The Daily Bugle was louder than usual that morning. Journalists rushed around, assistants carried cables and cameras, but there was something different in the air. Peter adjusted his wrinkled blazer and crossed the corridor, balancing stacks of photos and a cup of coffee.
- Hey, Parker! - Betty Brant's voice cut through the newsroom. - Finally.
He dropped the photos onto the desk, knocking half of them onto the floor. Betty laughed as she approached and started helping him.
- It's good to know I make you flustered. - She adjusted his glasses and messed up his hair a bit. - There you go, you look cute pretending to be a nerd with those glasses.
- I get shy around hot women… - He froze quickly, pretending to be shocked with himself, lifting the cup of coffee he had brought for her. - ...I mean, majestic. - Peter smiled as he winked. - If this is another 'Spider-Man: Friend or Foe' story, I'm warning you now, I'm asking for a raise.
- Not this time, genius. - Betty spun the monitor on her desk, motioning for him to sit in the chair. - Look at this, Jameson's son took it.
On the screen, the photo showed Musk and Jameson's son posing in front of a SpaceX rocket. Behind them, on the hull, a dark stain stood out. Irregular and strange, as if something had collided with that area.
- I bet there are already about twenty conspiracy theorists swearing it's an alien trying to invade Earth. - Peter smiled, but his gaze remained fixed on the image, on how the black stain seemed to seep from the affected area, and it could even be an oil leak, but no leak branched out like creeping vine roots the way it did there. - Or, better yet, Jameson calling me on my day off to blame Spider-Man.
- This is no joke, Parker. - Betty shot back, typing something in a hurry. - SpaceX has grounded the rocket. Rumors say even government scientists are fighting for the right to analyze the sample. Including Connors, even in prison, he offered to study it for free to reduce his sentence.
The name hit hard. Curtis Connors. Peter felt a chill run down the back of his neck, identical to the one he felt when his senses sharpened and the world seemed slower.
But not because of any immediate danger — rather, the one he always felt whenever one of his villains was mentioned, as if one of them had been named, and now that chill itself seemed to reflect in the black stain shown in the photo.
- "Another life, another suit… the same pattern." - Peter thought about his accumulated life experience, with branches already forming, connecting, and adapting within this new environment.
- Okay… I'll admit I'm curious. - He looked at the photo again; it reminded him too much of something else. He didn't even want to think about the name. - But if this is some Spider villain coming back… someone give me a heads-up.
- Coming back? - Betty asked, one eyebrow raised.
- Just kidding. - He deflected, too quickly. - Last time I followed Spider-Man, I had to go into the sewers to photograph the Lizard. I lost my favorite outfit. I'm still mourning.
- What can you do… you're the one who decided to photograph the neighborhood hero. - Betty let out a short laugh, giving Parker a few light pats on the back. - Now you know why Jameson interrupted everyone's day off… We need to be the first to control the narrative.
[ ... ]
- Peter Benjamin Parker, second-best student at Midtown High, freelance photographer, affiliated with the Daily Bugle. - The voice of an analyst echoed through the room as images were projected onto the holographic screen. - Works directly with Jameson, specialized in… Spider-Man photographs.
- Of course it is. - A middle-aged man commented, sighing as he confirmed the theory of why his boss had been so enigmatic about the next mission. - The most elusive vigilante in New York and the kid who manages to get photos of him from insanely dangerous angles.
- So then, Agent Hill. Anything else about the boy with suicidal tendencies, or just an addiction to adrenaline?
- We are not investigating Parker, Agent Coulson. Our target is Spider-Man. - Maria Hill explained the basis of it all. - If anyone is going to trace his identity, that kid is the most obvious lead. I've never seen a vigilante so elusive — even our surveillance cameras seem to go offline when he passes by them.
- Could it be one of his enhanced abilities? - Coulson spun the chair, focusing on the documents and images projected on the computer screen.
- We're not sure. His main capabilities are evident, but lately he has drawn Fury's attention after displaying enhanced physical ability. - Hill explained, showing the blurred footage of someone leaping with extreme speed and force across the buildings of Queens. - The military is getting restless over this display of new abilities, extremely similar to the hunt they're carrying out against the gamma radiation scientist.
- Strange. - Coulson murmured from the apartment window, watching Parker himself leaving the building where he worked.
- What? - Hill raised an eyebrow.
- He seems… far too independent for his age. As if he notices things no one else does. I can't explain what's different about that boy, Parker.
- We're not going to waste time on impressions, Agent Coulson. - Hill cut in, coldly. - The order is simple: track Spider-Man, understand who he associates with, and determine whether S.H.I.E.L.D. may need him in the future. Parker is just a tool taking advantage of making some money.
- Just a tool… right. - He murmured, unconvinced, stepping away from the window, barely noticing how Parker down below suddenly stopped and looked directly toward the apartment they were in.
[ ... ]
- I'm home! - Peter announced loudly so May could hear, quickly setting the groceries down on the dining table and heading toward where the television he and his aunt had recently bought was. He was a bit broke after helping with the bills, but it seemed luck had finally come Parker's way, since his name had been approved for a loan and he managed to get himself a decent amount of money to splurge, even if just a little. - What did I miss?
- Oh, sorry, dear, I'm not watching. - May smiled at Parker while frantically searching for a channel on the television. - I'm doing the laundry.
- Come on, May… this could be the discovery of the century… well, in this universe at least. - Peter reflected a bit to himself. - They discovered alien life and you're not even worried?
- Oh, Peter… technically, we're both aliens.
- Interdimensional travelers. You were granted the privilege of being safely pulled to where your nephew accidentally landed. Honestly, it's almost too good that we have knowledge of other variant lives of ourselves. - Peter smiled. - By the way, would it be asking too much for a carrot cake tonight? - Parker asked, unsure if he could still act like her teenage/adult nephew.
- Of course you can ask, my dear. - May stepped closer and gave Peter a quick peck. - With chocolate frosting?
- Definitely, I love your mother's recipe. - Peter smiled at his aunt, being a bit spoiled.
- So I'll make two… you've been eating a lot lately. - May admitted as she looked at the groceries on the table. - Protein for dinner?
- Grilled chicken would be amazing. And I don't eat too much… my body just asks for it after pushing myself so hard. - Peter laughed, remembering his aunt's concern. - You know how hard it is for me to hold back so I don't hurt anyone.
- Well, I could show all this strength tonight... I can wear the costume and see what happens. - May bit the corner of her lip.
- You have no idea... I want to try a new position, so it's better to stretch very well. - Peter kissed his aunt. - Now let me go back to being a nerd, because we discovered alien life. - He finished by jumping on the couch, with his aunt laughing.
- NASA and SpaceX have not released any images, but if we zoom in closely on this photo taken from the emergency landing in which Spider-Man guided our space heroes through New York, we can see that there is something on the damaged hull of the rocket. - The red-haired reporter presented, as the image zoomed in and lost quality. - We also have some amateur videos suggesting that this stain may be something organic coming from space, because as you can see, it appears to retract and pulse slightly.
- Theories speculate that our failed attempt to reach the Moon after so long was not actually a total failure, since there has been a noticeable increase in military circulation since the rocket landed, and especially the temporary release from prison of the biogeneticist, Doctor Curtis Connors.
- So stay alert, because if a prisoner who was almost responsible for turning all of New York into reptilian beings has been released to take part in a resocialization and rehabilitation program at SpaceX, then the government truly needs urgent answers.
- "So Venom really arrived on Earth?" - Peter felt the chill as he watched the low-quality image of the stain pulsing on the rocket's hull, strongly resembling a black mass from another life in which Parker had allied with it and later confronted it. - "And I thought I might have some advantage by knowing the future." - Peter opened YouTube, rewatching an amateur video of a green, extremely muscular creature tearing through a group of soldiers in an open school field.
- "Soon new heroes and even Avengers may emerge… but not the way I imagined." - Peter sighed, thoughtfully considering how to react to this. He had already been setting the stage by frightening common criminals with a bit more strength, but that would not be enough against enhanced beings and everything he had already seen across his three lives. - "I think it's time to truly embrace the role of the first hero of this new era…"
- "And that means truly knowing the full extent of my powers, to the maximum."
It was a decision he had been considering for some time now, and with this development of the Hulk fleeing from the military, maybe he could get involved in a fight between those two big guys.
- Ah… May is going to kill me. - Peter sighed.
And with that, we bring another chapter of Infinite Change to an end.
Guys, I'm trying to keep the continuity of my fanfics going using my phone. I'm without a computer right now, so doing this on mobile is a bit more annoying, but I think it's manageable if I create smaller chapters.
I hope you enjoy it, especially the implicit references indicating that the time period this story revolves around is that of the 2008 Hulk movie.
However, even though Peter has knowledge of his life in the MCU, as well as the experience of his variant lives from "Tobey Maguire" and "Andrew Garfield," he will not follow the cliché of knowing future events, because he has already watched The Butterfly Effect and understands the ramifications everything can cause.
So he will act using his knowledge as a guiding advantage, but not as a certainty of everything that will happen.
I hope you liked it, and don't forget to give that support and show up in the comments. XD
– Characters Presented –
Peter Parker:
https://pin.it/3P9s0a5LZ
Betty Brant:
https://pin.it/1Z79OMkb1
Maria Hill:
https://pin.it/3tXDvw0Q8
Phil Coulson:
https://pin.it/1lR1qcAgQ
May Parker:
https://pin.it/63F7brmsi
The Stain:
https://pin.it/6Op91iqwI
Hulk Wrecking the Military (Recent YouTube Video):
https://th.bing.com/th/id/R.677ef398951b027589523fdb4d01afe4?rik=I1uxvwqgVAbXdQ&pid=ImgRaw&r=0
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