"You've seen how things have developed. Do you really think you can stop all of this?"
Peter crossed his arms and looked at the dazed Miles with an amused expression.
It was obvious this rookie still did not even know how to be Spider-Man, and he could not properly control the spider powers inside his body. If the job of shutting down the quantum collider were left to him, who could possibly feel at ease?
"That's why I said I should stay behind. Fighting Nazis is exhausting enough already. Staying in this world wouldn't be so bad. At least before I die, I could spend a little more time with Aunt May."
Spider-Noir picked up the conversation.
"Then you want Aunt May to go through Peter's death all over again?" Peter Porker said. "Let me do it instead. Even if something happens to me, it won't matter that much. After all, I'm just a pig."
Peter gave Porker a new look. For the first time, he felt the pig actually seemed like a real person. For that line alone, Peter had to respect him.
"No, I can do it! Peter believed in me!"
Miles patted his chest and spoke excitedly.
"And then he died."
"Trusting the wrong person has consequences."
Peter's words hit the mark like a needle. He rarely considered outsiders, and this was not really an attack so much as deliberate pressure.
"I promised him! I have to do it! I'll wait until all of you get back to your own universes, and then I'll shut the machine down! Please believe me, alright?! Please!"
"And after we leave, you'll have to deal with Kingpin and all his endless men on your own. Can you take them all out in an instant?" Spider-Noir questioned.
"If you can't, then Kingpin's experiment will succeed, and the collider will tear a hole into the multiverse. Everyone in Brooklyn will die, and the structure of this universe will collapse." Spider-Gwen said the same thing.
"The most important part is that who knows what might come crawling out of the quantum black hole in the multiverse. This world would become a complete disaster."
Peter Porker did not believe him either.
"Are you sure you can destroy the collider?"
"Alright, Spider-People, let's believe in the kid, okay? He'll save the parallel universes. He can turn invisible and release super-strong electric shocks. Come on, Miles, go invisible for everyone. You can do it, kid!"
Middle-aged Peter stood in front of Miles and passionately vouched for him, encouraging him nonstop.
And after being encouraged like that, Miles really did feel a little more confident. He shut his eyes and tried hard to feel the energy moving inside his body, even making a strained sound while doing it.
"Hnnng!"
Ten seconds later, absolutely nothing happened.
And Aunt May calmly said, "Kid, if your stomach hurts, the bathroom is on the right."
"Sorry. I still can't fully control this power yet."
"It's okay, Miles! Maybe you can't just turn invisible on command yet, but that's still cool, right? Show everyone your electric ability, kid. Like when you shocked me earlier!"
Middle-aged Peter sounded absurdly proud.
Then Miles made another strained noise like he was constipated, and once again, nothing happened.
"Alright. I think we should go back to discussing who stays behind to shut the machine down."
Middle-aged Peter stopped insisting, because he had realized this kid was completely unreliable.
That loss of support from middle-aged Peter made Miles fall silent. He really wanted to tell everyone that he could do it, but he had only learned how to swing on webs today, and his invisibility and bioelectricity worked only when they felt like it. Could he really finish this mission?
Had he really failed the promise he made to this world's Spider-Man?
"If he could fully master his powers, then maybe he really would be the best choice for this. Unfortunately, time won't wait for anyone."
Peter spread his hands and pointed at the clock nearby.
"We've got less than twenty-four hours left. If he can quickly get control of his abilities, then maybe there's still a little hope."
Too stubborn to back down, Miles immediately started trying again.
Sure enough, the Black kid began forcing himself once more. His expression became more and more strained, and sweat even started running down his face, but nothing happened.
"Electric webbing? Peter, don't you have something like that too?" Spider-Gwen seemed to think of something and looked at Peter. "Miles has a lot of potential. Why don't you teach him?"
"That's a good idea, but sorry, Gwen. My electric webbing comes from tech gear I built. It's not the same as his natural spider powers. I can't teach him that."
"What? You can make gadgets that amazing too? When I was your age, all I knew how to do was bury myself in books."
Middle-aged Peter looked at Peter in surprise. This younger version of himself always seemed able to bring out a different kind of shock.
"So what exactly made you become this much of a chatterbox?"
...
Alright. Let's just pretend I never said that.
"Fine then, kid. Kingpin is going to send a lot of dangerous people after you. I'll ask you one more time. Are you confident you can deal with all of them in one go?" Spider-Noir asked, patting Miles on the shoulder.
"To be honest, I haven't even fought anyone before... I don't even know how to fight."
Miles's voice was quiet, and he sounded less confident than ever.
"Can you reassemble a motherboard in the middle of a firefight, then catch the enemy off guard with a perfect counterattack?"
Peni did not seem to have much confidence in him either. Even though she was only fourteen, her combat experience was still far beyond Miles's.
"No..."
"Can you swing through the air as gracefully as a dancer?"
"I can't do that."
"Can you sever your humanity and feel no guilt over your own violence?"
"What?"
"When something important has to be done, can you resist the temptation of good food?"
"What kind of question is that?!"
"Can you make Aunt May an account on a dating site so she can go out now and then?"
???
The room froze instantly, and everyone looked at Aunt May in complete confusion.
Aunt May, what happened to you after Uncle Ben was gone?
"I can do that!"
At last, Miles had found something he could actually do, and he answered with full confidence.
"But that doesn't really help Spider-Man much, does it?"
And with one sentence from Aunt May, his confidence was crushed again.
"Are you strong enough?"
"Are you disciplined enough?"
"Are you ruthless enough?"
"If you get knocked down over and over, can you still stand back up every single time?"
The nonstop barrage from all the Spider-People left Miles completely overwhelmed, to the point where he almost wanted to run away from this terrifying place.
"Alright, everyone, stop for a second! Everything you're asking, aren't those things only you yourselves are good at?"
"Don't force your strengths onto someone else. He has his own road to walk. He just hasn't found it yet."
"Just like how I can kill more than a dozen people in an instant, and you can't. That's simply what each of us is, isn't it?"
Peter really could not keep listening anymore. Sure, he wanted to put some pressure on the Black kid too, but their method of doing it was just ridiculous.
Rebuilding motherboards? Dancing gracefully? Were they seriously expecting a teenage Black guy to do all that and calling it proper Spider-Man behavior?
Those might be qualities you need, but that does not mean they are what he needs.
"Thanks, Peter..."
"I'm not dropping my prejudice against you, but I want one answer from you."
"Why do you want to be Spider-Man? If all this is about is a promise, and you still do not even understand your own direction, then I can speak on behalf of this world's Peter and tell you this. Go home. Go back to being ordinary."
Peter gave a cold snort and turned to walk back toward the others, though a faint smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.
Kid, if you do not go through some hardship, you'll never become Spider-Man.
Of course, even if you do become a proper Spider-Man someday, that still doesn't mean I'll forgive you for trying to steal my girl.
Absolutely not.
(End of Chapter)
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