Peter found himself back in Dense Fog Space.
"What's going on?" he asked, his tone thick with confusion. "Didn't the universe reboot? Shouldn't I have returned to the universe? Or should I have disappeared and been replaced by a new me?"
"That should have happened, but you died so that everyone else could live."
Peter tilted his head, trying his hardest to understand the implication-laden words, but failed.
He let out a deep sigh. "You could just say that you saved me. I fully accept your kindness, and I owe you one. Thank you."
The black sun remained silent.
"Listen, I'm definitely not saying you're the kind of person who expects repayment whenever you help someone, but I think..." Peter placed a hand over his chest, then spread it outward. "Personally, I think good deeds ought to be rewarded. You did a good deed too, right?"
"I'm still alive, and so is everyone in the universe. No matter what your reasons were, you made things better for them... So, I mean, is there anything I can help with?"
Peter looked at the black sun with utter sincerity in his eyes.
And if his gaze had been a little sharper, piercing through those strange patterns to see what lay within, he would have seen a man in a white lab coat slamming the table and telling several versions of himself, "See that?! That's what a perfect score looks like! That's what an outstanding graduate looks like!"
Looking at the silent black sun, Peter sighed in disappointment. "Fine, even if I can't help, where should I go? As nice as it is here, I can't stay forever. I should be doing something, shouldn't I?"
Suddenly, Peter felt a great deal of knowledge appear in his mind, probably an explanation of the current