Max appeared in what seemed to be an endless desert, dust and sand hanging in the air.
And there it was,the Miracle Machine.
But something beside it immediately caught his attention.
A Flying Thunder God kunai, along with a scroll pinned into the sand by it.
He bent down and picked both up, studying the kunai. There was nothing unusual about it except the Flying Thunder God seal engraved on its handle.
The scroll, however, had a blood seal.
Its contents were clearly meant for his eyes alone,or Thena's, though that was unlikely.
Max bit his thumb and smeared blood across the seal. The scroll popped open with a puff of smoke, revealing a note.
It read:
You're probably already aware of who wrote this note, and the fact that you found it means you've once again managed to win just like I did. Which also means you know what comes next now that you've found the Miracle Machine.
The choice is entirely yours. I hope you've thought it through, because there will be no going back.
Good luck.
Max sighed before placing two fingers on his forehead and resting his other hand on the Miracle Machine. A moment later, he vanished along with it.
Back in the Monitor satellite, Cyborg had only just asked where Max was when he suddenly appeared with a whoosh, the Miracle Machine appearing alongside him. He was using it to prop himself up due to how drained he was, startling several of the heroes in the process.
"Dad!"
Thena and Terra shouted as they rushed toward him and tackled him into a hug, nearly knocking him over. Max patted their heads and offered them a tired smile.
"I told you I wouldn't lose."
"You sure that thing still works?" Luthor asked. "Because it looks like it hasn't worked in centuries."
"I assure you, it works," Max replied.
"Then let's power it up," Mr. Terrific said as he walked toward it and began looking for buttons, switches, or some kind of interface to activate it.
He found none.
"It doesn't work that way," Max said. "What we want to do is create a whole universe from nothing. That comes with a cost."
The room fell silent.
"A sacrifice," Dr. Fate said.
Constantine closed his eyes and sighed before speaking.
"I'll do it. After all, this is my bloody mistake. It's time I stopped running from them."
"I think it's going to take more than just a life," Dr. Fate said as he turned toward Max. "After all, we want to create something eternal. Am I right?"
Once again, everyone's attention shifted toward Max.
"Yes," Max replied. "And in this room, there's no one more special than I am."
Everyone immediately understood the implication.
"No," Thena said. "You can't actually mean what I think you do."
"There has to be another way," Terra added.
"I agree with them, Max. There has to be," Wonder Woman said.
Max smiled sadly before speaking "If there was, we wouldn't be here. This is the only way."
Thena stared at him for several seconds,then she formed a single hand seal as the Sharingan in her left eye spun to life.
"I'm sorry, Dad, but I can't let you."
The next moment, Max found himself standing in a pitch-black space.
Chains wrapped around his body, restraining him against a wall.
Thena stood before him,still holding the handseal as Max instantly realized what had happened.
Thena had placed him under a genjutsu.
The chains only held for a few seconds before shattering from a mere twitch of Max's muscles, the pieces vanishing into the darkness.
Thena's jaw tightened as she formed another hand seal.
More chains emerged from the darkness, thicker this time, wrapping around him from multiple angles with even greater force.
Max broke those too.
Vines erupted from the ground and bound themselves around his body, only to be sliced to pieces by an invisible force.
"Thena," Max said softly.
Thena made another hand seal.
"Thena. Stop."
"No," Thena said, her voice tight. "We can't lose you, Dad. There has to be another way."
A cage formed around Max as he simply pried the bars apart with little effort.
"You have to let me go," Max said.
"I don't have to do anything. You promised us that you wouldn't leave us. You said-"
"I know what I said," Max interrupted softly.
"But I also promised that I would do anything to keep you safe, and nothing has ever mattered to me more than seeing you safe. I really wish there was another way."
Thena's shoulders began trembling.
"Why is this happening to us? It hasn't been long since Aunt Nina left us, and now you too." She said as tears freely flowed from her eyes.
"Why does it always have to be us? Why does it always have to be people around me making sacrifices? Why does it have to be us who suffer for everyone else? Why us?"
Max stared at her for a moment before pulling her into a warm embrace.
"It's because we're the only ones who can. But what drives us is knowing that we're not doing it for everyone. We're doing it for you. Everyone else just happens to benefit from it."
He gently caressed her hair.
"I know how hard it is," he continued. "To turn to the next page of a story when you know someone you love won't be on it."
His voice softened further.
"But the story has to go on. It always has to."
He paused for a few seconds before continuing.
"Even from now on, life won't be easier. There will be challenges, and some of them will feel impossible. But that's what life is,challenges and overcoming them. That's the foundation of it, and what makes it worth pushing through."
He pulled back slightly so he could look at her face.
"It's seeing your dreams come true in the end."
"So tell me, what's your dream?"
Thena wiped at her eyes.
"I want to one day be as strong as you and start a family of my own."
"Then never give up on that," Max said firmly.
"Work toward it. Find someone who will love you as much as you love them. I bless your union in advance and wish you all the happiness in the world."
Thena's lip trembled.
"And most of all," Max said as he reached up and wiped away her tears with his thumb, "never forget that I love you. Always have, and always will."
Thena closed her eyes and wiped away the rest of her tears.
"Take care of Terra and your mother for me. After all, you're the strongest now, and that comes with responsibility. And don't trouble Diana too much."
A sound somewhere between a laugh and a sob escaped Thena's lips.
Max smiled faintly and licked his hand, intending to fix her messy hair, only for Thena to pull away while muttering something under her breath. She wiped away the snot from her nose before looking back at him with puffy eyes.
"Goodbye, Thena," Max said.
Thena stepped forward and wrapped him in one final, firm hug.
"It's not goodbye, Dad."
She tightened her embrace.
"It's see you again."
Max smiled before responding.
"See you again it is."
End of Chapter
Chapter 53:Is this how the story of max Schiller ends?
Chapter 54:Back home
Chapter 55:A powerful stranger