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The cops cursed under their breath as the Licker crept closer step by step.
Just as the three of them were about to bolt, the stained-glass windows of the church flared with light, and the distant growl of a motorcycle engine roared through the air.
CRASH!
The glass shattered into glittering shards as Alice came flying in on a motorcycle, slamming straight into the Licker and sending the beast tumbling.
The monster scrambled back to its feet with an ear-splitting screech. Alice whipped her bike around in a tight skid across the stone floor, revved hard, and smashed into the Licker again, knocking it across the nave.
In one fluid motion, she leapt off, letting the bike rocket forward. As it rammed into the creature, Alice drew the twin pistols at her waist, aimed squarely at the gas tank, and pulled the triggers without hesitation.
Two bullets struck home.
BOOM!
The explosion tore through the church. Fire swallowed both bike and monster, hurling burning chunks of flesh and metal across the floor.
Everyone stared wide-eyed at the wreckage. Just as relief was about to wash over them, a shadow loomed above. Another Licker clung to the rooftop rafters.
Alice didn't waste a second. She whipped out a pair of assault rifles and opened fire, sparks raining from the ceiling as bullets chased the creature.
The Licker darted and scrambled along the walls and ceiling, its claws clicking against stone as it dodged every shot. Then, in one terrifying lunge, it launched straight at her.
Her rifles clicked empty. Without missing a beat, Alice tossed them aside, slung a shotgun off her back, and leveled it at the oncoming beast.
BLAM!
The buckshot slammed into its chest mid-air, spraying blood as the Licker was thrown back across the hall.
It hit the ground, twitching, barely able to move. Alice strode forward, calm and cold, pressed the shotgun to its skull, and fired again.
BLAM!
The head burst like a watermelon, blood and gore painting the floor.
Jill gaped at the woman who had just obliterated two monsters like it was nothing. "Who… who the hell are you?"
Alice didn't answer. Instead, her eyes lifted.
The others followed her gaze. High above, at the church's peak, a black figure clung to the stone, watching them.
Venom.
It let itself drop slowly, hanging upside down by a strand of webbing until it was face to face with her.
"Alice," it said with a grin, voice dripping with familiarity. "It's been a long time."
"Why are you here?" Alice's voice was flat, hard. No joy, no reunion in her eyes.
"Did you forget?" Venom's grin widened. "We're one. No matter where you go, I'll always find you."
It was true. Once someone had been bonded with Venom, the connection never vanished. He could always sense them, always feel them—no matter the distance. Worse still, anyone who had once merged with him was left with a craving. The longer they stayed apart, the stronger the hunger grew… until it drove them insane.
"Alice," Venom whispered, voice almost coaxing, "let's join again. I can feel your body yearning for me."
Its form rippled, black surface melting into liquid, tendrils reaching out toward her.
Alice took a slow step forward.
"Yes…" Venom hissed with satisfaction, stretching his inky limbs toward her. "That's it. Come to me. We'll be whole again."
The tendrils inched closer, wrapping through the air. Venom's monstrous face softened into something almost human, full of anticipation.
But Alice's eyes hardened. In the same instant, she raised her shotgun.
BLAM!
The blast tore through Venom's skull. Dark blood poured down its neck as its body convulsed. The tendrils collapsed into puddles of black ooze, and the body crashed to the ground with a wet thud.
"I'm done believing your lies."
Alice lowered her weapon, turned her back on the corpse, and walked away without looking back.
"Move. We're getting out of here."
She didn't need to repeat herself. Jill and the others scrambled to follow her as they fled the ruined church.
The silence that followed was thick and eerie. One headless Licker corpse still twitched on the floor, black liquid writhing over its skin.
Another Licker crept in, drawn by the smell of blood, crawling toward the body to feed.
But before it could sink its teeth in, the black ooze suddenly lashed out—hundreds of tendrils whipping around it, dragging it into the seething liquid.
The Licker thrashed wildly, trying to break free from the black fluid, but it was useless. In the end, the liquid swallowed it whole.
A crack of lightning split the sky. From the ground, Venom slowly rose, its jaws opening wide in a monstrous grin.
"Alice… no matter where you run, I'll find you. Don't fight me—we're one and the same."
The shot Alice had fired only blew apart the Licker's head. Venom hadn't been hurt at all.
Another flash lit the church, and then Venom vanished into the shadows.
"….."