Mind Bomb

As psychologist Matthew Kurtz approaches Ravencroft Institute, Carnage rants, and raves in his cell. John Jameson, head of security, is glad that Carnage has stopped singing for a while, even though his desire for violence is no less disturbing. When Kurtz buzzes for entry, John is a little unhappy that Doctor Ashley Kafka didn't inform him advance that Kurtz was coming to the facility. She admits that she hoped that he wasn't going to show up since horror always seems to follow him wherever he goes. As he walks the hall through one of the cell-blocks Kurtz witnesses as one of the patients tries to break out of his cell. John authorizes non-lethal containment. However, one of the guards unloads an entire tranquilizer gun, disgusted that this prisoner killed five children before being imprisoned. Kurtz finds this entire display educational. Soon he is joined by one of the security staff that escorts him to the chamber where Cletus Kasady is being contained. There he is greeted by Ashley Kafka and John Jameson.

There, Ashley explains that Matthew Kurtz is a specialist who has been sent in from Washington to examine Carnage. Still, John is unhappy with this man being here until Matthew shows an identification that shows that he is being a representative for the Pentagon. He then pulls rank by saying that he has more security clearance than both Jameson and Kafka and that he has the authorization to examine Kasady. To add insult to injury, he points out that their attempts to cure Carnage have failed. Still, John doesn't entirely trust Kurtz and the psychologist responds with a smug attitude. Despite Jameson's warnings, Kurtz insists on being allowed to see Cletus Kasady alone. As John and Ashley watch from the control room, Kurtz blasts Carnage with a sonic blaster forcing the symbiote to separate from him. From there, he pulls out a syringe filled with a classified chemical and injects it into Kasady's brain right through his eyelid. This causes Cletus to go into convulsions and pass out on the floor. John is about to intervene, but Ashley orders him to stand down as she wants to see what happens next.

Matthew Kurtz begins questioning Cletus about his past and learns how he has committed many acts of murder dating back to when he was a child. This eventually landed him a jail shared with Eddie Brock. When the Venom symbiote freed him, it left behind a child that bonded with him to become Carnage.[1] However, this is nothing new, and Kurtz looks forward to digging even deeper into his mind, although he is not entirely unconvinced that Kasady was simply born evil. When asked why he kills, Cletus explains that it is pretty and makes him feel like he is on television. He claims that his favorite film was the Zapruder film that captured the assassination of JFK. However, he insists that art doesn't inspire him, he inspires art. Both Kurtz and Kafka are fascinated by what Kasady is saying. That's when Matthew asks Cletus how he sees the world. That's when the symbiote bonds to Cletus again. Turning its tendrils into a corkscrew and bores into Kurtz brain. He then peels back the facade of reality, showing Matthew Kurtz a world that reeks of rotting meat, where predators feats upon the weak and everything is covered in blood. A world where death and perversion is not hidden in the shadows but ripped open and dumped out for everyone to see. It's a place where every idea has been desecrated upon and every human atrocity exists.

As this is happening, John Jameson puts the facility on high alert and orders his men to use lethal force as necessary. When they reach the cell that holds Carnage and open the door, the naked form of Matthew Kurtz comes rushing out raving like a lunatic. He attacks the guards, savagely biting and clawing at them while Carnage watches from his cell. When John and Ashley arrive, Kurtz has already killed three guards with his bare hands. With no other choice, John and Ashley order the guards to put Matthew down like a mad dog. With Carnage merely sitting in his cell, John and Ashley quickly close the door. As they do so, Carnage insists that Krutz wasn't mad, he was just shown the truth. He warns them that chaos cannot be shot, it cannot be contained, and they certainly can't keep it locked up for long.

Recurring Characters

Carnage, John Jameson, Ashley Kafka

Continuity Notes

1. Cletus Kasady's transformation into Carnage was chronicled in Amazing Spider-Man #344-345 and 361-363.