If Peter wanted to, Otto Octavius would never have been able to enter his consciousness.
It had nothing to do with the Spider-Totem; the Totem protected the role of the Chieftain, and it did not care who that Chieftain was. Thus, whether it was the Superior Spider-Man or the Amazing Spider-Man, the Totem could accept either.
It also had nothing to do with Knull. What Knull anticipated was the death of Peter Parker. If an entity like Belasco had taken control of this body, he would have sensed Knull's presence and formulated a countermeasure, but Otto Octavius would remain oblivious to such things.
It was simply because Peter knew the story of the Superior Spider-Man, and because he had learned magic, allowing him to defend against such soul-based attacks at any time.
Yet, he allowed Otto to enter his consciousness anyway, because—
A perfect, flawless version of Otto took a punch from Peter and staggered back. Otto realized what was happening; this was Peter Parker's consciousness defending against his intrusion.
But what of it?
The fragments of his past, every drop of his soul, flowed through Otto's consciousness. As Otto saw everything that made up the man known as Peter Parker and realized what kind of existence he was facing, he threw a punch of his own.
"You are just luckier than me!"
Having seen Peter's life, Otto roared as he charged. There was no Symbiote suit here, no spider-powers—there was nothing but a raw, psychic confrontation of spirits.
Just as Otto could see Peter Parker's life, Peter could see Otto's.
He saw the brilliant talent of Otto's youth, his dedication as a university associate professor after graduation, and how, after failing his professorial evaluation, he was sought out by Osborn to join Oscorp Industries.
He also saw the story he already knew—the story of how Otto had been cast out.
"You were just lucky enough to be bitten by that spider! If it had been me, I could have done better than you!"
Otto continued his tirade as he lunged at Peter. He saw more now; he saw deep into the soul of his opponent, into things no one else knew.
He landed a punch on Peter's face, seemingly shattering something.
Otto laughed, nearly hysterical with excitement.
"You are just like me! You don't belong here either! Your soul comes from another world, doesn't it?"
Cackling wildly, he grabbed Peter by the collar and delivered punch after punch.
"In that case! What makes you think you can act so superior? Why couldn't I do better than you? I have more knowledge! I am smarter! You're just a failure, an indecisive nobody wearing the name Peter Parker!"
"You aren't even the real Spider-Man!"
Otto stopped his fist because the face he was striking had shattered.
Beneath that face, there was not the visage of another person who wasn't Peter Parker.
There was the mask of Spider-Man.
"I'm sorry, Otto."
What was he apologizing for?
"I'm sorry we never had the chance to meet under different circumstances. If we had met sooner, if I could have been your student in university, if I could have joined your lab before you walked the path of no return, perhaps everything would have been different."
Spider-Man caught the fist Otto swung at him.
"I also regret, Otto, that by the time we did meet, you were already beyond saving. Perhaps you once had the chance to become someone else, but that chance is gone."
"Shut up!"
Otto's other fist was also easily caught by Spider-Man. He let out a desperate, impotent howl: "You're an impostor!"
"I didn't become Spider-Man because I was reborn as Peter Parker. I became him because I knew how many people would die if Spider-Man didn't exist."
What flooded into Otto now were Spider-Man's memories—no, it was the story of Spider-Man.
A boy bitten by a mutated spider, who entered a wrestling match to make money and let a thief pass by on the street, only for that thief to kill his uncle.
That was the first time he failed to save someone.
Then came his lover, his friend, the police captain he respected, and even his former enemies.
That young man named Peter Parker should have lost so many things.
Otto looked at Spider-Man, staring at him in disbelief. "You... you've just been saving people this whole time?"
The other man simply answered Otto.
"I may not be the 'true' Peter Parker."
And no one had ever decreed that being Peter Parker meant one had to bear the responsibility of Spider-Man.
"But I am still this world's Spider-Man. This is my world, my world needs a Spider-Man, and I will do everything in my power."
Otto froze. He hesitated, stumbling back two steps in uncertainty. It was those two steps that made him realize the truth.
"Otto, you have lost."
"..."
It was Otto Octavius himself who, in his quest for revenge, chose a path from which there was no salvation.
He would never become a better, "Superior" Spider-Man.
Peter opened his eyes. Only a fraction of a second had passed, and the withered Superior Octopus before him had completely lost all signs of life. Doctor Octopus was dead, truly dead; his consciousness had dissolved before him, ceasing to exist.
This was also Peter's goal: to ensure Otto Octavius could never be resurrected in any form. As he had told Otto: there was no way to save him.
Perhaps death was the only salvation left for him.
"Ah, damn it..."
Before he could mourn or grieve for Otto, Peter's Spider-Sense blared louder than ever before. He took a deep breath and looked around as Cindy swung toward him.
She had just felt something very... wrong.
"Are you okay?"
"Kang is here. I can see him. He's gone to Avengers Tower; I have to stop him."
Or perhaps he couldn't stop him. Peter shook his head. Cindy immediately moved to follow, but Peter stopped her.
"You can't come with me. If I fail, the entire world will be reshaped. When that happens, Cindy, you have to find me."
"But..."
Peter chose the simplest way to answer. He pulled down Cindy's mask and kissed her. Then, he donned his own mask.
"Find me."
"But—"
Cindy Moon watched as Peter Parker swung toward Avengers Tower, feeling utterly bewildered. What was he talking about? Finding him? Where was he going?
And that kiss...
Ignoring everything else, Peter arrived at the perimeter of Avengers Tower. Almost as soon as he entered, he saw Kang the Conqueror. Kang had frozen everyone else in the room and was now carefully controlling the Cosmic Cube, placing it within the tower.
Peter approached using his invisibility, moving as stealthily as possible, getting close enough, and then—
"I know you're there, Spider-Man."
Peter and Kang's hands landed on the Cosmic Cube at the exact same time.
Kang the Conqueror looked at Peter with a cold smirk.
"But do you even know how to use the Cosmic Cube? You won't get the chance."
"The Kang Dynasty has arrived."
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