"Peter--"
"Stop Peter!" Susan also spoke, "Reed, last time you touched something you didn't understand, you almost killed us all!"
"Some people are worse off than us." Peter grabbed Reed's collar, "When I stole Spiral's belt drawings and gave them to you, I never thought you would build a damn portal! Close it now!"
"Peter, I--"
"Shut up! I don't want to hear it!" Peter roared, "The last time you touched this thing, you released Doctor Doom! Who knows what is on the other side of this door?! Close it! Now!"
Reed sighed, "Okay... okay."
Peter let him go and took a step back. "Thank you." Reed walked to the console and started to turn off the machine. The green portal slowly shrank and closed until it disappeared. Peter took a long breath.
"Seriously, Reed, I don't know what's going on in your head." Susan scoffed, "Once is bad enough."
Reed rubbed his head. "I know, I know... but I have always been very sorry about Peter. I think if I can solve this thing, at least it can prove that the pain was not in vain."
Peter sighed, "Reed, I don't care about that. The only person who should be responsible for my injuries is Doctor Doom, and you are not him. I don't blame you. But you Building this machine... It's really hard to convince me that you're not crazy. What if this door leads to Hell? Do you want to open a hole in the earth that leads directly to Hell?"
Reed blinked. "Peter, you should know that Hell does not exist, right?"
Peter pressed his temples. "Believe me, Reed, Hell are very real. There are so many records about angels and demons. I even know a guy with blue hair who can teleport through time Hell. It's probably true. So let's not take this risk. Okay?"
Reed and Susan looked at each other, and Susan turned around. "We have to have a good talk about those movies you watched."
Peter rolled his eyes. "I'm not talking nonsense." When the three of them walked out, the alarm suddenly sounded. Peter cursed, "What's wrong?!"
Susan and Reed rushed to the console. "Doctor Doom is hacking into our system!" Susan shouted.
"He wants to get the blueprint of the portal!" Reed also shouted.
"Can you hold him back?" Peter asked.
"We are trying!" Susan gritted his teeth.
"Maybe I can help." Peter took out the red tablet, unfolded it into a helmet and put it on his face, "Sassy, can you help strengthen the server's defense line?"
"Yes, sir." Sassy responded cheerfully.
"Connect her directly into the machine so that she can directly fight against Doctor Doom's invasion." Reed instructed.
Peter ran to the portal, pulled out the helmet's connecting cable and plugged it into the machine.
"Entered the host, locating the worm, and cleaning it." Sassy's voice came.
A few seconds later Reed shouted, "It worked! Sassy deleted the virus from Doctor Doom!"
"It's a terrible name to give an AI." Susan muttered.
"Don't worry, honey, I think you're sexy too." Peter smirked. Reed glared at him, while Susan chuckled.
But in the next second Reed's face changed drastically. "No! No!"
"What's wrong?!" Susan exclaimed.
"He entered the main system! How could it be?!"
"That worm is a trap." Susan's eyes widened, "He wants to activate the portal!"
"Warning! Doctor Doom has set the portal to its maximum range. There is a very high risk of blowing up the entire building." Sassy reported.
Boom--
The green portal appeared again. Peter stared at the green void, his throat was dry. "Sassy, is there a way to make it stop?"
"The portal is not yet fully stable. Any living life entering it now could destabilize it and prevent complete collapse."
Peter sighed. In other words, he had to jump in. He couldn't let anything happen to the people in this building, and he was the only one who could bear it. The self-healing factor should allow him to pass through the unstable portal alive. He quickly made up his mind. "Sassy, help me find a safe landing place."
"Received, accessing sub-terminal code... Location found. Location ID: home."
"Peter! What are you going to do?!" Susan shouted.
Peter turned around and gave a mocking military salute. "Self-healing factor, remember? I'll be fine. Just be prepared and get me back, okay?"
"No, Peter! I'm going! All this is caused by me!" Reed rushed towards Peter.
"Sorry, Mister Fantastic." Peter knocked Reed away with a biological electric shock, "But you are the only one smart enough to bring me back." He unplugged the connection cable from the helmet, walked to the machine, and took two steps back.
"The location has been locked, sir." Sassy said, "The portal will be stable enough to collapse in twenty seconds."
"It's so damn perfect." Peter ran forward. He seemed to hear Susan shouting something behind him, but he didn't hear it. He jumped into the green portal.
The world began to spin. His stomach was churning, and his body seemed to have lost weight. He felt like he was being thrown into a circle, surrounded by green, and he was terribly nauseated.
Then everything suddenly stopped. Gravity returned, and Peter fell headfirst to the ground. He quickly adjusted his posture, rolled, half-kneeling, raised his head and looked around.
He is on the top of a building in Earth-982 Manhattan. He knows this city.
"Okay, Sassy, where are we?" he asked.
"Searching all known databases... Information found. We appear to be in Manhattan, year 2008."
Peter sighed, "Okay, can you look up the general history of this world and tell me the differences from ours?"
"Sorry, I can only access the Internet in this world to obtain information, and I cannot compare it with your original world."
Peter walked to the edge of the roof and looked down. The city looked similar. "Okay. Let's talk about this world. Is there any Avengers?"
"Yes. The Avengers of this world was formed in 1976, so the members are much older."
"Check Peter·Parker."
"Searching... Found. Peter·Parker appears to be New York Police Department's forensic expert. Wife Mary·Jane Watson-Parker is a fashion designer and former model. Daughter Mayday·Parker is currently studying at Midtown High School."
Peter slapped his forehead. "Fuck, I fell into the Spider-Girl universe." He looked around and had to find a way to go back. Maybe he should wait here? Reed should have repaired the machine by now, right?
He sat down on the roof of the building and waited and waited and waited. Nothing. No portal, no news, nothing.
Peter sighed. He had to find Mayday and needed her help. Spiral was the one who sent her to his world, and maybe he could help him go back. But he had to try... But maybe he should change his image first? He looked down at himself, still wearing a blue and red Captain America T-shirt and jeans. Actually... maybe there is no need to change?
"Sassy, can you get me some cash?" he asked.
"Yes, Spider-Man. All you have to do is connect me to the nearest ATM."
"Okay, help me find the nearest ATM." He looked down the alley.
"Found it, the nearest one is a block from here."
"Thanks, Sassy." Peter took off his mask and folded it into a flat plate. He walked along the street, and most of the pedestrians turned a blind eye to him. Ah, New York, every dimension is the same. He quickly found the ATM, and there were not many people in line.
When it was his turn, he pulled out the USB cable from the helmet and plugged it into the machine.
"How much should I take?" Sassy asked.
"A thousand dollars, be safe." He whispered.
"Got it." As soon as he finished speaking, the machine quickly spit out the banknotes.
"By the way, delete all my images from the surveillance screen." He raised his head and looked directly at the camera, "Don't let anyone find out that we have been here."
"Received." Sassy processed it quickly.
Peter took the money and unplugged the connection cable. People around him stared at the stack of banknotes. He smiled and put the money into his pocket.
The first thing was to buy lunch. He went to Subway and bought three oversized sandwiches. Traveling through dimensions was really exhausting.
After lunch, Peter set out to find Mayday. It was about eleven o'clock, and she should be at school now. He took the bus and arrived at Midtown High School ten minutes later.
This shitty place was still the same in another dimension, which was really disappointing. He hated this school.
Peter Walk in like a student of this school. Strictly speaking, does it count? Does registering as a student in another universe count?
He looked around. There were all unfamiliar faces, and it could be seen from the looks they cast, that everyone knew he didn't belong here. However, there were obviously more appreciation in the eyes of a few girls. Okay, he is still handsome in this world. It's good to be yourself.
During lunch time, Mayday should be in a cafeteria somewhere. He went in and looked around, where was the person? Suddenly, a streak of platinum-blonde hair swayed through the crowd. Peter's eyelids twitched. No... it must be an illusion.
He tried to look again, but that patch of hair had disappeared. Peter sighed, either he was crazy, or it was a problem with the world. He continued to look, and just then he heard a familiar voice.
Peter looked back and smiled. She turned out to be his daughter. He found her at a glance. She was surrounded by a group of people: a fat boy, a thin boy, a round-faced girl with glasses and a brown ponytail, two blond boys who looked like they wanted to kill each other, and Mayday·Parker, who was surrounded in the middle.
"Do you know what your problem is, Moose?" The thin boy pointed at the fat boy, "You have to learn some respect! Don't talk to us like that casually!"
"What do you want?" Moose growled.
"What if I really do it?" The thin boy stood up and the two of them stared at each other.
"It's not good for children to fight." Peter interjected and walked over.
A group of people all turned their heads. Mayday took a breath and widened his eyes. "He...Peter?!"