GT: *working on something under a tarp* Ignore me, please.
SZ: Ignore him. He busy with something.
Z0: *wheeling in a giant pod* Dodododo….
GT: Who's singing about baby sharks out there?!
SZ:...Uh….we own nothing. Begin story!
Deep in space in the meteor belt of our solar system. An interesting alien structure was built into a planetoid. It looked like a giant laboratory. Rounded and circular in shape with a gold and purple color to it. A look that just seemed to scream evil villain lair. This was the base of operations of the Kabal of Khyber the Huntsman, Malware the Rogue Galvanic Mechamorph, and Dr. Psychobos the Mad Cerebrocrustacean.
=Unacceptable!= Malware snapped as he slammed his clawed hand on the table where Psychobos was working on a new device.
In the background, Khyber grunted as his Anubian Baskurr turned into Buglizard and growled at him. Its eyes looked unfocused and confused as he thrashed around. Khyber grunted, pulling on a red leash as he tried to keep it in place.
"Easy old friend…" he grunted as she reverted to normal...only to then morph to Mucilator, then into Terroranchula, as it backed away dragging him with it. Khyber was then sent flying back as Slamworm rolled around in panic.
=You said you'd have the Nemetrix repaired by now, Dr. Psychobos!= Malware snapped =Yet the beast continues to change form at random. Not even Khyber can control it now!=
"I said I would try! It is based on a p-pathetic piece of Galvan technology after all, and I use the term loosely. And I explicitly told him too many quick changes in a day could overload its transformation matrix!" Psychobos countered as he continued to work and ignored the chaos as Necroshade tossed Khyber around like a rag doll, "Unfortunately, the piece required to stabilize the Nemetrix...resides within the Omnitrix itself. That which allows for the rapid changes between species without overloading." he motioned to a schematic of the Omnitrix's core.
=Which resides on Ben Tennyson...deep within Plumber Headquarters on Earth= Malware noted before Khyber crashed into the table.
"Down, old friend!" Khyber growled as Tyrannopede roared before Terroranchula spat a web at him, making the huntsman duck and tackle Buglizard, "I shall go collect the piece!"
=No, Khyber. Your single-minded obsession with obtaining Tennyson as a hunting trophy has clouded you to our true goal= Malware argued.
"Your goal. Not mine," Khyber growled before Panuncian tackled him.
=It is the Omnitrix we need! Tennyson is inconsequential= Malware spoke, stretching his arm out and grabbing the Panuncian before shocking it and tossing him across the room and into a wall.
"Not to me!" Khyber growled, "I will not rest until I have turned his entire team into trophies on my wall!"
=How do you intend to do that when you can't even control your mutt? Maybe it's time to end our contract…= Malware spoke as the two glared at each other.
"Enough," Psychobos spoke up as his cranium opened, exposing machinery attached to his brain before he blasted both with purple lightning, knocking them into opposite walls, "It was I who b-built the Nemetrix. Obviously, I am the only one who can r-repair it." he floated over the table and towards the doors, "Out of my way! Try not to destroy each other until I return...or do. That would be a sp-sp-splendid surprise to come back to!"
"When this is over...I'm steaming his brain…" Khyber growled.
=I thought you were going to feed him to your pet= Malware noted before tentacles grabbed the two =...Frag=
"Bugger," Khyber sighed before both were pulled to Vicetopus and into Mucilator's slimy sacs.
A cloaked ship landed on a building across the street from Max's Plumbing. A door opened as Psychobos hovered out along with a large multitude of machines.
"If you want something done right, you have to do it yourself…"
"This is not what I had in mind!" Rook shouted as he kept dodging vines aimed right at him.
"Hey, you never specified 'No Omnitrix aliens,'" Makoto argued as she rolled out of the way of another set of vines, "Easy on the whipping, Wildvine!"
"Hey. We're just sparring here," Wildvine countered, he was a tall green plant alien, unlike Pax he was thin and tall and a deep forest shade of green with four long vine legs like tentacles, a venus fly trap like flap framing his head, and seed pods on his back. His Omnitrix on a belt around his waist.
"Yes, but this was meant to be weaponless combat!" Rook argued, "You are cheating!"
"1: The Omnitrix is not a weapon." Wildvine spoke as he whipped his vines, making the two bump into each other as he jumped and flashed into Humungosaur and pinned both of them down with his thumbs, "2: The bad guys always cheat. There's no such thing as honor in a street fight. The bad guys won't give you a moment to collect your weapon...so if you wanna beat them...you gotta fight like 'em." he chuckled as he let them go, "Plus, I got the Omnitrix, so I win even against them."
"But what if you could not rely on it? What if you were to end up in an encounter while it was unable to be used or malfunctioning, preventing you from transforming?" Rook asked.
"Then I improvise and get lucky." Ben smirked honestly, "That happened all the time as a kid and here I am. Besides, this isn't about me; this is about your training. You had to resort to saying things like cheating. Are you going to do the same in a real fight?"
"Maybe as a diversion," Makoto noted.
"And you tend to over-rely on your right side, Makoto," Ben added, "A bad guy sees that, they could easily get you surprised with an attack on the left."
"This is what I mean...you show astounding combat tactics and awareness...yet why do you choose to rely on the Omnitrix so much?" Rook pointed out, "Even when armed and outnumbered, you always are fast to find a way to fight your enemies. Why do you not train your true form as well?"
"Hey, I do," Ben argued, "I did karate lessons under Gwen."
"Then why do you not learn further?" Rook asked.
"Honestly...I tried, but Gwen told me I just need to fight smarter. I love her, but man does she send confusing signals...It's a wonder Kevin ever even got that first date. She yelled at me for being late to a match for Julie...when I was busy stopping a Museum robbery!" Ben complained, throwing his arms up into the air before sighing.
"Finally found a video of one of her matches?" Makoto asked.
"Yep," Ben replied, "I hate it when bad guys are right."
"So...that is why...you just gave up on your personal training due to your reliable trainer not putting priority in it!" Rook realized as it all made sense.
=Ah well. I love Gwen as much as the next guy in this family, but I think we know this life was never meant for that girl= Max sighed =She's not like you or me, Ben; she actually wants a normal life=
"Oh please. 'Normal' is just a term for 'boring,'" Makoto snorted, "Though I would like to meet her and Kevin one day. You guys keep bringing 'em up, so now I'm curious."
"Honestly? Dye Tsubaki's hair orange and pull it into a ponytail and you've got Gwen," Ben joked.
=I heard that= Tsubaki spoke.
"Ah man…"
=Yeah, but Tsubaki doesn't know magic or actually has your Grandma's spark= Max laughed.
"Grandma...Wait, Max, you're married?!" Makoto shouted.
=...Even I'm surprised by your statement, Makoto= Noel deadpanned.
"Hey…!"
"Grandma Verdona...is a weird topic…" Ben muttered.
"Why?" Makoto asked.
=Ah, Verdona...My stellar girl…= Max sighed.
"Grandma is an alien." Ben chuckled.
"Hah?!"
"Yep. I'm one-quarter alien on my dad's side," Ben explained, "But the 'spark' only really shows up in girls."
"Spark?"
"Grandma is from a race called the Anodites, beings made of life energy. Unlike NRG, however...no DNA to scan. So when they have kids with other races...the kid looks like the Non Anodite parent." Ben explained.
"Wait...Anodites...are real!?" Rook exclaimed.
"Yep."
"Wait...your grandma is part of some sort of...legendary mythical race of magic aliens!?" Makoto summed up.
=I...I am impressed, Magister…= Tsubaki spoke.
=Hai…= Noel added.
"...Another point of being glad the NOL isn't in this time," Makoto spoke up.
"Why?"
"Anything magic related? They had to automatically own it," Makoto explained, "...Though I'm also glad Sector Seven ain't here, either. Science. Lots of science."
=Well, they should be glad those NOL ain't here. If they want to get to my granddaughter...they have to go through me= Max smirked =And you can ask Vilgax or any other scum of the Galaxy...no one topples a Tennyson=
"Grandpa once strapped Vilgax to a nuke and shot him into space," Ben smirked proudly.
=...Well damn. The old man is hardcore= Ragna spoke up in the background.
"What th...Ragna?" Ben pondered.
=Your gramps here asked me to come and see how'd I fare in your training here= Ragna snorted =Considering no one had any jobs on the board in Undertown today and that I'm avoiding Tao at the moment, why not?=
"...Why are you…?"
=She catnipped too much catnip again. In other news, Pakmar got a ton of cash from selling cat scratchers to the Kaka clan. Not saying any correlation or anything=
"Oh not again...we had to file so many complaints last time…" Makoto complained, "...Wait. Who gave her catnip?!"
=Some spiky rat she was chasing=
"...Porcupine quills for hair that paralyze anyone who gets poked?"
=Yep=
"ARGIT!" Makoto barked.
In Undertown, Argit suddenly felt a shiver up his back, making his quills curl upwards, "Oh great...who'd I piss off this time? ...I'd better go into hiding again!" he panicked, taking a woman's scarf and a man's glasses, "You didn't see nothin'!" he shouted putting them on while running...only to trip over a trash can in the process.
"Ugh...Come on. I paid you cash. Give me the juice box," Ben scowled, poking a button repeatedly in annoyance.
"Hand it over, alien vending machine!" Makoto snapped, smacking it repeatedly.
"That is not a vending machine," Rook pointed out.
"Uh quarter slot?" Ben countered.
"Okay, what the hell?!" Ragna snapped in the background, "Are those goddamn saws on robot arms?! Did you just set them on fire?!"
=Come on, son. I passed this level when I was 17!= Max cheered.
"Oh, screw y-YARGH!"
"Seems he's having fun," Makoto noted before bonking the machine again, "Seriously! Juice now, dammit!"
"Again, not a vending machine," Rook deadpanned.
"What is this nonsense?" Tsubaki asked, walking out with Noel.
"I couldn't keep watching…" Noel explained, hanging her head, "It was like gym class at the academy, only everything is on fire or sparking with electricity."
"And why are you two banging on a computer?" Tsubaki questioned.
"It won't give us our juice boxes," Makoto complained.
"I do not think they notice anymore…" Rook sighed, "And I still do not understand these boxes made of juice they want."
"They're not made of juice, Rook," Tsubaki sighed, "They…" a siren went off, "...Makoto...Ben…"
"We didn't do it!" both replied quickly.
=Perimeter breach in progress! Multiple targets incoming!= Max called =Ragna, we're pausing the session!=
"Finally!" Ragna declared as Plumbers ran by a tunnel connected to where the group was.
"Move it, you five. We've got trouble," Max ordered the group as he ran by.
"Action time!" Makoto cheered.
"Oh dear…" Noel spoke, pulling out her guns.
"So long as it's not on fire or covered in electricity, I'm good!" Ragna declared as he ran by...his body smoking with soot on random parts of him with his hair poofed up and sparking from static.
"...I don't understand. The security system was updated after what happened with Khyber," Tsubaki stated as she brought her sword and shield out, "Who could be infiltrating us?"
From the ceiling in the main area, drills pierced through before dropping down, connected to purple slender robotic forms. The drills opened up to expose a red optic before firing lasers and blasts of electricity from the split drill pieces.
"Concentrate fire!" Max ordered before ducking under some Plumber agents that got sent flying, "Watch for those tails!"
"Robot worms…" Ben muttered, "That's a new one."
"Ragna seems to be enjoying himself," Makoto noted, seeing Ragna grabbing one of the robots by its tail before slamming it into another.
"Come on, ya bastards! I got a lot of stress from the old man's training, and I need something to vent on!" Ragna declared as he bisected one of the robots with his sword.
"...M-maybe a little too well…" Noel whispered.
Unaware to everyone, Psychobos floated in from one of the holes, riding on a purple platform as he looked down below, his gaze soon stopping on Ben, "...And now the fun begins…"
"So...what alien you gonna use this time?" Makoto asked as she and Ben stood back to back, the Beastkin punching back one of the robots.
"Dunno. Tempted to use Grimlock again, but I d-"
"Just focus!" Tsubaki shouted nearby, using her shield to block ne of the robots' drill before slicings its head off. One attempted to attack her from behind before a laser shot destroyed its head.
"Keep your head above, Tsubaki!" Rook shouted, using his ProtoTool to blast some of the robots.
"It's 'Heads up', Rook!"
"...I got just the one," Ben smirked as he activated his Omnitrix, "Okay you evil freaky robots. It's Her-woah!" he yelped when Psychobos grabbed both his arms from behind
"Oh gross! It's like Brainstorm got tiny legs and a huge claw!" Makoto exclaimed with a yelp.
"I shall have you know these c-claws are not just for show!" Psychobos spoke, "Now hold still, b-buffoon!"
"Hey cut it out, Krabby!" Ben grunted.
"Oh believe me, I wish I could…" he spoke as a device strapped to his giant claw released a light which began scanning the Omnitrix, "I need a clearer scan…" he grunted, letting out a shock that struck the watch, "There it is!" as he focused on a specific part in the core of the Omnitrix, sparks of green and purple energy coming off it from prolonged use of his electrokinesis, "Ah...and a better s-storage as well."
"Cut it out!" Ben grunted as the Omnitrix began glowing, "Uh-oh…"
"W-what's this ?...A d-d-defense system...Oh my…" he realized just before a shockwave separated them.
"I got ya!" Makoto called, catching Ben once more, "Wow. You sure like falling into my arms, huh?"
"Shut it…" Ben blushed.
"Oh...that was most unpleasant, and I use the t-term loosely," Psychobos grumbled.
"Wait...that didn't make sense…" Tsubaki pointed out.
"We're having crab meat tonight!" Ragna shouted, lunging at Psychobos.
"Barbarian!" he snapped before blasting him with his purple lightning, lifting Ragna up into the air against his will, "Now if you'll e-e-excuse me, I shall make my leave."
"You are excused!" Rook shouted just before landing a flying side kick to the Cerebrocrustacean, forcing his shell to close and free Ragna.
"Good one, Rook!" Makoto cheered, helping Ben stand.
"The Cerebrocrustacean is getting away!" Rook shouted as Psychobos began to float back to the hole he came in from.
"Noel, cut off his escape!" Tsubaki called out.
"Hai!" she called out, aiming, only for her and the others to be distracted when Ben grunted loudly.
"GAH!" Ben cried as a green aura surrounded him.
"Ben!" Rook called out as he and Makoto moved to get close only for green electricity to shoot out and strike him, Makoto, Ragna, Tsubaki and Noel.
Rook groaned as he shrank down, grew a tail and his skin became green, leaving him standing in the form of Upchuck's race, the Gourmand.
"This is disturbing…" Rook spoke, looking at his new stubby little arms.
"Disturbing?!" Ragna shouted in a high voice...now a red-white, and black Ball Weevil, "I'm a goddamn bug!"
"Guys?" Ben blinked, "You're Upchuck and Ball Weevil!" he freaked.
"No shit!" Ragna snapped.
"Makoto and the others were also hit by that feedback from you…" Rook realized, his eyes shrinking in panic. The guys all then panicked upon hearing a feline like growling.
"...Please tell me that was someone's stomach," Ben begged.
"Oh come on! Why did she get a good one!?" Ragna snapped as Ben and Rook turned to see what he saw.
Makoto had a less drastic change. But it was a change nonetheless. Her armor had stretched out to fit her now more muscular but still feminine build. Her tail was gone, replaced with a tiger's tail, as wrist claws poked out of her armor. Sure enough...she was now an Apopplexian, but thinner and with the same body type as her normal self.
"Lemme tell ya somethin', Benjamin Kirby Tennyson; what did you do?!" Makoto snapped.
"Uh-oh," Ben gulped, 'Huh...If I wasn't so terrified, I'd be amazed at seeing a female Rath. ...'
"My eyes are up here…" she growled.
"AH!" he cried, falling over.
"Oh, this feels awkward…" Tsubaki noted, her voice a bit deeper.
They looked to see Tsubaki had also been altered. She actually looked more like a werewolf with her own uniform stretching out to deal with her added size while her fur was a dark color of her hair with a tail poking out of a tear in her uniform. She tapped at her snout only to yelp when it split down the middle into four pieces, exposing a pinkish interior before grabbing and shutting it.
"Hey...that's the werewolf alien!" Ben realized, "I haven't used him in ages...I just called him 'Benwolf' the first time I used that form...been meaning to change that name…"
"She's a Loboan," Rook noted.
"Lemme tell ya somethin', Rook Blonko; Makoto has no clue what a Lo...a lo...what you just said!"
"Think werewolves that can shoot sonic waves from their mouths," Ben explained.
"S-So...this splitting mouth is normal?" Tsubaki asked, keeping her clawed hands on her snout.
"Yes," Ben replied before looking around, "...Um...Where's Noel?"
"Oh...my head…" Noel groaned as she got up, a pair of icy-blue and snow-white moth-like wings on her back.
"..."
"Um...B-Ben-san, what's wrong?" Noel asked, her fluffy icy-blue moth antennae twitching on her head while her skin had turned pitch black with white and blue patches all over, her eyes becoming bug-like and a deep blue; yet for the most part, she still retained most of her human physical appearance...not counting the wings flapping around behind her.
"Don't look in a mirror," Ben warned.
"Eh? Why?" Noel asked as she looked at the reflective surface of a nearby monitor, "EEEK!"
"I told you not to look in a mirror!" Ben groaned, facepalming.
"M...moth! I'm a moth!" Noel freaked.
"...Uh...uh..oh!" Makoto gasped, "Think one of the Mothras if they had an ice form!"
"Yes, yes! Um...Think of Rainbow Mothra!" Tsubaki advised.
"Lemme tell ya somethin', Tsubaki Yayoi; that's what Makoto just said!"
"You didn't specify which one!"
"I….oh," Makoto growled before a laser from one of the machines hit her, "Rrrrr! Lemme tell ya somethin' drilling bots that shoot lasers and electrocute Plumbers; Makoto will smash you with the moon! Then she'll take you to the moon to be smashed by the earth!"
Max chose to ignore the chaos happening with Ben's team as he stopped shooting long enough to pay attention to Blukic and Driba. They flew up to him on a hovering tray carrying ammunition in red clips.
"Phased Pulse clips," Driba explained, pointing to the new clips for their rifles.
"Much more effective," Blukic added while patting them.
"First squad, fall back to change ammo! Second squad, give them cover!" Max ordered as he grabbed a clip and swapped them.
"He is getting away!" Rook noted, pointing up at Psychobos getting to a hole in the ceiling.
"No he ain't!" Makoto growled as she picked up Rook and cocked her arm back.
"Oh no…" Rook squeaked before Makoto threw him, "GYAH!" Psychobos barely avoided the thrown mutation, letting Rook smack into the ceiling as he continued on out, "...ow…"
"You're next!" Makoto spoke, grabbing Ragna so roughly, he squeaked, "..." she did it again, earning another squeak and Tsubaki's attention.
"...One more time?" Tsubaki asked.
"...Don't you even think about it," Ragna growled.
*SQUEAK*
"..." both blinked twice as Ben facepalmed.
"It's always the squeaky things that distract me in those forms…" Ben sighed.
"Wh-why is he squeaking?" Noel asked as she learned to cover herself in her wings like Big Chill often did.
"Most likely...they are squishing the sticky ball goo inside of him…" Ben figured, "The...kind that explodes…" he sighed as an explosion made both girls cry in surprise.
"Ooh~! Imma call you Exploding Bug!"
"Like hell!" Ragna snapped.
"What is wrong with us...why is it so hard to focus?" Tsubaki complained.
"Not so easy, is it?" Ben arched an eyebrow to them.
"Ahem," Ben looked down to see the two Galvan as Driba pulled out a box that unfolded into a tall-to them-tower.
"If ya'd put yer arm in there, please," Blukic noted.
"On it," Ben sighed before putting his Omnitrix-attached arm inside the circular room section as it closed around his arm, stopping the flashing.
"Alright what hap-happened...uh...who are you cadets?" Max blinked looking at the others new forms.
"Lemme tell ya somethin', Magister Max Tennyson, grandfather to Ben Tennyson also known as greatest Plumber and badass in the Milky Way; it's me, Makoto! Ben Tennyson did something and now I'm really mad! I just wanna punch everything!"
"Oh...oh boy...yeesh…" Max cringed, "So this happened...Last time this happened was when someone messed with the Ultimatrix...Gwen and Kevin had a real bad day…"
"S-Sir? What's happened to us?" Noel asked, carrying Rook in her arms with Ragna on her 'hood.'
"Well...best guess the Omnitrix sent out its mutation energy, which is used to make Ben into aliens...and it made you kids into random aliens in his current roster." Max said, "But...only half."
"Half?" Tsubaki asked.
"Yes...you're all...well...sorry for the terminology, Makoto, but you're all halfbreeds at the moment." Max sighed.
"It's fine. Whatever," Makoto snorted, "Ugh...GRAH!" she punched a wall, "Gah! Why am I so cranky! Not even this mad when it's that time of the month! ...Did I just say that out loud?"
"...Code Blood Orange," Max stated as everyone but the group that was changed and the Galvans began to scream and run off.
"Do we even wanna know?" Ragna asked.
"Protocol after the last time we had a female Apopplexian at a Plumber base during that time," Max explained as an agent quickly came back pulling a cart filled with fish and chocolates.
"Dude, food!" Makoto beamed as she began to scarf it down.
"I...am disgusted…" Tsubaki groaned, "But I don't want to risk throwing up with this new form…" as if to prove her point, her jaws split open once more, "Ah!" she closed them again, "How do I make that stop?"
"I don't know...that never happened to me," Ben explained, "Whenever I needed to use the sonic howl it did...but most of the time it stayed normal."
"Ben...how...how do you live like this...adjusting to so many body types...so many abilities...it is...impossible!" Rook grunted, unable to move as he wished due to his Gourmand belly, "Noel, if you could loosen your grip just a little...you are squishing my pudgy belly."
"Oh! G-gomen…" Noel apologized as she let him go.
"Thank you…" he sighed, "Seriously, this body is impossible…"
"What? No he's not," Ben countered, "The key to Upchuck is using his gut to gain momentum when running and jumping so you can swing around faster than expected."
"I...I do not see how that is even possible." Rook sighed.
"HOW DO YOU THINK I FEEL?!" Ragna snapped, "I'm a goddamn bug with exploding slimy puke! I'm essentially a goddamn Pokemon!"
"Well Ball Weevil is a lot faster then he looks, and the sticky balls are controlled via your new body's gag reflex," Ben explained, "It helps if you were full before transforming into him. Odd, I know...also you might feel a compulsive desire to clean things."
"Clean...why would...why…" he paused, looking at Makoto and the mess she was making, "Do you need to eat like a fucking slob?!" he snapped, jumping over towards her.
"Can't talk...eating."
"Oh hell no! You eat like a-DID YOU JUST FLIP ME OFF?!"
"What about Rath?" Tsubaki asked.
"...I got nothing for that one," Ben sighed, "At times, I can at least direct him. And remembering people I care for helps me control him better at times...but...well, they get angry at the tiniest of things. We can't say anything critical to her till she's back to normal."
"Why am I doing this?!" Ragna snapped, rolling a sticky ball and cleaning all the mess Makoto was making, "Am I gonna die if this goes off!?"
"What about me?" Noel asked.
"Big Chill is actually one of my calmest aliens...you lucked out," Ben smiled, "But you are more prone to cold out of habit heat is hardly a weakness, and you might have new weird eating habits. Like...eating metal…"
"Eating metal?"
"But, uh, not really for another 78 years," Ben assured.
"What happens then?"
"Big Chill's kind gives asexual birth…" Ben chuckled.
"Lemme tell ya somethin', Ben Tennyson! Max Tennyson shared pictures of the babies!" Makoto declared.
"..." Tsubaki, Rook, Ragna, and Noel slowly looked at him with wide eyes.
"You've...reproduced?" most of them muttered in unison.
"It's a long story and Kevin does not let me live it down!" Ben replied before turning to the two Galvans, "Blukic! Driba! Please tell me you can fix this."
"Yes/No! ...No/Yes! ...Maybe…" they both spoke from inside.
"Go get the owner's manual…" Driba whispered.
"The what?" Tsubaki asked, able to hear their whispers with her new ears, "I'm sorry...did you say Owner's manual...as in something Ben should have!?"
"Hey, I'm doing good," Ben defended.
"..." Tsubaki motioned to herself and the others.
"Oh this is SOOOO not my fault!" Ben argued.
"Oh I hate to pick sides but Ben's right. He can't have controlled this even if he wanted." Max spoke, "But still, Ben, you should study it."
"I didn't even know it existed!" he argued.
"Of course it did. First Thinker Azmuth knew it'd only be a matter of time 'till you broke it," Driba spoke.
"Or dropped it in the toilet…" Blukic spoke.
"Or hacked it a second time…" Driba muttered.
"Or self destructed it to use it like a grenade again…"
"Okay!" Ben hissed.
"...Well, at least it cannot get any worse," Rook spoke.
"GH?!" Ragna nearly fell off his ball at that, "...IDIOT! DON'T EVER SAY THAT OUT LOUD!"
"ROOK!" Makoto roared.
"Never say that…" Tsubaki sighed.
"Oh dear…" Noel muttered, tearing up in worry.
"Way to go, partner...you just jinxed us…" Ben sighed as a small shock went down the Galvan observation tower and into the prison level.
The prisoners below went about their business in their cells, unaware or uncaring of the chaos above. For all they cared, the Plumbers could perish with whoever attacked them. Why would they care for the Red Spots? But they were a little worried that if they all died, no one would be around to feed them...so there was that…
Regardless, the Omnitrix energy wave ran through several cells directly below the spot where Ben was situated. The energy coursed into Liam's cell first, touching his leg and causing him to morph...his body growing until he could hardly fit in his cell anymore. He roared, punching the door down as the energy went down into its next cell. Fistina panicked as the energy came towards her before touching her, causing her body to change into a more fluid metallic substance.
Psyphon blinked as he saw the energy run along his wall. He touched it willingly, letting its energy course through him. He took his hand back as dark red fire began burning on his hand...only he felt no pain, "Oh...yes…" he smirked.
=I don't like the looks of this= Bubble Helmet groaned as the energy came into his cell before touching his leg, making him bulge until he grew inside his suit, new arms and legs pushing through the bionic ones as his helmet popped off leaving him in the form of a blue and black furred version of Shocksquatch's species the Gimlinopithecus, "Now I really don't like it!" he snapped, looking at his new fur covered hands, which to his original species was...highly disgusting.
He then turned to his cell door as it began to melt, blinking upon seeing a red Galvanic Mecamorph in the exact same shape as Fistina, a Vaxasaurian wearing the same attire as Liam with a plumage of feathers atop his head, and leading them was a Pyronite who's head looked disturbingly like Psyphon...even kinda sounded like Psyphon as he laughed maniacally at his own false bravado and hype ...oh...this was the real Psyphon, wasn't it?
"Cheer up, Bubbles… We're getting out of here…" Psyphon stated.
"Primary Security Grid is still offline...get that secondary grid back up to full power!" Max ordered as the Plumbers worked like mad to restore the base to proper working order.
"Gah...I'm hating this…" Ragna growled, riding on top of another slime ball as he used it to pick up some of the debris, "I hate this urge to clean everything! Grr...when I catch th-HEY ASSOLE! CAREFUL WITH THAT! I AM NOT PICKING THAT SHIT UP!"
"I really can not take him seriously with that voice," Rook admitted.
"You're a pudgy adorable Upchuck. Neither of you can be taken seriously," Ben countered.
"It's...kind of...true." Noel nodded, making Rook pout, "See...cute."
"My masculine pride does not enjoy that…"
"Let's see...Randomizer...Life form lock…" Driba muttered, reading the manual with Blukic.
"Nope, and not handy…" Blukic replied.
"DNA scanner...DNA repairer...uh…" Driba mutered, "Intergalactic time, local time, temporal anomaly detector, Externet Wireless Hotspot...ooh~ Remember that for later."
"Wait...this thing gives free Wifi?" Ben blinked.
"It seems to have many...mundane add-ons…" Tsubaki noted, "Why would Azmuth add such things?"
"Keep the user occupied and not mess with its delicate controls," Driba stated, "No...that's actually what the sticky note on it said. Apparently, Ben fiddles with the Omnitrix when bored or nervous and one time sent a recording of his morning ablutions to Azmuth."
"It...was...not well received…" Blukic added.
"HA!" Makoto laughed, "...Wait. What does Ablu...Ablue...whatever Driba said means?!"
"Morning rituals like washing your face and brushing your teeth," Tsubaki sighed.
"Oh...like that one time me and Noel Vermillion caught you singing in the shower th-" Makoto began.
"I had auditions for the school play that year!"
"Focus!" Ben snapped, making them flinch, "If we don't fix this, you guys could be trapped in those forms!"
"...Apologies/Shuttin' up."
"Uhm...Driba, Blukic…" Noel spoke, peeking into the containment cube, "What if you just turn the Omnitrix off and then back on?"
"..."
"..."
"Wait...it can turn off?" Ben blinked.
"Well, there is a manual reboot." Driba spoke, turning the page in the manual.
"Just a slight little hitch. It could accidentally unlock and transform you into a new transformation while in the process in order to keep the user...that'd be you...safe until such a time it turns back on," Blukic spoke.
"...Well why didn't you do it sooner?!" Ben complained.
"We wanted to be sure he didn't yank something important out," Driba spoke, "If he did...oh boy, this could be much more troublesome."
"So far...so good." Blukic spoke, "But the feedback of the morphogenic energy and Psychobos' electrical energy...well made you all into half aliens. More than likely aliens Ben often prefers to use or random...I don't know..."
"Nani? You know who that was?" Noel asked.
"Psychobos is the so called greatest mind of the Cerebocrustaceans…" Driba spat.
"He's a right loony." Blikic added, "Jammed a whole bunch of doodads and gizmos in his brain."
"The mere thought he thinks himself smarter than a Galvan? HA!" Driba laughed, "Impossible!"
"Then explain why he was so gung ho on trying to get my Omnitrix?" Ben asked.
"...Wait," Tsubaki spoke as she held her chin in thought, "What if...he was trying to obtain something from it to fully complete the Nemetrix?"
"Makoto still like Predatrix more!" Makoto chimed in.
"Not important right now," Tsubaki stated before looking over at Ben, "Ben, how many predators were in the Nemetrix?"
"Ten. What does..." he paused as he recalled something, "He said more options...he's going to upgrade it to house more forms…"
"Which means more predators to match your other alien forms," Tsubaki finished.
"Great...more nightmare fuel…" Ragna muttered.
"Hey! Lemme ask ya somethin', Blukic and Driba! Is there a predator for Apopplexians?" Makoto demanded.
"Khyber," Ragna pointed out, earning a growl and glare from Makoto, "What? It's true. He took down that form like it was nothing and isn't it one of the kid's stronger ones?"
"Not a kid!"
"Talk to me when ya beat me when I'm my regular self. Then we'll ta-HEY! Did you just miss the trash can on purpose, ya asshole?!"
"So this is why you've been much more clean at home," Tsubaki realized.
"Totally handy," Ben smiled.
"How do you avoid the...well...kaboom?" Noel asked before one of her antennas rubbed her nose, "...Ah...ah...ACHOO!" she sniffled, "Sorry…"
"L-l-l-lemme tell ya somethin', N-n-n-n-Noellie...B-b-b-b-bless you…" Makoto shivered, her lower half frozen in a block of ice with snow on her head and shoulders.
"The sticky balls only explode if I let them," Ben explained as Tsubaki pulled out a torch to melt the ice, "I don't know how but Ball Weevil can choose when they detonate and when they don't, otherwise they are bouncy, sticky balls that suck up whatever is garbage or debris to accumulate more mass."
"Like a katamari?" Noel asked.
"Makoto made the same comparison...Though to be fair, you were in a state of fear from Terroranchula," Ben noted before Makoto hugged him from behind, "?!"
"Lemme tell ya somethin', Ben Tennyson whom I consider a good friend; don't think too far with this. Still cold from the ice," Makoto grumbled.
"We really need to get these forms under control," Tsubaki noted, putting her hands on her jaw before it split open again, "Otherwise if something happens, we'll be in trouble."
"...Lemme tell ya somethin', Tsubaki Yayoi, one of my best female friends! You did not just tempt fate with that!" Makoto growled as she spun around to glare at the half-Loboan, unintentionally spinning Ben and the device he was connected to with her.
"Help...me…" Ben gasped out, her tightened grip cutting off his air.
"Ano...M-Makoto…" Noel began before Ben took her hand.
"Think ghost...think ghost…" Ben gasped out.
"Gh?! Gh-ghost?" Ragna tensed at that.
"Ghost…?" she muttered, becoming transparent with Ben and his device, pulling them out of Makoto's hold, "O-oh! I did it…"
"What was that!?" Ragna shouted, hopping in the air for a moment in fright.
"You did not know they had such abilities?" Rook asked, "Yes, Necrofrggians can become intangible, invisible, and all sorts of spectral properties."
"...I knew the species name and the look, but not the powers aside from ice!" Ragna exclaimed, "Guh...That's just damn freaky! What next?! A jailbreak with hybrid jailed guys?!"
"Stop tempting fate!" Ben barked, "Please tell me you can reboot the Omnitrix, guys."
"We just need to do one thing to start it. Once it finishes rebooting, everyone should go back to normal at the same time you do," Driba informed as the duo rose the core in the Omnitrix and began to twist in several times before pushing down, letting out a green light that faded to reveal Ben replaced with a short, chubby, yellow-skinned creature wearing a pair of underwear-like shorts that were black and white in color with the Omnitrix on his belly button.
"Aw Man~" he sighed, "This has to literally be The Worst alien...Ever...of all time!"
"Lemme tell ya somethin', The Worst; that is a perfect name for it!" Makoto declared.
"You are the neighbor species to Ball Weevil; an Atrocian," Driba explained.
"The Worst's kind are all slobs...and Ball Weevil's race cleans their mess," Blukic added.
"You mean I gotta live in symbiosis with this disgusting thing!?" Ragna snapped, jumping on The Worst's head.
"At least it cannot get any worse," Rook noted...before the floor nearby exploded.
"Stop. Tempting. FATE!" Makoto roared, being held back by Tsubaki from trying to strangle Rook.
"You really need to stop saying that…" The Worst sighed as Liam, Fistina, and Bubble Helmet-sans helmet-climbed out.
"...Oh great. They changed forms too?!" Ragna complained.
"Bwak! We're getting out of here!" Liam shouted, "They can't stop us all! Bukawk!"
"Liam!" The Worst panicked, "Great...when I really want Humungosaur? No...it never comes...but he gets it!"
"Is now really the time for that?" Tsubaki questioned as Plumbers mobilized to capture the trio.
"What can I even do?! Does this guy have any powers?" The Worst asked.
"He does not." Blukic shook his head.
"SERIOUSLY?!"
"Well...he's indestructible and Terroranchulas tend to avoid them. But you still feel pain," Driba explained, "Other than that? Nothing."
"Atrocians are so lazy that it took the Insectoids discovering space travel for them to follow. 'Course, they're terrible and end up shouting loudly in places they shouldn't," Blukic added.
"Ahaha...man, this really is The Worst!" he cried before panicking with the Galvans as Liam stomped while looking at him.
"Tha-bagawk-that you Tennyson!?" he asked, punching his fist into his palm, "Oho...this is gonna be payback."
"Hey!" Liam looked to see Makoto glaring up at him, "Lemme tell ya somethin', Liam the now-Humungosaur! You leave them alone! Other wise, your stomach's gonna be chewing something bigger than its eye could check!"
"That...bukaw...that didn't make any sense."
"...I KNOW!" Makoto roared as she tackled him.
"BUKAW! OH! THE PAIN! WHY!?" he cried as everyone cringed.
"Is...is that a female Apopplexian on that...time of the month?!" Bubble Helmet panicked.
"Maybe...or she's just really pissed off," Ragna bluntly stated.
"...PFFT!" Bubble Helmet laughed upon seeing Ragna, "Oh...oh, this is great! The Grim Reaper's a little bug!"
"When I get back to normal, you're gonna regret it, you damn ape!"
"Make him regret it now!" The Worst shouted, "Use your sticky balls!"
"Wha...how?!"
"Just think kaboom after you kick them away!" he explained.
"Oh this is just…" Ragna grunted as he hacked up a sticky ball before standing on his back legs and kicking it letting it smoosh onto Bubble Helmet's face...and then explode sending him flying back, "That worked…"
"Doi! You're one of my useful aliens!" The Worst reminded, "Stop fighting like your old self. You're not you, so be the aliens you are!"
"But...how do we...?" Rook began.
"You're Upchuck...be Upchuck! Eat something!" he pointed at a pile of large rubble.
Rook blinked before he felt a rumble in his stomach...and the Gourmand instincts took over as he jumped into the pile and began eating. After eating enough to make his stomach bulge out, it began rumbling again.
"Now Upchuck it!"
Rook began spitting green energy balls which hit Bubble Helmet and Fistina, making them back away from each explosion. Ragna spit up another sticky ball as he rolled it around, making it bigger before kicking it into the two sending them flying back as it exploded on contact.
"For such little aliens...they are amazingly powerful," Tsubaki spoke.
"Tsubaki, your turn. Let your snout open and howl! Howl as loud as you can!" The Worst ordered.
"Right right…" Tsubaki nodded, taking a few deep breaths as she mentally prepared herself for it. She took in one deep breath as her snout open, the half-Loboan then began letting out a loud howl that let out sonic sound waves that hit the escaped prisoners.
"R-retreat! Bukaw!" Liam cried as he covered his new black eye and ran for the hole they made.
"IF I COME DOWN THERE, YOU BETTER BE IN YOUR CELLS!" Makoto roared.
Rook burped up a final shot just as Ragna rolled in an exceptionally large ball in...letting them both explode as a loud chicken gobble was heard from below.
"Noel, I need you to freeze up the hole so they don't climb back out," The Worst ordered.
"Right...how do I to that?" she asked.
"Makoto...make her sneeze," The Worst sighed.
"Got it," Makoto replied as her tail started tickling Noel's nose, "Lemme tell you somethin', tail that's not big and fluffy as I like. You're not as big and fluffy as I like! But you'll do for making her sneeze!"
"?!" Noel tensed as she felt another sneeze coming on, "...ah….ah…." Makoto hefted her up and aimed her face at the hole, "...ACHOO!" a blast of icy winds shot out and froze over the hole, "...e-excuse me…"
"Wow...we actually did it…" Ragna gawked, "No wonder you love these things!"
"Yeah, you guys got useful aliens…" The Worst sighed, "I'm stuck...as this thing…"
"We could try to speed up the reboot process," Driba offered.
"Please do…I'm afraid the other criminals down below got transformed as well."
"Alright, give us some room to work!" Driba said, swinging his hands to shoo the others away, "Unless you'd like to get zapped into yet another alien."
"Yeah fuck that. I'm sticking with the guy that can make giant grenades." Ragna shook his head before jumping away.
"I...I rather like being a Yuki Mothra…" Noel added.
"Let her have that moniker for now," Tsubaki whispered when she saw Blukic open his mouth.
"I will be gathering a team to head down there," Rook informed, "We need to keep those rooms safe until we can get the prisoners back in their cells."
"I'm going, too," The Worst informed, "Um...once they get my Omnitrix on a faster reboot."
"Ben, you will not be useful in your current state," Rook argued.
"Were you or any of us until he began barking orders?" Ragna countered, "Face it, Greenhorn...he's a better leader then you and knows the weaknesses of their forms. If you don't take him, your team is as good as done for. And you won't have a cheat sheet for how the new body of yours works."
"He has a point," Tsubaki sighed.
Back down in the prison levels, the elevator dinged as the three mutated escapees found Psyphon working at a console. Liam swung his arm out the moment he spotted him, smacking him into a wall.
"A-bugawk-and where were you while we were getting out behinds handed to us!?" Liam complained.
"I was busy being the smartest person in the room. Then again, what else is new?" Psyphon replied, standing up before he shot a blast of fire that made the three back away, "Now don't forget who is the master here lackeys! I knew your attempt at escape would fail, Tennyson's team is still up their, and these are his forms...he knows their strengths and weaknesses."
"We could've escaped if you helped!"
"But...I didn't need to escape with you...you see that was all just a diversion as I...took care of some business down here." he laughed, "I was busy making a real escape." he smiled turning on a machine as a portal to a different world appeared above them.
"The Null void!?" Bubble Helmet shouted, "NO! No way! I ain't going back in there!"
"Who said anything about going in there?" Psyphon smiled darkly.
=Attention, Plumbers= a voice echoed on the PA.
"Huh...That sounded like…" Rook began as multiple screens displayed Psyphon's transformed headshot on them, "Is that...Psyphon?"
"Meep," Noel squeaked, phasing through Makoto and hiding behind her.
"Lemme tell ya somethin', Noel Vermillion; that was cold," Makoto whispered in annoyance.
"He's become half Pyronite," Tsubaki realized.
"He actually looks kinda cool." Ragna and The Worst said at the same time.
"Jinx! You owe me a smoothie!" The Worst declared.
"Really…?" Ragna sighed.
"Sorry...couldn't resist."
"I know who you are, Psyphon," Max informed, "And we won't give in to your demands!"
=Tsk-tsk… You realize we control the lower deck of this base?=
"That won't help you. The only way out is through us, and that's never going to happen. Return to your cells immediately!"
=I...think not= Psyphon replied =I've connected the base's power core directly to the Null Void gate!= he revealed before showing the gate =The gate has been set to overload=
"That don't sound good…" The Worst groaned.
=If the gate were to overload, Bellwood...Undertown...everything...and everyone, will be trapped...in the Null Void!=
"You're bluffing Psyphon!" Max quickly replied.
=One prison is the same as any other to us! But...what of the poor helpless people you swore to protect? How long shall they all fair in a harsh dimension like the Null Void...and what will the world think of you Plumbers...who let it happen?= he let them realize how serious he was =MwaHAHAHAHAHAHA!= he cackled, realizing they saw the point of his threat.
"Hmm...Multi-joint first?" Blukic suggested as he walked up to The Worst, carrying a device resembling a piece of chewing gum with blue string sticking out of it.
He opened the emblem on The Worst's belly button and put the 'gum' into it. The 'string' connected to ports in it before Blukic closed it. The Omnitrix beeped before The Worst changed into a blue-skinned fairy-like Alien with tiny wings on its back, purple markings on its cheeks and chin, big green eyes, and blue hair pointing up into the air. It wore a green and black 'dress' and white gloves.
"AH!" Noel gasped as she scooped up the new form in her arms and hugged it, "Kawaii!"
"That's a Nemuina," Blukic explained, "They can enter and control a person's dreams."
"Well...not useless…I'll call it Pesky Dust," the new form purred in a very high pitched effeminate voice.
"...Kawaii!" Noel squeed, tightening her hug and causing some dust to fall off him.
"New one please!" Pesky Dust pleaded.
"Down," Driba ordered as Noel pouted and put him down.
"The prisoners have sealed off the maintenance tunnels," Rook informed as he walked over with a group of smaller Plumbers, "We will be taking the vents."
"I'm coming," Pesky Dust informed.
Blukic opened up the Omnitrix symbol on his chest. He pulled out a silver and green coin-shaped circuit board and put it over the Multi-joint. He closed it and Pesky Dust was replaced with an orange mole-like alien in a black and green bodysuit that covered all but his face and arms, white gloves, and a bushy yellow mustache with his emblem on his new belt.
"Well, I do say...This is new," the alien noted in a British accent in a well-mannered voice.
"Why are there two Jerry's?" Tsubaki asked, walking over.
"Lady Yayoi, 'tis I, Ben," the new alien informed, "Jerry is beside me." a similar alien looking like him in Pumber's uniform waved, "Though might I trouble you with asking what it is this form is capable of, Jerry?"
"Not a bother at all, my good sir," Jerry replied before his mustache stretched into a pair of fists and then let him hover as they shaped into a propeller.
"I dare say that I think this is a good one…" he realized, "I shall dub this form...Mole-Stache!"
"Hey, look at that he might be more useful than you now, Rook!" Makoto laughed.
"Says the one who can't fit into the vents," Driba noted.
"Rrrr...Leme tell ya somethin', Driba of the Galvans! Makoto is gonna come up there and use you as a chew toy!" Makoto snarled before Tsubaki held up a chestnut parfait, "But first, Makoto is gonna eat a parfait!"
"Ulp...Better go quicker!" Driba panicked, grabbing a chip resembling a green ship's steering wheel and put it into the Omnitrix, turning Mole-Stache into a blue fish-like alien with tiny legs and arm-like fins wearing a bandolier sporting the Omnitrix on it, "Oh, a Walkatrout. ...I do believe you named the wrong form 'The Worst.'"
"Can this guy do anything?" Walkatrout asked.
"You...are a fish...with legs," Driba pointed out, "On land."
"So...I can breath underwater?" he pointed out.
"Yes…"
"Sounds better then being an indestructible blob that still feel pain! Gonna call it Walkatrout."
"But that's…"
"Too annoyed to think of anything better," Walkatrout replied, "But...for the sake of my sanity...anything else you can try?" Blukic pulled out a tiny wrench and smacked the Omnitrix as he flashed to Greymatter, "At least I'm smart. I'll take it."
"Now we have another egghead," Ragna complained.
"Our heads are not eggs, Insectoid," all three Galvans hissed.
"Give us updates when you can," Tsubaki advised as she opened a nearby vent.
"We…" Rook began.
"Affirmative. Come along, team," Greymatter cut him off as he walked ahead.
"Where are you going?" Rook asked.
"Well obviously myself, Driba, and Blukic shall take charge. Being the smartest of the team, we can deactivate the core faster. Furthermore, those are my alien forms and you still can't even control your Upchuck powers," Greymatter began as he poked Rook's belly, making him burp up a glob of acid, "See…?"
"That does not prove anything…" he groaned, holding his stomach.
"No, but it does prove that as Greymatter I am the smartest among us now," he smirked, "Though I can't shake a funny suspicion that I'm forgetting something."
"What? Like a highly dangerous criminal locked far below this place?" Ragna snarked.
"Noel, I require that flame retardant foam," Greymatter informed as he pointed at an extinguisher, "I've been hit with that enough times when I was 10 to know how effective it is at extinguishing a Pyronite's flames."
"Anything else?"
"We need magnetic disruptors, insulating foam grenades, and high yield stun rifles to stun Liam," he listed, "Also? Some snacks for Rook. I find that metal and concrete makes for the more explosive blasts."
"...Let us just go…"
"As you wish."
"You know Rook is probably gonna eat Ben down there..." Makoto muttered as they went down the shaft.
"Probably," Tsubaki replied.
"You know while small...these air vents are still rather...roomy." Greymatter muttered as he as they repelled down some rope.
"Yeah...a skinny bastard could climb out through here." Ragna spoke just walking along the wall of the vent shaft, "So what do we do once we get to the bottom?"
"Simple really. The power core is on the bottom level. Once it's shut down, the Null Void Gate can't overload."
"...Meaning once the bad guys come in to see what's wrong, we rush 'em," Ragna smirked, "Good...I've been meaning to give pencil neck another beating."
"Yes with any luck we can detain them long enough for the others to bust down a door or two and get down here to help." Greymatter spoke.
"RAH!" Makoto roared, punching down a reinforced door, "NEXT!" she cheered running on all four and landing a drop kick to another.
"Repair team is not gonna like this…" Max sighed.
"But effective. We'd never get through without Makoto's new doubled strength." Tsubaki spoke as the rest of the taller humanoid Plumbers walked through the destruction.
"Hai. Demo…" Noel began as a loud crunching noise was heard, "She could've toned down a bit…"
"Owie…" Makoto cried, laying on the last door with a giant bump on her noggin.
"...Honestly Makoto…" Tsubaki sighed as she facepalmed.
"We are here," Rook spoke as a grate opened, letting the team of tiny Plumbers and one Ragna jump into the control room.
"...That's a big core," Ragna noted, looking up at the large engine floating in the center of the room.
"Stations six and nine...go," Rook ordered.
"You keep talking like that, and I'm out," Ragna frowned, walking past him.
"We'll get to work shutting it down," Greymatter spoke as he, Driba, and Blukic began working.
Greymatter then brought out a collapsable stick and smacked both their hands before pointing at what they really needed to do. After a few minutes of silence and quick work, the lights went out as the core began to slow down.
"...We have completed phase one," Rook whispered.
"This was phase one?" Ragna blinked
"Wait for it…" Greymatter held a finger up.
"Huh?" Ragna raised a brow before something began to weld a circle into the wall. A moment of silence passed as the circle fell, revealing Psyphon and his goons standing there, "Oh...you cheeky bastard. You knew they'd come in here!"
"But of course."
"Well did you also…"
"The secondary security field!" Getymatter cut Psyphon off, "A very weak forcefield around the base meant to discourage jailbreaks. Yes...you almost would have gotten away with it...if I hadn't figured it out and instead just sent all the energy to that field. Yes, this isn't a shut down...we just sent all the energy to that one field until the reactor powers back up."
"...I'm going to cook every last one of you!" Psyphon screamed, shooting crimson fire from his hands, forcing the Tiny Plumbers to scatter, "...Don't just stand there, you idiots! Get them!"
"Yes Boss!" Bubble Helmet yelped as he and his fellow goons charged.
"You vermin are gonna rue the day you…!" Psyphon began before he noticed Ragna, "...Please tell me that's who I think it is."
"Bwak! It is, boss!" Liam answered as he tried smashing a few of the tiny Plumber Agents, only to be poked in the eyes by Jerry's mustache via them shaping into fingers to poke.
"...I am going to enjoy this immensely…"
"Boo!" he cackled, making Psyphon scream and fall over, "Where's your bravado now, pencil neck!?"
"It's Psyphon, you foul-mouthed barbarian!"
"Ladies and Gentlemen...take them down!" Greymatter shouted as the Plumbers all pulled out blasters scaled to their size and began shooting forcing, causing Psyphon and his goons to scatter.
Bubble Helmet grunted as he jumped over a console and into the center of three Plumbr agents. He proceeded with raising his arms up as he began to charge up electricity.
"He can't attack if he's insulated!" Greymatter shouted to one of the agents, prompting one of them to toss out a small grenade at Bubble Helmet. Instead of an explosion, however, the mutated prisoner was covered in a heavy layer of foam, "Trust me when I say this, that'll take a while to get out."
"Grr…" Bubble Helmet gave a muffled groan at that.
"The magnetic disruptors for the Mechamoprh girl!" Greymatter called out as Fistina was surrounded by Blukic and Driba who used two small EMP generators, the magnetic field generated by the devices causing her to lose control of her body as it spasmed around wildly, "That hurts, trust me. It's like nails on a chalkboard...while pulling a muscle.."
"Kid, look out!"
"Huh?" Greymatter blinked before Liam grabbed him from behind.
"Gotcha!" Liam shouted before a glob of explosive slime hit him on the back of the head, "Bukaw!"
"Hey over here!" Rook waved as Ragna kicked a sticky ball which exploded on contact with Liam's face.
"Ha! And I ain't ever even played soccer!" Ragna laughed.
"It is pronou-" Rook began.
"I know what I said!" Ragna barked before he and Rook jumped out of the way of Psyphon's fire.
"You all have been a thorn in my side for too long!" Psyphon growled.
"92…" Ragna counted.
"I am going to enjoy burning our carcases once I am done with you!"
"153…"
"I…!" Psyphon began before raising a brow, "...What are you…"
"No no. Go ahead."
"...And...I will take great satisfaction once I have ended you, Grim Reaper!" Psyphon continued.
"Heh...wow. 355."
"I w-OKAY! THAT'S IT! What are you doing?!" Psyphon snapped, pointing at Ragna as his flames flared up in anger.
"I am rather lost as well…" Rook admitted, "Why are you saying numbers at random?"
"Oh that? I've been hunted by so many types of bounty hunters and rogue vigilanties, I've more or less made a list of how many times I've heard certain lines," Ragna shrugged.
"...You...you are insane," Psyphon uttered in disbelief, unaware of Blukic and Driba heading towards Greymatter.
"190."
"Ugh...any ideas?" Greymatter asked his fellow Galvan as they held up a new circuit piece, "Well why didn't you say so sooner?" he turned around and tapped the Omnitrix, opening it.
"What ya doing over here?" Liam asked, appearing over them. He moved to punch, only for the door to fly off the wall and smack him.
"Okay...that's….the...lasst….doooorrr…" Makoto slurred as she fell over.
"Uh-oh…" Bubble Helmet muttered, seeing the Plumbers' backup arrive.
"Come on now!" Greymatter hurried his fellow Galvan as they opened the Omnitrix and the last piece locked into place lighting up the circuitry inside. Greymatter then grunted when Liam grabbed and slammed him into a wall.
"Got ya, Tennyson!" he cheered before a green surge of energy flew from him, reverting all who were mutated back to normal.
"Yes!" Rook cheered, standing at his normal height once more.
Psyphon gawked as Ragna reverted to normal with a smirk. At the same time, he lost his Pyronite powers, leaving him in his original state.
"No! NO!" he shouted.
"Oh finally…" Tsubaki sighed as she and Noel returned to normal.
"Lemme tell you some-" Makoto stopped mid speech as she returned to normal, "Why do I feel...so happy, yet so stupid…?"
"Don't worry. No one recorded anything," Noel offered a bright side.
"Oh phew…"
"I did it!" Blukic and Driba declared before glaring at one another, "You did it?! It was me! No! It wa-stop that!"
Liam squawked in confusion, returning to his original form, the electrical feed passing through him on its way back to being absorbed into Ben's Omnitrix as he reverted to normal. The watch flashed yellow for a second as he landed on his feet.
"Uh-Oh…" Liam noticed the same look in Ben's eyes when he normally transformed into something to fight him.
"Uh-oh is right, Chicken little!" Ben cheered turning on the Omnitrix and cycling to a new symbol, which he quickly slapped.
The green wave washed over him as he grew taller and more muscular. Brown feathers formed along his torso as scales covered his forearms and lower legs. Sharp talons formed on his fingers and toes with a pair of black scythe-like blades extending from his elbows. A hawk-like beak formed on his face with a mohawk of white feathers forming a plumage above his head. A green mask formed and framed his face as his green eyes glared down at Liam. Green bands formed around his arms and legs as a pair of black briefs covered his waist with a green and white belt around it. The Omnitrix formed in his chest connected to two straps around his shoulders.
"Omnitrix is fixed," the new form grinned, "And thanks to you...I got me a new alien."
Liam, not impressed with Ben becoming his race, merely punched at his new form only for his arm to be blocked...and the new alien to swing his right leg up and kick him along the left side of his face, sending him skidding back across the metal floor.
"Whoo…" Makoto gave a slow whistle at that, "He got some good distance there with that kick."
"...He almost looks like a chicken hawk," Noel noted.
"Think I'm gonna name this guy...Kickin Hawk!" he cheered as he took a punch from Liam, his grunt of pain being a hawk-like screech. He let another punch hit him before he smirked.
Kickin Hawk leaned back from the third punch and kicked his leg out, grabbing Liam's outstretched arm with his talong and making him cluck in pain. Kickin Hawk then jumped and balanced himself on Liam's arm before he stretched out his other leg and struck Liam's face, his talons scratching him and making him stumble back while holding his face. Liam clucked as he rushed, only for Kickin Hawk to lean back and kick both his legs out, striking him in his stomach. Liam shook his head 'no' at the grin on Kickin Hawk's face. Sadly, he did not receive the hero's mercy as he was launched high into the air, slamming into the ceiling before falling back down.
"Haha!" Kickin Hawk cheered as he swung his leg and kicked Liam into the generator, shocking him, his enemy fell beak first into a computer as he groaned in pain, "And that, my friends...is how you make the feathers fly!" Kickin Hawk smirked before putting his hands on his hips as he leaned forward, "Whoo!"
Psyphon tried to crawl away, only to stop as Ragna stomped his foot in his path. A mechanical whir made him slowly look at in time to see Ragna had his scythe deployed.
"Now…" Ragna began with a smirk, cracking his knuckles as he towered over Psyphon, "Do I need to restate my threat to you?"
"..." Psyphon's eyes shrank down in fear before looking back at the Plumber agents, "I'd like to be taken back to my cell, please."
"Oh...don't worry. We got a new one for you and your friends." Max smiled, "Hope you don't mind bunk mates."
"...Bunk….mates?" Psyphon repeated, not liking the sound of that.
"Take them to the Megamax cells," Max stated simply.
Psyphon and his goons were soon walked into a different prison level, one with little to no light. They were led into a large cell for multiple people at once. The four muttered amongst themselves...it didn't seem all that bad so far to them.
"Psyphon…." a deep raspy voice spoke from across their cell, making the leader of them freeze up. They all looked up as tentacles slithered about before returning to place as a tall figure stomped forward, "It is good to see my old servant once again." he spoke as he towered over all four of them in stature, red eyes glaring down as some sort of breathing mask covered the rest of his face, "How it warms my cold blood to see an old face."
"...L...Lord….Vilgax…" Psyphon whispered.
"3 months...4 weeks...9 days...14 hours...and 10 minutes…" he spoke, flexing his arms as they began swelling, "And in that time, I hear you amassed power...men...arms...so tell me, Psyphon...why did you not free me?"
"...Um...well...I...u...y-you see, my lord…" Psyphon began to stutter in fear as his three goons pounded on the cell door, pleading to be let out, "I uh...I was just...um..looking for the right time to..um...figure out a brilliant strategy to free you and...and…" he gulped nervously as the figure lowered itself down to look him directly in the face.
"And….what?"
"Well you see, my lord...my plan almost worked had Tennyson and his team not ruined it…" he quickly said.
"Team, you say?" he spoke standing up, "What of his cousin and the Osmosian?"
"Gone…"
"Hmm..." he spoke, "You do well to obey, Psyphon...but par the course, I must do all the thinking...again."
"...O...of course, milord…" Psyphon nodded as he bowed, "We...are at your beck and call."
"WE'RE NOT WITH HIM!= Liam, Fistina, and Bubble Helmet screamed in pure fear.
"Silence…" Vilgax growled, making the three stand at attention, "Psyphon...when you escape again, like the unkillable worm that you are...I have a request for you to carry out."
"Anything you wish My Lord…" he bowed again.
"Put out a hit…on me."
"Wh-what?" Psyphon's eyes widened at that.
"Hehehe…" he chuckled faintly, "Oh, don't you worry, Psyphon...all you need to do is put the hit out...and I...will free myself from there. In two months time, the Plumbers shall move me to a new prison...one meant just for me. That will be their moment." he explained, "And Psyphon."
"Yes Lord Vilgax?"
"Don't ruin my plan…" he growled, his eyes glowing ominously.
"...U-understood...my master."
"Good work, fellas. You really saved our bacon," Max applauded as he and Rook sat with the girls at a control station for the training room.
"I suppose we were lucky that we had such an advantage in the form of Ben's knowledge of his alien forms," Rook smiled.
"I never want to be Rath again…" Makoto groaned, nursing the bump on her head, "How does Ben do it?"
"It was...rather difficult to adapt to such a different form. Especially the mouth..." Tsubaki added.
"I think I was starting to get use to it," Noel smiled.
=I wasn't!= Ragna's voice shouted, as they turned to see his match with Kickin Hawk =I was basically a goddamn Pokemon, damn it!=
=Hey. Least you weren't repeating your name over and over!= Kicken Hawk quipped with a laugh as he kicked at Ragna.
=Oh, what? Like you don't have a giant tree form that can only say 'I am Groot' or whatever you'd call it?= Ragna countered as he ducked under the kick.
=Still got a million or so aliens to find out!= Kickin Hawk spoke as he grabbed Ragna's sword with his foot =But I think I only need this one for this spar!= he spoke, balancing on the sword and kicking Ragna, sending him flying across the training room.
=You wouldn't be saying that if you were sparring with my master!=
=Talkin' cat?=
=Y...wait. How the hell do you know...?=
=Honestly, I figured it'd be something weird like that. You and I seem to have the same levels of weirdness in our lives=
=Oh yeah? Probably not as weird as the time I accidentally started a bar fight because I ate this jackass' steak=
=Ha! You think that's weird?! I fought a guy who wore cockroaches as armor!=
=I have to constantly deal with a vampire and her familiars, the former seemingly loving to torment me every chance I get!=
=So? That doesn't...=
=She once stuck these special glasses on me that caused every woman in the city to fall in love with me and chase after me=
"Hey...I remember something like that…" Makoto sat up.
=Uh-oh…= Ragna realized.
"I...think I recall that, too…" Noel added.
=Gh?!=
'Strange...I don't recall, yet...I do for some odd reason…" Tsubaki added.
=Uh…I just remembered! I need to help Tora out with something in Undertown! See ya later, kid!=
=Huh? Hey...hey! Come back here, man!= Kickin' Hawk shouted =...What a gype! I got hyped for nothing…=
"That kid has a sharp sense of danger," Max chuckled.
=You had Tennyson and the Omnitrix in your claws, and you didn't end him!?= Malware roared at Psychobos who was standing near a knocked-out Crabdozer.
"Tennyson is nothing," Psychobos stated as he placed the Nemetrix back on Crabdozer's collar, the 'fangs' of it becoming more detailed as it displayed a number obscured by Psychobos' larger claw, "Azmuth is our enemy. With our p-perfected Nemetrix, we do not need his inferior toy. Azmuth will pay for his hubris...and I use the term l-loosely."
=Yes...yes, he will pay!= Malware laughed with Psychobos.
Khyber patted his dog's head as she returned to normal finally, panting from exhaustion from all the transforming and battling her master and his ally. The two just watched as the two began laughing maniacally, which went on for a while. It was the least of his concerns at the moment. All he cared for was obtaining his sought after trophies from Ben Tennyson and his team...and he would not rest until he finally got them.
SZ: Hoo..this was a blast of a chapter.
Z0: It took us a minute to figure what to mutate Tsubaki into, but TsuWolf seems like a good pick. Makoto came up with it.
SZ: Yup. Gt would say something, but he's still busy with his secret project.
Z0: I'm not liking the sound of it...but eh it'll be out problem for next time.
SZ: Hai...so read and review folks! Onto the next chapter!