Chapter 15- Reflections

Two months later

***

"You learn quickly," Nat said to Arthur. She had spent the last few months teaching him to fight among other things.

"I think I was born for this," Arthur replied, deflecting a kick. He was suppressing his powers as much as possible.

"I agree... but there's still a lot to improve," commented Nat, breaking through his defense and delivering a precise blow to Arthur's throat.

"COUGH-COUGH," Arthur fell to his knees, clutching his throat.

***

"I won our dispute," Nat said, sitting with a glass of water beside Arthur.

"Haa... I accept defeat," Arthur responded grumpily.

"No, you hate losing," Nat retorted, smiling at him. "Arthur... I've been assigned to another mission, I'm being reassigned."

"...alright."

"Don't make that face, it's not like we'll never see each other again," Nat said, tousling Arthur's hair before getting up.

"I've told you to stop messing with my hair," Arthur complained, getting up to pack his things. "So, is your new mission going to be interesting?"

"I still don't know; I'll meet the boss tomorrow."

***

After packing everything, Arthur faced Nat at the door. "Good luck on your next mission, Nat. If you need help, I'm here," he said, raising his hand.

Natasha didn't want a simple handshake as a farewell. She went up to him and hugged him tightly. "Take care, Arthur. I don't want to see news about Spider-Man blowing up out there."

"Hehehe! Can't promise anything."

***

As I swing towards the shed, I reflect on Natasha Romanoff. 'She's an exceptional fighter, possibly trained since birth... which suggests the existence of an organization that forces children to become assassins. Nat told me she's not American, implying it's not SHIELD. Could it be this secret organization that killed my father?... how many of them are out there?'

'Hmm... That's assuming she told me the truth. I could never quite tell if she was lying or not. The only time she lost control of her emotions was when I said she looked like my mother. Does Natasha have family issues and had to play the 'mother' to a brother or sister? That would explain why she treats me like a younger brother.'

Finally arriving at the shed, I enter and make my way to a rug in the corner. Pulling the rug, I open the concealed hatch and jump into the hole.

This is Prowler's secret base, a large room with two compartments: one where Michael planned missions and another where he trained his aim with the various weapons stored.

I've chosen to use this place as a base for plans and projects I don't want anyone to know about.

"Let's see... first, update her section,"I murmur as I walk towards the section dedicated to Natasha Romanoff.

I stand before the extensive criminal board with various images and documents, filled with numerous lines converging onto the photo of Adam Maxwell.

As I gaze at Natasha's image, I write 'New Mission' beside it and connect it with a line. "Fortunately, I found that paper among Peter's things." I fix my gaze on one of the central names. "Nick Fury, the big boss behind SHIELD, Avengers Initiative, and the incident with the Asgardians... what a complicated situation."

Taking my eyes off the board, I walk over to the desk covered in various papers. These were the projects I planned for the future. Sitting in the chair, I pick up the ones I've already started and read the titles, "'End of Hunger' and 'End of Poverty.' This is going to take a lot of work. I might not even be alive when these projects are completed, but future generations will benefit."

I organize them and place them in the drawer. 'However, for these and the others to succeed, it is necessary for this one to succeed,' I think, looking at the most challenging one, 'End of Hatred Among Humanity.'

"I'm completely crazy," I murmur as I look at the the document. I hadn't written or planned anything yet; there were too many information and data to be studied and evaluated. After all, if there's something that has accompanied humanity since its beginnings, it's wars, and ending them abruptly is impossible.

Stepping away, I start spinning in the chair. 'I could easily eliminate all dictators, terrorist leaders, and presidents influencing wars, but what would be the point? Another would rise, and the cycle would begin anew... peace in the modern world is a fragile line, sustained only by nuclear weapons.'

I increase the speed of the chair and close my eyes. 'The solution can't be death... I need to change the system from the bottom up.'

'No child is born with political or power ambitions; they do not carry an innate religion or ideology. No child cares about ethnicity or culture; the point is not in being different, but in hating what is different.'

'They are indoctrinated to harbor hate, taught to believe they are right and others are wrong... that's what I need to change.' Placing my hands over my ears, I tune out the ambient noise and sink into silence. 'Where should I start? An egalitarian education, devoid of any doctrine, would be an answer, but for that, all children need to be fed. And surprisingly, even in current times, there are places without access to drinking water...'

"Social inequality and lack of resources..." I murmur. 'Can I really do this? Change a civilization that has harbored hatred for millennia? A world where inequality prevails? The likelihood is minimal, but I must try; otherwise, I don't envision humanity persisting for another century.'

Standing up, I start pacing in circles at the center of the room. 'It's the same with criminals. Until a month ago, I thought killing would be the best solution, but thinking rationally, it wouldn't change anything. I could eliminate every criminal that crossed my path, but what would be the result? Others would appear, and the problem would persist.'

'No... the problem would be worse. Crimes might decrease for a while, but they would inevitably resurface. Criminals would become smarter and more violent; they would surely start planning ways to protect themselves from me, like using bombs or taking hostages. Even if I consider the almost nonexistent chance of them stopping entirely, when I die, they would come back.'

I interrupt my thoughts and return to the rest of the documents. "All of this is extremely complex... I'll need a lot of time and take it slow; I can't afford to make mistakes in any part.'

Stowing everything away, I walk to the training ground. 'Killing is not the ultimate solution... but what about supervillains? Is it prudent to let these super-dangerous humans live? And what about psychopaths who find satisfaction in killing and causing pain?...'

Upon arrival, I glance at all the weapons lined up in the same direction. Reviewing each of them, I confirm they are loaded and head over to the computer that activates the firing devices.

[The game will start in 4 seconds...]

'How sadistic of me to put that', I think as I walk towards the center.

[3]

I take the blindfold from my pocket and place it over my eyes.

[2]

I take a deep breath.

[1]

[Start!]

!!!

BANG! BANG! BANG!

***

Returning to school, Arthur swings between buildings until he hears the sound of breaking glass. Going to the source, he sees four men robbing a jewelry store.

'How troublesome.' Arthur drops behind two of them and electrocutes them.

"What-" The remaining two shout before being knocked down.

Tying up the four and calling the police, Spider-Man swings between buildings again but is interrupted once more by a voice.

"I must say, that was pretty cool, not as glorious as my methods, but still pretty cool," Iron Man said, flying alongside Spider-Man.

***

"Hmm... this pizza is really good," Tony Stark commented. The two were sitting on the edge of a building.

"It's the best there is," Arthur replied, his mask raised to his nose.

"I prefer cheeseburgers."

"Then more for me," said Arthur, shrugging his shoulders and reaching for the slices that belonged to Tony.

"Hey! I didn't say I wasn't going to eat," Tony exclaimed, slapping Arthur's hand away.

"What are you doing in New York, Stark?"

"Stark Expo starts tomorrow. I was going to invite you, but that would ruin my grand entrance. For some reason, there are more fans of Spider-Man than there are of me."

"Simple, I'm cooler."

"Hahaha! Don't get ahead of yourself, kid. Models love Iron Man."

"You know that's not what I was talking about, right?"

"Details, just details... I came to let you know about a wannabe pirate."

"Wannabe pirate?"

"Yeah, a guy named Nick Fury who's the director of... what was it again? Hmm... SHIELD, yeah, I think that was the name."

"SHIELD? The super secret organization?"

"Has he ever bothered you?"

"No, I met an agent."

"I get it... I'm more important than you."

"Hey!"

"Anyway, this guy invaded my house just to talk about a team whose name I already forgot. Obviously, I didn't accept the invitation; you can't trust those government folks; they're a bunch of opportunists."

"A team? For what purpose?"

"I don't know, I left the moment he started talking. I just came here to tell you not to accept if he comes to invite you. There's nothing good they can offer. By the way, I made sure to erase everything connecting Arthur Maxwell to Spider-Man. No need to thank me."

"Haa... how the hell did you find out?" 'Does half the world already know who I am?'

"Not too difficult. After returning from my vacation in the Middle East, I got updated on the whole situation in New York and you can be sure that seeing a kid hanging out with a guy whose face looks exactly like Peter Parker's is a good clue."

"A lot of footage." 'Damn! I didn't think about that.'

"Not that much. I think someone deleted most of it. It's just that I'm very good at what I do."

"...it might have been SHIELD."

"Good guess, not that it matters." Tony concluded, finishing the last piece of pizza and getting up. "I could give you a thousand reasons why it's dangerous to do this at such a young age, but somehow, you've been in this hero business longer than I have, so you must understand the risks."

"If you want, I can give you some tips."

"Very funny," Tony replied sarcastically, closing his helmet. "We should meet up sometime. I'm curious about the collider story, and I could give your suit a little upgrade."

BOOM!

Arthur looked up, watching Stark soar into the sky. "...he didn't even give me a contact number, typical billionaire."

***

"Report," said Nick Fury the moment Natasha Romanoff entered.

"I've eliminated all scientists except two."

"Two?"

"One of them is scientist Olivia Octavius, who is detained in the new maximum-security prison, and the other has disappeared."

"Octavius isn't a problem, but that other scientist is."

"I agree. I investigated the places he frequented, his family and the cameras. But I didn't find anything, it's as if he got into some hole and disappeared

"Hmm… I'll take care of it. Now, tell me your assessment of Arthur Maxwell's personality."

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Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters or songs featured in this fic. Additionally, I do not claim ownership of any products or properties mentioned in this novel. This work is entirely fictional.