Archive of Our Own ^beta

“How do you take your coffee?” asked Bobbi, who was pouring herself a cup in the kitchen.

“With whiskey,” grunted Jessica, not looking up.

After a moment Jessica did look up. Bobbi was staring at her expectantly. Jessica rolled her eyes.

“Black.”

Bobbi poured Jessica her cup and placed it next to her at her desk. She placed a hand on Jessica’s shoulder and rubbed it as she watched Jessica type away on her laptop. Jessica fought the urge to instinctively pull her shoulder away. Being in a relationship like this was still taking some getting used to.

“What are you up to?” asked Bobbi.

“I’m downloading a movie to watch later tonight,” said Jessica, “and it IS pirated. That’s not a problem, is it?”

“No,” chuckled Bobbi, sitting at the kitchen table nearby, “Of course I do have to report it to S.H.I.E.L.D.”

“Do that and I swear to God I’ll give you swirly.”

Bobbi laughed. Jessica smiled. She was only partially joking, but she was glad it made Bobbi laugh nonetheless. The two had already told Peter and Mary Jane about their relationship, who of course made a huge fuss. Bobbi had told Maria Hill as well, leading her to believe it was a ruse to get information out of Jessica. Bobbi was still feeding her false information.*

“What’s the movie?”

“Attack of the Zombie Ghosts IV.”

“That can’t possibly be any good.”

“Attack of the Zombie Ghosts III certainly wasn’t.”

“Excellent.”

“You want me to wait so you can watch it too?”

No response.

“Bobbi?”

“Sorry,” said Bobbi, voice suddenly very serious, “I just got a notification from S.H.I.E.L.D.”

“What is it?”

Again, no response.

“Bobbi?”

“Oh no....”

“Bobbi!”

“Sorry,” apologized Bobbi, now in something of a panic, “The Avengers get notified whenever there’s a threat for us to address. We just got notified that a section of the Phalanx Dreadnought has crashed in upstate New York.”

“Shit, was anyone hurt?”

“No…”

“Then what’s the problem?”

“Its defense systems are still active.”

“Fuck.”

That was bad. A month or so ago Jessica, Bobbi, and Peter were among those on a team gathered by S.H.I.E.L.D. to take down a Phalanx Dreadnought. The battle had led to the formation of the Avengers, but Maria Hill targeted Peter and kicked him team while humiliating him in the process. Disgusted by this, Jessica quit the Avengers immediately afterwards.*

Since the Phalanx’s defeat, pieces of the ship had continued to float in space where they were being studied by S.H.I.E.L.D. Occasionally pieces fell down to Earth, but usually S.H.I.E.L.D. was able to prevent any serious damage. If the defenses were still active on this portion, it posed a serious risk. Phalanx technology far surpassed humanity’s. Their defenses included deadly drones, mechanized walkers, and other dangerous weapons that could be deployed to the planet and put people at risk.

“The other Avengers won’t make it in time,” said Bobbi worriedly, “They’d have to come all the way up from D.C. If we don’t stop those defenses now, they’ll make it to Kingston in no time. We have to do something.”

“I’ll call Peter.”

***

Spider-Man fired another web onto the tree in front of him and yanked on it with enough strength to launch him, being careful to not pull so hard that he uprooted the tree. He did it again and again, launching himself down the side of the highway. It wasn’t easy getting around by web slinging outside of the city, but he could still move faster than most cars on the road if he focused. Right now, all of his effort was going into that focus.

I can’t believe it, he thought, We should’ve taken out all of the defenses before leaving. This is all our fault.

The team that had taken down the Phalanx Dreadnought had followed explicit orders from Maria Hill to leave as much of the technology undamaged as possible. This meant leaving entire sections of the ship active. They didn’t pose a risk to anyone in space, but now that one had crashed...

We shouldn’t have listened to her, thought Peter, We should have deactivated everything.

Jessica had called Peter the moment she learned about the crashed section of the ship. Peter had changed into his Spider-Man suit and rushed out as soon as he heard. Jessica and Bobbi were on their way as well, but he couldn’t afford to wait for them. He could get there faster and save more people, so he had to.

He finally made it to the clearing with the ship. Sure enough, the enormous mound of black, twisted metal was clearly visible embedded in the ground. Several S.H.I.E.L.D. vehicles had surrounded the ship. Spider-Man was relieved that there was at least one line of defense already in place. If there was a chance he could stop the Phalanx weapons before any of the agents got hurt though, he had to try.

He took a running leap over the agents heads and latched onto the side of the ship, crawling directly towards one of the hatches. The agents murmured and exclaimed at his unexpected appearance, but Spider-Man tore open the hatch and let himself in before they could respond.

The moment he was inside, two humanoid droids activated and turned to face him with red glowing lights. He heard the sound of their weapons powering up and webbed each of them and slammed them together. They smashed to pieces upon impact, but several more had activated along with several drones.

Spider-Man fired his webbing up at the open hatch, sealing it shut. Now even if he failed, the weapons couldn’t use the hatch to escape. He then redirected his attention to the enemy. He punched and kicked several of them away while using his spider sense to dodge their energy weapons. He used his previous experience fighting these defenses aboard the dreadnought to maintain an advantage over them.

Spider-Man had smashed the last drone into the wall when he heard a loud whirring below him. Peter punched both of his hands through the ground and ripped off a section of the floor, giving him a direct line to the floor below.

Spider-Man leapt down into the dark corridor of the ship, only to turn around and see a massive mechanical walker charging up an energy weapon. He barely had time to utter “Oh no” before it began firing on him. Spider-Man dodged blast after blast, but he was worried the machine would blow a hole in the hull and escape. It would mow through those agents outside. He had to stop it here before that happened.

Spider-Man webbed the top of the walker and swung around it, leaping up into the air and coming down on top of it with as strong of a punch as he could muster. He cried out in pain as his fist rebounded off of the advanced alien metal and pain shot through his entire arm. He tried to shake it off. It had been a long time since something was too strong for him to punch through.

The walker articulated its upper half into a high-speed spin, flinging Spider-Man off of it and into a wall on the other side of the corridor, damaging the wall in the process. Spider-Man got to his feet and saw the walker charging it’s weapon again. With nowhere else to go, Spider-Man pounded his way through the damaged wall and leapt into the newly opened room just as the walker fired at him.

Spider-Man sighed with relief. It missed him. He gathered his bearings. Where was he? It was a dark room, but it looked like a storage facility of some kind. He looked over and saw a cylindrical glass tank that had been smashed open. He was still trying to discern what that meant when he felt something warm at his feet. He looked down and saw a black slime slithering up his leg. The next thing he knew it had enveloped his entire body.

***

“We’re almost there,” said Bobbi, leaning forward as the motorcycle sped down the highway, “You think Peter made it yet?”

“Probably,” said Jessica, who was sitting behind Bobbi with both arms hugging her tightly, “He can move really fast when he wants to. Shit, is that it?”

“Yes.”

Bobbi pulled over on the side of the road as she and Jessica leapt off and ran towards the enormous spaceship embedded in the ground before them. They had just run past the first S.H.I.E.L.D. security checkpoint when one of the agents attempted to stop them.

“Official Avengers business,” dismissed Bobbi, waving a badge in their faces.

That was all she needed to say. Bobbi had changed into her S.H.I.E.L.D. uniform; it was much better suited for combat than her usual attire. She had been trying to convince Jessica to invest in something similar, but Jessica refused. She insisted that the uniform made Bobbi look like a dork.

“Look,” said Jessica, pointing to an open hatch that had been webbed shut.

“Guess he is here,” said Bobbi, “Here, grab onto me. I have a new toy I want to try out.”

“I’m going to let that one slide without a remark.”

Jessica did as she was told, trusting whatever Bobbi had planned. Bobbi wasn’t one to act recklessly, so Jessica generally trusted her judgment in combat or investigative situations. Bobbi drew one of her batons and hooked a long cable from her utility belt to it. Then she held it in the air and flicked a switch, causing the top of the baton to extend and then open into a 4-prong grappling hook.

“Wow,” scoffed Jessica.

“You have a better idea?”

“Sure don’t; take it away.”

Bobbi fired the grappling hook up to the top of the ship, where it stuck to the webbing on the hatch. She then pulled the trigger and the cord retracted, pulling Bobbi and Jessica up as it did. The two grabbed onto the side of the webbing when they reached it. Jessica swallowed nervously as she looked down at the ground several stories down. She didn’t love heights.

“Is there any way we can break through this stuff?” asked Bobbi.

“Yeah,” nodded Jessica, pulling herself closer to the top of the hatch, “Look…”

Jessica lightly peeled away the top of the webbing until there was an opening big enough to climb through.

“Huh,” mused Bobbi.

“When you pull hard it just gets tighter,” said Jessica as she crawled in, “but if you pull on it lightly, it detaches. Kinda like a seatbelt.”

The two of them dropped down into the ship, where they saw dozens of damaged and deactivated defenses. It looked like Spider-Man was doing a pretty good job. They continued down the hallway and searched room after room, narrowly avoiding an enormous hole in the floor.

They found no sign of active defenses. Everything had either been damaged in the crash or forcibly deactivated by Spider-Man. It actually began to make Jessica uneasy. They had searched the entire floor and found no sign of movement.

Finally they made it down to the floor below them, where they heard a loud whirring in the distance. Sneaking cautiously, they eventually made their way into a tall room with a large mechanical walker. A single web hung off the top of it, but there was no sign of Spider-Man.

“Looks like Peter fought this thing,” whispered Bobbi.

“But he didn’t beat it,” added Jessica, “Where is he?”

The walker turned to them as the energy weapon began to charge.

“Shit.”

Jessica grabbed the back of Bobbi’s uniform and leapt away with all of her strength, hoisting Bobbi with her. The energy weapon blasted away their former hiding space as Jessica and Bobbi landed across the room. Jessica let out a cry of pain as they did.

“What is it?” asked Bobbi in concern.

“I think I pulled something in my leg,” groaned Jessica.

“Didn’t you stretch before the mission?”

“No, Bobbi. I didn’t,” responded Jessica irritably.

They both looked up fearfully as the energy weapon began charging again. Jessica couldn’t make another jump like that. This was it. They were done for.

That’s when a slender black figure leapt into the room from the other end. He flew directly at the walker and delivered a single punch right into its side. The walker shattered and collapsed to the ground as the energy weapon released a foul smelling exhaust and powered down. Jessica and Bobbi stared at the ruins of the massive weapon.

“What the hell was that?” asked Jessica.

“Look!” said Bobbi.

Jessica looked over at where Bobbi was pointing. The black figure was still there. He had large, white eyes and boasted a large white spider symbol across his chest. Jessica squinted and stared at the figure for a moment.

“Peter?” she whispered.

The figure fired a black web onto the ceiling and swung away.

“Was that him?” asked Bobbi.

“I think so,” said Jessica quietly.

Jessica felt her phone vibrate and pulled it out of her pocket. She should have left it with Bobbi’s bike. She was lucky the small device survived the fight. She checked the text she had just received. It was from Peter.

Can’t talk here. Meet me at your apartment.

“What is it?” asked Bobbi.

Jessica let out a low, frustrated growl.

***

“Peter!” shouted Jessica as she threw open the door to her apartment.

“Relax,” assured Bobbi, “He said he was fine, right?”

“Yeah, but why the hell didn’t he show himself when he saved us?” demanded Jessica, “Why is he being so cryptic?”

“Hi guys,” said Peter as he walked over from around the corner, “Sorry about that.”

“Peter, what- Wait, what the hell are you wearing?”

Peter was not wearing his Spider-Man costume or his usual clothes. Instead he was wearing black boots, black skinny jeans, and a black leather jacket over a white shirt. It was nothing like his usual style. Though Jessica did have to admit it looked good on him.

“Are you both okay?” he asked, “That thing’s weapon didn’t hit you, did it?”

“Peter, what’s going on?” demanded Jessica, “Where did you go? Why are acting like this?”

“Sorry,” said Peter, “Let me explain. Before either of you showed up I found something aboard the dreadnought.”

“What kind of something?” asked Bobbi.

“This kind.”

Peter stood up straight as his pants, shoes, jacket, and shirt all converted into a black and white slime. Jessica instinctively gasped at the sight before the slime solidified into a black version of Spider-Man’s usual costume with a large white symbol on the front.

“What the hell is that?” asked Jessica.

“I don’t know,” admitted Peter, looking at his hand, “but I think it’s… alive somehow.”

“Alive?”

“Yeah,” said Peter, “I can sort of feel its thoughts, or at least its feelings. It responds to my thoughts too, which is how I can tell it to do this.”

The suit converted back into the civilian outfit.

“Or this!”

Peter pointed his wrist at a wall and fired a small black burst at it. When it landed on the wall it looked nearly identical to Spider-Man’s usual webbing, but it was black. Peter pulled his wrist back and the web leapt back onto him.

“Peter, wait,” said Jessica, “We don’t know what that is.”

“Maybe we do,” said Bobbi.

Both Peter and Jessica looked to her. She had been oddly quiet since they got to the apartment.

“I’ve been a part of the team analyzing the Phalanx’s research,” she said, “My specialty is biology, so I’ve mostly been going over their records on different life forms. The Phalanx assimilated almost every civilization they came into contact with, but there was one they couldn’t assimilate: the Klyntar.”

“You’re saying that thing is intelligent?” asked Jessica, “That it was part of a civilization at some point?”

“Maybe,” said Bobbi, “What we know for sure is that the species is symbiotic in nature. It bonds with a host. That’s how it survives.”

“So Peter and that... symbiote are bonded now?”

“I don’t know,” frowned Bobbi, “There wasn’t a lot of information on the species itself. It seemed like Phalanx was less interested in them as a culture and more interested in them as a bioweapon.”

“A bioweapon!?” cried Jessica, “You’re telling me that Peter is wearing Anthrax or some shit!?”

“No, it makes sense now!” added Peter, “I’m a lot stronger now. That mech we fought? Before I found this suit I couldn’t even dent it. Once I put the suit on though, I took it out with just one punch!”

“Peter,” said Jessica firmly, “We don’t know nearly enough about this. You need to take that suit off.”

“But-”

“NOW!”

Peter nodded. He gestured across the room and the symbiote slithered off of him and into the corner of the room, where it reformed into a cloth version of the suit lying on the ground. Jessica and Bobbi looked away. Peter was naked underneath, and as such he quickly ducked back into the bathroom, red in the face.

“Doesn’t S.H.I.E.L.D. have a procedure for this?” Jessica asked, turning to Bobbi.

“The procedure is to quarantine the building while a team of scientists go through everything and everyone who came into contact with the lifeform,” said Bobbi, “My guess is that you don’t want that.”

“Well…” thought Jessica, “...could you at least take a look at it? You’re a biologist, right?”

“My field of knowledge is somewhat limited to this planet,” said Bobbi back, “You don’t think we should just let S.H.I.E.L.D. handle this one?”

“Positive,” said Jessica, “If this thing really is a bioweapon, the last place it should be is in the hands of Maria Hill.”

***

Max Dillon waited on the side of the bed, staring at the door. He had been in prison for months now. Due to his powers, much of his time was spent in solitary confinement where the chance of him attacking someone or escaping was minimized. That’s why he was as surprised as anyone when he learned he was receiving a visit today. Not just any visit, but a conjugal visit from his wife. Max didn’t have a wife, nor was he expecting any visitors, but he didn’t question the chance of seeing someone who wasn’t a prisoner or a guard. The prospect of getting laid was nice too.

He wore a set of cuffs, one on either wrist, that glowed red to indicate his powers were being dampened. It infuriated him that so shortly after becoming so powerful, they had locked him up in a box with no power at all. He’d get out of here one day though. He was sure of it.

The door opened and Max looked up. He smiled as he recognized his old neighbor, Francine Fyre walk in. She had been there when he first got his powers.* She was actually the one who had encouraged him to make use of them. He had suspected that she had developed feelings for him after that. He was glad to see that his suspicions were true.

“Francine,” he smiled, standing, “What a pleasant surprise! How did you convince them you were my wife?”

“I know some people,” she said with a smile, “They moved some papers around. Made me seem like someone who qualified for a conjugal visit.”

“Well done!” he said, approaching her confidently, “When I get out of here, I’ll see that you’re rewarded handsomely.”

“When you get out of here?” she chuckled, “Boy, have I got news for you, Dillon.”

She pulled open her leather jacket and removed her shirt to reveal an odd green and yellow skin tight suit she had on underneath. The yellow stripes on the shirt had an odd glow to them, almost like they were pulsing. Max only had to stare at it for a moment before he recognized that electricity was being stored inside.

“What in the world is that?” he asked.

“A special kind of suit,” she said, “One that can store and release energy. I have the amount of a car battery stored up right now. Let me see those cuffs of yours…”

Max offered his wrists to her. Francine pulled out a pair of yellow gloves and put them on. The energy moved from the yellow stripes into the gloves themselves, which were now glowing with electricity. She placed one finger on either cuff. Then all the glow from her suit went away as it discharged into either cuff. The metallic bands burst open and fell to the ground.

“Francine, Francine, Francine…” chuckled Max, feeling his power coming back to him, “You really are something!”

“Come on, Max,” she whispered, stepping closer to him and placing her hands on his shoulders, “Let’s not forget why I’m here.”

“Um,” considered Max, “Not that I’m complaining, but don’t you think we should lea-”

Francine cut him off with a kiss, wrapping her arms around him and pressing her lips against him hard. He moaned and kissed back, rubbing his hands over her body as he did. Francine could feel the power radiating off Max. The more they kissed the stronger it got. Then…

Max let out a muffled scream as he felt himself convulse all over. His body tensed and he found himself unable to pull away from the kiss, starting to feel his flesh burn. The convulsions began to cease slowly as he could see Francine’s face begin to glow an eerie electric blue. The next thing he knew she was stepping back from him as he weakly fell to the ground, trembling. He looked at his hands and tried to summon his electricity again. He couldn’t. His powers were gone.

“What…” he asked weakly, “What have you done to me?”

“You never deserved these powers,” mused Francine, feeling the electricity flow through the suit, “You just wanted to use these powers to make yourself seem less pathetic. Me? I’ve been waiting for this my entire life. I’m going to use these powers to shake the world.”

Francine cackled as she flexed her muscles, radiating sparks of electricity as they danced around the room.

“The world has a new supervillain,” she announced, “and her name is Electro.”

***

“No idea at all?”

“No,” said Peter, shaking his head, “Jessica says she found out that she was Max’s neighbor, but beyond that? Nothing.”

News had gotten out about Francine Fyre’s stunt. Max, though injured and powerless, had survived the ordeal. Fyre, who had escaped using Max’s powers, was in the wind. Almost a week had passed and there hadn’t been any sightings of her. What was she planning?

“You’d think they’d have kept Max under tighter security,” muttered Mary Jane.

“They were about to,” said Peter, “S.H.I.E.L.D. just finished a prison for supers that they’re calling the Raft. Fyre got to him just before he was transferred.”

Peter and Mary Jane were walking across Empire State University’s campus. New York had recently had something of a heat wave the other day, causing all of the snow to melt into a dreary grey sludge. Puddles dotted the ground all over campus’s grassy quad, mixing with the mud to form pools of grey-brown sludge. It was not a terribly charming look.

Peter and Mary Jane were both dressed lighter attire than was usual for the winter. Peter was just wearing his hoodie and jeans while Mary Jane wore a knee-length sweater over black leggings with brown leather boots.

“Lousy timing,” sighed Mary Jane quietly, “You still don’t know what’s going on with that weird suit either, right?”

“No,” admitted Peter, “Bobbi’s been observing it, but she still hasn’t come to any conclusions. She says she probably won’t find anything without proper equipment.”

“But there’s no way to do that without turning it over to S.H.I.E.L.D.”

“Right.”

“MOVE IT, PARKER!!”

Peter’s spider sense rang out to warn him of a danger from behind. It was Flash. Peter never used his spider sense to defend himself from Flash’s pranks, but he did use the moment of warning to step away from Mary Jane to keep her out of the crossfire.

Flash barreled into Peter from behind, throwing his shoulder into him and plowing past. Peter cried out as he was flung to the side. He landed face first in one of the quad’s many grey-brown puddles. Mary Jane winced in sympathy as she heard the splash and watched the bits of snow and mud fly into the air. Peter groaned as he lay in the cold water, clothes thoroughly soaked in filth. Flash stopped where he was and spun back to face them, a confident smile on his face.

“Aw, sorry Parker!” he offered sarcastically, “I warned you!”

Peter slowly got to his knees, shivering and wet. Though it was warm for a winter day, it was cold for an underdressed skinny boy soaked in snowy water. Mary Jane rushed over to Peter and placed a sympathetic hand on his shoulder. She glared up at Flash.

“You jackass!” she shouted, “What the hell is wrong with you!?”

“Oh, relax!” chuckled Flash, “He just got a little dirty, that’s all. Hit the showers, Parker! Locker room is right next to the bleachers!”

Flash ran off laughing, accompanied by some chuckles from onlookers. Mary Jane helped the still-shivering Peter to his feet and tried to dust the bits of snow and ice off of him. Peter sighed dejectedly.

“Maybe you should use the locker room shower,” suggested Mary Jane, “You still have a spare change of clothes in your backpack, right? Did they stay dry?”

“Yeah,” said Peter, “Yeah, that does sound easier than going all the way back to the dorms.”

Peter always kept a spare change of clothes with him when he could. It came in handy given how often he had to change in and out of his spider suit. He and Mary Jane made their way to the football field. Peter went into the locker room while Mary Jane waited outside.

Peter found a bench to leave his backpack on while he went around to the showers, stripped out of his filthy clothes, and began to wash the grime off with a streaming hot water. Peter sighed in relief as his numb extremities began to feel again from the heat of the water. He scrubbed the bits of ice and dirty out of his hair and soaked himself until he finally felt clean again. He grabbed a towel from the nearby bin and dried off. Peter thoroughly wiped himself down until he was completely dry, not wanting the unwelcome sensation of walking into the cold while still damp. When he was finally done, he tied the towel around his waist. Then he returned to the bench and gasped.

His backpack, and by extension his clothes, were gone. Peter, clutching the towle nervously. This was bad. This was really bad. It wasn’t only his clean clothes that he left in that bag, but his spider suit as well. He should never have left it alone like that. He needed to get that bag back at all costs.

Peter heard a door close on the other side of the room. That had to be the culprit. He gripped the towel tightly and rushed across the locker room, opening the door and seeing Flash just as he sprinted out of the building with the backpack. Peter, in a panic about his secret identity and not thinking clearly, charged right out the door and into the cold.

That’s when Peter’s spider sense rang out again. Flash, who was lying in wait just outside the door, grabbed the towel as Peter ran by.

Oh no… thought Peter as he felt his butt and crotch go cold.

The crowd before him burst out into laughter. Peter turned bright red as he covered his privates with both hands just in time to hide them. A crowd of maybe a dozen students were pointing and laughing at him as he shivered. Michele Gonzales and Liz Allan were of course among the crowd, nearly tearing up from laughter.

“What’s the matter, Puny Parker!?” guffawed Flash, “Afraid we’ll see your puny penis!?”

Peter clenched his teeth as hard as he possibly could, face bright red. He couldn’t go back inside. Flash still had the backpack with the spider suit in it. He couldn’t let him out of his sight. He simply had to stomach the unbearable embarrassment.

“Oh, man up!” scoffed Flash, tossing Peter’s backpack to his feet, “We’re just joking around.”

Peter looked down at the backpack, unwilling to move either of his hands away from their protective position to pick it up. Instead he just looked sadly back up at the laughing crowd. He slowly hooked the backpack strap with his toe, ready to shamefully go back into the locker room and get dressed.

“Wow, Tiger!” shouted Mary Jane from the other direction, “Look at you!”

The crowd’s laughter died down as Peter turned to see Mary Jane. She was walking up confidently to Peter. What was she doing? Why did she have such a confident smile?

“Look at those slender legs!” she smiled hungrily, “And that ass!”

MJ you brilliant, beautiful woman…

“Come on, hot stuff!” growled Mary Jane, wrapping her arms around Peter’s neck.

The crowd’s tone had changed. They were still smiling, but their attention was on a dumbfounded Flash. Mary Jane grabbed the backpack and whisked Peter into the locker room, leading to a few of the crowd cheering playfully. Liz stared disdainfully at Flash.

“Looks like you just got Parker laid,” she scoffed, “Great prank, loser”

Flash clenched his fists as the crowd slowly dissipated. Liz and the others had all walked away and Flash was still angrily staring at the space where Peter had been. He wouldn’t allow that twerp to make him look like an idiot like that. Next time he saw him, he’d make him pay.

***

Bobbi looked over her notes again. She didn’t know why she bothered. There was nothing to be found. There was no useful data and the symbiote hadn’t done anything in the several weeks since it separated from Peter. It still displayed signs of life, so Bobbi theorized that it might be in some sort of hibernation. Beyond that, she had nothing.

“You can look,” said Jessica as she came in with Peter behind her, “but I’m telling you, the thing looks the same as it did when you left it here.”

“I just want to see it,” said Peter.

Jessica’s desk had been cleared and turned into an observation table for the symbiote. It sat in a small empty fish tank maintained at a constant temperature, looking like folds of black fabric. Notebooks, magnifying glasses, and various other tools lined either end of the desk. A large binder with a few sheets of paper in it was there as well, since Bobbi had turned it into something of a workstation. Peter walked up and looked at the glass. After a moment, the symbiote pulsed.

“Oh my God!” exclaimed Bobbi, “It moved! It hasn’t moved in days!”

Peter stared at the symbiote, which pulsed again. Then it leapt at the side of the glass Peter was on. It flattened itself against the glass, as if trying to force its way through.

“Holy shit,” realized Jessica, “It’s reacting to Peter!”

“They were bonded,” said Bobbi, “It’s possible that it remembers him and has been waiting for an opportunity to bond again.”

Peter said nothing, continuing to stare intensely at the creature.

There was a loud beeping. Bobbi perked up and grabbed her butt as the phone in her back pocket suddenly vibrated. She hurriedly pulled it out and looked it over, looking more concerned with each second.

“What?” asked Jessica, “What is it?”

“Someone just broke into the Raft,” said Bobbi.

“You’re kidding me!” exclaimed Jessica, “Isn’t that where they’re keeping Norman Osborn?”

“And Jason Kingsley,” nodded Bobbi, “and Rappaccini and just about every supervillain and evil genius you can think of.”

“Who the hell’s idea was it to keep all of them in one place!?”

“There was a failsafe,” explained Bobbi, “The controls were supposed to be unhackable.”

“Fyre,” concluded Peter.

It had to be her. She wouldn’t have to hack anything if she really had Max’s powers. Bobbi had confirmed that Fyre was a major supervillain groupie, meaning this sort of stunt would be just like her. What was more, she had intercepted Max before his transfer to the very same prison. Peter had been expecting her to show up for some time now.

“Where is it?” asked Jessica.

“The Raft floats at sea,” explained Bobbi, “and right now, it’s on a course straight for New York.”

“Got it,” said Peter quietly, standing up straight.

Both Jessica and Bobbi tensed as they saw the symbiote shot upward, bust the top off of the glass box, and leap onto Peter. It quickly latched onto his face and began to spread over his body, tearing away his clothes as it did.

“Peter-!” cried Jessica, reaching out for him.

“It’s okay!” called out Peter.

The symbiote settled into its suit form, having replaced the clothes on Peter’s body. The mostly torn garments lay at Peter’s side. Peter looked himself over and flexed his muscles, feeling the symbiote bonded with him once again.

“What’s going on!?” demanded Jessica.

“I called it to me,” said Peter, the mask peeling away from his head to show his face, “Jessica, I need to stop that prison break.”

“Are you insane!?” yelled Jessica, “That place is housing every superpowered psychopath that wants you dead all in one place!”

“I know,” said Peter, “which is why I need the suit.”

“We still don’t know if it’s safe to use,” added Bobbi.

“You’re right,” acknowledged Peter, “but it’s also my best chance at staying alive long enough to keep everyone safe from those maniacs.”

“Peter-”

“Sorry Jessica, I’m going.”

Spider-Man ran up to the window, fired a black web out it, and swung away. Jessica looked to Bobbi with concern.

“The Avengers are already on their way,” offered Bobbi, “He-”

“You said the Phalanx had notes on this symbiote thing, right?” asked Jessica suddenly, “Does S.H.I.E.L.D. have more of those files?”

“Possibly,” nodded Bobbi, “I could certainly check. Hill wouldn’t think twice if I-”

“Do it.”

***

Spider-Man crept along the outside of the facility. He had hitched a ride over by webbing onto a S.H.I.E.L.D. dropship. Then he had begun to feel instincts on where to go. He figured the instincts were coming from the symbiote, guiding him how best to stay safe.

He pried the bars off of a window and climbed in. He looked around. His spider sense rang down his spine as he heard the first of several loud bangs. Peter dodged each and every bullet before webbing the firearm away with a black symbiote web. The security guard raised his hands in surrender.

“Relax,” said Spider-Man, “I’m here to help.”

“Okay,” muttered the guard nervously.

“What can you tell me about what’s going on here?”

“Some lady in a whacky suit came in using some sort of electrical powers,” explained the guard, “She got ahold of the main engine room and, well… The next thing we knew the lights were out and the convicts were unleashed.”

So it WAS Fyre.

“Are all of the prisoners free right now?”

“Yes,” nodded the guard in horror, “all of them.”

Suddenly Spider-Man felt a lurch all around him. He looked around, but his spider sense didn’t detect any danger. He caught the concerned look of the guard.

“They’ve taken control,” he said quietly, “They’re going to drive us right up to the pier…”

“Where’s the control room?”

“Interior section of the deck,” he said, “It’s right inside, but it’s crawling with cons.”

“Of course it is,” sighed Spider-Man, heading through a door and into the halls.

He had made it down one hallway and into another before several prisoners ran at him. He didn’t recognize either of them, but their muscles seemed enhanced somehow. Still, they were no match for Spider-Man or his enhanced strength as he punched them both down to the ground.

Finish them.

What was that? Spider-Man dismissed the thought. He had to focus on stopping the Raft from getting to land. He went to leave.

Where are you going? Finish them before they get up and hurt somebody else!

“Who said that?”

He didn’t know why he asked. He knew the answer before he even spoke. It was the symbiote. It was speaking to him. It felt like the voice was manifesting as one of his own thoughts.

I won’t do it, thought Spider-Man, I won’t kill anyone.

Fine. At least restrain them so they can’t get up after this.

Spider-Man turned back and obliged, firing a black web at each of their hands and leaving both of them completely pinned to the ground. Then he continued on his way.

The symbiote’s connection to him must have gotten stronger. Before he could only feel a vague connection. After that, only impulses and urges. Now he was hearing clearly articulated thoughts and ideas.

We should have killed them.

I don’t-

I know, I know. You don’t kill anyone because it would be a misuse of your abilities. You have “too much power to play judge, jury, and executioner.” Just thought I’d bring it up, since those were convicted criminals and all.

Spider-Man froze. How did the symbiote know he felt that way? How far into his mind was this thing?

I’m all the way in, Peter. So if you were worried I’d discover some deep, dark secret; don’t bother. I’ve already seen every one of your thoughts. Including your plans for that self-insert Captain America fanfiction where he tells you how great a hero you are.

He turned bright red under the suit. He couldn’t believe the symbiote knew that. It must have known everything about him. Everything. He felt completely exposed.

Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone else. They’ll just be our little secrets.

Spider-Man leapt up and onto the ceiling as his spider sense ran down his back. He stared as two men rounded the corner. He recognized both of them instantly. One was Norman Osborn and the other was Jason Kingsley. The Green and Hob Goblins, respectively. Both were enhanced by the Goblin serum that gave them strength equal to Spider-Man’s. That’s to say, strength equal to Spider-Man’s before he was bonded to an alien bioweapon.

Yes, we can take them down easily together. Ready?

We don’t kill them.

Yes, agreed.

“Where is he?” demanded Norman, “The guards said they spotted him ridng in on a dropship!”

“He’ll go straight for the engine room to stop us,” responded Jason, “You know that.”

“Don’t condescend to me! That’s why we have to stop him before he gets there!”

“Jeez,” chimed in Spider-Man, “You two could really use a peer mediator or something.”

“Spider-Man!” they both shouted,

Spider-Man leapt down from the ceiling and punched downward onto Jason’s head. The blow slammed the man’s face down and onto the ground. Norman attempted to leap over the body and tackle Spider-Man, but the symbiote reacted quicker and fired a net of black webbing at him. Norman was pinned to the wall in the black spiderweb as Jason slowly got to his feet. Spider-Man readied himself to take him down.

Ha! There’s nothing that can stop us!

Spider-Man’s spider sense urged him to turn around. He did, but then a horrifying shrieking sound filled every fiber of Spider-Man’s being. Vibrations pounded away at his eardrums, echoing the waves of pain through his skull. The symbiote began to react too, writhing and squealing in agony. When it finally stopped, Spider-Man fell to his knees. He was weak and trembling.

“Well, well, well,” chuckled Shriek as she strolled up to him, “Digging the new suit, Spider-Man.”

It’s that gang leader, recalled Spider-Man, That one with the screaming powers that I fought with Black Cat!*

Spider-Man saw that the black webbing holding Norman to the wall had fallen away and was slithering back to him. That was bad. Shriek’s scream hadn’t hurt Peter nearly this much during their last fight, but it was hurting the symbiote. It was hurting the symbiote so badly that it was affecting Peter.

“It’s quite fitting,” mused Shriek, “After all, what better to wear to your own funeral than your finest black suit!?”

Shriek inhaled to scream again, but this time Spider-Man was quicker. He fired a black web onto the piping behind and over Shriek’s head. The moment before she let out her wail, Spider-Man yanked back and slammed the pipe into the back of her head, knocking her out. Water burst from the opened piping, blinding and deafening Spider-Man for a moment before it cleared.

“Get him!” shouted someone.

Spider-Man turned around. Norman and Jason had been joined by a crowd of enhanced convicts, most of whom were twice a normal human’s size. Spider-Man knew he couldn’t take all of them at once. He fired another black web down the hall and yanked himself down there. The prisoners quickly gave chase.

Spider-Man continued his retreat, wanting to get to the engine room before the Raft got any closer to the pier. The symbiote responded accordingly, giving him sharper reactions and longer leaps and bounds as he fled the pursuing mob of enhanced rioters. Finally, he rounded a corner and leapt into a ventilation shaft, losing them.

Spider-Man made his way to the shaft into the engine room, where he silently crawled in and around the ceiling as he looked down at the situation. The main engine was pulsing an eerie blue. Various posts designed for manual engineering were moving on their own. The room was filled with convicts. At the foot of the engine, a woman in a green and yellow suit monitored the engine. That must have been Fyre.

We have to stop them.

Use the water from the pipes. If we soak Fyre AND others, it will electrify them all.

Yeah, and maybe get them killed!

Well, if we try to take them head on, it could possibly get US killed!

This isn’t a negotiation! I won’t risk killing them.

Even if it means I won’t help you?

Yes.

Alright. Have it your way.

Peter felt a rush of cold air overwhelm him as his suit shrunk away. In a moment of shock, Peter realized he was no longer on the ceiling but falling toward the ground. He instinctively tried to fire a web and save himself, but he didn’t have his web shooters. He cried out in pain as he landed on his back on a catwalk. He shivered for a moment. The metal was cold against his skin. That’s when Peter realized he was naked.

“What was that!?” cried out Jason.

Peter scrambled down the catwalk and leapt into the shadowed corner of the room beside him, narrowly avoiding being spotted. He began to tremble. He felt exposed again, but this time to the whole world instead of just to the symbiote. Down below Peter were dozens of superpowered criminals that wanted him dead. Now he was hiding naked from them in the corner. Was the symbiote trying to kill him?

“It’s Spider-Man!” spat Norman, “I’m sure of it! Everyone spread out and search. He’s in here somewhere!”

Peter felt another enormous lurch around him. He couldn’t keep wasting time like this. The Raft was on its way to land, where the escaped prisoners would kill who-knew-how-many people before the Avengers got there. He had to stop Fyre now.

Peter sped down the wall as fast as he could, darting from shadow to shadow to stay hidden as he made his way to the floor. He didn’t have his web shooters, so we wouldn’t be able to fight by swinging or webbing anyone. He also wasn’t nearly as strong as he was with the symbiote. Still, he had to do something.

Peter grabbed a wrench off the floor and whipped it at Fyre’s head. She pivoted and flicked it away with an electromagnetic pulse. Peter leapt away as she sent a burst of lightning at him. He bit his lip nervously as he heard her chuckling as he ducked behind a pillar.

“Who are you?” she laughed, “And why are you... naked?”

Peter’s spider sense activated as two men descended upon him from behind. He leapt straight into the air and did a backflip, allowing both men to pass under him before he kicked them both in the back and knocked them out.

“Holy shit!” shouted another prisoner as more surrounded Peter, “He really is naked!”

Peter clenched his eyes shut, pushing away the fear and shame. He couldn’t afford to cover himself or let the embarrassment slow him down this time. He leapt away and his spider-sense activated as he soared through the air. He reacted accordingly, dodging several bolts of lightning as he flew over Fyre.

Peter landed in a squat and prepared to leap at Fyre again, but his spider-sense alerted him to someone behind him. He spun around and threw a punch, but Norman blocked it and forced Peter into an armbar.

“Who do we have here?” he asked excitedly, “Could this be who I think it is?”

Peter’s spider sense was firing off like crazy. He ducked forward and rolled, flinging Norman over his head as he did so. He got up to face Norman again, but he felt a hard blow to the back of his head. He heard Jason’s laughter as his head smashed into the ground, ringing in pain. He felt his hair being tugged up as he was lifted to Norman’s face. He went to throw a punch, but Jason put him into a full nelson.

Peter found himself trapped, arms completely restrained as he was displayed naked before a delighted Norman Osborn. Norman then punched Peter in the ribs, stomach, and jaw. Peter held in the cries of pain, glaring up at Norman and doing his best to hide how small he felt.

“Stop!” cried out Fyre.

Norman did so, though Jason maintained his grip on Peter. Fyre walked up to the three of them and looked Peter up and down. She gave him a satisfied, smug smirk.

“This must be Spider-Man,” she sneered, “Where’s your spider suit, Spidey?”

Peter gritted his teeth and glared back at her.

“HAHAHAHA!” cackled Norman, “What luck! Not only will I be a free man, but I can squash the spider too!”

“Hold up, now!” grunted Jason, “What gives you the right to squash him?”

“Boys, boys,” sighed Fyre, “Please be respectful. I’m the reason you’re all going to be free, I think it’s only fair that I get to do it. I deserve to be the woman who killed Spider-Man.”

“As you wish, Sparky,” smiled Norman back.

“Call me Electro.”

“Electro,” coughed Peter weakly, “You know how dumb that sounds, righ-?”

Peter grunted as Norman’s fist collided with the side of his head, ending his sentence and leaving him barely standing. Only Jason’s hold on him was keeping him on his feet now. He glanced over at Electro, who was rubbing her hands together as she drew closer.

No, pled Peter silently, Not like that…

Black Cat had used an electric shock to immobilize Peter back when she betrayed and humiliated him. Then Fisk had tortured him with electricity and Peter thought he was going to die a drooling mess.* Now the very thought of being shocked was sending his mind into a panic. Of all the ways to die, he’d desperately hoped it wouldn’t be this way.

Electro was a foot away from Peter now. Her hands were out, glowing with a blue electric energy as they moved toward his chest. His heart was pounding faster and harder than he thought was possible. He couldn’t let this be it. He couldn’t!

Please!! Help me!!! he cried out in his mind.

I thought you’d never ask.

The symbiote descended from the ceiling like a shadow. The black liquid wrapped itself around Peter instantly. Peter felt the armored exterior form around his body, strengthening him as it did. He felt the symbiote’s presence in his mind again. They were back together. Peter felt a warm rush of pleasure that started in the pit of his stomach and surged through his body all the way to his extremities.

Now! cried the symbiote, snapping Peter back to reality.

Spider-Man pulled downward, throwing Jason over his shoulder and directly into Electro. Spider-Man leapt away as Jason screaming in pain from the electrification and Electro pushed his smoldering body aside.

“Holy shit!” shouted one prisoner.

“Looks like he’s still breathing…” noted another.

“Somebody KILL that spider!” shouted a third.

You know what to do.

You’re right.

Spider-Man leapt straight up and fired a web to the top of the huge room. He retracted it, pulling himself all the way to the ceiling. He looked around and found what he was looking for: the intersection of all the pipes on the ceiling. He fired a web onto the valve at the intersection and tore away the entire piping structure surrounding it.

A rush of physical pleasure came over him as the water sprayed down below, electrifying the inmates in a spectacular display before the power to the entire room went dark. Spider-Man felt the shift of momentum as the Raft ceased its head on charge for the pier. He kicked open a segment of the ceiling and leapt out and down onto the deck.

In the distance he saw the Quinjet, the transportation used by the Avengers. They were here now. They could handle the rest.

They don’t deserve your help anyway. Not after the way they treated you.

You’re right.

Spider-Man webbed onto a passing S.H.I.E.L.D. sentry helicopter and swung away.

***

Peter walked briskly across the quad. He needed to get to his dorm as quickly as he could so he could get to his laptop and let Jessica know he was okay. She was right to be concerned. If it hadn’t been for the symbiote, Peter might’ve died trying to stop that prison break.

“Wow, Parker,” scoffed Liz, “Are you trying to rebrand or something?”

Peter looked over to see Liz, Michele, Flash, and others sitting together at an outdoor table. He looked down at himself. The symbiote had morphed back into a black leather jacket and skinny jeans. It certainly wasn’t his usual style. He looked up to see Flash glaring at him.

That one. That’s Flash, isn’t it? The one who’s tormented you since high school? The one who left you naked in the cold for others to mock you?

Yes, but don’t get any ideas. We can’t use our powers to-

Look out!

Peter’s spider sense activated as well, warning him of the half eaten burger hurtling towards him. Peter stood by and let it hit him in the face, feigning surprise and disgust as the crowd began to laugh. He slowly wiped it off his face.

What was that!? Why did you let him do that!?

“Something wrong, Puny Parker?” demanded Flash, standing and walking over to him.

Let’s just go. We-

No! This is pathetic. We’re going to put an end to this.

I don’t want to!

“Your girlfriend isn’t around to help you out this time,” taunted Flash, getting closer, “Is she?”

Now’s our chance! Fight him!

No!

“You want to be a smartass again?” dared Flash, standing over Peter and looking down at him.

Fight him!

NO!

“Answer me!” shouted Flash.

The jock punctuated the order with a slap to the side of Peter’s head. Peter’s spider sense felt it coming, but once again he feigned surprise as he let the blow strike him. He could feel the symbiote roaring with rage.

Kill him!

“NO!” screamed Peter.

“So that’s how it’s going to be,” grunted Flash, “Fine by me.”

Flash punched Peter right across the face. Peter cried out in pain. The onlookers gasped in shock. Peter hit the ground hard. Peter groaned, rubbing his aching jaw. It had been some time since Flash had hit him that hard. He forgot how much it hurt. The symbiote was screaming now. Peter winced as he felt convulsions of pain erupting from the pit of his stomach.

“Thompson!” shouted a deep voice.

Peter fought through the intense pain coming from both his head and the pit of his stomach to look up and see the one shouting was none other than Kurt Murch, the coach of ESU’s football team. Flash was the quarterback for the team, so the two were well acquainted.

“Coach Murch!” realized Flash nervously, “Parker and I were just-”

“Don’t play dumb with me, Thompson!” yelled Murch, “I’ve bent countless rules to keep you on the team, but your ego has persisted. Now you’ve gone and assaulted a student in broad daylight. Is it maybe because you think you’re too good to lose your spot on the team? Is that it?”

“No, Coach Murch-”

“Well that assumption would be incorrect,” continued Murch, “because effective immediately you are suspended from the team indefinitely.”

The crowd gasped again. Flash turned a light shade of pink as he looked around, realizing how many people were seeing this.

“But-” he began.

“Clean out your locker by the end of the day,” ordered Murch, “After that, we can discuss this further.”

The coach shot Peter a dirty look. He didn’t seem happy to have done what he did. Flash really was an amazing quarterback. This meant losing his star player and he seemed to partially blame Peter for it. He left without so much as a word to anyone else, including Peter.

“Wow,” whispered Michele, “That’s rough, Flash.”

“Shut up!” he shouted indignantly, “This is all your fault, Parker! You think you’re clever?”

“I really don’t…” moaned Peter, rising to his knees.

“I’ll figure a way back onto the team!” insisted Flash, “But after I’m done with you, you’ll NEVER be able to recover!”

Flash stormed off, leaving his friends to snicker at his frustration and indignance. Peter shuffled off while they were distracted. He had only made it a few steps before he felt another stab of pain in the pit of his stomach, the throbbing from which brought him to his knees.

You loser! You pitiful failure!! What was that!?

You wanted me to kill him! I-

You have proven yourself to be an unreliable judge of your own actions. If it weren’t for me, you’d be dead in a pool of your own urine right now!

I just…

Shut up! Where are you going!?

My dorm. I have to let Jessica know that I’m-

NO!

Peter cried out in pain as he felt a rush of agony in his lower stomach. It was overwhelming, preventing him from thinking clearly.

You will NOT!

I’m going.

Peter tried to will the suit off of him, but that wasn’t working. The symbiote was bonding to him in a way he couldn’t undo. He powered through the pain and brought himself to his feet, slowly began to walk, and made his way to his dorm.

He was bracing himself against the walls of the hallways as he staggered toward his room, twitching as he held in his reactions to the stabs of pain he was feeling. He was just outside his dorm. There she was. Mary Jane was standing in front of it. She must have been looking for him. Peter lost his balance, grabbing at the wall to stop himself from falling.

“Oh my God,” gasped Mary Jane, running up to him, “Oh my God, Peter!”

“Get Jessica,” whispered Peter as he fell to his knees, leaning into Mary Jane’s arms.

“Peter!” shouted Mary Jane, “What’s wrong?! Peter!!”

***

“Ma’am, I’m going to have to see your student I.D. Ma’am?”

Jessica ignored the student working the front desk as she shoved her way through the students at the door.

“It’s okay,” Malcolm assured the student, “She’s with me. Jessica!”

Jessica was already mashing the call button for the elevator over and over again. Malcolm rushed up to her and got close enough to whisper.

“MJ told me about Peter,” he said, “Is there anything I can do to help?”

“Yeah,” said Jessica, “Stay away.”

“Alright,” nodded Malcolm, backing away as Jessica rushed into the elevator.

Jessica made her way to Peter’s dorm and rushed in. She closed the door behind her. Peter was curled up in a ball on the floor, wearing an unfamiliar set of black clothes as he shivered and groaned in pain. His skin was red and shining with sweat. Peter’s eyes looked pained and desperate.

“Oh my God,” uttered Jessica, kneeling beside him, “Peter, are you-?”

“I’m sorry, Jessica,” he shuttered, “You were right. It’s… GRRRRRGGH!”

Peter clenched his teeth to hold back the scream. He was in an untold amount of pain right now and doing everything he could to hide that. It was painful to even watch.

“Peter,” stuttered Jessica, “Peter, it’s okay. It’s going to be-”

“I’m slipping,” whispered Peter weakly, “You need to get me away from here. It’s going to take over soon.”

Jessica looked to Mary Jane in shock. This was bad. What could they do about this? Until they heard back from Bobbi, they had no idea what they were dealing with. Peter was right. If the symbiote took him over in the middle of the dorms, there would be trouble. Jessica looked back to Peter, nodded, and lifted him.

“What are you doing!?” demanded Mary Jane.

“Stay here, Red.”

“Jessica!”

Jessica shifted her grip on Peter, opened his dorm window, stepped out, and leapt down to the ground with him. Mary Jane let out a yelp of protest, but Jessica was already leaping to her next destination. She jumped across the street and into the second floor of ESU’s parking garage.

Jessica rushed Peter between the cars. It was late at night now. There was no one in sight. Jessica was halfway across the length of the garage when Peter let out a pained grunt and burst free of her grasp.

Jessica rolled and leapt back to her feet, pivoting to see Peter several feet away screaming as he gripped his head in pain. Jessica rushed up to him as black liquid began to ooze across his skin, growing darker as Peter’s muscles seemed to grow larger.

Jessica reached for Peter, but black tendrils snapped at her as the black slime worked its way up to Peter’s neck. Jessica pushed past the tendrils and managed to pin Peter, getting to look him in the eyes as the slime covered his face.

“Help me,” whimpered Peter.

The slime poured into Peter’s mouth, filling it completely as blackness enveloped Peter’s entire face. A set of jaws closed down, forming rows of sharp teeth. The eyes became crooked and distorted, devoid of discernable emotion. Peter wasn’t there anymore.

Jessica cried out as the symbiote kicked with both legs, sending her flying up and into the ceiling, cracking the concrete. Jessica grunted as she landed painfully on her feet, only to be tackled by the symbiote. Its beast-like face snapped at her with ravenous ferocity. Jessica roared in frustration as she threw the symbiote and over her head, slamming him into the car there.

The car’s alarm blared in response to the collision, sending the symbiote tumbling to the side as it clutched its head in pain. Soon the cars around him were going off too, causing the symbiote so much pain that the mask briefly receded from Peter’s face. Jessica was relieved to see that he still seemed to be alive.

The symbiote ensnared Peter’s face again and fired a black web out the window and across the street, yanking itself away from the sound. Jessica rolled over and rushed after it. She was no match for its speed, but she could tell it was heading north. There was only one thing on that side of campus: the football stadium.

Jessica leapt out the window and pulled out her phone, dialing Bobbi and listening to the ringtone as she ran for the stadium. When Bobbi finally picked up, Jessica began speaking without pause or hesitation.

“Bobbi, this is Jessica. The symbiote has completely bonded to Peter. It’s controlling him. He’s on campus heading toward the football stadium. It seemed sensitive to sound, but other than that I have no idea how to fight this thing and keep Peter safe.”

“Oh God! Okay, here’s what I’ve found,” responded Bobbi promptly, “Your suspicion about sound is correct. The organism is vulnerable to both sound and fire, at least according to the Phalanx files. They armed its section of the ship with all sorts of sonic weaponry. I’ll steal a portable one from R&D and will be there to give you backup shortly.”

“Don’t drag your feet.”

Jessica hung up and continued her sprint.

Back at the parking garage Malcolm and Mary Jane were staring in awe at the damage from the fight. Both had seen the whole exchange, down to the moment the symbiote took off toward the stadium.

“Did you see that?” asked Mary Jane, “The car alarms hurt it, whatever it is.”

“Jessica said to stay away from this,” said Malcolm nervously.

“This is Peter we’re talking about,” said Mary Jane, “Jessica doesn’t get to decide when I need to stay away from him. Now help me out: is there any easy way we can create a loud noise to weaken that thing?”

“Yes,” realized Malcolm after a moment, “The equipment rooms in the stadium should all have air horns. The coaches use them for training all the time.”

“Alright, let’s go!”

***

Jessica rammed her shoulder into the doors and forced them open, snapping the deadbolts. She rushed up the stairs and into the bleachers, looking down either way. The stadium was completely deserted. It had been closed for the night and no cleaning crew or anything had arrived yet. It was eerie.

Then she saw it. All the way across the field on the other end of the stadium in the bleachers was the monstrous figure that had taken control of Peter’s body. It reacted to her presence. She wasn’t surprised. She had slammed those doors open pretty loudly.

Jessica watched the symbiote fire a web onto one of the stadium lights and swing. It was heading for her. She readied herself. Peter was stronger than her to begin with. She didn’t know if she stood a chance against this thing. She didn’t have to beat it though. She just had to last until Bobbi showed up with that sonic weapon.

Jessica braced herself as the symbiote leapt down at her from above. It had changed more. Its muscles were larger and more pronounced. Its teeth had grown and Jessica could see a pointed tongue inside now. She wondered if she could still save Peter.

The symbiote hit Jessica hard. She found herself slammed into the ground with the wind knocked out of her. She focused her attention back on the symbiote just as it opened its jaws and dove down at her. Jessica backfisted the mouth with her left hand, hitting the beast with such force that several teeth flew loose as the body was thrown back and over several rows of seats.

“Sorry Peter,” whispered Jessica, hoping that this wouldn’t harm him.

Jessica backed up as the beast crawled closer to her, mouth now oozing with green drool as the tongue darted about hungrily. It was unrecognizable from Peter now. It snarled and leapt at Jessica. She rolled to the side, barely dodging the symbiote before it crawled over her and brought its jaws to her face, breathing hot and foul-smelling air into her face. Jessica braced her arms against the monster’s head, straining herself to hold the horrifying mouth of teeth away from her face. She felt herself slowly start give way as the beast pushed harder.

“Hey you!” Jessica heard Mary Jane shout.

Both Jessica and the beast turned their attention to the doors Jessica had broken through. Mary Jane and Malcolm were standing there now.

“What are you doing here, you idiots!?” demanded Jessica.

The beast had a more direct response. It roared at them and began a feral bound in their direction. Jessica reached a futile hand out in desperation, knowing those two stood no chance against this monster. Then both Malcolm and Mary Jane produced an air horn in each hand from behind their backs. They blasted all four at the beast’s face as it neared them, causing it to reel back in pain. Slime unraveled from the head, revealing Peter’s screaming face underneath.

“Peter!” cried out Mary Jane.

“Keep on blasting him!” shouted Jessica.

Mary Jane and Malcolm resumed their assault. The horns blared in the beast’s face, peeling away more and more of it as Peter became more and more visible. Screeching in pain, the symbiote leapt back and pulled Peter with it, entrapping him again before running away and onto the field.

“Jessica!” called out Malcolm, rushing up to her as Mary Jane ran up to the field.

“Give me those horns,” ordered Jessica, getting to her feet,

Mary Jane stopped in her tracks. She considered for a moment, but nodded and held out her horns. Jessica grabbed them all as she leapt over the barrier and onto the field.

“Hey asshole!” shouted Jessica, “We want our friend back!”

The figure turned back to face Jessica. It looked less bestial than before. That was good. They were starting to break its hold on Peter. The symbiote charged at her. Jessica raised up all four air horns, two in each hand, and readied herself to pull the triggers. Then a black web snatched all four canisters and flung them away, leaving Jessica unarmed as it charged her.

“Great,” she sighed.

Jessica threw up her arms in defense as the figure punched her, sending her flying back and into the wall. Jessica slowly rose to her feet, groaning in pain. Her back and head throbbed. The symbiote was still running at her. She leapt to the side just as the figure punched the wall where she had been, shattering part of it. Jessica sprinted for the center of the field. Within moments, the symbiote was in pursuit. She was running out of time. She couldn’t keep this up any longer.

There was a high pitch pulsating noise before a mechanical shrieking sound. Then Jessica heard the sound of Peter crying out. Jessica spun around to see Bobbi at the barrier, pointing a large Phalanx rifle at Peter as it emitted a shrieking sound. It was a sonic weapon. The symbiote was slowly peeling away. Peter began to grasp his way out, extending an arm to Jessica. The moment she had a free shot, she grabbed that arm and yanked Peter out.

The symbiote pulled away the moment Jessica grabbed Peter. Peter’s naked body collided with Jessica as the two fell onto the turf of the football field. Jessica smiled with relief when she saw Peter look around and make eye contact with her. He was back.

“You did it,” he smiled weakly.

Jessica smiled back.

“Jessica!” cried out Malcolm.

Jessica and Peter got to their feet and looked to Malcolm. A dark figure leapt over the barricade and approached them. The symbiote had assumed a less hostile appearance again, but had taken control of someone. The figure held the sonic weapon in its hand. It had taken Bobbi. It looked at the weapon for a moment, then smashed it.

“Shit!” cried Jessica, “No!”

“Don’t worry,” assured Peter, “I’ve got an idea. How long do you think you can distract this thing?”

“By ‘this thing’ you mean my possessed girlfriend, so it’s kinda hard to say.”

“4 minutes?”

“Just do what you’re doing to do!” shouted Jessica impatiently.

“Alright,” nodded Peter, leaping up and over the figure.

The symbiote looked to Peter, but then turned back to Jessica. The teeth had formed again. The figure smiled at her for a moment.

“So you’re Jessica Jones.”

“Great,” grunted Jessica, “It can talk.”

“I can do more than that,” the symbiote smiled, “Would you like to know what your girlfriend really thinks of you?”

“Like I would believe-”

“A sad, lonely girl with trust issues all over some guy who dumped her,” they hissed, “An alcoholic failure who’s given up on life.”

Jessica clenched her fists. She had no way of knowing whether Bobbi really felt tht way. Somehow the symbiote knew the details of her life, though. At the very least this thing was getting inside the memories of her girlfriend. She didn’t like that.

Jessica charged the symbiote, slamming into it and tackling it to the ground. She had only done it for a moment before the beast struck back, swinging its arm into Jessica with such force that it threw her back and into the air. She landed hard and slid through the turf.

“Hey!” shouted Peter from above them, “I’m the one you’re after, why don’t you come fight with me!?”

Jessica looked up. Peter stood several rows up into the bleachers, covering his crotch with one hand and waving at them with the other. Jessica looked back to Bobbi, who writhed for a moment before the symbiote leapt off of her and slithered over the barrier and toward Peter. Bobbi collapsed into Jessica’s arms. Jessica looked up nervously to Peter.

I hope you know what you’re doing, Peter…

Peter leapt high into the air, landing nearer to the symbiote. The symbiote leapt up and at him, but he dodged it and leapt onto one of the loudspeaker posts. Then Peter began to rapidly scale the post as the slime climbed up after him. Jessica clutched Bobbi and smiled in pride. Peter was a genius.

Jessica looked over at the operator’s booth in the bleachers and Mary Jane and Malcolm stood ready at the controls. They watched Peter intently and the moment he reached the speakers they pulled a switch. The symbiote was just about to latch onto Peter again when the speakers blasted a horrendous feedback signal. The black slime flew to pieces in the air as the vibrations ripped it apart. Everyone stared tensely at the speaker for a moment afterward. Then the noise stopped.

Peter fell from the pole. Jessica gasped, placed Bobbi on the ground, and leapt. She soared through the air and slammed hard into Peter as he fell, clutching onto him and redirecting his momentum and landing safely with him. She lowered him to the ground and looked at him. He was fine, but he had passed out.

Holy shit… thought Jessica, We really did it. Thank God.

***

“I don’t know,” said Peter, “It just felt like I needed it.”

“Like you needed the symbiote?” clarified Malcolm.

Peter and Malcolm sat on either side of the latter’s desk, having their usual counseling session. Though initially Peter’s guidance counselor, Malcolm had volunteered his time as a trauma therapist to Peter to help him with the Spider-Man parts of his life.

“Yeah,” said Peter, “In those moments on the Raft when I didn’t have it, I felt so weak and exposed. I thought I needed it to be strong and secure again.”

“But the only reason you felt that way was because it abandoned you, right?” asked Malcolm, “It sounds like the symbiote manufactured a problem for it to solve.”

“It seems obvious now,” siad Peter, shifting uncomfortably in his seat.

“No,” assured Malcolm, “No, you couldn’t possibly have known at the time. This thing was inside your head, Peter.”

“Yeah…”

“And Bobbi told us that none of those convicts were seriously hurt.”

“Yeah…”

“You’re handling this extraordinarily well, Peter,” said Malcolm, “but we’re still going to have a lot of processing to do.”

“What else is new?” sighed Peter.

“We’re about out of time, so we’ll give it a rest for now,” said Malcolm, “We’ll pick it up next session.”

“Thanks.”

“Oh!’ realized Malcolm, “One more thing: have you seen Flash?”

“Flash?” asked Peter, “No, why?”

“His coach hasn’t seen him since you two had your scuffle,” said Malcolm, “They checked with his friends and they hadn’t seen him either. It might be nothing, but they wanted to know if there was anything you could think of that might help out.”

“Sorry,” frowned Peter, “You know I would help if I could.”

“I know you would, Peter,” said Malcolm, “Have a good night.”

“Good night, Malcolm.”

Malcolm sighed to himself as Peter left. It seemed like every day these things piled up just a little more. He hoped Peter would take care of himself.

***

The previous night…

Flash couldn’t believe it. Multiple successful seasons as a star player, a spotless athletic record, years and years of practice and training, but one misstep with Parker and it was all gone. He wasn’t a football player anymore. He struggled to think of a reason he’d even want to stick around college if he couldn’t play.

Flash roared in frustration as he chucked his empty duffle bag into the floor. He opened his locker and began unloading his things into the duffle bag. He tossed aside the few ratty clothes and empty food wrappers he didn’t want. He closed the locker and took a look around the locker room. It was where he and his team had hung out before and after each game. He’d miss this place.

Then Flash heard a horrific feedback noise in the distance. He looked around with concern, but the sound stopped a minute later. He shrugged, finished packing up, and walked for the exit. He turned back for one last look at the room. He winced as he felt a cold dripping onto the back of his neck.

Eh, this place was always leaky, he thought, Good riddance.

Good riddance indeed.

“Who’s there!?” demanded Flash, throwing his bag aside and putting up his fists.

It’s just you and me, Flash.

“And just who’s that?”

An ally. We’re together now. Can you feel it?

“...yes.”

You’re feeling something else as well, aren’t you?

“Yes.”

Undeserved defeat at the hands of the weak!

“YES!”

Like Parker! That loser has never known real power in his life. But because of him you have lost any chance at Mary Jane and now your spot on the football team!

“You…” thought Flash aloud, “You were there… When Coach Murch-”

Yes, I was with Parker. I told him to fight you like a man! It was his cowardice and underhandedness that set you up for this expulsion.

“You were with Parker?”

The same way I’m with you now. I have a score to settle with the whelp too.

What even are you? thought Flash, now telepathically communicating with it.

Don’t worry about that, worry about what I have to offer. In my time with Parker, I learned a great deal. Now that you and I are bonded, you have learned that too.

What does that mean? wondered Flash, Wait, what? Wait a minute, you’re telling me-

“No way!” cried Flash out loud, “Spider-Man was Puny Parker the whole time!?!”

He could never have made use of his power. Not the way you can. But I brought his powers with me. Together, we can be stronger than him.

“And we’ll crush him,” declared Flash, “and anyone else who stands in our way.”

Indeed. We’ve been wronged and betrayed. We’ve been letting others oppose us unchallenged for too long. Now we’ll bring them down. They’re all going to taste our hatred. They’re all going to taste our VENOM!

***

Venom will return in Spider-Man: Tormented