With Great Power Comes Great Responsibilty

Chapter 23

After what had happened to him with his formula, Gildarts had no choice but to discontinue it. He couldn't risk turning himself or anyone else into a monster much to the anger of Mard Geer.

"So that's it? You're just going to end it?" He said.

"The formula is highly unstable and extremely dangerous Mr. Geer and I don't think I'll be able to perfect it." Gildarts said. 

"Very well if that's the way you want it. I'll take my business elsewhere and I won't be paying your medical bills anymore."

"I'm sorry to hear that sir but you know what? I found a new way to support my daughter. My old friend Dr. Kingston has agreed to loan me the money for as long as I need it. He has something called compassion which is something you clearly lack."

He left Mard's office after that. Mard Geer didn't act like it but he was actually very worried. That formula Gildarts was working on was supposed to increase his business and raise profits. He was recently having trouble due to competition from other scientists such as Professor Edgar Stien and Dr. Acnologia Kingston but he managed to fix him by bribing a spy to sneak into his lab and sabotage his latest work but now Dr. Kingston was working on something new, something much more effective and he needed to beat him. Mard was convinced that there was only one thing that would help reach his goal. 

A chemical he established himself which was supposed to enhance the body and mind of whoever took it. However he had hesitated on testing it because according to the scientists who worked for him the chemical wasn't stabilized yet. Nevertheless he still decided to test it on someone much to the protests of his employees.

"Sir we really don't think that this is a good idea." They told him.

"Now is not the time to be squeamish." He said. "I will not have all my work ruined by that idiotic, goody-goody, Acnologia. Now find me a test subject."

"We can't do that sir." His lead scientist said. 

"What do you mean you can't do that? It's easy, just find some homeless fool and offer him 50 bucks to be a test subject. We've done it plenty of times."

"Not with a chemical this unstable.  If we used it on someone and they died or suffered some other fatal side effect you could be sued, arrested even."

"Sacrifices have to be made sometimes."

"Well we won't make that sacrifice. If you persist on doing this then we quit."

"What?! You can't quit! I won't allow you to quit!"

"We have every right to quit if we want to."

Mard angrily demanded that his scientist stay and test his new chemical but they refused. A lot of them quit, not all but a lot of them. This angered him further but it did not detour him from his desire to conduct his experiment. He decided that if he couldn't find a test subject for the chemical then he would test it on himself.

"Ungrateful traitors!" He said to himself as he prepared the chemical. "I'll get them for this! But I'll deal with later besides as they say, if you won't something done right do it yourself."

He hooked up the chemical to a machine that would convert it into a vapor and once inhaled by the subject it would take effect immediately. He turned on the machine and stepped inside of the chamber. A purple vapor filled the chamber and he inhaled as much as he could. It enhanced his body and mind almost instantly but it also warped his body and mind as well. His transformation would give him what he wanted and it would allow him to eliminate the competition, avenge those who betrayed him, and make this whole city his.

...

"So Gray are you going to the fair tomorrow?" Natsu asked him as they walked back from class.

"I kind of have to go. Gajeel wants me to take some pictures of the fair, he's expecting a pick pocket or something to take place there. Are you going?"

"Yeah I've been really busy with stopping crime and stuff like that. I need a break."

"I hear ya."

"You know I hear Professor Stien is supposed to be at the fair."

"The chemist from uptown Magnolia?"

"Yeah that's him. I want him to evaluate my paper on paranormal chemistry."

"You think he'll do it?"

"I don't know but it can't hurt to ask right?"

"No I don't think so. By the way I heard through the grape vine that Lucy is thinking of dumping Loke."

"Really?"

"I don't know for sure because rumors are hardly ever truthful but that's what I heard."

"Oh man if she dumps him I can finally ask her out."

"What do you mean you can ask her out? What about me? I could ask her out."

"I liked her first."

"Yeah but I can actually talk to her without throwing up."

"Aren't you already in a relationship with Juvia?"

"We're not in a relationship. We're just hanging out to make my aunt happy."

"Don't you like her?"

"She's a nice girl but I don't think she's for me."

"I can think of a few people who beg to differ."

"Name one who's not my aunt."

"I'll give you three there's Mrs. Redfox, Erza, and me of course."

"Wait a minute how does Erza know about her?"

"I might have mentioned her a few times. We both think that you and Juvia would make an adorable couple."

"The only reason you want Juvia and I to be a couple is so that you can end up with Lucy."

"That is also true but let's be fair. Lucy is supposed to be at the fair tomorrow so why don't we hang out with her and at the end of the day we ask her that if she were to date one of us, which one would it be."

"Alright but what if she prefers neither of us?"

"Then we cut our losses and move on to other women."

"Good plan but that's probably where we're going to end up anyway. I'm sure that rumor about her dumping Loke is a crock."

"Only one way to find out."