The Bite
Well hey there partners! How have y'all been? Ah ha yup. Of course! Well as I can't really hear you so let's talk about me. It's been four years since I've started my path of mysticism and a long time since the last time I've had anything fun to narrate about in my life. And oh boy, jumping from the end of the invasion to now. Well it's a lot when being compared but it's very minor and mild when I was going through the process. It's been almost three years since I've begun my journey in the United States. I've been living in a small one bedroom apartment by myself. I've forged some paperwork and applications over the internet to get myself this room. It's small, inconspicuous and in an area that's busy enough for people to not notice there's a child living by himself. Plus I could pretend to be an adult when I need to but I usually like to just be my heavy chubby self. Like I still keep up with my training but I had a thought while taking a shower one night. If I had such a strange condition for me to perform magic. Won't it be the same for everything else? Like if almost every method of superpowers in this world is an attempt of recreating the super soldier serum, won't radioactive spiders be the same?
Like sure there's not really any concrete evidence that THIS franchise's version of Peter Parker and the spider powers came from an Oscorp-like corporation. But almost every single iteration of a spider person in the movies and through the comics got their powers because of a genetically engineered spider. One that's based around the replication of a super soldier…well that and they all are marked with the totem powers. But knowing me and how shitty my luck has been I probably won't become a totemic user since I'm not a main character to the timeline. If let's say that this universe's radioactive spiders are also based on project rebirth then I can only build the foundation as best as I can receive my spider bite. And since I don't have any access to Vita rays to activate the potential secret sauce within the spider DNA. I can only use the next best thing. Building fat and storing energy for later. If I am to survive this whole ordeal and operation, my body is going to need a constant source of energy to heal while it's going through a very rapid change on the cellular level.
Oh and one more thing I've just gotten done with middle school. See there's a lot of little boring stuff that happened in the last three years that I can summarize in a couple of paragraphs. Apparently on the day of the Chitauri invasion was the first time that I met Peter Parker. He was out for a basketball game at Madison Square Garden with his uncle that day. I'm not sure why they came to Manhattan instead of just staying in Queens but hey, it works for me and that's all that matters. Anyways, in the chaos of the attack just like the real Leed family of this world, Ben Parker became one of the tens of hundreds of casualties of war. I'm not quite sure how he did but my best bet would be he was trying to protect this nephew during the chaos. It was only up to chances and lazy writing that I met him in one of the community shelters that the government has set up for everyone. But out meeting did not last very long because they were able to reconnect him with his aunt rather quickly.
As for me? Well I was able to embody the identity of Edward Leed because I too was the only serving member of the Leed family. Now I'm not quite sure what actually happened to the real Leed family but I figured I could pull a '1906 San Francisco fire' and secure myself a new citizenship number and identity. And the plan worked almost perfectly except for the fact that since I had no living immediate relatives, I was going to be placed in an orphanage or foster home until I turned eighteen. Which was something that I could not do because that defeats my whole purpose of leaving my family in the first place. So, once I got all of my new paperworks I hopped off the grid and forged myself a fake adult identity to get my own apartment before erasing everyone's memory about my apartment unit. Now from 2012 to 2015 I did keep an eye on everything that was going around the world but I didn't really step in at all. Either school was in the way and the timing wasn't quite right or there weren't really any rewards I could take away from the situation.
Like during the event of Iron Man 3, there's no way in hell am I showing up on my father's radar and leave behind any indication that I was involved with the whole fake Ten Rings and Mandarin debacle. And besides, what use do I have for Tony Stark's arc reactor when my own reactor works just fine. Now for the events of Thor 2, well in my opinion it was the most boring and weakest of the MCU movies so I didn't even bother with it. I mean I would have loved to get my hands on the reality stone because I'll need that someday but school was in the way and I didn't really want to put up a fight since edumacation is very important to me. I guess the same thing could be said about the events of last year, Captain America The Winter Soldier. It was just a bunch of spy on spy and assassin on assassin stuff that I can't really keep up with or help out since it would only put me on Hydra's radar as well as Nick Fury's. But it was pretty nice getting my hands on a couple terabytes of classified S.H.I.E.L.D.S documents. Most of which will be useless in the next couple of years but it was pretty nice getting the chance to read about the events of 'Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.S' up to the point of the Winter Soldier event. I said it was a pretty nice read because I do not want to go anywhere near the events of AoS. From what I can remember, the show just got really weird and boring. Maybe the confusing later seasons might happen in this universe too but if I don't get involved it probably won't happen to me.
As for what happened during my regular civilian life in the past three years? Well I was doing some stalking and snooping around after the Chitauri invasion and found the school that Peter was attending. I transferred myself to his middle school in Queens to try and get closer to Peter so that I can be there when he gets bitten by the radioactive spider. It's been pretty good so far I think. At first it was pretty boring because he's still a kid and can't really have any of the deep conversations I would have with my fellow sorcerers. But eventually Peter became pretty fun to hang with. Even at a young age his brain is already doing more than what your average college professor could ever think of. We would just need out about science and the latest development and breakthroughs in most fields of science. I can see why Tony saw so much of himself in Peter. Not that I wish to take his place or anything, my aim is set on higher things than just the god of technology himself.
It was always fun dreaming about the possibilities with Peter as we walked home from school. What we could do if given the chance to pursue a path of science that could help everyone. Oh the innocence of that kid....I wish it was that simple. There's just too many people trying to hold on to their old powers and greed that they refuse to let the world improve for the better. There's corruption and injustice everywhere that goes unpunished because they live above the law. They made these rules to hold down the everyday man. Rules to keep the everyday person blind and focus on surviving the rat race set for them instead of look-
"Hey Ned!" Peter called out to try and get me back to earth as I was silent for a long time on the subway ride. "We're here Ned. We can't miss the science fair." I put on a smile as I pull out my earphones before exiting the train cart with him. Following this kid really is a blast. He allows me to be a kid again without having to worry about the rest of the real world and all of its problems. I really wish I could've just played a background character to all of this. No getting involved in people's lives. No complications if things go wrong but my dumbass just can't allow it huh.
After exiting the station we soon arrive at the science fair convention. It's honestly pretty cool seeing so many nerds in one spot, the smell though..... Peter and I enter the doors and it was like we were in nerd heaven. We grabbed a brochure and proceeds to wonder through the gymnasium full of amazing and successful experiments. I'm honestly pretty shocked at how cool some of these experiments are. There's some that tried to recreate an arc reactor using various vegetables as it's power source, one that tried to do a baking soda volcano but the explosion froze mid-eruption, someone was able to turn copper into silver after dipping it in a bath of chemicals with metal wires attached to it.
"Peter, can you believe these things? It's ridiculously crazy how awesome they are. Like look at that." I point towards an experiment down the aisle. "It's a robotic arm that moves as smooth as a person." My eyes begin to glow with the wonders of a child once more. We quickly rush towards the mini robot presentation.
"You know Ned, maybe one day we can build one just like that. One that can hang up people's coats when they get home or one that can cook for them." Peter's eyes also lit up at seeing the tentacle like arm move around like a real thing. The arm has succulent cups at the tip of it to help it grip and grab on to objects like an apple, wrench and phone. "H-how do octopuses grab onto a phone?" Peter took a step closer. He seems lost in the possibilities of combing animal characteristics with technology.
"Hey kid, watch yourself." The woman presenting the robot calls out to him as she stops the arm from continuing to move. "S-sorry ma'am I just got carried away with your robot. How does an octopus use a phone like we do?" Peter points to the phone next to the robot arm and she starts to break out into laughter. "Oh kid, that's rich. You're so sweet and funny but that phone isn't on display for the robot to grab. I just forgot that I left my phone there." she continues to laugh before slowly calming down after catching her breath.
"P-peter we need to look at this." I pull him aside as I see an experiment that was the whole reason why I came to America in the first place. Radioactive spiders. My eyes begin to dart around as I search for any spiders that might be hanging out and about, somewhere it shouldn't be. "Are those radioactive spiders?" Peter spoke in awe as he approached the glass cages of the spiders.
"That they are son." The man standing behind the table spoke. Out of everyone he seems the most out of place. He doesn't have the appearance of a nerd or a scientist but of a salesman from the 50s. A con artist if you will. "These are the only ones of their kinds. They're a rare new species of spiders created after generations of breeding and experiments. Unfortunately these are the only surviving members of the family because after one day they all died mysteriously overnight. After that they're kept under close supervision and in individual containers to prevent any more loss of spiders." The man tried to entice the two boys standing in front of his stand. His exhibit hasn't gotten much attention because he lacked anything that made his experiments exciting and he was tuck at a far corner of the fair because he had live animals.
"Mister, how do you know that these spiders are radioactive? They just look like normal spiders to me." I point out the big elephant in the room because besides the unique coloring of these spiders, they look just like your typical everyday spiders. Hell they even look like different species at that. There's no way this guy isn't full of shit.
"Well that's where this comes in son. I've been studying these spiders for years and I've kept the family safe in my lab for a long time." He produces a small particle detector in his hands. "These babies are producing radiation rays that's off the chart. That's why they must stay behind special glass cages otherwise it could harm us." He gently presses the tip of the reader onto the glass panel and the readings on the machine begin to produce a lot of strange sound as the light moves from red to orange, yellow, green and back again.
Peter and I quickly took a step back as the strong and wild readings of the spiders caught us off guards. This is definitely a safety hazard and plainly irresponsible for having such a display out in the open like this. Who knows how many people have been hit with an extremely dangerous dose of radiation and had no idea about it. Well Peter and I quickly left the crazy man to himself after he told us about the absurd amount of radiation that's coming off of his spiders. But unknowingly we've also got two tags along that hitched a ride on the pants of our legs. Well Peter's pant legs and my pant pocket.
Since we've already seen most of the fair, the quick shower of radioactivity pushed us to leave the convention. Honestly the spiders were probably the least exciting thing because nowadays no one really cares about nuclear power or radiation things anymore. With the new age of Stark technology, all of those things seem like technology of the past and long outplayed. YAWN. I stretch my arms out as Peter and I walk towards the entrance to the train station. "You getting tired, Ned? It's barely even 5 o'clock yet. Let's go get something to eat before we go home." He tried to sound up and full of energy but I could tell that he's also getting tired.
"No it's okay Peter. I think I've had enough for today. I don't know about you but my left hand is killing me." I pull my hand out of my pocket to show him the red swelling of my hand. "Something must've happened back at the fair because I think I'm having an allergic reaction or something." I gave him a weak chuckle as this was all part of the plan. There's a dead spider in my pocket and I intend on studying it once I get home. "Alright man. I'll see you tomorrow at school." He gave me a smile as we shook our handshake before leaving. His right hand also has a slight red bump behind his thumb so he must've been bitten too. I look at the growing red bump on my hand. SIGH. I really should've gotten the guy's information before we left because I need to look more into his studies of these radioactive spiders. Truthfully I wanted to bring the live spider home with me but I can't risk not getting entangled in Peter's totem moment. I need to ensure that I will have a chance of becoming a spider person.