Make Way for Slyde!

A new costumed villain known as Slyde is making his criminal debut by robbing a bank. With his slick body suit he is able to skate across the floor to the teller window in moments. After robbing the teller at gunpoint, Slyde is confronted by the guards. Unphased by this, Slyde tosses his gun away and slides right through them and out the window and into the street. Meanwhile, elsewhere in town, Spider-Man is busting up a shady poolhall to learn who was responsible for beating up Nathan Lubenski the night before. However, before he can get any answers he is chased out by the owner. As he swings away the wall-crawler blames himself for not being there to protect Nathan and likens it to the death of his Uncle Ben, something that happened because Spider-Man failed to act. On a rooftop, Spider-Man wonders why he can't even save the people he cares about and angrily punches a chimney. Hearing sirens, Spider-Man decides to go and check it out in the hopes it gets him photos good enough to sell to the Daily Bugle.

A few blocks away, Slyde manages to keep a step ahead of the cops thanks to his non-stick costume. Evading them, he manages to force the cops into crashing into an oncoming vehicle. That's when Spider-Man arrives on the scene and tries to stop Slyde by webbing him up, unfortunately, not even Spider-Man's webbing can cling to the fleeing criminal. Slyde manages to trip up Spider-Man, making him land in the back of a fruit truck. As he crawls out of the truck, he asks himself how things can get any worse. Looking in a shop window he sees a mannequin that resembles the Beyonder and hopes he won't run into the god-like being again, especially after their last encounter. With Slyde long gone, Spider-Man web-slings away and heads on to the hospital to see how Nathan is doing. At that moment, Slyde has escaped to his home where he celebrates his first outing as a costumed criminal. He thinks back to when he was Jalome Beacher, a chemical engineer working for the Beemont Manufacturing Company. It was there that he developed a new chemical coating. However, the company was soon bought out by a larger corporation owned by a man named Rockwall and Beacher soon found himself out of a job. When Jalome attempted to start his own business, the banks refused to grant him a loan. As such, he decided to use his new coating to get him the money he needed through crime. He now vows to make Rockwell pay for screwing with his life.

Meanwhile, Peter Parker arrives at the hospital and learns from the doctors that the men who attacked Nathan didn't give him any lasting injuries, something Peter finds odd. When he goes in to check on Nathan, he gets a cold reception from Aunt May who is still upset with him for not watching after Nathan the night before. When Peter asks Nathan who attacked him, Lubenski tells Peter that he doesn't want him to get involved and that he doesn't want to think about it anymore. However, he looks at a bouquet of flowers sent by an "ominous" friend. At that moment, at the Beemont Manufacturing Company, Hawkins is gloating over how profitable his business is making him. Suddenly, Hawkins and his assistant Max hear a crash from one of the other rooms. When they go and check it out, they find Slyde. With nowhere to go, Slyde smashes out the window and decides to abort his petty revenge. Outside, he spots Maxwell trying to make a break for it with a briefcase. Seeing some value in it, Slyde snatches it from Maxwell and makes a break for it. Rockwell is furious because the records in that briefcase could ruin him.

As Slyde makes his getaway, Peter Parker is walking his Aunt May to the bus. He apologizes to her again for not being there to protect Nathan. She tells Peter it's not his fault and supposes that family eventually drifts apart. The words cut Peter deep and he thinks it over as he watches the bus drive away. At that moment, Slyde has returned home and goes over the documents in Rockwell's briefcase. He finds two sets of papers, one that shows the Beemont losing money, while others show that the company is actually turning a profit and Rockwell is using it to launder money for the mob. Slyde considers turning over this information to the District Attorney but decides to use it for a more fitting revenge against Rockwell. Back at the Beemont office, Rockwell is expecting the thief to call and blackmail him. Sure enough, Slyde calls and demands a large sum of money in exchange for returning the papers. Rockwell makes arrangements but has no intention of paying the money, and orders Max to hire as many men as he can to eliminate Slyde and get the papers back.

The following afternoon, Spider-Man happens upon some hoods in an alley marveling over the job they have been hired to do. As they flee, Spider-Man manages to snag one of them. He demands to know who attacked Nathan. However, the thug doesn't know anything about it, but spills all he knows about the hit taken out on Slyde. Spider-Man can't bring himself to stand by and allow someone get hurt, even a criminal like Slyde. The evening, as Slyde is making his exchange with Maxwell, Spider-Man silently takes out the hired guns. The exchange is made, and Maxwell orders his men to attack. While Spider-Man takes out the last of the guards, both Maxwell and Slyde try to make their escape. When Spider-Man tries to stop Maxwell's getaway car with a web-line, Slyde comes in and kicks out the tire. Before Spider-Man can stop Slyde, District Attorney Blake Tower and the police arrive and inform the wall-crawler that Slyde is under their protection. As it turns out, Slyde recorded Maxwell admitting to laundering money and is turning it in as states evidence. Even though he has handed this over, Slyde tries to pull a fast one by escaping with the money. When Spider-Man tries to stop Slyde, he still can't capture the crook and he manages to get away.

Meanwhile, at a Native American reservation near Heartsdale, New Mexico, members of the tribe meet with their leader, Joseph Threetrees. He has determined that the time of great bloodshed and chaos is soon coming upon them. He then tells his people that he is going to see their protector and savior. Driving into the nearby city, Threetrees barges into the head office of Fireheart Enterprises. Entering his private office, he finds Thomas Fireheart watching footage of Spider-Man. He tells Thomas that the Puma is needed and he must fight along side Spider-Man to stop He-Who-Comes-From-Beyond.

Recurring Characters

Spider-Man, Thomas Fireheart, Blake Tower, Aunt May, Nathan Lubensky, Slyde, Jenna Taylor, Joseph Threetrees

Continuity Notes

• Peter comparies his not being there for Nathan Lubenski last issue to the death of Uncle Ben, which happened in Amazing Fantasy #15.

• Spider-Man hopes that he doesn't run into the Beyonder again. He has a disasterous encounter with the god-like being in Secret Wars II #2.