Wewt! Another update! Two in one day; I think I deserve a cookie.
So now it begins! What happened at to Ben? Why can't he remember? And what will the Plumbers do now that they have nothing to go on? Read on and find out!
This chapter isn't quite as long as the others, but I wanted to leave it with suspense. So, I'm sorry about that, guys. But I'm sure I can make it up to you somehow :P
Rakcrack15: Thanks again for the review! I always look forward to hearing from you :D
Remisolleke: Fast uploads are good! I'm an impatient person so I like to get chapters up as fast as possible. Depending on how fast the ideas flow, I can write chapters in a matter of hours or it could take longer. But I'll do my best!
Disclaimer: Disclaimed.
Reviews, suggestions, ideas, critisism etc etc etc I'm happy to hear from you!
"Ben!" Gwen and Kevin rushed through the mass of fallen Forever Knights to where Ben had collapsed on the stone. Kevin picked him up with ease and hauled him over his shoulder.
"Come on, we should get out of here," he said as he headed towards the drawbridge.
"But what about the Knights? We need to find out what they're after!" Gwen said, not moving from her position.
"Do you really think this is the time to worry about that?"
"It's the perfect time!" she turned away from Kevin and looked down at the fallen leader of the Forever Knights who was gasping for breath from inside his crushed armour. "What is it you want? Why are you going after alien technology so desperately?"
The Knight refused to answer. He took a few short wheezing breaths as Gwen turned away. "...I'll...never reveal our plan...to the likes...of you," he panted.
Gwen turned back to him and crouched down. "I can help you," she said earnestly. "Tell me what you're doing and I'll remove the chest plate of your armour so you can breathe."
The Knight struggled for more air as he shook his head. "I'll...never tell!"
"So be it," she got up and moved over to Kevin. "They're in pretty bad shape; I don't think they'll be doing any suspicious activities for a while."
"Should we call the cops?" Kevin asked.
"No, I'll call Grandpa Max. There are probably no charges the police can get them for."
"Alright, let's go," Kevin said, turning towards the entrance.
Ben opened his eyes to see Gwen looking down at him, an expression of concern and relief splashed across her face. From what he could gather, they were in the back of Kevin's car and his head was resting on Gwen's lap.
"Ben! Are you okay?" she asked as he tried to sit up.
"...Fine, just tired," and sore, he added mentally as he rubbed the back of his head. His whole body ached but he wasn't quite sure why. He looked down at his hands and struggled to hide his confusion when he saw the bruises that had been on his wrists earlier that day were completely gone. His chest no longer ached, either.
"What happened?" he mumbled.
"We were going to ask you the same thing," Kevin said from the front seat as the car turned around a corner. "What happened to you?"
Ben tried to think back to the previous events. He remembered arriving at the Forever Knight's castle, then walking into a trap, then...nothing. "I don't remember. What happened after the Knights appeared?"
"You don't remember what happened?" Gwen asked, her voice laced with concern and something else that he couldn't quite put his finger on.
Ben shook his head, instantly intensifying the headache he had developed. He winced and placed a hand on his forehead.
"You went Swampfire and were getting creamed," Kevin began.
"But then you shouted 'enough' and wrapped all of the Knights in vines; even the ones that were shooting from above," Gwen finished for him.
"I did that? But there must have been at least a hundred of them!"
"You really don't remember?" Kevin brought the car to a halt at a traffic light; they were back in Bellwood.
Ben looked out the window, ignoring his question. The sky was fading to a dull grey and was streaked with red and pink light. The sun was setting. The prospect that he was being taken home suddenly dawned on him. He would be at home. At night. By himself. Panic gripped at him, threatening to overwhelm him. Thinking fast, he took a deep breath and said, "Why don't we go do something?"
"Do something? Ben you just collapsed after being chopped to pieces. I think what you need is rest!" Gwen protested.
"I'm not in pieces anymore! And I feel fine," he lied. "We haven't properly hung out in a while. Why don't we get some smoothies and chilly fries and go watch a movie or something?"
"I agree with Gwen," Kevin started the car forwards again. "I think you should get some sleep. I wouldn't mind some, either."
"We can do something after school tomorrow, alright?" Gwen tried to make a compromise.
Ben frowned. If he didn't come up with something quickly, he would be stuck at home for another night drinking coffee in a futile attempt to stay awake. He considered telling them about his encounters with the alien, but that hadn't worked out so well the first time and he no longer had the wounds to prove it. It would probably just make them think he needed sleep even more. No, he would keep quiet. At least until he had proof.
Gwen's phone rang, cutting through the silence. She fished it out of her pocket and held it to her ear.
"Hello?" a short pause. "Oh, hi grandpa. What can I do for you?"
Ben tried to read her expression. Her smile faded and was replaced by a serious look.
"Okay, we'll be right there," she hung up the phone and looked at Kevin through the rear-view mirror. "Change of plan," she announced. "We need to head over to Grandpa Max's."
Kevin pulled up next to the Rust Bucket in the caravan park where Max usually stayed. The 'retired' Plumber came outside when he heard the car.
"Well, we're here," he said as he turned off the engine.
"Shh," Gwen hushed him and signalled to Ben. Kevin looked over his shoulder at the younger teen. He had his head resting against the window and his eyes were shut.
"So much for not being tired," he said smugly as he and Gwen got out of the car.
"Hey kids," Max greeted as they walked over. "Where's Ben?"
"He's sleeping," Gwen informed him. "It's been kind of a rough day."
"You can tell me about it in a minute. Come on in, there are some people I want you to meet." Max led the two teens into the caravan that had become much more cramped with the addition of the five aliens seated around the small table. There wasn't any room for anyone else to sit down, so Kevin and Gwen stood leaning against the kitchen counter.
"Who're these guys?" Kevin asked.
"I'd like to introduce you both to Grem, Hinra, Petra, Takren, and Silyon. They're guards from the Plumber prison ship, Galactica. Guys, this is my granddaughter Gwen, and her boyfriend, Kevin."
Kevin flinched slightly at the word 'boyfriend'. It still felt weird to him, but he was glad that Max had accepted it. The five aliens greeted them politely but said little else. They seemed almost uncomfortable around the newcomers.
"So what did you need us for, grandpa?" Gwen asked, suspicious at the mention of the prison ship.
"Well," Max took the file Grem offered to him. "It would seem that a prisoner has managed to escape Galactica and we were hoping you might be able to help us track them down." He passed the folder over to Gwen who opened it and looked closely at the photo.
Kevin glanced over her shoulder. The sight of the alien sent chills down Gwen's spine and she shuddered. It reminded her of Ghostfreak.
"We were able to track down the escape pod the prisoner used but they were long gone. This button was from the control panel of the computer they used to hack into the Plumber database," he held up a small red button and Gwen took it from him.
"And you want me to see if I can use it to track them down?"
"If that's alright."
Gwen shut her eyes, gathering mana. The button in her hand began glowing pink. For a few intense moments there was silence as all eyes were on her, hoping that she would be able to find something. When she opened her eyes the glow diminished.
"Did you find anything?" Kevin asked.
"I got something, but it didn't feel like a living being; it was probably the escape pod."
Grem sighed and all eyes turned to him. "Another dead end. Now what?"
"We let the other Plumbers know the situation; someone might have seen something and that way we'll know right away if something comes up," Max said, placing a hand on the turquoise alien's shoulder.
"Grandpa, I wanted to talk to you about the Forever Knights," Gwen said. When she had Max's attention she continued, "We went over to their castle today, but it was a trap. They were expecting us. Ben managed to defeat them but even at the risk of his own life their leader wouldn't reveal what they had planned. I feel that even now they've been taken down once, it won't stop them. Whatever they're planning, they're not going to stop without a fight."
"Don't worry," Max tried to reassure her. "I sent a group over there to arrest them. Whatever they had in mind is going to stay just an idea for a long time."
Gwen wasn't so sure. She knew from past experience that the Forever Knights would stop at nothing to get what they wanted. Imprisoning them would only slow them down and increase their anger.
"You didn't mention what happened to Ben," Kevin said as he and Gwen returned to the Camaro.
"I didn't think it was worth mentioning; at least not yet. It was probably just the resulting anger from having all his limbs cut off and not being given the chance to defend himself."
"Maybe."
Ben was still fast asleep when they got in. Gwen sat up front with Kevin. It was dark by the time they pulled up in front of Ben's house.
"Should we wake him?" Kevin turned in his seat and looked over at Ben's sleeping form.
"It would probably be best to just let him sleep; he didn't seem too eager to go home before," Gwen gave Kevin a strange smirk.
Kevin sighed as he realised what her expression meant. "Do I have to?"
"He could always stay in here," she suggested. "But he might drool with his head on that angle."
"He is not going to get drool on my car," Kevin grumbled as he undid his seat belt and stepped outside. He opened the back door carefully so Ben wouldn't fall out and gently lifted him off the seat bridal-style.
Gwen was sure she heard him mutter something like 'this is so embarrassing' and 'you owe me one, Tennyson' as she watched him walk up the path to the house and let himself in.
The room was dark; darker than it should have been. Kevin turned on a light and looked around. The first thing he noticed was the coffee table – or lack of it. There were still a few wood chips littered on the carpet. With a raised eyebrow, Kevin continued his scan. The front window was gone and in its place was a large wooden board. His other eyebrow rose. Something was going on here and he made a mental note to ask when he next saw Ben awake.
Nicola jumped as the alarm bells began ringing throughout the base.
"Security to mainframe! Come in mainframe!" a voice came through her Plumber's badge. She quickly lifted it closer to her mouth.
"Hello security, this is mainframe! What's the situation?" in her many years of training to reach her position, she had been taught the necessity of keeping calm in a situation such as this but having an actual problem occur that wasn't a drill set her on edge.
"We've got an intruder making their way into the control room. Entrance guards have been taken out. Lock all doors! I repeat –" the voice trailed off and was replaced by a terrified scream.
Nicola could feel the fear rising within her as she returned her focus to the computer mainframe and set the sequence to full lock-down. No intruder would be able to get far. She took a nervous glance at her co-workers who were also busy preparing the base against the intruder.
Nicola brought up the security screens and tried to locate the suspect. On the second level entranceway she spotted it; a slender grey creature coated in black markings. Its claw-like fingers reached out to the guards who were shooting at it but all the laser bullets sailed straight through its intangible form. The Plumbers were somehow lifted into the air and thrown about like they were little more than wretched playthings. One slammed into the security camera and the screen went blank.
Nicola watched in sheer horror as the creature moved from screen to screen as it slowly made its way through the base. With its intangible ability, she knew it could easily get to wherever it wanted to be in a matter of moments, but the creature seemed to take pleasure in ensuring that every living being it came across was taken down. Soon she could hear the calamity it was causing in the hallway just outside the room.
She sprung from her chair and grabbed one of the Tachyon Canons from a compartment in the wall. She was quickly followed by the other Plumbers in the room. Most were human but there were a number of alien species mingling among them.
And then it was upon them. It came through the door in its intangible form, a horrible sneer on its face, revealing its pointed teeth. Nicola didn't wait. She pulled on the trigger, sending a blast right at the alien. The creature didn't even flinch. It made its form intangible and the blast travelled straight through it, bursting a whole through the door and revealing the horror on the other side. Plumbers were scattered across the floor. Some were lying on unnatural angles and their weapons had been reduced to rubble.
The ghost-like alien laughed horribly at her failed attempt. Then suddenly it was gone. Vanished. Nicola shook with fear as she tried to locate it. She watched petrified as one by one her comrades were raised into the air as if by magic and thrust across the room where they lay motionless against the walls. She felt a strong cold hand grip her around the throat and lift her into the air. She dropped her weapon and tried to tug at the invisible hands that held her but to no avail. She felt herself released as she was hurled across the room and collided with the metal computer panel. Then she knew no more.