BEN 10 DOES NOT BELONG TO ME. JUSTICE LEAGUE UNLIMITED DOES NOT BELONG TO ME. ACCORDING THE INTERUNIVERSAL HAMSTER ACCORDS, I DO OWN THE MOON OF THE PLATYPUS-BUNNIES, BUT ONLY IF I WEAR A HAT BACKWARDS EVERY THIRD WEDNESDAY.
Oh, this episode; OH THIS EPISODE. Finally, we're gonna get some Cadmus plot going again. I considered doing a couple of non-Cadmus chapters, but now I want to get into the meat of the story, so forgive me if I'm skipping any episodes that you like.
Ben 10: Unlimited
Chapter 15
Doomsday Sanction
The Watchtower
While everyone in the League knew that Ben and Kara were dating, only a select few in or out of the League knew that they were now living together. That small circle included the founding members, Green Arrow and Black Canary, whom Green Arrow had finally started a relationship with, and the Kent family. Most of the people in that group were actually very happy for the couple; the only ones who didn't say anything were the Martian and Batman.
When Kara had broken the news to Clark, Ben had, at first, been afraid that he would burst a blood vessel, fry him with heat-vision, or both. Instead, he wrapped him in a bear-hug, and gave them his blessing.
Afterwards, the founding members had given Ben a promotion of sorts. He was given the status of "senior member", with only a founding member having more authority. His new position meant that if one of the seven founders were killed, he would take their place. He was also allowed to attend and voice his opinion on meetings with League leaders. If all the founding members were unavailable, Ben was to take operational command until a new group of leadership was formed.
Two months had passed since the two heroes moved in together, and one month after Kara's 19th birthday, they had been planning on celebrating their first year together as a couple, when they received an emergency summons to the Watchtower; the life of a superhero was full of sacrifices, it seemed.
Most of the League was on the island of San Baquero, helping to evacuate the populace from an erupting volcano; due to the electromagnetic energy being cast off from the eruption, communications were spotty, at best, and the teleporters couldn't get a lock anywhere near the island.
Thankfully, Ben had a solution, at least for the first problem; the communicator in his Ultimatrix didn't rely on the League's communication's technology, and was unaffected by the volcano's interference thanks to its alien design. The other members of the League could use the Ultimatrix to bounce their signals to each other. Still, in order to be used as a relay effectively for the others, Ben had to remain on the Watchtower. Wonder Woman pointed out that one more hero on the ground wouldn't be as useful as someone who could help everyone at once.
His inability to help, however, did allow him to attend an important meeting. Earlier today, Batman had met with the leader of Project Cadmus, Amanda Waller, and now had important information to share.
"How long is this going to take?" asked Flash, once all 8 of them had been assembled, "I thought we had an island to evacuate?"
"The first teams are already down there," said Wonder Woman, "and we'll join them as soon as we're done here." She turned to Batman. "What did you learn?"
"Project Cadmus is in the business of developing weapons," Batman said without preamble, "specifically to fight us."
"I could have told you that after the incident with the Supergirl clone." Said Ben. When the other Leaguers looked at him, he added, "Who else would have done it? I mean, they were capable of creating the Ultimen, why not a Kryptonian clone?"
J'onn nodded. "They're worried we've grown too powerful, and they want to even the odds."
Batman went on to tell them about how Cadmus had made simulations about what would happen if the Justice League ever went rogue, and how just the original 7 would have been able to conquer the world in just a few weeks. Their evil counterparts, the Justice Lords, had done just that in their own parallel timeline.
"That's crazy!" said Flash, "We'd never try to take over like that!"
"If the Justice Lords did," countered Batman, "why couldn't we? We have more than eight times the numbers as them; we could take over the world in a weekend."
"The only reason that those guys went overboard was because their Flash died," said Flash, "so as long as you all focus on keeping me alive, that'll never happen here."
The others looked at him for a long moment, before the Martian spoke up again. "Let's put a pin in that theory to explore another time."
"I've seen the Federal budget," said Superman, "and there's no funding for a 'Project Cadmus'. Where's the money coming from?"
"We're all thinking the same thing." Stated Shayera.
"Luthor." Wonder Woman spat out the name like it was a curse.
Luthor had popped back onto the League's radar after he regained control of LexCorp, and again after he announced that he was running for President of the United States, and raised even more red flags when his campaign started to gain momentum.
"He's the obvious suspect," said Batman, "after all, he funded General Hardcastle's rogue operations. But if he is bankrolling Cadmus, he's doing an excellent job of covering his tracks. I've got The Question looking into it and…"
Everyone else, save for Ben, who'd come to trust the faceless man after he helped with the Supergirl clone incident, groaned.
"Not that kook!" whined Flash.
"I admit, he's wound a little too tightly…" Batman began.
"But if there is a connection, you can bet that he can find it." Finished Ben.
Batman took up the reigns again. "In the meantime, I'll be following the trail from Waller's end."
Superman stood up. "If that's all, we have work to do; we all know our stations, let's get to it."
As the heroes filed out of the room, Wonder Woman caught Ben's arm. "Hey, Ben, can I talk to you?"
"Uh, sure Diana, what's up?"
"Well, I guess I want to apologize on behalf of all of us for a couple of things." By "all of us", she meant the founding members.
"What do you have to apologize for?"
"Well, I know how you like to be in the thick of things, but…"
Ben sighed. "But I'm needed here the most right now. I may not like it, but I've made peace with that."
"Also, I know that it's yours and Kara's anniversary as a couple…"
"And she and I both knew that we'd have to make sacrifices; it's part of being a hero. It stinks, but we both know that we have to do the right thing."
Wonder Woman's smile turned coy. "I just hope that we didn't interrupt any… plans that the two of you might have had for later."
Ben glared at her, even with his face turning red. "Don't you have an island to evacuate?"
…
Cadmus Headquarters
Amanda Waller holding her own "war council" with the leaders of each division in Cadmus, plus one employee that had issues to iron out. First was Professor Emile Hamilton, head of the science division. Next was General Eiling, head of military applications and tactics. There was also Tala, head of mystical research and personnel. Finally, there was Dr. Milo, a scientist in the genetics department. He fell under Hamilton's supervision, but his recent actions, and subsequent failures, required a meeting with all of the Cadmus leaders.
Hamilton opened up the meeting with a progress-report on one of Cadmus' most valuable assets. "Galatea will be fully recovered soon, and ready to return to active duty."
"And the Doomsday weapon?" Waller asked about the only thing in Cadmus' arsenal more physically powerful than Galatea. It had been severely injured in a battle with the Justice Lord Superman, and had been locked up ever since.
"Considering the damage done to its frontal lobe," answered Hamilton, "the cellular regeneration has been remarkable; its EEG's are still flat. Nonetheless, we're monitoring it closely."
"Keep me updated." Waller turned to the sorceress in the room. "Tala, have you developed a plan to retrieve the armor?"
Several months ago, the Justice League had defeated a suit of armor that been crafted by the Greek Gods; it required no wearer, and had proven to be indestructible, so Cadmus wanted it. Unfortunately for them, the Justice League had it locked up in the Watchtower itself.
"We've come up with some promising scenarios," answered Tala, "but they're going to require certain additional resources."
"Fine; see me after so that we can go over the details." Waller switched her attention to the only soldier in the room. "General, how goes weapons development and training?"
Eiling looked over his paperwork. "Most of our man-portable equipment should be able to handle all of the League's non-powered members, and some of the metahumans, but for some of the heavy hitters like the aliens and that shape-shifter with all the names… well, the heavier stuff still has some radiation issues that need to be fixed; I'm not going to send troops out that are going to die before they even get a shot off."
"That reminds me, I have one issue that is still concerning," said Hamilton, "both the scans I took of the Ultimen, and their sudden disappearance."
That had been the only thing that annoyed Waller about Hamilton. He seemed to have an obsession with the original Ultimen; his scans of them, before they'd mysteriously vanished without a trace, had shown that the cellular degeneration had been both reversed and halted. To say that it was a miracle would not have been too far of a stretch; it should have been impossible, save for an act of God. Waller knew who was really responsible, but she wanted to talk to that person first; his past was a mystery, and she hated mysteries.
"At the moment, the Ultimen are a moot point; it seems they've gone to ground, and we know that the League hasn't contacted them in any fashion."
Waller sighed, then turned to the final item on her agenda. "And Doctor Milo," she said, looking at the silent man who sat across from her; the other people assembled looked at him with expressions ranging from indifference to barely-contained dislike. "Splicing together human and animal DNA. How's that coming?"
Milo, a small man who clearly hadn't slept, shaved or showered in days, stood up as straight as he could. "I know what you're thinking," he said, "but my experiments are actually quite close to paying off. I just need a little more time and I promise, I'll have something concrete to show you."
"Concrete?" echoed Waller, "Like that super-powered warthog that tore up your lab last week?" she glowered at him. "Professor Hamilton's already shown me the remains of your lab assistants; all twelve of them."
"That," started Milo, sweat forming on his brow, "that was just an unfortunate accident, and accidents…"
"An 'unfortunate accident' might have one or two deaths," Waller said with a raised voice, "but your actions have now raised the death-toll in your department to sixty-four! It should never have even reached double-digits!" She spent a moment to collect herself. "Doctor, I am not known for my sense of humor, but I can see a sick joke when I'm looking him in the face. In light of the lack of results and unnecessary deaths as a result of your work, I'm pulling your funding."
Milo's head shot up, his bloodshot eyes widening in shock and horror.
Waller continued. "In accordance with the Technological Clearances Act, we'll set you up in a new, non-vital capacity and confiscate your research." Waller allowed a grim smile to briefly grace her features. "Be lucky you're not being sent to prison or shot. Now, get out."
Milo slowly picked up his papers and marched out, his features solemn. However, in his mind, he was already plotting revenge.
…
It didn't take long for Milo to find the right room; he'd had enough clearance to learn where all of the most dangerous weapons in Cadmus were located.
None were more dangerous than Doomsday.
The monster was kept locked in restraints that not even he could break, and he was created to be even more powerful than Superman. He was huge, easily ten feet tall and five feet wide. His hand alone could wrap itself around a human torso and have room to spare. His brow, teeth, shoulders, elbows and knees seemed to be made out of a hard, bony material. His skin was a deathly-grey, with shaggy, unkempt white hair covering his head. The only clothing he wore was a pair of green shorts and boots.
Milo approached the monster, confident in his plan; and perhaps his madness. Doomsday had been pronounced clinically brain-dead, but Milo hadn't been convinced. He took a deep breath, then spoke.
"I know you're faking." He took a look at a computer. "The lobotomized portion of your brain has completely regrown."
Doomsday opened his eyes.
"Do you remember anything from before?" getting no response, Milo continued. "That's all right; I'll show you. You've been used, and you deserve to know." He activated a computer and turned the screen towards the monster's face. It showed a visual history of Doomsday's existence.
"You see, you were created from a sample of Superman's genetic material. However, your DNA was altered to make you his superior. And then you were trained to hate him. You were conditioned, humiliated, repeatedly injured…" the image showed a restrained Doomsday being blasted by heat-vision emitted from a hologram of Superman's face. "But not by Superman."
Milo paused the screen, rage covering his face. "No, it was done by Amanda Waller, and Emile Hamilton." He resumed the history. "When you became uncontrollable, they tried to dispose of you. They put you in a rocket and launched you into space; but you were too strong. Your struggles threw the rocket off-course… and it came back down to Earth." The history ended, but Milo's story did not. "When you landed, you fought a different Superman, one from a parallel timeline. He lobotomized you."
Doomsday finally spoke, his voice deep and gravelly. "Superman."
"Yes, good." Said Milo, "But he isn't your enemy; your hatred of him was manufactured. At every turn, Waller and Hamilton abused and betrayed you, just as they betrayed me! Don't we both deserve retribution?"
Doomsday stared at him, unblinking. "Yes. Release me."
"And you'll solve both our problems?" asked Milo.
"Yes."
With a mad grin, Milo typed in a series of codes into a computer; with a hiss, the restraints opened, and Doomsday stepped forward. Milo turned as the monster approached him.
"What are you…?"
"Your problem's solved." Doomsday reached for Milo's face.
"AAAAAAAAAHHH!"
Doomsday stepped out of the room, just as several Cadmus soldiers arrived and opened fire on him; their weapons didn't even get his attention.
"Now for Superman."
Doomsday made his way to a Cadmus rocket; he had heard much during his recovery, including where Superman was now. He punched in the coordinates for San Baquero, and hopped inside the rocket. In a few moments, it was gone.
…
In Waller's office, a soldier rushed in, saluting Waller.
"What's going on?" She asked over the noise of the alarms.
"Ma'am, Doomsday's escaped." Waller's eyes widened in shock; who in the world would be crazy enough to… then it hit her.
"Milo," she growled, slamming her fist into her desk, "I'll have his hide for this."
The soldier suddenly looked ill. "Doomsday beat you to it, ma'am."
…
San Baquero
Thanks to the support of Ben's Ultimatrix, evacuation of the island was going smoothly; still, there were a lot of people to move, the League had only so many transports, and Ship could only hold so many people. The UN had offered to send help, but the people of San Baquero had been leery of contact with any mainland government for years. They'd only accepted the League's support when they'd run out of other options.
While the Ultimatrix was relaying signals, Ben could still use it to stay in contact with Supergirl.
"Hey, Kara, how's it coming?"
After a moment, Supergirl responded. "Well, I've just finished carrying a boat filled with people to the mainland, and I'm headed back for more; I should be back at the island in a few minutes."
"Great work. By the way, did you record the end of that show last night? I fell asleep before I could finish it."
Supergirl rolled her eyes. "You know that I fell asleep before you, Ben."
"Oh, right." She could practically see the sly smile on her boyfriend's face. "Now I remember."
Since the two of them had officially moved in together, the two of them had become much bolder with each other, but only when they were alone, or when no one else could hear them; they felt that what they shared was between them only.
"By the way," continued Ben innocently, "did you know that you sometimes levitate in your sleep, then fall back down? The impact knocks me off the bed."
Supergirl blushed. "You and I are having a serious talk when we get home."
"And I would love to have that 'conversation' when we get there."
Supergirl's blush intensified. "Oh, shut up, I'm almost at the island."
Ben's tone changed; he knew when to be lighthearted, and when to be serious. "Okay, be safe; I love you."
Supergirl smiled; she always did after Ben said those words. "I will, and I love you, too."
As she landed, she was greeted by Wonder Woman. "Okay, glad you're here, Supergirl, I need you to… Kara, are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine; why do you ask?"
"Because your face is all red." Wonder Woman backed up at the look she was being given. "Never mind, I don't want to know."
…
Superman was trying to buy time by creating tunnels in the volcano, diverting the lava to areas with nothing to damage; he'd been optimistic when he thought that he could possibly stop the impending eruption altogether.
He had just finished with one such tunnel, leading the lava into a large cavern in the volcano, and was preparing to leave, when an object crashed through the side of the volcano. Superman could see that the object was a rocket, and what stepped out of it was a monster. It walked towards him, seemingly immune to the lava pooling around its feet.
"Superman," said Doomsday, "I'm here to kill you. Is this a bad time?"
The grey-skinned beast roared and charged; Superman tried to fly off, but Doomsday was too fast and tackled him into the side of the cavern and into a pool of lava. Holding Superman down, Doomsday delivered a series of punches into his face, until he was thrown back by a powerful kick.
Using his heat-vision, Superman dropped a large chunk of rock onto his opponent, but Doomsday just lifted it above his head.
"I remember… those eyes."
Doomsday threw the rock to the side, then tackled Superman again. Holding him down, he drove his bone-covered knuckles into Superman's eyes, blinding him, at least until his healing factor kicked in.
"Let's see you do that again."
Just as Superman began to regain his sight, Doomsday sucker-punched him, then tried to crush him with a double blow; Superman dodged it, then sent Doomsday flying into the base of a small cliff.
"I know who you are," said Superman, "but I'm not the one who hurt you."
"Superman is Superman," said Doomsday, getting to his feet, "and I will kill you."
"Why?"
"It's what I am; I don't care why."
Then Doomsday charged, and the battle began again.
…
Cadmus Headquarters
"GPS puts the stolen rocket smack-dab on San Baquero," General Eiling said to Waller, "Doomsday went right back after Superman. I love a well-conditioned soldier."
"And what will your soldier do after he's killed Superman?" asked Waller, "We can't leave him loose; for all we know, he'll try to kill everyone on the planet! He has to be stopped before he leaves that island!"
"But how am I supposed to…"
"I don't care! Get it done!" with that, Waller stormed out.
After she left, Eiling picked up a phone and dialed a number. Without even waiting for someone to answer, he spoke. "This is Eiling; authorization: Firewall."
Somewhere in the Atlantic, a submarine received orders, confirmation and coordinates. Then, they launched a nuclear missile; a nuclear missile laced with Kryptonite.
…
San Baquero
Wonder Woman flew down to one of the last transports, carrying an ambulance; they were close to 75% done. She reached for her comlink.
"Superman, what's your status?"
For a moment, Superman didn't respond. "Uh! Something's come up! Ah!"
Wonder Woman had had plenty of experience as a warrior to know when someone was fighting, but she knew that Superman could handle it.
…
Superman was not handling it; Doomsday was strong, stronger than anything he'd ever fought before. The monster had reduced his costume to shreds, and he was covered in cuts and bruises. Every time he struck, Doomsday struck back harder.
He knocked the monster into the lava, and the fight went on.
…
The Watchtower
"Another transport just landed on the mainland," Batman said to J'onn and Ben, "they're almost done."
An alarm went off at the panel next to the Martian. "I don't believe it," he said after a moment, "it's a nuclear missile, headed straight for San Baquero!"
Batman and Ben rushed over. "And from the spectrograph, its warhead is lined with Kryptonite!"
Ben tensed. "Can we hit it from up here?" he asked.
The Martian shook his head. "No, it's moving too fast; but who fired it?" Then J'onn turned to see Ben leaving. "Where are you going?"
Ben didn't even turn his head. "You guys figure out the who and why; if you can't stop it by the time I reach the Javelin bay, I'll take care of it myself."
"What about communications?"
"You heard Batman," Ben snapped, "they're practically mopping up; they know how to finish."
Batman watched him leave, then grabbed a phone.
…
Cadmus Headquarters
Waller was organizing some papers on her desk, when a phone rang; a certain phone that only one person knew the number to. She picked it up.
"Yes, Mister President?"
"Call off the missile."
Waller froze; that wasn't the president's voice, that was… "How did you get this num…"
"The missile heading for San Baquero!" snapped Batman; Waller froze again. "If anyone dies on that island today, I'm coming for you."
Waller regained her composure. "You do what you have to, and so will I."
She marched out the door and into the war room. "EILING!" she roared at the aging General.
…
The Watchtower
Batman hung up the phone. "She didn't know."
"Captain Atom is on his way from Southern California," J'onn said to Ben over the communications.
"His top speed is only mach two," said Ben as he ran to the Javelin bay, "he'll never make it in time!"
And even if I can, he thought, I don't think that Jet Ray can take down a nuke safely.
He made it to the Javelin bay and rushed to one of the ships. He activated the Ultimatrix.
Guess I'm gonna need more firepower. He slammed down the dial. "UPGRADE!"
Upgrade wrapped himself around the Javelin, making it larger, faster and better. He sent an emergency release signal from the computer, and a hatch underneath the ship dropped him outside the Watchtower. He fired his Upgraded engines and rocketed towards San Baquero.
"Upgrade," came J'onn's voice over the radio, "you're coming in too fast; you won't survive reentry."
"Obviously you don't know what I'm capable of." Said Upgrade. As if to prove his point, his engines' power increased. "I should intercept the missile in two minutes."
…
Cadmus Headquarters
"What were you thinking?" Waller demanded of Eiling, "You're going to kill Superman and everyone else on the island!"
Eiling didn't look troubled. "We have to sanction Doomsday, we were going to get to Superman somewhere down the line, and we've been trying to stop drug traffic from San Baquero for years. The way I see it, three birds, one stone."
Waller glared at him. "Call it off."
Eiling shrugged. "Anti-abort safeties are already engaged; I couldn't stop it even if I wanted to."
Waller seemed to sag, then stared at the map that was showing the path of the missile.
God help us all, she thought.
…
San Baquero
Upgrade could see the missile, only a few hundred feet ahead of him; several miles ahead of that, he could see the smoking volcano of San Baquero. He tried to destroy the rocket part of the missile with a missile of his own, but it was deflected off.
"The missile's got some sort of magnetic shielding." He reported to the Watchtower.
After a moment, Batman's voice came over the radio. "The only chance you might have to get through that shield and survive would be to set an opposing charge on the hull, then eject."
"Understood." Upgrade would have smiled, if he had a mouth. Man, Kara is going to kill me for this.
…
Meanwhile, Wonder Woman received a call from J'onn; the message was filled with static, so Ben must not have been on the station, for some reason.
"Wonder Woman, can you hear me? There's a missile with a Kryptonite warhead heading for your position."
"Say again?" she prayed that the interference was making her hear things.
"I repeat: there is a Kryptonite missile heading your way!"
Wonder Woman knew of only two reasons why a Kryptonite missile would be launched, and Supergirl had taken another boatload of refugees to the mainland. That only left…
"Flash, get everyone as far away as you can! I'm going back for Superman!"
Flash tried to protest. "But…"
"DO IT NOW!" then she flew off to the volcano.
…
The last of the refugees made it off the island, just as the volcano erupted; however, neither Superman nor Doomsday noticed. Superman was on his last legs, literally; he could barely stand. As Doomsday began to choke the life out of him, Superman blasted him in the face with his heat-vision; Doomsday roared in agony, but slammed his fist into the Man of Steel, sending him flying.
"Ah ah ah," mocked Doomsday, "can't beat me the same way twice."
Superman struggled to his feet. "Then I guess I'll need a bigger fire."
With the last of his strength, Superman unleashed a barrage of punches and kicks, stunning Doomsday long enough for him to pick him up and hurl him into the open mouth of the volcano. With his energy spent, he fell to his knees; he couldn't even think about escaping the oncoming lava. He was completely spent.
So it was with great relief for him that Wonder Woman flew in and pulled him out, just in time.
…
Upgrade approached the missile as carefully as he could, then gave the hull of the Javelin an opposing charge. Just before he connected, he withdrew to the escape pod and launched; he'd given autopilot instructions to move the missile away from the island, or the path of refugee ships. That would have to be enough.
As he flew back, the nuke went off. The blast of energy was so great that Upgrade turned back into Ben. For a moment, all he saw was the explosion; then, he saw nothing at all.
…
The Watchtower
News about the missile had spread quickly through the League, and the members who'd been on the station rushed to the observation deck to see what could be done, or at least find out more information. When they arrived, they discovered what Ben had done. The entire League, save for the injured Superman, had been scrambled in a desperate search for their teammate and friend. Ben had indeed been found, and was rushed to the Watchtower's infirmary. However, the search party had found one other thing.
They'd located Doomsday.
The creature was encased in lava so dense that not even he could break out, at least for now. Two days after the battle, the founding members, save for Batman, sat in front of him.
"Did Cadmus create you?" asked Superman, now recovered from his injuries. Doomsday said nothing. Superman turned to the Martian. "J'onn?"
J'onn's eyes glowed for a moment. "I can't read his mind; his brain's been altered to be immune to my methods."
Superman continued. "You don't owe anything to them; they manipulated and tried to kill you."
Finally, Doomsday spoke. "So I keep hearing."
"From who?"
"All you need to know is that I will get free… and I WILL kill you."
Superman sighed. "If that's your final word." He pulled up a strange device that looked like a cross between a vacuum-cleaner and a computer. "I only use this as a last resort. It's going to send you to another dimension; you won't be hurt, but you also won't hurt anyone else again."
Doomsday glared at him. "You'll wish you'd killed me."
Without another word, Superman activated the Phantom-projector, sending the monster to the Kryptonian prison-dimension.
…
For the last two days, Ben had remained unconscious; everyone had been assured that he would recover, but he needed rest. While every member of the League checked in on him at some point, Supergirl had stayed at his side for the entire time. She wouldn't let Ben wake up and wonder where she was.
Outside the room stood a brooding Batman, who turned when he saw Superman and Wonder Woman walk up to him.
"How's he doing?" asked Wonder Woman.
"He's predicted to wake up soon, maybe in a couple of hours." Batman spoke without looking at them. "You sent him off to the Phantom Zone, didn't you?"
"He left us no choice." Said Superman.
"Spoken like a true Justice Lord."
Superman reeled back, as if he'd been struck. "What!?"
"Passing judgment like gods? With our super-powered army and our orbiting death-ray? Cadmus is right to be scared. The human race wouldn't stand a chance."
"We'd never go there," argued Wonder Woman, "it isn't in our nature, and nothing can change that."
"Nothing?" Batman turned to Superman. "What if Luthor does become president, like he did in their world? What would stop you from killing him, just like that Superman did?"
Superman shrugged. "There's always that Kryptonite you carry around."
"You don't get to joke!" snapped Batman, "Not today; Ben just took a bullet for you." He began to stalk off, when he felt a hand on his shoulder.
"I'm sorry, Bruce. You're right. But you don't have to worry about the Justice League, trust me; you know me."
Batman stared at them for a moment. "Yeah; I do."
"Come on," said Wonder Woman, "let's go; we don't want to wake up Ben by accident."
Batman finally nodded, and the three walked off.
…
Inside the room, Ben began to stir; he slowly opened his eyes and looked around. He recognized this place; he was in the infirmary, which meant that he was alive. He heard soft breathing nearby; he turned his head to see Supergirl sitting on the chair next to his bed, asleep. He slowly reached out and took her hand in his. She must have been sleeping lightly; her eyes shot open at the touch, and she stared at him.
"Ben?"
Ben smiled. "That was my name, last time I checked." Supergirl gently moved forward and gave him a gentle, loving embrace, which he returned.
"Don't you ever scare me like that again!" she buried her head into his shoulder; Ben could feel tears wetting his shoulder, and could feel a few of his own building as well.
"I promise." Normally, he'd make a joke about the whole thing, but not today. They had come too close to losing each other for that.
Supergirl let out one more sob, then took a deep breath and sat up; she wiped her eyes, then an impish smile crossed her face.
"Good." She said. "You can't die yet; we still haven't celebrated our anniversary."
Ben's face went red; and here he thought that it was too soon for jokes.
I really liked this episode; it really brought out the fact that the people of Cadmus were more than just faceless bad guys. They were organized, they had a plan, and they had rules. This chapter was meant to do the same thing, but with a Ben 10 flair.
Now, I have an announcement: I will not be updating as often. I have college classes starting, and that takes precedence. That being said, please stop asking for updates in the reviews. They will come when they come, and demanding more isn't motivating me to do more, it's making me want to take a break. I have no problem with giving me feedback on a chapter, because that's what the review section is for. It is NOT for asking me for another chapter right after I just gave you a chapter. I am flattered that you want more, but if you want the quality to be maintained/improved, you'll just have to be patient.
Speaking of patience, I know that a lot of you are wondering about Alien X. He WILL make an appearance, just much later down the line. I have it worked out, and I want it to be as epic as possible. Until then, please just be happy with Ben kicking butt without the god-mode cheat-code.
One muffin to rule them all; one muffin to find them. One muffin to bring them all, and in the darkness, bind them.