Fighting

Apocalypse was still asleep. This was terrible news, adding another troublesome threat to this already fragile world.

Donnie was anxious. Early the next morning, he went to Professor X, hoping to spend this period learning fighting and marksmanship at the school.

"My fighting and shooting are too poor. I'm at a huge disadvantage in battle. I hope you can train me and make me stronger," Donnie said.

Ororo was assigned to teach Donnie. Cyclops would have been the best choice for this task, but unfortunately, Cyclops had been sent out to gather information. Under Professor X's orders, he had gone to find someone.

Or rather, a wolf.

Cyclops was to find a man named Logan and bring him back to the school, because Professor X believed Wolverine Logan could become a dependable comrade and was qualified to join the X-Men.

That was why Donnie had never met the famous Mutant Cyclops. He had gone out long ago to search for Wolverine Logan.

Donnie maliciously wondered whether Cyclops and Wolverine might have already clashed before fighting over Jean. It was entirely possible, especially considering the explosive tempers of those two. Cyclops might barely hold himself back, but Uncle Wolf was the kind of man who would rather throw hands than talk. He had spent one or two hundred years being impossible to kill anyway, so what did he have to fear?

"You actually dared to lose focus during training?" Seeing Donnie distracted, Ororo was displeased. She seized the opportunity to sweep his leg, then followed with an over-the-shoulder throw, slamming Donnie brutally to the ground and leaving him dazed.

Donnie lay on the ground helplessly. This scene had repeated itself countless times. He had no idea how many times Ororo had cleanly and efficiently knocked him down, leaving him utterly frustrated. Countless times, he comforted himself: I'm meant to take the army-group route. Commanding a whole pile of war machines and slaughtering enemies is what I should be doing. Fighting is just for emergencies.

Then, unwilling to admit defeat, he would go all out the next time—only to be knocked down again.

The AllSpark could continuously strengthen his body, even gradually improving his reflexes, but it could not strengthen his combat awareness or fighting techniques. He often counterattacked in the most ineffective ways, only to have his openings seized and be thrown around until he was covered in dirt.

"What number is this today?" Ororo wiped the sweat from her forehead and looked teasingly at The Mechanic. He clearly possessed exceptional physical abilities, yet he was so vulnerable. If those enemies outside saw this, their jaws would surely drop.

"Exactly thirty times! He lasted five minutes longer than yesterday!"

Many people were watching nearby. Shadowcat Kitty was the most attentive. She liked keeping track of time and was usually the first to call it out, remembering more accurately than Donnie himself.

The audience erupted in cheers. These students had nothing better to do lately. After class, they would run over to watch Donnie get tortured, enjoying every moment of it.

"I won! Pay up, pay up. Ten dollars each."

Pyro John was the most energetic. He had bet that Donnie would last longer and had won the wager.

The others looked miserable, muttering things like, "How is that possible?" and "This has to be rigged," as they painfully pulled out their allowance money.

Donnie's face darkened as he lamented the decline of morals. A bunch of brats were openly gambling, and worst of all, the teacher was pretending not to see it. There was no saving them.

"Want to take a break?" Ororo mocked.

"Yes, yes, I need a break!" Donnie immediately agreed while lying on the ground, shouting that he needed to rest. At the same time, he kept muttering things like, "So big."

Ororo lowered her head and saw Donnie staring fixedly at her chest. From that angle, it perfectly outlined its full curves, along with her round, long legs...

Bang!

With a heavy kick, Donnie clutched his stomach and howled in pain.

Storm Ororo remained perfectly calm. She crooked a finger, signaling for Donnie to get up and continue.

The onlookers went wild, openly expressing their admiration.

"What did I just see? He actually flirted with Ororo and survived?"

"Tsk, tsk. Impressive. As expected of The Mechanic."

They watched the show from the side, delighted beyond measure.

Pyro John even publicly declared that he admired Donnie more than anyone else: "As expected of the boss I chose. That courage, that boldness, that ability to take a beating—I'll be following him from now on."

Shadowcat and the other girls did not hesitate to express their contempt for Donnie.

During this time, Donnie was not only training in fighting and marksmanship. He also underwent blood tests and various examinations conducted by Jean and the others. The results were now out.

"Absolutely astonishing. I never expected the results to be like this." Jean was an expert in this field, but even she was amazed this time. The report in her hands was detailed and covered every aspect.

Jean looked at Charles, Donnie, and the others before solemnly revealing the report's findings.

"According to the results, Donnie's ability is no longer limited to creation and control. His power has an even more astonishing range. In all my years of research, I have never seen an ability like this. You named it 'Spark,' and the name truly fits," Jean said, marveling at the incomprehensible wonder of this ability.

Spark did not merely grant Donnie the ability to create mechanical soldiers. It also improved every aspect of his physical capabilities. It was evolution in the truest sense.

"Your ability allows you to grow at every moment. The essence of your life is slowly rising. It's too comprehensive. Spark is like a flame that ignites everything, giving you limitless possibilities. Take your healing ability, for example."

Jean explained that although Donnie's healing ability had not yet reached an outrageous level, it was undoubtedly extremely practical. Some injuries only required a night's rest to completely recover.

This gave Donnie far greater endurance. As long as the AllSpark did not run dry, he could fight until the very last moment.

Jean sounded a little jealous just saying it.

"You bastard, how are you so lucky..." Ororo muttered resentfully, filled with envy.

Donnie laughed heartily, boasting that he was simply that lucky and that his good fortune came entirely from his own outstanding character. His smugness made people want to punch him, and Ororo indeed did exactly that.

In the end, Charles stopped their horseplay and asked Donnie about his next plans.

Donnie pondered for a moment before saying, "I'll stay here a while longer to learn fighting and marksmanship. Most importantly, I'll replenish more Transformers until I maximize my combat strength." Donnie had wanted to ask the professor for another batch of alloy and silver, but ultimately held his tongue. His skin was not that thick, nor was he that shameless.

This elder had already helped him far too much. He did not want to shamelessly keep asking for benefits.

Donnie took out a phone and handed it to Jean, asking whether she could find out who had sent him the messages. Jean replied that she could try.

Finally, Charles smiled and said he would arrange something for Donnie to do in his spare time: every other day, he would teach the children a class and show them things they could not normally learn at school.