Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The room was already beginning to smell unpleasant. And so did Benjamin. Isolated for the third day in a row, his room had become a sauna of unease: windows and curtains closed, leftover food scattered on the floor, and a mess that would make any Xylitecnian jealous. The great hero, Ben Tennyson was but a shadow of what he once was.

On the other side of the locked door, a woman's voice is heard:

"Ben, dear, I brought you your dinner," said his mother.

It's already night, thought Ben.

"Open the door, son. Your father and I are worried about you."

Ben remained silent.

Sitting on the bed, covered by a comforter, the only light in the room was the television that was on twenty-four hours a day.

"Ben, it's been three days since you left this room."

You wouldn't understand. He thought. None of you would understand!

A double knuckle strike is heard on the door, accompanied by a male voice:

"Benjamin, it's me, your father. Open that door."

In a weak voice due to little use, Ben says:

"Go away..."

"Let's talk, Benjamin," says his father. "We've tried talking to your grandfather, but he can't explain what happened."

Ben looked at the watch on his left wrist and felt a slight tremor in his hands.

"Go away!"

"Ben, we are only worried about you, my son."

"Leave me alone!" There was an edge, typical of trapped crying, in Ben's voice. "Just leave me alone..."

The boy couldn't see, but he knew that his mother would have bowed her head, looking at the plate of food in hand, and his father would have hugged her and rested his chin on top of his wife's head. It was the way they both showed concern and a sense of helplessness to anyone who could see.

"I'll leave your food out here," she said.

"And when you're ready to talk," her father continued, "just know that we're here."

No thought of gratitude crossed Ben's mind. There was no way. There was no room in a mind wracked with fear and panic. The young man again looked at the epicenter of his suffering stuck in his wrist. A memory resonated again in the whirlpool of his mind: "The Omnitrix is the most powerful weapon in the universe."

And like every weapon, it serves only to wound...

A vibration over the mattress and a spotlight appeared from the cell phone screen warning the arrival of a new message. It was Gwen, his cousin. One more message piling up among the 78 unread ones. 79 now. 80. 81. Gwen and her habit of dividing her speech into several smaller messages. 82.

And then there was the explosion.

Chapter Text

Let's go back to seven days before the explosion.

The Bellwood power station was closed. All the station's employees were in the comfort of their homes, under the warmth of a sleep that only dawn could provide. Those present at the station at this moment opted for a sneak invasion and tried their best not to make any noise so not to attract the attention of the authorities.

Kevin's car was parked outside, waiting for Ben, Gwen, and its owner to investigate the report that a creature had been seen in the surroundings of the station.

The creature, on the other hand, chose to arrive in flight.

The silence was completely broken when Kevin was thrown and crashed into the west wall of the station. With the impact, a thunderous sound echoed through the area and a hole opened in the concrete wall. He was lucky that his skin at this moment was composed of the purest iron, otherwise at least two of his ribs would have broken.

"Give up, Albedo, you won't be able to escape," said Ben. "In truth, your plans never worked out. You should have learned by now."

A red-eyed Vaxasaurian stared at the teenager. The moonlight made the almost ten-foot-tall creature form a huge shadow on the ground. Its bestial breath turned to smoke as it came into contact with the cold night air. The alien replied in his thick voice:

"I am a scientist, Tennyson, failures are part of scientific experimentation."

"Oh, yeah?" Kevin came out from under the debris and went through the hole in the wall with an angry look on his face "So wait a minute and I'll give you a bunch of data to analyze when I smash your face!"

Kevin jumped up with his arms raised over his head and, with clenched hands, aimed a blow at the top of Albedo's head. The creature, in turn, turned its body with impressive speed for its size and hit Kevin in the air with its tail. The teenager flew away again, this time in the direction of an electrical tower.

"Kevin!" shouted Gwen. The girl moved her hands and threw a bundle of mana around the young man's waist, then pulled the energy rope and avoided a serious accident by a matter of inches.

"Thanks, Gwen!" Kevin looked up at the tower, relieved, as he walked away from the construction.

"Be more careful! Even you can't take a shock like that, especially with that iron skin of yours."

"It wasn't my fault, okay?" his feet touched the ground.

From the other side of the station Ben's voice was heard:

"Gwen, is Kevin hurt!?"

"Not yet, Tennyson!" replied Kevin

"That's too bad!" Ben said ironically, without taking his eyes off the creature in front of him. "Okay, Albedo, where were we?"

The Vaxasaurian half-closes his eyes at the provocation.

Ben presses the Omnitrix core on his wrist and it coats himself with a green light.

Albedo seizes the opportunity that the transformation has afforded him to flee. With heavy steps, he heads towards one of the exits of the station. Each step made the ground tremble above him.

As soon as the greenish glow fades, no sign of Ben or any alien can be seen on the scene.

Suddenly, the Vaxasaurian feels an icy wind across his chest, radiating a chill down his spine. Slowly, a blue image began to materialize from his chest and then float in front of him.

"But you're leaving already?" said Big Chill in a voice that bordered on a whisper "It's still early, at least stay for a cup of coffee..."

The villain grits his teeth and contracts the muscles of his left arm to attack, but his arm doesn't move. He then realizes that a thick layer of ice has spread from his chest and expands all over his body, mainly limiting the movement of his limbs.

"That's my fault, I admit," Big Chill smiles.

Albedo ignored the alien and began to force movements against the ice. Little by little, cracks began to form, echoing shattering sounds. The Vaxasaurian emitted a grunt with each effort.

The necrofriggian flew around, circling the creature.

Finally Albedo manages to free his left arm, lifting fragments of ice and mist into the air. With one mighty punch he destroys the thick icy layer that trapped his feet, and then leaves in the direction of the exit.

Two steps. That was all he managed to do before he felt his left leg no longer rise from the ground, trapped under another iceberg stuck in the ground. With another punch, he shattered the trap on his left limb, but before he could take another step, he felt the irritating chill run through his other leg. He was trapped again. The creature's patience was reaching its limit.

"What is it, Albedo? Can't you get out?" Big Chill flew around the villain, shooting more and more jets of pure blizzard at the creature's body. "I can do this all night long."

"Really, Tennyson?" Albedo destroys part of the ice that covered his chest and grabs Big Chill in mid-air. "And if I kill you right now?"

"I want to see you try," Big Chill smiled and slowly began to disappear.

As the image of the necrofiggian faded, another one filled Albedo's field of vision: Kevin was approaching, jumping over mana platforms to reach the creature's height and then launched himself into the air with a right hook prepared especially for the villain.

The clash between the Vaxasaurian's jaw and the Osmosian's iron hand resulted in a loud metallic noise that spread throughout the place. With the impact, the huge creature became unbalanced and fell backwards, shattering what was left of the ice and collapsing to the ground, unconscious.

"Add this to your research now, you sucker!" Kevin turned his back on the creature and continued walking toward his companions.

Gwen approaches him running, while Ben descends to the ground and covers himself with his wings, forming a beautiful blue hood.

"Now what do we do with it?" asked Kevin.

"We should warn Azmuth," said Gwen. "Everything concerning the Omnitrix must be passed on to him."

"Or we could send it to the null void," proposed Kevin.

"That's not a bad idea," said Ben.

"And it would be faster too."

"Azmuth hates the idea that a copy of his creation is wandering around," said Gwen. "Maybe he can turn off Albedo's clock and-"

"I know, Gwen," said Ben

"And you don't mind that someone with your face is walking around committing crimes?"

"It bothers me a lot, yes," Ben said "It's unfair that a pretty little face like mine is with a psychopath like him; but, Gwen, look at the time... I'm soo sleep. Azmuth catches Albedo inside the null void later"

"The null void is infinite, Ben," she said.

"Really?" Ben looked at Kevin "You knew thi-"

"Ben, look out!"

Gwen summons a spherical shield around the three youngs. A frightening claw mark is drawn on the defense behind Ben. Slowly the scar begins to fade on the surface of the shield, making way for the wild sight of the creature.

The heroes have fooled themselves into thinking that the villain would remain unconscious for long. Not only has he awakened, but he has changed form. At first, they thought they were being attacked by an appoplexian like Rath, but there was something very different about this new alien.

The musculature was more defined, especially in the back, causing the alien's body to curve forward. His coat was longer and wilder, especially his face that resembled a mane so long and sparse. On the back of his hands, two attached claws protruded instead of one like Rath's.

And above all, not even in Rath's worst days could one see so much hate and bloodlust in the eyes of a creature like this one...

Albedo advanced against the shield again, drawing countless sequential slashes with each attack. Each blow made the defense shaken and its members fear for their lives.

The shield won't hold forever, thought Ben.

Ben flew up through the shield, trying to get the creature's attention. With one last attack from Albedo, the defense shattered and Kevin jumped toward Gwen to get her out of the alien's line of attack.

Big Chill fires an icy blast at the creature's back to get its attention. It slowly turns its body and stares at him with fury in its gaze. The necroffrigian throws himself through the air toward Albedo, and along the way, Big Chill becomes increasingly intangible until he disappears, seeking to take his opponent by surprise.

With a few inches to go, the creature moves its body quickly, as if sensing the approach of the attack, positioning itself with claws ready to strike.

It dodged!

Ben checked his own body to make sure it was invisible.

This alien's senses are absurd!

"What is wrong, Tennyson?" Said Albedo in a guttural voice like a roar. "Are you trying to understand how I managed to dodge his attack? It's easy!" He positioned a finger on the tip of its muzzle "I sensed a very strong smell of fear approaching me..."

Big Chill returned to his normal appearance. With his wings he hovered in the air.

"Have you looked in the mirror recently, Albedo? If you did, you would surely feel the 'smell' spreading around you immediately. That is, if the mirror remained whole long enough for you to appreciate your beautiful image." Big Chill crossed his arms "If you want, I can give you the phone number of my hairdresser, he can't work miracles, that's a fact."

"Don't you ever shut up?" said the creature.

"I tried it once, I didn't like it very much."

Big Chill sees Gwen and Kevin stealthily approaching the alien. Around the girl's hands, balls of energy grew and became increasingly dense, ready to be thrown. Kevin, in turn, twisted his hands into two heavy balls of iron spikes and ran towards the creature.

"But tell me," said Big Chill, "what kind of alien are you transformed into?"

"Don't you recognize it?" Albedo gives a wicked smile with teeth. "Try to guess. Meanwhile I'll finish off your annoying friends."

Without turning his body around, the creature takes one of his arms behind his back and trims Kevin's iron ball. It jams its claws into the sphere, so that the osmosian cannot escape, and then spins its body around. Two turns on his own axis and then Albedo launches Kevin toward Gwen. Gwen's two energy balls dissipate in the air the moment she is hit by her colleague's body. Both are then thrown and fall unconscious to the ground.

"Gwen! Kevin!" Ben couldn't believe his eyes.

Big Chill inflated what would have been his lungs and launched a huge glacial blast towards the villain. The creature brought its arms in front of its face and, ignoring the ice forming on its body, advanced at a slow pace toward Ben.

The necroffrigian fired relentlessly. At some points the villain even stopped for a moment, but then it started walking towards Ben again. He then saw from within the blizzard a gigantic paw protrude and grab his head.

There was no time to escape.

Albedo slammed the body of Big Chill three times on the ground. Dust and debris rose into the air with each impact. A small crater formed in the ground with each hit. It was a merciless wrath.

The creature lifted the half-decayed body of Big Chill. Holding it by the head like a trophy, it said:

"Ben Tennyson, you pathetic human..."

The boy didn't respond.

"You have no idea how long I have waited for this moment..."

Ben tried to maintain a minimum of consciousness in order not to faint completely. His body ached and throbbed.

Albedo brought his other paw up to the center of the thorax and clawed his claws around the Omnitrix symbol. The appendages of the back of his hand scratched the necroffrigian's throat.

"I can't stand your arrogance! I just hate it! For I know that if it weren't for the Omnitrix, you would be just another insignificant and disgusting being who contaminates this disgusting little planet..."

He moves his claws even deeper into the symbol, causing little green electric beams to radiate from inside the device. If for those looking from the outside it felt that these beams indicated danger, for Ben it meant pain. With the omnitrix intimately bound to all his molecules, each escaping electrical pulse was marked by a stabbing pain coursing through his body.

"Maybe if I pull it out of you..." The creature's face deformed into a demonic expression of rage and sadism. "If I destroy the omnitrix still trapped within you, perhaps I can get the level of suffering I dream of causing you!"

The greenish light of the Omnitrix flashed, with more and more electrical beams escaping from its fissures. Big Chill screamed, but his voice was muffled by the paw that held his head. Mist from the necroffrigian's screams could be seen escaping through the creature's fingers.

Suddenly Albedo stopped.

The creature let go of the symbol and stared at its hand. It trembled. As if discarding a small paper ball, Albedo threw Big Chill aside and turned his attention back to himself.

The necroffrigian hit the ground and undid the transformation. Ben rolled a few more feets before he stopped with his face on the ground. He was disoriented; but mostly he felt very painful. His body was vibrating and throbbing.

Gwen was the first to wake up and ran towards Ben.

"Ben, are you ok?"

"Ouch..." He tried to get up, but felt his arms weakened. "I've been worse. How are you? Where's Kevin?"

"He's okay. He grumbled a little when I tried to wake him up, but he's alive."

"Everybody!" shouted Kevin.

The two cousins looked up to find their friend. However, the figure of the creature with clear signs of distress caught their attention. It stood with both paws on its head and staring at the ground. It seemed to seek sanity. Only a guttural groan could be heard from the creature. Suddenly it raised its head and began to look quickly at its surroundings.

Kevin's voice echoed again, this time he was running towards his cousins:

"What are you guys doing standing there, it's going to get away!"

Said and done. The creature jumped and launched itself into the air, drawing a parabola in the sky. It was not possible to see where it landed, but from the trajectory, it was at least hundreds of feets away from the station.

"Gwen, Kevin, go to the car. I'll fly after him."

"Are you sure, Tennyson?" said Kevin "You don't look so good..."

"I am" he said seriously, trying to ignore his own pain. "He's too dangerous for us to let go."

"It's up to you, come on Gwen."

The girl hesitated for a moment before going to the car. The two of them went urgently towards the nearest exit to where the car was parked.

Ben, in turn, was preparing himself for the transformation. Before activating the omnitrix, he noticed that Albedo's claw marks were still on the surface of the disk, with small sparks coming out of them.

"You look great too, Omnitrix," he said wryly as he touched the watch's disk.

A hologram projected itself onto the device. Turning the disk, he went from one creature to another, thinking about which one to choose:

"Swampfire, Chromastone, Brainstorm, Jet-Ray. Yes, let's go with Jet-Ray!" And he pressed the disk.

A green light coats Ben, initiating the transformation.

The omnitrix sinks into the surface of Ben's skin like a parasite invading a body, tearing tissue and forcing the skin to regenerate itself over the watch structure.

Something was wrong.

From the point where the watch once stood, Ben felt as if something was running under his skin, bringing with it a stabbing pain that traveled up his arm until it reached his sternum. A bulge appeared in the center of his chest and tore through his skin to make room for the symbol of the omnitrix.

The young man almost fainted at the image he had just witnessed.

An excruciating pain coursed through his spine, bringing with it the sensation that his vertebrae were deforming and multiplying. A skinless tail began to project from his tailbone to the ground.

Ben screamed in agony.

His face began to pull, as if the muscles in his face were walking and shifting position. He felt the cartilage in his nose soften and pull on the skin until it disappeared into his face. The young man then found himself in further despair: he was no longer able to breathe. In intense distress, Ben tried to draw in air, but his airways were altering their anatomy and causing him to suffocate. Abruptly he felt the skin between one of his ribs tear and a searing pain pierce his soul. One by one, the spaces between his ribs began to break up and give way to black gelgas.

Tears streamed down his deformed face.

A cruel and distressing feeling radiated from his hands that caught his attention. The young man watched his fingers change their shape, fusing their carpal bones together and forming a three-fingered structure.

He roared and screamed in agony as each deformity, fracture and fusions penetrated his bones, muscles and organs. He cried out for help, but saw nothing and no one coming to him for support.

With his distorted hand, he struck the symbol on his chest, interrupting the transformation. The process began to reverse itself, bringing with it all the excruciating pain, suffering, and sensation of the cruelest torture, until it returned to its human body.

And then the green glow goes out.

Ben, standing up, sees Gwen and Kevin running towards him. There is panic in their gazes. His vision was beginning to blur.

H-help...

Chapter Text

Kevin was driving at high speed.

"So, anything new?"

"Nothing..." replied Gwen. The young woman on her knees on the back seat remained in magical concentration. Beams of mantra flowed from her hands and circled Ben's unconscious body, searching for what had affected her cousin. "Did you talk to Grandpa Max?"

"Yes."

"And?"

"And he said he has no idea what happened."

Without slowing down, Kevin makes a sharp left turn, causing Gwen to hit her head on the glass and lose concentration.

"Ouch, Kevin!"

"Sorry..."

"We can't help Ben if we die! Will you please drive properly?"

"You're the one who told me to run."

The car makes another turn, this time to the right, and it was Ben's turn to hit his head on the window.

"Ouch!"

"Ben, you're awake!" said the girl.

"Who said you have to be an expert in magic to wake someone up, huh?" Kevin smiled with irony.

Gwen offered a disapproving look in the rearview mirror and slapped the young driver on the head.

"Easy there, you nervous girl." said Kevin.

"What are you guys arguing about?" Ben still looked a little dizzy.

"Sorry, Ben," she said. "How are you feeling?

"My head hurts, but I think it's from hitting the glass." His hand stroked the sore spot on his head. "What happened?

"You blacked out, Tennyson," said Kevin.

"What do you mean I blacked out?" He began to get restless on the bench. "Did you manage to catch Albedo?"

"No..." replied Gwen.

"But why? Guys, we have to go after him!"

"And we will, calm down!" Gwen put her hand on her cousin's shoulder, "But you need help, so let's take you to Grandpa Max first."

"What? No guys, I'm cool, look!" Ben touched his own body showing that there was no injury "See! Let's go back, our objective is Albedo!"

"Our objective is also to take care of each other, Ben!"

"Then I'll go alone."

Ben touches the Omnitrix disk, which activates with the Jet-Ray hologram already evident. However, as he tries to press the core of the watch, his hand hits a pink, extremely resistant bubble that coated the watch and his hand.

"What!?"

"Ben, give it up, we're taking you to Grandpa!" said the girl.

"Gwen, let go of my hand!"

"Hey there, kid!" said Kevin "I agree with you that we have to go after Albedo and beat the crap out of him, but seriously, you're messed up, so just stay cool and we'll take you to your grandpa's whether you like it or not!"

"What do you mean, messed up?"

Gwen and Kevin looked at each other in the rearview mirror. It was left to her to explain:

"Ben, when we were walking back to the car, we heard you scream. Right then, we ran back..."

"Screaming?"

"We saw you covered by the green glow of the watch, you were supposed to be transforming, but... You were howling in pain..."

Ben put his head down and tried to remember something.

"It lasted only a few seconds, but it was enough for us to hear several of your voices at once, screaming and crying and begging for help from within the green light..."

"It was scary," said Kevin.

"When the green light was gone, you were standing up, your face was wet with tears, and then you collapsed."

"I-I..."

"You were out for about twenty minutes, Tennyson."

"What?"

"That's why we called Grandpa Max," said Gwen. "He said to drop you off with him and to go after Albedo. Maybe he did something with the watch and we don't know about it."

Ben was silent. He couldn't remember any of this. He felt tired, but it was 1:30 AM now, who wouldn't be tired? He thought. He looked at the landscape outside the car and saw his own reflection in the window. What happened there?

"Okay, I'll stay with Grandpa Max," he finally said.

"I'm glad you accepted," said Kevin, "because we have just arrived."

The car brakes sharply, just a few inches away from hitting the bumper of the trailer parked in front of Ben's house.

"Kevin!" say the cousins.

The trailer door opens and from inside emerges the figure of Max Tennyson with a cybernetic goggle resting on top of his head and advanced technology gloves on each hand.

"Hi, kids," said Grandpa Max with his characteristic smile.

"There you go, Mr. Tennyson, it's delivered." said Kevin, unlocking the car doors.

Gwen changed seats and moved to the front seat, while Ben went towards his grandfather.

"I almost forgot," said Gwen. She snapped her fingers, undoing the bubble around Ben's hand "Keep an eye on him, Grandpa!"

"Don't worry, Gwen," he waved goodbye. "Any news, let me know, and be careful!"

Kevin's car screeched as it left and continued down the street into the night. Ben got into the trailer right behind his grandfather.

"Grandpa, I..."

"Relax, Ben, Kevin already told me everything."

"And can you explain what happened?"

"No."

Ben stared sadly at the watch on his wrist.

"But I have a guess," concluded Max, who walked towards a panel full of buttons that appeared underneath the microwave oven.

"The Rust-Bucket never ceases to amaze me" Ben smiled.

Max pressed two buttons and the dining table sank to the floor making room for a circular pilaster with five metal spikes. The structure resembled a half-closed hand with its fingers pointing upwards.

"Come on, Ben, put your hand here in the middle."

"Grandpa... are you sure this is safe?"

"Yes, I'm sure. This will create a ghurtyl isolation field, preventing any of the Omnitrix's defense systems from hurting us."

"Like self-destruct?"

"Like that. Now, come on, put your hand in there."

As Ben leaned the watch over the pillar, a new blue bubble coated, not only his hand, but part of his forearm as well.

I've had enough of these bubbles, Ben thought.

Grandpa Max put on his glasses and pressed the activation buttons on the sides of his gloves. His appearance resembled that of a mad scientist. He reached inside the isolation area and cautiously investigated the surface of the Omnitrix.

"Ben, what happened to the watch? It has cracks in the surface of the disk."

"Albedo tried to rip the disc out of the Big Chill's chest. No, I mean, he tried to smash the disk actually..."

Ben strained his eyes to try to see inside the luminous bubble.

"Actually, Grandpa Max, the holes he made in the Omnitrix looked bigger before."

"Maybe the clock is trying to fix itself," Max removes his hands from inside the bubble and moves towards the panel. "Maybe if I scan it I can find out if there is any internal damage."

Max pressed a button on the panel and both watched from the roof of the trailer as a semicircular device descended and positioned itself over the ghurtyl field.

"I'm going to start scanning," Max said as he pressed a button on the confirmation screen.

A horizontal beam of light started a path from one side of the bubble to the other. As soon as the first wavelength of the scanner touched the surface of the Omnitrix, the clock changed color. It turned orange and a high-pitched sound was heard from inside the device like an alarm. A spherical electromagnetic pulse coated the clock and expanded inside the van to cover the entire residential neighborhood, immediately shutting down all electrical devices in the area.

Ben and his grandfather stood paralyzed in the darkness inside the Rust Bucket.

"Grandpa?"

"I'm here, Ben."

"What happened?"

"Probably some defense mechanism of the watch."

"But wasn't the ghurti-whatever field supposed to contain exactly that?"

"It did," Max opened one of the trailer windows. "The light only went out in the neighborhood, not in the country."

Ben's eyes widened.

"What do we do now?"

"You'd better get some rest, Ben. I'll try to get the power back on somehow."

One of the electric aliens would be of great help now, Ben thought.

However, the Omnitrix was running the typical red light that signaled "I'm recharging, so forget about being a hero for now."

"Are you sure you don't want help?"

"Don't worry, you can go and rest, I think that by sunrise everything will be sorted out," Max was pacing back and forth in the trailer, looking for equipment and tools. "I will contact Azmuth again as well."

"Have you spoken to him?"

"I tried, but I couldn't get him to answer me. Now go to sleep."

Ben left the trailer and the only light in the area was the crescent moon that reigned in the sky. Before opening the door to the house, he looked over his shoulder at his grandfather's trailer and thought about going back to help him, but realized that his hand on the lock was shaking.

Fainting is not the same thing as sleeping. I need to rest...

And he went inside.

Chapter Text

"Ready, Gwen?" asked Kevin.

"Not yet."

Gwen and Kevin returned to the area around the Bellwood Power Station. More specifically, the place where Albedo landed after jumping into his apopplexian form. In the center of the crater that had formed, Gwen was using her magical knowledge to look for traces of the villain. Kevin was leaning impatiently against his car.

"What now?"

"Not yet."

"Come on, Gwen, how much longer is this going to take?"

"If you let me work, maybe I can finish it sooner."

Kevin looked at the surrounding landscape. At one end of the road was the power station with its electricity towers clustered behind a large wall. At the other, you could see the entrance to the commercial part of the city, with its buildings and billboards. In the middle of all this path, the temperate climate forest that fills much of the unoccupied land of Bellwood. In the sky, the same crescent moon as before.

"I did it!" Said Gwen.

"Finally! I couldn't wait any longer."

Between Gwen's hands, three pink orbs orbited each other. The orbs moved away from each other and around Gwen they descended until they touched the ground where the crater was. Gwen stepped back from inside the hole. A set of four footprints resembling that of a giant feline lit up in the center of the spot.

"Now what?" Asked Kevin.

"We wait."

"We already know that he fell there," he said pointing.

"Kevin, please, just be quiet and wait!"

"Okay! Okay..."

A trail of lighted footprints began to emerge from inside the crater, heading towards the road.

"Into the car, come on!" said Gwen.

"Now you're talking my language."

The trail of feline footprints reached the road and continued towards the city. Kevin was driving along behind the lit up path.

After a few minutes of driving, Kevin said:

"I liked the GPS. Not only does it literally draw the path we have to follow, but there is no annoying voice telling us to go there and there. What did you do?"

"It's a different tracking spell," Gwen replied. "Anywhere Albedo has stepped or touched, the spell will reveal itself."

"I must say, it's quite useful."

"And cute too" she smiled proudly.

The car continued just behind the trail that was lighting up, as if they were following an invisible creature with dirty paws of phosphorescent paint.

After about five minutes on the road, the silence inside the car was becoming uncomfortable. Gwen sometimes looked at the landscape through the passenger window, sometimes at the trail. Kevin kept his eyes on the road, not even looking out the rearview mirrors.

"What are we going to do if we find him?" The young osmosian broke the silence.

"I don't know."

"Last time-"

"I know," Gwen interrupted.

"Last time," Kevin insisted, "he finished us off."

"I know, Kevin."

More silence...

"Are you afraid?" She asked.

"I don't know."

"What do you mean you don't know?"

"I'm not sure about that."

"Whether you are afraid or not?"

"I'm wondering whether I should look strong around you to try to impress you, or whether I should confess that I'm absurdly terrified."

The girl laughed.

"What?" he smiled too.

"Only you could make me laugh in a horrible situation like this."

"Humor isn't really my forte, but I try."

"But you're right" she said. "What are we going to do when we find him?"

"An aggressive approach might not work."

"Kevin Levin not opting for violence," she said with a false air of impression, "that's new."

"I'm still hurting from the beating I took," he said turning his right shoulder. "Besides we both agree that the main thing is to find out what Albedo did to Ben."

Gwen turned her gaze sadly back to the trail of paws. The memory of her cousin's screams resounded in her ears.

The feline footprints on the trail changed shape and took on the appearance of tennis shoe prints on asphalt.

"I think this is where Albedo returned to normal," Gwen said, pointing to the images that were beginning to approach the first buildings in the city.

"How about we stop the car nearby and walk on foot?"

"I think that's a good idea. Maybe this way we can get closer without attracting attention."

Kevin stopped the car on the first street on the left that he found. The two got out of the car and followed the pink tennis shoe prints that lit up the sidewalks of the city.

They continued for two blocks in a straight line, then crossed a street and went right, another left turn, and were halfway down the block when they heard the sound of trash cans acting as obstacles in the nearest alley.

Gwen and Kevin ran toward the noise. As they got closer, they hid near the entrance to the alley to look at what might have caused the sound.

If you don't mind me interrupting your reading, I would like to propose a kind of question game for you, the reader: What could be responsible for knocking over trash cans in the middle of the night?

If we stop to think about it, it could be Albedo trying to hide in the dark.

It could be a cat or a dog turning over cans.

Some drunk who could barely walk and fell down, maybe?

It could be anything, even two small gray and green pyramidal ships that were launching scanning beams amidst the garbage cans.

Well...

"What are they?" Gwen whispered.

"I don't know," he whispered as well. "I don't recognize the style of the ships from anywhere."

"What about Albedo? Do you see him anywhere?"

"No. Are you sure he came here?"

"Yes I am, look at the ground, the footprints are entering the alley."

Kevin and Gwen followed with their eyes the footprints that were lighting up in the alley and their gazes only stopped when they found the visors of the ships that were also curious about the footprints that were lighting up.

"Damn it!" said Kevin, pulling away from the entrance to the alley, pulling Gwen along.

"Freeze!" a metallic voice ordered from one of the ships.

Obviously, the order was not followed, and the two ran down the empty shopping streets.

"And now what?" asked Kevin to the girl.

As they turned a corner, they came face to face with one of the ships that was floating in mid-air. Two other ships were approaching from behind, and then they found themselves trapped in a semicircle, with only the wall of a building behind them.

"Identify yourselves," said another metallic voice.

"Identify yourselves!" complained Kevin "Who are you and what are you doing on Earth?"

"Kevin, what are you doing?" Gwen whispered

"I don't know," he answered whispering as well. "Buying time?"

The ships floated silently. The only sounds that could be heard were those of the engines and thrusters that kept the ship in a slight oscillation in the air.

"Well?" asked Kevin again. "Who are you?"

The same scanning beam as before now swept across Gwen and Kevin's bodies, analyzing every inch of them.

"Traces of Omni energy identified in both carbon-derived beings." said one of the ships. "According to article 876-KFL900-00000000\111\BN100-A0-0..."

"That's a big code, huh?" said Kevin.

"...045JGFF: you are under arrest."

"What!" they said at the same time.

A metal ring shot toward Gwen, locking her arms around her body and pushing her against the wall of the building.

"Gwen!" the teenager shouted, seconds before he too was pinned by a ring.

Kevin touched the wall behind him, and his osmosian nature allowed him to absorb the building's composition. In a matter of moments, his skin took on a grayish hue, with a dry texture. His body was pure concrete. Kevin then forced his arms against the metal ring, causing it to creak and open like a brass ring.

Without taking his eyes off the ships, he asked:

"Are you okay?"

"Yes" she answered, her eyes already emanating a pink glow. "You can go ahead."

"You're the boss!" He set off toward the ship that had trapped Gwen and, with one punch, launched the alien vehicle into the building across the street.

The girl covered herself in a pink color as she formed a shield over her entire body, in the space between her skin and the metal of the ring. This rigid silhouette then began to expand and open the circular prison. As soon as she was free, Gwen shattered her magical silhouette and began firing mana disks at the ships' visors, pushing them away with each impact of the disks.

From the sides of the ships came armament cylinders, one on each side, which began firing lasers toward the teens.

Gwen defended herself with a circular barrier in one hand, and with the other, tried to hit the ships' weapon systems.

Kevin, on the other hand, took advantage of the fact that his concrete skin gave him a certain resistance and opted for the brute attack. He made his hands grow like two huge blocks and, like a boxer, threw hooks and punches that sounded like a car crashing into a pole over and over again. A puff of crumbling concrete accompanied each blow.

A spaceship was trapped inside Gwen's magic bubble and hurled towards a car parked nearby, crumpling much of the bodywork and setting off the vehicle's alarm in the middle of the night. The sound was very disturbing, but not enough to make anyone come and check the car. As always.

"No form of resistance will be tolerated" said one of the ships. "Give yourselves up!"

"All right, we're going" replied Kevin, knocking a traffic light pole out of the ground and bouncing the ship like a baseball.

The ship rolled down the street and only stopped when it crashed into a newsstand on the sidewalk. The noise resounded through the streets along with the car alarm that kept beeping insistently.

The only remaining ship stared at Gwen Tennyson as if in a Wild West duel. The two kept their eyes open for who would make the first move. From the ship's right armament, a laser beam was fired toward Gwen. The young woman spun her body back and to the right to deflect the laser, while at the same time projecting a huge hand of mana slamming the ship and hurling it into an electronics store. The sound of glass, metal and technological products being shattered was enough to make any geek drown in tears. And the car alarm kept blaring.

"Yes!" Kevin ran toward the young woman.

"But what are these things?"

"I don't know." He looked at the surroundings and the trail of destruction the fight had generated. "It's been a while since I've been off the planet, so I can't tell. But it sure isn't from here, this is level four technology upwards."

"We have to tell Grandpa Max about this."

"Good idea. In the car I have a communicator and by the way..."

"What?"

"Did you notice that the annoying alarm stopped?"

There really wasn't any more noise. Gwen and Kevin turned toward the source of the alarm and noticed that a shiny black liquid, with small greenish beams, like circuitry, was dripping from the sides of the ship and coating the vehicle's hardware. Slowly, the body, steering wheel, engine, and tire axles were twisted and incorporated into the ship. What had once been a small triangular ship now became a bipedal machine about two and a half meters tall. A ship-car-robot, Ben would say, if he were present.

"Incorporation of technology?" asked Kevin.

"I've seen this before," said Gwen, "It looks like what Ship does."

"Ship?"

"Julie's dog, Kevin!"

"Yeah, yeah, I remember, the galvanic-mechamorph dog," Kevin looked in the direction of the electronics store. "But then, Gwen, I think we have even bigger problems."

From inside the store, an electric squeak could be heard, accompanied by flashes of light going on and off. A vacuuming sound was heard, and again there was more squeaking.

"To the car!" shouted Kevin.

The two of them run through the streets, going the opposite way from the trail of footprints. Behind them, the ship-robot-car was racing and firing thick beams of lasers from where the car's headlights would be. The two tried to dodge the shots that raised smoke and debris as they hit the asphalt and the surrounding landscape.

Gwen sees a hydrant on the sidewalk a few meters away and shouts to Kevin:

"Go get the car, I'll try to slow it down!"

"What are you going to do?"

"I have a plan, now go!"

Kevin accelerated his run even faster while Gwen slowed down and concentrated a considerable amount of energy in her hands. She passed the hydrant and, after a few meters, turned and shot a strong beam of mana onto the sidewalk at the base of the reddish object, causing its structure to weaken enough to not withstand the pressure and shoot a strong jet of water into the sky.

The robot-car-ship stopped running as soon as it saw the hydrant break and managed to keep the water from hitting it.

"Oh, come on!" said Gwen. Then she was forced to dodge another laser beam coming towards her from behind the water raining down from the hydrant.

She then remembered a common phenomenon between water and cutlery and decided to add a new step to her plan. Using magic again, she projected a concave shape — something resembling a large spoon — over the jet of the hydrant, causing the water to be deflected toward the robot-car-ship-car-robot-, ah! Never mind. You got it.

The alien ship began to suffer from shorted circuitry and crashed into the buildings, sparking sparks and smoke from inside.

"Gwen!" shouted Kevin from inside the car, which, in a drift, had already offered the passenger side to her.

"What took you so long?"

"You're kidding, right?" he said, already starting the car in the direction of the road.

Gwen ran her hands over her clothes, which were covered in splashes.

"Did you manage to warn Grandpa Max?"

"I tried, but it seems that his communicator is off."

"Grandpa never turns off his communicator."

"This time he did."

"That's strange. I'll try again."

"Try again later," Kevin looked in the center rearview mirror, "now we have other problems to worry about."

Gwen looked back and saw a bipedal black metal cluster, made up of monitors, laptops, refrigerators, vacuum cleaners, and air humidifiers, interspersed with wires and cabling, with a pyramidal ship serving as a head, turning one corner and racing after them.

It seemed that the dawn would be long over...

Chapter Text

We are back at the Bellwood Power Station. Ben, Gwen and Kevin surround the bizarre apopplexian-Albedo.

"There's no escape, Albedo!" said Ben, who was still human.

The villain gritted his teeth as he looked for a way to escape the encirclement. His tense muscles signaled that he would strike at any moment.

"We are going to send you to Null void where you belong!" shouted Kevin.

"We had agreed to warn Azmuth before, Kevin," said Gwen.

Albedo tried to advance to Kevin's right, but was stopped by a Gwen shield formed at the last moment. He then retreated and returned to the center of the siege. His gaze emanated bloodlust.

"We're not going to let you get away!" said Ben.

"That's right, Albedo!" Kevin continued, "You're going to tell us what you did to Ben, and you're going to tell us right now!"

His friend's words took Ben by surprise.

"What!?"

Ben looked at Albedo and realized that the villain's form was strange. He was no longer the Appoplexian. It was smaller. It was weirder. More human. It was... It was himself!

He looked at his surroundings and realized that he was now the one in the middle of the siege. Kevin, Gwen and one other person were making sure that Ben did not leave where he was. He was dangerous.

He stared at the third person in the circle and again saw his own image. A 15-year-old human with the usual green jacket! But how could he be in two places at once!

He then felt a pain go through his body. As he looked at what must have been his hands, he saw two misshapen and deformed extremities moving in an attempt to form something.

Ben screamed.

He screamed again when he woke up in bed.

He was in his room. His jacket rested on a nearby chair. His usual mess remained in the same place as always. He was safe. At least that's what he thought, and in that way he tried to convince his pounding heart.

With fear, he looked at his hands. They were normal. In his left fist, the Omnitrix rested with its green light. It was fully charged, and there was no longer any sign of Albedo's attack on the disk.

"Beeeen!" his mother shouted from the kitchen "Is everything alright?"

"Yes, Mom!"

"Then come and have your breakfast and take it to your grandfather!"

The teenager got up and went toward the window. Grandpa's trailer was still parked outside the house.

Could Grandpa Max have got the power back on? He thought.

Then he grabbed the TV remote and turned on the Sumo Fighters - Advanced Generations.

Yes, he did.

But without knowing why, he didn't want to watch it at the moment. Maybe his still racing heart could be one of the explanations. He thought it was more prudent to go see his grandfather, who knows, maybe he got a solution to the other problem too?

"Grandpa Max? Ben was standing in front of the door of Rust Bucket" Mom asked me to bring you some breakfast."

"Yes, Ben, I am. Come on in."

The young man closed the door of the trailer as soon as he entered and left the plate on the table. His grandfather was near the steering wheel, talking to a hologram of Gwen projected onto the dashboard, similar to a car ornament.

"Got it, Gwen, I'll tell him. And be careful. Any new information let me know." And she hung up the communication.

"Was that Gwen, Grandpa? Did she find Albedo?"

"No, Ben. But it seems they've found other people who are after him too."

"Really? Who are they?"

"Your cousin can't tell yet. At the moment she and Kevin are hiding in the abandoned military area of Los Soledad. They are making sure that they are not being followed before they find us again."

"And why?"

"Somehow those individuals they met can track the Omnitrix energy, and because they found small traces of energy in Kevin and Gwen, they ended up chasing them all night long."

"And why didn't they come after me?"

"I believe the blackout this evening also erased traces of the Omnitrix in the area."

Ben pressed buttons throughout the trailer, causing monitors to pop up in unusual places in the room. Then he said:

"There aren't any records of these people in the Plumbers' archive? What do they look like?"

"Gwen sent some pictures in a file over the Extranet. I think you should-"

"Here, I've got it" Ben says, clicking on a file on his computer.

Max smiles. He admires how easy it is for young people today to deal with technology. He remembers his time and how much a huge intercommunication network was needed in the missions. He turns in the driver's seat and goes back to fiddling with devices on the trailer's dashboard:

"While you're looking, Ben, I'll call the Plumbers to inform them of the situation."

As soon as the connection is established with the Plumbers' headquarters, a voice begins to speak, even before any identification.

"Magistrate Tennyson, thanks to Rhaveh, I was just about to contact you this instant!"

"What's wrong, soldier?"

"We are having problems in the East Power Plumbing Sector, sir. There are reports of trespassing and we have already lost communication with several of our men there."

"Any information about the invaders?"

"There seems to be only one, Magistrate, but with enough force to breach all our defenses."

Grandfather Max looked at Ben, who reciprocated with a worried expression. Then he returned to his communicator.

"I'm going. Keep an eye out for any calls for reinforcements."

"Will you be going alone, Magistrate?"

"Don't worry," answered the boy, "Ben Tennyson will also answer the call."

"Very well then, Ben Tennyson, we'll be waiting for you. Good luck to you both!"

Grandpa Max turned off the communicator and turned to his grandson, saying:

"Ben, you're not going."

"What!? Why!?"

"We still don't know what's wrong with you and the Omnitrix. I can't let you use the watch."

"Come on, Grandpa!? Kevin and Gwen already left me out of the Albedo search, now you too?"

"Ben, don't you understand-"

"Yes, I do! Okay, I'm not going to use the Omnitrix."

Max sighs, because he knew this discussion would take too long.

"Ben..."

"I'm serious, Grandpa. I promise not to use the watch no matter what."

"And how did you-"

"I am a Plumber too, Grandpa. I can use the Plumber's equipment..." Ben turned the drawer handle, and as he opened the drawer, where once there was silverware, there were now laser guns and energy grenades. "Like this! Come on, Grandpa, you know I can do it."

Max scratched his head and finally gave in. Time is a precious thing at the moment.

"Come on, sit down there," he pointed to the passenger seat, "and buckle up. We've already wasted too much time so I'm going to have to speed up."

Ben jumped into the passenger seat and, like a child who had just found out that he was going to Disney, he could barely contain his excitement. An adventure would make him forget the dream he had, he thought.

His heart kept racing. He couldn't tell if this time it was because of the possibility of an adventure that was approaching. In truth, it didn't matter.

Would it?

Chapter Text

Grandpa Max was driving the Rust Bucket at high speed, while giving instructions to his grandson:

"Right cabinet, under the sink, Ben."

"There's only pans in here, Grandpa."

"On the cupboard left door, just below, there's a little button."

"Just below, just below... I found it."

"Press and hold."

"Press and hold, got it."

Like a horizontal merry-go-round, the shelves of the cupboard were rotating, taking the pots to the bottom of the cupboard and bringing to the front the ammunition that Ben was looking for.

"Now we're talking!"

"We'll need ammunition for the pistols..." Max turned the wheel, making the trailer turn sharply to the right and into a street, "and for the rifles."

Ben had difficulty in walking inside the Rust Bucket. Each turn forced the young man to brace himself or lean on the nearest piece of furniture. In some cases, it was his shoulder or his own head that was unintentionally used for support.

"Jeez, Grandpa!" Ben fell sitting on the floor of the trailer, "Do you have to do all this?"

"Yes, Ben. The Plumbers' power sections not only provide power for communication, but also for the containment cells in the Bellwood Headquarters. Any power failure could facilitate a mass escape, and that's the last thing we need right now."

Ben adopted a more serious expression as soon as he understood the gravity of the situation. His posture also became firmer and less unbalanced, even with the sudden movements of the trailer. He then continued to organize the armaments they would need for the mission.

"All set, Grandpa."

"Good, good. We're almost there too."

Ben approached his grandfather and, holding the passenger seat, saw that they were approaching a large horizontal building, with two tall and wide cylinders sticking out behind the building and a wall surrounding the entire lot. The appearance of the whole structure was that of a place that had not received a good paint job for a long time.

"Bellwood Recycling Center? Really?" questioned Ben.

"The best way to hide something is to make it as visible as possible."

Max pressed two buttons on the dashboard of the car, activating the communicator, and said:

"Requesting entry. Magistrate Tennyson. Code MT2319."

A confirmation beep is heard from the communicator, followed by a computerized voice:

"Welcome, magistr-tr-tr-aaaaaaaaaaaaaaat-" And hung up.

"What was that?" asked Ben.

"I don't know, but it shows that the things in there must not be the best."

"It's obvious, isn't it, Grandpa?" he pointed to the building, "How long has it been since this place has been maintained?

Max smiled.

The gate to the recycling center began to open before Rust Bucket even got close to the entrance, so that Max made one more sharp turn to leave the avenue and they were already inside the place.

Ben understood the reason for his grandfather's wry smile as soon as he stepped out of the Rust Bucket. From within the walls of the Recycling Center it was possible to see the true appearance of the Plumbers' East Power Sector. Although the shapes of the structures remained the same, the technology that made up the architecture of the place exuded all the grandeur of the Plumbers.

"Camouflage..." he said, impressed.

"What were you saying, Ben?"

"I was saying that I was wrong."

"That's what I imagined."

With laser pistols in their holsters, several grenades and containment devices in their diagonal chest belts and, their tachyon rifle in hand, the two headed towards the main entrance.

As they approached the building, they could see that the main door had been ripped off and was lying thrown over one of the trucks parked there. There were two bodies lying just outside the entrance, dressed in Plumbers' uniforms. Max quickened his pace and approached the injured security guards.

"Ben, keep an eye on the surroundings. I need to assess their injuries."

"No problem, Grandpa." Ben aimed his rifle in various directions, looking for any imminent danger.

Max crouched down next to the first fallen plumber and placed his fingers near the neck of one of them. He tried to feel for any sign that they were not too late, a pulse for example. Luckily, the soldier was still alive. Max took out a small boton-like device and placed it over the Plumber's forehead.

"What is it, Grandpa?"

"It is a life support device that assists medical teams. It can analyze the individual's vital signs and help the rescue teams determine which injured people need immediate attention and which can wait a little longer. It also indicates the position of those who have already been found."

"Very cool!"

"Don't get distracted, Ben."

"Yes, of course. Sorry, Grandpa," and went back to keeping his aim.

Max took the Plumbers' badge from his pocket and made a new contact with the Plumber's Headquarters:

"Attention, Central. This is Magistrate Tennyson. Send medical teams to the East Power Sector, we have injuries on site."

"All right, Magistrate. We'll be sending our teams immediately."

"That's perfect."

"Any information on the person responsible for the attack?"

"Not yet. I'll let you know as soon as I can. Over and out."

Max went to the other fallen soldier and again, after an evaluation, put on the medical triage device. They then proceeded through the doors.

The Sector facility showed clear signs of combat. Numerous signs of laser or plasma combustion could be found on the cloyingly white walls. Various furniture and structures were destroyed along the way. Light bulbs were damaged, flashing or sparking at the slightest sign of energy. Grandpa Max and Ben scoured the corridors for any sign of life.

Ben had the feeling that something had caught his attention and turned to the corridor they had just passed.

"Wait, Grandpa."

"Did you hear something?"

"Yes..."

Ben walked ahead, taking slow steps so as not to make noise. He stopped in front of a door with the words "Personnel Department" written on a sign glued to the door.

The two of them positioned themselves each on one side of the door, prepared to enter at the signal from their grandfather. A silent count was followed by the sudden opening of the door and the entrance of the two with rifles ready to fire.

"Please don't hurt us! Please!" A thin alien with a mantis-like appearance, dressed in his Plumber uniform, stood in front of him, serving as a barrier to the three other aliens in civilian clothes who were hiding behind him.

Ben lowered his gun. Max didn't: "Identify yourselves, please."

"My name is Fickell, sir. I'm a Plumber cadet and I was on security detail at the site when the attack happened." The Plumber pointed at the civilians behind him. "They are employees here."

Max lowered his gun and offered his hand to the cadet in greeting.

"I am Magistrate Tennyson, we are here precisely to rescue you and contain whatever it is that attacked the base."

The victims began to look among themselves and breathe a sigh of relief. Help had finally arrived!

"And I am Ben Tennyson," the teenager stepped out from behind his grandfather and offered a smile to the victims, "nice to meet you!"

The aliens knew Ben Tennyson, knew that he was capable of transforming into aliens, and many of his transformations were well known to the universe.

Ben expected a reaction of "even more" relief from the victims. At least that was the usual reaction he usually received when he arrived somewhere populated with aliens. Rarely was he greeted with fear or apprehension as he was this time. The Plumber with the body of a mantis again stood in front of the civilians, arms outstretched.

"Please, don't come any closer!"

Max and Ben looked at each other. Mistaking Ben for a threat could only mean that their suspicions were right. Albedo was responsible for the attack.

"Calm down, please," Max tried to mediate the situation, "It wasn't my grandson who attacked you."

"Excuse me, Magistrate, but what assures us that-"

"He's telling the truth!" interrupted Ben, "It wasn't me. That was Albedo's doing."

"Albedo?" asked one of the civilians.

"A jealous Galvanian who is also able to transform himself like me," answered Ben. "In fact, our similarities go beyond the simple alien watch-"

"What my grandson is trying to say," Max cut through Ben's speech, "is that we are here to help. We've already called the support team that should be here any minute."

Ben, with a frown on his face, pointed with an open hand to the door and said:

"You can follow that corridor to the main entrance. We have just come this way and we guarantee that it is safe."

The aliens looked at Max for confirmation of what the teenager had said. The mistrust was palpable in the air. Max nodded his head as if to say "it's true what he is saying, you can trust me."

"Thank you very much, Magistrate," the Cadet Plumber shook Max's hand and turned to the civilians. "Come on, guys, with me."

"Wait, Cadet Fickell," Max noticed that the plumber was unarmed. He took one of his pistols from his holster, with two rounds of ammunition, and placed it in the alien praying mantis's hand, "Take good care of them."

"I will protect them with my life, sir. Once again, thank you, Magistrate." And he went down the corridor accompanied by the staff.

" 'Thank you very much, Magistrate...' " Ben said in a cheap imitation voice. "I also helped to save them..."

"Don't be spoiled, Ben. Come on, we have to find Albedo."

Ben followed his grandfather through the corridors. He was in a mix of upset and angry, with a hint of feeling wronged.

It wasn't me who attacked the building, it was Albedo, thought Ben. I hate it when he does that and people stare at me for days.

"Ben, focus." Grandfather's speech was like a hand pulling him from the bottom of a pool of thoughts. "This is no joke. Any mistake could put the whole mission at risk."

"I know, Grandpa. But it was me who found them. Some recognition wouldn't hurt."

Max interrupted his grandson for silence. Now it was Grandpa's turn to hear something...

Sounds of gunshots!

The two of them ran on and took the second corridor to the right. The door at the end of the path was still open, but even so their vision inside the place was limited by the darkness. At most, they could see a Plumber armed with a pistol shooting toward the ceiling.

The shooting was only interrupted when a crate hit the head of the soldier who fell unconscious.

The entire building again enveloped itself in silence.

Ben and his grandfather approached cautiously. Their steps were smooth and restrained, trying not to draw attention to whatever was beyond that door. Their aim remained steady and their trigger finger was ready to welcome anything that came out of there. With less than three steps to go, they stopped and waited.

Nothing.

Max picked up a stun grenade and threw it through the door, but as soon as he threw it, a gooey projectile caught the grenade still in the air, changing its path and making it stick to the ground near Ben and his grandfather's feet.

"Inside, now!" shouted Max.

They both jumped through the door and put their backs against the wall nearest the entrance, protecting themselves from the stunned blast of the grenade. A buzzing sound echoed in the air for a few seconds. Ben was having trouble deciding how to react next, while Max stood with his rifle pointed into the darkness.

The lamps in the place were all broken. The only light there was came from the door, revealing that they were in something resembling a huge equipment warehouse. Shelves with countless devices used for maintenance or replacement parts for the Power Sector's machinery, as well as boxes and crates, were scattered all over the place.

"Ben Tennyson," the voice said slowly in the darkness, "what a coincidence that we meet again..."

Chapter Text

The equipment warehouse was immersed in palpable darkness. The only source of light coming through the door behind Ben and Max Tennyson drew a bright trapezoid on the floor. With rifles pointed into the darkness, the two kept an watchful eye out for any movement.

Ben felt as if he should have transformed at least fifteen minutes ago. It would be much easier to resolve the whole situation.

Max, on the other hand, occasionally looked at the plumber lying at his feet. He couldn't get closer, so he had to judge if he was still alive only from a distance. Any sudden movement could be the opening the creature in the darkness needed to attack him.

"Ben?"

"Yes, Grandpa."

"Did you by any chance remember to bring flashlights when you separated our equipment?"

"Did I have to?"

Max didn't answer. He just took a deep inhale, then let the air out of his lungs freely. He didn't remember the flashlights either.

"Tell me, Tennyson, what is the reason for this unexpected visit?" Asked the voice in the darkness.

"Don't be ridiculous, Albedo," answered Ben, "we've come to capture you, and you know it."

"And how do you intend to do this?"

"We..."

"Because if I'm not mistaken, you failed miserably last night."

Ben noticed a figure moving over the poorly lit bookshelves.

"What makes you think," the voice had changed places, "that this time it will be different?"

"You caught us off guard that time. It won't happen again."

Again, the figure moved to another part of the warehouse.

"I like your confidence, Tennyson."

"Really?" Ben allows himself a smile on his face.

"Of course! Because then the feeling of victory when I finish with you is much more gratifying!" The figure came running toward to Ben.

The teenager pointed the gun in the direction of villain about to fire, however, Albedo was no longer on the ground. He was now in the air, leaping over Ben.

A rifle shot hits Albedo in the middle of his trajectory, throwing him to one of the sides of the warehouse. Due to the darkness, all that could be heard was the sound of something crashing into several wooden boxes, echoing sounds of equipment and parts coming to the floor.

"Ben, don't let his talk distract you," a light hum from Grandpa's rifle indicated that the next shot was already prepared. "If Albedo is still here, it means that this is the only way out of this warehouse."

"You bastard!" grunted Albedo.

"Give yourself up, Albedo," Max said. "We don't want to hurt you, but if we have to-"

"If we have to what, Plumber!" Albedo shouted and moved quickly around the room, making his voice resound throughout the huge warehouse and making it difficult to know where the sound was coming from. "Are you going to hurt me? Kill me?"

A crate came toward Max's head, and he crouched at the last second, getting into an unfavorable posture that made it difficult to aim. A jolt to his gun made him realize that his rifle was stuck, bound by a bundle of interlocking white threads — like a spider's web — that pulled on his gun, trying to disarm it.

Ben followed the web into the darkness and began to fire. One, two, three shots, yet the web kept tensing.

Either Albedo is managing to dodge it, he thought, or my aim is still terrible...

Max stood up and pulled the rifle with force, bringing the web and Albedo, who was still holding it, with him. Max's goal was simple: pull and throw the villain into the nearest wall. However, Albedo's dexterity allowed him to trim the trajectory and stick to the wall with his six Arachnachimp paws, like a cat falling on its feet.

Ben changed his shooting system to quick shot mode, allowing for a higher frequency of shots, although lower impact. Aiming at his copy of Spidermonkey, he fired several shots in sequence. His target ran up the wall toward the ceiling, dodging the lasers and leaving behind a trail of combustion signals on the concrete of the structure. The alien jumped up and continued its acrobatics until it hid again in the darkness.

"Your aim is really terrible, Tennyson," a panting breath could be heard in the pitch. "You should have practiced more before coming to face me."

"Oh yeah?" replied Ben, placing the rifle on the stand on his back. "Let's see if you'll still find this when I use the..." Ben placed his hand on the Omnitrix disk, activating it.

Max held his grandson's arm and said in a low, firm voice:

"Ben, you promised not to use the watch."

"But, Grandpa..."

The grandfather could not face his grandson because his attention had to be kept on the villain, but his serious expression made the grandson understand that this was not a point to discuss. Even more so at that moment.

Ben was irritated. Everything could be solved easier if he could use the watch. But he couldn't. He shouldn't. He then took the rifle from his back and aimed it again into the darkness.

"What was that , Ben?" the villain's tone of voice was provocative. "Have you given up on transforming?"

"I don't need the Omnitrix to finish you off!"

"Don't be contradictory, Tennyson," Albedo's voice kept on moving. "Yourself know that a pathetic human like you doesn't stand a chance against me."

Ben clenched his lips

"You're nothing without your pets, and you know it!"

"Ben, calm down," said his grandfather.

"You're weak! You're useless!" It was getting harder and harder to know where the voice was coming from with him moving with such dexterity "If it wasn't for the Omnitrix you'd be nothing!"

Every speech, every provocation made a single desire grow inside Ben: to be able to hit Albedo. He tried to predict movements, to figure out where the shadows would go, to figure out where the voice would come from.

Suddenly a piece of silhouette stood out on the wall to the right.

"Gotcha!" Ben shot out.

A scream was heard the instant the shot hit the Plumber's arm.

Ben and Max then realized his mistake. The plumber's fallen body was no longer on the ground. In one of Albedo's moves, the villain grabbed the wounded man and pinned him to the wall with webbing.

"No... I-I-I..." lamented Ben.

"How awful, Tennyson. Earth's hero attacking one of his own."

Ben pointed his rifle in the direction the voice was coming from, but was unable to fire. What if he hit another hostage? It was not possible to know with all this darkness. Ben's hand was shaking.

Max felt sorry for his grandson. Hurting one of his own is a regret that is capable of tormenting a person for the rest of his life.

"Ben, stay behind. I'll take care of this."

Max put the rifle on his back and drew his laser pistol. It was easier to move around and aim with a more portable weapon.

"Now it's the old man's turn?"

"Are you afraid of the old man here finishing you off?"

"I see this stupid trust is really a family matter!" Albedo bounced around the bookshelves and ceiling, looking for an opening in Max that he could take advantage of.

Max fires at the slightest noise the arachnachimp made as he moved, missing by a matter of a few inches.

Albedo, for his part, was finding it harder and harder to dodge. The shots were becoming more and more accurate. He had to be disarmed! He launched a web from his tail towards the laser pistol. As soon as he felt that the web had caught, he pulled it back. However, as the web came closer, he realized that it was not the laser gun coming him, but a stun grenade. The old man switched the objects in his hand at the last second. And more, with his sights set, the plumber shot the grenade, which exploded just inches from the arachnachimp, exploding in a shockwave that sent Albedo hurtling to the bottom of the warehouse.

Still aiming his gun, Max began to slowly approach the spot where Albedo had forcefully landed.

"Grandpa! Is everything all right?" Ben was standing by the door.

"Stay there, Ben," replied Grandpa.

The boy didn't disagree. He felt he needed that light coming from the corridor. Without it he wasn't sure if he would be able to take another shot.

Max's image was beginning to disappear into the darkness. At the end of the corridor between the bookshelves, there were sounds that were difficult to interpret. Were they objects being moved? Metal falling to the floor? One of the sounds sounded like a box of bolts that had just fallen to the floor. The sounds began to intensify... Wherever Albedo fell, this time he didn't want to be subtle and hide his presence. It seemed as if he was moving a mountain of metal, wood and steel pieces off of himself.

The darkness made it difficult to see, but slowly Max's vision began to get used to the low light and some things became possible to identify. On either side, devices and parts rested on shelves that seemed to extend to infinity. Behind him, his grandson stood guard at the only exit from the place. In front of him, a huge creature was slowly moving toward him.

Chapter Text

It was not in his plans to activate the supertransformation. In fact, he wanted to avoid it at all costs. He just wanted to go in, get what he was looking for, and leave. Of course there would be resistance, he already knew that, but this damned plumber had no right to humiliate him like that! Who does this old man think he is?

Albedo was walking down the corridor towards Max Tennyson.

He was Albedo, a Galvanian famous for his intellectual capacity. One of the main scientists of the Azmuth project. The only one who was able to see the real potential of the Omnitrix and, for this reason, was dismissed after defending its ideals. But things were about to change. All that was about to change. And it wasn't some pathetic smart-mouthed human who was going to put it all to waste.

Max was still unable to discern what the approaching creature was. Was it some other alien from Albedo? If so, which one? Since his vision was impaired by the darkness, once again the Magistrate valued his other senses to assess the situation. The warehouse smelled of dust and metal. Deep breathing could be heard coming from the direction of the creature, but no footsteps. This caught Max's attention. How could a creature that size make no sound when it walked? Not even the ground vibrated with its approach...

"Albedo, by the Plumber's code of law I order you to surrender yourself." said the Magistrate. "Don't make this situation even worse for you!"

There was no response.

There was no complaint, no disagreement, and no ironic speech from the creature.

Albedo just kept walking.

"Albedo, don't make me shoot."

Nothing.

Max pointed the pistol toward the ground, in a place he thought would be near the creature's feet, and fired a warning shot.

"Grandpa? Are you all right?" asked Ben.

"Stay there, Ben!" Max kept an eye on the creature coming through the darkness. "I'm warning you, Albedo."

The creature stopped.

For a few seconds, the silence in the place was thicker than the darkness itself.

And then Albedo moved forward.

The creature moved at great speed in the direction of the Magistrate. Max, in turn, began to fire successive shots at the creature, while trying to move away without taking his eyes off the approaching monster. The shots hit Albedo's fur, but seemed to do no damage.

Suddenly, Max noticed that his left foot was no longer able to leave the ground. He then saw that not only his left, but both feet were caught in a large mass of webbing, sticking them to the ground. He looked up, the creature was still approaching. He took out his rifle from behind him and without really defining what he was aiming at, he fired a laser projectile in the direction of the creature.

From the weapon, a luminous ball came out and traveled down the hallway illuminating the shelves, the floor, and even the villain when it hit him in the middle of his chest, pushing him a few feet.

Max finally managed to catch a glimpse of the creature Albedo had transformed into. It was something like a huge blue gorilla with gigantic spider legs that kept its huge body in the air.

Ben also noticed all the brightness that came on in the hallway in front of him. He couldn't see the creature clearly, but he could tell that his grandfather needed help: Albedo had transformed into something too big for his grandfather to handle alone.

"Grandpa! I'm coming!"

"No, Ben, stay there!"

Max saw the creature advancing toward him again. He readied his gun again, but the high impact projectile resulted in a slower rate of fire as well. With his aim ready he fired again, but this time the creature deflected and kept moving forward. Another shot? There was no time. Max dropped the gun, which was hanging from his belt, and with his arms crossed in front of his face he waited for the impact.

And it came.

Ben was walking towards the beginning of the corridor when something passed by his side and hit the wall behind him.

The boy turned and saw his grandfather slide down the wall and fall unconscious to the floor. The blood dripping down Max's face showed that his injuries were severe.

"G-Grandpa?"

Ben didn't know how to react. What should he do? Run to Grandpa? Call for help? The Plumbers could help! But what about Albedo? He could escape and... Albedo... He is responsible for all of this!

The teenager looks in direction of the dark corridor and observes the image of the spider gorilla slowly coming out of the darkness. There was a wry smile on the creature's face. He still had the audacity to laugh!

Ben touches the disc of the watch making a hologram appear. No matter which alien it was, he was going to finish off Albedo's kind. Then he pressed the disk.

A green light covered Ben indicating that the transformation was beginning.

The Omnitrix once again drilled through the tissues of Ben's arm, spreading a stabbing pain, and sank beneath the skin like a parasite, only to emerge again in the middle of his chest.

Not again! he thought.

Ben began to feel a very strong headache. An enormous pressure was spreading throughout his brain, causing his vision to blur and a great desire to vomit to arise. The young man put his hands to his head and felt something strange. As he looked at his hands he saw brown tufts of... what were this? Hair? His hair?

The boy squirmed as the vertebrae of his spine began to deform, causing his chest and abdomen to compress like a soda can being crushed. His skin folded and some ribs cracked in the process.

His hands began to deform, with his fingers merging into a huge claw. In his legs, two parallel lines ran down his thighs to his feet, splitting skin, muscles and bones, and making each limb become three. In the end, they formed six thin legs that rested on the tips of his feet.

Already entirely hairless, Ben felt as if his head was going to explode! His jaw clamped onto his skull and he was now no longer able to move his mouth, so that his cries were either guttural moans or thoughts of deep pain.

His body began to take on an orange tint and his skin hardened with the deposition of chitin, forming an articulated exoskeleton covering Ben's entire surface.

His skull grew larger and larger, until the instant the space between the parietal bones broke open, opening like closet doors and exposing a gigantic open brain. Unable to scream, his pain and agony was now being projected to the surroundings through his telepathy.

Hi.

Excuse me.

Sorry to interrupt your reading, but I need to point something out before we continue.

There is a rumor in fiction that says that we humans are not able to use 100% of our brain. This is a lie. Our brain is incredibly organized and uses every part of it as needed. If we need to move our leg, a part in the center is active. If we need to see, the region of the occipital lobe activates. And so it goes on working. There is no need to use it all at once. There is only one situation in which we use 100% of our brain: when we are having a convulsion. Like the one the Brainstorm is having right now.

As soon as the light of the transformation went out, the equipment warehouse was immersed in complete pandemonium. The Brainstorm's telekinesis lifted racks, crates, equipment, and everything else that could be found in the place and began to spin and hurl in all directions. Psionic rays coming from the alien's extremely evolved brain were shooting out in a thousand directions, like a huge storm.

Albedo planted his paws on the warehouse floor and tried not to be dragged by the whirlwind of objects and telekinetic waves emanating from Ben Tennyson. With his arms he tried to protect himself from a motor or crate that hit him from all directions. He felt that at any moment he might lose consciousness, because the telepathic pressure on his brain was unbearable, he could not think clearly. At some moments, he even felt that his body no longer obeyed him, as if a new order was imposed on his neurons.

Albedo could not understand what was happening. He could see the cerebrocrustacean at the epicenter of the maelstrom, with his paws stretched out and his claws folded over his thorax, his skull cap open, clearly not in control of his powers. Was he unconscious? That didn't matter, it wasn't his problem. He needed to get out of there.

The villain searched for a way to get to the exit, but had no idea how to get past the Tennyson who stood between him and the door. Each attempt at a step became more impossible with the waves pushing him further and further. Suddenly, a huge rack came toward him, hitting him and maintaining its trajectory until it hit the concrete wall of the warehouse.

Albedo's gorilliform body went through the wall of the warehouse and crashed into one of the plumbers' trucks that were parked in the back of the Energy Sector. Even with a sturdy body like his, the impact was painful enough to force him to untransform.

Disoriented and with a sore body, Albedo, in his human form, climbed out of the debris of the truck and tried to hide until he found a way to escape. Transforming again would not be possible. Not so soon. All he could do was wait and hope that Tennyson's lack of control was contained within the warehouse.

Inside, the situation tended to get even worse. The walls and columns that made up the structure of the building began to crack. In some places, parts of the roof began to fall and join in the whirlwind that levitated, spun, destroyed and threw everything within the Arthropod's reach.

Ben was like an empty shell of destruction. In the center of the hurricane, the only thing he was capable of doing was suffering.

Pain

Agony

Fear

Regret

Pain

Fear

Pain

Pain

Pain

A bright projectile hits the cerebrocrustacean, forcing Ben back into his human form and bringing an end to the chaos. Objects previously in the air begin to fall by gravity, forming a rain of debris.

By the door, Max lowers his rifle.

A tear cuts his face.

Chapter Text

Everyone in the room remained silent, listening carefully to the doctor.

"Unfortunately it is still too early to tell how much the seizure might have hurt him. Yes, he could end up with some sequelae, but he could also come out of this situation unscathed."

Each time the doctor stopped talking, silence covered the room. The only sounds were those of the equipment connected to Ben.

"And when will we know if he has any degree of sequelae?" - said Gwen. Standing at her cousin's bedside, her crossed arms were an attempt to contain her anxiety and feel embraced at the same time.

"That we will only be able to tell when he wakes up."

Yes...

He wakes up.

Benjamin Tennyson was in a coma.

After the Brainstorm transformation went out of control, Ben was rescued by the medical team and brought to the Plumber's base. Grandpa Max also received first aid, but his physical injuries were less severe than previously thought.

"Any idea when this might happen?" asked Kevin. Leaning against the wall of the room, he avoided looking at his injured friend.

"We don't know. Some patients come back from coma in a matter of hours, others may take days," answered the doctor. "Unfortunately, there are reports of patients who only come back after years. It varies from patient to patient."

The doctor tried hard to comfort Gwen, Kevin and Grandpa Max. But he also knew that the family members needed to be fully aware of Ben's current state of health, so even if it was painful, the truth was ultimately much more necessary than unfounded hope.

"We will keep him under constant observation by our team. We will inform the family of any news."

"Thank you, Dr. Lünderg," said Gwen.

"If you have any questions, just call me. I'll leave you alone for now. Excuse me," and closed the bedroom door behind her.

Again, the only ones who were willing to engage in any conversation were the medical devices with their beeps and vuuucks.

"..."

"..."

"..."

Beep - did the heart monitor.

"..."

"..."

"..."

Beep.

"..."

"..."

"..."

Beep.

"It was my fault," Kevin began.

"Kevin, don't say that, it's nobody's fault," said Gwen.

"Tennyson can't take care of himself without his damn watch, Gwen, you know that!"

"It doesn't matter, Kevin!" a tear kept coming out "What happened, happened. Now we have to try to find a way to help him."

"How?"

"W-we..."

"Do you know how to operate on someone's brain?"

"No, but I can..."

"Fix neurons!?"

"N-n-no-"

"How are we going to help him then, Gwen, you tell me!"

"I don't know!" a tear escaped.

Kevin's tear escaped too.

"..."

"..."

Sitting in his companion's armchair, with a band around his forehead, Grandpa Max kept a constant dialogue with his thoughts. Sometimes the dialogue turned into a huge argument, with vulgar words and insults that would offend even the most peaceful of monks. But on the outside, his expression was serene and serious.

He then stood up and walked towards the door.

"Grandpa, where are you going?" said Gwen.

"I'm going to find Azmuth," he answered without turning around.

"One of us is going with yo-"

"No."

"But Grandpa..."

Max looked at his granddaughter. He didn't say a word. He waited for her intelligence to understand all the unspoken words that he would not be able to say.

Gwen understood.

"Be careful, please," she said at last.

"I will. Take care of Ben, and anything new... You already know."

"We'll let you know."

During the dialogue between grandfather and granddaughter, it was Kevin's turn to remain silent with his thoughts. As soon as Max Tennyson walked out the door, Kevin also finally decided what he was going to do:

"I'm leaving."

"Where are you going?"

"Behind Albedo."

"Don't be stupid, Kevin!"

"Relax, Gwen!"

"What do you mean, relax!?"

"I'm not going to confront him... I'm going to try to find out what he's planning."

A few seconds of silence before Gwen resumed speaking:

"Promise me."

"..."

"Kevin, I know you well enough to know that you will go after Albedo the first moment you meet him, so don't-"

"I promise."

"..."

"..."

"Let's go get him. Together," Gwen said.

"Why don't we go now?"

"I need to try something."

"Okay..."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"Be careful," Kevin said.

"You too," said Gwen.

Before closing the door, Kevin risked a glance at his friend. He nodded and left the room, heading for the base garage.

Gwen stood for a few minutes watching her cousin. All around her, the devices continued their rigidly obeyed symphony. The young woman uncrossed her arms, took hold of one of her cousin's hands, and said:

"You'll come out of this, Ben. I know you are. And I'm going to do everything I can to help you."

Gwen moved away from the bed and sat down in the companion chair. She crossed her legs and placed her hands in a meditative position. She closed her eyes for a few moments before opening them with a rosy light filling them.

His mind was no longer in the room.

It was traveling through space.

Through time.

Through dimensions.

It traveled paths unimaginable by the human mind.

Suddenly it stopped.

Gwen found herself in a corridor between bookshelves. The place had a high ceiling, with a beautifully adorned dome. She walked down the corridor until she reached a wide, elevated, well-lit area with only one table and one chair, already occupied.

Then she said:

"Hi, Charmcaster."

Chapter Text

Gwen didn't decide this on impulse. She went over everything as carefully as time would allow, but unfortunately there was no way. If there was anything beyond the boundaries of science that could help Ben, it would be in the library.

"Hi, Charmcaster."

Gwen waited for some response from her arch-nemesis. However, Charmcaster remained seated, with her back to Gwen, concentrating on her notes.

In movies and cartoons, it is common to depict the voices of conscience as two opposing figures who counter-argue with each other. In Gwen's case, at this moment the voices of her conscience could be represented by a huge organized crowd shouting "Don't do it! It's going to be trouble!" and holding a banner written "It's going to be wrong and I told you so!"

Still, she felt she needed to try.

"Charmcaster, it's me-"

She interrupted her speech just as the image of Charmcaster began to fade into a violet haze. An illusion! Just as suddenly, Gwen felt a presence behind her about to attack her.

Gwen leaped forward, followed by a somersault, dodging the violet beam that passed over her. As she completed the movement, she stopped with one knee on the ground. She turned to the corridor with the bookshelves and watched the villain approach with a staff in hand.

"Gwendolin... Haven't you ever been taught that it's rude to break into other people's houses?"

"Charmcaster, I didn't come here to fight!"

"You should have thought of that before you entered without permission!" Charmcaster points her staff toward Gwen and fires another bolt of lightning.

Gwen again dodges the projectile, just inches short of hitting her shoulder. The organized crowd of her conscience was in a frenzy: We told you so! We told you so! They were never more right about her being wrong!

Charmcaster takes out of her bag two small spherical statuettes and throws them on the ground, then invokes:

"Petrus movidious!"

The statuettes begin to grow in size and change shape, like an armadillo ball unfurling, until they become two stone golens about two meters tall.

"Charmcaster, listen to me-"

"Finish her off," she said at last.

Gwen began to run away through the corridors of the library. The golens followed behind, destroying tables, chairs, bookshelves, books, everything in their path.

A table was thrown in front of the girl, forcing her to change direction at the last moment.

A golem comes out from behind one of the bookshelves and sets up a punch against the floor. Gwen slips and passes under the creature's legs. The impact of the punch makes the whole ground shake.

She quickly gets up and goes on the run. The creatures roar makes the air vibrate violently.

Damn! thought Gwen. If I had my magic, these monsters would be rubble by now! But, wait a minute...

Gwen stopped running.

She turned and faced the creatures that were chasing her. Like huge tractors, they were leaving a trail of destruction behind them. Yet she didn't move.

The ground trembled.

The roars made the whole structure of the library vibrate.

The golens bumped shoulder-to-shoulder, competing with each other to see who would win the race and crush the human once and for all.

And Gwen didn't move.

They were getting closer and closer.

Closer.

Gwen stood her ground, not showing a single trace of hesitation.

Closer.

Closer!

And they went through Gwen's body without doing her any harm.

If you think about it, you will see that it makes perfect sense that Gwen cannot use magic. Magic is a physical thing. An interaction between energy and the surrounding environment. Except that she is not in the surroundings, much less in the library. At least not physically.

The creatures looked strange, expecting more screams, blood or at least some broken bones, but there was none of that. On the contrary. Their victim remained standing as if nothing had happened. The stone golens again started to attack the teenager. They punched, kicked, slammed into the ground and made craters in the library floor, but the feeling was that they were always hitting the air.

Gwen walked towards the Charmcaster calmly, while the stone creatures insisted on trying to hit her. The girl's image vibrated like a hologram with interference with each attack, but that was all. A few meters short of reaching the villain's position, Gwen stopped and faced her.

"Stop!" shouted Charmcaster. It was a waste of time trying to hit an astral body.

The creatures ceased their futile efforts and positioned themselves behind their mistress, still not understanding what was happening.

"What do you want, Gwen?"

"I need your help."

"No." And she slammed her staff on the ground. A violet light covered the room.

Gwen put her hands to her eyes because of the excessive brightness. She could see nothing but violet. When her vision returned to normal, she realized that she was back in the Medical Wing of the Plumber Headquarters.

"Argh, how I hate her!"

Gwen fixed her posture again for meditation, disciplined her breathing, and concentrated again.

Her mind went back to the Charmcaster Library.

The enchantress was using magic to reverse the destruction in the library. One golem was lifting a bookcase, the other was carrying a pile of books back and forth.

"Charmcaster!" said Gwen.

"You again, girl!"

"Yes, I'm not happy about it either, but I need your help!"

"I already said no."

"You haven't even heard what my request is!"

"You're right. Go ahead."

"Thank you." Gwen smiled faintly. There was hope! "There are two da-"

Charmcaster taps her staff on the floor. Violet light. Gwen is back in the Medical Ward.

"Aaaah, how I want to break her face!" Gwen paced the room from side to side. "Make her swallow that staff!"

"Young lady, excuse me" A nurse appears at the door of the room "We are in a medical area, I'm going to ask you to please control the pitch of your voice."

"I'm sorry..." she said embarrassed.

The nurse nodded and closed the room door.

Look at the kind of humiliation she puts me through! - she thought.

With the silence, Gwen heard the beeping of the medical equipment again and looked at her cousin. Calm was needed. There are more important things at stake right now than her pride.

Gwen sat back in her escort chair and resumed her astral projection magic. Position. Eyes closed. Concentrated mind. Space. Time. Dimensions.

***

"Come on creature, lift that bookcase!" Charmcaster was coordinating the repair work. "No, I said, Terka magic books on that bookshelf!"

With her staff, she repaired the craters on the floor, moved objects back to their original position, made shattered vases go back in time and "un-shatter" themselves. In a matter of a few minutes, the library was back to its natural state.

"Perfect!" She looked at the fruits of her labor with pride "There, my children, now come back."

The golens began to reduce in size and to twist their own shape back into the appearance of a stone sphere, big enough to fit in one hand. Encantriz picked up the two spheres from the ground and placed them in her bag. As she closed the zipper, she said:

"You just don't give up, do you, girl?"

Behind her, Gwen stood watching her.

Charmcaster looks at the young woman. Her gaze wandered over Gwen's face, analyzing every inch of her face: the closed and tense mouth, the beads of sweat running down her temple, her eyes... She knew those eyes.

The villain revisited her memories. For a few moments, as she looked at Gwen it was as if she was looking at a younger version of herself. She knew that expression. That look. That pain.

"Okay, whatever," she said, turning her gaze and waving a hand as if to scare away thoughts. "You can use the books. Just point to some and the library will help you read them."

Gwen smiled.

"Thank you," she said.

Charmcaster didn't answer. She just walked down the corridors of the library to continue her studies.

You should give up, Gwendolin, she thought, believe me, it's less painful...

Chapter Text

Kevin started his investigative journey as soon as he left the Plumber Headquarters. He needed to keep his mind occupied so as not to screw up, so looking for clues and trying to understand Albedo's plan was something that could keep him "distracted" for quite some time.

What he would do when he found the Galvanian, he could no longer say for sure: How great was his willpower to keep the promise he made to Gwen?

In his car, Kevin traveled around the city in search of information. He went to biker bases and Undertown, passed TV networks and alien technology dumps, drove through abandoned amusement parks and quirky zoos. In a matter of hours, he traversed almost all of Bellwood.

Unwillingly, he was forced to revisit old acquaintances. To call them friends was perhaps too much, for most of them would like to see his head served with barbecue sauce on a silver platter.

And it was in a series of chance encounters with Argit, the underworld's porcupine trickster, that Kevin discovered one of his most relevant pieces of information:

"Come on, Argit, tell us what you know!"

"W-wait a minute, Kevin, my man!" Argit found himself upside down, being held by Kevin by only one of his legs. Below him was a fall of about 20 floors. "What's the need for all this aggression?"

"You've been running away from me since the first time you saw me."

"Yes, but..."

"The second time, you ran over my car and scratched the paint with your claws."

"Really? Look, you can pay for it."

"The third time, you tried to shoot those nasty spines of yours at me just as I was about to grab you."

"But you were covered with metal, and I knew it wouldn't hurt you."

"The fourth time, you threw a garbage can at my windshield and made me crash my car."

"I can't pay for that anymore..."

"Then you ambushed Octagon and Rhomboid in the Undertown to capture me."

"They told me they were going to throw a surprise party for you. I didn't imagine that they would try to rip your head off..."

Kevin looked up, staring at Argit, with the boulevard just below. The trickster flashed a yellow smile. The young man followed the good manners of the social contract and said with a smile:

"I'm glad you were able to find a space in your very tight schedule to talk to me, dear friend."

"H-hey, that's the kind of thing a friend is for..." Argit felt the wind swaying his body from side to side "B-but couldn't you put me down so we can talk like two civilized people?"

"No way."

"Got it." Argit watched the cars passing below him like little colored ants. "S-so tell me, how can I help you?"

Kevin got a serious expression and said:

"Albedo."

"I don't know any Albedo."

Kevin opened one of the fingers of the hand that held the porcupine.

"W-w-wait a minute!" Argit tried to move as little as possible so as not to slip out of Kevin's hand "I-I think I'm remembering a-something."

"I imagined you were."

"Albedo... Albedo..."

Kevin opened another finger. The wind was blowing violently at that point.

"Albedo! I remembered! Y-yes, he came to me. He wanted information about some equipment and materials."

"What for?"

"I don't know."

"Argit..."

"I'm serious, I don't know!"

Kevin trusted the answer. He bent his two fingers again around his interrogated man's leg.

"What is he looking for?"

"C-can't say."

Kevin opened three fingers.

"Oh my God!" Argit despaired, covering his eyes with his hands to try to avoid the dizziness and fear he felt when he looked down.

"What he wanted, Argit. Let's just say it!"

"H-he'll kill me if it turns out that I said anything, Kevin, and you know it!"

"Relax, I won't let him. I've got your back."

"Like this? I don't need it!"

Kevin wondered if Gwen would approve of his methods. Certainly not. He closed his hand again and held the porcupine firmly. He stepped off the edge of the building, carrying Argit, and dropped him to the roof floor.

The trickster groped the ground around him, trying to make sure he was back on solid ground and trying to calm his racing heart.

"Argit, I need some information. Come on, help me."

He stared at Kevin with anger in his eyes. He wanted to shove a thousand thorns into his face right now and run away. It wouldn't be that hard, just lean forward a little and...

***

Kevin was walking into the cave.

"Tadenita," was what Argit said before turning around and walking away. Their relationship wasn't the best, but let's just say that both of them had enough "scoundrel credit" with each other that they could "let this one go..."

The interior of the cave showed signs of mining. One or another transport cart was standing on a rail. There were several pickaxes lying along the way. Sometimes a small piece of Tadenite ore was found lying isolated in a corner. And it is a fact: the cave was too quiet and empty...

Kevin continued on his way, following the transport trail until he came to an opening with voices and sounds coming from within. The trail followed the opening and descended in a gentle curve until it reached an intersection of rails in the middle of a large space inside the cave. In the center, Vulkanus and about fifty pickaxe miners were gathered together.

The small Taedenite miners were walking back and forth, carrying parts and equipment. Vulkanus was out of his armor. This armor gave him at least two more feet of height. Together with his physical stature, this allowed him to reach a total height of 2.60 feets.

Kevin heard behind him a sound approaching and jumped through the hole moments before he was almost hit by a miner's pickaxe. The young man jumped onto the rail and slid down the iron, like a skateboarder on a railing, until he reached the ground, standing a few feet away from Vulkanus and surrounded by mining minions.

"Hey there, Vulkanus."

"What do you want, osmosian?" Vulkanus didn't turn around. On a mobile platform that changed height according to his will, he continued to tinker with his armor.

Kevin noticed that the famous armor was extremely damaged. An arm was missing, and there were holes, some plates were missing, and wiring was sticking out of openings in the exoskeleton.

Vulkanus was annoyed that he was being watched, so he asked again with more brutality in his voice:

"Say, what do you want?"

"Albedo," answered Kevin.

You know when you are talking some nonsense with a friend in class, and suddenly everyone is silent and you let out that embarrassing information that resonates and makes everyone turn around and stare at you? Well, that is how the cave reacted to Kevin's speech.

Many of the miners dropped the pieces and equipment in hand and wielded their pickaxes, ready to attack Kevin at the first command. Their leader, however, kept a close eye on the repairs to his armor.

"I don't know anything," replied Vulkanus.

"I'm pretty sure you do," Kevin watched as the villain welded a plate to the side of his exoskeleton. "This armor didn't crumble all by itself..."

"You think this is funny, kid?" Vulkanus dropped his tool and finally faced Kevin.

"Actually, I do."

"I've always thought you were a cheater, a liar, and irresponsible," Vulkanus gritted his eyes angrily, "but I never thought you were stupid. Do you want me to kill you, Osmosian?"

"What is it? Are you ashamed that you got beaten up by Albedo and are making threats to try to cover it up!"

The seconds that followed seemed to last for hours. Maybe the tense mutism was an important variable in the construction of the uncomfortable environment in which they found themselves.

The silence was broken the instant the villain gave the order:

"Finish him off!"

The miners attacked all at once. Kevin was firing kicks and punches, throwing minions everywhere. The cave was coated with the sound of battle.

Vulkanus turned his back to the confusion and continued repairs on his armor. With pliers he cut some wires and repositioned them inside one of the side panels.

Kevin jumped over a transport cart and kicked it towards the goons coming towards him. A miner jumped up ready to hit his head, when he grabbed him still in the air and threw him into the nearest wall.

Vulkanus lowered the platform to the knee height of the armor and bolted the right joint. He was looking for a screw, when he realized that it was between his lips. He thought a "wow, how distracted am I" and continued to screw.

Kevin shook off two minions that jumped on his back, throwing them against some wooden pillars that supported the rails. Two other minions were running toward him, one of them struck with a pickaxe to the right of his face. Kevin dodged, then punched the minion hard enough to propel him against another minion.

Vulkanus, meanwhile, with the platform at chest height on his armor, was finishing replacing the shoulder plates and finishing the last touches. Then he realized that the sounds of the hubbub had stopped. Only a single gasping breath could be heard.

"Vulkanus!" Standing up, surrounded by several fainted henchmen, Kevin kept his gaze fixed on the villain, who was trying his best not to show the intensity of his discomfort.

"..."

"Albedo, where did he go?"

The villain kept silent. His arrogance wouldn't allow him to assume he had lost. Twice more.

A remaining miner jumped toward Kevin, pickaxe in hand, ready to pierce the young man's thorax. Kevin held the tool and punched the henchman in the face, causing him to drop the pickaxe.

Vulkanus felt a wind blow past his face the instant the pickaxe hit the center of the chest of his armor.

The core of the armor turned into a fireball as it exploded, turning the exoskeleton into thousands of pieces. Vulkanus was thrown with the shockwave and slid backwards across the floor until he was stopped by Kevin's foot, resting on his huge head.

"I'll ask you just once more" Kevin was clad in Tadenite, his arm deformed at one enormous point, resembling a green stalagmite, which dangled over the villain's eyes "Where. Is. Albedo?"

***

Kevin stopped the car as soon as he reached the place. A huge building, with its architecture based on 16th century castles, adorned with red flags. Knights walked from one side to the other, securing the place.

Chapter Text

Max Tennyson was walking down the runway toward the plumbing ship. A few meters away, he saw Chief Mechanic Dankker coming down the boarding ramp of the spaceship, with a handkerchief, drying the sweat from his forehead.

“Magistrate Tennyson!” The mechanic was looking for a pocket to keep his handkerchief, but when he realized that they were all occupied with some tool or snack for later, he gave up and decided to continue with the wipe in hand. “Everything is ready for the trip: tank filled up, hyperspace system checked, and water in the windshield wipers. Just start up and go!”

“Thanks a lot, Dankker!” Max said smiling “I apologize for having to arrange everything at such short notice...”

“No problem, Magistrate, it's my job!”

“Anyway, thanks, I owe you one.”

Max climbed the boarding ramp carrying only a handbag. As he was about to close the boarding door, the chief mechanic called his attention and said:

“Everything will be fine, Max, don't worry. We'll take care of him. “

Without smiling, Grandpa Max nodded his head in affirmative and stared at the floor of the ship as the boarding door closed.

***

The spacecraft had just left the Earth's atmosphere and was heading off into the dark infinitude of space.

Max, dressed in his plumbers' spacesuit, was checking the conditions and data displayed on the ship's panels. Sometimes, a certain point in the trajectory needed to be corrected, but other than this, the spacecraft traveled smoothly, with everything operating according to plan.

He activated the ship's autopilot and prepared to load hyperspace. Even with faster-than-light speed, the trip could last a few days. He got up from the pilot's chair and walked through the corridors of the ship. It was a small size ship, supporting about five crew members, but at the moment only Max was in the middle of it.

Alone.

Just him and his thoughts.

His damned thoughts.

***

Max was in pain. A throbbing pain was spreading through the back of his head. Darkness. Slowly, he managed to open a gap between his eyelids. Pain. His body slumped sitting on the warehouse floor. His head was throbbing.

A crate crashed into the wall beside him. What was that! Alert eyes tried to comprehend the blurred images struggling to form in his vision. More pain.

Max felt as if a shockwave pushed his body against the wall. A yellow electric beam hit the floor beside him. His vision was beginning to acquire minimal definition. Something orange... A rush of ideas came over his mind. For a few moments he couldn't tell who it was or where he was. Again another shockwave came over him.

I can't breathe.

Somehow his brain was no longer able to transmit nerve impulses and his diaphragm became paralyzed. Just as suddenly, breathing returned. The image in front of him was beginning to take on meaning...

Ben...

Max struggles to get up. With his hand resting on the ground, he tried to overcome the gravity that at that moment resembled that of Jupiter. He tried at the same time to stay upright and to remain fixed on the ground so as not to be carried away by the whirlwind of objects flying around.

Ben!

He looked at his grandson in his cerebrocrustacean form at the epicenter of the chaos, without any control of his powers. Guilt. An opening in one of the back walls of the warehouse allowed more light to enter the room. The ceiling was beginning to crack, and in some places part of the structure was beginning to give way. He needed to do something. He wanted to shout his grandson's name in the vain hope of being heard, but at that moment his brain didn't know how to speak anymore.

It didn't know what to do. On his side, the rifle was dangling from the diagonal strap. There was no other way...

He picked up the rifle.

***

Max turned a corner in the hallway and stopped in front of the door to his dormitory, which opened automatically as he approached. The place, once occupied by beds and a few closets, was now lined with medical equipment from floor to ceiling. All automated and connected to the spaceship's artificial intelligence system.

Thanks again, Dankker, he thought.

Of course he was not fully recovered, but he needed to go after Azmuth. He needed to get the Omnitrix out of Ben's arm. And how to do this while still recovering? Simple: by collecting all the outstanding favors possible and breaking about twenty-three articles of conduct of the Plumber's Code.

Suddenly, the silence was covered by the computerized voice from the ship:

“Hyperspace charged, Magistrate. Activate hyperspace?”

“Is there any pendency that limits activation?” Max always found it awkward to respond to artificial intelligence from ships. It's awkward talking to something you can't see yourself.

“No, Magistrate.”

“You can activate.”

“Activating hyperspace.”

A high-pitched sound spread throughout the ship. Through the window, what were once fixed points of phantom glows now became horizontal lines with no sign of beginning or end. A slight jolt indicated that the ship had just entered hyperspace. Now it was just a matter of waiting.

“Hyperspace activated,” said the computerized voice. “Destination: Galvan Prime. Estimated time: 64 Earth hours.”

“Right. Thank you comput-“

Max's headache came back on. It wasn't the first time it had happened, and it wouldn't be the last if he didn't get proper treatment, according to his doctor. "Two weeks in a suspension chamber, with medication to stop the progression of the injury, in continuous infusion." Max's counterproposal was, "How much of the treatment can I do with medical equipment from our spacecraft?"

The pain lasted seconds, but it felt like hours. The positive point is that just as suddenly as the pain appeared, it also disappeared. The negative point: sooner or later it would come back.

Max took off the rough part of his uniform and sat down on the hospital bed prepared exclusively for him. Automated arms came out of the walls and began to move around him, preparing the medical equipment and drugs needed for treatment. The accelerated and absurdly coordinated behavior of the mechanical arms brought his mind back to the entrance of the Eastern Power Sector.

***

Max was carrying Ben in his arms and running through the corridors of the Power Sector. As soon as he spotted the Plumber ambulances parked at the entrance, he ran towards the vehicles and began to call out:

“Medic! I need a medic!”

A paramedic walked away from a patient who was being put into one of the ambulances. She indicated that they could leave without her and ran towards Max and Ben.

“What happened!” The paramedic motioned with her hand for a stretcher for one of the nurses.

“I-I don't know,” Max carefully placed Ben on the stretcher. “He was having trouble with the Omnitrix and seems to have lost control with one of his transformations.”

The paramedic looked confused at Max. What on earth was he talking about? She turned her gaze back to the unconscious young man; at first she didn't recognize him, but when she saw the watch with the Plumber symbol on its handle, it all made sense:

“This is Ben Tennyson!?”

“Exactly,” answered Max.

Suddenly, the unconscious Ben began to move his body again. Not with coordinated movements like a "wave hello" with his hand or a "thumbs-up", but with disconnected movements, as if all the muscles were being contracted in a disorganized manner, causing him to shake and sway on the stretcher.

“He's convulsing! Jackson, help me turn him over,” said the paramedic to an assistant.

Max remained paralyzed. He knew what to do, he knew the basics of first aid, but at that moment, in that instant, he couldn't move a single muscle.

The teenager's body was rocking with a force that Max never imagined his grandson would have, the nurses and paramedic were trying to keep him on his side until the crisis passed. Suddenly, Ben's arms folded over his chest and his legs were fully extended, with his head bowed back.

“Hold him down, I'll get the sedative!” she ran to one of the vehicles. She returned from inside the ambulance in a matter of seconds with a syringe pulling the liquid from inside a glass.

As soon as she injected the medication, Ben's body slowly came out of a state of complete contraction and adopted a relaxed posture, remaining unconscious. The nurse placed the balloon mask over the young's face and offered him oxygen while he carried the patient to the ambulance.

“Let's get him to the Plumber's Medical Ward,” the paramedic said, as if pulling Max out of a trance. “You may accompany the ambulance if you wish. By the way, sir...”

“Tennyson. Max Tennyson.”

“Pleasure to meet you, Magistrate. Dr. Espinoza. Don't worry, we'll take care of him...”

***

The sharp pain of the needle piercing his skin made Max leave his memories where they belonged.

“Magistrate, we are ready to begin treatment.” said the ship.

“Right.” Max lay down on the bed and stared at the dormitory lamp on the ceiling that stood out from the makeshift medical room.

“During the treatment, you will be given a small dose of sedative. This way, you will sleep-”

“No. No sedative.”

“But magistrate, according to protocol, the treatment demands a long period of rest, you will not be able to move. If you sleep, the time will pass more quickly.”

“That is not necessary. You can start the treatment.”

“Sir, I'm sorry, but I must insist that-”

“Without. Sedative.”

“Right, Magistrate. Starting infusion.”

A mechanical arm supports an oxygen mask over Max's face.

He remains awake throughout.

Alone.

Just him and his thoughts.

His damned thoughts.

Chapter Text

Chapter 13. Old friend

Charmcaster extends her arms upward and tries to stretch the muscles of her spine. A pop is heard from one of the vertebrae. Now it is the turn of the neck. She rotates her head from side to side. Two more snaps. Sitting in her chair for hours, studying one book after the other, made her muscles tense after a while.

She looked at the old clock stuck on the wall. It's so late already! She almost misses dinner.

The sorceress got up from her chair and headed for one of the corridors formed by the bookshelves. Every six meters, a space appeared between one bookcase and another, forming a new corridor that cut through all the others. And it was while passing through one of these intersections that she saw her archenemy.

Gwendolin was standing in front of a huge bookcase. Behind her, two stacks of books floated, waiting to be read or re-read. Another three books lay open, levitating in front of the young woman's face. She looked up to the top shelf of one bookcase and pointed to a book with a green cover. The object moved from its position and joined the other floating open books.

Charmcaster stopped looking at the teenager, with the disinterest of someone who gives up watching a TV show, and continued walking between the bookshelves to the back of the library ― restricted to authorized personnel only ― in search of her dinner.

The sorceress had always been in the habit of going to bed late. Many times, because she was wrapped up in her studies and in the knowledge that her uncle's library could offer her, she ended up going to bed a few hours before the sun woke up. Several times she only went to bed because her body practically forced her to.

He also had the habit of checking all the library's security systems before lowering his guard for activities that expose such fragility as sleeping. He checked the two alarms, the three magical protective barriers, the time clamp and the lock on the front door. It may seem like overkill for all this energy and equipment used in protecting a place like a library, but the presence of the lock made all the difference.

Everything being in place, Charmcaster headed down the upper corridor towards her room. With a mug of hot chocolate in hand, she blew the smoke that came out and drank it in small gulps to test the temperature. From the parapet of the corridor, it was possible to observe the many bookshelves that spread out like a great labyrinth. And in the middle of it, Gwen, standing, reading five books at the same time. The stacks of books that followed her were now three in number.

Go to sleep, girl, and get the hell out of my library! she thought. And she made her way to her room, taking slightly bigger sips of her chocolate.

As soon as she woke up from the little sleep she had managed to get, Charmcaster went towards the common area of the library. Her hope: to prove to herself that this story of determination was bullshit and that sooner or later, everyone had to give up at some point.

But no...

Gwen stood in front of the bookshelves, with five stacks floating behind her and two more open books in front of her. The young woman used her right index finger to follow the reading through the pages, being careful not to get too close and end up crossing the object.

How! thought Charmcaster.

How does she manage to stay out of her body for so long?

For what?

For whom?

Charmcaster didn't even pretend to herself anymore.

Every half hour, she would go to her arch-nemesis and check if she was still there, always taking care not to be seen. And even if she wanted to be seen, I don't think she could get Gwen out of her almost absolute concentration.

On one of the occasions ― it would be maybe the fourth or fifth, I had already lost count ― the Charmcaster focused her attention on the books that accompanied her: Human Anatomy; Charms of Rurquart; Physiology; Surgical Magic; Neuroanatomy; The Tharkiniol; Neurosurgery; How to invade the mind and convince people to obey you in 47 illustrated steps; Psychobiology; The Scientific and Magical Basis of Sleep...

Suddenly, Charmcaster began to notice that Gwen's image started to fade slightly. He looked at the girl's face and saw her eyelids begin to make a progressive falling motion, like a ball dropping and bouncing on the floor. She was beginning to doze off!

She looked around for something that might catch Gwen's attention, make some noise, whatever! Then she realized that she was surrounded by books. Charmcaster picked up a thick hardcover and threw it hard to the floor. The noise echoed throughout the library.

Gwen was startled. Her heart raced and, above all, her astral image returned to the definition it had been before.

Charmcaster took the book in hand and strode down the corridor, beside Gwen, with a look of disdain. When she realized that she was being followed by the young woman's gaze, she turned and said:

"What's wrong girl? The book just fell out when I went to pick it up." And she continued walking with the young woman's confused look following her.

Why the hell did I justify myself to her! he thought.

Gwen looked away from the open books and watched Charmcaster approach, walking down the corridor with her staff in one hand. When she was at a sufficient distance for a polite handshake, she stopped.

Standing still and silent, she remained so for a few seconds.

Gwen, not understanding anything, just stared at her. Would she kick her out of the library again?

"Here," said Charmcaster. In her hand was a blue-covered book with the word Somnus in silver letters.

"You know I can't touch it," replied Gwen.

Charmcaster let go of the book, which floated away, and stood in front of Gwen.

"Maybe it will help you with what you're looking for."

Gwen pointed to the book, which opened, and the pages flipped with the invisible help of the library. On the pages were exactly what she had been looking for all this time.

"For the Ebhardy civilization," said Charmcaster, "coma is seen not only as a consequence of neurological damage, but is sometimes the way the person's mind finds to force the individual to deal with his fears, anxieties and afflictions."

The young woman lifted her gaze from the pages and said smiling:

"Thank you, Charmcaster."

"If you say that again, I'll kill you."

"One question: how did you know that this is what I was looking for?"

The Sorceress bangs her staff on the floor. A violet light fills the room, forcing Gwen out of her spell.

When she opened her eyes, she was back in the Medical Ward companion chair. In front of her, Ben was still unconscious, hooked up to various devices. In his lap, the sorceress' blue book.

Gwen felt tired, but at the same time, something was taking over her being and made her forget the tiredness, at least for the moment.

"Hope", an old friend who had not appeared for some time.

Chapter Text

“You, the redhead, step forward and introduce yourself!”

“Phillip, my lord,” said Kevin. “Pageboy and future eternal knight.”

“An ambitious young man, I must say,” Sir William, in his silver armor and red cloak, stared at Kevin, I mean, Philip. He smiled and continued “That's good, without ambition you can't achieve anything! You, the tall one, step forward and introduce yourself!”

Kevin invaded the castle of the Forever Knights. Using an ID mask, he adopted the identity of Philip, a young red-haired man with freckles, a broad nose, and a great dream of one day becoming an Forever Sir. But for this, it would take a long journey as a page, to one day become a squire and, after much dedication, rise to the rank of knight. How he would earn the title of Sir was already something that his imagination did not allow him to think about when creating the lie.

At this moment Kevin was standing in a line with nineteen other young pageboys, with their backs to the main gate of the castle. Sir William walked briskly from one side to the other, his judgmental gaze wandering over the fearful expressions of the new recruits. Beside the knight, a squire with a clipboard took notes on the new members of the order and walked at the same pace as his lord.

Of the twenty young men, who at this moment were struggling to keep their urinary bladder functioning, only two besides Kevin (Phillip) are relevant to the story: Theodore and George. And why? Because they were the only ones that Kevin addressed. Actually, no. They were the ones who brought up Kevin, but after three grunts, two snorts with their nostrils and six disapproving looks, the Osmosian finally responded with words.

“... and should one of you be caught breaking any of these rules, gentlemen, expect no pity or mercy," Sir William concluded his instructions to the new recruits.

Sorry not to put the instructions at the beginning for you to follow, dear readers, but it is enough that the poor pages are forced to listen to several minutes of blah-blah-blah; “you can do this, you can't do that”; “you will be beheaded” and a bunch of other nonsense.

Finally, the knight concluded:

“Are we clear?”

“Yes, my lord!” they all replied at the same time.

“My Squire will show you to your quarters. Dismissed!”

The row of pageboys opened a space between their members to allow the knight, in his flowing red cape, to pass, as he went outside the castle. Then the Squire ― a young man a little older than the pageboys, with curly black hair and wearing a ridiculous red and white outfit ― asked for everyone's attention and began:

“I would say 'good day' if it was a good day, but having to deal with their nasty faces first thing in the morning is bound to kill the 'good' side of any day.”

The stewards looked at each other, confused. Was this a great example of Small Power Syndrome?

The Squire continued:

“If you have any questions, keep them to yourselves. If you have any complaints, keep them to yourself. If you have any compliments, keep them to yourself too, because I don't care what you like or don't like. Are we in agreement?”

“Yes, sir...” they all answered at the same time.

“Great, keep up with me” And he followed through the row, bumping into the arm of one of the recruits.

Theodore tilted his head toward Kevin (Phillip) and whispered:

“Nice guy, huh?”

Kevin answered nothing and continued walking quietly.

“Please tell me that all this "friendliness" is not contagious?” said Theodore.

***

“You three will be responsible for sweeping the yard.” The other page boys were also divided into tasks, but Phillip, Theodore and George were left with the task of cleaning the huge area of the courtyard. The upside is that it would be a large amount of time to be allocated to just one task, which would allow Kevin to concentrate on his next steps now that he was inside the castle. The downside is that Theodore and George were the talkative types and wouldn't shut up for a second, preventing Kevin from thinking.

“My father said that my name was inspired by the Knight-Founder of the Order,” said George. The young man with curly hair and glasses held his broomstick like a sword pointing to the sky.

“Really? I thought Jorge was the name of the Founder?” said Theodore. His physical features of Asian descent allied to his height, tall for his age, made him stand out among the other pageboys. At the moment he had his head resting on his hands that held the top of the broom and kept it upright.

“This depends on where you hear the story. In my case, it was inspired by the British version.”

“Cool. My name was not inspired by anything, I guess.” Theodore turned to Kevin and said: “And you, Phillip? Is your name a tribute too?”

Kevin answered with a frown and continued sweeping.

“Are you going to continue to be the quiet one? Then fine...” said Theodore.

“You should be sweeping instead of wasting time chattering,” said Kevin finally. “If Sir William shows up...”

“You've decided to talk at last!” said George.

“He's right, George,” said Theodore, “let's get back to work before Sir or his annoying Squire shows up.”

The quiet movement of the courtyard was suddenly changed by the arrival of the truck. As soon as the gate opened, the yard was lined with knight-soldiers: some to escort and secure the cargo, others to unload the truck and some just to satisfy curiosity. The fact is that in a matter of moments, all the attention in the castle turned to the vehicle and its mysterious cargo.

“What's going on?” asked Theodore.

Kevin approached his colleagues. He could not continue sweeping, as the crowd and his curiosity would not let him.

“Won't tell anyone,” George whispered, “but it seems that they discovered some mysterious technology in the west castle and are transferring it to ours for safekeeping.”

A square container reinforced with seals was taken from inside the truck and carried through the courtyard, with a sort of floating platform, into the castle. Riders escorted the cargo with guns at the ready.

“What did they found?” Kevin asked George.

“I don't know much. But from what I found out by snooping around my father's office.”

“Your father?” Kevin interrupted.

“My father is one of the Sirs of this castle. Responsible for tactical planning. Sir Gustav, have you ever heard of him?”

Kevin remembered punching a chief knight in the face a few months ago, if his name is Gustav he couldn't tell. George continued:

“He has a flaw in his right eyebrow and a patch of gray hair on the sides.”

Yeah, he's the one I punched in the face indeed.... he thought.

“I don't know him.” said Kevin.

“Anyway, they were after an ancient object called Chaotic, which according to them possesses a technology still unknown on planet Earth.”

“And what does it do?” asked Theodore.

“I don't know, man, but it must do a lot of damage. Otherwise they wouldn't be so careful...”

Kevin kept his gaze fixed on the reinforced doors that closed soon after this Chaotic entered the castle.

I'm sure that's what Albedo is after? He thought. The question now is how to stop him from getting...

“Hey, you useless!” the Squire's voice coming from one of the castle windows was still annoying no matter if heard from near or far. “Stop wasting your time and get back to work before I put you to work cleaning all the windows in the castle too!”

“Come on, guys,” said George, “we don't want to annoy the little king any more...”

Kevin went back to sweeping, both the floor and his thoughts. With a new objective in view, he had to rework his plans from the beginning...

Chapter Text

“Magistrate Tennyson, we are approaching the orbit of Galvan Prime,” says the ship's computer.

“Wonderful” Max changes position and, sitting with his legs hanging over the side of the hospital bed, he begins to remove the electrodes from his chest.

“Sir, the treatment is only 14% complete. I recommend that you allow me to complete it before releasing you to your work.”

“I appreciate the concern, computer, but it will have to be enough for now.” With a slightly pained expression, Max removes the venous accesses from his arms “Request landing permission from Galvan Prime, please.”

“Yes, Magistrate.”

Max put on his Plumber's uniform and headed towards the main cabin. As soon as the access door opened, the computer began to tell him the news:

“Sir, our permission has been denied.”

-What do you mean?” He quickened his pace and approached the command panel “Establish contact with Galvan Prime, I need to understand what is going on.”

“Yes, sir.”

Max checked the data and graphics on the ship's screens while he waited for the computer's response. Time was something he could not waste. After a few seconds, the answer came:

“Connection established with Galvan Prime, Magistrate.”

“Put it on the screen.”

The main screen was then occupied by the image of a Galvanian dressed in a green uniform, with a device attached to what would be the entrance of his ear canal.

“My name is Milzher, from the Galvan Prime Entry Control, how may I help you?” said the Galvanian.

“Hello Milzher, I am Magistrate Tennyson of the Plumbers, I would like to request landing on Galvan Prime.”

“Spacecraft code, please.”

“Computer, pass on the information.”

For a few minutes Max could only hear the sound of keys being pressed, at an admirable speed, on the other side of the screen.

“Right, Mr. Magistrate. However, there are no reports in our records of any travel from Earth to Galvan Prime.”

“I explain: I am on a mission, and unfortunately conditions have forced me to make this unannounced trip.”

“I see…” his apathetic tone of voice showed no signs of understanding.

“Am I free to enter?”

“Unfortunately, Mr. Magistrate, we cannot release you for internal security reasons, and since there was no prior notice of your arrival, we remain-”

“What do you mean?” Max interrupted. He knew that the Galvanian bureaucracy often bordered on the absurd, but there was a limit to being absurd!

“As I said, Mr. Magistrate, for reasons of internal security we-”

“That I understand, young fellow, and at first I did not question the impediment, it is your protocol. But understand, I am not here as a civilian, I am here as a Magistrate on a mission, and Galvan Prime is under the protection of the Plumbers, for this reason, I ask you to reevaluate the request for entry, it is of utmost importance!”

Max, in the last few days, had already broken a few dozen rules, breaking one more, lying and abusing his power to gain access ― after all it was a much more personal mission than an official one ― would not make his situation any worse.

The Galvanian remained silent for a few seconds, then turned his head to the side and started talking to someone outside the camera frame. What he was saying could not be heard either, as the microphone was turned off.

The more the parallel conversation went on, the more Max became annoyed.

The conversation lasted about three minutes. Finally, the Galvanian resumed his attention to Max and said:

“Landing authorized. The coordinates are being sent to your ship right now.”

“Thank you.” He replied, trying to hide the uneasiness in his speech.

“You are welcome. And welcome to Galvan Prime.” he said with the same apathy as before. “The First Manager, leader of the Galvanic Council, will be waiting for you at the landing area.”

“Excuse me, what?”

***

The landing turbines made the ship approach the ground like a slowly falling tree leaf overcoming the resistance of the air. Two support points came down from the sides of the ship and touched the ground allowing the ship to rest. The boarding ramp was beginning to slide and Max was already at the exit of the ship ready to disembark.

As he descended the ramp, the Magistrate observed a Galvanian, standing on a small floating circular platform, approach the ship accompanied by six Galvanian soldiers, with jetpack-like equipment flying around the Galvanian leader.

“Magistrate Tennyson,” the galvanian on the platform extended his arms toward Max as if to give him a hug that didn't happen. “What an honor to finally meet you!”

“Forgive me, Mr. First-manager, but I-”

“Fahtzi. Call me Fahtzi, please.” The platform floated high enough for the First Manager to look Max in the eye.

“Okay, Fahtzi.”

“May I call you Max?”

“Yes...”

“Tell me, for what reason did the hero of the Plumbers decide to visit our humble Galvan Prime?” With his hand he pointed to the imposing buildings of advanced technology that spread across the landscape.

“I'm sorry, First Manager-“

“Fahtzi, please.”

“I'm sorry, Fahtzi... But I cannot reveal the reasons that brought me here today.”

“I understand, I understand, you must be on a secret mission for the Plumbers, no problem.” Fahtzi pointed to the entrance of the Galvanic Council building and moved his platform like someone offering passage to a guest. “But that doesn't mean I can't welcome you properly. Please, come in.”

“First Manager, you don't have to-”

“Fahtzi.”

“Mr. Fahtzi, it's not necessary.”

“Just Fahtzi, there's no need for formality between us, Max.”

“Okay. As I was saying, there is no need. I am very honored that you have come to welcome me, but...” Max watched the first-manager float away on his platform towards the entrance. “But, you're not even listening to me...”

“Come on, Max,” from the entrance of the building, the Galvanian was waving. “I've asked them to prepare a meal especially for you. It's not necessarily a banquet, since your arrival took us all by surprise, but I'm sure it will be to your taste.”

Max began to walk following the Galvanian leader and his train into the Council building. As soon as he stepped through the opening doors, they were closed behind him by two guards. The magistrate and the Galvanians continued walking down a wide corridor. Fahtzi kept talking, I don't know if he ever stopped talking at any point:

“I learned from the stories that you are a great connoisseur of gastronomy beyond the limits of the Yersen galaxy, so you will surely appreciate what our chef has prepared.”

“Mister Fahtzi-”

“Just Fahtzi.”

“Fahtzi” Max stopped in the hall. “Unfortunately I can't stay.”

The leader and his soldiers also stopped and turned their attention to the magistrate.

“What do you mean, Max?” Fahtzi floated back “Have you stopped enjoying Yersinia's cuisine? Don't be, we'll prepare something different! Do you like flambéed tentacles in the esiadian sauce? I believe we still have some left in the-”

“Sir, I'm really sorry, but I won't be able to stay.” Max cut through the first-manager's speech. “It is true that I am on a mission, and at this moment, the time factor is of crucial importance.”

“No, no, no, don't worry, I'm sorry, I guess I got a little too excited too...”

“If it were under other circumstances, I would be delighted to accompany you to a banquet, first-manager, but unfortunately this time it won't be possible.”

“Don't worry, Max, I fully understand. What's more, if there is any way that I can help you to make up for lost time.”

The magistrate knew how difficult it was to establish contact with the great thinker Azmuth. He had been trying for days via communicator and had been getting no response. And from his previous experience, even if he was standing about one meter away from the scientist, with him walking around him, sometimes even tripping over his shoe, even then, the chance of not getting an answer from him was very high.

He decided to accept the galvanic leader's help:

“I need to find Azmuth.”

“I'm sorry, Max, but that won't be possible," answered Fahtzi.”

“Something has happened to Azmuth!?”

“No, no! Calm down, nothing happened to the great thinker Azmuth!”

“What happened then?”

“About two weeks ago, he went out into the galaxy on one of his researches. And when this happens, he becomes incommunicado for days.”

“And why is that?”

“It is his way, we are not sure why. We believe he hates to be disturbed and takes it to an extreme.”

Max looked away and stared at the ground. Finding Azmuth was his plan A, and his only plan, to tell the truth.

“And how long does he usually stay like this, incommunicado?”

“Last time he was gone for almost four galvanic months, that would be something... doing the calculations... something like seventeen earth years...”

It's over, Max thought.

“I...” Max was trying to formulate some sentence, but wasn't sure what to say.

“I'm sorry, Max. If there's anything else I can do. Anything at all, just say it!”

“Don't worry, Fahtzi. Unfortunately it was something only Azmuth could handle.”

“I understand. We will keep in contact, if we have any news, we will let you know.”

“Thank you. Excuse me...”

The Magistrate tried to disguise it, but his frustration was high enough to start leaking through his expression, speech, and even his breathing. He walked back down the corridor towards his spaceship. He went through the doors held securely by the guards and up the ship's access ramp.

Max entered the main cabin, being greeted by the automated computer voice.

“Welcome back, Magistrate. What are your orders?”

“Make the return trip to Earth.”

“That's affirmative.”

Grandfather Max walked slowly away and sat down in the captain's chair, watching the landscape that was beginning to move through the main window. The tops of the buildings on Galvan Prime were beginning to be seen as the ship gained height.

Max propped his right elbow on the armrest of the chair. With his hand he covered his eyes. His frustration was now beginning to overflow through his eyes.

The spacecraft reached enough height to leave the atmosphere of Galvan Prime. On the far horizon, the dark moon of the planet was visible, orbiting. The computer's voice resounded again through the cabin:

“Course set, Magistrate, activate hyperspace?”

Max uncovered his eyes, raised his head and said:

“In a minute, computer, hold on a moment. Now, who are you and how did you get in?”

Standing with her back to Max, a young blonde woman was watching the spaceship's screens. Realizing that the question had been directed at her, the young woman turned and facing him, said:

“Hello, Magistrate, my name is Eunice. I need your help to save Azmuth.”

Chapter Text

“Somnus vitae, rudis sik... sik...”

That word is so hard to pronounce! Thought Gwen. Even so, she kept trying.

“Sikhtar... Sikhtiear... Ah, what the hell,” and walked off across the room.

It takes a lot of care and discipline to perform the spell. One wrong word and maybe Ben's head would appear glued to his right thigh. So every word needed to be said with perfect diction; every hand movement needed to be performed with the delicacy of a watchmaker; every particle of magical energy needed to be channeled in a surgical manner. Primum nocere, as medicine says.

“Somnus vitae, rudis sikhetaerdür, expirs sar thurr... Not thurr, dhurr...”

And he walked back across the room.

The young woman was apprehensive. Although she studied every detail of the book, she could not predict exactly how effective the spell would be. What if it got worse! No. This was not the time to think about that...

But what if?

She looked at her unconscious cousin lying in the hospital bed. According to Dr. Lünderg, Ben might wake up after a few hours. He didn't. He could wake up after a few days. It has been two days and nothing so far. Months? Years? It was impossible to predict.

He thought about his grandfather. The pain in his eyes. The guilt. Grandpa Max always took care of us, imagine the pain he must be going through right now...

She thought of Kevin. A hard shell on the outside, but soft at heart. He didn't know how to deal with situations like these. He already lost his father, his mother, now his friend...

He thought of himself. Ben was more than just a boring, show-off cousin. He was his best friend. It was because he had found this crappy watch that they were able to have the most amazing adventures! He found out about his anodite nature. He met amazing people and exotic worlds. And all this was about to end...

No.

It wasn't.

Gwen stood at the foot of the bed. She adjusted her posture. Both hands palms up, one on top of the other, not touching. She closed her eyes. He began to levitate.

The violet glow of his eyes flooded the room as soon as he opened them.

His hands made a circular motion, drawing a circle of magic.

“Somnus vitae.”

The circle grew in size, covering Gwen and Ben's entire bed.

Gwen's hands moved in a symmetrical motion, drawing geometric shapes. New shapes appeared drawn in the air and delicately positioned themselves around the room.

“Rudis sikhetaerdür.”

On his forehead three small circles appeared, one inside the other. The circles began to rotate, each on a constantly changing axis.

“Expirs sar dhurr.”

Around Ben's head, three hexagons were drawn in the air. They each rotated in one direction, with the young man's head acting as the central point of rotation.

The room was bathed in a violet glow, accompanied by white and pink beams that drifted through the room.

Slowly, Gwen returned her hands to their original position. She stretched her neck, moving her head back and concluded:

“Despertare!”

A metallic sound like a large bell echoed through the room. A white luminosity began to cover Gwen's body, turning her into a huge silhouette of light. Suddenly the luminous form began to twist and distort, being sucked into the moving circles that had previously occupied Gwen's forehead. Then there was silence.

In the room, no sign of magic or spells. Just Ben and the medical equipment keeping him company.

***

When Gwen entered the interior of Ben's mind, at first she feared she would find various Sumo wrestlers battling each other, video game characters, or secrets that only the internet history had the displeasure of knowing. After all, we are talking about the mind of a teenager in full hormonal prime.

But this is not what she found.

Gwen was in Bellwod, her home town.

Of course, it was not a Bellwood like the one in real life, because if you paid close attention to the horizon, you would see that the image would distort or even disappear. But other than that, it was all the same.

In fact, something very important was not the same either: there were no people.

Gwen walked through the city, through the commercial area, walked along the avenues and even highways, walked through parks, and passed in front of her school. And in every place there was not the slightest sign of people.

Several times he called Ben's name, but received no answer.

He headed towards the residential neighborhood, maybe he would find some clue at his cousin's house.

As soon as he turned the corner and entered the street, he noticed the presence of the Rust Bucket parked in front of the house. Deja vu? Aside from the fact that it was daytime, the image of the parked trailer reminded him of the night Ben had his first crisis.

Not thinking about that now...

Gwen approached the trailer. On tiptoe and with her hands helping to filter the light around her eyes, she looked around for someone inside the vehicle. Nothing.

As she walked towards the door of the house, she watched the windows from a distance, with no sign of the residents' presence. Even so, he pressed the doorbell as good manners dictate.

Two arms came out of the house as soon as the door opened and pulled her by the shoulders into the house. Closing the door soon after.

Gwen prepared a mana ball in her left hand, ready to fire. What stopped you was recognizing the owner of the arms.

“Ben!” she said.

“Shh,” with a finger over his lips he called for silence.

“What?”

Ben looked through a crack in the living room curtain. With one hand he waved a "wait" at his cousin. He needed to make sure that the area was safe.

“I needed to make sure that the area was safe,” he said, although I had already said so.

“Safe from what?” she looked at the surroundings.

From above ― destroying roof, furniture, and perhaps some of the moral integrity of both cousins who screamed at the sudden appearance ― a creature falls in the center of the living room. Its appearance was difficult to comprehend, but its form was large, bipedal, with a broad chest and arms. Its head and legs were tiny compared to the proportion of its torso. Somehow, looking at the creature caused discomfort.

“Safe from that!” shouted Ben.

Chapter Text

Kevin was trying to keep himself calm enough not to make a mistake and put everything at risk.

“You're just a worm,” the Squire shouted at Theodore, “not a worm. A worm would be too good for you... You're the excrement of a worm,” the squire pointed his finger in the page's face, “No, come on, I wish you were just excrement! You are the bacteria in a worm's excrement! You are not capable of doing a simple task! Useless, incompetent! Now, get out of my sight!”

Theodore nodded slightly and walked off to the right. There was no sign of the young man's characteristic good humor.

The Squire followed his victim with his gaze until he saw him kneel by the toilet and pick up a mop. A smile formed at the corner of his lips. He turned in the opposite direction from Theodore and headed for the upper floors.

Kevin approached Theodore. He crouched down next to him, took one of the mops as well, and began to help him clean the communal bathroom.

“No need, man,” said Theodore.

“Relax, I'm done with my chores,” answered Kevin.

If this were another time, Kevin would have already absorbed the wood or the stone from the first object he saw in front of him and would have punched the Squire in the face. It would have been a nice punch. He wondered if he would break his nose and some teeth. At least two? Nah, three for sure!

But at the moment, none of this was possible. He needed to go unnoticed. His current goal was to get the Chaotic before Albedo did. Strange that he hadn't shown up yet...

About the sermon, maybe you think that Theodore has done something very absurd to receive such gracious words of motivation. I leave it to you, the reader, to judge:

The Squire gave Theodore the task of washing the castle's communal bathrooms, all five of them. The page spent half the day scrubbing walls and toilets; pulling clumps of hair from drains, enough to make a Persian carpet. As soon as he finished, he discovered that he should have used lavender soap, not coconut soap. The end of the story you may have already understood...

“Theodore... Are you crying?” asked Kevin.

“What? I'm crying?” Theodore wiped his eyes with the arm of his shirt. “It's the product...”

“I get it. It really burns the eyes...”

“...”

It was already the third sermon just that day.

“Hey, you should not mind what the Squire says” Kevin was filling a bucket with water from the faucet.

“I don't.”

“Okay then.”

From then on, only the sound of mops being forced against walls, floors and toilets was heard. The smell of coconut was slowly replaced by the smell of lavender. When they were finished, they gathered up their buckets and mops and looked with pride at the work completed.

“Doing it together will get us finished faster,” said Kevin.

“Thanks, Phillip!”

“No thanks, there are still four more to go.”

“Geez, you had to remember...”

“Stop whining and let's go!”

As soon as they removed the ‘In cleaning’ sign from the bathroom door, George, in his disheveled style, rushed towards the two of them:

“No, don't go out, come in, come in!” He pushed them both back into the bathroom.

“Are you crazy, George?” said Theodore, “What happened?”

As soon as he closed the door, George began:

“I found a way for us to get into the Crypt.”

“And who asked you to discover it?” Theodore put the bucket on the floor.

“I asked,” answered Kevin.

“What for?”

“Are you going to tell me that you've never been curious to enter the Crypt?” George's gaze said ‘Everyone wants to go into the crypt.’

“Of course I have. But my curiosity ends at the exact distance between me killing my curiosity and my curiosity killing me.”

Pause for explanation:

Kevin's request to George was also constructed through a lie. He was getting good at this! First he asked his colleague if he knew about the legend of the Knights' Pajens. George did not, although much of his upbringing was under the wings of the Eternal Knights. It made sense not to know, according to Kevin, because it was a History that was kept under lock and key in the Eternal archives and the Leaders feared that more pageboys would decide to take on the adventure and risk their lives. George became more and more curious and questioned "what the hell was this legend!"? Then Kevin told the story of the two pageboys who broke into the Crypt of Secrets of the Eternal Knights and, for showing courage and aptitude to face the dangers of the Crypt, were immediately elevated to the rank of knights.

It may sound like a silly story, but the most famous origin story of the Eternals was of a knight who fought a dragon on the moon, so... Their belief threshold is pretty low. The proof of this is that George believed it.

Kevin's interest, of course, was in the possibility of acquiring the Chaotic, since the Crypt is the most secure vault in the castle.

End of break.

“Dude, you don't have to come if you don't want to,” said Kevin.

“But you'll regret it if you don't,” George challenged.

“I don't know why, but I think I'll regret it more if I go.”

“It's up to you,” Kevin answered.

Theodore thought for a moment, then made a counterproposal:

“If you help me clean the other bathrooms, I'll go with you.”

“What, why?” questioned George. “It's your job, buddy.”

Kevin stared at George. The coldness in his gaze made the page check the proper functioning of his urinary bladder.

For reasons ‘unknown’ George changed his mind:

“W-we can help you, no problem.”

“If that's so, then fine,” Theodore smiled. Three getting the job done might give him time to watch the series ‘The Game of Kingdoms’ that he had been planning to catch up on for days. “But if I die, I'll kill you.”

“Right,” replied Kevin.

“Right...” replied George.

* * *

Four lavender-scented bathrooms later, the three pageboys decided to gather near George's bed to discuss the plan.

Theodore expressed a ‘it's going to go wrong...’ face with each new piece of information. Kevin kept a close eye on the explanations and the pictures on George's cell phone, which he took in his father's living room. George obviously didn't stop talking for a second; every now and then being forced by his own lung to take a breath when his voice started to fade.

“No, no, no!” George moved his hands in the air waving a negative sign “This here are the lasers,” his index finger pointed to a spot on the cell phone picture, “the electrocuted area is further ahead” his finger slid over the cell phone, going through the pictures until it found what he wanted. “Here. This is the electrocuted part.”

“A doubt,” said Theodore. “Actually, several doubts, but let's go in parts. The first is, why the hell under the castle has a vault inspired by medieval dungeons, with high-tech traps?”

“As a matter of identity and respect to the origins?” said George.

“I was referring to the necessity of the vault.”

“Ah, it's just that we have technologies and discoveries here in the castle that are too unstable or dangerous to be easily accessible. So, better to keep it well guarded underground.”

“Fine then” Theodore's face changed from ‘it's going to go wrong’ to ‘we're going to die with absolute and absolute certainty’ “Is giving up on this idea really not an option?”

“No,” replied George and Kevin.

“Got it, go ahead.”

“Then... Tomorrow, after dinner, we should meet again-”

“Tomorrow?” asked Kevin.

“Yes, tomorrow.”

“Why don't we go today?”

“Today's not good...”

“Why?” Kevin began to get annoyed with his colleague's hesitation.

“It's just that I planned for us to go tomorrow, so...”

“What do you mean, man, what's the difference if we go today or tomorrow? What about the adventure?”

Something is wrong, thought Kevin.

“Relax, Phillip, it's no problem for us to go today,” George started to put away his cell phone.

“I am tired,” said Theodore.

Kevin looked at his colleagues. Suspicions began to cross his mind at an incredible speed. What if it was a trap? What if Albedo had also disguised himself and adopted George's identity? Or Theodore? No, not Theodore... What if George had opened his beak for his father? Maybe at this very moment the Eternal Knights were preparing an ambush to arrest him, but it wouldn't be ready until tomorrow... What if? What if?

“Just give me one decent reason why we shouldn't go today,” said Kevin.

“I...” George looked away from Kevin. “I had planned to see The Game of Kingdoms...”

“You watch it too!” Theodore put aside all his concern and embraced his usual enthusiasm

“But of course I watch it!” George also embraced the excitement “The series is really good, geez!”

“I'm a bit worried about this last season, actually...”

“You too! I thought they started to deviate too much from the books and...”

From then on Kevin stopped listening. He left his colleagues chattering among themselves about their silly series of knights and dragons.

About the plan: his suspicions remained, of course, but what to do?

* * *

Dawn. Full moon.

Standing in front of the ventilation duct opening, Kevin once again wonders if it was the right thing to do. In his right hand, George's cell phone with the pictures of the maps and notes about the traps. He would give it back later.

His plan had always been to go alone, but after George's hesitant posture, he no longer knew the ideal moment to act.

He put his cell phone in his back pocket. He absorbed some of the iron from the opening grating of the duct, thus gaining enough consistency and strength to bend the grating to the point of gaining enough space to pass through.

It went in.

Chapter Text

“Computer?” said Max sitting in the pilot's chair.

“Yes, Magistrate.”

“Please confirm the identity of the young lady in front of me.”

“Of course, sir. The young lady's name is Eunice, no last name. She is less than two years old, although her biology is consistent with that of a 15 year old human. “

Eunice stood still, with her hands behind her back, waiting for the computer to complete the analysis.

“Human?” It may seem like a silly question, but in Max's experience, the phenotype does not always match the biological reality.

“No, sir. Eunice is a Unitrix, a primitive version of the Omnitrix, built by Azmuth. The Unitrix, unlike the Omnitrix, is capable of storing the DNA of only one species, in this case, Homo Sapiens.”

The Magistrate observed the girl. He had the impression that he knew her in some way, but could not say where, nor why.

“Why is your name not strange to me?”

“I have met your grandchildren before, Magistrate,” said Eunice. “I am actually the result of a genetic randomness in Gwen's DNA.”

“Eunice! Now I remembered,” Max rose from his seat and walked towards her to greet her. “They told me about you! Especially Ben.”

“Sorry to invade your ship like this, sir, but I had no choice.”

“I understand!” he said with his characteristic smile, “But how did you get in?”

“I remotely hacked into the ship's computer and added myself to the crew list.”

“That easy?”

“Actually, yes...”

“Not that I'm distrusting you, young lady, but...” Max raised his head so that his voice could be heard throughout the room “Computer!”

“Yes, Magistrate.”

“Tell me the number of members on the ship at this moment.”

“Yes, sir, just a moment.” A short pause, followed by “Only two, sir. The Magistrate and Miss Eunice.”

“Right, thank you.” Max turned to Eunice and continued “I hope you understand that if the system failed once, it can fail again.”

“I understand.”

“Okay, now explain to me: What happened to Azmuth? Isn't he on a research expedition?”

“No, Magistrate. Azmuth has not left Galvan Prime for months.”

“So Fahtzi lied.”

“It wouldn't be the first time, although I don't know what the Prime Manager said to you, so...”

“He said that Azmuth was not contactable and that-”

“In that respect, he didn't lie,” she interrupted.

“What do you mean, he didn't lie?”

“Azmuth is under arrest, Magistrate. The Galvanic Council has arrested him.”

* * *

Max's ship redirected its course. They landed on Galvan-B, the dark moon of Galvan Prime.

To humans, the change in the ecosystem of Galvan's moon - which ensured it became the mechamorphic environment it is today, with all the life made of the metallo-organic matter that populates it - may seem like a story thousands of years old. Something close to the dinosaurs. For the Galvanians, on the other hand, with a much longer life span, Galvan-B became what it is today last week.

As soon as the ship landed, a blackened liquid covered the outer surface of the ship. It did not alter its structure in any way, but ensured that everything took on the metallic-black color with green circuitry details characteristic of the site. Another important point about the ecosystem of this moon: once a vehicle or object is coated with the metallo-organic life of Galvan-B, no tracking system is able to differentiate it from a tree or a rock in the environment.

“Very well, young lady, we have landed where you recommended,” said Max, “you may begin your explanations.”

Eunice was standing with her arms crossed and her back resting on one of the cabin walls. She stepped away from the wall and as she walked around the cabin, she began to talk:

“It all started about a year ago....”

“Terrestrial or galvanic?”

“Terrestrial. “

“Okay, continue.”

About a year ago, little rumors started leaking out of the labs about Azmuth's newest invention. According to these rumors, the Omnitrix creator was planning to create an even more advanced version of the device. Some even began to announce the emergence of a Ultimatrix.

“Of course, with the rumors, so did the concerns.” said Eunice “The Magistrate well knows what happened when the Omnitrix was created.”

“Azmuth was chased, his ship was attacked by Vilgax and he was forced to launch the Omnitrix on Earth, hoping that I would be able to get the device.”

“Exactly. Although his plan at the time didn't work out so well, since it wasn't you who got the Omnitrix, fortunately, the device fell into good hands.”

Max was silent.

Although Eunice was "almost human" at times, the behavior of humans was something too complex for her to understand. Max's silence at this moment, for example, was one of those moments.

“Please continue,” Max asked.

“Sure.”

"When these rumors reached the ears of the Galvanic Council, the fear of a new attack by 'Conquerors' like Vilgax again hung over the heads of the leaders of the Galvanic Council. According to them, it was necessary for the Council to take action for the sake of protecting everyone.”

“And how did Azmuth react to all this?” said Max.

“In the worst possible way, of course. He hates it when people say that his creations are weapons, or anything like that.”

“I remember him always saying that the Omnitrix is actually a huge database of species.”

“And it is! “

“And I believe you. And in Azmuth too...” Max stared at the ground as a way to distract his vision so that his thoughts could walk more freely “But let's be honest, we're talking about a device with enormous destructive potential. If he intended to build something even more advanced, I understand the Council's fear.”

It was Eunice's turn to be silent. Her expression was uncertain as to whether she had made the right choice in asking Max Tennyson for help.

The Magistrate found the silence in the room strange. As soon as he looked up into the young woman's face, he understood what was happening.

“This doesn't mean that I agree with the Council's attitudes, Eunice, please don't misunderstand me! It's just that I've lived long enough to understand why people take certain actions.”

“I...”

“Please don't worry, just keep going. If I'm going to help you save Azmuth, I need to understand the whole context first.”

“All right... So... Where was I? Ah, after I awakened and met Ben and Gwen, Azmuth brought me to Galvan Prime and entrusted me with the task of Assistant to his laboratory. For that reason, I was able to follow the unfolding of this whole situation more closely than anyone else.”

First, there were the unplanned visits from Council members, often seeking to make Azmuth give up the idea of building that Ultimatrix. Then it was the news stories and reports questioning his choices and, at various times, presenting him as a senile, selfish old man, capable of sacrificing everyone's well-being for the sake of his experiments. Until the worst that could happen, happened.

“What happened?” Max asked.

“The prototype was stolen from the lab.”

“But how? “

“We don't know.”

“Don't tell me that they suspected Azmuth and that's why they arrested him?”

“At first, no. Because there were images from the security cameras that showed the real culprit entering and leaving the laboratory.”

“Let me guess: Albedo.”

“That's exactly right! How did you know?”

“He is one of the reasons that made me come here... Now everything is making more sense. But if Albedo was responsible, why was Azmuth arrested?”

“The fact is that Albedo did not commit just one crime that night. In order to steal the Omnitrix he had to escape from prison first.”

“Still, it doesn't make sense for them to arrest Azmuth. Unless...”

“Unless they suspect him of being responsible for Albedo's escape,” said Eunice.

“But we're talking about the Great Thinker and Scientist Azmuth, that theory doesn't make any sense!”

“It really doesn't, but as soon as the Ultimatrix was stolen, the Council and the media went crazy!”

“If they were afraid before, then they should be in a complete panic now...” said Max.

“At first, Galvan Prime practically isolated itself from the rest of the universe, both to keep the technology from escaping the planet, and to ensure that information didn't leak out that technology like this was out there.”

“So we, the Plumbers, were not aware of any of this.”

“Exactly. Then the investigations and accusations began. It was not known if Albedo had made it out of Galvan Prime, so the police forces started searching and questioning practically everyone. The planet went into a state of siege.”

“But Albedo is not on Galvan, he is on Earth!”

“He escaped! But how?”

“I ask you! Isn't the planet sealed off?”

“Yes...”

“Well?”

“I'm sorry, Magistrate, but I have no idea how he escaped.”

“That's fine, my dear. And Azmuth, what happened next?”

“As I said, the police began to start searching the planet. Even in the laboratories...”

“He must have hated it.”

“More than that, sir, he literally barred anyone who did not work there from entering the laboratory!”

“I can imagine what happened afterwards...”

“Council, media, population... Everybody thought that he used Albedo to take the technology off the planet.”

“What a great...” Max thought for a moment about the possible words he was going to spit out at that moment, “Crap!” The one he left in his mind was less friendly.

“About a week ago, the cops raided the lab and took him into custody.”

“Was anyone else besides him arrested?”

“From the lab?”

“That.”

“No. It seems that Azmuth was foreseeing that this was going to happen sooner or later and dismissed everyone days before. And considering that no one else knew the details of the project besides him, it turned out that no researcher who was questioned was able to provide any ‘useful’ information.”

“What a mess...”

“You don't even know!” Eunice rolled her eyes.

“And now, what are we going to do? I believe that if you came to find me, at least you already have a plan in mind.”

Eunice smiled. Yes, she did.

“Just to confirm, will you help me?”

“Of course! Although Azmuth will never admit it, we are more than acquainted. Besides, I have issues to resolve that only he will be able to help me with.”

“Issues?” Eunice asked.

“One thing at a time, young lady. First, your plan. “

“We will sneak into the prison and rescue Azmuth. The moment we come out, we will probably face resistance.”

“We will need a proper camouflage and enough firepower to face an army. Have you thought about this?”

“Yes, I have! So we'll use this!”

Eunice pulled from one of her pockets a small cube of black metallic material, with the same green circuitry details, which at this moment covered the entire external surface of the ship and the moon they were on.

Chapter Text

“What's that!?” shouted Gwen.

The creature roared and thrashed, throwing furniture and debris in Gwen and Ben's direction. Its shapeless and bizarre appearance made it impossible to identify the species or to know if it had any species to be identified.

“I don't know!” Ben replied “All I know is that it's been chasing me for a long time, and when I finally think I got to hide, you show up and bring the brute into my hiding spot!”

“Oh, I'm sorry if I didn't know that some weird monster was chasing you! But I just got here and nobody told me about it!”

“What do you mean you just got here? Where did you come from?”

Gwen didn't answer. Did she say more than she should have? Maybe for Ben, this place was Bellwood. The real Bellwood. Sooner or later he will find out, but it's better to solve one problem at a time.

“It doesn't matter! Now we have to get rid of this thing!” said Gwen.

“Good luck, do you want to try it first?”

She accepted the offer. Gwen stands in front of her cousin and coats her hands with bundles of mana. Stretching her arms out in front of her body, with her hands together and fingers intertwined in a bizarrely meaningful way, she says

“Vürkthera!”

A powerful beam of energy shoots out of his hands and hits the center of the creature's chest, hurling him against the living room wall and causing him to crash into the neighboring house.

“Mr. Sullivan is going to be a real pain in the ass with you?” said Ben.

“Who?”

“My neighbor.”

“We'll see about that. She takes her cousin by the arm and leads him through the living room door to the sidewalk of the house.”

“Okay, stop pulling me around! Tell me, where are you going?”

Gwen put her hand on her chin and looked around. Then she said:

“I honestly don't know. Somewhere safe?”

“Really? Don't you think I've already checked?”

Although Gwen had very carefully planned the steps to enter Ben's mind, now that she was inside, she didn't know what she was going to do next. Then she remembered Charming's speech in the library.

“Ben, what do you remember?”

“What do you mean, remember? Everything.”

“Before the creature chased you, what were you doing?”

“Sleeping.”

“And after?”

“I woke up.”

“Ben, I swear to you...” Gwen was trying to remain calm, but a small glow of mana was already beginning to appear on her right hand.

“I woke up. I didn't find anyone home. I had breakfast. I went to school. On the way I saw a cat stuck in a tree. I rescued the cat. I continued to school and was attacked.”

“And then?”

“I fought the monster through most of the city. I realized that he was just coming after me, so I tried to hide. But every now and then he or one of his friends finds me and-”

“Wait! There are more of these creatures!?”

“Of course!”

“Why didn't you say anything?”

“You didn't ask... By the way” Ben points to the end of the street, where two shapeless, hairy quadruped creatures are running towards them.

From the neighbor's house, the brute monster reappears, destroying the wall, the mailbox, and the car parked in front of the neighbor's house. Already in the middle of the street, he roars toward the youngsters.

“Can I join in this time?” asked Ben.

Gwen didn't know what to say or how to act. So she just stared in astonishment at her cousin and his incoherent excitement about the situation.

“I'll take your silence as a yes,” Ben extends his left arm and touches the Omnitrix disk on his wrist, activating it and making the hologram appear.

“Ben, wait!” Gwen screams, but it's already too late.

A green light coats Ben's entire body, indicating the beginning of the transformation. The glow grows in size, as does the silhouette from within the light. As the light fades, a red muscular creature with four arms reveals itself announcing its arrival:

“Four-Arms!”

The alien rushes toward the broad-trunked creature. He prepares his two right arms and hits the monster with a powerful double punch. Or is it two powerful punches? Whatever.

The creature is thrown toward one of the houses in the neighborhood and goes through several walls until it comes out on the other side of the property.

Gwen remains static, not understanding anything.

The tetramand turns toward Gwen and, with a proud smile, shows two "joins" with his right hands.

“Hey, cousin,” says Four-Arms in his thick voice, “yours are coming too, be alert!”

She turns around quickly and is met with a mouthful of fangs coming towards her. Gwen projects a shield over herself, causing the four-legged monster to crash into the defense and fall disoriented behind her.

The second quadruped also jumps next, but in this case it is hit by a car still in the air, being thrown meters away.

“You're welcome,” says Ben.

Gwen undoes the shield and, walking, approaches the tetramand.

Four-Arms grabs the first quadruped creature and holds it under one of his arms. Seeing his cousin approaching, he punched the creature in the face with a bottom-left hook that knocked the monster out immediately.

“Ben, you have transformed.” she said.

“Yes...” It coats itself with the green glow and returns to its human form “As usual, why?”

“And... And you're feeling okay?”

“Normal. Why?”

“No pain, scream or-“

“No. Why? Actually, Gwen, I'm the one asking. Are you all right? What are these questions?”

“Ben... Do you know where we are?”

“Bellwood, down the street from my house.”

“And you didn't find anything strange besides the creatures?”

“No...”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, I'm sure. We are in Bellwood. The creatures are probably henchmen of some fifth-rate villain out there. If I'm not mistaken, from my vast experience, any minute now he's going to show up and give his megalomaniacal speech.”

“So why are you crying?”

“What?” Ben brings his hand to his face and feels the warm wet path of tears on his cheek.

The young man falls silent, lowers his head, and faces his own hands. He watches his palms trim the tears, one by one, without ceasing. Ben sees a pair of hands invade his field of vision and gently hold his own. The tears continued to fall, this time over the back of his cousin's hands.

Without lifting his head, he says:

“We are not in Bellwood.”

“No...”

“Gwen... What happened to me?”

“You've been hurt, Ben.”

The bright, confident teenager of a few moments ago now showed all the fear and fragility that he had been trying to hide all this time.

“Did I die?” he said.

“No! No, Ben, you're not dead!” Gwen struggled not to let a tear well up in the corner of her eye, “and you won't!”

The young man raised his head. Gwen's last line said more than she had intended to say. Maybe he wasn't dead, but his condition couldn't have been better. The tears stopped for the moment. He looked around, trying to understand the landscape around them:

“Where are we?”

“Inside your mind.”

“Are you kidding?”

“Why would I be?”

“How cool!” Ben lets go of his cousin's hands and starts running around the room, trying to touch every object he sees “Is it as if we were in a dream?”

“I don't know, I'm still learning how this spell works...”

Ben walks and twists his body with his arms open, in the best style of The Sound of Music, and says:

“If this is a dream then I am able to do anything I want here!”

A crater opened up on the ground the instant the creature fell from the sky, hurling rocks and debris into the air. Ben and Gwen were thrown by the wave of impact and fell backwards onto the asphalt. In the center of the crater, looking bizarre like the others, a tall, asymmetrical, three-armed lug begins to emerge from behind the dust that is beginning to subside.

“Oh, man…”

Chapter Text

Kevin was trying to remember all George's instructions. He just didn't know if he could trust them...

"The crypt is the center of the underground floor," George said, sitting on the bed in the dormitory. "Since we're not going to enter through the elevator, but through the air duct, we'll get out here, in this little room that is between the elevator and the entrance to the labyrinth."

Kevin looks around. On one side, the elevator doors that connect the underground to the castle. On the other side, an opening in the wall, with stylized details around it, and numerous feudal paintings filling the walls of the small room. The whole place was dimly lit by torches.

Well, so far the four-eyes didn't lie, thought Kevin.

"The key to understanding the labyrinth is to know the correct path to follow. And for that, we need to read the texts and the paintings on the wall of the little room."

Kevin approached the wall. Paintings and texts were spread out like a timeline. According to George, the paintings told stories of great Forever Knights. However, the paintings were nothing more than projections on the wall that changed periodically. This was the way that the Eternal Knights always guaranteed a "new password" to the labyrinth.

The story of the time was as follows:

***

Sir Simon.

He was born in the north of England

And found in the path of the sword his vocation.

He faced storms and blizzards

In search of the knowledge he needed to fulfill his mission.

He overcame the iron rain of Sir Thormund

To reach the Lake of Doom.

And there, a bizarre and monstrous creature he met.

From its eyes, flames were burning and causing destruction.

He droves his sword through the creature's skull

Due to his courage and determination.

His acts of heroism reached the ears of the king

And so, he was named from the North, the Champion.

***

Kevin thought the whole thing was nonsense. Exaggerated, silly, and even lying at times. But what the hell, if the tin-heads wanted to believe that such a silly story really happened, too bad for them. He focused his attention on trying to memorize as much of the text as possible. I should have brought a pen! Wait a minute... I had George's cell phone in my pocket! He took some pictures of the walls, but unfortunately for him, the projection was made of a polarized light that did not allow him to take pictures. He opted to type a message that would not be sent, just a few key words, none of this litany of "vocation" and "doom" and "heroism".

When he finished, he looked at his text:

Northern England, sword, storm, knowledge, lake, monster, eyes with fire, courage, king, North.

It' s great! he thought.

Kevin then proceeded to the entrance of the labyrinth. The first room was a semicircular room, also poorly lit by torches. On its curved wall were three exits.

And now...

The Osmosian approached one of the passages and tried to see what was on the other side. Only darkness. He decided to look for more clues: he looked on the walls, on the floor, even on the ceiling. It was then that he noticed on the doorways, drawings carved in the same feudal style as the paintings. Three designs, one on each doorway: a sword, a shield, and a bow.

“‘He was born in the north of England. And found in the path of the sword his vocation,’” said Kevin. That was the most he could memorize. “Path of the sword, then!”

He followed the passage cautiously, stopping at the entrance of the place and keeping an eye out for any possible "novelty". He remembered George's instructions again:

“The labyrinth is full of traps, and each one has a different way of being activated. Some of them are by stepping on the wrong spot, others by making some noise, many of them have motion sensors or lasers. Really, if we want to get to the crypt alive, we'll have to do it without activating the traps...”

Kevin focused his attention on the ground. A few squares had the logo of the Eternal Knights on their surface, but most did not. As a matter of course, he deduced, I should only step on the marked squares. He looked for possible exits. Three again. But it was not possible to see the engravings, it was too far away.

The young Osmosian then began his route, from marked square to marked square, jumping around the room, careful not to slip an inch. He jumped over one, then another, then one more. He was already in the middle of the room when he could see the pictures: a group of people, a coin, and a book. He looked at his cell phone in search of something that could fit into the pictures. Knowledge and book!

Kevin jumped to the next marked floor when suddenly he heard a huge thunderous sound echoing through the room.

“Damnit!”

The trap activated. A huge gust of wind filled the room. The rain came immediately afterwards. The water and wind hit Kevin with overwhelming violence. It became increasingly difficult to stand in one place, imagine taking even a step. The sounds of thunder intensified, and then lightning began to punish the place, like an absurd storm.

Lightning struck the ground near Kevin, forcing him to throw himself to the side to avoid being hit. The rain crashed against his skin like small needles. The wind tossed his body from one side to the other.

I have to get out of here.

 Kevin touches the ground, coating his skin with rock. Being now denser and heavier, he was able to move forward with less difficulty. With his hands in front of his face, he tried to block out the wind and rain, moving towards the drawing in the book.

Staying inside the room became more and more unbearable. The rain and the wind were blowing in a thousand directions. Thunder rumbled through the room, making the floor shake. Lightning streaked everywhere, making it increasingly difficult to see.

Suddenly, a bolt of lightning strikes Kevin in the back. He is only a few meters from the exit. The rocky skin on his back, now cracked and fragile, probably cannot withstand another such bolt of lightning. Kevin tries to get up as quickly as possible and jumps towards the passage. As soon as he touches the ground again, he spins around in a somersault, goes through the opening in the wall and stops with one knee on the ground, leaving the stormy chaos behind him.

He stands up and looks back, but sees only darkness in the room he was in a few seconds ago. Slowly, his skin begins to return to its natural composition.

My congratulations to the guy who set this trap, he thought. He managed to make a pretty convincing storm.

In the new circular room — as dimly lit as ever — he sees projected on the opposite wall the image of a castle and its walls, with soldiers walking from one side to the other of walls in vigilance. Outside the projection are two exits, one on each side of the castle.

And now? What should I do? Perhaps he misinterpreted the trigger in the previous room and was therefore forced to face the storm. What would be the puzzle now? He looked at the floor around him and noticed small piles of junk near the wall. Were they remnants of armor?

Kevin slowly approaches one of the piles and picks up what would be a helmet. It was made of a rustic metal. Maybe the model was of British origin, who knows? He lifts the visor of the helmet and the look of a rotting skull stares back at him.

“Aaaaah!” He throws the helmet to the center of the room.

Each time the object bounced on the ground, the sound of metal resounded through the room, until the helmet stopped moving, returning to silence.

“Damn...”

 Sounds of bells begin to be heard from the projection on the wall. The soldiers in the castle move frantically from one side to the other. The image of a lord knight appears on top of the castle wall and in a thick voice says:

“Enemy to the north! In your positions!”

The soldiers begin to line up on the wall. All with bows and arrows in hand, they prepare to fire on command.

Kevin absorbs the rock from the wall and runs towards one of the exits. Over the opening, a drawing of a waterfall. He takes George's cell phone from his pocket, now with a cracked screen, and looks around for directions. By the sequence, he should go to a "lake". He looks again at the drawing of the waterfall. No! It must be the other way out!

“Readyyyyyy!” said the voice.

He was crossing the room toward the opposite opening, when he heard the voice finally say:

“Rain!”

Kevin continued running, but saw from the projection on the wall countless shadows of arrows streaking across the ground towards him. The shadows grew larger and larger until the moment the "rain" began.

From the ceiling of the room, numerous lasers fall and hit the ground, hitting Kevin a few dozen times. He tries to defend himself, but at some points his rock cover breaks, exposing his skin to the heat of the lasers.

The shooting ceases.

He moves with difficulty. Different parts of his body ache and throb. On his right forearm, a cut, already cauterized by the laser heat, as well as on his left thigh, a faint smell of burning flesh rises to his nostrils.

Again the voice announces:

“Readyyyyyyy!”

Kevin discards the rock cover, in search of greater lightness of movement, and runs toward the exit.

“Rain!”

Just as before, the shadows of the arrows move toward Kevin. More than that, they move toward where he intends to go. Kevin quickly changes direction and jumps to another part of the room, escaping at the last moment from the rain of lasers.

He runs to a pile of armor remnants and looks for something that would help him protect himself, however, no piece was in usable condition. On the ground, lying next to the pile, he sees a wooden shield.

This piece of crap won't hold anything! He thought. Unless...

“Readyyyyyyy!”

Kevin absorbs the metal from several pieces of armor he finds, unfortunately the amount was barely enough to cover an entire arm, who will say a body. He takes the shield and, with his hand on the outer surface of the object, he desorbs the metal, creating a shiny metallic layer over the shield.

“Rain!”

The young man puts the coated shield over his head and runs desperately for the exit. In his direction, the shadows of the arrows grew larger and larger.

“Work it, damn it, work it!”

The rain pours down all the way, leaving scorched scars on the ground where it hits. As it hits the shield the lasers are reflected in a thousand directions.

“Yes!”

As he approaches the exit, Kevin sees the engraving of a lake at the top of the opening, and then speeds up even more with the certainty of getting rid of that place.

As he crosses into the other room, the young man leans against the wall and allows himself to rest for a few moments. The current room was the same as all the others, which meant more traps, he thought; so he decided to get some air before he almost die again.

He picked up his cell phone from his pocket, but to his "happiness", the object had been partially burned by the laser that hit his thigh, so it no longer worked.

Great...

With his breath partially recovered, Kevin then decides to face the new room. This time, four openings in the walls.

Exactly at the moment when I need to take a guess is when the greatest number of options arise. Perfect!

In the center of the room, an image of a lake is projected onto the ground. A serene lake, with fish swimming from one side to the other.

Kevin tried to stay as far away as possible from the projected water. He walked towards the engravings in the openings. Some might help him to remember what was next in the story. But he found no drawings. Over the openings, he found the following letters: W, N, E, and S.

What the hell does that mean?

Kevin then heard a small sound of gravel bouncing on the ground. Turning toward the sound, he sees a stone rolling lightly over the lying lake.

“And there we go.”

In the center of the lake, the ground opens up and a giant serpent-like creature emerges from the opening.

"To reach the Lake of Doom. And there, a bizarre and monstrous creature he met." Kevin recalled.

Still with his shield in hand, he stands ready to defend himself against any movement of the creature. The next action of the serpent reminds him of yet another detail of the story:

"From its eyes, flames were burning and causing destruction"

Kevin holds the shield over his head, deflecting the creature's flames to the sides. Slowly, he begins to feel the metal heat up and the wood of the shield scorch.

The snake interrupts its eye flamethrower for a few moments as if to catch its breath before firing again. Kevin takes the opportunity to run away. But where to?

Still unsure which room to enter, Kevin runs in circles around the room, with the snake firing flurries of fire right behind him.

At one of the interruptions of the flames, he decided to counter-attack. He absorbed enough rock from the ground to fill just his right hand and, forming a ball of stone spines, set out to attack the creature. He aimed to hit the snake's body.

However, his hand went straight through.

“What!?”

The snake spun its body around and with its tail swung Kevin toward the wall.

But it doesn't make sense, Kevin thought. The snake's fire and physical damage were real, but when it tried to attack, it ended up going through it like a ghost. Was it really a mystical creature? No, it is not possible...

Kevin continued to run around the room, dodging the creature's attacks. At the same time he was thinking: was the snake real or not?

“That's it!”

He takes his shield and throws it towards the side of the snake's head. A metallic sound is heard the instant the object hits it. With that the image of the snake oscillates between the bizarre creature and a serpentiform robotic structure much thinner than the original snake. A projection!

“But of course it is a projection...” he says to himself.

Kevin runs towards the place where his shield fell, dodging the flames and the attacks of the snake's tail. Upon reaching the object, he touches the outer surface of the shield and absorbs the metal. He then deforms his hand into a pointed blade ready to deliver the final blow, for, according to the story:

"He droves his sword through the creature's skull"

Kevin again hurls the shield toward the serpent's head. The creature, attentive to the repeated movement, deflects by ducking, and it is at this instant, that Kevin leaps and pierces the snake's robotic skull with his hand-blade.

The machine loses its projection. It slightly throbs with the loss of command. Small beams start from the skull opening and sounds of circuitry spread through the room. When finally it deactivates and collapses to the floor in a deafening sound.

Kevin steps down from the creature and makes his way toward the passageways. He was too tired to say any punch lines. Besides, he didn't even have an audience to listen to. He decided to focus on how to get out of there.

But how, if he couldn't remember the end of the story? What the hell was happening? He defeated the creature, then he met a prince. No. It wasn't a prince, it was a king. Then the king... The king... What the hell did the king do!

I couldn't remember...

What about his list? No chance either... He could remember at most the beginning: Northern England, sword, and... Wait...

Kevin again looked at the letters of the openings: W, N, E, S.

“How could I have been so stupid! These are the cardinal points, North, South, East, and West. And if, I'm not mistaken, that knightly jerk was from the North, then...”

Kevin followed the opening with an N carved over the entrance. He hoped he wasn't so wrong. As soon as he stepped through the opening, he saw Sir William in the center of the room, lit by a single beam of light coming from the ceiling.

“Congratulations, Phillip!” said Sir, “Or should I say, traitor?”

That's great! thought Kevin. All this effort for nothing...

“I must say that your actions in the labyrinth were quite impressive. Don't you agree, my dears?”

The other lights in the crypt lit up, revealing a huge contingent of soldiers, arms in hand.

Kevin found himself with no way out. Perhaps he could convince them that this was a challenge among the pageboys:

“My Lord I-”

“Shut up! It's no use saying anything, because I won't believe any of your excuses. The castle is fully monitored and we were already suspicious of your attitudes. Besides, your disguise technology is damaged and I can see your real face.”

For Kevin, everything began to make more sense. George's information really was a trap. Like it or not, getting into the crypt floor through the ventilation duct was very easy. Besides, even though he activated the traps, no soldiers appeared. They were just waiting. Maybe the tin-heads weren't as dumb as he thought.

“But I will say that I was impressed when I found out that you, Phillip, if that is your real name, were a traitor too. You looked like a young man with so much potential! Our suspicions actually focused on someone else.”

“Excuse me?” said Kevin.

“Come on! Come out of the darkness and reveal yourself!”

From inside the previous room, a voice familiar to Kevin began to speak. It was an irritating voice, which, like it or not, made Kevin annoyed just listening to it:

“Wow, and I thought I had managed to disguise myself so well!”

Kevin watched as the Squire came out of the shadows and positioned himself beside him. He brought his hand to his face and pulled off his identity mask, revealing himself to be Albedo.

“By the way, thanks for the help, osmosian. You saved me a lot of energy!”

Chapter Text

“A mechamorpho-galvanian armor?” said Max “I thought Galvan had banned this technology years ago!”

“He did,” Eunice stared at the black cube in her hands.

“How did you get this?”

“In Azmuth's safe-deposit room. There's another one in my backpack. I managed to get some other devices that might be useful as well.”

“And it was that easy?”

“No... Something told me that the situation was going to get worse at some point and that I would end up needing this equipment, so I spent the last few days watching Azmuth before he was arrested. On one of these occasions, I managed to see his password.”

“Unfortunately, your predictions were right.”

“Yes, but thinking about it now...” Eunice's eyes were focused on the object in her hands, but her thoughts were wandering through her memories. “I have the impression that Azmuth allowed me to learn his password.”

“This would not be typical behavior for him, knowing his paranoid personality, and even more so with the situation that was going on. He would need to have a lot of-”

“Trust,” interrupted Eunice. “He wouldn't do this if he didn't trust me, would he?” Eunice looked at Grandpa Max with a hopeful look.

“No. He wouldn't...”

Eunice looked again at the cube, a slight smile beginning to appear on her lips.

“You're not really thinking about using it, are you?” said Max.

“We have no choice, Magistrate.”

“Of course we do, young lady! These armors were known for their firepower, but also because they caused serious temperament problems for their wearers.”

“But...”

“It's not a question of ‘buts’, Eunice” Max took the object from the girl's hand. “This technology may have guaranteed victory to the Galvanians in the Galvanic Wars but because their soldiers turned into an army of psychopaths!”

“I know that, magistrate, I have researched the technology! But there is one detail that people don't know: the behavioral changes only affect the Galvanian species...”

Max was silenced by the information. What do you mean? he thought. He no longer knew if he could believe what he had learned as a Plumber. Books and more books of false information? It seemed that the Plumbers were now always the last to know about something in the universe...

“But the records show-”

“The records have been altered.” said Eunice “It was another situation in which the Galvan Council acted to make the technology unattractive to other species.”

“And-and how did you discover this?”

“In Azmuth's own notes, the creator of the armor.”

Max walked through the command room looking at the black metal box with green details. He knew the stories. He knew about Azmuth's war scientist past. His regrets. He knew the potential of the technology. Its destructive power!

In case you don't know this technology, readers, I will explain: The mechamorpho-galvanian armor is not only stocked with a huge number of armaments, it also allows its wearer to incorporate the technology around him. In this way, it was transformed into a perfect weapon of war. All it took was to come into contact with a weapon of the enemy army and voila, another technology acquired to the Galvanians' war knowledge. And not only incorporated, but developed it and increased its power of destruction.

The young woman tried to break the uncomfortable silence that was already taking root in the room:

“Magistrate...”

“Eunice” Max turned suddenly and stared into the young woman's eyes.

“Yes?”

“Promise me one thing: don't tell anyone what you told me. The Council withheld this information, and I'm sure that Azmuth in this case agreed with them. We don't need a second Galvanic War.”

“Yes, sir.”

Max handed the object back to the young woman. Then he said:

“What else have you planned?”

“Just a second, I'll get my backpack and explain the details of the plan.”

***

Eunice had prepared all of part 1 of the plan even before Max arrived in Galvan. According to the young woman, she installed small electrical jamming devices in regions near the prison that held Azmuth. With a command on her computer, the devices would cause some of the prison's power to fail ― not enough to cause a mass escape or anything of the sort ― but enough to cause the prison staff to request technical assistance as soon as possible.

To do this, Galvan Prime would contact the most efficient species for making repairs to technology: the Galvanian mechamorphs, inhabitants of her moon. Using a communication interceptor, she would divert the repair request to herself, and using the armor, they would both enter the prison in disguise.

The armor has two forms: the active form, which resembles a fusion of a space suit with a power-rangers megazord, and an inactive form, which consists of a simple covering over the body in the form of a mechamorph. In other words, the wearer looks like a copy of Ultra T.

You might be asking yourself, but with a weapon as powerful as that in hand, why didn't Eunice break in alone and rescue Azmuth? Very good question. Actually, Grandpa Max asked the same thing. Since the activation of the armor is based on neural connection and includes embodied technology, there was a huge risk that the armor would end up absorbing Eunice, who, I don't know if you still remember, is a Unitrix and not a full biological body. Besides not being able to rely on the help of the Galvanians to deal with the armor.

One of the problems pointed out by Max was how to enter the planet if the only ship they had available was his from Plumbers. This is where the third stage of part 1 came in. Eunice would connect to the ship's computer and, using the same signal used by the armors to modify their form, she would command part of the metal-organic matter that coated the ship and make the necessary changes to transform the plumber spaceship into a mechamorphic tech-ship.

Said and done, exactly as she planned. Now, part 2.

***

The tech-ship approaches the prison landing area. As soon as the ship's doors open, two mechamorphs descend the ramp toward the service entrance. Galvanian soldiers, with their jetpacks and weapons in hand, stand guard over the site.

Inside all the black-metallic gelatinous mass, Max and Eunice remained focused on making the plan work. Inside the armor, information about the environment was constantly being analyzed and displayed in front of their faces. In the lower right corner of their field of vision, a small window displayed each other's faces, as in a webcam conversation.

As they walked, Max and Eunice talked to each other, without exposing the audio to the environment.

“Young lady, what are the chances of the prison metal detectors discovering us?” said Max.

“There's no way we can get in without activating the metal detectors, sir,” said Eunice, “but the guards know that.”

A few steps away from the entrance, one of the guards approaches and says:

“Identify yourselves.”

“Druhter and Cahzmiel, we are from the technical team.” says Max, in a metallic voice. “We have been called to repair a fault in your power system.”

Max (Druhter) and Eunice (Cahzmiel) handed the guard their respective false documents. After a check with the prison administration, the two were allowed entry. Druhter and Cahzmiel then followed one of the guards into the prison.

Eunice was the first to pass through the metal detector. Obviously, the device beeped. The abnormal part of the situation was that one of the guards came floating in with his jet-pack. Not that, thought Eunice. Silence covered the room. He stared at the young woman in disguise and said:

“Are you by any chance carrying something metal with you?”

Eunice didn't know what to say. Yes, I am literally wearing a huge metallic goo? What kind of question was that? Maybe she hadn't paid enough attention to the detector, I dunno. Inside her armor, she was sweating.

The awkward pause lingered in the room for a few moments. Then the guard let out a loud laugh, accompanied by the other guards.

“Relax! It's just a joke!” said the guard

“He...he...” Eunice tried to fake a laugh, but she was too nervous.

“That was very good!” said Max enthusiastically. “I'm even worried now! I thought to myself: now what? Am I going to have to leave myself whole in the metal box? Hahaha!”

The guards followed Max's laughter. One of them then said:

“Come on, come with me and I'll take you! Boy, it's been a long time since I laughed like that...”

Max and Eunice followed the guard around the prison. Grandpa Max's sociable manner allowed him to develop a whole conversation with the guard about Fritzian eel stew and how it was a shame that a mechamorph like Max could not be lucky enough to try such a tasty dish.

Back to the plan: Eunice's jamming devices acted on the prisoners' mess hall area, and to get there Max and Eunice would have to pass close to the cells. A huge and wide corridor, with several squares positioned in columns and rows, determined the openings of each of the cells. It was in the second row of the twenty-second column that Eunice saw her creator sitting, looking at the floor with a sad expression.

“Magistrate!” said Eunice over the comm. “I found him!”

Max looked at Azmuth. To see a creature so respected and known in the universe in that state was pitiful. There was no light in the eyes of that Galvanian in prisoner's clothing. In fact, there was none in any of the prisoners.

Max, of course, did not leave his military training aside and began to analyze the various guards that flew down the corridor, keeping watch over the prisoners.

“Here's what we'll do,” said Max. “I'll put out the soldier who is accompanying us, and you run towards Azmuth's cell. I'll watch your back.”

“Right," said Eunice.

Max chooses from the equipment in his armor an electrical stun system, then brings his hand close to the Galvanian in his convoy and fires the shock. The soldier lets out a slight grunt and faints. Max holds him in the air and slowly positions him on the ground. Eunice in turn runs towards Azmuth's cell.

Suddenly, a scream echoes through the corridor:

“Sound the alarm, we have a break-in!”

Eunice stands in front of the cell and begins placing small triangular devices at the ends of the opening. Max for his part activates his armor, turning his Ultra-T appearance into the advanced technological armor known to the legends.

“What took you so long?” grumbled Azmuth.

“Did you know we were coming?” said Eunice.

“No. But you still took so long...”

Max points his hands toward the guards who had begun to surround them. The arms of the armor modify their structure and become multiple firing tubes. He then begins to launch stun projectiles while trying to dodge the guards' lasers.

Meanwhile, Eunice activates her electronic devices and the laser wall that lined the opening of the cell turns off, allowing her to approach and grab Azmuth.

“I've got it!” says Eunice to Max.

The girl starts to run towards the exit. Max, in turn, follows flying right behind, shooting and making the guards fall stunned one after the other.

“Get reinforcements! Don't let them escape!” said one guard.

From the openings of the cell corridor, more and more Galvanians, equipped with laser weapons and jet turbines, appeared, infesting the place like a swarm of bees.

Suddenly, the main path to follow became crowded with guards, making it impossible for them to continue their escape.

“Magistrate, do you see a way out?” said Eunice.

“No, but we'll make one.”

Max stands in front of the scientist and his assistant and crosses his arms over his chest. The guards' shots hit the surface of the armor without mercy. On the inside, Max started the M.A.F. system, locking the target on each of the guards around them.

When the number on his screen acquired the forty-eight locked targets mark, Max fired. He opened his arms and from numerous openings in his armor a small guided projectile was launched. The image was like fireworks exploding in the middle of the corridor. Each of the projectiles headed toward its target, with each impact making an electric squeak. In a matter of moments, all the guards around them were unconscious on the floor.

Eunice and Azmuth stood static and dumbfounded.

Max then says:

“Let's go! We are close to the exit!”

Eunice and Max continue running down the corridor. Gradually, new guards start chasing them.

“We make a left here,” says Max, “and then we just go through the lobby with the metal detectors and-”

The headache is back.

Max falls on his face and stays that way. Eunice, who kept running for a few moments without noticing what had happened, screams as soon as she sees Max's armor lying on the ground:

“Magistrate!”

He tries to get up, but his headache was stronger than before. Kneeling down, with his hands holding his skull on the floor, he felt as if his brain was going to explode.

“What's going on, Unitrix?” said Azmuth.

“I don't know, sir!” Eunice runs and crouches down next to Max. “Magistrate, what happened? Were you hit?”

Max didn't answer. His head throbbed more and more. His armor oscillated between active and inactive form, indicating that the neural connection was absurdly unstable.

Eunice looked back the way they came and watched the guards getting closer and closer. She needed to do something.

“Sir!” said Eunice “Take care of the Magistrate, please. Without him I would never be able to rescue you.”

Eunice turns off her armor and the whole black metallic shell returns to a cube shape.

“What are you doing?” said Azmuth.

“Being useful.”

Chapter Text

The residential area lay with a trail of destruction. At the epicenter of all the confusion, a pink dome held Gwen and Ben under the last line of defense. Around the dome, a crowd of creatures were charging against the protection like a zombie attack.

Gwen tried with all her strength to keep the shield up, but she felt that her energy was almost gone and at any moment everything would be lost.

Then she hears her cousin say:

“I understood.”

But you, who are reading this, probably don't understand anything, am I right? After all, the last time we were following Gwen and Ben, a three-armed brute creature had just fallen from the sky, opening a crater in the middle of the street, raising a cloud of dust and debris over the residential area.

Well, for everything to make more sense for you, as well as Ben, to understand what is going on, let's go back a little. More specifically in the following line:

“Oh, man.” said Ben.

The teenager stands up on the cracked asphalt and face the creature that emerged from within the cloud of dust.

“Ben, let's get out of here,” said Gwen. “We can't waste our time with these monsters.”

“Didn't I tell you there's no point in running, Gwen, they'll always find us.”

“But at least it would buy us some time to think! We can't stay here forever!”

Gwen realized that her cousin was no longer listening to her. He looked around, but always turned his gaze to the creature in search of some sudden action that required his reaction.

“Ben, are you listening to me?” she wanted to confirm. It's rude to leave a person talking to himself.

“I have an idea,” Ben activates the Omnitrix on his wrist and begins to navigate among the alien holograms.

“What? No, Ben, wait-”

The boy presses the core of his watch and, in moments, appears in aerophibian form.

“Jetray!”

The alien takes off and takes to the skies. Gwen covers her face to protect herself from the dust from the take-off and then watches her cousin disappear through the clouds.

“Ben!”

He sure isn't normal! she thought. It's as if he's not thinking about anything, just acting!

Gwen hears a roar coming from the creature. Of course it was going to attack sooner or later! The three-armed monster takes off in Gwen's direction. The ground shakes with each step of the creature. The girl crosses her arms in an "x" in front of her face and says:

“Camouflat vaporis!”

From her hands, a dense, pinkish smoke begins to be created. Gwen uncrosses her arms and coats herself with the mist, which spreads in a moment.

The creature enters the smoke punching in a thousand directions. Unable to hit its target, the monster slams two of its hands together in a powerful palm, sending out a shockwave that dissipates the cloud of smoke.

The three-armed brute looks around the vicinity for his victim; when he then sees over the roofs of the houses the teenage girl running, creating bridges of magic between one roof and another, on the run.

Gwen's thoughts turned to desperate searches for solutions and curses against her cousin. How could that brat have just dumped her like that?

Suddenly Gwen hears a thunderous crash above her feet. The creature advanced towards the house where she was standing and destroyed the main supporting pillars of the building. The girl felt the roof shake and simply disappear under her feet as the structure came crashing down. At the last second, she jumped up and fell rolling in the grass.

From beneath the wreckage of the house, the three-armed freak began to rise, scattering pieces of beam, concrete walls, and furniture remnants from above.

Gwen, again, gets into position and stands ready for the monster's next attack.

It advances again.

A new crater is formed when a yellow ball of very high density crashes into the aberration. Gwen protects herself with a mana shield, deflecting pieces of concrete and roof debris that fly in all directions.

At the center of the crater, the teenage girl saw the yellow sphere spinning frantically over the monster's back, making it scream until it fell unconscious. The sphere then stopped. It leaped out of the crater and, as it positioned itself next to Gwen, unfurled itself like a ball- armadillo and offered the wide grin of the Cannonbolt.

“What's up, cousin, did you miss me?”

The girl punches the Arburian Pelarota in the arm and says, trying to ignore the pain she felt in her hand:

“How do you dump me with a monster like that and disappear into the sky?”

“Come on, Gwen, I told you I had a plan,” Ben returns to his human form.

“And I said we have to find a way out of here and not get into every fight that comes along!”

“Did you?”

“Yes, but you weren't listening to me!”

“So, okay, wiseass, how do we get out?”

“If I had known, we would have left already!”

“What if I wish we would? Technically we are in my mind so I must be in charge here...”

“Very well, then, try it,” Gwen crossed her arms and waited with a judgmental look on her face.

Ben closed his eyes and placed his index fingers on his temples. His expression became serious, then the youth began to make faces of deep concentration. Finally he said:

“Is it working?”

“Yes, it worked, Ben!”

“Really?” He opened his eyes with excitement.

“Of course it didn't! “

“Wicked to do that... “

Gwen closed her eyes and with one hand resting on her forehead, tried to find an answer for that place. At the moment, the only information she had was the city of Bellwood, deformed creatures, and an absurdly unstable Ben.

“Gwen...”

“Wait a minute, Ben, I'm thinking.”

But no matter how hard I tried, the pieces didn't fit together. Actually, they did fit, because this whole mess of battling monsters, causing destruction throughout the city, was more like a typical Tuesday than something that needed solving.

“Gwen, you'd better think faster, because it won't be long before they come after us.”

“I don't understand...”

“What don't you understand? Maybe I can find the answer you're looking for.”

Gwen looked into her cousin's eyes in a way that could be translated as, "really?"

However, thought Gwen, maybe it's not something she should solve! Maybe the one who should find the answer really is Ben! It was like the Enchantress said: his mind must be using this place to make him deal with some fear or anguish that only he would understand!

“Ben!”

“It's me!”

“You were right!”

“Was I?”

“You are responsible for everything here. This place, these creatures, this mindless way you're acting, maybe it's the way you're trying to communicate with yourself!”

Ben tilted his head to the side.

“It's like a puzzle you have to solve. That only you can solve!”

“And how do I do that?”

“I-I don't know.”

“Great!” He said ironically, “I was getting excited...”

“But we can't give up, Ben.”

“And who says I am? I just-”

A green laser hits Ben and throws him into the middle of the street.

“Hespera sophian” says Gwen. A circular surface protrudes in front of her and begins to reflect the laser beams. “Ben?”

“Relax, I'm okay...”

She turns her attention back to the source of the lasers. New creatures appear from behind the houses, shooting beams from their eyes. One of them resembled a deformed bat. Others were slender with long arms. In total, four aberrations were relentlessly shooting toward the youngsters.

They keep coming one after the other... Thought Gwen.

“Don't worry, Gwen, I'll take care of them too.”

“Didn't you hear a word I said, kid?”

Ben rushes past the shield and presses the Omnitrix core, coating himself in green light and announcing his crystalsapien form:

“Chroooomastone!”

Each laser that hit Ben's rocky surface was converted into a spark of rainbow light that traveled towards the pink crystal on top of his head. Gradually, each crystallized surface of his body shone brighter and brighter. The attacks did enough damage to make Ben yawn.

Finally, Chromastone said:

“My turn.”

From his hands, beams of pure energy are projected against the creatures, hurling them several meters away.

Gwen undoes her shield and tries to protect her eyes from the high luminosity that filled the residential area with the attack.

“You never tire of showing off, do you?” said Gwen.

“No. Is it my fault that I'm incredible?”

Grunts and roars started coming from the other end of the street, causing them both to look up and see more creatures approaching. The three-armed brute, joined the stumpy monster and the furry creatures of before.

At the other end of the street, the slender creatures that resembled bats were joined by pudgy, neckless monsters. All the creatures walked slowly as if there was no need for urgency.

“Are you ready for round two?” said Ben.

“Ben, please don't fight again, that's not our goal, and you know it!”

“But they're the ones attacking me first, does that mean I can't fight back?” He turns into the Heatblast.

“We can run away and get time to think of a plan.”

“If you want to run, be welcome. But I won't be the hero who runs away from a battle.” Ben looks at his Heatblast hands and says “I don't feel like using Heatblast today, maybe another one...”

Ben touches the Omnitrix symbol on his chest and transforms into the opticoid form.

“Eyeguy? No...” And touches the symbol again “Ripjaws? No... Upchuck? No... Swampfire? Also no... Rath? Um... Let me tell you something, Omnitrix, you're not being very good at picking the aliens I want!” And touches the symbol again.

Gwen watches her cousin transform into one alien after another. Her attention turns to the creatures that continue to advance. Are more coming? She sees over and behind the houses, new aberrations, with different shapes than the ones they fought before. The situation was getting more and more complicated.

“Ben?”

“Wait, Gwen... Big-chill? No... Wildmutt? No... Ditto? No... Frankenstrike? Maybe, but no...”

Gwen conjures a shield around her and her cousin and watches the creatures approach to the point of touching the protection. The monsters begin punching through the defense, echoing a clattering sound in glass with each attack.

“Ben, we have to get out of here!”

“We'll be right there, just let me choose the right alien to beat the crap out of these monsters, dammit!”

As if by a snap, an important connection is made in Gwen's head. She then screams:

 “Ben, stop transforming!”

“What? Why?”

“The monsters, Ben, the more you transform, the more of them appear!”

Ben returns to his human form and walks his gaze through the huge crowd of monsters that were punching, head-butting, and insisting on trying to get through the shield. The sounds of the impacts became more and more deafening.

“I'm almost out of mana...” said Gwen “And we're surrounded...”

The girl looked at her cousin, and a sadness came over her. In the end, I failed...

“I understood,” Ben said.

“What?”

“I understood, Gwen.” Her voice again lacked the joy and courage of a few minutes ago.

“So what do we do?”

“Undo the shield.”

“Are you out of your mind, Ben?”

“Trust me. They won't attack.”

In that instant, all the creatures ceased their attacks on the shield and stood still, as if awaiting a command.

A shiver ran through Gwen's body at the sight of all those motionless monsters. She stared at her cousin and realized that a tear was starting to appear in the corner of her eye.

He has found the answer...

Gwen undid her shield. Surrounded on all sides, she couldn't help but ask:

“Why aren't they attacking?”

“Because these monsters are me.”

Suddenly, for Gwen, all the creatures took on meaning. Their bizarre appearances, which brought discomfort and made it impossible to identify their species, gradually became deformed and partially transformed versions of their cousin. If before the creatures caused discomfort, now Gwen felt terrified and nauseated by what she saw.

Gwen turned her gaze to Ben, but was unable to say a single word.

Shrouded in tears, looking in absurd terror, Ben says:

“Help me...”

Chapter Text

That's him... thought Kevin.

His blood was starting to boil.

Finally I found him...

His thoughts were losing their rationality.

Because of him...

Looking at his face forced him to face his own helplessness.

Because of him Ben almost died!

He stared into Albedo's red eyes. His white hair. His ironic smile.

Sorry, Gwen...

Kevin stepped forward and grabbed Albedo's blouse with one hand. With the other he punched the villain in the face.

“You!” shouted Sir William “Stop right now!”

He did not listen, not even to his own reason. He prepared to throw a second punch.

“What an ungrateful person,” Albedo contained his anger in a wry smile. From a crack in his lip ran a trickle of blood.

Kevin stopped his arm in the air and said:

“What did you say!?”

“I called you ungrateful! I expected a ‘thank you’ but was met with punches.”

“And why should I thank you, huh, you bastard! For not beating you up before? Don't be for that!” And punched again.

“If it wasn't for me, you'd still be stuck in that damn maze!”

“For you!” Kevin laughed ironically, “I can't believe it!” One more punch.

Albedo turned his face away, made two circular movements with his jaw, and spat blood onto the stone floor of the crypt. His gaze stared at the red bloodstain on the floor, then said:

“I already knew you weren't the smartest of goofs, but it seems your lack of intellect must stand out among all of the species, it's not possible....”

“What did you say?” Kevin prepared his arm for another punch when Albedo interrupted him.

“’Faced,’ you inept man! The answer was in the damn story! If you didn't activate the traps in the rooms you wouldn't be able to advance!” Albedo pointed at the knights “This herd of fools values the ‘courage’ of throwing themselves into a suicidal situation more than dealing rationally with something!”

Kevin lowered his arm a little and stared at the ground, trying to remember the poem. He couldn't remember any "faced". He could only remember George saying that the traps were dangerous and could kill them.

“But what am I saying?” Albedo said, a mixed smile of irony and frustration drawn on his face, "It's logical that you wouldn't be able to understand this.”

“You activated the rooms.” said Kevin softly.

“That's what I said.”

The teenager remembered all the suffering he had been through. Storm, rain of lasers, a fire-breathing metallic snake... The wounds on his body were still throbbing.

“And then?” said Albedo “Where's the thank you?”

Kevin hit him again. This time he dented the cartilage of his nose and let a trickle of blood flow from the villain's nostril. He raises his arm for the next punch and-

An arrow passes between the space of their faces, disappearing into the darkness of the previous chamber and echoing with the sound of an explosion. The two turn their gaze toward the knights and find Sir William lowering a technological bow and handing it to one of the knights at his side. He then says in his thick, impassive voice:

“I hope you have not forgotten where you are at this moment...”

Actually, I did... thought Kevin.

“Let him go,” said Sir.

Albedo pushed Kevin away and let himself out of the youth's hand. He then brings the back of his hand to his nose and wipes away the blood that was flowing.

The soldier-knights stood ready, with the sights of their weapons focused on the invaders. Next to Sir William, three other knights stood out with their grandiosity, stateliness and arrogant posture. 97% chance they were Sirs.

“Name?” said Sir William to Kevin.

“Kevin Levin.”

“I've heard about you. A mestizo, if I'm not mistaken.”

Kevin didn't answer.

“And you must be Albedo.”

“That's correct.”

“Well, both of you have been present in our facilities for the last few hours, knowing our precepts and rules, so you already know what happens to scum like you.”

“Indeed.” Albedo raised a finger for attention “Before we proceed with the planned activities, which I believe will be quite amusing, I have no doubt about that; I have one question: How did you discover my disguise?”

“Your kindness” replied the knight.

Kevin intruded into the conversation:

“Excuse me?” he said indignantly.

“We already suspected that the alien Albedo would attempt to invade our facility based on his movements over the past few days. We only focused on identifying the member of our Order who was behaving out of the ordinary, in case there was an attempt of disguise.”

“Yes, I thought so,” Albedo said, “but I didn't understand the ‘kindness’ part.”

“It had been over twelve hours and none of the new recruits had asked to leave the training.”

“Okay, now I'm impressed,” Albedo said, looking at Kevin. “I really dedicated myself to making the recruits' lives a living hell...”

Kevin held back from attacking the villain.

“Our squire is famous for his methods of selecting the strongest.”

“Selection methods?” Kevin's memories about all the bullying he had suffered or witnessed at the hands of the Squire-Albedo kept coming back, like a clear case of post-traumatic stress.

“His record, if I'm not mistaken...” The Knight Leader looked at his fellow Sir next door and waved his hand as if he needed help remembering a piece of information.

“Three minutes and forty-seven seconds,” replied his colleague.

“Yes, three minutes and forty-seven seconds! After that the boy ran away in tears without even setting foot inside the wall,” Sir William smiled at the memory.

Kevin wanted to understand why a group of people would praise the disgusting attitude of a subordinate. But it didn't take much to realize that he was dealing with a group famous for the most despicable actions possible and precepts just as repugnant.

“Well, if there are no more doubts, let's move on to the execution.”

A sharp noise was heard from all the guns drawn. The shooting would start at the first signal.

“Should I keep my hands up?” said Albedo, already putting his arms up.

Kevin looked at Albedo suspiciously. What is he planning?

“Feel free to do whatever you think best,” Sir said.

“Well, if that's the way it is.” Albedo crossed his arms over his head and pressed the core of his Omnitrix.

Oh, shit!

Kevin ran toward a pillar to protect himself from the hail of gunfire that followed. He squeezed behind the stone column as much as he could, but each laser shot ripped off bits and pieces of his protection.

With difficulty, the teenager looked out of the corner of his eye to where Albedo had previously stood. He saw only a humanoid silhouette being completely pierced like a Swiss cheese. Red spots appeared on the walls, floor and ceiling with each new shot. Kevin even thought of feeling sorry, but the feeling of revenge spoke louder.

Well done...

Sir William raised his hand and the firing ceased. The smell of burning filled the air. Slowly, the smoke from the debris torn from walls and pilasters began to settle. Only a violent red stain remained on the dungeon floor of what had once been the Galvanian.

“Don't be a coward, mestizo,” Sir William said, “Come face your fate with an open heart, like your friend.”

He was definitely not my friend...

Kevin breathed heavily. He tried to find a way out of there, but the possible options were few. Even the impossible options had an unlikely chance of success...

He heard again the high-pitched sound of weapons being activated. Carefully he looked around the corner of the pillar to his left and saw the soldiers with their guns in their sights, but they're not aiming at me?

“That's right, Osmosian, now it's your turn,” a high-pitched voice echoed from within the dark antechamber. “Maybe against you they'll have a little more luck...”

Kevin turned toward Albedo's tombstain. He noticed that slowly the ‘blood’ spread over the ground and the walls began to recede into a single point. The shapeless liquid was gathering like a bright red lake. Literally.

The bastard had survived!

From the darkness of the antechamber, a small floating drone entered the vault room and hovered above the liquid. The antigravity generator then began to rise and bring the liquefied matter with it, until it formed a faceless, gelatinous-looking humanoid silhouette.

Having everyone's attention turned to himself, the polymorpho then continued to speak:

“Should I wait my turn again once you guys are done with the Osmosian brat, or is there no such thing as a queue?”

I, the narrator, if I were Kevin or Albedo, would sell tickets so people could enjoy the look on Sir William's face when he realized that he was not only fooled, but also underestimated. All this in front of the vast majority of his subordinates and his fellow Sirs. It was too much humiliation per square meter. It would certainly make a lot of money. Finally, the chief knight ordered:

“Finish those bastards off!!!”

The battery of shots were again fired at Albedo and Kevin. The teenager rested his hand on the ground beneath him and began to coat himself with rock. The villain, on the other hand, advanced toward the soldiers, dodging the shots with his disarticulated, formless body.

He can't take Chaotic! thought Kevin.

The boy ran through the left side of the vault room, his arms crossed in front of his face to shield his eyes from the shots. As soon as he got close enough to a soldier, he invested a blow with his shoulder, throwing him sideways.

Kevin saw in the center of the room the sealed square receptacle. Around him a row of soldiers surrounded the object. In front of him, a Sir with a technological bow was firing arrows in Albedo's direction. The damned walking catarrh was having trouble moving forward, but that didn't stop him from being able to dodge all the blows and projectiles coming his way.

Suddenly Kevin felt a heavy iron ball crash into his ribs ― the sound of breaking bones reached his ears ― and he was thrown to the other end of the room and crashed against a pillar.  The air in his lungs escaped on impact. Partially conscious, the boy realized that his shirt and part of his skin were scorched. A bruise had already begun to form in the region of his lower ribs.

The brute in armor approached Kevin accompanied by two other soldiers. In his hand was a weapon that was a mixture of Camelot and Star Wars: a stylized medieval mace, but instead of thorns, electric beams emanated from the smooth surface of the iron ball.

“Hello, trash! Remember me?”

Kevin's blurred vision slowly normalized, allowing him to identify the owner of the voice and the damn iron ball.

“Hey there, old man... I met your son. Nice people. Totally different from his father. We even became friends!”

Sir Gustav looked at Kevin with disgust. The mere idea that his son could become friends with such a repulsive being made the knight sick with hatred. He held the mace in both hands and raised it over his head to deliver the final blow.

A scream of pain echoed through the hall, making Sir Gustav stop the blow in mid-air.

Kevin couldn't see the source of the scream, but he could see the worried expression on the face of the knight in front of him.

“Arrest him,” said Sir Gustav. “I want the pleasure of finishing him off myself.” And he took quick steps towards the source of the scream.

The teenager felt pain from head to toe. He didn't even have the strength to react to the soldiers who lifted him up like a doll and put handcuffs on his hands. He was thrown back against the wall of the room and kept under surveillance by three soldiers in a semicircle.

At last some rest... Thought Kevin.

Now let's change our point of view a little. We will do a "Meanwhile" to better contextualize the reasons that led to the cry earlier.

Let's go back to the instant when Kevin came out from behind the pillar and advanced against the soldiers.

* * *

Meanwhile, Albedo was trying to reach the receptacle of the Chaotic, but the siege around him was intensifying more and more. Although he was at the moment a practically indestructible single-celled organism, he needed to have a minimum of organic matter to be able to hold the desired device in his hands in order to escape. So, losing pieces along the way was not a good strategy, and all that remained was to dodge as much as possible.

But this was wasting too much time, and time was not something he had to waste like this...

He stopped dodging.

A sword cut across his head from ‘one ear to the other’ making a piece of goo fly and hit the armor arm of a soldier. Laser shots hurled pieces of his "abdomen" at the soldiers behind him. An arrow hit the center of his chest and remained there. A faint audible noise preceded the impact wave that splattered the polymorpho's body against a crowd in attendance.

Victory! thought the soldiers.

Suddenly, small gelatinous streams began to form between the various pieces of polymorpho scattered in the room. The soldiers tried to get loose, but the more they interacted against the goo, the more it trapped them. Suddenly, all the beams tensioned with each other, forcing the pieces to clump together and bringing with them all the victims of the sticky trap to a single point.

About twenty bodies crashed into each other with such violence that few were able to maintain even the slightest bit of consciousness from the impact. That is, if they didn't pass out immediately afterwards.

From above the cluster of bodies, the antigravity generator flies over and gathers the remains of polymorpho into a single organism. Then, floating a few inches off the ground, Albedo's shapeless body attacked the other soldiers on its way to the Chaotic.

Punches were thrown in a thousand directions. A henchman was grabbed and spun around in mid-air three times before being thrown at his comrades. Two electric arrows came toward the polymorpho, but ended up hitting a soldier who was used as a shield. In a second moment, with his legs spinning like a propeller in the air, Albedo advanced kicking five soldiers and the Knight Archer.

Just a few meters before reaching the Chaotic's receptacle, the gelatinous mass of the polymorpho crashed against the surface of a medieval shield that appeared at the last moment. The knight carrying the shield emitted a guttural shout of rage, and then activated his internal defense mechanisms.

From the surface of the shield, a powerful shockwave hurled all the gelatinous matter and its antigravity generator to the beginning of the vault room, restarting Albedo's entire course.

Sir William jumps up and grabs the floating drone in the air. He then says:

“You mean it's that device that allows you to move forward that way.... I want to see what you will be able to do without your little toy.”

The machine rattles, trying futilely to free itself from the knight's hands. Sir William walks victoriously through his men until he meets the Knight of the Shield who was coming towards him.

“Sir Edward, I must congratulate you! Your strategy worked perfectly well!”

“Thank you, My Lord," said the Knight of the Shield in a thick voice that resembled a roar. - And now, what do we do with this?

“You don't really think you won with just that, do you?” said the high-pitched voice of the polymorpho from inside the drone.

The knights then realize that on the ground beneath their feet, the red goo has collected its fragments. Sir William pulls a dagger from his back and prepares to pierce the drone when his chin is struck by a jelly-like hand coming from the ground. He is thrown, falling backwards to the ground.

Sir Edward positions himself with his shield in front of his body. Albedo, in turn, circles around the knight's body and clings to various parts of his armor.

“Don't even think about it, brute,” Albedo says, his head protruding in front of the knight's face. “I notice that you are quite protected inside this metal carcass. I think you could withstand even a tank shot if you had to...”

A bead of sweat ran down the knight's face. There was anger in his eyes, but his body trembled with fear of what might come next.

“But it's a good thing you're not facing a tank right now, isn't it?” Albedo throws the knight's shield to one side of the room. “And if you are not facing anything that requires all this protection...” He begins to separate the components of the armor and throws pieces of it to all sides “... this all becomes unnecessary. Don't you agree?”

The knight tries to bring his hand to the polymorpho's head when he feels a stabbing pain go through his arm. The gelatinous matter that surrounded parts of his body changed its nature and became corrosive, opening a long wound in his skin.

Sir Edward lets out a pained scream that echoes throughout the vault room.

And with that, we conclude "Meanwhile..."

Let us return to Kevin.

* * *

The boy awakes with the second scream of pain.

What was that! Thought Kevin. What's going on! How long have I been out!

Five minutes and thirty seven seconds, just to clarify.

Kevin tried to move, but only then did he realize that he was handcuffed. The three soldiers around him didn't seem interested in him, but in the confusion in the middle of the room. He heard one of the soldiers say to his colleague:

“Let's go help!”

“Are you crazy? How are we going to beat something like that?”

“Fine, then, keep an eye on the kid there. Henry, are you coming?”

“Let's go.”

Two of the soldiers head toward the confusion. The remaining one was not really worried about Kevin, so much so that at no once did he turn around to see if the boy was still alive or not.

Kevin touched the ground and absorbed enough rock to cover his body. He forced the handcuffs, trying to break them. He couldn't do it at first, probably because he was weakened. After two more attempts, he managed to get rid of the shackles. He stood up next to the soldier guarding him and asked:

“What's going on over there?”

“It seems that the alien trash has taken one of the Sirs hostage. I don't know how he did it...”

The soldier looks at Kevin's face and takes a few seconds to recognize it:

“Wait a minute! You're supposed to be-”

A stone punch to the pit of the stomach was more than enough to silence the soldier who fell bent over the ground. Kevin kept his attention focused for a few seconds on the confusion.

Albedo coated part of a Knight's torso and arms like a parasite. Seeking to reach the Chaotic, he forced his hostage toward the receptacle. One acid burn at a time. Should anyone try to attack him in any way, he would simply slide down the Knight's body and use his body as a shield.

“Come on, Eduardo!” shouted Albedo “I don't have all day!”

A new acid burn formed on the knight's back, causing him to groan gutturally and, with great resistance, to take a step towards the receptacle.

Around the hostage, the other Sirs and soldiers were positioning themselves in search of some gap to attack, but "attack" meant being able to wound their colleague or superior to death.

Kevin looked around him. With all attention focused on Albedo, his path was partially clear to his objective. He cautiously advanced, hiding behind the pillars. He was one pillar away from the protective enclosure of the receptacle when he once again heard the knight's scream of suffering.

A wound was blistering all over the victim's right arm. He would probably no longer be able to use that limb. Kevin felt himself inside the labyrinth again. He looked around him for clues as to what he could do. He found the answer stuck in a wall.

Albedo delighted in all the confusion. The struggle of a few moments only wasted his energy and was to no avail. These worms were not going to give up so easily, and if they can cheat using technology, so can he. But, honestly, the screams of the brute were getting on his nerves...

He observed the expressions of the soldiers around him. He loved to be hated. He looked at the knights in front of him and their looks of fury made his heart race with excitement. Well, maybe it was his heart, he couldn't quite tell if he had one in that form.

Albedo kept an eye out for any movement. Any attempt to strike at him was followed by a cowardly slip and a "Are you sure you want to do this? What if you hurt your friend here, huh? He's your superior, huh?"

Suddenly a new scream is heard in the hall. But it was not one of pain. It was the roar of one who advances in an attack. Albedo smiled and turned in the direction of the sound. He watched the soldiers confusedly move away, forming a corridor for an individual running with a familiar medieval shield. "He won't have the courage to attack his superior," Albedo thought.

Then Albedo sees a determined look from behind the object, followed by a wry smile from an Osmosian.

Damn! Thought Albedo.

The polymorpho even tried to disengage from his hostage puppet, but as soon as the surface of the shield touched the knight's body, a shockwave spread over the spot. Like the first time, chunks of gelatinous matter spread across the site, staining mainly the surface of Chaotic's vault. The Knight was thrown and fell unconscious (but alive) into the arms of his companions.

Kevin was impressed by the result. He didn't know that the shield was capable of all that. He thought he would just give it a push and that would be it. Well, it worked at least...

Albedo's antigravity generator hit the surface of the vault, ricocheted and fell close to Kevin's feet. The boy didn't blink and jumped up to grab the object still on the ground. He knew well how the polymorpho worked.

The soldiers gathered around Kevin with their sights on his head. It was thanks to him that his superior was saved, so the least that is expected of gratitude is that there is at least one superior command to carry out the execution. Outsourcing the blame, some would say.

Kevin felt the drone swing in his arms. Holding the object tightly, his gaze ignored all the soldiers and knights around him and focused on the receptacle in the background. He watched the red goo of Albedo slowly invade the cracks in the vault.

Without the generator you're just a walking slime, you won't be able to hold the Chaotic... - thought Kevin.

Then the drone stopped moving. For a few moments a silence fell over the vault room. The knights were performing first aid on their tortured comrade. The soldiers were awaiting commands. Kevin could hear the accelerated sounds of his own heart.

Suddenly, the antigravity generator in his hands began to liquefy. The transparent liquid began to slide towards the Chaotic vault and penetrate through the cracks.

Something is wrong...

An explosion ripples through the room, hurling fragments of the receptacle in various directions. The few present who managed to react to the event sought to cover their eyes from the massive steel debris.

On the surface where the box once stood, a semi-transparent humanoid creature resembling a glass puppet stood. There was no device floating above its head, but three small spheres that rotated with each other inside the creature's thorax.

A thick voice sounded from the creature, saying:

“Where is it!?”

The soldiers looked at each other without understanding. Kevin didn't know what to say to the creature either.

Where is what? Thought Kevin, Who is this guy? And where is Chaotic?

The humanoid figure pointed at Sir William and asked again:

“The Entropy Regulator, where is it!?”

Sir William's answer was a wry smile, the kind we offer when we know we've won a dispute, or when our plans have reached their final objective, although they have suffered some unforeseen events on the way.

Then everything made sense to Kevin: there was nothing in the safe.

It was all a bluff!

Chapter Text

Galvan Prime

Day 01

The galvanic ship descends gently into the landing area of the Galvan Prime Research Center. The doors open and Azmuth lands on the access ramp with a young blonde girl following close behind. The girl had no official name until a few hours ago, so she was named Eunice by a trio of Earthlings.

Azmuth was walking with his tiny steps to the entrance gate of the laboratory. At no time did he turn to check if the girl was still following him. His wish was to switch her off to her receptacle form and continue with his planned experiments, but he promised the Tennyson boy to keep her in this dysfunctional appearance.

Eunice looked at her surroundings with exaltation. She had only been alive for a few hours and each new discovery was worthy of receiving her full attention. Several times she held the impulse to run to some strange object and touch it to see what would happen. "The Great Thinker Azmuth is going to get angry" he said to himself.

As soon as the access gate closed behind them, Azmuth and Eunice continued to walk down the corridors and hallways with their dialogue based on mutual silence. The other employees of the laboratory watched the slender pink figure walk through the corridors following the Chief Scientist, and there was a lot of chatter and comments that spread through the place.

I think we're attracting attention, thought Eunice.

“Yes, we are,” said Azmuth.

“Excuse me, sir?” she asked.

“Yes, we're attracting everyone's attention,” he answered without turning around.

But how did he know? Could he be able to read thoughts!

“Excuse me, sir,” said Eunice, leaning forward slightly, trying not to speak too loudly to be heard, “but by chance-”

“No.”

“I-I...”

“No, I'm not able to read your thoughts.”

“But then-”

“It's just a matter of logic, Unitrix. We rarely have creatures of other species in this building and I went out on a research trip two months ago and just came back without telling anyone.”

They stop in front of the elevator entrance. Azmuth stands with his hands behind his back waiting for the transport. Eunice, in turn, continues observing the surroundings and catching the numerous glances fixed on them.

“So it's not my fault, all this commotion? I really don't want to be a nuisance.”

“No, Unitrix,” interrupted Azmuth, “it's both of our faults. Now come on, the elevator has arrived.”

Inside the cylindrical space of the elevator, Eunice had to keep her neck bent, because the ceiling height was not designed for her height. There was no elevator music, as Azmuth hated this and forced the removal of ambient sound from all locations. It cut his concentration, according to him. The only sound that could be heard was the sound of the elevator motor exerting its traction.

“Mr. Azmuth,” said Eunice.

He stared at the door in front of him and said:

“Yes.”

“Thank you very much for allowing me to come.”

The Galvanian answered nothing.

The single-note beep that indicated a "You have arrived!" alerted insiders and outsiders to the presence of the elevator on the floor. As soon as the door opened, Azmuth followed walking with his usual kyphosis toward his living room.

Eunice was not sure what she should do from there. Should she follow him? Should she stay there? Was there a place where she could rest from her trip? She decided to ask:

“Mr. Azmuth, what do I do now?”

The Galvanian raised only one hand in the air and answered:

“I don't know, something useful, I hope.”

***

Day 03

Eunice was still getting lost in the corridors of the laboratory, but she had already made considerable progress on her knowledge of the place. With the help of some of the laboratory employees, she discovered a place that she could adopt as her room. Exploring a little further, he found the workshops, the library, the storerooms, and the pantry.

She saw Azmuth only on the day of her arrival, and even then, her last sentence reverberated in her mind. How could she be useful there?

She was in the most advanced research center in the galaxy. A place created and constantly developed to bring to the world the most amazing creations ever invented. Therefore, nothing could be more logical and useful than to create something extremely necessary to the universe. She made up her mind: She would become a scientist.

First step: learn to read.

Before the first step: try to remember where the library was. Was it on the fifth or on the forty-seventh floor?

***

Day 12

Multidimensional Fidgerian calculus is really not knowledge for me, thought Eunice. Her head rested on the tablet as a sign of giving up.

The library was occupied only by the young woman and the librarian.

Okay, she had managed to learn about Niwrad's multi-temporal evolutionary theorems, the entropic cadence scale of the universe and, earlier, pluripotential biochemical nanomechanics. But why does multi-dimensional computation have to be so complicated? Couldn't it be as easy as Catzian monomolecular physics?

“I've had enough, I can't take it anymore,” Eunice whispered without taking her head off the tablet.

When will I have learned enough to start practicing science? She thought about going to Azmuth and asking for some line of research to develop, but was afraid she would be scolded if she didn't know how to answer something.

“No,” Eunice raised her head in determination, “I can't give up!” She lowered her eyes to the first lines of the book and read again.

However, she felt as if she had acquired so much knowledge in the last few days that she was forced to unlearn to read, because it wasn't possible! I read, I read, and I don't understand anything!

“Now I'm serious, I give up!” And she rested her head on the table again in defeat.

He closed his eyes and meditated for a few moments. He thought about why he was doing all this. Not only why, but for whom? For herself? To prove herself to Azmuth? But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't find an answer....

“So long, Mr. Azmuth!” said the librarian.

Eunice stood up in shock. Azmuth was here! Did he see me? She ran towards the corridor to look for the library exit. Hiding behind a bookcase she saw the tiny silhouette of the scientist disappear as the doors closed.

May he not have seen me, may he not have seen me!

Eunice walked to her place of study. As she got closer, she realized that on the table there were not only one, but two tablets. Could someone have forgotten them there?

She took the forgotten tablet in hand to put it back. But first, he decided to read a few lines of the written text to try to determine on which shelf he should put it.

He read one line, two lines, and continued until he finished the paragraph. The book was about multidimensional Fidgerian calculus, but compared to the previous one - based on suffering - it was as if this one had been written for a primary school child, so simple and well explained.

Eunice decided to forget about returning the book. She sat down again without taking her eyes off the tablet and continued to feed her knowledge. Not with a horrible liver and jingo stew, but with a delicious lasagna Bolognese with ice cream for dessert. Sorry about the metaphor, but I'm just hungry at the moment.

***

Day 19

Standing in front of the door to the main lab, Eunice took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down to face another day of "trying to get into some line of research".

In the last three days, unfortunately, she had accomplished nothing.

She spent much of the day standing around like a decorative object moving around the lab. The times she tried to communicate with the head scientist and ask for permission to be part of the research, she only received a "Shoo!" or silence in response.

But today was going to be different. She was determined and would not take no for an answer. She took one last deep breath and pressed the button to open the doors.

What followed was the personification of chaos.

Red lights flashed throughout the hall. A loud siren tried to warn those present that an explosion was imminent. Galvanians were running around trying to find a way to interrupt the experiment. Dr. Uhmnael's research with D particles ended up resulting in an absurdly unstable reaction inside reactor 7. It was a matter of time before five floors of the building disappeared in a powerful explosion.

Eunice ran into the laboratory, dodging the scientists who were moving like ants in a colony under attack. She approached reactor 7 cautiously. Steam and smoke escaped through the gaps and pipes, indicating the progressive increase in pressure that had been established there. Successive flashes signaled that the chain of reactions was feeding back and becoming increasingly unstable.

Dr. Uhmnael shouted to one of his assistants:

“Start the cooling process!”

Eunice looked at the scientist in disbelief at what she was hearing. She had studied about this kind of feedback reaction, and although it was not with D particles, she knew that lowering the temperature could greatly amplify the reaction force.

“Doctor Uhmnael, don't do this!” Eunice shouted, “This kind of reaction gets worse if you just lower the temperature!”

“Who are you and what are you doing here?” replied the scientist “Get out! Don't you realize how dangerous it is here?”

They won't listen to me, thought Eunice.

The teenager approached the assistant in charge of cooling the reaction and, as if taking a doll out of the way, moved the Galvanian aside and positioned herself in front of the operating table.

“What is she doing!” shouted Uhmnael “Don't touch that, you'll get us all killed!”

Eunice ignored the chatter around her. Concentrating on the reactor about to explode in front of her, she changed parameters and variables through the buttons on the panel.

We must initially raise the temperature until a process of deceleration of the cadence is observed, followed by the insertion of three wikers of Úons particles associated with the gradual removal of pressure...

Eunice felt something small grab one of her arms.

“Stop it right now, you idiot, you don't know what you're doing!” said the Galvanian holding her arm.

The alien's resistance to the young woman was practically nil, so she continued with her interrupting work.

Now I lower the temperature at a rate of one degree every two seconds and…

More Galvanians clung to her body. Maybe one would not do the work, but as the amount increased, Eunice began to have difficulty moving.

And I change the electrogravitational field to 3u776…

Eunice was beginning to give way with the weight of the aliens. With difficulty she pressed the last button she needed.

A yellowish light invaded the laboratory and suddenly disappeared. The reactor, which only a few moments ago was threatening to end the lives of everyone there, went silent. A layer of ice began to form on the surface of the machine, accompanied by the light fog that forms on cold days.

The sirens finally fell silent, just as the red lights finally decided to rest. The employees looked at each other trying to understand what had happened.

It was then that a junior scientist shouted out:

“We are going to live!”

The earlier frenzy turned into a celebration, with hugs and shouts of cheers. The Galvanians who had once tried to stop Eunice, now helped her up from the floor.

“It was bad, human, we apologize for what we did and I hope you can forgive us,” said a Galvanian.

“Don't worry, we're alive and that's what matters,” Eunice replied with a smile.

The party was interrupted when the laboratory doors opened and a familiar voice resounded throughout the place:

“Who was responsible for almost destroying my lab!?” asked Azmuth.

Dr. Uhmnael walked towards Azmuth with his head down, embarrassed by the whole situation. Then he said:

“Great Thinker Azmuth, it's my fault.”

Azmuth said nothing, just stared at the scientist.

“I must have calculated something wrong, or failed to check some parameter before starting the experiment, and it turned out that the D particles entered a state of feedback reaction and so on-”

“And how did you interrupt the process?” Azmuth ran through explanation.

“Excuse me?”

“How did you stop the reaction? After all, we're not dead, so you did something!”

“Actually, sir, I don't know how the reaction was interrupted.” The scientist turned towards Eunice and continued “It was the human who intervened and managed to interrupt the process.”

Azmuth stared at Eunice.

The girl didn't quite know how to interpret her creator's gaze. She just remained paralyzed with an uncomfortable chill down her spine. Perhaps it was the reactor behind her that emanated an icy air, who knows.

“Unitrix, please come with me to my laboratory.” said Azmuth.

***

Day 22

Don't worry Azmuth didn't hang up on Eunice or anything like that. Without giving any further explanation, he made the young girl his personal secretary. In this way the girl was obliged to accompany the Galvanian at all times. I thought I would say 24 hours a day, but the length of the days on Galvan Prime are different, so it wouldn't make a good sentence. You get the point.

Honestly, Eunice was not very happy.

She had spent days working hard to be able to cope with a survey, yet now she was forced to follow Azmuth like a domestic dog. Is that what it means to be useful to him?

The only thing more fun than this desk job was being able to watch Azmuth and his experiments. I had been working as a secretary for two days now and had managed to gather enough notes to fill a book. Of course he couldn't have known that: Azmuth was absurdly annoying about the possibility of information leaks.

But although she couldn't be a scientist during the day, it was at night, in the recesses of her room that she embodied the Great Thinker Eunice and spent hours developing her theories and prototype equipment. Whether she would one day be able to put them into practice she could not say, but just being able to plan was able to satisfy some of her thirst for science.

***

Day 47

Eunice approached Azmuth's room with a set of documents that demanded the scientist's attention. How she was going to get him off one of his researches and look at the documents, she wasn't sure. Azmuth hated bureaucracy.

Just a few steps away she heard shouts from inside the room. A discussion!? But with whom? Azmuth didn't shout, he just spoke firmly. His interlocutor, on the other hand, made a point of telling the whole floor that he was there. It was not possible to clearly define what was being said, so Eunice slowly approached the door and put her ear to the ground to listen.

“Don't you dare speak that name,” the voice shouted, “You don't have the right!”

“And you have the right to come to my laboratory and make this kind of ridiculous scandal? Don't give me those ignoble arguments, my dear boy!” said Azmuth.

“Very well then. We're done here. You have three days to give me an answer, if not...”

Eunice heard the sound of footsteps approaching the door. Desperate, she turned away from the door and tried to pretend that she had just arrived. When the door opened, she found Councilor Fahtzi coming out of the room.

“Good morning, young lady!” said Fahtzi with a smile. “How are you?”

“I-I'm fine, sir.”

“How wonderful!” Fahtzi turned to Azmuth and said, “And don't forget what we talked about, Great Thinker, I need an answer from you as soon as possible! Galvan Prime is counting on you!” And he went down the corridor, walking unconcerned.

Eunice followed the Councilor with her gaze until he disappeared into the elevator.

I wonder what happened here?

“Unitrix, come with me,” said Azmuth as he passed by the girl's side and headed for the elevators.

The two remained silent the whole way. The destination: the communications sector.

As soon as they entered the room responsible for reporting to the entire research center, the sound technicians stepped away from their panels and greeted Azmuth respectfully.

“Open a channel to the whole building, I need to send a communication to everyone,” said the scientist.

After a few seconds, the technician confirmed that the channel was established, Azmuth stepped up to the microphone and began to announce:

“Attention all employees of the Galvan Prime Research Center, this is Azmuth speaking. I hereby announce that as of today, all operations, research and experiments conducted by this center are suspended and all employees and researchers are dismissed until further notice. I thank you all for your support over the years and ask you to clear the building by the end of the day.”

Azmuth stepped away from the microphone and walked back towards the elevators. Eunice, the technicians and all the employees of the research center remained stunned by the news. And now what?

“Unitrix,” said Azmuth.

Eunice forced herself out of the catatonic state she was in, and quickened her pace to accompany the scientist.

And now? Was she also forced to leave the Research Center? She didn't want to ask that question.

The teenager followed Azmuth through the building, unable to pay attention to the path. Her thoughts were a whirlwind of doubt. She didn't notice that the Galvanian was taking a different route, trying to dodge any employee that came along. The next thing she knew, the two of them were in front of Eunice's room.

“May I enter your room?” asked Azmuth.

“Mr. Azmuth? But why?”

“We need to talk and I'm sure that my laboratory at this moment must be crowded with angry people.”

Eunice remembered the countless notes and theories she kept hidden in her room. She thought about denying entry, but what did it matter now?

“Please come in,” she said, opening the automated door.

Azmuth could not hide his surprise. Was there a mess? Yes, there was. But mostly there were clear examples of a creative and impressive mind thirsting to break free on every piece of paper and note stuck on those walls.

“What would you like to talk to me about?” Eunice sat up in bed.

“You are probably thinking ‘What is going to happen to me now?’ am I right?”

“I'm used to you doing that. But yes, you are right.”

“Unitrix, I don't expect you to understand my reasons.”

“Actually, sir, I want at least one reason.”

“I know you do. But I can't tell you.”

“Is it about your new project, the ultimatrix?”

“How do you know this?”

“Sir, I follow you all day long. Maybe you sometimes forget that I am by your side, but I am always there. One of these times I ended up seeing notes from you about this new prototype.”

“And have you mentioned this to anyone?”

“Of course not! I would never do that! In fact, I am offended that you would even consider it of me!”

“I'm sorry, it's just that unfortunately this information leaked out and I honestly can't think of anyone responsible.”

“And you thought it could be me? Is that why you came here?”

“What? No! Unitrix, please calm down!”

An awkward silence fell over the room.

“Actually...” said Azmuth.

“’Actually?’”

Azmuth climbs onto Eunice's bed and stands beside the girl.

“Actually I came to make you a proposal.”

“And what would it be?”

“I don't know how things will be here on Galvan Prime from now on, and I would like you to return to Earth. I believe that the Tennyson boy and his family would welcome you with open arms.

“Sir, but what about you?”

“Don't worry about me.”

“I'm not going to just leave the research center and run away.”

“It's not a question of running away, Unitrix, it's a question of preventing further problems. I will talk to Magistrate Tennyson and in a matter of hours you will be on your way to Earth. You will be safe with the Tennyson boy, the Osmosian, and the human girl with that thing on her head.”

“A thing on her head?”

“Yes, that thing that looks like a weave of orange threads over her head.”

“Hair?”

“Is that hair? But the way she displays that hair doesn't make sense!”

“Are you saying the ponytail, sir?” Eunice takes her hands to her own hair and holds it up, simulating Gwen's hairstyle “That way, you mean-“

Azmuth jumps up and touches the back of Eunice's head, deactivating the construct that gives her human form and returning her to her original cylindrical receptacle form.

“I'm sorry, Eunice.”

***

Day 198

Galvan Prime Central Prison

Eunice crouches down and hands the mechamorph cube into Azmuth's hands.

“Use the armor to get the Magistrate out of here, Mr. Azmuth,” Eunice said, then stood up and looking at Azmuth from above continued, “I believe the inactive form is already enough to help you in this task.”

“Don't be ridiculous, Unitrix, let's go. There's not the slightest possibility that you'll be able to face them alone.”

“I know that.”

Eunice turned back and faced the corridor with the prison guards coming towards her. The girl took two fingerless gloves from her pockets and put them on. She then took a small headset and installed it in her right ear.

Azmuth stared at the girl, then at the Magistrate, who was writhing in pain at his feet.

Eunice pressed once the button on the headset and said:

“Begin experiment. Acinonyx jubatus.”

She then watched a hairy texture similar to cheetah fur grow on the palm of her gloves. She closed her hands and a small green light escaped through her fingers.

“Go now!” she said, before setting off at a high-speed four-legged race down the corridor.

The girl ran and jumped along the walls, hitting the guards in mid-air and dodging her tormentors' shots. Her speed and reaction time were amazing.

After clearing the corridor, she reached the cell hall again. From behind a corner, an armored vehicle appeared and drove toward him. On top of the vehicle was a photon cannon, capable of taking out a Vaxasaurian easily.

Eunice looked at the vehicle and compared it to the exit from the corridor behind her. In a matter of seconds she formulated a plan:

“Onthophagus taurus!” Again the green light slipped through her fingers.

The girl set off in the direction of the vehicle, dodging the shots that opened holes in the prison floor. When she got close to the bumper of the armored car, she grabbed it with all her strength, making the wheels of the vehicle skid on the ground.

Sweat dripped down Eunice's face, and then, in one last impulse, she lifted the vehicle and threw it over her head. The armored car crashed into the entrance to the corridor and, like a huge stone saddling a grave, blocked the main path between the guards and Azmuth.

Eunice was breathing heavily. Her gaze emanated fury and determination. The guards were piling up around her ready to fire.

“I'm sorry, Azmuth,” she said.

Chapter Text

We are all a kind of Iron Man.

This sentence must not have made any sense to you, I imagine, but you will understand. When I say that we are all a kind of Iron Man, I don't mean that we are all absurdly intelligent, stuck-up, rich, and carriers of advanced technology capable of battling monsters and aliens that are fanatical about 50%. No.

This metaphor is more to represent our relationship with our body. We are like Tony Stark in his armor. We are pilots in a covering of flesh called body.

By now you must have thought about the possibility of closing this text and go find something more interesting to read, because the narrator must clearly be on drugs and is not making any sense. Well, I will prove to you that I am not that crazy.

We have a personality, a way of dealing with things and interacting with the world around us. Some people call it soul, others ego, but I prefer to call it persona, why? Because I like this word.

There is also a primitive part of us. It manifests itself through impulses and life wills. The desire to eat, which we call hunger. The desire to drink water, which we call thirst. The desire to go to the bathroom, which we call you-know-what. The point is that this primitive part would be like the operating system of our flesh armor, its only function being to keep the body alive.

Many times we are interacting with something we enjoy, for example reading a book or playing a sport or watching an animation about a boy who found an alien watch, and we simply don't listen to the messages that this primitive side sends us. But as soon as we stop the activity, hunger, tiredness, the urge to go to the bathroom, sleep, all come at once. If we spend too much time ignoring these warnings, our operating system decides to choose for ourselves: have you ever heard of fainting?

And it is not only in primitive impulses that this J.A.R.V.I.S. of the body acts. It knows when a gear starts to lock, when a screw starts to loosen, when a part is being misused and can break at any moment. And it warns. At first it may seem like just an annoying, nagging thought, like a pop-up that appears when it shouldn't. But the more you try to ignore it, the more it tends to get your attention, setting off sirens and emitting warning signals to let you know that something is wrong.

Often the malfunction of a part is easily fixable by ourselves. However, in some situations we need specialized help to deal with the repair.

But in some cases, there are so many defective parts, so many "error" messages, so many sirens going off in a thousand places that we don't even know where to start looking for help. Sometimes it just slips out, reaching the ears of the nearest person at the moment...

“Help me...” said Ben.

Gwen looked at her cousin, and at first didn't move.

What do I do? Gwen thought.

She decided to get closer. She took the first step towards him, but the environment they were in reminded her that they were not in the real Bellwood.

The tremor began on the ground and spread through the air. In a matter of moments Gwen felt her whole body shaking. The images of the houses, streets and even the creatures became blurred and distorted, as if they were moving at high speed in all directions. Only the cousins remained paralyzed at the epicenter of the confusion.

As the seconds passed, the visual frenzy became nauseating, and Gwen tried to keep her eyes closed to lessen the impact of the dizziness that came over her. The girl felt her heart beating frantically in her chest, with each beat resounding in her ears.

She tried to open her eyes to look for her cousin, but the significant reduction of space around her drew her attention even more. It was as if the entire city had been reduced to an elevator room that kept getting smaller and smaller. A clautrophobic feeling came over her, and her breathing became even faster and more desperate.

An intense fear took over her. The nausea, the trembling, the racing heart, the gasping breath, the difficulty to focus her vision, the frantic thoughts, everything there indicated a condition of absurd danger.

For Gwen it was only a matter of time. Everywhere she looked she felt as if the final strike was about to come. Her breathing became increasingly rapid and uncomfortable.

I-I've had it... Thought Gwen. I know what to do... I know what to do...

Gwen closed her eyes and tried to focus on her breathing. It was difficult because she felt her chest moving on its own, but she kept persisting, forcing at least one part of her body to obey her. He needed to breathe.

Inhale-Exhale-Inhale-Exhale-Inhale-Exhale-

Exhale-Inhale... Exhale-Inhale-Exhale...

Inhale... Exhale-Inhale...

Exhale... Inhale...

Exhale...

Inhale...

Exhale........

Inhale..........

Exhale.............

Little by little, the young woman regained control of her body, her mind, her emotions.

She opened her eyes, and her surroundings were still in chaos, but no longer impacted her.

He looked around and saw Ben sitting on the ground in constant despair. He was struggling, gasping for air, and trying to push away anything that could hurt him. Gwen didn't blink and ran towards him.

***

Ben felt his chest hurt. His hands tingled, his arms felt heavy, and his mouth was numb. His vision was a mixture of blurriness and complete blindness. His heart seemed to gallop around aimlessly, each beat echoing throughout his body. In his ears there was only a thin, prolonged ringing. It felt as if the world squeezed him all at once. He wanted to run, to escape, to get out of there, to get out of it. He couldn't breathe. He could feel the air entering his lungs, but he wanted more and more air. The pain in his chest was getting worse. I'm going to die! Somebody help me, I'm going to die! He struggled. He was reaching for something and nothing at the same time. I'm going to die! He felt as if he heard something. Somebody help me! He wanted to scream. Was he screaming? His throat was closing up. My chest hurt. I need air. Again a sound. A voice? Help me, I'm dying! It was a voice. It was calling your name. Help me!

“Ben...” said the voice

Help me! I don't want to die!

“Ben, concen...”

The pain in his chest was getting worse. Now his legs were numb. The left arm was burning painfully.

“Ben, concentrate on my voice!”

I don't want to die!

“Breathe with me, go!”

Breathe!? I can't breathe!

“Pull in the air...”

I-I can't!

“Release the air...”

I-I-I...

“Pull the air...”

P-pull the air...

“Release the air...”

Release the air

“Pull the air.”

***

It wasn't quick. Ben took his time getting out of the crisis.

If Gwen had suspected that her cousin was not well, now it was a certainty.

She had had a period of great anxiety before, that was when the anodite side of her genetics awoke. It wasn't easy. But it certainly never reached the level of the crisis she empathetically experienced a few moments ago.

Ben is sick and needs help.

***

“That's it, keep breathing calmly,” Gwen said. Sitting next to her cousin, she held one of his hands and smoothed it gently in support.

“Gwen, I...” said the teenager. His eyes were still moist, but there was no longer any panic in his gaze.

“You don't have to say anything, Ben, just concentrate on breathing for now.”

“I'm better now...”

“Really?”

“Yes...” he answered with his head down.

Gwen breathed a little easier. She looked at her surroundings. There was nothing there. No sign of Bellwood or creatures.

“What happened to me?” asked Ben.

“You had a panic attack.”

“What do you mean?”

“It's complicated to explain, but the main thing is that now we know what is happening to you and we can help you.”

“How? Ben looked deep into Gwen's eyes.”

“We will need medical help, that's a fact, because Anxiety is not something that should be treated just anything, believe me.”

“But I've never had this before...”

“And there at the power station?”

“No. That's not what happened...”

“Wasn't it?”

Gwen saw the boy look down at his hands, followed his gaze, and noticed that Ben's hands were shaking again.

“Ben! Here, talk to me!”

He lowered his hands and again faced Gwen.

“If it wasn't an anxiety attack, what did you have at the station?”

“I don't know. I just know...”

“What do you know?”

“I just know that it hurt.”

Gwen listened to these words carefully. If Ben didn't have an anxiety attack at the station, maybe that was what made him sick. As she learned from her doctor a few years ago, it is not uncommon to develop anxiety after a traumatic event. She asked:

“Can you explain to me what happened?”

“No...”

She bowed her head, thinking for a few moments. She feared the answer she would receive, but she had to ask.

“Can you show me?”

“You wouldn't like it...”

“It's not a question of liking it or not. It's a question of finding an answer so I can help you. Come on, show me,” she said, offering her hands.

Ben held his cousin's hands. He closed his eyes and concentrated on the memories. Gwen concentrated on making the connection.

Empathy is one of the most beautiful and strongest abilities of the human being. The ability to feel with the other. To feel their happiness, their sadness, their concern, their pain.

It was only three seconds, but it was enough to make Gwen impulsively let go of her cousin's hands and interrupt the connection.

“Ben, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-” Gwen trembled “I didn't mean to let go of your hand, it's just that-”

“Don't worry, Gwen, I understand.”

“Is that what you felt back at the station?”

“Yes, and something similar when I was on the mission with Grandpa Max. By the way, how is he?”

“He's fine.”

“Glad to hear it.” I really thought I'd lost him with that Albedo attack.

“You know Grandpa, he's tougher than he looks.”

“His stomach sure is!”

They both laughed for a moment.

“And now what?” asked Ben “What do we do?”

“I'm not sure, but did you find the answer to what you were looking for?”

“I don't think so, I still don't know what's wrong with the watch...”

“So we have to-“

“I'd say I've found the reason I'm running away,” interrupted Ben.

“What do you mean?”

“From the beginning of this whole situation, it was as if I was trying to ignore that something was happening.”

“Really?”

“Yes. Thinking back now, I felt as if a part of me wanted to simply pretend that the event at the station simply didn't happen, while another part was trying to warn me that there was something very wrong with me.”

“I know this feeling well...”

“And pretending that the problem didn't exist only made me repeat the mistakes.” Ben stared at his watch.

“But it's different now,” Gwen said, standing up.

“Oh, is it?”

“Of course,” she said, offering a hand to her cousin, “now more than ever you understand that you are not alone and that you can always count on us to help you.”

“With us?” Ben accepted the help and stood up “Is there anyone else here?”

“No! But Kevin and Grandpa are also out there looking for a way to help you.”

“Got it. Now you stay here in my mind or I'll-”

Ben is interrupted by Gwen's sudden embrace. At first he is unresponsive, then he returns the gesture. For a few seconds, they said nothing, just shared the happiness represented by that hug. Gwen then says

“I'll wait for you outside, doofus”

“See you in a bit, dweeb.

Her body is coated in an intense light, her luminous silhouette twists and disappears in a single point.

***

Back in the room in the medical wing of the Plumber's Headquarters, the orchestra of medical apparatus goes on uninterrupted.

Near the foot of Ben's bed, a bright spot appears in the air and expands in a pop, causing the young anodite to reappear a few inches off the floor.

Gwen reaches down and rests a hand on the nearest wall. Her head aches and intense fatigue takes over every muscle in her body. All her efforts were beginning to take their toll. What about Ben? She walks towards the bed and observes her cousin's body still kept in its comatose state.

Did I leave too soon? She thought.

Now it was sleep. It had been days since she had slept and she felt like her body was under Jupiter's gravity. She pulled her companion's chair close and sat with her head resting on the bed, over his arms. If Ben made any move, she would notice.

Like a computer forcing a shutdown, Gwen fell asleep.

She didn't see the moment her cousin woke up. She didn't feel his hand come up beside her and rest it gently on her head. Just as she didn't hear him say:

“Thanks, cousin.”

Chapter Text

“I'm going to ask you just one more time,” Albedo said slowly, each word with a hint of impatience, “Where is the entropy regulator?”

In the center of the hall, where the Chaotic vault once stood, now a crystalline, humanoid creature waited for an answer. Closer eyes could still make out details of a polymorpho organism in the alien's appearance, such as the absence of joints or the face composed only of glowing eyes. However, no reddish coloration or catarrhal appearance could be found in its structure, as well as no gravity generator could be seen swinging over the creature's head anymore.

Around Albedo, the soldier-knights were arranged in a semicircle with their weapons in position. Kevin, still sitting on the ground, slowly began to get to his feet, as he felt that the situation would develop badly at any moment. Sir William stood with a proud smile of victory. Behind him, Sir Gustav and Sir Alfred (the uncle with the bow, as Kevin says) were going through the gates of the vault room carrying the wounded Sir Edward. The first aid performed was enough to be able to get him back on his feet, but more intense care of his wounds will still be needed.

Sir William then replied:

“There is no entropy regulator.”

“Don't you dare pull a prank on my face, Knight,” Albedo said in a thick voice, completely different from the thin, distorted voice of the polymorphs.

“You have stayed so long on our premises and so far you have failed to understand the fundamentals of our Order, worm?” Sir William pointed the tip of his sword toward the alien, “Putting an end to disgusting creatures that endanger humanity, like you, is the cornerstone of our precepts!”

During Sir William's entire speech, Kevin moved very cautiously, seeking to get out of the middle of the impending confrontation. With the non-existence of the entropy regulator, the whole thing had become a battle of psychopaths. There was no point in staying there. He looked around and noticed that the soldiers' attention remained focused on the new Albedo. He thanked the universe for making villains so fond of long speeches and for henchmen rarely acting without a command.

Amid the silence of the crypt, a slow clapping was heard.

“Beautiful...” said Albedo. “Really touching...”

Albedo ceased the clapping. Then he said:

“Only I can't accept having wasted all this time for an unfounded hunt. Either you hand me an entropy regulator this very instant, or I'm going to terminate every one of you until someone brings me the device.”

“Your threats do not frighten us, you alien scum,” Sir William said, “We, the Order of the Forever Knights, are sworn to fight and die for our goals!”

“And who says I will simply kill you? There are much more effective ways to demonstrate your determination to achieve a goal.”

Albedo took a step forward, and with that, all the soldiers around him moved one step in retreat. The alien's icy face twisted into what could be interpreted as a smile.

“Before you kill someone you can torture him.”

He took another step forward and was met with another retreat from the soldiers.

“Make him scream in pain...”

Another step. Another retreat by the soldiers.

“Make him show the universe the insignificance of his species with every tear and plea for mercy?”

Another step. Another setback.

“Take for example his companion, Edward...”

One more step.

No retreat.

“Look at this...” Albedo stared into the eyes of anger that protruded through the holes in the helmets around him.

Sir William bore on his face the personification of anger. Without raising his voice, he said the command that everyone there longed to hear:

“Finish this bastard off.”

The shots were fired without mercy. At first, Albedo allowed one or another laser to pass through his body. The gelatinous lump that was removed slowly returned to his body structure. However, the cadence of the shots did not slow down and he was losing more body than he could recover.

Suddenly the humanoid body spread out on the ground as an extensive circular patch, then compressed into a single point and launched itself into the air like a geyser. When it reached a height near the ceiling, it expanded again into a huge disk over several of the soldiers.

The knights began to shoot at the circular shape; however, the shots hit their target, but were not able to pass through the crystalline structure.

And then the disk came down.

Falling over a few dozen soldiers, a huge smoke of dust and debris rose into the air. The knights who were not hit coughed and tried to locate themselves in the mist that covered the place.

The smoke swirled rapidly at one point in the hall and then a scream was heard.

Sir William and the soldiers turned toward the sound, watching for the slightest movement.

Another shout accompanied by a thudding sound at an immediately opposite point in the hall.

Again the knights turned.

Two more shouts.

The fear deepened. One by one, the alien was charging at the remaining soldiers.

Although they tried to predict the next place the alien would advance, it was practically impossible with all the cloud of dust. The fact that the creature was moving randomly through the place at an absurd speed was also a very important variable.

Sir William heard a howl from a soldier who fell to the floor beside him, and within seconds a new groan from the other end of the hall. The screams were coming faster and faster. The knights, famous for being expert hunters, became the prey.

The smoke swirled and whirled, slowly settling to the ground. Gradually, Sir William was able to watch the creature move against the few remaining soldiers. Its speed of movement was impressive, appearing and appearing in different parts of the hall in a matter of moments, knocking the soldiers mercilessly to the ground.

The sword trembled in Sir William's hands. The sweat pouring down his face tore a path through the dust that settled on his face. He rested one hand on the emblem of the Eternal Knights on his chest and in his thoughts cried out for divine help.

“All right, where were we?” said Albedo from behind Sir William.

Sir spun his body on its heels, throwing his sword in a semicircular slash behind him, but it only struck the air, for the creature was already gone.

“Your rudeness in establishing a friendly dialogue is annoying...” said Albedo again behind the knight.

Sir William held the sword in both hands and again turned his body, delivering a blow to the alien's neck. The sword crashed against a crystalline surface and shattered, scattering fragments into the air.

Albedo stared at the knight with the icy stare of a glass statue.

Sir William saw behind the creature that the dust finally gave way, giving way to a desolate scene, with all his soldiers sprawled across the floor of the great hall.

“Come, knight, the device or life,” Albedo said.

* * *

When the glass disc fell and raised over the hall the mist of dust, Kevin found there the opportunity he needed to finally escape. With wounds on his thigh, arms and back, as well as two broken ribs, he knew that to enter any confrontation now would be to sign his death certificate with his own blood.

It was frustrating to know that all the time allotted to this mission was just a waste. If he had to look at the situation with an optimistic eye, at least it was frustrating for both him and Albedo.

Kevin went through the doors of the vault room and returned to the room of the metal snake. Its steel carcass was still lying on the floor. He hid behind it when he noticed that the Sirs, accompanied by three soldiers, were still in the room. The knight with the shield, once attacked by Albedo, had one knee on the floor. His companions at his side held his arms and said:

“Come on, Edward, we have a long way to go yet” said the uncle with the bow.

“I know...” Sir Edward said softly. “I'm just asking for a few seconds to breathe...”

“Sir!” said one of the soldiers to Sir Alfred. “We've been trying to reach the castle staff and haven't heard back yet-”

“And they won't be able to,” interrupted the knight-scum-father-of-George. “All communications are blocked here in the crypt.” Sir Gustav turned to Sir Edward and said in a thoughtful tone of voice. “As soon as we reach the elevators, Edward, we'll send a call to the castle staff to get the medical wing ready.”

“Thank you for your support, comrades...” Edward stood up slightly, trying to ignore the pain from his wounds and leaned on the arms of his colleagues. “We can go.”

They were at the threshold of the next room when the sound of an impact against a metal structure echoed through the room, drawing the attention of the knights.

Kevin, from his hiding place, saw Sir William enter the room in a parabola through the air and strike the snake's metal carcass. Steel debris scattered from the crash site.

“William!” shouted the Sirs.

What the hell? thought Kevin.

Sir Gustav pointed with his head to one of the soldiers and ordered:

“You, come here, help Sir Alfred carry Sir Edward to the elevators.” The knight slung his wounded colleague's arm over the soldier's shoulder. “I'll catch up with you soon! Go!”

The knights continued on their way. Sir Gustav, in turn, removed the mace strapped to his back and set off in the direction of his leader.

From inside the vault room, Albedo emerged walking calmly. Now, in a slightly less dusty environment, but still poorly lit, it was possible to see three small spheres orbiting each other in the center of the alien's chest.

Sir Gustav approached his fallen colleague and while helping him to get out of the snake's hardware, he asked:

“What happened in there?”

“The bastard became even stronger.”

“And our soldiers?”

“All defeated.”

“What a son of a-”

“And Sir Edward?” interrupted Sir William.

“Alfred and some soldiers are taking him to the elevators.”

“Very well, let's buy them some time then.”

“William, did he manage to get his hands on the-”

“No,” Sir William cut in, hoping that the alien hadn't heard him.

Both standing up, the knights stared at the creature that lay still by the door. Sir Gustav kept his flat mace armed with electric beams, while Sir William took two daggers from his back and stood in defense.

Suddenly, the creature disappeared.

“Gustav, dodge!” shouted Sir William, leaping to the side.

Although the knight reacted quickly to the command, it was not fast enough, so fast that Albedo's misshapen hand like a glass spear went from side to side across his left shoulder. Gustav reacted with a groan of pain.

Sir William leaped toward the alien, drawing two semicircles with the blades of his daggers, but his attack pierced the creature's gelatinous body, causing it to land in a disconcerted manner.

The mace knight watched the glass spear that went through him liquefy and return to the alien's body. He then planted his feet on the ground and swung the mace toward his opponent's chest. As the weapon and its electric beams approached, the creature at first moved away from his chest and then retreated as a whole.

“Wow, do I see a weakness here?” smiled Sir Gustav.

Albedo replied, squinting his eyes in anger, and then disappeared into thin air.

Gustav had already learned his lesson: he was fighting an extremely cowardly opponent who did not hesitate to strike from behind. So, rather than dodging, he turned on his own axis and launched a blow with his mace that hit the massive surface of an object Gustav knew a lot about: Sir Edward's shield.

As soon as contact was made between the mace and shield surfaces, the defense mechanisms of the shield in Albedo's possession activated, launching a powerful shockwave in a counterattack that sent Sir Gustav and the damaged mace flying through the air until it crashed into the far wall of the circular room.

Kevin witnessed the confrontation without knowing why. Perhaps because of the excitement? Maybe to understand the movements of this new alien from Albedo? Maybe because it was always a satisfaction to watch villains blow each other away? Who knows? The point is that his moment as a spectator yielded him important information.

The young man noticed an important relationship between Albedo's gelatinous body and the spheres that walk around his body. Perhaps the alien no longer has the gravity generator on his head, but these objects perform a similar and more advanced function.

During the fight, the knights could not tell, but the orbs did not always remain inside Albedo's body. At several points, Kevin noticed them floating around the surroundings and bringing with them a new function not known in polymorphs: is the gelatinous matter capable of being absorbed by one orb and exiting the other? If so, the creature then exhibits an ability to teleport from one space to another and to project only part of its body, as at the time the shield came flying out of the vault room carried by an arm that seemed to belong to no body at all.

Another piece of information observed by Kevin, but which would need confirmation was the density modification that such orbs allowed the alien. At the moment the glass spear went through the knight's shoulder, one of the orbs was located where the hand should be. Perhaps the orb changes the gravity on the gelatinous particles and makes it solid and liquid when it suits it.

But what am I saying? Enough of analyzing alien abilities and let's get back to the confrontation!

Albedo lowered his shield and threw it on the ground. Small sparks came out of the object, signaling that the shield's internal mechanisms were completely inoperative. I don't know about you, but this shield has worked hard today, it can rest now with the feeling of accomplishment.

The alien lowered his gaze towards his chest and observed the blade of a dagger passing through him. Sir William stood on the other side, holding the handle of the weapon with one hand.

Albedo merely turned his head on the shaft of his neck, faced Sir William and said:

“What do you hope to do with this, knight?”

The knight moved the dagger in a quarter circle and removed one of the spheres from inside the creature's chest, throwing it toward the ground.

Look, didn't the tin-heads also draw their spheres?

Albedo, realizing what was about to happen, twisted wildly in search of a way to protect himself.

Sir William threw his second dagger toward the sphere that was bouncing on the ground. A gelatinous bubble coated the object and hardened like a pearl, preventing the dagger blade from damaging the device.

The leader of the knights gritted his teeth in frustration and then, unexpectedly, felt his body being covered by tentacles of crystalline matter.

His frustration turned to panic.

The knight's terrified screams echoed through the room, aware of what was coming next. He tried in vain to free himself from the gelatinous fabric, but it was like trying to hold back a water bubble. His fingers went through the material, and what little he managed to get away floated in the air for a few seconds and then returned towards his body.

Kevin was already near the exit of the room when he heard the knight's screams.

Not this again... he thought.

The young man turned his head toward the cries for help, when he heard a voice approaching from behind him:

“Are you still alive, vermin?” asked Sir Alfred with his bow in his left hand.

“Unfortunately for you I am, but relax, I'm no danger to you, it's just that ...” Kevin pointed with his thumb over his shoulder “Your boss is in a lot of trouble, you should run and help him.”

“Who do you think you are to give me orders?”

Sir William's shouts intensified, interrupting Sir Alfred.

“Fine then,” said Kevin. “If it's no trouble to you, I'll be going then.”

“Don't you dare sneer at us, you alien scum! If you think you'll let us-”

More shouts from Sir William.

“Seriously, Uncle, go help your friend there,” said Kevin.

The young man walked beside the knight and noticed that the knight's hand was shaking.

“Hey, uncle with the bow,” said Kevin. “I think I know how this alien works, so if you need any help, I can help you.”

“Not in a thousand years would I think of asking a worm like you for help!” Sir Alfred exploded.

Kevin stared into the knight's eyes, trembling with anger. He waved his hand "okay then," and limped off toward the elevators.

“Wait, scum!” said the knight in disbelief at the words that escaped him.

Kevin stopped and did not turn around.

“Speak up!” said Kevin.

“I need your knowledge as an inferior creature to be able to bring an end to this...”

“But that's a lot of arrogance, really!” This time, it was Kevin who exploded. “Your colleague is in there taking a beating, you have no idea how you can save him, you're scared shitless and you come to me for help calling me ‘worm’, ‘scum’ and ‘inferior creature’! I want you and the entire Order of Forever Tinheads to go to hell!”

Kevin turned and stumbled on his way. He took about five steps when he heard Albedo's voice say

“Finally! The entropy regulator!”

The young Osmosian bowed his head and sighed. He remained focused on his thoughts for five seconds and then turned toward Sir Alfred and said:

“Okay, I'll help you, but you'll have to obey what I say without complaining, okay?”

“Yes...”

“And if you call me a worm, I'll break your face.”

Inside the room, Sir William found himself with his chest and arms wrapped in portions of gelatinous material. Around his head, a huge bubble of crystalline tissue suffocated him, with half of Albedo's polymorpho body protruding above the bubble. In the alien's hands, a small shiny hexagonal device with nanocircuits designed into its surface. The object once lay within the insignia of the Forever Knights on the chest of Sir William's armor.

“I knew it wasn't a simple bluff,” Albedo said. “Do you really think you were the first ones I tortured for information over the past few days?”

Sir William tried to keep the last shreds of air in his lungs, but the prolonged hypoxia was already turning his lips blue and his consciousness nearly gone.

“The next time you want to fight me,” Albedo bent his body and stood upside down at the same level as the knight, “do your best to find out if you can stand up to me. Ask the Animal how many teeth I made him lose in our last encounter. Or the rude Vreedles and their nasty habit of crying at the first broken arm. No, no! Ask Vulcanus how hard it is to pull out those horned beards of his with the foot of a Vaxaurian...”

An arrow passed close to Albedo's head and stuck in the ceiling.

The villain turned back to where the arrow had come from and found Sir Alfred with his bow ready for another shot.

“I've been missing someone!” said Albedo. “It wouldn't be fair to finish off only three of your colleagues and leave you out, would it?”

Another arrow whizzed past the alien's face and into the ceiling.

“Well done! Then let's go.”

Another shot.

“You bastard...”

Sir Alfred began to walk around the room and continuously shoot arrows. One by one the arrows were sticking to the ceiling.

“What a lousy aim you have, Knight!” quipped Albedo.

“And who says I'm aiming at you?”

Albedo frowned and looked up at the roof of the room. The arrows were stuck in small holes in the ceiling. Then in a single instant all the arrows detonated in small, controlled explosions. The alien tried to stiffen part of his body to protect himself, but realized it was unnecessary when he felt drops of water falling on him like rain.

Using the existing simulation mechanisms in all the rooms, Sir Alfred activated the devices used in storms, causing a rain to fall over the room. The floor slowly became wetter and wetter, forming a shallow mirror of water.

“Your strategy was not bad at all, Sir” Albedo received the rain itself like a plant that receives the morning sun, and slowly its body grew in size “Water is certainly not something a polymorpho does well. But for an evolved specimen like me, water is nothing more than an excellent dinner after a tiring day of confrontations like this one!”

“Well, let's not forget dessert then!” shouted Kevin from across the room.

The villain saw the Osmosian crouching with one knee on the floor and one hand resting on the damp ground. This same hand was coated in a metallic material and on it, a cylinder receptacle resembling a large pile was held up with the other hand.

Albedo looked behind the young man and saw Sir Gustav collapsed and parts of his mace smashed on the ground. It wasn't long enough for the alien to understand what was about to happen:

The creature launched from within itself the three spheres that departed floating across the room, each in a direction.

Sir William fell inertly to the floor after getting rid of the gelatinous material.

One of the spheres was already approaching the door when it felt a jolt and remained still in mid-air. An arrow with a sticky material at its tip stuck to the orb, while at the other end of the arrow an electric wire from the snake's carcass connected the wet ground and the orb floating in the air. The other two globes were also attached by the same mechanism, leaving Kevin to complete the plan.

Albedo even tried to project his body from one of the orbs, but it was not in time. The osmosian activated the electric core of Sir Gustav's mace on the back of his metallic hand and dissipated the electricity throughout the mirror of water formed by the rain. The electricity traveled across the room in moments and, using the electrical wires as bridges, electrocuted all three orbs at the same time, which fell inertly to the floor.

Before you get worried, the electricity was not high enough to cause damage to the knights there in the room, but for a fluid organism like Albedo, it was more than enough.

Kevin stands up from the ground and shakes his hand to clear the smoke coming off the metal. His hand felt stiff, as if the muscles in his fingers were all contracting at the same time.

I hope it's not permanent.... He thought.

The young man saw a small shiny hexagonal object lying near Sir William and did not hesitate to reach out to pick up the device.

A few centimeters before his hand reached the object, a sphere passed quickly past him, with a gelatinous hand coating it, and grabbed the entropy regulator, then ran out the door.

Kevin turned toward one of the globes that was still attached, but stubbornly trying to escape, and ran towards it. He jumped up and grabbed the newly freed orb still in mid-air and carried it out with him.

“What do you think you are doing?” Albedo's thick voice echoed from the orb.

“Didn't you help me get into the crypt? Well, you're going to help me out of it now!” said Kevin.

The sphere joined the others and they continued to walk through the rooms towards the elevators. The gelatinous material slowly began to sprout from the orbs, forming a formless crystalline patch that floated a few meters off the ground. Kevin kept a firm grip on the orb, even if it insisted on making jerky movements or tried to bump it against something in its path.

Upon reaching the elevators, Albedo burst through one of the doors and continued up the elevator shaft without stopping for a moment. He didn't even make any more effort to get the Osmosian off his trail.

He's in a hurry! Thought Kevin.

As they reached the floor corresponding to the entrance to the crypt in the castle, Albedo burst through the exit and transformed back into his human body.

Kevin fell to the ground beside him. As he raised his head, he noticed the entropy regulator lying a few inches away from him. He made an impulse and grabbed the device, then got up and ran with difficulty toward the castle courtyard. Albedo cursed a few vulgar slang words famous on Galvan Prime and set off after Kevin.

The Osmosian opened the courtyard door with his shoulder and was faced with a scene that would not be pleasant to see under normal conditions. After all the effort of the last few hours, it was certainly not the best surprise to wish for.

Another confrontation was taking place in the outer area of the castle: the Forever Knights on one side, seeking to protect their territory, and on the other side, a group of triangular ships thirsty for a blatant Omni energy signal that had appeared there in the last few hours.

Albedo stopped next to Kevin and observed the confrontational scene.

“I doubt you can guess who they are after,” said Kevin.

For an instant the teenager saw fear in Albedo's eyes.

Chapter Text

Accustomed to always seeing the girl following him around as an obedient assistant, Azmuth found the image of Eunice in front of him strange. With her back to him, the young woman was preparing to advance against the prison guards.

Was Unitrix always so tall? He thought.

Azmuth stared at the mecarmofo cube in his hands. He wished he had time to find a better solution to the situation, but unfortunately he didn't. And more than that, it seemed that the young Unitrix already had a plan prepared in case something went wrong. A plan that consisted in sacrificing herself for his sake. Not much different from what he had done...

“Go now!” said Eunice before taking off at a run down the corridor towards the guards.

“Eunice, wait!”

But it was too late. Azmuth could only watch the girl advance at high speed, bouncing off the walls and incapacitating the Galvanians along the way.

The scientist approached Max Tennyson, who lay motionless on the floor. According to the armor's sensors, the human was alive and that would have to suffice for the moment. However, there was no telling when a new crisis might arise again...

Azmuth pressed a button on the cube and a black liquid with green circuits began to coat his body. In a matter of moments the scientist of about thirty centimeters acquired the stature of a two-meter tall galvanic mechamorph. Carefully, Azmuth lifted Max (also coated in the metallic liquid) and supported him on his back. For different reasons, neither of them were able to activate their armor to warlike form, leaving them only a sneaky escape, at least until they reached the ship.

The scientist heard a loud bang coming from the corridor, then silence. The sounds of gunfire or the jet packs of the guards seemed muffled. Someone - and Azmuth knew who - had sealed off the corridor somehow.

Azmuth tightened his arms around the Magistrate on his back and headed toward the exit.

***

Eunice jumped from side to side, dodging the shots coming her way. Using the DNA of Musca domestica, she reacted to the environment with a reflex that bordered on the irritating. She jumped towards a wall and in mid-air replaced the DNA, allowing herself to stick and run laterally to gravity like a good Hemidactylus mabouia.

“You can't escape, human!” shouted a guard. “Come on, give up this stupid idea!”

Eunice didn't answer, she kept running up the wall, towards the prison ceiling. Like a swarm of bees, the guards with jetpacks chased her, shooting incessantly.

“Bring in another armored car!” The guard ordered, “She's far away from the other prisoners, this is the opportunity we need to shoot her and get it over at once!”

Eunice realized that the situation was beginning to change on the ground, yet she continued without stopping moving for a single second. Her plan was to keep the guards as busy as possible to allow Azmuth and Max to escape. A plan that bordered on suicide, as she knew that at any moment the guards would give up trying to capture her alive.

A new armored vehicle entered the wide corridor of the cells and began to load one of its projectiles.

It seemed that the moment had arrived.

The young woman jumped, trying to cross from one side of the corridor to the other, drawing an arc through the air. The armored car followed the girl's movement and then fired. The luminous projectile passed through the surrounding flying guards and hit Eunice still in mid-flight.

The girl's body was thrown toward the far end of the corridor. With the impact, shattering and squeaking sounds were heard echoing through the air. A red light flashed insistently, warning those present that the security of one of the cells had been breached.

***

Thanks to Eunice's confusion, Azmuth and Max managed to walk the remaining way without being bothered by prison staff. Every now and then a sudden sound would approach, forcing the scientist to hide in some administration room that was unlocked. With the sounding of the alarms, all civilian employees had been evacuated so as not to be in the middle of a possible crossfire.

But now there was no point in hiding anymore. As soon as they turned the next corner they would be facing the prison entrance. The same one as the metal detectors from before. This time, a group of ten guards stood heavily armed and ready to shoot any organism that crossed their field of vision.

I need a distraction... Thought Azmuth.

The scientist walked back a few meters as he thought of a plan. He returned to one of the administration rooms and supported the Magistrate on the floor, with his back to a wall. Azmuth approached one of the computers. A partially typed document was displayed on the screen, with all the legal and difficult terms that only lovers of everyday bureaucracy were able to endure without wanting to crash their own skulls into a wall. The scientist began to browse through folders and finally realized that access to this room was restricted to documents and files. But if this computer was connected to the prison's servers, it was only a matter of breaking through the connection barriers.

Using about 0.00000056% of his intelligence, Azmuth broke through firewall barriers, cracked ridiculous elaborate passwords, and overturned decades of work by the I.T. staff. Just what he needed.

The guards at the exit stood by with their guns drawn. They had received information that one of the invaders and the prisoner Azmuth had managed to escape and it was only a matter of time before they reached that position. The order was absurdly clear: shoot without a chance to react.

Suddenly, the prison lights flashed about twice before going out completely. Green emergency lights came on in the place, just allowing them not to be enveloped in a deep darkness. But the few things the Galvanians could see were totally impaired by what happened next: the fire containment systems went off throughout the prison, spreading a cloud of white powder throughout the facility.

The guards even tried to hold their positions, but with their vision totally impaired and the fog making it difficult to breathe, it was difficult to maintain any focus. Suddenly one of the guards shouts to the others:

“There is something amidst the smoke, shoot!!!”

Even with the shots fired, the black figure advanced against the guards. The impact threw the prison staff to the sides and Azmuth propelled himself against the prison doors that shattered like a bomb in a soda can.

The scientist stopped for a matter of seconds only to check the condition of Max propped up on his back. From the image reproduced in the lower corner of his display, the Magistrate still remained unconscious.

Suddenly a warning signal goes off on his display. The scientist jumps backwards, dodging by a matter of centimeters a laser that cuts the ground in front of him from side to side.

They are no longer trying to capture me alive? Thought Azmuth.

***

Eunice opens her eyes and sees the environment swirl around her. Her head hurts. She brings her hand to her occipital region in search of a bruise, but apart from the pain, there is no sign of injury.

Falling between debris from the wall of a cell, she moves her body slowly, assessing possible damage. It seems that choosing the DNA of Priodontes maximus seconds before she was hit was an excellent choice, for apart from the discomfort of the bruises, she didn't break anything.

Eunice looked around, but found no sign of any other organism inside the huge cell. In fact, what did such a large cell keep contained? The girl stood up from where she was and looked through the hole her body had made in the wall. The guards were focused on a new problem. A ten foot tall problem with scars that resembled a patchwork quilt and bolts in anatomically meaningless places. A Transylian was holding one of the guards with one hand and with the other hand absorbing electricity from the electrical devices around him.

“Damned!” said Eunice.

A situation that was not in her plans. Everyone inside that prison had their reasons for being there and many of them had ended up there before Fahtzi's craziness. If one of these crazy people escaped, it could endanger several civilians on Galvan Prime.

Eunice returns to the back of the cell to get some distance.

“Macropus rufus!” says Eunice into her single-sided headphone.

The red kangaroo's fur coated the inside of her gloves and Eunice did not hesitate to absorb the animal's physical capabilities. She positioned herself and then launched herself down the hole.

The Transylian used the hostage guard as a way to prevent the others from approaching. He needed some time to recharge his batteries. However, his exaggerated strength and barely contained anger made him squeeze the Galvanian in his hand more than he should, so much so that the guard was about to lose consciousness.

By the prisoner's calculations, the guard would black out completely the very moment he managed to regain all his energy, so it was only a matter of time before he could exterminate all these clever little gray rats.

Suddenly, the Transylian felt as if two feet were resting on his back, and abruptly an impulse sent his body hurtling down the corridor until it crashed into the armored vehicle.

With the movement, the prisoner released the fainted guard. Eunice caught the Galvanian still in the air and carefully positioned the officer on the ground.

Did I take too long?

Suddenly he starts coughing, as if his lungs finally have the freedom to expand properly again. Eunice took a relieved breath.

“Human, stay away from him,” said a guard.

Eunice raised her head and saw that she was once again surrounded. This time they were careful not to leave any possible space for her to escape.

“Our orders were clear not to allow you to leave here alive, but we saw what you did for our companion. So, don't force us to shoot, and surrender peacefully.”

Eunice took a deep breath. She wasn't sure what awaited her from now on, but being alive, she might one day see Azmuth and the laboratory staff again. She began to slowly raise her arms.

Suddenly the hallway lights go out and the fire extinguishers start spreading a dense white cloud all over the place. Why this happened didn't matter now.

Eunice requests the DNA from Condylura cristata and, in the midst of the confusion that has settled in, runs for cover.

***

Azmuth observed the police ships that floated in front of the prison. All armed with artillery cannons, capable of passing through the body of a Talpaedan without difficulty. It was not in the nature of the Galvanian police to use such force to contain a fugitive. Unless the order was not to capture...

Fahtzi must have ordered my death... Thought Azmuth. Ignorant boy...

The scientist could not see himself in any condition to continue advancing. The mechamorph coating would not withstand a single shot from the ships. But with the armor's warlike form, it was a different story. How long would he be able to withstand the neuronal impulse of the technology? Minutes? A few seconds? Where the hell did Unitrix land the ship?

A new shot came towards him. Even though he dodged, the laser beam pulverized some of the metal-organic material that corresponded to his legs. They were not to be trifled with.

Azmuth saw himself in no other situation than to take a risk:

“Activate armor.”

The liquiform composition acquired textures, segments and internal differentiations, and in a matter of moments, a galvanic mechamorph armor coated the scientist's body. On his back, Max remained unconscious.

With the activation of the device, Azmuth felt a shock go through his nervous system. An intense primitive impulse reached his limbic system, and he felt anger take over his being.

No! Calm down! He thought. Don't lose control!

One of the ships fired in his direction. Azmuth, without hesitating even for a second, raised his left arm and launched a ball of energy that consumed the laser and headed toward the ship, which narrowly dodged.

Control yourself, Azmuth!!!

With the aggressive counterattack from the fugitive, the police ships adopted a new approach: they left their static position in the middle of the sky and one by one began to move, drawing curves and circles in the air. Simultaneously, three laser beams were launched toward Azmuth.

Unable to think with the rationality necessary to have the slightest compassion, Azmuth raises one of his cannon arms toward the ships and fires. However, an abrupt movement moves his hand to the ground, forcing the ball of energy to hit the ground and raise a thick cloud of dust.

“Azmuth, deactivate the armor immediately!” said Max Tennyson, holding the scientist's arm toward the ground.

“Max?”

The scientist took a few moments to understand the situation that had been established. At his back there was no longer his fallen colleague, and from the expression displayed on the screen, there was seriousness and a certain disappointment in his gaze.

“Come on, Azmuth, deactivate the armor!” repeated Max.

“Sure, sure...”

Azmuth returned to his cladding form and before he could even say anything, a laser blast sliced through the ground beside him.

“Damn them!” shouted Azmuth “Max, where the hell did you and the Unitrix land the ship!”

“In the ‘parking lot’?”

“And where is that? This isn't exactly a place I usually visit!”

“Follow me!” said Max. After taking two steps he puts his hand in front of Azmuth's passage and says “Eunice! Where is she?”

“In the prison.”

“What?” Max dodges another laser “You left her behind!”

“But of course not! She left herself.”

Max activates his armor and projects a shield from his right arm, deflecting another shot at them.

“And you just accepted that!”

“Of course not!”

“And why didn't you go back for her?”

“And who says I'm not going!?”

Max looked at Azmuth through the image on his visor, and in all the years he had known the scientist, he had never seen an expression of determination as firm as the one he was in at this moment.

***

Eunice was hiding behind the cafeteria counter. The extinguishers had already ceased, but the white cloud still refused to settle. The girl's breathing was fast and tired. She felt her muscles vibrate with the effort, and a pain in the back of her neck signaled that continuing to alter her DNA in this way could put the structure of her construct at risk.

Why didn't I just give in then? Eunice thought.

Maybe because the idea of being contained within a tiny space simply terrified her? Maybe it was because she had no guarantee that she would be trapped? Fahtzi would surely have her destroyed at the first opportunity he found her. No... She had to find a way out of there... However, the scream that came next took her hopes with it:

“Human!” shouted a guard.

Eunice changed her position and slowly raised her head above counter level to look toward the entrance of the cafeteria. Armed with heat vision goggles, a group of guards were flying in to search the place.

The teenager crouched down again and remained so. She closed her eyes and thought to herself:

Now it is only a matter of time...

Suddenly a beep like a faint whistle sounded three times in her headphone. Eunice brought her hand to the device, but there was only silence. Again the whistle sounded three times in her ear, making the girl anxious.

Eunice looked at one of her gloves, and a brownish-gray fur wrapped around the palm of the glove. Was it a defect? The girl touched the fur and absorbed the DNA of Corynorhinus townsendii. At the same instant she heard a familiar, grumpy voice ringing in her ears:

“Who is the intelligent creature that develops a communication device that serves only to pick up commands, but receives no feedback of any kind?!”

Azmuth!

A tear trembled in the corner of the girl's eye.

“Hello, Eunice!” said Azmuth, “I really hope you are well. Max and I are already back on the ship and we are using a frequency of sounds that probably only you are hearing right now. Of course, that is if you took my hint and absorbed the DNA I selected for you.”

Eunice could hear Azmuth as if she were talking to him a few meters away. However, the nearby sounds of the guards' engines and the orders they were giving each other echoed inside the young woman's brain, giving her an immediate headache.

“Eunice, tell me, where are you?” said Azmuth.

The girl thought for a moment. How could she communicate without revealing her hiding place? She put her hand to her headset and hoped that just as the beep sounded in her ear, it would also reach the ship. Using a well-known code system used by human sailors, Eunice reported her exact position.

“Max, this girl has gone crazy,” Azmuth said. “What the hell does that bunch of whistles mean?”

Eunice held back her laughter. She had learned the code from one of the books she read in the library about human culture. Lucky for her the Magistrate was from Earth.

“Let me see,” said Max. “This is Morse code. Just a second... Dot, long, dot, space, dot, space, dot, dot...”

Eunice repeated the code in her headphone trying to make sure the Magistrate didn't miss any letters. At last:

“Cafeteria. She's in the cafeteria!”

“What are we waiting for? Let's go!” said Azmuth. “Eunice, we're getting closer. Pay attention, on my signal, deactivate the DNA and jump towards the exit!”

Which signal? Which exit?

“Now!”

Without much thought, Eunice deactivated the long-eared bat DNA and waited. A bang was heard, and a hole opened in the east wall of the room.

That exit!

The girl came out from behind the counter and advanced through the cafeteria toward the new spotlight. Shouts from the guards ordered her to stay put, but if she hadn't obeyed any of the previous orders, she wasn't going to now. Shots passed close to her body, missing by millimeters, until finally she reached the exit.

Eunice jumped out and fell in a somersault onto the ceiling of the plumbing ship. A small opening opened in the ceiling allowing the teenager to enter. The girl went straight down into the main cabin, being greeted by Max with a big hug!

“Eunice, my dear!”

“Magistrate, how nice to see you again! But don't worry about me. You, how are you?”

“That doesn't matter now!” said Max “What matters is that you are well!”

“In fact, none of this will matter if we don't get out of here,” said Azmuth dryly.

“You're right,” said the magistrate, returning to the pilot's chair, “Computer!”

“Yes, magistrate.”

“Activate manual pilot. Let me take it from here!”

“Yes, magistrate.”

Eunice slowly approached the computer panel, where her creator was. She lowered her head and, staring at the floor at her feet, said

“Lord Azmuth, I-I...”

“Lift your head, Eunice, and look into my eyes!” said Azmuth.

Eunice stared at Azmuth. She knew that she had disregarded dozens of the scientist's orders, had put herself in danger and had to be rescued.

“Thank you very much, Eunice.”

“W-what?” said the girl.

“You are an amazing youth, and once again you have proven that creating you was one of the greatest successes of my life!” Azmuth bowed his head in reverence. “Thank you so much for rescuing me.”

Eunice could not hold back her happy tears. The girl, who had been so brave and intelligent all this time, finally allowed herself a moment of true happiness.

Even in Max a tear trembled in the corner of her eye.

“Magistrate,” said the ship's computer. “Our sensors show that the entire planet is once again sealed off, making it impossible for us to go beyond the atmosphere of Galvan Prime.”

“Eunice and Azmuth, do either of you have an idea?” asked Max.

The Galvanian and the young woman looked at each other, but said nothing. Each went to one of the computer panels and began their research.

“Okay, that sounds like a no,” said Max.

“Magistrate, approaching ships to the east and south.”

“Of course they would come back...”

“I told you to destroy the ships!” said Azmuth.

“Yes, you did...” replied Max.

“What happened, sir?” said Eunice.

“On our escape, several galvanic police ships surrounded us and instead of Max simply destroying the ships he chose to launch an electromagnetic pulse against the vehicles leaving them disconnected, but in perfect state...”

“And why, Magistrate?”

“I thought they were manned ships...”

“He thought they were manned ships!” shouted Azmuth “For decades we have been using drones for aerial pursuits precisely to avoid accidents with pilots!”

“Ok, ok. Now come on, instead of yelling at me, have you found a way out of here?”

“Yes, I have! Unfortunately for you I am capable of yelling at you and finding a solution to our problem at the same time!”

“What would that be?”

“Head towards the triple tower of the Galvan Council and drop the ship between tower B and C.”

“What!? Are you out of your mind, Azmuth?”

“Do as I say.”

“No way! There must be another way...”

“Magistrate” Eunice put a hand on Max's shoulder “Ignore his grumpy manner, but please trust him.”

Max thought for a few seconds, then said:

“Computer, plot course for the space between Galvan Council towers B and C.”

“Thank you very much, Magistrate. I will go to the artillery to try to shoot down the drones.”

“Be careful.” said Azmuth in a fatherly tone of voice.

“I will.”

The police drones finally reached the plumber ship. Max moved the spacecraft through the air, dodging their fire, while Eunice launched laser beams at her pursuers. The image bordered on an impromptu fireworks festival in the Galvan sky, surrounded by lights and explosions.

“Sir, we are approaching our destination,” said the computer.

“What now, Azmuth?” said Max.

“Activate hyperspace.”

“If I just let the drones hit us, we'll die anyway, do you want to play kamikaze and take the Council with us?” said Max ironically.

“I don't know what kamikazes are, but I stand by my indication that you should activate hyperspace right now.”

Max stared at Azmuth, and again, a determined expression was drawn on his face.

“I pray to heaven you are not wrong. Computer, activate hyperspace.”

“Yes, Magistrate.”

The plumbing ship was approaching the towers of the Galvanic Council when its image became slender and, in a flash, disappeared at a point between the two buildings.

The police drones stopped their trajectory and circled in the air, looking for signs of the fugitives' ship.

***

Expanded orbit of the planet Keplorr, home of the Galileans.

Thurkn and Rhutel were preparing to begin the ritual. The Galilean couple for years had planned the sequence and trajectory necessary for the creation of this primordial core. They approached and held hands. Slowly they began to spin in a romantic round dance.

Then they released their hands and deformed into their spherical shapes without stopping the movement. The two Galileans functioned as two planets orbiting each other, emitting gravitational waves throughout the universe. At the center of their dance of creation, a small blackened dot was beginning to appear, distorting the oncoming light.

Happiness overcame the aliens, who began to move in orbit with even more enthusiasm. The small black hole began to attract to itself stardust and meteor fragments that had been unlucky enough to pass through it. A beautiful ring, like saturn's, began to encircle the black spot.

Suddenly the Galilean couple was overcome with sudden concern, for in a flash, a slender image emerged from within the core and launched itself into open space. The image finally took shape and the aliens saw a plumbing ship appear and continue on its way as if nothing had happened.

Thurkn was overcome with deep irritation, but the moment he moved to draw the ship in, his companion caught his attention: the blackened spot was already coated with solid matter and was beginning to redden. It was a crucial moment in the process, so Thurkn decided to leave the vandals for later and focus on the most important moment of her life: the birth of her firstborn.

Northyl. The couple had even decided on a name. His name will be Northyl.

Chapter Text

Gwen opened her eyes as she felt someone shaking her shoulder.

To say that she awoke would be an exaggeration, because she was too tired to recover with just a few minutes of sleep. Sleepily the girl looked at the image of the Plumber that was beginning to form in front of her.

“Miss Tennyson?”

“Yes...?”

“I am sorry to have to wake you up like this, but the Magistrata is asking for you in the main hall.”

“Who's doing what?” Gwen scrunches her eyes with her fingertips.

“The Magistrata, miss. He is convoking everyone.”

Gwen blinked a few times and concentrated on the Plumber. He had a mantis-like appearance and a look that smacked of inexperience, but you could sense a high level of commitment in the tone of his voice.

When we wake up, it is common for the brain to take a while to "pick up the pace". It is also common that when something very important invades our thoughts, this thing forces us out of our drowsiness with the same delicacy as a two-footed flying kick to the middle of the chest:

“Ben!” The girl turned her gaze toward the hospital bed.

But he was not there.

Gwen stood up abruptly, forcing the soldier to back away quickly. She began to look everywhere in the room for her cousin. The bed was untidy and the television was on, with the volume turned down.

“Miss Tennyson...”

“Ben Tennyson, where is he?”

“I beg your pardon?”

“The boy who was in this bed. Where is he?”

“I'm sorry, but when I entered the room there was only you.”

He can't have disappeared! ― thought Gwen ― I did everything right! I'm sure I did!

Gwen kept looking, looked under the bed, in the closet. She tried to convince herself that the boy came out of the coma, got out of bed without waking her, and must have gone somewhere.

Ben is alive! I'm sure of it! He must have gone out to eat something, that's what!

The young woman turned toward the door leading to the corridor and it was then that she noticed a blinking red light through the small window in the door.

“What's happening?” she asked.

“We are on red alert, Miss Tennyson, and that is why I have been assigned to pick you up.”

Ben must have seen this alert!

The girl again went back to the closet in search of her cousin's clothes. He wouldn't leave here wearing a hospital apron. According to her suspicions, the clothes were no longer there.

Ben wouldn't change in front of me...

“You!” Gwen pointed at the Plumber. “Where is the nearest bathroom?”

“I think across the hall.”

Gwen barely waited for the soldier to finish speaking and headed for the exit. As soon as she reached the bathroom door, she knocked twice with her knuckles.

“Ben?”

No answer.

“Ben, if you're there, please say something!”

Still no answer.

Gwen tried to turn the doorknob, but besides being absurdly cold, the shaft of the object turned with great difficulty. Oh, and the door didn't open.

“Something's wrong...”

“Excuse me, miss?”

“I'm sorry, soldier. By the way, what's your name?”

“Cadet Fickell, ma'am.”

“Cadet, I need you to break down this door.”

“But why?”

“I'll explain later. I'm practically out of mana, otherwise I would take it down myself. Now, please open this door.”

“But Miss Tennyson, I was just ordered to come and get you.”

“Cadet Fickell, a very important person to me may be hurt on the other side of this door, so do me a favor: stop talking and break this damn door down!”

“Y-yes, miss.”

The plumber bent his mantis knees, then leaped slightly into the air and propelled with both feet the bathroom door, which opened all at once, releasing a white mist from inside the room into the hallway.

As soon as Gwen got closer, she understood why the door was stuck. Fragments of ice were coating the entire interior of the room. The impression was that the temperature in the room had reached levels below zero degrees Celsius, freezing everything there. But unfortunately, no sign of Benjamin Tennyson.

Gwen looked up at the ceiling of the room and noticed a thick layer of ice coating the surface above her head. It wasn't long enough for her to understand what had happened.

“Ben, you stupid kid!”

* * *

“See you in a bit, dweeb,” said Ben.

The teenager saw his cousin's body coat itself with an irritating luminosity until it turned into a luminous silhouette. Then the shape twisted into a single point and vanished into thin air, leaving Ben alone in the void of his mind.

The boy looked sideways toward the white infinity in which he found himself.

He remained silent for a few seconds, then said for anyone who would listen:

“I'm sorry, Gwen, I lied.”

In all fairness, if we were to be very boring and judicious about the word he used; I ― Narrator ― can say that he did not lie, but rather omitted.

With no one to hide his thoughts, Ben started to simply talk to himself. A literal internal monologue.

“It's very likely that it was in the confrontation with Albedo that everything started to mess up, but that doesn't explain...”

Ben looked at the clock on his wrist.

“It doesn't explain all the others.”

Suddenly all that whiteness became dark green, with black spots floating around him.

Countless images of his body being deformed began to appear and disappear in mid-air. In a moment, his childlike face filled with prominent vessels and reddened, his musculature expanded in a monstrous way until, finally, two new arms emerged from the height of his ribs.

Ben turned his face away at the sight.

In another image, he saw his hands and arms dry up at the skeletal level, when then his head rotated on its own neck axis, deforming into an inverted one-eyed skull. Each deformity brought with it the sound of breaking bones and ligaments.

He looked to his left and another image where from his back two electric pillars emerged tearing his skin.

Ben looked to his right, and his body liquefying into a goo almost made him vomit.

He fell to his knees and supported his hands on the ground. He closed his eyes and tried to focus on the memory of Gwen trying to calm him down.

Breathe in and breathe out... Breathe in and breathe out...

Still on his knees, he opened his eyes. The images still flowed around him. It frightened him to realize that many of them were made from a younger version of himself. From when he was ten years old. From when he had found the Omnitrix.

Ben looked at his watch. He remembered Albedo, trapped in the form of a construct with Ben's appearance.

“Who is to say that I am not also a construct?”

After all, how could I have survived all this?

“I can no longer tell how much of Benjamin Tennyson is left here...”

The images then ceased. The green of the landscape became darker and darker until it covered Ben in total darkness.

Light again. A small horizontal gap, but it was light.

Ben opened his eyes.

He woke up.

* * *

Carefully, Ben turns away from his sleeping cousin and gets up from the hospital bed. He removes the sensors of the devices from himself and closes the register of the venous access in his arm.

Wearing a ridiculous patient apron, he took care not to let his buttocks show. He tightened the knot of his clothes and headed toward the television set in the room. Using primitive methods (because he couldn't find the remote control), he pressed the on button and lowered the volume until there was a small background noise in the room.

Before returning to bed, he stopped by a small stand with a tray and picked up what would be his dinner. His stomach didn't rumble, but he felt empty inside.

I wonder if they release some cheese fries ― he thought.

He picked up the glass of juice, took off the lid and took a sip. He hated the taste. Include a milkshake from Mr. Ice Cream on the wish list. He took another sip and put the glass aside. He took the rectangular lid off his lunch box and hated what he saw. Healthy food? Where did you see that? With his fork he picked up a cooked carrot and put it in his mouth. It's not so bad...

Ben looked at his cousin, who was sitting up with her head resting on the bed. He didn't even know how to thank her for all her efforts. He thought about Kevin and Grandpa Max. He was grateful for the family he had.

Even softly, the sound of "urgent news" drew the young man's attention to the television. He moved closer to listen carefully. The news anchor began to announce:

“We have reports of people being held hostage in Bellwood's Central Park. Our helicopter is flying over the scene right now and will bring you more details. John Smith, can you hear me?”

“Yes, Mahala, I hear you clearly.”

“Tell us, what is going on in Central Park?”

“Witnesses told us that around 3:40 pm, a group of spacecraft appeared flying over the place. In a matter of moments, about thirty people walking and working in the park were captured and are now being held captive by the hijackers. Experts say that there is a high possibility that these are alien spacecraft, but we have no confirmation yet.”

Ben looked at the aerial images that showed a group of people held together at one point, near the playground. Around them, triangular spaceships surrounded the hostages and flew over the surroundings firing at any approaching security forces.

“Thank you very much, John,” says the anchor, “and we now go to Analice Sierra who is on the ground.”

Suddenly the transmission is interrupted.

“Ben looked at his cousin to make sure that her speech didn't wake her up.”

A black image with a yellow logo fills the newsroom. A metallic voice then begins to speak:

“Attention bearer of Galvanian technology, report immediately to the coordinates that are appearing on your screen. You have one hour.  After this period, a hostage will be executed every ten minutes until you report. Countdown started.”

The image then disappeared, returning to the anchor's face, which remained silent with its mouth open.

Ben stared at his left wrist for about three seconds. More than enough time to make his decision. He turned towards the closet in search of his clothes. He thought about changing right there, but thought about the possibility of his cousin waking up. He headed for the nearest bathroom. As soon as she opened the bedroom door, a red light flashed in the hallway. There was no siren, but the light signal indicated to the health workers present the gravity of the situation.

The teenager went into the bathroom and closed the door behind him. He changed his clothes and threw his apron on the floor beside him. There, now what?

Ben raised his arm and touched his watch. His hands were already shaking. His heart was pounding in his ears.

I-I-I... ― he thought ― No! They need me!

Then he pressed the Omnitrix core.

Just as he had expected, the watch broke through his skin barrier and penetrated his arm like a parasite, radiating a stabbing pain.

Ben closed his eyes and tried to breathe. Every pain that went through him was accompanied by a low, restrained groan.

And then he began to shiver. Not from fear, but from cold. Ben felt the air around him begin to freeze rapidly and his body to lose heat at an absurd speed. He looked down at his hands and saw his fingers turning purple and blue. He felt that if he tried to move them, he might break them and lose them right there.

His skin as a whole became cyanotic, and in some places the cold was so intense that it became a black spot. The subcutaneous fat tissue abruptly reduced, making his arms and legs thin and squalid. His cheeks simply disappeared.

With the cold, his lips began to crack. His teeth were shaking more and more. His body burned with pain. He felt stiff and his skin became more and more stunted.

A tear ran down the right side of his face and froze before it even touched the ground.

The irises of his eyes expanded and filled his entire eyeball, becoming completely green. His lips dried and crumbled, leaving the dental bone layer exposed at gum level. His teeth only stopped shaking when they finally fused together.

Ben emitted guttural moans of deepest suffering.

He gasped for air and felt the cold burning inside him. His spine expanded, increasing in height, and his feet deformed into a two-toed frame with a prominent heel.

Finally, the skin on his back began to grow and spread around him like a huge cyanotic sheet. Then bony appendages emerged at the level of his scapulae and walked inside the excess skin, securing the points and determining the structure of the wings.

Ben just wanted to be rid of the suffering. Unable to scream, he only exhaled an icy air of suffering, coating the space in a white haze.

The glow of the transformation finally fades.

Big Chill leans on the sink and tries to stand up. His body aches and his head is dazed from all the agony he has just gone through.

But more than all this:

I did it.

Damn that he could be a construct. He was still a hero, and a hero is always willing to sacrifice himself for the good of those he protects!

Big Chill becomes intangible and flies toward the heavens, going through the ceiling of the bathroom.

Chapter Text

Just a second, guys, I'm looking here...

Not on this page. Not on this...

Wait a minute...

Here, I found it:

Fe-ar. noun. Definition: 1. a psychological phenomenon of strong affective character, marked by the awareness of a determined and identifiable danger or threatening object. 2. an emotional state resulting from the awareness of danger or threat, whether real, hypothetical, or imaginary. 3. absence of courage.

What does this mean?

It means that we need a dictionary to understand the dictionary.

Fear is one of the most primitive emotions of living beings. For some people it is a tool of power. For others, a mere stepping stone to achieve courage. There are also those who use it as a "justification" for their odd attitudes. Some, on the other hand, find themselves hostage to this feeling and live stagnated, frightened, paralyzed in a way that only the fear of change can explain.

Fear is also one of the pillars of History. It is up to History to analyze the events, the rise and fall of fear and then add a new meaning to this fear: Experience. A people that does not know its own history tends to repeat its fears.

Regardless of how it is used, every fear has a source, an origin, a reason. And, be it the most fragile of insects, or the most powerful creature in the galaxy, everybody has some fear. Everyone. Even galvanian evil-geniuses trapped in human form.

Kevin took a step back when a laser blast crashed into the ground, kicking up dust. The Eternal Knights were battling the triangular ships with their usual stubborn determination. For Kevin the whole situation that was being established in the outer courtyard of the castle only affected him in the realm of "how do I get out of here now?"

The young Osmosian observed Albedo who kept his gaze directed at the spaceships. His gaze was not directed for a single moment at the knights who had tormented his patience for hours. Only the "new visitors" were worthy of his attention.

Albedo had always been known to think himself superior to other creatures, so Kevin found the villain's persistent silence strange.  Not a single phrase of debauchery or mean comment. He just stared at the spaceships.

Suddenly, a reaction: Albedo clicked his tongue behind his teeth with contempt, turned his back to the exit and went back inside the castle.

“Where do you think you're going?” asked Kevin.

“Stay with the Entropy Regulator, I don't care anymore.”

“Excuse me!?”

Albedo continued walking toward an east corridor.

“There's no way I'm going to accept an answer like that!” Kevin began to follow Albedo with unsteady steps. “You're running away!”

Albedo stopped walking.

“I got it! I got it, didn't I?” Kevin put his hand on Albedo's shoulder and forced him to look straight ahead “Who are these guys?”

“It doesn't matter who they are.”

“Of course, it matters!” Kevin pointed toward the exit. “You simply gave up on the Regulator the instant you saw the spaceships. Either they are a danger to you, or they are a danger to all of us!”

Albedo remained silent.

“I've faced these guys before, Albedo; and from the looks of it this time, they were after you!”

Kevin again saw fear in the villain's eyes.

“I got it right again, didn't I?” said Kevin.

“It doesn't matter who they are after.”

“Really? Then you won't mind if I go over there and warn them that-”

“Don't do that!”

“Oh, now we understand each other.” Kevin stared at Albedo without a drop of patience in his expression. “Who are these guys?”

“They are the Galvanic Guardians,” Albedo stared at the ground seriously.

“See, that wasn't so hard! Now I should recognize that name for what?”

Albedo made a contemptuous face and walked down the corridor, leaving Kevin behind, who continued to follow him. At various times, the two of them were forced to hide behind a column or inside some room to avoid being seen by the knights who were heading towards the courtyard.

“Why have I never heard of these guardians if they are so fearsome?” asked Kevin.

“You're not going to leave me alone anyway, are you, Osmosian? You already have the entropy regulator, isn't that what you wanted: to ruin my plans? There, you did it, now leave me alone!”

“No, I won't.”

“That's great...”

“There's a lot here that hasn't been explained.”

“Really? Go back to the Plumber's Academy and study harder, you look like you used to run away from your classes.”

“Actually, I never went.”

“Why am I not impressed?”

“But now you are the one on the run! You could easily knock down one of these walls or go through them and escape from here using the Omnitr-“

“Okay, what do you want to know?” Albedo stopped and stared at him, abruptly narrowing the space between the two.

Kevin's chest recoiled at the villain's sudden approach. Then he began to ask:

“Why are you running away from them?”

“Because they are a bunch of psychopaths and are heavily armed.”

“So are the Forever Knights.”

“But these are different.”

“Where did they come from?” asked Kevin.

“From Galvan Prime.”

“Galvan? But Galvan is a peaceful planet!”

“It is now.”

“Are you referring to the-“

“The Galvan Wars? Yes, I am.”

“But the wars ended years ago! Are you guys time travelers or something?”

“What? Of course not!” Albedo looked away, as if staring at his own thoughts, “Although they should be buried in the deepest pit of history.”

“Then what are they doing here?”

“Some jerk, and I suspect who this jerk is, must have felt a bit nostalgic and decided to resurrect the secret force known as the Galvanic Guardians to do his dirty work?”

“Secret-force?”

“That's right, secret force. The height of cowardice. With the excuse of protecting the nation, or the innocents, or the government, or whatever lame excuse you can think of; such rulers choose to secretly subjugate anyone who stands in their way.”

“So it's not an official force?”

“Certainly not today. Or at least it shouldn't be. The Galvanic Guardians is for Galvan one of the worst scars in its history. A clear example of how cruel a species can be for the sake of a goal.”

“How cruel?”

“Kidnappings, torture, exterminations, disappearances, the whole package. It was the butchers of wartime. For them, anyone who did not support them was seen as a possible enemy, regardless of species...”

“And what are these guys doing here?”

“Are you really asking me that?”

“I get it, they're after you,” Kevin said, receiving a look from Albedo in response. “I need to warn the Plumb-”

With a bang, a hole opens in the wall of the room they were in. A Guardian spacecraft had been hit in mid-air and had entered the castle with the delicacy of an elephant in a crystal store. Albedo and Kevin put their arms in front of their faces to defend themselves from the debris of the impact. The ship spun in mid-air and crashed into the opposite wall, falling inoperable.

“What the hell!” said Albedo.

“What?”

Albedo jumped over the debris that now occupied the enclosure and headed for the nearest exit. Kevin, moved by adrenaline, followed right behind, ignoring his own injuries.

Suddenly, an analytical laser beam is emitted from the fallen spacecraft and travels through Albedo and Kevin's bodies. A metallic voice is heard soon after:

“F-found-ded-ded energy traces O-o-o-omni....” and deactivated it.

Albedo kept running and turned toward the staircase of one of the towers. Kevin followed behind. As they climbed the steps, they watched from the tower windows the image of the confrontation in the courtyard becoming more and more distant.

“Where are you going?” asked Kevin.

“Never mind, by the way, why are you still following me?”

I don't even know ― thought Kevin.

A metal claw came through one of the windows and grabbed Albedo, pinning his arms together and making it impossible for him to reach his watch. The claw is now pulled by a kind of energy rope, pulling Albedo toward the outside of the tower.

“Damn it!”

Kevin speeds up the steps and catches up to the alien moments before he crosses the window opening. He leaned one of his feet on the wall, trying to keep Albedo inside the tower, and with difficulty, tried to open the arms of the claw.

“Come on, Osmosian!”

“Do me a favor and just shut up!” replied Kevin, getting little response from his effort against the claw.

Suddenly, an electrical pulse travels through the energy rope and electrocutes Albedo, causing him to let out an agonizing scream. Kevin is frightened by the possibility of being electrocuted as well, and impulsively releases the claw that pulls Albedo out the window for good.

Kevin climbs into the opening of the tower and watches the Guardian ship begin to move away, with Albedo unconscious, dangling like a prize machine teddy. The teenager rests his hand on the rocks that made up the window and absorbs enough matter for his arms, then leaps toward the spaceship.

In mid-air, he deforms his hands into spiky balls. His left "hand" strikes the side of the ship and clamps down on the vehicle, which begins to sway in the air with the sudden change in weight. Kevin uses his other "hand" and strikes the spacecraft again, causing it to spin in mid-flight. Albedo remained like a yo-yo, spinning from side to side.

The vehicle spun and lost height until it crashed into the castle wall, hurling Albedo through the air toward the forest. Kevin, in turn, jumped the instant the spaceship hit the stone wall and tried uselessly to cling to the tree nearest the wall. The young man fell, bouncing from branch to branch until he fell face up on the ground.

For a few seconds he remained in this position, first to check if he was really alive, then to think what he was going to do next:

My car is hiding nearby....

With great difficulty, Kevin rose from the ground and made his way through the forest. He tried to walk fast because he knew it was only a matter of time before the Guardians or the Knights would come after him, so he had to ignore the stabbing pain radiating from his wounds.

With only a few meters to go, he could already visualize his car hidden among branches and bushes. Was it a strategy that would probably scratch the paint job? Yes, it was, but at least it worked.

Suddenly, a thud in the back of his skull made his vision blur. The grass on the ground quickly approached his face. Dazed and powerless, he could only see the shapeless image of a pair of tennis shoes approaching before finally fading.

First it was the sound of the forest filling Kevin's ears again. Then a shaft of light entered his eyes and brought back the image of grass and trees. He put one hand on the ground near his face and began to try to get up. His muscles shook with the effort. The headache joined the pain fest of his injuries and decided to make its presence felt with a throbbing thud. He sat down on the grass. He tried to find context for it all.

Gradually, the pain, the forest, the car in front of him, everything took on meaning again. Including:

“The regulator!” said Kevin, reaching into one of his pockets.

Unfortunately, he found no trace of the device. On the contrary, he found a branch lying next to him, probably the tool used to knock him out.

“That bastard!” he muttered.

Driven by rage, Kevin ignored the pain and got up. He staggered to his car and removed the branches. He got into the vehicle, put his head on the back of the seat, and sighed. Then he started the car. Just the vibration of the vehicle was reason enough to sharpen his pain even more, imagine driving. He touched the car's digital panel and activated the autopilot with coordinates for the Plumber's Headquarters.

The car then began to move on its own and headed toward the nearest road.

Kevin opened the glove compartment and took out a small first-aid kit. He placed the case on the passenger seat and took off his torn and scorched T-shirt. He took two pain pills from the case and swallowed them without the need for water. He took a bottle of serum, a packet of gauze and began to clean his wounds.

Suddenly the communicator began to ring. Kevin tapped the panel to accept the call and already started talking:

“Hi Gwen, did something happen?”

“Kevin, where are you?” Gwen said.

“I'm on my way back to the headquarters. I went to take care of some business, but I'm finished for now. Why?” Kevin squeaked slightly between his teeth as he placed the antiseptic gauze on the wound on his leg. “By the way, what about Tennyson?”

“That's exactly why I'm calling you. Ben woke up-”

“That's great news! I knew you would make it! I was sure that if anyone could get Tennyson out of this it would be you!”

The car began to pull into the industrial area of Bellwood. Kevin was beginning to bandage the area around his ribs.

“I was happy too!” said Gwen, "But we have a problem.”

“What's wrong?”

“Ben's gone.”

The car took the highway access and headed toward the commercial part of town.

“What do you mean, gone?” Kevin was taping tape to the band around his chest “Was it some side effect of the magic or-“

“No, it wasn't. He woke up and ran away. Some cameras in the headquarters caught him as Big Chill through walls and out the east side.”

The car slowed down because of the traffic that was settling on the highway overpass. Below the overpass the commercial buildings could be seen, with their huge screens projecting advertisements and breaking news.

“Are you still in the headquarters?” asked the young man.

“Yes, but the place is almost empty, at this moment only me, Cadet Fickell and Technician Sanmwell are in the surveillance room.”

“Why ‘almost empty’, where are the personnel?” Kevin put on the spare shirt he had left tucked under the bench.

“We have a complicated situation in the central part of the city, which has forced several teams to move there. I am almost out of mana so I decided to stay and try to find clues to where Ben might be. I even thought about the possibility of him going to this occurrence as well, but so far he hasn't shown up, and the way he's getting media coverage, it would be crazy for him to expose his identity in this way.”

Kevin looked out of the car toward one of the big screens. A reporter was bringing an update on the Central Park situation.

“Gwen.”

“Yes?”

“I think I found Ben.”

The news report showed an aerial image of Central Park. The triangular ships of the Galvanic Guardians were positioned in a circle around the hostages. Walking towards the ships, a young teenager in a green jacket caught the reporters' attention.

Chapter Text

“What are you doing, Max?” asked Azmuth.

“I'm trying to connect to Earth, but up until now I'm not getting a response.”

Max was sitting in the pilot's seat, with screens projected in front of him, fingering the keyboards on the armrests. On the screens, a straight line, oscillating slightly as he changed frequencies on the communication channel.

“Computer!”

“Yes, Magistrate.”

“Widen the reception area, I am sure the presence of the Galileans in the region is distorting and preventing any wave frequencies from reaching us.”

“Yes, Magistrate.”

Azmuth walked calmly to a position in front of the pilot's seat, raised his head to Max and asked:

“Why all this desperation to connect with Earth? We are already on course for the planet and, as I see it, all these attempts at communication will end up exposing us to Galvan Prime...”

“I need to know how Ben is going.”

“The Tennyson boy? What happened?”

The artificial voice of the ship's computer echoed over Azmuth's voice, making it difficult for Max to hear his questions:

“Magistrate, from my analyses, the frequency 673.98976-0003 Hz presents a satisfactory enough stability to set up a communication.”

“Wonderful, thank you, Computer.”

“At your service.”

Promptly, Max typed in the recommended frequency and waited a few seconds. Suddenly, the straight line of the projected screen began to oscillate with the incoming sound waves:

“Grandpa is that you?” said Gwen.

“Finaly! Yes, Gwen, it's me. Sorry I didn't get in contact sooner, how are things going over there?”

“I have good news, Grandpa, Ben is out of his coma!”

“Coma?” Eunice asked softly.

Without interrupting the conversation with his granddaughter, Max held up his palm to the girl, in a "I'll explain in a minute" gesture:

“What excellent news, Gwen! And is he all right? He doesn't have any sequelae or-”

“I cannot be sure, Grandpa, but I don't think so. Unless you consider it recklessness to have a sequelae...”

“What do you mean, Gwen?”

“He barely woke up and threw himself headlong into a mission and, no, I didn't let him. The airhead snuck out and hid from everyone. I'm heading to the scene right now.”

“But what happened?”

“Remember the ships that Kevin and I faced the night of the Albedo attack? Well, Kevin found out that they are called Galvanic Guardians and...”

“What!?” interrupted Azmuth “Please repeat that last bit of information, young lady!”

“Was that Azmuth's voice, Grandpa?”

“That's right. He's here, and so is Eunice.” Max stared at the scientist's worried expression. “We're going to Earth right now.”

“Young lady, who did you say is on Earth right now?” Azmuth said firmly.

“They are called the Galvanic Guardians, if I'm not mistaken. I'm getting close to Central Park and I can already see the ships, Ben, and the hostages.”

“Hostages?” asked Max

“Grandpa, the connection is cut off...”

“Gwen?”

“...ing. What did you ask?”

“What's going on there?”

“The ships have- ... and the Plumb- ...”

Max went back to typing on the armchair keyboards, looking for an improved signal.

“Gwen? Can you hear me, Gwen?”

The static of the communication resounded through the room. Azmuth and Eunice remained silent, exchanging worried glances. Suddenly, the connection re-established itself and Gwen's voice could be heard screaming:

“Ben, no!!!”

“Gwendolin!” shouted Grandpa Max.

A loud, shrill sound came through the loudspeakers of the room, forcing everyone present to cover their own ear canals with their hands.

And then, silence.

Max lowered his hands and stared at the screens with trembling eyes. His face paled and his mouth could only utter the following words:

“No, no, no, no...”

He typed in number after number trying to re-establish communication, but it was a futile effort. Azmuth and Eunice fell silent. In a matter of seconds, a huge mass of anguish filled the main cabin and took over everyone there.

“Max...” said Azmuth.

“Computer!” shouted Grandpa Max.

“Yes, Magistrate.”

“Search again for-”

“Max!” said Azmuth again.

“... frequencies with a minimum of stability. We're already-”

“Max!” Azmuth jumped over the armrest, preventing the Magistrate from continuing typing “What's happening on Earth! And what happened to the Tennyson boy?”

The magistrate stared at the scientist's steady gaze for a few seconds. Then he leaned his elbow on the opposite armrest and massaged his tempora with his fingers. He breathed in and out a few times, and then began to explain:

“Ben is the reason I went after you on Galvan Prime...”

Grandfather Max explained to Azmuth everything that had happened up to that point. From Albedo's first appearance and his bizarre appearance. Of the first crisis in Ben's transformation and his attempt to analyze the Omnitrix. The attempts to contact Azmuth and the silence that now explains why. The mission to the Plumber Energy Sector and Ben's second crisis. Of the coma that his grandson was in and his exit in search of the scientist.

The rest Azmuth was already aware of.

Throughout Max's monologue, the scientist remained silent. Eunice interrupted the magistrate from time to time to answer a question, but not Azmuth. He kept his head down, listening attentively and analyzing the information that was being given to him. Finally, after hearing the whole account, the scientist said

“I know what is going on with the boy.”

“So can you help him?” Max moved his torso away from the back of the armchair and came closer to Azmuth.

“Yes, I can,” the scientist gestured to Max to sit back again. “But first it's important that I explain what's going on with him and the Omnitrix...”

Azmuth jumped out of the armband and walked to the center of the booth. Facing Max and Eunice, the scientist said:

“I ask that everything I say from now on be kept in the strictest confidence, because this is about the workings of the most powerful machine in the universe.

Max and Eunice nodded.

“Computer,” said Azmuth.

“Yes, Thinker Azmuth.”

“Turn off all the microphones in the room and the voice command function. When we need you again, we will use the panels.”

“Yes, sir. Microphones off. Voice command function disabled.”

Azmuth let out a long sigh and began to speak.

Just a minute reader, that just knocked on my door.

...

Here's the thing, I just received an interstellar lawyer with a Freedom of Information Restriction Order. According to them, I am not allowed to make public the information said by Azmuth right now. Since I find this tremendously absurd, I will go to the Universe Lawyers Association right now to assert my rights as Narrator to bring you the full story. For this reason, while I go away for a few moments, here are a few words from our sponsors. See you in a bit.

Please wait...

◇───────◇───────◇

Do you hate it when you walk into a clothing store and can't find anything in your size, or with the required number of sleeves for your number of arms, or of material sturdy enough not to melt with your acid sweat?

Well, your problems are over!

Meet Salkhtaerrri' Kulrwwoue Tailoring today!

Here you will be able to choose the clothes you want, made especially for your body!

From a detailed analysis of your body structure, you will be able to experience the warrior fashion of the Tetramandos, the liquefied style of the Protost, or the refinements of an Incursean King!

Visit us this instant and experience a new being!

Salkhtaerrri' Kulrwwoue Tailoring - More than fashion, an experience!

───────

Has the stress of everyday life left you feeling tired and achy?

Do you feel like your body is breaking down to meet the responsibilities that life imposes on you?

Well, meet the new branch of Spa Yuyukkil on the planet Aeropela, about 700 kerks from the moon of Brnmud.

The fastest growing Spa chain in the expanded Galaxy!

Here you will get all the relaxation and relief from your pains with an extremely trained staff.

Call the number that is showing on your screen right now and receive ten friltz off your next reservation!

Spa Yuyukkil - The relief comes, the stress goes....

───────

“Daddy, when will we be able to travel again?”

“I don't know, son. As soon as daddy has some time...”

And that time is not coming.

Chronotech, an Urwassg associate, brings you travel technology that fits in your pocket and your schedule:

Instantum Hotel

Built on the asteroid JK476, Instantum Hotel has the best instant travel packages in the known universe. With time modulation technologies, you can now enjoy long vacations with your family in the span of a few parsseks.

No time? Then create it!

Hotel Instantum - Eternity in an instant!

Service not recommended for species allergic to chornoparticles and their derivatives.

◇───────◇───────◇

We are back...

Sorry for the wait, reader, but in the end it all worked out and I managed to overturn this ridiculous injunction!

The problem is that Azmuth has just explained everything already...

Well, then, I'll continue the narration and we'll see about this later.

Azmuth finished his explanation with a downcast face. His eyes remained closed, giving the idea that he didn't want to look at his interlocutors' faces. Eunice had both hands in front of her mouth, unable to say a word. A tear trembled in the corner of her right eye. Max was unable to stand still. Walking back and forth in the cabin, the first sentence he managed to say was:

“He's just a kid!”

He stood by the window that showed stars, an asteroid belt, and the misty trails of a pinkish haze. He ran a hand through his white hair and spoke again:

“How could you do this to my grandson, Azmuth!?”

Azmuth remained silent.

“A child...”

“Max” said Azmuth, “I understand your feelings, but I beg you-“

“How could you, Azmuth? Tell me, how!”

“What I'm trying to say is...”

“All this suffering...” interrupted Max again. “I was supposed to protect him. It was my duty as a grandfather!”

Azmuth was silent again.

“And instead, I practically threw my grandson into the hands of an arrogant scientist with an enormous desire to be a god!”

“Magistrate,” said Eunice, “please calm down! Talking like that...”

Azmuth gestured to Eunice, asking her to stay out of it.

“Max, the important thing now is to take care of the Tennyson boy,” Azmuth said, jumping onto one of the panels and standing at the height of a human's waist.

The magistrate walked back across the room. Getting close to one of the walls, Max punches against the metal surface, echoing a metallic sound.

“Yes, let's take care of him” Max walks towards Azmuth with his finger raised “You're going to take this damned clock off him and I never want to see your face or one of your creations again!”

“Magistrate, please...” said Eunice.

“I'm sorry, young lady, but your creator is the kind of individual who believes that there are no limits and no consequences for his actions.”

Eunice's attention is drawn to a light on one of the screens to her left: Max Tennyson's vital signs were being picked up by his uniform and, to Eunice's dismay, they were high enough to endanger his physical integrity.

“Magistrate, I beg you to try to calm down for a moment.”

“How can I calm down?” shouted Max, startling the girl.

“She's only worried about her health, Max! So stop behaving like this!”

“Don't you dare tell me how to act, Azmuth...”

Eunice, aware of the situation that was building up, looked around and ran into the corridor of the spaceship.

“At this very moment, not only Ben, but Gwen could be hurt and this is all your fault...”

Azmuth kept his hands on his back. His eyes remained fixed on the angry and desperate man in front of him. Unfortunately for Azmuth, this was not the first time he had received such a reaction.

“All this could have been avoided if about five years ago you had simply told me the dangers that a device like the Omnitrix would bring to my grandson!”

The beacon of light from earlier, has turned audible due to the increased risk to Max's life.

“I tried to warn you...”

“Warn me?” said Max “You never said a word to me about-“

“I told you that the Omnitrix was not a toy to be left in the possession of a boy like Benjamin Tennyson. And yet, you said you would be responsible for both of them...”

“I can't believe that's your argument!” Max clenches one fist “Do you really intend to blame me?”

Max slams his open hand on the surface of the panel next to Azmuth, then continues:

“You messed with my family, Azmuth....”

Suddenly, Max's voice becomes weaker and weaker. His muscles begin to feel heavy and he slowly begins to sag with the weight of his own body. His eyesight slowly begins to darken. Then he feels someone holding him. A pair of slender arms, but with impressive strength for his physical profile.

Eunice lays Max down on the floor. In her hand, a syringe of anesthetic.

“I'm sorry, Magistrate, but you gave me no choice...”

Chapter Text

“Let's talk now to our reporter Robert Newsman. Good afternoon, Robert.”

“Good afternoon, Mahala, according to eyewitness reports, a blue winged creature was seen flying over the skies of Bellwood this afternoon. The witnesses claim that the creature appeared and disappeared abruptly, but always maintaining a trajectory toward the center of the city. The secretary Jhosy Portland related to us the moment when, while taking her coffee break, she saw such a creature pass in front of her eighth floor window, let's hear her.”

“It looked like the creature was flying with difficulty, you know? It even seemed like it was going to fall at some moments, but then it suddenly disappeared and I don't know where it went or what happened. If it fell or kept flying...”

◇───────◇───────◇

Ben felt his transformation was extremely unstable. In the form of a necroffrigian, he was trying to fly and remain invisible, but even the flying part was not being possible to accomplish. The Omnitrix symbol on his chest oscillated between green and red, indicating that it might be more prudent to untransform. He was already approaching the first trees in Bellwood's Central Park.

As soon as he reached the first meter of the park's inner area, he began to reduce in height, feeling tree branches and leaves hit his face. With about four meters to go before he reached the ground, the transformation ended, leaving him at the mercy of gravity and the softness of the grassy forest floor. He crashed to the ground and rolled a few feet before hitting his back against a tree and losing consciousness for a few seconds.

He opened his eyes and stood up with difficulty, leaning on the trees. He looked at the Omnitrix on his wrist and was concerned that the alternating glow between red and green was present.

By the time I get there it will have calmed down, thought Ben.

The teenager continued walking through the forest towards the alien ships and the hostages. His aching body and racing heart were not enough reasons to stop him. There are people who depend on him right now. There are people who need the hero Ben Tennyson, he thought.

As soon as he reached the open area of Central Park, he could observe the situation on the spot. Several plumber trucks surrounded the park, with soldiers trying to keep the curious away for a few yards. Some troops were organized at the entrances to the park, preparing for an intervention at the first opportunity that would not result in harm to the hostages. In the center of the site, a circle of triangular ships held their hostages gathered at its epicenter. They were men, women, and children, who had once been strolling and enjoying the park, and now found themselves sitting on the ground with metal rings holding their arms close to their bodies. In the center of the rings, a small yellow light indicated "attention".

Ben ignored his pain and walked towards the ships. As he walked, he noticed the giant screens of the surrounding buildings began to display various angles of his approach. A few curious people in the crowd began to draw the attention of the others so that everyone could see his stupid/courageous (depending on one's interpretation) attitude. Even the Plumbers got a kick out of his attitude. Perhaps because they already knew Ben Tennyson, they chose to stay in position for the time being.

One of the ships broke away from the encirclement and flew up to Ben. The teenager stopped walking and, with his head raised, stared at the spacecraft's visor. It was a ship twice the size of the teenager, swinging in the air with the smoothness of a leaf. For a few moments silence filled the place, then Ben said:

“My name is Ben Tennyson, holder of the Omnitrix, that Galvanian technology they were looking for. Well, I'm here, now release the hostages.”

Through the speakers of the spaceship, a metallic voice answered:

“No.”

Again silence.

“Then take me as a hostage and let them go!” said Ben “These people have nothing to do with this!”

Again the spaceship responded:

“No.”

Ben bowed his head and looked at the clock on his wrist. The light was still oscillating, and although he wasn't sure what it meant, he didn't want to try his luck. He bit his lip in frustration.

The entire crowd around him was watching intently. Ben looked at one of the Plumber leaders and gave a slight "wait, please", then turned his attention back to the spaceship.

“You sent that ridiculous message saying you wanted me to come over and give you the Omnitrix, so come on!” Ben raises his arm, pointing the Omnitrix at the spaceship “Here it is, take it, but let these people go!”

“No.”

“And why?”

“Because we are not after you or this outdated technology.”

“What?”

“We are after the Galvanian Albedo and the Ultimatrix in his possession.”

As if by a snap, Ben's many questions were answered. Albedo, triangular ships, bizarre and powerful transformations of his copy-villain. It all made sense!

Damn it, what now? Ben thought. I have no idea where Albedo is!

“Albedo is too selfish and doesn't care enough about humans to give himself up!” said Ben.

“We know that,” said the spaceship.

“Then stop this ridiculous situation and release the hostages!”

“No.”

“Don't you realize that this is pointless? Albedo is not coming.”

“We know that.”

“Well?”

“It is you earthlings who will bring us Albedo.”

Ben didn't know what to say. The spaceship turned its back on Ben and flew toward the hostages, and as it went on its way, it said:

“You have less than two minutes, Earthling, if you care about your species you'd better hurry.”

“There's no way we can find him in such a short time!” said Ben.

“Sixty seconds.”

The spaceship shot a beam of light toward the group of hostages, which attached itself to one of the rings like a glowing rope. The ship pulled a woman from among the people, who was screaming desperately trying to free herself. Just then a child's voice was heard:

“Mommy! Mommy!”

“Let me go!” clamored the woman.

Ben said:

“Let her go immediately!”

The ship's visor leaned slightly toward Ben, as if to look the boy directly in the eye, and said:

“Fifty seconds.”

The woman struggled and screamed, begging to be released. The child forced herself against the other hostages and, also bound by a ring, tried to approach her mother, but it was very difficult for a six-year-old child to get up from the ground without being able to use her arms.

“Please don't do this,” Ben said. “We can solve the situation in another way, but no-”

“Forty seconds.”

The crowd outside the park was agitated, some shouting and demanding that the soldiers in front of them do something. The Plumber troops began to move, guns blazing, toward the spaceships. Their steps were calculated, alert for any reaction from the aliens and waiting for the command to fire.

Suddenly a shout echoed through the park. One of the leaders of the Plumbers ordered his troops to charge the aliens. Ben then noticed that the yellow light on the woman's ring had turned red; likewise, the light on the other hostages' rings had turned red, indicating that something would happen to all those people at the same time.

“Plumbers, stop!” shouted Ben “Stop right there!”

The soldiers stopped their advance and stared at the teenager.

“Thirty seconds,” said the voice.

Ben looked in various directions for a solution. He looked at the Omnitrix on his wrist, and the light kept flashing.

“Capture me, but let them go!”

“Mommy! Leave my mommy alone!”

“Stay there, Steph, don't come!” said the woman.

“Twenty seconds.”

“Mommy!!!”

“Let me go, for God's sake!”

“Help my mom!”

“Don't do this, please!” shouted Ben.

“Ten seconds.”

“Mom!”

“Don't look, Steph!” pleaded the woman.

“Execute.”

Ben even tried to run toward the victim, but there was nothing he could do.

An electric squeak was followed by a guttural groan from the woman as she felt the electricity go through her body. Her body trembled and her muscles stiffened.

The child's screams were the only sounds that could be heard in Central Park. Her tears streamed down her face and, using her chin and knees, the girl crawled toward her mother.

Then the shock ceased.

Ben fell to his knees next to the woman's body. His vision was blurred. He didn't know what to do. His mind became a blank. He raised his head and watched little Steph approach her mother. The teenager stared at the grated chin and knees of the child who seemed not to be bothered by this at the moment.

“Mommy! Wake up, Mom! Wake up, please!”

The hero felt the hot tears on his face. The child's pleas were the only sounds Ben could hear amidst the whirlwind of voices of hostages, soldiers, and bystanders to the misfortune of others.

“Wake up, mommy! Come on, please, open your eye! Open your eye, please!”

Again the commanding shout of the leader of the Plumbers echoed through the park. Ben then raised his head and saw the light from little Stef's ring turn red.

“Stop! Don't come any closer!”

“What do you want us to do? Let them kill everyone?”

“They will kill everyone if you come any closer! Look, the red light from the rings!”

The soldiers turned their attention to those lights.

“Find Albedo!” shouted Ben “Do whatever it takes, but find him! Only then will we be able to save them!”

“Wise decision, Omnitrix bearer,” said the voice from the spaceship. “With this attitude you got another ten minutes before we execute the next one. You should hurry.”

Ben turned to the spaceship and stared at it furiously.

Damned psychopaths! He thought.

“Mom?” said the little girl.

Ben turned to the fallen woman and could see that her eyes were narrowed with difficulty. Ben knelt down next to her and said:

“Breathe easy, don't worry, help is already coming.”

“Interesting...” said the spaceship.

Ben kept his back to the ship, head down.

“There are few records of humans who have endured an execution.”

The boy stood up.

“But there are no records of humans who have endured a second shooting” The yellow light from the woman's ring turned red.

Ben faced the spaceship and pressed the Omnitrix core.

Just as the teenager had expected, the watch pierced his skin and penetrated the flesh of his forearm, bringing with it the same stabbing pain as before.

Ben moved his arm in front of his face and watched as ghost images repeated the same movement of his member. It felt as if frames of an animation overlapped and could all be seen at the same time.

Suddenly the sound of his heartbeat resounded in his ears. Louder and louder, the systole and diastole markers echoed a rhythmic and obedient frequency: Tu-dum! Tu-dum! Tu-dum!

Then after a powerful Tu-dum, Ben felt the sound disperse throughout his body and his image multiply infinitely in front of him. Like an elastic motion, the images returned to his body all at once.

Another heartbeat and this time his image multiplied behind him and remained so. Ben turned his body to look and all his images repeated the movement with a few thousandths delay. Like a little ball hitting a wall and coming back, the images then returned to the primary Ben.

The boy looked at his hand and noticed small dots of pigment loss on his skin. The dots were multiplying and joining together, forming larger and larger hypochromic patches.

Another tu-dum!

Their images multiplied to the sides. Suddenly, the 5th image to the left and the 16th image to the right bent down with their hands on their chests. A bulge appeared in the middle of their sternum and opened the skin, making room for the Omnitrix symbol. The copies roared in pain. Then the whole row of images returned back to the main Ben, bringing with them a doubled over pain in his chest.

The boy groaned and tried to hold back the scream as he placed his hand over the Omnitrix symbol on his chest.

Tu-dum!

A dozen or so images brought their hand to his skull as it deformed and grew wider and wider. As it returned, Ben screamed at the intense pain and deformities that enveloped his head.

Tu-dum!

A hundred Ben's howled as their limbs were shortened in size through compression fractures. Return. Ben felt the hundredfold load of pain at once upon his limbs, emitting a guttural scream.

Tu-dum!

Spread over an area equivalent to a soccer field, thousands felt the skin on their forearms and legs open up circular wounds like ulcers and be filled with tiny cirrushes. In thousands more, the cartilages of their ears bent forward and bulged, forming two semispheres on either side of their skulls.

Return.

Already totally devoid of pigment and with his orbicular musculature retracted in a small line, Ben roared and cried with the full load of concomitant deformations he felt in his body. The skin of his lips grew and penetrated the inside of his mouth, segmenting itself into a circular shape and forming the typical appearance of a speaker.

Tu-dum!

Millions of images bent and tried to reach their backs as they felt the rectangular box grow and build up on their backs, attaching circuits internally and externally to their bodies. Their skins stiffened like leather, with a soft glow on the sonorosians pale, small body.

Return.

◇───────◇───────◇

The vehicle carrying Gwen and Cadet Fickell was approaching the entrance to Central Park. The girl watched from the window as her cousin knelt beside a fallen woman with a child nearby. Ships were flying over the hostages, and a triangular ship kept aimed at her cousin's back.

“They are called the Galvanic Guardians, if I'm not mistaken,” Gwen said into her communicator. “I'm getting close to Central Park and I can already see the ships, Ben, and the hostages.”

She noticed that communication was beginning to fail and her grandfather's voice was being replaced by noise.

“Grandpa, the connection is cut off!”

More noise.

“It's cutting off. What did you ask?”

“What's going on there?” asked Grandpa Max.

“The ships have taken hostages in Central Park and the Plumbers are intervening at this very moment and-”

“Miss Tennyson,” said the cadet, stopping the vehicle. “We seem to have a problem, it looks like the Plumbers are pulling away?”

“What?” Gwen got out of the car, still holding the communicator.

The girl made her way through the crowd, pushing and shoving away whoever she had to, and was approaching the Plumber containment line when she saw her cousin raise her hand to press the Omnitrix core.

“Ben, no!!!”

The green light enveloped the teenager and in a matter of moments it went out. However, instead of an alien appearing in the spot where Ben had previously stood, a cluster of sonorosian bodies all at once screaming the most agonizing symphony of pain emerged from within the glow.

Powerful sound waves echoed off the alien huddle and spread throughout the Central Park area. The alien ships, caught off guard, were the first to be pushed toward buildings, trees, and vehicles on the scene. The waves pushed the hostages, who rolled around on the ground centrifugally. Plumbers and crowds of people in the vicinity put their hands to their ears and tried their best to keep the screams from piercing their eardrums. The glass of the surrounding buildings shattered and began to fall towards the pedestrians on the ground. As soon as the first piece of glass touched the ground, a great rush of people rushed to the ground trying to protect themselves from the rain of shrapnel.

The sight of her cousin reduced to a huge mass of bodies in deep pain caused panic to engulf Gwen's face. Not again...

“Ben..” she said.

Some of the ships that had been hit and were now lying near tree trunks or inside buildings began to disappear one by one, in a clear movement of retreat from the new situation. Others still tried to get up again, but were hit by another sonic wave and thrown against another object. One by one the ships were teleporting and fleeing the place.

The plumbers moved about trying to protect the people with shields and trying to shelter them or divert them from the path of one piece or another of glass that rained down on the site. The troops were trying to get closer to the hostages who lay fallen and sprawled near the side bars of the park.

Gwen tried to summon a shield over the scene, but the pink disk failed and shattered before it was complete. Unfortunately her mana was not yet fully recovered.

Sonic waves were punishing Bellwood's Central Park. The trees closest to what would have been Ben leaned with the impact of the air, and some even externalized their roots with the tilt. Cars were thrown into local stores, and a truck overturned in the middle of the street.

Gwen looked around her at the hell that had become the place. It was then that she saw a huge shard of glass fall towards a man who was trying to get out of his overturned car. The girl ran towards the man and pulled him at once, pulling him out of the path of the shard, but feeling the fine texture of the glass touch her left arm.

“Thank you, thank you very much!” said the man, though Gwen could only read his lips.

The girl finally felt the pain of the cut and brought her hand to her arm, watching the warm blood trickle through her fingers.

Then the scream ceased.

A high-pitched ringing still echoed through the area and into the ears of all present. Gwen looked towards Ben and found him standing in his human form with an expression of deep terror.

◇───────◇───────◇

As the green light of the untransformation ceased, Ben found himself on his knees staring at the grass below him. His body trembled in a way he had never felt before. His heartbeat resounded in his ears at an absurd speed. The boy raised his head and saw the chaos that had settled around him.

Slowly he stood up and observed the trail of destruction that his heroic attitude had become. Trees toppled over; vehicles were thrown into the interior of businesses; no glass or window could be seen whole in the surrounding buildings; Ben looked for the hostages and saw them being carried unconscious by the Plumbers to the ambulances. The image of little Steph being carried away on a stretcher, with trickles of blood dripping from her ears hit him like a punch in the stomach.

What have I done? He thought.

Ben kept looking around until his eyes met those of his cousin. From Gwen's arm, blood dripped down to her fingers and onto the floor.

N-no...

Ben shook his head and ran for the exit of the park, not listening to his cousin's shouts of his name.

◇───────◇───────◇

Ben was running. He didn't know where, he didn't care where, he just ran. The next thing he knew, he was in front of his house.

Sitting on the front steps, a silhouette was waiting for him.

Ben recognized him immediately, after all, it was his likeness.

“Hello, Tennyson,” said Albedo, “after today's events, I think you're dying to talk to someone,” a smile came to his lips.

Chapter Text

“You bastard!” said Ben. “Because of you, they-”

“Me?” interrupted Albedo.

“Yes, you!” the teenager pointed his finger in Albedo's face as he remained seated on the steps.

“Really? Then please explain to me what was necessarily my fault in the whole situation?”

Ben was silent. Albedo continued.

“The fact that I didn't turn myself in to a bunch of psychopaths? Since when am I suicidal? Or the woman who was electrocuted? As far as I know, I was not inside the ship pressing the execution button! - Albedo stood up and stared at Ben. - Perhaps you are referring to all the people injured by the sonorosians' screams, oh, but I almost forgot, you were the one responsible!”

Ben stepped back and bowed his head.

“Honestly, Tennyson, this business of blaming me for all the stupid things that happen on this mediocre planet is getting on my nerves. Everything is ‘Albedo this, Albedo that’. Do me a favor, take the consequences of your actions!”

“Look who's talking!” said Ben. “Don't you dare act innocent now. You may not be directly involved in today's events, but everything that happened there is somehow connected to you!”

“Is it? Then explain it to me,” Albedo crossed his arms, “I'm all ears.”

“The aliens from the spaceships came after you and the Ultimatrix that is on your arm!”

“Boy, did they ruin the surprise.”

“And thanks to what you did to my watch, I don't... I...”

“Almost killed a dozen people?”

Ben stared at Albedo, who was smirking wickedly.

“Yes...” said Ben.

Albedo started to walk around the young man. Then he continued:

“Funny you should bring up that point, Tennyson, but that is where you are wrong. I have nothing to do with this Omnitrix problem.”

“How could you not? After our fight at the power station, when you tried to rip the Omnitrix off my chest-”

“True, I did try.”

“My transformations have been getting more and more... Unstable.”

“Nice euphemism.”

Ben replied with eyes filled with anger:

“You pierced the clock with your claws!”

“And it's pierced now?”

Ben looked at the watch on his left wrist. Except for the light that kept oscillating between green and red, nothing else different could be observed on the device.

“No...”

“You underestimate the Omnitrix, Tennyson. Do you really think that Azmuth wouldn't add a repair facility to the clock if necessary? The holes were only perforations in the outer casing...”

“But that doesn't explain-”

“What?” interrupted Albedo.

“It doesn't explain the pain in the transformations.”

“Of course not! One thing has nothing to do with the other...”

“So what's going on with the Omnitrix?”

“Ah, now you're interested?”

“Come on, tell me!”

“What if I tell you that I have completely lost interest in talking to you?” Albedo turned his back to Ben and walked away from the teenager.

“Don't make me force you!” Ben raised his left arm and positioned his right hand on the watch core.

“You are really impressive, Tennyson,” Albedo turned again and opened his arms, “As if it wasn't enough to hurt all those people in the park, you want to cause more victims in the middle of the residential area?”

Ben stared at his trembling right hand.

“And people still have the audacity to call me a villain. With heroes like you to protect them, there's no need for me to even try, you just save them and the day's quota of victims is already complete...”

What am I doing? Thought Ben.

“Put your hand down, kid,” Albedo said seriously. “Already under normal conditions you wouldn't stand a chance against me and the Ultimatrix.”

The boy lowered his arms and stared at the ground.

“I'm going to ask you a question, Tennyson. Why do you think I want to return to my Galvanian form so badly?”

“I don't know, because you hate being a human?”

“That’s true. But the main reason is that I don't know how much longer I can stay sane enough to want to return to my original form.”

“I don't get it.”

“When you transform, your body undergoes a process that is too complex and that you probably won't be able to understand, but that in the end results in a structure that Azmuth himself calls a construct.”

“Yes, he already told me something like that.”

“And did he tell you the consequences of this?”

“Consequences?” asked Ben.

Albedo let out a slight snort through his nose and gave a half smile:

“Of course he didn't tell you. He never does...”

“What are you talking about?”

“Omnitranyl Effect. Has he ever told you about it?”

“Omnitra... nyl?”

“That's right.”

“What would that be?”

“If you knew a little more of the history of the Great Thinker Azmuth, the most intelligent being in three galaxies and blah, blah, blah, you would know that he has a long history of amazing creations, but all with one problem in common.”

“Which would be?”

“All his creations come at a price.”

Ben's eyes widened. He tried to pronounce something, but wasn't sure what to say. Albedo continued:

“Just access some intergalactic encyclopedia or do some searching on the Extranet itself. Every creation of his comes with a price to pay. His incredible mechano-galvanic armor turned soldiers into merciless sociopathic warriors. There was such a sword of great power that not only ended wars, but entire species. Even the moon of Galvan prime did not escape its ego and in the process of terraforming, a creature was forced into being and is now living at the mercy of hatred for its own existence.”

“Are you saying that-”

“I am saying that with the Omnitrix it was no different. I was wrong to try to recreate a version of the Omnitrix for myself, but now I live my life being able to rid myself of the burden that Azmuth's creation imposed on me before the Omnitranyl Effect befalls me for good.”

“And what does this so-called O-omnitranyl Effect do?”

“Simple, you become more and more dependent on transformations to keep you rationally sane.”

“I don't get it...”

“Ever since the first transformation you underwent, your body has been asking you to be exposed to all the complex technology and chemicals involved in the transformations!”

Ben stared at his watch. Albedo then said:

“Azmuth didn't turn you into a hero, Tennyson. Azmuth turned you into an addict...”

Ben stared at Albedo, his face pale and his legs trembling with a loss of strength.

“N-no...” said Ben “You're lying! You're lying!”

Albedo fell silent, allowing the boy to deal with the information.

“You're lying. You sure are,” Ben paced back and forth. “I-I'm a hero. I-I change myself to save people!”

Ben walked up to Albedo's face and pointing to himself said:

“I save people!!!” A tear ran down his cheek “I-I-I transform to be a he-hero...”

“You know that deep down I am telling the truth,” says Albedo.

“No...”

“Come on, Tennyson, think.”

Ben focused his attention on his memories. How good it felt to transform. Becoming an alien for the simple pleasure of transforming. He would take on villains and accept missions because he knew that sooner or later he would need to transform into the Four-Arms or the Humungousaur to beat someone up. He remembered the time he traveled to the future as a child and met a version of himself, Ben 10,000. His version from the future that didn't even return to his human form anymore.

Ben felt like throwing up. He knelt down and nauseated himself, but could not get anything out.

Albedo crouched down next to the boy and put a hand on his back.

“Now that you've thought for a moment, do you believe me?”

“No,” Ben pushed Albedo's hand away and began to stand up. “There are holes in this absurd theory of yours!”

“Really?”

“You say that the Omnitrix makes me want to become more and more aliens, but you don't explain why I am suffering so much from the transformations. It just makes me want to give up transforming!”

“You really don't understand the pathophysiology involved in an addiction process, do you, kid? It is a matter of tolerance!”

“Stop talking tough and just spit it out, what the hell is this tolerance!”

“Why do you think Azmuth never let you have master control of the Omnitrix?”

Ben remembered all the times Azmuth had rebooted the Omnitrix and prevented him from keeping master control for an extended period of time. And in the end, he always said that he was still too young or that when the time was right he would figure it out and use it.

“The more you transform, the more your body asks for it, and when you don't transform enough, the experience becomes unpleasant. In order for it to become the usual feeling again, you need to transform more and more!”

Ben brought his hands to his forehead and ran his fingers through his hair. The teenager couldn't stand still.

“If you had master control, you would reach a tolerance level of the effects of transformations very quickly, and it wouldn't be long before the Omnitranil Effect would become even more evident in your body. That was the excuse Azmuth used to hide the side effect from you as long as he could.”

“No, no, no...”

“Don't be childish, Tennyson, denying it won't help you get out of this!”

“And what do you want me to do, huh?”

“Me? I don't have to want anything! You have to decide what you want to do!”

Ben went back to walking back and forth.

“If you want to be free of pain, then transform yourself!”

“Have you gone crazy? You know what happens to the people around me.”

“Then go to a secluded place and change until you can't do it anymore! Turn into all the ‘heroes’ you want until the effects of the transformation overcome tolerance!”

“You know I can't do that, not after all you've told me!”

“So give it all up!”

“What are you talking about?”

“Remove the Omnitrix and get rid of the source of your addiction once and for all.”

Ben put one hand on the back of the other and stared at the Omnitrix on his wrist.

“Leave this ‘hero’ business behind and go live your life as an ordinary Earthling teenager!”

The young man remained silent for a few seconds, then said:

“I knew...”

“Knew what?”

“I knew that all this was just a plan of yours to make me give up the Omnitrix in the end!”

“What!”

“You want to take the watch, and you made up this whole story so that I would-”

“Shut up!” interrupted Albedo. “Just shut up and think for a moment, Tennyson. Don't you see?”

Ben kept holding his arm with the Omnitrix next to his body.

“Look at you, Tennyson, the pathetic condition you are in. Those last lines are not yours, it's your brain trying to protect the source of your addiction, don't you see?”

The boy's eyes widened, the trembling in his arms made his whole body shake.

“You don't become a ‘hero’ because people need you. You become a ‘hero’ because you need to satisfy yourself.”

Ben took one step back, then two, and finally turned and ran towards the front door of his house. Violently he closed the door behind him as he entered.

Inside the house, Ben ran through the enclosures until he reached his bedroom. The boy entered and locked the door, as well as closing windows and curtains. Finally, he threw himself on the bed and covered himself completely with his blanket. Amidst the darkness under the blanket, only the green and red oscillating light of the Omnitrix.

And there he remained.

Alone.

Just him and his thoughts.

...

Chapter Text

Max, Eunice and Azmuth were in the room customized by the Chief Mechanic. The Magistrate lay anesthetized on the bed, his body being carefully manipulated by metal arms that protruded from the walls of the room. One arm gently inserted a needle into the vein of his patient's right arm. Another placed the oxygen mask over his face. Two metal limbs positioned the IV bags on specific holders to administer the fluids. Another syringe of anesthetic was administered to Max, now with the dosage optimized to maintain sedation for the entire treatment.

"We're ready, Miss Eunice," said the computer, "can we begin the procedures?”

Eunice bowed her head towards Azmuth, and after the scientist nodded slightly, she replied:

"Yes, you may begin.”

"Yes, Miss.”

Three new arms, with a conical end and a small spherical lens at each end, came out of the wall behind the Magistrate's head and positioned themselves in three axes around Max Tennyson's skull.

"Initiating Stereotaxis process.”

A thin green laser was emitted from the three lenses and they crossed each other like a three dimensional Cartesian plane. The crossing point was inside the Magistrate's skull. Eunice looked at one of the computer screens that showed an MRI image of Max's head. A small glow was moving across the image in accordance with the faint, controlled movement of his arms.

Azmuth finally said:

"Come on, Eunice. Max needs to rest, and our watching isn't going to make the treatment go any faster” He then walked to the door, which opened automatically, and proceeded down the hall.

Eunice followed him.

They walked down the ship's corridor in silence until they reached the command bridge. The pilot's chair was empty, and in the windows were beams of stars stretched to infinity by the speed of light. Azmuth approached and jumped on one of the paneled surfaces, looking at the landscape outside.

Eunice walked cautiously around the room. She massaged her knuckles and occasionally glanced at the scientist, then returned her gaze to any other point on the command bridge.

"Come on, speak up," Azmuth said.

"Excuse me, sir?" said Eunice.

"Come on, ask what you want to ask," Azmuth turned and stared at her. "What do you want to know?”

Eunice stared into the scientist's large, green and, at that moment, dull eyes. Then she said:

"How could you?”

Azmuth sighed, then said:

"All current technology was based on another that was flawed and damaged. That is the way of science. Could it be that in the future I will be able to develop a technology like the Omnitrix without its current problems? It is possible. But a problem never appears out of nowhere, it is created…”

Eunice continued to stare at him.

"Even when it is not your intention." Azmuth finally said.

"Is that why you were developing the Ultimatrix?”

"I always thought the name they gave it was ridiculous, but yes.”

"And were you succeeding, sir?”

"No…”

Eunice looked away and stared at the ground.

"Instead," Azmuth continued, "I just created more problems.”

"Are you referring to the evolutionary mechanism or-”

"No," interrupted the scientist. "It wasn't even fully established as a function of the new device yet, it was just a test I was doing. I'm talking about the whole political issue and the disgusting nostalgia that inspired some of our colleagues of the species!”

"Fathzi…”

"Exactly." Azmuth closed his eyes.

"What happened between you, sir?”

"At first, nothing. My history with him actually began with his father, Rhubio .”

◇───────◇───────◇

Rhubio was an engine engineer, he was a dreamer and from a young age he believed in the technological potential of Galvan as a way to bring better living conditions for Galvanians and all species in the galaxy.

With the outbreak of the Galvanian War, the welfare of non-galvanians became secondary in the thinking of the natives, and it was no different with Rhubio. He had lost his father and a brother in battle, and in a matter of a few months he became second in command of the third Galvan fleet.

It fell to me to be the leader of the war science department. My team and I had already created numerous technological aberrations, but surely the Galvanian mechamorph armor was the worst of them.

As soon as it was released for use by the troops, within a matter of days the war had turned in our favor. If the objective was to overlap with the other planets in order to have the necessary strength to request peace, unfortunately the result was not the desired one. In possession of a technology capable of overpowering any and all enemy weaponry in a matter of seconds, the galvanic troops decimated a large number of species in our local galaxy.

Rhubio had been one of the first to use the armor. He had applied for it as a test user, if that was what it took to get the technology to win the war, he said. Perhaps because he was the one most exposed to the armor technology, he was also the first to introduce the Armored Psychosis. I hate that name too, but again I didn't choose it.

His temper became increasingly unstable, with outbursts of anger and decision-making that bordered on psychopathy. Little by little, Rhubio became more and more devoid of feelings. And unfortunately he was not the only one.

With the advent of the mechamorph armor, increasingly cruel ideas were spreading among the military group, to the point that they developed a parallel force of combat and intelligence that they called the Galvanic Guardians, or G.G. as they were known by the emblems they wore on their uniforms.

Rhubio had even been considered to lead a very important position in the G.G., but his illness was getting worse and worse, making it impossible for him even to participate in a group of paramilitary psychopaths.

By this time I had already left the army for good and decided to dedicate myself entirely to life-protecting causes. I then became the head of the post-war science wing, treating and seeking treatments for the countless civilians and soldiers who suffered from the Galvanic Wars.

Forced into retirement, Rhubio had been sent back home. Although the army allowed us to treat wounded soldiers, at no time were we allowed to research or treat illnesses related to armored psychosis, because they feared that with the results, the government would bar soldiers from wearing the armor. So I decided to take care of Rhubio unofficially, visiting him daily to record his symptoms and propose therapeutic measures.

I will never forget those visits.

The very first time I approached Rhubio's house, I heard screams from inside the dwelling. The neighbors didn't come closer, just stared through the window openings. In the past I thought they feared Rhubio, but now I understand that they feared the army. Everyone knew the conditions under which the soldiers returned from the war. Just as everyone knew what happened to those who disobeyed the military.

As soon as I entered Rhubio's house that day, I had to hold him down to prevent him from assaulting his own family. His wife was cowering against a wall trying to protect her two children from their father's brutality. Fahtzi was the eldest son. With his eyes closed he was hugging his brother who was sobbing with tears.

There were several visits. I lost count of how many. There were several conversations, analysis of symptoms, prescription of medication, re-evaluation, containment measures when he got angry again, and more conversations. Finally, Rhubio was able to become functional again. Of course, with continued need for medication, and much less dreamy as before...

It was from visits to soldiers like Rhubio that I was able to obtain sufficient evidence to bar the use of galvanic armor, as well as to initiate the first movements for peace and an end to the war before the political class. In the end, it became clear to all galvanics that the army's desire was no longer to protect its people, but rather a relentless and psychopathic quest for power.

Okay, the war was over, but its after-effects remained in the midst of society. Rhubio and his family were in a very complicated financial situation, since the war heroes of old were now seen as crazy or mentally ill people who should be isolated from society. Rhubio's efforts to show the population that he was able to work, to interact, to live among all the others, were clear. But unfortunately for him, the sick person there was no longer him.

As soon as I became Chief Scientist of the Galvan Central Laboratory, I made a point of hiring Rhubio as the engine mechanic of my spaceship. His skills had always been impressive, and this was the opportunity he needed to show them off.

Years later I developed the Omnimatrix, or Omnitrix as they again decided to name it without my approval. I was en route to the Tretazyl galaxy, crossing the Milky Way, when my ship was pursued by Vilgax.

One of the shots from Vilgax's ship hit the left engine region, hitting Rhubio and eight other employees at the site. The consequence of this attack you already know, the Omnitrix was launched to Earth and the boy Tennyson found it. What few know was later when we returned to Galvan Prime.

I personally went to break the news to the families. Rhubio's wife Seliah cried a lot, but was understanding and thanked me for all the care I had taken for her husband and his family all these years. Fahtzi, on the other hand, who was a young teenager at the time, screamed and cursed at me as much as she could.

"You killed my father! "shouted Fahtzi, "You killed him little by little, and now you've decided to finish the job! For years they called him a madman, but the greatest madman on Galvan Prime is you! You! You murderer! You murdering bastard!”

◇───────◇───────◇

Azmuth kept his head down and his eyes closed. He seemed to meditate on the cries of the young Fahtzi that resounded in his mind.

"Mr. Azmuth?" asked Eunice.

"Don't worry, Eunice, I'm fine. "He opened his eyes and raised his head.”

"Fahtzi said this because she was angry about the loss of her father. You know that's not true…”

"Are you really sure?” he raised his eyebrows in disbelief.

"You have done everything to help Rhubio and his family.”

"If it weren't for my fault, Rhubio and his family wouldn't even need my help.”

"You had no way of knowing that the armor would cause the psycho-. Now I understand when you say "creating trouble without intending to."

Azmuth nodded.

"While it was not my desire to cause harm, it does not absolve me of responsibility for the damage I caused.”

"And even after all these years, Fahtzi has not even considered forgiving you?”

"Forgive me? Ha! It seems that he hates me even more…”

◇───────◇───────◇

Fahtzi has become the worst kind of individual: one who chooses to forget his own history and live at the mercy of a fantasy he has invented about the facts.

The first chance he got, he joined the army. The same army that led his grandfather and his uncle to their deaths and, of course, to his father's entire situation. For him, they were all war heroes who were disrespected by the population they were sworn to protect. Were the low-ranking soldiers as much a victim of the situation as the civilians? Yes, they were. But to think that the army's actions were justified because they "aimed to protect the population", that was never true.

Well, he joined the army, grew up in the military hierarchy and decided to embark on another sector of society: politics. With a discourse of recovering the values of a past of unreal glory, Fahtzi gained notoriety and eventually achieved a seat on the Galvan Council. I have never been particularly adept at inserting myself in the midst of politics, but it was not very difficult to see that Fahtzi pleased a rather peculiar portion of the population. Mainly wealthy people and great communicational leaders.

I spent years seeing Fahtzi only through images shown in TV news and interviews, however, about four months ago I received a call at the laboratory's reception desk because Councilman Fahtzi would like a meeting with me.

It was at this meeting that I discovered that information about the Ultimatrix had been leaked.

"I am a man of vision, do you understand Azmuth? "Fahtzi said, "and my vision is for a future for Galvan beyond the current passive and subjugated stance."

Azmuth kept his hands on his back and with his eyes closed listened to the Councilman's speech.

"And for my vision to come true, Azmuth, you must be open to collaborating with your planet and your people.

The scientist opened his eyes and stared at Fahtzi.

"We know about the new prototype you are building here. Just as we know of the potential this technology holds, just as we know from the reports on the earthling. You," Fahtzi put his index finger on the scientist's chest and repeated, "You must grant this potential to Galvan and his people.

Of course I denied it.

But he didn't give up, obviously.

As the days went by, he returned more and more often, some visits were full of pleasantries and compliments, others had a level of tension where there were clearly hidden threats in his words.

More and more news was released to the media with rumors and attempts to defame me to the population. It was clear how much influence Fahtzi had over various sectors of society.

Until in the end we reached the meeting that preceded the collective resignation.

"Don't you realize that there is no other option than for you to make the right decision, scientist!" said Fahtzi.

"Right decision?" said Azmuth, already out of patience for having to deal with this subject again.

"Of course it is! Galvan must become a protagonist in our galaxy again! To be great! Be respected! Be feared if need be!”

"There, you finally managed to be sincere with your ambitions, Fahtzi," said Azmuth, "I really don't understand how you can see the terrible period of our history, when fear could be seen on any face, as something to be aspired to again!”

"If it takes fear to achieve our goals for a better world then-”

"Better world!?" interrupted Azmuth indignantly "You lived during the war period! That was a better world!”

"Our kind was respected!”

"Our species has never been so disrespected in our entire history! We were synonymous with disgrace, ruin, destruction, cowardice and death!”

"A price to be paid for the-”

"For what? If you come with arguments like the end justifies the means , kid, it's because you forgot that among the "means" that were used was your father, Rhubio, who fell ill for this end !”

"Don't you dare speak that name. You don't have the right!”

"And you have the right to come to my laboratory and make this kind of ridiculous scandal? Don't give me those ignoble arguments, my dear boy!" said Azmuth.

"Very well then. We're done here. You have three days to give me an answer, if not…”

And the rest you already know.

Among Fahtzi's threats was to penalize every single employee in the laboratory. I don't know what he could do. Interrogate? Torture? When in doubt, I pushed them all away so that their anger would remain all focused on me.

And Eunice, I'm sorry. I failed you twice...

Yes, I did. I had no right to deceive you and forcefully shut you down like I did that time, I thought I could really get you off the planet. Later, when I discovered that the planet was already sealed off to me, with my every move being strictly monitored, I had no choice but to hide you in my office and schedule your reactivation for a few weeks later, when I figured that at least the lab searches would be over.

◇───────◇───────◇

"I really was quite confused when I awakened," Eunice said.

"I'm really sorry," Azmuth stared at the girl, "but I thought you were going to leave the planet after you woke up. I left clear instructions for you to leave Galvan with your receptacle…”

"Even if I wanted to, I couldn't, sir. The planet was under a state of siege and no one was able to enter or leave without authorization from the Council or the Army.”

"What did you do after you woke up?”

"Well, obviously I didn't stand still…”

◇───────◇───────◇

As soon as I was reactivated I read the instructions you left me. I was very surprised at the silence in the laboratory, so famous for the great movement of scholars and scientists. In the first few days I dedicated myself to understanding what had happened during the period that I was off-line. Although the media was not a very reliable source of information "this was not difficult to realize "at least to punctuate the events, it was quite capable.

I saw information about the theft of the Superomnitrix, his reaction to the accusations, and Fahtzi's lame arguments that eventually led to his arrest, sir. Then, as the days passed, it became more and more clear the increasingly authoritarian presence of the army against the population.

Several Galvanians were interrogated, Mr. Azmuth, their homes were raided by G.G. agents and their families were kept in custody for several days until they would tell any information they deemed useful. All for the sake of protecting Galvan from a great evil.

As freedom diminished, the general feeling of dissatisfaction grew, but of course, there was still fear. I walked around the laboratory for days, thinking of ways to help the population, but practically all my plans depended on our voice breaking through the barriers imposed on Galvan.

One day I intercepted a communication from a plumber's ship requesting entry to Galvan. It was Magistrate Tennyson, lucky for us. Although he doesn't know the half of what happened on Galvan, he didn't hesitate to help us.

◇───────◇───────◇

"Max is a good friend," Azmuth said, staring at the ground.

"Yes, sir.”

Azmuth kept his eyes lowered for a few seconds, then raised his head and said:

"And what was your final plan?”

"Ah, yes, so…”

◇───────◇───────◇

Using Dr. Vaexha's research from the 508 lab on new communication tools, I used one of her prototypes to communicate with the population through a sub-wave channel, undetectable by common devices. It was a long and laborious job, in which I invaded cell phones and computers, bringing a message of hope and asking for the support of the population to sign a request for a trial against Fahtzi.

With this document signed by a large number of Galvan citizens, I hoped that the Universal Criminal Court could bring to light Fahzti's crimes. Gradually, more and more people joined and assisted me in the arduous task of carrying the message in a hidden manner from the Council and soliciting the support of the population.

◇───────◇───────◇

"And how many signatures do you have at the moment?”

"Four billion, three hundred and fifty-seven million, nine hundred and forty-four thousand, and eighty-one signatures. Fifty-seven percent of Galvan's population.”

"That is already more than the majority of the population! How did you do it?”

"The desire for change and freedom was the force that moved us" Eunice looked at the stars in the window to her left. "What amazes me are the other forty-three percent of the population.”

"Don't judge them, Eunice, there is a sizeable group of people who feel that Fahtzi's choices are the best path to anything; but understand that there are also many in that percentage who are afraid and fearful of what Fahtzi and the army might do to them and their family.”

"Yes, I understand, sir.”

Azmuth rested a hand on his chin and began to twiddle one of his whiskers thoughtfully.

"I think now that perhaps this plan of yours might fail.”

"Really? Why?”

"Fahtzi has the whole government structure in his favor, he will be able to manipulate the information at will before being subjected to a trial, after all, a trial report is always sent to the accused before the session.”

"What do you think we should do then?”

"We won't waste your efforts, Eunice, don't worry, I just think that we should change the target of the Universal Criminal Court”

"How so, sir?”

"It will make sense soon. Now, we need to go to Calculnète, the planet of the rocks.”

"But why? Mr. Azmuth, I'm sorry, but I thought we had already passed the communication barrier where you simply act without explaining anything.”

"I will explain, don't worry. I only ask you to change our route to Calculnète, because we need to do some shopping if we intend to recover the Ultimatrix and bring our beloved First Manager to trial. We have no time to lose!”

A smile was drawn on the scientist's lips.

Chapter Text

This time it was Kevin who was in a hospital bed. But don't worry, readers, he is fine. No coma or anything more complicated, he's just recovering from his broken ribs and the injuries he got in the castle of the Forever Knights. In fact, he is only resting after much insistence from Gwen and an agreement between the two of them that he could continue working on his investigation into Albedo's plan if he promised to stay hospitalized until he recovered.

Kevin was sitting up, with the pillow on his back. Around him, on top of the covers, bundles of papers were piled up and tossed back and forth on the bed as a document, or record, or photograph, or any other detail caught his eye and helped him with his hypotheses.

The television was something else that he would not turn off for a moment. Any news could be interpreted as a clue about the Galvanic Guardians or Albedo to the most attentive ears. The news about the Central Park bombing seemed endless in the early days, with journalists bringing more and more stories questioning those involved in the case. For some almost unknown reason, the presence of the teenager who confronted the aliens had been little investigated and had already been forgotten by many viewers. Several network chiefs and newspapers received calls from authorities on the night of the event, advising them to leave the teenager out of their reports.

The sound of the TV was overtaken by Gwen's speech as she entered the room. A bandage encircled her right arm. In her left hand, a thick brown envelope and a notebook:

“I really don't know what else to do to try to help him! He knows that he shouldn't isolate himself in such a situation!”

“Who are you talking about?” Kevin looked up from his papers and fixed his eyes on the girl.

“Ben, of course!”

“Ah, I got it,” looking again at the documents. “Give Tennyson some time, the kid's been through a terrible situation recently. It makes perfect sense that he would want to hide from everything and everyone like this.”

“I know, Kevin, but he hasn't left his room in three days. There's no way I can't worry about him!”

“But if you keep forcing him like this, he may end up hiding inside his own head again.”

“You know that's not how it works...”

“I don't know, things haven't been running their normal course for some time now.”

Gwen remained silent for a few moments looking at the TV but not paying attention to what was being shown. Then she said:

“Maybe you're right, I am pushing Ben too hard....”

“Yes, I am” Kevin leaned forward to pick up a picture close to his feet.

Gwen looked at Kevin with narrowed eyes, then asked:

“And you, how are you doing?”

“Actually...” Kevin looked at the cluster of papers around him, “I didn't get anything.”

“Really?”

“Really. I feel like I'm missing some detail, some information that could help me figure out the whole plan of the bastard. A little something or other connects, but it's like the solution is right in my face, but so far I can't see it...”

“Maybe this will help,” Gwen took the envelope from under her arm and handed it to Kevin. I was asked to give it to you.

“Finally!” Kevin took the envelope, pulled out the thick document and began to leaf through it “I've been waiting days for this report!”

“The fight was inside a warehouse of equipment and electronic supplements of a power plant, what do you expect? To catalog everything, and only then to be able to identify what may or may not have been stolen from there takes time.”

“I know, I know...” Kevin looked at the notebook in Gwen's hands. “And what's this for?”

“That? I'll try to call Grandpa's ship again. Since the day in Central Park I haven't been able to reach him. Sanmwell, in the headquarters communications office, has set up a way for me to route the connection from my computer to the headquarters satellite so that I can try to make contact whenever I want.”

“Got it. Good luck.”

Gwen sat down in the companion chair and propped the notebook on her lap. She lifted the screen and began her attempts to connect to her grandfather's ship. Numerous numbers and audio lines were drawn on the screen, but only squeaks and interference were received by the computer.

“Damn it,” said Gwen.

“But are you already annoyed?” asked Kevin.

“Keep on with your papers, Sherlock!”

Kevin waved his hand in approval and continued thumbing through the report. Gwen, on the other hand, kept searching for a sign of connection.

As much as they had both come a long way in the last few days, when they thought about what they had achieved, they felt as if they had never left the place.

◇───────◇───────◇

Eunice entered the plumbing ship, with the access ramp rising up behind her and making the landscape of the planet Calcùnete disappear with the closing of the doors. She carried her backpack on her right shoulder, with clear signs that the bag was absurdly heavy, as her body leaned to the right as she walked towards the command bridge.

The girl passed in front of Max Tennyson's room and stopped for a few seconds to look through the window in the door. The magistrate was still sedated, with mechanical arms moving quickly but neatly around the man's head. Eunice bowed her head slightly, thinking for a few moments about everything that had happened three days ago, then walked down the corridor of the spaceship.

The doors to the command bridge opened and Eunice saw her creator, Azmuth, standing on a horizontal panel of buttons near the largest window of the ship. He watched the landscape move as the ship took off.

“I am back, Mr. Azmuth, and I hope you don't mind, but I had to improvise at some points. I couldn't find everything you asked me to find.”

“How much did you improvise?”

Azmuth jumped up from where he was standing and came walking towards Eunice. The girl put her backpack on the ground and opened it, displaying several rocks of different sizes and textures.

“Don't worry, sir, I managed to find the most important ones. “

“Excellent! I've already left the tools separated on the workbenches over there to get us started.”

Suddenly, the automated computer voice announced:

“Incoming call from Earth, Plumber Headquarters. Accept call?”

Eunice and Azmuth looked at each other worriedly, he then answered:

“Sure, we accept.”

“Establishing connection.”

Suddenly, on the main window of the spaceship, the image of a red-haired girl with a ponytail and green eyes was projected.

“Finally!” said Gwen, “Grandpa, can you hear me?”

“The magistrate is not here right now, Gwen,” Eunice walked towards the screen. “He's...” The girl looked at Azmuth, not knowing exactly what to say.

“Where is Grandfather?” Gwen's projected face looked sometimes at the screen, sometimes off the screen, as if facing a third person involved in the conversation, but not visible to the camera. “Is he okay?”

“He's undergoing surgery right now,” said Azmuth.

“What!? Surgery?”

Kevin burst into the camera frame, dressed in a hospital apron, and said:

“What happened?”

“This is something that I ask” said Azmuth. “Also, how could you let Max travel in this state?”

“What are you talking about? He told us he was fine.” Gwen looked at Kevin with arched eyebrows and continued, “He wouldn't let us accompany him to the doctor's appointment or on the trip, so we had to rely on what he told us. How is he!”

Eunice crouched down next to Azmuth and said softly:

“Mr. Azmuth, you kind of already gave the bad news. May I explain it to them? I owe it to the magistrate.”

“Please...”

Eunice stood up and stared into the eyes of the two teenagers on the other side of the screen. Then she began:

“Magistrate Tennyson arrived on Galvan Prime about a week ago on Earth. He was indeed in good health, or at least seemed to be. During the mission in which the Magistrate and I were rescuing Azmuth from prison, the Magistrate had a severe headache and fainted.”

“Oh my God.” said Gwen with one hand covering her mouth.

Kevin rested his hand on his forehead and kept his gaze fixed on the image. Eunice continued.

“The magistrate regained consciousness after a few minutes and was able to return to the ship. That's when he talked to you, Gwen,” Eunice stared at the young redhead.

“He didn't say anything to me.”

“To us too,” Eunice stared at the ground. Then she continued “Right after your call, the magistrate engaged in a conversation a bit more...” Eunice looked away from Azmuth.

“We argued. Max and I had a fight,” said Azmuth.

“But why? asked Kevin.”

“I'm sorry, but it's not possible to explain now,” said Eunice, “the point is that he was sick again, and before he got any worse, I sedated him with a dose of fentanyl.”

Eunice stopped talking for a few moments, then continued:

“His pressure was 210x120 mmHg. I didn't even know it could get that high...”

“If it wasn't for her sedating Max, I don't know if he would have survived,” said Azmuth.

“And what about him?” asked Gwen, her eyes watering.

“Intracranial hemorrhage,” Eunice finally said. “That's when vessels rupture inside the skull.”

Gwen hugged Kevin and hid her face in his chest. He stroked the top of the girl's head.

Azmuth continued:

“When we re-did the scans, we saw several foci of subdural hemorrhage that were reseeping several times, which is why the headaches. There is no room for the blood to flow out, since the skull is closed, so the brain is compressed. There was a big bleeding spot near his frontal lobe.”

“Maybe that's why his personality was so altered before the last crisis, isn't it, sir?” said Eunice.

“Is that so?” said Azmuth in a listless voice, and glanced at Eunice, there was guilt in the scientist's eyes.

“And where is he now?” asked Kevin.

“As I said, he is being operated on right now,” said Azmuth. “Max already came with his room prepared to perform the surgery. He knew he was sick.”

“It's possible that he's almost finished, if I'm not mistaken,” said Eunice.

“Can we see him?” said Gwen.

“Of course!” said Eunice fondly. “I'll just check that everything is alright before I pass on the image. If you'll excuse me," and she headed for the exit.”

For a few minutes the call was silent. Then Azmuth said:

“How is the Tennyson boy?”

Gwen and Kevin looked at each other. Kevin said:

“Gwen, you are more in the know about Tennyson's situation. I just got stuck here in this room. Can you explain?”

The girl ran her hands over her cheeks to dry her tears. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and began to speak.

“To be very honest, he's not doing well at all.”

◇───────◇───────◇

Gwen was sitting on the inside seat of a Plumbers ambulance. The vehicle was one of several parked in Central Park that was providing care to those injured in the mayhem. A doctor was carefully suturing the cut on Gwen's arm, however, all the care taken in performing the procedure was already irritating the girl who just wanted to get out of there desperately after her cousin.

“Are you finished, doctor?”

“I'm almost done, all that's missing is the last stitch and then the bandage.”

The teenager's left leg wobbled, her knee bouncing up and down. The doctor looked away from the suture for a moment and fixed her gaze on the girl's leg. Gwen, her eyes focused on infinity, took a moment to realize what she was doing. When she noticed, she put one hand on her leg and said:

“I'm sorry, I was messing you up, wasn't I? I'm sorry.”

“Don't worry, this happens to everyone who goes through a difficult situation.” The doctor sutured again. “If you need it, we have brought psychologists on staff and they can talk to you if you want.”

“Thank you very much.”

But Gwen didn't want to talk to anyone. Ben's panicked face replayed in her memory in an endless loop. She dreaded finding him lying in the street, or hiding in an alley, suffering another anxiety attack.

“There, I'm finished.”

“Thank you, Doctor.” Gwen got up from her seat and jumped out of the ambulance, heading in the direction Ben had run off to earlier.

Gwen looked in all directions. How she could find her cousin in the middle of a city, she couldn't tell. She tried calling on her cell phone, but the calls kept ringing and ringing, never to be answered.

Come on, Ben, where are you? ― she thought ― Pick up!

The movement on the shopping street was already frantic on normal days. After a possible alien threat, it was simply unbearable. People were walking and running in all directions. Store owners were closing their doors, forcing even more people to crowd the sidewalks. Gwen couldn't take two steps without bumping into someone with her shoulders. Suddenly she felt her cell phone vibrate in her hand.

The girl was filled with hope. She looked at the screen and saw "Aunt Sandra" written on it. Without blinking, she answered the call and struggled to hear anything over the noise of the crowd. Then she heard the question she needed:

“Gwen, do you know what happened to Ben? He came running into the house, slammed the bedroom door, and won't let anyone in!”

“I'm coming, Auntie,” and she hung up.

As soon as she arrived at her aunt's house, Gwen didn't even ring the bell. She opened the door and announced:

“Aunt Sandra, it's me, Gwen, sorry to barge in like this!”

Sandra Tennyson met the girl at the entrance to the hall of rooms. She was holding a tray of hot milk and some cookies. Her face was clothed in concern:

“I thought if I brought him something to eat, he would open the door...”

Gwen sighed and compressed her lips. Then she said:

“I'll talk with you in a moment. Let me try to talk to him.”

“Sure, sure,” and walked away to the kitchen.

Gwen approached the door to her cousin's room. She tapped twice with her knuckles and said:

“Ben? It's Gwen...”

But she wasn't sure what to say. Yes, it was Gwen, so what? What would he say next? Your cousin was not stupid. He was fully aware of what he had done in the park. There were no words that could soften or undo what had happened. He made a mistake. He made a mistake trying to do the right thing, but he was reckless. He was used to sacrifice himself for others, the problem was that this time he was not the sacrifice. And he knew it.

Gwen rested her forehead on the door. With great difficulty she could hear a muffled sound, as if she were under a cloth.

He is crying.

The girl's eyes filled with water. It wasn't supposed to be like this...

It's not fair to him.

Gwen turned and leaned her back on the door. She slowly slid down to sit on the floor.

“Ben...”

Again, the words wouldn't come out. She took a deep breath and let the air out of her lungs without resistance.

“I don't know what I can say to try to comfort you. I don't even know if you want to be comforted right now.”

The girl looked sadly at her hands.

“But know this: I am here.”

Gwen leaned her head on the door and stared at the dark ceiling of the corridor.

Ben was sobbing with tears.

◇───────◇───────◇

Gwen told Azmuth everything that unfolded from Hex's library to the Galvanic Guardians attack in Bellwood's Central Park. She tried to skip some information so that the story wouldn't get too long, but Ahzmuth made sure she went back and explained every minute detail of what happened.

“After he was locked in his room, I continued to visit him every day,” Gwen said. “I would sit by his bedroom door for hours, waiting for his time. According to my Aunt Sandra, he opens the door sometimes, but always when no one is around and only to get the food my aunt leaves by the door.”

“I see...” said Azmuth.

“When I'm not there, I try to send messages letting him know I'm available if he wants to talk,” Gwen lowered her eyes, “but he never answers.”

Kevin put his hand on the girl's shoulder and moved his fingers, like a light massage, in a demonstration of I admire your dedication and effort.

“I don't know what else to do?” she said.

“You're already doing a lot for him, young lady.”

“There are times when I want to kick down that door, grab him by the arm and take him to a doctor so he can get the attention he needs, you know? But then I remember what I saw inside his mind and I just don't know which doctor would be able to help him?”

Azmuth ran his left hand over one of his mustache extensions and closed his eyes for a few moments. Finally he said:

“We are almost arriving in your galaxy. I will make it a point to meet you as soon as I set foot on Earth, and then...”

“And then you will remove the Omnitrix from Ben's arm,” said Grandpa Max, who had just entered the command bridge.

“Max?”

“Grandpa!”

Max Tennyson was dressed in his Plumber space uniform. Eunice was right behind him, staring at the tablet she was holding.

“Hello, kids!” Grandpa Max smiled. “Miss me?”

“You have no idea!” said the girl.

“But weren't you having an operation and all?” asked Kevin.

“Yes, he was,” Eunice smiled, “but luckily, by the time I entered the room, the procedure had just finished. While I was reviewing his medical condition and taking out his IVs, we were listening to his report, Gwen.”

“Don't worry, Gwen,” Max said, “I just called my son and talked to him and my daughter-in-law. Unfortunately I couldn't give them many details, but I tried to comfort them as much as I could and let them know that I'm coming to see my grandson.”

“But that's great, Grandpa!”

Max stopped in front of Azmuth and stared at him from above. The scientist in turn reciprocated by raising his head and staring into the man's eyes. Max then said:

“I apologize for the way I acted.”

“No need to apologize,” Azmuth replied.

“Yes, I do. I don't know how much of it was due to the bleeding. However...” Max knelt down and spoke in a lower tone of voice, “my opinion of you and your scientific ethics have not changed. I hope you understand.”

“Yes, I do.”

Max stood up, keeping his gaze fixed.

“So let's make sure that both the Omnitrix and the Utimatrix don't get into anyone's hands.”

“I will try to make sure that they are properly secured.”

“Perfect.”

Azmuth turned to the screen and said to the teenagers:

“Speaking of the Ultimatrix, where is Albedo?”

Gwen looked at Kevin and said:

“That's your department.”

Kevin gave a crooked smile and replied:

“To be very honest, I have no idea!” And he shrugged his shoulders.

“What do you mean?” said Azmuth.

“He's hiding somewhere!” Kevin said, taking the computer from Gwen's hand and framed his bed full of documents on the camera “Since the beginning of this situation I've been chasing him and trying to understand his plan, but the pieces just don't fit!”

Eunice turned to Azmuth and said:

“What I don't understand, sir, is why Albedo is still on Earth?”

Eunice's question was like a spark running down a path of gunpowder inside Kevin's head. Such a simple question, but one that made perfect sense!

How could I not have thought of this before? ―  thought Kevin

“Gwen, hold this for me for a moment,” he handed the computer to the girl and walked towards his bed.

All that pile of documents, photos, maps, notes, information obtained from informants, began little by little to fit together.

The first time they met Albedo, since the confusion began, was at the Bellwood power station. It was not possible to find out what he was doing there, as the arrival of the trio must have disrupted his plans. It was also the first time he transformed and at one point, it seemed like there was something wrong with him. Was there something wrong with the Ultimatrix or was the ultimate-transformation too powerful for him to handle at first?

“Azmuth, was the Ultimatrix finished when it was stolen?” asked Kevin.

“No.”

“What was missing?”

“The base of its operation, responsible for the ultimate-transformation was finished, however, some internal components such as the cognitive stabilizer, the retro-feedback power source and the naturo-temporal selector were probably not present. They were on my bench for final adjustments.”

Kevin's head was boiling with information.

Maybe the lack of the cognitive stabilizer was responsible for his weirdness on the station! ― he thought ― I don't know what this naturo-temporal selector does, and the other missing component was-

Kevin interrupted his own thinking.

“No...” he said.

“What is it, Kevin?” Gwen asked.

“I understood the bastard's plan!”

“Then tell me!”

“In the various times we have met Albedo there has always been something that bothered me. If he had something as powerful as the Ultimatrix in hand, why didn't he ever start attacking us already ultimate-transformed into something? It was as if he was avoiding transforming!”

“Avoiding?”

“Sparing would be better!”

Max, Eunice and Azmuth kept an eye on the image of Kevin, who was pacing back and forth in the room, working out his ideas.

“He didn't always ultimate-transform,” Kevin continued. “He always needed to be taken out of his mind. And not only that, at various times he could just come and fly away, smash through walls and take what he wanted, but no! He even went so far as to disguise himself as a squire to reach something in a castle that he could easily break into!”

“Are you saying that-“

“Energy!” Kevin held Gwen's shoulders “He doesn't have the rechargeable power supply, so sooner or later the Ultimatrix will shut down if he uses too much of it!”

“Makes sense...”

“That's where it gets complicated” Kevin let go of the girl's shoulders and walked back across the room “He must have tried to get power from the station and realized that it wasn't enough to power something like an Omnitrix.”

“But he broke into the Plumbers' power sector and didn't even go near the reactors.”

“Because it wasn't enough either! Although these reactors are made of alien technology, capable of producing much more energy, it is still not enough for an Omnitrix!”

“What does he want then?” asked Gwen.

“He wants to create his own energy source. That's why the Plumber's Sector equipment, that's why the Tadenite, that's why the Entropy Regulator!”

Eunice and Azmuth understood Kevin's reasoning and looked at each other. Eunice said:

“That means-“

“That he intends to break up the densest ore in the universe through a fission reaction and direct the energy to fuel his Ultimatrix,” Kevin said.

“Fission?” said Max “You're saying that Albedo is-“

“An atomic bomb!” concluded Kevin “Albedo is going to explode an atomic bomb in Bellwood!”

Chapter Text

There' no point in me trying to lie to anyone... ― thought Ben.

It had been three days since he had found himself in his cave of discomfort that he called his room. Sitting on his bed, hugging his bent knees, he kept the television on waiting for the moment when they would announce that he, Ben Tennyson, was responsible for hurting all those people in Central Park.

There's no point in me lying to myself.

But the news never came. He once thought about the possibility that the Plumbers might have interfered in some way and prevented the release of his name and image.

But why would they do this?

I am no hero.

It doesn't make sense that they would want to protect me.

Unless they didn't want to protect me.

Maybe they were afraid of me.

Maybe they are at this very moment planning the best way to capture me!

After all, I am a danger to everyone...

Ben hugged his legs tighter. He felt his body trembling.

Or they must be ashamed of me...

For years they have helped and supported someone they thought was a hero, but after all...

After all, this hero is nothing more than a disturbed and junkie kid...

That's it, they are ashamed of me and are waiting for the dust to settle so that little by little everyone will forget who Ben Tennyson was.

They are ashamed of me...

I am ashamed of me...

Ben closed his eyes and wanted to cry, but he felt he didn't have enough tears left, so he just felt his eyes grow warm and a weight tighten in his stomach.

How could I?

I should have known something was wrong!

Maybe I didn't want to realize that something was wrong.

Isn't that how junkies are?

Ignoring their own reality?

He opened his eyes and stared at the television in front of him.

I am not a hero.

I'm a piece of trash...

On the other side of the locked door, a woman's voice is heard:

“Ben, dear, I brought you your dinner,” said his mother.

It's already night, thought Ben.

◇───────◇───────◇

In the Plumber's headquarters Kevin's hypothesis was not so well received. Some Magistrates found logic in what was proposed by the teenager, however, most of them thought the whole story was crazy. Even crazier was the proposed solution: to evacuate Bellwood.

There was no way to propose a mass evacuation, first: the hypothesis was built only on Albedo's strange behavior. Second: All the stolen materials could be used for other purposes than building an atomic bomb, so why would Albedo build one right away? Third: It was theorized that Albedo would explode a bomb, but how would he convert this into energy for his Ultimatrix? If it were that easy, any popping that occurred near a battery could recharge its energy, and we well know that this is not how it works. It's no wonder that power plants are such huge structures and nothing so developed has been built in Bellwood in recent days, for if it had, surely the Plumbers would know. And fourth and last: we don't know where the bomb might be...

You realize that the discussion has gone on longer than it should have, don't you? Well, before the Magistrates could point out any more flaws in Kevin's theory, the young man turned to the meeting room door and headed for the exit.

“Kevin, where are you going?” asked Gwen.

“It's pretty clear they're not going to help us, Gwen, let's go after Albedo before the worst happens!”

Gwen turned to the magistrates and made one last request:

“The satellite! Let us at least use the satellites to try to track any trace of radiation or energy that might be gathering in the city!”

Kevin stopped by the door and, still with his back to the magistrates, waited for an answer.

Magistrate Patelliday looked at his colleagues for any objections, but since there were no interventions, he said:

“Very well, we will request that our satellites start a scan for any sign of energy concentration.”

“Thank you very much, Magistrate,” said Gwen.

“And I will ask my units to spread out across the city and assist you in your search,” continued the magistrate.

“What!” Magistrate Arnux rose from his chair in clear objection. “You can't be serious, Patelliday! We need to be alert for a possible attack from the Galvanic Guardians, we can't keep diverting troops to a groundless search like this!”

“I respect your opinion in not agreeing with these kids, Magistrate Arnux, so I ask you to respect mine in believing them,” Magistrate Patelliday smiled at Gwen and Kevin. “They may be wrong, but if they are right, we will have a much bigger problem than the one we had in Central Park.”

Magitrate Arnux sat down abruptly in his chair and said:

“This is ridiculous!”

Magistrate Patelliday glared at his colleague and then turned his attention to the youths:

“What are you waiting for!?”

Gwen and Kevin were startled and then hurried to the exit. Before they stepped through the doors, the girl waved:

“Thank you very much, Magistrate!”

◇───────◇───────◇

Gwen and Kevin were driving through the city at high speed. Kevin tried his best to dodge cars and any obstacles that came in his way. On her tablet, Gwen could see a satellite image of Bellwood with lines and misshapen spots that marked several energy concentration points in the city.

These were not several bombs, don't get me wrong, but seeking to anticipate any start of the execution of Albedo's plan, the youngsters chose to be absurdly rigid in capturing the energy signals. Any concentration a little above normal was already a reason to move or direct one of the eight teams of Magistrate Patelliday to the site.

From the car's communicator, Azmuth's voice could be heard. In the background there were the sounds of tools and machines working at full throttle: Eunice and the scientist were working on the rocks obtained in Calcunète. What they were planning was not possible to say yet.

“I find it very difficult that Albedo will be able to break through the tadenite in just one attempt...”

“What do you mean, Azmuth?” asked Kevin, turning the car around a sharp right turn.

“As much as he uses an Entropy Regulator to destabilize the crystal structure, my calculations tell me that he could at most break the bonds between the molecules.”

“Do you think he could not cause the tadenite to fission to the point of causing an atomic bomb level explosion?” Gwen moved her fingers around the tablet looking for some other sign of energy.

“Maybe not the first one.”

“What!?” asked Kevin, almost running over a cyclist.

“If he uses the energy from the first explosion, maybe he can break the atomic bonds, and then repeatedly until he has enough energy to break the nuclei of the atoms.”

“One explosion would be destructive enough!” said Gwen.

“It certainly would,” said Azmuth. “The kinetic energy of the weakest explosion would be enough to blow up an explosives shed. But the radiation, which is the most energetic, I believe he could only get with enough intensity when Albedo reached the atomic level...”

“How can you say that so calmly?” asked Kevin.

“Believe me, my young man, I am not calm.”

“Kevin, a new signal has just appeared!”

“Where?”

“We're close, keep heading towards Bellwood Forest!”

Kevin climbed the sidewalk and drove for about three hundred ft, forcing people to jump into establishments or even into the street, trying to escape from the green vehicle at high speed. Then he went back to the street, went through a red light, almost crashing into a bus and a cab, and went straight ahead on an avenue.

“How's the signal!?” asked Kevin.

“Not good. It appeared not even ten seconds ago and is already accumulating enough energy to power a soccer stadium...”

“We found the bastard!” Kevin turned left and followed the same road that once followed shimmering pink footprints.

“I hope so,” said Gwen. Then she picked up her cell phone to type a message “I'll tell Ben.”

“Why?”

“Because we might fail, and I want him, my aunt and uncle to be safe.”

“Don't talk like that, it doesn't sound like you.”

“Are you going to tell me that you didn't warn your stepfather to leave town?”

The young man was silent for a few seconds, then answered:

“Yes...”

Kevin dodged trucks, cars, motorcycles, more trucks. He took the wrong way a few times and broke two rearview mirrors as he passed through a narrow corridor formed by two cars coming in the opposite direction.

Gwen kept her concentration on her tablet, her cell phone, and the surrounding landscape, guiding Kevin along the path he should follow. At a certain moment she saw the Bellwood power station pass by them.

Where it all began... ― she thought.

The energy stain on her tablet began to grow redder and stronger, indicating that the concentrated energy was reaching alarming levels.

With about half mile to go, Kevin's car suddenly shut down completely, continuing on its way due to inertia, but reducing its speed.

“Not this!” said Kevin.

“What happened?” asked Gwen.

Kevin didn't answer. He just rested his left hand on the center of the steering wheel, on a rubberized circle, and then held Gwen's arm with his right hand. He began to coat his and Gwen's body with a rubbery surface. Gwen felt her body trapped inside a cocoon, unable to move her limbs.

“Close your eyes!” shouted Kevin.

As Gwen closed her eyes, as if in slow motion, the girl saw in the forest landscape the trees leaning together like a great green ocean wave coming towards her. The cars located in front of them were, one by one, thrown up into the air like blowing through a sheet of paper. The girl's eyes closed completely the instant the wave hit them.

◇───────◇───────◇

Ben was lying on the floor of his room. His vision was impaired by the beige-grey haze of the wreckage. A persistent buzzing sound was the only sound in his ears. The room that once lay in darkness was now flooded with light through the shattered window and the hole in the ceiling.

Slowly he tried to get up, taking care not to rest his hand on any piece of glass or shards of tile lining the floor. He looked around, but the dust was still dense, making it difficult to breathe. He coughed a few times. He put his hand on the headboard of the bed and slowly got up from the ground. There were small abrasions on his arms and legs, and a small cut over his right eyebrow, where a trickle of blood was running down. His head hurt. He brought his hand up to his forehead for a moment and then looked down at his blood and dust stained hand.

He was dizzy and his thoughts were trying to organize themselves in an attempt to understand what had happened. Then he heard in the background, behind the insistent humming, a voice calling his name. It was his mother. The voice seemed to be getting closer. Now there was also the voice of his father.

Mother? Father?

The doorknob was turned violently, but the door did not open. Ben heard his father's voice say, almost in a whisper:

“Stand back, Sandra, I'm going to break in....”

And so he did. With a heavy shoulder impact, the wood around the handle broke and the door opened in a semicircle until it slammed against the wall. The two adults came in desperate and as soon as they saw the boy, they wrapped him in a strong hug.

“Oh my God, my son!”

“Are you all right, Benjamin?” said the father “Are you hurt?”

“Look at his forehead Carl, it's bleeding!”

“Relax Sandra, it seems to be just a cut.”

The boy did not know what to answer, the buzzing sound prevented him from understanding the questions properly. He was happy to see that his parents were fine, apart from the odd bruise, but he felt that his thoughts were still out of place.

“What happened?” asked Ben.

“I have no idea,” answered his father, “some explosion nearby perhaps?”

Ben tried to remember the minutes before the impact. He was in bed, the TV was on, and then... Then... The cell phone!

“Gwen!”

The teenager untangled himself from his parents' arms and approached his bed in search of his cell phone. He moved pieces of tile, decorations that now lay on the floor, tried to move a wooden beam that now rested on his bed, but he had no strength.

“What are you looking for, Benjamin?”

“My cell phone. It's here somewhere!”

His mother looked around and saw lying next to shards of glass and a Sumo wrestler figure, the cell phone with the cracked screen. He picked it up and said:

“Here, my son, is this it?”

“You found it!” Ben took the object from his mother's hands and when he turned on the screen, he saw that there was no phone signal available. “Damn it!”

“What happened?”

“There is no signal.”

Ben then tried to look at the messages received from his cousin, looking for clues as to where she could be. As he opened the conversation, he felt a tightness in his stomach. There were several messages from:

“Good morning Ben, I'm here if you need to talk.”

“Afternoon, cousin, I told you, if you need someone to vent to, just let me know!”

“Good night, doofus, just warning you that if you feel like you need to talk to someone during the night, just call or text me. It doesn't matter what time it is!”

And no message was answered.

Gwen... I... ― thought the young man

He continued scrolling down the messages.

“Kevin is still investigating Albedo's clues, I think he'll soon be able to figure out his plan.”

“Don't worry we will solve the problem with your watch.”

“Kevin says hi”

Ben looked at the Omnitrix on his wrist. The light no longer flickered, it remained the usual green. It was his hand that was shaking again. He continued to scroll down to today's messages:

“Ben, I was able to get in contact with Grandpa Max!"

“And Kevin just found out about Albedo's plan!”

“He intends to blow up an atomic bomb in Bellwood!”

“Grandpa Max, Azmuth and Eunice are coming to Earth right now.”

“They should be here soon.

“He'll finally be able to help you!”

“Kevin and I are going after Albedo to stop him from exploding the bomb.

“We just discovered a possible hiding place for him: in Bellwood Forest!

“Seek shelter together with Uncle Carl and Aunt Sandra”

“Stay safe!”

End of messages.

The boy was silent for a few moments.

“Benjamin? Did something happen to your cousin?”

Ben raised his head and approached his window, bent his body on the sill and looked towards Bellwood forest, located several miles away from the residential area. White smoke rose on the horizon into the sky, with greenish lightning bolts snaking uninterrupted through the smoke.

The boy went back into his room and said:

“I have to go after them!”

“What!” said his mother.

Ben approached his bed and knelt down on the debris on the floor, trying to look for something under the furniture. However, the bed had been pressed against the beam, forcing it against the floor and making it difficult to get underneath.

“My son, stop this madness! Come on, we have to get out of here! We don't know if there could be another explosion!”

“Don't you understand, Mom, right now Gwen and Kevin could be hurt and need me!” Ben stood up and tried to lift the bed, but the wood beam was too heavy.

“Carl, talk to him.”

Ben's father approached his son and, holding him by the shoulders, stared at him. He had been wishing for days that he could look at Ben's face, but with him locked in his room, only now could he see the state he was in. The boy's face was absurdly dirty with beige dust, and the blood from the cut on his eyebrow had already coagulated into a streak that ran all the way down his cheek. There were deep dark circles under his eyes and his eyelids were swollen. However, his eyes... The boy's eyes were filled with a determination that was at odds with his whole condition. There was fear, but there was also the courage he needed to overcome it. It was the same look as his father's, Max Tennyson.

“Father...” said Ben.

The man let go of his son's shoulders and put his hands on the wood of the bed, trying to lift him up.

“Carl, what are you doing?” asked Sandra.

“Come on, Ben, whatever you're trying to get down there, just go, because I can't hold on much longer!”

The teenager quickly crouched down and stuck his arm under the cabinet and pulled out a green rectangular board with gray details on the ends. He had won it from Tetrax when he was ten years old, and it had been stored under there for many years. His grandfather would not allow him to wear it on Earth because it drew too much attention.

“W-what is this?” his father asked, and then let go of the bed.

“A hoverboard.”

An expression of astonishment came over his mother's face, and then she began to say:

“If you're thinking that-”

“Come on, Benjamin,” interrupted his father, “go after your cousin and your friend. They need you!”

“Carl!”

Ben walked out the bedroom door with the hoverboard under his arm. He went towards the exit of the room, jumped over the door that was lying on the floor and put the hoverboard on the grass in the garden.

I hope it still works...

The youth climbed on top of the board, which slowly rose from the ground and remained so.

“Yes!”

Ben leaned forward, propelling the float across the street, dodging the crooked parked cars and the fallen streetlamps, towards the white, electric smoke on the horizon.

Chapter Text

Kevin felt horrible.

But this was a good sign: only people who are alive are capable of feeling horrible.

Slowly his consciousness returned to his body. It felt as if his head weighed a few hundred pounds. He heard a voice calling his name from afar...

Wait, maybe not from so far away...

Now it was quite close...

“Kevin!” shouted Gwen “Come on, Kevin, wake up!”

The teenager opened his eyes. Slowly he turned his head to the side and tried to look at the face of the girl to his right. Why is she upside down?

“You're finally awake!”

“I...”

“Don't move, I don't know if you've hurt anything serious,” the girl began to crawl on all fours out of his field of vision.

It wasn't Gwen who was upside down, it was him. In fact, it was the whole car. The boy looked at the shattered windshield in front of him and could only see dirt, leaves, and tree roots.

“Gwen, where are you going?” he asked.

“I'm here, don't worry, I'm just looking for a way to get you out of there.” Gwen crouched down and put her head back into the car. “By the way, what's your name?”

“What?”

“Your full name, what is it?”

“Kevin Ethan Levin.”

“Age.”

“Sixteen years old.”

“What do you remember?”

“We were behind the Albedo, when the electromagnetic pulse turned off my car and the impact of the explosion hit us.”

“Okay, the memory is normal.”

“Of course it is,” Kevin began shifting in his seat, looking for his seat belt buckle, “Now get me out of here.”

“Wait a minute, is there any part of your body that feels strange?”

“Yes, my patience. I feel it slipping away more and more. Now help me get out of here, please?”

“Hunf, you look great...” Gwen dragged herself out of the car.

“Of course I am,” he said, almost shouting, “I protected us with Arburian rubber, it would take a lot more than that to-”

Suddenly two giant pink hand projections rested their fingers on the sides of the passenger door.

“Gwen! W-what do you think you're going to do with my ca-”

The two hands moved one to each side, opening the interior of the car like a book. The sound of twisting metal and iron filled the forest air. Kevin, still restrained in the driver's seat by his seat belt, with his legs hanging in the air and an expression of disbelief said:

“B-but why?”

Gwen pointed her index finger toward Kevin's seat belt and fired a beam of energy. The belt snapped and the young man fell awkwardly on all fours against the ground.

“Because we don't have time and you're almost out of patience,” said the girl.

The teenager stood up and shook the earth and leaves from his clothes. He looked at the two halves of his vehicle lying beside him. Kevin then faced Gwen and pointing his index finger at her, said:

“You owe me a car!”

“Go demand it from Albedo,” Gwen turned her back on the young man and walked through the trees.

“Albedo didn't open my car in the middle!” Kevin followed right behind.

The two of them walked through the forest on a sloping terrain leaning on the trees, up towards the road. They found several thick broken branches along the way, probable victims of a green car that had been launched flying that way. Before long they reached the asphalt road.

“What the hell?” said Kevin.

Gwen for her part remained silent, focusing her energy on her gasping breath from the trek through the forest. However, her mind was filled with rage at the scene she was witnessing.

Several cars and trucks lay overturned on the road or dumped on trees in the surrounding area. Some clothes had escaped from the trunk of a popular car that was now wedged under a van. There were oil and blood stains all over the road. Screams and calls for help were heard everywhere. Those who managed to get out from inside their vehicles were desperately trying to help each other.

Gwen looked down and saw a small stuffed monkey near her feet. She crouched down, picked up the toy, and saw blood stains on the little monkey's clothing. The girl stood up suddenly and, with steady steps, walked towards a sedan that was turned sideways when she felt someone holding her arm.

The girl turned and faced Kevin with a look that said “let me go!”

“There is no way the police and fire department could have missed the explosion....” Kevin took the plush from the girl's hands and stared at the object with a downcast face.

Kevin crouched down and put the little monkey on the ground. Gwen looked at the boy with anger and frustration. He spoke again:

“If we don't stop Albedo, even those who are calling for help now won't survive.”

Gwen turned her face away and bit her lower lip. He was right and she knew it. Without raising her head, she said:

“Where should we go then?”

He pointed with his thumb over her right shoulder. The girl turned her face and stared into the white smoke with green lightning that rose up through the trees.

◇───────◇───────◇

Inside the forest, a circular clearing of almost a mile in length was forcibly opened. From the edges of the circumference to the epicenter was a gradient of destruction: on the outside, there were centrifugally inclined trees with their roots sticking out of the ground; in the center, there was not the slightest trace of plant life.

The area was covered by a dense, white smoke that rose into the sky and allowed, little by little, the deformed shapes of the objects and the creature present in the clearing to be identified.

Seven structures of violet-green crystals like fluorite rocks sprang up from beneath the earth and were positioned in a circular pattern halfway around the radius of the circumference. The nearly thirty foot long structures curved toward the epicenter like fingers on a hand. From the tips of the crystals, a rainbow energy surged and traveled across their surfaces to their bases buried in the dark earthen soil.

In the center of the clearing, a shabby structure of alien metal and violet-green crystals held a cylindrical receptacle on a platform composed of spacecraft parts and plumbers' equipment. Inside the receptacle, a greenish-crystal gooey liquid moved frantically as if dancing and, at the same time, struggling to escape from there. The entire structure was approaching ten feet in height.

Next to the device was a bipedal creature with its hands suspended in the air in front of the trunk, as if embracing an invisible being. The alien was concentrating, directing pulsing beams of rainbow energy up its legs to the center of its sternum, where a disk with the emblem of intergalactic peace was located. The symbol on its chest reacted to the incoming energy, releasing green lightning bolts into the atmosphere.

“That's it,” the creature said with satisfaction, “It's working!”

At the edge of the clearing, Gwen and Kevin approached cautiously, hiding behind a huge tree that lay parallel to the ground.

“There's the bastard!” said Kevin “What's he turned into this time?”

“I don't know. We have to get closer.”

Kevin found a heavy rock stuck in the ground and absorbed its matter before continuing to advance. Gwen, in turn, coated her hands and forearms with mana, and with a simple movement of her fingers, platforms appeared on the way, allowing the youngsters to jump over branches and trunks that had been destroyed in the area.

At first, Albedo resembled a crystalsapien by the rocky, purple aspect that made up most of its anatomy. But there were differences, starting with the absence of the pink horn on top of its head. Around its torso, structures resembling ribs made of violet-green crystal protruded from its back and advanced along its sides until they met at the symbol of the Ultimatrix. From his back, four crystal protrusions, two large and two smaller, projected outward from his body symmetrically.

The forearms and hands of a crystalsapien are usually thin and pink, but not those of this alien: he had something like large, thick gloves of violet-green crystal. Down his stony, purple thighs grew small, crystal-like pustules up to the level of his knees. From there, a column of crystal grew and widened to the ground, so that the division between legs and feet could not be distinguished, the ankles being absent.

Gwen and Kevin were already approaching the seven-column cage, when the girl suddenly stopped.

“What's wrong, Gwen?” Kevin said softly, interrupting his advance and turning to the girl.

Gwen raised her hand in front of her face, allowing Kevin to see what had caught his attention. The pink mana that coated her hands began to slip out of his control and floated toward the nearest crystal column.

“That's how he's converting the energy from the explosion,” Gwen said, “Crystals have the same energy absorption ability as the Chromatic.”

“No doubt then that we are dealing with a crystalsapien?”

“Everything leads to believe so...”

The pink mana continued its path through the air and touched the crystal's surface. It converted into a seven-color burst of energy and traveled towards the base of the crystalline column. At the same instant a bright red spotlight turned toward the two young men through the white mist that covered the place.

“It saw us!” said Kevin.

Gwen looked away from Albedo to the silhouette of the nearest crystal column, then said:

“If we destroy the crystals, maybe we can stop him!”

“What are we waiting for then?”

Kevin changed the shape of his hand into a rocky ball of thorns and advanced towards the nearest column.

“Galeus zipuctus!” summoned Gwen, causing a strong gust of wind to blow away the smoke that covered them, and making its way to the nearest crystal.

The gust of wind spread through the area until finally they could see the alien's face: a violet-green crystal mask, with three projections on its chin and a rectangular opening at eye level that allowed a red glow to travel back and forth in the darkness of the opening.

Albedo raised his left arm and pointed his open hand toward the youth. Energy concentrated in his palm.

“Kevin, he's going to throw something!”

The young man prepared to punch the crystal, but with the new information of the shot, he turned his body and positioned his back against the crystal's surface to protect himself.

Gwen invoked a shield to defend herself against the shot, but then realized that the energy concentrated in the alien's palm was no longer there.

He's given up shooting! ― thought Gwen.

The girl turned towards Kevin, hiding behind the crystal column that sprang up from the ground, and it was then that she understood.

Damnit!

Gwen ran towards Kevin. The young Osmosian kept glancing at the alien from behind the column and didn't even notice her approach until she jumped on him.

He was off balance, with Gwen clinging to his torso, and fell to the side at the same instant that a crystal spear emerged from the surface of the column at the exact spot where, a millisecond before, his back had been resting.

The two fell to the dark dusty ground and quickly got to their feet, fearing some more sprouting.

“What the hell was that?” said Kevin.

“It was obvious that this could happen!” said Gwen. “How do you think these columns came about?”

Kevin didn't answer. He didn't need to.

“But I think I understand something about him,” said Gwen.

“Spit it out.”

“He can't get out of where he is now, and I think this cage,” Gwen pointed with her chin, “is the farthest he can produce crystals.”

“Why do you think so?”

“Because he hasn't moved since the time we arrived.”

“Albedo is arrogant, he probably doesn't think we're worth standing up to, have you thought about that?”

“Yes,” said Gwen. “But look at the crystals again, all the energy is going from the ends to the base. Now look at his feet.”

Kevin stared at Albedo's legs, which looked more like two thick stalagmites. Then he said:

“They're going from the bottom up.”

“Exactly. Also, there was only one moment when the energy changed direction.”

“Let me guess,” Kevin gave a slight sarcastic smile, “when he wanted to scratch my back.”

“Exactly right.”

Suddenly, the crystal-green liquid inside the receptacle began to emit a pulsating glow. Albedo looked away from the youth and turned to his fission machine. The tadenite, now liquid, had accumulated enough energy for another attempt.

“We have to stop him!” said Kevin running towards the cage.

Gwen even raised her hand in a vain attempt to stop her friend, but he was right, regardless of the plan, something had to be done. The girl moved her arms gathering energy in her hands, interlaced her fingers in a strange way, with her arms stretched out in front of her body and pointing them at the alien, she said:

“Vürkthera!”

A powerful beam of energy shot out of his hands, passed next to Kevin, and hit the side of Albedo's body. The alien bowed slightly from the impact, but soon returned to his natural position, preparing the machine in front of him for the next explosion.

Kevin advanced beyond the crystal columns, and the very instant he stepped into the inner circle, several crystal pillars began to emerge from the ground, forcing him to dodge to avoid being impaled alive.

Gwen's spell in turn acted like an after-lunch dessert, for as soon as it touched the surface of the alien's body, it was converted into rainbow luminosity and absorbed.

“Gwen, what are you doing!?” Kevin jumped to the left to dodge two crystalline stalagmites that sprang up from the ground. “Just put on a nice bow and give your energy away at once!”

“Shut up, Kevin!” Unlike him, she had a plan. Gwen uncrossed her fingers, but still held the energy beam towards Albedo. Her eyes took on a strong violet glow, and then she said “Adfishio Potentia!”

The energy beam that reached Albedo's body split like the solid tentacles of an octopus and wrapped around his torso, arms and legs. He was immobilized!

Albedo stared at the girl with an overbearing look on his face. Then he said:

“What do you think you are doing?”

“Taking you off this pedestal of arrogance of yours!” Gwen pulled the tentacles and pulled the alien's body towards her, throwing him off balance and making him take his feet off the ground.

The young man ran as fast as his body would allow. His right hand was already turning into a huge block of stone.

“No!” shouted Albedo, as he fell.

Kevin jumped toward the receptacle and pulled his right arm back, preparing for the final blow against the machine.

Albedo forced his limbs against the tentacles and spun his body in mid-air, trying to break his fall with his feet against the ground. The tentacle holding his left arm shattered, and the alien pointed his palm toward the young Osmosian.

A beam of rainbow energy cut through the air and struck the right side of Kevin's body, deflecting the young man's trajectory and preventing him from hitting his target.

Albedo's feet finally touched the ground, allowing him to brake and giving him the strength he needed to finish shattering the tentacles holding him down. The alien lifted his body and faced Gwen. The red glow of its eye burned with fury.

The young anodite felt her hands trembling, her heart pounding in her ears, but her attention did not waver for a second from the villain.

Kevin fell violently against the ground and spun a few times before stopping with his left hand resting on the opposite side of his torso. The rocky skin was deeply cracked.

Albedo raised his arm toward Gwen. A glow was concentrated in his open palm.

Gwen opened her arms in front of her body and invoked a thick rectangular shield, preparing for the energy beam.

“Gwen, behind you!” shouted Kevin.

The girl tried to turn her head, but it was too late. A thin crystal spear emerged from beneath the ground and pierced Gwen's body.

Chapter Text

The object pierced his body so suddenly that there was no time even to scream or groan in pain, only to let out a sigh. The tip of the violet-green crystal appeared in her face, stained with blood. Her blood. She saw the reddish liquid running down the crystalline surface. She continued her vision down to the point where the spear emerged from the upper right part of her abdomen. A wine-colored stain appeared on her red sweater.

“Gwen!” shouted Kevin in disbelief.

She looked up to see Albedo in front of her, who was beginning to lower the arm pointed in her direction. To her left, Kevin was trying to get up from the ground as fast as he could.

She turned again to Albedo and saw him turn his back and walk toward the machine at the epicenter of the clearing. After three steps away from him, Gwen felt the base of the spear that emerged from the ground shatter, causing her to lose her balance and fall to her knees against the ground. The young woman rested her right hand on the point where the crystal came out of her abdomen and watched the crystalline structure lose its luster and turn to sand in her hand.

Oh no! This way the wound goes.... Thought Gwen.

The bloodstain began to grow at an even greater rate. The girl put both hands over the wound on her abdomen but began to feel a warm sensation descend over her back. She could not compress both the entrance and exit of the wound.

Her senses were beginning to weaken and Kevin's voice again shouting her name became more and more distant, although he was running towards her.

“Kevin!” Gwen kept her gaze focused on her wound, the rosy luminosity of her eyes swinging with difficulty “Don't you dare come here, I'm fine!”

“Are you crazy?" Kevin stood halfway between the machine and Gwen.

“Don't come!” Gwen's breathing was getting faster and faster. She raised her head and faced the young man. “I'm fine...”

Memories of when he had held Gwen by the arm, preventing her from going toward the victims of the first explosion, filled her mind. The moment he removed the plush from her hands, as well as the words he said more to himself, to justify his attitude, than to convince Gwen.

Kevin stopped running and stared at the girl for a few seconds. The way she was bent over, her hands dirty with blood, her face already beginning to look pale. They both knew that this was a serious injury, however, they were also aware of the destruction Albedo could cause if he achieved his goal.

The young man lowered his vision and shook a quick negative with his head, then turned his body and started running towards Albedo without saying anything.

I'm going to kill this bastard! Thought Kevin.

Albedo was only a few feet from the machine, and although the villain didn't stop for a single second from walking, Kevin saw that the glow that represented Albedo's single eye was staring at him.

The crystalsapien raised his arm slightly, still pointing toward the ground, and made a trail of crystalline spines emerge from beneath the ground. The air had been filled with the sound of stones scraping against glass with each thorn that sprouted toward Kevin.

The teenager jumped to the side to dodge the attack; but, as suddenly as he touched the ground, he already had to jump back again as new spears sprouted from the ground. Kevin bent his knees and jumped towards a crystal in front of him, trying to touch its surface, but the instant his finger touched it, the whole structure crumbled, causing him to fall against the ground in an awkward manner.

New crystal spears started coming towards him, and Kevin's right leg was narrowly missed. The young man spun around on the ground and stood up quickly, dodging three more crystals that came at him from the right.

Kevin turned his arm to the side to try once again to touch the surface of one crystal, but as he imagined, the indestructible structure turned to sand before he could even touch it. He looked at Albedo, who was already a few steps away from the device; and although the creature had no mouth, its torso swayed to the rhythm of a loud, debauched laugh.

Suddenly Kevin heard a high-pitched, agonizing scream behind him. It was Gwen's voice. Desperate, the young man turned toward the girl and saw her still kneeling against the ground. Her left hand was palmed slightly away from her abdomen with a violet circle and runes drawn in the air. Her right hand, in turn, was resting over her wound, with blue flames escaping through her fingers and white smoke rising from the wound to the right side of Gwen's face.

She is cauterizing the wound... thought Kevin.

Albedo's laughter grew louder, as if he thought Gwen's cries of pain were the funniest thing that had happened to him that afternoon. And to make matters worse, Albedo reached for his machine. The device was oscillating a strong white glow, with green lightning bolts coming out of the top of the structure.

“What the hell am I doing?” growled Kevin, staring at Albedo, who returned his gaze.

The young Osmosian set off again toward the villain. He was running like never before, although the distance between them was still quite large. Albedo again raised his hand against the ground and made the thorns sprout toward Kevin. With only a few meters to go before the trail of crystals reached the younger man, he stopped running. He retracted the muscles of his body as if he were going to jump to the right but interrupted the jump.

The green-violet crystal pierced Kevin's left calf, and he grimaced in pain. Crouching down, he positioned one hand on the ground so that he wouldn't become unbalanced and tear his muscles even more. He raised his head, threw a victorious smile in Albedo's direction, and said:

“I got it.”

Albedo pulled his arm towards himself, to interrupt the creation of the crystal, but it was too late, Kevin had gained access to the most resistant material among twenty-three galaxies.

The skin around Kevin's wound began to take on a crystalline appearance. In a matter of moments, his entire left leg was a violet-green color, with rainbow streaks dancing on its surface. The young man felt an enormous charge of energy fill his body as the crystal coated more and more of his body. He felt his mind beginning to cloud, making it difficult to think clearly. He knew that every time he absorbed something concerning the Omnitrix, his rationality was always the one that paid the price. He focused his attention on the image of the crystalsapien in front of him and repeated it to himself like a mantra, trying to give his mind one last command before losing his mind:

Destroy the machine and then finish this bastard off! Destroy the machine and then finish this bastard! Destroy the machine and then finish this bastard off!!!

As soon as the last strand of hair was filled with neotadenite, Kevin pulled out his left leg, breaking the crystal spear that pierced it, and advanced toward Albedo. He felt invincible! He advanced against the trail of thorns as if walking through dry branches, shattering everything in his path.

Albedo, realizing that his plan was now at risk, turned to face his machine and concentrated his energy in the center of his chest, then opened his arms pointing to the ground on each side of his body, causing a great glow to descend from his chest to his legs and sink into the ground. At the same instant, three circular walls radiated out from under the ground and positioned themselves in sequence behind his back, separating the space between him and Kevin.

Kevin lost his balance when the ground shook with the appearance of the walls, but he didn't fall. And those who think that the huge walls made him give up are mistaken, for now he felt even angrier. How dare they get in the way of his goal to destroy the machine and finish off that bastard!

The first punch against the first wall was enough to crack the surface from the bottom to the top. The second opened a hole big enough to look through from the other side, but not big enough to get through. The third made the crystal wall shatter into a V-shape making room for him to advance. There were two left.

At the edge of the crystal cage, Gwen was still on her knees, but now with her forehead resting on the floor. She was biting her lower lip so hard that a trickle of blood was dripping from it. Her right hand was resting on the wound on her back, the last sparks of blue fire escaping through her fingers.

It was certainly not the most appropriate way to deal with an injury like this, but he had no choice. He couldn't maintain enough magical concentration for a healing spell, and it was either cauterize the wound or die of hemorrhaging. For a brief moment, when she was almost losing consciousness, she felt a strange sensation wanting to invade her being, but the pain of the first contact of the Hyacinthum Sanar's flames was enough to quell that feeling.

Gwen put her hands on the ground and lifted her head, moving slowly, each stab of pain halting her continued movement. She looked at the walls in front of her and for a moment wondered where they came from. Then, as she saw the first wall fall, her attention turned to the man in the violet-green crystal who was advancing madly towards the second obstacle.

The girl stood up from the ground, her right hand still resting on her abdomen.

“Kevin...”

Her voice was weak and certainly not capable of overcoming the deafening sounds emitted by the punches on the second wall.

Gwen looked up at one of the seven huge crystal columns that delimited the circular boundary around Albedo's machine. She noticed that the violet-green glow with luminous beams was beginning to fade, with the crystal becoming more and more opaque from the ends towards the bases. It wasn't long before the teenager understood what was happening: Albedo was gathering the energy needed for the next stage of fission.

The girl turned her attention to Kevin who had just opened a hole in the second wall (apparently the closer to the goal, the denser the wall). There wasn't going to be time!

Gwen coated her hands with mana and chanted in a loud voice:

“Adfishio Potentia!”

The energy in his hands fragmented into tentacular beams and advanced toward Kevin. It latched onto the young man's arms and legs, immobilizing him. Gwen felt a stabbing pain tug at her right side as she pulled the mana tentacles, pulling Kevin toward her. The young man flew across the space between the huge crystal columns and was thrown behind Gwen, who, at the same instant, undid the spell.

The moment Kevin went beyond the limits of the cage, the neotadenite that clad him began to shatter and crumble, so that by the time he stopped rolling on the ground of dirt, stone and roots, his body was back to normal.

“What happened?” asked Kevin, rising from the ground. “Did we succeed in stopping him?”

But Gwen didn't answer; instead she summoned:

“Presidium!”

A path of violet light started in front of Gwen and began to draw a huge circle around the crystal columns on the floor. As soon as the path completed its shape drawing, several beams of light emerged from it towards the sky. The beams began to bend toward the center of the circle, drawing a huge semi-spherical cage. The "bars" of the cage began to curve progressively to the left, stretching and resting on each other to the point where there was no longer any free space between each of the beams, ending the protection in a huge mana dome.

“Gwen?” asked Kevin.

Keeping her face toward the dome, Gwen answered:

“Kevin, get out of here!” Another stab, this time in her back, making her look pained, but without losing her posture. “We couldn't stop Albedo.”

“And what do you think-”

Kevin interrupted himself as he realized what was happening, then said:

“Gwen, this is crazy!”

Gwen moved her hands in front of her body as if wrapping mana around her arms and then positioned both open palms in front of her body:

“H-hespera Sophian!”

From her palms, waves of mana expanded in a circular fashion and formed a second dome of energy, this time pink, above the first dome.

Gwen's eyes were glowing brightly, and from time to time the glow fluctuated, but soon they began to radiate a pinkish hue in proportion to the efforts the girl was making to ignore her pain and keep the spells under control.

Suddenly, the muffled sound of the explosion inside the domes was heard. The semi-spherical surfaces grew like homemade bread inside an oven, swelling larger and larger.

The floor shook violently. Gwen tried to keep her balance. Her musculature remained stiff and her clenched teeth ached with such force.

The top of the first dome shattered, releasing the energy of the explosion into the second defense and causing it to swell even more.

Gwen felt her mana draining away. She didn't know how much more she would take, but she knew that if she failed, thousands would die in moments.

“Patrium Dacuritatum!”

A small dot at the top of the dome appeared and opened up as a yellowish circular tissue. Then it began to grow, coating the entire semi-spheroidal structure until it reached the ground. The instant it touched the base of the dome, the fabric hardened into a thick shiny shield with rune details.

I can't take it anymore...

The second dome was beginning to crack at the top like armored glass, drawing cracks, but not losing its shape.

Kevin kept his arms in front of his face to protect himself from the brightness radiating from within the explosion. The temperature in the place was increasing more and more, as a result of the thermal energy that was forcibly contained within the shields.

The young man could not do much, but only observe the herculean effort his friend was making at the moment. Then he noticed that the wound on Gwen's back was starting to bleed again. It was obvious that this was going to happen!

“G-Gwen!” shouted Kevin, but his voice was inaudible amidst all the noise in the room.

Kevin noticed that Gwen began to levitate off the ground. At first a few inches, progressing to a few feet until she was above the dome.

“Thrasius!”

Kevin saw a crystalline surface sprout from the ground and grow up the sides of the dome, coating the third shield with yet another protection. However, what was catching Kevin's attention the most was Gwen. A violet light was growing from within the wounds on her abdomen.

The crystalline shield was about to reach the highest point of the dome, when the tops of the second and third shield broke off, radiating a white light into the sky. A very strong wind began to punish the region, causing the clouds to drift away from the column of energy.

Kevin leaned one hand on a rock that lay on the ground and absorbed its matter, trying to be heavy enough not to be blown away by the wind. Still with one hand in front of his face to protect himself, the young man raised his head toward Gwen.

The girl was still flying in the same place with her arms positioned in front of her body. The winds made her hair swing back violently, and the light coming out of her eyes and from her wounds was stronger and stronger. Gradually his fingertips also began to turn violet, growing spots that expanded to his forearms.

Even as the energy from the explosion leaked through the opening at the top of the dome into the sky, the second shield shattered inside the defense, Gwen moved her fingers, as if drawing runes in the air, and then said:

“Twista combetitus!”

Kevin turned and saw the rock beside him begin to rise from under the ground. The huge rock levitated into the air, accompanied by several other rocks of different sizes that appeared in the area. The rocks were gathering together until they formed a huge stone serpent with a blue aura. The creature slithered around the base of the dome and curled up, climbing around the defense and leaving only the top open as an escape valve.

Another burst was heard as the third defense broke through, causing the white glow to escape through the stone serpent's loops. The magical creature held firm, preventing the sides of the dome from expanding to the sides.

It was a few seconds that seemed to last forever, until finally the column of energy began to thin out to the point where it became a small line toward the sky. The stone serpent began to lose its blue aura, with the stones dropping away from each other and falling towards the base of the dome. The crystalline surface of the fourth shield turned into small glass fragments and dissipated into thin air, letting a dense white smoke billow out from the surroundings.

Kevin's eyes watered and his lungs became irritated by the hot smoke, causing him to cough.

“Where is Gwen?”

The silhouette of the girl began to descend from the sky through the dense mist, turning in mid-air and facing Kevin. The smoke slowly cleared, allowing him to see his friend:

Several strands of Gwen's hair were violet. Her eyes were differing; her right eye had a pink iris, while her left eye's sclera was pink, with a whitish iris. A violet stain spread over the left side of his face and neck. His hands and forearms were completely violet, with the spots going up to his elbows. Although there was a lot of light emanating from her body, the girl's eyes lacked brilliance.

“Gwen?” Kevin stepped back.

Chapter Text

Gwen couldn't wait to go home. The class seemed an eternity to end. She stared at the clock above the blackboard and felt as if the hand stubbornly refused to move.

Let's go… ― thought. Her right leg dangled under the chair.

She looked at her classmates around her. A herd of eleven year old pre-teens who, at that time of the day, were not paying attention to a single word the math teacher said.

Then came the long-awaited bell.

In a matter of moments, Gwen slung her notebook, case, and book into her backpack, slung it over her shoulder, and ran toward the door. The teacher gave one last instruction to the students, but she didn't listen. She ran down the hallway, dodging the sea of students, toward the double door to the exit.

Backpack on her back, she ran down the sidewalk. In her mind she tried to remember the steps that would be necessary for the execution of the spell. She practiced the steps, studied the correct pronunciation of the words, and meditated for hours to reach the required level of mana. Now it was time to put everything into practice.

She opened the door to her house and shouted for anyone who would listen:

“I'm home!” She climbed the stairs every two steps.

“But already!?” replied her mother from the kitchen. “Class isn't even over ten minutes ago?”

Gwen didn't answer, went into her room, threw her backpack to one side and went towards her desk drawer. Hidden under three notebooks was the Chamcaster's book of spells.

It was thanks to it that the young eleven-year-old girl had found her purpose. Her goofy cousin had a watch that allowed her to transform into aliens. She had the magic. Her last vacation was a cluster of adventures she would never forget. She faced villains, saved people, was called a heroine. And like every heroine, she needed to be prepared for the next challenge that came her way.

Gwen couldn't stop studying this book. Whenever there was a chance she was reading or reciting an incantation. Once she pronounced a spell wrong: she mistook "D" for "T" and ended up turning her bedside table into a carnivorous plant. His grandfather had to come from far away to put an end to the creature. Since then he has left guidelines:

“Gwen, I know you are a very curious and intelligent girl, but you can't be careless. Always try to prepare yourself well before trying any magic, and if you need to, let me know and I will take you somewhere open and safe so that you can train.”

“Yes, Grandpa…” She kept her head down, staring at her feet. “And I'm sorry that I made you travel all the way here for this…”

“Don't worry, I was already planning to come visit you anyway,” Grandpa Max smiled. He reached into his back pocket, pulled out a small object, and placed it in his granddaughter's hand. “Here, whenever you go training, keep this close to you.”

Gwen looked at the object with doubt.

“A hair clip?”

“Yes.”

“But I already have one, look.” She brought her hand to her clipped hair so it wouldn't fall into her eyes.

“But it's not just a clip.” Max took his hand to his granddaughter's hair, removed the old clip, and put the new one in. “It also acts like a Geiger counter for radiation, only for mana.”

“Are you going to watch me like I'm grounded?” Gwen took the clip out of her hair. “Why? I said I was sorry about the plant!”

“Calm down, Gwen.” He took the clip from her hand and put it back in her hair. “Like I said, it's just a gauge, it will only warn me if it goes above safe levels for you and the people around you .”

Gwen felt a slight discomfort in her stomach. As much as she loved magic, she knew it was something with great potential for harm.

“That way,” Max continued, “I can come to your rescue before you even think to call me.” He smiled warmly, then opened his arms and said, “Come here, give me a hug.”

Gwen wrapped her arms around his huge body in a tight hug.

Since then she has never stopped wearing her grandfather's gift. However, she had a certain fear that perhaps the incantation she was going to try today might trigger the clip.

Her mother's voice propagated from downstairs through the stairs:

“Gwen, I'm going to have to leave to go to the market, do you need anything!?”

“No, I don't, Mom!”

“Anything at all, just call me!”

“Okay!”

It was already in the girl's plans the absence of her mother. Her father was working and would only arrive in the evening. Her mother had informed her the day before that she would be shopping that afternoon. It was the perfect opportunity!

A few weeks ago, while studying the Charmcaster book, Gwen saw a chapter that instructed ways to reach out and release internal mana flow limiters to be able to amplify her powers. As said before, for a heroine it is always good to be prepared for future challenges and becoming more powerful was an important step in this preparation.

As soon as she heard the sound of the front door closing, Gwen lifted the rug in her room, revealing a magic circle drawn in chalk on her carpet. She opened her closet and took out candles that were positioned at strategic points in the circle. He entered the drawing and lit the candles with a match, then sat down with his legs crossed, with the open book resting on them.

He took a deep breath and let it out. He did this a few times until he could breathe without anxiety. He placed his palms one on top of the other, then closed his fingers into two "C's". He concentrated even more.

Slowly he began to visualize his own body inside his mind. The more he concentrated, the more he could see small lines drawing across it, indicating the path his mana was traveling inside of him. Almost in a whisper he began to speak:

“ Juuem si, corpore ksa… ”

The lines began to get more and more defined, drawing paths, spirals and deviations.

“ Yuurem baa, corpore tzu… ”

Gwen realized that there were places on her body where the flow of mana was almost negligible, she focused on them.

“ Reserare !”

A high-pitched, bell-like sound was heard echoing through the room, and then, about the point she was focusing on, several new paths appeared and connected to each other. Gwen felt her power grow at the same instant. Smiled slightly.

She focused again. Another point where she felt the flow was more limited. How many more new paths could she open? Well, one more at least. He focused his attention.

“ Reserare !”

Again the sound of the bell. New routes filled his body. His power grew incredibly. Again she smiled.

But it was already good, wasn't it?

Still immersed in meditation, Gwen took one last look at her flow before she began to finish the incantation. The mana coursed through her body with incredible speed. Next to her left shoulder was another detour. Her mana advanced quickly and then there it turned in a sharp curve towards her heart, and then, lo and behold, the sound of the bell was heard for the third time.

Gwen again felt the wave of power fill her body, this time causing her to float slightly for a few seconds. She didn't smile.

I have to stop ! ― thought.

Next to her right knee was another detour. At least there was, for with the ringing of the fourth bell, new paths appeared there.

In total, seven bells sounded.

◇───────◇───────◇

Max found himself leaving Plumber Headquarters, walking toward the Rust Bucket when a sharp sound echoed from his badge. He didn't have to pick it up to see what it was; there was only one thing that would make his badge sound like that. He ran to the trailer, sat in the driver's seat, put his badge over the dashboard, and started the car.

Barely had the garage gates opened and the Rust Bucket was already out at high speed. The badge projected onto itself a circular map of the city with a flashing bright dot. At the edge of the map, a pointer rose rapidly, pointing to what would be increasing levels of mana.

Max pressed a button on the panel and started the communication:

“Headquarters, this is Magistrate Tennyson speaking, I need reinforcements urgently at the coordinates I am sending you now. Only containment and control forces, no weapons, I repeat, no weapons.”

The Rust Bucket traveled through the city with a speed and dexterity disproportionate to its external appearance. It went through red lights, skidded around sharp turns and over residential fences until it finally reached its destination.

People came out of their homes and began to gather in the street to observe the event. Questioning voices were added to the sounds of astonishment.

Grandpa Max got out of the trailer and stared at the second floor of his son's house, more precisely where Gwen's room was.

“Oh, no…” said Max.

The walls of the room were just debris floating in mid-air, along with objects and furniture. A loud, low-pitched noise propagated through the area in a slow, obedient rhythm. Floating in the middle of her own room, Gwen found herself with her torso hoisted, her arms and legs fallen inert, and her head bowed back. A strong rosy glow emanated from her eyes and mouth. His skin acquired small violet spots that clustered into larger and larger macules.

A plumber's van stopped abruptly next to the Rust Bucket; quickly, five soldiers got out and approached Max.

“Magistrate,” said one of the soldiers “what are the orders!?”

“We need to cordon off the area immediately. Start moving people away from here. We will also need the Memory Control team to erase the events that these people are witnessing.”

Two more convoys arrived and were soon disembarking their members.

Max continued:

“I need someone to find out where my son and daughter-in-law are, if they are not around here, I need someone to distract them and not allow them to come home.”

“And what about the girl, Magistrate, what are we going to do?”

“I'll take care of the girl, now let's go!”

The soldiers nodded their heads in affirmation and went to their duties. Max, in turn, headed for the front door of the house.

◇───────◇───────◇

Gwen lost control of herself. She lost control of her magic, her body, and her thoughts. Only an instinct for survival screamed within her being. I want to live ! But living caused her fear. Being alive meant having to deal with this range of feelings and stimuli amplified to the extreme. I want to live !

She felt her chest heaving frantically, her heart pounding in her ears. Her thoughts were not obeying her and were racing down unimaginable paths. She felt trapped, certain that she would not survive this. I want to live !

She began to feel beyond herself. She began to see everything, everywhere, at the same time. She saw lines of mana in everything around her, some thicker than others. Some more tortuous than others. Some more full of life than others. She felt an immense need to reach them, as if her survival depended on it, but her body would not move. She clamored for them, she needed them. I want to live !

Slowly the lines began to come toward her, and her being welcomed them with open arms. As the mana coursed through her body, the lines around her began to taper and disappear. I needed more! I want to live !

And then a dense, shapeless dot entered his field of attention. It was small, but its interior was rich with magic. I need it! Her body leaned forward, her hands moving toward it. Suddenly, the dot expanded like a small sun, bringing with it an infinite number of lines. The streaks surrounded her and were touching the surface of her skin, feeding her hunger for energy. She would live...

Her breathing calmed down.

Her mind was quieting down.

Silence...

“Gwen?”

A small sliver of light appeared between her eyelids.

Darkness again.

“Gwen?”

She opened her eyes again. A blurred image came into focus: the face of her grandfather.

“Come on, Gwen..” said Max “Wake up!”

“Grandpa?”

The girl was lying on the floor of her room, her head resting on her grandfather's lap. Her hands held his left hand resting on her abdomen.

“How are you feeling?” asked Max.

“My head feels weird…” She tried to lift his neck.

“No, no!” Max leaned his granddaughter's head on his leg. “Don't get up now, try to rest.”

“What happened?”

“That doesn't matter now, the important thing is that you're all right and no one was hurt.”

Gwen lowered her eyes to her grandfather's left hand, on his ring finger, a wedding ring with a faint pink glittering jewel. She looked up and saw the orange sky of a late afternoon.

But where is the ceiling? ― she thought ― And the walls?

He looked at his grandfather with a big doubtful expression.

“I'll explain later, now rest.”

◇───────◇───────◇

After the situation had been brought under control by the Plumbers and the doctors had assured Gwen that everything was fine, Max decided to explain to his granddaughter what had happened. After all, no matter how much she apologized, the girl made it clear that she would not rest easy until she knew what had happened to her and if she was in danger of it happening again.

Max sat down in the armchair of the hospital room, propped his elbows on his knees, and fiddling with his wedding ring, began to speak:

“I guess neither I nor your father has told you anything about your grandmother, am I right?”

“Grandma?” asked Gwen, “No, it always seemed like a subject that shouldn't be talked about in the family. After a while I stopped asking.”

“That's your father's thing, there's no reason to be ashamed about who your grandmother is?”

“What do you mean, Grandpa?”

Max leaned back in his chair and stared at the ceiling of the room. His gaze visited his memories.

“Her name is Verdona… ”

“Is Grandma alive?”

“Yes, she is.”

“And where is she? Do you know where her house is?”

“Yes, I do,” Max smiled. “In Anodyne .”

“Grandma's an alien!” Gwen got out from under the covers and got down on her knees on the bed. “Why didn't you tell me about this before!”

“Because he's afraid I'll become the grandchildren's favorite.”

“Verdona…” Max got up from his armchair in a jolt.

A woman with white hair came through the bedroom door. On her lips was a smile of tenderness and joy.

“That's Grandma?” Gwen asked.

Max walked around the bed, approached the woman and said in a calm but concerned voice:

“What are you doing here?”

“It's good to see you too, Maxwell,” she caressed his cheek with her hand. “You'd think I wouldn't come to visit my granddaughter on the day she awakens her true essence.”

“Whoa, what's that?” Gwen leaned forward.

Max bowed his head, inhaled silently, and let the air escape from his lungs without resistance.

“I had intended to approach the subject in a less direct way…”

“Why? The girl has the right to know who she really is!”

“Yes, she does, but everything has a way of being approached. It might scare her and-”

“Hi,” interrupted Gwen, “Why don't you two put your manners aside and explain to me what's going on with me?”

“You're an anodite , Gwen,” said Verdona.

Max put his hands on his waist and paced the room restlessly.

“Ano what?” said Gwen.

Verdona sat down on the bed and with her left hand began to stroke her granddaughter's hair.

“Anodite, my dear.”

“Half-anodite,” Max cut in.

“You know very well that there's no such thing with anodites,” Verdona said over her shoulder.

“Grandma... I mean... May I call you Grandma?”

“Of course, my dear!” Verdona smiled with pride.

“Grandma, what is an anodite?”

“Anodite is what you are. An inhabitant of the planet Anodyne, just like me.” Verdona's eyes took on a rosy glow.

Gwen was filled with excitement.

“You have powers! What can you do? Can I do it too?”

“Calm down, calm down, my child…” Verdona held both Gwen's hands “You will learn everything I know in time.”

“Verdona, she's not ready yet,” Max said firmly.

Gwen and her grandmother stared at Max. There was frustration on Gwen's face, while Verdona remained serious.

“But Grandpa…”

“I'm sorry, Gwen.”

“Max, she's awake.”

“Yes, and she nearly sucked the energy out of everyone in the neighborhood.”

“Excuse me?” Gwen slowly let go of her grandmother's hands.

“I was trying to explain everything to you calmly before your grandmother arrived, Gwen, but-”

“Max, that's exactly why she should go with me,” Verdona interrupted. “Your species is not capable of dealing with…”

“Verdona, she's only eleven years old! I can't let my granddaughter go to another planet. Her parents wouldn't allow it.”

“If she loses control again, we don't know what can happen…”

“I know that…”

“What could happen?” asked Gwen. “What's wrong with me?” Her eyes began to water.

“Oh, my dear,” Verdona pulled Gwen close and hugged her, “don't worry, there's nothing wrong with you.”

“But you said…”

“We Anodites are a species made of pure energy. We use and manipulate what we call mana at our pleasure.”

Gwen moved her head away from her grandmother's trunk and said:

“Just as it is done in magic?”

“Exactly…”

“But on a level totally out of comparison,” Max cut in.

“Yes, we are a very powerful species,” said Verdona.

“What happened to me back home?” Gwen asked “I thought I had lost control of a spell, but it seems it wasn't just that…”

“No, it wasn't, my dear,” Verdona stroked Gwen's hair again. “Would you mind telling me which spell you were trying?”

“I was trying to open up some internal limitations on my mana flow to try to become more powerful, only-”

“Only the barriers started falling one after the other and you couldn't stop it.”

“Yes…”

“As I said, Gwen, we are a species that has a very intimate relationship with mana. Each pathway within our being needs to have a minimum amount of energy for it to flow with quality. A path without mana within us is like an artery without blood. Our body suffers a kind of asphyxiation of energy.”

“So when I started to open the barriers…”

“Energy was lacking to fill these new arteries .”

“I thought I was going to die…” said Gwen.

“And unfortunately that's what it feels like, only our survival instinct is higher. Lacking internal mana, her body began to seek energy in the surroundings.”

Gwen turned to her grandfather with fear in her eyes:

“What have I done!?”

Max came over to the bed and hugged his granddaughter.

“No one was hurt, Gwen, don't worry,” he lifted her head and, staring into her eyes, continued, “I told you I'd be there to protect you.”

Gwen loosened her embrace, turned to her grandmother, and asked:

“What would happen if I absorbed all of a person's mana?”

Verdona bowed her head, thought for a few seconds, and then said:

“No living creature survives without mana within its being.”

◇───────◇───────◇

Five years later. In a skylight inside Bellwood Forest. A thick white smoke was beginning to dissipate.

“Gw-Gwen, st... top…” said Kevin with difficulty.

The young Osmosian's skin was covered with rock, yet the force of the girl's grip on his fingers was enough to crack the covering around his throat. His legs dangled uselessly in the air. His hands held Gwen's violet forearm in a vain attempt to lessen the effect of his own body weight on the chokehold. Kevin then began to feel that something of vital importance was beginning to escape from within his being. He was dying.

Chapter Text

The grass there had never been so dry. The leaves on the trees had turned yellow to the point of crumbling with the slightest breeze. A leaning trunk was losing its vitality until it snapped in the middle like a twig, knocking its skeletal top against the ground with a heavy clatter. A bird flew by and lost height until it fell inertly to the barren earth.

Kevin was trying to free himself from Gwen's grip. He tried to keep his eyes and mouth closed, but in his desperation for air he opened them, and since then he felt something escape him like a sigh. His vision was blurred and colorless, but he was able to perceive the intense glow emanating from the eyes of his tormentor.

Then he heard a voice from among the trees that chanted:

“Vürkthera!”

A thick beam of violet light flashed from side to side across her field of vision, enveloping her friend. Kevin fell sitting on the ground as soon as he had freed himself from Gwen's hand. 

The anodite girl had been hurled toward the lifeless trees, through trunks as if they were cardboard columns, until finally her back hit a rock stuck in an earthen ravine. She fell to the ground inert.

Kevin looked to his left and saw a small purple cloud floating still among the trees. The cloud began to stretch upward and toward the ground, until it became the length of an average adult. From within the cloud emerged the overbearing figure of Charmcaster, in possession of her purse and the staff of her Uncle Hex.

“Did I interrupt your conversation?” asked the sorceress.

“Wha-” Kevin coughed and massaged his throat, then continued in a slightly hoarse voice “What are you doing here?”

“It seems I'm saving you.” Charming stared up at Kevin, “although I'm already regretting it.”

Kevin staggered to his feet and leaned against a dry tree. He looked at the trail of destruction that Gwen's thrown body had made in the forest, then stared at Charmcaster and said:

“If you think I'm going to let you do anything against Gwen you-”

“Oh, stop being such a baby!” Charmcaster waved her hand in the air as if she were hitting something with the back of her hand, “You're in no condition to protect even yourself.”

Kevin frowned and made a snapping sound with his tongue in his teeth.

“Come on, tell me, who was responsible for the explosions?” said Charmcaster. “Was it Gwen?”

“No, it was Albedo.”

Charmcaster stared at the bottom of the trail, Gwen was starting to get up. Then she asked:

“And what about her?”

“She protected the city from the second explosion, but seems to have lost control after that.”

“Got it. Are you sure we still need her to solve the Albedo problem?”

“I'm not even going to answer you.”

A sharp sound cut through the air, making Kevin and Charmcaster look up at the sky through the branches. Three plumber ships passed swiftly toward the center of the explosion.

Suddenly a cell phone ringing came from inside Charmcaster's bag.

She opens her purse, takes out her cell phone, and looks at the number on the screen.

“How do you have a signal?” asked Kevin.

“Does it matter?”

“Of course it does! If we had a signal we would have called for reinforcements long ago!”

Charmcaster looked Kevin in the corner with indifference, stared again at his cell phone, and then said:

“This miserable rat, I'll kill whoever gave him my number! There, kid!”

Kevin was surprised by the cell phone being thrown in his direction. He narrowly misses dropping it.

“Pick up the phone and explain to them what's going on.” Charming started to walk away from Kevin, towards Gwen who was now coming in the opposite direction. A smile grew on the sorceress's lips “I'll hold her.”

Kevin didn't recognize the number, put the cell phone to his ear and said a suspicious hello. He heard a naughty voice answer:

“That voice... Kev, buddy, it's been so long!”

◇───────◇───────◇

The sound of the first explosion had reached Hex's magical library.

Charmcaster got up startled from her chair and looked around.

“What the-”

The sorceress walked at a brisk pace through the bookshelves, aiming to reach her room. There she could access sources of information that could explain what the sound had been: her crystal ball, which allowed her to see anywhere in the world at the mere echo of its command, and her television, which also had a voice command.

She opened the door of her room and was approaching the pedestal with the sphere when the sound again reached the library, but this time a powerful tremor accompanied it, causing books to fall from its shelves and the huge chandelier to swing in mid-air. The sorceress even tried, but the crystal ball spun off its base, slipped through her fingers, and shattered on the cold floor.

“Oh, what the heck!”

The lights blinked twice until they finally went out, leaving the library in deep darkness.

“What the hell is going on!?”

Charmcaster left her room and turned toward a chandelier fixed on the wall next to her bedroom door. She licked the tips of her thumb and forefinger and closed them over the extinguished wick of one of the candles in the chandelier.

“Lux esparsa.”

The wick lit, then the other candles in the chandelier lit up, followed by all the candelabras in the library radiating their flickering lights.

And then came a new sound. It was not an explosion, no noise, no tremor. His Uncle Hex had told about its existence. A metallic, musical sound from the non-existent library tower. Its sound meant only one thing: the library is in danger of perishing to imminent danger. Perhaps this is why its sound is so reminiscent of an omen of disaster:

Doom... Doom...

Charmcaster was afraid.

Doom...

Her uncle's library was the safest place she knew.

Doom...

If even that place collapsed, there would be no chance of survival.

Doom...

But what could she do?

Doom...

The ringing of her cell phone was almost suppressed by the ringing of the bell. She grabbed it from her purse. She stared at the screen with the unknown number. In the upper right corner she noticed the total lack of cellular signal.

She put the cell phone to her ear and said:

“Hum... hello?”

“Charm, buddy, it's been a long time!”

◇───────◇───────◇

Charmcaster and Gwen were approaching each other in the best Wild West duel style.

The anodite was breathing rapidly; her muscles tensed leaning her forward; her steps began to accelerate until she was running.

The sorceress opened her purse and took out two small spheres. She threw them against the ground in front of her and chanted:

“Silicus Milez Sasitatio!”

Two huge stone golens grew from the spheres and stood in defense against Gwen's advance.

The girl was about ten feet away from the creatures when she jumped, put one of her hands over the head of the golem on the right, and pulled it away, causing it to fall backwards against the ground.

Charmcaster jumped back, her staff and left arm making an xis in front of her face to protect it from the dust that rose up.

Gwen dug her fingers into the creature's head and in a matter of moments sucked out all the mana that kept the stone structure alive. The second creature spun its arm back, striking the girl full in the chest and abdomen, throwing her back into the trees.

“Excellent!” said the sorceress, “Now, come on, before she gets up!”

Charmcaster had the sudden feeling of something coming towards her. She pointed her staff in front of her body and said:

“Amplusmica!”

The thrown tree trunk turned into countless yellow petals and splattered into the air and onto the barren forest floor. Although she received no damage, Charmcaster felt her vision was badly impaired by the flowers.

“You'll need more than that to defeat me, Gwen.”

Charmcaster suspended her defiance as she realized that her second golem was beginning to crumble, making way for Gwen's figure visible among the mana-less pieces of rock.

The girl's gaze was merciless. The nature around her lost more and more of its essence, becoming gray and lifeless.

“You miserable girl...” Charming took a step back.

Like a predator, Gwen again advanced. Charmcaster raised a shield at the last moment, making the girl crash into the semitransparent surface. Gwen felt the impact and no longer moved forward. She stopped.

Charmcaster held the staff up with her left hand, keeping the shield around her. Her right hand had been taken to her purse and was rummaging through her belongings.

Gwen raised her left arm and rested the palm of her hand on the barrier. At the same instant, the shield shattered, its pieces paralyzed in mid-air. Slowly the pieces of the barrier crumbled into a violet mist and flew towards Gwen's raised palm.

As the barrier broke, Charmcaster jumped to the side and spun around on the ground in a somersault. Again she took her hand to her purse and finally managed to find what she wanted.

“Multiplicet obiecti”

The sorceress threw up a small statuette that resembled a dog with an ant's head, clothed in an orange light. The small object vibrated in mid-air and became two, then four, eight, sixteen, and so on, until it reached the mark of about sixty statuettes scattered around Gwen and Charmcaster.

The girl remained impassive, as if nothing had happened. The enchantress, for her part, did not hesitate to continue her plan:

“Silicus Milez Sasitatio!”

One by one the statues were transformed into four-footed golens the size of wolves and advanced towards Gwen. Their stone teeth could not hurt the girl's anodite skin, but their headbutts threw her off balance.

Gwen tried to grab the creatures. When she succeeded, within seconds the golem was transformed into useless pieces of rock, spreading around the girl.

That's it, stupid girl, keep going.... ― thought Charmcaster.

One by one the golem was grabbed and sucked of its life force, turning into boulders. Charmcaster kept a close eye on Gwen's actions. Suddenly she heard behind her the sound of footsteps accompanied by a female voice saying:

“What are you doing!?”

Charmcaster stared at the young blonde with the backpack on her back and clicked her tongue in her teeth.

“It depends, if you like her, I'm trying to save her. If you, like me, hate her, I'm trying to put an end to her...”

The young woman threw the backpack on the ground and clenched her fists. Her hands were wearing fingerless gloves. Finally, she said:

“I won't let you hurt Gwen. Gorilla beringei.”

A green light escaped through the fingers of the girl's hands and suddenly they went out. The girl opened her mouth, showing dangerous fangs, and then advanced at a rapid pace, her arms raised over her head.

Charmcaster tried to turn around, but the approach of the teenager was too fast. That's what you get for trying to help someone, she thought.

Suddenly her field of vision was invaded by the back of a young man with his arms outstretched, shouting:

“Eunice, stop!”

The young blonde lowered her arms and braked with difficulty, stumbling and being caught by Kevin.

“Kevin?” said Eunice, “Why did you stop me? She's hurting Gwen.”

Kevin looked over his shoulder at Charmcaster and said:

“I really hope not.”

The enchantress ignored the attempt at intimidation and with a look of contempt said:

“Ah, don't be ridiculous!” Charmcaster turned her attention back to Gwen. Now only twenty-three golens remained alive “Tell that to my shattered golens on the floor!”

Kevin and Eunice stared at Gwen in amazement. The girl squashed the creatures like insects, sucking out their energy and leaving a carpet of stones around them.

“Magistrate Tennyson sent me here to try to help Gwen,” said Eunice.

“But how?”

Eunice ran to her knapsack, slung it over one shoulder, and returned, rummaging through the items inside.

“Here, hold these for me,” she put some shiny egg-sized rocks in Kevin's hands, “I was going to try to finish them off, but Magistrate Tennyson said it wasn't necessary...”

Charmcaster was impressed to see the rocks brought by Eunice. Firrdene Diamond, Bulvarian Rubellite, Caland'ere Beryls, Turkninomer Amber, and others she couldn't even name. The energy capacity of these ores was something out of the ordinary. Using them would be like turning a microwave oven straight on in a nuclear power plant!

“Where did you get this?” asked Charmcaster.

Eunice looked at the sorceress suspiciously and put her hands on the rocks to prevent her from seeing them.

“And what do we do with it?” asked Kevin.

“The Magistrate said to have Gwen absorb their energy, but...” Eunice tilted her head to look at the girl behind Kevin.

“If you try to approach her with this,” said Charmcaster, pointing at the stones, “you will be absorbed together.”

“What do we do then?” asked Kevin.

“Give me that Firrdene diamond.”

“No way!” said Kevin.

“Kid, if I wanted it I would have stolen it from you and got the hell out of here, now come on!”

Kevin looked at Eunice and nodded. The blonde girl took one of the diamonds and handed it to the sorceress.

“See, it wasn't hard,” Charmcaster felt a surge of energy fill her body the instant she held the diamond firmly in her hand. “When I give the signal, you come forward and place the stones around the rebellious teenager there.

Gwen had just destroyed the last golem.

““How is it? And how are we going to approach it?”

“Petrus movidius” Charmcaster ignored Kevin.

The carpet of rocks around Gwen began to vibrate slightly, and gradually the rocks began to levitate. Gwen, realizing that something was about to happen, went towards the Charmcaster through the rocks. She took three steps before the rocks clumped together, enveloping the anodite girl in a solid sphere.

“Now!” shouted Charmcaster.

Kevin and Eunice took off, and one by one they began to sink the ores into the surface of the stone sphere. A hollow sound began to be heard from inside the shell, as if someone was punching it. Even so, the two young ones continued their task.

As soon as they were finished, they walked backwards, watching what was going to happen. The hollow sounds became more and more intense.

“Come on, Gwen...” said Kevin.

Let's go, you stupid girl... ― thought Charmcaster.

The ores glittered in the sunlight. The sphere trembled with each hollow sound. And then the energy rocks were losing their glow. The punches became less frequent, little by little, until only silence remained in the dead forest.

“And now what?” asked Eunice.

“If you want to go check it out, be my guest,” said Charmcaster.

Kevin walked slowly towards the sphere. Suddenly, a small crack appeared on the surface of the stone casing. Another fissure, this time accompanied by a pinkish light coming from within the fissure. Another crack, another, another, until finally the sphere exploded into a thousand little pieces, leaving only a ball of light.

The three of them put their hands in front of their faces to protect themselves from the luminosity. Kevin, who was closest, saw a figure present in the center of the glow. The light began to dim and the young man realized that Gwen's figure became increasingly clear. However, her skin still bore the marks of anodite existence.

“Gwen?” he asked.

The girl was sitting up, with her legs bent at her sides. Her left arm rested on the sandy ground. Her head was kept low.

Gwen became aware of someone approaching. Her mind was trying to process the last memories of when she lost control. Slowly she raised her head and looked into the face of the teenager standing in front of her. There was fear in his eyes.

“I'm sorry, Kevin,” Gwen said, tears streaming down her face, “I swear I didn't mean to...”

Kevin knelt down, wrapped the girl in a strong hug and said:

“I'm the last person who can judge you, Gwen. We all have a side that we struggle to keep under control.”

Chapter Text

“Approaching coordinates 2.5.14-10, destination: Earth” said the spacecraft's computer, “We will leave warp speed in sixty seconds.”

“Great!” Said Grandpa Max, “Any more information about the explosion, Eunice?”

“Not yet, Magistrate” Eunice was standing by a multi-screen panel to the right of the command bridge, “I'm trying to get more data, but communication with the Bellwood Plumbers' headquarters is still lost.”

“That's not a good sign," said Azmuth, who was still in his makeshift space, working on his ores.

“No, that's a very bad sign,” said Max.

Max, meanwhile, was sitting in his pilot's chair, a holographic screen projected in front of him, with a map of Bellwood and a yellow circle that took up 10% of the territory, mainly involving the city's forest. Leaning on the arm of the chair, his Plumber's badge flickered in the light like a phone call waiting to be answered.

“There's been another explosion!” said a startled Eunice.

“What? But so fast!” Max got up from his chair and positioned himself next to Eunice.

“Unfortunately, yes” Eunice moved her fingers across the screens, pulling information windows from one side to the other, “But somehow, the area of the explosion isn't expanding...”

Max Tennyson's plumber's badge emitted a high-pitched sound that spread throughout the room. An uncomfortable feeling enveloped everyone at once, Azmuth and Eunice stopped what they were doing for a moment and both stared at the Magistrate.

“Not this...” said Max, reaching for his badge.

“What is it, Max?”

“It's Gwen!”

“Is she calling you?” Eunice asked.

“No, she's on the verge of losing control of her powers.” Max sat back in his chair and said, “Computer, how long until we arrive?”

“But just like that?”

“No, Eunice” said Azmuth, “check your data, you'll understand.”

Eunice turned to the screens and noticed that the information on the second explosion showed an exponential increase in the energy level, but remained relatively constant in the area of impact.

“S-she's holding the blast!?”

Max didn't reply, instead he shouted even louder:

“Computer!”

“Coming out of warp speed. We have reached the established coordinates: Earth.”

A hollow click accompanied by a sudden vibration ran through the plumbing spacecraft and then Max, Eunice and Azmuth saw the huge image of planet Earth fill the front display.

“Now leave it to me, computer, switch to manual steering.”

“Yes, Magistrate, autopilot deactivated.”

“Eunice,” said Max, “I need you to gather all the energy stones you can find.”

“What are you planning, Max?” said Azmuth.

Max watched a beam of light rise from a point on the earth's surface, centrifugally pushing away the clouds in the atmosphere of that region.

“I'm sure Gwen will be able to hold off the explosion, but if afterwards we can't hold her off, we'll have two problems instead of one.”

“What about Albedo?” Eunice asked.

Max's face contorted into a hard expression.

◇───────◇───────◇

Albedo laughed delightedly. His ultimate crystalsapien body glowed with energy, emitting bright beams through the dissipating smoke.

“That's it!” he said, “That's what I needed!”

The Ultimatrix insignia on his chest said in a robotic voice:

“Internal battery one hundred percent recharged.”

“Excellent,” replied Albedo. “What about the self-powered core?”

“Particles charged and vibrating at the appropriate frequency. Waiting for an energetic trigger to initiate a continuous fissio-fusion process.”

Albedo raised his head and looked at his creation with pride. The tadenite crystal once located at the top of the machine now consisted of a formless plasma mass inside its container. It wiggled frantically as if it wanted to escape.

He opened his arms, preparing to emit a powerful beam of energy into the shapeless compound and finally complete the fission process; when suddenly he heard a sharp sound cut through the sky. He turned around and noticed that three spaceships were coming towards him.

“Haven't they taught you that it's rude to be late for other people's parties?” said the alien.

The middle spacecraft opened a compartment under its left wing and launched a missile towards the fission machine. Albedo aimed at a point on the ground, causing a crystal tip to project there; he raised his arm towards the missile and the crystal tip grew like a huge, thin violet pillar, hitting the projectile long before it reached its target.

The spaceships dodged the column and began firing laser beams at Albedo. The shots hit the earth like a bright green rain, raising dust and debris into the air. The alien positioned itself between the ships and the machine and grew a crystal barrier about fifteen feet wide and twenty feet high. The lasers that hit the shield were converted into a rainbow glow and traveled down the crystalline surface to the ground.

The ships divided their formation: two to the left and one to the right, circling the area of the machine. Albedo raised his right arm and launched energy beams towards the spaceships. None hit. The spaceships dodged, pirouetting through the air.

Albedo closed his right hand and stopped the attack from coming out. The glow from his hand traveled up his arm, down his body and sank into the ground through his feet.

One of the ships turned and positioned itself in front of the machine, opened the lower compartment of the right wing to launch a missile when a huge beam of energy hit it from behind and pulverized half the spacecraft in mid-air. The remaining pieces fell in a rain of debris.

The plumber pilot of the ship on the right turned towards the source of the beam and saw, about 250 yards away, previously shrouded in smoke, a crystal structure glowing at its tip. The pilot scanned his entire field of vision and counted six more pointed structures that emerged from the ground like claws.

“Watch out for the outlying towers,” said the pilot into his communicator. “The last shot came from the one to the southeast. There are at least seven of them.”

“Yes, sir.”

Albedo heard new sounds cut through the air. A missile hit the crystal barrier at his back and sent him crashing into his machine. He stood up, resting his hand on the equipment and stroked it to see if anything had been damaged.

He turned his head slightly and looked behind him at the five other plumber ships filling the air in formation.

Another shot from Albedo's turrets hit the ship furthest to the right, forcing them to break formation. The spacecraft's shots began to intensify, every laser launched at the machine being blocked by a crystal shield or some part of the alien's body.

Albedo fired energy beams with his right hand and with his left he made columns of crystal appear. Two ships crashed when their wings were pierced by the pillars. A missile almost hit the machine, but was hit by an energy beam in mid-air. Two shots from the outer turrets intersected in a cross and pulverized two spaceships. There were still three left.

The alien fired several shots at a spacecraft, making it reduce its altitude more and more until finally five columns of crystal sprang from the earth at once and pierced the ship, turning it into a ball of fire.

Two missiles came towards it, one of which, however, began to veer off course in mid-flight towards the fission apparatus. Albedo, who was preparing to destroy both missiles at once, found himself unable to hit them both at the same time. He turned his back on the projectile coming towards him and fired at the second missile, causing it to explode in mid-air.

However, the first projectile hit him, throwing him away from his machine, face down.

The two remaining ships began firing lasers at the machine, causing pieces of it to break off. The amorphous material inside the container was beginning to lose its luster.

Albedo stood up furiously. He filled his chest with energy and let it flow down his body to the ground. The seven towers fired at the same time, emitting a strong glow as they crossed each other in the sky.

As soon as the glow dissipated, he noticed that there was no trace of the plumbers or their ships left.

“Useless insects,” Albedo cursed. He walked over to his machine, which was still working.

He would need a good few minutes to release the amount of energy needed to finish fissioning the tadenite, but with the constant arrival of Plumbers, his goal could fail. He had an idea.

Albedo raised his arms towards two of the outlying crystal towers. He began to rotate his body clockwise. All seven towers began to tilt to the right and grow in size. He continued his methodical movement, waves of energy shining from his chest and flowing down his body. The tips of the columns began to approach each other's bases and continued to grow, climbing on top of each other. Little by little, the towers became a spiral dome. The luminosity there was being reduced more and more, down to an opening at the top that was also closing.

Albedo heard the sound of an explosion hitting the left side of the dome and smiled.

"It'll take more than that to destroy my crystals,” he thought.

Suddenly a powerful impact appeared behind Albedo, causing the ground to vibrate and a huge cloud of dust and fire to arise. Something fell from the sky and hit his machine hard. Pieces of it flew past his face. He looked down at the ground at his feet and a bright green liquid was beginning to be absorbed into the earth. He lifted his head and saw a silhouette forming in the smoke.

“Who are you, you bastard!” said Albedo. “Do you know what you've done?”

The figure took a step forward and Albedo could see the galvanian mechamorph armor glowing in the light from the skylight.

“It can't be...” Albedo took a step back.

The armor's helmet opened, revealing the cold face of Max Tennyson.

“Ah, it's just you, cursed old man... I thought I'd killed you before, but all right, after what you've just done, I'll make sure you stay dead.”

Chapter Text

Before you think I've forgotten about Benjamin Kirby Tennyson, I assure you that I haven't. I know, he hasn't been here for a long time and you have every reason in the world to want to know what happened to him, but I repeat, I haven't forgotten.

The last time we saw him, he had just left his house, which had been damaged by the first explosion. He was in possession of his hoverboard and floating towards the enormous smoke on the horizon in search of Gwen and Kevin.

If you're already in this chapter, it means you already know what happened to them. Gwen and Kevin have had a rough time, but they're fine as far as possible. However, Ben doesn't know that. If you've ever been through the experience of not hearing from a loved one after a possible tragedy, you know very well how he's feeling at the moment.

If you don't, I wouldn't recommend you try it, because our mind's ability to create catastrophic scenarios, surrounded by suffering and the possibility of loss, is incredible. The anguish is overwhelming and makes your intestines churn frantically. The feeling in your chest is that an elephant has sat on you and it's not even bothering to look for somewhere else to sit. All this while your mind creates the worst imaginable scenario beginning with the letter "A", taking care to make you think of a terrible situation for each letter of the alphabet.

At this moment Ben Tennyson was floating towards his goal with his thoughts elaborating a scenario with the letter "D". The residential neighborhood around him showed varying degrees of disrepair. Very few windows remained intact, several roofs were uncovered and walls that had already been compromised by termites were unable to withstand the shockwave of the first explosion. Several cars in the street had their alarms blaring, joining the sound of people coming out of their homes shouting their families' names.

Ben, however, was trying to stay focused on the road. He dodged obstacles and requests of "has anyone seen so-and-so?". One worry at a time. His mind was finishing the letter "E" scenario and preparing to start the letter "F", when dark smoke appeared to the right of his field of vision. He turned around.

A small six-storey residential building was on fire. The third and fourth floors were already engulfed in flames. People poured out of the building like ants and gathered at a safe distance from the scene. A muscular man with short hair directed the people, saying:

“Come on guys, hurry up, go this way! Get away from the building as quickly as possible!”

Running in the opposite direction to the crowd, a red-haired guy looked at the faces of each of the children he passed. As he searched, he shouted:

“Rachel! Rachel! Where are you? Rachel? No, it's not her. Rachel!”

The boy kept going, bumping into people, until he reached the muscular man and said:

“My daughter, Rachel, have you seen her?”

“Sir, listen to me, you need to get away from here! I'm a fireman and this place isn't safe-“

“You don't understand, I need to find my daughter!”

“Which floor do you live on?”

“Sixth floor, apartment 604. Have you seen her? She's a redhead and-“

A sharp cry for help from the sixth floor balcony attracted the attention of the men and, of course, Ben Tennyson, who until that moment hadn't known why he was standing in mid-air.

“Rachel!" shouted the red-haired boy.

“What the hell?” said the fireman. “I thought I'd got everyone out. Sir?” the man ran to hold the red-haired man back “Stop, this is crazy, you can't go in there!”

“Let me go!” the man struggled in the fireman's firm embrace “Rachel!”

Ben tilted the board forward, propelling himself towards the burning building. He leaned part of his body weight backwards, tilting the tip of the hoverboard upwards, and advanced towards the sixth floor. The flames and smoke seemed to want to grab him in mid-air. On the ground, he could hear the father's screams as he was forced away from the building's entrance.

The young man reached the sixth floor and saw a red-haired girl of about eleven clinging to the balcony ledge, her face streaked with tears. She only stopped crying when Ben suddenly approached on his hoverboard.

“Hi! Rachel, am I right?” asked Ben, with a smile on his face.

The girl nodded.

“Great! Rachel, I know you're a brave girl...”

The girl nodded in the negative.

“Oh, aren't you?” he offered a smile again “Then I'll need you to be. I need you to get on that magic board of mine so I can get you out of here.”

“I-I won't be able to...” said Rachel.

“Yes, you can” Ben looked past the girl and saw the smoke and flames beginning to reach the corridor leading to apartment 604 “Come on, I'll help you!”

Rachel was shaking. Ben lifted the girl over the balcony ledge and carefully let her place one foot at a time on the hoverboard. Once on the board, the girl hugged Ben as tightly as the muscular fireman holding her father.

“There, there...” said Ben, resting one hand on her back and the other on the back of her neck.

Careful not to move the board from its horizontal position, Ben began to move away from the building. Little by little, he reduced his height, observing the approaching ground and the distant top of the building. The wind was hot and the air heavy, even though he was far from the flames. The crowd below him began to open up a circular space to welcome them onto the street full of parked cars.

They were approaching the height of the second floor when a bang at the top of the building made Rachel startle, unbalancing herself on the plank below them. Ben grabbed her tightly and, aware that he wouldn't be able to regain his balance, leaned back and pulled her close to him. They fell over the roof of a gray sedan and lay there in the crumpled bodywork. The crowd rushed towards them. Rachel's father was the first to arrive. Ben stroked the girl's head and asked:

“Are you hurt?”

Rachel slowly moved away from Ben and nodded in the negative.

“That's good!” he smiled.

“Rachel!” the red-haired guy held out his arms to receive the girl from the top of the car. “Oh my God, my daughter!” Now with the girl in hand, the father wrapped his daughter's head in kisses.

While the crowd focused on the father-daughter moment, Ben calmly climbed down the other side of the car, trying to ignore the pain in his back, and calmly walked over to his hoverboard lying on top of two garbage bags. He picked up the board, climbed on and floated away.

The problem with having a persistent thought in your head is that if you give it any space, no matter how small, it makes a point of coming back and occupying it. And then, like flipping a switch, the mind returns to its work of what letter was I in again? Oh yeah, F. What starts with F that could kill someone? What a fool I am, fire, of course!

Ben was now crossing the shopping district. Perhaps because it was closer to the center, the ambulance and police services were very present there. Of course, there weren't enough of them, because even in the best-case scenario, there was no way to help an entire city at the same time.

As he drove along an avenue famous for its Asian culture, Ben narrowly missed a half-destroyed banner inviting people to the neighborhood's eighth festival, and this near miss meant that he had to swerve at the last second, ducking his head and crouching down on his hoverboard to get under the banner. With the movement, the hoverboard lost height and the young man saw to his left a scrawny policeman and a paramedic trying to lift the fittings from a sign that had fallen on an elderly man.

Ben continued his descent until he landed on the ground. He leaned the hoverboard against a nearby wall and said to the policeman and paramedic:

“I'm going to help you!” and grabbed one end of the hardware.

“Thanks, kid!” said the policeman.

However, even with a lot of effort, the irons hardly moved. Positioned over the old man's chest, it was clear that all that weight was making it difficult for him to breathe.

Ben didn't give up, he changed position by getting under the iron, leaning it on his right shoulder and trying a lever movement. The iron lifted a few centimeters, but soon returned to its original position.

“Damn!” said Ben. For a few seconds, he looked at the people running down the street, desperate with their own problems. He decided to ignore them. “On three we'll try to get up at once, okay?” he said to the policeman, who agreed.

He started counting.

“One... Two...” he filled his lungs with air and said “Three!”

Again, the ironwork lifted a few centimeters, not enough to remove the old man. Ben, who was staring at the ground as he pushed, saw shadows approaching them. Three more people, two men and a woman, grabbed other parts of the wreckage and finally the tangle of iron began to lift.

The paramedic put her hands under the victim's armpits and with speed and care, pulled him out of the ironwork. Once free, Ben and the people dropped the metal debris to the ground, making a loud clanging sound.

The paramedic began to perform first aid on the elderly man. The policeman thanked the people for their help and quickly turned his attention to his walkie-talkie to request an ambulance to the scene.

One of the men helping with the rescue patted Ben on the back and said:

“Well done, kid!” and ran off down the street.

Ben gave a slight smile that lasted no more than two seconds. He waved his hand in thanks and picked up his board from the wall.

Then the second explosion was heard.

The ground shook like a lake hit by a stone. A powerful wind rushed through the maze of buildings and into the street, tearing away what was left of the banners, decorations and wiring that hadn't been ripped out in the first explosion. The people there were trying to protect themselves as best they could. Ben crouched down on the sidewalk, holding his board against his chest, trying not to be swept away by the gale.

Gradually, the wind and the shaking subsided, but the general fear grew more and more. The first explosion had been traumatic enough, now the occurrence of the second could only mean one thing: there was nothing to stop a third.

As soon as he could, Ben got up from the sidewalk and started running against the wind. He turned right onto an avenue, trying to dodge the people who were fleeing, and he could see a column of light rising into the sky between the buildings, blowing away the clouds on the horizon.

Even though another strong gale would come at him and knock him down, Ben didn't hesitate to get on his hoverboard and fly towards Bellwood Forest. The scenarios of doom in his mind began to overlap one another. The letters K, L and M combined in a combo of agony and despair. Tears began to flow from the corner of his eyes, but Ben convinced himself that it was the wind in his face.

He walked down a long stretch of road, getting closer and closer to the beam of light that was beginning to thin. He tilted his board to the right and entered a forest of tall, thin trunks. The squalid leaves and branches that reached his head and arms were like needles. He dodged a wide trunk but missed the long diagonal branch that connected one tree to another. He slammed his abdomen into the obstacle, bending his body and letting the hoverboard slip out from under his feet. The board moved forward and shattered as it hit another tree ahead.

A little bewildered by the impact, Ben couldn't hold onto the branch any longer and fell backwards onto the soft soil and leaves. He put his hands on his stomach and contorted his face into an expression of pain. With difficulty, he got up, leaning on a tree. He tried to fill his lungs with air, but stopped suddenly at the end of his inhalation: he had broken a rib.

Limping, he continued into the forest, watching his breathing and trying to ignore the pain. He raised his head and looked through the treetops for the column of light to guide him. If there's one place Gwen and Kevin could be, it's over there.

“I'm coming, guys...” said Ben as he imagined a catastrophic scenario beginning with the letter T.

He walked for about fifteen minutes and noticed that the trees were starting to lean. Some of them were already exposing their roots. Suddenly, he heard a roar of engines accompanied by a light wind blowing through the trees. Ben hastened his pace. Slowly, he saw his grandfather's spaceship landing in a small glade of fallen trees.

“Grandpa...”

He ignored the pain once and for all. He began to run. The spaceship's entrance ramp was down and the access doors were open. As soon as he entered the ship, he began to call out:

“Grandpa! Gwen!” he followed a corridor towards the command bridge “Kevin!? Grandpa, where are you?”

Ben reached the bridge and saw the pilot's chair empty. In the front window of the spaceship, he saw the forest he came from with small floating screens projected onto the glass.

“Young Tennyson...”

The alien's aged voice sent a chill down Ben's spine. A new thought filled his mind, pushing out every previously imagined worst-case scenario. Not a thought, a memory, rather. The conversation he'd had with Albedo to be precise...

Ben turned towards the voice. On a dark side of the command bridge, the silhouette of a Galvanian, famous for the destructive potential of his creations, walked out of the shadows into the light.

“I know it's not like me, but I'm pleased to say that I'm delighted to see you here...” said the alien.

“Azmuth...”

Chapter Text

Inside the crystal dome, the confrontation between Albedo and Max Tennyson was intensifying. The Magistrate reduced the brightness of his armor and used the darkness to hide his presence. His visor allowed him to see through the darkness as if it were a beautiful green summer's day. Albedo, by contrast, was unable to see anything beyond the beam of light coming from the skylight in the ceiling. His crystal body flickered like a firefly, constantly denouncing his position.

Albedo heard a sizzling sound resounding from his sides, turned his head to either side in search of the source of the sound, when a glow appeared in front of him. A small focus of blue light that grew and it became more obvious that it was a laser cannon shot. He placed his hands crossed in front of his body and let the laser hit him. The energy from the shot was absorbed by his crystal body and turned into a rainbow glow.

"Is that all, old man?" Albedo said "I thought you'd be able to entertain me at least once thi-"

Albedo's sentence was interrupted by the impact of two missiles coming from the sides.

Max gave a slight smile.

The alien staggered for a few seconds but managed to steady himself. He raised his head and showed a glint in his eye that was proportionate to his hatred. He emitted a roar of fury and his body glowed brightly. In response, the walls of the dome began to glow progressively from the ground to the top, momentarily dispelling the darkness there.

Being able to see Max's position for a moment, Albedo raised his hands and crouched down, sinking his arms into the ground.

Max felt the ground tremble beneath him and jumped back a few thousandths before a pillar resembling a Christmas tree rose out of the ground. With the thrusters on his back, he hovered in the air for a few moments, then raised his height to dodge the new pillars that appeared. When he was high enough to avoid being hit by the pilasters on the ground, he positioned himself with his arms in front of his body. The arms of the armor turned into multiple-shot barrels and began firing small missiles.

Projecting from the ceiling, a pointed column struck the Magistrate's back, throwing him violently to the ground. Max saw emergency windows appear on his visor informing him of major damage to the flight thrusters and that the repair process was already underway. He raised his head and saw, in the distance, Albedo preparing to fire an energy beam in his direction. He raised his torso, keeping on his knees, and raised his shields. The beam hit the protection, pushing Max continuously backwards. The rear camera on his visor showed that he was approaching the spikes on one of the pillars.

With difficulty, he planted one foot at a time on the ground, unable to stop the dragging force. On the side of his right arm and leg, small openings appeared, exposing small thrusters on the surface of the armor. He tilted the right side of his body slightly backwards and, using the force of the thrust together with the impulse of the thrusters, turned on his own axis, escaping the firing line.

The thrusters on his right side tilted towards the back of his body, along with the emergence of propulsors on his left side. He launched his body forward, running at high speed towards the alien.

Albedo fired another bolt of energy at Max, who dodged to the right. He attacked again and Max dodged to the left. Annoyed, he began to throw successive short beams from both hands. But to make him even more nervous, the multiple attacks weren't being enough to stop the Magistrate's advance.

In one of the dodges, Max's image split in two, continuing its advance. Another evasion and once again the image split in two. It didn't take Albedo long to understand what was happening: The old man was using holograms! And he was getting closer.

Albedo put up a wall between himself and the Magistrate. As they were holograms, Albedo saw the first image pass through the wall to his right, then the illusion to his left. That means only the middle old man remains!

A mixed sound of metal and glass resounded inside the dome as Max hit Albedo in the jaw from the right with a powerful punch. His hand was transformed into a gauntlet coupled with impact enhancers.

The alien was thrown sideways against the ground, dragging himself for several meters until he crashed into a rock that was already there. He rested one hand on the ground and the other touched the side of his face, where a crack lay in his crystal skin.

"But how did that bastard..." said Albedo, who then understood.

He hid behind the first hologram, so far away that the perspective didn't allow me to see him... ― he thought.

"What are you waiting for?" shouted Max "Come on, get up!"

"Oh, are you that excited to die?" replied Albedo. "What makes you want to be so suicidal?"

"You hurt my grandchildren..."

"Who are they again?"

"I want to see if you're still going to be this funny when I'm done with you."

Albedo stood up and raised his hands at his sides. Two rays of energy emanated from the walls of the dome and hit his hands. The alien brought them closer to his body, joining the beams into a single, long horizontal beam. Finally, he said:

"I'm scared to death."

◇───────◇───────◇

Some distance away, Gwen, Kevin, Eunice and Charmcaster heard muffled sounds of impact and explosion. Each noise was accompanied by a tremor that spread across the forest floor.

"What the hell is that?" asked Kevin, as he helped Gwen up from the ground.

"Magistrate Tennyson is probably confronting Albedo by now," said Eunice.

"What!?" Gwen said. "But how could Grandpa defeat him alone?"

"I didn't agree with that plan either," said Eunice, "but I promised him I'd come and get you and take you to his ship."

"No! We have to help him and-"

Kevin stopped speaking when the sharp pain in his calf hit him. His leg was encased in rock, but it was possible to see two holes in the stone.

"What was that?" Gwen said.

"I think I pushed too hard when I ran to put the jewels in your cocoon."

"Did I do that?"

"No! Relax, Gwen, it wasn't you!  Kevin replied "It was from my battle with the white-haired worm. I covered it in stone to stop it bleeding, but I need to make a decent bandage..."

"Come on" Gwen offered Kevin her shoulder to lean on. "I'll help you until we get to the ship."

"Thanks, Gwen.."

"Is this serious?" Charmcaster asked incredulously.

"What?" Gwen said.

"Why don't you just heal his leg and get it over with?"

"I'm not good at healing spells."

"You're not good at a lot of things, that's obvious, girl."

"Hey, don't talk about her like that!" Kevin pointed his finger in Charmcaster's face.

"You know what? You're right," said Charmcaster." Leave him with that leg, maybe he'll be less annoying without it."

"What?"

"Stop it, Kevin!" Gwen looked at Eunice and asked "Could you hold him for me, please?"

"Of course."

Gwen approached Charmcaster and said:

"Can you heal him?"

"I can, but I won't," Charmcaster replied.

 "You motherf-," said Kevin, who was interrupted by Gwen, who again asked for calm.

"Can you help me?" Gwen said.

"What's in it for me?"

"I'll let you keep the jewel you hid."

Charmcaster rested his hand on the bag and put it behind him. She frowned, annoyed.

"So?" Gwen asked.

Charmcaster raised his head and looked away. He thought for a few seconds, then looked at Gwen out of the corner of his eye. Finally, he said:

"Do you still have the spell book you stole from me?"

"No, but I remember it perfectly."

"Show-off"Charmcaster made his staff disappear and crossed his arms. "What healing magic did you try?

" Cureta Zhart Dae , page 47."

"To begin with, you're pronouncing it wrong. It's Vhart , not Zhart ."

"Your handwriting is terrible, you know that, right?"

"Shut up! Secondly, when you focus your mana, which way do you go?"

"Meridian of Chien , I follow the point of Thud and spiral down the third path until I reach the inflow of descending Portalis ."

At that moment, Kevin and Eunice looked at each other with the most perfect "what are they talking about?" expression.

"That's your mistake," said Charmcaster, "taking the third path causes you to lose energy near the Whiztark point and unbalances the influx. Try taking the second path, you'll see that it's much more effective."

"That makes sense, I'll try it your way" Gwen turned to Kevin and crouched down next to his injured leg.

"Wait a minute! What are you going to do with my leg?"

"I'm going to try to heal you, now stay still, please!?"

"B-but how do you know she's not trying to trick you into ripping off my leg o-or turning it into, I don't know, a bug o-or maybe a stone?"

"Your leg is stone right now!" Gwen said.

"I know that!" But it's stone now because I want it to be, not because that crazy statue fanatic wants it to be.

"Kevin, just stand still for a moment, please."

"Gwen..." Kevin kept his eyebrows arched and his voice thinner than he would have liked.

"When I say so, remove the stone."

Kevin nodded.

The young anodite closed her eyes for a moment, inhaled deeply and let the air escape calmly. She opened her eyes, placed her hands over the wound and said:

"Now."

Kevin let the stone from his leg slide down and cover the surface of the ground on which he was standing. At the same moment, the wound on his calf began to ooze blood from both openings.

" Cureta Vhart Dae ," said Gwen.

A magic circle appeared on either side of Kevin's leg, rotating in opposite directions and illuminating the area between them. Little by little, the wound began to close, replenishing lost muscle, fat and skin.

"I did it!" Gwen stood up, jumping for joy.

"You did it?" Kevin had his eyes closed during the healing process, opened a crack with his right eye to see the result and said "You did it!" And he hugged Gwen along with Eunice.

Gwen celebrated for a few moments and, when she realized that Charmcaster was moving away from the group, she pulled away from the hug and grabbed the sorceress's arm.

"We need your help!" said Gwen.

"What?" said Charmcaster, "Have you gone mad?"

"Albedo is too dangerous and we need all the help we can get!"

"I know he's dangerous, that's why I'm leaving right now."

"I don't know if Grandpa Max managed to destroy his bomb, but even if he did, there's nothing to stop him from trying to blow up the whole city again."

"So what?"

"So your library would be destroyed too, and you know that would be a priceless loss to the world of magic."

Charmcaster remembered the ringing of the bell of the non-existent tower with its promise of imminent doom. A sinister Doom that echoed in his soul.

"I must have lost my mind," said Charmcaster. He looked down and saw that Gwen was still holding his arm "What's this, release me! "She pulled her arm away abruptly."

"Come on, everyone," shouted Eunice, "Mr. Azmuth has been waiting for us for a long time!"

The four teens started running through the forest towards the plumbing spaceship.

◇───────◇───────◇

Max stood ready to react to the slightest movement from Albedo and his long energy stick. On his display, a message said that the flight thrusters were repaired and ready for use.

Albedo rested one hand on the long energy beam and pushed it forward. The beam moved in a straight line like a huge guillotine towards Max.

The Magistrate took off, letting the energy beam pass underneath him. High up, he saw the line of energy approach the dome wall and reduce in size until it almost disappeared, but the line changed its course and started coming straight towards him again.

Max shot into the air with the energy beam in his wake. He looked at Albedo, who on the ground was guiding the movement of the guillotine like an orchestra conductor. He flew between the crystal pillars, which were cut one by one like vegetables as the energy beam passed through. He could feel the heat of the beam approaching the thrusters of his feet.

Max flew over Albedo and dropped spheres from his chest that exploded in a concussive wave when they hit the ground. The impact hit the alien squarely, who, in a show of pain, put his hands to his head, trembling.

The beam of energy slowed down his movement and Max was able to move away from it for a few moments. He turned his hands into concussive cannons and aimed them at his opponent. He fired two spheres that set off towards their target, having traveled a third of the way, when Albedo raised his head and once again launched his guillotine towards Max.

The lightning bolt pierced both spheres in the air and they exploded in a powerful shockwave, throwing Max against the top of the dome with great violence. The sandy floor raised a huge cloud of dust that coated the dome. The Magistrate crashed through the crystal ceiling and fell to the ground, enveloped in a mist of dust.

Albedo kept one hand on his head and the other in front of his face. He stared at the spot where Max had fallen. His vision was shaky and impaired by the dust. Suddenly, he saw the silhouette of the armor moving towards him out of the mist. He moved his raised arm and, pulling it towards him, gave the command for his energy beam to come towards him and cut Max from behind.

The horizontal beam passed through Max, cutting him in two, and continued until it touched Albedo's crystalline skin. The glow of the beam shone through the crystal and expanded, illuminating the alien like a great pylon of light in the midst of darkness. For a few seconds it was possible to see all the way inside the dome, including Max Tennyson, who was crouching behind Albedo with his energy-saturated gauntlet.

"What?" said Albedo.

Max punched him diagonally upwards, right in the middle of the alien's back. With the impact, Albedo was thrown upwards in a parabolic trajectory. His body crashed into the ceiling and went through it, creating a hole in the dome and flying a few meters before falling into the forest.

From the hole created by Albedo's body, the semi-spherical structure began to shatter in a shower of crystals that crumbled before touching the ground.

Max raised his head and stared at the cloudless blue sky that opened up in his field of vision.

◇───────◇───────◇

"Come on, guys, it's this way!" said Eunice, waving to the three young people following her.

"How did you get from here to where we were so fast?" said Kevin, panting.

Suddenly a crash of shattering glass echoed through the sky. The four teenagers looked up through a gap between the trees and saw the image of a crystalsapien thrown in a curved trajectory. A few seconds later and the sound of something heavy falling to the ground.

"I can't believe it, he's done it!" said Gwen.

"That's it, Grandpa Max!" said Kevin!

"We need to warn Mr. Azmuth!" said Eunice, running towards the spaceship, which could already be seen through the trees.

The four of them approached the spacecraft's access ramp and boarded it. Gwen and Kevin led the way down the corridor, followed by Eunice and Charmcaster. As they entered the command bridge, they saw the figure on the back of a well-known young man with brown hair, wearing his typical green jacket. His left wrist, to which a alien device had always been stuck, was now empty.

"Ben?" Gwen said.

The teenager turned his head slightly over his left shoulder and stared at them. Gwen continued:

"W-what did you..."

Chapter Text

"I know it's unusual for me to say this sort of thing, but I'm glad to say that I'm pleased to see you here…”

"Azmuth..." said Ben uncomfortably.

The alien raised his head to look at the teenager's face. He hadn't expected to receive a warm smile from him, but neither had he imagined finding a face so wracked with pain and fatigue. His eyes were deep-set and dull, with dark circles under them. His cheeks were thinner and his skin was pale.

The image of the boy was like a punch to Azmuth's stomach. He knew it was his fault that he was in that state. Closed his eyes, bowed his head and said in a sorrowful voice:

"I'm sorry, Ben Tennyson.”

Ben didn't reply. He continued to look down, where the alien was, but kept his gaze fixed on the ground.

"I know I can't undo the pain you've felt," Azmuth stared at Ben, "but I never imagined this kind of thing would happen…”

"Are you sure?" asked Ben with an accusing tone.

"I beg your pardon?”

"Are you sure you didn't know the damage the Omnitrix is doing to me?”

"Ben Tennyson, the Omnitrix was created following all safety protocols, what's happening is an eventuality and-”

"Eventuality!? I'm being destroyed from the inside out and you call it an eventuality?" A tear of anger ran down Ben's cheek.

"But it was an eventuality! You weren't supposed to know what was going on inside the device.”

"And was hiding it from me really the best choice, great thinker Azmuth?”

"Hiding? What do you mean, hiding?”

"This damn watch of yours destroys and rebuilds me like a doll and makes me yearn for the next time like a masochistic madman!”

Azmuth didn't say anything, he tilted his head slightly to the left. Ben continued:

"I know about the Omnitranyl effect!”

"Omnitranyl effect?”

"Don't play dumb!” Ben grabbed Azmuth with one hand and brought him up to his face "Tell me by looking me in the eye if you don't know anything about the Omnitranyl Effect!”

"I know what Omnitranyl is…”

"I knew it!”

"But I don't understand how you know about it.”

"Your beloved assistant explained it all to me!" Ben placed Azmuth on the arm of the pilot's chair. He turned his back to the alien and continued: "He told me about Omnitranyl and its creations, which have a nasty habit of blowing the heads off those who use it.”

"What else did he tell you?”

"That you knew that sooner or later the effects of using the Omnitrix would start to affect me and, to try to delay this, you never allowed me to keep master control for too long.”

"I understand…”

"What I can't understand is that if you knew all this, how could you let me remain tied to the clock?” Ben stared at Azmuth, his expression one of disappointment and disgust "Unless you saw me as a mere lab rat for your experiments…”

"Young Tennyson, I need to interrupt you. I understand that you've been through some very difficult situations over the last few days, but your accusations are crossing the line -”

"Screw you!" Ben exploded.

Azmuth was startled.

"If what I'm saying is a lie, then explain to me what's happening to me!” Ben placed the Omnitrix in front of the scientist. "If I'm not a lab rat, then get that damn watch off my arm now!”

"If you want me to take the watch off, then I will-”

"You know very well that I don't want to!”

"And why not?”

"Because... Because I…”

"Because deep down you know that Albedo is lying.”

Ben lowered his arm. His breathing was labored and his heart was racing.

"What's happening to me?” he asked.

"Omnitranyl.”

Ben looked confused and impatient.

Azmuth continued:

"Lack of Omnitranyl, to be precise.”

"Please, I'm not up to any more charades. What the hell is that?”

"The Omnitrix transformation process consists of three stages” Azmuth held up the fingers of his right hand as he named each one "Temporal suspension, anesthesia and guided genetic evolution. Omnitranyl is the name of the anesthetic.”

Ben felt his legs losing strength. He put his hand on the pilot's chair and slid down to sit on the floor of the command bridge.

"Anesthetic?”

"Yes. After a lot of study, I managed to develop an anaesthetic powerful enough to neutralize the effects of the transformation, with an immediate onset of action and incapable of causing addiction.”

Ben rested his head on the back of the chair and stared at the ceiling.

"Does that mean that if you put the anesthetic back in, everything goes back to the way it was?”

"Yes. Albedo's claws pierced the tank that produces and stores it. The outside of the Omnitrix was closed to avoid exposing the inside of the device and aggravating the damage.”

"What about the images I saw inside my head? Are they real?”

"What images?”

"I saw my body as a child and my current body deforming entirely in what seemed to be transformations…”

"Yes, they're real.” said Azmuth.

"And how can I be alive after that?”

"The workings of the Omnitrix are extremely complex. Its construction was made possible by the culmination of ecophysiobiological knowledge combined with the most advanced technology.”

"I think I understood this from the moment I turned on the Heatblast for the first time. Just explain to me how it happens.” Ben turned his head and looked at Azmuth. "You said three stages.”

Azmuth put his hands behind his back and began to explain:

"The first stage is Temporal Suspension. Using chronosapian particles, the Omnitrix user's body is suspended in a time field that is out of sync with current time. In there, a few hours or even days can pass and, to outside observers, it will be seen as a green glow lasting seconds.”

"That explains a lot," said Ben. "But before I had this problem with the Omnitrix, I didn't remember being stuck in a transformation for so long.”

"That's because of the second stage: anesthesia.”

"And Omnitranyl is the name of this anesthetic.”

"Yes, Omnitranyl is inserted into your bloodstream as soon as the transformation begins. It has an anesthetic and hypnotic effect, leaving you in a state similar to deep sleep.”

Ben remained silent. He opened his mouth to say something, but shut it again.

"Any questions, Young Tennyson?”

"No, I was just remembering when I had surgery at twelve years old to remove my appendix. I don't remember anything after the doctor put the mask on my face and asked me to count from ten to zero.”

"A primitive way of anesthetizing someone, but that's it.”

With his arms resting on his knees, Ben stared at his hands, which were shaking slightly. He imagined for a moment what it would be like to be awake during his appendix surgery, but he didn't have to: the memories of his screams echoed in his mind.

"Should I continue?” Azmuth asked.

"Yes," Ben replied.

"The third and final stage is Guided Genetic Evolution. The Omnitrix stores the last state of all your cells like a photograph, then, using DNA vectors, it inserts the genetic material of another species into the nuclei.”

"That's cool…” Ben whispered, truly impressed.

"Now, with a new DNA dictating what the new phenotypic expression of each of these cells should be, the body begins to modify itself to match this genetic code. How tall are you?”

"Five point three feet tall.”

"For a Sonosorian with an average height of two point two feet tall, you have three feet of height incompatible with your new genetic code. Your bones and vertebrae compress to reach your new height.”

"You have no idea how much that hurts.”

"No, I don't... Maybe that's why, when I explained it in such a scientifically cold way to your grandfather, he got so nervous.”

"Grandpa nervous?”

Azmuth closed his eyes and nodded slightly.

"Young Tennyson, I told you this when you were ten years old and I've repeated it many times: the Omnitrix is not a weapon but it's not a toy either. I think you've now understood the complexity of the device you have strapped to your arm.”

Ben nodded positively.

"Tell me, Azmuth, why did you decide to create the Omnitrix?”

Azmuth brought his right arm in front of his body and stared at his palm, then said:

"Many people live their lives with one goal in mind. Some seek comfort, others wealth. Some want to change the world, others want to conquer the world. I was a person whose goal of changing the world seemed to me the noblest reason.”

Ben looked at the watch on his wrist.

"I thought that through science I might be able to change many people's lives for the better. How naïve I was…”

"What do you mean?”

"My fame as a great inventor didn't start because I created good inventions. Each new creation brought with it a new fear of the unknown, a new mistrust." Azmuth noticed that Ben was wearing a confused expression "You must not be understanding me, do you?”

"Actually, I don't.”

"Do you have one of those earthly portable communication devices?”

"A cell phone?”

"Try to imagine a human about a thousand Earth years ago coming into contact with a cell phone for the first time.”

"They'd find it extremely impressive, wouldn't they?”

"Impressive? How about strange? Or perhaps potentially dangerous?”

"But it's not dangerous.”

"No, it's not. But as I said, every new technology created brings with it a new fear. Ignorance is the basis of prejudice.”

Ben realized how much he didn't know about the Omnitrix and how much this ignorance caused him unnecessary suffering.

"Every time I created something new, rumors spread throughout the universe. Galvan Prime, the planet on which I put most of my efforts as a model of science for the universe, gradually began to be feared by the other species.”

"But this isn't your fault, it's theirs!”

"No, it's our fault too. The Galvanians began to use this fear as a bargaining chip and became more and more feared. Until war finally came.”

"I never knew that…”

"The education at the Plumbers' Academy has been better," said Azmuth.

Ben thought about saying that he had never attended the Academy, but decided to keep quiet about it.

"And what happened?" Ben asked.

"As much as I wanted to help everyone in the universe to have a better life, now it was my species that was in danger of being exterminated." Azmuth raised both hands palm upwards "These hands were now being used to destroy.”

Ben watched Azmuth's face carefully. He knew the Galvanian was old, but at that moment, his face looked much more aged than usual.

"With the help of those who suffered most from the war, we managed to stop the rampant killing, but the after-effects still lingered in the universe. Species such as the Arburian Pelarota  or Vladat have practically vanished from the universe. I needed to find a way not to let their existence disappear.”

"That's why you created the Omnitrix.”

"Yes, guilt made me create the largest species database in the universe” Azmuth looked at the watch on Ben's arm.

"When I feel guilty I eat a lot of potato French fries with chili…”

Azmuth smiled.

"But then, Azmuth, why did you let me keep the watch?”

"For a change, as soon as I created it, opposing forces saw in it the opportunity to achieve the desired power to conquer the universe. That's why letting it fall to Earth was the best thing that could have happened.”

"Really?”

"Of course! How many people could have become corrupted if they'd had something like the Omnitrix in their hands, and it came to be fixed on the boy who has within him the true meaning of what it is to be a hero!”

Ben remembered the girl on the balcony of the burning building, the old man under the ironwork. He felt a warmth inside his chest and his cheeks flushed. Then he remembered the mother and little girl in Central Park being rescued after their transformation crisis, the plumber soldier shot in the Eastern Power Sector. He felt the heat suddenly disappear.

"What happened?” Azmuth asked. His expression suddenly turned cold.

"I'm no sort of hero…”

"Ben Tennyson, if there's one thing I've learned in my life, it's that we'll make mistakes. We make choices that we often don't know the outcome of. We work more with chances than with certainties.”

"But people have been hurt.”

"Sometimes the only options we have are bad, but we are still forced to choose. Doctors, firemen, policemen, paramedics and Plumbers live this dilemma every day. “

Ben remained thoughtfully silent.

"Sorry to disturb your thoughts, but I made a promise to your grandfather. I promised him that I would remove the Omnitrix from your wrist.”

"What?" Ben got up from the floor and clutched the watch to his chest.

"He believes that I was unethical in hiding the way the Omnitrix worked and leaving you exposed to a possible side effect like the one that occurred with the lack of Omnitranyl is unacceptable.”

"I agree that if I'd known what we'd talked about now, I might have had a less tense week... “

"We're talking about omega-level technological information, if you had this information, someone could torture you to get it out of you. If I took the Omnitrix from you, it was only a matter of time before they came after it again. In other words, I had no good options…”

"And you still had to choose.”

"Exactly…”

"But the choice can't be yours alone," said Ben. "The Omnitrix has been with me for a long time, my opinion is no use!?”

"I completely agree.”

"I'll tell you what, I'll talk to Grandpa first. He can't decide on this alone. It's unfair!”

"But you won't be able to use the Omnitrix in its current state…”

"Can't you fix it?”

"Yes, I can, but not here. Not without my equipment.”

Suddenly, a muffled noise accompanied by a slight tremor reached the ship.

"What was that?” Ben asked

"It's probably effect of the confrontation with Albedo.”

Ben stared at the green glow of the clock. 

"What happened, Tennyson?”

"Nothing. I can keep the watch off for a while longer.” A smile broke out on Ben's face as he started walking towards the exit of the command bridge "You have no idea how much I needed to talk to you! Thank you very much, Azmu-”

"Where are you going?”

"I'm going to help my friends and Grandpa. They're the ones fighting Albedo, aren't they?”

"Don't be reckless, come back here!” Azmuth jumped off the arm of the chair and walked to the place where he had been carrying out his experiments earlier. "I can't fix the Omnitrix at the moment, but there is something I can do.”

Ben stepped back from the door. Azmuth jumped over the table and picked up a syringe with a petrol-blue liquid inside. 

"What's this?”

"Omnitranyl was created from my studies of a rather friable ore found on the planet Calcunète. I obtained a sample while we were on our way here and using materials from the medical room I was able to produce a solution that mimics the effects of anesthetic.”

"So that solves the watch problem?”

"More or less. Unlike the Omnitrix, which continuously produces anesthetic to compensate for its consumption, I don't have an infinite sample of this drug. Once injected, each time you transform a part of the anesthetic will be consumed.”

"So I can transform very few times?”

"Technically, yes," said Azmuth, "but I've thought of an alternative so that the effect lasts longer. Please show me your arm.”

Ben raised his arm, with the core of the Omnitrix pointing downwards. Azmuth approached the bend of the teenager's elbow, palpated a vein and warned:

"I'm going to inject it now.”

"Okay.”

Azmuth inserted the needle into Ben's arm and injected the entire volume of the syringe. Then he said:

"Now show me the Omnitrix.”

Ben rotated his arm.

Azmuth pressed a button on the side of the device and began to turn the core of the watch. Ben tried to memorize which movements he was making so that he could try to replicate them in the future, but after the eighteenth spin, he lost count and gave up. Finally, when the clock made a high-pitched, joyful sound, the scientist said:

"I'm done. Are you ready, Ben?”

"I don't know, you didn't tell me what you did! I thought we were past that stage…”

"The Omnitrix is now configured to be activated with a thought from you. Unlike the usual transformations, it will be able to restrict the formation of the construct to just a few parts of your body, so you'll be able to save the anesthetic.”

"I don't know if it made much difference now that you explained to me. In the end I still didn't quite understand…”

"You learned to use the watch by wearing it, so” Azmuth pressed the core of the watch.

A green light enveloped Ben and, in a matter of moments, went out. His left wrist was now empty.

"Ben?" said a familiar female voice.

Ben, who had his back to the command bridge exit, turned his head over his left shoulder and saw Gwen and Kevin standing together in the doorway.

"W-what did you..." said Gwen.

Ben turned his body and, with his arms wide open and a huge smile on his face, said:

"Gwen, Kevin, how I've missed you!”

In the middle of his chest, the Omnitrix symbol glowed brightly.

Chapter Text

The last piece of the crystal dome crumbled to the ground and Max flew off, heading for the place where Albedo had fallen. He flew over the barren terrain consumed by the explosion, reached the pine forest and continued for a few more feet until he noticed a path of broken branches that ended in a hole through the trees.

He carefully lowered his height, keeping an eye on his viewfinder, his additional cameras and the danger sensors. He landed in the thickly wooded area, with the wind echoing a symphony of swaying leaves.

He approached where Albedo had been forced to land. A hole about thirty feet in diameter marked the spot, but there was no sign of the alien.

Could he have escaped? ― he thought.

Worse than an evident danger is the uncertainty of its presence. The Magistrate pressed a button on his arm and activated the scanner on his visor. He looked at the forest around him, but found no sign of heat. He raised his head towards the treetops, but no sign of life was detected. He focused on the crater in front of him, looking for genetic material, traces of odors or anything else that might indicate where the alien might have fled.

A small signal beeped on his screen. A zoom automatically focused on the subject: a small piece of organic matter. A fingernail perhaps?

Max slid down the soft earth sides of the hole and crouched down to pick up the organic sample.

A ball of fire enveloped Max, filled the opening and grew into the sky, burning the branches of the trees around the crater.

The armor's thrusters propelled him out of the flames to a safe distance. Alerts beeped frantically on the display. Max planted his feet on the ground and immediately dropped to one knee. He stared at the column of dark smoke rising from inside the crater.

A huge hand appeared and touched the edge of the hole. The horned head followed, with eyes as bright as fire and heavy, noisy breathing. The huge body of the evolved Vaxasaurian rose completely out of the ground.

Max felt his vision becoming blurred, perhaps it was the excessive blood loss, he couldn't quite tell. The fact is that he needed to react somehow, to get out of there. The creature's gaze made its purpose clear.

◇───────◇───────◇

Ben wrapped his arms around Gwen and Kevin's necks. He was really happy to see them there.

"Wait a minute, Ben," said Gwen, "what are you doing here?"

He pulled away from the hug and said:

"I've come to help you! Azmuth told me you were up against Albedo, so I figured you needed help." Ben, who was always bad with details, finally noticed the violet marks on his cousin's face and hair "Gwen, what was that?"

"Long story, Tennyson," said Kevin, "Now... would you like to explain to us what that is?" he pointed to the Omnitrix symbol on Ben's chest.

Ben looked down at the symbol and gave a confused expression. He turned to Azmuth and asked:

"Have I become an alien now?"

"You know that defining someone as an alien depends on the reference, right?" Azmuth said: "You can be defined as an alien by me."

"You understood me!"

"Close your eyes for a moment."

Ben obeyed.

"Now focus your attention on your right arm and try to imagine your limb as if it were the arm of a Pyronite."

"Whose?" said Ben, raising an eyebrow but not opening his eyes.

"Heatblast, you blockhead," said Kevin. "Seriously, how can a knucklehead like that, who barely knows the name of his own species, be responsible for a watch that - what the hell is that!?"

Ben opened his eyes and saw that his right arm was covered up to the elbow in magma rocks, with a small river of lava flowing between them. His fingers were like glowing stones. It wasn't such an unusual sight for Ben, but when he noticed that his other arm was as simple as a human's, he finally understood.

"That's really cool!" said Ben.

"Remember, avoid making big transformations, otherwise the anesthetic will be consumed much faster than expected," said Azmuth. "Master control is activated, but focus on aliens you already know. We're in no condition to keep experimenting with new species."

"But, Ben..." said Gwen. "What about the problem with the Omnitrix? Doesn't it hurt anymore when you transform? What was causing the problem? What guarantees that it won't come back?"

"Gwen..." Ben held his cousin by the arms and looked deep into her eyes. - "I'm fine."

The girl's breathing calmed down.

"I don't know the details of everything you've done for me, but I do know that I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for your help," Ben looked at his friend, "Kevin's," and continued to look at the others in the room, "Eunice and Charmcaster. Charmcaster!? - And he took a step back.

"Bu!" she said ironically.

"What is she doing here?"

"Believe it or not, she also helped you..." said Gwen.

"What?"

"And now she's going to help us beat Albedo."

"Do I need to?" said Enchantress "Didn't your old man already manage to defeat him?"

"What's she talking about?" Azmuth asked.

Eunice stepped between Gwen and Kevin and, moving closer to the scientist, said:

"We saw the body of an evolved crystalsapien hurtling through the sky and falling in the middle of the forest. We believe that the Magistrate may have defeated Albedo."

"I doubt it very much!" said Azmuth. "As long as the Ultimatrix isn't removed from his arm, he's still a threat. We need to get to him immediately!"

"Yes, Mr. Azmuth" Eunice sat down in the pilot's chair and began to start the ship's departure processes.

The plumbing spacecraft began to rise from the ground, kicking up dust and leaves. The sound of the engines propagated through the trees and the cloudless blue sky became more and more visible from the main window of the command bridge. Once the ship had passed the height of the trees, an explosion was seen in the landscape to the east, raising a column of dark smoke.

 "The bastard's not dead yet!" shouted Kevin.

The ship moved towards the column of smoke. Until it reached the vicinity, three more explosions were observed in the area. Two trees fell over with the third explosion, opening up an area where the ground could be seen from the sky.

The spacecraft crew approached the window together, curious to see what was going on. The sight made them stomach turn...

"Grandpa!" Ben slammed both open hands on the window.

"How awful!" Eunice covered her mouth in horror.

Gwen's hair began to rise and her eyes began to glow violet.

"I'm going to kill this wretch!" Kevin shouted.

Ben turned his back to the window and shot towards the exit. Gwen and Kevin followed close behind. Eunice ran to her bag and shouted:

"Kevin, wait!"

He stopped suddenly and turned to her. Eunice grabbed his left arm and put something in his hand.

"Here, I couldn't give it to you before," said the girl.

Kevin looked at the ten rings in her hand. He picked up a thicker one in a shiny black color and looked at the details.

"These are rings made from rocks from the Calcùnete market. Unfortunately I won't be able to explain each one now, but at least this one I need to talk about" Eunice took out a yellow ring and showed it to Kevin "The main ore is inside this yellow coating. It can't be exposed to the air, so be careful."

"What happens?" Kevin asked.

"It explodes." Eunice handed him a folded piece of paper "I've written the ore in each of the rings here. If you have time, try reading it."

"Got it." Kevin began to put a ring on each finger and put the paper in his back pocket. "Thanks, blondie!"

Ben and Gwen were already at the door leading to the boarding ramp. As soon as the ramp started to descend, the wind invaded the spaceship.

"Don't you want us to land first?" shouted Eunice over the wind.

"No need," shouted Kevin, who ran past his friends and jumped out the door.

Gwen and Ben jumped after him.

Kevin was obviously the first to hit the ground. The impact of his landing opened up a small crater. His body was coated in a shiny black rock that resembled dark obsidian.

Gwen descended at high speed. With just a few feet to go, she slowed down, floating gently until she touched the ground. The violet strands of her hair glowed and the blemishes on her skin shone brightly.

With his four blue and black wings, Ben glided in a downward spiral in the air. A cold mist formed as he approached. He rebounded slightly upwards and let himself fall, planting both feet on the ground, bending his knees and body. As usual, his wings folded over him, covering him in a sinister cloak. Under the hood, his green eyes shone from within the shadow that covered his face.

Albedo carried a maniacal, toothy grin on his face. He held his arm high in the air, holding Grandpa Max's collapsed body by the head, proudly displaying the fruit of his hunt. The galvanic armor shattered at the mere sway of the forest wind. Below Max, a pool of blood was forming from where his right arm should have been.

Chapter Text

"Look, old man,” Albedo turned his head slightly towards Max without taking his eyes off the teenagers, ”they've come for you. Unfortunately, we won't be able to continue our conversation."

Albedo knew he had the advantage. As long as he had Magistrate Tennyson's unconscious body in his hands, no one would dare attack him.

He heard Azmuth's hoarse voice echoing from the spacecraft's speakers and spreading through the trees:

"Albedo, you stupid boy, stop this insanity at once!"

Albedo was breathing heavily. A frothy stream of satisfaction flowed from his Vaxasaurian lips. The person he most envied and even once admired was now looking at him with the respect he deserved. The smile grew even wider on his sickly face.

"What are you saying, Azmuth?" His voice was like a roar "I've never been as sane as I am now..."

Albedo lifted Max's body, glared at him and said:

"He took something from me and it's only fair that I take something from him too, don't you think?"

An icy mist seeped out from between Ben's clenched teeth.

Azmuth echoed:

"Ultimatrix, voice command mode."

Albedo raised his head slightly towards the plumber spaceship. There was a certain degree of confusion in his eyes.

The scientist continued:

"Disengage ultimatrix, command code..."

Albedo shouted in desperation:

"Stop, Azmuth!"

"Zero, zero, zero..."

"Don't do it!" Albedo placed his free hand on the ultimatrix symbol and lowered his eyes.

"Release coupling, zero" concluded Azmuth.

Silence filled the forest.

The teenagers tensed their muscles, preparing to advance.

Albedo remained motionless for a few seconds and then raised his head in an even more cynical smile:

"Do you really think I wouldn't deactivate that command at the first opportunity? You hired me as one of your assistants for a reason, and it wasn't for my beauty."

In a long scream in which every syllable was prolonged to make clear the intensity of his anger, Ben roared:

"Aaaaalbeeeeedooooo!" When he realized that the alien was staring at him, he continued in a firm, paused manner "Release. My.

Grandpa."

The alien looked at the teenager with disgust.

"Why don't you come and get it?"

Even though his eyes were burning with fury, a crooked smile of debauchery appeared on Ben's lips.

"Get what?” asked Ben.

Albedo turned to his human trophy and was shocked to realize that a violet cloud covered the magistrate's entire body. From his hand, which had previously been holding Max's head, he felt his fingers slip away in a puff of smoke.

"What the hell is that?"

He raised his head towards the plumber's spaceship and realized that Max had somehow been teleported, as his body now appeared from within a violet cloud at the opening of the access ramp. A silver-haired sorceress was moving her hands to keep his unconscious body floating in the air, carrying him into the ship.

"You bastards...” said Albedo.

He raised his right arm, turning it into a thick, multi-shot barrel, and aimed it at the spaceship.

Suddenly, there was a strong pressure in his abdomen. There was nothing in his stomach, yet he felt some liquid content escape through his clenched teeth. Something hit him so hard that he slid his huge body back a few feet. He lowered his gaze to the black obsidian-bodied teenager who stood with his arm straight in the center of his stomach.

Albedo raised both arms above his head to strike Kevin when a massive tree, being used as a baseball bat by Gwen and her giant magical hands, hit his entire alien upper body.

With the impact, the tree split in two, throwing each half to one side of the forest. Albedo felt his vision blur and darken. He became unbalanced, his head and torso tilting backwards. He blinked a few times, trying to regain his vision, and then a winged figure appeared in the sky. He couldn't make out what it was, but if it had wings before, it was gone now. And it was getting closer. A humanoid creature with two arms and... Wait a minute, not two, three arms.

Ben had added a muscular red arm to the underside of his right side. His first right arm, transformed into a magmatic pyronite rock, glowed brightly. He grabbed Albedo's head and neck at the same time and pushed him towards the ground with enough brutality to make him bounce once against the ground. Finally, he released all the energy accumulated in his Heatblast ’s arm in a powerful column of fire.

◇───────◇───────◇

Inside the spaceship, Charmcaster carried Max Tennyson's body floating like an invisible medical stretcher. Eunice nimbly removed the remaining pieces of armor attached to him. They made their way to the room adapted for medical treatment and, as soon as the automatic door opened, mechanical arms emerged from inside the room to receive their patient. Azmuth was standing next to the medical monitors, typing up protocols and assessing the first vital signs that were obtained by the mechanical arms.

"Mr. Azmuth, he's pale and his pulse is weak!"

"The spaceship's computer is already starting the volume resuscitation protocols, but what worries me..."

Azmuth turned towards Max's body, which was positioned on the medical bed. He stared at the serious wound on his right arm. There were signs of burns and significant damage to bone and muscle structures. Even if they found Max's arm, which seemed impossible, it might not be capable of being reattached.

"What are you planning for the old man?" asked Encantriz.

"First, stabilize him, and-” said Eunice before being interrupted.

"Yes, that I know, I'm talking about his arm."

"Close the wound, right, Mr. Azmuth?" Eunice stared at the scientist.

"Do you have any other ideas, young lady?" Azmuth directed the question to Charmcaster.

"No, I don't. It's just that I know an Arkhenian spell that helps to close wounds like this quickly, but -"

"But?" Azmuth said

"But he wouldn't be able to use any kind of prosthesis afterwards."

"What do you mean?"

"It's a spell created by victims of war, at a time when prostheses weren't thought of. It closes the wound and removes the existence of that part of the body from the person's brain, so they don't have to suffer later because of the missing limb. It's as if the person had already been born without it."

The mechanical arms worked tirelessly, positioning masks for oxygenation, obtaining venous access for the infusion of saline, while the blood for the transfusion was prepared. The monitors beeped at a regular, rapid pace.

Azmuth remained silent for a few moments, lost in thought.

"Mr. Azmuth?"

"Sorry, Eunice, it's just that I don't feel I have any good options to help Max at the moment."

"We don't have any prostheses here, sir, so closing the wound is the best option before he goes into shock."

"The armor..." said the scientist, more to himself than to anyone listening.

"I beg your pardon?"

"I was thinking of the Galvanian armor. Take her right arm and put it on, but its structure isn't compatible with human anatomy."

"Now that you've said it, I've thought of something!" said Eunice excitedly. "We have an Architect here on the ship!"

"What's that?"

"An Architect. When the Magistrate and I landed on Galvan B, I used the Architect device to model the moonscape around the spaceship and camouflage us. We can use it to alter the structure of the armor in a prosthesis."

"Excellent idea, Eunice, so bring it immediately!"

"Yes, sir!" Eunice went through the door into the corridor.

"And you, young lady, would you be able to help us repair the damaged tissue so that he can receive the prosthesis?"

"How long are you going to take?" Charmcaster asked "His wound is too bad to keep bleeding like that, I can reduce the damage a little, but without something to connect one end to the other, he'll bleed to death."

"Human anatomy isn't that complex, I should be able to structure a prosthesis in a few minutes."

Charmcaster looked at the scientist with a “right, you arrogant prick” expression and turned her attention to Max. She made her staff appear in her right hand and then shrank it to the size of a wand. With it, he began to draw circles around the injury.

Eunice rushed into the room carrying in one hand the cube with greenish galvanic beams and in the other a device that resembled a cross between a toaster, a plate scale and a tablet.

"Here, Mr. Azmuth, the Architect and the other remaining galvanic armor."

"Great, Eunice, now I need you to use your knowledge of physiology to program an interface that connects to Max's neurological system, while I structure the anatomy of the prosthesis."

For several long minutes, the only sounds in the room were the beeps of the machines and the mechanical arms. Eunice typed frantically on one of the medical computers. Charmcaster cleaned the wound and restored nerves and vessels that had been destroyed in the attack. Azmuth, meanwhile, kept his hands on one of the Architect's “plates”, sliding his fingers across a hologram of a human arm while the galvanic cube floated, trembled and changed its shape to a pyramid or dodecahedron on the second “plate”.

Suddenly, one of the monitors emitted a shrill warning accompanied by the monotone voice of the ship's computer:

"Patient in volume-refractory shock. Risk of cardiorespiratory arrest."

“Eunice?” asked Azmuth.

"I'm finished, sir."

"Very well, here" Azmuth handed the now octahedron to Eunice and then said to Charmcaster. "We're ready!"

"Right, bring it in."

Eunice pressed a button on the device, which transformed into a blackened gelatinous goo until it settled into the perfect structure of a human right arm. She placed the prosthesis on the stretcher near the wound and walked away. Encantriz again took the lead and echoed:

"Cureta Vhart Dae."

Bone, muscle, nerves, vessels and skin began to grow as if they were looking for the opposite side of a wound to close. When they touched the metal surface of the prosthesis, they magically attached themselves to their anatomical-mechanical counterparts.

"And now?" Azmuth asked.

"Now it's up to the old man..." said Charmcaster.

◇───────◇───────◇

As soon as the column of fire ceased, Ben rose to his feet and stood over the Vaxasaurian's massive, immobile chest. He stared at the alien's burnt face. It was common for him to say something ironic after a victory, but nothing came to mind at the moment. He wasn't in the mood.

Suddenly he felt two snakes coiled around his abdomen. Then a strong jolt pulled him off the alien moments before Albedo's hands collided in a powerful palm strike.

"Bloody insects..." grunted Albedo.

Gwen, who controlled the magic snakes, dropped Ben to the ground behind her, who fell awkwardly to the ground.

"Don't get distracted, Ben!" Gwen said "This will only end when the superomnitrix comes out of his wrist!"

Feeling his ego bruised by the slip, Ben leaned on a nearby tree and picked himself up off the soft ground.

Albedo also began to rise. Slowly he turned his body, resting one arm at a time on the ground.

Kevin, who was still clad in dense black obsidian, crossed between the cousins and set off towards the villain. He transformed his right hand into an enormous flat ball and prepared to strike.

The alien raised one of its arms slightly and fired three projectiles at the ground near Kevin, without hitting him, raising a wall of fire and black smoke.

Kevin stopped his advance, closed his eyes and covered his face with his arms. With no sight, he didn't see the metallic ball of thorns from Albedo's tail heading for his abdomen. The obsidian cracked. The teenager's body was thrown through the air, over his friends and into the trees.

Gwen, who had turned her head slightly to look at Kevin, instinctively projected a thick spherical shield around herself. Albedo had advanced in the best rhino attack style at an impressive speed for his size. The horn on the alien's nose pierced the shield, but remained contained centimeters before hitting Gwen's chest.

She felt her heart beating frantically. First she stared at the horn, then at Albedo's frustrated eyes.

The alien then began to shake his head wildly in all directions, turning the shield and Gwen into a huge rattling bell. Finally, the shield detached from the tip of its horn and the sphere flew off to the side, destroying the trees in its path.

"I may be wrong,” said Albedo, turning his head towards Ben Tennyson, ”but I had the impression of feeling my horn tearing through soft skin."

Ben gritted his teeth and emitted an incomprehensible grunt. His eyes filled with a brilliant green and then, with a cry of fury, he launched two powerful lasers towards Albedo's head.

The alien defended himself with his left arm. The beams scorched his tough hide, raising a stream of white smoke from each point where they hit him. With his other arm, he took aim at the teenager.

Sensing an attack, Ben interrupted the lasers and metamorphosed his legs into XLR8's legs. He quickly accelerated backwards, dodging the first two missiles that came towards him with a high-pitched hiss. He kept moving backwards with each new shot, but the soft ground limited his run. He stretched out his green Wildvine arm and grabbed the branch of a tree a good few meters away from him. He spun around the branch and landed on it. He barely had time to face his opponent when one of the missiles hit the tree trunk, forcing him to jump into the nearest vegetation.

The sounds of the missiles exploding echoed through the forest. The flames took over one tree after another.

Kevin jumped over a fallen tree trunk and advanced behind Albedo. His body was coated in a yellowish glass full of air bubbles trapped inside. He threw his arms back and his limbs turned into long blades. He took advantage of the fact that his opponent was busy attacking Ben and, in a double twist, severed both of Albedo's calf tendons.

Without such important structures to support him, the alien immediately fell to his knees, resting his left arm on the ground. Two of his missiles were still in the air, heading towards Ben.

This is my chance! thought Ben, jumping down from the branch.

With the pincer arms of the Lodestar , Ben magnetized the projectiles and deflected them behind him, then turned his arms and altered the path of the missiles again, launching them at the right side of the Vaxasaurian's head and chest.

Albedo roared and put his other hand on the ground. He was breathing heavily. He raised his head slightly and saw a female silhouette walking through the trees towards him. Suddenly, a huge hand made of roots emerged from the ground in front of him, grabbed his head and pulled him down. He flexed the muscles in his arms, pushing the ground beneath him. With difficulty, he tried again to look at the silhouette through the roots.

Violet spots glowed across the girl's body, many of them straight lines like cuts. Her hair levitated like the tentacles of an octopus. Every step she took towards Albedo, the harder the plant hand pulled on the alien's head.

"Damned anodite..." Albedo grunted through clenched teeth.

With only a few meters left to reach the alien, Gwen moved her open hands over each other and placed the flesh of her middle fingers against each other:

" Vindicta Gaia... "

The ground shook and a closed fist made of roots sprouted from under Albedo, punching him square in the abdomen. With the force of the blow, the Vaxasaurian rose a few meters into the air and fell face down on the ground with a loud thud.

After so many minutes of explosions, missiles whistling through the air and trees being shattered, silence finally enveloped the forest.

Kevin and Ben approached Gwen, observing the alien's massive body. No one wanted to declare victory. They were anxiously awaiting the alien's de-transformation, but it wasn't coming. Ben turned his gaze to the violet cuts on Gwen's arms and opened his mouth to speak when his cousin interrupted him:

"I'm fine. They're already healing."

Ben nodded slightly and went back to watching the fallen alien.

"Since when did that bastard get so tough?" Kevin asked.

“The Humungousaur would have undone the transformation ages ago,” said Gwen.

“It's not like that,” said Ben, “it would have held up just as well. Let's not underestimate it..."

Albedo's left arm began to slide along the ground, keeping his hand supported and raising his elbow. The teenagers took two steps back and prepared to attack again. The alien supported his other arm and lifted his torso in one go. It filled its lungs and emitted a loud, long Vaxasaurian roar into the sky. The sound was so violent that it forced the three teenagers to cover their ears to protect themselves from the noise.

Once he had emptied all his lungs, Albedo took two more deep breaths and then started laughing.

"What's gotten into that sicko?" Kevin asked.

"Don't you understand?" Ben said with a cold expression "He's laughing at us..."

Yes, an insane, proud “you'll need a lot more than that if you really want to kill me” laugh

◇───────◇───────◇

In the depths of the forest, an armored van built from scraps of alien parts was creating its own route, breaking branches with its windshield and dodging trees.

"Come on, Rhomboid, my man,” said Argit, sitting in the middle of the back seat, ”step on it!"

In his characteristic thin voice, Rhomboid replied:

"I'm going as fast as I can..."

"I don't know, Argit,” said Octagon. The older Vreedle sat in the seat next to the driver "do you really think that's a good idea?"

"Of course not! I thought it was a terrible idea from the start!" Argit replied "but if everyone's going to be there, I obviously want to say that I took part too! The noise is coming from that side, turn right!"

The van made a sharp left turn.

"You idiot, didn't I say right?"

"Rhomboid always gets confused when it comes to knowing what's right and left,” said Octagon.

"And why did you leave him behind the wheel if he doesn't even know something silly like that?"

"Octagon, I'm already starting to get offended" the younger Vreedle turned the wheel to the right, "can I throw him out of the window now?"

"Hey, Rhomboid, buddy, let's take it easy, I didn't mean to..." Argit moved his head sideways with a curious expression. "The sound stopped."

"Where am I going now?" asked Rhomboid, braking the van sharply on the soft forest floor.

“Is it over?” said Octagon, "wishing I'd shot him or two."

A powerful roar spread through the forest, making the walls of the van shake.

"It's not over!" Argit said, leaning his right hand on the driver's seat and pointing in the direction with his other hand "Come on, Rhomboid, in that direction."

The van screeched to a halt with the sudden acceleration and headed almost straight for the source of the sound.

"Watch out!" shouted Octagon, pointing to a half-broken tree with its tip stuck in the ground, making a sort of ramp.

The tires on the left side of the van climbed up the trunk, lifting the vehicle into the air towards the treetops. Branches and leaves covered the windshield, completely obscuring the vision of the passengers who were screaming desperately. As soon as they broke through the canopy, they found themselves up against the back of the head of a supreme vaxasaurian who was laughing madly.

With a deafening sound, the bumper of the van struck the alien squarely in the back of the head, pushing his face violently into the ground.

Chapter Text

After the impact, the Vreedles' vehicle landed awkwardly on the ground, its wheels sliding on the earth as it tried to brake. It made a left turn and only stopped when the right side of the van hit a tree.

Rhomboid kept his jaw locked and his chest heaving. Octagon, his eyes bulging, held onto the roof support above the passenger window with both hands. Argit, for his part, dug his nails as deep as he could into the seat cushion. He tried to turn his head to look out of the window, but the desperation of a few seconds ago made his spines bristle and pinned his head and back to the back of the seat. The only thing left to do was peek out of the corner of her eye.

Outside the vehicle, the teenagers looked from the creature to the van and from the van to the creature.

“But what was that?” Gwen asked.

“Who are these crazy people?” said Ben.

“Man, I think that's the most painful blow we've been able to deal that miserable bastard” Kevin grinned at the corner of his mouth.

“What do you mean?” said Gwen, slightly offended because just a few minutes ago she had managed to lift the alien off the ground with a single magic punch.

“For someone as arrogant as Albedo,” Kevin explained, trying to hold back his laughter, “that was a huge blow to his ego.”

“That's right!” Ben added “and we have to make sure he never forgets it!”

“I just wish it had been effective enough for him to de-transform,” said Gwen.

Albedo lay face down in the dirt. Green lights flickered on a few points of his body, such as his arms, ankles and the right side of his torso, but nothing that would cover him completely and undo his Vaxasaurian form.

Ben stared at the few wounds on the creature and the luminous beams emanating from within them.

“He's resisting the de-tranformation...”

“How?”

“Here, look” Ben pointed at the lights “The Ultimatrix is trying to deactivate it and he's not letting it.”

Kevin raised his right arm, deforming it into a glassy yellow blade, and said:

“So let's give it one final blow and help the watch finish it off!”

The van's passenger side door opened noisily and out stepped Argit, followed by Octagon and Rhomboid. Argit was wearing a diagonal leather belt with grenades attached. At his waist was a holster with two laser pistols. The Vreedle brothers were each holding a photon cannon. Argit began to speak aloud:

“What is this bizarre thing lying on the ground? Don't tell me that's Albedo... Although I wouldn't be surprised if it were.” He closed his eyes and continued to gesture arrogantly: “The guy has a fetish for transforming himself into bizarre things. He reminds me a lot of an acquaintance of mine who has the same bad habit. Speaking of him, Ben Tennyson, my man...” Argit opened his eyes and turned his face towards Ben. “Wait, what are you going to do?”

What Argit saw was Ben running towards him at high speed, his legs were black and blue like a kineceleran's and his arms were thick, with the orange fur of an Appoplexian. His expression carried an enormous sense of urgency. With only a few meters to go, Ben jumped out and grabbed Argit and the Vreedle in a single embrace and threw them aside towards the ground.

The van exploded into pieces as if it had been hit by a train. Albedo had advanced at extreme speed against the vehicle and was now violently punching through what remained of the fittings. Each blow was accompanied by a ferocious roar.

Ben de-transformed and said quietly to Argit and the Vreedles:

“Let's get out of here!”

Argit didn't take a second to obey Ben's orders and crawled off into the forest. The Vreedles, on the other hand, stood up and positioned their photon cannons aimed at Albedo.

“That bastard!” said Octagon

“That van was a gift from Mom, you bastard!” said Rhomboid, there was a bit of a whine in his thin voice.

“Guys, what are you doing?” said Ben.

The Vreedle fired. A powerful beam of light was emitted from each weapons, hitting Albedo's left arm and torso. The creature lurched slightly to the right, but quickly recovered and faced them.

“Oh, no...” Ben stepped between the brothers and lifted Diamondhead's right leg. As soon as he planted his foot on the ground, he shouted to the Vreedles “Run now!”

A wall of greenish crystal rose from the ground and expanded in seconds. But just as suddenly as it was created, it was also suddenly destroyed by Albedo's shoulder thrust.

With a semi-circular movement of his arm, the Vaxasaurian struck both Vreedles with the back of his hand, knocking them into the trees. Ben, who had gone under Albedo's arm, tried to run, but was then grabbed by the creature.

He was lifted up by the alien to eye level. The moment Ben faced the creature, he immediately realized that Albedo had lost his sanity completely. They were the same eyes as when he tried to rip the Omnitrix from his chest. Fear filled him. He began to tremble. He felt the creature's hand squeeze him until it almost broke his bones, but he couldn't do anything.

The vaxasaurian opened its mouth. Ben felt huge, hot, fetid breath hit his face. He stared at the creature's teeth and only one thought repeated itself over and over in his mind:

I'm going to die...

I'm going to die...

I'm going to die...

The huge mouth approached his head.

I'm going to die...

The cavern of teeth suddenly closed moments before it hit him. Kevin's greenish metal body punching the creature in the face flashed across his field of vision.

A thin violet film covered Ben's entire body in the almost non-existent space between his skin and the Vaxasaurian's hand. Suddenly the film expanded into a huge sphere and forced the creature to open its left hand.

Gwen moved her arms as if to grab the air in front of her and pulled it towards her. Immediately the sphere floated in her direction.

Albedo planted his right foot on the ground to avoid falling off balance and quickly straightened his body, clenched his right fist and struck Kevin while he was still in the air. The teenager cut through the sky at high speed and smashed through the thick trunk of a pine tree, causing the top to topple forward.

The alien raised his eyes towards the violet sphere and set off at a thirsty run. It wanted more than ever to destroy the sphere and its contents. He raised his arm to catch it when he felt a strong impact on his abdomen that reversed the distance he had traveled and threw him backwards against two trees. He rested his hand on his abdomen and grunted as he faced the one who had hit him.

Vulkanus raised his huge sledgehammer with a tadenite base, resting it on his left shoulder, then said:

“You have no idea how much I've been waiting for this...”

Gwen supported Ben on the ground and undid the sphere. With one arm resting on his shoulder, she questioned and checked that her cousin was all right.

Albedo brought his arm back and grabbed one of the trees. In a single movement, he plucked it from the ground and threw it towards Vulkanus. A beam of black mana hit the tree in midair and shattered it into several dry, rotting fragments.

Ben and Gwen shielded their faces with their arms. With their eyes covered, they didn't see the approach of the owner of an arrogant, muffled voice saying:

“Hello, Gwen!” Said Michael Morningstar, the Darkstar, “still as charming as ever.”

The cousins stared at the dark-clothed figure and the metal mask that hid his grotesque appearance.

“You're still great too, Michael,” said Gwen frivolously.

A few meters away, Octagon and Rhomboid were still intent on avenging the destruction of their van. With cries of fury that, whether they meant to or not, were more comical than frightening, the brothers fired their cannons at Albedo, who was protecting himself with his forearms.

Taking advantage of the low guard, a giant mutant rat came out from behind the trees and smashed its huge front teeth into the Vaxasaurian's neck. Albedo roared in pain and raised his arms over his shoulder, grabbing the mutant creature. With difficulty, he released it from his grasp and threw it onto its right side.

The rat emitted a horrible squeal as it struggled in the air. About to hit a thorny trunk, two strong, grayish arms grabbed the animal in mid-air. Thumbskull, with his hair resembling a huge fingernail on his forehead, placed the mutant creature on the ground as it fled into the forest.

A laugh was heard, followed by:

“Na-ah, Albedo, don't you know you can't mistreat animals for fun anymore?” Zomboso came out from behind Thumbskull accompanied by Frightwig and Acid Breath.

Albedo moved his head quickly, facing one opponent after another. His breathing became more ragged with each new individual that appeared on the edge of the clearing.

Next to Ben, Rojo, wearing her armor made from stolen alien technology, appeared, making the final adjustments to her gauntlets. A unison shout of “Yes, My Lord” made people turn towards the Forever Knights emerging from the left side of the forest. A high-pitched sound drew attention to the skies where a mutant bird flew over the treetops accompanied by Plumbing spaceships.

Ben and Gwen looked at each other with a confused expression. Kevin approached them and, observing the new visitors, said:

“Finally, guys, I thought you'd chicken out” and smiled debauchedly.

◇───────◇───────◇

Earlier, when Gwen was out of control of her powers, Charmcaster had received a call. Since she was busy trying to stop Gwen, the sorceress assigned Kevin to take the call and threw her cell phone at him.

Kevin didn't recognize the number, put the cell phone to his ear and said a suspicious hello. He heard a naughty voice answer:

“That voice... Kev, buddy, it's been so long!”

“Argit! But how are you managing to make a call?”

“I thought I'd called the sorceress's phone, did I dial the wrong one?”

“No, you called right, this is the Charmcaster's cell phone.”

“And what are you doing with her cell phone, Kevin? Don't tell me you've dumped the pretty redhead. Please don't say that, I was rooting for you guys so much...”

“Argit, shut up and tell me, how are you managing to make calls? The electromagnetic pulse from the bomb should have knocked out the power to the whole city!”

“My friend, I present to you the Infranet, a connection network built with the best knowledge of the underworld, used only in extreme emergency situations!”

“And why am I only finding out about this now?”

“You know, Kevin. After you decided to go over to the good guys' side, we couldn't risk this information falling into the hands of the Plumbers.”

“And yet you made a point of telling him at the first opportunity,” said a third voice.

“Argit, who was that who spoke now?” Kevin asked.

“So, we're on a group call. It's important for you to know that Infranet was only possible thanks to the efforts of everyone here. Take a step back from the screen and activate the camera.”

Kevin obeyed and as soon as he activated it, the faces of various villains began to appear on the screen: Dr. Animo, Zomboso, Vulkanus, Darkstar, Forever Knights, Rojo, Vreedles and, of course, Argit.

“The Infranet is a mixture of human technology, aliens, magic and a lot of other things that I don't really understand,” said Argit. “As much as everyone here hates each other, this communication channel is used for situations in which we suspect that the planet Earth or Bellwood could be at great risk. After all, this is where we live and if there's anything we can do in a situation of imminent destruction, we put our disagreements aside and communicate.”

“To stop the danger?” Kevin asked.

“Of course not!” said Argit smiling, accompanied by several other villains with similar phrases.

“Then what for?”

“So we can escape, of course!”

“I can't believe it...”

“If we know in advance that something might happen, we can organize ourselves and secure our business elsewhere.”

Kevin wipes his hands over his face in disbelief, then Argit continues:

“You have to agree that the idea is brilliant.”

“I'm not even going to answer you... Actually, I'm going to ask you: why did you call now?”

“I don't know if you heard, but there were two explosions in Bellwood.”

“I heard some rumors...” said Kevin, his leg throbbing from the cut made by the neotadenite.

“Since the sorceress had lost the lottery, she had to go and check to see what had happened, if it was one of those risky situations. By the way, buddy, do you have any idea what caused the explosions?”

“Yes,” she said, stretching the letter ‘e’ a little.

“And is it?”

“Albedo.”

At that exact moment, all the villains looked away from the screen and displayed an expression of restrained fury. Kevin continued:

“The bastard built some kind of atomic bomb to recharge his copy of the Omnitrix.”

Everyone decided to speak at once. A lot of swearing and insults all the way up to the fifth generation of the Albedo family.

“I know, I know, guys,” Kevin tried to mediate, “he's everything you've said and more. It's just that we're trying to stop him right now, so if you can help us, we'll be able to avoid him destroying Bellwood and you won't have to leave.”

The faces that had been filled with anger a few seconds ago were now mixed with expressions of fear and concern. The silent seconds that followed seemed like an eternity. Argit finally said:

“Sorry, Kevin, but I don't think it's going to happen.”

“Why not?”

Silence again. The young man exploded:

“I can't believe you're scared of Albedo!”

“Shut up, you scum!” Roared the Forever Knight. Kevin already knew him, he was the archer.

“Oh, go to hell! And I've already told you to stop calling me scum, you bastard... And if it's not fear you're in right now, then what is it?”

“We've already faced him, brat, and we failed,” said Vulkanus. “Why would we do the stupid thing of trying again?”

“I know most of you got your asses kicked by him. I saw with my own eyes all the humiliation he put you through.”

“Kid, watch your words...”

“But now it's different” Kevin smiled evilly. “He faced each of you alone before, but if we all get together and beat the shit out of him at the same time, there's no way he can win.”

At that moment, Kevin noticed that each of the faces began to stare at the screen, reflecting the proposal and seeking agreement from their peers. Light nodding movements became silent communication. To secure their selfish desires, they had come together to create the Infranet, now for the common goal of revenge, perhaps they could once again put their disagreements aside.

“I know you're dying to break that bastard's face!” Kevin urged even more. “He's one, we're many!”

When their expressions aligned with a common desire for vengeance, Rhomboid's thin voice echoed:

“Let's destroy this bastard!”

Followed by a unison roar of agreement.

Kevin quickly explained their location. He said that it might be a little difficult to find if there wasn't a huge cloud of smoke rising into the sky at that very moment signaling the location. Everything settled, Kevin hung up.

He took a deep breath and said to himself:

“If this goes wrong, Gwen will kill me... Although...” And he stared at the fight between Charmcaster and Gwen that was taking place a few meters away. “Maybe it wouldn't have to go wrong for that to happen...”

He picked up his cell phone again and began to dial the Plumbers' number. Was he going to reveal the existence of the Infranet to the Plumbers? Yes. After all, if everything goes wrong, Infranet will be destroyed anyway. He put the phone to his ear and waited. When he heard the voice answer in the same confused tone as when he saw a cell phone with no signal receive a call, he answered:

“Magistrate Patelliday, it's me, Kevin Levin.”

Chapter Text

Max Tennyson opened his eyes. He stared at the irritatingly bright ceiling above him. He was breathing fast as if he had woken up from a nightmare. A terrible nightmare in which a bloodthirsty monster had blown off his right arm.

“Mr. Azmuth, he's awake!”

The excessive brightness in his field of vision was suddenly invaded by the face of a young girl with blonde hair. Her expression was one of concern but at the same time relief.

“Where am I?” asked Grandpa Max.

“On your ship, Magistrate,” replied Eunice, ”we brought you here so that we could tend to your wounds.”

Wounds , thought Max. The image of the creature came back to his mind. The explosion, the pain, the blood... He raised his right arm in front of his face. He expected to find the arm of an old man, with the marks of age and scars from past missions. Whitened hair and wrinkles accumulating on the joints.

That's not what he found.

His arm was dark as tar, but with a sheen reminiscent of liquid crystal. Luminous green circuits walked across the surface as if endowed with a life of their own. He wiggled his fingers and rotated his fist, looking at both sides of his hand.

It wasn't a nightmare...

“Max...” said Azmuth, making Grandpa Max look away from his hand to the galvanian on his assistant's left palm.

The Magistrate stared at the alien for a few moments, neither of them saying a word. The relationship between these two had always been complicated to define. They never called each other friends, but there was a mutual respect. They both knew what they were capable of. Max had a militaristic past with missions he wished he never had to remember. Azmuth, as we well know, was the creator of revolutionary technologies for the universe; both for good and for evil. However, regardless of what their experienced lives had already brought them, they both tried their best to fight for what was right.

Max lowered his mechanical arm and stared at the ceiling again.

“Thank you,” thanked Grandpa Max, implying several points of understanding about Azmuth's decision.

The scientist rested his hands behind his back, closed his eyes and gave a discreet smile.

“So...” said Max “Can I get up now?”

“Oh, of course, of course!” Eunice moved her left hand closer to the table so that Azmuth could get down and then turned to the stretcher, pressing buttons and raising the top of the bed.

“Thank you, Eunice. Well, as you may have noticed,” Max raised his mechanical arm slightly, “I failed in my mission. I was unable to remove the ultimatrix from Albedo.”

“Don't be so hard on yourself, Magistrate, you destroyed the machine and interrupted one of the most crucial stages of his plan.”

“Exactly, Max, as much as he managed to recharge the ultimatrix, the feedback core was not effective. It's only a matter of time before the device discharges again.”

“A matter of time ?” Max was outraged by what he heard “It took weeks for the clock to even come close to discharging the first time, and that's because we don't even know how much charge was in it! How much longer can we go on with this?”

“I understand your concern, Max, but Albedo has blocked my access to the voice shutdown command. At the moment we only have two options: to be able to defeat him in a confrontation or to make him use the superomnitrix until the charge runs out.”

Charmcaster entered the conversation so suddenly that Max had a slight jolt when he realized the sorceress was there:

“It's not the best of plans, but it's the only one we have and luckily it's already started.”

“What is she talking about, Azmuth?” Max turned suspiciously.

Azmuth took a deep breath and said:

“Computer, display external images.”

“ Yes, Thinker Azmuth.”

On two of the screens in the room, which had previously displayed real-time analysis of Max's vital signs, aerial images of the forest confrontation appeared. Albedo in his ultimate Vaxasaurian form was fighting several opponents at once. One of the screens kept the image centered on the fight as a whole, while the second tried to show approximate images of each of the members of the confrontation.

Max saw opponents as different from each other as the Forever Knights and Vreddles fighting the Vaxasaurian.

“How did you manage to get them to work together?”

“We don't know,” said Eunice.

“But if I were to bet,” Charmcaster opened her hand and her cell phone appeared in a flash, accompanied by a faint puff of pink smoke, “I'd say the hot goth brat is to blame. You have to be careful with this boy's company.”

“Kevin?” As soon as Max understood the sorceress's hint, he turned back to the screens in search not only of Kevin, but also of Gwen. “Where are they? Gwen and Kevin?”

“They're fighting too, Magistrate...” Eunice pronounced each word carefully, as if trying to break the bad news little by little. “Computer, can you focus on them?”

“ Yes, Miss Eunice,” said the computer, directing the image towards Kevin, clad in orange sandy ore, who was running towards Albedo; then it switched its focus to Gwen, with a body full of violet macules, firing energy spheres.

“What happened to Gwen?” Max asked, getting up from the bed, and then he saw him .

The camera focused on the brown-haired boy in the green jacket. He jumped to the side to escape an explosion, shielding his face with his arms.

“Ben...”

 As soon as the smoke from the explosion cleared, Max could see that Ben's arms had been transformed into the Diamondhead .

“No...” Max turned to Azmuth in disbelief. “What am I looking at?”

“Magistrate, please calm down...” Eunice stood between the two of them with a calming expression on her face. Charmcaster, meanwhile, leaned her back against a wall and crossed her arms.

“You promised me, Azmuth! You said you'd take the Omnitrix off Ben's arm as soon as we got to Earth!”

“I promised I'd keep the Omnitrix safe and that's what I did...” Azmuth kept his gaze down and his arms resting on his back.

“What? In order to protect your damn device, you decided to keep putting my grandson's life at risk?”

Max's words made Azmuth react in a way he had never done before:

“ I put him at risk!?” Azmuth raised his head, his eyes blazing with ferocity: “There are many things in this universe that can point a finger in my face and say that their lives have been affected because of my actions, but these young people!?” Azmuth pointed at the screen. “No, my dear Max, you know very well who is to blame for them putting their lives at risk at this very moment!”

Max was silent. Azmuth didn't.

“From the first day that the Omnitrix landed on Earth and attached itself to Ben Tennyson's arm by mistake, you could have made the right decision and removed the device from him. All it took was a few calls and you'd know to meet me in Xenon and everything would be solved!”

Max turned his face away from Azmuth's gaze. At various times in his life, especially at night before going to sleep, he found himself thinking about what the scientist was saying but, unable to face the guilt, he always tried to escape such thoughts.

“You trained him! First the boy, but as soon as you saw the potential in the anodite girl, you started training her too! Even the young Osmosian! You trained them to face danger, to not refuse a call for help, to be the ones people can count on in a dangerous situation, regardless of whether they are recognized for their actions.”

Max turned his body and stared at the screens behind him. He saw his pupils launching lasers from their eyes, floating through the air, deforming their arms into metal blades, shooting fireballs from their alien hands, summoning giant magic hands and throwing huge rocks with them.

“They're not ordinary teenagers and you know it...” Azmuth softened his tone. “Maybe you never noticed, or actually you did and that's why you decided to instruct them as you did, but when we saw Albedo holding his dismembered body in the middle of that forest, I could finally understand what drives these kids.”

Max took his eyes off the screens and stared at Azmuth.

“You,” said Azmuth.

Grandpa Max felt a strange sensation compress his stomach and rise in his throat.

“These teenagers could have refused his training and his teachings. They could have used their powers to conquer the planet if they had wanted to, but no. They didn't do it. And they didn't do it because they admire you and look up to you. What you represent.”

“But I…” Max tried to say something, but Azmuth continued.

“I saw in the eyes of those three youths something I've already had the pleasure of seeing in your eyes on the occasions we've met: All three of them have the same fury in their eyes to do what needs to be done to protect the people and those they love.”

A tear ran down the right side of Max's face and stopped at the base of his chin.

“They're not just young anymore, Max, and you know it. Their actions teach us that they are capable of much greater things than we imagine and I learned that today too,” Azmuth looked at Eunice with an expression of gratitude.

The young girl's eyes began to water and, trying to disguise it, she began to dry them with the base of her thumb. She felt genuine happiness inside.

“Whether intentionally or not, even with our faults, we were somehow able to pass on at least what life had taught us was good. We don't always succeed, but knowing that we're fighting to stay on this path, and now they are too, brings me a little peace about the future that awaits us...”

Max stared at the screens again. He felt his heart tighten at the images of Gwen, Kevin and Ben facing the creature. When had they grown up so much?

“But what about the Omnitrix?” Max turned to the scientist.

“As I told you, his problem consisted of a lack of anesthetic and I was able to provide that temporarily.”

“Temporarily? But for how long? Ben sai-“

“Calm down, Max, it was the boy's decision to stay with the Omnitrix and he's aware of everything. He'll let us know of any problems.”

The Magistrate took a deep breath and finally said:

“So, what do we do now?”

“Well, part of the plan is already underway,” said Azmuth, ”now, the next step...”

Chapter Text

Ben kept his arms crossed in front of his face, waiting for the smoke to clear. His upper limbs were made of a greenish crystal of great density and resistance, excellent for protection against projectile impacts and shrapnel from explosions. As the smoke cleared, he saw his opponent again. Not his , because it would be too greedy to say that the huge, crazed vaxasaurian was only his opponent, as at that moment, at least six individuals were attacking him and another ten or so were waiting for the best opportunity to attack him again.

The teenager was panting for breath. His arms and legs felt heavier and the pain from the fight was starting to build up to the point where it wasn't just a nuisance. How long was this going to last?

Acid Breath, one of the members of the Circus freak trio, vomited a foul-smelling green liquid at the base of a pine tree. The trunk immediately began to corrode, thinning in diameter. Thumbskull grabbed the steam and pulled it sideways, breaking it in the area corroded by his colleague's acid. He turned his body, rotating the tree towards Albedo's head, hitting him right in the face, but instead of making him fall backwards, the vaxasaurian stood upright, his teeth embedded in the surface of the stem.

Albedo turned his head, also moving the trunk stuck in his mouth. Thumbskull, who had not yet let go of the tree, was thrown along with it. As soon as he turned his neck as far as he could, Albedo unclenched his teeth, throwing the tree towards Darkstar, Frightwig and Vulkanus. In a joint movement, the three of them hit the trunk in mid-air, shattering it into countless pieces.

Under Sir Alfred's command, a line of soldiers from the Forever Knights launched a barrage of shots from their laser weapons at Albedo. The creature roared and punched the ground violently, spreading a kinetic wave across the soil and causing the knights to collapse to the ground.

When least expected, Azmuth's voice rang out across the sky from Grandpa Max's spaceship:

“Ultimatrix, new voice command!”

Many of the people on the ground looked up in search of the source of the sound. Albedo didn't, as he was in a predatory animal state, not rational enough to reflect on the scientist's words. However, the distraction caused by the sound was an opportunity he had been waiting for, and when he saw his prey looking away from him, he fired one shot after another with little chance of them being deflected.

Octagon, Zombozo and Darkstar were hit hard, being thrown and falling unconscious. Rojo and Sir Alfred partially dodged, but were still hit by the wave of explosions. Frightwig and Argit managed to hide behind a tree and protect themselves. The giant mutant rat was hit by two shots and stopped moving.

“Command D1SCH-4RG3...” Azmuth continued.

Two projectiles hit a violet sphere in the center of the destroyed area, but not even a crack could be seen on its surface. In a flash, the sphere broke apart and Gwen, Kevin and Ben set off towards the villain. Albedo fired a new batch of projectiles that cut through the air with a high-pitched sound.

“A command creation and manipulation exclusive to its creator, Azmuth...”

With a spell, Gwen lifted debris from the environment, keeping it suspended in the air. Kevin and Ben jumped between the pieces of rock and floating trees. The Osmosian, coated in an orange sandy ore, jumped towards the projectiles and let them hit him. The missiles hit his skin but didn't explode, they remained stuck like a car stuck in sand. Ben, on the other hand, deformed his jaw, opening his mouth to a much larger diameter than a human and launched three of the Upchuck 's green tongues towards the projectiles. One by one, he swallowed the tennis ball-sized missiles, causing his abdomen to take on a greenish glow.

“Releasing charges into the external environment at the speed of 98 Zhels...”

Circles of mana surrounded Gwen's hands and, with sweeping movements of her arms, the wreckage that Ben and Kevin had used as a platform began to be hurled at Albedo. The projectiles sunk into Kevin's skin began to slide down his sandy body, gathering in his right hand, which grew into a huge ball dotted with missiles. Ben swallowed the last two projectiles in the air, stepped on a rock floating to his left and propelled himself towards the vaxasaurian's head. In a coordinated movement, debris hit Albedo's arms and legs. Kevin punched the alien's torso, causing the missiles in his sandball to detonate. Ben finally regurgitated a bright green, spherical mass into the creature's face, which exploded violently.

Albedo began to fall backwards, his eyes losing their shine and from his blood-stained mouth came only an unintelligible grunt.

“Command completion only with complete emptying...”

That last attack was able to cause significant damage to the alien, but to the heroes' misfortune, it was also important enough to snap Albedo out of his state of irrationality. Upon hearing Azmuth's last words, the alien slammed its tail into the ground and not only stopped its fall, but propelled its body back onto its feet. As it rose, it pointed both arms towards the sky and fired as many missiles per second as it could. One of them had to hit Azmuth's damned ship.

Gwen and Ben began firing at the projectiles, trying to shoot them down before they hit their target. Gwen launched mana disks and Ben lasers from his eyes.

“Initiate Ultimatrix discharge...”

A metal chain looped twice around Albedo's left arm and, with a sharp jerk, pulled him sideways and downwards. Rojo, with its armor of alien technology, held the chain. Six orange beams, with metal balls at their ends, wrapped around the vaxasaurian's right arm and, just like the other limb, he was pulled downwards. The orange bundles consisted of Frightwig's hair, which was supported by Thumbskull to pull him up.

Albedo began to contract his muscles when Kevin suddenly appeared in front of his face, his right arm transformed into a huge glass blade and his legs coated in a blue rubbery material. In one swift movement, the teenager struck a blow to the base of the alien's neck.

“Now,” Azmuth concluded.

A greenish bolt of lightning erupted from the Ultimatrix symbol and struck Kevin before he could complete the attack. The youth was thrown a few meters away and fell writhing in pain.

The sudden burst of energy startled Ben and Gwen, allowing two of Albedo's missiles to escape and hit Grandpa Max's spaceship.

“Grandpa!” shouted Ben and Gwen in despair at the sight of the ship turning into a fireball in mid-air.

Albedo roared angrily and crossed his arms, throwing Rojo and Frightwig to opposite sides of the forest. He stared at the symbol on his chest, which flashed and emitted short greenish rays uninterruptedly.

“Azmuth, you bastard!”

The plumber's ship began to fall in a funereal spiral until it hit the trees a few meters away.

“No!” Gwen put both hands to her mouth and the first tears began to appear in her eyes.

“No, no, no...” Ben ran off into the forest in the direction of the crash site. He felt an enormous tightness in his chest. He wouldn't believe Grandpa Max was dead unless he saw it with his own eyes.

Ben started to approach the crash site but couldn't find the spaceship. An enormous violet mist, reaching as high as the treetops, was advancing towards him. He stopped running and took up a defensive position. The mist covered him and it continued advancing through the forest.

Albedo spun the disk on his chest, thinking of some combination that would allow him to interrupt the discharge process. His attention was diverted by the arrival of a huge mist that came through the trees and began to cover the entire area of the confrontation. Within seconds, everyone involved in the fight was inside the thick purple smoke.

“I get what you're trying to do, Azmuth,” said Albedo, “but that trick won't work twice on me.”

In a few seconds, the mist began to dissipate, leaving only silence and a huge area of destruction in the heart of the Bellwood forest.