Did we have to do that? Peter asked Hexen,

Yes, if I was discovered they would not have believed anything else, and they would have tried to kill us.

But now they don't believe me, and they did try and kill us,

I can be removed from an unwilling host, but it would be painful and probably fatal for us both, would you prefer that?

Peter remained quiet, even in his mind. As they ducked down a back alley a Doombot hovered over head, scanned the area and then left to check the next block,

Why are they ignoring us? He asked,

Hehe, we learned from Huntress, one of your sisters, she can make us invisible to their cameras.

And you didn’t do that with my dad?

Hmph, we did not know he was recording our temperature, plus we would have had to spread ourselves out over you, and could you have explained that? Hexen huffed and Peter dropped it. 

He knew she was trying to keep him safe, and exposing herself to his parents was the last option to avoid being captured.

As they avoided the main streets and made their way down the dirty back alleys of Manhattan and out of the main part of the city towards Bleecker Street. Piles of garbage hid cardboard boxes with wary eyes peering out. Peter knew there were some places you didn't walk down even during the day, some places even the Patrollers avoided.

New Doomsberg was a paradise if you had money and connections, but a lot of places were more ghetto than garden and this was one of them. Once they had stopped running and were out of Manhattan, the area of Midtown was a slum and darkened windows and shanty houses lined between buildings. Peter could hear shouting and as a Patroller car zoomed past without stopping, he knew that while he wasn’t safe from the inhabitants of Midtown, or Shittown as it was unkindly named, he was safe from the authorities.

So, what’s the plan now? I mean, Bleecker Street is back where we came from.

Plan? We go back to Wanda and Stephen, we let them know we failed and then we make a new plan. We were caught and we need help. But we need to make sure we can get there undetected. Your parents knew about it, and we would be walking into a trap.

Are we going to do that invisible thing?

No, we will use the sewers, if they are as confusing as the ones in New York we should be able to lose our pursuers and make it back to the sanctum.

Uh, you know I can't see in the dark right, and we don't have supplies if we get lost.

You cannot see in the dark, I am currently monitoring a variety of senses, seeing in the dark is child's play, 

And you didn't share that?

For a split second, Peter was bombarded with the sights and sounds of New Doomsberg. He could smell the meal the vagrant they just passed was eating, he could hear the heartbeat of the woman lying in the cardboard shelter a street away, the air danced with ribbons of bright lights and as his eyes failed to adjust to the light he went blind, and as the thrum of the Doombots overhead became unbearable, he was engulfed in the silence of deafness as well. 

As the noise cut out from the streets it was his own body that betrayed him. The rush of blood around his ear, the thump of his heartbeat was a jackhammer in his chest. Everything, even the rough patches of the skin on his palms as he pressed them to his ears, and the tickle of his eyelashes overwhelmed him and as he started to scream, it all cut out.

You need time to adjust, we take weeks to acclimate to a new host, and it is only through sharing with each other we know how to dampen ourselves. You must trust me, you cannot do this without help.

Stop doing that, Peter yelled. The bright pain behind his eyes was filled with bright spots over his eyes, and all he could see right now were yellow dots tinged by blue halos as his eyes tried to cope with the light.

We are fine, we can still see, and as Peter blinked the world came back into focus, but it was in shades of grey, and every now and again he saw the bright dots of what looked like rodents skittering

We let you use our senses, we prefer the heat, we see only our prey, or our mates, 

Yeah, great, thermal is nice and all but what happens if we need to do something intricate,

Stop whining big baby, Wanda conjures magic with runes smaller than you can imagine and she does this without her eyes, bah, we regret sharing ourselves with you, we wish to have our Peter back.

Same to you snotball. I didn't want this. I didn't want to be host to some crazy thing that wants to suck me off and eat things. You think I like knowing the world is fake, you think I want to have to kill everyone I know to make it right.

Peter felt his heart thumping in his chest as the enormity of what he was being asked to do rushed through him.

I don't want this, I don't want this, he mumbled to himself, trying to stop the shaking and the panic. Attacking his parents and now being on the run was too much. If they caught them it was firing squad but not before they cut him open to find out his secrets, find out what Hexen was, and they wouldn’t care if it killed him.

Stop being a baby, and his heart slowed, with a steadier rhythm, Peter took deep breaths.

Stop fucking doing that! he yelled at Hexen

Then stop fighting me, the world is bad, we know, fix it and this is a bad dream, this goes away and you get eight pretties to live with, you get big money, you get big dreams, this, this is a nightmare, stop fighting.

Eight? Seriously I have eight girlfriends,

Eight you live with, we know you have tasted more, and yes, now do the things, get the red rock and we go back to the nice times, with Wanda and MJ and you stop being a baby!

I’M NOT BEING A FUCKING BABY!

Peter had enough, this creature was more than he could bear and as he lost his temper Hexen coated him and he stood coated in the red and grey symbiote,

DO THIS. DO THAT. SHUT THE FUCK UP! And Hexen rammed a fist into the crumbling brickwork, smashing a chunk free.

WE dO whAt we Want, we LiVe how We want, noT A baBY, not A BAby he screeched into the air, and around him, the homeless population all knew to run and hide. Mutants brought Doombots and patrollers, and they wouldn't be careful of what targets they picked.

Hexen had tried to calm him before, using the methods they always used, to please and taste him, but alone she wasn't enough. The anger raged within him and as it touched her, it felt good, it tasted good and at that moment, she lost control as well.

Attracted by the noise and the sudden flair of power several Doombots honed in on the screeching Symbiote and as they flew closer they hissed at them, grabbing and climbing up the walls of the alley and leaping at one

Kill you all, kill Doom, kill, and eat, kill and EAT! and as they shoved his fist through the camera of the Doombot he connected to its circuits,

See you, see you all, feel you, kill and eat you. They hissed into the headsets of the drone controllers, who were giving their supervisors nervous glances. Even in the control room, where the cameras mounted on each Doombot were monitored and recorded, the panic had set in. This creature was busy ripping their supposed high tech support to shreds, overriding their commands and mocking them.

“Alet Command, We have an Omega situation. We need heavier support. Pull all units back, and wait for proper reinforcements.”

A communications officer lifted her head, “Sir, we have word that Ironmonger is on his way. ETA five minutes. He is ordering us to send in Patrollers to keep the creature busy.”

Rubbing his face, the commander gulped, “Send in Units four and Five.”

As the order was issued the ATV set out from headquarters. Units Four and Five had both failed in their last task, to apprehend the mutant incursion on Bleecker Street, and the commander knew this was their punishment. Why send them to reeducation when death was faster and served the greater glory of Dooms empire.

Gwendoline, on the other hand, was not having a good day. She had gone to submit a complaint about Parker until she saw whose names were attached to his file and she just crumpled up the form and threw it in the trash. Two Doom-minion captains would have her court marshalled and then executed before her father heard about it if he did anything. She was protected, but even he didn't have that kind of pull.

As they received their orders she loaded up her body armour, loaded her gun and went through all the standard checks before heading into the back of the ATV. Reading the report on her tablet she sighed, another fucking mutant, but in Shittown this time. Three Doombots down and now her squad and another were being sent in to contain the problem. It was fine though, nobody gave a rats ass about Shittown or its residents. She could use lethal ammo and probably get a medal for clearing out the filth. 

She was wise enough to read the writing on the wall. Her unit had fucked up, and it was 'do or die' time, and with the Patrollers, it was sometimes better to die. 

All that meant though was one more chance for her, which meant live ammo and a really shitty day for everyone else. If this was her fate, then she could at least make her father proud one last time.

“Okay people. we’re heading to Midtown, weapons-free. We've got one mutie and a whole bunch of insurgents in the area. Anyone stupid enough to still be there is either looking for trouble or too dumb to live anyway. Lethal ammo is a go, as long as it's not wearing a badge, there will be no civilian casualties reported.” and her squad replied “Hoo-rah!”

Checking her own ammo once more, the ATV skidded to a halt 

“Everyone out, now. Go go go,” and her men rushed past her. As she checked no one was hiding she heard the screams already, as a smile crossed her face, it turned to a frown, there had been no gunfire and as she rushed out, she saw why.

The grey-suited thing was dancing between her men, sending out spikes and tendrils, even as her men exited the vehicle, it had simply killed them before they could fire. Body parts and blood sprayed, and their screams filled the air. He removed heads as easy as moving his arm and her men fell like paper dolls before it.

Shit shit shit, she thought to herself as the monster in grey and red hissed at her with a jagged toothed maw,

“We see you Gwen, and we will save you for last,” as the monster approached her the second ATV pulled up and the men inside rushed out, took a stance and as it reached for her, opened fire.

It laughed as the ammo bounced off a thickened hide and Gwen felt the warmth trickle between her legs as it turned and thick blades sprang from each arm.

“Kill You, Eat You!” and it dived. Gwendoline stared in shock horror as even at close range the guns were useless and it sliced and carved at the second squad, reducing them to bloody chunks within seconds.

It hissed as it approached her, Gwendoline coming out of her stupor grabbed her sidearm and fired point-blank into its chest. Looking down the bullets flattened harmlessly against its body armour and as it grabbed her with one hand around her throat she was lifted from the ground. As it pulled her close a thick slimy tongue slid over her face and she whimpered. It ripped at her clothing, tearing through her body armour as if it was paper and leaving it in tatters around her waist. It hissed in mocking appreciation as he lifted her higher and she felt the thick tongue slip down between her breasts, licking them all over, making her shudder.

“Eat you,” it hissed once more and she screamed as the beast stretched its maw and crunched down on her shoulder.

As the pain threatened to overwhelm her, as the teeth ground her muscles into a pulp as it chewed and swallowed her flesh, she heard the zip of missiles through the air and the pair were blown backwards.

Gwendoline rolled along the ground and screamed as she dragged her ruined arm, trying to find any safe palace to hide from the monster. Behind a car, she knew she only had a few seconds before it found her, and as she looked up, she saw the hulking black and green armour.

Ironmonger and the Doom Squad had arrived.