"What's a Schwoz again?" Tara asked, them both walking through the hallways side by side.
Max glanced at her, raising his eyebrows. "Schwoz is a who, not a what. And who he is, is one of the smartest men on the planet. He's a little weird, but he's ultimately someone who can help me. From resources to ideas, he's a valuable tool."
Tara gives him a look. "A tool? Is that what you see me as?"
"No. A tool is someone I use without them knowing that's what I'm doing, manipulating them into doing what I want them to do or getting what I need from them. You know what I'm doing and why. You're a partner, not a tool." Max explains.
His girlfriend nods. "I see. Well, how's the idea swapping going?"
"Later." He motions to a door. "Not a safe space. We've already said too much out of a safe zone."
Tara nods, glancing at the room. "I got my homework done." She told him, knowing he would know what she actually meant.
The guy gave her a look. "Alright. We'll see how well you did later. For now, class. Don't raise any alarms unless I say otherwise."
She nods, giving a quick, "Yes, sir." Before she leaned up and pecked his lips before walking away to her class while Max walked in.
~~~~~~~~~~
At the warehouse, Max was installing a biometric sensor on the outside of the building while Tara watched him. "How was class, babe?" Tara questioned.
"Boring like always." He replied, pushing something into place.
"Because you already know all the material?" Tara further prodded.
"Yep." Max replied, shifting back look. To make sure it looks right.
The blonde girl nods, then asks, "So, the ideas thing from earlier?"
"We're not in the warehouse." Max replied seamlessly, moving to focus back on the lock. Multiple components for it, including an eye scanner along with a palm print scanner. To be cautious.
"We're outside of it. On the property of the warehouse counts. So, tell me how it's going." Tara tries to reason.
Max pauses for a second before he keeps going. "I told him how I found him and he was impressed, then he wanted to know why. Also how I knew about him. I told him I heard through the grapevine and wanted to talk, to bounce ideas off of him. I talked about the super soldier thing, and that I needed a specific ingredient for it that is only native to one place. His homeland."
The girl took a second to think, then further prodded, "What did he say to that?"
Max connects two wires, then replies, "He asked for the chemical formula for it, so I sent it to him. He said that I had a chemical mixture minorly wrong, but was still impressed. He's moving locations but he'll write me back the second he's settled. Said we were going to talk more."
Tara nods slowly. "How are you delivering letters to each other so fast?"
"Express mailing. Little more expensive but we have the money for it." Max replies, hearing a beep of confirmation from the eye scanner.
His girlfriend nods. "So, when you get the serum, you're going to... what? Get even stronger? Get more powers?"
"Not powers. I'd become enhanced. Faster, stronger, quicker reaction times. There is a difference, even if it's minor." Max notes, moving to the handprint.
"So, like Soldier Guy?" Tara asked, referencing a superhero from this world.
"Where I come from it was Captain America, but yes, same premise." Max replies.
"Wait, you were born with powers, how do you force more?" Tara asked.
Max pauses. Then he said, "Years ago, long before our parents or grandparents were born, two plants were discovered. They give you superpowers. At first, it was black and white. One gave you good powers and a good mentality while the other gave you... 'bad'," Max made air quotes around 'bad'. "powers and a negative mentality. But as those supers had more kids, and the plant further bonded with their DNA. So, it got passed down from generation to generation. Eventually landed down to mine."
Tara takes a second. "So, you're saying that your powers have always been forced?"
"Technically, yes. On a wider scale, they are and always have been forced. On a smaller scale, no, it is genetic when it comes to me and my siblings, along with my parents. Possibly my grandparents. My parents don't know I know though." Max replied.
"Apply the same premise to a serum instead of a plant, I see. How do you know about the plants? I assume it's later show knowledge?" Tara asked.
"No." Max answered.
"So, how do you know?"
"The movie." Max answered casually.
"I'm sorry, they got a movie?"
"They did. They also got a sequel show."
"Jesus, how wide is this universe?" Tara questioned.
Max pauses then sits back a little bit on his knee, saying, "Let's see... Haunted Hathaways, The Thundermans, Thundermans Return, Thundermans Undercover, Game Shakers, Henry Danger, Danger Force, Henry Danger: The Movie, Knight Squad, kinda."
"Jesus fucking Christ, that's one universe?" Tara asked.
"There's probably some I'm missing, but yes. And naturally, in the original show, we crossed over with Henry Danger and Haunted Hathaways. I plan on shifting to Game Shakers on my own."
Tara gave him a look as he grabbed a tablet, connecting a wire to it and seeing a small menu pop up. Tara questioned, "Rewind. What are all of those anyways?"
"Henry Danger is about Captain Man's sidekick, which will pop up in about a year. Game Shakers is a group of four kids who made a game company with the backing of Double G-"
"The rapper?"
"Yes, Tara, the rapper. Carrying on, Haunted Hathaways is about a family moving into a new apartment only to realize there are ghosts, then they become friends with them."
"I'm sorry, what?"
"I need you to input your biometrics."
"We are not just moving past this-"
~~~~~~~~~~
Max and Mark were moving to the warehouse, the older man looking up at it. "What is this?"
Max glanced at him. "This is where you'll be bringing everything you pick up. Through the large side door, but you'll have to open and close that from the inside whenever you drop something off. Security reasons." Max told him, looking up at the building.
Mark followed his gaze. "Okay, are you going to give me a key?" Mark questions.
"No need." Max answers, moving to the lock.
"You leave this place unlocked?" The former soldier questioned.
"No, I'm not dumb. A key can be stolen. Biometrics can't." The teen answers, lifting the tablet and plugging a cord into it, pulling a screen up.
"Biometrics? Like my hand?" Mark further questions.
"And your eye, but yes. You see the circle on it?" Max asks.
"Hold my eye to it?"
"You don't have to press your eye to it like an idiot, just line your eye up to it from about a foot away and hold it there until it flashes green. Goes for after we're setting it up, too. Go ahead." Max commands.
The employee holds his eye to it, and sits there for about three seconds before it flashes green. The panel where a hand goes moves upwards into a compartment within the lock, opening the palm reader. "Fancy. But unnecessary."
"Unless they cut off your hand and remove your eye, they can't get in. It's more secure than a key someone can steal. Maybe they could take your eye or hand in a fight, but I doubt they could take both. You're that good. Fancy and necessary." Max replies.
Mark gives his boss a look, then just hums. "Fair enough. You're the boss."
"Damn right. Hand." He orders, and Mark puts his hand on the palm reader, holding it for about three seconds before it flashes green. Once it does, he removes his hand and the panel slides down.
Max unplugs the tablet from the console, closing it back before turning to look at Mark. "Was this all you needed me for today? Input my biometrics?"
"No. Because you're going to be coming here a lot, for example, any future meetings will take place here, you're going to see someone else here. So, you're going to meet her." Max answers.
"Her? Please don't tell me you have a fuck buddy you share the place with." Mark tells him blankly.
"We fuck, yes. But that's because she's my girlfriend. I trust her. And she already knows about everything. More than you, actually." Max tells him, putting his eye over the scanner, it reading before flashing green. Once the panel opens, he places his hand on it, letting it scan before the door clicks. He immediately pushes it open, remarking, "Another quick thing, you have five seconds before it locks again, so open it quick."
Then Max walks in, Mark following behind casually. When they step in, Mark looks around the area, seeing different places as works in progress. Then there's the large setup on a table in the middle, with a mat in front of it. A training mat.
The blonde in the chair looks up from the book she was reading, seeing both of them "Hey, babe. Hey... Mark? It's Mark, right?"
The man looks at Max before looking at her. "Yes, it's Mark. You're who he wanted me to meet?"
"I'd like to think so." Tara replied, glancing at Max right after. "How do you read this when the pages are blank?"
"Is that the book?" Max asked.
"Yes, and there are literally no words." Tara turns it around to show them both. To Tara and Mark, the pages were literally blank. To Max, there were words on it, a lot of words.
He had done more reading, and he honestly thinks he's nearly done. He's up to twenty hours a day once a day with a full twenty hours of cooldown, or two three times a day with six hours.
The guy was going to start focusing on physical training a lot more, building his body up and practicing with his powers.
"Tara, I think it might be something literally only I can read. You know why, but don't say it out loud. He doesn't know that much." Max tells her and she hums, closing the book before placing it on the table.
"Fair enough." She stands up and walks over to Mark, holding her hand out to shake. "Tara Campbell."
The man raises his eyebrows as he shakes her hand. "Mark Logan. Are you related to the rich Campbells?"
"They're my parents." She answered as their hands dropped.
Mark looked at his boss. "Tara Campbell of the Park Avenue Campbells. You have some reach. Is she how you're paying me?"
"No. That one is me. I started paying you before I told her anything. And I know I have a lot of reach. I could ruin your life with one phone call if I chose to." Max relays, then he gets a notification on his phone.
Max checks his phone as Mark and Tara start talking a little bit more, and what he sees is a text from Phoebe. "Are you going to be home for our birthday?"
Max idly reaches up and touches the necklace under his shirt, trying to think. Then he texts back, "Yes. I'll make sure my schedule is cleared." He replied, then clicked his phone off.
"So, you've killed people?" Tara questioned.
"I was in the military for nearly all of my adult life. Yes, I've killed people. And I'm good at it."
"Huh." She glanced at Max. "Have you killed anyone?"
"Considering present company, I'm not answering that." Max answered, tucking his phone into his pocket. "Me and my sister are going to be having a birthday party, are you going to be there?" Max asked, looking at Tara.
Tara gives a small laugh of amusement. "Of course I am. I wouldn't miss it."
"Going to push my sister into Wong's Pizza, but it shouldn't be that hard. It's what happened last time." Max said.
Mark gave him a look. "Thought you just moved here recently?"
Max and Tara both give him a blank stare. ""Classified."" They reply in unison.
The soldier gives them both a look. "There's something you're not telling me."
"You're on a need to know basis." Max tells him.
"And I don't need to know. Got it." Mark replied.
"That all you needed from me?"
"Yes." Max answered.
The man gave him a look then nodded before turning and walking to the exit. Once he leaves, Tara turns to look at her boyfriend. "Went to Wong's Pizza in the episode?"
Max hums. "Yeah. Next episode is about to start. When Billy speeds into my Lair and tells me to get upstairs, I know when it'll start. I'll update you."
The blonde nods. "Gotcha. What do we do until then?"
Max breathes out. "We still have a lot of parks to look through for that crystal."
Tara groans. "And you had to send him away for that?"
"I know you would want at least one quickie break while we're looking."
"Shit, you're right."
"I'm aware."
~~~~~~~~~~
Max had just finished his latest letter to Schwoz, mentally noting that he needed to go to the post office at some point today.
He looked at the closed parcel, thinking about everything.
As he stared at it, he heard a whoosh coming from down the stairs, and was glad that he made sure to get paperweights.
"Max, we need you upstairs right now. Thanks." Then he ran back upstairs without another word.
The teen looked at Colosso, remarking, "Don't dress up in a girly outfit when my parents come down here in a few hours."
"What?"
"You heard me." Max replied, tucking the letter inside of his jacket pocket, picking up his phone. He then texted Tara, saying to get ready for the party, then he walked upstairs.
When he got up there, he started mentally preparing himself for what was coming. Him and Phoebe made eye contact, then nodded to each other.
They knew what they were walking into.
Then the twins walked into the kitchen, then four voices yelled, "Happy birthday!"
Barb stepped forward and lit her fingers, Max looking down at them. "If those are trick fingers, I will be upset."
Barb took a second before pushing them back towards them. Max and Phoebe then leaned down and blew them out, the fingers not lighting back up.
Phoebe was grinning ear to ear, while Max had a slight smile. "Happy birthday, babies!" Barb yelled, then shifted behind them to hug the two of them. "One year older, one year cuter!"
Max attempts to keep the smile, but the line makes it fall a little. Hank just moves on, saying, "Time to unwrap your birthday breakfast!"
Max and Phoebe watched their parents shift then lift the cloches, revealing food that was actually gift wrapped.
"'That is both amazing and annoying. How did you put up with this?'" Max asked in his mind.
"'You get used to it.'"
"'Clearly.'" Max ended the conversation there, then he looked at the plate. "Guess you lick the wrapping paper?" Max asked, looking up at Hank.
"Yes, I do." Hank replied with a dopey grin.
The Thundertwins sat down, then unwrapped their breakfast, revealing smiley face pancakes.
"Ooh, smiley face pancakes." Phoebe said with a grin, Max sliding the wrapping paper over towards Hank wordlessly as he grabbed some utensils.
Hank, however, stepped closer to Barb. "Are we all set for tonight's traditional Thunderman birthday party?"
Barb nodded with a hum. "Birthday cake shaped like a piñata; check."
"Piñata shaped like a birthday cake; check." Hank added.
"Billy and Nora's puppet show?" Barb asked, shifting to look at her two youngest.
Billy and Nora talked through their puppets, delivering a, "Cheeeeck."
Hank then finished, "And finally... a preview of your birthday rap!"
Max replied a little louder then in the show, "We're still doing that?"
Even at a louder tone, they didn't hear, and Max felt something in his head that felt somewhat like a headache. Hank, instead, said, "Drop me a fat beat, Barb."
Phoebe replied to her twin, "I guess we are."
Their mother starts beatboxing, and Max tunes out the rap as he focuses on eating his pancakes. He did not want to hear it, so, he chose not to.
After the estimated time of when he thought it would end, he tuned back in, just to hear "Birthday breakdown!" Hank yelled, then everyone that wasn't the Thundertwins started beatboxing as they filed out of the kitchen.
Max turned to Phoebe casually, swallowing the piece of pancake he had put into his mouth. When he could talk again, he asked, "Thoughts on that?"
"I think we're getting too old for this." Phoebe said, looking a tiny bit frazzled. Right, she was still working at Wongs.
Hank and Barb came in, placing hats on their heads. "You can't break it down without your birthday hats-"
Max stood up immediately, pulling the hat off of his head. "I think I'm going to eat breakfast in my Lair. Phoebe, want to join me?"
Phoebe glanced at her parents before shaking her head, but she did mouth, 'Later'. So, Max nodded, grabbing his plate, then moving to walk downstairs.
~~~~~~~~~~
Max was downstairs, reading some more of the book idly while he waited for Phoebe to walk down the stairs. He knew she had been struggling with them, because they were loud.
His phone dinged with a text, so the guy picked it up to check, only to see a message from Tara about what outfit to wear.
Attached were three images, and what baffled him was the fact that two of them were dresses. He didn't think Tara even owned dresses, let alone actually wear one.
The first one was, unsurprisingly, a black one. It went down to her mid thigh, and she coupled it with fishnets and some basic silver jewelry.
The second one was, surprisingly, a dark blue that stopped high on her thought. It was coupled with soft yellow thigh highs, along with some golden jewelry, including a T necklace.
He idly wondered if it stood for Tara or Thunderman.
And the last, was, of course, the pair of underwear she was wearing underneath, which was black lace.
Max texted back, telling her that she didn't have to dress fancy, it was a bunch of high schoolers.
She replied that she was going to, and which dress should we go with.
All he texted back was to close her eyes, have only the two options in her head, then open her mouth to say which one popped out first. Whichever it was, that's what she should go with.
She just said thank you, and she will see him later, along with a kiss emoji. That was when he heard steps coming down his stairs, so he spun around in his chair to see Phoebe.
"Hiding?" Max asked, and Phoebe nodded, walking towards his bed before plopping her back down on it.
"Dad just put on his breakdancing sweats. They're about twenty years too small." Phoebe breathed out, taking the hat off then tossing it across the room. Then, as he turned the chair to face her, she looked at him. "When did we stop enjoying mom and dad's birthday stuff?"
"Me? When we moved here. You? Right around the same time mom dropped the fat beat." Max answered casually.
Phoebe stared at the ceiling for a moment, then let out, "Maybe it's time we have a cool party, like Cherry's. No silly hats, no piñatas, and no breakdancing buttcracks."
"So, you want to throw our own party without our parents?" Max simplified.
Phoebe sat up abruptly, staring at him. "Yes! Exactly that. We just need to get them to let us throw it."
Max gave her a look. "You're good at presentations, right?" Max questioned, already knowing the answer.
"Yeah, why?"
"Do that."
"You're a genius."
"Fully aware of that."
~~~~~~~~~~
"-and to sum it up, Max and I are old enough to throw our own birthday party." Phoebe finished, giving her parents a breathless look.
Barb and Hank just stare, then Barb asks, "Where will it be?"
Phoebe hits a button, and it flashes to the front of Wong's Pizza Palace. "I already cleared it with her, so it will be at Wong's Pizza Palace. We'll only invite a few of our friends."
Hank motions between him and Barb. "But... we're your friends."
Max gives them a look. "Yeah, no. You're our parents who like to think you're our friends, but you're not. The only one of us who get along with you is Phoebe, and even then, that's only half the time."
Both parents take a minute, then Barb just says, "I suppose if Phoebe's two hour presentation taught us anything, it's that they're not kids anymore."
Max leaned closer to Phoebe and whispered, "Please try to shorten how long the presentation is next time."
Phoebe turned her head enough to smirk at him, yes, smirk, before whispering back, "No promises."
"But they are kids!" Hank exclaimed, standing up and moving to them. "He's our-"
"Don't."
Hank seamlessly moved over, then went to touch Phoebe, only for her to take a step back. Hank then turned around, "Okay, I see what you're saying."
Phoebe gave them a polite smile, "So, we can have our party?"
Barb took a second. "I suppose if you stick to the plan, sure."
Phoebe smiled before moving to their mother to hug her, letting out a, "Thank you." Before she stepped back to walk upstairs.
Max's eyes followed her, tilting out of curiosity. She wasn't nervous when she asked if they could have the party, and she didn't squeal.
What was happening with Phoebe?
~~~~~~~~~~
They were currently walking to the post office before heading to Wong's. Phoebe asked, "Why are we going here?"
"I have to mail a letter, then we head to Wong's." Max replied.
"Letter for who?"
"A friend of mine."
"You have friends who aren't Tara?"
"Surprisingly, yes." He replied, stepping into the post office, Phoebe following behind him.
He stepped up to the person behind the counter, and when they looked up, gave him a smile. "Hey, Max. Another letter?"
"Yeah. Same person."
"Different address?"
"You know it."
"Let's see it."
Max handed the letter over, and they looked at it. They started going through the process, making sure the address was right before they started scanning it.
Max looked over and spotted Mark, who spotted him. Phoebe followed his gaze, and she saw the man. Mark and Max made eye contact, and she swapped between the two.
When the man across the room went to walk away, Max shook his head, tilting his head towards Phoebe, and the man gave a small, barely perceptible nod. Then he turned back to keep going through his own mailing process.
Phoebe filed it away as something she needed to look into, because apparently Max was keeping a big secret.
~~~~~~~~~~
The Thundertwins were now at Wong's Pizza Palace, and Phoebe was dancing with Cherry. Meanwhile, Max was sitting down, eating some pizza.
He could definitely taste the fake cheese, but he figured he would be fine. At most, some indigestion but that was about it.
Cherry stepped off into the phone booth, but then people stopped moving, focusing on the door. Max followed where everyone was looking, then watched as they parted.
What they were staring at was Tara, and it seems she went with the dark blue dress. The golden jewelry, the T necklace. It seems she even added some makeup.
Tara did not look like Tara at all, and it threw him off. Max stood up as Tara got to him, and he looked down at her.
"What inspired this?" Max questioned.
"It's my boyfriends birthday. And you told me these were your family colors. Thought might as well show my commitment by wearing this." Tara answered, giving him a caring smile.
Max let his fingers drift down to her necklace, grasping it before gently lifting it up. "Does the T stand for Tara?"
"It's supposed to. Figured tonight it could stand for Thunderman." Tara answers, looking up at him. Max lowers the necklace before leaning down and kissing her.
Tara throws her arms around his neck, holding him down until they need to breathe, which has them pulling away. When they leaned their foreheads together, Max whispered, "You look fantastic."
"I know." She whispered back, adding, "All for you."
Max hums. "I love you."
"I love you, too." Tara tells him, smiling before shifting up to peck his lips again. "I'm going to grab some pizza, then we're going to celebrate your birthday."
"Sounds good. Did you do what I asked?"
"You mean invite everyone? Yes, I did. Why did you even want me to do that?" Tara questions.
"To be safe, I'm trying to recreate the... episode... as much as I can stand. Until we get that crystal, appease the universe as much as possible."
"Gotcha." She replies, both of them having to talk in whispers. She gives him one last peck on the lips before saying, "Happy birthday." Then walking off to grab a slice.
Max looks at Phoebe, only to see her giving him a stare of... something. Weird.
~~~~~~~~~~
Max was leaning against a table, talking to a few people who wanted to chat with him... for some reason.
Phoebe walked over from Cherry, and they decided to take a step back. Phoebe then said, "We did it. We're throwing our own party."
"We are. Seems to be going alright." Max replied, looking over as Wong walked out of the employee only door.
Phoebe stood up and stepped up to Wong while Max stayed sitting. "Oh, hey, Mrs. Wong. Thanks again for letting us have our party here."
"I thought it would be fine, as long as you were okay with it coming out of your paycheck." Mrs. Wong smiled maliciously, then yelled, "More overpriced pizzas on the way!"
Max stood up. "Let me help you with that." Max added, setting his water down before following her into the back room.
Max and Wong start prepping the pizzas, as Max listens for the chime of the front door to open. When he does, he asks, "All these for us?"
Wong shakes her head, replying, "No, a delivery guy is taking these to the Sweep The Leg Dojo."
Phoebe stormed in. "Hey, Max, there's a lot of kids from school here, but-" Max effortlessly turned and froze Wong, still leaning on the table as he dd so. "Why did you freeze her?"
"You were about to tell me about some kids you don't remember inviting. I invited them. Don't want her to know, so I froze her."
"That wasn't part of my presentation." Phoebe said calmly, keeping her cool. That was another change, what was happening?
"I know. I just wanted to make sure our first real birthday party was the best we could ever throw."
"By inviting the whole school?" Phoebe clarified.
"Yes." Max replies, Cherry walking through the door. She eyes the two, giving Max a glance.
"Phoebe, this is the best party I've ever been to." Cherry told her. Then she spotted Wong. "That is one creepy ice sculpture. This party has everything." Cherry then dances back out the door.
"I don't know about this, Max." Phoebe told him.
Max raised his eyebrows. "Be honest, Phoebe. Are you saying it to try to pretend that you're not fine with this, but you want the best party possible, or are you saying it because you genuinely believe it?" Her twin questioned.
Phoebe took a moment, and it was a very long moment to think. He could tell that she wasn't sure, that she was trying to figure out what she should say. What she was actually feeling and thinking.
"I don't know. Why don't we just... go rock our birthday?" Phoebe asked with some hesitation.
Max simply nodded. "Let's go rock our birthday."
~~~~~~~~~~
The transmigrated one was sitting down in a chair, staring up at the ceiling. When his phone buzzed in his pocket, he pulled it out to check.
It was a message from 'Markie-Moo', who was obvious. The message said, "Got a message from an equipment dispenser. They have something of yours. Am I going to get it tonight?"
Max replied, "Yes, get it to the warehouse, I'll fix it later. After that, enjoy your night." Max texted back, getting a thumbs up before he clicked his phone off.
Tara approached him, and he looked up at her. "Hey, baby. Could you join me in the kitchen?" The blonde one questioned.
"Yeah." Max stood up, sliding his phone in his pocket while he followed her. When they got in, Max saw Cherry. "Hey, Cherry."
"Hi, Max." Cherry gave a small wave.
"So, we know it's Max's birthday, and we know I'm dating Max." Tara started, and Max gave her a confused look.
Cherry was mimicking it. "Okay...?" Cherry let out.
Tara continued, "I also happen to know that you two," Tara motioned between Max and Cherry. "Have fucked."
Cherry's eyes widen. "How-"
"I told her." Max cut her off. "T, get to the point."
"Let's have a birthday three-way." Tara said, doing as Max said.
Cherry stuttered. "What...? Why-?"
"You sure?" Max questioned, giving her a look.
Tara hums. "Yep. It's no different than that time me and Cherry gave you a blowjob at the same time. Just a little farther. I'm down. Max here is definitely down. Only question is if Cherry is." Tara replied, turning to look at Cherry.
The blonde girl bit her lip, glancing back and forth between the couple. Then she asked, "Where are we going to be doing it?"
"Here." Tara replied, and Max turned, only to see Wong not there, the pizzas missing. That explains it.
"Here?" Cherry questioned, looking confused and worried, darting her eyes to the employee only door.
"Yes, Cherry, here. Why not? Perfect opportunity." Tara confirmed. "It's hotter if we can be caught."
Cherry paused before biting her lip, then nodding. "Okay. What do we do first?"
Tara grinned, then motioned for Cherry to walk over to her, which the blonde girl did. Then both blondes knelt down, on their knees. Tara shifted to unbutton his pants, then pulled his cock out, stroking idly.
"You want first taste?" Tara asked the other girl.
Cherry answered without words, instead leaning forward and taking it into her mouth, starting to bob on it slowly. Cherry's eyes made eye contact with Max's while she moved up and down, Tara running her fingers through Cherry's hair.
"So pretty. Don't you think so, Max? Doesn't she look pretty bobbing on your cock?" Tara questions, smirking up at him.
Max gives her the same slight smirk, replying, "Absolutely. She's doing very good."
Cherry started bobbing faster, humming on it as she took a little more in. Meanwhile, Tara stood up, kissing Max while Cherry was working below.
Tara slipped her tongue into his mouth, running her fingers through Cherry's hair as Cherry sucks on his cock. Max slips his fingers down, then runs his fingers up Tara's thigh, then finds the lingerie she was wearing.
Tara takes her free hand and gets it under the waistband, pushing it down inch by inch before it becomes loose enough for it to fall all the way down.
Once it does, and she kicks it off, Max slides his fingers inside of her, going quickly. Tara moans against his lips, giving Cherry's hair a small grip.
Cherry goes as deep as she can, gagging before pulling back and continuing, bobbing a she stares up at the two. Her fingers slip underneath her own skirt, sliding beneath her panties to rub herself.
Max fingers Tara quickly, sliding up to rub her clit before slipping back in, over and over. All until she finished on his fingers.
When she calmed down, she looked down at Cherry before she crouched down, then pulled Cherry off, giving Max's dick a long lick before kissing Cherry, both girls moaning as their tongues slid into each others mouths.
Max watched, throbbing before Tara pulled away, pulling Cherry up with her. Tara guided Cherry to a table, getting her to lay on her back. "Slide into her, baby." Tara told Max, and he complied, moving between Cherry's legs.
He slid her panties to the side, then tapped her entrance with his rod, getting a gasp of pleasure from her. At the same time, Tara was getting on the table, putting her own pussy above Cherry's mouth.
The couple made eye contact, and Max slid inside of Cherry, getting a moan from her. At the same time he slid in, Tara lowered onto Cherry's face, getting the moan directly against her pussy.
Tara moaned as Cherry started licking, and she was licking happily. Eagerly. Her tongue flew everywhere it could reach, hitting Tara's clit as Max started thrusting in and out of her.
Cherry was moaning, feeling the double pleasure filter through her. Tara tasted amazing, and it helped her a lot. Tara's hands found her breasts through her shirt, giving them squeezes as Cherry worked with her tongue, making Cherry moan into Tara even louder.
Max rubbed her clit, then looked up as Tara leaned forward, and the two kissed. Tara shifted one hand to his face, cupping it as she slid her tongue into his mouth, Max pushing his own against hers.
The older blonde pulled away before leaning down, sticking her tongue out to touch Cherry's clit, it having the double effect of running along Max's cock every time he went in and out.
Cherry was moaning into Tara, giving both of them immense pleasure. It was a cycle of euphoria, Tara licking Cherry, Cherry moaning into Tara, Tara licking more, repeat.
Max kept pushing in and out of both of them when he saw both of them shudder, and Tara dropped a little bit, catching herself while Cherry released a loud, muffled moan.
When he saw and heard it, he slowed down. Tara eventually regained control of herself, then shifted around to have her bottom pointed towards Max.
Max got the hint immediately, pulling out of Cherry, to her dismay, before sliding into Tara. He grabbed her waist then started pistoning back and forth, groaning as he felt her squeeze him.
Cherry and Tara started kissing once more, the two girls moaning in sync. Max let a hand drift down to rub Cherry's center, making her moan even more.
The guy the decided to go back and forth, from girl to girl, rubbing whoever he wasn't inside of to make sure they were enjoying their time as well.
When he got close, he told them. And in response, Tara got up, moving off of the table and dragging Cherry with her.
They both got on their knees, then Tara guided Cherry to start licking his cock, going up and down, both of them swapping who was actually sucking it.
"Close..." Max grunted, and when he got there, Cherry and Tara shifted back, getting as close to each other as possible when he released, coating both of their faces.
Once he was all out of cum, the two women kissed again, moaning as they did before they pulled away. Tara got herself right before Cherry, saying, "Get some napkins, clean up, fix your clothes, and we should be fine." The blonde picked her panties up before starting to slide them back on.
Tara then made eye contact with Max, and motioned towards where Wong used to be standing, only for him to nod at her. He understood, time to get ready for the next part.
Max turned his head, seeing the employee only door close slightly. Someone had been watching.
Only question was who.
~~~~~~~~~~
Max stepped up to Phoebe, tapping her shoulder. She turned around from where she was dancing with Cherry, giving him a look he couldn't place.
Cherry's eyes found his, and he could see the blush fling across her face, her eyes darting to Phoebe behind her back.
"Help me get some more pizzas." Max tells her, and she nods, following him to the backroom.
Phoebe stops when she notices Mrs. Wong is missing, then looks at Max. "Where did you put Mrs. Wong?"
"I didn't move her." Max replies, shifting to look around. His eyes 'spot' the missing pizzas. "Pizzas are gone. I'm betting the delivery guy thought she was an ice sculpture and took her to the dojo those pizzas were getting delivered to."
Phoebe looks at where he was looking and nods. "Then let's go, it's our only lead. Let's hope we can get her back before we get in trouble."
Her twin nods, then they both exit out the backdoor, getting ready to go get Wong.
~~~~~~~~~~
They shift to look around the corner, looking at the class. Phoebe was staring, then whispered to him, "Maybe if we ask nicely, he'll let us have her back."
Max squints at him, responding in a similar whisper, "Unlikely."
"Watch as your sensei breaks his own arm, then resets the bone!" The Sensei yells, then does just that, Phoebe audibly wincing upon seeing it.
"Actually, you froze Wong, you handle this."
"I plan to." Max replied, then stepped out from behind the corner casually.
Fifteen children, all somewhat trained in at home martial arts. No practical use, that would be easy.
The difficult part would be the sensei, as he may have some practical use behind it, some combat readiness.
"Who are you, bozo?" The sensei asked, and Max's face didn't change.
"I'm here to take that. It's mine, got picked up by mistake." Max said, motioning his head to the ice sculpture.
The sensei glares at him slightly. "You think you can take something from my dojo!?"
"Yes." Max replied in a blank tone, adding, "I'm not asking, Kenny. I'm telling. That is coming with me."
The sensei breathes out harshly, the tells Max, "You have to fight for it."
"Fine by me. Is it you, or them?" Max questioned, motioning to the kids.
"Beginners class, circle of doom!" He yelled, then pushed Max between the kids as they stood up and started circling around.
Now, Maxie got his ass beat previously by this group of kids. He underestimated them, and even as a villain, he had morals against harming children.
Max had no such restictions.
So, when one of the kids charged, he merely shifted out of the way, grabbing the back of their head and using their momentum to shove them down as hard as possible.
Their face hit the mat, and they grunted when they landed, before crawling away.
Another one charged, and he turned, throwing his foot at theirs. His boot hit their shin, which took it out from under them and they flew, landing harshly before sliding.
Two more charged in right after, then all he had to do was place his boot into one of their chests, making them go backwards before he dodged the attack from the other, grabbing their wrist before picking them up.
While he held that one, and they threw weak hits at his wrist, another came forward. All Max did was throw a punch into their nose, making them hit their knees, Max seeing the red flow from between their fingers.
Max proceeded to throw the kid he was holding up by the wrist to the other side of the room, making them land on hardwood then roll.
Five down, ten to go.
Another two came in from different directions, at full speed. Max simply stepped back and let them run into each other, hard enough to let their foreheads collide, then both dropped to the floor, dazed.
His Thundersense went off, a bolt flashing in his eyes as he took a second, then he moved his head to the left, dodging a small wooden sword aimed at his head.
He grabbed it, then hit their wrist with his, making them let go before he flipped it.
Max's job got a lot easier from there, as now he had a weapon. He swung it at the face who aimed it originally, hitting them in the cheek and making them go down.
The teen shifted his feet, dodging an attempted kick before he swept the only leg on the floor out from under them, before bringing it down on their stomach.
Max then shifted, turning while swinging, hitting two who were charging right next to each other across the face, making them go down together.
Eleven down, four to go.
He looked at the last four, then held it up. "Why don't all four of you try at once?" He questioned, and the kids hesitantly looked at each other before charging.
Max resisted the smirk that wanted to cross his face to focus on them. He dodged two of them, hitting one in the back hard enough to knock them off balance and faceplant, half on the mat half on the hardwood floor. Their poor nose.
The teen shifted once more, dodging two punches at once before hitting one on the left side of the head with the wooden sword, then flicking his wrist to hit the other on the right side of the head. It was still a bit forceful, and considering he hit their ears, they dropped like a bag of bricks.
The last one was easy, Max turning before pushing it directly forward, hitting them right in the center of their collarbone, causing extreme pain as they grasped their chest, hitting their knees.
Fifteen kids down. One sensei to go.
Max shifted to point the sword at the sensei, saying, "There. I fought for it. I won. You going to hand it over or am I going to have to fight you, too? Unlike them, I won't take it easy on you."
Sensei Kenny looked at him with a mean face, then he ran forward.
Max, deciding this would be easier without the weapon, dropped it. The sensei had a small moment of surprise, because most people would keep the weapon in their hand if they had one, created an opening.
The teen dodged the hit, grabbing his arm before twisting around, making the sensei's arm go over his shoulder. With his elbow on Max's shoulder, Max yanked the arm down, and a loud crack echoed through the room.
When Kenny yelled in shock, Max turned then through a palm strike at his nose, breaking it and knocking him back. With the opening clear, Max did a spin, throwing his boot to sweep his legs out from under him. While Kenny was in the air, Max placed his hand on his chest then pushed him to the ground harshly, looking down at him.
"So, Kenny, can I take that sculpture now?" Max questioned, breathing a little heavy.
The sensei nodded, saying, "Yes, take it!" He yelled, and Max stood up, walking over to the frozen Wong, picking it up before carrying it over to the exit.
"Phoebe, door." Max ordered, and she took a second, staring at the mess of people on the floor. "Phoebe." Max said again, and she snapped out of it, opening the door so they both could get out.
~~~~~~~~~~
Max moved Mrs. Wong through the backdoor, using a telekinesis barrier on his hands to prevent his hands from getting too cold.
He set Mrs. Wong down, then shifted back from her to look at Phoebe. "Did you have to stare at me the whole way?" Max questioned, giving her a look.
Phoebe bites her lip, taking a minute to reply. "You hurt those kids, Max."
The guy sighs, hanging his head before pinching his nose. He replies, "It was necessary."
"A few of them were bleeding."
"I'm fully fucking aware of that, Phoebe." He snapped, looking up at his sister. "But it was that, or get beaten and go home with no Wong, and how do you think that would have turned out?"
She takes a breath, stepping closer. "I could have fooled them by pretending to be their chosen one."
"For the kids, that might've worked. But the adult? No fucking way that would have worked, then we'd have both been busted. Then, again, no fucking Wong." Max retorted.
"You didn't have to hurt them!" Phoebe yelled back. "There were easier ways! Telekinesis to knock them off balance-!"
"Exposes our identity."
"Freeze them!"
"Also exposes us. It was bad enough that my Thundersense flashed, I couldn't use anything else."
"Jesus fucking Christ, Max, do you just like hurting people!?"
"Yes!" Max yelled back. Then he calmed down a bit, speaking slowly and steadily, "I like to hurt people because it is the only control I have ever had. I have been hurt my entire life. By living in your shadow. By being younger. For my father being fucking Thunder-Man!" He takes a second. "That's why I became a villain. That makes me separate from you. It makes me unique. It makes me stand out in my own way. Hurting people, something you'll never do, is how I make people see me for me. So, yes, Phoebe, I like hurting people, because it is the only way I'm not following in your every footstep."
Phoebe paused, opening and closing her mouth while trying to find out how to reply. "How long have you felt like this?"
"We were six when it happened for the first time. It got worse from there. It reached it's peak in Metroburg, then I became a villain." Max replies.
"I-I didn't know..." Phoebe managed to get out.
"How would you? You never asked." Max replied, his face showing genuine sadness. Everything he just said was real, all of that was memories of Maxie coming to the surface.
He was warned that he would gain the memories of him, and some of the emotions might come to the front of his mind, and Ash was right.
Phoebe takes a minute, trying to think of what to say, the entire time she's staring at him. Biting her lip, she shifts from foot to foot. Then she surges forward, planting her lips on his.
Max takes a minute, then he starts reciprocating, but it only lasts a few seconds before she pulls away, her eyes wide.
"I'm so sorry, I didn't know what-"
"Phoebe. It's fine. If you want to forget this happened, we can." Max replied, and Phoebe made a face he couldn't decipher at the moment. His brain was rattled.
"None of this would have happened if we had just stayed home with mom and dad..." Phoebe let out quietly.
"Probably." He replied. "Want to go home? I already told Billy and Nora that we would watch the puppet show when we got home."
Phoebe nods "Yeah, sounds good." She replied hesitantly.
"Get ready to leave out of the back door. I'll unfreeze her, then we run."
Phoebe nods, then opens the back door. When Max unfreezes her, they take off.
~~~~~~~~~~
Max wakes up, then shifts up. He rubs his eyes, then walks upstairs, sans shirt, necklace dangling down his neck.
When he gets up, he walks into the kitchen, moving to pour himself a cup of coffee. While he did, he heard some steps behind him.
Once he got the coffee in the mug, he turned around, see Phoebe in her pajamas.
Max saw her stop, he saw the red flash across her cheeks before disappointment filter through her face before it vanished, instead, her eyes moving up and down him, eyes locking onto the necklace.
One more blush before she moved around him, letting their shoulders brush together for a second as he sipped it.
Their parents stepped into the kitchen from the front, Barb holding something with her brows furrowed. "Max, you have a letter." She spoke, sounding confused.
Billy and Nora step in after. "Max writes letters?"
"When I feel like it." He replies, taking a sip of his coffee. After he swallows, he asks, "Who is it from?"
"Uh... Schwoz. What's a Schwoz?" Barb asked, and Max used his telekinesis to pull the envelope to him from her hand.
"Who, not what." Max corrects, setting the coffee down to open it, pulling it out then unfolding it.
It reads, "Max, your super soldier thing is quite interesting. And I am willing to go to my homeland in order to obtain the ingredient needed to complete it, but I must know if there are any things that may complicate the process. Are there any other abilities you may have that could affect the process?"
Max reads it a second time, picking his coffee back up to take a sip before he starts walking to his bedroom. "Thank you." Max tells his mother, stepping out of the kitchen.
"You're welcome?" Barb replies, confused.
~~~~~~~~~~
Later that day, Max, Tara, and Mark were in one of many parks. They were searching through it, Mark asking, "The hell are we even looking for again?"
Max sighed, looking at him. "I told you, either a crystal, a container, or an opening we can get into. Whether it be a cave diving thing, or even a mine, I need to know."
"M!" Tara yelled, and they looked over. Both men walked over, then looked at what she was looking at. A small opening in the Earth, big enough for a person to slide through.
"Was this what you were looking for, boss?" Mark questioned, all while Max squinted, shifting to look closer, trying to find a glow.
He spots a faint shimmer of light on the wall, and decides this is worth investigating. "Tara, do you have the box ready?"
"I have multiple depending on how big it is. Headlamp?" Tara asked, and he nodded, the girl passing it to him.
Max pulled it on top of his head, then flipped it on, squeezing his legs through the gap. He shifted, wiggled, all to knock himself look before he dropped down, wincing in pain as he landed.
"Fuck, that hurt. Deeper than I thought." Max said, mostly to himself, then he looked up at the gap. "Shit, guys, how far up are you!?" He called out to them.
Mark replied, "About twelve, maybe fifteen feet from your head. Unless she packed rope or you can climb really well, you're not getting back up this way!" Mark called back down.
"Fuck..." Max muttered. "T, did you bring rope!?" Max called up.
"Shit, no! I didn't think we would need it!" Tara called back.
He could vaguely hear Mark replying, "You're saying you two knew he might have to go cave diving and didn't bring rope?"
From this distance, the vague response of, "I didn't think we'd be finding it today, we've been searching for weeks, we should have brought you sooner, my fucking bad."
Max clicks his phone on as they go back and forth, moving it around to see if he would have service deeper in the cave, only to realize that his phone wasn't functioning right at all.
The screen looked wavy, like it was distorting. He could swear he saw the letters and numbers literally coming off of the screen.
"Mark, Tara!" He called out, getting simultaneous 'What!?'s from both of them. "I'm going to walk deeper into this! I'll try to find a way out, but just in case I don't, wait here so I can tell you to get rope!"
"Are you serious!?" Tara yelled back.
"Yes!" Max called up.
Mark responded, "Alright! Whatever you say! Tara, get comfortable."
"You're on board with this!?"
"He pays my bills. Whatever he says, goes." Mark responded.
"Jesus fucking Christ..."
Max turned towards the light, which looked a little brighter. He couldn't explain it, but he had this urge to follow it.
Like, he was meant to. He was supposed to follow it, he was being told to. Not by anyone or anything, but still being told to.
So, the teen walks closer, shifting through the cavern. Occasionally he checks his phone to see what's happening with it, only to see it even worse.
Even more distortion, waves and the colors shifting in ways that he couldn't properly describe to someone even if he tried.
The numbers and letters were definitely coming off of the screen, and surged back into the phone when he clicked it off.
As he stepped closer, he started getting a major headache. Closer to a migraine. His brain felt like it was fizzing, similar to a soda. He got dizzy, vision turning blurry, and it was making it hard to think.
He got to a solid wall, where the glow was originating, and now he was confused. He had to lean his weight against the wall, trying to process. He let muscle memory with speech do the talking instead of actually trying to think.
"Light passes through the wall, but there are no openings. Crystal bypasses conventional materials when it comes to light... maybe the light is on a different scale compared to what we already have?" He takes a step to his left to shift his weight, but hits something solid. When he looks down, he sees three skeletons, one with a pickaxe.
Their fingers looked broken, their eye sockets had scratched on the skeleton parts.
"Crystal drove them insane trying to get to it. Their eyes couldn't handle the light, makes me wonder why I'm sane. Or maybe this fucking migraine is why. I can barely handle it, and I know what's happening here. They wouldn't have known. Fuck, my head hurts."
Max was rambling to himself as he leaned forward further into the wall, eyes having to close to prevent his head from hurting even more.
"Fuck..." He muttered, pushing his hand against the wall. "How do I get through this fucking wall?" He asks to himself, hands flattening against the surface.
Then it hits him. Telekinesis.
Max pulls his hands back, focusing what little he can into what his hands can do, then he slams them into the wall, using all of his telekinesis to push it.
The guy falls forward, the wall falling away as he hits the ground, crawling a few inches forward out of an instinct that he shouldn't have. Like a warning of sorts.
He would remember later that this would be his Thundersense activating at an intensity he wouldn't encounter again for a really long time.
Then he hears rocks shifting, the migraine hitting it's peak as he lays there, all energy suddenly pulled from him.
Then the sound of the ground falling inwards behind him.
{A/N: I'm removing voting from chapters. Having to write chapters while balancing what voting is makes everything so much fucking harder and I cannot handle it while trying to write these at a decently steady pace. I am sorry. But I hope this was a sufficient enough chapter. Thank you for your patience.}