C625 Spider-Man (Patreon)
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Not long after Miles stormed off, Peter found him perched on the edge of the Empire State Building, lost in thought. Without hesitation, Peter took a seat beside him, the cityscape sprawling below.
“What do you want?” Miles asked as he noticed Peter’s arrival.
"You ran off so quick that you forgot to ask some very important questions," Peter stated, glancing at Miles, who raised a confused brow.
"You just found out that your dad is fated to die, but you forgot to ask the key questions, how and when? You do want to save him, don’t you?" Peter's words hung in the air, prompting Miles to realize his oversight.
Miles's eyes widened as the weight of the situation settled on him. Instead of impulsively running off and wallowing in the fact that the girl he loved betrayed him, he should have been more focused on gathering information to save his father.
Attempting to stand up, Miles was stopped by Peter, who rested a hand on his shoulder. Confusion filled Miles's eyes as he looked at Peter, questioning why he was being held back.
"I already asked Gwen before coming to look for you. I thought it would be best that you two had some space, at least until we leave for the Spider-Society," Peter explained. "It was hard to get any answers from her because she was so distraught about all of this, but I got what we need."
Ignoring the mention of Gwen's distress, Miles asked, "What did she say?"
"Apparently, if we decide to do nothing, then your father will have about a year’s time left to live. She doesn’t know the exact time or date, just that he’s meant to die," Peter revealed, his expression serious.
Miles frowned, discontent with the vague timeline. "Did she say how he’s supposed to die?"
Peter shook his head, "She said the computer program back in the Spider-Society can only give a general timeline."
Frustration etched across Miles's face as he asked, "How the hell am I supposed to save my dad when I don’t even know what to save him from? For all I know, he might just choke on a donut during his lunch break…"
The uncertainty loomed over Miles as he grappled with the challenge ahead. The lack of specific details about his father's impending fate left him feeling powerless, unable to devise a plan to alter the inevitable.
Peter placed a reassuring hand on Miles's shoulder. "Sadly, based on what I’ve heard from Gwen, his death won’t be so mundane. It’ll probably be some villain who appears and kills him, and you’ll be just one step too late to save him..." He explained, knowing the usual Spider-Man tragedy pretty well by now.
Upon hearing Peter's explanation about how his dad will probably die, Miles couldn’t help but grip his fists in anger. "I won’t let that happen! Screw fate and f*ck the Spider-Society! My dad is going to live a long and happy life. I’ll make sure of it…"
Smirking, Peter patted Miles on the back and said, "Good, that’s the right attitude to have! You can’t let something so small get you down. Besides, I got your back, and I have all sorts of ways to protect your dad while you aren’t around. He won’t die, I promise."
Miles's eyes widened as he looked at Peter, a grateful expression on his face. "What can you do?"
Peter replied, stating, "The easiest solution is a protection spell. All of my loved ones have one on them. It allows me to track their locations when necessary. And if they’re ever in any danger, the spell activates, counterattacking the threat while simultaneously creating a barrier around them, saving them from any harm. A nuclear bomb could go off right next to them, and they’d walk away without a scratch. It even alerts me as well, so I know when they’re in danger…"
Miles's mouth hung open as he began to realize that meeting Peter might have been the luckiest moment of his entire life. No matter what problems he encounters, Peter is always there with an answer, ready to help him through it and save the day. And now certainly wasn’t an exception.
"Thanks, Peter," Miles said genuinely, knowing that without Peter, his life would probably be much worse.
Peter shrugged nonchalantly. "No problem. Like I said, I got your back."
Suddenly, Miles frowned as he looked off into the distance. After a brief pause, he asked, "But what if the Spider-Society is right? What if saving my dad will destroy my entire universe?"
Although Miles wanted nothing more than to save his father, he was still Spider-Man. The thought of anyone dying because of him, let alone an entire universe, was a scary and daunting feeling.
Peter sighed, understanding the weight of Miles's dilemma. "Miles, sometimes doing the right thing comes with risks. But we can't let fear dictate our choices. Besides, I don’t believe that saving someone’s life will destroy the universe. There’s something more to this ‘Canon Event’ nonsense, something we haven’t been told yet..."
Hearing Peter say that there was something more to this, Miles asked, "Do you think Gwen isn’t telling us everything?" His trust in Gwen had plummeted, so his first thought was to wonder whether or not she was lying or withholding information.
Peter shook his head, saying, "No, she was far too emotional to have been lying or holding something back. She doesn’t know the whole truth either, and truthfully, I doubt many members of the Spider-Society know either."
Hearing this, Miles frowned, unwilling to accept such an excuse for Gwen’s behavior, "That still doesn’t change the fact that she had months to tell me that my dad was going to die, and only said something now..."
Peter nodded and said, "I won’t speak in Gwen’s defense because obviously she’s in the wrong here, but I will say this. Gwen is your best friend and the woman you love, or at least loved-"
Upon hearing Peter state his love out loud, Miles couldn’t help but avert his gaze as his face turned a slight shade of red, blushing in embarrassment.
Peter continued, "You need to figure out if she can continue to be those things to you or not. Because at the end of the day, life is short and you shouldn’t waste too much time. Especially when it comes to love."
Miles nodded his head slowly, agreeing with Peter but unsure whether he could forgive Gwen or not.
Peter smirked as he added, "And if you do decide to forgive her, then I think it’s time to stop being such a pussy and ask her out already. After all, there are many more spiders across the multiverse. You need to lock her down before some other Spider-Man appears and catches her fancy." He said, staring Miles square in the eyes. “The friend zone is a torturous place to be after all.”
“Wait… I… Well…” Upon hearing this, Miles sputtered, unable to form a proper sentence as he tried to defend himself. Though one thing was for certain, he didn’t like the idea if Gwen being with someone other than himself...
Laughing as he watched Miles’s face go through about 10 different emotions, Peter slapped him on the back and said, "Don’t worry about it so much. First, figure out if you can forgive her before anything else."
Miles sighed before nodding his head, saying, "Alright..."
Peter replied, "Good, now I’ll leave you to think for a bit, but don’t take too long. We’re leaving for the Spider-Society in about an hour. After all, Ben still needs our help."
Miles nodded as Peter threw himself off of the building and swung away, leaving Miles alone with his thoughts. The city sprawled out below, bustling with life, but Miles felt a heavy weight on his shoulders as he grappled with the complex emotions swirling within him.
————
Returning home, Peter found MJ seated on the couch with Gwen sleeping in her lap, tear stains all over her face. MJ did her best to comfort her, which led to Gwen falling asleep with her head in MJ’s lap.
Peter, observing the scene, asked, "Is she alright?"
MJ nodded, saying, "Yeah, she’s just upset. How’s Miles?"
Peter answered, "He's fine now. I just had a long talk with him."
MJ nodded, saying, "Hopefully everything works itself out…"
Peter smirked as he shrugged, "It usually does."
After a brief moment of silence, Peter reaches up to his storage necklace and pulls out a vial filled with blood, its label reading the name Galactus. Staring at the vial, Peter wondered whether he should use it to evolve once again, just in case he runs into any problems during his trip to the Spider-Society.
Seeing this, MJ frowned as she asked, “Is it safe for you to be evolving again? You just did it recently, and it left you unconscious for almost a full day...” She said, her worries made clear.
Peter waved away her concerns, explaining that it’s perfectly safe. "I only passed out like that because I evolved nine times in a row. If it’s just once, then I’ll be fine."
MJ nodded, a resigned look on her face as she said, "Just don’t overdo it, okay?"
Peter nodded, assuring her, "Of course." He said, walking upstairs so as not to other anyone with his painful evolution.
…
Alone in his bedroom, Peter clutched the vial of Galactus’s blood, shivering at the thought of going through the pain of yet another evolution. Though with determination in his eyes, he swiftly downed its contents, and the room was instantly engulfed in a cascade of purple energy, which surrounded his entire body.
As his evolutionary powers activated, assimilating Galactus’s powers and abilities, Peter felt the familiar pain finally arrive, a searing current that coursed through his veins.
The agony intensified, and Peter collapsed to the floor, his body convulsing as the transformation unfolded.
A/N: 1676 words :)