Guess what? I'm back and deader than ever! Ah, Monster High puns.
Anyways, what follows is a chapter written by me, of course. But I'm not the only person you should thank. Ever since Ben's Halloween Fiasco, this reader has been at my side (not literally of course) practically handing me ideas and suggestions on a silver platter, all of which make this story a 100% better. This person, even if they did hop on the band wagon (I hope I used that term right) at the very beginning, has been such an inspiration to me and this story, they deserve recognition.
I demand every one of you out there get out of your chairs and get down on the floor to bow before the screen as we all thank the mighty DJ Rodriguez! Bow! Bow! Bow before their wonderful might (a little overboard, huh?)!
Now that everyone is done bowing and groveling, we can get on with the story! As always, review and comment and below, and don't be afraid to send me your ideas for this story! And for those of you who are bored out of their skulls, don't worry! Things will pick up soon, I guarantee it!
"Morning, Charmcaster. Sleep well?" Ben asked the sorceress.
"As well as anyone can wrapped up in a mummy's bandages." Charmcaster smiled as she rubbed her numb arms and hands. She then proceeded to stretch herself as far as she could to get the kinks out of her spine as Ben went about the newly cleaned kitchen making breakfast. After his first couple of nights of staying with Spectra, it became abundantly clear that he wouldn't be finding a new home anytime soon, which was just fine with Spectra; it made their relationship all the more cozier. And as such, Ben had taken some time to clean up parts of the house that he frequented, namely the kitchen, bathroom, and living room where he slept. The rest of the house he left alone, as Spectra found it seemingly relaxing. Said ghost came floating down from the ceiling, rubbing her eyes before pecking Ben on the cheek as he poured three glasses of orange juice; he had managed to scrap together enough money from his job at the Coffin Bean to buy groceries for him and Charmcaster and Spectra when the thought suited her.
"Ugh. I swear, you two are worse than me and Dark Star were." Charmcaster chided, turning away as Ben returned the kiss. She still wasn't entirely over her short relationship with Dark Star, taking every chance she could to get back at him for what he had done. She cleared the thought out of her head and grabbed one of the orange juice glasses in her hand, sipping the juice and licking her lips. "To my first day as a good guy," she said, raising her glass. Ben and Spectra took their own glasses and clicked them against hers, downing the rest of the juice in one gulp.
"So, Charmcaster? What do you plan to do today?" Ben asked her, leaning against the counter. The sorceress shrugged her shoulders and tossed her glass into the sink. "I don't know yet. Probably do some chores around the house and stuff. I've been thinking about enrolling in Monster High," she told them, causing Ben to do a waterless spit take. "I never did finish high school." she quickly explained.
"You could try," Ben told her. "Headmistress Bloodgood would be more than happy to get you enrolled, but . . . . you know . . ." Charmcaster nodded sadly. She knew the main reason there was a good chance she wouldn't get enrolled in Monster High. After all, it would take a while for the entire school to forgive her, just Ben was trying to get the school to forgive him. He had gotten a head start, and his hero nature helped with that. She would have to suppress every diabolical urge in her body if she wanted to start a new life. "You have good luck with that, Charmcaster." Ben told her. "I'll try and put in a good word for ya." he added, walking out of the kitchen with Spectra behind him. "Where are you two going?" Charmcaster asked.
"Deuce asked for my help on a present for his girlfriend," Ben called over his shoulder. "And Spectra's meeting up with a couple of her relatives! See you later!" he yelled as they both left the old house, closing the door behind them. Charmcaster sighed happily and grabbed the three glasses in the sink, dousing them with cold water before setting them back in the cupboard. It was going to be a long day without anyone home. And she was very lucky that Spectra and Ben had let her stay with them until she could find her own home, if she wanted to. Right now though, she was just fine where she was. And that was the way she liked it.
"Ben! Where you!?" Deuce rasped into his iCoffin.
"Déjame decir ya algo, Deuce Gorgon, hijo de la temida medusa! Rath está a pocas cuadras de distancia y llegar cuando él consigue allí! Esta cosa es pesado!" a loud, and angry voice came over the small device, forcing Deuce to hold it at arms length just to protect his ear drums. "Um, I didn't quite catch that."
There came a sigh from the device as Skurd took over. "He said, quote on quote, "Let me tell you something Deuce Gorgon, son of the dreaded Medusa, I will get there when he gets there, etc, etc. Oh, and that the thing the ugly brute is carrying on his back is extremely heavy." the Slimebiote translated.
"Cierra la boca, trapo mocos!" Rath yelled from the other end.
"Oh, please. Stop with your empty threats and get moving! This thing of yours isn't going to carry itself!" Skurd chided. There came a low growling from the other end and the the line went dead. Deuce sighed and put the iCoffin back in his pocket before climbing up the grand staircase of the De Nile household. Except 'household' wasn't the correct term for it. Being incredibly wealthy beyond belief, the De Nile's had transformed their home into practically its own country, it was so big. With a fountain the size of three tennis courts put together (complete with hungry Nile Crocodiles), a staircase as big as a Casketball was long, a front door that a To'kustar could fit through with ease, the De Niles greatly put practically every other house in New Salem (Normie or Monster) to shame.
Deuce kept this in mind as he walked up the grand staircase and through the seemingly oversized door. He walked down a long hallway decorated with hieroglyphics that depicted important events in the De Nile's history. Deuce paused at an odd one that seemed to have been crossed (very crudely) with a chisel, leaving gouges in the rock of the picture. From what Deuce could see, it looked like a tall, furry person holding the hands of a much shorter person wrapped in bandages. Next to the crossed out picture was a carving of him and Cleo together, the space after that completely blank. Deuce gulped and continued walking down the hallway, entering the throne room and bowing his head in front of the empty throne (just in case), before talking a left and walking down another long hallway. The low sound of thumping music echoed off the walls, and Deuce was thankful that Cleo's dad was on a long business trip; despite being over 10,000 years old, the pharaoh had never gotten used to the music most ghosts and ghouls were listening to today, especially where Holt was concerned. And of course, being Cleo, she hired the best DJ she could find, which just happened to be Holt.
After much walking, and taking a wrong turn or two (even after all his time with Cleo, he had never managed to figure out the lay out of her house), he eventually found himself in what seemed to an incredibly large living room. A giant flat screen TV, currently turned off, sat on one wall with Holt and his record table stationed in front of it. Monsters of every shape, size, and species were all around the room, dancing to the music and chatting with friends. Directly across from Holt's turn tables was a large throne (possibly taken from the real throne room) among large piles of presents and gifts. A huge picture of Cleo was hung up on the wall above the throne, the Queen Bee herself sitting on said throne and bobbing her head in time to the music as a few late monsters presented her with her presents. Deuce quickly made his way among the piles of stuff and sidled up to Cleo's throne from her left, startling her a bit from his sudden appearance. "And how is the Birthday Ghoul enjoying her party?" he asked her with a smile.
"You're the only boy who can come up to me in my own home and not have to bow," Cleo smiled as she waved another guest off. "You idolize me enough already." she added, pecking him on the cheek.
"Any word on when my gift from you is supposed to get here?" she asked sweetly.
"Yeah, um, about that. The delivery guy won't be here for a few more minutes," he told her, glancing at his watch. A loud DING-DONG that resonated throughout the entire tomb suddenly sounded from the front, Deuce turning towards the sound. "I stand corrected. He should be here now!" he said. Cleo nodded and snapped her fingers, 10 Anubis Guards appearing from out of nowhere and grabbing hold of two strong, golden rods that were attached to her throne. With a sudden heave, the servants hoisted Cleo and her entire throne up into the air and began to march towards the front door, a few of Cleo's close friends trickling after her to see what was so important that the Queen of the Nile herself would go. Deuce quickly rushed ahead, thanking his lucky stars that he was Cleo's boyfriend; had it been anyone else, she might have had their heads cut off.
After a couple minutes of hard running and another wrong turn (he seriously needed to ask Cleo for a map someday) he arrived at the front door to see a large object standing on the driveway, covered by a large tarp. At the base of the object was an odd, crystalline creature a couple feet taller than Deuce. He well defined arms of hard crystal that gleamed in the moonlight and an even sharper jawline. Two blades struck out from his broad back and shoulders, his pointing back towards them as he blinked his green eyes and crossed his cubed arms over his broad chest. He wore a black jumpsuit with a green stripe down the middle as he approached Deuce, taking his hand and giving it a good shake, the Gorgon wincing at the alien's strength.
"Is it done?" Deuce asked him.
"Yep. Took forever to get here, but I eventually did. No thanks to a certain someone." Diamondhead added, throwing a glance at Skurd, who sat on his shoulder with his little tentacles crossed over his chest.
"You never asked me to do anything," Skurd huffed. "Honestly, youth today and their manners!"
The Petrosapien was about to throw another shot when he heard someone in a state of power clear her throat. Both men glanced up to see Cleo's Anubis Servants set her throne down gently and bowing as the mummy got up from her throne and walked down the large staircase, guests from the party watching on the landing above. Glancing quickly through them, Diamondhead quickly picked out his friends and ghouls, everyone from Draculaura, Frankie, and Clawdeen (the werewolf still hated his guts) to Spectra, Ghoulia, and Lagoona. Even Jane had taken a break from the air vents and come out to the party, though she was still hiding behind one of the massive pillars on either side of the doorway.
"And what do we have here, gentleman?" Cleo asked in a haughty tone. "I assume that's you, Ben?" she asked, addressing the Petrosapien. He nodded and walked back to the large object as Deuce walked up to his ghoulfriend, taking her hand in his. "At first, I had no idea what to get you for your birthday, Deuce began, Cleo slightly annoyed for a brief second as Deuce continued. "Then I talked to Ben, and he gave me an idea to work with. So if you're going to thank anyone, thank him." he told her, walking her down the rest of the staircase and up to the object covered by the tarp, Diamondhead's fingers curved around it. "I know how much you like shiny things, fashion, and of course, yourself, so I asked Ben to combine all three." said Deuce, throwing a thumbs up to Diamondhead.
With a jerk of his arms and swept motion, the tarp came flying off to reveal the object beneath the canvas. Cleo gasped as a giant statue of her, carved entirely out of gleaming, cyan colored Tatdenite shone in the white moonlight, capturing every image of her beauty, from her long, dark hair to her bright eyes. "I know how much you like rare, shiny things, so I used Taydenite," Diamondhead explained. "It's the rarest mineral in my universe. And seeing as how your universe doesn't have any Tadenite to begin with, you have an entire 50 ft tall statue of you made entirely out of the rarest mineral in two universe!" Cleo screamed with joy at the sound of this and quickly pulled both Deuce and Diamondhead into a bone crushing hug, giving each of them a kiss before running off to admire her statue.
"Your girlfriend just kissed me," Diamondhead blanked.
"Um, yeah?"
"And you don't have the sudden urge to turn me to stone and put me in your Mom's garden?" Diamondhead asked, slightly amazed.
"Nah, man. She kissed you out of pure joy. I can respect that," Deuce told him. "But if I catch you kissing her, I will guarantee that you will become the World's Ugliest Lawn Gnome." Diamondhead nodded and turned to watch Cleo hug her statue, kissing it lightly. She had the biggest smile on her face Diamondhead had ever seen, and that couldn't have made her happier. "Do you want me to move it to the backyard or something?" he asked the mummy. "Oh, don't worry about it. It's not that big of a deal." Diamondhead ignored her and walked up to the statue as Cleo walked back to her boyfriend, letting him loop his arms around her and hold her tight. "It's not that big of a problem. It's a Way Big problem!"
For the briefest second, he was changed back into his human self before the alien DNA began to run through his veins and begin the changes. Thick, shaggy fur started to sprout all over his body as he gradually grew taller. His jaw jutted out into an ape like fashion. His lower teeth grew larger, curving up over his lip. Muscles piled on top of each other as his arms and legs swelled. Small bumps on his wrists formed, growing harder and more metallic like. His fingers grew thicker and less delicate looking, better designed for smashing things together and ripping things apart. His feet changed drastically as his big toe moved away from his others until it was at a 45 degree angle. The final change was when a metallic three horned prong suddenly appeared right above his eyes, giving him an angered look, even when he wasn't. The Omnitrix appeared on a thick, green belt around his waist, completing the transformation.
"Or, Shocksquatch." the Gimlinopithecus grumbled.
"Why do you even bother to call them out before you transform?" Skurd asked from his belt.
"I don't know. I've been asking myself that same question, eh?" Shocksquatch wondered. "Let's try this again, eh?" he said, slapping the Omnitrix symbol on his belt and letting the watch do its magic. He was quickly changed back into his human self for the briefest of nanoseconds before a different set of alien blood began to flow through his veins, changing his DNA as his physical appearance was altered. Everything about him began to change in one single way: it got big. It got huge. It got enormous as Ben's frame rocketed upwards towards the sky, dwarfing everyone below him and even making the De Nile tomb look like nothing more than a large dollhouse. His skin turned a pale, metallic white and red, large, thin blades growing out of her wrists and arms, fins sprouting from her waist, wrists, and shoulders. A large, thin red crest rose up from his head, adding to his height. Hard, metal knobs grew out from the corners of his mouth and he could feel a pair of organs forming in his hands, filling up with a sort of corrosive acid. The Omnitrix appeared on his chest, finishing the transformation.
"Now this is Way Big!" the To'kustar cried in triumph, his voice echoing across the grounds and causing the more timid ghosts and ghouls to jump with fright and hide (Jane and Draculaura). With ease, he gently wrapped his giant hand around Cleo's statue, easily picking it up from the ground. He knelt down and set down his hand in front of Cleo and Deuce, gesturing for them to get on with his head. Once the tiny figures crawled onto his ginormous fingers, he slowly lifted his hand up and marched across the grounds, accidentally crushing fancy hedges beneath his gigantic feet as he made his way around to the back of the estate. Once there, Cleo pointed to a bare patch of ground in the center of a beautiful oasis, right in the center of a small island. He gently set the Taydenite statue down at the center of the oasis and then set his other hand down to the ground to allow Cleo and Deuce to walk off. Moments after they did, the Omnitrix timed out, reverting the colossal To'kustar back down to the puny human. Cleo ran over to him and grabbed him into a hug, something she normally didn't do. Ben looked over her shoulder, Deuce giving him a thumbs up. Mission accomplished.
"Where on earth did you get something so big?" Cleo asked Ben, referring to his last transformation.
Ben shrugged. "I dunno. One of the perks of traveling the galaxy is getting to meet new alien species, To'kustars happening to be one of them. I did say the Omnitrix turned me into aliens after all."
"You simply must stay over for the sleepover," Cleo demanded.
"Wait, what?"
"Didn't Deuce tell you? I'm having a sleep over after the festivities with all my ghouls. They're allowed to bring their boyfriends, and seeing as how Spectra's invited, so are you. Besides, I'm sure we'd all love to hear about your adventures across the galaxy." she purred, drawing a finger around his collar bone. Ben gulped and laughed sheepishly as Deuce cocked an eyebrow. Ben frantically waved his hands about, trying tell him he wasn't trying anything, but he wasn't sure if Deuce was getting it or not.
"Come on, Ben! What happened next?" Draculaura asked excitedly.
"Yes, please continue. I would like to hear how it ended." Jinafire asked.
Ben grinned as he gazed at the eager faces around him. He sat cross legged on Cleo's bed, with the Queen Bee and her boyfriend sitting next to him as he regaled them with a story of one of his many adventures. The rest of the ghouls sat around him on their sleeping bags, sitting with their respective boyfriends; Draculaura with Clawd, Lagoona with Gil, Ghoulia with Slow Mo, and Abbey sitting next to Heath, though trying to ignore him and his fruitless attempts to charm her. Skelita and Spectra sat at the foot of Cleo's bed near Ben as Clawdeen, Jinafire, Jane, Robecca, Frankie, and Gigi sat haphazardly around the room.
"Well, lets see. After I pushed Vilgax into the Codon Stream, he grew into a 100 ft tall giant!" Ben remembered, smiling at the gasps from around the room. "I then turned into Way Big and began punching Vilgax with his own fist! Over and over again, I punched him until I then whirled him around like pizza dough and sent him right back into space! Boom!" Ben finished, socking his own fist into his hand. The ghouls all clapped as the story ended, the guys nodding their heads in agreement, stating that they would have done the same thing had they been in Ben's shoes. "Alright, alright, I think that's enough stories for now. I'll tell you another one in the morning, okay?"
The girls all started to complain, but eventually agreed that it was getting late. One by one, the boys trickled into the guest room and into their separate sleeping bags while the girls got cozy. And just when it seemed all of them would get a good night's sleep, a demon's roar shook the night!
"CLEO!"
"What in the name of Mr. Smoothies was that!?" Ben yelled, rushing into the girl's room with the guys right behind him. Most of the girls moaned and covered their heads with their pillows or ears as Cleo begrudgingly got up from her bed and walked to the doorway, her hands covering her ears. "What do you want, Nefera!?" she screamed. As Nefera's room was thankfully on the other side of the tomb (a very long way for those of you just joining us), the soulless girl had to yell at the top of her lungs if she wanted her sister and vise versa, not that either one particularly liked being around the other.
"There's a hideous monster watching me outside my window and it won't leave!" was all Cleo's annoying sister would say. Cleo ground her teeth and was about to walk out the doorway when both Deuce and Ben stepped in front of her, blocking the way out. "What are you doing, Deuce?" Cleo asked, folding her arms over her chest.
"Do you really want to have to deal with your sister?" he asked her, knowing full well that the answer was "No." No one in the name of the earth wanted to put up with Nefera's attitude, much less her little sister. Cleo sighed and hugged her boyfriend. "No. I honestly don't get what's wrong with her." she sighed, when an idea came to her. "Ben? Could you do me a favor and take care of Nefera? You are pretty much the only one here who has the ability to do it." she asked, attempting to inflate his ego. Ben rolled his eyes. "As much as I love flattery, I not an egomaniac like your sister." he told her. "I'll do it, but only because I want to sleep as much as everyone else does." he said, pushing past the rest of the guys and walking down the hall. The guys and ghouls all glanced at each other, mixed expressions on their faces of concern, confusion, and enthusiasm.
"Should we stop him?" Draculaura asked.
"I think we'd just be getting in the way, luv." Robecca told her.
The first thing Nefera noticed after waiting a half hour for her pathetic sister to come to her room was the fact that it wasn't Cleo who was sulking on the edge of her door frame. Instead, a tall, muscled, bandaged figure stood there, his blank green eyes set on her as two long tendrils fluttered in the breeze behind her. He wore a black and green collar around his neck and a matching headdress with his black and gold Shendyt. Black arm braces with thin, green stripes sat on his wrists and ankles as he watched her with a blank stare.
"Well? Are you just going to stand there and be useless or are you going to get rid of the hideous statue outside my window!?" Nefera hissed, assuming that the figure in front of her was some kind of new minion. The bandaged figure silently walked toward her and turned towards the large window that sat on one wall. Instead of leaping out of it to the garden below to destroy the statue, the mysterious figure merely grabbed hold of the silk curtains and pulled them closed, much to Nefera's annoyance.
"What are you doing!?" she growled from her bed, folding her arms over her chest and throwing him a furious glare. The bandaged figure seemed unaffected by the stare down as he responded. "You said to get rid of the statue, my queen-to-be. I simply compromised between both parties and obscured your view of "the hideous statue" outside of your window." he replied, a shocked and angered face crossing Nefera's face.
"You know exactly what I meant, you bandaged freak," she hissed, with venom in her voice. "And what is this "other party" you're talking about?"
"Your dear sister, Cleo, who I must say is much nicer than you." said Snare-oh. And before Nefera could react or even scream for her servants (which she had more of than Cleo, thank you very much), the Thep Khufan stretched out the tendrils on his back and quickly wrapped them tightly around her mouth, effectively silencing her. The enraged mummy tugged and pulled at the bandages around her face, her expression of annoyance and anger turning into full blown fury. With one quick movement of her sharp nails, she tore free of her binds! "GUARDS! SEIZE HIM!" she screamed, her angered voice echoing throughout the whole tomb. The sound of thumping feet echoed through the ruin, and within moments Nefera's room was full of spear wielding Anubis Guards, all pointing their weapons at him.
Snare-oh gulped and quickly slapped the Omnitrix symbol on his belt, resisting the urge to squish Skurd, and let the transformation take over as he was briefly transformed back into his human form, new alien DNA coursing through his veins. He felt himself become heavier, and much fatter than before as his gut bulged outwards and his legs became short and weak. His arms only grew a few more muscles on them before they fell limp to his side, still swelling with fat and useless tissue as the transformation continued. His fingers grew into dull claws as his toes become drab. A pair of black brief with a thick chain belt appeared on his sickly green skin as a heavy, cage-like helmet grew out of nothingness, held down by a large amount of chains, hoses, and locks. The most noticeable change however was his face. No one could see it, but Ben could feel it as it began to grow and shrink and swell and deflate in random spots, bony horns and knobs growing out at random intervals as sharp teeth lined his oddly shaped mouth. The final piece of the transformation was the appearance of the Omnitrix on the neck piece of the helmet, Skurd sliding to his station as the green light faded.
"What is that thing?" Nefera scoffed. "Do you honestly believe that-that . . . thing you transformed into is a match for my Anubis Guards?" she laughed wickedly, pointing a finger forward. The Underworld guards edged closer and closer, their unchanging dog-like faces starting to crowd Toepick's vision.
"Get on with it, dear boy! And for the love of all that's good and holy, let me get out of the way first!" Skurd cried as he quickly oozed onto Toepick's head. Once there, Toepick focused his mind, and the piston locks popped loose, releasing a small cloud of gas. The cage doors slid down and then slowly opened on rusty hinges, causing all the guards to pause and gaze.
Huge mistake.
In one huge collective motion, the guards all howled with fear, their entire bodies turning white as they dropped their spears and stampeded over each other to get away from Toepick's horrifying face, unable to pull their horrified eyes away as Toepick calmly walked forward. Unholy screams, roars, hisses, and demonic laughter could be heard deep within the helmet's recesses as the Anubis Guards all suddenly exploded into clouds of black ash, settling onto the imported carpet that covered the floor. "NO! What have you done to them, freak! Look at me when I am talking to you!" Nefera ordered.
"If you insist, my queen-to-be." Toepick wheezed. The voice was a warning to all of those who should get too close, a final chance to look away and spare their sanity for the horrors that sat within that helmet like a nest of demons waiting to eat an unfortunate victims soul. Of course, Nefera was too stupid to realize that as Toepick slowly turned toward her. Nefera opened her mouth to yell some more, but instead let out an unholy scream of fright as she gazed upon Toepick's face, unable to look away from the horrors in the helmet as she quickly turned a pale shade of white, even the black streaks in her hair turning white. And then she suddenly fainted, just as the Omnitrix timed out and changed Ben back to normal, much to Skurd's relief. "Don't you think that was a little cruel?" he asked Ben.
Ben shrugged his shoulders and walked over to Nefera's unconscious, white form among the piles of black ash. He gently looped his hands under her back and legs and lifted her off the ground, setting her gently on the bed and covering her with a blanket as she tossed and turned in her sleep, unable to forget the horrors that her eyes had unfortunately met. Ben hesitated as he left the room, unsure of what to do.
He walked back over to her and took her hand, gently rubbing his thumb on her own. Oddly enough, she seemed to calm down at the slightest touch of gentleness. She was still shivering and quaking in her sleep as the nightmares of Toepick's face haunted her dreams. And Ben did something he knew he would never forget or understand why he did it.
He bent over and gently kissed her pale forehead, stroking his fingers through her white hair. The frightened girl stopped shaking and calmed down, the slightest of smiles forming on her lips as Ben walked out of the room and clicked the lights off. "You didn't see nothing, got it?" he whispered to Skurd, who quickly gave him a mock salute. After another twenty minutes of wandering around the tomb and taking a wrong turn (seriously, the De Niles need to map out the place some time), Ben found his way back to Cleo's room, where the ghosts and ghouls were waiting for his return. As soon as he returned, he was swamped with questions from all side.
"Dude, what happened?" Clawd asked
"I demand you give me the details." Cleo ordered.
"I, like, need all the details!" Draculaura cried.
"What was that scream?" Jane asked.
"Was she hurt?" Gil wondered.
The questions continued until Ben jabbed his fingers into his mouth and let out a shrill whistle, silencing them all. "I wouldn't recommend going into her room anytime soon," he began. "She's still pretty shaken up after what I did to her."
"What did you do, dude?" Deuce asked.
"I used Toepick on her." said Ben, drawing confused looks from his friends. He then quickly explained what had happened and watched as their faces went from ones of slight amusement to worry, to complete horror. "Trust me when I say I didn't like doing it to her anymore than she wanted it." finished Ben. The others shared frightened and worried glances, though Cleo seemed unconvinced. "Seriously? Why would a creature evolve a face that hideous if it can't even look at itself without suffering the same affect?" she asked. Ben then quickly proceeded to tell her that Nefera's Anubis guards had exploded with fear, and the mummy decided to let the question drop, not wanting to see a demonstration. "Good night." Ben yawned, walking out of Cleo's room and back to the guest room, the guys following. Within moments, everyone was back in their sleeping bags and sleeping, dreaming.
And seemed that every ghoul was dreaming about a certain shape-shifter . . . .
Spectra was having the time of her life; beating down bad guys and then reporting it was her dream come true. And he had given it to her because he loved her, along with her own Omnitrix! With a twist of the watch face, she opened up the alien roster and began to cycle through her alien listings until she found the one she was looking for. With a slap of the Omnitrix, a bright purple colored light washed over her and began to change her DNA at the molecular level. Her hands swelled to the size of bowling balls as her fingers became hard and black, turning into claws. Her shoulders became broad and rounded as her usual white skin to a light lavender. Her entire frame began to grow bigger and bigger and more rounded as her legs became stumps, black claws forming on the ends of those. Hard, violet colored plating formed on her back and shoulders as black markings appeared on her body as her eyes turned indigo. A purple Omnitrix symbol appeared on her chest and the transformation was complete.
With a quick turn of her body, Cannonbolt rolled into a ball and sped down the highway after the thieves. After robbing almost a hundred banks, the Were-cat Gang were the most wanted monsters in the world, and only she and her husband could stop them. As if on cue, a blue and black blur zipped past her and easily caught up to the get away truck, jabbing a pointed hand into the spinning tires. The tire easily popped, and the truck began driving out of control off of the highway, Cannonbolt just managing to smash her round bulk into the side and prevent it from going over the side and into the river below. For the couple of minutes, she and her husband passed the truck between them until all four tires were popped and the truck crashed into a lamp post. The Were-cats staggered out, dazed, only to be surrounded by the same black and blue blur and quickly tied up with a spare piece of rope.
Cannonbolt unrolled her self and stood up as a Kinceleran zipped over to her with a cocky smile on his face as both Omnitrix's timed out in flashes of green and purple. Spectra gazed up at her husband, who had grown much taller than his 16 year old form. He still had those bright green eyes that she had fallen in love with all those years ago. The two embraced as the police arrived to arrest the petty thieves. "Fantastic work as usual, honey." Ben smiled. Spectra blushed. Even after all their years together, she still turned red whenever she heard that name. It all seemed like a dream, and yet she knew it wasn't. Ben had built her an Omnitrix of her own, using the smartest aliens in his arsenal. He had even managed to wire it up with her unique body structure, allowing her to use the Omnitrix and have a whole body once more (he would have used Alien X, but the Omnitrix was being uncooperative whenever he tried to. And when he did get Alien X, it was always during some universal crisis and would always time out before he could give Spectra an actual body. Typical watch). But Spectra didn't care. While she appreciated her husband's efforts, she didn't mind being a ghost. Sure, it made contact with Ben difficult , she wouldn't have changed anything for the world, and they both knew.
With a sudden motion, Ben swept Spectra off her feet and planted a kiss on her violet lips. Spectra, although used to it, was still stunned for a few seconds before deeply returning the kiss, much to the annoyance of the Were-cats as they were shoved into the police car. Spectra was having the time of her life with the love of her life, and she could feel herself smiling and turning red in the real world as the dream continued on . . . .
In yet another dream, Lagoona eagerly swam beneath the waves, the beauty of the sea never ceasing to amaze her; the rainbow of colors that dyed the corals and grasses as hundreds upon thousands of shimmering fish swam and flitted about. Cute little crabs scurried in the sand on the bottom as fearsome sharks patrolled the waters above. Eels darted in and out of holes chasing after little fish, while crafty octopuses dazzled Lagoona with their amazing camouflage ability. Playful dolphins broke the barrier of both worlds, acting as messengers between the two kingdoms. The water was nice and warm against her scales as she continued swimming. She was soon joined by another sea monster of sorts, his fearsome teeth and eyes hiding his true nature.
Both of them swam upwards and broke the surface, water spraying everywhere as Lagoona shook her head free of the salty water. Ripjaws swam closer, his toothy grin betraying nothing by happiness and love as her wrapped his muscled arms around her and pulled her close. Lagoona could feel herself heat up as they shared body heat, the full moon casting the water into a shining and dazzling light show; a cloud of flying fish broke through the water barrier of the worlds, their crystal wings shining like the stars above. A sudden green flash broke the stillness for a brief moment before it returned, and Lagoona found herself hugging Ben. The two kissed lightly and watched the flying fish glide off into the distance, the water around them broiling and bubbling with warmth as they embraced each other . . . .
In another dream, Robecca strolled down the sidewalk, with her fiancée's arms around her waist, happy grins on both of their faces. They passed equally happily couples of equal bizarreness; a human and werewolf, a robot and his sea monster children. But none of it seemed out of the ordinary now. Humans, monsters, and robots had managed to settle their differences and finally live together in a peaceful society together. And what a society it was; with the latest advancements in technology (most of which Robecca still couldn't understand or use very well) as well as visits and treaties with alien empires, the world had been transformed into a beautiful, ecological rich metropolis. Of course, Robecca's fiancée had made most of it possible. With the fancy watch on his wrist, he made the alien ambassadors more comfortable on earth with having someone of their own kind to talk to. Eventually, the ambassadors had gotten used to the other people on the planets, and a few of them were even in relationships with them.
Robecca smiled as another jet of steam leaked form her ears and into the air, a robotic pigeon swooping by and sucking it up into its beak. The steam wasn't a pollutant, but the people of earth found it much more relaxing and beautiful when they could actually see the stars and galaxy at night. With all the smoke and harmful gases from the atmosphere safely disposed of (some alien species seemed to actually depend on them, which had created a powerful industry of waste management). Robecca smiled; she, still so old fashioned, was able to still function in the new and advanced world because of her husband, and she pretty much owed everything to him. And he never abused it, treating her as if she were the only thing that mattered to him (other than saving the universe of course). Ben smiled and pulled Robecca towards the lush park and down onto a wooden bench.
The sun was just setting, and the stars were just coming out. Robecca pointed out a few of the constellations to him, and he in turn pointed out the planets he had visited in his many adventures. They sat there for what seemed hours as the fireflies flitted about the night and street lamps clicked on. Ben looped his arms around her and kissed her cheek, not minding that he technically kissing metal instead of skin. In their first few days of their relationship, Robecca had feared that he would dump her eventually when everything they did together didn't feel as good as it did with actual being. But Ben had ignored that problem, pushed it aside as if it were nothing. He didn't care that she wasn't a real person, or that her skin was bronze metal inside of smooth skin. He loved her for what she was inside (not the turning gears and furnace mind you), and that was all that mattered. Robecca felt another jet of steam pop out of her ears and sudden whoosh of wind as a mechanical owl swooped by to collect it. The two eventually walked back to the home they shared and climbed into bed together, sharing a final kiss before she shut down binary functions and Ben fell asleep, both of them holding the others hand as dreams danced in their head . . . .
The air felt hot and sticky against her bare, violet colored skin, but she loved it everything about it and her surroundings; the colorful butterflies that flitted through the tree tops as bright parrots chirped and squawked to each other. Down below on the forest floor, delicate antelopes tip toed amongst the trees and vegetation, hoping to avoid the watchful gaze of the leopards as the giant elephants wandered about. Monkeys chattered amongst the branches, racing against her as she playfully swung from vine to vine with skill that only matched theirs. She could feel the hot breeze brush against her as she landed on a large branch and sat down, tucking her loose, torn clothes tighter against her body. Moments later, a heavy thump landed next to her, and she turned to gaze up at a certain Appoplexian. The cat smiled at her and pulled her close, just as a loud shot rang out through the jungle. A green flash filled the air as the Omnitrix timed out and turned Rath back into a loin cloth wearing Ben.
"AHHH-AHHHHHHHH-AHHHHHHHHHH!" he cried, pounding his chest and grinning like a goof ball. Jane laughed and grabbed hold of a nearby vine and jumping free from the branch, Ben not to far behind. They swung through the trees with ease, jumping and switching between the vines and branches like monkeys. Eventually, they came to a wide clearing, landing on a tree branch that over looked it. What they saw horrified both of them; A large, mother rhino unconscious in a large cage as one man stood next to it with a gun in hand. Two other men were busily trying to shove a terrified rhino calf into a cage for transport. Jane felt anger rise up into her as she jumped down into the clearing and landed with a low thump. All three men to gaze at her, and the rhino calf scampered off into the bush. The men were looking at her with mixed expressions, looks of awe, fear, and lust as they traced their eyes over her barely concealed body. The edged closer, grabbing machetes and guns as they surrounded her. And just when they prepared to attack, a large figure jumped down from the trees and landed behind Jane, a furious frown on his face and Jane grinned mischievously.
The poachers gazed up at the humungous figure behind Jane and instantly turned white as they looked at him. His steely, green eyes glared at them as all four of his muscled arms bulged and flexed with rage, ready to tear them limb from limb with ease. As if given an unseen signal, Jane and Four Arms pounced upon the villains, the Tetramand grabbing the hands of the two that had been wrestling with the baby rhino and cracking them together like a pair of cymbals, knocking both of them. Jane handled the last poacher, kicking his gun out his hands and throwing it to her husband, who crushed it easily between his large fist. Jane then jumped into the air and onto the man's back, planting her feet firmly on his shoulders as she grabbed his hair and yanked back. Hard.
The man screamed and clawed at his scalp, desperate to get the wild girl off of him as she rode on him like a cowboy, refusing to let go as he ran around in circles, eventually running himself into a large tree and knocking himself unconscious, Jane jumping off and landing on the forest floor before he did. Four Arms grabbed the three poachers and tied them up with a coil of rope from one of the crates. Jane meanwhile, crept into the bush, calling softly out to the orphaned rhino calf. The baby animal soon came out of hiding, having hidden in a bed of tall grasses, and pressed himself against her, frightened. "Shh, shh. It's okay. I'm here." she reassured the baby. There the came the shriek of rusty metal on metal and the soft snorting of a large animal before the mother rhino crashed through the brush, pointing her horn at Jane before realizing who she was and drawing it back. The rhino calf happily ran back to its mother and nuzzled her closely as they walked off back into the jungle together. A loud beeping filled the air and Ben reappeared from behind a large bush, playfully tackling Jane to the ground. She laughed and hugged him, feeling his arms touch her bare skin and loop around her back. The two embraced and kissed as the jungle continued on in its steady rhythm and harmony . . . .
"How are they doing, my husband?" Jinafire asked politely. Her husband, an adult Pyronite yawned and looked up at her from his crossed legged sitting position. At his feet sat a clutch of two, pure white eggs sitting amongst a steady campfire. A bright flash of green light filled the Chinese styled house and Ben reappeared, his thick brown hair pulled back into a ponytail as he stood up. "Fine, as usual. You said that they take almost six months of steady heat to hatch, right?" he asked, taking her hand in his. The dragon nodded and let Ben kiss her on the cheek before walking off elsewhere to the household as Jinafire began her shift. She lay down on her stomach and curled her body around the two eggs, curling her tail around her head to as she shot out a short jet of flame to keep the flames steady.
The two had been married for a couple of years, after Ben had rightfully won her hand in marriage in a battle between another dragon that had claim to her. With the power of his Omnitrix and some basic sword moves, he stood a good chance against the mighty beast and defeated him, honorably calling him a true warrior and bowing low with respect. That was what she admired about her husband; no matter his enemies, great or small, he treated them all the same, with honor and respect (although he couldn't help send out a wise crack or two while doing it). She smiled as she remembered their wedding, a private meeting between her family and his in a beautiful Chinese garden under a large cherry blossom tree. She still couldn't believe a Normie of all people, found her attractive. Though she supposed she was rather beautiful in her humanoid form, most men did not find it attractive when their wife changed into a 30 ft long monster. Ben however, didn't care; he found her fiery spirit and heart of gold to be irresistible. And despite her culture, where women were inferior to men, Ben didn't see it that way and treated her as equal; When she had told them she was pregnant and that she would be laying her eggs in a couple of days, Ben had insisted they come up with an even schedule between the two of them so that she wasn't stuck with all the work. Jinafire breathed another jet of flame onto the eggs and closed her eyes, inhaling the intoxicating smell of smoke and brimstone as Ben walked back into the nursery carrying a tray sushi drenched in soy sauce, her absolute favorite. Ben noticed his wife had fallen asleep and set the tray down in front of her, kissing her on the forehead before leaving her peace, her face growing red and warm as he left . . . .
Frankie bit her lip as she looked over the many brochures in her hands. There were dozens of Monster and Normie Colleges to choose from and get a diploma from, but there didn't seem to be that many that allowed both Normies and Monsters. She was so focused on looking at the brochures as she sat on the park bench, that she didn't notice a figure stalking closer and closer behind her until he had grabbed her in his arms. Frankie yelped and turned to see Ben mischievously smiling at her before she playfully smacked him over the head with the handful of brochures. "Ben! Don't do that to me!" she laughed as her boyfriend sat on the bench next to her. A few years had passed since Monster High, and the two's relationship was still going strong.
"You find one yet, babe?" Ben asked her, setting his arm around her as he looked at the many brochures in her lap. Frankie sighed and set the piece of paper in a messy pile. "Unfortunately, no. None of these colleges will let us be together in one place. One college only excepts Monsters, the other only excepts Normies, and there are only one or two that actually let both in, but both of those are so far away! We'll never get to spend any time with our friends!" Frankie said sadly. Ben sighed; the search for colleges that they could be together at was not going well. Normies were still wary of Monsters and vise versa, though through Ben and Frankie's efforts they had managed to ease the hatred towards each other. "I think it's time you took a break, Frankie." said Ben, grabbing all the brochures in his hand and stealing them from her, keeping them out of her reach as she complained.
"C'mon, Frankie. You've been at this for hours," Ben told her. "Take a break, and then get back to it."
Frankie sighed and nodded; as usual, Ben was right (mostly). The two both deeply cared for each other so much that one could not function without the other. If one of them was not seen or heard from for a couple of days, the other would quickly find them, no matter the cost; Ben would pull Frankie from her work when she needed a break, and Frankie would pull Ben from his games when he hadn't seen day light for days. In a way, the two of them, the slacker/hero and the student/scientist, kept each other in balance. With a laugh, Frankie got up from the bench with Ben, taking his hand as he kissed her and walked down the sidewalk towards town . . . .
"How do you like them apples!?" Crashhopper hollered from high above the court. It was only a minute before the game would end, and Crashhopper was about to make the basket that would tie the game. As he came soaring back down to earth, he raised the Casketball above his head and slam-dunked it into the hoop on his way down as his team kept the others at bay. With the loud, shrill whistle of the referee and the loud announcement of the scoreboard, the game was tied. Coach Igor blew his whistle, and the Monster High Casketball team came in for a huddle as the Omnitrix timed out.
"We've twenty seconds to win this," Clawd began. "And as usual, Ben is keeping us together better than a mummy's bandages." The boys all nodded Ben smiled. Ever since he had become captain of the Casketball team, keeping Clawd as co-captain for his awesome skills, Monster High had never lost a game. Just when it seemed all was lost, Ben was there with his Omnitrix, ready to make things right with the slap of his wrist. "Ben, we'll try and get the ball to you so you can make the basket. If that doesn't work, pass it to Deuce and help us block." Ben nodded and glanced at Gorgon, who quickly steered his gaze away from him. Ever since Deuce had dumped Cleo or Rochelle Goyle, the two boys found it increasingly awkward to be together during games or classes. Cleo had to resist the urge to both break down and slap Deuce ever since then, but Ben had been there to pick her back up. Said mummy was with her fellow Fearleaders, cheering the team on as the game played. The Casketball team huddle broke, and the boys all took their positions. Cleo watched as Ben activated the Omnitrix and slapped the activation button, turning into Snare-oh. Out of all his transformations, she found the Thep Khufan the most interesting, mostly because it reminded her of herself. Ben however, had helped her become less and less selfish ever since they became a couple, which was infinitely grateful for. The watch wearing hero had done everything to keep her from turning into a miniature version of Nefera, and had even managed to shrink Nefera's ego while doing it to. Cleo's older sister was less annoying and rude than she normally was, actually being kind to Cleo after Ben had had a very long and serious talk with her. Essentially, he was making both of them better ghouls than they were before and bringing them closer as a family.
Cleo couldn't help but smile as she watched her boyfriend steal the Casketball from the other team and dribble it around the court with ease, ducking and dodging the other team members without breaking a sweat. Just as he came to the hoop, two members of the other team jumped into the air, ready to block his shot. Snare-oh quickly jumped and stretched his arms up and over the two monsters and shot it into the basket, scoring another point and winning the game as the scoreboard sounded. The crowd went ballistic as the Casketball team celebrated. Cleo rushed onto the court and practically tackled Snare-oh, hugging him tightly as cameras flashed. The two shared a kiss right then and there in front of all the cameras without a care in the world . . . .
Draculaura sighed heavenly as she waited by her window. The lights in her bright pink room were out, her father believing her to be asleep in her coffin. Instead, she was waiting by the window in her best outfit, waiting for her boyfriend to come for her. She didn't have to wait long when she heard a small click against her window pane. Without hesitation, she thrust open her windows and glanced down with a cherry pink smile. She glanced down to see a large, rounded shell hovering beneath her window sill. "Hope on, princess." Terraspin whispered quietly, continually spinning his flippers to stay above the ground as the wind created buffeted the lawn below steadily. Draculaura nodded and jumped from the window sill, landing quietly on the Geochelone Aerio's shell.
With a quick movement of his fins, Terraspin zoomed off towards New Salem. Draculaura held on tight, hugging her boyfriend's shell as they flew, the cool night air sweeping through her pink and black hair. They flew for a couple minutes before landing on a nearby roof top. Draculaura slid down off the shell and watched as a green flash surrounded the large, turtle-like alien and changed him back into a tall boy with brown hair. Draculaura's pink face turned red as she skipped over to him and hugged him, barely his chest as he looped his arms around her and returned the hug. She cried out in surprise as she pulled up into the air and onto Ben's shoulders. "I want to show you something," he said. Draculaura wrapped her arms around his neck as he walked across the rooftop and lightly jumped the small space between two buildings. They rounded a large air duct and stopped, and what Draculaura saw made her gasp.
Set up on the rooftop was a small table under a pink umbrella with two fancy chairs around it. Draculaura cried out with happiness and jumped down from Ben's shoulders as he smiled. He pulled her chair for her. He then took his own seat as a hired zombie waiter came by with two covered plates. The zombie set them down and uncovered them to reveal two veggie burgers with large salads. Draculaura gasped with surprise as she took a fork and dug into her salad. The food was delicious, and from the satisfied look on Ben's face, he had cooked it himself. She found the gesture incredibly touching, loving the fact that he had been kind enough to make vegetarian options and leave meat out entirely. That was what she loved about her boyfriend, him being so kind and thoughtful. Whenever she was having a bad day, he was there to make it better. Whenever Toralei came around, he was there (as Rath of course) to frighten her off and protect the one he loved.
"The stars are out," Ben commented, sitting back in his chair and glancing upward. Draculaura looked up to, Ben throwing a thumbs up to the zombie waiter. The living corpse quickly pulled out a violin and began to play a serenade as the young, happy couple left their table to sit on the edge of the rooftop to gaze up at the stars, Draculaura resting her head on his shoulder as he pointed out a few constellations to her. Ben then suddenly pecked her on the forehead, causing her to turn an even deeper shade of red. Before Ben knew what happened, Draculaura tackled him back onto the rooftop kissing him furiously. Ben returned her affection with equal madness, the two engaged in an all out make out session under the full moon . . . .
Mamá, I am going out!" Skelita called back to her mother. She quickly walked out the door and down the short walk to the road, her heels clicking as she jogged down the sidewalk. The moon was bright and the stars were out; Skelita thought they were her ancestors smiling down on her, telling her that she was doing the right thing, despite what her parents told her. She ran into town, her marigold and black hair flowing behind her as she held on tightly to her purse. She then came to a cafe and sat down at one of the tables and ordered a cappuccino while patiently waiting. After a couple minutes, she saw him.
A tall, slim figure lurched around the corner of the cafe, his back hunched over as he walked over to her. He wore a tight, see-through suit that covered his whole body. His black skeleton could be seen through the shining green suit, the charred bones held together by black and green striped knee and elbow pads, shoulder guards, and fingerless gloves. His skull was tight and roughly triangular with white, hollow eyes and bottom jaw. He walked over to her and sat down in the chair opposite of her, ordering the same thing as her. "You were not followed?" she asked quietly.
"Relax, babe." Bonez said in a deep, wheezy voice. "You parents won't suspect a thing, not when I'm in alien form." he added, just a green light washed over him and changed him back into his human form. "Okay, now they might suspect something." Ben sighed. Skelita smiled and took her boyfriend's hand. Ben smiled, feeling a little better. For some odd reason, Skelita's family had not excepted him when their daughter had brought him home. In fact, her Papá had forced Ben to change into Astrodactyl and fly off. She had cried that night, alone up her in room. And then, like magic, he had appeared at her window, taking her on a night she would never forget. What had especially surprised her, was the fact that it was a giant that had met her at the window. With ease, Way Big had shone her a different view of the world, showing her what it was like to be a giant. Everything looked so small from the safety of Way Big's hand, everything looking like toys as they walked about. After an hour of that and doing some star gazing, the To'kustar had returned her back to her house without her parents any wiser. She had rewarded him with a tiny kiss, turning the giant's face red as a tomato.
That memory still lurked in her brain somewhere as they both enjoyed each other's company. And she knew, no matter what her family said or did, there was nothing that could tear them apart . . . .
"Enjoying the ride, beautiful?" Ben asked Gigi. The genie turned a bright red as the cool night air swept past her, their red and gold colored magic carpet twisting and turning through the endless diamond sky. Over sideways and upside down they flew, Gigi and Ben somehow magically staying on the flying carpet when it did a barrel roll. "It's beautiful." she breathed. She had always been fascinated with the cosmos, hoping against hope that she could someday see the galaxy. And that dream had finally come true, all thanks to Ben.
He took her delicate hand in his pointed towards the stars, the carpet obeying the order and rocketing upwards towards space. Within seconds they broke through the atmosphere and flew through the inky blackness of space, passing the planets of the solar system and eventually leaving it behind. Ben steered the carpet towards another solar system, pointing out the many planets he had visited and explored to Gigi. She could believe she was finally seeing the stars with the one that she loved. "Thank you, Ben." she sighed, resting her head on his shoulder. Ben smiled and held her close as they dodged a shooting star and came to a slowed stop at an odd looking planet seemed entirely composed a shiny, green mineral. Petropia.
There was sudden ripping sound and Gigi felt herself being teared in two. The feeling however, was painless, and as soon as it had come, it was gone. And the most surprising result had occurred; there was a second Gigi sitting directly to Ben's left. The only difference between the two was that they had alternate clothing; while Gigi had black shorts, the other Gigi had blue; when Gigi's top was blue and pink, the others was pink and blue. Another noticeable feature was that she had dark blue hair instead of bright pink hair. This could only mean that it was Gigi's sister, Wisp. She giggled and turned red when Ben smiled and put an arm around her, doing the same to Gigi. The three of them embraced before lying back on the flying carpet in the black void of space. Both Gigi and Wisp simultaneously kissed Ben's cheeks as the solar wind rushed past them . . . .
If every ghoul was having sweet dreams about Ben Tennyson, only one ghoul was having nightmares not featuring him. And like a person breaking the fourth wall, we shall enter said nightmare.
Ghoulia was running. She was running as fast as she possibly could along an endless road that would curve and twist at odd, curved angles. The sky above her was tinted a dark purple color and below her was an endless, evil, dark void. She heard an enraged roar behind her, and she dared a look over her shoulder. She really wished she hadn't.
Behind her were several beasts and monsters of twisted appearance. Among them were her ghoulfriends, though they looked vastly different. Their faces were scarred, leaving pockets of yellowed bone and red flesh. Dagger-like teeth protruded from all of their lips, their fingernails twisted into raw claws that reached for her. Their clawed toes had ripped through their shoes and their dresses and clothes were ragged and torn, and a few of them had horns and spiked tails. They screeched and growled at her, reaching for her with their talons. Behind them flew math books, all of them filled with the wrong answers. The biggest monster however, was none other than Slow Mo. He chased after her with unusual speed and terror, a look of hate in his eyes. He and her friends all began chanting the same thing over and over, and it scared and hurt her to the very core.
"Freak! Freak! Freak! No one likes you! Freak! Freak! Freak!" the ongoing chant continued as Ghoulia continued to run as fast her legs could carry her. No matter how fast she ran though, the monsters were always right behind her, as if they were attached to her by a piece of invisible, short rope. It was then that one of the math books pumped its pages faster, rocketing ahead of Ghoulia fears. The evil book swooped low, causing Ghoulia to duck and stumble a little. The book dove again, and Ghoulia could feel it collide with her face, knocking off her glasses. She didn't stop running, even when the world was blurry and the sound of glass shattering and plastic twisting could be heard behind her. The book seemed more determined than ever, and gave a final attack, slamming its spine into her side and succeeding in knocking her off the endless path!
The fears all stopped chasing her and looked over the edge as she plummeted into the endless void, her friends hissing and cackling as they watched her fall to her doom. Slow Mo gazed her disappearing form with satisfaction in his eyes and toothy grin on his face, a look that Ghoulia would never forget . . . .
With a loud gasp, Ghoulia shot up in her sleeping bag, breathing heavily as the events of the nightmare came back to haunt her. Were those fears real? Or was it just those extra slices of pizza that she had eaten that were affecting her dreams. Knowing she wouldn't get back to sleep anytime soon, she rubbed her eyes and moaned quietly, picking up her glasses and fitting them over her eyes. She quietly got out of her sleeping bag and dragged into the hall with her, letting it drop to the floor as she went to go find the bathroom. Hopefully a splash of cold water would calm her jittery nerves. Having been friends with Cleo for a long time, Ghoulia skillfully found her way through the labyrinth that was Cleo's home. She eventually found a bathroom and walked in, clicking on the lights and walking over to the gold colored, ruby encrusted sink. Yes, the De Niles even decorated their bathrooms with their wealth.
She turned the sapphire topped handle for the cold water and splashed some of the chilling liquid onto her face. She felt a little better and looked at herself in the mirror, noticing that her pale, gray skin seemed a little lighter than before. Her light blue and white hair was in a mess from the static electricity in her cozy sleeping bag and would actually spark every now and then. She must have been tossing and turning quite a bit. Moaning, she looked down and noticed a small hand mirror hanging from a silver hook on the edge of the sink. Curious for a closer look at herself, she grabbed the hand mirror with one hand and pulled it up to her face, looking at herself a little more. She blinked her eyes quicker than she usually did, thinking she had seen something.
Wait, no, her eyes weren't playing tricks on her! The reflection of herself in the reflector was slowly vanishing in a cloud of dark, purple smoke. Two figures started to appear, and Ghoulia had to squint her eyes to see them clear enough. Eventually the smoke cleared, and she gasped. Two people, a short girl and a tall boy, were sitting next to each other on a bench in a graveyard, surrounded by tombstones and gnarled, leafless trees. The moon was out and was a sharp, silver crescent in the black sky. Twinkling stars blinked overhead as the two held each other close. Ghoulia almost dropped the mirror when the two figures turned so that she could see them: it was herself and Ben. Together.
The two talked to each other, though Ghoulia could not make out any sound. Ben laughed as Mirror Ghoulia smiled and sighed happily when Ben wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. She returned the hug, the two embracing for what seemed forever. Ghoulia quickly turned the hand mirror over so that she could no longer see the reflection in the looking glass. What had just happened? Was it a figment of her imagination? Ghoulia rubbed her temples, putting her oversized brain to work to try and solve the mystery. A commanding, snide voice with hidden warmth came to her mind; Cleo's voice.
Careful with that, Ghoulia! That mirror's magic and priceless! Cleo's voice rang. Ghoulia did indeed now remember Cleo telling her about the mirror. It would first show the viewer what their heart desired most in life, whether it be an item, a moment, or a person. Cleo herself had tried it out a few times, the mirror would sometimes waver in its answer, sometimes showing Deuce and sometimes showing a dress that Cleo had seen at the mall that she had wanted but forgot to bring enough money (despite being incredibly wealthy, the girl was also a bit forgetful). The mirror however, also had a dark side. Once it was done showing the holder what they most desired, the mirror would then show them their worst fears, the holders sometimes being driven to madness, which kind of explained how it ended up in the De Nile house in the first place, as Cleo's father was an antique dealer who had gotten the mirror for almost next to nothing from a crazy ogre who babbled on and on about the mirror was evil.
Old monsters aside, Ghoulia was thoroughly confused. Was being with Ben what she truly desired? She hadn't seen the mirror make them kiss or anything romantic like that, just a time between two good friends. Was that what she wanted? To be close friends with him? Although friends with the ghouls, she was never exceptionally close to them. None of them, except possibly Frankie where Science was concerned, could match her brain power. But then, why was the mirror showing her and Ben together as friends or a couple? She knew for a fact that he was absolutely hopeless at Clawculus if he wasn't Graymatter or Brainstorm, and she was the top student in that class. Maybe, the answer lied beyond her love for school? Maybe, deep down, she was desperately lonely and looking for someone to just pour her heart out to? She knew that while her ghoulfriends were exceptional at helping each other with problems and listening, there were just secrets between them that she couldn't share. Was that what she was looking for in Ben? He didn't seem to care at all whether his friends had fur or fangs, slime or vines, he loved them all equally. Ghoulia sighed and, with a shaky hand, turned the mirror over.
The image of her and Ben was gone, lost in the swirling cloud of purple ash. Another image was starting to appear, and Ghoulia knew exactly what was happening; the mirror was showing her what her heart feared the most. And when the image cleared, she nearly dropped the mirror on the floor for a second time.
The image didn't seem to have changed much from the previous one, with the exception of the appearance of all her friends. She, Ben, and her friends were all still out in the graveyard on the dark night. Mirror Ghoulia smiled at all of them, expecting a return smile or wave from each of them. However, none of those came. Cleo, ever commanding as ever, slowly reached down to the ground, and faster than her mirror counter part could move, Ghoulia's face was covered in mud. The ghouls all cackled and laughed. One by one, they all joined in, scooping up wads of earth and rocks and pelting her with it. Mirror Ghoulia cried out in misery and pain as the globs struck her skin. After one last attack, the ghouls all left her, laughing maniacally. Ben and her boy friends (just boys she was friends with) still remained, and Ghoulia feared of what was to come. The boys, minus Ben, all reached for her and began to slap and punch her, yanking at her hair and clothes without mercy. While no clothing came off, her skin was incredibly bruised and scratched from the attacks as the boys all punched her in the face one last time and moved off after the girls, all laughing as well.
With hope still in her heart, Mirror Ghoulia turned to Ben, gazing up at him with her sad eyes behind her broken glasses. Ben's face never wavered as he slowly brought up his wrist and activated the Omnitrix, Skurd silently oozing aside so his master could do his work. Ben suddenly slapped the activation button, and a brief green light filled the air as the transformation began. Ben's arms became more muscular, his legs stronger and longer. He soon became so ripped that he lost his shirt, it being torn off his body and tossed away. His skin became patchwork, stitches holding random colored flesh together as the Omnitrix symbol appeared on his right pectoral. Metallic bolts sprouted up from his shoulders, wrists, and neck as thick black hair sprouted from his head and down to his chin, stopping. The final transformation was the sudden growth of two large conductor like coils, crackling with electricity. Without a word, Frankenstrike reached for her, his heavy brow arched down into a frown. Mirror Ghoulia moved back in fear, but the Transylian was too faster, grabbing her in his large hands and mercilessly twisting her arms. Ghoulia swore she heard a snap from her arms, despite the mirror being completely mute. Frankenstrike then moved to her legs, breaking them also with a twist of his hands. He then through her, hard, on the ground and proceeded to stomp her frail body into the dust. Ghoulia flinched with every stomp, wondering why her Mirror-self wasn't dead yet. Frankenstrike then drew back a large fist and socked her full in the face, giving one last kick to the ribs before the conductors on his back gave her an electrifying shock. With a loud, hollow laugh, he lumbered off after the boys and ghouls, kicking Ghoulia's head as he walked off. Mirror Ghoulia than broke down into tears, the salty weeping mixing with the blood that had started to drip out from her wounds.
She was alone, in the graveyard without a friend in the world. Not even the crows or bats that flew the night's sky, or savage hell hounds and wolves that stalked the ground came to her, to feast on her broken body. She was worthless, pathetic. She didn't deserve to die, she only deserved to wish she could die, to just lie there eternity in her sorrow and pain. This time, Ghoulia did drop the mirror.
She couldn't stop crying, the images were so vivid. She ran out of the bathroom and ran down the hallway back to Cleo's room, hoping against hope that it was a dream. Once she got there, she glanced and nearly cried out in sorrow. The ghouls, despite being asleep and unaware of Ghoulia's troubles, seemed to be watching her with anger and annoyance in their eyes, wondering why this worthless pest had come to bother them. Ghoulia quickly moved to the guest room where the boy's were sleeping, and got a similar result, every Man-ster seeming to be disgusted by her mere present. Sniffing, she turned to look at Ben, who was the closest to the door. The bright light of the moon that cast through the window shone down on his face, and she saw nothing. Tears still in her eyes, she grabbed the edges of his sleeping bag and pulled it out into the hall as quietly as she could, which proved difficult; despite getting A+ in all her classes, she could never conquer gym unless dodge ball was involved. Once Ben's sleeping form was safely out in the hallway, she quietly closed the doors to both rooms and stooped down to Ben's face. She quickly jabbed a cold finger into the back of his neck and nearly jumped when he shot awake from the pressure point.
"Gah! Where's Vilgax!? Who do I punch!?" he asked wildly, hand hovering above the Omnitrix. Skurd, was no where to be seen, though a tiny snore from the bottom of Ben's sleeping bag gave a hint to his whereabouts. Ben then glared right at Ghoulia, his sleepy face softening when he realized it was her. "Ghoulia?" he yawned. "What's wrong?"
"Eeeeeeee-aaaaahhh," Ghoulia moaned sadly, looking both scared and beyond sad. Ben instantly got parental like and got comfortable in his sleeping bag. "Nightmare, huh? Happened to me once. Turned out to be a Cassiopelan Dream Eater though." he told her. "Seeing as you don't have a freaky face alien stuck to your head, I'm guessing you had a real nightmare, huh?" Ghoulia sadly nodded and hugged her knees, tucking her down so she couldn't look at Ben's face. "Do you want to talk about it?" Ben asked. After a few minutes of waiting, Ghoulia eventually uncurled herself and crawled over to Ben, sitting near him as she explained her nightmare and the mirror's effects.
After a quarter of an hour, Ghoulia was finished, her lip trembling as she looked at Ben with her fearful puppy eyes. Ben sighed heavily and reached for Ghoulia, the zombie girl flinching and then relaxing when it was gentle. "Ghoulia, I'm going to be straight with you: I didn't understand half of what you were saying. What I did understand though, it makes me angry. Angry that you could think such a thing." said Ben with a slightly annoyed tone. "Trust me when I say that none of your ghoulfriends, boy friends, or Slow Mo would ever hurt you. They wouldn't dream of it in a million years, and would refuse the greatest treasures of the world if all they had to do was hurt you and make you feel alone," Ben said, wrapping a comforting arm around Ghoulia's shoulders. "And I will always be there for you, through think and thin. That's what friends do." Ben then pulled Ghoulia into a hug, and she embraced it fondly, a warm feeling entering her as they hugged. After a moment or two, they broke apart, smiles on their faces.
"You gonna be okay?" Ben asked.
"Meeeehhhhhh-ahhhh," Ghoulia groaned, waving her hand a little.
"Would you feel better if I turned into Pesky Dust and set your dreams right?" Ben asked.
Ghoulia nodded and sat back as Ben crawled out of his sleeping bag and stood up, stretching a little before accessing the Omnitrix. He scrolled through the listings before coming across the alien he was looking for and slapping the activation button. A bright green flash of light filled the hallway, and Ghoulia had to close her eyes before looking down at what seemed to be just a little blue fish with two weak looking legs and fins wearing a green brace around its football-shaped body
"Darn it!" Walkatrout cursed before slapping the Omnitrix with a fin.
FWOOM!
"That's not it, eh!" Shocksquatch grumbled.
FWOOM!
"Seriously?" Blitzwolfer growled, his ears pinned against his head and his lips drawn back in annoyance showing his sharp teeth as his tail wagged angrily.
FWOOM!
"This is getting ridiculous!" Way Big complained as quietly as possible. Thankfully, the ceilings of the De Nile house were quite high, enabling Way Big to fit inside if he crouched low.
FWOOM!
"Okay, that's just cold," Big Chill pouted, not even laughing at his own joke. Another flash of green light covered the Necrofriggian, and Ben reappeared, an annoyed look on his face. "Okay, so the Omnitrix is not be cooperative," he sighed, sitting back down next to Ghoulia. "You want me to just sleep with you?" he asked. Ghoulia seemed a little stunned by the wording before she realized what he meant a nodded. Ghoulia then crawled back into her sleeping bag out in the hallway and watched as Ben crawled back into his directly across from her so that they looked at each others faces. "Good?" Ben asked. Ghoulia nodded and took off her glasses, closing her eyes and letting sleep coming to her.
Ben watched over Ghoulia's small form, waiting until he was sure that she was asleep. He then quickly leaned over and pecked her on the forehead, a sort of reassuring god night kiss. As Ben settled back down into his sleeping bag and closed his eyes, he failed to see the smile that curved across Ghoulia's face in her sleep, her dreams much more happy now that Ben was watching over her, and her fears had been destroyed for good.
Unknown to either of the them, Clawdeen had watched the whole spectacle from Cleo's room after Ghoulia had closed both doors. She peered through a crack between the door frame and door, watching the whole event unfold before her eyes, everything from Ben and Ghoulia hugging, to Ben's attempts at making Ghoulia's dreams all the sweeter. She even caught the moment where Ben lightly kissed her head, promising to watch over her for as long as he lived.
Needless to say, there werewolf was perplexed. Ever since the Halloween Fiasco, she had been wary about Ben. While most ghouls were attracted to him like flies to honey, she was repelled like Draculaura when met with meat. She was disgusted by him and how he had managed to round up almost all her ghoulfriends into a harem. In her eyes, he had every single one of them but her and Venus wrapped around his finger, ready for disposal whenever he pleased. The only reason she wouldn't share these thoughts with Venus was because she could stand only so much of her environmental talk before going insane. She felt angry and alone, left out of something big, especially when all the guys and ghouls had fawned over Ben when he regaled them with his tales of the cosmos.
The only reason she even tolerated Ben for this long was because he disliked Toralei as much as she did and actually had the fire power to do it. As far she was concerned, anyone who didn't like Toralei was alright in her book. So why did she still dislike him? Maybe it was because she was the only one left out of the fun. Ben had never even come near her, and she was sorry to admit that it was her fault. She sighed and rubbed her temples. Life had just gotten more complicated, especially with that werewolf alien form she had just seen moments ago. Her heart was pumping faster than she could run on a full moon, and she had a feeling it had nothing to do with the extra steak she had eaten before bed. With a yawn, she went back to her sleeping bag, deciding to put her weary mind to rest.
Maybe it would all be better in the morning.
And here is the longest chapter yet! 21 pages typed! Whew!
For all you readers out there waiting for an appearance from Blitzwolfer, I hope you're satisfied until the next chapter! Sheesh. Worse than a shoal of piranhas :) And for those of you wondering about Bonez, I based him off of a picture I found on the internet when searching under Atomix. Apparently someone that works for the show or just a fan drew it and posted it online. I gotta say, it actually looks pretty cool. Check it out if you don't quite understand what Bonez looks like.
Anyways, leave your reviews and comments below. I expect to see more reviews since this is not only the 13th chapter, but the longest! Obey my command! Mu-ahahahahahah-ahahahahahaha!
If you have ideas or requests for this story, please PM so I may appeal to my audience. Again, if your idea doesn't make it into the story, feel free to write your own and let your creative soar (cheesy, huh?). And if you have any ideas for the Ever After High sequel to come much later, PM me as well. I have a basic bare bones idea, and I want to hear what else other people have to say!
Hasta Luego!