Ben 10: Crisis Core
Chapter 2: Mistakes Revealed and Decisions Made
Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy 7 or Ben 10. Everything is nonprofit.
Ben stared at Lucrecia quietly, an unreadable expression on his face… "Ever since he was born I never got to hold him, not even once… You can't call me his mother. That is my sin."
A tear dropped from her slowly watering eyes as the damning words left her mouth; a feeling of shame and guilt oozing from her soul.
However, there was also a sense of relief at baring her soul; her grief bottled in for so long was now free and flowing like a broken dam that had once held back a large ocean. It didn't matter that she had bared her soul to a stranger, only that she had finally acknowledged the truth to herself physically and mentally.
For a moment she did not see the young superhero; instead, she saw her old love "Vincent…" she thought, a knife going through her heart.
While Lucrecia savored the little portion of peace granted to her, Ben was overwhelmed with various emotions over the information that he had just been told: rage, disgust, pity, and sympathy.
However, before he could even begin to address his thoughts, there were several questions that need to be asked.
"Do you know what happened to Vincent Valentine and your son after you left?"
"I left him in my laboratory; however, after the implementation of the Jenova Project, Shinra Manor was abandoned. My son works for Shinra and is now a famous war hero", she murmured quietly.
Barely looking at Tennyson's face, Lucrecia could only see judgmental eyes in the wake of her own guilt.
"You are going to meet your son or at least get a chance to talk to him", Ben remarked quietly, his expressive green eyes filled with determination and several other emotions that Lucrecia couldn't read as utter surprise prompted her to stare him fully in the face.
"You may be a powerful super hero, but Shinra has a vast army; you're just one person, Hojo has the full support of Shinra."
Lucrecia's eyes once again shifted to avoid looking at the young hero's face, not wanting to see green eyes reflect what she already knew: no hope.
"I have been in many situations that were hopeless, but prevailed because I never gave up… I have faced alien warlords, vast fleets and armies that have defeated worlds that were way more advance than my own, and other enemies with powers that are beyond your wildest dreams. It would take more than Shinra has to defeat me.
"I am the Great Ben Tennyson, Welder of the Omnitrix, and Savior of the Universe and I am offering you the chance to change your regrets, what do you have to lose?"
He grinned, a gentle cocky smirk on his mouth, determined but kind eyes urging her to accept his help.
Still certain of her opinion and the lack of hope, Lucrecia stubbornly opened her mouth to decline when suddenly a massive surge of pain erupted in her head.
Whimpering in pain and ignoring Tennyson's startled cry, she shut her eyes; trying to fight off what she dreaded: another vision.
Shut eyes opened to see a dark void… flames everywhere making her son's face look demonic as the burning smell of flesh filled her nostrils.
Desperate to see something else she blinked… zero flames, pitch black darkness, her eyes drawn to a sudden flash of green only to see a faint outline of a face; a hideous red light glowing from its eye glaring at her.
Fear leads to another rapid blinking of her eyes; and a new vision that will (unbeknownst by her) change her fate forever…
In a lush green field, Ben Tennyson stands talking to Vincent, while her son leans against a tree with two men in army attire, each carrying a large sword attached to their back along with another man clad in red with a red sword. Tennyson turns and looks at her with a smile, beckoning her forward. A feeling of hope rips through her and she takes a shaky step forward … then Darkness.
With a start, Lucrecia wakes up; a small gray creature visible from the corner of her eye shocking her into quickly standing up, only to receive a sharp pain inside of her head in return.
"Hey, watch it! You almost killed me with your left heel."
The scientist looked down by her foot, "Ben? Why did you choose to become such a small creature?"
She gently picked up the tiny grey frog-like alien, staring at his large green horizontal silted eyes with curious fasciation.
"The name's Grey Matter right now, I was trying to figure out what was wrong with you; this is my smartest alien."
"Really, she exclaimed in surprise.
"Yep, Galvans are one of the smartest races in the universe and you should really sit down" Ben voiced with concern.
"It's nothing; it just happens sometimes", Lucrecia uncomfortably stated; her tone of voice not encouraging questions.
Not wishing to agitate her more than necessary, Ben dropped the subject and once again asked her if she would accept his help.
"Yes", escaped her lips before she even registered what she was saying in utter surprise.
Even as doubt threatened to cloud her mind once more, a small piece of her clung to the tiny flame of hope that danced in her breast.
" I owe it to them to try; no more mistakes, besides like Tennyson said I have nothing left to lose", she thought with tiny sad smile on her face.
"We need a good plan", muttered Grey Matter pacing in front of Lucrecia. "I need more information… Lucrecia, where is the headquarters of Shinra located?
"Midgar, it would be suicide to go there."
"Don't worry, I have the perfect alien for this", he said with a grimace. The hero touched the omnitrix emblem on the back of his green jumpsuit laced with black on the hands, legs, waist, and throat.
"Ghostfreak ", Ben cried out in a creepy sinister voice; Lucrecia could only watch in shocked awe as the grayish ghostlike alien; its body sectioned with black lines disappeared.
Scanning the cave for the teen, Lucrecia felt goosebumps on the back of her neck as she could feel someone watching her. She jumped when the alien appeared right in front of her.
"Fascinating", she murmured; the scientist within her itching to examine the alien more closely, her doubts somewhat set to rest by the demonstration of his mysterious powers.
"Lucrecia, pack your bags because our next stop is Midgar," a chill ran down her back as Ghostfreak stared at her with his single green eye.
Meanwhile…
Professor Paradox appeared in front of the Bellwood movie theater, just as a certain couple exited the building. "Hello, Gwen and Kevin, I have some unfortunate news for you…"