The SVE Club

46. Revelation

    Midas couldn't believe that he let Willow tag along. He never would have guessed that she of all people would go off on her own in the burning building.

    As worried as he was, he did have a mission to complete here. Hopefully, Willow could stay out of trouble long enough for him to get the serum.

    Toting a clean, half-gallon milk jug that he'd gotten one of the housekeepers to smuggle to him yesterday, he turned into the room where Sam had said the serum would be.

    A glowing, glass tank full of blue liquid was tipped to its side, the contents spilling out fast. Midas stuck the milk jug under the spray, urging it to fill quickly. Some of the serum splashed onto his hand and a tingling sensation shot through his body.

Whoa, that's powerful stuff, Midas thought, being careful not to get any more on him. He filled the jug halfway before screwing the cap back on and placing the serum in his backpack. Just as he did, he heard a disheartening sound.

    "Midas! Midas, help!"

    "Oh, no," Midas murmured. He grabbed his bag and ran back into the hall.

    "Willow!" he bellowed. "Where are you?"

    "Midas!" Willow shouted again, her voice cracking.

    Following the sound of her screams, Midas found Willow in tears, standing in a doorway.

    "Willow! Where did you go?"

    "There's no cure," Willow sobbed.

    Midas shook his head, regret welling in his chest. "I'm sorry, Willow. But we need to leave. Right now."

    "No," Willow said. "We can't just leave him behind." She stepped aside to reveal Iron Ice stuck to the floor.

    Midas stepped forward, his eyes widening in shock. "Iron?"

Iron Ice struggled to look at him. "Why-" He stopped. "Midas?"

"We're gonna get you out of here," Midas said, rushing to his side.

"You- You're a villain," Iron Ice said in disbelief.

Midas sighed. "I'm not a monster. Can you walk?"

"Doesn't matter," Iron Ice answered. "They were working on some artificial conjoiner glue in this lab- I'm stuck to the floor."

"You can't pull away?"

"I'm not strong enough," Iron Ice whimpered.

"Not yet," Midas said. He pulled the serum from his bag and unscrewed the cap. He tilted the container and stuck a finger into the liquid. Ignoring the tingling in his hand, he took the drop that clung to his finger and shook it into a small cut on Iron Ice's cheek.

"Time to see if the old man's serum actually works," he muttered.

"What was that? What did you do?" Iron Ice hissed.

"Try breaking away," Midas ordered.

"But-"

"Try it now!"

Iron Ice grunted and began pulling himself up. Slowly, he began to unpeel from the floor, yelling with effort.

Midas and Willow exchanged wary glances. The serum was indeed super.

    "What was that stuff?" Iron Ice asked, finally sitting up. "What did you give to me?"

    "Explain later," Midas said. "We need to get out before the building comes down on our heads."