Becoming

Ted Mankowski and Nina Smith arrive at the trainyards in Queens on a scouting mission. Based on what Ted is able to pull from his laptop the situation is very dangerous and they decide to call things in to Miguel Legar.

At that very moment, Miguel is meeting Gil Corazon in order to cover for the lie his daughter, Anya — their secret hunter codenamed Araña — said about her having an internship at Webcorps, a front for the Spider-Society. Miguel explains that the corporation employs many interns like Anya and that their company makes its fortune in information commodities. When Gil asks how his daughter fits into their corporate plans. Miguel goes on about how intelligent Anya is and how they will give her every opportunity to succeed including scholarships, financial planning, referrals to corporations and universities when the time comes, among other perks. Gil agrees to allow the internship to continue as long as Anya does not put under any undue pressure and as long as there are no more unplanned weekends. Miguel agrees and after an awkward silence, the two men shake hands. On the car ride back to Webcorps, Anya remarks how her father is protective of her.

In the parking garage, they are met by Ted who tells them that he has found one of the Sisterhood of the Wasp’s nests and he thinks it may be the location of their new chosen one. Miguel sends Anya up to be fitted in her new Araña costume while he discusses things further with Ted. After trying on various different costumes there are none that she likes and she decides to come up with her own. Anya later meets up with her friend Lynn so they can go shopping. Meanwhile, Miguel goes over the intel collected by Ted and Nina to make sure it is correct because they have to be correct because the risks are so high. Looking over the data, Miguel agrees that they are preparing to select a new chosen one and they should strike in order to prevent the ritual from succeeding as it will prevent the Sisterhood from finding another chosen one for a whole year.

With everything organized, Miguel picks up Anya just as she has finished her shopping spree, forcing her to come up with a fast excuse to give Lynn. She feels bad for suddenly ditching her friend, Miguel tells her that life isn’t fair and this mission could be the most important one of the year. When they arrive at the trainyards, Miguel tells Anya to summon the hunter. At first, Araña feels uncertain, but Miguel promises to protect her no matter what happens and this is enough for her to move forward with the plan.

Not far away, in a boxcar, a high ranking member of the Wasps known as Vincent begins the ceremony in front of a strange cocoon. That’s when Araña arrives and summoning the carapace of the hunter begins fighting the footsoldiers standing guard outside. Vincent is soon warned that the Spider Society’s chosen one has arrived and he orders them to keep her away from the ceremony. As Araña fights through the guards, Miguel radios Nina and tells her to set a perimeter around the area. He then goes to look around for the sacred warding that is focused on the car. Using his mystical senses he determines the warding was cast upon a nearby rail spike. At that same moment, Araña has finished off the drones and attempts to attack Vincent and their chosen one. However, the warding spell creates a force field that prevents her from entering the boxcar. That’s when Miguel rejoins her and blasts through the barrier with a mystical bolt. However, when the smoke clears, there is no sign of Vincent or their Wasp’s new chosen one. Although they have succeeded in stopping the ritual, Miguel is bothered when he examines the remains of the cocoon but doesn’t say anything to sour Anya’s victory.

Back at home, Anya calls Lynn and apologizes for ditching her earlier and suggests they go to see a movie to make it up. After getting off the phone, Anya puts in the final touches on her spider-themed Bola. After testing it out, she accidentally breaks a lamp and decides that she needs more practice. Deciding to give it one more try, Anya goes out in her Araña costume to try it out in the open.

This story is continued in Araña: Heart of the Spider #1….

Recurring Characters

Araña, Spider-Society (Miguel Legar, Nina Smith, Ted Mankowski), Gil Corazon, Sisterhood of the Wasp (Vincent), Lynn