2. Doctor Octopus
1999
"Peter, come see the TV. The Stark Expo thingy is on." Ben called out to his nephew. The Expo had a more elaborate name, but Ben didn't really watch this kind of thing. It was not that he wasn't well read, he just preferred baseball.
The sound of gargled water being spat out was followed by the bathroom door being thrown open. The excited seven year old in red and blue jammies sped across the small house, plopping himself on the floor right between his aunt and uncle's legs. Usually he would be in bed, but Ben knew Peter wanted to watch Stark Expo, he always did.
He may not have been a science man himself, but he wanted to support his nephew's interests. He could be interested in worse things, like the amber liquid Ben sometimes had after a long day, or the grass roll-ups that teenager down the street smokes when he thinks no one is looking.
Mr. Stark himself came onto the stage, marking the beginning of the show. The presentation was tame, but still very flashy. In other words...Stark.
"Hello everyone, thank you for coming to Stark Expo. Last time I was here, my hair was still dark, and my dad was called sir. I also promised hover cars... we are working on it."
Laughter echoed through the audience. It quickly calmed in anticipation, as Howard Stark continued.
"What Stark Expo is about, is not competition, it's about recognizing those that are pushing the boundaries of science. Tonight, we have Oscorp, Roxxan, Trask, and Cross-Tech. All of them have individuals that have started a technological revolution. We are recognizing those individuals here and now. Then, we will have the rest of the expo to explore for the next three weeks."
"Lets start off with-"
Many awards were spread among the companies for various achievements. Peter wanted to see every single one, as each gave exciting insight into the future. Reed Richards took home several, the man claimed he was planning to head into space within a short time, possibly months! It was just about the end of the Awards show, but there was still one left.
"This year, the Howard Stark Award of Advanced Robotics goes to: Doctor Octavia Octavius, for her revolutionary work on prosthetic limbs and hazard work safety."
"What a mouth-full." Ben was hushed by May.
The woman that stepped onto the stage seemed uncomfortable as she walked. Octagonal shaped glasses adorned her. Dark locks dangled down the woman's shoulders and neck sloppily.
"Look at that, shes barely thirty, and she's already made such big accomplishments." Aunt May said.
"She pushed forward prosthetics and artificial intelligence ahead by a decade, possibly more." Peter added, without looking away.
He was smart for his age, it often worried his aunt and uncle that he would become an outcast because of his smarts. Ben tried, and continued to try sports with Peter, if only to help him feel more confident in engaging others. He loved that Peter shared his love of science with his father. Richard would have loved doing science experiments with his son. The boy was as smart as his father was at his age, but he didn't have an older brother to look after him like Ben had for Richard.
As the woman accepted her award, the camera changed angles to a woman in the audience that looked similar, but much older and grayer. Presumably a relative at least, the woman seemed happier than the one receiving the award. The camera cut back to Doctor Octavius, who more or less nodded at the cheers.
Ben realized Peter hadn't been as vocal as he was with the others. Looking down to his suddenly quiet nephew watching intently, he was surprised a frown adorned his face instead of a smile.
"Peter, what's wrong?" His Uncle asked. Eyes still fixed on the screen, Peter asked:
"Why does she look so sad?"
1982
Ten year old Octavia tumbled to the ground as the older girl hit her. Her large glasses fell off her nose and clattered onto the sidewalk. The hard landing caused spider cracks to appear in the frame. Dad was going to be awfully upset about replacing the lenses. She looked up at her attacker, tears barely held back.
"Stop it, leave me alone, what did I ever do to you!?"
The older girl didn't say anything at first. Instead, she stepped on Olivia's glasses, slowly applying pressure while Olivia watched the spider cracks spread before the spectacles gave in to the girls shoe.
The girl had a coldness in her eyes one wouldn't believe.
"You were born."
That Night
"Jesus girl, I can't afford to keep buying you glasses. Could you at least try to defend yourself!"
Her father was a working man, low income, likely put as much effort into his education as Octavia did in a day. Still, his words stung. Octavia didn't need to hear him say it to know he'd rather have had a son that had brawn instead of a girl with brains.
"Stop it! She is a thinker, not a fighter." Her mother always defended her, the woman was bony, like her, but she was Octavia's shield. Mother hated violence, how she married her father, Octavia would never know.
"Can she think of a way to not get her ass kicked? I'm not asking her to win, just fight back."
"Enough Torbert!" Her mother hustled her away to her room. Instead of pushing the matter, her father threw his hands up and went to his recliner, mumbling "Jesus Mary..." as he readied himself for another night of football.
Octavia sat on her bed, letting her mother go over all her scrapes and bruises. She already got bandaged up at the nurses, but mom would argue they needed to be changed before bed anyway. In her words, it would keep her up at night until she did it herself.
"The nerve of that man, to push violence and-" Her mother stopped mid rant, pressing a hand against her chest. After a moment, she allowed herself to relax and resume bandaging her daughter. "Never marry a man like that, Octavia. Labor will always be a necessity, but it takes our brains, our knowledge, to make real changes in the world. He might work hard, but smart people work hard too. All the equipment they use in construction? All the buildings they are contracted to build? All was possible because of someone smart, who used their brains."
"But mom, he's right. Sherry Johnson is only a grade older, but I couldn't even throw a punch."
"Let me tell you something, Sherry Johnson is either going to clean up her act, or she won't. Either way the real world will hurt her harder than she ever hit you. I guarantee you she will be in some trailer park, trying to handle brats just like her, and she'll watch you winning awards on the television."
"So... would I only win if I didn't become a mom?" Octavia didn't really consider the concept of parenthood. She was aware of it, she was also ten years old. Her mother saw the road her words might set her daughter on, and quickly acted to correct herself.
"Don't be afraid of becoming a mother either dear, just make sure it's with the right person. I can't imagine how you feel, watching your father and I. But I never regret having you, you are the joy of my life. You are your father's joy as well, he's just... stubborn, old fashioned. The best thing you can do, is work hard and prove to him wrong about you. Show him what a thinker can accomplish."
With that, she kissed her daughter on the head and left the room, hitting the light switch on her way out. Octavia got under her covers and watched the moon outside. She wanted her father's approval, so badly. For herself, for her mother, for her family.
She never got the chance.
Stark Expo, 1999
Olivia looked over the crowd absently. A part of her felt like she was beneath them, like she was ten years old again. A much bigger part of her felt far above any cheers and applause. There were only two people whose opinions she truly cares about at this point.
One was her mother, who was put up front where Octavia could see her. The woman had grown thinner over the years, but she smiled more over the years, even with the stress of working as a single mother. But Octavia made her efforts matter.
Her father would have been the other, but he was no longer here. An incident involving a drunk on a crane...her father didn't have a chance. They managed to pull him out, but he died at the hospital.
Instead, Osborn took his role, not so much that she wanted his approval, more so his funding. That, he gave in strides. She was a crucial member of his science team, and younger than most of them at the moment. Despite that, it was her on the stage, and none of her peers. A part of her wondered if Osborn did that on purpose, to make her feel alienated. She did earn her right to be on the stage, she has no doubt about that.
She accepted her award, and saw her mother in the crowd. Her lips pushed upward ever so slightly.
If I can't show my father, I'll show the whole world.
2007
"And here at Oscorp's Robotics Division, we are giving those who have lost their limbs, or never had them, a new lease on life."
Peter was excited, more so than any other school trip he had been on. He thought he was going to have to work hard to even see an Oscorp lab. Instead his 9th grade class trip took him straight here, the Robotics Division as well! Immediately one could see the tech of the future, even if it didn't come out publicly for another five to ten years.
Scientists dressed in white moved with calm and ease within the equally sterile white labs. They checked data, overlooked mechanical parts for signs of failure. More were behind fiberglass walls, working on more specific projects, their tools glowed hotly as they worked.
It was just like he imagined it.
"Matter of fact we- oh Miss Octavius, how do you do?" Their guide's voice sent Peter Crashing back into his body as he realized who was right in front of them.
Oh my god, it's her.
The woman had retained her inky black hair, even if strands were starting to grey. A frown adorned her face, and though she was stoic, she seemed to have their guide frozen in place.
"It's Doctor Octavious, Mr. Adder, I hope you weren't going to allow them in the lab." She didn't seem to like their presence, Peter could understand. If she knew Flash Thompson like he did, they would have been escorted out of the building. He takes that back actually, they never would have let Flash enter in the first place.
"For just a short time?" Mr. Adder seemed to beg her with his eyes. It was only a few seconds, but under her gaze it felt like much longer for the tour guide.
"They don't touch anything." Octavia stepped away from Van Adder. It was for the sake of the few that seemed truly interested, that she seemed to hold back a sneer.
The class split into groups. Other scientists seem to welcome the class, seeing they had a temporary reprieve from their workday. Attention was drawn to the prototype prosthetics, some seemed to resemble limbs outside of arms and legs. Peter already knew of this stuff, it was on their website.
Doctor Octavius herself seemed to distance herself, but kept within range, as though to watch over the class. She swapped between looking at her data pad, and looking over the students. Peter was struck by a thought.
Why does she look so sad?
He realized, quickly, what he wanted to do while he was here. For all he knew, there may not be another chance. It was time he grew a spine.
She looked over the class, some held mild interest, others were disinterested.
They won't appreciate it, they never will, not until the day it saves their lives. The projects we have been working on could have saved my father one hundred fold. At least, he would have lived long enough to see how far I actually went. At least Howard Stark saw it, ugh, if he could see his legacy now.
Howard Stark had passed away in a car crash not long after the expo. It left his multi-billion dollar company in the hands of his college dropout son. She damned Tony Stark in the back of her mind, his flashy attitude should have brought more into science. Instead, if it wasn't Stark, it wasn't cool. Bastard tried to make a slogan out of it. Him and Osborn, they needed to get a room and-
"Doctor Octavius?" She turned to see a bright young man with messy brown hair and somewhat thick glasses. She was surprised that any teenager had the gall or the braincells to come and speak to her. Of course, this one seemed meeker, which could be a sign of intelligence, or stupidity. However, she already doubted it was the latter. He seemed to remind her of, well, herself.
"Yes? What can I help you with?"
"Well, I just wanted to say... your work in prosthetics and artificial intelligence made a huge impact on me. I don't think I would be nearly as interested in the subject if it weren't for you."
A polite greeting and praise for her in the same time frame? It took Octavia off guard, which is saying something.
"I-thank you." No one really praised her for her work, a child of all things complimented her. She had maintained her composure, and reassessed the young man. "You sound like you have an interest in joining the field."
It was Peter's turn to stutter. "Y-yes Ma'am. Not really a sporty type. Sports are okay I mean, I just feel like this is where the real change is happening."
The good thing for Peter, was that great minds think alike.
Maybe not all of them are lost causes. Octavia couldn't help but think. If she had to deal with...the young, this one seemed tolerable at the worst.
"What is your name?"
"P-Peter."
"Would you like to see something, Peter?" At least she could show someone her work that would appreciate it. This way Adder can't complain to Osborn about her "cold treatment" of guests.
Octavia never appreciated Van Adder's attempts to impress the public eye with technology that was still a work in progress. That was Stark's sin, teasing a future that hadn't come yet. At least Osborn knew, if you were gonna show it off, make sure it works.
Of course that was their Yin and Yang, Stark burned in the sun, openly. Osborn was hidden in the dark, doors behind doors, behind more doors. Of course, Ironically, Stark kept his labs off limits. Meanwhile Osborn let shills, like Adder, parade "guests" around to show off.
At a more appropriate time, I need to speak to him regarding concerns about Project:OZ.
The pair were still well within range of the class, the lab however was spacious, allowing some privacy. Octavia paused for a moment to check an experimental body suit, its colors were bold, seemingly designed for hazard work.
"When my father was alive, he was a working man. He died on a job site when I was still in school. I was...saddened, but it motivated me to take an interest in physical science, eventually taking me to robotics-"
"Not to mention you obtained degrees in Nuclear and Atomic physics on the side!- Sorry." Peter was getting too excited, he didn't want to mess this up. More impressed than she let on, Octavia only smiled as she moved past the green and yellow body suit.
"No no, I am glad you know, it makes this next part easier. I wanted to prevent incidents like my father's from happening to other people. We have stopped several diseases that had scourged us for centuries, within a few decades of advancing medicine. Imagine if we could cure 'work accidents'. Prevent people from losing loved ones because of another's folly."
Octavia pressed several keys into a nearby pad, The circular metal case retracted, leaving behind a giant ring. Four Thick metallic tubes seemed to sprout from a device in the center.
"Are you familiar with the Vitruvian man?" She asked Peter
"Davinci?" He inquired.
Octavia smiled, as she began waving her hand one of the tubes moved. It shifted and swayed before its end sprouted with a three pronged claw. A glowing red light came from the center of the claw as it curled in the air towards peter.
"Amazing." He said in awe, as the glowing red light seemed to focus on him directly. The light seemed to reduce its intensity naturally, as though trying to avoid blinding the teenager. The way the red light shrunk made Peter think of HAL from 2001. He buried the notion. That was a movie, this was real!
"The tentacles allow me to work safely with chemicals that would be otherwise too harmful to the body."
"This could save many lives."
"The exact intent." It made her grin, happy to explain, instead of irritated. "These are still in the prototype phase, the interface still has some issues after long-term use. They are already incredibly strong however, and surgically precise. We are working on combining it with our nanotech. The final product will be-"
"Can the class please gather around me? Come along, next up, the Bio-Division."
And so fate came calling, as Mr. Adder called everyone to group back together for the next area. Peter went to join his class. But first, he turned to Dr. Octavius.
"Thank you Doctor Octavius, I hope to work in a lab like this someday. I want to change the world, just like you."
"I look forward to it Peter."
As Peter left, her eyes followed his back as he joined his class in heading towards the Bio division. She would be locked inside the lab the rest of the day, unaware of any incidents such as spider bites or formula sabotage. Her coworkers noted the unusual warmth in her responses.
That, and she was smiling.
1989
"I didn't see you last night." She asked him, politeness tightly held together by a thread.
"Oh yes, Octavia, really sorry. Something came up"
Excuses, always an excuse, why did she even bother. Was it her? Was she too intimidating? she was practically a mouse outside the lab. He didn't seem intimidated when she asked, what changed?
He was already excusing himself, not nervously or awkwardly, just indifferent. Like he didn't just stand her up the night before.
One of his buddies, probably the "something" that came up, bumped shoulders with him as he turned away from her.
"Ronnie, why are you wasting your time? Who was that one girl? Allison or?"
Octavia could hear them so clearly, but she knew they didn't care.
She didn't need any of them, they were all pathetic.
2008
"Thanks."
It was late, that night, Peter said he was studying. He was really beating up guys in the ring while wearing a mask. He needed the money, they needed the money. It was a good gig, of course good things don't last in a Parker's life.
"Thanks."
The manager of the place ripped him off, Peter thought it was justice when the guy got robbed. Let the robber run right past him. He crashed right into the open elevator. Turning to press the button, making eye contact with Peter. Peter just used the window when no one was looking. He made his way through the City easily, using his newfound agility. Eventually he stopped, as he came close to home, stopping to change his clothes. He came home to the sound of sirens.
"Son don't go in, you don't want to see."
"Oh Peter, he tried to rob us, Ben tried to-to."
Peter went on the hunt, found the man. It was easy for him, police already cornered him in a warehouse. He barricaded himself in, trapping himself for Peter. He broke the man's gun, his hand, then his jaw. He would have done more, would have killed him, than he saw his face. It echoes in his mind as he remembers the robber that escaped in the elevator, that he let go.
"Thanks."
He left the man for the police. The walk home was long, as it continuously echoed in his mind
"Thanks."
He never should have let him go.
2011
"Octavia Octavius?-"
It was a late night, She probably shouldn't have been working. No one stopped her though, they never questioned her in the lab. It wasn't like anyone would appreciate it anyway.
"The fuel cell is overbalanced in Section A and B, reducing the stress levels. Redistribute to Section C and D to compensate."
The doctor thought her new Nano-tech Apparatus would impress her peers finally. She could finally reach out, instead of pushing them further away. They thought of her as egotistical. Then...
"-We regret to inform you-" Her mind was working overtime. Everyone left her, her co-workers didn't respect her. Why couldn't anyone see that she was trying? She had no one but herself to depend on. She used to have...
"-The passing of your mother. It was a heart attack, very sudden."
She slipped up, a small slip up. That was all it took, a slip, a miscalculation. A powerful reaction of light encompassing her. Her vision was blinded white, then black.
BEEP...BEEP...BEEP*
"Who the hell let her work forty eight hours straight?! do any of you realize what this could do to our timeframe?"
Octavia slipped in and out of blackness, only to perceive far too bright light and shapes moving around her. Muffled voices were all around her, speaking the language of nurses and doctors that she could barely keep up with let alone hear in her state. Someone made a muffled sound that resembled "injection" and Octavia returned to the black once more.
BEEP...BEEP...BEEP*
That noise, it was the only consistency in the darkness. It brought a memory, her father. His last moments were shrouded in dark like this. Did he feel her hand in his, was his squeezing one last response of love? Or was it a muscle reaction? One final moment of resistance before the end.
After her father's accident. She had a recurring dream, of arms shooting out stopping the heavy metal pipes before they could land on her father, tossing them aside. Her father's face filled with joy and pride in his daughter.
BEEP...BEEP...BEEP*
After an immeasurable amount of time in that darkness, consciousness and pain came together as one. Octavia sucked in a breath like it was her first. It was still dark, something was bothering her eyes, itchy. She felt bound, restricted. Octavia let out a dry moan, her throat dry and raw.
"She is awake, Someone get Mr. Adder!"
"Where am I? Why can't I see?!"
"Miss Octavius, please calm down. You were in an accident." Adder's voice, god why him?
"It's Doctor, ugh. Someone, turn that light off." They seemed to ignore her. Vision returned to her spotty, Bandages cover her eyes. She could hear their footsteps echoing around her, the clattering of tools. The surgical light glared, it hurt so much. She couldn't tolerate it, they were still talking over her. "Get that fucking light off!"
SMASH*
As though from her thoughts alone, something whipped out, shattering the light. Nurses are screaming. She could hear Adder saying "You said all of them were restrained! What the hell did the budget go into?!"
"They were designed for people not-this. We were never ready for this kind of situation." The doctor-she at least thought it was-stated, defending his position from Adder's wrath.
Octavia was getting annoyed by these bandages, if she was blind she needed to know now, not after everyone is done talking over her. She began pulling the bandages off. No wait, not her, she was restrained...yet she wasn't. Octavia knew the answer before the last piece of cotton bandage was removed by her "helper".
The glowing red light dimmed so as to not disturb her already sensitive eyes much further. It kept its "eye" on her, as the rest of the metallic silver tentacle seemed to sway and shift. Looking around, she could see the others strewn out around her, bound down. They were still connected to her, and they seemed to move and struggle. Yet, one of them managed to get out, why not the others...
"What... what happened to me?" She asked, the lights above had dimmed considerably, possibly from one of the nurses finally listening to her.
"You were in an accident, a chain reaction occurred at the labs. Your arms saved your life, we were lucky to retrieve you." The doctor stated.
As Octavia caught up with herself, a question began prodding. It poked at the nape of her neck, chilling her spine.
"Why am I still attached to the apparatus?"
"The accident caused several injuries, the apparatus itself has... fused to your body."
Octavia didn't like what she was hearing. She made to move upward, trying to get herself into a sitting position on the medical bed. The lower half of her body wasn't listening to her, and when she came to a sudden realization, the fear set in.
BEEP..BEEP..BEEP*
"Miss Octavius please settle down." Adder said.
"My legs, I can't move my legs." Panic was in her voice. The tentacles began to shake in their restraints, several nurses stepping back to get out of range. The doctor intervened on Adder's behalf, to attempt to explain to Octavia what had happened.
"Your Spine suffered damage as well. We were able to remove the interface, but we did not want to operate with so many unknowns." No, no no no.
The Apparatus is still experimental, if the nanites invade her body during her wounded state... unclear consequences. This was made clear in all her presentations. Not only that, they removed the interface, the worst thing they could have done. There was a system in place for proper removal. The interface was able to render the nanites inactive. If they removed it improperly...
"It was always clear in my instructions, remove the apparatus, otherwise the nanites-"
"-might bond with your physical body, we are aware. You have to understand the interface was damaged, we had little choice. Mr. Osborn-"
The bound tentacles went still, the free tentacle that loomed over them snapped to the doctor, before focusing on Adder entirely.
"Osborn? Osborn told you not to operate?"
No.
"It was advised, and we felt it better to wait and see before-" The bound tentacles rattled their restraints violently.
BEEPBEEPBEEP*
"So you left me like this...to see what would HAPPEN!?" Her voice was cracked, dry, but didn't stop her rage from bleeding in.
"Miss Octavius, it really isn't the best time-"
The speed of which the free tentacle had moved from above to below was fast as it was lethal, liquid metal snapping like a stretched rubber band.
SHUNK*
Mr. Adder froze, as the kitchen knife shaped blade went from under his chin and out of his forehead, silencing him. Red dribbled down the metal, spotting the sterile floor below.
"That is Doctor Octavius, to you." She slid the blade out with speed, the body slumping to the shiny sterile floor, red spreading, covering it with a new shine.
It went to show how much they knew of her designs, they did not recall that the nanites could allow her extra arms to form all sorts of "tools". It wasn't their fault, as they believed removing the interface severed the connection. They should however, have realized this by now.
BEEEEEEEEEEEEE-*
Her bound limbs shattered their restraints, one devastating the heart monitor, silencing it forever. The nurses screamed again, everybody was.
Soon they were all silent.
2011, one day later
Peter heard about it from Harry first, mainly because he was at the scene.
He had been in his room, balancing homework and watching the rain drops trail down his window. As though intentionally doing so, the rain increased its intensity as Peter's phone rang. Hearing Harry's ringtone, he answered it. "Harry-"
"Peter?! Peter!! I don't know what to do. People are screaming-"
"Whoa whoa, Harry calm down. What's going on?"
"Some.. multi-armed fucking thing attacked the presentation! I don't know where my dad is-"
"Harry, Harry listen. Get inside somewhere, anywhere, just get to safety and wait it out okay? I'm gonna see if my pal can help."
"Okay."
Peter was already in uniform sans mask. The moment the call ended Peter was already web-slinging to the Presentation.
From Queens to upstate New York, it didn't take much for him to get there. He still wished he got there faster. It was pouring rain by the time he got there. From what Harry had told him beforehand that Oscorp wanted to showcase some new model of the glider drone, using the poor weather as durability testing.
It was easy to know where the action was at, seeing the flood of people running away. Spider-Man naturally sped toward the danger. Landing on a nearby streetlight, he assessed the area for a moment.
The blockades, meant to keep anyone uninvited out, were smashed through with incredible force. There wasn't one thing left undamaged. Cars- both civilian and police alike-were flipped upside down, on their side, or parked illegally, not by choice. Leaping off, he continued to web-swing forward.
He could have sworn Harry made a mistake, this looked like the Rhino's doing, but Alexei was locked up. He then began to notice the odd holes planted in the cars, as though they were grabbed and swung away, if not knocked over entirely.
Then there were the bodies, armed security that never stood a chance. Some seemed to have been speared right through, others torn apart. He had never seen something like this yet in his career as Spider-Man. He was close to throwing up, but steeled his nerves.
But what he quickly came upon made his heart sink. Even in the downpour, he could still see them so clearly on the raised platform. The Oscorp drone laid in pieces, utterly destroyed. Osborn was raised up in a cross formation, held up by silvery metallic tentacles. He was screaming, as the assailant in a dark green trenchcoat tortured the man, carving into him, relishing in the violence.
Spider-Man landed on a car loudly, crouched low, he called out to get the assailant's attention.
"Let him go! Now!"
Then, the assailant turned to face him. The image would be burned into his mind for years to come.
Her dark hair was wet with rain and...red...it clung to her face in strands. There was damage around her bloodshot eyes, scarring still raw and in the process of healing. But Peter recognized her, even if no one else could. He recognized her every time.
"No...why?"
"What about Doctor Strange?"
"That's taken you moron! I got it, Doctor Octopus, Doc Ock. Haha."
"She seems more like a squid sir."
"Does squid sound like an eyecatcher to you? Doctor Squid!? Not on my paper. Tell Jared, 'Doc Ock' on a rampage'."
A heavy smack came down on the desk, startling Jameson and his assistant. Jonah turned to yell at the offender only to freeze in place at the glare he was given. Robbie Robertson had a face he saved for only the most dire occasion. It was a face Jonah had only seen a handful of times, and each time was enough to make him pause.
"Tell Jared, that the headline will be 'Several lives lost during Oscorp Presentation'." Robbie interjected, disgusted. "Let's give the dead the respect they deserve first."
"-Passed away this morning from his grievous injuries, now making seven lives lost during the tragic Oscorp Presentation.-"
"-Seven dead, over a dozen injured, three of the deceased were Police officers.-"
"-Norman Osborn is alive, but is in critical condition. His son, Harry Osborn, credits the vigilante Spider-Man, for saving his life, and thanks New York's Finest for doing what they could to fend off the attacker-"
"-Octavia Octavious was brought down by Spider-Man before she could cause further damage. However, she was able to flee the scene, before any attempt to properly apprehend her could be made-"
"-Wilson Fisk expressed his condolences for Mr. Osborn, and hopes for his speedy recovery."
2017
Spider-Man didn't visit villains at the Raft often. As they would say, he already did his part. Now if only they could do theirs and keep them in. It was a little early for one of his "usual" visits, which varied from monthly to bi-monthly. This visit had more urgency, more...weight.
It wasn't often that one of the leaders in the ever bar-raising field of technology, asked your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man for help. More specifically, his help in obtaining another's help. He understood why most would be confused. Just because you're a genius in a lot of subjects, doesn't mean you know everything.
It must have been humbling for Reed Richards to ask for help, but this problem was out of his expertise, and this was the man that made portals to other worlds. What he was not "good enough" at, was physical science. There was only one person that knew it better, that would be able to help. The worst part is, she may be unwilling to help, or no longer able. Peter didn't know which he feared more.
He did what he could to check in on Octavius, code-named Doctor Octopus. God he was disgusted by that name. He quit the bugle after that... worked independently for a while. There was struggle, but he had persevered through worse, and he didn't give up. Three people taught him that, one gave his life for his wife, the other struggled with her health alongside the ever escalating dangers of New York. The third and last, he was visiting in prison, to beg her for help.
Octavia looked worse for wear each time he saw her, it seemed like. Both in body, and mind- No, that wasn't right. Her mind stayed sharp, but it was twisted. It was her arms, the Neural Interface affected her mind long after its removal. Echoed her darkest emotions, the most violent. It made her a dangerous foe in every way, and not just for Spider-Man. While she did try at times to exterminate the wall-crawler, her schemes were usually aimed at Norman Osborn, and succeeded. She ruined his chances to run for mayor, and much of her former employer's plans had been set back severely. Even after his descent into his "Goblin" persona, Octavia would interfere with him. There were many things he did not know about them yet, their entire history, let alone Octavia's. However, when it came to her, he felt like he knew enough, more than most people bothered to know.
Her body was a different story. It was only after their first encounter, that he realized she didn't move her actual human legs. They were thin, close to atrophy. It was clear they were barely being maintained. If only by assistance from brave staff, as Octavia seemed to refuse to do the physical therapy herself. The mechanical arms did most things for her, with technically far more ease than her human arms. During their fights, she seemed to move with a lack of humanity, like a beast, yet that too, was untrue. They wouldn't let him see her medical files, even though he was their best chance at bringing the super-scourges of New York into custody. He wasn't even sure if they were trying to help her.
Octavia's brilliant mind didn't go anywhere, it was consumed by grief, and wrath. Hopefully, there was still compassion.
"I need your help Doc."
"My help?" She was restrained by a "harness" for her harness. Literally a giant lock in the ceiling that kept her arms from changing form or breaking out. It allowed her movement and sway, but she didn't move much anyways.
"Susan Richards is pregnant, but she may lose her child, and her life, without you."
Susan Richards, Octavia remembered her when she was still Susan Storm. The intelligent, yet very kind Sue. She was friendly, at least when Octavia was around. Still, she seemed to have a life Octavia never even dream of. Feelings of jealousy erupted, though most of it was spite for the Spider. The Spider that constantly interfered. The Spider that persistently begged her to stop. The Spider that practically throws her into this cell. The Spider that kept hoping for her well being...
"Her husband is Reed Richards. He should be able to fix it."
"He can't, he admitted it to me himself. He wanted me to ask you, because you know the field better than anyone else does, including him." Reed Richards, one of few to exceed her, and only in certain subjects. Well respected in the scientific community, while she was cast out, as they reap the benefits of her work.
"Why should I? Why should I do anything for you?" It was practically a hiss as she glared at Spider-man's white "eyes".
"Because you are the only one who can." He never removed eye contact with her, he always treated her as an equal, even when she was in chains. He stroked her ego, and she was smart enough to see it.
"That wasn't the question Spider, why should I do anything for you?"
Who was this woman, that wore the face of one of the greatest minds of the century? This broken shell, that once upon a time, received a reward from the hands of Howard Stark himself. Broken, perhaps, but not gone. The woman that showed a young Peter the possibilities of the future was still there...somewhere.
"Octavia don't do it for me, do it so a woman doesn't lose her child. Save the child of Reed Richards, and have him forever in your debt, in history. Do it for whatever suits you."
Spider-Man, to her shock, went on his knees. He rested his hands on her cuffed ones.
"I am begging for your help, please. Not Doc Ock, but Octavia Octavius, the woman that persevered. The woman that never gave up."
The man had such a strange effect on her. Tapping into her best, and her worst, at the same time. It is what made it both so frustrating to fight him, while at the same time wanting to rip him apart. But he was begging her, and it was stroking her pride in all the right ways, her pride, her mind, her decaying body...
"L-let me help."
The process was largely handled by the Fantastic Four and Shield, once Octavia had agreed. Octavia had to be moved to the Baxter building, given a lab to work in. She was doing her job well for someone who had a bomb that was glued to their skin, and set to detonate if she tries anything like escape or attempted murder.
The lab itself had Cameras placed all around to watch her, besides that she was largely left to take care of things herself.
Outside in the hall, Spider-Man sat on a bench. Sure, he could have left it to shield and the FF. He was the one that brought her here, however, so if anything went wrong he had to make it right.
He was somewhat shocked to see Reed join him outside. Doctor Richards had never looked so...human. One of the world's brightest looked so lost, as he took a seat beside the Spider.
"Has anything changed?" Peter watched his friend carefully. Richards had his fair share of sleepless nights, overworking himself in the lab. Yet, never had Peter seen such a gaunt look in his eyes.
"Octavious is still working, I just...couldn't sit and watch anymore." Reed Richards was a man you went to for answers, not the other way around. It must have been freezing cold in hell right now, wherever that place was. Peter understood how he felt, unable to do anything for the ones you loved most. Reed hunched over, his hands shaking. "This has to work, it has to."
"Octavia is the best in her field doc, I wouldn't have gone to her if I knew anyone better."
"Thank you for that. I should have asked myself. I should have been the one on his knees, begging for her help."
"Don't worry about it."
It was quiet, Peter didn't know if he should say something, anything, to keep Reed busy. Or maybe the silence was better, and simply being present was enough. It was only quiet for about five minutes, but that was long enough that it startled Peter when Reed spoke, more so confessed.
"It was my fault. All of it. I should have learned my lesson the first time, when it cost Ben." Reed's head rose, but he only stared blankly at the wall. "We made love in the Negative zone, I was so stupid, so damn stupid, and now my child will pay for it."
"Doc, you can't control everything."
"I can't, but that's just it. I could have controlled this. I didn't have to do the deed in another dimension I know little of. Even Johnny knew better, and my child, if they make it, what effects the negative zone will have on them, their future? I could have either made this world a messiah, or a destroyer. But what I fear most, is that they will never have the chance to even live in this world."
Reed's head shot up as the SHIELD agent exited the security room and went straight to the pair.
"Doctor Richards, Spider-Man, it's done. You can go in-"
Reed moved so fast, Spider-Man wondered if he obtained super speed. Dreading what he would be walking into, he entered quietly and cautiously. Octavious was in front blocking his view of the bed. To the Spider-Man's right, Reed was on his knees by the bed. Holding Sue's hand in both of his, the world's greatest mind wept, releasing years of repressed emotions..
2021-April
Nathaniel Richards Junior just had his fourth birthday, last week. The little boy was born with a mop of blonde hair like his mother, and shared the same brown eyes as his father. The boy did not show any signs of high intellect, but he was bright, certainly for his age. There was no sign of mutation, but the super family kept their eye on things.
Pictures were sent to Octavius, one of the few things she received while in the Raft. Birthdays, Holidays, even a video of his first walk(Johnny of all people was insistent on getting it on record). If anything kept her sanity intact, it was the recorded proof of a life she had saved. At least, Peter hoped that was the case.
Unfortunately this time the pictures would have to wait till she returned. She had escaped, again, roughly a year ago, not long after Nathan's third birthday.
Doctor Octavius had only one other breakout after 2017, and that was because of Osborn. That can't happen anymore, because Osborn is dead, impaled by his own glider. That was the last time the sinister six had been formed, at least successfully. The police had enough time to come in to see the Industrialist under the goblin mask, exposing Norman Osborn. They were in the middle of removing the glider when it seemed to activate a self destruct sequence. The policemen had enough time to get away from the blast, however, it left very little of Norman for Harry to bury.
Octavius had been quiet, however. The primary object of her vengeance was gone, blown to pieces and then buried. That was not a good sign, nor a bad one. What it meant, was that Peter had no idea what was coming.
Then he heard a specific call on the police radio. A kidnapping, the address he knew very well.
When Mary Jane went missing, it caused him alarm like it would anyone who was close friends with the girl. When he went to her apartment, to look for clues, the damage done was immediately recognizable. He knew it was Octavius, and he had to find them. The first thing his did was break into the Raft for the files they kept hidden from him. He needed to know everything about Octavius that he could, anything that could give him a hint of what she planned to do.
What he found disturbed him, horrified him, because it only bought more fuel for his nightmares. More regret for past sins, mistakes made with good intentions.
He went to every dockyard, looked in every abandoned building. He even called in a favor to Nick Fury, which thankfully wasn't in vain. He revealed three possible locations Octavius could be using. The church was honestly that last one he was expecting, from a woman of science. The church itself actually made sense, abandoned after too many arsonists tried to use it as a bonfire. No one expected Doctor Octopus to use it as a hideout.
Spider-Man leapt onto a broken window, getting a decent look at the abandoned holy place's current state.
It wasn't even the church itself, it was under the church. The big hole in the floor, and the odd pattern of holes that made a path into it, told Peter he found his target. Now he had to deal with the fear of being too late. He launched himself down, hearing the echo of machines in the underground.
Octavious worked tirelessly, against doctors orders, and also court orders, and also the orders of the Raft Warden. Lights were very minimal, of course the use of torches and other tools supplied more efficient light. Each Tentacle with fluidity and grace in their tasks, despite the doctors current state. She was certain they would outlast her, even if the process worked. If all else, they were the deepest footprint that was her legacy.
You know she doesn't deserve this.
Her conscience speaking up for a moment made her look at the comatose redhead. Once upon a time, she would have torn the bitch apart, but she had none of that rage left, at least, no time for it. It was all business.
In her opinion, the bitch didn't deserve what she had either. fame, beauty, health...love. But Octavia wouldn't be so cruel, when it was all said and done she would take care of her swiftly, painlessly. It was more than what she would have gotten.
You can still stop this. Your mother wouldn't want you to do this, neither would-
Octavia's conscience liked to make a debut every so often, when it was least needed. It certainly wasn't there when Oscorp came knocking.
You didn't need me to tell you what Osborn wanted was wrong. You understood, otherwise why would you-
Octavia shook her head, disrupting the thought. She wasn't insane, this wasn't the voice of some imaginary creature. It was simply her, a part of her that felt hesitant, guilty, a part of her that she thought had been murdered years ago.
This isn't what you want.
That was partially true. But it wasn't that she inherently wanted the redhead. As beautiful as she was, Octavia could have gone after any beautiful woman. It was New York, and there was plenty of selection. But she chose Miss Watson for a purpose.
She will succeed, or she will die trying.
Landing, Peter took note of his surroundings. There was a functioning ladder just out of view of the hole, which was odd considering Octavius didn't need a ladder. Where any natural light had failed to enter, dim lights had been set up along the wall of the tunnel, leaving a path for him to follow. Crawling along the wall, he moved quietly Cautiously aware of Anything that might pop out. He moved directly to the ceiling, hiding in darkness as he spotted more lights at the end of the tunnel, lights that shifted with the shadows of long sinewy shapes.
Spider-Man slowly moved up to give himself a peak into the hideout. It was dimly lit, just like the tunnel, the biggest source of light came from the monitors, running all sorts of things from data analysis, brainwave scans. Lights flickered from PC towers that were taken from wherever the doctor could have found them.
Mary Jane was breathing at least, strapped to a gurney, a device on her head The device seemed to be connected by a cord to a much bigger machine. An empty gurney was right beside Mary Jane's, a similar device hanging on a pole beside it. He only saw the back of Octavius, as her extra arms worked around her as she typed away on a control console. She had some sort of helmet on her, he couldn't get a good look at it from where he was. At least, he believed it was Octavious.
There was another, horrifying possibility. He was too late, for ex girlfriend and scientist alike, and this was simply another mad scientist who believed they could do better, by doing the same thing. But he needed to deal with this regardless.
He moved silently, making his way to MJ slowly. He was about a dozen feet away before the ceiling made a large cracking sound. He froze, watching Octavious for a reaction. Her tentacles slowly paused, but didn't look up at him. Her head turned, waiting for another sound, before turning back to resume her work. Peter remained frozen for a moment, and then silently started to move again, putting his right hand forward.
A tentacle suddenly whipped around, its glowing red eye glaring at him, before releasing a torrent of energy.
BZZZZ*
Spider-Man kicked off the ceiling, and dive rolled away from MJ's gurney to keep her out of the line of fire. Another tentacle had joined the fight, both the upper tentacles opening fire on the human arachnid.
BZZZZ-BZZZZ*
Spider-Man dodged the bright bursts, maneuvering himself closer to Octavius. He dodged and weaved around the metallic tentacles that seemed to flow elegantly around him, despite their violent intentions.
He was able to get close to Octavious, for a moment. Her goggles-replaced with multi-eyed lenses, seemingly connected to the helmet, locked unto him as he rushed toward her. A tentacle shot up from below, cutting him off from the doctor again. He was able to evade, landing again on the ceiling.
"Gonna make me play rough Doc?" He was answered with an immediate follow up attack. each tentacle spearing a place the Spider was just a millisecond before. Peter took note of the way the doctor's legs dangled, and in a strange way relieved him.
At least it's still Octavious, and not some new schmuck I have to figure out. But I can't fool around either.
Multitasking as he "rolled" himself across the ceiling, Peter swapped his current web cartridge for something he hoped would be more effective. Leaping off the ceiling, he shot directly at Octavius, knowing her tentacles would come to defend her. One came up to block-
SMASH*
-and another pierced the area he just vacated, devastating old cobblestone. He landed by a wall as she turned, a third tentacle swinging in an arc. Peter jumped over it as it took out the wall behind him, firing webs at the attacking tentacle before having to jump again to avoid it. Immediately after he had to twist his body midair to avoid the third.
As the third tentacle passed, he slapped a small device onto it. As the tentacles retreated to the doctor, a classic move after going on the offensive for so long, The device exploded and the doctor was covered in fresh webbing.
Peter felt victorious, for about three seconds. On the fourth second, four glowing circles quickly turned into burning beams as they burned the webbing away. Any that was left was torn away by the violent thrashing of the tentacles. Octavia seemed to drop all pretense of strategy, as she practically lunged herself at Spider-man, using all of her tentacles to attack. Spider-Man dodged, and felt his heart curl inward as the doctor's body landed roughly on the floor, before the tentacles pulled her right back up to go after him again.
She truly doesn't care anymore. Even before she would have noticed... I can't let this continue.
She swung at him again, upper left tentacle, then upper right, then lower left. The lower right came shot out in a spearing strike, while the two left ones took a turn balancing Octavia.
The multi-eyed device over her eyes seemed to read Spider-Man's movement. This allowed Octavia to keep the pressure on, and kept Spider-Man on the move. Each strike was dodged, and paid back with a shot of webbing that was blocked.
Their deadly dance was well practiced, a winner never quite clear till the very end. One would dominate the other before the tide shifted.
Octavia was a thinker, not a fighter. It was how Peter survived his first encounter. She wasn't used to fighting. Over the years she had gotten better, learned new ways to use her tentacles, upgrade them, whatever tools were at her disposal. She learned, but so did Peter.
In this battle, however, Spider-Man turned the tide, he didn't spend all this time not figuring out ways around Octavia's arms. She hadn't considered the strings of webbing sticking to her limbs until it was too late. Though it was not apparent at first, her movements were as fluid and vicious as ever, they were becoming slower, more obvious and easy to dodge.
The new web fluid he has designed contained his own nanites. While only temporary, it was meant to cause discord in the nanites of Octavia's arms. Each arm he hit moved more sloppily, inconsistently, before it was too much for her to use them, becoming weighted noodles. Four became three, three became two, and two quickly became none.
The doctor stopped her assault, simply trying to will the arms to keep her standing, but the already wobbling arms simply collapsed, unable to support themselves let alone the doctor. Peter's experimental web fluid successfully countered the nanites in the arms, making them weak and flimsy, until the doctor herself couldn't will them to move.
Leaving her be for the moment, Spider-Man quickly moved. Removing the device from Mary Janes head, he checked her pulse. She was alive, and that lifted another stone off of Peter's shoulders.
He strode back toward the doctor, who laid in a nest made of her paralyzed tentacles. Her multi-eyed device watched him, but offered no resistance. He carefully lifted her up bridal style, the weight of her nano-mechanical arms meaning nothing to Spider-Man. He gently put her on the gurney adjacent to Mary Jane, who was starting to wake up.
"Pe-Spider-Man?" She questioned, coherent enough to not say his name outright, that was a good sign.
"Are you okay?" He asked quietly.
"Ye-yeah but.." He didn't wait for her to finish her thoughts, and instead pointed to the hole in the wall he came from.
"Follow the tunnel, there is a ladder to get you to the surface. Do not wait for me, go." Peter was not in the mood for his usual chipper nonsense, and Mary Jane could see that. Following his instruction fast, Peter watched her as she disappeared down the tunnel.
Turning back, he removed the upper portion of Dock Ock's mask, revealing Octavia to him. He took a moment to assess the multi-eyed visor, admiring its craftsmanship.
"Spider..." a hand loosely grabbed his wrist, and he found himself looking at the doctor. "You saved the day again..."
Peter didn't want to waste time anymore. He skipped any pretense, as he looked at her face, every second making the reality painfully obvious.
"It's true isn't it? Cancer...you are dying." She seemed to want to laugh, but didn't. Her mouth opened, as though to let one out, but she closed it to ponder for a moment.
"I think I've been dead since... that day, the accident. My body has only decayed, the arms are what made me strong, and kept me moving." Peter looked at the crudely made yet advanced equipment set up around the hideout. To the average Joe, these machines could be meant for anything, nuclear devices, biological weapons, PC gaming. It did not take long for Peter Parker to piece things together.
"Were you planning to..."
"Transfer my mind into a new body?" Spider-Man proved over the years that he was more intelligent than he let on, yet she couldn't help but finish for him. More of a confession on her part really, no point in secret plans anymore. "Yes, it's the only chance I have. The only chance I had."
He was silent for the first time in a while, and that was strange.
"Why Mary Jane? You could have picked anyone in this city and gotten away with it before I could do anything, before anyone would even realize what you had done." He turned to her again. "Instead, you pick Mary Jane Watson. A starlet, a model, you know I've saved her before, you had to have known I would notice." Octavia nodded, not quite looking at Peter. "Was it her fame? Her looks?-"
"I didn't pick her for any of that. Sure, she was pretty, young, a lot of things that I never was, or haven't been for some time..." She turned her head away, looking down one of the unlit tunnels, only darkness contained within. "You want to know... why I picked, her? It wasn't her looks, or her life, it was who she knew."
What?
"In these years of madness, I had few good memories to hold on to. One of them... he was just a kid, but leagues above everyone else, even if he didn't see it yet. He came to my lab, and showed me kindness. Genuine kindness I only got from my... I haven't thought about him for several years, but he popped up in my head now and again. This...thing I've become, it's horrendous, I would never burden him with that, it's bad enough he has probably seen me through other means. But I knew that girl knew him, I knew they had history."
"I thought if I could take that girl's body, I could talk to him again, help him achieve the things I couldn't. Maybe... I could give him what Octavia Octavious never had, and couldn't give." She turned to Spider-Man again, tears running down her scarred face. "If you could tell Peter Parker the truth, tell him I am sorry."
His hand curled into a fist as she spoke, and it shook with barely controlled anger. Her confession sent him through an emotional rollercoaster. Shock, grief, happiness anger, it all swirled in his mind. It made him reckless in his response. He didn't care anymore, not after this.
"So that's it, you're just going to give up? You think I would be happy with that? Knowing you died like this, that I could have helped?" Spider-Man's voice had suddenly become angered, practically furious. The shaking moved to his body.
His sudden aggression confused Octavia, who couldn't quite comprehend why he was suddenly upset. She wasn't afraid, she already faced death, and Spider-Man would be an ironic mercy and fitting end. The hurt in his voice, and the shaking of his shoulders were what confused her, and all she could do was stare at the man, who continued his emotional outburst.
"You've resisted everything thrown at you, just to give in now? You think I would want to know that it ended like...this."
He suddenly ripped his mask off, looking at her, eye to eye. The face she had thought of for years, suddenly was in front of her. The boy, now a man... Spider-Man. No...
"I worshipped you! Your mind, your conscience, wanting to help others... the way you never gave up!" He turned, walking a few steps away from her, furious. He spun back to face her. "You were everything I wanted to be!" He grabbed one of the metallic arms by its end, raising it as though to smash it- "You just...threw it away." -before dropping it back down.
She hadn't felt horror in years, Not since she had become a monster. After the accident, she never wanted him to see her like this. She wanted to hold on to the memory of his smiling face. The adoration, the admiration, the affection. But now looking back on the years of fighting Spider-Man, it only made sense. It also meant that every attack, every slice, every broken bone she ever gave the Spider, she was giving to...
"Peter Parker... I-I don't believe it-Oh my god... You...you've seen what I've become first hand. Don't look at me. Stum looking at me!" She raised her arms, curling away from him, her last line of defense.
She couldn't hide behind her mechanical arms anymore. He moved back to her, prying her human arms away firmly, but not rough. He forced her to look at him. The scarring around her eyes had never healed quite right, her scalp had aggressively thinned, becoming patchy as her condition has worsened over the years, only made worse as the cancer took hold.
He parted the long thinning hairs away from her face. "I have seen who you were, who you can still be." He grabbed her face gently, "We can fix this together."
He couldn't be serious. She laughed weakly, ending in a cough as she gave her old enemy a withering glare.
"And you'll..what? Find me a different girl? Put me in the Raft to die in peace? What can you do that I haven't, Peter?"
"I can help you find a way, without costing anyone else their lives, just like you did before." he grabbed her hands gently, putting them together with his. "Please, believe in me Doc, like I believed in you for years."
Peter knew he had little options. The Raft would let her rot, or let her let herself rot. Shield would take her to custody, and he just didn't trust them to try to help her so much as themselves. The Avengers...no, they would debate, discuss, take too long. He did have one place, he just had to hope they would listen.
"Peter this is-"
"Doctor Octavia Octavius, and the only reason your wife and child are alive."
Reed Richards knew he was right, more than right and that's what made it so hard. He owed this woman a debt he believed he could never pay. This was also a near psychotic super criminal who could and has torn people to pieces. Hiding her here could be trouble for everyone in the Baxter building.
She wasn't much trouble now, considering that she was held up with Spider-Man's assistance. Her apparatus was still recovering from Peter's specialized web fluid, only able to pull their own weight...barely. If things went south, there was no way she could fight.
"What you are asking for-"
"I am asking you to try, please, it will take all of us to figure this out. If you don't help, I'll go somewhere else. She will die in the Raft if I bring her there."
"We will help." Susan Richards spoke from the entryway. Still in her nightgown, she moved forward to the quiet doctor, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder. "You saved my Nathan's life, we owe it to you to try."
2021-October
The idea was insane. It would be considered unethical by many, if so many others hadn't tried it already. Yet they were still trying to tread carefully in the uncharted waters.
Cloning, it wasn't Peter's first rodeo with the concept, but it was the first time he was trying to do it himself. Not alone of course, having the fantastic four and Doctor Octavius to help was a dream, if it wasn't so dire.
Miles Warren was the only one he knew that succeeded in cloning not only himself, including powers, but also Gwen Stacy. He had nearly beaten the man to death, but ironically, his clone convinced him otherwise. The professor was thrown into the Raft, his clone hitting the road with 'Gwen Stacy', he didn't know where they were, and didn't want to, they were free to live their lives. They wouldn't be able to add much anyway, that is why they were using Warren's confiscated data.
Why didn't Peter trust such a thing to SHIELD, was because he simply didn't know if SHIELD could be trusted. He could trust Reed, because Reed understood the risk of cloning an individual. Warren didn't just recreate an individual biologically, but memories, emotions, personality. The other Spider-Man had believed he was the original, until otherwise proven. Peter didn't want that for Octavia. What he wanted to do, is exactly why he needed a brilliant mind like Reed Richards.
The goal was an empty vessel that Octavia could put her body into without robbing another person of their life. Octavia, with some ground rules implemented, was allowed use of her mechanical arms once again. It was risky, but so was everything they were trying to do. If people knew exactly what The Fantastic Four were doing, all sorts of organizations would come to bring the hammer down. It was all based on trust. They trusted Peter, and Peter trusted Octavia. He hoped it was enough.
Peter had looked up for the first time in a while. He had worked so long and so late, he didn't have the energy to physically cringe when he looked at the time. Looking over, he saw Octavia still at work. You wouldn't have guessed she was fighting for her life the way she worked. He made his way over to her, putting a hand on her shoulder.
"Come on Octavia, you need to rest."
Even if Reed wanted him to guard/watch Octavia whenever she was working, Peter would have still looked after his fellow scientist.
"We are so close, Peter."
It was another late night. Someone having her back, supporting her, fired up Octavia's engines once more, but she was stepping back into old habits.
"And we will get there, but you need to rest so you can cross the finish line." He grabbed her human hand gently. "Please?"
Octavia was tempted to argue, but she did feel tired, even if her extra limbs didn't. She remembered the last time she was tired. She had made a mistake, and that mistake...
Peter was right, she should rest.
She sighed. "Alright." Setting her tools aside carefully, making sure nothing was on that didn't need to be, She followed Peter out the door.
They walked down together to her "room". The cryotherapy bed was designed to slow down Octavia's cancer while she rested. Every second that could be bought, so long as it didn't compromise the thin line of morality, was taken. It had to take some redesigning to allow her comfort as she slept, the apparatus made traditional beds complicated.
They reached her room, and she made her way towards her bed. Her arms retracted back into her apparatus, but she was tired, and retracted them too soon and too fast, slipping on her legs, Peter caught her before she could even yelp.
"I got you." Octavia took her time as she looked at the young man. The man she had fought for years, thought of both knowingly and unknowingly. The man who was risking everything he worked for, including his personal relationships, to help her.
"You always do, don't you?" She grimaced at the bed, the canopy required for the cryotherapy to have full effect. "It feels like a coffin." She quietly complained.
"I have seen some at funeral homes, they can be comfy, weirdly enough.' She glared at him."Hey, give it some time, you are going to rest in your own bed, I'm going to fight tooth and nail to make it happen. Remember?"
Peter set her down on the bed, She crawled into it on her own, looking at Peter as the Canopy slowly came down, her body crashing fast.
"If I make it, I am done sleeping alone." and then she was out like a light.
Peter didn't quite grab the context until after he left the room. But he shook his head.
2021-Christmas Eve
"Mama, is Miss Octa-Octavius gonna be okay?" The four year old struggled to pronounce her name, but that he managed to at his age was still impressive. He seemed to have inherited some level of intellect from his parents. Little Nathan liked the lady, even if she looked sickly and mean, like those old cartoons. But she wasn't mean, she was actually very patient with him. She even smiled at him often, something she had rarely done the last few decades of her life.
Perhaps it was the fact he was only alive because of her, that he would live on as a monument of her achievements. A reminder of Reed Richards debt. A debt he was close to paying off.
The body itself was ready, they had watched it grow from a single cell, to a fetus, to a grown woman. It was held in Stasis in a tank of glowing green in the labs. The apparatus that Octavia had made was refined and made ready. Reed was certain it would work, that it was ready, but ever since the Van Allen Incident, he was doubtful, suspicious of his own work. Sue was confident it was fine, that Reed was channeling old emotions. Years later, he was still working through his guilt, of sins long forgiven by the other members of his family.
"She is sick honey, but we are working on making her better. Get some sleep, tomorrow is christmas morning." The "mother" of the Fantastic Four said, retiring for the night. "Say goodnight to Peter and Octavia."
"Nighty night Peta and Octa-Octavia, thank you for the gift Oct-tavia" Nathan showed progress in pronouncing names as he waved goodnight. His unbiased affection toward the scientist made her beam. Peter had reason to believe that the child gave Octavia energy to fight on, even during harder days.
Peter and Octavia were left alone. Johnny had drank too much egg nog and crashed pretty early. Ben had left early to catch a flight with Alicia to see some relatives. Reed had retired a few hours ago, wanting to rest for whatever the next day brought. Octavia and Peter were side by side on a "just as comfy as its selling price" couch. Octavia's blanket hid how thin she was, but it barely hid her smile.
"That child really is a darling." Octavia was in better spirits than she had been in years, her body may have continued its decay, but if she passed now, she felt like it was around people who cared. Living with Sue and Reed, fellow intellectuals, and Peter, someone who idolized her, made her feel like she had mattered again. Seeing little Nathaniel run around, she was reminded that she did some good in this world.
"That child is here because of you, and so is her mother. That is two lives you saved, that is why I know you still can be saved too." He was always rooting in her corner, he stayed true to his word, even when progress seemed to halt. Her expression turned grim, as she felt the need to confess.
"Peter...I did a lot of things, some under a manic state. Other things... I was more than aware of my actions." She made a bony fist under the blanket, unsure of how to say exactly what she wanted to say. She wanted to say many things, especially to Peter. In spite of that, there were other things to say, less pleasant things, that might change his opinion of her.
"I have thought about that, and I contacted a few Lawyer friends of mine, let's call them Matt and Jen. When we get you into a new body, we can work out how to serve your sentence for the better of humanity. There was an Island... It's abandoned now, but not far. House arrest, or Island arrest, sounds a lot better doesn't it?"
"I won't...go back to the Raft?"
"You were never going to Octavia. They were supposed to help you guys, not just lock you up. They hid the fact that you had cancer, from me. After everything I have done, I owe them nothing."
It was unbelievable, the efforts he went through, no one did this for a stranger, even a former idol. She owed him everything. Turning to the artificial fire, she worked up the courage needed to be honest.
"Peter." She looked back at him, his eyes were on her. "I set the explosive off in the glider. I killed Norman Osborn." She confessed. He didn't even blink.
"I know. Well, I theorized, believed the theory, left it at that."
She was the only one that had that level of expertise within the Six, beside Quentin Beck. But while the former film director was smart, he was not THAT smart. She looked away again, still feeling ashamed.
"He was so confident that I wouldn't dare turn on him. Then I saw the plans he had in store. The serum...it healed him from anything minor. I couldn't let him-"
"I couldn't either, that's why I let the police see him in the suit." Peter saw what was in the former CEO's computers, the contingency plans he was going to put into effect. He may not have known Norman well, but the Goblin Serum erased Harry's father, twisted what was left into... something else.
"It's been for the better. Harry has been turning Oscorp around, giving people what they are owed. Ironically, Norman would be proud of him"
"I know your uncle would be proud of you, saving lives, even if some of them aren't-"
"Don't start that again, there is always time to change. You always mattered Octavia, no less than anyone else on this planet."
She turned back to Peter, seeing him staring at the glow. It colorized him in the warmth that seemed to bleed out from him. He turned to her, and gave her that smile. She never wanted him to look away from her. Then he added:
"You always mattered to me."
Tears went down her gaunt cheeks freely, but she was smiling, before she felt a haze in her head, as a buzzing sound rang in her ears.
"Peter...I think it's time.."
"Wait, what do you-"
Octavia slumped into his chest as his Spider-sense rang loudly, and panic pushed Peter into overdrive. He activated the emergency alarm, notifying Reed and Sue immediately, before flying down the halls, Octavia in his arms bridal style. Reed and Sue took the executive elevator, and got there at the same time.
"It's happening now isn't it? we have to prepare for the transfer." Sue said, More to her husband.
"I don't like this, but it's now or never." Reed was hesitant, but Octavia was out of time. All this time spent, they couldn't stop now.
"Let's Do it." Peter made the choice.
Laying her down on the medical bed, he readied the device. Octavia returned to consciousness again. She called out to him weakly. "Peter.."
He came to her side immediately.
"Just hang in there, okay? It will work." It has to.
"Peter, before we start, you need to know-"
"Tell me after."
"No," She grabbed his face. "If this doesn't work. You made these last months, my life, worth living." She pulled him forward, and Peter was more shocked he didn't resist as she pressed her lips to his. In milliseconds he grabbed the back of her head gently, kissing back. She lost consciousness once more.
It was now or never. The device fitted on her scalp, they began the transfer.
The only sounds were the machines and the monitors. The Monitor overlooking her heart rate beeped rapidly before eventually...a long unending beep, echoed throughout the lab.
2022
Spider-Island, that is what his friends called it, those that knew about it anyway. The Fantastic Four helped him build the new facility. Publicly it was going to be a new site for the newly made Parker Industries, It was what they had discussed, whether she made it or not...
Octavia's body was placed beside her mother and father, adjustments were made to avoid desecration, as with all deceased villains, more for their families than themselves. The Avengers made sure of that.
Peter was working late again, having become quite the workaholic over the last six months. He was in his spider suit, his mask somewhere, probably in the sleeping quarters. There was no worry about his identity, anyone that could find the island would have no problem finding out who he was. He was so focused he didn't notice the figure that entered, arms coming from behind him.
He was so focused, he didn't respond when the arms wrapped around his neck. He did turn to meet the lips of his offender.
"You are supposed to be sleeping." He chastised against her lips.
"So are you, so make me." Octavia countered.
Octavia Octavius may still be missing publicly, but she was actually right here, "serving" her sentences. Some were reduced due to pleas of insanity, and her time was being cut down with her "assistance" to help society. It was all low-key, she would be able to forge a new false identity to eventually return to the public. They were currently considering making her Octavia's long lost "daughter", her new body made it believable. They were still working on names.
"You could always...tuck me in." Pressing her chest to his back to emphasize. The technically younger scientist grew red at her boldness.
Peter was so focused on saving her life, he didn't notice the...edits she made to the clone body. She ridden her body of hereditary diseases, removed chances of the cancer returning, but she decided to refine herself even more. It certainly gave her...assets that she felt she lacked. Peter told her he would have had her the way she was. She thought it was sweet of him, but decided to take the opportunity anyone would probably take.
Shiny black hair, flawless skin, and an enhanced athletic body, able to stand on level with the Captain himself. She made herself into the woman Peter saw in her, the woman she wanted to be. It certainly made her more forward. There was a time that Peter feared he was making a copy, and the Octavia he was trying to save would still be dead. A clone that simply "thought" she was Octavius. A visit from Strange resolved that with a quick look at her soul.
Of course her arm design was improved as well. Peter was slightly disturbed at how... bluntly she removed the apparatus from her old body. A majority of it was more or less the same, though she took the opportunity to upgrade. "More efficient." She said, Peter just thought it was cooler.
She didn't need the interface, the arms could move on their own. It was like having a literal pet octopus, it even seemed to have an emotional connection to its creator, judging by the discreet nuzzles it gave Peter. He was still keeping an eye on that, even if his eyes were usually focused on Octavia. The new Silver and black bodysuit complimented her nicely, even an octopus symbol was on the front.
"You were working too, weren't you?" He asked, but he knew.
"More play than work, but I want you to see this." A sleek silver arm brought up a folder in front of him. Opening it up, his eyes widened.
"A new Spider suit? I haven't done red and black since I first started. A refined HUD system, spider arms? Never had the budget before, but now...retractable talons?
"Think of the applications, it could help you tear open walls or doors to get to people. You don't need to slash open criminals Peter, though you certainly could. Your other villains grow stronger every time." She grabbed his Chin, pulling his face to hers.
"I want you to be able to beat them at every turn, to be...Superior." She spoke as she pressed her lips to his.
It was a good night.
And then a portal opened, and a fucking truck flew out of it.
Peter didn't need to tackle Octavia away, their arms around each other made it easy for both to launch themselves away. Peter led the direction while Octavia shielded them with her arms. The truck missed them, and ended up tumbling into the wall, unable to break through the reinforced steel. Planted to the wall with his lady, Peter took note of the woman that came through with it, lying on her side.
He quickly leaped over to her, looking over her for any immediate signs of injury. Her olive green bodysuit made her sex obvious, but a wild beehive hairstyle hid the woman's face. A mask not unlike Peters formed over Octavia's face in reaction to the danger. She was already scanning the woman, ready to yank Peter away, damn fool. Peter however, checked her pulse with his fingers. Both came to the same conclusion at the same time. "She is alive, heart rate is normal ." She declared, as her mask retracted.
Peter turned the woman over, lifting her head for support, his other arm around her shoulders. He assessed her wounds immediately, bruising and some bleeding that she was lucky wasn't worse, considering the truck. He removed the cracked green goggles that should have been his first hint. No faster than he recognized her face, the woman herself awoke.
"Are you okay-Octavia?"
"Spider-Man?" The woman asked back, still hazy.
That was all Octavia needed to immediately grab her man with a tentacle, pulling him away from the woman. The new look-alike sprang alive, wincing, than looking around her surroundings. Two tentacles sprouted out of her back to back to lift her higher. They seemed to have a rubbery, translucent green look.
After taking a full circular view of her surroundings, she planted herself back to the floor. She winced slightly as she posed her arms in a thoughtful manner.
"I see, the Super Collider must have sent me here. Strange, I don't feel like I'm unstable. Too soon to say probably."
Peter was a bit dumbfounded that she seemed to forget their presence.
"Hello there, Doctor Octavius." Octavia grabbed the new "Doc Ock's" attention. "You are definitely not from here." She looked like Octavia's old self, except healthy and happy...and that hair...did she deal with tangles often? "I am guessing you are also Octavia Octavius"
"Olivia actually." The woman said. "I must say, I love your hair, are those arms...nanotechnology? I considered the concept, but Alchemax refused to fund... the bastards."
She was taking this extremely well, which means she was at least aware of the multiverse. That wasn't shocking, Reed Richards made the discovery a few years back.
"I can tell you it was worth the effort, making it shift from liquid to hard structure was one of the hardest challenges, took a few years of Research and Development." Octavia answered her counterpart, as though they were just meeting at a science convention. Olivia's own tentacles seemed to be Pneumatic, making use of either gas or air pressure, she would have to ask, if she could.
"Amazing, speaking of which." She turned her attention to Peter again, Her tentacles zoomed her over to him. "Another Spider-Man? And this one has kept himself in shape, mama likes. I am Olivia Octavius, but you can call me Liv, handsome." She was looking at him with wonder, and dissecting curiosity.
Octavia's tentacles immediately put space between the two, her friendly nature immediately gone, but Peter was quick to calm everyone.
"Lets not get crazy yet, we don't even know each other." He walked around Octavia's tentacles slowly. "Everybody should just retract their tentacles, we are all friends here."
Olivia was very fast to retract her tentacles, Octavia's was deliberately slower. Peter turned back to his new "visitor".
"Olivia was it? I noticed you landed on quite hard on your arm quite hard, may I?" He reached out slowly. When she gave him her arm, he lifted it slowly, taking notice of her wince as he moved it. "Doesn't seem broken, but I would like to give you a scan, make sure you didn't receive a concussion or internal bleeding. You did get sent here by a truck."
Olivia grew red at Peter's gentle touch. "I will give you my consent... Doctor Parker?"
"It's just Peter, I haven't earned a formal degree yet." There was a "That will be corrected" under Octavia's breath. "It sounds like you come from somewhere at least kind of similar? You aren't bent on world domination right? Or have a vendetta with arachnids?"
"No no, I mean I fought with my Spider-Man a couple of times, but it was never a personal beef. As for the other thing, nah, I was a chief scientist at Alchemax, I had all that I needed." A melancholy expression came over her. "My Spider-Man did pass away, but he died a hero, not my doing, that was Osborn and Fisk. Took Osborn down with him though."
Hearing that he was dead in another world was slightly disturbing, but with all that he did, it wasn't shocking he didn't make it sometimes. It kept him grounded, reminded him he wasn't invincible.
"I guess you're technically a villain, but I can't really punish you for anything if it was a separate universe entirely, but we will have to monitor you, if that's okay?" She gave him an optimistic thumbs up.
"Protocol, got it, I'll behave. I am sure I will win you over."
He turned to Octavia. "I am going to set up a bed for her in the medical bay, will you be okay?"
"Absolutely." She replied.
Peter walked through the doorway, Octavia watched his back, and his rear, as he left, as did Olivia. Olivia's brain had registered the six circular shapes on her counterpart's back, but her body failed to catch up.
The moment Peter was out of the room, the doors shut, and the Nanite formed tentacles shot out of Octavia's back. Four of them Grappled Olivia's, the difference in power immediately apparent. The extra two she had installed weren't left out either, one gripped Olivia's neck, the other made a serrated twelve inch blade placed centimeters from piercing her forehead.
"You listen to me right now." Octavia's voice was deathly calm. "Whatever relationship you had with your Spider-Man, this one is mine. And he is the only line between you and imminent death. That line is very thin, don't cross it. Peter will be willing to give you a chance, based on his experiences with me. I know myself, I do not know you."
Olivia handled the threats with grace, and without showing fear, outwardly.
"We certainly have different upbringings, if our names are any indication. I am not hating on you, but Octavia Octavius sounds like a mouthful."
"It will be Parker soon enough." It was her ego that made that verbal slip. Olivia's eyes widened at the bold statement.
"Oh, oh. You two are like that." The serrated blade formed into two, now leveled at Olivia's eyes. Both variants had grown up with an eye phobia, particularly damage.
Once again, Olivia's pokerface was commendable. "I think we are operating on a lot of misconceptions. I wasn't lying when I said I came here by accident."
"And how is your presence here not a danger?"
"For starters, if I go back to where I am from, I am probably going to jail, sound familiar? If I don't go to jail, the Kingpin of New York will have me executed for the failure of achieving his dream, even though it isn't my fault. Finally, I am in a new universe! I have a fresh start here, and that has a lot of potential."
"You mentioned Super Collider, and what do you mean by unstable?"
"I'll give you both the full story when handsome comes back, but the short version is that I tried to bring my bosses dead family back, by getting them from a different dimension where they are alive. An unfortunate side effect during testing was several Spiders were pulled in by accident, the same one my Spider died in and well, they screwed the plan up hard. I just got it to work too! We were all in the middle of fighting when a truck smashed into me, and now, I am here."
"By unstable, the Spiders that were pulled in were glitching out of reality, it was going to cause them imminent death. However, our machine had the bugs worked out before the big fight. Believe me, we will know, and it will only be a real danger to me."
Octavia hadn't loosened her grip at all.
"I won't let you hurt him, I will flay you alive if you do. If you try to take him from me..."
"Honey, I didn't even want to hurt my Spider-Man, he just chose his side, I chose mine." Neither of them lost their cool, although their tentacles stayed in a death grip, Olivia was vying for peace. Neither had stopped analyzing the other during the entire interaction. It was then, Olivia noticed, within the other Doc Ock's octopus symbol, was a very discreet spider symbol. Olivia let her expression become soft.
"Your Spider...he cares doesn't he? Not like most of our peers, I presume?"
"He saved my life, and my soul. I belong to him, he belongs to me."
Olivia smiled. "Ours was a good soul as well, blonde too, but I already prefer the mop of chocolate on your Spider's hair." Octavia warmed at the praise for her lover, but her possessive side kept a cold steel grip on the other woman.
"I wonder if Peter would dye his." Octavia wondered aloud. Olivia decided to make for peace, letting her extra arms go limp. Les Peter sees them in a death grip upon returning, that wouldn't be good for her new muse.
"Please let me go, Octavia, I can tell the difference in power between our arms anyhow. I swear by my status as a scientist, otherwise let me die of molecular instability."
Octavia released each of Olivia's arms one by one, each one ready to snap back in case her counterpart tried anything. Finally she released her neck, before stepping away.
"What do you really want, Olivia?"
"If I can stay, a fresh start, without the red tape from my old world. I want a Spider-Man that will let me study him willingly, safe experiments of course. I'd like to have civil discussions with my counterpart on scientific theory, swap notes maybe?"
All if it seemed agreeable, and for what Octavia had done, and where she was now, she would be a massive hypocrite to not-
"Finally... I wanna ride your Spider like a Harley."
-Peel the flesh from her bones. "I just said-"
"I don't want to take him from you...okay that's a lie, I can already tell he is a fine, fine catch." Seeing her words weren't exactly appealing to Octavia, she continued. "Let's cut to the heart of the matter, I am not here to just sabotage 'my' own love life. How about before we decide anything, lets take our time, yeah? I can tell he won't let me just jump his bones, especially with the way he looks at you. Let me earn your trust, show you I mean well, maybe in a year, we will give him a valentines day surprise, unless you think two Doc Ocks are too much for him to handle?"
It was far too quiet in the lab. Finally Octavia spoke.
"He definitely has the stamina." She smirked, offering her hand in agreement. "Very well, I'll give you a chance, I know Peter already has. Like I said before, if you hurt him I will flay you alive, and that's just to start."
Olivia took the threats in stride, grasping her hand gently.
"I'd expect nothing less, we will get along swimmingly dear." Coming closer to Octavia, she whispered. "I wouldn't mind exploring you too."
This woman was gonna be a riot to be around.
"Octavia? I got the spare room ready. Olivia, are you able to remove your apparatus? We can alter the bed otherwise."
Smiling, the woman's own apparatus removed itself simply, much like Octavia's before her...first accident.
"Thank you Peter, I hope this doesn't cause too many...complications."
"Nah, things like this happen as often as taco tuesdays. How about we show you to your room, figure things out in the morning...like the truck." He responded, giving a slide glance against said truck, laying on its side, maybe he could convert it for use around here, if he could fix it?
The suddenly made trio now exited the lab, Octavia walking parallel to Peter, Olivia only a few feet behind them. The Spider showed an odd amount of trust, but most likely because he had Spider-sense, and Octavia had six robotic "eyes" on her back.
"Did everything go okay? Is she okay?" There were multiple questions beneath his words, but she could tell his concern for her "other" was genuine. Though she kept a tentacle eyed on Olivia, she didn't need it to see her other smirk out of the corner of her eye.
"I think everything will be okay Peter," She slid her hand into his. "How about we put my 'sister' to bed', so that we can go to bed."
She was done sleeping alone, and she meant it.
End
Author's Note:
And scene! I hope you guys enjoyed this one. The feedback I have received from the first chapter has been great. I can't wait for all your thoughts on this one.
Do leave a review. Let me know how you feel about Spider-Man, and his femme fatales, as characters. Do you like them? Do you find them likeable? Does Spider-Man feel like Spider-Man? Let me especially know how you guys feel on the Villain(ness)'s of the story.
Another Chapter will be out in two weeks max like before. After that I am not sure, might be a short break while I work on my other anthology.
Until then, my friends.
Rework Edit:
If this is your first time reading, wassup? but you're also probably a little confused. TLDR: I've re-edited pretty much every chapter up to 6, hopefully debuting at the same time as chapter 7.
Story has almost completely stayed the same. I've added an extended fight sequence, and also some more backstory between Octavia's parents. Also expanded upon the Fantastic 4s role in the story, as I felt like I glossed over way too much.
I feel that this version is superior, and ultimately it is the same story. I hope those of you revisiting feel the same way.
till then friends.
-Timing
