"Avengers! Assemble!" Hope screamed, holding up the cut out she made of me.
"YA!" Morgan cried out as she moved a holographic army of faceless soldiers against another army of faceless soldiers that had kidnapped a very real barbie doll.
The mock battle had giant space monsters, similar to the Chitauri army, and the good guys had holographic members of the Avengers, and they were all running across the dining table that had been cleared for their use.
Apparently the girls were playing heroes and princesses, where the former saved the latter. The holograms were apparently something Morgan figured out how to make herself. Pepper had bragged about it, how she figured out how to display the armies with FRIDAY's help.
The two girls were busy wrapped up in their own fantasy world happening in the dining room, they didn't even look at the living room where the situation wasn't as easy going.
Jean, Felicia, Wanda, Johnny and I sat in the living room couch. Steve had taken a seat on a chair to one side while Pepper sat across from us in another comfortable looking seat. The rest of them surrounded us, eyeing us carefully. Pepper and Rhodey still wore their suits, obviously on edge.
"So..." the Spider-man with good hair turned to my Wanda and the one from this world, "this is weird right? It's not just me?"
"Agreed," T'Challa replied, eyeing the suit Felicia was currently wearing.
"You need something, buddy?" Felicia asked with a raised eyebrow, "you're going to burn a hole into the suit if you keep staring."
"I doubt vibranium will burn," T'Challa replied, the implication left unspoken.
"Keep looking at me like that and it will," Felicia snorted, "plus, if I didn't make it obvious before, I'm not really looking for anyone right now."
"That's not-" T'Challa sighed, rubbing his nose, "I just knew this would be trouble," he grumbled and spoke clearly, "the vibranium in your suit, where did you get it?"
"From another world?" Felicia shrugged, "what does it matter to you?"
"I suppose it doesn't..." T'Challa replied.
"I believe what my brother means is that your suit is amazing," Shuri spoke up quickly, the beads around her wrist coming alive, analyzing Felicia's suit, "kinetic absorption, bulletproof, fireproof, temperate adjustment and...something I can't seem to pick up on. Who made the suit?"
Felicia turned to me, "who do you think? Perfect birthday present if I do say so myself."
"Dude! That is so cool!" Shuri replied, typing away at the holographic screen that came out of her beads, "mind if I steal some of your designs?"
"Sure," I replied, "go ahead." Once again silence fell over the group, the sound of Shuri mumbling under her breath about Felicia's suit design was the only noise heard.
"Perhaps it is time to address the elephant in the room," Doctor Strange spoke up, clearing his throat, "maybe we can begin with introductions first?"
"Right," I nodded, "Peter Parker, in my world, I'm Spider-man, you all know that."
"Felicia Hardy," my Kitten went next, flipping her hair over her shoulder, "the Black Cat and current avatar of Bast."
"What?!" Shuri, T'Challa and the Dora Milaje all cried out as one.
"Oh yeah, I forgot you worship Bast don't you?" I said, my brain plopping out that vital piece of information now.
"You are the Panther Goddess's avatar?!" T'Challa asked, his eyes going wide, looking the woman over, "you?"
"Yes, why the look?" Felicia asked, flexing her fingers, summoning a phantom projection of a large cat's paw over her arm, an avatar of Bast's magic, "because, again, it's starting to get uncomfortable."
"I am the goddess champion," T'Challa explained, "how did you become her avatar?"
"Long story short?" Felicia sighed, "I stole her amulet, she got pissed. Tried to kill me but we sorted it out."
"...By Bast," T'Challa sighed, rubbing his head, "I cannot even ...you said you did this on your Earth, correct?"
"Yes. Why?"
"Shuri, see if you can track that amulet on our world," T'Challa quickly ordered, his mind picking up on the implication of an amulet with a direct connection to his deity being somewhere on his own world, "and then put our agents on acquiring it, make it our top priority."
"Doing so now brother," Shuri hummed as she took a picture of the amulet around Felicia's neck, sending it away into her database.
"So...your a goddess?" Sam Wilson asked, his eyebrow frowned, "like Thor?"
"Nope, New York girl born and raised," Felicia shrugged, "I just picked this up."
"I almost hesitate to ask about you," Sam turned to Jean, ignoring Wanda's doppelgangers.
"Jean Grey, I am a mutant," Jean explained, seeing their confused looks she turned to me and asked telepathically, 'don't they have our kind here?'
I shook my head, "a mutant is a sub-race of the human race on my Earth. Individuals born with abilities, I would be considered a proto-mutant, man-made mutation."
"So, what can you do?" Bucky asked, with a tone of worry.
``I can speak to you through your mind,' Jean replied telepathically, smiling as the people from this Earth flinched in shock.
"Holy shi-" Hulk's eyes widened, "does that mean-"
"-No, I won't read your thoughts, without your permission," Jean smiled, immediately the Peter of this world blushed, "don't worry, I've seen it all. You should see what this one thinks off half the time," she smirked, elbowing me, "I swear, fatherhood has made you more frisky Tiger."
"Jean, do you have to make me out as a sexual deviant?" I rolled my eyes, "I literally just got their respect."
"I'm sure," Jean rolled her eyes.
"Wait, so would I be considered a mutant?" Johnny asked, confused.
"No, you got your powers after, you're like me," I explain with a shrug, "well, not exactly..."
Johnny grinned, "yeah," he then noticed everyone looking at him expectantly, "oh, right, Johnny Storm, I'm a walking fireball," to demonstrate he held out his hand and light it on fire.
"Woah! That's so cool!" the Peter with the good hair cried out.
"Thanks, man," Johnny grinned, turning to me, "why can't you be that in awe?"
I rolled my eyes, "I've seen you do that hundreds of times Johnny, now put that out before you set off the smoke alarms." Johnny rolled his eyes and did so.
"And I suppose I'm next," my Wanda spoke up, drawing everyone's attention to her, especially this world's Wanda. My Wanda stood up, walked over to her doppelganger and looked her over, "a bit older, maybe...and your hair," my Wanda reached up to her darker and shorter auburn hair, "I like it."
"Yes, I...I grew it myself?" the other Wanda said, unsure, "you're me?"
"Yes...you got your powers through the Mind Stone?"
"Yes."
"Did your father abandoned you?"
"No he… he died," the reply shocked my Wanda.
"No mutant Wanda," I say softly, "Erik was just a human, not Magneto...he died in this world. So did your brother."
My Wanda's eyes went wide, "Pietro is dead here?"
The Other Wanda's eyes watered, "he-he is alive? On your home?"
"Y-yes...I would never have thought…." My Wanda turned to me, "you said the multiverse is infinite...I suppose one were he died is ...damn it all… how?"
"By saving someone, a child and Clint," Steve stepped up, putting a gentle hand on his world's Wanda, "maybe we should not learn any more about other worlds...less we know the fewer regrets we relive..."
"So your friends found a way to you, using," Paper looked to the box containing the Reality stone of our world in it, "that...I didn't think I would ever see one of those again."
"An Infinity stone..." Hulk whispered, "you need to get rid of it. Now, the power, the temptation-"
"-Not a problem," I reply, taking the box containing the red liquid and open the top. The other flinched, moving away as I reached in and pulled out a fully stable and motionless jelly-like substance.
"How is that thing not trying to eat you?" Rhodey asked, powering down his weapons.
"When an Infinity Stone is taken from its own reality to another, it loses its power," I reply, moving the jelly around to demonstrate, "it's just...jelly now. Powerless. The Reality stone can be used to bring people into other worlds but once they are there, well, it becomes useless."
"So, you risked your lives on one chance?" Rhodey asked, "that's insane."
"What's insane is a black hole taking your daughter and boyfriend out of your home without explanation," Jean shot back, "trying to find them is anything but."
I smiled, putting the dead infinity stone back into its container, putting it away, "yeah...I still can't believe you found us..."
"It was Wanda's idea," Jean admitted, turning to the woman, "she kept us all together."
Wanda sighed, running her hand down her hair, "it's not a big deal. I just figured I should do something before goes all Phoenix and burns everything."
"I wasn't that bad," Jean protested, to which Wanda, Felicia, and Johnny all leveled her a scratching stare. The redhead blushed, "okay...maybe a little..."
"You threatened to blow up a planet Jean," Felicia rolled her eyes.
"It was the moon!" Jean cried out, "and you know I was just overreacting! I wouldn't have done it..." she ended quietly like a child got caught doing something they shouldn't have.
"I don't even know if you all are joking by this point," Sam whispered, the others sharing similar looks.
"Kind of," Felicia sighed, "it's a long story, and we don't have time for it."
"Exactly," I got up, "it's time we leave. Pepper, thank you, for...everything," I nodded to the woman who just nodded, still a little lagging behind on the whole situation. I turned to the other Spider-men in the room, "you still want to come with?"
"Hell yeah," the Amazing Spider-man replied, getting up quickly, "I owe that energy vampier a punch in the fucking teeth. Assuming he's still alive like you think."
"I'm coming as well," this world's Peter Parker nodded as well, "until we resolve this, May and anyone close to me won't be safe."
"I am as well," this world's Wanda stood up, her eyes shifting between me, My Wanda and the Amazing Spider-man, "I wish to help."
"Then there's only one thing left to say," Johnny grinned as he got up, "assemble!"
…
Everyone in the room seemed to automatically agree to just ignore that last bit. Except for Steve, who just seemed to smile a bit.
"First stop is our homeworld," I held up the portal watch my colleagues and I spent the whole day fixing and perfecting. I turned to Jean, "I want you and Johnny to take Hope home and keep her safe."
"But I-"
"Jean a blackhole tried to swallow our daughter. You are the best shot we have to destroy something like that if it tries again. Agreed?"
Jean looked ready to argue, but sighed, nodding, "yeah...your right. Nothing more important than her being safe...I'll do it."
"And what about me?" Johnny sulked, "I also came across universes to find you you know. Now you want me to leave?"
"I want you to protect my daughter, Johnny, because I trust you more than almost anyone else," I replied back, placing my hand on his shoulder, "you're my best friend Johnny, I trust you."
Johnny seemed a bit taken aback, I'll admit, I we never really admitted the fact that we were our best friends. It was just something we knew was real, it didn't need to be said. He grinned, "you trust me more than anyone else?"
"No, I'm sending Jean with you, aren't I?" I grinned back.
"Before you leave, may I suggest something?" Doctor Strange spoke up, earning everyone's gaze.
"Damn, he even sounds like our Strange," Jean replied communicated to Felicia, Wanda and me.
"He acts like it too," Felicia grumbled.
"We need to ensure these Inheritors and other beings don't pose a threat to our plane of reality," Strange explained, turning to Felicia, "and the fact that gods from other worlds can just casually drop-in is...disturbing. I propose that until the situation with the Inheritors is over, we treat it as a hostile invasion. Mrs. Stark, can you contact the UN and have them put the world on the watch? Just in case another extra-dimensional threat arrives that we don't know about."
"Are you thinking about the Inheritors or...something else?" I asked, implying Strange's plan was actually for the white-cloaked Doom he saw in his visions.
Strange nodded, "both."
"Fine, okay, whatever," Pepper sighed, rubbing her nose and sighing, "how did Tony put up with this shit?"
"Whiskey," Rhodey replied.
"Hope! Honey!" Jean got up first, moving to the living room, "we need to go!"
"But I don't want to!" Hope cried out. I sighed, I asked the others to meet us outside by the pier near the lake, promising to join them soon.
Jean and I entered the living room and saw Morgan and Hope looking up at us with wide innocent eyes. I could smell their desire to keep this budding friendship going on for a long time, even Jean turned to me with a pleading look. As parents...this was new ground for us.
I wrapped an arm around Jean and pulled her close, showing her we were in this together. "Hope, we have to get home now," I tell my little girl, "mommy and Aunty Felicia and Wanda came a long way to get us."
"But daddy! Morgan and I are still playing!" Hope cried out.
"I know, but it's getting late Hope," I sighed, "you can play some other time."
"When?" Hope asked, looking a little hopeful. Gods, the puns I can make in my own head.
"I….we," I turned to Jean. She looked even more unsure than me. Having playdates with Morgan wasn't going to be possible. This is a one time deal, we both knew it.
"I can't lie to her Jean," I told my red-haired lover.
"I….I know," Jean smiled, reaching up and cupped my chin, "you won't have to. I'll step in Tiger."
Jean moved forward and closed the mental connection we shared. She then kneeled before Hope and stared at the girl. Immediately I could detect the mental connection Jean formed between Hope and her. The way my daughter's face kept changing expression without a word being said outwards confirmed as much.
I tried to listen in, figure out what was being said, but they blocked me out. Slowly though, I saw Hope's eyes slowly start to water. She began to sniffle, Morgan grew worried, "Hopey? What happened?"
"I need to go Morggy," Hope said, calling Morgan by a nickname, "mommy says it's important."
"Oh...when can we play?"
"I don't know, but I'll try," Hope replied, turning to Jean and then saying something through her mind.
Jean smiled, nodding, "if anyone can do it, your dad can."
That made Hope grin, she turned to Morgan, "soon! Mommy said daddy can do it so I'll try to come again and play Morgy! Promise!"
Morgan smiled, "cool! Next time, I want to be Thor! He's so cool and fat! Uncle Thor once let me ride his shoulders!"
With that, the two girls bolted out to the back. I joined Jean and we walked behind them. I turned to her and whispered, "what did you tell her?"
"What I tell myself whenever I'm in a tough situation," Jean smiled, "that you would be there to help. So while she can't see for some time, I told her you would find a way to see her again."
I snorted, "you know, you're something of an amazing parent yourself, Jean."
"Oh I know I am," Jean replied, "I'm just as good as you buster, I just assured Hope you'll do fix it because that's your category. I'm the fun parent."
"Bullshit, I'm the fun parent," I argued back. Who does this hot bird think she is?
"Oh yeah? What fun thing did you and Hope do while you were gone?" Jean challenged.
"We visited Venice," I grinned.
Jean raised an eyebrow, "and? Did Hope have fun?"
"Yeah, of course, she did! We went on a boat ride!"
"And…."
"Well… we were attacked by this guy named Mysterio, but that isn't my fault!"
"Peter, Tiger, love of my life. You are an amazing dad, but you are way too responsible to be the fun parent. Trust me on this," she leaned up and kissed me, pulling me down and whispering to my ear, "your fun in other ways."
I smiled as we walked to the pier where everyone was waiting for us. Hope and Morgan said their goodbyes, with the idea that they would see each other soon, maybe even the next day. No one had the heart to tell them that may not be the case.
The Avengers stood by the base of the pier, the Peter Parker of this world, now in his suit, the Amazing Spider-man, on his own, and this world's Wanda joined us at the head of the pier.
"We wish you all the best," Pepper said as she held Morgan in her hands, "whatever you face out there ...kick its butt."
"Yeah! Kick its butt!" Morgan cried out.
"Language," Steve replied, though everyone could tell it was more of a running gag at this point.
"Kid," Rhodey stepped forward, approaching his world's Peter Parker, "you sure you don't want the Iron Spider suit?"
Peter shook his head, "now I...I don't think I'll need it. Plus who knows how it'll react when in another world. The servers that host its system might not work in another reality."
I picked up on that bullshit, and by the looks of things so did the Amazing Spider-man and Rhodey, but we didn't say anything. The colonel just nodded and walked away, though we all did notice just how defeated Peter looked.
"Alright then, first stop, our home," I held up the portal watch and turned it on. I then had it scanned my molecular makeup and determine the dimension I was from. It wasn't a part of the original schematics, but something I added in, super helpful when you wanted to identify and travel to another world you didn't have on record.
The watch's face whirled to life for a few seconds before displaying a number. My world's number: 999.
Felicia looked over my shoulder and whistled, "turn that around and I might not want to go back."
"Maybe," I sighed, typing in the coordinates into the portal watch as to where in my world watch was to open up. "I've programmed it to open upright on the surface of Arachno. I can't, however, pinpoint where on the plant's surface you'll arrive, so you'll look around for a bit."
"It's a good thing we both can fly," Jean and Johnny nodded. "Come on Princess, it's time to go home," Jean reached down and pulled Hope into her arms, the girl waving her tiny hands at Morgan who waved back just as sadly.
"Right," I tapped the screen and held out the watch. Slowly the air before me began to glow. The cold night by the lake began to spark alive as a tear in space and time broke out before us. Cracks of warm purple light came out, crackling alive in short bursts. And then, a portal began opening before us.
"I'll go first," Johnny bravely ventured, "tell you if it's our place or not." I nodded in agreement and Johnny stepped forward, placing his hand next to the portal. And in an instant, I saw a blast of black lightning erupt from the portal.
BOOM!
Johnny was blasted off his feet, thrown into the air. "Johnny!" I cried out, cutting out the portal energy from the watch.
"I got him!" the Amazing Spider-man replied as he jumped and grabbed Johnny, landing on the pier with ease, laying him down.
"Let me take a look!" my Wanda called out as she approached Johnny, summoning several circular magical sigils around his body, monitoring his vitals.
"What happened?" Doctor Strange asked as we all gathered around his body.
"His body seems fine, but his mind seems to be in pain," Wanda whispered, "It seems like a magical whiplash, an overload to his system. But that makes no sense given the fact Johnny doesn't use magic. He can't."
"Then the portal dumped all that energy into him," I quickly deduced as I began messing with the watch's functions, pulling up the data for the last portal made from it's a memory.
"What happened Peter?" Jean asked as she saw a look of anger across my face.
"I don't know," I hissed. I hated not to know, "I can't even begin to explain what I'm looking at Jean. It's like...it's like our world is rejecting us."
"All of us? Or just Johnny?" Jean asked a glance sent to Hope in her arms.
"All of us," I replied, "something has put our world on lockdown. No one can enter it...no, that's not accurate. We can't enter it."
"Who would do such a thing?" Wanda asked.
"Who can do such a thing?" my Wanda asked.
"Something with a lot more power than a mere Sorcerer," Strange said as he snapped his fingers. A blast of fire came out of Johnny's throat and a moment later.
"FUCK!" Johnny cried out in pain as he exploded off the ground, grabbing his chest in shock as he broke out in a cold sweat, "what the fuck hit me?!"
"Fuck?" Morgan repeated.
"Oh for the love of God!" Pepper cried out, "potty training took you two years but this you learn in seconds!"
"It seems something is keeping us out of our home dimension Johnny," I told him as I helped him to his feet, "I'm sorry I didn't notice it before sending it forward Johnny, I...I didn't-"
"-It's fine, I'm alive aren't I?" Johnny smiled, "besides, I'm just glad it wasn't Hope and Jean who got zapped."
"So what now?" Felicia asked.
"You could stay here," Steve offered.
"Not an option," Strange replied, "if the Inheritors come for them, this world will be in danger."
Rhodey didn't like that as he stepped forward, "The Avengers-"
"-Are scattered," Strange replied, "as much as I hate to admit it, we aren't an army anymore ...but there is another army out there who can help them."
"The Superior Spider-man said he was gathering people to help," Peter said, his eyes hopeful, "maybe he managed to get enough to stand a chance!"
"Then that's where we need to go," Felicia nodded, looking at me, "do you know where they might be?"
I tapped on the screen, going to the backlogs I found the home dimension where this watch was created. World, 001. The Loom world, the center of the Multiverse and where the Weaver, the creator of the Web of Life, is said to reside.
The very core of this whole mess.
"Peter," Jean touched my arm, "what's wrong?"
"We're bringing Hope into the middle of a war Jean," I whispered.
"We can't find safe haven back home, we need allies Peter," Jean replied back, "and there is no one I trust more than you. So an army of you, well, it might be the next best thing to the fleet on Arachno."
I looked at her, "an army of Peter Parkers are not the same...don't trust anyone, not with her Jean. Especially the Superior Spider-man."
Jean nodded, "I understand. But why?"
"He's not what he seems," I reply, turning to the others, "fine, it's decided, we go to a world where the Superior Spider-man is gathering his army. Any objections?"
"No," they said, shaking their heads.
I held out the watch and activated it. Slowly another portal formed, but before anyone else I stepped forward and placed my hand against it, it's warm glow was comforting, though I kept waiting for the bit of the lightning to come once more.
It didn't. I turned to the others and nodded, "it's safe. You all go through first, I'll be right behind," I told them. One by one they entered, Johnny and the Amazing Spider-man taking the lead. Jean and Felicia went next to align with the two Wandas. And finally, there was Peter, the MCU Spider-man.
He turned to me and nodded, "you know, the last time I did this we ended up fighting Thanos."
"Something tells me this time will be worse," I replied as he jumped through. I turned to the others, I gave them a two-finger salute, "Avengers, it's been a pleasure."
I then stepped through, closing the portal behind me.
Earth- 2837
"ARGH!" Morlun lifted the several tons and several story tall sentinel-like it was made out of cardboard and threw it into a building.
"Evasive maneuvers!" a white Nick Fury called out from a nearby building rooftop as he guided the SHIELD issued mutant killing sentinel robots at the family of monsters dressed Victorian-era clothes that suddenly appeared in the middle of New York City.
They had torn apart five blocks into rubble within moments. Fury had been forced to use his secret ace in the hole, the classified sentinel project to defend the city. The Avengers were one hour away and every minute that passed by those things seemed to kill people by the dozens.
They ate them, absorbing some form of yellow energy from their bodies. The group comprised of
There was one man dressed in blue, one in a green-hued trench coat, a woman in dark Victorian-era clothing and a set of twins, male and female, wearing a matching set of red and white hunting uniforms.
And leading the group of six was a man that stood at seven feet tall. He looked every bit the patriarch as he was, with a long flowing white beard and mane, dressed in tight fighting Victorian era noble clothing.
"BRING ME THE SPIDER!" the one in blue cried out as he grabbed the leg of an approaching sentinel and used it as a bat, raising him into the air and into a building, increasing his death count by several dozen in that second.
"Damn it to hell," Nick hissed, "all personal move back! Give that space and continue the evacuation!"
"It won't work," a voice called out next to him. Fury turned to see Spider-man, New York's greatest defender land next to him. Fury had never seen Spider-man like this. His suit was ripped apart, hanging on by strands of red and blue. His lens was shattered and his skin was bruised and bleeding. He carried behind him a bag made of webbing, inside of which was something that glowed green.
"You fought them?" Fury asked, looking at the invader through a pair of binoculars.
"I survived them," he replied, "They want me."
"Well tough luck for them, we don't sacrifice our own, no matter the reason."
"Every second we waste another person dies, and it's on my head!" his rage was obvious, his lack of power even more so.
Fury turned to the young man, the man who would be his son's age if Fury ever had one. Who was someone...someone who Fury respected, very much so.
"What's the plan kid?" Fury asked.
"Give them want they want," he replied, pulling out a vial of green liquid from the web sac behind him.
"What's that?"
"I fought them in a hospital, I noticed one of them growing weaker in the x-ray room. Radiation hurts them. This is an aerosol version of radioactive water. Best I can come up with on such a short time. It should be enough to end them, but I have to get close. Like two feet."
"Good, then wait a few moments and I'll-"
"They can catch missiles Fury. And doge them at will. We only have this once shot."
"Then I'll do something else! I'll send a bomb at them so big they can't dodge it!"
"What? Nuke the city?"
"Damn it kid I'm not losing you too!" Fury cried out, throwing his binoculars aside, "I lost your father kid! Peter was a good man! A great man! And I don't-"
"-You know, mom never cried over dad," Ben Parker cut him off as he stood up tall, "not once. She missed him, but she never cried over him. I asked her, I remember asking her why. You know what she told me?" Fury didn't ask, he knew. "She said it's because dad knew the responsibility of his actions. And she knew he would have done nothing less ...goodbye Fury. Kiss mom goodbye for me would you?"
Fury's lone eye teared up, "sure kid," he did not think his liver could manage telling Watson another Parker had died in the line of duty, "and...tell Pete I said hi, alright?"
The boy of fifteen turns to Fury, pulled off his mask and let his red and brown hair breath, "yeah, I will. See you Fury"
Benjamin Peter Parker swung across the city to what he knew would be his death.
"SPIDER!" came another cry.
Ben growled as he heard the cry kill out the other screams for help that came from the dying people around him. He forced himself to ignore them all. Forced himself to keep moving.
He landed on a nearby light post, "oye! Harry Potter rejects!"
The group stopped and turned, all smiling viciously like a lion would a little doe.
But Ben wasn't afraid, he had already accepted his fate.
"Spider?" the one in blue raving like a mad man asked.
"Yeah, that's me, come and get it, pal!" Ben cried out.
"...Not Spider," he spat, sounding almost lunatic.
Ben drowned, "what do you mean? I'm-"
"-I believe my son asked for Peter Parker," a voice turned Ben's feet cold. He turned, ever so slowly, the giant old man, the father, was standing in mid-air behind him, looking at Ben like one would at a meal, "you see, he recently went through a very traumatic event. We brought him back, of course, but it left him scarred. He needs to feed to gain his sanity back. We only thought it was poetic that another Peter Parker fix what one damaged. But it seems there exists no one in this world. Sigh, oh well," he smiled, "you'll have to do."
He grabbed Ben by the neck and ripped off his backpack, "we could smell these a mile away child, clever, but in vain."
He threw the boy onto the ground and the one dressed in blue, Morlun, approached. Ben looked up, his body in pain. Morlun looked down, his eyes slowly focusing on his next victim.
Ben grinned, "so, tell me the truth. You're a virgin right? That's why you're so angry all the time. Sexual frustration."
"GRAH!"
Moruln grabbed him and drained him. Golden light ran from the body's form as he cried out in pain, screaming for help, but none arrived.
In moments, it was done. Morlun dropped the now mummified body of Ben Parker and wiped his mouth, "disgusting."
"Oh look, he speaks," the larger man in green laughed, patting Morgan's back, "it's good to see you back to your senses brother. Though I must say I enjoyed seeing you behave like your natural wild self."
"You enjoyed my suffering Daemos?" Morlun asked.
The big man smiled, "no, I enjoyed you suffer, for once."
"Enough brothers," the elder woman in dressed spoke, "we have restored Morlun's sanity, tell us brother, what caused your clone body to act so hysterical?"
"We know it was a Spider totem," the male twin in hunting clothes said.
"A version of Peter Parker that you have so much trouble with," the female twin snorted.
"It's known of your business!" Morlun hissed, "it is mine and mine-"
"-Enough!" a booming voice stopped them all cold. The patriarch of the family approached them, his massive feet stepped on top of Ben Parker's skull and crushed it into the ground. He didn't even register it was there as he destroyed it, "this is a matter of family Morlun. You will tell us and you will tell us now. What happened?"
Morlun growled, but bowed, "a totem, unlike any I saw before. I was barely finished speaking before he….he broke off my head."
Solus narrowed his eyes, "what makes him stand out so?"
"I...I don't know the father. All I saw before was… a flash of lightning."
Solus's eyes widened by a fraction before returning to normal, "interesting. It would seem we have a new player of note, other than the Superior and his army. Come, children," he said waving his hand, forcing reality apart as a portal appeared before them, "let us continue our hunt."
They smiled savagely as they leaped through the portal, leaving behind a destroyed city and the managed and destroyed the body of the son of Spider-man.
Earth-001
This one felt like I ever entered through before. While all the portals I traveled through before felt like a chaotic mix of a roller coaster ride and the teacup ride from Disneyland, this one felt like stepping through a door.
A purple road surrounded me and in the very next second, it opened up to another world and I was pushed outside.
I landed gracefully enough and looked up to see my group and I standing on top of a large building. We were in a city, a futuristic city that seemed a mix of ancient japan and china along with futuristic New York.
"Okay, so we're...here...which is?" Johnny asked as we looked around, confused.
"Which is Earth-001," a voice suddenly spoke out.
We all looked up and standing on top of a translucent platform were six figures I recognized. One was a Spider-man that took to wearing the UK flag as his costume. The lover cross ending at his chest and his legs full yellow. Spider UK, if I remember correctly.
The other one wore the classic Spider-man costume, with silver tubes instead of black. His spider logo was a bit sharper and...nostalgic. Was it...holy shit, was that Tobey McGaurie's Spider-man?!
The ones next to him were female, one wearing a black and white spider costume, resembling how venom would look on a host, the only difference being her lower jaw and ponytail were exposed. If I were to guess, I would say this one was Anya Corazon. One of the man Sider-women from the 616 universes!
The other female wore a costume I knew all too well, it was the costume Gwen wore as Spider-woman back on my earth, though by the way she acted, I suspect it wasn't the Gwen I was familiar with.
The final female wore the classic spider-man costume, though this one had web gliders under her arm. I honestly couldn't tell who she was though, because of how vague her costume was.
And the one leading them all was in red and black, the red ending in a 'V' shape at his abdomen. He wore a thick lens around his eyes and a backpack on his shoulder.
"I am the Superior Spider-man, welcome fellow Spider totems," he spoke as the platform landed before us and he and his companions stepped off. He looked at the Amazing Spider-man and nodded, "I see you took me up on my offer, good."
"Only because my world got ripped apart by a crazy lunatic named Morlun!" came the reply.
"Which was exactly what I told you would happen," the Superior Spider-Man said, turning to the rest of us, "and I see you brought friends, good, we can always" he stopped, noticing the others with us who weren't Spider totems. And of course, he recognized some of them.
"Johnny Storm, Felicia Hardy, Jean Grey and...two Wanda Maximoff's," Superior Spider-man noted, looking them over, "this is...strange. Why are you here?"
"They are here because we brought them," MCU Spider-man replied, doing his best to act tough. Superior Spider-man turned to him, slowly. He remained silent and I could almost see Peter sweat beneath his mask. He stammered out, "s-sir."
"That may be, but this world is for Spider-people. We cannot afford the distraction."
"Now wait a moment, that's not right," Spider UK stepped in, standing between Superior and us, "we agreed when we began this army that we would help anyone who asked for it."
The one I suspect to be Tobey McGauire nodded, "he's right, with great power-"
"-Don't complete that phrase or I swear I'll serve you to the Inheritors myself," Superior hissed, "I swear, I have heard that more times than any of you have ever said it."
"Then maybe you should listen," Spider Gwen replied.
"We are here to help," I finally spoke up, walking to the front of my group, passed Spider UK and stopped right in front of the Superior Spider-man. I towered over him by a good few inches, "the Inheritors are after us and those we care for. You said we're fighting them, then let's fight."
"This is a Spider totem matter," Superior hissed, "you put your friends in danger by involving them."
"I put them in danger by not," I replied back, "They can help. So can we."
"Him especially," The Amazing Spider-man popped in, "remember I told you Morlun was chasing me? Well, this guy right here socked him across the jaw and put him down! Permanently! He's like that bald anime guy with the cape! The Caped Baldy dude!"
Superior seemed to consider the advice and turned to me, "which Earth are you from?"
"Earth 999," I replied.
"I see. And you killed an Inheritor? By yourself?" Superior asked.
I nodded, "yes, I did."
"How?"
"I punched him really hard."
The others chuckled, Superior did not. He clicked his teeth, "don't take me for a ride. Answer the question."
"I am unlike other totems," I explained, "for one I am more than just a Spider-man. I'm also a sorcerer," I held out my hands and formed a red magical circle around me, "and doing so allows me minute access to the Web of Life's power. A sliver, but it's enough."
"You can access the Web of Life?!" Anya cried out, her eyes going wide like a child on Christmas.
I nodded, "yes, it's-"
"-P-Peter?" the woman in the classic Spider-man costume asked.
I turned to her, her tone of voice sounded fragile, like a glass structure ready to shatter at a moment's notice. But I recognized it, I knew it, I knew it very well.
"M-May?" I asked.
She pulled off her mask revealing a red eyes tear stricken Mayday Parker, the daughter of Spider-man from Earth-982. My friend.
She rushed into my arms, crying and I held onto her, holding her close. I turned to Felicia, the woman recognized her from my stories. So did Jean and Johnny. Especially Johnny.
"May, what's wrong?" I asked, running my hand down her back like I do to Hope every time she grew upset.
May pulled away and looked up into my eyes, I smelled despair and torture drip out of every pore in her body, "m-my dad. They killed my dad."
And I felt my stomach drop.