Chapter Six: Welcome to Happy Harbor

'THAT ONE...AND SOME OF THAT... NO NOT THAT ONE, THE OTHER ONE!'

It had been five days since Eddie had joined the Justice League's covert ops team and moved into Mt. Justice. While it took a few days to get used to the place, Eddie had managed to get into a rythym, not just with his daily routine but with the Symbiote as well. They were both still somewhat adjusting to the pairing, and although they had no problems for the most part, the Symbiote often made breakfast a chore. They had made a deal that the Symbiote had full control on one meal that they ate per day, the Symbiote heard Ms.Martian say the phrase 'Breakfast is the most important meal of the day' and had thus demanded it get to choose breakfast, which it now thought was the most important. While the Symbiote was more than capable of creating tendrils and making breakfast on it's own, Black Canary had told them both that they should use this opportunity to work on their mental bond and their communication skills. According to Dr. Desmond's notes, the Symbiote had the ability to share thoughts with it's host, and have the host and the Symbiote know what the other is thinking. In battle, this had the theoretical potential for the host to know what's happening around them before they turn to see it, but right now, Eddie was working on knowing what cereal the Symbiote wanted. The Symbiote was being purposefully vague, trying to give Eddie a mental picture of what it wanted telepathically. They both knew that this exercise was necessary, but it didn't stop them from getting frustrated.

"Which one? There are literally twelve different boxes of cereal! Saying 'the other one' isn't helpful."

'HOW DO YOU NOT KNOW WHICH ONE I'M REFFERING TO? IT IS OBVIOUS I AM REFFERING TO THAT ONE RIGHT THERE! YOU ARE NOT EVEN TRYING!'

"I AM trying!"

Before the argument could continue, the Zeta Transporter activated, and someone teleported into Mt.Justice.

*RECOGNIZED: BLACK CANARY, 1-3.*

"Good Morning, Eddie, how are you?"

Eddie was a little surprised to see her. "Black Canary? I'm fine, but I didn't think training was until tomorrow?"

Canary nodded. "Group training, correct. But remember, you agreed to train without the others."

'That's right, I start today, how could I forget!' Eddie mentally admonished himself.

As part of the deal he made with the League, he agreed to do much more training then the others. This made sense, aside from Superboy, the others had been trained by professional superheroes for years, Eddie had just gotten his powers a week ago, and needed experience in fighting and using them properly.

"Sorry, I remember. So, should I meet you in the sparring area?"

Canary shook her head. "Actually, I had something else in mind. Eat breakfast and then get your gym clothes on. You're gonna train somewhere special, we have to take a Zeta beam there."

Eddie wondered where they were going, but didn't question her. He quickly ate the cereal he already had (to the Symbiote's loud protests) and got dressed. He met Canary at the Zeta transporter. She typed coordinates into the console, then the machine powered up. As they walked through, Eddie heard the Zeta transporter speak.

*RECOGNIZED: BLACK CANARY,1-3. VENOM, B-0-5*

Location: Civic City, Pennsylvania. 08:03 AM.

Eddie And Black Canary exited the Zeta transporter. Eddie looked around and couldn't tell where they were, other than the fact that it was inside, and barren. "Um, Canary, where are we?"

She looked at Eddie. "We're in the basement of Wild One's Boxing Center, in Civic City, Pennsylvania. You'll be training with the man who owns this place. And by the way, when we're on the surface and not on duty, call me Dinah."

"Okay, Cana- I mean, Dinah." He smiled sheepishly and rubbed the back of his head. "Sorry, force of habit, that'll take some getting used to."

Before they could get to the staircase that led out of the basement, they heard a gruff male voice coming down the stairs. "I was wondering when you'd get here. Been waiting on ya!"

The man walked into view. he was HUGE! At least six and a half feet tall, and musclebound. He was bald, but had a grey moustache and beard. While Eddie was wary of the giant, Dinah wasn't the least bit intimidated. "Sorry Ted, meeting with the League went long, and then Eddie had to get ready."

The man, Ted, huffed in irritation. "Meetings, is that what they have you doing up there? I thought I trained you to crack skulls, not read off spreadsheets."

Dinah smiled and playfully rolled her eyes. "You know it's not that kind of meeting Ted, no spreadsheets. Anyway, this is Eddie Brock. Eddie, this is Ted Grant. He trained me in combat years ago back when I was just starting out. He used to be a superhero named Wildcat, but these days he's retired. He has agreed to help with your combat training."

Ted looked at Eddie, judging him. "Hmm... so you're the kid with the living goo in his head?" "I AM NOT GOO!!" The Symbiote was not happy with being called goo, slime, snot, or really anything other than Symbiote. Ted didn't even flinch at the Symbiote's outburst. "So it's feisty, is it? Good, I expect to see some fight from both of you, now let's head upstairs kid. I've got it from here Dinah, see you in four hours."

Eddie's eyes went wide. "Four Hours?!"

Dinah smiled, "Yeah, Ted can be a little... intense on day one. Good luck Eddie, I'm sure you'll do fine." As Dinah left back through the Zeta Transporter, Eddie and Ted went upstairs. The boxing center itself was very nice. Vibrant and clean, it was clear that Ted cared about this place. "So, how long have you had this place?" Eddie asked.

"Oh, just over ten years. Although this is my second center, the first one I ran was in Gotham, that's where I trained Dinah. But that place was old and broken down, it had to be condemned eventually. Luckily I had enough saved up to move shop and set up here." Ted walked over to one of the boxing rings, where a pair of gloves was hanging on the ropes.

Eddie looked at the pictures Ted had on the walls of the boxing center. "Are these all people you've trained?"

After Ted put his gloves on, he tossed a smaller pair to Eddie, and gestured for him to get into the ring. "Yep, each and every one of them. Some are from the Gotham location, some from here. Some are professional fighters, MMA, Pro Boxing. Others do, or did, what Dinah does. But they all have two things in common, they were trained by the best boxer there is, and they are the students I'm most proud of."

Eddie noticed that Dinah had a picture up there, not surprising really. She was one of the best fighters out there, of course Ted would be proud of her! As Eddie got in the ring and put his boxing gloves on, Ted took a fighting stance and spoke. "Okay kid, listen up! Before I can teach you how to punch good, I'm gonna teach you how to take a punch. You're gonna takle a lot of them in the field, so today we work on your blocking, dodging, and pain tolerance." The next four hours were pure hell. Eddie did indeed learn how to block and dodge, but only after taking several dozen hits. As Ted pointed out, his enemies wouldn't hold back in the field, so it was important that Ted didn't either. By the time Eddie was sent back to Mt.Justice, he was ready to pass out. (Sure enough, that's exactly what he did when he sat on the couch)

Eddie woke up at Two PM.Once he was awake, he went to the kitchen to make himself something to eat, only to find Miss Martian there baking something. She greeted him with a smile. "Oh, Hi Eddie! Canary told us that you started your training today, how did it go?"

"Hey M'gann, it went well, painful, but well."

The Team had all told eachother their secret identities (minus Robin of course) shortly after they first met Miss Martian.

Eddie smiled sheepishly. "So, what are you baking?"

"Chocolate chip cookies, I've never actually made them before but I wanted to test the recipe. I'm hoping that these will be a nice treat for Aqualad, Kid Flash and Robin."

Today was the first day that the whole team would be in Mt.Justice since they were first formed. Robin, Aqualad and Kid Flash had been helping their mentors while waiting for the team to be given their first mission. To say those three were getting restless would be an understatement. While Eddie understood their eagerness, he himself was in no hurry to be in the field. He knew he needed as much training as he could get.

"So, any word on when the others will get here?"

M'gann put the tray of raw cookies into the oven. "Actually, they're already here. But they saw you napping on the couch, so they went outside to let you sleep."

Eddie was surprised he slept through the Zeta transporters, he must have been more tired than he thought. Regardless, he was up now. He and M'ggan went outside to meet the others, Superboy was already out there.

The others took notice of Eddie and M'gann,and walked over to greet them.

"Hey Eddie, enjoy your beauty sleep?" Wally quipped.

Robin nodded. "Yeah, I'm not surprised you were tired. I've heard Wildcat is as brutal as Batman is strict."

Kaldur spoke. "I am sure that with time, you will become quite skilled Eddie."

Eddie thanked Kaldur for his encouragement, and then asked if Red Tornado would be arriving soon. He knew that the others had planned on asking for a mission today, and while he didn't feel like he was ready, he couldn't deny that a small part of him was excited at the prospect of going on his first mission as a superhero.Just as Eddie asked, Red Tornado came into view, and landed a short distance away.

As Red Tornado approached, it did not escape him that the entire team was present to greet him. This was unusual.

"Greetings, is there a reason you all have intercepted me outside the cave?" He inquired.

Aqualad stepped forward. "We were hoping you had a mission for us."

Red Tornado responded without hesitation. "Mission assignments are the Batman's responsibility."

Robin rebutted. "But it's been almost a week and-"

"You will be tested soon enough. For the time being, simply enjoy each other's company."

This answer soured Kaldur's mood. "This team is not a social club."

"No, but I am told social interaction is an important team-building exercise. Perhaps you can keep busy by familiarizing yourselves with the cave." With that, Red Tornado walked past them and entered the cave.

While Eddie, Superboy and M'gann had no particular opinion on Red Tornado's rejection, the other three were noticeably upset. Robin vocalized his frustration."Does he think we're falling for this?"

M'gann volunteered to help. "Ooh, let's find out!" She focused her telepathy on Red Tornado, attempting to read his mind. After a few seconds of silence, she briefly wondered why she couldn't hear any thoughts, until she realized her mistake. "Whoops, I forgot he's a machine, inorganic. I can't read his mind because he doesn't have brainwaves."

Wally once again tried to flirt with M'gann. "That's okay, your can read my mind anytime beautiful. So, guess what I'm thinking of?"

Robin slugged Wally in the side, causing him to wince in pain. "We ALL know what you're thinking."

Eddie shook his head. "Seriously, self control, speed bag."

Aqualad ignored Wally's antics, as he was still upset. "And now we tour the clubhouse.

While M'gann wasn't sure why three of her friends were upset, she wanted to help take their minds off of it, and maybe cheer them up in the process. She had just the idea of how to do that.

"Well, Eddie, Superboy and I live here. We can play tourguides."

That sounded about as fun as a fight with three Blockbusters ton Superboy. "Pass, I'll take the tour, but I'm not 'playing' anything."

M'gann nodded. "That's okay. How about you Eddie, want to help me give the tour?"

"Sure, let's get started."

While Eddie was able to provide information about the amenities that Mt.Justice had, it was Robin who taught him about the hideout's origins. He learned that Mt.Justice was the original headquarters of the Justice League. It was abandoned due to it's location being compromised. While this initially made M'gann and Eddie nervous, Robin and Kid Flash assured them that they were safe, essentially they were hiding in plain sight.

After that, Superboy picked something up with his enhanced sense of smell. "Is something burning?"

M'gann gasped. "My Cookies! I completely forgot!" She flew into the kitchen as quickly as she could, but unfortunately she couldn't save her cookies. They were burnt to such a degree that they were as black as the Symbiote.

"I'm sorry, they were supposed to be a treat." Despite the fact they were beyond burnt, M'gann was surprised to see that Wally was eating them.

He noticed everyone staring at him. "What? My speed means I have a ridiculously high metabolism."

Kaldur looked back at M'gann. "It was sweet of you top make them in the first place."

"Thank you, Aqualad."

He smiled gently. "Remember, when we're off duty you can call me Kaldur."

"Oh, right. Kaldur. Kid Flash is Wally. Robin's name is secret. And I know Eddie's real name, but not his codename.Eddie, could you remind me what it is?" Asked M'gann.

"No problem, M'gann. The Symbiote and I both agreed that we want to be called Venom in the field." When Eddie responded, Megan looked slightly confused.

"Venom, why Venom?"

Eddie paused to collect his thoughts and form an answer. "Long story short, my father wasn't a good man. All my life he told me that I was poisonous, that I killed the life around me. His life, my mother's life. So I want to turn that into something positive. I'll be the poison that eradicates the cancer. I'll be toxic to anyone evil. To them, I'll be Venom."

Eddie's heartfelt response took them by surprise. While Robin himself knew Eddie's past, he never had heard Eddie talk about it. Kaldur put his hand on Eddie's shoulder in support.

"I have no doubt that you'll be one of the best heroes this world has ever known. With a heart like yours, I see nothing but potential."

Hearing Eddie talk about his father made Superboy think about his own 'Father' of sorts, Superman. He had virtually no relationship with him. Superman had never said anything, but he made it clear that he wanted nothing to do with Superboy. This made him feel sad, and when Megan noticed, she tried to privately talk with him telepathically. She had no idea just how big of a mistake this would be.

'Superboy, are you alright?'

Hearing M'gann's voice in his head filled him with anxiety and rage. The Genomorphs had scarred him with all the mental intrusion, and he hated telepathy as he associated it with the mental control he had been subjected to in Project Cadmus.

"GET OUT OF MY HEAD!!"

This response greatly confused M'gann, and she telepathically asked the others what was wrong. 'What's wrong? I'm confused, everyone on Mars communicates this way.'

While Robin, Kaldur and Wally reacted with mild discomfort. Eddie fello over in pain, grasping his head and crying out, as the Symbiote writhed in pain.

"AAAGGGHHH!!"

Kaldur quickly cried out. "M'gann stop!"

Once she cut the link, Eddie and the Symbiote recovered. Aqualad explained the situation to the Martian. "While that is normal behavior on Mars, here on Earth your telepathy is an invasion of privacy. Plus, Superboy and the Symbiote were experimented on with telepathy by Cadmus. So they perceive mental intrusion as an attack."

M'gann felt terrible, she had no idea. The last thing she wanted to do was hurt her friends. "I'm so sorry, I had no idea!"

Eddie and the Symbiote forgave M'gann, knowing she didn't mean to hurt them. Superboy on the other hand, was quick to anger and slow to forgive. "Just.Stay.OUT!"

It took a bit of time for everyone to calm down, but once they did, Megan introduced everyone to her Bioship. While it operated just like a spaceship, it was an organic sentient lifeform. The Symbiote instantly took a liking to it. M'gann agreed to take everyone on a trip in the Bioship and fly around happy harbor. While they were flying Megan explained how the Bioship worked.

"She's as alive as any of us. Despite appearing and operating as if she were artificial, she's organic, like my clothes."

Robin became curious. "How good is your shapeshifting? Can you turn into us?"

M'gann looked down and smiled sheepishly. "Changing into boys is harder. But I can give it my closest attempt." M'gann put the ship in autopilot, and stood up. She transformed into female versions of Eddie, Robin, and Kid Flash, before returning to her normal form.

Kid Flash had a question of his own. "Can you do that Phasing through walls thing that Manhunter does?"

"Density shifting? No, that's a very advanced technique." She responded. Although she looked a little disappointed to admit that. Robin noticed this and tried to cheer her up.

"Flash can vibrate his molecules and pass through a solid wall. When Wally tries it... bloody nose."

"DUDE! Not cool!"

Eddie chuckled. "You say that as if it was news that you're a goofball."

Wally gave him a dirty look. "Oh, yeah laugh it up. At least my power is super speed and not super SNOT."

"I AM NOT SNOT AND YOU KNOW IT!!"

Before anything else can be said, the Bioship recieves a call from Red Tornado.

"Miss Martian, an emergency alarm has been activated at the Happy Harbor Power Plant. Please investigate."

M'gann nodded. "Understood, heading there now."

As the bioship approached the power plant and the clouds cleared, they were caught in a tornado that caught them by complete surprise. After some maneuvering, they were able to escape the pull for the tornado and land. Once they landed, the bottom hatch of the Bioship opened up and they all jumped out.

Aqualad, being a native atlantean, was not familiar with ground weather. He doubted that the conditions were right for a tornado at this time of year, but he figured he would ask Robin anyway.

"Robin, are tornados common in New England?" Upon recieving no response, he noticed that Robin was gone. The group then saw the windows of one of the warehouses being blown out, and went inside to investigate. When they arrived, they saw Robin get thrown to the ground by an unknown red assailant. This being was similar in appearance to red Tornado, with notable differences being blue tubes going through their body, and a green scarf around their neck. Superboy knew a threat when he saw one.

"Who's this guy?" he asked Robin.

"I didn't catch his name, but he plays kinda rough."

It was then that the being spoke. "My apologies, you may address me as Mr.Twister." The self proclaimed Mr.Twister then generated currents of wind that threw Superboy into a wall. Wally put on his goggles that he always carried and dashed towards Twister. He jumped in the air and attempted to kick him, only to be stopped mid-air and sent flying towards the parking lot. Kaldur, M'gann, Robin and Eddie charged at Mr.Twister. While Kaldur and M'gann were also sent flying in the direction of Superboy, obin and Eddie were just barely able to avoid his attacks.

"I was prepared to be challenged by a superhero, not a bunch of children." Twister taunted.

This angered Robin, as he threw three explosive Birdarangs he retorted. "We are NOT children."

The first two Birdarangs were destroyed by gusts of wind. And while the third embedded itself into Mr.Twister's metallic chest, he simply flicked it away with a finger before it exploded.

"Objectively, you are. Have you no adult supervision? I find your presence here quite... disturbing."

Robin and Eddie looked at eachother and nodded. "Well we hate to see you distutbed. What do you say Eddie? Wanna help make him a bit more 'turbed' by kicking Twister's can?"

Eddie smiled as the Symbiote formed around his arms, creating spiked fists. "Oh, definitely." As Eddie charged at Mr.Twister, the red villain tried blasting him away with a current of air. Only for Eddie's arms to stretch out and catch two support beams. Eddie then used the momentum to slingshot himself back and sent Twister backwards with a double kick. M'gann thgen threw some debris at Twister with her telekinesis. While it seemed like the team had the upper hand, this did not last long. Mr. Twister formed a great blast of air that sent them all to the floor. "Indeed, that was quite turbing. Thank you." Twister mocked as he hovered out of the warehouse. When Wally saw Twister floating out, he rushed up to him. "What did you do to my teammates?"

"Embarrassed them, largely." Twister attempted to send Wally flying, only for M'gann to telekinetically hold him in place. "I've got you, Wally."

Twister was getting annoyed with the team, they refused to stay down. "I thought you would all have learned your limitations by now. You cannot defeat me."

Twister's arrogance angered Aqualad. "Why are you doing this, what do you want?!"

Twister responded with an indignant tone in his voice. "Isn't it obvious? I'm waiting for a real hero."

Kaldur looked over to M'gann. "Read his mind, find a weakness."

M'gann hesitated. "I thought I wasn't supposed to read minds?"

"It's okay with the bad guys!" Robin snapped.

"Okay! Give me a moment, let me look!" M'gann tried, but she just couldn't sense anything, it was just like earlier with Red Tornado. It was with that thought that she facepalmed. "Hello, Megan! I can't read his mind because Mr.Twister is an android. And how many androids do you know that can generate tornados?"

Robin paused to think. "Red Tornado said we would be tested soon enough, and he's the one who sent us here... this is all a test, he's wasting our time and keeping us busy!"

Wally and Kaldur quickly followed that logic, but Eddie wasn't so sure that Mr.Twister was Red Tornado. Why would Tornado put civilians in harms way for a test?

Kaldur,Wally and Robin confronted Twister, only for the Android to summon a bolt of lightning. Wally was confused. "Uhhh... Can Red Tornado do that?"

Twister overheard. "You think I'm Tornado? Ironic." Before Twister could strike them down, M'gann covered them with the cloaked Bioship, completely hiding the team.

"Fine, stay hidden! I'll admit you have power, but you are nothing compared to me. Next time you get in my way I will not show mercy." Twister took off.

Superboy was furious. "RAH! I can't believe that just happened. Why on earth would you say that was Tornado? Were you trying to get us killed?!"

Eddie got in front of Superboy. "Back off! Use your rage against the literal machine, not her! She was just trying to help."

Robin also got in between them. "Eddie is right, she meant well. It was a rookie judgement call we just shouldn't have listened."

M'gann felt bad. "I'm sorry, I just wanted to help the team."

As Wally, Superboy and Robin ran off, Kaldur looked at her softly. "To be honest, I'm not sure we have much of a team." Kaldur himself left, leaving Eddie and M'gann alone. Eddie tried to comfort her.

"I know you were just trying to help. And so do the others, even Superboy. They just need to cool off."

M'gann looked at Eddie and smiled. "Thank you, Eddie. I think it's time we called Red Tornado for help."

They went back on the Bioship and called Red Tornado. However, they were surprised when Red Tornado refused to help. Eddie was a bit pissed.

"What do you mean you won't help?!"

Despite Eddie's anger, Red Tornado responded calmly. "If I intervened, it would not be to help. It would be to end the conflict. Still, I find it strange that this 'Mr.Twister shares my Aerokinetic abilities, a long with my immunity to telepathy."

It took M'gann a moment to ponder what Tornado had said, but it finally hit her. The similarities were to big of a coincidence. Plus she remembered that Mr.Twister made a comment about how it was 'Ironic' that they thought he was Tornado. That confirmed Twister was waiting for Red Tornado specifically. This gave M'gann an idea of how to beat him. "Hello, Megan!"

M'gann first explained her plan to Eddie, and then telepathically told the others. She knew that Mr.Twister was an android, and that he was after Red Tornado. So, she would shapeshift into Red Tornado and fight Twister. Wally would use his speed to create whirlwinds and make it look like M'gann had Red Tornado's powers. After Twister got confident enough. M'gann would take a dive, and hopefully Twister would reveal his plans. Then, the team would ambush Mr.Twister, and destroy him. M'gann insisted he was one hundred percent artificial, and knew that because if he were organic she would have felt a barrier in his mind, but since she felt nothing that meant he had to be inorganic.

Sure enough, the plan worked. Twister revealed that he was trying to reprogram Red Tornado, although he didn't say why. Once the team ambushed him, M'gann telekinetically crushed him with a large boulder. Since she thouroughly explained that he was an android before hand, there was no freakout in response to his violent end.

After they were all back on the bioship, Superboy apologized to M'gann for his behavior, while Eddie talked to Kaldur.

"So Kaldur, I'm curious. Why were you Rob and Wally in such bad moods today, It's not like any of you from what I've seen."

Kaldur nodded. "I apologize for that. The three of us had a conversation with our friend Speedy. He said some things that got in our heads. But I now see that he was wrong. I am confident that this team has a chance now."

END OF CHAPTER*