Chapter 6
Wednesday wakes up on the couch covered in a blanket with sunlight streaming onto her face.
For a moment, she's confused. It feels like a dream as she tries to adjust to her surroundings and figure out why her head is pounding. Then she hears Venom muttering to her to get up, and it reminds her of what happened the day before, and then she feels like she's been hit by a freight train.
She sits up as quickly as she can, searching around the room for Enid.
She's in the study, Venom explains, She's been there for a few hours now.
Wednesday throws the blanket off of her and heads over to where Enid is, wondering what she could possibly be doing besides getting the rest she needs. She stops in the doorway, watching Enid sitting at the desk with her back to her. She's working on something, and there's a quick zap and she's recoiling away and muttering curse words.
"What are you doing?" Wednesday asks, glancing down at what Enid's holding in her hands as she turns around, a bit startled.
"Making electrified webs. You saw how Xavier-," she corrects herself, realizing Wednesday probably doesn't know who he is, "that guy, got stunned when we electrocuted him yesterday, right?"
Wednesday nods, remembering how satisfying it had been.
"Well, he was hypnotized. And shocking them seems to stop the hypnosis."
"Won't it hurt them?" Wednesday questions, not too concerned herself but surprised Enid would use something that seemed harmful.
"That's what I'm trying to figure out. How to make a strong enough jolt to snap them out of it, but nothing more."
As long as it's as electrifying as last night, Venom teases.
"Shut it," Wednesday snaps back, and Enid snickers.
"What, does Venom want to be my first test subject?"
"If it keeps up what it's been saying to me all morning, yes."
Hey!
Enid snickers, and Wednesday just rolls her eyes, feeling her stomach grumble in protest.
"We're hungry. Don't fry yourself to a crisp while I'm gone."
Wednesday stalks off towards the balcony as Enid swivels her chair back around.
"No promises!"
---
Wednesday stops at a bodega down the street from the apartment to load up on chocolate bars, even though making a run to the zoo seems much more appetizing.
So, you've made your choice, Wednesday, Venom spats as she pops a piece of chocolate into her mouth, We're stuck eating chocolate all day.
She doesn't respond, keeping her eyes focused on the people passing by her on the streets.
Don't lie to yourself. There's so much more to do out there.
"You said you'd put up with whatever happens," Wednesday mutters, "So be quiet."
Venom groans. Wednesday tosses her wrapper into a trash can and opens up another bar.
You're going to get bored here. I'm just trying to save us some time. You're wasting these powers you've been granted.
Wednesday just keeps walking, keeping her head down. Venom's powers are something she'd dreamed of. But she convinces herself she's been capable of all this on her own, and they're just a bonus. She could live without them if she had to, right?
You know that these feelings are making you vulnerable. Vulnerable is dangeroussss.
Her phone starts buzzing, and she already knows it’s Enid. She doesn’t have any other contacts saved.
"Wednesday! You have to get back here!" Enid shouts on the other line, and suddenly Wednesday feels her heart rate rising.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing's wrong!" she quickly assures her, "Eugene's found something, get back here!"
Wednesday stuff the phone back in her pocket and takes off back towards the apartment. She decides not to take the elevator and scales up the stairwell.
"For future reference, I need you to not sound so frantic when on the phone," Wednesday scolds as she bursts through the door of the apartment. Enid's waiting for her, already giddy.
"Sorry. I'm just really excited. Come on," she runs back into the study, where her laptop is open.
"I've had Eugene sending me everything he's found out about the prison break," she explains as she falls into her seat, "It looks like Bianca was there not long before it happened."
"Really?"
"Yeah. Look."
She hits play on a video taken from the Raft's security cameras. Bianca's talking to an older, gray-haired man.
"Who is that that she's visiting?" Wednesday asks, leaning into the screen. He looks familiar, and she thinks on it while Enid fills her in.
"His name's Gideon. He used to be super high up in MorningSong. He built this robot suit and called himself Scorpion. It had this nasty poison that would make you hallucinate if it stung you. I put him in the Raft right before college started after he started robbing banks and kidnapping people."
There's a flash of something in Enid's that Wednesday can't place, a mix of fear and confidence. She sighs.
"And now Eugene says he's on the ever-growing list of missing inmates."
Wednesday stares at the picture of the man on the screen. It's a bit blurry, but she realizes where she had seen him before. He was one of the many inmates trying to escape during the breakout.
"I remember him. I stopped him. I used the webs you gave me."
It comes back to her clearly now. He didn't seem to be hypnotized, but he was still dangerous. He put up a good fight, but Venom had helped her capture him. She was ready to eat him, until she had remembered Enid saying not to kill anyone.
"He must have escaped," Enid ponders, shaking her head in frustration.
I told you there was no need to listen to her. Now look what's happened, Venom hisses, disappointed. Wednesday ignores it, even if she agrees with it, trying to focus on their next step instead.
"How high up in MorningSong was he?" she asks, and Enid shrugs.
"Like, second in command. Worked with Gabrielle all the time before he went crazy."
"And the poison he had. It sounds similar to the substance they're using now."
"Right," Enid nods, "Maybe it was like, a prototype."
Wednesday thinks for a moment, resting her chin in her hands. She thinks of it from MorningSong's perspective.
"Bianca must have brought the substance in and gave it to him. He used it to orchestrate a breakout so he could get back to working on it with Gabrielle."
As soon as the pieces fall into place, the worry on Enid's face grows.
"Oh no. No no no no, we need to find them."
She shoots up from her chair, but she winces in pain as she grabs her side.
"Yes. But right now you need to rest," Wednesday steadies her, hand on her shoulder.
"I can rest when this is all over."
Enid tries to shrug her off, but Wednesday grabs her arm so tight it startles her.
"And it won't be over if you're not strong enough to end it. You need to rest, Enid."
Enid doesn't budge. Instead she stares back at Wednesday, her eyes as dark as storm clouds.
"What was it you said last year? We take a step back and our enemies take two forward, something like that? We can't let them go forward at all."
They're both stuck in place, Wednesday's grip still tight, the pain still shooting across Enid's face.
Wednesday thinks it's ironic how the script between them has been flipped now. Enid's become just as obsessive as her, and Wednesday's become the cautious one. The tension between them hangs in the air, only interrupted by Enid's phone ringing. Wednesday finally lets her go, and Enid holds up the phone for her to see who it is.
"It's Eugene."
"Well, go on. Answer it."
Enid takes a breath, collecting herself, and then holds up the phone.
"Hey Eugene! Thanks for sending all of that information over. It's been totes helpful."
Her voice is cheery, doing a complete switch, and now she's got a smile on her face. Venom seems to wince inside of Wednesday's head.
"Glad I could be of help," Eugene chimes, "But I've got even better news!"
Enid raises an eyebrow, intrigued by what could possibly make this better.
"What is it?"
"I have eyes on Bianca. I'm sending you her last known location now and I'll keep you updated."
Enid's gasps.
"Eugene, you are the greatest! Thank you!"
"You're welcome, Ghost-Spider," Eugene says proudly, "Good luck!"
He hangs up, and there's hope and determination painted all over Enid's face. She straightens herself up, catching her breath.
"This is what we've been waiting for, Wednesday," she says calmly, "I'm not going to waste another second."
She doesn't wait for a response. She disappears into her room, coming back out in her suit that's still torn and covered in ash. She stops at the window, turning back to Wednesday.
Her mouth opens like she wants to say something, but she just shakes her head and pulls her mask down over head before she’s out the window.
Wednesday waits there for a moment. Then she takes a step towards the window, before Venom stops her.
You're forgetting something, Venom chimes in, and Wednesday glances back into the study.
Wednesday goes to grab the web shooters Enid had been working on, and soon she's out the window too.
---
Wednesday had seen something on Enid's laptop about Bianca being seen along the waterfront near the Queensboro Bridge. So she heads there first, and then follows the sound of commotion until she sees the webs hanging from the street lights and a car being flung into the air.
She stays out of the way for a moment up on a rooftop, because turning into Venom in broad daylight is not something she needs to do right now. Instead she watches Enid dodge another attack from Bianca, who's hypnosis seems much more stronger than anyone else's. She launches a hot dog stand at Enid, who jumps out of the way and webs it to a building.
It seems like you're hypnotized as well, Venom teases, Are you going to do something?
Wednesday snaps out of it just in time for Enid to land next to her on the rooftop, making a tiny crater.
"Oh, hey, look who finally decided to show up," Enid grimaces, and Wednesday helps her up.
"You forgot your electrified webs," Wednesday explains, shoving them into Enid's hands.
"But they're not ready yet!" Enid exclaims, trying to give them back, but then there's a shout from down on the streets.
"Well, you don't have any other options!" Wednesday grits her teeth, and Enid reluctantly takes them and heads over the side of the building.
She slaps them on just in time to stop Bianca from throwing her into the river.
Bianca falls to the ground, and Enid rushes over to her, panicking about the possibility that she might have just killed her.
Wednesday quickly joins her from the rooftop, and kneels down next to her and takes her pulse.
"She's alive."
"Oh thank god," Enid sighs, burying her head in her hands.
"We need to get her out of her before people get suspicious," Wednesday gets Bianca up, and Enid helps her clear the scene before anyone sees anything.
They take her to the old hideout and keep her webbed up to a chair while they wait for her to wake up. Enid finally listens to Wednesday and gets some sleep, curling up in one of her beds made out of webs in the ceiling corner while Wednesday keeps watch.
Part of Wednesday wishes Enid had stayed up so she'd have someone to talk to. Usually she'd be glad to have some alone time, sitting in silence where she could be with her own thoughts, but now it's just Venom rambling on and on about eating Bianca and everyone else with MorningSong. She can't believe she's actually wanting to hear Enid explain the secret meanings behind all of Taylor Swift's albums song by song right now.
Not long after the sun's set, Bianca begins to stir. Enid notices too, and she hops down from the ceiling, yawning and rubbing her eyes before she slips her mask on.
"Where the hell am I?" Bianca asks as soon as she's fully alert, and Enid shakes her head. Wednesday's learned to let Enid do the questioning, because apparently being nice seems to get people to answer things quicker.
"Not important."
"Ghost-Spider?" she squints at Enid before her eyes move to Wednesday, "And who the hell are you?"
"Also not important."
"You better tell me what's going on. As much as I'd like to miss it, I'm supposed to be at MorningSong's New Years Eve gala and they'd be suspicious if I didn't show up."
"Bianca, it's August."
"What?" The look of anger drops from Bianca's face, replaced with confusion.
"You don't know, do you?"
"Know what?"
"You've been mind-controlled."
"Mind-controlled? I need you to be serious right now."
"We are," Enid pleads, "Your mom has been using this substance to keep you hypnotized so you could help her spread it to the rest of the city. And I guess it started a bit earlier than we thought."
"There's no way," Bianca's shaking her head in disbelief, "That's ridiculous."
"I'm sorry, but it's true. I promise you, we've been trying to stop this."
After a moment, Bianca looks away from the two of them and takes a deep breath.
"She had talked about doing something to make the city listen to her. Something grand. She told me she was planning on 'going away' to work on it, but I thought she meant, like a vacation or something. I never heard any more about it, and then she told me I better make an appearance at the gala."
She frowns, trying to think hard about all of it.
"I don't remember anything else," she huffs, "It's all blank."
Enid crosses her arms, trying to figure out what they can do. But the idea of memories makes Wednesday realize she can help.
"Venom can recall the memories of those it's bonded with," she speaks up, "Perhaps I can try and see where you've been."
"Venom? What's Venom?" Bianca asked, confused once again. Enid steps in between the two of them.
"She has, like, uh, a parasite in her that gives her the ability to read minds and stuff."
Bianca reels back in her chair. "Excuse me?"
"Hey, I got super powers from a radioactive spider. It's not totally ridiculous," Enid shrugs, grinning awkwardly even though nobody can see it. Wednesday clears her throat from behind her.
"Bianca, this could be our only way of figuring out what you've been doing this whole time."
"Fine. Whatever. If it helps you stop them," Bianca leans back into her chair, "Do what you need to do."
Bianca closes her eyes and Wednesday does the same as she hovers over her. She can feel Venom coursing through her, then she can feel it connect to Bianca, and then suddenly, she's inside of Bianca's head.
She's in a hallway. She can hear voices coming from a room not far away, and as she looks around the walls, she can tell she's inside the MorningSong building. She follows the voices to an office, and peeks inside.
Gabrielle and one of her assistants are examining a vial of the red substance closely, its glow illuminating the room.
"We could alter the substance somehow," Gabrielle says, "Make it control people instead of giving them hallucinations."
She holds it up in the air, staring at it like it's a prized jewel. Wednesday figures it must be whatever Gideon had been using as Scorpion.
"Once we perfect this, we can spread it to everyone in the city. And when enough people are affected, we come out with a fake cure. They'll have no choice but to listen to us. We'll be their saviors."
Then everything around Wednesday blurs, and now she's in a work room. Gabrielle is at a computer, typing away furiously while her assistants surround her. Wednesday stays still, but Venom reminds her it's just a memory and nobody can see her.
"We need to replicate what we did with Bianca," Gabrielle points, and Wednesday sees Bianca standing in a corner, a blank look on her face. Wednesday notices the red glow in her eyes. "And while I work on this, I'm going to go into hiding. That way nobody will bother me while I work to perfect this."
Then everything blurs again. Now Wednesday's back in the lab her and Enid broke into, deep under MorningSong. It must have been not long after they were here, the way everything is strewn about and broken. She feels her face growing hot, thinking about that night once again, the spot where she held Enid's body in her arms just feet away. Her breathing's growing heavier, and Venom's trying to remind her it's not real when Gabrielle storms in.
"We were so close! We need to find a new location. Now. And let Gideon know he'll have to hold out just a bit longer," she shouts to one of her assistants.
Luckily for Wednesday, she's not in that memory for much longer. Now, she's in a brand new lab, watching Gabrielle hold up another vial of the glowing red substance.
"It's highly sensitive and seems to react negatively to electricity and fire," she speaks into her recording device, "We need to find a way to make it more durable against those elements, but how? Once we figure that out, we should be back on track."
There's a hopeful, menacing smile on her face as she locks the vial away. Wednesday tries to focus hard on her surroundings, trying to figure out where she is in this memory, but the only thing she notices is that there are no windows. They have to be underground somewhere.
Then she's whisked away to another memory. She's watching Gabrielle stand across from Bianca, holding another vial tightly in her hands.
"You're going to visit Gideon at The Raft, okay Bianca? Everything is already set up for your meeting," she explains sternly, "They think you're going to talk to him about the company. But you're going to slip him this vial, alright? I've paid off the security guards so they won't check your pockets."
She hands the vial over to Bianca, who nods silently and slips it into her pocket. Gabrielle's got a devious grin on her face as Bianca leaves the lab, and Wednesday follows closely behind her as she gets into an elevator.
The silence is eerie as Bianca rides up the elevator. She just stares blankly ahead as the red flickers in her eyes. Wednesday can't help but feel bad for her, knowing she's been under hypnosis for so long, just a walking shell of herself made to do things she didn't agree with.
The elevator stops and Wednesday follows Bianca down another short hallway and out of a door out into the open. Wednesday recognizes where she is immediately, and then she's whisked back into the present, almost falling over as Venom sinks back into her.
"Grand Central Station," Wednesday gasps out, Enid rushing to her side.
"What about it?" Enid asks, going to check on Bianca after Wednesday catches her breath and stands herself up.
"The new lab. It's in Grand Central Station."
"Of course. What better place to spread an evil hypnotic chemical than a train station?"
Enid goes to untie the webs on Bianca's hands and help her out of the chair.
"Will you be alright? We have a place you can stay if you need it."
"I'll be fine," Bianca says, although she's looking tired, "I can help get the station evacuated."
"Good idea. Thanks so much for doing that," Enid gives her a curt nod, "And I'm so sorry about all of this."
Bianca nods back, a grim look on her face. Enid can't imagine how she must be feeling right now, learning that her own mother had been using her as a pawn in her evil game this whole time, without her consent.
"Please stop them. I know you will."
---
Enid and Wednesday make a quick stop to get more web fluid and chocolate and to tell Eugene to help Bianca, and then make their way to Grand Central Station as quickly as they can. It seems like Bianca's got the place almost cleared out, signs on the boards telling people that they're closing early for the night and that they need to leave.
"There's where Bianca went in, down there," Wednesday points out a door she remembers coming out of across the room. She glances over at Enid, who's ditched her ruined suit for street clothes since she can't afford to have it get destroyed even more.
She needs to invest in more stealth-friendly clothing, Venom teases, and Wednesday can't help but agree. Enid's jacket is a lavender purple and her high top shoes are pink, and she's gripping the straps of her rainbow-colored backpack filled with explosives and a first aid kit so tight she might rip the straps.
"Are you sure you're okay to do this?" Wednesday asks quietly, noticing how exhausted she looks. She had gotten some sleep while Bianca was out, but she can tell it didn't do much. There's still a cut on her eyebrow and a bruise on her cheek that's just starting to show from her fight earlier.
"It's now or never," she says, gritting her teeth. She waits for one of the police officers escorting people out to turn around, and then takes off for the door.
"Enid, slow down," Wednesday scolds, "Be careful."
Enid stops outside of the door, and is surprised to find it unlocked when she tries to open it.
"That's suspicious," Wednesday says, but Enid just shrugs back at her.
"I'll take it," she replies cheekily, disappearing inside with Wednesday close behind. She knows Enid trusts her senses a lot, but they've also learned there are instances where it doesn't work. She just hopes it's not wrong this time.
"There should be an elevator somewhere," Wednesday explains, and Enid flicks her phone flashlight as she scans the walls.
"Here!" Enid replies as Wednesday catches up to her. "You said it goes straight to the lab, right?"
Wednesday nods, and Enid takes a deep breath.
"Alright. Let's do this."
She slips her mask on and presses the button. It feels like forever, waiting for the elevator to come, and Wednesday can feel the worry radiating off of Enid. She thinks about grabbing her hand to let her know it'll be okay, but then it dings and Enid's stepping in.
The elevator rattles and shakes as they head down, but it's a quick ride. Wednesday's thankful because it gives her less time to think, but then again it's also less time to try and convince Enid that it isn't a good idea. As the doors are about to open, Enid holds a hand out in front of Wednesday.
"Oh shit," is all she says, and as they step out of the elevator and into the lab, they're greeted by Gabrielle and Gideon. There's a giant chamber glowing bright red behind them, filled with the substance. It seems to pulse, as if it's breathing, and Wednesday can feel the chills run up her neck.
Enid feels the uneasiness rush back into her seeing Gideon again, out of jail with a newly repaired suit.
"Ahh, it's the Spider!" Gabrielle chimes, eyes flicking over to Wednesday, "And you've brought a friend."
"And it's the winner for the worst mother of the year award," Enid retorts, taking a slight step forward of Wednesday, "We found out what you've been doing with Bianca."
"Ahh, Bianca. She was supposed to be my successor. But she wanted nothing to do with any of this. What a shame."
"You've been hurting innocent people. Nobody should want anything to do with you."
"People hurt each other even without us interfering. Humans are violent by nature. We're just trying to help."
"How are you possibly helping them?" Enid spats, voice sharp with anger and disbelief.
"If she has control of everyone, she can tell them what to do," Wednesday interrupts, "Tell them that if they do anything they're not supposed to, they're at her mercy. If you told them not to hurt someone, they'd have no choice but to listen."
"Your friend gets it," Gabrielle grins, suddenly interested in Wednesday, "Who says I'm not trying to use this for good? Why, if you let us go I'd be happy to let you help us."
"No, that's all bullshit!" Enid steps in front of her, fists clenched tight, "You're not trying to do anything good. This whole idea, people being hypnotized and not in control in themselves isn't right. We're not playing a part in any of this."
"Are you sure? Your friend seems a bit... uncertain," she points to Wednesday, who's look is darker than usual as she's deep in thought.
"Don't tell me you're questioning any of this," Enid says to her quietly, the confusion thick in her voice. She just stares back, eyes like a void, and then brushes past Enid and steps in between Gabrielle and Gideon.
Enid's fists loosen and drop to her sides. She can feel tears staining her cheeks under her mask as it feels like the ground beneath is crumbling away.
"What are you doing?"
Wednesday takes a deep breath, closing her eyes for a moment, and then she smirks back at Enid.
"Just getting close enough."
It happens in an instant, Venom emerging and going for Gabrielle and slamming her into the chamber enough to make it crack. Enid goes for Gideon, but he's ready for her, and he uses a blast of the substance from his tail to send her across the room.
"Enid!" Wednesday shouts, eyes filled with terror as Enid crumples to the floor.
Then she turns to Gideon, who's getting ready to fire another shot. But Venom's too strong, and in a matter of seconds, Gideon's gone and devoured.
The adrenaline only lasts for a moment, and Wednesday's racing over to Enid, who's starting to pull herself off of the ground.
"Enid?" she calls, reaching out to her, but when Enid opens her eyes, they're glowing red.
Oh no.
Enid lunges at her, and she dives out of the way. Wednesday can't believe this is happening all over again, and she has to do everything in her power to stay out of Enid's way.
Meanwhile Enid's shooting webs at her, and she's trying her best to avoid them and keep an eye on where she's going. The room isn't very big, and Enid's so agile that she can get around Wednesday with ease. Another web whizzes past her, and when she turns to see where it came from, Enid's got a grip on her.
It hurts, more than it should for her, and she's reminded of just how strong Enid is. She remembers Enid telling her that she has to hold herself back when fighting crime. It's terrifying thinking about how dangerous Enid could be if she were mind controlled and set loose in the city, and it motivates her even more to put an end to all of this.
Enid tosses her across the room into the chamber, and the substance shakes inside of it, seemingly unstable. Wednesday's trying to get herself off of the floor when Venom starts yelling in her head.
The electric webs! Venom shouts, its voice ringing in her ears, and Wednesday quickly scans the room for Enid's backpack. She spots it under a desk a few feet away.
She crawls over to it, sifting through all of Enid's things until she finds one of the webs and slips it on. And just as she stands up, Enid's flying at her.
She hesitates for a moment, afraid of what it'll do, but she knows this is the only way to stop her. She closes her eyes and presses down on the button as hard as she can, and a bolt of electricity shoots out, hitting Enid square in the chest and sending her falling to the ground.
Wednesday breathes a deep, deep sigh of relief when she sees Enid starting to pull herself up immediately, even if she's stumbling. She rushes over, grabbing her arm to help her up.
"Enid, hey," she says softly, using Venom's strength to pick her up. She seems alright, the electricity not strong enough to really hurt a superhuman like her. But she can see Enid's still hurting from the blast and all of the other injuries that have been piling up, her jacket already torn and falling apart.
The chamber shakes again, and the cracks split some more, and Wednesday realizes they can't stay for much longer.
"C'mon, let's get you out of here."
Wednesday races out as the chamber sputters and the ceiling shakes. She breaks through the elevator, going straight up the shaft and out into the station, through the doors and onto a rooftop across the street. She rests Enid against a wall, crouching down next to her and brushing the hair out of her face.
"Wednesday- what happened-" she mutters, blinking slowly and taking a sharp breath that seems to hurt.
"You were hit with the substance. I used one of your webs to stun you. Are you okay?"
"Yeah," she laughs slowly, "But god, it feels like that time I got hit by a bus. But like, times a hundred."
Her head leans back against the wall, and she finally gets her eyes open and looks over Wednesday.
"How about you? You okay?"
But Wednesday's glancing back over her shoulder at the station.
"I need to blow up the rest of their equipment," she says, a look of determination deep on her face.
"What?"
"That substance. It's still there. I need to destroy it properly or it'll leak into the city."
"Wait, Wednesday, let me come," Enid starts to hoist herself up, but Wednesday places a firm hand on her shoulder and guides her back down.
"You can't even stand Enid. Just wait here for me, alright?"
"But-"
"I'm going to use the explosives you brought. I'll set the timers," she explains, "And I'll be right back."
It sounds like a simple enough plan. Venom nags her in the back of her head, warning her to be careful, especially around the fire. She knows there's a chance things could go wrong, but she doesn't want to think that way. She tries to think positively like Enid always does, and lets the thought of them getting pizza after this is all done convince her that she's just as capable of saving the world.
"You better be," Enid teases with a giggle, "Or I'm painting the walls of the apartment all pink."
Wednesday takes one last, long look at the weak smile glowing across Enid's face. She doesn't look at the scar on her cheek or her ripped up sweater. She just concentrates on that smile of hers and lets it light her up inside, reminding her that she's going to do this to make sure Enid and the rest of the city stays safe. For once, she's playing the hero.
"I dare you to try," Wednesday says with a tiny smirk, and then she's gone.
---
The station rumbles some more as Wednesday heads back inside, ducking past the curious onlookers on the streets who are finally starting to notice that something's up. She keeps repeating her plan in her head over and over again.
She's going to attach the explosives to the chamber, set the timers, and her and Venom are going to get the hell out of there.
The station shakes and shudders again as she heads into the lab, and there's rubble falling from the ceiling as the substance glows brighter. For a moment, she stares at it, entranced, thinking about how it seems like it has a mind of its own, like it's trying to talk to her like the symbiote did all those nights ago. She doesn't know how it was created or where it came from, but she knows she has to destroy it.
Wednesday finds Enid's bag right where she left it, but when she opens it, it's empty.
Where could they have gone? Venom hisses, upset. Wednesday looks around, thinking they may have fallen out and gotten lost somewhere.
"Looking for these?" A voice calls out, raspy and weak, and Wednesday turns to see Gabrielle struggling to stand against the chamber, holding up Enid's explosives.
Wednesday's eyes go wide. She's holding it tight in her hand, but Wednesday tries to stay calm, knowing it can't go off unless it's armed and counting down. She just needs to talk Gabrielle out of it, just like Enid does with all of the criminals she encounters.
"You two are trying to destroy my life's work!" she shouts, breath rattling, "But I know you weren't just trying to cause a distraction earlier. There is something inside of you, a darkness that you're trying to keep in. You're intrigued by what I'm doing."
"No," Wednesday clenches her fists tight, "You're wrong."
Wednesday can hear Venom hum in her head. It said something similar to her. But she shakes her head, telling herself to focus.
"Don't lie to yourself. I'm just trying to help you realize it," she coughs, keeping her grip tight on the explosive, "But it looks like it's too late."
Wednesday doesn't get what she means, a feeling of worry creeping up into her as the ceiling starts to crumble above them. A terrifying grin grows across Gabrielle's face, and then she turns the explosive around to show it's been counting down the whole time.
"You're getting what you wanted. But I'm taking you down with me."
Wednesday doesn't have enough time to react. The explosion is loud and bright and scorching, and then all she sees is black.
---
When Wednesday opens her eyes, everything is white.
Her head is pounding and her mouth is dry. She blinks slowly, waiting for her vision to adjust to her surroundings, and that's when she hears the steady beeping of a machine next to her.
She's in a hospital.
She doesn't know what she could have possibly been doing to have ended up in a hospital. She’s better than this.
Her eyes sweep the room, going from the whiteboard on the wall to the person in the corner, who's face lights up when their eyes meet.
"Wednesday," she gasps, and she's springing up to her feet and at her bedside, reaching out to grab her hand. Wednesday recoils away, confused.
"Sorry."
She's looking at Wednesday shyly, cheeks red in embarrassment. Wednesday's head is swimming, trying desperately to recall anything about what's going on.
"What am I doing here?" she asks quietly, "What happened to me?"
"You blew up the lab," the girl explains, "I guess Venom saved you."
Wednesday's brows knit together. "Venom?"
"The alien parasite you merged with? Although it seems like it's gone now. It must have died in the explosion protecting you. I'm sorry."
Alien parasite? Explosion? Why is she sorry about all of it? None of it makes sense to Wednesday. It sounds like something out of a science fiction novel. And she's still trying to figure out what this girl has anything to do with it.
"Do you not remember?" The girl asks, and her hopeful demeanor seems to have shifted quickly, "Please tell me you remember."
Wednesday just stares back at her and her brightly colored hair. For some reason she doesn't hate it, even if it hurts her eyes.
"Wednesday, please tell me you remember who I am," the girl pleads, and she's surprised to see that there are tears falling down her cheeks as Wednesday stays silent.
"It's me, Enid," the girl's voice cracks, and she's breathing heavily, hovering at the edge of Wednesday's bed, gripping the sheets tight.
Wednesday tries her hardest to think, seeing if there's anything in her head about this girl with her colorful hair and bright clothes who she should be repulsed by, but instead feels pity for. They fact that she's breaking down like this tell Wednesday they must have known each other well. But she can't remember anything or understand how she'd become so close with someone who looks like they were dipped into a rainbow.
She thinks harder, but it's all blank, just empty static.
So she takes a breath.
"I'm afraid I don't know anybody named Enid."