Peter understood with crystal clarity that the Green Goblin's threats were not empty posturing. Over the past month of confrontations, he had seen enough of this supervillain to recognize the depths of his madness and vindictive cruelty.
The thought of what would have happened if his mask had been removed sent chills through Peter's entire body.
He would know who I am. He'd know I live in Queens with May and Ben Sr. He'd know about Midtown High School and everyone I care about.
He would go after Aunt May and Uncle Ben. He'd attack my school and kill innocent students just to hurt me.
Maybe Ben could stop him. No—not maybe. Ben would definitely stop him.
In Peter's mind, Ben represented the pinnacle of capability and reliability. His cousin never allowed enemies to gain leverage over him, never brought danger to their family, and always seemed capable of solving impossible problems.
Ben had been there when Peter forgot to pick up May from work. He had developed an antidote when Peter's arrogance led to the lizard serum disaster with Dr. Connors. He had built a successful company and even conquered an alien planet.
Ben could accomplish anything.
But Peter also recognized that he couldn't drag Ben into every problem created by his own choices. Becoming Spider-Man had been his decision, and he bore responsibility for protecting both himself and innocent people from the consequences.
Peter's eyes hardened with newfound determination.
His voice carried more gravity than ever before: "Green Goblin, you psychopath—don't even think about hurting anyone!"
"What will you do about it, Spider-Man?" The Green Goblin found Peter's rage amusing rather than intimidating, studying him like a predator toying with inexperienced prey.
"Are you actually going to kill me?" he taunted with theatrical surprise.
His laughter echoed through the damaged courtroom as he regarded Peter with obvious contempt—like looking at a naive child who had stumbled onto a battlefield but lacked the resolve to take necessary action.
"Could you really do it, Spider-Man?" His voice carried deliberate pauses, each word dripping with mockery as he placed one hand dramatically over his heart. "Could you actually kill someone as irredeemably evil as me?"
The Green Goblin wasn't the only one curious about Peter's answer to that fundamental question.
Ben had received Peter's emergency call just minutes after saying goodbye to Mary Jane, their shopping plans immediately abandoned when news of the courthouse attack spread across social media. Knowing that Peter was at the scene had eliminated any possibility of enjoying a casual afternoon.
After parting ways with Mary Jane, Ben had arrived at the courthouse using his XLR8 form, but he deliberately chose not to intervene immediately.
Instead, he wanted to observe how Peter would handle this crisis independently.
With Ben's current power levels, most Earth-based villains posed no serious threat to him personally. But he couldn't realistically solve every problem Peter encountered through direct intervention. That approach would eventually transform him into something like the original Spider-Man—a hero with no personal life who spent every moment racing between emergencies.
Therefore, despite hearing the Green Goblin's threats against Peter, Ben refrained from immediate lethal action, choosing instead to evaluate Peter's problem-solving capabilities.
Hidden among the shadows near the courthouse entrance, Ben watched the confrontation unfold with analytical interest. This was a crucial moment for Peter's development as both a hero and a person.
"I won't kill you," Peter stated with quiet certainty.
Neither his Spider-Man persona nor his civilian identity could embrace murder as a solution.
Ben had anticipated this response completely. Peter's moral framework had been shaped by years of careful upbringing and personal conviction—not something that could be altered quickly or easily.
Unless someone Peter truly loved died in front of him, his fundamental nature would remain unchanged. Only such devastating trauma might transform him into something resembling the Punisher—cold, ruthless, and willing to kill.
"I will defeat you and ensure you're properly imprisoned," Peter continued with unwavering resolve.
The Green Goblin nearly burst into laughter at this declaration. After all that dramatic buildup, this was Peter's grand solution?
But observing Peter's completely serious expression, Stromm's amusement shifted to puzzled confusion.
"I've seen that conventional law enforcement can't handle people like you," Peter explained with mature insight that surprised everyone listening. "You always find legal loopholes to escape punishment, and there are always people willing to defend you for money. Regular prisons can't contain you because your allies will plan your rescue."
His analysis was methodical and disturbingly accurate.
"But they only rescue you because you still possess value they want," Peter pointed out. "Some people want your serum; others want to exploit your power. But if you lose everything that makes you useful, who would bother saving you?"
"I'm going to capture you and develop a cure that will permanently remove your superhuman abilities."
This was Peter's solution—naive perhaps, but entirely consistent with his character and moral principles.
If he chose to kill the Green Goblin, he would no longer be Spider-Man in any meaningful sense.
Having made his declaration, Peter immediately fired webbing at the Green Goblin from his right web launcher that is not damage. The attack came so suddenly that Stromm, lacking spider-sense warning systems, had no opportunity to dodge.
The adhesive strands struck their target perfectly, and Peter's enhanced strength yanked the Green Goblin toward him like a hooked fish.
Stromm attempted to resist through brute force, but Peter operating at full capacity possessed far superior strength. The Green Goblin found himself helplessly dragged through the air.
A massive fist filled Stromm's vision as Peter's punch connected with devastating impact.
BOOM!
The strike sent the Green Goblin flying across the courtroom, the force nearly separating his head from his shoulders.
Peter prepared to continue his assault, but Matt's desperate situation demanded immediate attention. The combined assault from multiple Hand ninjas and Bullseye's precise marksmanship was overwhelming the blind vigilante's defenses.
Matt used courthouse furniture as improvised cover while dodging bullets and thrown weapons, eventually retrieving his billy clubs but sustaining numerous wounds in the process.
Recognizing his partner's dire circumstances, Peter reluctantly abandoned pursuit of the Green Goblin to provide assistance.
Peter felt no moral constraints regarding the Hand ninjas. These supernatural operatives didn't truly "die" in conventional terms—when destroyed, they simply dissolved into smoke rather than leaving actual corpses.
He punched and kicked his way through their defensive formations with decisive efficiency, reaching Matt's position despite their coordinated attacks.
Wilson Fisk, monitoring the battle through hidden surveillance equipment, quickly recognized the futility of continued engagement.
Like everyone else involved, he had severely underestimated Spider-Man's true capabilities. The web-slinger's full strength exceeded even the combined power of Kraven and the Green Goblin—a revelation that dramatically altered the tactical situation.
Continuing this battle would likely result in losing the Green Goblin entirely while sacrificing valuable criminal assets in the process.
"The priority now is securing the Green Goblin's safety," Fisk calculated with cold pragmatism. "Once I obtain the serum, I can recruit additional powered operatives and eliminate Spider-Man through superior numbers."
He issued immediate withdrawal orders to Bullseye through encrypted communication.
Upon receiving the retreat command, Bullseye glanced at the Prowler and transmitted coded instructions to the other villains through Hand ninja intermediaries.
The Prowler understood immediately. While he couldn't collect the hundred-million-dollar bonus for killing Spider-Man, one million for a successful rescue remained achievable.
He spread his reinforced cloak and grabbed the stunned Green Goblin, launching both of them toward the hole blown in the courthouse wall.
"Spider-Man, they're taking the Green Goblin!" Matt shouted over the chaos.
Despite the overwhelming noise, his enhanced hearing had detected Kingpin's escape plan, but countless ninjas surrounded them like a living cage.
Although individual ninjas couldn't withstand Peter's enhanced strength, he possessed only two hands against dozens of opponents.
The criminal extraction proceeded with professional efficiency. Within moments, all hostile forces had vanished from the courthouse—the supervillains through the wall breach, the Hand ninjas through mystical concealment techniques.
Peter supported the wounded Matt, his expression grim with frustration and concern.
"Letting them escape could be catastrophic," Matt observed, frowning despite his injuries. "If the Green Goblin provides the modified serum to either the Hand or Kingpin, the consequences will be severe."
Although neither he nor Norman had seriously intended to recover the serum themselves, its acquisition by criminal organizations represented a significant escalation in threat level.
These groups wouldn't hesitate to use enhancement serums despite dangerous side effects. As long as they achieved their objectives, no risk was considered unacceptable.
Unfortunately, immediate pursuit was impossible given their current circumstances.
As the supervillains departed, civilians who had been hiding throughout the courthouse began emerging from their concealment.
Both Spider-Man and Daredevil recognized that they needed to disappear and resume their civilian identities before law enforcement arrived in force.
The two heroes exchanged meaningful glances before separating in different directions.
Several minutes later, Peter "revived" the dazed Harry and helped him locate Norman.
"Peter, why did I lose consciousness?" Harry asked while holding his head, still disoriented from the neural disruption.
He studied Peter's face with confusion, trying to reconstruct his final memories before blacking out. Fragmentary images of Peter striking him flickered through his mind, but he dismissed such thoughts as impossible.
"Uh, you were hit by falling debris and knocked out," Peter explained quickly, grateful when Norman's approach interrupted Harry's questions.
"Are you both unharmed?" Norman asked, jogging toward them with obvious relief.
Surprisingly, Norman showed no signs of depression or defeat. After confirming that both young men were safe, he scanned the damaged courtroom with apparent satisfaction.
"Attorney Murdock appears to be missing," Norman observed.
"I'm here, Mr. Osborn," Matt announced, emerging from behind fallen furniture while straightening his disheveled clothing.
Norman smiled with genuine warmth. "Mr. Murdock, are you injured?"
Matt shook his head, concealing his various wounds beneath his suit jacket.
Peter hesitated before voicing his confusion: "Norman, the Green Goblin escaped. Why don't you seem upset about this outcome?"
Norman's smile widened as he regarded Peter with paternal affection. "Peter, you possess remarkable intelligence and scientific aptitude, but you're not quite as strategically minded as Ben in certain areas."
Rather than maintaining secrecy, Norman immediately explained his reasoning: "Because I achieved my primary objective. Regardless of whether Kingpin was responsible for today's rescue operation, Stromm's identity as the Green Goblin has been definitively established. Furthermore, their dramatic courthouse assault essentially validates every accusation I made, ensuring complete legal victory."
"But the serum—" Peter began.
"Peter, we were never going to recover that serum," Norman interrupted matter-of-factly. "The formula was developed by you and Connors. If we require enhancement serum, we can produce superior versions whenever necessary."
Peter's expression remained troubled, his moral concerns unresolved.
Norman recognized his internal conflict and adopted a more serious tone. "It makes no difference who ultimately obtains that serum, Peter."
"Anyone seeking such technology obviously harbours questionable motives," he continued, placing a reassuring hand on Peter's shoulder. "Can you honestly argue that military possession would be preferable to criminal acquisition?"
If Kingpin obtained the serum, it might create a handful of enhanced criminals. But military applications could potentially trigger full-scale conflicts involving entire populations of enhanced individuals—a far more catastrophic outcome.