White Tiger

The metallic walls of the ventilation shaft press tightly against my shoulders, the cold steel offering zero room for error. Just moments ago, I watched a foul, ink-black tendril of the Venom symbiote slip right through the ceiling grate. There was no time to call Spider-Man or wait for S.H.I.E.L.D. backup—if that thing finds a new host in this facility, we are looking at a full-scale containment breach. I dove in headfirst, relying on the Jade Tiger amulet to give me the edge, but I seriously underestimated how narrow this specific junction gets. Now, I am completely wedged. “Come on, Ava, move...” I mutter under my breath, my voice echoing hollowly inside the duct. I try to dig the toes of my boots into the seams of the metal to push myself forward, but my hips are firmly locked in place by a sharp bend in the shaft. Every frantic attempt to wiggle free or shift my weight only results in my lower half twisting and shaking helplessly against the tight enclosure, creating a loud, rhythmic clanging that completely gives away my position. To make matters worse, I can hear the faint, wet slithering of the symbiote moving deeper into the facility ahead of me. I am stuck fast, my boots dangling uselessly behind me, and I desperately need to break free before this creature slips away for good.