2/2

"Only if Kraven didn't ruin your handsome face" replied the Platinum haired vixen over the comm. Cooper sighed at the comment, hoping the thief wasn't being too serious, he probably looked like hammered shit. "Bad news, most of the fighting's over, the survivors are all being directed to go to ground" she explained.

The pilot hmmed in acknowledgement as he approached the Cops, Yuri holding a radio set to her face as she got an update from her superiors. "The fighting is dying down. Apparently, every building that you scouted out has been brought down. The gangs are running and hiding" she said as she angrily threw the handset back into the car, confirming what Cat had told him. "We're on damage control now, and…we're supposed to bring you in."

The Marauder looked at the other cops, none of which seemed any more thrilled at the prospect than Yuri did. "Good to see my efforts are appreciated" he answered sarcastically. "But I can't let you do that" he said simply. All of the regular officers nodded and slowly stepped back.

Yuri simply reached into the car and pulled out the MGL, tossing him the weapon. "Lay low for a few days, wait for the dust to settle. That Russian? He tangled with Spider-Man a few years back. Still wanted" she explained as she led him away from the police cars. Only there was no body, signs of thermite burning were on the ground, but the Hunter was gone. "Damn" cursed Yuri as both drew their weapons.

"Nothing on thermals, he's long gone" reported Cooper. Both he and Watanabe grimaced at the prospect of Kraven being on the loose, but there was little they could do about it.

Yuri holstered her Barretta, "best you get out of here. And remember, don't cause any trouble" advised the Captain.

Cooper chuckled wryly, "I make no guarantees" he said with a forced grin before sprinting forwards and firing his grapple, jump kit firing as he disappeared into the night.

Cooper skidded and stumbled to a stop outside his hideout, the ad hoc team had agreed to regroup and discuss their next move after the fighting had subsided on the island. The Marauder made his way to the door and waited for BT to unlock the small door before he came inside. He noticed the journalist sitting in a small chair, scribbling something in a notepad look up at him. "Ms. Watson" he said cordially as he limped inside and began to remove his weapons. "I'm sorry for the inconvenience, you should be able to be on your way shortly" he said, noting the cracks in her composure as she stood.

"Cut the shit Matt" she said bluntly, the Pilot stiffening for a brief second before turning to face her. "I know it's you, I found your car in the garage" she said as she glared at him, the force in her expression enough to convince Matthew not to argue. "You going to say anything?"

Matt shrugged as he removed his helmet, "I really suck at this whole secret identity thing" he said dryly before he sat down, this latest revelation adding to his physical and mental exhaustion. "First Hardy and now you" he said with mirth as he rubbed the bridge of his nose.

"The Black Cat knows who you are?" replied MJ in shock. "Listen Cooper, what's going on here? Were you guys able to stop Cinderblock or not?"

Cooper shook his head as he thought back, he looked on the screen the data he had been going through again and again. Cinderblock was a massive undertaking, there was no way to do it all in one night. "This was just the beginning" he said in realization. "Tonight, was about destruction, but the stuff we found, the building materials, the designs..." he began as his mind wandered. "What will happen to the property where the fighting happened tonight?" he asked suddenly.

Watson furrowed her brow, her mind starting to move down the same path Cooper's was. "The city will seize it for the police investigation and then…they'll…sell…it." She made a shooing motion as Cooper pulled himself back and MJ began tapping away at the terminal. "Fisk already has the shell companies in place to buy and develop the property. Osborn will do it too, people have suspected that there's been a connection between them for some time but no one could ever prove it. My money says Fisk will get that property."

Cooper hung his head, "and we've been played like a damn fiddle this whole time. This isn't a criminal effort, it's a business enterprise. Fisk wanted to get those properties and push the gangs out at the same time, he's done that in a single move. All this shit for fucking nothing" he said bitterly.

Watson seemed startled by his words as he shook his head again. "I wouldn't say that" she said soothingly. "You rescued me, and we still know what he's planning, it's not over yet. Those weapons they were bringing in? A lot of them are off the streets now, thanks to you."

He looked at her and chuckled a bit, "You just want to make sure you get that interview, don't you?" he asked wryly. The reporter smiled but offered no denial. "You'll get it, but don't expect any of this shit to make it. I'm going to lie my ass off the whole time."

"I understand, this'll stay between us, and the Black Cat" she said in agreement, the conviction in her tone making Cooper feel better.

"And me" chirped a voice as Spider man rappelled down from the skylight, the other two craning their heads up to look at the webhead. "You told me too."

"Get your ass down here Parker" grumbled the Marauder as he stood up and began taking off his armor, sighing at the poor state of it. Taking a shot in the dark, the Pilot spoke up again. "You too Hardy, I know you're around here somewhere."

Sure enough, there was a distinct clicking of heels as Hardy strode from the still ajar door to his living quarters to join the others, though Spider man was still hanging by a thread, now eye level with the others. "So good to see you again Spider" said Felecia, Cooper able to see Parker gulp through his suit before Hardy came up beside Matt, leaning and resting against the Pilot with her elbow on his shoulder.

"My" said Watson as she eyed the Thief and Vigilante, "you two seem close" she observed, though the implication was obvious.

"Later" grunted Cooper, ending that conversation before it started. "I'll be honest, I'm out of my depth here. Any suggestions on our next move?" he asked the group. "Fisk is going to get his hands on that property he wants and we're on the outside looking in. Since my method of getting in BT and going until there aren't any more bad guys shooting at me isn't the best tactic, what are the alternatives?"

"That course of action has a 100% success rate thus far Pilot Cooper" reminded BT from his rack behind Cooper. The other members of the group glanced at the Titan before shifting their gazes back to the Pilot, who merely shrugged.

"As…reasonable…as that sounds" said Peter dryly, "I don't think the situation calls for it. The streets are safe again, no reason to start another war" reasoned Spider-Man, Cooper agreeing. "We need to do the same thing they are, rest recover, but stay vigilant."

"I can dig into this link with Osborn" said MJ, getting the others attention. "Maybe get a clue as to what the next part of the plan is" she suggested.

Cooper nodded, everyone seemed to agree with that. "I can help with that" offered Felecia. "Where would be a good place to look? Mayor's office? Fisk Tower? They all sound like fun. When do we go?" asked Cat happily, the Thief eager to stretch her legs and do some infiltration.

"Not now, we need to wait" said Cooper, not happy about it. "Next week maybe, but truthfully? I don't think we'll find anything that will require us to go loud" he said, knowing his heel was tapping on the concrete floor. "Slimy business deals and corrupt politicians" said the Pilot before snorting, "almost miss Typhon."

"Maybe we could expose them?" suggested Peter, looking to Mary Jane, who would probably be the one to do it.

The redhead shook her head. "Osborn is too powerful, nothing we have would be good enough to go public with. He's practically untouchable."

"Bullshit" spat Cooper. "He's mortal just like anyone else, we just need to make sure he remembers that too."

"You're not seriously thinking of killing Norman Osborn?" asked a stunned Spider-Man. Cooper shook his head and gave his best 'you are shitting me' look. "What are you thinking then?"

"I'm not sure, but if we do dig up dirt on him…" began the Pilot before trailing off.

But Felicia seemed to understand what the Marauder was plotting. "You handsome evil man. Blackmailing the Mayor is something that I can get behind."

"Effectively, if he knows we're watching then maybe we can keep the bad stuff in check without having to lift a finger or hurt a soul" the Texan suggested, the mentioning of limiting violence caused the lenses of Spider man's mask to widen, softening his expression.

There was a soft silence that fell over the group as they processed the suggestion. "It's a big risk" said MJ simply, everyone agreeing silently. "Going against the Mayor isn't something any of us are used to."

"We're not going against him" said Cooper. "We're not trying to put him away, just let him know he's being watched and enable ourselves to keep watching him without getting our asses thrown in jail."

"This sounds very exciting" said Felecia, though her tone made it clear she thought that it was anything but. "You all going to try and play hero again. How noble" she said with disdain. "You do know Osborn won't like this. How do you think he's gotten where he is? He can play this game with the best of them."

"Then we don't go into the shadows" said Cooper simply, everyone shifting shocked expressions towards the SRS Pilot. "We do it to his face. High profile if not public."

"But arranging that is going to be impossible. He would never agree to meet with any of us" said Peter with a knowing tone. "We've known Osborn for years, there is no way any of us would be able to get near him, especially behind closed doors. Even if we did, who would meet?"

Cooper grimaced, there was only one real choice. "I'll do it" he said simply. "You all have lives, it's a much larger risk. Spidey has his reputation, Watson has a career, and I don't think Felecia is willing to risk it."

"Still won't be easy" said Peter. "You sure you're up for this?" he asked.

Cooper smiled, "I think so. Even if it's different, this aint my first rodeo" he said simply as he and Hardy shared a knowing look. "And if worst comes to pass then all that needs to happen is you be conveniently indisposed; BT will have my back."

Just to prove that he was still paying attention, the Titan spoke up. "I will uphold Protocol 3 Pilot Cooper" assured the Vanguard from his nearby rack.

"I know buddy" replied Matthew, even if he was sure Parker wouldn't like it if this happened.

"Listen, Matt" said Parker suddenly, causing all eyes to go to the inverted wall crawler. "Not that I don't trust you, but I don't feel like a know you at all. No more secrets, who the hell are you really?"

Cooper shrugged, "It's a hell of a tale. Short version? I am really a kid from Texas who lost his family. Only it wasn't them who died, I did." He looked at the stunned expressions on Peter and MJs faces, even if Spider Man's shock was only expressed by widening his eye lenses. "I wasn't done just yet, there was…this woman, she became my 'benefactor' for better or worse. She sent me to the future or something, maybe an alternate dimension" he said with a shrug. "I was trained by SRS Captain Tai Lastimosa, briefly. After that our ship went down over our objective on a planet by Typhon, Lastimosa died and I was alone deep behind enemy lines, but I was still just some kid from Texas, even if I was good with a gun."

"How did you survive?" asked MJ, who was shocked and curious in equal measure.

Cooper threw his thumb over his shoulder and pointed at the hulk of BT-7274. "BT was Lastimosa's Titan, and he transferred control to me when he was killed. Our mission was to find out what the IMC developing that resulted in strange energy readings. It turns out they were building a weapon, a big one. Like they blew up the planet's moon as a test." Cooper took a deep breath, clearly trying to compose himself as he recalled what they had found on Typhon. "They were going to start targeting planets and kill the millions of civilians on them to end the war. So, we called in the cavalry, the entire Special Recon Squadron descended on Typhon to destroy the weapon before it could be used. Me and BT joined them on the final assault and were responsible for the weapons destruction."

He then leaned forwards, "BT was in bad shape, we took out the weapon by throwing his damaged chassis and cracked reactor into the core of the Fold weapon, with me inside." He chuckled mirthfully as he looked back at the Titan. "But it was called the Fold Weapon for a reason, it folded space and time. Whatever happened when the radiation from the reactor hit it…sent us to here. Here's the kicker, that tricky bitch, my 'benefactor,' had this whole place ready and waiting for us, like it had been planned from the beginning" he said, pointing to the space around them.

"I don't know how I'm here or why. All I know is that I want to help people and I love doing this pilot shit. The best way to do that is to use SRS tactics and strategy. Stop people from being hurt by destroying or capturing what enables criminal activity to take place, just like how we took down the Fold Weapon. I don't believe in sitting back and waiting for the other guy to come to you. The way to do it is to seek them out and hit them on their own turf, take them by surprise and prevent them from getting a shot off. If I have to kill a few guys in the process, then so be it" he said firmly before leaning back in his chair.

Spiderman was obviously not happy with that attitude. "Matt, listen to yourself, this isn't like Typhon, these are people like you. They aren't trying to blow up planets, you have to be better than them" said the wall crawler in a pleading but firm tone.

The Marauder shrugged. "I'm not trying to defend my actions, nor am I saying I won't change. But…" said Cooper as he sighed tiredly. "But I'm not you, okay? I will shoot back when someone shoots at me. I think that lethal force can save lives. Peter, face facts" he said as he glared at Spider man. "The bad guys that you saved and put away, how many got out? Out of that number how many killed someone after that? Like it or not we both have a body count, only difference is I know what mine is."

Peter visibly flinched at that, lenses narrowing. "That's not my fault. I didn't kill anyone and you're insane if you think I did" he argued, and Matthew agreed. "The solution isn't to start killing everyone though. You have to be better than that."

Matt nodded, tired and not entirely disagreeing. "You're right, no doubt about it. But you're gambling with the lives of good innocent folks" countered Cooper, sounding less sure of himself. "Those up against guys who have no qualms about shooting at you or police? Can you really call me the bad guy for taking every step to tilt the odds in favor of the innocent?"

Spider man nodded in understanding. "Matt, you're talking about what iffs here. If you play that game, you'll drive yourself insane. I quit doing it a long time ago, trust me, it's never a good thing."

Matthew took a breath and looked long and hard at the spandex suited superhero before his expression softened and the Pilot turned to his Titan. "BT?" he asked, causing the machine to focus on him intently. "What sort of less than lethal options do we have?"

"The SRS has developed arc cored stun rounds for use against automated infantry" replied the Titan quickly. "They are less effective at neutralizing organic targets but can do so without inflicting permanent damage unless the target receives multiple hits."

Cooper glanced over at Spider-Man, who nodded from his inverted position. "Phase some in tomorrow morning, all the calibers they have those rounds in" ordered Cooper before turning back. "I'll carry some of each, use lethal when I need to, and those when I don't. Good?"

The webslinger let out a sigh. "Good enough" conceded the Wallcrawler, not pushing the issue any further. He then turned to the redheaded reporter. "Come on MJ, I'll take you home" he said extending his arm and picking up the woman.

"One last thing" said Cooper suddenly, causing the two to look towards the tired pilot. "Thank you, both of you. For helping me settle in, with all this." They both gave him affirming nods before the wallcrawler pulled them up out of the skylight, leaving just Cooper and Hardy in the warehouse.

The Marauder relaxed a little before he was keenly aware that Felecia was leaning into him. "Now now, aren't you going to thank me?" she purred as she stepped in front of him, the Pilot looking up at her mask covered face.

The woman leaned forwards and placed a forearm on each of his shoulders as Cooper tried to smile nonchalantly. "You're right, but you've done a lot more. I was hoping to thank you by taking you to dinner" he finished with a cheesy grin.

"I don't know" she said, wiggling her hips as she tilted her head. "Can we do something a bit more…physical afterwards?" she asked seductively as Cooper did his best to maintain a straight face. "I know a group of maggia enforcers that need to be seen to" she said with a smile.

Cooper nodded in understanding. "I think that can be arranged, say Friday?" he offered.

Felecia then closed the small gap between their faces and kissed him, lightly at first before the kiss grew in intensity, their mouths battling for dominance before Cooper felt her tongue prying for entry, which he granted. He placed one hand on the back of her head and the other on the curve of her hip as she pulled him in to her.

As suddenly as it began, it ended. Hardy pulled back, both panting for breath as they eyed each other hungrily. "An appetizer, and a good one" purred the Thief happily as she smirked at him before turning and heading for the door.

Cooper didn't fail to notice the extra sway in her hips and the way her suit clung to her curves as she strutted out. After that kiss, the Pilot hated to see her go but loved to watch her leave. As soon as she was gone, he cleared the less than pure thoughts from his mind and got up to go get some sleep in his own bed. "Pilot Cooper" said BT suddenly, causing the Marauder to look at the Titan. "The human concept of love is comprised of four factors: Admiration, attraction, devotion, and respect. Recent interactions suggest you are at least 75% in love with Felecia Hardy."

Matt stared blankly at the machine before laughing wryly and disappearing into his quarters with a shake of the head, not seeing any point in arguing with the Titan.

Cooper's Logbook – 2016 Dodge SRT Viper GTS

I've always loved Vipers and how there is exactly zero subtlety about them whatsoever. One look at it tells you that it is a very fast and horribly impractical automobile made for men to play at being cooler than they are. It is every one of those things, but none of that truly captures the experience of seeing that low slung shape and settling down into the bolstered leather seats and turning the key. The entire care shakes and rumbles like a beast being stirred from slumber, and when compared to the soft whines and smooth motions of BT, the car has an almost primal feel to it. When you press the gas and run that big 8.4 Liter displacement V10 to the redline, a coiled snake appears on tachometer that is your signal to shift gears. This is the same snake emblem that acts as your third taillight and lights up whenever you slow down, just in case the guy following can't tell what kind of car he's behind.

And despite being a pretty modern car with seat warmers, backup cameras, satellite navigation, and some of those pesky safety ones like Anti-Lock Brakes, this fifth generation 'VX' car has the same three key features as all Vipers. Big V10 that makes a lot of power up front. That power goes through a six-speed manual transmission with a clutch pedal and stick shift in the middle. After that all the power gets to the road through two massive tires at the back.

Even though this thing has gotten me outed twice, being recognized by both Hardy and Watson, I have no intention of parting with it. Simply because when you get to wherever you're going, assuming you survive, you feel like the absolute King of Cool.

At least until you burn your leg on the side mounted exhaust as you get out of the car.

Log – Assault Rifle: G2A5 Battle Rifle

This weapon proves that you just can't beat the classics. An old school gun from the far future, this latest iteration of a 50-year-old design is considered by some to be too heavy, too unwieldly, and too demanding. But those some criticisms are championed by those who favor it, sturdy construction that will never fail when you need it, the fixed stock gives the weapon a solid feel and integrated dampeners help tame the gun's kick, and the weapon can fire a big bullet as accurately as its user is able. There are no polymer cased rounds or fancy guided ammunition, just a 6.19x97mm LEC round, a small hunk of lead shoved up to velocities on a par with the Longbow DMR and just as accurate. This round will punch clean through car doors and even the ballistic glass used on Police Riot Shields.

The weapon does come from a time when individual marksmanship was championed by strategists, meaning that it is limited to semi-automatic fire, one shot per trigger pull. There are existing designs for a trigger group with a fire selector and fully-automatic capability, but I haven't fabricated it yet. Even still, a cool demeanor and steady hand are all it takes sometimes, because throwing steel down range doesn't win fights, putting steel on target does.

Closing notes: Cinderblock is just about wrapped up. I hope that the tie-in to the main game is understandable enough, if not, the short version is that its the origins of all of the Fisk construction sites that serve as hideouts. If you've made it this far, thanks for sticking around and hopefully you've been enjoying the ride. There will be one more original story arc before the main game gets underway and will see Matt work alongside another Marvel character eventually.

Also, feedback on the fight with Kraven would be appreciated. Not the most original of setups perhaps, but a simple introduction for Cooper, and the story, to Superpowered villains. While Spidey does have a great rogues gallery, one ambition of mine is for Cooper to get one or two of his own that would be original as well. Any thoughts for powers and such will be heard.

Hopefully the resolution to the Spider-Man and Marauder subplot was satisfactory. Note how I didn't say satisfying, I'm not intending it to be because it crops up more later on. In fact, that debate about the line between good and 'evil' is still ongoing throughout the entire upcoming arc.

As an amusing aside, of all of the things to influence this upcoming story arc, one of the major elements took heavy inspiration from The Professional.

The entire arc will be darker in tone, at least that was my intent. Overall, I've been trying to ground the setting as much as can be expected considering the story is about fluke dimensional travel, a sci-fi commando and his giant robot, a superhero, and a sexy cat burglar. But at the same time, I don't want it to be too dark, all doom and gloom and angst. Hopefully I've been striking that balance to y'all's liking so far.

Before the weekend (probably on Friday), Cooper's going to get hit with an infectious disease.

The first time that I got it I was just ten years old. I got it from some kitty next door, Cat Scratch Fever.

Stay frosty, Misfit Delta out.