Summary:Spiderman reaches out to Whitestar, trying to turn her from her path of revenge by telling her of his own experiences. Log Info:Storyteller: None |
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Spider-Man lands on the side of the Empire State Building, looking out at the city. He takes a deep breath. ALICE is telling him that Tombstone and the others are going to jail at that moment.
It was at this point that his thoughts turned to Whitestar. He felt something for her. It was sympathy, he realized. She hated Kori, but after what he had heard, he felt Whitestar had gone through literal hell and that sort of thing can break a person.
"ALICE?"
"Yes, Spider-Man?"
"…Call Whitestar."
The V.I. paused for a moment, but only a moment. "Dialing…"
And somewhere in the city, a phone began to ring.
Meanwhile, somewhere in a dark place…sparks shoot in the air as Whitestar uses a stolen welder to carefully break down the casing for a large metal sun, filled with advanced technology. It was previously the centerpiece of the Sol-Tec campus in the city, a inspiration and example of their solar technology designed to make buildings more eco and heat friendly by absorbing solar energy rather than reflecting it.
Now…it's parts. And she's getting increasingly frustrated as she realizes how little she understands this planet's tech. She can SEE how the components work, but how to refine them into something that'll help /her/….that's unclear. She finally tosses the welder down, growling, then pulls off the black hoodie she's wearing, brushign off a few sparks that are burning holes in the fabric, leaving her just in her straps. She hasn't found anything she's willing to wear as of yet. Not that she particularly cares about losing her clothes when she explodes…but it's annoying, and it's the only fabric that's been able to resist her detonations thus far.
She's been through three hoodies already.
Then the phone rings, and she glances at it askance, frowning as she rubs her forehead for a moment, the gem in her glowing brightly enough to be a headlamp in the darkness, flickering fitfually. She'll have to find someplace to release the energy soon.
Finally, she walks over and picks up the phone, looking at the screen, before hesistating, then touching the green one that makes the phone pick up, then staring at it uncertainly, before she lifts it to her ear. "…"
CALL CONNECTED.
The message appears on the HUD of the suit, as well as a counter counting up in seconds. He pauses for only the briefest of moments.
"Hello, Whitestar? …it's Spider-Man."
"…yes." the Tamaranean says after a moment, frowning to herself. "Why are you calling me?" She leans back against her makeshift work bench, picking up one of the supercapacitors she's managed to work free, turning it over in her hand. "Last time, you talked to me then shot sticky liquid at me."
Spidey leaned back against the sheer wall, looking out at the city. "I couldn't let you steal it, Whitestar. It was a matter of right and wrong. I was trying to keep you from doing the wrong thing." He paused, then sighed. "And I called because…well, I was concerned about you. The last time we met, we were opponents. Nothing I can do about that. But that doesn't mean I can't be concerned for your welfare."
There's a pause. "Concerned for me." she says after a moment, closing her eyes, her brow furrowing as she rubs it. It's like…holding in a full body migraine, she's finding. Keeping this power in check. She's managed to keep it under control, but all it requires is her to lose control of her emotions too much. They control her powers, in a way. The stronger, the stronger her power is. NOrmally, that's be a good thing. But when you're trying to desperate hold in the power…
"It does not matter. I found a replacement. Those who responded were more interested in removing those in the area than stopping me."
Spidey blinked. He had to remind himself this sort of thing happened. He can't be everywhere at once.
He took another deep breath. "What are you trying to build, Whitestar? You said the last time we met you said you needed to stop something that kept happening. Are you talking about that nova effect? The one we saw you do the first time we met?"
There's another hesistation. She could tell him….but that would be giving away more of her weakness to someone who's been an opponent. And will likely be again, if she continues her quest for revenge. But…
He has tried to be kind to her. She can't remember the last time people were kind. There was no kindness where she was.
"Yes." she says, a little reluctantly. "What was done to me is not…stable."
Spider-Man hmms. "…okay. Listen. If you are willing to be patient with me…maybe I might know someone willing to apply his brain to the problem. No one will try to imprison you, or tie you up, or stick you in a prison cell. I just…" He took a deep breath. "…I just don't want you to hurt anyone, Intentionally or not. That's the only thing I'd ask."
He looked around. "Whitestar, I know you want payback. I might want to talk to you about it. But right now, I just want to try and help you that you don't kill someone who is unlucky enough to be around you."
He added, "If you want to just talk…or vent, or complain, or just get it out so that you're not the only one having to deal with it…"
Whitestar hesistates again. "…I can't trust anyone here. Your authorities are already looking for me to capture me. To lock me away again. I will /not/ be locked away." she adds, a tinge of powerful emotion in her voice. "I have someone in mind. They can….do what I need done. I won't harm them."
Spider-Man looked around. "Are they going to come willingly, or are they being coerced?"
"I will…ask them." When she has them back in her hideout. And are less likely to be able to run off if they say no at first. "I will nhot harm them." she reiterates. "As long as they do what I need done." She reaches out to a nearby table, picking up a picture of a blurred, bulky looking armor flying through the air.
Spider-Man looked around. "Okay. But, Whitestar…if there comes a time when you need help…call me. I'll do anything I can do to help you without breaking the law." He felt a little unsure, but there was that feeling again. Like she'd been shafted by life…multiple times. That sort of thing can scar you in ways he may be unable to understand.
Whitestart shifts slightly, her lips frowning. "…I believe you. But you are a hero of this world. You will not stand for what must be done. What I /must/ do. She cannot live. Not with what she's done. Not with what she's caused. It is /justice/ that she die, painfully, like so many others she condemned." Her voice trails off, before she more quietly, her voice rough. "…do not stand in my way, when that day comes."
Jeez, she was going to take it to the limit. "One of these days, I'd like you to give me the specifics. But I also want to ask, if you believe in the concept of ATONEMENT. That a person can try to do something to make up for what they've done."
"…if someone had, to save herself, sacrificed her family, her people, her world. If she had gotten all that you loved destroyed. If her actions led to years of torture and pain, and the deaths of hundreds more in the most cruel ways immaginable….would you forgive them?" Whitestar's voice is a low growl of hatred now, trembling. "There is no /atonement/ at that point. There is no justice left. Only /vengeance/."
Spidey took a deep breath. "I don't understand the pain you went through. I can't. And i won't lie and say I understand. I sympathize, but I don't understand that…magnitude. But there is one thing I can say."
He paused. "My uncle was murdered about two years ago. By a guy who wanted money. I hated this person…until I realized that I could have stopped him before that night. And I didn't. Because I was selfish. But I hated that man for taking the person I respected most in the whole world."
He pauses. Collecting himself.
"But when you hate someone…you give them power over you."
There's a low growl from the other end of the phone, then a muttered word in an alien language. But she's listening at least. Her eyes close, as she leans back against the wall, so many images flashing through her. "…I sorrow for your loss." she says after a moment.
"I dream about it. Have nightmares, really. But I can no more save his life than I can unscramble eggs. But I hated him for a long time. I'd dream about when I caught him, beat him senseless…only wishing that I finished the job, so he wouldn't hurt anyone else. Killing him to save others."
This hurts. It doesn't measure up, but there is something he is leading to.
"And then…one day…I realized he was controlling my life. By thinking what I thought, I had created him, in my head. A monstrous version of him, the him that my hatred saw. And he LIVED there. My hatred of him affected my choices, my thoughts, my moods. Much of what I did was affected by what I thought of him, and others like him. And then, one day, I realized I had taken someone I hated and gave 'him'…a version of him, anyway…control of my life. And the real him? He didn't even know I existed, who i was."
The voice on the other side is quiet now. Listening.
Spidey kept talking. "My situation isn't anywhere near yours. I lost one person. One person can be your whole world, but that's only you. You have lost so much more. But you have a Kori in your head too, don't you? Someone you see as a monster. Someone you wish vengeance on. Someone you want to destroy. The question is…has she become your sole reason to exist? For your vengeance? If that is true…then this version of her OWNS you. And she's not even the real Kori."
Another long pause, then her voice cracks with emotion when Whitestar speaks. ragged mow. "…I have nothing else left, Man of Spiders. She has to die. It…it won't make sense if she doesn't pay for what she's done. None of it will. I /have/ to…."
"She'll always be the monster in my head. Until she dies, or I die."
"I don't care which."
Spider-Man takes a deep breath. "There's a third option, Whitestar. But it will be the toughest thing fo you to do. Your entire sense of self will fight against it. The very nature of it will offend you. But if you can do it, you will be free.And she, the monster in your head, will be toothless, powerless, and banished from your mind."
Here we go.
"It would mean that you would give up your vengeance. To forgive. To absolve them of guilt. I can get a pretty good idea how you would feel about that, Whitestar. But you wouldn't do it for her. You would be doing it for yourself. When you do that, all the power she has over you is GONE. And then you can see that those two options are a waste of yourself. You don't have to kill. You don't have to die. People would be willing to help you. *I* would be willing to help you. But it all hinges on the most difficult choice you can possibly make. Forgiving my uncle's murderer was hard…but it freed me to see that I could help others. That I could move beyond him, that I can change my future for the better. This course you're locked on to? You tell yourself that there is no other option."
Spider-Man smiles slightly.
"But no matter what you choose, I'll still consider you a friend."
On the other side, Whitestar runs her fingers through her hair, almost pulling at the mass of silver, her eyes blinking as a tear traces down her cheek, pushed out as she closes her eyes. "…I can't…I can't forgive her. I won't forgive her. I want me fingers around her throat, to see the understanding in her eyes when I /CRUSH/ the life from her, just like I saw in all those who….I /CAN'T/!"
And the, unfortunately…without realizing it the Tamaranean squeezes too hard.
There's a crunch as the phone shatters…and the line goes dead.
CONNECTION LOST.
Spidey sighed. Time to get a new phone. And see if she still wants it. He hopes she does.
He looked out at the skyline and sighed. On to the next crisis…
He fires a webline and leaps into the night.
Deep in the dark, Whitestar looks down at the shattered pieces, blinking through blurry eyes, then lets the pices fall from her hand. Friends. She can't have friends. Not friends who will fight her because they believe in…things she has left behind. She can't have them.
She turns, looking at the pieces of equipment laid out already in the table…the beginnings of some sort of armored harness.
"I can't….but either way, one day, either way….I will be free of her…" she whispers quietly, then scrubs at her eyes, walking over to the table. And goes back to assembling what she can. She'll need someone to fix that…and that will mean the Man of Spiders will be her opponent, possibly.
She can't be a friend, when that is true. Not if it blocks her path.
Not even then. She can't bear otherwise but to go forward.