What bumps back in the night? (Open to Canons)

[Toxin]

Night had fallen over New York City, and with the blanket of darkness came the beasts of the night - in both the metaphorical and the physical sense.
As is common knowledge, there are those amongst the human population who thrive on the suffering of others. Be it motivated theft or the random and indiscriminate infliction of pain, you can usually bet your ass those bastards come out at night.

Unfortunately for them - So do I.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

It was a relatively quiet night tonight. Was being the operative word in that sentence. Less than five minutes ago an explosion had rocked a financial building in downtown New York, and if Toxin had heard correctly, things were pretty bad down there.

He'd been sitting atop a building across the street from the massive financial building. Apparently there was a bank, several vaults, a sorting and counting office and a whole lot of clerks, accountants and financial advisors in there during the day.
Fortunately most of the 'human resources' had left, but the police surrounding the building had been talking about hostages - twenty or so of them.

Some idiot gang with too much money, guts and ambition and too little brains had broken in, taken hostages and been penned in by the blues. Now they were making threats and demands - and all of it in his town. Well, his and Pete's at any rate.

"Well, ready or not here I come!" Toxin laughed as he launched himself from the building, firing out a strand of thick black webbing to swing across onto the top floor of the financial building.
His over-large tongue flapped in the wind behind him, handing out of his mouth between hundreds of large, needle-sharp teeth.

He landed on the wall of the building without making a sound - a feat that seemed impossible when you took his massive bulk and monstrous appearance into account.
Grinning and salivating, as most symbiotes do involuntarily, Toxin reached out with a single, impossibly sharp claw and sliced a hole in one of the plate-glass windows. He launched the discarded glass over his head, onto the roof of the building, and looking down as he went inside, he noticed an unusual figure below. . .

[She-Hulk]

Jen sat at her desk, watching the clock. "Come on, damn you!"
It was Friday and she was so readt to get off work. The long hand hand seemed to move slower if you look at it. SHe tapped her pencilon the desk top and her chin rested in her other hand. There had been no cases today, so it was pretty lousy. SHe heard a buzzing sound from her clock. She looked up to see that she was now OFF the clock. 'Finally!!!'
She leaped up from her chair, grabbed her briefcase and zoomed out of her office. Not paying any attention to people who were telling her goodbye, she stormed out of the office. She reached the outside of the internship

"Yes!! I'm free!!"
She screamed to herself, standing at the top of the stone staircase outside the place. A sound cought her atteion, shifting to the noise. Cop cars...five of them? Must be pretty bad.
"Ah.....a heroes work is never done."
Good thing she had on her costume, she didn't have to get her new gucci dress all dirty up. She then took off her heels and dress and took off on foot to where they were going. WHile running, she slipped on her 'hero' shoes.
'Bet Ironman never had to do this crap...'
She finally came to the building where she found that there were hostages. She can handle this little thing. Lowering to the ground, she sprung up th side of the building.

Nothing like a little climb"

She scaled the building with little time. King Kong had nothing on her. Finally she go to the roof with a a bit of taken breath. When she stood up from the climb, she saw another figure there.WTF?!?!

"A .......RED....venom?"

[Toxin]

Toxin watched with curiosity as the little green woman hurtled up towards him, and then over his head. His enhanced senses and vision had picked her out from the crowd down below easily - she was green, and he could smell something different about her. It got even stronger as she got closer.

She definitely wasn't normal, nor apparently did she have much in the way of manners. People usually introduced themselves in a more polite way. . . and Toxin didn't like it when people stared, it made him angry - and just a little bit hungry for some odd reason.
What he hated most of all though, was being compared to his 'Father' or his 'Grandfather'. He hated them, the self-serving slobbering puny scum sucking. . .

Toxin realized that in his silent rage, that whilst he unleashed a tirade of unspoken insults he was breathing heavier, salivating more and growing - tensing ready to spring on some poor defenseless victim. . .

That wouldn't set the right impression at all. He did his best to calm himself down, before he turned to the little green woman who now stood in the top-floor office with him.

"I'm not Venom!" Toxin's eyes narrowed as he fixed her with a cold stare.

"Too damn right I'm not." The symbiote thought at Patrick.

"I am Toxin, and I'm here to stop what's going on downstairs. What. exactly do you want greenie?" Toxin demanded, moving slightly closer to her, his vast bulk towering above her.

Why couldn't he work with Spidey again?

[She-Hulk]

Her head shifted back and her eyebrow perked up. She crossed her arms and had a 'diva' stance as she looked at the red man.......thing. What was he thinking? Does he Know who she IS?!?!?! All she said was red venom.....well....must be a touch subject for him. he maybe gets that a lot. Looks like a venom carnage mix. As big as venom, but red like Carnage. Definatly symbiot.

"Well, excuse ME!"

"I'm here to do the same thing, TOXIN."

WHo the hell was this guy. SHe had never heard of him. He LOOKed like VENOM. It was automatically assumed he was. Not her fault. You can never keep up with everyone these days. She needs a score card or something. But if he IS a hero, why knock 'em. Wonder is Pete knew about him? Oh well, looks like they will have to do this thing together. But if he gets an attitude with her again, his new colors will be red, BLACK AND PURPLE. She stepped toward him, looking where he was before. Her eyes caught sight of something. Probably what HE was looking at.

"What the HELL is that?"

She looked closer into the glass.

[Toxin]

Somewhere, down in the street below, a flash of yellow suddenly illuminated the night as a great streak of (what appeared to be) yellow lightning arced out of the building's lobby and stuck a police patrol car.
The patrol unit's car went up in a fiery explosion, casting light, burning gas and chunks of twisted glass and broken metal across the street.

Whatever the hell had just happened, the uniformed police officers seemed to bee falling back to find better cover, and somebody - or something, was coming out of the lobby.
Toxin moved closer to the hole he had created in the plate glass window and leaned out, trying to get a good look at what was going on down there.
As he looked down, his enhanced senses and vision making the picture sixteen floors below as clear as day, Toxin's huge tongue swayed and bobbed in the wind as it tangled from his mouth.

It seemed as if the bad guys here at the financial building had some sort of meta-human on their side. One who could throw yellow lightning. Toxin wondered briefly what else this guy could do, before dismissing the thought - It didn't matter, 'cause he was going to pound the snot out of him regardless.

"You see that?" Toxin asked the green woman, who still hadn't introduced herself yet.

"Think you can take him, whilst I sneak downstairs and try not to eat any of the bad guys as I tie them up?" Toxin had no idea what her powers were like, but she looked like a cute little mini-hulk. Maybe they were related or something. . .

[She-Hulk]

She was then distrackted by a large tounge thing swaying back in forth. Slim dripped odwn.

"Eww......thats gross."

She said to herself as she looked away and shivered. SHe then looked back down at the more muscular ...thing down at the bottem of the building while he continued to look inside.

"Yeah.....I guess."

She paused for a minute, thinking on what he just said...
"Wait...WHAT??!?!?! You will not EAT anyone. Got that."

Great...just what she needs....another nut.
But what ever, they needed to end this and fast. SHe will be coming in to check to make sure he didn't eat anyone
She stepped to the edge, looking down. She turned back to face the guy, Toxin

"I'm She-Hulk by the way."

She stepped back, falling 16 stories to the ground, landing on her feet. The impact created a crator in the ground. "Ooh going to be feeling that tomorrow. SHe then stepped up to him.

"Hey Big Boy. How about making sparks with me?"

SHe was equally as tall as he, yet her was more massive. SHe still could take him though. SHe aimed a line at her. SHe leaped in the air, smashing his face.

[Toxin]

Toxin rolled the name around in his head as he watched her fall from the open window. If she really was a hulk, how come she was so unbelievably small? Bruce Banner - as the Hulk, was almost as big as he was at his largest size, yet she was so. . . puny.

Well, if she really thinks she's the. . . His musings were cut short as she landed hard on the deck, sending concrete and asphalt flying out in all directions. She not only seemed to have survived the fall, but was already up and attacking the well built lightning-thrower. Fantastic, she'd be a perfect distraction.

As Toxin flowed towards the stairs, with surprising, liquid grace for such a large, beastly looking creature, he wondered if he should have joked about eating people earlier.
She actually seemed to believe him when he said he'd have to try not to eat the puny humans downstairs with their little guns. . . he wouldn't be too tempted at all. . . much. . .

Toxin burst through the double doors to the stairwell, shouldering through them. His bulk almost widened the doors by a few feet, but he managed to squeeze in - just about.

The stairs looked like they were a long way down - good, it should be fun.
With that thought, Toxin leaped over the edge and fired a strand of thick, black webbing up at the ceiling to control his descent.
As he hurtled down through the lower floors, he eventually stopped suddenly on the third floor.

Here! He could smell fear! So much of it! The hostages had to be here, in the room just ahead.

From the perspective of the three men stood guarding the hostages, it would have seemed like one side of the room had suddenly decided to implode, showering everyone inside with dust and plaster.
Toxin could smell the pure terror that ran through the veins of the kidnappers - and a few of the hostages - as the hulking form of the symbiote came swiftly through the dust cloud, disarming and tying up the criminals with several quick swipes, lunges and bursts of thick, black webbing.

Toxin leaned forward, putting his huge head just centimeters from the face of the criminal who seemed to be in charge here.
Slowly, he opened his vast maw, exposing an array of long, needle like-teeth and a huge, dripping tongue that seemed to have a mind of its own.
The slimy, pink tongue darted out and licked the helpless man, moving slowly up his neck and face, before withdrawing into the huge mouth as it closed once more.

The criminal had fainted. So had the other two, in fact.

"You're lucky I'm a good guy." Toxin chuckled as he effortlessly moved the three criminals into a corner and turned to the hostages - most of whom were screaming behind their cloth gags.

"Shut up!" Toxin hissed at the quivering civilians. "I'm not going to eat you," He almost purred, "So wait here whilst I go pay a visit to our friends downstairs."

[She-Hulk]

Once her fist connected, a bolt of lightning surged through her body, sending her to the ground, landing on her butt. Holy Crap!!!! she tingled all over. He must have some current flowing through his body to affect HER. He then held his fists over his head, bringing them down ontop of her. SHe swiftly rolled out of the way of the falling fists. He crushed the ground beneith him.
'Well Damn
She then jumped to her feet, aiming her toe into his crotch. Crotch shot, not her usually attack, but if she cant touch him, she might as well put him down some how. But even before she connected, he aimed an electric current, blasting her in the chest.

"Gah!!!"

Shulkie was sent flying back, crashing into a near by police car, totally, crushing it on impact.
The giant male slowly walked up to her.

"Me CRUSH green woman!!"

What? was he like a reject of her cousin or something. She rolled out of the dented car and grabbed the bumper of it and swung.

"Poor dim witted thing. Green woman hit man in head!!!"

Connecting with the left side of his face. But damn if he didn't feel it. He was uneffected by the attack. OKay....try something a bit bigger. SHe then left the car over her head, chunking it at him. He swung, crushing it with his fists. Pieces of car went flying everywhere.
Supper strength, electric powers, invulnerability, shock touch, and stupid.....what a combination. Good thing Jen had the wits to make up for his. She summersulted over to a near by hydren. If this didn't work, she didn't know what would.

"Bring it, dumbbo!!!"

He charged at her at high speed. She then kicked open the hydren where water spewed out. SHe held out her palms, redirecting it to spray on the man. Blasting him in the torso, there was a scream and a bright light. After everything dimed down, the man layed on the ground, seemingly knocked out. Could NOT be that easy. But what ever. She had to go make sure the Toxin guy wasn't eating anyone.

[Toxin]

Toxin hadn't seen any of their fight from up on the third floor, but he had certainly heard the sounds of blows landing and metal twisting. He could even smell something burning, from all the way up here.
Inwardly, he was a little glad he didn't have to do all the work anymore, and now that the hostages were safe. . . well, he could go downstairs and play hopscotch with the rest of the heavily armed thugs for all it mattered. This was now a win-win situation.

Just as before, Toxin disappeared quickly, flowing with liquid speed and grace towards the stairwell, before climbing up onto the wall next to the steps and following the stairs down. As he descended, his form seemed to waver and disappear as he became invisible - well, effectively. Toxin had camouflaged himself completely, and even on the move, stood no chance of being spotted by anyone.

He'd reappear downstairs whenever the green girlie decided to come inside.

[She-Hulk]

She slowly walked up to the smoking body. He was still breathing, but put down pretty good. She kneed beside him, putting her hand right above his arm. She-Hulk could still feel a tingle in her finger so that ment he was still charged. He must be a walking battery because that water should have drained him. The meta- human police seemed to have arrived and were now unloading things to contain him. SHe stood back up and began to walk to the front doors. Lets just hope Toxin rescued the civilians. But a noise caught her ear and then a scream. A creaking sound of metal cired out as she turned around. Thie electric guy was not only back on his feet, but had an armored car over his head and chunking it at Jen.

"Oh SHI--"

WAM!!!!

The car bashed her in the face, sending her through the front doors...and the wall as well. She slid on the marble floor about 20 ft before coming to a complete stop. She looked up to se the car was totalled to the side and the BIG man was coming through the newly made hole.
Damn! this guy is a beast!' Holding his hands above his head again, he crushed the floor benieht him, sending some sort of wave of energy, flowing through the floor and aiming at Jen.

'A little help would be nice!!"

She then leaped out of the way right before it hit crushed the wall behind her.

"I will CRUSH you!!"

"Not on my agenda today, Big Boy."

She looked to her left, seeing a collum holding up the balcony to the secondfloor. She wrapped her arms around it, ripping it off. She held it to her side, taking off at the guy. SHe then rammed it right into his stomash.

"Take it, Punk!!!

[Toxin]

Toxin certainly hadn't been expecting the little green woman to be making such an entrance. She actually had quite literally made a whole new entrance to the lobby when she came in under that armored van.

Apparently, the armed robbers here hadn't been expecting that either. They almost jumped out of their skins and started shooting right there and then, and probably would have if their leader hadn't calmed them down and ordered them to take new defensive positions - in case the cops came pouring in.

They all seemed to be pretty confident that their 'boy' over there - electrotard - was going to be able to handle the situation. The criminals all just moved to the back of the lobby, aiming their automatic weapons at Jen.
That was more or less precisely what Toxin wanted. There were only eight of them he could see, and no more he could smell or sense. They'd soon be getting a nasty surprise.

None of them saw the massive symbiote slowly become visible on the ceiling above them, and didn't notice a thing until it was too late.
Strands of red symbiote fluid shot out and disarmed five of the men just below Toxin. Their weapons were yanked from their hands and Toxin caught and crushed them in one of his own, massive clawed hands.
Before they even had a chance to turn around fully, a sweep of the symbiote's massively muscled arm had sent them sprawling, bruised and battered, across the floor of the lobby.

Of the three men who remained armed, one didn't have a chance - or the brains - to react. He simply stood and looked on as Toxin dropped from the ceiling and ran over to him, sending him flying with a blow from one massive forearm.

The other two had just started firing.

Two of the advantages of being a symbiote of such power were the amazing reflexes - reflexes that allowed you to dodge bullets, and the sixth sense - or spider sense - that let you know where not to be at the right times.
It might have seemed impossible to the two men firing at Toxin from across the room, but the massive symbiote was now moving so fast he actually blurred. What they were seeing was actually happening - The huge symbiote was dodging their bullets, and getting closer.

The sheer quantity of fire directed at him meant it was unlikely he'd dodge them all - especially at his current size, but as Toxin felt a few bullets enter his arms and chest, he immediately felt the symbiote plug the wound, begin healing the tissue and rejecting the bullet. There was nothing they could do now to stop the inevitable.

- Unless they threw a grenade. . .

The symbiote saw the small green explosive device coming towards him, his heightened senses and reflexes almost making the scene appear to be in slow motion.
He reached out and struck the grenade with the flat of one palm, much like a tennis player might strike a tennis ball.
The grenade suddenly change course and sailed through the air, to land back at their feet. The armed men registered surprise briefly, before it exploded, launching them across the lobby to land, blackened and unconscious, against the wall.

With the gunmen taken care of, the symbiote turned to she-hulk and the elecrotard and moved towards them, ready to help the little green woman bring the events of tonight to a final conclusion.

[She-Hulk]

The ram sent him across the room, sliding into the wall. The impact sent a crack all the way up to the ceiling. She then felt bullets coming from the gunmen. Oops, almost forgot,...the men. She toted the giant piece of column aside and stood right in front of them.. The bullets bounced off like hail falling to the ground. She placed her hands on her hips and tilted her head. She would have been over there giving them lumps, but they were in for a nasty.......gross surprise. But before SHE knew it, she was being struck by another bolt of electricity.
Flying to the other side of the room, implanting into the wall. MAN, these walls are thick. Can't say too much for the entrance though. Wait that what she could do. The man started to walk to her. Thats it buddy, a bit closer. Pulling herself out of the wall, she turned around, grasping the wall with her arms wide open. Come on, come on!!! It Begin to crack. Just a little bit more.

CRICK CRICK........CHINK!!!

Got it. The wall crack in multiple lines all the way to the top, It Begin to collapse on the dumb ass, crushing him with the debris. Ha!! But she knew it wasn't over. She ran over to the beat up armed car, lifting it over her head as he pulled himself out of the pile. She charged.


"I always like to recycle!!!"

Swinging it across his body, sending him through the newly made hole in the wall to the outside. She threw the crumble vehicle to the ground, walking over to Toxin with a heavy breath.
She shook her head, over looking the beat gunmen. He got the easy job. If he says one word, she would clobber him.

Now noticing that the big man had already come back through the hole. He was bleeding a bit. Well he COULD be dented. Now all they have to do is dent his some more........a LOT more. She turned to Toxin.

"Tag, you're in now bud..............oh and don't touch him, he has a nasty shock."

She waved her arm like some gentleman inviting a woman inside a car or something, motioning him to take his chances with the dumb punk.

[Toxin]

Toxin had watched the fight between She-Hulk and the electrotard as it unfolded in the lobby. She surely did know the meaning of collateral damage. . .
The foyer was completely destroyed, and there was a battered van - or the remains of one - double parked in the waiting area. She'd even destroyed a balcony and made another exit, or entrance, depending upon your preference.
Toxin seriously hoped these guys had insurance. Could you get superhero damage insurance? Probably could in New York these days.

Tag? So it was his turn with the big guy now then was it? Should be more entertaining than the little men with their little guns.

"Throwing in the towel already, are we lovely?" Toxin cocked his head to one side and smiled at his own little joke. This again had the effect of making him seem to be looking at Jen like she was some kind of appetizer.

Toxin didn't bother to stand, in fact he just disappeared - as if he'd become invisible again. The sounds of heavy, rapid footfalls filled the lobby as claw marks began to appear in the floor leading up to the over-sized moron, who now stood in the hole Jen had created.

Suddenly Toxin reappeared only a few feet from the charged hulk-thing. He was running at almost full speed, and throwing his vast weight into a blow with his right hand. . . only his right hand wasn't a hand - it was a huge mallet.
Toxin, much like his 'father' - Carnage, had the ability to form weapons from his limbs. Toxin tended to prefer blunt weapons (they were less lethal) but had been known to slice 'n' dice on occasion.

The numb-skull electrotard didn't even see it coming. The blow landed with massive force, and launched the huge guy (who was in truth a fair bit smaller than the huge symbiote) back out through the same hole in the wall he had come through in the first place.
He sailed through the air, before impacting heavily on a car across the street, then bouncing and rolling into another building.

"Well," Toxin smiled, raising his hand to mock a golf player watching a good hit, "That wasn't so hard was it?" He chuckled, turning around to Jen.

Moments later, the wall suddenly exploded as a yellow taxi cab came hurtling through, sending chucks of concrete and iron flying in all directions.
Toxin's 'spider sense' gave him the heads up - that was without a doubt, but all too late to avoid the car entirely.
The front end of the car struck Toxin in the back, before spinning off into the lobby - towards She-Hulk.
Toxin grunted as he was thrown forwards with enough force to bury his face in a marble covered pillar nearby.

"Oh dear," Toxin spat out a chuck of marble, "Now I'm going to have to hurt him. I mean really hurt him."

[She-Hulk]

Wasn't SO hard.......Are you serious?....He is right right behind you. Watching the guy smack Toxin forward was kind of amusing. Thats what he gets for being so thick headed. Then hearing him talking about the guys was her king of thinking. He was pissed and so was she.
"Now you're talking."

But now they had to THINK. No more ruching him. Make a plan, Jen. Think..... She wondered if this place had a basement. Of course it did. And the water pipes must run down through it. If they could get him down there where he would be inclosed and away from people. Trapping him and then letting loose water. Thats should take the shock out of him system.

"Wait, Toxin. I wanna hurt him as much as you do. But I got a plan. This place has got to have a basement. We get him down there and somehow bust up some pipes and spray his ass with water. .......Water hurts him by the way."

And what was the best direct root to the basement?? Why strait DOWN of course.

Jen then took off at him, leaping into the air. Coming down, she smashed bother fists against the floor. A shock wave spread through out the floor, cracking the tiles. But still didn't knock all the way through.

"TOXIN!!!! Can you keep him distracted while I take the floor out?"

[Toxin]

"Keep him distracted?" Toxin would have raised a quizzical eyebrow at the little green woman, if he had any.
What, precisely, did she expect him to do? Put on an original performance of beauty and the beast? They did have all the cast assembled - Jen could be the beauty, providing green women were your thing, the electrotard could happily be the beast - a nice simple role with a few grunts for dialog, and he - Toxin the fearless town hero, out to save Jen from the beast!

Actually, her name was Belle or something. . . wasn't it? He probably shouldn't ever admit knowing that, to anyone - ever.
Imagine what would happen then! Nobody would take him seriously any more. He'd actually have to eat people to put the fear of god back into them. . . that was a bit arrogant wasn't it?

Toxin shook his head and dropped his musings, going back to the task at hand as he turned back to face the big guy coming back through the now car-shaped hole in the wall.
So. . . Toxin probably shouldn't get involved in a protracted fist fight with the charged idiot. Fortunately he had a way around that.

Toxin moved with a speed belying his massive size as he quickly scaled the nearby wall and perched on the ceiling, looking down on the electrotard.

"Catch." Toxin called down to the idiot, who looked up. Big mistake.

Suddenly the idiots eyes were covered with thick and incredibly strong, black webbing. He stumbled around briefly, clutching at his eyes before something struck him in the head and knocked him backwards, to land on the flat of his back.
Another wonderful ability he had inherited from his 'father' was the ability to create hardened, sharpened projectiles from the secretions of his symbiote, and launch them at high velocity. The big moron had just taken one to the forehead, but still seemed more or less fine - aside from a small cut on the scalp.

"How's that lean, mean and green?" Toxin called down from the ceiling, as viscous saliva ran out from between the teeth of his upturned mouth.
It could be fair to describe the sound of his voice as a snake chewing gravel, but Toxin still enjoyed the sound of it. He might have been the only person who did.