Key deftly crossed the stream to the left and followed the footprints to the T-junction. He ignored the two other rooms on his way and stuck his head over the corner to see where the footprints led.

The left of the T-junction had no room but a closed end and equipment. Several control desks with panels were placed against the walls. One cylindrical glass container stood in the center of the room. Its two ends were sealed with metal lids connected to the roof and the ground. The indicator lights on the lids emitted a soft glow as green as the lemon-green liquid in the container.

The evolving pod…

Key recognized the device immediately, and the memory of being put into that cylinder flashed before his eyes. He could almost feel the liquid gushing through his nostrils again. He inhaled a lungful of air and closed his eyes as his heart raced faster. The stench of the tunnel, although unpleasant, did distract him a little.

Cold sweat went down his forehead, and his dread was suppressed again. He opened his eyes and looked away from the evolving pod, spotting a bed in a dark corner and a figure lying on it.

Then, Key heard a loud clank coming far away behind him. Key whipped his face to the back, staring at the corner he came from. He swung his focus between the three different rooms and that corner. After about a dozen seconds, Key blew out a puff of air and figured that the sound must be made by someone up there stomping on the manhole lid.

He turned back and stuck his head over the corner again. Yet, the bed was empty.

"Key!" Loter yelled.

Loter levitated beside the manhole, periodically glancing over the turn before it. Every time, he would see a random janitor, nurse, or doctor walking toward him and would have to wait for them to pass by. After repeating this process about three times, Loter finally got to lay his hand on the lid.

He grabbed it by the grid yet failed to pull it up from the ground.

How did Key do it so easily with one hand? Oh yeah, he only opened one side of it.

Loter held both hands on the same grid cell and hauled backward, tilting the entire lid upward until it was standing vertically.

I'm a genius!

Loter quickly flew into the tunnel and closed the lid as he went. However, he did get startled by the clank of the lid.

Should've done it slower, but it's okay. Key won't notice.

Inside the dark tunnel, Loter could barely see anything but the dim light coming from a turn. He levitated toward it and peeked out from the corner.

Wait, I don't need to do this. I'm invisible.

He flew over the corner and halted there, watching Key cautiously staring in his direction.

Key noticed… But it's okay. He can't see me.

Key turned around after a few seconds. Just as he looked toward the left side of the T-junction, a figure rushed out from the right side.

Loter called immediately. Yet, before Key could react, the figure smacked something against his occiput, knocking him to the left of the junction.

Loter flitted past the three rooms, crashing into the figure. His momentum shoved the two into the wall, making a small and narrow crack.

With his invisibility and flight disabled, Loter stepped backward as he inspected who he stunned on the wall.

The person was a white-skinned man who seemed to be in his twenties. There was no hair around his mouth and chin, and not a trace of wrinkles was visible. He had a short golden undercut and was wearing a white lab coat over his black T-shirt. In his right hand was what seemed to be a pale and desiccated zombie arm.

Loter clenched his fists and raised them before his face. He glanced at Key, who was crawling up with a hand braced against the wall.

"Who the fuck even are you?" The man took a quivering step away from the wall. His body lightly swayed from side to side, and his back hunched enough for his shoulders to point forward, contrasting his young and robust face. He scrutinized Loter with his eyes moving from top to bottom and backward again.

Suddenly, he lunged forward.

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The swung zombie arm met Loter's right hook in midair. With a crushing sound coming from the elbow, the forearm bent almost 180 degrees and touched the upper arm. A deep fist dent was printed into its wrist.

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Without a word, the man dropped the broken arm entirely and stepped backward as he glared at the teenager before him and swallowed his own saliva.

Loter did not aggress but pulled his right fist back to its guarding position. He glanced at Key again.

Key had already gotten back on his feet and staggered between the man and Loter. "Wait," he said, holding his left hand in the air. "I'm here for business, not conflict."

"What?" Although confused, Loter still dropped his guard.

Key leaned beside Loter's ear and whispered, "It'll make sense. I'll explain. Just let me 'andle it."

Loter, with a slight frown, nodded and took a few steps back. Then Key turned toward the man. "You are not Doctor Jamount," Key said.

"No shit," the man replied in his hoarse voice.

"Mike?"

"How—"

"I've seen your family photo, and your father used to talk about you a lot."

"Whatever. If you're here for my dad, he's dead already, killed by Tio three years ago."

"I'm not 'ere for 'im. I'm 'ere to find you, Mike Jamount."

"Make it quick then. Let that boy punch through my skull or whatever. I'm not accustomed to pain." Mike turned around and closed his eyes.

"No, I don't want to kill you. I want to do a business."

Mike turned back, knitted his brows, and glanced between the two kids. Then he nodded and said, "I see."

"I want the newest version of the body enhancement module."

Wait, what? What is Key talking about? This is not what we agreed upon. I thought we were here to arrest criminals, not ask for their help.

"And why should I listen to you?"

"I'm your father's masterpiece. 'E would want it if 'e were alive."

Interrupting the conversation, Loter suddenly exclaimed, "Key, I need a word with you."

"Lot, it's not—"

"I need a word with you."

Irritated, Key looked back and saw Loter's scowling face. His irritation immediately disappeared. He followed Loter back to the manhole, and they stood beneath it. The light from above went through the grid and fell on Loter while Key was still in the dark.

"This is not what we agreed upon," Loter said in a muffled voice so that Mike would not hear them.

"I can explain, Loter."

"Then, do it."

"I'll take that man to the police, but I first need 'im to give me the module," Key explained, his voice suppressed to a murmur.

"Why?"

"I—"

"You already have your brain calculator thing. You don't need whatever that module thing is."

"No! No, no! you don't understand. You gain a random power without ever needing to try anything. You don't even need to train or understand your power." Key's voice raised as he spoke faster and faster. "I need to plan out every move and expand every gadget I 'ave to barely keep up with everybody. And it doesn't even work 'alf of the time! Even Ramiron 'ave to use 'er own reaction time to delete incoming attacks, and you just need to sit there and wait for your 'ands to punch for you."

Loter's face froze into a blank visage. Not a single sentence could form in his mouth. Questions like "Was Key right?" and "Did I really have it that easy?" flashed through Loter's head and hovered back.

Receiving no response, Key went back to Mike, leaving Loter to his own thoughts.

With only a minimum amount of verbal exchange, Mike agreed to give Key the newest module on the condition that Key not expose his location for three days.

While Loter watched them from afar, Key helped Mike empty and refill the pod. Then, he changed into the hospital gown Mike had given him, took a pill of sedative, and lay on Mike's bed. In the meantime, Mike was typing in all the input on the control desk.

With the lemon-green liquid almost filling the entire pod, the desk began beeping, and the indicator lights glowed.

"Key?" Mike called. Receiving no reply, he went to the other room and came back with a step ladder. "Mind giving a hand?" he said while placing the ladder before the evolving pod.

"What, what hand?" Loter replied and approached him.

Mike climbed up the ladder and said, "I need to get this kid into the evolving pod."

"Wait, the thing is connected to the roof. How are you going to open it?"

Mike pressed some buttons on the upper lid of the pod, and a rectangular hole opened beside the buttons.

"That's self-explanatory." Carrying Key on his shoulder, Loter climbed up the ladder. "Head first? Or feet?"

"Feet, feet, but let me help you. Just wait a second." Mike quickly scurried to one of the three rooms and came back with another folded step ladder. He put it next to and slightly behind the other one.

"How do you usually do this on your own?" Loter asked as Mike climbed up the ladder.

"I don't." He lifted Key up by his shoulders, and Loter had Key's hips on his shoulders. Loter grabbed each ankle by a hand and carefully put Key's feet through the opening.

"Okay, now let him slide in," Mike said while lightly pushing the shoulders forward.

"Yeah." Loter put the shanks on the edge of the opening and held Key by the waist, shifting and pushing him gradually into the pod.

With Key's head dropping into the liquid and his body floating peacefully, Loter let out a sigh and jumped off the ladder. "How long do we have to wait?"

"Normally, it takes at least a day, but since it is not his first time 'evolving,' my guess is probably about five or six hours."

"That's long."

"You can go out and have a walk if you want."

"No thanks, I need to stay here to protect him."

"Smart kid," Mike jokingly said.