The problem currently afflicting the Spider-Man of Earth TRN-011 wasn't a psychic attack, but rather an information disruption. Within his mind, he could simultaneously perceive hundreds of different states occurring in the same location, inducing a sensation akin to severe nausea.
After clutching his head and staring at Peter for a moment, he became certain of one thing: the events unfolding here were the work of another person. But what had he just heard? Gwen?
Gwen Stacy?
"You... what did you just say?!"
Claws lunged toward Peter without warning, but Peter—who had developed his Spider-Sense into short-term precognition—easily evaded the Symbiote Spider-Man's strike. He countered with a punch square to the latter's face; for some reason, he found punching this counterpart's face immensely satisfying.
Watching the symbiote collapse to reveal the true face of this Symbiote Spider-Man gave him a profound sense of achievement.
However, Gwen was running into trouble on her end.
"Hey, smart guy, how's it going over there? Everything smooth?"
"It's fine. Just keep following the manual and see if you can collect enough data..."
"I'm afraid that's not going to work!"
Gwen's outcry wasn't without cause. At this very moment, she was being pursued by Black Cat. Like the other villains in this universe, this Black Cat had been infected by a symbiote, granting her even greater power.
For Gwen, who possessed only spider-powers, a symbiote-enhanced enemy was clearly an extremely difficult opponent to handle.
"I'm currently being chased by another world's Felicia, and to make things worse, I'm wearing this incredibly heavy helmet!"
Peter didn't immediately grasp why this was such a problem. After punching the Symbiote Spider-Man back, he asked, "Can't you just make her forget you?"
"Then what happens on your end?"
When Gwen's forgetting ability activated, not only was she forgotten, but even the functions of Mysterio's helmet would suffer glitches. She had indeed interfered with the symbiote's perception, but because of her power, the Symbiote Spider-Man would perceive the interference as normal and fail to detect any anomaly.
In other words, if the experiment was to proceed correctly, Gwen could not use her forgetting ability.
Peter performed a backflip to dodge an attack from the Symbiote Spider-Man, then fired webbing from both hands to snag the incoming webs. He yanked his opponent forward, slamming him violently against a building. "Can't you just run further away before resuming the experiment?"
Gwen's answer remained the same.
"Then what about you?"
"Trust me, if I wanted to take this guy out, I could do it whenever I want."
Peter spoke with squinted eyes as he charged forward. He dodged a punch from the Symbiote Spider-Man and immediately followed up with a strike to the gut.
"Do you really intend to keep fighting me? It seems the symbiote didn't just dampen your sense of humor; it dampened your Spider-Sense too."
Peter landed another punch as he spoke, then performed a mid-air spin-kick that connected with the side of his opponent's head. "Can't you take a good look at the situation?! What have you gained from all this?"
"What have I gained?! I don't give a damn about what I've gained!"
With just one sentence, Peter had provoked his alternate self. The Symbiote Spider-Man stopped dodging Peter's attacks entirely; he caught Peter's fist, allowing the boy to unravel the symbiote on his arm, and then delivered a brutal headbutt to Peter's forehead, sending him stumbling back a step or two.
"And what did I gain from being Spider-Man?! How many times have I saved this world, this city!"
His claws grew even sharper than before, nearly tearing through the symbiote on Peter's chest. As Peter retreated a couple of steps, he was met with a flurry of symbiote tentacles. They moved with such speed that Peter nearly failed to react.
"And this city, this world, never gave me anything! Not even a 'thank you'! I'm just constantly losing!"
"My power wasn't enough to save others! I had to rely on the symbiote's power to save this city, yet MJ was disappointed in me!"
The Symbiote Spider-Man continued his assault as he spoke. Peter shifted to a defensive stance, constantly evading the onslaught.
"I couldn't save my lover! I couldn't save my friends! I watched one good person after another turn into a villain, and then I had to fight them! I've had enough!"
The symbiote on his body suddenly erupted. Peter maneuvered rapidly, relying on his Spider-Sense to dodge the spikes. However, this was exactly what his opponent wanted; he had funneled Peter's movement path, forcing him to move into a trap. He lunged forward, seized Peter by the throat, and slammed him violently into the ground, pummeling him.
"In that case, why should I bother continuing!"
"I have to say... that sounds quite reasonable, but there's one problem—"
"No one ever said we had to be Spider-Man!"
Pinned to the ground, Peter kicked the Symbiote Spider-Man in the jaw, then quickly surged after the reeling figure to launch a counter-attack.
"It was never an obligation; it was a choice. Even if you want to quit, you don't have to go to extremes!"
Fighting his way back, Peter returned the headbutt with interest. "With great power comes great responsibility was never a curse. You turned it into a curse yourself, and now you're blaming the words?"
The Symbiote Spider-Man faltered. He had expected this younger version of himself to use Uncle Ben to talk him down, but Peter hadn't.
Yet, precisely because of that, he felt the boy might be right. He had indeed gained power, and he could indeed stop being Spider-Man, but did he really have to become... this?
Joining the so-called Web Corps? Controlling all of New York? Killing his old friends?
A Spider-Man's life wasn't what I wanted, but is this what I want?
The Symbiote Spider-Man's contemplation didn't last long. A burst of gunfire interrupted their exchange. Peter immediately leaped up to dodge the hail of bullets, then looked toward the source of the fire.
It was the Black Cat of this universe, arriving on the scene clad in a symbiote suit. Peter backed away a few steps, looking at his alternate self with a look of confusion.
"Well, I have to say, the symbiote is indeed impressive, and you can control it. But why did you design a symbiote suit for Black Cat that has her midriff exposed? Is that some kind of personal fetish?"
The Symbiote Spider-Man snapped back to reality and looked at Peter.
"...I've suddenly realized that Peter Parker's mouth really can ruin a lot of things."
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