'This is exactly like Star Wars,' a part of his mind noted bitterly. 'Fuckin' Tatooine.'
As he wandered around the swap meet of the barren desert planet they were on, the Osmosian had to internally commend himself for the reference.
The terrain of the desolate rock truly was reminiscent of Anakin Skywalker's home world. There was a multitude of aliens scurrying around them, squeezing between one another to reach the stands of whatever foreign objects were on display for the masses. The various species they slid past (Lenopans, Lepidopterrans, Uxorites, and Gourmands, to name a few) seemed civil enough, if only a tad too curt.
However, they were on a mission. And if they wanted to attract as little attention to themselves as possible, they needed to conceal themselves.
The exploits of Ben Tennyson and his Alien Force had already reached the far ends of the galaxy. The stories of his greatest battles were of high interest on the extranet, with constant buzz surrounding the heroic grandson of the greatest Plumber in the Milky Way galaxy.
But his teammates were not left in the sidelines.
While there were more headlines that blatantly featured the Wielder of the Omnitrix, there were still reporters and news chiefs who wished for a scoop on the team behind the hero.
Gwendolyn Tennyson was the second highest search result on the extranet. The granddaughter of the esteemed Magister Tennyson and the High Magus of Anodyne, Verdona. The less renowned but more powerful one of the cousins, whom had inherited the ability to manipulate mana from the miniscule percentage of Anodite that was in their blood. She was the Hero's oldest companion and the bond between the two cousins was a popular topic.
Although he came very close, Kevin Ethan Levin was the third highest search result when reading about the Alien Force. With his history as the infamous mutant Kevin 11, it came off as a great shock when the word got out of the ex-con joining Ben's team and making his way up the Plumber ranks. The boy, with his Osmosian abilities that were rivaled only by Aggregor, was seen as both a savior and a destroyer; only expected to fight for himself and himself only. Which was why the eventual relationship between himself and Gwendolyn caused much controversy.
But he did not want to open that can of worms.
Moving on, the next highest searches were of Ben's countless ex-girlfriends. Julie Yamamoto, Elena Validus, Ester the Kraaho, and Kai Green.
Following the girls was the newest addition to Ben's team, the Revonnahgander who rose to the top of his class in the Plumbers Academy; Rook Blonko. Ben's partner and trainee, assigned to him after Gwen and Kevin decided to leave Bellwood for Friedkin University. Around this time, an alien society had culminated beneath Ben's hometown. This initially led to some negative reception towards the Hero of Heroes, who pranced around with his alien partner to stop bad guys and save the day. However, as human and alien relations began to evolve and change for the better, the disapproving voices of the people of Earth and beyond slowly began to shift. Everyone began to see Rook as the hyper-competent sidekick and occasional savior to the Hero of Heroes, exactly as he actually was.
That was why they were disguised.
Gwendolyn was in her Lucky Girl alter-ego, her formerly shoulder-length hair reaching her lower back in a long ponytail. Instead of her regular cyan-themed outfit, she wore a black battle suit with purple accents; much like the costume she wore during the Colossus Kevin debacle.
Beside her, Rook stood in a brown cloak with a low-hanging hood. He wore black goggles over his eyes and his Proto-Tech armor was swapped out for Kevin's Rooter suit. Any evidence of affiliation with the Red Spots was ripped off of the outfit, which was easy when considering the true purpose of the Black Ops faction.
In all honesty, Kevin thought, the edgy look didn't fit Rook at all. But who was he to judge?
Meanwhile, he stood before his fellow Plumbers, titanium plating covering his entire person. A similar-looking helmet stood atop his head, diverting any suspicion away from his true identity.
So he hoped.
With waning confidence, the trio made their way to the cars that were on sale. Every so often an alien would send a questioning glance their way, only for Kevin to beckon and silently challenge them.
Gwendolyn rolled her eyes and grabbed the Osmosian, disregarding his sense of personal space that was only really a thing whenever there was too much mana radiating off of her. She quickly shushed his cry of protest.
"We just need something that's fast but cheap." she reminded the boy, who simply gave an eyebrow wiggle in response.
"Don't worry. I got this." he assured his girlfriend, advancing towards the seller, whose back was turned to the trio as he held an audio receiver up to his ear.
The Osmosian, known for his lack of patience and temperament, simply tapped the guy on the shoulder. When the seller responded, Kevin hoped that his ears were deceiving him.
"One second, good sir," a nasally voice mumbled with one finger up. He whispered something under his breath into the device and chuckled, tossing it away. "So, what brings to Servco Argitstix today?"
The Osmosian held his breath as he looked down at his former partner in crime. The one who fucked him over time and time again. The one who could get him out of a bad situation only to pull him into something much worse.
He should've expected it.
As Argit gave that faux-affable grin that all con men were required to learn, the Osmosian gritted his teeth and silently thanked Rook for the spare helmet.
"Give me the cheapest hunka junk you got." he grinded out roughly. Argit raised an eyebrow.
"Jeez. What's up your ass today, man?" the ship dealer shot back. He turned away and beckoned for the other male to follow him.
Beside the Osmosian, his girlfriend grabbed his hand and gave him a look that screamed, 'Don't do anything stupid'. Rook opted out of the exchange and was busy wandering around the plaza. Kevin rolled his eyes at the Revonnahgander and nodded at his Anodite lover, proceeding to follow the porcupine-like alien.
As the con and ex-con made their way down the aisle, Argit decided to try lifting the mood with some banter.
"So…" he drawled awkwardly after several beats of silence. "You some kind of energy-based lifeform or something?"
Even beneath the helmet, Kevin simply gave Argit a blank stare.
"Or like, are you a bounty hunter?" he continued, seemingly ignoring the silent treatment that the Osmosian was giving him. His eyes widened and his ears perked up as he quickly backtracked. "Because if you are, please don't kill me or kidnap me or whatever. I can pay you double- no, triple - the amount they're giving you-"
"I just. Want. A ship." Kevin cut him off roughly. "Nothing fancy. Just something cheap and fast. That's all I want."
The dealer raised his arms defensively. "Alright, alright."
The two finally closed in on a fairly small cruiser. It was only big enough to carry around five people, and that was only if they squeezed in. It was dingy and shoddy. But looks could be deceiving.
"When I said 'hunka junk', I didn't mean it literally, Argit." groaned the Osmosian.
Suddenly, Argit narrowed his eyes.
"Wait a minute," he began slowly. "Don't I know you from somewhere?"
"No."
Kevin cursed his inability to mask his voice.
"No, I've definitely heard that voice before." Argit implicitly questioned, staring intently at the armored Osmosian before him.
He glared into the eye holes of the titanium helmet before a spark of recognition shone in his eyes.
Kevin breathed a quiet, "Shit."
"Did you get a haircut-"
The Osmosian wasted no time in throwing the conman across the room, triggering the Argitstix security alarm. Groaning in frustration, the Osmosian quickly sent out a distress signal and began to square off with the waves of Techadon robots that were headed his way.