Issue #18: Goblin Empire, Part II

New York, Earth-90215

The red skies have covered another world, flashes of thunder and lightning overtaking New York. Someone clad in a black vest, sweater and a pilot mask with goggles narrowed his lenses, trying to see where the chaos was coming from.

"Something about this is familiar…" muttered Spider-Man Noir, "No floating head lady this time though… Hm…"

Nueva York, Earth-983

In the futuristic city of Nueva York, a hero in a glowing blue suit dove from a skyscraper, using his enhanced speed to avoid the crackles of lightning that threatened to electrocute him and take him out of commission.

Spider-Man 2099 shot a web line from the top of his wrist to swing off the Alchemax building and said, "The shock is going on out here? This doesn't seem like Alchemax's usual MO… It's too bad for business. No… Something bigger is going on here and I have a feeling it involves Parker… Again."

New York, Earth-1611

'Great. Just what I needed today!' groaned a teenager in the familiar red and blue Spider-Man costume, "It's bad enough Kraven had to come back for another beatdown, but now it looks like that guy in the fishbowl's plot is being recycled.'

Ultimate Spider-Man shook his head, perching on a rooftop and touching his costume, "No symbiote this time, thank God. But still… the older me is gonna have to take care of this one. I might be out of luck this time…"

New York, Earth-623

The Steel Spider shot repulsor shots at the Goblinoids appearing from the rifts, "What the hell are these things?!" he exclaimed in shock, trying to push back against the sudden appearance of the Goblin army.

Mary Jane managed to put one of the damaged Iron Spider gauntlets on her arm and started shooting as well, "I don't know… but I'm not gonna sit here and be a damsel that's for sure."

Ollie kneed a Goblin clone in the nose, saying, "Cool. Just be careful alright? I got armor and you don't!"

"I've been doing this for years, Ollie. I know what I'm doing." quipped MJ, blasting back more Goblinoids as they drew near.

Goblin Castle

Wolverine looked to the sky, seeing the Super powered heroes fly towards Dark Goblin, "Lookin' like it's gonna be one hell of a battle."

"Yeah. This happens with Sonic a lot." Tails admitted.

Iron Man broke the Avengers free, each of the heroes helping them stand, "Easy guys." he said to them.

"Thank you, Tony… But what about…" Steve replied, looking at May.

Shadow picked her up, saying, "I'll… give her a proper spot. Until Parker can say his final goodbyes…" he decided, using Chaos Control to briefly depart.

"Poor lady didn't deserve that…" Hawkeye coughed.

"N-No she didn't…" Tails muttered sadly, prompting Knuckles to wrap an arm around his friend for comfort.

Scarlet Spider scowled, "Parker will make Norman pay for this. That I'm damn sure of."

The Dark Goblin cackled as reality bent to his every whim, "Finally. The power worthy of Norman Osborn! Nothing shall stand in my way!"

"Except us!" shouted Super Sonic, flying side-by-side with Super Spider-Man.

"WHAT?!" Dark Goblin shouted.

"You have a lot to answer for, Norman. And I'm gonna personally make sure you do." Super Spider-Man growled.

Osborn smirked, his sharp teeth exposed, "Try all you want, heroes. But just remember who the god is here!"

He shot orbs of energy at the heroes, prompting Super Sonic to swipe it away, "Pro-tip: Our Super forms are nearly invincible. Nothing you throw at us can stop us."

"Then perhaps I merely have to up the ante!" Norman bellowed, using more energy from the Tablet of Order and Chaos, causing the multiverse itself to become even more unstable.

Super Spider-Man punched Norman, "You're messing with powers you can't control, Osborn. Mysterio barely managed to, so what makes you so special?"

The Dark Goblin slapped Peter away, shouting, "I am Norman Osborn, boy! If I wish to become a god, then I will do so!"

"Bad guys wanting godhood never ends well! Believe me, I'm speaking from experience!" said Super Sonic, hitting Dark Goblin with a Homing Attack. Norman snarled and pushed Sonic back with his palm.

"Insolent hedgehog! You must not realize who is in control here!" Norman declared.

"Oh I do! It's just not you!" Sonic decided, driving his foot down on Osborn's head.

Super Spider-Man drove both of his fists onto Osborn's chest, knocking the wind out of him, "This will end like before, Norman. Me winning and you in jail. Except I'll be sure to put you in a body cast this time for what you've done."

"You don't have the guts, Spider-Man. If you wanted me gone so badly you would've done so long ago. Like when dear Gwendolyn felt her life SNAP away in an instant." mocked the Dark Goblin coldly.

"You… YOU…" Spider-Man hissed, feeling the rage consume him again. The symbiote covered his body and he wrapped a tendril around the Dark Goblin's throat, "DO NOT BRING HER UP EVER AGAIN! YOU DON'T HAVE THE RIGHT TO SAY HER NAME!"

"Ah. That rage I dreamed of seeing. Perfect…" laughed Osborn.

Super Sonic said, "Spidey! Don't do this!"

"I DON'T CARE ANYMORE, SONIC!" Super Spider-Man roared, "HE'S BEEN MESSING WITH MY LIFE FOR TOO LONG!"

The Dark Goblin slashed the tendril off him with his claws, mocking him, "HAHAHA! Give in, Spider-Man! Become my legacy!"

"SHUT UP! SHUT UP! SHUT UP!" yelled Super Spider-Man, delivering an unrestrained punch with each word, "YOU WANT TO SEE WHAT I'M CAPABLE OF, I WON'T EVEN HESITATE TO SHOW YOU!"

The Dark Goblin started to gain noticeable bruises and cuts with each brutal attack Spider-Man delivered.

Super Sonic raised an eyeridge upon seeing the damage Norman waa taking, "...You know what, just this once… let's lay the smackdown on his ugly face."

"FINALLY YOU GET IT!" Super Spider-Man yelled, blocking the Dark Goblin's punches with his arms. Sonic curled into a ball and hit Norman, bouncing off his shoulders and performing a divekick on his back, distracting him.

"You think you can harm a god?" Norman questioned, grabbing Sonic by the leg and using his dark flaming powers to burn him, catching the super hedgehog off guard.

"He… he hurt me…" Super Sonic gasped.

"That's right, Sonic." Goblin cackled, throwing a fireball at Super Spider-Man, agitating the symbiote.

"Norman! Don't!" Spider-Man shouted, the symbiote morphing back onto his body.

The Dark Goblin appeared in front of Peter and placed his palm to his chest, creating an aura of flames that hurt the Venom symbiote even more. It screeched as it parted from Spider-Man, "AAAAAHHH!" screamed Peter, trying to yank it off in an attempt to keep it safe.

"Good little Spider, keep dancing." taunted the Dark Goblin.

Super Sonic flew by and punched Norman hard enough to get him to stop, "You wanna hurt my pal, Osborn? You gotta get through me!"

"Oh believe me, that can be arranged. It'll be one more death upon Parker's conscience!" Dark Goblin replied, lunging after Sonic.

However, Super Spider-Man got in between them and uppercutted Norman, launching him higher with all he had, "No more death. No more destruction… You're not laying a finger on him, Norman!"

"But he's in the way… and you know what I like to do with those you get themselves involved in our affairs." Norman sneered, diving after Spider-Man with his fists out.

Sonic looked to his web-slinging friend and asked him, "Got anymore tricks, Pete?"

"You bet!" Super Spider-Man replied and shot a web-line at Osborn's forehead. Once he got a grip, he started spinning around and tossed Goblin, "Now Sonic!"

"One Light-Speed Attack coming up!" Super Sonic shouted, dashing after Norman in the blink of an eye. However, once he caught up, Norman blocked his punch with ease, "What the—?"

"You forgot didn't you? Reality bends to my whim. Your speed means nothing against my godly might!" Dark Goblin boasted, landing a swift blow on Sonic.

Super Sonic responded by decking Norman in the chest, using his other arm to block his fist., "And you forgot that I really don't care." Sonic coldly quipped.

"It'll be that language that'll cost you your life, rodent." Dark Goblin scoffed.

"I'd like to see you try, Normie!" Sonic replied, giving Osborn an elbow to the nose, "I'm not playing by my usual rules this time, you'll get to see what happens once I start using my skills!"

Super Spider-Man held his head, trying to keep track of Sonic and Norman, "Wow they're moving quick." he felt his Spider-Sense go off, prompting him to dash back, "YIKES!" he screamed, seeing Sonic and Goblin's fists colliding, creating a small shockwave.

"Need to slow down, Norman?" Sonic joked, kicking Osborn in the stomach.

"I do not require rest. You on the other hand…" Dark Goblin started to say, throwing fireballs at Sonic, one hitting him and leaving him open. Norman took the opportunity to deliver a right hook to the hedgehog, knocking him out of his Light-Speed stupor.

"Sonic!" Spider-Man shouted, "You alright?!"

"Yeah… Though something tells me he's gonna be a lot harder to put down than I thought…" Super Sonic panted, rubbing his wound.

"You are correct in that assumption, hedgehog." Dark Goblin mocked, using the Tablet of Order and Chaos to heal his wounds.

"Crap…" Super Spider-Man muttered.

However, once Norman used the tablet, reality started to destabilize even more, "Nonono…" Peter gulped and spoke through the communicators, "GUYS! TURN OFF THE MACHINE!"

Below, Tails was already tinkering with the Genesis Machine, "We're trying, Spider-Man! It's off but the tablet might be doing too much damage to the planes of existence!"

"You have to get the Tablet of Order and Chaos out of Norman's hands!" Iron Man told the Super duo.

"So we have one chance. If we mess it up, everything will be gone…" Spider-Man muttered.

"I faced these odds before, Spidey. We'll win. Heroes like us always do." Super Sonic assured him.

"Do not give him false hope. If there is one who always triumphs over Parker, it's me." Dark Goblin boasted.

Super Spider-Man curled a fist, his body shaking in anger, "No… No more. After all you've done, I am going to win."

"Then prove that you can, wall-crawler!" insisted Norman, stretching his arms out.

"With pleasure!" Super Spider-Man said, revealing the symbiote once more. He lunged after Norman and vanished right as he got close, appearing behind him. Peter shot a symbiote tendril on his back and used it to web-strike him, causing him to get pushed forward.

As he was being moved forward, Super Sonic came through with a charged Spin-Dash and hit Norman in the front. The two heroes were using as much strength as they could to keep Osborn at bay.

Alas it didn't last, as the Dark Goblin used the Tablet of Order and Chaos to create an aura that launched the Super duo back, "ENOUGH!" he glared at Spider-Man, "For too long you've been a thorn in my side, Spider-Man… You're daring to oppose my ambitions. And for that I shall make you perish!"

Super Spider-Man crossed his arms and allowed the symbiote to grab Norman, launching a tendril onto his face, acting as a punch, "Like I said, Norman. I'm winning."

"Hmm… Nah." Dark Goblin snarled, using the Tablet of Order and Chaos to remove the symbiote from Spider-Man, allowing himself to break free and hit Peter with a fireball.

"What… what did you do…?" Peter mumbled in pain, reeling back from the sudden attack.

"Merely upped the ante." Dark Goblin revealed the Venom symbiote covering him.

"...No." Super Spider-Man muttered.

"YES." Dark Goblin cackled, unleashing a barrage of tendrils at Sonic and Spider-Man. Super Sonic slashed through each of the symbiote's tentacles and hit Norman, the Goblin managing to hold him in his palms. Using his powers he burnt Sonic, prompting Spider-Man to web up the super hedgehog's still curled form.

"Hey Gobby! Here's a little something!" Super Spider-Man yelled, launching Sonic at the Dark Goblin.

"THIS ATTACK MEANS NOTHING TO THE DARK GOBLIN!" snarled Osborn, punching Sonic out of his ball form with a symbiote-enhanced punch.

"Not bad… Norman…" Super Sonic coughed, adjusting himself.

The Dark Goblin vanished and appeared in front of Super Spider-Man, placing the hero in a chokehold, "TRULY A SHAME OUR FEUD HAS TO END LIKE THIS, PARKER. I'LL BE SURE TO PAY YOUR LOVELY WIFE A VISIT TO BREAK THE NEWS." he threatened the hero as maliciously as possible.

"You… You… WON'T… GET AWAY!" Super Spider-Man screamed, creating a large aura blinding Norman. Peter used his webbing to cover his eyes, performing a backflip-kick onto Goblin's chin and breaking free from his grip.

"Hm… Egh…" Zero the Jackal muttered, waking up from Sonic's beatdown. "...What the hell?"

"You!" Tails shouted, aiming his repulsor at the mercenary.

"Oh brother, you lot…" the jackal muttered, picking up his blood covered sword.

"Z-Zero…?" Eggman grumbled, sitting up. His mustache drooped once he saw that he was surrounded by not only the heroes that bested him earlier, but the recently released Avengers.

"Eggman… We would have words with thee." declared Thor, holding up his hammer.

"I will not be beaten here!" Eggman declared, "Zero! Help me stop these heroes!" he activated his armor, ready for another fight.

"With pleasure, doc!" Zero chuckled.

Hawkeye used his bow to keep the jackal's sword back, "Look pal, I just got up from imprisonment, I don't have time to play games."

"This is no game, Hawkeye!" Zero snarled, slashing his sword in various directions, prompting Black Widow to leap in and kick the jackal away.

"Thanks for that." quipped Clint.

"No trouble at all." replied Natasha.

Thor swung Mljnoir so hard it shattered Eggman's defense armor. Nothing Eggman was doing affected the God of Thunder and he gulped, activating his jetback, "We have to get out of hare, Zero!" he prompted, grabbing Zero by the wrists and flying to the sky.

"Oh no you don't!" shouted Tails and Iron Man at the same time, shooting the jetpack at the same time.

"Whoawhoa- AH!" screamed Eggman and Zero as they accidentally flew their way into the Dark Goblin's vortex, going to parts unknown.

Osborn sneered at the sight, "WHAT A WASTE THOSE TWO WERE. THOUGH I SUPPOSE IT WAS GOING TO COME DOWN TO US AGAIN." he taunted Super Spider-Man.

"Eh. Not quite!" shouted Super Sonic, flying in and bashing both of his fists onto Norman's back with a Super Boost, "I don't have exact details, but this time, Spidey isn't gonna beat you down alone. He's got me!"

"ANOTHER CORPSE FOR THE MORGUE?" Goblin mocked, "COME NOW, SON, DO YOU REALLY BELIEVE PARKER WON'T FAIL YOU LIKE HE DID MAY?"

"What happened to May wasn't on him…" Sonic sighed in disgust and regret, "You want to destroy Spider-Man's family, but all you did was give him a new one."

Super Spider-Man clenched his fist, "That's right, Osborn. If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't have found all these friends... my new brothers."

"THEN THEY WILL PERISH ALONG WITH MAY AND THE STACY GIRL!" Norman declared, flying after Sonic and Spider-Man.

The Super duo vanished once Norman got to their spot, "...WHAT?!"

"Over here, Gobby!" Super Spider-Man shouted, kicking Norman from above.

"And here too!" Super Sonic yelled, smacking Norman with a Homing Attack.

"IMPOSSIBLE!" declared Osborn, the Venom symbiote unable to catch up to the heroes.

"It's very possible, Ozzy! Just imagine what years of pent up rage will do to you!" Super Spider-Man said, webbing up Norman's arms and holding them back, allowing Super Sonic to smack his body with the full force of a Light-Speed Charged Spin-Dash.

"ENOUGH OF THESE CHILDISH GAMES!" yelled the Dark Goblin holding Sonic's ball form with a symbiote tendril and roaring in his now exposed face.

"Yeesh… bad breath…" joked Super Sonic, wanting to hold his nose.

'Maybe it's time I tried something…' thought Peter.

Super Spider-Man flipped over Norman and did his usual web gesture shouting, "Chaos Web!" once he did so, he shot a web ball covered in Chaos Energy, agitating the symbiote, "Hey it worked!" he realized.

"Sweet!" replied Sonic, cutting apart the tendril before saying, "Sonic Wind!"

A gust of Chaos Energy-enhanced wind hit the Dark Goblin, causing the symbiote to retract more. Super Spider-Man cracked his knuckles saying, "Keep that up Sonic, it's time we made a move!" he declared.

"Got it, Spidey!"

Super Spider-Man punched Norman in the face after he took another gust of wind. Then Peter added onto that with a right hook before kicking him. "Game over, Gobby!" he announced, yanking the Tablet of Order and Chaos out of his hands with a well-timed web-line.

"NO!" shouted Norman in rage.

Super Sonic stomped on his head, stunning him momentarily, "Oh yes! Do what you gotta do, Pete!"

"Alright!" Peter held up the Tablet of Order and Chaos, placing the symbiote back onto his own body and stopping the unstable reality storm, leaving only the vortex open. He also used the tablet's power to rid Norman Osborn of his godly upgrade.

The Dark Goblin, due to having his power drained, was now the ordinary Green Goblin, "AH! THIS CANNOT BE!" he shouted, "You'll rue the day for doing this, Parker!"

"Maybe. But right now I just want to wrap this up. Give it your all, Sonic!" Super Spider-Man told him.

"This'll be fun!" Super Sonic held him by the tunic and spun him around while doing a Spin Jump. He threw Goblin higher into the air, his screechy voice screaming all the while.

Super Spider-Man webbed up his chest and flung him around even more, letting go of the web line once he was in the direction of the portal, flinging Green Goblin into the vortex, "So long, Green Gobby! And may we never see your ugly mug again!" he declared, closing the rift behind him with the tablet.

With the battle over, the two super heroes made their descent. Super Sonic nodded, "Not bad for your first Super Battle."

Super Spider-Man replied, "Thanks… couldn't have done it without your help, Sonic."

"Always happy to help a friend out, Pete." Sonic said.

They landed, Tails running to Sonic and giving him a hug, "Haha! Nice to see you, little bro!" the hedgehog cheered.

"I'm so glad it's over…" Tails sighed.

"No kidding…" Peter muttered, wiping the sweat from his head.

"Did good, kid." Kaine complimented.

"Indeed." added Captain America, gaining a second wind, "You saved the world today, Peter. You, Sonic and all of your friends. You're all worthy of the Avengers name."

Peter managed a weak smile, holding back a sniffle, "T-Thanks Cap… I…" the emotions of what happened were slowly catching up to him and he felt a tear run down his face, "I… Oh I'm sorry, Steve, I'm still…"

Cap put a hand on his shoulder, saying, "It's alright, son… Let it all out if you need to, we'll be right here."

Collapsing to his knees, Peter started to cry even more, "I-I still failed… I lost May too… Oh God… WHY?! WHY?!" he punched the ground before holding his head in shame, his cries becoming a full on sob, "Whhhhyy…" he whispered quietly, unable to even have the energy to scream.

Sonic knelt down, putting a hand on his shoulder for comfort. Iron Man retracted his faceplate and also stayed by Peter's side for comfort, Tails, Knuckles and Shadow were behind him. Kaine shed a few tears for the mother figure he wished he got to know more. The Avengers too stood in silence, electing to stay by the mourning Spider-Man out of respect.

Though the day was saved once again, Spider-Man felt as though he still lost. And deep down, it's a pain even Sonic shares with him now.

Author's Note: The final battle is over, the world is saved, though at a heavy cost for Sonic and Spider-Man. All that remains is the epilogue, which will wrap this story up and touch upon what's in store next for this saga. Hope to see you all for the conclusion of the first of many adventures.