//------------------------------//
// The Struggle of Forgiveness 
// Story: Spiders and Magic: Ultimate Showdown 
// by Masterob 
//------------------------------//

Within the town of Ponyville, the citizens were being rounded up to the center of town, which gave Twilight as well as Mayor Mare a chance to ensure everyone was okay.

In addition to the heroes helping round everyone up, the other worldly warriors were also assisting, albeit with some suspicion from the ponies.

"Everyone keep moving to the center of town!" Johnny ordered, the hero flying above. "The sooner you do this, the sooner Twilight can verify everyone's safe! Then you can all go home!"

"This has been such a weird day," Daisy said.

"I know, but stuff like this happens a lot, so I'm kind of used to it," Roseluck said.

"At least we had Spider-Mane around to save the day, lucky us," Lily Valley said.

"Oh right..." Daisy said, feeling a bit unsure. 

"What's wrong?" Roseluck asked.

"Well...bad things do tend to happen when he's around," Daisy said, causing both her friends to gasp in disbelief.

"How could you say something like that!?" Roseluck said. 

"Yeah, he risked his life for us, you shouldn't be so ungrateful," Lily Valley said.

"I don't mean to be, but bad things tend to happen because he's around," Daisy said.

"Bad things always happen, if anything Spider-Mane keeps us much safer," Lily Valley said.

"Imagine if he wasn't here," Roseluck said.

"Oh the horror! A world without Spider-Mane to save us is a world where we truly fall to evil's power!" Daisy dramatically emphasized. "The horror of it all!"

Johnny, who was flying by, shook his head at the trio, "Those girls can be so dramatic. But given what happened they've earned a pass."

"This way folks!" Peter called. "Let's hurry through this!"

"This town took quite a bit of damage from all them vines," Applejack said. "We're gonna have to figure out a way to fix everything, and soon."

"We'll get it done," Peter said. "Good thing this town has Superhero Insurance, courtesy of Princess Celestia."

"Yeah, but it comes out of their taxes," Bon Bon said, getting Peter's attention. "With all the damage being done, imagine how high taxes can be."

"Oof, I do not want to deal with Equestria's version of the IRS," Peter said. "But me and the wife have some bits and we'll donate what we can."

"Same, our family's making good bits lately, we’ll fund whatever needs our support," Applejack said.

Sunset led a few ponies toward the center, looking back to see if there were any more, "Alright, I think we're almost done."

"Good," Dante said, walking by. "I'm itching to get back."

"Huh? What for?" Sunset asked.

"Everywhere I go, these ponies keep glaring, like they can't trust me," Dante said. "It's not just me either, it's happening to everyone from my world, along with people from the other worlds you brought over."

True to Dante’s word, ponies were seen glaring at helpers like Sonic, Kratos and even All Might, the latter able to tell and feeling a bit awkward. Even Mark was hesitant to go near any of the ponies.

"Figures, guess they still don't trust you," Sunset lamented. "We'll be done soon. But remember, we need to check in with Peter regarding what Madame Web said."

"Oh right," Dante said. "Alright, I'll let the others know."

Once everyone was gathered, Twilight did one final head count with Mayor Mare, the two coming to a concerning conclusion.

"A few ponies are missing," Twilight said. "Peter! Did you or your friends notice any stragglers?"

"I'm afraid not," Peter said. "Do you know who might be missing?"

"Uh...Royal Pin, Comet Tail, Berry Punch and...Lily Longsocks," Twilight said.

"Alright, everyone split up and find the stragglers!" Peter ordered to the heroes, each of them heading in different directions.

"Twilight, should I help too?" Rumble asked.

"If you want," Twilight said. "Try not to get lost yourself."

"Me and my team have this," Rumble said, turning to his squad. "Let's get to it, Rumblers."

"...What did you call us?" Smolder asked.

"Rumblers, that's our hero team name," Rumble said.

"Screw that, it's a dumb name," Scootaloo said.

"Yeah, I'm not going by that name," Smolder said.

"No one said anything against it," Rumble said.

"Because we didn't know until now!" Scootaloo said.

"Ahem," Twilight said, getting their attention. "Part of being heroes is urgency."

"Uh, right, sorry Twilight," Rumble said. "Look, talk team names later, let's go protect the others."

Rumble was quick to spread out with his team. Unknown to him, Gallus was listening in, the Griffon talking to his own squad. "Alright, that vine thing was a bust, but we can still save face by finding those stragglers. Who's with me?"

"Yeah, let's do it!" Wallflower Blush said.

"And remember, we're trying to find them unharmed...Garble!" Gallus said.

"What? I didn't hurt anyone, now did I?" Garble said.

"Well you could have," Gallus said. "Please focus, your sister likes this town so at least do it for her."

"H-hey, don't get sappy!" Garble said. "Ugh, fine, let’s go boys."

"We go save ponies!" Yona said as they began to split up.

"Excuse me!" Mayor Mare said, getting their attention. "Where do you think you're going?"

"To find the missing ponies," Gallus said. "You know, hero business."

"Hero? But you're not heroes," Mayor Mare said.

"Not yet, but soon, this town will be known as the home...of The Gallants!" Gallus said.

"...That name sucks, we should be called the Garbarians," Garble said.

"But I'm the leader, so we're the Gallants," Gallus said.

"Garbarians!" Garble insisted.

"I don't mind being called the Wallflowers," Wallflower Blush said, her suggestion going unheard by the bickering duo.

"Um..." Mayor Mare tried getting their attention. "Shouldn't you-"

"Not now!" Gallus and Garble said, the two resuming their argument.

Applejack looked in in disbelief, "Good grief."

"Seems like young heroes are too worried about looking or sounding cool," Big Macintosh said. "Rumble nearly fell into this trap but he got himself out of it again."

"That's his specialty, learning from his mistakes," Applejack said. "That's a lesson everyone should learn, no matter where yer from."

"Well Gallus has potential to be better, anyone does," Big Macintosh said. "Just keep an open mind and have a little faith."

"Wise words, big brother," Applejack said. "Let's not stand around, Peter called the heroes to help but we can do our share."

"Ah don't mind lending mah two in-laws a helping hoof, let's gallop," Big Macintosh said as he and his sister went to assist.



 

In their newly established base at Castle Doom, with a Skrull Ship having made its home on the side, the villains had begun to gather. 

The ones formally stationed in Tartarus gazed up in amazement at the sight of the structure that overlooked the vast lands of Latveria.

"Wow...big castle," Sonata said. 

"This is Doomstadt," Ultron said. "This will be your new base of operations."

"Be grateful, I do not allow just anyone into my castle," Doom said. "Be on your best behavior while here, I do not tolerate rambunctious behavior."

"Well, since we're villains, doesn't that mean our best behavior is our worst behavior?" Cozy Glow coyly asked. One glare from Doom startled the girl into hiding behind Sonata.

"Do not believe for a second that being a child will spare you from my wrath," Doom warned.

"Easy Victor," Otto said, trying to calm the situation. "A man such as you should not think about bringing harm onto a child."

"Why does everyone keep calling me a kid? I'm not just some kid!" Cozy Glow said.

"Hey if you want to tick off the scary guy with the green cape, then by all means, you do you," Aria said.

"Enough dawdling, keep moving," Doom ordered. 

"Try not to fall behind," Wesker said, walking ahead.

Sonata turned to the young girl beside her, "Just stay close to me, and try not to talk to anyone."

"Oh fine," Cozy Glow said, reluctantly obeying. "Still, why are we coming here? What about Tartarus?"

"You'd really rather stay in your world's version of hell over a large castle where we can at least have more personal space?" Electro asked.

"Well, when you put it that way..." Cozy Glow said.

"Plus, the only reason Tartarus worked out is because of Discord's illusion spell," Shocker said. 

"You stayed in Tartarus this whole time?" Tron asked, getting their attention.

"Of course, nowhere else we could go," Shocker said. "Even when the higher ups caught onto our plans, they could never check Tartarus because Discord's spell basically turned the place into a maze."

"Really came in handy when a certain someone blew our cover," Aria said, gesturing to Cozy Glow.

"Easy mistake, and it worked out, didn't it?" Cozy Glow said.

"By pure luck, things could have gone really bad for us," Aria said. 

"Yeah, we nearly got caught by Spider-Man," Shocker said.

"How is Spider-Man these days? Still being a goody two shoes superhero?" Tron asked.

"Pretty much," Shocker said. "At least according to Cozy Glow here."

"He was very busy during my time as one of Discord's spies," Cozy Glow said. "His wife opened a big fancy school to teach everyone about Friendship."

"Wow really? Fitting for ponies I guess," Tron said.

"And then all the superheroes started beating each other up," Cozy Glow said.

"...They did what now?" Tron asked.

"Oh yeah, a big fight broke out," Shocker said. "All because Iron Man and Captain America had a few disagreements or something."

"Iron Man tried enforcing too many rules, so Captain America rebelled against him," Cozy Glow said, turning around. "Isn't that right, Marty?"

"Yes, and while the heroes were waging war with one another, I took to taking over the town of Ponyville, hoping to use Princess Twilight's school against her," Martin Li said. "Unfortunately my plans were ruined once Spider-Man returned home."

"Starlight Glimmer certainly didn't make things any easier," Cozy Glow said.

"Starlight Glimmer? Isn't she with Discord?" Tron asked.

"She switched sides after she and Loki tried taking over The Crystal Empire," Adagio said.

"Still, I am curious about the fact that superheroes fought each other," Tron said.

"Hey we can tell you everything you need to know," Shocker said. "Once we head inside the castle at least."

It wasn't long before the gates to the castle opened, Doom leading everyone inside as they passed through the halls. The Tartarus Villains were gazing at all the unique furniture and home designs, including some knight armor statues, chandeliers and fancy curtains.

"Wow, this place is not what I was expecting," Cozy Glow said. "I thought it'd be shiny, like Celestia's castle."

"You think that place is shiny? Have you seen the Crystal Empire's castle?" Shocker asked. "That's even shinier."

"The Castles in Equestria seem to have a bit of an Arabian Flavor to them," Tron said. "Maybe Russian."

"No way, Russian Castles look like giant desserts," Shocker said. "Nothing tasty looking about those Equestrian Castles."

"Still, isn't Equestria this European like place? Wouldn't they have European type castles like this one?" Electro asked.

"Equestria seems to be a mixed world of many cultures," Mysterio said. "Plus I can't imagine those ponies living in a place like this."

"You should see my castle," Wily said, the man appearing nearby. "It has state of the art security."

"I have a few castles myself, some of them have ghosts though," Eggman said.

"...Why the hell do you have haunted castles?" Electro asked.

"Hey, it works for the Koopa Kingdom," Eggman said.

"The who now?" Electro asked.

"H-h-haunted?" Cozy Glow began to freak out. "This place doesn't have any weird stuff like that, does it? Like ghosts or anything?"

Wesker stopped in his tracks, glancing behind him at the now startled girl, "My dear...there are no ghosts around this castle, that I promise you."

"Oh...good," Cozy Glow said.

"But...I can't say the same about zombies," Wesker taunted, freaking Cozy Glow out.

"Z-z-zombies?" Cozy Glow latched onto Sonata.

"And even worse, the demons," Wesker said. "Tell me, do demons frighten you?"

"Uh....they can't be so bad...can they?" Cozy Glow asked.

"Don't be so sure, little one," came Vergil's voice, the villain stepping over from behind while glaring with a flash of red eyes. "You never know when one of my kind can pop up."

"Yes young child," Wesker said, removing his sunglasses, freaking Cozy out with his own red glowing eyes. "Many dangers lay afoot."

"Uh..." Cozy Glow was shaking while holding onto Sonata for dear life.

"Hey, knock it off, you're going to scare her," Sonata said.

"Who? Us? Scare this 'brave' little girl?" Vergil asked as he walked right past them. "Preposterous."

"R-right, it is pre...whatever you said because I'm not scared," Cozy Glow insisted. "I'm just...holding onto Sonata just in case she's scared."

"Aw, you're so sweet," Sonata said, rubbing Cozy Glow's head.

"Pretty sure she's making that up, that kid was ready to piss in her skirt," Shocker said.

"Oh what do you know, Hermie!?" Cozy Glow shouted.

"Enough with the 'Hermie' crap! It's not intimidating!" Shocker said.

"You call yourself 'Shocker', is that supposed to be any better?" Vergil asked.

"Better than Vergil, that sounds like the name of a good little boy," Shocker said, almost regretting it the moment Vergil glared at him.

"Brave words, " Vergil said, keeping his hand on his sword. "Do be careful, they just might be your last."

"Hey easy, it's just a joke after all," Sonata said, hoping to ease the situation.

"I am not one for comedy," Vergil said, releasing his sword. "Save your jokes for your little playdates."

Shocker furrowed his brow at the demonic being, then focused on Sonata and Cozy Glow. "Let's just try to treat carefully here."

"Yeah, we'll be fine," Sonata said.

"Seriously though, are there monsters here?" Cozy Glow asked.

"Kid, you've handled Tartarus just fine," Shocker said.

"And if there are any zombies or ghosts, I'll destroy them, no problem," Sonata insisted.

"You're confident," Tron said. "Still, that girl right there, how old is she?"

"Does it matter?" Cozy Glow asked. "I may be a teenager but I can still do things."

"Not saying you can't, when I was fourteen I was already robbing cities blind," Tron said. "It's just rare to see another young girl like you going about. Even more amazing that you were in Tartarus. Isn't that place for like the worst creatures?"

"Well Celestia wasn't happy that me or Marty there took over town," Cozy Glow said, gesturing to Martin Li. "Princess Twilight also wasn't happy that I ruined her School of Friendship."

"School of Friendship?" Tron asked, this catching the attention of some of the other villains. "What's that?"

"It's a school where everyone learns how to make friends or something," Cozy Glow said. "Honestly, it wasn't that great of a place. A lot of the ponies were straight up jerks, some had their little friendship groups and omitted anyone they didn't like. My group of friends barely even liked me, the only ones who did were my true love Sandbar, and a girl who I thought was my best friend, Ocellus."

"Uh, let me guess...love drama?" Tron asked.

"Exactly! Ocellus took my sweet Sandy away from me!" A saddened Cozy Glow said, that sadness quickly turning into rage. "Which is why I'm going to crush her the next time I see her, and take my Sandy for myself!"

"Makes sense, you see something you like, you take it," Tron said. "But love can be tricky, I've had my share of drama."

"Oh really now? Did you like the boy or did he like you?" Cozy asked.

"It's hard to say, I think he liked me, he acted all sweet and charming, probably just to throw me off my game," Tron said. "I still remember the first time I really got to speak to him, he saved me from a viscous dog."

"A dog? Was it going to bite you?" Sonata asked.

"Probably, dogs are scary and unpredictable!" Tron said.

"Tron Bonne is the type of person who wets her pants at the sight of a chihuahua," Vergil commented.

"Hey! They're aggressive dogs despite their size!" Tron shouted.

"She's not wrong, the littlest animals often show the biggest bravado," Wesker said. 

"See, Wesker's on my side!" Tron said.

"Still, being afraid of a dog is very shameful, last thing I need during a mission is you hiding in your Gustaff because you don't want to come out and face such a relatively harmless creature," Wesker said.

"...They're not that harmless," Tron said.

"Honestly, throw a treat and even the Mighty Cerberus will react all playfully," Shocker said.

"Sounds like the Cerberus of your world is a total joke," Vergil said. "Of course the one in mine lost a fight to my brother."

"Really don't want to think about there being multiple versions of Cerberus," Tron lamented. "Still, to my point from earlier. The Mega Man I know was quite the charmer, got me all frazzled, but that boy could not commit. By the time he did commit, instead of coming to me, like a smart person would, he picked someone else."

"Big oof," Sonata said, earning an eyebrow raise from Shocker.

"Big oof? What kind of phrase is that?" Shocker asked.

"A phrase begetting drama," Tron said.

"So...who was the girl? Do you know her?" Cozy Glow asked.

"Her name's Roll, and I was almost certain that she was his sister, unless he just wanted to keep it in the family," Tron said.

Cozy grimaced at the thought, "Ew, that's gross!"

"They weren't related by blood," Wesker said. "Roll's grandfather took in that Mega Man but that's it."

"Still, they were practically siblings!" Tron said. "I lost the love of my life to a girl that's basically his sister!"

"Stop whining," Vergil said. "What's done is done, either get over it or take revenge."

"I'm planning on both!" Tron shouted. "No one crosses Tron Bonne and the Bonne family!"

Vergil turned his attention to Wesker, speaking directly to him, "Please remind me why she's on our side? We have more than enough scientists, just cut her loose, or end her life."

"For the last time Vergil, Tron still has some use to her, at least until this invasion starts," Wesker said. "Even a chess team needs pawns."

"Well some pawns are more expendable than others," Vergil said.

It wasn't long before they arrived at a large dining room, Doom getting everyone's attention once he was near the head on the table. "Take your seats."

"Is there enough room?" Shocker asked.

"Cozy Glow can sit with me," Sonata said.

"What? On your lap? She's not a little girl," Shocker said.

Doom summoned some robots of his, "Fetch me some chairs, and extend the table space if you have to."

The robots did as commanded, getting chairs for each of the villains present, resulting in a bit of a tight squeeze but manageable for everyone to sit together.

"So...is there food coming? I'm kind of hungry," Sonata said.

"Of course, you are guests here after all," Doom said, snapping his fingers. "Robots, bring us a feast." The robots did as commanded, heading into the kitchen to prepare some food for the villains present. "Give it some time, you will have your feast soon."

"Aw thanks, you're a lot friendlier than you look," Sonata said. "Funny since you nearly killed us before."

"Don't jinx your luck," Shocker said.

Loki took it upon himself to sit on the other side of the table, directly parallel from Doom's position. "This is a nice hall you have, Victor. Doomstadt is quite a fascinating place, almost as regal as the halls of Asgard."

"Asgard...didn't Discord say it got destroyed?" Sonata asked.

"Yes, Ragnarök proved too much, even for me and my team," Loki said. "Despite my efforts, Sutur destroyed my rightful place of rule. I will have my revenge for that soon."

"At least most of them are still alive in Equestria, Thor built a New Asgard there," Cozy Glow said. "You can take that over instead."

"That's good to know," Loki said. "I will finally crush my brother, and perhaps Sunset Shimmer."

"Hm? What do you want with her?" Adagio asked.

"She was present at Asgard, her constant meddling of the multiverse made things much more complicated than they needed to be," Loki said. "Summoning Gods, Superheroes and Wizards, anything she could to get the upper hand."

"Wow, that girl really loves her multiverse travels," Adagio said.

"You speak so familiar regarding her, what is your connection?" Loki asked.

"Years ago, me and my girls tried stealing magic from a High School in a human equivalent of Equestria," Sunset said. "So she and the Elements of that Universe thwarted our plans, and messed up our voices in the process. Me and my girls can't sing as well now."

"You're worried about singing?" Vergil asked. "This isn't a talent competition."

"We're sirens, genius," Adagio snapped. "Me and my girls use our songs to hypnotize and control others, and steal their negative energy. Of course we can still feast on negativity but the singing is done."

"So, you're sirens?" Tempest asked. "I've heard stories of you, but I didn't expect you to be real."

"We were banished centuries ago by Starswirl the Bearded," Adagio said. "We're the last of our kind too, we don't know if there's any others, but I wouldn't be surprised if they got wiped out."

"It's possible," Chrysalis said. "Celestia acts righteous but she would absolutely do whatever she needed to do to ensure peace."

"If I may ask, who exactly are you?" Vergil asked.

"Chrysalis, Queen of the Changelings," the woman said. "At least I was before Twilight Sparkle and her do-gooder husband ruined everything for me."

"Peter ruined it?" Wesker asked.

"Yes, Peter Parker tried giving me and my Changelings a peace offering," Chrysalis began. "But it was a trap, we were ambushed by an unknown party in an attempt to have me killed. Of course those in power feign innocence. Sad to say that their plan worked to an extent, many of my Changelings joined their side, likely out of fear."

"So you lost a good chunk of your army?" Tempest asked.

"I still have some followers, I lost contact with them when we got chased into that wasteland of a realm," Chrysalis said. "Pharnyx is watching over them, so I'm not too worried."

"Oh right, some of our allies are still in Tartarus," Shocker said. "We should check on them soon."

"We have some allies as well that are not present, including a nice surprise," Wesker said. "When Vergil, Tron, Juri and I went to New York City in Marvel Earth, we uncovered a great shadowy secret that could prove to be useful to us and our invasion."

"Well that's cryptic," Adagio said. "But we'll go with it for now."

"Sounds like you were quite busy after your failed invasion years back," Goblin said, getting Wesker's attention. "But at least you've done more than lick your wounds."

"Of course, I always make good use of my time," Wesker said. "How about you? How have you prepared for this invasion?"

"Tirek should have everything," Goblin said.

"We worked it out with Discord before cutting ties with him," Tirek said. "We're going to attack key parts of Equestria, destroying the foundation of the country before taking Canterlot."

"Key parts?" Wesker asked. 

"Yes, like The Crystal Empire, and Ponyville," Tirek said. "Two of the strongest cities there."

"Probably shouldn't stop at Equestrian Cities," Cozy Glow said. "Keep in mind they have allies outside of Equestria. You know, like Mount Aris and Yakyakistan for example."

"Yes, I have not forgotten those," Tirek said. "With our extra numbers, we can afford to hit those locations, and many more."

"If Asgard is there, that's one more thing to concern yourself with," Loki said. "But, myself and my team will deal with them."

"So we just gotta plan on who attacks where," Adagio said.

"One thing to keep in mind is what hero normally patrols what city," Martin Li said. "A year ago, Tony Stark created something known as The Earth/Equestria Alliance Accords to locate heroes in certain parts of Equestria and beyond. Granted that ran into some troubles, after resolving it they continued to locate heroes but were a bit more flexible with their rules."

"Flexible?" Vergil asked. "What are these accords exactly? Why did they exist?"

"Due to several invasions, including an attack our friend Loki here led," Martin Li said, gesturing to the God. "Tony Stark created The Accords, likely to appease to Celestia."

"Oh yeah, apparently if the hero disobeyed the rules, that hero gets banished," Cozy Glow said.

"Stark even meant to establish a prison in Tartarus for those who stepped out of line," Martin Li said.

"Iron Man did that?" Loki asked in surprise. "Well how about that, guess he's got more cruelty in him than I expected."

"The meanest was a lady who called herself 'Captain Marvel'," Cozy Glow said. "She wanted total control and was really bossy about it."

“And this is what led to that conflict you mentioned earlier, is that right?” Tron asked.

"Yes, the Accords created so much tension, Captain America broke away and rounded up some heroes to do battle with Iron Man," Martin Li said. "A civil war broke out between both sides, that is when Cozy Glow and myself launched our invasion of Ponyville."

"I always knew Tony Stark was a megalomaniac," Green Goblin said. "And everyone said I was the corrupt businessman."

"This whole thing did cause Tony Stark to retire, with Iron Man being no more," Martin Li said. 

"That's baloney, he was clearly fighting at the Canterlot Arena," Adagio said. "Maybe not in a full suit but he still fought against The Changelings."

"Well he's not active at least," Martin Li said. "He stepped down, along with the Wonderbolts Captain, Spitfire."

"Oh yeah, that's when Fleetfoot took over, at least according to Discord," Cozy Glow said. "Don't really know her but good to have this information."

"Did any of those heroes kill each other?" Tron asked.

"No, they actually agreed to stop fighting before it got bad," Martin Li said. "What's even more surprising is that a few former villains took part in the conflict. Taskmaster, The Lizard and Sandman."

"That's a surprise," Mysterio said. "Well maybe not Sandman, he's teamed with The Avengers before."

"Didn't we see Taskmaster at the Marvel vs Capcom Tournament?" Electro asked. "I think he's on their side now."

"Must have paid him more money," Martin Li said. 

"What about those other two guys?" Aria asked.

"Hard to say," Mysterio said.

"Regardless, Taskmaster is now our enemy," Doctor Doom said. "If Sandman and Lizard choose to fight alongside Spider-Man and his friends, he is our enemy too."

"Martin Li," Venom said, getting his attention. "If we may ask, what did Spider-Man do during these Accords? Was he supportive?"

"He was since he admires Iron Man," Martin Li said. "I did hear rumors that he switched sides."

"Peter has been a little outspoken about The Accords, and several things in Equestria," Cozy Glow said. "Even Princess Celestia."

"Was he now?" Wesker asked.

"I don't even think he liked The School of Friendship, he found it pointless," Cozy Glow said. "He worried that Equestria was too focused on Friendship and that ponies used it selfishly or something. Kind of like what I did."

"Interesting..." Venom said. 

"I will admit, I agree with Spider-Man," Tempest said. "Friendship is an illusion, Equestria is not as pure as everyone thinks it is. It's a disease-ridden land that spreads false happiness, but the moment you step out of line, or just can't keep up, you get left behind."

"Sounds like you've had it rough," Electro said.

Tempest placed her hand over her scar, "You have no idea. When I got crippled as a child by that Ursa Minor, my so-called friends wasted no time in ditching me. From then, I realized it was better to be alone."

"Wow, Equestria just is not nice to kids," Cozy Glow said. "I mean, Celestia threw me in Tartarus so I'm not surprised. Peter, despite saying he cared, did pretty much nothing to get me out."

"Yeah, he even claims to have 'looked into it'," Sonata said. "He had a year to figure this out."

"Your first mistake was relying on him to actually care," Venom said. "Spider-Man is much more selfish than he lets on."

"All superheroes are selfish," Shocker said. "Those ponies are too."

"That's why we must change the world, to improve it," Ultron said.

"We'll change all the worlds, especially mine," Eggman said. "Make certain pests realize they're getting in the way of progress!"

"We'll carry out true justice," Goku Black said. "Rid the many worlds of their sinful impurities, and replace it with beauty and divinity."

"Hey, what's your story?" Tempest asked, getting Black's attention. "Why do you look like that Saiyan, Goku?"

"It's a choice I made," Black said, then gestured to Zamasu. "This is my counterpart from my timeline's future. This is what I originally looked like."

"We Kais have time rings," Zamasu said, gesturing to it. "They can only travel to the future and back, for the most part at least."

"My mentor was a fool who believed mortals had worth, so I had to kill him and take the ring to carry out my plans," Black said. "I had to rid the multiverse of the mortals who do nothing but lay waste to their homes, their planets. I even chose the body of a mortal who thought he could outclass the gods, the body of Son Goku!"

"With this, we remove the impurities from the world and replace it with harmony," Zamasu said. "Creating the civilization we know the worlds can be."

"Exactly my plan, personally I would go with robots," Ultron said.

"Mostly, having some humans to worship you feels more rewarding," Eggman said.

"I would take some of those humans and evolve them into something better," Wesker said. "Create a truly strong society."

"I say get rid of humans and let the demons run the world," Vergil said.

"Seems we all have different interpretations of the same idea, perhaps it would be wise to discuss a reasonable compromise," Black said.

"Do what you must, so long as you don't hurt any genuinely innocent people," Venom said. "Not every human is bad, they just have bad protectors."

"We will my friend, we want justice and harmony just like you do," Black insisted.

Venom couldn't help but feel some uncertainty in his voice, "Right..."

"At the very least, spare the children, teach them better," Doctor Octopus said. "Children are our future, something Princess Celestia does not seem to understand."

"I second that," Juri said. "I'd rather not have to hurt a kid."

"Such soft hearts," Vergil commented.

"I got something to say," Prowler said, getting everyone's attention. "We're all talking about Equestria, but what about all these other worlds? One of those ponies knows how to open portals and shit, right? What's to stop her or any other pony from doing that?"

"That is going to be troubling," Wesker said. 

"It might be wise to start our plans by weakening those worlds," Black said. "I will assist how I can in that."

"You do have impressive power," Adagio said. "You can go and tear up Marvel Earth."

"Not alone," Dormammu said, getting everyone's attention. "Some of these worlds may be too powerful, even for you. Plus you will need assistance navigating, unless you want to end up someplace like my realm."

"I can help with my world," Bison said. 

"Same with mine," Kazuya said. "Navigation is tricky but doable."

"I will assist with mine," Sephiroth said. "Perhaps you can even help me with a goal of mine too."

"What about your world?" Aria asked. "Anything to worry about?"

"I am not concerned about Trunks or that X-Force group he's with," Black said.

"X-Force?" Tron asked.

"A group from Marvel Earth arrived in that future, led by a man who calls himself Cable," Black said. "He and his allies tried to destroy me, but they proved useless."

"So, you ran into some of the X-Men's friends, interesting development," Bison said.

"Speaking of the X-Men, wasn't there a lady who was with you?" Cozy Glow asked. "She's a shapeshifter I think."

"If you mean Mystique, she's dead," Loki said. "She perished in Ragnarök along with The Storm King and my sons."

"Mystique is dead?" Bison asked. "Well this is a surprise."

"Apparently, Sabretooth and Magneto are also dead," Shocker said. "Basically anyone who was a serious contender for the X-Men is done."

"Not all of them," Doom said. "Apocalypse and Mister Sinister still draw breath."

"Oh yeah, nearly forgot about those two," Shocker said.

"I am surprised to hear of Magneto's defeat however," Doom said.

"He was killed by his daughter, The Scarlet Witch," Electro said. "According to Discord, she's still in Equestria."

"That may be troubling ,but I am not too concerned," Doom said. 

"Didn't she also kill that Baron Mordo guy?" Aria asked. "Isn't he strong like Doctor Strange?"

"Strange is a prodigy, but destroying Baron Mordo is quite the feat," Dormammu said. "If Scarlet Witch is in Equestria, extra caution must be taken."

"I can handle her if need be," Black said.

"Just be careful, power can only get you so far, you need to think strategically," Martin Li said.

"I am quite capable of that, my friend," Black said. 

"You have handled yourself well in that future," Vomi said, getting Black's attention. "Trunks is no easy feat."

"You speak about him with familiarity," Black said.

"I never met him, but I am familiar with his father, Vegeta," Vomi explained. "I'm a scientist from The Red Ribbon Army, where my late husband worked to create world destroying Androids, including his most prized possession, Cell."

"Androids?" Black asked. "Funny, Trunks had to deal with a pair of them if I'm correct."

"Technically, Lapis and Lazuli were Cyborgs, models Seventeen and Eighteen," Vomi said. "It's easy to get the two terms mixed up, and it was much easier to just say 'Androids', or 'Artificial Humans'."

"Those two left a mark in Trunks's future, and your husband created them?" Black asked.

"He did, he kidnapped some twins and forced them into his research, turning then into monsters," Vomi said.

"Well that's just demented," Juri commented.

"I concur with that statement," Doctor Octopus said.

"Well it can't be undone, not even by Shenron," Vomi said. "It's no wonder they killed him in the end. Seems like the ones in your timeline have fulfilled their own purpose."

"They have indeed, Trunks had already long defeated them by the time I showed up," Black said. "Saved me a bit of trouble, not that they would have been hard to kill."

"What of the ones in your timeline? Are they alive? Would they join us?" Green Goblin asked.

"They're alive, but they're not evil, they're civilians now," Vomi said. "Don't expect them to side with us."

"Worth asking," Goblin said. "At least we still have more than enough power on our side."

"No one can stop us if we use our strength wisely," Doom said. "Cooperation is key."

"You are correct Doom," Super Skrull said, getting attention on him. "It's not just the numbers, it's how you use them. Between my army of Skrulls, your army of Doombots, and whatever other surprises our guests have, I say we're in good hands."

"We do have quite the army already, so I say that we're good," Adagio said. "Unless you think we could use more. You mentioned two of the X-Men's enemies, think they'd work for us?"

"I can ask but I make no promises," Doom said.

"I don't think we need to go that big, Peter always says Quality over Quantity," Cozy Glow said.

"What does he know? Send in everyone we can!" Adagio gestured to Dormammu. "Like, you fire-head guy, know anyone?"

"My name is Dormammu," the Dark Lord corrected. "And I do know of Shuma Gorath of the Chaos Dimension, I do not recommend him however."

"Yeah, we don't need more Chaos guys," Shocker said. "Spider-Man's got some other enemies, we can find Hydro Man or The Beetle."

"We still need to find Urien," Juri said. "But Sigma's coming, isn't he?"

"I can contact Sigma, he will be there," Ultron said.

"What about other worlds?" Cozy Glow asked. "Anyone have any ideas?"

"I know Discord wanted to go to the Justice League's world, he mentioned guys like Lex Luthor and The Joker," Shocker said.

"The Joker is out of the question, he can't be trusted," Doctor Octopus said. "Luthor is a maybe."

"Well we thought Dormammu couldn't be trusted, and he's a team player," Shocker said. "We even have Annihilus."

"Loki, you mentioned that Sunset Shimmer brought in a lot of allies," Adagio said. "Do you know where they're from?"

"I do not," Loki said. "I do remember that Superman was there. I also remember a boy with a wand, a man with a laser sword, a large muscular blonde hero, a scrawny hero in yellow, and an elf with bow and arrows."

"I think I saw...human sized turtles too," Tempest said.

"Any chance you saw a plumber or a pointy eared swordsman?" Eggman asked.

"Or a woman in orange armor?" Wily asked.

"Possibly," Tempest said.

"Still, laser sword? Did you see a Jedi or something?" Venom asked.

"Come to think of it, I think I saw this person in Ponyville," Martin Li said. "I do not know if he was a Jedi, I honestly thought they weren't real."

"In the multiverse, what seems fictional can be reality," Wesker said.

"That certainly was the case with Superman," Doom said, then thought to himself. "...Wonder if the Starship Enterprise exists somewhere out there?"

"Many thought I too was merely mythology," Loki said. "Seems like the multiverse has plenty of surprises."

"Okay but let’s say Jedi really do exist," Electro said. "Now I'm no geek but aren't they like really strong?"

"Whatever a 'Jedi' is, with our power, I believe we can take one in a fight, so I do not understand your concerns," Black said. 

"Seems as if we have much more to educate ourselves on," Doom said. "This Sunset Shimmer woman seems to have opened many opportunities for us."

"Sir...food is ready," a robot said, as robots brought in dishes of different salads, fruits, steak, mashed potatoes and chicken along with drinks such as water and fine wine.

"Yes! Chow time!" Sonata said.

"Let us feast, we will discuss more later," Doom said. 





Back in Ponyville, the heroes had begun to return with the stragglers, Johnny and Rainbow Dash leading Comet Tail back into town.

"Thanks for finding me," Comet Tail said.

"You got it bro, but next time, don't hide in a barrel, that's not as safe as it looks," Johnny said.

"Coming through!" Deadpool said, escorting Royal Pin. "Found this guy in Town Hall, hiding behind some balloons! Until they popped."

"It happens all the time too," Royal Pin said.

"Gotta watch that horn," Johnny said.

The two stallions were brought to town, Twilight calling out for more, "Anyone else!?"

"I see Peter," Starlight said, gesturing to the distance, Peter walking over with a shy looking Lily Longsocks.

"I know what happened was scary, and it's easy to panic, but you can't just run off on your own, it's not safe," Peter said.

"I'm sorry," Lily lamented.

"It's fine, I'm just glad you're safe," Peter said, rubbing her head.

"Thanks to you," Lily said, nuzzling against Peter. "You're my hero."

"It's nothing, really," A now flustered Peter said.

"Aw, how sweet," Gwen said, trotting over. "Found this girl okay?"

"Yeah, she's fine," Peter said. "I found her close to Sweet Apple Acres. Guess Applejack must have just missed her."

"Well welcome back to town, kid," Gwen said. "Now I think there's one more."

"Berry, get a grip," came Rumble's voice as he escorted the drunk mare. "Geez, where'd you get these drinks?"

"I always keep some extra Apple Cider stored away for emergencies like this one," Berry said.

"But...Applejack doesn't put alcohol in her cider," Rumble said. "That's just a big misunderstanding."

"It's there, you just gotta find it..." Berry said, stumbling a bit and falling over.

"For the love of..." Rumble lamented.

"Oh good, that's the last of the missing ponies," Twilight said, using her magic to levitate Berry Punch onto a bench. "Still, Applejack really doesn't put alcohol in her cider, I'm not sure what this mare means."

"Where is my sister-in-law?" Rumble asked.

"I'll get her attention," Starlight said, firing a magic beam into the sky, acting as a type of flare. "That should get everyone else's attention too."

"Fast too, here they come," Trixie said, gesturing to the returning heroes.

"These heroes are amazingly alert," Doc said. "That type of discipline is admirable."

"Doc, did your Patroller Robots get damaged?" Lyra asked.

"My patroller robots? A few that were here might have but it isn't anything I can't fix," Doc said. "With any luck, one of them may have picked up on what caused this."

"Is this everyone, Twilight?" Johnny asked.

"Yes, everypony in town is accounted for," Twilight said. "Thanks for your help."

"You know it's no trouble for a guy like me," Johnny insisted, placing his foreleg around Rainbow Dash. "Especially when I got the best wife by my side."

"Heh, you're too nice Johnny," Rainbow Dash said.

Peter took to the stage, "How is everypony doing? No one's hurt, right?"

"Uh...a few of us are," Octavia said, gesturing to her scraped hoof. "But it's nothing that a little medical treatment can't fix."

"Yeah, we're all still alive at least," Golden Harvest said.

"Well you're all safe and sound, that's all that matters," Peter said.

"Yes, we're clearly alive, now you owe us an explanation," Spoiled Rich said, to the dismay of her daughter. "What were those...THINGS!?"

"Twilight might be able to explain it better," Peter said, gesturing to his wife. "Take it away, hon."

"According to Celestia, these vines are called Plunderseeds, part of Discord's magic," Twilight explained.

"Discord!?" Lyra asked.

"My word, so he's enacting his plan," Octavia worried.

"I can't deal with Discord again!" Cherry Berry said.

"Yeah, last time he made Ponyville all weird," Caramel said.

"Discord has indeed made a move, just like he promised back at the Tournament," Twilight said. "But that will not mean the end of Equestria. My husband and I will fight alongside our friends to keep you safe."

"I can't promise it will be an easy fight, and it may get dangerous in the near future, but this is why I implore all of you to take extreme caution," Peter said. "My friends and I may have to increase security until Discord's found, assuming that's okay with all of you."

"Increase how?" Diamond Tiara asked.

"Nothing too extreme, I don't want to repeat whatever screw ups The Accords originally had," Peter said. "But I can't promise total freedom either. We'll compromise."

"Do what you must, in an emergency it is very understandable that you have to take extra measures," Octavia said. "We will trust you and your friends to keep us safe."

"We who?" Spoiled Rich asked. "This is happening because of Spider-Mane and his friends."

"I would hardly blame Peter for the Plunderseeds," Octavia said ."This is not the first time Discord has caused trouble for Equestria, if anything we're better off because Peter is here to save us."

"Seriously mom, you're as annoying as Thunderlane was a few years ago," Diamond Tiara said.

"Hey!" Thunderlane shouted in annoyance.

"Let's not point fingers," Peter said. "Figuratively speaking of course."

"We just need you all to cooperate, that's all," Johnny said. "You make it easy for us to save you, we make sure life goes back to normal for all of you."

"Normal!?" Came Gallus's voice as he stepped in with Yona by his side. "Things have been anything BUT normal since you so-called heroes showed up!"

"Not this shit again," Johnny lamented. "Kid, don't you have anything better to do than whine?"

"Easy Johnny, be the bigger man," Peter urged, then focused on Gallus. "If you don't feel safe in Ponyville, you're not obligated to be here. You should be where you do feel safe until we figure this out."

"Nowhere is safe, all of Equestria is doomed," Gallus said. 

"You heroes have been slacking lately," Wallflower said. "How did none of you even notice Discord was amounting an army? You let so many things happen right under your noses!"

"...Who are you?" Johnny asked.

'WALLFLOWER BLUSH!" the mare shouted. "I voiced my opinion to you the other day!"

"Oh...right..." Johnny turned to Peter. "I really don't remember her."

Peter did a quick shrug before addressing Wallflower, "We never intended for harm to come to Ponyville."

"Didn't stop it from happening," Wallflower said. 

"Uh...what's with this chick?" Gwen asked.

"Wallflower Blush, she's had some unfortunate encounters with Peter over the last few days," Starlight explained.

"Excuse me," Twilight said. "Gallus, Wallflower, everypony. I know you're all worried but please go easy on Peter."

"Easy? If we don't crack down on him, he's going to allow harm to fall onto everypony in Equestria," Gallus said. "Believe me that I'm voicing my opinions not just out of concern for everyone else, but for you too Princess. You're great at your role and it would suck if your legacy got tarnished over these so-called heroes."

"Um, I appreciate that Gallus, and I'm happy that you have such respect for my status" Twilight said. "But I do have to side with my husband."

"I know you do, but that's why I have to say something, to keep him on his hooves and make your job easier," Gallus said.

"Who decided you were in charge of that?" Lyra asked.

"Someone has to, no one else was willing to speak out," Gallus said. "Except Thunderlane, but he made poor choices and gave into the hive mind. I'm not so easily swayed."

Thunderlane glanced at Lightning Dust while gesturing to Gallus, "He's so full of himself."

"And this guy was a student at the School of Friendship," Lightning Dust said. "No wonder Peter thought it was a waste of time."

"And now he's talking trash to Peter, that's just not okay," Thunderlane said.

"You know I can hear you two," Gallus said, glancing at the couple.

"Wow, didn't think you could hear anything other than the sound of your own voice," Thunderlane said. "It really is like looking into the past. I can't believe I was like you once, being this ungrateful to a hero like Peter who risks his life and asks for nothing in return."

"I'm so tired of that sob story we get all the time about the heroes 'trying' and whatnot," Gallus said. "If they did their jobs better, there wouldn't need to be any worry about trying."

"Think he's right?" Cherry Berry asked.

"Hard to say," Caramel said.

"No way, he's just being ignorant," Golden Harvest said.

"But he's not totally off," Shoeshine said.

Many of the ponies in the crowd were muttering to themselves, trying to decide if Gallus was correct or if he was out of line.

"Being a hero isn't easy," Thunderlane said. "I mean you wanted to be a hero, didn't you? Why weren't you saving anyone from these vines?"

"I did! Well, I tried to at least, but I still was brave enough to take on the danger," Gallus said. "I even went to look for survivors."

"After you spent like five minutes deciding a team name," Thunderlane said.

"So did your brother!" Gallus said.

"Gallus..." Yona tried to speak but felt unconfident to do so.

"Rumble got his act together immediately, because he knows what being a hero is about," Thunderlane said. "To you, being a hero is just to satisfy your own inflated ego."

"Don't you talk to me about egos!" Gallus shouted. "I have half a mind to-"

"That's enough!" Peter interrupted, getting their attention. "Look, Gallus. I'm sorry, alright? I'm sorry I'm not better than I am, and I'm sorry that I've let these bad things happen. Alright? Are you satisfied?"

"It's a start..." Gallus said.

"Why is Peter apologizing? He didn't do anything wrong!" Octavia said.

"This is bogus, he just saved everyone and they wanna act like this?" Vinyl pointed out.

"Such cruelty from this Griffon," Doc said.

Wallflower could feel tension surrounding her, seeing that many in the crowd were growing impatiently furious with Gallus.

Team Capcom and their allies however leaned on the furious side, not too thrilled at the lack of respect aimed at Peter.

"Would it be bad if we just, you know, punched that guy really hard?" Dante asked. "Just to knock some sense into him?"

"You know it would be bad," Chris said. "Yes he's being irritating but we're not thugs, we can't just beat someone up."

"Well what if we challenged him to a fight?" Dante asked.

"Does he look man enough to accept that challenge?" Chris asked. "Just endure, fighting him will just make Peter look bad."

Sunset was glancing at Celestia, feeling annoyed that so far, the leader of this country hadn't said anything, "Of course you're just standing around. Let everyone else do the work for you while you have the nerve to act so surprised by how bad things get later."

Gwen grumbled in annoyance, the girl finally having enough. "Time for me to step up." Gwen leapt onto the stage, quick to get everyone's attention. "Yo! Pony Town!"

"It's 'Ponyville'," Peter quietly corrected.

"Pony Town, Ponyville, whatever you call yourselves, listen up," Gwen said. "Heroes aren't perfect, sometimes we make mistakes. After all, outside of our powers, we're just as ordinary as you. We have our own problems, our own worries, our own lives. You can't just blame Peter here for what happened, it's not his fault."

"He knew about Discord! That's the issue!" Gallus said.

"And what was he supposed to do to prevent this from happening?" Gwen asked. "Is he supposed to predict the future? Is he supposed to snap his currently non-existent fingers to make the problem go away? Because from what I'm seeing, you're just using Peter as a scapegoat for your problems. Peter is not responsible for your safety, none of these heroes are. This isn't a job, it's a bunch of good people trying to help others. They could be selfish and leave you to yourselves, but they're not. So stop acting like they owe you anything, because they don't."

"Then why are they here?" Gallus asked, Yona glancing at him in confusion. "Why aren't they back in their world and leaving their problems there?"

“This is why every creature hates Griffons,” Gabby lamented.

"Tell me, are you from around here?" Gwen asked. "Do you live in this town?"

"No, but I have friends here," Gallus said. "Plus I live in this world and-"

"Just stop, you're digging yourself into a hole," Gwen said. "Honestly, I barely even know you, and I can tell you're full of shit just by how entitled you're acting."

"Entitled?" Gallus asked. "Hey I grew up without a good home and-"

"Spare me your sob story, it doesn't justify you acting like an asshole," Gwen said, leaving Gallus flabbergasted. "Same with your friends there."

"Hey!" Wallflower shouted.

"Like, do you believe that Equestria would be better without the heroes around?" Gwen asked. "Is that what you're saying?"

"...Yes," Gallus admitted. "I do! I know a lot of ponies feel the same way about it!"

"Wow..." Bobby said. "All the times we saved his ass and he says that?"

"Maybe we should leave then, see how long these ponies last without us the moment Discord comes back," Janet said.

"Let's not say things like that," Remy said. "It's not fair to the ponies who don't have any ill will towards anyone."

"Still, that guy just pisses me off," Bobby said. 

"Not alone there buddy," Wade said.

"So, you want Peter to leave?" Gwen asked.

"Yes!" Gallus said, this getting Yona uncomfortable.

"Dude, you have so many issues, I suggest getting a therapist or something because this is not okay," Gwen said. "Peter has no reason to leave, if you hate it here, then you leave. Don't come into Peter's town and start bossing him around."

"How long before this affects where I'm from?" Gallus asked.

Gwen furrowed her brow, "Wow, you have a response for everything, don't you? Sorry to break it to you, but bad things happen. What isn't smart is pushing away those who fight back against the bad things, and considering you did such a poor job protecting anyone today, you're in no room to lecture others how to do their job. Everyone here owes their lives to the heroes and-Shut up! I'm not done talking!" Gwen warned just as Gallus was about to interrupt. "You can be worried, because this was a troubling situation, but you're directing your anger and frustration at the wrong person! Take all that frustration and focus more on finding a solution than blaming others for their problems! And no, your friends here aren't much of a solution if you still feel that insecure to blame the problem on everyone except yourself! For everyone's sake here, you need to grow up!"

"You go girl," Janet praised.

"She's already good in my book," Remy said.

“She’s so cool,” Gabby said.

Gallus grumbled in annoyance, he did not want to back down just yet, "You want to know something about your friend Peter?"

"Not really but you're probably gonna tell me anyway," Gwen said. "Get it over with."

"Did you know he's a terrible father?" Gallus asked, gesturing to Mayday, the girl facing the ground to avoid the gazes while Franklin held her close. "His daughter is no angel, he made sure of that."

"Is he serious?" Wade commented.

"Wow, you will cross any line, won't you?" Gwen asked.

"I mean it, his daughter said some terrible things about me, my friends and even her own mother," Gallus said, this beginning to irritate Peter and embarrass Twilight. "Meanwhile her daddy does nothing but console her."

"So a little girl hurt your feelings? Is that what you're trying to say?" Gwen asked. "You're such a pussy."

"Oh damn!" Dante said, laughing to himself. 

"You're gonna make excuses for her too?" Gallus asked.

"I don't know what she did but she's like, nine years old, she's gonna do stupid things," Gwen turned to the girl. "No offence kiddo."

Mayday just waved it off, not wanting to speak up.

"She's really shy, especially in big crowds," Peter explained.

"Last year, a bunch of ponies caused an anxiety attack for her," Johnny said.

"Oh wow, that's just messed up," Gwen turned to Gallus. "And you still want to say these terrible things?" Gwen leapt off the stage, glaring at the Griffon. "I should beat the shit out of you, right now!"

Before things could escalate, Peter leapt down as well, "Gwen, don't. That's not gonna solve anything."

"You're way too nice Peter, after everything this guy said too," Gwen said.

"I admit, he ticks me off, but I don't wish harm on him," Peter said. "He's still a citizen of this world and I do consider it my duty to keep them all safe if I can."

This took Gwen by surprise, while she understood this was a different Peter, seeing him so confident and letting nothing bother him was still surreal to her. This Peter was very mature, but at the same time, she could see the worry and self-doubt in his eyes. A mixed feeling of pride in his maturity and the fear of how much he can endure clashed in her mind.

Mayday huffed in annoyance, "I wish daddy would let that jerk get beat up."

"I don't blame you but like he said, that won't solve the issue," Franklin said. "Being nice is the best way to go about it. Peter isn't a bad guy and anyone with common sense knows it."

"But Uncle Wade says common sense is rare," Mayday said.

"He's probably just joking," Franklin said. "Look, maybe try to be like your dad is and just be nice, even if he's being mean. Show that he's wrong about you."

"I don't want to," Mayday said.

"You should, at least do it for your family," Franklin said.

"...Ugh, don't make this tough for me," Mayday said.

"I'm only doing this because I care about you and I want ponies to know you're nicer than they think you are," Franklin said.

Mayday's face started turning red, "And now I'm blushing. Why do you have to be so cute, Frankie?"

"Uh..." It was now Franklin's turn to blush. "Not like I'm trying to be."

Peter focused his attention on Gallus, "Listen, I believe in free speech. You are well within your right to criticize, but it needs to be reasonable. You can say what you want about me, but please...PLEASE, do not talk about my daughter. I know she was rude to you, and I will admit that I need to be harder on her, but that's on me to deal with. Grow up and stop making a fuss over what a little girl says."

"Peter is right, Gallus," Yona said, finally speaking up. "Mayday did make mistake, that true. But we all make mistakes. I am clumsy yak, I break things and I say things I shouldn't, but it's okay because it happens to many. You make mistake too, but we friends forgive, and ponies can forgive too. You must forgive Peter, and Mayday. After all, Peter is one who will save us from bad things. He a good pony."

"So is Rumble," Silverstream said, flying over to the Griffon. "He said mean things to you but he's sorry. He's apologized, yet you still hold this grudge. He was mean to me during Wonderbolt training, but now we're best friends. He realized he was being a jerk and worked hard to make up for it. You have to be a bit more forgiving of Rumble, Peter and Mayday."

"...I can't just back down from this, last thing I want is one of these 'mistakes' hurting the few that I care about," Gallus said. "Sorry, but I gotta speak my mind."

"Gallus..." Mayday said, nervously trotting over with Franklin by her side. All eyes were once again on her, the girl sweating up a storm. "Already regretting this."

"I'm here for you," Franklin said, holding her hoof. "Go on, it'll make you feel better."

Mayday nodded and focused on the Griffon. "Listen...if I said something mean to you...I'm sorry. I...did not mean to upset you. I was just...I was jealous because I thought my mom liked you and your friends more than she liked me."

"Hold on, what?" Johnny turned to Twilight. "Why does she think that?"

"I have no idea," a very surprised Twilight said.

"Poor Mayday," Gwen empathized. "Really wanna give her a hug, but in a bit. Let’s see how this turns out."

"I got mad, and I said mean things, I'm sorry," Mayday said.

"Aw...we did not know you felt like that," Yona said. "Your mommy loves you though."

"Yeah, she would never pick us over you," Silverstream said.

"I hope not," Mayday said, the girl wiping a tear from her eye. "Sorry, thinking about it hurts my chest."

"Hey, no crying," Silverstream wiped her tear. "Come on, you look prettier when you smile."

"See, told you smiles are cuter on you," Franklin said, making Mayday blush.

"Thank you for being kind to my daughter, it means a lot," Peter said. "And Mayday, thank you for apologizing, you did the right thing. I know it's not easy to admit mistakes but that was a very grown up choice you made."

"Lets give her a round of applause!" Wade said.

"Please don't! You're gonna startle her!" Peter insisted. "The gratitude and forgiveness is enough."

"Yona, Silverstream, I don't know if I said it before but I'm sorry to all of you too," Mayday said.

"It's cool, I'm over it," Silverstream said. "It never really bothered me much, if anything you inspired me to be better. So I took it as tough love."

"We all forgive you," Sandbar said, gesturing to Ocellus and Smolder. "Plus it's hard to stay mad, you remind me a lot of my sister. She's made mistakes too so I can understand where you're coming from."

"I heard that!" Coral Currents shouted.

"Sorry sis!" Sandbar said.

"Point is, we just want to move on from this," Silverstream said. "As we can see, we have bigger issues, lets put this behind us and focus on what's actually important."

"But, this is important," Wallflower said. "Our country, no, our world is falling apart, and the only thing holding us together are Spider-Mane and his friends. They're just not doing a good job of it. They don't even respect our world or its cultures."

"What are you going on about now, lady?" Wade asked, stepping forward. "What are we doing that's so bad? Is it because we're different? Like what differences do you see? Are we not singing enough? Are we not talking enough about Friendship? Because none of you seem to do so much these days."

"That's because you and your friends got the School of Friendship shut down!" Wallflower said. "All because of your stupid power struggle from The Accords!"

"Lady, the Accords sucked but we fixed them, move on!" Wade said. "Also the School is back up, just as a recreational center. You can do the exact same thing you were doing last year! You can't learn Friendship in a freaking school! You learn from society!"

"Everyone was just happy, they all found their groups, meanwhile I never got mine," Wallflower said.

"Groups huh? Wow, real friendly, this just proves that Friendship isn't something that can be forced, it's gonna happen naturally regardless," Wade said. "Twilight didn't make her friends in a school after all, she made them out of school. On her own."

Peter glanced briefly at his wife and her friends, some thoughts of doubt creeping around, "So it seems."

"You're just ignorant, that's all!" Wallflower said.

"Call it what you want, things are never gonna get better until you learn to change for the better," Wade said. "Stop blaming others for your problems!"

"My problems come from others!" Wallflower said.

"Come on, this so silly," Yona said. "Gallus, accept Mayday's apology so we can go."

"Eh...is she really sorry though?" Gallus asked. "She's probably just saying it just to make her and her father look good."

"Are you fucking serious right now!?" Wade shouted, Peter and Gwen instinctively covering the ears of Mayday and Franklin respectively. "You know what, at this point, it's clear you just want to whine and complain about shit because of your trashy childhood! If that's all you're gonna do, then you need to leave! You're not wanted!"

"Hey you can't just kick me out!" Gallus shouted.

"Too bad..." Came the voice of Flash, the former high school jock trotting over with MJ by his side. "I don't appreciate what you said about Peter and his daughter, and I'm not nice like these heroes are trying to be. So if you don't leave, I'll personally make you!"

Gallus took a step back, "Alright fine, but I'm leaving because I'm tired of being here, that and you're clearly too stubborn to change."

"Look who's talking!" Lyra said. "Take a hike already!"

Many in the crowd began to gather around, nearly intimidating Gallus, not that he wanted to show fear. "You bunch of suck-ups! I'm off!"

The Griffon flew off alone for the moment, leaving his team behind.

"Wow...you ponies are bullies," Garble taunted.

Peter sighed in annoyance, "I'm not even gonna bother humoring that notion."

"Well...he's not wrong!" Wallflower said, fury in her eyes. "You just ran that poor Griffon out of town."

"You know, for a 'Wallflower', you're very outspoken," Wade said. "But that's why you're acting like this, right? You just want ponies to notice you, even if you have to be negative. Believe me when I say, it's not worth it."

"You know, if you want, I can help you find a good friend," Peter said. "Or maybe Twilight can."

"She tried, and you ruined it!" Wallflower said, the pony looking to be on the verge of tears. "This is your fault!"

"Alright, I've had it!" Mayday flew up to get in Wallflower's face. "Leave my daddy alone, already! He didn't mean to hurt you! Why are you acting like he's one of those villains!?"

"Because he might as well be, that's why!" Wallflower said. 

"Saying things like that makes it harder for somepony to be your friend," Mayday said.

"What do you know about friendship you little brat!?" Wallflower shouted. "It's your fault the school closed down too, all because you're a failure of a pony! I HATE YOU!"

Immediately after those words left her mouth, Wallflower felt immediate regret. Many in the crowd amazed that she would say such a thing, something even she herself couldn't believe she said. "Did...I actually just..."

Mayday shut her eyes, trying not to show emotion, though her slight sniffles did not help her much. All those watching could not believe what they had just heard. Wallflower began to panic, she could feel anger aimed at her, she could see the frustration building up in not only Peter, but also Twilight and many of their friends.

"M-Mayday, I..." Wallflower struggled to speak. "I didn't mean...I'm sorry! Please, can we move on from this!?"

Mayday had no immediate response just some tears streaming down her eyes despite her attempts to hide her emotions.

Wallflower nervously backed off, she knew she had messed up and she couldn't stick around. Quickly she ran off, hoping to put distance between her and the heroes, the ones she knew who's trust she completely destroyed.

Peter could only watch as Wallflower left, nothing but anger in his heart. Despite his disappointment in Wallflower, and how much he wanted to tear into her, he knew it would be wiser to wait.

Unfortunately his friends did not seem like they wanted to wait, they were ready to take action.

"So, anyone up for weeding out a wallflower?" Johnny asked.

"Sign me up," Wade said.

"Starlight can tell us where she lives!" Janet said.

"Why me?" Starlight asked.

"Aren't you an old guidance counselor?" Janet asked. "Don't you have her address?"

"Hold it!" Peter said. "Let's try not to-"

"You want her, you gotta go through us!" Garble said, cracking his knuckles.

"Wow bro, didn't expect you to stand up for a pony," Smolder said.

"Hey, any excuse to wail on some of these so-called heroes is good in my book," Garble said.

"Dude, now is NOT the time!" Peter said.

"Quiet Spider-Dork, you're up first!" Garble said. Suddenly he was being lifted into the air, Hey, what-"

He was then blasted off, everyone turning to see that Sunset Shimmer was the cause of the magic, "That guy's so damn annoying."

"Please don't do that to my brother, I could have calmed him down," Smolder said.

"Whatever, I doubt anyone was gonna get through to him," Sunset said. 

"Hey! You can't do that to Garble!" A lackey dragon said.

"Let's get her!" the other dragon said.

The two lunged at Sunset, but Ryu, Chris and Dante were quick to stand in front of her, the trio glaring at the dragons.

"Oh crap, it's those guys from years ago!" one dragon said.

"They're looking meaner than ever, let's bail!" the other dragon said as the two flew off.

"You better run," Dante taunted. "Geez, here I thought dragons were tough."

Smolder huffed in annoyance, "You guys again."

"Hm? It's you," Ryu said.

"Yeah, it's me, the little sister of that red dragon you beat up years ago," Smolder said.

"That explains your anger toward us," Ryu said. "We're sorry for hurting your brother, but we were left with little choice."

"I'll say," Doc interjected. "Myself along with Derpy and Dinky were being terrorized by those dragons when these fine gentlemen saved us."

"Good to see you doing well," Chris said. 

"Thanks to you," Doc said. "You men were heroes to us that day."

"It's nothing, just doing our part," Chris said, then saw the foal on Derpy's back. "Is that your child?"

"Cute isn't she? Takes after her mother," Doc said. "We call her Mirai."

"Mirai?" Ryu asked. "Like the Japanese word for 'future'?"

"Time travel is fascinating to me," Doc said. "As for the word, I think I heard Peter mention it, from a thing called 'anime'."

Ryu turned to Peter, the hero comforting his distressed daughter. "Clever choice."

"Ahem..." Smolder said, getting their attention. "I guess you had your reasons for hurting my brother, doesn't mean I like those reasons. You still hurt him!"

"Smolder, you gotta learn to forgive," Silverstream said. "Seriously, every creature needs to learn about forgiveness. Why is it such a complicated topic?"

"Because forgiveness is the hardest thing anyone can do," Ryu said. "It takes a lot of will and courage to do so."

"You're right Ryu, forgiveness is hard, but it's something we must learn," Peter said. 

Trixie scoffed in annoyance, "Forgiveness isn't the problem, the problem is that ponies just don't want to forget and still choose to judge."

"Come on Trixie, don't give up hope," Starlight said. "It's not easy but it can work. I managed to make it work with my own problems."

Luna took her chance to get the attention of all the ponies in town, "Drama aside, since you are all well, I urge you to take to a designated part of the town while my sister calls in guards to clean up the mess left here."

"This way everyone!" Cap said, getting everyone to the next part of town.

As they did so, Peter gestured Mayday toward Twilight, "Go with your mom, I'm gonna find that mare."

"Okay..." Mayday said, obeying her father's command.

"Going after Wallflower?" Johnny asked, trotting over with Bobby, Wade and Janet. "Need us to come too?"

"No, I'll handle it on my own," Peter said.

"Are you sure?" Janet asked. "We can help with the intimidation factor."

"I don't want that, I just want to fix this problem the right way," Peter said. "Just go help the others, and make sure everyone stays as harmonious as possible, I'd rather there not be anymore fighting."

"Alright, we got this for you, Peter," Johnny said, leading the others away. "Let's go!"

Mayday trotted over to Twilight, the mare currently speaking with Luna. "Mom?"

Twilight turned to her daughter, "Sweetheart." She rubbed her mane, "Sorry you had to go through that."

"It's fine," Mayday said.

"It's alright if it's not," Luna said. "That mare was out of line."

"Mayday...what did you mean when you said I cared more about Sandbar and his friends than I did about you?" Twilight asked.

"...You were always nice to them, even when I disagreed, you always took their side," Mayday said. "I thought you just didn't care about me, or my feelings."

"That would explain her outburst last year," Twilight recalled. "Mayday, I'm sorry if I made you feel that way, but I do love you, please know that."

"I hope so," Mayday said.

"Geez, she's really torn up, I should do something for her," Twilight thought to herself, the mare smitten with regret.

"Princess Twilight," Mayor Mare said, getting her attention. "I require your attention, the Rich Family's shop was destroyed and Spoiled Rich is none too happy."

"That mare...I'll see if I can resolve the situation," Twilight said, then turned to Mayday. "I'll be right back honey."

Twilight flew off, leaving Mayday behind with Luna, the mare rubbing her Goddaughter's head, "Things will be alright."

"Mayday!" Came Luster Dawn's voice, the girl running up with Franklin beside her to bring Mayday into a hug. "I'm so sorry I wasn't here earlier! This whole vine thing was weird, and my parents were a little shaken up but it's fine because Mr. Lang's talking things over with them. Still, I was so worried about you!"

"I'm fine, thanks for wanting to look out for me," Mayday said.

"Franklin told me some jerks were picking on you! Tell me who and I'll beat them up!" Luster Dawn said. "I've been working on my magic, I bet I can-"

"It's fine, really, daddy's handling it," Mayday said.

"He's got this under control," Gwen said, trotting over. 

"Hm? Who's this? Why is she wearing a suit similar to your dad's?" Luster Dawn asked.

"Is it really that similar? His has more webs," Gwen said. "But if you must know, my name is Gwen Stacy, I'm kind of a friend of Mayday's dad."

"She's from another dimension," Mayday said. "The Gwen dad knew is not this one."

"Uh...right..." Luster Dawn said.

"I know it's confusing without context," Mayday said. 

"I can fill in the blanks, why don't you kids join me?" Gwen asked. 

"Sure, that'd be great," Mayday said.

"Hop on my back, Mayday," Gwen said. "I'll give you a ride."

"Uh...sure," Mayday said. She hopped onto the girl's back, resting comfortably. "Thanks."

"Sure thing, any daughter of Peter is a friend of mine," Gwen said, then turned to the kids. "So, the boy is Franklin, but who's this girl?"

"I'm Luster Dawn, Mayday's best friend," the filly greeted.

"Well, you sure seemed that way a second ago," Gwen said. "That was quite a hug."

"Mayday normally doesn't like hugs, but she makes an exception for me," Luster Dawn said. "That's why I love Mayday, she's very precious to me and I always want to be there for her."

Mayday ducked her face to hide her blush, "Geez, don't lay it on so thick."

"Aw, it's cute, she really cares about you," Gwen said.

"So do I, she is my girlfriend, and she means the world to me," Franklin said.

"Aw...I wish I had a guy tell me that," Gwen said, rubbing Franklin's head. "You got yourself a keeper, May."

"Yeah, yeah. Can we move on from this please?" Mayday said. "This is getting embarrassing."

"At least Flurry Heart isn't here right now, her love for you tries to put ours to shame," Luster Dawn said. 

"See, ponies love you May, so don't let some bad apples ruin things for you," Gwen said.

"Speaking of Apples, I hope Auntie Apple Bloom is doing okay with all this," Mayday said.

"She's fine, she's over there talking with Rumble after all," Luster Dawn said, gesturing to the two. "Their baby seems fine too."

"Speaking of babies, where's my brother?" Mayday asked.

"He's right there," Gwen said. "Looks like MJ has him."

Mayday turned to see that Mary Jane did indeed have Benjy on her back while talking things over with Flash and Aunt May. "Cool."

"MJ looks natural with a kid," Gwen said.

"Makes sense, she said she's married to Harry Osborn," Mayday said. "Personally I think he's a little mean, he dislikes daddy like Gallus does."

"Oof, Peter just can't catch a break, can he?" Gwen asked. "How has he handled things, emotionally I mean?"

"Pretty well, when he's sad, mom tries to cheer him up," Mayday said. "If not her, then one of her friends, or daddy's hero friends. Even Aunt Trixie, Rumble, Miss Glimmer and Autumn Blaze try to help."

"Who is Autumn Blaze?" Gwen asked.

"That's her right there," Mayday said, gesturing to the Kirin as she chatted with Trixie and Starlight. "Those three, they're daddy's closest non-hero friends. Autumn Blaze is fun to be around, and she's smart when it comes to emotions and how to process anger. I like her, she's friendly. Miss Glimmer is my mom's protégé but she's also loyal to my daddy since he saved her from Loki. She's really nice too, and she looks after me. Aunt Trixie is basically like a sister to my mom, and my daddy's closest friend. She's even like a second mother to me, and I love her a lot."

"It's so nice hearing you talk, you have such a pretty voice," Gwen said.

"Uh...thanks," Mayday said clamming up. "Let's just go now."

"Sorry, didn't mean to embarrass you, you're just so adorable," Gwen said.

"She is, isn't she?" Luster Dawn asked.

"The voice of an angel," Franklin said.

"...You're all just teasing now, aren't you?" Mayday lamented as Gwen trotted off.





Sunset checked around town, the girl looking very worried about all that had transpired. "What caused this anyway?"

"Didn't Peter mention it was that Discord guy?" Dante asked. "Looks like he's starting his plan."

"Which means we need to be around," Chris said. 

"I'm a bit worried for Peter, he's got this on his mind, then this talk of Wesker's return," Sunset said. "Plus, Loki's still out there."

"Hey, let him come," Dante said. "We still owe him for what he did to our friends. Chun-Li won't say it, but Cammy's death really got to her."

"Jill is still bummed out about Carlos," Chris said.

"And Cloud's just as bothered by his group of friends," Ryu said.

"...You think they're actually alive somewhere?" Sunset asked. "Like maybe-"

"We saw them die, Asgard blew up, they're gone Sunset," Chris said. "I hate it but that's the sad reality."

"...Well, there's still the Dragon Balls," Sunset said. "Goku said they can revive the dead."

"Don't those things have limitations?" Dante asked. "Besides, if I know Cammy and Guile, I don't think they would want to mess with fate like this."

"Thinking about it, seeing them again likely isn't too unlikely," Ryu said. "Thor did say those who die while fighting for Asgard go to Valhalla."

"Pretty sure that's just the Asgardian way of saying the Afterlife," Dante said. 

"Well according to mythology, Odin could go to Valhalla," Chris said. "Thor's King now, he can likely go there too."

"How do you know this?" Dante asked.

"I researched Norse Mythology before we went to Asgard for Ragnarök last year," Chris said. "Granted the mythology differed from reality, but I wanted a basic idea."

"I did some research myself," Sunset said. "Not just Norse Mythology, all types, including Greek and Japanese stuff. It helps me understand certain things better, not just on Earth but Equestria as well."

"You studied diligently for those," Ryu said. "Good to train your mind along with your body, that will help bring you closer to true enlightenment."

"Back to what Chris said about Valhalla, is that really possible?" Sunset asked. "Could Thor go?"

"I'm not sure if he can yet, I feel like he would have revived his brother and friends if he could," Chris said. "Unless they too did not want to be revived."

"At the very least, we can talk to Cammy and see if she wants to be resurrected, same with the others," Sunset said. "This way, it doesn't feel like anyone died for nothing."

"They fought for what they believed in, and their deaths were honorable," Ryu said. "They did not die for nothing."

"Even so..." Sunset said, glancing at Ryu with a look of sadness mixed with desperation in her eyes. "I just...really need to see them again."

Ryu could feel the sadness emanating off of Sunset, "I...completely understand. Anyway, we should be going now, Peter's got a lot on his plate, we'll discuss villain troubles later."

"Besides the glaring is getting irritating," Dante said, glancing at some of the ponies. A few turned away and kept walking, acting like they weren't staring. "Like you always Sunset, these ponies hold one hell of a grudge."

"A few of them seemed mistrusting of Peter, no one wanted to say anything, at least not too loudly, but if this keeps up, this grudge could affect him too," Chris said.

"For their sake, I hope not," Sunset said. "Peter's the one saving their worthless asses, if they turn against him that will cement the idiocy of this world."

"Man, you do not hold back, do you?" Dante said.

"And why should I?" Sunset asked. "I was a good student, I studied hard for Celestia, but I was the bad guy for disagreeing with her a few times? Then she acts like multiverse travel is bad because bullshit reasons. You guys are proof that the multiverse has great things."

"If they do, Miss Shimmer..." Came the voice of Starswirl, Sunset immediately looking like she wanted to slam her head against a wall. "Why has there been so much trouble?"

"Gee I don't know, maybe because trouble exists everywhere? Long before Peter came to Equestria? Long before my friends here did?" Sunset said. "Seriously, the amount of scapegoating is amazing."

"Do you deny the truth before your eyes?" Starswirl asked.

"Hey, Keep in mind the Sirens that showed up the other day existed in THIS world before. If I recall, you were the one responsible and what did you do? That's right, banish them to another realm, let them become that realm's problems!" Sunset pointed out. "Don't complain about the multiverse to me when you are more than willing to use it for your own fucking advantage!"

"You watch your tone with me, keep in mind you can still be banished yourself," Starswirl said. "You and your friends can stay in their own dimension."

"Just try to banish us, see what happens," Sunset said.

"Alright easy, don't let him get under your skin," Chris said. "Follow Peter's example and be better than your critics."

"You speak as if that's possible," Starswirl said.

"It is, I wholeheartedly believe it's good to be the better person," Chris said. "I believe that Sunset has it in her."

"Well, if you want to be the responsible one, keep this Little Pony under control then," Starswirl said.

"Gee, can we do that? We're 'brutes' after all," Dante said. "That's what you and Luna like to say."

"And I will say that your world has caused more than enough trouble," Starswirl said. "Celestia and Luna told me of your brother and his allies trying to bring this world to ruin."

"That's not the fault of my friends!" Sunset said. "Doctor Doom is the one who brought them here, and this connection only exists because of Discord and The Green Goblin! My friends here came to help, even now they came to help!"

"Well they've overstayed their welcome," Starswirl said.

"And this is why I wanted to leave," Dante said.

"Don't let me keep you," Starswirl said, turning away. "Make sure you don't break anything on the way out."

"...You're lucky I don't have fingers in this form, dickhead," Sunset said as she angrily trotted off.

Ryu turned to the demon in the group, "Dante...have you been teaching her these words?"

"The hell is that supposed to mean?" Dante asked.

"She's been using uncouth language," Ryu said.

"So? She's feeling a little pissed off right now, she's allowed to vocalize it," Dante said. "I know you have that Japanese politeness to you but not everyone's going to manage their anger like you seem to."

"Let’s round up our friends," Chris said, calling out to the Saiyan of the group. "Hey! Goku! You around!?"

"You called?" Goku asked, flying over.

"Mind finding our allies?" Chris asked. "We're leaving."

"Sure," Goku said, using his instant transmission to teleport away.

"You know, good thing that Starswirl guy didn't talk shit in front of Kratos or something," Dante said. "That guy would have destroyed him."

"Don't undersell Kratos, he's reasonably calm," Ryu said.

"Yeah, if anything I'd be more afraid for him if Amy Rose were here," Chris said. "That girl doesn't look like she takes crap from anyone."

"Love that chick, she's got spunk," Dante said.





Meanwhile with Peter, he had found Wallflower under a tree in Ponyville Park. From the look of things, the girl had regret in her eyes, likely feeling terrible for what she said about Mayday. Peter was disappointed in this mare, but if he could handle things peacefully, that's all that matters.

"Wallflower Blush?" Peter said, getting her attention.

"Spider-Mane?" Wallflower asked.

"Just 'Peter' is fine," the hero said. "I came to have a word with you."

"If this is about what I said to your daughter, then just say what you have to, I know I deserve it," Wallflower said.

"I just want to know, why would you say that?" Peter asked. "Did my daughter really upset you that much?"

"A little...I know she hated the school, and I felt like you both were the reason it shut down," Wallflower said. "I really liked that place."

"But it's up again, just not called a 'School'," Peter said. "I know it's hard to make friends, I'm no good at it either."

"You? You're the most popular hero in Equestria, everypony wants to be your friend," Wallflower said.

"First off, I wasn't always popular, when I was on Earth, people didn't pay any mind to me, I was a wallflower, just like you," Peter said. "And even now, I don't want ponies friends with me because I'm a hero. I want them to be my friend because of me. Everyone loves Spider-Man, but not everyone likes Peter Parker."

"Aren't you one in the same?" Wallflower asked.

"Spider-Man is what I do, not who I am," Peter said. "It's just a mask I wear. Outside the suit, I'm an ordinary guy. Well, I know I'm married to a princess but still, I have my hobbies, my strengths, my weaknesses. Plus you know full well not everyone loves my superhero persona. It's not new to Equestria, a lot of people on Earth hated Spider-Man too."

"If they hated you, why are you still a hero?" Wallflower asked. "How come you never gave up?"

"My uncle always told me that With Great Power, there must also come Great Responsibility," Peter said. "I can never turn away from anyone who needs me, no matter what that person might say."

"Even someone like me? Or Gallus? Or anyone else?" Wallflower asked.

"I saved you, didn't I?" Peter asked.

"Yes...I couldn't understand why, I didn't even like you," Wallflower said.

"You needed help, that's why," Peter said. "That's what heroes do, they help those who need it. Honestly, it doesn't even have to be a superhero thing, it just needs to be a person or pony thing. Help someone for the sake of helping someone."

"I tried to today...I failed," Wallflower said.

"Then try again, it doesn't even have to be grand, little things count too," Peter said. "Look, you and your friends want to be heroes, right?"

"Well...kind of," Wallflower said.

"If you truly feel that way, then know your strengths and weaknesses," Peter said. "Anyone has the potential to be a hero, it just starts with being a good person, or pony."

Wallflower furrowed her brow at the hero before her, "Just curious, why are you being so nice all of a sudden?"

"Hm?" Peter asked. "Uh...is there a problem?"

"I just said something terrible to your daughter, after Gallus and I criticized you in front of town, why are you being nice to me?" Wallflower asked.

"You want me to be mean?" Peter asked.

"I...well....maybe you should," Wallflower said. "Being nice like this, it's kind of cruel. Don't you care about your daughter? You should be furious with me!"

"Don't get me wrong, you really got me seeing red after you said that to my little girl," Peter admitted. "But...I can tell you didn't mean it, and that you're really sorry. But, I also feel like you should apologize to my daughter before I can fully forgive you. Friendly as I'm trying to be right now, I will always prioritize my daughter before anyone."

"...I just don't get you," Wallflower said.

"Don't worry about it," Peter said. "Look, if you want to hate me or not trust me, that's fine. That won't stop me from trying to save your life if you need help. All I ask is that you're kind to my friends and family. Any anger you feel toward me is for me only, not anyone I love or care about."

Despite her initial mistrust, Wallflower could not see any deception in Peter's eyes. He was being genuine and it showed. "Alright Peter."

"Mind coming with me?" Peter asked.

"Sure..." Wallflower said.





Everything in town was getting cleaned up, ponies were slowly returning to their homes. Sunset had rounded up her entire team and was ready to return to her portal.

"Twilight, we'll let you finish here," Sunset said. "Tomorrow, me and my friends will contact you and Peter about what Madame Web had to say."

"Sure thing, sorry about all this drama," Twilight said.

"You have nothing to be sorry for," Sunset insisted. "We're always happy to help."

"That's right, don't hesitate to call us if you need anything," All Might said. "We'll be here!"

"And, sorry that your husband went through all that," Mark said. "He's a nice guy who cares about everyone, like genuinely cares. Seeing him get talked to like that, it's kind of messed up."

"Yeah, it is," Twilight said. "But he'll pull through, so long as I'm by his side at least."

"Even the strongest of men need support," Kratos said. "Never waiver on that, Princess Twilight."

"I won't sir," Twilight said. "I love Peter, he's everything to me."

"Talk about commitment," Cloud said. "Spider-Man found quite the mare."

"He's a lucky guy for sure," Sonic said. "And we all know that when it comes down to it, he'll still be the hero this town needs."

"But certainly doesn't deserve," Sunset commented.

"Sunset..." Ryu scolded.

"I'll see you later, Twilight," Sunset said as everyone stepped through the portal.

Twilight waved everyone off and focused back on the town, taking a look around to see what else she could do. She spotted MJ with Benjy, surprised to see the woman feeding him a bottle.

"Mary Jane?" Twilight asked.

"Hm?" MJ looked up. "Oh hey Twi, Benjy seemed hungry so I prepared him a bottle. Don't worry, May helped me out, turns out formula for baby ponies isn't too different from humans."

"Well, thanks, I appreciate you feeding my baby," Twilight said.

"Guess it's my maternal instinct, Harry and I do have a son," MJ said. "I really miss him, I might head back tonight. Maybe I can bring him tomorrow, he can meet his Uncle Peter."

"That would be great," Twilight said, feeling strange that this lady she didn't really know was feeding her baby. "Is it really that weird? Trixie and Starlight have fed Benjy. Even Janet has offered to on occasion. Just because this was Peter's old crush...who admits feeling a special attachment to my kids for some reason...ugh, don't let it get to you, Twilight."

"Hey Twilight," Gwen said, getting her attention.

"Hi Gwen," Twilight said, seeing Mayday standing right next to her. "Oh Mayday, sorry I was so busy."

"It's fine, Gwen kept me company, she's really cool," Mayday said.

"Yeah, your daughter's such a neat kid," Gwen said, rubbing her mane. "Almost wish she were mine."

Twilight's pupils dilated, "Is that right?"

"Yeah, I'm so jealous of you," Gwen said. "Cute kids, handsome husband, but some girls are just luckier than I am."

"You'll find someone soon, Gwen," MJ said. "There's single guys here I think, someone's bound to catch your eye."

"If I'm lucky," Gwen said. “I’m gonna be thirty in a few years.”

“You’re still young, you got time,” MJ said.

"Where are Luster Dawn and Franklin, weren't they with you Mayday?" Twilight asked.

"Luster Dawn had to go see her parents, Frankie went with his mom," Mayday said. 

"It is getting late," MJ said. "Long day, huh?"

"I've had longer," Twilight said, then noticed her husband coming. "Peter!"

"Hey Twi," Peter said, trotting over with Wallflower beside him. "Our friend here has something to say to Mayday."

Mayday turned away from the mare, Gwen quick to comfort her, "I'm here for you, kid. Don't worry."

"That's my line..." Twilight bitterly thought to herself.

"Mayday, I know you're mad and you have a right to be, but please listen to Wallflower," Peter said, turning to the mare. "You're up."

Wallflower nodded and awkwardly trotted to Mayday, "Listen...Mayday. I...I'm really sorry about earlier. It was terrible of me to say such a thing to a girl your age, and I should have known better. I don't blame you for the school closing, I'm just frustrated with my life so far and taking those frustrations out on the world."

"Twilight, I think Wallflower could use your Friendship guidance," Peter said. "Think you can make time for her?"

"Of course, it is my duty as the Princess of Friendship," Twilight said.

Peter nodded and focused back on his daughter, "Well Mayday? Do you accept Wallflower's apology?"

Mayday still looked annoyed, but begrudgingly agreed, "Yes..."

"It's fine if you don't forgive me yet, you were trying to be nice earlier and I threw it back in your face," Wallflower said. "If you never forgive me, then that's my burden, but I just wanted to get it off my chest."

"Just...let me think about it," Mayday said.

"Of course," Wallflower said, then turned to the hero. "And thanks Peter, you're really kind. I wish I saw that sooner."

"Don't worry about it, just focus on being the best pony you can be," Peter said. "And if you see Gallus, tell him that he's always welcome in this town. I don't want any animosity, I just want everyone to be at peace with each other."

"Will do," Wallflower said, making her leave. "Have a good night."

Peter was relieved, even if this wasn't fully settled, it's a start. "Mayday, how are you feeling?"

"Alright, I guess," Mayday said. "It was...nice of her to say 'sorry'."

"It was nice," Peter said.

"Daddy...is forgiveness really that hard?" Mayday asked.

"Yeah, sometimes," Peter said. "But it's always good to forgive. You don't do it because you want someone to feel better, you do it because it's a weight off your chest. It's a tricky subject though, you don't want to be too forgiving, otherwise people walk all over you. But if you don't forgive, you can't let anyone in."

"I think I want to forgive her, but I still feel kind of mad," Mayday said. 

"Remember what Autumn taught you, being mad is okay, just don't hurt others with that anger," Peter said. 

"Peter," Rumble said, getting the hero's attention. "I'm gonna head home, Apple Bloom's pretty tired."

"Seems like everyone's calling it a day," Peter said.

Rumble bent down to kiss Mayday's head, "Stay strong May.”

"Thanks Rumble," Mayday said, blushing a bit.

"See you Twilight, and...you two other mares," Rumble said.

"I'm Mary Jane."

"I'm Gwen."

"Right, Mary Jane, Gwen," Rumble said, waving good-bye. "See ya."

"Sunset mentioned talking things over tomorrow, we should bring all our friends to that, and that includes our up and coming hero, Rumble," Twilight said.

"Sounds good to me," Peter said.

"I'll bring the other spiders," Gwen said. 

"Oh cool, I'd love to see Miguel again, I just hope he's lightened up over the years," Peter said.

"He has, he said you left quite the influence on him, and he almost hates for you for it," Gwen said. "Not sure what you did but I'm glad you did it."

"I knew he had it in him," Peter said. "He's a Spider-Man after all."

"Let's get some rest," Twilight said. "See you tomorrow girls."

"See ya Tiger," MJ said, hugging Peter before handing Benjy over to Twilight.

"Bye Pete," Gwen said, kissing his cheek before trotting off.

Peter was a little surprised by the show of affection, meanwhile Twilight looked a bit livid.

"Tiger? Kisses? Seriously!?" Twilight gritted her teeth. "What next!?"

"Peter," Luna said, flying over to the boy. "I will be returning to Canterlot shortly, I do have to raise the moon. My sister may stick around longer but don't let her stay up too late."

"Sure thing, Luna," Peter said.

"Let me know if you're still having your nightly troubles," Luna said. "Or rather, I'll see for myself."

"Yeah, of course," Peter said. "Catch you later, Luna."

"You too," Luna said, flying off.

"...Things are so weird now," Peter said. "The seeds, Gallus, Capcom Villains, Discord's villains, and Sweetie Belle's suit."

"Oh right, I hope Rarity's handling it better," Twilight said.





Meanwhile as Sweetie Belle was on her way to her parents' house, Rarity was still pestering her about the suit. "How about you keep it, but instead of actually wearing it, it's more of a pet?"

"Rarity, drop it!" Sweetie Belle said. "I told you this suit is good! He helped me earlier today."

"He? It's a suit!" Rarity shouted.

"This suit has feelings, I can tell because I'm feeling them right now!" Sweetie Belle shouted, her horn briefly glowing in anger.

"Sweetie Belle, chill," Bobby said. "You too Rarity."

"Bobby, that suit is going to hurt my sister!" Rarity said.

"You don't know that, just trust Sweetie Belle, alright?" Bobby said.

"Seriously, Bobby trusts me, why don't you?" Sweetie Belle asked.

"Because, sister, you don't often think before you do things!" Rarity said. "It's why you ended up tagging along with that creep Vega and all those other villains."

"Sweet Celestia, that was like five years ago, move on already!" Sweetie Belle said.

"You watch your tone, I am your older sister!" Rarity said.

"I really don't give a crap," Sweetie Belle said. "Bobby, do me a favor, take my sister home, I think she needs to get laid or something."

"Sweetie Belle!" Rarity shouted in disbelief.

"Damn girl!" Bobby said.

"Just drop it, already," Sweetie Belle said. "I'm going home, I know you need to come to pick up Snow Gem but after that, kindly take a hike. I don't want to deal with your nonsense."

"Why you..." Rarity seethed in anger.

"Rares, maybe you should head home, I'll pick our little girl up," Bobby said. "Take a nice hot bath too, you need to destress. I can see wrinkles forming."

"GAH!" Rarity checked a nearby mirror. "Stress marks! Ooooh, I'll get my revenge on your suit for this Sweetie Belle! Ugh, I need cream!"

Rarity trotted away while Sweetie Belle grumbled in annoyance, "Freaking Rarity and her drama."

"She's just worried kid," Bobby said.

"I don't need her to worry, I need her to stop acting like such a pain!" Sweetie Belle said.

"You know Rarity just worries," Bobby said. "That suit's been trouble, you're gonna have to prove to her that you can handle it."

"I saved people today!" Sweetie Belle said.

"That's not enough, you need more," Bobby said. "Give it time, alright kid?"

"...Alright Bobby," Sweetie Belle said, then kissed his cheek. "Thanks for looking out for me."

"Anything for my little sis," Bobby said. "Let's hurry, your parents might be worried. Do they know about the suit?"

"They don't know it's an alien," Sweetie Belle said.

"Uh...you should clue them in, if Rarity tells them, they're gonna freak out," Bobby said.

"Yeah ,you're right," Sweetie Belle said. "Can we tell them together?"

"You bet," Bobby said. "Let's get moving."





As Fluttershy got home, she first checked on her daughter, making sure she was alright and unharmed. Thankfully she was in good hooves thanks to Laura's quick thinking.

With that settled, she opted to make some dinner for everyone. Logan and Laura weren't home yet, as they were still out helping other ponies, so Fluttershy thought to surprise them with something tasty.

"What would Logan like? I know he likes steak but I haven't been to Earth lately to pick any up," Fluttershy said. "He's not too picky, or he tries not to be, but I do want him to have something I know he'll enjoy. But, knowing him, he'll just say anything I cook is special enough, which really makes me want to cook something that much nicer."

As she thought things over, she heard a knock on her door.

"Who could that be?" Fluttershy trotted over and came across a rather unusual surprise.

"Hi Fluttershy, it's nice to see you," Discord said, the powerless being standing in front of her house.

"..." Fluttershy let out a massive scream of worry and slammed the door on the Draconequess.

"Fluttershy! Wait!" Discord urged.

"Ahem..." Discord turned around and saw an angry Logan with his claws out. "What the hell do you think you're doing here, bub!?"

"Did you know you're a lot faster than you look?" Discord asked. "I could have sworn-"

"TALK!" Logan shouted.

"Easy, easy, I come in peace!" Discord urged.

"Well yer about to leave in pieces," Logan warned.

"Logan! What's wrong!?" Laura shouted as she ran over. She was quick to spot Discord and immediately extended her own claws. "Great, first the seeds, now this!?"

"I swear it's not what you think. I don't mean any harm, I'm powerless," Discord said, snapping his fingers. "I can't even do a cheap trick!"

"...Powerless huh?" Logan asked. "What's to stop me from killing you right now then?"

"I know you can kill me, but I beg of you to give me a chance," Discord said, groveling on the ground. "I know I don't deserve it, but can you find mercy in your heart?"

Logan seemed unsure but one voice convinced him otherwise, "Let's hear him out."

"Huh?" Logan saw that Fluttershy opened the door.

"Are you sure about that, Shy?" Laura asked.

"I just...I feel like we can trust him," Fluttershy said. "Let's hear what he has to say."

"...Alright," Logan said, glaring at the chaos deity. "I'm warning you bub, you try anything stupid, and yer dead."

"Noted," Discord said, turning around to go inside the house with both Logan and Laura cautiously following.

There were a lot of conflicts remaining, the concept of forgiveness being among them. Once that barrier is broken, new opportunities arise.