Appearing in 1st story
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
- Infinite Solutions (First appearance)
- Harry (First appearance; dies)
- Unnamed Guards
- X-Ray (James Darnell)
Other Characters:
- Peter Parker (Awakens from coma)
- U-Foes (Mentioned)
- Vector (Simon Utrecht) (Mentioned)
- Eric (First appearance)
- NYPD (Mentioned)
- Barry (Mentioned)
- Wes (First appearance)
- Lord / God (Yahweh) (Invoked)
- Hulk (Bruce Banner) (Mentioned)
- Dr. Burdick
- Beyond Corporation
- Spider-Man (Ben Reilly) (Referenced)
- Basir
- Avengers (Mentioned)
Races and Species:
Locations:
- Earth
- United States of America
- New York
- New York City
- Manhattan
- Safe House #32B (First appearance)
- Lower East Side
- 42nd Street
- Midtown
- The Raft, Bronx (Mentioned)
- Manhattan
- New York City
- New York
- United States of America
- Hell (Invoked)
Items:
- Doctor Octopus' Tentacles
- iPad (Mentioned) (Topical Reference)
- Omni-Scanner
Synopsis for 1st story
With the medical staff not knowing exactly how to treat Peter in a coma, May asks his forgiveness as she turns to Doctor Otto Octavius; who charms her upon their meeting once more. Not wanting to waste more time, May inquires on Otto's device which he explains will catalogue the radiation signatures of the scene of the U-Foes's attack on Empire State University. At the impact crater, May finds a shred of fabric nonconforming to fashion with Peter's collegiate contemporaries. With their samples on scene too degraded for field study, they take the fabric for examination at Otto's Safe House #32B, where Otto attempts to be suave while the analysis processes. But before taking another path of investigation, May voices her want to find Peter a cure while Otto voices his goal of helping and protecting her to the best of his ability.
With the analysis complete, Otto finds a rare air pollutant found exclusively in the industrial district alongside a specific type of radiation. Uncertain of who they'll find, Otto dons his mechanical tentacles attached with an omni-sensor to recreate the needed radiological elements for their research. Arriving at the location, an apartment complex, May uses the call button to ask building super Eric to allow her and her "husband" to check out a room; her maternal dialogue earning an easy entry. Inside, Otto deduces that the room was used by the U-Foes and Eric informs him that a company named Infinite Solutions cleaned it up immediately afterwards. When May finds a clue with the Omni-Scanner, Otto explains how they'll need a larger sample for a cure, and their flirting had an uncomfortable Eric give them the business card to find Infinite Solutions in order to leave.
Learning online that Infinite Solutions holds and transfers super-criminals to trial or prison, May talks their way in the front door but they leave soon after as their cover story can take them no further. With the front door no longer a viable option, Otto takes May upwards to a top floor server room, they look for data on X-Ray and Vapor in order to make the necessary cure. Detecting them in separate detention cells, they find X-Ray in an open holding area before a guard finds them and gets a shot off as Otto attacks warning other guards. As Otto races to fight the guards approaching, he gives May the keycard of the guard he just struck and the Omni-Scanner so she could gain the sample from Vapor.
Seeing a chance to fight, X-Ray tricks a guard to deactivate the power dampeners before killing him. Disappointed in X-Ray's lackluster performance, Otto easily overwhelms him and demands to know his connection to their current location. X-Ray explains the U-Foes's failed fight with Hulk[1], then imprisonment, followed by their escape and getting a job which led to their encounter with the two Spider-Men[2], before their recent incarceration. But X-Ray's mentioning of the other Spider-Man as "superior" offends Otto, but he grows intrigued by the more advanced Spider-Man mentioned. Taking the sample from X-Ray, more guards arrive ordering Otto to surrender, but seeks to "correct" their misunderstanding of his standing among villains.
Once May arrives at Vapor's cell, the super criminal asks to be called Ann and the two connect over their snarky sarcasm. With introductions done, May explains Peter's importance to her as well as his injury caused by the U-Foes attack on ESU. Despite Ann's self view that she's a bad guy, May simply views her as someone who's made mistakes in life, and that one of her mistakes led to Peter's hospitalization. As the doctor's can't help, Ann questions how she possibly could as May opens the door to her cell. Answering that a simple of her biology is needed for a cure, Ann happily complies with painlessly giving the sample and the two part amicably.
With Otto having taken down many security guards, he demands to know who is at the pinnacle of authority behind Infinite Solutions, finding an endless loop of shell companies tracing. But as he threatens a still conscious agent, May walks in on him and demands he stop. Apologizing and explaining his uncovering a conspiracy, she doesn't want to hear it and returns his equipment no longer wanting any part in his activities. But as Otto tries to elaborate his need to use his power in a "the means justify the ends" ideal, May believes he has used his powers irresponsibly and tearfully takes her leave. Sometime later, May gets a phone call from Dr. Burdick that an anonymous delivery gave his team the research needed to treat Peter. Heading over to McCarthy Medical while angry Otto still did the right thing, May thanks Burdick's team upon arrival before finding Peter awake from his coma, quipping again before the two hug.
Elsewhere at night, Doctor Octopus attacks a satellite location for Infinite Solutions, which he swiftly deduced to be a shell company for the Beyond Corporation. Taking a keycard off a guard, Doctor Octopus gains access to the core servers and is offended to find that Beyond took assets from the defunct Parker Industries, turning their Spider-Man into an inferior copy based off his work. Not abiding their 'plagiarism' of his Spider-Man technology, Doctor Octopus swears to show Beyond that he stands superior to them, and aims to bring them down.
Solicit Synopsis
• With her nephew at death's door, May Parker is not just going to sit around accepting that Peter's ailments aren't solvable with conventional means.
• Aunt May is going to seek UNCONVENTIONAL MEANS by way of her ex-fiancé DOCTOR OCTOPUS!!!
• One of the most controversial couples in comics history is back together, and they're Peter Parker's only hope of living through BEYOND!Trivia
- With Infinite Solutions revealed as a shell company for the Beyond Corporation, it can be deduced that the U-Foes were covertly hired by Beyond to showcase Ben Reilly as their Spider-Man while indirectly leading them to removing the original Spider-Man.
- Otto has somehow regained his memories of creating Parker Industries and being the Superior Spider-Man.