A/N (Important, Please Read): Hey there everybody! It's new chapter time once again, and I've got a couple big things to say before we get on with it. First off, as you know, Eon was introduced in this chapter and we'll be seeing more of him here. That being said, as we all know, his backstory is a pretty complicated one that's riddled in retcons, so I decided to take a crack at explaining his backstory concisely without messing up the events of both Ultimate Alien and Race Against Time. But secondly, I have a pretty BIG announcement at the end of the chapter, so be sure to stay tuned for that! But for now, let's proceed, shall we? This is…
Chapter 117: One Last Call
…..
Outside of the Xiao Long-Rose Family home, Kevin Levin was whistling a tune to himself while doing what he did best; tuning up his car. The Osmosian was in a particularly good mood today, and that was due to a couple of things. First, and most important; he and the others were FINALLY going back home after three weeks of being in Remnant. He had to admit, he had grown fond of the rather dangerous world, especially since he was able to get into fights more often. Be it against Salem's forces or her Grimm, a good scrap was always present to him.
However, at the same time… he missed his mom every single day. It wasn't something that Kevin liked to admit to a lot of people, but his mother was his weak spot, especially after the death of his father and her second divorce from her second husband, Harvey. He made sure to provide for her as much as she did for him, and ever since he had arrived in Remnant, the raven-haired teen knew that his mom would be worried sick about him, which in turn had the same effect on him.
'Thank god I was able to talk to her last week.' Kevin thought to himself as he whipped his sweaty brow. 'At least she knows I'm alive now.' He couldn't help but smile as he went back to work. 'Man, tonight's gonna be great. I just hope she doesn't mind the extra guests.' The team had all agreed that they would be bunking at each of the Alien Trio's houses, with four Remnant teens to each; Team RWBY at Ben's, Team JNPR at Gwen's, and Team SN, Ilia and Penny at his own place. Rex and Holiday were already set up at Bellwood's Plumber headquarters, so thankfully they didn't have any bunking problems. 'That just leaves Raven, Tai, Winter and Qrow…'
As his mind wandered on that, Kevin couldn't help but think of the SECOND big thing that fueled his good mood; the fact that his best friend had finally shared a bed with a woman. Granted, they hadn't done the ultimate deed, but still, he was proud of Ben nonetheless. He had also given Yang mad props for it as well, which earned him a fist bump. 'Yeah, Ben's definitely found the one for him.'
"Hey, trouble maker!" Kevin's eyebrows rose up at the sound of Raven's voice. "Mind if we get a word with you?"
The Osmosian reached down and pulled himself out from under his car on his folding creeper, seeing that Raven, Tai, Qrow and Winter were all standing above him. He took a quick glance around and his eyes widened when he realized that Winter and Qrow were now in entirely new clothes. "Oh, hey guys!" He nudged his head toward the aforementioned two. "You guys are lookin' spiffy."
Qrow let out a small snicker. "Heh, thanks, kid." The former drunkard Huntsman had kept his torn cape and wristband, but otherwise, his ensemble was totally new. He had done away with his necklace and rings as well, with new, black rings in the old ones' place. Plus, it seemed like he had shaved a little, too.
His new outfit consisted of a light grey, collared shirt with floral patterns on their rolled-up sleeves, along with a black vest that had cross-shapes on its buttons under it. Underneath all of that was a white v-neck, and over the vest was a sleeveless, dark grey jacket with gold trimming and buttons. He also now wore dark grey dress pants and black dress shoes to match, giving him a somewhat classier vibe. Qrow extended a hand down toward Kevin and sent him a smirk. "Need some help up?"
"Sure." Kevin nodded as he grabbed Qrow's hand and hauled himself up, giving the older man a quick glance up and down. "You're lookin' pretty swank, old man. Tryin' to impress a lady or somethin'?"
"Heh, well, I'm always tryin' to impress the ladies, kid." Qrow chuckled again as he eyed Winter. "You've gotta stay on the ball when you've been in the game as long as I have."
Winter sneered at his remark before clearing her throat, offering Kevin a neutral expression. "Ignoring that… Kevin, I think we may have decided on who will be going where when we arrive on Earth."
Kevin's eyebrows rose up at that. "Oh, great! So, what's the low down?"
"Well, we felt it best if Tai and I stayed at Ben's place." Raven said as she linked her arm with Tai's. "Seeing as we're going to be meeting with Ben's parents, we thought it would only be fitting."
"I just hope we won't impose on 'em too much." Tai sheepishly said as he rubbed the back of his head. "I mean, not EVERYONE'S house can be as big as mine."
Raven gave Tai a light pat on his arm. "Oh, I'm sure things will be fine, Tai. …Why I'm hoping is that Ben's parents will LIKE me."
Kevin gave Raven a wave. "Ah, don't worry. Ben's folks are pretty chill. You'll be fine so long as you explain everything to them."
"Well, I hope you're right." Raven sighed before moving on. "In any case, Winter will be bunking at Gwen's place as she had intended."
The Osmosian's eyebrows shot up and his eyes darted over to the Elder Schnee, who had raised one of her own brows back at him. "Wow… you're really taking a chance on that one, huh?"
Winter gave a small shrug. "I'm not exactly sure I see an issue. After all, I find it quite optimal that I will be sharing a roof with Kenny." A small smile came to her face. "It will certainly make our outings a lot easier to plan, at least."
"Yeah, well… just be sure you don't get TOO cozy with him." Kevin urged. "I've learned that Natalie doesn't take to finding people in her children's beds very well."
Winter deadpanned at that remark. "…How do you know that, Kevin?"
"I wasn't able to see Gwen for a month after that."
The military specialist slapped her forehead and let out a groan. "Duly noted." Winter composed herself and placed her hands behind her back, giving Kevin a serious expression. "However, I hope you have been doing the math so far, Kevin. I will be staying at Gwendolyn's, Raven and Taiyang will be at Benjamin's place. So that leaves…"
Kevin's eyes widend substantially at that last part before trailing over to Qrow, the older man giving him a shrug. "…You're kidding."
Qrow could only offer a shrug. "Sorry, kid, but it's the only set up that works." He jerked his thumb toward Raven. "Listen, I love my sis, but the last thing I wanna do is bunk with her. Haven't done that since we were kids and I do NOT wanna go back to it."
"The feeling is mutual." Raven smirked.
"An' the last thing that Ice Queen wants is to bunk with me." Qrow continued before raising his hands. "So c'mon, can ya help a recovering alcoholic out here?"
Kevin rubbed the back of his head, feeling unsure of how to handle this. "Well, I would, but… my mom pretty much JUST moved into our new house a little over a year ago, and… well…"
"Hey, I get it." Qrow nodded. "Yer afraid of lettin' a walkin' bad luck charm into your new place. I'm sure your folks wouldn't exactly appreciate the chance of me bringin' the whole place down either."
The Osmosian sighed and crossed his arms, his eyes focused on the ground as he pondered what to do. "Well… ya know what? I'll ask my mom what she thinks about it and then we'll go from there."
Qrow gave another shrug. "Well, better than nothin', I suppose. I'll respect yer folk's wishes if they don't want me around, kid. If not, I'll try an' find another place to stay."
"Gotcha… also, uh… it's JUST my mom." Kevin clarified. "My dad hasn't been in the picture in a long while, really."
"Oh… uh, sorry, kid." Qrow apologized. "My bad. I'm guessing things didn't end well between you an' him?"
Kevin cringed a little bit at the wording of that question. "Well… not exactly. But at the same time, kind of." At the perplexed faces he was getting from that statement, Kevin pulled out his phone and pulled up a picture of himself at four-years-old, his mother, Evelyn, and his father, Devin, all sitting together and appearing to be quite happy with one another. "Okay, so… this was what my family looked like before everything went down."
He showed the picture to everyone, which piqued many of their interests. "Hm, well, you certainly were a cute kid, Kevin." Raven smiled.
"Yeah, and your parents seem like a respectable couple." Winter added.
Tai tilted his head. "So… what happened?"
"Ragnarok happened." Everyone turned their heads to see Max walking up to them, the old Plumber carrying Azmuth on his shoulder. "Sorry for the interruption, but I heard the conversation and couldn't help but be a part of it."
"It's good, Max." Kevin said with a sad smile. "You wanna take over? You're… you're a lot better at telling this than I am."
Max placed a hand on Kevin's shoulder. "Of course, son." The old Plumber sat down at the nearby picnic table and began recounting the event to the other adults present. "Well, first off, Kevin's father, Devin, and I were partners back in the day. …And his final mission truly was his last…"
…..
Once Max was done recounting the events of his and Devin's encounter with Ragnarok, the whole group was left stunned, aside from Kevin and Azmuth who remained silent throughout all of it. "…Damn." Qrow uttered as he shook his head solemnly. "What a way to go out." He craned his head up to Kevin nudged his chin toward him. "Sorry about yer dad, kid. I can definitely say I know the pain of losin' someone ya love, an' lemme tell ya; it ain't a good one."
"That, I think, we can ALL testify." Tai agreed, settling his arm over Raven's shoulders.
The Spring Maiden in question wore an angry expression after hearing Max's tale. "I hope Ragnarok got exactly what was coming to him after you sent him to the Null Void, Max." She went back to Kevin with a sympathetic gaze. "He deserved whatever he got for killing your father, Kevin."
The Osmosian couldn't help but smirk at that. "Funny you should say that, because guess who ended up one-upping Ragnarok in the end?" He jerked a thumb to himself. "THIS guy!"
Everyone's eyebrows shot up at that. "Really?!" Winter asked. "Does that mean he escaped?"
"He did, but Ben, Gwen and I managed to put a stop to him reactivating his sun-draining ship…" Kevin glanced away with a smirk. "…And I may have left him to be sucked into space."
Everyone's jaws dropped at the revelation, the silence lasting for a few good seconds before Qrow broke it. "…So, you're tellin' me that you left the guy who killed your dad for dead in the vacuum of outer space?" Kevin gave him a nod and Qrow immediately extended a fist. "Man, mad props, kid."
"QROW!" Winter exclaimed as Kevin returned the fist bump. "Do NOT encourage him!"
"What am I encouraging him of?" Qrow asked. "He already snuffed the guy, so what's done is done, right?" Winter groaned in response, facepalming for good measure. "Eh, whatever, Ice Queen." Qrow went back to Kevin and gave him a thumbs up. "But still, great work, kid. An' thanks for askin' yer mom if it's alright for me to stay at your place."
"No prob." Kevin saluted. "Though, uh… you DO know I have a name, right?"
"Yep, an' I'll start calling you that once you stop callin' me an old man."
Kevin rolled his eyes at that. "Heh, like THAT'S gonna happen." The Osmosian nudged his head toward the house. "Now c'mon, let's see how Ben and the others are doin'. That Lisa Lavender lady got here about an hour ago and I wanna see just how this interview is going."
Raven slapped her forehead lightly. "Oh, that's RIGHT, they DID have that interview today, didn't they?"
Finally, Azmuth decided to speak up. "Hmph, I was wondering what that light tremor was earlier." he said as he crossed his arms in disapproval. "It would seem that Ben was giving another "demonstration"."
Max gave a chuckle before lowering his hand to Azmuth, who climbed on board without hesitation. "Hehe, relax, Azmuth. Ben's gotten famous all over again. Of course the people are gonna want to see what his aliens can do." The Galvan grumbled as the group of seven made their way toward the house, with Max and Kevin letting out a laugh at the same time.
"Man, seems like some things NEVER change." Kevin commented as they entered the house. The group all trekked into the living room to see the Belladonnas, Ilia, and Sienna still watching Thundercats, though this time, Vernal had decided to join them. "Heya guys! Enjoying the show?"
"HA!" Vernal guffawed, throwing her head back toward Kevin. "If by "enjoy" you mean "riffing the hell out of it"!" She jerked a thumb toward the TV. "This has gotta be THE most dated crap I've ever seen in my life! You can TELL that this was made to advertise toys."
Kevin raised a brow and placed his hands on his hips. "Hey, don't go dissin' Thundercats like that! It's a good… if weird show."
"WEIRD is definitely the word I'd use." Vernal snickered.
Ilia gave a shrug as she pointed to the screen. "She's got a point, Kevin. I mean… robotic bears that have fur on them? Kinda weird."
The raven-haired teen raised a finger to argue… but then found that he couldn't counter how strange that truly was. "Well, alright, I guess you've got a point." Kevin crossed his arms and tilted his head. "So, where's Mr. Hero and the others? Anybody know how the interview's going so far?"
Ghira pointed to the stairs on the other side of the room. "Well, they HAD gone down into the basement a while ago, but then they came back and went upstairs instead." The panther man gave a small shrug. "Not exactly sure why, though."
"Well, Lisa probably wanted the interview to take place somewhere where there's some actual peace and quiet." Kali figured. "…Either that or they're showing her more Earth media up there."
Kevin let out a sigh and rolled his eyes. "Of course they're doin' that." He waved his hand to the others as he made his way to the stairs. "Alright, I'm gonna head up there and see just what the heck's goin' on. Don't wait up for me, 'kay?" With that, Kevin scaled the stairs and began making his way down the hall, immediately hearing the sound of a commotion coming from Qrow's room. The Osmosian approached the door and, just as he suspected, he heard the sounds of gameplay coming from the other side. 'Yup, just as I thought.' Kevin opened the door and called into the room. "Okay, who started the interview without me?!"
At his words, everyone in the room all spun their heads toward him. Ruby, Weiss and Rex were all sitting on one bed while Sun and Blake were sitting cross-legged on the other. Ben and Yang were sitting on the floor between the two beds while Lisa Lavender and Neptune were standing on either side of them, the blue-haired boy keeping the news camera focused directly on the television. They game they were playing was none other than Batman: Arkham Asylum, and judging from the smiles on their faces, they seemed to be having a good time. "Oh, hey Kev!" Ben greeted with a wave. "Glad to see you could join us."
"Yeah, 'bout time, right?" Kevin said sarcastically as he entered the room. "So, you guys showin' Lisa some Earth stuff before the big interview?"
"Indeed they are!" Lisa exclaimed. "And I have to say, this game is VERY interesting. I knew that you kids were superheroes, but I didn't think that your world had its own library of FICTIONAL superheroes as well!"
Kevin couldn't help but smirk at that. "Heh, yeah, Batman's pretty awesome." He walked in and propped himself up against the bed that Sun and Blake were sitting on. "So, where are you guys at now?"
"Well, Yang just finished rescuing two guys from the big "explosive" surprise gift that Joker had tied them to." Rex explained. "And Batman JUST burned Dr. Youngs formula, so that means now he has to rescue Young from Zsasz."
Yang gave an affirming nod. "Yep… but first I think we may have a problem." She pointed to the vents that were on either side of Batman as he stood in front of the next door… and they were blowing out a rather noticeable amount of gas that was making Batman cough. "Guess we've got Scarcrow's fear toxin to deal with… AGAIN." She glanced over to her boyfriend with a smirk. "So, what kind of a jumpscare are we in for this time, Green Boy?"
Ben couldn't help but wince at that. "Well… it's really less of a jumpscare and more… traumatic this time around. Step through the door and I think you'll get the idea."
Next to them, Lisa's eyes wouldn't help but widen in confusion. "W-W-Wait, what?" However, she immediately was taken off guard when the next room popped up with the title 'Wayne Manor'. "I… I thought we were in Arkham Asylum. What's "Wayne Manor" supposed to be?"
Yang visibly winced like her boyfriend had done. "…That's Batman's… Bruce Wayne's home. This can't be good." She made Batman proceed down the hallway and made a right turn… directly down into a seemingly endless hall. And then, oddly enough, a flash of lightning over took the screen briefly, and with it, it began to rain inside the hall. "…Yeah, definitely not good."
And, if that weren't enough, that's when the voices began to be heard. "I can't believe you insisted on sitting through that movie again, Bruce." Came the disembodied voice of Thomas Wayne. "Come on, we'll be late for Alfred."
Next came Martha Wayne's voice; "Go easy on him, Tom. He loved it so. Alfred will wait. Keep up, Bruce!"
On one of the beds, Ruby visibly paled when that conversation came up. "Oh… I think I know where this is heading."
As Batman passed a sign on the wall that said "Crime Alley", Blake's ears folded down and she settled her head onto Sun's shoulder. "This just got REALLY depressing really quick."
From there, Thomas and Martha began arguing over taking a shortcut through said alley, though ultimately, Thomas insisted on doing so. Weiss couldn't help but facepalm at that. "You STUPID man! Why in the HELL would you take a short cut through a place called "Crime Alley?!"."
"It wasn't named that at the time, Ice Princess." Rex explained as he gave his girlfriend a pat on the shoulder. "It was only called that after… the incident."
"W-What incident?" Lisa stammered as Batman proceeded forward, only for the reporter to be spooked out of her skin when a distorted voice suddenly started yelling at the Waynes. The scene had also shifted to look more like an actual alley way after the next flash of lightning.
"Hold it there, lady!" the voice forcibly yelled.
"Oh god!" Martha cried.
Thomas instantly began to try and reason with the criminal. "Please! There's no need for this!"
"Stay where you are!" the voice said as the clicking of a gun could be heard as well. "I'll shoot!"
"I'll give you anything you want—" BANG! At the sound of the gun going off, all of the trashcans in the hallway suddenly got knocked over, with sparks flying from them as Martha screamed and young Bruce called out for his father.
With Martha distraught, the voice then began forcing her to be silent and do as he said. "Be quiet, lady! Just shut up. Give me those pearls."
"Stay away from me!" Martha shouted as the man began audibly began grabbing for her pearl necklace. "RUN BRUCE—" BANG!
"MOMMY!" With the second shot from the gun, Batman suddenly began stumbling before he fell to his knees… in front of the bodies of his dead parents. The camera panned up as another flash of lightning suddenly reverted Batman back into a young Bruce Wayne, with the Bat signal shining down on top of him.
There was a long, drowned out silence through the room as Lisa finally came to the realization. "This… this is his origin story."
Ben gave a solemn nod. "Yep. It's been one that's been told time and time again, but the origins of the Batman are no less powerful here as they are anywhere else." He gave Yang a nod, seeing that she too had a bit of a solemn expression about her as she proceeded forward. As she moved young Bruce further along, another audible conversation came up where Bruce was found by Jim Gordon… and it was no less painful to hear.
"Why'd he do it officer?" Young Bruce cried. "WHY?!"
"…I don't know." Jim answered to the best of his ability. "It's this city, there's something wrong with it. And listen, son, call me Jim."
With another flash of lightning, Batman was back to normal, which allowed Yang to open the door to the next room. "Oh thank goodness that's over." Yang sighed in relief, brushing her hand through her hair. "I don't think I could take any more emotional drama today."
Lisa let out a sigh of her own. "Yes, that WAS a pretty heavy scene. VERY impressive storytelling. But… what CAUSED Batman to see that in the first place? Was it that toxin from that "Scarecrow" person you mentioned?" In response, Yang pointed to the screen… where the next room was in some HEAVY disarray, almost as if it were in a void of some sort. And then… another distorted voice came in.
"What are you trying to do?" As the voice spoke, a MASSIVE hand with large syringes attached to the fingers gripped at the wall. The index finger tapped a couple times before the hand pulled back, with the camera panning back to reveal an equally massive Scarecrow standing menacingly in the void, scanning his eyes all around for Batman.
Lisa's face grew pale at the sight. "…Oh my."
"Yeah, don't worry, I've done this before." Yang smiled as she focused on the game again. "This part's actually REALLY easy."
…..
Meanwhile, back in the Land of Darkness, Salem and most of her followers had gathered in the meeting room, where they were currently awaiting the arrival of their new guest. She had wanted to make sure that most of her acolytes were present for this meeting, and Eon had graciously agreed to wait patiently. And while Hog, Skull and Subdora had returned from assisting Watts and Animo with Silyrian, the latter three would not be joining them for obvious reasons. "Man, still can't believe that Tyrian's even ALIVE after all that." Hog uttered as he took his seat, craning his head up toward the ceiling. "You'd think losin' an arm AND an eye so suddenly would at least put ya into a coma."
"Yeah, well, Watts and the boss might HAVE to put him into a coma until he's all patched up." Exo-Skull uttered as he slumped down into his own chair. "Poor bastard."
"I am certain that Tryian will be fine." Salem assured with a wave of her hand. "I have known him for quite a while, and I can tell you that his persistence is only rivaled by… his rather diminished mind."
"You can say that again, Signora Salem." Subdora concurred. "…I simply wonder if his body is JUST as resilient as he is lost in the head."
Thunderhog jerked a thumb to himself. "Well, the doc DID say that us mutants are pretty durable, so I think Tyrian will pull through…" He paused for a moment before craning his head toward Salem again. "Though, uh… he MIGHT be a bit pissed that he lost his arm and his eye."
Salem raised a brow at him. "I would consider that an understatement, Thaddeus. But worry not, Arthur is already working on a replacement. One that will prove to be most… interesting."
Hazel, with his arms crossed and his eyes closed, pursed his lips in slight annoyance. "Watts plans to integrate a missile launcher into the new arm's pincer." He opened his eyes to focus on everyone there. "AND he'll have a targeting system in the new bionic eye."
"WHAT?!" Cinder, her group, and the mutants all exclaimed at once, with only Neo and Viktor remaining silent. The Fall Maiden practically shot up out of her seat. "Lady Salem, please pardon my choice in vocabulary, but you CANNOT be serious!" She pointed toward the doorway. "Are you seriously okay with giving Tyrian of all people a missile launcher?!"
Rojo clenched her teeth in nervousness. "Yeah, not sure if that's the best call, Boss Lady."
"Perhaps not." Salem admitted. "However, I have added a special caveat to this; should Arthur include this, then he will have to add a safety to it which only HE can deactivate." She sent a side-long glance toward her pupil. "Believe me, young Cinder, I am not about to let someone as unstable as Tyrian walk around with live weaponry around my castle." Her stare transitioned into a soft glare. "Now, are we done?"
Cinder bowed her head respectively as she sat back down. "Yes, my lady. Please, forgive my outburst."
"Very good." Salem craned her head around, gazing out toward her followers. "Now, if we are all settled, then shall we allow our new guest to come in?" There was a soft murmur throughout the room in agreement, to which Salem nodded. "Very well." She set her hand onto the Seer on the table in front of her, which rose up in response. "Find Eon, if you would."
But before the Seer could depart… "There is no need for that, Lady Salem." Everyone's heads snapped up at the sudden voice coming out of nowhere before, without warning, a purple vortex appeared in the room, taking everyone by surprise. Eon stepped out of the portal with his hands behind his back, greeting the group with a slight bow of his head as his vortex closed. "I am already here."
A few of the others shuddered as the man made his presence known, the glare of his blank white eyes sending a small chill through some of them. The only ones who didn't appear perturbed were Salem, Viktor, Hazel and Cinder, with Rojo only appearing to be slightly put-off. "Jeez, you must be a riot at magic shows." The bounty hunter commented.
"I've been told I have a few interesting tricks." Eon said before reaching to grab a chair. However, the moment he touched it, the piece of furniture began to age so fast that it practically crumbled to dust withing seconds. The table was set upon by a round of gasps from nearly everyone, this time with Hazel and Cinder very much included. Salem and Viktor only wore impressed expressions at what he had just done. "Oh, sorry about that." Eon apologized before lighting his hand up with purple energy and blasted out a beam at the dust… which immediately began reconstituting into a chair as if nothing had happened. Eon took a seat at the end of the table, lacing his fingers together as he propped his elbows up. "Just consider that a small demonstration of what I am capable of."
"…You are a time manipulator." Salem said with an evil grin. "How very interesting." She laced her own hands together and placed them on the table. "But… with such a great power… why do you wish to join our cause?"
Eon gave out a chuckle. "Hmhm, now isn't THAT the million-dollar question?" He steepled his fingers as he elaborated. "You see, for as powerful as I am, I'm afraid that a recnet incident has hindered my reach. And as a result, I can no longer step into Ben Tennyson's home dimension physically." He gestured toward Salem and her forces. "And that's where you all come in. With your help, I can take the revenge I so desperately crave… and I believe it's safe to say that you crave revenge as well, Lady Salem."
"You would be correct." Salem confirmed before raising a brow. "That said, why exactly are you barred from Ben's universe? And how did you come to acquire a power such as yours?"
Eon let out a sigh at that. "…Let's just say that my story is quite the complex one." He extended his hand as he began explaining. "You see, I once used to be two completely different beings; one human, and one Chronian. But after a… certain event, I ended up fusing into one whole being." He placed his hand onto his chest. "I still have my Chronian powers and personality… but my body is human."
"So I'm guessing that your Chronian powers are what let you manipulate time." Emerald spoke up. "Here's my question; does it have the same effect on living beings?"
Eon gave a shrug. "Basically yes… though aging or de-aging humans rapidly proves to have… very ill side-effects on them."
If possible, Salem's grin became even more sinister. "Oh, I will be sure to remember that." She leaned forward, eager to learn more. "So, why exactly do you have a conflict with Ben Tennyson? I'm assuming he must have gotten in the way of your plans?"
Eon placed his hands on the table, giving Salem a nod. "Correct, though at the same time, my plans succeeded… a bit more than I would have liked." He stood up and began pacing around as he recounted his story. "You see, not only am I from another dimension, but I come from an alternate timeline as well… at least that's where my human half originates from. My Chronian half was sent to Earth a little over 200 years ago to begin my race's invasion of the planet by activating an ancient artifact called the Hands of Armageddon, which would activate a portal between the dimensions." He stopped pacing and took a brief pause. "However, I was intercepted by the Plumbers and they imprisoned me. Two centuries later, I escaped, but after over-using my powers to do so, I had aged rapidly, and my body would not be able to handle activating the Hands on its own."
Mercury raised a brow at that. "Huh, guess your powers have a pretty bad side effect, huh?"
"Indeed, and now I need to be even MORE careful now that I have a human body." Eon emphasized. "Which leads me to my NEXT point; fusing myself with a human in order to regain my youth." He returned to his initial position at the end of the table, but remained standing. "As you are aware, the Omnitrix has the ability to scan and catalogue alien DNA, as seen when Tennyson scanned Trumbipulor and Bashmouth."
Rojo furrowed her brows. "How do you know about—" Before she could answer, Eon looked directly at her and tilted his head, giving her a questioning gaze beneath his helmet. "…Ah, right, time traveler, got it."
"Right. In any case, I saw an opportunity to regain my younger form by having it catalog my OWN DNA while deactivating the failsafe so that my personality could completely take over Tennyson's, essentially creating a younger clone of myself when doing so." Eon balled a fist in frustration. "My plan would have worked perfectly. I had successfully possessed Tennyson and activated the Hands. I was on the cusp of victory… but then Tennyson's DAMNED cousin managed to get through to him and allowed him to take over!"
Cinder sneered at that. "Ugh, don't even get me STARTED on Gwen."
"Hm, indeed." Eon agreed before crossing his arms. "In any case, the result was Tennyson managing to deactivate the Hands of Armegeddon… but not before I managed to force my way back out of the Omnitrix." He spread his arms out to accentuate his point. "But in the process, something went wrong. I WAS now younger, yes, but my DNA proved to be mostly human. I still had my Chronian powers and personality… but my face…"
Everyone's eyes around the table all widened in realization, with Thunderhog being the first to speak up. "…Wait a second. You said that you basically possessed the Omnitrix and made Tennyson transform into you. But… if you separated from him, then THAT would mean…"
Eon gave out a chuckle. "Hmhm, finally figured it out, huh?" He reached for his helmet and began undoing the clasps. "I suppose I shouldn't bother hiding my face then, should I?" With that, he pulled off his helmet and set it on the table, eliciting a round of gasps from everyone there.
"…No fucking way." Exo-Skull uttered.
"I… I cannot believe this!" Subdora exclaimed.
Haze put a hand to his head. "This… this is quite surreal."
Rojo saw Neo's jaw drop like a brick, to which she nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I'm right there with ya, sister."
After staying silent throughout the whole conversation, Viktor finally decided to pipe up. "…So THAT is how you recognized me."
"That's right." Eon replied with a bit of a smirk on his face… a face that heavily resembled an older version of Ben Tennyson's. There were a couple of visible wrinkles under his eyes, but the main thing that caught their eyes was the VERY impressive beard he was sporting. His green eyes stared out at all of them as the group stared back, allowing it all to sink in. "As you can see, the fusion was a VERY interesting union to be sure."
"B-B-But… HOW?!" Emerald shouted, all while secretly thinking; 'Dammit! That Blonde Bimbo is a freaking lucky woman!'
Eon extended his hand toward her. "I just got done explaining it to you. Haven't you been paying attention?"
Mercury stood up and glared at the Ben Tennyson look-a-like. "Oh, I'm sorry, it's just that when you reveal that you've got the face of one of our greatest enemies, it kinda throws everyone for a loop!"
"To say the least." Cinder muttered before eyeing Salem… only to see that the witch was grinning quite eagerly. "…Lady Salem?"
Salem pressed her hands together and took a calming breath, a small chuckle escaping her lips. "Well, I must say that this is… quite the amount of news that you have divulged onto us, Eon." She extended one hand to him. "So, now that I know how you acquired your… unique form, how are you barred from entering Tennyson's universe?"
Eon gave out another sigh. "Well, my first attempt at revenge didn't go according to plan. I was going to activate the Hands of Armageddon from a different time line, the same one that YOUR version of Ben Tennyson is from." He shook his head disappointedly. "Unfortunately, he and another version of his future self managed to destroy the Hands before I could, which resulted in me being forced out of that timeline completely."
Another silence carried throughout the room, with Thunderhog scratching his head. "So… I'm guessing that timey-wimey stuff like that happens a lot around you, right?"
"You have no idea."
Salem cleared her throat, putting the conversation back on track. "Nevertheless, are there any… advantages to being half Ben Tennyson?"
"Oh, quite a bit." Eon said while poking the side of his head. "While my personality is dominantly Eon, I still have the memories of Ben Tennyson all up in here. I know many of his weaknesses, at least up until age ten. However, from what I've observed, some of those weaknesses still apply. For example…" He craned his head over to Emerald. "Tennyson has a latent fear of peacocks. Use that however you wish."
Emerald's eyebrows snapped up at that. "That's… a weird thing to be scared of." Then a smirk of her own came to her face. "But I think I'll roll with it."
Cinder perked up at the information. "I must say, this COULD be very useful."
"Oh, indeed, young Cinder." Salem agreed, eyeing at Eon with dark intent brewing in her mind. "Eon, I believe that this will be the beginning of a beautiful partnership."
Eon clapped his hands together at that. "And I cannot wait to get started… my lady."
…..
"I just have to say… Batman's villains REALLY don't mess around, do they?" Lisa Lavender was currently still reeling a bit from what she saw happen in the Arkham Asylum video game just a few moments prior. Yang had managed to rescue Dr. Young from the mad man known as Zsasz, but unfortunately, just as Young was going to grab security codes from Warden Sharp's safe, a rigged explosion went off FROM said safe, effectively blowing Young up. After Harley sicced her goons on Batman for good measure, the reporter had spoken up, saying that now would be a good time to start the interview proper. With that, Yang exited the game and Ben shut off the PS3, allowing Kevin to pack it into his car with the rest of their stuff.
"Yeah, no kidding." Yang concurred as they went down the stairs and entered the kitchen. "It's like Harley said; "Mr. J hates a snitch"."
Weiss shuddered and rubbed her arms. "I'm just glad that a psychopath like that is only fictional. An insane killer clown is something that I would NOT want to run into."
Ben deadpanned and glanced over to her. "…Then you'd better hope you don't meet Zombozo."
"…Oh, right." Weiss' face paled in realization. "Ben, what do your enemies ALWAYS have to be so weird?"
The hero could only offer a shrug. "Eh, search me." He put his focus back onto Lisa and gave her a thumbs up. "So, you wanna get this interview started now or what?"
"Oh, definitely!" Lisa said excitedly before putting her microphone up to Ben's face. "Okay, so there's been one BIG question that's been picking at my mind ever since you transformed into Rath yesterday and started playing that music; what is a Real "Ah-mehr-ee-can" and is there such thing as a fake one?"
Ben and Rex's eyes simultaneously shot open at the question. THAT was certainly something that they weren't expecting. "Heh, w-well, it's actually pronounced "American", and it's the nationality that I am. I'm from the United States of America in my world, so that means I'm an American citizen. As for if there's fake ones… I think it's best if we avoid that question."
Lisa tapped a finger to her chin. "Hm, good point. So, moving on, why don't we take this downstairs so we can really get start—"
But before she could finish, the group suddenly began to hear a pair of voices coming from down in the kitchen, prompting them to stop suddenly. "So, Oscar? What do you say?" came the familiar tone of Professor Paradox.
"I… I-I really don't know." Oscar stammered out, the farm boy sounding unsure of something. "I mean, it's a pretty great offer, don't get me wrong, but… it's still kind of a lot to take in."
Ben's brows furrowed in confusion before he proceeded down the stairs, peering right into the kitchen. There, he saw the professor and Oscar standing near the table, the former giving the young boy a reassuring wave. "I understand that it must be quite a lot to take in all at once. It often is with mortals. However, I still believe that it would be quite beneficial for you." Paradox settled a hand onto Oscar's shoulder. "Take some time to think on it before everyone leaves and let me know, alright?"
"A-Alright." Oscar nodded. "Will do."
It was then that Ben decided to make his presence known. "Ahem!" Paradox and Oscar perked their heads up toward Ben as he, Team RWBY and Rex all made their way down, with Lisa and Team SN staying upstairs behind them. "Hey professor, Oscar, what're you guys talking about?"
"Something important, it sounds like?" Ruby asked further.
Paradox smiled in greeting. "Ah, hello, everyone. I take it that you're in the middle of your interview. Apologies if we are holding you up." He gestured toward Oscar with his right hand. "You see, Oscar and I were just having a conversation about a certain offer I just made him."
Blake tilted her head a bit. "Oh really? And what would that be?"
The professor shifted his eyes over to Oscar. "Do you wish to tell them now, or—"
"Yes." Oscar said instantly, stepping up to the group without hesitation. "I… I'm not about to make the same mistakes that Ozpin made. Something this important deserves to be shared with everyone."
The whole group gave him a smile at his words. "Hey, good on ya, Oscar." Rex praised with a thumbs up. "So, whatcha got for us?"
"Well… it's kinda complicated." Oscar tapped his fingers together nervously. "You see… Professor Paradox has offered to take me with him on his travels through time and space." He put a hand to his head for emphasis. "He thinks doing so will be able to help me sort out some issues with you-know-who in here."
Everyone's eyes widened at that, prompting them to all come down into the kitchen. "So… you two think you can reason with Ozpin and get him to come out again?" Yang inquired.
"Indeed." Paradox affirmed. "I thought that traveling with an old friend would be good for Ozpin, allow him to relax and get his mind off of things for a while." He gave Oscar a pat on the back. "In addition, it would allow Oscar to experience plenty of new things as well. Give him a new perspective on things, as it were."
Ruby sent the farm boy a concerned face. "Are you sure about this, Oscar? I mean… I thought that you were eager to start training with us and all."
"Well, I am, and I DO wanna get better with all of you." He ran a hand through his hair and let out a sigh. "But… I wanna sort out this whole thing with Ozpin first. I just don't feel right at the moment and I wanna make sure I am before I really start my training." He took a deep breath and faced Paradox again. "And right now, I'm leaning toward going with the professor. I know that this is probably all very sudden, but—"
"It's okay." Ben said with a reassuring nod. "We understand, Oscar."
Yang came up and gave the farm boy a light jab to the shoulder. "Hey, yeah, if you wanna go through with this, then we won't stop ya, Oscar." She ruffled his hair a bit while giving him a wink. "Just be sure you stay safe out there in the time-space continuum, 'kay?"
Weiss gave Oscar a small grin. "And make sure to listen to Professor Paradox. One wrong move and it could be over for you."
"And the LAST thing we want is that happening." Blake added.
"We'll all be here for you when you get back, okay?" Ruby beamed. "And once you're in Ben's world, we'll give you the grand tour!"
Oscar chuckled and gave them a nod of his own. "Hehe, thanks guys, I appreciate the support." He settled his sights back onto the professor. "I… I'm pretty sure I've made my decision, but I wanna go around and tell everyone else about what I'm doing before I leave."
Paradox bowed his head in understanding. "Of course. Take all the time you need, Oscar. Whenever you're ready, you'll know where to find me." With that, Paradox strolled toward the backdoor and went for the handle… only to pause for a moment as his head snapped up, his eyes widening in shock. It was at that moment that he sensed a huge flux in temporal energy, and he knew that there could only be one culprit. 'No… HE is here? Already?'
"Uh… Prof?" Rex spoke up, catching Paradox's attention. "You good? Ya seemed a bit startled there."
"O-Oh, yes, my apologies." Paradox said with a small smile. "I simply just remembered something I have to take care of before we all leave. I shall be back momentarily." With that, the Professor exited the house and closed the door behind him, a worried expression settling onto his face. "Eon… what are you doing here?"
…..
After Professor Paradox left, Ben had called for Lisa and Team SN to join them down in the kitchen, which the reporter was all too eager to do. She had asked about what had happened, though Ben was quick to make up an excuse. "Oh, uh, one of our friends was having a personal problem and we just wanted to help them through it before bringing you down here." Inside his head, Ben added; 'It's not exactly a LIE, but I don't think the world is ready for the whole "reincarnated Beacon Headmaster" thing.' The hero smiled and gestured toward the table. "So, shall we finally get this started?"
"Indeed I am." Lisa smiled as she ushered for Sun to come over to her. "Alright, monkey boy, time for you to do your part."
Sun pumped an eager fist. "Haha, alright!" He came over and handed the boom mic off to Lisa before folding out the tripod, extending its legs and propping it up a couple of feet away from the table. He took the boom mic back and held it up, giving the reporter a thumbs up. "Alright, ready when you are, Lisa."
"Great." Lisa directed her sights over to Neptune and extended her hand so he could hand the camera to her. "Alright, blue boy, you can take five."
Neptune sighed in relief. "Phew, thank god. I think I was just starting to lose feeling in my shoulder." He handed the news camera off to Lisa and she attached it to the tripod, making sure that its lens was properly focused for where it was positioned. "So… what happens from here now?"
"Hmhm, simple, really." Lisa said as she waved a hand to the table. "You all are going to sit down with me and I'm going to ask some of you a few questions. These will probably range from what you've done here in Remnant to your lives before all of this happened, etcetera, etcetera." She clapped her hands together and smiled to the group. "So, are we all ready?" The group gave her sounds of confirmation before sitting themselves down at the table, with Neptune and Sun staying behind the camera as the monkey boy held up the boom mic over the table. In the meantime, Neptune sat vigilantly behind the camera to make sure said mic didn't get into frame. Once everyone was seated Lisa sat herself down so that she was closer to the camera, lacing her fingers together as she looked into it and spoke.
"And now we come to the actual interview." Lisa began. "I've already asked these kids many questions beforehand, but now we're going to be delving into a bit more detail into who they are and how they got to where they are today." She pointed her hand toward Ben and Rex. "Now, I know that we all want to hear the story of these two…" Lisa then waved her hand over to Team RWBY. "But how about we focus on the ladies first this time, hm? Would you guys be okay with that?"
"Oh, of course!" Ben assured. "We'd be happy to let the girls answer some questions first."
Rex gave Lisa a happy salute. "Oh yeah, no problema, Lisa."
Yang glanced over to the boys with a cheeky grin. "Gee, way to pass the buck off onto us, guys." She gave a shrug before facing Lisa again. "But hey, not everyday that we get interviewed, so why not?"
"That's the spirit!" Lisa extended her hands toward Team RWBY as she asked her first question. "Now, we already know that you four were students at Beacon Academy. In fact, a LOT of your other friends here are students from Beacon. What I want to know is what inspired you four to become huntresses?"
Ruby tilted her head to the side. "Oof, jeez, there's the big question. Well… to be honest, I wanted to become a Huntress because I wanted to help people in need. To be a hero." She rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. "That and both of my parents were Hunters, and I look up to them both a lot…" A sad sigh escaped her lips as she craned her head down to the table slightly. "But now more than ever… I want to honor the legacy that my mother, Summer Rose, left behind."
Lisa's eyes widened as her face fell, saddened by what she was hearing. "Oh my goodness… Ruby, I'm so sorry."
"I-It's okay." Ruby smiled sadly as Yang placed a hand on her sister's shoulder. "I know how dangerous the life of a Huntsman gets, and my mom knew that too. I only barely knew her… but from what I remember, she was one of the greatest Huntresses ever, and I really hope I can become as great of a Huntress as her one day."
"…I think that's a very good goal to have, Ruby." Lisa bowed her head. "And I wish you all the luck in the world." Ruby grinned and bowed her head back before moving on to Yang. "And Yang, I assume you wanted to be a Huntress to walk in the same footsteps as your mom as well?"
A small chuckle escaped the Blonde Brawler's lips at that. "Heh, well yeah… but that wasn't the major reason. See, Ruby and I are half-sisters… and my mom is still alive." She placed her hands behind her head and reclined in her chair. "Heh, in fact, one of the main reasons I wanted to become a Huntress was so that I could FIND my real mom… but now that she's back in my life, I guess that's gone out the window."
Lisa couldn't help but blink at that. "Oh… well then, that's pretty convenient. So now that you and your mom have been reunited, what's next for you?"
"Well, I still definitely wanna become a Huntress, but ever since this whole thing with Salem started, I wanna help people more than ever now." Yang moved her gaze between Weiss, Blake, Sun and Neptune. "In fact, I'm pretty sure we ALL wanna help people now that we know what's at stake, right?" She got a bunch of nods and affirming words from her friends in response before going back to Lisa. "But there's still another reason why I wanted to become a Huntress… and that was to see the world. See, I'm kind of a thrill-seeker, and all my life, I've wanted to go on the adventure of a lifetime. So I thought that if I could become a Huntress, I'd get the chance to do that…" She set her eyes onto Ben with a loving stare. "And to add onto that, now I know that there's more than ONE world to explore, so I'm pretty sure I'm gonna get to go on that wild adventure I wanted." Yang reached over and intertwined her fingers with Ben's, the hero smiling at her all the while. "And now I get to go on it with someone who I love. So really, it's an absolute win."
"Awww!" Lisa cooed, her smile from ear to ear. "That's so sweet! I hope you two are really happy together." Her face then transitioned into a knowing grin, her eyebrows moving up and down. "Though I have to say, you DO know that you're going to be the envy of every girl in either this OR Ben's world, right Yang?"
Yang was quick to rebuke. "Ah, let 'em be jealous. I love my man and my man loves me." She turned her head toward the camera and pointed to it with a bit of a sassy head bob. "Deal with it."
"It's true." Ben cheekily added as he pulled Yang into a hug. "I really do love her." He sent a salute to the camera as well. "Sorry ladies, but this guy's taken."
Lisa couldn't help but let out a laugh at that. "Haha! Okay, noted." She then moved her attention over to Weiss, the heiress tensing up a bit. "Alright, Weiss, why is it that you want to become a Huntress?"
Weiss gulped before attempting to answer, already knowing that this would put her even deeper into the hole she dug herself into with her father. "W-Well… you see, I wish to uphold the Schnee Family name… by helping to cleanse it of the mud that my father put it in." Lisa wore a shocked face as Weiss took a deep breath, the surely former heiress putting everything she had into her confidence at that point. "You see, my father's business practices aren't the most… no, what I mean to say is that his practices AREN'T ethical in the slightest. He outright abuses the Faunus who are in the labor forces, let alone relegates them to labor forces because of his blatant discrimination." Her lips curled up into a snarl. "It makes me sick. And I was hoping to change ALL that once I inherited that company…" She let out a sigh as she lowered her head. "But that said, now that I've made it known where I stand on international television, he'll surely strip me of any inheritance I have."
Lisa took a moment of silence to take that all in. "…I see. The Schnee Dust Company HAS been scrutinized for its VERY controversial Faunus labor forces." She reached over and placed a reassuring hand over Weiss'. "If it's any consolation, I feel the exact same way you so, Weiss. But do you think that by becoming a Huntress instead, you'll be able to write the wrongs that your father has brought upon your family name?"
"I do." Weiss said resolutely. "If I can't inherit a way to stop this from happening, then I'll find another way."
"That's the spirit!" Lisa lifted her hand and balled it into a supportive fist. "Good luck, Weiss. I know you have it in you."
"She's right, ya know." Rex said while giving a thumbs up. "As far as I'm concerned, you're bad ass enough to FIGHT your way to the top of your dad's company, Ice Princess!"
Weiss couldn't help but blush, her head snapping away as she crossed her arms. "Oh hush up, Robo-dolt… but thank you."
There was a round of laughter at the table before Lisa moved on, her attention focusing squarely onto Blake. "And now, we have you, Blake. Why do YOU want to become a Huntress?"
Blake took in a deep breath, bracing herself for what she was about to say. "Well… it all started with my years in the White Fang." She laced her hands together and set them on the table. "I'm sure that you're familiar with Adam Taurus."
"The rogue White Fang general who helped lead the attack on Beacon, yes."
"Well… he used to be my mentor." Blake said shakily, gulping down her fear as she pressed on. "Among… other things…" She saw Sun giving her a worried gaze behind the camera, to which she gave him a short wave to assure him that she was alright. Sun gave her a silent nod back before she went on. "But more to the point, he always said that the White Fang would make the world a better place… but over time, his vision for a better world didn't align with my own anymore. So, I left the Fang and enrolled into Beacon, hoping that I could find redemption for all of the horrible things I had done."
Lisa leaned forward in intrigue. "I see. And have you been able to find the redemption you were hoping for?"
Blake rubbed the back of her head. "Sort of… but there's still a lot left that we have to do. A lot that I have to do…" She perked her head up and set her sights out to all of her friends, her smile increasing as she met all of their eyes. "…But at least I know that I'm not in this by myself anymore. I have a great group of friends to support me, and I couldn't ask for anyone better to fight by my side."
"Hear-hear!" Ruby shouted as all four teammates were suddenly brought in for a big hug from the younger girl. "Oh, I love you girls SO MUCH!"
"Hehe, love you too, Ruby." Blake managed to choke out before the hug ended.
Lisa gave a satisfied "Hm" as she watched the girls' hug. "Well, you all certainly have clear goals in mind for what you want to do. I wish you girls luck in everything you do, and I really hope that I'm able to follow your careers as you grow and learn as Huntresses." She got a massive "thank you" from the RWBY girls before moving her gaze over to Rex, the EVO flinching a bit as she raised a brow at him. "Now, why don't we hear more about you now, Rex? The world knows that you have nano-machines inside of you, but how exactly DID that happen?"
Rex gave out a chuckle as he crossed his arms and settled them onto the table. "You might wanna buckle up, Lisa, because in my world, let's just say that a LOT of crazy crap happens. It all started about seven years ago. One minute, things were going good. And then the next… BOOM. A whole bunch of nanites exploded into the Earth's atmosphere, basically infusing themselves into every living thing on the planet. And well… that's pretty much how it all started…"
From there, Rex began explaining his origins; about how his parents injected him with nanites to save his life, along with how they, his brother, Van Kleiss and the Consortium were involved with the Nanite Project. From there, he went on about how he kept losing his memories as he traveled around the world before being found by Providence, which then lead him to being trained to be a living weapon. From there, he quickly went through the rest of his story. From fighting the Pack, to reuniting with Caesar, to time traveling to a point where the Consortium had taken over Providence, to his and Ben's FIRST team-up, to eventually attaining god-like powers to cure every EVO on the planet… and Lisa could only stare at the young man dumbfoundedly as he explained it all.
"And that's pretty much how I got all my memories back and saved the world in the process." Rex finished. "Pretty neat, huh?"
"…I HAVE SO MANY QUESTIONS!" Lisa exclaimed as she practically shot up out of her seat and leaned over the table to get into his face. "How many enemies do you have?! How many of these EVOs have you fought-and-or-cured?! And WHAT is the story with that talking monkey?!"
"Why is it that EVERYBODY is so interested in BOBO?!" Rex shouted as she faceplanted on the table, much to his friends' amusement. Nevertheless, he answered all of Lisa's questions as she shot them his way, answering them to the best of his ability. "I know that this all must sound pretty crazy…"
Lisa shook her head vehemently. "Oh no, Rex, what you've just told me is fantastic! Under NORMAL circumstances, people might have thought you were crazy…" She jerked her thumb toward the stairs. "But after seeing all of this extra-dimensional stuff that you've shown me, I know that there HAS to be truth to what you're telling me."
Rex sighed a bit in relief. "Well, I'm glad to hear that, Lisa."
"And I'm VERY happy that you were able answer my questions, Rex." Lisa returned before finally facing Ben. "And now… it's finally your turn, Ben. What can you tell the people of Remnant about yourself?"
Ben took a deep breath and began drumming his fingertips together, letting out a small laugh as Lisa asked that. "Hehe… hoo boy, MY story. Well, it all started when I was ten years old. I was on summer road trip with my Grandpa Max and my cousin Gwen. We had stopped at a campground and I went for a walk in the woods… but then, a small pod containing the prototype Omnitrix came crashing down right where I was standing." He tapped the Omnitrix on his wrist. "And lemme tell ya, it was WAY different than the one I've got now. A lot… "clunkier" I think is a good word for it."
However, Lisa was still stuck on a set of three words. "W-W-Wait… you were ten years old when you got your first Omnitrix?!"
"Oh yeah." Ben confirmed with a smirk. "I was fighting bad guys, evil aliens, and pretty much doing awesome stuff with that watch all throughout that summer vacation. And all while I was ten years old!"
"…This is gonna be quite the sit-through." Lisa muttered to herself.
…..
Over the course of the next hour, Ben and Lisa went back and forth, with the hero pretty much explaining his whole story to her while the reporter kept asking questions wherever she could. Thankfully, Ben was able to answer most, if not all of these questions without much problem, with some of them even filling in some blanks that he forgot to mention. Finally, he came to his story's end, or at least up to the final battle with Vilgax and Dagon. "So basically; my arch enemy managed to absorb the limitless powers of an extra-dimensional entity." Ben explained as he neared the conclusion. "And with that, I thought it only appropriate to grab Ascalon and use it to beat Vilgax."
Lisa blinked in surprise. "Wait, so… you DIDN'T want to use your aliens for this fight?"
"Nope, honestly, with how powerful Ascalon was, I knew that it was probably the only thing that could really defeat Vilgax at that moment." Ben answered. "…Well, aside from Alien X, of course, but…"
"You didn't want to hinge the fate of the universe on something that could only possibly work." Lisa finished. "Gotcha."
"Exactly." Ben affirmed before moving on. "Anyways, I stabbed Vilgax with the sword and absorbed Dagon's power into it, effectively turning him back to normal. I was about to use the power to transform all of the Esoterica back to normal… but then Vilgax tried to convince me that I could rid the galaxy of all evil if I used the sword, Dagon's power, and the Ultimatrix combined."
This made everyone's eyes widen. "Wow, Ben, I… I don't think you went into THAT detail before." Weiss remarked.
Ben rubbed the back of his head. "…Yeah, 'cause it's not exactly something I'm proud of. See… I actually considered doing that." He saw everyone become even more shocked at the revelation before reassuring them. "B-But I didn't. Thankfully, my team convinced me to do otherwise, and I did what I originally said I would do."
Yang let out a sigh and wrapped an arm around her boyfriend's shoulder. "Good, because lemme tell ya; judge, jury and executioner aren't really good titles for ya, Green Boy."
"Heh, tell me about it." Ben chuckled before moving on. "But from there, Azmuth took back Ascalon and the Ultimatrix before giving me the new Omnitrix. And from there… well, a year passed without anything exciting going on before we all ended up here on Remnant." The hero let out a sigh as he gave Lisa a smile. "And… that's pretty much my story in a nutshell."
"A really BIG nutshell." Blake commented. "But a nutshell nonetheless."
Lisa sighed as well, allowing everything she just heard to settle in. "I must say, that's quite the life story, Ben. How were you able to just… handle all of this at your age? Most Hunters don't experience the kind of life-threatening events that you have in their own lifetime, let alone over the course of six years!"
Ben gave a small shrug. "What can I say? In my line of duty, ya have to grow up fast. I think I told you that yesterday during the battle, right?"
"Hmhm, yes, you did." Lisa nodded. "And I must say, I'm very impressed with what I've heard. Both from you and Rex…" Her gaze moved back over toward Team RWBY. "And from you girls as well. I can tell that you're ALL going to be great heroes, both on Remnant AND Earth. THAT you can be sure of."
"Thank you, Lisa." Ruby said graciously. "That means a lot."
"You're welcome." Lisa stood up and walked over to the camera. "And with that, I think we can bring this interview to a close. At least for now." She switched the camera off and everyone immediately relaxed, with Sun's arms practically falling down.
The monkey boy flung his head back in relief. "Oh, thank god, I don't know how much longer I could've held that!"
At that moment, a sly grin came to Rex's face as he leaned over the table, looking at Lisa expectantly. "Okay, so now that we've told YOU what we're all about, there's something that I've been wondering about YOU, Lisa."
Lisa blinked in surprise at the sudden statement. "Wait, me? What do you want to know about me?"
Rex folded his arms as he elaborated further. "Well, here's the thing I don't get about yesterday; you and your camera guy were pretty much there for the WHOLE battle, right?"
"…Yes, we were. Aside from when we had to go back to the station to get a helicopter."
"Right, so here's what I'm wondering; how in the HECK were you guys not injured?!" Rex listed off the points; "I mean, you were surrounded by bullets, energy attacks and falling debris, and the most you two probably got was just barely had a scratch, so what's the deal?"
Everyone immediately grew interested at Rex's question, which Ben was quick to pick up on. "Hey yeah, that IS a good question. It is pretty weird how you guys just… weren't touched throughout that whole thing." He raised a brow toward Lisa in suspicion. "It all seems pretty convenient if you ask me…"
A proud smile came to Lisa's face as she placed her hands on her hips. "Hm, well, I don't know about Greg, but I think I went unscathed because my good luck was watching out for me again." She received some confused faces as she went on. "You see, ever since I was a little girl, I had a knack of avoiding some pretty sticky situations. It all started when I was about eight; I was playing near the bottom of some sheer cliffs when a large boulder suddenly began falling down toward me. In hindsight, it wasn't the BEST idea to be there, and as you can imagine, I was scared out of my mind… but I was too stunned to move. I cried out for anyone to help me, but my parents were too far away. I thought I was done for, and my mind was racing a mile a minute to try and get my legs to move… but I couldn't."
"Oh my goodness!" Weiss shouted as the others around the table gasped at the events. "So… what happened?"
"Well, what happened next was kind of weird." Lisa pursed her lips in thought. "I suddenly felt this HUGE wave of… something flowing through me. I tried to run again after feeling that, but it was no good. I closed my eyes in fear… and then I heard a loud crash. But here's the thing; I wasn't crushed! The boulder somehow just veered off course and missed me by about five feet!"
"Woah, seriously?!" Yang shook her head in disbelief. "Man, you must've… wait… you said a wave of something, right?"
Lisa moved her hand back and forth a bit. "Yeah, it was this weird rush of… something. I don't know what it was, exactly, but here's the strange part; every time I'm on the receiving end of a really accident or something else that might've resulted in me getting seriously hurt… I always come out of it unscathed." The reporter raised her hands and gave a shrug. "And I honestly have no clue why."
The group of eight teens all stared at her with stunnef faces as she told her story, with Team SN and RWBY all facing each other. "You don't think…" Blake started.
"It's definitely a possibility." Weiss granted. "I mean, nobody is THAT lucky."
Ruby tapped a finger to her chin in thought. "Well… I wouldn't exactly call it luck. If it were, then she'd be lucky ALL the time and not just in dangerous situations."
"Oh… you think she's like Uncle Qrow?" Yang realized. "Hers could be a passive one like his."
As the teens conversed, Lisa looked between them all with a curious gaze, wondering just what they were talking about. "Uh, excuse me?" she placed her hands on her hips indignantly. "Mind telling me just what the heck you're talking about?"
Neptune offered her a glance. "Oh, we're just trying to guess what you're Semblance is."
If Lisa's attention hadn't been gotten by that point, then the utterance of THAT word definitely did. "My… Semblance?!"
"Oh, heck yeah." Sun said with a grin. "See, Semblances can be unlocked during some pretty intense moments, and it sounds like yours might be one of those cases." The blond crossed his arms as his tail swished around in thought. "Still trying to figure out what it is, though. If it's not luck, then maybe… threat avoidance?"
"That's probably the most likely candidate." Weiss affirmed. "I mean, if she had good luck all the time, then she'd probably be in a MUCH different position than she is now."
Lisa couldn't help but deadpan at that. "Gee, thanks, I—wait just a dang minute! How can you be so sure that I even HAVE a Semblance?!"
Yang began counting the factors on her fingers. "Well, for one, that wave of something you felt? That was probably your Semblance activating. And secondly, nobody who gets themselves into THAT many precarious positions comes out of it unscathed every time." The Blonde Brawler offered her a wink. "Face it, Lisa, you've got a Semblance and you didn't even know it!"
"I… wow." Lisa stared at her own hands in disbelief. "Wow! Haha, I have a Semblance!" She trailed a hand through her hair. "Hah, you know, if I had been a Huntress, I probably would've been VASTLY overpowered with this Semblance!"
"Heh, no doubt." Ben chuckled. "But hey, that's pretty cool that you have a pretty useful Semblance. Certainly, helped you out in the city yesterday."
Lisa gave a toothy grin and pumped a fist. "Well, now that I know I have this baby, I might just do more field reporting in the future! I should—huh?"
All of a sudden, the sound of clicking heels against the wooden floor caught the group's attention, their heads craning toward the kitchen doorway to see none other than Doctor Holiday enter the room. "Oh, THERE you all are!" the EVO expert said with relief. "You guys need to come into the living room right now, it's important."
"Doc?" Rex and the others stood up without hesitation. "What's the matter? Something wrong?"
Holiday smiled and shook her head. "No, but the interdimensional communicator is going off, which means that we're being contacted from Earth. Ben, we need Feedback."
Lisa gasped at the news. "W-W-Wait, you're being contacted from your home planet ACROSS dimensions?! H-How is that possible?!"
"Simple; Galvan Tech and a couple of geniuses." Ben replied. "And if I were a betting man, I think it's Agent Six calling in to check on us before we leave." The hero put a hand to the Omnitrix and found Feedback's icon, transforming into the Conductoid in a flash of green light just a few seconds later. "Alright, let's make this one last call."
…..
A few moments later, the entire team was all gathered together in the living room, along with Tai, Raven and Winter as well. The Belladonnas, Sienna and Vernal had all vacated the room, since they didn't want to intrude on what was not really their business, while Qrow had gone upstairs to get the rest of his stuff packed. Max was also making some last-minute preparations in the Rustbucket before they departed. The only other adult who wasn't present was… "Pyrrha, where has your mom been all morning?" Ren asked. "I don't think I've seen her since breakfast."
"Oh, she's been talking with Jaune's mother on the phone for a while." Pyrrha answered with an eye roll. "I think they might be coming over to the house in a while to spend a bit more time with us before we leave."
"Yeah, wouldn't be surprised if they did." Jaune shrugged with a grin. "We won't be seeing them for a good while after all." He rubbed the back of his head. "What I wanna know is… where's Azmuth?"
"Talkin' with Oscar and Paradox." Kevin answered. "I think he'll be headed back to Galvan Prime directly when the rest of us leave." He paused for a moment before bringing up another certain subject. "So… did you guys hear about… you know…"
"About Oscar wanting to go with the professor?" Ilia finished. "Yes, we have."
Nora gave a huff and crossed her arms. "Yeah, kinda bummed about it, to be honest. I really wish he would come with us instead. He'd make a great addition to the team!"
Ruby sent Nora a sympathetic expression. "Yeah, I know, Nora. But you gotta remember that he's got a lot of his own issues to sort out first." The Hooded Huntress glanced down to the floor. "After all he's been through with Ozpin, he's probably super confused about what to do with himself right now."
The Pink Dynamo sighed and hung her head a bit. "Yeah, I guess you're right…"
Meanwhile, Holiday and Feedback continued to work on setting up the communicator, both of them eager to see what Six would have for them once the call began. However, there was one person in particular who was a bit off put by all of this. "I don't think I've ever BEEN to one of these calls before." Raven remarked as she watched the alien and EVO expert work. "I mean, I caught the tail end of one the other day, but… you're positive that communicating over different dimensions is safe, correct?"
"Oh yeah." Feedback said with a wave of his hand as he plugged himself into the machine. "We've done this a whole bunch of times… or at least WINTER has."
That earned a snicker from the room as Winter gave the Conductoid a light scowl. "Oh, hilarious, Benjamin."
"Ah, c'mon, Winter. It's all in good fun." Feedback grinned as he began pouring his energy into the communicator. "Alright, Holiday, we should be good!"
Holiday nodded and went for the switch. "Alright, here we go." She flicked the switch and spoke clearly into the microphone; "Holiday to Earth! Come in Earth, are you receiving us?"
"Indeed, we are." came Six's voice loud and clear over the comm as the holo-screen turned on, revealing the green-clad man's face. Six smiled down and offered a soft smile toward his fiancé. "Hello Rebecca. Was hoping to catch you all before you left."
Holiday offered a wink back to her husband-to-be. "And I'm glad you did, Six. How're things going over there, hon?"
"Fairly well. We're setting things up and we're eagerly awaiting your arrival." Six set his sights out to the rest of the room to address the teens "Morning, everyone. I'm glad you could all be here for this particular meeting."
Rex gave his mentor a salute. "Hey, Six! Bet you're excited to see us come back to Earth, huh?"
Six sent Rex a smirk. "If you could call it excitement. So, any updates for us over here?"
"Ah, you know, just an attack on Vale yesterday that we were able to stop." Feedback said with a slight grimace. "…Though not before a whole chunk of the city got destroyed… and we ended up revealing our whole operation to the world."
Six furrowed his brows at this. "Mind explaining?"
"Salem, her forces, me and Rex's powers, the fact we're from alternate dimensions, the entirety of Remnant knows about this war now, Six." Feedback crossed his arms and nudged his head toward the door. "Heck, I just got done with an interview just a few minutes ago."
"Hm, I see. Well, that certainly IS less than ideal." Six deduced. "However, you're all safe and sound, at least, so there's a bright side."
"Yeah, that's true." Feedback conceded. "So, any news on Vilgax or the Pack? Or maybe even Charmcaster or the Collective?"
"No go on the first three, Ben." Six shook his head. "Things have been pretty silent on that front since we last spoke. However, as we speak, Manny, Helen, Alan and Rook Blanco are currenly moving in on what we believe to be the Collective's base of operations. I'm hoping to have an update from them in a few hours.
Rex pumped a fist as the rest of the teens gave an excited cheer. "Haha, alright! Well make sure they save some bad guy but for us to kick!" Rex couldn't help but smirk at that. "Oh, and uh, Six? You wanna talk about bright sides?" He reached over and pulled Weiss into a side-hug, the heiress smiling as he did so. "Guess which lucky duo just got into a relationship yesterday?"
This got Six's eyebrows to furrow in curiosity. "…Really?" He focused in on Weiss, whose smile faltered under the man's gaze. "Weiss… you and Rex are in a relationship?"
"Uh… y-yes." Weiss stuttered a bit. "We've, uh… had quite a bit of time to bond over the time that he's been here, and—"
"Good." Six smiled, earning a surprised face from Weiss. "A responsible young lady like you should help keep Rex's head on his shoulders. Congratulations." As Weiss stared at him in disbelief and Rex gave his mentor an indignant grimace, Six's smile disappeared as he focused his eyes down to Ilia. She was sitting cross-legged on the floor next to Penny, and the two girls flinched a little as Six eyed Ilia expectantly. "So, you must be the chameleon girl that I was told about. Your name is Ilia, correct?"
"Uh… y-yeah." Ilia stammered. "How'd you—"
"I make sure to have Caesar and Kenny keep me updated on any new developments." Six answered. "Helps in the long run, believe me." He then raised an eyebrow over to the Alien Trio. "Speaking of which, this brings your total number of team members to sixteen. I hope you've figured out a way to house all of them."
Gwen held up a hand. "Oh, believe me, Six, we've been talking about it extensively, and I'm pretty sure that we've got a good system down for them."
Six gave her a nod. "Excellent. However, I think you should run it by a certain group of people before you cement it. I've got them on the other line." He focused down onto Holiday again, his smile reappearing. "I look forward to seeing you all when you get back, Rebecca."
"Same here, Six." Holiday blew a kiss at the man before waving to him. "We'll see you soon." After the said that, Six gave her a nod before his face suddenly disappeared, much to the teens confusion. But then, the Alien Trio's faces to lit up again as the call was suddenly transferred over to a certain redhead.
"Kenny!" Gwen exclaimed. "Good morning!"
"Hey little sis!" Kenny waved out to everyone. "Glad that we could get a hold of ya…" He then moved his attention to Winter, with blushes coming to both of their faces as they made eye contact. "And a very special good morning to you, too, Winter."
Winter let out a small laugh as she sent Kenny a small wave back. "Hehe, good morning, Kenny. Well… I suppose that today's the day, isn't it?"
Kenny let out a breath, hoping it would de-stress him a bit. "Heh, y-yeah. To tell you the truth, I'm a bit nervous. It's… gonna be pretty different seeing you here in person instead of just on the other side of a screen." He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "I can't tell ya how much I was freaking out about this yesterday."
Gwen and Weiss both giggled a little before Winter shot them a small glare, getting them to stop immediately. "It's alright, Kenny." Winter's smile returned. "It will be a… very big learning experience for the both of us, to be sure. However, I'm certain that it will also be rather… fun." The military specialist sighed as she folded her arms. "And I certainly know that it's been a while since I've experienced any of that."
"Heh, don't worry, I'll help you out with that." Kenny said with a thumbs up. "I've got a few things in mind that I'm sure you'll like." At that moment, though, a small "ahem" could be heard off-screen, causing Kenny to send whoever made it an apologetic expression. "O-Oh, right, sorry." His eyes went back to Winter with a small grin. "Heh, as much as I wanna talk about that with you, though, there's a few other people who wanna talk with all of you."
At that moment, Kenny moved his communicator over so that it was focused onto something else… or rather another group of certain people. If possible, the Alien Trio brightened up even more, for on the screen were none other than Ben and Gwen's mothers; Sandra and Natalie, along with Kevin's mother, Evelyn. "Hi kids!" Sandra called out as all five of them waved to the group.
"Haha, mom!" Feedback shouted in excitement before unplugging himself and transforming back to his human form, having charged the battery up to maximum. "Man, is it great to see you!"
"Surprised to see us?" Natalie asked.
"To say the least!" Gwen said as she stood up to get closer to the screen. "That last thing we expected was to hear from you today."
Evelyn gave out a small chuckle before explaining. "Well, we kind of got a little excited to see you kids later on, and us ladies couldn't wait." She sent her son a small wave. "Hello sweetie! Hope you're doing okay!"
"Hey mom!" Kevin waved back. "Yeah, we're doin' pretty good." He jabbed a thumb over his shoulder to their group of friends. "And I'm sure you remember the gang, right?"
"Oh, how can we forget?" Sandra grinned before eyeing a certain blonde in the back. "C'mon, Yang, I see you back there!"
Yang's face flushed a little as she stood and approached the screen with Ben, returning Sandra's greeting. "Hehe, yeah, hi Sandra. Good to see ya again!"
Natalie then shifted her eyes over to Winter as well. "And Winter, it's so good to see you again, too. I've been hearing good things about how your little dates with my son are going."
Winter cleared her throat and stood as Weiss and Gwen began giggling again, much to her chagrin. "Ahem, y-yes, they have. Thank you, Natalie."
However, it was then that Evelyn noticed that there were some faces that she didn't recognize in the crowd of teens. "Oh, but I'm not sure if we've met some of these other children. I see…" She began counting the heads in the room, pointing out all of Team JNPR, Team SN, Ilia and Penny. "Eight kids that we haven't met yet."
"Oh, that's right!" Ruby realized. "You guys haven't really met all of our friends yet! Here, let's get you all acquainted!"
As the rest of the teens began introducing themselves to the three women, a certain Spring Maiden couldn't help but be taken off-guard. Raven let out a small "Eep!" before quickly hiding behind Tai, a panicked look coming to her face. If anything, though, this served to ALSO take Tai off-guard. "R-Raven?" The blonde man spun around and put his hands to Raven's shoulders, seeing the frantic look in her eye the instant he gazed into them. "W-What's wrong?"
"What's wrong?!" Raven harshly whispered. "Ben's parents, THAT'S what! I thought that I'd have more time to prepare before I met them but now, there they are!" The tribe leader kept her head low to make sure she wasn't seen. "I am FAR from ready for this conversation, Tai! I-I don't know what to do!"
Tai smiled down to her and cupped a hand to her cheek, bringing her eyes up to meet his. "Hehe, it's okay. Honestly, I wasn't prepared for this either. Hey, will you feel better if we introduce ourselves together?" He offered her a wink. "Because if I'm being honest, I'm a bit nervous too. But if we do this together, I think it'll be a lot easier. Whaddya say?"
Raven took a deep breath, collecting her nerves before giving Tai a resolute nod. "Alright, let's do this!"
By the time she was ready, everyone had already finished their introductions, and the three mothers were now familiar with everyone there. "Well, it's certainly a great pleasure to meet you all." Natalie smiled out to everyone. "I definitely look forward to getting to know all of you once you come over to Earth."
"Speaking of which…" Sandra glanced over to her son with a quirked brow. "Honey, have you all decided on how you're going to house your friends? Because I doubt they'll be thrilled if they have to sleep out in the streets."
Ben raised a hand to his mother assuredly. "Oh, don't worry, mom, we've planned all of this out right from the get go."
"¡Así es!" Rex said as he jabbed a thumb over to Holiday. "Holiday and I will still be bunking at Plumber HQ, and I have a feeling that Cooper's gonna have Team CFVY stay over at his place while they're there."
"Uh-huh, that's about right." Ben confirmed before he pulled his girlfriend into a side embrace while jerking his thumb over to Ruby, Weiss and Blake. "As for the rest of these guys, we'll be splitting them up according to teams. Team RWBY will be coming over to our place."
Sandra rolled her eyes with a knowing smile. "I kind of figured that would happen. Any excuse for you and your girlfriend to be together under the same roof, right?" She sent a wink toward the couple. "Not that I'm complaining. Just so long as you follow the ground rules."
"Hehe… yeah." Yang chuckled nervously. "I'm sure we'll have a talk about those once we get there."
Ruby gave the blonde woman a salute. "Don't worry, Sandra, we'll be sure to be on our best behavior! And we'll make sure to pitch in when we're needed." Weiss and Blake both reaffirmed Ruby's words with nods of their own.
"Oh, why thank you, girls." Sandra beamed in appreciation. "That's very sweet of you."
Gwen extended a hand over toward Team JNPR and Winter next. "And mom, Jaune, Pyrrha, Nora, Ren and Winter would like to stay at our place if that's alright with you."
Pyrrha gave the older redhead a polite bow. "I apologize if we intrude in anyway, Mrs. Tennyson, but—"
"Sweetheart, don't be ridiculous!" Natalie denied with a swipe of her hand. "I have PLENTY of room in my home for all of you… though be sure to be mindful that I have a lot of expensive décor, okay?"
"We sure will, Mrs. Tennyson." Jaune assured before eyeing Nora with a stern face. "We'll ALL be sure to keep that in mind, right?"
Nora sighed and gave Natalie a two-fingered salute. "I solemnly swear that I will NOT set off any explosives in your home, Mrs. T. Accidentally or otherwise"
Natalie blinked a couple of times at that. "Um… okay?"
"Trust me, it will make sense once you get to know her." Ren said as he gave his best friend a pat on the shoulder. "But don't worry, I've known Nora for most of my life, so I know you can trust her to keep her word." At that, green and pink duo shared a small, bashful grin.
"Well… good to know." As she began to question what exactly she got herself into, Natalie directed her sights back to Winter with a serious, if understanding, face. "Now Winter, I know that you and my son's relationship is only just starting to really get going, but I want you to know that I have my OWN set of ground rules as well, and I hope that you'll follow them accordingly."
Winter smiled and nodded her head. "Of course, Natalie, I—"
"I'll be frank; if I catch you in my son's bed, we WILL have words."
Immediately, Winter became flustered at the idea as Kenny cried offscreen; "MOM! Seriously?!"
Winter cleared her throat as everyone else around her also grew a bit uncomfortable… though if anything, Weiss and Gwen were trying to hold back their laughter at this point. "Y-Yes, I understand, Natalie. K-Kevin gave me that warning earlier."
Her words made Gwen stop laughing instantly and Evelyn and Natalie shared a quick glance, with both women smirking to each other in satisfaction. "Oh, I'm sure he did." Evelyn said before sending her son a disapproving glare. "After all, we DO remember what happened after that incident, don't we dear?"
Gwen and Kevin shared an awkward look with each other before the Osmosian craned his head down in shame. "Y-Yeah, we do." He then waved his hand over to Team SN, and the remaining girls. "In any case though, mom, Sun, Neptune, Ilia and Penny will be staying with us."
"Ah, very good." Evelyn grinned. "It's a good thing the new place has plenty of guest rooms. I look forward to having you all in my home."
Penny gave Evelyn a bow. "We appreciate your hospitality, Mrs. Levin!"
"Yes, we'll be sure to pay it all forward." Ilia promised. "Any help you need around the house, we'll be sure to assist you with."
Evelyn clapped her hands together. "Oh, thank you so much! Kevin, you've made some very nice friends over there in Remnant."
"Heh, thanks, mom." Kevin said sheepishly. "But, uh… there ARE a couple other guests that we'll be bringing over, and I'm wondering if one of them could stay in our house."
This made Evelyn tilt her head. "Oh, well of course, sweetie. Who is it?"
"Well, it's Ruby and Yang's uncle." The young Osmosian answered. "His name is Qrow, and he's kinda had a bit of a rough couple of weeks here in Remnant. He's a recovering alcoholic and he also got pretty banged up recently, so the gang's looking to get him away from it all so he can rest easy. So, we figured that Earth would be a good place for him to crash for a bit. But… there's a bit of a catch." He saw his mother cross her arms expectantly. "Ya see, the beings of this world all have special powers called "Semblances", and Qrow's Semblance… happens to be bad luck. And what's worse is… he can't shut it off."
"I see." Evelyn raised a questioning brow. "So you're asking my to practically bring an open umbrella into our home? AND one that once had a drinking problem? I'm sorry, sweetie, but I'm not sure if—"
"HEY!" Everyone's attention was suddenly brought to the stairs as Qrow came sauntering down, the hunter's eyes clearly searching for something. "Has anyone seen my—OH! There it is!" He reached down to one of the nearby end tables and picked up his cross necklace, doing an about-face as he went back up the stairs. "Sorry if I bothered ya. Carry on!"
For most, it was a brief, yet odd moment that could easily be shrugged off… but for Evelyn, that proved to be FAR from the case. The spikey, swept-back, greying black hair, the bright vermillion eyes, the short, yet visible stubble on his face… it was enough to make her jaw drop. The moment he was gone, she moved her eyes back to her son. "Wh-Who was that?"
"Uh, that was actually Qrow, mom." Kevin answered. "He can be a bit rough around the edges, but he's actually kinda cool—"
"Bring him." Evelyn answered immediately.
"W-Wait, what?"
"Er—uh, I mean… he can stay." Evelyn hastily pointed toward the stairs. "Tell him that he can stay at our home for as long as he needs to, just so long as he's able to pull his weight around the house."
Kevin blinked a couple times before making his way to the stairs. "Uh… sure…"
Once Kevin was up the stairs, Neptune let out a sigh as he set his sights onto his best friend. "So, we're REALLY gonna be living under the same roof as Qrow, huh?"
"Eeyup." Sun said before hanging his head in defeat. "Prepare for the worst, Neptune. That's ALL the advice I can give ya."
Meanwhile, back on the holo-screen, both Sandra and Natalie gave Evelyn similar smirks as small chuckles escaped their lips. "Hehe, well what do you know?" Natalie chortled.
"It seems like somebody is THIRSTY for some Silver Fox!" Sandra guffawed as Evelyn hid her blushing face behind her hands. "Oh, for Pete's sake, Evelyn, don't be so embarrassed! You're showing some great initiative! Now ya just gotta go for it!" All throughout the living room, though, the teens began cringing at the words before Sandra noticed. "Oh, come on, it's alright for you kids to be in relationships, but for us adults, you find it weird? Where's the logic in that?"
All of a sudden, a loud laugh came from the back of the room, alerting everyone as Raven and Tai both stepped into few. "Hahaha! Ma'am, I think I can speak for everyone here when I say that the thought of my brother being in a relationship must've broke their minds." Raven glanced over to Evelyn and gave her a sly grin. "I just hope you know what you're getting into, Mrs. Levin. My little brother can be quite the handful, if you know what I mean."
"I… I'm sure." Evelyn said in shock. "B-But, wait, you said that he's you're…"
"Little brother?" Sandra finished as she put the pieces together in her head. "B-But wait… if Qrow is Ruby and Yang's uncle… then… would that make you…"
Raven's eyes widened when she realized she had just taken the first bit step. 'Well, no going back know.' she thought to herself before glancing to Ben. "Hehe, Ben, would you like to do the honors?"
"Uh, y-yeah, sure." Ben stepped up and faced his mother, all while gesturing toward Raven and Tai. "M-Mom… these are Yang's parents." He then faced the couple next to him and repeated the process. "And guys, this is my mom, Sandra."
Sandra could only remain silent, her lips parting in shock as Raven bowed her head to her. "I-It's a pleasure to meet you, Sandra. My name's Raven Branwen. I'm Yang's mother and Ruby's step-mother."
"And I'm Taiyang Xiao-Long." Tai added. "I'm Yang and Ruby's dad. It really is nice to finally meet you." He reached over and clasped a hand to Ben's shoulder. "You have a great boy here, Sandra, and I'm glad that he's the boy who Yang's locked in on. He's—" But at the sound of a growing, high-pitched sound, Tai stopped, only to realize that it was coming from Sandra herself, a big smile forming on her face. "Uh, Sandra, are you oka—"
"EEEEEEE!" Evelyn and Natalie were forced to cover their ears as Sandra practically squeed in delight, the blonde woman practically pulling the communicator closer to her so she could see the couple better. "OH MY GOODNESS! It's so wonderful to finally meet you! I've been SO curious about what Yang's parents were like and here you ARE! AH! This is so exciting!"
Raven recoiled at the woman's exuberance, as did many others in the room. "W-Well, yes, it is. And I'm very happy to meet you, too, Sandra." The Spring Maiden collected herself as she pressed on. "That said, Tai and I are also going to be coming over to Earth with the kids. And we'd like to meet you and your husband, so we were wondering if—"
Sandra gasped in excitement. "Ah! Raven, say no more! I'll have Carl prepare another guest bedroom as fast as possible. I INSIST that you two stay with us for the duration of your stay here."
"Th-Thank you, Sandra." Tai stuttered in surprise. "I may not be staying long since I have a teaching job here in Remnant, but I'm happy that you'd be able to house both of us if need be."
"Oh, it's no trouble at all, really!" Sandra waved off. "Anything for the parents of such a wonderful young lady like Yang." She directed her gaze down to the Blonde Brawler in question. "And Yang, I look forward to having you, your sister, and your friends under my roof as well. Ooh, I can't wait to have you all here!"
Yang smiled up at the older blonde in appreciation. "Heh, thanks Sandra. It means a lot."
At that moment, Kevin came walking back down the stairs, his eyes shifting focus over to his mother on the screen. "'Kay, mom, I let Qrow know that he's good to stay at our place. And he says thanks, by the way."
"O-Oh, good, thank you, Kevin." Evelyn replied before clearing her throat. "W-Well, I think now is a good time for us to take our leave. We have a LOT of preparing to do before you all get here, after all."
Sandra sighed sadly at that. "Yes, yes we definitely do." She gave a wave to the girls in Team RWBY, her son, Raven and Tai. "But you can be sure that I'll see you all tonight, okay? I hope you all have a safe journey home."
Natalie faced her daughter, Team JNPR and Winter as well. "Yes, and please be sure that you have everything. Don't want to leave something in another dimension, you know."
"Oh, you can be sure of that, Mrs. Tennyson." Pyrrha promised. "And believe me, with the type of cargo we're bringing…" She turned around and gave a loud whistle toward the hall… to which Romulus, Rema and Zwei all came charging into the living room. The three mother's eyes widened as Pyrrha, Blake and Ruby picked up their respective canines, making sure that the women had a good view of them. "We will not be forgetting a thing!"
"…WHAT?!" Sandra and Natalie exclaimed. "You… you have puppies?!" the redheaded woman finished.
"Yep! And they are a non-negotiable addition." Jaune added. "They come with us."
Both Tennyson women blinked before Sandra crossed her arms. "Well, I suppose that's alright, but…"
"It would've been better if you had told us beforehand." Natalie finished before locking eyes with Romulus, the little pup staring back at her in an adorable way. "…D'oh, but how can anyone resist faces like those?" Natalie sighed before flicking her hand away. "Oh, what the heck? I'll allow it, but only if you promise to be responsible for them."
Blake scratched Rema's belly as she gave the woman a nod. "Oh, don't worry, we will. Besides, they're already potty trained pretty well, so that's one less thing to worry about, right?"
"Hm, that IS pretty good to hear." Sandra granted before giving one last wave. "But now, I think it's time for us to go. We'll see you kids later, okay?"
As everyone began exchanging goodbyes, Kenny stepped back into frame and set his sights back onto Winter once again. "Hey Winter, I… I'm looking forward to seeing you later today!" he rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment. "A-And sorry about… that THING that was mentioned earlier."
The military specialist blushed gave him a smile, raising her hand toward him. "I-It's quite alright, Kenny. Really, it's understandable why your mother would say… that." She cleared her throat to try and change the subject. "B-But I AM very excited to finally meet you in person. See you soon!" She sent him one last wave as the call ended, letting out a nervous breath as the holo-screen deactivated. "…That had to be the most discomfiting moment of my life."
"What can I say? My mother's blunt." Gwen pursed her lips in frustration.
Winter sent both Gwen and Kevin an accusatory stare. "Well, considering the position she found Kevin in, I cannot say I blame her." She placed her hands on her hips and moved her eyes out to the entire group. "But now isn't the time for that discussion. For now, I think it's time we focus back on getting ready to leave, and—"
At that moment, a knock suddenly came from the entryway, causing everyone to turn their heads and see Athena standing there with her scroll in her hands. "My apologies, I hope I am not interrupting anything."
"Oh! Of course not, mom." Pyrrha said before moving closer to her mother. "What's going on?"
Athena held up her scroll, directing her eyes onto Jaune in the process. "Well, I just got off the phone with Jaune's parents. They told me that they will be here fairly soon to see you all before you all depart." The woman sighed as she pulled her daughter into a small hug. "I must say, though, still cannot believe this is finally happening. It only seems like yesterday I was just arriving on Patch to see you, darling."
Pyrrha returned the embrace immediately. "Hm, I know, mom. And I appreciate you being here for so long." She sent the older woman a wink. "Though by now, I would think that you'd be a bit eager to get back to Argus, wouldn't you?"
"I suppose you're right." Athena peered down at her scroll as she pulled up a picture of her owls. "My birds probably miss me severely…" Her eyes then settled back onto Pyrrha. "Oh, but I'll miss YOU so much, too!" Her hug tightened a bit, which Pyrrha was happy to reciprocate. "My little girl is certainly moving up in the world, isn't she?"
"Hmhm, it's alright, mom." Pyrrha chuckled. "I'll be fine. And I'll be sure that you can come visit us whenever you want, alright?"
"It sounds like a plan, sweetheart." Athena pulled out of the hug and gave her daughter a kiss on the forehead. "Just be sure to stay safe on Earth, okay?"
The Invincible Girl gave her mother a resolute nod. "Of course, I will." Pyrrha then moved her eyes over to Jaune, giving him a wink. "So, you ready for the onslaught of your sisters one final time?"
Jaune sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Yeah, I guess so. C'mon, guys, let's go brace for impact… again."
"You heard the man, guys!" Ben grinned as he waved his arm toward the front door. "Let's all get outside before Blanche gets here and decided to let herself in again. The last thing we need is for the door to get slammed into my face again." The whole team gave out a laugh before proceeding outside, ready to meet up with the Arcs one more time.
…..
A/N (Important, Please Read): And there you have it! Ben, Rex and Team RWBY's interview went off without much of a hitch! And it seems that Lisa is quite happy with the information that she's been given (and the fact that she's gotten a taste of some Batman lore). But of course, we also got a pretty interesting call from Six (who had some pretty interesting information regarding a certain cult), as well as Kenny and the Alien Trio's mothers! What's more, it seems the team's been split up into groups depending on household. A bit different than living all under one roof, but it'll certainly be a WHOLE lot less crowded. But huh… seems like Kevin's mother, Evelyn, was a bit TOO eager to allow Qrow into her home after seeing him… What's more, Raven and Tai have finally met one of Ben's parents! And it seems that Sandra is VERY eager to meet the two of them.
And then of course… we have Eon revealing his past to Salem's forces and elaborating on WHY exactly he wants to work with them. Something tells me that Salem's pretty happy that she has her own evil Ben Tennyson on her side, even if he technically ISN'T Ben himself. So, how effective will this alliance prove to be? Well, we'll just have to see, now won't we? Also, yes, I plan on having Oscar go with Professor Paradox for a little while. While I definitely have plans for Oscar in the next volume, those plans aren't exactly immediate, so I felt it best to have him and Paradox partner up to explore the universe a bit and maybe help coax Ozpin back out from his hiding place in Oscar's head. That being said, Paradox knows that Eon is here now… so what exactly comes next? Well, we'll just have to find out… NEXT WEEK!
But before we get to that, it's time to get to the special announcement I talked about! Okay, so once the story ends, I'm going to be taking a bit of a break in between Volumes, just so that I don't burn out completely and I can get my ideas flowing the way I want them to. However, I won't be ENTIRELY leaving between volumes, as I also have a couple MORE stories that I wanna tell. And one of them is actually an idea that I've had in the melting pot for quite a while… a RWBY Chibi-styled fic to go along with this series. So, here's a little sneak peak;
"Ever since the cancellation of their show a couple years ago, the cast of RWBY Chibi have been isolated in the halls of Beacon Academy, simply wishing for SOMETHING to happen. However, little do they know that they're about to be visited by a certain Alien Trio and EVO, kickstarting what will undoubtedly be the greatest, funniest time of their lives!"
Stay tuned for "Ben 10 RWBY Chibi: A Series of Shenanigans", coming this Holiday Season! Also, stay tuned to the next chapter for yet ANOTHER upcoming story announcement!
Alright, now… NEXT TIME! As Jaune's family arrives for one last visit before the big jump, we also find ourselves visited by Ironwood and Goodwitch as well… and they've brought along a few guests, including Pietro, who Azmuth is all too eager to speak with. But with their arrival, Ironwood has some important information regarding a certain woman who's been found in Atlas recently. What could this mean for the future, exactly? Well, tune in next time to find out! Thanks for reading everyone, and stay safe out there!
