if only you had known me

[doctopoda]

Who: Otto Octavius doctopoda and you!
What: Otto's off on a trip to Excelsior City!
When: mid-March
Where: Excelsior City
Content Warnings: none



i. for with that grand collision

[Excelsior City! It would probably be great, if there hadn't been a Confluence-fueled metahuman fight here not that long ago!

Otto and Norman are in town for a few days to tour the housing facilities. As prospective neighbors? Yes, obviously! Probably. Anyway! As long as they're in town, Otto has a bit of unfinished business from his arrival: heading back to repay that shop he low-key looted when he first arrived here. 

Is that entirely necessary? Probably not. Nearly everyone has told him that it isn't, and technically he's sure they're right; they've probably got insurance to cover that sort of thing. But Otto can't...let it go. He can't. There's nothing he can do to make amends to any of the people he hurt back home. Even if he weren't stuck in another dimension entirely, there still wouldn't be much he could do. How do you begin to just make up for such a casual disregard for so many lives? He doesn't even know for certain how many people might have been hurt or killed - they'd been nothing more than collateral.

Paying for a broken window is something he can do. It's small and achievable. Come hell or high water, he is going to do it.

It's not hard to find the place again. He's got a good memory, and the actuators have better ones. When he gets there, the little hardware store is in much worse shape than he left it - part of the roof was smashed in by something or other, and water is still somehow dripping from the shattered beams down into the sodden remains of the place's inventory. It's sort of a mess.

Fortunately, Otto still has that unlimited credit card. He's more than happy to give a larger chunk of that (frankly sort of suspicious) unlimited money to someone else! After their talk, the shopkeeper looks him up and down.]

You're another mad scientist type, huh?

Unfortunately.

You above using those things to do some work?

[He arches an eyebrow, surveying the damage again.] ...no, not at all.

[And this is how Otto ends up low-key conscripted into repair and recovery efforts for most of the day! He doesn't mind. He's always found a certain satisfaction to working with his hands, building and creating. Generally that hasn't involved actual manual labor - god, it reminds him of his father - but...well, at least here, there's nothing to worry about. He won't build something dangerous or make some hideous mistake. All he has to do is spend a few hours focusing on clearing debris or nailing boards, and at the end of the day there's a cleaner interior or a repaired roof to show for it. It's...actually sort of nice.

Most of that day is spent on the roof of the hardware store. He's easily visible there, reared up on the lower actuators to tear out broken, rotting beams. On later days, you might also see him swept up with some random recovery crew elsewhere in the city. Whether it's clearing debris or getting started on repairs, there's always a need for strong arms, and he’s got those in spades!]

ii. came a grave consequence

[Honestly, it's been a pleasant few days away from the Diadem Hotel. Otto's starting to get used to going out in public as a terrifying tentacle monster! Things like that seem to be a little more expected here - apparently it's a city of mad scientists. Unfortunate for them, but there it is. More than that, even, is the fact that there aren't quite as many extradimensional transplants here. Otto doesn't know most of them. A fair amount of them, however, seem to know him. It's stressful. Every time he leaves the hotel room and sees the other strangers living there, he can't stop wondering if they've been hurt by some variation of him. If they're waiting for him to do something again. At least the natives of this world don't have any secret history with him.

But then again, it's not as though they don't have their own interests.

Today, Otto's had to dodge a few scientists on the street. That's simple, a smile and a request that they email him their questions. He's had plenty of encounters like that before, in another life.

His patience starts to fray when one man reaches out to touch him, grabbing an actuator without so much as a by-your-leave. Only a sharp mental effort stops it from flinging him across the street in retaliation. His temples start to pound, but no one is hurt, so it's...fine. He escapes the conversation with no harm done, and quickly begins to backtrack towards the hotel. 

Then, for the first time, a reporter notices him.

Norman would have known how to handle the press, he thinks wearily, but Otto himself has never received such attention. Even the most prominent of physicists don't exactly warrant paparazzi, and crazed supervillains don't get approached by them.

He tries to be polite. He tries to just get away. But the guy's persistent, and eventually Otto snaps:]

For the last time, I don't want to talk!

[That might not have been so bad on its own, had his two lower actuators not punctuated it by slamming hard into the ground. Otto flinches back a second later, an unintentional mirror of the reporter.]

Sorry. I - I'm sorry, I - 

[And then he appears to just vanish entirely!

The reporter and his cameraperson look around for a moment before wandering away, muttering about teleportation or something. Only once they're gone does Otto - who is totally still there - mutter to himself:]

What on earth...?

[He was completely unaware that he's sprouted superpowers until this exact moment!]

iii. wildcard

(( lmk at lluosogrwydd if you wanna do something else! ))

Comments

i

[thecoolerloki]

[The first few days in the hotel were fun, clearing out the minifridge and ordering as much room service as he wanted. But now he's grown bored, which is never a good thing for Loki to be.

While he could deal with the ever looming issue of school, he figures it's best not to get settled anywhere until the matter of his legal guardian is firmly settled as well. Basically, he's going to make that Strange's problem.

Instead he's playing hooky and exploring! That's what leads him to find the good doctor... cleaning up things.]

From one former supervillain to another, I'd think there are better uses of your time and abilities.

[says the godling who's dressed in modern clothes and sipping a milk tea. Clearly, he's using his time well.]

[doctopoda]

Are you suggesting that I ought to get back in the lab?

[Renowned supervillain Doc Ock? Known in multiple universes for his Horrible Science Activities, apparently? Otto's in a good enough mood now that he can be wry about it.]

I'm relaxing, I'm on vacation.

[thecoolerloki]

I suppose this could count as a vacation. If you're one of those types who goes off and builds schools for needy children by hand.

[No way is manual labor relaxing, though. Not that he was involved much in the rebuilding of Asgard, no, for some reason the stables always needed someone to shovel poop.]

But why not? Afraid you'll take one step and then come up with some evil plot? Part of the reforming is seeing how one can use their skills for good. [Loki says like he's not actively doing that right now.] Like... you could make apps for smartphones! That would be much more useful!

[doctopoda]

[Honestly, when you've got your robot arms doing all the work, it's really not all that taxing. Otto himself has mostly just been chilling and chatting with the other volunteers today.]

I do have some plans, actually. [He wasn't genuinely never going to do science again! Come on!] Just haven't got the lab space secured yet. That's why I came here to begin with. And, if I'm going to live here, it doesn't hurt to let people see me being helpful.

[Of course that isn't the only reason to help out; he's not that cold. But if it also helps garner him a better reputation, so he'll have an easier time going out in public later on - well, that's not nothing.]

[thecoolerloki]

Now that makes more sense.

[Good for the sake of being seen as good. He knows too that's there more to it than that, but also? This still isn't a vacation?]

Once you do have this lab space, is that when the smartphone app development begins?

[Loki's joking, probably.]

[doctopoda]

What is that, those little games that come on the phones?

[2004 CHIC]

[thecoolerloki]

Yes. Although they can be more than games from my understanding. I understand you are old, but I thought a Midgardian scientist would be at least acquainted with them. Most Midgardians seem to be somewhat addicted.

[Starkphones were also his favorite thing upon arriving in 2011. Good thing his past self chose to die then.]

[doctopoda]

I think we were a few years off from that kind of technology being commonly accessible in my world. There are mobile phones that can access the Internet, but they're still ridiculously expensive. Waste of money, in my opinion.

[Did Norman have one? He doesn't actually know; he hadn't seen him for years, before he died. For his part, Otto's done well for himself, but not "drop over a thousand dollars just to be able to check your email outside" well.]

These ones are neat little devices, though. I've been disassembling an extra one in my spare time. [Just for fun, really. He's trying very hard to stay occupied with something or other at all times.]

[thecoolerloki]

That sounds dreadful. Almost worse than coming from a time far, far behind them as I did. The promise of something great just out of reach.

[At least he didn't have a want for things like this in what he remembers of his first childhood. Vikings weren't a thing back then, let alone the internet.]

As soon as I arrived in Midgard, I took to learning everything I could about modern technology and culture. Although I don't know if I could disassemble one with any grace.

ii

[slidesrightoff]

[Eddie had been doing some potential househunting of his own, realizing that the time to make a decision or have it made for him was quickly approaching. The metal arms admittedly catch his attention first, but out of a desire to admire the degree of articulation each of them seemed to possess. But then he realizes exactly what was going on and tries to intervene, only to watch the guy disappear before he can close the distance.

He blinks a few times, ready to leave himself when he hears a voice.]

Wait, you're still here, arm guy?

[A look around brings him no closer to placing a voice back to a face.]

[doctopoda]

Unfortunately.

[He would much rather have actually unlocked teleportation powers and just gone home! As it stands, he's still very much here...just invisible, apparently.

Otto moves his arms - human and robotic - to look at them. Once in motion, it becomes pretty clear that this is more along the lines of camouflage than true invisibility; it's like there's pieces of the brick building behind him just sort of moving across the sky and pavement.]

I'm...sorry you had to see that. I shouldn't have lost my temper. [Even if...well, he is glad that guy's gone now.] This is a new one for me.

[slidesrightoff]

[Eddie watches as the building starts to move and sway, his eyes wide with almost childish glee. He's seen so much, and yet there are still things left in the universe to surprise and delight.]

Oh please, you have to be rude with assholes like that. They think that they can push and push and get what they want, and they need a few people who can tell them no.

Besides, on a rudeness scale of 1 to 10, you were like a 3 at most, so all's good.

[Eddie isn't sure how to take that last statement. Did he mean talking to the press (no one should have to unless it was his friend Parker), universe hopping (that was pretty new for almost everyone), or his powers (also relatively common for the confluence crowd)? Everything was so damn overwhelming half the time, wasn't it? He stretches, the blue metal of his arms and chest exposed from beneath his shirt catching the sun.]

I mean, I think it's a new one for a lot of people. It's like getting thrown into the deep end, only you don't know if it's water or acid or... or... jello. If it helps, we're all in the same boat to different extents. Anyone who claims to be completely okay with this is lying.

[doctopoda]

Well, I shouldn't have lost my temper.

[Although he supposes that, if he hadn't been trying so hard to be polite before, it might not have gotten to that point. Otto wouldn't always have been so nice about it. He just...doesn't much trust himself lately; it feels like he has to be calm and polite, most especially when he doesn't really feel that way.

But it's over, now. Let's move on.]

No, I suppose you're right. It's a great adjustment for anyone. [The personal stuff he's going through is just the cherry on top. And you know what, it's weird having a conversation with someone while nigh-invisible. There's a far gentler tapping of metal against pavement as the actuators move around, trying to replicate what they just did, before Otto admits:] I'd settle for knowing how to turn this off, right now.

[slidesrightoff]

Why not? He wasn't taking no for an answer. What were you supposed to do?

[There's nothing wrong with being firm, so long as people just don't, like, flip out...]

Oh, uh, have you tried taking a deep breath? You might have disappeared because you wanted to, like, metaphorically, you know? Try a deep breath and reminding yourself all is cool.

[It sounds like good advice. Whether or not it will actually do something, he has no idea. He only knows how to deal with figuring out his shells strength.]

[doctopoda]

[There's being firm, and then there's threatening people with your powerful robot tentacles? But Otto doesn't really feel like arguing about this.]

Hm. Worth a shot.

[He doesn't know much about them, but it sounds like a fair number of these powers rely on one's mental state. He wishes he'd asked Peter, or even Marko, some more questions when he had the chance.

Otto takes a deep breath and tries to...feel slightly better, anyway. Nothing immediately happens, but he'll give it a minute.]

Do you have any powers like this? They aren't exactly common, where I'm from.

[slidesrightoff]

[Pretty much!

Eddie scratches his chin. If he'd let them, he could have had something fancy, but Eddie was never one for flash.]

Nah, just your run-of-the-mill cyborg, yeah?

[He pretends to flex a muscle, showcasing his blue metal shell.]

But "be calm" seems to be the answer to like 90% of power problems, at least from my experience. My world isn't that different from this one, so we're sort of used to people suddenly popping up with powers they weren't expecting.

[doctopoda]

Your "run-of-the-mill cyborg". Hm. I guess I was something like that too, until just now.

[They're hardly run-of-the-mill in his world, of course. But it's a little...cheering, to hear someone describe it that way. Like it's something ordinary.

As he settles into ordinary conversation - maybe as he contemplates being considered something less than a freak - the camouflage does begin to wear off! It starts slow, the claws of his actuators coming back into view first. Several of them immediately rotate to watch the change ripple down their length; Otto's gonna review this footage later.]

Ah! There we go, it's wearing off.

ii.

[ikols]

[ Loki sees it all, drawn to the hubbub and the crash of those octo-limbs slamming into the pavement. He keeps his stroll casual from across the road, up until he sees Otto vanish, then his eyes narrow and he waits for the reporters to take their leave before heading over. He stands behind where he thinks Otto may still be, confirmed when he hears him speak.

Strange. New powers, perhaps? Victor would be jealous. ]

"Eight Invisible Arms"! Sounds like a Netflix original thriller more than you, Doctor.

[doctopoda]

[An invisible snort. He may not know what Netflix is, but he gets the gist.]

"Robot Ghost Octopus". Sounds like a great B-movie.

[Truth is, Otto's kinda shook by that entire encounter. The sudden invisibility that he can't turn off is just the icing on the cake! But, like with most things, he's just gonna try to brush it off. He's fine!

Luckily, he's also not above asking for advice, even from...yet another stranger who seems to know who he is already, lovely. At least he does sort of recognize this guy.]

You're another Loki, yes? I don't suppose you have any advice for turning this off? [He turns to face Loki as he speaks, and it's pretty clear when he does; maybe eventually he'll figure out how to make it work in motion, but right now the camouflage really works best standing still. Of course he notices this immediately.] Oh, look at that, it isn't invisibility...

[ikols]

Just like a chameleon.

[ If you thought he was going to say octopus, you owe him $5. ]

'Another' Loki? I can walk away if you like, I needn't help if you have a preference ...

[doctopoda]

[He vastly prefers that you not say octopus, so this works out!]

Are you jealous of a thirteen-year-old? [There's a smile in his voice, though, he's not taking this all that seriously. Honestly, he's fairly sure this might just be a problem he needs to work out himself anyway.] Don't worry - I'm sure you're both very fine Lokis.

[ikols]

That one's not really a child, but I see he's had his fun with you.

[ Loki paces around Otto, keeping a wide berth since he can't see those extra arms. ]

This is a power of will, seems like. Think about being visible to everyone again, of standing your ground and feeling confident about it.

[doctopoda]

Yes, he said as much.

[And it's not even that Otto disbelieves him; where does he get off saying that anything is impossible, at this point? But, you know, it all also sort of came off a lot like a young teenager blustering. Maybe it's just hard to get past appearances, when he's so used to the world being so much more grounded than things here.]

Alright. I'll try that.

[It feels sort of silly. But, again, we've really blown past that point. And hey - after a moment, he does slowly start to face back into normal visibility! The extra arms, for the record, mostly seem to be engaged in observing this change; only one appears to be actively watching Loki.]

Oh, there we go! Would you look at that? [Huh! Well, that's sort of neat! Otto takes a moment to watch the change move over his hand - did it mimic the texture of the bricks? Interesting. When it's done, he smiles at Loki and offers him his hand.] Thanks for the help. I - well, I feel like I should introduce myself, but you obviously know who I am already.

[He hates it? But it just keeps on happening, at least this one was just dumb B-movie jokes.]

[ikols]

It's even weirder I need to introduce myself to you, Doctor.

[ Sensing he has a handle on that weird new camouflage power and isn't about to dart around Loki as part of the wall to attack, he crosses a leg behind the other and gives him a brief bob of a curtsey. ]

I am Loki of Asgard, and I come with glorious cake-pops. Would you like one?

[ Here, from the coffee shop. He produces two and offers them over. ]

[doctopoda]

...sure. Thanks.

[He'll take a cake pop! Who doesn't want a cake pop! This might as well happen, y'know]

I don't recognize most of the people who know me around here. It's certainly been interesting. [Read: weird and kinda stressful!]