Sky Island.
Agent Carter's office.
Buzz~
Magic sparks slowly bloomed as Charlie stepped through a portal, deftly sidestepping a shield hurled at his face.
"Captain Carter, you're extra cranky tonight," he teased.
Carter's face was stone-cold. "I get skipping the front door, but not knocking on the door or the window? That's too much."
Charlie shrugged. "Sorry, Spider-Man's gotta keep up with the times. Web-swinging's old news."
"Right, Wade?"
He turned, only to see Wade struggling to pry the shield off his head.
"Oh-ho~ Pop! Feeling refreshed already. Next time, aim for my gut—I've been backed up lately."
Carter: "…"
"What is he?" she thought, startled.
This guy must have some kind of unkillable vibe.
Since when did Charlie have friends like this?
After the last restart, Carter's memories of Deadpool were completely wiped.
Good for her.
Charlie wiped the blood off the shield on Wade's suit before setting it in a corner.
"He's a person, not a thing," he clarified.
Behind him, Wade's face lit up with emotion.
The next moment, Charlie added, "You can call him Merc with a Mouth."
Wade: "…"
"Fine, I don't mind the nickname. It's got character."
Carter felt a strange familiarity at the merc's response.
She had some immunity to this kind of nonsense.
"Your suits have matching colors. New friend, huh?" she said with a smirk.
Charlie approached her desk. "I'm here for two things. First, I'm bringing my buddy for a makeover. Dr. Helen Cho's nano-tech should fix up his… messy face.
You know, women are visual creatures. His girlfriend might not say it, but deep down, she's gotta be grossed out by that pile of scar tissue."
"No, no, no."
Wade raised a hand, cutting in. "Correction: she's very satisfied with me. My, uh, equipment has plenty of… textured bumps, if you catch my drift." He grinned smugly.
Silence fell. Charlie froze.
Carter's face darkened. "That's the most disgusting innuendo I've ever heard."
She turned to Charlie. "Dr. Cho's here because I pulled strings. I'm not letting this creep scare her off."
"Fair point. I underestimated his gross factor," Charlie admitted, shrugging. "Alright, scratch that.
Second thing: I want to see the Time Tablet. If needed, I'll take it with me."
Too many people knew how to use the Time Tablet. If it fell into the wrong hands, it'd be a massive headache.
At the mention of the Time Tablet, Carter's expression turned odd.
Charlie's heart sank. "Don't tell me it got stolen again?" he said, dripping with disdain.
Carter quickly clarified, "No, it's not stolen. It's in the lab, but… it's not in great shape."
"How bad?"
"Very, very… very bad."
Soon, Carter led them to the lab housing the Time Tablet.
Passing Dr. Banner's lab, Charlie noticed it was empty.
"Did Dr. Banner quit?" he asked, curious.
Carter shook her head, exasperated. "Banner's not in a state to keep working here."
"So you fired him?"
"Of course not."
Carter explained, "I set up a lab for him on a deserted island. He's researching a way to fix his… condition."
"Isn't that basically imprisonment?" Wade piped up.
Carter shot him a side-eye. "It's Banner's own request. He doesn't want to hurt anyone—or gross them out."
"Oh, sure, I know you're talking about me, but I was serious earlier. My, uh, parts really do have plenty of—"
"Shut it, Merc."
Charlie cut off Wade's rambling.
Wade crossed his arms, sulking. "What's so gross? There's a guy whose superpower is sensing crap. Now that's nasty."
"Go to hell!!"
Before Wade could finish, Charlie's fist smashed his head into his chest.
Bang~
Wade's body crumpled to the floor. Charlie sighed in relief.
"Damn loudmouth, spouting that nonsense."
He rubbed his knuckles and covered Wade's body with a white cloth.
Seeing Carter's odd look, Charlie waved it off. "Don't worry, he'll be up in a bit."
"Alright."
Carter turned, then paused. "No one else is around. His blabbing doesn't matter. Besides, I already knew."
Charlie's eyes flashed with murderous intent. "Give me one reason not to silence you."
"I'm paying your salary next month."
"Good enough."
Charlie started massaging Carter's shoulders, grinning. "Boss, how's the pressure? Want some juice? Oh, your shoes are dirty—let me polish them."
"Enough, public place. Keep it professional," Carter said, glancing around before whispering, "We'll talk later."
Charlie's heart skipped a beat.
What the hell does that mean?
Is she…?
Well, she is a loaded lady. Not a bad deal.
He glanced at Wade, eyes wary.
Can't let this guy know about this opportunity. Gotta eliminate the competition…
He yeeted Wade out the window.
Done!
Charlie dusted his hands. "Boss, after you."
"Hm, you've got potential, kid."
Carter nodded approvingly.
Young folks sure know how to play.
Soon, the lab.
"Dr. Helen Cho, what're you doing here?"
They entered the lab and spotted a stunning Asian scientist in a blue coat.
Seeing Carter, Dr. Cho nodded slightly. "I'm checking if the Time Tablet's fragments could integrate with nano-tech."
Her gaze landed on Charlie in his suit. "Spider-Man!"
"Spider-Man!" Carter echoed, then stepped back.
"Second 'Spider-Man' wasn't me," she clarified.
Dr. Cho ignored her, rushing to Charlie with starry eyes.
Charlie leaned against the wall, one hand on his forehead, feigning exasperation with a hint of pride.
"Ugh, can't help it. Even here, I run into crazy fans. Since you're Tony's friend, no problem—I'll give you a signed photo. Hang it in your bedroom so you can wake up to my epic pose every day."
"Sorry, I heard your suit's nano-tech too. Can I study it?" Dr. Cho asked, her voice soft but sharp, like a cold blade piercing Charlie's heart.
Or maybe not like one.
Stab!
Out of nowhere, Wade popped up, plunging a dagger into Charlie's chest.
"What?!"
Carter gasped, and Dr. Cho stumbled back, horrified.
"Murder!"
"Relax."
Wade repeatedly stabbed Charlie's chest. "Toy knife."
Charlie's cheek twitched. "You're fast."
"Of course."
Wade touched his forehead, smug. "Good mood, fast healing."
Carter and Dr. Cho sighed in relief.
"I thought the invincible Spider-Man was toast again," Carter said, shaking her head.
Dr. Cho patted her chest. "Good, the nano-suit's fine."
Charlie: "…"
"Wait, you said Time Tablet fragments?" he suddenly registered.
Carter scratched her head, embarrassed. "Yeah, sorry. It just… cracked. We don't know why."
She pressed a button, and the lab's barriers lifted.
In a glass case, the Time Tablet, covered in fine cracks, came into view.
"Ah~ Such ancient vibes," Wade said, arms spread, soaking it in.
Charlie shoved Wade's face away.
He stepped closer, inspecting the Time Tablet, brow furrowed.
"Even artifacts can break?"
He recalled the Ancient One's words.
The Time Tablet has limits.
He turned to Carter. "How many times have you used its power lately?"
Carter shook her head. "After your mission, I hid it here. Those senators wanted to use it to de-age, but I gave them a fake tablet and said it needed time between activations."
Wade quietly raised a hand. "To mess with Tony, I used it, like, a dozen times."
"What?" Carter startled.
"Impossible. The system didn't detect any intruders," she said firmly.
Wade patted his belt. "Your system needs an upgrade."
"Oh, shit," Carter muttered, facepalming.
Charlie mused, "Just a dozen uses shouldn't shatter the Time Tablet. There's another reason."
"We've got no leads," Carter said.
Charlie waved it off. "We'll find some."
He drew a circle, magic sparks forming a glowing portal.
"When trouble hits, you don't sit around. Time to call the Sorcerer Supreme."
"Sorcerer Supreme?" Wade asked.
"Bald! Badass!"
As Charlie spoke, the portal revealed the Ancient One, mid-sip, sneaking a cola.
"Something up?" She stashed the cola, her face turning serious.
Charlie stepped into her attic. "The Time Tablet's cracked. Can it still be used?"
The Ancient One frowned slightly. "It's here already?"
She muttered, then looked at Charlie. "It's usable, but not for long."
Wade clutched his head, wailing. "Women are terrifying! She's making me guess!"
"She's probably gender-neutral," Charlie whispered.
Wade's white pupils widened. "Neutral? I'm into it!"
"Get lost."
Charlie kicked Wade aside, then got serious. "Ancient One, why's the Time Tablet like this?"
She thought for a moment. "Simple. It's been overworked."
"Overworked?"
Charlie frowned, pulling a bill from his armpit. "Here's a hundred bucks. Explain."
"No problem."
The Ancient One tucked the bill under her cushion. "In forty days, the world's progress has matched forty years. Don't you find that odd?"
"Nah, it's Marvel."
"But there's still basic logic."
She continued, "The Time Tablet's time force can reverse aging, but paired with specific time magic, it can serve… less obvious purposes."
"Clearer, please." Charlie borrowed another hundred from Carter.
The Ancient One took the money, her smile widening. "Humans are least sensitive to time. Someone used the Time Tablet to accelerate world development, and no one noticed anything off."
Charlie's heart jolted. "Who?"
"I can't tell."
The Ancient One shook her head. "Their magic surpasses mine. I can only sense something's wrong, not track them."
"So, a mage?" Charlie pondered.
"Yes."
"Why accelerate the world? What's their real goal?"
Charlie reached for more money, but the Ancient One waved it off. "A hundred's not enough."
Charlie: "…"
"You serious?"
"You piqued my interest first."
"Fine, my bad."
He turned to Carter, who waved grandly. "I've got cash." She called Agent Hill to bring a suitcase.
"Excellent."
The Ancient One beckoned, and Wong entered, grabbing the suitcase and leaving.
"Add a dish tonight," she called.
"Got it."
Once Wong left, the Ancient One said, "Accelerating the world likely aims to push technological progress for some purpose."
"That's it?" Carter's lip twitched, feeling ripped off.
But the Ancient One paused, then added, "I also noticed something else. The Time Tablet's power didn't just speed up the world—it brought things from the future into this era early.
More importantly, because of the last incident, beings from other multiverses exposed this world to certain… eyes.
Spider-Man, you know what I mean."
"Yeah, I do."
Charlie felt a chill.
The Resurrection Match hitting the main world triggered a bigger mess than he'd expected.
In a way, the match's mechanics clashed with the domains of Marvel's ancient gods.
Catching the big shots' attention was inevitable.
Just didn't expect it so soon.
With future elements arriving early, Charlie figured he'd soon be back in Spider-Man action.
Good news: Spider-Man won't be unemployed.
Bad news: Spider-Man's story keeps rolling.
No crossroads in fate—Spider-Man's only choice is one path.
Get stronger, or face a broken home and death.
Death's fine, but the family can't fall apart.
He took a deep breath. "Last question. What are these 'future elements'?"
The Ancient One glanced at the portal behind him. "They're here."
"What?"
Charlie's expression shifted as Carter got a message.
"Commander Carter, bad news—the Time Tablet's been stolen."
Carter: "…"
"Good news: I caught the thief," Wade's voice crackled through the comms.
Charlie: "…"
This guy's always popping up out of nowhere. Gotta watch my back in the shower now.