Marvel: A Drop of Poison

Hero Name: Poison
Real Name: Ray Connors
Alias: Jason “Jay” Smith
Age: 27
Date of Birth: April 26th, 1988
Appearance: 5’11” and 165 lbs with a medium build and short ash-colored hair (human). Symbiote form is 6’11” and 250 lbs, usually possessing a large, muscular build with claws, tendrils/tentacles, and a fanged maw similar to most other symbiotes. Can also take the form of a slimmer but almost-equally-strong build as well. The symbiote itself is mainly a mixture between dark purple and black.
Registration: Anti-Registration


Abilities/Enhancements: Although genetically engineered, the Poison Symbiote has taken traits from many other Symbiote samples, granting its hosts a combination of previously exclusive abilities.
- Superhuman strength, speed, and endurance.
- Healing Factor: Symbiote can rapidly heal injuries using its own biological matter, saving its host from potentially lethal injuries.
- Form fangs, tendrils, and bladed weapons from his limbs.
- The ability to stick to walls.
- Limited Shape-shifting capabilities: ie. Able to mimic the appearance of clothing.
- Able to deliver a venomous bite that weakens and eventually disables victims.
- Minor telepathic abilities: If the symbiote makes direct contact with another, it can read emotions and basic thoughts and project them directly into the host’s mind.

Backstory:
Ray begins what would initially be a pleasant and successful life, breezing his way through high school and tackling through university as a biology major. Unfortunately, after an accident involving a hostile and addictive alien organism which spawns from the Toxin Symbiote, he’s forced to drop out of school and cut ties with his family, an act that hurts them almost as much as it hurts himself.
Dealing with his newfound power almost proved to be hopeless situation as, no matter how much good he intends to do, Ray’s compelled towards extreme violence by the alien that had bonded to him. After a fateful encounter with Ashley Greene, among other super-powered allies, Ray’s able to find a degree of control with his new abilities, which at least prevent him from turning on his new allies. After an attack made by artificially replicated symbiote, Ray loses complete control of his Chaos Symbiote and attacks his friends, only able to gain of control of himself when faced with Ashley. He allows her to put a bullet in his exposed chest and bring his crazed symbiote under control. After Ashley’s supposed death in the final showdown with the invading symbiotes, Ray’s fury gives him enough power to stop it.

For the next two years, Ray begins to study the alien sharing his body and devises an experiment to kill it. It proves to be a success, but unfortunately the chemical imbalance in his body results in major withdrawals that threaten to kill him. Using his knowledge in biology, specifically Nothology, he creates his own artificial symbiote and makes it bond with him, giving him a more varied array of powers based on traits from multiple symbiotes.  

As events begin to spiral into what would soon become the Super Hero Civil War, Ray meets with a resurfaced Ashley and joins her on her crusade against the Kingpin. Tensions soon rise, however, as the two are eventually pitted against each other, resulting in a violent battle that almost kills them both. As Ray tries to sacrifice himself in a final act of redemption, Ashley saves them both by transporting them both to a strange place she calls “Summerland”, where he once again meets her recently deceased sister, Chloe.
Ashley and Ray soon begin a romantic relationship, but it’s cut short as the Civil War begins and super-powered humans are forced to pick sides or go underground. Initially favoring neutrality, Ray eventually joins Ashley and Badger in fighting against the government with Captain America. The resulting conflicts once again leave Ray struggling to keep his symbiote in check. They would participate in the final battle in the middle of New York City and subsequently go into hiding following Captain America’s surrender. Ashley disappears without a trace and leaves an already unstable Ray even more bitter and angry.

Ray eventually resurfaces in Los Angeles as a vigilante, changing his name to Jason and taking the name Poison when in alien costume. He devises a serum to help keep his symbiote in check while he hunts violent criminals, and after a few months begins tracking another symbiote not-unlike himself.

This hunt eventually leads Poison back to New York City…


Equipment and Extras:
USGI “Antidote” Serum: A serum made weaponized via a handgun-resembling syringe, used to keep the Poison Symbiote under control in the host’s body. Small doses can effectively “drug” or “disable” the symbiote, while a very large dose could potentially kill it.

Death.

It was the overwhelming scent of it that struck my nose as my footsteps were echoing off the concrete sewer walls. Even amidst the smells of literal shit being filtered through my “suit” I could still smell it and still feel the sickening feeling in my stomach root itself in deep. Even after all the death and violence before and after the War, the smell of this kind of death still keeps me on the verge of hurling.

Probably because I could have just as easily been responsible for it.

My fists clench at the thought; my teeth grinding as a feeling of guilt suddenly surges through me. However, it’s silenced as quickly as it had comes over me, followed by a feeling of calmness that settles almost as unnaturally. There's a voiceless whisper at my ear, assuring me that we would never stoop so low. ’Heh. Liar.’ I knew not to trust it; but not trusting it was as good as not trusting anything, and I knew I needed to trust something. The “symbiote” that was rooted inside me was better than nothing at this point.

There's a light ahead that catches my eyes and I can already tell it ain't good. My pace quickens, becoming a full-blown sprint. God damnit, there better be someone left... but I can hear the Poison in my head, cold and calculating, telling me there was no reason to hope. I do anyways; I have to, even if I know it as well.

I stop in front of a few trashed at-least-several-times-over couches surrounding what used to be a makeshift fire, and I realize this must have been some sort of shelter made by the local homeless.
Then I see the bodies. What’s left of them.

It’s “its” work for sure; the ripped appendages and skewered bodies make it clear as a boot to the nuts. That feeling of indescribable guilt hits me like a fucking truck. It doesn’t last long, though, as it’s soon replaced by blazing, pure rage. Poison’s doing? Probably. Right now, though, I don’t give a damn. Not daring to look back, we- I race deeper in. We can smell “it” now too; the monster that did this.

Now we’re going to rip it apart.

These sewers were a nightmare. Almost as much of a nightmare as the thing I was hunting. And that was saying something.
Its scent was still fresh; fresh enough to taste. Of course, I couldn’t tell if I was thinking in metaphors or if Poison actually wanted to eat the thing. Doesn’t really matter, though. Either way I was going to rip that fucking monster apart. For those people in L.A…the people here in the sewer…and every corpse I’ve had to step over in between. This was more than justice; this was all vengeance. Heh, if only Ashley could see me now…

The sewer tunnel eventually lead to a junction, which threw a pretty big monkey wrench into my tracking. All the water feeding into the middle…and the scent. Damn scent was everywhere. I slowly followed the walkway around the center of the junction, feeling the smooth texture of the concrete walls. There was no way to tell where the smell had went; there was just too much to track. That left only one thing to do. Kinda always wanted to try it.
Extending my hand and placing it flat against the cold wall, I watched as Poison flowed from my hand and slithered in every direction; around the junction and snaking into every passage way. The sensation was intense; everywhere the tendrils went I could feel everything. Flashes of the dark sewer, the smell of shit and contaminated water, and the sound of it running were all manually injected into my brain. Lucky me.

Then I…saw it.

Well, seeing was sort of the wrong word to describe it. In a flash, all my senses picked up the same thing: sight, sound, touch, smell, and even taste all surged through my body. I could see its blood-soaked claws and heard a loud, primal screech.
’Left tunnel’
“I know.”

The sides of the concrete sewer tunnel were a blur as I raced past them; pushing my superhuman speed to its limits. There was no way I was going to let it get away. Not again. Not so that it could end more innocent lives. I could still remember those poor bastards in Los Angeles. Ripped apart… Contorted… Eaten… Or worse. The fact that it brought me back to New York was just icing on a very unpleasant cake.

End of the tunnel, I could see its hunched over form slowly walking away like a predator fat off its most recent meal. It turns to me, probably hearing my obvious footsteps echoing off the cold floor. It’s too late, however; I’m on it in seconds. I hear its shriek, full of surprise and pain, as I deliver a powerful tackle to its side. The next moment we both go through the previously solid concrete wall, and the moment after that I feel the familiar sensation of free-fall in the darkness. I held on tight to my prey, however. There was no way I was letting this monster go again.
I could feel Poison whispering into my ear what we needed to do, and this time there was no shutting it out. We were going to rip this creature apart.

Our mid-air struggle was cut short by the sudden impact of the cold, hard ground.

I felt a sharp pain surge through my body as my side hit the concrete floor; not even my symbiote could cushion all of the impact. It hurt like a bitch, and I could hear a distinct ‘hissing’ noise coming from somewhere, but I didn’t have time to dwell. I was a little distracted avoiding the sharp set of claws piercing solid brick where I had been moments before. I caught a quick glimpse of my unfamiliar surroundings; old fashion lights and large pipes along the walls, one of which had cracked. I could smell the distinct scent of gasoline. Not good. I got up with a grunt and had to ignore the persistent ache in my arm. Unless I wanted to get skewered…again.

For the first time I got a good, long look at my opponent. It was a symbiote all right; looked like me on one of my bad days, teeth, tongue, and all, but a little smaller. Its small size only made its claws look all the bigger. And sharper. Just my luck.

We stared at each other; obviously it was studying me as much as I had been studying it. There was something it its eyes though…something primal I couldn’t describe. Whatever it was, it was not giving me good vibes. Then I saw it: the twitch in movement. The next moment I was practically jumping to the side to avoid what looked like a spear aiming for where my chest used to be. This thing was fast; too fast. It could extend its limbs further, giving it incredible reach to add to its already deadly speed. I had to let Poison’s sensory instincts direct me as I avoided another series of slashes, which looked like little more than orange blurs accompanied by unpleasant ‘swishing’ noises. ‘Too fast’ was an understatement.

I felt my heart pumping fast in response to the surge of adrenalin I was feeling. It was euphoric...at least, to someone it was. I could feel Poison getting strong, but I had to keep it in check; if I let ‘it’ in the driver’s seat, there’d be no telling when I’d get back in.
Of course, since we were so isolated anyways…
I bit back the thought because I was almost certain it wasn’t one-hundred percent MY thought. I had to stay in control. Too bad my foe didn’t have the same restrictions.

I avoided another series of ‘slashes’ and ‘stabs’ and, finding my moment, slammed by fist hard into the symbiote’s head. It felt…wrong; like I had hit mouldable clay instead of flesh and bone. I pulled my fist away and could see the indent I made in its head. Its ‘flesh’ reformed to its usual shape and, distracted, I didn’t notice its attack until too late. There was a sensation of searing pain as razor-sharp claws ripped across flesh on my chest, symbiote and human flesh. I gritted my teeth in order to keep any sounds of pain locked down. But what was overwhelming was the sudden mental connection I felt when my symbiote connected with its. For a moment, I felt like I could see in its mind...but it was impossible to tell what was going on inside. Its brain was moving a million miles a second.

Poison was already working hard sewing us back up, but that just made the agony persistent. Fortunately, pain was soon replaced by the natural anesthetic of rage, and with a swift back-hand I sent the creature flying back into a far wall. Right into a cluster of light bulbs.

“…Shit.”

Suddenly the entire shaft was engulfed in flames.

I woke up the following morning. The sun was passing perfectly through a ripped curtains and directly into my eyes, over-stimulating my exhausted senses. Sitting up with a groan, I tried to recall the events of the previous night. I remembered tangling with the symbiote in the sewers, and the huge explosion afterwards. Anything after that…it came in images. Flashes. Which told me I didn’t just get out; I was ridden out. Wasn’t the first Poison’s took the reins from me while I was sleeping. Now here I was back at my place; total dump of an apartment. At least the rent was cheap.

With a groan I picked my sorry-self up and leaned back against the sofa. There was a spring that was real keen on lodging itself into my back, but I was too tired and sore to care. What I cared about was that monster from last night getting away again; I knew it was still out there. If I survived, then it probably did too. Sadly, that meant no break-time for me.

The old floor creaked loudly as I sluggishly walked across it. It only took a couple steps to make it to the kitchen in search of food; the new-old place wasn’t very big. Grabbing what few non-expired scraps I could find, I had as glorious a meal as any. I didn’t realize how ravenous my hunger was until I was licking my plate clean. Side effect of all my late nights out with Poison; my body had to burn a lot of energy to keep the both of us in line. Thankfully some gas in the tank managed to give me a much-needed boost.
With a long, drawn-out sigh I sat back on the ten-years-past-its-time sofa and turned on the television. There wasn’t much I could do until I was back at full strength, anyways. I was greeted the same news anchor that was always on the News Channel. Unfortunately, the story she was reporting on was also a little too familiar…

“Damnit…”

The people of New York are still reeling from the sudden passing of Mayor Donahue, who was found murdered with his two bodyguards in his office last night.
The police have found no promising leads at this time, except for what appears to be a mysterious trident symbol etched into the mayor’s desk, supposedly left by the killer. Police say that there was remarkably little evidence left at the scene…

“Damnit…”

I switched the television off and stood in silence. Someone had assassinated New York’s mayor. Made it a professional hit. I never really knew the man, but I did know who he worked for; and it wasn’t, poetically, the city of New York. Wilson Fisk – AKA the Kingpin – had his large hand up Mayor Donahue’s ass for a while now.

I still kept tabs on Fisk’s activities, even with him behind bars. Old habits. Felt like maybe I owed her that much. His usual channels, which I kept a close eye over, gave no indication anything this big was about to go down. He seemed content in his cell for now. Or at the very least reluctant to draw this kind of attention to himself; the attention from guys like me anyways. So was someone moving against Fisk? Seemed the most likely option. The mayor wasn’t the first of Fisk’s assets to be torched. Someone or something was out to burn him.
My mind wandered for a moment to her, but I battened down that hatch pretty quick. No need to get my hopes up. Not yet. Even if it was her, she burned that bridge pretty thoroughly when she left. At any rate, my work here wasn’t done yet.

It had taken some time, but after my mind-struggle with my friend from the previous night, I was finally able to decipher one word from the complete anarchy of emotion raging in its skull. One word, but it was going to make all the difference. After all, it was a word that I had heard before. A long time ago.

Epsilon.

It had to be Epsilon.

The name still brought a bitter taste in my mouth even as I thought of it; remembering all the times it came up while Ashley was harassed by super-powered assassins and clones. Before, Epsilon had always been the shadow in the dark. The hand up the ass of the puppet master. All that cloak and dagger shit. Now?

Now they had not only gone public – quietly, but still in the public eye nonetheless – but they also went ahead and presented themselves as the leading cavalry in scientific and economic progress. Damn blogs; they always have to flower up those article headers.

I tried gathering more information on them before making my next move; they weren’t fooling me.

Ashley and I, we saw the nightmares they cooked up. The lives they destroyed. The very glimpse at old memories of them made my blood boil. My fists clenched in a sudden struggle to control my emotions. Luckily I had done serious work tempering my…well, temper; and nothing was quite as ‘therapeutic’ as beating on low-life scum that deserved it. Unfortunately, Epsilon just had a way of capturing my old anger. I had an idea of what they were capable of, and that was enough. That made them my responsibility.

Unfortunately, that didn’t make the job any easier to do; I couldn’t do it all by myself. I needed to get in touch with an old friend.

“I mean it, man. There’s some weird shit going down up here. And it’s got Epsilon’s smell all over it. Threw a bunch of money into rebuilding property that got messed up after the war…”
“Yeah, I see that b-“
“…But I’m not sure they’ll help you track down your new friend.”
“Epsilon’s got something to do with this. You smelled it yourself. If Ashley-”
“You seen her recently?”
“No… Not for a while. But if Epsilon’s surfaced, I can’t imagine she’ll be far away.”
“Can’t tell if that’s good or bad.”
“I guess I’ll find out when I get there. Thanks Badger.”

The phone clicked. I had my answers; or, at the very least, my clues. Epsilon was active in San Francisco, more active than I had ever seen them. Something had to be going down there. It was a feeling I couldn’t keep out of my gut. If I wanted to find some answers, my best shot was to start looking there.

I was out the door a minute later.