Spectrum ⇒ Avengers [ 1 ]

Hades

In the ancient Greek religion, Nemesis (/ˈnɛməsɪs/; Greek: Νέμεσις), also called Rhamnousia/Rhamnusia ("the goddess of Rhamnous") at her sanctuary at Rhamnous, north of Marathon, was the spirit of divine retribution against those who succumb to hubris (arrogance before the gods). Another name was Adrasteia, meaning "the inescapable".

I push myself back from the Laptop nervously.

I had originally thought that the obvious meaning behind the name 'Nemesis' was simply the dictionary definition- an enemy. But then I found the Greek goddess- and judging by Lee's 'Icarus' pseudonym, it seems more likely.

A spirit of divide retribution- it doesn't sound very friendly. 'Icarus' is a lot less subtle- as far as my memory serves, he was a mortal man who was built wings by his father. Unfortunately, he flew too close to the sun, and fell to his death.

Neither myth sounds like it could ever end well.

I'm nervous again, which isn't a change. What is a change is that today I'm going to meet with Lee. Apparently he's been calm lately, but has been asking for me. Always for me. The very idea of being in a room with him again is making my stomach lurch.

Nemesis. Icarus. Clearly, the Tarantula has a thing for Greek mythology. What's that all about? Was it too obvious to call us Freak 1-6?

I take a steadying breath.

"You're freaking out." Peter is lying at the end of my bed, staring at me from beneath his glasses.
"I'm not."
"You are. You're doing that weird huffling sound." I throw a pillow at him, but he catches it with a graceful ease I know I could never match. "There's nothing wrong with freaking out. I'd be freaking out."
"I'm scared." I admit. "He hates me."
"He's brainwashed." Peter reminds me. "He isn't in control of his own emotions, and he doesn't have free thought. Besides, no one could hate you."
I snort and collapse next to him. "Yeah, because I'm so wonderful."
His mouth opens, and then closes, and we lay there silently, staring up at the ceiling.

"I left them all, Peter." His head turns to look at me, but my gaze doesn't break away. "Not just Lee- there was Killian, and Jo, and Freya- she was so small, she was so young-" I take another breath. "And Jake. I left Jake. We... We stayed together on the streets, y'know? And we said we'd stick together no matter what. And I left him."
"Hey." His voice is gentle. This is the first time I've been able to say their names aloud to him. "It wasn't your fault. You couldn't have done anything."
"That's what everyone keeps telling me, but it doesn't make it better."
"I know." He sighs. And then- "her name was Gwen. We-we were together, and..." I don't say anything. I don't dare. This is the first time he's ever mentioned it, mentioned her by name. "She died. The Green Goblin killed her- he dropped her, she fell, I wasn't fast enough, and her neck snapped."

I inhale in shock. I hadn't expected anything so... Horrific.
"And I tell myself it's not my fault, but it is. I should have kept her safe." His hands curl into the white sheets of my bed. "I should have protected her."
And what can I say to that? What could possibly make that better?
"Then we'll find the Goblin, and bring him to justice." I say quietly. It's the one thing I'm holding onto- the hope that I can take the Tarantula down. She'll regret ever giving me this strength, especially when my hands are around her throat-

Whoa. Where did that come from?

I frown, my stomach flipping. Violent thoughts are common place these days, and I try to ignore me. As long as I don't follow through with whatever I'm thinking of, nothing is wrong, right? Right...

"You haven't been green lately, have you?" Peter asks, abruptly changing the subject. I bite the inside of my cheek and resolve to do some research on this 'Green Goblin' later.
"No. It's getting easier." There have been close calls, but with all of Tony's tech and Bruce's paranoia, I've managed to hold off on an actual transformation. "I can still feel her, though. The other me, inside."
"Really? How?"
"It's like..." I sigh and roll onto my side, meeting his eyes. "I don't know, it's like having an eyelash stuck in your eye. It doesn't hurt, it's not even irritating, but it's just there."
"Did you just compare the hulk to an eyelash?" Peter asks, chuckling. It's a warm sound, making the electric blue fade into a deep-sea colour.
"Yeah. I guess there are differences. An eyelash never broke Harlem." I joke.
"Neither have you-"
"-yet."