At Oscorp Tower, a line of students followed a tall man with one arm through a brightly lit corridor of glass and steel. "Welcome, class. My name is..." "Dr. Curtis Connors. A world-renowned scientist who graduated with twin doctorates in biology and biochemistry." The interruption came from a brown-haired, hazel-eyed boy near the middle of the line. Connors raised an eyebrow. "Yes… and you are?" "Pe." "Just the geek of Midtown. The king of nerds Peter Parker!" a blonde boy announced dramatically.
"Nice one, Flash," a large student beside him laughed, slapping his hand in a high five. "Boys," the teacher warned sharply. A wavy-haired boy leaned closer to Peter. "Nice job keeping it together." "Come on, Harry," Peter muttered. "That's Dr. Curtis Connors. I just… I got excited. I should've said more." He wasn't watching where he was going and walked straight into someone. Peter stumbled back. "Sor... Sorry. I-I didn't see you, Cindy."
Cindy Moon looked up at him, smiling softly. "It's okay, Peter." "Cindy, come on! I think we're almost done!" her friends called. She gave Peter a small wave before jogging back to them. "This is so boring," one of the girls complained. "I would've rather had an Avengers tour." "Yeah, I would've liked to meet Thor." "Or the Hulk. He's so hot." The other two girls stared at her in confusion. "What? Big green muscle guy? Total dream. I can only imagine what he's..." "And that's enough out of you," Cindy cut in quickly, shaking her head.
Up ahead, the teacher clapped his hands. "I hope everyone's paying attention. I'll be quizzing you later." A collective groan filled the hall. Elsewhere inside the tower, in a secured laboratory, a large, overweight man with messy brown hair rummaged frantically through a workstation. "Where is it?" he growled. "I told the cleaning crew never to step foot in my lab!" The sliding doors hissed open. "Otto, shouldn't you be helping with the tour?" a well-dressed man asked calmly.
"I don't have time to entertain a room full of hormonal teenagers thinking about girls or their hair," Otto snapped mockingly. The man's eyes scanned the room and stopped at a small containment jar sitting open. The label read: Project Spider. Empty. "Norman, do you need anything else?" Otto asked. Norman Osborn slowly shook his head and stepped out, hands folded behind his back. Neither of them noticed the black-and-red spider crawling along the ceiling slipping through a crack in the wall and disappearing.
"Alright, class, it looks like we're almost done," Connors announced. "It's about time," Flash muttered. "Hey, Kong check this out." Flash walked up behind Peter, who was drinking from a water fountain. He shoved Peter's shoulder hard. Peter lost balance, water splashing all over his shirt. "It's a soaked nerd!" Kong laughed. "Hey, Parker it's called drinking the water, not bathing in it," Flash mocked. Laughter erupted. Cindy stepped forward. "Flash, how about you leave him alone? Or are you two too stupid to manage that? Like when you cost us the game by passing to the other team."
The crowd burst into laughter. "You little." "Flash. Up here," the teacher called firmly. Flash grunted and walked away. "You okay, Peter?" Cindy asked gently, pulling a napkin from her bag. "Pete, sorry man," Harry said, returning. "My dad called me over." The class began moving toward the exit. Peter wiped his face. Above them, the spider descended on a thin strand of silk. It dropped onto a nearby table. Without looking, Peter placed his hand beside it. The spider crawled onto his skin. And bit.
"AHH!" Peter screamed. Blood trickled from his hand as he shook it violently. "Peter!" Cindy cried, grabbing his wrist. She reached for the spider but it leapt. It landed on her leg, scuttled upward, and bit into her calf. She gasped, swatting it away. Harry reacted instantly, stomping down hard. Crunch. Yellow fluid splattered across the floor and the bottom of his shoe. Peter and Cindy clutched their wounds, faces pale, breathing erratic. Then their legs gave out.
They collapsed. "Get them to the hospital!" the teacher shouted. From a balcony above, Norman Osborn watched silently. "Hm," he murmured. "Keep an eye on them. And get me Otto. Now." The security guard nodded. Peter's eyes snapped open. Bright hospital lights greeted him. "Pete! You're awake!" Aunt May rushed to his side. "Are you okay? Does anything hurt?" "I'm… okay," Peter groaned. "My head's killing me though." "I'll get the doctor," Uncle Ben said, stepping out of the room.
In the room next door, Cindy sat upright, sipping water. "You're sure everything's fine, Doctor?" her father asked anxiously. "Everything looks stable," the doctor assured him. "Just a severe headache. Nothing life-threatening. She needs rest." "See? I told you, Dad," Cindy said weakly. "Just a spider bite. You know I hate spiders." But her hand trembled slightly. Back at Oscorp Tower, Norman studied a digital file. "The venom is spreading through their systems," a scientist reported nervously. "It appears to be slowly killing them."
The door burst open. "Norman! What is this? You're firing me?" Otto shouted. "Do you have any idea what you're doing? Without me, this company would've collapsed!" "Your work is outdated," Norman replied coldly without turning around. "And you lost control of an experimental spider that bit two students. Leave your equipment at the desk. You can keep the goggles." Otto's fists trembled. "This won't stand, Osborn. I swear it." He stormed out. "Keep monitoring both subjects," Norman ordered quietly. "And wait for me to make the call."
"Make the call, sir?" the scientist asked. Norman didn't answer. Cindy knelt over her bathroom toilet, vomiting. "What's happening to me?" she whispered. A stabbing pain tore through her skull like a knife splitting her brain in two. In his bedroom, Peter writhed in his sheets, drenched in sweat. His body burned. "It's so hot…" he gasped, rolling off the bed onto the floor. "It feels like I'm dying." The bite on his hand pulsed red. Across the city, Cindy's bite glowed the same. In sync. Something inside them was changing. And it had only just begun.
An abandoned warehouse on the East Coast. Water tapped against broken windows as Otto Octavius stood alone in the shadows. "If he wants to fire me, fine," Otto muttered, pacing across the dusty concrete floor. "But no one can stop the brilliant mind of Dr. Octavius." He stopped in front of a massive steel capsule. With a dramatic pull of a lever, the chamber hissed open. Inside four massive mechanical arms, folded tightly, their metal claws gleaming under flickering lights.
Otto's glasses caught the reflection as he smiled. "And the world will finally see it." The next morning. Peter's alarm blared. He groaned, slapping it off before sitting up in bed. His body felt… heavy. Different. He stretched then yawned reaching for his glasses. He slid them on. Blurry. Peter blinked and adjusted them. Still blurry. "Huh? Weird…" He took them off. Perfect vision. He slowly looked up at the mirror across his room and froze.
"Whoa… where did this come from?" Defined arms. Broad shoulders. He lifted his shirt. Six-pack. Peter flexed slightly, eyes wide. "I don't even work out…" "Peter? You okay in there?" Uncle Ben called through the door. "Yeah, Uncle Ben!" Peter snapped out of it, scrambling to grab clothes. "Just getting ready!" Across town. Cindy groaned, waking up on the cold bathroom floor. A loud bang shook the door. "Cindy! You okay in there? I'm coming in!" She quickly unlocked it before her dad could break it down.
"I'm okay!" she said, rubbing her eyes. "Guess I was just… really tired." He studied her face carefully. "It's almost time for school. You sure you want to go?" "Yeah, Dad. I swear, I'm fine." She walked toward her bedroom. Grabbed the doorknob. Crushed it. Metal bent like paper in her grip. She stared at it. "...Okay. That was weird." She slowly opened the door, staring at her hand. Outside her house later that morning, Cindy texted her friends while walking. A black sedan idled down the street.
Inside, a man in a suit spoke quietly into an earpiece. "I've got eyes on Cindy Moon. She's heading toward school." Across Queens, another black car followed Peter. "I've got Peter Parker. Same direction." At Oscorp Tower, Norman Osborn stood by the window. "I don't want anything traced back to Oscorp," Norman said calmly. "End this." Peter walked down the sidewalk, still rubbing his head. "I don't work out. My vision's perfect. What happened to me?" Suddenly a sharp tingling sensation shot through the back of his skull. He didn't think. He moved.
Peter leapt backward instinctively flipping over a car speeding toward him at nearly forty miles per hour. The car smashed into a parked vehicle behind him. Peter landed on his feet. Heart pounding. "What the." The tingling returned. He turned just as a man stepped out of the black sedan gun raised. Peter bolted. "Sir!" the man said into his earpiece. "The kid just dodged a car going forty! He flipped over it!" Norman listened in silence. Then he smiled.
"Disengage," Norman ordered. "Do not hurt them. Return to Oscorp. I'll monitor them personally." He ended the call and leaned back in his chair. "Interesting…" Forest Hills. Midtown High. Peter jogged onto campus. The buses hadn't even arrived yet. "I ran all the way here… and I'm not even tired." "Yo, Pete!" Harry waved from a sleek car pulling up. Peter walked over. "Hey, Harry." Harry stepped out. "Don't forget your bag," Norman said, holding it out. "Thanks, Dad."
Norman's eyes settled on Peter. "You must be Peter. Good to see Harry made a friend who's a genius." Harry's smile faded slightly. "We gotta go, Dad." They walked off. "I thought you said it'd be bad?" Peter asked. "Because you're a genius," Harry muttered. "Anyway… you okay from yesterday?" Peter smirked slightly. "Yeah. I'm actually feeling better than okay." At her locker, Cindy's friends hovered around her. "You sure you didn't have an allergic reaction?" one asked. "You and Parker scared us." "I'm fine," Cindy insisted. "Have you seen Peter?"
"No. But shouldn't you be thinking about Jake Dorman instead?" her friend teased. "You've been crushing on him forever." "Shush!" "Hey, Cindy." She turned. Jake stood behind her. "Jake! I mean hey. What's up, dude?" He chuckled. "You going to Liz's party tonight?" Cindy froze. Is he asking me to go with him? Or just asking? Her brain spiraled. "She's going," her friend jumped in. "Oh. Cool. You wanna go together?" Jake asked. Cindy opened her mouth. Nothing came out. "She'd love to," her friend said again.
"Awesome. See you tonight." Jake walked away. Cindy stared forward. "Oh my God," her friend groaned. "After school, we're going shopping. You need help." Cindy bent to pick up a dropped book. A thin strand of web shot from her fingertips sticking to the cover. Her eyes widened. She quickly yanked it free and hid her hand. "Cindy! We're gonna be late!" "Coming!" Gym class. Flash smirked at Peter. "Glad you're feeling better, Parker. Thought I lost my punching bag."
"Alright, everyone!" the coach shouted. "Dodgeball! Pick teams!" Flash grabbed a ball and grinned. "Call this the gut buster." He hurled it. To Peter, the ball slowed. Like it was floating. He casually stepped aside. The ball flew past. Flash blinked. "Tch. Beginner's luck." He threw another. Peter dodged effortlessly. Kong grabbed two balls. "I got this." He launched both. Peter backflipped. The balls missed. Everyone stared. Peter blinked midair as he landed.
"I wonder…" He grabbed a ball. Threw it. Kong raised his arms to catch it. The impact sent him flying backward into the wall. The gym went silent. "Oooo," Peter muttered. Later. Peter stood at his locker, replaying everything in his head. "Since when can I do that? And how did I do that?" He grabbed his textbook. His hand didn't move. He looked down. His palm was stuck to the locker door. "...Oh crap." He tugged.
The entire locker door ripped off its hinges. Peter stared at it. Students stopped walking. He quickly tried to press it back into place. It slipped from his grip and clanged loudly to the floor. Peter forced an awkward smile. "Heh… don't you hate when that happens? Cheap school equipment, right?" Silence. Everyone stared. Peter slowly waved. "…Right?"
Cindy sat at her desk, half listening to the teacher while scribbling in her notebook. Her friend leaned over beside her. Across the room, a black-haired girl whispered to her group. "Hey, it's her. Let's see if she can talk after this." One of them pulled out a bottle filled with a strange dark liquid. Suddenly. A tingling sensation crawled along the back of Cindy's skull. She turned around slowly, confused… then her eyes landed on the girl holding the bottle. "Were you about to throw that on me?" Cindy asked casually. "Isn't that a little sad?"
The girl froze. "I... I wasn't going to throw it. It's my coffee," she said quickly, setting the bottle on the desk. Cindy leaned back in her chair, folding her arms. "Then you should be able to drink it, right? If it's coffee." A few students nearby started watching. "Pfft. You think you're so smart?" the girl scoffed, grabbing the bottle. "Fine. I'll show you. You're just some paranoid freak who should stay home." She lifted it toward her mouth. "Miss Sally. No drinks in class." The teacher's voice cut across the room.
The girl froze mid-sip. Slowly, she lowered the bottle as the class snickered. Cindy turned back to her desk, smirking slightly. After class, Cindy walked down the hallway, pressing her fingers against her temples. "That was weird," she muttered. "It's like I knew she was going to do that before it happened." Lost in thought, she turned the corner and walked straight into someone. "Oh! Sorry, Pete." Peter blinked. "No, that's on me. I should've been paying attention."
Suddenly both of them felt the same strange sensation in the back of their heads. They paused. Peter tilted his head. "Cindy… are you feeling anything weird?" She raised an eyebrow. "Like what?" Peter scratched the back of his neck. "I mean… since that spider bit us. I just wanted to make sure you weren't having some allergic reaction or something." Cindy forced a casual smile. "Nope. Nothing weird here." The strange sensation faded. "I gotta go," she said, stepping back. "I need to get ready for Liz's party."
Peter blinked. "Liz's party… wait, Liz is having a party?" Cindy laughed softly. "Yeah. You should come." She waved before walking down the hall. Peter stood there, confused. "What the hell was that?" he muttered. "My heart started racing and my whole body heated up." "Liz's party, huh? Maybe I should go." "You definitely should." Harry suddenly appeared beside him, throwing an arm around Peter's shoulders. "I'm going," Harry said. "And I'm not letting my best friend miss the chance to meet and mingle with girls." "Preferably pretty girls."
After school, Peter walked down a quiet alley, staring at his hands. "This all started after that spider bite," he thought. He approached a brick wall. "Strength… agility… sticking to surfaces." Peter placed his hand against the wall. His fingers stuck. Slowly, he lifted a foot. Then another. He started climbing. "Whoa!" Peter laughed, climbing faster and faster. Moments later, he pulled himself onto the rooftop. Wind rushed past him.
"This feels amazing!" He sprinted forward and jumped. Landing on the next rooftop, he rolled and popped back up. "Maybe I could use this somehow… make some money… or maybe get some payback on Flash." He flipped again but lost his balance near the ledge. Peter slipped. His hand shot out and stuck to the wall just in time. He hung there, breathing hard. "Okay… note to self," he muttered. "Watch where you're going."
Meanwhile, Cindy sat in her bedroom staring at two huge bags of clothes dumped on her bed. "I don't know what's more exhausting," she groaned. "Melissa picking my clothes… or carrying half the store home." Suddenly that same tingling sensation returned. "There it is again," she whispered. She turned around. Nothing. She shrugged and walked toward the door. CRACK. Her bookshelf snapped loose from the wall. Books came crashing down right where she had been standing seconds earlier.
Cindy stared at the mess. "It's like… I knew that was going to happen before it happened." She looked down at her hands. "Wait a second…" She pointed two fingers toward her window. Thwip. A strand of web shot from her fingers, sticking to the glass. Her eyes widened. She tried again. Thwip. Another web shot out. Cindy gasped. She started laughing, making finger-gun poses and shooting webs around the room while rolling across the floor dramatically.
"Pew! Pew!" Then she suddenly stopped. "Wait… how am I doing this?" Reality slowly hit her. "This all started after that spider bite." She sat on the edge of her bed. "I've been bitten by spiders before… but never like this." She thought back. "The spider came from Oscorp…" A knock came from the door. "Cindy?" Her dad's voice. She quickly opened it. "I was thinking we could watch a bad movie tonight," he said. "Got any ideas?"
"Dad… I'm going to Liz's party tonight, remember?" He shook his head immediately. "Nope. Movie night. And there will not be teenage boys all over my daughter." "I'll be with friends, I promise," Cindy pleaded. "Please?" "Sorry, Cindy," he said firmly. "It's a school night." The door closed. Cindy groaned and flopped onto her bed. "I'm fifteen! I'm not a little kid anymore!"
Meanwhile, Peter quietly walked into his house. From the kitchen, he overheard Aunt May speaking. "Ben… how are we going to pay the bills if they laid you off?" Uncle Ben gently held her hands. "Don't worry, May. We always manage. Something will come along." Peter slipped upstairs quietly. "With my powers… making money should be easy," he thought. He turned on his computer and started searching. Then one website caught his eye.
AMATEUR WRESTLING LAST MAN STANDING $1,000 PRIZE. Peter leaned closer. "And I just found a way." He glanced at the clock. "Tonight? Same night as Liz's party…" Peter grinned. "I'll just show up a little late." Then he frowned slightly. "I should probably wear a costume." A knock came at the door. Uncle Ben stepped in. "Pete, I didn't hear you come home. Dinner's ready." Peter hesitated.
"Uncle Ben… if you have an advantage over someone… should you use it?" Ben thought for a moment. "In some cases, yes," he said calmly. "But remember something." "Every choice you make shapes the man you become." "Good or bad… that part is always up to you." He closed the door. Peter stared at the computer screen. "Then this should be the right choice… right?"
Back across town, Cindy slowly peeked downstairs. Her dad was asleep on the couch. The TV flickered quietly. She pulled out her phone. Cindy: Hey Melissa, I'm on the way. Melissa replied instantly with a smiling emoji. Cindy climbed out her bedroom window. She crouched on the ledge. Then jumped. Wind rushed through her hair as she soared through the air. She landed on the neighboring building effortlessly. "WHOOHOO!" Laughing, Cindy sprinted across the rooftops leaping from building to building at incredible speed.