Web of Spider-Man Annual #5

Issue Details

Synopsis

ATLANTIS ATTACKS CHAPTER 11 - WAR ZONE: NEW YORK With an Atlantean invasion force en route to the island of Manhattan, the military has been called to to face this invasion force. Joining them are the Fantastic Four and Spider-Man. The tense moment is being captured on live television. Suddenly, the Atlanteans arrive at Battery Park and make first blood. As an invasion force converges on the mainland, the Fantastic Four and Spider-Man rush into battle. Watching the battle on television are Spider-Man's Aunt May and his wife Mary Jane. Unaware that her nephew Peter is actually Spider-Man, May worries that Peter might be in danger as he was attending classes at Empire State University. Mary Jane assures May that Peter will be just fine.   On the battle field, Spider-Man and the Human Torch work together, exchanging quips along the way.  After webbing up a number of Atlantean soldiers in a web ball, Spider-Man is assisted by the Invisible Woman, who uses her powers to toss them back into the water. Not far away, Mister Fantastic is swarmed by members of the attacking army, but is assisted by Ms. Marvel. Meanwhile, Ben Grimm, even without his powers, still puts up a fight against these invaders.[Continuity 4] As more invasion forces converge on the shore, the battle takes another turn when a massive Atlantean sea creature called the Megasaur rises out of the water. At that moment, under New York Bay, Attuma and his allies Llyra and Ghaur watch the battle. Attuma assures them that this battle will be won. However, they are soon joined by General Eptitus, who was wounded in battle. He warns Attuma that this battle is ill advised and is killed for speaking out against Attuma. Unimpressed by this, Llyra and Ghaur leave to carry out their own tasks. The quietly gloat to each other that Attuma is a fool and how they plan on committing genocide on the Atlantean people, a sacrifice that will complete their mission to bring Set to Earth. Llyra informs Ghaur that her Lemurian attack force has just positioned themselves above Atlantis and wait for her command.   Back in Manhattan, the Fantastic Four try to keep the Megasaur at bay, however the creature shrugs off their attacks. That's when Mister Fantastic notices a man piloting the creature from a device on its head. Not far away, a group of Atlantean soldiers drive a tank toward some American soldiers and are about to kill them when a man in a suit of armor leaps in-between them all. He orders the Atlanteans to cease their attack. When they ignore this mystery man, he rips down the side of a building and uses it to block their blasts, providing cover for the soldiers to escape. Meanwhile, the Fantastic Four and Spider-Man are not faring well against the Megasaur. Soon enough, all the members of the Fantastic Four are incapacitated, leaving Spider-Man alone to deal with the creature on his own. While the Invisible Woman tends to her unconscious husband, Ghaur arrives and sneaks up behind her. The Deviant has chosen her to be yet another Bride of Set and blasts her with a stun ray and they take her away. As he regains consciousness, Mister Fantastic can only watch helplessly as his wife is kidnapped. As the Fantastic Four recover, Spider-Man continues to hold his own against the Megasaur. Suddenly, Attuma joins the battle with yet another wave of soldiers.   While in Atlantis, the Lemurians get the order from Llyra to open fire. The commander of the fleet then launches a nuclear bomb that detonates in the middle of the fabled city. Back on the surface, Spider-Man has lured the Megasaur to Times Square where he taunts it into trying to hit him on the side of a building. When Spider-Man leaps out of the way, the Megasaur's fist punches through an electronic billboard and is jolted by electricity that incapacitates the Atlantean piloting the creature. This sends the Megasaur into a mindless rage and it begins to chase Spider-Man again. The wall-crawler begins luring the creature back out to sea. Once back in the waters, the creature returns to the sea, without further incident. Spider-Man webs up the creature's pilot and goes to rejoin the others in battle. At Battery Park, the battle rages on until reports come in about the decimation of Atlantis. Hearing that his kingdom has been destroyed takes all the fight out of Attuma and his armies. Ordering his warriors to stand down, Attuma then surrenders. In the aftermath of the battle, Attuma is taken into custody and the recovery effort begins. At a press conference, Mister Fantastic tells the press that his wife was kidnapped during the battle and that his team will do whatever it takes to get her back. When asked if he will assist, Spider-Man states that he will do everything he can to help. A RANDOM MIRACLE Professor Evan Swann is finishing up a lecture on Quantum Mechanics at Empire State University, explaining to the students Albert Einstein's "Uncertainty Principal" before dismissing class for the day. Lost in thought, Swann begins walking down the ESU campus when suddenly he is bombarded with energy in the configuration of a molecule. Suddenly, Evan Swann is endowed with the power of Captain Universe. His mind is soon flooded with an explanation to his great powers, how he has been endowed with the Unipower a sentient portion of the Enigma Force that, in times of great need, gives a normal individual the power of Captain Universe.  Swan, a man of science, finds this fascinating and wonders what sort of crisis he has been chosen to resolve.   Not far away, there is a sudden explosion at a nearby building. Emerging from the blast is a strange four-armed being calling himself the Quantum Mechanic, a self professed Space-Time Continua Service Representative. He begins examining the area with sophisticated machinery and reports back to his superiors that he has detected a relativity displacement that is affecting the entire continuum and begins preparing to strip down the planet Earth to its basic sub-atomic forces to examine this further. However, he is interrupted by Evan Swann who asks the alien creature what it is doing. However, the Quantum Mechanic ignores his questions as he works until he can stand the incessant questions any longer. The Mechanic tells Captain Universe to get lost as he has work to finish. After confirming that the alien intends to destroy the Earth, Evan tells the creature that he cannot allow it. The Quantum Mechanic strikes with a blow so powerful that Captain Universe is sent flying past the moon. Doubling back, Evan begins to think about the situation, and realizes that the thing that the flaw they are detecting is the very "Uncertainty Principal" he was lecturing about earlier that day.   Angry that a being would jeopardise the entire world because of their ignorance of this scientific principal, Swan gets angry and storms back down to the planet. He strikes the Quantum Mechanic with a powerful blow and teleports the creature away. After giving the alien and its superiors a stern warning against harming the Earth, Professor Swann returns to Earth. With his mission over, the Unipower leaves his body, reverting him back to normal. He is sad to see the power leave him, and envies whoever receives this random miracle in the future. PETEY: THE ADVENTURES OF PETER PARKER BEFORE HE BECAME SPIDER-MAN! Peter Parker is sent to the pharmacy by his Aunt May to pick up medication for his Uncle Ben. She tells Peter that he can spend the change on anything he would like.   On the way he runs into Flash Thompson and Liz Allan who are arguing over the fact that Flash can't afford to buy them both ice cream sodas. When the learn that Peter is going to the pharmacy and that he has ten dollars they convince him to buy all three of them ice cream soda, assuring him that he has more than enough money for his uncle's medication and the sodas.   When they arrive at the pharmacy, they immediately go to the soda counter and order three deluxe ice cream sodas. As they enjoy this treat, the pharmacist gives Peter the medication. When Peter pays for the medication, he only gets a quarter back in change. When the soda counter attendant tells them that their bill is two dollars and seventy-five cents, the trio fall over backward onto the floor and pretend that they are sick in the hopes they can get out of paying the bill. SPIDER-MAN'S MOST DUBIOUS Spider-Man goes through some of the low points of his career. He starts with his most dubious accessories. He talks about the time he obtained an alien symbiote from Battleworld and wore it as a costume until he found out it was alive and was trying to bond with him. When he relinquished the symbiote to the Fantastic Four he was given one of the Human Torch's spare costumes. Without a mask, Peter was forced to wear a paper bag over his head. Adding insult to injury, the Torch also put a "kick me" sign on the wall-crawlers back.  He also remembers the time when he was in high school and his Aunt May confiscated his costume forcing him to temporarily wear an ill fitting store bought costume.    Another embarrassing moment was when Spider-Man was convinced to build a Spider-Mobile to promote a newly designed engine. With the help of the Human Torch, the Spider-Mobile was born, however Peter didn't know how to drive.  He also recalls the time when he tries to cure himself of his spider-powers which backfired spectacularly when he grew four extra arms instead. A condition Spider-Man ultimately cured himself of.  Lastly, Peter complains about how Marvel Comics have recently created a funny animal version of him for their comic books called the Spider-Ham.    Next Spider-Man thinks of all the strange allies and enemies he has fought over the years. Of these individuals, Spider-Man recalls Razorback, Top Dog, Howard the Duck, Dracula, the Frankenstein's Monster, the Werewolf by Night, Brother Voodoo, Spider-Kid, Frog-Man, the White Rabbit, Hypno-Hustler, and the Humbug.    Lastly, he recounts some of his most embarrassing moments. These include, the time he went after a crook in the suburbs and had to ride atop a garbage truck,[Continuity4 18] the time Doctor Octopus attempted to marry his Aunt May, his early career in showbiz, and finally, the time he had to teach the Beyonder how to use the bathroom. A MUTE PRAYER FOR DEAF EARS In a winter snow fall, Silver Sable watches the burial of her operatives in the Wild Pack. Unlike the other mourners, she watches from a distance. Talking to herself, she believes that Kuryova was at fault for his death while they were on a mission. She thinks back to the mission that cost Kuryova his life. They were on a stealth mission in the Gulf of Sidra in Iraqi territory. She berated the man for not following his training when they are discovered by an enemy battleship. Her thoughts are interrupted by Kuryova's widow who is concerned about the death pension that may be due to her as she needs the money. Sable tells her that the cause of her husband's death is still under review. She then tells the grieving woman that she should pray that the Wild Pack's board doesn't find her husband's actions as grossly negligent as she does and leaves. As she drives away, Silver Sable wonders if the people outside look away at her out of fear or envy.   This questions makes her think back to the day of her mother's funeral. At the time she had asked her Uncle Mortimer why people turn away from her as they drive by. He tells her that the mourn the loss of her mother as much as she does. Silver questions this, but her uncle tells her not to worry about it, pointing out that all the stress is causing her hair to prematurely grey. Her recollection ends when she gets home, and she insists that her grey hair was not the product of stress, but anger. As she storms into her home, she thinks about the mission in Iraq, Silver Sable and the Wild Pack had fled to an abandoned warehouse in the city of Basra.  Once inside, she ordered Jannsens and Kuryova to guard the door while everyone else took positions. While Kuryova expressed his concerns over if they have enough firepower when suddenly the door blew open.   Sables mind snaps back to the present when she drops a crystal figurine on the floor. This attracts the attention of her maid who comes to clean up the mess and asks if her mistress is okay. Silver assures the maid that she is fine. The maid is remembers that this crystal figurine was a gift from her father. Silver remembers the day she obtained it. She was in the middle of a training session when she was distracted from her father's car arriving home. This allowed one of the other fighters to strike her from behind. Seeing this, her father warned her to not allow herself to get distracted in battle. Giving her the gift, he then left as suddenly as he returned home. Having not seen her father in months, Sable is upset that her father has left her alone again.   This gets Sable thinking about the mission again. Fleeing from the Iraqi military, Sable chastises Kuryova for abandoning his post. He tells her that they are being overrun. She believes him to be a coward, telling him that they will discuss this later. She is even more disappointed when he states that he is afraid of dying. This takes her back further, to when she decided to call herself Silver Sable for the first time. Her Uncle Mortimer asked her why she would call herself that. She explains that it is because her father's neglect drained her of all feeling. When Sable and the Wild Pack were being extracted from Iraq by helicopter, Kuryova began to scramble up the rope ladder while Sable struggled to keep hold of a wounded member of her team named Bettermann. Kuryova is also struck by a bullet, and she barely catches him. She warns him that he better die quickly for being such a coward.   With her recollections over, she is told that the council has decided that Agent Kuryova was guilty of five counts of insubordination, dereliction of duty, insubordination, and cowardice. Based on the details of his contract, his widow would not be eligible for his pension benefits. Sable tells her aid to relay this to Kuryova's widow, and to tell her her husband's negligence led to the deaths of two other agents and the serious injury of another. When her maid asks what to do about the broken crystal, she tells her to throw it away. However, she tells her to wait and collects the head of the broken crystal cat. She considers that he had left her so little and begins to cry alone in the darkness. CORPORATE TAKEOVER Uatu the Watcher continues his recounting of the saga of the Serpent Crown. He points out that while the Serpent Crown had mostly been contained in his native reality, there were other versions of the Crown which exist in other realities. In one such reality existed the Serpent Cartel which consisted of that realities leading business men: Justin Hammer, Leland Owlsley, Kyle Richmond, Sebastian Shaw, Gregory Gideon, Obadiah Stane, and Cornelius van Lundt. All these men were put under the influence of their version of the Serpent Crown. Seeking to free Set from their exile, they then made contact with Hugh Jones, the President and CEO of the Roxxon Oil Corporation of the Watcher's native reality. Jones was the current thrall of his realities Serpent Crown. Breaching the dimensional barriers to make contact, Hugh Jones reports to the Serpent Cartel how he used the power of Set to make Roxxon one of the most powerful corporations of his reality.   He tells how he came into contact with the Serpent Crown. It all started when the Atlantean known as Warlord Krang located the Serpent Crown and put it on. Under the influence of Set, Krang sought out and enlisted the aid of the terrorist known as Viper. With her Serpent Squad they kidnapped Jones to hold for ransom. They then put the crown on Hugh's head and attempted to use the power of the Serpent Crown to raise the Lumerian continent from the ocean floor. This scheme, however, was foiled thanks to interference from the costumed hero known as Nomad. During the ensuing battle, Viper tried to escape with the Serpent Crown but it was lost in the battle. With his tale concluded, he tells the Serpent Cartel that he is using all of his resources to try and locate his world's Serpent Crown.   Gregory Gideon then shares his tale of the Serpent Crown of his world. He found the Serpent Crown in the Pacific while building oil rigs. He then used the power of the crown to take control of the most powerful businessmen on his world. Getting resistance from Professor Imam and Arcanna, the Serpent Cartel imprisoned Imam in another dimension and locked Arcanna in a cell. When their teammates in the Squadron Supreme went looking for their missing teammates, all but Nighthawk and Power Princess were enthralled by the Cartel. They then moved on to take control of the President of the United States as well and his Attorney General, Kyle Richmond. Gideon and Jones then agree to work together to recover the Serpent Crown from Hugh Jones' reality.   The Watcher then continues the narrative, telling how Gregory Gideon loaned the enthralled members of the Squadron Supreme who then clashed with the Avengers. During the ensuing battle, Hugh Jones shunted the Avengers to the Squadron Supreme's world. There, they were confronted by the Serpent Crown enthralled President. However, the team managed to steal the Serpent Crown and flee...