BIOLOGICAL SUPERCOMPUTER SYSTEM

"Hey, Erik…" the young woman said, "I just wanted to tell you that my parents are throwing a party next weekend, and I wanted to invite you. There will be many important people there, so you should attend; it is an occasion to get to know the higher-ups…" she added.

"Why should I? It's not like I want to meet them… But I appreciate the invite," the young man replied.

"I know, I would also avoid this if I could, but unfortunately, I know that making connections is part of the job and that it is important for our future, so just come, OK?" Amber replied.

Erik was taken aback. He was grateful for the invitation, but he couldn't help feeling a bit annoyed. He had already been to one of Amber's parents' parties, which wasn't a pleasant experience for him.

It felt like he had been thrown into a cage full of tigers that wanted to eat him alive, and it wasn't an experience he wanted to replicate. He had always felt like he didn't quite fit in with the kind of society Amber was part of, which was more affluent and sophisticated than his own.

Amber must have sensed his apprehension because she quickly added, "Don't worry, if you don't feel like it, you are not forced to attend, but I would like you to come…"

Erik hesitated momentarily before nodding. "Alright, I'll come," he said, trying to put on a brave face. "But I'm doing this only because of you..." he added, making the young girl blush.

Amber smiled, relieved. "G-great! I p-promise you won't regret it," she said, stuttering before saying her goodbyes and walking toward her own room.

As Erik walked back to his own apartment, he quickly went to take a shower to wash away his fatigue, and after he was done, he quickly went to his room. He needed to search for information about this Achim guy, as he had postponed the search for many days; he actually also had to absorb Nathaniel's power since he hadn't had the time to do so in the past few days.

Erik sat down on his bed, determined to learn more about Achim. He knew that if he wanted to beat his enemy, he needed to learn as much as possible about him. However, he couldn't possibly do so from his smartphone, which would be easily traceable, so he asked the system to connect to the closest phone.

[ANSWER: THE CLOSEST PHONE IS ON THE SECOND FLOOR, 4 METERS ABOVE YOU. DO YOU WANT TO CONNECT?]

<Yes,> the young man thought.

[CONNECTION TO THE DEVICE: ERWIN CRAWFORD'S SMARTPHONE, COMPLETE.]

As he gained control of the device, he quickly started an anonymous search, typed Achim's phone number into the search bar, and hit enter.

As the results started pouring in, Erik didn't find much, but after a couple more searches, he was surprised to see the sheer amount of available information. He had never realized how much personal data was stored online and was actually curious to see what the internet said about him. However, he resisted the urge to check and continued his search.

He scrolled through the search results pages, clicking on every promising link. He found out that Achim was the son of a wealthy businessman and had grown up with every advantage. He had attended the best schools and was a pretty skilled fighter, not so much as to join the Red Palace, but he was indeed strong. He was now in military school but was in his last year, being an eighteen-year-old guy.

From the photos, it appeared that Achim was a reasonably young man who stood tall and proud with a lean, athletic build. His complexion was fair, with a hint of a sun-kissed tan on his exposed arms and neck. His thick, wavy brown hair, which was pulled back into a neat ponytail and fell just below his shoulder blades, was his most striking feature.

His eyes were a bright, piercing blue and seemed to sparkle with intelligence and curiosity. His nose was straight and just a little bit narrow, which gave his face a sharp and refined look. He wore elegant clothes in most of the photos, which were mostly taken in fancy places with wealthy and influential people.

Erik also learned that Achim was an accomplished athlete, having won several competitions in various sports; that was probably why he had that physique. He had a large circle of friends and was known for his charismatic personality and easy charm. However, Erik knew this wasn't all, as it was clear to him that this young man was affiliated with the Mambas in some way, maybe because of his father.

Erik realized that this was all valuable information, and he made a mental note to use it to his advantage, but there was nothing more about him on the internet. The young man then disconnected the phone. There was nothing more he could do to get information about the older man, but he learned a valuable piece of information: Achim went to Thornton High School; he only needed to go to the archive and find his information to get his house address.

"That's already something," Erik said to himself. "I definitely need to pay the school a visit."

After a few minutes of resting, the young man heard the sound of his and Benedict's apartment opening. His roommate entered the dorm room, greeted Erik with a quick "hi," and headed straight for the shower. Erik watched as Benedict disappeared into the bathroom but kept resting.

Several minutes later, Benedict emerged from the bathroom, freshly showered and dressed in his spare Red Palace uniform. He flopped down on the common area's couch with a tired expression on his face.

"You look beat," Erik commented.

Benedict let out a heavy sigh. "Yeah, it's been a long day…" He paused for a moment, gathering his thoughts. "I'm going to head to the cafeteria to have dinner together and to keep an eye on Aaron. We thought it might be good to cheer him up a little bit. Wanna come?"

"How is it going?" Erik asked, referring to Aaron's situation, if it wasn't his duty to stay with him today.

Benedict nodded in agreement. "It's been rough; not even Anderson and Mikey have been able to cheer him up."

Erik nodded, feeling sad for his friend. Despite their own busy schedules and personal challenges, they were always looking out for each other.

"So, will you come?" Benedict asked.

"Sure," Erik said finally.

"All right, let's go…" Benedict said.

Erik and the others met at the cafeteria and ordered their dinner. All of them got some meat dishes and some sides.

They were eagerly waiting for their dinner. The servers had placed platters of steaming food on the table. Benedict was starving and couldn't wait to dig in. As he took his first bite, he couldn't help but let out a satisfied moan. He then kept stuffing his face with food while the others ate.

Mikey, Anderson, and Amber were chatting, exchanging stories about their training gains. Floyd was munching on some corn on the cob while Gwen was delicately slicing her steak. Erik was taking it all in, enjoying the warm atmosphere his friends made.

Aaron was still in a sour mood, but the others did their best to make him feel better.

However, Benedict suddenly felt something catch in his throat as he chewed. He tried to cough it up, but it wouldn't budge. Benedict's face turned red as he struggled to breathe.

Erik, Martha, Aaron, Mikey, Anderson, Amber, Floyd, and Gwen were all discussing their own things at the table until they saw Benedict having trouble.

At first, they looked concerned, but as Benedict's struggles continued, his face turning redder by the second, they began to realize what was happening. And then it happened.

Benedict let out a loud, violent cough and spewed bits of pasta and sauce all over the table, including on himself. Everyone around him jumped back, dodging the flying food, but some were not so lucky.

"I'm sorry," he gasped, trying to clear his throat.

But then something strange happened. Aaron looked at the scene, and then he started laughing. It was contagious, as everyone else soon started doing the same. Even Gwen, who was normally the sternest and coldest person in the group, couldn't hold back her giggles.

Benedict looked mortified as he coughed and sputtered, trying to catch his breath. He felt embarrassed.

But the laughter around him only grew louder, with Erik and Martha leading the charge. The laughter died down slowly, and the group started cleaning up the mess. Benedict sat silently, picking at his plate, too embarrassed to speak.

But then, to his surprise, Aaron patted him on the back. "Don't worry about it, man," he said, grinning. "We've all been there..."

Benedict looked up, relieved, and slowly a smile spread across his face. He realized that even though he had made a fool of himself, his friends didn't care, and besides, he had made Aaron laugh.