Web of Spider-Man #125

Issue Details

Synopsis

LIVES UNLIVED Having switched places with Ben Reilly, Peter Parker has taken up the guise of the Scarlet Spider in the hopes of clearing himself of murder charges.  Deciding to start at the beginning, Spider-Man breaks into the Daily Bugle to check its morgue files. He starts by researching Miles Warren. At first, he only finds reports about Miles Warren's time at Empire State University before he was pushed over the edge by the death of Gwen Stacy. That's when he comes across a listing of a Miles Warren living in New Jersey. Shockingly, this man -- the spitting image of the man who was the Jackal -- made the news when he got eloped. This marriage happened during a period in which the Jackal was regenerating his body.  Suddenly, Peter's spider-sense goes off warning him that someone is coming and he leaps out a nearby window. He narrowly avoids being seen by a young man, who has come looking for his uncle, reporter Ben Urich, to borrow some more money.   Meanwhile, at Ryker's Island, Ben Reilly sits in his cell thinking about how his return to New York has upended the life of Peter Parker and his wife Mary Jane.  He is also upset that he couldn't be present when Aunt May died recently.  Despite this, he feels that this prison cell is where he belongs, thinking that swapping places with Peter was the right thing to do as Parker has friends and family on the outside that are relying on him. By this time, Spider-Man has ridden atop a train to the town of Ridgefield Valley in New Jersey. There he swings across this suburban town to the address that is registered in the name of Miles Warren. Not trusting the harmless looking suburban home he creates a web cushion on the roof of the garage, only to discover that it has been electrified. Pulling off a window with a line of webbing, Spider-Mann leaps into the garage and discovers a sophisticated laboratory.   Deciding to take a closer look inside, Spider-Man breaks into the house and looks around. He discovers nothing more sinister than the trappings of a suburban couple. As he gazes at a wedding photo that depicts Miles Warren getting married to Gwen Stacy, the wall-crawler's spider-sense begins going off. When he turns around, he sees a woman who is the spitting image of Gwen Stacy standing in the doorway armed with a broom. When Peter pulls off his mask, Gwen becomes furious and tries to attack him. As Parker leaps out of the way, he is zapped with a taser by a man who looks exactly like Miles Warren. Gwen tells her husband -- calling him Warren -- that this is the man who has haunted her nightmares. While back in New York City, Felicia Hardy visits Mary Jane. There she learns that Mary Jane is pregnant, all about Peter's clone, and how Ben Reilly switched places with Peter in prison so Parker could clear his name.  This all goes a long way to explain why "Peter" didn't recognize Felicia when she visited him in prison.  Mary Jane also expresses her concerns that Peter's radioactive blood may have an affect on her unborn child and how she has been under the care of Seward Trainer to discover this.  After telling Felicia all of this, Felicia realizes that Mary Jane wants to talk this out with her husband, and agrees to go out looking for him. Quickly changing into the Black Cat, Felicia swings off assuring Mary Jane that she always gets her man.   Back in New Jersey, Peter Parker wakes up to discover that the home he invaded is now deserted and wonders where the occupants. At that moment, the couple who look like Miles Warren and Gwen Stacy flee from their home. Warren assures his wife that while he has a right to protect his family, he did not kill the intruder. Gwen understands considering the tragedy that Warren had suffered in the past. Warren thinks back to the past, about his first wife Monica. How they were in love and had two children together. However, Warren's obsession with his work led him to neglect his family to the point where Monica and her children and left. Sadly, tragedy struck and Monica and the children soon died in a car accident before Warren had a chance to reconcile with them. He then lived a solitary life as a teacher until the fateful day that he first laid eyes on the young woman who would eventually become his wife.  At that moment, Spider-Man is looking around the Miles home and is astonished to discover that these clones had established a normal life for themselves. While the Miles are heading toward the New York, Gwen tells her husband not to close up on her. She reminds him how he was there for her after her father had died and how their relationship blossomed into that of love. She felt so powerless at times, like when the woman called Dreamweaver convinced her that she was a woman named Joyce Delany.  However, her beloved Warren Miles found her and remind her who she really was.   Meanwhile, Spider-Man has broken into a safe in Warren Miles' lab. There he discovers files that indicate that not only was Warren Miles aware of the fact that he was a clone and that the Gwen Stacy clone that is with him is the one that he was convinced was really a woman named Joyce Delaney. As Warren Miles tells his wife that he has done everything to protect them from forces that would try and harm them, Parker learns that this version of Miles Warren was trying to develop a cure for the degeneration factor that affects all of the Jackal's clones. He is amazed to see what Miles Warren would have been capable of doing if he wasn't obsessed with destroying Spider-Man. That's when he discovers something in the notes about the Gwen Stacy clone and becomes concerned for her safety. He swings off to follow the Miles couple, able to track them thanks to a spider-tracer he planted on their car earlier. At that same moment, a new Green Goblin flies out into the night sky and begins looking for action.  As Miles drives towards a toll on the George Washington Bridge, he spots Spider-Man in his rearview mirror and tries to speed away. With other drivers put at risk of getting into a collision, the wall-crawler quickly stops anyone from getting injured. Meanwhile, in his panic to get away from Spider-Man, Warren crashes his car. Suddenly, the Green Goblin flies in and pulls Gwen from the car. The Goblin takes her atop the bridge and assures her that he will get her husband next. Spotting the Goblin, the web-slinger thinks that he is attacking the clone of Gwen and swings up to save her.   In a panic, Warren Miles climbs out of his car and pulls out a gun and begins shooting at both Spider-Man and the Green Goblin. As the clone of Gwen tries to dodge the bullets, history repeats itself when she trips over the edge of the bridge and begins to plummet to the water below. However, this time, Spider-Man is able to swing down and save the life of the clone. When he gets Gwen to safety, they witness Warren Mile's car fall into the water below. Spider-Man leaps in after him, but when the wall-crawler pulls Warren out of the water he is already dead and his body degenerates into genetic goop. Spider-Man thinks about how much a waste this is as this version of Miles Warren could have found a cure for clone degeneration. When the wall-crawler gets back up onto the bridge there is no sign of the Gwen Stacy clone or the new Green Goblin. This entire encounter leaves Peter with more questions than answers. While elsewhere in the city, the Green Goblin returns to his home. He was actually trying to save Gwen and her husband and failed miserably. He pulls off his mask and tosses aside, realizing that he has to learn a great deal about the responsibility needed to use his powers in the future. While somewhere else in the city, the woman who was married to Warren Miles suddenly finds her memories coming all together. She finally realizes the truth: She is neither Gwen Stacy nor is she a woman named Joyce Delaney. She is a clone, and knowing the truth hurts her deeper than she could ever though possible. SHINING ARMOR Looking through a copy of "Webs" a collection of Spider-Man photos collected by Peter Parker, the clone of Gwen Stacy suddenly remembers the truth about her self and passes out.  That's when her love Warren Miles enters the cabin and discovers her passed out on the floor. He is not the real Miles Warren, who is believed to have died years prior.  He was created to look after and love the clone of Gwen Stacy, to be her knight in shining armor. After putting Gwen into bed, Warren then tosses the book into the fireplace and begins nursing the woman he loves back to health.   Over the next few days, Gwen is nursed back to health and her memories soon become submerged once again. Her love for Warren grows and when he finally musters up the nerve to ask her to marry him, Gwen gladly accepts. Warren takes charge of the wedding arrangements, as he has all the materials he needs to make it happen. The couple have a wedding ceremony complete with witnesses and a priest. However, Gwen is unaware that these individuals are all clones created by her newly wed husband. In fact, as soon as they leave the church, these clones quickly begin to degenerate into genetic goop as they had served their purpose.