Arc Eight. Chapter Two Hundred Thirty-Nine. Trauma Centre

Whatever Hank had done to keep Silk calm had not transferred over when she switched hosts, and she was angry.

It was like coming from a drug-induced haze. Hank had used a chemical cocktail to keep her quiet, she could barely remember being with Cindy, only the lulling toxic haze that followed her time after she killed Aaron. Even Peter's cell infusion had only made her feel whole, but the numbness remained.

The new symbiotes were both stronger than her, and she watched as one took her host, took Cindy from her and she raged.

Give her back, she screamed at the blue one, who laughed and batted away the tendrils she produced. Pinned her legs together with mechanical arms, and then sticking her arms to her side,

No, please, I'll behave I'll behave, as the last time she struggled as Hank used liquid nitrogen to keep her from escaping. The pain of being subdued and broken drove her into a blind panic.

Yes, you will, and Cindy is fine. We just need to make sure you're okay, we won't hurt you. The blue one told her, trying her best to stop the struggling symbiote for not just hurting herself, but hurting her new host.

Feel for her, listen to her and see.

Silk had been too shocked when the drug wore off, but as she touched her host's mind, Gwen, she was called Gwen, she saw what life could have been like. She knew she loved the heart pumping state, when Cindy was angry or excited, adrenaline it was called, her new host told her, but she learned of something better. When she met the memories of a pair-bonding she quivered as it sparked a response.

Gwen moaned and twisted as Silk brought her to orgasm, and Gwen came over and over again, Silk becoming relentless in her discovery of a new drug.

"Now, Now dear, calm yourself. You'll hurt Gwen, there will be time for that later." And as Octave extended her powers, Silk calmed under the influence of the stronger symbiote.

Slipping back, Liv sighed and using the arms hosted Gwen into a better position and then used the other two to climb back down into the warehouse, where she met Felicia.

"What the hell Liv?" but she paused,

"We needed to show the pair that we weren't going to hurt them, and Gwen was a suitable host. Would you have done it? I mean, would Huntress even have let you?"

Felicia crossed her arms and huffed, "was still dumb, Didn't she tell you about her little outburst?" and Liv shrugged,

"You're getting as bad as Peter. Oh no, an attractive young woman loves you, the horror." Liv said mockingly, "With the way you're collecting them, I think we might need a warehouse just for you."

Felicia rubbed an arm guiltily, "Well," and Liv laughed,

"I was joking dear, I'm sure if it came down to it, Peter would have no objections. Do we complain when he drags home another one?" and Felicia pouted and shook her head.

"There, but we do need to fix poor Silk, and before she hurts Gwen." Liv could feel the symbiote snarling and writhing under Gwen's skin, and Gwen was barely holding on. Silk was feral, and without Peter here, Liv was unsure if curing her was a good idea.

Silk wasn't mad at her treatment. She was just mad. Whatever trauma had caused the anger was buried and even her discreet probes were coming back as useless. She was an empath, not a telepath like Peter was, and with Wanda still at the sanctum, none of the latest symbiotes had the full range of powers Peter had.

"Oh, you stupid old bat," Liv cursed at herself. "Felicia, call Jean, I need her here, now." and Felicia shrugged and grabbed her phone, sending an S.O.S to Jean, at the mansion.

With Jean's powers, it didn't take her long to arrive, with Laura and Logan in tow, ready for battle and as the trio slipped in through the roof hatch,

"Oh thank god. Jean. I need you to calm Silk, and find out what's actually wrong with her." Logan frowned and shrugged,

"Not a lot we can do, pipsqueak. Hey got food?" and Felicia's shoulders sagged and she took Logan and Laura into the kitchen and began to pull out various leftovers to re-heat.

Jean was mumbling under her breath and Liv put a hand on her shoulder, "You'll be fine dear. Just slowly, and carefully," and as Jean reached out with Helios to touch the symbiotes mind, she gritted her teeth as the anger washed over her,

"Fighting. Hurt. Anger, humiliation." she hissed,

"Tortured, hurt, betrayed." and a fiery aura flared around Jean, "I, its too much" and Liv, ignoring the scorching heat, coated herself in Octave and touched her shoulder,

"You are doing fine dear." and Helios nodded,

"She, Flash, suffered. Peter's pain was too much, he couldn't take the guilt. He drank, and prescription pills. On the roof, Webb lashed out and as they fell, felt afraid, spawned Silk, " and Jean cleared her throat. "Webb was afraid of dying, and he's terrified of Peter. Silk shares that guilt and pain, but anger. Hank Pym did some terrible things to her, separated her from Cindy for hours until she started to die, he kept them both drugged, tested her over and over for weaknesses, oh god Liv, the things he did." and Helios's eyes snapped over to Cindy, who froze and stood, moving over. "Cindy suffered during high school. A closet lesbian, her mother found magazines in her room and berated her. She had a girlfriend, someone nobody suspected and hid it from them both, always afraid they would find out, always jumping at shadows." and she shook her head.

"We need to get Silk a new host, and unbond Cindy," Jean told Liv, sho shrugged.

"We can't. There are no suitable hosts in the warehouse. Everyone has a symbiote, even you."

"Logan," was all she said and Liv laughed,

"Logan? No offence dear but you want to give an unstable symbiote to someone who could murder us all. Cindy has no training, Logan is older than everyone combined, and I have seen him train Peter. No."

"I can deal with him," Felicia said as she brought him into the room, "and he agrees."

"Now, you want me to host Silk, so you can heal her both physically an' mentally, but why can't you just leave her on Gwen?"

"Because we need Gwen to find where Cindy ran off too, and she'll know all of Poison's favourite snack spots. We need someone who can control themselves, without being overwhelmed, and while I think it is dangerous, we need someone that won't die if Silk becomes overly aggressive."

"Won't die?" Logan asked, furrowing his brow.

"Symbiote can eat their hosts from the inside if they become too aggressive. No offence but you'll survive, even if it is painful."

Logan took a breath and sighed, "yeah but bein' eaten ain't exactly my idea of a good time. An' how exactly do you think Gwen will cope fightin' against a symbiote, they aren't exactly pushovers."

"Everyone here is Enhanced. Gwen included" and Logan tutted.

"I told that boy you were all too liberal with that potion crap."

Liv shrugged her shoulders, "She invented it, do you think she would test it on anyone else?" and he still shook his head,

"An' you don't have a problem with that? I fought Red Skull, I know what a bad formula can do. You're all crazy, an' one day it'll bite your ass so hard that it won't be just you that suffers."

"Well then. If that is your final decision. Huntress dear, can you please go find Miss Moon, and try not to hurt her too much. Gwen dear, I'm afraid you'll just have to endure this. We do have the biogel on hand, and if need be," and she glared at Logan, "we do have the Extremis formula, but I for one would not like to expose you to it without depowering you first."

"I didn't say I wouldn't help. I've fought Talon, an' you know they ain't pretty when they get that mad." and as Liv tutted, he walked past her and held out his hand to Gwen.

"Get it over with, before I change my mind." and she raised a shaky hand and Silk flowed onto him.

Logan laughed, and snorted, "that it? I ain't impressed." and he walked from the warehouse, "goin' for a smoke." and he continued to laugh as he pulled the pack from the top pocket of his jacket and bit the end from it, "as if some pansy-ass teenage drama would phase me."

Logan had lived through more wars than he could count, taken more lives and done so many bad things that a raging symbiote was just another drop of anger in the ocean that bubbled under the surface,

An' you. Behave or else, he mentally chided the symbiote, but Silk refused to respond.

As soon as it touched his mind it was overwhelmed. The rich experience flowed from him like honey and she swam in it, drinking him in. Everything he shared with her was new and raw, and what Hank had done to Cindy was nothing compared to what had been done to Logan, or what he had done.

As Logan headed to the door, he was greeted by Laura who sniffed at him a few times,

"Host?" and he rolled the cigar between his teeth, and nodded,

"Good, fight then. Can't die, and I can cut loose properly." and Logan laughed and ruffled her hair, much to her annoyance,

"Let her settle first, then yeah, let's see just what you guys deal with." He had been ignoring the spike from Silk, that small rush that he knew was her excitement. His was more feral, and she was like an angry kitten compared to what he normally dealt with.

Laura was perfect though. Her regeneration was the same as his, and he could probably cut her head off and she'd be fine. He could find out just what level these symbiotes pushed their hosts, and after years of exercises with Charles, and the need to stop stabbing people when they pissed him off, he had a pretty good grip on not just his rage, but all of his emotions.

As he took a draw of his cigar he felt the symbiote inside him quiver as the nicotine hit it, like that huh?

We do, Cindy was quiet, and only indulged in the candy, but you. Please, we do not wish to be afraid.

Show me, and as Silk flooded him with the memories of her times with Hank, Logan bit the end from his cigar and his claws almost slid out from clenched fists.

Yeah, you an' me, we should find that Pym and make him aware of just how much he messed up.

You would do that?

Aww shit, and Logan relaxed and thought back to the dam, of the tank and of the spotty memories of being experimented on, we ain't so different, an' I know how much it hurts, you'll be fine.

All his lessons, all his meditations and exercises never taught him how to comfort a scared and angry alien Symbiote that could read his thoughts and alter his brain chemistry. He figured though it was no different from one of the kids brought to the school, manifesting their powers for the first time, and that like them, sometimes it was just a friendly ear and comforting presence they were after.

Oh yeah, no poking around, I ain't one of Parker's little women okay, I ain't about to start whippin' it out for a good time alright?

We, we do not understand, the Cindy felt the desire but with us there, never

Shit, no wonder. Yeah, that's a conversation I ain't havin' with you either. You can get all that from one of the others.

If we wish to stay?

Logan laughed, I ain't about to be mommy to one of you critters. You know I ain't the nicest person around, and you know it's gonna be a rough ride right?

We do, but Cindy, we feel so much pain bonded with her, we taste you and we like it. she is, she was the only one we had.

Well, I ain't calling you Silk, I know that much. It's gonna be, I dunno, Snarl or Rage, or summin'. Naming things ain't my speciality.

We like Rage, it makes us feel like we feel.

An' you know I ain't gonna stop smokin', right?

The burning stick? No, do that more, and we also wish to taste the whiskey.

Well shit, I think we're gonna get along just fine.