Code Of A Hero

A  story collaboration
By Silent J and The Scribe



"With great power comes great responsibility"                          
- Spider-Man

"To honor the code means to be a hero; to dishonor the code, means to be a villain"
- Nightshock

Dramatis Personae-

Zachary Thomas / Nightshock - Breed Leader; Superhero
Terri Lee - Commissioner of the NYPD
Lieutenant Jenna Shepherd - NYPD Lieutenant
Han Titan / Superior Man - Superhero
Harry Osborn / Goblin a.k.a G2 -  Superhero; CEO of Oscorp International
      


      "They will need me again, they will love me again."           

                        
Nightshock & The Breed                                                             
                                             

"Code Of A Hero"

  
            The night was full of action, the air was tense with adrenaline. High above the city, in an office building, were gunmen, holding the building hostage. Trying to make sure that there was no needless bloodshed, the commissioner of the NYPD was on the scene, negotiating with the criminals. "We can either end this peacefully, do things the hard way ", she shouted at them. "WE AIN'T GONNA DO NOTHING LADY!!!", they shouted back."Ok, let's try this the 'easy' way ", she muttered to her partner. "What do you want in exchange for the hostages?" "WE WANT 5,000 GOLD BARS, A FLEET OF HELICOPTERS, AND A HUNDRED OF THE LATEST LAPTOPS AVAILABLE ", they shouted down. "YYYEEEAAAHHH..... we'll get right on that", she said. "Lieutenant, tell the S.W.A.T. team to get into position, and wait for my signal." "Alright guys this is Lt. Jenna Shepherd, get ready to storm the castle on command." After a few moments of silence, the word went out: "alright, GO GO GO!!!". As the S.W.A.T. team stormed the building, gunfire erupted in some of the offices. When the noise died down, bodies were flying out of the building. Thankfully the police had setup safety nets outside of the building, catching the crooks. "Good work guys", said Lt. Shepherd. "Thank you ma'am, but that wasn't us."

Later that night, at the crime scene...

A knocking came at the commissioners car window: "The news crews will be arriving soon Commish', uh, just you letting know." "Thank you Jenna, that will be all", the commissioner said. Suddenly, their was another knock on her window. "Paging Lt. Terri Lee", said a familiar voice. "Nightshock! Its very good to see you again, though its 'Commissioner Lee' now ", said Terri. "Whoa, 'Commissioner'!! When did you get all high n' mighty?", Nightshock jokingly asked. "Somehow, I said yes to taking the job." "Yeah, with Captain Stacy becoming Mayor, somebody had to take the job, I'm not surprised that you did Terri", Nightshock said. "Huh, somebody had to." Then, a weapon was cocked at the back of Nightshock's head. "You got three seconds to turn around and put your hands on your head." "New partner?", Nightshock asked sarcastically. "Just a few months; Jenna, stand down, this guy's a hero", Terri said. "Oh yeah, who is he?", Jenna asked. "Nightshock." She then had the dumbest look on her face. Clearly embarrassed, Jenna quickly apologized to Nightshock: "I am so sorry, I just couldn't tell who..." "We have a suspect escaping custody, repeat, we have a suspect escaping custody!!", said one of the officers on the police radio. "Where is he headed?", asked Jenna. "Down your way, he'll be there in a few seconds." "Don't worry", said Terri, "We'll get 'em." As the prep turned the corner, the three of them were ready and waiting for him. But before they could do anything, a voice rained down from the sky: "BEWARE VILLAIN, COWER BEFORE THE MIGHT OF... SUPERIOR MAN!!!!!!!" and with a swift blow to the chin, he knocked him down to the ground, with the guy tightly hugging the concrete. "DON'T WORRY, I STOPPED HIM BEFORE HE COULD GET AWAY", said Superior Man. "Uhh, thanks?", Jenna said, a little unsure about the situation. As if things could not get worse, the media just arrived. "Commissioner Lee, Commissioner Lee!!", said the reporters, "Jean Nilins, 6 o'clock news; what were the crooks after in the office building?" "As of yet we do not know, but we will release our report in the morning", she answered. "What about the missing criminal that escaped Police custody?" "I BELIEVE I CAN ANSWER THAT", said Superior. "Superior Man, Superior Man!!!" "Ned Leeds, Daily Bugle; Superior Man, you caught the crook?" "YES NED, IT WAS A SOLO TAG AND BAG, AS THE YOUNG PEOPLE PUT IT", he answered. "You've been out of the game for awhile, is this your time to make a comeback?", another reporter asked. "WELL, AS AN OLD FRIEND OF MINE, CAPTAIN AMERICA ONCE SAID:'IF YOU'RE LOOKING FOR AN OPPORTUNITY, REACH OUT AND TAKE IT'". "So you helped the police with the suspects holding up the office?" a reporter remarked. "WELL... I....". "Um, that was me", Nightshock said, materializing from the wall. Then all the reporters clamored toward Nightshock: " NIGHTSHOCK, NIGHTSHOCK, did you know what the robbers were up to?" "The only thing I know was that they held up an office building." "NIGHTSHOCK, do you know what they tried to make off with?" "I can't say for sure", he replied, "and it doesn't look like they were trying to steal anything".Superior Man stepped in, "Ah, youth. So inexperienced when it comes to the art of investigation." That got the reporters to laugh a little. "NIGHTSHOCK, NIGHTSHOCK, any response to Superior Man's remark about your investigative skills?", one reporter asked. "Ummm.... oh, there's an... old lady crossing the street, gotta go. Bye", Nightshock said, leaving in a hurry. As the media went chasing after Nightshock, Superior Man looked on and muttered to himself: "IT SHOULD NOT HAVE GONE LIKE THIS." Afterwards, when the reporters were done chasing Nightshock, Superior casually said: "Now that we are done chasing 'fame', why don't we refresh ourselves at my estate?"

Back at Breed HQ.....

Snickering at him, Inferno said: "Oh, hey. Loved your interview, 'oh.. old lady, gotta go', he-ohh, hilarious." "Hardy har har!!!", Nightshock said, sarcastically. Walking over to a comm screen he proceeded to say: "C.H.E.R.I.L., get me any information you can on 'Superior Man', quickly." "Just a moment....", C.H.E.R.I.L. said. "Ahh, here it is. Apparently, Superior Man, a.k.a. Han Titan, started his superheroing in the 1970's. He was a technician in a company that produces armored suits for the Government. After a lab explosion..." "Cliche", said Nightshock, "...fused the abilities of an power altering suit to his DNA, it give him amazing strength and blasting abilities, rendering him virtually 'Superior' in every way. Ok seriously, I'm just reading what it says on here, and I think I threw up a little. Anyway, after  he defeated his first Supervillian, he gained instant fame. Over the years, he had advertising and sponsoring funds from different companies and business around the world. He became a 'world renowned hero' in the 80's, preventing something called the 'Protagonist Movement', not a lot of info on that subject though." "Anything else?", Nightshock asked, "It also says that he retired in the 90's, before the Sentinel Strike happened. Beyond that, just common knowledge. Oh, it says on his Twitter page that he's hosting an impromptu party for those reporters that were chasing you." "Now he's feeding them?! He's probably telling them that I'm not rich enough to have the media over for tea and crumpets, because I live in a cave!" "Tea?", Ironcore said,"Crumpets?", said Inferno, "What's next, a paraded day of how he makes me look like an a.... " Just then, alarms were ringing like crazy. "S.T.A.T. has picked up bogies headed to Superior Man's penthouse", Deadlock said. "Ok, what do they look like?" "We're receiving visual from S.T.A.T....now ", she said. A large screen showed six men wearing jetpacks. They were wearing black jumpsuits, and one of them was carrying a large backpack that was full of bombs. "Hmm" "What?", Ironcore said. "Nothing", said Nightshock.

On approach to Superior Man's penthouse.....

As Superior Man was mingling with his guests, talking of his greatest adventures:"Yes, I after defeated the Cloysian armada, I....", Nightshock and Ironcore were scoping out the party, from above. "You think that they would be here by now ", said Ironcore. "Yeah, I think....", just as Nightshock was about to finish, three men burst into the building, shattering a few windows. One fired a weapon at the ceiling while the other shouted:"This is a holdup! Everybody take out your wallets, jewelry, and other valuable items, and put them on the floor. Do as we say and no one gets hurt." The guests were shocked at first, but did as they were told. One assailant walked up to Superior Man, weapon pointed at his head. "That includes you, hero", the man said threateningly. Above them, Ironcore cracked his knuckles, eagerly anticipating the coming battle. "Finally, some action", he said quietly. "Hmm, I count three, but where are the rest?" Nightshock suddenly got a tingle of spider-sight; shifting his attention downward. His blue eyes began to glow an even brighter blue as he used his photon-sight to scan below them. He saw the other three planting the explosives two floors beneath the penthouse. In all, there were ten bombs set underneath their feet. "Alright Ironcore, you hit 'em high, I'll knock 'em low", Nightshock whispered to him. "You got it." As Nightshock phased down through the floor, Ironcore jumped straight down to the floor, shaking the building ever so slightly. "All right, put your hands down everyone, this is a rescue. My name is Ironcore, and I will be saving you tonight", he bellowed jokingly. "Says who?", yelled one of the robbers, then he turned around and saw a big silver lookin' dude who said: "ME!!!!!!!" After punching his lights out, Ironcore turned his attention to the other two crooks. Grabbing one of them, he lifted the baddie two meters off the ground, and just roared in his face. The crook fainted. While Ironcore dropped the one guy, the other two set their weapons on stun. "Look out!", came a voice from behind Ironcore. He turned a half-second too late, getting zapped and falling to the floor. Superior Man, waiting and watching from the background, sprung into action. He moved like a blur, landing almost unseen punches on the two thugs. "Take that you cur", he said triumphantly as he sent them spiraling to the floor. As they fell, he turned to face the crowd and said:"No need to worry folks, danger averted." As the crowd of media were applauding him, Nightshock ghosted through the floor, dragging the other three criminals with him. "Averted? Then I guess you didn't notice these three down there planting bombs!!!!" The crowd gasped, as Nightshock dropped the evidence in front of them. "Well then, good thing I directed you down there eh?", Superior Man said. "Directed ME??", Nightshock thought to himself, "I'd like to direct my fist into his..." As he was about to finish his thought, Ironcore came to, a bit groggy from being blasted. "What I miss?" "Nothing man, just nothing." Then Superior Man walked up to Nightshock and Ironcore: "Well gentlemen, I must thank you, for the assist." "Assist? If we weren't here when this happened, you wouldn't be able to say 'Thank You' ", Nightshock said to him. "You seem to think you're all that. Why don't we put that enthusiasm to a contest then?" Superior Man thought for a moment. "Really, a contest? I really don't think so." "Oh come on", Superior Man said as he put his hand on Nightshock's shoulder, "It would be great, a test of strength, speed, will, and might. Pitting ourselves against danger, obstacle, and...." "OHHUURRAAA....HE..SAID... NNOOOO!!!!!!", the crowd was stunned, seeing a black hand emerging from Nightshock's shoulder, grabbing Superior Man's hand. "VENGEANCE, CALM YOURSELF!!!!!!" With that said, the symbiotic hand then released his grip, and receded into his costume. "What is that?", Superior Man pompist asked. " 'That' as you so commonly put it, is Vengeance, my symbiote", Nightshock said to him. "I thought you were a 'clean' superhero; running around with such filth on you", Superior Man said. Vengeance then started to growl deeply. "Hey!!! Vengeance has helped save this world multiple times just like any other hero!!! Which is more than I can say about you lately", Nightshock said, scornfully defending his symbiote. The crowd was a little fearful, waiting for Superior Man's response. "Well then, why not put that 'claim' to the test?" After thinking for a moment, Nightshock finally said: "You're on!" "Alright then; my publicist will arrange the whole thing; now by what number may we call you by?", Superior Man asked. "Just call this number, we will answer", Nightshock replied bluntly. "And just to make it fun for the kiddies, let's make it an event for charity", Superior Man said snidely. "Good to see you putting your money to good use. For once", Nightshock shot back.     

Back at Breed HQ.....

"ARE YOU NUTS!!!!!!", Inferno shouted. "You've done some stupid stuff, but this???.....", she said as she was storming out of the room. "She's right you know", Deadlock said, "He's just goading you into doing dumb things in front of the media to try to revive his career." "So are you really going to go through with it?", she asked. "I have to if I want this to end, hopefully", Nightshock answered. "It makes me wonder though: the robbery, the scuffle at his place, it's not just a coincidence, I think..." Just then, a comm was ringing. "Who is it C.H.E.R.I.L.?" "It's the publicist", She said. "Uh-huh, hmm-hmm, OK bye." As Nightshock hung up the comm, Ironcore asked: "Well, what did they say?" "She said to meet them at the new construction site downtown in the FC", Nightshock said. "Next to the Oscorp building?", Ironcore asked. "Yep; maybe we'll see Harry down there", Nightshock replied, as they went out of the room.

Later... at the Construction site...

"Hello Nightshock, good to see you here today", Superior Man said. "Uh-huh. I see the media coverage is all setup", Nightshock said. "Don't look so gloomy", Superior Man said, "Your defeat will be quick and painless", he said with a smirk. "For charity right?" Nightshock said snidely, as he left to get away from him before he did something that he would regret, and examined the course. As he was walking around, he happen to notice a familiar Police car. "Terri, is that you?", Nightshock asked. "Nope, just your friendly neighborhood Lt. Jenna Shepard", She said. "Ahh, the Probie. So, where is the boss lady?", he asked. "She's talking with Mr Osborn at Oscorp; ya know, officiating stuff over the'are" As Nightshock turned toward the front door of the Oscorp building, Terri and Harry Osborn emerged. They were conversing about the usual business; crime rates, the stock market, and other things. "So, how's are things with you Harry?", she asked. "Oh, things are good", he said, "the stock market has been good to us, sales have been going up, Dad hasn't been around lately, which is good. You?" "Well, I got a new partner; cocky, arrogant, you'd love her." After sighing and taking a moment for herself, she looked up at some buildings and said Harry: You know...I'm still waiting to see him swing by those building, cracking some kinda joke." "Yeah, I miss him too", Harry said as they were walking towards the site. As  Nightshock was talking with Jenna, Harry and Terri were walking to them; then Nightshock give Harry a particular look. "Oh no, what'd I do now?", he asked jokingly. "You know what you did man; you never call, you never write...", Nightshock replied similarly. He walked up to Harry, and crushed him in a bear hug. "How ya been Mr. Mogul?, Nightshock laughed. "About the same as you ya chump!!", Harry shot back humorously. "You two are just impossible", Terri said, clearly annoyed. The four of them continued walking back to the police cruiser, and picked up their conversation. "So, you think you can beat this guy?", Harry asked. "I hope too, so that I can shout him up", Nightshock said. "Yeah", Jenna said, "I think you should shove his ego straight up his...." "Hey hey, whoa whoa whoa. Remember, kids might be reading this..", Nightshock said, interrupting her. Walking up to Nightshock Superior Man asked: "So....are you ready?" "Yeah, lets get this over with."

At the start of the competition.....

"THE FIRST EVENT IS A TEST OF STRENGTH AND WILL!!!", said the announcer. This first challenge consisted of two Sentinels with enhanced armaments and weapons. Whoever could defeat the Sentinels in the shortest amount of time would be declared the victor. Superior Man started first. He went for the legs, punching them with all his might. Then the torso, hitting it with extensive blasts of solar rays. He at last attacked the head, throwing haymakers, blaster fire, and judo-kicks at it, to be able to defeat it. All in all, his time was 2:34 sec. Then it was Nightshock's turn. As the machine got closer, Nightshock had a stern look on has face, analyzing the Sentinel for a weak spot. As soon as he found it, energy started rushing to his arm. He raised it up, and then brought it down like a horizontal slash. An energy beam, about twenty feet long, rushed forth from outta nowhere, striking the Sentinel. Just as it began to move again, the machine started to creak and moan. Within seconds, it spilt apart, falling to the ground. He then looked at the clock to see that his time was only 35 seconds, thus winning this part of the contest. "Ah, I see we have a winner", Superior Man said, Gritting his teeth. "NIGHTSHOCK IS THE WINNER OF THE STRENGTH/WILL CONTEST; NOW, ON TO THE NEXT ROUND", The announcer said. "FOR THE NEXT CHALLENGE, IT WILL BE ONE OF SPEED AND INTELLIGENCE."

The second challenge consisted of a twenty lap race around New York City including Staten Island, Liberty Island, and Brother Island. There were certain obstacles to throw them off, and small challenges that needed to be completed in certain locations; this is where the intelligence comes in.

As Nightshock and Superior Man lined up at the starting line, a clock began to count down:"5!! 4!! 3!! 2!! 1!! GOOOO!!!!!!!" And away they went, zooming from the site to Staten Island. Their first task to complete was clean up the longest alleyway in Staten as they went along. As Superior Man spun his arms, like a cyclone, whisking the trash into the proper receptacles, Nightshock (running backwards), slowed down time, webbing the trash into the bins. On Liberty Island, their challenge was to help a little girl find her lost dog. That's not very exciting....lets move on to the third Isle. On Brother Island, as they through the abandoned city, they saw two girls on top of two abandoned buildings, and they had to rescue them. Nightshock then looked over at Superior Man, who gave him a smirk and a wink. Nightshock turned his head and saw the buildings start to crumble. "See ya later, CHUMP!!!!", Superior Man said as he ran off, taking the lead. Nightshock let out a frustrated groan, knowing he had to safe them. He then jumped up, and split into two, each taking a building, and a girl. As Superior Man was enjoying his "lime light", the Nightshocks came up right behind him, setting the girls down. "Can you believe this?", the clone said, "I know!!!", said Nightshock.

The final challenge was a test of will, endurance, and stamina. "FOR THE FINAL EVENT, IT WILL BE A PHYSICAL CONTACT CONTEST. WHOEVER KNOCKS HIS OPPONENT OUT OF THE RING, TWO OUT OF THREE TIMES, WILL BE THE WINNER!!" "I hope you go easy on an old man", said Superior Man jokingly. "Don't worry, I'll apply the right 'pressure'", Nightshock said, worrying Superior Man. They both got into position, ready to fight. "3!! 2!! 1!! GOOOO!!!!", and they were off.

Superior Man made the first move, sinking his fist square into Nightshock's chest, knocking him back a few feet. There was something different about him Nightshock noted. As he quickly recovered, Nightshock felt a surge of energy building up in him, that wasn't his own. It knocked him out of the ring, and through a bulldozer. Nightshock then got back in the ring, determined to pay him back. "No hard feelings for the sucker punch right?", Superior Man said at a mic, "No", he simply said. As soon they had entered the ring again, Nightshock punched him so quick, you couldn't even blink fast enough to see it, sending him flying out. But as they got ready for the last round, both were fuming mad, and focused on winning. Superior Man was trying to save his already tarnished image. Nightshock wanted to win, just to shut him up. Then the bell rang, and so did their heads. Both men exchanged blows for a full minute, and switched fighting styles every few minutes or so. At one point, Nightshock was able to predict Superior Man's next five moves. So the next time he threw a punch. or attempted a kick, Nightshock could block them with ease. He could see that Superior Man was wearing down, until he tried to throw a roundhouse, which Nightshock avoided by ducking, spinning, springing up and elbowing him in the back, knocking him out of the ring.

Minutes later, Superior Man stood up from where he was lying, weak, defeated, broken. He walked away in shame, while he saw Nightshock receiving praise from the press. Praise that HE should have been getting, for HIS victory. He had been shown up by this upstart young punk, who dared to call himself a hero. NO MORE, he decided. No more would he operate under the pretense of being a selfless hero. In that moment of ultimate shame and humiliation, he  would become the one thing greater than any hero.........

The next day back at Superior Man's penthouse......

"Sir, sir are you alright?", a publicist asked Superior Man, now as his alter-ego of Han Titan. "Mr. Titan, are you all right?" the publicist asked again. Han was sitting in a chair, facing a large window with a view of Central Park, raining. His armored suit was hanging in its alcove, still bearing the battle scars of the night before. He finally mustered up some words, saying: "No Henry, I'm not all right. That boy has humiliated me, stole my media, my fame, my way of life...but no more." "What do you mean by that Mr. Titan?" "Well, the stunt with the terrorists at the office building, the attack on my penthouse, and the collapsing buildings from last nights charity event, that was all just a ploy to launch my comeback. But that's not it. I've also spent a 'little' money on another project of mine", he said, pointing to another suit of armor hanging in the center of the room. "This will ensure that I'm never forgotten, and take care of that brat once and for all. Now, there's something I need you to do." "Yes sir", Henry said, slightly depressed, "I DIDN'T SIGN ON FOR THIS", he then muttered under his breath.

At the Breed H.Q....

Nightshock was down in the Ops center staring at the display screens. I WONDER WHY THOSE BUILDINGS COLLAPSED, he thought. Deadlock was sitting next to him in a chair, her hands quickly typing on the keyboards. "It seems that both buildings were rigged to blow, but I can't identify the accelerant used", she told him. "I wonder....", but before he could finish his sentence, alarms began blaring loudly. "This is Lieutenant Shepherd to all units, requesting assistance. Repeat, need assistance. Commissioner Lee has been abducted on site from.....", as the transmission came from the police band. "I'm there", Nightshock said. "Be careful", Deadlock said. "Don't wait up", he replied.  

Down at the crime scene....

"Alright, get this area taped off, now!!", Jenna said. "What goes on here?", Nightshock asked. "Well, as for as we know: someone just burst into this restaurant, knocked around Mr. Osborn, and made off with tha' Commish' ", Jenna said. "Was there anything else?", Nightshock asked. "Yeah", Harry said, limping a little as he was walking over, "This was left behind." Nightshock took the strange looking cube, which opened into a letter. After he read it, it instantly disintegrated. "Well, what's it say?", Jenna asked. The only thing nightshock said was: "Come on, we got to go, I know who did it." "Well, who?", asked Harry. Nightshock looked at him. "WHO DO YOU THINK?!?!?!"

At Superior Man's penthouse...

"Alright Titan, WHERE IS SHE?!?!", Nightshock shouted, looking around a darkened lobby. "I knew that I'd chosen the right bait", said a voice from the shadows. "Here's your prize", said the voice, "Take her if you can...". As Nightshock ran to get Terri, a blast came outta nowhere, knocking him back into a wall. "Not quite what you expected, was it?" the voice asked. "Where are you psycho !?!?!", Nightshock shouted. "Right here", Titan said, standing directly behind him. As he turned, the last thing Nightshock saw was a fist coming right at his face. With a loud CRACK!!!, the blow sent Nightshock flying backward, through a solid concrete wall, and went flipping into the air. "What was that?", Nightshock muttered to himself. "You like it?", said Superior Man, "its just one of my many surprises for you." "Superior Man? Is that you?" "No, not Superior Man; just call me....EXCELSIOR!!!!", he said, as he punched him again. "I've made a few improvements to my armor. Allow me to continue the field test", he said. Excelsior then started to lay an onslaught of punches and kicks, increasing in speed, upon Nightshock, determinedly trying to prove that he is better than Nightshock ever was.

Meanwhile, inside the penthouse.....

Jenna raced towards Terri, in an effort to rescue her. "Ohh no you don't!!!", Excelsior said as he signaled his guard robots to attack Jenna. As she ducked for cover, trying to evade the bots, a few Goblin bombs flew at the robots, and blew them to pieces. "Well, the infamous 'G2'. Thanks", Jenna said, as they freed Terri. Harry zoomed by overhead, giving her a thumbs up.

Back outside....

Harry flew over to where Nightshock was fighting Excelsior. He circled around, ready to strike if needed. "Dude, I got your back!!! Just keep hitting him, he should fall down soon!!!", Harry shouted above the ruckus. "Thanks, bro!!! That really helps!!!", Nightshock shouted back sarcastically. By now, Nightshock was back on the offensive, beating him back. Once they were back in the air, on opposite sides of the building, they began rushing towards each other like missiles. The crash was so intense, that it created a low pitched sonic boom, shaking nearby buildings; the light it created was so bright, it could blind the entire city. The two of them kept clashing for five full minutes, until they raced back down to the ground, where the fight continued. Suddenly, almost like deja vu, it was the construction site battle all over again. Both men were matching each others moves, kick for kick, blow for blow. That is, until, Excelsior cockily said: "I've been at this game far longer than you, 'hero'. You got no chance of beating me. Why don't you just accept it, 'boy'? Not Spider-Man at his best could beat me. Guess what happened to him?" After hearing that, Nightshock saw Excelsior's next move coming, and blocked it with his left arm. But as for his right, Excelsior saw it charged with a bright blue energy, and it was gunning for his face. When it finally connected, the blow was so powerful, it split every tree within a two mile radius, shattering Excelsior's suit. Standing over him, Nightshock pulled him up by his chestplate and said: "Never utter those words again about Spider-Man. He...was a hero, he laid his life on the line for this city and made the ultimate sacrifice when the time came. He was more of a hero than you EVER were. He followed the rules: he hid his face, to protect those he loved. He fought the wicked, to protect the innocent. He raised the weak, so they could become strong. He saw the world, not as it was, but what  it could be. And he knew that anyone who possessed a skill, an ability, or power, was charged with the responsibility to wield it wisely. Spider-Man knew the Code of a Hero. To honor the code means to be a hero; to dishonor the code, means to be a villain. But you have forsaken it, and thrown it aside. You became the very thing you swore to fight.....a villain. Its not about fame, or material possessions, or what you think the world owes you....its about justice, truth, the right way, morals....things people can depend on, and need", and before he released him, he said: "You don't even deserve to bear the title of a hero." With that, he dropped him, and left. There was no more to be said.

Later that evening....

Nightshock, Terri, Jenna, and Harry were standing next to an ambulance, talking. "Thanks for the rescue Jenna, there may be hope for you yet", said a grateful Terri. "Well, if it wasn't for.....where they'd go??", Jenna said, puzzled. "I heard what you said, about the code, and Spider-Man. I know how you feel Zack", Harry said, his mask receding into his armor. "Thanks man, I really appreciate it", Nightshock replied. "What's wrong?", Harry asked. "Just thinking about him, what he did, and what we have to do. Can we live up to the Code?", Nightshock said, with a hint of doubt. "Don't worry man. We're doing Pete proud. We made it this far, right?", Harry said, trying to calm him down. "Yeah, I guess so", Nightshock replied, "Ya know, we have got to stop talking in front of this Gargoyle; one day he might spill his guts to the media." Both of them looked up at Bruce, Peter's constant companion, a stone gargoyle. But also, he served as a silent witness to Spider-Man's courage and tenacity. And if Bruce could keep going, so could they.                     



          


             

END