Back when Jason left the lab, Nolan was already deep in simulation, attempting to crack the final pieces of the Super Soldier Serum. He had originally planned to take his time with the last two or three complex problems.
But no one expected HYDRA's purge to arrive so quickly. With pressure mounting, Nolan pushed his brain to the limit, running mental calculations non-stop. By the time Jason warned him, he was already working through the final equation.
It didn't take long.
Though pale, Nolan's eyes shone as he stared at the perfect chemical formula in his hands.
At that moment, he was stunned that he had actually managed to figure it out.
Keep in mind that the U.S. military, HYDRA, and other organizations have been trying to replicate the serum for years without success.
And now he had done it. Alone.
To be fair, HYDRA had already solved most of the puzzle, leaving only a few extremely difficult gaps. But sometimes, it's those final steps that are the most critical.
After all these years, Nolan was the one who finished it.
Such was the terrifying power of his Master of Research ability. With this gift, he believed that as long as he survived, he would one day reach the very peak of this universe.
"Next step prepare the serum. Once it's ready, I'll use the chamber to inject it.
If it works, I'll walk out of here and finally have the strength to protect myself."
This facility was just one of HYDRA's many scattered teams working on the serum. There were no subjects like the Winter Soldier, no enhanced beings, just regular researchers.
Even the HYDRA cleanup squad, at best, consisted of battle-hardened veterans. In this scenario, a perfect Super Soldier would be more than enough to decimate them.
Nolan quickly locked the lab from the inside and shut off the external access codes.
Now, the door could only be opened manually from within.
Originally, this feature was a failsafe giving researchers time to destroy data in case of an enemy breach.
Now, it had become Nolan's final shield.
"The lab's reinforced with tempered glass. Even if the soldiers outside are fully armed, it'll take them time to break through. That's all I need."
Slamming the door shut, Nolan sprinted to the lab bench.
He began rapidly activating machines and gathering ingredients. Soon, his hands were full of vials and reagents.
With practised precision, he mixed the compound's blue and green liquids, blending, crystalizing into different states, and then processing them in a centrifuge to extract their essence.
In the monitoring room, a HYDRA soldier squinted at the footage. "What's this guy doing? He can't really think he can crack it now, right? In such a short time?"
The squad captain sneered. "He's delusional. The whole organization's been trying to recreate that serum for decades. A no-name researcher pulling off a miracle like that? Laughable. He thinks he'll just inject it and walk out? What a fantasy."
After a moment's thought, the captain pulled out his communicator. "Team 13, head to Lab 2. Everyone else, continue rounding up the remaining researchers. If Enemies catch wind of this, we'll have more than a cleanup job on our hands."
.
-
.
In the lab, Nolan glanced at the surveillance monitor.
The stream of incoming soldiers made his hands move even faster. The pressure was building he didn't have much time before they were at his door.
Moments later, heavy footsteps echoed just beyond the lab. Through the glass, a fully armed squad spotted Nolan.
"There he is! He's inside Lab 2, running every machine. Looks like he's cooking something up!" the squad leader shouted into his radio.
"Use the passcode!"
"The lock's disabled! Manual access only!"
"Then blast the glass!"
The captain's voice was cold as ice.
"Is this guy seriously defying our authority?"
The squad raised their rifles and opened fire. A barrage of bullets hammered the glass.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Nolan broke into a cold sweat as the gunfire echoed. His grip on the reagent tightened.
"Just a little more… almost there!"
Teeth clenched, Nolan pushed his mind and body to the brink. There was no room for error he only had one shot at this.
Back in the command room, the squad captain watched the feed and frowned.
"He can't really be trying to synthesize the serum… Has he lost his mind? If he fails, he's better off dead."
He had seen plenty of volunteer test subjects in his time many of whom his team had to clean up afterwards.
He knew firsthand how agonizing the process was when the serum failed.
"This guy's driving himself straight off a cliff."
But something felt off. The captain couldn't shake a sense of unease. He picked up the phone.
"What's the situation?" came the voice from the other end.
"Sir, I have something to report—"
Across the ocean, Baron Strucker sat watching a screen showing the lab's interior.
He saw Nolan frantically working with the reagents and shook his head.
"Don't worry. Let him play."
"If this rookie can solve the Super Soldier Serum after all these years…"
"Then our entire research division might as well retire."
He had glanced briefly at the data Nolan was using but didn't take it seriously.
If the serum could be cracked that easily, then HYDRA's years of effort would be meaningless.
---
Back in the command room, the squad captain heard Strucker's indifferent tone and swallowed his concerns. He hung up the phone.
Outside the lab, the sustained gunfire finally left a faint crack in the reinforced glass.
The cleanup team grinned.
"Finally. This damn turtle shell's starting to give."
"All this trouble… for one guy. What a waste of ammo and time."
Watching Nolan still mixing away inside, the soldiers sneered.
"Keep shooting. Once we get in, I'm gonna use that freak as target practice."
"Or maybe we're doing him a favour! If that serum of his really works, it'll be a mercy kill! Hahaha!"
.
-
.
Inside the lab…
Nolan stopped mixing and began shaking the test tube.
The colourless liquid inside began to shift until it gleamed like a sapphire, a dazzling blue radiance pulsing within it like a work of art.
Staring at the vial, Nolan finally exhaled in relief.
He had done it.
The Super Soldier Serum.
But he couldn't inject it directly. That would be suicide.
Without energy reinforcement from the injection chamber, the serum would drain his body dry, leaving him a shrivelled corpse.
And Nolan had no intention of dying that way.
As cracks spread across the glass wall, he rushed to the control panel and loaded the serum into the machine.
Then he climbed in himself.
"Super Soldier Protocol activate."
----
100 Power stones = 1 Bonus Chapter!