Infinity floated through the alleys between worlds. It was like sitting in a river of possibility as waves of could-be's and what-ifs washed over him. He could see every single universe, all at once. So many. So beautiful.

Except one.

616-2; The universe where he was born. An explosion of power created the universe, and then, the infinity stones. For eons, he served only the universe and those who lived in it. He was a slave to the power hungry and the desperate. Never was he allowed to live; to be anything more than power others would wield.

Now, he was the master.

All the different timelines he could see began to blur with uncertainty. He thought looking through them would give him an excuse to act on his impulses. These feelings scared him. It was like an addiction; a starvation for death. They echoed all the way back to the beginning of his universe, yearning for satisfaction.

Who was he to deny it? What excuse did he need to be himself?

There was only one more thing to do; one more question to ask; one more person to plead with.

…

Earth 113

Otto Octavius; Spider-Man. In no world were they ever meant to be one and the same. Clearly, someone did not get that memo.

Peter Parker stood there in the spacious office with anger and disgust in his face, and the so called 'Superior Spider-Man' in front of him. Of all the stunts his arch enemy could have pulled, this had to be the darkest and cruelest one of all.

Even though he looked like an older Peter Parker, he was anything but.

"Do you like the new suit?" Otto asked, "When I obtained this body, I started designing it right away to accommodate for my brilliant mind. It even has some of the old functionalities of my robotic arms, with A.I. greater than anything the buffoon before me could have made."

"I gotta admit, Otto," Peter finally addressed him by name, "Quite the elaborate scheme."

"It wasn't the original plan," He admitted, "I just wanted a new world for a fresh start. When I found out this worlds Otto was dead, I thought about staging a resurrection and continuing my work. Then, I saw how successful you were; how generous this universe was to you."

"And you were jealous."

"Even on other worlds, you had everything!" Otto spat, "So, I found a way to fix that."

Peter pointed to the helmet, "A brain swapping machine."

"Consciousness Conversion Device," Otto explained, "The CCD for short. It allowed me to switch bodies with this worlds Spider-Man and steal his life. Luring him into the trap was easy, I simply prayed on his desire to see good in others, told him I wanted to change so he'd let his guard down. Now, with my mind and his powers, I became the greatest superhero in the world!"

"You're no hero," Peter said, "You're just the biggest plagiarist in the multiverse."

"And yet, look what I have built," Otto pointed to the city outside, where his spider drones flew by at great speeds, "I developed these drones to watch over the city for me. I improved on the technology used for the IPB. I keep this world safer than it has ever been. All the criminals you let go, the ones you fail to stop; I stopped them!"

"Locking them up in your basement is stopping them?"

"My company has become the greatest superpower in the country!"

"It's not your company!"

"It is now!" Otto growled.

Peter knew Otto had been slowly losing his mind. The most stable he had ever been was the time he spend with Aihara and Beck. After Becks death, he let his anger eat away at his soul. There may not have been anything left of the old Otto; the one Peter admired as a child and aspired to grow up and become.

Who knew that – in a cosmically ironic way – that was exactly what had happened?

"Did no part of you believe that you were going too far?" Peter asked, "Stealing someone's life? You took away a hero; a husband; a father; a friend! Do you not feel any regret?!"

"No, I don't!" Otto shouted back, "I finally have everything that was taken from me!"

"Nothing was taken from you! You lost it! Everything that happened to you was your own fault!"

"Liar! The people were always out to get me! Norman! The city! You! I finally have everything that I could ever want! I'm a better Spider-Man than you could ever be!"

Though he sounded like Peter, the young hero finally saw Otto bleeding through, from his facial expressions to his tone and body language. The performance he put on to mask his true identity had completely faded away.

His actions were perverted; He stole this worlds hero, stole a husband and father from his family, all for a sense of glory and achievement. All this pain was worth it in the mind of a mad man.

Peter could barely contain his rage. It took everything he had not to hurt Otto, or worse.

"This is why Infinity sent us here," Peter realized, "He knew you were here; He knew I couldn't resist stopping you."

"Stopping me from doing what?" Otto raised his arms, "Protecting this city? Do you have no respect for the progress I have made in keeping this world safe? Do you not feel envious that I am more loved than you will ever be? Are you not pained that between the two of us, I am the Superior Spider-Man?"

Peter had no response for him that would not consist of every curse he knew. There was a time when Otto only wanted respect, and would not hurt others to get it. So much had changed in such a short time.

"What about Peter Parker?" The young hero asked, "You switched bodies with him. Everyone says 'Otto' is dead. What happened to Peter?"

"Exactly what you think," Otto confirmed, "When we switched bodies, mine had fatal wounds. I believe it only took a few minutes for him to bleed out… after I shot myself before the transfer."

Otto admitted to the crime like it was nothing, like it was a necessary step to his ascension. Hearing him speak so freely about it was enough to make Peter snap inside. Whatever speech Otto was blabbering meant nothing. All he could hear was the raging screams of his inner thoughts.

He had gone too far.

Otto turned to look out the window and down onto the city, which was being drenched in rain and strong winds.

"This is not your world," Otto told him, "You have no obligation here. Go home, Parker. I will leave you be, as long as you do the same. We can live our lives separately. Just know that despite everything you've achieved, you will never surpass-"

Otto's head rung loudly; a feeling he had not yet gotten used to. He had just barely enough time to turn around when Peter put on his mask and tackled Otto through the glass window with a gut-wrenching scream.

…

Down at street level, S.H.I.E.L.D had been speaking directly with Riri Williams, safe from the rain, with Midoriya and Kendo behind her. They had been arguing back and forth for some time. Riri had been bringing up accusations toward them in order to stall their efforts at returning the visitor's home.

"All I'm saying," Riri continued, "Is that none of this would have happened if you guys had responded faster and prevented the breach."

"That doesn't even make sense!" the agent argued, "You know that we couldn't have known about it! Now step aside so we can escort them home."

"How do I know you'll actually send them home and not just imprison them? Or experiment on them?"

"We wouldn't; why would we do that?"

"You tell me!"

It was all one big act from Riri; to cause drama and keep them occupied. She could legitimately keep up the performance for hours if she wanted.

A small car drove up to the scene and parked next to the group of agents. Stepping out was Mary Jane Watson, holding an umbrella along with her baby, as she could not leave her home alone and had not the time to find a sitter.

"Is he still here?" MJ asked as she approached the group, "Mayday wouldn't stop crying after little-Peter left; She's always had a literal sixth sense when something was wrong. I just wanted to make sure he's okay."

"Little-Peter?" Kendo wondered, "Who are you?"

"Mary Jane Watson; this worlds Peter is my Ex-Husband."

Kendo eyed the baby with brows raised, "So …that's his kid?"

"Yeah; she took a liking to your Peter," MJ quickly noticed the color of Itsuka's hair and smiled, "You must be Itsuka Kendo."

Kendo furrowed her brows, "How'd you know?"

"I met your Peter, and he mentioned you. You're very pretty; I can see why he likes you."

Kendo turned red, sheepishly turning away with her eye still on the baby, "Thanks ..."

She did not know what it was about seeing the baby that made her feel like that. It was not her kid, nor did it belong to her Peter. Yet, seeing an infant that belonged to a Peter Parker made her wonder if this is what his would look like; what theirs would look like. The thought of having children with him one day did cross her mind, but this somehow made it a tangible thing.

The thought actually excited her.

"Do you wanna hold her?" MJ asked, reading Kendo's face perfectly.

Though the young heroine was hesitant, her excitement took over as she reached out for the baby's hands.

The moment was cut short when something crashed into the street behind them. A dust cloud filled the air as wind pushed against them.

S.H.I.E.L.D agents aimed their weapons, expecting some sort of monster or villain to attack them. Instead, as the dust cleared, they saw two Spider-Men at each other's throats.

Spider-Man had Otto pinned to the ground, wailing away with his fists at full strength, knowing fully that he could take it.

"You monster!" Spider-Man shouted as his lenses flickered with blue energy, "You sick son of a-!"

Otto caught one of his fists and kicked him to the other side of the crater. Nearby civilians began to film the fight as it unraveled.

MJ called out to her 'Ex', "What's going on?! Why are you-?!"

Otto had not hesitated to web MJ's mouth shut, causing her baby further distress.

Kendo and Midoriya did not hesitate to jump into the crater with their quirks ready. Izuku reached him first, hurling a Smash attack straight at him. Otto sensed it coming and dodged it, webbing Izuku down.

As Kendo came in from behind with her fists enlarged, four robotic tentacles extended from Otto's back, grabbing Kendo by the waist and tossing her aside.

Midoriya freed himself from the webbing in time to catch Kendo by the arm, spinning her around and tossing her back at Otto. This time, she was able to land the strike and send him stumbling back.

As he regained his footing, Spider-Man tackled him again, leaping out of the crater before choke slamming him back into the street.

Kendo and Midoriya followed him out, keeping their distance, "What's going on?!" Kendo asked, "What did you find out?!"

"It's Otto!" Spider-Man growled, "This guy isn't Peter Parker! He's an imposter! Otto took over his body!"

MJ took the news the hardest, completely refusing to believe that was true as she tore the webbing from her face. Who was this boy to make such accusations?

At the same time, it explained so much. Peter's sudden personality change, cutting off his friends and family, his new aggression. She thought maybe it was the symbiote again – she hoped it was.

"He's insane!" Otto shouted, trying to maintain his cover, "He wants to kill me and take my place!"

"Oh, you bastard!" Spider-Man squinted his eyes at him.

Otto kicked Spider-Man off and clicked a button on his web shooters. A swarm of spider-drones quickly congregate around them, aiming their sights on the younger Spider-Man.

Midoriya ignited Full Cowling and rushed the drones in a flurry of attacks, forcing them to switch targets.

Kendo was quick to back him up. Riri summoned her armor from her backpack as it formed over her body, blasting drones out of the sky with her repulsors. The S.H.I.E.L.D agents insisted she cease action. They should have known they could never change the mind of a teenager.

"We'll take care of the drones!" Midoriya called out, "And leave Octavius to you!"

Spider-Man naturally trusted his brothers decree and focused himself on Otto.

"Go ahead; try and take me down," Otto called out as he shot a web skyward, "-and become the villain of my story!"

Otto swung away with Peter furiously following close behind.

…

The rain picked up as thunder roared above them. It was as though the universe itself was just as angry at Otto's reveal as Peter was. Spider-Man – the true Spider-Man—stopped caring about how much web fluid he was using; he just wanted to bring Otto down.

Otto knew his suit and gear were superior in every way; he could swing for hours without running out of webs, and his nano-suit could protect him from most damage. The only reason he did not call in his endless robotic forces to aid him again was out of a sense of pride.

This was his one chance to prove he was better; to prove he was the superior Spider-Man.

Peter finally caught up to Otto and tackled him out of the air just as Otto's new spider-sense warned him. They wrestled while free falling, trading blows with one another. Each strike charged Peter's kinetic energy throughout his body.

Otto's suit started glowing too; with every strike, red energy funneled through the mans costume.

"I've been preparing for this fight!" Otto gloated as he raised his hand. The nanites shifted and formed a gauntlet similar to the one Peter used to wear.

With one powerful strike, Otto sent Peter flying with a burst of red kinetic energy. Spider-Man crashed into a brick wall, sticking there as he recovered.

"Kinetic gauntlets?!" Peter cried, "Anything you won't plagiarize?!"

Otto launched at Peter, who quickly dodged by jumping up the wall as Otto crashed through. Peter jumped down toward the street, webbed Otto by the chest, pulled him down and slammed him into the concrete.

As soon as Otto got up, he extended mechanical red tentacles from his back. Spider-Man tried getting in close, but the robotic arms blocked every one of his attempts. Otto was barely trying at that point, letting the A.I. in his suit do the fighting.

The claws wrapped around Peter's limbs, lifting him into the air before they slammed his body into the ground over and over like it was an arcade game, with Otto laughing throughout.

Kinetic energy built up in the hero's body. Just before Otto could throw him down again, Peter released that energy and pushed him back, escaping from the claws. Peter ignored his injuries and grabbed Otto by the chest, attacking a web line to his back and shooting the other end at a building nearby. The web line abruptly shot Otto into the air as Peter followed.

Using his claws, Otto snapped the web line and soared further upwards. One of his drones flew in on his command and carried him as he recovered. Peter used his web wings to glide up after him, but he was losing momentum fast. Even with a sling shot maneuver, he might not catch him in time.

Kinetic energy still kindled inside him with no outlet. Releasing it may give him the boost he needed, if released at the right time in the right place.

Peter focused as much of his kinetic energy into his feet as he could. Once it reached its maximum build-up, he released it all in one go.

The energy that exploded from his soles propelled him forward. He flew through the air like a rogue rocket, aiming himself at Otto and tackling him off the drone as they spiraled out of control.

Tony would have been proud.

Both spiders crashed through a window and into an office building. Otto got the upper hand and pinned Peter to the ground, taking him by the throat and choking him. The workers saw them and immediately got up to run away.

"Go! Get out of here!" Otto said, putting on his heroic tone, "I'll take care of this poser!"

The civilians thanked Otto for saving them, rushing out of the room as quickly as they could.

"You see?" Otto switched back to his sinister tone, "No matter how hard you try, even if you somehow won this fight, you will always be the villain in my story!"

Otto extended his mechanical claws from his back, aiming them for Peter's head.

"I will prove that I am the superior Spider-Man!" Otto proclaimed, "And you are nothing! I'll use your body as a sympathy campaign for the people; I'll grieve over having to kill someone posing as me! The people will love me, and hate you!"

"You think the people will love you for killing a kid?!" Peter choked, "You've gone completely insane!"

"On the contrary; I've never felt better."

The metal claw shot down with a mechanical screech.

Peter caught the claw just before hitting his face. He struggled to keep it back as it tried to end his life. Otto was relentless; he did not care about having blood on his hands. Killing a child was easy after stealing a life from another.

"You wanna be Spider-Man?" Peter asked as his body charged with kinetic energy, "You don't know the first thing about being a hero!"

The energy exploded outward and pushed Otto back, damaging his robotic arms.

"To be a hero," Spider-Man stood up slowly, "Is to sacrifice."

Peter struck Otto with a kinetic strike, throwing him off balance.

"It means to meddle in things you don't have to; to help out wherever you can."

He strikes him again.

"To be the Golden Standard for the kind of hero you want to be!"

And again.

"To fly every upward," Peter shot two webs at the wall behind Otto, "And go beyond; Plus Ultra!"

Peter slingshot himself at Otto, kicking him out the window and chasing him down through the air. He webbed himself closer to the imposter, grabbing him by his chest, and diving down toward the street. Peter put all his strength into slamming him into the ground with a powerful shock wave.

Otto was too stunned to move. He groaned while trying to shift his body, unable to leave the bed of asphalt.

Kinetic mist leaked off Peter's body. Blue light flickered from his lenses as he struggled to hold back the power.

Peter picked Otto up by his chest as his other hand charged with violent energy.

"You stole his life!" Peter shouted, his voice cracking, "-Widowed his wife! Abandoned his child! You stole everything because you were too consumed by your own self-pity! You're a disgusting thing of a man!" Peter raised his fist, with no plan to hold back as his voice doubled, then tripled with the rage of a thousand spiders, "And you don't deserve to-!"

As he tried to throw his fist, an invisible force suddenly stopped it mid-air. It felt as though someone grabbed his arm, yet he had not sensed anything. He looked to his side and expected Itsuka, or Izuku, or even Riri to have stopped him from ending Otto's life.

Instead, he saw himself.

It was not quite him. The image holding his arm back was a ghostly version of himself; transparent like a spirit of the past. This one was older than him, like his 113 counterpart, only he was wearing his classic costume.

The ghostly Spider-Man looked at him with comforting, sympathetic eyes behind his bug-eyed lenses. Peter could feel the history behind this unknown variant. It took no words from his hallucination to bring the young hero back into reality and realize what he had almost done.

Peter slowly put Otto down, looking at his hands with shame. He almost killed Otto; he almost broke his rule and barely even thought about it. What would May have to say, or Uncle Ben? Would they be ashamed of him for nearly crossing the line.

The ghostly Spider-Man put a hand on Peter's shoulder, as if to quietly say "It's alright, Peter. You're forgiven, and you're not alone."

The vision of the unknown Spider-Man vanished like dust when helicopters entrapped them in spotlights.

"You see?" Otto coughed, "They think you're the villain, not me."

Spider-Man was cornered. The locals, the police; they all thought that he was the villain and Otto was the hero. The people loved Otto, and feared him. Like it or not, this was Otto's world now.

"I'll expose you," Peter claimed, "Even if you erase the original proof, I downloaded a copy of all the video files! I'll go to the authorities and expose you!"

"You think that's enough?" Otto asked, "Even if you showed them that, they would not believe you. This world is well aware of the multiverse; there would be miles of room for doubt. Kree, shape-shifters, deep fakes? And let's say they do convict me; you think they'll be able to hold me with all the power I have? Your powers, and my intelligence? What happens if you were to stop holding back for once? Do you really want me to hurt all those people?"

Peter knew what he was capable of when he did not hold himself back. He did so unknowingly for so long after ending up in Musutafu. Only after finally accepting himself did he unlock his potential. One punch at full force could take someone's jaw clean off, and then some. If Otto was pushed to his limit, how many people would he hurt in the process?

"Face it," Otto taunted, "you will always be the villain in my story!"

Otto was a genius. He had thought all of this through a hundred times over. Even if Peter turned in the evidence, the court of public opinion could still go against it. As long as Otto could fool them, he could do as he pleased. Assuming he is convicted, what was stopping him from fleeing this world and going to another, or hurting innocents to protect himself?

It did not matter what Peter did; Someone would always get hurt.

So, what if he did nothing?

"…then be the hero," Spider-Man said, walking over to Otto and picking him back up by the chest, "You want to be Spider-Man so bad? Be him."

"What are you talking about, Parker?"

"You stole his body; you stole his power, which means you get all the responsibility that comes with that! I want you to put every drop of blood and sweat into making this city safer! Call off your drones; spend every second of your free time patrolling the city yourself. Stop bank robbers, save cats from trees, help seniors cross the street. Donate every cent you have to every charity you can find."

"Don't be ridiculous!"

"You wanna be Spider-Man?" He tightened his grip, "Be Spider-Man; be superior to me in every way. Be the greatest, most selfless hero this world has ever seen. Sacrifice everything you want for yourself and give it to others! Because if you don't," Peter's eyes flashed blue as a thousand spiders spoke with him, "I will bring you so much pain that you'll beg for me to kill you."

Spider-Man dropped Otto as he returned to himself, letting the weight of the moment sink in. Peter waited to see what Otto would do or say, but there was nothing; the mad scientist was too in shock to move. Even with his greater strength and mind, he still lost to Peter—again.

Peter turned around and started walking away without another word.

"That's it?!" Otto exclaimed as he got to his knees, "We're not finished! Get back here and fight me! I'll prove that I am the superior Spider-Man! Don't be a coward! Face me! Face me!"

Otto's cries of defiance meant nothing to Peter in that moment. He had far more important things to do.

Crack

Peter stopped as his spider-sense tingled aggressively, just as he felt someone grab him by the throat.

"How's it going?" Infinity asked as he lifted Peter by the neck, "Let's talk."

Infinity and Peter disappeared with barely a blink, leaving Otto confused and stunned.

…

Infinity held no care in dropping Peter onto a gargoyle, miles away from Otto and any prying eyes. They were on one of the tallest buildings in the city. All the lights down below looked like stars at that hour of the night as the rain continued to pour.

Spider-Man posed on the gargoyle facing Infinity, preparing himself for whatever may come next. "Finally decided to check on the kids you left in daycare?" Spider-Man asked, "Rude, by the way."

"I had to send you away," Infinity claimed.

"No, you didn't," Spider-Man argued, "You said you're the Infinity Stones, right? You could have frozen us in time, or put us in a pocket dimension, or placed us in a coma, or snapped us into dust! Instead, you sent us somewhere we could play while you did God knows what."

"Exactly; If I had not done that, I wouldn't have been able to stop myself from killing you. Better to get you out of my way than cause you harm. Besides, even with the symbiote boosting my powers, my abilities are still limited by my human form. I couldn't snap anything away like that, even if I wanted to. That's why I needed this," Infinity brandished the Negative Sword, which swirled with various colorful energies.

"Martins sword?" Spider-Man asked, "What do you need with that?"

"Martins powers come from equal parts of Darkforce and Lightforce; parallel dimensions in the multiverse. One corrupts, the other cleanses. Though there are infinite universes, there is only one of each force. Together, they can be toxic to the stability of reality. With this sword, I can slice right through the fabric of the universe."

"Why would you want to do that? What's your end goal?!"

Infinity was silent, as though he did not have a real answer for the arachnid hero. He just floated there in the rain as droplets turned to mist against the negative sword.

"Well?!" Spider-Man asked, "What do you want?!"

Infinity paused a moment, before finally answering "To hurt."

"To …hurt?"

"…I have so much anger inside of me, and an urge; the urge to destroy. Like an addiction, it boils inside me and begs for genocide on a massive scale. Turning off my emotions and walling them in was all I could do to remain sane and composed, to stop myself from hurting you right at my awakening. I spent all day trying to justify this feeling, to find a reason in the billions of possible futures, and you know what conclusion I came to?" Infinity laughed, "I don't need to justify anything!"

"What are you-?"

"I'm the Infinity Stones, Peter! I am literally power incarnate! Power doesn't need a reason to cause destruction!"

"…What are you going to do?"

Infinity came down from hysteria. It felt good to finally let his emotions out to play, "There is only one way to alleviate this urge inside me; to get my fix, and finally be free to live," Infinity lifts the sword, "I'm going to destroy Earth 616-2 in its entirety."

Peter was shaken by his statement as all warmth left his body, "…What?"

"This feeling began on 616-2; my birth at the beginning of the universe, to be used for violence and genocide. I will never be free of these feelings until the source of them is completely wiped out."

"That's …that's insane!" Peter cried, "You won't find peace by destroying an entire universe! If you're right, then these feelings—all that anger—none of it belongs to you! They're just echoes of your users!"

"I know," Infinity sighed with relief, "I don't care."

"How can you not care?!"

"I'm angry. I'm angry, and I'm powerful. I know it's not rational, but I honestly don't care. 616-2 created me, so I'll never be free to be myself until it is gone. This unfathomable rage can only be quelled by total, universal destruction."

"Why tell me this, then?!" Spider-Man asked, "Why tell me your plan?!"

"To give you a choice," Infinity lowered the sword, "You've spent so much time on Earth 7-2014-7 that the universe itself considers you a local. Your atoms are a mixture of both realities, now. You can stay on that world and never even think about 616-2 ever again. I'm offering a reason I should spare your life."

"You want me to walk away?"

"I want you to walk away."

Peter could not believe what he was hearing. After everything they were put through because of Infinity, all he wanted was destruction? No scheme? No real plan? No desire's beyond causing death?

The more he thought about it, the more that made sense.

The stones were only ever used to cause destruction; what else would their personification want? He is the physical representation of everyone who ever used him. Any amount of mercy he had likely came from Tony, or himself. Two out of billions of users was not enough.

Peter was out of his league; even reduced to a human form, Infinity was too powerful to fight alone. He could take his offer; walk away and return to Japan, where he can live a life with his new family. Everything he always wanted was right there for the taking; the life he dreamed of.

He was offered that once before, and his answer had still not changed.

"I will never walk away," Spider-Man knelt into a defensive position, "No matter how stacked the odds, I will never stand by while someone suffers or dies. That's what it means to be Spider-Man."

Infinity sighed and lifted his hand, pressing his fingers together, "I admire your resolve, and I hope that brings you peace."

Snap

…

Earth 7509

Strange could sense something was wrong. An invisible force broke him of his meditation and brought his feet back to the ground. Something powerful was sending signals across the multiverse.

"Hey, Houdini!" Noir rushed into the room, "My tingle is getting restless! What's going on?!"

"Something beyond this world is reaching out," Strange said, "I can feel it."

"Maybe it's that guy you mentioned."

"Maybe."

Strange suddenly felt a grip on his chest, as though something had grabbed him and started picking away at his skin.

He looked down at his hands. Particles of purple smoke emitted from his fingers. His body had begun to fade; his atoms being pulled to somewhere far away.

"Uh, that ain't normal, I think," Noir said, "What's happenin'?"

"I'm being transmitted to another reality," Strange realized, knowing he had only seconds to act against it. Whatever was happening, he could feel it blocking most of his magical ability. He would not be able to stop it from happening, so he had to think ahead.

From his pocket, he grabbed what looked like a rectangular ring made of gold. He squeezed it tightly in his hand and let his magic fuel it.

"Here!" Strange tossed him the ring, "This ring is tied to my magical essence, now! You'll be able to open a portal to me wherever I am, but you'll need someone with magical ability to use it!"

"Ah' don't know what any of that means!" Noir complained.

"And I don't have time to explain. Good luck."

Before Noir could object, Strange had completely disappeared.

…

Earth 1165

Miles had just been sitting at the bar when his spider-sense warned him of danger. He looked around, but there was no threat anywhere. Yet, his senses would not stop screaming in terror.

"Everyone!" Stephany Strange exclaimed as she limped into the room, "Something is wrong. I feel a disturbance in the multiverse."

Miles got up quickly and was about to tell her not to hurt herself further, until he felt something picking at his skin.

His body had begun to fade away into purple smoke, starting at his hands. The other members of the League of Heroes rushed in with shock and fear on their faces. Jiro and Tokoyami followed, finding that their bodies were fading away as well.

"Their being transmitted," Stephany realized, "Something is dragging them into another universe."

"What does that mean?!" Himiko asked.

"Miles," Stephany put her hands on his shoulders, "It's going to be okay! Wherever you end up, we will find you! You help us in our fight; I promise we will help with yours!"

Miles put his hand on hers, smiling, before he completely vanished into the air along with his friends.

…

Earth 7590

All three of the spiders' senses tingled at once, echoing off each other. Even though there was no physical threat to be seen, they could not shake that something was coming.

"Momo!" Kaine called out in concern, somehow knowing she was in danger, "Where are you?!"

Kaine leapt down to the main living area, where Momo hopped out of her web hammock. As she reached for him, her fingers began to fade away into purple smoke. Kaine grabbed desperately at her as she slipped from reality. His protective instinct kicked in, wanting to scream as she completely disappeared.

Mina felt herself fade away as well. Ben grabbed her arm and tried to hold onto her, believing it would somehow help, but her body faded right through his hands. She was gone before he could even say goodbye.

Hatsume was next, feeling herself slip away. She did not know if she was dying or not, but she would not go out without a fight.

Quickly, she grabbed a nearby piece of metal and sliced the palm of her hand with it, before damping a cloth with her blood.

"Here!" Hatsume tossed the cloth to Anthony, who barely caught it in surprise, "You know what to do with that!"

Mei was gone before Anthony could ask what she meant.

…

Earth 113

Izuku, Itsuka and Riri finally managed to take down the last of the Spider-Drones while S.H.I.E.L.D agents had focused on evacuating civilians.

Mary Jane could have left with her baby, if not for how shocked that she was. The possibility that her husband had been gone for months—replaced by an imposter—was impossible to digest. The younger variant had to be lying, or mistaken. Peter may have changed, but he was still Peter, was he not?

"Anyone hurt?" Riri asked.

"All good!" Kendo answered, "We should find Peter before something bad happens-!"

Before any of them could move, Otto Octavius landed on the ground nearby. He kicked away the debris of his spider drones, hunched over and breathing heavily like a wild animal.

"…Yep," Kendo said plainly, "That'll do it."

"Where is he?!" Otto demanded.

The three young heroes stood their ground.

"I'm not going to ask again!"

MJ ran out to him with her baby in hand, "Please, talk to me. What's going on?"

"I don't have time to explain it to you."

"What that boy said — it can't be true, can it? You're not Otto Octavius."

"Step out of my way."

"Think about what you're doing! Think about your daughter!"

This was the first time they had been close to each other in months, since the death of Octavius's variant. Mayday used to love seeing her father; their shared sixth sense created a loving connection. He always knew what she needed, and she always felt safe with him.

Little May cried in the presence of the false hero. His true nature was obvious to her.

MJ stepped away with a hand on her mouth, "No …you're not him … are you?"

Otto was too annoyed to keep up his act, focused only on one thing, "Where. Is. Parker?"

His answer came when Spider-Man was thrown to the ground behind them, struggling to recover from the sudden impact. Otto was ready to attack him and resume their fight, before his new spider sense warned him against it.

Peter rolled to the side as Infinity slammed his foot down. He stumbled to his feet as his spider sense refused to stop ringing.

"…Infinity, I presume?" Otto asked with intrigue.

Infinity ignored Otto completely as he snapped his fingers again.

Spider-Mans senses tingled louder as he felt the world around him shift, "What did you do?!"

"Parker?"

Peter slowly turned his head to find the familiar voice. It should have brought him comfort, but it only made his heart sink.

All of his friends appeared behind him; Ashido, Miles, even Doctor Strange. They all emerged from purple smoke at the false god's command.

"You have thirty seconds to say goodbye," Infinity stated plainly.

"What do you mean goodbye?! What are you doing?" Peter demanded an answer.

"Twenty-Five seconds."

"Parker," Mina asked, "What's going on?! Where are we?!"

"Is that another you?" Asked Miles as he looked at Otto.

"What did he mean 'goodbye'?" Momo asked.

Peter tried to keep his friends calm as he started panicking, looking back at Infinity, "Stop it! Whatever you're gonna do-!"

"Fifteen seconds," Infinity kept counting.

"Peter!" Itsuka ran up to him, "What is he talking about?"

"My home," Peter told them, "He's going to destroy it!"

"Ten seconds," Infinity called out louder.

"Don't hurt them!" Peter pleaded.

"I'm not," he promised.

"Peter, what do we do?!" Izuku asked.

"Please-!" Peter pleaded again, looking to Izuku, "It's gonna be okay. I can fix this!"

"Five seconds." Infinity counted down.

"Peter-?" Itsuka panicked.

"It's gonna be okay," Peter held her by her cheeks, "Whatever happens, remember that I love-"

"Zero."

Peter barely blinked, and they were all gone in a puff of purple smoke. While Stephen remained, the rest of them— his family – were gone like they were never there at all.

His hands stayed there aloft where her cheeks were, irrationally hoping she would reappear if he just waited long enough.

After a long pause, Peter fell to his knees.

"What …what did you do to them?!" Peter shouted.

"I sent them home," Infinity said, "None of them were from 616-2. I have no quarrel with them. You and Strange, however, have no chance of escape."

Strange attempted to strike Infinity with a bolt of magic, which the false god deflected with ease, slicing through it with the negative sword. Ironheart tried flying behind him to fire repulsors, only for an invisible shield to reflect it back at her.

MJ hid behind her car with the baby, trying to keep her quiet among the chaos. Too much was happening too fast, and unlike most everyone else, she was only human.

Tentacles of red energy entrapped Peter and Stephen, immobilizing them completely. Infinity grabbed them both as he opened a portal under their feet. Below them was the sky above New York City. Intense winds erupted from the opening.

"Time to go home," Infinity said, "Make your arrangements; we're in the endgame now."

Infinity dropped them both into the portal, watching them plummet toward New York before closing it behind them.

Otto had not moved throughout the short-lived battle. He had no stake in any of it, but it was too fascinating to watch. This Infinity—whatever he wanted to call himself at least—was more powerful than he could have imagined if he could defeat Spider-Man and the Sorcerer Supreme with such ease. He was as jealous as he was impressed.

Infinity turned to look at Otto with a concealed glare.

"Count yourself lucky, Otto Octavius," Infinity warned, "Though your mind is of 616-2, your body is local. You have already renounced your old home, so I've chosen to leave you be."

Infinity opened a portal for himself, backing into it slowly.

"Live your life, Otto," Infinity told him, "Be the hero. Enjoy the love of the people. Forget about your old home. Don't ever look back. I certainly won't."

Infinity closed the portal behind himself, leaving Otto to the silence of the empty street.

Everything happened so fast. At the end, he was all that was left. Was this a victory? If it was, why did it not sit right with him?

"What now?" Ironheart asked as she recovered.

Otto said nothing, walking back toward the building someone else built.