42
I spent practically the entire day running logistics to set up the laboratory at the base. The equipment was considerable, damn expensive, and I didn't want to waste such a space. The routine was exhausting but reliable: I'd drive to my house, wait for the next van, and receive a batch of equipment. If something was especially valuable, compact, or bulky, it vanished into my inventory without a trace. The rest I loaded into the car, grunting with the effort. Then I'd return to the base, unload everything, and repeat the cycle. Fortunately, because the order was so large, Lucas made sure to personally coordinate many details, handling the logistics to make my life as easy as possible. Essentially, the only thing complicating it was my own paranoia.
But by six in the evening, when the last box was brought inside, I closed the heavy laboratory door behind me and, leaning against it, exhaled. My first truly serious laboratory spread out before me under the harsh light of the industrial lamps. Yes, there was no equipment worth tens or hundreds of millions of dollars here, like at Stark Industries, but everything standing before me, gleaming steel and plastic, covered practically all my pressing needs. And not only mine. I had also consulted with Peter, and ultimately we settled on three main equipment categories, creating a universal complex for an under-genius engineer and a genius biochemist.
First category: Production and Material Processing. The kingdom of metals and polymers.
This is the foundation of foundations for any creator: the place where formless raw materials turn into parts, housings, unique alloys, and basic components.
The 5-axis CNC milling machine, the true king of the lab. A massive, imposing unit for high-precision machining of metals, polymers, and composites. I looked at it and saw more than just a machine, a tool capable of producing parts with the most complex geometries from digital 3D models, from microscopic gears for gadgets to load-bearing elements for exoskeletons. Absolutely essential. The Haas model weighed several tons and cost me a hundred thousand dollars, but every cent was worth it.
The industrial multi-material 3D printer. If the CNC machine was the sculptor cutting away excess, this printer was the alchemist creating from raw materials. A machine for layer-by-layer fabrication of objects from various materials: metal powders like titanium and tool steel, heat-resistant plastics, carbon-filled composites. Indispensable for rapid prototyping and creating non-metallic device components. The Stratasys model cost fifty thousand dollars.
The vacuum melting furnace. The heart of my future forge. A compact but powerful unit for melting and creating unique alloys in a vacuum, preventing oxidation and yielding ultra-pure metals. Ideal for working with titanium, niobium, and most importantly, for my future experiments with vibranium. The price tag was thirty thousand dollars.
The plasma cutter and advanced welding machine. Tools of brute but necessary force. For precision cutting and welding of metals, for working with armor plate, housings, and load-bearing frames. The full professional set cost ten thousand dollars.
Next category: Electronics and Analysis. The nervous system and the brain.
Here I would assemble, test, and debug all the internals of my future creations.
The advanced soldering station with microscope is my tool for neurosurgery on printed circuit boards. For work with microelectronics, mounting the most complex chips and components that were barely visible to the naked eye, this eight‑thousand‑dollar station is essential; without it, creating even one impressive modern gadget would be tough. The high‑frequency oscilloscope and spectrum analyzer are roughly the eyes and ears of an electronics engineer. These devices let me "see" electrical signals, analyze radio frequencies, debug EMP devices, sensors, and communication systems. A high‑end Japanese model, capable of catching the most elusive interference, cost me thirty thousand dollars. The scanning electron microscope, or SEM, is the cherry on top. This microscope is the most expensive and possibly the most important device I have purchased. It allows me to see the structure of alloys, the integrity of graphene coatings, and nanomachines in action. Yes, Extremis wasn't forgotten, an extremely important tool for quality control and fundamental research. The desktop model, considered relatively cheap compared to industrial monsters the size of a room, cost me one hundred fifty thousand dollars. But the opportunity to look beyond the edge of the visible world... it was worth it.
Third category, tentatively labeled "Chemistry and Biotechnology": The territory of life.
This section, necessary for creating potions, serums, and analyzing organic compounds, was mainly supervised by Peter. I think his eyes lit up when we compiled the list, and I completely trusted his expertise.
The gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer. As Peter had put it, this was the "great inquisitor of chemistry," the gold standard of analysis. A machine capable of taking virtually any complex mixture, separating it into its components, and determining their chemical composition with pinpoint accuracy. For our purposes, it would prove indispensable for analyzing vampire and meta-blood, refining the NZT formula, and creating healing potions and stimulants. The massive, reliable Agilent model, roughly the size of an office desk, had set us back a hundred thousand dollars and now hummed in its place of honor.
The ten-liter bioreactor. A high-tech cauldron for brewing potions, or more precisely, for cultivating cell cultures (those same cells necessary for the Potion of Ash and Dawn from the Moon Jellyfish) and synthesizing organic compounds in a perfectly controlled environment. Essentially, this was a sterile, automated womb for our most delicate projects. That set us back forty thousand dollars.
The high-speed refrigerated centrifuge. For separating liquids into fractions by density. Low temperatures prevented damage to fragile protein structures, which was critical when working with blood or cellular extracts. Another thirty thousand dollars from Blade's budget.
The inverted fluorescent microscope. Not just for studying dead samples, but for observing living cells directly in culture dishes. The fluorescent function would allow us to "highlight" specific cellular components to monitor their health and division processes in real time. To spy on the secret life of cells. A quality model with a digital camera had set us back thirty thousand dollars.
Yes, most of the equipment fell into this category, alongside many less expensive but acutely necessary smaller items. Analytical scales and a set of micropipettes for ultra-precise weighing and measuring, the entire set cost five thousand dollars. A water purification system capable of producing distilled water, a Dewar vessel for storing liquid nitrogen, an ampoule sealer, and so on cost another twenty thousand dollars.
Finally, we had installed a fume hood with laminar flow (twenty thousand), creating a sterile work zone, and a cryostat reactor (twenty thousand), resembling a high-tech thermos for conducting reactions at ultra-low temperatures.
Of course, we had also transported all the previously purchased equipment from my garage, and something from my inventory, like that miracle box with rare ores. The day had passed incredibly productive.
In total, all the equipment had cost a little more than six hundred thousand dollars. In my previous life, that kind of money could have bought a decent house and still left enough to live comfortably for about ten years. But in a world where SHIELD's annual budget ran into the billions, and the cost of one Iron Man suit exceeded the cost of an aircraft carrier, this was quite a reasonable sum. It wasn't surprising that Blade had allocated the money without hesitation. The funniest thing was that only the components for the Potion of Ash and Dawn lying before me in the container cost more than this entire laboratory put together. By the way, about the potion.
"Peter, are you here yet?" I dialed his number. Enough sneaking into the university laboratory. We had already attracted too much unnecessary attention.
"Yes, John, I'm almost at the checkpoint. There's some serious guy in a uniform looking at me like I'm trying to bring a bomb. Can you meet me?"
"They won't let you in without me. Stay where you are; I'm already coming."
After picking up Peter and bringing him to the base, I gave him a brief tour. He walked around the laboratory looking like a child who had gotten into Willy Wonka's chocolate factory, touching the equipment and muttering something under his breath about DNA replication and phase diagrams. Meanwhile, I'd written to Blade to resolve the issue with the pass for Peter. The response came a minute later: "Will do."
"Dude... This... this is just unreal," Peter said, finally exhaling, his eyes burning with anticipation. "A 5-axis Haas, a Stratasys, and is this a mass spectrometer from Agilent? This laboratory... it's perfect. Balanced, powerful... especially for the price. What should we do first?"
"Healing potion," I said, looking at him seriously. "Or, as it's fancifully called, 'Potion of Ash and Dawn.' But essentially, this is a healing potion. Capable of curing... well, quite a bit. Within 24 hours."
Peter froze. His scientific enthusiasm shifted to incredulous shock.
"This... what did you say? Healing within 24 hours? Critical conditions? This violates the laws of biology, thermodynamics, and common sense!"
"Yes," I replied calmly, approaching the table where all the components were already laid out. "For Uncle Ben. And for one more of my acquaintances. There was no hope from ordinary medicine. So we would create this very hope with our own hands."
I began bringing Peter up to speed.
"I started preparing the catalyst in advance," I said, pointing to the rhythmically bubbling bioreactor. "I placed moon jellyfish cells in a nutrient medium, and there should be just enough biomass for a dozen portions."
"Why this specific catalyst?" I read about it. "This is one of the rarest species of jellyfish that's biologically immortal; the Hayflick limit doesn't apply to them..."
"Yes, that's the whole point." I nodded, pleased that he had immediately grasped where I was going. "The enzyme from this jellyfish's stem cells doesn't just stimulate cell division. It literally hacks past its fundamental limiters. It forces cells to regenerate so fast that it contradicts all known biology. It gives the cells a single, deafening command: 'GROW!'"
"Sounds like if you give it free rein, it'll turn the patient into one giant, fast-growing tumor," Peter said thoughtfully, not realizing how right he was.
"Exactly. Uncontrolled growth is cancer. That's why this comes into play." I reverently showed Peter a small ampoule containing mere micrograms of exceedingly rare cosmic powder. This was why Lucas's order had been delayed almost twenty-four hours. "Protein compounds from this Titan lichen don't operate on a chemical level, but a quantum one. It's simultaneously an ideal guidance system and, most importantly, a reference template. Like a ghostly image of ideal, healthy DNA. This Marker, roughly speaking, is what orders our cells to grow correctly."
We went over the recipe once more, and I made sure Peter understood everything. He paced around the laboratory, staring into space, then summed it up. His voice held the awe of a pioneer.
"When the potion enters the body, the Marker disperses throughout, identifying and marking all the 'sick' points at a quantum level: DNA breaks, cellular damage, necrosis... Then the Catalyst rushes to these marks and launches an unrestrained restoration process, using nutrients from the potion and the body itself as building material. This isn't treatment, John. This... is a system restoration from a backup."
"Exactly!" I said, smiling, pleased that Peter had grasped the essence of the name "Potion of Ash and Dawn." From the ash of disease to the dawn of healing.
"John... this... this is madness," he said, his voice becoming hushed, almost reverent. "This changes absolutely everything. This isn't biochemistry; this is applied quantum biology. The concept of a protein that resonates with DNA damage... it sounds like science fiction. But if this works, it's a breakthrough comparable to discovering the double helix itself. It's a biological reset button. It can cure cancer, heal spinal cord injuries, fix genetic diseases, even reverse aging... But in the wrong hands..." His eyes widened in horror as realization dawned. "If the Marker can be tuned to healthy DNA, or the Catalyst separated from it, this becomes the most terrifying biological weapon imaginable."
"Well, right now, the main thing is that this potion can save Uncle Ben's and Frank's lives. Everything else is just details," I said with a shrug.
"Yes, but we have to be incredibly, unthinkably careful with this technology."
"I'd be more worried about Connors's serum. At least with my formula, I know what I'm doing," I said, grinning. I wanted to make Peter think about the destructive potential of this regenerative crap.
"Yes... it has its own problems," Peter admitted with a sigh. "But Doctor Connors... he won't share his complete data. He hides the ugly side of the testing from the university. I'd be glad to help, but he doesn't really trust... either me or Gwen."
"Minor details. We'll definitely need to fix that."
"Problem? What are you talking about? The serum is experimental; there are still years of research ahead. It's hardly surprising that it has a number of... shortcomings. Hard to call them problems."
"Hmm, yes, you're right. But in any case, you're going to need to get full access to this work when you're on NZT." Things hadn't worked out with Octopus, so at least with the Lizard, I'd try to avoid tragedy. "If he's a genius, he won't be offended by the help of another genius. And now, enough talk. Time to proceed to... biochemistry. Even if it's quantum."
Nodding, Peter began assisting me. The theory was finished; the sacred practice began.
The catalyst was already prepared. We processed the biomass from the bioreactor in an ultrasonic homogenizer. A high-frequency hum filled the laboratory as sound waves destroyed cell membranes, releasing the active enzyme. We passed the resulting broth through a centrifuge, separating the heavy fractions. Then the liquid was fed into a liquid chromatograph, which, with the highest precision, separated the pure enzyme from all impurities. The output was several milliliters of concentrated, absolutely transparent liquid that seemed to absorb light. This was our purified catalyst.
The second phase, Marker preparation, took several more hours and required almost surgical precision. I first froze the micro-sample of crystalline lichen in liquid nitrogen, making it as fragile as glass. Then, in a sterile agate mortar, I ground it into nano-dust, an ancient method for futuristic technology. We mixed this dust with a special solvent in a cryogenic chamber. The low temperature allowed us to extract the protein compounds without damaging their fragile quantum structure. The resulting solution was passed through a series of nano-filters, leaving behind pure Marker extract.
This was a liquid with a light pearlescent tint. The volume was minuscule. A single drop could be divided a hundred times. This would be enough for dozens of portions, considering that the Marker operated at the microworld level that Hank Pym would envy. A universe of information in a drop smaller than a pinhead.
The final phase was not just chemistry but an almost sacred rite: full-fledged potion synthesis. In a sterile flask on a magnetic stirrer, we mixed a synthetic nutrient medium and colloidal ionized silver. The solution was slowly heated to the precise temperature of 36.6°C, the temperature of a healthy human body.
Into the heated, barely swaying base, with constant stirring, we very slowly introduced the Marker extract, literally micro-drop by micro-drop. The solution immediately acquired a light pearlescent shimmer. After an hour, when it had again become perfectly homogeneous, we added the purified catalyst just as slowly. The finished elixir was held for another thirty minutes at constant temperature, after which it was quickly cooled in an ice bath and poured into a dozen lightproof ampoules. The potion was ready.
And the system didn't keep us waiting.
[Created advanced potion "Potion of Ash and Dawn." Complexity: Medium. Received +300 OP!]
Reverses tissue aging inside the body. Heals wounds, restores damaged organs, returning them to peak functionality, as if time had turned back.
Advanced potion created: Potion of Ash and Dawn. Complexity: Medium. +250 OP received!
...
Created the advanced potion "Potion of Ash and Dawn." Complexity: Medium. Received +10 OP!
That's why having your own equipped laboratory was so rewarding. One batch meant an avalanche of OP. Literally 1,150 points from a single batch. Considering the 250 OP I already had, my balance was now 1,400 OP. Enough to cover all four planned purchases.
I stood in the middle of the laboratory, feeling not blood but pure potential running through my veins. Time for an upgrade. First, and long overdue, was the improved Extremis formula for 500 OP. Yeah, I knew creating it wouldn't be simple, and this laboratory might not even be sufficient. But this was my path. My key to rewriting my own source code. At the very least, I'd understand where to start. Delaying this purchase any further would be a crime against myself.
Second and third were the information packages I'd recently received from the system: Individual Armament for 200 OP and NE-mage technology for 400 OP. This was truly a debt of honor. I'd already been wanting to create a suit for Blade today, not just functional, but crafted with soul, considering everything he'd done for me. I wanted to do this thoroughly, and this knowledge was necessary. Plus, it would help with the fourth item, the one that should have been unlocked at the very start of my journey. But OP had been too valuable; I'd been rushing off in directions I couldn't even explain... and ultimately, of course, I wasn't complaining. I wouldn't be here, in this laboratory, with friends and allies. But the anti-fatigue pills from the Arcanum recipes had always itched at the back of my mind. The remaining 300 OP were just enough. I'd unlock them, craft the pills, recoup the costs, and earn even more OP on top. This was an upgrade to my most fundamental resource: time.
The plan for the night was ready. First, I'd transfer the potions to Blade and have him deliver them to Frank and Uncle Ben. The process needed to be carried out discreetly. Next, I'd unlock all the information packages and recipes, then craft the anti-fatigue pills. After that, under their influence and using the new knowledge, I'd create the suit for Blade and settle my debts. And then... then I'd finally be able to work on personal projects. This would be a very long and productive night.
Hey, come by and pick up some healing potions," I said, dialing Blade. I didn't mind Peter listening in with undisguised interest. "Yeah, in addition to Frank, we need to treat one more person. Thanks, we're waiting."
"Who was that?" Peter asked curiously when I ended the call.
"The most solid guy on the planet," I said, grinning. "I think you'll hit it off. Now, sorry, I'm gonna crash on the couch in the hub for twenty minutes."
Actually, I was bracing for a mental storm. The headache from processing all this information would be brutal. Leaning back on the couch, I took out an NZT pill and swallowed it to speed things up.
The moment the world acquired crystalline clarity, I realized I was fucked.
Cold, sticky horror pierced me. The logical chain that my ordinary brain would have missed now formed with deafening clarity under the NZT. Fisk was a master of conspiracy. And in this universe, there was a meta-bastard named Chameleon, a genius of disguises. Considering the company's capitalization was still intact, his death had most likely been staged. And Gwen... in her conversation with Jeffrey, Gwen had mentioned her father's name, George Stacy. And there was no way this information hadn't reached Fisk's ears.
Why? Why couldn't I have connected these dots without the drugs?
Well, I'd have to disappoint Blade. His plan to "get out of the country" was postponed. But maybe this would keep him in the USA a little longer. We'd need all the help we could get.
//=================//