3rd POV:
''What of Ghost Spider and Spider-Man? How are they dealing with this?,'' Steve asked.
Up till now they were chasing HYDRA bases and either killing or arresting agents. With Black Widow acting as the third super powered person in the team they had enough strength to do this. Thor was still off world and Hulk was still volatile and and a double edged sword.
They were also still looking for Baron von Strucker.
Soon that will change however as Tony will retire in a few months.
He still will make equipment for them and construction some kilometers away from the X-Mansion has began of an 'Avenger Facility'. But otherwise he will focus on his daughter, Morgan
Unknown to the rest of them, Tony was conflicted. He still had that vision of all the Avengers dead, but at the same time he could not abandon his daughter or Pepper. He would probably still keep upgrading his suit and wear it one final time to stop that evil and then drop it for good. And make equipment for the rest of them.
They all were in the Avengers Tower right now.
''They were completely inactive for a few days and crime picked a little up. But then they slowly resumed their actives and kept patrol more and more, until they reached their usual quota,'' Jarvis reported.
''I can understand Spider-Man. But Ghost Spider? I've seen the photos. They seemed like lovesick puppies to me,'' Clint said.
''Maybe they are both tougher then we expected?,''Bruce suggested.
''What I want to know is where those five came from. That was an ambush clearly. Well thought out. Planned. Organized. And looking at those plasma harpoons, also well equipped. Why send assassins after Nexus?,'' Tony asked.
''It may have something to do with the fact that Nexus possesses telekinesis. Even if slightly restricted. The internet argues that it is the most powerful of all abilities displayed or theorized about, bar the more fantastical ones like conceptual attacks. But these logically can't exist.
Perhaps Nexus was investigating someone he shouldn't have,'' Jarvis reasoned.
''He is a vigilante in the eyes of the law. Anyone he investigates he has no authority to,'' Steve mourned the loss of an ally. Especially one that theoretically made them operational again.
''Did Fury say something?,'' Bruce asked.
''No. He is investigating the trail of that sniper weapon that shot plasma harpoons. It looked an awful lot like a Chitauri weapon. He is also keeping an eye on Genosha and the X-Mansion. He is stretched thin,'' Natasha replied absentmindedly. And with S.H.I.E.L.D no longer being what it once was, they couldn't focus on too many things at once.
''I can understand Genosha, but why the X-Mansion?,'' Steve asked.
''A school full of superpowered hormonal kids?,'' Clint said in a 'duh' tone. They were a flight risk.
''What do we do about the assassins? If they killed Nexus they may come after Ghost Spider and Spider-Man as well,'' Steve asked.
''The more important question is what occurred before Nexus was ambushed. Jarvis can you bring up a list of activities that can be laid at Nexus' feet?,'' Natasha suddenly asked.
''Of course, ma'am, just a moment,'' Jarvis said.
''You suspect something?,'' Tony asked. Then again, maybe he should have voiced his own suspicions. The guy went through a plane turbine and had not even a scratch on him. He doubted even plasma could do something to him.
''We will see in a moment,'' Natasha told him as they all waited.
Finally Jarvis presented her with a holographic list and Natasha looked at it for a while. Among all the small time croocks he arrested, all the cats he got down from trees or other small kind gestures he performed stood something out
''There. He busted a human trafficking font. Three victims were saved. No one was arrested. It was the mafia,'' Natasha said.
''Makes sense. You hear, human trafficking you think of the mafia or the cartel,'' Clint agreed.
''They did not seem to stop. Nexus is gone, but there are reports of Ghost Spider and Spider-Man also busting mafia operations. The mafia would want them dead for that,'' Bruce said.
''Should we help them? The mafia is nothing to scoff at,'' Steve asked worriedly.
''No... Nexus faked his death,'' Natasha had her eyes narrowed for a while, before revealing her conclusion making them all perk up.
''You think so? How?,'' Bruce asked.
''Personality profiling. I admit I watched some of the videos where one could see him socially interact in some way with someone, since...,'' Natasha explained.
''Since it annoys you that he easily and shamelessly found all your tracking devices on you on that day,'' Clint smugly rubbed that memory in her face. Natasha cast him an unimpressed look.
''The point is, that Nexus is a little like me or Fury. Assassins come after you? Fake your death. It also may help in dividing the group of assassins for more easy pickings. I guarantee you, he is lurking in the shadows, working to find the one who sent the assassins. Maybe the contractor and the head of the mafia are one and the same. Seems likely,'' Natasha explained her reasons.
''In that case, how did her fake his death? We saw the video of that self destruction device. Was it a robot or something else?,'' Bruce asked.
''Something else. Remember, we still don't know everything about Nexus or how telekinesis works,'' Natasha answered.
The group stood silent for a while.
''So, they are currently engaged in a hush hush operation and we will only interfere?,'' Tony asked.
''Yes. Let us leave them to their work. Before we know it, they will have already cracked the case and we will see lots of mafiosos get arrested,'' Natasha assured him.
''Very well, though I still think we should keep an eye on them,'' Steve said reluctantly after a while.
She thought long about this. In the end she decided Nexus was the leader for more then one reason. The other were also competent and yet they still looked to him for guidance. And unlike Steve, who admittedly got better, Nexus was not all that trusting.
Example, him finding all the tracking devices on her, while his friends assumed she could be trusted and would not attempt such a thing.
Two steps ahead that one.
And always working on a plan, if she nailed his personality profile, which she was certain she did.
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''Did anyone see Kitty?,'' Madelyne asked worriedly.
''No, I saw her briefly at the graduation ball, but then I lost sight of her,'' Evans answered.
''Now that you say it, I don't think I really saw Kitty at all on that night,'' Kurt pointed out.
''She probably made herself invisible. Also probably why we can't find her right now,'' Scott reasoned.
''Man, I worry for her. Nexus' death hit her hard,'' Bobby said.
''Do you think I should use my telepathy to try and find her?,'' Madelyne suggested.
''No. Let us leave her alone and mourn in peace. She knows we are there for her, should she need us. Remember, after Zeros death most of us were mostly the same,'' Pietro said.
''She will move on and before you know it she will be back on her feet,'' Rogue added.
Goddamn it, Bell. He better appreciate them lying for him.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
''Guys, I have greet news,'' Chat said as she burst into the man cave some time later.
''Word wide peace?,'' Bell asked.
''People have stopped discriminating?,'' Peter immediately understood what Bell was doing and played along.
''No more diseases?,'' Gwen asked.
''Gems cost cents now?,'' Felicia played along as well.
''What? No. I mean, that would be nice, but no,'' Chat shook her head.
''Well, you did say we should guess,'' Gwen shrugged.
Chat took a pillow from the couch and threw it at her playfully. Gwen grabbed and threw it back onto the couch.
''Well, you all guessed wrong. Me, myself and moi managed to establish an information/ spy network over the entire city using my birds and various other animals,'' Chat revealed proudly.
Bell gasped theatrically.
''Big Brother! Down with the tyrant, before she tells the world that Peter wears pink boxers with roses,'' Bell declared pointing a finger at her. Peter spluttered.
'''You wear pink boxers?,'' Felicia bit down a snicker.
''What? NO! They are black. Bell!,'' Peter denied.
''Let us not torment my boyfriend and instead look over all the information I have brought,'' Chat said while taking out the notepad from her pocket. She wrote down everything that the animals reported to her.
''At least someone is on my side,'' Peter murmured as Bell took the notepad and looked over it.
''These are a lot of new locations. Some do coincide with what I found by hacking,'' Bell sat down at his computer and started making a new list about the locations they should hit up.
''Not so fast. Chat is not the only that did something the last few days. Look at this. Evidence,'' Felicia cooed sultrily as she pulled out two USBs from between her breasts. She hit up a few places and stole them at night.
The others dead panned at her.
There was no reason to hide the USB in her breasts.
''Just give me the damn things,'' Bell said while grabbing the USBs and slotting one in his PC.
''So? Is it enough for you to go to Murdock?,'' Chat asked.
''I distinctly remember telling you that I am not a miracle worker. You all dumped a lot on my lap, give me some time to sort through everything,'' Bell told her.
That was a lie of course, but he had to keep the pretense going for Peter, Chat and Felicia.
A few minutes later, Bell was done, as the others came back from their occupation.
''It is more than enough to arrest and stop at least some of the operations, so yes I will seek him out. Any way. Chat, Felicia, well done. As for you two, I guess you have some new places to hit up,'' Bell said giving them a list.
Bell reported that Fisk has suspicions of him being alive, so he couldn't sneak around and bust operations and gathering evidence. That suited Bell just fine as it meant Gwen and Peter were forced to take the full brunt of the sights they will get to see.
The reason gathering evidence was so hard was because they needed the right kind of evidence. Breaking and hacking a PC and stealing data was evidence, but it was inadmissable in court as it was gathered with no warrant. They also needed evidence that was readily apparent to suggest probable cause. Not every operation or location they hit was a font for human trafficking or drug smuggling. Those were easy to solve with a phone call to the police.
Mostly.
Bell knew that some of them were let free because 'vigilantes had not jurisdiction to operate there'. Gotta love the justice system. And especially the corrupt judges and lawyers. It depended on where the mafiosos landed as there were several courts in NYC. And there were a few Satanaelist judges.
He did not share that with the others, not even Gwen. He will let the number of people that the system let walk free build and build and build. And then he will shatter their belief in the system.
Peter would be easy. He already doesn't trust the system all that much. Gwen on the other hand would be more difficult. Her father was a police man. She mostly picked up the mask as she knew police men were not equipped to handle people like Rhino or Elektro.
So, Bell decided to be an information broker for Murdock. And unknown to them Daredevil as well. This way he would still get to do something, aside from hacking and pointing them in the right direction to find the right evidence and/or bust fonts for human trafficking and drug smuggling.
And while he was doing that, they would get to gather more evidence. Maybe they will even get ambushed by one of the assassin that would push them over the edge.
It was not like they were actually in danger as he was secretly watching over all of them. They were more then equipped to handle the assassins themselves, minus Chat and Felicia.
There was a method to his madness.
Or so the saying goes.
Peter and Gwen took the list of new locations and looked over them. They nodded, ready to get back to work.
''Well then, let's roll out,'' Bell declared.
---
Matt rolled his shoulder. He was in his office and gave Foggy, Karen and Jennifer the excuse that he wanted to do some over time on a few cases. After some back and forth they reluctantly agreed to leave him alone and they departed.
He preferred it this way. Last night was... hard on his shoulder. Every moment he spent interacting with his friends, he risked exposing himself.
He stopped reading the braille document and leaned against his chair.
Too much was happening at once.
Nexus dead. Frank Castle aka The Punisher going on a rampage killing mafia goons indiscriminately. Though calling it rampage was maybe a little much. As much as he liked the Satanaelists, they forced the mafia to be even more careful when operating. It was hard to track them down. Even Castle had so many kills under his belt thanks to that. A blessing and a curse in a sense.
Possibly assassins in the street going after Spider-Man and Ghost Spider as they also investigate Fisk.
Kingpin possibly knowing that he was Daredevil.
Too much at once. Far too much.
He was one man and both his nightly activities and his job as a lawyer were demanding.
He could only do so much.
...
He needed something that would accelerate his operations. Something that could save him time. But what? Form a team?
Feasible but that could risk his identity,
Matt released a sigh. He could not wait for the day to put Fisk behind bars.
The suffering he and his mafia inflicted, was far too much.
Matt perked up as his senses picked up someone lockpicking the back entrance of the building.
Male. Young. Healthy. Slim build. No particular smell. Never met before. He picked up a box. Soft material, not a weapon then. Unless a pillow? He was making his way upstairs. Calm. Not here to kill then?
Matt could not risk it.
He stood up and turned off the lights, before grasping his cane. It was dark, night should almost settle. The darkness would give him an advantage if he was an attacker. Then again NYC never sleeps and the curtains were not drawn. He could feel some light from the streets come in and illuminate the room. But he couldn't tell by how much. He stood behind the door as it opened inward.
After some time he could feel the door knob twist down and the door open. Matt pressed himself against the wall and made as little noise as possible, as the man did not enter the office.
He could feel the man give an amused huff and open the door completely. Shit. Matt tried to make as little noise as possible as he moved himself a little to allow the door to open unobstructed completely. It would leave him exposed, but from where the man stood he should not be in his dead angle. So he could still spring a trap on him.
''I'm not here to fight you. We are both after the same thing,'' the man told him. Matt remained silent. He would be more inclined to believe him, if he had sought him in a different manner.
''I'm coming in. If you attack me, any good will I had for you, will vanish and then i will consider you an enemy. I have documents for you in this box,'' the man told him. Matt could feel the man pat the boy he was holding.
''Does the man have a name?,'' Matt asked calmly. He was a bit of a daredevil like that, taking risks.
''Call me Cipher. I'm new in town and an information broker,'' Cipher told him.
Truth. Matt could not feel him lying.
''An information broker. That means you sell information to parties for the right price,'' Matt remarked.
''Everyone has a different price,'' Cipher said. Matt could feel him slowly step in and turn on the light. He looked at him and then calmly made his way over to the table sitting in front of it. Matt made his way back to his seat, still ready at any moment to defend himself. He could feel Cipher put the box on the table and then open it, before pushing it towards him. Matt after a while picked up a paper and trailed his hand over the paper.
The accident he was involved in gave him super senses. His touch was sensitive enough that he could feel the denture of the ink in the paper. He did not NEED braille, but he was using it anyway to hide his nightly activities.
''These are locations and suspected activities. You are following a trail. If it is not money you want then what other price do you ask. What even is this information about? And why give it to me?,'' Matt asked him.
''I know of your plights. Both as Matt Murdock the lawyer and ... otherwise. The price is whatever you make of the information I have given you,'' Cipher told him instead. Hey, he was an information broker. The are notoriously evasive when it came to sharing information. Unless you capture them and then threaten them, then they sing like a canary. But Bell was not going for that angle.
''So you are using me to take down Fisk,'' Matt concluded.
''You fear I plan on filling the vacuum left behind by Fisk. Take over the operation so to speak. Those papers are a lot of information, enough to make any lawyer salivate, especially since it is all evidence gathered in the confines of the law. If you think that your desire for answers is tainted by my involvement then by all means, explain to a grieving mother why her daughter was taken and sold in a human trafficking ring. I'm sure she will have such understanding for your reasons,'' Cipher talked away. Matts jaw twitched.
''That is not a no,'' Matt pointed out.
''As I said I'm an information broker. The price I ask is different and not monetary. I know who wants what and I seek them out. I call you, not the other way around,'' Cipher said.
''Did you reveal my identity to Nexus?,'' Matt asked him suddenly.
''Hmm. For all the good that did,'' Cipher said.
Matt could hear his heartbeat. He was not lying. So he was selling to anyone? He tightened his hand around his cane.
''You still yet live. So do you friends. Fisk can not pay the price for that information,'' Cipher decided to throw him a bone.
Matt calmed down a little.
''So you want me to put Fisk behind bars? It is in your interests?,'' Matt semi asked, semi concluded,'' And then? Do I need to pay a different price for your information.''
There would always be a need for information brokers and he sorely needed one.
In a way that was a godsend, that Cipher sought him out. He wondered if God sent him to him. As a christian man he sometimes tried to find Gods grace in his life. He would not become a Satanaelist as he could not condone killing in any form however.
Or was he the devil sent to tempt him?
''And how far does this partnership go?,'' Matt asked him.
''So long as I want it to. Use the information well, Murdock. I trust you will bust quiet a few of operations. If you feel inclined feel free to verify the info with your alter ego,'' Cipher said while standing up and leaving as spontaneously as he entered.
Matt wanted to say something but he was already out of his office. He waited until he sensed Cipher exit the building before quickly putting the papers in the box, closing it and then putting it under his desk.
Then he followed after him. If he was an information broker then he probably already knew how his abilities functioned. Had to. After all he gave him non braille documents.
He kept a block of distance between them, until he stopped.
That smell. And those sounds...
Matt moved his head back and forth and finally decided to go after the new commotion. Did he lead him here intentionally?
He will find out more about this Cipher on a different day. He went for the new commotion.
---
Bell entered his basement. Matts abilities were good, but for this one he did not need to make a mask. That would come later.
He only wore his hoodie over his head. He deleted any camera feed that caught him and he wore gloves as well. He also made some minor changes to the rest of his build so that Matt does not link his build to Nexus' build.
In other words Matt was none the wiser.
He stopped momentarily when he saw Felicia do the jack-o pose with her rear towards the door of the basement. A yoga mat was below her.
Bell rolled his eyes.
Subtle.
He took a seat at his computer without reacting to what she was doing making her a little off put, by his disinterest. She stood up and embraced him from behind trailing her hand over her chest.
''And? Did you give our dear lawyer the information?,'' Felicia talked in his ear.
''More like his friends since I lack the means to create braille documents. We should be hearing about some of the operations getting busted. Like that fake art operation and so on. They already know that he is investigating Fisk,'' Bell told her while coding. He was actually using his technomancy behind her back and just putting on a front.
''Are they trustworthy?,'' Felicia asked.
''Yes,'' he told her. He wanted to tell her he has a harem, see what come of it. But Gwen did not want that yet, so he chose the more interesting development. He wondered what was brewing between the two of them.
Felicia moved her hands over his chest for a little longer, before giving up.
''Very well, sweet heart, I trust you. As for me, I will go steal some more data,'' Felicia said. It was night anyway.
Bell cleared his throat and held up an USB without turning around, before she could leave. She needed them after all.
Felicia grabbed it a little disappointed and then left.
---
''Enough,'' Daredevil said as he threw one of his batons at Frank Castle. He was about to kill the last person among these people.
The baton hit him and Frank turned around. Upon seeing him he quickly turned around and snapped the persons neck before he could stop him.
Daredevil grit his jaw as he could not stop that, he still leapt for Frank.
''You again. What do you want?,'' Frank said as he ducked under his grab and gave a quick punch to his liver. They both wore a kevlar vest and these punches did nothing.
''I thought you were a better man, Frank. How many times do we have to go through this?,'' Daredevil bit out as he locked his arm, kicked the back of his knee and gave him a back hand.
''I am the better man. You think your way works? This assholes were all put behind bars just last week for murder and now they walk free. Or did at least. See? You kick them down and they rise back up. I kick them down and they stay down, never to harm an innocent again,'' Frank said as he shoulder tackled him to the ground and railed on him with his fists. Daredevil did a good job of defending himself, until he twisted from under him and gave him a kick while spinning away on the ground.
''The system works Frank,'' Daredevil told him while throwing some dirt in his eyes. Frank however reacted quickly and avoided getting blinded.
''No. You want to THINK the system works. If you really believed that and the system really worked you wouldn't have put on that mask in the first place. Face it, Matt. These criminals need to be put down like the rabid dogs they are,'' Frank bit out and gave some punches. Daredevil blocked them or dodges them.
''Why don't you face reality? Look at Nexus. You want to end up like him? You think these 'people' would show you the same mercy you offered them?,'' Frank growled as the two landed on the ground and rolled, trying to end up the on top for tactical advantage.
Daredevil clenched his jaw but said nothing.
The two fought each other for a little longer until both ended up on their back gasping.
''Fuck you, Murdock. Your naivete is sickening,'' Frank spat.
''People deserve a chance to be better,'' Daredevil said.
''And how many innocents need to die for one asshole to prove himself better? Is the life of one asshole worth more then 10 innocents?,'' Frank spat again.
Daredevil staid silent this time around, both being beat up from each other and sporting bruises.
''There is a information broker going by the name of Cipher. He gave me an entire box full of locations and proper evidence. People do believe in the system,'' Daredevil eventually said.
''Never heard of him and you are an idiot if a damn information broker of all things doesn't have his own plans,'' Frank huffed.
The two had a bit of an hate-understanding-mutual respect type of thing going on. That was Daredevil basically asking him if his contact picked up something about a Cipher and him denying that he did not have prior knowledge about that person. Matt also understood that the Punisher will now keep an eye out for this person, even without him stating so.
Frank picked himself up and made to walk away. Daredevil let him. Mostly because, he was really beat up, especially after last night. He still didn't properly recover.
Damn it.
This is a loss for him.
---
''What do you mean, you have evidence about Fisks operations?,'' Foggy asked him the next morning. Jennifer and Karen also looked over the papers.
''Exactly as I said. And well, not Fisk per say, but mafia operations. Lots of them. I hired a good but affordable information broker and promised to defend him in court should the need arise, at a massive discount. He brought me all this, though not in braille as you can see,'' Matt joked.
The others looked at each other.
''An information broker of all things? Matt, what is to stop him from going to Fisk, if he is as you suspect the head of the mafia?,'' Foggy asked him wanting to slap him silly for his stupidity.
''Not this one. Trust me. He did tell me some things that I can await in those papers. So? Do they hold up? Can we use them to have the police draw up a warrant and hit these places?,'' Matt asked them. Those weren't human trafficking rings or the more nefarious operations done by the mafia, but cutting off any revenue helps.
''Well, whoever you did hire, did a damn phenomenal job. Everything is by the book, so yes we can use them. But Matt, nothing here suggests that Fisk is this Kingpin, as you constantly claim,'' Jennifer cautioned him.
''No, unfortunately. He is still looking for evidence on that. Look, please help me put these people behind bars. You don't need to put your life in danger, but at least help me go through this information. I will be the one that will sit in that court room and work with the police. Well?,'' Matt asked them. He did need an excuse to keep his alter ego a secret.
The others looked at each other for a while.
''You do know that you are dealing with the mafia here. Matt, this is no joking matter,'' Foggy cautioned.
''I know, which is why I will be the only one to put myself at risk,'' Matt said.
Foggy sighed.
''That is not how it works Matt. But..... Ok. But we need to be cautious alright. We need to hit them and we need to hit them hard. Enough so that we can have them suffer the longest possible sentence. No offense, but some of these crimes here would only land you a few years. And we also need to ensure all cases land in a non corrupt judges court, preferably a Satanaelist. But there are only so many gong around. What I'm saying is, we need to play this very smart. Alright?,'' Foggy said to them, making them all nod.
''In that case, what are we waiting for? Let us get to work,'' said Karen seriously.
---
''I understand. Proceed as usual and await further instructions,'' Kingpin said, before hanging up the phone in his office.
He stood up and stepped towards the window to observe the city.
Things were escalating for the past three and a half weeks.
In retrospect, perhaps he jumped the gun slightly in having Nexus assassinated.
As he understood, the other two have started to pick up their activities again, but unfortunately they were even more erratic then before. And more cautious. As he understood, the five assassins tried to ambush them a few times but nothing came of it or they dodged and then escaped. Despite being the lesser threat, their spider sense made them a nightmare to ambush.
Funny.
In a way there was also a sort of mafia going on about, involving the heroes. Daredevil picked up his activities. The Punisher aka Frank Castle as well. The Avengers sometimes go out in the city to help people and stop crime now that they are back from busting HYDRA bases. The Spider people have been busting more and more of his operations. At least the more nefarious ones, were a simple police call sufficed. The Satanaelists still existed.
There were whispers of some more heroes going about that did not make the news.
With Nexus dead everyone was looking for the culprit, like the mafia would do for one of their own.
Matt Murdock was working together with non corrupt cops to put an end to some of the operations. Everything by the book. Good work. In another life, he would have hired Murdock to work under him as a lawyer.
They were chipping away at his empire. Their efforts did not amount to much as his empire was that big, but the problem was the sharks, those that smelled an opportunity.
Vanessa was annoyed for some reason.
Fisk closed his eyes to calm his anger.
How best to play this and turn the situation around to his advantage.
Vigilantes were his biggest problem. They operated outside the jurisdiction of the law. In the past it would have been easy to undo their damage. A good defense lawyer and the matter would have been settled in court and his men could walk freely. But they have changed their game recently, playing things by the book. Now, he needed to pay some money to get his most competent people out of prison.
Vigilantes...
Vigilantes...
They were outside the jurisdiction of the law, because they hid their identity. And they wore a costume...
Fisk smirked.
Yes. Yes.
He could do that. The media was a powerful tool to sway the public.
He could push an anti vigilante campaign. Have someone dress up, attack innocents. Perhaps not that far. That was too out of character, the dumber ones would still fall for that, but not the Satanalists.
He needed to attack the right people...
Perhaps, those lawyers?
Have the fakes claim that they were working with criminals to attain information on the criminals?
A possibility, certainly.
Fisk clicked his tongue. If only the Satanaelists would have been declared terrorists by the UN, things would have been simpler.
Alright. Have someone dress up in a superheros costume. Frame them, sway the public. Push an anti vigilante campaign.
...
The next mayor elections are also coming up...
That would give him a lot of power.
Fisk considered the situation and run multiple plans in his head. Discarding a few and optimizing others.
He sat back at his desk and requested his secretary to contact the assassins again. He had further offers for them. Then he hang up.
They proved themselves competent. The bounty on the Spider people would still stand, but they could earn that much more money.