Peter surveyed the warehouse, its once empty shell holding a promise of a brighter future. Now, of course, he wished they'd all shut the hell up and let him sleep. Felicia and Gwen had taken to sharing a home, MJ was still quietly living on her own and Liv had taken the cabin next to Peters as her new home. Peter had removed the lower door frame so her wheelchair could roll over it. She was close by as Peter was the only one staying in the warehouse most days and if Liv needed anything he was there to help.
Everyone had accepted Liv. Gwen and Liv had history and while Felicia was salty about her involvement with her dad she still shrugged and accepted things. MJ was happy as long as Peter was happy and while Liv was a stranger she knew all about being trapped where you didn't want to be and the pair bonded.
Peter had a list and with everyone there, he began to go through it. Item one was a ramp and washing facilities for someone in a chair, They all agreed to let Liv move in, even if she couldn't pay rent they weren't going to hand her over to the NYPD where Osborn could get his claws into her, so the lab would need to be modified to accommodate her chair. Being the wiz he was, that was left up to Peter.
Item two was adding soundproofing to his own place, listening to Gwen and Felicia had been fun at first but damn did they ever take a break and Liv had taken things into her own hands as well, a lot of frustration was being vented on not just carnal desires but the many food trucks and convenience store treats in the surrounding area. He drew the line when she asked for a cigarette, smelling 4 sexually active females were bad enough that to add in the rank smell of stale smoke and nicotine was more than he could handle. She instead opted for a vape machine and seemed to shudder in almost orgasmic pleasure as she took her first draw.
Item three was to start working on the new and improved cyber limb system, the CLS was a working prototype already, and with Livs help, he should get a fully working version made. He had her harness to work on and he knew after dismantling it and studying the mechanisms he could replicate it.
Item four was on the table right now, a discussion with Liv about her future.
Item five, Gwen had news and needed to share it.
"So, Liv I've got a plan," Peter said, pouring them both coffee, MJ and Gwen were both at work and Felicia had conveniently taken the time to scout out her apartment. Liv seemed to shrink a little, so far they had all been nice to her but she still felt the sword of Damocles over her head.
Peter rolled his eyes "oh stop, I'm not going to save you and then kill you, I'm not really a monster, this," he slid over a paper "is my plan."
Liv took the paper and scanned it, her eyes bugged out, even under the thick-rimmed glasses she wore. "A contract, zero pay but shares in Parker Industries, to develop and build a working cybernetic replacement system for artificial limbs?" Peter nodded "uh, you know that the harness is already that."
He shook his head "no, it's a harness with a glaring flaw," he pointed to her legs, "it does really work if removing it disables the wearer now does it?"
She frowned and glanced down at her legs, "no, but you could blame that on the person removing it," she stated.
"Now, this isn't a blame game, this is a negotiation. I need your expertise and I'm willing to pay for it." He handed her a second paper.
"Curt Conners" was written at the top, and underneath was a list of possible locations and safe houses. "How, How did you get this?" She was stunned, she knew Curt had been working on a regenerative formula but had disappeared before it was finished.
"Felicia was tracking Oscorp for years, her dad is missing and she's good at digging," he signed, "so, a safe place to stay, we'll hunt for Conners to fix your legs and," he slid over the last piece. "Neural Interface Cap System." It was his design based on the chip Osborn used to tap into her nervous system.
Once Liv saw it she shook her head "No."
"Read the paper," Peter said rolling his eyes.
She took the schematic, and frowned a few times as she scanned over it, "but this, no, you need, yes, no, oh, I see. Peter Parker, I kind of hate you right now, with the design you could cap the entry point to my spine, allowing me to control the harness and safely remove it afterwards."
She pointed to several points on the design sheet Peter had handed her, "but let's be honest. Right now while you have the facilities to make a working prototype, I'm not going to let either you or Ms Stacy cut open my spine to try and implant an experimental design that you've made in the equivalent of your garage."
"I know, but we can work on finding Connors. If his serum works we can repair the damage to your spine while you're working on making this design a reality. I won't ask you to undergo surgery, it's not like either Gwen or I are doctors. Sign the contract and we'll protect you, give you a home to stay in, and make sure nobody finds out about your involvement with Oscorp until we can prove it wasn't your fault."
Liv nodded, it was a very nice offer much better than what she could expect from the police or feds, assuming Osborn didn't get to her first. "Any company perks?" she asked with a grin.
"Well, sit on my lap and we'll see what comes up," he chuckled and Liv rolled her eyes.
"Peter dear, that was old when I was a student," but she still laughed and signed her name. It was great to feel wanted again, to feel happy and fed, to feel like a person once more and not just a tool for some egomaniac.
"you know that was just a design right, we can't actually do a proper contract with you being a wanted felon and all that"
"Shh Peter, shh, you're ruining the moment," she said.
While Liv and Peter forged a new bond, Felicia was skulking outside her old place. She had been paranoid about going back to her apartment, the pair that followed her that night would have killed her without MJ and Gwen's interference. She had no regrets about what happened after, just the almost dying part, the being mostly dead part. That boiled her blood and Huntress stirred feeling and feeding her rage. She took a deep breath and recited her mantra over and over, her dad said it was Buddhist but she didn't know, it calmed her and that was all that mattered.
She hadn't dared to come back here until Huntress shared some new tricks with her, even some she doubted Peter knew about. She noted the scruffy-looking car with the two men sitting in it, it just screamed stakeout and she ducked down the alley between the buildings a few blocks over.
As her symbskin bled over her, she felt its texture shift slightly and the light around her bend and she faded from view. She'd seen it on one of MJ's old movies and asked if Huntress could do anything like that. Normally Huntress just ignored MJ, feeling Muse was wasting her abilities but when they watched the movie together Huntress growled and purred with every appearance of the alien hunter.
That, we like that, we can do that too, take us to your home, we can show you just how amazing we are.
Invisible Huntress angled herself and pushed off the top of the window, spun and webbed a line against the edge of the building, swinging back and through the window, sending herself and broken glass into her bedroom.
In the room she heard a "what the fuck," and as the door opened she pirouetted in midair and fired off a thin line at the man. He was holding an uzi and had no uniform on, she marked him and the others as targets, no questions asked.
The thought line stayed connected to her wrist, and as it touched him she sent a bioelectric shock down it and the man twitched and froze on the spot, his muscles spasming and she kept the charge going, making sure he was out for the count before it detached from her wrists. Bioelectric taser webs, good to know.
Her vision changed and she saw the patterned heat from the two other men as they stalked towards her, they had crouched down to try and stay hidden but with her thermal vision, she saw them plainly.
His swearing had brought the attention of the other two men and Huntress faded from view as they rounded the door. She grabbed one and spun him, her hand locking on his throat and a second taser blast taking his ability to breathe away, the third raised his weapon but with his friend a shield he hesitated, long enough for her to fire another thin line, catching him on the shoulder.
With all three men stunned Felicia bound their hands and feet together with the stickiest web she could make, unsympathetic if they lost circulation. This was one occasion she didn't care about why. She wanted her things and they were just in the way.
Good enough? She asked Huntress and got silence back so yeah, just too stubborn to admit it,
Yes, we deserve the credit though, the shocks were us, you are just the muscle, we are the brain. You should reward us, take Gwen and Peter when we're home. But first, kill the bugs that taint our presence.
Felicia was silent for a moment, how to explain morals and ethics to something fundamentally not human, too noisy, too easy.
We agree, no pleasure in a kill if the prey is so weak.
Keeping one eye on the trio she emptied her closet and sideboard into a duffel bag, grabbing her own bug out bag as well, her father always taught her to pack light, travel tight as he put it and she had.
Two backpacks were filled, leaving the mismatched crockery and furniture in the apartment, her rent was paid in cash so leaving was no issue. One last thing though.
Felicia lightly tased one of the men, bringing him out of the nice nap she had granted him earlier. The mask of Huntress was mimicking her black cat outfit perfectly, no need to expose and more of her secrets. The man glared at her but she didn't care.
"Don't come after me, don't look, don't hunt for me. I took out the other two and I'll take out anyone else you send. Final message, last chance," he growled at her, defiant until the end so she shrugged, "oh well, had your chance." Looking through the cupboard she had an old nonstick pot and talking one of the pistols and holding it under the lid she webbed it shut, and then fired off five rounds.
She had been stupid of course, and the loud bangs slightly deafened her.
do not do that again Huntress chastised her but she knew someone would call the cops, throwing the pan at the men's feet she shrugged and climbed out on the fire escape and up the side of the building.
Sadly the backpacks she took would turn invisible with her too heavy, practice more was all Huntress said and Felicia ignored her. Working her way home she entered the warehouse through the roof hatch Peter used to set up the antennae. He'd put in a more secure locking mechanism that there was no key for, a symbiote tendril was needed to slide into and unlock it, and she found Peter and Liv discussing wildly something she didn't understand and really didn't care to understand, Peter waved at her and she entered Gwen's home, sitting on the couch and holding her head in her hands
I won't cry, they don't fucking deserve it, I won't cry, but dad, I will find you.