The Beasts Within

Needing to find the Lizard, who is on the loose in New York City, Spider-Man has sought out help from Madame Web. She has predicted Spider-Man’s arrival and that he is not only seeking Curt Connors but to also find out why the city has been experiencing a rash of violent episodes.[1] The clairvoyant says that everything is connected by a web, including Spider-Man and all his foes. She senses that something is tainting that web which is leading everyone connected to it to start giving in to animalistic tendencies. When she begins talking about the object responsible, Spider-Man asks what it is and where to find it. However, Web declines to say, believing that Spider-Man’s proper course is to find his friend as the Lizard will lead him to the infection’s source. Learning from past experience to always listen to what Madame Web says, Spider-Man heads to Central Park to look for the Lizard, impressed that his new costume practically allows him to fly there.

Meanwhile, the Black Cat has just left the Baxter Building, unable to sit and wait as the sudden urge to kill and eat something is causing her to grow angry. She is found by the Puma who tells her not to fight the urge as she’ll ultimately lose, he should know as he has had plenty of experience dealing with his animalistic nature. He tells her to fight him in order to sate the urge and get it out of her system. When she asks where he came from, the Puma reveals that he has been drawn to her scent for some time now. He tells her to fight him, and at first, she resists until his continued aggression causes her anger to take over. After a brief battle, they both stop as Felicia admittedly starts feeling better. The Puma tells her that it will last for a while but what’s affecting them is building up in their systems and the only way to get rid of the anger is to act on it.

Back at the Baxter Building, the Invisible Woman is entertaining Billy Connors while her husband, Mister Fantastic, examines John Jameson. Reed has made a correlation between John’s sudden transformation into the Man-Wolf and Billy Connors being turned into a lizard, like his father. He concludes that both of them have enlarged proto-reptilian portions of their brains. Whatever is causing the rash of violence in the city is affecting that portion of the brain, aggravating both John and Billy’s unique conditions. That’s when Reed realizes that they are shielded from the effect inside the Baxter Building and suspects that it might be some kind of radiation as it affects everyone to varying degrees.

At that same moment, the Black Cat and Puma are taking a break and he tells her how he was given his powers by his tribe, who chose him to be their champion.[2] For years, he thought he had his animal side under control until the day he came back to New York for a meeting at his company, Fireheart Enterprises. He suddenly feel the rage come over him and rushed outside as he transformed into the Puma for the first time in a very long time. Emerging in an alleyway, he came upon a stray dog and ripped it to shreds. He had been tracking the Black Cat’s scent ever since. They both realize that some unknown power is drawing them, and others like them uptown. At that same moment, the Lizard emerges from the sewers in Central Park drawn by a need to feed. That’s when he is ambushed by the Vermin, who is drawn by the same force. The pair begin brawling and the Vermin is about to gain the upper hand when the Lizard remembers how his human alter-ego, Curt Connors, injected his own son with the lizard formula. This gives the monster a renewed strength to fight back. That’s when Spider-Man arrives on the scene. He pills Vermin off of the Lizard and beats him into submission. That’s when the Lizard attacks him and although Spider-Man’s technologically enhanced armor is more than a match for the Lizard, the Vermin quickly recovers and ambushes the wall-crawler from behind. This knocks all three of them into Park’s reservoir. Luckily, Spider-Man’s new costume allows him to breath underwater and he manages to pull himself to the surface with help from the mechanical spider legs built into the outfit. Emerging in front of the Museum of Natural History, Spider-Man is shocked to see a number of prehistoric animals that surround the building. Emerging from the museum is Stegron the Dinosaur Man, who welcomes Spider-Man to the future.

Recurring Characters

Spider-Man, the Lizard, Black Cat, Madame Web, Puma, Mister Fantastic, Invisible Woman, Vermin, John Jameson, Billy Connors, Stegron the Dinosaur Man

Continuity Notes

1. Madame Web mentions how Spider-Man died recently and came back to life and how he recently got a new costume designed for him by Tony Stark. She is referring to The Other: Evolve or Die story arc which took place in Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #1-4, Marvel Knights: Spider-Man #19-22, and Amazing Spider-Man #525-528. Tony Stark gave Peter his new costume in Amazing Spider-Man #529.

2. For more details on the Puma’s origins, check out Amazing Spider-Man #256-258.