Symbiosis: At World's End

Breach

Merrick sprinted across the plane, heading towards a massive collection of buildings in the distance. He realized fairly quickly that the strength he had gained from the symbiote had increased his running speed dramatically. Off to the side of his vision was a sign that had the words " N RA IS O" written on it.

"Guess some of the letters were worn away with time." Merrick wondered aloud. The symbiote didn't respond. It seemed rather lost in thought, as if something was bothering it.

"Hey, something on your mind?" The symbiote quickly came back to reality.

"Last night, when you were resting, I detected the cries of several hosted Overlords. They were chattering about a 'wall of pain' being lifted. Whatever they were talking about, they certainly were excited about it. After several minutes, they began shrieking about being too late."

Merrick pondered the statement for several minutes as he ran. Then it hit him. How come he didn't realize it sooner?!

"The sonic shield must have dropped for a brief window of time, which would have allowed them to get into the city behind it and the wall!"

The temperature seemed to drop several degrees. If just one of those things got through, something bad could happen. Something very, very bad indeed.

"As much as I hate to admit it, we can't do anything about it now. We have to keep moving."

Merrick reluctantly acknowledged the fact and continued his sprint towards the crumbling remains of a once magnificent city.

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The city was more high strung than ever before. Citizens leapt at the slightest movement in the shadows, soldiers patrolled the streets day and night, and many families had established a curfew. The night watch had increased hours and R&D was working double time in both energy and hours. Everyone was working nonstop.

This included Brianna's parents, thus making it so that she rarely saw her parents. They called her every night at ten thirty sharp to make sure she was okay, then were forced back to work. Brianna felt more alone than ever before. She knew that her parents had no choice but to work these hours, but it still hurt. She absentmindedly turned on the stove and placed a pot of canned soup on the heating element. She placed her laptop on the dining room table and did some research while she waited for the soup to simmer.

She spent five minutes studying an article that someone had written about symbiotes and their strange ability to absorb the abilities of their first host, meaning that if it was hosted by a spider, for example, it would gain the ability to stick to walls and create webbing for its host. Another example showed a sketch of one with large ears like a wolf's as well as a highly developed nose. It seemed far-fetched, but it was fact in the textbook her school provided.

"At least it was good for something." She muttered as she closed the article and ladled the soup into a bowl. She finished it in five minutes and decided to go take a walk. She threw on a thin coat and stepped into the dying light of dusk. The patrol in her end of the city had ended a few minutes ago. The soldiers wouldn't bother her at this hour. She walked for about half an hour, then observed that it was getting rather dark and decided to take a shortcut home.

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Merrick was fighting the urge to whoop as he shot through the air after catapulting himself off a web-line. He never, in a million years, thought he would travel like this. Soaring through the air using the webbing the symbiote formed to swing from building to building. He swung into a wide ark and landed solidly on his feet in a crumbling away section of a building. The symbiote covering his face retreated and he breathed in a long breath of fresh air.