Chapter 28: Bruce's Plan
"You can't stay here. If you do, you'll die. It has to be me who shuts down the machine. I'll wait until you all go home. I promised him. So, I have to." Miles spoke with fiery passion. What he said made sense on the surface.
But then, Spider-Man Noir stood up, cutting through the emotional speech. "Who are you? If it's up to you, I'd rather put my trust in the Bat over there." His words were blunt and fast. Noir had already noticed Bruce when they entered. He knew who he was dealing with, and he believed if Bruce was involved, their chances of getting home skyrocketed.
This time, even Peter B. Parker stayed silent. They all knew it. When faced with a choice between the untested kid and the grim, competent vigilante, the vast majority would pick Bruce. Even if he was just a man.
Just like Bruce had said. Miles wasn't ready.
But Peter felt he had to speak up for the kid. "His name is Miles. He helped me get the computer from Okmax. And he's got a cool new trick—invisibility! Watch this, he can turn invisible right now!" Peter said excitedly, gesturing for Miles to show off.
Only, Miles made his introduction fail. He couldn't control the power on command. He strained, focusing hard, but nothing happened.
He looked at his own, very visible hands and shrugged, shoving them in his pockets. "I can't just do it."
The other Spiders exchanged looks. They believed Peter wasn't lying, but the evidence was clear. The kid wasn't ready.
Gwen pulled Peter B. aside, gathering the other Spiders. "You can't kid yourself. He's not ready. It's not going to work. He's just a kid. I'd rather have that Bat help us than put the mission on a kid." Her voice was low but firm. She didn't like Bruce's vibe, but she had to admit he looked capable. "He might be gloomy and terrifying, but he clearly knows what he's doing."
"You do realize he can hear you from over there," a low voice rumbled. Bruce was walking forward, his arm shooting out to seemingly grab empty air. There was a yelp, and Miles Morales flickered into visibility, the hood of his sweatshirt firmly in Bruce's grip.
The reaction was instant. Miles's eyes went wide. Every Spider-Person stared in disbelief. They had just watched Bruce snatch a fully invisible teenager out of thin air.
"I don't believe for a second you don't have powers now," Noir stated, eyeing Bruce with deep suspicion. This went far beyond "ordinary human."
"You... you could see me?" Miles gasped, shocked.
"I couldn't see you," Bruce said calmly, still holding the hood. "But I could deduce your probable location and state." He dragged the stunned Miles back to the group and set him down. "If I hadn't stopped you, you would have slipped away to go see the person you trust most, to explain why you might be gone on a mission."
Miles stared up at the Bat-mask, his mind reeling. This wasn't just detective work; this was mind-reading!
"It's not mind-reading," Bruce said, as if plucking the thought from the air. "It's basic behavioral deduction."
"I think it's mind-reading," Miles muttered.
Bruce ignored him, turning his gaze to the assembled heroes. "Have any of you considered that Wilson Fisk's eyes and ears are all over New York? It is highly probable that anything you do or say could be reported directly to him."
The Spiders shifted uncomfortably. They knew it was true.
Peter B. wanted to argue it couldn't be that easy for Fisk to find them, but the logic was sound.
"My suggestion," Bruce continued, his voice leaving no room for argument, "is that no one leaves this place until the plan is executed."
There were reluctant nods all around. Even Miles, who desperately wanted to see his uncle Aaron to explain, knew he couldn't risk it now.
"Now, we need to make two keys," Bruce said, looking directly at Peni Parker in her spider-robot.
"Wait, we don't have time for that," Gwen interjected. "We can only repair the original and make one working key. Making two from scratch is impossible."
"One will be real. One will be a decoy," Bruce stated simply. "Can it be done, Peni?"
"No problem!" Peni gave a confident thumbs-up from her cockpit.
"Then begin work. The rest of you, prepare as you see fit." With that, Bruce turned and walked to the large computer console, his cape sweeping behind him.
"Miles, let's train," Peter B. said, pulling the dejected teen to his feet. He couldn't let this kid, with a unique power none of them had, waste his potential.
Gwen watched Peter lead Miles away, then her eyes drifted back to Bruce. He was already seated, his hands a blur over the keyboard. She walked over and leaned against the table to his left, silently observing the frantic activity around her. Noir and Spider-Ham were trying to reassemble the dimensional stabilizer cube. Peni was already deep in her work.
"Do you know something?" Gwen asked quietly, thinking of Bruce's earlier precision in stopping Miles. She had a feeling there was more to it.
"I am only accounting for a possibility," Bruce replied, his eyes never leaving the bank of monitors.
On the screens, live feeds from traffic cameras across New York were displayed. Bruce was tracking routes, plotting paths. All the routes led to one final destination: the Fisk Tower.
Looking at the dark, focused figure beside her—a hero from a completely different kind of story—Gwen didn't know what to feel.
"We will succeed, right?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
For the briefest moment, Bruce's flying fingers hesitated on the keys. Gwen saw it. She waited, thinking he might offer some reassurance, some shred of hope.
But he didn't. He simply resumed typing, the clatter of keys the only answer.
Gwen sighed, a mix of frustration and resignation. "I still hate you," she said softly, not really meaning it, but needing to say it.
She pushed off the table and went to find Aunt May, leaving the Bat to his silent, watchful preparations.
(End of Chapter)
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