Bad Beat - Chapter 14 - Blue (Patreon)

Gabriel stared at the inside of the cardboard box and couldn’t help but whistle in admiration. However, instead of doing anything with it, he stepped back, put on double-layered disposable gloves, and only then reached into the box.

He carefully lifted the small bottle from its snug spot, cradled by a shock-absorbing sponge, and held it up to the light. It looked like a medicinal ampoule with only a small white sticker on it.

There were two things written on it.

One of them was ‘50 ml’.

The other was probably a name: X-42.

Nothing else.

He gave it a gentle shake, watching the light blue liquid slosh lazily before settling.

Thankfully, it didn’t glow…

“Well, well… what are you?” he asked loudly.

He returned the ampoule to its sponge bed and started inspecting the pallet. He methodically opened each box, counting as he went.

By the end, he had gone through 30 boxes, each containing two layers of 25 ampoules – 1,500 in total. He found the tracker in the middle – a small disk-like object that immediately disappeared into his card and vanished into the ether.

He let out a relieved sigh but didn’t turn off his phone. Setting the boxes aside, he absorbed the pallet itself. It created a white card with an interesting name: 1 x U.S. Standard Reinforced Polymer Pallet (Bugged).

Smiling slightly, he vanished it too.

Then came the tedious work: checking every box for hidden electronics or esoteric tracking devices. By the time he finished, he collapsed onto the couch, boxes stacked around him like a fortress.

“Haaaa…” he groaned as he stretched. Then he idly absorbed one of the ampules and read the card. Its green border framed the ampoule’s image, the name ‘X-42’ clear as day.

The card’s real title, however, was far more intriguing: 1 x Unstable Power Booster Ampoule (Version 42).

“Fuck!”

Gabriel let his head loll back, closing his eyes and letting out an explosive sigh.

“The gang is going to be so fucking angry…”

Angry didn’t seem to cover it. Apoplectic, maybe…

“But… why was it so unprotected?” he asked out loud, holding the card at eye level and scrutinizing the words written on it.

“Hiding in plain sight? Or even they didn’t even know what they were moving?” he mused, glancing at the other boxes. All of them, full of the same liquid. None of them had labels, markings, or even a stray word written with a pencil.

The worst part was that he had basically found liquid gold, yet he was fairly certain he wouldn’t be able to use it. His power seemed more conceptual than the ones he had observed in this world.

Most powers, however tediously, were connected to the real world – they manipulated biology, technology, or physics itself. But there was always a clear line of logic connecting the effects of the power to the results.

His power didn’t seem to follow the same rules…

Sighing, he picked up another ampoule, absorbed it into a card, and initiated the fusion process. The two green-bordered cards shimmered, pulsing faintly, before merging into a new card: 1 x Volatile Power Booster (Version 1).

It sounded a bit better, but he would still refuse to give it to anyone.

Looking at the massive number of remaining ampoules, Gabriel’s eyes twitched. He stretched again, turned on the TV to something mind-numbing, and pulled the first box of power booster liquid next to him.

“Time to grind…” he muttered as he began the tedious fusion process.

Volatile was followed by Erratic, which was finally followed by a name that didn’t sound sketchy: 1 x Charged Power Booster (Version 1). Then came the Effective, Refined, and finally, after the sixth fusion since the beginning, he got a name he was happy to read: 1 x Stabilized Power Booster. (Version 1).

‘Probably the original version of the formula…’ he thought as he temporarily summoned the ampoule into his hand. Seemingly, nothing changed – the bottle still looked the same with its intact seal and the simple white sticker reading ‘X-1’.

Returning it to the card, he pressed on.

The next one was Optimized, followed by Improved, then Enhanced, and finally it landed on the simple name of 1 x Augmented Power Booster (Version 1).

As a side effect of the uneven number of bottles, he was left with one bottle each of Erratic, Charged, Effective, Stabilized, Optimized, and the Improved version of the booster.

All in all, after the process was completed, he had seven bottles sitting in front of him.

Seven ampoules, all containing light blue liquid that looked entirely innocuous.

He silently collected the 30 boxes and began to fuse them, starting from 1 x Standard Ampoule Transport case, until he had a Reinforced Composite Ampoule Case in his hands that somehow transformed from high-quality cardboard into a white polymer case with high-tech shock absorbers and airtight seals on the lid.

The seven ampoules were placed inside carefully, the lid snapped down, then the case vanished into a card.

Gabriel dealt with the remaining trash before reorganizing the living room to its original state.

Now all he needed was to figure out what to do with a pile of high-tech devices and several bottles of power enhancers.

Child’s play…

As it was still Saturday, he looked up the nearest computer store and went to buy a few items he didn’t have for his idea: a new case – claiming that the glass on his old one had shattered – and a new router.

After hauling back his purchases, he pulled out the devices he had assembled before, rubbing his hands together with an excited expression.

He had high hopes for this idea…

On the table lay a carefully assembled arsenal of technology: a bare computer case without glass, a boxed router, one of the Cutting-Edge Laptops with its charger, a few smartwatches, tablets, a dozen upgraded power banks, wireless earphones, webcams, keyboards, USB hubs, pocket projectors, and even a ring light.

Among them were also three powerful graphics cards, two Cutting-Edge Sensory Devices, several motherboards, processors, power supplies, hard drives, and a few high-performance coolers.

From his recent book hunt, he added a few volumes: the General Engineering Encyclopedia, a comparative study of programming languages, and a practical guide to efficient coding.

Finally, he placed a bottle of power booster on the table, positioning the Improved version next to the technology like a crown atop his digital arsenal.

Gabriel stood over the pile, frowning. “Something is still missing…” he mused as he rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

For a few minutes, he just stared at it, trying to figure out what was missing from this assortment of high-tech devices. He even walked around the table, hoping a different angle would help.

Sadly, it didn’t.

Shrugging slightly, he left the devices there and went to the kitchen to have a meal. Hoping a quick breat would help jumpstart his brain.

He cooked his usual rice dish with a generous amount of steamed vegetables. Sitting down, he began to eat – feeling the usual warmth spreading through his body – when his phone buzzed.

Pausing the video he was watching, he opened the messenger app with one hand.

It was Mia.

Instead of replying in writing, he just called her.

It rang for a few moments before her face appeared on the screen, clearly frowning.

“Hey! What’s up?” he greeted with a smile between bites.

“Gabriel,” she said seriously. “It’s almost been a week. Are you going to do anything about the loot?”

He opened his mouth to respond, but she cut him off.

“The longer we wait, the higher the chance they find us,” she continued, frustration leaking through. Clearly, she had been holding it back for a while. “I just saw a post online. Jackals are in a tizzy. Something clearly happened.”

“Any clue what?”

She shook her head. “No. Not many people are eager to go near an agitated gang…”

“Prudent.”

“I’m glad you approve,” she replied sarcastically, rolling her eyes. “But with more people around, there’s only a short time before they locate your hidey-hole. Especially if they bring in supers…”

Gabriel frowned, ignoring the comment about his ‘hidey-hole’. He didn’t want to explain what exactly happened to the things they had stolen, so he slightly changed the subject. “Do you think they have access to information-type supers?”

“It’s a gang, Gabriel,” Mia said exasperatedly. “If they don’t, then they’ll hire mercs.”

“Would they find us even if we hadn’t left any clues?”

“Who knows? For all I know, they could have access to a precog…” she said, throwing her arms in defeat. “So, pretty please, tell me you’ve got good news!”

Gabriel eyed her on the screen and nodded. “I’m almost done.”

Her eyes widened.

“Really?”

“Yup,” he said, taking another bite. “Just got hungry, so I’m taking a small break before finishing.”

“Should… should I head over?” she asked, curiosity chasing away her bad mood.

Gabriel shook his head. “Please don’t. I need to focus on the last part…”

Mia’s eyes narrowed. “It would be easier to accept that if I knew what you’re actually doing over there…”

Gabriel chuckled. “All in good time, Mia. All in good time…” He glanced at the clock on the oven. “It’s around five. I should be finished by seven.”

“Alright, but even if you’re not, I’ll be there at seven on the dot!” Mia declared, then looked to the side. “How about pizza?”

“The same place as usual?”

“Yeah, Papa Pomodoro is running a two-for-one sale.”

“Nice. Get me a Meat-lover’s and a Hawaiian.”

“Ugh… disgusting…”­­

Still chuckling at the conversation, he finished his meal and was about to wash the dishes when he spotted something: a lone grain of rice at the bottom of the bowl.

He picked it up and ate it.

Then his eyes widened, and a grin split his face as a light bulb went off in his head.

Quickly but carefully, he took out a fistful of Ordinary Spiritual Rice and created one lone High-Quality Spiritual Rice grain, stopping before Ascended-Grade. The message he had received was still alive in his enhanced memory.

The fragrance made his mouth water, but with great willpower, he resisted.

Instead, he put it away and approached the pile on his table.

Not even sitting down, he absorbed the case into a card and began arranging the components for fusion: first the power supply, then the power banks and chargers, followed by motherboards, processors, and other desktop components. Then came the smartwatches, tablets, and laptops.

After that, he added all the other tools he had lined up, finishing with the ring light. He wasn’t sure if it would be useful, but he might as well include it.

Slowing down a little, he grabbed the books and added them thing he was creating, before finally fusing the router and Cutting-Edge Sensory Devices into the technological amalgamation.

Hesitating for a second, he grabbed the Improved Power Booster, took a deep breath, and added it to the card.

Still not finished, he reached for the card holding the rice grain when he had another brainwave.

He rushed to the kitchen, washed his hands, dried them, took his sharpest knife, pricked his finger, and absorbed the blood into a card. The card surprisingly had a rainbow-colored border, shifting through all visible spectrum colors, and a simple name: 1 x Drop of Life Force.

Another deep breath.

He pulled the three cards together.

One held the technological monstrosity, the second the rice grain, and another his drop of blood.

First, the blood fused with the technological card.

Then, holding his breath, he completed the process with the rice grain.

There was a small flash – though no fanfare and confetti – then he was holding only one card that didn’t have a blank face.

The border was bronze-colored, and the face of the card displayed a slightly glowing blue sphere that seemed to constantly turn.

Happily, Gabriel read the name: 1 x Computer Assistant.

A bland name for something he suspected was far more than an assistant.

He was about to summon it when he noticed the time – Mia would arrive in a few minutes.

The process had taken more time than expected.

Disappointed, he put the card away for now and began preparing for her visit.

On the now-empty table went a new phone, earphones, tablet, and laptop, all ready for her.

He was finishing putting away a few stray clothes when his bell rang.

RING RING

“Coming!”