Putting the young boy down on the examination table, Vilgax observed Ben closely, inspecting him from head to toe.
Brown hair. He knew it wasn't uncommon among humans, but it was because the boy was human that Vilgax was suspicious. He had known a very special brown-haired human, around nine years ago. Said brunette had been around for a year, until Plumbers came in and took him away. One of their biggest mistakes that the warlord promised himself to punish them for.
The human he had seen was a mere infant, a young child full of energy that ignored everything about the world outside of his crib. Yet Vilgax had envisioned that this child would someday be a force to be reckoned with, especially if the warlord was the one raising him into that state of power.
Of course, the Omnitrix bearer could've been anyone, Vilgax wouldn't have cared as long as he had taken the device into his possession. It wasn't until he saw the boy's eyes that he realized something was off.
He had seen those eyes before. A very bright green, one that belonged to a person he loved. A person that he would've given everything for. A person that he protected with his life. A person he failed. A person that died soon before his promises to keep the child safe were rendered null. He clenched his fists, his anger resurfacing.
Now wasn't the time to get lost in his memories.
Tapping on a nearby command panel, he ordered one of his drones to bring him a syringe, as well as inputting the blood test sequence. He looked back at Ben. The boy was still sleeping peacefully, thanks to the chemical he had been sprayed with. Vilgax had that bottle made years ago as a youngster, when he was still reckless and foolish. It was just a harmless anesthetic, weak enough to put anybody with a low drug immunity to sleep painlessly for a few hours. He had kept it in this old armor, just to think of the past when life was still peaceful.
He had expected the Omnitrix bearer to be much more durable, much older and less... familiar. But if it all worked out, Ben would be with him, on Vilgaxia, away from this miserable planet holding him back. It was ironic that he, of all people on Earth, had found the Omnitrix. The person Vilgax was looking for had the item he got injured searching for. From what the short time he spent on Earth before told him, humans would describe completing this mission as "killing two birds with one stone".
He took the syringe, bringing it to Ben's arm. Carefully, he extracted a sample of the boy's blood, making sure he didn't injure Ben in the process. He gave the syringe to his drone and looked at it going away, going towards the ship's labs to start the DNA test. He hummed, taking Ben's hand into his own, observing the Omnitrix.
That device was the strongest weapon in existence, it could possibly destroy the entire universe. Or help conquering it. He had interrupted his current conquests to obtain it, as a means to use it for himself before anyone else took the initiative to face him with it. Having the Omnitrix in his possession would make him even more unstoppable, powerful, to be feared. It would grant him abilities from all across the universe, possibly even the power to reshape it.
And a longer life than the one he had now would erase the shame in the origins he now kept hidden.
As they neared the base, Max was trying to remember how the situation got this critical. Ben found the Omnitrix at the beginning of summer, and now he found Vilgax. He knew it was just a matter of time before Ben ever heard of the Plumber operation, but he never planned to be the one telling Ben about it. He would've expected Carl and Sandra to do it instead, and wait a few years when Ben would be old enough, but now was the worst time ever.
Some years ago, troops were sent to retrieve recent data from Vilgax's palace on his home planet, in hopes to avoid another of the warlord's evil schemes. It was supposed to be a brief mission, really.
Max was ordered to supervise the operation from the ship. He didn't want to meddle with Vilgax's business too much, especially with the grudge the tentacled alien had towards him for numerous reasons, but he didn't exactly have a choice either. It was either that, or Vilgax would add another planet (possibly Earth) to his collection, and he would rather have his sons and family alive when going back home.
The mission had gone well, they just hadn't planned for Vilgax to come back out of the blue when it happened. The security system had changed thoroughly since last time they broke into the fortress, three years before the incident. They were able to leave the planet's solar system unscathed, but one of Max's juniors had brought something, or rather, someone else than the info he was expecting.
A human baby, found in the building, visibly unarmed. No chains, no bruises, no torture collar (thank goodness Vilgax wasn't that cruel), no sign of harm. The only thing he had on him, was a little bracelet with the name "Benjamin" on it in Chimerian (the language used on Vilgaxia), which Max assumed was the boy's name. He had no idea what a child, a human at that, was doing on Vilgaxia. What he did know, however, was that with Vilgax involved, it couldn't have been good.
He had taken in the child, away from a possible life of pain under the warlord's service, as Max knew Vilgax's hatred of Earth and its inhabitants, and he had given the infant to his son Carl, who was recently told his wife Sandra could not bear a child. It was likely the boy's parents were either human servants or slaves who had died serving the king if Vilgax kept Ben around in good shape and with no seeming injury.
He saw no other reason for an intergalactic tyran to let an infant from a species he despised live. Vilgax didn't care for other species, he didn't care for anyone. Except his people, and Ben was most definitely not part of them if he was held captive in the king's fortress.
He knew that someday Ben would have to learn the truth about it, he just would've preferred it happening in different circumstances, in a different way. He simply hoped Vilgax wouldn't recognize the same child who escaped him years ago, otherwise Max feared the worst happening to his grandson. The Omnitrix was already a good motivation for Vilgax to attack Ben like most of the drones and Bounty Hunters he sent did, another reason to harm him wasn't needed at the moment.
Sighing, Max was so caught with his thoughts, he almost didn't realize they had reached their destination. Or that Gwen spent the last 10 minutes calling him to get his attention.
"Gwen, I promise I'll explain, but we need to get Ben out of trouble now." he said, silencing her as he pressed a button on the RV, triggering a panel underneath them to open.
On her side of things, Gwen wondered what in the world was going on. Her grandfather suddenly knows a lot of things about aliens, they're using a passageway to a secret area located right under Mt. Rushmore, an alien guy just kidnapped Ben (...again.), and she was in the middle of this mess, left out of the loop.
She looked at Max as they were descending underground. At first, she didn't say anything, but when her grandfather stayed silent ever since they left town, she was feeling concerned. For her grandfather, for herself, and Ben. She just kept staring at Max for the whole trip, until she had enough and tried to get answers. He had kept being silent, thinking about something else, which only managed to annoy her more.
Grandpa Max obviously knew something, something he didn't tell her or Ben about, when the latter had an alien watch capable of making him even grosser. That wasn't a thing that happened to all families on summer vacation. Did he know where the Bounty Hunters that attacked them came from too? Did he know who sent the Omnitrix to Ben? Did he know who sent the drones to attack them last time?
What wasn't he telling her?
She wondered if it was the reason her parents and uncle and aunt were so distant with him. If he knew about the existence of aliens all this time and he hid it from his closest relatives, she guessed it would be a good enough reason for even responsible adults to be mad. But this was a whole new level of secrecy and lies, and it would get worse when Ben comes back to Bellwood.
Ben had the watch on him, no way her uncle Carl and Aunt Sandra don't react negatively to their son becoming a monstrosity on the spot. She knew all too well Ben wouldn't resist "going hero" in public when she and Max would get him back home unsupervised with the watch.
She crossed her arms, sighing as she thought of her cousin. If Ben hadn't found the watch, maybe none of this would've happened. But considering she wouldn't have learned anything new about Max without her idiot of a cousin fooling around, it was a good thing he was too curious about what he shouldn't get into. Especially if the watch had fallen in the wrong hands... (well, wronger than Ben's.)
Ben would totally need her help until he was old enough to go to college. He was so clueless at times, he definitely couldn't manage having the Omnitrix, living his life with normal people and being a doofus at the same time on his own. Maybe it was a good thing her parents made her go on this trip with Ben, otherwise he'd become so full of himself, he probably wouldn't stop pulling pranks on her and showing off without her guidance.
She frowned as the elevator they were on reached what appeared to be a big basement. Following Max out of the RV, she was determined to help her cousin. She just hoped she'd finally receive answers to this entire mess of a day, and that Ben wouldn't know she was worried (he would tease her to no end for that).
Right now, she needed to follow through whatever her grandfather had in store, getting harmed in the process of helping her cousin being the least of her worries as she followed Max through the hallway, unsure of what other hidden out-of-the-ordinary thing was waiting for her.
Ben grumbled as he pulled himself out of slumber. He felt quite the headache, unsure of what could've hit him so hard. He felt some tingling on his left arm, probably from sleeping on it so much. Gosh, he felt so restless. He hadn't gotten a good sleep ever since... ever since the guy in his vision appeared in his dreams every night. It was already so tiring to get up in the morning with Gwen telling him he was slacker, he didn't need extra nightmares messing up even more his sleep schedule.
He twitched on his bed, trying to find some rest, definitely not in the mood to wake up this morning.
"At last, you have awakened, my boy."
Ben's eyes opened in shock, realizing he wasn't on his bed or in the Rustbucket. He shook his head, and found himself in what looked like a medical room. He could figure it out since he got sent way too many times at the nurse's office, due to his bickering with JT and Cash often ending up with one or two wounds on the cheek or a black eye. But the voice he heard belonged to no nurse or doctor.
Looking all around him in search of the source of the voice, he gasped as the alien that attacked him earlier came out of the shadows, his red eyes focused on Ben.
"Gah! You're that Vilgax guy from earlier!" he said, coming back to his senses. He tried to to go hero, but he was stopped as Vilgax took his hand with the Omnitrix.
"Wait!" Vilgax said "Just... wait an instant. Please."
That raised a few flags.
"What?"
"Just. Don't use the Omnitrix for now. I only want to talk." Vilgax said, anger absent from his voice.
Ben was in disbelief over what he heard. Compared to earlier that day when the squid alien was pummeling him as if he was swatting a bug, now Vilgax asked him to talk. Did he hit his head too hard after being thrown at the wall? Because Ben saw no other reason for the giant green alien to do a complete 180.
He wondered if the gas he inhaled earlier wasn't making him hallucinate or numbing his perception of things, because Vilgax's grasp on his arm wasn't rough and painful like it was before. Right now, the man held him firmly but gently, preventing Ben from using the watch but also not causing the boy any pain. Weird. Nonetheless, Ben brought his other hand down and pulled his left wrist off the man's hand.
"Okay. What do you want from me, octo-face?" Ben asked, making his captor sigh.
"Don't worry, my boy, I'm not going to harm you. If all goes well for us both." Vilgax answered, confusing Ben.
"Uh, what's that supposed to mean?"
"First things first, young child. What is your name?"
Ben frowned. If he gave away his name, it'd be a dead giveaway about who he was, who was his family and would clue the alien on how to blackmail him. On the other hand, if Vilgax wanted to hurt Ben or take the Omnitrix, he would've done it by now. Wasn't that what he used the purple spray for? And there was something else: how did Vilgax know his grandfather? Furthermore, how did Grandpa Max know about Vilgax?
"It's okay, I can wait. But it would be preferable to hurry." said Vilgax.
Ben sighed. Vilgax had said Grandpa Max's name, that meant he must've known him and their whole family for that, so Ben guessed there would be no harm in talking, he was already caught anyway. Might as well stall the guy until he found a way to escape. Taking a deep breath, he decided to answer.
"My name is Ben Tennyson." It seemingly startled the squid man, because Vilgax's eyes widened slightly before frowning.
"Hmm," he hummed in a deep voice, "at least, they respected that. I'm glad you're okay, Benjamin." Ben blinked. It was probable his first name wasn't uncommon on other planets, although he found the alien's response to it weird. Who respected what?
"Next question, how old are you?"
"Pretty sure I'm 10. In human years. Uh, do aliens have a different concept of time out there?" Ben asked. He heard Vilgax sneak in a little "heh" at Ben's question before shaking his head no.
"Is this planet a safe place for you to live in?"
That question felt awkward. What did he mean by "safe"? Any place could be dangerous for Ben if he wasn't careful about what he did, but with his family around... Yes, he could say he was safe on Earth, just not when he was fighting human or alien criminals like he recently was. But, why did Vilgax ask him if he was safe? He couldn't possibly care about Ben's safety, right?
"Uh, I guess so. Why do you ask?"
"Just to make sure we still have time. Now for my last question: were you told who I am and what I am to you?"
Ben stared in confusion. What the heck was this guy talking about?! He didn't even know him, only saw him in his dreams a couple of time. But Vilgax knew Grandpa Max, and he most likely knew about Ben too if he knew where to look for the Omnitrix. And now that he got Ben in his grasp, it was his chance to take the watch for himself. Which he could've already done if he hadn't taken the time to ask about who Ben was and his well-being.
What...
What was going on this crazy day?
"What is that even supposed to mean?!" Ben snapped, unable to comprehend the situation anymore. "My turn asking questions! Who are you?! How do you know Grandpa?! Why are you doing this to me?! What the hell is going on?!"
He was now standing on the table, anger showing on his face. Vilgax was taken aback by Ben's temper tantrum, although he did feel a bit amused at Ben's anger. He very likely got his temper from the warlord himself, if any of Vilgax's past tantrums in his first years of ruling were anything to go by. Had his breathing mask not been in the way, Ben would've seen the grin the man had hidden on his face.
"I took you here because I needed to make sure I didn't harm you too much after our battle. I don't think I could forgive myself if you got yourself injured because of me, or worse." answered Vilgax, shushing Ben down but not calming him down. "As for Max Tennyson, let's just say he and I... clashed too many times for my taste."
"Doesn't answer my question! How do you know him? How does he know you?" insisted Ben, set on understanding what was occurring inside the ship.
"If he didn't tell you who he really was, I don't suppose he told you about who you really are, did he, Ben?" asked Vilgax, looking at the boy's confused, lost expression before Ben clasped his head.
"Stop talking like that, you're not helping! Well, of course you're being annoying, you're a bad guy! But who are you anyway?" Ben asked.
As he spoke, the drone that Vilgax sent came back. It looked much similar to the ones that attacked Ben's family, making the young hero realize Vilgax was behind the robot attacks, as well as hiring Sixsix and Kraab to hunt him down. He was so unnerved by today's events, he was noticeably startled when the drone revealed a holographic screen out of its helmet.
"DNA test complete." said the drone in a robotic, mechanical voice.
Wasn't any less creepy than Zombozo's circus tricks, but it still gave Ben goosebumps. He sat down on the bed he was standing on, trying to read what the robot projected. It couldn't have been a good thing, as Vilgax's face took on a more serious expression, looking back at Ben.
"Just as I hoped."
"What? What are you talking about?" Ben asked, unsure of what was about to happen.
"The blood sample I took from you was what I needed to know if you were the one I was looking for." Ben gulped as he saw a band-aid on his left arm. Yup, the guy really could've killed him if he wanted to. "So you really have no idea who I am?" Ben shook his head no.
"Of course, the old man doesn't ever trust anyone, he always has to be the perfect role model in charge of keeping everyone in line. He doesn't even tell you about your true origins."
"What.. what do you mean by that?"
"Listen closely, Ben." said Vilgax as he knelt on one knee, getting down at Ben's eye level. "I know this may scare you, and I know you lived your whole life thinking you were from Earth. But you're not."
"Huh?!"
"I wasn't sure myself, but you looked all too familiar to me."
What kind of nonsense was this guy giving him? Of course Ben was from Earth, he was human after all. Well, not as often as he used to be now that he could turn into 10 different aliens with the watch, but he still came from Earth. He lived on Earth for his whole life. What was Vilgax even trying to tell him?
"I don't understand. How... how do you know me?"
Vilgax looked at Ben longly before deeply inhaling. With a tense look, he finally gave Ben the answer that would make the boy's entire world crumble.
"Ben, I am your father."
Silence.
Ben's eyes widened in disbelief at what he was told. No way. No freaking way. No, no, no. He probably misheard. That was it, that was the only explanation possible, because there was no other explanation as to why Vilgax would say that. They couldn't possibly be related, they didn't even look the least similar! Ben shook his head in denial.
"You're lying to me!"
"Ben, I know it's hard to comprehend after I attacked you, but you have to believe me."
"Well I don't! I don't believe for one second you're my father! My dad is at home with my mom and you're not him at all!"
"How could I convince you otherwise?"
"You can't convince me, you don't have any proof!"
Vilgax hummed. "I don't suppose you can understand a parenting test at your age." he said, pointing to the screen the drone was still showing.
"I, uh, don't understand alien writing."
Ben swore he could've heard Vilgax mumble the words "old bastard" and "never planned to tell him about the outer world" under his breath. He watched as the ruler walked to a closet and took what looked like a normal bottle of water out of it. He then went back to Ben and casually took off the boy's shirt before promptly pouring the cold liquid on him.
"Wha- Hey!"
"Although you possess a human biology, it doesn't mean you should lack all of the attributes your mother and I had."
"So what?" asked Ben, ignoring the part about his mom. "Not freezing to death from this cold shower automatically makes me your son?"
Vilgax lightly laughed at Ben's remark. "The water from this planet is different from the one on Vilgaxia." Ben rolled his eyes at the planet's name. "Its chemical composition can enable our species' true form, but it won't work for you as you were born human. However, the one on Vilgaxia has one attribute not found here." he added, pointing to Ben's left armpit.
Ben looked at himself in confusion, before freezing as he saw something new on his body. Below his arm something green just appeared: on his skin was marked a tiny green six-tentacled squid, with two tentacles raised to its head. It had tiny little eyes, shaped roughly like Vilgax's own. As he was about to ask the alien about it, he saw Vilgax taking off his left hand's glove, revealing the same mark on his palm.
"What you're seeing is Vilgaxia's insignia. It's the symbol of our planet and a mark of honor, only reserved to royalty."
'Royalty, huh?' thought Ben. 'Can't be. I mean, it'd explain why his name is also the name of the planet, but then, would that make me...' Ben stopped his thoughts because he most definitely did not want to agree with what Vilgax told him.
"Its presence on your skin is a genetic trait that can never be canceled out, regardless of what species you would be born as. It normally takes a few months to show itself on your skin and only needs some water to be visible. But you never stayed around long enough for it to happen..."
Vilgax switched back to an angry expression, clearly displeased by past events Ben had yet to hear about. Ben meanwhile was looking at the king, unsure of what to say. Feeling cold, he put his shirt back on and deeply sighed.
Okay, Vilgax hadn't aimed anywhere specifically before dousing him, so the chances that he knew where the little squid would be on Ben's body were small. It meant Vilgax aimed at random, unless he took the time to make a specifically-shaped tattoo under Ben's arm while he was snoring like a baby, and it would hurt like hell right now if it was the case.
Besides, why would Vilgax set this whole thing up instead of just straight-up cutting his arm off like he seemingly originally planned?
"Okay," conceded Ben, "let's admit for a second that you are my dad. Why are you making us talk instead of just, I don't know, ordering me to give it to you or else I'm grounded?"
"Because I didn't want to add our meeting to another list of my mistakes." Vilgax answered, his expression getting less tense, his voice becoming gentler, more vulnerable. "Ben, I spent the last few years looking for you, I lost all hope when I found no hint of you still being alive. There were so many places where you could've been, I should never have let my judgement get the best of me."
Vilgax stood back up, his eyes looking worn out.
"Ever since your mother died, I swore to protect you, and I failed. I lost you soon after I lost her, and I regret that. I really do, Ben. You don't know how much I care about you, how much I missed you, my son. And I intend to set things right this time."
Ben paused as he realized the man in front of him wasn't the same person who tried to slaughter him anymore. Vilgax had changed in a matter of minutes from the heartless warrior he embodied to a poor man, a sensitive and shattered person. How was it even possible? Ben wondered if he really was the cause of that change.
He was taken aback as Vilgax's hands wrapped around him, initiating a hug. Ben blinked, still in shock of all the information, all the reveal, all the mind twisting he just experienced.
How was he supposed to take in all of this? If Vilgax was right, that meant he was the son of... the son of an alien. He was always linked to the alien stuff way before he found the watch. He was always meant to have an insane life, it didn't matter if he got the Omnitrix or not. He was supposed to be a weirdo since the very start. He was never normal to begin with.
He clenched his fists. When were his parents (could he call them his parents anymore?) planning to tell him? When was he supposed to learn that all of the times Gwen found him weird, every time people made him an outcast, every time he felt bad about how everyone saw him, all of that was true? He was told he was being treated like an equal at home, yet they spent all this time lying to him, hiding the truth about being... being an alien kid!
What else didn't they tell him? He wasn't even sure his name was his real name anymore. If they didn't tell him the truth now, would they ever? How could they tell him he was considered an adult if his whole life was built on lies?
What did they tell the rest of his family? That they had a baby overnight?! And what else? Vilgax knew Grandpa Max, which meant he was definitely involved in this whole mess. Did Grandpa Max think Ben wouldn't eventually know even if he wasn't told? And what harm would there be if he was? He wouldn't stop loving his family, he trusted them with all his heart.
And now, that trust was broken.
He understood Vilgax didn't look like the most kind guy around, but it still hurt to know it took him being kidnapped by his real father to learn the truth. How could they expect him not to find out at some point? Did they think he would live his entire life without ever discovering a lie that big? Did they ever even consider the possibility he would be mad if no one trusted him with the truth?
He hadn't realized tears were running down his cheeks. Out of words, he found himself returning the hug, feeling it could help cooling down the warlord's behavior, and that he needed comfort too at the moment. He should've been aware of his bloodline a long time ago, now had been the worst moment ever to tell him. He felt Vilgax patting his back, and tried to keep his composure as his... father... spoke to him.
"From now on, I promise to make this all better for us, Ben. You spent almost all of your life away from home, and I will make sure you're able to live free from Max Tennyson's doings. Stealing you was his biggest mistake, he won't be able to hinder you any further if I intervene." He pulled away from the embrace, a hint of softness in his voice. "Now, you probably have a lot of questions concerning your roots and status on Vilgaxia. Where do you want to start?"
Ben hesitated, not very sure of what to ask. After what Vilgax revealed to him, he had over a thousand questions in store. He thought it over. Now what was the reason Vilgax had been so upset while reuniting with him? He decided to begin with the first thing that caused all of this.
"What did Grandpa Max do, exactly?" Vilgax frowned, but he seemingly shook it off when answering.
"It was almost nine years ago. I was gone for a few days on a business trip to a planet in the Andromeda Galaxy, when I was notified by one of my spies of a Plumber ship approaching our house."
'Plumbers? I mean okay, Grandpa Max fixes pipes and stuff, but is that a bad thing on other planets? Did Grandpa flush him down a toilet before?'
"I had interrupted my plans and attempted coming back in case something happened to you while I was gone, when I..."
Suddenly, the light of the ship started flashing red when an alarm cut him short, catching their attention. The drone displayed a different screen, showing a map of the ship with another alien inscription on it, changing every second. Ben didn't feel like asking the alien king again what it was, not wanting to annoy him more than his Grandpa did, so he tried to figure out on his own.
Vilgax's eyes were wide in shock, and the red beeping became louder while the inscription changed, reminding Ben of a ticking bomb.
Wait, a ticking bomb? Ben remembered that (at least on Earth) not every country uses the same letters, and the same applied to numbers sometimes. What if this was what the inscription meant? Numbers changing quickly. A timer. A countdown.
There was an intruder.
"What's going on?!" Ben asked.
"The auto-destruct launch sequence has been initiated! Someone must've entered the control room while I was away! This countdown is what time we have left before this entire ship explodes!"
"Can't you disable it from here?"
"No, the main commands are only accessible from the main computer. And there's only one person I know that would have the nerve doing this. Ben, come with me. I'd rather have you around while dealing with this nuisance."
"Okay, XLR8 it is!" said Ben, about to turn into an alien. He was picked up by Vilgax almost instantly.
"It might be best if we go together and that you keep the Omnitrix recharged in case you need it."
"Oh come on, it'd be faster if I go hero! I already got into a situation like this so many times I can't count them, I know what I'm doing." protested Ben.
"You would most likely end up captured, especially if they see me near you, and I don't think I want that to happen again, son."
"Please, I can take care of myself just fine." said Ben, set on winning this argument.
"Then I trust you to stay with me on this one." Vilgax said, carrying Ben under his arm before running off in direction of the main room of the Chimerian Hammer.
Ben pouted as they went into the hallway. It felt like when his parents forbid him from going to his first video game convention on his own under the pretense it could get too violent. So many kids (including Cash and JT) were there to make fun of him. He didn't realize quite yet how much the memory was appropriate.
His arm felt a bit sore from sleeping on it and he still felt a bit dazed from the drug Vilgax used to put him to sleep. That and being taken around like a rag doll all day kind of wore him out. It'd take some time to get used to kicking butt after today if he didn't get a timeout now. Maybe Vilgax had a point in saying they needed to team up for this fight, but he really didn't feel like admitting it for now. Besides, he had the Omnitrix, he could fend for himself.
He did have one question for the ruler, though.
"Who do you think is doing this?"
"Oh, I have my little idea." seethed Vilgax, anger rising again.
Making a stop here, next chap in a few minutes!