[Staten Island Ferry. The Deck.]
"FBI! Drop the weapons!"
It was a trap. Peter Parker had led the FBI right to Vulture's crew. But he hadn't anticipated the Vulture's response.
Adrian Toomes suited up. The alien Chitauri weapon powered up.
ZZZZRT.
The beam sliced through the ferry like a hot knife through butter.
"No!" Peter screamed, shooting webs to try and hold the two halves of the ship together.
The massive vessel groaned. Water poured in. The passengers screamed as the deck split apart.
"I got this!" Peter yelled, straining every muscle. "I got this!"
He didn't have it. The webs snapped.
WHOOSH.
Iron Man descended from the clouds. Thrusters at maximum, he slammed into the side of the ferry. Mini-drones flew out, welding the split hull. Tony strained against the weight of 3,000 tons of steel, pushing the ship back together.
[The Skies Above]
Vulture saw Iron Man. "Stark," he spat. "Time to go."
Toomes banked his wings, aiming to strafe the exposed deck where Peter was vulnerable. He charged his plasma cannons.
"Say goodbye, Spider," Toomes growled.
He dove.
THUD.
Something landed on Vulture's back in mid-air.
It wasn't a bird. It was a man in a tailcoat.
Sebastian Michaelis had leaped from the upper railing of the ferry. He grabbed Vulture's mechanical wings with his bare hands.
"Going somewhere?" Sebastian shouted over the roar of the turbines.
Toomes panicked. He spun, trying to shake the man off. "Get off me!"
Sebastian crawled up the wing assembly. He didn't use tech. He used brute, demonic strength. He grabbed the hydraulic piston controlling the left wing.
"This design is derivative!" Sebastian yelled. "And your paint job is tacky!"
CRUNCH.
Sebastian ripped the hydraulic line out.
The wing seized up. Vulture spiraled out of control.
"Mayday!" Toomes screamed. He crashed onto the roof of the ferry cabin, skidding to a halt.
Sebastian landed gracefully next to him. He dusted off his coat.
Toomes pulled a blaster. Sebastian kicked it out of his hand before he could blink. Sebastian grabbed Toomes by the collar of his bomber jacket and lifted him off the ground.
"You threatened the child," Sebastian's eyes glowed fuchsia. "The Young Master is fond of the spider. That makes you... redundant."
Sebastian raised a hand, claws extending. He was ready to end Adrian Toomes right there.
"Sebastian!" Tony's voice boomed over the comms, strained with effort. "Don't kill him! We need the ship stable! Get down here and help weld the hull!"
Sebastian paused. He looked at the terrified Vulture. He looked at the chaos below.
"You are lucky," Sebastian whispered to Toomes. "The Master calls."
He threw Toomes aside. "Fly away, little bird. Before I change my mind."
Sebastian jumped off the roof, landing near the split in the hull. He grabbed two massive steel plates that were buckling and held them shut with his bare hands, allowing Tony's drones to finish the weld.
Toomes didn't wait. He scrambled into the air and fled, terrified of the man in black.
[A Rooftop in Queens. Sunset.]
Peter Parker sat on the ledge, head in his hands.
Tony Stark stepped out of the Iron Man suit. He looked furious.
"I told you," Tony said, his voice low. "I told you to stay away."
"I was just trying to be like you," Peter whispered.
"I wanted you to be better," Tony snapped. "Someone died on that ferry, Peter? No. But they almost did. And if they had, that would have been on you."
"But I stopped Vulture!"
"No," Tony pointed to the shadows. "Sebastian stopped Vulture. I saved the ship. You broke the law."
Sebastian stood in the shadows, leaning against a chimney. He said nothing. He watched the boy break.
"I'm gonna need the suit back," Tony said.
"But I'm nothing without the suit!" Peter cried.
"If you're nothing without the suit, then you shouldn't have it," Tony said. It was the hardest thing he'd ever had to say.
Peter slowly peeled off the mask. He handed the suit to Tony. He looked small. Just a kid in oversized sweats.
Tony took the suit. He walked toward the jet.
"Sebastian," Tony said. "Drive him home."
Tony flew off.
Sebastian walked over to Peter. The boy was crying.
"Come along, Master Parker," Sebastian said gently.
"He hates me," Peter wiped his eyes.
"No," Sebastian opened the car door. "He is terrified for you. There is a difference."
Sebastian started the car.
"You faced a villain who had alien technology. You held a ship together with webs. You have heart, Peter. But heart alone does not stop bullets."
Peter looked out the window.
"Mr. Sebastian? Did you beat the Vulture?"
"I clipped his wings," Sebastian said, checking the rearview mirror. "But I let him go. Because today, the lesson was for you. Next time... the lesson will be for him."
[End of Chapter 40]
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