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Chapter 25 - WHEN CURIOSITY SPARKS DANGER

Rosa and Melati exchanged knowing nods, their expressions a mixture of awe and newfound understanding.

Only now did the full complexity and delicate intricacy behind the serum's creation truly dawn upon them.

They remained quietly enthralled, still digesting the weight of Felzein's scientific discourse.

"How, then, do you transform all these elements into this fluid elixir?" Melati's voice broke the silence, tinged with genuine wonder.

Felzein offered a gentle smile, his eyes alight with the passion of a craftsman revealing his art.

"I painstakingly blend and refine these ingredients through a series of carefully orchestrated stages," he began, his tone measured yet imbued with quiet reverence.

The two women leaned in, captivated, their anticipation palpable.

"Well then, pray tell, what is the method?" Melati's question hung in the air, eager and expectant.

Felzein's lips curled into a gentle smile before he resumed, his tone measured and deliberate.

"The crafting of this serum is an intricate affair, demanding patience and meticulous care. I begin by isolating each vital ingredient, extracting them one by one with precision."

Rosa inclined her head, her eyes bright with curiosity, "Do tell us more details, if you please," she urged.

With a knowing smile, Felzein produced a slender vial filled with a crystalline liquid, holding it delicately between his fingers for them to behold.

"To procure the growth peptides," he explained, "I must isolate them from biological sources proteins found within blood plasma or certain botanical specimens."

"This is achieved through chromatographic purification, a technique designed to separate and retain only the most potent and efficacious molecules."

Melati's brow furrowed thoughtfully, "And the stem cells, how are they incorporated without losing their vitality?"

"Stem cells require a delicate touch," Felzein replied earnestly. "I preserve them in specialised culture media that sustain their life and function. Prior to infusion into the serum, they are gently combined with a physiological buffer to maintain their stability."

Rosa regarded the vial with renewed admiration, "And what of the hyaluronic acid and copper peptides? How are these prepared?"

Felzein's eyes gleamed as he elaborated, "Hyaluronic acid demands high-pressure homogenisation, ensuring it dissolves seamlessly into the serum's fluid matrix."

"Copper peptides, on the other hand, undergo nano-liposomal encapsulation, an advanced process that enables them to penetrate the skin's layers with heightened efficacy."

Melati nodded slowly, absorbing each word, "So, each element requires its own bespoke method of preparation."

"Precisely," Felzein affirmed. "Once every component is primed, I blend them together using ultrasonic emulsification."

"This process employs high-frequency sound waves to harmonise the minuscule particles, forging a perfectly unified serum."

Rosa's eyes sparkled with inquisitiveness, "Is the serum then ready for immediate use?"

Felzein shook his head gently, "No, not immediately. Rigorous stability testing must follow to guarantee that each component retains its potency over time."

"The serum is subjected to a spectrum of temperature and humidity trials, ensuring its resilience and effectiveness when applied."

Melati smiled, the awe in her gaze deepening, "So this is no mere potion, it is the fruit of disciplined science and painstaking endeavour."

Felzein inclined his head, humility and pride mingling in his expression, "Indeed. It is for this reason that I exercise such care in every trial. I cannot risk imperilment through haste."

Rosa returned his gaze with a knowing smile, "And that, dear Felzein, is why we shall not permit you to conduct such reckless experiments alone again."

A soft laugh escaped Felzein's lips as he met their eyes, "Very well, I give you my word. From this day forth, greater caution shall be my watchword."

After a lengthy exchange of words, Felzein's gaze drifted toward the clock hanging quietly on the laboratory wall.

The hands marked a quarter past ten in the evening.

A sudden awareness of the hour stirred within him, a gentle reminder of time's stealthy passage.

He turned to Rosa and Melati with a soft invitation, "Ocha, Melati, it grows late. Shall we take our leave?"

Melati blinked, caught off guard by the lateness, "Indeed, it's far later than I realised."

Rosa nodded in agreement, her voice hushed yet certain, "Yes, let us go."

Together, the trio made their way toward the secret door.

Before her foot could cross the threshold, Rosa's eyes were drawn magnetically, irresistibly towards a shadowed corner of the laboratory.

There, glimmering faintly beneath the mellow pallor of the overhead lights, lay an object she hadn't noticed before.

It seemed half-hidden, half-revealed, as though it had been waiting for her all along.

Something about it tugged at her. Subtle, silent, but unyielding.

She felt it then, not so much a thought as a compulsion, deep and strange, the need to go closer. To see. To touch.

Her steps, slow but certain, carried her across the room.

"Ocha! Where are you going?" Melati's voice rang out, tinged with sudden alarm.

Felzein's head snapped round, his eyes narrowing as they tracked Rosa's silent approach.

"What is it?" he asked, his tone sharpened by a whisper of dread.

Melati pointed, her voice rising with urgency, "She's about to touch something there, at the end!"

Felzein followed her gaze, and in that moment, his heart jolted violently.

"No! Ocha, don't touch that!!" he shouted, his voice raw with panic, crashing through the stillness like breaking glass.

And then... He moved.

SWOOSH!

A blur of motion. A gust of wind.

Felzein surged forward with a speed that defied reason, a phantom streak of light and force.

The air cracked in his wake, rippling with energy.

Melati staggered slightly, her hijab billowing like a sail in a sudden gale. Her eyes widened astonished, disbelieving.

No human should have been capable of such speed.

Yet Felzein was already halfway across the room, a streak of desperation and fear.

And Rosa?

She stood frozen, her hand already reaching out, trembling, suspended just inches from the object that had drawn her in like a siren's song.

In a single, fluid motion, Felzein surged forward, a blur of urgency and precision.

SMACK!

His hand struck Rosa's wrist just in time, diverting her fingers from the shimmering glass that seemed to hum with silent danger.

But in that selfless moment, the hero became the victim.

His own palm, unguarded and unthinking, grazed the surface of the glass.

BZZZT!

A jagged crackle split the air like a whip, sharp and savage.

"ARGHHH!"

His scream tore through the laboratory, raw and unfiltered, a sound born of agony and instinct.

His body convulsed violently. Blue-white lightning flared where his skin met glass, snaking up his arm in cruel, luminous tendrils beautiful and terrifying in equal measure.

His jaw clenched, his limbs seized. The pain was not merely physical.

It was elemental, primal, a current that seized his very essence and flung it into chaos.

Rosa stood frozen, her heart hammering in her chest, her eyes wide with helpless disbelief.

"Felzein!" Melati cried, her voice cracking with panic, as she saw his body flung backwards by the invisible force.

He struck the floor with a sickening impact, his frame trembling, a faint trail of smoke curling from the scorched imprint on his hand.

And then, stillness.

The lab, once pulsing with purpose and inquiry, now held its breath.

Silence fell, dense and oppressive, broken only by the faint hiss of static, and the ragged, uneven breaths of those left standing.

It was a silence not of peace, but of aftermath.

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