The war was finally over.
The Spider-Men looked at one another, grateful to have survived this battle, yet mourning those who had fallen.
Without their sacrifice, perhaps victory would not have been possible.
But their attention also turned to the one who stood out the most among them—
The Bat.
In the final moments, it was this bat who held off Karn and ultimately succeeded in turning him, giving the Spider-Men a much-needed reprieve in the face of war.
They offered the bat a gesture of respect.
"I guess this means it's over," said Jessica from Earth-616 as she landed beside Bruce.
Coincidentally, she and Gwen now had Bruce standing between them.
"Not yet," Bruce replied, his eyes on the Great Weaver, who was currently weaving the web. "The Weaver still needs to locate the dimensional anchors for each of your universes, to make sure you return to the correct timeline."
"So we've got a few more minutes, huh?" Gwen, on the other hand, seemed more concerned with how much time they still had together.
At some point, she had already moved close to Bruce, clinging tightly to his arm.
Bruce didn't react. He simply stood there in silence.
Even when Jessica from Earth-616 leaned in on his other side, Bruce remained calm and composed.
Just then, the Great Weaver had begun locating the Spider-Men's universes.
"Earth-982 is ready. Safe journey, Miss Parker," said Spider-UK, who was helping the Great Weaver with communication.
Perhaps out of sympathy for Mayday Parker, the first portal the Weaver opened was to her universe.
In the next moment, many more portals began opening one after another.
"Farewell, sapiens. Time to hoof it back home," said Spider-Ham as he stepped into his portal.
"So long, everyone! That was one heck of a thrill ride!" waved Takuya Yamashiro, the Spider-Man who piloted Leopardon.
"If you ever have time, come hang out in my dimension," said the Ultimate Spider-Man from Earth-12041, calling out to Miles just before stepping into his portal.
"Wait, are you serious?" Miles asked, clearly in disbelief.
The Ultimate Spider-Man just grinned. "Have I ever joked?"
One by one, the Spider-Men left.
The hall, once somewhat crowded, suddenly felt a little too empty.
Eventually, it was Gwen's turn to return to her own universe.
"I'm heading back. Don't miss me too much," she said to the Bat.
Bruce gave no verbal reply, only nodded.
Gwen took a few steps away from him—then suddenly turned and ran back.
She threw her arms around Bruce in a tight hug.
Before Bruce could react, she kissed him directly on the lips.
Leaving behind a dazzling smile, Gwen disappeared into her portal.
Jessica from Earth-616 chuckled.
Then she gave Bruce a hug as well, since her portal had also opened.
"I'm not as bold as that kid," she whispered in Bruce's ear. "But if we ever meet again someday… maybe I'll want to have a child with you."
In the mental prison within Bruce's mind, Thomas felt a stir of emotion upon hearing those words.
He had never imagined he'd live to see the day where he might have a grandchild.
But that feeling was quickly tucked away.
Jessica had already returned to her universe.
Bruce stepped forward to stand before the Great Weaver—alongside another individual.
The Ultimate Spider-Man.
The two of them were watching the Great Weaver.
More precisely, they were staring at the mechanical spider legs attached to the Weaver's lower body.
Even under their intense gaze, the Weaver remained unhurried as he continued spinning portals for the Spider-Men.
But when it came time to send Spider-UK back to his universe, the Weaver found nothing.
There was no trace of Spider-UK's universe.
Which should have been impossible.
Absolutely impossible.
"What's wrong?" asked the Ultimate Spider-Man, watching the Weaver's reaction.
The Weaver turned to Spider-UK and said, "Your universe has disappeared."
Spider-UK froze.
He had never imagined his universe could vanish.
But then, remembering what the Queen had said when he went looking for her, Spider-UK may have already had an inkling.
He just didn't think it would happen this soon.
"I can't explain why it happened. It just… vanished," said the Weaver, unable to determine what had caused the disappearance of Earth-833.
Spider-UK took a deep breath. "I know. It was an incursion. A kind of cosmic phenomenon—it erased all of reality."
He removed his mask and said with deep regret, "The Captain Britain Corps was investigating them. I… I should have helped. But I put the needs of the Spider-Men before my teammates. Before my world. Before everyone I knew."
Peter Parker stepped forward and placed a hand on Spider-UK's shoulder. "Billy, we're truly sorry."
"I know what I'm about to say doesn't compare to what you've lost," Peter continued, "but if you hadn't brought us together, we might've already ended up as food for the Inheritors."
The British Spider-Man looked at Peter Parker. He could only say to the current Peter, "Thank you, mate."
"I'll stay here and protect this place," British Spider-Man said as he put his mask back on.
At that moment, Bruce walked up to the Weaver and extended his hand.
The Weaver was a bit confused by Bruce's gesture but still reached out his hand.
The symbiotic metal from Bruce's suit flowed into the Weaver's body.
Only a minimal amount remained on Bruce—just enough to support his suit.
"Consider it a gift."
"Thank you."
The Weaver then opened a portal to Earth-1610.
"Looks like I'm leaving with my boss," Jessica from Earth-1610 finally appeared and said to the other Spider-Men.
"Goodbye. I hope next time we won't meet under such circumstances," Peter Parker said with a smile, looking at the Bat.
Bruce didn't say anything—he simply stepped into his own portal.
"Goodbye!" Jessica from 1610 waved cheerfully.
Earth-1610
The Bat had already returned to his Batcave with his little assistant.
"Ahhh~~~"
Jessica stretched with a yawn. Although she had been a little dismissive of the Batcave before, now that she was back, it felt amazing.
At least here, no one was constantly trying to kill her.
And she could finally get a good night's sleep.
"To be honest, Boss, I think we went through life and death together this time. Can I ask you a question?" Jessica looked at Bruce, who was walking toward the control panel.
Bruce didn't respond, but in Jessica's eyes, that meant he had given her permission.
"What's the deal between you and that female heir?" Jessica had seen Bruce gently close that woman's eyes.
That definitely wasn't how one treats an enemy—or a stranger.
There was definitely something going on that she didn't know about.
The only question was whether Bruce would actually tell her.
"She helped me with something," Bruce replied, sitting in the chair and starting to inspect the control panel.
Things had been so urgent earlier that he hadn't had time to fix anything.
Now, he finally had a moment to take a proper look.
"She helped you?" Jessica didn't buy it. She didn't believe someone would so easily help a person they'd barely met—or had even fought against.
Judging by how vicious those people were during the battle, none of them seemed soft-hearted.
Would someone like that really help Bruce fight against her?
She didn't believe it.
But Bruce clearly wasn't going to say anything more.
Jessica decided not to press the issue.
"What's the situation with those two Spider-Women? Especially the one with the white hood?" Jessica still remembered how that little one had rushed toward Bruce when she saw Morlun going after him in the chaos of the battlefield.
"Friends," Bruce said flatly.
Jessica narrowed her eyes, clearly unconvinced.
She quickly followed up, "Oh, friends? What kind of friends kiss that passionately? Want me to show that to Aunt May?"
"If you've got that much free time, you could help me clean the Batcave," Bruce replied, clearly uninterested in continuing the conversation.
Who knows what kind of questions she'd ask if he kept answering?
Sure enough, as soon as Bruce said that, Jessica immediately yawned and said, "Sorry, I'm super tired. I'm gonna head to bed."
Stretching again, she walked toward her room.
Bruce didn't say anything more—he just stared at the control panel.
(End of Chapter)
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