"Harry!!!"
Peter's eyes widened in horror as he watched his friend writhe in unbearable agony. He couldn't believe Harry had been reckless enough to inject himself with the spider venom without even testing it first.
"Thank God he didn't do that in real life," Gwen muttered, exhaling shakily as she watched Harry's face contort in pain. Just the sight of it made her uneasy.
Harry Osborn swallowed nervously as he observed his counterpart's suffering on The Screen. He felt immensely relieved that Peter had gotten him the serum that cured his illness. Otherwise, this could have been his fate.
"This Harry is completely out of his mind," 1st-Gen Spider-Man murmured, exchanging glances with 1st-Gen Gwen. Neither of them had expected their universe's Harry to be so desperate—willing to stake everything on the spider venom without hesitation.
The first-generation Harry sighed and ran a hand through his hair. Mary Jane, standing beside him, let out a breath of relief. "Good thing you got that enhancement serum from your father. Otherwise, you could've ended up just like him."
"No," first-gen Harry shook his head firmly. "My father told me there was never any genetic disease in our family."
Even now, he struggled to understand why this had happened in another universe. In the end, he could only chalk it up to the differences between parallel worlds.
Meanwhile, Tony Stark was deep in thought, watching Harry's excruciating transformation play out. He turned to Bruce Banner and asked, "What's gonna happen to him?"
"He's going to die," Banner replied without hesitation. He pointed at the dark blue veins bulging across Harry's body. "That's a sign that the toxins are spreading. Unless he has access to advanced medical tech that can immediately purify his bloodstream, he won't make it."
Tony sighed. "Damn. First-gen Harry died. Is second-gen Harry about to bite the dust too? I was hoping he'd make it."
Banner shrugged. "Hard to say. But knowing how The Screen works, it probably isn't showing us everything yet."
—
[Gwen sat in the back of a taxi, lost in thought. The driver suddenly pointed out the window and exclaimed, "Hey, it's Spider-Man!"]
[Gwen turned her head, following his gaze. The moment she spotted what Peter had done, her heart skipped a beat, and a smile broke across her face.]
["Stop the car!" she blurted out instinctively, forgetting that they were stuck in traffic.]
["Miss, I haven't moved at all!" the driver huffed in frustration.]
[Gwen didn't wait. She threw the door open and stepped out onto the street. A crowd had gathered by the river, staring in awe at the bridge where, written in massive webbing, were the words "I LOVE YOU!"]
[Peter Parker's confession was displayed for all to see.]
[Gwen couldn't help but laugh, her eyes welling up with tears. And before she could react, Peter swung down, grabbed her, and carried her off into the air.]
[They landed at the top of the bridge, where Peter wrapped her in a tight embrace.]
["Did you see my message?" he asked, smiling.]
["What message?" Gwen teased, playing along.]
["Come on, you didn't recognize it?" Peter leaned in, feigning disappointment.]
[She grinned. "Maybe you should read it to me?"]
[Peter locked eyes with her and whispered, "It says: I love you. Because I love you, you are wrong."]
[Gwen tilted her head, amused. "What did I do wrong?"]
["You said we were drifting apart," Peter murmured, pressing his forehead against hers. "But you were wrong. We were never drifting apart—I've always been following you. And I always will."]
[His voice softened. "I know there are a thousand reasons why we shouldn't be together. But I hate every single one of them. We have to make a choice, right? Well, I choose you."]
[Gwen's breath hitched. Peter held her gaze as he continued.]
["So here's what I'm thinking—England. Let's go together. From now on, I'll be by your side. Until the end of the world. Until the seas run dry and the rocks crumble."]
[Gwen's face lit up with a radiant smile. She had no intention of leaving Peter behind.]
["I mean," Peter smirked, "they have criminals in England too."]
[Gwen nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah!"]
["They have too many criminals," Peter teased. "Too many."]
["Like who?" Gwen asked, raising an eyebrow.]
["Jack the Ripper!" Peter declared dramatically.]
[Gwen burst out laughing.]
["What's so funny?" Peter grinned. "Jack the Ripper is still at large, you know!"]
[Gwen only laughed harder before pulling him into a deep kiss.]
—
Peter smiled softly as he watched the screen. "I told you I wasn't going to leave you."
Gwen, leaning against his shoulder, whispered, "I want to stay in New York."
Peter turned to her in surprise. "What? Aren't you going to Oxford?"
She shook her head. "No. I got into Columbia University. I don't have to leave."
A rush of relief washed over Peter, and his smile grew even wider. "I should go tell Uncle Ben and Aunt May. I told them I might go to England with you, and they've been worrying about how I'd adjust."
Gwen chuckled. "Yeah, we should tell them. It'll put their minds at ease."
—
[Just as Peter and Gwen were lost in their moment, a sudden flash of sparks erupted in the distance. Then, in an instant, half of New York City went dark.]
[Peter and Gwen's smiles faded. They turned toward the city skyline, their expressions shifting to concern.]
["What's happening?" Peter murmured. "Is that Max?"]
[As the entire New York City power grid failed, panic swept through the streets. The blackout spread rapidly, plunging the city into darkness.]
["He must have cut off the entire power grid," Gwen said, her voice tense.]
[At the airport, air traffic controllers scrambled to land flight PNA322, but the power outage left them stunned. The airport manager rushed to the technicians, demanding they restore power.]
["There should be emergency protocols for power failures, right?" Peter asked as he surveyed the darkened city below, where only car headlights illuminated the streets.]
[Gwen's gaze snapped to the power plant. "There's an emergency restart system, but if he's severed the transmission cables, no backup system in the world will fix this."]
["So how do I stop him? Every time I get close, he fries my web-shooters."]
["Ever try grounding electricity?" Gwen suggested.]
["I've tried everything—rubber, plastic—"]
["Ever tried magnetizing electricity?"]
["I haven't—"] Peter stopped, realization dawning on him.
[Gwen smirked. "Remember eighth-grade science class? If you use a battery to magnetize a nail—"]
[Peter's eyes widened. "It creates an electric charge!" He turned to Gwen, a spark of hope in his voice.]
["Exactly!" Gwen nodded.]
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