Lethal Protector
Once upon a time, in the great city of New York, a gentle white hero made himself a quiet promise.
His name was Eddie Brock, and long before the great sacrifice of Spider-Island, he had decided exactly what kind of hero he wished to be.
He would not chase fame in the bright and glittering center of the city, where the cameras flashed and the crowds cheered. No. Eddie would guard the forgotten corners instead — the dark alleys, the little shelters, the quiet blocks where ordinary people lived their lives, and where no other hero ever seemed to patrol.
Eddie called himself a Lethal Protector. But between you and me, dear one, it was the second word that mattered to him most. Not "lethal." Protector. For more than anything else in all the world, Eddie was there to protect.
And so, night after night after night, he swung across the rooftops of New York on long strands of shining white webbing, watching over all the sleeping people down below.
When a robber tried to frighten a tired shopkeeper, Eddie was there to stop him before he ever got the chance.
When a little child wandered too close to the busy, rushing traffic, Eddie swooped down and gently lifted them out of harm's way.
And when a heavy beam fell and pinned a worker to the ground, Eddie used his tremendous strength to lift it away — and then, seeing that the worker was hurt, he laid a soft healing hand upon him too, and made him well again.
You see, dear one, other heroes often fight their battles and then fly quickly away. But Anti-Venom nearly always stayed a little while longer. He liked to make sure that the people he had saved were truly, completely all right before he went on his way.
Then one quiet evening, his patrol happened to cross paths with another hero's.
It was Spider-Man.
Now these two had a very long and very complicated history together. Once, long ago, they had been the bitterest of rivals. Later, they had become wary allies, standing side by side against the red symbiote Carnage. But New York is a very big city, dear one, with plenty of trouble to go around for everyone.
And on that particular night, a gang of crooks had gathered far too much firepower for either hero to handle all alone.
So they teamed up, the way they had done before.
Spider-Man's spider-sense tingled and sang, warning them of every hidden ambush. And Anti-Venom's mighty strength smashed straight through every locked and bolted door. Thwip! Crash! Thud! The crooks never stood a chance, and soon every last one of them was caught.
When it was all finished, the two heroes climbed up onto a tall water tower together and sat looking out over the glittering skyline of the city they both loved.
And then Spider-Man said something he had been quietly thinking for a long, long while.
"You know," he said, "you're not so bad to have around."
Now, coming from the very hero who had once feared Eddie most of all, those simple words meant a great, great deal.
Anti-Venom rumbled a low, warm, pleased sort of laugh. And there, high above the sleeping city, two men who had spent so many years as enemies were slowly, and surely, becoming something very much like friends.
Later that night, Eddie swung home all alone, gliding softly over the quiet rooftops of the city he had chosen to guard.
And as he swung, he thought about how very strange and wonderful his life had become. The man that everyone had once feared now spent his long nights making certain that perfect strangers got safely home to their beds.
He was not a perfect hero. Eddie knew that well, and he never pretended otherwise.
But he was a faithful one.
And for the people of New York — especially the ones that nobody else ever remembered to watch over — a faithful protector was exactly, precisely what they needed most of all.
So close your eyes now, little one, and let yourself feel safe and warm. Somewhere out there, high above the quiet streets, a faithful white guardian is keeping watch, making sure that everyone gets home safe.
Even you.
Goodnight, Eddie. Goodnight, faithful protector. Sleep well.