chapter sixty-six
meaning of responsibility

PETER HONESTLY never thought being Spider-Man would lead him to this exact moment: working on advanced engineering and mechanics in the back laundry of Happy's Long Island condo with three out of five supervillains in the sitting room with his aunt, one of them still in the F.E.A.S.T. truck below and the last working right alongside him. But he's learned pretty quickly that crazy stuff always happened▬most especially to him.

They have been working almost non-stop for hours, it was now night. Peter tried to keep Nina and their friends updated so they didn't freak out and press the button too early. He didn't mention that he was working right alongside Norman Osborn▬but so far, there was nothing about him that seemed as evil as Nina said. All he held was an inquisitive nature and a genius mind▬he wasn't threatening, he wasn't sending Peter's hairs on end; unlike the rest of the villains, he was incredibly docile.

Dr. Osborn stayed at Peter's side as he engineered and re-crafted the chip on the back of Doc Ock's neck. The idea was to recreate the protective system Octavius had in place before it had been fried; and hopefully, this time, Peter's mechanism would be at a less risk of exposure.

"Remarkable," Osborn murmured as Peter delicately slipped the final pin into place, his tongue between his teeth in his concentration. "The technology and you. When all this is over, if you need a job and you're willing to commute to another university..."

Peter's breath hitched. He barely listened as he pulled off his goggles and glanced at the simulation. His eyes widened▬he almost couldn't believe what he had just achieved. A grin started to tug at his lips. "It worked," he gasped, shocked at his own genius. He laughed and turned to Osborn with a delightful smile. "That totally worked!"

He snatched the chip and sprinted back into the main living room. "I got it! I did it!" Peter announced to May who was sipping water behind the kitchen counter. She immediately set it down. "Will you send him up?"

"Oh! Oh▬yeah▬" his Aunt May quickly swiped upwards on the hologram of Peter's nanotechnology belt. Doc Ock could do nothing as his metal arms lifted him up to hover at the height of the stairwell above. He struggled and complained, but Peter just raced to the next landing with a bright grin on his face. "Hold on, Doc!"

"Oh, will these humiliations never cease?!" cried out Doc Ock in vicious exasperation. Peter readied himself at the edge of the landing as Octavius grew closer and closer. "You!" he snapped at Spider-Man as he lifted himself up onto his toes to reach. "Keep your science fair project away from me!"

Peter ignored him and reached out to pull the collar of his jacket down. He bit the inside of his cheek as he tried to keep Doc Ock still to attach the chip. Octavius wasn't helping with his furious struggles.

"It'll work," reassured Osborn from below as the rest of them all looked up to watch. "Have faith."

Octavius gave another struggle. "Says the reckless fool who turned himself into a monster!"

Peter gritted his teeth▬Octavius's words filtered right past him and he didn't stop to consider what he meant. "Stay still▬" he told Doc Ock, not wanting to lose sight of his strength right now. He needed to be gentle. "Please stop moving your head. Hold still▬"

"Don't you dare▬"

Spider-Man huffed and reached out, snatching Doc Ock's hair lightly and pulling his head up straight, but with enough strength to keep him still. The rest of Octavius's objections were buzzing in the back of Peter's mind as he leaned forward, biting the bottom of his lip in concentration as he gently hovered the new chip over the old, damaged one. Below, his Aunt May, Osborn, Electro and the Sandman were all watching in silent anticipation.

"I swear," Doc Ock was still grumbling, "when I get out of this, we're gonna rip you a new▬"

Peter placed the chip down. It latched on and the pins slipped in through his skin and towards his spine. Doc Ock slumped and his head fell down. Peter held his breath, startled by the reaction. He hovered there, a little unsure of what to do. He waited for Octavius to wake up, but he didn't move▬the only thing keeping him up was the technology of his metal arms. Otherwise, he was limp.

There was a painful silence where Peter was terrified he had actually killed him.

"Uh ... Doc?" he called out anxiously. There was no answer. Peter swallowed harshly. He briefly glanced down at his Aunt May who also held her breath. "Doc?" Peter asked again, hesitant. When Octavius still made no movement, he quickly reached out to touch his shoulder. "Doctor▬"

Octavius jolted upwards, waking up with a gasp. Peter stumbled back, his eyes wide. They all watched with anticipating frowns and breathless silence for Doc Ock to say something. He frowned to himself, breathing a little heavier until slowly, he started to calm down▬he seemed to realise something.

"It's so quiet," he murmured no louder than a whisper. He hung there in that silence as if searching for what had controlled him for so long. "Those voices inside my head..." Otto Octavius hitched an emotional breath. "I'd almost forgotten."

Osborn watched the change in Octavius's face▬the change in his eyes. He frowned, but then his brows lifted with a realisation that the man that hovered above them all was no longer a malicious supervillain, but instead the scientist who had just wanted to change the world. "Otto," he greeted with a small smile.

Octavius breathed a tired smile, too. "Yes. Norman." May relaxed the grip the nanotechnology had on Doc Ock's arms and he slowly lowered himself back down, fully in control of his mind and body once more. He chuckled as his feet landed on the ground, unable to believe it. He looked happy▬he looked like a thousand pounds of weight had finally been lifted off his shoulders. "It's me."

Spider-Man lowered himself down, too from a string of web▬admittedly too lazy to take the stairs (why take the stairs when he can just drop down?). He set himself down next to Octavius with a bright grin. Even the Sandman seemed impressed. "Would you look at that?" he muttered, surprised that an eighteen-year-old kid could achieve such a thing.

Peter smiled at him, shrugging. He walked over to his control over Doc Ock's arms and disconnected them. He nodded at Octavius, trusting him▬from now on, nothing else would ever control him again.

Otto Octavius nodded back. He breathed a smile that was filled with emotion▬and relief; tremendous relief. There needed to be some way he could repay Spider-Man. He couldn't do that with a 'thank you' or a simple smile. Peter frowned when one of Doc Ock's metal arms moved towards him. He went to step back, but then the talons opened gently. They wrapped around the top of his chest almost like a warm hug and he watched, still and amazed as the red scales of nanotechnology scrawled down the metal arms and onto Peter's suit.

Spider-Man glanced down and was met with a breath of awe to see the red turn into the gold of the Iron Spider▬it slipped up and over his shoulders and then down his back; the white spider emblem became encased with armour of gold, red and black▬the symbol stretched all across his chest and his back; snug and glittering. Peter felt like he was standing there in every suit he has worn: his classic suit, the Iron Spider and the suit he made with Mr. Stark's technology▬everything, all together to create something that was a product of all Spider-Man had gone through and faced up to this moment.

Dr. Octavius pulled the metal arm away and nodded once more. "I'm grateful, dear boy," he said to him and Peter's gaze softened. "Truly." He smiled and shook his head firmly.

"Yeah," said Peter, feeling much better about all of this now, "you're welcome."

Octavius let go and smiled. "How can I help?"

*ೃ༄

THEY CONTINUED to work. After the success of helping Doc Ock, Peter felt confident in what he could do. While Osborn and Octavius worked on the other antidotes and serums, Peter focused on finding a way to extract a concentrated amount of electricity from Electro's body without effectively draining him to the point he'd die. Peter was so caught up, that he stopped checking his phone. As the hours passed by, he didn't notice the missed calls from Happy, or the many texts from Nina, Ned, MJ and Felicia▬all of them asking how everything was going. He couldn't help it. He was so focused and excited on what he was doing▬on how all of this was working way better than he could have ever hoped. He was saving these guys▬giving them all a second chance, but he was also saving Nina. If he sent these guys back, cured and back to the way they were before everything in their lives changed, then not only could Peter Parker be stopping this loop that Dr. Strange said could never be destructed ... Peter Parker also felt like he was saving Nina in every universe. If he could shatter the loop here, then maybe ... just maybe ... out there, in every universe, Nina Hart could live her life the way she always deserved to.

Because, deep down, all of this had really▬truly▬only been about her.

Peter was thankful for Mr. Stark's technology. Even dead, Tony Stark will always be a hero. Without him helping Peter, even now, he knew he would have never been able to do any of this.

At last, Spider-Man managed to find a way to do exactly what he wanted for Electro. He turned the object in his fingers, double-checking his simulation and calculations to make sure he hadn't messed up. "Okay," he muttered finally and Electro glanced over to where he sat beside him at the table.

A bit hesitant, Peter leaned over and placed the device on Electro's chest. Max arched a brow at his hesitation, silent. "It just goes right here." As soon as it touched his chest, the device lit up with green before it zeroed right back to the start. Peter sat back. "That should be drawing power now. I'll come back in a second to check on it, but keep an eye on the lights. When they're all green, it means that all the electricity in your body's dissipated. Well," Peter backtracked, "not all of the electricity. I mean, obviously, you know you need electricity in your brain to function. Your nervous system is..."

Peter pursed his lips and turned back to his laptop. The air had grown very awkward. "I'm not really sure why I'm explaining electricity to you..."

Electro hummed. He then tapped the table. "Hey, can I ask you a question?"

"Sure."

He pointed to the mess on the table surface. "Are these your Legos?"

Peter stammered. He glanced down at the Legos. "Uh..." Before he could answer, he heard his timer go off in the other room. "Oh, uh▬" he stood up and shuffled on his feet for a moment. He glanced at Electro and then the Sandman who stood waiting and observing. "Uh▬I'll▬" he awkwardly pointed to the other room. "I gotta go. I'll▬I'll be back."

As he left to go into the back room where he had the Goblin's cure slowly cooking from an equation Dr. Osborn helped create himself, Peter bit back a smile. He wasn't just happy and excited that this was all going to plan▬he was also proud of himself. He had done this. He had done this▬even when Dr. Strange told him it was impossible and that he was playing with fire, Peter Parker had proved him wrong. Not only that, but Peter had proved the whole Universe it was wrong. And if Peter could do that, then he felt like he could do almost anything. He was fuelled with confidence he hadn't had in a very long time, and it made him feel more than great▬he felt like he finally had his whole life back on track. He felt like he was winning.

He checked the temperature, his heart pounding with anticipation of all of this finally being over. All of it. The villains, Dr. Strange, the threat of Nina's life▬they could be happy. The new life that awaited them in Boston at M.I.T. was giving him all of the motivation he needed. Nina Hart wasn't going to die. She was going to live her life, and Peter was going to follow her wherever it took them▬this was their path. He was going to protect that. He will do anything to protect it. She was his path, now and forever, Peter knew that. He wasn't being naive without any idea of what the future would bring. No, he knew that he could never have a life without Nina Hart. He'd feel alone and ... and empty without her.

And maybe that was because they were connected. Not by some tender feeling or promise, but by a physical string that tied them to each other in every universe. He knew that. There was proof. In every single universe, Peter Parker was meant to be with Nina Hart. And in this universe, Peter Parker will never let the world have the chance to take that away from them. He could understand why the Peter Parker in that universe did everything he could to save Nina and succeed▬even if he had broken the multiverse in order to do it. Because Peter knew he would do the same thing; he was. Except this time, he had found the loophole. He was saving every single Nina Hart still alive, too.

He couldn't wait to tell her. He couldn't wait to make it back to her and see the smile on her face▬see the relief and the happiness the moment she learnt that she was safe; that Peter Parker fulfilled his promise that he would always, always catch her before she hit the ground. Those words she said would never matter again: If you expect disappointment ... Well, you can never really get disappointed, then. After this, Peter knew that there was a way to expect a happy ending and achieve that happy ending▬there was a way to always have hope.

Peter grinned to himself, feeling the sudden need to reach for his phone and text Nina the good news already. His fingers wrapped around the case and he only briefly saw the many notifications on his phone when his grin dropped.

Spider-Man looked up. His brows knitted together. Slowly he slipped his phone into the compartment he had made in his suit. He stood there▬rigid still▬for just a second, but it felt like a good minute at least. The world around him slowed down and his vision tunnelled. His heart pounded a different pace and Peter held his breath, hearing a soft whisper in his ear ... his own voice, and yet it wasn't at the same time ... a high-pitched ringing that seemed far away. It sounded like it was coming from the main room.

His hair stood on end; lifting up from the back of his neck to stand just as rigid as he was.

Spider-Man's breaths grew laboured. He slowly turned around and the ringing seemed to get louder just for a moment as he glanced out through the ajar door. He barely heard the mumblings of confusion from Doc Ock as he passed him and Mr. Osborn, following the ringing sound as it lured him back into the sitting room.

"May?" he called out, his voice sounding on edge and distant▬even to himself.

He heard Octavius and Osborn follow him. Each step was a pounding echo in Peter's head that matched the pace of his heart. He nearly jumped. He heard so much and saw so much▬he was spinning in a tunnel of sounds and colours. He heard chatter down below, he heard sirens and car horns and planes. He heard the rustle of wings from insects and the slight shift of the carpet underneath his feet. Just the feel of the wool made him want to leap upwards to the ceiling.

Spider-Man was on high alert. His senses were struck by something far more powerful than they'd ever warned him of before. Danger... they whispered to him. Even when he had stared the Vulture right in the face in his own home had he not felt his senses like this▬they crawled up his skin and sent shivers down his back. The words of his name and questions were in the back of his mind and yet, at the very same time, were right in his ear as if they were spoken right into them through a microphone with the reverb pushed up as far as it could go.

He heard footsteps climb back down the stairs. He knew it was Aunt May just by the weight each step pressed down onto the wood. He could sense it▬sense everything. "What is it, Peter?" her voice bounced back and forth in his mind.

Spider-Man stopped right in the centre of the room. He was surrounded by them: the Sandman, Electro, Doc Ock and the Green Goblin and Spider-Man's heart was running a wild, echoing pace. It was a beating drum, getting slower or faster ... a map to what he needed to know; to what it was trying to tell him.

He slowly looked at each of them, trying to chase the danger that screamed at him from every angle. "What's happening?" the Sandman's voice was disorientated and distorted. Peter zeroed in on him ... no▬he was wrong. Not him. His gaze wandered to where Max stood, hands clenched and a wary frown on his face. Peter's heart pounded a little quicker; the drum in his mind sped up ... but something still didn't feel right.

There was a shift in the shadows. Boots scuffed on the floor. Peter's gaze snapped over and he noticed Norman slip out from behind Octavius. He frowned. His breath quickened in deeper breaths▬Spider-Man felt sick as he watched him wander past. He looked different. There was something different about him ...

Spider-Man got distracted by May's footsteps once again. He heard her walk away▬she slipped into the back room and he had no time to stop her when a loud, piercing tone nearly made Peter wince. He turned towards the sound, very much on the edge of his toes; but there were so many sounds. So many of them, everywhere▬everywhere...

Spider-Man took a deep breath. He closed his eyes and he focused. He tried to block everything out and listen to what his powers were telling him▬to narrow it all down to what made him so on edge. The ringing sound returned, louder than ever ... it got louder and louder, and louder▬

He threw his arm out to his left and pressed the trigger. Spider-Man's eyes snapped open to see his webs encase Norman Osborn's hand to the desk. He stared at it. Peter took a sharp breath through his nose, realising he was standing in front of his laptop. If he had been just a second late, Osborn would have been able to stop the programming connected to the device on Electro's chest.

Spider-Man narrowed his eyes. Outside, the glinting lights of Long Island and New York blinked into the yellow glow of Happy's condo▬and right now, in this moment, it seemed to cast a ghoulish shadow over Osborn, and it showed another man in the green glint; a creature malicious and cold. The monster under the bed in every single nightmare.

When he spoke again, it was not Osborn that was talking. The voice was low and it scraped the ground; as if he was taking slow, striding steps through piles of gravel. The Green Goblin let out a low chuckle. "That's some neat trick, that sense of yours," he growled.

He turned to face Peter and the look in his eye▬there was a monster hiding, and finally, that monster had come out to play. Spider-Man felt a chill down his spine. The nightmarish creature Nina had warned him about ... He was right there, this whole time.

And Peter had let him right into his home.

Octavius frowned. "Norman?" he let out, very confused.

The Green Goblin's face contorted into a terrifying smile. "Norman's on sabbatical, honey."

Even Electro took a few cautious steps back. "The hell?"

Spider-Man clenched his hands. "The Goblin..." he whispered, slowly realising what he had done▬the terrible mistake he had made. His eyes darted to where Aunt May stood in the doorway of the back room. She locked his gaze and subtly nodded. Slowly, she started to slip away out of sight. She swiftly grabbed a bag off the hallway dresser before disappearing into the back room.

Meanwhile, the Green Goblin continued: "'No more darker half'?" He sneered at them all, his eyes crazed and his voice twisting out from the back of his throat. "Did you really think I'd let that happen?" those horrifying eyes locked onto Spider-Man. "That I'd let you take away my power just because you're blind to what true power can bring you?"

"You don't know me," said Spider-Man.

"Don't I?" the Goblin chuckled lowly. Peter clenched his jaw. "I saw how she trapped you▬" he couldn't help it. Spider-Man's gaze flickered back over to his Aunt May as she stepped out of the back room, the bag she took now full of Peter's work, "▬fighting her holy moral mission. We don't need you to save us. We don't need to be fixed!"

Spider-Man held his breath, fighting the urge to leap into action the moment the Green Goblin raised his voice. It wasn't an urge to fight, nor was it an urge to shut Osborn up. No, the biggest urge Spider-Man had was not to run over and rush his aunt out of here. Out of all of the things he was warned about▬the possibility of her danger sent him crazed. It left his stomach twisting and his limbs buzzing with a desperation to get out of here and take his aunt with him.

The Green Goblin glanced at Electro and the Sandman. "These are not curses," he told them. "They're gifts!"

Electro frowned. He glanced down at the device on his chest that was ticking closer and closer to completion.

"Norman," Octavius tried once again▬his voice breaking through as a desperate attempt at reason, "no▬"

"Quiet, lapdog!" snapped the Goblin.

Spider-Man could feel the tension rise like deep waters▬higher and higher up past his ankles, to his knees and slowly pulsing around his chest, getting closer until it was getting harder to breathe. "You don't know what you're talking about."

"I've watched you from deep behind Norman's cowardly eyes," sneered the Green Goblin. That smile returned▬twisted and insane. "Struggling to have everything you want while the world tries to make you choose." He chuckled and shook his head. "Gods don't have to choose. We take. You tried to take away my gift, so ..." The Goblin's smile broke out into a wide, piercing grin, "... I'm going to take something away from you. Something you care about▬oh, so very much."

Spider-Man clenched his hands even tighter into fists. "May, run."

His aunt didn't think twice. She took off towards the door at a sprint and raced for the staircase. The Green Goblin laughed▬a cackle; a terrible, horrible sound. "Such a pretty little thing, isn't she?" went on the monster. Spider-Man knew exactly who he was talking about and his blood boiled. "So delicate. So easy to take. So easy to kill."

Suddenly, Electro snatched the device on his chest. He forced it away from him and it sparked. Spider-Man couldn't react in time▬he had fallen for the trap. He had let the Goblin threaten and toy with him; make him lose his focus the moment he mentioned Nina and gave Electro just enough time to force himself free. He flung out his hand and Spider-Man threw himself backwards, watching as a strike of pure, yellow lightning crossed inches over his nose and into the back room. Seconds later, the energy core from Mr. Stark's fabricator soared over their heads and right into Electro's hands.

Spider-Man stumbled to stand up straight▬he launched forward to stop him, but with astonishing strength, the Green Goblin ripped himself free of the webs and backhanded Spider-Man so hard he flung upwards into the staircase above.

The steps cracked at the force. Spider-Man grunted when he hit the tiles of the ground. With the reactor in Electro's hands, the entire condo's lights dimmed in and out▬flickering and sparking. Spider-Man couldn't see where the Sandman had gone ... he had slipped into the wind, turning into absolutely nothing. Soon, the lights burst and the room delved into shadows that glowed yellow, pulsing from Electro's hand.

As Spider-Man groaned, trying to regain some of his strength and mind▬he struggled to get back up, not expecting the Green Goblin to be so strong▬Octavius let out a shaky breath. "Oh, my God," his arms curled upwards as he stared at Electro in horror. "What have you done?"

Lighting flickered in Electro's eyes. "I liked you better before."

The power from the core coursed right through his veins from one arm to the next▬and the pure energy that emitted from his fingers was far more powerful than before. Golden forks of lightning struck Doc Ock in the chest. He yelled as it cascaded up his metal arms and threw him across the room. His body broke through the wall▬shattering the plaster and glass windows.

When Spider-Man got back onto his feet, he was thrown backwards once again as the Green Goblin's fist met his jaw. Peter cried out, barely catching himself on the staircase handles. He gritted his teeth and pushed himself to stand. Thinking of the Goblin's threat, his mind narrowed into one single, furious thought. The sitting room ignited into an explosion of yellow light as Electro disappeared into the night. Nothing more than a twisting cage of lightning, he darted back and forth amongst the furious tornado of sand▬and soon, the street right outside the complex had turned into a vicious storm that exploded cars and ripped trees right out from their dirt squares next to the sidewalks.

Spider-Man paid no attention to them. As Electro, Sandman and the Lizard all escaped, he turned his fury onto the Green Goblin▬and he saw red. He yelled as he flung his fist out and Osborn stumbled backwards, his head spinning. Peter didn't know if May had gotten out of the building. He didn't know where Octavius was. All he cared about right now was stopping the Green Goblin before he fulfilled his promise▬before he could get away ... and he could kill Nina Hart.

But like a springboard, the Green Goblin only came bouncing back with a laugh and murder in his eyes. Spider-Man couldn't block his next hit. Glass smashed around him as his back burst through the living room windows. His feet stuck to the tiles, keeping him there as his body bent dangerously backwards out into the night. His webs snatched onto the Goblin's chest and he tried to pull him out with him. The man's crazed laughter haunted Peter Parker's ears as he merely grabbed onto the threads of his webs and tugged.

Spider-Man yelled, shocked as he felt his feet lift off the ground. The Green Goblin spun him around like a rag doll and he crashed out onto the balcony. Glass cut the skin above his brow and pierced through his suit.

He struggled when the Green Goblin stepped out through the broken glass. Spider-Man threw his hands up and caught the supervillain's wrists, but he just shoved Peter harder against the concrete balcony.

Peter let go of the Goblin's wrists and flung two webs up to the balcony above. Pressing his feet against Osborn's chest, the both of them went flying upwards. Spider-Man twisted them over until he was on top and attached two more webs to the floor. With insane strength, he forced the Goblin right through the concrete balcony▬it collapsed down onto the next.

The flashing lights of a nearby helicopter shone a ghostly light on the both of them▬surrounded by debris and concrete dust on their skin. Peter ignored the furious spin of the chopper and desperately tried to spin the Goblin up into a web before he'd get out of his daze▬

But Osborn wasn't as dazed as he thought. "Oh, no you don't▬!" He tugged Spider-Man down by his ankle and Peter's knee hit the ground. He yelled, both from the shock and the pain when the Green Goblin picked him up like he was nothing and chucked him into the empty apartment. Glass showered.

Spider-Man landed painfully on the tiles, groaning. His heart pounded. He could feel something warm and yet cold at the same time fall down between his eyebrows▬he quickly realised it was blood from a cut just under his hairline.

He wiped it clear and struggled onto his feet, breathing heavily. He had to keep going. He had to get back up. He was Spider-Man and he had to stop the Green Goblin. He had to stop him before he'd win▬because he promised Nina he'd always keep her safe. But Spider-Man had underestimated the Goblin. He had underestimated his anger and his strength▬his crazy strength that rivalled Peter's own. The timid, terrified and confused Norman Osborn was nothing in comparison to the beast that lingered under the surface.

It took all of Spider-Man's efforts to pull his punches. Despite the Green Goblin's crazy strength, he was still just human underneath it all. But as Peter took more and more hits than he delivered, he started to realise that underestimating the Green Goblin might just be the biggest mistake Peter had ever made.

His back hit the hallway wall. He slumped to the ground, groaning as he stared back through the hole in the plaster and wood. His back screamed with pain. Spider-Man slipped as he desperately tried to get back up onto his feet. When he heard the Goblin kick through the rest of the plaster himself, he scrambled back▬cowering like a spider in a corner the moment it saw the shadow of a hand.

The Green Goblin cackled lowly as he approached Spider-Man. "Strong enough to have it all." Peter stumbled as he got back up onto his feet, trying to put some space between the two of them. He saw a decorative bench at the end of the hall and webbed it. With a yell, he threw it over his head at the Green Goblin, but he just ducked. The bench split in half further down the hallway. Spider-Man charged, but the Goblin blocked his punches and grabbed his arm▬he spun him around. "Too weak to take it!"

Peter's gasp of pain turned into a wheeze when the Goblin punched him so hard, he went soaring down the corridor.

When his back hit the tiles, he twisted and broke his fall. Skidding up onto his feet, Spider-Man gritted his teeth and charged at a furious run. He took large strides▬one, two, three before he stepped up onto the wall and leapt.

He locked the Goblin's head between his legs and slammed him up against the wall. He caged him there. Repeatedly▬again and again▬Spider-Man brought his fist down, square in the Goblin's face. He didn't break; he didn't pass out. With every punch and every slam, the Goblin's smile only got wider and wider▬he laughed in Peter's face with blood on his brow and around his teeth. He was a maniac; he was something more than insane.

Spider-Man heaved a furious breath and yelled in his frustration. He slammed his elbow down. Even if he broke the Goblin's nose, it didn't stop him. It only fuelled his crazed manic self. Spider-Man kept going, hitting him in the face, on the shoulders, on the top of his head▬until the Goblin pushed himself away from the wall and flung Peter downwards.

His yells turned into a strangled cry as he crashed down to the next level. He coughed and spluttered, feeling something worse than an ache flare up his side▬like one of his ribs just splintered. The light from the Daily Bugle chopper from outside blinded him and when Spider-Man glanced back up through the gaping hole, the Goblin was gone.

The panicked jolt to his heart forced him back onto his feet. He couldn't let the Goblin get away▬he couldn't let him win. Peter tripped and stumbled to the end of the hallway, one hand clutching his side and the other in front of his eyes to block out the piercing light of the helicopter.

His webs splintered across the window pane and with a pull, it shattered at Spider-Man's feet.

He staggered to the very edge and pulled himself out. He hit the concrete exterior and clung on with a desperate hitch of his breath amongst the horrible pain he felt. Spider-Man winced at the beating wind and ferocious torchlight from the helicopter. The spotlight followed him as he climbed up the side of the building.

Spider-Man was struggling. He was finding it hard to breathe without so much pain he wanted to throw up. He slumped against the concrete next to the window of the above-storey hallway, under the spotlight of Jameson's hatred. He glanced down and saw the head of the Daily Bugle watching from the streets and Peter wanted to shout at him, but he couldn't even take a breath without almost collapsing.

His hair stood on end. Spider-Man spun around only to be met with a ginormous mass of green scales and talons.

The Lizard snatched Spider-Man and pulled him away from the concrete. He gasped and was flung around by claws that wrapped around his head. He struggled to get a footing, but the Lizard had taken him by surprise. "I told you, there'd be consequences!" shouted the creature before shoving Peter into the corridor▬and for a moment, he suffocated on the claws and scales pressed against his cheeks and nose; he didn't even notice the glass scratching his skin.

The Green Goblin was waiting for him. Spider-Man couldn't do anything as he was thrown upwards. His back hit the ceiling and then he was falling. Falling and falling▬tumbling and spinning with the Goblin as they fell through floor after floor.

When they finally hit the ground floor, Peter was barely conscious. He groaned and tried to claw away, coughing and wheezing▬the world around him was a blur of smoke, plaster dust and a haze of swirling lights of police. He couldn't see a thing.

He cried when the Goblin tugged him backwards by his ankle and spun him around. Peter choked and spluttered when suddenly, his hand was around his throat. He didn't have the energy to pull away or to fight▬he felt himself fading away; he saw black dots in his vision and he wheezed, feeling his life be squeezed right out of him.

The Green Goblin leered right into his face as it slowly turned purple and blue. "Your weakness, Peter," he sneered with spitting menace, "is morality. It's choking you!" he laughed and Spider-Man stared up at him, dazed and defeated. "Can't you feel it?"

There was a blur over Goblin's shoulder. Suddenly, he let go of Peter's neck, throwing himself backwards with a cry of pain. Peter coughed and gagged, lying there in his dazed pain as he saw his Aunt May. She had jammed the cure into the Goblin's neck and was now standing behind Peter, breathing heavily.

Spider-Man still couldn't move. He wanted to call out to his aunt. He wanted to tell her to run. He wanted to do something▬to push her out towards safety. To▬to do anything ... but he couldn't move. His lungs burned, his throat felt like gravel, his ribs screaming and his legs spasmed with pain.

The Green Goblin stumbled around, and they watched with racing hearts to see if anything would happen. He doubled over, heaving and for a moment, Peter thought that they had managed it▬his Aunt May had done it. But then Peter heard that malicious laugh once more. It started off soft, and then it grew louder. The Goblin stood up and pulled the needle from his neck. He threw the empty cure into the rubble.

"It didn't work!" he growled. His eyes were fixed on Aunt May.

Peter managed to turn onto his side, coughing and feeling like he was breathing knives and fire. His arms shook and his legs trembled as he struggled back onto his feet.

May staggered backwards as the Goblin's aggression grew. Peter desperately tried to stand up▬he had to get her out of here. He had to get her out of here now. Everything around him was screaming▬the lights, the sirens, the helicopter; the rubble underneath his feet made him want to flinch just at the touch. Something was going to happen. He had to get his aunt out of here▬He needed to get her out of here.

"Norman was right!" continued the Green Goblin, seething. "He got it from you, that pathetic▬" He noticed Peter struggle to get back up and pressed his foot down onto his back. Spider-Man hit the rubble once again. He groaned, "▬sickness!"

Spider-Man was wheezing as he desperately tried to breathe▬but he was breathing in ash and plaster. Lights showered sparks above. Outside, it was a tornado of sirens. He couldn't help the terrified whimper that escaped his lips when the Goblin snatched onto his hair and forced him up to his knees. Peter couldn't fight back. He met Aunt May's gaze and saw her standing there with a pile that had fallen from the broken ceiling above in her hand. She was ready to fight the Green Goblin herself to protect Peter. He felt tears brim▬from the pain, from his terror, from everything ...

In his ear, the Goblin whispered: "You tried to fix me."

Spider-Man's voice was hoarse and broken▬it didn't sound like his own. But he had to try. He had to get her out of here. "May, go▬" he begged. "Please▬"

The Goblin clenched his hand tighter around Peter's hair and he winced. "Now," his voice drawled a nightmarish tone in his ear, "I'm gonna fix you."

He felt it. Peter felt it. He felt his hair stiffen and his skin crawl. He couldn't do anything. He couldn't struggle, he couldn't fight▬he couldn't even scream. As he heard a hum in the back of his ears▬as he watched something; the Goblin's glider hovered outside the glass doors over May's shoulder ... all he could do was beg: "May, run▬please▬!"

He couldn't scream▬he couldn't yell. But he felt his entire body twist and collapse in on itself when the glass shattered and the glider struck May right in her side. All Peter could let out was a broken sob as he saw her be thrown to the side▬

"May▬!"

The Goblin shoved him to the rubble. Peter coughed and spluttered. He crawled, his fingers grasping the edges of the concrete rubble as he tried to drag himself towards his aunt. He hitched back sobs, unable to see where she went in the haze and blinding siren light. "M▬May?" he whimpered as if she might hear his voice and make her way to him. "Aunt May?"

The glider swept around the destroyed lobby and the Green Goblin leapt up onto it. He laughed and Peter barely heard it in the buzzing haze of his mind. He kept whimpering and begging for his aunt▬desperate to find her in the destruction. "Peter, Peter, Peter..." chuckled Osborn and he glanced over, beaten, bloody and bruised.

Spider-Man wanted to cry, but he pushed himself to turn around. He swayed and slumped, but managed to keep himself up on his hands and feet▬crouched and ready to attack. The Goblin merely just shook his head at him, still chuckling. "No good deed goes unpunished. You can thank me later."

Peter saw the pumpkin bomb too late. His eyes widened. He saw it light up. He stumbled onto his feet. The Green Goblin held up his arm. He chucked it in the direction May had fallen.

Spider-Man threw himself after it. "NO▬!"

The world narrowed to a single point▬his vision tunnelled to the small, unassuming little ball that twisted and spun; glowing green and orange like some terrible Halloween decoration. But as it twisted towards his Aunt May, Peter had never felt so terrified▬so scared that he wasn't going to be fast enough.

He stretched out his fingers. He reached as far as he could go.

Peter's fingers touched the pumpkin bomb and he desperately tried to hit it off its course of destruction and death.

But he was too late.

It exploded and he was thrown further across the lobby. The explosion rang in Peter's ears as the ground floor erupted into flames. Outside, more explosions followed and the police cars burst into pieces as the Goblin made his escape. Spider-Man crumpled on the ground amongst the destruction that felt like it was of his own making. As the ceiling and the walls fell apart, so did his life▬even if he might not realise it.

The flames died down and so did the ringing in his ears. He pushed himself up by his elbows, his vision a haze of smoke and fire.

He heard someone cough in the silence. Peter glanced over and felt his heart twist with sobbing relief to see his Aunt May stand in the orange haze. "M▬May?" he choked out.

His Aunt turned to him. She stumbled slightly. She looked a bit disorientated. "Peter?"

Peter found enough energy in him to stand up and stumble towards her. "May, May▬I'm here. I'm here."

She still had the bag of cures in her hand and as Peter met her, they both supported each other in the firey haze and destruction around them. They coughed and spluttered, their lungs burning with smoke. Peter slumped towards his Aunt May, wrapping an arm around her and collapsing into a desperate hug.

He hitched back a sob. "Are you okay?" he asked her.

She nodded. She sounded in pain, but she nodded and reassured him. Peter tried to pull away but she clung on▬almost as if she could barely support herself. He frowned but he kept her standing with his arm around her, meeting his aunt's gaze. "It's okay," he said, holding her up. "It's okay. We're okay, right?"

He saw a cut on her forehead and quickly brushed away some of her hair to check it. Aunt May nodded. She smiled. "Yeah," she chuckled. Peter glanced at the flames by the door, trying to search for a way out. He didn't notice the sway his Aunt May had▬the distant look in her eyes. "Yeah. Knocked on my ass."

"Yeah, me too," Peter sighed and tried to move only to wince. He gripped his Aunt May tighter on her shoulder, clutching his side. "Agh▬I think I broke my ribs," he muttered.

Aunt May shuffled closer to him, reaching an arm around her nephew as he held his sides▬as if to try and take away some of the pain for him. They stood there for a long moment in silence▬just trying to breathe and comprehend all that had happened. Peter looked around in the empty, burnt and destroyed lobby ... His heart sank.

"This is all my fault, May..." he murmured. She immediately shook her head. She brushed some of the grime off Peter's cheeks but he continued. "I▬I should have just listened to Strange and let him send them back." He turned to her.

"No," said Aunt May. "You did the right thing." Peter frowned at her. "They would have been killed. You did the right thing."

He continued to frown at her. How could she say that? After everything that had just happened▬all the pain and suffering Peter had now caused because he thought he could play a game against the universe and win? This was his fault. He did this. And she was here and telling him that he should have done it all again? "No," he told her, growing a little frustrated. "It's▬it's not my responsibility, May."

She spun to him at this. Peter saw something flash in her gaze▬a breath of anger. Peter's frown lifted to surprise to notice it. His aunt stared at him as if she had heard words from someone else▬someone who wasn't the boy she raised. "Oh," her voice was shaky. "What Norman said? My moral mission? No."

Peter realised and he quickly tried to backtrack. "Wait, wait. No, May▬"

"No, no, no," she cut him off, tapping a finger on his chest. It hovered over the spider emblem. "Peter, you listen to me. Tell me right now, what was it your Uncle Ben always said to you? Tell me."

Peter stammered, shocked to hear his uncle be brought up in this conversation. He choked back a lump that rose just at the mention of him because deep down, he knew exactly what words she meant. "May..."

"No, Peter," her voice was shaky and light▬it sounded distant and far-off, but it was here, present enough to hold a slight sternness to it; one that made Peter purse his lips and hold back his argument. "What did Ben always tell you?"

When he swallowed hard, she took a sharp breath through her nose and rested her hand back on the symbol on Peter's chest. "You have a gift. You have power," she told him. Peter set his jaw. His own breath was shaky. "And with great power, there must also come great responsibility. Hmm?"

Peter felt her hand burn on the spider emblem on his chest▬the symbol of his power; his responsibility. And right now, he didn't know what to do with it. What was the right thing to do?

He heard his Uncle Ben right now▬his voice almost seemed like a distant memory he couldn't quite recognise. His Uncle Ben had always been a part of him. Peter's father had named Benjamin his second name. He even sometimes looked quite a lot like his uncle in pictures when he was younger. They both shared a similar, stubborn Parker pride. And his words▬his philosophy on life; it stuck with Peter and he tried his best to live by it▬for Spider-Man to live by it ... but it wasn't that easy. Sometimes, Peter didn't know what to do. Most of the time, he was lost.

But still, he tried.

He took a deep breath and nodded. "I know," he murmured and his Aunt nodded, too. She patted his chest▬proud of him; always proud of him.

May managed a weary smile. She nodded again. "Let's get the..." she took a shaky breath. Peter frowned a little bit. Something didn't seem right. Something wasn't right. "Let's ... out of here." She was shaking▬trembling, even; like she was cold. She was in shock.

Peter figured it was from everything that had happened. He nodded and put a comforting arm around her. "Yeah, yeah, let's go..."

He started to lead her out of the lobby, but then his Aunt May stopped him. "Wait..." her voice sounded more and more breathless▬it was trembling now, too. Peter glanced back at her, something twisting in his gut to see how much her hand was quivering on his arm. "Wait ... Let me just catch my▬"

And then she collapsed.

Peter's eyes widened and he launched forwards, catching her before she'd hit the ground. "May?" he let out, startled. He supported her head as she laid back down amongst the rubble. "May?" Peter tried to stay calm, his eyes darting at her cheeks that were void of colour▬How had he not realised that before?

She didn't say anything at first. She just stared up at him as Peter brushed her hair out of her eyes. "May? What's happening? What's happening?" he asked her in a shaky whisper, trying to figure out what was wrong with her. Peter hovered over his aunt, his breath hitching. His hands hovered, not sure what to do. "What happened? Are you okay?"

"I'm okay," her voice was breathy and weak▬Peter barely heard it. Outside, there were sounds of tires screeching as they hit the brakes. More police were exiting out of the vans, fully armed as they approached the burning building. Peter didn't notice any of it.

He stayed at his aunt's side, his hand cupping her cheek as he searched her eyes for at least some reassurance that she was still conscious. "Y▬Yeah, yeah," said Peter, his hands starting to shake, too. "Yeah," his voice broke slightly, "you're okay. You're okay. What happened?"

His hand moved gently to brace her head against the rubble. His other hand rested on her back, trying to keep her up so she didn't hurt herself. His Aunt May gave him a tired smile. She watched him▬and she didn't look okay; she looked like she wasn't really here. Peter felt his chest tighten. "Just have to..." her eyes flickered around them. Peter shuffled closer, trying to stay calm. He nodded. "Just have to ... catch my breath."

"Okay," said Peter quickly. His heart was starting to race. "Okay, well, catch your breath." He offered her a reassuring smile. She was okay. Everything was okay. "I'm right here. We're▬We're gonna take our time." Peter felt his throat close up. He took a deep breath himself to stay with it. He brushed her hair gently. "You catch your breath and then we'll take you to a doctor, okay?"

She didn't reply. She just stared at him, dazed and a little confused. Peter frowned. He felt something slippery when he moved his hand. He pulled it away and his eyes widened to see his fingers stained with deep, crimson blood. May's blood.

Peter took a shaky breath and it hitched in the back of his throat. He looked down and he felt sick▬he saw a gaping gash in her side where the glider had hit. His Aunt May hadn't even noticed. She hadn't felt any pain ... no pain at all. Peter's heart pounded at a more frantic pace. His hands trembled. He stared at the blood on his fingertips and felt a dreadful drop in the pit of his stomach▬it was his heart, and it was withering with a terrible realisation.

His mind flashed back to a horrible memory. A memory where he had stared at the blood on his fingertips once more. He glanced at his aunt, unable to speak as he saw his Uncle Ben instead, dying right in front of him ... That had been his fault, too.

He felt numb for a long moment but it was only a few seconds. He knew what was happening▬he knew why his aunt was so disorientated and dazed. He knew and yet he didn't want to believe it. No, this wasn't happening▬this couldn't be happening. She was fine. May was fine▬she was going to be fine. Everything will be fine▬

May stared at him. She did not register the blood on his hands. She didn't even know that it was her that was bleeding. "Are you okay?" she asked him instead, her voice barely even there.

Peter heard the sounds of guns and shields hitting the ground as officers outside stood at the ready. He glanced at them, and he trembled. What was he supposed to do? This wasn't happening▬

He hitched a terrified cry. "Somebody help!" he cried out to them, his voice cracking in a strangled plea. "Please! I need an ambulance, please! Somebody?!"

"What happened?" asked his Aunt May.

Peter turned back to her and quickly reassured her. "Nothing happened," he whispered. He was fighting back tears. "Nothing happened. It's okay, it's okay." He cupped her cheeks and swallowed the lump in his throat. His words were breaking away; withering with his heart. "You're okay, you're▬you're okay."

She nodded, but her eyes weren't meeting his. "I just ..." she was staring at something else. Peter felt his jaw hurt in his determination not to cry. He nodded, gently brushing his thumb along her cheek to keep her calm. "Let me just ... Let me catch my breath."

Peter nodded. He took a tearful breath. "I'm right here," his words were croaky. "I'm right here." He glanced out at the gathering police, anxious. He tried to ignore them, focusing on his aunt right now. He took another breath and his words wouldn't get any louder than a broken whisper. "I▬I'm right here. It's ..." he shuffled closer and nodded, managing a smile. "You're okay. It's just me and you..."

His smile slowly fell when he saw her gaze wander off... and something about it changed. It didn't move from there. She didn't take another breath. She became ... still.

Peter waited for her to blink. To take a breath▬to do anything.

She didn't.

*ೃ༄

a/n:

whenever someone says tom's a terrible actor i show them this scene ^

sorry that nina's not in this chapter, but i really felt like i needed to write out this scene, even though you've all watched it. it's for the flow of the book and makes it less jagged when you're cutting between scenes to where you're oc is in. you need context, even in fanfictions. and this context is super important.

that being said i couldn't write the rest of the death scene otherwise i'll be crying for the rest of the night and we'd reach an even longer word count.

someone asked when the memes were coming back and i just gotta ask you ... do you really want memes after this chapter? *sobs*.

r.i.p. chain for may </3 :

(minimal editing)