Power Up

After listening to J'onns explanation I once again sink my mind into the muscles on my arm and imagine tightening my muscles and increasing the density. When I look at my arm it is a bit misshaped and feels awkward to move around. The 52 J'onn keeps showing his example but I feel like I'm missing something important.

Wanting to solve this on my own I let my mind wander over the process. Thinking about what makes my arm strong I realize that there is more than just muscle mass. Remembering a video I was shown that was made to scare young solders away from steroid use, it dawned on me. When the muscle mass grows too quickly and unevenly you run the chance of the tendon or nearby ligaments breaking under the sudden strain.

I once again sink my mind into my arm but this time I work to move all the cells closer, increasing the density of the whole arm not just the muscle. The tricky part here was to increase the mass of the overall arm at the same time so it didn't just shrink. This was going to take some getting used to.

Letting my arm return to normal I then use my shifting ability to increase my arm to the size comparable to the Hulk. I then compact my cells to the point where my arm looks normal, but I still feel the power there.

A thought hits me and makes me wonder what would happen if I got good enough with The Red to let my emotion control the change to say King Kong but then use my Martian ability to increase the density of my body while compacting to the size of a normal gorilla. There is a nightmare thought.

I look over to J'onn and ask, "How strong are you compared to normal Martians?"

He replies "A normal Martian my age with just average control of his biometric structure can lift 10 Tons with a little struggle but I barely struggle with 100 Tons. This is because I constantly keep my cells compressed until its natural and I can do that level without thought and then I start it over again. Never so much that it takes more than 5% of my thoughts to hold it though."

"I try not to increase my strength too much at one time because then I may inadvertently hurt someone by using too much strength. Think of reaching for a soap bubble and trying to touch it without breaking it. That is what it is like for me to touch a normal person. Superman has the same issue. He has referred to it as living in a world made of paper and cardboard with the people being soap bubbles. Bump into one in the street too hard and you have a messy popped bubble on your hands." J'onn explained.

"Believe it or not, the people that get the most use out of the holographic training room are those of us with super strength. After a mission where we must use a good portion of our strength, we have to go in there to learn to hold back again. Often you will see that individuals with super strength try to form relationships with people that can handle at least some of our strength. Just imagine the fear of being too rough in a moment of passion or playfulness. Keep this in mind as you seek strength young Gar." As he finished speaking, he turned toward the 52 J'onn.

After I was able to copy the 52 J'onn as he increased his muscle structure he just stopped and then returned to the chair and table.

"Looks like this is all he wants to teach me, what say we look at the other doors J'onn?" I ask.

As we exit the room the door closes and then fades away, just leaving an empty space where it once stood.

Looking at the Red door that was across the hallway from the Green one I reach for the door handle but it doesn't budge at all. The same for the White and the Yellow door.

"Perhaps there is a prerequisite for each door to open" J'onn offers.

"There must be, but is it my mind that decides or is it my body? Let's go to my library and we can talk about how I combined the young Garfield with my thoughts." I say.

After our conversation about the bookshelf idea I had we both exit my mind and find ourselves back in J'onns room.

"Out of curiosity J'onn, about how long does it take for your muscle increase to feel natural enough u don't have to devote thought to it?" I ask.

"When I first started if was just a very short few Earth months, but now at my current denseness it will take about 100 years I believe. I just started again after getting my memories back or I would be more than halfway through this cycle." J'onn says.

"I think I will go to my room and think my way through today's events, maybe try a few things but nothing to major. See you later J'onn." I move towards the door.

"I almost forgot, Devilbat said he will have a place for you to stay in Gotham in a week if you are still interested in spending time there." J'onn said.

"I look forward to spending some time there, thanks J'onn. Maybe when you work out your identity crises and you choose an area to operate out of, I could join you there as well." I wave as I leave.

Walking back to my room I was in a bit of a daze as I moved through the halls. With this new power did I still need to practice with The Red? Sure, its faster to change using it but the Martian shape change allows me to modify my body just as much as it allows me to take other shapes.

Just because I started off as a clone of Beast Boy, that doesn't mean I need to stay a copy of him. He never really seemed like he wanted to improve his powers, just use them as they were. His big push in life was wanting to fit in and chase Raven. I kind of feel like I'm also falling into the role I had in the military as well. Try to emulate the figure of authority so that I can be promoted, rinse and repeat.

I don't really feel like I have a purpose here. I think that for now I will just build my strength and go where the wind blows me until I don't like that direction.