We are approaching the end, starting with finishing the fight from last chapter. We will also see some other Marvel characters make brief appearances as we get closer to Peter and Gwen returning home.

Chapter 6: Back in Time

"He's the one who's most like me. Nothing ever turns out 100 percent OK; he's got a lot of problems, and he does things wrong, and I can relate to that."

x-x-x-x-x

The sight of a blackout followed by the sound of a power drain caused the spider trio along with their archenemy to look around at the now blacked out Octopus lair. All the remaining tentacles fell limp, motionless and inactive, which freed the Spider Trio once again. Doc Ock's Octopod remained active as it operated on its own power source, but the fact that his lair had been rendered inert was more than enough to infuriate him. For the spiders, it was a relieving sight and confirmation that Anti-Venom's mission was a success. Cyborg Ock finally shouted, "WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS?!"

After aiding Ghosty in helping their daughter to her feet, Spidey said, "this means you lose…again."

Before Ock could vent again, a weird sound was heard behind him, and they all turned to see a white formless slime ooze out of the same tentacle porthole as before. It steadily reformed into the solid shape of their old enemy now trusted ally.

"Told you I'd be back," said Anti-Venom, "did I miss anything?"

"Oh, just a little family bonding," Ghosty quipped, sharing a laugh with Spidergirl and Spiderman.

Ock on the other hand was far from amused, as he yelled at Anti-Venom, "what have you done?!"

"Simple, I wiped out your whole system and shut off the power to this place," Anti-Venom answered, "that just leaves one thing left to deal with, you."

"You filthy slime!" Cyborg Ock yelled, "You'll pay for this! And when you do, you'll wish you had never existed!"

'Been there, done that, and I'm never repeating it again,' Anti-Venom thought to himself as he recalled troubling memories from his darker days. Now, the reformed ex-villain faced the unreformed one as he commenced with his final attack.

"I didn't want to use this feature as it drains my power, but it seems the lot of you have left me no choice," Cyborg Ock droned as he brought up four tentacles above his Octopod while standing base on the other four. The tentacles opened themselves up to reveal a yellow glowing node in their center. A hum sounded from them which drew the spider's attention, until the surprise was revealed as energy blasts fired from the tentacle nodes right at them!

They all jumped or backflipped away to dodge before Spidey commented, "Woah! Ok that was new. Although I do recall saying you were due for an upgrade."

"And it will be the last one you'll ever see arachnid," Cyborg Ock said before opening fire once again. They dodged the energy shots he was sending their way, adjusting the position of each firing tentacle toward its designated spider. All while he remained stagnant in the Octopod standing on his remaining four limbs. It was that fact however, that revealed an opening Ghost Spider called to exploit.

"Everyone! Follow my lead and get close to him!" she called out to the others. Spiderman, Spidergirl and Anti-Venom were slightly baffled, but knowing Ghosty she had a plan so they followed through. Cyborg Ock's attempts at halting their advance with his energy blasts fell through as Ghost Spider reached the first tentacle that was anchored to the floor. She took her last web grenade in hand and looked over to see Spiderman and Spidergirl had positioned themselves at two other tentacles.

"Whatever you have, stick it to the joints and clear!" she ordered as she shoved her grenade into the tentacle joint. Spiderman stuffed his own Spider Zapper into his tentacle joint and Spidergirl stuck her own web grenade into hers, before jumping over to the final tentacle to set her last Spider Zapper.

"Done!" Spidergirl confirmed.

"Clear out kiddo!" Spiderman said to her prior to jumping away from the Octopod. He and the two female spiders sat on their own wall perch as Cyborg Ock recollected himself and recharged his tentacle blasters.

"Your pitiful attempts to break me are futile! Why don't you just GIVE UP?!"

"Not our style Doc," said Spiderman, "instead, we prefer to give parting words, or one in particular…Webs!"

His voice command was acknowledged by the Spider Zapper, activating it along with the other spider tech they planted on the tentacle joints. Two of them were fried and the other two were gummed up by a detonation of webbing, causing Ock to cry out in agony as his Octopod collapsed to the floor.

"AAGGHHHH!"

The pod sat on the hard lab floor with a slight tilt, its four remaining arms moving around wildly above it due to its controller's disorientation. Anti-Venom took advantage of the moment and webbed all four of them together in a band wrap, before jumping atop the pod and pulling all four of them together. Compared to the other spiders, Anti-Venom's strength was greater just as it was in his pre-hero days, which made it a snap for him to pull the remaining four tentacles out of their sockets. Their detachment made Ock scream before the reformed symbiote threw them away like dead snakes.

With that, the battle was over…and the four spiders gathered around to the front of the now immobile Octopod, and the now helpless Doctor Octopus.

"Uggghhh…" Ock groaned to the spider audience before him.

Considering their history, Spiderman acknowledged the beaten villain sincerely, "no more Ock, it's over, you're done."

"Uhhhh…congratulations arachnid, you've broken me…for the final time."

"Save it Octavius," Spidergirl cut in, "none of this is my father's fault, it never has been. I know because I've been raised on the stories, the TRUE stories, not the false lies slanderers like the Bugle attempt to sell every day."

She paused for a moment before continuing, "so I know for a fact, that save for the accident at Oscorp, you alone are responsible for everything that has befallen you. Honestly, it's sad you chose this path in the first place when you could have chosen something better. That choice alone is what always makes people like my parents, especially my father, different from those like you. So you can keep trying to blame him like a scapegoat as much as you want, because truthfully, the only one you can really blame for all of this…is YOU."

Having nothing for a rebuttal, Doc Ock merely silenced himself, while Spiderman, Ghost Spider and even Anti-Venom stood with proud smiles directed at the future heroine who had really come into her own.

Finally, Ock spoke again, "pretty words spider brat…but it's all for nought…"

BEEP…BEEP…BEEP…"SELF-DESTRUCT SEQUENCE INITIATED, DETONATION IN 30 SECONDS."

The spiders watched in horror as Doc Ock's pod lit up red, and a countdown appeared on his window screen starting from 30 and immediately started counting down.

"Enjoy my final trump card spiders, whether you die here or not…I win…"

"WE GOTTA GET OUT OF HERE!" yelled Spiderman.

"Up there!" Anti-Venom said, pointing to the tentacle porthole he had used before. They quickly ran over to directly below it before Ghost Spider spoke.

"We can only fit through there one at a time, and WE HAVE NONE!"

"Relax! Just stay close to me," Anti-Venom said as he spread his arms around the trio before turning his body into plasma and covered them, and the mixture pulsated upward into the porthole out of the lair, leaving Ock behind, who groaned in defeat.

Back up on ground level, and with five seconds to spare, the spider group ran outside as fast as they could before web shooting to the nearest building before it happened…

BOOM!...BOOM!...BOOM!...KABLAAAMMM!

With a cascading array of explosions, the former Tricorp building collapsed to the ground, destroying its foundation and anything else that lay underneath it. Dust from the collapse kicked up into a cloud that the spider group watched from the parking garage yards away. After a few minutes, it finally settled, and all that was left of Tricorp, and Doc Ock's lair was a pile of rubble.

"It's over, we did it," Spidergirl said softly.

"Yeah, yeah we did," said Ghosty, but remembered Ock's contingency plan, "wait, what about that exposure video of us? Is it out there now?"

Anti-Venom shook his head, "not when there's nothing to upload, the virus wiped out all of Ock's systems and data, including the video. Though just to verify, we should check the digital web."

"On it," Spidergirl said before she turned on her wrist shooter's holoscreen and did a quick internet search. After a minute, she confirmed it.

"Whew…well, other than the usual videos of catching me and my parents in action, there's nothing recently uploaded about our identities being exposed. We're safe," she said.

Ghost Spider sighed in relief, "thank goodness. You did great today Rose, your parents would be proud, just as I am."

Spidergirl smiled at her mom-to-be under her mask and accepted the compliment, "thanks Gwen…you too Peter, tha…"

She stopped in the middle of her sentence as she turned to see Spiderman standing quiet and motionless, staring at the Tricorp ruins with a sense of unease. Anti-Venom and Ghost Spider saw it as well, and Ghosty walked up next to him to ask out of concern, "Peter? Are you alright?"

He was silent for a few more seconds before dropping his head, "huff...well, it's just…" he paused before continuing with a sad tone, "it…it didn't have to end like this, did it?"

Realizing that the death of another one of his enemies was hitting him harder than expected, Ghosty attempted to console, "there was nothing we could do, and we all know it."

He sighed and said, "yeah, I know. It's just, I'm supposed to be a hero, protecting the innocent and upholding justice, not seeking vengeance. I'm supposed to save people, including the villains, or at the very least keep them locked up so they can't hurt anyone else, not kill them."

Ghosty continued, "but you didn't kill him love, he did that to himself, believing he would ruin our lives by taking his own, and that's a failure he can take to the grave. As it was said before, he was responsible for his own mistakes and him alone, and in failing to learn from them, it cost him everything." She had to make him understand that the only person who is ultimately responsible for their own life, is themselves.

"Yeah I guess so, sigh…it's just that after Harry's dad that I…"

"Stop right there…" Ghosty cut in, knowing where this guilt trip was going. She gave him a Spider-LOOK which made him shut up and listen to his girlfriend while the other two awkwardly watched. "You are no more responsible for Ock than you were for Osborn. You didn't make the choice for them to become monsters, they did that themselves. You know, ever since I gained my powers and joined you in this life, I've learned one hard truth…it's that you can't save everyone, especially the ones that don't want to be saved."

Ghosty's monologue cast some semblance of uneasiness among them. Fortunately, Anti-Venom broke it as he put a hand to Spidey's shoulder and added his own nugget of wisdom, "...but that doesn't mean you should never stop trying."

After a moment of silence, all three spiders accepted the symbiotic hero's words with a friendly nod. A newfound sense of comfort befell them even as the smoke continued to funnel out of the pile of rubble in front of them.

Getting back on track, Anti-Venom took the lead ahead of the spider group as he led the way to the headquarters of the Order of the Mystic Arts along the rooftops of Neo-Manhattan. They jumped and swung along the city's back alleys as they continued to keep out of sight of the populace who were still on edge from the recent Octobot attack. After landing on another rooftop, the three spiders joined Anti-Venom overlooking the building across from them. It was built in a Victorian style manner yet had an ethereal presence to it. A large circular window with elliptical shapes embossed in it was its most prominent feature. Unbeknownst to all but one, they had arrived at the New York Sanctum of the Order of Mystic Arts.

"Is that it?" Spiderman asked.

"Yup, follow me," said Anti-Venom. They swung their way to the roof and stood still in silence.

Until Spidergirl broke it, "sooo, are we supposed to meet someone up here or what?"

"Just wait for it," Anti-Venom replied, and they said no more.

Suddenly in the blink of an eye, an orange swirling vortex opened up in front of them, all too similar to the one Spiderman and Ghost Spider saw prior to the arrival of Dr. Strange in their time. Out of the portal stepped someone they didn't recognize, a bald man wearing a black robe and carrying a staff on his back. The closest representation the time displaced spiders could compare him to was a Shaiolin monk from kung fu movies.

"This is a private residence, why do you trespass?" he spoke with a stern no-nonsense tone.

"We're looking for Stephen Strange of the Order of Mystic Arts," said Anti-Venom.

"He is not here," the man answered.

"Figured as much, well that brings up the second reason why we're here, refuge."

"Outsiders are forbidden in the Sanctum."

"Not for me, for my two friends here," Anti-Venom stepped aside to show Spiderman and Ghost Spider behind him.

"Regardless, outsiders are forbidden here."

"Even when they're out of their own time?" Anti-Venom clarified with some annoyance. That seemed to get the man's attention, in which Ghost Spider took point.

"Please, we don't mean any trouble, but long story short, Spiderman and I are from the past, and through some magic involving one from your order, we got sent here into the future."

"Now, we need your help to get back to the year 2010," Spiderman added, who couldn't resist the reference, which made Spidergirl and Ghost Spider let out a breath while Anti-Venom snickered. The man however showed no emotion, and merely held up his hands so his palms were directed at the duo. An orange light emitted from them, then encompassed the spider duo who stood still in awe from the spectacle. It ended as soon as the man dropped his hands.

"You two do project an aura akin to being in contact with powerful magic, one that has not been seen in centuries…"

Spiderman nodded and explained, "we figured, Dr. Strange called it the Tempus Madayo, which as we soon learned means time medallion. A guy named Baron Mordo used it on us and sent us here."

The man's face scrunched as he said bitterly, "Mordo…hmph, yes it would make sense that this is the work of the traitor. Even in exile, his actions still bring ruin upon many."

Ghost Spider then asked, "So can you help us?"

He was silent for a moment as he took a cleansing breath, "very well, given the nature of your predicament we can offer temporary asylum, but only for one night."

"That should be all they need," said Anti-Venom before turning to his friends from the past. "This is as far as I can go to help, so you two play it safe from here on and make it home, alright?" Spidey and Ghosty nodded before embracing their old friend in a group hug.

"Goodbye Eddie, we'll see you again."

"Take care bro, and thanks."

Anti-Venom winked at them, and after sharing a brief hug with Spidergirl, shot a web to swing away out of sight. That left the three spiders with their new host, whom Spidergirl had to ask…"Uh sir? Could I please stay with them, at least until we can send them home?"

The man was quick to refuse, but then Ghost Spider vouched for her, "she's with us, and I can assure she will be no trouble, otherwise we will claim responsibility."

"What she said," Spiderman added.

The man sighed before relenting, "very well, follow me."

"Thank you sir! Umm, can we call you sir?" Spidergirl asked awkwardly.

"You may call me Wong, now come," Wong said before stepping back through his portal to the Sanctum on the other side. Spiderman, Ghost Spider, and Spidergirl followed him soon after, and the portal closed behind them. Their return to the past was now in the homestretch.

The Spiders spent the night in the Sanctum, with Peter in a guest room and Gwen and Rose in another, while keeping their costumes on but masks off as they slept. They returned them when Wong arrived next morning with two things, dress robes for them to wear over their costumes while in the Sanctum, and invitations to breakfast. Peter commented how the Sanctum's version of oatmeal and wheat cakes were almost if not as good as his Aunt May's.

Afterwards, Wong offered them a tour of the Sanctum, at least in the areas that weren't considered off limits. They had just passed the door that Wong explained led to the library of Kamar-Taj when another individual arrived. Appearing in a flash of blue light, was a young woman, possibly early twenties wearing an ensemble almost similar to Dr. Strange. She even had his eyes and hair color, which was styled in a way that reminded Peter and Gwen of Betty Brant.

"Wong, I needed to speak to you."

"What is it Clea?" Wong asked.

Noticing the trio of costumed teenagers behind him, she said, "while at the London Sanctum, I received word we allowed outsiders into our New York location, which I can now confirm to be true. Care to explain why?"

Wong squinted before addressing her, "first, you would be wise to show respect to your elders, young one, I have been part of this order long before you were born. Second, I have good reason for why I allowed them in, at least for the day."

"Which is?" Clea asked.

"The boy and white-cladded girl seek to return to their own time, which is a matter of the Sorcerer Supreme," answered Wong. Clea's eyes slightly widened, before returning to normal as she observed the spider duo more carefully, as they awaited her response.

She finally spoke, "I see, you two wear the colors of New York's famous Spider Duo, Spiderman and Ghost Spider, yet you are children."

Spiderman folded his arms, "not children ma'am, teenagers."

Ghost Spider matched his irritation, "and who are you anyway? you look barely older than us."

Clea squinted in annoyance before addressing the spider heroine, "I am Clea Strange, daughter of Stephen Strange Sorcerer Supreme, and I…am 21."

All of their masked eyes went wide as Ghost Spider stuttered, "Dr. Strange is your father?!" A moment of awkward silence befell them as she concluded by saying, "...uhh sorry?"

"I suppose that will suffice for an apology," Clea said with a slight nod.

"I never knew Dr. Strange had a daughter, my parents certainly never mentioned it," said Spidergirl, still surprised.

"I lead a sheltered life, so very few know about me. My father prefers to keep my existence known to those only within the Order," Clea explained.

"Overprotective dad huh? Boy, can I relate," Spidergirl said with hands on hips.

"Ditto," Ghost Spider added before sharing a giggle with her future daughter, making the two sorcerers crack thin smiles as the atmosphere lightened.

Spiderman let out a breath before saying, "cool to know the Doc ends up having a kid too, though if you're as old as you say you are, you haven't even been born yet in our time."

"No I haven't," said Clea with a shake of her head, "and I prefer to not comment on it for the sake of maintaining the timestream."

Spidey nodded and said, "believe me we get it, though speaking of the timestream, any idea when the Doc will arrive?"

"I ALREADY HAVE."

A bodiless yet familiar voice echoed through the hall, freezing them in place. A flash of orange light appeared ahead of them, making the spiders jolt from their positions, whereas the sorcerers merely turned to face it. Floating above them with his iconic red levitation cloak and blue robe, Dr. Strange slowly lowered himself to the ground. The 25 year older version of the sorcerer Peter and Gwen had met didn't look much different, except his hair and goatee were all white now and no longer peppered. Wong and Clea bowed on one knee to address their leader respectfully.

"Sorcerer Supreme…"

"Father…"

"Wow…" Spidergirl was in awe seeing her parent's magical ally for the first time. She had always enjoyed going to magic shows as a kid, and now meeting a real life spellcaster here in the flesh was a childhood dream come true. Dr. Strange set his feet on the ground before turning toward the spider heroes.

"Doc?" Spidey whispered getting his attention.

"Spiderman, Ghost Spider, despite the circumstances, it's a pleasure to see you again," the aged sorcerer replied.

"Well we're relieved to see you, the last time we saw you you were fighting Mordo just before we got sucked into that portal!" said Spidey.

"...and now you've appeared before me again in order to get back," Dr. Strange said before cracking a light smile. "Which I've fortunately prepared for." In the blink of an eye, a familiar medallion appeared around his neck, the Tempus Madayo!

Ghost Spider gasped, "the Time Medallion! You had it with you?!"

"I've kept it with me ever since that accident 25 years ago, knowing that this day would inevitably come."

Spiderman realized something, "Really?...Heeyyy, if you knew this day was inevitable, why didn't you come to us in the first place the moment we arrived?!"

Everyone was silent as the Doctor explained, "just because I'm Sorcerer Supreme doesn't mean I'm allowed to meddle with time whenever I wish. There are rules that must be followed, and one of the biggest if not the biggest, is interfering in events that are meant to happen, good or bad."

"Wait, are you saying, we were meant to come to the future? But why?" Spiderman asked.

"That's a question you'll have to answer for yourself one day. Can't expect me to give you all the answers, right?" Dr. Strange cryptically answered, which confused the spiders even more. Their thoughts were interrupted however as the Sorcerer Supreme returned to the main issue.

"What I can do is get you home, which I'll do right now…" he waved his hands in the required motion while he spoke the familiar incantation, activating the medallion. As soon as it glowed, the familiar sight of a time portal appeared behind him, ready to cross once again. Unlike last time, there was no vacuum, given the mastery of the Sorcerer Supreme.

Dr. Strange stood off to the side and said to the duo, "2010, as you requested."

The Spider Duo along with Spidergirl gave their robes back to Wong with their thanks, before walking up to the portal. They paused for a moment to turn around to face Spidergirl.

Their future daughter said, "Well, I guess this is goodbye."

"I guess so, at least for now," Spiderman said back.

"It's been really spectacular Spidergirl, but we have to go now. We won't forget you though, right?" Ghost Spider commented.

Dr. Strange interrupted, "actually, that brings up another rule like I mentioned. It will all be made clear though once you cross the threshold back to your time."

Spiderman asked with a dry tone, "you're not one to give straight answers are you?"

"When it comes to science you don't understand yet, how can I?" Dr. Strange ribbed Spiderman which made him scoff.

Ghost Spider turned back to Spidergirl, "we'll meet again, real soon if I'm right, which I usually am."

"Heehee, right," Spidergirl chuckled and gave her a hug, and whispered, "goodbye Gwen, thanks for everything."

"Goodbye Rose, both your grandmothers would be proud of you."

Spidergirl turned to her father-to-be and gave him a hug too, "Goodbye to you too Peter, take care of Gwen."

"You got it kiddo, see you in the future."

Breaking the hug, Spidergirl said to them both, "I never thought my parents would become two of my best friends, it's funny how things work out."

"When it comes to the life of Spiderman, I can assure you anything is possible," replied Spiderman.

"Keep up the good work, and give your grandfather and brother a big hug when you get home, and cherish every moment with them like it's your last," Ghost Spider encouraged.

"I will," Spidergirl answered with a nod.

Dr. Strange cut in and gestured to the portal again, "I hate to interrupt, but the clock is literally ticking."

Nothing else was said, and with one final parting wave, the Spider Duo entered the portal and crossed over to their time. The portal vanished once they had entered, and Spidergirl stared at its previous spot with a bittersweet sense. Her one last thought following their departure was her family's greatest lesson, 'with great power, comes great responsibility.'

Spidergirl swung her way home after bidding Dr. Strange, Clea and Wong farewell. She changed into her regular attire on the rooftop of her apartment home before heading down the stairs. She stopped at the door upon arrival and announced her return.

KNOCK…KNOCK..."Grandpa, I'm home!"

"We're here honey come in!" was George's response. Rose unlocked the door using her key and entered her residence where she found her grandfather and little brother sitting on the living room couch.

"Hey Rosie! Where have you been? You were gone for a whole day!"

Pushing aside her discomfort at being called 'Rosie', the spider-powered teenager was prepared to answer him confidently, "you wouldn't believe me if I told you little brother."

Benjamin scoffed at his big sister's jab and replied smartly, "oh yeah, try me?"

George chuckled at their banter before he cut in, "now Ben, your sister just got home, no need to harp on it. Though I do share his curiosity on where you've been all night?"

Rose settled herself as she started her explanation, "well, believe or not I was actually staying with the family of an old friend of Mom and Dad. You remember that one guy they talked about, the former doctor with a weird name?"

Benji's eyes lit, "Mr. Strange? Oh yeah, wasn't he the guy Dad said used to be a doctor before he got in an accident and switched over to becoming a hippie healer or something?"

Rose rolled her eyes before replying, "he's not a hippie, or a healer. He's technically still a doctor, he just helps people in a different way now. Anyway, yes, I actually ran into him yesterday, said he recognized me from mom and dad's descriptions, and even said how much I looked like mom at her age."

"Well he certainly wasn't wrong there," George added.

Rose blushed before continuing her cover story that was partly based on fact, "anyway, one thing led to another and we got into a LONG conversation about what Mom and Dad were like when he first met them when they were young. It carried on until after it was dark, and once we realized late it was, he offered me to stay the night at his place with his family, including his daughter Clea. At first light, I bid them farewell and made it back here." She joyfully gave her explanation even though it wasn't the full truth. However she kept it to herself to ensure the repaired timestream would stay untarnished. Although, the pleasant memories she had made and shared with Peter and Gwen would be joyful ones for years to come if not the rest of her life.

"So he really did know Mom and Dad then?" Benji asked.

Rose nodded and said, "yup, did you know they all first met one time when Dad and Mom were tailing Spiderman and his partner?"

Benji's eyes lit up again in pure excitement, "WOAH! You mean when Dad used to take all those photos of Spiderman years ago? Then when Mom joined him after Ghost Spider appeared later? Wicked!" Needless to say the boy was ecstatic, the Spider Duo were his heroes after all. His parents had raised him and his sister on all the stories, and after learning how his father used to photograph them for the Daily Bugle(not anymore though) thought it was super cool that his dad was closely affiliated with New York's most famous superheroes. Little did he know, at least for now, how close they really were!

The boy's joy brought smiles to his sister and grandpa's faces as they chuckled, and Rose walked over to sit on the couch by her brother who sat in between her and his grandpa, "that's right, would you like to hear the story?"

"WOULD I!" Benji cheered as he leaned on his sister's knee. She adjusted their positions so they sat in a comfortable storytelling manner.

"Alright then I'll tell you, on one condition," Rose said sternly.

"What?" he asked.

Giving him their mother's infamous LOOK, she said, "STOP calling me Rosie, otherwise I'll never tell you another Spider hero story again, deal?"

Her brother let out a deep huff, but relented, "...fine." She playfully rubbed his head in loving annoyance, but only for a second.

"Good, well it all began like this…" Rose's chipper demeanor returned as she began unweaving her tale. All was calm and well in the Parker household as the three of them settled into their home, passing the time until their other two loved ones would finally return home.

In the year 2010, in the Museum of Natural History, the Master of Mystic Arts Dr. Strange was settling himself as he contemplated his next move. He had just succeeded in relinquishing Mordo of the Tempus Madayo medallion prior to finishing their magical duel, however it ended with the rogue sorcerer escaping once again, vowing revenge. Now, he was left with the artifact responsible for all this madness, and knowing that the museum was no longer safe for it, absolved to have it secure within the vaults of the Sanctum later, after he solved the problem it had caused.

Mordo's earlier activation of it had sent the two young spider heroes falling into a time portal a few minutes ago. He knew the medallion was the only way to get them back, but he had no idea which time period they had been sent to! The Tempus Madayo's secrets had been lost to time, so other than the spell to activate it as it did before, no one knew how to control it. Regardless, the former surgeon knew it was up to him now, and resolved to study the medallion in deep meditation for as long as it took to understand it and bring them back. Little did he know, another version of himself had already succeeded.

SHOOOMMM

Another time portal suddenly appeared ahead of him, breaking him away from his thoughts. He was further surprised when he saw both Spiderman and Ghost Spider stumble out of the portal and collapse to the ground, and the portal vanishing from existence right after that. The spider heroes groaned as they pushed themselves to their knees.

"Uggghhh…what happened?" asked Spiderman.

"Oooohhhh…I have no idea, my mind's all…foggy," Ghost Spider replied.

"Spiderman! Ghost Spider!" Dr. Strange exclaimed as he walked up and knelt down to them one hand on each of their shoulders. "Your back! Are you alright?"

"Doc?" asked a confused Spidey, "yeah, we're okay. Why wouldn't we be?"

His behavior baffled Dr. Strange, "umm, because you both just fell through a portal earlier, remember?"

"We did?" Ghost Spider asked confused, "huh, weird, I don't remember any of that. All I remember is we were fighting that Mordo guy earlier before you arrived, then you two fought like it was some crazy magical shaolin showdown. Then it led to Mordo activating that medallion he stole with some weird incantation, and then…nothing, I can't remember anything."

"Me neither," said Spiderman, feeling just as lost.

Dr. Strange was at first baffled by their memory lapses, before he deduced a likely reason why. Since the portal they had exited from was another time portal just like the one they originally fell into, it was most likely created by someone on the other side who wielded the medallion in the future. There was only one candidate that came to his mind, his future self. If it was, then he no doubt cast the portal spell with the alteration of wiping the Spider Duo's memories of their future trip upon return, as a means of keeping the timestream intact per their Order's code of maintaining natural law. That being the case, there was only one thing left for Dr. Strange to do.

"I think whatever Mordo caused with that portal messed with your memories a bit," he said as he started his own explanation, "tell me, do you at least remember who you really are, where you live, or what you did today prior to coming here?"

"Yeah I do…As do I," Spidey and Ghosty said back to back with assurance.

Dr. Strange stood back up and said, "then it looks like no harm is done. You both get a clean bill of health and I suggest you two head home to get some rest."

Ghost Spider asked curiously, "you sound more like an actual doctor than a sorcerer, care to explain?"

Dr. Strange humored her, "before I was part of the Order, I was a brilliant neurosurgeon, one of the best in the country in fact. Until one day, an accident forced me to give it up, and I traveled the world to find a new calling, which I did."

"Wow," Spiderman said, astonished as much as Ghost Spider.

Dr. Strange then finished, "but my life story is one for another day, like I said, you two should get outta here. I have to clean up Mordo's mess before I can track him down again."

"Ok, you sure you don't need help?" Ghost Spider asked.

"I'll be fine, this is what I do. You two stick with what you do best, protecting the innocent of New York," Dr. Strange said encouragingly.

The two spiders looked to each other with a nod, and Spidey replied, "Sure thing, later Doc." He waved goodbye and shot a web up to the skylight to exit and swing away.

"Hope we meet again one day!" Ghosty said with a wave before she shot her own web up to follow him. Once they were out of sight, Dr. Strange pulled the medallion out from his robe as he contemplated his inevitable future task.

"Yes…yes I'm sure we will."

After swinging a couple blocks away from the museum, the Spider Duo regrouped on a random rooftop to gather their thoughts. What had turned out as a 'normal' day for them, ended up being completely flipped on its head at the very end of the day. Of course, it's not every day, even for superheroes, to discover that real sorcerers and magic actually exist! Besides that, they felt something was missing, something significant, if not important.

"It's weird," said Spiderman, "it's been a real bizarre afternoon to say the least, but at the same time I can't help but feel like we experienced something else, something that's been…I don't know, blocked."

"I know, I feel it too," Ghost Spider said, "but remember what Strange told us? Mordo's spell could have messed with our minds. If that were the case, I think we're fortunate that a little memory lapse is the worst thing that came of it."

The two of them nodded in agreement for that before Ghost Spider said something else, "although, I do remember this morning how I asked you what our future might entail, do you?"

"Well, I certainly haven't forgotten, it was pretty memorable," Spidey quipped, which made Ghosty giggle.

"Yeah it was," she continued, "It's just that, despite whatever we may have forgotten, I feel more hopeful than ever about our future now."

"Yeah, me too," Spiderman agreed, "after all, we have each other, and there's no challenge we can't handle together, right partner?"

"Right," Ghosty said as she walked up and gave her partner a loving hug which he returned. She whispered into his ear, "see you tomorrow, my love."

"You too beautiful," Spidey said as they broke the hug, and his girlfriend giggled while tickling his chin. She then turned and jumped away to swing back home leaving him by himself.

"Tomorrow, and hopefully one day, forever," he whispered to himself before jumping the opposite direction toward his home in Forest Hills. Peter and Gwen later on both arrived in their respective homes and gave Aunt May and George warm hugs and greetings. Afterwards, they told them in their own way that despite all the pain and tragedy their families had been through, they still felt blessed, and said they are thankful for the family they have had in the past, grateful for the family they have now, and look forward to having in the future.

The characters Clea Strange and Wong are based off their original comic book counterparts. This chapter concludes the story in 2010, the next one will finish it in the future.