Notice: Ben 10 is owned by Man of Action and Cartoon Network. This story however is my own.
Chapter 5: Future-state!
"Lord Eon," a feminine figure bowed. She was dressed in a (mostly) black suit, and wore an unusual helmet, that like her master, obscured her face. The helmet had some dark pink highlights, and was framed by two upward protrusions, jutting from the edges. In all honesty, they looked like horns or antennae.
"Ahh...you're here Entropy. Good, we must plan for the next phase."
"Yes. Before that though...may I enquire as to where you were? You have been gone a long time, and I have been waiting f-" Eon raised his hand to silence her. In response, she shuddered and retreated a little.
"..." Eon looked over at how his subordinate cowered from his frustration. Then he relented and answered her.
"I was...defeated by two Ben Tennyson's. One of which wielded the most powerful Omnitrix I had ever seen. And I was pretty sure he was holding back, since he could even use...magic." If you could see behind Eon's helmet his eyes were narrowed, and brows furrowed. He hated losing, even more so to himself.
Entropy was startled by that revelation. No other Ben Tennyson had the ability to wield magic. They all relied solely on their innate skills, wits and the powerful Omnitrix at their disposal. Of course, that was usually all they needed, but...Lord Eon could always account for that. After all...he was a Ben Tennyson too. Still...
"Are you worried Entropy?" He turned to his subordinate, his dark visage casting a shadow over her lithe form.
"...I'd be lying if I said I wasn't. It's troubling that he can use magic..."
"Indeed it is. He might actually be..."
"I think so too my Lord. Though...we both knew that we'd one day have to face him, yes?"
"Hmmm."
Eon was deep in thought, likely contemplating the next move, in his overarching objective.
"...Lord Eon?" Entropy tilted her head, inquisitively. It was rare to see Eon in such a pensive mood.
"Hmm? Oh yes, then...let us head to the control centre. Come, Entropy!"
Eon's cape billowed with his swift movement, as he turned and walked down a hallway. Entropy bowed her head and followed suit.
At Azmuth's Lab
"Okay then...that's...why...?" Ben was honestly lost for words. This was a huge info dump from Azmuth; seemingly 20 years in the making!
"I'm sorry Benjamin. I should've told you years ago. I...had ample opportunity." The ancient Galvan bowed his head in shame. He should've told Benjamin so much earlier. Perhaps then...!
"You clearly should've told Ben earlier Mr. Azmuth. Even if it was just a few years ago. My husband...!" Julie was getting a little worked up. She thought on what Azmuth had just told them, realising some instances over the past 20 years might've been due to Eon's meddling. Probably as an indirect result of his time travelling and absorption of other Ben's throughout the Omniverse.
"...with this information, we could've stopped some of the tragedies that happened, due to this Eon guy's influence."
"Like what honey?" Ben tilted his head, in a quizzical motion.
"Whaddaya mean like what!? There was clearly a few incidents over the years that didn't make sense at the time, but now seem completely logical if you factor in Eon!"
This outburst startled Asuka and Ken. They both jumped when they heard their mother raise her voice and yell at their father.
"Oh..." A stunned realisation hit Ben. His wife was exactly right. He was a little too lackadaisical sometimes, but even he knew that several incidents over the past 20 years were...unusual.
Though, what does Eon want exactly? He's some twisted version of me and that's all I know. How did he become so warped? What are his motivations? Who helps him?
These questions stirred in Ben's mind, slowly but surely forming a migraine. He just couldn't understand any version of himself becoming like Eon. Well...that's if you didn't consider ones like Negative Ben (from the Negative Dimension) who were just bad because of the state of their world.
If he's not evil because of nature, perhaps it's...nurture? Circumstances could've warped him into this being we see now. Then again, how does the crinkly old Eon factor into all this? Is he the same Eon, or just another guy masquerading as Eon?
"I guess there's no point in going E-on and E-on about this-" Ben bemused; much to the ire of both Julie and Azmuth, "-we'll just have to take it as they come. For now, the world, this galaxy, this universe – and most importantly, my family – need me. I'll take care of Eon, one way or another."
EOC Notes: A small but impactful chapter for this story. If you can guess who Entropy is, well done. I think it's pretty obvious who, but...I guess it can still be left up to interpretation.