A sudden mass of wires and tubes formed around Bolt's neck and back.
Once they did, they pumped a variation of fluids into Bolt's bloodstream, causing his muscles to expand.
In the span of a few seconds, Bolt's entire body was three times its regular size, making him taller than Jake and Max combined.
"He really was a monster."
That is what Max thought of this transformation. He hadn't had this feeling since Mr. E.
When Mr. E defeated him so easily...
And turned him into the mindless Maximum.
But that was then.
This is now.
Now he had the powers and abilities of a multitude of mumans he consumed.
And the ability to create temporary powers of his own.
Bolt was supposed to be nothing to him....
So why was he still scared?
Suddenly, Bolt appeared right in front of him, his hand morphed into a powerful-looking gun.
Max didn't know it yet, but this was the gun that killed Jake.
"Oh, that's why," Max thought as Bolt sent him flying into a pile of debris with a blast of raw plasma from said gun.
"That's disappointing," Bolt said, warming up his arm. "I was expecting you to dodge that. Maybe I misjudged you."
Max lay there with his palm on his face. He barely managed to block by covering his arms completely in red energy and absorbing most of the attack's energy.
Even then, the attack not only harmed him but actually did good damage. As he got up, he noticed his vision begin to blur. With one blast, Bolt was able to knock him off balance.
Was he really that weak?
"Max!" He heard across from him. He turned to see behind Bolt; Zack and the kids were on the ground. They were watching him fight.
Watching him lose...
This whole time they came face-to-face with this monster. He could tell from the looks on their faces they didn't even think of running.
If they could do that, why not him?
Max straightened himself accordingly and walked toward Bolt. Bolt smirked.
"Oh? Want some more, eh? Good. It's been so long since I've been in an actual battle. Please don't disappoint me further."
Max stopped.
"What now?"
Suddenly, he disappeared.
Bolt barely noticed Max reappear in front of him. Luckily, his body naturally reacted and pulled his arms up to block his incoming punch. Said punch still sent him flying a few meters away.
"So the gap between us isn't as huge as I th..."
Bolt stopped once he felt an excruciating pain coursing through his arms. Once he looked down, he could see the red energy Max emitted coursing through his veins, destroying them from the inside out.
In the span of two seconds, the red energy obliterated his arms into a mess of metal and flesh. Just as he let out a scream of pain, Max appeared in front of him again...
Red energy pulsing through his fist.
Bolt then activated the rockets in his feet and launched himself into the air, far away from Max. During his flight, he destroyed his own arms using his self-destruct protocols and used his repair protocols to regenerate them.
Max grew a pair of wings from his red energy and flew towards Bolt as fast as he could.
As Max got closer, Bolt laughed.
"Amazing! How stupendously amazing! To think I underestimated you, boy! One punch had the power to completely destroy my arms. How did you achieve such a thing? I remember from the battle with the Broker, the blue one used a similar ability to hit him from within. Is this what you're using?"
Max ignored him and flew even faster, creating a sonic boom to chase down Bolt. Bolt laughed again and flew towards Max this time.
Just as Max pulled his fist back for another energy-infused punch, Bolt pulled his fist back and murmured something to himself. Max was able to read his lips, though.
"Copy protocols," he said. Max had no idea what it meant but didn't care. He was on a massive high right now.
Stacya was wrong.
He was strong, not just physically, but internally too. In the face of an opponent who can truly fight back, he's not only holding his own, but scaring the shit out of him.
This is why he had so many powers. This is why he made himself as strong as possible.
So the stronger would see him as a wall.
Just like he had seen them long ago.
Jake was dead. A pity, but not a setback. He had all he needed right now.
Today it was Bolt.
Who was next? The All-Stars of the Super Society? The Elites?
Canman?
The mere thought made him laugh as maniacally as Bolt, piquing his interest.
"Oh? Finally gonna say something?" Bolt taunted, his fist being covered in a cloak of green flames.
"Yes. I'd like to thank you. Really. I was obsessed with growing stronger and stronger, always afraid I just wasn't good enough. Seeing you before, back in the slaughterhouse, it cemented those fears, but facing you now, I see I'm strong enough already! I am the apex! The ultimate organism, and it's only a matter of time till the world sees my name, knows my name, and fears my name!"
Bolt was cackling like a madman now.
"Well, I want to thank you too! You're the ultimate test for not just me, but humanity in general. It's been so long since I've had to rely on my copy protocols to defeat an opponent!"
"Copy protocols?"
"Yes. My cybernetics are categorized into multiple different protocols. Defense protocols, repair protocols, and my favorite, copy protocols. Though I never get to use them—until now."
"And what the hell are these copy protocols?" Max asked, a strange feeling building within him. A feeling he only felt the first time he looked at Bolt.
Fear.
Why now? After all this? After cementing himself as someone on his level? Was his body trying to deceive him? Was it a sick joke from the universe?
"They allow me to use the abilities of any muman I've studied and obtained a sample of. I've obtained all the abilities of the members of the Super Society. The basic members, the All-Stars, and the Elites!"
Max didn't even know what to say to that.
His laugh stopped.
His jaw dropped.
He realized what that feeling was for.
It was a warning.
Max clashed with Bolt's green-flamed fist for a brief moment and used his wings to launch himself away from him.
Bolt's arm was still covered in those flames, his red energy practically nonexistent.
Whatever they were, they completely negated the effects of his red energy.
"Haven't you realized who these flames belong to, boy? Come on, don't disappoint me now."
Before Max could answer, he felt a sudden, indescribable pain in his arm—the same arm he used to punch Bolt.
He turned to it only to see the green flames consuming his arm like how one would consume a five-star meal. Slowly and methodically, the flames ate away at his hand and began climbing up his arm.
"F... Forest Fire's green flames?" Max said, the horror in his voice so visible it made Bolt smile.
"Yes. Her ability allows her to make these green flames. They only disappear once the victim is incinerated, and they eat away at the body like nothing. Truly one of the most powerful abilities these mumans have to offer," Bolt explained, causing Max to instantly panic.
As Max used his ability to give himself cryogenic blasts, Bolt charged him. Max shot a blast at his burning arm only for it to do nothing to quell the flames. Realizing he had no other choice, he ripped off his own arm at the shoulder to prevent the flames from fully spreading across his body. Just as he finished this, Bolt was mere inches away from him.
Charging another flaming fist.
Max gave himself quick teleportation and disappeared from Bolt's sight.
He then reappeared on the ground far away from Bolt's location.
"Oh? Retreating now, are we? Seems your red energy ain't what it's cracked up to be when compared to the power of an Elite!" Bolt mused and conjured another cloak of flame on his other hand. He then fired a barrage of green fireballs at Max's location.
Luckily, Max was quick enough to dodge the blasts while giving himself regeneration so he could quickly grow back his arm.
He soon realized at this pace, he was going to lose.
So this was the power of an Elite?
And Canman was far above this?
His high faded then and there.
Suddenly, the fireballs stopped coming.
Before Max could look up to check on Bolt, the monster landed right in front of him, charging another flaming fist. Max was able to teleport right on time, though, or he would've lost.
"Damn, you're fast, and with that teleportation, it's not easy to catch you. Luckily, I have the perfect solution for that."
Max prepared a more serious battle stance, morphing his arms into axes covered in red energy.
"Copy Protocol: Canman."
Max's stance suddenly dropped.
He didn't even realize it.
"Oh? Fearful already? I haven't even used the ability yet," Bolt said, pulling a soda can from the palm of his hand.
"W... what is that?" Max said, stammering.
"A result of Canman's ability. A can made from my own flesh, which serves as a pocket dimension."
Max suddenly felt a sudden force pulling him towards Bolt.
"They also have a force comparable to that of a black hole!" Bolt said with a childlike glee.
Max tried to use his axes to keep himself in place, but his moment of rest couldn't even last a moment as the force pulled him in along with the ground beneath his feet.
As he flew toward Bolt, he realized nothing he could do would resist the force and decided to teleport out of its way.
Right after teleporting out of the way, though, he came to a terrifying realization.
Bolt knew he'd do it.
He saw Bolt creating more green flames on his hand and launching a small green mass of them at him so fast he barely noticed it hitting his chest.
But he did notice the sudden pain that came with it.
In an instant, the flames spread to Max's whole body, covering him in a feeling of pain so intense he screamed with everything he had left. To make everything worse, Bolt turned the can in his direction and the force pulled him right in.
No way to fight back.
All he could do was scream in pain as the flames consumed him...
There was nothing he could do...
But scream...
No.
There was something.
One last act of spite.
Charging the last of his red energy into his finger,
Then he fired it right into Bolt's temple.
Right after he was sucked into the can,
The flames still consuming him...
To be continued...