The next person Doctor Octopus sought out was Rhino. Unlike Scorpion and Electro, Rhino didn't harbor a deep-seated hatred for Spider-Man; in fact, the two had barely even clashed. Therefore, Otto needed a new reason to persuade him to join the team.
"Aleksei, it's been a long time."
When Otto appeared before Rhino, the honest man sitting motionless in his cell stared at Otto for a long while before it finally clicked: "Dr. Octavius? They said you were dead."
"Yes, and so I have been reborn—more energetic and younger than ever." Otto smiled. "I have a plan, and I need your help. I intend to take my revenge on Norman Osborn and crush anyone who stands in my way. The greatest threat is Spider-Man."
Rhino said nothing, clearly uninterested.
"That is why I am here to hire you, Aleksei. During this time, I have been contemplating your wife's illness, and I have found a way to save her. Not only that, but I can guarantee that when this is all over, I can remove that bionic skin from your body—something even the Avengers couldn't achieve."
Doctor Octopus spoke persuasively to Rhino. "If you don't believe me, then once we are out, I will cure your wife first. You can pay me my commission after that. How does that sound?"
Rhino looked up at Doctor Octopus. "Is it a deal?"
"It is a deal, Aleksei."
Rhino required no additional equipment. His bionic metal skin was irremovable, which was why he was forced into a high-security cell. Of course, now those security measures made little difference.
Doctor Octopus led them to the next cell. This one was even more peculiar, featuring heavy-duty isolation facilities. At Otto's signal, Rhino smashed through the enclosure, and they watched as a pile of sand flowed out. Soon, Sandman coalesced into human form.
"Mr. Flint?" Otto extended an invitation. "Your talents are very unique and creative. Have you considered helping us defeat Spider-Man?"
"Why should I help you deal with Spider-Man?" Sandman voiced a fundamental doubt. "He helped me break my curse so I wouldn't be killed by Hydra. I have no reason to fight him."
"True, but because of that, you can only survive in this cage for the rest of your life. Imagine: would people ever trust a criminal member of Hydra? Even if you got out, could you do any job other than crime? Would others accept you?"
"Not to mention, I can lead you to make a fortune. A vast amount of money."
Sandman fell silent for a moment and then narrowed his eyes.
Minutes later, Doctor Octopus led the group to the cell holding Mysterio. To their surprise, a fight was already in progress. The prisoners hadn't even escaped yet and were already fighting among themselves.
Among them, "Shocker" Herman Schultz had been quite resourceful. He had found a fallen Ultron drone that had been torn apart by angry inmates and used the repulsor transmitter parts inside to cobble together a temporary shock gauntlet. He had come to rescue his cellmate, Mysterio.
Instead, he ran right into Doctor Octopus and the others.
"Octavius? I heard you were dead."
"I am very much alive. Prepare to run for your life, Herman; that opportunity is coming soon," Otto said as he walked toward Mysterio. At that instant, Shocker raised his shock gauntlet and aimed it at Otto.
Before he could say a word, he was swatted away by one of Otto's mechanical tentacles. Otto sighed helplessly; it was truly tedious that someone actually believed Pym's nonsense.
Quentin Beck was clearly terrified, huddled in his corner, clutching his head and afraid to speak. Otto had Sandman pry Quentin's hands open, then smiling, he placed a newly crafted light-particle controller onto Quentin's head.
"Like I said, Quentin, Spider-Man didn't actually remove his mask. He was just using psychology to deceive you."
"Perhaps you're right, Doctor Octopus."
A non-existent suit appeared on Quentin's body. His helmet filled with white mist, and green smoke swirled around him. Then, Mysterio's confident and majestic voice replaced Quentin Beck's cowardly one.
"And this time, Mysterio will not be deceived by Spider-Man."
After Peter rapidly contacted the Avengers, he encountered a most troublesome situation: By analyzing recent A.I.M. data, Ultron determined that the equipment of most of the American Avengers was controlled by A.I.M. Today, the American Avengers were scheduled to protect the President at an event before departing.
The reason the American Avengers were sent to protect the President was due to intelligence suggesting that terrorists from the Ten Rings would attack him.
This was clearly a rigged performance. Consequently, Captain America took the remaining members of the Avengers to stop A.I.M., while news broke that Tony Stark's West Coast mansion was being attacked by terrorists.
Almost simultaneously, the X-Men found Senator Kelly and discovered the Brotherhood of Mutants attempting to attack him during his speech.
It was also at this time that the data transmission from the Raft prison vanished.
No matter how one looked at it, something had gone wrong. Peter contacted the Fantastic Four, asking them to rush over. Then, he used a Sling Ring to open a portal, bringing Wanda and Pietro to the Raft. Kitty was responsible for persuading Senator Kelly, so Peter sent her back to New York via portal.
As for Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch, Magneto had given special permission for them to help, provided they stayed safe.
Then, the moment they emerged, they saw prisoners running rampant everywhere.
"Remember to stay safe..."
Peter hadn't even finished his sentence before Quicksilver sped away. Peter sighed helplessly and looked at Wanda. "Stay safe, Wanda. Also, if you can, please find Ant-Man and the Wasp."
"You be careful too, Spider-Man."
After watching Wanda leave, Peter moved forward. He cast a spell on himself to enhance his Spider-Sense, but after walking for a short while, the sense began to blare.
Spider-Sense was ringing? Why wasn't he seeing short fragments of the future? Besides, there was clearly nothing around...
?!
Feeling the air pressure, Peter immediately raised his arms to block. He was then sent flying by a massive force. Peter landed gracefully, his hands surging with electricity, and then...
And then the electricity vanished.
Three people who had attacked him emerged from a void: Mysterio wearing his helmet, Scorpion with a newly attached tail and artificial spine, and... Electro?
"How are you alive, Max?"
"Surprised I survived, are you? It's fine, Spider-Man, you're in for even more surprises!"
Spider-Sense was screaming, but there was no way to feel where the threat was coming from because threats were everywhere. Peter intended to move away, only to find his feet pinned by sand that had appeared out of nowhere.
"Sandman? I'm so disappointed. I remember I was the one who broke your curse."
Sandman emerged behind him, using sand to solidify his limbs. "Sorry, Spider-Man, but I thought about it carefully, and maybe I'm just not suited for a normal life. So, my apologies!"
Rhino charged out from nowhere and smashed through Sandman. Peter nimbly latched onto Rhino's neck. Because his bio-electricity had been absorbed by Electro, he had temporarily lost his wall-crawling ability and was forced to hang onto someone else's neck: "Uh, hello? Aleksei, why are you mixed up in this too!"
Kicking Rhino in the stomach, Peter performed a backflip and landed. "What is this, a Losers' Alliance? Who's the leader? If I'd known you guys formed a team, I would have brought my symbiote along."
"You really should have brought your symbiote, Spider-Man."
Accompanied by a laugh that was both familiar and strange, Peter saw the Techno-Wizard walking over. No—seeing the glasses, the new hairstyle, and the mechanical tentacles, Peter recognized who it was.
"Dr. Otto Octavius? You're actually alive?"
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