CHAPTER SEVEN
Scaling the Wall
----------------------------------------
It was the next morning, and Ian was standing in the middle, dressed in his blue suit, with Adam in his red suit on his right and Garnet in her orange suit on his left. Cyrus had instructed them to be suited up and ready at 8am sharp, but they stood in the training room waiting for her arrival. Overhead lights illuminate a warm glow across the polished floor. The space was enormous but not overwhelming, about the size of a basketball court, providing enough room for the team to move around freely. The flag was hoisted high in the center of the room, its red and white stripes standing out against the neutral walls. It fluttered gently in the breeze created by the ventilation system.
Cyrus strode into the training room, her purple suit gleaming in the bright light. Her helmet was firmly in place, concealing her face, but her presence was commanding. The rest of the team turned to greet her, their helmets sitting beside them on the ground.
“Good morning,” Cyrus said. “Are we all ready to get started? Your training ends when you grab that flag,” she is pointing up at the lone flag hanging in the center of the room.
“What?” Adam said, incredulous. “That’s got to be at least fifty feet.” “Forty,” Garnet corrected him.
“Alright team,” Cyrus said, “For now we’re going to run through a series of tests to help you all get used to your powers.”
Garnet nodded, “Awesome.”
Cyrus stood in front of the team, her eyes scanning over each member as she spoke. “Your suits give you power, speed, and agility, but it’s like a muscle. You need to train them, or they won’t be effective. This obstacle course is designed to test your abilities and help you improve them.”
She gestured to the course behind her, a large, multi-level structure that spanned the length of the room. “There are weights to lift, and obstacles to overcome. It will test your strength, speed, and agility, and culminate in a forty-foot vertical leap to a flag.”
Ian cracked his knuckles. “Sounds like fun.”
Cyrus paused, looking at each member of the team. “Remember, your suits are a tool, but you are the ones wielding them. Focus on your abilities.” After taking a deep breath, she runs through the course. She crosses the jumping platforms with ease, using her enhanced speed and agility to navigate the jumps. She approaches the balance beam. Four large kettle bells sat on one side. With a grunt, she lifts one of them off the ground and moves it across the beam. She keeps her focus and determination, not slowing down until she reaches the ultimate challenge: the 40-foot vertical leap to the flag. She takes a moment to catch her breath, then springs into action. With a running start, she jumps towards the wall, using her enhanced strength to propel herself higher and higher until she finally grabs the flag.
“Your turn,” Cyrus calls out to the rest of the team, a smile on her face. “Let’s see what you can do.”
Adam turns to Ian. “She did that in like five minutes.” Ian nods. “Yeah, she’s pretty impressive.”
Adam looks up at Cyrus and back down at the jumping platforms in front of him. He leaps onto the first one, the slanted top makes him slide off onto the floor below. Adam stands up, rubbing his backside, and sees Garnet and Ian laughing at him. “What?” he asks defensively.
Garnet shakes her head, “Nothing, just didn’t expect you to slip up so soon.”
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
Adam climbs back up to the starting platform, determined to do better this time. “Faster this time,” he declares. He surveys the ten slanted jumping platforms in front of him and takes off with a running start. He propels himself from one to the next, but the third upsets his balance, and he slams into the ground with a loud thud.
Ian chuckles at Adam’s struggle but offers words of encouragement. “Come on, man. You got this. Remember what Cyrus said. Take it slow and steady. Use your suit to your advantage.”
Adam picks himself up and takes a deep breath. “Ok, so I’ll do it my way.” He climbs back up to the starting position, and this time he runs to the edge of the platform. With a powerful leap, he clears five of the platforms before landing. Without missing a beat, he kicks off the fifth and clears the remaining platforms with ease.
As Garnet and Ian complete their attempts on the jumping platforms, Adam looks ahead at the next challenge: a balancing beam with two massive kettlebells placed at one end. He approaches the weights and squats down to pick one up, but as he tries to lift it, he struggles and grunts with the effort, his arms shaking with the weight. “Jeez, what is this, 50 pounds?”
“Three hundred!” Cyrus lounged herself out from on top of the vertical wall.
“Three hundred pounds? That’s insane!” Adam said in disbelief. He takes a step onto the balance beam, the weight of the kettlebell in his arms making it hard to maintain his balance.
“You’re doing well, Adam,” she calls out. “It’s not just about the weight, it’s about the balance. Use your suit to help you stay centered.”
Adam steadies himself and moves forward, the beam shaking with every step he takes. As he tries to drag the weight across the beam, he struggles to keep it from tipping over, his muscles straining with the effort. He grits his teeth, determined to make it to the other side. Despite the challenge, he makes it to the other side and drops the kettlebell with a triumphant grunt.
“I told you to treat your suit like a new muscle,” Cyrus says. “You have to train it, build it up, and push its limits. Keep at it, Adam. You’ll get there.”
Adam turns his head just in time to see Ian lose his balance on the beam and fall to the ground with the kettlebell. “You good?” Adam calls out to him as he makes his way over to check on his teammate.
Ian groans and nods, rubbing his sore back. “I’m good, just need a minute to recover,” he replies. “I can’t believe you carried that thing across the whole beam, man. You’re a beast.”
Adam stretches his legs and takes a deep breath before launching himself up the wall. He feels the power of his suit propelling him upward, but within seconds, he slides back down the wall. He lands with a thud on the ground, frustrated. “What am I doing wrong?” he mutters to himself.
Garnet sets down her kettlebell and rushes over to Adam at the wall. “You, okay?”
Adam nods. “Yeah, I’ll get the hang of it.”
Ian joins Garnet and Adam at the wall after successfully crossing the balance beam. “Hey guys,” he says, looking up at the imposing wall. Ian joins Adam and Garnet at the wall, his breathing heavy from the exertion.
Garnet climbs the wall. She makes it about halfway up before slipping and falling back to the ground with a thud. “Oui,” she groans, rubbing her behind.
Adam places his hand on the wall and pushes it, feeling its weight and sturdiness. He looks back at his friends and then back at the wall, analyzing it. He takes a deep breath and climbs, focusing on each handhold and foothold as he makes his way up. Adam looks up at the wall and sees that the holes get smaller the higher he climbs. He reaches up and grasps onto a small hold, feeling the strain on his arms and fingers. He pulls himself up, but his grip gives out again and he falls back down, landing hard on the mat below. “This is impossible,” he says, frustration clear in his voice.
“Hey Adam,” Ian called out from below, getting against the wall and holding out his palm to give him a boost up. Adam plants his foot into Ian’s stretched out hands and jumps off of him. At the peak of his jump, Adam ascends only halfway up the wall. Struggling to find a hold, he slips downwards. Suddenly, he jabs the wall with his open hand, creating his own handhold.
With the newly created handhold, Adam repeats the process for his other hand, using both as leverage to propel himself up the wall. He continues this pattern, creating handholds as he goes. He finally reaches the top of the wall, panting heavily from the effort. With a last burst of strength, he pulls himself up and leaps off the wall, soaring past Cyrus and grabbing the flag at the top. But as he comes back down, he loses his grip and falls, landing hard on his back between Ian and Garnet. Gasping for breath, he holds up the flag triumphantly, a huge grin on his face. “I did it!”
Ian offers a hand to help Adam up, and Garnet pumps her fist in celebration. “Yes, you did it!” Cyrus jumps down from the wall to join the group. “All within an hour. Take a break, then we’ll go again until each of you gets the flag within five minutes.”