Chapter Four: Peter, Part Two
"No matter how buried it gets or how lost you feel…"
POV: Peter Two
Peter had known something was off the moment he'd seen Middle Peter. Sure, he believed in coincidences- Middle Peter appearing in his world at the same time a 'monster' was rampaging- but his sixth sense nagged incessantly not to let his guard down. It wasn't cautioning him about another Spiderman, it wasn't even buzzing like it did when there was imminent danger. It prickled, a warning to stay away.
The entire conversation between him and Middle Peter had felt awkward and forced. Peter had tried to keep an open mind, but he couldn't ignore the red flags that had popped up throughout.
Peter's shifty eyes wouldn't have been too big of a giveaway if it weren't for how controlled his body movements were. He had been closed off, each move calculated, a far cry from how Peter remembered his counterpart acting.
Peter Parker may be stubborn, but he was no idiot; the destruction from the monster he'd tried to find was not far from where they'd stood. Twice is a coincidence, Peter had thought to himself. He'd tried to get his counterpart to open up- he refused to call it digging for information, that felt impersonal and this? This had been personal, he'd been sure of it.
The other man's questions had been strange. Alarm bells had gone off in Peter's head when the topic of Gwen had come up. Middle Peter's eyes had revealed the truth. Peter just hadn't been quite certain what the truth was, yet.
Another clue slammed into place when Middle Peter had yelled. Peter had felt the niggling of a suspicion, the idea not quite fully formed in his mind. Middle Peter had tried to cover it up by continuing to yell at Peter, but the latter knew that the first sentence had not been aimed at him.
Something had been very, very wrong.
The thought had been forming, Peter unable to quite grasp the meaning yet, not until he'd heard what the passersby had said-
And then all the puzzle pieces had fit together to form a horrifying, nauseating picture.
He'd had no time to act on his conclusion as Middle Peter had attacked. Peter hadn't wanted to fight him- still didn't- and had tried to reason with the other man. Peter had seen just a glimpse of a struggle between Peter and the symbiote- had tried to encourage Peter to take back control- but it had disappeared in an instant. Something had clearly shifted in Middle Peter's mind.
Peter was still absolutely sickened. That wasn't Middle Peter; that was the symbiote, manipulating him to do its bidding. He feared that Middle Peter was too far gone to be saved. Peter shook his head even as he gave chase to the other man, keeping to the darker, less populated areas to avoid his face being seen.
The fire alarm hadn't been his first idea. When it had become clear that Middle Peter couldn't be reasoned with- and that Peter was no match for the symbiote- Peter had attempted to lure them to the clock tower of a church he knew was a few blocks away. His injuries had slowed him down, and his sixth sense not working properly with the symbiote in control of his attacker; his plan had been foiled. It had been complete luck that he'd spotted the fire alarm in the building they'd landed in.
Peter hadn't been prepared for Middle Peter's own reaction to the sound. Peter had enhanced hearing, sure, but it obviously wasn't as sensitive as the other man's. He could only hold down Middle Peter in the hopes that once the symbiote had detached itself, it would die and that younger man would come to his senses.
He hadn't expected the suicide threat.
In hindsight, Peter supposed Middle Peter wouldn't have actually hurt himself. But still, there were precious minutes wasted as Peter debated whether or not he should follow Middle Peter. Would the younger man attempt to harm himself again? Was it even worth going after them without a plan, seeing as he was no match for their combined strength? He couldn't exactly guarantee he'd be able to lead them somewhere.
In the end, though, Peter Parker was stubborn. In all worlds, it seemed.
And so, painfully aware that he wore no mask, and body aching with several injuries, Peter flung himself through the skylight.
The symbiote left a clear trail where he'd gone; Peter went the long way around to avoid being seen. He honestly didn't know what he was going to do when he found them. But he had to try.
A wordless shout caught his attention. Peter was out of time to plan. His heart was in his throat, fear becoming his primary emotion when he saw just who the symbiote had in its grasp. Peter couldn't swing fast enough, terrified for Youngest Peter's life. Youngest Peter didn't understand what he was up against-
Venom tossed Youngest Peter off the roof. Peter switched course immediately to catch him. Of course, Peter realized with embarrassment as Youngest Peter easily caught himself and stuck to the side of the building, trying to catch another Spiderman really hadn't been necessary.
Peter crouched on the edge of the roof across from Youngest Peter. "You alright?" he called over.
Youngest Peter looked up at him, body tense. "You're not going to try to attack me too, are you?"
Something twisted in his gut. "No. No, of course not." Peter stood and searched for their third. As predicted, Middle Peter and the symbiote were nowhere to be found.
"Great, because I have no idea what's even going on right now." Youngest Peter's voice shook despite the bravado he attempted to put on. He leapt up to stand beside Peter, body sagging in relief.
"Come on," Peter said gently. "Let's go to my place. We can talk there."
"Yeah," Youngest Peter nodded. "Yeah, let's- let's do that."
It took Peter longer than he would have liked to swing to his apartment, but of course he couldn't risk anyone seeing his face. The sun had fully set by the time they'd arrived, sweating and aching. Once inside, Peter insisted they both took showers; he used the extra time to gather his thoughts. He was sure Youngest Peter did the same.
One change of clothes and order of Chinese takeout later, Peter finally explained to Youngest Peter the situation as he knew it: Middle Peter being corrupted by the alien symbiote, his lackadaisical view of murder, and his obsession with Gwen. In return, Youngest Peter shared what he'd overheard in his world: Middle Peter arguing with the symbiote, which had clearly had to threaten him to do its bidding to begin with.
Slowly, Peter put the timeline together. "He gets the symbiote," he said, spinning a chopstick between two fingers. "He fights against the corruption, resulting in the symbiote threatening him somehow. At some point, he slips and starts… killing… people." The symbiote's influence, Peter knew. Still, his heart ached that one of them had fallen so far. They had to help Middle Peter; he didn't realize what he was doing. "He makes that device," he nodded at the gadget sitting innocently on the table. "Somehow crosses over to your world, but he's still fighting the symbiote-"
"Right, 'cause he still doesn't want to kill you," Youngest Peter cut in, eager to contribute.
Peter nodded. "Exactly. But the symbiote does, so when they cross over to this world, it goes berserk looking for me. Somehow, between arriving here and actually fighting me, the symbiote changes Peter's mind about killing me. Probably something to do with Gwen- I think the symbiote could be using her as a lure for Peter to do its bidding."
"And now we're here," Youngest Peter sighed, stabbing a piece of chicken with his fork.
"And now we're here," Peter repeated.
A moment of silence passed. Youngest Peter cleared his throat. "So, uh, what do we do now? What happens if he does get to Gwen? Will he hurt her, do you think?"
Peter shook his head. "I don't think so. He loves her- his version of her." Kidnapping, however, seemed very much on the table. Peter wisely didn't bring it up.
"Okay, so you said sound can kill the symbiote, right?" At Peter's nod, the younger boy continued, "What if we set up speakers that we can amplify a high-frequency noise?"
Peter caught onto the idea immediately. "We use me as bait to lure them somewhere-"
"-Then use the speakers when they won't expect it," Youngest Peter finished.
Peter frowned. "Won't the sound effect you, as well?" he asked, recalling Middle Peter's extreme reaction to the fire alarm. "My hearing isn't as sensitive as Peter Three's- but what about you?"
"Oh, don't worry about that!" Youngest Peter reassured. "My suit's not as high-tech as it used to be, but I figured out a way to muffle sound in my mask. It won't bother me!"
Peter hoped for both their sakes the boy wasn't lying. "Alright, we'll get some sleep- we both need time to heal," he said firmly when Youngest Peter went to protest. "Then we'll figure out how to lure Peter and the symbiote to us."
Youngest Peter furrowed his brow. "And what about your mask? You said you dropped it-"
Peter quirked a grin. "What? You don't have spares?"
Youngest Peter blinked. "…No?"
Peter dropped the subject. He stood up with a groan, body stiff. "Well, then." He glanced at the clock. 8:00. They could do some planning and prep for a few hours before getting some well-deserved sleep. "Let's get to work."
POV: Peter Three
Peter woke with a start. Not to the sun, oh no, he couldn't be a normal person. He had to wake up to the sound of a spider on his shoe. Peter twitched, skin crawling. He took a few minutes to center himself and regain control over his hearing. When he felt he could stand it, he reached over and scraped the spider off of him. The sound didn't irritate him as much as it could have, so that was a plus.
Peter licked his lips, mouth dry. God, he was thirsty. And-
Hungry!
Yeah, yeah, I know.
Peter laid his head against the side of the tunnel he'd slept in last night. He'd had no luck finding Gwen. He'd snuck around Oscorp- seemed like security wasn't that good in any world- but no one had heard of her. He'd done a quick google search of her in the library. Gwen only had a facebook account, but it was private. He could only see that she lived in New York City still, but at least he had that confirmation now. He'd spent maybe a bit too long staring at her profile pic, though. Peter had memorized her features- different enough that he probably wouldn't have recognized her at first, but her smile was similar enough that he would have figured it out.
Peter's heart ached with longing and desperation. Where was she?
Food!
In a minute.
He still didn't have a plan. He supposed the easiest thing to do was just… take her to his world and explain it there. Sure, she'd probably be frightened, but if he just explained everything to her-
Food!
"Alright, alright, geez Louise," Peter mumbled in exasperation, getting to his feet.
If he tried explaining things to Gwen first, she'd probably run. He couldn't have that.
Peter flipped his hood over his head as he entered the busy streets of New York.
But then came the next problem. The Kid had his machine. Peter huffed, irritated. Okay, new plan: get that device back, find Gwen, then hop back to his world.
Also, prevent Venom from leaving him. That was also on his to-do list.
Something like unease whirled in Peter's stomach.
Right. Okay. Food. Then track down the other Peters. Kill two birds with one stone.
Literally!
Peter hesitated. Maybe… Maybe killing the Kid wouldn't be necessary. Old Man Parker, sure- he was getting in between Peter and Gwen. But the Kid? Maybe injure him a bit, that was all. Peter just needed the device.
A quick flicker of movement out of the corner of his eye. Peter glanced over, then up. Irrational anger bubbled to the surface. Spiderman.
Let's follow!
Peter ran after the swinging hero until the opportunity came for him to use his own webs to follow. There were a couple times when he lost sight of Spiderman, but then the latter suddenly appeared once more. The swinging wasn't in any elaborate pattern, either. It was like Spiderman wanted Peter to follow.
This is a trap, Peter realized. He didn't stop swinging.
We will win anyway.
Peter followed until they'd reached an empty field. Spiderman landed on the ground and looked up at Peter, waiting. Peter only paused for a second- where was the trap?- before he swung sharply towards Spiderman. Venom encompassed him in mid-air, and therefore it was him who slammed Spiderman into the ground.
Why didn't he move out of the way?
"Back so soon?" Venom hissed into Spiderman's face.
"If I recall correctly, you're the one who ran," Spiderman gasped out.
No games this time, Peter told the creature.
"No games," Venom agreed, jaw opening far wider than should be possible. He went to bite of Spiderman's head- Peter just about to retreat further into their mind so he didn't witness it- when a blaring screech pierced their eardrums.
Actually, Peter realized through his jumbled thoughts, it was more like several layers of high-pitched noises. Some were a constant shriek, others were alternating beeps, and still others mimicked sirens.
Venom retreated inside Peter immediately, trying to save itself. Peter collapsed on top of Spiderman at the sudden regained control of his body. Before he could escape, Spiderman wrapped his arms and legs around Peter and then flipped them over. With Peter and Venom both incapacitated by the noise, plus their hunger and therefore weakened strength, they were thoroughly trapped.
No! It couldn't end like this! Peter dug deep and pushed with all his strength. It took a few tries, but Old Man Parker was clearly still in pain from his beat-down the previous day. Spiderman's grip slipped, and Peter ripped himself free.
Venom was beginning to detach from his host. Peter shot webs at Spiderman, trying to stick him to the ground. The Old Man, despite his pain, maneuvered out of the way and shot his own in return. If he said anything, Peter couldn't hear it. In fact, Peter was so dazed and out of sorts from the noise in his ears he didn't notice when someone else snuck up behind him.
Peter's arms were pinned to his sides as the person behind him caught him off guard. Peter snuck a look behind him. Baby Parker. Of course it was. How had he forgotten about the Littlest Kid That Could? Peter let out a wordless shout but was unable to break free. Venom's form struggled to stay connected to Peter's body, but the alien was quickly losing its shape.
Peter flung his head back and was pleasantly surprised when it made contact. The grip around him now loosened, he spun around and aimed a punch at the younger Spiderman's head. His wrist was caught by Old Man Parker, and his web shooter crushed. He really needed to work on making a stronger web shooter, Peter thought hysterically. He tugged his arm, but the Old Man held his grip.
The Kid had recovered and held out his arms to restrain Peter. Peter leapt into the Old Man and used his body as leverage to kick the Kid in the chest. The force of the kick sent all three sprawling onto the ground. Old Man Parker let go of Peter's wrist in the fall; Peter twisted out of the way. He stumbled to his feet. Venom's quivering ball of goo form now held onto Peter's shoulder, although just barely.
A glinting in a bush caught Peter's attention. Using his left web shooter- the only working one- he aimed at the object. He swung with all his strength; the object went crashing into the Kid, who hadn't been able to flip away in time. One of the steady screeches stopped. So that's how they'd done it. Speakers. A new plan formed.
He was unable to put his plan into action, however. Both Spidermen lunged for Peter from different angles. Peter shot webs at Baby Parker while attempting to leap over the Old Man, moving Venom to hold him at his stomach. Baby Parker dodged- although it wasn't difficult to do, as Peter's aim had been off. He wasn't exactly left-handed. Old Man Parker grabbed Peter's ankle mid-leap and pulled him to the ground.
Peter yanked his leg free. He aimed another web as his adversaries.
Nothing.
Shit.
He'd never gotten the chance to make more web fluid.
Peter scrambled to get away, one arm covering Venom's form protectively. He didn't manage to make it to his feet; both Spidermen piled on top of him, holding him down and squishing Venom.
"Get off of me!" Peter shouted angrily, desperately.
He glared up at the two Spidermen, trying to land a kick or punch. Each time he had a limb free, however, one of them would restrain it. They managed to maneuver Peter's arm away from Venom, leaving the creature exposed. Indescribable fear overwhelmed Peter- his or Venom's, he couldn't be certain.
And then suddenly the connection between host and symbiote was gone.
Venom, no longer attached to Peter, spazzed even more. He flopped onto the ground in a poor attempt to escape. Peter bucked against his captors' hold.
"Stop it! You're killing him!" Some of the emotions Venom had kept at bay were beginning to return: mistrust, doubt, wariness. Horror. Guilt.
And yet.
Peter wrestled one arm free. He haphazardly threw the arm in Venom's direction, hoping that perhaps the alien would be able to attach to him just the slightest bit. In response, the two Spidermen dragged him across the ground until Venom was out of reach.
"Please!" Peter begged. He was vaguely aware that he was crying. He couldn't turn his gaze away from the writhing- dying - form of the symbiote. Perhaps there were long-term side effects of hosting an alien in your body, Peter thought with a hysterical laugh. Oh. Perhaps he shouldn't have laughed, he realized as one of the Spidermen- Old Man- no, Older Peter- shook his shoulders.
"You're hurting him," Peter cried. A whole mess of emotions spun in his head, but he knew he needed to save Venom. He thought back to the beginning of the whole mess. "He has someone who cares about him, back in my world. I'll stop struggling. Just… Please, please stop hurting him!"
True to his word, Peter went limp, although he couldn't take his eyes off of Venom. He ached to host the alien again. He missed the power already. Or, he supposed, the illusion of power. But still. There was no way to describe a host and symbiote relationship. It just was. Peter's mind churned. There had to be a way to reconnect with Venom. There just had to be.
But first, he had to save the creature's life.
He turned to glare weakly at Older Peter. The man's body was tense, hands still gripping Peter's shoulders tightly. "You once stopped that Peter-" here, Peter nodded at the Spiderman lying on his legs "from killing Osborn." He narrowed his eyes. "How is you killing Venom any different?"
Peter kept eye contact the best he could through a Spiderman's mask. Finally, Older Peter turned his head just slightly- enough for Peter to know the man was saying something to Small Peter. Small Peter cautiously stood. Peter ignored his instinct to kick himself free, grab Venom, and run. Apparently satisfied, Small Peter disappeared into some bushes and returned with a glass container.
"You had that all along?!" Peter exclaimed in shock and fury.
Older Peter kept a close eye on him. Peter himself kept a close eye on Small Peter and Venom. His ears were still ringing- so, so much pain- but he forced himself to focus. Without touching Venom, Small Peter scooped Venom up and into the container. Even with the container fully sealed, Venom continued to spazz. Peter couldn't take his eyes off of him.
He felt himself being shaken, and then a gloved hand moved his head. He had no choice but to look up at Older Peter.
And then the blaring stopped. Peter blinked a few times. It took a few minutes of him lying there, staring up at Older Peter or at the sky, before his hearing returned to him. It was then that he realized he wasn't just crying- he was full-on sobbing.
He didn't understand.
"You with us?" Older Peter asked cautiously, finally removing his hand from Peter's head.
Peter swallowed dryly, tried to contain his emotions. "Yeah, uh, I think so. Just-" He made to make a gesture towards his head, only to remember he was still restrained. "My head's all weird right now."
"Okay, good," Older Peter muttered to himself. "That's… We can work with that."
Peter shifted uncomfortably. His back scratched the rough ground beneath him. "Now that that's over, can you let me up now?"
"Depends," Older Peter replied. Peter couldn't tell if the teasing tone was wishful thinking or not. "Are you going to try to kill me again?"
"No!" Peter yelled harshly. He and Spiderman both flinched. "Sorry, sorry, but- no, I'm not going to-" The emotions rolled over him in another wave. Older Peter moved off of him. Peter curled in on himself, hysterical sobbing returning.
He heard both the other Peters remove their masks- guess they'd determined he wasn't a threat anymore, Peter held back another frantic laugh. One hand ran through his hair. A body draped over his own, but unlike before, this felt more comforting than restraining.
"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," he repeated until he was all cried out. The three of them stayed like that, silent.
Peter moved to a sitting position, the Spiderman who'd been on top of him in a strange hug- Small Peter, he noted- crawled over a bit. The hand in his hair left, but Older Peter stayed nearby.
Nausea and a rolling stomach hit Peter next. He leaned forward and placed his head in shaking hands. What had he done? He couldn't fix this.
"It wasn't you," Older Peter stated firmly, as though he'd heard Peter's thoughts. "The symbiote-"
"But it was me!" Peter wailed. He shifted his hands back to tug roughly at his hair. "It- It turned me into a monster!"
"But, like, you didn't really want to do those things, did you?" Small Peter asked tentatively, hands flexing on his knees nervously. "That thing- It messed with your head."
Said 'thing' was out of sight, Peter noted. They'd probably put the container in one of the bushes. To prevent temptation, Peter thought miserably.
He'd forgotten what a normal range of emotions felt like.
He kind of wished he didn't have them back.
Peter huffed humorlessly. "I can't even blame him," he admitted, untangling his fingers from his hair. He glanced at Older Peter for a moment before returning his gaze to the ground. "He knew what you did to his counterpart. That you killed him. I-" He pushed down the images of Gwen's death, ignored the lump in his throat. He changed what he was going to say. Repeated, quieter, "I can't blame him for that."
Just as quietly, Older Peter asked, "You think the symbiote killing me is justified?" Peter flinched. Although the words hadn't been said in anger- rather, they were soft, gentle, like the man was coaxing a scared child to come out from under the bed, it's alright, it's safe now- he still felt the slap of the accusatory words against his face.
"No, that's not-" Peter stuttered. "Just- from his perspective, it makes sense, that's all." He looked up at Older Peter again, pleading. "There are people who deserve to die, but you're not one of them."
A pause.
"Deserve to die?" Small Peter interjected, incredulous. "What do you mean, deserve to die?"
Older Peter tried to respond to Small Peter, keeping his eyes on the middle of the three, "The symbiote-"
Peter was done with people talking for him. "I mean, bad people. Some- Some people who do bad things, and then other people get hurt," like Uncle Ben and Gwen and, and, and- "Those people shouldn't be allowed to keep roaming around. It-It sucks, but I understand now that, that maybe that's what I'm supposed to do." Peter looked between his counterparts, seeking validation. Small Peter's eyes are wide, mouth hanging open, expressive eyes shining with horror. Older Peter looked faintly ill, mouth turned down at the corners and with the slightest furrow of the brows.
He had to fix this. If he understood, so could they. All three of them were Peter Parker, after all. "But that's not- That is to say, not everyone, obviously. I mean…" Peter turned his watery gaze to Small Peter. "You- You almost killed Osborn! So you get it. And maybe you should have. Killed him, I mean. He's a dangerous man- You could have saved so many people-" Small Peter appeared stricken.
Older Peter cut in, tone even. "He did save people. He refrained from killing Osborn, and administered the cure to his ailment. By doing so, he saved people." His eyes pierced straight through to Peter's soul. Too bad Peter didn't have one anymore.
Still, Peter decided to drop the subject. He was tired and hungry and had a massive headache the size of Mount Rushmore that was quickly turning into a migraine.
The other two Peters seemed to get the memo. All three carefully stood.
"We'll go back to my place," Older Peter advised the two younger Spidermen.
"Yeah, that's great," Peter agreed wearily. Then, a quick thought- "Hey, do you guys still have my hopper device? Kinda need that to get home."
Peter felt the two Peters exchange a look over his shoulder. Finally, Older Peter replied, "Actually, I think we need to talk first. After we get to my place."
Small Peter went around the various bushes and other hiding spots to grab the small speakers, and then Venom. While the two were on their own, Peter turned to his older counterpart. "Listen, man, I really do want to apologize." He rubbed the back of his neck. "You were right. The symbiote was corrupting me." He tripped over a particularly bumpy part of the ground. Older Peter caught his arm. Peter grinned over. "Thanks." Older Peter didn't remove his light grip, which Peter was thankful for. The hand kept him focused and grounded, something he desperately needed at the moment.
Older Peter gave a wry grin. "Like I said before- I get it. It might have been a different alien, but I've been in your shoes. If you want to talk about it, I'm here."
Peter shook his head in disbelief. "I still can't believe he managed to convince me to kill you. I promise, I never meant to do that. I don't actually want to kill you," he said earnestly. "I really do just want Gwen."
Something twisted in Older Peter's face. Peter's heart dropped. "So the Gwen thing," the older man said, guarded. "That was you?"
Peter didn't understand the question. "Well. Yeah? I'd never really thought about it before, but…" His sentence trailed off at the calculating look Older Peter gave.
He doesn't know if he can trust me, Peter realized, a bit dazed. Suddenly the hand on his arm felt like it was holding him down rather than keeping him grounded.
"Alright, guys, I've got all the- Is everything good?" Small Peter returned wearing a ragged backpack. He glanced between the tense bodies of the two others.
Peter didn't know if he could answer. He felt like he was becoming detached from his body, and not in the way it had done with Venom. His heartbeat had also picked up speed.
Luckily, Older Peter answered for the both of them. "Yeah," he said, once again refusing to let his eyes stray from Peter's face. Peter wasn't quite sure what Older Peter was searching for. "Yeah, we're good. Let's get going."
The older man never let Peter out of his sight. Perhaps Older Peter had found what he'd been seeking, that he never strayed far from the middle brother.
Or perhaps it was what he didn't find.
A/N: Sorry for the delay guys! I had the chapter written out but wasn't satisfied with it- I'm still not satisfied, to be honest. That fight was over really quickly, but in the end I couldn't think of how to drag it out. Peter 2 knows how Venom works and its weaknesses, and wouldn't be caught off-guard again. Two well-fed Peters with a solid plan also outmatch a tired and hungry Peter 3 and Venom. In any case, only one chapter left!
