The ghost they search for XP

Uh Oh....

It was in the middle of the night, that I got woken up by my Spidey sense. Not only was it tingling so bad, but it was basically screaming at me to move my ass. Who knows why? Well, I do. 'Cause the moment I woke up, my room was completely bright—and it was the middle of the night! How in the world was my room supposed to be lit up this brightly?

HAH....

One reason and one reason alone.....

JANE!!!

I swear, before Jane, something like this would have been basically impossible. Thanks to her, I nearly got busted and grilled by thunder... Tony was after me, and it was the only reason why I thought about Jane....

Yeah, maybe I jumped to conclusions right there, but then again... maybe not?

I groaned, rubbing my eyes and sitting up in bed. My head was still foggy from sleep, but the bright light was doing a good job of waking me up. I stumbled out of bed and made my way to the window, grumbling under my breath.

Me: Why can't she just play nice for once? I didn't ask for a light show in the middle of the—

I froze as I looked out the window. My eyes widened, and my heart dropped into my stomach.

Me: Uh-oh.

There were flashing red and blue lights everywhere, police cars lined up in the street like they were tailgating outside a football game. And—oh, perfect—they had spotlights aimed directly at my apartment. I could see cops gearing up with some seriously intense-looking equipment.

 SWAT teams, really?

 What was this, a Michael Bay movie?

And that wasn't even the worst part.

Hovering just above the building was none other than Iron Man himself, glowing like a neon sign and clearly not here for a friendly chat.

Me: Oh, you've gotta be kidding me. Why is he here?!

As if on cue, Iron Man's voice boomed through the night, amplified by some built-in speaker system in his suit.

Iron Man: Hey, Spider-Man! Or should I say 'Insect'? Yeah, you! Come on down here before we have to do this the hard way!

I blinked, utterly baffled. Iron Man and I had never met in person without my mask—so how did he know I was here? I mean, sure, I had a few slip-ups with Jane, but could they have really tracked me this fast?

My mind was racing, trying to piece together how in the world this all went down. The only thing that made sense was that when I put Jane into Stark's system, I hadn't covered my tracks well enough. 

Stupid, stupid, stupid! 

My IP address was like an open door with a welcome mat that said, "Come arrest me!"

I started pacing my room, chewing on my lip and pulling at my hair.

Me: Okay, okay, think, think! How do I get out of this? They're all out there—SWAT, Iron Man—oh man, I'm so screwed!

I quickly threw on my suit, still muttering to myself.

Me: Maybe if I just explain, they'll understand? I mean, it was all a big misunderstanding! Yeah, sure, I put an AI in Stark's system, but it's not like I meant any harm... right? RIGHT?!

Just as I was about to sneak out the window and make a run for it, one of the cops spotted me. Great. The jig was up.

Police: Spider-Man, we have you surrounded! Come out with your hands up!

I groaned again, pinching the bridge of my nose.

Me: Surrounded? Really? I'm like, 90% sure this is overkill...

Iron Man's voice cut in again, his tone impatient.

Iron Man: Last chance, Webhead! Come out, or I'm coming in!

I could see him charging up his repulsors, and my Spidey sense went into overdrive. Time to think fast.

With a deep breath, I stepped up to the window, hands raised in a half-hearted surrender.

Me: Okay, okay! I'm coming down, but can we please skip the part where you blast me to pieces? I just woke up, and I'm not in the mood for extra crispy Spider-Man!

I could almost feel Tony rolling his eyes behind that helmet.

Iron Man: Just get down here, Bug Boy.

Me: Spider,...

I muttered under my breath.

Me: not a bug, but whatever...

With one last glance around my room—what might be the last time I see it in one piece—I climbed out the window and swung down to the street. The moment my feet hit the pavement, I was surrounded by cops, guns trained on me like I was the world's most wanted criminal.

Me: Hey, guys, morning! Or, uh, night? Not really sure at this point, but do we really need all the guns? I'm not armed, I swear!

Iron Man landed in front of me, crossing his arms.

Iron Man: You're coming with me. We need to have a little chat about the mess you've made, Webhead.

I winced, internally screaming at myself for being so careless.

Me: Yeah, sure. But, uh, could we maybe talk about this somewhere less... public? I mean, you kinda brought the whole NYPD out here, and I'm not really looking for that kind of attention."

Tony raised an eyebrow—at least, I think he did. It's hard to tell with the helmet.

Iron Man: You're in no position to negotiate, but fine. Let's go.

And just like that, I was being escorted—well, more like dragged—by Iron Man to who knows where. I had no idea what was going to happen next, but one thing was for sure: I was in deep, deep trouble.

As we took off into the night sky, I couldn't help but mutter,

Me: Great job, Pete. Next time, remember to cover your digital tracks... if there is a next time.