Before Peter could finish his sentence, he instinctively followed his Spider-Sense, leaping sideways to abandon his position. He dragged the distracted Tobey-Spidey with him.
The spot where they had been standing was now empty save for Doctor Octopus.
SHOOSH SHOOSH SHOOSH— Several spherical objects shattered glass and landed on the floor, clanking loudly. "They're Pumpkin Bombs!" Tobey-Spidey instantly recognized the weapons.
BOOM!BOOM!BOOM! Explosions rocked the area. The ceiling above them, already dilapidated, shook violently from the impact. Peter and Tobey-Spidey quickly relocated to the safety of the wall.
Tobey-Spidey spoke gravely, confused: "That's Goblin equipment, but the Green Goblin died two years ago..."
Peter (Earth-616) narrowed his eyes. The attacker was the Second Green Goblin—Harry Osborn? If he remembered correctly, this should be the beginning of the Spider-Man 3 plot! But 3 was supposed to happen months after 2! Has the timeline been accelerated?Is this the Butterfly Effect?
Peter hadn't met Harry. The only people he had interacted with were Tobey-Spidey and Doctor Octopus. Tobey-Spidey had been with him the whole time and couldn't be the cause of the temporal shift. It must be Doctor Octopus. Peter analyzed that Doctor Octopus must have met Harry Osborn again, and the encounter had gone badly.
Peter's flexible mind quickly analyzed the situation. "Otto! Get out here!" The roar of the Second Green Goblin echoed from outside. The attacker was indeed Harry Osborn.
He was riding an advanced, Glider-Board (Glider-style hovercraft) and wearing the Goblin armor, but instead of his father's full mask, he wore a visor covering only the upper half of his face. His eyes, behind the goggles, faintly glowed green, making him look menacing.
CRASH! On the ruined church floor. From the dust, several mechanical tentacles quickly extended, and the soot-covered Doctor Octopus emerged, his face twisted with suppressed fury. The tentacles had quickly formed a shield to protect him from the blast; otherwise, he would have been killed instantly!
Doctor Octopus looked up through the hole in the ceiling at the Second Green Goblin: "Harry Osborn, have you come here to die? Do you want me to kill you?"
"Harry? That's Harry?" Tobey-Spidey exclaimed.
"Yes," Peter confirmed. "Harry has inherited his father's mantle and become the Second Green Goblin."
"No, how can this be..." Tobey-Spidey was distraught. Harry was his closest friend, but the Green Goblin represented destruction and madness.
"You need to be careful," Peter warned.
"Why?"
"Harry believes you killed his father. Do you think he will come after you now that he has the power for revenge, Spider-Man?" Peter asked.
"Oh, damn it!" Tobey-Spidey was deeply troubled. "I don't want to fight Harry."
"How about I teach you a trick?" Peter offered. "Another Spider-Man taught me this."
"What trick? Tell me!" Tobey-Spidey was eager to learn.
Peter raised a fist: "Physical Persuasion (Beat him until he sees reason)."
Tobey-Spidey: ...
While they were talking, the fight was already underway. The Second Green Goblin was here for revenge. The rage and hatred consuming Harry's mind, coupled with the voice urging him on, led him to drink the green liquid. He was unconscious for half an hour. When he woke, he felt an immense surge of power! He quickly assembled the newly designed Glider-Board, put on the Goblin armor, grabbed some Pumpkin Bombs, and rushed to the church to find Doctor Octopus.
He wanted to make Doctor Octopus, the man who so wantonly insulted, threatened, and nearly killed him, pay the price. After that, he would find Spider-Man and kill him to avenge his father!
BOOM! The Green Goblin II threw another Pumpkin Bomb. Doctor Octopus tried to repeat his earlier tactic, preparing to catch the grenade and throw it back. However, learning from his mistakes, Green Goblin II had timed the explosion perfectly. The moment Doctor Octopus's mechanical tentacle grasped the bomb, it detonated. Fortunately, the alloy of his tentacles was highly resilient; otherwise, the arm would have been destroyed.
"That guy!" Doctor Octopus glanced back, caught in a dilemma. On one hand, he feared Green Goblin II would destroy the expensive experimental equipment he had managed to rebuild, especially the laser confinement system, which cost him the gold from several banks. Tritium was even harder to acquire. He wanted to leave, but he couldn't let the Spider-Men destroy his equipment.
On the other hand, two annoying Spider-Men were lurking nearby. If he left, they would surely sabotage his experiment.
Seeing Green Goblin II prepare for another attack, Doctor Octopus suddenly shouted: "Wait, Harry!"
Green Goblin II stopped, sneering down at Doctor Octopus: "Do you want to beg for mercy?" Having just acquired great power, he felt invincible.
"No!" Doctor Octopus replied. "I want to tell you that Spider-Man is here! We can eliminate them together!"
"Oh?" Green Goblin II's eyes lit up, and his mouth curved into a wicked smile. "Spi—der—Man! Where are you? Come out!"
Having their eavesdropping exposed, Peter and Tobey-Spidey looked bewildered. Peter nudged Tobey-Spidey: "They're looking for you." Tobey-Spidey whispered: "Hey, you're Spider-Man too!" "But you are the Spider-Man of this world, aren't you?" Peter countered.
Tobey-Spidey gave him a pathetic look: "I can't fight both of them alone. You'll help me, right?" "Call me Bro." "What?" "Call me Bro." "Damn it... that's not fair!" Tobey-Spidey gritted his teeth. "Well?" "Bro." "Good boy, little brother. Let's go!"