Chapter Text
Chick the Photo ⬆️
The sky over Manhattan tore open like cheap wrapping paper. A pulse of light—blinding, violent—split through the clouds above Times Square, sending thunderheads rolling like an angry ocean. New Yorkers did what they do best in weird situations: panic, record with their phones, and run.
A second later, something slammed into the ground with bone-rattling force. Asphalt shattered like glass under a perfect pair of black boots. Android 18 stood, unfazed, her blonde hair whipping in the storm-born wind. Her ice-blue eyes narrowed, scanning the city around her.
"This... isn't home," she muttered.
Then the second crash hit. Behind her.
BOOM.
A much larger figure landed feet-first in a crater across the street. Green. Mottled. Grinning.
"Ah, 18," Cell hissed, voice like wet gravel. "This world feels... delicious."
18 barely reacted. She squared up, shifting into a ready stance. "If you think a change of scenery gives you an advantage, you're even dumber than you look."
Cell's tail raised like a scorpion's, gleaming in the gray light. "Let's find out."
He lunged.
Before the tip of the tail could strike—
THWIP!
A webline lashed through the air, slapping the tail off-course. Cell paused, confused. So did 18.
Then a figure swung down from a nearby building, twisting gracefully through the smoke and chaos before landing in a classic three-point pose.
"Hey, Gargan," Spider-Man quipped, tilting his head. "New paint job? Mutated again? Because you look like a walking avocado had an affair with a beetle."
Cell blinked. "Who in the hell—?"
18 raised an eyebrow. "Is that... a bug in spandex?"
Before Peter could answer—
A new voice, loud and angry: "WHO THE HELL IS STEALING MY LOOK?!"
Crash! The real Scorpion tore through a taxi, tail swinging wildly. "I see one fake bug bastard and suddenly everyone wants the Gargan drip?! Nuh-uh. That's MY brand, pal!"
Cell narrowed his eyes. "More insects. How quaint."
Spidey threw up his hands. "Okay! First of all, rude. Second of all, this is officially the weirdest Tuesday I've had since the time Deadpool swapped bodies with a cow. Third of all, we're arachnid, not Bugs or insects."
Cell didn't wait. He struck, tail-first, aiming once again for 18.
This time, both Spider-Man and Scorpion moved.
Spidey web-yanked the tail while Scorpion bulldozed into Cell's chest with a roar. The bio-android stumbled back, surprised by the resistance.
"You're fast," Cell admitted, turning to Peter. "But you're still just a man."
"Buddy," Peter huffed, flipping backward to dodge a ki-blast, "You have no idea how tired I am of hearing that."
Meanwhile, 18 watched. Evaluated.
The bug-man in red and blue moved with the kind of grace that came from years of battle—but he didn't kill. Even against something like Cell, he fought to subdue. Not destroy.
It reminded her of someone.
Krillin, a voice in her head whispered.
But she didn't know a Krillin. Not in this timeline. That name meant nothing. Just a ghost of a world she hadn't lived yet.
"Screw this!" Scorpion yelled, grabbing Cell by the tail and slamming him into the hood of a cab. "No one upstages ME!"
Cell kicked him away, more annoyed than hurt. "Pathetic."
He leapt again—but this time, 18 intercepted him with a flying knee to the face. His head snapped back. Spidey whistled.
"Oof. Okay, note to self: Do not get on her bad side."
18 glanced at Peter. "You fight well. For someone so... squishy."
"Thanks? I think?"
She didn't wait. With one hand, she grabbed Spider-Man by the arm and blasted off into the sky.
"Wha—hey! Hey! Kidnapping is a federal crime!" Peter shouted, flailing.
She didn't respond until they landed on a distant rooftop, overlooking the city.
She dropped him gently.
"We need to talk."
Peter panted, hands on knees. "Okay... ow... next time maybe just ask for my number."
She studied him for a moment.
Then said, quietly: "You remind me of someone. And that's not a compliment I give lightly."
Spider-Man straightened. "You remind me of every ex who could break me in half. But... you saved me back there. So. Thanks."
They stared at each other.
Below them, the city burned. Cell roared in the distance, flying free.
And the strange storm in the sky didn't close.
This was only the beginning.