The so-called slum was a chaotic maze, a sprawling tangle of twisted, giant seashell-like structures stacked atop one another.
In the crisscrossing, dark-gray alleys, a familiar figure tumbled onto a wide street, pursued by hovering robotic soldiers.
"Boom!!"
"Bang~~"
The robotic soldiers extended octopus-like mechanical tendrils, their gleaming tips stabbing wildly at the rolling figure.
Occasionally, terrifying plasma cannons fired from their abdomens, bombarding the scene and forcing the figure to scramble desperately, teetering on the edge of danger.
From a corner, Old Steve watched, his weathered face showing surprise.
"I don't think I need to check things out. That looks like Carol, but… not quite."
In his memory, Captain Marvel Carol Danvers was stronger than Thanos.
During the Endgame, if Thanos hadn't had the Infinity Stones, Carol could've taken him down single-handedly.
But this person…
Yeah, a total mess.
Nearby, Tony locked eyes on the disheveled Carol, his face full of shock.
"Krypton's robots can overpower Carol? That's insane!"
If true, his first Resurrection Match was doomed to fail.
After all, even the Invincible Spider-Man couldn't handle Carol, yet these robotic soldiers had her on the ropes.
Krypton's tech was clearly far beyond his reach.
Only Charlie watched calmly, a smirk on his lips.
"Truly a Marvel Superman. Without a yellow star's energy, even Superman's out of luck."
Seeing Charlie seemed to know something, Tony's curiosity spiked.
"You know—"
"Hahaha, Little Spider's superpowers are back!" Old Steve cut Tony off, laughing heartily with hands on his hips. "We're winning this one!"
Tony: "???"
"Aren't his powers webbing and magic?"
"Of course not! His superpower lets him sense—"
"Go to hell!" Charlie interrupted, flashing forward and landing a chop on Old Steve's neck.
"Ouch! What was that for?" Old Steve rubbed his sore neck, bewildered.
Charlie: "…"
"Why didn't you pass out?"
"Oh, after winning my last Resurrection Match, my durability got a big boost."
Charlie's mouth twitched. "Why didn't you say so? You not fainting makes this awkward."
Old Steve grinned. "No worries. Tell me what's up with Carol, and I'll knock myself out."
"You think you're funny?"
"I read a lot of books after resurrecting. I'm plenty funny now."
"Congrats, then."
Charlie ignored Old Steve's attempt at humor, crossing his arms and watching Carol's frantic escape with a gleeful smirk.
"Simply put, Carol's powers come from a special method that converts solar energy into the cosmic energy she needs for lightspeed flight, enhanced strength, and defense.
But this star system's sun is dying, emitting weak red stellar energy compared to its peak yellow energy. It's not enough for Carol to convert into cosmic energy. She's lucky to even stay functional."
Tony and Old Steve nodded, getting it.
"So she's weak right now. Even with gravity field protection, her strength's taken a huge hit," Tony said.
"It's not that Krypton's robots are too strong—it's that Carol's weakened," Old Steve added.
Tony mused, already brainstorming an anti-Captain Marvel suit design.
"Boom!!"
Suddenly, a plasma cannon blasted the street. Carol, increasingly frail, could no longer fend off the robotic soldiers.
A split-second too slow, she was hit by a plasma burst, her body disintegrating into particle fragments.
"Oof, she's out," Charlie said, clapping his hands, only to draw the robots' attention.
Charlie: "…"
Old Steve stepped back quietly. "I'll count to three, then we split and run."
Tony's face hardened. "Got it. Start."
"Three!" Old Steve whispered, then bolted without hesitation.
Seeing the empty space beside him, Tony's face darkened.
But before he could act, the robotic soldiers turned and left, showing no interest in capturing them.
Tony: "???"
"They didn't see us?" he asked, stunned.
Charlie shrugged. "Obviously not."
"Then our heroic aura must've intimidated them," Old Steve said, circling back.
Charlie rolled his eyes. "All you've got is old-man aura."
He glanced at the departing robots, a thought forming. "Remember those Kryptonian soldiers who gave up chasing us?"
Tony nodded. "Yeah, they were weird. These robots are weird too."
Old Steve stroked his chin, eyeing Charlie suspiciously. "Little Spider, you don't have connections here too, do you?"
If not for Spider-Man's "network," there was no reason for the soldiers to let them go.
Carol had just died right in front of them.
Charlie shook his head. "First time here. Haven't had time to cozy up to anyone."
"If I'm right, Kryptonian soldiers and robots have strict roles. They don't meddle outside their duties."
Tony and Old Steve exchanged glances.
"No way. That's absurd," Tony said.
"Robots, sure—maybe it's their programming. But the soldiers are living people. How could they be that rigid?" Old Steve argued.
Charlie looked at the city's tallest building. "Because of advancing tech, Kryptonians no longer reproduce naturally. They use genetic engineering to create new citizens.
Before a child is born, their societal role is already planned—worker, soldier, leader, or scientist. It's decided pre-birth."
"Destined before they're even born?" Old Steve frowned. "That's beyond cruel."
Tony shuddered. "How's that different from robots?"
"There's a difference, but there might as well not be," Charlie said, thoughtful. "The Genesis Chamber is a super-device for growing Kryptonian infants. All genetic data is stored in a 'Codex' skull, which feeds hereditary info into the Chamber to produce new infants.
When the rulers need newborns, robots retrieve them from the Chamber's pods, letting them build Krypton and maintain its facade of prosperity."
"You know a lot. Is that your superpower? Never saw you use it before," Tony said, amazed.
Old Steve puffed up with pride, but Charlie's glare shattered it.
"He's praising me. What're you proud of?" Charlie scoffed.
Old Steve blinked. "Yeah, why am I proud?"
Weirdo. He sank into self-doubt.
Tony caught Charlie's earlier point. "So, if we leave the soldiers' patrol zones, they stop chasing because their programming doesn't allow cross-area pursuits."
Charlie nodded. "Probably. These are low-level soldiers; their genetic coding isn't perfect.
As for the robots chasing Carol, I suspect there's another reason."
Having played so many Resurrection Matches, Charlie could now pick up on subtle details without needing to die and retry.
He was getting too good, making other participants feel irrelevant.
"Something's off," Old Steve said, frowning. "Even if those soldiers give up, the ones in this area might still come after us."
"So," Tony's face darkened, "they've probably surrounded us."
He looked up sharply.
The sky was calm, no sign of trouble.
Only Carol's tattered suit floated overhead.
"Is that her jacket?" Tony asked.
"Nah, probably her underwear," Charlie replied.
"Lace, huh? Didn't peg her for the secretly flashy type," Old Steve said.
Tony grinned oddly. "I like it."
Charlie side-eyed him. "Having another episode?"
"He's got it bad," Old Steve quipped.
Carter returned from scouting, glancing at Tony with disdain. "I got intel. This is Krypton."
Charlie: "…"
"We already knew that."
Old Steve palmed his forehead. "What else?"
Carter continued, "Dru-Zod is Krypton's military leader. Faora's his second-in-command. Jor-El's their top scientist, and I heard Zod and Jor-El are close friends."
"What else?" Tony asked. "We really want to know where Clark is and how strong he is."
"Superman Clark, worth two resurrection slots, must be terrifying," Old Steve said gravely.
Carter thought for a moment. "I didn't get anything on Superman, but his other name, Kal-El, suggests he's tied to the El family.
With the Genesis Chamber, family names here are strictly hierarchical. Jor-El's family is one of Krypton's elite, so Superman's likely an El.
If we infiltrate the El family, we should find him."
Charlie didn't rush to act, a thought striking him. "Has Jor-El had a child yet?"
Carter frowned. "You think Superman's Jor-El's kid?"
"Not think—know," Charlie said.
Carter shook her head. "No kids. If he had one, all of Krypton would know, unless they hid—"
She paused mid-sentence. "Your superpower tell you this?"
Charlie shrugged. "Sort of."
Now he understood.
Jor-El and his wife secretly had Clark through natural reproduction, defying Krypton's norms.
They'd never let anyone know.
This was likely the early stage of Man of Steel.
Superman was just born, making him an easy target.
Spider-Man was best at bullying kids.
Especially newborns.
But the problem was, the kid's parents wouldn't approve.
Superman's father, Jor-El, could even take down General Zod.
And getting to Jor-El was a hassle.
But soon, Charlie's worries vanished.
"Bzzz~"
The calm sky warped, and several massive black beetle-like ships emerged from the void.
The disguised crafts slowly surrounded the four.
"Boom~"
Energy flickered under the beetles' wings as they descended.
"Hahaha, thanks for helping me find Superman's intel."
Dark Stephen emerged from his dark magic.
At the same time, General Zod and other Kryptonian leaders stepped out of the ships, their faces unreadable.
"Click~"
Elite soldiers encircled Charlie and the others, their bio-exoskeletal weapons glowing faintly, radiating a dangerous aura that even shocked Charlie.
"They teamed up? That fast?" Tony exclaimed.
Old Steve waved it off. "Relax, Little Spider's got this."
Carter hesitated. "I think this round's busted."
Old Steve scoffed. "No way. I always believe in Little Spider. He's the best, most amazing Spider-Man!"
Carter pointed at Charlie, already surrendering with hands raised, her cheek twitching. "That's your best, most amazing Spider-Man?"
Old Steve: "???"
To ease the awkwardness, he raised his hands too. "I read a book that said, 'The wise adapt to the times.' Little Spider's even better than I thought."
"I'm proud of him!!!" he shouted.
Carter: "…"
Hearing the commotion, Charlie glanced back, touched by Old Steve's loyalty. "Old man…"
"Little Spider…"
"Old man…"
"Litt—"
"Shut up!" Dark Stephen snapped, cutting off their sentimental exchange.
He sneered. "Spider-Man, we meet again. Since we parted, I've thought of you every moment."
Charlie shivered. "That's so creepy, dude!"
Dark Stephen ignored the jab. "Thanks for teaching me how to play the Resurrection Match last time. I learned well."
Teaming up with the local world's natives to defeat other participants—that was Spider-Man's lesson.
He hadn't forgotten being ganged up on in the last match.
Charlie got it. "So you didn't go to fight—you went to negotiate. No wonder it was so quiet."
"You're too late to figure it out."
Feeling victorious, Dark Stephen turned to Zod. "Jor-El's yours. He's illegally birthed a new Kryptonian naturally. You know what to do. It's to your benefit."
Zod frowned slightly. "Can you confirm his intel's true?"
"Of course. You know who he is? He's Spider-Man!"
For Charlie, Dark Stephen felt both admiration and seething resentment.