A lonely warehouse in the dead of night. There was a robbery taking place. Three men clustered around a safe, and two of them attempted to move it while the third acted as lookout, and peered around the corner with sharp eyes.
He held up his hand to stop them and said “Hold it, you guys, I think I hear somethin’!”
“Relax, Charlie,” one of his buddies said. “It was probably just a mouse.”
Suddenly the most awesome image in crimefighting appeared directly on the wall above the startled thieves.
“Mouse?” a voice erupted with incredulity from behind them. “You’ve never seen a mouse like this before!”
“Look, it--it’s--” The criminal who had begun to speak could hardly form the words, stunned as he was--as they all were--by the red glow of the spider-signal on the wall in front of them. It glared at them, a grim reflection of the face of Spider-Man’s mask, and before they knew it, Spider-Man himself was jumping into their midst.
“Don’t be shy, fella! You can say my name. It’s Spider-Man!”
“Get ‘im!” shouted the bravest of the burglars as he pointed with gusto. “There are three of us! He can’t take us all!”
But Spider-Man sprang forward and punched two of them at the same time, right in the face. “Brother, you’re living in a fool’s paradise!” he chastised them as he clobbered them all, then hung them from the side of the building with a hefty dose of web-fluid from his wrist-mounted shooters.
And with that, Peter removed his mask and said “Computer, end program.”
Just like that, the entire cityscape vanished, including the roof beneath his feet, which he’d climbed to in order to survey his imaginary stomping grounds with pride, hands on his hips.
He had to take advantage of opportunities like this now, to keep his reflexes sharp and hone his skills. Captain Picard had seen to it to promote him to Ensign after his work with Doctor Cobbwell and some other jobs he’d gotten involved in around the ship, thus earning a bit of a name for himself. He didn’t want to get too proud, and he certainly didn’t need the attention if he was going to continue to cavort and caper as Spider-Man…but his aunt needed him to succeed, so he took the promotion for what it was worth, standing right alongside Wesley Crusher as he, too, earned a promotion.
It’s going to be more of a challenge, but I’ve earned it. Now I need a real challenge as Spider-Man. Everyone I’ve faced so far has been too easy to beat in combat. Heck, I didn’t even have to be there to take down Captain Picard when he was The Vulture. Data could have done that by himself! Good thing I never really mixed it up with that Q guy, regardless…
Little did Spider-Man suspect that his frivolous wish was about to come true! For at that moment, in the confines of engineering…
“Here comes Doctor Octopus!” Chief Engineer Argyle said to Chief Engineer MacDougal.
MacDougal looked at him askance and asked “Doctor Octopus? Why do they call him that?”
“Watch! You’ll see in a minute. I just hope he’s nothing like that Kosinski we just had on board.”
MacDougal’s lips pressed into a thin line in response. She hadn’t met Kosinski personally, but the stories had flown around rather quickly about how horribly egotistical he was. She didn’t want an experience with someone like that if she could help it. Still, Doctor Octopus was supposed to be able to put right what had been done to the engines in Kosinski’s recent experiment, one which had inadvertently flung them to the end (or the beginning?) of the universe. Their dilithium articulation frame was damaged in the tumult, and the radiation held in check by the containment field surrounding the warp core would kill anyone who tried to repair it without a heavy suit. The crew was more than capable, but it would take extra time without Doctor Octopus’ new innovation, which he was eager to try out.
Soon the doors to engineering slid open, and Commander Riker led a man inside. He was rather stout, with a mop of brown hair and--spectacles? Probably for show. But the most striking feature about him as he strode into the room was the harness clamped around his midsection, which had four silver-gray metallic arms sprouting from it like the arms of an octopus. They were segmented, and each had three fingers at the end for manipulation of materials.
MacDougal smirked but said nothing. She looked at Argyle’s eyes to see if he was doing the same thing, and he didn’t turn, but stood at attention and looked with his eyes, around which creases suddenly appeared.
“See?” He explained quietly. “It’s that especially-designed contraption that he wears, which enables him to perform his experiments behind the containment field which shields him from radiation. He created that get-up himself, and he’s the only scientist permitted to wear it! He’s the most brilliant atomic researcher in Starfleet today!”
Octopus beamed at the compliments, smiling as they approached and Riker made the necessary introductions.
“I’ll just get to work, shall I?” He told them without preamble. “I know my way around a warp core, though if you’d care to watch and ensure that I don’t break anything, I would appreciate it.”
Argyle liked him already. He was much more polite than that upstart Kosinski.
Such a man was Otto Octavius, better known to his coworkers as Doctor Octopus. He stopped short of the containment field and stared up at the throbbing warp core with admiration. Then, within seconds, he was tentatively reaching through it with his metallic arms, which were inorganic and therefore allowed to penetrate it. The field flared briefly around them before settling into a new pattern, always remaining airtight to prevent the release of harmful radiation.
My artificial extra arms permit me to work safely with volatile chemicals which are far too dangerous to touch without protection. Though others fear radiation, I alone am able to make it my servant!
Octavius carefully peeled off the lid to the lid to the frame and began to inspect the interior, turning over each crystal and inspecting for cracks before moving on, groping more deeply and seeking the root of the problem.
But nothing is ever perfect, not even the projects of Doctor Octopus! And, as the unsuspecting atomic genius conducted his experiment…
“Look!” cried MacDougal. “The radiation-meter has gone wacky! Something’s wrong! There’s going to be an explosion!”
“Sound the alarm!” Argyle shouted in a dignified fashion. He manipulated the controls in order to seal off the room immediately after their departure. Commander Riker ran straight for Octavius, but Argyle stopped him by grabbing his arm.
“Sir! There’s no time!”
Riker could see the rapid buildup in the equipment all around them and acquiesced. They bolted from the room in an orderly fashion, every officer who was present, and the doors closed behind them…and then an explosion rocked the very deck beneath them. Riker braced himself on the bulkhead while some crewmembers fell and others did as he did, including the two Chiefs who were present. Then he checked a readout on the wall panel by the door, confirmed that it was safe to enter, and began to punch in his override code.
When the doors finally slid apart, Riker dashed into the room first and checked on Octavius, followed closely by Argyle and MacDougal. He quickly checked the fallen scientist for a pulse and then…
“He’s still breathing! I hope we’ve reached him in time.” Riker tapped his combadge. “Doctor, we’ve got a patient for you.”
In the hours that followed, after exhaustive tests…
“My readings show an uncertain amount of brain damage,” Doctor Crusher patiently explained to Captain Picard, Commander Riker and the two engineers, who all stood clustered in sickbay around Octavius’ bed. “I’m afraid his mind has been permanently damaged. And we can’t remove those artificial arms of his yet, either. The radiation has caused them to adhere to his body in some strange way.”
“Would it be safe to wake him? See what kind of condition his mind is in?” Riker asked.
Crusher shook her head. “It might be a few days. I’m sorry, I just can’t know for certain until I run more tests. I‘d also better keep him inside of a restraining field just in case he‘s not himself when he does come to.”
Picard nodded. “Do it.”
Days later, the brain of Doctor Octopus--the brain which had been damaged by radiation--reacted in a bitter way…
“What am I doing here? Let me up! I must return to my work!”
Doctor Crusher emerged from her office and came over to admonish him.
“No! You’ve been very ill. You must stay in bed. You need the rest.”
With that, she stepped away from him and returned to her work. But Octavius kept his eyes half-lidded and waited for her to leave.
They’re jealous of me! They want to keep me from my work! But I’ll show them! I’m stronger than any of them!
He struggled for a moment, and felt that there was something wrong with his head, but could not for the life of him figure out exactly what had happened. He wanted to touch it, to feel where he had been injured.
I’ve been restrained! They’re trying to make a prisoner of me! The fools! No one can hold Doctor Octopus against his will! No one! I’ve got to break this restraint!
Then, suddenly, at just a suggestion of a thought by Doctor Octopus, his artificial arms moved as though they had a will of their own. They rose from the sides of the bed and obliterated the restraining field with blow after powerful blow.
I did it! My arms did it! Their strength is incalculable! They can do anything! Somehow my mechanical arms have become almost a part of me! They obey my every command! With such power and my brilliant mind, I’m the supreme human being in the galaxy!
“Computer,” Doc Ock called.
“Working,” the omnipresent voice replied.
“Locate Doctor Crusher.”
“Doctor Crusher is in her quarters.”
With that, Doc Ock rushed toward the doors to sickbay and out into the corridor, to implement a plan. His fevered mind worked quickly as he considered his options, and he failed to notice the young ensign he ambled past, who stopped to watch him with undisguised suspicion.
That guy’s up to no good, Peter thought when he passed Octavius in the corridor. I don’t know what was up with those arms on his back, but it looks like I might have just gotten myself some action worthy of Spider-Man!
With that thought lingering in his mind, he rushed back to his quarters to change and then asked the computer for the location of Doctor Otto Octavius.
Doctor Octopus forced open the door to Lieutenant Commander Argyle’s quarters and brashly stepped inside. Argyle looked up from his computer screen and stood up with a start.
“What are you doing?” Argyle asked, treading carefully with this brain-damaged and potentially dangerous individual.
“I want you to come with me to engineering. There’s a task I must perform. You’re going to gather the appropriate equipment for me.”
“Now Ock…”
“No arguments! Come now or I’ll break your spine with my octopus arms!”
As Argyle made to exit, Ock stopped him with a casual but disturbing gesture made with one of his metal arms. “Oh, and remove that pin on your chest. You won’t be needing it.”
Argyle sighed inwardly and removed his communicator, then preceded Ock out the door.
Spider-Man watched them advance down the corridor from the safety of the Jeffries tubes and followed them toward engineering.
When they got inside, Ock immediately pushed Argyle toward one of the computers.
“Activate the isolation protocols for this room. No one gets in or out without my say-so.”
Argyle turned on him with a desperate glare. “You can’t keep all of us prisoners forever, Doctor Octopus. There’s no point to this. Captain Picard will get in here with a full security detail, and when this is over you’ll be incarcerated in a Federation prison. Why don’t you let me go and end this?”
“Not until I’m ready! With my powers, no one can resist me! You’ll remain to serve me until I no longer need you--and not before!”
Well, well, Peter thought from a vantage point just above them, so the good doc’s flipped his lid, eh? This is just what I’ve been hopin’ for--a little action!
“But this is mad!” Argyle continued to argue. “You have no right--!”
Ock lifted him high off the ground and pinned him to the wall. “Right? You dare speak to me of right? I have the right to do anything--as long as I have the power! And if you doubt my power, here is a small sample…”
“Don’t do it, Doctor…”
Looks like it’s time for Spider-Man to join the party before he really hurts Mr. Argyle!
Spider-Man punched out the panel beneath him and dropped into the middle of the fray. “Hold it, Doc! How about pickin’ on someone who can fight you back?”
“Spider-Man!” Ock exclaimed, dropping the Lieutenant Commander. The two of them took up fighting stances and stared each other down.
“Well I sure ain’t Captain Picard!”
“You dare speak flippantly to me? You fool! When I’m finished with you, you’ll sing a different tune!”
Ock attempted a pincer attack with two of his arms, which Spider-Man deftly bounded over, saying, “You don’t think those dumb-looking flappers of yours can move fast enough to catch Spider-Man, do you?”
But a third one of them caught him in the jaw and knocked him on his back.
“Surprised? Doctor Octopus is far more powerful than you dreamed! Far more powerful than even you!”
While they battled, Argyle rushed over to the computer console. He was being ignored, as Ock was intent on crushing Spider-Man.
Spidey webbed two of Ock’s arms together as they went to grab his inert form. “Don’t let that one lucky punch go to your head, pal! I’ve got a few more surprises!”
“Ah, most ingenious of you! Your spider’s web!! But as you can see, holding only two of my arms isn’t enough!” Ock told him as he got to his feet. “I still have more!”
No time to shoot my web again! He’s faster than I expected! But I can still grab his other arms! Oof! It takes all my strength! He--he also has superhuman strength!
Just then, Lieutenant Commander Argyle pantomimed for one of his staff to contact security.
My web…Peter thought as he watched Ock perform his next feat of strength, incredulous. …he snapped it! Nobody has ever done that before!
“And now, super-man,” Ock said with mounting pretense, “I grow bored with this game! My time is too valuable! Now watch me trap a spider in a web of my own--a web made of my newfound arms! Your strength is merely that of a spider, but mine is the energy of an atom, born of a nuclear accident!”
I’m helpless! Can’t fight all those arms at once! Don’t know what to do next! He’s just toying with me!
Ock pulled him close and slapped him--the ultimate humiliation. “You dared to mock me before! Why aren’t you mocking me now? Where are your brave words and taunts now, Spider-Man?”
He then flung Spider-Man out the door and, with a start, realized that the room was no longer barricaded. He rounded on Argyle.
“What did you do?!” he practically roared, but Argyle simple shrugged.
“I don’t know what you expected, Doctor. You’re not yourself! You don’t know what you’re doing!”
Ock turned and thrashed the central computer console until sparks erupted from it, causing several of the engineering staff to jump back in alarm. He then stalked with purpose toward the throbbing warp drive and gazed at it with reverence.
“I will harness the power of this mighty engine and use it toward my own ends. Get that field back into place--now!”
Spider-Man pushed himself onto his hands and knees in the corridor. He beat me! I--I never had a chance! I didn’t even give him a good fight! He could’ve finished me off any time he wanted to! What do I do now? I’ve never been beaten before! But this time, my spider powers were not enough! Is this the end of Spider-Man?
He was going to take his mask off to soothe his oncoming headache, but it was soon exacerbated by the sound of booted feet charging along the deck in his direction. He quickly got up, ignored how beaten and chagrined he felt and dashed off, his head hanging in shame.
“Stop right there!” one security officer shouted.
“Nevermind him,” Tasha Yar said. “The trouble’s in there.”
Ock watched Argyle operate the controls as he tried to compensate for the destroyed center console, and then looked up in shocked outrage as Lieutenant Yar, Worf and a full security complement entered engineering, weapons drawn.
“Ha! What is this pitiful--”
A phaser blast interrupted his carefully-tailored monologue, and Doctor Octopus dropped to the floor, stunned. Even his metallic arms weren’t fast enough to block a phaser blast.
“Take him to the brig,” Yar ordered as she holstered her recently-discharged weapon.
“Hello, Petey!” one of the female cadets called out to him as she passed with Flash and another friend in the corridor. “Hey, what’s with him? He didn’t answer!”
“Him?” Flash replied. “He’s down in the dumps! Looks like he lost his favorite test tube!”
There’s no one I can talk to…no one who’d understand…
Even Wesley had a hard time getting through to him, and in the end decided that he’d simply give his friend some space.
Peter walked around in a funk the next couple days. When he finally answered Aunt May’s persistent comms, she could tell that something was the matter.
“What’s bothering you, Peter dear?”
“I…I don’t know, Aunt May. I feel like such a failure.”
Her weathered face showed concern for her poor nephew. “Why, Peter? You’ve come so far in such a short time. How many youngsters your age have been promoted to acting Ensign? Captain Picard surely likes you, and so does that Admiral Jameson. You don’t have to do everything right all the time, just do the right thing.”
Peter couldn’t help but smile a little at that bit of advice. “I know. It’s hard for me to handle it when I mess up, is all.”
“You’ll get through it, Peter. I know you will.”
“Thanks, Aunt May.”
He activated his comm screen to see that the Human Torch was going to transmit a speech to the crew from Four Freedoms Plaza. The rest of the Fantastic Four were away on a mission, but he had been asked to address them in the wake of so many recent bizarre and arguably superhuman appearances. Some of them were questionable, like The Chameleon, but still seemed to fit the general description of, for lack of a better term, a comic book character.
Peter went to his quarters and activated his screen, still depressed but willing to see what the Torch had to offer.
“I’m sure you’re all expecting some kind of dazzling display of my powers!” The Torch began. “But I’ve used my flame so much recently, I have to wait a few days to let it get strong again! While I’m waiting, your Captain asked me to address you…”
If only I had his power…his confidence! But that’s easy when you’ve never been beaten!
“Now for a little demonstration! I can’t apply my total flame, but here are some fiery figures for you!” He moved his hands through the air with a flourish, and soon a flaming equation stood in the air in front of him: 2+2
3
“This is what usually happens when The Thing helps me with my homework! I get results like this!”
Then, after a few more colorful demonstrations…
“Now, for a parting thought! Stick to your duties and do your best in your chosen field! Don’t be discouraged if it sometimes seems tough! The important thing is never give up! Remember that--never give up! Ability alone isn’t enough! It’s one lesson I’ve learned from my partnership with The Fantastic Four!”
It’s almost as though he’s talking to me!
“Even The Fantastic Four have had defeats--but we always come back! Our motto is never say die!”
He’s right! Dammit, he’s right!
Peter found himself fired up at the end of the speech, and once it was done he found himself striding through the corridors of the ship with newfound resolve. He found himself wandering past the brig, when it became apparent that Doc Ock had managed to break out! He donned his costume in private and then emerged to confront Doc Ock for a second round. It wouldn’t be long before the ship’s crew arrived to apprehend him, but Spider-Man wanted the first shot. So he stood directly in front of him, defiant and proud.
“You must be a fool to want to challenge me again, Spider-Man! No matter. I defeated you once easily enough, I can do it again!”
“Don’t worry, I’m not fooling around this time!”
Spider-Man leapt in low, tucked and rolled, and came up right in front of Ock, who backed away quickly and brought his arms in at Spidey’s back. His spider-sense clued him in to the attack, but while he could dodge one or two of the offending limbs, he could not dodge all of them. His ankle was snagged, and soon he was hanging upside-down.
“I should have realized sooner, Octopus, the best defense is a smashing offense!”
With that declaration, he shot his webbing directly at Ock’s face, obscuring his eyes.
“That blasted web!” Ock cried, putting his hands to his face. “It’s spread out over my glasses! I--I can’t see! Can’t get it off!”
Even though he can no longer see me, his other arms are now around me--pulling me toward him with incredible strength!
“Ah…there!!” Ock yelled triumphantly. I got them off!”
I’ve got two of his arms apart, but I dare not let go of them!
“Give up, fool! Sooner or later you’ll have to let go, and then I’ll have you!” Ock raged as he took a shot at Spider-Man with his regular fist.
I’ve got one chance…but I’ve got to time it to the split-second or I’m finished!
“Now!”
Suddenly, Spider-Man let go of Doctor Octopus’ arms and, at the same instant, lashed out with a smashing right.
I did it! I knocked him out! I had to let him go, and then strike faster than he could move! Strange that an old-fashioned punch to the jaw defeated the most dangerous villain I’ve ever faced! Better not take any chances! I’ll wrap my webbing around him many times while he’s out. He’ll never be able to snap this!
Once again he was interrupted by booted feet, but this time he stayed and watched with glee as they collected the unconscious villain.
“It’s Octavius.” Yar told her team. She knelt to check him over, and quickly declared, “He’s unconscious?”
Worf bristled at what he saw. “That is Spider-Man’s web,” he said through gritted teeth.
“What did he do? Set Octavius free and then beat him up?” Yar stood. “I doubt he would do that, but how would Octavius have escaped the brig?”
The brig guard came to, and found himself surrounded. Captain Picard stood impassively to the side while Yar questioned him.
“It’s those arms. He broke out using nothing but those arms!”
“How?” Yar demanded.
The guard’s arms flew out to his sides and then flopped immediately back down. “They’re strong! He just…beat on the force-field until it went down.”
Yar turned to Picard. “We’ll have to find a better way to contain him. May I recommend shackles, sir?”
“It appears we have no other option. Yes, shackle those arms so he cannot maneuver them to break himself out again. We’ll create multiple safeguards to make certain we can transport him to somewhere where he can receive the correctional help he needs.”
Wes caught up with Peter in the corridor after he’d changed out of his costume and was headed toward Ten-Forward for a celebratory root beer.
“Looks like you’re feeling better,” he told his pal with a smile.
“Yeah, I don’t know why I was feeling so down,” Peter replied. “I don’t know, it just…doesn’t it sometimes feel like you’re going nowhere fast?”
“We’re both acting Ensigns, Captain Picard loves us…”
Why do I feel like I’ve had this conversation once already?
“…and we serve on the one and only ship in the fleet that has The Amazing Spider-Man on board!”
They entered Ten-Forward.
“I get it, Wes, I do. Sometimes it still just feels like the same old thing day in and day out. Do you ever wish you were really in the thick of it, like Commander Riker, or Data…or even Spidey?”
It was a private joke, one that even Wesley wouldn’t get, but Peter pressed on. “We just do our duties the same way every day. When something goes wrong for us, it hits many orders of magnitude higher than one of those legends screws up.”
Wes and Peter took their usual seats by the windows and a server took their order--two root beers.
“It’s not like that, Peter. Not at all! Usually I just think of it as a learning experience. We’re so young and we know so much already.” He laughed. “We could probably run this ship if we had to.”
Peter laughed at that too. “I bet we could.”
In the meantime, Captain Picard was having an entirely different montage of thoughts and feelings overtake him. He sat alone in his ready room with his usual earl gray and felt sorry for the poor Doctor Octavius, who had already lost his mind, and had to suffer the additional humiliation of being beaten by Spider-Man. He couldn’t deny that in this instance, Spider-Man had done him a favor, but it was nothing his crew couldn’t handle on their own. On a starship, a man with powerful metallic arms was hardly a threat unless he got the drop on everyone, and the odds of that were astronomically low. With the raw speed and power of a simple hand-held phaser added to that, it was a cinch every time. Picard wondered what in the blazes Spider-Man thought he was doing. Did he truly believe he was helping? Did he believe that his interference was needed?
Counselor Troi didn’t bother to barge in this time. Maybe she’d finally wised up and realized that Spider-Man was a menace. It was more likely, though, that she simply thought it best to refrain from bothering him when he was overtaken with such broodings.
He wandered over to his fish, Livingston, and watched him swim for a bit, then retreated to the window to watch the stars streak by. He wanted to enjoy the peace while it lasted, because Admiral Jameson was going to have some choice words for him about this most recent incident.
It took some time for the wounds to heal. The engine room was operating at peak efficiency once more by the end of the week, and the Enterprise was off once more in search of new life and new civilizations. Lieutenant Commander Argyle recovered his dignity fairly quickly, for everyone understood that Doctor Octopus was a force to be reckoned with as long as those arms hung from his back. He was no threat on board a starship, but if he actually had his wits about him, who knew what he’d be able to pull off?
The Enterprise crew put the whole sorry incident behind them, and warped off for parts unkown.
He held up his hand to stop them and said “Hold it, you guys, I think I hear somethin’!”
“Relax, Charlie,” one of his buddies said. “It was probably just a mouse.”
Suddenly the most awesome image in crimefighting appeared directly on the wall above the startled thieves.
“Mouse?” a voice erupted with incredulity from behind them. “You’ve never seen a mouse like this before!”
“Look, it--it’s--” The criminal who had begun to speak could hardly form the words, stunned as he was--as they all were--by the red glow of the spider-signal on the wall in front of them. It glared at them, a grim reflection of the face of Spider-Man’s mask, and before they knew it, Spider-Man himself was jumping into their midst.
“Don’t be shy, fella! You can say my name. It’s Spider-Man!”
“Get ‘im!” shouted the bravest of the burglars as he pointed with gusto. “There are three of us! He can’t take us all!”
But Spider-Man sprang forward and punched two of them at the same time, right in the face. “Brother, you’re living in a fool’s paradise!” he chastised them as he clobbered them all, then hung them from the side of the building with a hefty dose of web-fluid from his wrist-mounted shooters.
And with that, Peter removed his mask and said “Computer, end program.”
Just like that, the entire cityscape vanished, including the roof beneath his feet, which he’d climbed to in order to survey his imaginary stomping grounds with pride, hands on his hips.
He had to take advantage of opportunities like this now, to keep his reflexes sharp and hone his skills. Captain Picard had seen to it to promote him to Ensign after his work with Doctor Cobbwell and some other jobs he’d gotten involved in around the ship, thus earning a bit of a name for himself. He didn’t want to get too proud, and he certainly didn’t need the attention if he was going to continue to cavort and caper as Spider-Man…but his aunt needed him to succeed, so he took the promotion for what it was worth, standing right alongside Wesley Crusher as he, too, earned a promotion.
It’s going to be more of a challenge, but I’ve earned it. Now I need a real challenge as Spider-Man. Everyone I’ve faced so far has been too easy to beat in combat. Heck, I didn’t even have to be there to take down Captain Picard when he was The Vulture. Data could have done that by himself! Good thing I never really mixed it up with that Q guy, regardless…
Little did Spider-Man suspect that his frivolous wish was about to come true! For at that moment, in the confines of engineering…
“Here comes Doctor Octopus!” Chief Engineer Argyle said to Chief Engineer MacDougal.
MacDougal looked at him askance and asked “Doctor Octopus? Why do they call him that?”
“Watch! You’ll see in a minute. I just hope he’s nothing like that Kosinski we just had on board.”
MacDougal’s lips pressed into a thin line in response. She hadn’t met Kosinski personally, but the stories had flown around rather quickly about how horribly egotistical he was. She didn’t want an experience with someone like that if she could help it. Still, Doctor Octopus was supposed to be able to put right what had been done to the engines in Kosinski’s recent experiment, one which had inadvertently flung them to the end (or the beginning?) of the universe. Their dilithium articulation frame was damaged in the tumult, and the radiation held in check by the containment field surrounding the warp core would kill anyone who tried to repair it without a heavy suit. The crew was more than capable, but it would take extra time without Doctor Octopus’ new innovation, which he was eager to try out.
Soon the doors to engineering slid open, and Commander Riker led a man inside. He was rather stout, with a mop of brown hair and--spectacles? Probably for show. But the most striking feature about him as he strode into the room was the harness clamped around his midsection, which had four silver-gray metallic arms sprouting from it like the arms of an octopus. They were segmented, and each had three fingers at the end for manipulation of materials.
MacDougal smirked but said nothing. She looked at Argyle’s eyes to see if he was doing the same thing, and he didn’t turn, but stood at attention and looked with his eyes, around which creases suddenly appeared.
“See?” He explained quietly. “It’s that especially-designed contraption that he wears, which enables him to perform his experiments behind the containment field which shields him from radiation. He created that get-up himself, and he’s the only scientist permitted to wear it! He’s the most brilliant atomic researcher in Starfleet today!”
Octopus beamed at the compliments, smiling as they approached and Riker made the necessary introductions.
“I’ll just get to work, shall I?” He told them without preamble. “I know my way around a warp core, though if you’d care to watch and ensure that I don’t break anything, I would appreciate it.”
Argyle liked him already. He was much more polite than that upstart Kosinski.
Such a man was Otto Octavius, better known to his coworkers as Doctor Octopus. He stopped short of the containment field and stared up at the throbbing warp core with admiration. Then, within seconds, he was tentatively reaching through it with his metallic arms, which were inorganic and therefore allowed to penetrate it. The field flared briefly around them before settling into a new pattern, always remaining airtight to prevent the release of harmful radiation.
My artificial extra arms permit me to work safely with volatile chemicals which are far too dangerous to touch without protection. Though others fear radiation, I alone am able to make it my servant!
Octavius carefully peeled off the lid to the lid to the frame and began to inspect the interior, turning over each crystal and inspecting for cracks before moving on, groping more deeply and seeking the root of the problem.
But nothing is ever perfect, not even the projects of Doctor Octopus! And, as the unsuspecting atomic genius conducted his experiment…
“Look!” cried MacDougal. “The radiation-meter has gone wacky! Something’s wrong! There’s going to be an explosion!”
“Sound the alarm!” Argyle shouted in a dignified fashion. He manipulated the controls in order to seal off the room immediately after their departure. Commander Riker ran straight for Octavius, but Argyle stopped him by grabbing his arm.
“Sir! There’s no time!”
Riker could see the rapid buildup in the equipment all around them and acquiesced. They bolted from the room in an orderly fashion, every officer who was present, and the doors closed behind them…and then an explosion rocked the very deck beneath them. Riker braced himself on the bulkhead while some crewmembers fell and others did as he did, including the two Chiefs who were present. Then he checked a readout on the wall panel by the door, confirmed that it was safe to enter, and began to punch in his override code.
When the doors finally slid apart, Riker dashed into the room first and checked on Octavius, followed closely by Argyle and MacDougal. He quickly checked the fallen scientist for a pulse and then…
“He’s still breathing! I hope we’ve reached him in time.” Riker tapped his combadge. “Doctor, we’ve got a patient for you.”
In the hours that followed, after exhaustive tests…
“My readings show an uncertain amount of brain damage,” Doctor Crusher patiently explained to Captain Picard, Commander Riker and the two engineers, who all stood clustered in sickbay around Octavius’ bed. “I’m afraid his mind has been permanently damaged. And we can’t remove those artificial arms of his yet, either. The radiation has caused them to adhere to his body in some strange way.”
“Would it be safe to wake him? See what kind of condition his mind is in?” Riker asked.
Crusher shook her head. “It might be a few days. I’m sorry, I just can’t know for certain until I run more tests. I‘d also better keep him inside of a restraining field just in case he‘s not himself when he does come to.”
Picard nodded. “Do it.”
Days later, the brain of Doctor Octopus--the brain which had been damaged by radiation--reacted in a bitter way…
“What am I doing here? Let me up! I must return to my work!”
Doctor Crusher emerged from her office and came over to admonish him.
“No! You’ve been very ill. You must stay in bed. You need the rest.”
With that, she stepped away from him and returned to her work. But Octavius kept his eyes half-lidded and waited for her to leave.
They’re jealous of me! They want to keep me from my work! But I’ll show them! I’m stronger than any of them!
He struggled for a moment, and felt that there was something wrong with his head, but could not for the life of him figure out exactly what had happened. He wanted to touch it, to feel where he had been injured.
I’ve been restrained! They’re trying to make a prisoner of me! The fools! No one can hold Doctor Octopus against his will! No one! I’ve got to break this restraint!
Then, suddenly, at just a suggestion of a thought by Doctor Octopus, his artificial arms moved as though they had a will of their own. They rose from the sides of the bed and obliterated the restraining field with blow after powerful blow.
I did it! My arms did it! Their strength is incalculable! They can do anything! Somehow my mechanical arms have become almost a part of me! They obey my every command! With such power and my brilliant mind, I’m the supreme human being in the galaxy!
“Computer,” Doc Ock called.
“Working,” the omnipresent voice replied.
“Locate Doctor Crusher.”
“Doctor Crusher is in her quarters.”
With that, Doc Ock rushed toward the doors to sickbay and out into the corridor, to implement a plan. His fevered mind worked quickly as he considered his options, and he failed to notice the young ensign he ambled past, who stopped to watch him with undisguised suspicion.
That guy’s up to no good, Peter thought when he passed Octavius in the corridor. I don’t know what was up with those arms on his back, but it looks like I might have just gotten myself some action worthy of Spider-Man!
With that thought lingering in his mind, he rushed back to his quarters to change and then asked the computer for the location of Doctor Otto Octavius.
Doctor Octopus forced open the door to Lieutenant Commander Argyle’s quarters and brashly stepped inside. Argyle looked up from his computer screen and stood up with a start.
“What are you doing?” Argyle asked, treading carefully with this brain-damaged and potentially dangerous individual.
“I want you to come with me to engineering. There’s a task I must perform. You’re going to gather the appropriate equipment for me.”
“Now Ock…”
“No arguments! Come now or I’ll break your spine with my octopus arms!”
As Argyle made to exit, Ock stopped him with a casual but disturbing gesture made with one of his metal arms. “Oh, and remove that pin on your chest. You won’t be needing it.”
Argyle sighed inwardly and removed his communicator, then preceded Ock out the door.
Spider-Man watched them advance down the corridor from the safety of the Jeffries tubes and followed them toward engineering.
When they got inside, Ock immediately pushed Argyle toward one of the computers.
“Activate the isolation protocols for this room. No one gets in or out without my say-so.”
Argyle turned on him with a desperate glare. “You can’t keep all of us prisoners forever, Doctor Octopus. There’s no point to this. Captain Picard will get in here with a full security detail, and when this is over you’ll be incarcerated in a Federation prison. Why don’t you let me go and end this?”
“Not until I’m ready! With my powers, no one can resist me! You’ll remain to serve me until I no longer need you--and not before!”
Well, well, Peter thought from a vantage point just above them, so the good doc’s flipped his lid, eh? This is just what I’ve been hopin’ for--a little action!
“But this is mad!” Argyle continued to argue. “You have no right--!”
Ock lifted him high off the ground and pinned him to the wall. “Right? You dare speak to me of right? I have the right to do anything--as long as I have the power! And if you doubt my power, here is a small sample…”
“Don’t do it, Doctor…”
Looks like it’s time for Spider-Man to join the party before he really hurts Mr. Argyle!
Spider-Man punched out the panel beneath him and dropped into the middle of the fray. “Hold it, Doc! How about pickin’ on someone who can fight you back?”
“Spider-Man!” Ock exclaimed, dropping the Lieutenant Commander. The two of them took up fighting stances and stared each other down.
“Well I sure ain’t Captain Picard!”
“You dare speak flippantly to me? You fool! When I’m finished with you, you’ll sing a different tune!”
Ock attempted a pincer attack with two of his arms, which Spider-Man deftly bounded over, saying, “You don’t think those dumb-looking flappers of yours can move fast enough to catch Spider-Man, do you?”
But a third one of them caught him in the jaw and knocked him on his back.
“Surprised? Doctor Octopus is far more powerful than you dreamed! Far more powerful than even you!”
While they battled, Argyle rushed over to the computer console. He was being ignored, as Ock was intent on crushing Spider-Man.
Spidey webbed two of Ock’s arms together as they went to grab his inert form. “Don’t let that one lucky punch go to your head, pal! I’ve got a few more surprises!”
“Ah, most ingenious of you! Your spider’s web!! But as you can see, holding only two of my arms isn’t enough!” Ock told him as he got to his feet. “I still have more!”
No time to shoot my web again! He’s faster than I expected! But I can still grab his other arms! Oof! It takes all my strength! He--he also has superhuman strength!
Just then, Lieutenant Commander Argyle pantomimed for one of his staff to contact security.
My web…Peter thought as he watched Ock perform his next feat of strength, incredulous. …he snapped it! Nobody has ever done that before!
“And now, super-man,” Ock said with mounting pretense, “I grow bored with this game! My time is too valuable! Now watch me trap a spider in a web of my own--a web made of my newfound arms! Your strength is merely that of a spider, but mine is the energy of an atom, born of a nuclear accident!”
I’m helpless! Can’t fight all those arms at once! Don’t know what to do next! He’s just toying with me!
Ock pulled him close and slapped him--the ultimate humiliation. “You dared to mock me before! Why aren’t you mocking me now? Where are your brave words and taunts now, Spider-Man?”
He then flung Spider-Man out the door and, with a start, realized that the room was no longer barricaded. He rounded on Argyle.
“What did you do?!” he practically roared, but Argyle simple shrugged.
“I don’t know what you expected, Doctor. You’re not yourself! You don’t know what you’re doing!”
Ock turned and thrashed the central computer console until sparks erupted from it, causing several of the engineering staff to jump back in alarm. He then stalked with purpose toward the throbbing warp drive and gazed at it with reverence.
“I will harness the power of this mighty engine and use it toward my own ends. Get that field back into place--now!”
Spider-Man pushed himself onto his hands and knees in the corridor. He beat me! I--I never had a chance! I didn’t even give him a good fight! He could’ve finished me off any time he wanted to! What do I do now? I’ve never been beaten before! But this time, my spider powers were not enough! Is this the end of Spider-Man?
He was going to take his mask off to soothe his oncoming headache, but it was soon exacerbated by the sound of booted feet charging along the deck in his direction. He quickly got up, ignored how beaten and chagrined he felt and dashed off, his head hanging in shame.
“Stop right there!” one security officer shouted.
“Nevermind him,” Tasha Yar said. “The trouble’s in there.”
Ock watched Argyle operate the controls as he tried to compensate for the destroyed center console, and then looked up in shocked outrage as Lieutenant Yar, Worf and a full security complement entered engineering, weapons drawn.
“Ha! What is this pitiful--”
A phaser blast interrupted his carefully-tailored monologue, and Doctor Octopus dropped to the floor, stunned. Even his metallic arms weren’t fast enough to block a phaser blast.
“Take him to the brig,” Yar ordered as she holstered her recently-discharged weapon.
“Hello, Petey!” one of the female cadets called out to him as she passed with Flash and another friend in the corridor. “Hey, what’s with him? He didn’t answer!”
“Him?” Flash replied. “He’s down in the dumps! Looks like he lost his favorite test tube!”
There’s no one I can talk to…no one who’d understand…
Even Wesley had a hard time getting through to him, and in the end decided that he’d simply give his friend some space.
Peter walked around in a funk the next couple days. When he finally answered Aunt May’s persistent comms, she could tell that something was the matter.
“What’s bothering you, Peter dear?”
“I…I don’t know, Aunt May. I feel like such a failure.”
Her weathered face showed concern for her poor nephew. “Why, Peter? You’ve come so far in such a short time. How many youngsters your age have been promoted to acting Ensign? Captain Picard surely likes you, and so does that Admiral Jameson. You don’t have to do everything right all the time, just do the right thing.”
Peter couldn’t help but smile a little at that bit of advice. “I know. It’s hard for me to handle it when I mess up, is all.”
“You’ll get through it, Peter. I know you will.”
“Thanks, Aunt May.”
He activated his comm screen to see that the Human Torch was going to transmit a speech to the crew from Four Freedoms Plaza. The rest of the Fantastic Four were away on a mission, but he had been asked to address them in the wake of so many recent bizarre and arguably superhuman appearances. Some of them were questionable, like The Chameleon, but still seemed to fit the general description of, for lack of a better term, a comic book character.
Peter went to his quarters and activated his screen, still depressed but willing to see what the Torch had to offer.
“I’m sure you’re all expecting some kind of dazzling display of my powers!” The Torch began. “But I’ve used my flame so much recently, I have to wait a few days to let it get strong again! While I’m waiting, your Captain asked me to address you…”
If only I had his power…his confidence! But that’s easy when you’ve never been beaten!
“Now for a little demonstration! I can’t apply my total flame, but here are some fiery figures for you!” He moved his hands through the air with a flourish, and soon a flaming equation stood in the air in front of him: 2+2
3
“This is what usually happens when The Thing helps me with my homework! I get results like this!”
Then, after a few more colorful demonstrations…
“Now, for a parting thought! Stick to your duties and do your best in your chosen field! Don’t be discouraged if it sometimes seems tough! The important thing is never give up! Remember that--never give up! Ability alone isn’t enough! It’s one lesson I’ve learned from my partnership with The Fantastic Four!”
It’s almost as though he’s talking to me!
“Even The Fantastic Four have had defeats--but we always come back! Our motto is never say die!”
He’s right! Dammit, he’s right!
Peter found himself fired up at the end of the speech, and once it was done he found himself striding through the corridors of the ship with newfound resolve. He found himself wandering past the brig, when it became apparent that Doc Ock had managed to break out! He donned his costume in private and then emerged to confront Doc Ock for a second round. It wouldn’t be long before the ship’s crew arrived to apprehend him, but Spider-Man wanted the first shot. So he stood directly in front of him, defiant and proud.
“You must be a fool to want to challenge me again, Spider-Man! No matter. I defeated you once easily enough, I can do it again!”
“Don’t worry, I’m not fooling around this time!”
Spider-Man leapt in low, tucked and rolled, and came up right in front of Ock, who backed away quickly and brought his arms in at Spidey’s back. His spider-sense clued him in to the attack, but while he could dodge one or two of the offending limbs, he could not dodge all of them. His ankle was snagged, and soon he was hanging upside-down.
“I should have realized sooner, Octopus, the best defense is a smashing offense!”
With that declaration, he shot his webbing directly at Ock’s face, obscuring his eyes.
“That blasted web!” Ock cried, putting his hands to his face. “It’s spread out over my glasses! I--I can’t see! Can’t get it off!”
Even though he can no longer see me, his other arms are now around me--pulling me toward him with incredible strength!
“Ah…there!!” Ock yelled triumphantly. I got them off!”
I’ve got two of his arms apart, but I dare not let go of them!
“Give up, fool! Sooner or later you’ll have to let go, and then I’ll have you!” Ock raged as he took a shot at Spider-Man with his regular fist.
I’ve got one chance…but I’ve got to time it to the split-second or I’m finished!
“Now!”
Suddenly, Spider-Man let go of Doctor Octopus’ arms and, at the same instant, lashed out with a smashing right.
I did it! I knocked him out! I had to let him go, and then strike faster than he could move! Strange that an old-fashioned punch to the jaw defeated the most dangerous villain I’ve ever faced! Better not take any chances! I’ll wrap my webbing around him many times while he’s out. He’ll never be able to snap this!
Once again he was interrupted by booted feet, but this time he stayed and watched with glee as they collected the unconscious villain.
“It’s Octavius.” Yar told her team. She knelt to check him over, and quickly declared, “He’s unconscious?”
Worf bristled at what he saw. “That is Spider-Man’s web,” he said through gritted teeth.
“What did he do? Set Octavius free and then beat him up?” Yar stood. “I doubt he would do that, but how would Octavius have escaped the brig?”
The brig guard came to, and found himself surrounded. Captain Picard stood impassively to the side while Yar questioned him.
“It’s those arms. He broke out using nothing but those arms!”
“How?” Yar demanded.
The guard’s arms flew out to his sides and then flopped immediately back down. “They’re strong! He just…beat on the force-field until it went down.”
Yar turned to Picard. “We’ll have to find a better way to contain him. May I recommend shackles, sir?”
“It appears we have no other option. Yes, shackle those arms so he cannot maneuver them to break himself out again. We’ll create multiple safeguards to make certain we can transport him to somewhere where he can receive the correctional help he needs.”
Wes caught up with Peter in the corridor after he’d changed out of his costume and was headed toward Ten-Forward for a celebratory root beer.
“Looks like you’re feeling better,” he told his pal with a smile.
“Yeah, I don’t know why I was feeling so down,” Peter replied. “I don’t know, it just…doesn’t it sometimes feel like you’re going nowhere fast?”
“We’re both acting Ensigns, Captain Picard loves us…”
Why do I feel like I’ve had this conversation once already?
“…and we serve on the one and only ship in the fleet that has The Amazing Spider-Man on board!”
They entered Ten-Forward.
“I get it, Wes, I do. Sometimes it still just feels like the same old thing day in and day out. Do you ever wish you were really in the thick of it, like Commander Riker, or Data…or even Spidey?”
It was a private joke, one that even Wesley wouldn’t get, but Peter pressed on. “We just do our duties the same way every day. When something goes wrong for us, it hits many orders of magnitude higher than one of those legends screws up.”
Wes and Peter took their usual seats by the windows and a server took their order--two root beers.
“It’s not like that, Peter. Not at all! Usually I just think of it as a learning experience. We’re so young and we know so much already.” He laughed. “We could probably run this ship if we had to.”
Peter laughed at that too. “I bet we could.”
In the meantime, Captain Picard was having an entirely different montage of thoughts and feelings overtake him. He sat alone in his ready room with his usual earl gray and felt sorry for the poor Doctor Octavius, who had already lost his mind, and had to suffer the additional humiliation of being beaten by Spider-Man. He couldn’t deny that in this instance, Spider-Man had done him a favor, but it was nothing his crew couldn’t handle on their own. On a starship, a man with powerful metallic arms was hardly a threat unless he got the drop on everyone, and the odds of that were astronomically low. With the raw speed and power of a simple hand-held phaser added to that, it was a cinch every time. Picard wondered what in the blazes Spider-Man thought he was doing. Did he truly believe he was helping? Did he believe that his interference was needed?
Counselor Troi didn’t bother to barge in this time. Maybe she’d finally wised up and realized that Spider-Man was a menace. It was more likely, though, that she simply thought it best to refrain from bothering him when he was overtaken with such broodings.
He wandered over to his fish, Livingston, and watched him swim for a bit, then retreated to the window to watch the stars streak by. He wanted to enjoy the peace while it lasted, because Admiral Jameson was going to have some choice words for him about this most recent incident.
It took some time for the wounds to heal. The engine room was operating at peak efficiency once more by the end of the week, and the Enterprise was off once more in search of new life and new civilizations. Lieutenant Commander Argyle recovered his dignity fairly quickly, for everyone understood that Doctor Octopus was a force to be reckoned with as long as those arms hung from his back. He was no threat on board a starship, but if he actually had his wits about him, who knew what he’d be able to pull off?
The Enterprise crew put the whole sorry incident behind them, and warped off for parts unkown.