Maiden- This is the sequel to 'Holding Out For A Hero'. Takes place approximately 15 years after Ultimate Alien and includes mine and Em's OCs, Vera and Scarlett. Read & Review ladies and germs!
ages for characters-
Ben- 31
Gwen- 31
Kevin- 32
Vera- 32
Scarlett- 32
Cooper- 33
Kenny Tennyson- 11
Amber Tennyson- 12
Roxanne Tennyson- 9 months
Devlin Levin- 12
Quinn- 11
Summary- Ben promised himself he'd never become the heartless man he and Gwen had seen when they were 10. But the future has a funny way of changing itself. Bera Gwevin
Shifting Sands
Chapter 1- Divided We Stand
It was undenyable to anyone in the known 500 galaxies, that a group of four Plumbers were responsible for the era of peace that had spread throught the universe for the last 15 years. Of course they weren't alone. They'd recruited more than a thousand Plumber kids to aid thier success. Helen Wheels, Peirce, Manny Armstrong, Cooper Chase Daniels, Scarlett Lafayette Kimana, and Alan Albright being the more famous among the thousands. But not nearly as famous as the original four. Benjamin Kirby Tennyson; the infamous Ben 10; Gwendolyn Kathrine Tennyson, Veridian Amber Lakota and Kevin Ethan Levin.
Ben began his hero adventures at the tender age of ten years old, accompanied by his twin Anodite cousin, Gwen. He obtained Azmuth's most powerful weapon, the Omnitrix. In the course of six years, he'd put the devise to uses the old Galvan never thought of. Kevin, an Osmosian sociopath turned hero, joined the team five years after Ben gained the Omnitrix. Vera, a Thunderbird/Sioux hybrid came along two years later. The quartet had faced and defeated many of the universe's most diabolical enemies, and lived to tell the tale. Vilgax, Aggregor, The Hybreed, Darkstar, Charmcaster, Hex and even Kevin himself were just a few of the major threats. With peace and tranquility abundant, it seemed the four original Plumbers could finally kick back and relax...
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"C'mon, Roxy. Sit still for mommy, please?" Vera pleaded with her one year old daughter. The little girl giggled and continued to wriggle around in the high chair that Vera was trying to secure her into. "Feisty, aren't you?" the Sioux woman chuckled, smiling at the infant. Her whispy brown/black hair sat in pigtails with two electic green bows that matched her eyes.
"Amber, Kenny! Dinner!" Vera called, moving Roxy's high cair closer to the table. Seconds later, Kenny appeared in the doorway.
"Where's dad?" the eleven year old asked, brushing his brunette hair from his jade eyes.
"Off on a mission with great grandpa and Uncle Kevin. He'll probably be home late."
"He's always off on missions." the boy muttered angrily, taking his seat at the dinner table.
"That's the cost of bein' a plumber." Kenny's twelve year old sister, Amber, rebuttled.
"I guess...but we like, never see him anymore!"
"Would you rather see him, or a rouge alien bustin' through your bedroom wall? Besides, not like he cares much about us anyway."
"Amber." Vera warned sharply.
"What? It's true! If he really loved us, he would be with us right now!"
"Amber Gwendolyn Tennyson, not another word!" Vera's golden eyes glared hard into those of her daughter.
"Got room for four more?"
"Aunt Gwendolyn! Uncle Kevin!" Amber and Kenny yelled, rushing to hug the two heros. Devlin and Quinn stood by thier sides, instantly taking off with thier cousins to play.
"Gwen, Kevin, what a suprise." Vera spoke, lifting Roxy out of her highchair. "I thought you were off with Ben?" she questioned to the onyx eyed Levin.
"Naw. I showed when I got word that Animo broke out of the Null Void again, but when Benji saw me, he told me to go home. That he and Max would handle it."
Vera growled low in her throat and bounced Roxy nervously on her hip, the infant having laied her head on her mother's chest.
"Seems like you have your hands full." Gwen offered, sitting down at the table.
"That's the understatement of the year." Vera replied, rolling her eyes. "Between two pre-teens and a 9 month old, i'm wrung out. Roxy is a very high mantience child."
"Roxanne Casandra, you giving your mommy a hard time?" Gwen playfully scolded her neice, taking her from Vera's arms. Roxy cooed and giggled, happy to see her aunt.
"I've noticed you don't do much Plumber work anymore." Kevin threw casually, leaning against the far wall.
"I don't have the time, Kev. I'm practically a stay at home mom now...I really do miss the glory days though."
"Don't we all." the osmosian laughed. "I'd love to go back to when we were teenagers. Hangin' out and kickin' alien butt is what we lived for."
"That was before it became a full blown job."
Ben entered the kitchen, his expression anything but joyful. His clothes were torn and tattered as well as several minor wounds on his arms.
"Damn, what crawled up ur ass and died?" Kevin rebuttled.
"Not in the mood, Kevin." Ben replied icily, washing his cuts in the sink.
"Someone's touchy." Kevin smirked, walking into the living room.
"Dinner's still warm if you're hungry." Vera spoke to her husband who was busy dressing his arms.
"No time. I just came home long enough to clean up and change. A group of Talpaeans are causing earth quakes all along the edge of the city."
"Ben, they're just Armadrillos. They're not that big of a threat and i'm sure some of the other plumbers can take care of it."
"Whatever, i'm goin' back out. I'll be back when I get back."
"Uh, rude much?" Gwen scowled from her seat. "Ya know, ever since Roxy was born, you've turned into a major jackass. You've been ignoring your family and throwing yourself into the hero buisness. You're not only a Plumber now, you're a husband and father."
"I don't need your snide comments, Gwendolyn."
"Snide? I'll give you snide!" she yelled, summoning a ball of mana, aiming for her cousin. Ben's hand went to the Ultimatrix, but was stopped when Vera created a wall of lightning between him and Gwen, deflecting the attack.
"Enough. Both of you." she seethed, golden eyes flashing angrily. They softened immediately when Roxy began to cry. She quickly took her daughter from Gwen and tried to soothe her sobs.
"I don't have time for this." Ben stormed.
"I'm getting really sick of him." Gwen huffed.
"You're not the only one..."
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Vera's eyes opened sleepily about three in the morning. The source of her disrupture was the shift in weight on the bed. She turned to see Ben tiredly getting into bed after disrobing down to his boxers. He stilled once the duvet covered his torso and his head hit the pillow. Usually, he tried to wrap his arms around his wife, or at least kiss her cheek before succumbing to sleep. But tonight, no such luck. Vera had shrugged it off, and was about asleep again, but an unfamiliar scent hit her nose. She recognized it as women's perfume, but it wasn't hers or Gwen's. Amber eyes flew open in a rath of fury, her patience finally having snapped.
"Ben!" she screamed loud enough to wake the entire house. "What the hell do you think you're doing!"
"I thought I was goin' to sleep!" he screamed back, clearly annoyed.
"How dare you come into this bed smelling like some two dollar whore's perfume!"
"What are you talkin' about, Vera!"
"You smell like a cheap floosy." she responded, her voice like venom. "I've had enough of your bullshit, Tennyson. If you were that unhappy in this marriage, then you should've just told me! Instead of ignoring your family and goin' off and screwing around with another woman!"
"I'm not having this conversation, Vera." he responded, laying back down. But jade eyes snapped open again as his entire body screamed in pain. His wife stood at the foot of the bed with her hands outstretched and sparkling with electricity.
"You should know better than to talk back to a Waka Kiya."
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"I woulda decked 'em." Kevin spoke rather gruffly. He, Vera and Gwen sat around the Tennyson's living room, listening to what happened the night before.
"I'm sure electrical shock hurts worse than a sucker punch, Kevin." Vera deadpanned.
"What kind of perfume did you say he smelt of?" Gwen asked.
"Dunno. It's nothing i'm familiar with...sorta fruit like...cherries, I think."
Gwen and Kevin's eyes widened. Vera raised an eyebrow to silently ask them to explain.
"V, don't freak when we tell you this, but...we know who wears stuff like that." Kevin admitted, his voice taking on a careful note.
"Back when he was 15, Ben met a girl named Julie Yamamoto." Gwen picked up where her husband left off. "They dated off and on for a year. Until she and her family moved back to Japan just a day before Ben met you. Her signature perfume was sakura blossom. Which is japanise for cherry."
"So he's reunited with an old flame?" Vera asked, her voice smooth and slightly scary. "Fine. Then i'm gone. Amber, Kenny and Roxy are comin' with me too."
"But where will you go?" Gwen asked, concerned for her best friend. "Your mom moved from Bellwood a year ago."
"I'm sure Scarlett and Cooper will put me up for a few days until I can contact my father on Ventus."
"You're goin' back to Ventus Avias?"
"Yes. I've had enough of being an underappreciated housewife and un-needed Plumber."
"Your'e not 'un-needed', Vera." Gwen interupted. "You're one of the best in hand to hand combat and agility. Even without your powers, you're a tough..." she trailed off, seeing Vera walk into the darkness of the hallway.
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Vera's black Ford Thunderbird pulled up to an incredibly large and technilogicaly advanced house. A tall electric fence ran along the perimeter with a small computerized screen attatched to the main gate.
"State your identification." asked a computer voice.
"Veridian Amber Lakota. Badge number 100170." Vera replied smoothly.
"Identification confermed."
Vera, Amber, Kenny and Roxy walked the pathway up to the house just beyond the gate and knocked. A small, petite woman answered the door. She had bright red hair that fell to her shoulders, fair skin and sparkling silver eyes.
"Vera!" she shrieked, embracing the Thunderbird hybrid. "It's soo good to see you!"
"You too, Scarlett." Vera laughed, hugging her old friend tightly. "Sorry to put you and Cooper to all this trouble."
"Nonsence!" Scarlett snapped. "You know I love you and my neices and nephew! Kenneth Ethan and Amber Gwendolyn, give aunty a hug!"
The two kids smiled brightly and hugged thier aunt/godmother. Scarlett then turned to Roxanne, whisking her away from Vera. The Souix Plumber smiled softly and led her children inside, listening to the constant cooing and babbling of her childhood friend.