Author's Note: Greetings fellow readers and people who typed in the wrong web address. Once again, welcome to my humble little tale. It is rated M for, among other things, sexual content in some of the later chapters. I must confess I do love Kevin 11,000. For my money, there is just so much that can be done with the character and probably not enough of it can be done in this single story.
Anyway, enjoy.
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"You're saying Kevin just left you there?" Grandpa Max asked one more time, making sure he had the details straight as he and Ben went over Gwendolyn's vitals to make sure she was fine.
"More or less." Gwendolyn recounted as she lay in the infirmary within Ben 10,000's Mt. Rushmore headquarters. They had spun different names for the place for years, but none of them had ever really seemed to catch on. "I woke up and he was gone."
"Doesn't sound like him. I can't believe he didn't just slit your throat while you slept."
At this, Ben received dirty looks from both Gwendolyn and Max.
"I mean, in a good way. You know what I meant." He dismissed them both nervously.
"Did he say anything to you?" Max continued the questioning.
"Nothing important." Gwendolyn knew that this was necessary, but she wasn't feeling like being debriefed just yet, and certainly not by her own family at this juncture. Especially before she had had a chance to make sense of everything that happened. "Like I said, I woke up after the battle, he was there, said something about finding Ben, and then I passed out again. When I woke back up, he was gone, and I didn't wait around for him to come back."
"Still not like him to go to that trouble just to let you go." Max seemed more disturbed by this lack of news than anything else.
"I don't think he had planned for me to wake up when I did. I found a bottle of something that he must have used to keep my groggy the first time. He may have had somewhere to be and had intended for me to stay under until he got back."
"Boy's getting sloppy. It's not like him to leave a trail." Max reasoned.
"What makes you think he did?" Gwendolyn asked. "That house hadn't been lived in for years. I'm sure the property is listed as condemned. And it's not like he left a scribbled note with directions to where he was going."
"If he left a scent, I can find it." Ben stated confidently.
"You know how fast he moves. Even Wildmutt's nose isn't that good." Gwendolyn was doing what she had done most of her life, namely trying to convince her pig headed cousin to slow down.
"Maybe not. But Carnisaur's is. And then there's Z-Ray, Wild Flight, not to mention Blood Ground. I'll find Kevin and be back in time for dinner. Grandpa's making tentacles." And with that, Ben transformed into XLR8.
"You need help Ben." Gwendolyn insisted as she rose out of her bed. "I'm coming with you."
"You're staying put Gwendolyn." XLR8 crossed his arms at this. "You're in no shape to take on Kevin."
"The medbotts in my blood are doing fine knitting me back together."
"Sorry. No time to argue." And with that, XLR8 disappeared in a blur.
"Oh no he does not." Gwendolyn began to enchant when Grandpa Max intervened.
"Gwen, he's right. You're in no shape to go up against Kevin."
"I'm fine." She insisted, deliberately ignoring Max's paternal use of her old name. "And I don't need to be babysat just because Ben 10,000, Hero of Heroes is on the job."
"This isn't about ego." Max Tennyson tried to hold his ground against his stubborn granddaughter. Unfortunately, it ran in the family.
"Tell that to the super hero that just zipped his way out of here."
Grandpa Max sighed. "I would if he ever slowed down enough for me to get a word in. You remember how bad he was the first time he unlocked Master Control?"
"Hasn't really changed all that much, has he?" Gwendolyn raised an eyebrow at this, smiling amusedly before adding "And don't think I'm letting you change the conversation that easily."
"Gwen, you need rest. Trust me, I have a feeling before this is over, you'll get your shot at Kevin. Besides, there's somebody who's been dying to see you again."
At this, Gwendolyn's eyes lit up. She had been so focused on finding Kevin that she had completely missed it. But at Max's mentioning, she had allowed her mind to flow. Allowed herself to feel what couldn't be seen, and that was when she knew.
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"Ken Tennyson."
"Aunt Gwendolyn!" Jumping up from his couch in the family living room next to the enchanted pet that she had animated for him his last birthday, the light of day coming in from the full sized windows leaking every bit of daylight into the room, the newest protégé to the family business ran for his favorite aunt.
Gwendolyn couldn't contain an irrepressible smile or laughter as her arms fell around her godson. He was getting bigger. He reminded her so much of his father when he was a little boy. She hugged onto him, and honestly did not want to let go, but she fought the urge to be one of 'those' relatives.
"I heard you got into a fight. Are you ok?" Young Kenny asked, pulling back from the hug.
"I'm fine Kenny." She assured, even as lent a spare hand to pet the enchanted mutt at her leg. "Your Aunt Gwendolyn has been through much worse."
"Hey, dufus." Another young voice called out from the next room as it walked in through the door. "Did you eat my snacks again?"
"I told you you could have some of mine if you wanted them." Ken argued back at the other boy without a second thought.
"Pfft. Big deal. All you ever have is those dumb alien crackers." The boy never gave Gwendolyn a second glance as he munched down on the last of his fruit filled flashed frieds. "Sho," he spoke with a full mouth. "Who's this?"
"Aunt Gwendolyn," Kenny looked back up before introducing the other boy "this is Devlin."
"What's up?" He asked, obviously trying to sound polite.
"Nice to meet you." Gwendolyn bent over to shake his hand, and get a closer look at his face.
It was absolutely uncanny. This boy was practically the spitting image of his father. His eyes held none of his father's hate or rage, and his hair was quite a bit longer than Kevin's had been at that age, but otherwise, it might have been a time displaced version of Kevin standing in front of her.
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The three of them had spent the better part of the day together, telling stories, showing off to one another. The sun had already set, and the living room lights kept out the pitch night, yet it felt to all of them as if it couldn't have been more than a few minutes. Gwendolyn couldn't remember the last time she had enjoyed herself this much. Her smile honestly couldn't have been any wider as Ken and Devlin regaled her with tales of their own heroic exploits. Apparently, the pair had become quite the crime-fighting duo, and their latest adventure against the Forever Knights was now being reenacted in full detail.
"So, I was surrounded by five Forever Knights."
"There were three."
"No, there weren't, there were five!"
"There were three. One in front of you and two in back."
"Whatever. So anyway, I change into Four Arms and throw two of them at once."
"You threw one of them into another."
"It's the same thing."
"No it's not."
"Devlin, let Kenny finish." Gwendolyn tried to quiet the anxious young boys in front of him.
"So then I changed into Diamond Head, and managed to nail two more of them across the room."
"No you didn't. That was me!"
"The point is," Kenny clarified "I changed into XLR8, and managed to dismantle their whole cannon in less than two seconds!"
"Big deal. I'm the one who tore the cannon clean off the body with his teeth."
"It sounds like you both had your hands full." Gwendolyn decided to redirect the conversation.
"Nah, it was a piece of cake." Devlin insisted.
"Not like when we went up against Darkstar."
"Oh man, that was seriously wicked! You remember when you nearly whipped him with his own cape?"
"Yeah, and he tried to get up and you tackled him and started…"
The boys reminiscing was interrupted by an all too familiar sound of an alien on two wheels rushing in. The whole family unit turned as XLR8 ran into the room, only to change back into regular old Ben.
"Hi dad!" Kenny ran up to his father. Gwendolyn watched however as Devlin held his ground.
"You boys keeping Gwendolyn company?" Ben asked after returning the hug.
"We've been catching up." Gwendolyn smiled warmly, especially at Devlin who seemed to appreciate the attention.
"Well, everybody get ready for dinner. Fresh tentacles are already on the grill."
"Yes!" Kenny exclaimed as he ran out.
"Oh man. Why can't we ever have hamburgers?" Devlin asked as he looked down at the mutt by his left leg. "Come on Max. You can have my scraps again."
"Boy's a carnivore, that's for sure." Ben exclaimed almost proudly to Gwendolyn.
Gwendolyn watched the boys until they were out of the room before turning to her cousin. "No luck?"
"I don't know how he does it." This was one of those rare times that Ben Tennyson was at a loss for answers. "I must have flipped through over a dozen different aliens trying to find Kevin's scent. I picked it up at the house, but every time I tried to follow it out, I lost it less than a block away. Even if he had flown off, I should have been able to track him with Wild Flight."
"You think he's mixing the different aliens that he's absorbed to try and throw you off the scent?" Gwendolyn offered.
"No. I would have been able to track him through that. He must be using something different. I'll figure out a way to find him though. Just don't say anything to the boys."
"Don't you think that's jumping the gun a little bit." Gwendolyn heard herself say. "I know he's possibly the galaxy's most wanted but, are we sure we want to start something here without a plan?"
"My plan is I kick his butt like I always do, and life goes on." Ben replied firmly.
"The last time you went up against Kevin, I heard he did quite a bit of butt kicking himself." Gwendolyn reminded. Unbelievable. After all this time, Ben could still never accept the possibility that he might lose.
"He caught me by surprise." Ben stated simply. "It won't happen again now that I know what he's capable of."
"Hello! We have no idea what he's capable of." Gwendolyn retorted, becoming agitated for reasons that at the moment she didn't even understand. "Even if 11,000 isn't an exact count, we have no way of knowing how many aliens or what kind of abilities he has absorbed off of them since he was a kid. From what I saw, he seems able to mix and match abilities and attributes at will into that hulking form of his. No matter how fast you change between aliens, you're still looking to be four or five different power sets behind him."
Ben just shrugged. "He won't be the first bad guy to try that shtick. Remember when Albedo and Animo teamed up?"
"Ben, this is more serious than that." Gwendolyn softened her voice however slightly, less the raised volume in the room had already attracted any juvenile ears in the other room. "This is Kevin."
"I know who he is Gwendolyn, I've been putting up with him since we were kids." Ben dismissed with his usual confidence, the kind that still latched onto Gwendolyn's nerves, grabbed hold and just twisted for all it could. "Trust me. Sooner or later, he'll show himself, and when he does, he's history."
Gwendolyn could see there was no further point in discussion. She just shook her head and left the room before saying anything she might end up regretting; an act she had yet to observe her cousin ever practice.
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The labs at Los Soledad had been abandoned for decades before either Ben or Kevin had been born. A few years back, the Plumbers had retrofitted the entire base into an emergency command center during the third Vilgaxian invasion. However, that was years ago. And once again, the facility stood unkempt and abandoned.
Except for a lone figure that strolled through the night.
Kevin had to admit, as run down hovels went, this wasn't the worst he had ever hidden out in. Isolated, secure (or at least otherwise blockaded), and forgotten, it was as safe a place as Kevin would find for the time being.
Kevin took a long moment as he felt the calm night breeze across his face. It was an unusual sensation, one he wasn't accustomed too. There was no wind in the Null Void. And in there, the quiet only meant that whatever predator was lurking out there was too stealthy to be heard.
He took a moment to survey his surroundings. 'Better to rule in hell than serve in heaven.' According to Milton, the Devil had said that.
Then, from nothing, Kevin heard it. A heartbeat. It was close.
Kevin turned around only to receive an energy blast directly to the chest, knocking him into a nearby satellite dish that fell over upon the impact.
"You're not going to run away this time Kevin." The voice echoed across the open, empty base but he couldn't find the source.
"I didn't run last time Gwendolyn." Kevin rose up, as if unaffected by the blast. "How did you find me?"
"All that time I let you 'talk me' into staying in your private basement for two, I was locking onto your personal manna. There's nowhere on this planet that you can hide from me now."
"How wonderful." Kevin seemed delighted by this as he rose to his feet. "You can't beat me Gwendolyn. I know your weakness, remember?"
There was no response. Instead, the gentle night breeze across the open plains transformed into torrential winds kicking up dust and gravel by the tons into the air. The sky grumbled and roared, opening up as lightening came down directly upon Kevin's exposed, human form.
Kevin screamed as the first blast, and then a second bore down on him, bringing him back to his knees. Yet with a single knee he rose up, before disappearing in a burst of super speed.
He couldn't see Gwendolyn, and she was obviously manipulating the very air around them to carry her voice, which left the option of smell.
Hiding inside one of the barracks, hovering in the air in meditation, feeling her surroundings with her mystical senses, Gwendolyn couldn't react in time as a super fast Kevin tore through the walls and knocked straight into her, throwing her through the other side of the walls and out into the open.
Gwendolyn skidded over the ground before eventually coming to a stop. The ache in her body chided her for underestimating Kevin as she tried to clear her head.
As she did, she watched as Kevin's monstrous form tore up through the small barrack that she had been hiding in, towering over her.
"Out of tricks yet?" Kevin's dark voice echoed as he looked down upon her.
"Bia statuos." At this next spell, the very ground around them both came to life, rising and shaping itself into no less than eight hulking, brutish golems, all of which converged on Kevin.
Kevin lashed out at the first one, shattering it to pieces before striking at the next two to his left.
"Not impressed," he growled as the remaining grappled at him.
"You will be." Gwendolyn just smirked before turning to the golems that Kevin had already dispatched. Without any movement or effort on her part, the dirt and rock that had forged them rose back up, reassembling itself into the functional warriors that Gwendolyn had conjured.
"Potentos gravis."
Kevin felt himself suddenly pulled by an invisible force down to the ground. He struggled against it even as the stone golems around him began to renew their attack, which this time he felt himself unable to defend against.
"Fun fact." Gwendolyn remarked. "In that big brute form of yours, your center of gravity is much lower."
Kevin cried out over the attack to his fiery hide as thick stone fists bore down upon him over and over again. Wasting too much of his own effort simply trying to move, Kevin reared his head back, and roared.
The sonic howl tore through two of the golems, taking the right arm off a third, and peeled the earth as it past, straight for Gwendolyn.
Gwendolyn summoned her shields, but they weren't enough to protect her completely. All they could do was absorb the brunt of the blast before being shattered to pieces, leaving Gwendolyn to be knocked back again.
Kevin could feel the spell pulling him down continue to hold, but he noticed that the Golem's seemed to be letting up on their attack however slightly. Reaching up with the tendrils coming out of his backside, he began to grab at the different golems and tear them to shreds even as they continued to reform. Meanwhile, changing one of his spare hands into pure jade diamond again, he dug it directly into the ground.
Gwendolyn recovered to see what looked like a large bullet wisp beside her head, shooting up from the ground into the air. At first, she almost might have believed she had imagined it until more and more came up. A veritable barrage of what appeared to be small jade diamond shards shot up from the very ground beneath and all around her.
Unable to predict where the next shard would come from, Gwendolyn flew up into the air, desperately to clear some space. Unfortunately, she wasn't fast enough as several shards grazed her.
And then she was hit.
The first one dug itself into left leg, the pain and shock almost causing her to overlook the second as it hit her right in the stomach.
Kevin rose up from the ground, smashing the golems it seemed almost all at once. Yet still they reformed. Rearing his head back again, Kevin let fly with a blast of freezing winds that encased the golems all in solid blocks of ice. Then, with his right, fiery tentacle, he reduced them to slag, apparently incapable of reforming.
"I tried to tell you Gwendolyn. You can't beat me." He insisted, even as he made his way over to where she lay, shaking and bleeding. "You're one weakness; you're only mistake." His voice began to fade in and out as she lost consciousness. "You should never have come here alone."
