Chapter 14: Feast in the Shadows
Gwen's eyes fluttered open, her vision adjusting to the dim light of the abandoned warehouse. She groaned softly as her body feels weak and her head is throbbing.
Slowly, she looked down at herself and realized she was wearing her original Ghost-Spider suit—the white and pink one—not the suit Peter had made for her.
"Peter... Peter..." she whispered hoarsely, her voice trembling as she glanced around the empty space.
Her memories of what had happened in the Spider-Society came flooding back, bringing tears to her eyes. She recalled Peter's pained expression, the betrayal, the pain she felt when seperated from Peter and the overwhelming sense of helplessness as Miguel took him away from her.
But after a few moments, Gwen wiped her tears and forced herself to stand. Her sorrow transformed into determination.
'I have to save Peter.'
She clenched her fists and her resolve solidifying. But she needed a plan. Storming into the Spider-Society without preparation would be suicide. That's when an idea struck her.
America.
America Chavez could open portals to other dimensions. If Gwen could convince her to help, she might be able to return to the Spider-Society and rescue Peter.
Just as Gwen was about to leave the warehouse in search of America, the sound of footsteps echoed through the space. Startled, she instinctively leaped into the shadows, perching herself in the dark corner of the roof to observe.
A woman wearing a black-and-red spider-themed suit entered the warehouse. She looked around, her movements calm.
"You can come out now," the woman called out, her voice steady. "I mean no harm."
Gwen hesitated for a moment before jumping down from her hiding spot, landing gracefully in front of the stranger. She immediately took a defensive stance, ready to strike if things go south.
"Who the hell are you?" Gwen demanded.
The woman removed her mask, revealing her face. "My name is Jessica Drew. I'm a member of the Spider-Society."
At the mention of the Spider-Society, Gwen's muscles tensed further. "You're with them?" she hissed.
Jessica held up her hands in a gesture of peace. "I understand why you'd be suspicious, but I'm not here to hurt you. I came because I believe Peter might not be the anomaly Miguel claims he is. And I want to help you get Peter out of his prison."
Gwen narrowed her eyes and her stance is unyielding. "Aren't you with them, Why are you doing this?"
Jessica gave a small smile. "Because it's what any Spider-Person would do—helping those in need, even if it means going against the odds."
Gwen hesitated as uncertainty flickering in her expression. But she knew she had no other options. If there was even a small chance Jessica was being honest, she had to take it.
"Fine," Gwen said cautiously. "But if this is a trick, I won't hesitate to take you down."
Jessica nodded, understanding Gwen's skepticism. Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out a wristband and handed it to Gwen.
"What's this?" Gwen asked as she began to examining the band.
"It's a dimensional stabilizer," Jessica explained. "Without it, you'd glitch out and risk dying when traveling between universes. It keeps your body in sync with the frequency of the dimension you're in."
Gwen frowned. "Why didn't I glitch last time?"
Jessica smirked. "The symbiote. It can adapt to any universe, and since you were bonded to it, it kept you stable. But now..."
Gwen's grip tightened around the stabilizer as she slid it onto her wrist. "I get it. Let's just go save Peter."
Jessica activated her dimensional watch, opening a glowing portal. The two of them stepped through together.
---
**SPIDER SOCIETY, Earth-928**
As they emerged on the other side of the portal, both women froze in shock. The grand halls of the Spider-Society headquarters were eerily silent. The bustling activity they had expected was gone.
The once-vibrant base was now desolate. The cells that had held various anomalies were empty and their barriers were deactivated.
And in the center of the room, standing before an energy prison, was Peter in his symbiote dress but he is not having his face mask.
But he wasn't the only one there.
Inside the same energy prison that had once contained Peter was Miguel O'Hara.
Jessica and Gwen stared at the scene, their minds racing to comprehend what they were seeing.
Peter stood tall and his gaze was locked on Miguel, whose usually confident demeanor was now replaced with frustration and disbelief as he banged his fists against the energy field.
"What the hell happened here?" Gwen whispered, her voice was barely audible.
Peter turned his head slightly, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth as he acknowledged their presence. "Ah, Gwen. You're just in time."
.
.
.
A few moments earlier...
Peter stood inside his energy cell, his hand which is in black symbiote form resting against the glowing barrier.
"Sage, activate Predator."
> Activating Predator...
Immediately, the black tendrils surged outward from his hand, coating the entire energy cell. The barrier flickered and pulsed as the tendrils enveloped it entirely.
Within seconds, the black mass receded, revealing Peter standing in the cell but he had a big smile on his face. After absorbing the barrier he asked Sage to create it again so no one will notice.
> New equipment added... New data regarding the energy barrier acquired...
Peter grinned. He had absorbed and analyzed the mechanics of the energy prison or barrier. Not only could he now create similar energy prisons by replicating the device's technology, but he also gained the knowledge to alter and dismantle them at will.
'This is useful... very useful, if I used this energy barrier around my body then I no longer need to worry about sonic or heat based attacks.' Peter thought and asked Sage to try to do it.
> New task added... Creating energy barrier around the body... Processing.... Generating a device for energy barrier... Estimated time: 5 mins.
He then turned his gaze outward, observing the prison complex. Rows of energy cells stretched out before him, each holding a variant of a Spider-Man villain.
His eyes scanned each one until they landed on a familiar figure—the Mysterio variant.
Peter's smile widened. "Perfect."
A tendril separated from Peter's body, camouflaging itself and slithering silently across the floor toward Mysterio's cell.
He moved cautiously; though the Spider-People weren't present, the surveillance cameras were still active. Any sudden or obvious action could alert Miguel.
The tendril reached the barrier of Mysterio's cell. Using his newfound knowledge of the energy prisons, Peter deactivated a small section of the barrier, creating an opening just large enough for the tendril to slip through.
Inside the cell, the tendril struck like a viper. In two seconds, Mysterio was consumed, his body dissolving into the symbiote.
> New data acquired... New equipment added...
Peter's mind surged with new knowledge—the mechanics of Mysterio's illusion technology, the holographic devices, and the intricate ways he manipulated light and sound to deceive his enemies.
'This technology seriously has so much potential... 'Peter thought, his grin widening as he began to plan.
He repeated the process with the other prisoners, moving with precision and stealth. Each time, he disabled the barriers briefly, consumed the prisoners, and restored the barriers afterward. He also messed with the barriers so he can use all his Powers freely.
The process was slow but accurate. He knew Miguel relied heavily on surveillance, so he ensured everything looked undisturbed. To add an extra layer of deception, Peter used Mysterio's illusion abilities to project images of the prisoners he had consumed, making it appear as though they were still in their cells.
By the time he finished, Peter had consumed 12 variants—Doc Ock, Rhino, Scorpion, Mysterio, Vulture and Electro among them. Most of them relied on technology for their abilities, so Peter didn't gain many direct powers, but the knowledge of their gadgets was invaluable.
The real prize, however, was Electro.
>New skills acquired...
Skill: Bio-elctricity generation acquired...
Skill: Electricity manipulation acquired...
Skill: Flight acquired...
With Electro's abilities coursing through him, Peter extended his hand, allowing sparks of electricity to dance across his fingers.
"Sage," he said, "can you use electricity manipulation and tap into the electromagnetic spectrum and analyze the signals transmitted by it?"
>Affirmative... Accessing electromagnetic spectrum... Done... Acquiring data... Done... Processing data...
> New skill acquired...
Skill: Electromagnetic spectrum manipulation.
Peter shimmered as his connection to the electromagnetic field deepened. He could feel the flow of electricity around him, the hum of power coursing through the Spider-Society's technology.
> Signals identified... Surveillance systems, communication channels, and energy flow patterns located.
Peter's grin turned dark. 'With this, I can control their eyes and ears.'
"Sage now use every skill to encrypt my past life memories. User different languages to encrypt my past life memories so that no one could understand them." It will give him some edge against the telepaths.
> Noted. Using current knowledge and skills to encrypt memories... Processing... Estimated time to complete: 1 hour.
Peter smiled and nodded his head in satisfaction. But His next move was clear.
With his newfound knowledge and abilities, Peter began tampering with the Spider-Society's systems, subtly altering the environment. Cameras were looped, alarms disabled, and energy barriers reprogrammed.
Peter leaned against a wall, smirking as Sage updated him.
> Warning: Lyla has detected anomalies in the system. She is attempting to counteract your manipulations.
Peter's smirk faltered slightly. "Of course, she noticed... Should've accounted for her earlier."
Sage continued..
> Engaging in system override. Current status: 47% control achieved.
Peter straightened and said in a sharp tone. "Sage, lock her out. Don't let her reclaim anything!"
The digital battlefield was now a warzone between Sage and Lyla. Sparks of disrupted signals flashed across the facility as the two AI systems clashed.
Peter's illusions on the prison cells flickered momentarily before he was forced to deactivate them entirely.
Peter grimaced. "If I can't fool her with illusions, then I'll use the truth to my advantage."
He made the security cameras show him devouring all the villain variants and projecting an image of himself fleeing through the headquarters, appearing to escape with the help of a flying drone.
The illusion of his retreat led straight to a decoy location, far from the Spider-Society's main base.
As expected, Miguel and Lyla fell for the bait.
"Lyla, alert everyone! Send them after him now!" Miguel ordered, his voice echoing through the base. Within moments, portals opened, and dozens of Spider-People poured through, heading toward Peter's illusion.
Peter smiled. 'Perfect.'
Using his electromagnetic manipulation, he disrupted their communications and equipment, ensuring they couldn't realize that they are after an illusion until it was too late.
.
.
.
Back at the base, Miguel and Lyla remained, their instincts telling them something was wrong.
"This doesn't feel right," Miguel muttered, his eyes narrowing as he scanned the empty halls.
Lyla materialized beside him. "I've been trying to call them, but there's so much interference. Something's jamming our signals. And the sudden interferance in the systems, something is very wrong here Miguel."
Miguel's claws extended as he tensed. "It's him. He's still here."
Unbeknownst to them, Peter had already infiltrated the main base. His symbiote's camouflage rendered him nearly invisible, while his electromagnetic abilities masked his presence from the sensors. If they used temparature sensors they can find him but Peter already fired all the temperature sensors in the base.
Moving silently, he approached Miguel from behind.
In one swift motion, Peter activated the energy prison device and slammed it near Miguel. The glowing barrier sprang to life, trapping the leader of the Spider-Society inside.
Miguel roared in anger, slamming his fists against the energy barrier, but it held firm.
"Peter!" Lyla's voice crackled with panic. She attempted to alert the Spider-People, but the interference Peter had created disrupted even her holographic form.
Peter stepped into view, his symbiote form glistening in the dim light and slowly turning into human form.
"Surprised to see me, Miguel?" Peter said mockingly, his voice dripping with malice.
Miguel snarled, his fangs bared. "You think this is over? You've only delayed the inevitable!"
Peter chuckled darkly. "Oh, it's far from over. But for now, I've got some unfinished business here."
Lyla glitched slightly, struggling to maintain her presence. "You won't get away with this, Peter! We'll—"
"Save it, Lyla," Peter interrupted, "You can't call for help. This is my game now."
Miguel growled, his claws scraping against the barrier as he glared at Peter. "What do you want?"
Peter's smile widened showing his sharp teeth glinting.
It was at this moment a portal opened and Gwen and Jessica arrived, they found Miguel trapped inside an energy cell identical to the one Peter had just escaped.
And standing before him was Peter, in his symbiote suit.
"What the hell happened here?" Gwen whispered, her voice was barely audible.
Peter turned his head slightly, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth as he acknowledged their presence. "Ah, Gwen. You're just in time."
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