This is the first part in my Marvel/Ben 10 crossover. I was inspired to write this by Ben 10: Age of Marvels by I craft experiences (great writer btw). I've seen crossovers where Ben's universe is combined with the Marvel universe, but I really wanted to focus on the space aspect of it, blending the lore and cultures of the show and the comics/movies in a way I hope is unique. I'm a huge fan of both of these franchises, so I hope I do the characters justice. There are a lot of deep cut easter eggs from both, and I just really hope it all works. I'd be glad to hear any feedback you guys have.
2005; Location: Just outside Bellwood, New York
Ben Tennyson grumbled as he stomped through the forest ground he was camped out in, cursing the fact that his grandpa had gone behind his back and invited his cousin Gwendolyn on the summer trip that he'd been looking forward to for months now. His cousin was born only a couple minutes before himself, the two of them looking almost like twins barring their different colored hair, and yet they had next to nothing in common, aside from their shared proficiency in combat sports. He hopped into Grandpa Max's RV, 'The Rustbucket', with an excitement that was immediately deflated by the annoying sight of his ginger-haired relative.
Ben had felt that his grandpa had been distancing himself from the boy for years now. Ben's great uncle Gordon would tell him how similar he was to his grandpa, almost scarily so. He said that Ben's confident swagger, cavalier attitude, and insatiable drive to explore the unexplored reminded him of Max's days as a fresh NASA recruit. "I wouldn't be surprised if you followed right in his footsteps!" He would notice his grandpa's scowl as the older man said this, the dark look a sharp contrast to his comical Hawaiian shirt. Ben still doesn't know exactly why his grandpa hated the idea of them being similar, but he felt a sense of inadequacy, pushing himself to do anything he could to impress his grandpa.
He doesn't remember a time when his parents showed him any validation or care, remaining as aloof and disinterested as people living in the same house could possibly be. Gwen always complained about her parents being overbearing, but he always felt jealous that Uncle Frank and Aunt Natalie were so involved and caring about Gwen's life. Their attention on Gwen never translated to him though, because to them, he'd always be the annoying nephew that accidentally ruined Gwen's 7th birthday when he puked on the cake. She hadn't forgiven him either, and it showed.
He had tried striking up some conversation with her, but when all he got in response was a look of disgust, as if he were one of the mealworms grandpa likes to cook up, he figured their ride to their first campsite would be better spent in silence. When they finally got there, the feelings of disappointment from a ruined trip combined with a loss of appetite from the 'delicacies' they were served for dinner pushed Ben to ditch his family back at the clearing. "Anything out here's gotta be better than back there!"
Ben yelled in surprise as the shooting star he was staring at suddenly veered in a different direction, on a direct collision path to his secluded spot in the woods. He saw the flames surrounding the object as it shot down to Earth from the atmosphere. He stared at the falling meteor in shock for a few moments before his brain caught up. Alert! Alert! Run you moron!
He didn't even take a moment to look back at the impending wreck, his shorter legs moving as fast as they could to escape the impact zone. He didn't quite make it as the force from the crash landing launched him forward to face-plant into the ground. Ben woke up with a gasp, the ringing in his ears giving him a headache. He tried to open his eyes, but could barely manage a squint as a bright emerald light almost blinded him.
The 10-year-old stumbled up to the edge of the giant crater, not realizing that the ground was unstable, and consequently fell almost on top of a metal ball that was slightly cracked open, leaking the green light. As if it sensed him approaching, the crack widened, entirely displaying the object stored inside the ball. Ben was hoping it was some cool space tech like a laser gun or a lightsaber, but was confused at the sight of a watch. It wasn't an ordinary looking watch by any means, the whole device was bulky and looked like it would take up half his forearm, and the faceplate didn't actually display time, just some weird green hourglass shape.
The curious boy reached forward unconsciously, curiosity and wonder taking over his body, but before he could react, the watch jumped up and clamped on his left wrist, slightly changing shape to fit snugly and securely. He yelled as he felt a sharp pinch, then dropped to his knees in pain as what felt like drills began to dig into his arm bones. Heat spread all around his wrist, quickly going from uncomfortable to excruciating, and as he looked down at the watch, he couldn't tell when the alien device ended and his wrist began, almost like the two were fused together.
The boy gasped for air as the pain finally stopped and a small beeping noise emanated from the watch, accompanied by soft female voice, "Genetic assimilation complete. Greetings Magister Maxwell Tennyson, I am ZENNITH, and I have been designed by the First Thinker to assist you in adjusting to the calibration of the Omnitrix." Ben was terrified now, scrambling backwards as if he could distance himself from his own wrist. Why does this thing know his grandpa? And what the heck is a 'magister' or an 'omnitrix'? "Your presence on Primus has been requested by the First Thinker, where your training will begin. The specially-designed bioids will help you become a sentinel for peace and understanding in the universe. The First Thinker believes in you Magister Tennyson." Before Ben's racing mind could catch up to everything, a small green pulse expanded from the Omnitrix to form a dome around Ben. He felt a tingle in his fingers and looked to see his left hand begin to disintegrate. He panicked and started running back to his campsite, calling out for anyone to hear. He'd even take his cousin if it meant not turning into green sparkles.
"Gwen! Grandpa! Somebody please help me!" He could instantly recognize the bright pattern of his grandpa's shirt. Once the aging man noticed what was happening, he called out for Ben and began sprinting towards him faster than he's ever seen his grandpa move. "Grandpa! Help m-" With a small pop and fading green sparks the boy disappears, with Max's arms only meeting empty air.
It seems like groggily waking up with unfamiliarity is something Ben should be getting used to, given it was the second time it's happened that night alone. He couldn't find the strength to open his eyes, but he could hear a buzzing and whirring noise slowly approach him.
With a groan, Ben rolled to his side, pressing his forehead into the cool metal floor to soothe his aching head. He pressed his knuckles into the floor and willed himself to get up once again, blinking while trying to regain his vision. He was greeted with an unfamiliar sight, a room full of different contraptions and computers that displayed symbols completely unfamiliar to him. One wall of the metal room was entirely glass, allowing Ben to see the area he'd just been sent to.
As he approached the large window, he could see for miles out, giving him the impression that the room he woke up in was far higher than ground level. He didn't recognize the area, not even from a book or map, as the forest that stretched for miles out seemed almost alien to him. The strangest part of the area was the giant volcano-looking mound. He says volcano-looking because even though there was a molten liquid flowing from the mouth, it was a toxic green color, and it seemed to flow in pools all around the planet.
"Woah… where… where am I?" He placed a hand on the glass and stared out on the foreign land in wonder. "Ah! What the-!" A large wasp-like cybernetic creature suddenly rose into Ben's view, startling him to trip backwards onto his butt. The creature was nothing but razor sharp edges, stingers, and shaped metal, with rapidly flapping organic wings. The eyes of the creature showed no emotion, but a mass of green liquid, similar to that coming from the volcano, swirled around in its eyes.
The eyes never strayed away from Ben as it began hovering closer to the window. In response, Ben began sliding backwards, moving until his back bumped into a metal pod. He turned around and used the pod to lift himself up, but a small shock to his hand made him jump away with a yelp. "Aw man! I cannot catch a break today!" He complained as he shook out his hand and looked to see the wasp robot was gone. The pod made a hissing noise and started shifting open, revealing a smaller pod inside of it, similar to a Russian nesting doll. Steam rose as the inner pod opened as well, slowly dissipating to reveal a blonde girl, a few years older than Ben's age, with a black and white jumpsuit being generated along her body.
The girl's eyes suddenly opened revealing a shade of emerald that uniquely ran in the Tennyson family. In fact, if Ben didn't know any better, he would say that she is a Tennyson, considering she looks like an aged-up version of Gwen with blonde hair. She looked at him and squinted her eyes in slight confusion. "Are you… do you work with the First Thinker?"
Now Ben was starting to get annoyed. "I dunno who the heck this First Thinker guy is, but I've been hearing non-stop about this guy and how he wanted to kidnap me and something about my grandpa being a 'Magic Sir', and I'm sick of getting no answers! You gotta tell me where I am, who you are, and what this watch is doing on my wrist!" The boy was breathing heavily as he came to the end of his rant, with his left arm being stuck out in the girl's direction. To her credit, the girl didn't seem offended by his rude gestures and remarks, but she did seem to be lost in her thoughts.
"How is this possible? The Omnitrix was designed to only assimilate to Maxwell Tennyson's genetic data, any other merge attempt should be unsuccessful." She started walking towards the computer console located at the end of the room. Ben was confused as to why his grandpa would know this person.
"How do you know my Grandpa Max?" He followed her up to the computer to see what she was doing, not like it meant anything to him when the symbols were practically gibberish to him.
She looked down at him in thought. "He's your grandfather? Of course, your genetic information must have been similar enough that the Omnitrix recognized you as Max Tennyson. What is your name?" She slightly crouched to meet his eyes and gave him a reassuring smile.
He didn't quite bring down his walls, but her kind smile was a bit comforting. "Ben. Now please, tell me what the heck is happening."
Her eyes, in contrast to the wasp robots, were very understanding. "Yes, you must be very confused, and I'm sorry that things have been moving so fast for you. I am the Unitrix, I was created by the First Thinker as a prototype to the Omnitrix, but I was repurposed by Azmuth, a brilliant inventor known as the First Thinker, to be the custodian of Primus."
Ben looked down at his wrist. "Unitrix? So you're like a robot or something? Why do you look like my cousin?"
"I was designed to absorb, contain, and to some extent, manipulate the DNA of various sapient life forms found throughout the universe. When you came into contact with the pod containing my original core, it analyzed your DNA and created a synthetic body based on your DNA. I can only hold one sample of DNA at a time, one of the programming flaws that was improved by the First Thinker on the Mark 1 Omnitrix you currently wear."
Ben's face brightened in excitement. "So you can shapeshift into whatever you come into contact with? That's so cool!"
She smiled at his excitement. "Maybe, but you can do much 'cooler' things with the Omnitrix." She pointed it out and grasped his arm, raising the Omnitrix to his eye level.
Ben looked with skepticism. "Really? Because this dumb watch doesn't even tell the time, it's just a useless piece of metal that burned my wrist."
"Well of course it doesn't do anything until you activate it. Here." She reached down and pressed the small buttons near the face plate, immediately making the core rise with a small chime. A silhouette of an oddly shaped figure was seen on the screen, looking like a ghost, with a wispy tail. Ben looked at it curiously and began to experiment with it, noticing that the ring around the faceplate could twist around. The silhouette changed to a large figure with 4 arms and what looked to be a huge amount of muscle. Ben shook his head in surprise, not even thinking about what those buttons were for earlier. Ben twisted it one more time and saw a different figure, which seemed much more human-shaped than the others, barring the larger arms and spiky head. "Go ahead Ben, press down on the core to test it out."
He looked up at the Unitrix with apprehension, still not even close to understanding what was happening. Still he pressed down on the core and was blinded by the brightest flash of light he's seen yet. Whatever was happening felt really odd, like his skin and bones were expanding and hardening up, like rock. It felt like minutes, but only a second went by before the light died down, and in the young boy's place was a creature made of molten rock and fire.
"What happened?" He looked down at his hands and screamed in fear. "Ahh! I'm on fire! What the heck happened to my voice?! Why am I on fire?!" The flaming creature rasped out, and it was then that Ben realized those weren't spikes in the silhouette, but flames.
The Unitrix took a moment to calm the panicking fire alien down. "Ben! It's alright, you're not on fire, you are fire. Take a moment to look at yourself."
Ben took a couple deep breaths and realized that he didn't feel any burning. He didn't even feel warm. "Hey… look at me. I'm totally hot!" He laughed as he started messing around with his new body, flexing and testing out his new limbs. He accidentally shot a fire ball out from his open hand, nearly hitting Unitrix in the process.
She giggled despite nearly being fried and looked at the singed spot on the wall. "I guess your first bit of training will be learning how not to do that."
He laughed a bit sheepishly before noting just what she said. "Wait, training? What do you mean? I gotta get back home, I have a summer trip with my grandpa to get back to. Although I wouldn't mind if you took my dweeb cousin instead, if you know what I mean?" He winked and walked towards her nonchalantly. "Alright, it's been fun meeting you, Unitrix. Nah that just sounds wrong, I'm gonna call you 'Shifter'..." He thought about it for a moment before shaking his head. "Nah, I wanna save that one actually. I'll just call you… Eunice! Like Unitrix, but it doesn't sound like a boring science fair project." She smiled at him, seeming to like her new name. "Alright Eunice, send me back."
Her smile turned sympathetic. "Oh Ben, you don't understand. The Omnitrix is the most powerful device in the universe. At its full potential, the Omnitrix will allow you to transform into over 15 million different alien species, 87% of which have unique physiological abilities. Many of these species are also extinct or near-extinct, making their abilities a rarity in the universe. The majority of beings in the universe, either benevolent or malevolent, will be seeking this device for their own personal gain. As its wielder, it is your duty to defend the Omnitrix from all who seek to abuse it, and through your training, learn to be a great force for peace and understanding in the universe."
Ben grew especially upset at the explanation. "Yeah I've heard that from the watch lady already, doesn't change the fact that I was hung up on a tree by my underwear not 5 hours ago, and I just want to go on a relaxing and fun summer road trip to forget about my stupid school and my stupider bullies. So please, just send me back home and give this watch to someone else."
"I'm sorry this burden fell to you Ben. If it were up to me, I would take your grandfather in your place, but unfortunately it isn't. I don't know how to take you back to your homeworld, as Primus' location is only known by the First Thinker."
"Well can't you just find this Azmuth guy and make him take me back home? Why isn't he here if he's the one who had me kidnapped by a watch in the first place?!"
Eunice sighed and turned back to the computer. "That's gonna be a problem. Azmuth– I mean the First Thinker– isn't connected to Primus, which is a problem as he should always have some sort of connection to the codon stream."
Ben just stared, eyes wide and mouth agape. "I… I have no clue what any of that means. Are- are we on a different planet?!"
"Yes, we are currently on the planet Primus, an organic machine created by the First Thinker in order to contain the Codon Stream, a liquid database that holds the DNA of almost every sapient being from the nearest 12 galaxies. The system it resides in is unknown, but the nearby space probes indicate that the location is at the edge of an undetermined galaxy."
The symbol on his chest began beeping and flashing red, and after a few moments, Ben's form was covered in the red light, returning him to his original body. He looked down to his hands, seeing his little fingers instead of fire and rock. "What happened? I didn't do that."
"It's a safety measure; given the importance and danger of this device if it fell into the wrong hands, the First Thinker installed limiting functions, such as a time limit and a restricted number of available species. Both of these restrictions will lighten the further along you get in your training." She calmly explained to the boy.
Ben once again walked up to the window, now able to see his regular form in the reflection. "I'm really stuck here aren't I? On an unknown, unfindable planet with a weird watch that can turn me into aliens that was meant for my grandpa, who is apparently much more than a regular astronaut."
Eunice approached, feeling sorry for the boy, as the life he had before seemed to be over. "Your grandfather never told you about who he was or what he did?"
He looked down at her. "No, my great uncle always told me that he was an astronaut. I wanted to be like him when I grew up, I wanted to see space. Going to another planet and turning into aliens isn't what I expected." His head bowed in sadness as he thought about the family he may never see again.
She placed a hand on his shoulder, though his gaze never left the wide expanse of the alien world. "Your grandfather was so much more than a regular astronaut." He looked up in surprise at that statement. "He was known throughout the universe as one of its greatest heroes and defenders. He worked as a Plumber, a unified, intergalactic peacekeeping force that deposed tyrants, settled planetary disputes, and acted as a beacon of hope to a previously lawless galaxy. The organization has gone defunct in recent years, but your grandfather's legacy lives on. He was chosen by the First Thinker due to his legendary acts of selflessness and bravery."
Ben stood in the silence that followed, thinking over the situation he had found himself in. From what he's heard so far, it's looking like there might not be a way back home; he'll be missing out on his summer trip, little league, basically his entire childhood. Despite the fact that Eunice was kind (and pretty, but he tried not to dwell on that, given she was basically like his sister), her presence did little to comfort him. Then he started thinking about who he left behind, the things that actually mattered to him beyond the fun and thrill.
And he was dismayed to realize that he barely had anything.
The only people that ever really cared about him were his grandpa and great uncle, and even then, great uncle Gordon saw him more as his 'brother's kid's kid' than as his nephew. He tended to be a loner at school, barring his new friend Jonesy, who'd only been in Bellwood for a couple months now.
He'd noticed how much his grandpa had been pulling away lately; the one person that was always there for Ben, the person he'd admired more than anyone in the world, seemed to be just out of reach. Ben blamed himself, but he didn't know exactly why. Was his grandpa ashamed of him? Did he finally realize that Ben Tennyson, the bratty school delinquent wasn't worth the trouble?
"Eunice… Would… Do you think my grandpa would be proud if I went through with this? Helping people with the watch, I mean. Would this… Azmuth dude be proud?" Eunice furrowed her brow at the change of topic. "I'm gonna live up to his legacy, I'm gonna show him that I'm actually worth it, no matter how long I have to train on this green robot planet."
Eunice didn't know how to respond to that– she might've been created for the purpose of understanding different cultures, but she was not an empath. Despite this, she did see a fire in his eyes, one that she suspected Max Tennyson would be proud of regardless. "We can get started as soon as you wish, Ben, though I need to caution you, it will be difficult and there is no shame in taking it slow."
He smirked to himself, guess she'll find out sooner or later that taking it slow wasn't his style. "When it comes down to sink or swim, I've found it's easier just to jump in the deep end. Let's get started." He pressed the buttons on the now-recharged Omnitrix, raising the core. He twisted it a few times and stopped on a random silhouette. He looked up at Eunice who already seemed to understand Ben's incorrigibly rebellious nature. "Let's try this guy on for size!" He slammed down on the watch, flooding the room in a burst of green.
2009; Chandilar, Throneworld of the Shi'ar Empire
Chandilar is an interesting little world sat at the center of the Shi'ar's massive empire, and it is a mixed bag of different species. It wouldn't be out of place to find citizens with various avian-like features, but many of those characteristics had been slowly disappearing as the expanding Shi'ar would 'marry' other cultures and add to the gene pool, so to speak. Contrary to how the aggressive growth of their empire would seem, the Shi'ar people had been quite diplomatic during their age of exploration. As other planets began to rise in power, and colonized planets began to rebel, the Shi'ar had to match the rising threats with greater brutality.
Majestor D'Ken Neramani (not to be confused with a Magister) had been leading the Shi'ar Intergalactic Empire for the past decade, but when their expansion came to a sudden halt, he was left in a very unenviable position. The Galvan, the Spartoi, and the Tetramand practically fenced them into their corner of the galaxy, and with the Incursions increasing in their aggression on their planets, they were fighting a war on multiple fronts. He was pressured by the Prime Minister Araki and the Shi'ar Death Commandos to make larger moves against the blockade, but the Galvan ensured they were far outclassed in technology.
They needed some sort of edge on their enemies; D'Ken chose a spy to infiltrate Galvan Prime in order to find anything they could use to cripple their enemy. He knew it would be a large challenge, but he had faith in his spy, his eldest daughter, Cal'syee the Deathbird.
"My lord!" He was brought out from his thoughts by a large being, bearing the Gladiator head dressing and crest of Strontia on his chest. D'Ken has always been apprehensive of his presence, knowing that the upper limits of this being's power was unknown. "That bastard slime Milleous has just laid siege on Tryl'sart! Let me take my commandos and finish what was already started on Incursia and reduce their super weapon to rubble! We must take action!" The fanatical and overzealous Strontian known as Kallark was the leader of the Shi'ar Death Commandos.
D'Ken dismissed the thought, casually leaning back into his throne once more. "Tryl'sart's can hold out for several cycles, and even if it can't, it would be an acceptable loss. It would be a mistake to provoke the same weapons that nearly wiped out the Rigellians. Besides, I have a spy planted on Galvan Prime, and once we've assimilated them and their technology into our empire, the Incursions will be a paltry threat." The sounds of battle outside the palace walls had disturbed the gathered council.
Prime Minister Araki stepped forward following a rather loud explosion and pointed to a cybernetically enhanced Skrull. "Chieftain Flaw, lead a local militia to settle whatever squabble-"
A female figure was launched through the wall of the palace, falling at the feet of D'ken. He looked down to see the classically avian appearance of a pure-blooded Shi'ar. Lady Deathbird lay unconscious, a couple of her finger talons broken and her wings slightly singed. Another figure floated down before them, hoverboard slightly humming as it began to power down. His mag-boots blared as he leapt from the board to the gathered soldiers and politicians below. The greaves went up to his knees and led up to a full set of blue proto-tech armor modified with infinitum metal from Khoros as a gift from the Tetramand Emperor Gar Red-Wind. On top of it all is a darker colored jacket weaved with Kotati metal fibers, a large green hourglass spray painted across the back. A small device was attached to his temple, directly connecting to his frontal lobe to feed him info through a HUD. Finally, a proto-tool was attached across the hourglass on his back, currently not in-hand, but ready in an instant to be pulled out. His face looked rather young, framed with his semi-long, tousled brunette hair. His eyes gave away his experience and confidence, emerald green eyes shining with amusement at the sight of the angered Shi'ar warriors.
"I'm afraid this'll be more than just a squabble Prime Minister. I dunno if you realized, but the Galvan haven't been aggressive in this little beef you have with them, but let's just hope that they won't see this as a declaration of war." The teen's smirk incensed Gladiator, who stepped forward with energy building in his eyes.
"You threaten our empire, worm?!" The teen gave no indication that the champion of Strontia was even worth his time, glancing over him with a bored look.
"Listen mohawk, you put a hand on me and you'll start an intergalactic incident, which is too bad, since I'd love nothing more than to show you the humiliation of getting your ass kicked by a teenager." Kallark growled but was firmly held in place by Araki. The teen then turned to face D'Ken once more. "I'm just here to bring your daughter home before curfew and warn you that sending her out again is gonna lead to a full-scale war. I've heard you're also struggling with the Incursions, so if you see Princess Attea, let her know her favorite monkey-boy says hello." He lazily waved and jumped to his board, mag-boots activating and firmly attaching him.
D'Ken notices the watch sitting on the teen's wrist, slightly obscured by the jacket. "The Brood, Chimera Sui Generis, and Chitauri all have high prices on your head, Ben Tennyson. I wonder if they would bid over your corpse?"
Ben seemed to consider it for a moment. "Why don't you call them and find out. Send your commandos once you get an answer, and we'll come to an 'agreement' like I did with the Universal Church of Truth, hm?" D'Ken flinched, recalling how quickly the powerful cult's Grand Unifier was beaten, with his face plastered all over the Extranet. The hoverboard began flying away with none of the Shi'ar raising to the air to attempt to stop him. Ben flipped the bird to the avians as he shouted. "Azmuth says hello!"
D'Ken turned to his advisor, his hand clenched in a powerful grip. "Let every one of our military outposts know that if Ben Tennyson is seen in our system again, he is to be captured or killed on sight, no exception. We'll do what Vilgax never could and destroy that brat once and for all!"
Meanwhile, Ben was breaking the planet's atmosphere as he pressed a button on the device on his temple. Nanomachines from the device extended to form a breathing apparatus, while a hard-light dome was generated over the rest of his head. He laughed, doing a couple spins in the air as he entered the vacuum of space. Seeing a large ship break through a jump point, he altered his flight path to meet it.
The forest greet paint job on the ship worked for stealth, but it was kind of defeated by the painted designs and decals all over, from hourglass shapes to alien symbols. A large '10K' was painted in white along one side of the ship. The ship itself was actually a Stealth-Hawk stolen from a Super Skrull that gave him quite a lot of trouble, but it was given much more than just a fresh coat of paint.
The primary engine is an assembly of different technologies, utilizing the base engine block from Khoros upgraded with Galvan and Kree technology. The external thrusters were mounted on a 360 degree pivot point, allowing for unparalleled control and evasive ability. The weapon systems were made from the same metal in the armor used by the Prypiatosian-B, allowing the weapons to fire indefinitely without risk of overheating the weapons. The armor plating on the ship was formed with taydenite, making light and laser based weapons effectively useless.
It was his pride and joy: The Rustbucket v2
"Hey Gluto, open up the hanger for me. Get ready to jump, I don't think the Shi'ar appreciate my humor." Ben pressed a finger to his temple as his board approached the rear of the ship. The Protost, Gluto, responded with synthesized noises and grunts.
"Hey! People totally like my humor, they love me on Contraxia." Ben took a second to think about what he said as he flew through the open hangar, the artificial atmosphere generating around him. "Ya'know, maybe you got a point after all."
The hangar wasn't anything too extravagant, with there only being enough room for smaller vehicles, like his hoverboard or the motorcycle he built from scratch, the Tenn Speed. Once the massive doors closed and it was safe for Ben to deactivate his helmet, he turned to walk to the head of the ship, only to be tackled by a dark blue creature with a bright gold collar around its neck. It looked like a cross between a dog and a dinosaur, its jaws being sharp and strong enough to chew through steel. Such a powerful maw wasn't used for hunting though, rather being used to lick Ben's face all over. "Hey! Who's my good girl, how've you been buddy?" He laughed as he lifted himself up to his feet, petting the dog-like alien and scratching behind her ears. "C'mon Zed, we still have some work to do. And after, we'll go on a little hunting trip on Terradino, sounds good?" Zed's tail went wagging like crazy and as Ben started walking further in the ship, she trotted alongside him.
He walked past the left wing of the ship, which held the sleeping quarters for himself, his co-pilot, and whatever guests they had on-board. He got to a door that was sealed off with a red light, and a scanner went up and down his figure, turning the light green. The door opened up to reveal the bridge of the ship, his blobby co-pilot sitting at his flight station, each of his three eyes looking at a different screen of information. He sat down in his own chair, kicking his feet up on the control panel in front of him and letting Zed lie down right by his chair. "ZENNITH, sweetie, what else we do we got on the backlog?"
A hologram of a small feminine frog alien appeared on the control panel; she was modeled after one of the leading scientists of Galvan Prime. "Xarta has requested assistance with a new wave of Deviants and Kymellia II has activated a distress beacon to locate an insurgent force experimenting on anti-matter said to be hiding near the planetary core. Furthermore, Gar Red-Wind has personally asked for your presence on Khoros for 'reasons undisclosed'. Finally, Nova Prime has once again left a message requesting your official cooperation and enlistment into the Nova Corps." Gluto chuckled at that last part, with Ben joining him for a full belly laugh.
"Oh man, hearing that never gets old. Send a message back to Nova Prime telling her that I'd rather go skinny dipping on Kylmyys than join up with the Gold Domes. Alright Gluto, taking care of those Xartan Deviants shouldn't even be a challenge, set a course for Xarta, but add a stop on Knowhere. Looks like the next couple of cycles are gonna be busy!"
So... what do you think? Good? Terrible? Let me know honestly and seriously don't hold back, don't worry I can take it. I'm still trying to figure out my voice in writing, so if there are any critiques to the story or writing style, I'd love to hear it. This universe will use the MCU as a base for character personalities and stories, but with heavy alterations from the comics, as you could probably tell from this chapter. Next chapter shouldn't be too long, so see you then! (Cross posted on AO3)