SZ: Whoo! The Ben10 and Blazblue mood is still on high! We're going with another chapter!
GT: Yes. *looking around* ...My nitroglycerine is missing.
SZ: Your what?!*goes right into the bunker*Start us off!
GT: Yeah, it was around...um...a canister the size of a Volkswagen Beetle. I really hope no one drops it or ignites it. *Kamen Rider ZER0 pokes out of a secret passage, holding a remote while my canister of nitroglycerin was above us, neither of us seeing either*
SZ: *offscreen*...we don't own anything aside from original content! So b-
Z0: FIRE!
*KRA-KA-BOOM!*
To say things were just a little awkward for Ben and Makoto was to say that a flood was just a little drip of water. For most of the ride to Ben's home within Ben's car, neither really could think of something to say about what Max dumped on them. One thing agreed upon was that they were thankful Max had taken Rook with him to do some final paperwork to make things official for his new position and for doing the filing of the captured criminals.
"...So uh…."
"...Yeah...ano…"
"...God this is awkward…" Ben muttered as they stopped at a red light.
"Oh my god! Someone finally said it!" Makoto groaned in relief, "No offense, but does your grandpa love to troll people? Because I feel that's what he just did to us."
"...I'm starting to think so, too…" Ben sighed, slumping in his seat.
"...Well, since we're gonna be living together, anything about you I should know about?" Makoto asked.
'Really starting to hate how messed up the future is not knowing about me…' Ben thought, "Eh, not much. Be careful when mom goes on a healthy meal phase and try to warn me and dad if you notice it, don't go in my closet or peek in my drawers, and always knock on the bathroom door. Not a lot of rules in the house."
"Wow. Your parents sound kinda laid back," Makoto noted.
"They can be...What about your parents?"
"...My parents…" Makoto paused as a soft smile grew on her face, "They...well for starters, no one is tougher than daddy. He goes deep-sea fishing in the summer, and he hunts for big game in the winter. He's been a bodybuilder for 45 years, and his motto is 'I'll rest when I'm dead, dang it!' Heh heh...Oh daddy kicks so much butt! As for my mom...she's really great, too. She can be all sunshine and smiles, but..." she paused as she paled a bit, "Anger her...game over, man….game over!"
"Really?"
"Yeah. I remember when I was twelve and dad forgot their anniversary date…" she shuddered, "So glad my sibs were either not born yet or in the one room in the house with the thickest walls playing a game on the TV."
"Sibs? As in plural?"
"Yup. Mekoto, Mikoto, and the twins Mokoto, and Mukoto."
"...I am finding a weird pattern in your parent's naming sense."
"Actually, it was all mom."
"...know what? Forget I asked," Ben muttered.
"You have no idea how many people say that when I tell them my mom is the one who named me and my sibs."
"I can imagine…" Ben noted as the light turned green
"Moving on then...so...any good places to eat here?" Makoto asked, "I know I'm still a bit queasy after the whole Buglizard gas, but just curious is all."
"Oh, a few places," Ben replied.
"Such as?"
"Mr. Smoothy for one. Best place for any kind of smoothie you could think of," Ben replied, "There's also the Burger Shack. Though I normally go there for their chili fries. No one does it better in my opinion. There's also Le'Roys, a cafe run by Mrs. Dalton, another Plumber."
"...Any all you can eat places?" Makoto asked, "Just a heads up, I am a VERY big eater...oh. And do you know any places that serve parfaits? Specifically...Chestnut parfaits?"
"Eh, one or two for the buffet part. A place called 'Golden Corral' opened last week. Got asked to do the opening, which was pretty neat," Ben shrugged, "As for the parfait part...not sure really. Why ask?"
"...Because Chestnut parfaits are my absolute favorite…" Makoto replied as she drooled a bit, "My mom would make one that would leave you in pure ecstasy~"
"Huh…Right," Ben nodded, "...So uh...you went to a Military academy, right?"
"Yeah...and believe it or not, the Hierarchical City is pretty much the entire school."
"Wait what?" Ben blinked at that, "...An entire city...is a school?!"
"Yup...thought it's pretty exclusive and hard to get into."
"Yeesh...I barely handled high school when it's simply just one building. I don't think I'd be able to handle an entire city being a school," Ben cringed.
"Huh? Wait, aren't you still in school?" Makoto asked.
"Ah…" he stopped the car suddenly. His face frozen into one of confusion, shock, terror, and realization.
"...You never graduated, did you?"
"...I could always take online classes..." Ben muttered, letting his head fall onto the wheel and making the horn honk.
"Gah!" Makoto yelped, covering her ears, "Head off the horn, please!"
"Oh! Sorry," Ben quickly apologized as he raised his head up, "Forgot about your ears…"
"Yeah...Beastkin have better hearing and sense of smell than a regular humans," Makoto muttered.
"Right. Speaking of...anything about yourself you should tell me on about how you live when you're at home?" Ben asked.
"...Well, I like to chill and relax...especially if I have the house to myself," Makoto shrugged.
"Good luck with that. Mom's more of a stay-at-home person," Ben noted.
"I figured," Makoto nodded.
"Oh and like a normal and great Mom, she can be embarrassing...So do me a favor since I know you would never want me to sit through your mom's embarrassing stories of you...be kind will ya?"
"Eh, fair enough," Makoto shrugged, "...We close to your place by the way?"
"Just down the street." he explained, taking a final turn.
"Cool...Maybe later we can head out and pick myself up some new clothes," Makoto said, "I mean...technically the only ones I have are the ones I'm wearing, and my battle outfit back at HQ, and I'm pretty sure your parents would not approve of it."
"...It's not that bad, is it?"
"Two words. Under...boob."
"Okay yeah! My Mom would literally ground you as if you were her own if she saw that outfit," Ben nodded simply, his cheeks turning pink.
"Exactly," Makoto nodded as they stopped, "...Huh. So this is your house..looks pretty nice."
"It should be. This use to be Dad's home as a kid, too." Ben smiled, "Grandpa Max sure knows how to pick 'em."
"Wait, you live w…"
"No, he has an RV he lives in," Ben explained, "Though I think he's on his fifth RV since I first got the Omnitrix when I was ten."
"You've had it since you were ten?" Makoto blinked in surprise, "So….you've been helping people out since you were a kid?"
"Well I mean I gave the thing up when I was around Eleven...then four years later Grandpa Max vanished and a race of Aliens called the HighBreed began a plan to kill all life in the universe since they themselves were dying...So it began a whole mess of events where me and my cousin Gwen began dealing with aliens again, recruited my childhood nemesis Kevin who's now my best friend and Gwen's boyfriend and left with her to college." he explained as he took a deep breath, "So we formed a team of friends and began a sort of tiny war with the HighBreed. But in the end, I thought it'd be better to instead help them, so I cured them of all their genetic defects and diseases via splicing their DNA with random aliens. And from there I just kept saving the universe from Evil Alien dictators, crazy power hungry power draining weirdos, and some weird extradimensional Lovecraftian monster which was called a 'dragon' but was really a giant squid."
"I only counted four to five times you saved the universe…" Makoto stated, not shocked by the long winded story.
"...You say that like your world's dealt with something worse."
"..."
"...It has, hasn't it?"
"I would love to say something about it, but you know...time travel and all that," Makoto noted, "Butterfly Effect."
"...Fair enough," Ben nodded as they got out, "Well...you ready?"
"Ready as I'll ever be," Makoto shrugged.
"Okay…Then let's head in," Ben said as the two headed to the door before Ben pulled out a key and opened it, "Mom, Dad! I'm home with our guest!"
"Hi!" Makoto added.
"Oh! Hold on! I'm just about finished!"
"Take your time; it'll give her time to get comfortable." Ben spoke.
"Okay, dear!"
"...She sounds nice," Makoto noted as she sat down on the couch.
"A lot of people say that," Ben shrugged.
"Right," Makoto nodded, "...So...they know about your...well, hero job?"
"Yup."
"...You ever gotten in trouble because of it?"
"...When they first found out, I got grounded…"
"You got grounded for being a hero?"
"They saw me fighting a Highbreed with Gwen and Kevin that resulted in me getting a black eye," Ben explained.
"Ohh...I can relate. Came home with a shiner and a swollen arm once."
"How…?"
"Bunch of racist bullies pushing around a fellow Beastkin because she was...well...a Beastkin."
"...And no one has done anything about it y-"
"Beastkin aren't particularly liked back where I'm from," Makoto explained with a frown, "At worst...we're considered animals or tools rather than people…"
"Future sucks…" Ben blurted.
"Tell me 'bout it. In the several hours I've been here, I've seen a whole lot more green and less top of clouds, learned that we used to have actual aliens living on the planet, an intergalactic police is out there protecting all of space, and that there's a watch that lets someone wearing it to become all kinds of aliens," Makoto noted.
"...Is there anything good about the future you miss aside from your family?"
"My best friends Noel, Tsubaki, Mai, and Kajun," Makoto answered before shooting up and pointed dramatically, "Together, we make the pretty girl detective team, Remix Heart!"
"Pretty girl detective team?" Ben repeated, holding back a laugh.
"...what's so funny?"
"And you ripped on me for my catchphrase…" he kept trying to keep from laughing, "So what 'mysteries' did you do? Find someone's missing stuff?"
"Nope. Stuff involving the mysteries of the school, stuff you would consider freaky magic and all...mutated plants...weird stuff," Makoto shrugged.
"..."
"Hey. You asked."
"I've dealt with freaky magic a ton when I was ten and eleven and then since I was fifteen, a freaky alien fungus when I was ten, and do not get me started on Dr. Animo and his mutated animals," Ben compared.
"You know about magic?" Makoto asked.
"My cousin, Gwen. She's like Grandma Verdonna in that they're Anodites, aliens literally made of mana," Ben explained, "When she was eleven and I was ten, she got a spellbook to practice with and we didn't know she was part alien until Grandma showed up out of the blue when I was fifteen and she was sixteen."
"...Wow. Is everyone in your family this...just wow."
"I mean Dad is the most normal of us...except the time he blasted the alien who was kicking my butt with a Space Bazooka. That was by far the most awesome thing I've ever seen him do!" Ben cheered.
"...Heh. Now I'm glad I ended up here," Makoto admitted with a chuckle, "I mean...who knows where I would've ended up?"
"Maybe someplace full of cute and scary creatures?" Ben joked.
"Or someplace where people are robots instead," Makoto added.
"Or maybe some type of bizzaro reverse world where good is bad and vice versa."
"Or a world where the Black Beast never…!" Makoto began before covering her mouth, "?!"
"Oh, that doesn't sound good," Ben cringed.
"Mmm mm," Makoto quickly shook her head, her hands still covering her mouth.
"...Let's not pry into it any longer then…"
"...Good idea…" Makoto muttered as she sat back down, ears drooping a bit.
"..." Ben looked at the drooped ears before an idea came to him, "Ah, got the perfect idea."
"Huh?" Makoto looked at Ben as he turned on his Omnitrix once more before pushing down on the top.
In a flash of green light, Ben was replaced with a child-sized alien. He had white fur that was short enough to look like skin from a distance with three whiskers on his cheeks. He wore a green jumpsuit with black details on it and small emerald gems on his waist and going up his arms. Hi head was covered in a black hat with three green fins while his big green eyes looked at her with a grin.
"Ta-dah! It's Ditto!" the alien declared.
"...You look adorable!" Makoto squeed.
"Voted number one cutest alien transformation on several sites," Ditto beamed before splitting into two, "And behold!"
"You can multiply?" Makoto awed.
"Eh, it's not perfect. I mean...the original is way more handsome," Ditto spoke.
"Hey! Wait...are you the original or...am I? 'Cause if it's me, then Thank you, but if it's you...well then, good sir...this means war." the other Ditto spoke as he pulled out a white glove and hit his other, both now holding their face.
"YEOW!" they both cried in pain.
"What just happened?" Makoto asked.
"Dingbat here forgot if one copy or the original feels pain, everyone does," the gloveless Ditto growled in annoyance.
"Hey! Just be glad we're not Echo-Echo and doing the daily routine of putting a copy in stasis in the closet," the other Ditto argued.
"Oh right. I totally forgot about him!" the original blinked, "We haven't let him out since the whole thing with Dagon and the creepy cult...Thank god we didn't drink the punch."
"Oh...we weren't supposed to drink it?"
"What's the matter with you!?" the original shook his fist.
"Hey, hey, hey! You hit me, you hit yourself," Ditto 2 reminded.
"Shut up, stupid! I'm not the one who forgot," Ditto Prime sighed, putting his hands on his hips.
"Hey! I'm not stupid!" Ditto 2 argued before making another and pointing at him, "He's the stupid one."
"What I do!?" Ditto 3 asked confused, "Idiots I tell ya…" he sighed, leaning on Makoto's leg.
"Hey! Who you calling an idiot, wise guy!?" Ditto 2 demanded.
"You two. Who else?" Ditto 3 replied.
"Ugh...If you two numbskulls weren't me, I'd have traded you for a TV deal ages ago." Ditto Prime shook his head, the trio of adorable cartoony aliens unaware of how hard it was getting for Makoto not to burst into laughter.
"See, and this is why Echo Echo is better in combat."
"Oh, I totally agree."
"To be fair though, with that guy we can change back while cloned...and run the risk of multiple Bens...and Oh-ho-ho! We do not need a repeat of that day...Gwen still never lets us live it down."
"In retrospect, we should have sent Emotional Ben to the event and Angry Ben to help Kevin."
"And boy did you get the stink-eye from Julie when you spilled the beans that we went and saw Sumo Slammers the Movie."
"And this is why we don't date."
"Hey...wait a minute…" Ditto Prime blinked.
"..." Ditto 2 and 3 looked at the clock for a minute.
"Uhm…"
"Shh...This is how he learns," Ditto 2 whispered, cutting off Makoto.
"GAH! I haven't spoken with her for weeks!" Ditto Prime yelped.
"Told ya." Ditto 3 smiled.
"There he goes," Ditto 2 chuckled as Ditto Prime dialed rapidly.
"Hello? Hello? Jul...Huh…" Ditto Prime gawked before looking at his duplicates, "It says her phone number's not her's."
"Well, she was thinking of getting a new one," Ditto 3 recalled.
"She did say she'd call when she got a new one," Ditto 2 added.
"Do you think France is treating her well?" Ditto 3 asked.
"I hear it's got some crazy things of its own," Ditto 2 responded.
"Oh yeah. I hear the cheese is out of this world!" Ditto 3 smiled.
"If it were, why hasn't it been scanned?" Ditto 2 asked.
"Oh yeah like an alien made of cheese would be so helpful."
"We have Goop."
"Touche...and he does smell like stinky cheese…"
"Nah. That's Swampfire's normal smell."
"Then what's Stinkfly?"
"Better than the stench left by the lizard," Ditto 2 replied.
"Ah, now look what you did, stupid! You made her suffer phantom stink!" Ditto 3 pointed at Makoto.
"Don't make me jump off the back of the couch," Ditto 2 warned.
"Oh yeah? I'll stub our toe on the coffee table...the corner end…" Ditto 3 threatened.
"I'mma jump out the window while it's closed!"
"No, don't!" Ditto 3 panicked, "Mom will kill us! Remember the time we rolled around in our sleep and went Way Big!"
"Oh geez...We may have been Way Big, but we sure were in way bigger trouble with mom!"
"My kingdom for a throwing tomato…"
"It's tohmata…"
"Who the heck says 'tohmata'?!
"...She's in France?!" Ditto Prime exclaimed.
"..." the copies shared deadpanned looks, "You deserve this." they sighed, facepalming so hard that...
"Ow!" Ditto Prime cried, falling over backwards, "My face...my money making face!"
"..." Ditto 3 glanced at Makoto, trying hard to not laugh now, "Eh, laugh away."
"PFFFFT! Ahahahahahahahahahahaha!" Makoto laughed hysterically as she fell onto her back, legs kicking as she held her gut.
"And that is why we are awesome," Ditto 2 smirked, fiving Ditto 3.
"I'm freaking out!" Ditto Prime shouted suddenly while huddled up in the corner.
"Ben, are you traumatising yourself as Ditto again?"
"No, Mom..." all three replied, sounding like kids caught with a hand in the cookie jar.
"Yeesh. 5 times in one month and she never lets us live it down," Ditto Prime sighed, momentarily back to normal, "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna go have an existential crisis in the kitchen while swiping the last cookie crunch flavored ice cream."
"You are the weakest link in us…" the clones sighed.
Prime smacked himself in the cheek.
"YEOW!" 2 and 3 yelped.
"Oh my god stop...please...I...I can't laugh anymore!" Makoto chuckled, trying to calm down.
"Eh, we'd love to but the less clones we have as Ditto, the less energy we drain...so...we'll be stuck like this for a bit," Ditto 2 explained.
"Which is fine by me," Ditto 3 noted as Makoto realized he was on her lap now, "Less competition."
"Huh?"
"Hello~ nurse!" 3 declared.
"Oh geez...you're Pervy Ditto, aren't ya?" Ditto 2 sighed.
"Nah. That's 4. 5's Lazy," 3 replied.
"As we've come to learn...Ditto returns to one each time...but spend enough time as him, the clones personify different aspects of our personality more and more," Ditto 2 went on, "We never had this issue when we were 10."
"That's 'cause then girls were gross," Ditto 3 argued.
"Oh, that's 57 who still thinks that," 2 recalled.
"How many clones can you make?" Makoto asked.
"I don't know...we never got farther than 68 before timing out."
"So close…" 3 sighed, "And hoo boy! Number 42 was a smarty!"
"How does he even know how to make a fictional alcoholic drink?!" 2 questioned, "...Uh...To be fair, we did not drink it. We accidentally, humorously snuck it into Will Harangue's water supply."
"It lives forever on the internet...and galactic super version as: Human disgraces his species to the cosmos," Ditto 3 laughed.
"...Who?" Makoto asked once her laughter died down.
"..." Ditto 2 and 3 shared looked before 2 ran off and came back with a laptop, "A big ol' stinker who likes to call us a menace."
"He once spent millions of his own money to make a super spider bot that knew all of our moves." 3 added on.
"Well...He disregarded Nanomech and Way Big. Too small and too big to scan," Ditto 2 noted, "...Did he have insurance for giant robot smashing his vehicle due to a To'kustar dropping it?"
"I think they just now added an Alien coverage plan to most agencies…" 3 shrugged, "Hang on. Let me check with Dad. Hey DAD! We gots a question for ya!"
"Ben, are you Ditto again?"
"Only up to three!" 3 replied.
"Good. Keep it that way. And what do you need?"
"Is there alien coverage in most agencies now?"
"They call it Ben Insurance."
"Oh, now that's just cold...AHAHAHA! BRAIN FREEZE!" he cried along with 2 suddenly.
"Must be eating it fast," Makoto noted.
"Ben, slow down," Makoto heard his mom scold.
"I'm feeling I got dumped by being an idiot. Let me feel the brain pain…"
"Let us not feel it!" 2 and 3 exclaimed, rubbing their heads to try to work through the pain.
"What's with the laptop?" Makoto asked.
"Gonna check on any news involving her since Mr. Mope's being a dope," 2 replied.
"Oh. Okay then."
"Alright. Found it a-"
=in latest news, that menace Ben 10 was seen near some craters where, possibly, some family owned business were destroyed...no doubt by him=
"Aw great. Another Will Harangue rant...and it's unskippable!" 3 complained.
"Huh...So that's Harangue? He sounds like the perfect spokesperson for the NOL," Makoto noted, "...Not that I'm agreeing with what he's saying. It's clear he's leaving out some important details just to make you look like the villain."
"...How…"
"I used to work in the Intelligence Department, but I'm also a double agent for Sector Seven."
"So...you're a lady spy." Ditto 3 smiled, resting on the arm of the couch, "Well now…"
"Stop it," Ditto 2 spoke, tossing a pillow at his face.
"Ack!"
"Why do I taste pillow instead of frozen dairy goodness!?" Ditto Prime complained.
"Huh...I never noticed that till now...we can taste too…"
"Hey hey, look someone caught a picture of us with Makoto." Ditto 3 pointed out, "Wait...what's that byline say at the bottom...don't unmute! Don't!"
"Huh?" Makoto blinked at that, pondering for a moment before frowning, "...It better not be something racist towards me!"
"...Kinda wanna unmute now," Ditto 2 admitted.
"Don't you da…" Ditto 3 began before Ditto 2 unmuted.
=It appears that instead of his cousin and her companion, Ben Tennyson was spotted with an unknown individual. While it seems that while those two seem to have come to their senses on him being a menace, he's now wrapped in an innocent in him being a so-called hero!=
"...yup. Totally trying to make you look more like the villain," Makoto deadpanned, "...Least he didn't called me anything racist."
"Wait a bit...he always says something else after a break between rants," Ditto 2 held a finger up.
"Eh?"
=But after taking a closer look at this 'innocent'...it seems she herself is not fully human, but some sort of half animal hybrid freak. I told you he's making an army to keep us in line, but you…!= Harangue began before Makoto slammed the laptop shut.
"...Excuse me…" was all Makoto said as she got up before walking towards the door, "Also you have a swear jar? Because I apologize in advance for what I'm going to say."
"Ma! Get the jar!" the Ditto's shouted just as Makoto left the house.
"Oh dear...one of you stub your toe again?!"
"No i-"
"NO GOOD GODDAMN RACIST ASSHOLE!" Makoto's voice snapped, followed by a loud smashing sound.
"...That better not have been our car!" Ditto 2 shouted.
"It was our car…" Ditto 3 sighed, "Looks like we'll need to go Upgrade or Juryrigg later."
"Ah man...and Kevin just fixed it." Ditto 2 sighed.
"Oh...this must be how he feels...like that time Humungosaur used his car as an exploding battering ram."
"Oh he was NOT happy…"
"Hoo...sorry about that…" Makoto said as she walked back in, taking a deep breath as she flexed her hand a bit.
"It's okay...It's probably cosmic karma for Kevin's car…"
"Don't you mean Car-Ma?" Ditto 3 asked, only to get another pillow to the face, "Touche…"
"I'm surprised you haven't timed out yet," Makoto noted
"The Omnitrix is weird like that." the duo of Ditto's shrugged in unison, "One time we got stuck as one of our aliens forms, Rath, for almost a whole day."
"It was that dang alien Baby's fault. He was a cute little ice cream shaped mashamallo of a thing...but he let out an energy field that stuck us in the one alien that makes us both A: Nigh indestructible...and B: Dumbest thing in the Milky Way," Ditto Prime sighed, walking back in with an almost empty tub of ice cream.
"Nah, Rath's not the dumbest. That's you," Ditto 3 joked.
"I will shovel the rest of this tub into my mouth," Prime threatened, "And why were you watching Harangue?"
"We were trying to watch the video of Julie's latest match in France," Ditto 2 explained, "Not our fault Harangue bought unskippable ads for our normal video site."
"How can he afford it? I figured he'd be a little short after some of his failed schemes…" Ditto 3 muttered.
"Dunno," Ditto Prime shrugged.
"...Maybe we sh...oh shoot!" Makoto freaked, "I still need to get some clothes and exchange my money! Ahh mou...why'd I have to get mad?!"
"Mom will help ya with that," Ditto Prime spoke, "I told her most of the situation...while we...handle...uh...business...you and her will take care of your stuff."
"It'd save us from the cliche anime tropes...I like it!" Ditto 2 smiled.
"...Fine. Will give me time to check the place out," Makoto shrugged as she left the room.
"...Yeesh. Talk about a violent reaction," Ditto 2 cringed once Makoto was out of the room.
"Women…" Ditto 3 shrugged. At that, the Omnitrix began beeping and flashing red causing the Ditto's to fuse to one before reverting to Ben.
"Ugh...That always feels weird," Ben grumbled, "...Well, least I'm not hungry anymore…"
After an eventful evening at the Tennyson home, Makoto was given a room to call her own and was prepared once she returned from some errands with Ben's mom. A nice bed after many many events in one single day was just what she needed. So began a new day as she awoke to the sounds of something cooking in the kitchen.
"I swear I don't get how the stove stopped working. I thought it was electric," an annoyed voice spoke as Makoto, wearing a yellow pajama button shirt and pajama pants, walked into see an alien of living fire and molten rock holding a frying pan in his hand as bacon was being cooked, "Ah man that smell so good...ah, but I can't even touch it without making it triple crispy...I love and hate you for that, Heatblast…"
"I'm just glad Dad made the kitchen mostly alien proof," Ben's dad sighed as he helped with turning the bacon.
"Okay. You can't blame the time as Goop totally on me...I was sick and confused," Heatblast complained, "Also, I at the time did not know Goop could turn into highly concentrated acid."
"...uh...morning," Makoto spoke.
"Morning!" both male Tennyson's spoke.
"Sorry, Mom said the stove was acting wonky so...we went with plan B," Heatblast explained.
"I mean if Ben has so many aliens that control fire...Why not have them be useful?" his dad laughed.
"You know I could just power up the house as Brainstorm or Shocksquatch," Heatblast argued.
"Yes, but you went with Heatblast," his dad replied.
"I swear it's like Azmuth asked you to help program this thing's sense of humor." Heatblast sighed, grabbing an uncooked piece of bacon and tossing it in his mouth, "Ah man...still crunchy…"
"Do power issues normally happen?" Makoto asked.
"No, not normally...which is weird." Heatblast muttered, "The news said blackouts have been happening around the city….well least it cut out for us before Harangue's segment began."
"I still don't get why you watch that channel at times." his dad argued as he began cooking eggs now.
"Hey, that's the only channel that still shows the old Sumo Slammers show from when I was 10...they don't even stream it online anymore!" Heatblast argued, "Dad, you're overcooking the eggs."
"No, I'm not…"
"You are...here let me."
"Ben, no!"
"Just let me do it. It's my hand…"
"Yes, but you're going to…."
"You burnt it," Makoto deadpanned.
"Wha...you guys distracted me!" Heatblast complained.
"It's alright, Ben. We got plenty more. Might as well try and use 'em up incase it takes a while for the power to come back on..." his dad sighed.
"I...D'oh!" he complained, smacking his flaming head.
"Ah well. I still say this will be an eggcellent day," his dad chuckled, earning a giggle from Makoto.
"Ah, puns...A perfect way to start any day," Makoto noted, "In fact...I bet it's gonna be an Eggciting day!"
"Heh heh. Nice one!"
"I got more 'cheesy' ones, too! In fact...hey Ben, we gonna encounter any cheese-like aliens? I bet the leader's name is Munster, and his lackeys are named Colby and Pepperjack!"
"Oh man...make it stop…" Heatblast groaned.
"Aw what's wrong? I thought you liked puns," Makoto teased, "Besides...I only just Brie-gun!"
"Gouda on you, Makoto!" Ben's dad laughed as Heatblast once more facepalmed.
"I wish I was Upchuck so I could show you exactly how I feel about those cheesy puns…" he groaned, "Oh man...you got me doing it, too!" he cried as the two laughed.
A ding went off as the elevator's doors slid open, letting Ben and Makoto walk out, Ben in his normal clothes while Makoto was in a jean skirt and a t-shirt with the word 'EXPLOSIVE' on the bust area. As they walked towards where Max and Rook were discussing something, Makoto looked around.
"Huh...All these look kinda normal," Makoto noted.
"Of course they do. Plumbers do need to work undercover at times," Ben replied, "Sorry we're late, Grandpa. Forgot that my car broke last night."
"Totally my bad," Makoto added, "But anyway, we're good and ready to go, sir."
"Great. Today is simple surveillance," Max explained, "Since your car's going to be out of commission for a time, Rook has a vehicle we've just modified for stealth in Bellwood."
"Oh?" Makoto asked.
"Yes. It is right there," Rook informed as he pointed to a normal truck with Max's shop's logo on it with an SD version of himself leaning against it with a plunger in hand.
"Oh…." Ben slumped at how...simple it seemed.
"...Maybe there's more to it than meets the eye?" Makoto guessed.
"Yeah, I bet the girls will all be screaming when they see this thing coming down the block," Ben joked.
"Females are not afraid of my vehicle," Rook spoke before smiling and taking out a remote of sorts and hitting a button, "But they should be." he smirked, hitting a button as the truck transformed into an alien hover jet.
Ben and Makoto just gawked. One in total shock and the other in a blend of awe and pride in being correct. Ben was able to go to the same ground of impressed as Makoto as he turned to Rook.
"Sometimes you're actually kinda awesome." Ben smiled to his partner. Rook smiling back as a result of his praise.
"Aw...the boys are bonding." Makoto laughed, "Also..shotgun!"
"Sh-aw man…"
"...I do not…" Rook began in confusion.
"It's a meaning for who gets the front seat by the driver's seat."
"Oh…"
A bit later, the trio was now out on surveillance, Rook driving his vehicle as they drove around town as a rather bored-looking Ben sat between him and Makoto.
"...I'm not familiar with human emotional cues, but are you angry at me?" Rook asked Ben.
"Nah...just bored…" Ben sighed, "I've felt more like a tour guide then a hero lately…" he sighed, "Over here on your right you'll see a city, over here on your left you'll see water, careful it's wet."
"...Apologies for his behavior, Rook," Makoto spoke, "He's probably just salty he won't be working solo like he originally planned."
"Sal...ty?"
"It means he's bitter."
"Am not!" Ben argued, earning a look from her, "...Okay maybe a bit. I mean, I've saved the universe a million times...at least!"
"That is why I look forward to this," Rook added, "I hope the real Ben Tennyson lives up to the legends."
"There are Legends about him/Me?" Both Makoto and Ben asked in unison.
"Yes. However, not all of them could be true. For example...Alien X," Rook noted as Makoto noticed Ben raise a brow, "It does not truly exist, does it?"
"Alien X is real," Ben replied.
"Anyone wanna explain to the girl from a bad future what an Alien X is?" Makoto asked.
"According to the Externet Rumors, Alien X is a Celestialsapien, a race of reality bending aliens who exist outside the known Multiverse," Rook explained, "But...honestly, such a fantastical life form, if Ben had such a thing, no villain would ever try facing him."
"Reality...bending?" Makoto asked.
"A blink could just make you no longer exist," Ben explained, "But he is real, Rook. But the drawbacks...yeah, not worth using him."
"Drawbacks?" Makoto asked.
"Debating. Lots and lots of debating," Ben frowned, "Honestly, one time I went Alien X for a moment out here, it was several weeks all about a debate on letting the dinosaurs avoid extinction or not for me in it."
"...Rook?"
"Rumors have it that the reason they're not seen is because they constantly debate between three different minds; the mind of love and compassion, the mind of hatred and anger, and the mind of reason. They have to constantly vote to perform any action," Rook explained.
"That is true. My Alien X has the first two and I'm delegated to the voice of reason...It...is not easy." Ben sighed.
"Course it's not. You're reason," Makoto joked.
"I still do not believe it exists. Please, show me!" Rook spoke excitedly.
"I really don't want to...Last time I tried to use Alien X to stop a guy called Aggregor, I got into a really heated argument with my other personas...I tried to apologize later, but they froze time around the Omnitrix for three whole days...and, oof, days out here feel like years in his head," Ben groaned, "We still never made it past the Dinosaur topic...man he really didn't want to save them…"
"..."
"...Look, Rook. Find us a little heroing to do, and I'll prove to you I can live up to the legend."
"Just be careful not to get a swelled head," Makoto quipped.
"The field kit has an injection of nanites that can cure that," Rook noted.
"Overconfident, Rook. 'Getting a swelled head' means getting overconfident in one's self," Makoto explained, "Gonna have to get you a book of Earth slang."
"Ooh...Earth study readings." Rook smiled.
'And just like that...Rook could be considered an alien male version of Tsubaki,' Makoto thought.
"How about that?" Rook asked while pulling to a stop as they saw a trio of little crab-like aliens...eating someone's car.
"Yeesh. Talk about getting iron in your diet," Makoto noted.
"I believe that is mostly fiberglass…" Rook noted.
"...I got this," Ben grinned, moving over a bit as he leaned out the window, causing the aliens to notice him. He was about to select an alien to transform to...only for the small aliens to spit back up the car parts they ate, "..."
"...Wow. Not even transformed and you showed them," Makoto sarcastically stated.
"...Oh. And you could do better?" Ben argued as he moved back into his seat.
"Maybe…" Makoto smirked before noticing a pair of thugs trying to pry open an ATM, "...Watch. I'm gonna scare these guys into turning themselves in."
"How?"
"Watch," Makoto smirked as she hopped out, bouncing a bit before jumping over behind the two thugs and tapped their shoulders, "Excuse me~."
"?!" the two tensed as they turned and aimed their guns...only for said weapons to be crushed into dust when Makoto grabbed them, "..."
"Now how's about turning yourselves into the police and think about what you've done. Hmm?"
"...Yes, ma'am," the two thugs gulped as they held their hands up, one of them pulling out their phone and calling the police.
"Good boys," Makoto smiled as she walked back over to her ride, "See?"
"..." Ben and Rook shared looked while Rook hid his ProtoTool.
"...Okay, seriously, how strong are you?" Ben asked once Makoto was back in her seat, "I don't think Fourarms is that strong…"
"No clue who that is, but last time I was at a gym, I bench pressed a hundred tons," Makoto shrugged.
"Seriously?!"
"And last time I tried one of those punching machines...broke it just from one punch," Makoto added, "...Pretty sure if my friend Kajun were here, she'd give ya an estimate of how strong I am."
"We could perform some tests at headquarters," Rook offered.
"Yeah... I don't think Grandpa would want us breaking their science stuff. Not like Blukic and Driba use it often though," Ben muttered.
"Who and who?" Makoto asked.
"Our science team...They are Galvans AKA tiny little aliens who are the smartest race in the universe...though those two may be...bottom of their kind's usual IQ scale." Ben sighed.
"Really?"
"Yeah. Azmuth, a Galvan, made the Omnitrix," Ben replied, holding up his wrist to point at the watch, "But he's like...so smart he makes his own species seem normal. Blukic and Driba however...well compared to other Galvans…"
"...I see," Makoto noted, "...Just be happy my friend Kajun isn't here, otherwise….brr. Science Mode…"
"Science...Mode?"
"Just trust me...not something you want to be on the receiving end of."
"Noted," Rook replied.
"Right. So let's get going! I wanna have an exciting time!" Makoto beamed.
"That was not an exciting time," Makoto deadpanned as the sun finished setting over the town, "A chase ended up being an alien just looking for this old lady to return their purse...then having to calm down said old lady to accept the alien's thanks. Aliens we thought were going to be doing a tagging were simply hired painters about to apply the first coat. Three actual crimes stopped the moment they saw Ben triggering his watch." she took a sip from her straw, "But I will admit that I am liking this smoothie from that place we stopped by before that last crime."
"Best in town," Ben agreed, taking a sip from his own straw, "...Still...wish something exciting would've happened. I mean look…" he pointed at someone passing by, "This guy's practically doing nothing but jaywalking."
"...Wait," Rook spoke as he noticed the person's phone, "His phone should not be able to be powered here on Earth. Is that normal?"
"Huh?" Makoto looked at the phone, seeing it was white and black and connected to his backpack by an orange cord, "Uh...What's wrong with that phone that shouldn't let it work?"
"It utilizes Amber Ogia, which my homeworld is the only one capable of cultivating," Rook explained, "Attempts to cultivate Amber Ogia off-world - even on artificial planets specifically constructed for that purpose - yield only a sickly and inferior version of the original plant."
"So something weird is going on," Ben spoke skeptically as he leaned forward, "Also, yes Rook. It's not normal, so let's go figure this out."
"Ooh an investigation!" Rook cheered excitedly.
"I call dibs on punching him!" Makoto cheered as they all jumped out.
The young man walked down an alley as he seemed to get into a heated discussion with...someone on his phone, "Well you tell her I'm part of something big!"
"Either parent or girlfriend with attitude," Makoto whispered as Ben nodded. The trio ran ahead as Rook and Ben hid behind a dumpster while Makoto jumped and landed on a fire escape above him and out of his sight.
"I'm gonna have to call you back." the young man spoke, hearing something getting knocked over behind him. He quickly turned around as his phone transformed into a gun and fired a beam of yellow electric energy, which detonated a random trash can.
Ben grunted as he pushed Rook out of the way, "You're welcome." he smirked before getting up and rushing the shooter as he ran away from them.
"Oh no ya don't!" Makoto called as she jumped at him, only to roll when she missed and continued pursuit on the ground.
The trio turned into another hidden path in the alley ways. The three stood their ground, ready for combat, only to yelp when an orange colored buggy shot out of the darkened path and almost ran them over. The trio hugged a wall and watched as he drove off.
"Finally some action!" Ben cheered while activating the omnitrix and running towards a wall, "Big Chill will let me cut right through these buildings!" he cheered, slamming the watch as he flashed and smacked into the wall with a flash of sparks, "Heatblast...oh right...last form I took...ugh...Okay, Omnitrix...Big Chill, Big Chill!" he declared, slapping the Omnitrix on his chest once more, letting out green flash to reveal a large humanoid tiger with a white underbelly and black spikes growing out of the back of his fists, "Rrrr...LEMME TELL YA SOMETHIN', NEW OMNITRIX THAT I HAVEN'T GOTTEN USED TO! Rath is not Big Chill!"
"So that's Rath?" Makoto muttered as Rook drove his truck in hover mode up to her so she could jump in.
"Yes," Rook replied, "Ben, get in!"
"RAH!" Rath roared, jamming his claws into the wall of the building and climbing to the top before jumping off the roof, "Lemme tell ya somethin', punk kid driving a buggy! You better stop running away before I catch you and make you sorry for running away in a buggy!"
"...I think he's too angry to hear ya," Makoto sweatdropped, "...Nevermind. Let's hurry and catch him before he gets away!"
"...Understood," Rook nodded as he piloted his vehicle in pursuit of their target.
The young man took a quick sigh as he adjusted his mirror, only to cry in shock as he saw Rath running on all fours to keep up with him. Rath suddenly lunged as he opened his mouth and chomped on the bumper...and got himself stuck to the buggy as a result. Rath gave out muffled roars of rage as he kept punching the trunk repeatedly. He raised up his fist once more and slammed it down hard, tearing through the metal of the buggy and burying his arm up to the elbow into it.
"Lemme tell ya somethin', punk kid driving a buggy! You stop this right now or I'll do to you what I threatened to do to Jarret of Pantophage! Except you're smaller, so I'll only be able to shove my fist into your mouth to rip out your intestines and knit them into a sweater!" Rath snarled.
"AHA!" he cried in terror as he hit the gas harder.
"D'oh! Ow! Ouchie!" Rath cried as the sudden speed made his head bob and hit the trunk repeatedly, "Al-ow!-right! Lemme te-yeow!-ll ya s-gah!-omet-guh!-hing, bug-guh!-gy! Rath will destroy you!"
He slammed his other arm into the buggy, tearing into the metal once more. With a roar, he swung his arms out and ripped the buggy in two...just in time to slam chest first into a streetlight, bending it into the shape of his body. The teen struggled with his seatbelt before the half he was on dropped down and a large white fist with a black spike growing out of the back grabbed him by his shirt, ripping him out of the seat and right into Rath's enraged face sporting a bruise mark shaped like the streetlight.
"I will destroy you…" Rath growled, showing his teeth before a beeping went off, making him look down to see his symbol flashing red, "Lemme tell ya somethin', new Omnitrix...not cool!"
A flash of red went off and the teen yelped as he crashed onto the ground. He scooted away, preparing to get up to continue fleeing, only to be stopped when he bumped into a pair of feet, making him look up at Rook. A clicking noise made him look down to see his wrists cuffed by a smirking Makoto.
"At the end, I was kinda worried," Makoto noted, "Sure, some bits were funny, but I have got to remember to not be his target when he's been made livid."
"Try spending an entire day as him…" Ben sighed, "Rath destroyed an alien star ship, an alien pitstop...and stopped an illegal mining operation and a galactic war...in one day while babysitting."
"...I can see him doing everything but the babysitting," Makoto admitted.
"Surprisingly, Rath is good with kids," Ben admitted.
"It is true. Appoplexians for all their rage...are well known for being gentle with children." Rook added, "It's once you stop being a child that you should worry."
"Ugh...seriously ,what is your deal?!" the teen snapped, "I wasn't doing anything wrong!"
"Except shooting at Plumber agents!" Rook argued.
"And reckless endangerment and driving!" Makoto snapped.
"Also, dude! Alien phone blaster! Seriously! How are you innocent!?" Ben added, "Also please tell me your boss is someone big and dangerous so I can kick his butt!"
"Ha! You guys wouldn't last a minute against my boss!" the teen argued with a grin.
"Wait...Aren't you just a normal human...and we all have super powers…" Makoto argued, "Also your engine doesn't sound normal either."
"?!" the teen tensed at that.
"She is correct. That is not a typical Earth combustion engine." Rook spoke.
"Maybe it's a hybrid?" Ben offered as they walked towards the half that housed the engine block.
"No, wait, don't. There's nothing in there! I sw-!" the teen began just as Ben and Rook opened the front...which soon exploded in electricity as something shot out, "...oh crud."
The something was a tiny chihuahua-sized alien. Its body was primarily black with a yellow lightning bolt design on the middle of its body and a yellow circle atop its head. In truth...it actually looked more like a battery.
"What is that...a tiny living battery!?" Makoto panicked.
"A Megawatt!?" Ben shouted before more appeared, before freeing a second Megawatt from the teen's backpack "...I haven't seen any of these guys in years."
"Megawatt?" Makoto repeated before the tiny aliens cackled as they proceeded to repeatedly zap the teen.
"Ow! Ow! Ow! Yeow! Stop-ow!-that!"
"I have never faced a Nosedeenian...any advice?" Rook asked as he pulled his ProtoTool out, only for one of the Megawatts to travel through it and began to zap him, "Ah!"
"Yeah...try not to let them zap you," Ben deadpanned.
"Really helpful Be-YEOW!" Makoto cried as one zapped her, making the fur on her tail fluff up.
"It's okay. They more or less act just like naughty kids," Ben explained, "If they wanted to hurt us...they could do a lot worse."
"Seri-OW!-ously?!" Makoto demanded as her hair had poofed up into an afro.
"Also, Rook, don't cut them," Ben warned, "They'll multiply."
"What...oh!" Rook began before he realized he was using an energy sword mode; he quickly swapped it to a tonfa formation.
"Anything else!?" Makoto snapped.
"Well to stop them, we need to lock them in something insulated like glass or rubber." Ben spoke, "Or drain their energy to put them to sleep...Literal Sleep! Not the thing you assumed!" he shouted, seeing the shocked look on Makoto's face when he said that.
"Oh! Then perhaps-ow!-you can-ow!-use the one called-gah!-Feedback!" Rook suggested, making Ben flinch.
"He's, uh...not...in my new watch…" he muttered.
"Ah! Do something!" Makoto complained, "My hair can't take much more of this!"
"I'll just go Heatblast like that time when I was a kid!" Ben smiled only for the Megawatts to fly off via the city's power lines, "Ugh…" he groaned as he ran after them.
Rook moved to follow, only for Makoto to stop him with her tail and point to their vehicle.
"...oh."
"You cover the air. I'll follow with Ben on foot," Makoto said as she rushed off, "Plus some payback for floofing up my hair and tail! I don't like afros!"
"I do not know what that earth saying means, but I understand the plan!" Rook saluted before jumping into the truck and floating upwards into the air.
"Come back here, you little shock brats!" Ben shouted as they stopped on a building, "Oh hey that worked!"
The two then proceeded to stick their tongues out and blow a raspberry at Ben before jumping off and taking a sudden turn to the right.
"It didn't work…" he sighed chasing them again as Makoto caught up, the wind fixing her hair.
=They seem to be heading towards the waterfront!= Rook shouted via the Omnitrix's communication setting.
"They must be looking for a place to absorb more energy and make more friends." Ben grunted as they kept running.
"Make more friends?" Makoto asked.
"When a Megawatt is full...or damaged...they split into more…" Ben panted.
"...so they're going to make more?!"
"Yup. They may be fast.."Ben began as he began to go through his selection of Aliens in the Omnitrix, "But they can't outrun XLR8."
With that he slammed the watch...as a green wave spread across his body turning him into a plump robot like being of copper like metal with a giant wind up key on his flat head. The Omnitrix set in the center of his stomach surrounded by a green window revealing moving internal gears and mechanisms.
"Clockwork!? This iz ridiculous!" he panted, falling behind Makoto slightly given his new stubby legs and wide body.
"How are you a robot!?" Makoto shouted, "I let Heatblast pass cause he's just living magma...but a Robot!? How does this guy even have DNA?"
"Iz now really ze time to…" Clockwork began as he looked at her, "...Time to..time...ugh...mein head…"
"Eh?"
"Your...ugh...looking at you right now...iz not good for mein head…" Clockwork groaned as the green on his torso flickering to an azure tint for a moment.
"...Ben...are...are you okay?" Makoto asked in concern.
"I….I...I don't feel so...good...oh…mein robotic tummy….iz ooh..." he groaned as the gears inside moved like mad along with the gear on the top of his head, "That...iz not good…"
"...Oh crud…" Makoto whispered, "What do I do what do I do…?" she quickly looked back and forth between the escaping Megawatts and the groaning Clockwork, "...what do I do…?!"
"Go on...ahead..."
"Not if you're like this!" Makoto argued as she tried to help him up.
"I think you are ze cause of this...Clockwork is a Chronosapien...IE aliens with time powers and you...are not from this time...ooh here I go again!" he cried as the key on his head began spinning as it fired a green beam up into the air, "Iz that how I throw up…!?" he freaked as the beam formed a portal.
"I think so?!" Makoto added in equal shock, "...Wait. Something's coming out...did you break time?!"
"Oh, I hope not," Clockwork replied, looking around, "No sign of Professor Paradox, so I think zat time iz fine." he looked over at the electric aliens, "You go check what fell. I'll go after zem."
"Got it…" Makoto nodded as she rushed for the portal.
"And so zat doesn't happen again…" Clockwork tapped his emblem, turning into Chamalien, "Seriously? I don't get you since the first time I used you and now you keep getting picked?" he sighed before running after the two Nosedeenians on all fours, "Stupide montre extraterrestre..."
"I swear if some caveman or dinosaur got pulled from the past…" Makoto muttered, going right underneath the portal just as something was falling through, "...Wait...is...is that…?!" the portal closed the moment the object crashed into her, "Gah! Ow..." a black hat landed on her face, turning into a cream color before it landed, "...this sucks."
"Ow…."
Makoto shook the hat off her head, not paying attention to the sapphire gem on it resembling a half-open eye or the tiny 'wings' on it, and looked at what...who landed on her. The figure was a young woman her age wearing clothes that would've been form-hugging on a woman older than the teenager on her. The outfit was bleeding from a pitch black and silver to a cream and white with a small cape on the back. Makoto made out long flowing locks of red hair and fair peach skin.
"...Tsubaki?!"
"Ahh...Makoto, not so loud…" the young woman muttered as she slowly opened her eyes, revealing them to be a rich blue, "...W-What are you wearing? How did you get it on so fast? Did you wear it under your robes?!"
"Eh? Wh…" Makoto began before she heard the Megawatt laughing, "...n-nevermind. I need to go help my team."
"Your team? Wh-" Tsubaki began before Makoto quickly rushed off, "...Makoto Nanaya, you get back here and tell me what's going on!"
"Trust me...this is important!"
"Stop laughing!"
"I…" Makoto began as, at that, a wooden pole fell over, "The Megawatts did it!"
"What are these Megawatts you keep talking about?!"
"Aliens! That's all I'm gonna say for now!"
"...Makoto, did you accidently eat Noel's cooking again?!"
"Just trust me!"
"Oh…" Tsubaki grumbled as she followed before looking down at herself, "What did you put me in?!"
"I didn't do nothing!" Makoto replied as she picked Tsubaki up and ran off, not paying attention to a red pen-shaped sword, a book-like shield with a sapphire 'eye' on the back, or the dropped hat.
"Ugh...oof…" Chamalien grunted reaching the docks as he stopped by a set of stairs, "I...this...whoo!" he cried, reverting to Ben, "Oh my god... I'm gonna...ugh…"
"Are you hurt, Ben?" Rook asked after landing his truck, jumping out as he ran over.
"Could've...been better," Ben panted, "Though...something...seemed odd."
"Hmm?"
"The Megawatts...I think they wanted me to follow them."
"Wanted you to follow?" Rook asked.
"Each time I caught up to them, they waved me to keep going...and if I lagged behind, they waited." Ben gasped, taking a few more breaths of air, "They wanted me here...I don't think these guys are out to cause mayhem...I think they want help."
"...Should we wait on Makoto then?"
"You called?" the two turned to see the Beastkin approach.
"Megawatts...led...me...here...they want help...Change of plans...save...their friends." Ben gasped.
"Are you sure you are alright?" Rook asked.
"Just...too much running...need a second…" he sighed, "But if you see my face go green...back away."
"Just don't aim it at me in a revenge vomit," Makoto replied.
"Makoto, when did you add a cape and red hair extensions?" Rook asked.
"Huh?" Makoto blinked twice, "Oh...I don't have those."
"Ugh...So many jumps and flips...Why, Makoto? Why?" Tsubaki groaned on her back, peeking up to show her face was a bit green.
"Hey...another person...and you know her...Oh crud...Did we break time? Please tell me we didn't break time!" Ben panicked.
"Uh, Ben?" Rook asked.
"I went Clockwork, saw Makoto and suddenly felt like I had gone into an eating contest where all the food is expired with the only drink being expired milk and all taking place on a spinning fair ride," Ben explained, "Next thing I know, I'm vomiting a portal in the sky."
"Ugh…" Tsubaki groaned as Makoto put her down, "Makoto, when the world stops spinning, I'm going to ask Kajun if it's possible to turn you into a squirrel for five minutes."
"Here. Swallow these," Rook offered a pair of pills, "Standard issue nausea pills. They should help with your motion sickness."
"...Thanks…" Tsubaki whispered as she took the pills, putting them into her mouth and swallowed them, "I really…" she slowly looked up to see Rook, "..."
"...Greetings."
"...Makoto…"
"Like I said...aliens."
"I thought you were trying to pull a prank again!" Tsubaki hissed.
"Makoto?"
"Her name's Tsubaki Yayoi. She's one of my best friends," Makoto explained, "Tsubaki, these are Rook Blonko and Ben Tennyson. Don't stoke Ben's ego and Rook doesn't use contractions and doesn't knows slang. He does know how to joke, though."
"It is true," Rook smiled, "I am well versed in Makoto's situation and assume you, too, are from her timeline."
"Aw Man~ We broke time!"
"Not we, you!" Makoto accused and pointed at Ben.
"You made me!"
"How was I supposed to know I gave your robot form a stomach ache?!"
"Someone explain what's going on here?!" Tsubaki interrupted.
"Okay uh...look...we have a job to do...here are the cliff notes, Time space shenanigans, past, Earth full of aliens, Space cops and super hero," Ben pointed to himself and Rook, "Small little aliens need saving from bad guys...I'll explain it all later, but right now I need to punch a bad guy's face in! Rook...let's bust some bad guys!"
"I promise we'll explain better later," Makoto assured Tsubaki, placing a comforting hand on Tsubaki's shoulder, "But for now, know that we're doing a good thing and justice will be dealt on bad guys who, from what Ben said, are doing bad things to little aliens. More than likely? Turning them into batteries for cars and space phones that turn into blasters."
"Makoto, you stay here and explain to her," Ben ordered.
"What?!"
"Remember, Grandpa Max said you're my apprentice, so that's my order," Ben replied, "Rook, come on."
"Oh that…Why he…" Makoto fumed as Ben and Rook went off to the warehouse on the dock.
"...Apprentice?" Tsubaki repeated.
"...Tsubaki, this...is gonna be a long explanation…" Makoto replied with a sigh.
Once they were inside the large warehouse, Ben and Rook took a quick glance around the area, hiding behind a crate as they soon noticed something. There was a large device in the middle of the room. Inside of it were multiple Megawatts, trapped inside the glass tubes connected to it as the two that were out tried to free them.
"...I was right. They needed help," Ben whispered.
"They are being used to power that machine. They power this...factory…" Rook awed in shock, "Those poor Megawatts."
"They are annoying...but they don't deserve this." Ben nodded in agreement.
"Hey! Two of the batteries got out!" a man's voice shouted.
Ben and Rook looked up to see another young man with the same punk style, only he had a pair of giant robotic arms connected to a similar battery pack. The man jumped off the higher level and the two free Megawatts hissed before they tried to flee. The man swung his arms out and a blast of yellow electricity struck the two aliens. They struggled to escape but the energy sucked them into the teen's hands and into a pair of pods on his shoulders, causing them to light up.
"Well...that seems a little advanced for this type of criminals…" Ben muttered as he and Rook watched.
The two could clearly hear the crackling of electricity from another thug trying and failing to sneak up on them. Ben sighed along with Rook.
"You gonna get that?" Ben asked.
"No, I think Makoto has it covered." Rook said as they kept looking forward.
The thug blinked before a fist bonked the top of his head, making his eyes cross as he stumbled around before falling over face first. For good measure, Makoto kicked the downed thug in the rear, sending him flying and smacking into the Megawatt generator.
"I thought I told you to stay and explain what's going on to your friend," Ben groaned.
"Seriously? And miss the big bust?" she smirked with a shrug of her shoulders, "Relax, I had her lie down in the truck and called for backup."
"Well I hope she feels better." Rook nodded.
"Speaking of..." Ben turned to the first thug who gawked at the scene, too stupefied to actually make a move, "Dude, put the Megawatts down...and the three of us won't kick your butt."
"..." he raised his arms as if to give up only to instead shoot an electric beam which captured all three of them in an energy sphere.
"Huh...I did not see that coming." Ben muttered.
"Neither did I," Rook nodded as he started looking around his pocket and pouches for something.
"Oh come on!" Makoto complained, the fur of her tail poofing up again as she pulled down on her skirt due to being upside-down.
The doors to the warehouse were pushed open, earning the attention of everyone. A large, well-built man entered, wearing a black muscle shirt with a skull on the front and orange pants. His combat boots and brown belt sported spikes on them while he wore black bands on his wrists and elbows with tape covering his hands aside from the fingers and thumbs. His face was painted to look like a skull with his hair done in orange spikes while purple flame designs were tattooed to his arms. Over the man's shoulders was a towel. He entered with the teen that had driven the buggy following him.
"...Oh, I knew we forgot something," Makoto cringed.
"You better be worth interrupting my workout," the leader spoke, tossing his towel away before he began hitting a punching bag.
"Looks like spies, Fistrick," their captor explained.
"...Spies? In my house of business?" Fistrick asked as he punched the bag even harder, showing how strong he was.
"No sign outfront," Ben spoke as he noticed Rook found a gadget in his back most pouch, "You must not want folks to know about your business." he spoke as Rook began fiddling with the device.
"...Well, this kind of alien tech doesn't just fall off a truck."
"I'm sure whoever you took it from isn't happy about it going missing," Ben frowned.
"Hahaha…" he laughed, punching the bag one last time, sending it flying across the warehouse and slamming into a wall, "He don't care anymore, Bro." he smirked, implying what the three imagined he was implying about the previous owner.
"You steal alien tech and then use alien hostages to charge it!" Ben simplified their scheme with a look of anger.
"One Alien makes it. Another Alien powers it!" Fistrick smirked walking over to his prisoners, "I mass produce it and sell it to the highest bidder!" he smirked as he put his arms behind his back to seem presentable and professional, "It's just good business, bro."
"And you...are scum." Makoto added.
"Yeah yeah, you ain't the first girl to say that." he shrugged before noticing the device in Rook's hand, "What is that?" he demanded.
"An Electron Entanglement Disruptor," Rook answered as he pressed down on the button, causing the barrier trapping him and his teammates to fizz out and vanish.
Ben slammed the Omnitrix, turning him into Bloxx as he and Makoto punched the ground, sending a shockwave which lifted giant chunks of concrete up like spikes and striking the goon who captured them, knocking him over. The other armored goon got up and charged at Rook, who formed a sword from his ProtoTool. Rook dodged to the left of a punch and then under several more. As the thug charged his robotic arm and punched, Rook ducked to the side and slashed the arm's hydraulic systems, making it lose its ability to move.
The thug grunted as he failed to move his damaged arm. He aimed his still working one and charged a blast only for it to be stopped when Bloxx grabbed his hand in his giant one. The blast hit and dissipated against the aliens physical composition. Bloxx retracted his hand, dragging the thug over as he tossed him up into the air. The thug then blinked when he was struck by Makoto's tail, sending him flying away.
Fistrick watched his two grunts easily bested by the combined abilities of the trio and just glared at Bloxx who changed back to Ben, "Oh you just made a big mistake, bro!"
"I make a lot of mistakes, but shutting you down isn't one of them," Ben smirked.
"Pfft...hahaha! You admitted you make a lot of mistakes!" Makoto laughed.
"What? Like you haven't?" Ben argued.
"...Uh...Hey! The hot headed muscleman that's smarter than he looks is making a break for it," Makoto informed.
"...Crud! Rook!"
"On it, partner." he spoke while flipping his weapon into gun mode as he fired a blast that split into a bola and tied up the younger grunt.
Fistrick ducked down and around the generator for his factory. The trio ran after him and saw him jump down a trapdoor in the floor right behind the generator. The three paused as steam escaped from the trapdoor.
"...Oh that can't be good…" Makoto whispered as something began to rise from the steam
Rising up was a large orange and silver humanoid mech suit. It took a step forward as its foot ended in caterpillar treads for movement. Its large arms opened and closed, showing off god knows how many missiles within. Sitting in the opened chest was Fistrick, strapped to the cockpit chair.
"You never asked why we needed so many of these Nosedeenians," Fistrick smirked as the chest and head unit closed around him, finishing the machines body as it was painted with his shirt's skull symbol on the chest as well. Six tubes on its back sparked to life, making the Megawatts trapped within scream as their energy was taken to empower the suit, "Let's take this baby for a test drive. Looks like I'm getting my workout after all."
"...I am having very mixed feelings right now," Makoto admitted, "One...I really wanna punch that guy's face in for what he's doing to those little guys. Two...it's a freakin' mech suit~!"
"Yes...Specifically a Class 12 Armored Mecha Suit." Rook explained, "Ever deal with one before?" he asked Ben.
"Nope. How do we beat it?" Ben asked.
"Me? You could try Alien X." Rook offered with a small little grin.
"Stop…" Ben sighed.
"How about punch it...Really hard!" Makoto shouted.
The three then blinked as red lights marked all of them. The Mecha suit aimed and fired a multitude of micro-missiles from shooters on its forearms.
"Better plan, RUN!" Ben shouted as they ran and avoided direct hits from the missiles. But the shockwave from the combined explosions still sent all of them flying away and smacking into the ground.
=Woah...I love it!= Fistrick declared as he marched forward.
Rook grunted as he leaned forward and let his ProtoTool fold forward and begin shooting rapid fire energy blasts. Fistrick raised his arms as shields and let the blasts explode off the suit. The Megawatts cried as it seemed the suit expended energy to tank the blasts.
"Rook, stop shooting! You could hurt the Megawatts." Ben declared.
"If we can't fight back...that does tend to make our job more difficult." Rook argued.
"Well yeah...but we can't hurt the little guys either." Makoto agreed with Ben, "They're just prisoners."
"Oh we're fighting back, we just need to find a way to do it without hurting the Megawatts." Ben explained.
"That won't be easy." Rook sighed.
"Eh...it never is." Ben agreed as they all ducked to avoid a barrage of energy vulcan fire from the suit, "Okay Omnitrix...I want Fourarms...not Greymatter….not Nanomech, Fourarms!" he declared, stopping on the icon for the alien he named, before he slammed it down.
However, the green flashed surged as Ben's skin began to harden like stone. His body began to swell as he grew larger and larger till he was just shy of the Mecha Suits hight. Its body was made of tan, black and reddish-brown stone layered outwards. Its head and torso where merged with a large mouth opening to breathe. The alien blinked as he flexed his four fingers and stomped his feet. A molten red core was set in his stomach and a pair of green and black shorts covered his waist with the Omnitrix resting on his forehead.
"Whoa...okay...This guy's new," he spoke in a deep but calm voice.
"Wow! He's a big guy!" Makoto awed.
"A Galilean...a living planet." Rook spoke in awe seeing one in person for the first time.
"Wait...he's a living planet?!" Makoto gawked, "...Can he summon meteors that look like moons?"
"No, but they are masters of gravity." Rook added.
"Gravity?" Makoto blinked only for Ben's new form to get pushed through a wall by Fistrick's mecha suit, "Whoa! That is one tough 'bot."
"Class 12's are the most dangerous models in the universe," Rook added.
"Gravity...Grava...no no…" Makoto muttered as they walked out to see Ben's new form block the Mecha Suit's punches with his arms.
The alien raised his arm as a sphere of bluish white aura formed around his hand and held the mecha up in the air, "Gravity powers? Alright! I can work with that!"
"Graviton? No no…" Makoto shook her head.
"Imma call this guy Gravattack!" Gravattack named himself.
"Oh that is a good one." Makoto agreed just as Gravattack slammed the Mecha suit into the ground and kept it pinned with increased gravity pressure.
Rook ran up as he jumped on the suit and began tugging on the battery pack holding one of the Megawatts.
"Yeah, Rook!" Gravattack cheered while raising his arm...and Fistrick's mecha along with Rook into the air, "Oops…"
"What are you doing!?" Makoto shouted, jumping and landing on top of Gravattack's head.
"Focus your gravitational field lower! I can't free them like this!" Rook shouted.
"Sorry! Sorry! New powers…" Gravattack sighed before slamming the mecha suit down again, the impact causing one of the batteries to eject.
"Well, that's one down," Makoto noted.
Rook smiled before he heard gears moving. He looked at the shoulder as it extended and bent like a manipulator arm...before aiming at him as a barrel opened in it.
"Oh shit! Rook, dodge!" Makoto yelped.
"Oh dear…" Rook gulped, about to dodge before the laser shot slammed him him, sending him crashing into some metal containers.
"Rook!" Gravattack shouted rushing to his side, "You okay? Come on Rook, speak to me partner!?" he asked in concern as Makoto jumped off his head and landed next to Rook to check on him.
"He looks okay…" Makoto spoke, "Ben!" she panicked as the Mecha suit grabbed and tossed Gravattack across the docks.
Fistrick's mecha stomped the shocked alien down before reeling his fist back and punching Gravattack without mercy, =You...want...some...more...Bro!?= Fistrick asked punctuating each word with another punch aimed at Gravattack's core.
"Not...really…" Gravattack grunted in between punches.
=To bad about your friend. To bad for you, cause he got off easy!= Fistrick stated as he moved to punch Gravattack's core again.
"Now Makoto!" Rook's voice shouted as a crane hook slammed into the Mecha Suit and sent it flying and slamming back down into the warehouse.
"Heh…" Gravattack looked over to see the two standing near a crane, Makoto behind the driver's seat, "That was pretty off the hook, am I right?"
"You're welcome," Rook waved to Gravattack.
=RAH!= Fistrick yelled as his mech burst from the roof of the warehouse before landing across from them =Weak!=
"Talk about persistent," Makoto muttered.
"...I think I can separate the Megawatts from the suit," Rook spoke, converting his ProtoTool into its bow formation, "Ben, see if you can hold him down."
"Easy," Gravattack smirked.
"Provided we can get it to stop moving," Makoto suggested as she hopped down onto the dock, "...Hey, Ben. The docks are made of wood, right? Not something alien made?"
"Yeah..."
"And you're currently an alien that controls gravity right…" Makoto added as she gave a squirrely grin, "His suit can take it...but can the docks?"
"..." Gravattack smirked.
Fistrick charged at them only for Gravattack's hands to glow once more. Fistrick was sent flying above them and crashed down hard onto the docks on the far end of them. Fistrick started to get back up only for him to slam down fully onto the docks once more.
=Guh...same old trick, hero?=
"What can I say? It's my first time," Gravattack noted before Makoto held her gut as she cracked up in laughter, "...oh…I should've worded that better..."
"Y-Yeah! Ahahahaha~!" Makoto replied in her laughter.
"...Okay, rising up to 50Gs," Gravattack frowned as Fistrick grunted as he collapsed once more as the dock started to crack around him, "Now while you seem to be standing up against all that pressure, the docks…" he smirked as the docks around Fistrick started to break up further, "That's another story."
Without a moment's notice, the docks underneath Fistrick's mech broke, sending it into the water below...before it was lifted up out before being dunked in again. He was pulled up and dunked once more...and once more after that.
"Ha! This is like one of those dunk tanks!"
"Think you can start spinning him around?" Makoto asked, "We can give him a spin cycle!"
"Not a bad idea…" Gravattack smirked, "But first…"
He pulled Fistrick out once more. On a nearby crane's hook, Rook exhaled slowly as he had his ProtoTool in its bow mode. He pulled back on the string and aimed at Fistrick's back. He released the string and an energy arrow shot out and struck the back of the mech. The arrow split in two and stabbed into two spots on the mech's back, causing it to spark. The canisters shot off and hit the ground, breaking and freeing the Megawatts, letting them flee.
"Nice shot, Rook!"
=Power Level critical...12% remaining= the computer system in Fistrick's mech spoke as the inside was sparking and leaking water.
=...Just enough…= Fistrick frowned as he pressed a button.
"So ya gonna give him the spin cycle now or…?" Makoto began to ask before the machine opened up several panels...exposing rocket launchers that immediately fired their entire salvo, "Oh beetle-infested acorn trees…"
"Gh?!" Gravattack tensed as he quickly shielded Makoto and braced for impact, unaware his hands were still glowing as the salvo of rockets flew in a different direction, "...Huh?"
"...I wonder…" Makoto muttered, noticing the glow, "...Try moving your hands."
"...Ok…" he muttered as he did, causing the rockets to fly around him, "...Wait. Do I…?"
"You have your own orbit!" Makoto awed.
"That is pretty cool!" Gravattack beamed before looking at Fistrick's mech, "...I wonder…"
=...oh...this is not good…= Fistrick paled.
Gravattack began to float into the air. His arms and legs tucked into his body as it became a spherical shape. Fistrick's mech trembled before it was pulled into the orbit, becoming a large orange blur amongst flames and rockets. After a few moments, Fistrick's mech shot out of the orbit and slammed into a metal container several meters away...before the rockets were sent out and all of them collided with the mech, creating a massive explosion.
"That was so cooler than the spin cycle I was thinking of!" Makoto squeed as Gravattack dropped down to his feet, "...Think we can do more?"
"...Naw. I think he's had enough," Gravattack replied as he changed back into Ben.
"Ugh…" Fistrick groaned, climbing out of the remains of his mech, "Ugh...bro."
"Okay, let me get this straight, Makoto," Tsubaki sighed, pinching her nose to work through the developing headache, "You went to the remains of a Hierarchical City…"
"Uh-huh," Makoto nodded.
"You found an abandoned lab…"
"Yep."
"You messed with the working computers and blacked out…"
"Uh-huh."
"And then woke up here, regressed to the age of sixteen," Tsubaki motioned to the docks they were out as Plumbers were putting Fistrick and his men into a truck to be carted off.
"Right."
"So we're in the past, which is filled with aliens, a young man with a watch-like device that lets him become aliens, an interplanetary law enforcement, and no real way to get back home because the one race that could will more than likely become sick and tear apart time itself if they so much as look at us?"
"Eeyup."
"And, apparently, your finding that out brought me here, deaged and, considering I don't remember anything past us just finishing the graduation from our academy, deaged my brain," Tsubaki frowned as she motioned to her ill-fitting attire.
"Sorry," Makoto sheepishly apologized.
"...Ugh…." Tsubaki sighed, "I would have a hard time believing you..If I hadn't seen what had just transpired happen…"
"Be thankful you stayed in the spaceship truck," Makoto noted, "I'm worried I still have a charge from those little zap-punks."
"...The Megawatts you mentioned, correct?"
"Yup….speaking of, what happened to them?" Makoto pondered as Max walked over to the four.
"I hear that a colony of Megawatts are helping power Undertown," Max noted.
"Since when?" Ben asked.
"Since now," Max replied as he pointed to a cheering group of Megawatts in a large glass container shaped like a battery with a lot of them waving to the four.
"Anytime," Ben mock saluted them.
"Now that we've taken care of that…" Max noted before looking at Tsubaki, "Another time traveller?"
"Makoto's fault," Ben replied.
"What?!"
"Hey, you're the first one and you were the cause for me getting sick as Clockwork," Ben pointed out, "Seriously, looking at you when I was him with just a glance was making me nauseous for some reason."
"...Not my fault you moved your finger too fast and didn't bother to check," Makoto muttered as she turned away, crossing her arms with a pout.
"Makoto, act your actual age and not your current age," Tsubaki scolded.
"Says the girl who got de-aged as well," Makoto countered before flinching at the stern glare Tsubaki gave her, "...shutting up."
"Heh-heh…" Ben chuckled before the glare was aimed at him, "..." he shuddered a bit, "How do you and Gwen know the same glare…?"
"This is going to be more paperwork, it seems," Max sighed.
"I deeply apologize for the trouble," Tsubaki spoke to him as she bowed her head a bit, "...And I apologize for Makoto's behavior. She can be...quite the handful." she bowed once more, "Tsubaki Yayoi."
"Max Tennyson," Max chuckled, "Nice to meet a polite young woman like yourself. And it's been no trouble with her. She's done some good in her two days here."
"Really?"
"Yup!" Makoto beamed as she chimed in, "Helped take down a massive shakedown operation with the leader using bombs that leave pretty big craters." she looked over a Ben, "Did we ever find out what alien that one toilet was meant for?"
"Dunno," Ben shrugged before his stomach grumbled, "...But I do know one thing...I'm hungry for some food."
"Oh same here," Makoto agreed, "Think we can try that buffet you mentioned earlier?"
"...Three plates only," Tsubaki ordered.
"Aw come on! I helped with freeing trapped little battery aliens!"
"The last time we ate at a buffet, you ate them out of house and home and caused all five of us to be banned from it for life. Four plates only. If I hear you went over one...nothing chestnut related for a month."
"?!" Makoto tensed at that, "...yes ma'am."
"She can eat out a buffet?" Max asked.
"In the few years I've known her, we have been banned from no less than three," Tsubaki sighed, "And that last one before graduation had the perfect cheesecake, too…"
"...Now her warning about her being a big eater is starting to make sense…" Ben muttered, "...Wait. Where is she gonna stay in the meantime?"
"For tonight, she can stay on the base. I'll talk to Carl and Sandra in the morning," Max replied.
"...She's not gonna be my apprentice too, is she?"
"It depends," Max replied before looking at Tsubaki, "Rook will show you where the base is once you're all done with a well-earned meal."
"Thank you," Tsubaki nodded before shooting Makoto another stern glare, "Makoto, remember to behave or less...and again, four plates...only."
"Fine…" Makoto pouted.
"Seems another legend is disproven," Rook noted.
"Which one?" Ben asked.
"A blended beverage at the end of each adventure," Rook replied.
"Eh, that's always been a day thing," Ben shrugged, "Plus, the buffet doesn't have them."
"...Okay," Rook rolled his eyes.
"Oh and by the way, Alien X is real."
"Then why can't I…"
"Just...trust me."
"...Do you have any books on different alien species by any chance?" Tsubaki asked Max, making Makoto tense up.
"Actually, I keep an ALDB on me," Max replied as he pulled out a small, flat, round device with a green gem in the middle that lit up and displayed a holographic screen, "Taking the initiative, I see."
"Of course. If I am going to be here, I might as well learn and study up on the different kinds out there...and make sure Makoto doesn't forget."
"...Oh acorns!" Makoto freaked as she bolted out of there.
"...uh…" Ben began.
"She's gonna make us study when she's able to!"
"...y-yeah. Like she can make me st-" Ben began.
"Tennyson-san, would you mind if I included Ben in these lessons?"
"Not at all. Ended up not finishing his last year in high school due to his duties, so maybe a tutor for helping him with online courses would be good," Max replied.
"..." Ben turned on his Omnitrix and selected an alien, "Bye!" he slapped down and the green light went off...revealing Ditto, "...Oh poo…"
SZ: *Clears up the last of the rubble* ok...that's the last of it...any other hidden explosives Gt? Because I don't want Z0 pulling a Goro Majima again!
Z0: *Rises up as a mass of smoke and embers before reforming* You rang?
SZ: AHH! Z0!
GT: What's a Goro Majima?
SZ: Really crazy guy from the Yakuza series made by SEGA
Z0: Kind of a really fun game series.
GT: Ah. Cool. And no, I don't have any hidden explosives.
SZ: Good...because we are done here for today…*looks at some of the reviews from the previous chapter*...We'll address some of these next time guys.
GT: Oh, that's good. *hissing sounds go off* ...Z0, did you break the container filled with Creeper Eggs from Minecraft ON and I spent a month collecting?
Z0: *training them like pets* Maybeeee….
GT: …*facepalms as Z0 lit one on fire* Well...Read and Review, readers...read and re…
*BOOM!*