Tricks

Lunch felt more like dinner. The evening was already settled and alongside the food was alcohol. 

"To breakthroughs," the team echoed, clinking their glasses together.

Felix sipped on his wine and leaned back in his chair. The day was over and the sun was setting. The team was at a middle-class restaurant, fancy but not overtly so. 

"So, what's the next step?" Dr. Octavius asked.

Maya set down her wine glass. "We'll need to continue monitoring our first test subject and replicate the experiment with additional animals. If we see consistent results, we can start thinking about larger-scale tests."

"Rats next, right?" Bobbi asked. "They're a good step up from rabbits."

"It is the standard," Kavita said. "We'll need to run some simulations first to narrow down the parameters though."

"Fair enough."

"How's your throat, by the way?" Dr. Octavius asked. "You weren't doing online work for a good while because of it."

"It's fine now," Bobbi replied. 

"You sure? I saw the footage of Martin Li choking you," Dr. Octavius pressed. "It's okay if you can't come."

"I'm fine, really."

Felix eyed her throat. He remembered stumbling onto the scene: the blonde was lifted off her feet, unable to speak, with blood slowly spilling. Mr. Negative then tossed her aside like she was trash. Getting sent to the hospital after something like that was reasonable. Even so…

'She spoke to me. She was the one who suggested that he possessed negative electricity. Almost like she was aware of what happened to him…' 

But she was too young to have been the scientist in the memory. She was thirty-two, a whole decade younger than Martin Li. Did she read the records? How? When? Felix had combed through the database through Herbie and there was nothing digitally speaking.

Wait…

Digitally speaking…?

'If Martin Li's incident occurred three decades ago. Back then, keeping information on a digital interface was rare. Meaning…' 

There must have been a physical copy of the incident. Was it possible that Bobbi Morse read the physical papers? She did have Level 7 Clearance and she was second only to Dr. Octavius in terms of authority. 'I wish I could issue an order to Herbie to investigate further.' 

But he couldn't. He had to play along with this lunch/dinner. 

The team talked, laughed, and savored the chocolate cake Dr. Octavius had brought, which turned out to be just as amazing as promised.

"Alright, team," Bobbi said, massaging her neck. "I am heading out. See you all tomorrow."

Kavita and Maya echoed similar sentiments, gathering their belongings and heading for the door. Felix wanted to follow suit, but as he caught Dr. Octavius's eyes, he saw a silent request to stay behind. 

'Is this about what I think it's about?

"See you, Felix," Bobbi called over her shoulder.

"Yeah, see you," he replied. His curiosity was piqued by Dr. Octavius's unspoken invitation so he stayed seated.

"Thanks," Dr. Octavius said once everyone had left. "I was worried you wouldn't notice."

"I did so…are we waiting for her?"

"Yep," Dr. Octavius said.

A few minutes later, just as Herbie showed him, Shuri entered the restaurant. She was dressed in her usual sleek white Wakandan attire, her presence commanding yet graceful.

"Ah, Shuri." Dr. Octavius leaned forward. "She was the one who wanted this meeting."

"Hello, hello." Shuri sat down in a rush and crossed her arms. "I've been hitting a wall with the particle accelerator design. The combination of Reverbium, True Adamantium, and Vibranium is proving more problematic than I anticipated."

Dr. Octavius sighed. "We need to find a solution, and quickly."

"Because of Osborn?" Shuri's expression crinkled.

"Yes. Mr. Osborn has been pushing for this project to be completed in three months time."

"Three months is doable," Shuri said. "I am a genius."

"Shuri, what have you tried so far?" Felix questioned. "Maybe we can identify where things are going wrong."

Shuri nodded and pulled out a sleek tablet, which showed full details of the current designs and data. All three of them huddled together toward Shuri's side of the table. "Okay, so getting the elements together? That's a check. That's what we figured out last time. The issue is inputting the correct battery that works with the damn thing."

"I thought lithium-metal anodes were compatible," said Dr. Octavius, puzzled.

"And rechargeable," Felix added. "That's why we picked them."

"They were compatible until we actually got to tests. I've managed to stabilize the Reverbium and Vibranium interface with it, but the True Adamantium is creating unexpected energy fluctuations. It's like the elements are fighting against each other rather than working in harmony when it's there."

Felix studied the projections. Herbie was too. "What if we adjust the energy field parameters? Maybe the frequencies we're using are too close, causing interference."

Dr. Octavius looked thoughtful. "It's a possibility. We've been using standard settings for the accelerator, but given the unique nature of these materials, a custom configuration might be necessary."

Shuri tapped a few commands into the tablet, bringing up a new set of parameters. "We could try a phased approach, gradually increasing the energy rather than applying it all at once. It might give the materials time to adapt and synchronize."

"Maybe…" Felix went into a thinking pose. "Let's do this at the lab. It'll be better."

Shuri grinned. "Figured you would say that, Felix Faeth. I have a limo waiting."

"Oh, grea—woah!" Okoye was standing right behind Dr. Octavius, taking her by complete surprise. "I…did not see you there."

Felix had noticed. Her senses were getting better and better at that sort of thing. 

"That's my job," Okoye retorted. "Let us go, My Lady."

***

The ride to the lab was quick, the car gliding smoothly through the bustling streets of New York. The team reviewed their plans, discussing the intricate balance needed to stabilize the materials. The black cube-shaped building that housed the lab came into view,

Once they arrived, Okoye escorted them inside. They moved to the main console in the laboratory, where Shuri began inputting the new parameters. After all, if a scientist had a supercomputer, then it was first better to run simulations.

In ten minutes, they discovered just that. 

"Damn it! If we phase it, then it just powers down." Shuri bit her nails. "I really thought it would work."

"Hold on," said Felix, gesturing at Shuri to let him touch the keyboard. "How about this?"

No one knew it but Herbie had been running the simulations at lightning speed, providing near-instant feedback. The specific adjustments they were doing were incorrect. So he fixed it and in ten minutes, her advanced computer brought up the successful results.

"Woah, okay." Shuri double-checked the simulation. "Okay, okay, wow. That's…huh. I underestimated you, Felix Faeth."

She called herself a genius, so what did that make Felix? A super genius? Probably, even though it wasn't true. "I know a couple tricks," Felix ended up saying with a small smile.

"Look at that," Dr. Octavius said, pointing at the screen. "This new calibration of the phased approach is definitely helping. The energy levels are much more stable now."

"Now we need to test it with the actual materials," Felix said. "Shuri, can you bring the particle accelerator?"

The machine gun-like particle accelerator was rolled over on a cart by Okoye. She also brought them antifire coats and grey welding masks made of Vibranium. Not just the masks but the grey coats they were given were lined with Vibranium too. Talk about rich.

The new battery and calibrations were carefully put forth, the energy field gradually increasing as per the new phased approach.

"Here we go," Felix muttered, as they initiated the test.

The particle accelerator hummed to life, the energy field slowly enveloping the materials. The readings on the monitor showed the energy levels stabilizing, with the Reverbium, Vibranium, and True Adamantium of the device beginning to harmonize with the battery.

"It's working," Shuri said, her voice filled with awe. "The phased approach is allowing the materials to synchronize."

Dr. Octavius watched the monitor closely. "We need to maintain these settings and continue monitoring. This is a significant breakthrough, but we need to ensure long-term stability."

Both Herbie and Felix agreed. This was very experimental technology they were working with. "Let's run this for a few hours and see if the stability holds. If it does, we'll have a solid foundation to build on."

The device remained stable. Honestly, even Felix didn't expect the calibration to work. Then again, it was Herbie that inputted the numbers. The Fantastic Computer must have run millions of simulations during the long car drive. 

They didn't activate the device just yet though. Project New Element, while certainly on the cusp of completion, required one last thing: that being the base element. That was going to require a lot more trial and error and a proper protective zone. There were a hundred elements with seventy of them being metals. And considering there were 350,000 chemical compounds.

Yeah…that was much to experiment with. 

Luckily, they wouldn't have to experiment with all of them. Shuri's supercomputer was powerful enough to get them to narrow down on thirty specific elements and compounds in a week. 

The Fantastic Computer was able to narrow it down to six in five minutes. 

Felix was sitting on the bench next to the vending machine. Like last time, he thought how nice it was to be obscenely rich. According to Herbie, his current net worth was over thirty million, though not of it was in cash yet.

Meanwhile, Shuri and T'Challa were calculated to be worth ninety trillion. Big, big difference. Three million times the difference to be exact.

Dr. Octavius walked over, bought two drinks from the vending machine, and handed one can over to Felix.

"Thank you," Felix said, taking it out of respect rather than necessity. 

"Man, time flies," Dr. Octavius said, sitting down next to him. "It's not even been a year and you've gone from a newbie to this."

"Meaning…?"

"You've grown in ways I never expected. To calibrate the battery the way you did reminded me of Reed."

"I do my best."

The two popped their cans of soda and drank. 

"The first day and I'm already doing overtime," Felix said jokingly.

"Don't worry, once this is all said and done, I'll give you a nice pay raise." Dr. Octavius laughed and then stopped when she heard the heels of Okoye. The dark-skinned guardian stopped directly in front of him. The doctor tensed up. Felix was relaxed.

"How long will this project take?" Okoye asked.

"Uh…" Dr. Octavius exchanged looks with Felix and replied, "At this pace, a month or two."

"Understood."

Okoye left without comment after that.

"A month or two is pretty broad," Felix noted.

"As long as the eagle-eyed lady isn't badgering me about it, I'm fine."

***

Felix jogged through the streets of New York. A taxi was pretty useful when you were equipped with the most advanced glasses in the world. The city was quieter than usual. He slowed down as he saw his apartment building and noticed a familiar figure sitting on the stairs. Miles Morales, with his head resting in his hands, looked deep in thought. 

'Did he fail a test or something?'

MILES MORALES HAS NOT FAILED A TEST. 

'So it's something else.'

Felix quietly made his way over and took a seat beside him.

"Hey, Miles," Felix said softly. "What's up?"

Miles lifted his head. "Oh, uh, hey, Felix. Coming back from work?"

"Yep."

"Been a while since you went."

"The Tower has been patched up. Now I can give you that tour like I promised," Felix said jokingly.

"Yeah, sure." Miles smiled but it was not as enthusiastic as Felix thought it would be.

"What's up?"

"Just thinking."

"About what?" Felix asked, leaning back against the step, his eyes on the street ahead.

Miles sighed. "The streets, man. They feel a bit more peaceful ever since Spider-Man busted Mr. Negative and the Inner Demons. I mean, it's like a whole different city now."

Felix nodded, a small smile playing on his lips. "Yeah, I noticed that too. It's been quieter. Safer."

Miles shifted, his gaze dropping to his hands. "But…"

"But…?"

"You know Martin Li?"

"Mr. Negative?"

"Yeah, him. You know he runs FEAST, right? In Harlem, FEAST is big, you know? It's a lifeline for a lot of people. And now, because of Martin Li's shitty actions, things have gotten worse for the homeless folks there. Some locals think they were a part of his scheme."

Felix's smile faded as he listened. He knew about FEAST's importance in the community, especially in places like Harlem. Martin Li's dual identity as Mr. Negative had not only wreaked havoc in the city but had also cast a shadow over the good work FEAST had been doing. Automatically, Herbie pulled up footage of the incidents. It was violence that erupted purely from irrational hate.

"That's fucked up." Felix said it in a laid-back sort of way that a high schooler would be fine with. But it was also an authentic remark on the camera footage he was seeing through his spectacles.

Miles nodded, a frustrated look crossing his face. "I just… I feel like I should be doing something to help. But I don't know what. I don't have the resources or the influence or anything to make a difference."

"Sucks being young, huh?"

"It's not funny…"

Felix smiled lightly and gave Miles a reassuring pat on the back. "Hey, leave this to the adults, okay? Specifically, leave it to me."

Miles looked at Felix. "Huh?"

Felix stood up, hands in his pocket. "You focus on being a kid and doing well in school. I'll handle this. I'll make sure FEAST gets back on its feet."

Miles stood up too, looking rather confused. "Y-you will?"

"Don't underestimate your neighbor, my friend. He had tricks up his sleeve."

Namely, a supercomputer that had access to the NYPD's investigation on Martin Li and his companies as well as money. Millions of dollars worth of money.