Chapter 1 - Showdown
Rio Morales and Jefferson Davis stood atop the roof of their apartment with bated breath, both witnessing the climactic battle between the Spider-People and the Spot.
Below, Brooklyn had turned into a warzone. The streets were littered with debris, the air toxified with dust and smoke. Down there, their son was among this chaos; they had recently found out that Miles Morales was in fact their Spider-Man.
Rio was standing in the same spot where she last had her conversation with him before he left to go find that Gwanda girl. Her hands were clasped over her flaming heart. She wanted him back home. She wanted him safe.
Jefferson, sensing his wife's anxiety, had his arm over her trembling shoulder. "He'll be okay." He whispered, though he was unsure himself. "He's our Spider-Man."
"How do you know?" Her voice cracked, eyes watering. "What if…? What if he isn't?" Her breaths became shallow. "What if… he ends up… like the last Spider-Man? What will I do?"
She broke down sobbing, turning away from the scene his bury her face in her husband's shoulder. He folded his arms around her protectively. His eyes remained fixed ahead, praying for the best possible outcome.
"Come on, Miles." He muttered, barely moving his lips.
Down in the belly of this arduous battle, Miles found himself staring to his nemesis through half-lidded eyes; it was like staring into a cosmically horrifying abyss.
He had Gwen on his shoulder, barely conscious. Her suit was torn and dirtied, her mask gone, exposing the cuts and bruises on her face. Miles himself looked no better, for his mask was shredded, revealing only half of his weary face.
"What are we gonna do?" Gwen whimpered, wincing from pain and exhaustion.
Miles didn't have an answer for her. All the Spider-People who had fought alongside them were now laying strewn all over the roads and pavements. They could see Miguel O'Hara, Jessica Drew and Hobie. Miles couldn't tell which of these bodies were dead or unconscious.
At the very least, they had yet to spot the prone form of Peter B. Parker.
But as far as Miles and Gwen knew, they were the last two Spider-People standing in the Spot's way… but what could they do? What hope was even left?
The Spot's voice echoed from the distance. "It's over, Spider-Man. I've won. I will take everything from you and I will from everyone else." His head turned slightly next to him. "And I will start with your girlfriend."
"No!" Miles' blood turned to ice.
"You can't save her, just like you can't save anyone."
"Shut up!" He cried. "You're… wrong!"
He began limping Gwen away, determined to get her away from danger.
Gwen, however, could barely move. Her eyes were glazed over as she looked to Miles. Unlike him, hope had long drained from her face. They were overmatched.
She recalled the clocktower, what she had said to him about to fate of Gwen Stacy in every universe, how each of her relationships with Spider-Man ended in tragedy, and how she had pulled him close, only to push him away; she wanted nothing more than to go back to that time so she could do it all over, and differently. Now, it looked like she was about to run out of time.
"Miles…" She spoke, her voice barely a whisper.
"I'm gonna get you out of here!"
"Miles…" She repeated. "It's okay."
"No!" He shouted. Miles could already sense the defeat in her tone. "Don't you dare, Gwen!"
"These last few days with you… have been the best in my life." A sad smile formed on her face. "It was like a dream." Her eyes became wet. "You showed me what it truly meant to be a hero." Miles finally looked at her, his heart sinking. "I've tried my very hardest… not to fall for you… because I always knew it would end this way… but I can't help myself."
"YOU ARE NOT GOING TO DIE!" Miles' throat tensed with fear and anger. "WE ARE NOT GOING TO DIE! THAT IS NOT HOW OUR STORY WILL END!"
Tears began streaming from his own eyes, the cracks in his resolve laid bare. All the memories came flooding. He thought of his life with her, he thought of his friends and his parents. He couldn't afford to lose them. Not now. Not ever.
"I'm… not a mistake."
Just then, he seized up, a sharp pain coursing through his body as he glitched, and he remembered… ever since he returned from Earth 42, his molecules could no longer adjust to his own universe anymore, thanks to that spider. He was an anomaly.
He drops to his knees, Gwen catching him. He smiles humorlessly, unable to believe his bad luck. He was even wearing the watch that Hobie made, yet it couldn't help him in this case.
If the Spot didn't kill him, his unstable molecules would.
But in that moment, the shock had also lit a bulb in his head.
"That's it!" The collider… his venom powers… if the Spot was containing energy from all those colliders… he could absorb it from him. This realization caused him to light up like a Christmas tree.
"Miles?" Gwen took immediate notice of this sudden change. "What is it?"
"The collider!" With renewed energy, he shot up. "My venom can absorb his powers!" He then did a gleeful spin. "Why didn't I think of this before?"
"But how do you know it will work?"
Double taking between Gwen and the Spot, who was steadily approaching them, Miles seized her by the waist. "I'll explain later!"
"Where do you think you're going?" The Spot's voice boomed between the broken buildings.
Sensing their sudden eagerness to get away, the cosmic entity summoned numerous black holes to suck up some of the debris, and then proceeded to hurl them at the two heroes; the concrete projectiles fired through the air like bullets from a machine gun.
Miles only managed to swing up to the rooftops in time and wasted no time getting some distance away from the threat. Gwen had shifted onto his back, letting him carry her.
"You can't run away forever!" Bragged the Spot, his hands cupping where his mouth would have been. "Right… I have no mouth… you didn't see that!"
More deaths traps spawned around Miles, firing even more projectiles from all sides like tomb from Indian Jones. He dodged them all, taking extra care so that Gwen doesn't get hit either.
Soon enough, no more portals appeared, which hopefully meant that he got away… at least for the time being. They were back on the clock tower now.
Gwen, regaining some of her strength, climbed off Miles' back as he took of his mask.
"Are you oka-?"
Another searing glitch stopped his question. Gwen grabbed ahold of him to make sure he wouldn't fall off the ledge. Even when he caught his balance, she wouldn't let go of him. It was getting worse; even if they did manage to defeat the Spot, how were they then going to solve this problem? His destabilizing atoms will eventually cause irreparable damage.
"Are you hurt?" Miles repeated, pretending that nothing happened.
"No, I'm fine, but—" Gwen wanted to voice more concern, but Miles eyed her in a way that told to worry about it later. "So… you absorb the Spot's powers? Then what?"
"He's no longer a threat… hopefully." Miles shrugged.
"But what will happen to you once you have all that power stored into your body?" Gwen frowned, frustrated at his calmness. "Do you just release it?"
"Yeah." He shrugged again, casually, which began to frustrate her.
"But how do you know if you'll even survive it?" She was raising her voice now. "Do you have any idea how many colliders he must have absorbed? What if it's too much?"
"The chips are down, Gwen." His tone was somber again. "It's a chance I have to take."
"N-No!" She cried, her voice shaking. "You can't!"
"There's no other choice, Gwen!"
"No! There has to be another way!" She shook her head frantically, her breathing now unsteady. "Maybe… maybe we can go back…" She trailed off, unsure of what she was even about to say; rational thought had left her mind as she clung to desperation.
"Go back where?"
"I DON'T KNOW, OKAY!?" Her sudden shriek started the teenage boy. "I just… I can't…" She turned away from her friend, hiding her face in her hands, and she began sobbing. "You… said… there was a first time… for everything."
Miles' frown softened into pity. "Gwen, I…" He placed a hand on her shoulder, gently turning her around to face him again. He sighed, looking away at the troubled city. "There is a chance that I'll survive." His eyes shift back to hers, glowing. "First time for everything… right?"
He lifts her chin. Gwen's blue eyes were drowning and overflowing. She hated this. She knew he was right, and she hated herself even more.
Wiping her tears, her glare narrowed to a look of determination. "I won't let you do this alone."
Miles looked at her sadly, then smiled. "I know."
He leaned in, Gwen sensing what was coming. She allowed her mouth to open, her eyes to fall shut… and they kissed. Time slowed to a standstill as their warm lips connected passionately. They wanted this to last forever.
Once they separated, however, an electric current surged through her body in a flash. Suddenly, her legs turned to jelly, and she fell limp against her friend, her love. Miles cradled her as he gently lowered her to onto his lap, calm as before. She was now unconscious.
It was a trick that Peter taught him… watch the hands, not the mouth.
"You can beat the crap out of me later." He stroked her hair like a sleeping cat.
Not too long after, he was greeted by the timely arrival of Peter B. Parker, who thankfully didn't have his baby, Mayday, with him this time.
"Hey, kid. I've just spoken to your parents and— Whoa!" He was quickly started by the lying form of Gwen, fearing the worst. "Is she okay? Miles, what happened?"
"She's fine." He stated calmly. "I… tased her with my venom powers."
Peter's jaw fell off. "Why?"
"I have a plan." He scooped her up in a bridal carry, her head leaning into his shoulder. "I need you to take her somewhere safe."
Peter took Gwen, but he was still dumbfounded. "But why would you knock her out?"
Miles inhaled. "Because she didn't like my plan."
"Wait… what are you gonna do?" His mentor's tone was very serious now.
Miles looked over to where the Spot was still wreaking havoc, his eyes narrowed. "What I was made for."
And so, putting his mask back on, he dove off the clocktower. Peter called after him, then shook his head and proceeded to swing the blonde Spider-Woman to safety.
Whatever he had planned, he had better make it out in one piece… for his family's sake… and Gwen's.
Miles had returned to the scene with renewed vigor, ready to face the Spot for the final time. He was back among the bodies of those who had fallen.
Unbeknownst to the young hero, three Spider-People stirred into consciousness. Miguel lifted his head from the dented concrete to look up at the two foes. Jessica had slumped against a wall, her hand on her pregnant belly, also witnessing this scene… perhaps it wasn't a good idea to a baby to a battle.
The third Spider, Hobie, also lifted himself off the ground. When he saw Miles staring into the face of oblivion, he couldn't help but smirk at the kid like a proud brother. Unfortunately, his leg was too busted for him to really do anything. He nonetheless had faith in him.
"Welcome back! So, did you come back to die with your friends?"
Unlike before, Miles didn't waver. He showed no more signs of fear, only conviction.
"Nah." He answered. "I'mma do my own thing!"
Hobie grinned at his comeback… if he could adopt this kid.
Miles wouldn't die with his friends or family… he would rather die for them.
There was a rumble, a sound of thunder… but it wasn't coming from the supervillain.
Energy was coursing through the veins of the young Spider, revving up… and then lightning surged through his body, his venom powers unleashed and escalating.
"That's… new." The Spot observed his arch-nemesis, a tinge of worry in his otherwise menacing voice.
The other three Spiders watched in amazement.
A fourth figure, right then and there, stepped out of the shadows in a purple getup, nodded once at what he was seeing, and then retreated in a hurry.
"Let's go!"
Miles Morales charged at the Spot, repeating the same air tricks to avoid his attacks. He was faster than before while still being kept at bay.
"Whoa, slow down!" The Spot hurled more portal projectiles his way, visibly alarmed by the young hero's growth spurt in power. "Stay back! You're making me… kind of uncomfortable now!"
Suddenly, the Spot was hit by a flurry of explosives, and a purple masked figure blurred into Miles' view. With his heightened senses, he could see the Prowler of Earth 42 leaping into this battle. His counterpart looked his way briefly and nodded a second time.
Miles understood right away; he was going to provide a distraction so he could get close.
"What the hell!? Who are you!?" Flabbergasted, the Spot turned his attention to the purple vigilante. "Oh, I see! You're trying to distract me… okay, well… go away!"
For someone with no powers, this Prowler was remarkably agile. Everything the Spot tried to throw at him, he dodged and countered with his own artillery.
He was nearly there… just a bit further now.
"Come on…" Panted Miles. "Almost… there…"
"NOW!" Cried the Prowler while he was pinned down by a giant black hand.
"Gotcha!" Shouted Miles as he hopped onto the Spot's back and squeezed his arms around the entity's neck.
"Uh, what are you doing?" The Spot, confused, started thrashing to get him off. "Can you like get off, please?" Miles held on tighter. "Are you trying to choke me or…?"
"Now, I'm gonna do this!"
The lightning energy in Miles' body glowed white-hot, its current now flowing backwards up his arms into his chest. The Spot realized right away what was happening… he was being drained.
"No!" He cried. "Get off me, now!"
Miles wouldn't. He used his spider powers to stick to him. He felt his chest vibrating, his heart racing, cosmic energy being pumped through his vessels. He also felt his cosmic nemesis shrinking in his death-grip.
Hobie, Miguel, Jessica and the Prowler saw clearly what was happening. The Spot was getting smaller and smaller as Miles drained more of his powers from all those colliders, his struggles becoming more frantic.
"Come on, kid." Miguel said under his breath. He had to admit, whatever this kid was doing, it was working. Jessica was even surprised to hear this from the man.
"Don't let up!" Shouted Hobie. "You got this, Miles!"
Miles could barely hear their cheers over the sound of his struggle. This was a longer-winded process than he anticipated. This guy had to have absorbed a thousand colliders to get this powerful. He was becoming exhausted… the pain in his chest was swelling viciously, burning even.
He briefly thought of what Gwen had said, of whether his body could take this much punishment, especially for someone his age.
No, he had to do this. The fate of the multiverse depended on this, and if this would be his final heroic act to save everyone… then so be it. At least they would now be rid of two anomalies. This was it.
Finally, Miles was no longer latched onto the Spot's back. He was now standing over his shrunken form, still clutching his neck. The Spot had now been reduced to his human size, having reverted to his spotless white pigmentation.
"I give up! I give up!" The once-multiversal threat was frantically tapping out in submission now. "Please, I give up! Look, I'm tapping out!"
"Hey!" The Prowler called out, smirking. "I think you got him."
Finally, Miles let him go. He fell face-first onto the concrete road, wheezing for air. "I think… my days of villainy… are over now."
The Prowler walked over and stomped him out cold. When he looked at Miles, he unmasked himself. Now, he was Miles G. Morales staring into the paled face of his twin, his Earth 1610 counterpart, and knew immediately that something was wrong.
Miles was painfully clutching his chest, his eyes bulging red, face contorted. His breathing was also ragged and labored. When he tried to speak, his voice only came out in short gasps. All that absorbed energy was still coursing through his body, its light so blinding that it looked like it was burning through his skin.
Through his pain, Miles knew that if he stayed on ground level, the explosion of energy he was about to unleash would wipe out Harlem, maybe even all of New York. He had to get airborne, fast.
The two Miles were shortly approached by Miguel, and then Hobie, who was being hobbled by Jessica.
Hobie was too amazed by what he had just witnessed from the young hero to care about the pain in his leg. He just wanted to congratulate the kid… that was until he too saw his current condition, and his glee faded into concern.
"Hey, bruv… you alright?" He looked to the Spider-Society's leader for answers. "Oi, what's wrong with him?"
Miguel answered somberly. "He's absorbed all the collider energy from the Spot, and now it's tearing him apart."
"I…" Miles tried to speak, his voice only croaking. "I… must… get to… air… before…"
Straining his neck, he forced his head to look skywards and pointed.
Miguel's eyes widened with horror. "He's going to explode! We gotta get him airborne now!"
Taking his hand off his chest, he fired an innumerable stream of web-lines from both wrists, attaching them to the height of two buildings he was standing in between. He then rolled his wrists back until those web-lines tightened greatly around his arms.
With his feet glued to the ground, he would wait until the right moment, when he felt the swelling burst of energy about to break out… and when it did, he released his feet and launched himself skyward as a human slingshot.
With the breeze blowing downwards against his nimble form, he thought of Gwen, he thought of Peter, thought of Peni, of Ham and Noir… but most importantly… he thought of his mother and father. Tearful satisfaction showed through his mask as he closed his eyes, surrendering to fate at last.
When Gwen came to, she found herself rested in Rio Morales' lap and quickly shot up, checking her surroundings frantically. She was back on the rooftop where she had that awkward first meeting with Miles' parents.
"That son of a…" Her memories came flooding back, making her furious, and then anxious. "Where is he?"
They weren't alone. With them was Peter, Peni, Spider-Ham, Noir, Pavitir and Jefferson.
"It's okay." Rio motioned to the blonde, trying to calm her down.
"No… you don't understand—"
It was too late. Before she could say any more, there was a lightning explosion in the night sky where the battle had taken place. It was shaped like a giant electric web.
Gwen leapt to the edge, her spider sense screaming bloody murder. She had felt this connection before when she sensed that Miles was in danger in another universe. Her blood turning to ice, she squinted up at where she saw the explosion… and there, she could see a tiny speck of was looked like a flailing body plummeting from the heavens.
"MILES!" She shrieked; the sound she made from her throat was guttural. Everyone else jumped in fright.
Rio, especially alarmed by her reaction, ran up to her. "What is it? What happened?"
Gwen couldn't concentrate on anything. Her heart was in freefall, just like Miles. Her lungs felt like they were being squeezed by a hydraulic press. "W—We have to get to him… now!"
"Take me with you!" Rio demanded.
Gwen looked to Miles' mother, then to Jefferson and the others. They all just nodded.
She grabbed onto the older woman, fired her web out and swung off, her passenger screaming all the way through.
When they had made it to the ground, Gwen released the shaking mother and gave her a moment to gather herself.
"Yeah, it's always scary the first time?" Said Gwen, trying to lighten the mood.
"Have you done this before?" Rio asked her, her breathing lighter now.
"Uh… no. I always swung on my own." Gwen recalled Peter, her only friend from that world. Had he known that he knew her secret, would she have perhaps taken him for a few swings. "I'm sorry… Mrs. Morales."
Rio could only smile at her. It took her long enough. She was glad.
"Come on." Dusting herself off, she led the young superhero off.
When they arrived at the scene of the explosion, they found numerous Spider-People standing under a huge net that was webbed between several buildings. They must have formed it to cushion Miles' fall… but where was Miles?
There was a tighter huddle right under the center of the net. There, she could see Miguel, Jessica, a few unknowns and… "Hobie!"
Gwen sprinted towards the Spider-Punk with her arms spread wide, only to brake when he motioned for her to stop, an impossibly dark look in his eyes, which was uncharacteristic of him. Her nerves began to betray her again.
The rest of the Spider-Gang caught up to them shortly with Jefferson.
"I'll never get used to that." Stated the cop. "Now, where's my son?"
The huddle dispersed, and what they saw confirmed their worst fears. Miles Morales was laying in the arms of his Earth 42 counterpart, almost motionless. They could hear him gurgling and wheezing.
"Baby!" The nurse ran to her son's side, Gwen and Jefferson in tow.
To avoid an awkward moment with the parents, the Prowler snapped his mask back on before either of them could see his face. He carefully passed the other Miles over to his mother, who nestled his head in her lap.
"Miles?" His mother cried, holding his face between her hands. "Come on, baby!"
Gwen and Jefferson knelt next to his prone form, realization dawning on them.
Miles was looking at them all, his eyes bloodshot, twitching uncontrollably. His breathing was even shallower than before.
"Son." His father reached over to take his hand. "You did it. You saved us all."
Miles managed a weak smile, but it was marred by agony.
His father looked around at all the different Spider-People for answers, particularly the one with the blue suit, red symbol and large build that looked like their leader. "What's wrong with my boy?"
Miguel looked down sadly. "He… just saved the multiverse."
"That doesn't answer—"
"Open his suit." Ordered the mother, her years of medical training kicking in.
Gwen obeyed. Digging her fingers into his suit where the chest symbol was, she ripped it open with all her might… and what she saw underneath caused her to scream in horror and disgust.
Peter and the rest of Gwen's Spider-Gang gathered round to see what was wrong, and they too reeled back. Peni spun away, bursting into tears.
There was a protruding red lump on his chest where his heart would be, pulsating like a sickly alien organism… his heart had been greatly inflamed, and very soon, it would fail him.
TO BE CONTINUED.
Author's Note: I've not written any fanfiction in a long time, but I really wanted to get this off my chest after watching Across the Spider-Verse. This is all based on my theory of how Beyond the Spider-Verse might end. Expect the next chapters to be shorter. This won't be a long-winded story, because I can't commit to such long arcs anymore. This will perhaps be wrapped up in a few chapters. Hope you enjoyed it. Reviews are welcome!