Arc Four. Chapter One Hundred Fifteen. For Whom The Bell Tolls

As Goblin laughed at MJ's fate he failed to notice the lightning crackling around her eyes.

Thor and Loki both looked around as they heard the whisper,

'whoever is worthy'

"Whoever is worthy,'' she shouted, standing and holding out a hand, reaching for something in the sky.

Thor now knew what his father meant. To be selfless, not selfish. To be firm but tolerant, and most of all to protect those unable to protect themselves, no matter the cost. His brashness had led to this situation, and it was his duty as its instigator to make sure that the Klyntar was dealt with.

"I. AM. WORTHY." and the illusion covering MJ faded and the blood pooling around her feet stopped. Thor smiled and pulled himself away from the symbiote as his battle armour clicked and covered his torso, a bright red cloak draping itself over his back. He looked at the surprised Goblin, and raised a fist and smashed it into the creature's face. "You shall not pass red troll. I will not allow you to harm the MJ or her friend." and holding up his hand Mjolnir lifted itself from its resting place. The torch on the Statue of Liberty exploded into a bright flame as lightning struck it over and over.

As the hammer flew towards the island it collided with the energy shield, causing a massive resounding toll to cover the island and all over the state. Anyone near covered their ears as the massive note resounded and the symbiotes screeched in pain.

The groups looked up at the shield as the hammering started, sounding like a massive bell. Venom and the rest shuddered as the noise resounded through them but they knew about the sound weakness and had been desensitising themselves. Only Gwen rolled and clawed at her ears as each strike sounded across the island.

Norman was the same, with each hammer strike against the shield his symbiote screeched in agony and tried to peel itself away from him. All over the island the symbsoldiers fell clutching their ears. The glass barrels writhed and bubbled as the smaller slugs, with no protection burst as the sound overwhelmed them.

Lightning crackled along Thor's arms and he held his hand aloft, each pull of his hand striking Mjolnir against the shield once more.

As Carol shook her head, working off the massive energy spike Red Gobin had hit her with, she saw a shimmering light cover Loki and he was back to being the strangely handsome man as before and Thor, fully clothed in resplendent battle armour, holding up his hand.

"Move," and Thor seeing a brightly glowing Carol let his hand fall and as the giant green mutated Norman screeched and held his ears, Gargoyle stretched and sloughed off him like an oozing blanket to escape the noise. Carol hit him full blast with a photon beam, sending him flying and crashing into a building.

Flying after him she punched him again and again, letting him rise up before smashing him down into the ground.

"Friend Carol, wait. You cannot kill him." Thor shouted. "He is a Klyntar. Even if he revels in chaos, we must take him for judgement," and huffing Carol relaxed and the glowing stopped. Goblin lay bleeding and crippled on the sidewalk, blood dripping from his mouth.

As they watched Gargoyle slowly slid back towards him, "Try anything and you won't be so lucky" and Goblin tensed as Gargoyle rebonded with him but then lay still.

"Loki, good to see you brother," Thor said, slapping his brother on the back and laughing. "Can you make some restraints for our prisoner here? Friend Carol, we can take him back to Asgard with us, it would be safer than here on Earth. We'll find a nice planet to leave him on. After he faces trial for breaking the treaty of course." and Loki went over and summoned two sets of metal cuffs. As he clasped them around Goblin's arms and legs his eyes shifted black for a second before he smiled and finished restraining the beaten Norman.

Carol moved over the MJ,

"Are you okay?" she asked and a stunned MJ nodded, Muse was complaining about the noise but as Peter showed them how to dampen it she was only complaining.

The peter will be okay, he is the peter and he has the others with him

I hope so Muse, I hope so.

Across at the Life Foundation building, Venom and the rest helped Gwen to a safe place. Poison was screeching and holding her head as the tolling continued and there was nothing they could do for her right now. Huntress sat in the driver's seat of the ATV and once everyone was buckled in she grinned and they sped off. Poison had retreated into Gwen but even now she could only suffer the pain while Ravage and Liv tried to shelter her.

Smashing through the gates the armoured front of the truck thumped over any and all symbsoldiers in their way until it rammed into the reinforced glass front of the building.

Harry wasn't stupid, and the front had been redesigned to take the weight of someone the size of Venom crashing into it, even the weight of the truck only dented and smashed out the reinforced glass.

"I'll stay and guard Poison," Ravage said, cradling the sobbing symbiote in her lap. Ravage laid a thick layer of symbskin over herself, trying to blanket out the noise as much as possible. Venom and Huntress both nodded and grabbing the hold bar around the top of the passenger compartment swung their legs up and kicked. Even as the tolling noise faded Gwen continued to hold her ears and rock herself back and forth.

Venom ran a hand over her head and nodded at Liv, "See you soon."

Kicking out the front window Huntress and Venom climbed out and there was Harry, standing with two more symbiote soldiers. One, red and black, pacing back and forth creating and dismissing blades from all over his body, the other, pitch-black stood silently but as Huntress and Venom climbed down they could feel it watching them.

"Took you long enough, loser." Harry said "I mean, I got the shield up, got my soldiers in the street and I can say that taking out oh, 5 trucks worth did shit all Parker, I mean, that's about 30 men. Nice job on the noise though." Harry dismissively waved a hand at the pair.

"Just two? I guess Gwen didn't make it? Shame, out of the two of you, she was the nicer one, and smarter, and better looking. Should have thrown yourself on that grenade Parker. Given her your symbiote and let it save her, oh, or maybe you shouldn't have brought her here in the fucking first place." Harry shook his head, "I mean, really, even if he was an asshole Norman never sent me out to do anything dangerous." and he smirked and shrugged "Guess that's the price of knowing you though.

Venom shook his head "monologue much? Guess if daddy ignores you, gotta compensate somehow, but yeah, we cured your shitty anti-venom, really. Gwen's fine, so suck it Osborn." but Huntress batted his arm

"Fighting, don't talk to the bad guy, shit." and she shook her head.

"Oh no, Felicia, you might want to," and Harry raised a hand and snapped his fingers. "Meet Kaos and Carnage. You might have beaten them before, but we learned, we adapted, and now they will finish the job they started." but Venom glanced over at Huntress who shrugged,

"I have no idea what you are talking about Harry, so save-" Venom started before Harry interrupted,

Harry tutted, "you lied to me," and Carnage gave him the finger while Kaos remained still. "See, Carnage was our first, a bit unruly but still, you take what you get but Kaos. He was our second and our most fun. You know he screamed for you Felicia, screamed until he was gone.

Stepping forward, the symbskin on the black symbiote slid back and the hollow haunting eyes of Thomas Hardy stared at Huntress and Venom. They recognised the symbiote now. He was the one that attacked along with the red one. Harry had tested them and now they would get payback.

"No, dad, no." Huntress took a step forward but Venom put a hand on her shoulder, stopping her.

"Fucking let go of me," she shouted, and shrugged him off but his grip was like a vice.

"Look at him," and as Huntress stared, she saw. His face was hollow and sullen, black bags under empty eyes. She could see his skin was pale and sunken over his face, and even the skin on his shoulders was white. Whatever had been done to Thomas Hardy left him starved and emaciated.

"Oh, he's fine, doesn't talk much but he still works, wanna see?" and as he snapped his fingers once again the skin slid back over him and his face split apart into the rictus maw. Felicia flinched back and dropped down into a fighting stance as they waited for Harry to finish his speech.

"Kill them both, I don't need them alive for the next part of my plan," and giggling and screeching, the pair leapt for Huntress and Venom.

Carnage giggled and laughed and leapt at Venom who moved aside easily while Kaos leapt at Huntress who grabbed the symbiotes outstretched hands and threw him to one side.

"Dad, dad you don't need to do this. You can control it. Huntress and I don't fight each other, we exist together, please," but Kaos ignored her, slashing at her with finger knives.

Venom wasn't going to chat with Carnage and as he made two huge knives from his hands and lunged, Venom sidestepped once more and punched down, squashing him into the floor.

Huntress ducked under a slice from Kaos and drove a fist into his stomach, "Dad, please," she whispered, "it's Felicia," and at her name Kaos paused, tilting his head, but shook it and screeched at her, pushing her away and slicing at her again with his claws.

Venom had grabbed Carnage and was slamming him against the floor when he erupted in a writhing mass of razor-sharp tentacles, whipping and whirling around, and unwilling to see if his armour was thick enough to withstand them Venom had leapt backwards and away.

"Fucking gut you for that," Carnage said, wiping the blood from his maw. "Eat your entrails and skin the pretties," he said motioning over to Huntress but Venom shrugged,

"So far, I'm disappointed, you're a shit fighter. What were you, the janitor? You swing like you're mopping a floor."

Carnage screeched and swung again, slicing and slashing at the air as Venom ducked and weaved. Anyone watching would think that Carnage was winning, the blades millimetres from hitting Venom but a fighter would see that Venom was testing him, testing to see how far he could push and once he had a measure of the man he struck.

Weaving under a blow, he bent Carnage's arm around and brought his knee into the man's stomach, as Carnage folded Venom pulled the arm and spun him around, and as he came back around hopped to the other foot and kicked him across the courtyard. Carnage went flying, rolling and coming to a thudding stop across the replanted green. He tried to rise, lifting himself up on both arms but shook and collapsed back down into the ground. As Venom shook his head he started to move over the help Huntress but Harry moved as well.

"Enough!" Harry shouted, and Kaos grabbed his head and screeched. Huntress and Venom watched as a pure white symbskin poured over Harry, thickening his skinny frame and enlarging him until he was almost as big as Venom.

"We are Monarch, Ruler of the Klyntar and you will obey us." Monarch said, his voice full of majesty and Venom and Huntress felt they should kneel, obey and follow their ruler. Venom shook his head, he was tired of being bullied and now Harry was no different,

"Nah, you look like a cumshot, you fucking shitbag," Venom said and as Huntress laughed, Monarch yelled.

"KILL THEM!"

And as Carnage limped back over, the fighting began once more.