Hey there! Hello! How you doing? Doing well? I'm glad you do! Welcome to yet another chapter of Spidey and Kitty's Multiversal Adventure! Now, before we go to the usual business… ONE HUNDRED REVIEWS! Dear God, if someone would've told me last year that I'd have a fan fic with one hundred reviews, I'd be laughing in disbelief and yet, here we are… I'm already a broken record, but I'll say it again: THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL OF THIS! All of you who read, favored, follow and reviewed my fics are part of this success and you keep on giving me the motivation to keep going, so mark my words, there's still a lot of MAB86 to go and I owe it all to your loyalty and support.
Now, last chapter was a pretty intense one due to having another fallen spider while some complications arose back at Loomworld during Karn's resurrection. The Hunt is reaching its peak and both groups of spiders must be ready to tackle the remaining challenges ahead; but before we get to do that, let's check on the reviews!
Timeless Writer: Like I said before, it was a tough choice to add him to the casualties. He had it rough, but I'm sure his remaining Spider-Force teammates will avenge him in the end of the road.
El-lector327: Verna ha demostrado ser letal y he aquí la más pura evidencia. En cuanto a lo de la Chica Arácnida y Peter y Kitty, se bien a qué te refieres y el detalle no es que el sentido común "se desactive", porque obviamente ellos siguen indagando, solo que siempre hay algo o alguien que los interrumpe y luego tienen que lidiar con la situación de la cacería, poco tiempo queda para hacer las preguntas que tienen que hacer pero te aseguro que ese momento vendrá.
Ahora, lo de traer una Araña Cósmica, yo me he visto tentado de hacerlo pero luego me imagino una situación de esas tipo "How It Should Have Ended" donde llega la Araña Cósmica y de un solo tajo logra derrotar a Verna y nos ahorramos como 15-20 Capítulos, por eso mejor mantener un cierto nivel de poder (además, quizás todavía tengan en mente lo que ocurrió con el Capi Universo que Solus derrotó y querrán evitar que vuelva a ocurrir).
Ka1zen: My friend, there are more stories ahead, as you can see in my profile, so you can be sure that the world will know the type of hero Peter Parker is. As for your questions: I think Spencer's trying to do that, to erase the One More Day crap but in my "Alt-616" Universe that's pretty much already nullified since Peter's no longer with MJ, he's with a much better woman now and the other one, nope, I think there are few spiders left to join the fray, so stay tuned for the rest of the story.
As for the Arachnid Girl's suit, the design actually resembles more like the Gamerverse Spider-Man suit, but the color scheme is different: I originally imagined it as Black instead of White, Gold instead of Red and Purple instead of Blue, BUT your color scheme sounds better (Gold instead of White, Purple instead of Red and Black instead of Blue)
Wilcard Sparda: The Arachnid Girl's identity will be revealed in its due time, don't worry about it, and about the Holidays thing...you're totally right! Peter and Kitty's first Holidays together were ruined thanks to Knull's invasion, and of course you can expect the reaction:
Peter: "Once again, the world's ending because of one of MY bad guys"
Kitty: "Honey, no offense, but you really need to get a grip on your bad guys"
Maximiliano Valdez: ¡Me alegra mucho saber que mis historias te han servido de inspiración para poder formar tus propias historias y ojalá pueda llegar a leerlas! Como expliqué más arriba, siempre hay algo o alguien interrumpiendo que evita que deduzcan más al respecto (y todavía falta por revelar una pista importantísima XD)
URS: Primero que todo, ¡Bienvenido a bordo! Y segundo: Lo he considerado, Life Story es una excelentísima historia (otra muestra del gran trabajo de Zdarsky) pero faltaría ver cómo incorporar el aspecto de los X-Men en el Universo construido por Zdarsky (como ya ahora están haciendo con los 4F)
With our checklist already marked, let's get down to our adventure!
Enjoy the reading!
SPIDER-MAN AND KITTY PRYDE: INTO THE GREAT UNKNOWN
Chapter 24: Lessons Learned
Every spider-themed hero was on high alert after what just transpired: Their attempt of bringing back the 'Outcast Inheritor' Karn went sideways after the cloning process apparently failed due to him acting in a feral state of mind. Octavia's concern grows proportionally to Karn's growls and grunts as he slowly steps out of the pod.
"K-K-Karn?" Octavia tries to interact with him "Karn? It's me… Octavia…" she tries to reason with him, and that manages to attract his attention "Yes… It's me, Karn… please, remember me…" she can barely hold the tears behind her goggles but Karn remains in his feral state and right then he rushes towards her and jumps but he is intercepted by Hobie who tackles him to bring him down.
"To be honest, I never liked you!" Hobie tries to hold him down "But you ain't bringing us down, you son of a WHOA!" his words are cutoff when Karn grabs him and throws him against the side of the cloning tank.
"HOBIE!" Mayday exclaims, prompting her to fire a couple of web-lines at Karn but he manages to break them as soon as it reaches him. Pavitr and Julia try to hold him but he breaks it and slashes Pavitr's arm with his claws.
The Spider-Family of Earth-18119 make their move but Karn dispatches them one at a time, he strikes Spider-Man with a double punch, then jumps to kick Spinneret and ends grabbing Spiderling by the throat, only to be hit from behind by the adult Gerry Drew.
"I don't know what the #$%& you are, but you're not intimidating me" Gerry faces him and goes for a Venom Blast charged punch but Karn jumps above him and quickly turns to grab him from behind and hold him over his head, throwing him against the beaten spiders.
"KARN! PLEASE STOP!" Octavia's pleads become more worrisome while the other spiders try to stop him by firing a barrage of webbing at him in an effort to hold him down until they find another solution, but yet again, Karn's strength makes their effort futile as he shreds the webbing around him with his claws.
"KARN!" Spider-Zero calls his name, gaining his attention "You have to stop this!" she calls him out with a stern tone of voice as she looks directly into him "You have to remember who you are…" she tries to convince him to relent, to plead to him but all Karn does is to stare at her.
"Hhhhhrrrrr" Karn mutters, his eyes fixated at her, looking as if he was ready to strike and he indeed goes for it when he rushes towards her but before he could reach her, Spider-Zero's arachnid companion jumps from her shoulder, creating an almost invisible tether between him and the Web of Life and Destiny itself while he intercepts the Inheritor. Karn tries to shake him off in between grunts and growls but the spider manages to bite him in the neck, sinking its fangs through his skin "AAAGGH!" he manages to scream, feeling a sudden surge of energy flowing through him and glowing with a bluish aura for a very brief moment until he collapses.
"KARN!" Octavia runs towards him, pulling away from Pavitr's grasp so she can reach his fallen body, holding the back of his head to lift it "Please don't die again, please, please…" she can barely hold the tears as she cradles Karn's body but suddenly Karn reacts with a loud gasp that startles Octavia while the spiders once again stand in guard ready to attack. Karn opens his eyes and looks around but then he fixates his gaze into Octavia, slowly beginning to recognize her.
"O-Oc-Octavia?" Karn begins to react by muttering her name, prompting Octavia to smile at the discovery that his memories are coming back. Karn then looks around and begins to recognize more familiar faces "Pavitr? Hobart? Miss Mayday? Lady Reilly?" one by one he calls for the spiders he knows, all the while Octavia helps him to stand up "W-W-What happened? Where am I?" he asks while he holds his head with one hand and the other grabs Octavia's shoulder.
"You are in Loomworld" Julia approaches him, concerned yet hopeful "Tell us Karn, what's the last thing you remember?" she asks him, to ensure he has regained his memories.
"I remember…" Karn begins to piece together the moments crossing his mind "I remember being here when the spiders were fighting the Inheritors and then…" he then begins to recall that fateful moment "Then Verna appeared and attacked me…" he remembers the moment she killed him "She killed me…" he realizes what happened "But how?" he then turns and looks at the cloning tank, finding the answer to his question "Of course…" he then looks at the Web of Life and Destiny, concretely towards the young girl "Are you…?"
"Yes" Spider-Zero replies "I'm the Master Weaver, I took over after your untimely death" she tells him about what she does now "I'm the last survivor of my world, hence why…"
"The Web chose you…" Karn finishes her sentence "And I'm glad that a good soul took over my duty, but I have to ask…" he then turns to look at the group of spiders, all of them amazed of the scene they are looking at, and while some are sympathetic, others remain cautious "What happened while I was gone?"
"There's a lot to fill you in" Octavia tells him as she holds his hand "But one thing's for sure… we need you" she tells him with concern in her voice.
"A new Hunt is on" Julia interjects "And now you have the chance of not only help us, but also you have been given the chance to settle a score" with those words, Karn comes to the realization that the one who ended his life is involved in this new Hunt, giving him a solid reason to assist the spiders once again.
"Tell me everything…" Karn replies with renewed determination in his voice, waiting to fill in the blanks as he prepares to join the battle.
MEANWHILE, ON ANOTHER EARTH
In one of the most elevated parts of the city, a portal opens revealing the arrival of Verna and her Hounds, landing on top of a rooftop with a wide view of the city's skyline and beyond, giving a quite futuristic look of their surroundings.
"I can sense not one but two strong totems" Verna comments as she closes her eyes and takes a deep breath, slowly exhaling and licking her lips "Two young and delicious totems…" she can still feel the power of the previous totem she devoured coursing through her body, the life force of the young Spider-Kid flows giving her renewed vigor due to its young age, the reason why she targets younger prey "Carnage, I take it that you're fully recovered" she talks to her Alpha Hound "We must search in every corner of this Earth until we find them"
"Yessssss, Misssstresssss" Carnage bows down to her while the rest of the Hounds follow suit.
"Keep your eyes peeled" Verna tells them and then turns to walk towards the edge of the rooftop, taking a good look to the city with her wicked grin on her face before she makes the jump down to begin the search, being immediately followed by her Hounds swinging behind her, eager to find and bring down another totem in this Hunt.
THEN, IN ANOTHER PART OF THE CITY
Across the city, another portal opens atop a rooftop, revealing the Order of the Web's arrival alongside Kitty and the Arachnid Girl. The group lands on top of the rooftop and they all gather around to prepare their plan.
"OK, we have to address what happened earlier" Peter begins to talk to the group "Verna beat us hard with the last one" he sighs, still reeling from the loss of Charlie Parker, the Spider-Kid of Earth-218 "We just can't afford to lose another one from this point forward"
"Then I'm sure we can all agree that Verna must die!" Kaine interjects voicing his opinion with a cold tone "She doesn't deserve imprisonment in a radioactive wasteland and if you ask me, she doesn't even deserve to be brought back as a baby like they did with the others!" his anger boils over as he faces Peter "She deserves to rot in Hell for what she did".
"Kaine, we're all angry for every spider she has killed" Cindy steps in to intervene "But we're not cold-blooded killers like you" she speaks with complete seriousness.
"We'll stop Verna and make sure that this ends for good" Miles adds to Cindy's words.
"Besides, we're all reeling from what happened and you're not the only one who's angry" Anya comments, turning her sights towards Jessica who remains strangely silent, yet is understandable after what she just went through.
"We have to work together" the Arachnid Girl intervenes "I mean; we all want to win this, right?"
"We have to" Ben comments "We have to make sure that from this point forward, no one else falls under our watch"
"Great, well, that's good, guess we're all on the same page" Peter tries to break the growing tensions "How about we get into the search for our totem?"
"Agreed" Kitty intervenes "Now that I've seen the full scope of what Verna's capable to do, I'd say that we have to protect every one we can find" she talks with seriousness in her voice "Now, the Webware's files tell me that we're on Earth-8… That's it? Just Earth-8?" she reveals the location they are currently on, a place that brings a certain level of familiarity to Gwen.
"Earth-8, where have I heard that before?" Gwen mutters to herself until the holographic newsreel emerges on a nearby building.
["Welcome to BugleNewsDotCom! All News! All Day! In what it was considered one of the hardest battles fought in the last decade, the Kree/Shi'ar Alliance brought their entire arsenal against Earth, but our heroes thwarted the invasion thanks to the combined efforts of the Fantastix, the Avenging Family, the X-People and our favorite couple, Spider-Man and Spider-Gwen!"]
As soon as the hologram shows the adult versions of Miles and Gwen, the group makes a truly combined gesture of having their mouths agape and right then they all turn to look at Miles and Gwen, who still cannot take their eyes off the holographic projection.
"You two are married!?" Peter asks them "When did that happen? I mean, at least tell me I was invited!" he jokes about not being invited to Ben Grimm's wedding, being the last recorded superhero wedding.
"Oh God, I remember now…" Miles mutters, still shocked by the scenario "It was when my dad was still working for S.H.I.E.L.D., he went missing in another dimension but with Gwen's help we found him" he explains.
"And did you two were doing something else during all that?" Anya asks them with a playful tone.
"Uhhhh…" Miles tries to say something but he feels embarrassed about telling them about the attraction he and Gwen had.
"There was a hint of attraction, OK?" Gwen intervenes to respond "But we're friends, just that, my love life is practically non-existent and after what happened back at Spider-Punk's Earth, I'm still kinda processing something" she makes the reference to Kitty's teasing which 'awoke' her bi-curiosity.
"My love life's a Mess with Capital M" Miles comments "But wait; does that mean that our adult versions are the totems we're looking for?" he poses the question, but right then Gwen begins to realize a very important detail.
"No… not them…" Gwen mutters and right then she jumps off the rooftop and swings away.
"Hey! Gwen! Wait!" Peter calls for her but the group decides to follow her, not knowing why she left the place in such a hurry.
THEN, ACROSS THE CITY
In a penthouse atop one of the most luxurious buildings in the city, a young African-American boy is sitting on the couch watching television while he eats a strawberry Pop-tart, but his moment is interrupted when he is hit by a ball of paper from above.
"Max! Did you grab the last Pop-tart again!?" a young blonde African-American girl walks on the ceiling, frowning at her brother while she holds another ball of paper.
"I did not see the name "Charlotte Morales-Stacy written on it" Max sarcastically replies with his mouth full after he took another bite of his Pop-tart.
"You know? I was wondering why we're all alone…Now I know why" Charlotte quips back at her brother and jumps off the ceiling, twisting her body to land on the couch in a sitting position "Because nobody will save you from what I'm about to do to you" she then grabs her brother's neck in a hold and twists her knuckle over his head.
"OW! OW! OW! STOP IT!" Max complains as they both wrestle and fall to the floor.
"You should've thought about it before you ate the last Pop-tart!" Max complains as they both roll on the floor but suddenly they stop when they look at a figure knocking on the glass of the window, a figure they both already know.
"Mom?" Both siblings ask simultaneously.
"Wait, Mom's away but…" Charlotte comments, starting to notice something familiar.
"Isn't she the one who visited us a few months ago?" Max throws the question.
"HEY! I know you're looking at me and I think you can hear me!" Gwen tries to call them "Could you open the window, please!?"
"Must be her" Charlotte comments, standing up to open the window and allow Gwen to enter inside the apartment.
"Whew, thanks" Gwen replies "I don't know if you remember me but I remember you, and I'm here because the two of you are in grave danger…where're your parents? Or that version of Ham who's your uncle?" she asks them almost frantically but both children remain calm as they both stand up.
"First of all, we do remember you; you're the one who came looking for the Alt-version of Dad" Charlotte replies with a gentle smile on her face.
"As for our family, they're in Washington D.C., President Wilson's awarding them for stopping the Kree/Shi'ar Invasion" Max answers her questions with a more aloof tone. Gwen groans in response but right then, the rest of the spiders appear and enter right through the window, surprising Gwen and the children.
"Gwen? What happened?" Peter asks her but then he gasps as he jumps at the sight of the children "Oh God, we just broke inside a house"
"Gwen, what the Hell?" Cindy speaks with a nervous tone "Can you explain to us what's going on?"
"Uhhhh… wait, do I know you?" Miles asks the two children, beginning to recognize them.
"Yes you do" Max replies as he looks at him.
"Allow me to fix this" Charlotte finally intervenes "Hi, I'm Charlotte Morales-Stacy and he's my brother Max Morales-Stacy, we're the children of this future's version of Miles Morales and Gwen Stacy, we know them because we helped them with a dimensional quest they had, which I hope ended with good results" she quickly explains the backstory.
"Wait, hold on…" Kitty intervenes "They're your children!?" she points at Gwen and Miles with her mouth agape, a gesture that almost everybody imitates.
"Hey, I already said that my love life's a mess, but how about we focus on the real thing over here?" Miles tries to avoid a very awkward conversation.
"Well, I guess that if they're the children of two spider-totems than it must mean…" Ben makes the comment, which is confirmed by Charlotte who grabs her web-shooters.
"We're the Spider-Kids" Charlotte comments as she aims her web-shooters at the group "Now, we explain our story, now please explain yours" she talks with a stern voice, prompting Gwen to step in and intervene.
"OK, hey, calm down" Gwen tries to reason with her 'Alt-Future daughter' "Like I was trying to tell you, all of you are in danger" she begins to explain her story "We're all part of a group called The Order" she refuses to add the 'Of the Web' part "We're travelling across the Multiverse to protect the spider-totems from Verna and her Hounds"
"Verna's a deadly huntress who aims at us Spider-themed heroes" Miles adds to Gwen's words "And we have to fight to end her Hunt once and for all"
"WOW!" Max exclaims "So wait, this Verna lady is targeting all of us?" he asks them.
"We have to be part of this!" Charlotte steps in, eager to join the fight "We can totally help you guys!"
"No!" Jessica interrupts, finally speaking for the first time since their arrival "No, you won't… you can't… you shouldn't…" she was trying to say every phrase she could think of to deny their involvement, clearly traumatized by Charlie's death, and Kitty catches up on that.
"Jess? Why can't we let them…? Miles tries to ask but Kitty steps in.
"Allow me to talk to her, maybe the only 'Non-Spider' in the house can bring some semblance of calm" Kitty talks to the group, to which Peter nods and then Kitty turns to take Jessica away from the rest "Jess, I know you and I aren't precisely the best of friends but I just need to know… are you rejecting their involvement because of what happened to that Charlie kid?" she asks her, but Jessica shakes her head.
"It's not just that, it's just…" Jessica replies, closing her eyes and sighing in frustration "You've seen what Verna does, right? How her preferred targets are the younger ones, she already killed one, can't let another one die…" her tone becomes more anxious as she speaks "Can't let her be any closer than him, I can't, I can't, I can't…" her anxiousness becomes more evident, as if Charlie's death triggered something inside of her and Kitty begins to feel it.
"Jess, look at me, look at me" Kitty puts her hands on her shoulders so she can look at her face, even going so far to lift up her mask "Deep breath, and look into my eyes" she tries to calm her down "Verna won't win, we won't let her win…you and me and Peter and everyone else will fight to defeat her"
"Can't let her get near him…" Jessica now can barely hold her tears "Can't let her get near my baby…" and in that moment, Kitty understands why Jessica got so upset, because it reminded her of her son and how he is also a target for Verna.
"Gerry…" Kitty whispers "But wait, he's too young to have his powers already manifested isn't he?"
"He's barely a year old and he already crawls up to the ceiling" Jessica wipes her tears "His powers already manifested" she slowly sighs "I almost lose him once, I can't let that happen again" those words just increased Kitty's curiosity about what she meant to say.
"Verna targeted him before?" Kitty asks her but Jessica shakes her head in denial.
"No, it's just…" Jessica sighs and then grabs Kitty's arm to go further away "In case you never heard my origin story, I gained my powers because my father tried to cure me of a mortal disease; well, that disease reemerged not too long ago" she begins to explain the story of her recent ordeal involving the Merchand Serum "Not to mention that it's an hereditary disease" she indirectly reveals that Gerry also had it "I frantically searched for a cure and found one, but in order to keep the disease at bay in the meantime, I had to consume a serum that stabilized me and even increased my powers, but of course the price to pay was that I was becoming way more aggressive to the point of not even distinguishing friend from foe" she explains what she went through "I burned bridges with people close to me… I was this close of losing the only friend who means the world to me" she points out how her friendship with Carol Danvers was almost damaged to the point of no return "In my mind I was trying to save my son and I did it, but I didn't want to lose everything…"
"I totally understand it…" Kitty sympathizes with Jessica "And I kinda get now those quips Cindy mentioned about your social skills" she then sighs "And now I know I'm not the only one eager to tear that #$%&+ apart…"
"Is that so?" Jessica asks her as she starts to relax "Do tell…"
"You know that thing Verna has in her forehead?" Kitty gestures pointing at her own forehead, to which Jessica nods.
"Yeah, Mister Sinister's Diamond, one of your bad guys" Jessica replies as she crosses her arms.
"Back during Krakoa's early days I acted as the Red Queen of the Hellfire Trading Company and I had a seat at the nation's Quiet Council" Kitty begins to explain her story "But the Black King Sebastian Shaw was not happy about it and he attacked me to the point where I drowned and died" she mentions Shaw's ambush that effectively killed her "But then…the guy with the Red Diamond brought me back as a puppet against my friends, not to mention that after I recovered, turns out that I'm not a 'true mutant', I was one of his playthings… that led me to leave Krakoa for good".
"Damn… I get that the guy's quite the manipulator but…" Jessica now is the one who sympathizes with her "Does that mean that things between you and the X-Men are done?"
"No, I'm still friends with many of them" Kitty calmly replies "But that story led to a new chapter" she then turns to look at Peter "And things have gone pretty well since then"
"You know? If I have to choose between you and Watson, you'd win by a landslide" Jessica gives Kitty her approval of her relationship with Peter, forming another bond between her and the spiders "I mean, I never met her but I doubt she'd be as great as you are".
"Wait, didn't she used to live with him when he was an Avenger and moved to that big tower?" Kitty asks, remembering that Peter told her about his time when he, MJ and May lived in Avengers Tower with the rest of the team.
"That wasn't me, that was the Skrull Queen who took my place" Jessica replies, pointing out that during that time it was Veranke who took her place with the New Avengers "But anyways, it's good to have you around here, thanks for the talk" she kindly smiles at her.
"Don't worry" Kitty replies in kind "But I do agree with you on something" she then looks at the children "If we bring them to the fight, Verna will target them relentlessly, we have to spare them" she comments, to which Jessica nods in response.
"We have to" Jessica tells her but before they could rejoin the rest of the group, the apartment's alarm begins to blare.
"We have an Intruder!" Charlotte exclaims as she sets up her web-shooters.
"Who would be so dumb to attack the home of the city's coolest heroes?" Max poses the question while the rest of the group begins to feel the buzzing of their Spider-Senses, knowing for sure who the intruder is.
"I don't think you should call her 'Dumb', kid" Kaine comments just as Raptor and Bloody Jane break through the window to enter the apartment with Carnage and Verna following suit.
"I knew I'd find another young prey" Verna relishes the discovery while the group of spiders stand guard ready to fight.
"I'm afraid the buffet's closed ma'am" the Arachnid Girl quips at her "Besides, you really need to lay off the carbs"
"Body shaming jokes? Really?" Anya tries to point out the lame joke but the Hounds jump to attack with Peter, the Arachnid Girl and Kitty going against Raptor; Kaine, Jessica and Cindy against Bloody Jane and Anya and Ben against Carnage, while Verna goes straight against the Morales-Stacy siblings.
"You two look quite inexperienced" Verna taunts them "That works quite well for…" her words are then interrupted by a double kick to the back of her head courtesy of Gwen and Miles, who jump above her to stand right between her and the children.
"You want them?" Gwen faces her and stands in guard.
"Try to beat us first, loca psicopata!" Miles taunts her as he charges his fist with his Venom Blast.
"No problem!" Verna replies as she unsheathes her claws and jumps to attack them. Gwen manages to fire her webbing to hold her a bit, allowing Miles to land a couple of punches to keep her at bay. Verna cuts off the webbing but when she turns, she finds herself trapped in a barrage of web balls and blasts courtesy of the siblings.
"HEY! Stay away from the Alt-versions of our parents!" Charlotte exclaims with a frown on her face.
"Computer, activate enemy countermeasures VNM1, Passcode George Jefferson" Max activates the apartment's defensive maneuvers and right then a group of four devices emerge, creating a wave of heat and another of sound that strikes directly at the Hounds, weakening them and giving the spiders room to attack.
"Wait! Sonic Heat! You got Sonic Heat?" Peter exclaims as soon as he looks at Carnage writhing in pain "I really like this Earth!" he quips as he lands a punch to Carnage while Kitty and the Arachnid Girl take her down with a double kick.
"NO!" Verna exclaims at the sight of her Hounds being beaten again by exploiting their weaknesses "This will end now! RHINO! CAT! SABLE!" she summons her other Hounds with the trio blasting from underneath having infiltrated the building and stayed as a backup plan, but knowing the defenses, Verna opts for the escape "Just so you know, you cost me a great meal! YOU SHALL PAY FOR THIS!" she then activates her device and the portal opens, allowing her and her Hounds to leave.
"WOOO! Morales-Stacy for the Win!" Charlotte exclaims in celebration.
"Can't get any better than this!" Max exclaims but right then they receive a notification of an incoming phone call "Uh-Oh! It's Uncle Ham!" he calls for his sister before he activates the holographic interface, revealing a grey-haired pig wearing a brown coat "Hi Uncle Ham!"
"Max? Charlotte? It's everything OK?" the elderly Ham contacts them.
"We're good Uncle Ham" Charlotte replies "Hey, remember that alt-version of Mom who came to visit? She's back! And she brought a group of Spider-folks, including an alt-version of Dad and…" right then Charlotte turns around but discovers that they are gone "Hey, where'd they go?"
"Charlotte, your parents received an Intruder Alert warning and asked me to call you back" the elderly Ham replies "And judging from the damages behind you, I can guess that you kids did some crazy shenanigans" he points at the damaged building, putting the young children in trouble and also wondering why they left all of a sudden.
RIGHT THEN, A FEW BLOCKS AWAY
The group of spiders took advantage of the incoming phone call to take their leave, and while they know that it was very rude to leave them like that, there is a valid reason for having taken advantage of the cloud of dust to make their escape.
"OK, we're gone, now can someone explain us why we had to leave so abruptly?" Peter throws the question "I mean, we skipped the part where I recruit them to the fight"
"That's exactly why Peter" Jessica steps in to reply "After what happened to Charlie, I think it's best to leave those two kids out of the fight"
"I agree with Jess" Kitty adds to her words "They're eager to help but it's reasonable to leave them behind for this one" she explains to them.
"Believe it or not, I agree" Kaine voices his approval while the rest of the group nods in agreement.
"It's a fair call" Miles joins the conversation "We'll make it up to them once this whole thing's over"
"Agreed" Gwen adds to Miles' words "But I have to say, we really got 'Saved by the Bell' after that call" she mentions the timing of the incoming call that helped them escape.
"So, should we move to the next one?" the Arachnid Girl asks the group with Peter activating his device.
"Indeed we are, and let's hope we can keep this up until we manage to bring enough numbers to beat her" Peter comments as the portal opens and everyone makes the jump to the next Earth.
WOOOO! This one was a blast to do! After dealing with another loss, the spiders managed to help the young Morales-Stacy siblings of Earth-8 to survive, although they won't be joining the fight after what they went through with Charlie. For those who never heard of them, they are the children of Miles and Gwen seen in the Spider-Man/Spider-Gwen crossover "Sitting in a Tree" which also sparked the attraction between Miles and Gwen although that wasn't explored ever again after both series ended (Miles just added Gwen to his list of love interests alongside Bombshell, Ultimate Katie Bishop, Barbara Rodríguez and Starling while Gwen only had a failed date with her Earth's Harry Osborn), but at least it's good to know they made it through. Now, for our next stop, it'll be a more lighthearted chapter as they'll visit the craziest universe yet featuring a popular Spider-Totem who might go wee-wee all the way home.
Now, before I wrap things up, I'm sure you already heard the news about Nick Spencer's Amazing Spider-Man run ending in September with issue #74. I'm still afraid of what he'll do with Teresa but that aside, all roads lead to final annulling the infamous "One More Day" storyline, so now the speculation begins: Who will take the reins of Spidey's flagship book? Place your bets! And after that, I'll see you back for the next chapter!
NEXT CHAPTER: GUARANTEED 100% KOSHER (OR SO HE CLAIMS)