DISCLAIMER: HEAVY SPOILERS FOR SPIDER-MEN: BEYOND THE WEB
ARUSH KUMAR'S POV:
April 3rd, 2017
After classes ended for the day, I made my way to the nearest grocery store from school. As I walked in, I saw a large variety of stuff- from meat to cup noodles, this place had it all.
Jackpot.
I moved over to the cup noodles section and grabbed one of it. Before I could check the price however, I suddenly lost focus, and my vision went hazy.
What's happening?
...
...
What the hell was that?
I quickly took out my phone and sent out a text in the group chat.
THE BOYS
[Need to talk to you guys ASAP] - [15:12]: ME
[Text me when you guys get home] - [15:12]: ME
With that said and done, I paid for my stuff and walked back home.
...
ZAIN ZAFFAR'S POV:
"What an unpleasant coincidence."
"Huh?" I turned to look at the source and spotted my seatmate. "Oh, it's you."
"You're blocking the way. Can you move?"
"Right, right..." I said, moving away. "There's no need for you to be so confrontational... My name's Zain Zaffar, nice to meet you."
"And you just introduced yourself like that?" she asked me.
"Yeah, is there a problem with that? After all, we sit next to each other, its common courtesy, no?"
The girl didn't respond. I scanned my eyes over to shampoo shelf and thought about what to buy.
"Suzune Horikita."
"Hm?" I involuntarily responded.
"It's my name. Don't get the wrong idea though, we're not friends. I have no need for things like that."
"I see..." If Horikita was choosing isolation voluntarily, then she's probably more content than I am.
I dropped some basic necessities into my basket. Horikita was examining the shampoo she took from the shelf. She quickly put the shampoo and other daily necessities into her basket. I thought she would go for good quality items, but she only went for the cheapest one available.
"Don't girls usually make a fuss over what kind of shampoo they use?"
"Well, that depends on the person, doesn't it?" she gave me a glare that seemed to say, 'Would you stop looking into my basket without permission?'
"So, how was your first year here like?" I asked in an attempt to move the conversation forward.
"You don't seem like the person to care about such things."
"Just trying to make small talk..."
"Right... Don't even ask– my classmates are very tedious, and that includes you."
"Wow, I'm hurt." I said sarcastically.
THE BOYS
RITVIK: [@ALL We need to talk] - [17:02]
AGRIM: [@ARUSH @ZAIN Meet us at the house] - [17:03]
I checked my phone and saw that I had two messages from Agrim and Ritvik. Looks like everyone needs to talk...
...
Location: The Boys' Mansion
"What's up?" I asked as I walked into the living room.
"We need to talk." Arush said, dropping the bag of groceries on the floor.
Suddenly, Agrim and Ritvik also entered the room. I turned to look at them.
"Let's talk." Ritvik said, grabbing a soda from the mini-fridge.
"What's up?"
"Alright, let me just get to the point." Agrim started...
...
THIRD-PERSON POV:
The dimly lit room echoed with the soft hum of fluorescent lights, casting an eerie glow on the faces of Agrim, Ritvik, Zain, and Arush. The air was thick with the tension born from the weight of shared visions.
Agrim's eyes, deep pools of determination and sorrow, bore into Arush's. "Ritvik and I were wondering if you know anything about Ned as the Green Goblin?"
Arush and Zain's neck snapped towards Agrim.
"How do you know about that?" Zain asks, surprised.
"So, you do know about it..." Ritvik said, his arms crossed. "Listen, the two of us had a vision-"
"A vision?" Arush asks. "I had one today... It's the whole reason I wanted to talk to you guys."
"You too?" Agrim asked.
"Wait, you guys had one as well?"
"I did, today." Ritvik replied.
"I had one a few days ago, but I didn't really know how to broach this topic, and brushed it off as a nightmare."
"..." Zain was silent this whole time.
"What can you tell us about Ned as the Goblin?"
"Right... You guys, uh... you might wanna sit down." Zain said.
"You know about it too?" Ritvik asked, and Zain replied with a nod.
"What did you guys see?" Arush finally spoke up.
"I saw myself in an abandoned mansion, facing Harry Osborn. He was the Green Goblin, and he had just killed Liz Allan, and a little boy called Normie. I tried to stop him, but I was too late. And then... he captured me."
Zain and Arush glanced at each other, clearly in the known about what had happened.
"Yeah... That was you. Do you not remember any of it?"
"No..."
"I'll tell you... Sit." Arush patted the seat next to him. "Harry... he, uh– he had completely lost it... He was addicted to the Goblin drug, and he kept on taking it– surrendering to the Goblin's conscience."
"He started targeting the Spider-Men for what they had done to his father." Zain added. "I was his priority target. He was out for blood. He tried to kill you guys and Arush to get to me."
"Liz was actually Harry's wife, and the little boy you saw was actually their son. We attended their wedding together. You almost didn't come, Agrim, but decided to be the bigger man in the end..."
"You're talking shit. I have no knowledge of any of that."
"That's..."
The room seemed to shrink as Agrim and Ritvik processed the words. The grief etched on his face spoke volumes, and the haunting images of Liz and Normie's demise lingered in the air.
Ritvik, his expression a mix of curiosity and trepidation, leaned forward. "And what about mine? The one with Ned as a Goblin- he killed Betty in my vision."
"Ned Leeds was a big time journalist for the Bugle, but after a series of false stories, he went into depression, and a downward spiral." Zain said, sitting down as well. "Ned and Betty actually got married. You attended their wedding."
"What? No, I didn't." Ritvik replied.
"You did. You don't remember that because you guys died. The deal Arush made with Mephisto altered your memories." Zain said, explaining. "Listen, I've been keeping this from you guys, but... When you guys died, I was left all alone back in our world. No parents, no lover, no friends. I was all alone, and... I went to Doctor Strange for help. To see if I could bring you guys back... It was all useless. Nothing worked. Strange... He, uh, he told me that a deal with Mephisto is a binding, and only ends after either of you are dead. So... Once Arush died, the deal became null and void. Strange actually helped me find a loophole in that deal, and that's how you guys are here right now, spider-powers and all."
"What?"
"What the fuck are you talking about?"
"Are you serious?"
"I'm sorry... I didn't know how to tell you."
"What... What about our memories?"
"That was the catch... You wouldn't get back any of your previous memories. Only the ones you had after being resurrected by Mephisto. As for you, I have no idea." Zain told Arush.
"That is... a lot to take in."
"I'm sorry guys..."
"You saved our lives, bro. The fuck are you apologizing for?"
"I didn't save your lives. In a twisted sense, I took them away. I took away your sense of identity."
"There's only one way I'll forgive you... Tell me everything that happened when Betty died."
"Alright..." Zain nodded, wiping away a stray tear. "So, this one evening- you were swinging around the city, trying to find the Hobgoblin, since we were busy with crowd control... And you did find him... In an alleyway near the Bugle, he had cornered Betty and was about to hurt her. You jumped in, tried to save her- but... I don't know if the blast killed her or the debris that followed after. All I know is that when you got her body out of the rubble, she was long dead..."
"That sounds horrifying." Agrim said, turning toward Arush. "What'd you see in your vision?"
"Oh, right... I actually saw Zain and myself fighting the Kingpin at this super weird place with all kinds of things flying around. I even saw Gwen... but- but she was also wearing a Spider-Man costume."
Zain's features tightened, the thought of Gwen still paining him.
"You... you saw me at the Kingpin's collider?" he asked Arush.
"That was the Kingpin's collider?" Arush asked.
"Yeah- look, you remember how you told me to shut down the collider before you died?"
"Yeah-"
"Wait, wait, wait! Arush died as well?"
"Yeah... Kingpin killed him."
"How?"
Zain mimicked the exact motion Kingpin did as he killed him, and made Agrim and Ritvik flinch and look away in disgust.
"Well, after that- a bunch of spider people ended up in our universe. And one of them was an old, washed up version of you." Zain told Arush.
Zain sighed, a weariness in his voice. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you guys this sooner, but I just didn't know how..."
"It's alright, pal. We're in this together." Ritvik said, placing a hand on Zain's shoulder.
"I agree. No matter what happens, the four of us will stand united." Arush said.
"Right... Together."
As the room settled into a contemplative silence, Zain found himself caught in the echoes of his friends' pain. The visions, a tapestry of despair, had bound them closer, like threads entwined in a fate beyond their control.
TO BE CONTINUED...
AUTHOR'S NOTES:
The web of secrets unveils bit by bit. How did they die? How are they back? What will happen next? All of those questions will be answered soon enough...
Thanks for reading, folks. :)
- ZZS101