Ace Matheson - Spiderman

Chapter Five: Marionette's Prison Escape

Marionette sat in his prison cell, listening to the clock on the wall tick away.

Tick, tick, tick.

There was brief shuffling, then the sound of heavy metal doors opening.

"Oi, you've got a visitor." Officer Byers called out. "A fancy lawyer is here to talk to you." He said as he lead a tall, lanky man to the prison cell. Marionette looked up, his expression unchanging.

"Hello there. I'm Joseph, your personal lawyer." The man said cheerfully, Byers seeming to hesitate.

"You've got five minutes of privacy. He's a high risk prisoner. I can't leave him alone for any longer than that." With that, Officer Byers left the room.

There was a moment of silence, Joseph waiting until he was sure there would be no one listening in. He turned to Marionette who's face was expressionless.

"Doc Ock has asked for me to retrieve you. Now don't get me wrong, I was excited when I found out I was going to be apart of Docs little AI experiment. But seeing you in the flesh. He really did a good job."

Joseph stepped forward, lifting his arm up until a red hologram appeared from a watch on his wrist. When he clicked it, it flashed green, Marionette hearing his cell door unlock.

"He wants to fix you. Make you stronger. You want that don't you?"

"I'm not sure what I want. I thought I wanted to defeat Spiderman but I'm starting to think-"

"Don't think. Marionette, you are the answer Doc has been looking for. You are an artificial intelligence in an artificial body that he made especially for you. You don't want to go against your creator, do you?"

"... No, I suppose not." He sighed softly. Joseph smiled and nodded.

"Attaboy. Now. Wait till I leave and give those cuffs a little pull. You'll be right out, and it'll look like a malfunction." Joseph reached through the bars and grabbed Marionette's chin. "Make us proud. You've got a lot on your shoulders." With that, he exited the room, talking to Byers cheerfully as Marionette closed his eyes.

He sighed, waiting until he was sure Joseph was long gone, Marionette pacing anxiously around his cell. He couldn't help but think... was Spiderman as bad as Doc Ock told him?

He appeared to be a hero... after all, he was free and Marionette was behind bars. Was... was he a bad guy? But he was meant to destroy Spiderman. After all, he'd been told that Spiderman destroyed Alchemax, the place his design was ever even drafted.

Surely Spiderman wasn't as good as he seemed. He was annoying for sure, and rude, but it seems like he just wanted to save people...

He eventually decided not to think about it as he looked towards his now unlocked cell door. He stood up, hands trembling as Byers walked back into the room. Byers seemed to hesitate before he walked towards the door.

"Do you eat? Or... charge..." Byers said, scratching the back of his neck as Marionette looked down. After a moment... he pulled lightly on his cuffs, watching them fall off his wrists. He kicked the cell door open, Byers stumbling back and grabbing his gun. But by the time he'd gotten his bearings... Marionette was already gone.

He went straight home, following his instincts... well... programming.