4. The Search Begins…

Otto opened his eyes. Sunlight was spilling into his room, but it was also blinding his eyes because of the glint off of the tentacles. He sat up, rubbed his eyes, and shuffled into the kitchen. He opened the fridge to find that it wasn't even running. He checked the microwave. That wasn't working, either. They had cut the power from his home. Perfect. He opened the cabinets and found a box of cookies. Good enough for a breakfast, he thought. He opened the box and took a bite out of one. They were stale. So what was he supposed to do? He couldn't function properly without food. Finally he found a loaf of bread in the breadbox and slopped some peanut-butter on it. It was good enough. He walked back into the bedroom and turned on the laptop on his desk. At least THAT still worked. Getting online, he pulled up Google. Now, deciding what to search for was the hard part. 'Super villain wannabees' was kind of what he was looking for, but a search like that would result in fantasy quizzes and other things. He wondered if his own name would give him anything. It was worth a try. He typed in 'Otto Octavius'. Surprisingly, the search engine found more than a hundred sites just about him. Otto was somewhat flattered. One site in particular was appealing. It was a chat room entitled 'Super Villain Wannabees'. Maybe that search wouldn't have been so outlandish after all. So he clicked on the link. Two people were already in the chat room, debating over being 'super villain wannabees'. Otto decided not to join just yet, but listen in and see what they were thinking.

"Don't you think it's a little dangerous to be the partner of a megalomaniac who was turned insane by the failure of a science experiment?" This person's screen name was 'The Debater'.

"I'd give ANYTHING to be his partner!" Otto liked this remark very much. Taking a look at the screen name, he found that this girl's name was Rachel.

The Debater: "Oh, really? Tell me, what certain qualities does this doctor have that makes him so appealing to you?"

Rachel: "Oh, there's SO many! First of all, and most important, I think, would be his intelligence. He's a brilliant doctor, he's got a PhD in Nuclear Physics, he's created a successful fusion reaction,"

The Debater: "May I remind you that there was a breech in the fusion reaction? The famed Otto Octavius miscalculated." This person was getting on Otto's nerves; making a rebuttal for every word the obviously devoted person said.

Rachel: "So? Humans make mistakes! Do you even realize how close he was to making the greatest breakthrough in technology in the history of mankind!"

The Debater: "Fine. So, go on with your list of wonderful qualities for this brilliant man."

Rachel: "Very well. As I was saying, other wonderful things about Otto would be his beautiful eyes, his smile, his beautiful brown hair, his voice, his personality, and that trench coat is simply breathtaking!" This was too much for Otto to handle. Was he really that much adored?

"Well, I must agree that he is simply gorgeous," said The Debater. "But you're really saying that you'd like to be his, how should I say it, 'partner in crime'?" This was exactly what Otto was waiting for.

Rachel: "Absolutely. I would do anything for him; he's my role model." Otto was being unmercifully flattered. Role model? This was the one. The person to be his partner in crime.

The Debater: "May I ask what kind of relationship you would have with doctor if you ever received the privilege to be his partner? Par say, romance?" Now this was something Otto hadn't thought of. Of course! If a devoted fan girl was to be his partner in crime, he had to make sure he knew what she was wanting in for.

Rachel: "Romance! Heck no!" Otto breathed a sigh of relief. There was hope yet. "I only wish to join him because he's brilliant, and not to mention gorgeous, but I would just love to be his partner for the sake of gaining that wonderful opportunity. Any romance is out of the question." Another person entered the chatroom. Otto looked at the name, which said 'Anna'.

"Are you kidding! Rachel, don't you remember when we gave him that nickname, 'Otto Hotto'?"

The Debater: "Otto Hotto?"

Rachel: "Anna, that was just cuz' he was cute! I don't want a romantic relationship with the guy! He's in his late forties and widowed!" This comment offended Otto a little bit. Sure, he wasn't in his prime anymore, but he wasn't that old!

Anna: "Well, if I was his partner, I'd be his new wife!"

Rachel: Anna, you're insane."

Anna: "That gives me a better reason to be his partner! We'd be an insane twosome!"

Rachel: "So, are you coming over today?' The Debater then dropped out of the conversation.

Anna: "Of course! We need to plan our uh… plan!"

Double-O: "And what plan might that be?" Otto had joined the conversation.

Rachel: "Oh, we're going to try to meet Otto again."

Double-O: "Again?"

Rachel: "Yeah. We've tried like 5 times, but we've always ended up failing."

Double-O: "I see. So you two are desperate to meet this guy, huh?"

Rachel: "Hello? Have you seen the title of this place? Me and Anna here are totally obsessed! You should take a look at our website! Would you like to?"

Double-O: "Sure, why not."

Rachel: "Well, it was nice talking with you, ladies."

Otto left the chat room and clicked on the link. It brought him to a site called 'Otto-Obsessed'. On every page, the entire background was covered with pictures of himself.

"How do they find this stuff!" He clicked on one of the links and found himself in a quiz. 'Do you have what it takes to be the partner of the infamous Dr. Otto Octavius?' "This is unbelievable!" He opened a page entitled 'Partnership'. He supposed it was created by Rachel, and it had a list of ten reasons why she should be his partner in crime. The very last one confirmed his decision. It read:

"Dr. Otto Octavius is my role model. He is intelligent, witty, charming, handsome, has great potential and wonderful powers. He has taught me about intelligence; how to use it wisely. He will never give up trying to make his dreams come true and neither will I."

That was it. Rachel would be his partner in crime. He clicked on her profile and found a picture of her. Printing it out, he planned to find her that day at Time Square, since it said in the profile that's where she and Anna always hung out. He would find this desperate fan girl who wanted to be his partner in crime, and would grant her request. He stood up, put on his coat and hat, grabbed his sunglasses, and headed out the door for Times Square.