prevously in chapter 24
"Keep fighting! Don't let him escape!" shouted another patient, a young man with glowing eyes that radiated heat. He shot a beam of intense heat at Henry, who barely managed to dodge in time, the beam scorching the wall behind him.
Henry fought with everything he had, using his enhanced strength and speed to fend off the patients. He shattered bones, crushed limbs, and even managed to decapitate one of them, but they kept regenerating, their bodies knitting back together with horrifying speed.
Realizing he couldn't win this fight, Henry decided to flee. He bolted for the door, his heart pounding in his chest as he heard the patients rallying behind him.
"Don't let him get away!" one of them screamed, their voice filled with rage.
Henry sprinted down the corridors, the effects of his Stealth Elixir aiding him as he moved swiftly and silently. But the patients were relentless. They used their powers to chase him down. The man with the heat vision fired beams that narrowly missed Henry, scorching the walls and floor around him. The woman with the glowing cracks leaped with unnatural agility, trying to cut him off at every turn.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 25
Henry burst through a series of doors, his breath coming in ragged gasps. He could hear the patients getting closer, their footsteps echoing in the halls. He reached another security checkpoint and quickly dispatched the guards with his gas, barely slowing down as he moved.
The patients were right behind him, their bodies glowing ominously in the dim light. One of them, the hulking figure, tore through a wall in his pursuit, debris flying everywhere. Henry ducked and weaved, using every ounce of his enhanced abilities to stay ahead.
He finally reached a stairwell and took it three steps at a time, his legs burning with the effort. He could hear the patients crashing through the building behind him, their shouts and growls filling the air. Henry burst onto the rooftop, the cool night air hitting his face.
With no time to lose, he sprinted towards the edge and leaped onto a nearby fire escape. He scrambled down the metal ladder, his muscles straining, the vials of research clinking in his satchel. The patients reached the rooftop just as Henry disappeared into the shadows below, their furious cries echoing in the night.
Henry landed in a narrow alleyway, his breath coming in ragged gasps. He melted into the darkness, his heart pounding as he listened to the sounds of pursuit fade into the distance. The building was still in chaos, alarms blaring and lights flashing, but Henry had what he came for. With one last glance over his shoulder, he disappeared into the night, the precious vials safely tucked away in his satchel.
-scene change-
Back in his first hideout, Henry could be seen carefully looking at a sample of the Extremis as he thought, "Well, I will be damned, but boy am I glad I didn't immediately pour it down my throat even though I wanted powers." He sighed as he looked at the status screen of the Extremis compound.
[ Name: Extremis Compound ]
[ Grade: 7th ]
[ Description: The Extremis Compound is a revolutionary bio-enhancement serum that fundamentally alters human biology. Developed through advanced genetic engineering and nanotechnology, this compound grants extraordinary abilities and enhances the body's natural functions to superhuman levels. It is highly volatile and requires precise administration to avoid catastrophic side effects. ]
[ Effects: +1,000% regeneration rate, +700% strength augmentation, +750% speed enhancement, +700% durability boost, +1,000% heat resistance, +800% reflexes improvement, +950% endurance increase ]
[ Deterioration-Rate: 0% ]
"But those are some ridiculous effects," he mused as plans upon plans on how to not only get rid of the side effects but also enhance them appeared in his head. The treacherous alchemist in him told him to immediately drink the vials, all of them, but he could hear Goldie's voice telling him otherwise, so he stopped himself before storing the Extremis in actual storage, a high-grade one. After that, he sighed as he thought of a huge mistake he made, "I should not have gone in there using my plague doctor's suit," he finally realized his mistake, "now the alchemist would be on everyone's radar.given the amount of CCTV there, telaporting was not an option" He sighed as he leaned back in his chair, "Looks like I will have to lay low for a while, then be even more cautious." He sighed, angry at his own stupidity before an idea popped into his mind, "Maybe, I can create a new persona," he mused but remembered just how much it took to get a shred of reputation. He dismissed the idea.
"Not now, I first need to stock up on potions and create a weapon, a powerful weapon, maybe I can try creating a magical weapon." One thing that Henry lacked was powerful weapons, so he shifted his focus to that. Inside his first hideout, he could be seen working on what seemed to be a suit. Well, it was just a metallic frame now. He was wearing nothing but a tank top and jeans, and he was currently securing some bolts onto the frame as he thought, "After the prototype is done, I can switch it to an alchemical metal." He mused to himself as he already had a blueprint for his power suit, which was just the theoretical part of the suit. Now he just needed the practical version of the suit. Literally a couple of hours ago, while he was busy adjusting the bolts and screws, he occasionally glanced over at an egg buried in sand that was soaked in potions.
This was a turtle egg he found in the rivers above him. For some reason, it was fertilized, so he picked it up and put it in a potions soil. They were all tier 1 potions, so he wasn't missing anything. The reason he was putting a turtle in a potion sand bath was because he felt bored, so he grabbed a turtle egg, and there it was. "Well, good day, Terry," he named the turtle Terry, and as if responding to him, the turtle egg cracked. "Oh, you are coming, Terry," Henry smiled as he watched the egg hatch, it didn't take long before the head of a turtle poked out, which Henry graced with his finger as he cooed at the turtle, "Look who is the cute tur—" however, the turtle immediately bit him, causing him to involuntarily retract his hand while throwing the turtle and the egg off the table, cracking the egg as he yelled, "Fuck, Terry," as he looked where Terry fell, expecting the turtle to be injured.
But the reptile was fine, too fine for Henry's taste as the turtle got out of his shell and looked around, "This motherfucker, that is it, you are going to jail, straight away." Henry, irritated, decided to build the turtle a jail, which was going to be his enclosure. "Thinking you can bite me and shit, you're going to be spending the rest of your miserable life in jail," Henry barked as he built Terry's enclosure, and the sneaky fucker was already trying to get away. So Henry grabbed him before bringing him back and putting him into his enclosure, which was actually decked out, spacious too, decorated with food and water. "Wait a minute, this shit is a mansion." Realizing this, Henry was annoyed as he swore the damn turtle gave him a smug look as he got comfortable in his new home.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
A/N Well, another chapter. Hopefully, you guys like it. Anyways, yup, the Extremes is a Tier 7 material on its own, but even then it barely qualifies as one. But don't worry, he will make it stable. And just in case you guys get upset, Henry is still a while away from having a potion that can permanently raise his stats. I am a couple of chapters ahead of you, and Henry just got a high-tier potion that permanently increases his stats, so be patient.
PS: I kinda forgot that this was the chapter where Terry the turtle was introduced, so yeah, everyone, welcome Terry, Henry's number one hater. Yup, you didn't hear it wrong, hater.