Author's note: Hey everyone, FireSlash here and welcome to the next chapter of 'United.' Before we begin, there are some stuff I'd like to say. First off, thanks to all of you who've show support for this story. I'm grateful that you took time to read this fic. Secondly, I will be starting school next week, so do not expect frequent updates. I will do my best to update this story as often as I can, but I'll be busy. This goes for all my stories. Third, speaking of my stories, *self advertisement alert!* if you like this story, I urge you to check out my other Loud House fanfics. I'll even be starting a new one which'll be a Xenoblade Chronicles/Loud House crossover or I might make a Loud House/Captain Universe fic instead. I don't know yet. Let me know in the comments which one you'd rather see. The losing one will still be written, but only when I finish one of my other fics first. Finally, this chapter is a bit short partially due to it being mainly build up. Think of it as a 'calm before the storm' moment. Stuff gets more exciting in the upcoming chapters.

Now that I've said what I had to say, let's get right into the story. Review and enjoy :-).

0000

"Dammit!" Carlton growled in his office. The latest tests he had done involving the symbiotes ended in failure, just like the ones before. Compared to the previous runs, the symbiote ended up bonding with its host for twelve hours, a record time, before killing him while he was still in the cocoon. "Why won't the symbiotes accept their given hosts?"

This anomaly was a bit confusing to the scientist. Unlike most parasites, the symbiotes were an intelligent species, so they were consciously rejecting their hosts. Did they find them more useful dead rather than alive? It would appear so, especially since the symbiotes always ate their killed victims.

Recalling all the subjects used during the experiments, Carlton attempted to trace the reason as to why the symbiotes refused to coexist with them, only for the answer to leap out at him a few seconds later. The men he had picked were all weakly and starving, something which hinders a human's capabilities. With such a huge problem present, it was no wonder why the parasites simply ate them.

Taking out his phone, he began to call his employees to tell them about his recent discovery, but he was interrupted by the scientist who informed him about the evasive symbiote a few days ago. "Hello sir, sorry to interrupt you yet again, but I've received some news you might want to hear. It's about the fourteenth symbiote."

His interest piqued, he motioned for her to continue talking. "Go on."

"A few hours ago, intel managed to locate the symbiote for a brief second. Readings show it had made its way to Royal Woods, Michigan. However, that's not all we found. The symbiote has claimed a host, a living one at that."

"Do you have the host's identity?" Carlton asked. He was curious to see what type of host the symbiote had bonded to so he could know what to look for when trying to find some suitable test subjects.

"No. We weren't able to get enough information to determine the individual's identity, but we have staff working on that right now."

"Excellent. I expect good things from you. Do not let me down."

"Yes sir."

Smiling, Carlton went back to work as the scientist left his office. "Now, where should I get my next batch of lab rats from?"

0000

"W-what did you do?!" Lincoln asked the symbiote, tears flowing out of his eyes as he stared at his hands as if they had been tainted. After the run in with those thugs, Venom had made sure to ditch the scene as soon as possible. Using his tendrils as some sort of grappling hook, he had placed Lincoln on top of a nearby buidling before he allowed the thirteen year old to resume control of his body. Having seen what Venom had done, the boy was beyond horrified and disgusted by the symbiote's actions. When he had thrown one of the thugs into the car, he ended up shattering his spine. He wasn't the only casualty, for the symbiote managed to break the skull of the man he had pounded into the ground. As for the final thug, the entire right half of his neck had been torn up, causing him to die a slow and agonizing death.

It wasn't like Lincoln was unconscious while the symbiote was wreaking havoc either. He had witnessed everything that had happened with his own two eyes. Practically having blood on his hands, the teen was scared, not knowing what to do. He was both terrified and confused.

"All we did was do what they were going to do to us," Venom casually replied, unfazed by the fact he had killed.

"W-why though? T-they didn't have to die."

"It was either us or them, and we chose them."

"You could've beaten them up instead…"

"Death was the only way to make sure they don't bother us again."

"We have the police-"

"Your memories show them to be unreliable. They are like the rest of you race; feeble and cowardly. We are stronger than them."

"That doesn't make us better than them…"

"It does, for we are not restricted."

"..." Knowing Venom wasn't going to change his mind anytime soon, Lincoln sat down to collect his thoughts. What was even going on? First he finds himself booted from the Loud House and now he has some sort of murderous parasite taking over his body. He didn't know what to do.

Taking some time to think, he decided to ask Venom a question. "What are you?"

"We are a Klyntar," Venom informed the young boy. "We come from far away. We came with thirteen others, but they have been captured. We avoided such a fate and to survive on your filthy planet, we needed a host. Your were the first one we found."

Lincoln's eyes widened upon hearing this. The reason Venom had bonded with the boy was because he was the first person the symbiote found. Talk about bad luck…

"Well now that you invaded my body without my permission, get out," Lincoln demanded. "I'm not keeping a murderous parasite in my body. Go find someone else."

"We refuse. We have settled quite nicely here."

"If you won't get out, then I'll force you out," Lincoln declared, the murderers Venom committed making the boy feel enraged.

"We don't think you get it," Venom snarled, bothered by Lincoln's nagging already. Resuming control of the boy's body, the symbiote threw him into the ground. When Lincoln tried getting up, he found himself unable to do so, the symbiote holding him down. As hard as Lincoln tried resuming control of his body, he couldn't overpower the organism that had invaded his body. "This is OUR body now. We can do whatever we want with it."

Growling, Lincoln began trying to get up again, only for his head to slam back down into the ground. However, he wasn't done. Concentrating, he repeatedly continued trying, but failed each time. Venom was just too strong.

"…So what now?" Lincoln distastefully asked the symbiote, angry that he couldn't overcome the alien's control over him. "Are you going to go on a rampage and kill people?"

Venom scoffed. "…If you think we're just some cold hearted killer, than you're mistaken. We do not go around killing anyone we see. We spare the innocent."

"Well that makes me feel better," Lincoln sarcastically said.

"As it should," Venom replied, not picking up the sarcasm. "Also, do not think you gain nothing from our new bonding. You will gain some of our strength, something you will need to fight against our hunters."

"You never told me who was hunting you…"

"They call themselves the Life Foundation. They wish to use our power for greed. As we have successfully bonded, they will be after you, even if we separate. Without us, you are a sitting duck. Which is why we have an offer. Keep us around, and we'll let you use some of our power."

"And if I refuse?"

"Then we cannot guarantee your survival, nor can we guarantee that we won't go bloodlust. If you truly wish to protect yourself and your kind, then you will allow us to stay without resistance. Cross us though, and we WILL kill you. So, do we have a deal?"

"..." Sighing, Lincoln began looking at his options. On one hand, he could try having his genius sister Lisa remove the parasite from him, but since it seems Venom knows what he's thinking, that wouldn't work. He'd kill him before that could ever happen. The symbiote also mentioned that it might go berserk with a different host, so keeping it with him seemed like it would prevent anymore unnecessary deaths. And about being hunted, if Venom was right, then he was pretty sure he'd be unable to avoid this 'Life Foundation' in the future without help. As such, it seems he'll have to continue serving as the host for the symbiote. "…fine. You can stay, but you better not hurt anyone."

"We promise to hurt only the bad."

"…This is the best I'm going to get, isn't it?"

"Yes."

"Ugh, fine."

0000

For the next hour, Lincoln continued to hang out on top of the building, still trying to get over the murders. Unfortunately, he wasn't able to, them being engraved in his mind possibly for the rest of his life. Hey, he was only thirteen, most would act the same after witnessing such a gruesome scene.

Lying on his back, the boy watched the clear sky above him, only to be interrupted by his cell phone ringing.

Whipping it out of his pocket, he picked up the call, not bothering to check who was calling him as he was still dazed. "…Hello?"

"Hey bro," Lincoln's third oldest sister Luna Loud said from the other side of the line. "Uh, we kinda need you to come back home. Turns out the sister fight protocol doesn't really work. Lola and Lana are still fighting… sorry for kicking you out of the house."

"It's fine," Lincoln said. To be honest, he forgot all about that stupid protocol. He had bigger things to deal with now.

"Ya sure? You don't sound so hot…"

"Yeah. Sorry, I didn't sleep well," the boy lied. There was no way he was going to tell his sisters about Venom. They'd probably kick him out of the family…not like he could blame him.

"Ah, bummer. Well, I'll see you soon."

"Bye." Hanging up, Lincoln looked down the building. "How am I supposed to get down from here?"

"We can help," Venom said. "Extend your arm to the other building."

Knowing that Venom needed him, Lincoln decided to trust him, doing as he was told. A second later, a strange black substance shot from his hand and nailed the building next door.

"You can use our gifts for transportation." Venom informed him as he began covering Lincoln's face and boy with black liquid to cover his identity. "We will show you." Regaining control of Lincoln's body, the symbiote had him jump off the building, much to the teen's surprise.

"AHHHH!"

Expecting to fall to his death, he was further surprised when the tendril he shot began acting like a rope, causing him to avoid hitting the ground. Swinging from said tendril, Venom shot another one at another building, swinging from it as well.

"WOOOHOOO!" The boy shouted in excitement as he continued to swing from building to building. The rush he was feeling from doing so felt so good. No wonder his fifth oldest sister Lynn jr. wanted to try out extreme sports.

'You know, I can get used to this,' Lincoln thought to himself, the stunt allowing him to temporarily relax.

0000

"So, this will be our new living quarters?" Venom asked Lincoln when the two arrived at the boy's home. The Loud residence was certainly not something for sore eyes, it looking extremely worn out and the front yard was littered with various toys.

Even with its lackluster appearance, Lincoln was glad to call this place home. It had supported him ever since he was born after all. "Yep. Welcome to the Loud House."

"It looks like rubbish."

"Eh, it does, but it's my home."

"It still looks like rubbish."

"Whatever." Waking up to the front door, Lincoln began to twist the doorknob, stopping a few second later before entering. "Remember, I live with twelve other people. If you don't want to caught, then you better be on your best behavior, ok?"

"Fine."

'Still not happy with having to live with this thing from now on,' Lincoln thought to himself before swinging the door open. Taking a look at the inside of the house, Lincoln noticed the entire place looked like a war zone...well, more than it usually did. "Geez, what happened here?"

"Linc, is that you?" Turning his attention towards the living room couch, Lincoln saw his sisters Lynn and Lucy hiding behind it, using it as a fort.

"Lynn? Lucy? What're you doing back there?"

"Trying to avoid the chaos obviously," Lynn hissed.

"The two have managed to destroy a good chunk of the house already," the gothic Lucy remarked.

"Where is everyone?"

"Locked in their rooms," Lynn informed him. "Even mom and dad aren't willing to interfere."

"Then why are you two out?"

"Lynn got hungry," Lucy bluntly told him, causing the athlete to blush in embarrassment.

Lincoln rolled his eyes. "Of course you did. Look, I'll stop the fight, just promise me you guys will change the protocol."

"If it means stopping the terror twins from destroying the house, gladly," Lynn said, Lucy nodding in agreement.

Following the sounds of chaos, the boy eventually found the two twins battling it out in their room.

"Alright you two, stop it!" Lincoln shouted, only for them to completely ignore him. As such, he tried again. "I said STOP IT!" Sadly, he was ignored for the second time today.

"Man, this fight really is bad," Lincoln remarked. They'd normally listen to him after being yelled at.

"Looks like you need our assistance again," Venom remarked before having Lincoln walk towards the girls, despite his protests.

"Hey, why are you-" Lincoln began to ask, only for him to get his answer when Venom effortlessly picked up both girls by their clothing, revealing himself to have superhuman strength.

"As you can see, we are far stronger than any member of your species."

'Yeah, I assumed that much after what you did earlier,' Lincoln thought to himself, knowing Venom could hear him. Shaking his head, Lincoln began pushing those bad memories to the side, having a job to do.

"Guys, stop arguing already." Lincoln told them as they struggled to get at each other. Eventually getting nowhere, the two looked up at their older brother.

"But Lincoln, Lana dirtied all my dresses," Lola whined, causing Lana to glare at her.

"It was an accident you brat!"

'Sometimes these two fight over the dumbest things,' Lincoln remarked to himself. "Look Lola, you need to calm down. Lana said it was an accident."

Hearing this, Lana stuck her tongue at her twin, causing Lincoln to face her.

"And Lana, you need to pay more attention to your surroundings. I know you like getting dirty, but not everyone feels the same way. Now, apologize to each other."

Taking a quick glance at one another, both twins let out a light humph before facing the opposite way. "Ugh, looks like I'll have to bring out the big guns. If you two apologize to each other, then I'll buy you ice cream. Sounds good?"

While they weren't ready to forgive each other yet, both girls couldn't resist the temptation of free ice cream.

"Sorry," both girls mumbled to each other, making Lincoln smile.

"See? Problem solved. Hear that guys?! You can come out now!"

Opening their doors slightly, the rest of the Loud family began surveying the scene, making sure it was truly safe for them to leave their rooms. Eventually deciding it was, everyone flooded into the halls, the Loud House returning to its former self a few seconds later.

"Whelp, looks like you saved out butts," Lynn stated, putting an arm around her brother. "Thanks for that...and sorry about kicking you out."

"It's ok," Lincoln replied, shrugging the incident off. "It's not that big of a deal."

"I must offer you my apologies as well," Lisa, Lincoln's genius four year old sister said, walking up to the pair. "It seems there were some possible situations I did not factor in when creating the sister fight protocol went awry. I will make sure to do better when creating a new version of the protocol."

'The smart one's dangerous,' Venom telepathically told Lincoln. 'She will be the first to notice us if we drop our guard.'

'Tell me about it,' Lincoln agreed. "Uh, well good luck with that. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to take a nap. I had a long day…"

Letting loose a loud yawn, the boy gently eased himself out of Lynn's hold and made his way to his room, still needing some time to break down everything that was on his mind.

0000

For someone who's lived with his siblings for thirteen years now, Lincoln knew that getting some alone time was practically impossible unless he locked his door. Fully understanding this principle, the boy locked his door before plopping onto his bed. He honestly needed to recharge, especially since he knows he'll have to deal with the murders Venom had committed. Even though the two only met yesterday, the parasite was proving to be more trouble than he was worth. Sure, he now had superpowers which was cool and all, but how was he supposed to gush over them when he was constantly worrying about his alter ego acting up?

Shaking his head, Lincoln began to take off his clothes so he could go to bed already. Yes, it was still noon, but he was just that drained.

'Allow us.' With Lincoln having removed everything but his underwear, the symbiote began surrounding the boy's body with black goo. Much to his surprise, the goo's appearance and texture soon warped into that of his pajamas. 'We can shapeshift.'

"Huh, neat," Lincoln remarked, realizing his life got so much easier now that he didn't have to wear clothes. Before he could realize the other incredible things Venom's shapeshifting could allow him to do, Lincoln passed out from exhaustion.

0000

'The spooky one's here.'

"Wha." Groggily getting up, Lincoln looked at his alarm clock, surprised that it now 12 o'clock in the morning. "Man, I must've been exhausted. Now what was that about Lucy being here?"

"I'm surprised you noticed me," The goth said. Normally, the boy would flinch or scream in fear after his little sister unconsciously sneaks up on him, but right now, he felt a lot bolder than usual. It was a bit strange, but the boy chalked it up to the fact the symbiote warned him a head of time…

"What're you doing up so late?" Lincoln asked her, his protective brother instincts kicking in. Lucy normally stood up late to watch some old vampire flicks while the rest of her family were asleep, but twelve in the morning was late even by her standards. Usually when she was awake at this time, something was troubling her.

"...I was worried about you," the eleven year old admitted, not normally the one to show or tell how she was feeling. "When you came home, you had a look on your face, one I've seen many times. You appeared to be disturbed and somewhat frightened."

'Darn it,' Lincoln winced. He forgot how perceptive his little sister was. Heck, when it came to determining how someone felt, the little poet was even more skilled at doing so than Lisa. "Look, if you're worried about me being angry at you guys for kicking me out, then there-"

"I know you're not upset about that. Something else happened, I know it."

Though Lucy had to be one of his favorite sisters, sometimes it was necessary to lie to protect the ones you love. It didn't make it any less painful. "I think you're imagining things. I'm fine, don't worry."

"Would you tell me if you weren't?"

"Yes." God he felt bad.

"...Goodnight Lincoln." With a soft nod, the girl began making her way back to her room, leaving Lincoln alone with the symbiote.

"She did not believe you...hmm… We see now that the smart one is no longer the biggest threat. We must keep an eye out for the spooky one at all times. If we do not, then she will be our downfall…"