As they all arrived back at the castle, Max and Alan were preparing to head back to Earth. The plan was for them to keep an eye on Zs'Skayr's base and to let them know what all was happening.
"Gonna miss you," Ben smirked.
"Chill dude. We'll be dropping in from time to time," Alan smiled. "You've got a planet to rule!"
"True," Ben smirked, now flexing his muscles. Alan only rolled his eyes and threw a playful fireball that Ben dodged.
"And you behave here. Verdona is going to be going back and forth to let me know how you all are doing," Max said, now looking at Ben and Gwen.
"Hey, we'll be fine! I mean…what could happen?" Ben smiled, now crossing his arms. But as he did, he let a blast fly through the air that barely grazed them!
"What on Earth?!" Verdona gasped. Spellbinder only shook his head and looked at Ben.
"Do I need to strip your powers for a day?" Spellbinder asked, now arching a brow.
"Now c'mon old man! I was just having fun," Ben teased.
"Old…man? You, young human, are asking for it," Spellbinder said. Ben squeaked and ran behind Max, but Max quickly moved out of the way.
"Oh no, you've asked for this Ben," Max laughed.
"And this time, you will have no help," Gwen teased.
"Hey, I can't help that I'm younger than the old ruler of Anodyne," Ben teased further. Spellbinder cracked his knuckles and then walked closer.
"I will not chase you now…but once your grandfather, Verdona, and Alan return to Earth…you will be left here with me," Spellbinder said deviously. Ben gulped as the other began to leave; once they did, Spellbinder shot after him like a canon as Gwen laughed hard. Ben was then tackled and playfully tickled by the ruler. For a caring ruler of a planet, Spellbinder was merciless when 'attacking' Ben!
Meanwhile…
Zs'Skayr and Mr. White watched the portal as a large figure was coming through. Zs'Skayr's eyes widened significantly as the large being approaching him and placed its' hands on its' hips.
"Why Zs'Skayr…are you that surprised to see me?" the being smirked.
Zs'Skayr did a small bow and motioned for Mr. White to bow too. "Welcome home Prince Vamps."
Vamps smirked and walked over to him and motioned for him to stand.
"Your welcome is accepted. However, this is not home. What have you done to our castle?" Vamps said, now looking stern.
"The Anodites Prince Vamps! They destroyed everything there! I tried to stop them, but it was too late!" the evil Ectonurite said. The large Vladat's eyes narrowed in surprise.
"The Anodites? I have seen little activity of them since the war, despite the fact that we saw the ruler only a few minutes ago," Vamps replied.
"HE WAS THERE?! I mean, when did you see him?" Zs'Skayr asked.
"When Whampire and I were summoned back by our father. He too has witnessed the damage and he is not pleased." Vamps said, leaning against a chair.
"And he wants to know what you plan to do about it," another deep voice said. Zs'Skayr watched as Whampire appeared behind Vamps.
"Prince Whampire!" Zs'Skayr bowed once more. Whampire nodded in response.
"Now then…how are we going to deal with this issue?" Whampire asked.
"What issue?" Mr. White asked. "I thought that the Anodites were already taken care of and the plan could be finished here."
"That just shows how little you were paying attention," Zs'Skayr snapped, getting ready to snap at Mr. White again.
"Enough, enough," Vamps said, now holding up his hand. "You are still recovering I see and apparently there is more to this story that I have not heard."
"And we want to know more about the Anodite ruler's new heir. He is a hybrid; we could smell the human qualities," Whampire added.
"Oh he is none of our concern! I am sure he perished in the blast of Spellbinder himself! I saw him recite the annihilation spell!" The devious being smirked happily.
"He did not…" Vamps said smoothly. That made Zs'Skayr's eyes glow in horror and anger!
"Both of them survived and returned to Anodyne," Whampire said.
"WHAT?! IT CAN'T BE! I SAW HIM KILLED! BOTH OF THEM COULDN'T HAVE SURVIVED!" He roared. But Whampire was on him in a blast and grabbed him by his neck and held him against the wall!
"Hold your tongue when you are speaking to royalty," Whampire whispered angrily.
"P-Please forgive me! Forgive me!" Zs'Skayr gasped out, now trying to free his neck from Whampire's grip.
Whampire turned and saw Vamps nod and he released him. Vamps then walked over to his crumpled form and then he motioned for Whampire to bring Mr. White over. Vamps then grabbed Mr. White by his tie and pulled him closer to Zs'Skayr.
"Listen to me…all I know is my family castle is in ruins and there is more to this that I want to know about. Listen carefully…the Anodites are still in power and we have been under the radar for years due to the war. YOU…Zs'Skayr helped to star the war and you caused us to have this happen. Now…we will continue to stay under the radar for now. When it is time, we will rise and see who should be rightly in power…Anodyne or Anur Transyl." Vamps said lowly.
"YES! DESTROY THEM ALL!" Zs'Skayr yelled in triumph.
"No one said anything about destruction. Only that one of us should be in power and the other should not be. Especially since Anodites are known to be very dangerous," Whampire said.
The others nodded and continued the talk. For you see, the Anodites and Vladats had completely altered views of each other. They knew each other as bloodthirsty and horrible aliens, but what they didn't know is that they never had real contact or a real conversation. Their thoughts on each other were very different from reality.
As they were talking, they did not see that some certain Ectonurites had found them and were watching from the shadows.
"We must be very quiet and quick; it will only take a few minutes for the Vladats to sense us," Nuro said.
"So this is their base," Ghostfreak said.
"Yes…Ghostfreak, remain undercover but be very careful. Now that the Vladat royals are alive and have returned, they will definitely be wanting answers and they can be potentially dangerous," Nuro said, now seeing Whampire begin to sense their energy.
"You go captain Nuro. I will resume my cover," Ghostfreak said, now becoming visible and floating back out to the others. Nuro nodded and disappeared because he knew that if he was sensed, their entire mission could be a failure. The mission? Keep an eye on the Vladats to determine the future.
Meanwhile back at Anodyne…
Ben stretched and transformed into his dark blue Anodite form again. He was so amazed at the wonderful atmosphere; it felt so much like Earth.
"Ever think of going back?" a voice asked. Ben turned and saw Gwen walk up beside him.
"Where? Earth?" Ben asked.
"Yeah. I sort of miss grandpa already," she said.
"I wish he could live here too," Ben said. "But I do need to stay here and learn how to rule."
"And that begins now," Spellbinder grinned, now walking over and placing a hand over their shoulders. "We have a gala tonight and I will introduce you as my son."
"Wow…wonder what they'll say when I say I'm a hybrid," Ben chuckled.
"Well…let's not tell them that part yet," Spellbinder said gently. Both Gwen and Ben looked at him in confusion.
"Why? That's what I am," he answered.
"I know, but let me explain it to them another time," Spellbinder said. Gwen looked a bit sad and Ben got defensive.
part 2
"You're ashamed aren't you?! You're ashamed I'm part human!" Ben growled.
"Ben that's not true!" Spellbinder protested.
"Well if it's not then why did you want to cover us up," Gwen said sadly.
"It's because some Anodites are unsure of humans. Many were captured by humans thanks to Zs'Skayr." Spellbinder said.
"Well then I guess I made a mistake staying here. I wish you told me this before I agreed to stay," Ben said, now turning to Gwen. "Let's go!"
Gwen looked a bit sad; was Ben going to leave that fast? But before he could take another step, both were caught in a bear hug by Spellbinder!
"You both are not taking one step away from me or off this planet," came a deep voice from behind them. Both tried to squirm, but Spellbinder wasn't moving. He then recited a spell that made it to where neither of them could move!
"HEY! WHAT GIVES?!" Ben panicked.
"Let us go!" Gwen squeaked out.
"You both have just brought something to my attention and I wish to address it now," Spellbinder said, now whistling for a guard to come. Once the guard came, he whispered something to the guard and before they knew it, the guard was gone.
"W-what's happening? What's going on?" Ben said, now trying to get free!
"You will see," Spellbinder said, now picking them both up and carrying them to the castle.
A few moments later…
Ben and Gwen stood before a very large congregation of Anodites; they were all over the castle floor.
"Everyone, I wish to present Gwen and Ben. Ben is a direct descendant of my blood and I also consider Gwen a member of my family as well." Spellbinder announced. "And they are also of human blood, but I love them as my own and I would expect the same respect from my kingdom."
Ben tried to get free of the spell and Gwen did the same! They expected them to throw things at them and have a terrible reaction at that! They were scared to death! But Ben paused as a male Anodite flew up to him and looked at him. He gave him a friendly grin and then flew up to Gwen. She gulped in fear and tried to squirm.
"Human…I mean…Gwen. Relax…we mean no harm," he smiled, now gently touching her face.
It only took a few more moments for others to come over and begin to greet them! Ben and Gwen were surprised, but relieved. The ceremony continued and neither of them had to be concerned about being attacked by angry Anodites.
Spellbinder saw them squirming to move and gently excused himself as he picked them up and took them to the back of the throne room.
"Now I will release you; I had to ensure that neither of you could run away from me," he chuckled, now waving his hand. But his eyes widened as both Ben and Gwen pounced on the large king and he landed in a bunch of pillows. "Now what is all this?!"
"You scared us half to death!" Gwen teased playfully, but began giggling as he began tickling her sides.
"Now whatever is the matter Gwen? Surely you know I had it under control," Spellbinder teased, now tickling more into her sides and abs. He then grabbed Ben by his waist and then gave him a quick noogie as he released Gwen!
"NO! Hey! Cut it out dad!" Ben laughed. But at that moment, he paused. Even though he knew that Spellbinder was his father, it just felt so strange to still call him father because he was still a king! And an alien king at that! Spellbinder watched him and turned over on his side to face Ben.
"Ben…release that from your mind. You are my son and the rightful heir to my throne. Nothing or anything will change that." Spellbinder said gently.
Ben opened his mouth to talk, but Spellbinder put his hand up. "Not your heritage, your powers…nothing. You and Gwen must learn to live among us now. We are also your family. You can still be a part of Earth. But for now…"
And with those words, he pulled them both to his chest and made them look at him as he sat up. "You are a part of me. Both of you."
"But I'm not like Ben…I'm not your daughter. Not really," Gwen said sadly.
"I don't see why you cannot be. I care for you as if you were my very own like Ben," Spellbinder smiled.
Gwen smiled shyly back and felt him place his forehead gently against hers and gently against Ben's. Both teens grimaced in discomfort but when he was done, they felt something on their heads. As they felt their heads, they felt a stone that formed.
"Yes, that stone is a symbol of Anodite Royalty. Gwen, your purple stone is a symbol of being a relative to a royal. And Ben, your red stone is a symbol of being my true heir." Spellbinder explained, now helping them up and gently touching the back of their necks. "Now come…your new home awaits."
The teens nodded happily and followed after Spellbinder, ready for the wonderful adventure! Ben then turned to Gwen with a cheeky smile.
"Race you around the castle?" Ben challenged.
"I'll win dweeb," she teased. Both almost took off in the air until they felt strong arms wrap around their waists. They saw Spellbinder give them a smirk.
"You may have a race after you meet the others," he said. They only chuckled and did what he said. You can't argue with the ruler of an entire planet! He was already acting like a father too!
Their story had finally come to a close, but the future looked bright and beautiful! What they didn't know however was that there were some Vladats that were still alive and living back and forth between Earth and Anur Transyl. But they did know that there were some Ectonurites that were on their side and that were helping them to keep the galaxy safe. Life was not always perfect for the Tennyson teens, but they knew that they could always count on family to have their back, whether it was family on Earth or family that lived in a planet in a distant galaxy.
guestsurprise: I hope you all enjoyed the finale! This story was a blast to write! Lately ideas have been hitting me hard and I just can't wait to put them down on paper. But for now, this story has come to a close and I hope you all enjoyed this fun and wild adventure from my crazy imagination! ;)
newbienovelistRD: I'm glad you had a blast writing this, Amiga! This was your best work yet! :)