Symbiote
Symbiotes were beings which bonded with a host of another species.
One species of alien symbiotes existed in Reality Z-25 31-H. They were sentient and could alter their shapes, meaning they could act as a kind of “second skin” for the human hosts with whom they bonded. When they did so, they also gained a psychic link with their human host, being able to influence their thoughts. While bonded to a human, these symbiotes could spawn, but another, as-yet-unpossessed humans would be needed to be “impregnated” with the spawn. They would then theoretically serve as its first host, though through an act of will, the bond could be rejected, forcing the “spawnling” to separate from its human “mother” and seek a new host. (COMIC: Kate Five vs Symbiote - Chapter 1) Specific vibrations, such as the ringing of the Fortress of Evening's bell, could temporarily dissociate the symbiote from the human, with the symbiote being able to survive and move on its own long enough to, on one occasion, lay in ambush for its host and possess it all over again. (COMIC: Symbiote Surprise)
The first Symbiote to have been sighed on Reality Z-25 31-H's Earth was an oily-black one called Ghede. Shortly after transferring itself from a past host to Kate Five, Ghede spawned a new, blue Symbiote, using Battle Angel as the “mother”. After Battle Angel rejected the symbiote, it instead bonded with Nexus Girl. It refused to obey its “father” (the combination of Kate and Ghede), instead electing to maintain Nexus Girl's values and thus protect Battle Angel and try to defeat Ghede. (COMIC: Kate Five vs Symbiote - Chapter 1)
Behind the scenes
The Symbiotes of Kate Five are closely based on the alien Symbiotes seen in Marvel Comcis, most prominently in the form of Spider-Man's enemy Venom. This was an avowed fanfic lift when the original Kate Five story was serialised, but was increasingly downplayed as James Bridger introduced his own lore for the Symbiotes and drew away from the idea that Kate's Symbiote was the selfsame Venom himself.
