"Friendly Neighborhood Cosmic Hammer!"
As dazzling magic bloomed in the void, light and shadow flickered, and a red-and-blue giant rose from the ground.
The raging giant shot webs, dragging the massive Celestial skull crashing into the earth. Tony, its "captive," gaped, his face full of heartache.
"Easy! Don't wreck it!!"
BOOM!!
The response was the explosive crash of the Celestial skull hitting the ground, sending a terrifying shockwave across the city.
"No!!"
Carter and the others scrambled back, activating the city's defense shield to counter the devastating force.
In a scene resembling an asteroid strike, a massive crater was shrouded in thick haze.
The red-and-blue giant stomped into the crater, but before he could shove the Celestial skull aside to check his handiwork, endless dark magic surged from the pit. The skull was violently pushed away, and countless dark tentacles erupted, instantly binding the giant's body.
"Damn bug, you're still alive?"
In the darkness, Doctor Doom adjusted his skewed mask.
His body radiated terrifying magical fluctuations, his exposed eyes blazing with fury.
"Tell me, how did you fool my eyes?" He manipulated the endless dark tentacles, locking Charlie's body without leaving an inch of wiggle room.
Charlie tugged at the tentacles, but finding no escape, he looked down at the diminutive Doctor Doom.
"Nice magic practice, but if you want the truth, there's only one way—kill me again!"
As he spoke, light flickered, and Charlie's body shrank rapidly, vanishing into thin air. The dark tentacles lost their target.
Doctor Doom sneered coldly.
"Then as you wish!"
Over the past decade, he'd collected every scrap of data on Spider-Man.
Pym Particles? He had those too!
BEEP BEEP~
With a tap on his wrist device, his form vanished in a shimmer of light.
In the micro-world, Charlie, who was sneaking toward Doctor Doom, lost his target.
"Huh?"
As a planet-like speck of dust drifted by, Charlie sensed something off, but his spider-sense stayed silent.
HUM~
BOOM!!
A dust particle exploded with energy, engulfing Charlie and slamming him into another speck at lightning speed.
BANG!!
Charlie's form embedded into the uneven dust surface.
Scorch marks from energy burns lingered on the nano-metal at his chest.
The damage was negligible to him.
But his spider-sense failing confirmed one thing.
This guy had a way to neutralize it—troublesome.
BOOM!!
Another energy beam shot toward him. Charlie swiped his wrist device, his body expanding massively. Now gigantic, he swung a dust particle like a weapon toward the source of the energy.
HUM~
RUMBLE!!
The colliding dust particles erupted into countless fragments. Doctor Doom grew larger too, his iron fist shattering the air's impurities, intent on grinding Spider-Man to dust.
Charlie met him head-on with a punch.
BOOM!!
The clash of fists unleashed an invisible shockwave, tearing apart nearby dust particles. Both figures landed on the peaks of a jagged "mountain range."
WHOOSH~~
As the wind howled, Doctor Doom rubbed his wrist, his tone dripping with disdain.
"Is this the invincible strength of Spider-Man? Seems I overestimated you."
Charlie flicked his hand, chuckling. "You're no better. Doctor Doom shouldn't be this weak."
At that, Doctor Doom laughed instead of raging.
"Heh, annoying bug. Let's see how tough you talk next."
With a wave of his hand, an endless army of ants surged from the mountain range, crushing everything in their path, determined to devour Spider-Man.
But before Charlie could act, a colossal foot smashed down, wiping out swaths of ants.
Above the "clouds," Old Steve's eyes glowed like blue stars.
Yes, he'd spotted the micro-world battle.
"Lit~tle~ Spi~der~ Get~ Out~ I'll~ Crush~ Him~~"
Old Steve's voice echoed through the heavens, his mountain-sized foot crashing down.
BOOM!!!
It felt like the apocalypse.
But Doctor Doom teleported away instantly, reappearing behind Charlie.
"Your buddy's too naive."
As he sneered, his palm unleashed a dark energy blast, a fusion of dark magic and tech weaponry.
BOOM!!
BANG~
Under the dark energy's assault, Charlie's body was corroded to nothing.
"Dead."
Doctor Doom dusted his hands. "Jumping clown, I did overestimate you."
"Is that so?"
Suddenly, a familiar voice sounded behind him. Doctor Doom's heart skipped.
"How—"
"Friendly Neighborhood Vitality Slash!"
HUM!
Magical sparks rained down, enveloping Doctor Doom, then snapped shut.
SHINK!
The closing portal sliced through Doctor Doom's body, leaving only his lower half standing.
Charlie dusted his hands. "Done… or maybe not."
Under his gaze, Doctor Doom's lower half stood firm, flesh wriggling at the cut, rapidly regenerating.
Before Doom could fully "revive," Charlie retreated a kilometer, palms pressed together, firing blazing web-balls like they were free.
PEW PEW PEW
RUMBLE!!
A nuclear explosion rocked the micro-world, a "massive" mushroom cloud rising.
Even with full firepower, Charlie wasn't reassured.
Sure enough, light flickered in the cloud, and Doctor Doom reappeared, rapidly growing larger.
"Damn bug, I'm getting serious!!"
Doctor Doom roared, his armor erupting in dazzling energy, blasting everything around him.
RUMBLE!!
BOOM!!
Another explosion rocked the lower world, but a golden light descended. The Temporal Spider infused Charlie's suit, and an infinitely vast portal enveloped the sky, sucking in all the explosive energy into an unknown dimension.
HUM~
As the explosion faded, the golden Spider-Man spread his arms, embracing the world.
Specks of light scattered, and Charlie snapped his fingers.
SNAP!
HUM~
With the skill activated, Arthur, wielding a golden trident, reappeared in the Marvel Universe.
"Father! Your suit's not as cool as mine."
Arthur pointed at his golden scale armor, smug as ever.
Charlie: "."
He snatched the trident and kicked Arthur aside.
"Lemme borrow this."
Trident in hand, Charlie leaped into the air, golden lightning crackling in the void.
RUMBLE!!
BANG!
Golden lightning engulfed Doctor Doom's position, but he didn't flinch. He unleashed dimensional magic, twisting everything around him under unknown rules.
BOOM!
The lightning shattered the ground. Doctor Doom stepped forward, closing in on Charlie instantly.
"Interesting weapon."
Before Charlie could react, Doom grabbed the trident, his eyes glowing an eerie purple.
HUM~
"Careless~"
As the purple aura spread, Charlie felt dizzy.
When he came to, the trident was in Doom's hands.
"You—"
SHINK!
Before Charlie could speak, Doctor Doom pierced Spider-Man's body with the trident.
No mercy, clean and swift.
"You—"
Charlie pointed at him. "Never seen… such a no-nonsense villain."
"Ah! I'm dead again!"
BOOM~
As the trident's divine power tore Spider-Man apart, Arthur wailed nearby.
"Father!!!"
"You calling me?" Charlie suddenly leaped from the void to Arthur's side.
Seeing Charlie again, Arthur shuddered.
"Ghost!!"
"Shut up."
Charlie formed a hand seal, the spider totem flashing. Arthur and the trident in Doom's hands vanished, replaced by a bewildered Diana.
"What happened?"
Summoned Diana scanned her surroundings, then locked onto Doctor Doom's formidable aura.
"A terrifying foe. I see why you need my help."
Her eyes sharpened, gripping her sword and shield in her usual combat stance.
But Charlie snatched her sword, shield, and Lasso of Truth from her waist.
"This guy's a bit dangerous. Stay back."
Pushing Diana aside, Charlie charged at Doctor Doom with the divine sword and War God's shield.
Doom snapped out of it. "Hmph, interesting summoning trick. I swear, I'll kill you for good!"
With a cold snort, he conjured a sword and shield from nano-metal wrapped in dark magic, engaging the invincible Spider-Man in close combat.
ZAP ZAP~
CLANG CLANG CLANG!!
RUMBLE!!
Their fight was almost theatrical. Diana, watching, couldn't make sense of it.
"Hey, gorgeous, we meet again."
Old Steve sauntered over, greeting her. "Don't worry, I'm a bad guy… we're not bad guys."
He eyed Diana's striking figure, then whispered, "Secret: I'm filthy rich now. You into… arrangements?"
"What?"
Diana thought she misheard.
Her gaze weirdly sized up the old man.
She knew Charlie had this quirky but righteous old buddy.
But now…
In a flash, the battlefield shifted. Taking advantage, Doctor Doom ambushed Charlie, swallowing him in dark magic.
"Ah! I'm dead again, again, again!!"
"I'm back."
Charlie landed from the void, patting Diana's shoulder. "Don't mind him, he's a villain now. But if you're into it, I can be rich too."
With that, he sent the confused Diana away, and Doctor Doom's "trophy" vanished with her.
Through Charlie's repeated resurrections, Doctor Doom sensed something wrong.
"No, my data says this summoning skill has a cooldown—one use per day. You've used it twice in a row."
Doom stopped rushing to kill Spider-Man.
His eyes flickered, studying Charlie, hands forming seals to probe an unknown entity.
Soon, his eyes blazed.
"How… Elios is inside you!!"
Doctor Doom was stunned. "I get it, it's the Elios in you!"
He clenched his fists. "That's it. Elios devoured time's rules, letting you bypass cooldowns for continuous summons."
Charlie crossed his arms, grinning. "Not bad, you figured that out. I only recently realized I could play it this way. But too bad, you still haven't guessed why I can resurrect infinitely."
Doctor Doom took a deep breath. "True, I haven't. But no matter. Your resurrection must tie to Elios. If I sever Elios's link to this universe, you'll be affected."
Charlie's face shifted dramatically.
"Oh my gosh, you figured it out! I'm so screwed!!"
He shook Old Steve's shoulders. "What do I do? What do I do?!"
"Little Spider, you're shaking me to death," Old Steve said, rolling his eyes.
"Fine, I'll switch."
Charlie ran to Carter, shaking her. "I'm so scared, I'm terrified!!"
"Get lost!"
"Got it!"
Charlie glanced around, finding a willing partner.
"What do I do, I'm so afraid!"
"Hahaha, don't worry, sis has your back." Lady Deadpool's laugh dripped with sarcasm.
Watching this, Doctor Doom's shock turned to fury.
"Clowning bug, die!"
He tapped his wrist device, and energy beams shot from the city's corners, converging into a massive magical sigil in the sky.
CLICK CLICK CLICK~~
Amplified by the sigil, Doctor Doom formed seals, casting unknown magic. The Elios in Charlie began to slumber.
"Hulk, Jean Grey, take them out!"
At his command, the silent Banner's expression turned feral.
ROAR!!!
The beast within broke free, Hulk replacing Banner, unleashing endless rage.
Simultaneously, the controlled Jean soared, Phoenix Force reigniting.
SCREECH!!
The golden phoenix shadow screamed, unexpectedly expelling the previously absorbed chaos magic.
BOOM~~
Crimson energy spread wildly. Wanda, previously unconscious, opened her eyes, the Darkhold above her unleashing a terrifying dark aura.
"Hm?"
Doctor Doom frowned. There wasn't just one Darkhold.
He had one too.
He'd used his Darkhold to control the Phoenix Force, but it inadvertently empowered the chaos magic's master.
This was trouble.
As he moved to help the Phoenix Force reclaim the Darkhold, the invincible Spider-Man summoned various magical spiders.
ZAP ZAP~
HUM~
With electricity and magic enhancing his suit, Charlie's armor became dazzlingly ornate.
In that moment, Doctor Doom sensed death's approach.
"How…"
His heart trembled. No one knew Spider-Man better than he did.
How could such low-level magic threaten him?
Unless… he'd overlooked something.
The Black Death Sword?
Impossible, Spider-Man wouldn't dare use it.
Then…
It hit him.
Doctor Doom's eyes widened, locking onto the glowing spider totem on Charlie's chest.
All this time, he'd ignored it!