I groaned as I got up from my bed. Last night was incredibly intense. First, the whole thing with Jimmy and that scumbag Thomas. Then stopping a mega-tsunami that nearly flattened Tokyo. After that whole thing, I spent an hour rescuing hurt civilians, which led to me running out of food.

  Which would be fine if it weren't for the fact that I suddenly got jumped by four Super-Soldiers with power armour. Then, after I took a beating, I managed to win, knocking everyone down. That's until someone from the government said it would be a fantastic idea to drop an atomic bomb in the middle of the forest, while their own soldiers still lay on the ground. I later learned from Gavin that it was a bomb that yielded the same energy as the Fat Man nuke. You know...one of the biggest and most powerful nuclear bombs in the world! I had to drive it away so none of the forest or Squad Nova got killed because of the government's stupidity.

  But that led to it exploding right at my face. It hurt a lot. Granted, I was low in power, but it still wasn't pleasant. Even when I ate, and my healing factor did its magic, I still felt incredibly sore. Not to mention, my suit and SEE goggles have been damaged.

  Gavin has already sent it to Jason for repair. I got a call from Jason himself in the middle of the night, apologizing for the whole debacle and not being able to stop Squad Nova from entering his territory in the first place. And he didn't know they were going to drop a nuke into his country. I got chills hearing his normal voice transformed into an irritated, cold one. Saying he's going to give all the Monarchs an earful in the next meeting.

  As an apology and reward for saving a whole nation, he's got a special surprise in about a couple of days. Sure, that's great and all, but the biggest problem I had at the moment is that because my suit is being repaired, that means no Red Justice for a couple of days. That's why I'm glaring at my floor as if it personally insulted me. I narrowed my eyes so hard that my eyes heated up, just a bit more, and I might just laser my floor.

  I was in a very annoyed mood. No, Red Justice for two days? It's like asking a teenager in the modern age that they won't be using technology for a week. That's what I'm feeling right now. It makes me antsy, like what if a disaster like Japan happens again? Am I seriously going to do nothing, all because I don't have my suit!?

  Then again, I could maybe stitch up a homemade costume for a while. But I doubt Gavin will let me. And I'm not nearly as effective as a hero without my SEE Goggles. I groaned as I got out of bed, preparing myself to head to school. Then my phone pinged from my pocket just as I was about to enter my bathroom.

  I brought the screen to my face, and to my surprise, Gavin had texted me.

  GAVIN: Meet me at the hangar after school. Put on something active.

  RED

  After School...

  JUSTICE

  I was frowning. Jimmy wasn't at school today. That made me incredibly worried. I ended up asking Mr. Dracos why Jimmy isn't here today, and apparently, Thomas said over the phone that Jimmy wasn't feeling well. That's bullcrap, I knew it was.

  Gavin said that he made an anonymous call to child services to investigate the Bullard household. What had happened? I wanted so desperately to know what happened to Jimmy. Gavin forbade me, but during recess, I snuck out of school and went invisible to go to the house.

  Not inside the home, but nearby. I sensed Jimmy's silhouette but not his scumbag of a father. I think he's at work. I felt like a creep staring at him through the window. He was on his bed reading a book about whale anatomy. I frowned. Why hadn't child services done anything?

  Were there complications? But I thought they would respond quickly, especially when there is a potential incident where a child is being abused by a parent. Jimmy seemed fine, so with some reluctance and hesitation, I returned to school to finish my day.

  After school ended, I relaxed a little bit at home. I missed hanging out with my parents, sister and dog. It was brief, but it was nice to spend time with again, even for only half-an-hour. Then I searched through my wardrobe, wearing blue jogging pants and a tight black shirt. After that, I flew to the hangar.

  I spotted Gavin's truck, parked, while the man himself was on his phone, chilling while leaning on his vehicle. I dropped down.

  "Sup. What did you call me here for-?"

  He then points a finger to shush me. His face was deadly serious before grimacing. My eyes widen before I tense. My mind is racing. What could be going on for him to make that face? Did something happen? A natural disaster, again?

  Is the government sending their army at me? Another super terrorist group? Vampires? I was about to ask, what's wrong, only for-

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  "YES! LET'S GO! LET'S GOOOO!" Gavin suddenly shouted.

  I blinked.

  Gavin pumped his fist in the air, phone raised like a trophy. He started doing a little victory shuffle beside his truck, laughing like a maniac.

  "I FINALLY BEAT THAT STAGE! THREE DAYS! THREE DAYS OF GRINDING! Yeah baby! That's what I'm waiting for! That's what it's all about!"

  My eyebrow twitched. The tension in the air vanished like a fart. I stared at him, completely silent, as he kept celebrating and doing some weird dance that he totally got from some weird trend on the internet. Freaking cringe. I shake my head disappointedly.

  "You—" I started.

  Gavin glanced at me with a huge grin. "Oh, hey, kid. You made it."

  Yeah, call me, kid, when you're acting like a gen-alpha kid with ADHD. I seriously considered blasting a tiny optic beam at his phone.

  "...You shushed me for a game?" I said flatly.

  He shrugged. "It's a hard stage to finish. High stakes You know how it is."

  "No, I really don't."

  I shook my head again. "You know what, whatever, why did you call me here?"

  Gavin didn't say anything; instead, looking at me critically, his face shifted into a more soldier-like expression. He rubbed his beard before he finally said something.

  "Ben, I will admit this: when it comes to your age group, you are a cut above the rest."

  "O-Okay?" I responded, caught off guard by his sudden compliment.

  "You have good instincts. Quick reaction. Decent battle IQ. Overall, you are a combat prodigy. I wouldn't be surprised that once you reach your twenties and maybe even younger, you would no doubt surpass me when it comes to hand-to-hand combat skill."

  And next you will say 'But.'

  "But..."

  Ha, I knew it. Gavin folded his arms, eyes sharp now, the playful mood completely gone.

  "Raw talent isn't the same as real skill," He continued. "Right now? You've got the foundation, not the house."

  I frowned, crossing my arms as well. "What do you mean?"

  "You don't have a style, Ben. No boxing base, no grappling base, no martial art you specialize in. You just... punch hard and move fast."

  "Ouch, but fair."

  "You're not bad. You know how to throw a punch without breaking your wrist. You know how to guard your head. You're not an absolute bum in a fight. That already puts you above most kids your age."

  Is he complimenting me, or trying to wreck my pride? I can't tell.

  "You rely on power to fix mistakes." He says, "If your timing's off? Power. If your footwork sloppy? Speed. If your guard's open? Durability and healing factor bail you out."

  I looked away slightly. He wasn't wrong. If everyone I faced anyone like Atlas, Droid and Squad Nova at the same level? I wouldn't stand a chance. My fight last night proved it. I may have jumped, but it didn't change the fact that their skill and teamwork were the ones that gave me the real challenge.

  Not their physical stats. If they fought like me, I would have won very easily, even when ambushed and low on energy. I stopped crossing my arms and clenched my fist. Frustrated at the fact that all of his words are right.

  Gavin's voice lowered, more serious. "You've only been in real combat for what, three months? That's nothing. Some fighters train for ten years before their first real fight." He paused to catch his breath, looking less stern.

  "Listen, I'm not trying to trash-talk you. Amazingly, you're at this level for your age and lack of experience. But it doesn't change the fact that Squad Nova is still out there, and many other Super Soldiers who outclass you in combat skill by a lot. And they will continue to send people after you. Remember what I told you before, you're going to meet something or someone you can't just physically overpower."

  "Yeah...I get it," I grumbled.

  Gavin then pulls something from his pockets. It was a pair of MMA gloves, it was colored bright red. He then tosses it at me and I catch it easily.

  "That changes today. Last time, we had a time limit. But now, especially now that Red Justice won't be appearing for at least a couple days, we get to train, here and now."

  The seriousness and the motivation in voice and face, I'll admit, I got fired up, too. I quickly put on my gloves and started bouncing around. Gavin walked over to the back of his truck and popped it open. Instead of weapons or gadgets, he pulled out a small metal case. It looked ordinary—until he opened it.

  Inside were thick, dark-gray bracelets with faint red lines running through them like circuitry. He picked one up with both hands. I raised a brow; he seemed to struggle picking it up. He then tossed it to me. I caught it and almost slammed my hand into the ground, thankfully I managed to regain my balance before I made a fool of myself.

  "This thing weighs a ton! What the heck!?"

  Yeah, while a ton isn't too much of a big deal, I mean, I was able to lift a mountain when I fought the SV4. I didn't expect something so small to be heavy.

  "Close," Gavin said casually. "Five hundred tons, give or take."

  Oh, no wonder, it's a bit heavy even for me.

  "They're gravity-weight bands." He explained.

  "Okay? Why are you giving this to me?"

  He grabbed more and pressed them into my hands.

  "Three on each wrist. Three on each ankle."

  "That's six thousand tons total!" I protested.

  "You can lift heavier, don't be dramatic."

  I put them on as I said. Six bracelets on my arms and six on my legs. I'll admit they're quite cumbering. Like I lifted heavy stuff, but that was because I was flying and using both limbs. Here, I was actually feeling it, the weight. Even breathing felt heavy.

  He stepped back and rolled his shoulders.

  "We're sparring."

  My head snapped up. "Right now?"

  "Right now," he confirmed. "Sparring is the fastest and most honest way to build skill and experience. No lectures. No theory. Just action."

  "Then why do I have to wear these?"

  "The reason you're wearing those? To nerf you."

  "Nerf me?"

  "Yup. If you want to improve, you need to struggle. You're already way above me in raw power. If we spar normally, you'd just bulldoze through. That teaches you nothing."

  I stayed quiet, listening.

  "So we slow you down," He continued. "Bring you closer to my level. Give me an actual chance to fight back."

  He cracks his neck before putting on his black MMA gloves.

  "Also, no flight. No optic blasts. No Cosmic Energy tricks. Just your enhanced physical stats. Basically, a powered-up version of your training before you went to Russia."

  I see. I looked at the braces before nodding. We went to a more open area away from the truck. We didn't want to accidentally break his car after all. I raised my fists and glared at Gavin, who narrowed his eyes as he got into a boxing stance.

  "Alright, come at me, kid!"