Gwen and the others quickly obtained their watches at the headquarters. Stepping out, Gwen truly felt the sheer vastness and eccentricity of the multiverse: the person in charge of equipment distribution was actually Aunt May—naturally, an Aunt May version of Spider-Man.
"I never dreamed there could be an Aunt May version of Spider-Man—and honestly, how on earth did Aunt May even get bitten by the spider?"
As Jessica listened to Gwen, she didn't pay much mind to the elderly lady. Instead, she looked at the watch on her wrist and asked back uncertainly, "So, with this thing, I can just travel across the multiverse at will? I mean, as long as I follow the manual?"
"Not in our universe. Earth-616 is protected by a very strong reality barrier, so you can't just come and go as you please. That's why we have to use the Baxter Building of the Fantastic Four as a transit hub."
Cindy gave Jessica a brief explanation. Jessica nodded, only half-understanding, and then looked at the various signs along the street. From a certain perspective, the Society's headquarters wasn't much different from a regular city; it was filled with all sorts of advertisements.
[Spider-Man Rescue Special Training—Teaching you the correct way to save a lover thrown from a great height by an enemy, rather than snapping their spine with a web line.]
"That ad copy seems a bit... off."
"It is a bit weird." For some reason, Gwen felt a sudden chill. Then, she heard a voice that was familiar—or more accurately, a voice that was unfamiliar yet strangely recognizable: "That's because in most universes where Peter Parker is Spider-Man, his first love ends up being thrown from a great height by an enemy. And in most of those universes, the outcome for the lover is not very good."
Jessica looked over and saw a Spider-Woman dressed in the same outfit as Spider-Gwen appear beside them. She nodded thoughtfully. "So that kid Peter really is Spider-Man."
"...She didn't know?"
Realizing what she had just let slip, the newcomer Spider-Gwen looked at Jessica. Although Spider-Women were fewer in number than Peter Parkers, they were still a fairly common Spider-Totem. Having interacted with several versions of Jessica Drew, this Gwen had assumed this one also knew Peter's true identity, but it appeared she didn't.
"I basically knew—or guessed it, anyway. I just lacked a bit of evidence."
"Well... then I guess I won't do a full self-introduction..."
If Jessica hadn't known Peter Parker was Spider-Man, then she certainly wouldn't know that Ghost-Spider was Gwen Stacy. Thus, Spider-Gwen simply shrugged and introduced herself: "I'm Ghost-Spider from Earth-65. By the way, this name is actually really great—much better than Spider-Woman."
Jessica was a bit speechless. "Is that name really that bad?"
"Eh, hard to say. Maybe it's just more literal," Gwen picked up the topic. "But you know, it's fine if it's a universe with only one Spider-Man. But in a universe with multiple Spider-Totems—especially one that already has a Spider-Man—if you add a Spider-Woman on top of that..."
"People would think she's his older sister?"
Big question marks appeared over the heads of the other three. How did she reach that conclusion?
"Batwoman is Batman's cousin, Supergirl is Superman's cousin... So, people might assume Spider-Woman is Spider-Man's sister, or something." Jessica added after she finished, "Plus, I actually am two years older than Peter."
"Let's just skip this topic," Gwen sighed. "Peter was pulled away by Miguel—that 'double-door refrigerator' of a man—to discuss some things. We aren't very familiar with this place. Why don't you show us around?"
"Sure. Honestly, there are plenty of fun places at headquarters. I can take you for a tour," the resident Spider-Gwen said, adding a point, "But if you want something truly interesting, it's going on recruitment adventures in different universes. Seriously, that's way more fun than wandering around here. Have you ever been to a cartoon universe? Everyone there is in a Disney style, and Spider-Man is a pig."
Peter and Miguel took the elevator down from the hub. As they descended, Miguel explained the final category of anomalous cases.
"Setting aside those universes that the Web of Destiny does not wish for us to enter, there is one last type of universe—one you are very familiar with."
"Earth-616, right? The one with the powerful reality barrier that can't be penetrated."
"Not entirely correct. Earth-616 is indeed one of them, but it isn't the only one."
Using the model displayed by his watch, Miguel quickly isolated several special universes—three, to be precise.
"This is your universe, Earth-616, the place where the reality barrier is strongest. This one here is Earth-199999. We've observed that this universe is very unique; it produces absolutely no cosmic variants. Everything in this universe is one-of-a-kind."
Earth-199999... Oh, the MCU movie universe. According to the lore, before their version of Kang was killed, that universe was bound by the TVA and the Sacred Timeline, so it produced no temporal branches. It was a completely independent universe, and until Kang was killed, no universe similar to the MCU would appear.
From that perspective, it wasn't unreasonable for Earth-199999 to have a powerful reality barrier. It might even be different from the barrier of Earth-616—their barrier was set by He Who Remains, making it fundamentally impenetrable. After listening, Peter simply said, "No need to worry about that one for now," and moved to the next topic.
"And the other one?"
"The other one... I find it very baffling. Based on its fluctuations, it is almost identical to your universe. You could say it is a variant universe belonging to Earth-616. But we've explored many variants of Earth-616, which is why its specific strength is so puzzling. Simply put, I can't find a reason why this universe should be so unique."
Miguel added, "However, after consulting with several of the scientist Spider-Men in the Society, we've reached a possible conclusion. It's likely that this universe isn't just a simple variant of Earth-616, but rather a sort of control group—a corresponding existence. That is why you two are so special."
Peter had a faint, sinking feeling. He asked back, "What's the universe designation?"
He hoped it wasn't a designation he recognized, because the more famous the number, the bigger the trouble usually associated with it.
But Miguel clearly wasn't going to bring him good news.
"Based on the vibration frequency, the universe designation is—"
"—1610."
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