Disclaimer: I do not own Ben 10 or its sequels, spin-off and related characters. All is the property of Man of Action and Cartoon Network. I'm just borrowing them for some non-profit entertainment.

Occupation Earth

Episode VIII

It was late by the time Kevin pulled his car into what used to be the house he shared with his wife. The house he thought he was going to raise his on in, where Gwen planned to raise their children (plural) when she finally got the daughter she wanted. The daughter she eventually got from Darkstar instead -but he tried to push that from his mind. Len Morningstar was the least of Kevin's problems at the moment.

He left two messages for Gwen already. One back at Los Solidad, written in his own blood. A powerful source of mana. So that she would recognize it and know that it was him, that he was alive. The second a quickly scrawled note pinned to the uniform of a Chimera Sui Generis patroler. Kevin was leaving a clear trail for her to follow. Now all the Osmosian had to do was wait for his wayward wife to come and find him. Their old house was as good a place as any to confront her.

The place was actually in better condition than Kevin expected to find it in.

After ten years, he imagined coming home to a ruin. To the remains of what used to be a house. But instead, not only was it still standing, but also in almost pristine condition. Not even any signs of break-ins or looting. That was odd.

The answer presented itself, however, once Kevin killed the car engine and stepped out. Crossing the lawn to the front door, there was a bold red and black sign posted on the door. It bore six-tentacled squid of the Vilgaxian crest, the symbol on Vilgax's banners. Beneath the crest, written in three different languages -two alien ones and then English- was the message:

'Property seized by order of Supreme Leader Vilgax-Thulu.

'All traitors, known and suspected, forfeit their properties and holdings to the Supreme Leader.

'No trespassing. Violators will be executed without trial.'

Well, that was a cheerful message. But it certainly explained why the house was mostly left alone. Unconcerned, Kevin placed his hand on the metal door handle, to absorb the metal, and cut through the sign. His body didn't turn to metal. In fact, Kevin didn't absorb any of the steel at all. But he did feel his body cover itself in armor. Just not the armor he expected.

Kevin looked down in surprise as his body was once again coved toe to head in Taydenite. Apparently, his own ten years spent saturated in Taydenite had left him a little changed from what he was before as well. After ten years of marinating in it, the Taydenite matter stayed with him, even after the armor was initially dropped. A new mutation, maybe?

But he could reflect on that later. For the moment, armor was armor. He ripped through the offending 'No Trespassing' sign and went in. The door was even unlocked for him.

Standing alone in the darkness of his old living-room, Kevin breathed in a deep sigh. The air was musty and had a stillness to it of a place that hadn't been disturbed in a decade. But underneath all that, it still smelled like home.

The lights didn't work. Of course, they wouldn't. If the property had been seized by Vilgax and his oppressive occupying government, then there was no reason for the power company to continue providing service to a place that wasn't using it. Likewise the gas was out. The stove wouldn't turn on -not that Kevin really felt any pressing desire to cook anything. But it was good to know for other reasons. If things did come to a fight -which he still doubted- no gas meant no explosions.

Heading upstairs, he found the first real signs of someone having been there since he and Gwen left it the day of their ill-fated battle.

Their bedroom door was closed and Kevin didn't remember closing it as he and his wife had rushed off to help Tennyson and their friends. Entering the room, he noted a distinct lack of clothing on the floor, and Kevin definitely remembered leaving their clothing all over the place. Gwen's skirt and blouse should have been crumpled in a heap by the side of the bed. His pants and underwear should have been bunched up in a pile at the foot of the bed.

But they were absent from the floor. After a carful examination, he found them sort of thrown in a drawer. Almost as if someone were trying to tidy up but their heart wasn't really in it. That was just downright odd.

The bed was still a mess, of course. He and Gwen hadn't made a bed since Devlin was born -not that Kevin really ever made a bed before Devlin was born. But Kevin's pillowcase was missing.

Stepping out of the bedroom, he checked the next door down the hall. Devlin's nursery.

Here there were also signs of someone having been in the room since they'd left ten years ago. One of Devlin's baby blankets was missing as well as Kevin's copy of The Princess Bride -probably the only book (that didn't have to do with cars) that Kevin had ever actually read. He had planned to read it to his children just like his mother had read it to him when he was younger. But it was gone now. And it was such an odd thing to take, too.

Shaking his head, not really sure what to make of any of this, Kevin backed out of the room and closed the nursery door.

His last stop on the second floor was to use the bathroom -and discover to his horror that the water was also turned off. Admittedly, he should have known that would be the case. But one doesn't really fully comprehend just how terrible not having working plumbing can be until they've dropped a giant log and suddenly find themselves unable to flush it.

"Things like this are why I question how Gwen stayed with me so long." He informed the empty bathroom of the empty house.

'Well, that, and you're a giant asshole.'

Alarmed, Kevin spun around, searching for the source of the voice. It sounded like Tennyson -like Ben. But Kevin knew that couldn't have been right. Everyone said that Ben was taken back to Vilgaxia after they lost the first battle. There was no way the obnoxious Hero of the Universe could be whispering in Kevin's ear from half a universe away. He was not an Anodite and could not astral project. Neither was he psychic or telepathic -unless he was in the form of a psychic or telepathic alien, which wasn't likely since he was also supposed to be in a coma at the moment.

Kevin continued to glare at the empty space where he was sure he heard Ben's voice come from. Obviously, there was nothing there and that worried him. This was the second time since being saved from Vulkanus' Taydenite farm that Kevin had heard his old friend's voice. The first being in the Los Solidad medical building while Rook and his mother were packing it up. Cooper had been working of a reproduction of the original Omnitrix and after seeing it, Kevin heard Tennyson's disembodied voice comment on it.

That was not normal. Not even for Kevin's own unique interpretation of 'normal'.

Over the course of his life, the Osmosian had been various forms of 'crazy'. It was kinda his thing. Sanity always had been a bit of an uphill battle for Kevin. But 'hearing voices' was one type of crazy he'd never experienced before. Auditory hallucinations were not in the Osmosian's usual repertoire.

'I'm insulted! What makes you so sure I'm a hallucination?' Asked the voice of Tennyson, sounding whiney and incensed. Even if it was a hallucination, it was still managing to play the Hero perfectly. That level of indigence was just to Ben.

"I'm not hearing this." Kevin said aloud. This time speaking to himself. Reminding himself that hearing voices weren't his flavor of crazy.

He headed back downstairs. Lifting a couch cushion, Kevin shook ten years worth of dust and age from it. Threw it back down where it went, and sat down. Sat down in his spot on the couch to wait for Gwen to follow his mana and find him.

Sweat slid from her forehead and down her cheek.

Lenette liked to think that she was tough. But she'd never been worked this hard before, and it was only her first day of training. Lifting her head, the girl glared up at Igurax. The Chimera Sui Generis soldier had been her bodyguard her whole life. As such, he had always been more of a silent fixture. Always there, but in the background. Quietly trailing her like an attentive shadow. Having him actually take an active role in her education was a completely different experience.

"Again." He said, standing over her. Matching the glare she was giving him with one of his own.

Len inhaled, trying to work some oxygen into her burning muscles. "We've been doing this for hours. Its late. I'm tired."

"Your enemies will not care." Igurax informed her, uncaring.

"I can't do this anymore." She whined.

"Then you will die." The Chimera Sui Generis concluded. Not announced, or informed. Concluded. As if that was the end of it. If she didn't train, then she would die. And if she did indeed die it would be the end of it.

Len stamped her foot loudly, ready to throw a full tantrum if need be. Thus far, tantrums were the most powerful weapon in her arsenal. It got her whatever she wanted from her daddy. The thing was, Igurax wasn't Daddy. He was her bodyguard. His job wasn't to keep her happy, his job was to keep her alive.

"Where's my daddy?" Len demanded.

"Probably seeing to important Rall'ya business." Igurax could not have sounded any more uninterested. "And before you try running and crying to him, remember that he's the one who assigned me this task."

The girl pouted to no affect. The Chimera Sui Generis soldier was immune to all her carefully honed manipulation techniques. Len paused for a moment to reexamine her strategy.

"Where's my mother? Daddy said she'd help with my training too." Mom certainly wouldn't let Igurax push her around. After all, Len was her precious little girl. "Didn't Daddy say she was supposed to be helping me with my powers? I wanna do that now. Bring me my mother."

For a moment it looked as if Igurax was about to protest. He wasn't a member of the household staff that could be bossed around. He wasn't even one of her daddy's assistants that helped him with the clerical duties that went along with the position of a Rall'ya. He was her bodyguard. A warrior. Trained to fight. He did not 'fetch'.

But he was also a soldier, and soldiers followed orders. Lennette Evelyn Morningstar might not technically be his commanding officer, but she was part of the mission he was assigned to. To ensure that Ben Tennyson's cousin remained loyal to their great Thulu. So, the Chimera Sui Generis straightened, calling upon his military discipline to keep him from snapping back at the little shrimp. Instead, he silently left the room to find the Red Witch.

The Red Witch flew into a rage after Darkstar informed her -with no room for argument- that her baby girl, her last living child, would be thrown out to the wolves. Made to pursue her old friends and comrades.

The Witch snarled at anyone who bothered her after that. Everyone except for Darkstar himself, whom she still had to submit to for feedings and... other cravings. But aside from him, the Witch was mostly left alone. Avoided by the household staff and Darkstar's clerical aids.

She barricaded herself in one of the manor's empty rooms. The house certainly had enough of them. Her own bedroom certainly wasn't a sanctuary since she was forced to share it with Darkstar, and her dojo was to be the stage for Lenette's training. There was now no place the Witch could call her own -except to claim one of the many vacant rooms.

Every piece of furniture in the place was smashed. Not that there was a lot to begin with, but the charming baroque style armchair that was by the window was now reduced to kindling. Its upholstery ripped off, the stuffing thrown about, and the wood shattered. A few generic pictures on the walls sported shattered glass and cracked frames, hanging tilted. There used to be a writing desk, but what was left of it was now less recognizable than the chair. That was all that used to be in the room. Now it was just wood chips, fluff, and shards.

The Witch took stock of her destruction. Taking some small measure of comfort in it. She couldn't hurt Darkstar, but she could wreck his shit. The mess matched her mood perfectly.

Taking a deep breath, she forced herself to calm down. Nothing would be gained from staying enraged. Her maternal anger would not help Len.

The door opened without a knock.

Eyes glowing star sapphire, the Witch spun around, as if to attack whoever it was that dared disturb her violent brooding.

Igurax stood in the doorway, looking calm and unaffected. His face tentacles not giving even the slightest of sway at her sudden movement. Arms clasped behind his back, feet slightly parted, a perfect parade rest. But then, he was a trained soldier who fought in the first battle. He saw her power and her fighting prowess first hand ten years ago and he was not impressed.

"Shouldn't you be guarding my daughter." The Witch snarled at him. Hating him for everything that he was. His race, his allegiance, his role. Everything about him gave her reason to hate.

"The Little Miss has requested you now train her in the use of her powers." He informed her, almost disinterested.

A lump rose in her throat, and the Witch found herself having to stifle a sob before she could speak. "Its late. Why is she still up? Len should have been asleep hours ago. I'll take over her training in the morning."

Igurax never appeared aggressive with her or Darkstar. Although he was Vilgax's agent and reported directly to the Thulu, he never openly challenged her in the raising of her offspring. Part because Chimera Sui Generis did not take as active a role in the rearing of their offspring, as mammals like humans did, and he didn't fully understand all that Lennette and the Witch needed from each other. But, mostly, because it wasn't his job to tell her what to do with her offspring. Igurax had one mission: stay close to the girl and be in a position to kill her should the Witch ever openly betray the Thulu.

That was his job.

That was Igurax's one purpose in remaining an ever-present fixture in the Morningstar household.

They called him her 'bodyguard' and in a way, that title was true. If the girl were to die -which could happen, Earthlings (especially young Earthlings) were remarkably fragile things a simple accident could end the child's life. But if Lennette were to die, then there would be nothing to hold the Witch in place. No leash to pull her down or rein her in. Vilgax-Thulu would lose his greatest instrument against the remnants of his enemy's allies. In this respect, his title of 'bodyguard' wasn't entirely a fabrication.

But his core mission would always be to follow whatever orders his Thulu gave him.

Tilting his face upwards, the Chimera Sui Generis equivalent of raising his chin in a subtle challenge, Igurax said, "Vilgax-Thulu wanted this done quickly."

Her hands balled into fists as the Witch glared back at him, meeting his challenge with one of her own. "And our great and powerful Thulu -in his infinite wisdom- should also recognize that she'll be useless to him if she's so exhausted she can't stand."

"My understanding is that Osmosians have greater stamina than humans." He countered.

"Not when they're children!"

The alien only shrugged. A human gesture he'd picked up at some point during his decade stationed on Earth. "She is your offspring. You will do as you see fit. However, be aware that every day you delay her being deployed out in the field, will be counted. Take to long and our Thulu may decide you're more of a hinderance than a help."

"Is that a threat?" Asked the Witch, eyes once again glowing. "Are you being ordered to kill me now, Igurax?"

The Chimera Sui Generis soldier gave another very human-like shrug. "I do as I'm ordered." He moved to leave, but paused in the hall. Turning back to her, he added, "You should too."

That was the closest thing to 'friendly advice' the squid-alien had ever given her.

Len was stretching when the Witch found her in the dojo.

Wearing the gym uniform from her school, since Len had no other work-out clothes, he back to the door. The Witch crossed her arms over her chest and examined her daughter.

Kevin was always tall for his age. Even back when they were children, he always seemed to tower over herself and Ben. Len had not inherited her father's hight. She was more petite. Lithe and slight of frame. She was more like her mother. Lean and sinewy. Slender and narrow.

Her hair, naturally an ebon-black, was bleached to Darkstar's shade of golden-blond. But at the top of her scalp, the Witch could see the natural dark roots growing back out. Darkstar would insist her hair be re-dyed again soon. He hated looking at he daughter and seeing traces of her real father. It was why he insisted on Len knowing how to maintain here normal human form. He hated seeing her in her stone body. A mutation inherited from Kevin.

That was how the Witch knew that this order to put Len out into the field didn't come from Darkstar, but from above him. From Vilgax. If Len was going to be an enforcer like her mother, if Len was going to fight rebels and place herself in harms way, then she would need her mutant form. Kevin's second mutations. An amalgamation of stone, wood, and Taydenite.

Closing here eyes, the Witch remembered her late husband in that form. All the things he could do, and all the things he couldn't. The form's strengths and its vulnerabilities. She wished Kevin were alive and here to teach their daughter instead. He certainly understood his forms and powers far better than the Witch did. But he wasn't here, because he wasn't alive. So, she would have to train Len. Train her as well as she possibly could, so that her daughter didn't end-up joining her real father.

The Witch cleared her throat.

Len turned around. When she saw it was her mother, she straightened, adopting an air of business-like professionalism. "I'm ready to practice my powers now."

"Oh, are you?" The Witch raised one perfectly shaped red eyebrow. She gave the child a more thorough examination. Noted her drooping shoulders and heavy eyelids.

"I a~am." Len yawned.

"You wanna know what I think?" Began the Witch. "I think you're to tired to learn anything more tonight. C'mon. Its well past time someone put you to bed."

"But I'm not sleepy!" The girl whined. No sooner were the words out of her mouth, however, than she heaved another -heavier- yawn.

The Witch put an arm around the nine-year-old and lifted her up. "Nope. Its bedtime. Lets go. I'll even read you a chapter from The Princess Bride. How does that sound?"

They exited the dojo. All the while the Witch was very aware of Igurax keeping a close eye on them. He didn't allow himself to be seen. He liked to give the allusion of privacy. But he was always there. Staying ever close to Lennette, should the order come through that he would have to take her life as payment for a betrayal from the Witch. The Witch sensed his mana and took it as an ever-present threat.

He hung his head in his hands. A very human gesture for Chimera Sui Generis trooper. But then, Albedo had noticed, that after a decade spent on Earth, quite a number of Chimera Sui Generis -both soldiers and private citizens- seemed to have adopted a few native habits and mannerisms.

They found the trooper tied up in the back of his own abandoned patrol car. His weapons and radio stolen. The trooper a little beat-up, but other wise unharmed. A note pinned to his uniform. He was immediately brought in for a statement.

Albedo stroked his silver-white beard absentmindedly. Turning his attention from the trooper on the other side of the two-way glass, he looked down at the note in his hand and reread it aloud. "'To Gwendolyn Levin, we ned to talk. -Kevin'."

"I guess cutting himself and splattering it on walls was to pretentious for him." Vulkanus shrugged. "Now he's trying something a bit more pedestrian."

"There's a saying here on Earth, 'less is more'." Albedo supplied. "It means that simplicity is best. Now that he's no longer with the rebel's main group he won't keep moving anymore. Remember, he wants to be caught. He still thinks the Witch is the one pursuing him, so he'll find a place to wait for her. Somewhere easy to find that means something to both of them."

"Considering that the both of them have saved the world together from multiple locations across the globe, that could be anywhere on Earth." Vulkanus reminded him.

Here Albedo smiled. "Ah, but he pulled over anywhere on Earth. He was pulled over on the highway leading into the Bellwood. He's most likely going home." Folding Kevin's hastily scrawled note, the human-bound Galvan placed it in an inside pocket of his jacket. "We can be there by morning."

...