I opened my eyes, seeing the ceiling adorned with the posters of Spider-Man. My name is Owen Jenkins. I am 15 years old, 5 feet, ten inches tall, weigh 230 pounds, and a big fan of Spider-Man. My parents were out of town for the week, and it was Spring Break, so I was alone and had nothing to do. I got out of bed, making it up after I got out, then proceeding to get out clothes for the day. I decided to wear a red t-shirt with tan shorts. I walked down to the kitchen for breakfast. My stomach started groaning in hunger as I entered the kitchen and opened the refrigerator door, finding a piece of leftover pizza from last night. I grabbed the piece and ate it cold, since I was too hungry to wait. My stomach ceased to groan as the last bite went in. as I went back up to my room, my head started buzzing. The buzzing was not like a buzzing you experience as you are drunk or high, but it was specific. The experience was only in one direction, precise, like spider-man's Spider-Sense. The direction was that of the door. I walked down to the door, opened it, and saw what should be a fictional character, but was in front of me, in reality, and not a dream.
The symbiotically powered hero known as Toxin, or Eddie Brock, the only character of the Marvel Universe to be bonded to three symbiotes. His symbiote was red and black, with his mouth full of white razor-sharp fangs and a green tongue. He smiled, his green tongue licking his lips. His voice made a sound that I realized was a hacking sound, and from his mouth spewed a blob of blue and black. My hand caught it by instinct. The action of me catching it resulted in my forearm covering my eyes. When I lowered my arm, Toxin was gone. My hand suddenly felt cold, like ice was just surrounding it. I looked down at it and saw the blob starting to spread, and I came to the realization that the blob was a spawn of the symbiote. Any other person would be screaming and freaking out, but I was excited and ready. I rubbed my hands together, slid my hands across my face, legs, chest, arms. The spawn covered the remaining sections of my body I didn't run my hands over. When my entire head was covered, my entire body felt cold, I couldn't breathe, and my muscles were useless. I was frozen in place, yet I still remained calm. When my breath finally ran out, I gasped, and the symbiote merged with me completely. That was the last thing I remembered.
I woke up in my bed, able to see and breathe. I put my hand in front of my face, and saw that it was covered in blue and black. I looked down at the rest of my body and saw that it was covered in the same colors. I jumped off my bed, nearly breaking the floor in the process of landing on it, ran to the bathroom, looked in the mirror, and saw that it was real. From what I read in the comics, the symbiote could communicate with the host telepathically. I was going to try it, but first I wanted to try something else first.
I wish I had six-pack abs. I thought. The symbiote must have heard my wish, because I could feel the fat in my body disappearing, and the muscles in my abdomen tightening. In seconds, I had a full six pack, as well as highly defined arms, and impressive pectoral muscles. I tried flexing them like muscle men do.
They jumped like a couple of cheerleaders.
I screamed in delight as I now had a body that was smoking hot.
Can you hear me, symbiote?
Yes, baby. I can hear you. I heard a female voice say in my head.
Wow. I didn't expect a female, but it doesn't matter. I just want to say thank you for this. Also, do you have powers like your predecessor?
Yes, sweetie, I do. I can do anything you want me to do.
Well, can you change into street clothes? I would like to go into town, and this would look out of the ordinary.
Certainly, darling.
Wait! if I think of something concerning the way I look when not in disguise, can you make that your default look?
Like I said, whatever you want, honey.
I thought of a costume I saw in a video game, and instantly, my suit became black from my solar plexus down, as well on my arms. My eyes were covered in black lenses like spider-man, and the remaining sections of my body were blue.
Thank you. One last thing: is it ok if I call you "Sarah"?
I like that name.
I'm glad you do. Street clothes, please.
Sarah retracted her mass, making black shorts and a blue polo. I walked out of the bathroom, out of the house, grabbing the extra key my parents hid under the mat, activating the security system, and started running. Normally, my legs would be getting tired after I ran 50 feet. But, with Sarah bonded with me, I felt like I could run forever. When I reached the highway, I didn't stop. I just kept on running, feeling power surging through my muscles, Sarah absorbing the lactic acids and making them expel from my body with each breath I exhale. Luckily, I didn't have to worry about my muscles being injured, because Sarah healed my muscles and provided extra oxygen and other nutrients to my muscles so I didn't have to stop. I passed the BP store at the crossroads, turned left after about 5 miles, and then turned to my right, reaching the house of my best friend, Lindsay Mayhand. That's when I heard the sirens.
Chapter 2
Police officers were in their yard, setting up crime scene tape. I ducked under the tape as it WAS BEING SET UP, RAN INSIDE THE HOUSE, shrugging OFF THE OFFICERS THAT TRIED TO STOP ME. Mrs. Mayhand was being interviewed by a female officer, about 30, medium build, a smoker, judging from the cigarette pack she concealed in her uniform pocket, yet the outline could be seen, and she was getting frustrated. Mrs. Mayhand was Bi-Polar, and she refused to take her meds. Mrs. Mayhand, or Christi, was in her forties, somewhat overweight, and blond-haired. While the interview was being conducted, Christi yelled at her. "Why are you wasting time asking, these fucking unnecessary questions?!" she said. "My daughter has been fucking kidnapped, and you should be looking for her! I know who did it! It was that fucking boyfriend of hers, Jared! I can't believe he deceived us like this." She told the officer, who put her hand to her face to wipe away the spit she had on her face. I left, not saying a word to anybody. I started running to Jared's house, following the scent of Lindsay's perfume, something I would never be able to do if Sarah wasn't bonded to me. My sense of time went away as I ran to the scent. All I wanted was to see Lindsay, to find her. When I got there, my nose was invaded by the scent of blood, cordite, gasoline, and exhaust fumes. The smell of blood was what worried me the most. I ran inside, and saw that Jared's mom and dad were lying on the floor, both shot in the head with a shotgun. Nothing was left of their heads, a shotgun will take care of that. Jared is in a hurry, it looks like. I knew him, and he wouldn't have been so sloppy. I found a match in the kitchen, punched a hole in the wall, lit the match, and touched the fiberglass. After it caught flame, I threw the same match on a body, and ignited the gasoline. I ran home, angry and frustrated. After hours of doing pushups and bench pressing my bed, I decided to follow them. I sat at my computer desk, waiting impatiently for the computer to warm up. When it finally did, I opened the writing program, typed a note for my parents to read when they got home, and went to gathering supplies. I used the symbiote to make tendrils that I could use for multi-tasking purposes. All at the same time, I grabbed my suitcase, packed some clothes, found my secret stash of money, put it in my wallet, got some food, and packed it, all while I put the note I printed out on the kitchen counter.
I merged the multiple tendrils into one big one, and put the suitcase in my hand. I put the suitcase to my chest, and Sarah absorbed it all, not adding any extra weight whatsoever. I walked out of the house, locked it, armed the security system, and made my way into the city, but first I had to make a quick stop to pick someone up.
The house wasn't far from mine, something I didn't expect. I knocked on the door rapidly, making a dent in the hardwood floor unintentionally. A voice from the inside yelled "Just a minute!"
I waited impatiently, finally hearing the soothing sound of the lock clicking and the door opening. I saw my acquaintance Zack, a boy I know from my Sixth Period Gym class. Both of us would go into the weight room, work out, talk about various things, sometimes not at all, and we both would spot each other when we bench pressed. His curly blond hair was dampened, indicating he just got out of the shower, and was just getting dressed.
"Hey, Owen. How the hell did you find out where I lived?" he asked, surprised.
"I followed your scent. May I come in?" I asked.
"Yeah." He stuttered, moving out of the way. "Come on."
"Thanks." I said, walking inside.
"What do you mean 'followed my scent'?" he asked.
"Remember when I told you about the thing that got out when I got angry?" I asked him.
"Vaguely. Why?" he said.
"Because I made it up. But this is real. I just acquired it this morning." I told him. Immediately, I ordered the symbiote to assume the guise of my new uniform.
"Whoa!" he said, leaning back against the door.
"Yeah. This is a symbiote. It gives me the powers of Spider- Man, and then some. I used this to track you down. I need your help." I said, saying the statement about me needing his help after my symbiote returned to my civilian disguise.
"Wait. Did the symbiote give you the muscles?" he asked, noticing the dramatic definition increase in my triceps, pectorals, and abdomen.
"Yeah. But this needs to be kept a secret. But that's not what I'm here for. Lindsay Mayhand, a girl that goes to our school, has been kidnapped. Her boyfriend, Jared, did it. He also killed his parents with a shotgun."
"Why don't you let the police handle it? They know what to do."
"Because they aren't in Alabama anymore. They don't know where to start. He burned down his home, left his parents' corpses in there, drenched in gasoline. The police are gonna sit around planning where they might go. I can follow the scent until it fades. I think they are on their way to meet one of Jared's friends. His name is Bobby Martin. He sells meth and operates a meth lab in Georgia. The reason I know this is because I followed him a few months ago. I need a ride. I don't have a car, let alone a permit, I can't be seen in a bus, because they have a camera. The last thing I need is to be spotted. That's why I need your help. I can webswing like Spider-Man, but the buildings aren't tall enough for me to get the necessary arch and momentum for me to keep going without me touching the ground."
"…Ok. I'll help you, but you owe me." He said, grabbing his car keys.
"I'll do anything to return the favor, unless it's illegal, or sexual."
"Deal."
He locked the house, got in the car, which I did as well, started the engine, and went on our journey.
The scent of her perfume was clear, yet it went all the way into Georgia. When I reached the end of the scent, I found myself at a meth lab, disguised as a catholic school.
"See? They're at a school for worship."
I got out of the car, slamming the door. "Jared and Lindsay are Christians. The scent ends here, but I don't smell any burnt cordite. If she was dead, there would be burnt cordite, decaying flesh, and blood. Besides, this place is a meth lab." I said, finishing my sentence as I started walking into the alley on the right side.
"What does that have to do with anything concerning Lindsay?"
"Zack, my friend, you have a lot to learn. There is a lot more to Jared than meets the eye. All of his friends are secretly drug dealers, each specializing in only one drug to sell. Jon, for example, operates the biggest meth lab operation in the south."
I put my hands on the wall of the school, made Sarah cover them, and felt the static-like sensation on my fingers, signaling that I could wall crawl.
"Get on. Climb on my back."
"O-kayyyyy." He said, getting on my back. When he had a good grip, I started climbing up the wall, the entire weight of my body and Zack supported by my fingers alone, the only reason I had my feet on the wall was support. I can cling to walls with my feet, but I usually do that when I need to run, but I had some time. When I reached the roof, I jumped onto the top of a roof access point.
"Okay, we're here. Why don't we go inside?" Zack asked.
"Because I need to interrogate the leader. Everyone in there has guns. I would be okay, but you would be cut down. Jon smokes, and he can't smoke in the school, or the fumes made in the process of the synthesis of the methamphetamines will light up the place like a candle in a room with no windows. We wait."
"OK." He sighed. He sat down on the roof, while I started one-handed pushups, alternating each hand every 200 or so. When I was on my third set of 200 with my left hand, Zack started talking to me. "How come you're not freaking out?" he asked.
"About what?" I asked him back.
"This! A girl you like has been kidnapped, you know about drug dealers in our school, and you're bonded to a FREAKING ALIEN!" he said, screaming his last two words.
"Whoever said I wasn't? I am freaked out about Lindsay being kidnapped and me knowing about drug dealers, but I see no need to waste energy on being distraught when the energy can be put to better use, such as gaining strength and planning the interrogations that are bound to follow." I said, switching to my right hand. "And the reason I am not freaking out about an alien being bonded to me is because I always dreamed of this happening. I can web-sling, lift 80 tons while I am in normal size, add mass to increase my strength, create shields, blades, blunt weapons, axes, and spikes anywhere on my body from the alien mass. I can even freaking turn invisible, dude. I can also outrun vehicles at their top speed, heal from any injury, sense any danger or incoming attack from any direction, and dodge them automatically. The best part is that I can fight like spider-man, because I know all his moves, including his own martial arts style called "The Way of The Spider", which works with my new "Spider-Sense", telling me what I need to do in a fight in order to win. My dream has come true." I said as I heard the door to access the roof open. I quickly got up and hid. When the door closed, I peered around and saw Jon activating his lighter. I ran up behind him, grabbed him, and pressed him against the door, pinning him there with my hand around his neck. While I was spinning him around, I made my entire body shake, and my right eye covered in the symbiote.
Jon opened his eyes to look at me. "H-hey, Owen. How you been? You look good, man, you been working out?" he said, nervous. "Hey, Zack. How you been." He said to Zack, who came into my peripheral vision.
"Shut up, Jon. Where's your phone?" Zack said.
"HEH. WOULDN'T YOU KNOW IT? I LEFT IT ON MY DRESSER THIS MORNING. SORRY, BUDDY."
Zack started checking his pockets while I held him in place. He found it, activated it, and looked through the call logs. He showed me the screen, which said that he had been talking to Jared within the last six hours.
"Hey, Owen, Buddy. You all right? I got what you need for the shakes, my friend." He said, smirking.
I shut my eyes, grinned like a madman, let out a wheezing laugh, and turned to Zack. I quickly turned back to Jon, and said "Listen, Jon. You know about demons, right? Like Satan and others?"
"Yeah, man."
"Well, I have a demon in me, called the corruptor. He eats human flesh, and delights on making people suffer. Right now he's hungry. He's hungrier than he's been in decades. And right now, the only standing between you and him, is me. And right now he's – he's"
I put my free hand on the side of my head, screaming in a voice that started in semi-high pitch, then got higher very quickly. "He's scraping at the dooooor. Scraping at the dooooooooor."
Jon started sweating slightly, and started looking around madly. "Now, if you don't tell me where Jared went, I'm gonna let him out. You have no idea how great it would feel just to let him out. (Groan). You're going to tell me where he is, or I will eat your freaking heart!" I said, making both of my eyes turn black.
"North! They went north, to Washington! He's got a friend up there who owns a prostitution ring. He plans to give the broad away to settle a debt he has with him!" he said.
When he said that, I grabbed the phone from Zack's hand, put it in Jon's mouth, and sternly told him "This is never spoken of to anyone, right?"
He nodded, whimpering as he did so. "Good girl." I said, patting him on the head. "Let's go, Zack. Remember, Jonny Boy, if people come looking for me, I will know it was you." I said, walking away. Discreetly, the symbiote made a razor-sharp tendril, acting on my instructions, and stabbed Jon in both legs, missing any major arteries and veins, yet hitting the pain centers that were most sensitive. I heard him scream in pure, animalistic agony that sounded like an animal with his leg caught in a bear trap. Zack climbed onto my back, got his grip secured. I jumped over the side of the building, landing on the sidewalk. Every emotion in my mind was gone, except anger. That anger was directed at JARED, AND Jared alone. Everything else was gone. The only desire that I had now, was to make sure Jared had a painful death.
Many, many ways of torture went through my mind as Zack drove down the highway that lead to Louisiana. I could pour concentrated, heated hydrochloric acid on his hands, melting the bones and flesh, then cut his feet, and put salt on the wounds, heating the salt to where it would pop inside his wounds, simultaneously causing third degree burns on his feet. I looked up and saw Zack turn into a gas station, stopping at a pump. He turned the car off, sighing in regret, or what sounded like regret. His right hand slipped into his back pocket, grabbing his wallet and pulling it out. Zack flipped it open, and pulled out the last remaining bill he had, a 20. When he had his hand on the door latch, I grabbed his wrist, stopping him, while I asked Sarah to produce my wallet, which she complied in doing so.
"Here." I said, pulling out a fifty. "Take this. Use it to fill up the car. Don't worry, I have at least 1000 dollars left. I'm not taking no for an answer."
He took the fifty from me, got out, slammed the door shut, and walked into the store. As he walked into the store, I got out and walked in there after him, locking the door to the car before closing it. The door opened automatically when I stepped onto the pressure plate, allowing me access to the store. I quickly went into the candy aisle, grabbing all the chocolate bars I could find. I had Hershey bars, both normal and king-size, three musketeers, rolo, and some Reese's cups, as well. By this time, Zack had already gone out to the car to fill it up, so I headed to the register, put everything on the counter, and had to wait for the smart-ass sixteen-year-old to register everything. the process took a unusual amount of time, because the girl decided to talk on the phone while she did so. I had a total amount of 50 candy bars, and the girl would stop and scream "No way!" into the phone after every four to five candy bars. Finally, after ten minutes, in which Zack was already in the car and waiting on me to get in, I grabbed the phone, hit the "end" button, and slammed it on the counter, putting my hand over it. I leaned across the counter, fury clearly visible in my eyes, and my heat gathering in my cheeks.
"You listen to me, you inconsiderate, over-privileged brat. I am in a big hurry. Somebody's life is in danger. There is a girl that is going to be sold into prostitution against her will. I am the only one who can find her, and I need to hurry."
She got the message, because she rang up the last 25 remaining candies, and gave me the price, handing me a bag with all the candy in it. I gave her a 50, told her to keep the change, and ran out of the store. I got in the car, put on my seatbelt, and Zack started driving. He looked over at me and saw me unwrapping two candy bars and shoving them into my mouth, quickly chewing them up, and swallowing. I repeated the process once more when Zack said to me "Dude! Chill out, man. It's not going anywhere, man. Slow down!"
"My apologies. The symbiote gains sustenance from phenethylamine, a substance that acts as a neurotransmitter and regulator for moods. It is only found in two substances: chocolate and human brain tissue. So, unless I want to have violent mood swings, I need to feed the symbiote a lot of chocolate to have it avoid draining my body of it, or resort to cannibalism."
"I sincerely hope that you don't eat me." Zack said, chuckling.
I ate the chocolate in silence from then on. Zack said stuff to me, trying to make conversation, but the attempts were futile. My mind was concentrated on one thing only: getting Lindsay back. Sarah moved a thin tendril upwards to my right cheek, increasing in diameter, making a pillow for my head.
You're tired. Rest. I am sure that the human known as "Zack" will let us know when we have arrived at our destination.
I leaned into the makeshift pillow, making myself comfortable.
Sarah, please make the pillow more firm.
No problem, sweetheart
Thank you. Sarah?
Yes, baby?
I need to ask you something. Why do you call me these affectionate names?
Because… I love you. I am not kidding. I want to be your love for life. In my opinion, you are sweet, caring, loving, and compassionate. You may get mad at times, but you always reel in your temper before you lose it. And also, you knew what I need to survive. I truly do love you, Owen.
This actually caught me off guard, but I thought about things, and finally, I realized that I love her too.
I knew you felt the same way. You just had to realize it. Sleep, my darling. You gather your strength, and I will do the same. When we are both revitalized, we will find Lindsay, my love. Have pleasant dreams, baby.
Have pleasant dreams too, Sarah.
Soon after that, my mind drifted off in the warm, comfortable, hospitable, and welcoming waves of fatigue and sleep.
Chapter 3
Darkness. That is what I saw. Only for a few moments, though. I could see a small light, but my eyes were slitted, equivalent to when you have to squint to see in an extremely-lit room. I could hear people exclaiming happily, saying "It's a boy!" my vision was now in the direction of a woman in a surgical gown, her head covered with sweat, and a smile on her face. My eyes focused and I saw that it was Anne Weying, Eddie Brock's Ex-wife.
Quickly, the scene changed to me being carried by Eddie Brock while he WAS BONDED TO THE Venom Symbiote. He looked down at me, saying "DON'T WORRY, SON. YOU WILL BE TAKEN GOOD CARE OF."
I felt someone punch my arm. My eyes opened and saw a chicken sandwich in my lap, along with waffle fries and an extra-large Dr. Pepper in the cup holder. I looked over to Zack, nodded, and took a bite of the sandwich after I opened it.
"Thanks, man." I said.
"No problem. We're on the outside border of New York. I decided to stop on the way here and get something to eat."
Just as he finished his sentence, we drove into New York.
"The search for Lindsay is no longer needed." I said.
"Why?" Zack asked me.
"She was only an actor. The kidnapping thing was planned to get me here in the first place, to Eddie Brock, my Father. Venom. The guy who was bonded to an alien and wanted to kill Spider-Man. My real mother is Anne Weying, his ex-wife. I had a dream just now. Where I was being born, and where Eddie took me away. I am sorry that I made you drive me up here for nothing." I said, taking out my wallet. I took out all the money I had, as well as the 500 dollar Visa gift card I got for Christmas and the Wal-Mart gift cards, resulting in me having over 3000 dollars in my hand. I put 500 dollars of cash in the empty cup holder next to my cup, and took my cup from the holder.
"That money is for the trouble I caused you by asking you to do this. Tell people at school that I had to go away. I have everything I need here." I said, taking a pause to get a drink of my Dr. Pepper, and putting the rest of my uneaten food in a bag.
"So do not worry about me. But I want you to know this: we live in a combined universe of Marvel and DC. There are heroes here, and I am one of them. Make sure that all of the kids in gym know that I went on to help people who need it, and that I will not be back."
"Where are you going?" he asked.
"When we get to the next red light, I will be getting out of the car, and I will be on my way to get a hotel room, and then I will be on my way to find some recruits for the Avengers League." I answered, finishing as we came to a red light, at which I got out of the car and ran into an alley, changing into my costume and swinging into the air among the skyscrapers of New York, embracing my new life as "Shadow-walker".
Chapter 4
Swinging across the buildings, doing acrobatic stunts between swings, I heard a 'thwip' that was not my own. I turned and saw Spider-man and Spider-woman swinging towards me. These were Peter Parker and Mary Jane Watson, who both got their powers from the same spider, sharing a seventh sense that allows them to sense each other's presence, aside from that, they had the sixth sense, wall crawling, equilibrium, organic webbing, strength, speed, agility, reflexes, accelerated healing, and night vision.
"Hey, you in the black and blue duds, pull over to the curb and have your license and registration ready for viewing please." Peter said, tapping my shoulder.
I stopped and clung to the side of a building, making myself comfortable.
Peter and MJ came to my side and clung to the wall.
"I don't know if you heard, but there is a law against impersonation." Peter Remarked.
"You always were the jokester, Peter. Hey, MJ. How was your honeymoon? I heard you just got back into town."
I could see their eyes widen behind their lenses, and hear a sharp intake of breath from both of them. "Don't worry." I said. "I know who you are and I am not here to be a threat, but instead, an ally. I am putting together a team of heroes. People from the Avengers and the JLA. I only want to know your answer. I can offer you the best lab equipment and technology there is, some financial help, and a guarantee that your child will be healthy and alive, and with you forever."
"What child?" MJ asked. "We just got married."
"Believe me, you will have a child. Your child will be stolen by Norman Osborn. Not directly, but by someone he paid to do so. I know right now he is dead, but he will be back. Believe me. The doctors will say that your child was stillborn, but she will be alive. Your clone Kaine will be here soon." I said, handing Peter a piece of paper with an address.
"Be here at nine o' clock. Expect others to be here, just so you are not surprised. This is important, Peter. Get the New Avengers, the Avengers, Heroes for Hire, X-Men, and Secret Avengers. I will get the rest. Before you ask why I cannot do this, it is because I am a stranger. You two are not strangers, so they will trust you. They may ask why you ask of such a strange request. For the X-men, tell them that I know that Professor Xavier will die soon. For the Secret Avengers, tell them I know how Luke Cage will die. For the Avengers, tell them that I know how Hulk and Captain America will die. For Heroes for Hire, tell them that I know how they will die. Make sure everyone comes. You can hesitate to trust me if you want to, but I ask you to do this as a huge favor to me."
And with that, I swung off, leaving them clung to the wall, the note still in Peter's hand. My next destination being the Daily Planet.