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Chapter Nine: Wishful Thinking

Alright, it's your old pal Ben back in the driver's seat. Not a literal one, of course. I haven't even gotten my learner's permit yet.

So to resume our regularly scheduled program I'll start us on Friday and take it from there.

"I'm sorry, Ben. I have a terrible cold. I don't think it's the flu or anything, but I think I'm going to be out of commission for a couple of days."

"Is there anything you'd like me to do? I could bring you some soup."

"No, it's alright. I'm all covered here. I appreciate the thought."

"Alright, make sure you get plenty of rest. Talk to you later."

"Thanks. Later, Ben."

"So what am I gonna do today?" I wondered. "Hmm, I could use some Omnitrix practice. Yeah, that sounds like a great idea!"

I ran down the stairs saying a quick goodbye to my folks before heading out the door and hopping on my bike.

I made my way out to the abandoned train yard where I'd have plenty of space to practice.

"Alright, let's see who should I go with?" I asked myself as I began to cycle through my aliens. "No, not feeling Humungusaur. How about someone I haven't used yet."

I cycled through the choices before stopping on the last alien in the cycle.

"No, definitely not that one..."

Truth is I've been deliberately avoiding that one. There was something about it that seemed different from the rest. It was like I could feel the power coming from it. It made me uneasy.

"Hooow about this one!?"

I slammed my hand down on the Omnitrix and transformed into the alien of my choice, a mostly red humanoid manta ray-like alien.

"Now what can we do?"

I tried taking a few steps but found walking on the thin bendy legs of the new alien to be a bit difficult. Then the innate instincts of the alien instincts kicked in. You see whenever I transform into a new alien it's like there's a little voice in the back of my head that tells me what it can do. If I remember correctly, Albedo explained that a part of my subconscious is taken up by the alien the DNA originated from. Sometimes the instinct is stronger, and I can figure at the powers instantly. Other times, it takes me a minute or two. There was even one that was so strong it took on a will of its own, an evil will. This instinct was telling me 'fly, fly fast.'

So I held out my arms and before I could even blink I was already a couple of hundred feet in the sky.

"Whoa, I'm fast."

Pushing my speed a little further I was able to clear the sizable train yard in less in just a couple of seconds.

"I'm very fast."

And I felt like I could go even faster.

"Hmm, name, name, need a name...I'm some sort of Manta Ray thing...How about MANTA-MAN! Nah, no that sounds like some sort of D list Superhero...Wait, I got it. MANTASONIC! Yeah, that has a nice ring to it."

I spent the next several hours practicing with Mantasonic and the rest of the aliens. I hadn't used it minus the tenth one. I save the details on them for a later time.

I decided to spend the following Sunday taking some Ben time, and by Ben time I mean, I loafed around in my underwear all day playing video games.

Then Monday came. Gwen told me she was feeling better but wanted to take one more day of rest just in case. So it was going to be just Kevin and I patrolling, but then Kevin said he had some personal business to take care of and asked if we could postpone to the next day.

So, I decided to do a solo patrol. I rode my bike around the city hoping to find some signs of alien activity but ultimately came up short. I thought that would be it, and the day wouldn't lead to anything eventful. Boy was I wrong about that.

I was just about ready to turn in for the night when we got the call from my Grandpa's neighbor.

"I'm sure there's nothing to worry about, Karen. I am sure it was just a raccoon."

"No, I'm telling you, Harold. It sounded too big to be a raccoon. I swear I might have seen some snooping about."

"It's dark. It was probably just your eyes playing tricks on you."

"I may be old but my eyes are still sharp I'll have you know!"

"Look, if I send Ben over to check it out will you calm down?"

"Just hurry. I don't like the thought of hoodlums lurking about."

"I'm sorry, Ben. I know it's late but would you mind?"

"No problem, dad."

"Thanks, I can't wait til' your Grandpa comes back from his vacation." My dad replied before letting out a huge yawn. "I'll probably be out cold by the time you get back so try not to be too loud when you come in."

"Got it."

At first, I agreed with my dad's assumption about a raccoon but as I walked up the stairs to change out of my pajamas I began to think what if it wasn't. What if a Brainguts had decided to come back and recheck the Rust Bucket?

I had set the Rust Bucket's defense grid but the Brainguts and Highbreed obviously had some powerful tech on their hands so maybe they could have a way to get past it.

Before heading out the door I tried giving Kevin a call but he didn't pick up. I was about to leave when I thought maybe Gwen was feeling up to going out. So I decided to give her a call.

"Gwen."

"Hey, Ben. Something wrong?"

"Yeah, my dad just received a call from a friend of Grandpa's who says they might've seen someone snooping around the Rust Bucket. I can't get a hold of Kevin. I know you said you still weren't feeling a hundred percent, but I was wondering if you'd feel well enough to come check it out with me?"

"You know what, I'm actually starting to feel better." Gwen replied to my relief. "I'll grab my bicycle and meet you at Grandpa's."

"Great. See you there."

I arrived at the RV grounds just a moment before Gwen. Seeing her there, I couldn't help but think about how wonderful her complexion looked in the moonlight.

'Get a hold of yourself.' I thought. 'Now's not the time for swooning.'

As we drew closer to one another, Gwen suddenly looked away from me.

"Something wrong?" I asked.

"I'm fine, just got something in my eye." The was a fair amount of pollen in the air so I assumed it might have been that. I told her to look at me. I then blew as gently as I could to blow out any pollen or dust that had gotten in her eye. "Better?"

"Yes. Thank you."

The natural lighting of the night made it difficult to tell, but at that moment, I swear I saw her blushing...But I quickly convinced myself that it was just my stupid eyes playing stupid tricks on me.

"Don't mention it. Oh, and I'm glad you're feeling better."

"Thank…"

"Don't mention it." I interrupted while letting out a small laugh.

"So what exactly did they see?

"Well, they didn't exactly see anything. They were out walking their dog and thought they heard a noise coming from the area. They called and told my dad about it. He insisted that it was probably a raccoon or something, but I figured we should check it out just in case."

"Yeah, probably a good call. Better safe than sorry."

As we arrived at the Rust Bucket's little nook, I began to think it may have been a raccoon after all. But since we were there, I figured it wouldn't hurt to check the perimeter.

"Doesn't look like anyone's broken in." Gwen communicated.

"I made sure to activate the Rust Bucket's defense grid on the last time I was here so it wouldn't be easy for any two-bit crook to break in. Alright, I'll check the other side of the Rust Bucket. You check…"

The startling snap of a branch suddenly alerted us to someone watching us from the shadows.

"Who's there!?" I shouted as I popped up the Omnitrix's display and readied myself for a fight.

But to my surprise, it wasn't a two-bit crook or a Brainguts that was in the shadows. It was...

"Okay, you got me. I surrender." Kevin said lightly as he slowly approached us with his hands up.

"Kevin!?" Gwen and I shouted at the same time.

"Jinx! You owe me a Mr. Smoothie!" Gwen shouted just before me.

"Aw, man!"

"You snooze, you lose."

"Anyway, what are you doing here?" I asked, making sure to let him know I was anything but trusting at the moment.

"Yeah, why on earth would you be snooping around here. Especially at this time of night." Gwen added, giving Kevin an equal look of suspicion.

"Hey, hey, I can explain. I was thinking. Maybe you might've missed some things the time you were here. So I figured I'd come by and scope the place out myself. See if I could find any clues you might've missed."

As much as the situation seemed sketchy, Kevin's words did actually have some sense to them.

"I guess, now that I think about it, once I found the holodisk, I didn't really bother checking the RV for any more clues."

"See? It never fails to double-check."

Still, I had my doubts.

"But why didn't you call me?" I asked. "I could've come with you. I kept the key to RV on me, you know."

"I'm good at getting into places I shouldn't, and I figured it was late enough and didn't want to bother you. I thought I could get in and out without anyone noticing, but this thing's got one heck of a defense system."

Kevin picked a little rock and threw it at the Rust Bucket, but the defense system kicked in and deflected it back at Kevin, who caught it and threw it to the ground.

"That's the Rust Bucket's defense grid." I told him. "It's a pretty solid defense system. If Grandpa Max actually remembered to arm the thing. He'd always say, "The Rust Bucket's always within my sight, so what's the point in arming it?'"

"Well, I've already searched the grounds. Didn't turn up anything. Mind if I take a look inside?"

Even though Kevin's words made sense, something about the situation felt off. I didn't know why. Kevin hadn't given us any reason to distrust him as of late, but still…

"Come on, I know we've only been friends…"

"Allies." I corrected him.

Despite everything that's happened recently, there was still a part of me that wasn't willing to call Kevin a friend. I almost hated myself for that. He'd even been willing to keep my secret about Gwen, and still, I wasn't able to fully accept his friendship.

"I know we've been friendly allies for a week, but after everything we've been through with the Brainguts, I'd figured you'd at least trust me more than this. And besides…" Kevin leaned over and whispered in my ear. "I'm keeping your secret from Gwen, ain't I? That's gotta be worth a few brownie points."

He was right. As I said, he had my back when it came to my deepest secret. The very least I could do was trust him in this situation.

"Follow me." I said as I walked towards the Rust Bucket. "Tennyson, code one two two seven."

After deactivating the defense grid, I took the key I kept tucked into my sock and opened the door to the Rust Bucket.

"The Brainguts tore this place up. So that's another reason I didn't think to check any further. Figured if he had found anything he would have had it on him."

"You got a point but look. It doesn't look like they searched those."

"Nice eye."

"Thanks." Kevin said before looking at the driver's seat.

"Don't worry about looking over there. I already searched that area."

"Sorry. I've just always wanted to drive a Plumber's vehicle. I bet she handles like a beauty...Mind if I take it for a test drive sometime?"

"No can do." Gwen replied.

"Yeah, I couldn't get it started even if I wanted to."

"Why not? You have the key, don't you?"

"Yeah, but this only opens the door."

I walked over to the driver's seat and put the key in the ignition. One turn of the key caused a slot to pop out beneath the steering collum with a circle just big enough to fit a Plumber's badge.

"See, you can only start the Rust Bucket with a Plumber's badge."

"Well, I have a Plumber's badge. Is it coded to Max's, or would it work too?"

"I'm not sure. It might work, but Grandpa would kill me if I let someone drive the Rust Bucket without his permission.

"Fair enough. Let's get searchin', shall we?"

After the search ultimately proved unsuccessful, I was ready to call it a night and go home.

"Sorry, guys. I thought we might've been able to find something."

"It's alright. It was worth a shot."

"Oh yeah, how was your date with Julie?" Gwen asked.

"It's a long story. I'll fill you in on the details later, but overall, it went pretty great."

"That's good to hear."

"We should probably get going. My dad knows I'm here, but we don't want to risk your parents finding out you're not in bed."

I knew I should have trusted my gut. My every instinct was screaming to me that Kevin was up to something, and when Kevin pushed Gwen and me out of the Rust Bucket, those feelings were justified.

"Very funny, Kevin!" I shouted, a part of me still wanting to believe that he was just messing with us.

But as the Rust Bucket barreled away, it was obvious he wasn't joking around.

"Kevin, come back!"

"Damn it, Kevin! I knew I shouldn't have trusted you!"

Filled with anger at Kevin's betrayal, I selected Manta Sonic and gave chase. Thanks to the Rust Bucket's rocket boosters, Kevin had managed to gain a fair amount of distance, but due to Manta Sonic's speed, I managed to close the gap in no time.

'Alright, need to find a way in. Got it! I'll go in through the back and get the drop on him.'

I fired my neuroshock beam at the Rust Bucket's back window. That, unfortunately, backfired as Kevin had managed to re-engage the Rust Bucket's defense grid. Thankfully, Manta-Sonic's body proved to be pretty durable as I bounced several times against the asphalt. Doesn't mean it didn't hurt like hell though.

I'm not sure what hurt me more at the time, the pain from the burn caused by my own attack or the pain of betrayal. I mean, obviously, the physical pain hurt more, but the fact that Kevin had managed to trick me...Why? After everything that's happened...After having to trust him with my deepest secret...After he gave Labrid his word...WHY!? I was angry. I wanted answers, and I wanted them now. But, for better or worse, the anger I currently felt was pushed aside as Gwen caught up to me.

"Ben, please tell me you're alright."

"Yeah…" I replied, still face down on the ground debating whether or not I even wanted to get up. Of course, I knew I had to, so I turned over and let Gwen help me up. "I think my ego's bruised more than anything." That's when the pain from the burn on my chest started coming back in to focus. "And that…" I said as I show Gwen the mark.

"You're hurt, again…" Gwen said as she gingerly placed her hand on my chest.

"Ow…"

"Sorry…"

"It's alright. It doesn't hurt too bad."

"I was…I thought you could've been...I…"

I can't remember the last time I saw Gwen cry. She was pretty good at keeping her emotions in check, but there she was breaking down in front of me. Crying...over me.

"It's okay, Gwen." I assured her. "I'm fine. I promise. It's just a little burn. It'll heal."

"I can't lose you, Ben. I…"

After practically soaking my shoulder with her tears, Gwen slowly raised her head and looked at me. A thousand thoughts ran through my head at that moment. Was she sending me a sign? Was the look in her emerald eyes telling me...to kiss her? Was this the moment I'd been wanting for so long? I…'The tracking beacon!'

My train of thought on that subject was derailed as that thought popped into my head, but maybe it was for the best. I was probably just deluding myself anyway. Nothing more than wishful thinking. There's no way she was feeling what I felt...right?

"Hey Gwen, I just thought of something!"

"What?"

"Grandpa had a tracking beacon installed in the Rust Bucket. He keyed it to the Omnitrix's signature so it would be easy to track in case...Well, in case it got stolen…"

"Yeah, I remember, but that was before the Omnitrix recalibrated itself. Are you sure it will even work now?"

"Only one way to find out." I checked where Grandpa Max had placed the button to activate the beacon but sighed as it was no longer there. "There was a little button that grandpa had installed on the Omnitrix that activated the tracking beacon, but it's not there anymore."

Then another thought hit me. That voice I heard when the Omnitrix reset. Maybe it had some sort of voice function, and maybe the button wasn't necessarily gone but had become part of the Omnitrix.

"Um, Omnitrix, Can you locate the Rust Bucket?"

"Activating tracking beacon." The Omnitrix replied before displaying a map that showed the Rust Bucket's current location.

"Since when can it talk?"

"I heard it speak when the Omnitrix recalibrated itself. Look, that dot must be the Rust Bucket. Looks like it's not that far from here, only a few miles or so."

"Then let's get going."

And with that, we hopped on a platform created by Gwen and took off towards the Rust Bucket...and Kevin.

A/N

I was originally planning to have the chapter go for a bit longer so it wouldn't end in the same place the previous chapter did, but I decided that was a good place to stop. And I felt it was necessary to replay the most recent events in the story from Ben's perspective.

I would like to thank you all once again for 100 follows and 81 favs. It means a lot that, that many people would choose to show their support for my work. It really helps motivate me to keep going.

Have a good one, and stay safe. Cya.