Ester

"How did we get here, Rook?" Ben asked his partner in confusion, referencing the fact that they were suddenly in Undertown, wincing as a blaster bolt whizzed right above the upturned picnic table they were using as cover.

"I do not have the slightest idea." Rook remarked as he began laying down cover fire. "But does it not strike you odd that we find ourselves fighting what appears to be a rouge faction of the Kraaho just as the adversary we were fighting moments ago claims to have fractured the space-time continuum?"

"Wait, we're fighting the Kraaho?" Ben remarked as he peered through a hole in the table, seeing four of the elastic aliens in front of a spaceship part store, firing on them with reckless abandon. "I thought Ester was keeping them in line."

"I'm doing my best!" Ester declared from behind Ben, shocking the heroes, who weren't aware she was there. "But these five just arrived from off-world, and they refuse to listen to me!"

"When did you get here?" Ben asked as he activated the Omnitrix, taking his time to look for a decent alien to use.

"And are there not only four rouge Kraaho firing upon us?" Rook added.

"What are you two talking about?" Ester questioned them. "I called you two to help me deal with this, remember? And these guys are just the distraction so that their leader can steal a fusion engine!"

"A fusion engine? Don't tell me these guys are planning the same thing Seebik was." Ben asked sarcastically before turning into Big Chill.

"That's what it looks like." Ester confirmed. "Think you can make a distraction while Rook and I get behind them?"

"A sound strategy," Rook nodded. "But before that, may I have a quick moment of your time, Ben?"

"What's up?" Ben asked as Rook ushered him away from Ester for a moment of privacy.

"Do you not recall the confrontation we were in just moments ago?" Rook asked seriously. "The one that involved a massive threat to the space-time continuum. Yet now we are somehow in the middle of a confrontation with Kraaho criminals. A confrontation Ester supposedly asked for our help with, yet I recall no such events."

"I remember the time thing," Insisted Ben. "I just have a system in place for when time related problems come along."

"And what system would that be?" Rook asked, legitimately curious.

"Wait until Paradox shows up to explain the whole thing." Noticing the odd and somewhat disappointed look Rook was giving him, Ben struggled to justify his actions. "What? That is literally the only way I've ever solved anything involving time related super villains. Now if you'll set your timey-whimey problems aside for the moment, we have some Kraaho to put on ice." Phasing through the table, Big Chill started freezing the ground with a huge gust of air, tripping up the Kraaho criminals before flying into the building they were guarding.

"That ice should make them easy to deal with." Ester told Rook. "Think you can handle these guys on your own while I help Ben? Their leader is pretty tough, not to mention that fusion engine will be generating enough heat to keep him going against Big Chill."

"Not a problem." Rook said before they both jumped over the makeshift barricade, Rook smacking a few of the shivering Kraaho around with the Proto-Tool's staff form, and Ester using another as a springboard to jump through the window.

Meanwhile, Ben was searching the building on foot for the leader, his wings folded around him as a cloak. "Now let's see here. If I were a fusion engine in a rundown used parts store, where would I be?"

"Only reason store is rundown and selling used parts instead of new ones is because you keep ruining Pakmar's businesses, Ben Tennyson! Giving him a bad rep with the bank and high insurance premiums!" The tied-up diminutive alien shouted from the floor.

"You run this place? I should have known." Big Chill sighed as he picked Pakmar up by the ropes binding him and holding him at eye-level. "Mind telling me where I can find the guy who's robbing the place so I can arrest him?"

"I will not tell you! Now get out of Pakmar's store! Pakmar would rather be robbed than have you ruin yet another of his business ventures!" Pakmar shouted irately before getting an elastic slap to the face.

"Never mind him, Ben." Ester remarked as she dusted off her hands. "Haz-Mat parts like a fusion engine are usually kept in the back, behind reinforced doors."

"Cool." Ben remarked as he unceremoniously dropped Pakmar on the floor, before he got blasted in the back by a massive energy blast.

"I believe you mean, hot." Smirked a burly looking Kraaho, decked out in a hi-tech suit of armor, the smoking gauntlet indicating where the energy blast had come from.

"What do you want, Korrvic?" Demanded Ester. "I told you before, I'm the leader of the Kraaho on this planet!"

"I will not take orders from a half breed!" Korrvic protested. "Much less a woman half breed."

"Sexist much?" Remarked Ben as he got up and dusted himself off. "If you don't like the rules on this planet, why don't you just go somewhere else?"

"Because, all Kraaho tribes on other planets are too well fortified. Only on this planet is the Kraaho settlement new enough for me to take over!" Smirked Korrvic maliciously. "But that was before I knew the leader of the local tribe was the lover of the meddling hero Ben Tennyson!"

"Well, I wouldn't exactly say we're lovers at this stage in our relationship." Ben corrected sheepishly. "We only started going out recently, so it's just at the typical going steady stage."

"Aww, that's so sweet of you to say." Gushed Ester. "But just a warning, if you get me a class ring or something I'm gonna scream."

"Enough of this!" Exploded Korrvic. "This is why I refuse to let a woman be in charge of any tribe! Always with their heads in the clouds, obsessing about the opposite gender instead of focusing on the expansion of their territory like a Kraaho should! This is why women are only fit to serve men! This is why I created this armor, and stole the necessary fusion engine to power it! And this is why I will end the two of you where you stand!" He shouted as he leveled both of his arms at Ben and Ester.

"Wow, I have never seen such a sexist jerk in my entire life." Huffed Ester indignantly. "Although, on the bright side, it does make you pretty easy to trick."

"What are you talking about, woman?!" Korrvic demanded furiously.

"Buddy, you might want to look down for a sec." Ben deadpanned.

Korrvic sensed a trap in waiting, but his curiosity quickly got the better of him. Looking down, he quickly noticed that Ester had stretched out her leg to the side. Following the winding trail of her leg, Korrvic noticed her leg had wrapped around his ankles just in time for Ester to pull it taught, sending Korrvic off-balance and into a sudden face plant into the ground.

"And now for the coup d'gracie." Remarked Ben before taking a deep breath, and covering Korrvic in a thick layer of ice, his Kraaho biology making the blistering cold especially unpleasant. Turning to Pakmar, Ben remarked, "There, I took care of him without trashing your store. Happy now?"

"I will not be happy until you are gone from my life forever, Ben Tennyson!" Pakmar shouted, before he grudgingly relented. "For now though, Pakmar will settle for you taking that criminal far from my place! And get someone to untie me while you're at it!"

"You sure you don't want me to take care of those ropes?" Ben offered as he lifted the ice encased criminal. "And what about the fusion engine this guy stole?"

"No! Do nothing but take him away from here!" Demanded Pakmar. "Send someone else to untie me, and send back the fusion engine in the mail! Those things do not come cheaply!"

"If you insist." Ester joked as she stood by Ben. "Now come on, unless I missed my guess, this guy has a cell at Plumber's HQ with his name on it."

"N-Never!" Shivered Korrvic angrily. "I shall n-n-never lose to a woman! Activate s-s-self-destruct m-m-mechanism!" Suddenly, a light on his suit started flashing rapidly.

"What are you doing!?" Ester demanded in shock.

"See what you do to my businesses, Ben Tennyson?! See what you do?!" Shouted Pakmar.

"Self-destruct mechanism. Pretty self-explanatory if you ask me." Big Chill remarked before turning into NRG. Grabbing Korrvic in a bear hug, he heated up his body just enough to melt through the area where the flashing light was encased in ice.

"What are you doing?!" Demanded Korrvic as Ben reached into his armor and pulled out it's power core.

"Keeping you from leveling the place." Ben deadpanned as he opened up the helmet of his armor, placing the fusion engine core in his mouth like so much popcorn. "There, see? No harm no foul for Pakmar, and our sexist friend here get an extended sentence for attempted suicide bombing." Suddenly, his stomach started gurgling, giving Ben a foreboding feeling. "Oh no, I'm beginning to remember what happened the last time I ate a fusion engine. Duck and cover!" With a loud, semi-radioactive belch, Ben accidentally blasted through most of the store's support beams.

"Time to get out of here!" Panicked Ester as she grabbed Pakmar and ran for it, the diminutive alien loudly complaining the whole way.

When Ester got outside, she saw that Rook had easily restrained the four thugs, and back-up had just arrived to haul them away. Smiling even as Pakmar continued to whine, her satisfaction soon turned to worry as the building completely collapsed. "Ben!" Ester shouted in worry, unable to do much besides stare at the heap of rubble.

"Good riddance!" Huffed Pakmar. "Now that pesky Ben Tennyson is gone, maybe Pakmar can finally peddle whatever wares he manages to get next in peace."

"Oh, who asked you?!" Angry at the remarks the salesman was making against her boyfriend, Ester stretched her arm up and dropped him from ten feet in the air.

"You did that on purpose." Grumbled Pakmar as he struggled against his bindings. "And will somebody remove these chaffing ropes from Pakmar's person?!"

"I'm okay, in case anyone was wondering." NRG grunted sarcastically as he forced his way out of a pile of rubble. Reaching down into the massive pile of concrete, metal, and wood, he pulled out the unconscious form of Korrvic, the falling debris having simultaneously broken his ice prison and knocked him out. "And will somebody get this guy in a cell before he wakes up? He may be pathetic, but he's also reckless enough to try and blow himself up when he's losing."

"A truly dangerous combination, to be sure." Rook noted as he handcuffed the Kraaho and hoisted him over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

"Nice work today, Ben." Ester smiled as her boyfriend changed back to normal. "I don't think I could have handled those thugs without you."

"Please, you barely needed my help." Ben joked as they followed Rook to the Proto-TRUK. "Who was it that made him do a face-plant while he was ranting?"

"And who was it that froze him and ate the power core of his suit before he could even get any use out of it?" Ester countered as she slung her arm around Ben's shoulder. "Face it Ben, we just make too good a team for bad guys to keep up."

"Ahem!" Coughed Rook in protest.

"And where we we be without our favorite Revonnahgander?" Ben recovered quickly. "So, now that we've caught today's bad guy, who's up for-"

"Do not say smoothies." Rook cut in abruptly. "No offense to your taste buds Ben, but you need variety."

"I've tried, but my mom and grandpa Max are so... out there with their cooking, that it's just safer to stay with what I know." Ben explained.

"Exactly how are your mother and grandfather terrible cooks?" Rook asked in confusion. "I have always found their cuisine most delightful."

"Different species, different taste buds." Ben justified. "Trust me, it's one of those things you either have, or you don't."

"I'm a pretty good cook." Supplied Ester, seeing a chance to gain some ground with Ben. "I'd be more than happy to see if I've got anything in my cook book that suits you."

"Would you really?" Ben exclaimed in relief. "Thank you so much, you have no idea just how... wait a second." He paused in thought. "Quick question, which condiment can make any food taste better?"

"Trick question," Scoffed Ester playfully. "Both ketchup and cheese are equally good, though if I had to chose one, I'd go with the cheese, since it's more versatile."

"Where have you been all my life?" Ben half-joked as they loaded Korrvic into the back of the Proto-TRUK. "Say Rook, you think you can handle getting these guys locked up on your own? As the white rabbit would say, I'm late, I'm late, for a very important date."

"From the works of Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, alias Lewis Carroll." Rook recited from memory happily, tossing Korrvic into his vehicle haphazardly as he did so. "Good to see you taking an interest in your own planet's literature for once."

Leaning in closely to Ester, Ben whispered, "I make a few pop-culture references I know go back further than any movie version I've seen every so often, and let him make whatever connections he wants. I've found that it keeps him happy." Getting a stifled chuckle from his half-alien girlfriend, the budding couple escorted each other to the Kraaho section of Undertown.

Conclusion

Later, at Ester's hut, Ben and the Kraaho leader were polishing off what looked to be a meal of some kind of alien 4-legged poultry, as evidenced by the bones sitting on the table. The hut itself was sparsely decorated; a bed, a small kitchen, a TV, and a closed off area for a bathroom, and the whole area was painted a simple brown color.

"Okay, credit where credit is due, that was one of the best meals I've ever had." Ben sighed contentedly as he reclined. "Normally alien cuisine doesn't agree with me, but this was actually really good. What's your secret?"

"Human taste buds," Ester snarked, eliciting a chuckle from Ben. "Seriously, since my mom is human, I inherited more than just a tolerance for the cold. Combine that with the fact that traditional Kraaho dishes aren't exactly appetizing, and I've had to learn quite a few tricks to make xenocuisine edible."

"You think you could give my mom some tips?" Ben asked. "And my grandpa, and half the people I know." He trailed on jokingly, getting a chuckle from Ester. "Seriously though, growing up in my family, one of the main things I'm probably gonna need in a girlfriend are good cooking skills."

"But don't you already have a girlfriend who's a good cook?" Ester flirted, sharing a knowing look with Ben.

"Yeah, I guess I do." Ben seconded the motion, the couple toasting glasses of smoothies in silent agreement.