The day was calm and content, with everything and everypony going around like another usual day. Ponies were strolling around, shops were set up and doing business, and other various things. It was around noon Equestrian time, and many ponies were out to grab lunch. In Twilight Sparkle's palace, things were going normal for their residents, as well. In fact, a certain human with his other was sitting on his bed, hands brought under his chin, staring at the wall across from him, and just thinking.
It had been some few days since their encounter with the Xenophage and meeting Discord, and things were pretty subtle since then. Of course, as soon as Eddie had awoken in the morning the following day, an anxious Twilight had bombarded him questions after question once he arrived at the dining area. He managed to calm her down and confirm to her that he and his other were perfectly healthy. She, too, told him she was fine when he had asked about her leg. Apparently, the guards had secured the remains of the alien, and, via carefully loading them into separate cargo crates, flew it back to Canterlot for study. Twilight told Eddie that, despite having been a major threat to ponykind, the Xenophage coming to Equestria marked a big day for the ponies. Even though Eddie and the symbiote were technically the first aliens, they came by some odd means from another dimension. The other alien, however, coming from space, proved that there was indeed life beyond their planet. Astronomers and scientists were sure ecstatic.
During the days between then and there, nothing noticeable went on. Eddie didn't go out too much, remaining inside the palace, where he would either be in his room or in what he'd call the palace's living room, reading the Equestrian Papers. The only interactions he had were with Twilight and Spike in the palace, Luna in hadn't visited his dreams since he experienced an old memory, which the symbols was fine with. And, as always, the symbiote. He found it weird, though, that his symbiote was able to traverse the dream realm, something that, as far as he knew, could only be done by magic. But it didn't shock him like it did Luna, he knew of all the exotic and odd things symbiotes were capable of.
When his other had told him that it would sometimes visit Pinkie's dream when he was asleep, he asked why, and it told him, "She can make odd things occur, like Discord." He didn't quite get it, but didn't question further. After some days passed after that, the two shared a thought, brought up by Eddie, of what would happen back on Earth, both assuming they'd find a way back.
No doubt that their discovery of the new dimension would warrant much attention. Granted, stuff like that has happened before, almost frequently, but it was still something big. Earth and Equestria might have peaceful talks, or some communications. Their primary concern, though, was what would happen to them. Both Brock and the symbiote were well aware of their reputation back on Earth, and after coming back from Equestria, they doubted that major authorities -hell, maybe even the damn Avengers- would remain content and still with Venom back from a completely different world that was peaceful. They knew that the results would likely be them being tightly locked up to put it simply.
They thought on it for awhile, even when Eddie sat on the bed, staring at the wall, but his focus not on it. 'Would they separate us?' the familiar voice of the symbiote filled its host's head.
"I wouldn't be surprised if they tried." Replied the buff man. "And with all of this happening, they'd chase us down until they get what they wanted."
'What would that be?'
Eddie shrugged, looking down to his feet. "Answers, maybe. What they'll really want is you." Eddie sighed as stress began to build up within him. He stood, and began slowly pacing around the room. "Whether it's to destroy you or contain you, it's not gonna be good."
'Won't let that happen, Eddie.' The symbiote growled that part out, defying all who would want to break the bond, even if they were Earth's mightiest.
Eddie huffed, stopping his pacing and leaned himself against the side of a wall. "I appreciate your conviction, but this is something huge, bigger than us."
'Fought many things bigger than us before. Came out on top.' The Klyntar replied with defiance.
Brock shook his head, replying, "You don't get it. If it'll be like I think it will, we can't just fight it out or even hide. They'll just keep coming." His stress only built higher when he felt a rising heat in his head that was intense and demanding... and it wasn't his.
'Why? We are not monsters like they think. We have been doing good for much time. Why won't they see that!?!' Tired of milling about, he walked over to the bed and plopped his back on it. While it was odd to him about his other's behavior at first, he, too, understood the frustration of it all, even agreed with it. He couldn't blame people for being skeptical and afraid of them due to their checkered past, but it really agitated him at times at how almost nobody acknowledged or ignored what they have done for good, or for being -or at the very least trying to be- heroes. But no, they refused to look back from the past.
More of that fiery anger swelled within Eddie, only difference, that was his own. His empty stare morphed into a glare, directed at those who wouldn't see them for who they were, what they were trying to be. "Because these goddamn people only look at the past and won't move from it... and they don't do second chances, apparently."
It was a moment like that where their bondage truly shined to its most absolute. Their bodies weren't the only things that merged, but also mind and soul. Both of their sparks of anger fused into one, both so similar that they had to combine. The sparks became flickers, then flames, then uncontrolled fires, and finally unyielding infernos. Why couldn't the people at home trust them? Why did so many heroes have to attack them? The human and Klyntar would try to talk to them, try to convince them that they are on the same sides, that there wasn't a need to fight, because Venom didn't do anything wrong in those scenarios. No, they all came to fight because they all thought he was just as crazy as before, they thought that Venom was the same from so long ago, and they wouldn't listen to a word. Was nothing they did proof enough? That they've changed, and wanted to redeem themselves? Apparently not, it appeared.
Wherever that pent up rage came from, Brock did not care. All he knew was that he was tired of having to evade the police, getting stuck in fights with heroes from past grudges or prejudices, and never being able to escape his past reputation. He was sick of it all, and needed to pent at least some of the wildfire within him. His hands tightly clenched into fists, begging to hit something to unleash their fury, as he sprung to his feet again. He quickly strode to the center of the room while his head twitched to left and right, looking for anything at all to let loose on. Hell, even the damn walls would do.
Before he could have annihilated any physical object, he paused in puzzlement when he felt the blazing rage becoming less and less. His rage was still wholesome and demanded to be enacted upon, but he only took a second to realize that it was his other's anger melting away into something else. While he felt its anger go away, it wasn't replaced by anything much better, either. In fact, he was distracted from his own emotions when the symbiote's emptiness managed to garner his attention. It wasn't an emptiness as in nothingness, but of despair and sorrow. 'Will it ever stop, Eddie?' His eyes widened from how the alien within him sounded, from how it transitioned from unbridled fury to a sense of despair... hopelessness. The same hopelessness they both felt before and didn't want to feel ever again. 'Will they not stop from trying to remove me? How would we stop them? How could we avoid it? Don't want to be separated again, Eddie, don't know what to do...'
Forgetting about his boiling anger for the moment, he tried to reassure his other, but he knew he couldn't. Those were the exact things he asked himself, wondered, and pondered upon as well. He didn't know if he was frustrated or scared that he couldn't find an answer to such questions. With trepidation, he replied in a low, "I don't know..."
That same hopelessness left a bad touch on him, and he wanted to remove it from the symbiote, but he knew that to do that, he would at least have come up with something that satisfied both of them, something he couldn't do then. 'I don't want this, Eddie... I... I'm afraid of what will happen.'
Eddie lightly closed his eyes, dipped his head, and sighed. His muscles loosened and relaxed, fingers unfurled,
and he took in a deep breath. He exhaled with, "It's fine... I'm afraid, too." He opened his eyes again and turned his head to where the bathroom was. He entered the bathroom, turned on the sink, and rinsed his face off with some cool water. When he finished, he looked at his reflection in the mirror to see a man who didn't know what to do with himself, lost and not where he belonged. All of those actions took the steps to cease his anger, until it was nothing but sorrow. With that, came his own understanding.
He knew that people and heroes of Earth had every good reason to be mistrusting of him and his other. They had made many mistakes they thought were right at the time but couldn't have been more wrong. It was the heroes duties to ensure that everyone was safe, including the common, idiotic crook who deserved to live, too. He knew that they would want to bring him in for their past crimes. As for the public and innocents, well, he was mainly painted as a villain due to his old rivalry with Spider-Man, a hero who wasn't one to his eyes long ago. He and the symbiote saved and protected many innocents during that time, but they saw Venom as a killer lunatic for his fierce aggression against many, and they weren't completely off about him and his other being a little crazy.
They both had done a lot that a hero would do since their reunion, because they drove to be heroes and defenders of the innocents; but, they still had a long way to go and much to prove if they, more so for Eddie, wanted to be redeemed and forgiven. Brock knew it would be a long way, but he was determined to reach the end. Besides, he and his other defended innocents not for the sake of being forgiven, but because they are innocent and don't deserve evil's torment. It comforted him, knowing that there were indeed those out there who saw the two for who they truly were. There was the tribe of dinosaur people who lived in the sewers who saw them as saviors. Some heroes who were convinced gave them, albeit reluctantly, a chance to do good without their interference. And, the one that brought a small smile to his lips, the ponies of Equestira... for the most part, anyways. He was well aware of how some of them felt about him and the symbiote as Venom.
While he didn't feel "all better", he certainly felt more calm than before. The symbiote, though, was still strayed in its worries, and Eddie could feel it. Another thought that troubled Eddie was that what if they weren't able to get back to Earth. He sighed again, striding out of the bathroom, muttering, "I need to clear my head. We both should, actually. It'll help us think this whole thing through."
'Could swing. It always helps you and I.' Brock found himself agreeing with the idea, for it was indeed true. Like how a person would take a walk or how a pegasus would fly to think, swinging for them was their ticket for clear thoughts, even if Ponyville wasn't a city and had shorter buildings. Still, they were tall enough to where it could be done without disturbing the citizens on the streets.
Nodding, Eddie exited his room into the hallway, walking down the long corridor towards the entrance. "This'll be just what we need."
Air whipped around him as he soared higher in the into the sky, above all the buildings that he zoomed past at great speeds. When he reached the apex of his ascent, he began to descend to the ground that came closer and closer. Instead of panicking or being terrified, he looked for a good vantage point on any building or structure, and saw a rather tall one, at least compared to the others, with metal beams reaching out from four corners of the building at the very top. He fell below it, just far enough to gain another good swing.
When he felt he was at the right position, he raised his right arm, and with a 'thwip!' a thick, black wire of webbing shot out from the white square on the back of his hand and stuck to the metal beam. With the webbing attached to both, he felt the web become taut when it reached its maximum length, and so he swung under and over the building before releasing his hold, soaring back into the air again with great speeds.
Venom had been swinging to nowhere in particular in Ponyville for a little bit, and both his halves were easing up, though their thoughts were still active on what to do once they were back on Earth, and other things they thought about in the palace. The ponies had noticed the wicked webslinger not long after they began, and different reactions were given about. At one side -luckily for Venom, the bigger side- were the positive ones.
Some smiled, some waved up to him, some pointed him out to others, and some called out to him, whether they were cheering him on or asking if he could land and talk to them. Then there were the others, the ones Eddie knew weren't too fond of him and the symbiote as one. They glared at him and muttered under their breaths, taking him for an evil monster that only appeared to be a hero to betray them at one point.
Normally, Eddie wouldn't care about that. In fact, it was a big upgrade from Earth since the majority of them were for Venom. But, still a bit frustrated from the thoughts of before, he was angered at those who saw him and his other as monsters. Humans on Earth had legitimate reasons to harbor mistrust and negativity towards Venom, but what did he do in Equestria? He hadn't wronged any of them and yet some thought of him as a beast that would betray the trust given to him. It didn't matter, though. He would still defend innocents regardless of what he thought of them and they of him.
The pegasi that were in the skies looked at him in surprise, likely from the fact that a flightless creature could reach to such heights from ground level. Perhaps Venom would have acknowledged the ponies calling to him, or the on looking pegasi, but both host and alien were delved too deep into their thoughts to do so. Eventually they neared the edge of town, but instead of swinging back in, Venom soared yet again in the sky, furthering himself from the town. Despite the height of the fall, the Lethal Protector landed on both feet without a struggle. He found himself on a field of grass with a stream of water running perpendicular from him. For some reason he felt compelled to go over and look in, so he took steps towards it. When he looked down at the stream, he of course saw his reflection, albeit a bit distorted from the running water. The only thing different about his usual appearance was that he wasn't grinning that wicked grin of his, but instead his lips were splayed thin, exposing all his teeth.
He continued to stare, both Eddie and the symbiote thinking of their future. Swinging had provided a calmer state, but they still had concerns and worries once they would reach Earth again. Brock reminded both of them that, so long as they stick to the right path, things would be better. It might take awhile, they knew, and they doubted it would be easy, but not an unreachable goal. The thought eased them some, though some uneasiness still lingered around. The symbiote in particular was lost in the gaze of the water.
Ever since it first became Venom with Eddie, there was always someone or something out there that wanted to break their bond, and such a thing would put it on the defensive. Not from the pain, (though it was highly painful), but from what would be taken from it: the host. Hosts weren't just company or something to occupy. No, hosts were apart of symbiotes, they defined who they were, gave them care in an uncaring universe. Being separated, even if temporary, could be an absolute hell.
Venom stared into the stream still, completely lost in its unending picture, the thoughts continuing. "Aaaeeiiiiihhh!" His head snapped upward at the shrill shriek in the direction from where it came from. His eyes arced upward when he saw Fluttershy's cottage past the stream a bit of ways, undoubtedly coming from the yellow pegasus herself. Ditching their prior thoughts, that most Wicked of Webslingers leaped across the stream and dashed over to the cottage.