Peter had quietly completed his takeover of the Spider-Society. Within minutes, he had replaced 2099, becoming the self-appointed "Big Boss" of the Spider-Verse.
To this, the majority of the naive little Spiders remained oblivious. A few recognized Peter's power grab for what it was, but they had no intention of stopping him.
After all, having a leader as powerful and resolute as Peter was far better than supporting a fool like 2099, who had been sold out and was still helping the buyer count the money.
After instructing the Spider-Men to return to HQ and stand by, Peter didn't follow them immediately.
He wasn't like those hot-headed Spiders who charged in without a plan. He understood one thing clearly: no matter how the multiverse changed, his own universe was his primary base of operations.
He wouldn't go anywhere until the defenses of his home world were set.
After seeing off the other Spiders, Peter turned to Gwen and Felicia. After a moment of thought, he tossed the portal watch he'd ripped off Miguel's wrist to Felicia.
"Felicia, I'm counting on you to watch the house this time."
"If anything comes up that you can't decide on, ask Tony or the Captain. Also, the Shadow Fist will take orders from you if necessary."
"If something happens that even Steve and Tony can't handle, use the watch to contact me immediately. I'll teleport back in an instant."
Felicia looked a bit disappointed; she had hoped to travel through the mysterious parallel universes by Peter's side.
However, she quickly adjusted her mood. For one, she knew this journey was a key opportunity for Gwen to fully accept their "triangle" dynamic, and her presence might actually be counterproductive.
Secondly, with the watch, she could travel the multiverse whenever she wanted in the future—there was no rush.
More importantly, Peter leaving her to guard their home base was the ultimate sign of his trust. In his heart, she was the one, second only to Gwen, whom he could entrust with everything.
Realizing this, a warmth filled Felicia's chest, and her trace of jealousy vanished. She smiled brightly.
"Don't worry, Peter. I'll take good care of the home. I wish you and Gwen a smooth trip through the parallel universes!"
Her graceful acceptance made Gwen feel a slight pang of self-consciousness. Gwen, always strict with herself and kind to others, couldn't help but wonder if she had been being too petty compared to Felicia.
While she was lost in thought, Peter quietly took her hand. "Let's go. We don't know how long we'll be away. We should tell George, Uncle Ben, and Aunt May so they don't worry."
Feeling Peter's usual gentle touch, Gwen's reflexive urge to pull away faded. She gave a soft, almost imperceptible "Mm," signaling her compliance.
Before leaving, Peter remembered something and spoke to the somewhat sidelined Dr. Otto Octavius.
"Doctor, don't forget to report to Parker Technologies tomorrow morning. And..." He looked at the cooled "Artificial Sun," a thought occurring to him.
"To prevent this from being misused by the wrong people, I'll help you dispose of it ahead of schedule."
Peter placed his hand on the device.
[Detected sacrificeable Dark Blue item: Tritium Artificial Sun]
[Description: A large-scale controlled nuclear fusion reactor... contains technical flaws but has immense potential in interstellar warfare.]
[Sacrifice for 1,200 points. Proceed?]
Even the system thinks this thing is better as a "big pineapple" (explosive) than a power source, Peter thought as he confirmed the sacrifice.
After an hour or two of finalizing their arrangements, Peter activated the spider-watch. The high-tech hexagonal portal tore open.
Hand in hand, he and Gwen stepped into the Spider-Society, a place entirely new to them. After a brief sensation of weightlessness, they appeared in the micro-city inhabited only by Spider-Men.
Peter wanted to study how this hub existed between universes, but he figured it was just "Marvel logic" and didn't waste the brain cells.
As soon as they landed, Neighbor #1, who was acting as the welcoming committee, rushed over. "Old Me! Finally! Everyone is waiting for you to make the call!"
"What's the problem?" Peter asked.
"Simply put... we can't find the Ultimate Spider-Man's universe using the AI, 'Lyla,'" Neighbor #1 said dejectedly.
"No kidding," Peter scoffed. "Do you really think Miguel had the brains to develop a cross-spatial system this advanced? This whole system was likely built by Otto Octavius using 2099's future tech.
As the developer, it would be trivial for him to leave a backdoor or set his home universe's coordinates to a high-clearance level."
The other Spiders hadn't thought of this because they were stuck in the habit of relying on Lyla. However, once Peter pointed it out, the solution was easy. Many Spiders here were from high-tech futures.
It was child's play for them to deconstruct the system and generate a new AI assistant. Peter, never one for creative names, dubbed the new AI "Little Spider."
With Little Spider's help, they quickly locked onto the universe of the Ultimate Spider-Man—the "Otto-Parker" variant.
As the virtual webs wove the portal, the Spiders turned their gaze toward Peter and Gwen. Peter didn't hesitate; holding Gwen's hand, he led the way into the portal.
After a dizzying transition, the familiar New York skyline appeared. However, the streets were filled with something very unfamiliar.
Thousands of Spider-Police officers, patrolling in armored Spider-Vehicles!
Clearly, their act of disabling Lyla had already alerted the incredibly shrewd Ultimate Spider-Man...
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