44: New Spider Suit & Tony's Revenge

Andrew's house. 

Andrew stood on the balcony holding two steaming cups of tea. One for himself, one awaiting Gwen's return. 

After a time, a white figure alighted on the railing. 

"Welcome back, Ms. Spider-Woman." 

Andrew handed her a cup. "This new tea can soothe you."

Gwen removed her hood and accepted the warm drink from Andrew's hand. 

A warmth rose within her.

But she still seemed downcast. 

"What's wrong?" Andrew asked, concerned.

Perched on the railing, Gwen said disappointedly, "I helped them, yet they wanted to arrest me." 

"If not for you tonight, my dad might've caught me."

Andrew nodded, then remarked, "Do you think your father hates you, or Spider-Woman?" 

Gwen considered this. 

She had aspired to be a crimefighting Spider-Woman largely due to childhood influence from her father. 

But tonight, she had nearly been killed by her own father...

"Do you enjoy being Spider-Woman then?" 

Gwen nodded firmly, launching into her adventures that night. 

How she fought crime, the joy of those she rescued. 

Meeting Daredevil and stopping a gang war together. 

As she spoke, Gwen forgot her earlier unpleasantness. 

She felt truly happy as Spider-Woman. 

"Thank you, Andrew."

"Without you, I doubt I could've persevered." 

Andrew smiled. "Do what you love, leave the rest to me. You're an amazing Spider-Lady." 

"Thank you, Mr. Andrew!" 

They clinked cups before Andrew pulled Gwen close by the waist, pressing together. 

He had to praise Gwen's material choices whenever they embraced like this. 

Just as things were heating up, the prompt sounded in Andrew's mind again.

"The frog cub is traveling~"

Andrew froze. 

Did this foolish frog have to act up at critical moments?

But it was gone now. 

That's right!

Andrew gripped Gwen tightly, meeting her lips with his own. 

Gwen's body initially tensed up, then softened into Andrew's arms. 

...

The Queens.

George, head still spinning, found the piercing noise oddly refreshing. 

More officers had been called to the scene.

Nearby precincts were present, establishing a perimeter.

At George's direction, all connecting sewer openings were surrounded. 

"Chief, shall we go down now?" a detective queried.

George cast him a glance - wasn't that seeking death presently?

"No, we'll enter at dawn tomorrow once heavier weapons arrive." 

"Report anything from the cordoned sewers immediately." 

"Yes sir!" 

George settled back into his car. "Looks like I'm spending the night here."

Inside S.H.I.E.L.D. 

Nick Fury's dour expression was darker than usual. 

In Queens' feed, though heavy police movement was visible, prior to that it had been perfectly tranquil. 

No sign of the lizard creature or Spider-Woman, nothing!

"Hill, track down who hacked that footage?" 

"Unable to pinpoint the source sir. But the methods indicate just one suspect in New York capable of this - Tony Stark." 

Nick immediately knew she meant Tony. 

Indeed, Tony seemed the only one able to meddle undetected under S.H.I.E.L.D's watch. 

"He's tied to Spider-Woman too then?"

Nick frowned. 

Somehow everything linked back to Tony lately. 

"Get some rest for now. Look into it tomorrow." 

Hill respectfully departed Nick's office. 

Alone, Nick retrieved a small pager from his jacket. 

Thick fingers rubbed over it pensively. 

"Carol, where in space are you now..."

"If you were on Earth, I could relax so much more."

A woman wreathed in energetic flames had given him this pager years ago. 

Instructing to only use it if Earth faced mortal peril. 

In fifteen years, he had never been without it. 

After fiddling a while, Nick returned the pager to his coat. 

...

Having indulged kissing Gwen awhile, Andrew finally released her, satisfied. 

Gwen lay against him like a blushing bride. 

Though silent, quite contented. 

Eventually Gwen recalled the late hour. If she didn't emerge from her room tomorrow morning...

It would seem suspicious. 

"Andrew, I should get back first."

"See you at school tomorrow." 

Andrew watched Gwen depart, swinging through the city. 

Despite enjoying the view, he had to complain. 

"How can such a progressive nation still have such conservative families?"

Andrew settled before his computer again, taking out the "T-Series Robot Design" keepsake the frog cub brought back today. 

He transmitted it to the Red Queen. 

"Red Queen, with your scientific knowledge, can you design an upgraded spider suit for Gwen?"

Watching her fight tonight, Andrew saw room for improvement. 

Beyond webs, her methods were basic. 

Her webs also traveled straight forward. 

"No issue sir. Given materials, I can produce a fully functional spider suit." 

Materials meant money, naturally. 

"Excellent, start conceptualizing. Ensure convenience and functionality." 

"Understood. 'Spider Suit II' project initiated." 

...

Boom boom boom! 

Inside Tony's lab, explosions sounded.

Reviewing the test data, Yinsen adjusted his glasses. "Lethality seems high, but needs control."

"No problem, just recoil from the isolated gauntlet." 

Tony held a silver-white robotic arm, palm still warm from the repulsor blast. 

They had just tested the suit's palm cannon.

"Gulmira's a hellscape now." 

The news showed footage of Gulmira. 

Tony watched the coverage, recognizing several Ten Rings members onscreen from outside the cave where he was held. 

"JARVIS, Mark 3 prep status?"

Mark 3 fixed weaknesses from the high-altitude test. 

"Ready for deployment sir." 

"Let's go then."

"Eliminate things that shouldn't exist in this world."

Five minutes later, Tony in a black wetsuit stood on a platform. 

It shifted, robotic arms equipping him with the Mark 3 armor. 

After suiting up, Tony slowly ascended, asking a voice behind him, "What shall I tell those scumbags?"

Yinsen considered then sternly stated, "F**k you!" 

"I'll pass it along!" 

Tony jetted for Gulmira at full burn. 

Seeking both retaliation and to destroy the illicit arms.

Tony's movement instantly drew Nick Fury's attention in S.H.I.E.L.D. 

"You've produced another suit already?" 

Watching Tony streak rapidly away, Nick was somewhat surprised. 

Perhaps money empowered that. 

While unfamiliar with Tony's full assets, Nick knew S.H.I.E.L.D was far poorer by comparison. 

And his armor increasingly resembled that mystery golden mech...

Further convincing Nick of some link between them. 

If Nick racked his brain, he'd never guess why Tony's suits resembled the Emperor's armor. 

Simply because on first seeing it, Tony considered the Emperor's armor cool.

So his designs tended toward it.

"Hill, where's Tony headed?" 

After roughly calculating Tony's path, Hill responded "Appears toward Gulmira, sir." 

"I'd wager he's going after the Ten Rings, for revenge." 

"More so though, to eliminate the arms Obadiah's been dealing through them."

Nick added, "We'll see how things develop." 

"Update from NYPD?" 

"Preparing to enter the sewers and search for the lizard's lair."

"Any leads on who Spider-Woman really is?" 

Hill answered, "None yet..." 

"Another elusive one. Troublesome..." 

Nick muttered some curses internally. 

In class, Gwen suddenly sneezed several times.

Andrew handed her a tissue. "Are you okay? Catch cold last night?"

Gwen took it, dabbing her nose. "I'm fine, just some random sneezes." 

"No problem." 

Their intimacy naturally drew resentful looks from the other male students. 

Even the lecturing teacher coughed pointedly, signaling them to restrain themselves.

Gwen blushed and sat up attentively again. 

Just then, her phone screen lit up. 

Red text appeared: "Chief George has entered the sewers with a team to search for Connors." 

Gwen's expression shifted sharply as she glanced at Andrew. 

They had to find a way out of class now.

Andrew gave Gwen a reassuring look, then softly tapped her phone. 

A second later, the dismissal bell unexpectedly rang. 

The formerly lifeless classroom instantly grew lively.

Even the teacher looked stunned...

Class was over already? 

Was I that forgetful lecturing today?

Andrew grasped Gwen's hand, dashing from the room. 

The other students were perplexed.

Hey, no need to rush off! 

It's still morning...

Soon Gwen in her spider suit swung from a hidden corner of campus. 

In the library, Andrew activated a computer and donned headphones. 

The Red Queen's voice came through immediately. "Sir, Tony Stark has departed New York, flying toward the Middle East it seems." 

"Oh? Any footage?"

Andrew instantly perked up. 

Tony's safety directly impacted Stark stock, tied to his future income. 

"Yes, I cracked military satellites this morning. Got video of Tony." 

"It's blurry but I optimized it."

Onscreen, a white streak cut across the sky. 

The picture clarified into Tony Stark fully armored as Iron Man. 

Andrew's mouth twitched - the suit styling seemed...different?

He then watched Tony massacre the Ten Rings from high altitude. 

Several were spared for the refugees to handle; their fate was surely gruesome. 

This exemplified Iron Man's selectivity - kind to his people, utterly merciless to enemies. 

"Let's check on Gwen now..."

In Queens, Gwen perched in a tree. 

The entire area was covered by police, especially the sewers. 

Multiple detectives stood guard, armed not with pistols, but destructive shotguns!

"Red, any other sewer access points?" 

"Down the alley to your right, a sewer behind an abandoned door." 

"Very hidden, no police presence..."

Gwen thanked her and swung that way.

Concurrently... 

In the sewers, George's group stopped at a passage bend. 

The scene before them left all stunned...

...To be continued.