As the man dressed as a devil finished assembling his gear, what appeared to be a walking cane split in two. He struck the wall, sending sparks flying toward me!
Will's eyes narrowed into thin slits as the embers came dangerously close to blinding him. When he looked back, the devilish man seemed to have disappeared. Will looked around, distracted by his own form.
He was covered in long, straight fur that clung to a thick, leathery hide. Will's eyes widened as he took in his body with growing concern.
His hands had elongated by several inches, and his nails resembled sharpened obsidian—deep red in color.
He paused.
Who had I hurt?
Will looked down at his torso, noticing that he wasn't unscathed himself. It felt like he'd been hit by a steamroller. No, not a steamroller... more like a freight train!
At least the wounds were shallow...
Will scratched the top of his head for a moment when suddenly, a flying knee hit him right in the eye!
"ROOOOAAAR!"
Daredevil had used Will's eyes as a springboard, launching himself far enough to grab a streetlamp. He swung onto a balcony and disappeared inside the building.
Will squinted his remaining good eye and gave chase.
StompStomp
With just two powerful steps, he launched himself through the door, which exploded in a shower of splintered wood.
Daredevil stood on the other side of the room, waiting for him.
"Daredevil," Will growled, "If you're done monkeying around, we can get serious now."
A vein pulsed under the fur on Will's head as he charged forward, swinging his fist wildly, hoping to catch Daredevil off guard. But then—
Click.
Strobe lights, brighter than anything he'd ever seen, flashed all around him. The light disoriented him, and his wild swing missed. He tumbled to the floor, his forward momentum sending him crashing down.
CrashThwakCrunch
A wooden stick hit Will in the arm, his leg, and his jaw, dislocating it, knocking him unconscious.
Daredevil gasped for breath, realizing how much effort it had taken to put this oversized ape down. He looked down at Will and noticed steam beginning to hiss from his body.
As Will's form continued to shrink, the thick fur fell off, disintegrating as it did. His nails, once sharp, reverted to their normal state with an audible clatter. His jaw shrank and realigned.
"Daredevil," he muttered, "That looks like it would hurt if he was awake." He winced sympathetically.
Will finally returned to his normal state. Daredevil stood there, confused, his hands on his hips.
"Daredevil..." he said slowly, "Is he a demon or a mutant?"
Daredevil tilted his head lightly to the left, his senses picking up a stealthy shuffling on a nearby support beam. Someone was trying to sneak away unnoticed.
"Spider brat," Daredevil whispered, "appears to have been hurt. I'll lecture him later. He needs rest."
Daredevil proceeded to tie up the unconscious Will and retreated into the night.
Spider-Man couldn't help but thank his lucky stars that help arrived when it did. He was used to back-alley thugs and the occasional police chase, but giant apes? That was just crazy, right?
He chuckled to himself.
"Spider-Man," he muttered, "The irony isn't lost on me that I'm a teenager with spider powers."
He swung into the night, hoping to return home. Unfortunately, the night was just beginning for young Spider-Man.
William woke up with a pounding headache, feeling like he'd been hit by a truck. Slowly, he gathered the strength to rise from the couch he was resting on. His head was spinning, but he managed a few wobbly steps before hearing the door open.
Panic surged through him, and he immediately assumed a defensive stance, not knowing who had entered.
He noticed the man approaching and figured it was time to strike first. Without thinking, William threw a punch. The man, however, seemed to predict its strength and trajectory. He easily dodged the punch and used his walking cane to trip the wobbly teen. William stumbled back and was shoulder-checked into the couch.
"That's no way to act toward the person who patched your wounds," Daredevil said, poking at the bandages around William's torso, causing him to wince in pain.
William gritted his teeth, his eyes narrowing in both pain and indignation. "Who are you? Where am I? Are you some kind of weirdo?"
Daredevil's brow furrowed in frustration. He was starting to regret helping. "Matt," he said, offering William a business card. "Matt Murdock. I'm a lawyer."
"Why did I wake up unconscious and injured, Mr. Murdock?" William asked flippantly.
Matt sighed, realizing that William probably didn't remember much. He threw him a flash drive. "Play it and get back to me. I've got a case to manage, so if you're able, you can return home."
William nodded, taking the flash drive. He started to walk toward the door, then paused, turning back to Matt.
"Thanks for the help," he said before running off into the night.
Matt looked out the window, a sigh escaping him. "This is gonna be a whole thing, I just know it."
He shook his head and turned to call it a night.
William jogged lightly through the city. The cold night wind brushed past his skin, giving him the chills.
"I should've brought a jacket," he muttered to himself as sirens wailed in the distance.
He considered ignoring it, but his curiosity got the better of him. He decided to check it out, figuring it was already late anyway.
Meanwhile, Spider-Man was swinging through New York, chasing a car that had one of the criminals from earlier. The man was driving wildly through a crowded night market when he swerved into a nearby light fixture.
Crash
Creek
The driver's door opened, and a man with a large cut on his forehead stepped out, wielding a Beretta. He aimed it into the crowd, and people quickly retreated.
"GET OUT OF MY WAY!" the criminal shouted. "YOU… OLD MAN, GET OUT OF THE CAR!"
He pointed the gun at a sweet old man.
"I refuse," Ben Parker said, his voice calm despite the tension.
The criminal's face reddened with anger as he tried to drag Ben out of the car. But Ben fought back, grabbing the gun in an attempt to wrestle it from the man's grip.
BANG!!
The sound of a gunshot echoed through the street, followed by a gasp. But before the crowd could react, the approaching sirens grew louder.
The criminal dragged the old man's limp, dying body out onto the pavement and fled with the cops hot on his tail.
Spider-Man, now dressed as Peter Parker, approached the crowd. His heart skipped a beat when he saw who the victim was.
His breath stalled, his legs nearly buckling, and his face paled as the possibility hit him like a freight train.
"Ben…" Peter whispered, his voice shaky. "Uncle Ben, you're going to be okay... you still gotta take me to my first job as a professor's assistant, right? I can't just show up without my favorite uncle!"
Tears welled up in Peter's eyes as he desperately tried to hold on to hope.
Ben, barely conscious, coughed up blood. "Peter…" he rasped, his voice barely audible. "I've seen the costume, and I've..."
He coughed again, his strength waning.
"Remember... With great power comes great responsibility," Ben managed, his hand weakly pointing at Peter's bruised body.
Then, Ben's eyes fluttered, the light fading as he went limp.
But suddenly, a familiar hand reached from behind and grabbed Ben's head. Something small was forced into his mouth, and he was made to chew.
A few moments later—
GASP!
Ben's eyes shot open, his breath returning.