Ch.6: Tourist Trap
Angel stared across the table giggling. For some reason, Ben was pressing his face against the Rust Bucket window, controlling his features into a rather odd face.
"I would tell you your face will freeze like that, Ben, but in your case, it can be an improvement," said Gwen, not looking from her laptop.
The boy in the other had turned his back on Ben, noticeably eating a sandwich much faster than recommended. When he devoured the whole thing, he opened his mouth and stuck his tongue out, the contents of his lunch now a visibly mushy mess.
"Oh man, the seafood special," groaned Ben before smirking. "Time to pull out the secret weapon."
"Ben, I've got an idea," said Angel and whispered in Ben's ear.
Ben smiled and suddenly disappeared under the window. There was a green light and Angel screamed, getting on the table when suddenly Stinkfly jumped up and pinned Angel down as if he was going to attack her. The boy stared at the 'attacking' Lepidopterran, stunned beyond words, then screamed for his father to hear, who turned his head to see what got his son so excited. One look at the giant bug and the father slammed his foot on the gas pedal, taking off down the road.
Stinkfly and Angel noticed the two's reactions and fell on the floor, holding their guts as they laughed. Gwen looked up from her laptop and shook her head in disapproval.
"There's this thing as taking the joke too far, you know," said Gwen.
"Suite yourself. Funny is funny," said Stinkfly while laughing.
"Ben, get over here," alled Max from the driver's seat. Without a warning, Max hit the brakes and sent Stinkfly and Angel sliding up to the front, causing Stinkfly to hit the console with his tail. "Oh good, you're ready to go. We got trouble ahead."
Just up ahead, the road was blocked by a propane truck that had smashed head first into a cargo truck with the driver of the propane truck stuck inside his vehicle as the door appeared to have been smashed inward, jamming it in place. And to make things worse, a fire seemed to have ignited upon impact as it was making its way to the fuel tank.
"If that propane he's hauling catches fire, then that truck will become a rocket to the moon," said Max.
(Theme song:
It started when an alien device did what it did,
And stuck itself upon his wrist with secrets that it hid,
Now he's got superpowers, he's no ordinary kid,
He's Ben 10!... (Ben 10! Ben 10!)
So if you see him, you might be for a big surprise,
He'll turn into an alien before your very eyes,
He's slimy, creepy, fast and strong; he's every shape and size,
He's Ben 10!... (Ben 10!)
Armed with the power, he's on the case,
Fighting off evil from Earth or space,
He'll never stop 'till he makes them pay,
'Cause he's the baddest kid to ever save the day!
Ben 10! (Ben 10! Ben 10! Ben 10!)
Stinkfly flew out of the RV and made his way to the wreckage, but backed away when the flames flared up. Meanwhile, Max was trying to direct the panicked drivers away from him.
"Come on, people," shouted Max over the confusion. "Let the… bug do his job."
"These flames are too intense. I really wish I was Heatblast right now," said Stinkfly. "That gives me in idea." Stinkfly flew up and shot multiple slime balls, that put out the flames. Once the flames were out, Stinkfly landed on the roof of the cabin and ripped the roof apart with his sharp tail and pulled the driver out.
"There's no need to thank me. Just doin' what I had to do," said Stinkfly to the driver after landing safely on the ground.
"Ahh, that's the monster that attacked those kids," shouted the kid from before, who happened to be in the crowd.
"Well, look at the time. Gotta fly," said Stinkfly before flying away.
Soon, the Tennysons were back on the road and Max thought it would be nice if they made a relaxing pit stop at one of his favorite towns. Even though he was excited, he was very mute on the details as he wanted to keep it a surprise. As they drove, the kids saw a sign that made them even more curious.
"You'll have a ball with it," said Gwen aloud.
"C'mon, grandpa," begged Ben. "At least give us a hint of what 'it' is."
"Uh–uh, no hints," said Max excited. "I've been planning this stop all summer."
The pattern continued for another thirty minutes until finally Max stopped the RV at their destination. The old Tennyson was buzzing with excitement as he got up from the driver's seat, walked over to the door, and turned to the children that were gathered around him.
"Now I want you all to close your eyes," said Max. The children complied and closed their eyes, with Angel grabbing Ben's arm, and heard Max opening the door. Together, Ben, Angel and Gwen stepped out of the vehicle. "Now, open 'em up!" Their eyes flew open – Ben and Angel looked excited and Gwen looked curious. But in just two seconds, their expressions all changed to looks of disappointment as they stared up at the sign that said: "Ta–da! Welcome to Sparksvile!"
Ben, Angel and Gwen shared a look with one another, almost afraid to say anything that could hurt Max's feelings. Every building in the small town was topped with some kind of an oversized prop, like a bottle of ketchup or an oversized hotdog. While the children grimaced, Max looked around with joy and wonderment.
"Is this place or what," asked Max excitedly.
"I think I'll go with 'or what'," said Angel.
"Come on," said Max, still grinning from ear–to–ear. "What's more exciting than the world's biggest fishbowl?"
"I'll go with Stinkfly as the world's biggest insect," said Angel.
A man in well–dressed western suit, but with a permanently blank face walked up to the Tennysons and spoke in a monotonous voice.
"As the mayor of Sparksville, I welcome you, O' seekers of wonder," said the mayor.
"I know you guys are probably excited to see 'it'," said Max, breaking the awkward moment and handed the children three tickets. "I'll go check us in at the hotel."
With that, he left the children to their own devices, which really left them with nothing to do in the old boring town. With nothing better to do, Ben and the girls decided to check out the exhibits.
They decided that their first stop would be at a run–down looked building only covered by a white sheet with a sign that said 'Jackalope' out front with no other reason that it was the closest one. Ben rang the bell on the rickety ticket booth when the mayor showed up wearing a staff hat.
"Tickets please," said the mayor monotonously.
"I thought you were the mayor," said Ben, raising an eyebrow still handing over the tickets.
"He who wears the crown is burdened by many hats, son," said the mayor, ripping the tickets and letting them through the turnstile. "Mind the signs."
Inside the building, they took pictures of everything, made funny faces as they captured the moments. They took pictures of several different places, including: the front of the jackalope building, an "American Gothic" painting cutout, a planetarium in which an employee was replacing the "sunlight" bulb, a giant house of cards, a giant hot-dog, Ben getting sprayed with ketchup and mustard, Gwen getting a hot-dog tossed at her, Ben wearing jackalope horns and Angel wearing googly-eye glasses, the world's largest fish bowl (Ben, Angel and Gwen pretending to be about to vomit), them sitting on a bench bored and an "It is this way" sign.
They decided to finish up their day to see the barn containing "It", and unsurprisingly, the mayor happened to be there.
"Through these doors lies the weirdest, wildest thing to ever find its way to Sparksville," said the mayor in his usual monotone as the doors behind him cracked ominously.
"Please tell me this is 'it'," said Ben, complaining as the trio walked inside, past the multiple luminescent signs. Ben turned his head and read one: "Do not touch it."
"Do not photograph it," said Gwen, reading another sign.
"Do not use any batteries or electrical equipment anywhere near it," Angel read the last overhead warning sign.
Ben and the girls looked skeptical. Finally, they reached the other end of the barn and found a giant wall with flashing lights and a bold label that said: THIS IS IT. The wall was raised by an unseen mechanism and revealed… a giant rubber band ball.
"This is 'it'," complained Ben.
"It's big ball of rubber bands," said Gwen blandly to the mayor walking up behind them.
"And who knows what secrets lie within," said the mayor, trying to sound mysterious.
"I guess more rubber bands," said Angel sarcastically.
"Stay for as long as you like," said the mayor monotonously. "Mind the signs." And with that the mayor left the children with the rubber band ball.
"Look at this place," complained Ben when the mayor was out of earshot. "These guys are full of 'it'! We've been punked!"
"Can't argue with that," said Angel, crossing her arms in a huff.
"It's pretty lame," agreed Gwen. "I can't believe grandpa was so excited about this place." But despite their complaining, Ben suddenly had a mischievous grin on his face and started walking around the ball. "Uh–oh, I know that look, Ben. What are you thinking?"
"It better be something fun," said Angel in hope.
Instead of speaking, the boy decided it would be better if he showed them. He walked around the rubber band ball until he was out of sight. The girls heard the Omnitrix being activated, and a flash of light filled the barn. A few seconds later, the giant rubber band ball was lifted off the ground by Kickin Hawk with both hands above his head.
"One good prank deserves another," said Kickin Hawk.
"…For once, I agree with you," said Gwen after a moment of thought.
"Got something special in mind," Angel asked Kickin Hawk.
"I was thinking of the world's largest soccer ball," said Kickin Hawk, tossing the rubber band ball between one hand to the other.
"Ben, you better put that down before you drop it," said Gwen firmly.
"Not a chance," said Kickin Hawk arrogantly, raising the elastic ball higher in a single hand while putting the other behind his back. "I could lift this thing with one hand tied behind my – ".
Unfortunately, just as Gwen predicted, Kickin Hawk lost balance in his right hand and dropped the rubber band ball on the ground. Angel and Gwen got out of the way as the ball bounced off the floor and through the roof. The ball continued to bounce after it left the barn, it knocked over several exhibits and crushed a food cart and went for the Tennysons – the girls once again got out of the way while Kickin Hawk redirected the ball in another direction with a kick. The giant rubber band ball finally came to a stop when it smashed through the world's largest house of cards.
Angel, Gwen and Kickin Hawk approached the wreckage with horrified expressions until Gwen slapped Kickin Hawk across his elbow.
"Ow," whined Kickin Hawk. "What was that for?"
"Because thanks to you we're gonna be criminals," said Gwen with a glare.
"Don't get so stressed," said Kickin Hawk calmly. "I'll just put everything back to the way it was. No problem." And as luck would have it, the Omnitrix timed out and turned Kickin Hawk back into Ben. Angel and Gwen gapped at Ben, who leaned against the rubber band ball with a grimace. "Okay, maybe a little problem." What he didn't notice was a small charge from the watch being drawn into the ball.
"What are we gonna tell grandpa," asked Gwen in panic as they walked back to the motel just down the street from the destruction.
"Nothing," said Ben immediately. "Just play dumb."
"Easy for you to say," said Gwen. "You're more experienced then me."
"Good thing I can keep a secret," said Angel.
Inside the motel room, it appeared that the entire room had been turned on its side, including the beds and the door.
"Hey, there you are," said Max gleefully. "Isn't this place a riot?"
"Why? What'd you see? We don't know anything about it," yelped Gwen quickly and Angel put a hand over her mouth.
"She means it's great grandpa," interrupted Ben while putting on the best smile he could muster. "Can't wait to check out the bathroom."
Back at the rubber-band ball, the charge had spread all over the surface. A small electric bolt escaped from it and started to circle the power lines and exhibits. It then put a hole through the welcome sign for the town. The bolt then revealed itself to what appeared to be a yellow creature. It's amused by its work, laughed and left.
Ben, Angel and Gwen managed to somehow find a way to sleep on the side way motel beds. However, Angel decided to sleep with Ben. They all managed to get a good sleep during the night until morning as Grandpa Max's voice was heard.
"What the heck happened here," asked Max in a voice that caused the children to fall from their beds.
"Ah, he knows everything," squeaked Gwen. "We have to come clean, tell grandpa everything!"
"Sometimes it's hard to believe you're really a kid," said Ben, rolling his eyes.
"Never admit anything until you absolutely have to," said Angel, agreeing with Ben. "Got it?"
"Benjamin! Gwendolyn! Angel! Get out here," Max called them in a serious tone.
"Gwendolyn? We're doomed," said Gwen in fear.
Ultimately, they reluctantly got up and opened the side door, ready for their punishment. However, when they got outside, they were in complete disbelieve when they saw what happened to the town. It was worse than anything Kickin Hawk had done thousand times.
"Whoa, what happened," asked Ben in shock.
"I don't know," said Max. "Looks like a tornado tore through here overnight."
"Good," said Ben in relief. Unfortunately, this earned a suspicious look from his grandfather as he said it. "I mean, yeah, it was just one of those freaky nature things, right, girls?"
"Yeah, probably," said Angel nervously.
Gwen didn't trust herself to say anything and simply nodded with Ben half–baked explanation. Max looked suspicious, but decided to let it go and looked away from the children. Just when the kids thought they were almost I the clear, the mayor of Sparksville walked up to them.
"I think it's pretty clear who is responsible for these juvenile acts," said the mayor in his usual monotone.
"Juvenile acts, huh," repeated Max and looked at the children suspiciously. "If I didn't know better, that sounds like – ".
"Oh, I'm not talking about these youngsters," the mayor interrupted.
"You're not," asked the Tennysons. Max looked back at the kids, who smiled innocently.
"Yeah, well, if they didn't do it, who did," asked Max.
Just then a small yellow creature appeared. It hung around Ben, Angel and Gwen, making silly poses and faces, and pulled Gwen's shirt over her head, and left.
"What the heck was that," asked Angel.
"Megawhatt," said the mayor.
"Mega–what," Ben repeated strangely.
"Exactly," said the mayor. "Normally wrapped up tight inside of 'it', that is until last night. Some say it's ball of lighting come alive, others say it's a static cling run amok. Tough to say."
"Maybe it's an alien," guessed Angel.
"Alien," said the mayor, looking at Angel strangely. "That's just plain kooky talk."
Near a soda machine, the Megawhatt saw the chance to cause even more trouble and entered it.
"What's it doing," asked Ben.
"It eats electricity," said the mayor. "The more it gobbles, the more powerful it gets." The soda machine stopped shacking, but then started to fire cans of soda at the people like bullets. "It's also got a dangerous sense of humor."
The barrage continued, and the four took cover from a nearby overturned car.
"You left that thing inside a giant rubber band ball all this time," Max asked the mayor. "Isn't that kind of dangerous?"
"Not as long as people mind the signs," the mayor said for the umpteenth time.
Max and the mayor turned their gazes on the children. Angel was good at keeping a secret, but Gwen looked like she was about to crack any – .
"All right, we did it, we're guilty," confessed Ben.
"So much for admitting nothing," said Gwen, glaring at her cousin.
"We're gonna talk about this later, you three," said Max. "But for now, how do we stop this thing, Mr. Mayor?"
"What do you mean, we," asked the mayor dryly, casually sitting on a bench behind him. "You let it you, you catch it."
The four started looking for the Megawhatt. As they discussed where they might possibly find it, it sneaked up behind Max and gave him a wedgie, literally lifting him off the ground.
"That's not funny," Max grunted. "It's just painful."
"Don't worry, grandpa," said Ben, activating the Omnitrix. "I know just the alien to take on Sparky." When he slammed down the hourglass, Ben was engulfed in green light. When the light faded, in Ben's place stood Shocksquatch.
"Of course," said Angel. "Shocksquatch has electrical powers like the Megawhatt."
"That's why I chose him," said Shocksquatch.
"I know I don't say that very often, but good thinking," said Gwen.
The Megawhatt let go of Max and continued to cause havoc on the other exhibits. He maked the world's largest ketchup bottle overflow. The top of the bottle then cut the head off a giant chicken.
"Time to go home," said Shocksquatch, who was rolling up on the rubber ball, and he sent pieces of rubber–bands flying in every direction, which caused even more damage.
"Whose side you are on," asked Gwen, yelling.
"Is it me, or there's a lot of excitement today," asked the mayor in his standard monotone, while sitting on a bench with a bag of popcorn with a random kid next to him.
The Megawhatt laughed at the damage done by Shocksquatch, which only made him angry.
"Let's see how you'll like this," said Shocksquatch as he fired an electrical charge from his hands. The Megawhatt avoided and blast and looked at Shocksquatch. "Not so funny now," said Shocksquatch.
However, the Megawhatt laughed again and took off. Shocksquatch chased after it and managed to slow it with an electrical blast, and punched it hard.
Not too far, Angel, Max and Gwen watch the fight.
"We have to help Ben somehow. The Omnitrix will time out soon," said Angel, worried for her crush.
"I've got an idea. Let's go," said Max before running off, followed by the two girls.
Shocksquatch grew tired of chasing and tossed a sewer lid at it. "Hey, sparky, catch!" The lid cut the Megawhatt in half, only to regenerate into two separate parts. "Okay, maybe that wasn't such a good idea."
And just as luck would have it, the Omnitrix timed out and turned Shocksquatch back to Ben. The Megawhatts didn't look happy to see him, especially after all the trouble he caused them. Both Megawhatts fired bolts of electricity at the boy, barely missing him when Max and the girls arrived in a truck that was carrying the world's largest thermometer and picked Ben up.
"Grandpa, what're you doing," asked Ben.
"Giving these sparkles a science lesson they won't forget," said Max.
The elderly man slammed his foot on the accelerator to kick the truck into high gear when the Megawhatts started chasing them. It took the Megawhatts a few seconds to catch up to them, but it looked like Angel, Max and Gwen had a plan after all.
"Hey, Mega–weird," called Gwen out insultingly, shifting a lever on the console. "Come and get us!"
The lever seemed to be controlling the flat bed of the truck as the world's largest thermometer was raised at an angle on the surface, sliding off and stabbing into the ground. The Megawhatts were going too fast to stop and ended up smashing headfirst into the thermometer. Max stopped the truck and hopped out with the children. They saw the electric current of the Megawhatts sparkling off top of the giant thermometer before it slowly dissipated into the ground.
"What happened," asked Ben, confused.
"We used the world's largest thermometer as a lightning rod," said Gwen smugly. "Who needs an alien superhero when you got good old fashion brain power?"
"I don't think it's over," said Angel as she grabbed Ben's arm in slight fear.
"Your friend is right," said the mayor. "The Megawhatts will just use the ground as a conductor."
"What does that mean," asked Ben, still confused.
"Oh no," said Gwen, realizing the error of her judgment. "It means the Megawhatts are just zipping underground until they find some was back to the surface."
As if to prove her point, the Megawhatts started to come from every power line and telephone line. The Megawhatts gained a massive amount of energy, and continued to cause trouble. They busted the wheels of every car, a transformer, a fire hydrant, and then the world's largest toothpicks.
"There goes the world's largest toothpicks," said the mayor in his usual monotone. "Oh, the humanity."
The Megawhatts giggled incessantly before they zipped to somewhere else.
"Those creep's idea of good clean fun is going to have us pushing up daisies," said Max.
"Now is a good time to go hero, Benny," said Angel and put a hand over her mouth when she realized how she called her crush.
"I'm trying, but watch is still recharging," said Ben, not paying attention to nickname Angel called him by.
The Megawhatts settled on the knocked over jackalope near the motel. After speaking to each other in some language, they took off.
"Uh, where'd they go," asked Ben, sratching his head.
"I don't know," said Max suspiciously. "But I don't think it's good."
Without a warning, the ground started rumbling ominously and suddenly one of the building nearby exploded outwards, opening a massive hole in the wall. What came out was Sparksvile's planetarium exhibit, only now it was walking around like a human and it was powered by the Megawhatts. The monster–sized exhibit paused for a moment, seemingly looking down at the Tennysons, then marched mechanically towards the outskirts of the town.
"Well, that's something you don't see everyday," said Angel. "And we've seen a lot of strange things so far."
"Come on," said Max, running ahead. "We'll head it off in the – ".
No doubt he was going to mention the Rust Bucket, but they only ran a few feet before they found out that the Megawhatts had already beaten them there. The RV's tire had been taken off and there were green smiley faces on the windows, along with with a tag:
"U am lame," Ben read, laughing mockingly. "That's weak."
"And don't even get me started on the grammar and spelling," added Gwen.
"So what now," asked Angel.
"I reckon they'll head for the big hydroelectric dam to power up," aid mayor, who finally stood up from the bench. "After that, they'll just wipe out the next town and so on and so on. They think it's funny. Yup, the Megawhatt have a real twisted sence of humor."
Gwen looked around the town as if the answer to all their problems would just appear out of nowhere when her eyes fell on the world's largest fish bowl. Ben also noticed his cousin looking up at the fish bowl and somehow seemed to understand her thought process and they both exchanged knowing looks.
"You thinking what I'm thinking," Gwen asked her cousin.
"Yeah," nodded Ben. "Beat those pranksters in their own game."
At the dam, the planetarium was busy trying to smash through the dam. A column of flame then engulfed it. It looked up to see Heatblast on top of the dam.
"This is your only warning," threatened Heatblast. "Knock off the funny business or I'll fry your twinkling butts."
The planetarium hit the dam again, causing a leak and knocking off Heatblast over the edge at the same time. Heatblast descended the dam to the rapidly approaching water, though he was able to create a column of flame under himself to ride it to safety.
Heatblast moved to seal the leak, while the planetarium moved to the turbines to absorb the energy. Near the turbines, a large tarp covering a sphere-shaped object could be seen. As the giant planetarium approached the turbines, Heatblast arrived, riding another column of fire. He still needed to get the hang of controlling it though, as it went out and caused him to crash into a nearby wall. The Megawhatt staggered out, though the planetarium punched him across the dam.
"Leave him alone," said Angel, who had sneaked up from behind and sprayed the planetarium with a hose to annoy it.
As the Megawhatt–planetarium was about to punch her, Heatblast made a large fireball.
"What's the matter," asked Heatblast. "Too hot for ya?" The Pyronite threw the fireball into the planetarium and watched as the machine exploded. With their toy destroyed, the Megawhatts had no choice but to leave the machine and none of them looked happy to be there. "You really got burned with that one. You guys should really quit while you're behind."
They tried to get him, though he disappeared in a cloud of smoke. The Megawhatts turned around and saw Heatblast leaning against a giant tarped object, blowing kisses at them tauntingly. They became so annoyed and attacked recklessly towards him as he entered the tarp and the Megawhatts followed him inside. When the last Megawhatt went inside, Max and the girls appeared form behind.
"Ben did it," said Max. "They took the bait."
Max grabbed a bundle of the tarp and pulled it off, revealing that the Megawhatts had recklessly followed Heatblast into the world's largest fishbowl. By the time the Megawhatts realized they had been tricked, Heatblast came around and breathed a current of fire that melted the top of the fishbowl, permanently sealing the Megawhatts inside. And of course, Heatblast had to get the last laugh and taunted them by sticking his tongue out childishly, with Angel mimicking him.
"Once again, science saves the day," said Gwen proudly as the Omnitrix timed out, turning Heatblast back to Ben.
"With a little help from science fiction," Ben included as Angel hugged him.
When they returned to Sparksville, the children were more than happy to have the Rust Bucket fixed and were ready to leave at any moment, but first the mayor wanted a word with them at the town square next to something hidden underneath a tarp.
"You folks done right by us," said the mayor monotonously.
"Hope this adventure wasn't a big setback for Sparksvile," said Max in concern.
"More like a giant step forward," said the mayor, shrugging his shoulders uncaringly. "With our new attraction, soon we'll be raking 'em in." He pulled the tarp and flash of light temporary blinded the Tennysons until their eyes adjusted. When they saw what it was, the children came close to laughing while Max looked on I awe. "The world's biggest light bulb. It'll be a humdinger."
Ben felt the most satisfaction out of the idea knowing he was the one that put them there, but the mayor had to ruin his parade by reminding him how all this trouble started.
"Just as long as people mind the signs," said the mayor, leaning closer to Ben in particular.
The mayor then walked away with a signpost planted on the ground in front of the light bulb to emphasize his point:
"In case of emergency, do not break glass," Ben read the sing aloud. He knew that the sign was made specifically for him in mind, but Ben couldn't find it in him to care anymore as he and the rest of his family walked back to the Rust Bucket. "Ah, I think I'm pranked out for a while."
"There's a time and place for a practical joke, Ben," said Max sagely. Ben stared at his grandpa for a moment, not really caring for what he had to say, until he opened the RV door. Angel noticed the bucket of water and tried to warn Ben, but it was too late as the bucket landed on Ben's head. The young Tennyson boy pulled up the bucket and glared at his relatives, who were starting to crack up. "But funny is funny! Especially when it's not on you!"
Ben dropped the bucket back down in defeat as Gwen and Max laughed and Angel grabbed his arm in concern.
To be continued…
Happy New Year, everybody! I hope all of you had great holidays. Here's the first chapter of the year. I'm sure some of you expected for Ben to get Buzzshock in this chapter, but the first alien Ben will unlock is Cannonbolt. Anyway, the next chapter will be Kevin 11 and I'll post it as soon as possible.
R&R