Chapter 251: Venom Controls Peter
Riot opened his blood-red maw, roaring Venom's name. His jagged teeth, row upon row, made him look like a demon crawled straight out of hell.
"He seems to have a pretty big grudge against you," Peter remarked to the symbiote inside him, eyeing Riot's aggressive state.
"Yes, he has always been jealous of me," Venom explained, attributing Riot's rage to pure envy.
Riot looked up at Venom, who was clinging to the ceiling. To be honest, he truly envied the fact that Venom had found such a perfect host. After merging with Carlton Drake, Riot had searched for information on Spider-Man—an incredible human. Even without a symbiote, Spider-Man possessed extraordinary power. If a symbiote could bond with him, they would become invincible.
"Give it up, Riot. You will never be my match," Venom barked confidently. With a host as strong as Peter, he felt bold enough to talk big.
"You are a traitor. You have no right to speak to me," Riot hissed, quietly taking a step back. He was preparing to retreat.
The Spider-Man that Venom had bonded with was simply too strong. He needed to call in his human security forces. As a symbiote, he knew exactly what their weaknesses were. If his subordinates came in fully armed with high-frequency weapons, they could drive Venom out of Spider-Man's body. Once Venom was exposed, Riot had a hundred ways to kill him.
"He's trying to escape, Peter! Stop him!" Venom quickly projected his urgency into Peter's mind. They couldn't let Riot get away.
Though Peter was confused by Venom's behavior, he agreed that Riot couldn't be allowed to roam free. Such a vicious symbiote was clearly a major threat.
Thwip!
"Hey, big guy! Your friend wants you to stay, so why don't you stick around for a chat?" Peter fired a web, snagging Riot's leg.
Riot immediately reached down to tear at the webbing, but Venom exerted all his effort to keep the bond strong. "Sorry, Riot. You're staying right here."
"GET OFF ME, TRASH!" Riot's hands shifted into scythes as he moved to slice through the webbing.
Seeing the blades, Venom quickly retracted the web; he wasn't about to let himself get cut for no reason. However, the delay was enough for Peter to jump down and block Riot's exit.
"I heard there's a party tonight. Want to join?" Peter stood in Riot's path, making escape impossible unless Riot abandoned Drake's body to slip through the vents as a puddle. But Riot wouldn't take that risk; finding a host isn't easy, and without one, he would wither away in the oxygen-rich air.
"Venom, do you really intend to kill your leader?" Riot chuckled darkly.
"Leader? What? Venom, he's your leader?" Peter asked, his mind reeling with confusion.
Just as Venom was about to explain, Riot spoke up. "It seems Venom hasn't been entirely honest about our mission."
"Shut up, Riot! Peter, kill him now!" Venom snarled at Riot before whispering urgently to Peter.
Peter's core principle was not to kill humans, but he didn't have a rule against killing symbiotes—they weren't exactly human. During the Battle of New York, he had indirectly killed plenty of Chitauri invaders.
"But I feel like you're lying to me, Venom," Peter said, hesitating. He felt like he was being used.
Venom stared at Riot, staying silent. Riot had to die. If he didn't...
Riot spoke again. "Do you know what our original plan was, Spider-Man?"
"Original plan?" Peter felt he was finally about to learn the truth.
Seeing Peter's reaction, Riot realized Venom had told him nothing. "Venom, myself, and the others..." Riot began, intending to reveal the truth—with some extra "embellishment" to drive a wedge between the boy and the symbiote.
Venom couldn't wait any longer. He couldn't let Riot finish that sentence.
"Sorry, Peter! I'm borrowing the body for a bit!" Venom projected.
"Body?" Before Peter could react, the black suit began to liquefy, completely enveloping him.
"What are you doing!" Peter tried to fight back, but struggling against Venom was like trying to grab water; there was nothing to hold onto as the symbiote took control.
"I AM VENOM! RAAARGH!" Venom roared, revealing his true form. He was a towering, nightmarish figure of black, rippling muscle. His arms were massive, and his long tongue flicked over his rows of teeth. Unlike when he bonded with Eddie Brock, this version of Venom had a large, white spider emblem on his chest.
"So you finally show yourself, Venom!" Riot said, his suspicions confirmed.
"Venom, what are you doing? Why can't I control my body?" Peter struggled from within, but Venom held him in a tight, internal grip.
"Relax, Peter. You won't be hurt. I'm just borrowing this for a second. I'll give it back soon," Venom said soothingly. He knew Peter's identity had to remain a secret, so whenever he addressed Peter, he did so through their mental link.
"You can just borrow my body?" Peter's skin crawled. What if Venom did something horrible while in control? His opinion of the symbiote was quickly souring.
"Riot is right here. Let's end this!" Venom lunged at Riot, staying low to the ground to prevent him from saying another word.
Riot's right hand turned into a massive hammer, swinging at Venom's head. Augmented by Peter's superhuman strength, Venom caught the weapon with ease. "Is that all the strength you have?"
BOOM!
Venom kicked Riot in the abdomen, the sheer force sending Riot flying backward.
"RAAARGH!" Venom ripped a metal lever off the damaged console and, before Riot could recover, plunged it through Riot's chest, pinning him.
"Aggh!" Riot screamed in pain, swinging his scythe to try and cut Venom in half.
Without even looking, Venom caught Riot's arm. "You... cannot beat me!"
"But you can't kill me either!" Riot kicked off Venom's chest to create distance, stood up, and ripped the lever out of his own chest.
"See, Peter? I told you he can't be killed," Venom said internally, constantly reinforcing the idea that Drake was safe to keep Peter from resisting.
"I guess he really can't..." Peter thought, wondering if he should just let loose and end this fight as quickly as possible.
The hole in Drake's chest closed instantly as Riot reformed. He touched the wound and looked at Venom. "You're a cowardly fool, Venom."
Click!
Riot slammed a large red button on the wall. Suddenly, red warning lights began to flash throughout the lab.
WEE-WOO! WEE-WOO!
"What is this?" Venom asked, confused by the "human toy."
"It's an alarm!" Peter warned. "Riot is calling for backup!"
"I see. Peter, trust me. Don't fight me. Let's finish this together, and fast," Venom said.
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