Chapter 15: The Ant Tea Experiment

Arc 2: The Forge of Essences

Eli stared at the beaker filled with ants, watching as the sparks of essence jumped sluggishly between them. The ants were moving slower by the second, and Eli knew that in its current state, the essence was only taking energy without giving anything back.

How do I fix this? he wondered, thinking back to the way his ring worked. When he upgraded an item, the ring would take energy from him, but it transformed that energy and gave something back once the process was complete. It was like a capacitor or a battery, storing and releasing energy in a balanced cycle.

A thought clicked in Eli's mind: What if I upgrade the beaker? If he could stabilize the energy inside the beaker the way he did with his ring, maybe the essence would become self-sustaining. It would stop draining and start giving back energy instead.

Luckily, his mother had left the IV drip system in place, connected to his arm. All he had to do was hook up another IV and start the process. He grabbed the beaker, now glowing faintly with the unstable sparks, and lay down on his bed, connecting the IV to his arm.

Taking a deep breath, Eli slowly began to tip the bucket in his mind, letting his energy trickle into the beaker. At first, he barely felt the pull, but as the process continued, he entered that familiar, strange state of focus—halfway between awareness and sleep.

As Eli poured his energy into the beaker, his hunger returned, sharper this time. He paused to remove the empty IV and connected another one, his hand shaking slightly with excitement. This was going to work.

For the next two hours, Eli lay there, maintaining the slow trickle of energy. At one point, his father came in, noticing Eli's still form and the IV attached to his arm. Assuming his son was just sleeping, his father quietly changed out the IV bag and adjusted the monitors, shaking his head at the sight of the beaker still clutched in Eli's hand.

Moving carefully so as not to disturb him, his father left the room, oblivious to the experiment unfolding before him.

A good while later, Eli opened his eyes. The first thing he noticed was the beaker still resting in his hand—and the ants inside it.

They were all still.

Frowning, Eli gently shook the beaker, but the ants didn't move. They were dead. Yet the essence inside them hadn't disappeared. If anything, it had grown stronger, no longer jumping between the ants like before. Now, it was separated evenly between them, glowing brighter and steadier than it ever had.

A new message appeared in Eli's vision:

Item: Beaker with Strange Substance

Mentality: 1/2

Description: A beaker filled with a strange substance containing a spark of the supernatural. One-time use.

Eli's heart raced with excitement. He had done it. He had upgraded the beaker, transforming the unstable essence into something more refined and stable. And even though he had relied on his powers to finish the process, this experiment was proof of concept.

Now, Eli couldn't wait to test the beaker's new properties. The thought of ant tea came to mind, and without hesitation, he hurried downstairs to put his new discovery to the test.

In the kitchen, Eli carefully boiled two cups of water, pouring the hot liquid into two separate mugs. He added the contents of the upgraded beaker to one of the mugs, watching as the liquid turned a deep brown, with a faint smoky scent rising from it.

The other mug was filled with plain water, but after adding some mint leaves, Eli noticed the distinct difference in the smells. The ant tea had a stronger almost spicy minty aroma, while the mint tea smelled lighter and fresher.

Eli brought the first cup to his lips and took a cautious sip.

Immediately, a wave of lightness washed over him. It felt like he was floating on air, his mind buzzing with forgotten memories and thoughts he hadn't considered in years. It was like unlocking a vault of forgotten ideas.

But then, a sharp pain pierced through his thoughts—a memory he didn't want to remember, clawing its way to the surface. Eli winced pulling away. The tea wasn't just enhancing his thoughts—it was forcing him to confront something buried deep but eli felt that he should keep it that way.

Despite the discomfort, Eli was fascinated by the effects. This was powerful.

He quickly poured another cup of the ant tea, his mind racing with excitement. He had to share this with his father.

Eli raced downstairs, cup in hand. "Daddy, I made tea for you!" he called, holding the mug out with a proud smile.

His father looked at the mug suspiciously, his earlier memory of the beaker filled with ants still fresh in his mind. What exactly had his son been up to? But the strong scent of mint coming from the tea eased his concerns, and he accepted the cup.

"Thanks, Eli," his father said, taking a sip.

The moment the tea touched his lips, something clicked. His father's eyes widened as a rush of thoughts flooded his mind. He had been working on a patent for a solar panel at his job, but they had hit a bottleneck in the process. Now, everything he had learned over the years seemed to fall into place, forming a almost as if it was searching for a solution to the problem. His mind raced, putting together ideas faster than he could process.

But before he could fully grasp the answer, the feeling faded, leaving him frustrated and unsatisfied.

He finished the rest of the tea, not realizing it was the cause of the mental burst, and handed the cup back to Eli with a smile. "Thanks, son. That was good. But I just thought of something important. Can you get ready? I need to head into work."

Eli was confused. Hadn't his father liked the tea? It seemed like something had happened, but his father didn't mention anything unusual.

His father, now in a rush to get to the office and capture his ideas before they slipped away, hurriedly prepared to leave. He glanced at Eli, feeling a twinge of guilt. If Eli weren't sick, he would have left him at home, but he couldn't risk it.

Eli returned moments later, and together they rushed out the door.