Pangea Academy's Number Two! (BOOK 2)

You Are A Power, Yourself!

"Why, hello there ICJ." The Scientist greets the pair, "And who is this?" America senses a comforting presence about the man, something that urges him to trust every word out of his mouth. Thus, leading to America being immediately suspicious.

He responds with a simple, "America."

"Ah? That kid with the crazy power?" The scientist's eyebrow raise in shock, "Wow. What an honor." America found himself naturally inching behind ICJ as the conversation continued.

"Alright, enough with the chit chat, doc." ICJ sighs, "What have you got for us?"

"Well, the liquid is definitely a drug if that's what your worried about." He shrugged, "Though, that's to be assumed since it was found in the Pharmaceutical Development Branch."

"This means nothing to me so far." ICJ deadpans.

"Okay, okay. Just clearing that up so we have no miscommunications." He smiled, "Drugs interact with the body's biological systems by binding to specific receptors or altering biochemical pathways, thereby modulating physiological processes to produce therapeutic effects."

"The drug, when administered via injection, augments superhuman abilities by profoundly amplifying neural and muscular functions, thereby unlocking latent physiological potentials. However, its extensive biochemical manipulation harbors undiscovered adverse effects, potentially precipitating severe neurodegenerative disorders or catastrophic systemic failures upon prolonged use."

"This also means nothing to me." ICJ claims, "Care to dumb it down?"

"Oh, of course sorry." The scientist's eyes held amusement and a bit of mockery as he simply stated, "It's a drug that a person takes through injecting to enhance their power usage but it has significant drawbacks that have yet to be discovered."

"So an amplifier drug. What a petty crime to die for." ICJ sighs, "It's not revolutionary, so why would someone try to cover it up?"

"Ah, this! This is what struck me as odd." The scientist explained, "It's completely undetectable." 

In the brightly lit lab, the scientist walked to a row of steel lockers and entered a code on one marked C12. Inside, neatly arranged shelves held various vials and containers. He located a small vial with the residue, the result of the duo's extensive investigation. Carefully retrieving it, he securely locked the locker and returned to his workstation to continue his explanation of his research.

"Of course, when you look at it in its vial, it's detectable however..." He popped off the cap of the glass, "You cannot smell it, whatsoever." And proving him right, ICJ could not smell it.

Though, America could. The minute the cap was popped off America scrambled away. The teen boy recoiled as the nauseating stench assaulted his senses, his face contorting in disgust. His nose wrinkled, and his eyes watered as he gagged, instinctively covering his mouth with his hand. He staggered back a few steps, fanning the air in front of his face in a futile attempt to dispel the horrid odor. His reaction was visceral, just like last time.

"Close the damn cap." ICJ yanked the vial out of the stupefied scientist's hand and clamped the cap shut once again. Pushing the glass back into the scientist's hands, ICJ approached America. "Mr. DC, is this what you felt before?"

America was gasping for breath, as if he was desperately trying to hold in his gagging. The only response ICJ received was the slightest nod downwards from the suffering boy.

ICJ theorizes, "Then you must be reactive to this drug."

"Has this happened before?" The scientist questioned, his eyes sparkling with interest. ICJ nodded, "Then, perhaps I could try to shed some light upon this?"