Chapter 21
Chapter 21
The Vanishing Point
In utter disbelief the Eight Paragons, Thor and Rocket had their eyes fixed on Oliver who was now wearing a very dark outfit with a very deep weird voice, as if it wasn't human. The Guardians of the Galaxy's raccoon had climbed over a pile of rubble to be the same height as the heroes.
"Oliver…" stammered Sara, shocked.
"Yes and no," Oliver replied simply with his new distorted voice. "It's complicated."
"Nice outfit," complimented an ecstatic Ryan. "Heh, very Sith."
Peter was both shocked and amazed.
"Oliver, is that really you?"
"What's just happening?" Thor exclaimed stunned and incredulous. "How can you be here?"
The former archer replied:
"I am Oliver Queen, but I'm also something more."
"More what?" Barry exclaimed in a stunned whisper.
"Some might call me a ghost, a Spectre that's in tune with the entire Multiverse."
At this declaration, the Paragons had a sense of hope.
"So there's still a Multiverse out there?" Ryan wondered.
"If it still exists, why can't I summon Bifrost?" Thor added puzzled.
"Multiverse's gone," Oliver retorted. "Replaced with its antithesis."
"An anti-matter universe." Supergirl wondered.
"Which we need to prevent from happening." confirmed the former archer. "Right now, the Anti-Monitor is at the Dawn of Time, fighting to make permanent his destruction of worlds."
"Heh, there's still hope to save all those we lost, despite what he did?" asked Rocket anxiously.
"There is always hope," Oliver nodded.
"Then we go there," Kate said. "And we end him."
"Together," Thor added, brandishing both weapons determinedly. "We must overcome him all, whatever it takes. We must beat him before his anti-matter universe remains permanent."
"He's extremely powerful," Oliver reminded them. "All of us together might not be enough."
"How can we defeat a cosmic being?" Peter asked in amazement and disbelief. "He destroyed thousands of worlds. How can we stop him?"
"We need a backup plan." the Spectre said.
"You have our attention." J'onn said.
"A backup plan?" said Rocket ecstatically. "I'm on it. What do we have to do?"
Oliver explained to them:
"Several millennia ago on a planet named Maltus, Mar Novu attempted to travel to the birth of the universe but instead opened a breach to the anti-matter universe."
"So the Monitor gave us the Anti-Monitor." Lex realized thoughtfully.
"Correct. So while some of us fight at the Dawn of Time, others must go to Maltus." the former archer clarified.
"And prevent Novu from freeing his doppelganger?" Supergirl assumed with determination. "I'm in."
"Travel to an alien world? So in." Ryan said, interested.
"The planet where the Monitor came from?" Rocket added jovially. "I'm in, too. If we stop Novu from creating his evil doppelganger, we can save everyone."
"Same," Lex added emphatically.
At these words, Supergirl and the raccoon looked at the psychopath with disapproval.
"Come on. You know you don't want to risk letting me out of your sight for even a millisecond." Lex objected to the Girl of Steel.
"Oh no!" Rocket moaned in exasperation. "Does this idiot really have to come with us?"
"I'm not asking permission, mammal," Lex told the Guardian of the Galaxy.
Barry looked at Oliver apprehensively.
"We can get to both through the Speed Force, but I can't get into the Speed Force right now. It's probably because there's no Multiverse left, but you said you're in tune with the Multiverse. Does that include the Speed Force?"
"What you're asking me is very dangerous, Barry." Oliver replied in a neutral tone.
"But possible," he emphasized the speedster. "You could give me the energy boost I need. Please. We have to do this! Everyone's lives depend on it!"
Thor joined the two men.
"Oliver, you said yourself that Speed Force was the key to saving everyone. So that's how we can reach our two destinations. If we want to achieve both of our goals, we need your help to achieve them."
Oliver placed his finger on Barry's forehead. Immediately, the latter felt an energy run through his whole body.
"I've unlocked your potential, Barry." the Specter said.
"By touching my head?" Flash exclaimed in disbelief and amazement.
"Use this power with caution." Oliver told him softly. (Then he gave a friendly smile like the real Oliver would.) "Do you trust me?"
"Are you Oliver Queen?" Barry asked, still wondering if his real friend was still there.
"Yes," the Spectre assured him, still smiling.
"Then I trust you with every cell of my body." Barry replied categorically.
"Good. Now run, Barry… Run."
Barry turned to his allies. They all nodded with determination. They knew what to do.
"It's your move, speedster," Rocket said optimistically, aware of what he expected.
"It's all up to you, Barry," Thor told him softly with an encouraging and friendly look.
And Flash gone in super-speed, taking all the Paragons, including Thor and Rocket.
Supergirl, Ryan, Lex and Rocket appeared in super speed in the middle of a forest on the planet Maltus. Rocket and Ryan screamed, as they were thrown into the air. Supergirl managed to grab them both, and placed them gently on the ground. Lex lands abruptly under a pile of fallen leaves.
Rocket struggled to his feet, as the Kryptonian helped Ryan to his feet.
"Thanks for landing," said the raccoon.
"Thanks for the kind assist," Lex muttered sarcastically, dusting off his handsome, chic suit.
Rocket looked around. He only saw trees.
"So this is Maltus? That's not exactly how I imagined it."
"Why doesn't this alien forest look more alien?" Ryan added, contemplating the surroundings dubiously.
"Let's focus," Supergirl said, taking the walk. "Mar Novu could be anywhere, and it's not like we can just do an Internet search for him."
"Well, actually, maybe we can," Ryan suggested, indicating a direction. "Look at that, guys!" (Several yards from their positions, tall buildings stood outside the woods.) "Any city that large has to be a bureaucracy."
"And?" Supergirl asked with a shrug.
"How's that working out for us, Smart-Boy?" resumed Rocket skeptically.
"Well, bureaucracies require some form of central data bank to function." Ryan replied, turning to them. "We find that, we find Novu."
Supergirl and Rocket were jovial at this news.
"Not bad, you pal," the raccoon said enthusiastically.
"That's actually not a bad idea." added the Girl of Steel, smiling. "Let's go!"
The three of them turned and were stunned to find that Lex Luthor was no longer with them.
"Seriously, where did cue ball go?" grumbled Rocket again unhappy. "I knew it was a stupid idea to let him come with us!"
And he growled in rage. Supergirl gave him a sympathetic look.
"Yeah, you're right, Rocket," she said frustrated too. "Where did Lex go?"
Flash was rushing forward, through Speed Force, taking with him, the other Paragons. But as he ran, he came face to face with the Anti-Monitor who was brandishing his arms as if to attack him. He did everything to dodge it, then he lost track of his course.
Flash felt a fall into the void, and landed with a crash in a server room. As he stood up, he found that he was no longer wearing his hero outfit, but was dressed in plain civilian clothes. He felt like he had stepped back. As if he had jumped back in time. This room seemed very familiar to him.
To his surprise, he discovered a large trunk labeled: Queen Consolidated.
"Queen Consolidated?"
"Not exactly."
He turned his head to find Oliver Queen, no longer wearing his dark Specter gown, but dressed in a chic suit. He smiles amicably.
"You're in the Speed Force, Barry."
"What happened to you?" Barry asked, stunned and confused. "You're not Spectrey anymore."
Oliver looked at himself and retorted, as if he had become himself again. Then his body began to disappear in smoke.
"Oh… Well, I'm lost… I'm out there somewhere in the Speed Force, too. Right. The Anti-Monitor attacked. We were separated, and I am utilizing various pieces of my essence to keep me, Sara, J'onn, Thor, Peter and Kate together."
Puzzled, Barry looked around recognizing where he was and retorted:
"That's why I'm here. (Turning to Oliver.) This is where we first met."
"There are few things more powerful in the universe than memory and connection." said the former archer. "I am using our memories of our friends and closest allies to keep all of us from falling out of the Speed Force."
"Wait. What happens if they fall out?"
"We'll be consumed by anti-matter. I can buy you time, Barry, but you need to get to each of us."
"I mean, the Speed Force is infinite." Barry objected in distress. "I could never know where to begin to look."
"Remember, Barry, memories and connections." Oliver told him as he disappeared in smoke. "You need to consider our greatest victories, our most crushing defeats, the moments when the bonds between us were forged."
"The bonds were forged." Barry repeated with determination.
"Now do this, Barry." Oliver told him encouragingly. "Because you have to."
And he disappeared immediately, like an eraser erasing a stroke of a pencil.
Then Barry ends up disappearing in super-speed.
When he stopped his run, it was to find himself at the Star Labs checkpoint and wearing his Flash outfit again. Puzzled, he looked around.
"What the…"
Then a male voice caught his attention:
"Um… Hello…"
The voice echoed. Stunned, Flash turned… to see a second Flash who was wearing a jumpsuit much more futuristic than his. The two Flashs stared at each other in confusion and amazement.
"What the hell is this?" said the new Flash disoriented still with a voice that echoed.
"I'm asking myself the same question." said Flash in amazement. "Literally. No, this can't be happening, this… you should... What are you doing here?"
The new Flash was as stunned as its counterpart and replied abruptly:
"Well, I'll answer that when you tell me where "here"...is."
As Flash tried to find a rational explanation, his counterpart continued in a jovial voice:
"Is this cosplay. Oh, do you want a selfie, bro? I'm sorry..."
Obviously, he thought he was talking to an admirer, but Flash was quick to clarify:
"No, no, I'm sorry. We're not… I'm also the Flash."
"You're also the what?" his double asked in confusion.
"The Flash."
"The Flash? The Flash?!" repeated the new speedster, still more confused and disoriented.
"It's complicated," replied the hero of Central City who didn't know what to answer to his double.
Then the new Flash eyed her with interest, then began to touch her outfit.
"I like your outfit. It seems comfy."
"Yours is pretty cool." Flash replied, touching his counterpart's jumpsuit. "Pretty safe."
"It's smooth.Breathable."
Then the two Flashs stopped touching and became serious again. They both shook hands, and both said at the same time.
"I'm Barry Allen."
On behalf of Barry Allen, the new Flash shook its head in disbelief and confusion.
"No! No!"
"What?" Flash asked dazed again.
"What does this mean?! How can this...?" said his doppelganger, completely disoriented.
"This should be impossible now." Flash retorted skeptically.
As far as Barry knew, all of the Parallel Earths had been consumed by anti-matter. Where could this Flash come from? It didn't make sense!
"Should be impossible now?" his counterpart confused.
"You don't know about the...?" Central City's Flash whispered, flabbergasted.
"Oh my God, don't do this to me. I don't know about the what?" the new Flash flew in annoyance. "You okay?"
"Hum..."
Suddenly, the new Flash went up in smoke, whispering in amazement:
"I told Victor this was possible…"
Once alone, Flash remained confused and distraught. Who was this Flash and where did he come from? And why in this replica of Star Labs?
On Maltus, Lex walked through the forest whistling with a natural tune. Then Supergirl came to land right in front of him, with Rocket clinging to her red cape.
The two heroes stared at Lex contemptuously.
"What do you think you're doing?" Supergirl thundered loudly.
"What you should have done the moment fleet feet dropped us off here" Lex retorted like he was talking to an idiot. "Checked out the lay of the land, looked for hidden dangers. We are on an alien world. Any number of chest busters or predators could be lying in wait. Don't you capes ever watch a movie?"
He continued to walk, ignoring the two heroes. Firmly, Supergirl followed him, with Rocket behind her.
"You know what? Whatever it is you're planning, I'm gonna figure it out," the Girl of Steel said, running to get ahead of Lex. "And I'm gonna stop you."
But the psychopath was hardly impressed. He just stared at Supergirl with disinterest.
"I doubt that. In a contest of mind over muscle, mind wins every time, but here. Let me make it easy for you. Ask me what I'm up to.
Supergirl snorted in disbelief, knowing that her enemy was going to make it difficult for her. But Lex continued to insist still with a strange calm.
"Go ahead!"
"All right," Supergirl retorted in annoyance, crossing her arms over her chest. "What are you up to, Lex?"
"Universal domination, of course."
Cursing a curse of rage, Rocket climbed to the top of a rock to level with the bald psychopath and eyed him furiously.
"Hey Luthor, listen to me..."
"I almost forgot this talking animal!" Lex grumbled, rolling his eyes.
"Shut up and listen to me, Chrome-Dome," Rocket said in anger and a threatening tone. "I don't care if you don't like me..."
"No kidding!" Lex shouted indifferent to the raccoon's angry.
But Rocket continued firmly, as if he hadn't been interrupted:
"But we didn't come here to do tourism or for universal domination! We have a mission! We want to save everyone! I lost the only family I ever had! And I intend to get them back! So you're gonna stop showing off and acting like you're the smartest of us all! You'll follow us, without arguing! And you're not going to give me any trouble about it, right?!"
"And if I refuse, what are you gonna do to me?" Lex asked in a calm voice, not feeling threatened at all. "You gonna use your claws, raccoon?"
Rocket immediately drew his blaster and aimed it straight at the psychopath's head in rage.
"I'll do worse than that! I'll fix you hairless face with my gun!"
Lex just sighed wearily and brandished his fists, immediately blasts of energy burst from his wrists and hit Supergirl, pushing her away, and landed on the ground. Stunned, Rocket fired a blaster, but Lex dodged his attack and hit the raccoon with his newfound powers. The Guardian of the Galaxy was hit and thrown into brush.
"Oh, I probably… uh… should have mentioned that I gave myself a few upgrades when I checked the Book of Destiny out of the library." Lex clarified as the two heroes were unconscious in two places in the forest.
Ryan appeared and ran up to him in panic.
"What are you doing?"
"God, I am so tired of answering that question." Lex grumbled.
And he lashed out at Ryan, attacking him with his energy jets and pushing him away from him. He fell to the ground, totally unconscious.
He readjusted his costume and resumed his walk, whistling, as if nothing had happened.
"Moving on."
The last thing Kate remembered was that she was being carried by Flash in the Speed Force, and then… the Anti-Monitor appeared out of nowhere. Everyone had been dispersed. Then Kate had felt herself fall into a great void...
Upon regaining consciousness, she discovered that she was in a hallway leading to a door with the Palmer Technologies logo on it.
Puzzled, she looked around and heard Ray Palmer's recognizable voice echoing:
"Yeah… The Black Canary… She tried to shut me up, but it's not gonna work."
She walked towards the source of the voice. Then she heard Oliver's voice echoing too:
"I didn't kill those people…"
"Yes, I know.Felicity told me." Ray said in disbelief. "An impersonator, right?Heh.Hate when that happens."
She walked down the hall and came to an office, where Ray Palmer, clad in a fancy suit, was behind a desk cabinet, with Oliver standing in front of him.
"Five years on a deserted island." Ray muttered,still skeptical. "Ohh.That kind of thing really changes you, doesn't it? Must have been difficult -if not impossible- to hold on to your sanity all those years, and here you are, pretending you have everything in control."
"Felicity told you the truth," Oliver replied firmly. "And you should trust her judgment."
Obviously, Kate was in a memory of Oliver. At a time when he and Ray weren't yet allies. As she listened to them talk, she seemed thoughtful, as if their discussions concerned her.
"How can I do that?" Ray said in surprise. "Her perception of you is clearly clouded by her emotional attachment. She's not seeing you for what you really are."
"You have no idea what this city is up against." Oliver growled insistently, turning around.
"Actually, I think I do," Ray said. "And I'm gonna stop him."
Turning around, Oliver saw Kate. Frowning, he looked around him, and, puzzled, questioned the young woman:
"Who are you?"
Kate looked confused, not knowing how to explain that she was in the past.
After being transported by Flash into Speed Force, Peter was shocked by the appearance of the Anti-Monitor and was separated from the Paragon group.
As he regained consciousness, he saw with amazement that he had landed in the middle of Times Square in New York. Many people were crossing the street, totally ignoring the young man. Was he back in New York? To his New York? Where was he considered public enemy number one?
Stunned, he looked around, and saw his girlfriend MJ, near a street lamp. Had she come back?
"MJ!"
As he was about to join her running, he stopped his race when he saw a Spider-Man perched on top of the lamppost. It was himself! What did this mean?
Then a giant screen on the Madison Square Garden building caught his attention:
"This is breaking news… We come to you now with revelations about last week's attack in London…"
London?! Stunned, Peter realized he had jumped in the past. He recognized this moment with horror. It was the day his life had turned to horror. The day his secret identity was revealed by his late enemy Quentin Beck.
In horror, Beck's bloodied face loomed over the big screen in Times Square. He spoke in a distraught voice:
"I managed to send the Elemental back into the dimensional rift, but I don't think I'm gonna make it off this bridge alive. Spider-Man attacked me for some reason. He has an army of weaponized drones, Stark technology. He's saying he's the only one who's gonna be the new Iron Man, no one else."
And to Peter's horror, the image showed Beck on the ground, with Spider-Man speaking in EDITH's doctored voice:
"Are you sure you want to commence the drone attack? There will be significant casualties."
Then his own voice retorted in a firm voice:
"Do it! Execute them all!"
"No… Stop… No…" stammered Peter distraught. "Why make me relive this? Don't!"
Then the journalist broadcast the speech of J. Jonah Jameson who hastened to clarify:
"There you have it, folks: conclusive proof that Spider-Man was responsible for the brutal murder of Mysterio! An interdimensional warrior who gave his life to protect our planet, and who will no doubt go down in history as the greatest superhero of all time!"
Hearing Jameson introduce Beck as a great superhero made Peter miserable. Distressed and distraught, he tried to cover his ears.
"Stop it! Please!"
"But that's not all, folks." resumed the recorded image of Jameson. "Here's the real blockbuster. Brace yourselves, you might wanna sit down."
And finally, Beck's face appeared on the screen, much to Peter's horror:
"Spider-Man's real... Spider-Man's real name is... Spider-Man's name is Peter Parker!"
And a gigantic photo of Peter bursts onto the screen above Madison Square Garden.
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Peter yelled, distraught. "Stop it! Anti-Monitor, if you're going to kill me, just do it! But don't make me watch this! Come on! KILL ME!"
As he cried out, he realized that everything had stopped. Stunned, he noticed that everyone around him was frozen. New Yorkers stared at the huge screen, completely still like statues. Even the screen showed the photo of Peter Parker. Everyone was frozen. There was no sound. No whisper. Peter would have thought he was in a silent movie.
Shocked, he walked over to MJ who was still like the others, and watching worriedly, the Spider-Man perched on the stationary lamp as well.
"I don't understand… Am I dead? I am in paradise? Or in Hell?"
"Far from it." answered a deep and recognizable voice.
Peter whirled around and saw Oliver in his archer's outfit. He no longer looked like a Specter, and walked quietly towards the young Avenger with a reassuring smile.
"Hello Peter," he said in a very normal voice.
"Oliver?" exclaimed the confused and stunned young man. "What's just happening? I am dead?"
"No, you are not," answered the archer, still smiling. "The Anti-Monitor attacked us and I used my Spectre powers to save you. I brought you here."
Peter looked again at MJ still, then his entourage, completely distraught.
"Why did you make me come here? Why show me this?" he lamented in fury and despair.
"Peter, I'm not trying to torture you," Oliver assured him soothingly. "Absolutely not. I want to help you."
"To what?"
"To become the hero that you are again. The Avenger that you are. The hero Tony and I saw in you."
But Peter was still furious.
"How is showing me what I screwed up gonna help me?"
"You're here, because it's one of your worst memories," Oliver said calmly. "The day you stopped believing in yourself."
The young Avenger then resumed his tone full of despair:
"Oliver, I'm not a hero! Novu screwed up by making me a Paragon! And that… (He showed him the giant screen that displayed his picture.) it's proof that all I can do is fail…"
"You haven't failed, Peter, not at all! You saved your friends. I know that, because I was there. I was by your side, but it was you who defeated Mysterio and saved your friends. And you prevented the deaths of several innocent people. You were able to thwart the plans of a madman who wanted to cause harm to others just to be famous."
"Beck's dead, but he won," Peter said in an angry voice. "He became famous. He ruined my life. Everyone takes him for the greatest superhero of all time, and that I'm the criminal who murdered him."
"But you and I both know that's not true," Oliver objected gently. "You're much better than that, Peter. Don't let a fool destroy your life. You're not a criminal, let alone a murderer. You've to find the strength to fight, to prove to the world that he was lying. You are what Beck never was. A hero. A true hero. You are much more than an Avenger. You are Spider-Man. And Spider-Man must continue to fight for his friends, to fight for justice. You can show the whole world who you really are. A hero who risked so much for others. Look at that."
Peter looked up at the big screen again, and was surprised to see himself fighting the Vulture several years ago. Then he saw himself fighting Thanos on Titan, using his web to slow him down, and finally battle with the Avengers against the entire Mad Titan army.
Then Oliver continued with a smile:
"And that's what really happened in London."
Then the screen showed Spider-Man fighting an army of drones. Confront Beck and fight against a Green Arrow illusion.
"That's the Spider-Man I know. You are worthy to be a Paragon. Because you know how to choose what's right. You never run away from your responsibilities. You take them. You never stop fighting. Now I'll show you something else."
The archer waved his hand, and the screen showed another Spider-Man. This Spider-Man who fought an individual wearing a green jumpsuit, whose nickname would be the Green Goblin. And that same Spider-Man was fighting a man with metal tentacles on his back, then stopping a train.
And Peter then recognized this Spider-Man as being the one from Earth – 962, because he was fighting the Kraven hunter.
And the screen scrolled past other Spider-Mans. To his surprise, Peter recognized the black Spider-Man, Miles Morales, and Spider-Gwen. These two Spider-Men fought crime by hovering from web to web.
"Tell me what you see," Oliver asked him, still smiling.
"They're all Spider-Man in other Earths," Peter replied, not seeing what the archer mean.
"And? Take a good look. There's something else. All of these Spider-Men have something in common. Look at them and tell me what they are, besides being Spider-Man!"
He saw Spider-Man from Earth – 962 stop a train, then save Mary-Jane. He saw Miles Morales fight a tall, bald, obese man in a black suit. Then Spider-Gwen fight several enemies to protect civilians.
"Heroes," Peter whispered. "They are all heroes."
"Exactly," Oliver replied, satisfied. "All of these Spider-Men not only gained similar powers to yours, but they also went through the same ordeals as you. They suffered losses, failures and that made them better. The best of heroes is failure. This is what makes you stronger and better."
Then the screen showed Charles Xavier's face when he spoke to Peter on Earth – TRN414:
"… Just because someone stumbles, loses their way, it doesn't mean they're lost forever… And it's by making mistakes that we learn from ourselves. This is how we improve, how we become an adult. By making mistakes, by learning from them and we mature afterwards..."
Oliver nodded with a smile:
"He was right."
Then the image of Charles resumed:
"…You have to hold on to that hope, Peter, and that is how you will overcome this difficult trial. You mustn't forget that despite your powers, you are above all a human being, and the human is far from perfect. He can tip over, go astray and then become better. We're all confronted with trials, but the true measure of a man is how he chooses to react in the face of those trials. You have proven your worth as an Avenger, as Spider-Man, as a hero, and later as a Paragon. I'm sure that you really are..."
Peter then looked at Oliver who continued to smile at him encouragingly:
"You have to hold on to hope, Peter. If you want to save your friends and prove that you are a good one, you must never give up. Heroes never give up. The real heroes are the ones who have to keep going, no matter what. If you insist on keeping Beck from triumphing, you'll see. People will see Spider-Man's true face and Mysterio's joke. They will see the hero I know. And during this Crisis, you acted with honor and bravery."
And the screen then showed Spider-Man's battles during the Crisis. Peter saw himself fighting the dark demons on Earth – 38. Then fighting Kraven on Earth – 962 with Alex, Dreamer and Kelly by his side. And finally, Earth – TRN414, where Spider-Man fought Magneto and Psycho-Pirate along with Supergirl, Batwoman, Alex, Kelly and the X-Men.
"Everything you accomplished during the Crisis proves you are worthy of being a Paragon," Oliver said cheerfully. "You are a real hero. Everything Mysterio never was. You are one of those who never give up. And all your fights will inspire other heroes in the near future which is up to you. Look."
And the giant screen showed a brand new black Spider-Man that looked very futuristic.
"Who is this? Another Spider-Man?" Peter said curiously.
"Yeah, his name is Miguel O'Hara," Oliver clarified. "And he's a Spider-Man from the future. From the year 2099. And he became a hero taking inspiration from you."
"Seriously?" exclaimed Peter, dumbfounded. "Will my actions have an impact on the future?"
"Yes, if you keep fighting, you can inspire a generation of heroes to take your place in the centuries to come," Oliver said. "This future depends only on you, and on the outcome of this Crisis. The others are counting on you, Peter. They rely on Spider-Man. If you give up, if you have no more hope, then all will be lost. The Anti-Monitor will win and his anti-matter universe will remain permanent forever."
Peter then realized his mistake. He thought his failure would make him weak and useless. But he couldn't think so. Not when the universe was under threat. Spider-Man had to react. He had to.
He turned to Oliver.
"I am Spider-Man, and I must face the Anti-Monitor, if I am to be able to save my friends, and one day inspire heroes like Miguel O'Hara. I hope I don't dishonor the memory of Mr. Stark."
To his surprise, Oliver suppressed a laugh.
"You won't smear Iron-Man's memory. Tony has always had faith in you. And he's proud of you."
"How do you know?" Peter wondered.
Oliver motioned for him to turn around. Peter did so and saw in amazement… Tony Stark in his Iron-Man suit, smiling amiably at him.
"Hi kid! It's been a while!"
The young man's jaw dropped and his eyes widened in disbelief.
"Mr. Stark?"
Tony laughed at the shocked expression on Peter's face.
"We'll say that Robin Hood is the Ghost of Christmas Present and I, the Ghost of Christmas Future. You're an Avenger, kid, and like Oliver said, you have to keep going. Never give up. The Avengers never gave up, even when Thanos wiped out half the universe. We have always remained united. The heroes must persevere and fight for a better world. Don't let a crackpot like Beck pretend what you're not. You are much better than that, Spider-Man."
Stunned and shocked, Peter smiled at the sight of his idol.
"Nice to see you again. Does that mean... that I will see you both again?"
Oliver and Tony exchanged looks, then the archer spoke again:
"We're never far from you, Peter. Never forget who you really are."
Peter looked at MJ frozen again, then returned his attention to the two men who had been his idols.
"I'm ready."
"Parker," Tony said with a smile. "When you've defeated that Anti-Monitor bastard, you'll tell my wife and daughter that I love them 3,000."
"I will," Peter assured him.
"Before you leave us, there is one thing I must do," Oliver said, resting his finger on the young man's forehead.
Peter felt a powerful energy consume his body, and looked stunned when he found he was no longer wearing his civilian clothes. He was now wearing his Spider-Man outfit. The same one he had when he fought Mysterio in London.
"I've always liked that suit," Oliver said jovially, resuming his Spectre's voice.
"I like it too," Tony added.
Peter smiled, delighted at the sight of wearing his self-designed costume and donned his Spider-Man mask. The Avenger Spider-Man, the Paragon of Responsibility was determined to fight the Anti-Monitor.
"I want to limit your involvement in this."
"Why? Because I'm an alien? I also happen to be your biggest weapon!"
"You're an unknown quantity, and this isn't personal."
"Except that's exactly how this feels."
"Kara, when I when I started living this life, I was going up against human threats alone, and I could handle that. Then there were metahumans, and I could handle that. I just discovered that there are multiple Earths, and I was brainwashed aboard an alien spacecraft."
"I'm sure that was unnerving…"
"I don't get unnerved. When I go up against something new, I push back. Right or wrong, it's who I am, and it's what I do, so I am asking you for just a little bit of space so that I can draw a line somewhere so that I can claw back just a small sense of normalcy..."
J'onn had no idea what was going on. After being attacked by the Anti-Monitor, he had just found himself in a huge hangar, with versions of Oliver Queen and younger Supergirl arguing.
He joined them with a determined tone.
"I'm afraid we're well past normal."
Oliver and Supergirl saw him.
"J'onn, what are you doing here?" exclaimed the stunned Girl of Steel.
"That is a very long story." J'onn replied with a look of confusion.
Thor lands with a crash on the shores of a dark island. Stunned and confused, the God of Thunder looked at his surroundings.
"Where am I? Allfathers, help me find my way..."
He brandished Stormbreaker in hopes of summoning the Bifrost, but nothing came. No rainbow light.
Then he ends up going into the forest of this strange island, wondering what he was doing there.
"This island isn't real. I'm in Speed Force," he declared. "I feel the disturbances of this dimension… Why am I here?"
And he heard voices that were familiar to him. He hastened to join, hoping to find his friends there.
He arrived in front of a part of the forest where he recognized Kara chatting with Oliver who looked like a bearded hermit who had been in solitude for a very long time.
Thor understood then that he was in a memory, as the Kara he saw was wearing the Avengers jogging suit, when she had gone to meet him in New Asgard on Earth.
He heard his Kryptonian friend speak:
"… The only way to save your city is to come with me to Avengers Earth, repair what Thanos broke. Even if it's dangerous, we have to, Oliver. Because I lost everything during those five years. I lost my loved ones, my identity, and even my Earth. You can go home. I can't. On my Earth, the air has become toxic to me. Kryptonite was spread throughout the atmosphere. If I go home, I die. I had to flee not to die, and I took refuge for five years on Avengers' Earth. Now, I have nothing. Thanos took everything from me. All. This new chance is our only hope. My hope of returning to a normal life. Because I'm nothing at all without Supergirl. I don't know what to do with my life. What do you want to do? Stay on this island until the end of your days without worrying about others? Do you really think Felicity and William wanted that? Join me, Oliver. Don't do it for yourself or for me, but for your son and your wife. Be realistic, you cannot go on like this. Like me, I cannot continue to wander the Multiverse like a ghost. Your family misses you. I miss mine too. My sister Alex misses me so much..."
And Oliver answered her:
"…You are right. We must act for our Universe."
Thor smiled wistfully, remembering the Avengers' struggle to undo what Thanos had destroyed. His friend Kara who had urged him to keep hope.
He couldn't help but speak out loud:
"The Universe still needs us."
Kara and Oliver looked up and saw the God of Thunder with his two weapons in his hand. The Kryptonian was stunned at the sight of her Asgardian friend.
"Thor, what are you doing here? And… how did you get skinny again? Looks like… (She smiles happily.) Looks like you're back to yourself… you're not even drunk anymore…"
And Thor joined the two heroes.
"It was you, Kara, who made me the hero that I am now. You gave me hope in a time when I no longer had it. You did so much for me. I can't thankyou enough."
Stunned, Kara continued:
"Why are you on Earth – 1? Weren't you supposed to be with the Avengers on to the Quantum Realm's trip?"
Thor burst out laughing, knowing that his friend was suspicious of what was going on.
"Kara, I'm not really here. This is the Speed Force. I must be in one of Oliver's memories."
"The Speed Force? Memories? What are you talking about?" Oliver asked, confused.
On Maltus, Rocket regained consciousness, grumbling. He cursed the Anti-Monitor for taking his family away from him and having a lunatic psychopath like Lex Luthor didn't help his bad mood. He vowed to kill Lex, even if it meant losing one of the Paragons. How could save the universe with a madman like him? Even Nebula was much more bearable than him.
"Officially, I hate Lex Luthor," he mumbled.
Close to him, Ryan had regained consciousness too, and had quickly stood up.
"Supergirl?"
The raccoon joined him, picking up his blaster.
"I'm fine. Thanks for asking."
"Where's Supergirl?" said the scientist.
Then the two joined the Kryptonian who was unconscious on the ground. Rocket came over to gently pat Kara's face, while Ryan checked her body.
"Kryptonian, wake up please, rise and shine," the raccoon said nervously.
Then Supergirl woke up, confused.
"Rocket? Ryan?"
"I think Lex pulled a Luthor on us." Ryan said.
"I hate that bald asshole!" Rocket roared angrily. "I hate him! He was a dick at the Vanishing Point, and here, he only pisses me off even more!"
"So do I," Supergirl said, getting up.
"On the bright side, I haven't been knocked unconscious on an alien planet before." Ryan said.
"It's pretty much the same as being knocked unconscious on Earth." Supergirl retorted, reminding her that she was an alien.
"Hey Kryptonian," said Rocket. "I know we've never had a good relationship, but you and I have a common enemy, Lex Luthor. And I want to beat this bald moron!"
"You'll get your chance, I promise," Supergirl assured him, delighted to be on the same page with Rocket.
She checked Ryan's body with her x-ray vision, and made her way back to civilization. As they walked, Ryan couldn't help but retort:
"This definitely makes me question again why I'm here. I haven't got special powers or, you know, powers. I'm pretty much the dictionary definition of unspecial, and I definitely don't feel like I'm a Paragon of Anything, let alone humanity."
"The most important is not to know that you are a Paragon," explained Rocket while walking. "It's being able to be able to stop this damn Crisis and get our loved ones back."
"Supergirl, Rocket," Ryan said, stopping his walk. "Are you sure you guys got the right guy?"
Supergirl looked at him compassionately and replied:
"You left your family because someone you never even met told you, you were needed. I'd say that makes you pretty special."
Ryan felt more confident.
"I don't know about hope, but you're definitely the Paragon of Pep Talks."
"Yup! She is," Rocket said with a smile.
"Years of practice," Supergirl replied, looking at the scientist and the raccoon. "We need to catch up to Lex."
"He's gonna make a mistake that's gonna ruin our only chance of stopping this Crisis," Rocket retorted. "We have to stop this idiot before he does any more damage."
"Yeah," Supergirl replied.
"How do you know where he's headed?" Ryan wondered.
"Well, before he knocked me out, he said was looking for universal domination. " the Kryptonian explained.
"So Hardly sounds like a newsflash." Ryan replied.
"Not really," added Rocket.
Supergirl added as she walked:
"The universal part is new, and if I know him, he's looking to mess with Novu's experiment, change history to his advantage."
"It would be a disaster," Rocket lamented. "If he finds Novu before us, we're screwed!"
Supergirl stopped her walk and turned to Ryan.
"I'm guessing you haven't flown on an alien planet either."
"I've never flown." replied the scientist uncomfortable.
" No, but it's okay, Dr. Choi." Kara replied. "You don't have to be nervous. It's just up, up, and away. Rocket, you're gonna have to let me transport you."
The raccoon grimaced. He hated being lifted and even more hated having to fly with Supergirl.
"We're in Crisis, so… I can handle it," he replied, climbing over Kara's body.
"Hold on," she said, taking Ryan by his jacket.
And she flew away taking with her, Rocket and Ryan.