It was somewhere around five in the afternoon, and Kade was still hanging around the skate park, half-wondering if Peter had bailed on him. He'd already hit every ramp in sight, spun more tricks than he could count, and now, with the place empty and nothing new to try, the whole thing had started to feel… well, boring. He bounced his skateboard under one foot, glancing around with a sigh.
"Should've brought my controller," he muttered, watching the shadows stretch across the pavement. The idea of heading home, taking a quick shower, and kicking back to get into some superhero-slash-supervillain action (on his console) sounded a whole lot better right now. Maybe it was a solo night, after all.
Just as Kade was about to call it, pack up, and make a break for his room and some well-deserved downtime, he heard that unmistakable, jeering laugh—the one he'd come to know as Flash Thompson's.
"Hey, look who's all alone at the park," Flash sneered, striding over with his usual swagger, flanked by his crew. "Couldn't find anyone else to hang with, huh? Guess that's what you get for ditching us to go play buddy-buddy with Parker."
Kade rolled his eyes, already feeling the boredom creep back in with every word Flash spat. "Didn't know you'd take it so personally, Flash. Maybe next time I'll give you a heads-up if I decide to hang with decent people."
Flash's face darkened, and a mocking laugh escaped him. "Decent people? You mean losers like Parker? Man, you've got pretty low standards if you're hanging with that geek."
Kade shrugged, staying cool as he casually balanced his skateboard. "Hey, some people use their brains for something other than annoying everyone else, you know?"
Flash's grin faltered, and his friends exchanged glances, murmuring at the comeback. But Flash, stubborn as ever, wasn't about to back down. "Real funny, Kade. But if you're gonna act all high and mighty, maybe you should show us why you're so special."
Kade sighed, setting his skateboard down and stepping on it with a slight smirk. "You really wanna see something, Flash? Alright, I'll give you a free show."
Without another word, Kade pushed off and skated toward the half-pipe, gaining momentum as he went. He soared up, spinning with an effortless 360 flip, then rolled down, twisting into a kickflip that seemed to defy gravity as he landed cleanly back on the ground. Flash and his friends watched, awed and irritated at the same time.
But Kade wasn't done. He skated directly toward Flash, weaving smoothly around him in a tight circle, his board spinning beneath him as he pulled off an impossible-looking slide, spraying dust at Flash's feet.
"Catch that?" Kade asked, smirking as he slid to a stop, his board angled just enough to look casual yet poised, like he was ready for round two.
Flash sputtered, brushing the dust off his shoes, clearly embarrassed but refusing to back down. "Whatever, man. You think you're so great with those tricks? You're just showing off."
"Oh, you caught me, Flash," Kade replied, feigning shock. "But hey, if you want a closer look…"
And with that, Kade dropped his board again, spinning it underfoot as he rolled forward, edging right into Flash's personal space. Just as Flash stepped back, Kade popped up into a manual, his board's nose tilting as he balanced on the back wheels, forcing Flash to stumble back another step.
The crowd around them started to laugh, and Flash's cheeks burned red. "Back off, man!" he barked, trying to regain some of his confidence.
Kade grinned, stepping off his board and flipping it up to catch in his hand. "No problem. But maybe next time, don't try to come at me unless you've got something more than hot air, yeah?"
Flash glared, fists clenched and jaw tight, but his friends started pulling him back, muttering things about how it wasn't worth it and that Spider-Man was holding a better show just a few blocks away. Flash's scowl faded at the mention of Spider-Man. In an instant, his tough-guy act dropped, and he was all eagerness, practically sprinting off with his friends in tow, hoping for a chance to catch a glimpse of the hero—or maybe even snag an autograph.
'So *that's* where he is,' Kade was left thinking to himself.
A few blocks away, Spider-Man was already knee-deep in a not-so-typical New York City mess. Interdimensional worm—squirming, towering, and slithering with far too many legs—was tearing up the streets. Spidey was flinging webs left and right, pinning down as many of the writhing limbs as he could, but his webbing barely held. The creature bucked wildly, snapping free and lunging toward him.
"Alright, so maybe pest control wasn't the most glamorous superhero gig," he quipped, leaping out of the way as one of the worm's limbs crashed down where he'd been a split second before. "And someone remind me why _I'm_ the one handling interdimensional vermin? Isn't that usually in the _Sorcerer Supreme's_ wheelhouse?"
A few more webs shot out, holding for a split second before they dissolved. This was getting old fast. Where in the world was Doctor Strange when he was needed? This had "mystical party" written all over it, and the doc was, well… fashionably late.
Then, just as he was getting ready to dodge another one of the creature's wildly thrashing limbs, a flash of golden light filled the sky. Spider-Man squinted, surprised. Floating above him, his golden ankh blazing and mystical symbols swirling around his hands, was not Doctor Strange—but Doctor Fate.
"About time one of you magic types showed up!" Peter called out, dodging a particularly nasty strike from the worm. "Hope you're good with worm removal. I'm kind of on a time crunch here!"
Doctor Fate's power surged, a golden beam of energy striking the creature with force. But instead of sending it reeling, the creature only grew angrier, letting out a horrible screech as it writhed even more violently. Fate's gaze darkened, his golden eyes flaring with barely concealed frustration.
Spider-Man took this as his cue. "Hey, Fate!" he yelled, jumping in between the creature and the mage, "So, how does this go? You do the magic mumbo jumbo, I keep it distracted, we swap trading cards after, or what?"
Doctor Fate didn't respond, only focused on intensifying his golden strikes as his ankh zoomed out bolder.
"Y'know, usually Strange throws me a line or two! Like, 'Stay back, Spider-Man,' or 'This thing's from the Dread Dimension, don't look at it funny,'" Spider-Man rambled, ducking as the worm swung again. "Just trying to keep the magic party chatter going!"
Doctor Fate finally answered while glowing like the sun, "I suggest you keep your distance."
"Ah, so you _do_ talk!" Peter replied, flipping away just as another leg smashed the ground where he'd stood. "Okay, okay, message received. But if you're the magic pro here, mind giving me the game plan? Or do I just keep yelling at it until it gets tired?"
Fate's ankh unleashed a fierce, golden beam that locked directly onto the worm's gaping mouth. It drilled into the creature's massive body with a brutal, tearing force, ripping it apart from within. The worm let out a final, ear-splitting screech as its body fragmented, limbs and pulpy chunks disintegrating and scattering in every direction, raining down toward the city below.
Peter's eyes widened as he looked up at the debris hurling toward the streets. Huge pieces—each way too big for him to web up in time, and far too many to even try.
"Hey, uh—Fate, you _do_ know people live down there, right?" he shouted, leaping from building to building as fast as he could to intercept falling chunks. "I know Strange can be intense, but he'd never just obliterate one of these things right over a city! This is insane—those pieces could crush people!"
Fate hovered above, unbothered by the chaos below. His voice, cold and detached, echoed down. "Your new Sorcerer Supreme doesn't waste time with mercy."
Peter felt a sick twist in his stomach at Fate's words but had no time to argue. He dove after the nearest chunk, spinning webs rapidly to create barriers that slowed the debris before it could strike the street. The crowd below screamed as another section careened downward, and he scrambled to catch it in a hasty net.
In the midst of the mayhem, Peter spotted Flash Thompson and his friends among the panicked crowds. He didn't have time to think about it; he fired a web and yanked them to safety just before a massive chunk smashed down, shaking the ground with impact.
But then, out of the corner of his eye, Peter noticed a lone kid on a skateboard, holding up his phone and snapping pictures of the falling pieces like it was some thrill-seeking stunt. Peter's eyes widened. "No way… Kade?!"
Typical Kade wasn't even looking up at the massive chunk about to flatten him, casually focusing on his phone. Peter threw out his hand, desperate to get a web to him, but he wasn't fast enough.
In a flash, Fate's symbol lit up again, and in a sweep of golden energy, Kade and several others were lifted to safety. Fate floated above them, and with a casual wave of his hand, the remaining chunks of worm dissolved into harmless blossoms, showering down over the streets in a surreal drift. Without a word, Fate vanished, leaving no trace behind as though he had never been there at all.
Peter exhaled, looking at the blossoms falling like confetti across the city and then back at Kade, who only grinned while scrolling through his phone and shrugged like it had all just been part of his day.