"Spider-Man and I are about to become besties. I'm the chaotic gremlin bestie, obviously. Also, I brought him armor. And no, I didn't wash it."
Location: Oscorp Rooftops – Just Before Sunrise
Peter Parker was doing his usual thing — rooftop brooding, probably thinking about homework, rent, and why all his villains had fashion designers with trauma fetishes.
Then…
Thud.
A duffel bag hit the roof behind him like a dead body full of regrets.
"Hey bug-boy!" Alexander called out, grinning with cracked shades and a face still half-bruised from the Rhino fight. "Got you a present."
Peter whipped around in defensive stance.
"Who the hell are you?"
"Your friendly neighborhood… uh… anti-social lizard assassin with anime issues."
Alexander unzipped the duffel.
Inside?
Rhino's armored shoulder plating, redesigned with lightweight hydraulics and nano-mesh lining. It was bulkier than Peter's usual gear, but modular.
"This is Rhino's armor. I beat him up, robbed him, and sanitized it… emotionally. Not physically."
Peter blinked. "You want me to wear Rhino's gear?"
"Yes. Upgrade time. You're smart. Add some web-powered motors to it, and boom — spider-tank."
Peter narrowed his eyes. "Why would you give me this?"
Alexander pointed to the sky like a prophet.
"Because the system said so. Wait—NO! I mean—because you're the heart of New York! And I'm trying this new thing called benevolent chaos. Also, because if you die, I'll have to fight the next Spider-Verse candidate, and they might be British."
Peter was… unsure.
"This feels wrong."
Alexander smirked.
"Good. That means it's working."
He handed Peter a flash drive labeled:"Parker Protocol: Upgrade Me Daddy v1.0"
"Install that into your suit's HUD. It has schematics. Also some anime soundtracks. Your next fight's gonna slap harder than a JoJo punch."
Peter opened the file and scrolled.
"Is this… is this a playlist that starts with Gurren Lagann's theme and ends with Tokyo Drift?"
"You're welcome."
[DING!]
Quest Progress: Spider-Man Upgrade – Stage 1 Complete
New Side Note: Peter now has passive respect/confusion status toward you.
Later That Day – Hidden Bunker, East Brooklyn
Alexander pushed open a rusted metal door that led into a space lit by neon signs, arcade machines, weapon racks, and a giant inflatable unicorn for no reason.
Welcome to: The Brotherhood of Bang.
A Deadpool cosplayer flew past him on roller skates, dual-wielding water guns filled with hot sauce.
"Initiation is Taco Tuesday Fight Night!" a voice called out.
Deadpool dropped from the ceiling.
"Heyyyy, if it isn't the lizard kid with the meme gauntlets! You ready to bang?!"
Alexander blinked.
"...Okay. That's a misleading sentence, Wade."
Deadpool nodded seriously. "Fair."
Inside the lounge were the rest of the Brotherhood:
Domino, shuffling cards made from real adamantium.
Taskmaster, grumpy in the corner, watching anime training montages.
Bob from HYDRA, but no one remembered how he got here.
And a few OC bounty hunters, all dripped out in cyberpunk gear.
Alexander took a seat at the bar (they served energy drinks and Red Bull ramen) and pulled up his system menu.
"Okay, so I've upgraded Spider-Man. Next on the list is Daredevil. But first…"
He cracked his knuckles and grinned.
"I'm gonna vibe with the Brotherhood, make some cash, collect bounties, and maybe throw hands with a mutant rhino again."
[DING!]
Quest Updated: Brotherhood Bonds – Build Rapport, Get Missions, Don't Die
"Challenge accepted," he said, downing a ramen shot with chopsticks.
End Scene: In an Oscorp Vault
A masked man with glowing green eyes sifted through documents and villain schematics.
"Alexander Connors… who gave that boy access to Rhino tech?"
He smiled beneath the mask.
"Let's see how far he's willing to go… to be the next Assassin God."
[TO BE CONTINUED IN CHAPTER 8: "Devil of Hell's Kitchen Gets a Boost (and Maybe a Hug)"]