Code Zulu Alpha: Nerd in the Apocalypse!

"Listen, I'm not saying that calisthenics is the god of all exercises or training regimens because it's not, I still lift weights from time to time. The best exercise is whatever works for you because it should be something you enjoy and can do for the rest of your life. You can still stick to bodybuilding, powerlifting, or whatever you're doing right now, but what I'm saying is that eventually… if longevity is something you're aiming for, you gotta get off the juice. If not, just disregard everything that I said and do what you've been doing before. I'm not your coach, I'm not your mom, and I'm not your patriarch to tell or force you to stop whatever it is that you're doing."

I thought our discussion was already over but a big dude named Myke—yes, it was spelled with a y and numbered 444—that was obviously on gear came up to me as we were about to head for dinner.

Myke, from what I was told, was nicknamed in this place as the "Human Jack" because if a jack wasn't readily available and it was an emergency, he'd just lift one side of the vehicle and have the others fix whatever needed fixing.

He didn't look too thrilled by my response, "I get what you're fucking saying but I'm happy with the size and the strength that I have right now. However, like everyone here, we're close to running out of the stuff we're using. I could probably go on for six to seven months if I lower my dosage but that's gonna be it."

"Then what are we even arguing about? Is there something wrong with what I said?"

Myke sighed heavily as he wiped his face with his hands, "I… I still want to remain this way. Is there a way to do it without PEDs?"

I scratched my head as I looked at him bitterly, "I think you know the answer to that, no?"

"..."

"Let me put it this way… Let's say Coleen, Anne, and the rest stops using now and you trade with them something valuable of yours to prolong the inevitable."

"Inevitable?"

"Can you still get them anywhere else?"

"No…"

"Exactly. If you're gonna do just that, go ahead, I won't stop you as I said earlier. But my only advice to you is that… as hard as it may sound, you gotta start accepting the fact that it's gonna happen sooner or later. We can say that it's just delaying the inevitable but we could also say that you might just need more time to process things. Everyone's different in that regard."

"..."

"But yeah, think about this… If you have a normal working car, you can upgrade it by swapping out the internals, fabricating a new body or other attachments, or everything else, right?"

"Yeah, like what we do here obviously."

"Yep, like what you do here. We can take it as ourselves working out in the gym, taking natural supplements, and some other stuff… But there comes a point where you hit a limit, right? A car or our bodies' natural limit—our genetic limit—do you understand where I'm getting at? And doing what you're doing is just excess."

"..."

"Myke, there's a balance about things we should follow and what do you think would happen if we put a V8 in those ride-ons kids use or a jet engine in a beetle? It's probably gonna be fucking awesome for a few seconds but it's gonna be fucking bad news to whoever's using it. Can't be we happy with our bodies the same way we upgrade our vehicles? Granted this place is a little extra but there are just some things you don't put in your car. We could replace the parts or the machine we broke but we can't just as easily swap our hearts if it stops working when it had too much."

"..."

"Your huge muscles are great and all—and you'd probably win a few titles if you join a competition or two but *places thumb on chest* if this stops, it's game over. No de-load or rest day could possibly remedy that. And in your case, you shouldn't think of it as a bad thing but a good thing. If you kept blasting whatever it is you're blasting, it might kill you faster than the things walking around outside."

"..."

"So… Can we have some dinner now?"

"Yeah… We're the only ones here…"

"Myke."

"Hmm?"

"While I'm still here, we can talk as much as you want but remember that the only person that could solve your problem is yourself. Trust me, being natural isn't so bad and you might come to like it. Besides, how many calories do you eat in a day? Six thousand? Eight? No wonder the Rivas Family had to send reinforcements… I know plant-based protein isn't as good as meat-based protein but sheesh~ How much do you eat? Five times your lean body mass?"

"..."

"Myke, that… that was a joke…"

"Uh-huh. I know."

"And you should laugh after one, if I remember correctly."

"If I remember correctly, a joke should be funny first."

"Hah! That was a good one, ahaha… haha… I guess that was a little too technical…"

"..."

"You don't laugh much, do you?"

"I'm having a crisis here and you want me to fucking laugh about it?"

"It could help?"

"Not with this one, no."

"..."

"..."

"How about we eat? That could—"

"Yeah, that could help. I'm hungry."

"..."

"..."

"Should we—"

"After you."

"Uh-huh."

"Yeah."

"..."

"..."

After a short bit, the two of us followed after everyone to their mess hall but a certain someone was smiling from ear to ear because of the food served on the tables. It was because not only we were having a bulking fiesta of sorts, the one in charge of cooking fucking knew his stuff.

Tatiana quickly waved me over, "Hey! Get over here already! We aren't allowed to eat unless everyone's present!"

"Really?"

"Yeah, we saved a seat for you!"

"Wait a—" I was about to invite Myke to our table but as I turned to my side, he had already taken his seat among the others.

I didn't put it to mind as much because we didn't hit it off as I thought I would, and our dinner was concluded in less than 15 minutes. I was caught off-guard at how fast everyone just wharfed down their meals but no one can fucking beat Tatiana in this regard. As usual, she gained some fans and admirers from her display though Kaley looked like she wasn't faring well.

Only a few people remained in the mess hall and Kaley and I were just chilling for a short bit.

"You good?"

"I… I need to take a minute…"

I chuckled as I rubbed her back, "Why'd you eat that much though?"

"I dunno… I just… I kinda liked what everyone looked so bulking up a bit wouldn't hurt, right? I've seen you look at Quinn and a few others, I want— ah! Why'd you pinch me?!"

"Kaley, you know that you can just say the word and we can stop whatever it is we're doing with other people, right? You know that I only have eyes for you… I can look here and there and admire but you know where I'm at, right?"

"..."

"Kaley?"

Kaley was staring weirdly at me for a few seconds but it didn't take long before she let out a small chuckle, "I know about that, doofus… My point is that we might've found something we like so we should pursue it to spice it up a little bit more… I've been training with Tatiana ever since she came to our fold but you wouldn't mind if I put on a bit more muscle, right?"

"If done the right and natural way, I wouldn't mind. Also, if you don't mind getting heavier… Hmm?"

"Did you just…"

"Huh?"

"Er?!"

"Haah?"

"You just called me heavy!"

"I did."

"...!" Kaley had never looked so shocked.

I stood my fucking ground, "Kaley. Your fucking tits are heavy, imagine adding the rest of your body to it."

"You—"

"Hey! I called you heavy, not fat! And I could still carry you in my arms if I want to!"

"Why would you even carry me?!"

"After we got married for real?"

"You— You're just— Ahh! That's not fair! I'm not letting you get away with it! I'm gonna— HlrRfGhhrrFrHA!"

"Kaley?"

Looking at Kaley's expression, it looked like she bit off more than her stomach could handle and I helped her get to the nearest restroom so that she could throw up. In any case, her little flare-up with me quickly ended though I had to apologize to the chef because some of his cooking had gone down the toilet.

"She good?" Chef Ng—Number 104, approached me.

"In a bit, yeah…"

"Is she pregnant perchance?"

I instantly shot him down, "No!"

"You sure?"

"Very!"

"Heh, just messin' with you. I saw what she ate, she was trying to bulk the wrong way. You can't just up the volume of your food intake that much. Looking at you two, you're probably eating around 2000 calories a day. She ate more than double that. But you, you held yourself well. Good on ya."

"Yeah… I used to be fat. I can handle a little bit of volume from time to time."

"So…"

"Hmm?"

"I don't know how to say this but I'm gonna say it anyway… You're different."

"Umm… thanks?"

Chef Ng chuckled, "I'm sorry, it came out wrong but while we're on the topic of apologizing, what you made Quinn do, no one has ever achieved that. Ever."

"Not even her late—"

"Yeah. Not even Mike."

"Myke? Number 444?"

"Huh? Oh, no. I meant Michael— Mike with an 'i', hahaha… damn… it brings back memories, that one…"

"Care to elaborate?"

"Well, you know... Quinn's been Quinn ever since time immemorial but yeah… ever since we lost him, she's been… not Quinn. But when you're talking with her, she's… you know, Quinn again."

I nodded a few times, "I've… She kinda told me something like that… yeah…"

"Hmm. Kid, I don't know you as well but I can tell that you have an effect on people, the good kind. I have something like that when it comes to preparing them food but all I'll say for now is that it's been a while since Quinn ate with everybody. And I want to thank you for that."

"I… I don't know what to say… I'm—"

"You don't have to say anything. It's just a simple thanks from an old man. Anyway, your wife needs you over there."

"Ah— See you later, thanks for the food!"

"Yeah."

With that said, I handed Kaley a clean handkerchief and we excused ourselves and went back to the garage's 2nd floor. And for some reason, Quinn and Tatiana were somewhere else but Isaac was waiting for me to arrive.