#Paibok

[nitpickrider]

Paibok could probably explain to you the Skrull custom for those who beat their children and it might make you feel better. X Men Unlimited Infinity 103

[justdealingwithsomeissues]

These guys are calling themselves the "Fearsome Foursome" which I guess is better than calling themselves the Frightful Four... but it's mostly the same thing...

[bobbyskizza]

Klaw and Paibok are my favourite kind of villains, just a pair of shitty two faced guys who think they are somebody.

[heckcareoxytwit]

A preview of Phoenix #4

PHOENIX #4

BEWARE…THE GOD BUTCHER! His call has gone out across the universe: He will have his retribution. He will bring his awful vengeance to bear. GORR THE GOD BUTCHER is going to kill the PHOENIX. Plus: CAPTAIN MARVEL comes to call…

Written by: Stephanie Phillips Art by: Alessandro Miracolo, David Curiel Cover by: Yasmine Putri Page Count: 32 Pages Release Date: October 9, 2024

[blushingphoenix]

Priceless moment thanks to Mentallo.

I thought Frenzy only had eyes for Scott Summers. Oh my god, does Paibok shape-shift into Scott summers?

// X-Men: Red (2022) #8

[tangleweave]

@morgansmornings (continued from here)

Eddie did all he could to discern the words Jayden was whispering, and some of them might have been forever lost if his Other hadn't been listening as well. Her murmur was directed more into his chest and his jacket than his ear. Fortunately, his Other picked up on the salient details and put the necessary conclusions into Eddie's mind almost faster than Eddie himself might have.

"Jay?" Eddie pressed his palm against Jayden's forehead, only to find it flush with fever and streaming beads of sweat. She'd indicated being dosed with something. Maybe it was best to get her back to base; they likely had the resources to figure out what it was.

Well, now. Time for Us to take the reins.

Cannon and Paibok will not like it.

They can kiss Our ass. "Abort, abort, abort." Eddie kept his instruction calm and quiet. "Figurehead, need you to wipe out the mobile's memory and give us an extract for six, on the double. Bolts, regroup at the parking deck, Yellow Level. Marko, check the mobile."

The reply from their home base was as curt as could be – not a voice that could be mimicked, but a warbling double-blip tone, A and G, to acknowledge the request.

Marko's voice cut into the channel. "Why check the mobile if we're just going to use another one to get out of here?"

"Wouldn't put it past our target to datamine the equipment or sabotage the ride. Maybe both. Dunno how long she's had to play with it." Eddie tilted Jayden's head to one side and swept her hair aside to check her ear canal. Her earpiece was still there, so Mystique hadn't nicked it, but that didn't mean she wasn't trying to listen in on the exchange. A channel was only as secure as the people on it. "Go silent until we regroup."

Realizing that carrying Jayden bridal style while she was unconscious would surely draw suspicion, Eddie instead hefted her up and carried her as he might have borne an exhausted child, and tucked her forehead against his neck as he moved with purpose out of the terminal.

Reaching Yellow Level of the parking deck only took about three minutes, but it was three minutes longer than Eddie would have liked, and all of it in radio silence – it was something of a surprise that the others would endure his orders as easily as all that, but maybe they were willing to accept his wisdom in the moment. Yellow Level was the ground floor and there was plenty of cover here; a Figurehead van would be here soon to pick them up and get them out.

Marko. Behind Us.

Eddie turned around to see a pile of sand roiling and shifting its way out from behind a vehicle and subsequently build itself up into the form of a man wearing a green T-shirt and brown khakis. Why in God’s name could Marko not look like he was wearing something else? He’d worn far less conspicuous clothing into the airport – but morphing into his sandy form did mean that he couldn’t take normal clothes with him. (Which meant that he’d left yet another set of decent clothing in a bathroom stall or ventilation system somewhere.)

When Marko’s face resolved into something recognizable, he cast a glance at the unconscious handler in Eddie’s arms before stepping forward. “Tires got slashed. Computers were overheated by the time I got there, so either it was her or Figurehead, doesn’t matter now.” He gestured at Jayden. “What happened to her?”

“Poisoned, I think.” Black tendrils dipped into each of Jayden’s pockets, seeking out what she’d tried to indicate to him. A sample? Maybe a needle or… and then one thin tentacle withdrew from one of her cargo pockets to hold aloft a serrated silver dart. Eddie winced, and out the corner of his eye he could see Marko doing the same thing. The tendril spun the dart slowly around for them both to inspect as Eddie’s Other whispered to him. “Dunno what it’s got on it but He’s not eager to find out. We gotta get this back to Figurehead. For all We know, it could kill her.”

He pressed his cheek against her forehead. She was still warm and pouring sweat but her temperature hadn’t skyrocketed yet. He looked back to Marko. “Not gonna let that happen on Our watch. Count on it.”

“Okay, sure, but what’re we gonna do about the target?” Marko asked. “We’re not just gonna give up on trying to catch her, are we? She flies outta here and she’s in the wind.”

“If this dart was her, she’s in the wind anyway,” Eddie replied, while the tentacles withdrew into his body – save for the one wielding the dart, which tucked it carefully away in an isolated pouch. “Maybe right now she’s just better at bobbin’ an’ weavin’ than we are at boxin’ her in. We gotta step up our game.”

“Assuming Figurehead doesn’t put us all back in the hole again,” Marko groused. He pointed a finger at their unconscious handler. “Even her, to hear her talk about it.”

Eddie glared daggers at Marko. “Nobody’s goin’ back,” he vowed. “Count on that, too.”

+ + +

The return to base was mercifully uneventful. A large unmarked van, identical in its shell to the mobile unit they'd been employing for monitoring, into which all of the 'Bolts packed. Given the nature of their quarry, they naturally had to confirm their identities with passphrases, memory questions, and even ability demonstrations. Save for Elektra, all of them possessed some degree of meta ability -- Cannon with wind generation, Marko with his living sand, and of course Eddie's Other and Paibok with their multitudinous capacities for shapeshifting.

It was a point of interest to Eddie that it might have been one of the few things he and Elektra had in common, that they did not exist within the realm of augment, mutant, or alien. Eddie knew that Elektra had some experience with paranormal phenomena, and that she was incredibly resilient and fast, but he was still hazy on whether that stemmed from anything other than rigorous physical and spiritual training. He'd heard tell that she'd died once... but really, who hadn't?

Upon return to The Brute, the blocky, unmarked building lodged in the middle of Arizona that was their foundational home base, the unconscious Jayden was brought to the infirmary while the rest of the team was brought before faceless government types that calmly debriefed each and every one of them damn near straight into oblivion. Eddie couldn't be sure but he was fairly certain he was the one kept for the longest period of time, and that his teeth were threatening to fall out as he died slowly of old age in front of the pair of agents questioning him. Even his Other had to remind him that it was only natural, since he'd assumed command when Jayden had been disabled.

He avoided asking what would be done with her, knowing they would tritely remind him that it was none of his concern, and instead inquired as to whether he could see her in recovery. They didn't seem to take issue with the idea, and he hoped that was a good sign.

The room she'd been put in was remarkably like that of a standard hospital room, absent a window to look out at the landscape beyond. It meant that Eddie could take a seat in the nearby chair, though first he inquired about her health to the nurse checking up on her charts. Beyond that the prognosis was good and that she should wake up anytime, the nurse didn't have much to offer and handwaved any other questions about details. He didn't get to hear any insight into whatever poison was used to tag her... and that sure sounded like the matter was being taken out of his team's hands and handed off to someone else.

The notion made him sigh. Between this and the mall incident from a few weeks ago, he wasn't feeling too great about the team's track record, and he could only imagine that Jayden would be feeling none to happy about the failure once she woke up as well. They'd wanted Mystique caught alive... and he had no illusions that it was so they could enslave recruit her, as well. But that seemed a terrible idea to him. Maybe it wasn't the worst thing on Earth that she'd managed to slip past them.

He heard a soft sound erupting from Jayden, interrupting his ruminations, and he stood up to approach her bedside in time to see her eyelids fluttering, struggling to open.

"Hey there," he murmured. "Glad to see you're still with us."

[swooooord1]

En las primeras páginas, una peculiar nave espacial, rodeada de plantas y con detalles metálicos y círculos rojos, flota en el espacio mirando hacia la Tierra. Los operadores a bordo confirman que su trayectoria es clara, y le dan la bienvenida al Pico, la estación espacial central de S.W.O.R.D.

En esta página, Magneto llega a la estación espacial S.W.O.R.D., llamada El Pico. Los sistemas confirman su llegada, y él agradece la bienvenida de Nathan. Magneto nota un comentario un poco sarcástico: “Espero que sobreviva a la experiencia…”, mientras camina por la nave.

El director de seguridad se presenta a Magneto, bromeando sobre que lo despedirán si algo sale mal. Magneto le responde que intentará no envejecer mientras esté ahí. Seguidamente le preguntan a Magneto por qué ha venido, y él explica que está allí para hacer una inspección por parte del Consejo de Krakoano. También menciona que habrá una pequeña mudanza, aunque no parece algo importante.

Un personaje se sorprende al ver que Magneto mueve la estación de mil toneladas mientras la inspecciona. Magneto responde con calma, diciendo que es algo sencillo para él. Al final alguien le pide que tenga cuidado y no dañe la estación, a lo que Magneto sonríe.

La Comandante Brand llega y le dice a Magneto que puede volver a sus tareas, ya que ella se encargará del resto. Magneto viajó solo y le preguntan por qué no usó un portal más fácil. Él responde que a veces es mejor tomar el camino difícil para probar los propios límites.

Brand y Magneto visitan la sala de tecnología. Genio les cuenta que la tecnología krakoana ha mejorado la estación y se presenta de forma divertida y se da cuenta de algo inesperado que llama la atención de Magneto.

Genio, habla con Magneto a cerca de que puede controlar tecnología mutante y biotecnología. Magneto le dice que él es parte importante del futuro de Krakoa y le recuerda que no se olvide del lanzamiento que tienen pronto. Rápidamente, una mutante interrumpe para que sigan con su trabajo.

Magneto y Brand caminan mientras discuten sobre el futuro de Krakoa. Magneto cree que el trabajo de Los Seis será clave para todos. Brand dice que trabaja con el Consejo, pero no lo hace directamente para Krakoa. A pesar de eso, sigue estando ahí. Magneto le recuerda que, aunque no lo quiera, Krakoa también la ayuda a ella.

Brand le dice a Magneto que no le gusta pedir ayuda, pero que S.W.O.R.D. volvió en un buen momento porque hay una crisis en la galaxia. Ella recuerda que en Alpha Flight siempre iban atrás y los héroes no avisaban bien las cosas. Magneto le asegura que con ellos no pasará lo mismo, y Brand le dice que sabe que hacerlo sola sería m��s difícil, pero todavía piensa en algo más grande que Krakoa.

En esta escena, Brand y Magneto hablan sobre los peligros en el espacio, como una guerra y una criatura que devora planetas. Brand le explica a Magneto que S.W.O.R.D. debe proteger al sistema solar, no solo a Krakoa.

Magneto habla sobre cómo S.W.O.R.D. es una organización de mutantes y se pregunta quién los representa. Brand y Frenesí responden que ellas hablan por S.W.O.R.D. Frenesí demostrando su fuerza, golpea a un enemigo y se presenta como la embajadora de la Tierra, pero pide que la llamen Frenesí cuando está trabajando.

Frenesí le muestra la base a un representante de la Alianza Kree-Skrull, y él está impresionado por la tecnología de S.W.O.R.D. Luego hablan de problemas pendientes y Brand explica que la alianza Kree-Skrull ahora tiene tanto poder como el imperio Shi’ar, por lo que no es buena idea hacerles enemigos.

Magneto menciona a Wanda, llamándola una farsante. Paibok, un alienígena de piel verde, habla de ella como un miembro leal de Los Vengadores y alguien a quien el emperador respeta. Se menciona que "Los Seis" están esperando a Magneto. Finalmente, Frenesí, comenta que antes prácticamente adoraba a Magneto, pero ahora su opinión ha cambiado.

Magneto está hablando con un personaje llamado Fabian Cortez. Fabian se disculpa por sus errores del pasado y se inclina para pedir perdón, pero Magneto lo rechaza diciendo solo "No, gracias." Fabian sigue intentando hablar con él, pero Magneto no le hace mucho caso. Al final, otro personaje se pregunta por qué Magneto lo ignora, pero parece que no es importante para Magneto.

Los personajes están en un lugar llamado "La plataforma de despegue". Aquí pueden abrir portales que los llevan a cualquier ciudad. Genio explica que este viaje tiene dos partes y que, con su ayuda, los teleportadores pueden usar sus poderes para decidir a dónde ir. Magneto se ríe sorprendido y dice que no puede creer lo que está viendo.

Peeper se encuentra con Magneto y le comenta con entusiasmo cuánto tiempo ha pasado desde la última vez que se vieron. Magneto menciona que no sabía que Peeper era parte de "Los Seis", y Peeper responde que trabaja también con Marv en otra misión. Mientras discuten, Fabian Cortez observa y pregunta qué está ocurriendo, a lo que Amelia Voght le ordena que vuelva a su puesto porque esta vez es necesario.

Los personajes se preparan para una misión importante. Fabian Cortez parece molesto y critica la situación. El equipo de teletransportadores sigue el plan, creando una gran explosión de energía. En medio del caos, hablan sobre lo peligrosa que es la situación. Finalmente, Magneto mira lo que está pasando y dice que ahora todo depende de los dioses, mostrando que está preocupado por lo que sigue.

En esta página, Los Seis viajan a través del espacio protegidos por un escudo de energía. Llegan a una costa muy lejana, el lugar más remoto al que han llegado, y se preparan para ir más lejos. El viaje los lleva hacia lo desconocido, mientras el escudo los protege durante la misión.

El equipo sigue adelante, pero sienten que su trabajo no es suficiente. Se concentran en controlar una energía poderosa. Mientras avanzan, se dan cuenta de que no basta con solo mirar la energía, deben llevársela con ellos para poder cumplir su misión.

El equipo llega a su destino, una estación espacial ubicada a más de 35,405 kilómetros sobre Krakoa. Tras un largo viaje, confirman que finalmente han alcanzado el lugar al que se dirigían.

Magneto informa que S.W.O.R.D. está en órbita sobre Krakoa. Bran advierte sobre una descarga iónica y ordena a los teleportadores que se preparen para traer a los demás a casa. Genio sostiene a Distribuidor, quien dice que han roto algunas leyes cósmicas y ha visto cosas extrañas.

El equipo vuelve de su misión con un objeto misterioso. Lo revisan y confirman que es seguro y no tiene radiación. Todos se sorprenden al ver lo que han conseguido y se dan cuenta de que lo que están haciendo en S.W.O.R.D. es más grande de lo que pensaban. Un personaje le dice a Magneto que él tenía razón sobre lo importante de la misión.

El equipo se reúne tras su exitosa misión, y parece estar listo para enfrentar lo que venga después. Brand al frente del grupo menciona con confianza "Lo que viene ahora", mostrando que el equipo está preparado para nuevos desafíos. El resto del equipo están a su alrededor, observando con confianza el futuro de S.W.O.R.D..

Continuará...

[yetanothercomicbook]

The Flame, This Fury

Fantastic Four #371

"This is even more entertaining than I imagined!"

Johnny is ambushed by Devos the Devastator, Paibok the Power Skrull, and Lyja the Lazerfist!

Two excellent stories here. Ben and Reed working with Sharon Ventura to rescue Alicia Masters from Aron the Rogue Watcher. The question is, can they trust her?

While this is going on, Johnny is alone in battle in a plotline that's been building for a little while. And what they heck is up with little Franklin? Or Susan for that matter. It's a comic that positively zips along, every page delivering something exciting and fun. Especially that last page...

On Sale Date: October 27, 1992.

Total Paid Circulation: 217,625 (average #371-382).

Wizard Top 100: #27.

Tom DeFalco (16 of 66).

Paul Ryan (16 of 60).

10/10

[morgansmornings]

"Aliens, mutants, monsters, spooks, and not a single one of any of you seems to have the sense God gave pistachio nuts."

Eddie directed a scowl at his teammate from across the cafeteria. Airport terminals were generally busy spaces, but this one only had fifteen gates -- supposedly it wouldn't be long before their quarry crossed someone's eyesight. He and Cannon had been directed to take position here just past the security checkpoint while Paibok and Marko trolled from each end towards the café and back; meanwhile, Elektra had taken up at the bottom of the escalator near baggage claim, just in case Mystique somehow caught wind of their presence. She hadn't made clear just how she would know if she saw the mutant -- but she was confident.

Cannon caught sight of the glare from Eddie, sneered in return, and hid a middle-finger salute behind one side of his jacket. Eddie rolled his eyes. They together might have borne a passing resemblance to one another in their college days, but the other man's hair was more closely shorn, lighter, and just somehow dumber.

Forget the hair, Eddie, what You should be asking is whether that moustache is even permitted within 200 yards of a school zone.

The silent remark managed to interdict Eddie's scowl with a guffaw originating somewhere just above his belly, and he didn't have the heart to tell his Other to play nice. Most of the time They could barely play nice with Themselves, never mind Their so-called teammates.

"What does any'uh that even mean, anyway?" Eddie asked, his eyes scanning the crowd for their target. "You ordered a hoagie from Charley's, I didn't see you hit up Coldstone. God gave pistachios the good sense to belong in ice cream, not a cheesesteak."

"And gave our mark the good sense to not stay seated in any kind of food court for more than fifteen minutes, which is my goddamn point, Brock, so why're we still here?"

Another voice interjected. "Perhaps she might be as ravenous as you are, Cannon. A full sandwich and three soup cups? How many calories does your metabolism require?"

"Suck it, Paibok, you eat five times as much as the rest of us. If you were made of chocolate, Brock would get a bellyache off you."

Eddie snorted. "If he was made'uh chocolate, he'd be a Hershey bar. An' you'd be vegemite sayin' it was Ghirardelli."

"Guys, maybe not so much with the chitchat? Especially if you can't stand each other. Just a suggestion." Marko, a man of practicality, though it was curious to hear him attempt diplomacy. A being made of living sand had little reason to appeal to anybody's better angels.

Special Agent Handler, coming up behind Us.

Eddie slowly turned in his seat to face the indicated direction. As ever, his Other was correct; Jayden was walking towards Them, though there was a certain unsteadiness to her gait--

Something is wrong.

Yeah, no shit.

Eddie got up from his seat and muttered to the open channel. "Specter on site."

A variety of surprised words and sounds echoed in his ear while he stepped towards her, all reflecting the same sentiment of surprise and concern. She was supposed to be in the van, not the terminal. Who was monitoring?

Jayden swayed woozily in front of him, looking for all the world like she was either drunk or drugged. Her lips parted but nothing seemed ready to come out... and then her knees were buckling.

"Hey, whoa..." Eddie caught her under the arms, held her fast against him to keep her from collapsing. "You don't look so good."

Understatement of the century.

This Meme: Accepting @tangleweave

~~~*~~~

Not many would have though that listening to a bunch of once villains bicker amongst themselves more in the manner of befitting children was the highlight of their day. But to her it was better than the alternatives. She had them spread out in order to catch the mark. Mystique has been a pain in her ass for months now, finally giving Jayden the excuse to put her out of commission for a while.

Getting the team in place had been a bit of a challenge. More so with the stalemate that Jayden and Elektra seemed to always find themselves in when out on missions. It wasn’t a surprise to Jayden, she knew what she was getting when she and her Pair of trusted shadows cornered the resurrected woman. Why she was still lingering about when she had clear issues with the way Jayden wanted the team to operate was beyond the leader’s point of caring about. She would get an answer eventually. Or the women were bound to try and kill each other. The bet was still open on that front.

She had stepped out from the undercover van, needing a moment of quiet just for her own sanity. A move that would prove to be more fatal than she could have foreseen.

It was the stinging pinch that had hit her in the center of her spine, between her shoulder blades where she could not reach without effort. Only a moment, that was all it took for the toxin to start spreading. First came the almost immediate numbness. Then the vertigo as she finally pulled the dart out of her back. She had the reason to put it into one of the cargo pants pockets for later.

Eddie, she had to get to Edde.

The fact that she had been attacked was clue enough that the shapeshifter was already three steps ahead. With logic starting to abandon her she left the van and staggered forward. Falling into a rend between spaces she came back out down the hall from Eddie and Venom. Her fogging thoughts praying that they would be able to pull the obvious rip cord and get the team and herself out of there.

The delayed response to the Pair catching her should have been more than worrying. She felt like she was freezing, despite the sweat breaking out over the back of her neck and forehead. She pressed her face into the cool leather of Eddie’s jacket. Seeking comfort as she tried to pull herself together.

“She-She… ugh, gone. I don-” Everything was too loud, too bright. Weak arms coming up only to fall short of being able to cover her head. “My pocket. Sample. Dog…”

Was it just her, or was the world tilting and going through an eclipse?

“Dog…. house.” And with that, she lost consciousness.

[nitpickrider]

She gonna fuck that Skrull? yeaaa, she's gonna fuck that Skrull. X Men Unlimited Infinity 103

[justdealingwithsomeissues]

I guess Lyja needs something called a "Lacaroo" for her child, and Paibak can block her from getting access to it, though it is left completely vague for us.

[random-movie-ideas]

Here are the characters that aren't so essential, but I'd rather have them around than not:

Jennifer Walters AKA She-Hulk

Wyatt Wingfoot

Sharon Ventura AKA Ms. Marvel/She-Thing

Willie Lumpkin

Agatha Harkness

The Inhumans

The Mad Thinker

Nathaniel Richards AKA Kang the Conqueror, etc.

Ronan the Accuser

Paibok the Power Skrull

Kl'rt AKA The Super-Skrull

Philip Masters AKA The Puppet Master

Harvey Elder AKA Mole Man

Morris Bench AKA Hydro-Man

Kala

Ulysses Klaue AKA Klaw

Attuma

Maximus Boltagan

Nicholas Scratch

Annihilus

The Beyonder

The Doombots

Essential Characters for a Fantastic Four Series

Here are the most essential that you should work toward including:

Reed Richards AKA Mr. Fantastic

Sue Storm AKA Invisible Woman

Johnny Storm AKA Human Torch

Ben Grimm AKA The Thing

Norrin Radd AKA Silver Surfer

Namor the Sub-Mariner

T'Challa AKA Black Panther

Franklin Storm

Alicia Masters

Franklin Richards

H.E.R.B.I.E.

Lyja

Victor Von Doom AKA Doctor Doom

Kristoff Vernard AKA Doctor Doom

Bentley Wittman AKA The Wizard

Peter Petruski AKA Paste-Pot Pete/Trapster

Medusalith Amaquelin AKA Medusa

Flint Marko AKA The Sandman

The Frightful Four

The Kree

The Skrulls

Galactus

[why-i-love-comics]

X-Men: Red #8 - "Mission to the Unknown" (2022)

written by Al Ewing art by Madibek Musibekov & Federico Blee

[newwarriorsforever]

Nova (Richard Rider) appears on this week’s comics! 

Here, Richard Rider is one of the representatives who was present in the meeting with Gladiator, Deathbird, Xandra, Paibok and Frenzy. Also, the chart mentions that Richard is an ally of Arakko. 

- - X-Men Red #8 (2022)

[tangleweave]

@morgansmornings (continued from XX)

The mall incident had been jarring, to say the least. Eddie didn't pretend to understand the hoops that Jayden and her higher-ups had to jump through to secure and recover the rest of the team, but it must have been costly for all of them to have been returned unharmed and evidently not even so much as interrogated. Paibok was particularly sour about it, and so was Marko. Cannon hadn't seemed to be affected in the same way, but he was more annoyed about having been swarmed by a trio of well-dressed gentlemen out of nowhere before having the opportunity to whirl up and kept insisting that if he'd had so much as just his helmet, things would have gone down very differently. Elektra, meanwhile, had been her usual ninja self and managed to evade the black-tie spook squad with no explanation given… and simply shown back up at HQ wondering just how long it would take Eddie and Jayden to catch up.

But she’d had no valuable information on the faceless agents that had come in and grabbed the other three. Evidently she’d been a little too busy evading them herself. She hadn’t even managed to score anything on how everyone else’s powers had been shut down.

Whether it was a device or some sort of metahuman ability, the nullification effect they'd all been made to experience had taken its toll. Perhaps here, Elektra had the advantage, since she had no special powers to speak of, but even without Venom's morphological abilities, Eddie was talented at disappearing into crowds and hiding in plain sight. Such skills had served him well in his old career. Hell, they had served him while he'd been on the lam. They were pretty much what had gotten him and Jayden out of the jam without also being swept up.

His intervention had been a sore spot in the debriefing. The question had come up why he would risk himself like that when it had already been demonstrated everyone else’s abilities had been compromised – and he’d given an answer that was honest enough. The disabling of their communications had indicated the team was the target right from the beginning; the bigwigs would want their trained asset back if at all recoverable.

The truth was a little more selfish. What the bigwigs did with Jayden mattered just a little bit less to him than what they would do without her. She was, for all intents and purposes, his sponsor. It didn’t matter that she seemed to be grooming him to be de-facto second-in-command. It didn’t matter if he’d earned the respect of his teammates (Cannon and Elektra were stubborn holdouts and he’d call them out as such whenever he damn well pleased). If something happened to her, Eddie was almost certainly doomed to get sent back into that sonic hellhole.

And he wouldn’t have been terribly surprised to learn that it was a factor the higher-ups were counting on.

Two weeks later and everyone was still nursing their pride… up to and including Jayden, who’d yet to say anything to him since they’d gotten out with their skins still on. A little odd, he thought, since she seemed the most impregnable when it came to ego. Hers was difficult to even bruise. Still, he’d done his best to offer her space, but the others seemed ready to shut that down – a collective effort, apparently, with just how quickly the rest of them had all paired off.

At first, he’d half-expected her to just scoff and walk away, rather than get in the ring with him. The other half of his expectation was what he got instead… her, ready to go, bringing everything she had to bear. And she’d been concise with her directions – at all costs, avoid revealing the symbiote’s presence.

An easy enough instruction, in Their estimation. They already had a fair amount of practice at the covert game. Venom could present as clothing, or He could simply lurk within Eddie’s bones and muscle. But it did mean that He couldn’t provide weaponry in the ways They were accustomed to. Gone were the terrors of a swath of obsidian tentacles, the wicked curve of a reaper blade, or the threatening head of a morningstar… not even lengthened claws to cap Eddie’s fingertips. Any production had to be covert, fluid, and not easily disarmed, otherwise the jig would be up.

Left strictly to pugilism, that meant a whole lot of dodging and weaving for Eddie, trying to get inside her range while she was whirling whips through the air and poofing from one spot to the next. He quickly realized he wasn’t as on his game as he ought to be, though that realization was brought on less by self-assessment and more by Venom noting Eddie would never give quarter to the others like this – not even Elektra.

And so They had leveled up Their game by beginning to produce knives of Venom’s essence into Eddie’s palm. Even a pseudo-whip to match Jayden’s monofilament marvel, though with a touch of Venom’s awareness to reach her – or at least interdict her own weaponry and drag her closer.

But even that strategy had its limits with what she could do to defend herself. Not even just her porting, which at some point Eddie began to think he was getting a handle on, but also her illusory ability, which wasn’t merely disorienting, but something he actually found a bit nauseating. Every time he took a swing he was certain would connect, it was like she’d spun him around in an office chair a hundred times, and his fist would swipe past her somehow. Venom was little help here. Their proprioception wasn’t in error – They were putting body parts precisely where They intended to, it was simply that she never was where she looked like she was.

And quite suddenly, there she was, bullrushing Eddie, from two different sides at the same time, in whatever way that was possible. And all Eddie could really do in the moment was let his body go slack and allow the tackle to happen, so that he could absorb and redistribute the impact of the attack – trying to meet it head-on was an exercise in futility, and bracing in the wrong direction would get him unacceptably hurt in the end.

And maybe, just maybe, this way They might have a handle on just how far away Jayden was from her illusory blinking.

What They didn’t expect was that her hands would grip Eddie’s head on the way down to the floor – nor that she would express abrupt and genuine concern for his well-being.

In that instant of uncertainty between them, Eddie became that much more aware of every sensory input surrounding them both. The heat and weight of the air in the minimal space between them. The scent of their exertion. The grip of her fingers around his head and her knees braced against his ribcage, her calves bracketing his hips.

The pounding of his heart, and the sound of her pulse racing.

The flush of her face and how her eyes were flickering up and down his…

A gravelly whisper resounded in the chambers of Eddie’s mind, and wrinkles vanished from his forehead just to reappear around the corners of his mouth with the crooked grin that took root and began to grow across his face. One hand slid up the center of her back, settling at the junction of her neck and collar…

And then abruptly, an inhuman shove at the center of Eddie’s back, like a coiled spring, catapulted them both to the right. In an instant, Eddie was atop Jayden, her back now pressed into the sparring mat, and what might have initially seemed an innocuous and gentle gesture of his hand at her collar was now a series of black tendrils extending from each of his fingertips, coiled fully and firmly about her neck.

Now Eddie’s smirk was in full bloom, the tip of his nose barely brushing against hers as the tendrils – for all intents and purposes, extensions of his own nervous system – reported to him the pace of her pulse and breathing. He could see her pupils dilating, and he knew if he looked hard enough, he might even see the stream of thought scrambling across her retinas like a ribbon crawl on a cable news channel.

Eddie let the moment stretch out into two seconds. Three. Four.

On the fifth second, he released the faintest scoff of a chuckle.

“Thanks for the lesson.”

The braid of tentacles withdrew its grip around her neck, and he sat back on his haunches, then got to his feet and held out a hand to her.

[comicwaren]

From X-Men Red Vol. 2 #009, “Return of the King”

Art by Stefano Caselli and Federico Blee

Written by Al Ewing