Theo and James stood across from each other, their gazes locked in a silent challenge. The tension between them was suffocating.

  James tilted his head, rolling his shoulders like a predator preparing to pounce. His grin never wavered. “Not bad Theo, not bad.”

  Theo wiped the sweat from his brow. His body still thrummed with energy, his heartbeat pounding against his ribs. Every fiber of his being screamed at him to stay alert, to move, to survive. His chest rose and fell in measured breaths, his body instinctively shifting into a defensive stance.

  Then, James disappeared.

  Theo barely caught the flicker of movement before, CRACK!

  A brutal strike smmed into his ribs, sending a shockwave through his core. The impact knocked the air from his lungs, pain blooming like fire beneath his skin. Before he could react—

  WHAM!

  A second blow crushed into his stomach. Theo choked on a gasp, his vision swimming. His feet barely managed to stay pnted as his body jerked from the force.

  But James wasn’t done. Theo braced himself, but it didn’t matter.

  A right hook, Theo barely got his arm up to block, but the sheer force rattled his bones. Theo was trying to figure out how James hits felt so Heavy. Not just powerful but Heavy. Like he weighed more than he looked.

  James then did a feint, Theo twisted to dodge, but James was able to anticipate it, driving a vicious knee into Theo’s ribs.

  Then another strike, and another.

  Each one nded like a hammer against his body, forcing him to stagger back. His muscles screamed in protest, his breath coming in ragged pulls now. Theo, was In all right words, getting his ass beat.

  From the observation ptform, Alyssa’s fingers clenched into fists. “He’s getting overwhelmed.”

  Hayes didn’t respond immediately. His gaze followed every movement, Hh was analyzing the fight like a complex equation.

  “Theo is adapting” Hayes finally said. Alyssa then looked at the fight again “but it’s not enough is it, How are we suppose to test his power if he can’t even defend himself.”

  Standing next to them, one of the scientists frowned at the readings. “James’s is current at his max power, He has his weight at 401 pounds with each hit, and when he moves he is dropping his body weight down to 40 pounds. He was controlling his power well now. But, I’m concerned about Theo, Each of James hits should be breaking that kids bones, he shouldn’t even be standing right now.”

  “Leave it,” Hayes said, voice calm but stern. “This is a test…. For both of them. I need to see how much control James really has now.”

  Theo gritted his teeth as his mind raced. His body felt sluggish, he was too slow. His muscles burned. He needed a pn.

  “I can’t win like this.” He thought to himself.

  James then lunged. But this time Theo was able to react.

  His instincts took over and He sidestepped at the st second. The punch barely missed, whistling past his face. The sheer force of it stirred the air, sending a chill down his spine.

  James’s expression flickered to a brief surprise. But Theo didn’t hesitate, he was thinking, “this is my chance, I have to hit him with everything I have, Everything!!!” . His fist shot forward, Bio-Energy roaring through his veins like a raging current. Every ounce of strength left in his body surged into the strike. His muscles tensed, his breath steady, his instincts honed to a razor’s edge. There was no hesitation, no restraint, as if his very soul ignited.

  The punch connected perfectly. For a fraction of a second, time seemed to freeze.

  Then A loud deafening shockwave erupted, ripping through the air like thunder.

  The ground beneath them cracked, jagged fissures splintering outward. The reinforced tiles buckled from the sheer impact, fragments of shattered flooring flying in all directions. A bst of air howled through the room, sending dust and loose papers whipping through the air.

  James’s body snapped backward.

  His form blurred as he was unched across the training hall like a ragdoll. The sheer force turned him into a projectile.

  His back smmed into the reinforced wall. The impact was so violent that deep fractures spiderwebbed outward from the point of collision. The entire structure groaned, the reinforced metal and concrete straining under the blow, his body was lodged into it.

  Silence hung in the air like a held breath.

  James’s head rolled forward. Blood spttered onto the sterile floor, poring out of his mouth, his eyes, and seemed to be seeping through his very skin.

  Theo was barely able to registered what he had just done. His vision blurred. Colors bled together in an indistinct haze. His limbs felt like dead weight, every ounce of strength drained in an instant.

  He tried to breathe, but his body refused to listen.

  A cold numbness crept over him, like ice spreading through his veins. The roaring energy that had filled him just seconds ago was gone, leaving only emptiness in its wake. The world tilted, his body falling in slow motion. “Damn.” He was able to barely whisper.

  As everything was going dark, he heard ECHO’s voice.

  “Warning. Your Bio-Energy has depleted. You are now fainting.”

  Then nothingness.

  Hayes moved first. “Get James to the medical ward. Take Theo to a recovery room—NOW.”

  Scientists scrambled into motion, their boots pounding against the floor. Medics rushed forward, already scanning Theo’s vitals, securing him onto a stretcher. Another team moved toward James, assessing his injuries with rapid efficiency. The one standing next to Hayes and Alyssa spoke. “ Sir… James body weight at the moment of impact…”

  Hayes looked over “ What is it? Out with already. He had himself weighing at 1 pound didn’t he? That’s why he went flying like that?”

  The scientist voice was crackling. “Nnnn.. no sir, he had his weight at the max. He weighed 401 pounds. He shouldn’t have been sent flying like that. That boy, He shouldn’t have been able to do that.”

  Alyssa spoke.“That st hit…It wasn’t normal.”

  She had felt it. The way the air seemed to bend around Theo in that moment—the way his energy exploded outward, far beyond what he should have been capable of.

  That wasn’t just strength. That was something else. Something dangerous.She turned, following the others as they exited the arena. But the unease remained.

  Elsewhere…

  Within the dimly lit control room, a figure stood watching the pyback footage of the fight. The screen flickered, repying the moment of impact—the instant Theo’s fist met James’s body.

  They paused the footage.

  Rewound. Pyed it again. And again.

  Their fingers tapped against the desk. Then—ever so slightly—they smiled.

  “This… is interesting.”