The golden sky of Earth-13 cracked apart as the first blow fell.Captain Universe rose like a blazing star above the silver towers, his cosmic aura burning away the shadows that spilled from the Inheritors' portals. But for every ray of light, there came a flood of darkness. The Inheritors did not simply arrive; they invaded, dragging with them storms of monstrous hounds, corrupted drones, and webs infected with decay.
The sanctuary trembled. And with it, the hearts of the Spiders.
Spider-Cyborg stood in the center of it all, his systems flaring red as warnings scrolled across his internal HUD. His right arm hissed with smoke where wires burned. His vision flickered at the edges, but he kept moving. Because if he stopped now, if he faltered for even a second, Earth-13 would fall.
Karn approached him steadily, the hum of his staff cutting through the din of the battlefield like a war drum. Around them, chaos reigned: Gwen clashing with Bora in a vicious dance of blade and silk; Otto grappling with Jennix in a contest of machine minds; Noir firing into swarms of hounds from the rooftops; Miles darting like lightning between collapsing spires.
But Peter only saw Karn.
The masked hunter's voice was calm, even as the world fell to ruin. "Your existence is error. The Web does not sing your name."
Peter lifted his cannon arm, sparks dripping from its joints. "Good thing I don't need a song. Just a good aim."
The blast lit the sky. Karn raised his staff and absorbed the energy, dispersing it with a twist that sent the shockwave rolling back across the battlefield. Peter staggered but didn't fall.
Karn tilted his head, almost curious. "You endure. Why?"
Peter's chest heaved. He thought of Daemos' claws tearing into him, of Bora calling him half-thing, of Otto's cold dismissal. And he thought of Miles' simple words: You got back up.
"Because that's what Spider-Men do," Peter growled. "Even the broken ones."
He lunged.
The clash was brutal. Karn's staff swept arcs of destructive energy, while Peter's arm roared with unstable blasts. Each strike rattled his cybernetics to the core, threatening to tear them apart, but he forced them onward.
Above them, Captain Universe battled Daemos, their blows echoing like thunderclaps. Every strike of cosmic light pushed Daemos back, but the Inheritor only laughed, his body healing faster than the universe itself could burn him.
Across the city, Bora tore down spires to crush Gwen, who swung through falling debris with blade strikes timed to perfection. Miles tangled with Verna's hounds, his venom blasts chaining through packs of monsters. Otto's arms wrestled Jennix's drones, their commands colliding in a storm of metal fury.
The war consumed Earth-13.
Peter slammed his cannon into Karn's staff, the feedback nearly shattering his arm. Sparks flew. His vision blurred. But he kept pressing forward.
"You're nothing but their weapon," Karn said flatly. "A puppet of steel."
Peter spat blood onto the cracked silver floor. "Better a weapon that fights back… than a monster that feeds."
For a moment, Karn hesitated. His stance faltered, just slightly, as if the words had struck something beneath the mask.
Peter saw the opening. He poured everything into his cannon. Circuits screamed. Metal burned. His arm trembled as energy overloaded. And he fired point-blank.
The explosion ripped through the plaza, flinging both of them apart. Karn's staff shattered at the tip, sparks of corrupted Web-energy scattering. Peter's entire arm blew open, wires dangling, hydraulics leaking.
He fell to one knee, smoke pouring from his shoulder. His systems blared failure codes, red across his vision. But he was alive. And Karn was down.
For the first time, Peter saw the hunter stagger, clutching his broken weapon.
The battlefield froze for a heartbeat. Every Spider, every Inheritor, seemed to feel the tremor.
And then Daemos roared, his voice shaking the sky. "ENOUGH!"
With one titanic swing, he hurled Captain Universe across the plaza. The cosmic Spider crashed through towers of silver, his glow flickering. Daemos advanced, hunger blazing in his eyes.
The Spiders faltered. Fear rippled through them. Even the Enigma Force seemed to waver.
Peter struggled to stand, his ruined arm hanging uselessly. His body begged him to stay down. To give in.
But he remembered Miles' words. You got back up.
He forced himself to his feet. One leg shook. His vision dimmed. But he stood.
"Hey, ugly!" he shouted at Daemos, his voice hoarse but defiant. "You wanted me dead? Come finish the job!"
Daemos turned, his grin widening. "Gladly."
The titan charged.
Peter braced. He had nothing left—no cannon, no strength. Just stubbornness. Just the will not to die crawling.
And then, at the last moment, a golden blur intercepted Daemos' strike. Captain Universe rose again, battered but blazing. His voice thundered with power.
"No more worlds will fall."
The Enigma Force surged, brighter than ever before. Energy cascaded across the battlefield, pushing the Inheritors back. Bora hissed. Brix stumbled. Verna snarled. Even Karn shielded his eyes.
For the first time, the Inheritors retreated.
The portals snapped shut. The sky cleared. The silence left behind was deafening.
The Spiders collapsed in exhaustion. Gwen knelt, clutching her ribs. Miles leaned against a shattered wall, chest heaving. Otto dragged himself from the wreckage, his mask cracked.
And Peter fell to his knees, staring at his ruined arm. The wires sparked weakly, like a dying heartbeat.
He should have felt broken. Instead, for the first time, he felt… enough.
Captain Universe landed beside him, his glow dimming but steady. "You fought with no song. No totem. No destiny. Only will."
Peter looked up, sweat and blood streaking his face. "And was it enough?"
The cosmic Spider placed a glowing hand on his shoulder. "Today, it was."
And for Peter, that was everything.
But high above, hidden in the remains of a closing portal, Morlun watched. His eyes glowed with hunger, his smile wide.
"The Web frays," he whispered. "And when it snaps, not even the Enigma Force will save them."
The war was far from over.