Vengeance, Part One

A drug deal has gone sour when the buyer of stolen chemicals begins killing the dealers who procured the substances for him. Shockingly, the killer appears to be Spider-Man. After he has slaughtered the drug dealers, the wall-crawler climbs up the side of a building. The entire incident is witnessed by homeless people who live in the area. He warns the homeless people to run if they ever see him coming in the future. But is this really Spider-Man? It seems unlikely as at that moment, Peter Parker is at home with his wife Mary Jane watching television.[1] While Mary Jane channel surfs for something to watch, Peter decides to take the opportunity for some romance. Unfortunately, the mood is killed when Mary Jane happens upon a news report that claims that Spider-Man is responsible for a series of murders. Hearing this, Peter becomes furious and begins changing into his alter-ego to find out the truth and put an end to the killings.

Meanwhile, mobster Geoffrey Barnett is escorted to one of his clubs. He is paranoid because the Punisher has been gunning for him. Alone in his office, Barnett tries to calm down when someone behind him calls out his name. Geoffrey turns around and sees a man clad in a black and gold costume. He introduces himself as the Master of Vengeance and claims that he will destroy Spider-Man. This is of little interest to Barnett since he tries to steer clear of the wall-crawler and tells him to leave. The Master is insulted by this and fires an energy blast from his fingers that send Barnett crashing into the wall. The Master of Vengeance then flees the scene. When Barnett's men enter the room, he tells them that they have just been served an ace in the hole. At that moment, Spider-Man arrives in the area where the drug dealers were murdered. Spotting some homeless people trying to keep warm around a fire, the wall-crawler tries to question them. However, when they see Spider-Man they begin to run in terror. Spider-Man manages to web up one of them. However, before he can get any answers, a news crew ambushes him. Realizing that this is a no-win situation, Spider-Man drops the homeless man and flees. As he leaves, his spider-sense goes off, but the web-spinner doesn't see any immediate danger.

Across the street, Spider-Man is being watched by Dwight Faron, the man who has been posing as the wall-crawler and is the Master of Vengeance. He gloats about how he will eventually destroy Spider-Man's reputation, just like the masked hero ruined his. With him, is a former colleague named Vicary. A drug addict, he is going through withdrawal symptoms and begs Dwight to give him some drugs. Dwight reminds him how his drug addictions got them both into trouble five years ago. The mob came to collect on their debts, but Vicary had no money to pay for his debts and sustain his habits. Instead, he hired Dwight to use his chemistry skills to make more drugs for Geoffrey Barnett. After drinking a formula, he continues reminding Vicary of the situation they have found themselves in. Dwight took the job because he needed to make more money. Screaming in pain, Dwight tells Vicary to stay away. Smashing open a closet, he reveals his Master of Vengeance and mock Spider-Man costumes. He concludes his trip down memory lane. Vicary got caught by Spider-Man, who exposed the entire scheme and left Dwight as a fall guy. Arrested for his part in an illegal drug operation, Dwight lost everything including his wife and children. After five years in prison, Dwight now plans on getting revenge on everyone he blames for his incarceration. He has decided to start with Vicary begins to strangle him.

At that moment, a pair of vice officers are attempting to make a bust when they are surrounded by gun-toting drug dealers. However, when they spot the wall-crawler swinging by, they drop their guns because they are afraid to get murdered. However, Spider-Man swings right on by, leaving the dealers to get busted by the cops. The wall-crawler finds what he has been looking for, a pay phone that hasn't been broken. He calls Mary Jane to apologize for running out on her, and how half the city is trying to bust him and the other half is scared. He has to cut the call short when police try surrounding him. As he swings away from the authorities, he is followed by a news helicopter. When a reporter tries to question them. Spider-Man briefly blinds them with his belt-signal. While they can't see, clings to the bottom of the helicopter to get out of sight. He then overhears that "Spider-Man" has been sighted downtown and hitches a ride as the news copter goes. At the scene, the Master of Vengeance has dressed up as Spider-Man again. He is carrying Vicary up the side of a building. He is interrupted by the real Spider-Man arrives and sprays webbing in the impostors face. His causes the Master to drop Vicary, but Spider-Man swoops down and saves him.

Turning Vicary over to firefighters on the scene, they determine that he is suffering from a drug overdose. By this point, the Master of Vengeance tries to flee the scene. He struggles to take off his fake Spider-Man mask, but can't remove it because of the webbing. Meanwhile, Geoffrey Barnett and his men try to make sense of the Master's attack on his bar. They are interrupted by the arrival of the Punisher who mows them all down with a machine gun. Down the street, the Master is on his way to Barnett's bar when Spider-Man catches up to him. The villain blasts the hero, stunning Spider-Man momentarily. When Dwight arrives at Barnett's and discovers the mobsters are all dead. When he is confronted by the Punisher and blasts the vigilante as well. That's when Spider-Man catches up with him, he manages to dodge his foes blasts and lands a knockout punch. Suddenly, the wall-crawler's spider-sense goes off, warning him of danger from behind. When he turns to see what it is, Spider-Man finds himself looking down the barrel of the Punisher's gun.

Recurring Characters

Spider-Man, Mary Jane Watson, Punisher, Master of Vengeance

Continuity Notes

1. Peter and Mary Jane are referred to as husband and wife here. However, years later, their marriage is erased from existence by Mephisto in Amazing Spider-Man #545. As such they should be considered a common-law couple here.