Tonight, Someone Dies!

Gwen Stacy, alias the spectacular Spider-Woman, hardly heard the crashing thunder all around her. She hardly saw the flashes of lightning above her. Her mind was focused on only one thing, to find her hated archenemy Jack O' Lantern and finally put an end to his insanity once and for all.

Out of all the supervillains Gwen fought as Spider-Woman, Jack O' Lantern frightened her more than any of them. He knew her secret identity and repeatedly exploited it by threatening her in her own home. He had a depraved obsession with making her the heir to his criminal legacy, nearly destroying her very sense of self. He was a sadistic psychopath who'd murdered as many innocent people as any of the villains Spider-Woman ever fought.

Jack O' Lantern picked up on all of that ever since he'd escaped from prison. He'd repeatedly written threatening messages on Gwen's bedroom wall while she slept, leaving her to be shocked when she woke up. He'd attacked some of her closest friends, slaughtering their parents and leaving them clinging to life. He'd even created his own superior version of her to be his new villainous heir by genetically combining his DNA with her own.

Most of Jack's actions left Gwen stressed, exhausted and on the verge of a nervous breakdown. The revelation of how he'd created her doppelganger upset her as much as everything else he did, but it also filled her with a primal rage, the kind of anger she hadn't felt since her earliest days as a superhero. She'd largely gotten over that anger as she came to terms with its source, the abuse she and her mother Helen Lieber-Stacy suffered at the hands of her father George Stacy, but learning the truth about her doppelganger brought it all back.

In creating Spider-Woman's doppelganger the way he did, Jack O' Lantern violated her in a way none of her other enemies ever had. Her fear at his threats, her despair at his attacks on her loved ones and her distress at his sick obsession with her were the powder that accumulated within her, and his violation was the spark that made it all explode.

Now, Spider-Woman's spider-senses were leading her to Jack O' Lantern's lair.

One way or another, it was all going to end here.

Tonight.

SPIDER-WOMAN #110

CLONE SAGA, PART FOUR

TONIGHT, SOMEONE DIES!

Spider-Woman wasn't surprised when her spider-senses led her to a high-class manor that was almost completely dark. There were no lights or security, and Spider-Woman would have thought the place abandoned except for the manor grounds being carefully trimmed and cared for. She wouldn't have been surprised if Jack O' Lantern had somehow brainwashed the manor's residents, making them act normally and providing cover for the chemicals and machinery he needed for his schemes to be delivered.

Everything was dead silent as Spider-Woman crossed the grounds. She seemed like she was alone, but she could feel Jack O' Lantern with her every step of the way. He knew exactly where she was, always watching, always by her side. He even found Spider-Woman in her nightmares, his maniacal laughter filling her with terror.

The front doors of the manor swung open by themselves as Spider-Woman reached them. An eerie light glowed from within, and Spider-Woman entered, expecting to see Jack O' Lantern and her doppelganger.

She found something else entirely. A man's severed head sat on a table in the middle of the entrance hall, his eyes and mouth glowing brightly from the candlelike electric light placed in his head. Repressing a horrified scream, Spider-Woman kept her composure and examined the man's head more closely. He seemed middle-aged and prosperous, and Spider-Woman realized that he was probably the manor's owner. Looking along the corridors leading off from the entrance hall, Spider-Woman saw long lines of more glowing lights. She realized that they were likely more severed heads filled with lights, probably belonging to the middle-aged man's family and employees.

Jack O' Lantern's latest victims were a trail for Spider-Woman to follow, to finally meet him face to face.

Fear, eagerness, rage and resignation all whirled within Spider-Woman's mind as she followed the trail.

The trail of heads led Spider-Woman to a grand ballroom. It was decorated with a large, elaborate window that offered a clear view of the hellish storm outside, and illuminated by an electric light that was a larger version of the ones filling the heads. The light's flickering made the room seem as if it was the inside of a giant jack o' lantern, but Spider-Woman ignored all that. All she could focus on were the two figures standing at the center of the room, awaiting her arrival.

One of them was Spider-Woman's doppelganger, who had the same black hair and red and gold costume as Spider-Woman herself. She leered at Spider-Woman's arrival, the tension in her stance reflecting her eagerness for this moment.

Spider-Woman barely spared her doppelganger a glance before focusing on the perverted master of ceremonies. Jack O' Lantern wore an entirely new costume, one that reflected his refined surroundings. The costume was a macabre gentleman's suit, with a white collared shirt, matching opera gloves, a green styled waistcoat, black tailored trousers, button boots with white spats, and a black morning coat. His head was still the same pumpkin, carved with a demonic grin and glowing with holographic flames, although it now seemed to hover on its own above his shirt collar.

Spider-Woman and Jack O' Lantern stared at each other for several long moments, the hatred between them almost palpable. The doppelganger stood off to the side, her glance constantly shifting between Spider-Woman and Jack O' Lantern.

Jack finally spoke.

"And so the climax begins," Jack said, his voice making Spider-Woman's skin crawl. "The star and the deuteragonist have confronted one another, and the monster at last makes his appearance. Truly my magnum opus, wouldn't you say?"

Spider-Woman took a deep breath before she answered, trying desperately to control the rising terror she felt.

"You're going to pay," she said, "for everything. You and your little…'science project' over there," she said, gesturing towards her doppelganger.

"Ah, if only I could have been there when the final truth was revealed," Jack said, the grin on his pumpkin face seeming to widen. "To see you learning how I made you into a worthy heir…"

"Stop it…" Spider-Woman said, as she started to tremble violently.

"…and how my legacy will live on in you…one way or another," he said, before he started to laugh.

"Stop it…" Spider-Woman said, barely able to control herself.

"Now that we've reached the climax, all we have to determine is whether the deuteragonist is worthy of overcoming the star," Jack said. "You'll fight for your life against your doppelganger…a doppelganger that contains both our powers, and both our legacies."

Spider-Woman's doppelganger stepped between her and Jack, her grin widening even more. Spider-Woman tensed, determined to overcome her mirror image. She knew that even if she managed to overcome her doppelganger, she'd likely be worn down and easy prey for Jack O' Lantern.

But what choice did she have?

Spider-Woman and her doppelganger each tensed to attack, but before they could move any further a fourth figure leaped into the ballroom. His costume was red and blue, marked with the images of webbing and spiders, and he glanced from Spider-Woman to her enemies.

"Is this a private party, or can anyone join?" the amazing Spider-Man asked, smirking underneath his mask. "Two against one is kind of unfair, isn't it?"

The doppelganger was briefly caught by surprise, but then she recognized Spider-Man and how she'd won their previous fight. Jack O' Lantern only stared intently at Spider-Man, and while his pumpkin grin remained the same Spider-Woman somehow knew his expression was turning to murderous rage at Spider-Man's interruption.

"I suppose you think you're clever," Jack O' Lantern said, "but you'll make just as fine a test of the deuteragonist's skills. You should know, the only reason she didn't kill you was so Spider-Woman could learn about her."

"So you're too clever by half," Spider-Man said, scoffing. "Why do villains always go for the pointless theatrics?"

"Spider-Man…" Spider-Woman said, still struggling to process everything she'd seen.

"Look, I've got a score to settle with your not-so-better half, so why don't you leave her to me?" Spider-Man said. "I'm pretty sure you've got a few thousand scores of your own to settle with Jack."

That was all the incentive Spider-Woman needed. Her fear melted away, completely replaced with her anger, as she locked stares with Jack O' Lantern.

He stared back impassively at her, but she knew he was smiling maliciously behind his pumpkin mask. A part of him wanted this battle, to personally, slowly and painfully kill her.

Spider-Woman's eyes flared behind her mask.

This was a long time coming.

Spider-Man shifted his glance from Spider-Woman to her doppelganger, who smirked back at him. Not only did she have all of Spider-Woman's powers, but she also had Jack O' Lantern's weapons. She'd nearly killed him the first time they'd fought, and he'd been itching for another shot at her.

He was angry at losing their first fight, and even angrier that the doppelganger was threatening someone who was like a sister to him. That was why he'd tagged Spider-Woman with a spider-tracer back at the Fantastic Four's headquarters, and how he was able to follow her here.

He clenched his fists in anticipation.

Spider-Woman lunged at Jack O' Lantern, raising her arms as if to fire her sting blasts. Jack did the same, and he was the first to fire, shooting his wrist blasters. Spider-Woman was one step ahead of him, snagging his arms with her weblines and pulling them off to either side. Jack's blasts gouged into the ballroom walls as Spider-Woman leaped at him with a jumping kick, but Jack O' Lantern rose into the air on his skull-ringed hover platform. Cutting the weblines on his wrists with the long finger claws that emerged from his gloves, he pulled a pumpkin bomb out of one of his morning coat pockets and tossed it at Spider-Woman. She cried out in pain as the bomb exploded, cutting her with the shrapnel blades it contained, but she managed to roll out of the way as Jack fired his wrist blasters at her.

Spider-Woman fired her sting blasts again, but now Jack O' Lantern was the one a step ahead of her. From another coat pocket, he pulled what looked like a small metal toad, which emitted a loud screeching noise as it fell. Forced to let up her attack, Spider-Woman covered her ears in pain as she tried to focus. She was knocked off her feet by Jack O' Lantern's wrist blasters, which struck her twice in as many seconds. She managed to dodge the third blast, shattering the sonic toad with a sting blast from one hand. With her other hand, she tangled the flock of razor bats Jack O' Lantern tossed at her, causing them to crash to the floor.

As Jack O' Lantern flew past Spider-Woman to attack from another angle, she shot a long stream of webbing in the direction he was heading. She soon had a large web from floor to ceiling, blocking Jack's passage. As he shifted his hover platform to go around the web barrier, Spider-Woman struck both Jack and his platform with her sting blasts, knocking him off balance. Leaping into the air and spinning a webline, Spider-Woman caught Jack O' Lantern head-on with a vicious swinging kick.

As Jack O' Lantern came back down to the floor, Spider-Woman landed on her feet.

They charged at one another again.

Spider-Man let the doppelganger make the first move, anticipating that she'd try to counter anything he initially tried. He was proven right when the doppelganger shot her sting blasts at him, and quickly followed up by firing her wrist blasters, which were identical to the ones Jack O' Lantern wore. Spider-Man leaped from side to side, dodging the blasts, and retaliated with a double shot of his webbing. The doppelganger flipped easily out of the way, but Spider-Man reacted faster than she expected. Tangling the doppelganger with another webline, Spider-Man viciously slammed her into the floor, causing her to cry out in pain.

It was soon the doppelganger's turn to react faster than Spider-Man expected, as she pulled a pumpkin bomb from her belt and tossed it at him. Spider-Man easily dodged it, but it exploded into a thick mist that swirled all around him. He wasn't too worried, knowing he could rely on his spider-senses, but then the screams of Jack O' Lantern's sonic toad suddenly disoriented him. Forced to cover his ears and then shield them with webbing, Spider-Man didn't hear his spider-senses' warning and was struck by the doppelganger's wrist and sting blasts.

Crying out in pain as he was knocked down, Spider-Man rolled to the side and came back to his feet. The doppelganger's mist still swirled around him, but he now heard his spider-senses clearly. He dodged the doppelganger's next series of blasts and shot his webbing towards where his spider-senses told him the doppelganger was moving. His spider-senses were as faithful as always, his webbing tangling the doppelganger and anchoring her to the floor. As she struggled to free herself, Spider-Man charged in, hitting her with a series of vicious punches.

The doppelganger managed to free herself from Spider-Man's webbing with her sting and wrist blasts, but not before she was viciously beaten by Spider-Man's attack.

She jumped back and locked a hateful stare with Spider-Man, before they came at each other again.

Jack O' Lantern had reinforced his skull-ringed hover platform since his last battle with Spider-Woman, so her sting blasts had little effect on it. He flew straight at her, catching her off guard as he gestured with his arms. Spider-Woman expected him to fire his wrist blasters again, but instead he palmed something small from up his sleeve and tossed it at Spider-Woman. Expecting to dodge Jack's wrist blasters, Spider-Woman was confused at the small item Jack threw until it expanded into a large wave of white, semi-translucent material shaped like a ghost. The ghost grabber, as Jack called it, came over Spider-Woman like a wave until it completely encased her in a bubble-like casing.

Spider-Woman struggled against the ghost grabber, but its material was too slick for her to get a solid grip on it. She was all but helpless, as neither her webbing nor her sting blasts could penetrate the grabber. Spider-Woman refused to give up, continuing to struggle even as Jack O' Lantern tossed her into the air. The ghost grabber didn't give Spider-Woman any protection as she slammed into the ceiling of the ballroom, nor did it protect her from the next wave of razor bats Jack O' Lantern threw at her. The bats shredded the ghost grabber and nearly did the same to Spider-Woman, cutting her all over before she started to fall. Reeling from the pain, she couldn't focus long enough to catch herself with a webline, and was helpless as Jack O' Lantern struck her with his wrist blasters and sent her crashing to the floor.

Jack O' Lantern started cackling insanely before he drew another pumpkin bomb from his pocket. He hurled it at the prone Spider-Woman, but soon it was his turn to be caught off guard as Spider-Woman recovered more quickly than he expected. Leaping to her feet, Spider-Woman caught the pumpkin bomb with a webline and hurled it right back at Jack O' Lantern. Forced to suddenly dodge the bomb, Jack O' Lantern dropped his guard. Spider-Woman struck him head-on once again, this time with her sting blasts, and he cried out in pain. Following up her advantage, Spider-Woman used her webbing to anchor Jack O' Lantern's hover platform to the floor. Jack O' Lantern only tried flying away for a split second, but that was long enough for Spider-Woman to hit him again with her sting blasts. She jumped up at Jack O' Lantern and struck him in the chest with a flying kick, knocking him off his platform.

Jack O' Lantern fell to the floor with a crash, while Spider-Woman landed on her feet. She was splattered with her own blood and gasping in pain from her injuries, but she looked more than ready for another round with Jack O' Lantern. Jack O' Lantern staggered to his feet, shaking his head before he locked stares with Spider-Woman. While she couldn't see Steven Mark Levins' face behind his pumpkin mask, she somehow knew his face was contorted with a manic rage. She merely stared back at him defiantly, her expression cold.

Somehow, she knew that made Jack O' Lantern even angrier.

Spider-Woman was about to attack again when she suddenly realized Jack O' Lantern was smiling behind his mask. A cacophony of sadistic laughter suddenly filled her ears, and she realized it wasn't coming from Jack O' Lantern.

Looking around in alarm, Spider-Woman saw Jack O' Lantern's gremlin army fly into the ballroom.

Spider-Man and the doppelganger grabbed each other's hands, and they were soon struggling to push each other back. The doppelganger had twice Spider-Man's strength, and she had the upper hand, but Spider-Man exploited that by rolling back and throwing her into the air. The doppelganger cried out in pain as she slammed into the wall behind Spider-Man, and then in alarm as Spider-Man caught her with a webline. Spinning in place, Spider-Man whirled the doppelganger around before sending her crashing into the wall again. The doppelganger bounced off the wall and landed on the floor as Spider-Man charged in, his fists clenched for the knockout blow.

The doppelganger burst out laughing as a flock of razor bats seemed to erupt from her body, tearing Spider-Man's webbing to shreds. The bats followed up by suddenly flying at Spider-Man, who dodged them frantically. The bats' sudden attack left him off balance and wide open to a series of blasts from the doppelganger, who struck him with both her wrist and sting blasts.

Screaming in pain, Spider-Man rolled across the floor to try and get away. Before he could get to his feet, he saw the doppelganger standing over him, her hands glowing with the blast energy they both knew would finish him.

The gremlins were three feet in height and purple in color, with clawed hands and feet. They leered evilly as they lunged at Spider-Woman, their eyes glowing with the light that Spider-Woman recognized as the kind Jack O' Lantern's pumpkin bombs emitted. Working frantically as she realized what the gremlins contained, she sprayed her webbing in a wide arc and tangled them up. Whirling around, she swung the gremlins at Jack O' Lantern, intending to catch him in the explosion. Jack O' Lantern was faster than she expected, lashing out with a ghost grabber and catching her around the waist. Jack pulled Spider-Woman towards him, and she couldn't react in time before they both came into the gremlins' proximity.

The gremlins' explosion shattered the ballroom windows and blew both Jack O' Lantern and Spider-Woman out onto the mansion lawn. The storm raged around them as they staggered to their feet, the lightning bolts briefly illuminating them as the thunder roared in their ears. The scene resembled something out of a nightmare as Jack O' Lantern and Spider-Woman stared at each other. They were both drenched from the rain, their costumes tattered from the battle and their bodies splattered with blood from the grisly wounds they'd inflicted on each other. If they felt any pain, they didn't show it as they attacked each other once again.

They each fired their wrist and sting blasts at each other, dodging around them. Jack O' Lantern tossed a pumpkin bomb at Spider-Woman, which she caught and tossed back at him with a webline. The bomb exploded and knocked Jack O' Lantern on his back. As Spider-Woman fired her sting blasts at Jack, he rolled out of the way and sprang to his feet. He caught Spider-Woman head-on, knocking her off her feet as he lunged at her. Seizing Spider-Woman by the wrists, Jack O' Lantern kicked her viciously as he started to laugh.

"You had to know it would end like this," Jack O' Lantern said, as Spider-Woman slumped to her knees. "All the potential you squandered, all the damage you could have done, all the rage you snuffed out…you brought this all on yourself. You let yourself become one of those pathetic, miserable sheep, when you could have been so much more."

"After everything I did for you, you spat in my face," Jack continued, as Spider-Woman shook her head. "I tried to show you a better way. I put your wretched father out of his misery. I offered to make you my heir. It's too bad for you that I have my heir now, a better Spider-Woman, a better Gwen Stacy, than you could ever be."

Jack O' Lantern started laughing again as Spider-Woman bowed her head, trying to hold back her sobs.

Spider-Man was down, but he wasn't finished. He couldn't hope to dodge the doppelganger's blasts, so he simply spun in place, shooting his webbing as he did so. As he hoped, his webbing tangled up the doppelganger's feet, making her lose her balance. As she stumbled, falling to one knee, Spider-Man jumped to his feet and charged at her. She managed to fire her sting blasts before the male wall-crawler reached her, but he charged right through them. Finally reaching the doppelganger, Spider-Man hammered her with a vicious series of punches that drove her back. She managed to hit him again, this time with her wrist blasters, but that wasn't enough to stop Spider-Man, who'd gained a second wind from his anger.

Finally, lifting the doppelganger up, Spider-Man sent her flying across the room with a vicious haymaker. She landed near the shattered window, as Spider-Man ran after her. She groaned when Spider-Man reached her, and she passed out as he knelt down for a closer look.

Suddenly realizing the implications of the broken window, Spider-Man looked around frantically for Spider-Woman and Jack O' Lantern. He saw Spider-Woman seemingly limp, with Jack O' Lantern holding her up by the arms. He was about to jump down to help her when he cried out and fell to his knees, pain lancing his body.

As a wave of dizziness passed through his head, Spider-Man realized the doppelganger must have hit him harder than he realized. He was too exhausted to help Spider-Woman, as he'd never get to her in time to stop Jack from killing her.

And once Jack killed Spider-Woman, Spider-Man would be easy prey.

So this is what a Pyrrhic victory looks like, Spider-Man thought to himself, despair in his heart as he struggled to get to his feet.

"Now you see why this little production was my magnum opus," Jack O' Lantern said, seeming to smile despite the fixed grin of his pumpkin mask. "The protagonist falls, doomed by her own weakness and naivete, while the monster triumphs. My legacy is secure, and New York is mine for the taking."

"And now, the curtain falls," Jack said, dropping one of Spider-Woman's arms and extending the claws on his now-free hand.

"Oh, it falls," Spider-Woman suddenly said, as she stopped acting like she was broken. Jack froze in surprise, caught completely off guard.

That moment cost him dearly, as Spider-Woman sprang up and viciously head-butted him. Dazed from the blow, Jack O' Lantern couldn't stop Spider-Woman from freeing her arm and striking him with a double sting blast. As he staggered back, Spider-Woman leapt at him, screaming in rage as she brutally attacked him.

Jack O' Lantern was helpless to defend himself as Spider-Woman beat him mercilessly. She poured all the rage and terror she felt from Jack O' Lantern stalking her, from his nearly murdering Kitty Pryde, from the violation he committed by using her genes for his doppelganger, from trying to destroy her sense of self, from the murders he'd committed, from everything he'd ever done into her attack, until he finally crashed to the ground.

Gasping for breath, the rain of the storm making the dried blood on her body run, Spider-Woman seized Jack O' Lantern by the throat and lifted him up.

"This is like old times, isn't it?" Spider-Woman said, recalling a similar scene from one of their battles where Jack O' Lantern was the one to viciously beat her and take her by the throat. "Remember when you told me how I represented everything you hated about this world? How I interfered every time you tried to live by having your sick version of fun? Well, I just wanted to thank you for the compliments. If you hate me that much that you're willing to do all this, then I must be doing something right."

"You want to know the other reason why I'd never want to be your heir, besides your being a sick son of a bitch? Because you're just pathetic. With all your ranting about how you're special and know what it's really like to live, and the rest of us are just sheep, you're really just projecting. You could have lived any kind of life you wanted with all your gifts, and this is what you do with them? How are you any different from any of the other supervillains I've put away?"

"…This isn't over," Jack O' Lantern said, his hatred of Spider-Woman seeming almost tangible around him. "I'll…always…haunt you. No matter where you go…no matter what you do…"

"And no matter how many times you do, I'll win," Spider-Woman said. "Just look at your little science project," she said, raising Jack to look at the mansion window, where a recovered Spider-Man had bound her doppelganger with webbing.

"…Unworthy…" Jack O' Lantern said, before he loudly closed his mouth. Spider-Woman looked at him in surprise, thinking that he was about to attack her again, but she suddenly looked up as she heard the doppelganger's scream. The doppelganger was shuddering violently as Spider-Man tried to help her, before she finally collapsed. Spider-Man felt her neck for a pulse, and shook his head sadly at Spider-Woman.

"…A cyanide capsule in her tooth, and a trigger in mine," Jack O' Lantern said, seeming to leer at her behind his pumpkin mask. "Even if this isn't my magnum opus, the story still ends on my terms."

Spider-Woman felt a rage rising up inside her, and she raised a fist at Jack O' Lantern. It'd be so easy for her to drive her fist through his pumpkin mask, and then through his face, or to crush his windpipe, and…

…No, I won't sink to his level, Spider-Woman thought to herself.

"Just keep telling yourself that," Spider-Woman said, as she wrapped Jack O' Lantern in a webbing net. "I'm the one who's won all our battles. I'm the one who'll still be walking free while you rot in a jail cell. I'm the one who you'll never be able to break."

Jack O' Lantern didn't reply, but Spider-Woman could sense the hateful glare on his true face.

"You want to know why I've stuck at this, Jack O' Lantern?" Spider-Woman said as she began climbing the walls of the mansion to rejoin Spider-Man, carrying Jack with her. "Because I have the power to fight back against monsters like you, bullies that torture anyone who can't fight back. I have the power to do something…"

"…and I do," she finished, as she climbed into the ballroom and tossed Jack by the corpse of her doppelganger.

Spider-Man had already telephoned the police, and they were on their way. He and Spider-Woman leaned on each other as they waited for the police's arrival, both almost too exhausted to stand.

Spider-Woman was physically and mentally exhausted, both from the battle with Jack O' Lantern and from the overwhelming events of the past few weeks. She grieved for all of Jack's victims, and hoped that her actions gave them and their loved ones closure.

But at the same time, she felt a tremendous sense of peace, as she finally woke up from the living nightmare she'd been enduring.

(Next Issue: Gwen means every word she said about continuing to fight crime as a superhero. But as she thinks about the problems she's gone through as a superhero, she wonders what kind of impact it'll have on her passions and dreams in life. All this and more in the final issue of Ultimate Spider-Woman: Change With The Light #111: Gwen's Last Dance!)