In the desert near Bellwood, Kevin sped his car down the road with Ally riding on her bike behind. Kevin then slammed on the brake as they got to a truck, sending everyone skidding.
"Dude, come on!" Kevin shouted.
The driver glared back as they kept going at the same steady speed.
"Oh, that's how it's gonna be?"
Kevin pressed a button on the dashboard and aimed all his car's weapons at the truck.
"Kevin!" Gwen scolded.
"What?"
"Anger management! Appropriate response?"
"Yeah, okay, no missiles. I guess we're going off road!"
Kevin turned on the spikes on his tires and drove around the truck in the desert sand and got back on the road around the truck.
They heard a week sneeze and Gwen turned back to see Jen looking extremely pale with her brother and cousin comforting her as she was wrapped up in a blanket.
"Thanks for the help, guys. But I don't think I'm gonna make it," Jen said hoarsely.
"Don't worry, cuz. We're almost there," Becky reassured.
"Look! There it is!" Ben shouted as Kevin pulled up into the nearest Mr. Smoothie.
"May I take your order?"
"One mango-blueberry, extra echinacea stat!"
"Yep," Jen wheezed before inhaling sharply. "Achoo!"
As soon as Jen sneezed, a nearby garbage can gave a pink explosion before its top before it landed back down on it perfectly.
"What was that you told us about what colds do to your aliens?"
"It majorly affects our powers," Ben explained.
"Yeah," Jen said. "And in the case of Anodites, we can't control our mana powers."
"It's alright, Jen," Ben said. "Its just a commo cold."
"There's nothing common about this cold, bro," Jen sighed. "It's unbelievable. I'm even more sick now than you were when we were facing Clancy."
"I can feel that," Ben said as he pat Jen's blanket-covered back.
Gwen passed Jen a pair of tissues as she exploded and the used tissues floated in the air before bursting and some auras around the others shimmered before Gwen smiled.
"Magic health bubbles. Hope taught me that one yesterday."
"Good call."
"Here you go," Kevin stated as he passed Jen her smoothie. "This is an old Levin family cure."
"A smoothie?"
"Nah. It's just a smoothie so you can hold down the real cure."
"It better not be that garbage San Ju Yen Pien."
"Nope. It's bitterroot. They call it that because."
Jen's eyes widened and she gagged down the smoothie with a disgusted sigh.
"Yeah. Anyway, it's good for keeping back a cold. Also, it's good for warding off ear attacks. Drink up."
Jen muttered something as Becky sighed and facepalmed.
"She says she can't. The root is so bitter, her mouth's puckered shut."
"You can understand that, Becky? You should be a dentist," Kevin said.
Soon, a bright light appeared in the sky and everyone filed out of the vehicles and they squinted upwards.
"We've got company," Kevin said.
A familiar ship soared downwards before it touched down next to the restaurant.
"Whoa," Ally said, hanging up her helmet.
"That's..." Becky began.
"The Resolute," Gwen finished.
"But that means?"
Two figures stepped out of the landing platform as their helmets degenerated to reveal.
"Tetrax and Maya?" Jen asked. "Good to see- ACHOO!"
The smoothie in her hand blew up in her hand, getting smoothie everywhere as she sighed.
"Sorry."
Tetrax growled before picking up Ben.
"Hey? What's the big idea?"
"Ben and Jen Tennyson, give me Chromastone!"
Tetrax tossed Ben down to the ground as Jen raised an eyebrow.
"Take it easy, Tetrax," Maya said as Ridley squeaked as he floated alongside her. "We don't ant to hurt them, guys?"
"What do you want with Chromastone?"
"Use the Omnitrix now! Give him to me!"
"No, wait!" Tetrax shouted as he grabbed Ben's arm and started adjusting the dial to his Omnitrix to Chromastone and slammed the core down.
"Hey!" Omni shouted as he suddenly popped up from the Omnitrix. "Take it easy, Shard!"
Ben instantly transformed into...
"Diamondhead!" the Petrosapien shouted as Trixie popped up next to Jen and pat her back.
"You're not Chromastone!"
"No, I'm not. I tried to warn you, but you were too reckless!"
Jen sniffled before sneezing as a nearby truck instantly blew up in a small explosion.
"No. I sense Chromastone within you. Where is he!?"
"Well," Trixie said as she hovered next to Maya. "If you would stop getting so intense, you could let Omni here explain!"
"I think we should explain it to our old friend," Ally said as she morphed her arms into hammers and charged Tetrax along with the others, but they were instantly knocked aside by the bounty hunter and Maya sighed.
"Sorry, guys. He's really intense about this mission because it's really important."
Tetrax held up some kind of magnet device as Omni's hourglass pupils instantly shrunk.
"Oh... I don't like where this is going."
"What are you doing?!" Becky shouted.
"What must be done!"
Tetrax slammed the device into Diamondhead's chest and instantly fired it up.
"I feel so... I'm... coming... apart!"
"Stop! You're hurting him!" Gwen protested as Jen gasped, but clearly she couldn't stop Tetrax now.
"For that, I am truly sorry, Benjamin."
Diamondhead shattered a few seconds later and fell to the ground in several pieces. And left standing where he was was" none other than Chromastone. Only, he didn't have the Omnitrix symbol anywhere on him.
"Ben?" Jen sniffled. "Are you... okay there?"
"Not Ben.'
"He's right," Diamondhead said, shattered on the ground. "He's Chromastone. I'm Ben."
"I can't even control him," Omni winced as he floated over Ben. "I can't detect the Crystalsapien DNA in my database."
"I can't either," Trixie said. "It's like he's been completely deleted from our files."
"It's Ghostfreak all over again," Gwen remembered.
"Like I ever understood how this thing works," Diamondhead muttered.
"Is it time?" Chromastone asked as Maya nodded and took out a neon crystal from her belt and presented it to the Crystalsapien, causing it to sink into his stomach.
"Very nearly," she said.
Chromastone''s body took on a reddish tone rather than the purple one that he normally had and the horn on his head grew longer.
"It is done. I go now to complete my destiny."
Chromastone looked up and immediately took upwards, breaking through the upper atmosphere.
"I didn't know Chromastone could fly," Jen said.
"Believe it or not, neither did we," Trixie said, impressed.
"Oh, he can do far more than that, children."
"Yeah," Gwen said before ensnaring Tetrax and Maya in her mana grip and Becky aimed her bow at them with Ally forming maces from her hands with a glare.
"Yeah. After we put me back together!"
Kevin winced before smiling. "Okay, that's pretty much all of you."
"Pretty much?" a pathetic-looking Diamondhead asked angrily as they stared at him.
"It's the best I could do!" Kevin said as he picked up the Omnitrix symbol and placed it on where Diamondhead's chest was supposed to be.
"We don't know what will happen if I transform when he's in pieces like this," Jen said, wiping her nose.
"Even I don't like this idea," Omni said, hovering over Diamondhead's shoulder.
"Doesn't matter, Omni," Ally sighed, stepping back from her bike. "It's going to eventually time out anyway."
"I guess you have a point there," Trixie said as Kevin pressed the Omnitrix symbol and he transformed back as Ben looked over himself, relieved.
"Everything's where it's supposed to be?" Becky asked as Ben nodded.
"Just like before."
"How does a creature who's literally made of energy get a cold anyway?" Jen asked.
"Grandma told me that she's never had one," Gwen said.
"From touching doorknobs," Kevin smirked. "Doorknobs and keyboards are covered in germs. Plus, the fact that you're half human doesn't help."
"That's not what I... never mind."
"So what do we do with Tetrax and Maya?" Gwen asked.
"Let them go," Ben said. "They're about to start explaining what just happened, right?"
"Yeah," Maya said as Gwen dispersed her mana grip, letting the two bounty hunters go.
"I'm sorry I was so hostile, Ben," Tetrax said. "This was the only way I could redeem myself from my past actions."
"For helping Vilgax," Jen realized.
"For betraying his people," Maya said, giving her partner the floor.
"The twins and Ally know this already," Tetrax said. "It was I, and I alone, who sold Vilgax a secret crystal with unlimited power. "And it was that power that helped Vilgax destroy my planet. Petropia. Because of my selfishness, I was cursed to walk the universe alone. The last of my kind."
"Then he teamed up with me and vowed to never let Vilgax do to any more planets that he did to Petropia."
"But recently, I discovered a chance for me to redeem myself. You see, neither Vilgax nor I understood the true nature of the crystal. Since the beginning of time, our people's memories and DNA have been encoded into the crystal's molecular lattice."
"So it's kind of like a backup drive for the entire planet?" Becky asked.
"And everyone who ever lived there," Maya confirmed.
"Once I figured out the truth, I stole the crystal from Vilgax and brought it here to Chromastone, who was created to be the guardian of the sacred crystal. He will bring it back to the ruins of our home. And when our solar system's three stars are in perfect alignment, he will channel the crystal's limitless power to regenerate Petropia and its people."
"You know, you could've just told us that to begin with," Jen sighed.
"There wasn't time. The stars are aligning even as we speak."
"Um, is that shooting star a part of it?" Becky asked.
"Shooting star?"'
The said meteorite crashed into the desert behind Mr. Smoothie as everyone's eyes widened.
"Uh oh. That's no shooting star," Becky said.
"That's-"
The alien warlord stepped out of the cloud of smoke as Jen and Ben gasped.
"Vilgax!"
"Where is my crystal, Tetrax?!"
"You know, maybe I should have stayed in bed today after all, bro," Jen sighed nasally.
"No kidding."
"You stole from me, Tetrax and Maya. Give me what is mine and your deaths will be quick."
That was when a shield of green crystal popped up in front of the twins that blocked Vilgax's laser as everyone turned to the Petrosapien bounty hunter.
"Tetrax?"
"That wasn't me."
"Hi, Dad."
Everyone turned to behind them as they saw a Florian stepping up to them as she lowered her shield as Tetrax raised an eyebrow.
"Ma'Dow?"
"It's Rosie now, Dad."
"Hey, Rosie," Gwen said as Rosie smiled at her.
"Mom told me you came in and I had to come in to help you."
"Glad to meet you, Rosie," Maya said with a smile. "I'm Maya Aran, your dad's partner."
"Great to meet you too."
Suddenly, the Ruby Ray of Ruloux burst through the crystal shield and everyone hit the dirt.
"I've got this, guys," Jen said, hitting her Omnitrix core down and transforming into...
"Skyscraper!" the... Harpian said as AeroForce looked herself over and groaned. "Trixie, what gives?"
"I told you about our failsafe, remember?"
"Fine," Jen said as Ben transformed into Humungousaur and glared at the alien warlord over them.
"Let's get ready to rumble, Vilgax," Humungousaur said, picking up a streetlight to use as a bat. "Because we're gonna..."
Suddenly, AeroForce started sniffling as everyone looked to her as she inhaled.
"She's gonna blow!" Kevin said, tackling the girls down as AeroForce let out a loud sneeze that caused a powerful gust of wind that blew Vilgax back into Humungousaur, who gave him a massive sucker punch to the head.
The two continued brawling for a bit as Gwen shot her hands out and encased Vilgax in a mana field. Vilgax wasn't fazed by this as he used his laser vision to burst it, sending Gwen flying back.
Maya shouted out as she unleashed a ton of missiles from her suit that all slammed into Vilgax, sending up a huge explosion as he was then wrapped in several thorny vines before getting pelted by several green crystals.
"We can't beat him like this," Tetrax reported. "Fall back and regroup!"
Everyone took off as Humungousaur morphed into...
"Jetray!"
... and took off with his sister as he fired his neuroshock blasts at the ground as AeroForce flapped her wings and blew up a cloud of dust, obscuring Vilgax's view. When the cloud dispersed, everyone was gone.
"Cowards! There's nowhere you can hide from Vilgax!"
"It's almost time," Maya said as everyone stared at the three stars coming into alignment.
Up in space, Chromastone flew through the remains of Petropia before coming to the three stars. He brought his hands toggether before slowly drawing them apart, his body glowing with ultraviolet energy as he let out a powerful wave of energy.
As the wave passed by, the shattered remains of the crystal planet started coming back together again.
Vilgax continued battling with the team as Jetray fired his neuroshock blasts down at them as they hit one of Becky's arrows, causing it to explode in Vilgax's face.
AeroForce morphed into Firefly as she immediately felt the effects of her cold. Her exoskeleton was now a sallow shade of cerulean and she let out a powerful beam of ice as Vilgax was stopped in his tracks.
"Float like a butterfly, sting like a-huh?" she asked as Vilgax burst out of the ice and flew up to her, grabbing her shoulders before tossing her back as kicked off of him with her stinger.
"I shall crush you like the insignificant insect you are!"
The chase continued as Jetray blasted Vilgax from behind as Firefly groaned.
"You know, Vilgeek, flying's no fun if everyone can do it!"
At that point, the Omnitries timed out and the twins groaned out.
"Aw, man!"
"Guys!" Gwen shouted as she thrust her hands out and formed a mana slide that the twins landed on before sliding down to meet the rest of the team.
Vilgax hovered above everyone and blasted his laser vision down at them, which Gwen and Rosie quickly double-blocked with a mana shield over a crystal shield.
"Anyone got any ideas?" Ally asked, nervous.
"I do. Keep Squidface busy."
Kevin got into his car and tore off with the others ducking and dodging Vilgax's laser blasts while also firing at him with blasts of their own.
"This isn't working!" Maya shouted, blasting a concussion blast at Vilgax, who just shrugged it off.
"The crystal, Tetrax! There is no escape for you!"
Kevin suddenly appeared in his car and pressed a button on the dashboard, which brought down the bumper that dragged through the sand, creating a giant dust cloud that shielded everyone from Vilgax's view.
"You fools! You're just prolonging the inevitable!"
Vilgax landed on the ground and saw Kevin's car all by its lonesome. He ripped off the door to find no one inside before he roared in absolute fury.
"See?" Kevin asked as he pushed a sewer grate off the entrance compartment and smiled. "Told you guys I had a plan."
"Kevin, do you ever have a plan that doesn't involve crawling around in the sewers?" Gwen asked, disgusted.
"You're welcome, honey."
"You can stop whsipering," Rosie smiled, rolling her eyes. "We're half a mile away from where VIlgax is."
"Good point," Jen ssaid. "Even with his superhearing, there's no way he can make us out over all the people talking in the des-"
Jen sniffled as her brother gasped.
"Uh-oh! Everyone duck for cover!"
Jen then let out an extremely loud sneeze that echoed all across the walls.
"Oh, come on, guys," Jen said. "What are the odds that Vilgax is going to hear-"
A large explosion suddenly occurred from the wall and a very pissed off Vilgax stepped out and glared at our heroes.
"Give me the crystal!"
"Will this do?" Tetrax asked as he erected a giant crystal wall that didn't even phase Vilgax as he tore right through the barrier and sent Tetrax crashing down.
"Daddy!" Rosie gasped.
"I can't hold him back!"
"Bet we can," Ben said as he and Jen stepped up and slammed the cores down, transforming into...
"Rath!" the Appoplexian roared out.
"Soundwave!" the Sonorosian shouted as she multiplied herself into five and then sniffled before letting out a loud sneeze that translated into an uncontrollable sound wave that slammed right into Vilgax, knocking him off his feet as Rath leaped forwards and grabbed Vilgax by his collar, slashing his cheek.
"LET ME TELL YOU SOMETHING VILGAX, CONQUEROR OF TEN WORLDS! RATH IS SICK AND TIRED OF YOU ALWAYS BUTTING INTO OUR BUSINESS!"
"I'm only going to tell you once. Give me the crystal, now!"
"You'll never find it!" Maya shouted as Rosie tended to Tetrax and helped him up. "We sent it far away."
"Yeah," Kevin said as Ally morphed her hands into giant fists. "That guy Chromastone took it halfway across the galaxy."
"Really?"
Gwen and Ally both elbowed Kevin.
"Ow. What, too much information?"
Vilgax dropped the act as Rath timed out and took off into the sky, heading straight for Petropia.
"Nice going, motormouth," Jen glared.
"Oh come on, Jen. It's not like he can find Chromastone in time."
"I've got to stop him!" Tetrax said... just before he was wrapped up in Rosie's vines and she smiled up at him.
"We're going with you, dad."
"I wouldn't argue with your own daughter, partner," Maya agreed.
"Okay. You call can come."
The team boarded the Resolute and Gluto started firing up all the systems as everyone took their seats and buckled in.
"Guys," Jen said. "I don't know if I should really be flying with this cold. I mean, what if my head explodes from the pressure?"
"Don't worry. In space, no one can hear you sneeze," Kevin joked.
"We can," Becky rolled her eyes.
The Resolute then took off into space, heading for Petropia.
At the three stars, Chromastone was continuing his work until eventually, Petropia was completely reconstructed and the crystal planet hovered safely in space.
"It is done. Petropia lives again. And soon, her people will live again as well."
Chromastone sent out a wave of energy, but before he could do anything, he was struck by a laser blast from behind and he was sent tumbling down a crystal hill. At the bottom, the Crystalsapien looked up to see the menacing face of Vilgax staring holes into his soul.
"Chromastone. I believe you have something that belongs to me."
"I beg of you, Vilgax. Do not do this!"
"Why not? The crystal is rightfully mine! I paid for it! You're nothing but a common thief!"
Vilgax then harshly punched and kicked Chromastone, sending him skittering back.
"Billions of lives are at stake!"
Chromastone blasted a few ultraviolet blasts at Vilgax, only for him to swat them away like they were nothing.
"You should be more concerned with preserving your own life."
Meanwhile, the Resolute arrived at the planet Tetrax once betrayed. He gazed upon it in awe.
"There it is!" Ben shouted as Jen's eyes widened and sparkled at the sheer beauty of the crystal planet.
"Petropia. I never thought I'd see it again."
"Your descriptions do it no justice," Maya said, stepping up as Rosie's jaw was on the floor in awe.
"It's even more beautiful than I dreamed."
"But where's Chromastone?" Ben asked.
Everyone looked on the monitors and gasped in surprise as they saw Vilgax holding Chromastone up by the collar and glaring holes into his soul.
"He's in trouble! Step on it!" Becky shouted as Gluto hit the gas.
"Any last words?" Vilgax asked the lone Crystalsapien.
"I must... save... my people... Have mercy!"
"Mercy?" Vilgax asked while leaning down. "...Never heard of it."
He then yanked the crystal horn right from Chromastone's head, sending him falling down, lifelessly.
"No!' Tetrax shouted as the Resolute touched down. "Give it back!"
Tetrax fired tons of crystals from his hands that Vilgax instantly blocked with his shield.
"You bore me, Tetrax."
Vilgax fired an ultraviolet beam from the crystal and encased Tetrax in a red crystal prison.
"Daddy!" Rosie shouted as everyone filed out and bore their weapons and powers to Vilgax.
"That fool! Using all of the crystal's power just to reconstruct a dead world!" Vilgax scoffed, throwing the crystal away. "All of this was for nothing!"
Vilgax took off into space again as Ben and Jen shouted down from below, furious.
"We'll show you nothing! Come back here and fight!" Jen nasally shouted, eyes red with anger as Maya fired a powerful beam at the crystal and broke through it as Ally cradled Chromastone's lifeless body in her arms.
"The crystal?" Tetrax asked.
"It's no use. It's dead," Ben lamented.
"And Chromastone?" Maya asked as all eyes turned to Gwen, who cried over the Crystalsapien's body.
"Jen?" Becky asked. "You think you could-"
"I wouldn't risk it," Trixie said, popping up on Jen's shoulder with a stern gaze.
"She's right," Jen sighed. "This cold has been messing with my powers all day. I don't even want to think about what will happen if I use my Master Spark form like this."
"Then all hope is truly lost," Tetrax said.
"I'm sorry, Daddy," Rosie sighed as Chromastone suddenly got to his feet weakly.
"No. Not yet. The stars are still aligned. There is still time."
Chromastone focused and a new crystal grew from his head and he turned to Ben.
"But... I am too weak to continue. Ben... please."
Chromastone broke the crystal off his head and presented it to Ben, who took it... just before Chromastone vanished.
"What are you supposed to do with it?"
"I don't know," Ben said as he adjusted his Omnitrix and pressed the core down. "But Diamondhead does."
The Petrosapien took off into a run as he climbed a large crystal spire and ran across a crystal bridge that started crumbling behind him just before caving in under his feet. Panicking, Diamondhead took the red crystal into his mouth and leaped up to the ledge he was going for, struggling to climb himself up to the highest point possible.
"He needs help," Jen said as Rosie nodded and ran by her.
"You're still sick!" Ally shouted.
"I don't care!"
Jen focused as she rose up her and her hybrid friend on a mana platform as Rosie focused as the flower on her head bloomed and she focused as she shot out a powerful solar beam that instantly hit the crystal and Diamondhead lifted the supercharged crystal to the stars and it gave out a powerful green glow.
"He's done it!"
With that, billions and billions of crystals started forming out of the landscape that each morphed into Petrosapiens aplenty, looking around confusedly.
"That was incredible!" Gwen said, hugging the three as Diamondhead transformed back. "Everyone on the planet is alive again."
"Not everyone," Ben sighed.
"Yes, Ben. Everyone."
Everyone looked and gasped as they saw Chromastone standing there and everyone's eyes widened.
"Chromastone!" Jen exclaimed. "You're alive!"
"No. Not Chromastone. He is still in your Omnitrixes. I am Sugilite, Guardian of Petropia."
"You're Chromastone's DNA source," Ben realized as Sugilite nodded. "I think this belongs to you."
Sugilite took the crystal back and reattached it to his horn area.
"I am in your debt. As are all Crystalsapiens."
"Apparently, there's a line," Jen chuckled as the Petrosapiens behind them all cheered and raised their fists in celebration and the twins and Rosie played it up for the crowd as Jen gave a theatrical bow and Ben gave out the rocker signs. "Well, there's one more planet we saved to add to our ever-growing list."
"We're never gonna hear the end of this, are we?" Kevin said.
"Nope. But that's part of being a superhero," Ally said.
"I can hear that," Becky sighed.
Back on Earth, the Resolute stopped off at the same Mr. Smoothie from earlier as everyone, including Rosie, stepped back.
"You sure about this, Ma'Dow?" Tetrax asked, placing his hand on Rosie's shoulder.
"Yes. It's always great to see you, Dad. But Earth's always been my home. I'm a Plumber's Kid and I have a duty to this planet."
"I understand."
"Thanks for the ride home, guys," Ben said as Tetrax smiled.
"It's the least we can do, Ben," Maya smiled as she crossed her arms.
"We don't want to hold you up. You must be anxious to get back to your friends, Tetrax," Gwen said.
"I am. But first, I have a score to settle with Vilgax."
"Are you sure that's such a good idea?" Jen asked. "I mean, that guy is pretty much unstoppable now."
"Maybe. Or maybe not."
On Vilgaxia, Vilgax was sneezing rapidly, setting off his various powers as Psyphon turned to him with a hankie.
"I don't believe this!"