WARNING: The following contains spoilers for "Scream," a story in King in Black: Planet of the Symbiotes #1 by Clay McLeod Chapman, Guiu Vilanova, Dean White and VC's Cory Petit, on sale now.
Marvel's King in Black has not only brought the wrath of Knull upon the Earth, but it's also transformed it into yet another of the dark god's trophies. The landscape writhes with tendrils of living darkness and the skies have been blacked out the same way. There is little hope for anyone left, as Knull has unleashed not only his army of symbiote dragons but the individual symbiotes which comprise part of the Codex as well.
Among those on the hunt for Dylan Brock are the Life Foundation symbiotes who collectively might be the most iconic of the bunch outside of Venom and Carnage. As they search for Knull's quarry, they find themselves hunted by one of their own. Now, Scream is back and she's looking forward to an explosive family reunion in King in Black: Planet of the Symbiotes #1.
The streets of New York City are empty, save for the symbiotes that roam searching for new hosts. Four, in particular, are on a mission to find Dylan, the son of Eddie Brock, and the one person who has been able to eradicate symbiotes entirely with just a thought -- something that Knull cannot allow to persist. Riot, Lasher, Agony, and Phage descend upon a young boy alone in an abandoned car, crashing through the windows and ripping him from his seat before realizing that this is not the child they seek. Before they can sink their teeth into the poor kid, their estranged sister shows up to spoil their fun.
Scream arrives not a moment too soon, wrenching Lasher back by his throat, forcing him to drop the boy while they get reacquainted. The other symbiotes are quick to regroup and merge together into a hideous mass of gaping maws lined with rows of fangs. It isn't the first time that these four Life Foundation symbiotes have joined together, in fact, it's one of the most well known of their abilities. But the form they take on in the fight against Scream is unlike anything they've done before as Hybrid.
While all of the Life Foundation symbiotes were forcibly birthed from Venom, the four that Knull has taken control of share a bond with one another that Scream forced upon them. When Donna Diego was the host for the Scream symbiote, she went mad and murdered the other hosts one by one, leaving them to be captured and experimented on. When they escaped, they all bonded to Scott Washington, merging together and becoming the symbiote known as Hybrid, the experience has given them an insight into the nature of their abilities that few others are even aware of. The merged symbiotes overpower Scream with relative ease before consuming her and setting themselves up for a serious case of heartburn.
Andi Benton, the current host of the Scream symbiote, has been through the wringer with their ilk before. When she was bonded to a piece of the Venom symbiote by Flash Thompson, it did more than save her life, and she dubbed herself Menace. During her time with that portion of Venom, she slowly lost control of her emotions, allowing the Hell-Mark that had been branded on the symbiote by Mephisto to transfer to herself personally.
Though this was in no way a good thing at the time, it has given her an edge against her symbiotic brethren, as well as a natural immunity to one of their greatest weaknesses. From inside the horrific Hybrid, Scream unleashes a blistering wave of Hellfire that shreds the other symbiotes apart from one another, blasting them to pieces and burning away their collective mass. While it's all but certain that the other Life Foundation symbiotes were able to slink away into the shadows, even in their reduced state, the same is true that they aren't going to be looking forward to another family reunion for quite some time.