Learning to Breathe
Author's note: Hello, everyone! It's time for the next chapter in our little adventure.
Scott: Too bad the entire story sucks.
Kristen: It does not!
Fred: He's only mad 'cause he's not in this fic.
Rs7: Break it up you two! Cyclops, what are you doing here? You're not supposed to show up until chapter 33!
Scott: I'm on strike.
Rs7: Oh for the love of…
Scott: You never put me in any of your stories!
Kristen: You were in Mutants in Magix! That was a big fic!
Neal: That's right. Why aren't we in that story?
Rs7: 1) that story is finished. 2) it's a completely different universe! Kris, you don't even exist there!
Kristen: Oh, yeah. Forgot that.
Rs7: And 3) I'm dealing with Megan's characters in addition to the other nuts in that fic.
Thorn: Hey!
Scott: Oh you shut up!
Kristen: You first, One-eye!
Scott: Make me!
Rs7: (swings big rubber mallet around) Do you all want a piece of me? Do you?
Mystique: Here we go again, folks!
Neal: Let's get back to the fic now, can we?
Rs7: Fine! Okay, it's Golem's turn for training. We all know that this will be fun, don't we?
Chapter Twenty-five: Power Lift
After a day's rest, one-on-one training returned with a bang (and a few holes) when Zartan told Golem to come practice his technique.
"I can punch fine." Mitch protested, but nonetheless followed Zartan into the weight room. "Okay, I didn't mean to knock that dent in the wall, but…"
"That is not what we're here to discuss." Zartan replied.
"Then why are we here?" The brown haired boy scratched his head.
"To test the limits of your abilities, Mr. Dukes." The older man replied, walking next to a large barbell. "This weight weighs 100 lbs. You will attempt to lift it. If you succeed, you will move on to a heavier set, and so forth. Think you can handle it?"
"Easy." The boy grinned. He lumbered up to the weight, threw it over his shoulders, and proceeded to use it as a baton.
"Well done." Zartan smiled. "The 150 weight is on the ground behind you."
"Cool." Golem smiled. Spitting in his palms, he gripped the metal handle and lifted the weight in the air.
"Now set that on the bench." Zartan ordered. The gray-eyed boy complied immediately. "There are two fifty-pound rings on that shelf. The numbers are stamped on them."
"I see them." The boy answered.
"Good." Zartan nodded. "Slide one on either side of the barbell. If that isn't enough of a challenge, keep adding rings to it until it becomes one."
"Got it." Golem nodded.
Thirty minutes later….
"Wow. I've never seen that many holes before." One trooper blinked. True to form, there were about fifteen new "doors" or "windows" in the workout room. Mitch swung a ball bearing around while Zartan screamed for him to put the weight down.
"I know what I'm doing!" The husky teen protested.
"That's what you said the last twenty times, now stop it! We're done today!" Zartan shouted.
"I can do this! Watch" Mitch harrumphed, throwing the weight as if it were a baton. This time, it went into the shelf. "Oops!"
"Yeah, oops!" Zartan said. "Next time you decide to show off, take it outside! You've racked up over ten thousand dollars in damages in under an hour!"
"Why are you just strict with me and not the girls?" Mitch asked.
"Trust me, it's not just you!" Zartan groaned. "But you are worse than your brother about this, and that's an accomplishment!"
"Really?" The brown haired boy asked.
"Really." The man replied. "Look, a little goofing off is fine, but you need to stop when you're told or else you might do damage to someone instead of a wall next time."
"I never thought about that." Golem hung his head.
"I figured." Said the spy. "We'll work on this more later. Class dismissed for now."
"Okay." The gray-eyed teen sighed as he walked out.
"I swear, those kids are going to drive me crazy." Zartan moaned once the boy left.
"I think it's a short trip." The trooper, who had watched the entire display, quipped.
"Oh, shut up!" Zartan snapped.
I hope you enjoyed this little chapter. I'm working on the next few now, so hopefully they'll be up this week.