NOVEL NEXT Chapter 40 – Training [2]
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The test quickly came to an end, with Jean, Sara, and Kitty emerging as the victors. While Kurt could consistently teleport, some balls still hit him as the pitchers seemed to constantly adjust the trajectories of the balls based on situational analysis.
Scott also started off well, but as the test progressed and the balls increased in speed, he began to get hit a few times, although he still managed to deal with most of them using his lasers.
Jean was constantly shielded by a barrier around her body, and Kitty could simply phase through and dodge the bullets. Sara, however, found the test somewhat unfair, considering Kitty's power. Nevertheless, she couldn't say much about herself since Prime did most of the work.
Whenever a ball veered off course as intended by Sara, Prime quickly sprouted a tentacle from her back, which caught the ball and sliced it in half swiftly and efficiently. This process also served as good training for Sara, helping her sharpen her natural reflexes.
With the announcement from the robotic voice, the test finally came to an end. Sara looked around and noticed that everyone seemed visibly tired. Although not apparent at first glance, this test demanded quite a bit of endurance. Even though not physically exerting the body, it required frequent use of powers, which demanded considerable effort.
"You don't look tired at all. Are you made of iron too and didn't tell us?" Kitty said, panting but with a smile on her lips.
"If that's the case... would my teleportation still seem cool to the rookie?" hearing this question, Scott looked at Kurt, putting a smile on his face and shrugging.
While Kurt grew increasingly disheartened with his situation, realizing that even the rookie seemed to have more impressive powers than his, Scott approached the group again after finishing setting up the next training.
"Alright folks, get ready, we're starting the second test" exclaimed Scott, prompting everyone to return to their positions.
With that, everyone repositioned themselves, stretching and getting ready for the next test. Scott explained that it would be a reflexes test, which made Sara wonder how she could fare well using her powers in this situation.
In the end, both Sara and Prime didn't need to wonder much about it. All their senses were shared; in a way, there was no Prime without Sara, and vice versa. They were both one entity, and that perception was intrinsically ingrained in their consciousness.
With that, the test quickly began after the robotic voice repeated the countdown. Various types of weapons unknown to Sara started appearing all over the room, positioned at different heights and directions. While she wondered what the purpose of all this was, Scott once again began to explain the rules.
"This test is pretty simple, just like the first one. All these weapons will fire lasers. All we need to do is dodge the lasers without straying too much from the square marked on the floor" explained Scott, pointing to the square around Sara, who hadn't even noticed his presence.
"Within this square, you can use any method to avoid the attacks"
Hearing this made Sara doubt if he was really serious. Golf balls were one thing, but lasers seemed to be too much. Sara wasn't particularly worried about herself, as she knew Prime would protect her, but she couldn't say the same for the others.
"I don't know if I'm being weird for asking this, but... doesn't this seem a bit dangerous?" Sara questioned, pointing to one of the lasers aiming directly at her head.
Truth be told, even being mutants, even Prime was wondering why the heck kids were training so intensely. All he could think about was what kind of world he had stumbled into.
"Don't worry, the lasers don't cause harm, and the weapons are just holograms. The most you'll feel is a slight itch"
Hearing this, Sara just nodded, amazed at the technologies present in that mansion. To be honest, she didn't even imagine that holograms so realistic could be created.
Now, with Sara aware of the rules, the test finally began in earnest. All the weapons started glowing with an intense red at their tips, and as everyone prepared their powers, Sara closed her eyes, feeling her body becoming lighter.
At this moment, both Sara and Prime were in a deep state of mental connection. As the sound of lasers being fired echoed through the room, Sara moved with minimal precision, causing all the lasers to simply pass through her.
You know, everyone in the room was just like, getting more and more blown away by what they were seeing. It was like, everyone agreed Sara only really flexed her full power after she transformed, but the way things were playing out seemed to challenge that whole idea.
As the test went on, everyone's awe just kept growing as they watched Sara, like, getting more and more skilled at dodging the lasers with crazy precision. It got to a point where Sara just had to move one tiny part of her body to dodge all the lasers, showing off this freakishly amazing control over her moves.
When the second test wrapped up, Sara once again came out on top, while everyone else was catching their breath after giving it their all to dodge those lasers. While everyone else was still trying to catch their breath, Sara was just chilling against the wall, sporting this confident smirk as she watched the others.
"I'm starting to think this newbie is just messing with us" Kurt commented, turning to Jean, Kitty, and Scott.
"Yeah, feeling the same way" Kitty replied with a sigh, showing her surprise and maybe a bit of disbelief at losing to a newbie who'd only had her powers for less than a month.
"I'm definitely winning the next test!" Kurt exclaimed, his determination all fired up.
After the second test, Scott quickly set up the console for the next challenge, which was gonna be a speed test. The room went through this quick transformation, with a finish line popping up in the spacious area. It was pretty big, giving plenty of room for everyone to run around freely.
Midway through the test, Sara couldn't help but notice Kurt's cocky and teasing grin. She just chose to ignore it, knowing there wasn't much she could do against someone who could teleport. But she was dead set on securing second place in the competition.
And then, this robotic voice started up again, starting a countdown. Sara's feet were gradually enveloped by Prime's energy, all while she smiled with determination. Focusing on the finish line, Sara waited for just the right moment. When the time hit zero, she shot off with all her speed, fueled by Prime's energy.
The room was suddenly hit with this strong gust of wind, catching everyone off guard. Before they could even process what was happening, Sara was already crossing the finish line, with Kurt right alongside her. Even he, with his teleporting power, seemed surprised by Sara's speed, which almost matched his at the finish.
Needless to say, both Sara and Prime were shocked. Neither of them expected to hit that kind of crazy speed. The way Sara ran seemed to surpass the speed of sound multiple times over.
"You didn't tell us you had that much power in your legs. In the video... you seemed more like the brute force type" Kurt said, surprise written all over his face.
(Well... that's cause I didn't even know)
"Well... that's cause I didn't even know"
Sara and Prime replied at the same time, though this whole thing got Prime seriously rethinking what he knew about himself. If he could run that fast, what else could he do?.
(Why didn't my new body come with an instruction manual? That'd be incredibly helpful right about now, you know?)
Prime's internal monologue aside, everyone gathered back in the center of the room. Kurt seemed to be taking the biggest hit, feeling pretty down since he was getting outshined in pretty much every aspect by the newbie. Sara praising his teleporting power didn't help his mental recovery at all. In fact, for Prime, that seemed like the final blow, totally merciless.
Once Scott finished setting up the last test, he joined the group. Then, this metal dummy popped up in the center of the room, right in front of them. As Scott approached the dummy, he gave it two taps with the back of his hand.
"This is the final test, and it's what I consider the simplest yet my favorite" Scott said with a smile.
"All you gotta do is give this dummy the hardest punch you can muster" Scott instructed.
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