That single sentence had completely shattered the self-hypnosis Peter had been living under.
Yes, exactly.
The reason the Peter of this universe had put on the suit in the first place wasn’t anything noble—he simply wanted to avenge Uncle Ben!
His Uncle Ben had been senselessly murdered not long ago on a dark night by a thief with a star tattoo on his wrist.
And the incompetent NYPD still hadn’t caught the killer.
So Peter decided to take matters into his own hands.
That was what kicked off his early activities as Spider-Man.
No, at this stage, he couldn’t really be called a “hero,” because every single action he took was fueled purely by a personal vendetta.
Until moments ago, when that sharp exchange with Captain Stacy snapped him awake.
He was suddenly reminded of what Uncle Ben had told him: “With great power comes great responsibility.” And so, he fell silent.
He pondered.
He left the Stacy home and climbed up here, pondering for a whole minute before making a completely unprecedented decision.
He was going to tail Gwen’s dad—a NYPD Captain with his own dedicated tactical task force.
Because George Stacy remained convinced that Spider-Man was a dangerous amateur who needed to be put behind bars.
Not only that, but after tonight, he might look down on Peter Parker even more, stepping in to keep him and Gwen apart.
That was the last thing Peter wanted.
Coincidentally, during dinner, Captain Stacy had brought up the importance of strategy—a car thief Peter had caught a while back was actually a piece of bait the NYPD was using to catch a much bigger fish, and Peter’s rash interference had completely ruined the sting operation.
That was part of why Captain Stacy held such a grudge against Spider-Man.
Peter was a guy who listened to good advice.
So right now, he wanted to use a little “strategy” of his own on Captain Stacy.
If all went well, maybe he could change the captain’s perception of Spider-Man just a bit.
As for his standing as Peter Parker…
well, he’d have to take that one step at a time.
And right at that moment, the other Peter…
took control of the reins.
…
After digesting the memory fragments, Peter’s immediate thought was: ‘Why did Uncle Ben suffer a tragic death in this world too?
Don’t tell me there’s an Osborn here as well?’ He quickly dug deeper into the newly received memories.
There was indeed an Osborn family in this universe, but here, the Osborns seemed deeply tied to Peter Parker!
Norman Osborn and Peter Parker’s parents had been colleagues and associates, while Harry Osborn was Peter’s closest childhood friend.
It was just that Harry had later been sent away to a private academy run by the Osborn family, while Peter attended public school, driving the two apart.
They hadn’t seen each other since.
From the looks of it, the Osborns in this world had nothing to do with Uncle Ben’s death.
Peter breathed a quiet sigh of relief.
If Uncle Ben’s death here was tied to the Osborns as well, he’d have to seriously consider asking Aunt May back home whether she used to have a boyfriend named Ben.
Oh, wait…
there wasn’t even an Osborn in his own universe!
Never mind then!
Peter shook his head repeatedly.
‘No, no, no, now’s not the time to be distracted!
Stay focused and clear your name!’ Peter pulled the Spider-Man suit out of his backpack and pulled it on.
He had to admit, even though this Peter hadn’t been Spider-Man for much longer than he had, the suit’s design and material were miles ahead of his own homemade onesie.
Especially that massive spider emblem across the chest.
‘Wow, why didn’t I think of designing it like that before?’ “Alright, all set.
Let’s go!” Peter stood up, stretched his limbs, and felt the snug fit of the suit before leaping off the ledge.
His target was a police cruiser driving down below.
That was Captain George Stacy’s car.
A moment ago, the captain had taken an urgent phone call, leaving dinner mid-meal to rush out the door.
Peter guessed he must have received a high-priority dispatch.
It was the perfect chance to rebuild his image in Captain Stacy’s eyes.
Yep, this was his grand “strategy.” Okay, fine—it wasn’t really a strategy at all, just a little emergency PR.
A way to prove he wasn’t out there fighting crime just to settle a personal score.
“Woohoo!
Man, this is the life!
Who would’ve thought that after swinging around my city an hour ago, I’d get to do another lap over here?” Peter yelled as he shot through the city streets.
“Whoa!” As he rounded a tight corner ahead, Peter pivoted sharply to brush past a wall, only to spot a couple making out in a dark alleyway, their hands wandering as they composed a restless melody of hormones.
Peter’s sudden appearance shattered the romantic mood in an instant, and a pair of bewildered eyes looked up at him.
Peter offered an awkward laugh, quickly apologizing, “Sorry!
Don’t mind me, I’m a professional Spider-Man!
My eyes are strictly on the mission—I definitely didn’t see you two kissing, and I *definitely* didn’t see your hands…
Uh, hey, hey, don’t pull a gun!” Peter planted both feet against the wall, scrambling up and out of sight in a flash.
That guy had zero manners, pulling a gun on him like that.
Terrifying!
Still, likely influenced by the original Peter’s emotions, the current Peter was feeling pretty tense too.
He had no idea what kind of mess he’d run into by following Captain Stacy, nor did he know if another botched attempt would make the captain hate him enough to issue a full-blown APB for his arrest.
He could already picture his face plastered across a wanted poster…
Yikes, that was a horrifying thought!
Peter shuddered, nearly losing his grip.
“Man, fate really has a sick sense of humor.
How’d he manage to fall for the daughter of a guy who thinks his alter ego is Public Enemy Number One?
Talk about ‘lucky,'” Peter grumbled about the original Peter, a hint of jealousy in his tone.
Grumbling aside, this Peter’s girlfriend, Gwen Stacy, was undeniably stunning.
A blonde, long-legged, gentle, and brilliant star student.
Meanwhile, back at his own school, Peter had a crush on a girl named Liz—except she barely gave him the time of day.
*Buzz!* Just as Peter was letting his mind wander while swinging along…
His Spider-Sense suddenly flared out of nowhere, buzzing like crazy!
No, you couldn’t say it came out of nowhere.
Because the moment Spider-Sense triggered, it was the ultimate warning sign!
At the exact same time, Peter felt the tension in his hand go completely slack.
His face turned pale beneath the mask.
‘Oh crap, the web didn’t fire!’ The web-shooter had suddenly jammed…
Peter was completely speechless, internally cursing how unreliable this universe’s Spider-Man was with his gear.
Sure, his own homemade web-shooters were crude compared to the high-tech model Iron Man gave him with the suit, but at least they never randomly broke down mid-air!
And the consequence of a sudden breakdown was…
well, exactly this!