Peter Parker perched on a stone gargoyle high atop the streets of New York watching parents herding children along trick-or-treating. At almost 8pm, they'd all be heading home soon to glut themselves on the candy haul. It never ceased to amaze him how many Spiderman costumes he saw amongst the crowds. Despite the powers, he still just felt like a regular guy.

Unease filled him. Considering this particularly dark holiday, he'd expected some big show, but lately, nothing. The villains had been too quiet.

He'd love it if villains took vacations - he grinned briefly at the image of Venom sunning himself on a beach - because then he could finally take Mary Jane somewhere and maybe not worry every second about what was happening back home. But they didn't. So he couldn't.

He pushed aside the bitterness and refocused on keeping citizens safe.

So what were the villains prepping for? Were they blending in with the costumed-merrymakers on the streets below right now causing mischief?

A woman's cry of "Help!" from far away reached him. With practised ease he immediately dove off the building, shot out a web and caught it to swing in an arc towards the trouble.

A few lucky people looked up and pointed as he swung by. Their children chased him down the street. But he was single-minded now.

"Please! Someone help!"

He zeroed in on the woman's location. Letting go of the web at the top of the arc, he sailed forward to land on the side of a building.

Down below a woman in a nurse's uniform was backed to a wall, fingers gripping the brick, while four burly men closed in on her.

Peter shot four successive webs, one at each man. Leaping to the bar of a streetlight, he yanked to drag them backwards and string them up. Instead of cries of pain, metallic clanks sounded when the men collided with each other.

"Robots!" Peter exclaimed and looked around for danger. He had to get the woman out of here before things got gnarly.

Leaving the robots suspended, he leapt down to the street. "Everything is okay now, ma'am," he said, approaching her at a swift but measured pace.

She smirked. "Maybe for me."

A jolt of electricity shocked him and he fell to the ground.

The woman, whose hair had a frazzled, scorched look, stared down at him. "But not for you."

Electro snaked an arm around the waist of the woman, who ripped off the fake nurse's hat. "Knock knock, Spidey."

The rest of the Sinister Six stepped up to make a circle of wickedly smiling faces above him.

"It's tricky treat time," said the Sandman.

Peter groaned and prepared for the worst.