The Seer

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***

 Sergei Kravinov's estate.

Same time.

I stand on the platform, holding a strand of webbing, and watch Kraven squirming.

A thought comes before I realise it.

Something's wrong.

Fragments of a mosaic begin to piece together in my mind:

An awakened unbridled hatred that I can't curb.

A deception.

Not real. Artificial.

The clicks. All those images. Something's happened to my mind.

It's not me.

It's all wrong.

Everything that's happening is wrong.

"Wake up!"

What?

"Wake up!"

Raj?

"Wake up, Bearer!"

Before I can react to Symbiote's exclamation, there's a loud female scream.

I turn round.

- I beg you to let him go! - screams the mulatto, tears streaming from her eyes.

I look around involuntarily.

The arena is completely destroyed: explosion marks, several dozen bodies lying on the ground, spider webs, bullet marks, broken traps and hunting equipment all over the place.

Did I do this?

Meanwhile, the unknown woman continues to scream.

- Please, it's my fault! Sergei wanted to prove his destiny as the greatest hunter, but it was me who was given the image of the spider in a vision. It was I who pointed you out to him. What happened to you is my fault! - the woman began to wipe her face from the hail of tears.

I'm just now realising she's pregnant.

- Please, we've been watching you, you don't hurt the innocent. My husband and I may not be innocent," the woman places her hand on her bulging belly, "but he is. I beg you, don't become a patricide, don't leave my unborn child an orphan.

I let go of the thread involuntarily.

Craven's body falls to the platform.

- My love! - The mulatto woman runs up to Kravinov and starts to give him artificial respiration and heart massage.

It's no use. He's been hanging too long. Even a trained man can't...

After a second, the Hunter regains consciousness, coughing wildly.

- Looks like your potions saved your life, congratulations," I remark absent-mindedly.

Lucky the thread was thin enough.

"Carrier!"

"Raj, I can hear you, how are you mate?".

A few seconds of complete silence forms in the mind.

"HOW...ME? HOW ME?!" - the symbiote's voice booms out in an enraged drumbeat.

"Please don't scream, I'm already in some sort of stupor."

"..."

"Nothing to say?"

"I simply have no words, Bearer."

"Too bad, because I have a lot of questions."

I turn around and walk towards the exit, instinctively remembering where he is.

- Stop!" comes Kraven's gruff voice at my back.

I freeze.

- You've proven yourself superior to me, Spider. You saved my life. And yet the prey has overpowered the hunter. You have proved your right. I will leave America, return home and never bother you again. And let no one doubt that Sergei Kravinov is a man of honour.

In reply I only nod curtly and leave the room.

Not paying attention to the devastation, I reach the Fantastic Machine. I sit down, type in the coordinates of the Baxter Building, and lean back in the seat, activating the autopilot.

"We fought the Gaines, didn't we, Raj? Before everything happened?"

"You mean the man and woman who, judging by their facial features, are related, Bearer?"

"They're twins. And telepathic."

"So..."

"They influenced my mind."

"So their interference prevented me from contacting you?"

"No, there's something else here."

Pensively I look up into the sky.

"They were actively attacking my mind, but I could feel myself resisting their onslaught and seemingly quite significantly. I'm not trained in special mind defence techniques, so that leaves only one option..."

"Your Spider Sense. It protected your thoughts in the moments I tried to read them, which means..."

"Could react to a telepathic intrusion, yes."

That's some perspective...

I cover my eyes.

"But...the Hynes' interference still made you do what you ended up doing," a confused Raj tries to make sense of the situation.

"Not exactly," I sigh. - "They redirected their compulsion, awakened long-slumbering negative emotions in me, very deep down inside. In essence, they, metaphorically speaking, let my inner demon off the leash rather than taking control."

"I mean, what happened."

"My reaction. Wholeheartedly and completely. The anger, the hatred. That's what can happen if I don't control them, if I go rogue and stop following my principles," it was only now that realisation of what had happened was hitting full force, "God, those bodies. Did I really kill those six?"

"No, Bearer! I could not reach you, but I watched you and, with all my might, held back your furious blows. The hunters are badly battered, many have fractures that will remind you of what happened even after they heal, but they are all alive," the Symbiote rushed to reassure me.

"Thank you, Raj," I exhale in relief. - "But wait. If you could watch, why didn't you take control of my body? Didn't stop it?"

"I...couldn't."

I open my covered eyes.

"What did you say?"

"I....me as if I'd been placed in a closed area of the mind. Locked up with a heavy deadbolt. All I could do was watch you and try to scream."

"But you could take control of me if you, like, invaded my mind, went to extreme measures, couldn't you?"

"That's the point, Peter. I tried to do that. But I couldn't."

Excitedly, I grab the chair rail and don't even notice him crumpling under my grip.

"Are you telling me that a rampaging Spidey Sense locked you inside my mind and you couldn't even control yourself in any way?"

"Yes."

"It can't be."

"But it is."

Silence for a while.

"Is there anything else you'd like to share, Bearer?" - Concerned Raj clarifies after a while.

Immediately I think of the clicks.

"When the telepaths invaded my mind, did you notice anything unusual?"

"Like I said, it was like I was placed in a dark room with no windows or doors. Only your eyes showed me what was happening, all I could do was try to call out and hold you back with all my might."

"Then you did not see?"

"Saw what, Bearer?"

"Various events...as if"-my eyes widen in shock-"foreseeing the future."

"You mean you saw the future?"

"That's the point, Raj. I don't know."

The rest of the journey to New York passed in silence.

*

Later.

The Baxter building.

The fantastic machine began to land on the platform. Reid was already waiting at the coordination desk.

- I trust you've solved your urgent case?

- Yeah, it was an educational trip. Thanks again, Reed.

- You're welcome, Spidey, handshake. - At least now I can see you're okay.

- Relative, but thanks.

I note the hatch still open.

- Are the others back yet?

- You've been gone over three hours, so yeah, Johnny, Sue and Ben are back.

- How's the big fella, all right after his walk?

- It's not Ben's first time out in public, they're getting used to it, and so is he.

I'm not really keen on crossing paths with the rest of the foursome after what happened. They'll start asking questions, asking me to stay, do something, and I'm not in the mood for that right now.

- If anything, Spidey, I left the landing hatch open on purpose.

I look at Richards in surprise.

- Even if Sue accuses me of not often being able to read human reactions, or empathy is just not my thing, I can see a scientist puzzled by a new discovery. You want to talk about it? - Mr Fantastic asks me sympathetically, but not insistently.

Yes, it's certainly easier with the smartest man on the planet than with the rest of us.

- Thank you, Reed, but I'll have to handle this myself. Thanks for the emergency exit.

I'm heading towards the hatch, but halfway down, I turn round.

- By the way, I'm a little banged up on the handrail in your driver's seat," I rubbed the back of my head, a little embarrassed.

- It's okay, I'll fix it," Richards said.

- Thanks again, Reed," I saluted, and ran up the wall of the lab and jumped out of the Baxter Building through the landing hatch.

I run across the roof and, jumping off, shoot a web towards a streetlight.

*

Forty minutes to get to my house. I crawl along the wall of the building and, once I'm on top of it, I make my way to my flat in the same familiar way I've done hundreds of times before.

I open the door and go inside. No one's there. Mary's at the theatre and Felicia's at the office. I glance at the wall clock.

14:00.

Middle of the day. It doesn't matter. I should get some sleep. Or rather, try to meditate.

I go into the bedroom, take off my suit in a few movements and throw it in the wardrobe. I'm left in just my underwear.

I fall on the bed, quickly cover myself up, and just a moment later fall into sleep.

I open my eyes in a completely different space and the pictures here are much more phantasmagoric than in reality. I look down at my hands and notice that I am back in my red and blue suit.

- Welcome to your head, Bearer.

I turn around at the sound and see the symbiote...the way I look, in the black suit. Except the symbiotic material moves spontaneously from time to time.

- Raj?

The symbiote nods.

- Why are you looking like that?

- Like what? - The Klingon examines himself. - Looks like the usual.

- Do you always picture yourself as my black spider suit?

- It's more comfortable that way," Raj shrugs.

- The boss is the boss," he said, "I guess it's a bit of a mystery, really.

I look around the space, glowing with different fragments.

- We're in my head, and these are my memories, right?

- That's right, Bearer," the alien gets on the same level as me.

Well, nothing criminal. Just Peter Parker's life. A little bit of childhood, a little bit of school and so on. Unless, of course, you think of Spider-Man.

After that thought, the fragments are changed and expanded. Here's the first battle with Shocker, here's one of hundreds of web-slinging flights around the city that are similar to each other, but evokes a childlike delight, just like the first time. Here's a conversation with Maria in the lab and hundreds more pictures.

- I'm amazed," I say.

- I see," the symbiote comes closer. - Let me help you, after all, I have more experience in contact with minds.

I nod.

Raj raises his hand, and we seem to be transported into a dark, but not dim, empty space.

- Let me guess, this is where you're locked up? - I look around.

- Usually this is where I dwell," the alien jabbed a finger in the direction, "and from there I watch through your eyes, which are obviously closed now.

- But this is where Spidey Sense locked you in, isn't it? - Though it's all just a theory at this point.

- That's right. A very...unusual feeling of helplessness," the Clintarian mewled slightly.

- Damn, Raj, I'm sorry, I was so focused on myself. How are you doing after all this, mate? - Being trapped in someone else's body, but in your own at the same time, is a hundred per cent unenviable fate.

- You taught me that in any situation you have to believe that everything will end well, so I believed, - even though the alien had no mouth, but it was clear from his tone that he was smiling.

- When have I ever been so smart? - I couldn't hold back the soft smile.

- Always.

- Okay, - I studied the unchanging empty space again, - you are the prince of the inner world, so tell me how to try to tune in to those pictures that I saw?

- Have you tried the...let's call it the main hall then?

- You mean the place where fragments of my memories shimmered? - The symbiote nods. - No, I haven't.

- Then go ahead," Raj points to a dark space.

I walk a little further and close my eyes, trying to focus on the memories of the clicks.

When it feels like a couple of minutes have passed, I ask a question.

- How's it going?

- Nothing, Bearer.

I open my eyes. Still the same space and the same puzzled alien.

- I have only one explanation for why it won't work," the symbiote rubs his chin thoughtfully in a familiar gesture.

- I'm all ears," I sigh tiredly. Can I be tired in my own mind, though?

- It's probably the same situation with these memories as it is with my attempts to read your thoughts in the depths.

- Are you saying Spider Sense is guarding them?

- I think so," the symbiote shrugged uncertainly.

- Well, then what am I supposed to do?

- Why don't you try activating your Sense?

- Raj, this isn't a monitor screen that I can switch on or off at will. I haven't fully explored the nature of spider sense. In fact, I believe it has mystical origins. Although, judging by its action, it's like an unconditional reflex, like pupil constriction or salivation. I can listen to the Sense, react to its signals, focus on it, but I cannot control its work.

- Try to concentrate on the sensations you feel when you receive a signal from the Spider Sense, dissolve in them, feel them, and then try to remember those pictures of the future.

Well, it's worth a try. What have I got to lose?

I close my eyes and concentrate on those ringing and tingling sensations in my brain.

- Carrier?

I open my eyes and look where the symbiote went. Fragments lit up in the previously empty space. Memories.

- Wow, it worked.

- Well, I'm the prince of the inner world, you said it yourself," Raj joked.

We come closer and look at the pictures.

- They are like three-dimensional 3D models," I examine the sketch of a memory, "or like stage productions in a theatre.

Right now, Raj and I are looking at the very first memory that clicked in my head. It's playing on repeat.

- Is that Dr Curt Connors, the Bearer? - Raj said, after watching the memory.

- Yes.

I watch the event again, the doc sitting in the lab, the vial in his hand, and the reflected face of the Lizard.

Moving on to the next exhibit.

- Unremarkable shadows," the Clintarian concludes.

- But, clearly as a hint, a bright lilac cloak.

And I have a couple of guesses as to who it might belong to.

Next.

A polygon with the Oscorp emblem and a pile of moving sand.

- The usual loose stuff," Raj says.

And I just twitch.

Suddenly, memories of one of the most disgusting results of the battle between Spider-Man and Sandman pop into my head.

- Raj, purely hypothetically, if this sand tries to pour massively into me through my mouth and tear me from the inside out, can you stop it?

- Um...yeah, I guess so," the symbiote looks at me like I'm dumbfounded.

- Good," I exhale in relief, "good.

I hope Flint Marko isn't as bloodthirsty or as smart in this world.

Moving on.

A smudged battle of clearly two individuals against three opponents. The colour red dominates most of those present, but a black blotch stands out amongst them.

- Have you seen the battle of the five blots?

- I'm kind of joking around here," I angrily besiege my partner, "but you're right, it's the most incomprehensible vision so far.

- It turns out that you have a competitor on the basis of word creation, in the person of me?

- Dream bigger, tentacle. Where you went to school, I taught.

Moving on to the next painting.

A girl with brown hair and brown eyes.

- She looks just like you, Bearer, Raj notes.

- Yes. But who is it?

An alternate female version? A clone? My daughter?

Just questions.

- Let's move on.

We're seeing a repeat: Suburbia. A manor house. Skins on the walls. Kraven sitting in his study.

- I think this event has run its course, don't you, Bearer?

- I agree. Any thoughts on how it might be removed?

- We're in your head. You are king and god here.

I raise my hand and, with a flick of the hand, wave the vision away.

The image dissolves like morning mist over a river.

- It takes some getting used to," I clench and unclench my palm distantly.

- Rome wasn't built from scratch either, Peter.

- Let's keep moving.

Another vision.

A red cloak. A hammer and a shadow reaching out.

- Any guesses, Bearer?

- Yes, I have one.

- Share it?

- I'm sure you'll know when we cross paths with him.

We're approaching the final flash.

George is handing me photos, the date of the accident Ben and May were in.

- Captain Stacey?

- That's right. But did you notice an oddity, Raj?

- What's that?

- The pictures. They're CCTV scans of the day of the accident my aunt and uncle were in.

-Yes, and?

- Doesn't it bother you that George is giving the scans to Spider-Man?

It was only now that the symbiote noticed that my hands were covered in the red-and-black fabric of the tech suit.

- Do you think it knows Peter Parker is Spider-Man?

- It's possible.

The mental focus and images of the vision of the future fade away.

- What now? - Raj is interested.

- I think I've just got more things to do.

The next moment I open my eyes in my bedroom.