"Come on, play with me!"
As Death Goddess spoke, the Beyonder was already spinning a barren planet like a basketball on his finger before hurling it toward Charlie.
BOOM~
In the cosmic depths, the spinning planet broke free of gravity, churning with immense cosmic energy. Its core destabilized, and red-hot fissures cracked its surface, glowing fiercely in the dark universe.
Seeing the planet hurtling toward him, Charlie pondered how to counter the Beyonder and the Beyond Clan behind him while casually activating his wrist device.
Pym Particles!
HUM!
Dazzling light bloomed in the cosmos. A giant Spider-Man caught the near-exploding planet, golden webbing spreading from his palm to encase it.
HUM~
CRACK CRACK~~
The planet's fiery fissures healed visibly, the golden webbing embedding into its surface, transforming it into a massive starry basketball.
THUD~ THUD~ THUD~
The planet bounced in Spider-Man's hands, cosmic energy bursting with each impact.
He leaped!
BOOM!!
"Fin Fang Foom's No-Regrets Cyclone Dunk!!"
In the dark cosmos, Spider-Man's form erupted in boundless light.
The Beyonder gazed up at Spider-Man's silhouette, grinning widely.
"Hahaha, fun, so fun!!"
He spread his arms, conjuring a starry basketball hoop.
"Come on! Dunk on me!!"
BOOM~~
Cosmic auroras flared. Forgetting their opposing sides, Spider-Man and the Beyonder turned the universe into a basketball court, trading planets as basketballs in a cosmic showdown.
On Earth, Tony, peering through a telescope, was stunned.
"Oh my God, Spider-Man just unleashed the legendary court-killer move! He's going on the offensive!!"
"Holy crap! Spider-Man's attack failed! The planet's back in the Beyonder's hands. He's using an unheard-of lethal weapon—shit, a sneak attack! Spider-Man miscalculated, but with a quick save, the Beyonder didn't score. Now Spider-Man's got the planet again—"
"No, no, no! Out of bounds!!"
Tony's excited commentary left the others grim-faced.
"I can imagine their battle is insanely intense," Harry sighed. "Too bad we can't help him."
Honest Banner looked puzzled, pointing at Tony. "But something feels off."
"They're literally playing ball," Carter agreed.
"No way, absolutely not!"
Old Man Steve was indignant. "Spidey's fighting hard for us! How could he be playing ball with that guy? If that's true, what's the point?"
"He scored!"
Tony suddenly shouted, leaping from the telescope to face everyone.
"Yes! Charlie scored! It's in!"
Old Man Steve: "…"
"Uh, they're really playing ball?" Carter's mouth twitched.
Tony shrugged. "What else?"
Everyone: "…"
They stared at the aurora-lit starry sky, speechless.
At that moment, Gwen swung in.
"Based on observations, the Beyonder is a juvenile of the Beyond Clan. He loves to play," she said.
The group fell into thought.
Old Man Steve clapped his hands. "I get it! Spidey's stalling!"
"Stalling?"
The others were confused.
Old Man Steve nodded. "Exactly. Things are different now. We're no longer on the Web of Life and Destiny. Fate's not on our side anymore, so Spidey's not confident he can beat the Beyonder."
He paused, his face growing serious.
"To be precise, the Beyonder himself isn't the biggest threat. Spidey's not sure he can defeat the Beyond Clan, so he's stalling as long as possible."
"That's right," Gwen stepped forward. "So during this time, it's up to us to find a way."
"Us?"
Carter and the others exchanged glances.
"What can we do?" Banner lowered his head.
Tony sighed helplessly. "Even the invincible Spider-Man's out of ideas. We…"
Mid-sentence, he jolted awake.
"Wait, we're not out of options."
He turned to the group. "I thought of someone."
"Who?"
Everyone looked expectant.
"I thought of—"
"It's me!"
A dark throne descended, and the Dark Queen appeared with a faint smile.
"Jade?"
Gwen frowned. "You have a plan?"
"Of course."
Future Jade smiled. "There's a way, but it needs your cooperation."
"What do you mean?"
The group was puzzled.
Future Jade reached out, and the Book of Ages, hidden in the Eisen Apartment, crossed the void to land in her hands.
"The Book of Ages!" Old Man Steve exclaimed. "Spidey hid it here? That's wild."
Future Jade chuckled. "Only a few can open the Book of Ages. It doesn't matter where it's kept."
She looked at Gwen. "To change fate, you need to understand its trajectory."
Gwen looked confused. "So?"
"I've roughly figured out Spider-Man's fate trajectory, but the deeper, older parts I can't access."
Future Jade opened the Book of Ages. "I'm experienced with this, so I need your help."
"Tell us what to do," Carter said firmly.
The others agreed without hesitation.
Future Jade brushed the brush beside the Book of Ages. "I'll use its power to briefly send you to the place where Spider-Man was born."
"What?"
The group was stunned.
"The place where Spider-Man was born?"
Gwen couldn't believe it. "How's that possible? The Book of Ages can do that?"
"It couldn't before, but now it can."
Future Jade tapped the dark elf beside her throne, revealing overlapping dimensional spaces, forcibly fused by her.
These spaces were painstakingly seized from dimensional demon gods, and now it was time to use them.
HUM~
The forcibly fused dimensional spaces began repelling each other, faintly emitting unstable dimensional energy.
The group still didn't understand what Future Jade was planning.
As the spaces grew more unstable, Future Jade snapped her fingers, dragging Wade from Death Goddess's side to their feet.
"Whoa, what a dark chick," Wade said, eyeing the aloof Future Jade, feeling an urge to grovel and lick her toes.
But too many people were watching.
He had to save face.
"Ahem, why're you all staring at me?" Wade scanned their odd expressions, sensing trouble.
Future Jade ignored him, explaining to the group, "When Deadpool breaks the fourth wall, I can use the repelling forces of these dimensional demon gods to temporarily open a path beyond the multiverse.
The Book of Ages will guide you to the place where Spider-Man was born.
Once you know the trajectory of Spider-Man's birth, you'll have a chance to truly escape fate.
Escaping fate means embracing uncertainty.
And that means…"
"Spider-Man isn't doomed to lose!" Gwen realized.
Future Jade nodded. "Exactly. With a chance to win, anything's possible."
Old Man Steve raised a different point. "But Spidey said collecting the Totem, Bride, and Heir could sever his tie to the Web of Life and Destiny."
Future Jade shook her head. "Severing fate means severing Spider-Man's future.
Escaping fate, understanding fate—that's how you master it."
"I get it," Old Man Steve mused.
Wade leaned close to him, whispering, "You really get it?"
Old Man Steve turned away. "No, but with so many people here, I can't look like an idiot."
Wade had an epiphany. "Oh my God, your wisdom blows me away."
"No big deal."
"Respect!"
"No big deal."
"Respect!"
Thumbs up to Old Man Steve, Wade turned to the group.
"Then I get it too. When do we start?" he asked Future Jade.
"It's already started."
Future Jade's palm shook, and the overlapping dimensional spaces contracted sharply.
"Now!"
Wade slapped his teleportation device. "After it's all over, we don't regret what we did, but what we didn't do."
With that, he tore open the curtain before him.
Future Jade tossed the near-exploding dimensional spaces into the rift.
HUM~ BOOM!!
Dazzling light rained from the void's breach, enveloping everyone present.
Meanwhile, at the cosmic court.
Charlie dunked with ferocity, shattering the Beyonder attempting to block him.
BOOM!!
The planet basketball sank into the starry hoop. Charlie sensed something and looked toward Earth.
"Where… did they go?"
With this question, he turned to the reforming Beyonder.
Having lost three rounds, the Beyonder was visibly frustrated.
"Argh! Damn it, how could I lose so badly!"
"No, no, no, we're done with this. Let's play hide-and-seek!"
The Beyonder clapped, laughing, and vanished from Charlie's sight.
"Hide-and-seek?"
Staring at the empty space, Charlie scoffed, "I'm not playing your boring game…"
"Bleh, come find me!"
The Beyonder popped up behind Charlie, making him scowl.
Asshole, what kind of hide-and-seek is this?
He reached for the Beyonder, but his head turned into a basketball.
BANG!
The basketball burst, and the Beyonder's voice echoed through the starry void.
"Hahaha, I hide, you seek! If you can't find me, I'll heh-heh-heh you!"
With that, he vanished again.
Charlie: "…"
Elsewhere, in an unknown universe, an unknown time.
New York, an amusement park.
As Gwen and the others parted the mist, they arrived at a familiar place.
"Oh my God, look at that!"
Their appearance didn't raise suspicion but drew all eyes.
Tourists swarmed them, gazing in awe.
"It's the Captain—no, he looks like the President!"
A woman with a child rushed forward, pointing at her kid's bald head to Old Man Steve. "Can you sign it?"
Old Man Steve: "???"
He quickly composed himself, flashing a professional smile. "Of course."
He pulled out a pen and wrote his name on the kid's head.
"Steve Rogers?"
The woman looked puzzled. "Sir, I didn't want your cosplay character's name… Wait, no, a photo's better. What's a signature?"
Pregnancy brain kicking in, she realized her mistake and dragged the dazed old man for a selfie.
Carter scanned the crowd, frowning. "They don't seem to know us."
Harry mused, "But they kind of do."
"Of course we know you!"
A kid in a cheap Spider-Man mask ran to Harry, yanked it off, and glared at him.
"Evil Green Goblin, don't you dare hurt Spider-Man! He's a hero!"
The boy stood with hands on hips, striking Spider-Man's classic pose.
Harry was dumbfounded.
"When did I hurt Spider-Man? We're best friends!"
"No, you're not! You killed Gwen!"
Gwen: "???"
She seemed to realize something but needed confirmation.
Pushing through the photo-seeking tourists, she shot a web and swung away.
Her move drew gasps and shocked stares from the crowd.
"Oh my God, she can fly!"
"No, no, she's swinging on webs!!"
"How is this possible?"
Amid the tourists' exclamations, Old Man Steve and the others exchanged glances and followed Gwen.
BOOM~~
Mjolnir crackled with lightning, armor flames roared skyward, and cosmic energy streaked over the amusement park. Harry, on his hoverboard, toyed with the Spider-Man mask he'd snatched from the boy, looking helpless.
"I didn't beat up my friend."
As they left, stunned tourists uploaded the scene to the internet.
It sparked an unprecedented uproar.
"My God! It's the Captain, kinda old."
"Wait, the Captain can fly?"
"He's got Mjolnir—no, tons of them! Awesome!!"
"Is that Captain Carter? She's glowing… Captain Marvel?"
"Look, a black-suited Spider-Man, and it's a girl!"
"What's going on?"
"How are these fictional characters in the real world?"
"Hahaha, I knew they were real!"
In a mental hospital, a haggard patient raised a Captain America shield, leaping onto a bed, laughing.
"They're real! I knew I wasn't crazy! Hahaha, I'm not crazy~~~"
Atop the Empire State Building, Future Jade's eyes glowed faintly, her mind registering everyone's reactions.
"No, it's too late. We need to go back further."
Muttering, she tapped the dark elf beside her. A dark clock in the sky spun counterclockwise, and Carter's group, searching for Spider-Man's birthplace, vanished instantly.