Peter Parker (Earth-61610)

"The 'real' heroes? What the heck does that mean? Is 'hero' an actual job? What, is there some kind of club I wasn't aware of? I thought heroism was just helping people. I thought anyone could be a hero if they wanted to. Did I--did I take my cartoons too much to heart when I was younger? Or are you gonna let me help."

- -Peter Parker Peter Parker, better known as Spider-Man, is an active superhuman vigilante (Marvel) in the New York City of Earth-61610.

Early Life
Born Peter Benjamin Parker, Peter was raised in Manhattan by Richard and Mary Parker. Although both parents loved him dearly, both were radical (read: mad) scientists employed by Osborn Corporations, renowned scientific research company and generally a radical scientist think-tank, and thus neither had much time or attention to spare for Peter. As a young child he was frequently left in the care of his Aunt May and Uncle Ben in Queens, and even when he became old enough to be left on his own he was arguably closer to them than to his actual parents.

Peter began showing signs of brilliance at an early age, and perhaps as much to win affection from his parents as anything, he took up an interest in various fields of science, particularly mechanics and chemistry. His reasons for persuing such fields quickly shifted from a cry for attention to passionate love for the fields themselves, and in the grand tradition of radical scientists, he often exhibited more passion and creativity in his studies than common sense. Between his intelligence, his interests, and an uncertainty in social connections deemed "creepy" by peers, Peter was a natural target for bullying in elementary and middle school. The regular torment courtesy of such characters as Eugene "Flash" Thompson and Carl King contributed to a developing social anxiety, and a difficulty associating with or opening up to other people was a weakness Peter would retain for the rest of his life.

Early Adolescence
By the time he was enrolled in Midtown High School, Peter had developed a resentment of his parents and a passionate hatred of bullies, and more broadly abuses of power over others of any kind. Most of this anger and hate, however, was hidden by fear of being met with repulsion or fear in others, and he found comfort in the liberty of sarcasm and snide remarks. Having spent his entire childhood up to this point largely without friends, he was taken off guard by social butterfly (and his neighbor across the hall) Mary-Jane Watson's sudden interest in him, although this due to her general sociable attitude rather than any romantic affection. Although they didn't become friends  per se,  the two struck up a generally cordial relationship, and Peter found himself in the unofficial role of techie for Mary-Jane's developing rock band The Mary Janes.

OsCorp Expo
Under normal circumstances, Osborn Corporations (stylized as OsCorp) is a fairly secretive company. Any corporation that employs radical scientists en masse has to be, seeing as radical scientists are only slightly more well-liked than mutants, but during the January of Peter's freshman year of high school OsCorp decided to stage an exhibition of some of their safer projects. Peter, being the only one in his Biology class to get 100% on the previous semester's final, recieved two tickets to said expo, and although one of them was almost immediately destroyed by Flash, he was able to protect the second.

At the expo Peter met Gwendolyn Stacy, a student of a rival school, and the two immediately took a liking to each other. During a tour of the Recombinant Biology lab, however, automatic weapon fire from a few floors below announced the presence of someone who disagreed with the whole "radical science" deal. When the gunman made his way up to the Recombinant lab, Peter, moving quickly, saved the life of Dr. Curtis Connors and temporarily incapacitated the gunman, in the process accidentally compromising a containment procedure for several experimental spiders grown from recombinant DNA and a serum similar to the one developed by Dr. Bruce Banner and Dr. Betty Ross several years prior. The gunman was taken into custody by police, and Peter was harshly berated for his damage to the laboratory equipment. Unbeknownst to everyone, several spiders had escaped, and one of them had bitten Peter's hand.

Abuse of Powers & Revelation
After a night of restless sleep interspersed with periods of excruciating pain, Peter awoke the next morning to discover a host of superhuman abilities, ranging from vastly increased strength and speed to a hyper-attunment with vibrations in the air and objects he was in contact with. At school the same day, he found himself once again a target of Flash Thompson, and in a fit of rage he broke the bully's nose and was immediately suspended for it. Although he had felt a flash of horror at his act of violence, it was ignored in favor of anger and he questioned why he was punished for his act of violence when members of the school's sports team got away with similar acts on a regular basis. It was during this rant that he discovered the spider's corpse on his body and realized what had happened, and he left school in a panic.

After calming down (and accidentally discovering the ability to jump 100 feet in the air and stick to walls), Peter managed to contact one Dr. Albert Moon, a soft-spoken scientist who had been working in the Recombinant Lab. Fearing recognition, he wore a mask when meeting him, and the hasty explanation of his experiences prompted Dr. Moon to nickname him "Spider Boy," to Peter's annoyance. Several tests established that Peter's DNA had been retrovirally altered (which he already knew), that his cells had been renewed through the modified Hulk serum (which he had suspected), and that his mutations were stabilizing and would not alter his physiology further (which was a welcome if surprising relief).

As Peter began to speculate what he would do with these newfound abilities, he became aware of an underground fight club frequented by more unsavory mutants and those who had undergone biological experimentation. Such mutations and experimentations rarely yield positive results, so the anonymous young man immediately established himself as a force to be reckoned with. Giddy from his powers and the perceived freedom they granted him, Peter deliberately ignored the chance to stop a fleeing thief on his way home, despite the cries of the robbed drugstore's clerk.

Over a period of time believed to be roughly two weeks, Peter's ego grew as he became familiar with his powers. After spending much of his life helpless in the face of the cruelty of his peers and perceived apathy of his parents and teachers, the rush of hubris led him to act without thought of consequence, driving him to do such things as attack (and nearly hospitalize) Flash Thompson unprovoked. Predictably, this resulted in an attempt at lawsuit, and although his parents were able to settle, Peter was grounded for his rashness, at which point he began to verbally attack his parents. Over the course of the ensuing argument, Peter revealed how much he had come to privately resent his mother and father for their chronic absence and neglect, and how little sway he believed they had a right to over his life before angrily leaving. When Richard and Mary informed May and Ben of this, Ben called Peter in an attempt to talk some sense into him, and although he succeeded in calming him down a frustrated Peter ignored his advice and hung up.

Venting aggression at the fight club, Peter found himself meeting Norman Osborn, CEO of OsCorp, who through various connections had learned of a young man possessing abilities similar to those of his missing spiders. Norman implied knowledge of Peter's true identity (despite having no such knowledge), and it was during this confrontation that Norman inspired what would become Peter's preferred alias ("...if you think you can just keep on playing your little Spider-Man game..."). During his escape, however, Peter heard a nearby gunshot, and investigation revealed that Ben Parker (who had deduced Peter's destination based on clues in their conversation) had been shot dead attempting to prevent a carjacking.

Over the next several hours Peter closely followed the police's attempts to track down the stolen car, and when its location was finally discovered in the Bronx he was one of the first on scene thanks to his powers. As the condemned apartment came under siege by police, a disguised Peter broke in through the top window, terrorized his uncle's murderer in a blind rage, and nearly beat him to death before seeing his face in the light. Although he had no recollection at first, Peter soon recognized the man as the same thief which he had allowed to escape several weeks before, and a horrified Peter fled the scene, leaving the killer unconscious for the police to find.

Early Career as Spider-Man
Over the next few days, Peter made a habit of exploring the city with his powers to distract himself from his own grief. It was during one of these outings that he happened across an accident in the makeshift laboratory of Dr. Cobwell, electronics professor at Empire State University. The accident had occurred when Carlton Strand, a thief, had been discovered attempting to steal expensive equipment and accidentally induced an Extremis-controlled power surge when escaping, transforming him into the first Electro. Seized by a sense of guilt-induced altruism, Peter saved Cobwell's life, first from the panicking Strand (who proceeded to accidentally teleport away through an outlet), then from the corrupt police officers who arrived on scene and assaulted the scientist. In the process, however, he was nearly shot and electrocuted, indirectly caused several hundred thousand dollars worth of property damage, and (most importantly) endangered several lives. Peter fled the scene with an even deeper sense of horror and guilt.

This, alas, was only the beginning. Several days later, Ben Parker's murderer was released from prison due to the (ahem) circumstances of his detainment. Peter tracked him to a slum in Queens, where he accidentally confronted the Big Man and Strand, who had since obtained a rudimentary grasp of his powers and been subsequently promoted. Following a panicked fight for survival, Peter deduced that the Big Man was plotting to unite the city's independent street gangs in order to overthrow the Kingpin's monopoly on New York's organized crime. Rather reluctantly, he decided to interfere with and handicap the brewing gang war.

When the Kingpin was made aware of the Big Man's activities, he decided to organize a meeting with a Big Man. This meeting was not attended by him in person; instead he opted to send representatives in the form of Lonnie Lincoln (Tombstone) and Herman Schultz (the Shocker), while the Big Man attended with Strand and the Enforcers. Peter, who had become aware of this meeting through frequent spying on both parties, accidentally interrupted the meeting, and after a brief confrontation revealed that he had called the police, who had just arrived. The resulting battle was a disaster: fourteen people were killed, Peter was shot twice and nearly strangled by Tombstone, and every criminal escaped.

Although Peter resolved to quit the vigilante business following this fiasco, he found himself increasingly drawn to crimes and disasters, with mixed results. Fisk, taking notice of the increasing activity of the then-nameless vigilante, commissioned OsCorp for the creation of a supervillain, which after some hesitation Norman Osborn agreed to. The combined efforts of Dr. Miles Warren and Jonas Harrow eventually empowered the underboss Mac Gargan, who forced Peter to battle him on the Queensboro Bridge. In the ensuing battle the self-proclaimed Scorpion was shot by SHIELD agents with a depleted uranium, armor-piercing bullet, which immediately began to fuel an accelerated mutation. Scorpion fled the scene, leaving 39 people dead and Peter himself beaten into unconsciousness with multiple stab wounds. Captain Stacy's attempt to unmask him prompted spider-sense to jerk Peter awake, and he fled the scene by falling into the East River.

Attempting to recover the following day and in a severe state of distress, Peter was confronted by Gwen Stacy, who had deduced his identity while watching a live broadcast of the battle. Gwen let slip several points the police investigation of the battle had produced, and Peter deduced the Scorpion's origins based on these and clues he had found over the past month. Over the course of the subsequent argument (during which Gwen repeated much the same arguments her father had given to Peter's mask), Peter explained the guilt driving him to continue intervening in crimes, and Gwen accidentally revealed spider powers of her own, although Peter failed to realize this until several hours after she had left.

Using some of his old projects, as well as chemical formulas he had photographed at the OsCorp Expo several months before, Peter began work on producing an artificial spider silk in the hopes of leveling the playing field, succeeding after several days of continuous work. At the same time, renewed bouts of spying led him to believe that the Scorpion would attempt to raid OsCorp in pursuit of a cure for his horrifying mutations on the same night that Norman Osborn would personally exhibit several prototype weapons to representatives of SHIELD and the US Government. When the Scorpion attacked the tower, it was to find the masked teenager calmly waiting for him, armed with two wrist-mounted "web-shooters" and, for the first time, calling himself Spider-Man. Although the battle destroyed a large section of the OsCorp building and left Norman in the hospital, there were no casualties and the Scorpion was handily defeated.

"Active" Powers
Superhuman Strength: When unaffected by outside factors (including but not limited to: Fatigue, adrenaline, sedatives, stimulants, or radiation), Peter is capable of lifting approximately 100 times his weight without risking injury. Although this means he gets stronger as he finishes growing, his "default" upper limit is usually stated to be about 7.5 tons. However, as he rarely is unaffected by outside factors, this can vary from day to day to some degree. Although he can push past this rough limit, it is always extremely difficult and minor to severe injuries usually result. Peter's strength also extends to his legs; he is capable of jumping 100 feet into the air and, given a running start, nearly 600 feet forward.

Superhuman Durability: Peter's body has become tougher and more resistant to most forms of physical injury. Although he is far from invulnerable, his tissues are conditioned to withstand great impact forces. He is capable of falling over 100 feet with no discomfort, and regularly withstands blows that would devastate an ordinary human. Similarly, although he is neither bullet nor bomb-proof, most lower-caliber bullets stop almost immediately upon entering his flesh, and he has been known to get back up and continue fighting after taking a pumpkin bomb to the face.

Superhuman Speed: When unaffected by outside factors, Peter is capable of reaching a speed of approximately 33-35 times his body length per second. This gives him a sprint of approximately 130 miles per hour, although heat buildup and lack of air prevent him from maintaining this for more than about 10 seconds. He can, however, maintain a "jog" of roughly 80 mph for extended periods of time. Quick bursts of this super speed allow Peter to move (on average) twenty feet without appearing to occupy the intervening space: a maneuver sometimes known as a "flash step."

Superhuman Stamina: Peter's body has been altered to be significantly more efficient than a normal human's, to accommodate his other powers. Although his body produces the same amount of fatigue toxins per given amount of effort as a normal human's, his relative strength, speed and agility ensure that that same amount of effort can do a lot more. He is capable of maintaining his aforementioned "jog" for hours on end. In addition, he is capable of recovering from fatigue far faster than most humans, and oftentimes recovers from an extended effort in a matter of seconds.

Superhuman Agility: Peter's agility, balance, equilibrium, and coordination are enhanced far beyond the natural physical limits of the finest human athlete. Peter is extraordinarily limber and his tendons and connective tissues are twice as elastic as the average human's, despite their enhanced strength and durability.

Superhuman Reflexes and Perception: Due to his vastly increased nerve conduction velocity, Peter's reflexes and processing speed have been enhanced to roughly 40 times those of a normal human. Although this means he can see the flicker of florescent lights and preceive individual frames of movies, he does not perceive the world as moving in "slow motion"; in his words, he simply "keeps up better." In conjunction with his spider-sense, this allows him to dodge almost any attack, up to and including most gunfire (he has noticed the ability to see bullets, but with difficulty and rarely as more than a blur).

Adhesion: The skin cells of Peter's palms, fingers, soles and toes have grown a collection of incredibly small hairs called setules, which when extended are attracted to nearby molecules via the van der Waals force. The resultant adhesion is virtually unbreakable (at least, more unbreakable than the surface he's sticking to), and allows him to adhere to anything from textured walls to sheer surfaces like glass. Although Peter is capable of extending and retracting these setules at will, they appear to be extended by default, as evidenced by the many times he has adhered to something without realizing.

Hypersensitivity to Vibration: Peter's sense of touch has been altered to be able to detect subtle vibrations and changes in air pressure, to a degree unmatched by normal humans. He can feel the brief increases in air pressure caused by movements in his immediate surroundings; although the precise limit of this ability is not known, he has been able to feel large objects moving nearly a hundred feet behind him. Similarly, he can feel vibrations through solid objects: he has been known to detect footsteps through the floor originating from hundreds of feet away, and frequently searches large areas by using webbing to extend the range of this ability. This constant sensitivity is at times overwhelming or uncomfortable to Peter, but for the most part he considers most of these sensations "background noise," somewhat akin to the whirring of an air conditioner or conversation across the room.

Spider-Sense: Peter possesses an extrasensory "danger sense," alerting him to potential or immediate danger by the manifestation of a tingling sensation in the back of his skull. The precise nature of this sense is unknown, but when the source of the threat is within range of another sense Peter's full attention is drawn to it. Although originally only reacting to immediate threats to Peter's well-being in the form of what narration repeatedly describes as a "high, sharp note of MOVE", it seems to have become both more versatile and more paranoid with regular use. It now reacts to theoretical danger as well, changing in pitch, volume, length and intensity depending on the threat present in a given situation, in the process actively drawing his attention to the perceived threat. Potentially dangerous people and objects, for example, induce a continuous low hum with mere proximity, increasing to an insistent tingle if they actually intend to attack him. Although this allows Peter to vaguely determine the proximity, direction, and severity of a threat, it also contributes to his paranoia and social anxiety; spider-sense has a tendency to be quite twitchy, especially in crowds.

"Passive" Powers
Healing Factor: Although not nearly to the extent of Wolverine, Peter is capable of healing from injuries far faster than a normal human. He is capable of recovering from broken bones and major tissue damage in approximately one week; although it should be noted that he scars just as easily as normal humans.

Contaminant Resistance: Due to his accelerated metabolism, Peter has a higher tolerance for drugs and diseases than most humans, and he can recover from the effects of larger doses quickly.

Metabolizing of Radiation: The spider that bit Peter, in addition to carrying an engineered retrovirus, contained an extensively modified version of the serum that created the Hulk. This serum, through undisclosed means, is fueled by gamma radiation to stimulate cellular renewal and growth, although to a much more controlled degree in Peter than in Dr. Banner. Although he himself no longer contains any radiation, nor is he capable of "hulking out," in the presence of radioactive materials his strength, speed, and healing factor gradually but significantly increase. During this time Peter's blood darkens in hue (a well-known side effect of the serum), discoloring his larger blood vessels; he has on one occasion used the resulting appearance as a scare tactic. This state of increased physical ability is temporary: once the radioactive material is no longer present Peter's strength, speed, and healing gradually regress to their normal capacities. The limit of this ability is unknown; although there is a point at which his powers stop increasing and radiation begins harming him as it would normally, we have yet to find out what it is.

Parasitic Immunity: Due to the aforementioned Banner-Ross serum in his blood and cells, as well as the fact that he is no longer technically human, Peter is immune to vampire bites. In addition, most vampire-like parasites try to avoid him, due to his "tainted" smell; according to Morbius, Peter smells to vampires like "metal and poison and a horde of spiders." Similarly, although he is unquestionably a Spider-Totem, he is also contaminated by numerous toxins and impurities, making him more poisonous than beneficial to Inheritors; they did not approach him.

Extrasensory Intuition: Peter seems to have the ability to react to his environment instinctively, navigating in the dark or executing complex feats of agility with little concentration. Although this is at first glance a function of spider-sense, it seems to be broader than mere threat detection; he is capable of finding his way to doors with his eyes closed or through complex obstacles with no prior preparation.

Abilities
Genius-Level Intellect: Academically gifted, Peter displays an uncanny affinity for science that is nothing short of genius. In addition, he is extremely well-read.

Radical Scientist: Peter frequently exhibits more passion for science and curiosity for exploring it than common sense restricting his acting on it. He is able to use this "mad genius" tendency to develop a wide variety of devices and compounds, most notably web-shooters and webbing respectively. He is frequently experimenting with extraordinary machines and substances, usually procured from defeated enemies or destroyed laboratories, and has a tendency to use his spider-sense and nothing else as a gauge of how bad an idea attempting to create something is...and frequently he just interprets it as a warning to dodge.

Indomitable Will: Peter is exceptionally strong-willed and stubborn. Although he is not completely free from temptation, he is both entirely resistant to any form that would require him to hurt innocent people and completely immune to mind control. He is capable of emerging from defeat even more focused on his goals, and repeated psychological trauma has merely fed his obsessive altruism. As Spider-Man, he has a tendency to all but ignore even the most severe injuries, usually creating a makeshift bandage or cast out of webbing. Note that this often becomes a problem: his sense of altruism has long since become self-destructive, and further strengthening it often suppresses other parts of his personality or feeds his guilt complex. In addition, literally walking on broken bones will make the injury worse; a fact Spider-Man is aware of but apparently has yet to fully internalize.

Skilled Photographer: He is a reasonably skilled photographer, although too distracted to be considered a professional.

Skilled Combatant: Peter has become an excellent hand-to-hand combatant utilizing a fighting style that directly complements his superhuman abilities. His methods are violate, enabling him to rival practically all types of combatants. Although strictly adhering to his unofficial "do not kill" rule, he takes a pragmatic approach to combat, more than willing to resort to such tactics as groin attacks, bone breaking, and minor lacerations if it will end the fight quickly.

Genre Savvy: Peter seems to have noticed the pattern his life falls under, and the eerie parallels between it and certain genres of fiction. He has read comic books, has watched horror movies, has read the old science fiction novels. He has developed a sense of self-awareness in regards to his own story.

Weaknesses
Unlike many superhumans, Peter Parker does not have a weakness he is automatically vulnerable to, but methods do exist to render him vulnerable.

Spider-Sense Interference: Spider-sense can lose effectiveness if it is blocked or temporarily weakened by specialized equipment or certain drugs. On the other hand, in some situations it is possible to use spider-sense to confuse him or bring him to a panic.

Absent-Minded: Peter is remarkably forgetful and distant.

Pathological Altruism/Guilt Complex: Peter has a tendency to hold himself responsible for any and all deaths directly caused by his battles (and there are a lot). He has over time grown to personally care about the individual people he protects, and is frequently distraught over his inability to save all of them. He has often commented on the perceived paradox of his own continued survival even as the number of deaths he has tried and failed to prevent extends well into the hundreds, suggesting a form of survivor's guilt.

​Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder: Peter's career as a superhero has frequently left him horrified and traumatized. In his first year alone he was nearly killed dozens of times, and bore witness to nearly two hundred civilian deaths, many of which were extremely gruesome. As a result, he frequently gets distressing flashbacks and feelings of extreme fear or shock during his civilian life. He is also regularly subject to nightmares, partially justifying his chronic insomnia. Oddly, although spider-sense often induces these flashbacks, it seems to have the ability to override them and restore him to a condition of awareness of present danger, which may explain why he is rarely subject to them as Spider-Man.

Loss of Contact Lenses: As one of the few superheroes genuinely possessing myopia, Peter is forced to wear contact lenses as Spider-Man. As such, these have an annoying tendency to fall out if Peter is severely jostled, for example by a superhuman-strength punch.

Equipment
Webbing: Peter's scientific brilliance (matched, once again, by his scientific recklessness) has allowed him to invent an artificial spider silk. The precise nature of this chemical is unknown. A liquid in its regular form, on contact with air this "web fluid" rapidly expands to one hundred fifty times its original volume and adopts a fibrous, flexible quality, which can be shaped by machines into a variety of shapes including lines and crude bandages. In its solid form, web fluid has a tensile strength 5 times greater than galvanized steel. Although solid webbing is transparent, it is observed to have a faintly golden hue similar to that of golden orb-weaver spider silk.

Web-Shooters: Peter possesses a pair of wrist-mounted devices designed to shoot thin strands of web fluid at high velocity. A single cartridge of web fluid, measuring approximately 7 by 17 by 75 mm, is loaded into the back of each web-shooter and the default diameter for weblines is exactly 2 mm. Each web-shooter is activated by a trigger mechanism located high on the palm of the hand; these triggers can be pushed back into the body of the web-shooter and spring out again with a flick of the wrist. Although Peter's original design was computerized, repeated encounters with both Electros prompted him to redesign the web-shooters to be primarily mechanical devices, although there is a red light that flashes when one is low on webbing. A consistent flaw in the design is the tendency for residue to accumulate from extended use, leading to the appearance of spiderwebs running from his wrists to his waist.

Spider-Tracers: Peter has created a number of small tracking devices, which are wirelessly connected to his cell phone and appear on a modified Map application.

Slave Camera: Peter has constructed a portable camera which syncs to and is controlled by his phone. This camera is approximately the size of a normal camera lens, and can automatically focus and be set to automatically take pictures at regular intervals.

Drone: At one point, Peter had a remote-controlled drone which his slave camera could be mounted in and could anchor itself to walls with simple web-shooters. This drone was destroyed in a fight with the Vulture; he has yet to replace it.

Bulletproof Vest: Procured from the corpse of a police officer in one of his earliest battles, Peter occasionally wears a bulletproof vest over his costume when he expects an unusually violent confrontation. In addition to limiting his agility somewhat, this vest is primarily Kevlar and as such very little use against sharp objects.

Backpack: As Spider-Man, Peter habitually carries a dark red backpack, often sarcastically called his "utility backpack". Although its contents vary wildly from day to day, the following has been repeatedly found in it:
 * Fire Extinguisher
 * Multitool
 * Flashlight
 * Batteries
 * Soldering Iron, Solder
 * Copper Wire, Wire Cutters
 * Kukri Knife (stolen from Kraven)
 * Specimen Vials, various sizes
 * Web Fluid Cartridges (approx. 50?)
 * Spare Web-Shooters
 * First-Aid Kit
 * Map
 * Snacks
 * Cell Phone
 * Cash