Chapter 11: The Vampire Bites Back

Lord Transyl eyed the holographic communicator. It was annoying enough to be out of touch with this modern technology, the universe just had to make it light-based. At least now that his favorite little slave gave him a hand, it wouldn't be as painful as usual.

He hissed in anger, glaring at the 'face' of the Limax commander that had just made contact with them. He now was in better position to make threats than before, he could make a light meal of this nuisance if they refused to withdraw their armies. He wasn't a fool, they clearly had something in mind. He had never seen such a mutation before, those slime fiends must've had a reason to come by and risk their lives fighting the Vladat king.

Soon enough, this planet would be their tomb, and they'd feed the current generation of Vladats for months to come.

"You have a lot of nerve coming onto my territory, slugs." groaned the vampire lord.

"My pleasure, bloodsucker." answered the Limax.

"Attacking my lands, coming into this planetary system unannounced, thinking you have a chance against me. You must not value your life dearly if you took so many risks, or perhaps this was your way of surrendering your people to us."

"You couldn't be farther from the truth, Vladat. Now that I know you keep Tennyson prisoner and that he won't be able to stop me, you'll lead yourself to your own undoing."

Lord Transyl's eyes widened. What did they want with his slave? Perhaps that trick he used to bring him back to full power could be used for other means, or it would just be the achievement of having Ben in their clutches. He wasn't going to let them have that pleasure anyway, his slave was only his to possess, no one else.

"What makes you believe that my most prized slave serving me would ensure my defeat? He hasn't done anything against his lord for the time being."

"Indeed. So he won't be able to stop us, and you're too proud to risk such a great hero's life when you could use him yourself. He must hate you for what you've done, so as long as he's your prisoner and you don't intend on using him, there will be no one to stop the Limax from taking over."

"We'll see about that." he smirked. "You slugs aren't the only ones to have learned tricks in the past millenniums."

"We'll see, indeed. Besides, I already have a spy watching the battle for me."

The last message that fiend left instilled some doubt in Lord Transyl's mind. Certainly, they could stop whatever he sent, but a spy? They would've already found out if a Limax had disguised themselves as local, the scent on the fake skin they made was hard to hide even for days. He'd have to look into it once he dealt with their leader.

However, even if it'd be hard for an intruder to do him any harm, his mind wandered to Ben's safety.

Ghostfreak flew over the battlefield, possessing soldiers here and there. Either an Anur alien was weakened and Ben could give them strength, either a Limax needed to stay put while they were shocked, bit, gagged or whatever. He did admit Ghostfreak took a lot of the fun out of battling when he had to make people fight for him, most Ectonurites on the field just used their tentacles to fight as they barely had any other experience fighting.

He couldn't blame them. He was a hero, they were innocent bystanders, he was more used to kicking butts than they were (despite the 'warm' welcome they gave him when he arrived saying otherwise).

It was meaningless to help them all one by one, he had to look for the big guys and take them out. He remembered how those aliens tried to eat his grandpa, great aunt and all the elderly in that retirement community they went to, recalling how they turned into a giant goo creature and fought Heatblast (lousy choice at the time, really, but he didn't have Arctiguana yet). Guess this was the round two they were looking forward to.

Through looking, he finally found those he was looking for. Zs'Skayr's henchmen were there, and Scout was there too. But...

Where was Rook?

"Hey, guys!" shouted Ghostfreak. It was hard getting their attention when they were busy beating up others, but he couldn't exactly ask them to come for a coffee break. "What's up?"

"Looking peachy over here, how's the weather?" said Crüjo, rolling his eyes. "You managed to sneak out, as usual?"

"Yep! By the way, I think I'm out of excuses, your boss must hate me even more. If that's even possible. Also, have you seen Rook?"

"He's walked out on us in that direction." said Viktor. "I don't know what his plan is, but it almost looked like he was running away from the battle. He wasn't that much of a coward when you knew him, was he?"

"Nah, he must have something in mind. Okay, thanks, bye!" waved the Ectonurite before flying off.

He only had a few minutes to get to Rook before he timed out, at least they could make up a plan while they were together again. What he missed to notice was that Scout was calling out to him.

The Loboan had noticed something off with his best friend, Rook wasn't acting normally at all. The way he spoke, how they talked about stuff earlier, something wrong was clearly going on, and Ben could get hurt if he wasn't careful. As much as he tried, his howls couldn't reach the Ectonurite teenager and the boy disappeared in the crowd.

Out of ideas, he had to try and follow him. It was hard when you were attacked by all sides, and friendly fire wasn't an option he could simply get rid of. Part of him wondered if Ben was really gone that fast or if he just turned invisible not to get caught by the ongoing battle, hard to check.

However, even if he saw Rook, Ben was now nowhere to be seen. Furthermore, why was Rook...

Why was Rook punching himself over and over?

"Rook! Rook, what's going on?! What are you doing?!"

The Revonnahgander didn't answer, instead he kept bringing his fists to his own face, beating himself up while an unfamiliar screech came out of his mouth. What happened to him, how was he so feral all of a second?

As he tried to approach his friend, he was stopped by Viktor's hand on his shoulder.

"Any idea what's wrong with him?"

"He's not in full control of his actions, somebody must be possessing him, but it doesn't look like that Vladat is responsible." he said as he kept hearing the unusual sounds coming from Rook. "No, that sounds more like..." His eyes widened as he recognized that pitch. "Master!"

This got the attention of Kuphulu and Crüjo, who got closer while pushing away their respective opponents. It was undoubtedly their master's voice, but why was he harming Rook? Why make him hurt himself when Rook was very clearly under their orders?

"Master, he may be Tennyson's friend, but he's helping us! Don't harm him when he can still be of use!" pleaded Viktor.

A ghastly hiss of anger came from Rook's body, and they saw the ghost alien come out. Except... it wasn't Zs'Skayr.

Except, it was Ghostfreak.

Except, this wasn't what they were envisioning.

Except, this was the final straw.

"You..." hissed Ghostfreak. "You're not... Rook..."

The Revonnahgander, or rather his impostor, got back up after the Ectonurite left his body, then sported an uncharacteristic grin as Ghostfreak was glaring at him.

"Correct. And here I thought it'd take less time for the great Ben 10 to realize his partner was gone."

This wasn't Rook's voice, the pitch it had was closer to the Limax. Suddenly, it peeled the blue furry skin off itself, revealing the slimy creature underneath it, its blobby face making a borderline mocking expression. But it wasn't over.

The fake skin it wore... it looked so lifelike when it was worn, and now it looked like a part of it was rotting, as if it was real skin. Where did it come from? This wasn't the usual replica they had for impersonating others.

"What have you done with Rook?!" hissed the Ectonurite.

"Once he was all on his own, without that little toy you Plumber scums gave him, it was easy to take his body and dispose of the rest."

"...what do you mean?"

"You solid lifeforms are so pathetic, needing something like this skin to stand on your own. Once I rid it of his innards and threw it off elsewhere, it was easy to make you think your friend was still with you, when all I needed was to daily report to our leader about your little plans."

Ben wasn't listening anymore.

There was nothing around him, no battle, no people, no life, no friends, no enemy. He was all alone. He never had the ability to do anything right anyway, just one other mistake to add to the pile.

But the time for doing right and wrong was over, only one word came to mind as he heard the slug bastard talk.

"Once our leader gets rid of that guy keeping you prisoner, we'll leave it to him to decide what to do with you."

Revenge.

With a ghostly scream that gave every single other person chills, tentacles came out of his body layers and dug deep into the impostor. Before his friends could even say anything, bits of green splattered all over the ground, black and green tentacles thrashing around as they took the creature apart.

None of them tried to stop him, because the rage they were witnessing had by far surpassed even Zs'Skayr's wrath in the past. The Ectonurite had reached a level of anger no one, not even Zombozo in the past, was able to make him feel. Even if his form wouldn't last, he knew this wasn't the first victim he'd make with such an emotion. He still had one more to take care of.

Once he saw there was nothing left, he withdrew his tentacles and turned to the gang.

"Where is their mother ship?"

Their master's voice was ringing very clearly in the teen's, and it was hard not to answer when they knew death was in his tone. With a shaking hand, Kuphulu raised his bands towards the ship in question, leading Ghostfreak to leave the place without a word.

He had just killed an opponent in cold blood. A long time ago, they would've brushed it off as a new low for their master's enemy, but now that they knew Ben...

"Rook..."

Crüjo put a hand on the Loboan Plumber's back, who had fallen to his knees as he touched the blue fur on the ground. Ben wasn't the only one to have lost someone tonight.

Hiding himself as a bat was an old trick he thought he wouldn't need anymore, but now that Ben restored his abilities, he did anyway, it was better than being rusty with his powers. Of course, one could mistake his actions as foolishness, especially when he faced a giant slug worm like that Limax fiend was, but he could hardly take the threat seriously, he'd faced more dangerous beings in his prime.

It wouldn't be long before his opponent would smell his scent out, and that's when he'd choose to strike. He missed the thrill of a combat without either winning too soon, or having a thorn in his side preventing him from winning without some pain. For the first time in an eternity, he found the thrill of adventure he missed before being crowned.

He could see the Limax disoriented, looking for him. Had it used its scent earlier, it'd find him much more quickly. So predictable, these slugs were so easy to dispose of, he had to deliberately make it last if he wanted a challenge.

However, he himself started picking up on another presence.

No, Ben couldn't have made it this far even if he managed to get out, could he? Yet the energy he was sensing was too familiar, too warm, too tempting... it couldn't have been anyone else.

Then again, Ben could do well on his own, he'd only need to be disciplined yet again after this. But as he felt his slave come closer, the scent of a human being was getting stronger. Was Ben not transformed? This would prove to be risky if he wasn't going to morph into another species. His Omnitrix would not be reached while he wasn't in full control, meaning he had to get his slave out of danger once again.

The Limax heard footsteps coming from the corridors of their fleet, alerting him of the presence of an intruder. He gurgled as he saw Ben Tennyson, the nuisance that stopped his armies six years ago from feeding itself with nice and tender humans. His spy informed them Tennyson wouldn't be able to transform anyway, so victory would be his.

The boy who caused his fleets so much trouble in the past walked in looking down with a grim expression, fists clenched as he didn't even bother to run into the fight, a sign he knew he was no match for the Limax leader. Only that he didn't notice the look of emptiness in the teen's eyes.

"Well, well! If it isn't Ben Tennyson, savior of the universe! Have you come to surrender your Omnitrix to us?"

Ben didn't respond, but as he raised his head to look at the Limax, Lord Transyl himself could perceive the anger seated deeply inside Ben's mind. The stare he was sending the slug was one he had very rarely seen, but he knew it was full of a strong and unshakable emotion, one he'd hardly expect to see in his slave: bloodlust.

The boy's eyes were devoid of the life, the light that's been animating him ever since he came on the planet. All there was left was a distorted look, shaking eyes ready to strike like a predator on its prey, any sign of mercy or sympathy was simply missing. He was in no position to fight back, yet he clearly had more intent on living than his enemy did, facing both the greatest hero in the galaxy and the most fearsome creature that existed in the entire universe.

"You..."

Ben's tone was heaving, holding back a scream as the fury inside him was building up. The slug must've done something to push his slave over the edge, Lord Transyl never had those results with him.

"You could've attacked dozens of planets... but you chose to come at this one, where you knew I was stuck... where you knew I needed help... all before killing Rook and wearing his skin to fool me." said the teen through gritted teeth. "Yeah, that's right, I found out. That bastard you sent died before he could tell me more, and you're next."

The Limax laughed at the teen's attempt at a threat. What was he hoping? That his cousin and Osmosian friend would come in from the windows along with his grandfather, and they'd save the day as they always did? Tonight would mark the day the Limax defeated once and for all the Plumbers.

He was out of words as Ben reached the dial and the icons started circling through.

"What?! How-"

"I figured out why Lord Transyl gave me this." he said, caressing the Corruptura on his forehead. "I assumed this was like a dog collar, stopping me from going too far when he kept me on a leash, but I understand now."

He raised his head to the purple bat observing him with surprised, curious and unsuspecting purple eyes. This would better prove his worth to the vampire lord once and for all, he'd be too tired afterwards.

"It was to keep me safe, he knew I'd get myself in danger and that I didn't care about getting hurt. But guess what? Tonight, I'll be careful about it, I'm not gonna die after what you did to Rook." he coldly stated as his hand stopped on an icon he thought he'd never see again. "You are."

As he slammed on the core that had popped up, he let the cold feeling surround him. His skin grew paler, his teeth grew into fangs, his fingers slowly became claws. Albeit the thirst in his eyes was still there, it looked less human and more sinister, matching the horns and mask he now wore. Green flaps grew under his arms, reaching his waist as the rest of his body was covered in a tight jumpsuit.

Once the light faded out, the alien hissed its name as it glared at the mass of scum before him. "Whampire."

The Limax stuttered in its movements as it saw Tennyson become a Vladat, but recovered. It'd take more than that to defeat him, especially when the king of those bloodsuckers himself had cowered and hidden himself somewhere. What he never expected was for Ben to finally raise his voice.

A glass-shattering scream had escaped the angry Vladat's mouth, causing it to resonate beyond the walls of the fleet. But when directed at the slug, it had the simple and efficient consequence of dispersing it into a puddle. Once Whampire saw the bastard was down, he lunged towards its slimy body as it started to reform. Before the Limax realized what was happening, Whampire's teeth dug into its gooey surface.

Life energy and blood weren't exactly the same, as you could tell by looking at any Anodite. And in a creature like this' case, while no blood was leaking, anyone could tell something was taken out as its form was deflating, a pathetic gurgle akin to a scream escaping from it as its life was being pulled out of its body.

Where he was, Lord Transyl patiently observed. Ben found their opponent's weakness in his sonic scream, something he hadn't tried yet due to how unlikely he expected it to be the answer. Yet his slave instinctively knew what to do and took down that fiend once and for all. But what mattered most to the vampire lord at the time being was that Ben was feeding himself.

He had finally embraced the most sacred part in being a Vladat, fueling his own life with the energy of the universe around him. His first choice of meal was certainly... disputable, but this was a major development in his slave's behavior. If only he had been the one behind it.

With a huff, he returned to the shape of a man and landed back on the ground. Ridding himself of the dust on his robes, he looked at the other Vladat, who got back up as he made a tired hiss and turned around. The king was displeased to see that, rather than a look of triumph or of pride, all Whampire had was a sour, defeated expression of exhaustion.

Far from accomplishing anything, Whampire's face could only mean he lost, despite the creature's leftovers on the ground proving otherwise. His slave wasn't acting the way he should, and he knew why. Revenge could make a meal better, but would leave a bitter aftertaste once accomplished. And in Ben's case, revenge would not bring that Revonnahgander back.

The boy would need a lot more to recover from this particular tragedy, and so for the time being, only he could grasp Ben's pain and alleviate it. He approached the green clad alien and trailed a cold hand down the young hero's shoulder, bringing it to Whampire's palm.

Lord Transyl heard no complaint, no remark, nothing more from his slave. The fight was over.

None of the troop members knew what had happened until they spontaneously, all at the same time, were surrounded by Loboans forming a circle around them while every species other than the Limax knew it had to get out of the way. In an instant, as the howl resonated through the night, what was previously a tenacious army was nothing more than a pile of slime ready to be washed away.

The cold would affect them less in their new state, but Lord Transyl was certain that the doctor that mangled his return among the living would have enough to make a deadly poison to the slugs. With the hope it didn't affect anyone else.

Not that the fate of other species mattered much to him, but after everything that ensued tonight, his slave deserved some rest more than anything else.

The effort that was required to accomplish everything he did despite being an inexperienced Vladat was formidable, but he wouldn't be able to stand it much longer. Furthermore, in his state of mind, Ben's will was destroyed. Should he not act, the boy wouldn't have any drive left to live anymore, and there would be another death among them, one he couldn't bring himself to replace.

Ben hadn't said a word as he followed Lord Transyl out of the ship. He didn't argue, didn't run away once Whampire timed out, didn't ask for anything, he simply had an empty look as he sat on the bed beside the vampire alien.

With a sharp, cold finger, Ben's chin was raised to face the ruler, weak green eyes facing mesmerizing purple ones. Someone had taken the opportunity to break his slave's mind before him, but it wouldn't stop that he'd be the one to heal it, whether his slave wanted it or not. Much to his surprise, Ben was actively looking at him straight in the eyes, indifferent to his fate.

"What do you have in mind, my slave?"

"As if you care..." muttered Ben. "I failed everyone, I fail everything... I'll never be a real hero, I can't do it..."

"Yet you've already saved this world and the universe around it countless of times." he said, caressing the boy's cheek as Ben closed his eyes, hands trembling from the pressure. "Why would you think that way?"

"It doesn't matter what I did before if all I did was ending it terribly... Rook is gone by my fault. His family, my friends, everyone we know... They'll hate me, everybody will know it's my fault, I'm useless..."

"Not to me, my slave, not to me..."

"You got the wrong idea, like everyone else does!" shouted Ben, as he started to cry. It was time he surrendered as he could feel Lord Transyl's claws dry away his tears.

"Now listen, I cannot recover what you've lost, as your friend was, like you, a mere mortal. But I can give you a purpose."

For the first time ever since he got caught, Ben found himself listening to him out of his own volition. His head wasn't spinning, but he was too tired to care. It'd be easier for him to fall asleep and let the ruler's voice take him away from this nightmare. He'd cherish nothing more than peace, and the man would willingly give it to him once he submitted.

The Vladat's eyes were spiraling again, and Lord Transyl's compelling voice was invading his mind. Only this time, it was more than welcome to his already damaged psyche. For a moment, the feeling of rest was back, and Ben felt like his worries would soon fade off.

"Should you accept to serve me faithfully, you won't be plagued by the role of being a hero to all your people, for I will be the only one to ever need your assistance. Your place shall be by my side, as I'll be the only one to own you and the only one you'll ever have the need to answer to." said Lord Transyl, stroking Ben's brown locks as he looked at the boy's green eyes, the pain and emptiness soon replaced by another emotion, one that'd make Ben his until he died. "All these responsibilities as a praised savior of the universe won't hinder you anymore, all I ask from you is your loyalty."

Ben stared back at him. Nothing held him back anymore, those words would imprison him forever yet... he had never felt this free ever since he got caught. He bit his lip, before letting the answer out on its own.

"I... I..." he heaved. "I... accept."

For a few seconds, nothing happened. Then Ben's mind was lighter again, devoid of the weight he'd been carrying for months now. His memories of the events were still there, the pain wasn't fully gone... yet Ben wasn't afraid anymore. The burden that took place in his head had disappeared, instead feelings of comfort, attachment and trust were filling his mind.

He kept looking at the man's eyes who, despite returning to normal, were impossible to look away from. Regardless of what happened previously, it only felt like the right thing to do, what he should've done from the beginning.

"Now that you agreed to my suggestion, you shall no longer be my slave, but my servant. You will not be regarded as a prisoner, but as a valued member of my court. And from now on, should anyone try to hurt you again, I shall be the one to handle it. Do you understand?"

"Yes... my, my lord."

Ben threw his head back as a tingle came from his forehead. Lord Transyl held him by the back, letting his head rest as the little creature left its spot. As soon as those words fully penetrated his brain, he felt the Corruptura withdraw its tentacles and slowly detach itself from him, before it finally fell down on the ground, letting a squeak as it was removed from Ben. He didn't need it anymore, now that his spirit belonged to Lord Transyl only.

He didn't know if their minds were connected, or if they were merely thinking of the same thing.

Because as their eyes met again, their faces came closer. They paused to look at each other, remnants of thoughts of the entire night soon rendered null as their lips met.

Neither would let go of this new feeling that had been tracking them ever since Ben got to know Lord Transyl, Ben could only ever think about making his lord happy. And despite the pitiful actions he had shown earlier, somehow, Ben knew his lord would treat him well, regardless of what he was and what he did.

He shuddered as he felt strong, protective hands, reach his sides and pull off his shirt, revealing a youthful, not quite toned but still slightly muscular figure. He blushed as he felt his lord's gaze upon him, trembling as those same hands pulled him closer and he went in for another kiss.

Tonight would mark the beginning of a new life for Ben Tennyson. With his allegiance sworn and his heart, body and mind taken, he could only treasure the feelings of solace, warmth and love Lord Transyl had to offer, keeping him close through the night as every scars both had gathered were soon closing themselves on their own.

Deepest apologies, and a happy new year!

It's been so long since this plot was spinning inside my head, I'm glad I finally got to sit down and write it down instead of leaving it to rot there like Roo- ERM!

Speaking of which, have you noticed when Rook stopped being himself? :3 (Hint: Revonnahganders do not speak in contractions)

As you can already tell, this is the end of an arc for the fic and the start of a new one, now that Ben is getting cozy with his Dracula boss/bf ;)

(apologies if the "took his organs out" part disgusted you, but hey, this fic is rated M, and not so pretty things usually happen in prison).

Now that Ben has lost anything tying him to the world outside Anur, and that he doesn't fit elsewhere out, how will his daily life change? Moreover, how will he react next morning after Rook's death? And after his first time with an alien lover?