Gwen's Choice (Seeking Collection, Seeking Follow-up Reads)

"Apologies, General Ross, but this incident falls under NYPD jurisdiction. The military doesn't need to get involved."

"Alright, that's settled. I'm on site now. I'll hang up."

On the helicopter, Captain George Stacy unhesitatingly ended the call from the military.

"Captain, turning them down so bluntly like that... are you sure it's wise?"

The officer beside him watched his superior dismiss a general so blatantly and couldn't help worrying about his future.

After all, while the police and military belonged to different factions, their relationships were tangled and complex. And since the other party was a general, if he resorted to underhanded tactics in the shadows, the captain's career prospects might take a serious hit.

"Hmph, those military types aren't being generous out of the kindness of their hearts, coming to help us catch criminals."

"Offering assistance now—they just want the genetic samples of those two superpowered individuals down there, to run some horrific gene experiments and dig out the secrets hidden inside them."

"After all, it's common knowledge that the military's been trying to recreate a super-soldier on par with Captain America."

"I strongly suspect that these powerful freaks popping up one after another are products of their own special experiments."

"But no matter what, since they've disrupted order in my jurisdiction, it's up to the police to arrest them and bring them to justice."

"Only then can we face the citizens of this city with our heads held high."

Captain George stared down at the two Spider-People, now completely surrounded, a resolute gleam in his eyes.

"This is the NYPD. You in front, listen up: you are surrounded. Drop your weapons immediately, cease your criminal activities, raise your hands, and lie face down on the ground. Any resistance and we are authorized to use lethal force..."

With dozens of police cars, several armed helicopters, and over a hundred heavily armed officers encircling Gwen and Peter, an officer with a megaphone began shouting at them.

"Damn it, what do we do now?"

Gwen, trapped by the police, felt a surge of panic.

Though her strength far exceeded an ordinary person's, she still couldn't stop bullets.

If it were just a few armed cops, she could rely on her powerful Spider-Sense to dodge their shots.

But now, with nearly a hundred officers around and armed helicopters overhead for cover, escape was no easy task.

"It's all this idiot's fault!"

Knowing she might not get away, Gwen slowly raised her hands, ready to surrender, while cursing Peter in her mind.

"But if I'm caught like this, how do I face my father?"

Yet what terrified her most wasn't being arrested—it was facing her father, the captain. She'd heard him rant at the dinner table more than once about his hatred for Spider-Woman—her.

"Officers, I think you've got the wrong guy. I'm no criminal—I'm a famous upstanding citizen of Los Santos."

Besides Gwen, Peter, also surrounded, slowly raised his hands, bent his knees as if to kneel, and spoke in an easygoing tone to the cops around him.

"Los Santos? Where's that?"

"No idea. Probably some backwater town."

None of the officers knew where Los Santos was.

"Repeating: to avoid unnecessary casualties, raise your hands immediately, lie face down, and do not resist. Otherwise, we will open fire."

Seeing that both seemed ready to comply, the police sent a few officers forward to restrain them.

The officers crept closer, but kept their guns trained, alert for any surprises.

"Heh, sorry, forgot to mention—my 'upstanding citizen' rating is five stars!"

When the officers were just a few meters away, Peter, clad in black spider-suit and crouched low with his face hidden, chuckled and spoke again.

"Shit! All units, open fire immediately, no authorization needed!"

On the helicopter, Captain George, observing everything, suddenly sensed something wrong and urgently barked into his radio.

He also shouted to the pilot: "Quick, pull us up!"

But it was already too late.

Boom!

A thunderous blast erupted beneath Peter's feet.

Like an anti-tank mine had detonated.

The sheer force sent the officers only meters away flying backward.

Even the sturdy street, strong enough to support trucks weighing dozens of tons, was shattered by the impact, leaving a crater several meters deep.

Around the crater, countless cracks spread outward like a spiderweb.

A cloud of dust rose, swallowing the scene.

Rat-tat-tat... Bang-bang-bang... Thump-thump-thump...

When the sudden incident occurred, the surrounding officers were momentarily stunned, but thanks to the sheriff's earlier warning, they quickly snapped back to their senses.

Without a moment's hesitation, they unleashed a torrent of fire from their handguns, rifles, and other weapons into the smoke and dust.

Tens of thousands of bullets poured out like raindrops in just a few seconds—even an elephant would have been reduced to a pile of shredded meat by now.

Yet, from within the smoke, not a single scream emerged, as if their bullets had struck nothing but air.

Boom!

Just as doubt and unease gripped them, a violent explosion suddenly rang out from the sky, instantly drawing everyone's attention.

"No good, he's up there!"

Someone had already made out the scene unfolding in the sky above.

"Oh my God, how is this possible!"

But the sight before them left everyone present utterly incredulous.

There, among the armed helicopters that had been circling the sky, one of them was now snapped cleanly in two, its wreckage plummeting toward the ground.

And what was even more unbelievable—from one of the broken fuselage sections, a figure suddenly burst forth, charging straight toward the nearest helicopter beside it.

"Is this really something a human can do?"

Watching the armed helicopter torn apart in midair, nearly everyone present was struck speechless with shock.

"A good chance..."

At the same time, as all the officers stood frozen, overwhelmed by the scene unfolding before them, Gwen found the perfect opportunity to escape.

"But..."

Yet, looking at the wreckage of the helicopter destroyed by that thing called Venom, crashing toward the ground, and the survivors screaming within it, Gwen ultimately halted her steps toward escape.

The next moment, the web line from her wrist shot out, and she launched herself into the sky, charging straight toward the falling helicopter wreckage!