"I don't like this place, it's too fucking sketchy looking."
Seán looked up at the tall gray skyscraper looming in front of him as people walked past, the sign above the double glass doors displaying the words "New Life Foundation" in bold white letters.
"Just go in already." Anti hissed impatiently.
"Okay okay!" Seán huffed as he rolled his eyes and glanced back up at the sign one last time before he hesitantly pushed open the doors to go inside.
"Hello, are you here to volounteer as a tester of our project?" The woman inside behind the front desk questioned politely with a smile that set Seán more on edge.
"Er, yes. I'm here to volunteer for the...project thing." Seán answered hastily as he awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck.
"Perfect! What's your name then?" The woman asked as she started typing something into her computer while looking at Seán.
"Uh, Jack McLoughlin." Seán lied, the Irishman biting his lip nervously as the receptionist continued typing.
"Okay, and do you have any family?" She continued, pausing her work to wait for a reply from Seán.
"I...I don't." Seán whispered softly, remorse washing over him like a wave as he thought of his dad and all that he had done for him.
"Alright then, follow me." The woman instructed as she stood up and started to walk further into the building, Seán cautiously following behind her while also looking for signs of any other symbiotes around.
"Oh great, he's here." Anti groaned in annoyance as Seán was led into an empty room with clear walls that only people on the outside can see through.
"What do you mean?" Seán whispered under his breath as he was not very gently shoved into the room and locked inside.
Before Anti could reply, a loud high pitched noise rang out in the room, causing Seán to wince and cover his ears while Anti let out an inhuman scream of pain as he retreated out of Seán's skin to fall to the floor in a black pool.
"Jesus, that fucking hurt." Seán muttered as he bent down and reached out towards Anti, the symbiote lying motionless on the floor.
"So he's the one that left with our symbiote."
Seán froze as he looked around him, wishing he could see outside of the room that he was trapped in.
"I know who you are Seán Parker, your father stole the symbiote that lives in you away from me years ago, and now you have returned him home. I suppose I should thank you, but I won't." The male voice continued.
"Time to go." Anti spoke up as he returned into Seán's body, the symbiote covering Seán's body with his inky blackness before he smashed down one of the walls.
Anti slapped aside the guards armed with stun batons and ran past them deeper into the building, more armed guards chasing after them with guns.
"Who was that guy talking to us?" Seán yelped as Anti slammed a scientist into the floor to prevent them from calling for more reinforcements on the radio in their hand.
"Carlton Drake, the guy that runs this whole fucked up foundation! I was held at the New Life Foundation in New York with Riot before your dad snuck in and got me out so he could experiment on me!" Anti yelled back as they ran down the hall and turned the corner just before a spray of bullets embedded in the wall.
"Why are we going further into this place with guards after us?!" Seán shouted as Anti used his powers to protect the Irishman as guards came in front of them with stun batons that crackled with electricity.
Anti didn't answer as they ran through a set of doors into a large lab filled with rows of symbiotes that were trapped in jars of various sizes.
"This isn't about my family or Signe, is it?" Seán realized aloud with a twinge of betrayal as Anti began examining each symbiote before grabbing a blood red one that was laying dormant at the bottom of the jar.
"Your dad tortured me everyday for years to try and find weaknesses to our kind, and he made me weaker in the process. When I was with you then, I felt so powerful for the first time. You're my perfect host, and I am never letting you go, even though I hate your family with every ounce of my being." Anti stated darkly as they ran out of the lab, alarms blaring around them and bright red lights flashing.
"You won't have to worry about them anymore since they're dead." Seán muttered coldly in reply.
Anti was silent as they ran towards the nearest window and jumped out, Seán biting his tongue to keep from screaming like a little girl as Anti absorbed the brunt of the impact, the jar held safely in his hands.
"Why didn't you try to save all of them?" Seán spoke up as Anti sunk back into Seán's skin, the newly rescued symbiote squirming around in its prison.
"Where I'm from, I'm not very well liked. The only other symbiote that does care though is him." Anti admitted as Seán stared at the red symbiote.
"Now what?" Seán sighed wearily as he walked down the street.
"Mark I found him!"
Seán looked up to see Tyler flying overhead in his suit, Mark running across the rooftops below him.
"I guess we talk to Wingus and Dingus now." Anti mused wryly as Tyler floated down in front of the Irishman, the male still hovering in the air while Mark jogged to catch up with them.
"Jesus Seán, what-"
Mark broke off when he saw the blood red symbiote trapped in the jar in Seán's hands, his gaze darkening as he eyed the creature warily with his fingers curled into fists at his side.
"We'll kill him with Anti." Mark finished as he stormed off, Tyler shrugging apologetically at Seán before taking off into the air, leaving Seán standing outside of the New Life Foundation with a symbiote in hand.
