The hero of DC and Marvel

It took an hour, but the police finally arrived. I explained everything and told them to check the security footage. After reviewing it, they arrested Jason Woodrue.

"Hey, Arsenal, thanks for the help. I heard you've been in Gotham all night. You even saved some friends of mine." one of the officers said.

"No problem. I'm always happy to help."

"An ambulance is on its way to assist Miss Pamela."

I frowned. "I don't think that's a good idea. You should let me take her—I have a better chance of helping her."

The officer gave me a skeptical look. "What do you mean?"

"Miss Pamela is now poisonous to others. If your doctors try to treat her, she could unintentionally hurt or kill them. I'm better equipped to handle this without putting anyone in danger."

He hesitated. "I'm not sure we can actually let you do that..."

I sighed. Should've just taken her before they got here.

But then, the officer glanced at the chaos of the crime scene, the paperwork, and Jason being hauled away in cuffs. He sighed.

"Well, we've got our hands full with the prisoner. I guess we wouldn't notice if Miss Pamela... disappeared."

I gave him a nod. "Thank you. You won't regret this."

"I don't know what you're talking about," he said, looking away. "But I hope Miss Pamela returns safe and healthy."

I got the hint.

I walked over to Pamela, still unconscious on the ground. Gently, I picked her up in a princess carry and took off into the sky. Once I was above the clouds, I teleported to Sanctuary, straight to the medical wing.

I carefully set Pamela down on a bed.

That's when I noticed Peggy sitting beside another bed, watching over Steve Rogers. He was no longer frozen in ice, just unconscious.

I walked up to her. "How's he doing?"

She looked up, slightly startled. 

"He's fine. The Super Soldier Serum saved him from the worst effects of being frozen. Now... we just wait for him to wake up." She turned back to him, her voice quieter.

"And how are you?" I asked. "This must be a lot for you."

She was silent for a few seconds before speaking.

"I almost don't want to close my eyes because I'm afraid this is a dream... I've been dreaming of this moment for so long. I never thought I'd see him again. And now... I'm just waiting for him to wake up."

She turned to me. "Thank you. For everything. Because of you, Steve and I have a second chance."

I gave her a small smile. "I'm happy to help. When Steve wakes up, I think you should take some time off. You two deserve it. Spend some time together, help him adjust to the new world."

She nodded. "Thank you."

"No problem."

With that, I teleported back to Gotham.

The sun was rising now. Ever since All Might started working the city during the day, crime had dropped significantly—almost nonexistent. Of course, there were still some idiots who tried, but they were quickly dealt with.

With nothing left to do here, I decided to fly to a new location.

Metropolis

I had never actually spent much time in Metropolis. Superman handled the city well, so I never needed to intervene. But curiosity got the better of me—I wanted to see the city for myself.

As I flew above the skyline, I was taking in the sights when I heard an explosion.

I immediately changed course, heading straight for the source.

It was a bank robbery. Three criminals were in a shootout with the police—and the cops were losing. The criminals had high-tech laser weapons.

I flew down, landing between them and the police. The criminals turned their weapons on me, firing.

The laser blasts hit my suit... and did absolutely nothing.

They hesitated, stopping their assault. One of them started whispering in panic.

"It's Arsenal..."

"Why is he here?! This isn't his city!" another one said.

I crossed my arms. "I go where I'm needed. Now, surrender."

They froze, looking at each other. Then—because criminals are predictable—they decided to shoot at me again.

I sighed. Why do they always do that?

Before their fingers even released the triggers, I blitzed toward them at blinding speed. In a blink, I grabbed all three of their weapons and crushed them into scrap.

They stared at their now-useless guns in horror.

One guy—the dumbest of the bunch—decided to punch me in the face.

Bad idea.

There was an audible crack as he hit me, and he immediately screamed in pain, clutching his now-broken hand.

I raised an eyebrow. "Okay... You saw your weapons didn't work, so your next move was to punch me? Explain."

The guy groaned. "I don't know, man! I just really need the money... College debt is a Bitch"

...Okay, that actually made me pause for a second.

I sighed, shaking my head. I quickly healed his hand and waited for the police to arrive and take them into custody.

The police took the criminals away, and I prepared to leave. Just as I was about to take off, I heard a sonic boom.

I turned in the direction of the sound, and immediately, I knew who it was.

he was approaching—fast.

A few seconds later, he was right in front of me. Superman.

He hovered there, calm, powerful, radiating an almost unshakable presence.

I wasn't worried about him seeing through my suit. I had already lined it with lead—his X-ray vision wouldn't be able to pick up anything.

"Arsenal, it's a pleasure to meet you." Superman extended a hand, his voice warm, almost too friendly.

I shook his hand firmly. "The honor is mine, Superman. I have a lot of respect for you."

Now that he was right in front of me, I could feel it.

I had always known the answer, but now I was sure—Superman is stronger than me.

I could sense his energy. It was overwhelming.

And if I focused hard enough, I could feel it growing—slowly but surely. Just by standing in the sunlight, he was getting stronger.

Kryptonian biology is Bullshit.

"Thank you for helping out here. I was busy stopping an avalanche from crushing a small village," Superman said.

"No problem, Superman. I'm always happy to help where I'm needed," I replied.

"I know, I've seen what you can do on the internet, and I have to say—it's impressive. I'm glad you're using your power for the good of the people."

"Of course. Only cowards use their abilities for crime."

"Maybe. But not all crime is black and white. Some people are just desperate and make bad choices."

I thought about that for a moment. "Yeah… I guess you're right. I've seen that a couple of times myself. Well, since you're here, I don't think I'm needed anymore."

Just as I was about to fly off, an explosion rang through the city.

Without hesitation, we took off toward the source.

When we arrived, we saw two men outside a bank—powered criminals. Unlike the last group of robbers, these guys weren't just carrying weapons.

They wore simple ski masks and carried duffel bags stuffed with cash. Behind them, the bank's entrance was blown wide open, smoke still rising from the blast. They were locked in a firefight with the police—one hurling bolts of electricity, the other launching flames.

we flew down

The moment they saw us, they froze.

"shit! It's Superman and Arsenal! Why do we have to be so unlucky today?!" one of them cursed.

"Your luck can change," I said, stepping forward. "If you surrender now, we won't have to hurt you."

"Fuck that! I'm fighting my way out!" the electricity user shouted before unleashing a powerful lightning strike toward us.

The blast hit us both.

Superman staggered, dropping to one knee. The attack actually affected him—though not much.

Me? I didn't even flinch.

The guy's eyes widened.

I kept walking toward him.

Gritting his teeth, he focused everything on me, sending a full-power lightning strike straight at my chest.

But electricity does nothing to me.

His partner—the fire user—shook off his shock and joined in, sending a massive wave of flames my way. Unlike lightning, I wasn't completely immune to fire, but I was tough enough to take it.

Step by step, I walked through their attacks, unscathed.

By the time I stood right in front of them, their confidence vanished.

The electricity guy slowly lowered his hands. "You know what? On second thought, I'd like to surrender."

"Me too," the fire guy quickly added.

I smirked. "Sorry, that option is no longer available. Now, knock-out victims say what?"

"What?" they both said.

Boom. Boom.

They dropped before they even knew what hit them.

Superman got back to his feet, brushing off the attack like it was nothing.

"That was impressive. Thanks for the assist," he said.

I nodded 

"You could've easily taken them down yourself. The only reason you didn't move was because the police were behind you. You didn't want to risk them getting hurt. You were just going to let that guy hit you, let them think it actually did something, and then make your move."

Superman looked at me, slightly surprised.

"Yes... that's exactly right."

I smirked. "Not surprising. You're a true hero."

With the situation handled and no immediate danger left, I stretched my arms. "Well, since I'm actually not needed anymore, I should get going. See you around."

"Goodbye, Arsenal. Until we meet again."

I gave him a nod before taking off into the sky.

For the next six hours, I flew around the world, helping wherever I was needed—stopping crimes, saving people, doing what heroes do.

By the time I was done, exhaustion finally caught up to me.

I teleported back to my base, appearing straight into my room. Without a second thought, I peeled off my hero suit, flopped onto my bed, and within seconds—

I was out cold.

Peter POV

After everything that happened last night, I wanted to talk to Ed, but he was nowhere to be found. I left him a message with Church, telling him we needed to talk, and then just crashed for the night.

Now, I'm at school, but my mind is elsewhere. I never thought I'd meet someone like me—someone with spider-like powers—let alone someone I already knew.

Cindy.

I remember her from Debate Club. I quit a while ago because, well… Spider-Man duties. We weren't exactly close back then, and I doubt she's particularly happy to see me randomly showing up now. Still, I need to talk to her.

Right now, I'm sitting on the stage in the cafeteria, waiting. Debate Club usually practices here, and sure enough, after a few minutes, they walk in.

"Peter? What a surprise. Don't tell me you're thinking about rejoining the Debate Club?" Mr. Harrington asks, raising an eyebrow.

I actually consider it. Crime in New York has been lower lately, and with Starlight around, I don't need to be Spider-Man all the time anymore.

"Yeah, actually. I know I kind of just bailed on you guys before, but—"

"No need to beg," Liz cuts in with a smirk. "As long as you promise not to disappear again."

"I promise. Unless there's a world-ending event—then, I'm definitely running for the hills," I joke.

They all laugh, but in the back of my mind, I remember what Ed said about the future. A world-ending event could actually happen. At least now, I have a built-in excuse if I disappear on them.

"Well, we're glad to have you back, Peter," Abraham says.

"Thanks. Feels good to be back."

Our Debate Club isn't big—just me, Ned, Liz, Abraham, Cindy Moon, and a new girl, Beth Chapel. She moved here a month ago, and from what I've seen, she's really smart and really nice.

I steal another glance at Cindy, trying to see if my Spider-Sense will react like last time. Nothing. Maybe that was a one-time thing. That's… good. If my Spider-Sense doesn't go off around her, she probably won't figure out I'm Spider-Man.

Still, I need to talk to her. I need to know how she got her powers.

"Peter! It's so good to have you back! We really missed you," Beth says with a bright smile.

"I'm happy to be back. And I'm sorry for just leaving without explaining… I won't do that again."

"That's great!" She surprises me with a hug. Told you she was nice.

We start practice, and honestly? It feels like I never left. No one holds a grudge over me disappearing, and we fall right back into the rhythm.

After practice, everyone starts heading to class. But just before Cindy can leave, I grab her hand.

"Can we talk?" I ask.

She looks at me, confused. "Uh… sure? Is something wrong?"

Crap. I didn't actually plan what to say. I just blurt out the first thing that comes to mind.

"I know you have powers… like Spider-Man."

Cindy's eyes go wide with fear.Okay. Not the best way to start.

"W-What are you talking about? I'm not like Spider-Man," she says quickly.

"I saw you," I insist. "The way you took down those thugs—it was almost exactly like how I… uh, how Spider-Man fights."

Her expression shifts from fear to panic. She suddenly steps closer and grabs both of my hands.

"Peter, you can't tell anyone about this," she says, almost pleading.

"I won't," I reassure her. "But I know people who can help you control your powers."

She raises an eyebrow. "Who? Spider-Man?" she jokes.

I don't laugh.

She stops laughing.

Her eyes widen even more. "Oh my God… you know Spider-Man?" she whispers.

Then, before I can stop her—

"OH MY GOD, YOU KNOW SPIDER-MAN?!" she practically shouts.

I slap a hand over her mouth before she can attract any more attention.

"Do NOT say that out loud!" I hiss. "I don't want the whole school to know!"

She stares at me in shock.

"I'm going to remove my hand now. Please… don't scream."

She nods.

I slowly pull my hand away.

"Yes, I know Spider-Man," I confirm. "That's all I'll say for now. Meet me at my house after school, and I'll explain everything."

She hesitates but eventually nods. "Okay… I'll see you after school."

With that, I leave the cafeteria, my mind racing.

I really, really hope I'm not making a mistake.