Meta Essence Gacha in Marvel

Third Person P.O.V.

"Why didn't Eidolon bring us to the mansion?" Jubilee asks while sitting on a rock in this huge clearing.

"To not give away the location of the mansion, of course." Jean answers while observing the dozens of thousands of people around "Most of those are adults and not metas… They will go back to their lives."

"No need to get involved with all of them." Scott adds "It would be dangerous to us and to them."

"I feel a little bad that I can't do much to help…" Kitty comments from her spot beside Dazzler.

The X-Men watch Lady Jade going around checking on people, and doing Eidolon's work while he is not here. 

After they arrived in this open space, she called for some machines that looked like ATMs that were delivered by some huge drones. Those machines can identify the people around them so that they can find their homes. They can give any information and then it would access the database of all the countries around the world. Face recognition, DNA, Name… They can even make a quick search to see the news of their disappearing cases and check their families.

They can even call or text them.

Shego is going around the ones that appear to have some problems. The ones with memory loss, catatonics, too young, too old…

'This is boring as fuck…' She is already tired 'This is what I gain from trying to be helpful…'

When she saw the Portal that they used to drop here activating again, she almost ran away from this task.

Eidolon emerges from the portal calmly and looks around, his eyes falling on the X-Men. "Still here? I thought you guys would call the Blackbird or something."

"We are waiting to see if any of the rescued would like to join the mansion." Jean answers

"I see…" He nods "Why don't you do this way... Let the people go back to their families, but I will give you guys the address of the metas so that you can visit them later."

"This can work." Jean accepts

"Great! I need a bath!" Jubilee says

"You guys can come with us." Kitty talks with Dazzler and Wind Dancer, it seems that they are already friends.

On the side, Eidolon approaches Illyana.

"I heard that you cooperated well with Shadow." Hector comments

"..." Illyana keeps her silence, not knowing where this talk will go

"Good job." He pats her head "I know that is hard, but sometimes the best action is inaction."

"Hm." She nods with a grunt

"Go back, later this week I will look for you for more training." He instructs "I can bring you to fight some villains if you are still bitter for not doing much." He assures her

"Hey, what about us?" Psylocke approaches together with Psylocke.

Eidolon takes a good look at them… They are surprisingly similar, too similar. He even searches his brain to try to remember if one is from a parallel universe or not.

"You two are so similar that I thought that you would figure out a way to change back alone." Eidolon says "It would be a more secure solution… But okay, I can help with it."

He remembers that statistically everyone has at least 5 or 6 doppelgangers around the world, so he stopped thinking about it. But the fact that they are even almost similar in powers is a little intriguing. Are your powers always like this?" He asks

"No." Elizabeth Braddock is the one who answers "I had telepathic powers and precognition… The Psychic constructs I acquired on this body."

"I was able to use telepathy after getting this body." The other Psylocke says.

"I see… So it equalized. Maybe it was a blessing in disguise, there's a high chance that you two will keep the other's power after switching back." He comments before extending his hand "Let's start. Don't worry, it will only take a second."

A raise of his hand and a twist of his fingers is all he needed to make the exchange… The two Psylockes stiffen for a moment before relaxing, already checking her bodies.

"I'm back." Elizabeth Braddock looks at her body, mostly at her attire and at the other Psylocke, because the two are very similar.

The other is silent, but there's relief in her eyes while checking herself.

"Now you can go back to your old life…" Eidolon says to Elizabeth before turning to the other "And what about you? Do you have a name beyond Psylocke? Somewhere to return?"

"..." Asian Psylocke looks at Eidolon suspiciously, different from the other, she doesn't know him only that he helped "I was called Kwannon."

"Another codename? Okay…" He doesn't press the issue "From what I heard, Ms. Braddock here was undercover inside the Hand, so you work for them, right?"

"..."

"The Hand is one of the most disgusting evil organizations that are in my sight." Eidolon says "They are lucky that they are equally pathetic and not a priority, but I know that one day they will overstep."

"..." Kwannon continues to only stare at him silently, her body tensing… By his word, maybe Eidolon will not let her go today. His gaze is also very intimidating.

She tenses even more when she notices his arm moving under his mantle, he can be doing anything under there… She is almost attacking first… A good hit on his neck would do the job, right? She has a deceptive big range because of her psyche blades…

"Wanna work for me?" Eidolon suddenly asks while extending his hand to her

"Eh?"

On his hand, there's a small device shaped like a medallion with the symbol of the SCP on it.

"I know of the Hand methods, so there's a chance that you are working to them for the lack of option and a better perspective… I hope the years away from them changed your mind and you can decide to abandon this lifestyle." The hero says

From the side everyone is staring at it, to the X-Men is the first time she sees someone being recruited, with the exception of Jean who was offered another option in the past, the scene is surprisingly similar, she noticed.

Shego on the other hand, is glaring holes at the back of Hector's head, but he is doing his best to ignore it for now.

"Work for you?" Kwannon looks between him and the medallion-like device in his hand.

"Yes, but don't worry that I will not ask for an immediate answer." Eidolon reaches for her hand naturally and puts the device on it "In a few days back on this world you will understand what I do and you can make your decision. Just press the button if you wanna talk… The pay and benefits are pretty good." He jokes

"You guys are being paid??" Jubilee and Tabitha shout from the side, but they stop after being elbowed in her ribs by Dune who is in the middle of the two.

Ignoring the comedic moment, Kwannon looks at the device before looking at Eidolon again "I will think about it."

He nods before turning around, without pressing the issue.

"Hmpf, where will she put it with those clothes?" Shego comments while walking by her side.

"..." He wisely doesn't engage because he knows Shego's secret superpower of using his words to attack him. And just made a move in an Asian hot babe(even if is not like that)… He already gave her enough ammunition.

The hero then makes the courtesy of opening a portal back to the mansion before turning to the many rescued people.

Crackling his knuckles he prepares himself to speedrun this boring job, he will check their body and mental health, and other things "Field work is so much easier…"

....

Different from the Operation against the Anti-Metas groups organized by Eidolon in the past, it was impossible to keep things under wraps because of the sheer quantity of people rescued.

And most of them are not metas that would keep their mouth shut. They are also not "Invisible humans" to the rest of the world. They still have loved ones looking for them.

The great number of missing people reappearing attracted the attention of the police and Media, and only a few days later people were already aware of almost everything that happened.

It is a hot topic that Eidolon, together with a group of metas, rescued them from another dimension where they are suffering unspeakable torture.

If Eidolon predicted all that, and is this the reason that he insisted on taking the X-Men with him, is unknown, but no one can deny that the result is pretty favorable to the metas in general.

It's like he said during that talk with Magneto and Xavier… When there is a common enemy is easy for humanity to come together.

And alien tyrants and invaders are the best ones to take up this role.

Now they know that there are scary things out there that the police and government can't protect them from, so they can only rely on the people with powers… The metas.

Eidolon talked about it, but suffering it personally put things in perspective.

It's also good that Eidolon continued with the good work around the world…

"Please return everything that you took…" Eidolon says calmly while he hovers down.

The two robbers that invaded this open marriage to make a quick heist stop on their tracks.

His sudden appearance has an immediate effect on the mood of the place, the victims relax visibly while the robbers get nervous.

"Stealing from a happy occasion, so scummy." The hero shakes his head and gives a nod to the bride and groom. "No… don't do that…" Eidolon sighs after seeing one of the robbers point his gun at one of the guests "Now I will need to break your arm… On such auspicious occasion, man." The hero puts his hands on his hips in resignation, acting like a disappointed parent.

With a last sigh, Eidolon moves faster than the eye can see. *Swish* He turns into a blur and appears behind the robber, the said robber lets go of his gun and clutches his arm.

"I warned you." The hero steps on the robber's back, forcing him into the ground before turning to the other "You, return everything to their respective owners… You don't want to make being cuffed a painful experience, right?"

With this small act of persuasion, the robber only nodded vigorously and went around to return everything, he was mocked all the way by the guests during his shameful task.

From grandmas "tsking" and saying that their parents would be disappointed to guys almost slapping his face, luckily to him Eidolon stopped that.

"Let's not exaggerate… The time is for love, not hate."

He took the robbers to the Police Station so that the venue would not be filled with police cars, but not before taking some pictures with the married couple and even receiving a slice of cake.

It became a good memory at least.

....

Once, Eidolon took Illyana to deal with a terrorist group that poked their head out of their hideouts.

"No need to kill or even arrest them." He says while the two walk through the maze-like caves that are the base of the terrorist group.

"Why not? I don't think anyone would miss them if we deal with them permanently, and even so… We can give them to the authorities…" Illyana says at his side, beyond her standard attire, she is also using a full-face mask to protect her identity and filter the air. And it has an in-built HUD in the lens.

The mask is something similar to what the Amazons of the Saint Seiya anime used, Hector thought that it would go well with her armor. The mask has a human face, but without any definitive features beyond some markings that give it personality.

"Which authorities? A good chunk is in cahoots with them…" Eidolon scoffs before stretching his hand making a lot of weapons disappear "Politics are annoying, I don't get much involved with it beyond exposing crimes of the higher-ups."

"You could do more…" Illyana says

"The population can do more too…" He shoots back "It's a thin line that I thread, Magik. I can only act as much as the people give me their support… Unless I decide to become a tyrant."

"That's really annoying." She huffs under her mask, he can imagine her pouting… she is even crossing her arms

Eidolon chuckles and pats her head "A little secret between us… I act behind the scenes too. Just a little." He whispers to her

She turns to him in surprise, but when she thinks about it, it makes sense. If the law and politics are slow… Eidolon can act faster for the good of the people.

"Go on. Deal with them, just don't kill anyone." Eidolon urges her "Destroying their money is enough for today."

"Where did they get all this money again?" She asks while making her Soulsword appear

"They are financed by a huge fish called the Ten Rings. Another reason why I do not waste my time dealing with every terrorist group, only the ones that really have plans to attack civilians… It's like removing water from the ocean, one bucket at a time."

"There are groups that don't attack? I thought that this was their thing… Instigate terror." 

"Sometimes you just need to exist to do that… They are posers." The hero says in distaste "Nowadays they even post videos of them waving weapons around, acting like monkeys… Some even posted executions on the internet."

"Oh. Pathetic…"

Eidolon shrugs his shoulders "The human IQ tends to fall when in group. They feel powerful, then get arrogant and conceited… That's when they start treating other people as lessens…"

"And that is where you humble them." She completes

He chuckles "You're learning." He says while walking to a terrified terrorist.

Paying with the same coin, he will instill terror in them. If there is someone who deserves PTSD is a terrorist.

.....

X-Mansion

Eidolon constantly visited the X-Men so that he could instruct Illyana, it's possible to say that he is really putting a lot of effort into training her.

It almost looks like favoritism, but only he(and Belasco) knows Illyana's potential. And she is his sidekick, obviously he will go all out… The only limiter is the fact that Illyana is not one of his people yet.

And Illyana would never complain, someone is finally not treating her like a porcelain doll. Before Eidolon talks with them, the X-Men don't even let her use the Danger Room.

Now she can use it freely, and that is where she is heading right now, even in her day off.

She still takes classes in the Institute, too young to go to a normal human school, but she is ahead in most of the subjects so she has a lot of free time. Even when teachers like Ororo and Xavier want her to still go to class to socialize with the other kids.

But to her is strange… Her old friends are too young now, and the ones at her age find hard to see her as a equal. She herself can't look at them as equals… She is a lot more mature because of her circumstances.

Once again, Eidolon stepped up and talked with Xavier.

"Let her do those things at her own pace…" He said "She is in an awkward time frame, fluctuating in being too young to this and too old to that… At some point, she will find where she wants to stay. And even if not… Eventually, everyone will be an adult."

He has a different perspective of them and is thinking ahead knowing that she has a very long lifespan. Some years as a teen will not impact her too much, her important years already happened… As sad as that is to think about it, they can't redo her childhood. They need to let it go so that she can grow.

"Oh Illyana, what are you doing here?" Bobby Drake asks, he is together with the main group of the X-Men resting in the room before the Danger Room.

"Training… Is the Room empty?" She asks

"Well, yes… We are taking a break." Angel says unsure

"Then I'm going to use it a little. Thanks, bye." She starts walking through the door to the Control Center, giving a thumbs up to her frowning brother, Colossus.

In the Control Center, she found Scott, Jean, Kitty, and others discussing the next exercise.

"Excuse me…" She says to Kitty that was in front of the panel.

"??" Kitty allows herself to be pushed away with confusion on her face.

Pressing some buttons, Illyana appears to be looking for something before frowning "You didn't activate it?"

"What?" Kitty asks

Illyana ignores Kitty and goes back to the Enemy Selection and starts typing something… She pauses for an instant, like she is trying to remember something, then continues.

When she finishes typing the code, the screen changes, and at the end of the list of enemies, a new name appears… Eidolon.

"What sort of game bullshit is this? We have Eidolon as a playable character now?" Kitty asks with mirth in her voice

"He thought that it would be funny to make it this way." Illyana rolls her eyes "I thought he told you…"

"No… Ah, I remember him leaving in a hurry last time because of a bridge falling or something like that." Kitty remembers that Eidolon was improving the Danger Room together with Dr. McCoy.

Illyana clicks on Eidolon's name and another page of options appears.

"Eidolon… Eidolon(CQC)... Eidolon(Heavy Sword)... A lot of options, even with his famous weapons… I can even make him hold back or compete in sports…" Illyana goes through the many options. She can customize his fight style and even choose some battle forms "Civilian Identity(No Powers)?" She frowns when she sees this option

"Why did he put this option?" Kitty asks, looking over her shoulder.

A lot of people also come to look. "Maybe to train from the foundations… Without relying on our powers." Rogue tries to guess.

Illyana on her part looks at the option for a good time before smirking "Heh." *Click* And selecting it.

"Illyana…" Everyone looks at her strangely "Are you trying to bully Eidolon's hologram?" Jean asks her slowly

"Yes." She confirms shamelessly, already walking to the arena. "Gonna wipe the floor with his face." She shows a big and sadistic smile on her face. She likes the guy, but she will not pass the opportunity.

"..." Everyone turns to look at Colossus who can only facepalm.

When Illyana steps into the arena, a voice says "Simulation starting: Versus Eidolon… Civilian Identity, No Powers."

The arena itself doesn't change, she didn't choose a place for the fight, but a figure slowly starts appearing in front of her, feet first.

This made everyone's eyes widen… What appeared were a pair of shoes and then pants, as the the hologram slowly formed it became clear that is not using the usual hero attire, it was really using civilian clothes.

When the torso is formed no one dares to blink. The hologram appears to be wearing formal clothes… A long-sleeved black shirt and a black waistcoat, tie and he's even using black gloves.

The only thing lacking is the jacket to be wearing a complete suit…

But when it finally forms its chest everyone collectively rolls their eyes.

"Obviously…" Jean comments.

"I should have expected that.."

"I was kinda expecting for him to still be wearing a mask even in his civilian clothes." Kitty comments

"He must sleep with that thing." Spyke jokes

Something obscures the upper part of its torso and head. Eidolon's features are completely hidden like a constant shadow is looming over him… If one pays attention, one would notice that there's not an inch of his skin exposed. He is even wearing gloves after all.

"Hmpf! Whatever…" Illyana rolled her shoulders, she was also curious but she didn't care that much. She is ready to destroy this Eidolon.

"Start!"

She dashes at the weak Eidolon mercilessly, a huge swing of her sword ready to destroy this hologram so that she can change to another and train seriously… This is just for some fun…

Unfortunately, things will not go her way…

Civilian Eidolon doesn't try to dodge or block, he steps forward at a reasonable speed, nothing too fast and Illyana can easily keep track of his movements.

When she is close enough, she attacks with a horizontal slash, but Civilian Eidolon surprises her by giving another big step forward, and then in a great show of flexibility he throws his torso backward to avoid the slash…

But at the same time, he strikes… A half punch with his left arm, his knuckles hitting her elbow on the nerve, instantly making her arm numb. She even drops her sword.

*Tak* Then a quick jab on her throat with his right arm, but he doesn't let go of her neck… The jab opens and in the next second, he is grabbing her small neck between her fingers.

And it is not over! With the leverage, he pushes her to him spinning, at the same time he moves around her, and ends up behind her…

It happened so fast… No, it was not fast. But for some reason, Illyana had no chance to do anything. It's like only he can move. His timing… His tempo… She was overwhelmed.

In one moment she is attacking and in the other, he is giving her a chokehold.

"Gah!" She tries to grasp for air but his surprisingly strong arms hold her still…

When she finally thought about using her powers to do something a siren sound echoes.

"Defeat!"

"What?" She looks around shocked after she was released… Looking back she can see the hard-light hologram disappearing.

A screen appeared and on it, she saw "Death by broken neck" and a drawing of a stick figure having its neck broken.

So that is what happened… It is a training so he obviously would not go that far, but she didn't escape fast enough.

She thought that she was resisting not being suffocated, unaware that he would be able to kill her that easily.

"Son of a bitch…" She curses while rubbing her neck.

In the Control Room, the reactions are similar.

"Damn…"

"Did you guys see that?"

"It was nothing impressive- I mean, he didn't do anything super but he folded her like a chair."

"The guy can stand on business even without powers…"

The only one not surprised is Rogue, because she had a taste of that.

"Again!" Illyana shouts angrily from the arena. She can't let this slide… She underestimated him, it will not happen again.

Kitty shrugs her shoulders and hits the button.

Once again, Civilian Eidolon appears, emoting by tightening his gloves.

"Start!"

Once again, Illyana makes the first move but she is much more cautious now, keeping her eyes open and her mind on the next move already.

Her pride urges her to again use a horizontal slash, but she keeps herself at a bigger distance from him, her Soulsword emitting a wave of energy in the Civilian Eidolon's direction.

He can't close in now… it is that what she thinks.

The wave of magic energy is big and large enough to not allow a space to dodge, but it also blocks her vision from him.

In another great show of flexibility and body control, Civilian Eidolon advanced instead of retreating… He went forward, leaning till his face almost scratched on the ground but he was able to balance himself and have enough leverage with his legs split apart to still dart at Illyana.

"!!" When Illyana reacts, Civilian Eidolon is already on her. She tries to stab him with her sword, but he slaps her hand away to divert the attack and…

"Defeat!"

A screen appears showing a stick figure stabbing the other in the eyes.

Illyana was defeated again in less than 10 seconds. Not that would be any different, a long battle would be disadvantageous to Civilian Eidolon and the AI knows that. So he ended it fast because her durability was not that big.

"Again!" She shouts.

And she lost 6 more times…

All ending fast… Anyone watching could see that the Civilian Eidolon acted very normal, casual even… But that only makes things more surprising. It's like he is giving simple answers to a complicated question, and only when he does it people understand.

It was an eye-opening experience.

But finally, in the 9th bout, Illyana finally won.

"Aaargh!" With a battle cry, she shakes off his pursuit, attacks the ground to destabilize him, and teleports in the air already attacking downward…. Her wave of magic energy hit almost the whole arena.

She basically won by abusing her high specs. Hector would call her a "sweaty".

"Victory!"

"Congratulations… Phase two can start… Please Select the upgrade…"

"What?" The not-so-happy for winning Illyana gets annoyed hearing that.

On the Control Center, the screen changes and Kitty opens her mouth "Oh~ I can give Civilian Eidolon weapons… normal weapons… It even has an option to allow him to use… Martial Arts? Was he not using it already?" Her eyes widen and she almost absentmindedly clicks on an option.

"Special Agent Mode selected… Be ready…"

"Start!"

Once again, Civilian Eidolon appears but this time he has a suitcase at his feet.

When the battle begins, he quickly steps on the suitcase and it opens with a loud sound, a handgun being ejected from it, one that Civilian Eidolon quickly grabs and instantly shoots at Illyana.

*Bang* *Bang*

She was not caught off-guard even though he acted fast, she used her sword to hit the bullet, melting it with the magic power.

"Defeat!"

It's what she thought…

"What??" She shouts angrily "How did I lose???"

A replay screen appears and in slow motion shows what happened, and with a close-up too, it shows that Civilian Eidolon shot the second bullet exactly on the trajectory of the first.

Illyana's sword hit one, but the time was off to hit the other that reached her forehead without obstruction.

"..." She can only stare at the replay with wide eyes. Then she finally grits her teeth and shouts "Again!"

She planned to train for just 30 minutes or so but ended up being an afternoon-long session.

She eventually wins, after many tries, of course… It was not easy though, she tried to take advantage of knowing their moves but she was surprised at many moments.

For example, against Special Agent Normal Eidolon, she dashes to attack before he gets his gun… Only to have the suitcase kicked at her stomach and still receive two shots between her eyebrows.

She fought Geared Normal Eidolon too… He used some ninja-like tactics like smokescreens and other things. It was the most annoying one to her.

She doesn't know, but that was the more Batman-like version of him.

She finally is on the final boss of Normal Civilian Eidolon… The one that can use Martial Arts freely.

"Okay, that is not normal Martial Arts…" Jubilee says while looking down at the fight.

Normal Eidolon is dashing around so fast that he is disappearing from sight, this type of speed is not normal. His jumps are super high too… He is able to go from the ground to the ceiling in a single leap, and from one wall to another in a similar fashion, bouncing around freely.

At some point, Illyana sent him a flying slash while he was in the air and he literally stepped in the air to change directions…

"That is bullshit!!!" Husk shouts while pointing her finger "My ass if this is a 'normal' guy."

"He is stronger than most enhanced…" Angel says

"Look! He also sent a flying slash with his leg!! Bullshit I am telling you!!" Spyke shouts too.

"She is lucky that she didn't let him grab the sword this time…"

"It's her best try till now."

Everyone is very immersed in the fight, but they are definitely surprised that something that claimed to be "Normal" can do all that.

"I think is possible…" Rogue defends him, her eyes glued to the fight. "I think he is using Inner Energy, or whatever…"

"So you are saying that THAT is normal?" Husk points at Eidolon creating afterimages of himself for a feint.

"Well… its not easy…" Rogue shrugs

"I think what she is trying to say… And what Eidolon is saying by normal…" Jean talks "It's that everyone can do those things that he is doing… With the right training. So he really doesn't have any powers… Only a normal body and his training."

"....." They look at her to absorb her words.

"Bullshit." Someone finally says, seeing he sending those invisible bullets with his fingers that killed Illyana some tries ago.

This time she was prepared, and instead of trying to follow it with her eyes, she only looked at his finger and the possible trajectory.

She successfully dodged it this time.

Jumping away at the same time, she opens a portal behind him, from where she appears already attacking. At this point, she knows that she can't give him even a second to react.

Her decision-making and reflexes are some of the aspects that this training session really improved.

*Woon*

Her sword stabs him in the back.

"Victory!"

"YEEAAH! Fucking Finally!!!" Illyana allows herself to fall to the ground, her limbs spread in all directions while she recovers her breath. Her brow is full of sweat.

"Illyana…" Colossus voices reaches her in a warning tone.

"Okay… Sorry…" She raises a hand weakly, she doesn't have the strength not even to argue.

Suddenly the robotic voice of the room speaks again "Replaying Message…"

"?" Illyana sits up in surprise while seeing another holographic avatar of Civilian Eidolon appearing in front of her.

But this time, on its shadowy feature, his eyes appear clear as day.

"Congratulations on finishing the first step of your Training Course Illyana, did you have fun trying to bully a powerless version of me?" He speaks, even without a mouth, it is possible to see the amusement in his tone and in his eyes.

"..." What Illyana can say?

"No need to answer… This is a recorded message, by the way." 

"..." This only makes matters worse… He predicted that she would try fighting his normal self…

"Yes, I knew that you would try doing that… But is okay, that is why I went through all the trouble to program a variety of versions for you. And yes, this is me without any powers or boosts… But don't feel discouraged. If you know how to use your body, you can replicate abilities that are no different from superpowers. I'm pretty strong even as a normal human, no need to feel ashamed for having a hard time. Not to blow my own horn, but if I say that I'm the best fighter of the universe, no one would dare to say that they are the first." He chuckles "I know every martial art known to man, and this fact is not limited to this universe. I also have extensive knowledge about biology, so I know where to hit to make hurt…"

"..." That she knows… More or less 60% of her losses are because he hit some weird place in her body, making it short-circuit or numb. She becomes an easy target after that.

"But you also should know that this version of me is still weak and limited… There's no way that an AI can be as good as me. Fighting in an open field is also very unlikely to happen normally. Sorry, but I'm still stronger than you even without any meta powers or enhancements. And I didn't program a version of me with magic too."

"..." It's a punch on the ego after the other.

At this point, the X-Men think that Eidolon is a very hardcore and heartless teacher who puts his students down to teach them.

But ignoring whatever feeling Illyana is having right now, the message continues.

"The lesson here… What I wanted to show to you, Illyana. It's the human potential. Your potential." He points at her, a little off, but still at her. "Everything I did, you can do too. And others too…I don't wanna see you underestimating normal humans without powers, and I also don't wanna see you neglecting your human side."

"..."

"Having powers is nice and all… It makes you special, but being human is a gift too. It's okay if you don't understand now… Don't forget, we are meta-humans… Meta and Humans."

And with that the hologram disappears, leaving a silent Illyana sitting down there.

It went exactly like how he had planned. Illyana who started this afternoon looking down on someone "normal" was humbled and amazed by what a normal human can do.

Teaching both humility and at the same time igniting some passion on her.

"*Huff*" Illyana allows herself to fall on the ground again "Next time I will ask him to teach me how to hit pressure points…" She says tiredly, but with a small smile on her young face.

.....

Hector P.O.V.

"Hmm~ I'm not any specialist, buuuut… I think you should sit there instead of my lap." I point to the big chair beside my reclining one. 

"Shush~ You are right, you're not any specialist. I am. This is how it is done nowadays." Harley lies through her teeth while she straddles me.

Right now we are in her new office, ready for another therapy session…

I kinda committed genocide, so I guess I need to talk a little about it… Small problems from the job, you know?

"If this is how therapy is done, I guess it will become increasingly popular among the male demographic." I give up trying to make sense of this crazy girl, and only put my hands on her hips and enjoy her soft body pressing against mine.

"You wish." She scoffs "I think not even the lure of a hot babe can make men go to therapy. You all just 'I'm good' and roll with it." She says with a roll of her eyes.

What can I say? "It is what it is…" I shrug my shoulders at her.

" 'It is what it is…' The Male Motto." She repeats my words in a mocking voice and face.

"Let's be real right now, society makes us this way, you can't complain now… And I'm not gonna delve into this topic." This can become a very long discussion about male problems, but that is not what I'm gonna talk about.

"Fine… You want to vent about that Genocide thing, right? Go on." She lies down on me, putting her head on my shoulder.

"It's not venting, just speaking a fact and expecting a second opinion. Third... I already talked with Cortana." I say "And don't banalize genocide, please. That's how nihilism starts…"

"Meh, how many people did you kill anyway?"

"1.239.471.693 Spineless Ones." I answer, making her give me a side glance.

"A very specific number… You could have said 'more than a billion'. And you corrected me by calling them 'people', huh? Is saying Spineless Ones easier for you?" She went Dr. Harleen Quinzel mode.

"It's what they are." I answer simply

"Hmm." I can almost see her taking notes on her mind "I think you already made up your mind… maybe you are searching for validation in some way, my panacotta. I have no problem in giving you that… But first… What really bothers you?"

"..."

"You didn't do it on a whim, right?"

"No… There's no talking with them… I saw… They are too different." I shake my head "Their mind doesn't see us as equal. A huge inferiority and superiority complex chains their thoughts… They are lethargic, don't have feelings on their own… Only from the TV, like drug addicts living through small bursts of dopamine… truth be told, that race should have failed and disappeared long ago. But some exceptional ones prevented that. And to tell another truth… Even the only TWO exceptional ones despise the rest."

"I see, I see…"

"I did what I did because I knew they would never stop. They are hooked on what Mojo gave to them, without him they would slowly and painfully disappear or another one would appear to continue the legacy of Mojo. Not even one had more empathy for a human than the empathy that a small girl would have for a cute plushie."

"I see… So you think your actions are justified…"

"Yes." I nod

"Again… What is bothering you, my love?" She asks while caressing my hair

"..." I give her a look "Maybe the fact that I am not bothered by it." I admit "From one side, I think is good, but I can't help but second guess myself and ask for your opinion… You guys are my anchor to reality in case I start going crazy." Even though many of them are enablers. Not that I can say anything.

"So it's an inner issue…" She nods to herself "Did you ever think that maybe you are not afraid of being unfeeling… Maybe you are afraid of feeling it later, down the line?"

"..."

"I already noticed that you are a very cold person… On the outside. Maybe you think that you are coping for now and at some point, you will be hit by the consequences of your actions. Probably overthinking that you will have a mental breakdown or something… Or that this Genocide planted a seed that will bloom someday into something really bad. Maybe the start of you spiraling into madness, or corruption…"

"..." That… That makes a lot of sense "Maybe…" I confess

"You know more than me, and I know that you hate having weakness. Maybe you are also afraid that this even created a crack in your psyche that can be explored at a later date." She continues.

"..." Damn… When she says those things it looks obvious

"What I think is… You really don't feel much about those Spineless Ones and will not feel in the future. You know a lot of people, Hector. You are aware of the sheer proportion of EVERYTHING! The Multiverse and all that… It's impossible for you to care about all. It's okay to have this different perspective from everyone else because you view things differently from everyone else. You are too far from the curve, stop trying to use normal people as references… A little at least." She taps my chest "You are a methodical guy with a will of adamantium. It's a good thing that you second-guess yourself, after all, everyone is prone to make mistakes. This also confirms that you are not arrogant… And arrogance is one of the first signals of creating a god complex like you fear."

"Makes sense, but is strange you know… I change too fast." I sigh "Sometimes I'm a calm and kind guy who is very merciful, some days later I'm feeling much less forgiving. And I'm not talking about mood swings, it's almost bipolarity."

I still think that this is maybe a collateral effect of my Assimilations. It's small, but is still there… Those moral swings.

"Maybe you should accept that periodically changing is inevitable. Everyone changes." Harley says 

"But is too fast in my case… Almost unnatural." I argue

"Maybe it's on your nature to be inconsistent…" She drops another bomb "Heck, humans are inconsistent and you are the most human of us all. You think you have a lot of masks that you put in different situations, but maybe you have a lot of faces. All of them real… You are not a fake. Just human… Too human."

"..." Dang… That's deep.

"..." She stares at me with a raised eyebrow, challenging me to say that she is wrong.

What can I say beyond…? 

"Did I ever tell you that you are pretty good at this therapy thing?" I give her a cheeky smile.

"Say it again." She laughs and gives me a tight hug "The session is over, time to the payment…" Her hands start going down on my torso, reaching my belt "From ya, I only accept Credick Card~" And Harley Quinn is back.

.....

A.N.:Hello there. 

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