章 295: Symbiote 0295: Fixing Things

Two weeks later, Alex had stabilized the Organ Bond with Gwen, providing a large boost to her physical abilities. Unfortunately, it still wasn't enough to breach the Cosmic threshold. Still, while she couldn't crush a planet with ease, she wasn't too far away from having the kind of strength necessary for such a feat.

{ «Status- Host #1»

«Name: Gwen Stacy (Ghost Spider) (Earth-65)»

«Bonding Rate: 70%»

«Bonding Level: 6»

«Powers: Low Cosmic Physique— Spider Sense— Wall Crawling— Bio-Electricity— Camouflage— Blood Berserker II»

}

Now that Alex was pretty much done with everything major on Gwen's Earth, he decided to take things slow and focus on consolidating his control over this planet. Once he found the Power and Space Stones, he would transfer the incubating celestial away and stabilize the presence of the planetary shield as well.

To indulge Gwen, Alex agreed to get an easy humanities degree from her university. He was more interested in enjoying college life with her than anything, so the course didn't matter to him as long as they spent sufficient time together.

In the meantime, unlike Gwen's planet, which, while still being a part of Gaia, was still not under the effects of Time Dilation, both of the other planets had already gone through a period of four years since Alex had landed. With his increased reserves of Bioenergy, Alex had even topped up the time dilation tech with more Time Authority to keep it going for as long as he needed.

Both planets had gone through many radical changes during this period of rapid growth and expansion. In Research Earth — Gwen's Earth, Alex had chosen to use the European Union as his main base of operations. Since Gwen was still going to complete her degree, it made sense to set up his base of operations where he was staying permanently.

As for Farm Earth, he had already established the center of his influence in the United States, having long taken over as the President even before establishing the planet shields or the Time Dilation tech.

While Earth-65 was under siege by Scarlet Angel and Alex was fighting a battle that scaled the entire city, he was doing something contrastingly mundane in Research Earth.

…

"Hi, Mrs. Stacy. My name is Alex."

"Hello, Alex. How are you? This meeting has been long overdue."

"Better late than never, right?" Alex glanced at Gwen at his side. "It took a ton of effort for me to get her to agree to this in the first place."

"How about we order first? I'm starving," Gwen interjected amidst the pleasantries.

"Sure," Alex agreed.

After ordering, Gwen's mother asked curiously, "Tell me, how did you guys meet? Gwen tells me you are a major investor in her research center."

"Oh, so you didn't tell her about our meeting during your flight."

"Come on, Alex …" Gwen mumbled, looking away. "It's embarrassing."

"Oh, you think mistaking another man for your boyfriend and directly jumping on their back in the middle of the plane aisle is embarrassing?" Alex asked.

She didn't respond and merely rolled her eyes.

Mrs. Stacy felt a little awkward about the mention of Gwen's ex. "Alex, Gwen told me that you're also into research. Are you working on something I might know of?"

"I'm working on creating a new kind of energy. Separate from electrical, nuclear, and more. If I can succeed, the entire world could be changed."

"I see … Do you have any successful patents? I'm curious how you were able to become one of the premier investors of the Apex Research Group. From what I've read about them, they just showed up recently and have facilities throughout the world, concentrated mostly in Europe. Expanding so rapidly in a period of merely three to four years is unheard of when it comes to a business."

"I can't say much, Mrs. Stacy, but we have a ton of political support. Most of the influential figures in the EU support the group wholeheartedly. With such a wide array of support, all that one needs is the determination and skillset dedicated toward expansion."

"It's really impressive," The woman sighed. "I wanted to ask … Is it you who is funding Gwen's master's degree, or is it the Apex group?"

"Mom!" Gwen was outraged at her mother, who just shot her a look.

"Mrs. Stacy, you don't have to worry about your daughter's qualifications. While she does receive special treatment because of me, that wouldn't be enough to garner her the respect that she has from the other scientists. She is truly a genius worth investing in. As for whether her sponsorship is my wish or the group's, it doesn't matter. I am the Apex group. Whatever I say goes. I would've taken her in even without that master's degree, but she insisted."

"Alex, you're being a pretentious douche," Gwen pointed out.

"I apologize," Alex raised his hands in defeat.

Soon, the food arrived, and the three of them continued talking. Though most of the time, it was Gwen's mother grilling Alex. Whenever she thought of Gwen's prolonged no-contact in the first six months after she'd just moved to England or how this was the first time her daughter had returned to see her family in the past four years, she felt that Alex had a big hand in the situation.

As the dinner progressed, the woman's impression of Alex skewed in a slightly positive direction despite some of the confusing things he spoke of. Whenever the woman thought she was losing track of the conversation, Gwen would interject and help Alex.

As far as first impressions go, Gwen's mother would say, 'Not bad'. She preferred Peter more than Alex, feeling that he was more caring toward her daughter, but she didn't have any issues with Alex. The duo's relationship seemed to be stable, at least on the surface. As for the kind of old-money vibe that she was getting from Alex, she didn't let it affect her view of the man. In her eyes, money was only a secondary factor in her daughter's happiness, the first being how her boyfriend treated her.

Soon, it was time for the dinner to conclude.

"So when's graduation, honey?" Gwen's mother asked.

"In a month. Would you like to come back with me to attend my graduation?" Gwen asked.

"I would love to, honey. You can finally show me around campus as well," Gwen's mother nodded.

"Yeah … Sorry. For never inviting you … or visiting. Or calling as much as I should've," There was genuine guilt on Gwen's face.

"At least you didn't completely estrange yourself from us," her mother said. "I was half expecting my daughter to have become a punk with tacky colored hair, tattoos, and an inappropriate dressing sense."

"You don't need to worry about that. You can head home. I'm going to show Alex around for a bit before coming home."

"You aren't staying with him tonight?" Her mother asked, making Gwen blush a little.

"No …" She looked away. "I'm staying at your place for the duration of my visit."

"All right."

Gwen's mother bid her farewell to both Alex and Gwen and made her way to her car before driving away.

As for Alex and Gwen, they were left on the sidewalk, hand-in-hand, until the woman's car turned a corner.

"Wasn't that awkward …" Alex commented.

"I should hate you, you know?" Gwen's tone was flat. "You are the reason I don't talk as much with my mother and brothers. You killed my boyfriend, manipulated my memories … essentially ruined my life."

"And if I had the choice, I would've done things differently," Alex responded. "But I didn't. You know that I wasn't in complete control of my actions during that time."

"What if I asked you to turn back time and change everything … Fix everything. Leave me, and don't ruin my life."

"No can do, Gwen," Alex shook his head. "Say whatever you want about me. My feelings for you are true. You, more than anyone, are well aware of that."

"That's why I agreed to this …" Gwen said. "I could've just separated from my fool of a second personality and let you two live your lives while I lived mine. Sadly, I just can't bring myself to abandon that innocent soul to your clutches."

"Yet, you are willing to give her the more dominant position between you two."

"I don't want her to be … I don't want to be miserable, Apex, hating you, yet unable to leave you. At least her love for you is real. And while I still hate you, I have accepted what happened and the fact that it can't be changed. That obsession I once held has largely dissipated by now. I don't particularly have much of a purpose left anymore."

"Don't say it like that," Alex sighed. "Despite your hatred of me, it has been more than three and a half years since we've known each other."

"Stop trying to be sentimental. How long will your preparations take?" She asked. "Since I've accepted it, there's no point in living a lie with my mother and brothers. The sooner I can merge with my other self, the sooner I can talk to them without a heavy heart. Do you know how difficult it was for me to keep a straight face in front of her?"

"Give me another week," Alex sighed. "We have been working on this in the backend for years now. Another week isn't a big deal. I want to be completely sure that everything will work."

"Don't delude yourself, Apex," She looked at him coldly. "The only reason you let me live was because my loss could cause problems for your Gwen. You aren't a good person, so stop trying to be one."

"I have feelings, you know."

"That doesn't make you empathetic. You are only selectively caring toward your hosts, leaving everyone else to serve the purpose of tools. The biggest example of this is that facility you established last year on that other Earth. Under the guise of using death row prisoners, you are using humans as cattle."

"I'm selectively empathetic," Alex shrugged. Unaffected by Gwen's words. What she spoke was the truth, after all. "I'm fighting for my survival here, Gwen. I am not going to let any moral boundary stop me from making sure I survive."

"That makes it all the more important that I merge with my other self. She's as meek as a puppy in front of you. She would never refuse you for anything. The only way to keep you in check is by using that selective empathy you're talking about."

"Go home, Gwen," Alex said. "I won't disturb you for a week. You can do whatever you want … Under certain limits, of course."

"Don't worry about it," She turned on her heel and walked away from him.

***

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