"What the—! Are you human or a ghost?!" Peter's eyes were wide. He was stunned not just by the man's impossibly theatrical entrance, but by his appearance now! The figure was standing directly in front of Peter. Illuminated by the streetlight, his entire form was visible. And he... was grayscale! No, to be precise: black, white, and gray! He wore a long gray trench coat over a pure black, tight-fitting suit. On his head, he wore a fedora, and beneath the brim, a pair of aviation goggles—though they looked incredibly vintage. His aesthetic was completely out of place in this world.
"Huh? Buddy, your art style looks different from mine, no?" the man commented in surprise. Peter was speechless: "Shouldn't I be the one saying that?"
"Hmm. Your lines are soft. You don't strike me as a fighter; you look more like a... scholar?" the man observed, sizing Peter up. "Well, you're right; I'm just a guy who struggles to lift a brick. You still haven't answered my questions. Who exactly are you? What did you mean by 'we are the same kind'? Do you know why I'm here?" Peter rattled off a stream of questions.
The man waved a dismissive hand: "Okay, now I'm more certain we're the same kind. You talk just as much as I do." Peter: (Sighs internally) ...
The man continued: "Hello. Let's reintroduce ourselves. My name is Peter Parker, but they usually call me: Spider-Man Noir."
Peter: !!! "Spider-Man! You're Spider-Man!" Peter's eyes were huge. He felt he shouldn't believe it. But subconsciously, his mind flashed through every action the Noir Spider-Man had taken: Hanging upside-down from a ledge without any external support... Jumping effortlessly from a ten-meter height without a scratch, glider, or harness... The only oddity was the unique visual aesthetic.
"Yeah, aren't you?" Spider-Man Noir shrugged, looking at Peter with confusion. "Me? Of course not! I'm just a regular person!" Peter insisted. He might want to be Spider-Man, but he hadn't been mutated... wait, had he? He had just been bitten by a spider! Thinking this, Peter instinctively raised his bandaged left hand.
"It can't be, right? Lots of people get bit by spiders... if a spider bite makes you Spider-Man, would an ant bite make you an Ant-Man?" Peter thought, but his hands were busy unwrapping the white gauze. He even felt a faint sense of anticipation. Spider-Man Noir remained silent, crossing his arms and seemingly waiting for Peter's "performance."
The gauze was quickly removed. To Peter's utter bewilderment, the wound that had been swollen and painful just yesterday was now perfectly smooth. Not only was the swelling gone, but the skin showed no sign of an injury at all!
"You were just bitten recently?" Spider-Man Noir finally spoke. Spider-Men are highly intelligent, and Noir, as an independent hero fighting capitalist monopolies, was particularly sharp. Seeing Peter's actions, he had pieced the story together.
Peter nodded reflexively: "Okay, I'm starting to believe what you said." Spider-Man Noir smiled, then familiarly slung an arm around Peter's shoulder, as if seeing a younger version of himself: "Alright, I went through this phase too. You'll adapt quickly. But before that, how about we grab a drink?"
"Fine," Peter agreed. When feeling lost and disoriented in a strange environment, a small drink was a solid choice.
The two walked side-by-side toward the end of the alley. But they stopped abruptly. In front of them, a massive electronic screen displayed a news broadcast. The screen showed Spider-Man in a blue-and-white suit!
"That's... Peter Parker, Spider-Man!" Peter gasped, staring at the screen. He was certain this was no movie ad; the image and content were not from any of the filmed generations of Spider-Man he had seen. His memory was excellent, and he was certain of it! The content on the screen clearly read:
"We interrupt this program with a special, somber report." "Our hero, Spider-Man, left us today. His death is linked to a mysterious seismic event that occurred in Brooklyn this morning." "Confirmed by multiple sources, Peter Parker, 26-year-old graduate student and freelance photographer, has been the masked vigilante known as Spider-Man for over a decade..." The announcement was accompanied by photos of Spider-Man and Peter Parker's face!
"This world has a Spider-Man too, and... he's dead?" Both Peter and Spider-Man Noir stared blankly at the screen.
Peter suddenly realized which world this was! He hadn't watched every Spider-Man animated series, only the live-action films. However, he had bought a PS5 console and the game disc for Spider-Man: Miles Morales! That game was a spin-off of the 2018 Marvel's Spider-Man game series, featuring the protagonist Miles Morales, an African-Latino mixed-race teen, and the second Spider-Man in the Ultimate Universe. He was also known as the "Dark-Suit Spidey." His powers were similar to the original Spider-Man, resulting from the bite of a spider created by Norman Osborn while trying to replicate Spider-Man's abilities. However, Miles also had the unique powers of Bioelectricity and Camouflage.
In the game's actual plot, the original Spider-Man didn't die but traveled to Europe with his girlfriend to fight Mysterio. But after completing the game and getting the platinum trophy, Peter, curious to learn more about the character, had researched Miles Morales's comic book origins. It was in that background story that he found the news of the first Peter Parker's death: After the Green Goblin's identity was exposed, Norman Osborn was arrested, and Osborn Industries was abandoned. Two months before Peter Parker's death, a thief infiltrated Osborn Industries, and a spider unknowingly slipped into his bag. Miles Morales, a young boy from Brooklyn, visited his uncle, Aaron Davis (The Prowler), who was a criminal at the time. At his uncle's house, Miles was bitten by the spider from Osborn Industries, subsequently gaining superhuman strength, wall-crawling, camouflage, and paralyzing super-abilities (Bioelectricity). Initially, Miles was negative about his powers and planned to hide them and remain a normal person. But shortly after, Spider-Man was killed in battle, and Miles arrived at the scene too late. He blamed himself for Peter's death and resolved to follow Peter's belief that "with great power comes great responsibility," becoming the second Spider-Man.
Peter also recalled that Miles had been subtly referenced in the MCU film Spider-Man: Homecoming. To track down The Vulture, Peter found Aaron Davis, who mentioned he had a nephew who lived in Brooklyn—this nephew being Miles. However, Miles would have been only about four or five years old during the events of that film.
Through comparing the information in his head, Peter quickly drew a conclusion. This must be the Ultimate Universe (Earth-1610)!