Carnage Vol 2 13

Raze and Carnage navigate a steep ravine, using tendrils to dodge arrows being shot at them by Chthon's Broodlings. Monologuing internally, Claire ruminates on why she's helping Carnage, noting that because of what he did to her on the Caspian Sea, whatever he wants she does as well. Deciding that she doesn't really care why as she uses tendrils to kill a pair of Broodlings, Raze notices Carnage has stopped and is muttering to himself in a voice not his own, stopping to steady him and wondering what's wrong.

Cletus is in the middle of reliving one of Jubulile van Scotter's memories of her father Mattias and her mother Amahle, with himself substituted in her place. Mattias is terminally ill and coughing up blood, but passes it off in order to not worry his wife and child. As Carnage comes to his senses, Raze notes that she can detect fear in his voice. Carnage snarls that Jubulile is in his head, and Raze reveals that she met Jubulile on Victoria Montesi's yacht and that the girl got into her head too. Carnage angrily realizes that the ritual he used to bond Jubulile to an offshoot of the Carnage symbiote connected her to him, mixing her memories with his own. Standing on the rim of a deep pit, Carnage admits that he might not know as much about how the Darkhold works as he thought, and Raze asks if he wants to go back. As they are swarmed by Broodlings, Carnage lengthens his claws into blades, snarling that right now he just wants to kill someone as he tears into the Broodlings. As she joins him in combat, Raze notes that she can still sense fear in his voice, and that when she looks at him it's through doubled vision: seeing him from the perspective of the Raze symbiote — who Carnage controls; and the woman who used to be Special Agent Claire Dixon, who is only able to watch in horror. As the Broodlings push them back towards the edge of the pit, Raze ponders her existential crisis, wondering which part of her is real, if she's nothing more than Carnage's puppet, or if it even matters anymore. She tells Carnage there are too many Broodlings and that they have to move, and Carnage retorts that he was getting bored anyways before grabbing her and leaping into the pit.

Stopping to rest, Claire retracts her symbiote from her face and observes that the Broodlings aren't trying to kill them, but herd them deeper into the ravine, pushing them towards the temple at the top. She posits that the Darkhold is influencing them in the same way it is Carnage, then notices he is in the middle of reliving another of Jubulile's memories: the construction of the Cinga and the discovery of her father's terminal illness. Carnage collapses, retracting his symbiote down to his waist, and as Claire catches him she notes that his skin is unhealthy pale. Taking stock of Cletus Kasady, the man she dedicated two years to hunting, she wonders how something so pathetic could produce so much evil.

Cletus gripes that he hates having Jubulile inside his head, feeling what she felt, and angrily demands to know what gave her the right to have a happy childhood with a father who loved her despite being terminally ill. The Carnage symbiote covering him again, Cletus swears to hunt Jubulile down, tear out her heart, and eat it. He notices Claire staring at him and asks if she has something she wants to say, which she awkwardly denies, remarking that the Broodlings will catch up to them soon. Carnage dismisses her concern, stating that the Darkhold is telling him their objective is close. When Raze asks what he means, Carnage remarks that as they get closer to the temple he's understanding more and more, and now knows that Jubulile isn't the only one renting space in his head.

As they approach the temple, Raze notes that Carnage's fear is gone, silenced by his rage and hatred towards Jubulile, noting that he doesn't even seem to be aware of the abnormal, non-Euclidean architecture of the Chthonic temple and wondering who Carnage's puppet master is. As they enter the Temple of Chthon, Carnage has another vision, of the death of Jubulile's father, but is snapped out of it by Raze asking if they've reached their objective. Looking into the depths of the temple, Carnage replies that they have, and as he descends down a flight of stairs Raze hesitates, noting that the place is pure evil and that if she follows him into it, she's evil herself. Unable to stop herself, Raze follows Carnage, lamenting her lack of free will, wondering who she is, what she's become, and asking where it will end.

Solicit Synopsis

• No escape from Carnage Island!!

• What has the world come to when the Anti-Carnage Task Force must team up with their most hated enemy in order to survive?

• And will this lead to a more peaceful Cletus Kasady? Don’t bet your life on it…

Trivia

The fourth panel in page 9, in which Carnage jumps down a cliff holding Raze under his arm, is an homage to the cover of Amazing Fantasy #15.

Links and References

References

Carnage Vol 2 13

Appearing in "What Dwells Beneath: Part Three"

Synopsis for "What Dwells Beneath: Part Three"

Solicit Synopsis

Trivia

See Also

Links and References

References