Author's Note: I own nothing. Here's where things start to branch from the main timeline more.

33 Meeting

Kevin was under a car when he heard the voice. He'd been moonlighting for Ed the mechanic, it was good steady honest work. Three things that couldn't describe any of the jobs he'd had up until then. Ed was also very flexible with the schedule as he was aware of Kevin, Gwen and Jen's other job as Plumbers, literally the only law in this sector at the moment. That still made him smile. The voice that called out his name did not.

"Kevin Levin." The thick English accent gave him away. Kevin rolled out from under the car and looked up into the face of a tall man with brown hair and bright hazel eyes. He was wearing a suit, tailored and well made. The only thing that gave him away for what he really was was a small pin he wore on his lapel. A silver sword with the crossguard replaced with an infinity symbol.

"Sir Hector. The hell are you doing here?" Kevin stood and stepped over to the opened hood of the car he was working on. He picked up a wrench and kept working shooting a look over at Ed across the shop. He was the only one there currently, the others were out at lunch. Ed raised an eyebrow at the man and Kevin shrugged.

"I have heard you are running with a new crowd Kevin." Everything he said sounded condescending and Kevin couldn't tell if it was just the accent or not.

"So?"

"If the rumors are true then you would be the man to speak to about brokering a meeting with Jennifer Tennyson." Kevin went still for an instant. That had not been what he was expecting. He'd been expecting the Knight to try and talk him into brokering an illegal deal again. He would not be dealing again. He liked having his badge too much. He turned, the wrench still in his hand.

"Why do the Forever Knights want to talk to Jen Ten?" He asked waving the wrench to emphasize his question. Hector smiled slightly, just a quick uptick of the corner of his mouth, glad to have caught the ex con's attention.

"We require a meeting with her. That is all I can tell you now."

"And you're here to broker a deal that I bring her to you? I'm not in the habit of betraying my friends." He said it smoothly, as if he hadn't betrayed her before and it wouldn't be a revelation to the Knight in front of him that he was friends with Jen. Indeed it got a raised eyebrow, a sign of pure shock from Hector. Kevin had worked with this man before, he was one of the Knights the other Knights didn't talk about because he had connections to the seedy alien weapon trade. It wasn't honorable work. But it had kept Kevin in his apartment and out of debt to many people for a while, and Hector had been his main contact. The brown haired man was famously reserved.

"No not betrayal. You have my word that neither she, nor you, nor her cousin who we assume will accompany you, will be harmed. We only wish to speak, we require her assistance. You will also be handsomely paid." Hector turned to the door and beckoned to two men standing there in suits. Each held two silver suitcases. Hector took one and set it on the open engine of the car. He popped it open and stepped aside so Kevin could see what was inside. It was full of cash. He took the second briefcase and opened it. This one was full of Taydenite. "Two of each." Kevin inspected the briefcases with an unimpressed look.

"Not enough." He closed them and set them on the floor before kicking them over to their handler. Hector looked taken aback.

"This is twice your normal asking price."

"And you're asking for something special, not to mention last time I worked for you, you skipped out on my pay and got a friend of mine killed." He hadn't known Magister Labrid long, but the alien had given him a chance, few did that. Hector frowned.

"What will it take for you to arrange this meeting?" Kevin raised an eyebrow. Those were dangerous words for a broker to say to another during a bargain. He looked over Hector again, leaning on the car. The man's hair wasn't slicked back like normal and there were bags under his eyes. His fingernails were also chewed down, a bad habit Hector had that was always a tell for stress and desperation.

"I need a few pieces of tech. Energy cuffs. Three sets, with the keys. I need four laser lances and a containment cube. Along with the cash and Taydenite you've already offered." Hector pulled a phone out of his pocket and stepped off to the side pressing one of the buttons. Kevin grinned at the Knight still holding the briefcases. The man stayed stock still glaring anywhere but Kevin, the Knights hated working with anyone who didn't conform to their view of the world.

"Done!" Hector said hanging up the phone. He nodded to the Knight who was still holding the cases and he set them down. "Keep this half of the payment. You'll receive the rest of your request tonight at the rendezvous. Seven o'clock at this address." He pulled a folded piece of paper out of an inside pocket and handed it off to Kevin. Without another word he turned and left, taking his knights with him. Kevin stared after him. They were desperate. Hector hadn't even tried to talk him down. Ed cleared his throat behind him.

"Everything alright?" Kevin shrugged picking up two of the briefcases.

"Probably not. The Forever Knights are spooked, they don't spook easy." Ed looked over the shady briefcases and Kevin's heart gave a twinge. Ed hadn't known he was a criminal, used to be a criminal. Ed nodded.

"You're buying lunch, get that fuel line fixed. You can put these down in the Hole for now." Kevin grinned.

"Thanks Ed." Ed nodded.

"I only ask that you take any fights outside if this happens again." Kevin's smile nearly split his face as he nodded.

Finding the Tennyson girls turned out to be a bit harder than he expected. He ended up having to track the Omnitrix with his badge. They were at Gwen's school. In the gym. He walked in as Gwen judo flipped her cousin and pinned her. He blinked slightly but stood by the door as the girls wrestled for a moment. The smack of a knee meeting a stomach had Gwen rolling off her cousin and raising her hands in surrender. Jen rolled back to her feet and winced.

"Sorry. You know I don't react well to being pinned though." Gwen nodded as her hands glowed and she ran them across her stomach before she managed to stand. Her tank top rose slightly and Kevin caught a glimpse of a disappearing bruise, vanishing too rapidly to not be Gwen healing it with her powers.

"I honestly forgot. Sorry." Gwen apologized as she pushed her bangs out of her face. Jen nodded and grabbed her water bottle before she spotted Kevin and frowned.

"Kevin? You look serious what's up?" He shook his head and stepped forward.

"I set up a meeting for you." Both girls raised eyebrows at him.

"With who?" They asked the question nearly in unison which was a little creepy."

"Doesn't matter, come on." Gwen's eyes narrowed at him.

"With who?" Her voice had gone steely. Jen took a long drink from her water bottle.

"The Forever Knights." Water spewed across the wrestling mats. Jen looked up at him, incredulous.

"You're kidding?" He shook his head. "Then you're nuts! They got Magister Labrid killed. They've been trying to kill me for years!"

"And they need help! Desperate enough to come to you, though they couldn't find you directly." Gwen shook her head.

"They paid you to bring Jen to them didn't they?" The redhead crossed her arms as he spluttered at her question.

"Can't I ever do anything out of the kindness of my heart?" Both girls were glaring at him now and Jen looked about ready to kick his ass, alien or not. He let the façade drop. "Ok. They approached me to broker a meeting, requested Jen specifically, assumed we'd be there too." He gestured between himself and Gwen. "Paid me double what I normally charged for brokering weapons deals, and caved to my demands for alien tech immediately when I said no. They're desperate. They need your help." Jen still looked skeptical.

"Look I've never seen this guy so spooked. And I've known him for a while. I've also never seen him cave to demands like this. They're scared of something Jen. Have you ever seen a Forever Knight scared?" Jen thought about it for a moment as Gwen glared between them. The redhead would be overruled if Jen agreed. She would go of course, she wouldn't leave Jen alone with the Forever Knights but she still remembered the first time they'd encountered the Knights. They'd been trying to dissect Jen, who had been stuck as Grey Matter, talking about this being the first encounter with this species in centuries.

"Fine. I'll meet with them but if there's any sign of a double cross we take them down hard." Kevin nodded.

"Of course."