Post by Uatu the Watcher on Apr 14, 2007 1:52:13 GMT -5
[Straczynski, J. Michael (w), Ron Garney (p), and Bill Reinhold (i)] “The War At Home Part One” The Amazing Spider-Man, v1, #532, (Jul. 2006), Marvel Entertainment: [6-11]
Adapted By: The Punisher
Three hours after their departure from Stamford, Connecticut, two individuals by the names of Tony Stark and Peter Parker had found their way inside the elegantly decorated waiting hall of the White House. Inside the home of the commander-in-chief, priceless paintings displaying the nation’s heritage donned the walls. Marble busts of presidential leaders rested on pedestals between doorways. A lavishly expensive red carpet encompassed the floor, white wall to white wall, as silent and collected secret service agents stood at attention in the hallway.
“Tony--” Peter whispered to his friend beside him. Parker sat upright, with his hands atop the knees of his beige kaki pants, as his left leg seemed to subtly and spontaneously tap up and down repeatedly. His hair was a matted and hastily prepared mess; as if it had been recently constricted by a hat or other headgear. The collar on his long-sleeved blue jacket was halfway popped, seemingly uncomfortably, as it rested wide open; displaying his off-yellow, halfway buttoned, collared t-shirt.
“This is the White House, not church, Peter. You don’t have to whisper.” Tony Stark spoke in return with complete confidence. One leg crossed the other, resting atop his knee, which resonated his calm and professional attitude as he sat in his gray suit. His blue undershirt, lacking a tie, was completely buttoned up all the way to the top; save for the final collar hold that Tony stylishly spread out to the sides of his neck.
“Says you.” Parker replied. “I am so out of my league. I’m just a kid from the neighborhood, Tony. What am I doing in--” His voiced dropped in a sizable decibel amount, returning to a whisper. “--The White House. I think I gotta pee.”
“Mr. Stark, the President will see you now.” The door to the oval office entryway remained open as a secret service agent announced generically from the entrance.
“I’ll just be a few minutes, Peter. Wait here. Try not to touch anything breakable.” Stark said as he walked off into the office.
“Yessir.” Peter reluctantly replied, now left alone to his own devices. The door shut behind Tony with a soft thud, returning the hallway to silence once more. All by himself, Peter couldn’t help but feel uncomfortable in such an intimidating atmosphere. An unnerving quiet chill creped up his spine, collected from the various factors of his immediate surroundings. The silent agents who stood in his very presence without uttering a single word. The lack of any audible background noise inside the house, not even a muffled conversation from inside the office. But most of all was Parker’s unyielding need to urinate.
To ease his nerves, Peter picked himself up from his chair and began to pace the elegant hallway. Casually, he smirked a nervous smile at the impersonal guards; naturally not receiving a reply in return from behind their dark aviator sunglasses. Placing his hands behind his back, he strolled from painting to painting as he gave each artwork a once-over glance at their contents. The pictures, in and of themselves, were of no concern to Parker, he could care less. It was all a simple masquerade to pass the time as Tony discussed in private with the President. A nervous tune made its way to Peter’s lips, as he began to whistle an indiscernible song; partially out of boredom. Walking slowly, singing to himself, time seemed to pass slower and slower each moment Tony failed to walk out the office’s doors. Somewhere between the second verse of his new song and overlooking the Abraham Lincoln bust was when Peter finally about-faced in from his curiosity, and walked up to the nearest secret service agent; scratching his head in his agitated state.
“Ummm… Hi, listen, is... there a restroom anywhere around here I can--”
“Don’t worry. You can rely on me, Mr. President.” Tony’s words could be heard as the office door opened, silencing Peter’s humble request. Already, Stark began to make his way down the hall to the elevator.
“What happened? Tony? Wait up--”
As Peter chased behind, Tony was remained silent until reaching the secure privacy of the elevator’s inside.
“What did he say?” Peter asked.
“Two things. First, as a former secretary of state and one of the most visible figures in our little fraternity, he wanted me to know that congress will meet later today to push through the Superhuman Registration Act.” Tony spoke as Peter entered inside with him, pressing the elevator’s lobby button afterwards. “It’ll be signed within a week or so.” The walls hummed with a comforting mechanic resonance as the elevator began descending. “You don’t need a Richter scale to know there’s been a tectonic shift in the way the country sees us, Peter. You can feel it. The whole country just shuddered. They want the powers identified, responsible and controlled. Starting immediately.”
After the two exited the elevator, making their way outside the white house, Peter continued his questions once out of sight of any eavesdropping ears. “But… you’re gonna fight this, right? We… I mean, all those guys who have other names, real names they’ve worked so hard to protect… They’re not going to just roll over after all that.”
The two continued to walk their way along the path, to Tony’s private limousine; Parker continued his rant. “I mean… Look at your case. It took you years to convince everyone you weren’t Iron Man anymore.”
“I know. Which brings me to the second point.” Tony’s tone remained serious as he stopped in his tracks, facing Peter beside him. “He asked me, straight-up, if I was back to being Iron Man.”
“And you--”
“I told him yes, Peter.”
“You what?”
“The President of the United States asked me a question, Peter. I told him the truth. I told him I was Iron Man.”
Tony looked Peter dead in his eyes, a disheartening presence in his voice. “But that’s not the worst of it, Peter. Not today. Not by a long sight. Not for me--” The shock and concern of the situation was apparent in Parker’s eyes as his heart sank on what he dreaded to hear. “--And not for you.”
“But… I had nothing to do with what happened at Stamford.”
“Doesn’t matter.” Tony kept his mood cool and collected even in the face of the subject matter he presented. “The world where that made a difference just ended. The rules have changed, and once the President signs that act, those rules become law. Here’s how it’s going to work from this day on, Peter:” Facing away from Peter, he began to continue on his way toward his vehicle. “Everybody--EVERYBODY--in a mask is going to have to take it off, reveal himself, and register with the government.”
“Good guys and bad guys?”
“You still don’t get it, Peter--” The two entered the limousine and sat comfortably in the back of it’s leather interior. As the car drove began to leave the White House, Tony continued on about what he had learned from the President. “--Right now, in the eyes of the people and the government, for as long as we remain anonymous--we’re all bad guys. Those who refuse to comply will be hunted down and arrested... along with anyone who aided or abetted them in keeping their identities secret. Their assets will be frozen, their homes seized. And finally they will be jailed. Imprisoned. Some, potentially, for a very, very long time.” Already, at Tony’s words, Peter began to appear uncomfortable; as if the weight of the world had fallen in his lap. “This is going to split the powered community right down the middle, Peter. And I have to know where you stand.”
“I stand with you, Tony. I told you that. I made a promise. I don’t do that sort of thing lightly.”
“I know.” The tension in the air worsened as Stark looked Parker dead in the eyes. “Peter, I have to take the lead in making the other powers register. If I don’t, someone else worse will. And frankly... I think it’s the right thing to do at this point. I want you at my side, Peter. But I need you as both Peter… and Spider-Man. Openly”
Peter’s eyes widened with a heart-stopping fear; his voice quieting in return. “Boss..? Tony...? What… What are you saying?”[/b][/color]
“I’m saying that, because of my position, I have to make sure everything is on the up-and-up. That means that the only way that Peter Parker can work with me--is if Spider-Man unmasks.”
“I can’t... don’t ask that of me. Anything else, but not that.”
“It’s not me asking, Peter. If you don’t unmask, you’ll be just like the other powers who defy the law. Wanted criminals. Hunted. Jailed. Not just you, but MJ and your Aunt, because they’d be considered accomplices.” As Tony spoke, Peter turned away and gazed out his window with concern; his eyes filled with dread and sorrow as he cupped his mouth and chin with his hand. “If you turn against the law, I can’t have you with me. I won’t be able to protect you… Or your family.”
“God… God, God, God…” Peter said hysterically underneath his breath.
“We live in a time when everyone has had to make sacrifices of their privacy. Wiretaps. Increased surveillance. Random searches at airports. Did you really think we would be immune to that for long?”
Upon reaching their destination, Dulles International Airport, Tony Stark’s limousine drove out onto the airfield where it pulled beside one of Stark Industry’s own private jets. Both Tony and Peter exited the vehicle as Tony began walking Peter over to the plane’s entrance.
“I’ve told the flight crew to take you back to New York.” Tony said as he stopped short of the plain’s staircase.
“You’re not coming?” Peter asked.
“I can’t. I have another meeting with the President after he signs the Registration Act.” Tony placed his hands inside his jacket’s outer pockets. “Peter, I’m standing behind registration. I know this is a big step for you. My pilot has instructions to pick you up if you want to stand by me.” He began to walk away from Peter, back to the limousine. “If not… Not.”
“Goodbye, Peter.” The door shut behind Tony as the car drove off and away from the airfield; leaving Peter alone at the end of the day, his ride in the sky waiting to take him back to New York City. So much in so little time had fallen in his lap. Responsibility. Duty. All that he knew and cared for seemed at risk. His friends. His family. His wife. The burden of what he had taken upon himself since his life altering events of high school felt no lighter than they did at this very moment. Peter knew his next choices over the next few days would last with him forever; regardless of the consequences.
Adapted By: The Punisher
Three hours after their departure from Stamford, Connecticut, two individuals by the names of Tony Stark and Peter Parker had found their way inside the elegantly decorated waiting hall of the White House. Inside the home of the commander-in-chief, priceless paintings displaying the nation’s heritage donned the walls. Marble busts of presidential leaders rested on pedestals between doorways. A lavishly expensive red carpet encompassed the floor, white wall to white wall, as silent and collected secret service agents stood at attention in the hallway.
“Tony--” Peter whispered to his friend beside him. Parker sat upright, with his hands atop the knees of his beige kaki pants, as his left leg seemed to subtly and spontaneously tap up and down repeatedly. His hair was a matted and hastily prepared mess; as if it had been recently constricted by a hat or other headgear. The collar on his long-sleeved blue jacket was halfway popped, seemingly uncomfortably, as it rested wide open; displaying his off-yellow, halfway buttoned, collared t-shirt.
“This is the White House, not church, Peter. You don’t have to whisper.” Tony Stark spoke in return with complete confidence. One leg crossed the other, resting atop his knee, which resonated his calm and professional attitude as he sat in his gray suit. His blue undershirt, lacking a tie, was completely buttoned up all the way to the top; save for the final collar hold that Tony stylishly spread out to the sides of his neck.
“Says you.” Parker replied. “I am so out of my league. I’m just a kid from the neighborhood, Tony. What am I doing in--” His voiced dropped in a sizable decibel amount, returning to a whisper. “--The White House. I think I gotta pee.”
“Mr. Stark, the President will see you now.” The door to the oval office entryway remained open as a secret service agent announced generically from the entrance.
“I’ll just be a few minutes, Peter. Wait here. Try not to touch anything breakable.” Stark said as he walked off into the office.
“Yessir.” Peter reluctantly replied, now left alone to his own devices. The door shut behind Tony with a soft thud, returning the hallway to silence once more. All by himself, Peter couldn’t help but feel uncomfortable in such an intimidating atmosphere. An unnerving quiet chill creped up his spine, collected from the various factors of his immediate surroundings. The silent agents who stood in his very presence without uttering a single word. The lack of any audible background noise inside the house, not even a muffled conversation from inside the office. But most of all was Parker’s unyielding need to urinate.
To ease his nerves, Peter picked himself up from his chair and began to pace the elegant hallway. Casually, he smirked a nervous smile at the impersonal guards; naturally not receiving a reply in return from behind their dark aviator sunglasses. Placing his hands behind his back, he strolled from painting to painting as he gave each artwork a once-over glance at their contents. The pictures, in and of themselves, were of no concern to Parker, he could care less. It was all a simple masquerade to pass the time as Tony discussed in private with the President. A nervous tune made its way to Peter’s lips, as he began to whistle an indiscernible song; partially out of boredom. Walking slowly, singing to himself, time seemed to pass slower and slower each moment Tony failed to walk out the office’s doors. Somewhere between the second verse of his new song and overlooking the Abraham Lincoln bust was when Peter finally about-faced in from his curiosity, and walked up to the nearest secret service agent; scratching his head in his agitated state.
“Ummm… Hi, listen, is... there a restroom anywhere around here I can--”
“Don’t worry. You can rely on me, Mr. President.” Tony’s words could be heard as the office door opened, silencing Peter’s humble request. Already, Stark began to make his way down the hall to the elevator.
“What happened? Tony? Wait up--”
As Peter chased behind, Tony was remained silent until reaching the secure privacy of the elevator’s inside.
“What did he say?” Peter asked.
“Two things. First, as a former secretary of state and one of the most visible figures in our little fraternity, he wanted me to know that congress will meet later today to push through the Superhuman Registration Act.” Tony spoke as Peter entered inside with him, pressing the elevator’s lobby button afterwards. “It’ll be signed within a week or so.” The walls hummed with a comforting mechanic resonance as the elevator began descending. “You don’t need a Richter scale to know there’s been a tectonic shift in the way the country sees us, Peter. You can feel it. The whole country just shuddered. They want the powers identified, responsible and controlled. Starting immediately.”
After the two exited the elevator, making their way outside the white house, Peter continued his questions once out of sight of any eavesdropping ears. “But… you’re gonna fight this, right? We… I mean, all those guys who have other names, real names they’ve worked so hard to protect… They’re not going to just roll over after all that.”
The two continued to walk their way along the path, to Tony’s private limousine; Parker continued his rant. “I mean… Look at your case. It took you years to convince everyone you weren’t Iron Man anymore.”
“I know. Which brings me to the second point.” Tony’s tone remained serious as he stopped in his tracks, facing Peter beside him. “He asked me, straight-up, if I was back to being Iron Man.”
“And you--”
“I told him yes, Peter.”
“You what?”
“The President of the United States asked me a question, Peter. I told him the truth. I told him I was Iron Man.”
Tony looked Peter dead in his eyes, a disheartening presence in his voice. “But that’s not the worst of it, Peter. Not today. Not by a long sight. Not for me--” The shock and concern of the situation was apparent in Parker’s eyes as his heart sank on what he dreaded to hear. “--And not for you.”
“But… I had nothing to do with what happened at Stamford.”
“Doesn’t matter.” Tony kept his mood cool and collected even in the face of the subject matter he presented. “The world where that made a difference just ended. The rules have changed, and once the President signs that act, those rules become law. Here’s how it’s going to work from this day on, Peter:” Facing away from Peter, he began to continue on his way toward his vehicle. “Everybody--EVERYBODY--in a mask is going to have to take it off, reveal himself, and register with the government.”
“Good guys and bad guys?”
“You still don’t get it, Peter--” The two entered the limousine and sat comfortably in the back of it’s leather interior. As the car drove began to leave the White House, Tony continued on about what he had learned from the President. “--Right now, in the eyes of the people and the government, for as long as we remain anonymous--we’re all bad guys. Those who refuse to comply will be hunted down and arrested... along with anyone who aided or abetted them in keeping their identities secret. Their assets will be frozen, their homes seized. And finally they will be jailed. Imprisoned. Some, potentially, for a very, very long time.” Already, at Tony’s words, Peter began to appear uncomfortable; as if the weight of the world had fallen in his lap. “This is going to split the powered community right down the middle, Peter. And I have to know where you stand.”
“I stand with you, Tony. I told you that. I made a promise. I don’t do that sort of thing lightly.”
“I know.” The tension in the air worsened as Stark looked Parker dead in the eyes. “Peter, I have to take the lead in making the other powers register. If I don’t, someone else worse will. And frankly... I think it’s the right thing to do at this point. I want you at my side, Peter. But I need you as both Peter… and Spider-Man. Openly”
Peter’s eyes widened with a heart-stopping fear; his voice quieting in return. “Boss..? Tony...? What… What are you saying?”[/b][/color]
“I’m saying that, because of my position, I have to make sure everything is on the up-and-up. That means that the only way that Peter Parker can work with me--is if Spider-Man unmasks.”
“I can’t... don’t ask that of me. Anything else, but not that.”
“It’s not me asking, Peter. If you don’t unmask, you’ll be just like the other powers who defy the law. Wanted criminals. Hunted. Jailed. Not just you, but MJ and your Aunt, because they’d be considered accomplices.” As Tony spoke, Peter turned away and gazed out his window with concern; his eyes filled with dread and sorrow as he cupped his mouth and chin with his hand. “If you turn against the law, I can’t have you with me. I won’t be able to protect you… Or your family.”
“God… God, God, God…” Peter said hysterically underneath his breath.
“We live in a time when everyone has had to make sacrifices of their privacy. Wiretaps. Increased surveillance. Random searches at airports. Did you really think we would be immune to that for long?”
Upon reaching their destination, Dulles International Airport, Tony Stark’s limousine drove out onto the airfield where it pulled beside one of Stark Industry’s own private jets. Both Tony and Peter exited the vehicle as Tony began walking Peter over to the plane’s entrance.
“I’ve told the flight crew to take you back to New York.” Tony said as he stopped short of the plain’s staircase.
“You’re not coming?” Peter asked.
“I can’t. I have another meeting with the President after he signs the Registration Act.” Tony placed his hands inside his jacket’s outer pockets. “Peter, I’m standing behind registration. I know this is a big step for you. My pilot has instructions to pick you up if you want to stand by me.” He began to walk away from Peter, back to the limousine. “If not… Not.”
“Goodbye, Peter.” The door shut behind Tony as the car drove off and away from the airfield; leaving Peter alone at the end of the day, his ride in the sky waiting to take him back to New York City. So much in so little time had fallen in his lap. Responsibility. Duty. All that he knew and cared for seemed at risk. His friends. His family. His wife. The burden of what he had taken upon himself since his life altering events of high school felt no lighter than they did at this very moment. Peter knew his next choices over the next few days would last with him forever; regardless of the consequences.