WE Are (Veddie)

Little Sh*t

[New York, 2039.]

‘He’s almost here, Eddie. Can feel him more, the closer he gets...’

Eddie can feel him, too. Can feel that he’s almost here. Both she and Venom can feel him racing closer. Racing closer towards all creation. Racing towards all light just to snuff it out with his darkness. His hands wrapping around the world’s throat, she can almost feel it already. Venom, too.

“I feel it, love.” Eddie acknowledges, then switches the mute off of her ear piece after checking her mother’s old wristwatch and seeing that it’s time to check in again. “Cap? You there?”

This is it.

No more running.

No more hiding.

“Yeah, Brock, I’m here.” Sam’s voice instantly comes buzzing through her comms. He sounds almost as tired as Eddie feels, but also sounds no less chirpy than usual.

That’s the thing Eddie admires most about him – he gets the job done with a single complaint. He appreciates his position.

Eddie takes a deep breath before replying, “It’s time.”

“Uh, yeah, copy that. We got a situation just come up here. Call me back when the kid’s safe, and you’re hopefully on your way.” Sam’s tells her, sounds less chirpy and more stressed now as he barks out orders to Bishop and Romanoff.

“Not a problem.” Eddie switches off her comms for now, takes the ear piece out and shoves it into her pocket. She takes a couple of seconds to compose herself, just stares down at the lights flickering around the city below her, wind whipping roughly around her, but unmoving her.

‘He wants to help.’ Venom tells her after a moment, voice soft, slightly guilty.

“Well, can’t be easy bein’ head of the Avengers.” Eddie sympathises. “And now, we’ve all gotta deal with another alien invasion. I’d apologise to him, if it weren’t for the fact that this f***s all of us on planet Earth.”

Venom scoffs out an amused laugh through their thoughts, then, tells her, tone rather snooty, ‘You know I wasn’t talking about Sam.’

Eddie huffs, zips up her leather jacket and quickly pulls her long and rather shaggy hair into a loose bun on top of her head. “He can keep wantin’, ‘cause he ain’t gettin’.”

Venom says nothing, but Eddie still feels the guilt tugging at her heart over the slight disappointment.

“Come on, V, I know he’s special, OK? But he’s still a human child. One that deserves a human childhood. Or at least half of one.”

Venom doesn’t disagree. Still... ‘He could end all of this before it ever had time to begin. It’s what he was made for.’

Eddie glares down at the flickering lights, glares down at the city who have no idea they’re all about to die... probably. “No, V. He was made for us to love him. Nothin’ more and nothin’ less.”

Venom is taken aback by her harsh and rather angered tone. Though, he immediately feels guilty when her words register. ‘You KNOW I didn’t mean it like that!’

“Do I?” Eddie scoffs, folds her arms over her chest, the toes of her boots hanging over the edge of the rooftop, glare still set down in fury over the city lights and busy night traffic. “Because it seems like your suggestin’ we send a child to fight a fuckin’ ancient alien god of darkness!”

Venom floods forth when she almost tips over the edge, takes full control as he tells her, “Calm, Eddie... Come. We need to move now. He’s here...”

Knull...

The Lord of the Abyss...

The God of all symbiotes...

...has arrived.

The call goes out to everybody they know. And then, everybody that the Avengers and even what’s left of the X-Men and the Brotherhood knows, too. All hands are on deck.

If the plan holds – hers and Sam’s plan – the mass evacuations will start any second now.

Eddie can feel the slight panic rising in her other half, along with her own. But it’s not Knull that’s making their heart skip horrid beats...

No. That fear will come later.

Because right now, as Venom crawls silently down the side of the building, and slips back into the open window of their living room, their heart is more scared for this...

The already half-grown lump under the pile of blankets on their ratty old couch...

Their reason for being...

Their son...

They wish they didn’t have to wake their precious son up to this absolute nightmare.

Dylan’s been through so much already. He deserves better than this.

They wish they could just let him sleep as Venom silently closes the window and just as silently moves over to the couch.

Eddie is then left standing there as Venom slowly sinks back into her. She simply stares at their son’s perfect sleeping face. ‘I hope he doesn’t inherit any of our darkness. Mine, in particular. At least yours is primal and not just f****d up human psychology.’

‘No darkness in you, Eddie. Only the light to my own darkness. You are filled with love, Eddie. So much, that it blinds you from it. It is both sad and beautiful. Like your heart, Eddie.’

“OK, that was... beautiful.” Eddie rolls her slightly watery eyes when she hears him chuckling quietly in her head. “But please do not make me cry right now. This is hard enough as it is. He already hates me for doin’ this. So, might as well get it over with, right? God, where’s Toxin, when you need him?”

She knows it’s a morbid joke, but she can’t help it. Humour is her go-to when she’s feeling shitty.

And she really does miss Patrick, too. Can’t help it, no matter how undeserving she feels of missing them.

It’s her fault Patrick died, after all. Her fault that Toxin can’t stand to be around her anymore...

Venom spirals our of her right shoulder, noodle-head hovering in front of her with a slightly sad look between his large milky eyes. He feels all of her guilt like it were his own, and half of it, he feels, is his own. “Now is not the time to feel sorry for ourselves, Eddie.” He tells her, voice soft, no teasing. “We need to wake him. The Scarlet Witch has secured the bunker. He won’t need to take anything with him.”

Eddie sighs, walks over to the couch and crouches down beside their son. “Dylan?” Her voice is soft as she rakes a gentle hand through his thick strawberry blonde locks – almost identical to her own.

Dylan stirs, half the blankets sliding off of him and onto the rug. “Wha –“ He blinks, screws his eyes shut as he rubs at them with both hands. His green eyes snap open, glances between both his parents, feels their fears before he sees their worried faces. “Are you OK?”

Eddie smiles, nods, smiles more sadly, then, regrettably, tells him, “I’m sorry, bud, but it’s that time.”

“We need to leave as soon as possible, Dilly.”

“I know.” Dylan nods, rubs a hand over his young, but clearly tired face – Eddie’s heart goddamn aches for him. “I can feel it, too, dad.” He tries not to look afraid, though, he’s eager to help.

His mom always taught him that if it's within your power to change something for the better, you should always at least try to do it.

Although, it seems that his mom is also a hypocrite, because she definitely won’t be allowing him to help in this fight.

Which is ridiculous!

He’s just as powerful as Knull himself!

It’s exactly why Knull headed straight to Earth...

In hopes of destroying Venom and destroying Dylan along with his father...

In other words, finally destroying his competition.

“He’s here... isn’t he?” Dylan doesn’t know why he asks the question when he already knows the answer. Maybe it’s out of a little terror. But he’s determined!

He’ll have to find some way to sneak out of the bunker, if he can’t convince either of his parents to let him go with them...

It’s not long then before Dylan is following his mom through the dark and cold underground. Well, she’s more dragging him along as they all but practically run through the almost never-ending maze of a place, her hand clasped tightly with his, his father seeping out just enough to make sure their hands don’t get separated.

But Dylan isn’t stupid. He knows it’s more likely that his father just jumps at the chance to touch his mother. It’s almost sickening sometimes. He doesn’t want to see that s**t!

Eddie’s silently thankful of the kid’s non existent sarcastic and witty comments right now, but she’s not stupid. She knows he won’t go down without a fight.

Little s**t.

She doesn’t know who he’s more like. Her or Venom. Maybe equally the same. Too much so sometimes.

Parker gave them this bunker. Good kid that he always was, much to Venom’s annoyance, he practically just handed it over to them, well, lent it to them, but without wanting anything in return. Eddie is definitely not ungrateful. Can’t say the kid didn’t practically hand her a lifeline here.

Protection for her own kid is all that matters to her.

Maybe Parker just felt sorry for them after she and Venom came clean to the Avengers about Knull.

But whatever, it’s good enough for her.

Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth, and all that.

Beggars can’t be choosers, Eddie knows that all too well.

Parker said this secret bunker of his was built for him by someone named Ezekiel, and that it can, supposedly, withstand a nuclear h*******t.

But Eddie just hopes it can withstand what’s about to come as she drags her son through the triple steel door, Venom shoving it closed behind them and then, watching with fascination as a ripple of red shimmers over the door.

He’s always been somewhat amazed with magic.

“Mom, dad, please don’t do this.” Dylan says, rubbing at his hand when they both finally let go. “Please don’t leave me in here by myself. What if something happens to you both? I –“

Eddie sighs, tries to stay composed as she tells him, “We’ve been through this, D.” She hardens her soft tone a little as she then tells him, “And you know it’s not up for discussion.”

Venom frowns, but says nothing. He doesn’t want to undermine Eddie, no more than he wishes to upset her even more than he already has.

Dylan glares defiantly back up at her. “But I can help! You know what I can do, mom! I have powers just like him! I think that... maybe.. I don’t know... I could take control of the whole hive... or... um... or I could... I could even maybe try to take control of Knull himself –“

“Absolutely not!” Eddie snaps, glares over at Venom when he says nothing. “Are you seriously agreeing with him?!” She hisses when she hears his thoughts. “You made a promise that you would protect our son, no matter what.” She huffs, turns back to their son, shoots him a soft look, tone softening as she tells him, “Just like I made a promise that I would protect you, no matter what.”

“Mom, please –“

Eddie pulls him in for a hug, presses a kiss to the top of his head, which fits snugly under her chin – f**k, he’s getting so tall. “I know how much of a little powerhouse you are, kid, trust me, OK? I do. But you’re still just a kid. You’re my baby, for cryin’ out loud. Can you at least understand why I don’t want you anywhere near any of this?”

Dylan only glares into her throat, lets out an annoyed huff. “Of course I understand that.” He grumbles out. “But I just know that I could –“

“Don’t make me slip another night pill into your water, kid.”

Venom can’t help chuckling at that.

Dylan pretends to look horrified. “That’s borderline child abuse. I’m appalled.”

Eddie simply shoots him an all too sweet, but clearly mocking smile.