Aquilibra: Hi guys! A new update for Catastrophe finally! I'm actually very pleased with how this chapter came out. It's a bit longer than the last with more flair. Plus I was in a better writing mood. Dang my fingers are tired. Anyway, read and enjoy!

P.S. - To all those who commented: Thank you! I hope you find this chapter satisfying!

(Notes & Warning: Please know that Ben 10 does not belong to me, and neither does Dr. Animo, and that I base no claim on either as my own. Also, as a warning, this chapter does contain some suggestive material. You have been warned.)

-o-O-o-

Catastrophe

-o-O-o-

Chapter 2: Deal With the Devil

Waking up after being knocked unconscious was never fun. Ben knew that from experience. Various villains, bounty hunters, and other assorted bad guys had taught him that over the years. So slowing coming to in a strange place; that was also strangely soft and warm, which was unexpected, was not very pleasant. Not to mention the fact that the past three hours or so was a muddled blur in his head. From what he could tell, it had to have been one hell of a weird fight, seeing as he now had a freaking tail with feline ears to match. As soon as whatever crazy arch-nemesis walked in, there were several questions he had in mind to ask (or rather scream at) them. Like why he was back to being a middle-schooler instead of his normal teenage self. The ears and tail he could live with, but having to go through puberty all over again?! Oh hell no!

But first things first, Grandpa's voice filtered in through his mulling thoughts, check out your surroundings, then plan escape. Cracking his eyes open slowly, Ben tried to see where he was, but then quickly shut them again as a small amount of light filtered in and instantly started up a hangover-worthy headache. A groan of pain almost forced its way from his throat, but he quickly pushed it back down. He was pretty sure he didn't want to alert whoever had…wait a second. Where was he?! This definitely wasn't his room, the walls were concrete and from what he could tell, there was little to no furniture other than the bed he was laying on. Which was another thing. He was lying on a bed. And it wasn't his. He had no clue how he'd gotten there, and why he was in someone else's bed. And who—?

The smacking sound of combat boots on a hard surface abruptly snapped Ben out of his contemplating. Quickly jerking his head to the source of the noise, he narrowed his eyes at the shadowy corner, his new cat-like ears flicking towards where the sound seemed to be coming from. More footsteps and the slight outline of a person—at least it wasn't an alien, Ben thought—could be distinguished from the shadows. A soft laugh reached his ears, followed by what sounded like an…evil cackle? Only one creep he knew laughed that creepily. Animo. Why hadn't he thought of it before? Any other of his current enemies would have probably just awoken him forcefully or killed him while he was unconscious. Cowardly, but effective. "Animo! Why the hell did you bring me here?!" Almost seeming to frown, Animo stepped out the shadows and surveyed the angry teen—ahem, middle-schooler—chained to his bed. Reaching over to his right, Animo flicked a switch that turned on a dim light overhead. The light, though not very bright, lit the dark room and brought clearly into view the furious hero. Although with that cute gray tail and ears twitching wildly with anger, and those adorable green eyes narrowed, Ben didn't look very intimidating. More like a fussy kitten upset over having its food bowl taken away. If not for having to retain his dignity and status as a super-evil bad guy, Animo would have swooned then and there. The urge to attack the boy with hugs and just soak in all that cuteness was irresistible. But Animo resisted (he was a doctor after all). "Hey! Answer me! What's with," Ben gestured just barely with his manacled hands at his predicament. "all this? Why am I chained to your bed?!" Hearing his prisoner speak, very loudly in fact, at him seemed to bring him back to the present. "Huh? Oh yes. Well, truth be told Tennyson, I found you too adorable to kill." Animo said all this with such a straight face, and with all the seriousness of a widow at her husband's funeral; it was a feat itself that he managed to say adorable without faltering. "Let me go right no—wait, WHAT?!" God, if the doctor had only thought to bring a camera. Ben's expression now was priceless.

Ben was shocked—no beyond shocked, he had gotten over that a while back, now he was pretty much in the disbelieving stage. Not only had Animo not murdered him in his sleep, he had called him CUTE. It had to be some kind of sick joke. Some sick, perverted, twisted sense of humor that Animo found funny. At least that was the only conclusion Ben could come too. He couldn't actually-? No. But then again, hadn't he mentioned earlier…during the fight… The fight! It came rushing back. That past hour or so, fighting Animo's mutant dinosaur, getting knocked out… Crap.

"Change me back! Change me back now!" Ben shouted angrily at Animo, twisting and writhing in his confines. The doctor seemed a bit taken by surprise at the sudden change of attitude, but he supposed the drug had worn off. Shaking his head in mock apology, the villain walked to the side of the bed and leaned over the captive hero. "Sorry Tennyson, that's not quite…possible." Truth was, Animo couldn't have changed Ben back even if he wanted to, which he didn't. When the cat from the pet store had attacked , its claws had seriously damaged his DNA Configurator's controls, resulting in Ben's current form and the impossibility of his situation. In other words, the device was broken and Ben was stuck being a ten-year old with ears and a tail. His tail, at the moment, was jerking to and fro in an agitated manner, reflecting Ben's inner musings. The flicking appendage drew the eyes of Animo, who stared at it, fascinated. He wanted to reach out…stroke it… A scientific need, nothing else, he firmly reassured himself. As he noticed the older man staring at his tail in a odd way, Ben willed it to still and slipped it behind his back. "Fascinating…" Animo muttered to himself. Ben said nothing, but looked at him distressingly, worried where there was going. Animo was an evil scientist after all. He might want to…dissect him or something. "Tell me, Ben, what does it feel like?" Animo blurted out, no longer able to control his scientific curiosity (because that was certainly all it was). "Oh, awesome. I just love being chained up by crazy psychotic villains, especially on their beds." Ben's words practically dripped venom, his glare leveled and vicious like that of a cornered wolf. Shaking his head in an annoyed manner, the villain reached forward towards the trapped hero and grabbed his mahogany brown hair in his hands. Pulling up swiftly, he forced the youth to look him dead in the eyes. "Your tail." Animo ground out through his teeth. "What does it feel like?" Ben hissed as his hair was pulled roughly, and narrowed his eyes savagely at the doctor. When the boy didn't answer his question still, Animo yanked again, pulling Ben slightly up off the bed and the sound of clanking chains filled the dimly lit room. "Tell me!" He barked. "Gahhh! Stop!" Ben twisted in his grip, gripping the offending hand pulling his hair in such a painful way with his chained hands. But still Animo's grip did not release. "Okay! I'll tell you! Just…stop!" The grip on his hair was relinquished, depositing Ben back onto the bed. "Good boy. Now, let's try this again. No smart comments or insults. What does it feel like to have a tail?" The hero glanced at the mentioned appendage and then said hesitantly, "It feels…sorta like having an extra arm or leg. Just…weird." Nodding his head thoughtfully, Animo suddenly reached forward as if to grab the boy's hair again. Ben flinched and drew back almost involuntarily, eyes glued on the hand. When the chains didn't allow further movement away from the approaching appendage he was sure to cause more hurt, he clenched his eyes shut in apprehension. He tensed, waiting…

…Only to feel a hand…stroking his head gently. "Now was that so hard, little hero?" Ben flinched again, but could not shy away from the petting. The chains saw to that. Animo bared his teeth in a feral grin, sliding a finger down the hero's face, touch feather-light, and then lifted his chin up slowly. Ben's eyes were still tightly shut, not wanting to look upon the face of the evil doctor. To not have to see those eyes…and for the other to realize how pitifully weak he was right now…

…If only he knew that Animo had already come to that conclusion. Just holding this power over the hero sent a thrill down Animo's spine. A tingling sense of excitement like leaping off the edge into the abyss. And he wanted more of that thrill, that sense of control and raw power. He wanted—no needed more. Holding the youth's chin in his hand, Animo's eyes swept over the prone hero on his bed. Ben's wrists were elevated above his head, chained to the metal headboard of the bed. His legs were slightly curled, like he had been trying to roll into a protective ball and had been interrupted. His new appendage, his gray tail, lay limply on the bed, unmoving. Lastly, his face; Animo had never truly thought about how well-featured Ben really was. His smooth, unmarred skin that was just tanned to perfection. His eyes, when open, which at the moment they were not, were a brilliant shade of emerald green, beautiful in both depth and clarity. Usually they shone with a light entirely of their own, but ever since Animo had walked in, they had burned instead of glowed. They burned with a green flame, an all-consuming fire that raged within him. All-in-all, Ben was something of a 'looker'. Animo had just never taken the time to truly appreciate it. Now, while the hero was prone and unresisting to him, he could just take it all in interrupted.

Something about the hero had always been…alluring to him… That much he would admit. But the other part of the attraction was far less modest and far more depraved. But Animo would never stoop so low as to be a pedophile, right…? Even super-villains had standards. But maybe he could exploit the current situation. Use it to his advantage. He had told Ben he wanted revenge on him for all the humiliation, the mockery and shame he'd brought on him. Thanks to the hero, Animo had become a laughing-stock among other super-villains. The literal black sheep in the crime family. All because of one measly teenage hero. Although, Ben wasn't a teen anymore. He was a weak, frail and easily dominated ten-year old. And then there was the ears and tail, surely not something Ben was oh-so-proud of right now. Yes, he could use this to his advantage. If he played his cards right.

All the while Animo mulled over thoughts in his head, his hand still on Ben's chin but his mind far away, Ben finally opened his eyes. He had felt the firm grip on his chin grow light and distant and wondered what was causing Animo to do so. So, curious as humans are, he opened his eyes. Animo had a glassy look in his eyes, not paying a lick of attention to the hero. Ben briefly wondered if Animo was thinking about him. He quickly, hurriedly, dismissed the idea. Why did he even care? He just wanted to get out of here and go home. Pretend this whole thing had never happened. So many lines Ben had strived to draw firmly in his relationship with his villains had been crossed in just the space of a few hours. This whole thing was headed in a direction he very much did not want to go. He pulled on his chains agitatedly. Once again, he was reminded of his predicament. And again, Grandpa Max's instructions rang through his head. One: Take stock of the situation. Captured by Animo, chained to his bed. Check. Two: Consider motives and enemy weaknesses. No idea what Animo is planning, self-conscious towards cracks about his doctorate and mental health. Check. Three: Look for possible escape routes. Hands unusable thanks to chains attached to headboard, legs a maybe, tail..? So far, no possible escape route. Check.

His dilemma was beginning to look more and more hopeless.

Remember the plan, Animo repeated to himself. Dropping his grip on the boy's chin, he stood back from the bed and picked something up from the bedside table. Ben watched him apprehensively, wondering exactly what the villain was doing. When the pale man turned around with the object in his hands it was revealed to be a…cellphone? Confused, and a tiny bit anxious, the youth glanced back and forth between the phone and the man holding it. "What are you..?" He started then trailed off. Animo approached the bed, this time walking to the other side and sitting on the edge. As the mattress dipped beneath the added weight, Ben couldn't help but move away a tiny bit. He leaned over his prisoner and showed him the phone. Ben's eyes followed the movement of his hand with the cellphone, wondering just what Animo was getting at. "See this Tennyson? I'm sure you what it is, seeing as how you formerly were a teen." The villain flipped the phone open and appeared to be punching in a number. The sound of beeping filled the dead silent room with each press of his fingers. Finally when he was done, he turned the screen to Ben. Ben gasped. On the cellphone's small, brightly lit screen was his Grandfather's number. His shocked and dismayed stare glanced quickly to Animo, questioning without words. "Here's the situation, Ben: If you don't do as I say and be a good pet, I'm going to call your grandfather. When he answers, and he will if he values you, I will tell him that I have you at a specified location. Worried, and anxious to 'save' you, he will follow my instructions to go alone to that place. And then, once I have him exactly where I want him, I will set off a series of explosives and eradicate him permanently. So here's your options, either give yourself up to me or your grandfather is as good as dead." For a moment, Ben could only stare at the villain with unparalleled horror. He had two choices…one…he could refuse and Animo would kill Grandpa Max…two…he could surrender to the villain and have God knows what done to him… To anyone else, the decision itself would have been impossible. But Ben was a hero. And that meant others always came before himself. So his answer could only be one.

"I…I…give up. I'll…be your…pet."

Thanks for reading!

Okay people, end of Chapter 2! I think that went rather well, don't you? Don't worry about poor Ben, I'm sure his situation will get better...or maybe not..XD

Also, like, isn't Animo the slowest typer EVER!? I figured he wasn't really the social type so I gave him a super retro cellphone. Yeah guys, it's so ancient you've probably never even heard of it...

It's the flip-phone!

BUM BUM BUM!

Just messing with ya guys, :) I've had a flip-phone before, and it makes me very glad to have IPhone now!

Anyway, thanks for reading and as always, please review! Flaming will be ignored but helpful critique is always appreciated!