Chereads / THE AMAZING SPIDER-BAT / Chapter 17 - ONE BAD DAY PART 2

Chapter 17 - ONE BAD DAY PART 2

Harry enters his dark home as thunder, lightning, and rain are in the background.

"Dad? It's me. Look I'm not staying, I just need to grab some stuff then I'm gone." Harry says out loud.

As Harry walks through the house, after not getting a response back, he hears laughter somewhere in the dark.

"Hello?" Harry says.

The laughter continues, scaring Harry a little.

"Dad?"

"I'm here." A voice says behind him.

Harry jumps and quickly turns around to see his father, covered in the shadows.

"Jesus dad, you scared the hell out of me. Why are you in the dark?" Harry asks.

"I was just- thinking." Norman replies.

Harry is confused.

"Is something wrong?"

"No... in fact- I'm feeling better than I've ever have, Harry my boy."

Norman slowly stands up.

"Today help taught me- who I really am. You see son- my entire life, I have been wearing a mask. A mask that I wore for Oscorp. For your mother. For you. But I'm done hiding son. No- I think I'm ready to show everyone- who I really am, HAHAHAHA!"

When Norman steps out of the shadows, revealing his new look, Harry is horrified.

"Dad, what the hell happened to you?"

Norman grabs Harry by the face and pins him against the wall.

"What? You don't like it? Is it not what you kids today call "hip"? Well, I guess I was always behind the times." Norman says, still laughing.

"Dad please, you're scaring me." Harry says.

"Good! Embrace it! bask in it! Once you do, and stop pretending to be what the world tells you to be or else, life will be soooo much better. Soon, you'll feel it too... that freedom, and self discovery other people are too afraid of. Like father, like son as they say."

Norman's laugh and deranged smile mentally scars Harry as his father throws his son to the side. Norman then runs and jumps through the window, leaving Harry utterly stunned.

Meanwhile, as Peter and Gwen are laying with each other in her bed, a smirk appears on her face.

"I can't believe the same guy who was too afraid to J-walk is now a vigilante who works outside the law." Gwen says

Peter let's out a small chuckle

"See, that's totally not fair." Peter jokingly says, making them both laugh.

Gwen then thinks to herself for a moment.

"Are you really ready to leave it all behind? This city? Your family's company? Spider-Bat?" Gwen asks.

Peter looks over at Gwen and smiles

"It's not like the company is going anywhere. It's in good hands and Ben will keep me posted on what's going on. As for Spider-Bat... maybe I've done enough to save this city. Either way, I know I can leave him behind to be with you."

The two smile at each other and share a kiss. At that moment, Peter's Spider-Bat mask starts to vibrate.

"Uh- your mask is buzzing." Gwen says, laughing.

Peter jokingly sighs and picks up the mask.

"I patched in my phone to the mask. My suit doesn't really have pockets for an actual phone." Peter says.

He answers the phone and hears Harry's voice.

"Peter!" Harry yells, alarming Peter.

"Harry? What's going on, are you ok?"

"I- I went home to grab my stuff and my dad was there."

"Harry talk to me, what happened?"

"I don't know man- he's lost it. His skin is all pale, his hair's green, and he- he smelled like blood."

"Where are you right now?" Peter asks, worrying Gwen.

"I'm still at the house, dad just jumped out of the freaking window."

"Harry, listen to me. I want you to go to my place and stay there for now. I'm at Gwen's right now but I'll be there as soon as I can."

"Yeah, yeah ok."

When Harry hangs up, Peter quickly puts on his suit.

"What's going on?" Gwen asks.

"Somethings going on with Harry's dad. I gotta go check it out."

"With the suit on?" Gwen asks.

"Well, I can't exactly go out in my underwear and socks." Peter jokingly says.

"You know what I mean Peter."

Peter stops for a moment

"From what I heard Norman has- changed, and not the good kind. I don't think Peter Parker can do much in this situation."

Gwen stares at Peter for a moment

"Just- be careful, ok? I love you."

Peter smiles

"I love you too."

The two share a kiss, then Peter jumps out of the window and web swings to Oscorp.

At Oscorp, the board of directors are there walking through the dark.

"Where's Osborne? He said he had something to show us. And who turned of the lights?" One of the members ask.

"Right you are, Chuck. And I am a man of my word." A voice says.

Green gas then starts to fill the room, surrounding the members of the board, causing them to cough uncontrollably. Everyone's coughing then slowly starts to turn into laughter, with big smiles appearing on their faces. Their laughter gets even louder, tears of blood dripping down their faces, gasping for air.

As a few of them drop dead with big smiles on their faces and fear in their eyes, Norman comes skipping in, his skin peeling, looking like a goblin.

"I knew it would leave you in stitches HAHAHAHAHAHA!"

Meanwhile, as Peter swings through the city he calls Ben.

"Ben, is Harry there?"

"Yes sir. He seems to be quite shaken up by something however."

"Yeah, apparently we have Norman to thank for that. Keep an eye on him, I'll be there as soon as I can. I gotta go pay Osborne a visit."

"Alright. Be careful master Parker."

Peter hangs up and lands infront of Oscorp. He slowly walks through the building, seeing no one in sight. Soon he goes into a room and sees the dead board of directors with grotesque smiles on their faces.

"Jesus. Norman, what did you do?"

Laughter can be heard through the building as Peter continues to walk through the trashed building. Peter enters the lab in Oscorp and sees Norman Osborne packing a lot of things that Oscorp have been working on while humming.

"Mr. Osborne." Peter says.

Norman stops and turns to Peter, shocking the young hero with his appearance. When Norman sees Spider-Bat his grin becomes even bigger.

"It's you." Norman says.

"Norman, listen to me, you're sick. You need help."

"You're right, Batsy. I did need help. But not anymore. Now I feel like a new man, a new Norman Osborne. And with a winning smile too."

"You just killed five innocent men."

"Well technically seven if we're counting Doctor Stromm and my taxi driver." Norman replies laughing.

"What the hells wrong with you?"

"Me? You're the one dressed up as a cross between a spider and a bat and beat the holy hell out people. You and I are not so different, you know."

"I'm not like you. You're a murderer."

Norman gets close to Peter, getting into his face.

"Don't talk like one of them, you're not. Even if you'd like to be. Face it, S.B. We're two sides of the same coin. All it took was one bad day to make us who we are today. The only difference is that you chose the path of the hero. Sure they found you amusing for awhile, the people of this city. But the one thing they love more than a hero... is to see a hero fail. fall. Die trying. In spite of everything you've done for them, eventually they will turn on you. To them- you're just a freak. Sure they need you right now. But when they don't- they'll cast you out."

Peter has had enough and grabs Norman by the throat and prepares to punch him.

"Easy, easy."Norman says putting his hands up.

Peter thinks for a moment, pushing Norman to the ground.

"So that is a sore spot for you. I apologize. Fine, I'll go with you. Could ya give me hand?" Norman asks, extending his hand.

When Peter goes to grab it, his Spider sense goes off and he quickly pulls his hand away while Norman starts to laugh.

"That's some neat trick." Norman says.

He then quickly jumps out at Peter, grabbing him by the head and shocking him by a self made joybuzzer.

"Zapp-solutely marvelous, dontcha think? HAHAHAHAHAHA!"

As Peter drops to a knee, Norman punches him in the face, then grabs him by the back of the neck and throws him through a wall.

"Be honest with yourself, you wanted it to come to this. The truth is... that costume you wear, is just an excuse to hit something."

Norman then throws a kick, but Peter quickly catches it, punches him in the face and throws him into the wall. Peter then lands a right cross to his jaw, but Norman counters with a punch of his own. Peter shoots a web at him but Norman catches it and throws Peter into the wall. The young hero gets back to his feet, jumps off the wall and drives his knee into the side of his face.

He then starts to punch Norman in the face over, and over, and over again, blood dripping from his mouth. Peter is then stopped by Norman's laughter, almost like he enjoys this. Peter tries to throw another punch but Norman kicks him across the room.

"Well- this has been one hell of a time, but I think it's time we call it a night." Norman says.

He then presses a red button. At that moment, Peter's Spider-Senses goes off again and he quickly flips out of the way, dodging the Oscorp glider that crashes through the wall. Norman jumps onto the glider.

"But as a parting gift, I'll leave you something very...explosive."

An orange and green bomb then comes out of the glider and he throws it at the young hero. Peter quickly webs a large chunk of wall and uses it as a shield from the explosion, sending him into the wall. Norman then flies through Oscorp, leaving bombs all around the building while laughing as he does.

Norman flies out of the building and the explosives go off, causing the building to crumble.

Moments later, Commissioner Stacy and other cops pull up to the flaming pile of ruble that was Oscorp.

"Jesus. Search the wreckage, see if there's any survivors. Or bodies." Stacy says.

The cops search through the ruble, finding no signs of life.

"I don't see anyone George. Maybe no one was inside." Bullock says.

"Or the bodies are completely burned." Montoya suggests.

Stacy stands in silence for a minute, still trying to figure out what happened.

"Alright, let's move out. We'll get a crew out here, see if they can fi-"

At that moment Peter burst through the wreckage, suit damaged, and blood dripping from his mouth and face.

"Jesus! How the hell are you still breathing after this?" Bullock asks.

Stacy quickly makes his way over to Peter to check on him.

"Are you alright? What happened?" Stacy asks.

Peter tries to catch his breath, struggling to stay on his feet.

"Norman... Osborne. He- something happened- he's not- the same."

Peter almost falls over but Commissioner Stacy catches him.

"Easy there buddy, we gotta get you to a hospital."

"No. No- hospital. I have to- stop him. Have to... keep... moving."

Peter tries to walk away, but quickly drops to the ground, unconscious.

"Is he alive?" Montoya asks.

Stacy listens for a heartbeat.

"Yeah, for now anyway. Bullock, help me get him in the car." Stacy says.

Bullock hesitates for a moment, then helps carry Peter.

"I swear I don't get paid enough for this job." Bullock says.

The two men put the hero in the back of the police car and drives to the NYPD precinct.