The day had gone well—so far. Peter had successfully fought off the Raptors, sending them fleeing as they realized that a man with inhuman strength and spider-like legs emerging from his back was more than they could handle.
Brooklyn and the others cheered as they watched the Raptors retreat. All except Yaz and Sammy, who stood there, wide-eyed, staring at Peter. Who could blame them?
No one still didn't know where Ben was night creeping in, the worry only intensified. "Didn't he say he went with Bumpy?" Darius asked.
Peter nodded. "I remember he said that. Who's... Bumpy, anyway?"
"A dinosaur he befriended," Kenji replied, leaning against a nearby rock, arms folded. Peter raised an eyebrow, surprised.
"Really? That's impressive." Peter said.
"It's a plant-eater, though. Doubt any of us could befriend a carn—" Darius started, but his sentence was abruptly cut short by a sharp screech from one of the all jumped, turning to see one returning. "Oh great! Didn't Peter teach you a lesson?" Kenji exclaimed, hurling a small rock at it. The rock struck the Raptor with a dull thud, causing it to screech in frustration.
They began to back away slowly, with Peter stepping in front of them.
For some reason, Peter's spider sense wasn't tingling as it usually did. The Raptor didn't seem aggressive; it merely looked annoyed at being attacked with a rock.
"Hold up—" Peter said, his brow furrowing.
"What?" Darius replied.
"Something... feels off about this one—"
The Raptor snapped its jaws shut.
"What? What are you talking about?" Yaz pressed. "Just take it down, like you did with the others—"
Peter wanted to act, but something about the dinosaur felt... calm.
Though he wasn't an animal expert, Peter had spent a fair amount of time studying science and animal behavior, especially when he was learning about mammals, and and arachnids.
Peter had his hands up, so the Raptor wouldn't pass him, but it seemed to make the Raptor behave.
"Uh... what's happening?" Sammy asked.
"I don't know..." Peter whispered. "But... it's not acting hostile—"
The Raptor tilted its head slightly, revealing a blue streak running along its jaw and down its neck. "Wow, she's actually beautiful.. look at that blue streak..."
The Raptor, made a quick jerk, then looked at Peter then tilted its head. "Eeep?" it said, surprisingly calm.
"Uh... Peter? What it's doing?" Darius asked.
"It... it's reacting to something I said-," He said.
"...What did you say?" Kenji asked. "Say it again then!" Yaz yelled in a whisper.
"Um...honestly?" Peter said. The raptor grunted and then screeched. Peter looked around "Uh, Okay, okay! Um..." He glanced back at the blue streak. "...Blue?"
"Eeep?"
The raptor did the same thing. It stopped, looking at Peter. "Blue?"
Peter furrowed his brow. "Is... that your name? Blue?" he asked tentatively.
The rest of the group stood behind him, trying to remain still.
But that's when Ben decided to come back.
"Guys, I'm back—OH SHI—" he screamed as the Raptor lunged toward him. "AHHH!" Ben yelled, bolting away. "Ben!" Darius shouted, alarmed.
"I got him!" Peter yelled, quickly shooting webs at the Raptor's legs. The strands caught, and he yanked, causing the Raptor to trip and crash to the ground with a loud thud. It roared in surprise, realizing it was trapped. Peter quickly shot more webs, ensuring it was secured but careful not to cover its mouth or nostrils.
Ben had found refuge behind a tree by the time Peter had subdued the Raptor.
"Ben! Where have you been!?"Kenji demanded, frustration in his voice.
"I thought I told you! I was with Bumpy!" Ben shot back, grunting as he brushed past Kenji. "Let's just get back to camp," he added. "That's where I was headed, but you guys weren't there!"
"Yeah, because Yaz and Sammy were stuck in a cave! If it wasn't for Peter, we might never have gotten them out!" Kenji exclaimed.
Ben sighed, shaking his head. "Is this really how it's going to be? Relying on someone from 'a different dimension' to help us? We managed fine before he showed up!"
"Yeah, barely. We could have used the extra help during all that time," Darius countered.
"Darius is right. But, we have done a lot on our own." Brooklynadded.
Ben rolled his eyes, then walked off.
"Not even going to say thank you to the guy who saved you?" Kenji called after him. Ben didn't respond.
Kenji sighed and turned to Peter. "Don't mind him. He's just... different," he said. Peter glanced at him, then back at Ben's retreating figure.
'I really don't want to ruin these guys' friendship. I need to find a way back,' Peter thought.
"New York doesn't stand a chance without you Peter. Without you, this city is hopeless. It's like a playground for us villains. Recess without a supervisor to watch over us. By the time you get back... this city will be destroyed..." laughter could be heard, as Peter could see the entire city of New York was in flames. The buildings are on fire, and places flooding.
He could see someone walking towards him. A person with dark mist.
"Mr. Negative!" Peter shouted, but as the figure drew nearer, he realized it wasn't him. The dark mist swirled around the figure's body, revealing a glaring white letter 'D' emblazoned on its chest. "N-No... it can't be... how are you here?!"
Peter gasped and jumped awake. Panting, he looked around. Everyone was near him sleeping. They had brought him to the camp they built, for them to have a night's sleep. At least they had an extra sleeping bag.
But Peter couldn't sleep. "Why was that thing in my dream for?"
He shook his head, trying to dismiss the thoughts. 'I'm just on edge... being away from my city right now.' He sat in the sleeping bag, hugging his legs to his chest. 'Being a teenager with superpowers is so stressful.'
Glancing around, he saw everyone else peacefully asleep. Above him, he spotted a small overhead shelter they had constructed. 'They really are true survivors,' he thought.
Rising to his feet, he walked toward the steps leading to the lookout.
Once he reached the ledge and leaned over it, he gazed at the trees below and sighed. All that filled his mind was the image of New York City. "I don't even have a phone to contact other dimensions... Do those even exist?" he muttered to himself. His mind didn't even cross to use his watch.
"I'm not sure, do they?"
Peter jumped, turning to see Darius climbing the steps. "D-Darius... you startled me..." Peter said, catching his breath.
Darius offered a soft smile. "Sorry about that, Pete." He leaned against the rail beside Peter. "Isn't this place pretty?" he asked, looking out at the scenery.
Peter nodded. "Y-Yeah... it really is..."
Darius turned to him, concern in his eyes. "Something bothering you? I saw you get up. Is it Ben? He can be rough sometimes, but he's a good guy once you get to know him—"
"It's not Ben," Peter replied, resting his head on his fist, his elbow on the rail.
"Then... what is it?"
"Darius... I told you I'm a superhero. My city... they rely on me. Without me, they're vulnerable."
"Oh... right. You mentioned that before," Darius said, his expression thoughtful.
Peter nodded. "The villains... they're relentless. The citizens... they might not survive without me, especially if I'm stuck here for days."
Darius nodded in understanding. "Then, first thing in the morning, we leave."
Peter agreed with a nod.
Darius smiled, gesturing toward the camp. "Come on, let's get some rest if we're doing that."
Peter was about to, but then he felt like he needed to talk about that dream he had. But he knew Darius wouldn't understand. He'd have to explain the whole deal about how a strange villain he had to fight with a couple of people who were from another universe. But he couldn't get into that now, that'll take too long to explain.
Yet, it was nagging at him, and he knew he wouldn't be able to sleep if he didn't get it off his chest. "Darius..." Peter called softly. Darius paused on the steps and turned back.
"Can I talk to you for a moment?" Peter asked.
"Um, about what?" Darius replied, curiosity piqued.
"This... dream I had."
Darius blinked in surprise. "Oh... um, okay." He walked back to Peter, leaning against the rail. "What is it?"
Peter took a deep breath. "Alright... here goes."
"So... let me get this straight... You're from a universe... that is connected to another universe, that has you existed as a comic character? And... this dark creature came in and terrorized your city, and you with the help of this guy with a giant key, took him down?" Darius asked, blinking in disbelief. He couldn't believe Peter's bizarre story.
Peter nodded. "Exactly... It may sound odd, but it happened. I was always terrified it would return, and then it appeared in my dream, vivid as ever," he explained.
Darius let out a sigh and placed a reassuring hand on Peter's shoulder. "Pete... that was just a dream. I'm sure it was nothing," Darius said.
Peter shrugged. "I'm not so sure."
Darius removed his hand from Peter's shoulder. "You... don't think that thing is the reason you're here, do you?"
Peter shook his head. "Nah, that was all KingPin."
"King Pen? Wait... I can just hear Kenji now... 'King Pen? What is he? The King of Pens?'" Darius softly chuckled.
"Okay, I don't make jokes that lame bruh," came a familiar voice.
Darius and Peter turned to see Kenji approaching. Darius snorted. "Oh yes, you totally do!" he said, playfully punching Kenji's arm.
Kenji rolled his eyes as he joined them, leaning against the railing. "So, I noticed a couple of the sleeping bags were empty, and then I found you two up here. What's going on guys?" He glanced at Peter. "Can't sleep or something?"
Peter opened his mouth to respond, but Kenji cut him off. "Yeah, I was like that. It's tough to catch some Z's in a new place."
Peter sighed and looked down. Darius glanced at Kenji and then back at Peter, sensing his friend wanted to discuss something important but preferred to keep it private. "Hey, Kenji? Can you give us a minute alone?" Darius asked.
Kenji blinked, then looked at Darius. "Alone? Whoa, when did you two become an item? Ya just met—"
Darius rolled his eyes and huffed. "Not like that, you fool! Just give us some space; we were having a private conversation!"
"Ooh... Private what~" Kenji teased, making kissy noises as Darius playfully shoved him away.
When Darius returned to Peter, he noticed Peter was chuckling softly to himself. "What're you laughing at?" Darius asked, nudging him with his arm.
Peter smiled. "It's just that you two remind me a lot of me and Miles."
"Miles? Who's that? A friend of yours?"
"Best friend. Well, my second best friend, after Ned, of course. Miles... he's kind of a long-distance best friend."
"Long-distance? He lives in another state or something?"
"I'd give you one better—he lives in a whole different dimension."
Darius gasped, "Woah, he does?"
"And not only that. He's me."
Darius blinked. "You? ...What do you mean you?"
"He's an alternate version of me. Another Spider-Man," Peter explained.
Darius gasped, while trying to take all this information in. "Woah... wow... this... " He looked out to the trees in front of them. "I never knew all of this existed... I can't believe it..."
"Yeah. I was just like you until I met Miles. And... all the other versions of myself..."
Darius gasped once more. "There's more?!"
Peter nodded. "As I said. I was just like you. Didn't believe more universes existed, but once I saw this dark.. creature.. that is what sold it,"
"What... is that thing again? You didn't really talk about him enough for me to understand." Darius said looking at Peter.
"Someone who can corrupt dimensions and collide them together. He already fused the dimension of this boy with telekinesis with another one that has a talking steam locomotive. Now... I'm actually starting to wonder if he fused mine with yours."
"But didn't you say that was... that King Pen guy?" Darius asked.
Peter nodded. "It was. So... maybe it wasn't Dark-Blade."
"That's its name? Sounds... terrifying, honestly. Does it have a blade? Or... a sword?"
"No... He uses his... mind, I guess. He can deceive you, possess you, or outright manipulate you to get what he wants. And to this day, I still don't know what that is," Peter said.
Darius placed a hand on Peter's shoulder. "Let's get some rest. I'm sure whatever it is isn't here. We need a good night's sleep if we're going to search for that... um..."
"Collider?" Peter asked, looking at Darius.
Darius nodded. "R-Right! Yeah, that."
Peter chuckled. "Sure, let's go."
Darius smiled.
They both left from the top of the camp and went back down to their sleeping bags. Peter couldn't wait until tomorrow, to go and search for that machine.
