Chapter 292: My Father, Iron Man

"There's no way he can hold it."

Otto sighed as he watched Spider-Man struggle to keep the ferry from splitting in half.

"This isn't like when the our Gen Spider-Man stopped the train," he explained. "The train was heavy and moving at full speed, but he managed to slow it down by using a massive amount of webbing to create leverage."

"But the weight of a ferry—and the kinetic energy after it breaks apart—is something entirely different."

The structural integrity was already compromised, water was gushing in from below, and the ship's center of gravity had shifted. The cargo was displacing erratically, making the situation even worse.

Even if Spider-Man somehow held it for a few seconds longer, the physics were against him.

"There are only two possible outcomes," Otto continued. "One, the webbing snaps under the strain. No matter how strong it is, it has a breaking point."

"Two, if the webbing does hold, then he won't. He'll either be forced to let go, or his body will fail before he even realizes it. Best case? He dislocates something. Worst case? He loses a limb."

"No matter what, he can't save this ship alone."

1st Gen Spider-Man frowned. He tried putting himself in 3rd Gen's position. If this were me… what could I do?

But the more he thought about it, the more he realized—he'd be just as powerless in this situation.

[Just as Spider-Man was reaching his breaking point, something unexpected happened—the two halves of the ferry stopped drifting apart.]

[Instead, they began pulling back together. Spider-Man, straining with everything he had, suddenly felt himself being lifted instead of dragged down.]

[Confused, he glanced around. "What… happened?"]

[He landed on the ferry's deck and heard a clank-clank-clank—the unmistakable sound of metal locking into place. His eyes widened. "Wait… what?"]

[Then, in the window reflection opposite him, a familiar red-and-gold figure appeared.]

[Tony Stark. Floating outside the ship. Arms crossed. Looking unimpressed.]

["Hey there, Spider-Man. Thought you were at band practice?"]

[Before Spider-Man could respond, he turned his head toward the sky. A series of thrusters were streaking toward them, separate from his suit.]

[They flew to both sides of the ferry, locking onto the hull. The moment they latched on, they activated, generating a massive burst of thrust.]

[The combined force from multiple thrusters successfully stabilized the ferry, pulling its two halves back together.]

[With the biggest crisis averted, Tony gave Spider-Man a glance, then ascended into the air.]

[Inside the ferry, the same black man from earlier clapped excitedly. "Yeah!!! Iron Man!!!"]

[The other passengers erupted into cheers.]

[Meanwhile, Spider-Man quickly swung after Tony, following him to the lower deck. He arrived just in time to see Stark cutting through debris with a laser, sealing off the damage.]

["Wait, Mr. Stark!" Spider-Man called, catching up. He swung up to the top deck, landing beside him. "Hey! Can I help? Can I do anything?"]

[Tony barely spared him a glance as he secured the observation deck with reinforced steel cables. "I think you've done enough already."]

[Spider-Man stood there, suddenly feeling small. As he looked around, he saw dozens of rescue ships approaching from the distance. Helicopters hovered overhead, ready to assist.]

"Whoa… that was awesome!"

Otto stared at the scene, amazed. "Independent intelligent thrusters? This is next-level tech."

"Yeah!" 1st Gen Spider-Man was equally impressed. Just when it seemed like there was no hope, Stark had swooped in like a literal savior, fixing everything in seconds.

Sure, some property was lost, but there were zero casualties. That alone was an incredible outcome.

George Stacy exhaled, finally relaxing. He turned to 2nd Gen Spider-Man and said, "Now I finally understand why the 3rd Gen Spider-Man calls Iron Man his father."

Before 2nd Gen could say anything, Gwen chimed in, "But you have to admit—Tony really did treat Peter Parker III like a son. He might've recruited him for help, but he also gave him a fully-equipped suit."

"He encouraged him. And from the way he talks to him, it's obvious—he cares about him."

Even Tony himself looked surprised. Watching his future self handle the situation so smoothly made him realize just how far he had come.

"That me probably figured out Spider-Man was lying," he muttered, rubbing his chin. "Which means he tracked his location manually. Or…"

His eyes narrowed in thought.

"Karen probably sees everything Spider-Man does," he guessed. "She must've sent the thrusters automatically when things got out of control."

Then, a lightbulb went off in his head.

"Banner, did you see that? The thrusters—look at them closely!" Tony replayed the footage, pointing at the moment the thrusters arrived.

Banner raised an eyebrow. "Yeah? What about it?"

"I just had a genius idea."

Banner sighed. "Tony, you have a new idea every two minutes."

"No, no, hear me out," Tony insisted. "We should build a platform—one that provides remote support at any time. When we need it, it appears instantly."

"And since we've already solved remote control issues, all we need is a satellite signal. That way, no matter where we are, we can call for backup."

Banner paused, then slowly nodded. "...That's actually not a terrible idea."

The two of them exchanged a glance.

"But before that," Banner added, "we need better nanomaterials. Otherwise, this won't be possible."

Tony smirked. "Already ahead of you. I've been gathering research on nanotechnology for a while now."

[Meanwhile, at the Vulture's secret base…]

[Only two people remained: Toomes and Mason. Even Herman was preparing to flee with his cut of the loot.]

[Vulture stared at him. "So that's it? You're running?"]

[Herman scoffed, stepping closer. "The FBI is onto us. Iron Man is onto us. Yeah, I'm getting the hell out. And you should too."]

[Toomes didn't flinch. "You know I can't do that."]

[Herman frowned. "Then what's your plan?"]

[Vulture turned to Mason, his voice calm. "That high-altitude vacuum seal device. Can you fix it? So it'll be ready when I need it?"]

[Mason's head snapped up. He stared in disbelief. "Wait… really?!"]

[For so long, Vulture had refused to consider this option. But now, he was asking for it.]

[Realizing his chance, Mason grinned. "Of course I can! Trust me, you won't regret this."]

[Vulture turned back to Herman. "You in?"]

[Herman raised an eyebrow but didn't answer.]

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