Vengeance, Part Two

With the Master of Vengeance framing him for murder, Spider-Man is in the process of apprehending the criminal when he runs afoul of the Punisher. Seeing two Spider-Men, causes the Punisher to pause. Still, Spider-Man wants to bring the Punisher to justice for all the people the vigilante has killed over the years. While the wall-crawler is busy dodging the Punisher's bullets, the Master of Vengeance recovers from the blow he took from the hero. Seeing that his opponents are distracted, the Master fires a blast at Spider-Man, which buries the wall-crawler and the Punisher under a pile of debris. However, when the Master of Vengeance tries to finish them off when he discovers that he used up his powers and flees to recharge. The Punisher recovers from the blast first and goes into hiding until Spider-Man recovers and leaves the scene as well. With everyone else gone, Spider-Man decides to head home. He goes back to his apartment where he crawls into bed with his wife Mary Jane.[1] However, moments later, Mary Jane's alarm clock begins to go off. Peter tries to convince his wife to let him stay in bed, but she reminds him that they are short on money and he needs to work. As Peter runs off a list of caffeinated beverages to help him get out of bed. Mary Jane has a better idea and removes her nightgown in front of him. Meanwhile, the Master of Vengeance returns to his hideout, cursing Spider-Man for ruining his plans for revenge. When he once again tries to remove the Spider-Man mask that is stuck to his face, it comes off with little effort. Unaware that Spider-Man's webbing dissolves after a few hours, Dwight Faron loses his temper, thinking that the wall-crawler somehow fooled him.

Later that morning, Peter Parker struggles to stay awake during a photographers meeting. On his way out, Lance Bannon thanks Peter for getting on Victor Pei's bad side, as it nets him more photo assignments. Out in the hallway, Peter is shocked when he sees Frank Castle, who is posing as a visiting journalist, being given access to the Daily Bugle's morgue.[2] Going through the reports, Castle learns everything he needs to know about Dwight Faron. Suspecting that he is being watched, Frank pulls his gun and turns around, narrowly missing the prying eyes of Peter Parker. Satisfied that it was a false alarm, Castle is is determined to take down Faron. By the time Frank leaves the Daily Bugle, Peter Paker has changed into Spider-Man and begun following him. Seeing that his quarry is going to enter the subway, Spider-Man tags the Punisher with a spider-tracer, unaware that he is playing right into the vigilante's hands.

Spider-Man follows the Punisher into the subway and hitches a ride atop the train that Frank enters. When the Punisher gets off at the end of the line, the web-slinger follows after him. However, when the web-slinger gets up to the surface he finds the Punisher's overcoat in a nearby garbage pail. Pulling it out, he finds the message "look up Spider-Man" written on the collar of the jacket. Looking up, he spots the Punisher running across the roof tops. Spider-Man follows after him, falling for the Punisher's trap. The Punisher ducks when Spider-Man leaps at him, forcing the hero down through a weak part of the roof and into a cage. The Punisher wants Spider-Man out of the way while he goes after his impersonator. The wall-crawler refuses to allow someone to die, but his words fall on deaf ears. As Spider-Man tries to free himself, the Punisher gets away. Later, the Punisher has put on civilian clothes and pays a visit to Vicary at the hospital. He convinces the drug addict to tell him where he can find Dwight Faron. It's two full hours before Spider-Man gets free and wonders what to do next. That's when he spots the briefcase that the Punisher brought with him to the Daily Bugle. Looking through it, he discovers the notes he took on Dwight Faron.

By this point, the Master of Vengeance is giving himself another dose of the chemicals that giveh im his powers. However, this time it causes him a great deal of pain and he keels over. That's when the Punisher enters the room and prepares to shoot the villain. That's when Spider-Man comes crashing through the window to stop him. Spider-Man manages to disarm the Punisher and web him to a wall. Unfortuantely, this gives the Master of Vengeance enough time to recover. He ambushes Spider-Man from behind, knocking the hero over. With Spider-Man at his mercy, the Master of Vengeance gloats about finally getting his revenge.

Recurring Characters

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

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.

2. The Punisher is depicted as going through microfiche records. This should be considered a topical reference per the Sliding Timescale of Earth-616 as microfiche is generally considered an obscelete technology.