Marvel: Civil War

I laughed. "Yeah, I suppose it is good to actually see me for once, I'm as real here as I was in the physical world before I died. Summerland is a special kind of place... its the realm between life and death, the reason you are able to be here is because you were once dead... oh my that was a long time ago wasn't it."
He tilted his head slightly.
"Your kinda cute when your so clueless you know that?" I laughed again. "Well I suppose I should tell you the reason I brought you here... in Summerland anything is possible, and it is here that you can train your mind to be stronger... to overpower the symbiote. If that is what you truly want."

"That... sounds like a good idea, I could try atleast" I said to her, "I can't get rid of it, it's a part of me now"
Cool breeze had washed over me, even the wind felt amazing here. Suddenly there was a flash of black and for a moment a severe pain shot through my head. It left quickly but the traces of it were still there. "the sooner the better.."

The party had ended, the fun was over, and it was back to being serious. I sighed and walked outside, looking at the beaitful moon that luminated the night sky. It was peaceful and calm, serene. Something about it that I just didn't get enough of.

The sound of paper flapping through the air, caught my attention; looking up I snatched something from the air. It was an envelope, something that, at first, had no meaning to me. I read the back of the small package, it read: To: Andrew Alfonso 1st sucessful Project #31

In curiousity I opened it, taking out a few photographs. One was of me, in front of a facility with a man who seemed in his late 40s. There was a small sign above the doorway. It was a manufacturing factory for cars and it was located in Rossevelt island.

"What in the fuck....I don't remember this," I flipped through the next picture, it was of me and some woman in front of a waterfall. Niagra Falls to be exact. My hand kept sliding through the pictures, some that didn't make any sense whats-o-ever. Then the last picture, it was of me in a tank with drills inserted into my body; in the background I noticed that my vitals had flatlined....I was dead?

There were words sprawled on the picture in black sharpie.

R.I.P
Andrew Alfonso - 1970

I looked over the pictures over and over, flashes of images appearing in my head; confusion took over my emotions, I was angry, mostly confused. it was a necessity to figure this out; it had to deal with my past, something that had been dead to me, something I had no hope for before, but now...it was time again.

"Alright then, I'm going to take some of he restrictions off of you... just be careful. Though you can't die here, your injuries will be very real."
I focused my thoughts on Ray, lifting part of the restriction I had put on him.
The landscape suddenly changed... a forest.
"Interesting choice Ray."
"That wasn't me."
I glanced over at Ashley... there was a smile on her face as she slept.
"You have no idea how long its been since I've seen her this happy... she's normal here... emotionally atleast."
Her happiness didn't last long though. Despite Summerland's power to block out negative thoughts from someone's mind... Ashley's mind was somehow able to overpower it.
And I feared that the same might happen to Ray if it isn't careful
He went to wake her but I stopped him.
"Wait... this is something her mind wants... Summerland works in mysterious ways sometimes, if it wants her to see this then we must let it."

*as Ashley
My thoughts kept wandering until I came across something I had not expected.
I was a little girl, Chloe wasn't born yet. I was with my parents and we had gone for a walk in the woods. My father was wearing hiking boots, a pair of beige cargo pants and a white t-shirt. He was just as I remembered him... short dark brown hair... the most brilliant dark green eyes I have ever seen.
My mother was also wearing hiking boots, a pair of denim shorts and a black tank top. Her long black hair came down to her mid-back and she the amazing chocolate brown eyes.
"Daddy where are we going?"
"You see that cave up there sweetie?"
He pointed towards an opening in the side of a small cliff.
I nodded.
"If your ever in trouble when your older, remember that cave okay?"
I nodded again.
I realized almost instantly that the cave was the very same one near Chloe's house... the house that had once belonged to my parents.
We kept walking, and my thoughts began to wander again... time shifted.

This time the memory was not a good one.
I was in an apartment. Chloe and I were watching TV. I was about seven at the time, Chloe was four. There was a knock on the door.
Grandma answered it, two police men were there. I couldn't hear what they were saying but I somehow knew it wasn't good. She closed the door, tears in her eyes.
"Grandma what's wrong?"
"Nothing... I think its time you two get to bed alright?"
It was the night my parents were killed... why was I remembering this?

My thoughts became mixed after that, jumping from point to point.
First I was in a small house, there was a man. The psychologist that I had to see after my parents were killed. I couldn't remember what he asked me, his mouth was moving silently. I jumped at him, hitting him in the face. Grandma grabbed me... pulled me back... and I cried.
My mind then jumped to when I was 15, the night I ran away from home.
I remember kissing Chloe on the forehead.
"Everything will be better now." I whispered to her as she slept.
My mind continued to race through my life's events.
When I got my first gun... my first kill... running with the gangs of New York.
It lingered on the night my life had changed forever.
It was late, I had just taken out another gang. The door to my apartment was cracked open. I pulled my handgun out and slowly opened the door, when I entered... everything went black... I woke up in the hospital 3 days later.
It skipped forward to when I got back to my apartment, the look on Jessica's face. She spoke but there was no sound words came out... it's been soo long I couldn't remember her voice.

It then jumped to the first time I met Ray.
"What is someone like you doing killing a bunch of people like them... more importantly, what are doing hunting OUR prey!" He said to me.
He had grabbed me with his tendrils but I quickly broke free of his hold.
"You are strong for a human, but We are stronger yet"
"Look!" I said to him "We're obviously here for the same reason, why not go in together."
"Ha! You try and seduce us! You can Hunt with us but their leader is OURS"
"Whatever you "two" want I guess" I replied.
That night would weave our fates together, though neither of us knew it at the time.

It flipped through the events that followed... I forced my mind not to focus on anything in particular... but it lingered slightly when Chloe was killed.
I remember the pain that went through me. The rage it drove me into.
Shuffling through the rest... stopping on a more recent one... the night Ray left and my world burned.
My mind refused to focus on the events leading up to it... the house was burning and I was fighting Aurora. I knocked her through the floor... into the fire. I watched as she burned.
"Ashley don't do this! Please! I can help you fight him!" She pleaded and begged but I just watched. Her screams echoed through my mind like a sung stuck in my head... until they stopped.
It then jumped to my fight with Kingpins new 'son'.
I relived the pain my body was in as I stood in the middle of the highway... the most intense I have ever experienced.

The last memory was a recent one. Ray was laying on the ground... broken after bringing down the building. Everything went black after that.
When I woke up... my parents were standing above me... Chloe was standing with them.
I was still using Rays chest as a pillow and I quickly got up... trying to make sense of what was in front of me.


OOC: Its long I know but its something I needed to do.
Ray and Chloe are seeing all of this as if they were watching a movie...
Ashley is seeing the memories as herself obviously.

OOC: I just need you to post your reaction to what you were seeing happen around you.

It was like watching a really skippy movie, it kept jumping from scene to scene, sometimes from movie to movie. Some of it I recongnized, some of it seemed to have happened long before I had ever met Ashley. I assumed they were flashbacks, really fucked up flashbacks. But then the really weird thing happened, suddenly two figures appeared standing infront of me, or rather Ashley.
"Well what th-" I began to say when I felt Ashley stir and wake up, and from the look on her face she may have been just as confused as I was.

"Chloe?"
"Yes." She nodded, a smile on her face.
My parents...
I got up as quickly as I could, they were both smiling.
It was as if they never left, having not aged the slightest since the night they were taken from me... from Chloe.
My dad held his arms out, I ran to him... I couldn't find the words... only tears.
"Ashley, honey why are you crying?"
"I don't know... should I be? I mean... I don't even know where to start."
"I know... we missed you."
"Why didn't you... try before... all those times when I needed you?"
"Because it wouldn't been right, you would've become dependant on us... you needed to live your own life... but that never happened did it."
It wasn't a question, and I knew what he was talking about.
"But were here now."
My mom joined in, making it a sort of deformed looking group hug.
"I missed you soo much sweetie... god your soo beautiful now, I think I might be jealous."
"Mom... please your embarrassing me!"
They both hugged me tightly.

For the first time in my life since they died... my life was complete again. We were all together.

"Oh crap! Umm... mom, dad... this is Ray."

My dad broke the group hug and looked over at Ray.
"And so it is... its nice to finally meet you."

I was in in my own little world thinking about something when I heard my name being spokened. "And so it is... nice to finally meet you" I heard Ashley's father say. It took me a few moments to realize he was talking to me. "Oh uh..... yeah, likewise I guess" I rushed in quickly, the man had some sort fo aura about him. He reached out his hand and I did the same to shake it. But as I extended mine, for a split moment there was flash and my arm was huge and black, with clawed fingers the end. It disappeared just as quickly, but it left a terrifing impression none the less. I was able to shake his hand however, and I tried to put the thought away.
"You guys look ok, anyways, for dead people I mean," I didn't mean for it to come out quite like that and I ended up biting my tounge for being stupid.

"Dad... can you help us?"
"That all depends on what it is I guess."
"Well... Ray is having problems with his symbiote?"
"I know... don't think we've been up here partying all the time. Your mother and I have been watching you through the years... Rays problem has become very clear recently. I'll need some time to get something ready... symbiotes can be difficult if not treated properly."
In a small area a couple of feet away a house appeared... our house... the one that had been burned to the ground.
"Uh dad... about the house."
"Its alright, make yourselves at home... Ray, I'll call you when I have something ready."


OOC: You can think of something... its your "problem" so its only fair.

"I.... I think I need to take a walk and sort some things out" I said quietly and got up. I din't know exactly how do deal with the momnter in my head, it was a beast that needed taming. I was walking for several minutes simply trying to piece together what I could do.
"I can handle it well under ideal conditions" I said aloud, "It becomes difficult whenever my adrenelines up or I'm stressed, and that night...... I lost it completely"
I sat down and buried my head in my hands, completely left in the dark of any solutions I could come up with. Then it hit me. Sometimes Symbiotes grew too powerful when they reached a certain mass, to great for the partner's mind. If I could somehow shrink it's power, or atleast stop it from growing... It might work I thought, then began putting my theory together what materials and such I needed.

I found myself sleeping again.
My mind empty of thoughts... silent and dreamless for the first time in a very long time.


OOC: Sorry, its all I can really do at the moment... you can continue your thing.
Feel free to use Ashleys dad.

((Sorry have to make supper))

A figure...a shadow jumped from the building ahead, disappearing as soon as I noticed it. My fists were clenched around the photographs, I had a life...had.

I turned to Ghoul's house and then back, "I'm sorry guys, I'll be back whenever..." It was pointless, no one was in the vacinity, but still, it was only polite. The only memories I had were of the wars, especially 'Nam, but even then barely anything came to me. It was time to pay a visit to this factory or whatever.

Making my way towards Rossevelt Island, I stopped by a couple of places to get any information on the place.

As I reached my final destination, flashbacks of what people had just said came.

"Yea, place has been shutdown for about, hmm I'd have to say 30 years mayebe 28. It don't seem right though, don't seem dead yet."

Thats mostly some of the responses I got, all different, but similar. And to think all this time I've been searching in wrong corners; this could be very well just another one.

The threshold at the end of the bridge was crossed and before I knew it, I was stopping my car in front of the factory. It was extremely large and boxy, with a faded grey color painted on to it. Rust had accumilated over the years, but something didn't seem right. The electricity still worked, I noticed after I checked the power generators and lights.

"You'd think someone would have torn it down by now?"

I paced my way towards the doors, placing both my hands on the middle pushing it inwards. The metal doors creaked and moaned, but the motion it was fluid; like it had still be in use for quite some time. It looks like somene's been here still. What greeted me was the entrance of the complex; it was rusted and dirty, vines running in some places, but in parts of areas it was cleared and cleaned out. Even the pathways were cleaner then everything else.

My footsteps echoed throughout the building, small chips of wood falling from overgrown vines and branches. After ratting the area out a bit a secutiry door caught my attention. It was looked tight, barred with some of the strongest metal out there. The reason I knew this was after I punched it the first time, a loud clang filled the complex making way to much noise. I had to keep this quite, I checked for any other way in other than the finger print scanner. I guess the only way in is for me to keep smashing through th-....unless I actually tried the scanner first.

I pressed my thump against the screen, the lights on it went from grey to green:

"Access Granted - Welcome #31 ID 3931200. Have a good day."

The meta doors unbarred and revealed the next room shortly and slowley. I couldn't believe what I saw, this was just ridiculous.

"Oh my god..."

Quickly I clutched my head, it was to much for me. Memories flooded my concsience, screaming, agony, blood, and a freak. My eyes readjusted and I looked around like an animal. This place, something about it, it wasn't right. Especially the scenery that was around me.

That should be everything, but I cant do it here, I need to see some people first. Everything was planned out, all that was left was the neccissary materials to do so. I walked back to the house that looked like Choe's, but suddenly a memory of what I saw there, what happened... I couldn't look at it directly. I stepped through the doors and searched for Ashley. I found her, sleeping peacefully. The last thing I wanted to do was interrupt, so I sat in a chair and leaned back. It wasn't exactly sleep but it made the time go by, atleast I would know when Ashley woke up.

I slept for what felt like an eternity... the most peaceful I've had in a long time.

I woke up slightly dazed and half asleep. Ray was in the big chair at the other end of the room.
"Hey." I said, my mind still half out of it.

I responded instantly with an "Oh.... hey". I rubbed my eyes, I might've lightly fallen asleep but I snapped out of it within moments. I was thinking more about what I had to do when I got back, which led to my somewhat difficult question.
"Ashley, I need you to take me back"

"Kay... gimme a sec to wake up first... we should probably... wait... what?"
I was confused more than anything... being half asleep didn't help.
"I need to go back."
"You sure Ray?"
"Yes this is wonderful, it really is but I can't do this here."
I scratched my head before stretching my legs.
"Well... alright, we should probably eat first though... my mom's an amazing cook."

"Alright then, I understand"
I knew Ashley would probably wouldn't without spending some time with her parents, I probably wouldn't had I had the same opprotunity. I walked into the bathroom and splashed some water on my face, it made me seem less tired. I could smell the food from here, It did smell delicious. I walked out and sat the table, feeling a bit uncomfortable. Something about this place seemed a bit off to me, but I didn't pursue the thought, I may have just not been used it.
"So... uh what are we eating?" I asked a little nervously.

"Mom said its a surprise, but she forgot about my heightened senses."
I sniffed the air.
"Smells like steak and potatoes... and apple pie... oh your in for a treat, her apple pie is simply awesome." I said enthusiastically.

I admitted it did sound good, and I really was hungry. I Also felt ashamed that I had to take her away from here, I hadn't Ashley this happy since... well ever. This was perfect, too perfect for my liking though, I was an impure soul in a pure world, I stuck out like a sore thumb.
Within minutes the food was brought in and I could hardly wait to dig in. Once I got the all clear I probably never lowered the plate.

I couldn't help but giggle a little as I watched Ray devour everything on his plate.
Chloe gave me this weird look.
Her voice popped into my head. "Are you... giggling?"
"Maybe."
My parents had also noticed... kind of hard not to... since I came here I've been the complete opposite of my usual self... it reminded me how much of myself I've sacrificed... how far I've come.
I was no longer that lost soul of a teenager that I was soo many years ago... and I actually liked it a little.
"Mom, I think you've made a new friend."
We all started laughing... except for Ray who was still eating like he hadn't eaten in a very long time.
The atmosphere in the room was unlike anything I'd experienced in a long time... and I have to admit I was going to miss it. But we had a job to do, with the fate of the natural world hanging in the balance.

I had no self-control when it came to food, I ate everything. There was a possibly I might've eaten the plate too had I not been paying attention. Now that i was done I leaned back in my chair, thinking I'll never eat like that again to myself. I looked up and noticed everyone in the room was staring at me. "Uh yeah... That was excellant" I said.
I stood up, sighing because it was time for me to leave. "I have to leave now, It was nice meeting all of you" I said to them. I nodded towards Ashley, telling her she could take as much time as she needed, and then walked out the door.

Ray looked at me and nodded... he knew just as well as I did that I wouldn't be this happy again for awhile.
"Mom... dad?"
My dad looked at me with a sincere expression, my mom... well lets just say she looked at me in that worried mother kind of way.
"Ashley, sweetie its alright... were not going anywhere."
I nodded. "I'm sorry for leaving soo soon."
"Don't worry, we both knew you wouldn't be here long. I had every intention in helping him but I also knew he would come up something for himself. We'll be here if you need us... now go, the world needs you two just as much as it needs everyone else to fight the good fight."
I hugged them both.
Chloe followed me out the front door.
Ray was waiting outside on the porch watching the sunset.

The sun seemed so soothing, it certainly was worth looking at for a while. As I stared I heard foot steps from behind. "You ready?" I heard the voice say from behind. "Almost, just looking....maybe I'll remember it when I get back" I said hopefully.
I looked back at the sun, it was a radiant shade of orange, I could feel it's warmth as if it were real.

*as Chloe
"Alright Ray... unlike coming here, leaving is a little different. Just ask Ashley and she'll tell you all about that."
I couldn't help but laugh as Ashley shot me a dark look.
"Ray, concentrate on New York city... pick a specific place in it. Maybe Ashley's apartment... something your familiar with. I assume you'll want to do this alone so I'm sending Ashley to Ghouls place, she'll meet you at her apartment when your ready... now concentrate."