Hey, everyone! Welcome to another chapter of Corruption, murder and…Redemption?
Once again, I would like to say a big thank you for your continuous support. It's your reviews, favorite and following of this fanfiction that keeps me going.
Before I get to the chapter, there's a review I wish to address, not just to the reviewer but also to all the readers, so please bear with this.
While it's true that Alien X is omnipotent (or close to that anyway) and wasn't needed by Ben to take down Night Raid, I can't help but agree and disagree. If you've watched all the episodes of Omniverse, there's an episode which has Ben use Alien X to fight the Plumbers kids and those Plumber superiors (I don't know how to spell their actual name). Also in the episode Ben first gains full control of Alien X, he's shown to not have a full idea of the alien when he was fighting the Galactic Gladiator. However, I plan on having Alien X brought up in the next chapter, with Ben mentioning why he doesn't use Alien X to fix everything…or basically be God. There were two previous chapters where I had Alien X mentioned and make a cameo. One of them was the time he saved Ieyasu, while the other was in that nightmare Ben had about Sayo. If you go back and read where Sayo shouts "It's a lie", Alien X was then supposed to appear as a proof of that. But because I felt both scenes were either too much or unneeded, I decided not to add them.
Thank you reviewer, Archon, for your interpretation of the last chapter. You stated things about it very well than I would've explained.
Now about Atomix, Archon was right. Let's not forget that Atomix is a walking nuclear bomb, so if he attacked a human being that person would die (which is what Ben didn't want), even though you were just emphasizing why Ben shouldn't use Alien X). As for why he didn't just take Aria away with Big Chill at first, well it's because Ben doesn't pick the right alien. He blames it on the Omnitrix when really it's just because he sometimes doesn't pay attention to it. Also, if he did turn into Big Chill, he would've been shot right back to the ground by Mine. Remember, Night Raid is an elite group of assassins; they know how to attack from different sides and places, and like Archon mentioned, everything happened so fast. Also, while Big Chill can turn intangible, he can't do the same with someone he's holding. Hence, even if he did, Aria would've fallen off once he did that.
Sorry for the long talk, I just thought I should have this all let out before getting to the chapter. Here it is now! Enjoy!
Chapter 7: Attack, Fight and…Kill the Omnitrix User? Part 3
Over the years Ben has been a hero; he has faced and accepted a lot of things. After all, his hero life sometimes seems to have its ups and downs like a moving rollercoaster. But when he thought about, could he add that to his experience in another universe? Maybe, but who knew for sure. This world he was in had proven to be very different from his world and the world of Rex Salazar at the time he met the young man. At least that world held some morals despite the craziness.
However, none of that seemed to matter then. The reason was due to the position the young superhero found himself in yet again. This time, however, it was a hard situation that he has to be careful. In one side, Aria was threatening to kill Akame, and in the other there was another member of Night Raid, who would likely kill the girl once she went ahead and kill Akame.
"Aria, don't cross that line." Ben pleaded. He tried to keep his voice as calm as possible as he continued looking at the girl. "Akame is down, there's no reason to kill her."
"You stay out this, Ben!" Aria objected strongly. Despite looking at the hero's way, she still had the down side of the branch above Akame's head. "This is right! This bitch thinks she can constantly scare me with her damn katana! Well I won't allow it! I'll kill her, especially if you and that purple haired hick come any closer!"
"Aria…" Ben muttered.
This wasn't the first time he was in a position like this. In fact, this reminded him of a time where the Forever Knights wanted to kill a bunch of aliens who they held hostage. But then again that time involved him using the threat of force in order to aliens free. However, in a situation like this, he couldn't do the same thing with Aria, especially with the fact that she was just a girl.
Sheele, on the other hand, was different. She may be an airhead who has done some dumb things, but she knew when to act for the betterment of Night Raid. But this situation was debatable. She didn't want Akame to die considering she was her friend. But at the same time, the mission called for Aria to die. It had been so confusing until she heard Aria's response, which then brought an emotional blank look on her face as she lifted her giant scissors with one hand.
"I see." Sheele muttered. The conflict in her head was dissolving. She spoke in a way that it got both Ben and Aria's attention.
Before both teenagers knew it, Sheele's giant scissors let out a brightening light. It happened all of a sudden as it caused Ben to shield his eyes with both arms, while Aria shielded hers with the arm holding the threatening small branch. The light coming from Extase was such an unexpected action that it gave Sheele the chance to charge at Aria.
"No! Aria!" Ben cried out.
The light coming from Sheele's weapon was being a total nauseous, but it didn't keep the teen hero from taking a peek just in time to see the assassin's figure running off to Aria. It alerted the superhero to react fast as he went to the Omnitrix, selected an alien by random and slammed on its core. When the usual flash of green light died down Ben was the fast speeding alien known as XLR8.
"Leave her alone!" XLR8 shouted. At the same time, his visor's color changed to dark green. It was a way to activate heat signature mode, which allowed him to see through Sheele's surprise move with ease. Hence, before the young woman could get any closer, the alien hero ran towards her.
At the same time, Sheele's speed was impressive, but it didn't top XLR8. The alien hero was able to grab the female assassin by the waist before she could open the scissors and close it on Aria and ran her off to a direction before the airhead could react. By the time he came to a stop, he left her standing at a clearing, far from their former location, before running off.
"Uh…what just happened?" Sheele asked, confused.
Back at Aria, the blond rubbed her eyes due to the effect of Sheele's Extase. She had been surprised by the attack, until she then saw both Ben and Sheele gone. She didn't know how that was possible, but it gave her the motivation to return back to her psychotic look as she chuckled and glanced at Akame.
"Ha…ha…ha…No one's here to save you, bitch." Aria said. Then she formed a devilish grin as she raised the branch above Akame's head. "Now…do me a favor and burn in hell!"
Aria's objective at this point was almost complete. She was just seconds away from striking the branch to Akame's head side with ease, with no seemingly there to stop her. But as her hand went down, a flash of green light came from her back, followed by a normal human hand grabbing her wrist.
"Don't, Aria!"
Aria almost snarled in response. But she didn't. Instead, she whipped her head to her back, directly glaring at Ben with furious eyes. "Stay out of this, cattle! She deserves to die! This is only right!"
"No, it isn't." Ben retorted. He had a serious look mixed with mild frustration as he continued. "Killing her won't make this better."
"Yes, it will!" Aria yelled back. "My mother said so! That's how the world works! I'm a noble and it's my right to deal with hicks and other low-life in any way I want! Besides, this bitch dared to scare me! I'll kill her! My parents would want –"
"Your parents are gone!" Ben suddenly stated. The look in his eyes held no compassion as he stared down at the psychotic girl. "They're gone, Aria! You won't see them ever again! Night Raid made sure of that!"
(A/N: TO GET A BETTER FEEL OF THIS MOMENT, LISTEN TO ANY SAD OR SOFTLY UPLIFTING THEME MUSIC OR SONG YOU HAVE)
"No…" Aria's face suddenly dropped. The psychotic and adrenaline rush she felt instantly left her. She hadn't known about her parents' fate until then as dread took over. "Y-You kept this from me?! W-Why?!"
"Because you have to move on!"
Aria became silent. She let Ben's words enter before turning her teary eyes down at Akame with a frown on her face. "Then I'm all alone. There's no need for me to live." She said softly and sorrowfully. "I'll kill her and end my own life here."
"Don't say that!"
Right now, Aria didn't want to respond. She wanted nothing more than to do what she said if it would bring her satisfaction. But in a strange twist it didn't happen. Ben suddenly pulled her arm up with enough force that he pulled her off from the ground before wrapping his other arm around her waist and pulling her to his chest. His action caught Aria by complete surprise as it led her to look up at the hero's face, confused as he was staring back at her.
"Wh-What are you –"
"You're not alone!" Ben stated determinedly.
"Huh?"
"You have me!"
"Wh-What?"
Aria was feeling strange about this. She didn't know how else to respond to Ben, who seemed to be reaching into her. His determined eyes were staring directly into her eyes that in a way it felt like he was speaking right into her soul.
"You heard me, Aria. You have me. You're not alone." Ben stated in the best way he could. His serious tone seemed to have calm down a bit as he stared at the lost look on Aria's face.
However, something in Aria was objecting to it. She tried using her free arm to push Ben away as she shook her head away in a fit of rebellion.
"Do-Don't spill such nonsense! You're just a –"
"A human being, just like you." Ben said and continued. "Aria, you've been a pain in the ass for a long time. You're spoilt, selfish and one of the craziness girls I've ever met. But I know somewhere…deep down…there's good. You try to hide it because you think it doesn't suit you, when really…it does."
"No. You're lying." Aria muttered. Tears were forming at her eyes as every one of them rolled down her cheeks as she continued. "I am good! My parents told me! I've always been good! Do-Don't call me things I am not! I'm a noble!"
"You're parents were wrong, Aria." Ben stated straightly. "Torturing and killing those who seek help isn't good, it's pure evil. You're parents lied to you. They didn't care about anything good, they just –"
"No, that's a lie! I-I'll kill you!"
"You won't, Aria." Ben continued. "Search deep down, you know I'm stating the truth. Your parents went down a dark path and took you along with them, and in the cause of it they paid the price. It doesn't matter if Night Raid came for them, they would've gotten their just rewards, with you taking the fall along with them."
"No…"
This was becoming too much for Aria to take. She could feel the mental walls she built breaking apart piece by piece at a rapid pace as she unintentionally let every word Ben said sink in. It made her feel something entirely different, though not in a way she would've, as it led her to sink her face into Ben's chest to cry.
"Pl-Please kill me. I'm done."
Ben sighed in response. He kind of expected such a response considering all that he went through. But he didn't talk yet. Instead, the hero used his free hand to caress the hair on Aria's face before speaking again. "You guys and killing…doesn't that get a bit old?"
"Huh?" Aria questioned, confused. His rhetoric question there brought her to look up at him to see a smile on his face. "What do you mean?" She asked.
"It's nothing." Ben replied. He then moved that hand to hold Aria's wrist and continued. "Listen, no one is perfect, not even me. We've all done things that we're not proud of. But it's always important to know we're never alone. You don't always have to be strong by yourself. It's okay to ask for help."
"Oh…" Aria muttered. She stopped crying upon hearing that, but couldn't help but feel some new dread coming over her. It made her to look down as she contemplated on her past which has brought her to that moment. "If what you said is true…then I'm a monster. How can I move on from that?"
"You just do." Ben stated. However, this confused Aria. It caused her to look up at the young man, a bit confused, before he then continued. "Listen, there'll always be people who would see you for the outside, but keep in mind that they don't define who you are. Who knows, you might find people who will help you in the way. But you can be strong…be wise…and be worth better than what they'll expect from you. That isn't to say you have to be perfect for them; you just have to be the best that you can be."
Aria became silent again. She let her ears take in every word Ben said as it made her feel calm for a reason she didn't know yet. To her, she liked it, especially to the point of laying her head on Ben's chest as a thought came to mind. .
"Did – Did you mean that?" She asked.
"Huh?"
"About being with me..." Aria added. "You were right about those things about me. I see it now. But just so you know…I'll be a handful."
"I know." Ben replied. "You were always a handful but…at least you've know that."
"Hmph…" Aria responded. Then she turned back and looked at the unconscious bodies of Night Raid. "You know…if you leave them alive, they'll come for us again."
"Let them. I'll take them on." Ben said determinedly and smirked.
"And the empire?" Aria added. "Once word of your Teigu is heard, they'll be many greedy men after it."
"I'm kind of aware of that. But I've dealt with worse, so no worries."
"Hmph." Aria said and smiled. For some reason, she found Ben's confident words comforting to her. It made the tension she felt within her decrease to the point that she released her grip on the branch and let it fall to the ground. "Alright…I concede defeat, Ben Tennyson."
(A/N: THE SONG ENDS HERE)
Ben was satisfied to hear this. It would appear that he may be on the road to get Aria to that future he saw those nights ago. But before any of them could speak, both heard fast footsteps followed by a whoosing sound, which immediately got them to turn behind them. It was revealed then that the source was heele, who was suspended from the air, heading straight at them with her scissors open to kill.
"Holy shit!" Both Ben and Aria cried out simultaneously.
Fortunately, there was some time to react properly. This was obvious as Ben was quickly able to tighten his grip around Aria's waist before making a jump backwards, over Akame's unconscious body. But because Ben didn't think it through, he and Aria fell to the ground on their butts.
"Ow." Aria winced. Her butt hurt from the impact.
"Hey, are you okay?" Ben asked.
On that instance, Aria forgot about her pain. She heard Ben perfectly clear and turned to him before giving an assured nod. "I'm fine."
"Good." Ben commented and grinned. He then chose that moment to stand back up to his feet before turning his head at Sheele, who stood with Extase in both hands. The giant scissors was terrifyingly big, but the hero didn't seem worried as he went over the Omnitrix and activated the hologram dial. "Alright, stay back and let me handle this."
Aria smiled and nodded in compliance. She may not have said it, but she trusted the alien hero to handle things from on out – not that she didn't before. It was just that things felt complicated before. But the past didn't matter for the time being. Ben was facing the new female assassin when a memory came to mind.
"Wait, a minute, I just remembered. We've met before." Ben said.
"Hmm?" Sheele responded with a tilt of her head. She seemed lost by the young hero's indication as she couldn't recall it.
Fortunately, Ben didn't take this the wrong way. He still had his fingers selecting through random aliens as he continued. "Yeah, at Aria's house, don't you remember?"
"No, I don't." Sheele answered softly.
"Wait, you're serious?" Ben questioned. He then gave Sheele a 'you're kidding me look' and continued. "I get we didn't see each other's face, but come on, you'll have to be a total airhead to not remember meeting at that hallway with your bloody scissors."
"How did you know about my airhead problem?"
"Wait, what?" Ben froze. It wasn't due to an attack, but due to a sudden realization, which as it clicked on his mind made an anime strain to appear on the side of his head as he gave Sheele another look. "You're not joking are you?"
Sheele became quiet. She looked down at the ground, which had Akame's body a few feet before her, as she said nothing. It wasn't known why this was so, but in a few seconds after she raised her head with a silent plain look as she held both handles of Extase with her glasses flashing at the moonlight.
"I'm sorry." She said suddenly.
"Huh?"
Then she swiftly attacked. The purple haired assassin leapt at Ben with her scissors opened with such accuracy that she would've cut Ben in half. But being an experienced hero, the young man jumped to his left and rolled on the rolled on the ground till he came to a stop with his knee on the ground and the other bent so that his foot was on the ground, while glaring at Sheele as she stood at where he once was. The purple haired assassin clearly had her eyes on him, as she looked down on him with no indication of emotion on her face.
"Great." Ben said with annoyance. "Why is it always the cute girls in this world are always the psychotic killers?"
Sheele said nothing in response. She glanced at Aria, who shrieked back a bit before turning to Ben, who she then suddenly charged at with her Extase opened. But before she closed the gap, the Omnitrix's faceplate slide back just in time for the core to pop up and for Ben to slam down on it. When the light died down, Ben was a small sized alien with green skin with six sprout-like growths on the back of his head, a dark-green patch of skin on his head, light-green skin on his face and belly, as well as a crooked teeth overbite, with the Omnitrix symbol on his stomach.
"Upchuck!" Ben cried out.
At the same time, Sheele drew closer. She just about widened her scissors, when suddenly Upchuck opened his mouth and released four adhesive tongues which grabbed both sides of the scissors. The attack caught Sheele by surprise as it made her come to a stop, with a frustrated groan as she tried to keep her stand. Upchuck was trying to take Extase away from her.
For the time Sheele had acquired the legendary Teigu, she has always felt close to it. This was the weapon she had used to take out certain enemies and in a way feel better belong with Night Raid. But right now, all that she thought about felt threatened as Upchuck continued pulling. The alien may be small, but his tongues were impressively strong as they kept pulling her closer to him despite how much of her strength she was opposing against him.
Things only turned out for the worse as the seconds went by. Upchuck was feeling irritated by Sheele's actions. He could understand that she was attached to the weapon, but at the same time could listen to his stomach. The Upchuck species weren't known for having their meals held back from them. Hence, he did what he thought was best for the moment. He put in much pull, causing Sheele to be lifted off the ground and sent flying into Upchuck's mouth with her Teigu going along.
"HOLY SHIT, BEN!" Aria cried out in pure shock. Her mouth was wide, as well as her eyes as she stared at the alien hero, who now had his cheeks puffed. One moment she had been seeing a tense fight, and the next she just watched the superhero eat a human being. It was very shocking to say the least as it was basically an act of cannibalism. Hence, the young woman reacted further. "YOU ATE HER!?"
Upchuck turned to her in response. He didn't say anything yet though, as a look of disgust in his eyes soon came over before he opened his mouth and let Sheele and Extase slide out on to the ground in green slime.
"Yeah…don't remind me." Upchuck said in disgust.
As for Sheele, she was conscious. But she couldn't a muscle. In fact, she had a weak look on her face as she then said. "I feel so sticky."
"Yeah, sorry about that." Upchuck apologized.
Just then, the Omnitrix symbol began to beep and making whining sounds. It caught the attention of its user as he looked down on his stomach before then being engulfed in a flash of light. When the light died down, Upchuck was back to being Ben, who had his arm up as he looked at the Omnitrix.
"Huh, I guess the power is out." The teen said subtly. He would've complained about it if not that he thought about the night. The Omnitrix had allowed him to use that many aliens until now it couldn't anymore for the time being. But that wasn't to say the night was over.
Night Raid has been a pain to Ben, both mentally and physically, as the teen thought about it and went around Aria. He was just about to approach the girl, when he tilted his head to Sheele with a bit of concern.
"Hey, you okay over there?" He asked.
"Uh...yes." Sheele answered. She could see Ben from her position as she was lying on her front. "If you wish to kill me, make it quick. I won't beg for my life."
"Ugh." Ben responded with annoyance. He didn't like the mistaken attention the girl had on him in the slightest bit. Hence, he turned his back at her and placed one of his hands in his pockets. "I'm not going to do that."
"Huh?" Sheele was surprised. "Why?"
"Simple. It's just not the way I do things." Ben answered. He didn't annoyed anymore as he went away. Instead, he donned a position of determination as he continued."I'm a superhero. I don't have to kill to make things right. You and your friends can come at me as much as you want, but there's no way I'll kill a single one of you. I'm not your enemy, and never was."
'He doesn't want us dead?' Sheele thought. The young woman was confused as she mustered a way to move her arm. But she couldn't. 'Does this mean he doesn't know about our hideout?'
"By the way." Ben said again, cutting her out of her thoughts. "…you should be able to move soon enough." He then gave Sheele one last look before turning his back at her and sticking his other hand into his other pocket. "I've only been to the Capital once, and I can tell this world is rotten thanks to the empire. So one day, I'm going to change it for the better. I'm going to take on the Prime minister and any of his lackeys, and when I get to the emperor, he's going to answer for the crimes he allowed to go by. That is a promise."
Sheele became quiet. She didn't know what to make of Ben's words as they sounded odd to her. Here was a young man with the power to kill her friends, only to choose not to do that due to a sense of duty. It was weird. She only met someone with such a good heart in her former best friend before they had fallout a long time ago.
So without saying anything, Sheele kept num and watched Ben walk away. At first, he was going to Aria, but for an unknown reason he went over to Akame's body and picked up the branch Aria almost used to kill the unconscious assassin. Then, by gripping the tear in his shirt made by said assassin earlier, he ripped a piece of his cloth and went over to Aria, who he then knelt down and pushed her dress up a bit to tie the branch to her ankle with the cloth holding it.
"Y-You ripped your own shirt?" Aria questioned, surprised.
"Yeah." Ben said. He gave the ankle a bit of a look before looking directly at Aria as he continued. "I watched this on a survival...I mean by a group of people. It won't heal your leg, but you'll be able to stand on your own. You wanna try it?"
"I…um…sure." Aria said and smiled warmly.
Ben smiled back in response. He stood up back to his feet and extended his hand to Aria, who took it and let the teen softly pull her to her feet. But as she took another step, she lost her balance and fell on the teen with such force that both fell to the ground, with Aria on top of him and Ben on the ground. But before any of them could say a word, a gunshot was heard hitting a tree not too from them.
Sheele knew who that possibly came from.
'Mine.' She thought instantly.
And true to her mind, the one responsible stepped out into the open. She had both her arms on her Pumpkin as she stared daggers at Ben, who looked back at her from his position. Obviously, that shot was meant for him, if not that Aria had knocked him to the ground unintentionally. But now he found himself a bad situation, he couldn't help but feel a bit worried about the situation.
'Shit…this is bad.' Ben thought. 'The Omnitrix hasn't recharged yet…What am I going to do now?'
Mine sent a scowl at Ben. She had the perfect chance to end the Omnitrix user and Aria with a single shot. But as she lifted her weapon at the teen hero, he reacted by pushing Aria to the ground and hovering his hand over the Omnitrix, to which Mine gritted her teeth in annoyance.
"Easy there. I don't want to fight you." Ben said with a cautious voice.
However, Mine didn't seem to care. She just took a firmer grip of her Teigu as she targeted it for Ben's head. "Hmph! You have a lot of nerve and stupidity to say that after what you did! Sorry I had t bust your romance shit, but this is where you and that girl die! But if you think about running or touching that Teigu of yours, I'll pull the trigger on you before you can touch it. I'm an expert sniper, don't underestimate me!"
"'Yup, this is really bad.' Ben thought further. 'The Omnitrix is still recharging right now. I could try to outrun her shot, but from the sounds of it she'll kill Aria before I can get close to her. Damn…this is usually the part where Rook or Gwen and Kevin or just about anyone I know would step in.'
Unfortunately, there didn't seem to be a way Ben would receive help. Mine already had her mind made up, when she was just a second away from pulling the trigger. But before she could, someone intervened.
"Mine! Wait!"
"Huh?"
Mine paused with a confused face. She looked over to the source of the voice and found Sheele getting back on her feet. The slime from Upchuck was still a nauseous though, as it made standing up a bit harder. But as the young woman struggled to her feet with her Teigu in hand, she let out a puff of her and stared at Mine with a soft look on her face.
"Sheele, you're okay." Mine said with voice of relief. She sent a warming smile at her friend before it turned into a scowl as she focused back on Ben. "Stay right there, I'll finish this right here and now." She said.
However, her friend seemed to have a different idea.
"No, Mine…I need you to stop."
"What?!"
Mine was shocked to hear this. She turned her attention back at Sheele, while still having her Teigu directed at Ben with a mix of shock and annoyance. "You can't be serious, Sheele! This bastard –"
"Akame and the others are fine." Sheele stated.
"Hmph! Good!" Mine responded in a rude manner. "But that doesn't change the boss's order. We have to kill him and the girl."
Sheele became silent with that said. She at first glanced at the ground, before turning her attention at Ben and then at Aria, as well at finally Mine. The decision she had to make was rare, but she knew she had to do it.
"I understand." Sheele said with a hint of admittance. It made Ben to feel tense a bit while Mine felt better as she went back to the teen hero and placed her finger at Pumpkin's trigger. But before anything happened, Sheele spoke up again. "That is why I'll take responsibility."
"What?" Mine questioned and turned back to her friend. "What the hell are you talking about, Sheele?!"
"I'm saying…" Sheele paused and looked sad at the ground. She felt a heavy burden on her chest as the seconds continued. "Let him and the girl go. I'll take the responsibility for this mission's failure…Please, Mine."
"What? No!" Mine rebuked. "Do you even know what you're saying?! Boss will be furious!"
"I know." Sheele mumbled. "But…you have to trust me…Please, Mine."
Now it was Mine's turn to be quiet. She glanced at her purple haired friend before scowling at Ben, who just stood quiet as he watched the entire scene happen. Aria, on the other hand, was on the ground, lying on her front, as she too watched everything occur. She didn't know what else to do other than stay quiet and hope for the better.
"Fine." Mine said in defeat. She had taken what Sheele said, and in the process decided to put her weapon down at her side. "I don't know why you're doing this…but I expect answers. They can go."
Ben and Aria were relieved to hear this. However, the former couldn't help but feel the intensity in the air between the two female friends. It almost pained him that it was due to his inability to fight back that resulted to this. But before he could go on further, his mind was instantly jerked back to Mine when she yelled.
"Well!?" The pink haired assassin shouted. "What are you waiting for?! Leave before I change my mind."
From the looks of it, the pink haired teen didn't seem to bluff. She had the look of pure hatred at Ben as she gripped her Pumpkin in her right hand, possibly as an indication that she would do what she said. But even when that came to Ben, he took the moment to turn to Sheele with a sympathy face.
"I know this wouldn't mean much, but…thank you." He said.
Sheele said nothing in return. She just glanced at Ben with a sad look on her face before turning back at Mine, who seemed really angry with regret. The teen hero wished then he could help out, but he knew better than not to intervene. Hence, he picked Aria up in bridal style and ran off just for the two friends to stare at each other with many things going on in their heads.
-(LINE BREAK)-
"Well that went well…" said Professor Paradox. "And to think, three new timelines were made from this night."
"Huh…is that so?" asked his companion. "You never told me before."
Professor Paradox chuckled as a smile formed on his face. Currently, he and his companion were on the same spot where Mine and Sheele had been when Ben was battling some of Night Raid's member, the cliffside. He didn't find it odd though, and neither did his companion as he sat on a rock behind Paradox and poured a bottle of liquor into a glass cup before drinking it all till it was gone.
"I guess I would, if you would stop drinking, Ben." Paradox said and turned to his companion. "I guess Leone's habit is still on you."
Ben 10,000 smirked as he placed the battle and cup down by his sides. "What can I say? Leone was right. A drink can help calm a guy's stress."
This version of Ben 10,000 isn't the one Paradox interacted with in the past, though. He was someone almost different from the previous versions. He was muscular in size like them though, with tousled brown hair which had grey hair at both sides, while wearing a white-striped black shirt with short sleeves, black fingerless gloves, green pants, black boots and a trench coat which he wore over his shoulders as he had his eyes on the time travelling professor.
"I guess so." Paradox said softly. But he didn't seem too much into the subject though. "But I can't blame you. We're in another Time War, which seems more dangerous than Maultruant…I guess it's cause it involves two individuals' timeline born from this timeline."
"Yeah, don't remind me." Ben 10,000 stated with a grumble sound. The cup and bottle he had next to him then disappeared in a flash of blue light before he then fully stood up. He knew who the cause of it was, but said nothing as he went over to Paradox and stood next to him. "So about those timelines, what were they?" He asked.
"They were…dark. I'm sure I told you about them when you were your sixteen, but I guess I should mention it now. In one timeline, Aria was successfully killed by Tatsumi and Ieyasu due Akame sending a second strike of her Murasame when you were Rath. This caused that version of you to fall into a depth of depression, anger and failure, just to the point that you used Alien X and wiped out Night Raid and took over the empire. In the second timeline, Mine refused to listen to Sheele, hence causing Sheele to fight her friend and flee with that version of you and Aria. Her action changed the very course of the future in such a way that she avoided her death by Suiryu and became a love interest. As for the third timeline, Kurome came in and rescued both you and Aria. Apparently, she was…interested in you."
"Ugh…please don't say it like that." Ben 10,000 said with his face in his hands. But as that moment went by, a thought came in mind that led him to drop his hand and look at the moon in thought. "Oh yeah, I remember the first timeline you mentioned…So that's how that evil Ben from the incident with Vigax and the other Bens came to be huh?"
"Indeed." Paradox said and nodded. His eyes then wondered off to the figure of Mine, who seemed to go over to Leone's body as she was waking up. It led to a thought coming to his mind as he immediately turned to his friend once again. "By the way, when are you planning to reveal yourself to her?"
"Soon." Ben 10,000 simply said. Then he looked down at the figure of Mine and smiled. "She sure has grown since the last time I met her…but of course that was like a week to me and years for her. Now then…" He turned to Paradox. "Let's get to why we came here."
Professor Paradox nodded in response. He knew what Ben 10,000 meant, and so complied as a blue portal appeared before them. This portal was to take them somewhere, which both individuals knew about before stepping into it. Once that happened, the portal closed, with them at their destination.
***************(LINE BREAK)******************
Yup! You just read that! Ben 10,000 is involved in this fanfiction. But it isn't any of the Ben 10,000 you know. This one was created out of present Ben's experience in the world of Akame ga kill. I plan on him appearing again in the later chapter to explain certain things and answer questions that may be on your mind. He does have a connection with Mine, so expect that to be revealed as the story goes. As to whether he would have any action, no he won't. In fact, this second time war won't affect present Ben much. It would affect how he acts, but overall he'll remain the Ben we know. As for the new "Biomnitrix" he wears, these are slightly different than the ones former Ben 10,000 wears. I'll reveal about them in good time.
If you don't get what happened in this chapter or you're just not satisfied with it, continue reading to know. I apologize that there wasn't that much action. Originally, there would've been a lot of it in the form of Ben and Mine facing off in other parts of the forest, hand-to-hand combat. But as I thought about it, I realized it left a plot hole which would ask "Why didn't Mine just shoot Ben from the cliffside?" I know it doesn't seem much, but I try to stay away from plotholes. So instead, I had it so that Mine was heading to Ben's location during that time with Aria and his short fight with Sheele. Also, I didn't want to insult Mine's shooting skills. If you've seen the anime and manga, you'll know what I mean.
Now about Sheele, some of you may not approve why she intervened. Well to be honest, in the series, we've seen that Sheele has a good heart for those in trouble. In fact, next to Tatsumi, she's the only one that had a normal life until it went downhill. By that, the only abuse she received before that fate with her former best friend was verbal ones. Originally, in this fanfic, she was meant to have a minor scene with no intervention as it was just that Ben vs. Mine that I had in mind. But as I thought of it, I decided to let Sheele have a prominent role that would impact Ben's life in their world, that way IF she does end up dead like the manga/anime, her death would impact Ben. It isn't for sure to say that she'll die. But just be open-minded to a possibility.
Lastly, there's the scene with Ben and Aria I feel should be addressed the most important. This is to ensure that no one misinterprets what happened. I didn't rush Aria if that's what some of you may be thinking. I've actually been hinting at this since the chapter with Ben and the Danger Beast. But if you want a breakdown then I'll provide it. The thing is that Aria was very close to her parents. So when Night Raid came that fateful night and killed her parents, she wasn't aware that they were killed. Ben didn't bother to tell her for the reason he stated in this chapter. But as he told her, she became deeply depressed to the point that she unknowingly was open to listen to Ben, who she doesn't know she has been trusting little by little since that time with the Danger Beast, until now she actually acknowledged him.
I hope the above explanations answered any misinterpretations. Sorry that it was long, I'll try to make these things shorter. As to why Ben acted that way to Aria, remember I said that this is Omniverse Ben if he was from an anime world? Well that's what I meant. And if you're wondering if he likes Aria or if Aria has those feelings for him, that's a no. However, I do plan on Ben's pairing to be like a love triangle (basically AriaXBenXLeone). I find that more interesting than a harem because we can focus on how both girls approach the guy and develop each other rather than the unneeded amount of girls for one guy. You may like harems, but for me, the most I've seen just annoys me. Also don't worry BenXLeone fans, their moment will come when the time comes.
So what do you think of the timelines Paradox mentioned? I plan on more timelines to be mentioned by Paradox, especially one planned by another reader that I like.
So until next time, thank you so much for reading. It was fun writing this chapter, especially with the thought to know your thoughts and continuous support. I'll see you next time!