Power Struggle

At his secret hideout in Manhattan, Doctor Octopus completes construction of a set of replacement mechanical arms.[1] With the mechanical arms are completed, commands his slave, the Answers, to place the mechanical arms on his body. With the arms in working order, Otto Octavius proclaims that Doctor Octopus is now complete.

Meanwhile, in Queens, the Beetle and Stegron have offered the Sinister Syndicate an exchange, Spider-Man for their stolen atomic blaster. Hardshell refuses to accept this exchange as AIM has offered to buy the weapon for a billion dollars unless the Beetle can match that offer. The Boomerang, however, is furious at Jenkins for leaving him to die in prison during their last partnership and attacks the Beetle.[2] Furious at Boomerang for attacking, Hardshell tries to blast him, but he dodges it, and she strikes Stegron instead. This puts Stegron into a range and he lashes into the other members of the Sinister Syndicate. In the middle of the battle, both the Beetle and the Vulture try to grab the atomic blaster. By this time, Spider-Man wakes up and quickly assesses the situation. Realizing that he's in big trouble unless he gets free, the wall-crawler uses all his strength to break free from his bonds. While his foes are distracted, Spider-Man leaps up onto a nearby rooftop to catch his breath and reload his web-shooters. While everyone is distracted by the wall-crawler's escape, the Beetle makes his escape with the atomic blaster. He is followed by the Vulture and is wants the atomic blaster for himself to cure his cancer.[3] As the others follow after them, Hardshell is being observed by someone calling himself Strikeback. While on the nearby roof, Spider-Man tries to fight the pain, but blacks out.

Meanwhile, Doctor Octopus and the Answer go to the ruins of Empire State University, to recover the remains of his mechanical arms.[4] Doctor Octopus intends to steal the computer processor that allows him to control the Answer and destroy him, unaware that the Answer can still hear his thoughts and begins trying to come up with a solution to his problem. Once inside the facility where the arms are stored, the Answer is forced to use his powers to deflect all the defense systems. As they reach the chamber where the arms are stored, Spider-Man comes crashing through the window to stop them. Seeing this, the Answer wonders if he somehow summoned the wall-crawler in response to his dilemma. Doctor Octopus orders the Answer to defend him from Spider-Man. At first, something prevents the Answer from using his power to defend them, when suddenly, he manages to create a forcefield which the wall-crawler crashes into. As they escape, Doctor Octopus and the Answer escape with the remains of the Doctor Octopus' previous mechanical arms and escape. As they leave, Doctor Octopus bounces off a containment capsule on the roof. The damage is only noticed by a single bee, which flies into the capsule. Back inside, Spider-Man recovers and realizes that he is too late to stop his foes from escaping.

Not far away, the Beetle is trying to escape from the Vulture with the atomic blaster he stole from the Sinister Syndicate. The Vulture is determined to get the device back as it is the one thing that could cure his terminal cancer.[5] Ripping off the power packs off the Beetle's armor, the Vulture manages to grab the atomic blaster and flees. That's when Hardshell catches up with him. When she hears why he stole the atomic cannon, she tells him that he can use the cannon to cure himself then they can sell it to AIM. The Vulture admits that he hasn't thought of it, but this was merely a distraction for Hardshell to try and get the weapon back. Dodging out of the way, the Vulture loses the blaster to Stegron, who is passing by on the roof of a truck being driven by the Rhino. Following behind them is Boomerang, who intends to grab the blaster and use it to kill the Beetle.

Not far away, Doctor Octopus decides to stop and dispose of the Answer. The Answer tries to resists, but it is a losing battle. However, before Doctor Octopus can kill the Answer, Otto is interrupted just as all the villains who are fighting over the atomic blaster come crashing into them, literally. Spider-Man also arrives on the scene as the villains begin fighting over the blaster. When Stegron tries to get the weapon away from Hardshell he is blasted by the mysterious cyborg calling himself Strikeback. Seeing Strikeback for the first time, Hardshell instantly recognizes him, but can't believe who it is. As Stegron and Strikeback trade blows, the Answer tries to getaway. By this point, Doctor Octopus manages to get hold of the atomic blaster and tries to use it to destroy the Answer. That's when Spider-Man comes swinging in and strikes Otto. Unfortunately, the weapon was still primed to go off and the feedback knocks both men out. That's when yet another player enters the scene, the Swarm, who won't let the raging battle distract him from destroying their mutual foe, Spider-Man.

Recurring Characters

Doctor Octopus, Answer, Sinister Syndicate (Boomerang, Rhino, Hardshell, Vulture), Beetle, Stegron, Spider-Man, Strikeback, Swarm

Continuity Notes

1. The mechanical arms of Doctor Octopus were destroyed in Lethal Foes of Spider-Man #1.

2. The Beetle allowed Boomerang to get arrested in Deadly Foes of Spider-Man #1.

3. The Vulture revealed he had cancer in The Spectacular Spider-Man #186-188.

4. Empire State University was severely damaged by the Human Torch in Fantastic Four #372. Doctor Octopus also mentions that Sabretooth was recently on the campus in Spider-Man Punisher Sabretooth Designer Genes #1.

5. The Vulture revealed he was dying of cancer in The Spectacular Spider-Man #186-188.