WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Spider-Woman #8 by Karla Pacheco, Pere Perez, Frank D'Armata, and VC's Travis Lanham, on sale now.
The world around Jessica Drew has been overrun with Knull's living darkness, and her friends are caught in the middle of it. World ending threats aside, things aren't going great for her on a personal level, either, considering she's just teamed up with one of her worst enemies in the hopes of saving herself from the afflictions left by the Marchand Serum she has been taking.
When the serum caused her to assault Captain Marvel, Jess was left imprisoned while the rest of the heroes went out to combat the King in Black. Octavia Vermis has come to her rescue but getting what they both need is going to mean turning her back on some of her closest allies.
When Octavia comes for Jess, she can't even remember her own name, her mind totally engulfed by the rage-inducing Marchand Serum. She doesn't even think before injecting herself with the first thing Octavia hands her, which is luckily a good thing as it brings Jess back to her senses. Jessica doesn't know that she can trust Octavia at all, but when looking back on how she's been treated by those closest to her, she decides that joining Octavia to take down Hydra goons in the search for a proper cure isn't such a bad idea after all.
Breaking into and robbing a Hydra warehouse isn't a problem for Jess or Octavia, who are both more than capable of taking down a room full of goons before making off with the loot they'd come for. Their next target brings them into battle against Stegron, who seems more annoyed than anything, even lamenting how he might leave villainy behind before he's assaulted by the unlikely duo. The third mark of the night, unlike the previous two, is someone that Jessica does feel pangs of guilt for. The last stop that Jess and Octavia have for the evening is none other than Tony Stark.
Octavia drops Jess off at a Stark safehouse and leaves her there to circle the block. Jessica isn't too keen on stealing from her friend, but Octavia reminds her this isn't the first time she's stolen from Tony, mentioning that at least this time it's just research and not an entire spaceship. Jess gains access the easy way, simply using her credentials as an Avenger. Once inside, she is greeted by one of Tony's drones, which kindly alerts Rhodey that she's there. She moves as quickly as she can to download the data she needs but Rhodey joins her in no time at all, looking to put a stop to her.
Jessica ultimately comes out on top, meeting back up with Octavia to hit the road. Her victory was more than fair, but it doesn't leave her feeling very good about herself. Jessica's career began under Otto Vermis, Octavia's father, who was a high ranking member of Hydra and brought Jess into the fold under his wing. When she refused to assassinate Nick Fury, she became an enemy of the organization for her betrayal, though she would go on to end up working as a double agent for both S.H.I.E.L.D. and Hydra at different points in her life.
Lately, with the Marchand Serum corrupting her mind, she's even taken the fight to her fellow Avengers, even taking down Carol Danvers in brutal fashion while under the influence of the drug. There's more than good reason for her fellow heroes to be wary of Jessica Drew. Then again, they should know by now that nothing is ever quite as it seems when it comes to Spider-Woman.