3rd Person Pov:
The streets of Manhattan, in front of Ryven Industries HQ, had turned into a war zone.
Sirens wailed in the distance, overlapping into a constant scream. Fires burned from overturned vehicles, their orange glow flickering backwards shattered glass and broken steel. The asphalt was no longer whole—cracked, cratered, and soaked in blood. Smoke hung low, thick enough to choke.
Above, a media helicopter hovered, its spotlight cutting through the haze like a blade. The cameras rolled. The world was watching.
And at the centre of it all—
Two monsters stood facing each other.
Venom shifted first.
The black mass rippled like liquid muscle, the white spider emblem stretching across his chest as if alive. His jaw unhinged wider than humanly possible, rows of serrated teeth glistening. His tongue lashed out, tasting the air.
Then he roared.
A deep, guttural, primal sound that shook the nearby windows and rattled the wreckage.
And he charged.
The ground cracked beneath his feet as he launched forward, faster than something that size had any right to be.
Alex didn't move back.
He transformed.
His streamlined XLR8 form expanded violently—bones snapping and reshaping, muscles swelling, armour shifting. Crimson skin hardened into dense plates. Two additional arms tore free from his sides. His body grew broader, heavier, stronger—like a walking tank of muscle and power.
Four glowing eyes locked onto Venom.
Four arms, wide and savage.
"Oh yeah…" he rumbled. "Now this is a fight."
He stepped forward—then sprinted.
Each step cracked the pavement beneath him.
And then—
They collided.
BOOM!
The impact exploded outward like a shockwave. Dust blasted away from the epicentre. Nearby debris was thrown into the air. The helicopter above wobbled slightly from the pressure wave.
Alex's upper fist connected first—
BAM!!!
The punch slammed into Venom's chest, striking the blue energy shield. The barrier rippled violently, energy waves cascading across its surface like a disturbed ocean.
But the force behind the blow was too much to fully contain.
Venom's entire body was launched backwards—
Crashing through a parked taxi—
CRASH!
Rolling across the asphalt—
THUD—THUD—THUD!!!
Leaving a trail of destruction behind him.
Alex didn't stop.
"Stay down!" he roared, charging forward like a freight train.
He leapt—
And came down on Venom like a meteor.
The ground shattered beneath them as Alex landed on top, two arms instantly pinning Venom's shoulders down. The other two rose high—
And came down.
BAM!!!
The street shook.
BAM!!!
Concrete cracked further.
BAM!!!
A crater began forming beneath Venom's body.
Each hit sent visible shockwaves through the shield, the blue energy flickering under the repeated impact. Dust and debris jumped with every strike, loose metal rattling across the ground.
"Stay! DOWN!" Alex growled, each word punctuated by another hit.
But Venom wasn't finished.
A tendril shot out—fast, precise—wrapping around one of Alex's punching arms mid-swing.
Another followed.
And another.
In a blink, Venom stopped the assault.
"OUR… TURN…"
Venom's voice came layered, distorted, echoing with something inhuman.
His arm shot upward—
BAM!!!
The counterpunch hit Alex square in the chest.
The force detonated like a cannon blast.
Alex was sent flying backwards—
Smashing through a burning car—
CRASH!!!
The vehicle flipped, metal tearing apart as sparks and flames burst outward. Alex skidded across the ground, carving a deep trench before finally stopping.
Venom rose slowly.
His body twisted unnaturally as he extended a massive tendril, grabbing the remains of another nearby car. The metal groaned as it was lifted effortlessly.
Then—
He threw it.
The car screamed through the air, spinning violently.
Alex pushed himself up just in time.
"Really? Throwing cars? That's my move!"
One of his hands glowed faintly. The air distorted—
The car froze midair.
For a split second, everything paused.
Then Alex clenched his fist.
The car reversed direction—faster than before—
And slammed into Venom.
BOOOOM!!!
Flames erupted, the explosion lighting up the entire street.
Alex didn't waste the opening.
He charged straight through the smoke.
Jumped—
Aimed to tackle—
—but a tendril lashed out from the flames.
It wrapped around his leg midair.
"NOT… HAPPENING."
Venom yanked.
Hard.
Alex was dragged down and slammed into the ground—
BAM!!!
Again—
BAM!!!
Again—
BAM!!!
The street beneath him collapsed into a crater. Asphalt shattered. Nearby streetlights toppled from the shock.
Before Alex could recover—
Venom was on him.
And the beating began.
BAM!!!
A fist crashed into Alex's guard.
BAM!!!
Another slammed into his side.
BAM!!!
Another to his head.
Each hit echoed like thunder. The forcefield around Alex flickered under the pressure, absorbing most—but not all—of the damage.
The ground trembled with every strike. Nearby debris bounced. Cracks spread outward like spiderwebs.
Alex blocked with two arms, straining, while the other two tried to grab Venom—but tendrils shot out, binding them tightly.
He was pinned.
Locked down.
Punch after punch rained down.
BAM!!!
BAM!!!
BAM!!!
BAM!!!
Venom roared with each strike, the sound mixing with the impacts into something savage and relentless.
Blood slipped from the corner of Alex's mouth.
His vision blurred.
He tried to shift—tried to roll—tried to overpower—
Nothing worked.
Every move was countered.
Every attempt crushed.
Another punch—
BAAAAM!!!
His head slammed against the ground, cracking it deeper.
Venom raised his fist again—
But then—
A piercing sound cut through everything.
A high-frequency shriek—sharp, violent—
A sonic blast slammed into Venom's back.
The shield absorbed most of it—
But not all.
The symbiote reacted instantly.
Its surface rippled violently. Parts of it peeled and snapped back like it was losing cohesion. Venom staggered forward, thrown off balance, skidding across the ground for several meters.
He roared—louder this time—angrier.
His head snapped toward the sky.
Above—
A formation of drones hovered.
Sleek. Black. Sharp-edged like predatory birds.
Their red sensors glowed as eyes locked onto prey. Dozens of them aligned in perfect formation, weapons charged, humming with sonic energy.
They hovered in formation like the Justice League.
Alex pushed himself up slowly from the crater. Pieces of broken asphalt fell from his shoulders. He rolled his neck, cracking it, then wiped the blood from his lip.
He looked at Venom.
Then at the drones.
Then back at Venom.
A grin spread across his face.
"Yeah…" he muttered, flexing all four arms as energy pulsed faintly around his fists.
His stance lowered, ready.
Excited.
Hungry for the fight.
"Now…"
His eyes gleamed.
"Let's start round two."
_________
One minute earlier
Alex's POV:
The street in front of Ryven Industries no longer looked like part of Manhattan.
It looked like a battlefield abandoned by hope.
Fires burned unchecked across overturned cars, their flames reflecting off shattered glass and pools of dark, drying blood. The acrid smell of smoke mixed with something metallic—thick in the air, suffocating. Sirens wailed in the distance, growing louder, but still too far to matter.
The ground beneath Alex's feet was fractured beyond recognition. Deep cracks ran like veins through the asphalt, some still glowing faintly from recent impacts. Broken streetlights sparked erratically, flickering like dying stars. Pieces of concrete shifted occasionally, settling with low groans, as if the city itself was in pain.
Above, a media helicopter circled, its spotlight cutting through the smoke, locking onto the centre of the destruction. Cameras were rolling. The world was watching this nightmare unfold in real time.
And in the middle of it all—
Venom.
The creature stood still for a moment, its massive black frame rising and falling with slow, controlled breaths. The white spider emblem stretched across its chest, unnaturally still against the shifting, living darkness of its body. Its head tilted slightly, as if listening… feeling… adapting.
But Alex knew the truth.
That wasn't just Venom.
That was Peter trapped inside.
Alex's jaw tightened.
I need to end this… without hurting him.
That thought echoed in his mind louder than the chaos around him.
Venom's only weakness.
Sound and heat.
Only that would help.
Alex's mind moved fast.
Raven Bots for sonic disruption… Heatblast for thermal pressure and we need control, not destruction.
"Alright…" he muttered under his breath. "Let's do it."
He began to trigger the transformation—energy building, form preparing to shift—
—but Elena's voice cut in instantly through his comms.
"Sir, warning."
Alex stopped mid-motion.
"There is an active forcefield around the target," Elena continued, her tone calm but precise. "Based on your previous recordings, it significantly reduces the effectiveness of both heat and sonic-based attacks."
Alex exhaled slowly, tension creeping into his shoulders.
Of course. Nothing was simple tonight.
He stared at Venom, watching the faint distortion of the shield ripple as the creature flexed its claws.
"Can you deactivate it?" Alex asked, even though he already knew the answer.
There was a brief pause.
"No, sir."
Elena continued, "The Spider suit is operating with its own advanced Virtual Intelligence. While I maintain a connection through the system, I do not have control authority. Additionally, you have not implemented a backdoor override in its core framework."
Alex winced slightly.
Yeah… not gonna do that. More disadvantages than advantages.
"But," Elena added, "I can attempt to hack into the suit's functional systems through our communication link. I can disable the forcefield—temporarily."
Alex's eyes sharpened.
"That's the part I like," he said. "How long?"
"Estimated time: two to four minutes."
Alex let out a slow breath, his gaze never leaving Venom.
Two to four minutes.
"Alright," he said finally, voice firm. "I'll hold him."
He rolled his shoulders, preparing himself mentally.
"Deploy Raven Bots," he added. "Full formation. Use sonic attacks and a containment field. It won't stop him—but it'll distract him and that is good enaugh"
"Understood, sir."
A faint hum echoed above as systems activated.
Alex cracked his neck slightly, muscles tensing.
This isn't about winning fast.
This is about stalling long enough.
His eyes locked onto Venom.
The creature moved.
Venom's head snapped toward him, sensing intent. Its body coiled slightly—like a predator preparing to strike. The air around it seemed to distort with tension.
Then
It charged.
The ground shattered beneath its feet as it launched forward, speed and mass combining into something terrifying.
Alex grinned.
"Yeah… you're not the only one who can do that."
He stepped forward.
And triggered the transformation.
Energy surged through him as his body expanded, muscles swelling rapidly. His frame grew broader, heavier, stronger. Crimson skin formed over reinforced muscle, glowing faintly under the firelight.
Two additional arms tore free from his sides with raw force, each one flexing instinctively as power surged through them. His stance shifted, automatically lowering the centre of gravity, becoming more stable—more aggressive.
Four glowing eyes opened.
Four Arms exhaled, a low, excited rumble escaping his throat.
"Oh yeah…" he rumbled. "Now this is a fight."
He slammed one fist into another—
THUD.
The sound alone carried weight.
Then he charged.
Each step cracked the ground beneath him as he accelerated, meeting Venom head-on.
Two monsters.
One objective.
And a ticking clock running in Alex's mind.
Three minutes... Or maybe less.
As the distance closed, Alex's grin widened.
"Let's see how tough you really are."
And then—
They collided.