Studying one of the sword fragments, Peter discovered that the material was very similar to steel, which seemed strange to him since he doubted Excalibur had been made from such an ordinary material.
What surprised him most, however, was that the material was highly absorbent.
He tested it with electricity, and its properties were out of this world. It was a better conductor than silver, possessed greater resistance than steel, and had superior hardness.
Peter was considering discarding the material since he already had something similar, but a voice in his head told him that he was about to make the biggest mistake of his life. Listening to that voice, he began thinking about what else he could do with it.
Spinning around in his chair, Peter tried to find a better perspective until his eyes landed on the katana resting on his workbench. It was the katana he used as Spider-Man, but now he planned to upgrade it and give it to Itsy along with his two pistols.
Looking at it, Peter realized that once he gave those weapons away, Spider-Man would no longer have a bladed weapon or a firearm.
Then he looked back at the fragmented remains of Excalibur.
An idea struck him.
Standing up, Peter found a sheet of paper and placed it on his worktable. Taking a relaxed breath, he began drawing what he wanted his new weapon to look like.
For several minutes, he discarded one design after another until he finally created the perfect one.
A weapon that brought back old memories.
Satisfied, Peter took the blueprint along with all the fragments and placed them inside a bag.
Leaving the room, he headed toward the forge he had built in the cave, though not before stopping by another room to retrieve the final material he needed. Fortunately, he already had plenty of it because he regularly used it to create practice weapons.
When Peter opened the forge door, a wave of different scents assaulted his enhanced senses. Shaking his head, he placed all the materials on a table and lit the furnace to begin working.
"Soon, you'll become a worthy weapon and cease to be mere fragments."
Peter turned around and began searching for everything he needed, never noticing that the fragments behind him were glowing with a faint blue light.
....
Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.
Wiping the sweat from his forehead, Peter examined the piece he was forging, carefully searching for any imperfections. Finding none, he tempered it for the third time.
Unlike usual, he did not temper the weapon in water or oil.
He used Zynothium.
The moment he did, Peter saw the blade become even more resistant. He had tempered it only three times because each attempt made it increasingly difficult to bring the blade back to the correct temperature, as every tempering process seemed to improve the metal further.
Taking it out of the Zynothium, Peter examined it and noticed that, for a few seconds, it glowed with a faint red light.
He then reached for what would become the handle, which was made from Quebracho wood, one of the hardest woods in the world. After making the final adjustments, Peter lifted the completed weapon and admired the beautiful result in his hand.
Turning around, he swung the axe and buried it in the wall.
"Beautiful weapon. Why did you choose an axe out of all the options you had?" a voice suddenly asked.
"Because that design has sentimental value. You wouldn't understand, Cassandra."
Peter walked toward the wall, pulled out the axe, and turned to face Madame Web.
"What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be doing your job? I don't want you neglecting your duties."
"Well, I am doing my job. And don't compare me to the other Carpenter again."
Cassandra crossed her arms.
"But it is incredibly boring and repetitive to watch the lives of Spider-Men. Did you know that eighty percent of them repeat the same actions, mistakes, and other events, with only slight differences in dialogue, friendships, or minor details? I have rarely seen a truly different Spider-Man."
"I didn't know that, but it's interesting to know," Peter replied with veiled sarcasm.
"Well, after watching so many repetitive lives, I decided to make a change and see what the new Totem was doing. I was surprised to find him forging a weapon."
She looked at him with amusement.
"I was also surprised when I caught a small glimpse of the recent past. I can't believe you're already a father at such a young age. You'd be the envy of many Spider-Men, you know."
"I don't care what the others think. Unless it's a multiversal matter, I don't care what they think, say, or do."
You look far too much like Miguel, Cassandra thought.
"Well, getting back to the weapon, I can see that it's rather unique but potentially fragile under certain circumstances. If you want, I can improve it."
Peter raised an eyebrow.
"Believe it or not, being Madame Web comes with many abilities and advantages. I learned a thing or two about magic from lessons given to magical Spider-Men."
"You're right. I don't believe you."
Peter looked her up and down.
"I don't think you train with everyone or anything like that. In fact, I'm surprised you're in such good shape. I thought you'd be more skeletal or mentally unstable from all that loneliness, but I guess I was wrong—"
Peter suddenly turned his head to the side.
Cassandra was conjuring a spell.
Several small tentacles emerged from it.
Tentacles Peter recognized from a certain animated series, though they were much smaller than he remembered.
"Don't use that spell. It's dangerous, especially for someone new to the mystic arts."
"Don't insult my abilities. And I know how dangerous this spell is."
Cassandra stopped conjuring the portal, placed her hands on her hips, and gave him a serious look that was noticeable even behind her red glasses.
"Do you want me to improve the weapon so it doesn't break against Captain America's weakest shield, yes or no?"
"What exactly are you going to do to my weapon? I worked really hard on it. I don't want someone coming along and breaking it."
"Hey! I'll place some spells on it that I learned from one of the Spider-Men who came into contact with Odin—and by contact, I mean he married one of Odin's daughters."
Peter looked genuinely impressed.
He could not help feeling proud of that particular Spider-Man for somehow managing to tame someone from that family.
"Well, the spells are more precisely the easier ones I can recognize and understand," Cassandra continued.
"The others are incredibly complicated and require far too many things. After seeing them, I realized that magic truly isn't for everyone, especially since I encountered some Spider-Men who were unbelievably skilled with it."
"Well, I'm hoping for an improvement."
Peter placed the axe on the workbench before sitting down in a chair to watch what Cassandra would do.
Cassandra extended her hand, and the axe slowly began floating toward her. Looking at her face, Peter noticed that her forehead was slightly sweaty and her eyes had widened.
He raised an eyebrow but ultimately ignored it and focused on the weapon.
What the hell? What is this axe made of that makes it so heavy? I can barely keep it afloat, Cassandra thought.
Slowly exhaling, she touched the axe and whispered several words.
Vein-like patterns began spreading across the weapon, glowing with a faint white light. When Cassandra finished whispering, Peter noticed her hand trembling slightly.
"Okay. One is ready now. You could create a magical concentration and give it to me so I can apply it to the axe.....obviously, if you know how."
"Concentration magic is one of the easiest things to learn."
Closing his eyes, Peter clasped his hands together and concentrated. After a few seconds, he opened them and saw his magic forming into a sphere.
Once it stabilized, the sphere shifted from light blue to purple.
The sight immediately reminded him of a certain divine technique from a certain anime, causing him to freeze for a moment.
"And now?"
"Apply it slowly to the axe."
Doing as she instructed, Peter began merging his magic with the weapon, causing the runes Cassandra had previously placed on it to glow with a faint purple light.
Once he finished, Peter looked toward Cassandra and noticed even more sweat covering her forehead.
"Now, the last thing. A little blood. Extend your hand."
Peter did as instructed.
The nail on Cassandra's index finger lengthened and cut his finger. With her left hand, she caused a small drop of blood to float into the air.
Moving her fingers, Cassandra shaped Peter's blood into the Alpha symbol.
Then Omega.
Finally, it transformed into a strange circle filled with several intricate markings.
The symbol caused Cassandra's eyes to widen, but she quickly hid her reaction.
When she merged Peter's blood with the axe, the vein-like patterns appeared again. This time, however, they decorated only the handle, which had once been light in color but was now completely dark.
Once the process was complete, the axe fell to the ground with a heavy thud.
Seeing that, Peter looked at Cassandra with a frown, but his expression quickly changed to intrigue and concern when he noticed her right arm trembling and her entire body covered in sweat.
"What is that thing made of to make it weigh so much?!"
"Weigh? That weapon is incredibly light."
Cassandra stared at him as if he had completely lost his mind.
"Light?! Fine. Let's see. Lift it and show me how light it is."
Her sarcasm was obvious.
Doing as she asked, Peter lifted the axe with one hand and looked at her.
To prove he was not lying, he extended the weapon toward her so she could take it by the handle.
Cassandra grabbed it.
The moment Peter let go, it was as though she had tried to hold an anvil with one hand.
She immediately dropped to her knees.
"See! It's not my fault you're an exception in the physical-strength department. Besides, this thing absorbed everything without breaking or suffering any damage."
She released the weapon and stood up.
"You're incredibly weak if you can't lift the axe."
Peter casually picked it up.
"And it's made from the fragments of Excalibur."
He sat back down.
Then he noticed Cassandra's utterly incredulous expression.
"Excalibur?! You pulled Excalibur out?! You?!"
She said it as though it were the craziest thing she had ever heard.
"Now I understand why it feels so heavy. I can't lift a weapon that doesn't recognize me as worthy."
Cassandra stared at the axe.
"Excalibur has an enchantment similar to Mjölnir. Only those whom the sword—or, in this case, the axe—deems worthy can lift it!"
She looked back at Peter in disbelief.
"And how on Earth were you able to reshape that sword into this in an ordinary forge?! That shouldn't even be possible! And I still don't understand how you managed to pull Excalibur from the stone in the first place!"
"I don't know. I just did it."
Peter shrugged.
"But when I applied Zynothium, it became more and more resistant. I tempered it only three times, and it grew stronger each time while becoming harder to temper afterward."
"Zynothium?"
"The material he creates."
"I have to see everything you've done. I stop watching you for one second, and you suddenly come out with all of this. It's unbelievable."
Cassandra immediately left to inspect everything Peter had created.
"Strange woman."
Peter looked down at the axe.
"And you're even stranger."
He studied the weapon for several seconds.
"I need to find something that can give you ice magic so I can finally finish making you look like the original Leviathan Axe."
(The Leviathan Axe is Kratos's frost-powered weapon from the God of War video game series.)
Peter turned the weapon slightly in his hand.
It did resemble the original in a way.
"And I need to do it before the day after tomorrow."
He thought for a moment.
"Maybe the female Saitama can help me."