Web of Realms: A Multiversal Journey

Chapter 16: Chapter 15: Kingpin's Motive



After a while, everyone managed to recover.

Peter helped Shadow-Spider, Gwen-Spider, and Spider-Ham to their feet, while Miles assisted Peni and the older Peter Parker.

Peter's expression was grave. "This is the second time now. Clearly, this is more than just a case of us not adapting to the environment."

Peni nodded. "I've studied quantum physics, and what's happening to us makes sense in that context. Our bodies are composed of quantum particles unique to our respective worlds. These particles shouldn't exist in this world, so the universe is instinctively rejecting us as 'foreign invaders.'"

Shadow-Spider, still catching his breath, asked in a low voice, "What happens to us if this continues?"

"We die," Peni said bluntly. "The longer we stay in this world, the greater the rejection force will grow—until we're annihilated."

Spider-Ham's face turned pale. "What? That's terrible! What are we supposed to do?" While he wasn't someone afraid to face danger, this wasn't the way he wanted to go.

The older Peter placed a hand on Miles' shoulder. "If we can find a way to return to our own worlds, we should be able to stop this, right?"

Miles looked worried. "But how will you get back? We don't even know how you got here in the first place."

"No, we do," Peni said, shaking her head. "It's Kingpin's particle collider."

Peter nodded in agreement, his thoughts now clearer than ever. "I suspected the collider was involved. After all, it was after its experiment that all of you appeared in this world."

Peni added, "I've found proof."

She pointed to the computer screen in front of her, which displayed a dense array of data.

The group gathered around to look, while Peni explained, ensuring they could follow along.

"This particle collider is made up of a 30-kilometer superconducting magnet ring, along with thousands of magnets of various types and models. For example, the 1,232 dipole magnets, each 15 meters long, are used to bend the particle beams. Meanwhile, 392 quadrupole magnets, ranging from 5 to 7 meters, focus the particle streams.

"To house this enormous device, Kingpin leveraged his influence to acquire several abandoned subway stations beneath Brooklyn and connect them to make room for the collider."

On the screen was also a project file. Combining this with the clues left behind by Ultimate Spider-Man, they finally pieced together the whole story.

They now understood why Kingpin had invested so much manpower and resources into constructing this massive machine.

It turned out that in this world, during a battle with Ultimate Spider-Man, Kingpin had been accidentally seen by his wife and son.

His family had always believed he was a successful businessman and philanthropist. That day, they discovered the truth for the first time.

Unable to accept this revelation, Kingpin's wife fled their home with their son. However, in their panic, they were involved in a car accident and died on the spot.

The loss of his family filled Kingpin with regret and anguish.

Desperate to bring them back, he sought out Olivia Liv Octavius—a brilliant but unhinged scientist specializing in quantum physics, also known as this world's "Lady Octopus."

Kingpin funded her research, and together, they built the particle collider.

Kingpin's ultimate goal was to open quantum portals to parallel universes, find alternate versions of his wife and son from other dimensions, and bring them into his world.

The unexpected incident occurred during the battle between Ultimate Spider-Man and the Green Goblin.

As Miles had explained, Ultimate Spider-Man was accidentally caught by the Green Goblin during their fight and thrown into the particle stream emitted by the collider.

To locate parallel-universe counterparts, the particle collider required a genetic sample as a search criterion. Originally, the samples intended for input were those of Kingpin's wife and son. However, due to an error, Spider-Man's genetic material was used instead. As a result, it summoned Spider-People from various parallel universes instead of fulfilling Kingpin's original intent.

This incident highlighted a significant flaw in Kingpin's collider.

The "genetic sample search method" was clearly unreliable. Otherwise, it wouldn't have summoned such a diverse group of Spider-People. They weren't just mismatched in terms of genetics with Ultimate Spider-Man—they varied widely in gender, age, and ethnicity. How could such a random assortment result from genetic compatibility?

The fact that the collider successfully opened a quantum portal to parallel universes was more a case of dumb luck than brilliant engineering.

In the end, they were all victims of this accident.

Spider-Ham rolled his eyes and snorted through his pig nose. "So we're all just collateral damage in this mess? Can I ask Kingpin if he offers after-sales service?"

Shadow-Spider pondered this. "He might offer after-sales service, like capturing you and dissecting you to study the differences between parallel-universe organisms and this world."

At that, the older Peter shuddered violently.

"What's wrong with you?" Peter asked.

The older Peter forced a stiff smile. "N-nothing."

Was he going to tell them that when he and Miles sneaked into Kingpin's lab to steal data, he had narrowly escaped being dissected by Lady Octopus?

The group continued reviewing the data while Peni explained the details.

Suddenly, Peter felt a persistent gaze fixed on him.

It was coming from Gwen.

At first, he thought it was a coincidence—perhaps she was just looking at the screen, and her angle happened to align with him.

But now he was certain—it wasn't a coincidence! Gwen had been watching him all along.

But why?

He didn't think of himself as so charming that Gwen might have fallen for him at first sight.

Though it was true that Spider-People shared unique bonds—like Peter Parker and Cindy Moon's "spider-sense chemistry," which caused involuntary hormonal reactions when they were close—he was sure no such connection existed between him and Gwen.

However, when he turned his head, he immediately met Gwen's direct gaze.

"What…what's wrong?" Peter asked, wiping his face to check if anything was stuck there.

Gwen furrowed her brows, scrutinizing him. "I've been wondering—why aren't you showing the same symptoms as the rest of us? Aren't you also from another world?"

"Uh…" Peter froze, then suddenly realized.

That's right!

He, too, was from another world. So why hadn't he experienced the "rejection reaction"?

He had arrived in this world around the same time as Shadow-Spider, yet Shadow-Spider had experienced the rejection twice already, while he hadn't felt it even once!

That was far too strange.

(To be continued)

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