Web of Spider-Man #25

Issue Details

Synopsis

BEWARE THE STALKER FROM THE STARS! On the planet Cygorion, the tyrant Xanja has just completed an arms deal that will give his invasion forces power to conquer other worlds. This new purchase is met with much fanfare from his people. However, not all of the Cygnorions are loyal to Xanja. One such soldier goes to the planet Hyginus II where he warns Vaalu, the monarch of Hyginus of these recent developments. Vaalu is concerned by this, however, his people do not explore the stars but their own past via time travel, a technology that does not suit their needs. Soon, Xanja has launched his newly purchased Cosmic Multi-Energizer speeds toward Hygiunus II. However, it's trajectory is changed thanks to interference from a radio frequency that is projected out into space at the Upper New York State Observatory on the planet Earth. Learning that his weapon has gone off course fills Xanja with rage, and he orders his minions to find out where the weapon has gone. Also witnessing this is Vaalu, who decides that this unforeseen turn of events allows him to come up with a plan.   Meanwhile, in the New York borough of Queens, a petty crook named Arnie Strunk scoffs at men working at a construction site. His friend points out that Arnie is wearing tattered clothes and lives in a condemned building. Strunk deflects this by saying that he hasn't had any fortuitous heists recently. Suddenly, the Multi-Energizer falls out of the sky. Seeing the object falling, Arnie's friend pushes him out of the way. Thinking the object was accidentally dropped from the construction workers and cusses them out and vows to show everyone that he is a big man. While at a nearby restaurant, Peter Parker takes his Aunt May out for dinner, assuring her that he can afford it. Elsewhere, at a local police precinct, Detective Harry Gibbs checks in and asks if there are any calls. When he hears about the call from the observatory, Harry's colleagues mock him for his obsession with UFOs and aliens. Harry ignores them and calls the observatory. He is told that an object fell from the sky and was tracked to the area of Jackson Heights. At that moment, Arnie Strunk is examining the object, unable to make sense of it. Unaware that he is holding a doomsday weapon, he dismisses it as worthless junk and discards it.   Later, as Peter Parker is dropping his Aunt May off at home, they are unaware that they are being observed by Strunk who has set his sights on stealing Aunt May's broach. As Peter walks away, Arnie makes a break for it. Peter's spider-sense goes off, but he fails to stop Strunk from stealing the broach and making a break for it. After checking to make sure his Aunt is okay he tries to chase after the thief. However, Arnie leaps into the back of a dump truck to make his getaway. Unable to change into Spider-Man and go after him, Peter tags him with a spider-tracer. Slipping into some cover, Peter changes into Spider-Man and traces the signal back to the construction site and gets the drop on Arnie. He recovered the broach, but his spider-sense begins going off again. It draws him to the strange device and more concerned with this possible threat, the wall-crawler tells Arnie to take off. Not far away, Detective Gibbs is questioning Arnie's friend who tells him about the strange object they found at the construction site. He takes them to the scene, and when they see Spider-Man, the youth points out the object in his hand. However, when Gibbs tries to talk to Spider-Man, the wall-crawler swings off to return his Aunt May's broach. Harry tries to follow after the masked hero by car, but ends up getting run off the road by a drunk driver.   By this point, Spider-Man has returned to his apartment. With his spider-sense still going off, he decides to figure out what this strange object is before returning the broach to his Aunt. After calling May to tell her he recovered the broach, Peter gets to work examining the strange device he brought home. Looking at it under a microscope, he can't identify its composition. Trying to cut the object with a pocket knife, it is strong enough to break the blade. Suddenly, his whole apartment begins to shake and the alien object begins to glow. The device then begins to project a holographic image of a distant galaxy. Peter finds himself pulled into the hologram, finding himself in a realistic representation of alien worlds at war. He begins picking up thought waves that explain the nature of the weapon and how it will power weapons powerful enough to lay waste to the entire universe. With the holographic projection over, Peter Parker realizes that he has to stop this from happening. However, he realizes this is way out of his league and leaves to turn the device over to the authorities. However, at a nearby police station, Spider-Man's claims are ignored. However, the officers on duty, decide that this is a case for Harry Gibbs.   At that moment, at Arnie Strunk's apartment is confronted by Xanja who demands to know what became of the Cosmultigizer. After Arnie tells him that Spider-Man took it, he passes out in fright. This doesn't bother Xanja, as he can track the device telepathically. Meanwhile, Spider-Man is out searching for Detective Gibbs when the device begins to glow again. Pinpointing the location of the device, Xanja then uses his powers to take possession of Strunk in order to search for it without attracting undue attention. Meanwhile, Spider-Man can't find Gibbs and goes into an unoccupied apartment to use the phone and call him at his office, unfortunately, he had not been checked in. By this time, Gibbs has just been pulled out of his wrecked car by officers who arrived on the scene. However, he refuses an ambulance, as he wants to track down the strange alien artifact. Continuing his search, Spider-Man is about to give up and turn the device over to the Avengers or the Fantastic Four when he is attacked by Xanja in Arnie Strunk's body. Spider-Man quickly realizes that he is not dealing with a simple penny-ante crook, but someone possessed by an alien and flees the scene. Finding Strunk's body useless, Xanja emerges from his human host and follows after the wall-crawler in his energy form.   Xanja returns to physical form at the docks where Spider-Man has lured him. There, the alien tries to retrieve his weapon. Realizing that his opponent is far too powerful, Spider-Man dives into the nearby water. By this point, Detective Gibbs has arrived and attempts to kill the alien with his service pistol, but it has no effect on him. Spider-Man comes back to the surface to help Gibbs, by Xanja is able to deflect all of his attacks. Suddenly, Gibbs begins to glow and an energy form comes out, revealing that he too has been possessed by an alien. It turns out to be Vaalu, who has come to stop Xanja from retrieving the weapon. With the help of Spider-Man, Vaalu is able to subdue Xanja. Vaalu explains to Spider-Man that using the time travel technology of his world he traveled back in time some 20 years ago. From there he took possession of a man who just recently died, reviving his body. Creating the identity of Harry Gibbs, Vaalu became a police officer to wait for the arrival of the alien device and prevent Xanja from obtaining the weapon. When Vaalu asks Spider-Man to hand over the device, Spider-Man asks why he should trust the alien to not use the device for evil. Vaalu points out that Spider-Man couldn't possibly keep it out of the wrong hands on this world. Spider-Man realizes that he has a point and turns it over in good faith.   The next morning, Peter Parker returns to his Aunt May's broach. When Aunt May comments on how they are living in uncertain times, Peter agrees that nobody on Earth knows that better than he does.