(Marvel, DC, images, manhuas, and every anime that will be mentioned and used in this story are not mine. They all belong to their respective owners. The main character "Karito Josue Valdez" and the story are mine)
It's just been one struggle after another. Here I thought I could at least have a nap because I've been going at it for days. But I tend to forget that good luck wasn't part of the Spider-Man package, so that is immediately out the window. And that "Peter" luck has just been getting worse, thanks, Zeb Wells. At least my Tombstone was of my level because of his connection to the Darkness. But even after all that, I fucked him up with a penance stare, thanks, Jonny.
Anyways, after the whole shitshow that the last level was, I'm now in what seems to be... of course, a labyrinth. What kind? I would like to know that myself because my senses have been activating since I stepped in here. And whenever that's the case, I get anxious. From what I've been sensing, my opponents this time will be more than just one person. If there's anything I have experience with, it's fighting entire armies and groups of supervillains. That is if a first-time reader is patient enough to read that far. Like, imagine expecting someone who had their powers for a day, had no fighting experience of the sort, didn't know how their own gamer system worked, didn't know they were being used by their own assistant, and was extremely ignorant. Yes, my mental condition wasn't helping me either in the beginning; it took trauma for me to finally lock in. I was just very lucky that I apparently had some sort of hidden ability to adapt to things extremely quickly.
So, that being said, my game system should be fine. It has been getting a little weird lately. But my powers haven't fluctuated at least. If they did, I would notice because my system is divided into three things: my normal human stats, my superhuman stats, and my skill stats. I found this out recently while messing around in the Nexus. Because I was confused at the time about how I even defeated Dark Lee in season one of my story. And it was because they had locked my skills but not my Superhuman or base stats. Thank God for that, because I would've been in trouble if they also locked my superhuman stats.
I think I've been bantering enough about the shit life I've had in season one. Let's just focus on what's going on currently because I've just been sitting down on the floor giving the thousand-yard stare to a wall. Speaking of which, these walls look like your typical dungeon Isekai anime. There's not much to look around for. I guess it is up to me to take yet another stroll around the place until I throw hands with some random Dark.
Stretching my hands upwards and exhaling a tired sigh, I stand up and officially enter the labyrinth. Oh boy, I wonder what weird shit happens next. I cannot fucking wait... Sarcasm, by the way. Anyway, I walked down the old hallway of this labyrinth with no excitement in my strides. Any motivation I had went down the drain the moment I judged someone and basically sentenced them to perpetual torment for eternity. Thanks, Jane.
But my boredom was slightly ceased when I noticed a group of Goblins. One, am I even in The Backrooms anymore? Or am I in some sort of Backrooms more otaku twin brother? Guess I'll never know... well... I will know once I come back to the Nexus. Becoming Omniscient is a piece of cake in that place. Actually, these might just be normal mobs in this level, I can tell. Because they are meant to exist here, not unlike the other presences that I feel due to my Spider-Sense, which I can tell are Darks.
Speaking of which, I am getting concerningly close to one of them. So I'm just going to kill these bacteria, aka the Goblins, so I can go through that door that is so out of place in this damn labyrinth. I think it'll teleport me into a small pocket dimension inside the level. I hope it isn't a pocket dimension, which is actually a whole different universe inside another one. How does that work? Ask Anti-Venom... Oh wait... I killed him. Sorry, not sorry.
(Karito) "I think the shockwave of my punch is enough to kill the fodders." Continues walking while thinking. "I don't wanna touch them, they look nasty..."
(Toxin) "Are you for real?"
(Karito) "I don't see any showers nearby."
(Toxin) "You worry about your hygiene in this moment?"
(Karito) "More like trying not to overthink about my situation by thinking of dumb shit."
(Toxin) "fair enough."
As I continued contemplating, thinking of ways to not dirty myself from Goblin blood, I unknowingly released bloodlust at them while thinking of 100 different ways to kill a Goblin without touching them. And I shit you not, they exploded. My face was the same one as that Kurt Angle meme. I had no words... my mere thought of killing them made them explode.
Is it bad that I find that hilarious? Well, I don't care. I needed the laugh before I face another Dark. When was even the last time I laughed? I don't even remember.
Now the entire hall is covered in blood. Great. I fucked myself over. I just walked towards the door that I mentioned earlier and grabbed its knob.
Yup, there's definitely a Dark behind this door, and he's waiting for me. I really never seem to catch a break, do I? Anyways, here comes nothing.
I turned the door's handle and opened it. When I fully opened it, I was greeted by a fancy room. In the middle, there was a table and two chairs. The fuck are we gonna do here? Group therapy session? Gamble? Please let it be none of them; I'm already mentally tired as it is from the last level. But I know my prayers are never answered. So, I did the only thing I thought was logical when entering this room.
I sat down on the chair and waited...
(Karito) "This feels weird..."
(Toxin) "What does?"
(Karito) "It's the fact that this room seems so... empty."
(Toxin) "Well, it is just you and me here."
(Karito) "No, you aren't getting it."
(Toxin) "What?"
"BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ- Hello? Hello? Can you hear me, Mr. Guardian?" A speaker hidden inside the room repeats aloud.
(Karito) "... Crystal..." His eyes narrow.
"I'm glad! I thought thought someone would've fucked with the speakers again. Any who, welcome!" The man said cheerfully.
(Karito) "You sound a bit too happy for this. What do you guys have planned this time?" He said tiredly.
"Oh, come on~! Lighten up a little, Guardian. You've been on the grumps for years now." He says mockingly.
(Karito) "Are you making fun of me?"
"Me? No, no, no! I would NEVER! How can I make fun of you? I respect the shit out of you, in fact." He corrects his comment.
(Karito) "You're fucking with me. How can any one of you respect me?"
"Oh? So Lee didn't respect you in the end? Wow~ Guardian, you are a piece of shit! HAHAHA!" He laughs heartedly.
(Karito) "ENOUGH! Who are you?!" He yells.
"Ouchie! Touched a nerve didn't I? Hehe." He pauses for a second before continuing. "But as for introductions, my name is Yuuchi Katagiri! You might know me from-" He gets interrupted.
(Karito) "Tomodachi Game... Ah fuck..." He pinches the bridge of his nose.
"Let me guess, you haven't seen the Manga nor Anime but have heard of me while going into a grand adventure in a place where it contains everything, nothing, and anything in-between?" He states bluntly.
(Karito) "You say it like it was easy to venture the very thing that contains Omniverses and The Bridge."
"That's true. It's impossible to explore the thing that makes uncountable infinity seem like a bacteria. The Nexus contains anything beyond space, time, reality, logic, and everything else that could, can, and will ever be thought of or not thought of no matter what anything says otherwise." He pauses.
(Karito) "Why are you telling me something I already know?"
"Because the readers are always kept in the dark? You are terrible in informing your audience man! Haha!" He laughs.
(Karito) "Well, the only reason I avoid talking it is because I have yet to understand it. Do you think it's easy to understand a layer of existence that transcends every verse and website in history? That shit is basically a server for the internet."
"Of course it ain't easy to comprehend it. You're just lucky to even be in it. Do you know how long we have searched for the damn Nexus, just so a Newbie Guardian by the power of Plot Armor because there ain't any other way than that! To reach a level of transcendence to gain direct access to one of the most powerful layers in creation? Are you fucking kidding me?" His voice raised.
(Karito) "Someone sounds jealous."
"You bet I am! It's bullshit! If your damn librarian wasn't so damn aware and cunning we would've found the damn Nexus an eternity ago!" He clicks his tongue.
(Karito) "Well, I have been able to create infinite variations of an infinite sets of 'concepts', mathematics, science, philosophy, physics... etc... completely different from existence. And that librarian will for ever read the contents of that library and just get smarter through all of time, until the internet just... dies."
"I gotta ask, how does it feel to be Omnipotent in the Nexus? Well, we are already because of our powers due to Hax. But you know what I'm trying to get at." He asked curiously.
(Karito) "You're awfully chatty..." He asked annoyed.
"Hey, it's not every day I get to talk to a Guardian. You people should be extinct from the face of fiction, yet here we are... 3 Guardians roaming around causing chaos in the Dark's turf. Pluss, just answer me this one question, then we can get into killing each other, bet?" he asked.
(Karito) "Ugh... fine. I'll answer you this one question." He sighs.
"Alright~. So, I'm guessing you Guardians have made some sort of tier system to accommodate your stuff, right?"
(Karito) "Yeah, we do. In terms of power, we use the Power scaling system to determine you guys capabilities."
"Just like us, alright... But for everything else?"
(Karito) "Peter and I have made a half done model of our cosmology and hierarchy for beings that go past the Boundless tier of our Power System."
"Well, the cosmology can be answered later in a Q&A, and maybe the power system too. If that's what the reader wants of course. Some of them will rather stay silent and remain ignorant of the Cosmology that revolves beyond their favorite verse." He smirks.
(Karito) "I guess... they'll most likely not care but I might be wrong. Anyways, I'm guessing you want me to answer the Hierarchy of Omnipotence that I made... am I correct?" His brow raises.
"Yup~, just making small talk... the calm before the storm~." He stretches the m.
(Karito) He sighs deeply. "After extensive research inside the Nexus, I have concluded with these scales for the literal God of their own verses. I'll start with the first one, Omnipotent 1. This is where most of the Gods of many verses reside. Essentially, it's the peak of their own verse. Omnipotent 2 is where the character transcends their own verse, going beyond the limits they have been confined by their own author. Omnipotent 3 is where people who have reached the layer of 'The Bridge' are categorized. If they somehow surpass the layer that I call 'The Outside' and reach the layer of 'The Bridge', they attain a new level of transcendence. They can venture through different verses, witness them being created before they are officially published, and exist as a being that has transcended math, science, philosophy, and everything else infinitely infinite times over.
Omnipotent True Infinity is where things get tricky. In essence, this is where Peter and I reside when inside the Nexus. We are above... well... everything. That's the only way I can explain this tier. If I start rambling on how this layer is explained, the reader will suffer from brain rot. Now, these last two tiers are theoretical because even our smartest member, the librarian, isn't completely sure of the layer that's above the Nexus, which we call 'The Eternal Realm,' formerly known as 'Eternirealm', this is Omnipotent Transfinite. And the final layer above that, True Omnipotence, I cannot explain to you because we still haven't reached such layers that go beyond anything that has ever existed through the real world and fiction.
It's simply impossible to explain them... the only thing I can answer it by examples so you can grasp... for now... my ignorant answer is... it doesn't matter if you create something stronger than it because it will become it... if you create a new concept to beat it, it will absorb it... anything you imagine, it will also become it... So the excuse of 'I made this to be more powerful, so it solos' wouldn't even apply to it since it will also be it... no matter the nerfs nor the buffs, it will continue to grow throughout eternity. This logic can also be applied to the Nexus, which is a layer below it. And the Eternal Realm and the Transcend Realm... The Librarian somewhat explained those two realms insanely briefly, in a way that we could somewhat understand because again, she only knows so little about it."
"To be honest, for someone whose suppose to be a 'New Guardian'. You're learning things at an absurd pace." He admits.
(Karito) "Thanks... now... what do you want?" He quickly changes topic.
"Straight to the point, huh? There's been enough chatter. Alright then! We are gonna play a little game in this labyrinth. A survival game, to be specific. You will be targeted by a certain amount of hunters and you will be the prey. Sounds simple, no?" He finished, purposely being vague.
(Karito) "That doesn't explain shit!" He shouts angrily.
"Of course it does! Just a little cat n' mouse game, y'know?" His voice showing hint of sarcasm.
(Karito) "You mother fu-" He was interrupted.
"Ahahaha! What's the fun in telling you everything? You're smart enough to figure it out."
(Karito) He grunts "Ughhh... Fuckin' fine! Let's just do this already."
"Oh ho~? Impatient are we? Alright, I'll indulge you! Yuuchi, out! BZZZZZZ..." The speaker turns off.
If his idea was to set me off, he did so successfully. This is the problem with dealing with smart characters; they will think of ways to counter you or trick you. And he's brought friends with him. I just wonder who.
Before I could continue to think about my current predicament, a door had magically appeared on the other side of the room. With no other choice, I made my way towards the door. As I was about to open it, my Spider-Senses warned me. I turned back, ready for a fight, but... no one was there.
Oh no... they are using my Spider-Senses against me. This is worse than I thought-!!!
CRACK!
(Spider-Man) "ACK!" Gags as someone grabbed his throat.
(Dark Kratos) "You're not escaping this time, Guardian." He frowns.
(Spider-Man) "Ngh! H-Hey, M-Mister Clean!" He smirks "Is you're body still sore from receiving a big bang to your face!"
(Dark Kratos) "You damn, Arachnid!" He throws Spider-Man across the labyrinth halls, bouncing off the walls repeatedly until crashing into a cross section.
(Spider-Man) "Ow..."
As I rubbed my head, my Spider-Senses warned me of an incoming attack to my right. However, I had assumed that they were trying to trick me, so I looked in the opposite direction at the cross-section of the labyrinth. But I saw nothing. That's when I realized that the attacker might be behind me, so I reacted by throwing a spinning back punch. However, the attacker dodged at speeds faster than the human eye could perceive. Noticing his movements, I concluded that, once again, I was fighting another speedster. But I quickly became aware of a second presence that teleported beside him through a crimson portal.
These two new opponents were the Silver Witch, an alternate version of Scarlet Witch who is a fusion of Quicksilver and herself, and the one beside her is Speed Demon. To be honest, Speed Demon isn't much of a threat to me, nor am I too worried about Silver Witch. I'm literally a magician's worst enemy as I can easily cancel magic-based attacks. But assuming that these three attackers are just a small trio among many is what has me worried.
Yuuchi seemed to have manipulated this level of the Backrooms completely. I can feel the dimensional alterations. This entire level has been changed into the size of infinity, and everyone here, because of their connection to the Dark, can travel said infinite space. Well, isn't that delightful?
Well, I can do the same pretty easily. But what worries me is... infinite space? How many people is this dude thinking of dragging in here until he's had enough? Or am I supposed to find him? Finding someone in a level that expands infinitely is bullshit. Because if that's the case, then I'm going to have to fight an infinite amount of Dark characters until I find him and kill him... Well, shit. The Spider luck is kicking in full throttle again.
(Dark Silver Witch) "Well, aren't you quite the catch~?" She smiles while twirling crimson magic around her finger tips.
(Dark Speed Demon) "How long are we suppose to distract him?"
(Dark Silver Witch) "Not for long-." Her eyes widen noticing Spider-Man in front of them.
(Spider-Man) "I'm not in the mood to talk so..."
I grabbed both of their faces, and with brutal strength, I slammed them onto the ground. Speed Demon's head exploded upon impact, but Silver Witch managed to stay alive. She threw wild magic, but it faded away the moment it targeted me. Panicked, she used her magic to push me off, but it only managed to slightly move my hand. I wasn't going to deal with a reality warper, so I decided to end her right there. Using Kaine's touch, I ripped off her face and disintegrated her head with a venom blast.
Slowly standing straight, I looked around and used my senses to search for Yuuchi in this infinitely expanding labyrinth. However, I wasn't given such a luxury because my spider-senses warned me of an incoming attack. I went to block it but was once again tricked by the illusion of an attack. Behind me, I was hit full force by Kratos' Namean Cestus. I broke through several walls of the labyrinth until coming to a stop on the fifth wall, leaving it cracked. I was fortunate that he didn't fuse his dark energy or upgrade his weapons with Darkenstine, except for the rest of his weapons.
Kratos switched to his chaos blades, swinging them around and throwing them towards my direction. I performed a 360 jump, narrowly dodging the blades, and used lateral repulsion to rocket myself towards the God of War. He saw my attack coming and retracted his blades, but I used magnetism to keep them in place for a second and land a flying knee on his nose. I grabbed his shoulder, sticking to his skin, and swung him towards a wall. I landed a series of liver blows and an uppercut until he pushed me with his shoulder. By using his godly strength, he punched me in the gut, making me crash into the roof.
He was about to pursue me when he heard beeping from below him. He saw small web-bombs, which exploded, and large amounts of electrical webs ensnared him. Seeing my chance to attack, I formed a barrier around him as I charged large amounts of bio-electricity. After reaching the max, I released enough energy to destroy half the surface of a large planet. The inside of the barrier became a beacon of light as Kratos screamed in pain. The intense crackling echoed through the labyrinth.
As I ceased my attack, my senses once again warned me. Kratos had entered his Spartan rage and tackled me to the ground, instantly shattering my barrier. He continued the ground and pound as I pushed him away by putting my legs on his waist. He managed to land a wild haymaker on the left side of my face. But I took the chance and grabbed his hand, pulling him into a triangle choke. I squeezed with all my strength, making the god gag. However, with his incredible strength, he repeatedly slammed me on the floor, going through layers of the labyrinth floors. I grunted in pain; of course, this man was going to be a troublesome opponent. I had to let go of the choke before he would continue to slam me through the labyrinth floors.
He used his Leviathan Axe, and with unexpected speed, he slammed it into my chest, stabbing itself into my skin. I found out the hard way that his axe was upgraded into Darkenstine. It went through my symbiote armor, an armor durable enough to tank three big bangs and still remain unscathed. With the axe still deep into my skin, Kratos lifted me up and swung me into a wall, making me crash into it. I landed on my knees, clenching my teeth as I saw my healing factor, quickly healing me. I held my chest in pain as I lifted my palm and used venom blast to gain some distance from the God Of War.
As Kratos summoned his shield, making the venom blast be stopped. He then quickly switched to the claws of Hades and lunged at me. I was able to dodge his initial slashes and used my magnetism powers to fly upwards and use the ceiling to propel myself downwards and land an axe kick on the God's head making him crash face-first into the ground. I used my stinger with perturbed out of my wrist to stab him in the back. But before I could, my senses had warmed me of an incoming energy blast. My arm turned into a shield as I braced for impact. The energy blast had engulfed me, rocketing me through several walls of the labyrinth until I crashed into an area that took the appearance of a lake. I crashed in the water, but I quickly resurfaced. Physically touching the top of the water, I used it to stand up as I stood above the water. I looked through the hole which I was launched from and saw Kratos and the new enemy, Shang Chi with his ten rings.
(Spider-Man) "Shang? Well, it was about time I met you." He smirks.
(Dark Shang Chi) Looks at Kratos "Why is he excited to see me?"
(Dark Kratos) "I don't know, but be careful." Switches to his Draupnir Spear "Did you bring the army?"
(Dark Shang Chi) "The Draugr and the Valkyries."
(Dark Kratos) "Use them to tire the Guardian out."
(Dark Shang Chi) "Alright." He whistles loudly.
After Shang Chi finished, his whistle echoed through the labyrinth, and everything turned dead silent. The only source of sound was the lake. But then I heard it: screams. A lot of them. Well, this is a labyrinth. Calling the undead here would be easy, but this place is infinite...
I'm in deep shit.
Suddenly, the entire area erupted. Undead came from all directions. Various types of Draugrs were present, their hellish appearance full of rage and vengeance. They aimed for my head, and my heart began to race with anxiety. I never seem to catch a break...
And with that, I was engulfed by an endless horde of undead, all of which were disintegrated by a Mega Venom Blast. I knew more were coming, so I tried to propel myself towards Kratos and Shang Chi, but I was later tackled by an endless horde of Valkyries alongside the Draugr...
Well, this is a very sick joke...
So I fought... for survival...
And I lost passage of time...
Because all there was... was endless Carnage...
...
...
...
One Week Later...
No pov
(Dark Shang Chi) "Oh, Kratos. You're back?" He looked surprised.
(Dark Kratos) "I have brought food for us," he stated seriously.
(Dark Shang Chi) "What did you get?"
(Dark Kratos) "Steak with mashed potatoes."
(Dark Shang Chi) "Oh, thanks." He grabbed the bowl and quickly started eating.
(Dark Kratos) "Give me a status report."
(Dark Shang Chi) "Well, he's still going."
(Dark Kratos) "Even after a week?"
(Dark Shang Chi) "Yeah, but I have a feeling he's up to something."
(Dark Kratos) "What makes you say that?"
(Dark Shang Chi) "You do know he has a Gamer System, right?"
(Dark Kratos) "Yes, I am aware. But these enemies aren't going to give him enough EXP to level up so quickly."
(Dark Shang Chi) "That is what I thought too. But you would assume he would've grown by now... at least something."
(Dark Kratos) "Are you saying he is purposely not leveling up?"
(Dark Shang Chi) "He hasn't. Heck, I thought he would prestige by now, but not even that."
(Dark Kratos) "Is he upgrading his stats before leveling up?"
(Dark Shang Chi) "Well, I think so? Because what else would it be?"
(Dark Kratos) "He didn't have a good understanding of the system when he first started, but now that he does, he's severely abusing it."
(Dark Shang Chi) "What he abuses is that hacker skill of his. That is by far the most dangerous skill I've ever seen. He's like a nerfed fictional programmer that continues to learn more and more as time passes."
(Dark Kratos) "I can understand why you would be concerned."
(Dark Shang Chi) "Don't you think he's trying to break this place?"
(Dark Kratos) "That's impossible; even the strongest characters will have an incredibly hard time forcing their way out of this place."
(Dark Shang Chi) "I... Okay..." He looked down, slightly worried.
(Dark Kratos) "Also, what has Yuuchi been doing?"
(Dark Shang Chi) "Probably still messing around."
(Dark Kratos) "I doubt it. He's smart; he's probably thinking of a way to defeat the Guardian."
(Dark Shang Chi) "Him? If he was serious, he would be helping."
(Dark Kratos) "His mind is his greatest asset. So if he's going to face the Guardian, it'll have to be a fight between smarts."
(Dark Shang Chi) "What's he gonna do? Play Poker with the Guardian?"
(Dark Kratos) "Well, we are Darks. Who said there can only be money?"
(Dark Shang Chi) "Oh... I see your point."
(Dark Kratos) "What about the other Darks in the League Of Legends universe?"
(Dark Shang Chi) "They seem to be letting it play out. Making occasional interruptions here and there by summoning monsters or other characters into the verse. Also, I'm a bit confused. What was Anansi thinking by creating a Von Neuman Universe?"
(Dark Kratos) "From what he has told me before this second season started, right in between season 1 and 2. He talked about creating a cosmology large enough for it to be able to cast darkness in at least 70% of fiction."
(Dark Shang Chi) "Does this involve the search for the Nexus?"
(Dark Kratos) "Yes, it does. While our God continues to search beyond in the internet, even passing through many of the Reader's devices in the real world just in case the Nexus was hiding there. Anansi will expand the Dark Universe into covering more of Fiction."
(Dark Shang Chi) "Hm, I see. So to cover more area and leave the Librarian fewer places to hide from us, right?"
(Dark Kratos) "Exactly, but the Von Neuman Universe is just a starting point for it. He still continues to improve the Cosmology, breaking it and molding it into something completely incomprehensible."
(Dark Shang Chi) "So the level of Infinity he wants to reach can only just cover a fraction of what he's trying to make?"
(Dark Kratos) "In his words. Yes."
(Dark Shang Chi) takes another bite of the stake and swallows "Anansi is really cooking something. That universe he created is busted enough as it is. Because no matter its size, no matter its nature, and whether it's visible or not, everything is encompassed within it. From the simplest elements to the most complex structures, from the mathematical to the non-mathematical, from the local to the global, That universe encompasses it all. You know how insane that is."
(Dark Kratos) "And he wants to go even further. I think he wants to prove a point or just show off."
(Dark Shang Chi) "Or he's just super bored, I don't know." He shrugs.
(Dark Kratos) "Can you remind me what the Von Neuman V had?"
(Dark Shang Chi) "If I'm not wrong it has these: The Inaccessible Cardinal, Strong Compact Cardinal, Ramsey cardinal, Absolute Infinity, Aleph, Aleph fixed point, Aleph two, Aleph Zero (set of natural numbers)."
(Dark Kratos) "Anansi is definitely using another story as a reference. Because he said that he's going to do something that even that colossal model cannot reach."
(Dark Shang Chi) "Yeah, you said that. But I can't even imagine what type of Multiverse he wants to make."
(Dark Kratos) "Do you think he will create a type V Multiverse?"
(Dark Shang Chi) "You're telling me that Anansi wants to make something greater than what Max Tegmark did with his 4 types of multiverses?"
(Dark Kratos) "We both know he wants to make something even greater than a Von Neuman Universe. And remember, it's a universe, not a multiverse."
(Dark Shang Chi) "So he's going to rewrite those 4 types of multiverses?"
(Dark Kratos) "Maybe he already has, but for it to be more powerful, he may be creating a type 5."
(Dark Shang Chi) "Since when was Anansi so invested in cosmology?"
(Dark Kratos) "I do not know, but if it helps us in the long run. I say let him do what he wishes."
(Dark Shang Chi) "He better pay us back with something by keeping the Guardian busy while he's doing crazy shit like making a composite cosmology in an Omniverse."
(Dark Kratos) "I'm sure he will. Despite him being somewhat of a prankster at times."
(Dark Shang Chi) "Also..."
(Dark Kratos) "Are you going to mention the fact that it's gotten awfully quiet?"
(Dark Shang Chi) "It has." Finishing his food, he placed the bowl on the floor. "The army should still be going."
(Dark Kratos) "As you said, it is infinite. But why is it so silent?"
(Dark Shang Chi) "Do you think he did something? Like... I don't know... Forcibly stop the monsters and Valkyries from spawning?"
(Dark Kratos) "What do you think he did? Input a command like Steve does in his universe?" He stated with doubt.
(Dark Shang Chi) "Yeah... you're right."
(Dark Kratos) "We should verify."
(Dark Shang Chi) "Alright, let's go."
The two Darks decided to investigate the reason for such eerie silence inside the labyrinth. As they stated, an infinite army should be screaming at the other side of the labyrinth. So the silence was concerning for them. As they continued down the halls riddled with mountains upon mountains of corpses, they came to a stop. The body count was so immense they had to start deleting the enemies out of their way to even continue walking down the path. But even after heightening their senses, they couldn't find Spider-Man, which was strange. It was as if he had completely disappeared from the level. But the hero was still there, but not there at the same time? The Darks just wondered what the hell did the Guardian do now.
(Dark Kratos) "..." He ponders.
(Dark Shang Chi) "Kratos?"
(Dark Kratos) "Look at the Level's programming..."
(Dark Shang Chi) "The programming?"
(Dark Kratos) "Do it now!" He yells commandingly.
(Dark Shang Chi) "A-Alright man! Chill!" Flicks a holographic screen and opens visual studios, entering the levels CPP file. "Oh fuck..." He starts to quickly write on the holographic keyboard.
(Dark Kratos) "He's changing the levels settings?!" Realization struck.
(Dark Shang Chi) "Y-Yes! He fuckin' hacking into the level!" He frowns.
(Dark Kratos) "Shit!" Starts assisting Shang Chi by opening his own holographic screen "So that's why the army stopped! He change the integer of infinity into 0?! When did he started doing this?!"
(Dark Shang Chi) "It seems he has been trying to hack into the system for a few days." He continues to type.
(Dark Kratos) "He was fighting and hacking into the level at the same time?!" His face turns into shock.
(Dark Shang Chi) "And he's still hacking! Reset the level!"
(Dark kratos) "I just did." Presses the button.
As the reset button for the level was pressed, the entire dimension glitched, and every abnormality and edit that was done to it after its creation reverted to its base settings.
(Dark Shang Chi) "Shit, we should hurry and write down the integers and while loops again."
(Dark Kratos) "You do that while I search for the Guardian, the Labyrinth isn't infinite anymore, so hurry and change the CPP file." Quickly disappears in search for Spider-Man.
int = ∞; // Used for the Army to attack the Guardian
Shang Chi continued typing until he heard footsteps behind him. With practiced movements, he executed a back kick, which was swiftly dodged by his opponent. The Dark had spotted the Guardian and unleashed measured consecutive punches, while the Guardian countered using Wing Chun. However, Shang, with more experience in martial arts, briefly outskilled the Guardian, landing a spinning elbow strike to the side of his face. The Guardian quickly recovered and retaliated with a spinning back fist, causing Shang to recoil. Regaining his balance, Shang threw a swift front kick, which the Guardian caught, attempting to counter by kicking Shang's other leg. Anticipating the move, Shang leaped into the air and delivered a powerful kick to the Guardian's face. However, the Guardian, refusing to release his grip on Shang's leg, utilized his superhuman strength to hurl Shang Chi into a nearby wall, shattering it upon impact.
Rolling across the floor, Shang swiftly rose to his feet, sensing incoming webs and venom blasts. Dodging the webs, he deflected the venom blasts with his ten rings. The Dark retaliated by hurling his rings, which ensnared the Guardian's right arm. Unexpectedly, the aura surrounding the rings around the hero's arm turned red as he forcefully grabbed the rings around his arm, initiating a tug-of-war with Shang Chi.
(Dark Shang Chi) "That's impossible! You can use the rings?!"
(Spider-Man) "Well, more like they allow me to use them! Sucks to be you! You should've upgraded them when you had the chance!"
(Dark Shang Chi) "Everything about you is bullshit!" He angrily yells.
(Spider-Man) "That's my fuckin' line, asshole!" His arms violently glitches.
Shang Chi's eyes widened in shock upon noticing what the Guardian was doing. Before he could retaliate, the hero hacked into the weapon and made it explode, pushing both fighters back to opposite ends of the hallway. Once Shang Chi recovered and looked at the ground at his broken ten rings, his face contorted in rage.
(Dark Shang Chi) "YOU MOTHER FUCKER!"
(Spider-Man) "HAHA! COME ON, SHANG! I KNOW YOU CAN DO BETTER!"
(Dark Shang Chi) "I'LL KILL YOU!!!!" He flash steps towards the Spider-Man.
(Spider-Man) "!!!!"
The Spider managed to block the incoming flying knee, but he was sent crashing into a wall. Wincing, he quickly regained his fighting stance and spotted Shang Chi, initiating a series of attacks. The two traded punches and elbows, each blocking and countering the other's moves. However, Shang Chi's superior skill began to push back the Guardian. As the Guardian threw a jab at the Dark's face, it was swiftly caught and pushed back, causing the hero to stumble on his feet. This gave Shang the chance to dash forward and appear behind the defenseless hero.
The Spider attempted a back kick but was caught by Shang. Anticipating another attack, the hero instinctively performed a roundhouse kick, but failed to notice Shang's forward movement. This interrupted his kick, leaving him vulnerable to Shang's front elbow strike to the face. As the Spider was tackled to the ground, Shang Chi initiated a ground and pound, mounting the hero and landing a series of hammer fists. Despite the onslaught, the hero blocked and lifted his hip upwards, almost pushing the Dark off him. However, Shang managed to maintain his balance and seized the opportunity to wrap his arm around the Spider's neck, forming an arm-triangle choke. With a grunt, the Spider grabbed his loose arm and seized his captured arm, slowly moving it downwards. He twisted his entire body, successfully escaping from the chokehold. Once free, he retaliated with a point-blank venom blast, blasting Shang Chi away. The martial artist rolled across the floor before swiftly regaining his footing, his eyes narrowed with determination.
(Spider-Man) "Tch... I knew it... I can't beat you in hand-to-hand combat..."
(Dark Shang Chi) "I suggest not underestimating me."
(Spider-Man) "I won't..." He smirks behind his mask.
(Spider-Man) His senses tingled at his right but caught a spear to his right, directly aimed to his face "You tried."
(Dark Kratos) "Tch... He adapted.
(Spider-Man) "The army was good practice." Notices the spear disappear from his hand "Huh, it has loyalty."
(Dark Kratos) "You're not gonna win this, Guardian."
(Spider-Man) "I would be rich by now for the amount of people that have told me the same thing." Pops his neck.
(Dark Shang Chi) The spear appears in his hands "Tch..."
(Dark Kratos) Summons his Blade Of Olympus "Stand your ground, Guardian."
(Spider-Man) "Well, things just got complicated."
Without further dialogue, the two Darks disappeared and reappeared in front of the Guardian. Shang Chi aimed to stab the hero's abdomen while Kratos swung his blade at the Spider's head. However, upon contact, the Guardian's form disappeared, and both Darks halted their attack, mere inches apart from each other. They had struck a decoy of the Spider. Before they could use their senses to find the hero, Shang Chi was slammed with a concentrated spherical venom blast that pushed him towards the God of War. Kratos evaded, causing Shang to crash into a wall and explode due to the venom blast.
Kratos advanced and swung his blade downwards, but the hero sidestepped and attempted to stab the God in the liver. Kratos blocked the attack by pushing his blade to the side to shield himself. The hero tried again to stab the God, but Kratos swung his blade like a bat, slamming the side of it into the hero's upper body, launching him into a series of walls.
The hero rolled across the ground but dug his feet in and propelled himself towards the God. Kratos sidestepped, presenting Shang Chi, who attempted a stabbing motion with his spear. The hero, using his magnetism, acrobatically dodged the spear and landed a flying knee strike on Shang Chi, sending him slamming into a wall.
Shang Chi recovered, changed his weapon into a sword, and launched himself forward to attack the hero together with Kratos. Spider-Man activated his hyper-senses as a symbiotic shield formed on his left arm and a stinger on his right.
The Spider blocked Shang's sword and parried Kratos' blade, sparks flying with each impact. The hero continued to block and parry continuously, waiting for a chance to retaliate. He noticed that Shang Chi had thrown his sword, which stabbed into the shield. Kratos then swung at Shang's stuck blade, pushing the hero back and sending the weapon flying back to its owner, who caught it mid-air and swung downwards. However, the hero parried the attack and used his shield to stumble Shang Chi, tripping him to the floor. Kratos attempted to stab the hero in the back, but he jumped into the air and executed a 360-degree spin, narrowly dodging the blade. Kratos changed direction and used Shang as a stepping tool, but the hero foresaw this and blocked the attack before it was fully executed. He then pushed the God to the other side of the hall and kneed Shang Chi in the face with such force that it lifted his entire body into the air.
As Shang's body fell, the hero tackled the martial artist to the ground. With his symbiotic tendrils, he apprehended him and placed his hand on the Dark's head as his entire arm glitched violently once again.
(Spider-Man) "I knew I couldn't beat you by pure skill only! I knew that!"
(Dark Shang Chi) "Get off me! NGH!"
(Spider-Man) "If I ever had the chance of beating you it was by using my powers! But I want to be better!"
(Dark Shang Chi) "FUCK! OFF!!!" His aura turns dark.
(Spider-Man) "I'm gonna steal your Martial Art's skills!" He smirks behind his mask.
(Dark Shang Chi) "WHAT?! NOOO!!!!!"
As the Spider spoke, Shang's body started to convulse, indicating that the Guardian was hacking into his brain. It took a few seconds until he was able to break through the defenses and access Shang Chi's status. Seeing all kinds of martial arts skills, Spider-Man then started to extract them from Shang Chi, causing the martial artist to scream in agony. That was until Spider-Man's spider-sense alerted him. He knew about the fake decoy meant to trick his senses, so he was going to disengage from Shang Chi to dodge Kratos' incoming attack. However, once he released Shang from his tendrils, the Dark wrapped himself around the hero, holding him down.
(Dark Shang Chi) "DO IT NOW, KRATOS!" Holds Spider-Man down.
(Spider-Man) "OH SHIT!" Was going to form spikes around his body.
But Spider-Man wasn't able to escape as the Blade of Olympus stabbed him and Shang Chi in the stomach. Both of them fell to the ground, grunting in pain as Kratos yelled, the sword glowing a blue hue until a cataclysmic explosion engulfed all three of them, shaking the entire dimension. As the explosion ceased, Kratos pulled his blade out of his ally and enemy, and surveyed his surroundings. A crater stretching for miles into the labyrinth had been created by him. The God of War sighed, looking at his fallen comrade who sacrificed himself so that he could kill the Guardian by using the Darkenstine-infused Blade of Olympus. This upgraded version, besides being able to kill immortal Gods, can also "kill" laws of reality and concepts. He made sure to use that against the Guardian, as he couldn't survive such an attack. Turning around and making his blade disappear, the God of War left, leaving two corpses behind. No regret was etched into his visage. His job was done, and now he would find the Guardian of Prometheus Flames and the apprentice for the Guardians to once again be extinct.
(Spider-Man) "..."
(Dark Kratos) "Thank you my friends, because of you we were able to kill the Guardian. I will never forget such sacrifice." He walks away.
(Spider-Man) Cough
(Dark Kratos) "!!!!!"
(Spider-Man) "Fuck..." Cough "It's not healing as quickly as it should..."
(Dark Kratos) "How..."
(Spider-Man) Turns on his back "Ugh... That fuckin' hurt..." Holds his bleeding stomach which was healing slowly.
(Dark Kratos) "HOW ARE YOU ALIVE?! I KILLED GODS WITH THIS BLADE! EXPLAIN YOURSELF!"
(Spider-Man) "Shut... up... you blew a damn Dark Infused-Tsar Bomb in my face..."
(Dark Kratos) "YOU WORM!" Summons his blade and swings downward to finish the Guardian.
With explosive speed, the hero kicked the blade out of Kratos' hands, sending it into the air, and spun around, delivering an upward back kick to the God's stomach with such strength that it sent him flying to the roof of the labyrinth.
With a lateral repulsion, Spider-Man launched himself into the air, heading straight for Kratos. Along the way, he used his magnetism to attract the Blade of Olympus towards him. Snatching it in the air, Spider-Man stabbed the blade into Kratos' stomach, causing the God to scream in pain.
(Dark Kratos) "YOU THINK THIS WILL KILL ME?! THIS BLADE FAILED TO KILL ME BEFORE!" He screams defiantly
(Spider-Man) "I know that. But there's one thing you should've done to actually killed me."
(Dark Kratos) "What?!"
(Spider-Man) "Maybe it's because Guardian's have been dead for eternity but we are also Paracausal beings! JUST LIKE YOU DARKS!"
(Dark Kratos) His face turns into shock "No way..."
(Spider-Man) "You should've 'deleted' me as a fictional character instead!"
As Spider-Man finished his sentence, he turned the blade, causing Kratos' body to glitch and contort. In an instant, both Kratos and the blade were deleted. Spider-Man continued to gaze at the empty spot on the ceiling where Kratos had been stuck. He controlled his breathing and detached himself from the ceiling, landing on his feet. Using his senses, he detected Yuushi and dashed towards him. A moment later, he stood in front of a door. He quickly opened it but halted before entering when he noticed a force field surrounding the entire room.
(Dark Yuuchi) "Well... color me impressed."
(Spider-Man) "What is this force field?"
(Dark Yuuchi) "It forcefully blocks all stats and skills, making you human."
(Spider-Man) "I can still kick your ass with my human stats."
(Dark Yuuchi) "I don't doubt that, but this room as a rule. No one can die... except..."
(Spider-Man) "Except?"
(Dark Yuuchi) "One loses the game."
(Spider-Man) "So your making me play a game with you and who ever wins gets to live?"
(Dark Yuuchi) "Exactly. You catch on quick, Guardian."
(Spider-Man) He sighs, frustrated.
(Dark Yuuchi) "You don't have a choice, Spider-Man. The exit is right across the room and it won't open until there is a winner."
(Spider-Man) "Fuck... Fine..." He looks at Yuuchi "What is the game?"
(Dark Yuuchi) He giggles "Where are we right now?"
(Spider-Man) "We are playing Labyrinth... of fucking course..." He facepalms.
(Dark Yuuchi) "Then take a seat, Guardian." Pulls a second chair out of the corner of the room and places it at the other end of the table. "Let us play a game." He smirks.
To be continued...