The energy in the gym buzzed as Ember, Exeo, Bo, Riggs, and Fon finally slowed down after a solid hour of sparring. It hadn't taken long before everyone started using their abilities, and now the place looked less like an elite training gym and more like the aftermath of a battlefield.

Fon looked around with an innocent grin, surveying the destruction.

There was a jagged ice barrier still half-formed in one corner where Bo had been practicing his defensive moves. Meanwhile, Fon's earth stabilizing tricks had turned into a series of cracked, upturned floor tiles in the shape of a small mountain. Riggs's wind manipulation had flung mats and training dummies around like confetti. And Ember—well, Ember had taken the opportunity to "liven things up" with several smoldering scorch marks scattered across the walls and floor, creating an unplanned, chaotic mural.

Riggs, catching his breath and wiping sweat from his brow, let out a small laugh as he surveyed the damage. "So… should we be worried about explaining this?"

Fon chuckled, nudging him. "I'm sure Dr. Lewis won't notice a thing. We'll just—"

But before he could finish, the door slid open, and there stood Dr. Lewis, his face a mixture of horror and fury as he took in the complete disaster. His usually composed demeanor cracked, and his eyes practically bulged as he surveyed the room, jaw slack in disbelief.

"What… the… ACTUAL HELL HAVE YOU DONE TO THE GYM?!" Dr. Lewis's voice rang out, bouncing off the battered walls.

Bo, Riggs, and Fon flinched, exchanging guilty glances. Ember, however, flashed a wide, unapologetic grin, clearly undisturbed by the mess. Exeo simply folded his arms, one eyebrow raised, looking as calm as ever.

Dr. Lewis stomped further into the room, his hand clenching the bridge of his nose. "How in the HELL did you even manage this?! There's ice on the floor, scorch marks on the walls, and—are those mats stuck to the CEILING?!"

Fon shrugged sheepishly, trying to offer a calm explanation. "You know… sometimes training just gets a little, uh, intense."

Dr. Lewis whirled on him, pointing at the cracked floor. "A little intense? That's not training; that's total DESTRUCTION! I swear to everything that's holy and fucking unholy, if you so much as TOUCH another training dummy, I'm going to lose my damn mind!"

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Riggs, barely suppressing a snicker, muttered to Ember, "Maybe we should remind him he gave us full access to the gym."

Unfortunately, Dr. Lewis overheard. He spun around, glaring with an intensity that could have melted steel. "Don't you dare play smart with me, Riggs. 'Full access' doesn't mean 'DESTROY EVERYTHING!'"

Bo, trying to hold back his laughter, gave a small, apologetic nod. "We may have… gone a little overboard."

"A little overboard?!" Dr. Lewis's voice hit an octave none of them had heard before. "The only thing left intact in this room is that ONE sad, lonely weight bench in the corner! I don't know whether to yell at all of you or cry!"

Ember, clearly enjoying himself, casually leaned against the scorched wall, crossing his arms. "Hey, we were just giving the equipment a workout. It's not our fault it couldn't handle the intensity."

Dr. Lewis threw up his hands in exasperation. "Ember Bellator, you and your 'intensity' have single-handedly managed to ruin everything I've worked to keep functioning in this place! While you both were out, I have to keep RENOVATING this place because of your brother and these three! I don't know if I should scream or—actually, YES, I should scream! And what on earth is that—are those cracks in the WALLS?"

Fon sheepishly raised a hand. "That might have been me."

"Of course it was," Dr. Lewis seethed, pinching the bridge of his nose again. "You—one tiny earth ability, and suddenly you're the master of destruction!"

Exeo, finally speaking up, cleared his throat, trying to sound reasonable. "Look, Dr. Lewis, we got a little… enthusiastic. But I promise, we can help clean it up."

Dr. Lewis looked at Exeo, his eyes narrowing. "You, Exeo, of all people—I thought you were the responsible one! But no, apparently the Bellator curse of complete chaos runs in the family!"

Ember burst out laughing, unable to contain himself any longer. "Curse of chaos? Now that's a title I can live with."

Dr. Lewis pointed a shaking finger at Ember, his voice practically shaking. "Oh, I'll give you a curse, alright. The curse of never touching this gym again if I have my way! All of you—I swear, you're all like walking hurricanes! My poor, beautiful gym…"

Bo, trying to keep a straight face, stepped forward. "We… really do apologize, Dr. Lewis. If it's any consolation, it was a great workout."

Dr. Lewis looked at Bo, his face incredulous. "A great workout? The gym looks like it's been through the apocalypse, and you're saying 'great workout'? I swear, if I hear one more word, I'm—"

Riggs couldn't hold it in anymore and started laughing, which set off the rest of them. Ember and Fon doubled over, chuckling, while even Exeo allowed a small smirk to creep onto his face.

"Oh, you think this is funny?" Dr. Lewis shouted, his face going red. "You'll be laughing on cleanup duty, because guess who's scrubbing every inch of this mess? I'll give you a hint: it's not me!"

As the team continued to laugh, Dr. Lewis stormed out, muttering every curse under his breath. As the door shut behind him, Riggs wiped a tear from his eye, still chuckling.

"Well, that went about as well as I expected," Riggs said, grinning.

Ember clapped him on the shoulder, smirking. "Hey, what's a little chaos between friends?"