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Chapter 24– I Will Survive.

 

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Ahh, what the hell?

 

I wake up, but I can't open my eyes.

 

Hmm, I am so tired.

 

I am at that point where you wake up but have yet to open your eyes, and so you just want to snuggle deeper into your covers and go back to sleep.

 

Let's just sleep a little longer. I literally can't get up. So I go to turn, to snuggle deeper into my be-.

 

"Aghh!" An intense pain erupts in my side, and I flail in panic and-

 

"Ugh." I muffle out a groan against the hardwood floor pressed against my face. It turns out I was either on the sofa or the very edge of my bed because when I turned and agitated my stomach, I ended up falling face-first into the ground. Actually, why the hell does my stomach actually hurt?

 

Let's see, I had gathered information from a bunch of assholes about a meeting, so I was preparing to go. But then, when I got home, Felecia tried to talk to me, so I avoided her and made a tactical retreat. And then I arrived near the meeting spot when- I got blown up.

 

"Ben!" Someone shouts, but I don't pay any attention, more distraught by the rapid barrage of memories assaulting my eyes, informing me of the immensity of the dire straights I was in. That fucking Bullseye bastard got the jump on me and then proceeded to kick me while I was down and had a piece of metal going through me. I would have died there, no doubt about it.

 

"Why the hell are you on the floor? You need to rest and recover. Just stay here, and I will take care of anything." So the feminine voice says as they help me up and move me to lay back on the sofa, but again I am more distracted by worrying thoughts. I would have died right then and there, and I don't think anybody would have missed me, and I wouldn't have even had a funeral.

 

It was only because of the bullet shooting the gun out of Bullseye's hand that I had the opportunity to fight back and escape. The only thing I saw from that direction was a flash of red, even with my enhanced vision, showing just how far whoever that was took the shot from. Thank you, my red angel, you have given me more time, and I am not going to waste it. I don't know who they were or why they were there, or even their intentions towards me, but they saved me, and I won't forget that.

 

"BEN!" The shout brings me out of my fugue, and I look up from my laid-back position to see Felecia hovering over me, her face worried, probably because I wasn't responding to anything she was saying, which might have made her fear that my head was actually not okay since I might have suffered some brain damage. Thankfully, I have not... I think. I was just bifurcated by a quarter—no big deal.

 

"Not so loud, geez. I'm injured. Don't you know you are supposed to be gentle with the infirm?" I say, lightly joking to wipe that weird, worried look off of her face. But, seriously, it is creeping me out. Not aesthetically, I quite like that look on her face, but it just seems too unnatural. I have literally never seen such an expression or anything like it on her face before. It is usually a seductive, lazy or bored expression, so this is new and is making me feel off.

 

"Shut up, you idiot! You would be dead right now. What the hell did you do? If you got here any later, you would be dead!" She says, not getting the message and continuing on the grim theme, plus she is angry now, which is an emotion on her face that I am more familiar with. Still, I am really surprised and glad to be alive. I really thought that was the end.

 

"Oh wow, you patched me up? Thank you, you must be an amazing medic or something because I really thought I was a goner." Seriously, I was bleeding out, and I am pretty sure that I ran out of the adhesive seal to keep my blood inside. I don't even remember getting home, losing a bit of my consciousness while flying through the air. I vaguely remember landing home and then giving someone a greeting before suddenly feeling a great rush of air, and that was it.

 

"Are you kidding me? I didn't do shit. I just wrapped you up the best I could and was going to try and get you to doctors, but then..." She hesitates, and why wouldn't she? I mean, my injuries were more than life-threatening, and I was most definitely on my deathbed. She should have definitely taken me to the hospital, but she didn't. And somehow, I am still alive, and I don't feel like I have a hole inside of me.

 

"And then? Why didn't you take me to a hospital? And why am I not dead?" I ask, very curious. I am not accusing her or anything because I am clearly alright and alive, so everything worked out. But why? Why am I okay, and how did Felecia do it?

 

"I... I heard a voice?" She says, clearly finding it ludicrous herself though I am instantly on guard hearing that. Hearing voices could mean you are crazy, but we live in a crazy world, so it is equally- no, actually, more than- likely that it was another person or spirit or something talking to her. Telepathy is a worrying thought, purely because it is a very insane invasion of privacy with not a lot of defences for it.

 

"A voice? Okay, and what did this voice say? What kind of voice was it?" When it comes to matters of the mind and people that like to fuck with it, you are almost spoiled for choice in the Marvel universe. Pretty much every asshole and their grandmother has some method to mess with the mind, but there are a few big contenders. Namely the mutants, Charles Xavier, Emma Frost and a few other fuckers, including that rapey mutant fucker whose name I have forgotten. Not that purple guy; that is mind control, not telepathy. Well, whoever it is, it is a big problem.

 

"It- It was an old women's voice. Very old, like over a hundred, brittle, on the edge of death old. She told me not to take you to the hospital, that everything would be fine and you would live." That does not ring any bells. I have no recollection of any telepathists that are that old and female, which means I am probably dealing with an unknown, which is even more worrying since I don't know what to expect or prepare for.

 

"And you just listened to her? The random voice in your head?" Honestly, I would find it very hard to start trusting a random voice in my head, especially in such a dire situation where every moment counts. I was dying, bleeding out, and my only hope for survival would be the hospital, and yet there was this utterly unknown voice telling her to do nothing, and it would be fine. No way anybody would just go along with that. They would be incredibly dumb if they did.

 

"She knew about you, Ben. Like, everything about you. She talked about your future, your destiny, and she told me you would live. But, not just that, she showed me things, things that could not possibly be faked." Okay, this is legitimately weirding me out now. Speaking into someone's mind is one thing, but projecting the type of things Felecia is talking about is a lot different.

 

"And what exactly did she show you? What convinced you to listen to her and trust that I would be okay?"I do have concerns and worries, but I am also fine and alive. A bit bruised, but all my organs are inside me, and the blood is contained to the inside of my body. So she told the truth and knew I would be fine, either through expertise in biology and science using a sample to determine my powers or something more mystical like seeing the future, which isn't out of the question.

 

"She- She showed me a lot, things I couldn't believe and things that made no sense, but I just knew them to be true. I-It wasn't anything about you. It was about me so that she could gain my trust. She told me some things that I didn't know before, but they are true. I checked afterwards. I- I can't elaborate, but just know I was assured that you would be fine." She says nervously, understanding that her answer is basically dogshit with nothing to back it up or serve as proof. But I will leave it for now, things worked out, and there is nothing more I can get from her.

 

Still, from what she has said, I really don't have a clue just who it was that apparently knew about me, including my future and the capabilities of my body, because I had no clue that I could survive and heal from that. Actually, I was pretty sure that I couldn't, given my past experiences with the original Spider-Man, at least, that was according to memories before the absurd clone situation. So I guess I have changed, at least somewhat, if I can do this because I know other Peter can't do this.

 

Nobody knew I was capable of this, and yet someone did, enough so that they could rest assured that I would live without the aid of the hospital. Putting it all together, I can't disregard the option that this might not be a mutant and might actually be a very skilled mage, which might explain some of the things Felecia has seen that she does not want to share. It could be a mage and a mutant. The two aren't exclusive, after all.

 

"Alright, fine. I understand. And I am clearly fine, so I guess it is better not to look a gift horse in the mouth." Sighing, I accept her refusal to say anymore. I sit up on the sofa, Felecia hovering around me with a concerned look on her face, worried that I am doing too much too early. I am, too, because my body definitely hurts, but nowhere near the levels of pain, it reached last night. Plus, I am curious. Just how good is my apparent healing factor? How much have I healed from that injury?

 

"Alright, let's look at the damage. Say, how long was I out?" I ask, reaching down to pull on the bloody bandages wrapped around my midsection to see if there is still a hole there. But before I can peel it away, Felecia grabs me by the shoulder and starts to scream at me.

 

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING!? DO YOU WANT TO KILL YOURSELF!?" She screams at me, shaking me profusely, not realising what she is doing could also seriously exacerbate my injuries. What she was doing was actually hurting me, while what I wanted to do was only to take a peek at my wounds. Finally, having enough of it, I reach out and grab both her arms by the wrist, stopping her from shaking me.

 

"Hold your horses, Felecia. What you are doing is what is going to kill me. All I want to do is get a good look at my injuries to see how bad it is and if there is anything I need to do to aid my recovery. Okay?" I say, spelling it out clearly for her. And with my message across, she lowers her hands, her expression downcast after realising what she was doing. And so I get back to looking at my injuries, and I wonder how big the hole is now.

 

"You were out for about fifteen hours or so. I wasn't really keeping count." Felecia helpfully supplies, going along with me, which I appreciate. I give her a nod to show that I heard her before reaching down again to my bandages which, now that I touch them, I realise they are stained with dry blood, which is good because it isn't fresh blood, so that bodes well for me.

 

Gripping the edges, I pull it away from my body and look down into that gap, and I refrain from showing any emotion, keeping my face neutral to keep from revealing anything to Felecia. Right now, I am glad that I have excellent vision because I can manage to see my wounds with the current light, and I don't have to shine a light down there, which would allow Felecia to see it as well. It is not a nice sight down there.

 

Looking past all the dry blood is problematic since there is just so much of it, but aside from that, I know precisely the spot where the penetration occurred, and it is unsightly. The flesh there is marred and looks to be seriously burnt and scarred, it seems like a massive scab that could easily be poked and ripped in two, and I am sure it is just the same on the back. Though I don't think that hole is there anymore, or at least not quite as big, I shouldn't aggravate it or do anything too strenuous.

 

"So, how is it?" Felecia asks as I move my bandages back into place, tightening them and securing them into place but making sure not to do it too tight as that might irritate the wounds. I don't know, and I am not a medic or doctor, am I? I have no clue about proper medical care and techniques. Even looking down at my wound, I can't tell whether its current condition is good or bad, just that it is better than it was before, which is good enough for me.

 

"Fine, though I don't think I will be going out anytime soon. Especially not in my BDSM outfit, though I would still like to see you in yours." I say, trying to skirt by the topic. And I do so quite nicely by using euphemisms for our super suits, which does well to reset her back into her normal mood, which is a mix between sultry and bored.

 

"Alright, I will be sure to do enough BDSM'ing for the both of us. Now, let's get you into your own bed. I am sure that this sofa isn't comfortable, but I wasn't comfortable moving you before I knew you were okay." Saying so, she lent me her hand, which I took and used to stand up, the blanket that was covering me before dropping down. Standing up, I wobble for a moment, still not stable though Felecia helps and grabs my shoulders, steadying me with her two hands.

 

And then, wanting to get a good look at my wounds, her gaze moves from my face and slowly pans down to look at my torso. But when her face continues to stare in that direction, I also glance down and spot my little buddy hanging freely, swaying with the wind. I look back up, and my eyes meet hers before she averts her gaze and glances o the side, her face remaining neutral.

 

"I- You weren't wearing underwear when I got you out of your suit, and I wasn't thinking at the time, so I just did your bandages and put a blanket on you. You should probably grab it and wrap it around you." She explains, not wanting me to come to some other conclusion.

 

"Yeah, my outfit is quite form-fitting, and underwear gets in the way, so I forgo it. As for the blanket, well, I can't bend down and grab it, so you can if you want to. But given my limited range of mobility, you would also have to wrap it around me. So go ahead if my nudity makes you uncomfortable. As for me, well, you have seen it now, and I am not really bothered by it. On the contrary, I am quite proud of it, actually." So I say, smirking at her to see what she decides to do, and she obviously sees I am getting pleasure from the situation.

 

"Whatever, let's go." She says, pulling my arm over her shoulder and holding it in place, and then putting hers around me to support my back and then pulling me into her. My naked side held tightly against hers, which could easily make my excitable little guy perk up, so I avoided thinking about it. However, it is pretty hard since she is wearing a thin top that cuts off at the midriff and some shorts.

 

"Ohh, man. It hurts a bit, but way less than you would think after having a hole inside of you. I guess my powers are a lot more potent than I thought to heal this much." So I say as we start to walk towards my room, Felecia supporting me and pulling me along with me, just holding on to her as we go. I do stumble slightly, forcing me to use my other hand to grab onto Felecia's left shoulder, basically giving her a half-impromptu hug.

 

"Still a bit dizzy though and quite lightheaded. I think we might be moving too fast." I say because my head is spinning a bit, and though I would definitely like to go back to the previous position, given that my third leg is now brushing up against her leg, I can't because holding onto her is the only thing keeping me up right now. I really want to go back to sleep.

 

"That would probably be the painkillers and drugs I gave. I might not have taken you to the hospital, but I did use everything I had here to help you. But that brings us to another topic. Just how did you end up in such a state." Felicia very kindly ignores my unintended grinding and inappropriate position and continues to walk me to my room. I also ignore it because I don't have the luxury to appreciate it right now, my eyelids working very hard to stay awake on account of the drugs in my system. I guess I was able to ignore it and brute force past it when I awoke, but I am crashing now.

 

"Oh yeah, that... It was Fisk. The bastard might be fat, but his brain is rock-hard muscle. Which is the opposite of how a good optimal brain is since it should be wet... So I guess Fiss has a wet soggy brain..." I answer her, though my head is starting to feel very muddy. Damn that fat bastard, when I get him, I am going to skin him and use the layers of his fat to make a fucking coat for myself.

 

"Ben. You are getting off track. Who did this to you? Are they going to be gunning for you again?" Felecia says calmly in my ear, finally getting me towards my room and letting me go for a second to start opening it. I brace myself using my hand on the side of the wall as she does so, my hand slipping slightly, but I manage to catch myself.

 

"Yeah, yeah. Uh, right, Fiss laid a trap, and I went up into it. Um, Bullseye ambushed me with a bomb, and I got fucccckkkked. Right, right here." I take my hand off the wall to point at the point of penetration, forgetting I was using it to hold myself up. I nearly slipt and fell, but thankfully Felecia had already got my door open and grabbed me before I could.

 

"Ah, thanks... Anyway, after that, I fought a bit and then ran away. Nigerundayooo... Haha, Jojo." I loved that series. So fucking funny and serious at the same time. Damn, I never got to see the end of Stone Ocean. I need to check on the state of the shows and entertainment here. I have been too worried to enjoy myself properly. I have a lot of stuff to catch up on.

 

"Right, Jojo is pretty great. Anyway, here we are. Let's get you into bed." Felecia, a girl I like even more now that I know she is as cultured as me, helps me to my bed and sits me down on it. Before moving to help me get into bed properly, she was really lovely. Actually, why was I even trying to avoid her before?

 

"So... What did you want to tell me earlier, Felecia?" I say as she moves the cover and helps me inside. Damn, it is really comfy. So soft, so nice...

 

"Right, well. Uh, what I wanted to tell you was that Fisk had one final task for me, and I-"

 

---

 

"-finished it, so you don't need to do this stuff anymore. You don't need to keep going out there and fighting all the time. There is no need. You don't have to be Batman anymore, you-" I try and get it all out before I decide not to because I know if I tell him, then I know he will go. But I think it is better to rip the band-aid off now when it is just a tiny cut rather than have him hang around and have it forcibly peeled off when it is a gash. Except, it seems I was not quick enough, and the bandaid is still there.

 

"-you are asleep... haah." Sighing, I feel let down. I worked myself and bolstered my courage and everything, and I told him, and he was fucking asleep. God damn it, Felecia, you really like to mess things up, don't you. All you had to do was tell him and get it over with, and then you could both move on with your lives. Well, I guess it is his fault as well for being so injured. Whatever, I will tell him tomorrow.

 

Saying so, I go to stand, having sat down on the side of the bed when laying Ben to rest. However, I find myself unable to. Ben is still gripping my arm tightly, his hand encircled around my wrist and holding on tight. Trying to be gentle and not wake him up, I gently try to pull myself free, and when that doesn't work, I use my free hand to try and pry his fingers open, but they refuse to budge.

 

For a guy that was almost very close to death, his grip is like a vice, refusing to let go. Having had enough and not caring about waking Ben up right now since he was conked out with all the drugs, I start to yank my arm to free myself. I give that up when it starts to hurt my arm, and Ben isn't even slightly disturbed, so I resort to the tried and true method.

 

"BEN, WAKE UP!" I punctuate my words with a couple of rapid slaps to the face, not enough to hurt but definitely enough to disturb his sleep and wake him up. Which, thankfully, he does, filling me with relief. Though that soon turns to despair when I see that his eyes are glazed and there is a dopey smile on his face. I guess those drugs are really kicking in now.

 

"H-Heyyy, Felecia... what are you doing here? And you look really good as well, you know, you look really pretty." He spaces out and starts to say, making me roll my eyes as he starts hitting on me. But, of course, I am used to intoxicated men hitting on me, and they are easy targets, after all, so I don't pay it any mind.

 

"Yeah, well, I am sure every boy over twelve is obsessed with the Black Cat. So, you're nothing special. Guys just like a bad girl. Now, do you mind letting go of me?" I say, going along with him to placate and get him to listen before asking him to release me. As I said before, I have dealt with people out of their heads a few times, and you have to give a little to get a little if you want them to listen to you.

 

"W-Who- Who is talking about the Black Cat? I-I am talking about you, Felecia... right now. You are beautiful, like... I really like you. I- I could see myself marrying you, you know, somewhere down the line. Having a bunch of super babies, b-but, what would we name them?" I- my brain shuts down, hearing him speak... I- what?

 

"We, we could keep the cat theme going. So, i-if it's a girl, then Felicity, and if it's a boy, then F-Felix. Huh, nice, right?" Th-This guy must be seriously out of his mind to be talking about this. Did I give him too much? No, that doesn't matter. I- I need to stop him talking about this stuff now.

 

"Uh, yeah, whatever. Anyway, I wanted to tell you. Fisk gave me my-" I say, trying to tell him that I don't work for Fisk anymore. But, once again, people out of their minds work on their own schedule, and so he cuts me off.

 

"Yeah, Yeah. Fisk... Don't worry, don't worry, Felecia. I will get him for you, and then you will be free, and I can go. B-But, I will miss you, Felecia. That dry look on your face when you think someone is being stupid... that smirk when you feel like you have gotten one over someone... the smile on your face when you win at Mario Kart. S-Sometime I lose on purpose, just to- to... see... it." He falls asleep, leaving me in shocked silence. I- I don't know what to do...

 

He- He... He is still holding my wrist...

 

---

 

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