"Yes, sir," Peter answered. "School is out for the summer, and I should be able to come in a lot!"

Perry smiled, admiring Peter's spunk. "Good. Now, Olsen, give Parker a tour of the place. Lois, you can do whatever you were doing." He turned and returned to his office.

"Nice to meet you, Peter. I have a feeling we'll be working together a lot. Maybe now, someone will give Jimmy here some competition," Lois said with a smile as she turned and walked back to her desk.

Peter turned to Jimmy.

"So, Peter, what school do you go to?" Jimmy asked.

"Midtown High. I'll be a senior next year."

Jimmy's jaw lowered a bit. "Really? That's where I go to school, too! I'll also be a senior!"

Peter tilted his head, trying to study Jimmy's face. "Yeah, I thought you looked familiar."

"Parker, Parker," Jimmy said, thinking aloud. "Hey, aren't you the brainy kid? The one that was in that accident last year?"

Peter smiled. "That's me."

"That's why I didn't recognize you. You don't have your glasses!"

"I stopped wearing them about six months ago."

Jimmy motioned around the City Room. "Want to take that look-around now?"

Peter shrugged. "Might as well."

"Hey, Parker!" someone called out. Peter looked back. He saw a brown haired jock driving a car coming up the street. The car pulled up to the curb. Peter sighed and walked over.

"Flash Thompson," Peter said.

"Hey, Parker. How you doin'?" Flash asked, flashing his smile showing off his perfect teeth.

"I'm doing okay. I just got a job at the Daily Planet."

"Really! What are you? Hot-shot ace reporter?"

"Nope. I'm a photographer."

"Cool. Wait a minute! I think I know someone who's a photographer for the Planet." Flash snapped his fingers. "Jimmy . . . something!"

"Jimmy Olsen. Yes, we've met."

"So, how did you become a photog?" Flash asked.

"I was able to snap some pictures of Spider-Man fighting the Joker."

"Spider-Man!"

"I assume you've heard of him."

"Who hasn't! He like - the coolest! Well, nice talking to you, Peter. See ya 'round!"

With that, Flash drived off, and Peter began walking again, wondering why the star football player had just had that conversation with him, all around posterboy for school nerd.

Suddenly, he felt a buzzing, tingling sensation. He looked around, and then ran to the window and looked out, but saw nothing. He walked over and looked out his bedroom door. Nothing.

'What was it?' he thought. 'Why did I felt that buzz?'

Outside, a dark figure sat in a tree, looking at the houses in the neighborhood, laughing.

"Oh, I am so happy for you, Peter," Aunt May said. "I'm sure it will be a lot of fun for you."

"I'm sure it will too, Aunt May," Peter replied between bites of his hamburger.

"Just don't do anything too dangerous."

"I'll try not to, Aunt May."

"A shame though that you got the job with pictures of that awful Spider-Man. That crazy man that killed your uncle was raving about that madman," Aunt May said, yet again. "But, a job's a job."

Peter had heard this before, and so he ate the rest of his dinner in silence.

At the podium, Lex Luthor was making a speech. Peter lifted his camera and snapped some pictures as Lois took notes.

"And so, this is my way of giving back to the community," Luthor said, with a smile that was obviously for the cameras. "LexCorp has appropriated the funds to build a park for the neighborhood children on this site. But, this will be no ordinary park. I have helped in the planning and development for a special facility which will allow children to come in and learn about new technologies, and hopefully have a little fun . . . "

Luthor continued, but Peter stopped paying attention. He was there to take pictures, a job which didn't involve listening to Luthor ranting. He leaned toward Lois.

"How much longer will he be?" Peter whispered.

"It depends on how much he actually cares about this project," Lois replied. "It shouldn't be too long. Most of this information has already been put out. This is just the groundbreaking."

"Then dig a chunk of dirt up and get this over with!"

"Be patient, Peter. I'm sure it's not that bad."

Peter smirked.

The man stood in the shadows. He wore a greenish outfit. He picked up a large bowl and placed it on his head.

Lifting his right hand, mist swirled away from it. The scenery in front of him faded and changed. He now stood on a beach.

Under the mask of glass, he smiled.

"I've heard of slow news days, but this is the slowest," Lois declared. "The only newsworthy item is the groundbreaking."

Peter sighed. "What we need is a big story to blow people's minds."

As if on cue, all of the windows on the exterior wall of the City Room shattered.

"What the--?!" Lois screamed.

Perry came out of his office. "Great Caesar's Ghost!" he exclaimed. "What in the world did this?"

Suddenly, the wind picked up and a man floated in. He was tall and pale, wearing a dark green and black suit. He was wearing white gloves with the fingers cut out. On the ring finger of his right hand, he wore a strange ring.

"I come for Spider-Man!" he proclaimed. "I am Lax, a member of the CORPS. I demand to know where Spider-Man is."

"What makes you think that we know how to find him?" Lois asked.

Lax floated over to her and stared at her. "Because," he said. "You recently published pictures of his fight with a madman you call the Joker."

Lois looked at Peter nervously. Lax noticed this and turned his head to the young photographer. "Where you the one to capture the image?" he asked.

"Yes," Peter replied. "But I don't know how to find Spider-Man. He usually shows up when there's trouble."

Lax looked at Peter, and then turned to Lois's desk. He picked up her monitor and threw it across the room. The screen shattered and the casing broke.

"There. I have made trouble. Now, where is Spider-Man?"

No one said a word.

"Very well," Lax said. "I shall have to do this the hard way." He picked Lois up and ran out the window.

"No!" Peter shouted, running to the window. He saw Lax floating down, giving him a little wave.

Everyone in the office was stunned. Perry looked around. "Well, what are you waiting for? A story just literally crashed into our office! Parker! Go get some pictures!"

"Yes, sir!" Peter exclaimed as he ran down the stairs. The elevator was in use, and he could waste no time. Not many people used the stairs, so it would be a safe place to change into Spider-Man.

He activated the nano-machines, and Spider-Man burst out onto the ground floor, and ran into the street. He quickly saw Lax.

"Hey, YOU!" he shouted. "That's not the way to treat a lady!"

"Well, well," Lax said, turning around. "It looks like I was right." He put Lois down. Spidey saw that she was tied up with something, but he couldn't tell what. Quickly, he attached his camera to a wall nearby as Lax walked over. That was for general shots, which would get both opponents. He still had the second camera that was built into his belt.

"I heard you were looking for me," Spidey said.

"Yes," Lax replied. "I am here to see if Earth is ripe for the master."

"Master?"

"I must see if events long planned have begun."

"And what do I have to do with this?"

"You are an anomaly. You are not accounted for in the master's plans."

"And what are these plans?"

"I cannot tell you. Besides, in a few moments, it will not be of any concern to you."

"Why is that?"

"Because," Lax said, very frankly, and with a bit of an evil smile, "you will be dead."

"Why me?" Spidey asked. "Why not Captain America, or that Bat guy in Gotham, or even those Young Justice brats? Why me?"

"You were the first one that I saw. Therefore, you must be wiped out."

Spidey released two weblines, one attached to each of Lax's legs. "Let's see how well you can wipe me out while you're on your back!" he exclaimed as he pulled on the weblines. Lax remained standing. He laughed.

'Oh, no,' Spidey thought.

Lax grabbed the webs and pulled hard. The force made the wallcrawler fly forward, right at Lax. As he got nearer to Lax's face, Lax punched him, sending him flying back even farther than he had run. He landed several blocks behind the Daily Planet.

As Spidey tried to regain his composure, he groaned. He knew he was embedded in pavement. Traffic would be a nightmare for hours. The blackness was coming over him. He wanted to welcome it, but then he saw Lax standing over him.

"Still alive?" he asked. "We'll just see about that!" He reached down and picked Spidey up, tossing him back the way he came.

Spidey stuck his arms out and fired weblines. That stopped his flight. Lax came running. Spidey jumpped up and landed on his opponent's back, knocking him down.

"You are a good fighter," the corps member said. "But not good enough!" he added as he backflipped, sending Spidey crashing back into the pavement yet again.

Spidey let the webbing build up inside his webshooters for a while. He lay on his back, waiting for Lax to come after him, which he did. As soon as Lax was standing above him, he fired both balls of impact webbing, one into Lax's head, the other to an area on his body which should have put him out of the fight for while.

Lax stumbled back. Spidey stood up and began to punch Lax continually in the face and gut. He was causing his opponent to move back, which he considered a good sign. It was a good thing, until Lax was able to punch back.

Spidey stumbled back a few feet, holding his stomach, trying to catch his breath. Meanwhile, Lax came running at him. Spidey saw this and groaned.

"You know," he said, "you keep running at me like this, and I'll never get a decent joke in!"

"Funny," Lax said, hitting the webslinger in the gut. Or so he thought. Instead, Spidey had had enough time to erect a webshield and push Lax back.

Lax fell to the ground. He laid there, on his side. 'This isn't working. Brute force isn't enough,' he thought.

He stood up. Spidey rushed him, and the next thing the wallcrawler knew, he had been batted away, literally.

"Where the heck did that bat come from?" he asked.

Lax gave no answer. Instead, he silently walked over to Spider-Man. Before he could get there, Spidey leaped up and jumped, trying to grab the building behind Lax. However, he felt a chain around his foot, and was pulled down hard.

'Man, the only way to get out of this is to fake either major injury or death,' Spidey thought. 'I've spent most of this massacre on the ground.'

"What happened?" he asked.

"Some lunatic came in and shattered all the windows, demanding Spider-Man," Perry answered.

"Why here? Why Spider-Man?"

"He claims it was because of the story and photos we recently ran."

"Where's Lois and Peter?"

"Lois was kidnapped by the . . . person, and Peter is out getting pictures, I hope."

"What do you want me to do, chief?"

"Spider-Man's fighting the guy outside. I want you to get some photos, in case Parker can't. Mostly, try to get the damage and the crowd reaction. Parker should be getting the fight."

"Okay!"

Smiling, he walked back to his desk to begin a new editorial. "Blasted superhero caused my building to be destroyed," he muttered.

Police arrived on the scene just as the perpetrator was making his getaway.

One of the cops got out of his car and watched him leave. He pushed the button down on his radio. "Uh, command, I have a clear ID on the perp. It appears to be the quote superhero known as Spider-Man."

"I have tortured you," he said, bringing the hero down slowly. "Now, I shall BREAK YOU!" he shouted.

Spidey acted fast. He commanded the nano-machines to emit an electrical charge. The charge was enough to make Lax drop him. Spidey used his agility to land on his feet.

Click!

Spidey turned around. 'Olsen!' he thought. 'He's taking pictures too! Gotta keep him away from Lax. Of course, Lax's only plan is to turn me into worm food.'

Suddenly, Spidey felt the wind get knocked out of him. He doubled over, surprised that he hadn't been knocked several feet back. Looking up, he saw Lax, on one knee, grabbing his right hand. Spidey took the opportunity. He came up and slugged Lax right upside the head.

All this time, he was formulating a plan. He had to get out of the Spider-Man suit, and make it appear dead. Of course, he also had to make sure that he could get the suit back after Lax had realized that the fight was over.

Of course, if he kept this up, he wouldn't really have to worry about that plan. Webbing Lax up, he heaved and began swinging. Lax was twirling around in the air. Spidey aimed for outer space and let go. Lax went flying.

Spider-Man ran over to Lois and was able to get her mouth free. She was still bonded though.

"What are these things?" he asked.

"I don't know," Lois replied. "He made them materialize out of thin air."

"What?"

"Look, all I know is what I saw."

"Okay, okay," Spidey said, helping Lois up. "Quickly, get back to the Planet. You should be safe there. I'll try to finish this fight as fast as I can."

Spider-Man turned around and saw Lax. His stood tall and proud. His body glowed with a greenish aura. Or maybe it was yellow, or blue. Spidey couldn't tell.

Lax came closer. He formed a bat. Spidey thought fast and activated his light. It shined bright. He quickly switched it to regular, so it would blind Lax.

Lax brought the bat down, but it disentigrated. He took a step back, grabbing his head. Spidey came up and punched him in the gut before shutting the light off.

'Lax,' a voice said into Lax's head. Even Spider-Man couldn't hear it. 'Lax, you must return. This one is not worth it. Besides, there are many others. Return, and we will stratagize.'

"Yes, master," Lax said.

"Huh?" Spidey asked. "Who are you talking to?"

"None of your business, peon." Lax turned and walked away. However, two steps later, he turned back and charged Spidey. "I will leave now. But rest assured, I will be back!" With that, he decked Spidey so hard, Spidey passed out.

As Lax left, Lois's bonds disappeared.

However, when he got home and looked in the mirror, he couldn't see any physical bruises. That was good. He didn't have to worry about hiding anything, or coming up with excuses.

He really started liking the nano-machines. However, some changes would have to be made to the costume.

"Mr. White, here are the pictures," he said holding up the film. "Should I get them developed immediately?"

"Yes, Parker," Perry replied. "I think it's too late for the evening edition, but we should be able to make tomorrow's morning paper. Get Olsen to teach you how to develop."

"Yes, sir! Where is Jimmy?"

"He should be in the darkroom."

"Peter! You have pictures that need developing, too?"

Peter held up the roll of film. "Mr. White said I should get you to teach me . . . "

Jimmy opened the door. "Come on in!"

"Wow," Jimmy said. "These are great. How did you get them?"

"Well," Peter replied, "some of them, I got from a building nearby. Because of the fight, I was a bit shaken up. I think I still have a small headache."

"No kidding."

"So where were you all morning?"

"Me? I was downtown, buying some film, looking at new cameras."

Peter looked at his. "Yeah, I guess I better think about a new one soon. Maybe after the first few paychecks."

Jimmy laughed. "That's the truth. It was at least three months before I thought about getting a new one."

"Are they that expensive?"

"Not really. It's just that you don't want to use your entire paycheck for it."

'I wouldn't have to if someone hadn't stolen Spider-Man's money,' Peter thought. 'Then again, I wouldn't be here. Maybe some day, I'll find that money.'

SPIDER-MAN: MENACE!

It would be in big bold letters.

'That wallcrawler cost me much money. Now I must pay to repair the windows in the City Room, and everything else that was lost. Someday, I'll get that wallcrawler, webslinging menace,' he thought.

As he finished the editorial, he clicked the send button. The editorial was on its way to the press. Although, because of the big news day, it would be bumped for several days.

Peter looked over the paper and smiled.