X Marks The Spot

Gwen Stacy had gotten used to being catcalled long ago, and so she did her best to ignore the cheers and whistles as she passed by the construction site. She'd always had mixed emotions about it-while she often took pride in how good she looked, and how she could be the hottest guest at any social function, she was sickened by how crude and juvenile some of the catcalls could be.

Even then, though, she couldn't help but wonder how many other women would attract as much attention as she did while wearing a flannel shirt, a thick jacket, blue jeans and black Converse high-top sneakers. She wasn't exactly dressed to kill, given that it was a windy day in late October, but even so Gwen could still get admiring glances from men and jealous ones from women. Despite her annoyance at how juvenile the catcalls could get, Gwen couldn't help but feel a certain pride at how good she could look, no matter what the weather was like.

I could be dressed like a firefighter or a construction worker, Gwen thought to herself with a smile, and I'd still have guys drooling over me…

…but then I'd also get the catcalls, she thought to herself with a frown.

I like the attention, I really do, Gwen continued, but why do some of these guys have to act so crude about it?

SPIDER-WOMAN #78

"X MARKS THE SPOT"

The young man cursed inwardly as he made his way through the bus terminal, realizing that everyone was staring at him. Emotions ranging from concern at the troubled look on his face to admiration at his intense, handsome features crossed the faces of everyone whose glance he caught. It was a vicious cycle, he knew-his emotions made his strides determined and purposeful, and attracted other people's attention to him. That only made him more aggravated, which only heightened his magnetism.

Taking a deep breath, he turned his powers back in on himself, trying to make himself inconspicuous, or at least normal-looking, but that effort only made him continue to look intense and focused, such that people continued to pay attention to him even after the effects of his powers wore off.

The young man shook his head as he came up to the counter, taking his wallet out of his pocket.

"Where to, son?" the older man behind the counter asked.

"One pass to New York," the young man replied, making as if to hand over his credit card.

"Billy Collins, huh?" the older man asked as he glanced at the man's credit card. "You hoping to star on Broadway or something?" he joked, as he began to scan the card.

The young man's eyes flashed for a moment, as he dared to focus his powers.

To everyone and everything around him, it seemed as though the booth attendant had scanned in his credit card, and simply printed out his ticket. Of course, that was what he wanted them to think, when in fact he'd scrambled the perceptions of everyone around him and simply gotten the machine to print out a free ticket.

The young man hated stealing from the bus company, and hated himself even more for doing it, but he was already taking a dreadful risk by having a credit card in the first place. The less of an electronic trail he left, the better. Simply using his powers, despite his best efforts to keep them in check, was practically like using a cell phone to broadcast where he was. All anyone tracking the phone's user had to do was check which cell towers the signals were bouncing off of, and they could get a good idea of where the person had been.

He'd managed to get around that problem by using burner phones and Internet terminals at public libraries and Internet cafes, but even then he knew he was still leaving an electronic trail for his pursuers.

All of them.

"Thanks a lot for your help, Gwen," Gwen's cousin Jill Stacy said gratefully as she put on the headpiece. "I'd have never gotten this done without your help!"

"Come on, it's not a problem," Gwen assured her. "Besides, you look hot!" she grinned, as Jill admired herself in the mirror.

Aside from the fact that She-Ra had blonde rather than black hair, Jill looked just like the cartoon character come to life. From her red cape to the gold-colored boots to the prop sword she was carrying, Jill played the role of She-Ra to perfection. Gwen had been an invaluable help, gathering together many of the materials and fashioning them into costume pieces.

"You're going to knock them dead at Fright Night!" Gwen grinned, as Jill just giggled. The Fright Night festivities were a set of Halloween parties organized by Empire State University to help students unwind from the stress of midterm exams. This year's Fright Night was the first one Jill was attending as a freshman Empire State student, and she was determined to make the most of it.

Gwen was very satisfied with the way things had turned out. Once again, she'd come to realize how losing her job at the Gloom Room A Go-Go had actually been something of a blessing in disguise for her, as it had given her more free time to keep on top of her schoolwork and prepare for midterm exams. In between preparing her and Jill's costumes for Halloween, and studying for midterms, Gwen had been very busy, but she hadn't had anywhere the same level of stress she had on previous occasions.

"How about you, Gwen?" Jill asked. "What are you going as?"

"Never you mind," Gwen grinned, thinking of how her friends and family, especially her mother Helen Stacy and her boyfriend Randy Robertson, would react when they saw her costume.

Working as a gate attendant at a bus company wasn't the most glamorous job in the world, but Gerry Brown had never really been interested in glamor or excitement to begin with. Compared to life in the big city, life in the more outlying towns was much more laidback and peaceful, just the way that Gerry liked it. His wife shared the same sentiment, and neither one had any interest in moving to a larger community or making more money than they already did at their current jobs.

Some called it boring, but Gerry and his wife considered it peaceful and relaxing.

Hence it was all the more surprising when the FBI agent arrived, demanding to speak to Gerry's boss, and then to Gerry himself. He couldn't possibly fathom what could have brought a fed to a smaller community like his, much less what the fed wanted to ask him about.

"What's this all about…" Gerry trailed off as he sat down in his boss's office across from the fed, who merely reached into the pocket of his sport coat.

"Special agent Fanon, FBI," the agent replied, showing Gerry his ID before returning it to his pocket. "I need to talk to you about a fugitive I believe purchased a bus ticket from your window."

Gerry only scratched his head as Agent Fanon pulled out a smartphone and typed into it briefly, before displaying the screen to Gerry.

"Yeah, I served that kid," Gerry nodded. "His name was…Billy Collins, I think."

"Billy Collins, huh?" Agent Fanon. "I might have guessed-that's one of his most common aliases. Where was he headed?"

"I…believe it was New York," Gerry replied. "But surely you could have gotten that from our records?"

"There's nothing in your records, as your manager's already confirmed," Agent Fanon pointed out. "I believe that young man used some sort of trickery to get a free ticket from you. Our profile suggests that he may actually be a mutant."

"…A mutant?" Gerry asked in shock.

"That's right," Agent Fanon nodded. "Hence my need to speak to you, to see if you might have recalled him."

"Well, I certainly did," Gerry nodded. "He had a most imposing presence about him-and he's not the sort of person you'd forget easily."

"Likely not," Agent Fanon shook his head as he stood up to leave. "Thanks for your help, Mr. Brown-you've done your country a great service…"

Gerry only shook his head as he made his way back to his station.

Halloween night…

Randy Robertson took a few moments to admire his costume in the rearview mirror, before getting out of the car and walking up the front steps of the Stacys' townhouse. He hadn't seen Gwen or most of the rest of his friends all week, given how busy they were with midterms and other commitments, but tonight was going to make up for all of it.

He smiled eagerly as he rang the doorbell, eagerly looking forward to whatever costume Gwen had come up with. She had been coy about it for quite a while, saying that it would be the last thing he would have ever expected.

"Hello, Randy!" Gwen's mother Helen greeted him as she opened the door to let him in. "Gwen's just about ready-she wanted to surprise you with her costume."

"Hello, Mrs. Stacy," Randy nodded politely. "How are things going?"

"Oh, they're fine," Helen assured him, "but you don't need to stand on ceremony with me, honey," she continued, before turning to face the stairs.

"Gwen, will you hurry up already?" she called upstairs.

As he got a good look at her costume, Randy realized that Gwen had been right-it was just about the last one he would have expected her to wear.

Gwen was clad in a spandex bodysuit, colored pure white on the arms and legs up to the middle of her upper arms and her thighs. The rest of the costume, including the torso and the upper parts of her arms and legs, was black except for the large white spider that took pride of place on her chest, with a duplicate image on the back. Her long blonde hair flowed down behind her, and she was smiling that perfect, beautiful smile as she walked down the stairs.

"So, what do you think?" Gwen grinned, turning around once and again, showing every inch of her perfect frame, which her costume did nothing at all to hide.

Randy stared askance at her. He was amazed at how good she looked, but he was even more surprised that she was apparently going to the Fright Night party in her own identity as the spectacular Spider-Woman, albeit apparently in a new costume design.

"You look…wow…" Randy babbled, still not entirely believing what he was seeing.

"So what are you supposed to be?" Gwen asked, as she skipped down the stairs and gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

"The name's Shaft…John Shaft," Randy grinned, quickly regaining his wits as he got into character. "He's a badass mother-"

"Shut your mouth!" Gwen shot back.

"But I'm talking about Shaft, man!" Randy protested.

"Then we can dig it!" Gwen grinned, before they both fell into laughing.

"Sorry," Gwen apologized. "I didn't recognize you at first," she continued.

"Well, I admit that I don't look much like Richard Roundtree," Randy nodded, pleased that Gwen had recalled the classic film and the iconic Isaac Hayes theme that had accompanied it. He'd shown it to her several months ago when they'd decided to stay in and enjoy some movies downloaded from Hulu, and he was glad that she hadn't forgotten it.

"You ready to go?" Gwen asked.

"Not just yet," Helen insisted. "I've got to get a picture-there we go!" she grinned as she took a picture with her phone. "You two have a good time, alright?"

"We sure will, Mom," Gwen replied, hugging Helen tightly. "Come on, let's go!"

"So what's with the costume?" Randy asked, once he and Gwen were in his car.

"What, you don't like it?" Gwen grinned mischievously. She had hoped that Jill would come with them, but she was going to another Fright Night bash with some of her own friends.

"Of course, I love it," Randy replied, barely managing to avoid stumbling over his words, "I'm just not sure why you'd want to do it. Why'd you do it?"

"Why not?" Gwen grinned. "I thought it would be a cool twist."

"Yeah, but aren't you worried about your secret identity?" Randy asked in concern.

"Not really," Gwen shook her head, "not when there are other people out there going as me for Halloween. Remember last year, and how many people were going as Spider-Man or Daredevil?"

"Yeah, I guess," Randy shrugged. "And besides, who am I to complain? I mean, I'm going to be going in there with you on my arm."

Gwen just grinned and laughed at that.

Who'd have thought the best Halloween costume I could wear this year would be to go as myself? Gwen thought.

The young man knew that Empire State University was likely the best place to hide out for the time being, among other people his own age. Unfortunately, it was now halfway through the semester, which meant he couldn't enroll in any classes until the winter term. He could have used his powers to get the university's professors, students and administrators to enroll him into the system and act as though he'd always been there, but that would have been the equivalent of broadcasting his whereabouts across the Internet. As it was, he'd had to settle for manipulating a couple of administrators into letting him audit a few courses under the pretense of trying to decide his major, even as he manipulated a local restaurant owner into giving him a waiter's job so he could pay his bills.

He hated himself for using his abilities on the unsuspecting people he was manipulating, but he simply couldn't see any other alternative besides being imprisoned by the people pursuing him. Unfortunately, he couldn't help himself from naturally attracting attention with his natural psychic radiations, and he'd already run into a few people who he'd been able to bond with. They'd invited him to the Fright Night festivities, even offering to help him with his costume.

At first he'd been inclined to turn them down, concerned about the danger he might put them in, but the months of loneliness and desperation had taken their toll on him.

Just for one night, he needed the companionship.

Jean Grey's head pounded with the effort of working Cerebro, the high-tech computer that could detect and analyze the presence of mutants even over vast distances. It was a technological marvel, the work of her teammate Forge, a genius at invention and engineering whose skills Jean considered to be on the same level as the likes of Tony Stark or Stuart Clarke.

It was through Cerebro that Professor Charles Xavier, with Forge's help, had recruited young mutants still struggling to master their abilities, and formed them into the X-Men as a group that not only fought mutant and other criminal, supervillain threats, but also advocated for mutant rights in society and taught young mutants how to fully control their budding abilities. In the six years since they'd been founded, the X-Men's efforts had proven very successful, particularly in discrediting the mutant registration movement and getting anti-mutant activists exposed as the bigots they were. However, at Professor Xavier's insistence, the X-Men still worked to help educate young mutants in controlling their abilities, particularly when they would otherwise be a danger to themselves or others.

The search Jean was currently engaging in was a poignant one for her, as she suspected she knew the mutant in question very well. She could only imagine what he was going through, if the manifestation of his mutant powers was anything like hers.

That wasn't the only thing that worried her, though.

She was also worried about who might be after him.

"I take it everything is in order, Professor Fanon?" Debra Whitman asked as she handed over the memory stick containing the information the professor had requested.

"Yes, it is," Professor Fanon nodded, a relieved look on her face. "It's our own fault, really-it's been a few weeks since our systems were attacked by that virus, and we still haven't gotten everything up to date yet! That's why I had to come down in person to pick up the records you gave me of the students who transferred over from Penn State-we're still double checking our systems to make sure that they're clean."

"It's no problem, really," Debra assured Professor Fanon. As a senior administrator in Empire State University's registrar's office, Debra was frequently called on to process rush requests for student records. Other institutions requesting records were given top priority when it came to requests, and Debra was always happy to oblige fellow academic travelers.

"Thank you so much," Professor Fanon shook Debra's hand warmly. "You're a lifesaver, believe me!"

"Oh, I do," Debra only smiled back, as she escorted Professor Fanon out of the registrar's office.

"Hey, it's-a me, Mario!" Ben Reilly greeted Gwen and Randy as they made their way into the university hall where the Fright Night festivity was being held. Dressed as the famous video game hero, Ben eagerly gave Randy a fist-bump as they came up to greet him, before hugging Gwen and giving her an approving once-over look.

"Is anybody else here yet?" Randy asked Ben, as they walked towards the open bar set up at the other side of the room.

"I doubt it," Ben shook his head. "The party just started-Liz and Harry said they were going to be a little late. Don't know about Kitty and Kong, though," he continued.

Gwen listened politely as Ben and Randy conversed, but out of the corner of her eyes she could already see many of the other guys in the crowd ogling her sexy costume, and the daggers a few of their dates were staring her. She did her best to repress a grin at that, edging a little closer to Randy as they got some drinks and continued chatting.

She wasn't quite sure what pleased her more at that point, the disappointed looks on the faces of the guys ogling her, or the jealous looks several of the women were still shooting at her.

"So what are you guys doing these days?" Ben asked once they'd gotten something to drink. "I heard the Gloom Room A Go-Go got trashed by a bunch of supervillains," he continued, referring to the retro nightclub where Gwen had recently worked as a waitress.

"Just keeping on top of my schoolwork," Gwen nodded. "I haven't been able to get a whole lot of modeling or acting work done recently, except for this one indie film that I've been working on."

"What's it about?" Ben asked.

"Something about wanting to recreate the typical situations inherent in modern life, or something like that," Gwen shrugged. "I don't know, really-the director's a pain in the ass, and she hates me because the guy funding the production got me the job. She thought that I just slept my way there."

"That's bullshit," Randy broke in.

"Of course it is," Gwen nodded, "but what can you do? I'm just glad the production's almost done. How about you? What are you doing these days?"

"Pretty much the same as you," Ben shrugged. "Still trying to keep my head above water. Just another day of life as a pre-med student. What's life like for you, Randy?"

"It's-" Randy started, before they were interrupted by the sounds of their names being called. Turning around, they were delighted to see Liz Allan and her boyfriend Harry Osborn coming towards them, dressed as Tinkerbell and Sherlock Holmes, respectively. It wasn't long before Gwen had caught Liz in a tight hug, and they began chatting away, even as Ben and their boyfriends watched in amusement.

"Oh, Gwen, it's been so long! And look at you-you look so hot tonight!" Liz gushed.

"Me?" Gwen asked incredulously. "What about you? I'm surprised Harry didn't have to beat the other guys off with a stick!"

"Come on," Liz rolled her eyes. "Give me a little credit, at least. So what have you and Randy been up to lately?"

"Working and studying," Gwen sighed, before filling Liz in about her work at the Gloom Room and April Reese's independent film. "What's life like for you and Harry?"

"It's heaven," Liz smirked. "Harry bought us a condo, and he's already interning at Other Side Productions."

"Who are they?" Gwen blinked. "Are they new, or are they-"

"Yeah, they're trying to really tap into the online market," Liz explained. "You'd be surprised at how many of these organizations are out there-they're dealing directly with places like Hulu and Netflix, setting up their own online news programs on places like YouTube, things like that. Harry says that's the future-traditional TV programs aren't going to be able to compete."

"Hmm," Gwen mumbled. "I'm wondering if…" she trailed off.

"What's wrong?" Liz asked in concern.

"It's nothing," Gwen assured her, as she mentally reminded herself to have a chat with Harry about all this online media stuff.

If traditional means of finding acting and modeling work are going to be going by the wayside, I should probably be looking into the new ones, Gwen thought to herself. Besides, I haven't really done much of that yet…

"How about you, though?" Gwen asked.

"I couldn't be happier," Liz grinned. "Harry treats me like a queen, he always makes time for me, and he…" she suddenly trailed off, as she realized what she was saying.

"…He what?" Gwen asked curiously.

"…Never mind," Liz flushed in sudden embarrassment.

"…It's fine, really," Gwen smirked, realizing what Liz was probably about to tell her and imagining how good Harry probably was at it if Liz was going to mention it. "Come on, let's go get you something to drink."

As they came back from the bar, they saw that Kitty and Kong had arrived dressed as Belle and the Disney version of the Beast.

Soon, the entire gang was back together again, catching up on old times.

Gwen had been enjoying the attention she'd been getting from the other partygoers, but this was nothing compared to the enjoyment she felt at reuniting with all her old friends.

The young man tried to keep a low profile as he made his way through the party. Unfortunately, that was when he realized that a large number of the female partygoers were staring at him. Their opinions of him was made quite plain by the looks on their faces, and some of them were already approaching him with eager expressions. His classy attire, dressed as the anime character Tuxedo Mask, did nothing to change their opinions of him.

He found himself yearning to reach out, eager to take some of the female partygoers in his arms.

All his frustrations and resentments, being forced to run and flee for his life, came up within him all at once.

His powers came up with them.

Gwen was paralyzed briefly when she saw him, unable to look away. She was only vaguely aware of how the other girls were sharing her admiring gazes, caught up by the young man's statuesque figure, his thick and tousled brown hair, the haunted look of his piercing blue eyes, and the poignant expression on his handsome face. Completely unable to take her eyes away, Gwen could only stare at him, entranced by his attractiveness.

When Randy tapped her on the shoulder, she jumped in surprise, before turning around in alarm.

"What…oh, Randy!" she babbled, feeling as though she'd just been suddenly awakened from a deep sleep. "You…where…what…"

"Who's that guy supposed to be dressed as, anyway?" he asked, gesturing at the young man.

"I'm…not sure…" Gwen said slowly, her gaze turning back towards him.

"Uh-huh…" Randy trailed off, unable to keep the edge out of his voice. "Well, I'm sure he doesn't need you standing there like a statue," he pointed out.

"…Randy?" Gwen asked in surprise, before she finally snapped out of her daze.

"I'm sorry, sweetie," she said, flushing in embarrassment. "I honestly don't know what came over me!"

"It's okay," Randy replied, the edge in his voice replaced by amusement as he saw how flustered Gwen was becoming. "Now you probably know how most of the guys feel when they look at you…"

"Yeah…I…" Gwen mumbled, her head still whirling.

"Come on, let's dance!" he said eagerly, leading her back as the new song began to play.

Soon, Gwen was leading the dance, making old friends and new, as she resumed her enjoyment of Fright Night.

Despite her best efforts, however, an image of the young man remained at the back of her mind.

She could feel her heart pounding when that image appeared.

The young man knew he'd made a serious mistake when he'd seen how all the women were gazing at him. His powers had radiated out along with his emotions, which was likely broadcasting his whereabouts to the people pursuing him.

Cursing himself for his stupidity, realizing that he could have potentially gotten all of these people killed, he quickly fled the scene, praying that he would be able to get away from them in time.

April Reese sighed in frustration as she reviewed the footage one more time. Here it was, Halloween night, and instead of partying with her friends she was trying to salvage this train wreck of a production. Would that she could just blame everything on that privileged little cow Gwen-Jonathan Caesar was on her back about how slowly the film was coming along, she'd lost her best cameraman to that new company broadcasting online theatrical productions, and her co-producer wasn't speaking to her.

Sometimes I wonder why I bother, April thought to herself. The sooner I'm done with this production-

She never got to finish the thought as the gunshot rang out.

All April felt was hot agony in the back of her head, and then nothing.

If April had still been alive at that point, she would have seen her assailant destroying the production equipment, and the months of work she'd put into her production, along with it.

"You're sure about this?" Scott Summers, alias Cyclops, asked Jean as the X-Men outfitted themselves. "Could you have confused him with someone else?"

"Not a chance, Scott," Jean shook her head. "He went to midtown Manhattan-he probably thinks he could get somebody like the Fantastic Four to help him."

"Damn it all," Cyclops cursed. "Why didn't he just contact us, instead?"

"Our fathers…didn't get along," Jean sighed. "He wouldn't have many memories of dealing with me, and he probably thinks that we'd try to recruit him for the X-Men if we contacted him. He's probably running from us as much as anyone else," she explained.

"What's wrong with-" Cyclops asked.

"Uncle Edward was always hounding him to join the sports teams that were trying to recruit him, or to listen to Uncle Edward's military friends when they encouraged him to join the army, from what I heard," Jean explained. "When he refused, Uncle Edward called him a disgrace to the family. You can imagine how he feels about people trying to recruit him for things after that."

"Alright then," Cyclops sighed in disappointment. "So why is he-"

"If he's in New York, he's probably going to try to get someone like Reed Richards to help him," Jean pointed out.

"…Okay," Cyclops nodded, noticing that the rest of the team had gathered. "If the Fantastic Four find him before we do, we can work with them. What about the B-"

"They're there, too," Jean nodded, answering the question for him. "Come on, we need to get going."

Cyclops nodded to Jean and to the rest of the team, hoping that they wouldn't be too late.

Swinging through the air in her crimefighting costume, Spider-Woman was relieved she hadn't had any alcohol at the party. While she had enjoyed herself, she'd realized, from what she'd heard in her Criminology classes, that criminals were more likely to be active on Halloween because of its association with darkness and evil. Hence she'd decided to go out on patrol after Randy had driven her home-past experience had taught her that when she expected criminal things to happen, they usually did.

Tonight was an exception, however, as she found that the streets were deserted except for costumed partygoers. As one hour turned into two, Spider-Woman found her thoughts drifting back to everything she'd seen and heard at the party. Notably, she reflected on how happy she was to see Liz, Kitty and their boyfriends again, and how much she'd missed hanging out with them.

I don't see them nearly as much as I should, Spider-Woman thought to herself. And I should pay Tarot a visit again, too…

Those things wouldn't be too difficult compared to trying to find new acting and modeling work, especially if more and more things were going to be online. Aside from a Facebook page and that website she'd set up to see if she had any more long-lost siblings out there, she didn't have much of an online presence. Who's to say what she couldn't accomplish on Twitter, or with a YouTube page? She'd picked up a lot of handy tips from various beauty gurus, so why couldn't she do the same thing?

Of course I can succeed at that, Spider-Woman thought to herself with a smile. I mean, it's not like anyone else has my looks, my talent and my presence!

The thought of presence then reminded her of that beautiful hunk she'd seen at the dance, who she and every other woman in the room had been ogling before Randy had brought her back to it. Thinking about it now, she couldn't quite understand what she found so enthralling about him-he was a hottie, of course!-but the look in his eyes, and the expression on his face…

…God, I feel just like Bella, she realized, thinking of the protagonist of the Twilight novels, her favorite book series.

Suddenly, she felt a well of shame at that.

What's wrong with me? Spider-Woman wondered. Randy treats me like a princess, and here I am drooling over some guy I don't even know like some horny schoolgirl?

She thought that over for a moment.

Well…it's not like those girls dumped their boyfriends when they ogled me, is it? Spider-Woman thought. After all…

Spider-Woman was suddenly jolted from her reverie by the sudden jolt she felt. At first she thought that it was her spider-senses, but then she realized that it was a source of energy that somehow seemed familiar to her, but that she couldn't quite place. More than that, though, it stirred up uncomfortable feelings in her, feelings that, whatever this energy was, it was very, very bad.

Looks like Professor Vargas was right after all, Spider-Woman realized, as she changed course and began webswinging towards the source of the energy, her heart pounding in anticipation.

Soon she heard cries of alarm, and saw lights coming on all around a nearby apartment complex. Swinging down towards it, she sensed that the energies she felt were definitely coming from here, although she still couldn't manage to place it.

The commotion in the common area became clear as she leaped down to ground level. Looking around in alarm, she saw the young man she'd seen at the Fright Night festivities, looking around like a hunted animal even as he began to try to push his way through the crowd. Unfortunately, his agitation only seemed to make the people crowd around him more, to the point that Spider-Woman felt her attention almost forcibly drawn to him.

Is he the source of the energy I've been feeling? Spider-Woman wondered. No, he isn't, so…

A loud rumbling sound filled the air as the pavement all around Spider-Woman and the apartment residents rose up, surrounding them in a barrier. At the same time, the air filled with the hateful laughter of several voices, as several figures seemed to materialize out of thin air from all around her. Two of them were all too familiar to Spider-Woman. One was a man dressed in heavy metal armor, with a hateful, manic look on his face. The other was a woman with wild white hair flowing freely behind her, and six arms protruding from her shoulders and sides, each of her hands brandishing a long dagger. The last of the figures was a man dressed in a blue bodysuit and goggles, with the image of a slashing sword on the chest of his uniform.

That was when Spider-Woman realized where she'd seen the energy she'd detected before.

It had over a year and a half since her family had been abducted by the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants in an attempt to draw out her father, the late unlamented George Stacy, for a public execution. Spider-Woman had been instrumental in helping the X-Men rescue her loved ones, especially with her defeat of the six-armed mutant, who was better known as Spiral. She'd also battled the armored man, the earth-manipulating mutant who called himself Avalanche, when he'd tried to forcibly recruit Kitty Pryde into the Acolytes of Magneto, the mutant supremacist terrorist who directed the Brotherhood's terrorist activities. While she didn't recognize the man with the goggles, it was easy to conclude that he was another member of the Brotherhood.

"So soon a reunion, little spider?" Spiral leered, bouncing from one foot to the other eagerly. "Do not think that I have forgotten your past slights, much less forgiven them!"

"All we want is Nathaniel Grey," Avalanche chimed in. "Well, that and a few dozen dead flatscan bodies wouldn't go amiss either…" he smiled evilly.

"It's three against one, sweetie," the goggle-wearing mutant, better known as Super Sabre, added. "You might as well just give up now…"

Spider-Woman's eyes narrowed. She sure as hell wasn't about to give up this Nathaniel Grey person, whoever he was, to them, and she knew that Avalanche and Spiral were going to try to kill the people penned in by Avalanche's raised ground, even if she didn't do anything.

Her only response to the mutant terrorists was to charge forward, her hands glowing with the energy of her sting blasts.

(Next Issue: Spider-Woman fights for her life against the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, determined not to let them succeed at abducting the mysterious Nathaniel Grey. She later crosses paths with the X-Men, as she learns the truth about Nathaniel and his mysterious abilities. She searches for Nathaniel, and eventually encounters him in a surprising fashion. Even as all this is going on, Gwen's relationship with Randy takes an unexpected turn, and the police investigate April Reese's mysterious murder! All this and more in Spider-Woman #79: Extreme Measures! Guest-starring the Uncanny X-Men!)