Chapter 24: Laboratory
Steve didn't realize what had happened at all until Dr. Erskine personally came to find him that evening. He learned that he had been chosen as the first test subject for the Super Soldier Program.
Honestly, he thought he was being sent to the frontlines at first, but he only learned about the Super Soldier Program after arriving here. However, he never thought he would be chosen, as there were many better soldiers than him.
He knew his physical abilities very well, and his training during this time made him realize the gap between himself and a real soldier. Frankly speaking, he feared that if he were to go to war now, he would be dead before he even saw the enemy, let alone end the war.
But the Super Soldier Serum was an opportunity to change all of this, and now that opportunity had dropped on him.
Although according to Dr. Erskine, the serum could potentially turn him into a guy like Schmidt, Steve believed that he had enough goodness to avoid such a fate.
All of this will be revealed after tomorrow's experiment!
...…
The next day, early in the morning, Steve was called out alone, and the group boarded a transport plane back to New York at the airport.
On the plane, Steve sat in a large seat, gripping his seat belt tightly, appearing somewhat nervous. It wasn't because he was about to receive a serum injection or because of air sickness, but purely because Peggy was sitting next to him.
Noticing Steve's discomfort, Peggy didn't say anything, but her mouth couldn't help but curve into a slight smile.
Across from them, Jack and Erskine exchanged a knowing smile like lightbulbs.
Two hours later, the plane arrived safely in New York, and everyone disembarked. Peggy took Steve to the hospital for a simple physical examination. At the same time, Jack escorted Erskine to the Strategic Scientific Reserve's secret laboratory in New York City.
The Brooklyn antique store.
To be honest, setting up a top-secret laboratory in the city center is a bit odd, but considering the huge power supply needed for the Super Soldier Serum project, it's not easy to do it in the suburbs.
Since Congress wouldn't provide a generator, Phillip had no choice but to set up the lab in the city.
A car parked in front of the antique store, and before getting out, Jack noticed several suspicious people nearby.
However, he didn't say anything, knowing these people wouldn't act now. Otherwise, they wouldn't have waited until they arrived here. Escorting Erskine into the antique store, they entered the laboratory after giving the secret code.
Once they arrived, they were relatively safe. Erskine went to prepare for the experiment, and Jack was bored, so he decided to explore the laboratory.
Inside the lab, amidst a pile of unfamiliar equipment, there was a single bed-like table where Steve would soon have to lie down and become the test subject.
Regarding this, Jack had nothing but pity in his heart.
The side effects of the super soldier serum were too great. He could end up like Schmidt with a big red face if things went wrong. He wasn't worried about not having powerful opportunities with the Multiverse Salvage Pool.
But speaking of the Multiverse Salvage Pool, Jack felt slightly annoyed as the probability of getting good things was incredibly low.
Since he obtained his hawk-eye vision now, he hadn't salvaged anything particularly useful. Most were useless junk, like used powder boxes, half-eaten apples, partially used lipstick, and even a pair of women's prescription glasses.
He could give away new cosmetics, but there was no use for used ones except to gather dust in the corner.
The most valuable item he found was a hidden blade from the Assassin's Creed series. It could eject a sharp blade from the wrist and fire small crossbow bolts or poison darts. Jack tested it and found it to be quite effective.
This thing is not bad. Small and easy to carry and hide, and you can hardly tell from its appearance.
It is currently strapped to his wrist. Other than that, there was nothing else.
"Hey, Jack, I haven't seen you in a while. How have you been?"
At this moment, Howard entered the laboratory and saw Jack, and greeted him. "Just okay, nothing special." Jack looked at Howard and said, "What about you? Peggy said you've been pretty busy lately."
"Okay, I've been doing fine. Recently, I discovered a fascinating young man who is a genius. He's a bit inferior to me, but his research impressed me. I've been busy with that lately."
As he talked about this, Howard's face showed a hint of seriousness and excitement, as if he had found a worthy opponent in a game of chess.
"A young man? If he caught your attention, he must be impressive."
"Yes, indeed. I plan to appoint him as the chief scientist of Stark Industries, but... it may not be that easy."
"Why not? Is he unwilling?"
"No, it's because... he's from the other side, studying abroad here."
Howard seemed hesitant to speak, but Jack could easily guess the young man's identity from Howard's expression.
The two didn't stay on the previous issue and chatted for a while. Eventually, they both got ready, and Peggy arrived at the lab with Steve, who had just had his medical exam.
Howard went to do something else, and Jack went up to the observation room above the lab. Colonel Phillips had just brought a group of well-dressed officials in.
"Colonel!"
To be honest, Jack wasn't a big fan of being around a bunch of suits, but he had no choice since Colonel Phillips had specifically requested his presence.
"Oh, Lieutenant Wayne!"
Phillips, who was talking to an elderly man in a suit, immediately pulled Jack over and introduced him, "This is Senator Brandt from the committee. The success of the Super Soldier Program depends on his lobbying the White House."
Phillips' introduction confused Jack about why he was suddenly introduced to such a high-ranking official. While Jack was unsure, Senator Brandt could see that Phillips valued this soldier and introduced him to influential people to help him climb the ranks. After politely greeting Jack, he redirected the conversation to the experiment.
Fortunately, Colonel Philip took over the conversation perfectly and subtly waved his hand towards Jack. Annoyed, he shook his head and sat in a corner.