Silk #5 — Nick Peron

Dec 26

Dec 26 Silk #5

Now

At the Porter apartment, Marie Porter is playing in her room when she notices that her babysitter isn’t watching her. She finds Mrs. Bump passed out in the kitchen. That’s when someone enters the room. Turning to see who it is, Marie asks if they are a kitty, because kids are fucking dumb.

Meanwhile, at the Fact Channel, Cindy Moon sits at her cubicle. She is debating on if she should call the psychiatrist that Mister Fantastic referred her to. She eventually decides to use the slow news day to continue looking for her family instead.[1] Looking at a photo of her brother, Cindy thinks back….

Then

After the discovery of Cindy’s spider-powers, her brother admits to her that he is scared for her. She tries to tell him it will be fine but when she reaches out he freaks out and tells her not to touch him. Albert then runs out of the room in tears.

Now

Cindy’s recollection is interrupted when J. Jonah Jameson comes to talk to her about the Silk/Human Torch sightings from the day before. She quickly tries to click out of her research, but Jonah gets a glimpse of what she was looking at. Intrigued by the police report among the personal photos Jameson asks what she is looking at. Scrambling to come up with an excuse, she decides to tell him the truth, that she is looking for her family and that they are missing. Jameson sits down next to her and asks her to tell him everything she knows. She tells him almost everything, omitting the fact that she is Silk and that she has been locked in a bunker for a decade. He tells her that he’s still got some friends in the NYPD from when he was mayor and promises to have them look into it for her.[2] That’s when Natalie Long comes to tell Jameson about a report about a man named Harris Potter’s daughter being kidnapped. Cindy recognizes the name as the guy who fought her as Dragonclaw.[3]

Cindy races to the apartment building as Silk where he finds Harris has barricaded his home from the police and is once more wearing his Dragonclaw costume. When she confronts him, he attacks. She quickly webs him up and learns that the Black Cat kidnapped his daughter and wants Silk in return for her safe release. Feeling sorry for Harris, Silk promises to get Dragonclaw’s daughter back. He tags along with her to the Black Cat’s hideout. There she calls in Spider-Man for help. Concerned about Cindy working with a villain, he calls her aside to talk things out.[4] While they are distracted, Dragonclaw decides to go in alone. When they notice, they both leap down through the skylight to help him.

While Spider-Man deals with the guards, Silk rushes into another room where she finds Marie tied up. When he gets her out of the room, Spider-Man and Harris have already dealt with the thugs. That’s when the Black Cat and her armed goons enter the warehouse. Silk tells Spider-Man and Dragonclaw to get Marie to safety while she deals with the Black Cat, but she asks them to come back as soon as the girl is safe.

Once alone with the Black Cat, Silk asks what her problem is. The Cat is annoyed with the rookie hero because she cost her money. Silk then webs up her fists and lunges at the Cat. Unfortunately, her minions bombard her with sonic blasts. Before the Black Cat can do anything, someone hits her so hard she is knocked out of the building. The warehouse suddenly explodes soon after.

When Silk wakes up she is strapped to the Repairman’s operating table. She has figured out that he’s the guy who gave Dragonclaw his upgrade. He confirms this but says he is no longer working for the Black Cat. That’s when he reveals that he is working for the people who have been keeping her family.[5]

Recurring Characters

Silk, Black Cat, Spider-Man, Dragonclaw, J. Jonah Jameson, Natalie Long, Repairman, Marie Porter, (flashback) Albert Moon, Jr.

Continuity Notes

Cindy was locked away in a bunker for over a decade. When she was finally freed she discovered that her family disappeared without a trace. See Amazing Spider-Man (vol. 3) #4-6.
J. Jonah Jameson was mayor of New York City from Amazing Spider-Man #592 until Amazing Spider-Man (vol. 3) #1. He was forced to resign after he botched an attempt to take back the city when it was conquered by the Goblin King.
Silk fought Dragonclaw in Silk #1 and 3.
Spider-Man says that the Black Cat going bad is on him and that it is complicated. At the time, Peter Parker’s body was taken over by Doctor Octopus (see Amazing Spider-Man #698-700 and Superior Spider-Man #1-31), who busted the Black Cat in Superior Spider-Man #20. When she broke out of prison in Amazing Spider-Man (vol. 3) #1, she went back to being a criminal.
The identity of the individuals who have Silk’s family is revealed in Silk (vol. 2) #11