A New Beginning
Chapter Four
It had been 6 weeks since Octavius had moved to the US. By this time, him and Rosie had both gotten over that night, and were officially a couple, even if they had no intention of marrying anytime soon. Him and Curt were also good friends, and they usually met at that diner every day for lunch.
The situation with Octavius and Norman Osborn, however, was far from resolved...
It was just another long night for Octavius. He was hard at work on a personal project of his, one that would allow him to work safely with radiation from a distance. He hadn't even asked Osborn for clearance to build the device.
I do not answer to that charlatan... he thought as he worked tirelessly on the device. He is not my commander. All he has done is provide me a place to continue with my life's work... he'll do well to remember that.
Then, it was finished. The project he had been working on for the better part of 4 weeks...
He stepped back and took a look at it. It was a strange 4-limbed apparatus; 4 "tentacles" attached to what looked like a steel girdle, to be worn around the waist.
Not even sure if it'll work... he thought. But I suppose there's no better time to try it out...
He stepped up to the device and, as if by thought, it began to move. It "stood up" on the ends of the four arms and raised itself over his head. He stood stock-still as it lowered the "girdle" over his head, attaching itself to his midsection.
He looked like a human octopus.
Then, suddenly, Norman Osborn entered the room, took a look at Octavius, and his eyes went wide.
"Whoa, Doctor Octopus. What's with the device?"
Octavius turned around to glare at Osborn.
"What did you just call me?" he growled, one of the tentacles unconsciously making a threatening gesture near Osborn's head.
Osborn pushed the tentacle away and said, "Sorry, the resemblance is just too obvious to miss." He smirked and said, "Anyways, what are you still doing here? It's past midnight."
Octavius shook his head and did not respond as he began to shut down the lab for the night.
Doctor Octopus? he thought. Where the hell does he come up with these ridiculous insults?
Osborn said, "Well, I expect you'll be out of the lab in 10 minutes? Good. Make sure to turn the lights off when you leave. I'll see you in the morning, Doctor." He then left the room.
Octavius glared at him as he left, then, without warning, he picked up an empty glass bottle off of his desk and hurled it at the door that Osborn had just closed. He debated leaving the device in the lab, but thought better of it, should Osborn decide to tamper with it, put on his black trenchcoat to conceal it, and left the lab, keeping the lights on out of sheer defiance.
He walked down the darkened streets, keeping to the shadows when he could help it. After all, most people were supposed to be off the streets by 10 pm, and it was well past midnight. Not to mention, he didn't exactly want to draw attention to himself...
All of a sudden, a young man stepped out of the darkness, an evil look in his eyes, a steel bar in hand.
Octavius just looked at him and said, "What do you want?"
Suddenly, the man with the bar swung, striking Octavius in the head, knocking him to the ground.
Octavius put his hand to his head, feeling that there was a gash where he had been struck. He glared up at the man holding the bar, who was poised to strike again.
"You're going to wish you hadn't done that..."
Then, Octavius stood up, the 4 tentacles bursting from his coat. The man dropped the bar and tried to run, but Octavius grabbed him by the collar of his jacket and threw him into the wall.
The man hit the wall and fell to the ground, visibly stunned, then got up and took off running.
Octavius looked around to make sure no one had seen what just happened. Fortunately, he was the only person out that time of night. The tentacles disappeared back under the coat, and he continued home.
When he got home, Rosie was already in bed. Octavius took off the coat, hid the tentacles somewhere for the night, and walked into the bathroom to get a closer look at the cut on his head. It wasn't too deep, but the blow itself gave him a fierce headache. He cleaned the cut, bandaged it up, and walked into the bedroom, not turning the light on to avoid waking up Rosie. He crawled into his own bed, as him and Rosie didn't share one, and went to bed.
--
The next morning...
Octavius awoke the next morning, the sun shining painfully bright in his face. The lingering headache from last night made it worse, and he stumbled over to the window, yanking the curtains shut.
This, of course, served to wake Rosie up.
She sat up in bed, rubbing her forehead, took one look at Octavius, and said, "My God! What happened to your head!?"
Octavius put his hand to the cut on his head and said, "Oh, that... I was attacked last night. It's nothing major..."
Rosie jumped out of bed and ran up to him, putting her hand to the cut. "Nothing major!? How is that not major? What happened!?"
Octavius sat back down on his bed and said, "A man struck me with a steel rod. I scared him off."
Rosie said, "And you didn't contact the police!?"
Octavius shook his head and said, "Rosie, it was after midnight when it happened. And I couldn't get a close look at the man. There was nothing to do."
Rosie just looked at the floor and said, "What is it with people? Why would they do something like this?"
Octavius' only reply was "Because people nowadays are nothing but an assortment of Neanderthals with about as much intelligence as a comatose sloth."
Rosie couldn't help but laugh at this.
"I agree with you there."
Octavius was about to respond, but a look at the clock had him out of bed quickly.
"Oh, no, I'm late!! I'll see you tonight, Rosie!!" He slipped into the tentacle harness, threw his coat on over top of it, and ran out the door before Rosie had a chance to see it.
--
"Dang, Otto, I didn't imagine you as the type to sleep late." Curt said as he and Octavius approached Osborn Insustries. "What happened last night?"
Octavius shook his head.
"Don't ask. Late night at the lab, combined with an attack from a common thug who didn't know who he was messing with..."
Curt just looked at the road, a disappointed look on his face.
"The nerve of some people... wait, how'd you scare him off?"
At this, Octavius responded with, "I can't exactly show you out in the open... but you know those actuators I was working on?"
Curt nodded and replied, "Of course... wait... tell me you didn't attack the man with them!"
Here, Octavius got defensive, and he looked at Curt, slightly annoyed.
"He attacked me first. And I had to wear them home; I didn't want Osborn tampering with them. They're under my trenchcoat as we speak... I had to hurry up and get out of the house quickly this morning so Rosie didn't see them... I don't know what she'd make of all this."
It was then that they arrived at Osborn Industries. Octavius walked into the building to find Osborn standing at the front desk.
"What happened to that device you built last night?" Osborn asked, a rather annoyed look on his face.
Octavius glared at Osborn as he took off his coat to reveal the tentacles underneath.
"You mean the actuators that I built, and therefore are my property?" he shot back, walking past Osborn towards the lab. "I took them with me. I will not leave them here for you to experiment on." As he opened the door to the lab, he looked back at Osborn. "And while we're on the subject, when I'm working on something, do not interrupt me! And do NOT give me orders. You may have given me a place to continue my research, but you are NOT my superior. Not in authority, and surely not in intelligence." With that, he shut the door before Osborn could respond.
Osborn stood there for a minute before walking into the lab himself. He stood in the doorway for a moment before walking towards Octavius.
"You know, I don't tolerate that kind of behavior from someone working under my roof..."
Octavius looked over at Osborn with a look that clearly implied the desire to hit him with a heavy object, and said, "I think you've mistaken me for someone who actually cares what you think!! If I cared one bit for anything you say to me, I'd listen, instead of telling you to get the hell out of my sight, and let me finish what I'm obviously doing!!" He turned away from Osborn and continued setting up the experiment he was preparing to conduct.
Osborn just shook his head and stalked out of the lab, heading back towards his office. When he got there, he locked the door, only to have someone knock a mere 5 seconds later. He opened the door to find Stromm standing there.
"Sir, what just happened in the lab? I heard the entire thing... what was all that about?"
Osborn sat back at his desk, leaving the door open, leaning his head against his closed fist.
"An issue with a certain someone questioning my authority..." he growled, shaking his head.
Stromm took a seat across from Osborn and said, "Well, was it taken care of?"
Osborn shook his head and said, "Not at all, I'm afraid... if I was not in need of his assistance on this project, he wouldn't be here."
Stromm said, "Well, is there any thought that you may have hired him too-"
Osborn cut him off and said, "Too early? Not at all. Look, Mendel, I know what I was doing when I hired him. He may be extremely difficult to work with, but there is no denying his brilliance. I can't think of anyone else with the expertise required for a job such as this. But when this particular job is over... he won't be around to interfere, will he?"
Stromm did not look pleased at this.
"Sir, you can't just do THAT to him! Someone is bound to know he'd be missing!"
Osborn put his hand up and said, "Save it. No one shows such disrespect to me, not even Otto Octavius himself."
Suddenly, a third voice spoke up...
"IS THAT SO!? And do tell, what do you intend on doing to me!?"
Osborn looked up to find Octavius himself standing in the doorway, and he did not look at all happy with what he had just heard...
Oh shit... I didn't expect he'd hear that... Osborn thought, standing up behind his desk.
Stromm looked somewhat frightened at Octavius' sudden appearance in the doorway, now wearing the 4-limbed device he had been working on.
"So, what? What do you intend on doing to me once you get what you want?" Octavius shouted at Osborn. "You intend on killing me, perhaps? Is that it?"
Osborn tried to come up with a response.
"No, Doctor, of course not. You must have heard wrong-"
Octavius cut him off. "No, I'm quite sure I heard correctly. I am far from stupid, Osborn!! You think I wouldn't know what you were saying? I catch on pretty quickly, you know! Give me one good reason why I shouldn't just kill you now before you can do the same to me!"
It took Osborn several seconds to come up with a response, but he finally said, trying to fight back a smirk, "You know, I don't know what I was thinking. Why would I want to kill one of the world's most prominent scientists, especially when he could be of use to me?"
Octavius snarled and took a step towards Osborn. "You mock me?"
Osborn unconsciously took a step back and said, "No, of course not. Look, I'm willing to put this behind me if you promise NOT to kill me. Agreed?"
Octavius just shook his head before stomping out of the office.
Stromm watched Octavius walk off, a somewhat impressed look on his face. Luckily for him, Osborn didn't notice as he took a seat, somewhat shaken by what had just transpired.
Stromm walked out of the office and headed for the lab, leaving Osborn alone in his office. He walked into the lab to discover Octavius standing against the far wall, glaring at nothing in particular.
Stromm walked up to him and said, "You'll have to excuse him, he can be quite the asshole..."
Octavius looked over at him with that same glare and said, "I believe the term 'asshole' is an understatement for one such as him... he's been planning to kill me the entire time, hasn't he?"
Stromm did not respond.
At that, Octavius shook his head and growled, "I'd leave this company now if I had another place to continue my research... but it would appear I do not. You just tell Osborn to stay away from me."
Stromm said, "I'll make sure of it." and walked out, closing the door behind him.
Octavius glared at the closed door a moment more before picking up a heavy metal paperweight and hurling it at the door. It rebounded off the heavy steel door with a resounding crash.
He walked back towards his experiment that he had not yet begun to conduct.
Just then, Osborn walked into the lab.
Octavius took one look at him and snarled.
"I thought I told you to stay out of my sight."
Osborn walked up to the lab bench and said, "Yes, I know you did. But right now, there is something I need you to work on for me-" He trailed off as he saw the glare that Octavius was giving him. If looks could kill, Mendel would have had to sweep up Osborn's incinerated remains off of the lab floor.
"I do NOT work for you, Osborn." Octavius growled. "You said it yourself; this would be a place for me to continue my research, not carry out your experiments. Now get out of my face."
Osborn sighed and said, "I understand that. But I can't just let you work here for nothing. You have to understand-"
He was suddenly knocked to the floor as Octavius punched him in the jaw. He put his hand to his face and said, "What the hell was that for!?"
Octavius glared down at Osborn and said, "That? Quite simply, for presuming to command me, AND for the earlier incident in your office. I do not take orders from you, Osborn!! I am not one of your mindless workers who will carry out your orders without question! I do not take orders from one such as you!! You want me to work on your project? I want something in return: for you to stay the hell out of my face while I am working. You will STOP giving me orders, and you will NOT attempt any stunt like the one I heard you planning earlier. If you cannot abide by these conditions, I will find somewhere else to go. Is that understood? Or must I spell it out for you?"
Osborn backed up a few steps before stumbling to his feet.
"Fine... fine. I'll leave you alone." He pulled a folded piece of paper from the pocket of his jacket. "Here are the basic specifications of what I need it to be able to do." He then stomped put of the lab.
Don't do anything you'll regret, Osborn... he thought to himself. It will be worth it in the end... and I'll get my revenge.
Octavius glowered at the closed door a moment more before unfolding the slip of paper and looking it over.
A device that could increase the electrical energy of any machine? What would he possibly need with a device like this? he thought to himself. Still, it should be relatively easy to build... I could have it finished within a few hours.
He gathered the neccessary materials and set to work on it...
--
3 hours later...
Osborn was sitting in his office, feet propped up on the desk, when Mendel walked in, carrying the finished device.
"He told me to bring it to you..." Mendel said, setting it on his desk.
Osborn picked up the device, looked it over, and said, "Excellent! Where is he?"
"He doesn't want to talk to you," Mendel said, somewhat apologetic. "He's still angry about what happened earlier, and, quite frankly, I don't blame him."
Osborn looked up from the device, an irate look on his face.
"And what do you mean by that?"
Mendel took a step towards the door and said, "Oh... nothing. Sorry..."
Osborn rose from his chair, slowly but with visible anger, and snapped, "What, you agree with him now!? You're taking his side over mine?"
Mendel stuttered, "N-No, I didn't mean that a-at all..."
Osborn said, "We'll see how much you agree with his point of view after I use this little device to ruin him for good. Oh, and another thing: you're fired! Get out of my office!!"
Mendel glared back at Osborn and said, "I thought you'd never say that. I've been waiting for the day you fire me, you pompous asshole!! You know, it's easy to see why people like Otto Octavius wish you dead..." With that, he walked out of the office, making sure to slam the door as hard as he could.
Osborn put his head to the desk, and screamed.
"WHY DOES THIS CRAP HAPPEN TO ME!?"
--
Meanwhile, Octavius was standing in the doorway to the lab, looking at the door to Osborn's office. He saw Mendel stomp past, heard Osborn scream, and he couldn't help but smirk at what had just occurred.
He walked back into the lab, grabbed his coat and put it on over the actuators, and left the building. He'd had enough of Osborn and his imbecilic tendencies for one day.
--
Rosie was somewhat surprised when Octavius walked into the apartment. It was barely 4:00, and he wasn't usually home until sometime around eleven at night.
"You're home early..." she said to him. "Slow day at the lab?"
"You might say that," he replied, taking off his trenchcoat, forgetting what he was wearing underneath...
Rosie looked at him, wide-eyed.
"WHAT is that contraption you're wearing!?" she yelped.
Octavius looked down at the tentacles. He had completely forgotten about them.
"Oh, these? I developed them to handle dangerous materials from a safe distance." He said, a slight smile on his face. "Guess I forgot I was wearing them... I just finished them yesterday. I don't want Osborn experimenting on them." At the mention of Osborn's name, an angry look crossed his face and he shook his head.
Rosie looked at the device a second more before the shocked look disappeared, and she smiled.
"I feel like going out to dinner tonight. I need to get out of the house for a few hours. I haven't gone out for a night out in far too long." she said.
Octavius started to protest, but Rosie gave him 'the look' that implied that there would be no arguments.
He sighed and said, "Fine... anywhere in particular you had in mind?"
--
The two wound up at a restaurant in the Upper West Side, near Central Park. They had walked; it wasn't too far from their apartment, and it was a nice night for a walk.
They walked into the restaurant, which was filled with people, as it was a Friday night, found a seat, and before long, a waiter came up to the table.
"And what will you be having tonight?" he asked, with a strong Brooklyn accent.
Rosie looked down at her menu and said, "I'm up for something exotic tonight. What about you, Otto?"
Octavius did not look up for the table as he muttered, "Whatever sounds good to you..."
The waiter nodded and walked away. Rosie looked over at Octavius and said, "What's wrong?"
"I don't like crowds..." he whispered, somewhat embarrassed.
Rosie nodded, but said nothing more about it. Instead, she said, "So, what happened today between you and Osborn today? You looked noticeable upset when you came home today..."
Octavius shook his head and said, "I don't want to talk about it."
They were both silent a moment more before Rosie said, "Is something going on?"
"I told you, I don't want to talk about it."
Rosie was about to say something, when suddenly the sound of a large explosion cut through the air. Both Rosie and Octavius looked out the large picture window at the front of the restaurant, only to see a cloud of smoke overtaking the street.
Rosie said, "What do you suppose-"
Octavius ran towards the door, looking back in time to see Rosie staring at him. He said, "You go home. I want to see what that was. I'll be home soon." With that, he ran from the building and towards the building that was now engulfed in flames. He was a mere 20 feet away from the building before he realized...
Wait a second... this is the main offices of Quest Research! What happened here?
Without warning the building started to collapse, pieces of brick falling from the crumbling ten-story building. Octavius turned to escape before he himself was endangered, but a falling chunk of brick hit him in the head, and he fell to the ground, out cold...
--
Octavius awoke to find Rosie standing over him, visibly concerned. He was still lying on the street where he had fallen after the brick hit him in the head. He looked around to find that the fire was extinguished. Now the firefighters were just concerned with cleaning up the aftermath.
"What happened to me?" he asked, still dazed.
Rosie knelt beside him and said, "You were hit by a falling brick. Why did you get that close?"
"I recognized the building... Did they figure out what happened?" he asked as he tried to get to his feet, faltered, and was caught by Rosie before he fell back down. "Heh... guess I'm still a little off..."
Rosie was about to respond, but one of the officers on the scene walked over to them.
"You really shouldn't be here right now," he said. He took a look at Octavius and noticed the cut on his head where the brick had struck him. "Hey, you alright? What happened?"
Rosie said, "He was hit by a falling brick. Knocked unconscious, but he's alright now..."
The officer looked at him a little closer before his eyes widened and a smile crossed his face.
"I think I know who you are..." he said.
Octavius looked at him oddly. "That's highly unlikely. I've never met you."
The officer's smile didn't falter.
"No, I know who you are! You're Doctor Otto Octavius!"
Octavius looked at him, unable to respond.
The officer stuck his hand out. "I'm Captain George Stacy. My daughter, Gwen, she's kind of a fan of yours."
Octavius shook his hand and said, "Is she, now?"
Capt. Stacy nodded and said, "Oh, yes. Her and her friend, Peter Parker. Good kids, they are..."
Octavius looked at the smoldering remains of the building and said, "Well, I must be going. I need to lie down..."
Capt. Stacy said, "Hey, wait, you sure you don't want one of our paramedics to check you out?"
Octavius shook his head and said, "No, I'll be alright..." With that, him and Rosie started walking back towards their apartment. When they got there, Octavius walked into the bedroom and sat on the edge of the bed.
"God... hit in the head twice in one week by two separate objects... this is just not my week." he said as Rosie walked into the room.
"Sometimes that happens," she said, apologetic.
Octavius looked over at her a moment, before saying, "Well, I'm going to bed. I've got quite the headache from that brick..." He pulled the blanket over himself and turned out the light. But he couldn't help but wonder about what had happened...
Quest is... or was, Osborn's main competition... could it be that he...?
"I'm getting too suspicious..." he said to himself as he drifted off to sleep. It had been a long day...
-To be continued...
