#Spider-Man Preview | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

dayfalwastaken · 9 months

Text

Spider-Man, the Other.

Being in a hurry, he hadn’t wasted time checking out the cutting-edge equipment, going straight for the glass container in which the Symbiote had been kept. A small, cylindrical capsule with metal hatches that lacked inside decorations. It’d reminded him of an aquarium. The empty, sad type that didn’t have any algae or other ornaments for the fish- aliens in this case- to swim in.

The Klyntar had noticed him almost immediately in spite of its lack of eyes. It had stopped moving and stuck to the glass as he’d descended from the vent above, and Peter could’ve sworn he’d been judged harshly for his fashion sense. What had most likely been happening was the Symbiote trying to decide whether he was a threat or not. He did look very different from the Oscorp eggheads that had done God knew what before he’d arrived.

Ultimately the Symbiote had retreated from the glass as he’d stepped closer. Either in fright, caution or dismissiveness, he hadn’t been able to tell. He’d stopped before the container and had taken a quick moment to appreciate the way in which the alien lifeform moved. Reminiscent of what he’d known it to be like, the Klyntar had been ever shifting, going from a black puddle to interwoven tendrils and a mass of living goo in a matter of seconds, never keeping its form stationary.

Peter hadn’t been sure how to interpret its constant movements. Had it been attempting to intimidate him, was it in a panic, excited to see someone that wasn’t dressed in a lab coat? He’d had no idea. It hadn’t felt as if it was being hostile, as it’d made no attempt to lash out at the glass or anything of the sort, but…

Well, gauging the reactions of a cephalopod-looking creature wasn’t what he’d call a cakewalk.

Slowly and silently, he’d reached for the metal hatch, and it had been in that instant that the Symbiote had shown clear signs of being afraid. It had gone transparent, merging perfectly with the glass, not even distorting space where it had previously sat. Invisibility to rival Susan Storm’s. No hiss of hostility, no nothing. Just a swift defense mechanism- a fight or flight response where the flight had won. It’d occurred so fast that Peter still wondered just what in the heck had been done to the poor Symbiote before he’d gotten there.

But he’d been determined to get it out of that capsule before his time ran out. Calming himself first, he’d knelt down until he was crouching in an attempt to appear as nonthreatening as possible. He’d still kept his hand on the hatch, but he’d been careful not to make any sudden moves.

“I know you can’t really understand what I’m saying, but I’m not here to hurt you. Believe me, that’s the last thing I wanna do.” He’d said despite knowing the chances of being understood were nonexistent given how no one, as far as he knew, had bonded with it prior to that.In response, a small shudder had passed through the air where the Symbiote had camouflaged itself. At least that was confirmation it’d been able to hear him.

“I don’t want to spook you or, you know, rush this, but we are in a bit of a hurry.”

Another shudder.

Talking with it is good then. I can work with that, he’d thought.

“Um- we’re both gonna be in big trouble if we don’t get out of here as fast as possible, is what I’m trying to say.”

And a third one.

“And, yeah, I know you have no reason to trust me, but your chances aren’t going to improve if you stay here either. The guy that runs this joint- ho boy, let me tell you, he is not the kind of man you wanna hang around with.”

In a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment, he’d managed to catch a black stain manifesting in midair for a few milliseconds. A hint of curiosity, perhaps.

Yes! Okay, greatgreatgreat. I got this.

“You’re… scared. Or close to it anyway, and- that’s uh, reasonable, yeah! I’d be too if I was in your shoes, but you don’t have to be. Just…” He’d been at a loss for words. Nothing could’ve prepared him for how to approach this. “I just want to help you.” He’d admitted quietly. “I think we can help each other… You don’t have to be alone and… I don’t have to go at this alone.” His voice had barely been above a whisper as he’d spoken that. Peter liked to believe the Symbiote had at least sensed, in some capacity, that he’d been honest.

Otherwise, he wouldn’t have an explanation for why space had begun rippling before steadily turning back into that familiar noncolor. Maybe it had been feeling his emotions and realized he had no true intentions to harm it? Whatever had prompted the shift in attitude, he’d more than welcomed it.

But some amount of mistrust was still present. If he had to describe it, he would’ve said it was a similar sensation to his Spider-Sense going off, only instead of being alerted to danger he was being gazed at by thousands of eyes that weren’t there. All studying him and looking for clues that would imply deceit or malice.

The Symbiote had found none, however.

Maybe it’d been his imagination, but Peter was positive he had experienced some sort of… well, relief being transmitted from the Symbiote. In return, a humble spark of pride had lit up inside of him. Like the Symbiote acknowledging that he meant well was enough to put him at ease for what they were about to do, and… He’d been thankful for that.

Calculated in its pace, Symbie had taken its time crawling to the front of the container, standing stiffly on the other side of the hatch. It’d extended a thread, touching the metal with its tip while another one had formed to reach for the glass, towards Peter.

“Alright. I’mma get this open for you… Nice and easy.” He’d dug his fingers into the cover and, courtesy of his super strength, crushed the metal so that the airtight seal would break and allow it to come off.

The Symbiote for its part had not flinched at the creaking sound, waiting patiently for him to remove the hatch, but Peter had still clenched his teeth in deep focus as he’d concentrated on making as little noise as he could.

Once oxygen had flooded the cylinder the small tendrils had pulled back, not unlike how coil springs would. The Klyntar had produced a sound akin to a low growl, though one that hadn’t been directed at Peter at first sight.

They’ve been keeping it in a vacuum this whole time? I mean, it did come from space so that does make sense, but how’d it hear me with no air to..? Ah, it was sensing the vibrations coming through the glass. Yeah, sure, I can see that.

Tinier tendrils had timidly creeped out of the tube, attaching themselves to its sides and dragging the rest of their mass outside. Peter had moved his hand back a little, having wanted to allow the Symbiote to initiate the bonding itself, only it too had been hesitant to start.

“Don’t worry, I’m having second thoughts about this as well, but I still think it’s worth a shot. What do ya say?”

In a motion that could’ve been interpreted as nothing else besides a nod, the Symbiote had pushed its front half up and down before scaling the gap in-between and wrapping around Peter’s hand in one clean go.

No amount of shocking from Electro could’ve prepared him for the sheer current that had gone up his nervous system the moment he’d made contact with it. Electrifying his every cell as it’d made its way up his fingers and arm, the Klyntar had stuck to the suit like glue, and Peter hadn’t been able to resist freezing up.

Quick yet gentle in its ascent, he’d felt it seep into his skin faster than it had covered the red, rushing to spread throughout his body. It had slithered its tendrils through his veins, pushing his blood every which way as it had traveled through his muscles, past his tendons and over his bones to reach his spine.

A scorching heat comparable only to the Sun had hit him then, and combined with the sudden feeling of suffocation from his lungs seemingly filling with fluid as the suit had been fully covered- he’d thought he’d passed out. It’d certainly appeared like he’d gone under, given that for a few seconds his vision had been obstructed by pure darkness.

In spite of that, what was more of a presence rather than a voice had told him, softly, to remain calm. Connected to his brainstem and fastening around his neurons, he’d shared, for what hadn’t been nearly enough time, a profound sense of togetherness with the Other.

While his hands had acted on reflex, clawing at the void to allow himself to gasp for air, Peter had floated, undisturbed in a dreamlike state. Somewhere in the middle of reality and his subconscious, time had grinded to a halt, and a missing piece he hadn’t known he’d been missing had found him.

He’d heard it speak, not in words but in emotions, in a way that would always transcend human speech. For however long they had been like that, he’d known what the Klyntar been saying and vice versa despite not uttering a single sentence. Peter hadn’t minded.

He had felt exposed, naked even, like every facet of himself- all that he was and ever would be had been put on display for all to see… But there hadn’t been any judgement. Instead, a glimmer of reassurance, bright in its intent but too slow in its pulse, had flown from Symbiote to Host.

Or had that been the exact opposite? Now, the more he thought about it the less he understood it. The Other had been silent since leaving Oscorp as well. No shared innermost thoughts or sentiments that’d make him privy to what it was thinking, although he was more than sure his own were being read.

He’d have to be patient, he guessed. Bonding was a two-way street. The Symbiote was more than likely just as affected- in a good way, maybe, hopefully- and was doing its best to figure out what this all meant for itself. He just couldn’t see the tells of that as it was happening. Therefore, from his perspective it was pretending to be lifeless, he hoped, just for the time being.

It was fine. Peter could wait.

(Preview for an upcoming Spidey fanfiction called "Red, Black and Blue", which will attempt to explore how Peter Parker's life would change if he had kept the Venom Symbiote instead of discarding it, with a twist! Set in a "composite" universe of sorts that combines aspects from multiple Spider-Man incarnations, this fanfiction will tell its own unique story unrestrained from a pre-established setting such as the MCU or Earth 616, so there can be no limits on the type of story being told set by those respective mediums.)

28 notes · View notes