Eddie searched the office, turning over every inch of the room, looking for Barrison's folder. All his effort to find nothing. Not a single scrap of paper referencing her apart from in Kasady's folder, which was all but a scribbled down note. After a while Eddie had to conclude he wasn't going to find anything because there wasn't anything too find.
He gathered what he could from the desk, phone shoved back in his jacket pocket, brown folder tucked under his arm, torch light beaming forward guiding the way out of the room.
A loud crash bounced down the corridor.
Eddie stopped dead in his tracks, almost dropping the files. He stared down the winding corridor, listening to his hurried breathing, eyes trying to make out shapes in the dark being too frightened to direct his torch in the direction.
"What was that?" Eddie hissed quietly.
How am I meant to know?
With Venom's lack of incite, Eddie, weather out of intrigue or foolishness, followed the path in the direction from which the sound had originated from.
Skulking the dilapidated interior of the troubled house was not how Eddie would preferably spend his night, but here he was. He could only appreciate that he wasn't alone in this awful journey. The tiled floors were as cracked and discoloured as the foyer, many doors in the corridors ajar, rooms behind cells for the insane, accommodations padded and rotten.
Eventually Eddie found himself at the foot of a grand staircase, having heard no other noises than the house's bones creaking.
Something was dripping down the stairs, a clear liquid glinting in the torch light. Eddie could smell the gasoline before he even got this close, the fumes reaching down the corridor quite a way. This fact would make many turn back, find the nearest exit.
He ascended the stairs, doing his best to avoid the gasoline soaking the boards. Nearing the summit, a new sound entered. A humming coming from one of the corridors at the top.
Eddie clicked his torch off, keeping to the side of the decrepit walls as he neared the rhythmic humming. The full moons light did its best to lead the charge through boarded or smashed windows. Eddie shimmied his back along a wall, head peering slowly round the corner, voice coming from just beyond.
The orange hair, red suit and pale skin stood out in the dark. The serial killer hummed happily along to a song in his head, a gasoline canister in Kasady's hands in the process of pouring the fuel everywhere in a musical fashion. He was making his way periodically through the building, the man moved with a plan.
Eddie watched him back out of a room, sloshing the final contents of the canister over the floor. He snapped back away from the corner, out of view of Kasady, back to the wall.
The sounds of splashing stopped, footsteps gone, humming ended.
Eddie clutched the folder he was carrying to his chest, eyes unblinking.
"I hear you… Eddie…"
The voice sent a shiver up his spine.
Shit.
"Eddie?" Came the pleading call.
Eddie swallowed back some fear, hold on the folder adjusting as he made his decision.
He stepped out from his hiding place, finding the smiling killer dead centre of the corridor, eyes trained on him as soon as he was in view.
"Evening." Eddie waved a shaky hand, trying to use humour to mask his obvious fear.
"Just the man I wanted to thank!" Kasady threw the empty cannister to one side, plastic container skittering across the floor and into one of the side rooms. "Funny finding you here." The man dusted his hands off before correcting his suit jacket.
We can take him; I'll enjoy eating whatever brain he has left! Venom encouraged, a snarl following his words. Eddie could feel the symbiote pushing to be free, to take the wheel from him.
"Told you we were one in the same." Kasady waved a finger at Eddie, nodding in satisfaction.
"I'm going to take that as an insult." Eddie mustered a few words up. It wasn't easy being brave when a serial killer stood before you, no bars between.
Kasady chuckled, the chuckle turning into full laughter.
"He's a funny man. He's funny, isn't he?" The man continued to laugh.
"What are you after Kasady? You wanted your story to be told, for people to see the light in you?" Eddie threw down the folder he had taken, slapping down on the fuel-soaked wooden boards of the floor. "Well, there isn't one. And there hasn't been for a very long time."
"Your wrong." An angered growl rumbled out, hands clenching into fists a far difference from the once giggling man. "She found me; my light found me." Kasady's hand gently laid on his heart, head tilting at Eddie with puppy dog eyes. "Now-now I need to find her!"
He's lost it.
"What gave you that idea?" Eddie replied in a whisper, looking down to mask his mouth.
"What was that Eddie?" Kasady took a step towards him, making Eddie take one backward in return. "You know, if it wasn't for you almost snuffing me out, if it wasn't for this gift you have so graciously gifted me…" Kasady slowly strolled forward, Eddie exchanging steps backwards. "None of this would be happening." He grinned with a wide toothed smile.
Reaching into the pocket of his fine red and black jacket a lighter came into view. The lid flipped back a flame sparked into existence.
"Kasady stop!" Eddie was too late.
Kasady lazily threw the lighter over his shoulder, smiling the entire time. The gasoline ignited immediately. In that moment of ignition, Kasady was enveloped by a familiar being, red and black flesh formed from him as he launched at Eddie.
A bladed hand reached forward as fire began to engulf the corridor. Fire chased after Kasady whose face was half overcome with sharp pointed teeth, the fire diligently following the trail of gasoline that had been poured.
Venom encased Eddie instantaneously prior to grasping at the closed metal door beside them, ripping it free from the cell and shielding them both. Kasady collided against it with a crash, sending them both flying back, the door getting deflected out of his hands, imbedding in the wall.
Flames toiled around them, walls being engulfed with the ravenous red and orange fire, smoke bellowing up against the ceiling. Not escaping the house fast enough the smoke quickly began to accumulate.
Venom wasn't even able to get to his feet, instead having to grab at the bladed hand of the other symbiote, its red form striking at his chest viciously. Venom grasped the hand, planting a foot on the chest of the creature before heaving it up and over behind him into the blazing fire that surrounded them.
Venom screeched out in pain as the fire flicked their tongues at him, the heat unbearable. It was taking Venom everything to not retract back within Eddie, and he could see the other symbiote struggling all the same.
"Oh shit, that's a red one!" Venom shouted, watching the creature twist itself back up right, tongue sloshing around, eyes narrowing on its target.
What does that even mean? Eddie's voice sounded in Venom's head, there places reversed.
The red symbiote was a little smaller than Venom, but nimble, faster. It darted forward with a scream. Venom put an arm out, catching the creature by the throat.
"Father…" The symbiote gurgled viciously.
Venom's eyes went wide. Neither Eddie nor Venom commenting on the sudden omission.
Distracted Venom didn't dodge in time, red symbiote plunging its formed blade like arm through his chest. Both creatures screamed out, Venom hurling his attacker through a wall, rubble and flames exploding on impact.
With the flames kissing Venoms arm, the black flesh started to retreat, Eddie's own arm peeking through.
Arh! Eddie cried out, arm feeling the sting of the hungry flames. Venom reformed fully, just as the symbiote once more crashed into him. They both fell through fire and flame, tumbling as the wooden floor beneath them gave out.
Both crashed down hard in a bed of fire, Venom and the red symbiote screamed out in agony as they both scrambled out from the clutches of the flame.
Crawling, Venom had no choice but to withdraw leaving Eddie scrambling to safety, smoke filling his lungs, keeping low the only way to breathe any oxygen. His arm was burned and face a mess of black ash.
"You need to come out right now!" Eddie coughed desperately.
"We're more alike than you ever thought Eddie!" Kasady called from across the foyer. Eddie recognised the burning space now. He was back at the entrance, front desk ablaze, walls being eaten away, beams and ceiling fallen over the exit. "But she… She completes me!" Eddie could see Kasady on the other side of crumbled ceiling and the howling fire, sleeve covering his mouth as he also fought for air.
"She's dead Cletus! She's gone!" Eddie called back. He was on his feet now, backed up in the corner as far away from the fire as possible.
The face he saw through the flames became stiff; eye contact locked even with the bars of fire between them. The rest of the ceiling creaked above, threatening to collapse as planks clattered against the tiles.
"No… You're wrong!" The pitiful shout got caught up in the smoke. "NO!" The cry turned into an alien scream, the creature forming once more, launching through the wall of fire straight at Eddie.
Venom appeared taking form, the claws dug into his chest, both crashing through the outer brick wall, both spilling out into the courtyard, moonlight welcoming them both back into its embrace.
Eddie rolled along the ground, Venom retreating within, leaving him face down in the weed-stricken gravel. The sound of crumbling bricks, fallen rubble, the splintering of wood and the inferno that now reached for the sky was deafening.
"Still think we can take him?" Eddie asked Venom mid groan, getting his arms up under him.
The fire bathed the area in light, the moon no rival. Eddie squinted as he shoved himself up, holding his side.
From behind an arm wrapped around his neck, getting him in a chokehold, pulling back on his windpipe.
"If she's gone… I've got nothing left to lose!" Kasady shouted into his ear. Eddie's hands went up trying to pull away the arm away, but it held firm.
"Venom?" Eddie wheezed out.
"I once gave you a wish Eddie Broke. Now I'm going to make that a promise…" Kasady squeezed harder making the edges of Eddie's vision begin to go dark. "You will stand over her corpse and beg for death before morning." The whisper was sinister, terrifying as the world went black. He never felt his face hit the ground.
Authors Notes
Sorry for not posting in a while, but do not fear this story has not been forgotten!