Gazing at the arc reactor glowing a ghostly blue in his hand, Obadiah had never felt so elated.
This tiny thing was a key.
Not just the key that would awaken the iron monger slumbering beneath the Base.
It was the key that would usher Obadiah himself through the gates of the New World and crown him the next king of war.
With this arc reactor he could replace Tony Stark as the Military's partner of choice.
Then he would lead Stark Industries—no, it should already be called Obadiah Industries!
He would expand Obadiah Industries, make it bigger, stronger, and greater than ever!
The entire global arms market would become his private garden.
Before long, Obadiah would be the most powerful man on the Planet.
But first, he would have to pay a small price to keep the Military happy.
With that thought, he pulled a phone from his pocket and dialed.
'My side is done; you can start your operation.'
The line went quiet for a moment, then a low voice answered,
'Wait. My people will be there shortly.'
Satisfied, Obadiah walked off.
Too triumphant to notice, he never saw Tony Stark struggling toward his workbench behind him…
Hell's Kitchen, top floor of Fisk Tower.
Kingpin ended the call, a victorious smile on his face.
He turned slowly to the six very different figures standing in a row across his desk.
These six were the 'masterpieces' he had painstakingly hunted down over the last half-month.
Kingpin called them the Sinister Six.
At their head was his right-hand maniac who could turn anything into a lethal weapon—Bullseye.
He now wore a high-tech battlesuit whose thrusters could boost his strength and speed to terrifying levels in seconds.
Beside Bullseye stood twin assassins in sleek black exosuits, built like praying mantises.
Code-named 'Execution Killers', they were already legends in the hitman World; the exosuits made them deadlier still.
Behind the twins came a Russian hulk armored in resilient polymer, a gaunt old man with massive metal wings strapped to his back, and a gaunt, twitchy middle-aged man in green bio-armor.
If Peter were here, he would have recognized them instantly.
They were three of Spider-Man's classic foes.
'Rhino' Aleksei, 'Vulture' Adrian Toomes, and 'Scorpion' Mac Gagan!
Kingpin's gaze swept across the six and he nodded in satisfaction.
'Today is your day to shine.'
'Remember, your target tonight is only one man—The Punisher, dead or alive.'
'Take him down, and I swear none of you will ever want for anything again!'
'Understood, boss!'
Bullseye bowed slightly, outwardly respectful, but his eyes blazed with excitement and bloodlust.
After the six left the office, an uneasy silence fell.
Finally, Adrian Toomes the Vulture broke it.
'Obadiah already controls Stark Industries; why bother helping us catch The Punisher? It makes no business sense—there has to be an angle.'
Bullseye glanced at him, amused, his gaze drifting to the metal wings.
'Old man, you're quicker than you look.'
He gave a meaningful smile.
'Normally you wouldn't be cleared for this, but since you asked, I'll throw you a bone.'
'Obadiah's only playing along because some very big people above us ordered the team-up.'
He tapped a finger to the ceiling, looking cryptic.
'You get it—The Punisher's spooky tricks make him a walking treasure trove to the real heavyweights.'
At the mention of figures bigger than Kingpin or Obadiah, the other five's breathing turned heavy.
So the op came with strings attached to true power.
If they delivered The Punisher, they could ride those coattails straight to the top.
Pleased, Bullseye laid out the full plan.
'Rhino, you'll hit the top of Stark Tower and fake-snatch Obadiah.'
'The rest of us lie in wait until The Punisher takes the bait.'
'Once he shows, the six of us plus Obadiah's iron monger tear him apart on the spot.'
'Even if he's got three heads and six arms, he won't slip the net.'
Toomes again spotted the flaw.
'And if he doesn't show?'
Bullseye's grin turned cruel.
'Then we use Ghost-Spider. I've mapped every time The Punisher's appeared—it's always when she's in trouble. Not a coincidence.'
'Plus, the girl can't help sticking her nose in everywhere.'
The others exchanged knowing looks.
Ghost-Spider was the real bait.
'All right, speech over—time to hunt.'
Not long after the Sinister Six left Hell's Kitchen, the Parker car radio crackled with an urgent NYPD bulletin.
'Emergency! A super-villain calling himself the Rhino is on the roof of Stark Tower. He claims to have killed Tony Stark and abducted Stark Industries acting CEO Obadiah Stane!'
'The Military has assumed control but wants a total blackout… All available units proceed to Stark Tower perimeter and keep civilians away!'
Listening to the looping alert, Peter lay in bed, utterly bewildered.
'Rhino? Kidnapping Obadiah?'
What kind of crazy twist was this?