Crumbling buildings were scattered across the desert. A vibrantly colored off-road vehicle sped across the wilderness. An old man, a bow on his back, drove into the distance, sipping alcohol. Ahead lay the colossal skeleton of Giant-Man, sprawled on the ground like a cross, serving as a landmark.
Pym Cross, that was its name here.
A faint spider-mark, almost imperceptible, grew clearer as the old man advanced. He drove into a dilapidated small town. A divine hammer, stained with the blood of a god, stood upright in the ground, and numb people knelt before it, praying. The old man, without a word, drove his car to the entrance of a garage, walked upstairs, and opened the door to his daughter's room.
"Ashley, you..."
The dream ended.
Peter sat up in bed. He had just told Reed that he wouldn't be traveling to other universes so soon, but it seemed the "flag" had been collected remarkably fast.
But, a wasteland universe? Why a wasteland universe?
Most wasteland universe stories were the same: villains banded together, chose to swap opponents, then killed most of the heroes and ruled the world. Though this plot didn't really hold up under scrutiny. For example, how did a Mysterio-controlled Wolverine kill all the X-Men? Others aside, how did he take out telepaths? How did he defeat Kitty Pryde?
Peter didn't remember the specific designation of the wasteland universe, but he knew there was more than one. The earliest wasteland universe was actually a side story of the Fantastic Four. In that branch, the future of the wasteland universe saw Mister Fantastic and Invisible Woman return from a time tunnel, gathering surviving heroes and their descendants to restore the world, ultimately battling Galactus. The other universe was the widely known one, the universe where stories like Old Man Hawkeye, Old Man Logan, and Old Man Quill took place.
However, neither universe seemed to fit the requirements of the Web of Destiny. True, there was a Spider-Man in that universe, Hawkeye, and Ashley Barton, the daughter of that world's Spider-Man. But the problem was that the entire story of that universe wasn't centered on Spider-Man, and its development had little to do with him. To exaggerate, it wouldn't even make a difference if that world's Spider-Woman died...
"What happened?"
Venom poked his head out of Peter's wardrobe, asking. Peter shook his head without replying; he was still thinking about it. At that moment, his phone rang. Peter picked it up and checked the message.
The Avengers were back.
A few minutes later, at Avengers Tower.
"So, your next destination is a world where we all died? Wolverine killed all the X-Men? Emma Frost could just shut down his brain directly." Tony Stark, having returned, could only describe the news as preposterous. "How did they kill Thor?"
"The Absorbing Man absorbed the magical energy of a hero I don't know, and lightning controlled by Magneto."
The Absorbing Man had already appeared in this world, got thoroughly beaten by the Hulk, and was now sent to the Raft prison.
"You mean Thor was beaten to death by the Absorbing Man with magical lightning on his fists?"
Tony sighed helplessly. When he first heard the news, his PTSD from the Battle of New York—the fear of not being able to protect the world—almost flared up. But after hearing the story of another world that Peter had "seen," he sighed in exasperation.
His PTSD didn't flare up, but his high blood pressure almost did. How could the people of that wasteland universe be so foolish?
"Alright, uh, we already know you have a very DC-like new suit and your alien friend. Do you need anything else if you want to go to that wasteland universe?"
Peter hesitated. He had originally thought about taking something, but now it seemed unnecessary. Were there any incredibly powerful individuals in the wasteland universe who could defeat Venom? Besides a Black Bolt, it didn't seem so, but Black Bolt in the wasteland universe wasn't an enemy.
Wasteland Hulk? Just a weakling who got soloed by Old Man Logan. His combat power seemed even worse than the uncorrupted old man. The traitorous Thunderbolts? It's hard to say if they combined could beat Venom.
"Chocolate."
Peter finally summarized everything he wanted: "Lots of chocolate. That's all I need. Venom needs to eat this."
Venom also popped out a small head, startling Tony slightly: "Yes, lots of chocolate."
Tony smiled: "Alright, but you'll have to figure out a way to carry it and ensure your alien pet doesn't sneak any. Conveniently, I've prepared a small gift for you. As a student, you need a good backpack."
A good backpack? Could it be...
Tony Stark snapped his fingers, and a brand-new Iron Man suit rose from beneath the floor. Its colors were still Iron Man's classic red and gold, but it largely referenced Spider-Man's costume design. The red-based armor had a massive golden spider on its chest. Additionally, the forearms and shins of the armor were painted gold, and the eye-lenses were also reformed in gold. The biggest highlight, however, was the three sharp, pure golden metal claws on its back.
"I didn't give it a number because it's for you: the Iron Spider Armor."
"Thank you very much, Mr. Stark." Peter didn't expect Stark to build this so quickly, but thinking about it, from the Battle of New York to the Extremis virus invasion, in less than a year, due to his own anxiety, Tony Stark had created over thirty Iron Man suits. Designing this probably only took him a few hours.
"Captain and I both agree on one thing: you're too young. He thinks you need more training, and I think you need armor to protect yourself." Tony snapped his fingers as he spoke, and the Iron Spider Armor demonstrated its excellent storage capacity, transforming into a hollow metal backpack.
Venom immediately mimicked three huge, sharp biomass claws behind Peter, then transformed itself into a backpack as well.
Tony Stark just stared at Venom, then watched Peter tell it to go back.
"Take it, kid. It's not worth much anyway... since I already built it, and I didn't expect you to bring out an alien symbiote." Tony said, drinking milk. "Oh, and. Black and white really doesn't look good."
"Then... thank you, Mr. Stark."
Peter lifted the metal backpack. To be honest, it probably weighed dozens of kilograms, but for him, it was no different from a regular backpack.
Alright, a new day. First, go to school. Based on previous experience, there are still a few days before heading to the wasteland. He should prepare well during this time.
"Oh, Mr. Stark. Remember to check the things I stored in the safe, and you need to shut down J.A.R.V.I.S. and all networked devices."
Tony Stark paused. He didn't know that Peter had filled a safe with webs to prevent J.A.R.V.I.S. from scanning the patterns on them. He just felt that something was very wrong.
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