DC : The Template System

Before the dance of death even began, an Atlantian soldier lunged, aiming a kick at Max's face.

Max stepped aside effortlessly, letting the foot swing past him. In the same motion, he drove a fist into the soldier's gut, sending him flying backward, blood trailing from his mouth.

A spear flew at Max from the side, grazing his cheek. He leaned with it, pain ignored, and snatched it mid-flight, then swept it in a wide arc—impaling two Amazon warriors through their abdomens with one savage move. Without pause, he hurled the bloodied spear upward, striking down an archer perched on a rooftop.

Two more Amazons charged from either side. Max jumped, legs snapping outward—a split kick that caught them both in the face, knocking them out cold before he even landed.

As his boots hit the dirt, he rolled forward and grabbed a fallen sword, just in time to deflect an axe flying at him. It was thrown by a strange creature—part man, part fish—who let out a war cry and rushed him.

Max smirked beneath the mask.

An atalntian lunged on his flank, dagger flashing. Max casually leaned aside, narrowly avoiding the stab. Then the soldiers went for a jab to the face.

Max caught it's arm. And snapped it like a twig.

The dagger flew from the soldiers hand, and Max caught it midair—only to hurl it right at the creature.

The fish man that had been charging at him tilted his head, barely dodging—but that was a mistake.

The dagger exploded.

Max had attached an explosive tag to it. The blast sent the creature tumbling away in smoke and flame.

Before Max could even breathe, a volley of arrows rained down on where he stood. He flipped back—again and again—dodging them with inhuman grace.

His eyes snapped upward as a yellow plasma blast hurtled toward him.

He instantly summoned his gunbai, catching the beam with its surface. The force pushed him backward as he flipped through the air, landing in a crouch, his boots skidding across cracked pavement.

The attack faded. Max dismissed the fan.

He stood tall… then casually patted the dust off his cloak.

Orm stood tall, his trident humming with raw energy. Without a word, he turned and blasted a monstrous beast charging toward them—vaporizing its skull in a single, thunderous beam.

"I must admit, surface dweller," Orm said coolly, his voice echoing with disdain, "your combat skills are... impressive. But this is where it ends."

With a flick of his wrist, he fired another blast directly at Max.

Max sidestepped the beam in a blur and raised a single hand in a seal.

"Fire Style: Majestic Destroyer Flames!"

A colossal wall of fire—wide as a tidal wave and tall as a fortress—erupted from his mouth, engulfing the battlefield in searing heat. Trees melted. Metal screamed. The sky glowed orange.

Orm's eyes widened. He slammed his trident down, summoning a towering wave of water to counter the blaze.

The two elements collided—fire and water clashing with explosive force, blanketing the battlefield in a choking cloud of steam.

Through the haze, Max dropped to one knee and slammed his palm into the ground.

Poof. Poof. Poof.

One by one, monstrous figures appeared around him in bursts of smoke:

A three-headed dog, its snarling mouths chained by black rods jutting from its snout.

A giant green bird, its neck pierced with jet-black receivers.

A massive ox, muscles bulging and eyes glowing with malice.

A rhino, armored and unstoppable.

A colossal centipede, its many legs churning the ground.

A chameleon, its tail a writhing snake.

All of them bore the Rinnegan.

Max's voice was calm, almost amused beneath the mask. "Crush him."

The summons roared and charged forward in unison, shaking the ground beneath them.

Max turned his head toward a distant clash of lightning and red energy—the battle between Barry and Thawne—and narrowed his eyes.

Without another word, he vanished in a flicker of movement.

Cyborg and Batman landed amidst the chaos, plasma fire crackling and debris raining from above. Smoke curled around them as they pressed forward, dodging rubble and fallen soldiers.

They spotted Grifter, his dual pistols blazing as he held off a squad of Atlantean shock troops.

"You're Grifter, right?" Cyborg called out, blasting a drone from the sky with his arm cannon.

Grifter ducked behind cover and fired a burst. "Yeah, and what's with you? The government send you to grab me now of all times?"

"No, we're here on behalf of Tobi," Cyborg said. "He told us to relay a message."

Batman stepped up beside him, voice cold and direct. "Evacuate. Immediately. If you stay here, you die."

Grifter paused for a beat, eyes narrowing behind his mask. "What's that lunatic planning now? Isn't it enough that he's got some war god tearing through both sides like tissue paper?"

"We've delivered the warning," Batman said flatly. "What happens next is your choice."

The two vanished into the smoke, moving with precise purpose.

Grifter growled and tapped his comm. "All resistance members, pull back! I repeat—pull back now!"

He kept firing, retreating step by step.

"Dammit, Tobi… what the hell are you about to unleash?"

He looked back at the battlefield

The ground trembled. Cries of battle were drowned out by the deafening thunder of titanic footsteps as Max's summoned beasts rampaged across the war-torn battlefield.

Orm snarled, his staff glowing bright as he fired blast after blast at the charging rhinoceros summon, each shot slamming into its hide with little effect. The beast roared in defiance, charging through the blasts. Then—impact. Orm was gored clean off his feet and flung into the air like a ragdoll.

Across the field, the three-headed dog—its snarling maws dripping with blood—faced off against the monstrous Cerberus, the Amazons own war-beast. The clash was brief. Brutal. Each head fought with coordinated fury, and in a flash of snapping jaws and gushing blood, Max's summon tore into the Cerberus's neck. The great beast collapsed, twitching, before going still.

The Rinnegan-eyed monsters were tearing through legions. And despite the bad blood between them, Amazons and Atlanteans now fought side by side, their fear of Max's summons outweighing their hatred for one another.

In the thick of the chaos, Clone Max 1 locked blades with Wonder Woman as he had dispersed his sussano, their duel a brutal dance of speed and strength.

Then it started.

Soldiers—both Amazon and Atlantean—screamed. One by one, they were yanked into the air by an unseen force, their bodies twisting, flailing—then vanishing leaving no trace.

Grifter watched in disbelief, ducking behind a ruined barricade as a giant centipede with Rinnegan eyes crushed a squad of Amazon archers beneath its chitinous bulk.

"Yeah... definitely Tobi's freak show," he muttered, eyes narrowing behind his mask.

He remembered those eyes—haunting, purple, rippling with power—from the last time they'd crossed paths. Back then, he'd only seen a glimpse of what Tobi could do. Now, he was watching an army of monsters with those same eyes tear through soldiers and monsters alike.

Each creature—be it the three-headed hound, the invisible chameleon, or the towering ox—radiated that same oppressive aura.

There was no mistaking it.

They were his.

Meanwhile...

Max's first clone stood before Wonder Woman, who was breathing heavily, her armor scorched and dented, her sword dripping with blood.

"So tell me, Diana," Clone Max said calmly, twirling two kunai in his hands, "Did you really kill Mera out of self-defense... or was it to eliminate the competition for Arthur's affection?"

Diana's eyes narrowed. "I did what I had to do to protect myself," she said—then launched at him in a blur of divine fury.

Steel clashed with chakra-forged metal as they exchanged vicious blows, the air crackling with tension. Even as they fought, Clone Max spoke—his voice cool, surgical.

"You neither deny nor confirm it... which means it could be both."

He blocked a powerful downward strike and twisted under her guard.

"But you know what I think?" he continued, dodging a punch and slashing across her bracer. "I think your pride couldn't stand the idea of sharing Arthur. Your royal standing, your belief in your own moral superiority—none of it could handle being second."

Diana let out a furious cry, but he didn't stop.

"So when Mera attacked… you didn't hesitate. You saw your chance. And you made it look justified."

End of chapter.