Toxic Kisses

As Eddie Brock sleeps, he is haunted by a nightmare where he is tormented by a voice. It tells him to embrace the Realm of Insanity and allow himself to bond with even more entities. Brock wakes up when someone ranting about pollution on the street is being attacked. Changing into Venom, Eddie climbs up to the surface from the sewers to save the man from getting beaten. He saves the man, a rescue that is witnessed by Beck Underwood a public defender that is an ally of the underground citizens that Venom protects. The person who Venom rescued is Abby Rubin who was part of the Scaremore Mercury Project. She has been seeking out other Scaremore employees to be part of a class-action lawsuit against Scaremore because their project was making people sick. Rubin explains that the Mercury Project attempted to bond a virus with mercury. The project gave the mercury an amoebic will. Scaremore shut down the project and has been trying to silence people involved. Hearing all of this, Venom offers his help, and Beck accepts him. Eager to please this lawyer, Venom takes the two attackers to get information from them.

At the Scaremore Industries building, Charles Evans orders his assistant, Mr. Darby, to do whatever it takes to cover up the Mercury Project before it turns into a public relations nightmare. However, Evans wants plausible deniability and sends Mr. Darby away. Darby puts in a call to Black Tom Cassidy, asking him to hire the Juggernaut to participate in a kidnapping. Meanwhile, Eddie gives Beck a tour of the underground city and tells her how he became their protector.[1] Underwood notices that Brock is very articulate and learns that he used to be a reporter.[2] Beck admits that his symbiote kind of scares her and asks if it isn't influencing him. Eddie explains that he has a symbiotic relationship with his other. When she moves to kiss Eddie, she is horrified when the symbiote touches her with a tendril. As Eddie apologizes, they are interrupted by Abby Rubin who tells them that one of the other plaintiffs in Beck's case has dropped out and that he was calling from the hospital. Brock wants to do something, but both Abby and Beck tell him that there's not much his powers can do against a criminal corporation who can hurt people and remain immune from the law.

That night, Eddie Brock has a nightmare as he sleeps. In it, the same creature from the night before tells Eddie to reject Beck and bond with it. Meanwhile, in other parts of the city, employees of Scaremonre Industries are dumping toxic chemicals from the factory into various waterways and parks. The next day, Beck Underwood and Eddie Brock plan the next stage of her legal strategy. Later that day, Charles Evans and his sister hold a press conference about their business holdings. It's there that a process server delivers a summons for him to appear in court. Furious, Evans tells his assistant Darby to do something about the lawyer. At Beck's law office, Cain Marko arrives to deal with her. Eddie tries to stop Marko, he is pushed aside. When Eddie turns into Venom, Cain Marko reveals that he is actually the Juggernaut. The pair come to blows, but despite his added strength, Venom is no match for the Juggernaut. When Juggernaut smashes Venom into the floor, it breaks sending both falling into the sewers. There, they fight in the contaminated water which contains the last of the Mercury Project.

The Juggernaut knocks Venom out and leaves him to drown in the water. However, as Venom sinks to the bottom, a voice calls out to him, asking him to bond with it.

Recurring Characters

Venom, Juggernaut, Black Tom, Beck Underwood, Abby Rubin, Charles Evans

Continuity Notes

1. Venom began defending the underground people in Venom Lethal Protector #6.

2. Eddie Brock was a reporter until he lost his job for conducting false interviews, as explained in Amazing Spider-Man #300.