"Achoo!"
In the corner of an abandoned factory, Charlie sneezed.
"Who's talking smack about me behind my back?"
He rubbed his nose and peered out cautiously.
Outside, a streak of green flame sliced through the night sky, with trails of red mist spreading in its wake.
And to top it off, an arc of electricity crackled as it shot through the air. Charlie rubbed his temples.
It was bad enough dealing with Norman and Hydra Cap, but he hadn't even done anything to provoke Electro.
Why was every problem being dumped on him?
The reason the Resurrection Matches were so tough was partly because of these guys, the ones he'd already defeated.
He couldn't imagine what future Resurrection Matches would be like.
General MacArthur had famously said that mixing personal grudges with the competition was deeply unprofessional.
After a quick inner rant, Charlie decided to drop the goal of killing other contestants.
If he showed up, most of them would immediately target him.
Taking on one or two was fine, but all four villains at once? The odds weren't in his favor.
Why four villains?
Because the fourth villain had just arrived.
Crack!
At the factory entrance, a shadow appeared, and a metal arm under the blood-red mist began to shatter, piece by piece. With a horrifying roar, a crimson claw tore through a concrete pillar with a deafening crash.
Boom!
The shattered concrete pillar was hurled like a massive spear by Bucky, and Charlie leaped onto it, running along its length before smashing through a ceiling panel, vanishing from Bucky's sight.
"He's here!"
Bucky yelled, as crimson tendrils thrashed wildly, joined by green flames and blue electricity that quickly encircled the area.
"Haha, little Charlie, you can't escape!"
Norman lobbed several pumpkin bombs, and the factory instantly exploded in a series of blasts.
"Damn it, Norman, we're still inside!" Bucky cursed.
"Oh, sorry, I only have eyes for him, not you."
Norman sped toward Charlie, who had just poked his head out of the fire. But someone beat him to it.
Crackle!
A flash of blue electricity surged forward, plunging into the sea of flames in an instant.
"Spider-Man, I hate you!"
Max dashed toward Charlie, surging with an onslaught of electricity.
Charlie charged forward, unaffected, throwing a punch straight into the solidified arc of electricity.
Boom!
The air crackled, the flames contorted, and stray electric arcs shot off as fragments of nanometal scattered through the air.
Charlie's exposed fist showed purple traces, undamaged by the electricity.
Electro could absorb massive amounts of electricity, and his body had taken on an energy-like state. But his output was limited, with a low energy efficiency that wasted a lot of power.
Simply put, he wasn't Thor.
With his Titan-imbued Spider-Man physiology, Charlie's resistance to magic was on par with the Amazing Spider-Man, and Electro's speed was his only real advantage.
Being entangled with him would leave Charlie no chance to take down any other contestants.
"What?!"
Seeing Charlie barrel forward, undeterred, Max's face twisted.
This Spider-Man was different!
Wham!
In the next moment, Charlie's body crashed through Electro's, scattering him like a cloud of energy and disappearing from sight.
It took barely three seconds for Electro to re-form, his blue silhouette solidifying in the electric arc.
"You blue scrap heap! What are you doing? Stop him!" Hydra Steve yelled as he arrived, furious that Charlie had slipped away, and directed his rage at Electro.
"What did you just call me?"
Feeling insulted, Max's eyes sparked with blue electricity.
Boom!
His body flared with intense currents, and Hydra Steve barely had time to shield himself with his crimson tendrils before he was engulfed in a storm of electricity.
Crackle!
Zap, zap, zap-
Steam and smoke rose from the crimson tentacles, carrying the scent of charred flesh. Hydra Steve's body couldn't resist the electric surge, with seared, blackened flesh constantly regenerating and falling off.
Seeing this, Bucky lunged at Electro, aiming to rip through the current with his crimson claws.
Boom!
But Max merely shot him a glance, and with a storm of arcs, Bucky was thrown back, crashing to the ground.
"You've all tormented me, and now you're going to pay!!"
Max roared, and the electricity enveloping him flared violently.
Seeing this, Norman didn't hesitate. He turned his glider around and flew out of sight.
"Idiots, losing their minds over Spider-Man. Good luck."
...
In the distance, arcs of electricity rippled through the factory, accompanied by intermittent blasts.
Looking back, Charlie saw that Max hadn't followed him and felt a pang of confusion.
He'd prepared to get entangled with Max, knowing how fast that guy could move.
But mysteriously escaping the encirclement, Charlie casually swung toward the city.
Besides Max, who desperately needed electricity, none of the other contestants had made any big moves yet, clearly wary of being ambushed by the others.
Meanwhile, Hydra Cap and his group were sticking together, giving Charlie no opportunity to strike.
With Loki not having opened the space-time portal and the Chitauri invasion yet to arrive, killing an Avenger seemed somewhat manageable. But if he triggered Bruce Banner's rage, Charlie wasn't sure he could handle the Hulk's fury.
Who knew how strong this universe's Hulk was?
Even the cinematic Hulk was a formidable threat, and only Thanos had managed to truly put him down.
Plus, the Avengers of the multiverse seemed to have luck on their side, and Charlie wasn't keen on testing his own luck against theirs.
He knew his limits.
No point in wasting a precious restart.
So his only remaining target was Loki.
As for Thanos and Odin—forget it. That was just wishful thinking; anyone who believed it was asking for trouble.
So, one question remained.
Where was Loki?
Between skyscrapers, Charlie landed on a sleek glass wall, lost in thought.
Without additional information, he'd be like a headless spider, randomly bashing around with no efficiency.
Wait—Tony!
Remembering the trickster, Charlie turned toward the distant, towering landmark.
Stark Tower.
Immediately, he launched himself off the glass wall, swinging on webs toward the iconic structure.
Soon, Charlie quietly scaled the top floor of the tower.
Glancing at the rooftop's luxurious private pool, he nodded slightly.
It seemed the two Tonys shared the same impeccable taste.
"Hey, you know where Tony is?" he tapped on the floor-to-ceiling window, startling Pepper inside.
"Oh, sh—! That's a big bug!"
"Wait, aren't you Spider-Man?" Pepper realized.
Tony had told her about Spider-Man when he came back.
"Yes, I need to talk to him," Charlie said, sticking to the window.
Pepper pointed to the other side, indicating the door.
"Alright, thanks."
Entering the penthouse, Charlie took in the simple yet lavish furniture and art.
It was his first time in Tony's living quarters.
"Want some coffee?" Pepper asked, holding a cup and looking a bit flustered.
It was her first time meeting another superhero.
Frequent visitor Coulson didn't really count.