Arriving back home proved odd to say the least. Instead of everyone leaving they settled in the living room and one of the side rooms chatting. Bruce was talking with Harleen and Selina. Edward was talking with Claire and Gon. Pamela was spending time with maria in the kitchen talking about plants and the like.
Teth-Adam was talking to Jonah and Jason about something. Supringsly enough, John was talking to Morgen with Zatana about Holy Spells. It was a very odd thing. The others just chit chatting normally. max went to his den looking at his mirrors.
"Hmm, some things need dealing with. Slade, is your daughter ok?" Max asked.
"Yeah, just exhausted. I have no idea why she ran all over the beach like that. I had to promise we would return togethor one day. She even made me pinky promise." Slade could not hide his smile. "She is opening up more, which is good."
"We have a case. A big one." Maxwell said. the spiritual clone had nourished well at the beach. More and more the connection between him and Max became more apparent. But the distinction of differences started to show. "I do not think we can maintain the fused state much longer."
"That is fine." Max said as he flipped a mirror over to the two. "It has served its purpose. Once I make 15 it will not matter anyway. My body will resemble a young adult well enough. You will have your freedom."
"What!?" The spiritual clone asked. "Are you sure?"
"Yeah, I have done this before. I have no problems with your development. Besides posing as my Uncle every now and then of course. But other than that, you are free to do as you want."
"I do not plan on going anywhere. I like the work we do. Besides, who will keep Slade from getting bored?"
"This is true. Having two of you is something. Enough of difference that things are nice. He is my partner officially. You Boss, for the other stuff." Slade said nodding.
"I will continue to work with Gotham police cleaning it out. If I make it to chief, then things will be even better." Maxwell turned to the mirror seeing the issue become worse. "We should leave Slade." He stepped into the mirror in the Watcher get up. Slade doing the same following with.
"Hah, that turned out well. Much to learn this way." Max observed before sending the mirror away. He turned for his new visitor. "What is it, Morgen?"
"You are stronger. A lot more at that." Morgen moved up but stopped a safe distance away. "Can you restore me more? Will you restore me more?"
"Very well. You have done well enough work wise." Max waved his hand healing her face more. "Without your mask, about 5 hours a day."
"Haaa, thank you. Your contracts.. are to dangerous for me to sigh at this time." Morgen kept her mask on trying to understand the magic involved. It was to steppe in Order for her to imitate. "it seems you are determined for me to change my ways some."
"Just for you to try. it is not the Dark Ages. No matter how much we wish it to be so." Max moved to sit down across from her. "I am one to tell you, The Darkest of Magic and its price is not worth it. You will lose everything you hold dear."
"What did you lose Max?" Morgen did not miss the change in his tone. Or disposition.
"I lost everything. Despite my power as a Grand Sorceror. I lost my kingdom, my soldiers, and my family." With a wave of Max's hand, images formed of a kingdom. "I focused on a single path during that life. That of Sin. Turns out, not that much different than Virtue in the final stages."
"So they say. So did my father on occasions." Morgen kept looking at the image of everything. "This place looks familiar. My father told me stories of it." Max left her alone to look it all over.
Inside a mirror, Circe/Cheetah was in trouble. Max sent a message to a certain group to buy some favor for the future.
.
-Michigan-
.
"Easy as pie." Cheetah said. She maneuvered throughout the buildings with practice ease. Max had a few jobs available that required theft. She took them to hone her skills and not to be a freeloader. her training of the others were not enough. 'Why he wanted these jewels is something else.'
In a bag, she carried several little black pieces. A broken apart diamond. The current amount was in the possession of an astronomer and doctor named Bruce Gordon.
"Stop!" A grisly voice said. The man-creature Eclipso was in front was quite the sight. He had an old patched coat with no shirt on underneath. His ears pointed with a slight curve. Strange lines around the hand that held a very dangerous looking sword. "You do well to return those."
"Sorry but no." Cheetah said. she backflipped onto another building taking off into a sprint. 'Even I know you are bad news.' She lamented that she was caught and did not read the dossier entirely. "Shit!"
"Kill her!" Eclipso yelled from the sky. he was levitating directing others to fire. Each of the thugs had a broken black diamond on them. Focus points for the primordial manifestation that was Eclipso.
*Pew!* From Eclipso's eyes, a black light shot out. Cheetah dodged with ease, but she was sent to the fire of the thugs. Moving through most of it she was eventually nicked a few times. Her body slid against the side and over. She landed down below in an alley. All ready getting up to escape.
*Bwoop!* Max appeared in a typical catsuit. His face mouth covered in a mask that canceled the sound of breathing.
*Pow!* Max shot the closes thug in the face. He slowly walked forward with his guns drawn. Right hand holding a customized Walther PPQ. Infused completely with magic. It did not need clip exchange as it was powered by mana in the air if need be. The actual rounds were specifically designed to deal with magical creatures.
*Pow! Pow! Pow!* Three more shots took out the others.
Max's left gun never fired. In that hand was the same gun but with anti spirit rounds. As well as anti metahuman rounds.
"It is you!" Cheetah called. She was grateful and ashamed about needing his help. But she wanted to break her ties completely with a few people. The money Max paid from this job would take care of that.. "You did not have to come."
"Of course I did. " Max kicked a can towards a few more of the thugs. "You are my little kitty." He said to make her mad but was surprised she didnt say anything. He wanted to find out what was wrong and finally saw what was wrong. Three bullet holes were in her side. "Stay here and recover."
*Tink.* With a little spirit energy used, the bullets were dislodged at once. Max place a healing spell to help heal her. The guns vanishing to his subdimension.
"You just need to stand aside, and get the package out of here. You do not have to do things alone all the time. We have agents to help you." Max's body flexed as he channeled her curse into him. He turned into a large Catman. With a jump, he up top dealing with the thugs. "Raaaawwr!"
*Flicker!* Deploying his movement technique, he cut through all of them with ease. The only one left, was Eclipso.
"You are something extraordinary..." Eclipso said from up hi. His eyes looking at Cheetah escaping. He was angry but Max was the bigger threat. He could always find the pieces later. "Do you know who I am beast!?"
"Yes." Max moved around pretending he couldn't reach him in the sky. He was buying time for Cheetah to get far away. "You Bruce Gordon human vise. But you Eclipso are a primordial creature that believes God sent him to punish mankind. Claiming to have sent the great flood and other things to punish as God's instrument of Wrath. You are nothing more than a wraith causing trouble really. Last I heard, the Spectre took your place as the spirit of Vengeance."
"Ahhhh!" A black diamond appeared as Eclipso howled. He focused his rage through it shooting a laser beams from his left eye. "No one replaced me! No one!"
*Booom! Boom! Boom!* Max dodged each shots. Running across the top of the building in the opposite direction.
'Perfect!' Max jumped in an abandoned building as he felt Cheetah get away. Once through a portal, Eclipso would not be able to find her. 'Time to leave myself.' Max opened a mirror and vanished.
"Where did you run little cat!" Eclipso yelled incensed. He felt the connection to the diamond disappear. The only trace to them was Max. "Come out!"
*Pewww!* A large force of magic fired from the diamond and his eye. The building went up in flames as it collapsed.
"Freeze!" Several men in suits said. In their hands were very strange guns.
"You are under arrest." A man said with authority. A cigar lit in his mouth. The odd thing was that it looked like just a skull for a head. But that was not the case. His skin and organs were completely see-through. He was Director Bones of Infinity Inc thanks to Max's involvement. "If you make even a twitch, we will light you up."
"I am invulnerable!" Eclipso said.
"Fire!" Director Bones ordered. The rain of fire blast Eclipso out of the sky. Up above, a team with jetpacks fired electrical nets shooting him straight down when he recovered a little. "Let us just see how invulnerable you are."
*Slip!* Director Bones removed his glove revealing a skeletal hand. He touched Eclipso burning the flesh a little. Director Bones had something called "Cyanide Touch" that burns through flesh.
"See, not invulnerable. Just resistant." He touched the wraith Eclipso all over before stopping once satisfied. The body was regenerating but slowly. It took a great bit of strength to do so. "Load him up, and the bodies. We are taking them back to the Department of Extranormal Operations."
"Are you sure Director? Orders were to take him to Infinity Inc." A grunt asked.
"Yeah. The government is gonna get this one. Our benefactor will just have to be upset." He was referring to Max. On the ground, Eclipso smiled as he was taken away.
.
-Max's Penthouse-
.
"Haaa that was not fun. I should have duked it out with him. But, need to build up others." Max reverted back to normal in the den. His body shrinking faster. Morgen spared a glance then looked back to the image of the magical kingdom. "Do not stay up to late."
Max walked to the secure room attached to his den. Inside were the broken pieces of the black Diamond. Separate and constantly getting drained of its energies. The grid underneath could absorb enough energy for an entire city. In a few years, the pieces would be useless and the energy purified then return the Earth.
"Glad you made it back." Circe said. She was in her human form as she healed from the gunshots. The purple toga looking lovely on her as usual. The dark magic involved was already taken care of by Max and herself. "You did not have to come you know. I would have made my way back easily enough."
"True but.." Max shook his head to keep from making an excuse. "I won't next time. Forgive this time." Circe suprised him by turning back into Cheetah. She grabbed Max and took him out of the room. "where are we going? If you want to fight to make up for it, how about we wait till tomorrow."
Cheetah said nothing and took him to another one of the den's in the complex. Far from the others bothering them. She placed Max on a beanbag chair. Circling him like an animal.
"Do what you did at the beach. I want to see the adult you." Max gestured for her to join him on the beanbag chair. The moment they touch, things changed.
"You could have just asked yah knows. More nicely." Max said looking around. He was at the age of 25. The prime state for his body usually. Slightly younger-looking than the Spiritual Clone. But more alive in a way.
"This is nice." Cheetah said. The spirit bodies were exactly what she wanted. Standing tall she ran her hands along her body. Each time she took the form on the outside, her Heart would break every time she reverted back. Eyes staring at Max in lust.
"What is it?" Max asked. He felt her mind react quickly. Cheetah changed it to an island. It was a likeness of Paradise Island. "Why show me this?"
"You are not shocked. You have seen it before?" Cheetah wiggled on Max with purpose. She received a nod of a Yes. "You are not a woman by chance are you?"
"No. I was there before it separated from the rest of the world." Max smile turned into a grin. "The history is old and generally the same the many times it was told."
Cheetah ran her hands over Max's chest. She didnt stop wrapping him up in a full body hug. Her soul pulling on what Max was thinking.
"You are attracted to me. Both versions of me. You want me very badly." Cheetah had a few tears rolled down her cheek. "But you hold your self back. You lost someone but havent lost someone how odd. Why are you not stopping me from searching your mind?"
"You are searching my soul. It is a difference." Max rubbed the base of her back. "Do as you must. The more you trust me, the better." Lust, Diligence, and Patience circulating.
Cheetah dug deeper. She felt the different lives and almost crumbled from the intensity of it. Two lives were so devastating that Cheetah openly wept. The look of some of the people with him were the most interesting.
"Queen Hippolyta but younger. How?"
"Time and space is vastly different." Max fixed himself in the bean bag chair. He was suprised Cheetah still sat on him and stared him down. "Very forward but alright. I know your Greek gods personally. Various versions of them at that. But specifically Zeus, Hera, Athena, Aphrodite, Hephaestus, and Hades."
"Are you a god?"
"Nope. Never made it to that rank. But I have killed those at that level before. When you have the chance, pray to them again. But be careful, some knowledge is dangerous just knowing." Max's hands gently moved down her back. He stopped right at her buttcheeks.
"You only take one. I will be that one." Cheetah declared. Her tone marking her territory. Max gave a nod. "I will help you find the pieces of your ex-wife. Then I will have a talk with her."
"Aye, that sounds like a plan." Max felt his cultivation stir in a different way. Something unknown but not problematic. Cheetah bounced happily from what she felt. "Yeah, that is a bad idea."
"This is exactly what I wanted." Cheetah took her toga off. Her firm breast almost sending Max into a frenzy. "You like this I can feel it in several ways. You are very open."
"Yeah, one of my faults." Max grabbed her ass tightly. "Just try to bear with some of the things I do. I will do my best to do the same."
"A few years before we can do this with our actual bodies yes?" Cheetah asked.
"Yes. It will be harmful to my cultivation and a little odd for you to do it with a minor's body." Max grinned.
"Pft I guess." Cheetah rolled her eyes.