𝙎𝙋𝙄𝘿𝙀𝙍-𝙈𝘼𝙉 ¹ | 𝙈𝘾𝙐 𝙍𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙧 𝙄𝙣𝙨𝙚𝙧𝙩

9.08 - 𝙎𝙚𝙖 𝙤𝙛 𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙤𝙨

RAIN CONTINUED TO pour amidst the sudden storm. Carlos LaMuerto stood on the rooftop of the warehouse, the water splashing onto his unmasked face as he looked up into the clouds.

He shut his eyes, thinking of his last moment with Jean. He saw her face; he recalled her voice. He remembered what she had told him before he left the house to go to city hall. Her last words to him.

"Do what you have to do."

Carlos kept his eyes closed as his lip quivered. She was always supportive of him and his endeavors. When he wanted to go to the army, she egged him on. When he got his powers and tried to use them for the benefit of others, she was with him every step of the way. It was a two-way road, as Carlos had her back throughout her advancement in the police force.

They were heroes together.

Carlos planted a foot on the rooftop's ledge and rested his head on his hand, going into a thinking position. He began to sob, thinking back at what had happened moments earlier.

How he stumbled upon the dead body of Jean and her killer, Sin Eater, standing over her.

How he brutalized the man, who didn't even bother putting up a fight.

How he murdered him in cold blood...right in front of everyone in the neighborhood.

He didn't even care about what others thought...but he did wonder what his son would think. Carlos wondered what he'd tell Fabian.

How could he tell him?

How would a five-year-old ponder the fact that their mother was killed in her line of work by some masked serial killer? And if he were to have somehow seen or told that his father murdered said killer...how would he process that? Would he see him as an avenger...or just some other killer?

If it was the latter, Carlos felt like he'd lost everything. He would have no one. It would just be him. His sorrows and the shadows he wore.

He suddenly heard footsteps splashing the wet rooftop floor behind him, and Carlos knew who they were. He finally opened his eyes, looking out the view of the Harlem River before muttering to himself.

"Do what you have to do."

Spider-Man called out to Black Tarantula.

"Carlos."

The man stood up and faced them. He looked at them for a moment before stepping away.

"Carlos, stop." Daredevil said firmly.

"What?" He turned back around. "You...you saw what happened, what Carter had done. You know what I had to do. I killed him because I had to! He killed Jean! He murdered my fiancé!"

"You don't want to go down that road, Carlos," Y/N replied. "Believe me...it doesn't end well."

"You two wouldn't understand."

Matt chimed in. "We do."

Both heroes had lost people close to them while donning their masks. They understood the pain and grief that came with it. And in the immediate aftermath, they almost lost their ways and became bitter. But they ended up preserving and becoming better because of it. Still...the pain of their losses was still felt in their heart, but it was up to them to use it as strength to continue.

Carlos scoffed. He shook his head and paced in front of them, his wet mask still in his right hand. Y/N tried to offer consolation.

"Listen, it was the heat of the battle. Okay? What you did doesn't make you the bad guy."