Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters

A/N (IMPORTANT, Please Read): Greetings everyone! Happy Easter to you all, and as you can see, I have a gift for ALL of you! Welcome to Volume 2 of my Ben 10 RWBY series! It's been a long time coming, but after working on this project for the past few months, it's finally ready to be unleashed. And what an opportune time, too, since Volume 8 of RWBY just ended… with some rather tumultuous results. On THAT topic, though, this story has well established itself as an AU in the past, so expect to see some pretty BIG changes from what happened in canon. And actually, on that note as well, there have already been some pretty major changes in Volume 1 of this story already. I think it goes without saying that Volume 1 WILL be required reading for this story, so if you fancy yourself interested in this story, then I strongly encourage you to do that. Trust me, you'll wanna know where we're at.

Oh, and get this; the first FIVE chapters will be posted all throughout this week, just like I did at the start of Volume 1! So get ready, because you guys are in for a fun week. Also, just so you guys are aware, the few chapters of the story are going to fluctuate in length a little bit as we get started. Just thought I'd throw that out there.

And finally, special thanks to SinraiPaleodemon1 on DeviantArt for commissioning Sunnypoppy for the awesome image of Ben and Yang you see up in the corner there, as well as allowing me to use it for this story. I suggest giving both of them a look, as they make great stuff. With all that said, let's dive into the story, shall we? We have a bit of a prologue on our hands here to start things off, so let's get started. This is…

Ben 10 RWBY Volume 2: Ultimate Omniverse

Prologue at the Falls

…..

Niagara Falls. One of the most scenic places in all of North America. Situated directly on the boarder of New York State and Ontario, Canada, these massive falls, with a drop of almost 50 meters, and their cascading waters have been around for well over ten thousand years. People from all over the globe have traveled to the popular destination to bask in all its glory, and today, it was no different. For at the Falls' Visitor Center on this bright summer's day, people could be seen gazing out toward the geological marvel in awe, and down in the huge basin of the falls, there was a large tourism boat giving people an up-close and personal view of the Falls in all its splendor.

However, the waterfalls were NOT what one Manuel "Manny" Armstrong was focused on at the moment… namely because he was currently BEHIND the crashing wall of water. He, along with his friends and teammates Helen Wheels and Alan Albright, were currently skirting along a narrow ledge that lead to a hidden cave system behind the Falls, one that not many people knew about. However, it was evident that ONE group of people knew about it, because they were using it as their base.

For almost a month know, the once known "Plumbers Helpers", who had recently graduated to FULL Plumbers status about six months ago, were on the trail of a new, devious group that was starting to make itself known; the Collective. These people, whoever they were, seemingly had just appeared from out of nowhere and began abducting people from all across the eastern United States, leaving absolutely no trace of them even being there. This immediately sent up multiple red flags at Plumber HQ, which had gained a couple new assets after a certain incident a few weeks back…

"Manny, this is Six, are you in position?" came the stern voice of one of those assets from over the Tetramand hybrid's Plumber's badge.

Manny smirked as he responded to the green clad man who had become their mentor over the past three weeks. "Copy that, Six." he said as he and his two compatriots entered the cave. "We literally standing right in front of the cave."

Helen let out a breath, thankful that none of them had slipped into the waters below. "In one piece, thankfully." the hybrid Kineceleran breathed out.

"Yeah, glad that's over." Alan said before igniting himself in flames, transforming into his Pyronite form. "Have I mentioned how much I hate water?"

"Multiple times." Six answered over the comm. "Have you three heard from Rook?"

"About fifteen minutes ago, yeah." Manny answered as he took out his four pistols and spun them around in his hands. He briefly glanced down at his robotic hand, seeing that the newly made, four-fingered prosthetic was still working perfectly. "He said that he managed to dig into that other cave system without a hitch, and he's got his sights locked on that damn cult as we speak."

Helen narrowed her eyes and crossed her arms at her partner. "Could we maybe NOT go in there guns-blazing? Remember, these are regular people who've been tricked into something, not criminals."

"Helen's right." Six inputted. "Try to keep the fire power at a minimum. If you want something to hurt, then go for the cult leaders, NOT the people."

Manny let out a sigh and nodded, knowing that both of them were correct. "Right. Gotcha, Six." However, it was then that Manny and the others heard a noise over their comms, making them perk their heads up. "Uh… Six? What was that?"

A moment passed before a small chuckle escaped Six's throat. "Heh, well what do you know? Team, they've made it through. Ben and the gang are home."

The trio let out an excited gasp, and if circumstances were different, they would've let out a cheer as well. "Really? That's great!" Helen exclaimed as quietly as she could.

"Haha, it's awesome is what it is!" Alan pumped one of his molten fists. "Oh-ho, I can't wait to see 'em after all of those weeks of them just not being here."

"Same, man." Manny nodded. "But before we do that, we gotta take care of this first." He raised a single fist and extended it toward his compatriots. "Let's do the guys back home proud, okay?" The Tetramand received a "Yeah!" from his friends and they all fist pumped before the squad leader moved his attention back to Six. "We'll be checkin' back in soon, Six."

"Right, good luck." Six responded. "And make sure to check in with Rook before you move in, alright? Remember; be coordinated, don't just rush in."

Manny couldn't help but furrow his eyeridges a bit, knowing that the statement was probably directed towards HIM. But still, he made sure respond accordingly. "Yes sir, will do. Manny out." Manny pocketed his Plumber's badge and nudged his head toward the deep black void of the cave, giving his teammates a grin. "So, ya'll ready to enter the belly of the beast?"

Helen nodded resolutely. "Check."

While Alan gave a shrug. "As ready as I'll ever be."

"Great, let's roll." With that, the trio proceeded forward, with Alan's flames lighting their way as they moved further into the cave.

…..

After a few minutes of walking, the trio began to see torches lining the hallway, which served to set off multiple red flags for Manny. "Eeyup, definitely a cult." He took one of the torches off the walls and gestured to it. "I mean, who uses torches to light up a cave these days?"

"Really dedicated Larpers?" Alan guessed, to which Helen and Manny both deadpanned. "Hey, I'm trying to lighten the mood."

Helen sighed and shook her head. "Well, at least they know how to handle spooky décor." she commented as she reached for her own Plumber's badge. The Kineceleran activated it and spoke into it; "Rook, this is Helen, do you copy? Over."

Not a moment later, a voice responded to Helen's message. "This is Rook, reading you loud and clear, Helen. Over."

"I think we're getting closer to where our culty friends are." Helen continued. "What about you?"

"I am currently observing them as we speak." Rook answered. "And to be quite honest, I believe that there is a very appropriate human term for what they are doing right now… but I cannot place it at the moment."

Alan's eyes perked up when he saw that the tunnel was widening, and before they knew it, they found themselves entering a new, and very well-lit room. They could also hear voices speaking ahead of them, meaning that they'd probably find out just what the people were doing in a few moments. "Well… let's see what we've got here, then." The trio stepped into the room and immediately found a large boulder that they could hide behind. But then what they saw next… was something that made their jaws drop.

There, in the middle of this large room, was a gathering of multiple people, men and women of all different age groups… and they were all kneeling on the ground on one knee. They all had their arms raised up as they bowed toward the same direction, all while letting out a low, monotone chant. It was almost like something out of a horror movie, and it didn't help that they were wearing dark masks over their heads with matching black robes.

After the trio gawked at the scene for a few seconds, Alan leaned toward Helen's badged and spoke to Rook; "Uh, yeah, Rook? I think the term your lookin' for is; "freaky-deeky"."

"What do false shirts have to do with this?" Rook asked instantly.

Helen smacked her forehead. "Not "dickey", deeky. It's a made-up word." Helen peaked her head out slightly and began scanning her eyes around, searching for their newest teammate. "Where ARE you, anyway?"

"Move your head up to eight o'clock." Rook answered. Helen craned her head up about fourty-five degrees, and sure enough, she saw Rook hanging out on top of a particularly high outcropping. His whole form was donned in a black cloak, making it so that he would not be easily seen, all while he had his sights locked onto the people below him through his weapon's scope. "I am in position. Now I suggest you duck back. We have company."

Helen's head perked up and her eyes widened as two figures suddenly strolled into the room from another entrance, taking that as her cue to duck back behind the boulder. "I think we just found the leaders of this thing." she whispered.

Manny peaked two of his four eyes out from behind the rock to get a good look at the entering duo, and what he saw was… interesting. The first thing that caught his eye was the guy in front… and the huge mane of shaggy silver hair he was sporting. The man had a tan complexion, appeared to be in his mid-to-late thirties, and he had two scars going down his right eye. He had a white goatee and was fairly lean and muscular. But the most eye-catching thing about him… was his navy leather jacket with a big, furry, white collar that extended down to his chest. He had on a white undershirt, black jeans, and matching boots to complete the ensemble, along with black, fingerless gloves on his hands. Thing was, even with the big, furry collar, he still looked like someone you didn't want to mess with.

The man in the back, however, was MUCH scarier-looking than his compatriot, if a bit more on the heavy-set side. The only part of his skin that Manny could see were his expose arms, which appeared to be quite pasty. He wore a sleeveless, dark green zip-up jacket with black patterns on it, as well as a pair of matching ripped pants and black boots. He had on a pair of spiked wrist bands as well. However, the most notable thing about him was the luchador-esque mask that he had over his head. It was primarily black, but had green detailing all over it, especially around the eye-holes to make it look like he was constantly glaring. And around his mouth hole… there were large, pointed patterns that resembled teeth. It almost made him appear like some sort of reptile.

However, as intimidating as this duo was… Manny knew that these couldn't be the cult leaders. "Nuh-uh. These guys ain't the main man."

Helen glanced to her partner in confusion. "How can you be so sure?"

Alan peeked out as well. "Yeah, I mean, it looks like they're about to address the others…"

"Listen, if movies have taught me anything, it's that cult leaders tend to carry themselves with a WHOLE lot more dignity than those two're doin'." Manny explained. "If anything, I think those two are the big guy's top dogs."

Helen wore a deadpan expression. "Really? You're basing your assumptions on movies?"

"Don't question my freakin' methods!" Manny whispered harshly.

At that moment, Rook chimed in over Helen's badge. "Now would not be an opportune time to argue, I would think." he pointed out. "I do not know how they relate to canines, but I believe our "top dogs" are about to speak."

The trio glanced back to see the intimidating duo now standing on a small outcropping in front of the entire cult, which strangely enough had eight cases sitting upon it. The silver-haired man raised his hands to quiet the chanting, and once everyone had fallen silent, he spoke in a raspy voice; "GREETINGS, COLLECTIVE!" A brief cheer came from the crowd before he went on. "We stand before your today in the name of the Exalted One!"

"THE EXALTED ONE! THE EXALTED ONE!" the audience chanted all at once.

Manny smirked and eyed Helen. "Told ya—oof!" He received an elbow to the ribs for his trouble.

Next came the green-clad minion, who's voice was rather deep and growly. "We bring you great news on this day; the chosen few have completed their training, and are ready to proceed to the next level!" He raised a fist into the air and the crowd cheered again, before the man then extended his hand over to the entrance where he and his compatriot came out of. "Now… presenting the Chosen Few!"

At that moment, eight more people came out; four men and four women. All of them were of different builds, though they were also covered in cloaks and masks just like the rest of the cult. The only difference? These masks and cloaks were stark white. The chosen few knelt before the duo on the make-shift stage and both of them stepped down, bowing back to them in respect. "Our chosen few were hand picked by the Exalted One because he saw the most potential in them." the white-haired man continued before raising his arms toward the crowd. "But do not take that as a slight against the rest of you! Instead, take it as a motivator for you all to better yourselves so that YOU may excel more in the future!"

Alan blinked before tilting his head toward Manny and Helen. "Uh… you sure this isn't like some self-help course disguised as a cult?"

"Because THEN…" the green-clad man continued as he opened one of the eight cases… and presented a very deadly-looking weapon. "You will then one day be able to handle one of THESE!" The weapon was silver in coloration, and it appeared to be shaped like a rifle of some sort. However, with the vertical, rectangular barrel, the Plumbers knew that was no ordinary fire arm.

Manny's eyes widened at the sight of the familiar weapon. "That's a Mark 12 Techadorian Mutliblaster!" He whipped his head around to his teammates. "We learned how to assemble those back at the academy, right?"

Helen furrowed her eyeridges at the sight of the weapon. "Yeah… and it's also Level Five alien tech. And Planet Earth has only JUST exceeded the Level THREE threshold."

Alan rubbed the back of his head. "…Okay, so maybe they ARE a cult. And a pretty violent one at that."

"But where did they even GET those blasters?" Manny asked as he peeked back out from behind the rock, seeing that the weapons were being handed to the white-clad cultists. "And why the hell would a freakin' Earth-based cult need weapons THAT powerful?"

"It IS all very strange." Helen agreed. "Let's listen in more and see what we can find out…"

Back out in the room itself, the man in the purple jacket continued. "Now remember, while you may only use these weapons for now, the Exalted One has promised you even greater power in the future." The very utterance of those words made shivers go down the backs of all three Plumbers, the trio wondering just how powerful this "Exalted One" truly was. "And once you do gain that power, you shall pass these weapons down to the next chosen few who prove themselves."

"And through this, you will gain what you all have come here to gain." The man in the mask picked up from there. "Power. Power to take back control of your lives!" The crowd cheered at that. "Power to defend YOURSELVES from the threats that come to harm you!" Again, another cheer. "And no longer will you need these so-called "heroes" to hide behind!"

That got a cheer as well, though Helen noticed that a few of the followers, who appeared to be on the younger side, weren't as into that one as the older ones were. 'Hm, might be something to remember down the line later…'

"But before all of that, it's time that we give you your first task to carry out with these weapons…" The silver-haired man settled a glare over to the boulder that the Plumbers were hiding behind, pointing a single finger toward it. The whole cult craned their heads around and faced the rock as well before the man gave them the order. "COLLECTIVE… please take care of our guests."

Manny, Helen and Alan's eyes all widened in shock as the cavern began to be filled with a whole bunch of angry yelling. They all had the same question on their minds; how had they known they were there? However, that was something that would have to be asked later, as at the moment, they were suddenly set upon by dozens upon dozens of people. It was almost as if a sea of black robes and masks suddenly washed around the big boulder and began attacking them, using nothing but their bare hands.

"Woah! Hey!" Alan said as he made a small section of the ground beneath him catch on fire, allowing him to lift himself up into the air. "W-What do you think you're doing—GAH!" Without warning, Alan was shot in the back by eight powerful energy blasts, all of them connecting at once.

"ALAN!" Helen cried out as she watched in horror as her dazed friend come falling down off his platform and hit the ground head first. Alan was effectively knocked out, making him transform back into his human form. "Manny, we've gotta help him!"

"You think I don't know that?!" Manny shouted back. "Kinda busy trying to NOT hurt these people at the moment!" The Tetramand had been set upon by a whole slew of people that began to try and punch him… only for their attacks to fall utterly flat. He used all four of his hands to block many of their hits, though he was still taken off guard as to just HOW many people were willingly attacking him. "H-Hey! What the hell is your people's deal?! We're tryin' to HELP you guys out!"

"We don't WANT to be helped!" a masked woman called out.

"YEAH! Especially by YOU freaks!" another man shouted. "The Plumbers bring nothing but trouble from outer space to our planet, and so does Ben Tennyson! Harangue speaks the truth!"

Manny deadpanned at that. "Okay, YOU are FAR beyond help, clearly."

Helen grabbed her Plumber's badge as she used her tail to try and stave off the mob, calling up her comrade up top. "Rook! Can you get to Alan?!"

"I am already on it, Helen!" Rook replied. "I am approaching Alan as we spea—AAAGH!"

Helen's eyes widened as she heard that yell echo throughout the whole chamber. "Rook?! ROOK?!" The Kineceleran girl growled in frustration before rushing over the top of the boulder, getting away from the mob before scanning the whole room. However… she didn't see Rook anywhere. He was just… gone without a trace. But then, she also saw that the white-cloaked people were beginning to set upon Alan, and she knew that she couldn't let that happen. "Oh no you don't!" Helen began running toward Alan… only for her vision to be enveloped in a sudden red flash. Then, in the very next second, she found herself back out at the cave entrance, stopping just before she careened into the crashing waterfall. "AH! W-What the—"

"You like my little trick?" a feminine voice suddenly asked her. Helen whipped around… and came face to face with what could only be described as a hooded, hunchbacked woman in a black cloak. Her lower face was the only thing visible, her eyes covered by her long, dark hair. "I like to think of it as a gift… but also a curse."

"W-Who are you?!" Helen demanded.

"That doesn't matter." The hooded woman moved her cloak away, revealing a rather skinny arm… that was holding Rook's Proto-tool. "What DOES matter is that I took your friend…"

Helen snarled and went to remove her pistol from its holster. "You tell me EXACTLY where you took him, or so help me… what?!" The Kineceleran's eyes widened when she felt that there was no pistol to be found. Her eyes darted back up to the hunchbacked girl… and saw that she was holding her pistol as well. In the very next instant, there was another flash of red light in the woman's hands, and both the Proto-Tool and the pistol were now gone. Helen snarled and prepared herself for a sprint. "…I don't know HOW you did that, but I am going to RUN YOU THROUGH—"

"I wouldn't if I were you." The hunchbacked lady said. "Honestly, I would focus more on trying to save your friends." She craned her head toward the cave entrance, the two of them hearing the faint sounds of commotion coming from within. "If you even want a chance of saving them, I suggest you do it quickly."

Helen sent a suspicious glance over to the girl. "Wait, you're… giving me a chance to save them? Aren't you a part of this—"

"Questions to be asked later." The hunchback said with a shake of her head. "Ask yourself this; what COULD you be doing right now OTHER than talking to me?" Helen pursed her lips in thought before zooming back down the cave corridor, leaving the girl by herself. "That's what I thought." She put a hand to her ear and spoke; "She's coming back your way."

"Gah, of course." Came the raspy voice of her commander. "Get the cage and bring it here, we have to put the fire kid and the four-armed brute in there ASAP"

"…Yes sir."

…..

Back in the cave, the man in the purple jacket stepped over to Alan, bringing him in close before putting a knife to his neck. "Heh, you're gonna make good leverage, kid." The man to turned to his compatriot. "Scales, take care of the four-armed one!"

"You got it, Bishop!" The green-clad man said as he adjusted his mask. He then let out a powerful bellow and shouted; "CLEAR A PATH!" as he charged toward the cult and Manny. The group of hooded people obeyed Scales' wishes and cleared the way for him, allowing him to get a hit in on Manny. And, shockingly enough, the punch was surprisingly very hard. So hard in fact that Manny actually lost the grip of two of his pistols upon impact.

"GAH!" Manny stumbled back and his hand went to his cheek, shocked at how hard that blow was. This was NOT normal human strength. Scales' fists felt as hard as rock! "W-What in the hell was—YEEOW!" All of a sudden, Scales opened his mouth surprisingly wide, revealing a set of sharp teeth… before then proceeding to chomp down on one of Manny's hands. "AGH! You freak!" Manny began swinging himself around, slamming the deranged man into the cave walls in hopes of getting him off. Unfortunately, Scales' jaws proved to be clamped down securely, which only increased the pain whenever Manny swung him around. "Gah! Lemme go!"

"Oh, I'M the freak?!" Scales muffled out as he grabbed onto Manny by both of his upper arms. "Look in the mirror lately?!" The masked man then used his leverage to slam Manny right into the boulder head first, causing it to break instantly and crumble over him. With the Tetramand hybrid effectively buried, Scales proceeded to grab Manny's remaining two pistols, along with the other pair, and crushed all four of them with his bare hands. "Heh, this guy's not THAT tough." Scales said as he reached into the pile to pull Manny out.

It was at that moment when Helen came rushing back through the entrance, her eyes immediately seeing what was happening to her partner. "MANNY!" She made to move… but then a voice stopped her.

"Ah-ah-ah! I wouldn't do that if I were you, girly." Helen snapped her head around to see that the man in with the furry collar now had Alan in his grasp… and was now holding the knocked out young man at knife point. "We wouldn't want anything BAD to happen to your friend, now would we?" Bishop said, putting the knife even closer to Alan's neck. "Seriously, one more move and your friend is toast. And trust me, I have VERY fast reflexes."

Helen growled in frustration. Whoever this was had her pegged. He was holding the knife so close to Alan's jugular vein that the moment she moved a single inch, he'd be dead. She sighed and held her hands up, staying in place all the while. "Alright, just… don't kill him. All we want to know is what it is you want."

"All in due time." Bishop assured before they saw the hunchbacked woman appeared before them from out of a portal, now with a huge metal cage. This made Bishop grin. "Ah, good work, dear. Scales, throw that piece of trash into the dumpster!"

Scales, who was busy pummeling a disoriented Manny in the face, immediately nodded and put the Tetramand into a bear hug. "Read ya loud an' clear, bud!" With that, Scales let out a powerful yell and charged toward the cage, practically punting Manny into it. Scales reached in and took Manny's Plumber Badge while Bishop then did the same with Alan. With the knife still to his neck, Bishop set the unconscious young man inside before slamming the cage door shut.

Bishop then took out a small remote from his pocket and pressed a button… before then immediately crushing the remote in his hands. "Heh, too easy." He snapped his fingers and the white robed acolytes aimed their weapons at the cage, their trigger fingers at the ready. "Now, be a good girl and stay where you are." Bishop warned Helen. "If I even see one of your wheels roll, I'll give the order for them to shoot. And this time, the blasters will be set on high."

Manny, however, wasn't about to give in. Even in his disoriented state, he still had a lot of fight in him. "Ha! You… you think this cage… can hold ME?!" The Tetramand stood up and charged at the bars… only to be immediately shocked the moment he tried to grab them, causing him to get knocked back onto the floor with a yell. "GYAAAAAHH!"

"No, Manny!" Helen sneered as the cult members began approaching her again. Her hands were shaking, so desperately wishing she still had her pistol. But, even if she did, they'd probably shoot Manny and Alan if she tried to use it. And even then, she had to take into account all of the other cult members that could possibly get in the way. She glared at Bishop and growled. "Alright, you've got me outnumbered, and you've covered all of your bases. Perhaps… we can solve this peacefully."

"HELEN?!" Manny barked as he sat up... only to regret it a second later as he fell to one knee, the room spinning for him. "The… the hell are you thinkin'?! THEY'RE A CULT! You can't reason with a CULT!"

"He's got a point." Scales said with a shrug.

Helen sighed, keeping her focus on Bishop. She couldn't afford to get agitated right now. "What kind of cage IS that, anyway? You seemed pretty confident about putting Alan in there even though he can melt it."

"Oh, I doubt he could." Bishop denied. "See, I just threw your friends into an electrical cage made entirely out of solid Infinitum. Had to pay a pretty penny for it on the intergalactic black market, but it was worth it." He jerked his thumb toward the cage. "Basically, if your muscle-bound friend tries to bend the bars, which I doubt he could, he'll get shocked. Also, YOU'LL get shocked too if you try and rescue them. And even if your little hot tamale friend wakes up, he won't be able to melt those bars either. Plus, I destroyed the remote, so the cage is now permanently on."

Scales threw his head back and laughed. "Ha! The only thing that could possibly open that cage now is a freakin' BOMB!"

"TRY ME!" Manny yelled as he steadily stood up, clutching his head while balling his remaining three fists. "I'm a Tetramand, I can take the punishment!"

But Helen swiped her hand vehemently. "Manny, no! You've already taken enough punishment and you're hurt! I'm not about to take that chance!" She then settled her glare back to Bishop, her teeth grit together and her fists balled in rage. "…Again, I ask; what is it that you want?"

"Hm, I should probably clarify that, shouldn't I?" Bishop said as Scales and the hunch-backed woman moved up to him, taking their places at his sides. "We simply want to make the world a better place. One where people can defend THEMSELVES from the threats it faces instead of relying on OTHER extraterrestrials to do that for them."

Scales spread his arms out and laughed once again. "Haha, yeah! And with the help of the Exalted One, we're going to make that happen."

Helen narrowed her eyes at that. "And just who IS this "Exalted One" that you keep talking about? He sounds pretty intimidating."

"That is an understatement." the hunchbacked woman said. "You… you have no idea about the kind of torment he is capable of."

Helen saw Bishop give the woman a bit of a glare before going back to his conversation. "Exactly. Basically, you don't want to get on his bad side." He waved his hand toward the hunchback. "Now, if you know what's good for you, you'll follow this lovely lady to where your other friend is being held and we will bring you to the Exalted One so that you may meet him yourself."

Helen and Bishop stared down each other for a good while before the Kineceleran faced Manny, giving him a small smile. "Don't worry, I'll be back."

Manny's eyes widened at that. "What?! Helen, don't tell me you're actually going ALONG with this?!"

"Well, why wouldn't I?" Helen shrugged. "I mean, meeting someone with the title "Exalted One" must be a pretty high honor." She folded her arms while pointing toward the trio in front of her. "Though I probably won't have to go far to meet him. I'm guessing he's the big, imposing figure who's standing right behind you?" But then she gasped. "Oh no, wait, that's the backup that we brought."

Bishop's eyes widened as he and the rest of the Collective snapped their heads in alarm, expecting to see another person behind them. "Wait, what—" But there was no one there, just the outcropping they had used as a stage. Bishop's eyes widened and he turned back to Helen… only to see that she had unclipped a grenade from her belt, a toothy smirk now on her face as she pulled the pin. "…Oh fu—" BANG! In one swift motion, Helen closed her eyes and tossed the explosive to the ground, a bright flash bang blinding everyone and making them scream in shock.

By the time everyone's vision had cleared… Helen was nowhere to be seen. "Ha! I KNEW she wasn't gonna take your crap!" Manny laughed.

"GAH! You FOOLS!" Bishop's roar of anger was what got everyone's attention. "You fell for the oldest trick in the book!"

Scales lifted a single finger. "Uh, didn't you fall for it, too—"

"AFTER HER!" Bishop snapped, pointing his finger toward the entrance where Helen and her team had first entered. "Do not let her—"

"Bishop, that will be quite enough."

Bishop, Scales, and the hunchbacked woman's eyes all widened at the sound of their leader's voice ringing through the communicators in their ears, causing the former to reach up to his and speak back. "E-Exalted One!" Bishop stammered. "W-What do you mean?"

"It's quite simple, really." The low and slightly distorted voice continued. "If we allow her to escape, then she will no doubt bring ACTUAL back up to help her rescue her comrades. I say we let her do it… so that we may show the Plumbers just what the Collective is capable of. Bring the Chosen Few to me at once. It seems that their time might have come a bit earlier than expected…"

Bishop couldn't help but smirk at that. "Of course, Exalted One. Right away…"

…..

Meanwhile, after running down the long corridor, Helen had made it back outside, the sound of the crashing water relatively soothing compared to what had just happened in the cavern. She took a couple of breaths before narrowing her eyes in determination. "Okay Helen, just stay calm. All you need to do is get back to the Proto-TRUK and…" But then, her eyes widened in realization and she slapped her forehead. "…And Rook has the keys for the Proto-TRUK. Great, JUST great!"

Helen held her head in her hands as she leaned up against the cave wall, grumbling to herself as she now found herself without quick transport back to Bellwood… unless she ran the whole way. However, the thought of Bellwood suddenly reminded her… that a certain someone was now home, and he'd be just the backup she needed. Helen took her hands away from her face as a determined expression took over her features. She knew EXACTLY what she needed to do.

"It might be a long run, but I've gotta get back to Bellwood." Helen took a breath and lowered her visor, preparing for the run ahead of her. "I know you JUST got home, Ben… but your help would be pretty good right about now."

…..

A/N (Please Read): And with that, the prologue for this story has been set. And already, we have some pretty big events going down. For one, Helen, Manny and Alan make their series debuts in this chapter, while Rook gets an audio cameo (we'll definitely be seeing more of HIM later). Also, the mysterious group known as "The Collective" have finally appeared in-person. If you guys recall, this group was mentioned a few times in the story during Agent Six's calls to Remnant in Volume 1. Basically, they're a group who've been recruiting people while disguising the recruiting process as disappearances, leading the Plumbers to start an investigation. And as you can see, their three main members are all quite skilled, some even with powers of their very own like super strength and teleportation. But just WHO are they? And who is this "Exalted One" they keep referring to? All in due time, but for now, it seems that Helen has quite the trip ahead of her… and her goal is to reach a certain hero. Which leads us to…

NEXT TIME! We rejoin our main cast of heroes as they arrive at Ben's house, ready for a big reunion with their families… as well as giving everyone from Remnant a proper introduction to the Tennysons as well. However, is everything as peaceful in Bellwood as it seems? We shall have to wait and see…

Before I go though, I want to give ANOTHER special shout out to Paleodemon for the artwork and permission to use it. If any of you are interested, he currently has a Yu Yu Hakasho and High School DXD crossover challenge going on here on Fanfiction, so if you think that's up your alley, I recommend giving it a try.

With all that said, thank you all for reading, and I'll see you all in a couple days' time! See you later guys, and remember; stay safe out there!