Spider-Man 2099 #42
Earth
Having decided to continue controlling Alchemax, Miguel O'Hara quickly begins to question his decision when he is surrounded by various members of management who are all making demands. Getting fed up, Miguel stands up on his desk and plays an impromptu game of "duck, duck, goose" with these managers. When they ask what he is doing, he points out that they're all trying to take advantage of his recent appointment as CEO of the company and tells them to put in the proper work requests and he will make decisions based on those, on his own time. With his office cleared out, Miguel then demands to know where the new secretary he hired is. This secretary turns out to be an elderly woman named April. Miguel finds her greatly inadequate and tells personnel to find someone else. The head of human resources begins to wonder who he can find at a moment's notice. That's when one of the other staffers tells him that someone just came in looking to fill the job, someone she thinks will be the perfect secretary for Miguel O'Hara.
Meanwhile, Downtown, Raff tells Kasey Nash to take a look out the window. On the streets, they see a gathering of the Grunt Union which includes sewer workers, construction workers, Watchdogs and truckers. They are being led by a union leader who called himself Boru, a man that Kasey thought was dead. While uptown, Miguel is being driven to Xina Kwan's apartment, where he intends on offering her a job at Alchemax's ET Divison. That's when the power in the city goes out, stopping the Maglev vehicles as well. Seeing a screen showing a battle between happening at Stark-Fujikawa, Miguel wonders if this has anything to do with it.[1] Miguel tells his driver that he is going to walk the rest of the way, but slips away and changes into Spider-Man to web-sling to Xina's apartment. When he arrives, Jack tells Miguel that Xina won't be seeing him because she left town. Miguel returns to Alchemax and ignores the senior manager as he storms to his office. Before they can follow after him, the new secretary threatens them with a gun if they interrupt Miguel in his office. Realizing it has gotten quiet outside, Miguel goes outside to investigate and discovers that his mother has been hired on as his new secretary.
As Boru and his union make their way uptown, Miguel protests the idea of his mother working as his secretary. She then reveals that she is the one who shot Tyler Stone and since it put Miguel in power of Alchemax, she owes him.[2] This comes as a shock to Miguel, but Conchata said it needed to be done as Tyler's seduction of Dana was the last straw for her. She only wishes she could have done something to save Dana from his clutches before her death.[3] Miguel tries to brush this off as a joke but quickly realizes that Conchata is being deadly serious. Needing to think about all of this, Miguel goes up to the roof of the Alchemax building where sees the union forces approaching the building. Quickly changing into Spider-Man, Miguel confronts Boru and asks what is going on. He explains that his union is tired of being ignored by Alchemax and they are coming to give a show of force. Although Spider-Man claims not to be associated with Alchemax, he suggests that the unionized workers deal with O'Hara peacefully.
However, Boru insists that a demonstration needs to be made and launches his body at the S-Man. Although Spider-Man evades the attack he is ill-prepared for Boru's cybernetically enhanced strength and metallic teeth and claws and takes a thrashing. While outside the city, Xina continues to drive away from her problems. Spotting a hitchhiker, Xina decides to pull over and give him a lift. Asking if she will regret this decision, the hitchhiker -- who is known as the Net Prophet -- assures Xina that she will always be safe when he is around. Back in the city, Spider-Man realizes that he is fighting a losing battle against Boru and flees so he can change back to his civilian identity and try to diffuse the situation with more diplomacy. However, Boru and his followers arrive outside Alchemax, Conchata pushes herself through security and confronts Boru, telling him that if he wants to see Miguel O'Hara he will have to schedule a meeting like everyone else. Miguel arrives just as Boru insults his mother and she responds by slapping the cyborg across the face. This shocks Boru and he soon begins to laugh and schedules a meeting. Impressed with the woman, Boru calls the strike over and the union disburses. Miguel is surprised that his mother was able to handle the situation and has to admit that she is the only person suitable for the job as his secretary.
Recurring Characters
Spider-Man, Raff, Casey Nash, Xian Kwan, Conchata O’Hara, Net-Prophet, Boru
Continuity Notes
Miguel is looking at a screen showing a battle between Stark-Fujikawa and the Fantastic Four. This battle took place in Fantastic Four 2099 #2.
Conchata shot Tyler Stone in Spider-Man 2099 #34.
Dana D'Angelo was murdered by Venom in Spider-Man 2099 #37.
