A young Black kid named Miles noticed spider webs clinging to his clothes. Following the trail, he saw a motionless figure lying on the ground in the distance. After a brief hesitation, he approached cautiously.
The first thing that caught his eye was a pair of tattered pants, then a protruding belly, and finally a jacket. However, beneath the partially open jacket, a hint of red peeked through - possibly a costume.
Miles stopped in his tracks, his gaze fixated on the person's hand. It was the end of the webbing trail, and there, he spotted a web-shooter device.
"It can't be," he muttered in disbelief.
He crouched down and gently pulled open the jacket, revealing the unmistakable Spider-Man suit underneath!
"Who are you?" Miles asked, his face a mix of fear, confusion, surprise, and a hint of excitement.
But he received no response. This person, presumed to be the real Spider-Man, had been temporarily paralyzed by Miles' earlier unintentional electric shock. Though conscious, he couldn't move a muscle.
As the saying goes, troubles rarely come alone.
Miles didn't attempt to rouse the presumed Spider-Man, and meanwhile, the real Peter Parker was still trapped, trying to escape from his underground coffin.
That's when the "fourth force" suddenly arrived on the scene.
"Freeze, NYPD! What are you doing?" Two police officers ran over, shining their flashlights on the two figures on the ground.
Miles turned pale with fear. In a situation like this, he could potentially be shot on sight!
To evade arrest, he hoisted the paralyzed man onto his shoulders and reenacted a scene reminiscent of "The Boy Who Chased Trains...and the Homeless Man He Dragged Along."
For a while, the entire street descended into chaos.
Much later, after the commotion ended, Miles carried the now unconscious man back to his own home, while the real Peter Parker continued trying to escape from the coffin, knocking loudly.
Thump, thump, thump.
Thump, thump, thump.
Half an hour later...
Thud.
A figure descended from above, landing in front of Spider-Man's tombstone - it was the Spider-Man from another universe, the one in tattered pants, accompanied by Miles.
"Are you sure you heard knocking sounds coming from underground?" Miles asked.
The tattered Spider-Man said impatiently, "Why are you asking so many questions, kid? I'm absolutely certain it was knocking, someone's calling for help! And judging by the sound, it's coming from right here!" He pointed behind the tombstone where the coffin was buried.
"You mean Spider-Man, the real one, is still alive?" Miles asked in disbelief.
"Of course I'm the real Spider-Man! Are you wishing me dead?" The tattered Spider-Man gave him a sidelong glance, clearly irritated.
"No, I didn't mean that..." Miles explained, "It's just, I saw Peter get killed by Kingpin with my own eyes. And he's been dead for days. If he could resurrect, wouldn't he have done that already?"
The tattered Spider-Man pondered this. "Now that I think about it, Spider-Man doesn't actually have resurrection abilities." Having been the Spider-Man for 22 years at age 39, he considered himself well-acquainted with Spider-powers. Resurrection didn't seem to be one of them.
He crouched down and listened carefully.
Thump, thump, thump. Tap, tap, tap. Thump, thump, thump.
Short, rhythmic knocking sounds echoed from underground.
"What's he doing?" Miles asked.
The tattered Spider-Man sighed, "Sending an SOS in Morse code, kiddo. Looks like someone is trapped and needs rescuing."
Miles fell silent, recalling the famous words he'd learned.
"With great power comes--"
"Don't!" The tattered Spider-Man cut him off sharply. "Don't quote that to me! I've heard it enough."
An uneasy silence fell between them, until Miles spoke up again. "So...should we dig him out? What if...what if he's become a zombie or something?"
The tattered Spider-Man hesitated. "A zombie Spider-Man? I...don't think that's possible. But fine, let's dig him out. If things seem off, we can re-bury him."
"Or maybe he's a vampire?" Miles said, shivering. "I heard stories of early vampires rising from underground graves."
The tattered Spider-Man gave him an exasperated look. "If you're so scared, why dwell on those thoughts?"
After a pause, he said thoughtfully, "Actually...there is a chance Spider-Man could become a vampire."
"How's that?"
"In my universe, long ago, there was this guy Morbius. He turned into a vampire after accidentally exposing himself to a sample of my blood that I had left behind."
"Ah?"
Thump, thump, thump. Tap, tap, tap.
The knocking persisted from below.
The two locked eyes, coming to a decision. The tattered Spider-Man pointed nearby. "Miles, go lure those two cops away. Give me ten minutes, I'll get whoever's down there out."
After a moment's hesitation, Miles nodded and headed off.
Down in the coffin, Peter felt relieved. After nearly giving up from trying to escape for half an hour, they had finally heard his knocking!
Since that was the case, he would keep trying his best. Thankfully, he had learned Morse code out of boredom, allowing his SOS to be received.
Soon, the soil above was dug through, and a hand forcefully pried open the coffin lid, creating a gap.
A head poked through, staring at Peter in the dim light.
Peter lifted his head, studying the masked face above.
Wearing a Spider-Man mask...Peter's eyes widened in disbelief. Another Spider-Man in this world?
The tattered Spider-Man was equally shocked.
"Who are you?"x2
"Are you Spider-Man?"x2
The two stared at each other, an uncanny connection forming.
"Never mind who I am for now," the tattered Spider-Man said gruffly, reaching down to pull Peter out. "Let's get out of here first."
He quickly kicked the coffin lid back in place and haphazardly covered the excavated area.
Then, using a webline, he snagged the cornered Miles and flung him over his shoulder. "Hold on, kid!"
Miles quickly clung to him as the tattered Spider-Man swung away, carrying Peter over the other shoulder, leaving the bewildered cops far behind.
(End of chapter)