"Animo, the Circus Freaks, Charmcaster... Those are the only ones you could find, metalheads?"
"You already took care of our other collaborators, I believe, alien." said Driscoll.
Ben rolled his eyes, unimpressed by this Forever Knight creep. "Looks like that's the boss, I think Enoch was just the beginning." he said. "He might've been working with that guy with the horns and cape, or for him."
They readied themselves as Thumbskull charged. Max shot at him with his blaster, but that only stalled the man as he got back up. Ben knew this wasn't going anywhere without his intervention. He slammed on the dial, and in a literal flash, the Transylian seized the Circus Freak and threw him away, frying his nail head in the process.
"Finally some action." smirked the Frankenstein creature.
"Wow, what do you call this big guy?" exclaimed Cooper.
"Haven't decided on a name yet."
"Yes, well, Ben...Vicktor... alien, we got a fight right now!" said Gwen.
Charmcaster raised her hands, throwing a flurry of rocks as she was heaving. Gwen made her use more mana than she intended during their fight and it wore her out. She couldn't believe that this rookie was able to get a rise out of her.
"Vortress Nebulae!" said Gwen, deflecting the rocks.
"Why do you keep using that spell?!" asked Charmcaster.
"I don't need to waste my magic showing off."
"Gwen knows you're not worth the effort." said Benvicktor, infuriating the sorceress again.
Animo took out a remote, attracting a swarm of wasps similar to the ones Clancy sent before. And just like the ones before, they were easily dealt with. A simple hand wave, and Benvicktor already fried what was coming.
"This alien's got stitches to fix himself up. Even if your stupid animals got to me, I'd find a way back, Ani-moron."
They didn't defeat them yet, but Ben did manage to make them mad.
"We have to get to Mt. Rushmore quick." said Max. "Cooper?"
Cooper threw an orb on the ground, which revealed itself to be a smoke bomb as a white fog covered them. They ran behind the dust, and the Rustbucket took off. Most of the villains ran after it, but Driscoll didn't.
"Wait! Do not approach that vehicle."
He sighed, seeing them electrocute themselves on it and confronting its defense mechanisms. He really should've thought about a better team of criminals beforehand.
Meanwhile, their targets were running away, stopped short by the Forever Ninja. It drew its swords menacingly at the team, ready to attack. Frightened, Cooper attempted to flee, but was caught by Benvicktor's dead-looking hand.
"Cooper, look, I know all of this is freaking you out. I know I am freaking you out right now. But this ninja? It's a robot, like all that tech stuff you work with."
Cooper stared, trembling. This was getting scary, too scary. Ben looked like a horror movie monster, and some guy wants to kill them, but...
"Technology is your world, you control those things. Don't be afraid and show that horned weirdo who's the boss of this metalhead."
Ben was right. Cooper took a deep breath and looked intensely at the robotic fiend in front of them. The Ninja ran forward, but it froze as it was about to strike. Its arm was shaking, as if something was restraining it.
Everyone sighed in relief as the Forever Ninja retracted its arms and put its swords on its back again.
"There they are!" said Charmcaster, pointing to the small group, who now outnumbered them.
"I'll distract them." said Benvicktor. "Cooper, make sure this thing obeys when I need its help, then go with Gwen and Grandpa. Meet you three at the hatch."
"Uh, Ben, are you sure this is a good plan?"
"Make sure it obeys." repeated Benvicktor threateningly, making it sound like an order.
Cooper gulped, and Max and Gwen looked slightly worried too, though they didn't have the time. The Forever Ninja trembled a bit, before going to Ben's side. The three humans then ran off, hoping Ben could take care of it.
"Is he always that bossy?" asked Cooper.
"No, that's usually me." said Gwen.
"You must have a lot to say as the brains of the team."
"Thanks!"
Cooper blushed a bit as he kept running. Looks like Ben hit the jackpot, he really did have a crush on Gwen after all. Though he could tell this was the worst time ever to ask her out for a movie. What was the name of the one he mentioned? Astral Wars?
Benvicktor on the other hand felt that doing anything else would be more fun than fighting these pests. No wonder his father only cared for the planet-conquering stuff, fighting bad guys like these was getting boring at some point. He shoved Frightwig aside, electrocuting her after tying her bangs together.
"It's pointless, brat! You're outnumbered!" said Acid Breath.
"I may be outnumbered, but you're out of your depth." mocked the alien. He whistled, and in an instant, the Circus Freak was knocked out cold from behind. Sixsix threw his body away before joining his liege.
"Another one?!" said Charmcaster. She gasped as a metallic claw took hold of her neck, threatening to snap it before she received a strong metallic punch, sending her on the ground.
"Make that two." said Kraab, looking as if he just took out the trash, walking towards the young master.
Frightwig got back up, but before she knew it, an energy net was thrown at her, paralyzing her. Thumbskull tried to avenge her by running headlong towards them, going for a punch. Benvicktor's expression barely changed as he grabbed the man's face and pressed on it with his arm, threatening to crush it as he made the Circus Freak scream in pain before slamming him on the rocky ground.
Which only left Animo, a quite exhausted Charmcaster, and the Forever Knight. Said Knight's helmet visor glowed red, and the Forever Ninja slightly trembled again, about to attack its new master. Benvicktor threw some sparks of green electricity at it, calming down the machine before it got into a fighting stance, aiming weapons at its own creator.
"I see you came prepared to this battle, alien..."
"You should've known better than messing with me, medieval freak! I'm not exactly a genius in technology, but I've learned a few things, thanks to the company I keep." he waved to his guards. "I know how to deal with monsters like you."
"You're one to talk for the spawn of the worst creature in the galaxy."
Benvicktor's eyes widened, before he gritted his teeth. "So you know..."
"I'll make sure to send your remains to the abomination that made your existence possible, as a warning. I'll be cleansing the universe of creatures like you one at a time." said the Forever Knight before walking away.
This was bad, this was even worse than he thought. So this guy knew who he was, he must've known about what Max did. But how could he know about that mission? Unless...
With anger, Benvicktor pointed at the remaining bad guys.
"Sixsix, shock that witch and take away any items she carries on her." he ordered. "Kraab, go after Animo. I need to go back to the others. You, follow me."
He touched the Omnitrix symbol, reverting back to Ben, then ran away, followed by his new robotic soldier.
"Driscoll knows Mt. Rushmore like the back of his hand. He'll find a way in, it's only a matter of time." warned Max.
Clenching his fists, Ben walked away.
"Ben, where are you going?" asked Gwen.
"Barricading this place until this old Plumber buddy of Grandpa gives up and goes home." said Ben, gritting his teeth. His voice was almost so devoid of emotion that it felt chilling, even if he was on their side.
"Hey, wait for me!" said Cooper.
The blonde technopath ran up to him, noticing that Ben seemed really angry. Max just told them about who the Forever King was and how come he knew so much about the Plumber bases, including the keys allowing access to the Sub Energy.
From what Gwen told him, Ben was pretty grumpy ever since he learned about Max's true identity. It was a bit weird, Ben was totally the guy you'd expect to love all that Plumber stuff, being a space cop and saving lives. Instead, Ben was more annoyed at discovering all that stuff was kept a lie than admirative of what Max did.
She even told him that they did make up at some point, but at the first wrong move, Ben was back to being mad at him.
"Hey, Ben. You doing alright?"
Ben glared at him, before realizing he was being rude again. "Ah, sorry, Cooper. I'm just in a real bad mood lately."
"Tell me about it... Hey, we kinda took time to find that hatch thingy, so we didn't see how you beat those guys. Where are they now?"
"I went XLR8, a blue speedster alien, and took some of them to the cops. Not too sure about Animo or Charmcaster, they might still be up for trouble. Driscoll took his precautions when he came, but so did I."
"That's cool. And was this Ninja useful?" he pointed to the Forever Ninja who now followed them around like a puppy.
"Not really. I should get rid of it at some point, it could have a tracer or stuff on it. Driscoll doesn't need it since he knows where we are, but he has to figure out how to get in first, which is why we'll put a stop to his plan." said Ben, stopping in front of one of the hatches. "While Gwen and Grandpa are busy barricading the entrance in that control room, I'll block these."
He brought his hand to the Omnitrix and, dialing Clockwork, he slammed on it. In a flash of green, the clock alien started working on the job. His wind-up key turned, and time seemed to slow down all around him. Cooper on the other hand just saw a blur coming right and left, putting tons of junk at high speed all over the doors.
Focusing on his powers, he managed to perceive what Ben became. Some kind of large steampunk robot clock was carrying all the heavy stuff, getting the task done in a matter of seconds. Some species turned out to be really impressive, no wonder Ben took it like a superhero thing at first. He still wondered what made the alien hero change his mind though.
Clockwork then sent green rays towards the items he picked. Suddenly, all the old stuff was shining as if it was brand new, and the hatches themselves looked like they've been installed recently. It was as if Ben turned time back on those.
"Man, that's amazing! With your powers, we don't need to worry about the Forever King getting inside."
"Not so sure about that." said the alien with a German accent, his smile turning into a frown. "We're only ready to hide, we need to be ready to attack."
He touched the Omnitrix symbol, and reverted back to himself.
"Go gather anything you can find to make us weapons, like attack drones or something. Gwen can defend herself, but Grandpa is nothing without his precious gear."
"Sir, yes, sir!" said Cooper, acting like a soldier as he ran off to the old storage rooms.
Ben smirked. Though he knew Cooper was joking, he did find ordering people around kind of fun. Making sure he was alone and that no security camera was around, he took a communicator out of his pocket and pressed on a button.
"How are you guys doing?"
A gurgle came out of the item, and Kraab's voice followed.
"What Sixsix is saying, young master, is that we sent most of those nuisances to the local human police station. However, Animo has escaped our grasps, we have no idea if he's still working with this Forever Knight or if he fled."
"Good work, guys. Keep looking and remember, I'm the one making the calls. If I'm caught talking to you, I'll be toast." he paused. "It's an expression, I'm not gonna become a literal breakfast."
The sigh of relief from his bodyguards made him snicker.
"Look, I think my dad knows about this guy more than we do. I don't want to ask Grandpa more about him, so ask my father for information about the Forever King Driscoll. This guy used to be a Plumber and he knows about me, my father's the best person to ask for info."
"Understood, young master."
"And, uh..." Ben hesitated. "Tell him... that even if I didn't go with him, I'm really glad that he's always there for me, and that I look forward to the next time we meet and... that I'm glad that he's my dad."
It took a few seconds for the communication to end. Something told Ben his guards were more sensitive than he thought. He wouldn't like it if they told anybody else though.
"Don't you think Ben was acting a little weird?" asked Max.
"More than usual? Yeah, I noticed."
They were closing out the hatch from which they came from, using the new exo-suit Cooper made for Max. It allowed him to lift any heavy item with ease, making him look far stronger from the old man he was.
"When Cooper came, Ben was super nice to him and they started talking about stuff in their little corner. It's like he was planning something behind our backs."
"Now, now, I wouldn't jump to conclusions. Maybe Ben is just glad to have a new friend of his age."
"Then what were you talking about?" she asked, lifting a metal container with her magic.
"I'm glad he's been taking saving the day more seriously but... it almost feels like he's trying to say he doesn't need us."
"Oh, that. Yeah, I don't know what's the deal either. I thought he was just being cocky, but this isn't normal, even for Ben. He barely boasted when we defeated all of those bad guys earlier, and I know he'd normally brag about it all night long."
She paused, bringing her hand to her face. She felt a headache, tired from all the fighting. This wasn't good, the trouble wasn't over, she needed to stay focused, not fall asleep.
"Gwen, are you alright?" asked Max.
"Yeah, just... a bit dizzy from using all of that magic."
"It was certainly a first, don't strain yourself next time."
"I'll be fine, and don't worry. I'm not like Ben, I'll..." she hesitated, "I'm not gonna waste my powers on something trivial."
She wasn't quite sure she could still make fun of Ben for his recklessness, when all he did was... acting childish. He did become more capable and careful with his powers, they barely heard him complain about timing out anymore.
"Say, have you ever met any other magic user while you were a Plumber?" she asked.
"Well... not exactly..."
"Oh come on, don't you know if there's any trick I don't know about? Just in case Charmcaster comes back for more."
Max wasn't sure he could really answer. On one side, it'd really help if Gwen learned a bit more. On the other, he wasn't sure he could talk about Verdona yet...
"I can't really tell you, but," Gwen gave him a frown as she was listening, "you can try taking energy from what's around you."
Gwen raised a brow, what did he mean?
"There's life and energy all around us, that's how you and Charmcaster can use those spells. Try to gather more from there than on your own energy, or on someone else's spells."
She tried to understand what he meant, but this was still confusing. Nonetheless, she gave it a try.
Deeply inhaling, she focused on the energies all around her. In the air, outside the base, all the power she could feel nearby. Slowly breathing, she found herself progressively feeling better. She suddenly felt lighter, and the headache was gone.
"Did I do it?"
"I think so. Try using magic now."
Gwen then lifted a hand towards another container, and with a pink hue, the item flew to the pile of junk they gathered. Gwen was amazed about this new trick, although she was a bit concerned. Her magic wasn't blue anymore, it was...
Pink. Like Charmcaster's. Sure, it was a different shade of pink, but she didn't know why its color suddenly changed. Maybe it was because she finally improved? After all, everyone made sure of letting her know she wasn't keeping up at all. Telling her she didn't use those spells correctly, defeating her in the blink of an eye, doing stuff she couldn't do even without her powers.
It was exhausting, being judged like that for a flaw she couldn't help because of a power she just got. Then another thought crossed her mind...
Was this how Ben felt whenever she lectured him? Was this why he stopped playing around so much? Was Ben changing just because he's had enough? She wondered if she hadn't been too harsh on him before.
As for Max, it looked like a wave of nostalgia hit him. He had a small smile on his face, Gwen was proving to be doing well enough with "the spark".
"How's it going?"
"Good, the security drones are almost ready." said Cooper. "Hey, Ben?"
"Yeah?"
"I thought about what you said, earlier, about Gwen."
"And?"
"And... I think I maaaaaaaaay be a little... interested in her?" he awkwardly admitted.
Ben snorted, sporting a cocky grin. He nailed it. "So, what are you gonna do about it?"
"I don't know... I mean, when we get out of there, I won't be able to hang out with you guys anymore, I'll have to go back home. And after the freaky adventure I went through, I think I need a little rest."
"Great, that's totally what you should do." said Ben. Cooper's confused look made him realize what he said came out wrong. "Er, I mean, it's still summer after all. You should take the time to relax and do the stuff you want instead of worrying about bad guys targeting us."
"Huh, I guess you're right. Hey, there's this super cool new M.M.O.R.P.G. I'm gonna play, Nations of Conquest. You could get your own character in there and give me your address so we could talk over games and stuff."
"That sorta sounds cool." said Ben, looking slightly uncomfortable. "You know, I've been thinking... I'm not sure I'll be able to make it to Space Pirates 4."
Cooper tilted his head. "That movie you won a ticket to?"
"Yeah. I got the Omnitrix, so it means I gotta fight a lot of bad guys when I can. Bad guys from all around the universe could follow me, I might ruin the premiere if some ugly old alien broke into the theater and tried to saw my arm off. So I thought," he showed the VIP ticket to the technopath, "would you want to see it? I mean, you can't bring another person, so it kinda stinks if you planned to invite Gwen. But it'll be free, there's a buffet and you'll meet the movie's cast. What do you think?"
This was a surprise. Even though he struggled to have it instead of Gwen, Ben was gonna give up his spot for him? It was really nice of him, but...
Before he could answer, they heard a beeping. An alarm was coming from the control room.
All four humans stood in front of the hatch from where the motion sensor detected an incoming intruder. They heard a noise, and suddenly, a giant figure came from... a hole dug in the wall near the hatch. Riding a monstrous prairie dog, Animo entered the hideout.
'Figures, as if the bad guy would use a door.'
The Mutant Praire Dog tackled Max away using its tail, turning around to attack the children. In a flash of green, Wildmutt lunged at the beast, digging its teeth right into its neck.
The creature screamed in pain as Wildmutt was threatening to tear its skin away, tackling it with his strong orange legs. Aware that he should end it quick, Wildmutt swept his opponent with his claws, leaving gashes on the animal's skin.
The sight of the bestial carnage turned everyone else's stomach, except for the Forever King who managed to get in through the hole.
"It's over, Driscoll!" said Max, getting up. "You're on your own, but don't worry, you'll spend some time with your new cellmates in prison."
"Not quite alone yet, Tennyson." said Driscoll. "I've heard of Vulpimancers having quite a sharp hearing. Dr Animo, if you please."
Animo pulled out his remote and pressed on another button, although he looked a bit nauseous after what Wildmutt did to his creation. In the blink of an eye, Wildmutt was on the ground, growling as if he was in pain.
"Ben!" said Max.
"I'll leave you to take care of them, Doctor." said Driscoll as he rushed towards the room where the Sub Energy found itself.
"We gotta go after him!"
"What about Ben?" asked Gwen.
"He'll be fine!" said Cooper. "I saw him in action and he told me about the stuff he did. By the time we get there, he'll make paste out of that old man and help us! Come on!"
Both Tennysons seemed convinced, and all three ran to stop the Forever King. Animo stayed behind to gloat instead of helping his associate. He didn't realize he was about to regret it.
"I'll teach that brat who's gonna be paste after I'm done torturing you, Tennyson! Maybe I could even keep you like this and use you for some of my experiments." he said as he added intensity to the sonic frequency he used to make Wildmutt squirm.
He didn't expect the alien to suddenly get back on his feet, a smile on his dark lips.
"What are you doing?! Why are you mocking me?! You should be on the ground begging for your life!"
The Vulpimancer brought his paw to the symbol on his shoulder, and in a flash of green, Eye Guy stood instead.
"Here's what's wrong with your plan, Ani-messed up. For one, you thought you could fight me all on your own." he said, shocking the device out of Animo's hand with an eye beam. "Two, you believed that after fighting so many times, I wouldn't be used to your dirty tricks, old man."
"Wait! What are you now?! Those ears... are you a bat alien?! You should still suffer from the ultrasounds I'm using!"
"And that brings me to three. When that Plumber used his tool on me and made me feel as weak as the animals you're using to do your dirty job, I swore I'd never let that happen again. Which is why I asked these guys to teach me how to accept the pain, even when it's there."
He pointed to behind his back, where Kraab and Sixsix came. His new eyesight allowed him to see everything around him, but he didn't need it to see where the fight was going.
"Hope I never have to deal with you again, freak."
With a simple eye beam, Animo was now stuck in an ice prison, his face frozen into an expression of pure horror.
"You," he pointed at the Forever Ninja, who still stood nearby, "carry this iceberg to the authorities and come back. Don't get caught."
The robot obeyed, seizing Animo with its lasso and climbing through the hole in the mountain.
"As usual, all bark and no bite. Now to take care of the final boss..."
"Now I shall be, the Forever King, of the world!"
"Don't be a fool, Driscoll! The Sub Energy is too unstable!"
"Funny. That's what the Plumbers said about me when they kicked me out. I'll see my way out now, I know I'm not needed here anymore."
Driscoll then blasted the ceiling, making several pieces above fall into the room and crush the combat drones Cooper built. The other humans barely dodged while Driscoll blasted a wall nearby, using his armor's gadgets to forcefully dig his way out the mountain, going through several layers of rocks.
He came out in daylight, the battle having lasted way more than it should have. He pulled out a remote control, calling his ride.
Soon enough, he'd be back at the castle, and then he'd be the official new Forever King of this planet. Purging it from these aliens would be his first act as the ruler of a new world...
Metallic orbs exploded as they fell in contact with the Forever King's tank. He looked above, seeing Ben and his bodyguards smugly observing him.
"Your trip has just been canceled." declared Ben.
"You have been a thorn in my side long enough, alien!"
Ben smirked. "Funny. You say you hate aliens, but you sounded just like my dad when you said that. How does it feel to be compared to the most dangerous creature in the galaxy?"
Driscoll didn't respond, he simply brought the item he stole to his chest. A tube came out of the symbol on his armor, absorbing the small purple orb inside the container and powering the suit with it.
A purple beam came out of the armor's visor, before which Ben was safely carried away. Rocks from the mountain fell on the Forever Knight, who dodged before sending several other beams at Ben.
"You know what, Driscoll? I know just the guy to use to defeat you."
Ben circled through the alien icons, finding the one he was looking for. With a devilish green, he slammed on the dial, the change barely present again. When the green light faded out, he could tell Driscoll was angry.
"So you finally reveal your true face to me, you pest..."
"Be careful there, Driscoll." said the young Chimeran, a grin upon his black lips. "You sound even more like my dad now."
He lunged at the man, barely feeling affected as the purple beam went through him.
"This Sub Energy you talk about is nothing compared to what my father went through." said Ben, scraping the armor's chest. "Vilgax almost died more than once, whether because of a nuclear power plant blowing up on him, or his spaceship set on self-destruct mode, or even protecting me..."
"I'll make sure to make him know he failed!" said Driscoll, seizing Ben by the shirt.
"That's the difference between you and him. Unlike you, my father taught the people on his side something."
With a swift kick, Ben smashed Driscoll's helmet with his plated foot, freeing himself before his claws dug a hole in the armor, picking the purple orb out with his bare hands.
"He taught me how to get back on my feet. You Plumbers never learned any of that, did you?"
Driscoll was heaving, clutching his chest as he could feel the power in his armor dying. "You really don't know what you're talking about, are you?" A small laugh came from his broken helmet.
"What? You didn't teach all those goons how to keep fighting, I didn't need much help to tear down this Forever Alliance of yours in no time. What do you have to say?"
"I have to say... that for someone who was there when that stupid old man brought you on our planet, I was smart enough to infiltrate the Plumbers, even after they kicked me out. I'd even say I was practically invited to that mission to put an end to the monster that made you." laughed Driscoll, angering Ben.
"You... you were there? Didn't Grandpa say you were fired for far longer than that?"
"You still call that old man your grandfather? Don't make me laugh." mocked Driscoll. "We both know you're pretending to belong on this planet, alien. He knows your place is in a cage, away from humanity."
There was a loud metallic sound as Ben punched Driscoll hard, shattering his helmet and revealing his face. The bearded man still looked amused as he kept insulting Ben's origins.
"You may think you're right to trust him, but you'll be disappointed to know that when the right time comes, that old man will get rid of you once he sees the danger you represent."
Ben clenched his fists, ready to attack again. He almost wanted to shove that Sub Energy deep down Driscoll's throat, but he knew better. He stepped back, and with a snap of fingers, Kraab threw the small orb supposed to contain the Sub Energy inside. In a few seconds, the stolen item was back its rightful place, and Ben felt like smashing Driscoll's uncovered face with it.
Instead, he decided he just wanted to get rid of him.
"With all that power drained out, your armor is super heavy, isn't it?" asked Ben. "That's why you're stalling, you're waiting for backup. So... blast him!"
Ben simply enjoyed the show as Driscoll struggled to get away while, Sixsix and Kraab fired at him repeatedly. He sighed, twisting the dial of the Omnitrix as he observed the man cowardly run away.
In the end, while he learned some bits about who the Plumbers got affiliated with and other secrets of the base, the final fight was still disappointing. Driscoll wasn't much different from the small fries Ben dealt with before. No matter what he did, combats around here became boring. He needed action elsewhere.
Meanwhile, Gwen, Max and Cooper came out of the hideout, running up to Ben.
"There you are!" said Gwen. "You already timed out? And where's Driscoll?"
"Gone." said Ben, pointing to the broken pieces of armor on the ground, the Sub Energy lying in there. "Here's what you guys were looking for."
"Good job, Ben." said Max.
"Grandpa, he told me he worked on a mission with you about ten or nine years ago." lied Ben, although it wasn't much of a lie. "I thought he was fired and you quit at the time."
Max looked guilty as Ben mentioned the very reason he grew up on Earth. "Well... it was an emergency mission, they needed as many Plumbers as we could in case Vilgax would strike, and... we didn't know Driscoll was a Forever Knight back then. At least thanks to you, we won't hear about him for a while."
Ben blinked, seeing nothing has changed.
He may have saved the world in one night, but as per usual, nothing came out of it. The universe could explode any day, it wouldn't make anything change.
"Are you sure you don't wanna come?" asked Ben.
"I'm sure." said Cooper. "But if I ever hear about a new Sumo Slammers game incoming, be sure I'll be the first one telling you about it."
"What about telling Gwen you're the one giving it?"
"If I like Gwen, I'll try to impress her myself. But thanks again for the suggestion, Ben."
Ben waved as he saw his friend go home, going back into the Rustbucket.
"So, did Cooper finish making his own Omnitrix as a friendship bracelet?" teased Gwen, on her computer.
"Well, no. But, uhm... you know how the movie premiere is in two hours?"
"Yeah, how could I forget?" glared Gwen, still annoyed she didn't get the ticket.
"Well, I was thinking... You earned it more than me." he said, putting the VIP ticket in front of her.
"Wait what?!"
"This whole trip with Cooper, I've been ignoring you and putting you aside for the sake of the mission. Besides, I'll probably make a lot of noise, get myself banned from the theater or make everyone flee because I used the Omnitrix for something dumb. So I figured, why not let you see it instead? You deserve it."
Gwen stared at him, eyes wide. What was even going on?!
"You... you'd give up your spot, for me?"
"Yeah."
"Oh Ben, thank you thank you thank you!" she tackled him with a hug, then pushed him away abruptly, giving him a 'don't tell anyone or you're dead' look.
'What just happened? Did Ben just offer me his place at the premiere? Wow, that's so nice of him! Wait, I can't tell him that, I'll sound mean. Er...'
"Hey, you know, if you need my computer, you can use it if you want."
"Is this bribery to make sure I don't change my mind?"
"N-No? What makes you say that?" asked Gwen as she quickly snatched the ticket away from the table, heading towards the front seat.
With a snort, Ben sat down and opened Gwen's computer. He was lucky she complied, at least he wouldn't have to do it behind her back. Pulling a cable from his pocket plugged to the communicator and connecting it to the laptop without anyone noticing, he opened a chat window.
'Mission accomplished, I'm free for the rest of the afternoon. So, what did he say?' typed Ben.
'Your father was very satisfied of your performance, young master. He believes you may not even need our assistance anymore.' answered the Bounty Hunters.
'No way, you guys are still working for me, not letting you off the hook yet (kidding).' He wished they understood emojis, he wouldn't have to explain he wasn't threatening them.
'We pursued Driscoll far enough, there is no chance he'd follow you to your next destination. However, we are slightly concerned by our newest addition.'
'Get used to it.' shrugged Ben.
Sixsix and Kraab looked on, unsure as they eyed the Forever Ninja standing next to them, hiding from any human's sight as they were. It looked like they had a new member on the team.
Helloooooooooooooo!
And that wraps up the original series' main show episodes. Don't worry, there's more to come, this is just the end of an arc. I'll have special chapters incoming, just wait and you'll see ;)
The Forever Ninja always gave me the impression he had a role similar to the Bounty Hunters and mostly what Sixsix and his siblings did, and since his personality only depends on those who own him... Ben now got three bodyguards!
Since the ticket argument kinda dragged on during these two episodes in canon, I decided to just let Ben win it. But not keep it! :p
Hope you guys liked how this came out and I'll see you for the next couple of chapters.
Heato, out!