Chapter 15 - Assimilation

"What if the team that scores the fewest points has to kiss as a punishment?" I suggested, and everyone looked at me in surprise.

Why did I do that? Well, because I had just been given a quest that was quite difficult to complete without a good excuse.

[Side quest: Flirting

Description: You're a teenager. You're in the phase of trying out all sorts of things, but you didn't used to be popular with girls and maybe that can start to change now.

Objective: Kiss someone.

Rewards:

+ 100 Card Points.

+ 1 System Feature.]

It didn't have to be Gwen. The system didn't have her as an option, but she was my partner in the game, and if I could kiss anyone in this place, it would definitely be her. So I proposed this interesting bet, which I knew the boys would immediately agree to.

Surprisingly, Harry Osborn, after crossing his arms and looking at MJ, was the first to agree.

"I think it might be interesting."

MJ looked at him in surprise, but then sighed. "Me too."

Flash, of course, loved the suggestion. "I'll do it! Come on, it'll be fun!"

I looked at Gwen and waited for her reaction. She looked at me with those eyes that seemed to see beyond the surface.

"Okay. Why not?" said Gwen.

When the rounds began, Jason was the first to play. He stood confidently at the edge of the lane and threw the ball with little force. The ball went straight and hit nine pins the first time.

"Boy, I really am the best!" Jason celebrated, but his joy annoyed his partner.

"You idiot, why are you so happy? Aren't you going to kiss me?" Betty asked.

Jason was a little surprised. "Yeah, it's just that you and I already..."

"Huh! It doesn't matter that you want to see the others kiss. Do your worst while I do my best!"

"Okay..."

Everyone laughed at the interaction between Betty and Jason, especially as the players in the next lanes stopped to listen to the brief argument.

MJ and Harry were next. Harry looked confident, but the ball he threw deflected at the last moment and only knocked down three pins.

MJ, on the other hand, was calm and knocked down all the pins. She tossed her hair to the side and smiled.

Then it was Flash and Glory's turn. Flash, as usual, was over-enthusiastic and ended up throwing too hard, leaving three pins standing. Glory, while less dramatic, didn't get a strike either, so Flash gave her a look of feigned disapproval, which got almost the whole group laughing again.

Finally, it was my turn. I picked up the bowling ball, feeling its weight as I spun it in my hands.

I was a good bowler, but I wasn't stupid enough to throw a strike ball now. Still, I couldn't make a complete mistake and let it be known what I was up to, or else Gwen might start to hate me. I only needed to hit five or six pins to get a little above last place.

"Come on, Lucas! Show them how it's done!" Flash shouted with a big grin, then gave me a one-eyed wink. He was probably waiting for me to make a deliberate mistake.

I positioned myself on the lane, adjusted my feet and visualized the line I wanted the ball to follow. I knew how to play to get a strike, but it was much harder to know how to knock down a certain number of pins.

I took a deep breath, and the smell of polished wax flooded my senses. With a gentle motion, I released the ball. It rolled down the lane, but I deliberately didn't give it the force it needed to strike. The ball veered slightly to the right, knocking down only five pins.

"Oops, looks like somebody lost their hand." Flash teased.

"Relax, we've only just started." I replied.

Gwen didn't say anything, just picked up a ball and walked to the lane. I didn't know what to expect from her, if she would use her powers or not.

When she released the ball, it rolled down the lane at a medium speed and was a little crooked until it hit eight of the nine pins.

I couldn't help but smile when I saw the satisfied smile that formed on Gwen's lips, knowing that she hadn't used her powers, otherwise the ball would have hit much harder.

"Wow, you're good." I complimented her.

"I used to come here with my dad on my birthdays, it was almost a ritual. So I know how to play a little."

As the match went on, it became clear that I wasn't going to get what I wanted by suggesting this game, because Gwen was carrying our team.

Finally, we made it to the final round. Gwen and I were in first place, while Jason and Betty were dangerously close to last place.

Betty picked up the ball and threw it carelessly down the lane. The ball rolled and knocked down only two pins before going out.

"That... That can't be right."

Jason laughed wildly. "I told you to take it seriously, but if you wanted to kiss me so badly, just ask!"

"Hey, I tried! It was just... bad luck."

"I think we have our losers! Time to settle the bet!" Flash said.

Jason and Betty exchanged glances, knowing that they had to serve their punishment, and they had no problem with that. Still, we were all excited for the moment, but unfortunately, at that moment, the lights in the bowling alleys began to flicker, as if the power was about to go out, and the ground suddenly seemed to shake slightly. Until everything went out.

"Guys? What's going on? Where are you?" asked Flash.

"It's probably just a power outage, it's no big deal." Jason commented.

When the emergency lights came on, there was a man in the middle of the bowling alley. He was hovering a few inches off the ground, surrounded by an electric field that crackled like a plasma torch, emitting little snaking beams around him.

When I saw him, I had no doubt that he was Electro, or rather an alternate version of this universe's iconic villain. He didn't have blue skin or Jamie Fox's face like in the movies; he was bald and wore tight-fitting clothes that mixed green and yellow.

Electro's face was partially obscured by a star-shaped mask, and he had the smile of a predator who had just sighted his prey. However, the prey was not anyone from this place.

"Everyone, get out of my way! I don't have time to play with you. My target is the powerful generator behind these tracks. And while I'm at it, maybe I'll take some of your money, too." Electro said as he looked at a bowling alley employee who just agreed without saying a word and started running. "That's it! Do the right thing and get out if you don't want to be electrocuted!"

"Let's get out of here!" a man shouted, grabbing his son and running for the exit.

Within seconds, the bowling alley was in chaos. People began running toward the exit, tripping over their own legs in their haste to escape.

Running would be the most logical thing to do. What could I do about Electro?

When I looked over to see what Gwen was going to do, she was obviously gone, which meant Spider-Woman would soon be.

Coincidentally, I received a message that made me smile.

[The "One for All 20%" Unique skill Card has been fully assimilated.]

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