A sudden deafening screech shattered the eerie silence inside the dim laboratory corridor.
The symbiotic monster, previously confident and smug with its wild grin, froze mid-motion, its expression warping in an instant. That look of savage delight quickly morphed into one of raw terror.
"No—!" it managed to say, before its voice collapsed into a bloodcurdling scream.
"AAHHHHHHH!"
The massive body of the creature began to tremble violently.
Its muscles convulsed and limbs elongated grotesquely as if pulled by invisible strings. The outer layer of the creature started loosening, the once cohesive form now unraveling like a wet tapestry.
Beneath the breaking structure of the beast, the figure of the original host—a homeless man, trembling and disoriented—became visible.
With a thunderous crash, the symbiotic monster collapsed in front of Nathan, convulsing in agony. Then, the inky blackness peeled away from the host's body.
It slithered across the floor, transforming into a pale yellow, gelatinous blob. The symbiote, exposed and weakened, attempted to flee.
Nathan's voice remained calm. "Good... You've finally separated. Now I can capture you directly."
While most would be content with neutralizing the creature, Nathan preferred the real prize—the symbiotic organism itself. Smaller, more manageable, and not nearly as destructive when alone.
From the streets nearby, murmurs of shock erupted as civilians and onlookers reacted to the sudden vanishing of the towering monster.
"This thing's weak to sound?!" shouted one onlooker. "How the hell did he know that?!"
Drake, watching from afar, narrowed his eyes. "He knows more than we do. He knows their weaknesses better than anyone in our research division. Who is this guy...?"
Even though the figure before them remained invisible, Drake was now certain Nathan was there—someone standing in plain sight yet unseen.
Nathan exhaled softly, and with a flick of his mind, a wave of psychic energy burst from him, forming an invisible force field that rapidly encased the panicked symbiote.
The alien organism slammed itself into the barrier, attempting to ooze in multiple directions. But the walls around it had already closed in.
There was no escape.
Around them, researchers, guards, and executives stared in disbelief.
"What the hell is he doing?!"
"How can he manipulate space like this?!"
The awe and terror in their voices grew louder. The invisible man walking among them was no ordinary thief.
Without another word, Nathan walked toward the laboratory. The writhing pale-yellow symbiote floated behind him, held in his telekinetic grip.
He approached a containment unit meant for symbiotes and gestured with his hand. A pair of psionically-crafted scissors materialized and cut the safety seal. With a flick of his wrist, the container opened, and Nathan dropped the symbiote inside.
One down.
But he didn't stop.
As he moved toward another wing of the lab, Nathan's heightened senses caught something faint—a pulse, a weak tremor of life from the room next door.
Curious, Nathan approached the sealed chamber. Using his telepathic abilities, he reached out—what he sensed shocked him.
"Still alive?"
Inside was another symbiote. This one was different. Withered. Drained. Dying. But not dead.
Nathan's eyes narrowed with focus. "Looks like there's another survivor. If I can save this one... I'll have two."
He opened the lab door, walked over to the containment tube, and gently extracted the near-dead organism using his psychic field.
Next stop: the control room.
There, under the soft hum of computers and fluorescent lights, Nathan inserted a USB drive into the primary terminal.
He began downloading everything—every line of data, every file, every experiment log—related to the symbiotes.
To an outsider, it looked like he was the owner of the building, casually copying files from his own lab. His confidence radiated so deeply, no one dared interfere.
Drake stood nearby, face pale, jaw clenched. His company's most vital assets were being stolen in real-time, right in front of him.
Still, he tried diplomacy.
"Wait," he said through clenched teeth. "How much do you want? Name a price. Just leave the specimens."
Nathan didn't even glance at him.
"You don't understand," Drake continued. "We have backing from the military. Taking those... you're making enemies you don't want."
Still ignored.
"Our company will pay you generously. Just walk away, and we'll act like none of this happened."
Nathan didn't stop copying. His fingers danced across the keyboard, while data flowed like water into his device.
"Have you no shame?!" Drake finally burst out, switching from polite Mandarin to an angry shout. "Those were years of work! Do you intend to take everything?!"
No response.
Then the transfer finished.
Nathan pulled the USB from the machine, whispered, "Done," and vanished from sight with a gust of wind.
He was gone.
Drake stood frozen, staring at the empty containment tubes, the looted lab, the stolen knowledge.
With a crashing thud, he fell to his knees.
"Everything... everything's gone..." he whispered.
His prized possessions—the venomous organisms meant to change the world—were gone.
And then came the final blow.
A sound from down the corridor.
Footsteps. Small. Light.
A little girl, no more than ten, walked in through the aisle.
Drake frowned. "What the hell is a child doing here?!"
A subordinate rushed toward her. "Get lost, brat—"
SHHHNK!
A silver blur sliced through the air. Blood splattered the floor. The man collapsed in a heap, lifeless.
The girl kept walking.
Her body began to stretch and twist, growing larger, forming tentacles, armor, and finally becoming a towering silver-white symbiote.
It stepped toward Drake.
The monster's claw reached out... then melted into a silvery liquid and entered Drake's body.
Drake screamed... then stood upright, no longer the same.
He had become Riot's new host.
Memories flooded into him—memories of his fellow symbiotes being captured. He saw Venom's defeat. And he saw Nathan's shadow in those memories.
Riot growled inside Drake's mind.
"That human... he's dangerous. He knows us. He built sonic weapons."
"But we'll retrieve Venom. And once we do... this world will belong to us."
Riot turned toward the skyline.
"So many ecosystems. So much strength. Their flesh will nourish us."
"But we need more. We'll summon millions of our kind. The Life Foundation's rockets can bring them here."
"And when that happens... this planet will fall. A Symbiote Empire will rise. And the one who dared oppose us will fall."
Inside the host body, Drake grinned.
"Yes. The rocket is almost finished."
"We'll launch. We'll conquer."
"And I'll personally kill the bastard who robbed my lab."
---
Meanwhile...
On a rooftop nearby, Spider-Man typed rapidly on his laptop. He had tapped into street cameras and surveillance footage.
Every now and then, the figure of a child would appear on screen.
He traced the movement on a digital map.
"Life Foundation Building," he muttered. "That's where they're going."
But when he tried to hack the building's security feed, he was blocked.
"Internal network... no remote access," he muttered. "I'll have to go check it out in person."
Packing up his gear, Spider-Man zipped across the skyline, heading toward the facility.
---
Back in Nathan's hidden lab, the symbiote he'd recovered was now sealed inside a containment pod.
The beast—a demonic creature residing in the lab—sniffed the air and asked, "You didn't bring food again?"
Nathan replied coldly, "No."
The creature scowled. "To grow stronger, you must feed me more humans. I refine the demonic power for you."
Then the beast paused.
Its gaze shifted to the glass pod. "What is that...?"
The symbiote inside pulsed faintly.
"I've never seen anything like this," the beast said. "The energy… it's foul, terrifying. It reeks of an ancient evil."
"This... this is the aura of a cosmic evil god."
Nathan's eyes narrowed.
"So, you noticed it too?"
He gazed at the symbiote. "These creatures were created by Knull, the Symbiote God. Of course it carries his aura."
The beast recoiled slightly. "You've brought a fragment of Knull's will into this lab. Are you mad?"
Nathan smirked. "Relax. Knull is imprisoned, held captive by the very creatures he created."
The Symbiote Planet, a world made of millions of his offspring, was also his prison.
Knull has no freedom.
Nathan turned back toward the dying symbiote.
Time to begin.
He moved the specimen to an isolated chamber, connected tubes and instruments, and booted up the recently stolen data.
On the screen, files scrolled by rapidly, feeding Nathan the knowledge he needed.
After fifteen minutes of rapid assimilation, Nathan sat back.
"Not perfect," he said. "But enough."
He began setting up the equipment, preparing for an experimental revival.
Two symbiotes. One dying. One already secured.
And deep within Nathan's eyes—
a storm was brewing.
---
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