Spider-Man 2099 #4
The Specialist
Gabriel O'Hara has parked his car on a deserted street with his new girlfriend Kasey Nash in order to make out. She asks why he doesn't take her home, and he explains that they need to seize the moment as it happens. However, their romantic moment is interrupted by the corporate assassin known as the Specialist slices the roof off the top of Gabriel's car. The Specialist has come for Kasey, but when he grabs her out of the car, she manages to get free and run. Gabe attempts to confront the Specialist, only to get pinned to a nearby wall with throwing stars.
Meanwhile, at Babylon Towers, Miguel O'Hara answers his door and is grabbed by a member of the Public Eye. This is part of an entourage protecting Tyler Stone who has come to bury the hatched with Miguel. This is because, with the sudden appearance of Spider-Man, Alchemex has decided to focus on protecting its members. Since injecting Miguel with Rapture, Tyler has noticed that Miguel has not come for another dose.[1] He figures Miguel went to the black market to get more of the highly addictive drug but decides to ignore this because he wants to make peace. Miguel daydreams about revealing that he is Spider-Man and forcing Tyler to ingest the Rapture, but snaps out of it when Tyler tries to get his attention. Tyler then assures that after the disaster at their facility, he is calling an end to all human testing on Miguel's project until all the bugs have been worked out. He has decided this since he has figured out who Spider-Man really is. Miguel is shocked when Tyler says that Aaron Delgato is Spider-Man.[2] He then gives Miguel a vial of Rapture and leaves.
Meanwhile, in Latveria, Doctor Doom goes over the footage from Nueva York of Spider-Man's battle with Venture. He finds it peculiar that his return was followed by that of Spider-Man and decides to examine these developments further.[3] Back at Babylon Towers, Miguel begins putting street clothing over his Spider-Man costume. When his assistant Lyla asks why he is doing this, he explains that he needs to hide the costume in case Tyler Stone has his apartment searched. After willing his finger talons to retract, he goes on to explain that he can't just destroy the costume since it is constructed out of Unstable Molecules making it virtually indestructible. Also, since Stone is afraid of Spider-Man, he has decided to use his powers to stick it to Stone, at least until he can find a way to cure himself. When Miguel goes outside, he finds his brother Gabriel waiting for him outside. When Miguel asks what happened to the roof of his car, he tells her how the Specialist kidnapped Kasey and asks Miguel to use his connections at Alchemax to find out what happened. Miguel resists this, and when Gabriel tells him that Kasey once said that with great power comes great responsibility, Miguel quips that she needs to stop reading fortune cookies.
After Gabriel drops Miguel off at Alchemax, he goes to a meeting with Tyler Stone. When Stone asks why Miguel is wearing sunglasses, he explains that the "rapture" has made his eyes light sensitive. He then begins asking Tyler why he thinks that Aaron Delgato is Spider-Man, only to be told that they should discuss it further in Tyler's office. Elsewhere in the facility, Kasey Nash demands to know why the Public Eye has arrested her, and is told that she was tried in absentia on terrorism charges. At that moment, Miguel and Tyler are taking a mag-lev device through the Alchemax building to get to Tyler's office. Stone begins explaining why he thinks Aaron is really Spider-Man. Not knowing what really happened to Aaron Delgato leaves Miguel feeling uneasy. That's when Kasey manages to grab one of the guard’s guns and attempts to escape captivity. Crossing paths with Tyler and Miguel, she takes O'Hara hostage. Squeezing his arm, Miguel accidentally squirts some of his webbings onto the floor, which trips up Tyler and the Public Eye guards while Kasey makes he getaway with her hostage. On their way out, Miguel and Kasey recognize each other. Kasey is not impressed to meet Gabriel's corporate brother. After they get outside, she releases Miguel and makes a run for it.
With a shadow passing over him, Miguel looks up and sees the Specialist chasing after Kasey in a hovercraft. Recognizing the Specialist's from Gabriel's description, Miguel finds himself caught in a dilemma. He thinks about what Gabriel was saying about power and responsibility, and decides that great power doesn't create great responsibility but guilt. Slipping into a Metro Express booth, Miguel quickly changes into his Spider-Man costume and goes after the Specialist. Meanwhile, Kasey tries to shoot the Specialist, but he is able to deflect the bullets his martial arts skills and weapons. He then cuts her weapon into pieces with his samurai sword. That's when Spider-Man arrives on the scene and snags the Specialist's craft with a web-line causing him to crash. However, when Spider-Man tries to go toe-to-toe with the Specialist he quickly realizes how outmatched he is. The Specialist quickly overpowers Spider-Man and raises his sword, preparing to land a killing blow.
Continuity Notes
Tyler later reveals that he didn't really inject Miguel with Rapture but with a synthetic version to trick Miguel into being loyal. This is revealed in Spider-Man 2099 #25.
Aaron Delgato was a lab assistant who worked with Miguel. He apparently died in Spider-Man 2099 #1. Tyler thinks that Aaron is Spider-Man because his body never found.
Doctor Doom ended up in the year 2099 and took over Latveria in Doom 2099 #1-2.
