marvel Comics and Disney respectively
All original characters were created for the purposes of fan fiction. This is in NO WAY connected to Marvel Comics or the ongoing Scarlet Spider title produced by Marvel.
Batman and ALL related characters are owned by DC Comics and Warner Bros. respectively
All original characters were created for the purposes of fan fiction. This is in NO WAY connected to DC Comics or the ongoing Batman titles produced by DC.
Scarlet Spider
Issue 15
A Thing to Fear
Part 2
Shadows and Sewers, Bats and Spiders
By: Tim Ruppenthal and Richard Wilson III
Queens Alleyway, 8:58 PM
Connor: Oh...my *urgh*...Ba-ah!man!
Batman: Where is she?! I know she was here.
(Connor points at his throat and shrugs, Batman drops him hard on the ground)
Connor: Where is who?! I don't know who you're talking about! Can I have an autograph?!
(Batman’s eyes narrow)
Connor: ...Maybe another time...
Batman: I don't have time for this. Scarecrow was here. Where is she?
Connor: Scarecrows a girl?!
Batman: The original's apprentice... You or someone like you was here earlier.
Connor (Remembering he's a superhero): Ben! Oh man what happened to him?!
Batman: If I had to venture a guess, he got into a fight with her and probably got hit with the toxin.
Connor: Holy crap! What's gonna happen to him?!
Batman: Hallucinations, paranoia and eventually heart failure.
Connor: Oh man! We gotta find him! Ben's the most paranoid guy I know!
Batman: Scarecrow first, then your friend.
(He presses a stud hidden in his cowl to activate his Detective Vision)
Batman: The highest concentration of Fear Toxin leads to the sewers. Are you going to stand around like a fool or help me?
(Connor jerks up)
Connor: Spider-Man at your service Batman sir!
(Connor pulls up the manhole cover and tosses it aside, climbing down)
Connor: PPPPPPPPUUU!
(Batman drops down beside him)
Batman: Stay close.
(He points across the tunnel)
Batman: She went that way
(Connor pulls up the suits shirt, and puts on his spider-light.)
Connor: Lets go then!
Our Lady of Saints Church, 9:00 PM
Ben: Shut up! Shut up, shut up, SHUT UP!
Shadowed Man: You failed us Ben.
Shadowed Woman: You've disappointed us.
Shadowed Man: You've forgotten us.
Shadowed Woman: Abandoned your promise.
Shadowed Girl: You've forgotten me.
Ben: LEAVE ME ALONE!
Man: You are not fit to wear that suit. You will never be the man I was. You are nothing.
Ben: Dad! No! You can't mean that! I'm your son!
Hallucination Ben Sr.: No son of mine would fail to protect his family
(Bens mask becomes stained with tears.)
Ben: I...couldn't...I...was...I just couldn't...I'm sorry!
Shadowed Girl: You couldn't protect me either. You didn't love me.
Ben: No! I tried! I tried to make it back to your house! Your family left!
Shadowed Girl: You failed to come to my rescue. How would you have come to my rescue if my life was in danger? You were pathetic. And you still are.
(The girl steps onto the ledge of the building.)
Ben: No! Please! Jade I would have rather died than see you hurt!
Shadowed Girl: Then save me.
(The girl drops back off the building)
Ben: JADE!
(Ben leaps after her, but the hallucination disappears and he falls through an awning of a busy market. scattering fruit everywhere)
Ben: Jade! Where are you?!
Random Patron: WOAH! Spider-Man's trippin!
(Ben looks around and is surrounded by hundreds of gang members closing in and pulling out weapons)
Ben: Get away from me!
(Ben begins to attack as the police arrive)
Police Officer #1: Spider-Man attacking civilians?!
Police Officer #2: Who cares?! Tranq him!
(Ben plows into the two gang members pulling uzis, bringing them down as he looks around for “Jade”)
Ben: Jade!
(Ben pulls a gang member close to his face by the collar)
Ben: Where is she!?
(The man slumps over, unconscious as more police arrive)
(Ben growls as the gang members surround him, jumping onto the building and sprinting off before swinging quickly and finding a dark alley.)
Ben: Gotta get in my civies! Those crazies are following me!
(Ben changes his clothes, putting a hand to his heart as he pulls on his shirt)
Ben: Why is my heart going so fast...? Screw it! I can't think about that now! I have to get out of here and find Jade!
Sewers. 9:03 PM
(Batman and Connor continue to search through the sewers for the Scarecrow)
Connor: How'd the Scarecrow escape?
Batman: She used one of her mentor's many passages out of Arkham and took the Trans-Dimensional Ferry here.
Connor: "Whoa...what does she want with New York?"
Batman: She thought I wouldn't follow her here... She was wrong.
Connor: Well duh! You're Batman! You don't let ANYONE get away!
Batman (Stopping): She's close.
(Connor's Spider-Sense goes off as Scarecrow drops from above and kicks Batman in the head)
Connor: "WHOA!"
(Connor spin kicks, hitting Scarecrow in the chest.As she falls, Scarecrow tosses several orbs at the walls that release the Fear Toxin. Connor jumps back and holds his hand over his mouth and nose)
Connor (Muffled): Batman!
(The toxin clears as Connor sees Scarecrow restrained by Batman, who's wearing a rebreather)
Connor: Jeez! A kick to the head and you still got her! You ARE awesome!
Batman: Come here.
(As Connor approaches, Batman takes a syringe and jabs it into his arm)
Connor: OWWW!
Batman: The inoculation for the toxin, in case you inhaled any.
Connor: Oh! Okay!...(ow)
Batman: I have her restrained. We'll drop her off at the dock where the police transport is waiting to bring her back to Arkham. Then we'll find your friend.
(Connor nods, quickly)
Connor: Okay! That sounds like a plan! I know the quickest way, follow me!
Queens, 9:05 PM
(Ben is running down a block in Queens before dashing down into the Subway)
Ben: "Phew...gave the gang members the slip."
Hallucination Ben Sr.: And yet you still failed.
Hallucination Anna: You got away but others were still hurt. You're a disgrace.
(Ben is in a cold sweat, and gets off at the next stop, rushing through the station and out onto a random block in North Queens)
Ben: Get away from me!
Hallucination Jade: So you're finally telling the truth? You never wanted us to be together Ben? You were a liar, I should never have trusted you.
(Ben stops in his tracks, as a big guy slams into him)
Man: WATCH IT PUNK! OR YOU'LL GET YOURSELF THROWN IN TRAFFIC!
Ben: Wait! Jade! I didn't mean you!
(The guy gets angry, and grabs Ben's throat)
Man: What'd you call me punk!?
(Jade becomes a giant thug)
Ben: Holy shit!
(Ben slams his fists hard into the thugs head, and he crumples to the ground, Ben starts running down the street
Jade: You almost hurt me!
(From above)
Connor: BEN!
(Ben looks up to see a kid that got shot)
Ben: That..kid...how?
(Ben's Spider-Sense goes off as Batman swoops down and grabs him, bringing them both to a nearby roof)
Ben: Holy hell! Get off me!
(Ben breaks out of Batman's grip a few feet above the roof, landing hard and rolling into a crouching position, seeing the big thug from before holding the kid)
Ben: Let go of the kid!
Connor: Ben?
Batman: He's too far gone to be reasoned with, he needs the antidote now...
(Ben shoots a web at Connor, pulling him out of Batman’s grip, and leaps at him, knocking Batman to the ground)
Ben: You are NOT killing that little boy again you freak!
(Connor hits Ben in the ribs)
Connor: Come on Ben, we're trying to help you here!
(Ben looks around and sees the thugs partner, he growls like an animal and grabs the thug by the arm, whipping him across the rooftop)
Ben: Where is he?!
(Connor lands into Batman and they both tumble off the roof)
Ben: Get back here!
(Ben is gasping for breath. and holding his chest as a cloaked figure leaps from above and kicks Ben in the face)
Cloaked Figure: Sweet lamentation Benjamin, unfortunately you don't look so well...
(Clearly seeing the cloaked figure, Ben gasps)
Ben: You... You!
(Ben wipes the blood from his nose away, as he struggles to his feet)
Ben: You! YOU KILLED MY PARENTS! I'LL KILL YOU!
Cloaked Figure (Moving and parrying Ben's blows): Did I? Or were you just seeing things then like you are now?
(With a swift open palm hit to the chest, Ben crumples, gasping for breath)
Cloaked Figure: A pity, I had such high hopes for you...
(The figure looks to the edge of the roof as Batman and Connor make their way up, only to see Ben laying on the ground clutching his chest)
(Ben is clutching his chest, looking up at the figure)
Ben: No...I..won't let you win...
(Ben feels a sharp pain in his arm as Batman injects him with the antidote)
Ben: AH!
(Ben slips into unconsciousness)
Connor: Ben?
Parker Family Apartment, 9:34 PM
Ben: Wha...where am I?
Wesley: Woah there killer. May! He's up.
(Both Mayday and Connor walk into his room at the Parker Home)
May: How're you feeling?
(Ben holds his head in his hand)
Ben: Like a hockey puck...
Wesley: Connor told us what happened. He and Batman were able to cure you and bring you here.
Ben: Batman? What the hell was Connor doing with Batman?
Connor: You got into a fight with the Scarecrow and got hit with her Fear Gas
Ben: Fear gas...but..it was so real...
Connor: Well, that's the idea...
Wesley: Regardless, none of it was real.
(Ben slumps against his pillow, looking actually kind of sad)
Ben: Right...not real at all...
Mayday: Well, we'll leave you to rest. Come on Connor.
Wesley: We're down the hall if you need anything.
(Ben sits up after they leave the room, and opens his side table drawer, taking out a small silver girls locket. Inside it is a picture of Ben and a girl with punk style hair kissing)
Ben: Nothing was real...
(From the window): Quite the family aren't they?
(Ben turns, startled to see Batman in his window)
Ben: Batman...
Batman: You're healing well.
(Ben shrugs. Slipping the locket back into the drawer)
Ben: I'm a fast healer...What were you saying about the Parkers?
Batman: They're good people. Willing to take care of others they've only just recently met
Ben (Nodding): Yeah...was there a reason you came here? You must have known that your antidote would have made sure I'd be fine.
Batman: Sometime soon I'll call on you to help me in Gotham, and help you through it.
(Ben's eyes widen)
Ben: Protect...Gotham? Look New York is one thing...but Gotham? I can barely hold down things here...
Batman: I'll call for you soon.
(Batman disappears almost as suddenly as he appeared)
(Ben looks at his bag, and out the open window..and then at the door into the hallway)
Ben: (internal) Good people...
(Ben shuts the window, and climbs back into his bed. Falling asleep.)
TO BE CONTINUED...
Well folks, I hope you enjoyed our long delayed conclusion! Next time, be ready for a quick deviation as my partner, Tim Ruppenthal, gives us the events that inspired these hallucination flashbacks that even I don't get! Stay tuned, and again, I hope you enjoyed our work.
-Co-creator Ghost Richard Wilson III
