Peter made one final trip to Earth-TRN011 to take Gwen away, bringing this disjointed battle to an end. After returning to their headquarters, Gwen asked Peter with a look of utter confusion, "That's it? It's over?"
"It's over."
Hearing Peter's confirmation, Gwen found the whole situation baffling. "So, if it ends just like that, what was the point of us even going there?"
There was, in fact, a point. Aside from failing to completely resolve the issue of Earth-TRN011's Symbiote Spider-Man, everything they had set out to do was accomplished. The local New York City had been liberated from the symbiote tide, the villains had failed once again, and the Black King had been forced to leave that universe. The local Captain Universe would ensure that the Black King never returned.
Furthermore, Peter's original goal—researching a way to dismantle the symbiote hive mind—had been a success. The Mysterio helmet Gwen had used gathered enough data to help Peter deal with Carnage. But how should one put it...
How did things escalate from "finding a way to deal with Carnage" to becoming Captain Universe and brawling with the Black King?
Admittedly, Peter had learned quite a bit through the Black King. For instance, he learned that the Black King's essence was an extension of the Living Abyss, meaning Knull was effectively amorphous. He learned that both Carnage and Knull likely possessed the ability to bypass his Spider-Sense. He also discovered that the Black King's power, much like the Uni-Power of Captain Universe, was tethered to its own universe.
But it felt as if he had set out to learn a cubic equation and intended to flip through a high school math textbook, only for a calculus manual to be slammed into his face with someone telling him: "Once you master calculus, you'll never have to worry about multi-degree equations again!"
Was that really necessary?!
Peter got the distinct impression that the Black King hadn't actually intended to go to war with him, but the entity's actions were truly incomprehensible, as if it were suffering from some sort of mental malady.
As for Knull, his consciousness had fallen silent after being severed from the Black King's influence. Peter planned to head back and consult Professor X for a full analysis to prevent Knull from ever waking again.
"Regardless... aside from the lingering regret regarding Earth-TRN011's Spider-Man, the mission was a success. The helmet gathered enough data. Next comes the dedicated research into defeating Carnage."
Peter took the helmet and let out a helpless sigh, unable to stop himself from complaining once more.
"Picking a fight with the Black King just to deal with Carnage... that's a new one even for me."
"Then... shall I go with you to the Baxter Building?"
Gwen asked with a hint of anticipation, and Peter nodded without hesitation. The two of them immediately stepped through the headquarters' portal, materializing directly inside the Baxter Building, and headed toward Peter's private laboratory.
"So, care to explain, genius? How do you plan to use this thing against Carnage?"
"To put it simply, I need to design an entirely new suit and integrate the technology of Mysterio—well, strictly speaking, the tech of several members of the Sinister Six."
As Peter spoke, he began connecting the Mysterio helmet to the computer. Gwen asked curiously, "Why didn't you do this sooner?"
"Because most of these supervillains' technologies haven't been safety-vetted. In some cases, even they don't fully understand the principles behind their own gear, making the danger factor extremely high—take Mysterio's helmet or Shocker's gauntlets, for example. Others involve ethical issues, like Otto's cloning tech."
Furthermore, much of the technology required strict oversight. For example, Kang's time-travel tech. After Kang was defeated, his flagship was preserved to serve as the headquarters for S.W.O.R.D., the department dealing with extraterrestrial civilizations.
The futuristic technology found on board was being studied by scientists from all over the world. However, it was clear that traveling through time on a whim was not something that should be allowed to happen; even if such technology existed, it needed to be heavily regulated.
Peter explained all this while watching the data upload. Then, he began the fabrication of the new suit. A silver fluid appeared within the experimental chamber. Gwen watched the liquid with curiosity; it looked somewhat like a symbiote, yet also resembled liquid mercury.
Peter offered an explanation beforehand.
"Those are nanobots utilizing micro-storage technology. Tony Stark intends to use these nanobots to create a suit of armor, but micro-storage isn't quite advanced enough yet. It can handle packing away a form-fitting Spider-Man suit, but not a heavy set of power armor."
Half-joking, Peter watched as the robots assembled themselves into the shape of a suit based on his programmed physical data. Next came the brand-new web-shooters and the four mechanical spider-legs on the back.
Gwen asked, puzzled, "You still need web-shooters?"
"I don't need them for simple web-slinging anymore, but I've integrated some other features."
This nano-suit was likely the finest piece of equipment Peter could prepare at the moment. The material of the nanobots was a composite of Rhino's bio-metal skin and the Fantastic Four's polymer materials, ensuring superior defensive capabilities that even an anti-tank armor-piercing shell couldn't penetrate. Furthermore, these nanobots could merge directly with Anti-Venom and be stored inside Peter's body.
It could freely reconfigure and transform like the All-New, All-Different armor. On its own, it could become any of the suits Peter currently owned—including the Velocity Suit and the Stealth Suit—and its external appearance could be customized at will.
Beyond that, thanks to Doctor Octopus's neural-link technology and Scorpion's artificial spinal cord, Peter could control the four mechanical arms as if they were his own limbs. He had also integrated a new molecular oscillator designed specifically to combat Carnage. Since he couldn't find Otto's original designs, he had even paid a visit to the "The Raft" prison to co-design it with "Shocker," Herman Schultz.
And now, he had added Mysterio's capabilities. However, because this technology—copied from the Danger Room—contained many strange "black box" elements, Peter could only integrate the specific data Gwen had collected into a specialized anti-Carnage program.
As for the appearance, Peter could have designed the suit as a classic "Superior Spider-Man" uniform, but he chose the iconic red and blue color scheme.
Peter watched as the fully formed nanobots began to surge like a tide into a micro-storage device shaped like a wristwatch. He walked over, picked up the watch, and looked at Gwen with a smile.
"Now, it is time for the world to meet this newly upgraded Spider-Man."
Pressing the button on the watch, the nanobots instantly covered Peter's body. Even after merging with Anti-Venom, the suit maintained its classic red and blue colors, though it possessed a metallic luster that made it look far more advanced than a standard fabric suit.
"Now then... where exactly is Carnage?"