In the abandoned subway tunnel, Peter shone the spider-flashlight on his utility belt ahead as he asked, "You mean you're not going to Puerto Rico?"
Looking at Felicia, who was now in her Black Cat gear and holding the grappling hook gun he'd given her, Peter expressed his confusion: "May I ask why?"
"The answer is simple. When the most nosy Avenger, Spider-Man, leaves New York, that's the best time for my investigation. All the freaks and monsters come out to play." Felicia stretched languidly, giving her answer.
Peter looked at her, concerned, "It sounds like you already have a direction for your investigation?"
"Of course. Why else would I need you? I need your help dealing with them before you leave." Felicia smiled at Peter. "What's wrong? Worried you won't have company alone? Need a girl to accompany you to the Caribbean beaches?"
Peter gave Felicia a look of disdain. It seemed like the woman couldn't speak without flirting. He checked the time on his lenses and countered, "Are you sure he's in here?"
"Absolutely. I personally checked his ledger."
"I can't believe you were running around Manhattan gathering intelligence during a massive symbiote invasion."
Felicia glanced at Peter but said nothing more because the person they were waiting for had arrived.
Tombstone, with his ashen-white skin, stepped onto the platform. Peter immediately turned off his flashlight and cloaked, while Black Cat hid to the side.
Tombstone's skin was natural; he was an African-American man with albinism. Because of this, he was discriminated against in both the black and white communities. However, he came into contact with a special chemical that made his albino skin incredibly tough, making him virtually bulletproof and granting him super strength.
"Tombstone might not be the most powerful among these gangsters, but he's definitely the most troublesome," Black Cat whispered. Bulletproof, super strength, and Tombstone's decent engineering knowledge made him a late-game, possibly final boss-level threat for most street-level heroes. Maybe only Iron Fist's punch could hurt him.
Peter took this threat quite seriously.
Though Peter was invisible, Felicia could still feel him right next to her. She smiled and looked at Peter, "Have you figured out how to deal with this walking rock?"
"If you had asked me when we first met, I might not have had a solution, but it's different now. Tombstone is just a small-time character. We can handle him easily," Peter said confidently, then moved with Black Cat in the darkness.
The gloom of the abandoned subway station provided them cover, allowing them to silently take down Tombstone's henchmen one by one without being harmed. It wasn't until then that Tombstone realized something was wrong—why were so many of his men missing?
"Someone's setting us up. Stay alert."
Tombstone arrived at the platform, waiting for his buyer, and vigilantly surveyed his surroundings. Suddenly, an incredibly familiar old man, bundled up in webbing, was thrown out. Tombstone finally realized who was responsible and roared, "Spi-der-Man!"
"In the darkness, even a spider can enter silently."
A deep voice spoke, followed by a heavy, powerful punch that slammed into Tombstone's head. Tombstone was sent flying, practically smashing through the tunnel wall. He stared blankly for a moment, then laughed, wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, and stood up, charging at Spider-Man, who had revealed himself.
Spider-Man's declaration wasn't over.
"In the darkness, even a spider can bring light."
Spider-Man, who had deliberately lowered his voice to sound like Batman, let white lightning course over his hands and struck the charging Tombstone. In that instant, Spider-Man indeed brought light. He clamped his hands onto Tombstone's face, releasing a powerful, high-voltage electric discharge. Tombstone immediately shrieked in pain.
Concurrently, Black Cat complained as she took out a henchman with a roundhouse kick. "Thanks for the light, Spider-Man. Now everyone knows where I am."
Peter shrugged. Tombstone still wasn't down; his virtually indestructible skin made him the ultimate punching bag. He gripped Spider-Man's hand, intending to crush his wrist. But Peter didn't budge. Instead, he lifted Tombstone.
"In the darkness, even hidden evil has nowhere to run from the spider!"
Peter controlled the Venom symbiote to extend thick tendrils from his back, directly lifting Tombstone and pinning him against the tunnel ceiling.
He suddenly had a thought: Tombstone's skin was only tough; his internal organs shouldn't be. If he were to force the symbiote down Tombstone's throat right now, it would definitely burst him.
Peter frowned. What was going on? Was Knull influencing him? Why else would he think of something so vicious?
But then again, unlike other criminals, Tombstone was a drug dealer...
"Do you think Tombstone deserves to die?" Peter asked Felicia.
Felicia, who had just knocked out all of Tombstone's men with her Super-Soldier physique, looked surprised, then frowned.
"He deserves what's coming to him, Spider, but..."
"I shouldn't kill?"
"Don't let people fear you." Black Cat walked up to him. "People fear power they can't master or understand. That goes for super-villains and super-heroes."
"But you've made the whole city stop being afraid of you. Don't ruin that."
"You're right," Peter said, retracting his tendrils and letting Tombstone fall to the ground. He sighed and webbed him to the floor. "Call the NYPD."
A few minutes later, Black Cat stood on a rooftop and asked Peter, who was crouched at the edge, "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine. If you're not coming to Puerto Rico with us, stay safe."
Felicia nodded, while Peter frowned. He wasn't sure if he was being influenced by Knull, but the feeling was definitely there.
He needed to make a trip to the Baxter Building first.
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