Marvel 216

He stood up, stretching lazily, then turned serious.

"But if we're going to survive... no, if we're going to win—it's not enough to just hide here."

Sara frowned.

"What do you mean?"

Max summoned another menu, pulling out a sleek-looking vial filled with swirling, blood-red liquid.

The vial pulsed softly, almost like a heartbeat.

"This…" he said, holding it up, "is called a Red Apple."

Sara stared at it suspiciously.

"...That looks nothing like an apple."

Max laughed.

"Yeah, naming things isn't my strong point. Anyway—this thing's important. It's a serum I created—well, technically it's a hybrid of some crazy Gach..... things I combined. It boosts a person's potential beyond human limits."

He crouched down in front of her, twirling the vial between his fingers.

"It unlocks dormant strength in anyone who takes it—men, women, kids, anyone. Even if they're normal humans, they can awaken powers strong enough to tear apart Ultrons barehanded."

Sara's eyes widened.

"You mean... we could fight back? Not just run and hide?"

Max nodded slowly.

"But there's a catch," he said, his tone dropping a little.

"Once you take it, there's no going back. Your body will evolve... your soul too. You'll become something stronger—but also different. Some people can't handle the surge, and if their will isn't strong enough… well, they lose themselves."

Sara was silent for a moment, processing.

"Have... you used it yourself?" she asked.

Max shrugged casually.

"Nah, I don't need it. I'm already beyond that level. But for everyone else? It's the key to flipping this dead world back onto its feet."

He placed the vial gently into her hands.

"I'll make more. Enough for everyone here.

But the choice to take it... will be yours."

Sara tightened her grip on the vial, a fierce determination rising in her eyes.

"I'll do it," she said firmly. "If it means we can stop running, protect each other... protect this..."

She looked around at the beautiful city growing under Max's care.

"...Then I'll fight."

Max grinned wide, a spark of admiration flashing through him.

"Good answer."

He stood up, looking out across the horizon where the remains of a broken world lay beyond their shielded paradise.

"This is just the beginning, Sara.

We're not just surviving anymore.

We're going to build a kingdom right under Ultron's nose."

The next day, Max and Sara stood in a massive open square inside the Eden Dome. Word had quickly spread among the survivors: Max, the strange newcomer who built them a paradise, was offering a way to fight back.

Hundreds gathered — tired faces, scarred bodies, but eyes filled with flickering hope.

Max stood atop a newly constructed stone platform, a sleek table beside him stacked with dozens of vials, each containing the crimson swirling liquid — the Red Apples.

Sara stood next to him, dressed in simple black clothing, her expression solemn but resolute.

Max raised his hand and his voice, letting it boom across the square without any mechanical aid — his power made sure every soul could hear him clearly.

"Today is the day we stop being prey."

The crowd stirred, murmurings of disbelief and excitement rippling through them.

"You've lived your lives scavenging in ruins," Max continued, "hiding from those metal bastards… watching loved ones fall while you ran."

A deep breath. His voice turned colder.

"I'm tired of running. Aren't you?"

"YES!"

The crowd roared.

Max grinned.

"Good. Because running ends today."

He held up a vial.

"This is the Red Apple. A miracle and a gamble. Drink it, and your body, your soul — everything you are — will evolve. You will awaken power, strength you never thought possible."

He let the words sink in before continuing.

"But beware — if your spirit is weak, if you let fear and doubt rule you— you could lose yourself. Those unworthy will burn out. Only those who truly desire to fight, to protect, to live free — will succeed."

Sara stepped forward, clutching her vial tightly.

"I'll go first," she said loudly.

Max smiled warmly.

"Brave girl."

Without hesitation, Sara popped open the vial and drank the Red Apple in one swift motion.

For a moment, nothing happened.

Then her body tensed, trembling as a glowing red light exploded from her core. She gasped as her veins lit up like molten rivers. Power, raw and primal, surged through her.

The crowd held their breath.

Sara gritted her teeth, screaming not in pain — but in triumph.

Her hair whipped wildly as a crimson aura blazed around her. The ground cracked under her feet from the sheer pressure.

Then, slowly, the glow stabilized. Sara stood taller, her eyes glowing faintly red, her muscles leaner, her presence sharper — almost predatory.

Max nodded in approval.

"You see?" he said, turning back to the crowd.

"This world doesn't need cowards hiding in holes anymore. It needs warriors."

He gestured grandly toward the table full of vials.

"Come. Take your fate into your own hands.

Become the sword that strikes down the machine gods."

One by one, the bravest among them stepped forward, faces grim but determined.

The Red Apple Awakening had begun.

And soon, a new army would rise — not of machines, but of awakened humans, ready to take back their world.

Max watched it all unfold, his heart thundering in his chest.

'This... this is how it starts,' he thought.

"To fight an army, you need an army," Max muttered under his breath, patting his chest with satisfaction as he watched the awakening process unfold before him.

The square glowed red as each survivor drank the Red Apple. The weaker ones merely became stronger physically — bones hardened, muscles thickened, reflexes sharpened. Enough to stand and fight, to survive.

But only one had gone beyond that.

Max's gaze naturally settled on Sara.

Red lightning crackled and danced around her, forming thin webs of electric fury that coiled and uncoiled across her arms and shoulders. Her very presence had changed — it was like standing near a charged stormcloud now.

She stared at her own hands, awestruck, red sparks arcing between her fingers."I feel… alive," she whispered.

Max nodded to himself, thinking,Hm. As I expected. Only those with strong will and a natural affinity can awaken an Attribute from the Red Apple...

He walked toward her, his coat fluttering slightly from the residual static in the air.

"Congratulations," he said with a small grin. "You're not just strong now. You're special. That lightning you command is the real deal."

***

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