3rd Person POV
The world changed and shifted as dimensions fused and people were thrown across the multiverse. Spider-Man continued his clash with Knull as the tides had turned. Spider-Man aggressively attacked Knull with fierce, wild swings, pushing him back. Knull was tossed back as a pocket dimension swallowed him whole. It took Knull merely a few seconds before he broke out and launched towards Spider-Man.
Morlun hunted totems infected with madness and consumed them, filling his own power and healing his current form. The Warden was focused on stopping Morlun, as Spider-Man was out of his league now. Neith concentrated on holding the Web of Life and Destiny together, without collapsing. The Madness spread like an infection across the multiverse.
Cracks formed across the skies as reality trembled at the cosmic clash. Knull and Spider-Man moved through realities, blade against blade. The world trembled under such immense cosmic pressure. Endless war and cosmic beings have ravaged its surface, while Cosmic Webs fight for control. Knull slashed forward against Madness, who took the blow head-on.
Madness spoke aloud. "Finally, on even footing, old man." Knull grew annoyed by how long this game dragged on, having already lost over ⅔ of his children to this dreaded place. Some were killed or trapped, while others were tossed across realities.
Spider-Man thrusted forward, finally landing a hit against Knull, who backed away.
Color bled into the sky as orange and black fervently devoured the world. Knull stood up as the ground cratered. He stepped forward slowly as black tendrils swarmed around him. Knull raised the Necrosword and swung seriously towards Spider-Man, tired of these foolish games that seemed to stretch forward endlessly.
Madness surged forward, the ever-changing symbiotic form squirming and hissing. Instead of merely dodging, he bent reality itself. Two orange wings burst from his monstrous form as he effortlessly floated. The slash from the Necrosword leveled half the city. Any remaining skyscrapers fell, and buildings were swept away. The hurricane of debris ripped through New York State, as the cyclone of debris swallowed hundreds of thousands.
It ripped into realities, causing devastation as reality glitched to restore and delete what was there and what wasn't. Peter swung his sword violently in a wide arc as if spinning like a tornado. Knull merely blocked it and unleashed a fury of black tendrils alongside the swing of his blade.
Spider-Man answered with several blades of orange threads. The threads lashed across Knull's chest plate; instead of cutting, they corroded and attacked like a virus. Black armor broke and peeled as the orange infection spread across parts of his body, before a black surge forced it out. A wave of shadow erupted outward from Knull's body.
Spider-Man was ruthlessly sent flying back into a barely standing skyscraper, steel beams shattered, and concrete broke like glass. He merely laughed before lunging back at Knull.
Madness' orange wings flared wildly against the abyss's effects as he flew back upward into the sky. The void leaked into reality as the sky began to eclipse, and even other realities felt an encroachment of darkness.
In the eye of a debris hurricane, the Mandarin hovered untouched. The ten rings orbited him as the planets orbit the sun.
"The prey has evolved," Morlun spoke in a condescending tone.
The rings locked with a sound "click." The chaotic mixture of energies surged before him and was greedily absorbed. The sphere continued absorbing more of the surrounding energy, whether it be Madness, Void, or Dimensional energy.
The Mandarin's power surged as he forged a locking mechanism. The dimensional rifts and gates all slammed shut. Reinforcing spider-men were locked out once again as silence reigned over the planet.
Morlun and the Warden looked at the Mandarin in pure shock. Peter and Knull were also surprised, but a bit busy in the heat of battle.
Morlun and the Warden didn't expect this human with ancient alien technology. He somehow did what Morlun had done earlier, but on a completely different scale.
Morlun simply blocked any incursions coming into the planet, while Mandarin had cut the Earth entirely from other realities altogether. He basically created a pocket, which was impressive, but it usually came with massive restrictions. Morlun and the Warden were deeply enraged because they both were now cut off completely from the Web of Life and Destiny. Knull and Madness were entirely unaffected because one created their own Web, while Knull was a cosmic being.
The Mandarin furrowed his brow as this was an unforeseen consequence of his planning, which was somewhat underprepared.
Unsurprisingly, the Warden moved first to neutralize this new, annoying threat to the holder. The risks of getting too close to something absorbing that much energy would even make Morlun reconsider attacking it directly.
Sharp mechanical tentacles slam downward as the Mandarin dodges once more. The Warden continues his assault, while Morlun ruthlessly hunts down the tiny group of remaining Spider-Men.
The sound of bodies dropping was like music to Morlun's ears. This had been by far one of the most exhilarating times in his life, and it seemed the party's ending was soon approaching. The hunt for so many totems has been such a wondrous meal.
Morlun killed the last Spider-Man before turning towards the pest that was ruining his hunt. This mere mortal had somehow blocked himself and his oh so favorite follower of Neith from connection to the Web of Life and Destiny. Usually, this would be a new level of interest to hunt, but this was inconvenient for plans, as he was, as of current dimensionally locked on top of being disconnected from the Web.
Before the three could continue engaging in battle, Knull slammed into the ground, the ground shattering into a spiderweb. Knull appears to have lost his upper hand as Peter lands softly near the 4 opponents. They all instinctively looked towards the monstrous being of madness whose power was now extremely concentrated, now that he was cut off from the rest of the multiverse. They all looked angrily at this little mosquito who decided to use advanced alien tech to create a separate pocket dimension from the multiverse.
Mandarin looked towards the ground, as honestly, he didn't really know how it worked either. Spider-Man, with his new insane power-up, decides to play Wack-a-Mole with his friends. He punted Morlun across the ruins and then drop-kicked the Warden and shouted "GOAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!". Peter was having a blast as he started beating the Mandarin with a can of Mandarin oranges. Knull was honestly kinda puzzled at this whole fiasco as it went from a life-or-death battle to whatever the heck is going on here now.
Knull, annoyed by this pointless endeavor, wasted no time in throwing his Necro sword directly into the Mandarin, splitting him apart. The alien technology was destroyed, and everyone felt the connection back to the multiverse.
The ground began to shake once more as the multiversal collapse had gotten so bad that this multiverse was getting wiped out. Weaker dimensions finally began shattering out of the multiversal chaos. This battle was truly spiraling, and yet the biggest question that seemed to finally cross everyone's mind was how "artificial everything felt. Spider-Man, Knull, Warden, and Morlun had almost a realization altogether. They all had depths of knowledge of many beings who would be interested in this conflict or would want to weigh in, and yet it seems as though they are uninvolved. Spider-man knew the voices had gotta involved, but then faded into the background? Why hadn't he noticed that previously?
Spider-Man and the Warden were by far even more confused. So many cosmic threats or cosmic balancers, and none seem to be seen? Even Neith felt more like a background support character. This was truly maddening. Knull took this small time of distraction to eliminate Morlun ruthlessly by ripping his head off and then crushing his skull. Warden and Spider-Man were confused at how easily he had died. Knull was strong, but this battle between them had been going on for a while, and it seemed no one would be killed easily.
Reality shifted once more, and Knull disappeared from existence, stunning both Spider-Man and the Warden.
Suddenly, a gaze tore through reality as Peter looked skyward to see something that shouldn't be seen.
Spider-Man remembers a straightforward, yet chilling quote.
"When you gaze into the abyss, it gazes back at you."
He felt his spider-sense break altogether, and his mind scream in fear. Madness completely froze up as all of reality seemed to freeze. The fracturing and glitches stopped, and realities stopped dividing and merging. The Web of Madness and the Web of Destiny and Life stood silently.
The multiverse seemed to almost freeze in fear. The silence was deafening to a mind in madness. Peter felt the weight of everything he had done and more hit him like a typhoon.
The indescribability of being silenced: any words Peter might try to form cannot escape his mouth. It didn't belong to anything inside the multiverse. Even the very concept of the Web of Madness seemed to be afraid. This puzzled Peter. "How can a concept be afraid?"
And for a split second, nothing happened before reality shifted back and time propelled forward. Realities began colliding once more, and the web of madness continued its spread.
It seemed as though nothing had happened or changed, yet an indescribable feeling lay buried deep within his mind. The ever-consuming silence was truly a nightmare.
Everything seemed to be in order before the voices of Spider-Men across the multiverse echoed in his mind. They screamed and begged as emotions flowed through him like a tidal wave. Raw emotions flooded his already chaotic mind.
He looked up and realized this was Neith's final trick. Reconnect him to the Web and overload him. To overwhelm him with Spider-Men across the multiverse, destabilizing his web. He was the anchor of the web, and without him, it would slowly fall apart. He couldn't understand why she had now decided to act. Where had Knull gone, and why was everything seemingly so easy? Peter thought to himself about gaining his powers of madness and how everything seemed odd. What about the voices of those in his mind from before? Where had they gone, and why had they not intervened?
Peter could fill in within himself. The Web of Madness began to shudder. The Web of Madness began to burn and decay away. The Multiverse started to stabilize as Peter's form grew grotesque and wild. Worlds returned to their canonical order, and timelines were restored. Realities were fixed or, if beyond repair, outright destroyed. He could feel the gaze of Neith as if she had secured victory. My mind continued wildly and sporadically, alongside my body changes and morphing beyond my own control.
I thought to myself how ironic it was that "Madness" was getting overloaded by the multiverse of Spider-Men attempts to rip me from my Web. I had no time to react as the Warden appeared directly behind me, raising his metal tendril. I was utterly confused by the events that had taken place up to now. My mind seemed to be opened, and then the door seemed to close.
The Warden stabbed him straight through his heart and ripped it out as another metal tentacle smashed his heart. As I stared at the heart out of my body, my mind seemingly went blank for a moment.
"So this is my end? Killed by a mere obedient puppet, how ironic."
The Warden spoke, gazing directly at Peter. "You chose this path by leaving behind responsibility. You used your power for yourself and nearly brought the multiverse to ruin. You are no true Spider-Man, merely a sad imitation. "
Peter spoke, "What did you lose? Uncle Ben, like we all do? Perhaps Gwen or MJ? A friend or maybe a classmate, such as Harry? Maybe you lost Aunt May, but you want to know something? You see, I had them all, and guess what happened?"
"I LOST EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM." Peter's voice breaking. "Not a single one survived. Uncle Ben, Aunt May, Gwen, MJ, Harry, and Felecia. The most important people in my life all died, and you know what I did. The evil they did, and yet I put them in prison, I took them away, I never killed them, because justice can't be served if they never got a chance to change at all." It was only after Felecia that I decided no more. I ruthlessly slaughtered every single one who dared take what I held dear. And you know what? I ENJOYED EVERY DAMN SECOND OF IT."
Peter continued, "I wouldn't want to be Spider-Man if all I do is sacrifice. You are the sad imitation that believes sacrifice above all else."
Peter's voice finally dropped to a mere whisper as blood poured out of his chest. The orange symbiote was weakly pulsing, trying to fight back, yet the full pressure of the Web of Destiny kept it from acting.
The Warden merely stared at Peter, unmoved by his sentiments.
"You still don't get it... Do you?"
A broken laugh escaped Peter's mouth.
"You think this was about refusing to sacrifice? You're wrong. I sacrificed everything. Every moment, every time I missed an event or wasn't available, every time I couldn't be there when the people who needed me the most died. I have paid the universe time after time in blood and tears until the only thing that remained was a hollow mask."
Peter continued speaking disdainfully to the Warden.
"You hide behind your mask in noble delusion, while I ripped it off to save what was left." Peter's gaze drifted upward, past the Warden, to where he had held a gaze from something beyond. Peter turned back towards Warden.
"You call me a sad imitation, and yet you're the one still playing hero in a story where the Spider pays the ultimate price.
Peter smirked as he looked directly into the Warden's eyes.
"In the end, I was merely a conduit for something greater, ISN'T THAT WHAT IT'S ALL ABOUT? GIVE AND GIVE UNTIL I AM, BUT A SHELL." Peter roared in his final moments. "DO YOU SEE WHERE THAT GOT ME? I merely opened the eyes of Spider-Men across the multiverse, and there will be others like me who do not follow your so-called "canon," or your foolish destiny, and will spit in the face of fate."
1st Person POV (Peter)
I gaze up to the sky one more time as numbness consumes me. I speak one last time as I look at the Warden in pity.
"How much must we suffer across the multiverse? You know, I saw it when I stared into the #######, and it gazed back at me. I saw the truth for what it really was. How could I have forgotten something so obvious? None of it is true. You are mer-
I felt the thread connecting me snap as darkness consumed my vision. As the Abyss swallowed me and what awaited me, I knew not. My mind slowly grew cold as I fell through the cracks in the multiverse.
My soul drifted as I saw Spider-Men in other universes falling on different paths. It seemed as though I would be lost in the multiverse, and yet I was ruthlessly dragged out into the void. The all-consuming nothingness where there is nothing, and yet I could sense the gaze of something.
I turned my head to see what it was, but that was a mistake. My mind can't comprehend what is before me, yet I realize I have merely become a pawn on a bigger board.
End of Route 1
-Author Notes
I enjoyed writing this route even though it was more of a spur-of-the-moment type thing. I tried to do a couple of things differently from my usual method of writing, such as showing POV switches and even trying to provide several POVS. I went for a very AU mindset for most of the characters, while trying to retain some of their original personalities. I added one thing after the other, trying to make it truly maddening. Btw, the fact that he occasionally repeats himself is normal, as he is technically insane.
Anyways I hope you guys enjoyed route 1, even if it was a bit short.
I look forward to writing my next route or proofreading this one, as I keep finding more mistakes I didn't expect.
CYA IN THE NEXT ONE FOLKS!!!!