Spider-Man Black and Blue (AU) Chapter 29: The Big Man

[Third Person POV] 


Norman and Harry Osborn stood just outside the Oscorp building, the late-afternoon sun casting long shadows over the glass façade. Harry jogged a little to catch up to his father, his tone careful, almost timid.


“Dad, wait up. I wanted to ask you something,” Harry said, falling in step beside him. His hands fidgeted at his sides before he finally spoke. “You know… we haven’t really done anything together this summer. I was wondering if maybe… we could see a movie together or something?”


Norman stopped, his expression already hardening. He turned his sharp gaze down at Harry, his voice clipped and dismissive. “No, Harry. I don’t have time to waste on frivolous activities like movies. I’m a busy man. Don’t you have friends? Take one of them instead. Don’t bother me with such nonsense again.”


His words cut through Harry, his expression showing a hint of sadness.


Beep Beep.


A sleek black limousine pulled up to the curb. The tinted window rolled down to reveal a man with an abnormally large forehead, his heavy features shadowed but unmistakable as he gestured for Norman to get inside.


Norman clicked his tongue, already moving toward the car. “Go. Do something productive with your time. I have business to attend to.”


Harry stood rooted in place, his shoulders sagging. He lowered his head, his voice so faint it barely carried over the street noise. “It didn't have to be a movie… and No, Dad… I don’t have any friends.”


He shoved his hands into his pockets, his figure seeming smaller with every step as he turned and walked away. Before leaving, he cast one last glance over his shoulder—watching Norman climb into the limousine and disappear behind darkened windows. The vehicle drove off, leaving Harry standing alone on the sidewalk.


Inside the car, the air was colder, heavier. Norman slid into the leather seat and immediately fixed a glare at the man across from him. The figure was tall and broad, dressed sharply in a suit that strained against his massive frame. His skin was ashen-grey, its surface rough and uneven like carved stone, giving the impression that he was chiseled rather than born. Resting on his lap was a closed laptop, fingers drumming idly across it.


“Tombstone…” Norman said through clenched teeth. “We’ve been over this. You don’t show up at Oscorp. If anyone saw me getting into a car with you, it would turn into a scandal. We agreed on arranged meetings—private discussions. Discretion.”


“Sorry, Norman,” Tombstone replied, his voice like gravel sliding across steel. “But arranging meetings takes too long, and this matter couldn’t wait.” He tapped the laptop once. “The Big Man wants to have a word with you.”


Norman froze. His usual arrogance faltered, replaced with the tight lines of unease. Of all the people in the city, the Big Man was the last one he wanted to hear from. His voice dropped, trepidation creeping in despite his best effort to sound controlled. “W-What does he want?”


“Find out for yourself.”


Tombstone flipped the laptop open and turned it toward Norman. The screen glowed pale in the dim interior, showing nothing but a stark black background and a single question mark. Then a voice poured from the speakers—smooth, calm, but carrying weight.


“Norman… how have you been? I trust my investments in you have grown fruitful…”


Norman’s jaw clenched. He knew the threat hidden behind those cordial words: I put money into you. Now I expect my return.


His voice lowered, careful, almost deferential. “What do you need?”


The Big Man chuckled softly. Somewhere in the background, the squeak of a chair echoed, an oddly mundane sound that only heightened the menace behind it. “In a way, you could say I’ve been inspired. As I’m sure you’re aware, this city has developed a… pest problem.”


Norman frowned, his mind racing. Then realization struck. “You’re talking about Spider-Man? He’s actually real?”


“Oh, he’s real,” the Big Man assured, his voice smooth but cold. “And like any pest, when left unchecked, he becomes a nuisance. He’s already interfered with several of my operations—delayed business, disrupted transactions. And if there’s one thing I despise, Norman, it’s delays.”


“So. I need you to do something for me…”


Norman’s brow furrowed, his lip curling as if he had just been insulted. “What do you honestly expect me to do? Call the police on him? The FBI? You’ve got your hooks in all of them already, don’t you? Why drag me into this?”


The Big Man’s voice oozed through the speakers, calm but cutting. “Didn’t you hear me, Norman? I’ve been inspired. It’s been two days since Spider-Man was last seen—after his skirmish with that Electro, as the media has dubbed him. I believe the he is licking his wounds, recovering. But make no mistake—he’ll be back. Once he heals, he’ll be out there again, sticking his nose where it doesn’t belong.”


Norman shifted in his seat, irritation creasing his face. “I’m still not hearing what it is you actually want from me.”


“I need you,” the Big Man said slowly, savoring each word, “to give him more distractions. More enemies. Something to keep him… occupied, while I conduct my business. In short, Norman, I want you to create more like Electro. More super-villains.”


For a moment, Norman could only stare, his face twitching as disbelief twisted into something between anger and horror. “…You’re joking.”


“The Big Man doesn’t joke,” Tombstone interjected, his stony glare flickering like a warning light.


Norman’s temper cracked. He leaned forward, his voice rising. “How do you honestly expect me to do that? Do you want me to just start experimenting on people? You realize if it ever came out that Oscorp had a hand in creating freaks running loose in the city, it wouldn’t be Spider-Man putting my head on a spike—it would be the entire board of Oscorp!”


The Big Man’s voice dropped, calm yet terrifying in its finality. “I don’t care how you do it. The methods are irrelevant. What matters is the result. The more chaos you can unleash, the better. Once Spider-Man is too overwhelmed, too bloodied, too beaten to keep interfering, the city falls neatly into line. My line.”


Norman bit back the urge to explode. His every instinct screamed to refuse, but he knew better. Men who had said no to the Big Man never lasted long enough to regret it. His pride warred with his survival instinct, until finally, he slumped back against the leather seat, exhaling sharply in defeat. “…I’ll see what I can do.”


“Good.” The Big Man’s voice smoothed again, returning to that infuriatingly casual tone. “Deliver, and you’ll be rewarded for your efforts.”


The limousine slowed, circling back around to Oscorp’s front entrance. The car rolled to a stop. Norman stepped out quickly, He adjusted his suit jacket, forced his composure back into place, and disappeared into the building without a backward glance.


The car pulled away. Inside, Tombstone turned the laptop back toward himself. His eyes narrowed. “Boss, you sure about leaving this to Osborn? This is no small task”


The Big Man chuckled, a low, confident rumble. “It’s fine. Norman is smarter than he looks—and more desperate than he’ll admit. I wouldn’t have invested so much in him if I thought otherwise. He knows what happens when he fails me. And he won’t.”


There was a pause, then the voice grew darker, more ambitious. “And soon… I’ll have my own task force. A cadre of super-powered soldiers, loyal to me. With them at my disposal, Spider-Man will be nothing but a footnote. The city will be mine, then the state, then perhaps more. All under my thumb.”


The screen dimmed, the call ending in silence.


Tombstone sat back, a wry grin spreading across his granite features. He could feel it in his gut—the city was about to change forever. 


And It all began with Spider-Man.