Ben 10: Alien Rebirth

by B.E.A.T.N

It started with an alien device that did what it did. It stuck itself upon his wrist with secrets that it hid. Now he's got super powers, he's no ordinary kid. He's Ben 10! My retelling of the Ben 10 series, with various changes throughout the story, including: mild cursing, some mild violence, skipped and altered episodes, etc. New chapters (almost) every Tuesday

19. Chapter 19

Ben 10: Alien Rebirth

Chapter 19: The Ultimate Weapon

We begin somewhere in Texas, where people are working to obtain some oil underground. The equipment seems to be having trouble. Suddenly, an earthquake alerts them and they run as the ground breaks up while the tower falls below.

The mysterious quake unearths a large tornado of flames, which then reveal to them a mysterious mask, right before their eyes!

….

Meanwhile, in the RV, Grandpa Max, Gwen and Ben are having a meal. Chester is eating his bird seed.

Max, "so, how do you guys like it?"

Ben, "this actually tastes pretty good."

Gwen, "yeah, it is. Say, Grandpa, what's the crunchy stuff in this?"

Max, "oh, that's what gives them the flavor. Dung beetles!"

Ben and Gwen immediately stop eating and cringe in disgust.

The one mystery they could never solve is why Grandpa Max had such strange eating habits, even after eating alien food!

Suddenly, an alarm then sounds off and one of the cupboards opens to release a monitor that showed the mysterious mask.

Max holds a tense look as he gazes upon the image.

Max, "as I live and breathe. The Mask of Ah Puch!"

Ben, "gazuntite."

Max, "not achoo, Ah Puch."

Gwen, "what is it?"

Max, "it's said to be the key to one of the most destructive weapons ever known in the world, the Sword of Ek Chuaj!"

Ben, "woah, sounds powerful."

Max, "oh, it is. In mythology, Ek Chuaj is the Mayan God of war, and legends say that his sword was powerful enough to wipe out a single city in one swipe! The Plumbers spent so long trying to contain this artifact, but we never did find it."

Ben, "woah. Imagine what that sword could do in certain hands!"

Max, "the sword isn't a toy, Ben. It's not for fun. In the wrong hands, this sword could control the fate of all mankind."

Gwen and Ben appear to listen and agree with him.

Max, "we're making a little detour on our trip. We're off to find this mask before it falls into the wrong hands!"

And with that, the RustBucket was off at high speeds!

….

They arrive at the area where the mask was found, trying to find a way in.

Max, "alright Ben, try to find a way in. One that won't cause any attention."

Ben, "I could always use FourArms or DiamondHead to break in?"

Max, "this is a serious situation Ben. We need stealth on our side."

As Max goes back into the RV for a moment, Ben and Gwen chat.

Ben, "jeez, why is Grandpa acting so, y'know, intense?"

Gwen, "this must have been an important mission to him in his Plumber days. Plus, this is a 'save the world' type situation, so I can understand his worry."

Ben, "alright, I'll give ya that. Now, let's see if GreyMatter or GhostFreak can sneak in?"

Ben pulls down his wristband and tries to transform into GhostFreak, but when the light fades, he's GreyMatter!

GreyMatter, "ugh, I really gotta fix that bug. At least GreyMatter is is a viable option to break in…."

GreyMatter climbs up the gutter to get into the building.

As Max gets out, Gwen says, "y'know, for as annoying Ben can be sometimes, he makes a good point. You're acting a little, tense, Grandpa."

Max, "you two are only kids. You wouldn't understand. Me and my team spent countless years searching for the mask and sword. But with no results. But now that the mask is on our grasp, this is my chance to make things right!"

Gwen still seems worried about this little obsession Max had….

….

Inside the building, GreyMatter arrives through the drain in the bathroom. Gum is stuck on his head.

GreyMatter, "ugh, nasty!"

GreyMatter sneaks through the halls as quietly as he can.

But little does he know that the place was guarded by two attack dogs.

GreyMatter, "uh, nice doggies?"

GreyMatter jumps out of the way before they attack him, and he runs out.

….

Outside, Max and Gwen wait for GreyMatter to open up the basement door.

Eventually, he does, looking proud of the fact!

Max, "what took you so long?"

GreyMatter, "I was-"

Max, "nevermind. Come on. We gotta find the mask."

GreyMatter gives an irritated look as Gwen picks him up.

Gwen, "um, why do you smell like dog slobber?"

GreyMatter, "trust me, ya don't wanna know, Gwen."

They walk through the basement hallways, and Gwen and GreyMatter continue to be aware of Max's condition. He looks very determined, almost to the point of obsession, to get his hands on the mask.

A vault is then at the end of the line, and GreyMatter tries to open it up.

GreyMatter, "let's see…. Yes…. Yes…. Alright…. I got it!"

He manages to open up the vault.

Inside reveals the Mask of Ah Puch, and Max finally gets his prize that he wasn't able to obtain many years ago.

Max, "finally, after so many years, I have it."

Footsteps are then heard behind them.

They all turn to see Enoch and his Forever Knights!

It seems that he's after the mask as well!

GreyMatter, "ah crud monkeys."

Enoch, "give us the mask!"

Max, "not gonna happen, Enoch!"

Before the Tennysons and the Forever Knights could go into a fight, a security guard comes in just in time to distract them!

He yells, "hey!"

GreyMatter jumps onto Enoch's face to cover up the eye holes of his mask, while Max and Gwen run out to get the mask to safety.

Max and Gwen are able to get out, but GreyMatter almost gets thrown into a paper shredder!

He hangs on for his life, while Enoch and his henchmen go after the mask.

Instead of chasing after them, they head the other direction.

The security guard, "security, lock down the building! Repeat, lock down the building!"

GreyMatter is able to jump away from the shredder and begins making his way out of the building as Gwen and Max continue to run away.

They saw an exit, but a guard was there, so they tried another way out.

Before reaching the exit, Enoch was right behind them, and he grabbed the mask away from Max!

With a hard decision, Max decides to get him and Gwen out of there.

Max, "Gwen, hold on to my hand!"

Luckily, they were able to get out of the building.

GreyMatter manages to get out also, but lands in a dumpster, reverting back into Ben.

As Ben gets out, Max and Gwen find him.

Max, "Ben, come on! We have to hurry up, so we can catch up to Enoch before he gets the sword!"

Ben grunts as he gets out of the dumpster, and he, Max and Gwen get back into the RV, racing after the forever knights.

….

Enoch is in his car, and he looks at the mask with amazement.

Enoch, "soon, we shall have the sword within our grasp. Soon…."

The driver then sees the RV in the side mirror, and Max is inside with an enraged look!

The driver, "sir, they're on our tail!"

Enoch, "deal with them!"

….

Max turns on the aerodynamics for the front bumper, and he accelerates the RV to ram into Enoch's car.

Ben continues to try and activate the Omnitrix.

Ben, "come on! Come on! I need an alien right now!"

Max's impatience has led him to put the RV in auto-pilot.

Max, "no time for that. We've gotta get that mask back!"

Max heads into the back, and soon comes out in his old Plumber suit!

While Enoch's men try to attack the RV, Max jumps out to Enoch's car to take back the mask.

Max sees the mask, but Enoch has a blade to protect it!

Max slips off from the top of the car after avoiding getting attacked by the sword, but he manages to get himself back up.

The situation is intense, but without Max's protection, Ben and Gwen are attacked inside the RV, while the henchmen try to go after them.

Gwen manages to shock one of them with her powers as she and Ben manage to get one of the men out of the door, and see a sign that shows that they are headed for Mexico!

Their excitement was drawn off after learning that the second man was coming from the RV's top, but Gwen is able to use the fire extinguisher to get him off the RV, smashing them in the face and making them fall off the bridge and into the water.

Max continues to attempt with all his power to try and obtain the mask.

Learning that the blade is metal, Max is able to use a magnetized pad he has to hold onto Enoch's sword, which had gripped onto it fairly hard.

With Enoch distracted, Max was able to take back the mask!

Max makes their way back into the RV, but unluckily, a truck was heading towards all of them!

Max, "Ben, Gwen, hold on!"

Without paying attention to the truck, Max turns on the rocket thrusters, which makes a great chance for the truck and the RV to collide.

Max was able to avoid the truck, but scratched the side of it.

Realizing that Enoch is behind them, he releases tire spikes to slow them down.

The RV drives away, but Enoch is ready for his counterattack, and is able to get around them!

….

Max and the kids stop somewhere due to the RV's breakdown from the attack.

As Max is trying to fix it up, he says, "ugh, I need the correct wrench! If I had the right tools, we could get back on the road."

Gwen and Ben are standing with one another as they watch Max work.

Gwen, "ever since we got the notification about that mask, Grandpa has changed. And NOT for the better."

Ben, "I'd honestly rather have the calamari cooking Grandpa back."

Ben looks through the mask, and the sockets glow, revealing a hologram that mapped the temple of Ek Chuaj.

Ben, "Grandpa, we have a map!"

Max, "great! Now, how are we gonna get there?"

Ben, "oh, I think I know how."

With no time to spare, Ben transforms into Buzzshock, takes control of his hoverboard and flies to the temple with Gwen and Max on it.

It takes a few minutes as they fly through the air.

Max, "can't you go any faster? We're in a bit of a time crunch!"

Buzzshock, "I'm not used to flying with passengers."

As they get closer, the Omnitrix starts beeping!

Buzzshock, "dang it!"

Just before arriving, Buzzshock reverts back to Ben and the three fall into the jungle, clutching his deactivated hoverboard close.

The trees manage to break their falls, and they soon arrive at the pyramid to see that Enoch and his men are already at the site.

Gwen, "we're too late!"

Max, "not quite. They don't have the mask, so they can't get in!"

The knights try to open the pyramid doors with dynamite, but it seems that the stone doors are strong enough to stay shut.

Max and the kids head another way to find a secret entrance to the temple.

As Max tries to look for a switch, Ben decides to use the mask to reveal its location.

A glowing brick was shown, and it opened up the tomb with success.

They make their way inside, but the path is incredibly dark.

With the path dark, Max grabs a nearby torch, but the blinding light makes Ben fall into a very deep pit!

Gwen and Max quickly save Ben before he can meet a grizzly end!

Gwen hugs Ben close as Max grabs the mask and says, "phew, that was close."

Max cared more for the mask's safety than Ben's! Much to the annoyance of the grandkids.

They head down the wooden platforms, but before Max is able to warn Gwen and Ben of the dangers of the temple, Ben accidentally activates a booby trap!

The temple starts to rumble, and begins to release boulders from above, breaking their path from all directions.

Max activated a grappling hook from his suit and is able to use it to get them to safety.

Ben and Gwen were glad to be safe, but Max was already far in front.

Gwen and Ben don't enjoy being around Max anymore.

Ben, "when this is over, remind me to throw out all of his leftovers to teach him a lesson."

Gwen, "oh, it's at the top of my list. Right above smacking him upside the head!"

They soon find the socket where the mask can be placed, but before they can do so, Enoch appears there to stop Max!

Enoch, "I'd love to chat about old times, but I'm late for holding the world at my mercy. So, I'll be taking that mask now."

Max, "over my dead body."

Enoch, "more like there's."

Enoch and his men grab the kids, but before Max tries to shoot the men holding Ben and Gwen hostage, he worries about their safety more for once during this whole mission, and surrenders, dropping his blaster and holding his hands up.

As Enoch takes the mask, he and his men line the Tennyson's up in front of the pit.

They were doomed and fated to probably never come back.

Enoch, "they say that this pit is bottomless. Let's test that theory!"

Enoch pushes Ben in first!

Max and Gwen, "Ben!"

Enoch then pushes them in as well!

Meanwhile, as Ben falls down the pit, he quickly starts to dial up the Omnitrix!

Ben, "c'mon! Anyone will do right now!"

He is able to transform into FourArms, who manages to grab a hold onto the wall, and grab Grandpa Max and Gwen with his two smaller arms before they fall down the pit any further!

Enoch places the mask into place, and a flash from the door indicates its opening.

There, a large pyramid shrine rests on top the sword of Ek Chuaj.

….

FourArms gets back up with Gwen and Max.

Gwen looked terrified as FourArms rubbed her back in order to calm her down.

Max, "come on! We need to stop Enoch from getting the sword!"

FourArms, "um, Grandpa, do you think we can slow down for a minute? I think Gwen needs a second to catch her breath."

Max, "we can't stop now. Enoch may already have the sword!"

FourArms, "ENOUGH!"

Max is surprised at the outburst! So is Gwen as she sees her cousin yell at their grandpa.

FourArms, "I know this is important to you Grandpa, I really do. But ever since we started looking for that mask, you've been treating Gwen and I like dishrags! You need to figure out what's more important! That stupid sword, or your family, who you've gotten into danger far more in one day than an entire week not chasing after these clowns!"

Max seems remorseful over FourArms' words as they continue forth.

Soon they see Enoch and his men fighting off against of guardian that was protecting the sword!

FourArms, "what the heck is that thing?"

Max, "it must be Ah Puch, the Mayan God of death and the underworld. The land of the dead. He's the guardian of the sword of Ek Chuaj!"

Gwen, "why can't these places ever be protected by, like, the guardian of cheerfulness? Is that too much to ask?"

FourArms, "they probably wouldn't be effective then."

Gwen, "... point taken."

The men were having trouble trying to control Ah Puch, and it was to the Tennysons advantage to use the time to try and go for the sword.

Gwen and Max try to head up the pyramid, while FourArms distracts Ah Puch.

FourArms, "hey ugly!"

Ah Puch growls at FourArms as he activates his helmet and says, "let's dance!"

The two began trading blows as the knights began to flee in terror of the supposed God.

Max and Gwen were just about to get to the sword, but unfortunately, Enoch was there to stop Max from using his hook to get it!

Enoch, "I will have the sword!"

Max was able to kick him down, but Enoch uses Gwen to distract him from getting to the sword.

Gwen, "Grandpa!"

Enoch holds his sword, ready to strike her down.

Max looks at her, and then the sword, and realizes that Gwen is more important than the sword and comes to her rescue.

While FourArms continues to fight, he notices that Max and Gwen are in danger, so he gives Ah Puch a powerful punch, finally knocking them to the ground in an unconscious heap!

He heads up to save them, but unfortunately, he reverts back into Ben before he can get close enough to help!

Ben, "every freaking time!"

Max heads back up to try and stop Enoch. Ah Puch awakens again and starts heading towards the kids!

Ben and Gwen, "Grandpa!"

Max is given a choice; to either save Ben and Gwen, or go after Enoch and take the sword, leaving Ben and Gwen in great danger.

"You need to figure out what's more important!"

The voice of FourArms rings in his head as he sees the truth.

They are more important than the sword! And so he heads down and defeats Ah Puch using his gadgets!

As this happens, Enoch pulls out the sword!

Enoch, "yes! I have done it! The Forever Knights have the ultimate weapon! Nothing can stop us now!"

As if tempting fate, suddenly, the sword crumbled to dust in Enoch's hands!

Enoch, "w-what?! No!?"

Max starts laughing, "I guess that's what you can expect when your 'ultimate weapon' is six thousand years old!"

The temple starts to rumble around all of them!

Ben, Gwen and Max begin to make their escape as the temple begins to crumble!

Max, "Enoch! Come on! You need to get out of here!"

But Enoch is too greedy to even listen to a request that can save his life.

And so, the trio leave as fast as they can!

….

Outside, they see the temple fall, honestly hoping Enoch made it out, though not eager to see him again.

Max, "it's finally over. And now that it is, I find myself craving some Dung Beetle stew."

Ben and Gwen smile at one another before hugging their Grandpa, happy he was back to his old self.

Max gets down to their level and says, "I'm sorry kids. I let an old mission get in the way of what's more important. You two are more important than any old sword or mask", Max hugs his grandkids before standing up and saying, "now, let's head back to the RustBucket. This suit is starting to give me a wedgie."

Ben, "hahaha!"

Gwen, "but, how are we gonna get back to the RustBucket? Or anywhere else?"

That's right when they spot Enoch's helicopter he must have been planning on using.

Max, "you're lucky I can pilot one of those things."

And so, they fly off back towards the RV, having saved the day yet again….

….

Meanwhile….

We see a pile of rubble near the temple. It slowly began to shake as an armored hand burst out of it!

Pulling himself out was Enoch, his armor scratched up and dented as he groaned and got to his feet. As he staggered forward, he heard a rather loud noise.

He looked up to see a helicopter landing in front of him.

A knight came out and said, "sir? How did your search for the sword go?"

Enoch groaned and said, "the sword was a fruitless effort. Perhaps the search for Ascalon will yield better results…."

….

Reviews:

Guest: so originally I was gonna introduce Kevin's little brother earlier on, but retconned him out. I plan to introduce him in Alien Force as Kevin's half brother. And with that, I also plan on introducing Harvey, Kevin's step dad, a lot sooner so his appearance in Absolute Power isn't so random.

OMNISENSE95: glad you enjoyed the chapter. But no, Gope ain't gonna show up until chapter 21.

kashriramji: so glad you liked the artwork. Yeah, I plan on doing another retelling of Omniverse where Ben and Julie stay together, and one where Ben and Ester stay together after Ben and Julie break up mutually.

Omnicaster: yeah. We're gonna see a LOT more of Xylene.

Bailey Radcliff: glad you enjoyed the chapter.

Ushindi: glad you liked the chapter and are excited for Technorg's return. 1. I think the Rooters arc is okay, but I absolutely hate that they retconned Kevin and the Plumber's kids' backstory! 2. I think Eon's a decent villain.

Tippy 1.1: glad you like the chapter. Yeah, Tehcnorg will appear more often alongside characters like Tetrax, Xylene, etc. Hope isn't joining the story in THIS chapter. As I've explained a few times, she's coming in for chapter 21, before Galactic Enforcers, after Wildvine is introduced. No problem regarding your ideas. And I understood what you meant about Ultimate Big Chill the first time. Yeah, I wanted Ben to be more respectable in Omniverse, with him being a hero, father and husband by that point. And yeah, I plan to have the Ultimate Kevin arc go like this: after absorbing Aggregor's powers, he leaves, being afraid that he'll snap at any moment. We'd get an original chapter that shows Ben and Gwen dealing with the aftermath of what happened with Aggregor and Kevin before seeing Kevin going after multiple people who've crossed him, such as the episode with Argit, his old gang in classic, etc. Ben's breaking point will be Kevin trying to absorb Hope's power after he thought he killed Argit. The Andromeda Five will most likely stay dead, and the last minute of Absolute Power Part 2 will be less cluttered. And I plan to introduce Harvey earlier on in the story, most likely during the events of Alien Force season 1 and 2, along with Kevin's half brother, Ethan. And yeah, the Dagon arc is gonna be a wild ride…. I hope to have Ultimate Echo Echo vs Malware at some point in the story.

guest: intriguing idea for the Biomatrix. Two species very similar to one another crossbreeding into a way more powerful hybrid species. Perhaps a hybrid between Swampfire and Wildvine? Echo Echo and Ditto? Jetray and XLR8? DiamondHead and Chromastone? There's loads of options….

Guest: I'm glad you like how Ben is more sympathetic towards Kevin, and how Kevin can manage to keep his cool a little. And yeah, I think a lot of people wanted more of Technorg, so I decided to oblige.

….

Biggest change to this episode, the reason this mission was so personal to Max was that it was the one mission he never completed when working with the Plumbers.