Chapter 49 - Prophecy
Author Notes:
- Yeah...Ben 10 canon in this story will stop at Ultimate Alien. I have nothing against the plot of Omniverse, but that art design change (for the main cast anyway) looks downright awful IMO
- This entire chapter was originally supposed to be uploaded in Spanish as an April Fools joke, but I didn't have enough time to translate
Midday had come as Gwen arrived at Orchid Bay's wharf. She proceeded towards an empty pier where she had set up the meeting point. Gwen had previously heard about the ice palace washing ashore on Bravo Beach and hoped to catch a glimpse of it from Orchid Bay. The distance greatly hindered Gwen's view of the structure, but she was at least able to make out its shape.
"So that thing's from Finn's world, huh?..."
Gwen turned her head and gazed out to sea. Having spent a considerable amount of time in the mountains, this sight of the ocean was a fresh and enjoyable experience for her. Her peace was interrupted when a sudden shock soon came to her. She had felt a hand place itself upon her shoulder. She immediately turned around and formed a bonding ring of mana around the person. It was too late for her to realize that person was Ben. Kyle was also standing behind him, surprised at what Gwen had just done.
"Uh, Gwen? Not exactly the greeting I was looking for..."
Embarrassed, Gwen quickly freed Ben. "Sorry... Spending time alone in a dark place surrounded by monsters for a while does that you..."
"No big. Anyway, I thought I'd stop by Kyle's place and pick him up."
"To show off your car, no doubt." she teased.
"Well... Alright, you got me, but we're still here. Where we heading?"
"You'll see."
Gwen took the lead and the group headed to the northeastern part of the city. Not wanting to draw attention, Gwen made Ben refrain from using his Ultimatrix. A bright green light accompanied by shouting a strange name and sounds of violent struggles would surely draw in nearby SACT agents. Kyle let him borrow his rifle while he used his sword to fend off any aggressive monsters.
After fighting their way through infested courtyards and walking up sloped terrain, the group arrived at a residential district. Gwen then led the boys to a house that stood upon a hill bordered by an iron fence. The house was very different from the rest of the neighborhood. It was a simple purple color, but the design was clearly of an older time period. If it were nighttime, this place would surely make someone feel unwelcome.
"Here we are."
Ben stood there disappointed, recognizing this house and realizing part of Gwen's intention for bringing him along. "Aw c'mon, Gwen... Are you really making me do this?"
"Let's go, Ben." she said in a serious tone, dragging her cousin by his jacket collar to the doorstep.
Kyle silently followed, confused about what suddenly came over these two. He stood behind them as Gwen rang the doorbell. In a few seconds, a large elderly woman in a purple and red dress answered. Nothing seemed particularly odd about her besides the pure white streak in her gray hair. She smiled upon seeing Gwen like she had just met a friend she hadn't spoken to in ages.
"Oh, Gwendolyn!" Her eyes then shifted to a look of annoyance when she turned to Ben. "Benjamin..."
"Hey, Ms Lee..." Ben said hesitantly. He tried to back away, but Gwen quickly nudged him closer. "Sorry about...tearing down your house..."
"You're just lucky I had a spare amulet to undo the damage in time..."
"In my defense, I was only ten and June was the one who attacked me first..."
"Yeah, like transforming into giant, intimidating aliens right before my granddaughter's eyes wouldn't provoke her..."
"I'm extremely sorry it took this long to get an apology directly from Ben." Gwen told her. "How is June?"
"Oh, she's not here right now. She and Monroe went off to investigate some strange magical occurrence in the desert. I don't know when they'll be back so it's just me and a few...interesting visits from Ray Ray once in a while."
"I see... Well, may we come in? There's something we need you to look at."
"Certainly, but...make sure your cousin doesn't break anything..."
Jasmine courteously showed the group inside. Kyle introduced himself once he was through the front door. Jasmine gave him a strange look at first, but it soon changed to a welcoming one as if the former never came to fruition. She then lead the group into her library. The shelves filled with ancient books and scrolls of all kinds. Any open space was occupied by a prized, ancient antique of sorts. Jasmine cleared a desk of its contents as Gwen seated herself and placed the Book of Prophecy in front of her.
"This is-!"
"Yes. The Book of Prophecy..."
"How in the world did you manage to acquire it? It's supposed to be guarded by the Underworld."
"You can ask Ben or Kyle about where they first saw the Book. As for how we got it, Kyle retrieved it from a girl named May in Mount Blackhead. I'd like to know where she got it too..."
"Oh, those creepy stalker chicks from Peach Creek?" Ben asked.
"Yes, and don't go pranking them with Eddy again, got it?"
"So why are you showing me this?" Jasmine asked.
Gwen held the spine of the book to Jasmine's eyes. "These runes suddenly appeared last night when I was studying the Book. I couldn't translate much of it so I needed help. I remembered that you dealt with the magical realm on a daily basis so I thought you would be a great help."
"I'm honored," she said as she took the book from Gwen's hands, "but I doubt a passage this small will provide much information... Just give a moment. My fluency in this language is a little rusty."
Jasmine pulled up a chair as she sat down and began reading the inscriptions. Gwen stood beside her waiting for a response. While they were waiting, Kyle and Ben examined some of the strange artifacts lying across the opposite table. Noticing Jasmine's careful watch over them, Kyle was wary of accidentally disturbing the objects and stopped Ben from doing so as well.
"These runes don't offer much insight." Jasmine soon revealed.
"What do they say?"
"Venture within the forgotten cavern of crystal where the first of the totems await. There, the Chosen One's journey begins... That's all there is."
"How can we find something that's forgotten?" Ben questioned. "There's probably tons of places like that."
"I think I know." Gwen answered. "The crystal mines in the Pimpleback Mountains. The story is that an explorer accidentally stumbled into a hole while climbing the mountains. There he discovered the vast quantity of crystals. The story goes on to say he barely made it out alive since there was no man-made exit, or he just didn't find it, and the hole where he fell was impossible to climb up to without the proper equipment. If the runes appeared in that area, then we should probably begin our search there."
"Wow. That was...easy..."
"Did you really have to come along, Ben?"
Gwen had taken Kyle back to the Pimpleback Mountains to assist in investigating the Book of Prophecy's strange message. They were already inside the Infected Zone and walking down the entrance corridor that lead to the mine's elevator. Gwen hadn't intended for Ben to join them, but the boy had already boarded the SCAMPER before she could do anything about it.
"I just want to see what this 'Chosen One' business is all about." he told her. "It's not everyday you get to see someone learning about it!"
"Sigh...fine, but Kevin's so gonna kill you..."
"Yeah, I think I figured that out when he took my car from the parking lot."
"Wait, how do you-"
"Borrowed a surveillance camera and tracking device from Dex. I was wondering why I suddenly found a driving ticket in my glove compartment... Mom and Dad weren't too happy about that..."
The group rode the elevator and soon came to the central mining area. Gwen retrieved the Book of Prophecy from her bag to see if anything had changed. She noticed the runes on the spine were now glowing much brighter than before. Other than that, there wasn't much indication of where to go. Gwen would just have to search the entire mine until the runes hopefully glowed brighter.
"Should we split up?" Ben asked.
"One of us would need the Book." Gwen replied.
"But what was it that we need to find? A 'totem', right? That should stand out in a place like this."
"There could still be enchantments placed to prevent others from finding it without some sort of key, and this book is probably it."
Gwen used her powers to create a personal elevator of mana for herself. She told the boys to wait for her as she ascended to the top. She came down a few minutes later to inform them nothing had revealed itself. That only left the mostly unexplored depths of the caves.
Ben took the lead while Kyle covered the rear. They both had flashlights as they anticipated pitch black darkness in these caves, but there were still small deposits of shining crystal embedded into the walls to light the way. Gwen was looking into the Book of Prophecy as they walked. She assumed that more clues would appear somewhere inside its pages when they came within the vicinity of the totem. Nothing changed after a quarter hour of walking though.
"You know your way around here, right Gwen?" Ben asked.
"I studied the maps, but I've never ventured this far before. Only Len and some of the Plumber investigation teams have gone this far. Don't worry though. I can just teleport us out if things get rough for us."
"But you know how much that does to you..."
"I'll be fine, Ben."
The group soon stumbled upon numerous branching tunnels, some naturally formed and some manmade. At most, Kyle and Ben were sent forward to scout and report their findings upon returning. They were mostly dead ends and more branching tunnels, the latter of which they marked on a map in case they needed to come back later. As they continued walking, the amount of crystal lining the walls soon decreased in number. They were clearly no longer headed in the right direction as the runes' glow diminished with each step.
"Ugh, don't tell me we passed it." Ben moaned.
"There were plenty of other paths we had to skip." Gwen replied. "Let's just head back." She turned to Kyle who was holding the map. She pointed to their current position and when the main crystal deposit was located. "Draw a circle around the main chamber based on where we are. Warn us if we get closer to an edge. Assuming the crystals are evenly spread out, the totem should be somewhere inside this circle."
Gwen turned back the way they had came as Ben ran forward to take the lead again. As they approached a branding tunnel halfway to the center, the ceiling suddenly caved it without explanation. Gwen was able to push Ben and herself away from the falling debris and avoid being crushed, but now they were separated from Kyle who was luckily not standing in any danger zone.
"Are you guys okay!" he called out.
"We fine!" Gwen shouted back. "Don't worry! I can just move these rocks out of the way!"
"Oh, I don't think so~" a voice told her.
The sound of a loaded pistol was heard as the gun was firmly pressed against the back of Kyle's head. Kyle wanted to turn his head to get a glimpse of his attacker, but an unknown force was keeping his head faced forward. Ben and Gwen's vision was obscured by the large boulders and dust cloud, but they were able to get a glimpse through a tiny opening. They were surprised to see nobody holding the gun. It was floating by itself...or the assailant was invisible or using special powers.
"Where are you!" Ben shouted.
"Oh, quit your yapping." the voice answered. "I've don't intend to shoot unless you make any sudden movement~."
Jinn stepped (or rather hovered) forward from the stable tunnel just to the left of Kyle. It was mostly impossible to read him as his anatomy lacked facial expression aside from his eyes, but Kyle could tell he was smiling on the inside.
"You're coming with me." he told Kyle.
"And where do you think you going with him?" Ben asked as he was about to transform into on of his aliens.
Jinn's laugh stopped him. "I wouldn't do that~ Transform into an alien now and the rest of that tunnel will collapse on top of you. Isn't rigging traps great!"
Ben slowly backed down, clearly out of options.
"While we're at it, I'll bring this along~!"
Jinn held the Book of Prophecy in his hand. The shocked Gwen looked at her hand to find it had vanished. She swore she held it seconds ago, distinctly remembering falling on top of it when she pushed Ben away from the falling boulders. She assumed Jinn had used some method to paralyze her awareness.
"Don't worry. I'll give it back! You two stay there while I take my dear friend on a small trip!"
The invisible force controlling the pistol pressed harder, indicating Kyle to start walking. Kyle tried looking back to his friends, but the sound of the gun's trigger being pulled immediately made him stop and shut his eyes tightly.
There was no shot. The chamber was empty. Relieved and assuming the gun was a fake threat, Kyle was about to draw a weapon Jinn stopped him.
"There is a bullet in there, y'know. Though you'll have to guess which one~ Call it my own twist on Russian Roulette!"
Kyle restrained himself and continued obey Jinn's commands. They walked a considerable distance until they reached a medium-sized chamber where a set of mine car tracks had ended. Jinn directed Kyle to step back as he approached the wall. Without hesitation, he punched it with enough force to make it fall apart, revealing a hidden tunnel.
"Shall we?"
Kyle continued walking forward as he felt the gun lower from his head. He wanted to attack now, but Jinn's abilities seemed to outclass even his. He wouldn't stand a chance and using his powers would possibly endanger Ben and Gwen.
They soon entered a small chamber heavily abundant with crystal. It was like the entire wall was composed of them. Standing in the center was a spire made out of a strange, tan stone. Inscribed on all four sides was a column of six drawings depicting strange, and yet surprisingly familiar, figures. The gun pressed forward before Kyle could further examine the chamber and forced him to move closer.
Jinn levitated the pistol away and repositioned it to point at Kyle a few feet in front of him. The alien came forward and gestured for Kyle to take the Book.
"Take it." he commanded.
"Why are you doing this? You went through all of that too show me the totem?"
"I did to ensure those two didn't interfere. I couldn't risk an accidental transfer..."
"Transfer?"
"Touch the totem and see for yourself." He then readjusted the gun's position. "This barrel is loaded." he said with a completely serious look in his eyes.
Kyle grudgingly stepped forward and placed his plan upon one of the totem's carvings. Almost immediately, the Book's runes responded by radiating a blinding light. Kyle attempted to shield his eyes but found that his hand wouldn't release from the totem. The light quickly subsided as the totem glowed with a soft, greenish blue aura. Kyle suddenly felt a massive amount of energy being drained from his body at an astonishing rate. The amount was enough to make him cry out in pain as he slumped to his knees. He could barely moved his body now as he desperately tried to free himself.
"What was that fool thinking!" Riyos exclaimed in this head. "I apologize for this...Kyle..."
Kyle's shadow took life and enveloped his body, allowing Riyos to assert dominant control. He allowed the totem to drain the remaining energy it originally needed from Kyle from his own. It took almost half of his and a majority of Kyle's when it finally stopped. Once charged, the totem let out a short energy burst which sent Kyle's body hurling back. Riyos, still in control, calmly stood up and faced Jinn with Kyle's sword drawn.
"What are you trying to accomplish?"
"Me?" Jinn asked pretending to look innocent. "I'm only following what the Book said!"
"An energy drain of that caliber is more than enough to kill this boy. Even you would know that..."
"Yes, but even if he died, the totem would've gone right to you for the remaining energy. In retrospect, I would've technically freed you. By stepping in, are you implying that you actually...care for his well being?"
"..."
"Well, whatever. I've done my part." Jinn tossed the Book of Prophecy to Riyos who easily caught it. "I hope I get to see more of you in the future!"
Jinn disappeared in a surge of whatever composed his body. Riyos looked towards the totem which was now glowing with a red aura. He hesitantly touched the surface to find no reaction. He then held up the Book of Prophecy to see it was back to normal. Opening it for a quick glance of the pages still didn't reveal anything readable.
As Riyos closed the Book and turned to leave, Ben and Gwen came rushing inside having escaped Jinn's trap. They looked at each other in silence before Gwen finally broke it.
"K-Kyle?"
"He is...not aware of himself right now." Riyos replied.
"So you're the guy who curbstomped Fusion Him back in Endsville?" Ben asked.
"If I am understanding that term correctly...then yes."
"What happened here?"
"That...bizarre alien forced Kyle to activate this totem. It would have killed him had I not intervened... It will be a while before he can regain enough strength to properly assert control from me again... If I leave now, he will surely die..."
"But the good thing is that he's safe, right?" Gwen asked. "Let's just get...Kyle's body back to a cabin so he can properly rest."
"Lead the way."
Riyos returned the Book of Prophecy to Gwen as he began following her to the mine's exit. Along the way, he was quick to take notice of Ben casting occasional glances at him. The first few were interpreted as simple curiosity, but the rest were just annoying to him.
"Is something bothering you?"
"No...it's nothing... It just feels...weird seeing 'Kyle' like a different person for this long. I thought he only saved...you for when things get rough for him..."
"I understand... Believe me, the boy does try to conquer obstacles with his own strength or at least with minimal influence of my power."
"If you don't mind me asking...what exactly are you? An alien, magical creature, or what?"
"...You should ask your cousin. She obviously knows what I am already."
"Gwen?"
"...Just be glad Kyle didn't end up with one intending to permanently take over his body." she replied plainly.
"Okay..."
"If you do not mind," Riyos said, "could I request that we take a short detour to the chamber where most of the infection resides? There is something I would like to investigate..."
