After methodically closing his wound with the few supplies left in the storage unit, Spider-Man left with the goal of reaching the Baxter Building and asking for help from those he considered family. But he failed immediately—his body demanded rest.
Realizing he couldn't go out into the streets in that condition, much less call Aunt May, Peter decided it was time to rest.
Returning to the abandoned storage unit, Spider-Man—now just Peter after removing his suit and hiding it beneath some rubble—began to surrender to exhaustion. Sitting atop the debris where he'd stashed his suit, Peter fell asleep.
The next day, the wound on Peter's leg had begun to heal, and he could move without as much pain. So, donning his Spider-Man suit once more, he quickly left the storage unit—unaware of a broken camera hidden in the farthest corner of the place where he had encountered Solus.
As Spider-Man swung through the city, he thought about what words he could use to make the Fantastic Four believe him, especially Susan and Johnny. After all, when Octavius was still in control of his body, he'd said terrible things to the people closest to him.
Lost in his thoughts, Spider-Man didn't hear the jeers of the people watching him swing by.
"When will that menace in the fabric suit stop lurking around our city?" a man said to a hot dog vendor.
"Right? I remember how he used to get a free hot dog every time he stopped a thief. Now I think those thieves were in cahoots with him—just like the ones from that bank robbery." The vendor's face was etched with indignation.
"Yeah, I still can't believe Spider-Man would collude with criminals like that."
Arriving at the Baxter Building, Spider-Man quickly headed for the roof—only to be repelled by a force field generated by the Fantastic Four's AI.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Peter Parker. You are permanently banned from entering any Baxter Building facilities," Karen informed him in a calm voice.
"Karen, please tell the Fantastic Four it's an emergency. I really need their help." Trying to ignore the dull ache in his chest at being cut off from the Fantastic family, Spider-Man insisted that this was urgent.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Parker. Mr. Reed Richards has instructed me not to allow you any contact with his family members."
Realizing it was impossible to reach them, Spider-Man decided to leave and seek help from the X-Men instead. He believed they would help him—after all, he'd aided them countless times without ever asking for anything in return.
As he swung through the streets, he noticed a massive screen where J. Jonah Jameson was once again tarnishing his reputation. But this time, Spider-Man noticed something different—he heard Jonah claim he had conspired with the bank robbers to steal taxpayers' money, calling him a complete fraud.
Spider-Man decided it was better to just call the X-Men.
Though he believed they would help, he wasn't sure how they'd react after the accusations of him aiding thieves—especially since he didn't always get along with their leaders (except for Logan).
Returning to the abandoned storage unit, Spider-Man used the communication device Doctor Oct had built while still in control of his body. It was a device that intercepted and hijacked signals to force a connection.
KRAKOA
Suddenly, in the middle of a meeting about how to handle the anti-mutant attitude of the wall-crawling hero, the television screen flickered to life—showing the very person they were discussing.
"Logan, Ororo, Xavier, Jean, Emma, Cyclops—how are you? I assume you're doing well. I'm calling because I need your help. I'm facing an enemy I can't beat alone, and the Fantastic Four won't help me." Without waiting for a reaction, Spider-Man quickly explained his situation.
"And what exactly do you need help with, you incompetent fool? Your public image? Because right now, they're tearing you apart like the pathetic thief you are behind that mask," Cyclops sneered, met with silent agreement from the others in the room.
"Fine. Guess I can't count on you. Logan—will you help me with this one mission?" Spider-Man asked hopefully, speaking to the man he considered a brother in all but blood.
"Sorry, bub. Can't do it. You're against mutants now, and I can't trust that you won't turn on me." Logan's tone was cold and final.
"How many damn times do I have to say it wasn't me who was anti-mutant? It was Octavius in my body!" Spider-Man snapped, frustrated.
"Spider-Man, Emma, Jean, and I ran a mental scan on you and found nothing abnormal. So please leave our network, or we'll be forced to remove and track you," Charles Xavier said calmly.
"Great. So this is what helping you in your darkest hours gets me. Good to know. Oh, before I go—congratulations, Cyclops, on being with both Miss Jean Grey and Emma Frost. Really, well done." With that, Spider-Man signed off—leaving chaos in his wake as two furious mutants tried to kill a panicking Cyclops.
Spider-Man had learned another valuable lesson: not all allies are grateful, and not all friends are true friends.
At this point, Spider-Man knew there was no use calling the Defenders—much less the Avengers. Every plea for help would be rejected the moment he asked.
Now, Spider-Man knew what he had to do.
He had to prepare to face Solus alone.
Because Spider-Man never needed teammates.
Spider-Man had always fought alone.