Trixie wasn't into shopping as much as Gwendolyn was, but today was the exception.
The famous Mall of America as the latest stop on the Tennyson family's continental tour. Besides being the largest shopping center in America, Trixie was surprised that so many people still congregated there since the existence of online shopping rendered malls obsolete. But Trixie wasn't complaining. While Max bought for himself (more "exotic" ingredients for future meals), Trixie was able to purchase herself a new laptop using the money from a few of her patents; Gwendolyn questioned when Trixie would place her laptop that Trixie lost in Canada, she pretended not to hear.
By the time they left the mall and made their way to the Rust Bucket, it was already close to eleven at night.
"Five-hundred stores, seventy-two restaurants, forty-eight movie screens, and an indoor rollercoaster!" said Gwen excitedly, pouring over the mall booklet she acquired.
"We could just spend the whole summer here," said Ben, dramatically falling to his knees in reverence. "This mall has everything!"
His performance was cut short when the overheard an alarm coming from inside the mall. The Tennysons caught a glimpse of two shadowy figures making a run for it as three security offices came running out the door and chased their thieves with their weapons out.
"Including their own police force," Max commented.
"Looks like the rent-a-cops could use a little help," said Ben, cracking his knuckles theatrically "A hero's work is never done." But when he pressed the button to activate the Omnitrix, the device made a buzzing noise and the emblem was stop-red. "Uh-oh, that's not good."
"What's wrong?" asked Max, concerned.
"The uh…watch is still recharging," said Ben sheepishly.
"Why would it be recharging?" questioned Trixie, inspecting the Omnitrix closely. "I didn't see you…." But upon noticing that Ben was turning his gaze away from her, whistling nervously, the answer became apparent to Trixie. "…You used your new alien to sneak to the front of the rollercoaster, didn't you?"
"…maybe," said Ben quietly.
"Sweet Galvan Prime," Trixie sighed exasperatedly, pinching the bridge of her nose. She passed her new laptop to Gwen. "Fine. I'll handle this. Accessing Nemuina sequence."
With her bulbous green eyes, fairy-like wings, and hair standing on end, Trixie took off alone in the direction of the thieves.
While in pursuit of the thieves, who were hidden by shadow despite dozens of streetlights over their heads, the mall security was baffled when the thieves jumped off one of said streetlights and flung themselves into the upper section of the parking lot. They were equally dumbfounded when Trixie flew over their heads and dived into the same area where the thieves went.
Trixie spotted the criminals running toward the opposite side of the lot, so Trixie sped up and tackled them from behind. The thieves were knocked flat on the ground, dropping the stolen items – a handful of jewelry – on the pavement. Trixie landed in front of them in a dramatic crouch like Ben taught her.
"That's far enough, criminals," said Trixie. "Surrender peacefully before this gets – "
But just when Trixie thought she had seen it all, she realizes that the two "criminals" were a couple of normal, average senior citizens in nightrobes and fuzzy slippers. For a moment, Trixie thought she might have gotten the wrong people…. That moment passed when the elderly couple suddenly started doing gymnast flips and, while she was stuck in a dumbfounded state, gave Trixie a kung-fu flying kick to the face.
Trixie hit the ground on her back and slid across the pavement. She held her throbbing head, groaning as she sat up, and took another look at the elderly thieves; grandpa cracked his neck like he was an action star.
"…There's not a chance you two are Limaxs, is there?" Trixie asked hopefully.
Grandma leaps over Trixie and the half-Nemuina rolled away before the elderly woman's foot stomped where her head had been, leaving a crack in the asphalt. Trixie flaps her wings to glide, only to be kicked sideways by grandpa. She was able to catch herself in the air and dived for the elderly man with her fists forward, but grandpa effortlessly sidestepped and brought his knee to her stomach while grandma punched her across the face. Trixie dropped to her hands and knees, her body aching all over while the elderly couple towered over her.
Trixie weakly raised her left hand, hoping to put them to sleep, but grandpa grabbed her by the wrist, spun around in the air, and threw her into a nearby car. As she crushed the hood under her body and the car alarm blared, Trixie winced as she sat up and saw something peculiar. The elderly couple were holding their heads like they were suffering a great deal of pain despite Trixie not hitting them once. And then, just like that, they both collapsed on the ground and lost consciousness.
"Well, that was weird," muttered Trixie, climbing off the car hood. She approached the couple when she noticed something red oozing out of the elderly man's ears, forming a puddle on the ground. "Hey, are okay? What's – "
Unfortunately, the matter only became more complicated when mall security finally arrives in their little cars, this time with back-up. The officers got out of their cars and trained their weapons on Trixie. Given that her current form made her look monstrous and she was standing in a puddle of sticky red liquid, Trixie could tell what was running through their minds.
"They must have let loose some kind of monster!" said one of the guards. "Get 'em before they harm anyone else!"
The last thing Trixie needed was a fight with security, and she doubted they were in a listening mood. The half-Nemuina girl flapped her wings and flew over the guards'' heads; half of security scuttled back into their tiny cars while the other half attended to the fallen elderly couple. Trixie flies down the ramps with the guards in close pursuit until she spots the Rust Bucket stopped just ahead. Ben opened the door, ushering her inside, then slammed the door behind them before Max slammed his foot on the accelerator. Unfortunately, security saw them and began pursuing the Rust Bucket.
"They must be trying to escape in that RV!" a guard yelled into his walkie-talkie. "Cut them off!"
Max practically skids out of the parking lot, nearly scraping the side paneling on the turn, while security is on their bumper. But unfortunately, another security car is waiting for them, cutting off the Rust Bucket's escape. For one terrifying moment, it seemed like was about to run over the guards, but the elderly man turned the wheel at the last second. Which, sad to say, caused him to drive straight into a lamppost, crushing the Rust Bucket's grill.
Now that the Rust Bucket was out of commission, the guards cautiously approached the door with their guns raised. The security team threw open the door and barged inside…only to find Max at the driver's seat with Ben and Gwen sitting politely at the table. Trixie was nowhere in sight.
"Uh, looking for something officer?" said Ben.
While the guards were scratching their heads, Trixie briefly peeked out from her secret compartment in the floor before quietly closing it.
"You got your butt kicked by a couple of old people?" Ben laughed out loud as he, Gwen, and Trixie walked around the Mall of America the next day. "Man, that's lame."
"Need I remind you of the retirement village in Nowhere?" said Trixie, giving the boy a dry look. "There was something abnormal about them. Especially that red liquid that came out of the old man's ears after he collapsed."
"Was he bleeding?" asked Gwen, concerned.
"It definitely wasn't blood," said Trixie firmly. "But I do feel like I've seen it somewhere before. I need more time to investigate."
"Well, you'll have plenty of time now," said Gwen grumpily. "Thanks to security chasing your fluttery butt, they played demolition derby with the Rust Bucket."
"Hey, the mall's gonna pay for all the repairs," Ben defended Trixie. "And it bought us a few more days here while grandpa waits for the parts. You should be thanking her."
"Hmm…guess you're right," said Gwen after thinking for a moment. She then slapped Trixie on the back and said, "Thanks, Trixe."
"You're welcome…?" said Trixie, not really sure how to respond.
The children continued wandering aimlessly through the mall when they came across a blonde woman in a flowery dress standing outside a candy store. She was carrying a box filled with little red, blue, and yellow balls that were apparently candy and encouraging people to take from it. She had just handed some out to a small family who seemed very satisfied from the taste and started calling out to others.
"Free sample!" she yelled cheerfully. "Free samples! Come get your free samples!" When the Tennysons walked by, she immediately pressed on them with a painfully wide smile. "Would you kids like a free sample? It's our latest product."
"Free candy? Don't mind if I do!" Ben cheered, wasting no time grabbing a sample and shoving it in his mouth.
"Hmm…interesting taste," said Gwen, taking the time to chew her sample. "What's it made of."
"I can't tell you that – company secret and all that," said the blonde woman teasingly. "But I can say it's made from one hundred percent organic ingredients."
"It's pretty good; you gotta try it, Trixie," said Ben, offering his friend a yellow piece.
"No, thank you," Trixie refused. "I don't have much of a sweet tooth. Especially after Murial's vinegar candy."
"But you really must try it," said the blonde saleswoman, pushing her box onto Trixie. "I promise you'll love it."
But Trixie narrowed her eyes suspiciously and said," You look familiar…. Have we met before?"
"Uh – er – well…," the blonde woman sputtered nervously, sweating slightly.
Trixie leaned in closer for a better look at the woman's face when a loud screech filled the air. Ben, Gwen, and Trixie flinched in surprise, but the blonde woman dropped her box, spilling her candy all over the floor, and clutched her head like she was in pain. The noise was coming from a stage that erected in the mall square, resulting from a man who had been doing a mic check and caused the speakers to screech from the feedback.
"Sorry, sorry, about that, folks," the man on stage apologized.
"Whoa, you okay?" Gwen asked the blonde woman, helping her stand.
"Yeah…sensitive hearing…," said the blonde woman, who was panting light as she started picking up the candy. "I'm fine…it's no trouble at all."
"Wonder what's going on over there," said Ben as he gravitated toward the stage.
"Let's find out," suggested Trixie.
Ben, Gwen, and Trixie joined the small crowd gathering around the stage, not even considering helping the poor saleswoman clean up. As they got closer to the stage, Gwen saw a sign and read:
"'The amazing Sublimino, Master of Hypnosis?' Pfft, yeah right. Everyone knows hypnosis is totally fake."
"Says the dweeb with magic powers," said Ben.
"He's got a point," Trixie remarked.
"Ladies and gentlemen," the man on stage announced. "Presenting Sublimino, the master of hypnosis."
The man walked off stage as a puff of purple smoke exploded. A dwarfish man with a balding head and dressed like a circus ringleader walked out of the smoke, coughing his lungs out, which didn't impress the audience. The short man even tripped on his coattails, nearly falling on his face, which only made the crowd even more doubtful. Sublimino eventually collected himself, acting like nothing happened. He approached the mic, grumbling when he realized it was too high and had to readjust it.
"Behold Sublimino," said Sublimino dramatically. "I am about to take you on a journey through that mysterious realm known as... the mind. First, I shall require some volunteers."
"Ugh, give me a break," Gwen groaned. "Only somebody with half a brain can be hypnotized."
"Hey, here's a volunteer for you!" shouted Ben, gleefully raising his cousin's hand.
"Me? Forget it!" Gwen rejected, ripping her hand away.
"What's the matter?" Ben taunted. "Afraid you don't have half a brain?"
Gwen glowered at him for a moment, which slowly evolved into a smirk. She raised Ben's arm in the air and said, "My cousin wants to volunteer, too!"
"What? No way!" Ben denied immediately.
"What's the matter?" Gwen taunted back. "Afraid you don't have half a brain?"
Ben knew what she was doing, just as he also knew that he would take the bait anyway. So the Tennyson cousins reluctantly walked onto the stage; Trixie stayed behind and pulled out her smartphone, already knowing they were going to do something stupid or entertaining or both. They joined the other volunteers consisting of an old man and elderly woman.
"Now... clear your minds," Sulimino told them, pulling out a golden watch from his pocket. "Focus only on this pocket watch as it swings back and forth." He starts to swing the watch in a slow pendulum motion. "Your eyelids are feeling heavy. You are falling into a de-e-e-ep sleep."
"Oh please," Gwen scoffed. "This such a load of – "
But when Sublimino snapped his fingers, all the volunteers suddenly closed their eyes and started snoring loudly. They were sleeping on their feet! Sensing the perfect opportunity, Trixie pulled out her smartphone and started recording.
"Prime blackmail material," she said to herself, smirking.
"Now you are in my power," Sublimino told his volunteers. "When you open your eyes, you will all become newborn babies."
Sublimino snapped his fingers and the volunteers snapped away. The four started crying and wailing, much to the amusement of the audience who broke out in laughter. Trixie made sure to zoom in on the Tennyson cousins; she was never going to let them live this down.
"Now! You are all chickens in a barnyard!" said Sublimino, snapping his fingers again.
Their wailing stopped and the volunteers started clucking like farm animals, flapping their arms as if attempting to take flight. Ben bent and started peck for imaginary feed on the ground. Gwen wanted the same imaginary feed and started fighting Ben for it. Even as chickens they can't get along, Trixie thought.
"Uh…why are Ben and Gwen acting like chickens?" asked Max as he walked in on the scene, watching his grandchildren cluck and wave their arms angrily.
"Entertainment," said Trixie simply.
"You are a ballerina!" Sublimino said to the elderly man, who springs away into a dance. "You are a ferocious grizzly bear!" The old woman growled with her hands raised like claws. "You are a little kitty cat!" Gwen dropped down on all-fours, mewling and grooming herself.
"Irony is such a beautiful thing," said Trixie, enjoying herself a little too much.
"And you, my lad," Sublimino said to Ben. "You are an alien."
Unfortunately, even under hypnosis, Ben had the tendency to take things too literal. He activated the Omnitrix and raised his hand to slap down on the dial, all while maintaining a blank stare.
"Joke's over!" said Max in a panic.
Trixie dropped her phone on the ground and rushed up to the stage, tackling as he slapped down the Omnitrix. Fortunately, she managed to get him behind the curtain before the explosive green light drew any attention. The green-haired girl sighed in relief as she clutched Gray Matter in her hand. Thank Galvan Prime he chose a small alien; she wouldn't know how to explain from a magma man or a flying manta ray got into the mall.
"You are ruining the performance!" Sublimino hissed angrily at Trixie, popping his head through the curtain. Trixie swiftly hid Gray Matter behind her back.
"Sorry," Trixie apologized, laughing nervously. "My friend uh…need to use the little alien's room."
Sublimino scowled, but did not press her, and disappeared back behind the curtains. Once he was gone, Trixie took another look at Gray Matter, who appeared to still be locked in a hypnotic state.
"Uh…take me to your leader," said Gray Matter "Your will is my command."
"Hmm…," Trixie hummed before a wicked grin crossed her lips.
Later that night, Max was hard at work trying to repair the damage to the Rust Bucket using only the light from the parking lot lamps. In the meantime, Trixie was more than happy to show of the footage she took of Ben and Gwen during their little performance. Gwen sat at the table opposite of Trixie, covering her face with her hands as if it would hide her from the humiliation she felt. Ben was equally mortified as he stood over Trixie's shoulder and watched himself cry and get into a chicken fight with Gwen.
"Ugh, this is so embarrassing," Ben groaned.
"I've never been so mortified in my life," Gwen whined.
"I'm sure that's not true," Trixie remarked. "Ooh, here comes my favorite part."
Trixie turned her phone to show them a new video of Gray Matter serving Trixie grapes like a servant while Gwen rolled around on the grass, completely enamored by the ball of yarn that Trixie had tossed her way. But, to on-screen Trixie's disappointment, she heard the familiar beep of the Omnitrix's warning system and covered her eyes as Ben returned to his natural form in an explosion of red light. The transformation seemed to have undone Sublimino's hypnotic spell because both the Tennyson cousins were looking around, wondering out loud how they got outside.
"Too bad you snapped out of it when the Omnitrix timed out," said Trixie. "It was nice to have some peace a quiet for a change." Without warning, Ben snatched the phone out of her hand. "Hey! Rude!"
"This is why mankind created erase buttons," said Ben, who practically jammed his thumb through her phone. "There. Deleted."
"That's all right," said Trixie, calmly taking back her phone. "This is why mankind also created the Cloud."
Ben and Gwen's faces fell when they realized this; Ben literally fell to the floor on his face in despair. That's when Max walked inside, wiping her greased hands on a rag.
"Well, I've done all I can for tonight," Max informed them. "It's been a long day, and we could all use some shut-eye. Lights out."
Trixie slid out of her seat and walked to the back of the RV to change into her sleepwear. Ben and Gwen exchanged miserable glances and slammed their faces down again.
The next day arrived as the clocktower outside struck eight o'clock. The Tennysons were once again wondering through the mall on the hunt for more parts and tools needed to repair the Rust Bucket. As they passed by the candy store, Trixie noticed that the blonde saleswoman from yesterday was missing even when Trixie looked through the windows. Strange, she thought. The stage in the mall square was still erected and it looked like Sublimino was five minutes away from another performance.
"Think we should catch the next performance?" Trixie asked the Tennyson cousins teasingly. "Maybe he can turn you into a puppy next.
"Har-har," Gwen grumbled. She turned to her cousin to get his reaction, but was surprised to see that he looked dead on his feet, like the gentlest breeze could knock him over at any moment. "Hey, you okay, Ben? You don't look so good. Not that you ever do, but still."
Ben let out a wide yawn and said, "Just a little tired, that's all."
"Hey, what's going on over there?" asked Trixie, pointing ahead.
A small crowd was gathering around an electronics store, most pulling out their phones and posting on social media. The Tennysons moved closer to investigate and discovered that the shop windows had been broken and the inside of the shop was in complete disarray. Mall security had had already cordoned area and were scrounging around the wreckage for clues.
"Whoa, what happened?" Gwen asked one of the security guards.
"Someone broke in last night and stole a whole bunch of computers and TVs," said the guard. "The fifth one this week…."
"Hey, Sam, what do you make of this?" another security guard appeared, showing what he had found in the wreckage. The Tennysons were started when the realized it was a sharpened piece of green crystal…exactly like the ones used by Diamondhead. Trixie, Gwen, and Max waited until the guards moved away before shoot looks at Ben.
"What? I didn't do anything? I swear," Ben said defensively. "I'm not the only person in the galaxy that can change into aliens, you know. Remember Kevin?"
"Kevin is lost somewhere in deep space," said Trixie.
"You don't know that," said Ben. "We thought Vilgax was gone and he almost flattened us like pancakes."
"It's not entirely out of the realm of possibility," Max agreed. "Still, I think we should keep our eyes out…."
It was close to midnight when something strange happened again.
While the Tennysons were all sleeping, Trixie was burning the midnight oil on her new laptop. She had lost a lot of her research notes when she lost Gwen's computer at Niagara Falls and was trying recover as much data from memory as she could. Her main priority was the Biomintrix notes – she feels it could an invaluable improvement to the original design. Trixie rubbed her eyes from doziness, thinking it was time to log off for the night, when she heard a strange rustling sound coming from the back of the RV.
Trixie turned around in her seat, expecting to see Ben getting up for a midnight snack. But instead, she found Gwen, in full Lucky Girl costume no less.
"Uh, Gwendolyn, what are you doing up at this time of night?" asked Trixie. But Lucky Girl just gave her a blank stare, which made Trixie very concerned as she stood up. "Hello? Gwendolyn? Can you hear me?"
Without even a word of explanation, Lucky Girl dashed out of the Rust Bucket and started sprinting towards the mall.
"Gwendolyn, wait!" Trixie screamed, which started Ben and Max out of their sleep. "Maxwell! Benjamin! Something's wrong with Gwendolyn!"
"She must be sleepwalking," said Max.
"More like sleep flipping," Ben added as he watched his cousin seamlessly flip off the hoods of several cars.
While the Tennysons ran to catch up with Lucky Girl, the sorceress-in-training stopped in front of the mall doors. One tug on the handle told her they were locked, so Lucky Girl cast an enchantment that turned the latch and opened the doors from the inside. But the moment she stepped inside, Lucky Girl was almost blinded by several lights flashing on her at once. The lights were coming from the half dozen security carts circling the entrance with twice as many security officers aiming their weapons at her.
"Halt in the name of mall security!" one of the guards shouted.
"Is that a kid?" another guard questioned.
"Avoid any fatal shots," called another guard. "Aim for the legs."
"They're gonna shoot her!" yelled Trixie as she and Trixie arrived in time to see the guards preparing to take their shots.
"Not if I can help it," said Ben determinedly.
Ben activated the Omnitrix and cycled through the dozen silhouettes until he found the one he was looking for and slammed the faceplate down. In a bright flash of green light, Ben's newest alien, Rifter, shot a wormhole from his finger at his feet and transported himself in front of Lucky Girl, startling the security force.
Rifter used the opportunity to stretch his fingers and shot several tiny green balls at each of the guards with the accuracy of a trained marksman. Each member of the security force screamed as they were sucked into the wormholes that formed on contact. A moment later, Trixie and Max swiveled around when they heard several bodies landed on the cars behind them and discovered mall security scattered throughout the parking lot, unconscious.
"That'll teach 'em ta draw on a lil' lady," said Rifter in his southern drawl. He approached Lucky Girl, who had stood stock still the entire time, and crouched down to her level. "Hey, Gwen, wake up, pardner. Yer sleepwalkin' – "
Before he even realized what happened, Lucky Girl grabbed Rifter by the wrist and judo flipped him over her shoulder, slamming him down hard on the tiled floor. Leaving the sharpshooting alien on the ground in pain, Gwen sprinted to a nearby store, which seemed to be for an expensive fashion brand that would send anyone into crippling debt with one purchase. Rifter slowly sat up, groaning, as Trixie and Max helped him up.
"Well, that's a real spur in my heel," moaned Rifter.
"It's no use, Ben," said Max. "She can't hear you. Probably has no idea what she's doing."
"That's usually Benjamin's job," Trixie commented, ignoring the indignant look from the alien.
CRASH! Lucky had just smashed through the store window and leapt inside. The masked heroine cast a spell to levitate several articles of expensive clothing and accessories, stuffing them into store a dozen store bags from behind the counter to be moved all at once.
"We better put a stop to this," said Max.
Rifter, Trixie, and Max started running toward the store when Lucky Girl noticed them out of the corner of her eye. The masked sorceress waved her hand and generated a powerful gust of wind toward her family. The Tennysons crossed their arms in front of their faces and tried to brace themselves, but they were swept up by the small hurricane one by one starting with Trixie, then Rifter, and finally Max. The three were shot across the mall, their panicked scream echoing through the empty stores, but were fortunate enough to land in the nearby fountain.
Trixie, Max, and Rifter emerged from the fountain, thoroughly soaked; Rifter's hat drooped pathetically over his eyes. Trixie brushed her wet bangs out of her face just in time to see Lucky Girl running out of the mall, bags loaded with expensive items floating in her wake.
"Well, on the bright side," Trixie tried to sound optimistic, "she's really improved on her magic."
"Not – helping," said Rifter in annoyance, though facing the wrong direction.
Lucky Girl ran several blocks across town with her stolen goods flying behind before she before she ended up in a storage unit lot. She paced herself through the rows until she stopped in front of one unit and waited. Only a few seconds passed before the metal door was thrown up and three shadowed characters stepped out. One of them moved forward and snatched away Lucky Girl's bag, checking its contents.
"Score," said shadow #1. "This is the most brilliant scam we've pulled yet."
"And thee best part is," said shadow #2, patting Lucky Girl on the head as if she were a dog, "these dumb meddling kids will take the fall for us."
"All right, fun's over," said shadow #3, speaking to Lucky Girl. "Get outta here before the cops show up."
Lucky Girl obeyed her orders without question and took off into the night –
Gwen could tell it was morning because the sun had a way off shining at just the right angle to hit her in the face. Though she felt strangely uncomfortable; the mattress was unusually stiff and her back was killing her. With a whining groan, Gwen slowly opened her eyes, sitting up as she rubbed the sleep away.
"Aw man, what a weird dream," Gwen moaned.
But when her vision finally cleared, Gwen understood why her back was so stiff. She had had been sleeping in a tree on the edge of the parking lot, the Rust Bucket visible a short distance away, dressed in her Lucky Girl costume with her mask clutched in her hand. Before she could make sense of all this, Gwen accidentally slipped and fell out of the tree, landing face first in the grass.
"Now I know how Ben feels," she groaned.
"Despite last night's bizarre attack and other burglaries," said the news reporter as a surveillance video of Lucky Girl and Rifter attacking mall security played on the TV, "mall representatives are claiming that this was an isolated incident and that the mall is still open for business – "
Trixie turned on the TV with the remote and turned to face Gwen, who had walked back to the Rust Bucket after disappearing all night, looking confused and scared. Gwen sat at the table near the window with Ben sitting beside her to block her in and Trixie and Max sitting across. They didn't want to risk her running off again.
"I just don't get it," murmured Gwen, resting her head in her hands. "Why would I go Lucky Girl and steal a bunch of stuff that I don't even have anymore?"
"Well, sleepwalkers are in a hyper dream state," said Max informatively. "Nothing makes sense in a dream."
"Yeah, but most sleepwalkers can't cast magic spells and throw tornados at people," Ben commented at the same time Gwen slammed her head on the table, feeling unbearably tired.
"Well, Ben's got a point," said Max, raising his granddaughter's head up. "We're gonna have to keep you awake and away from people until we can figure out how to stop you from sleepwalking again."
"What about Ben?" Gwen complained. "He went Diamondhead and stole a bunch of TVs."
"You can't prove that," Ben argued back.
"Don't worry; I've got you both covered," said Trixie as she brought out two spray bottles from underneath the table. She didn't hesitate to last both of them in the face, making them sputter and flail. "I think I'm going to enjoy this…."
Throughout the day, Trixie had been keeping an attentive watch of the Tennyson cousins ensuring that they stayed awake (and, admittedly, having a little fun with it.)
When Gwen had fallen asleep at the table with her head tilted back, Trixie stealthily approached from behind and pinched her nose until she floundered away, gasping for breath.
Ben had fallen face down on the couch until Trixie poured an entire tray of ice cues down his shirt, causing him to jump and scream.
And when both cousins flopped into bed in the back of the RV, Trixie pulled the edge of the blanket and dragged them off onto the floor. Gwen curled up on the floor, whining pathetically, while Ben glared up at the green-haired girl.
"You're enjoying this way too much," Ben grumbled.
"It's for your own good," said Trixie, not even trying to hide her smirk.
But trying to keep Ben and Gwen awake was starting to take its toll on Trixie and Max, too.
It was nearing midnight again when Trixie stumbled tiredly to the front. The Tennyson cousins were sitting across from each other with tape forcing their eyelids open – Trixie's latest anti-sleep plan. The human Omnitrix tried shaking Max awake as he dozed off at the wheel.
"Maxwell…," Trixie mumbled, failing to fight off a yawn. "Wake up…it's your shift…."
But she failed to rouse him and ended up collapsing on the floor herself, falling asleep in an instant. A moment later, both Ben and Gwen slammed their heads on the table, the tape on their eyelids peeling off.
All the while, unaware of the sleeping heroes, three shadowed characters stood on the roof of the mall overlooking the parking lot. Their eyes fell on the Rust Bucket and the leader's lips curled into a haughty smirk. They raised their hands and snapped their fingers – the sound echoing across the lot –
Ben and Gwen instantly shot up in their seats; wide awake but with dilated pupils. Gwen slid out from the table and walked to the back of the RV while Ben activated the Omnitrix, cycling through the options.
Trixie grimaced when a bright light flashed against her face.
"Mmm…turn it off…," Trixie grumbled, forcing her eyelids to open. "It's too late for…."
The words died in Trixie's throat when she turned her head as saw Lucky Girl exiting the Rust Bucket with Gutrot squeezing out behind her, slamming the door shut.
"Maxwell! Maxwell! Wake up!" Trixie sprang to her feet and shoved the retired Plumber roughly, startling him awake. "Benjamin and Gwendolyn!"
Max spun around in his see and, seeing no sign of his grandchildren, put the pieces together. He ran outside with Trixie where they spotted Gutrot trampling across the parking lot with Lucky Girl riding on his shoulders.
"They're both sleepwalking," said Max.
"At the same time?" Trixie questioned. "And coordinating together? That's just too illogical to be real."
"We can figure it out later," said Max determinedly. "Right now, we need to stop them before they cause any damage."
The next target on the Tennyson cousins' whirlwind shopping spree was the hardware store on the east side of the mall, and they weren't alone. The two elderly people from Sublimino's hypnosis show were assisting the alien hero and masked sorceress. The four of them paced between the aisles, filling shopping carts with an assortment of items like power tools, pipes and wiring, boxes of nails and bags of screws – the elderly woman even hijacked a forklift. They didn't seem to going after anything specific, but were just grabbing everything that wasn't nailed to the floor, including a pair of kitchen sinks Gutrot had picked up.
Max and Trixie arrived unnoticed and were hiding behind a pile of wooden beams, watching the thieves as they started loading their carts onto a storage truck the elderly man brought around before going for another round.
"I recognize the other two," Trixie whispered. "They're from that hypnotist's show. Sublimino."
"So that's what's going on," said Max thoughtfully. "Sublimino must've hypnotized them into stealing for him."
"So how're we going to snap them out of it?" asked Trixie.
As they attempted to formulate a plan, they hadn't noticed that Lucky Girl had spotted the top of their heads when she was piling stacks of woods and metal in her cart. They only realized when Lucky Girl threw her cart aside, creating a cacophony of loud clanging noises, and threw an orb of electricity at their hiding spot. Trixie and Max threw themselves out of the way as the wooden beams exploded into splinters; Gutrot closed the storage truck and signaled the elderly thieves to take off while he joined Lucky Girl.
Trixie was the first to her feet while Max was trying to recover, finding themselves standing at a stalemate against their own family.
"Ben, Gwen, listen to me," said Max pleadingly. "You've got to snap out of this."
"I don't want to have to fight you, but I will," said Trixie, raising her fist to show she was serious. When neither of them budged, she knew she was left with no other option. "All right, you asked for it. Accessing – "
Their fight was ended before it could begin, however, when a small squad of SWAT soldiers destroyed the skylights and roped in behind Gutrot and Lucky Girl. The soldiers didn't consider that Lucky Girl was only a child before they started shooting furiously at her and Gutrot. Trixie and Max let out mutual relieved sighs when Gutrot stepped in front of his partner, shielding her with his hard body. Once the soldiers stopped shooting, the Levoisian glared and held out his hand, expelling colorless gas from the nozzle. The soldiers backed off and covered their mouths, not knowing what the creature had released.
Another squad of SWAT soldiers came bursting in behind Max and Trixie with one soldier pulling them away from the fight.
"You two, get away from that thing!" he ordered forcefully.
As she was being dragged away, Trixie eyes moved between the firing squad that was about to mow down Gutrot and Lucky Girl, and the colorless gas that was still lingering in the air. It wasn't until her nose caught a scent of the gas that she realized what it was and her eyes flew wide in a panic.
"Don't shoot!" Trixie screamed. "It's propane – "
But they didn't listen to her and open fired on the pair.
The next moment, Trixie and Max found themselves being thrown out the store and out into the parking lot by the backdraft. Several SWAT members were also thrown outside, some of them showing signs of severe burns, and all of them were knocked unconscious. Trixie tried not to think about how there were less SWAT members out of the store than there were in.
"Where's…," said Max, coughing a few times. "Where's Ben and Gwen…?"
Trixie was also thinking the same thing and was concerned about the answer. Thankfully, her fears were quickly relieved when a bright flash of red light exploded from inside the wreckage of the hardware store. A few tense moments later, Ben walked out of the store leaning on Gwen's shoulder. Both of them were covered in ash, but were otherwise unharmed.
Gwen frowned worriedly as she looked at the damage, then turned to Max and asked, "Grandpa…what did we do?"
Naturally, the incident at the hardware store was reported on the local news channel the next morning. Trixie was delighted to hear that there were no deaths and that the SWAT soldiers managed to get out with minor injuries. Strangely enough, the mall representative claimed that the attack was another 'isolated incident,' repeating the same the same phrase as last time. But the Tennysons had little time to dwell on the matter as Trixie and Max explained their theory to Ben and Gwen.
"So Sublimino plants post-hypnotic suggestions in his volunteers," said Max, "turning them into his army of thieves."
"But the sound of the Omnitrix timing out snapped them both out of the trances," Trixie continued.
They turned to Ben and Gwen to get their opinion on the matter…only to discover that they had fallen asleep against each other's shoulders. Trixie would've thought the scene sweet if they didn't have pressing matters on their hands. As such, Trixie pulled out the spray bottles and shot their faces, make the cousins sputter until they were awake.
"But where did he have us take all the stuff we stole?" asked Ben, failing to fight back a yawn.
"I don't know, but Sublimino sure does," said Max.
"He's still performing his hypnosis show," said Trixie, checking Sublimino's event schedule on her smartphone. "If he's not gone into hiding, his next show is in ten minutes."
"Then let's give that creep a real showstopper," Gwen tried to sound tough despite the tired look in her eyes.
What none of the Tennysons realized was that someone was standing outside the Rust Bucket, listening to the conversation through the crack in the window. They turned and fled the scene before they were spotted….
For the fourth day in a row, the Tennysons were traversing through the Mall of America, this time with an actual lead. They passed by the familiar candy store and the blonde saleswoman was missing again, but none of them put any thought into that as they approached the mall's central plaza. Right on schedule, Sublimino was on stage, swinging his pocket watch in front of another group of volunteers.
"He's hypnotizing more thieves," said Gwen.
"Not if we can help it," said Max firmly, pushing forward towards the stage
"You are now under my complete control," Sublimino told his slumbering volunteers. "When I snap my finger, you will all be - hey, what are you doing?" He yelped as Max lifted him off the ground by the back of his coat. "Get your hands off of me! You're ruin my performance!"
"The jig is up, Sublimino!" Gwen declared with fists on her hips. "Get rid of whatever trance you have on us and give back all the stuff you stole!"
"What are you talking about?!" Sublimino growled indignantly.
"We know you hypnotized us into robbing the mall for you," said Ben pointedly.
"I have done no such thing!" Sublimino denied so strongly, she thought he might be telling the truth. Well, before he said, "Although, that's not a bad idea…. But I didn't do anything you are accusing me off! Besides, in order to hypnotize someone, need to be able to swing my watch in front of their faces each time. And I never seen any of you in the past couple of days."
"…I don't think he's lying, said Trixie after a moment of thought.
"Of course I'm not, you dimwitted girl!" shouted Sublimino, swinging his fists and legs around wildly. "Now put me down before I call security – WAH!"
Max released Sublimino, letting the dwarfish man fall on his back. As he landed, several colorful balls fell out of his pocket and rolled across the stage, stopping at Ben's feet. Trixie recognized them – they were the pieces of candy the saleswoman was handing out the other day.
"Sweet! Free candy!" Ben cheered, reaching for them.
"Ben, gross!" Gwen groaned.
"Wait! Don't touch them!" Trixie shouted suddenly, making Ben pause. She picked up the yellow candy, rolling it between her fingers, then turned to Sublimino. "Where did you get these?"
"Some girl was handing them out," Sublimino huffed, dusting himself off. "What? Is it a crime to enjoy sweets?"
"What're you thinking, Trixie?" asked Max.
"There's something that's been bothering me for a few days…," Trixie hummed thoughtfully. "I wonder…."
Trixie closed her fist and crushed the candy with a crunch! She felt something slimy drip between her fingers and opened her palm. With the candy shell broken, it revealed that the inside was filled with a familiar yellow ooze.
"Ew! Gross!" Ben grimaced. "Did we seriously eat that?"
"What is it?" asked Gwen curiously.
"This is…a piece of a Klyntar," Trixie spoke in horrible realization.
"Klyntar?" said Max, equally frightened. "You mean Symbiotes?"
"So the candy was filled with Symbiote goo?" Gwen gasped.
"That means the people behind the thefts are – " said Ben.
"Took you long enough to figure out!"
The Tennysons twisted around and turned their heads towards the upper level of the mall where three shadowy figures were standing on the second-floor railing. They jumped down and landed on the stage with three heavy thuds; the audience screamed and scattered with Sublimino trying to keep up with his tiny legs. Meanwhile, the Tennysons braced themselves as they stood facing three familiar women in Symbiote armor in the three primary colors.
"It's Rojo!" shouted Ben. "And…those other two!"
"Amarillo and Azul!" Azul snapped indignantly. "Our names our yellow and blue in Spanish!"
"I thought she looked familiar," said Trixie, looking at the grinning Amarillo.
"It really is a small world, the way we keep running into each other like this," said Rojo, smirking. "After you rid of that…ghost freak at Bancroft, I had hoped we'd seen the last of you."
"Sorry to disappoint," said Gwen.
"So you three are the ones controlling all those people," said Max. "You hid pieces of your Symbiotes inside the candy and handed them out to everyone who passed by. Then at night, you took control of them and forced innocent civilians to steal for you."
"It was the perfect plan," said Azul proudly.
"No one can resist free candy," Amarillo added chipperly.
"Well, you evil plan is over," declared Ben as he activated the Omnitrix. After a quick search through the opinions, he slammed down the face plate and transformed into Rath. "Let me tell you something, Rojo and her gang whose names I can't remember!"
"Seriously? It's not that hard!" Azul complained.
"Rath is gonna kick your butt so hard – "
Whatever threat the Appoplexian was trying to make was lost when Rojo grinned smug and snapped her fingers. Automatically, Rath's arms fell at his sides and he stared vacantly ahead, drool dripping from his open mouth. Rojo gestured for Rath to come to her and the Appoplexian obediently walked over and stood beside the red leader, facing down his family. And just to make matters worse, Gwen walked past her grandfather and stood on Rojo's opposite side, staring back at them with a glazed look.
"Oh no, she got Ben and Gwen," said Max worriedly.
"I'm afraid it's worse than that," said Trixie as she looked around.
Dozens – maybe even close to a hundred – of shoppers surrounded the stage, shuffling their feet with vacant stares like zombies. Even Sublimino and the mall management were among them; that explained a few things, Trixie thought.
"They've got the whole mall under their control," said Max, placing himself between Trixie and the horde.
"And we're not gonna stop there," said Rojo, smiling villainously. "Once we're done squeezing this place dry, we'll move on to the rest of America. Las Vegas, Fort Knox, the White House – we'll have the whole country in the palm of hands. And with these two working for us," she tapped Rath's arm and Gwen's shoulder, "it'll be that much easier."
"We'll stop you!" declared Trixie firmly.
"I'd like to see you try," said Rojo smugly as she snapped her fingers.
At her command, the crowd climbed onto the stage in droves and swarmed Max and Trixie. The retired Plumer made a good effort in trying to fend them off, able to throw four mind-controlled shoppers away before the crowd started to pile on. Fortunately, the crowd was blasted away by a field of electricity. Trixie had transformed into her half-Nosedeenian form, grabbing Max by the shoulders, and carried him up to the higher levels of the mall with…some slight difficulty.
Rojo snapped her fingers again; her downed army picked themselves up and shuffled towards the escalators and elevators.
"It's nice having someone else doing our dirty work for a change," said Rojo. She and her gang sat on the edge of the stage. "I don't know why we didn't do this earlier."
"Wish had some popcorn," said Azul.
"I got you, fam," said Amarillo, pulling three cartons of popcorn from seemingly out of nowhere. Rojo and Azul didn't question it; they were just watching the show.
Meanwhile, Trixie and Max landed in the upper floors; the half-Nosedeenian collapsed to her hands and knees, panting.
"Maxwell…I mean no offense…," Trixie wheezed, "But we need to get you on a diet…."
"Rojo's gang has the whole mall under their control," said Max, ignoring the comment as he looked over the railing. It was like a scene out of a zombie apocalypse movie; the mind-controlled shoppers were either stuffing themselves into the elevator (which prevented the doors from closing), or funnel themselves up the escalators. Either way, their progress was slow, so they would have time before they had to fend off an army. "There has to be something we can do to snap them out of it. Symbiotes are vulnerable to heat, right? Can't you turn into a Pyronite and – "
"Won't work," Trixie cut him off, finally catch her breath. "The Symbiotes are inside their bodies. All ii would be doing is hurting innocent civilians. And it won't work on Rojo or the others because they are permanently bonded."
"There must be something," said Max desperately. "Some other weakness, maybe?"
Trixie touched her chin, humming in thought. Her mind traced back to the first night this strangeness began, when she fought that elderly couple. They had both collapsed after the car alarm went off and had red goo dripping out of their ears. Trixie now realized it must have been the Symbiote being neutralized. Then she recalled Amarillo's startling reaction to the speaker feedback.
That was when it hit her.
"Sound!" yelled Trixie. "Symbiotes are vulnerable to loud noises!"
"Of course," Max realized. "It doesn't matter how deep they're burrowed if it's loud enough. But how're we going to free all these people at once?"
Trixie took a moment to peer over the railing as well. The zombified shoppers were starting to get their acts together and making steady progress to their location. Her eyes fell on Rojo's gang, who were just sitting back without a care in the world…then her gaze trailed up to the loudspeakers behind them.
"That's how we do it," said Trixie, pointing out the target. "If we set those at full volume, one good shout should – "
Their planning process was interrupted when Trixie was tackled from the side by what felt like a runaway bus, sending her flying through the window of a sporting goods store. She crashed into a rack of basketballs, scattering them all over the floor. The girl pushed herself to her hands and knees, grimacing, as she stared up at the snarling face of Rath as he stepped through the broken window. Figures he would make it before everyone else.
"Trixie!" cried Max.
"Go, Maxwell!" shouted Trixie. "Get to the stage! I can handle this!"
Though a part of him was reluctant to do so, Max knew it was the right call. The retired Plumber ran off to the left towards the stairs…then ran in the opposite direction with a legion of zombified shoppers shuffling behind him.
With that taken care of, Trixie pushed herself up and stared down the (honestly intimidating) Appoplexian. Rath opened his mouth for a big roar…until Trixie plugged it with a basketball, making the tiger man blink like a curious kitten.
"Gwendolyn is right – you do have a big mouth," said Trixie teasingly.
Rath glowered and popped the ball with his teeth before lunging at Trixie. The half-Nosedeenian effortlessly zipped out of his reach to the back of the store, next to several bins filled to the brim with every sports ball imaginable. An idea sparked in her head as Trixie reached out the items with her electricity, using static cling to grapple them. Rath attempted another lunge when he was hit in the face with a baseball, followed by a soccer ball to the gut, and a football to a place that made Rath's voice rise several octaves.
Rath was forced to back out of the store as he was pelted by a hailstorm of balls, crossing his arms over his face to defend himself. He was forced to backtrack until he found himself pressed against the guard railing. Then, quite suddenly, the balls stopped flying. Rath made a curious noise and lowered his arms, spotting Trixie as she gathered a large quantity of electricity in his cupped hands. The Appoplexian had no time to dodge before Trixie hit Rath with a full-powered blast to the chest, sending him flying through the guard rail and falling to ground level.
Trixie approached the edge after she heard a soft boom and looked down to find Rath lying on his back with a giant spider-web of cracks in the malls floor.
"If my sports analogy is correct," said Trixie, "I believe you are out."
But, predictably, her victory was short-lived when Trixie when she heard the unmistakable sound of an engine coming from her right. She had no chance to react before Trixie found herself slammed against the hood of a car. The half-Nosedeenian peeled herself off and looked through the windshield to discover that the person behind the driver's seat was none other than Gwen.
"Where did you get a car?!" Trixie screamed. "And for that matter, how did you get it up here?!"
Gwen wasn't in a chatty mood.
Trixie pulled herself up and started to climb up the hood when her and the car were suddenly sent flying. Gwen had driven them through the guard rail and sent them plummeting to ground level. With her heart hammering in a panic, Trixie used her alien speed to break through the windshield, grabbed Gwen around the wait, and shouldered their way out the door. The car hit the ground in a fiery explosion, but Trixie landed safely and set Gwen on her feet.
"Gwendolyn, you're not hurt, are you?" asked Trixie, looking the redhead over.
She really should've known better than to let her guard down. Gwen slammed her Trixie's chin with a high kick, making her stumble back. Right before Rath came in and sent Trixie flying across the mall with a two-handed swing. Trixie smashed through the top off the fountain, causing a pipe to burst, and bounced twice off the ground before landing on her front. Trixie grimaced as she pushed herself up by her elbows, her shoulder throbbing in pain. Rath and Gwen approached her slowly (read: menacingly), stepping through the large puddle around the fountain. That's when an idea formed in Trixie's head.
"I apologize in advance for this!" said Trixie, raising her electrified hand.
She slapped her palm on the water and watched the arcs of electricity travel towards Rath and Gwen. Both her friends cried out as the surge coursed through their bodies. Trixie felt guilty, but she knew it was the right call. When Trixie removed her hand, the Tennyson cousins thankfully collapsed; Ben reverted back into his human form.
"They are so going to yell at me when they wake up," Trixie groaned.
The half-Nosedeenian started to pick herself up when was shoved back down to the floor from behind. Looking over her shoulder, she found the small army of zombified shoppers dogpiling on top of her. She had completely forgot about them!
"Yes! Finally! Now crush her!" Rojo cheered from the stage.
"I wish we had more popcorn," said Azul. "This is just getting good."
"Whaddya say we hit the movie theater next?" Amarillo suggested. "Their prices are practically a crime anyway."
While they were in deep discussion about the outrageousness of movie theater prices, Max secretly snuck through the stage curtain and stepped quietly towards the loudspeakers. All it took was a little rewiring and maxing each speaker to full volume and he was done.
"That should do it," Max said quietly to himself. "Now we just need something loud enough to – "
"What do you think you're doing, old man!" Max let out a startled yell as Rojo grabbed him with a giant claw and pulled him away from the speakers. She held him aloft while her gang formed their own organic weapons, pointing at him threateningly. "Whatever tricks you're thinking, don't. We've got you overpowered and outnumbered."
But Max Tennyson wasn't known for giving up. He calmly assessed the situation and scanned his environment for anything useful. When he spotted the microphone directly behind Rojo, he had figured out his next move. The retired Plumber pulled his leg back and kicked out with all his effort. Rojo naturally dodged it, but Max wasn't aiming for her. Hs foot connected with the mic stand and knocked it off stage, landing a few yards away from Trixie.
"Trixie, the mic!" yelled Max.
Trixie understood what he was saying and held out a hand towards the mic stand, pulling it towards her with static electricity. Rojo stared at her inquisitively until she looked back and realized that the dials had been turned to the highest volume. The red gang leader panicked and shouted, "Stop her, you idiots!"
But it was too late – once Trixie had the mic in her hands, she shouted into it at the top of her lungs. And what do you get when you combine a ten-year-old girl with a Nosedeenian? A scream loud enough to shatter every glass surface in the mall.
Rojo's gang, who was standing directly in front of the speakers, were hit with the full blast. The three women held their heads, screaming in mind splitting agony, while their Symbiotes writhed frantically without detaching from their hosts. Eventually, the pain became too much and they all collapsed off the stage and were left unconscious on the floor. The same thing happened to all of their zombified victims, who were knocked out on the floor with dead Symbiote fragments oozing out of their ears. Even Ben and Gwen had yellow and blue slime dripping out.
Trixie stopped screaming; her throat raw and her lungs empty. Panting harshly, Trixie tossed the microphone away and started crawling out of the pile of unconscious shoppers. Thankfully, Max was there to help out.
"Good job, Trixie," Max praised her. "You saved everyone."
"Yeah…," said Trixie, her voice raspy as she changed to human form. "But I could really use a lozenge right now…. I'll call Lt. Steel and leave an 'anonymous' tip to pick up Rojo and her gang. Hopefully they can keep them locked up this time."
"We should probably wake them up and get out of here before they show up," said Max, gesturing to his grandchildren, who were snoring away in the puddle.
"Wait!" said Trixie, throwing her hand out to stop him. "Not just yet…."
Little over an hour later, the Rust Bucket was back on the open highway, driving through the Minnesota grasslands. While Max was eager to make up for the time they lost at the mall, Trixie was at the table typing away on her new laptop while her smartphone was on speaker.
"We got 'anonymous' tip," said Lt. Steel. "Found those three thugs right where you said they'd be. Nice job locking them in the sound booth with the volume turned all the way up. But polka music? That's just cruel."
"I can be a little evil when I want to be," said Trixie proudly. "When you lock them up this time, be sure to install some sonic amplifiers around their cells."
"I'll pass that on to the warden," said Lt. Steel. "Stay out of trouble, kid."
"Guess we won't be seeing those three for a while," said Max after Lt. Steel hung up.
"We can only hope," said Trixie, leaning back and stretching her arms over her head. "I wonder when Benjamin and Gwendolyn are going to – " she was cut off by a pair of screams coming from the back of the RV. "Oh, sounds like they're awake."
Trixie grinned to herself as she heard the cousins shuffle out from the bedroom and stomped up to her. When Ben and Gwen confronted her, Trixie burst into uncontrollable laughter. While they had been asleep, Trixie had fitted them both into baby outfits including diapers, bibs, bonnets, and pacifiers (which Ben was still sucking while glaring at her.)
"Not cool, Trix!" snapped Ben.
"This is so not funny!" said Gwen angrily.
"Oh, really?" Trixie grinned smugly. She turned her laptop around, showing them the picture of them sleeping in their baby outfits that she had posted on social media. "Then why does it already have ten million likes?"
It was official, Ben and Gwen agreed – they could never show their faces in Bellwood again.
Next chapter: The Life and Times of Gwendolyn Lee