Not long after, a beastly roar erupted in the alley. Having guzzled a massive dose of mysterious serum, Sergei ignored the hail of gunfire and charged straight at the leisurely Charlie.
"Spider-Man, I'm gonna hunt you down!"
Bang!
Before he could finish, Charlie raised a fist, and Sergei's entire face caved in.
Sergei: "…"
He staggered back, rubbing his distorted face, which quickly snapped back to normal—clearly the work of some serum granting him powers akin to a shape-shifting symbiote.
"That didn't count. Let's go again!"
His leg muscles bulged massively, and he launched himself like a cannonball, hurtling toward Charlie.
Charlie's expression didn't flicker. With a single hand, he formed a mystic seal, then slapped a palm against Sergei's chest.
Buzz!
Instantly, a spider totem bloomed on Sergei's chest. His body arched backward, and a shadowy essence was forcibly ripped from him.
"What is this?"
Floating in midair, Sergei stared at the "Sergei" before him, his eyes shifting from confusion to terror.
The air around him was bone-chilling, the world's malice crashing over him like a tidal wave.
A gust of wind blew through, and Sergei felt his heart seize with dread, as if he might scatter into the breeze at any moment.
In extreme panic, he flailed his limbs, trying to "swim" his soul back into his body.
But no matter how he thrashed, he couldn't move an inch.
Like a drowning man in an endless sea, despair and fear overwhelmed him.
"No!! Why is this happening? Why…"
"I already gave you a chance."
Charlie cut him off, a flicker of magical light glowing in his palm. Sergei's soul shattered into fragments under the mystic energy.
"No!!"
Pfft~
The soul exploded, scattering tiny specks of light. Carter, puzzled, looked at Charlie.
"What just happened? Why's he not moving?" She pointed at Sergei, now slumped motionless on the ground, utterly baffled.
Charlie shrugged. "Probably got spooked senseless by the invincible Spider-Man."
Carter rolled her eyes. "You think I'd buy that?"
"Nope."
Charlie shook his head, then shot a web and swung into the alley, using the same trick to shatter Chameleon's soul.
[You, the friendly neighborhood hero, ended a pointless hunting ritual. Retry count +3]
Glancing at the prompt, Charlie strolled out of the alley.
Soul magic didn't just let him project his own soul—it could yank out an opponent's too.
Shatter the soul, leave the body, and Sergei and Chameleon were nothing but vegetables now.
No more worrying about villains breaking out of prison.
Absolutely perfect!
As for the captured mutants, Charlie narrowed his eyes.
Unlike the relentless hunter Kraven, these goons posed no threat. The real target was whoever hired them.
"Dear Commander Carter, they're all yours. If they don't talk, I can step in."
"You?" Carter crossed her arms. "Know anything about interrogation?"
"Not really, but I know magic."
"Magic?"
Carter blinked. "Hypnotic magic?"
"Something like that."
"Alright, if I need you, I'll call."
…
After the fiasco, Charlie returned to the Eisen apartment. Wade and baby Kingpin still weren't back, which suited him just fine.
The next day, he visited Bleecker Street. Uncle Ben and Aunt May were totally used to his "business trips" by now.
The family shared a meal.
That evening, while swinging through the city, Charlie vanished without warning between the skyscrapers.
An hour later, he reappeared in the same spot, holding old man Steve's "relic."
A golden orb. A Time Tablet.
The old man's life had ended, and this was the first time Charlie personally saw him off.
It felt super weird.
Of course, his summon to the cinematic universe wasn't just to grab the Time Tablet.
Glancing toward the apartment, Charlie swung toward S.H.I.E.L.D.
Boom~
Midway, he ran into Agent Hill working late and hitched a ride.
S.H.I.E.L.D., Laboratory.
"It's definitely nanotech, but it seems way more advanced."
Helen Cho scanned the tech suit Charlie brought, marveling.
"The suit's packed with tech far beyond this era. Besides Stark, I can't think of anyone who could replicate it."
She looked at Charlie, brimming with curiosity.
"Spider-Man, where'd you get this? This stuff doesn't belong in this era."
Charlie spread his hands. "Snagged it from some shadowy guy."
Helen frowned. "Shadowy guy… Wakanda?"
"Wakanda?" Carter, nearby, looked confused. "What's Wakanda?"
Helen explained, "A secretive nation. They occasionally invite scientists to exchange tech. I've been there—learned nanotech from them."
Charlie raised a brow. This Wakanda wasn't totally isolated. Interesting.
He asked, "How's Tony's nanotech suit coming?"
Helen shook her head. "He's not taking it seriously. Lately, he's just throwing parties, having a blast."
Carter's face soured. "What a playboy. Never does anything productive."
Charlie, though, had another theory.
Tony slacking off had a reason.
The cinematic universe's Infinity Tony had accessed 31st-century tech from Kang the Conqueror's computer. Kang's tech suit wasn't a priority anymore.
But upgrading a suit takes time—not as fast as transplanting tech suit components into Charlie's Spider-Suit.
So he brought the tech suit to this world to upgrade his own gear.
Problem was, few people could pull it off.
Looked like he'd need Tony's help after all.
With that, he borrowed a quinjet from Carter and raced to Stark Tower.
Sadly, Tony wasn't at the tower.
So Charlie headed to Tony's private villa.
The coast, Liberty City, an outrageously lavish villa. Women swarmed around Tony, decked out in his armor.
Amid pulsing music and dancing, Tony showed off his suit's urine filtration system, earning cheers.
Charlie, arriving, shook his head, unimpressed.
"What's so cool about that?" he muttered.
"He's not the Stark he used to be."
A strange voice sounded nearby.
Charlie turned, facing pitch darkness, and blinked instinctively.
"Who's talking?" he asked.
"Me."
Rhodes stepped forward, finally visible in the light.
"Sorry, you're too dark. Didn't see you." Charlie grinned.
Rhodes' face darkened further.
"Tony mentioned you, Spider-Man. You're definitely cut from the same cloth."
"Why's that?"
"You're both annoying when you talk."
"I think you've got me wrong."
Before Charlie could finish, Rhodes shouted into the crowd.
"Whoa! It's Spider-Man!!"
At his yell, the women turned.
Confirming it was the real Spider-Man, they squealed, swarming him.
"It's really Spider-Man!"
"His metal suit is so cool!"
"And those muscles—amazing!"
"Hey, wash your hands before touching."
The crowd surged toward Charlie. Rhodes sidled up to Tony.
"Had enough?" Rhodes asked, face grim.
Thanks to the lighting, Tony couldn't see his expression but caught the anger in his tone.
"Want a drink?" Tony shrugged, reaching for a glass.
"I said, have you had enough?"
Rhodes snatched the glass, his face stormy. "I don't know what's going on with you, but you're letting a lot of people down. You're Iron Man, not a drunk, not the old playboy."
Tony, unfazed, slurred, "You've got the wrong guy. I'm just a lousy arms dealer."
He plopped onto the floor, grabbing a whiskey bottle and chugging.
Rhodes yanked it away, taking a deep breath.
"Spider-Man's back. Even if I can't help you, he can."
Tony paused at that.
"Spider-Man's here?"
He lowered his head, a smirk tugging at his lips, then swung a sudden punch at Rhodes.
Bang!
Rhodes flew back, crashing into a liquor cabinet, drawing every eye.
"Oh my God! They're fighting!"
"It's one-sided."
"No, this is insane. Stark beating up Colonel Rhodes? That's tomorrow's headline."
"Spider-Man's been owning the headlines lately."
The startled women huddled, whispering, debating whether to leave.
Charlie frowned.
This was getting out of hand.
As for Rhodes, dazed from the punch and lying in broken glass, he dimly saw Tony's smug face.
"Rhodes, you don't get to meddle in my life. We're done."
Tony waved. "Happy, get him to a hospital."
Then he turned to Charlie, nonchalant. "Yep, that's me now. A jerk. You can start hating me."
Charlie, thoughtful, stepped aside as Happy carried the injured Rhodes away.
"You seem in a great mood," Charlie said with a smile.
Tony shrugged. "Yeah. Wanna join the fun? Stay. If not, you're not welcome."
"Oh, I love it here."
Charlie stepped forward. Tony snapped his fingers.
Click!
Clank clank~
Instantly, the party lit up with sparks as drones aimed their guns at Charlie.
"Still love it?" Tony taunted recklessly.
Charlie finally sensed something off.
This felt premeditated.
If it was just palladium poisoning, a burned-out Tony wouldn't act like this.
So…
"Now this is getting interesting."
His eyes flickered with faint blue light. He turned. "I'll leave you to it then. Good luck, Iron Man."
He hopped into the quinjet and left the villa.
The women gasped as Spider-Man departed.
Tony laughed arrogantly. "See that? Spider-Man got scared off by Iron Man!"
He tossed out wads of cash, and the women scrambled for it.
"Yep, Spider-Man ran from Iron Man!"
"Iron Man forever!!"
They cheered for the money, dignity forgotten.
…
Meanwhile, the quinjet skimmed the sea, kicking up waves.
"Dear Captain Carter, Tony's in trouble," Charlie contacted Carter.
On the holo-screen, Carter's face was grave.
"I know. He hurt Rhodes. He'll get sued."
"No, I mean Tony's in trouble."
"What's the difference?"
"There's a difference."
Charlie glanced at the villa through the rearview.
"Whatever happens, keep an eye on him. Stop him before he screws up more."
Carter looked baffled. "What else could he screw up?"
"No idea."
Charlie switched to autopilot, reclined his seat, and propped his hands behind his head.
"If I'm right, S.H.I.E.L.D.'s about to have a big problem."
"More problems…"
Carter rubbed her temples, a move straight out of Nick Fury's playbook.
She knew Charlie wouldn't say this without reason.
So S.H.I.E.L.D. was in for real trouble.
"I'm starting to envy Nick Fury," Carter said with a bitter smile. "He wasn't fired—he escaped. I regret taking this job."
"Too late now," Charlie said.
Carter nodded. "Yeah, too late."
"Is it because of this so-called mutant god?" she asked.
Charlie thought. "Not sure. But before the crisis blows up, I need to deal with Apocalypse."
"Ask the Sorcerer Supreme for help?"
"Nah, she'd say no. It's on me."
"Can you handle it?"
"Gotta, whether I can or not."
"Oh, did those mutants talk?" Charlie asked.
Carter's face turned odd at the mention.
"They talked. No resistance at all."
"Who's behind it?"
"A lot of people. Not one person—a group."
"Huh?" Charlie had a bad feeling.
Carter took a deep breath. "Including some senators, General Ross from the military, and some world-class tycoons."
Charlie sat up.
"Now it makes sense."
Instead of anger, he was pleased.
"I should've guessed. Killing Spider-Man was never gonna work, especially with just a bunch of low-tier mutant goons. Their real goal was to spark a war between Spider-Man and everyone else."
"A war?"
Carter's headache worsened.
"I thought of that too, but what's the point? Everyone knows Spider-Man's unkillable."
"Maybe I'm not their target."
"Not you?"
Carter caught on. "Using Spider-Man to take on human authorities. Sounds more and more like a mutant plan."
"Doesn't matter."
Charlie grinned. "What matters is, it's time for Apocalypse to get his Spider-Man."
Carter: "…"
Saving the world doesn't need to sound so flirty, does it?