A/N: Hey there guys! Another Friday, another new chapter! And hoo boy, this chapter is one that I know you guys in particular have been waiting for a LONG while to see. I've had requests to do a beach-related chapter ever since VOLUME ONE. Let that sink in for a minute. And yes, it's a common trope that's usually seen in various shows, but man, a lot of people REALLY wanted this for quite a while. Well, we're here now, so how's about we take a dive in (heh, get it?) and see how it goes. Prepare to see some swimsuits (and put on your sunglasses and denim jackets. If you know, you know), because this is…

(Edit: 11/19/2021: Hey guys, Omni here, just had to change up something involving Eon here. He was originally seen on Earth here when in actuality, he's not supposed to. Just changed a couple things at the scene during the beginning to reflect that. Okay, on with the show!)

Chapter 30: Beach Break!

…..

The moment Cinder regained consciousness; she was met with the most splitting headache that she had ever experienced. And considering that she'd had a lot of major headaches and migraines prior to this, that was saying a lot. She didn't want to open her eyes for the longest time, but when the initial pain began to subside a bit, she cracked them open slowly. The Fall Maiden was immediately met with the sight of bright lights and the feeling of a stiff stretcher underneath her, which only served to add to the discomfort. It was enough to make her want to just close her eyes again and drift off back to sleep, hoping to whatever god existed that she would feel better after that.

…And then it hit her. '…God. Serpent God.' Immediately, Cinder's eyes snapped open and her entire body sprung up, her hands lighting up in flames. "W-What?! Where is he?! Where is Quetzalco—AGH!" However, she instantly regretted ever standing up as an intense pain shot right through her entire body, forcing her back down to her knees as she gripped her head in pain.

As she let out a groan, however, she heard a set of footsteps quickly approach her, and she was greeted by a voice that put her at ease. "Cindy!" Cinder felt Rojo's hands reach her shoulders and she helped her up, the bounty hunter letting out a sigh. "Oh, thank god, you're awake. We were pretty worried 'bout you."

"Mmph, wha…" Cinder slowly craned her head up and was met with a smiling Rojo, along with Emerald and Neo who had several bruises and cuts strewn across their bodies. Subdora was leaning against the wall near the door while Mercury was still on his own stretcher, scowling at his legs. "What… what happened?"

"We were almost blasted into oblivion by that Serpent God." Emerald explained, with Neo giving a solemn yet irritated nod. "We've all been out since last night, but you're the last one to wake up." The green-haired girl pointed to the Maiden. "You were probably the worst hurt out of all of us."

Cinder craned her head down and saw, much to her shock, that her midsection around her ribs were bandaged up, along with her left leg and right shoulder. It was also then that she noticed that she had been changed out of her usual dress and instead was in simple black leggings and a black tank top to facilitate these bandages. "Ugh… that beast. This is the result of its constriction on me."

"Yep, and that means you're gonna be laid up for a while." Rojo said before lifting Cinder up and back onto the stretcher. "Sorry, Cindy. But hey, think of it this way; it could be worse." She smirked and craned her head over to Mercury. "You could have ended up being completely owned in a comedic fashion like Merc over there." She placed a hand on her hip and tilted her head. "I mean, seriously, dude, what were you expecting trying to high-five him like that?"

Only a growl escaped Mercury's throat before Emerald furrowed her brow at Rojo. "Hey, c'mon, Rojo, don't be so hard on him. He tried his best to beat that bastard." The young thief went over to her silver-haired partner and offered him a smile. "Besides, we probably should've expected something like this when facing a god." She went to reach her hand out to him. "And don't worry, next time, we'll—"

"I DON'T NEED YOUR CHARITY!" Mercury suddenly snapped and pulled his shoulder away, glaring at Emerald with a white-hot intensity that took everybody aback. A few seconds passed, with everyone utterly stunned… and then it happened. Mercury saw tears forming in Emerald's eyes and just like that, he regretted his actions instantly. "E-Emerald, I-I'm sorry! I—"

SLAP! Without any warning, a hard hand came and smacked Mercury across the face, with Emerald's features having twisted in anger and sadness. With her fists balled in ire, she screamed; "WHAT IS YOUR ISSUE?!"

"I-I…"

"We just survived a fight with a FUCKING GOD and you're giving me ATTITUDE?!" The tears began to fall from Emerald's eyes as she continued. "Any one of us could've been killed in that fight and you're just angry as always!"

"Emerald, mia cara, let us not get too far ahead of ourselves, per favore…" Subdora pleaded.

"No! I'm DONE!" Emerald hollered, pointing an irate finger at Mercury. "I'm done dealing with your foul attitude, Mercury! You're nothing but a pent-up ball of anger and hatred that can't get past your legs getting broken!" She tossed her hands up to the air. "And yeah, I get it, it sucks to lose, especially to those heroes and a freaking serpent god. But you need to learn to get a freaking GRIP on that anger of yours and stop being such a goddamn dick!"

With that, Emerald stormed off, leaving Mercury utterly stunned by what just happened. The moment the door opened for her, she stormed past Khyber and his Baskurr without even acknowledging him, which surprised the Zaroffian slightly. Once she was gone, he craned his head back to the others with a furrowed brow. "…I take it tensions are still somewhat high?"

"HA! To say the freaking least, teach." Rojo balked before furrowing her brow at Mercury. "Merc over there lost his temper again and snapped at the wrong person.

Khyber immediately saw the red handprint across Mercury's cheek, along with the utterly baffled and astonished expression he was wearing. The hunter hummed to himself before walking up to the assassin. "You see now, boy?" Mercury glanced up to Khyber dejectedly, but unlike before, he had no glare to him. "Your rage festers within you and you end up unleashing it upon those who are undeserving. It is both a hinderance to your skills and simply unhealthy." He balled his fist and with finality, said to Mercury; "You must learn to take control of your emotions to prevent this from happening in the future."

Mercury was silent for a few seconds until he murmured; "Easier said than done."

"Only if you do not put in the effort." Khyber noted. "You believe you are incapable of changing your ways, but in reality, you simply have to make an attempt. There will be times where it is not easy, but in the end, the benefits will be worth the hardship." He raised an eyeridge down to the young man. "…But only if you are willing to go through my training." The Zaroffian heard Mercury mutter something, but didn't quite catch it. "I'm sorry?"

"I'll do it." Mercury spoke up, craning his head down in shame. "…If it'll help me make what I did up to Emerald, then I'll do it."

"Good, your training will continue tomorrow, then." Khyber approved, only to cross his arms as he switched topics. "But until then, I suggest you get the rest you require. I imagine fighting a god cannot be an easy task."

Cinder and the others were slightly surprised by him saying that, though. "Wait… how did you know about him being a god?"

"Simple… she told me." Khyber pointed over to the door just as it opened… and when the team saw who was there, they were all utterly floored.

There, wearing a rather neutral expression, was Salem herself. The witch was accompanied by Eon as well, though dimension-jumper had to stay on the other side of the open portal that was right behind her. Oddly enough, the portal actually moved WITH Salem as she walked in as well. Salem didn't appear to be angry or upset in anyway, however, which is what the team had EXPECTED her to be. Instead, she was relatively calm as she greeted them all. "Hello, everyone. I see you have all learned your lesson about facing a god." She shifted her eyes between Cinder and Mercury. "Especially the two of you."

"L-Lady Salem!" Cinder bowed her head as best she could without aggravating her shoulder. "Please, forgive us for our failure! W-We weren't expecting—"

"I know, Cinder, I know." Salem assured, raising a hand to her protégé. "I understand completely."

If they weren't stunned by Salem's presence, the team were sure surprised by that statement. "So… you're not mad?" Rojo uttered.

"Oh no, I am furious." The witch grimaced, making everyone's blood run cold. "But not with you… rather, I am angry with that serpent god, Quetzalcoatl." She stepped further into the room as she explained. "You see, I know of the futility of facing a god of that caliber, so in reality, I am not surprised that you lost." She set her sights onto her Fall Maiden with a disapproving gaze. "Though a part of me IS disappointed in you, Cinder. You know very well that while your maiden powers ARE great, they pale in comparison to those of a true god." She shook her head and closed her eyes. "When faced with an insurmountable obstacle such as that, it is better to perform a tactical retreat than to take it head on." Her brow furrowed as memories of her own insurrection came flowing back. "It is something that I had to learn the hard way, and I hope this experience has taught you something."

"Trust me, Boss Lady, it has." Rojo nodded, with Neo crossing her arms with a frustrated pout next to her. "I just wish we could've actually beat those brats. The Grimm MUST have had 'em worn out and the Tyrannopede would've mauled Humungousaur, for sure."

Just then, thought, Eon finally decided to speak up. "Oh, I wouldn't worry too much about that." Everyone's attention was brought to him as he began to open up a portal. "You see, we just contacted Doctor Animo and he and the brutes have—"

"Ahem!" The time traveler was interrupted by Subdora clearing her throat, glaring at him behind her tri-color glasses. "You will refer to them by their ACTUAL names, or else you will never hear the end of it."

Beneath his mask, Eon couldn't help but scowl at the fact that the Merlinisapien had just demanded something so insignificant. He wanted to clap back and say that he'd refer to them how he'd please… but given the expectant gaze that Salem was giving him, something told him he wasn't going to win this one. "Hmph, very well. Doctor Animo, along with Exo-Skull and Thunderhog, have finished setting up their little pet project out in the desert." The portal that Eon opened began to clear up and on the other side, they saw a massive butte that had several large holes in it, making it now resemble a massive anthill. "In addition, he will be sending one of these new mutations to terrorize the heroes."

Cinder's trademark nefarious grin formed on her lips, bringing her hands together approvingly. "Ah, very good. So, where exactly ARE the heroes now?"

With a snap of his fingers, Eon shifted the portal so that it now showed a bright, sandy beach accompanied by beautiful blue waves. "They have just arrived in Cancun, a wonderous beach city where they will no doubt be relaxing…"

The smiles that came to everyone's faces at that moment were all equally malicious. The idea of the heroes getting their vacation ruined again was all too good. "Hmhm, not for long…" Salem chuckled.

…..

Cancun, one of the hottest vacation spots in all of central Mexico. Both figuratively AND literally given the type of weather it experienced on a day-to-day basis. Nothing but sun, sand, and surf, making it one of many vacationer's dreams. There were also several beach-front resorts that lined themselves across the coast to facilitate all of these vacationers, but only one was so secluded that it wasn't even in sight of anyone. Hidden by massive walls of rocky cliffs was a large beach that had its own tall, white resort building actually built into the cliffside, and there was still enough space for the sun to beat down directly onto it without casting any shadows.

What's more, on top of the cliffs, there was also a parking lot that wasn't too far away from the resort. …Meaning that guests would have to go through the top of the hotel in order to enter it, in a strange twist of expectations. Though what was even MORE perplexing was that in order to actually GET to the place, one had to take a dirt road, which was also well hidden by the massive jungle that surrounded the whole area.

All in all, the place was a bit strange, but that didn't stop the Omni-Hunters from actually going there. Thanks to Kevin, they managed to locate the secret Plumber road fairly easily before a quick trip through the jungle took them to the resort. The Osmosian parked his car and Ben parked his, with Rex deactivating his ride after Weiss dismounted. Kevin got out first and greeted his best friend with a wave. "See? Told ya I'd get us here."

"Yeah, thank god." Ben muttered as he rubbed his sore back. "The ride through the jungle road could've been a lot smoother, though."

"My thoughts exactly." Yang groaned, popping a few of her own back muscles. "What's the deal, anyway? The rest of this place is paved."

"I imagine it's to make sure than no one else finds this place." Weiss noted. "Remember, ALL Plumbers are able to vacation here, including aliens. What do you think would happen if some regular civilians found this place thinking it was a regular resort?"

Yang hummed in agreement. "Hm, good point." The Blonde Brawler shrugged and smiled with excitement. "Ah well, we're here now, so now we can finally hit the beach!"

Nora bounced high in the air, pumping her fists to the sky. "WOO! Heck yeah! I can't freaking wait to do some swimming!" She put on a sly grin before tapping her fingers together connivingly. "Also I'm gonna make sure to bury at least ONE of you guys up to your necks in sand before the day's over, hehehe…"

Ren couldn't help but deadpan at that. "And why do I have the sneaking suspicion that it's going to be me?"

Pyrrha cleared her throat, bringing the proceedings to a brief halt. "Ahem, before we do anything, though, don't you think we should wait for Gwen and the others? It may be a while before they—"

FLASH! The entire team let out a gasp as a bright pink light shined through the entire area unexpectedly, and when it died down, there stood Gwen, Blake, Ilia and Sun. The four of them were smiling to everyone… aside from Blake, whose face was covered up by the stack of books that she was balancing in her arms. Gwen waved and called to them. "Hey guys! We're here!"

"…Wow, they're fast." Jaune commented.

"Well, the moment Gwen felt you guys arrive at the place, she just teleported us here." Sun explained.

Ben glanced over to his cousin, completely impressed. "Man, you're REALLY getting good at sensing people. We were like, what, over a hundred miles away from you?"

Gwen came over and nudged her cousin's elbow. "Well, I've just gotten so used to sensing you guys that I'm starting to get used to long distances better." She then waved her hand to get things back on track. "But that's beside the point. Why don't we go down and join up with Team CFVY? Besides, I'd rather not delay our beach time any longer."

"Good idea, but… er… Blake?" Weiss leaned in closer to her Faunus friend with a questioning gaze. "Why are you carrying all of those books with you?"

"Because I rented them from the library." Blake said from behind the stack before setting the books down on the back of Ben's car. "And they are all coming with me so I can do some further research."

Neptune couldn't help but scratch his head. "Uh, research on what, exactly?"

Ruby, however, peered closer to the books… and her eyes widened the moment she saw two words being repeated through their titles. "Ah! Oh my gosh!" Ruby plucked the top most book, labeled; "The Fairy Tales of Hans Christian Anderson" with a massive smile. "Blake, you borrowed a bunch of fairy tale books from the library?!" ZIP! The hooded girl promptly rushed up to her cat-eared friend and bombarded her with a hug. "OOOH, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, THANK YOU!"

"Uh, heh, you're welcome, Ruby." Blake sheepishly smiled whilst returning the hug. "To tell you the truth, I honestly got them to do some more research on that little theory that Ben had." She glanced over to the hero and reminded him. "You know, the one where you said that we could all have fairy tale counterparts in your world?"

"Oh yeah, I haven't forgotten about it, actually." Ben noted before picking up the copy of Aesop's Fables from the stack. "But I'm surprised that you're actively researching it, Blake."

"Hmhm, I'm not." Ilia giggled a little before poking Blake's shoulder knowingly. "Take it from someone who's known Blake longer than anyone else here; once she gets interested in a topic, she makes sure she knows EVERYTHING about it." Blake shot a narrow-eyed stare at her best friend, but Ilia simply shrugged. "What? You want me to lie? Or do you WANT me to tell the story of why you did SO much research when you found your mom's collection of—"

"AH!" Blake practically screeched before firmly pressing her hand over Ilia's mouth, her cheeks breaking out into a beet red blush. "We agreed NEVER to speak of that!"

Despite her surprise, Ilia still wore a smug grin. "Oh, I know." she muffled out. "I just used that as incentive to prove my point."

Blake grimaced and pulled her hand away, crossing her arms with a huff. "Okay, yes, it's true. Now can we just drop the whole thing so we can get down to the beach?"

Penny suddenly jumped in and proclaimed; "Absolutely! EEE! I am so excited! This will be my first ever trip to an actual beach!" She whirled around to the rest of the group as she practically jittered in place. "Back in Atlas and Mantle, everything is practically ice and cold, so to be somewhere that is the polar opposite is more than welcome."

"Well then, what're we standin' 'round here for?" Kevin popped open his trunk, revealing a ton of beach bags that no doubt belonged to the rest of the team. "Everyone grab yer shit and let's head down to the coast!"

"Language!" Ruby chastised. "But also agreed!" The silver-eyed girl grabbed her red and black beach bag, with everyone else doing the same. "Let's get the sun and fun started!"

…..

It had only taken a few minutes for all the guys to get changed into their swimsuits when they made it down to the bottom floor of the resort. Thankfully, there were changing facilities for both men and women waiting there for them, so it didn't take long before everyone separated and went to do their thing. Ben, who was donned in a pair of green swim trunks with a black stripe down the side with white trimming, was waiting with an umbrella and towel in hand near the door that led to the beach.

Kevin was also standing with him, though he was only in a pair of simple grey swim trunks. "So, Tennyson, how does it feel?"

"Hm? How does what feel?" Ben raised a brow.

"To finally be seein' your girlfriend in a swimsuit." Kevin smirked back.

Ben grimaced at his best friend before rolling his eyes. "Jeez, seriously, Kevin? We're going right into this topic?"

"Hey, I'm just sayin', Gwen's the love of my life and I wouldn't trade her for anything… but Yang is hot as hell and she KNOWS it." Kevin emphasized. "And she knows that everyone else knows it, too." The hero sighed and pinched the bridge of his knows, making Kevin chuckle and give him a pat on the back. "Dude, you can groan all ya want at me, but you know I'm right. You're one lucky bastard."

Ben's cheeks flushed red and he shook his head. "…Yeah, I know. Honestly, if anything, a part of me has been trying to NOT focus on… what she looks like in a swimsuit and just concentrate on having fun with her. …But then I realize that her having fun with me probably involves teasing me to know end with how attractive she is."

"Well, if ya need a dunk in the cold ocean water to, ahem, "get control of yourself", you know where to find me." Kevin added snarkily.

Ben deadpanned at the innuendo. "Thanks, but I think I'll manage…"

"Helloooo!" The sound of a singing voice made both boys crane their heads around, and they were greeted by the sight of Ruby and Penny coming toward them from the girl's changing rooms. Ruby was donned in a one-piece swimsuit that was black at the top and red toward the bottom, with a fading effect near her midsection that blended the two seamlessly. Also, while they couldn't see it, there was a rose design on her upper back. "Hi guys!"

Penny gave them a wave. "Salutations!" The redheaded android was donned in a two-piece swimsuit, the upper part being seafom green while her bottom piece was cream colored with a frilly seafoam green skirt. Also, she had undone her hair so that it was hanging freely without her bow. She saw the boys' trunks and complimented them. "Ooh! Your swim wear is exemplary, boys!"

Ben couldn't help but feel a bit sheepish at the compliment. "Ah, thanks. Yours are pretty cool, too."

Ruby held her hand up and waved at him. "Ooh, you're so nice. But please, save the compliments for my sis…" She glanced back toward the changing rooms, as if dreading that her sister would walk out any moment. "Trust me… you're gonna need them."

"Ha! See? Even RUBY knows, and she's the most innocent out of all of us." Kevin quipped.

"And YOU have the dirtiest of minds, Kevin Ethan Levin." The four perked their heads up in time to see Gwen come strolling over, the redhead now donned in a purple bikini. She deadpanned at him and placed her hands on her hips. "Pyrrha told me about that "Hooter" joke you made earlier. Not really impressed."

Kevin merely shrugged. "Psh, that? That joke could've been WAY worse. Besides, I was talking about a literal owl."

"Still, the implication WAS there." Gwen countered. "Plus, there were children present."

Penny and Ruby couldn't help but tilt their heads. "…I do not think I follow. What is the joke here?" But then, Penny snapped her fingers and realized; "Oh, wait! I can simply search for it!" With that, the android accessed her internet database and looked up the term "Hooter". And before long… she found what she was searching for, and her eyes widened at what it was. "Oh… I see."

"Hm? What is it?" Ruby asked.

"The term "Hooter" can refer to an owl… or an owl-themed restaurant that is hosted by several women with small tops and bottoms that accentuate their… assets." Penny explained.

Ruby's eyes were as wide as dinner plates at this point before glancing back to the Alien Trio, who all shrunk back a bit under her accusatory gaze. "Your planet has filthy restaurants! FILTHY!"

But Kevin was quick to scoff at her accusation. "Pfft, please, you think THAT'S filthy, you should see a stri—MM-MPH!"

"We do NOT need to corrupt her, Kevin." Gwen whispered harshly. "Let's just drop the subject and move on."

"Yo, guys!" Thankfully, the group were pulled out of their conversation when they heard Rex's voice pipe up, and as they expected, they saw the EVO approaching, along with all of the other guys. Rex himself was in a pair of red trunks with two orange stripes on each pant leg. "What's all the commotion out here?"

Jaune crossed his arms as he came to a halt. The blonde knight was actually donned in a pair of white trunks with yellow trimming around the pant legs and waist strap. "Yeah, you guys were getting kinda loud out here."

Kevin went to say something, but Ruby cut him off pretty quick. "NOTHING! We were just… debating on what we were gonna do on the beach, hehe…"

"Well, I know what I'M doing!" All of a sudden, Sun came rushing up and, much to everyone's surprise, he had a big yellow and blue surfboard in his hand. The monkey boy also wore a pair of yellow sunglasses and set of red trunks with yellow banana patterns on them. "I'm gonna be catchin' some waves! Ain't that right, Neptune? …Neptune?" He craned his head around to see that his partner was nowhere in sight, making him groan and push his sunglasses up. "Ugh, REALLY dude?!"

"I'm not going out there and you can't make me!" Neptune shouted back from the changing room.

Sun held up a finger and set his surfboard down. "Gimme a moment…" And with that, he zipped right back into the room, where the team could hear the two Team SSSN members start making a ruckus.

Ren sighed and facepalmed. "So much for a relaxing start to the beach day."

Gwen smirked and rolled her eyes. "Would you expect anything less? Also, nice trunks, Ren."

The green ninja glanced down, smiling at his pink and green lily-pattern trunks. He also chose to wear a green button-up shirt as well, since he had no plans on swimming right away. "Thank you, Gwen. Much appreciated."

"Hi guys!" Once again, the group turned around, this time being greeted by a smiling Ilia along with Blake right beside her. The chameleon girl wasn't in a traditional swimsuit, though. Instead, she was dressed in a black and grey wetsuit that almost resembled her stealth suit, complete with a gold zipper on the back. It had shorter leggings and sleeves, though, allowing her arms and most of her legs to breath.

Blake, on the other hand, was in a black one-piece with some white details around the arm and leg holes, and it also had a cutout that exposed her midriff. She wore a purple sarong around her waist and had on her own sunglasses sitting atop her head as well. "Did we miss anything?"

"Oh, not much." Penny pointed over to the boy's changing room, where the altercation between Sun and Neptune was still going on. "Your boyfriend is just trying to pry Neptune out of that room, is all."

"Hm, not surprised." Blake rolled her eyes. "I had a feeling Neptune would be difficult to get out there."

Ruby went over to Ilia and began inspecting her swimwear. "Ooh! Neat bathing suit, Ilia!"

"Hehe… thanks." Ilia replied with a slight blush. "I-I wasn't really too keen on the whole bikini idea, so I just decided to go with a wet suit. Much more efficient, really." She set her sights back onto the rest of the group. "The other girls should be coming out in a few moments, guys."

"Great!" Rex gave a thumbs up before jerking said thumb back to the men's room. "Now if only the Dynamic Duo would get out here already…"

Before long, though, the ruckus in the changing room quickly made its way to the door, and Sun finally managed to drag Neptune out. "Ach, okay, okay, I'm going!" The blue-haired boy grimaced as he walked out, showing off his blue and navy wave-pattern trunks. Of course, he didn't seem to happy about it. "Hey guys…"

Ben gave him a sympathetic smile. "Ah, c'mon Neptune. No need to be a sourpuss."

"He's right, you know." Gwen added. "You don't even have to go INTO the water. You can just stay on shore, get a tan, maybe make a sandcastle or two."

"Ugh, yeah, I know." Neptune bemoaned. "It's just… even being NEAR water agitates the hell outta me. Like, what if I get hit by a sudden wave or something?"

"Then ya stay up near the resort." Kevin deadpanned. "What more do ya want from us, an intervention? Because when it comes to this water phobia, you probably need one." This earned him a slight glare from the others, no doubt because he was so blunt. "What? I call it as I sees it."

Sun sighed and shook his head. "Okay, as harsh as Kevin was there, I kinda gotta agree, Neptune, you really need to… to…" However, Sun quickly found his voice to be completely gone as his sights found his girlfriend, and he was utterly floored by her swimsuit. The monkey boy was left with his mouth hanging open and his words incomprehensible, his eyes glued onto Blake.

The catgirl quickly notice and couldn't help but smile and blush a bit. "Oh boy, here we go…" Blake had to admit, a part of her was very happy that one look at her in this swimsuit was all it took for Sun to be rendered speechless. But on the other, they were in front of most of their friends, so this wasn't exactly the right place for gawking. She walked up to Sun and lightly pat his cheek. "Sun, babe?"

"H-Huh? Wha…?" The monkey boy glanced down and saw Blake giving him a sly smile, and it was then that he realized; "Oh… d-did I space out?"

"Yep."

"Because of you?"

"Double yep." Blake said with a slight giggle as Sun lowered his head, hiding his blush. "Hehe, don't worry about it, Sun. I get it. And I'm glad you like my swimsuit." She lifted his chin up before whispering into his ear. "And I must say, I like yours as well." Blake trailed her hand across his chest and added; "But why don't we save some of the more… personal stuff for when we're not in front of everyone, okay?"

If anything, this just made Sun's blush deepen, but he still found it within him to answer her. "O-Okay." And, for his troubles, he received a quick smooch on the lips from Blake, which both improved and worsened his situation at the same time. 'God, how did I get so lucky to have someone like her?'

Over by the Alien Trio, Gwen had to resist the urge to coo at the scene before her. The fact that she had helped those two with their relationship was one thing, but to see it blossom in such a way after the fact was something else entirely. 'They've been growing a lot more comfortable with one another with every passing day. I'm so proud of both of them!'

"Yoo-hoo!" The sound of a familiar chipper voice broke through the main hall as once again, everyone craned their heads toward the women's locker room… and Jaune felt his jaw almost fall clean off his head. Coming toward them were Nora and Pyrrha, the latter being where Jaune's eyes were glued.

The Invincible Girl had chosen a primarily red two-piece swimsuit that was held together by several golden rings. There was one in the very center of her top in the front and two at the hips of her bottom piece, and Jaune had to use all of his willpower to not focus on these places for the sake of his dignity in front of everyone. She had also let her hair down, which didn't help matters. Nora, meanwhile, was in a pink bikini top with a white bottom piece, and… well, the bikini top was a plunge cut, showing a generous amount of cleavage as she usually was want to do.

As such, many of the guys all glanced away in stunned silence… all aside from Ren, who wasn't too perturbed by it. He had seen Nora in bathing suits multiple times before, as they had traveled together for so long. …Though at the same time, there was a part of him that felt a bit different about it this time around. As he watched his best friend approach, he had to keep his eyes focused on her own eyes, because he had a feeling that if they ventured any lower, any mental reinforcements he had would break. '…Dammit, how did it ever take me THIS long to notice how attractive she really is?'

"Hello, everyone!" Pyrrha greeted with a smile. "I see everyone else is ready to…" The redhead trailed off when she saw Jaune staring at her with the blankest of stares she had ever seen, his mouth hanging open almost as if he were not home in his own mind. Pyrrha was a bit confused at first… but then she realized what probably caused this and she couldn't help but blush profusely. "J-Jaune?" She began fiddling with a lock of her hair in embarrassment. "Y-You're drooling."

"H-Huh?" Those two words managed to knock Jaune out of his stupor and his hand went to his mouth, sure enough wiping a bit of spittle that had leaked past his lips. "O-Oh god…" Jaune covered his eyes and turned away from everyone, utterly mortified. "You've gotta be kidding, this is so freaking embarrassing." he muttered to himself.

"Ah, relax, Fearless Leader!" Nora said with a playful wink. "Ya really don't have to be ashamed about staring at your own girlfriend, ya know!" She jerked a thumb over to Pyrrha and her swimsuit. "Besides, not even I can deny she WORKS that piece."

This only made the couple even more embarrassed. "N-NORA!"

Their simultaneous cries just elicited another laugh from the Pink Dynamo, but soon after, she broke out into a sly grin. "Speaking of which…" She sauntered her way over to Ren, who she noticed was keeping as straight a face as possible while keeping eye contact with her. "Renny, I've gotta ask…" She put her hands behind her back and sent him an innocent smile. "How do ya like my bikini?"

"It's… nice." Ren simply said, rolling his eyes away from her.

"How do you know that?" Nora countered, entering his line of vision again. "You haven't even looked at it yet." Just from the flustered expression working its way to his features, Nora knew she had won. Her motive was to break Ren mentally with this bikini and it was slowly but surely working. "C'mon, it's not like you haven't seen me in bikinis before, so what's the problem?"

'The problem is that I think you're doing this on purpose, and I can't tell if that's good or bad.' Ren thought to himself before clearing his throat. "I-It's nothing, really." With that, he forced his eyes down to see Nora's swimsuit, but only briefly before he gave her a curt nod. "You picked a good one, Nora. It looks nice on you."

"Aw, thanks, Renny!" Nora smiled before reaching out and grabbing hold of his arm… which she held very close to her chest. Instantly, Ren's face became completely red and they group could sweat they saw steam rising from it as Nora dragged him to the door. The hyper redhead grabbed all of their stuff and slung it under her other arm as she dragged him to the door. "Now c'mon, let's get this beach day started!"

As they went outside, the others could only stare after the duo in shock, only for Kevin to point at Ren and say; "There goes one lucky bastard."

"As much as I want to elbow you for that, I cannot argue." Gwen admitted with a sigh. "Well, in any case, we're still short two people…" She eyed Ben and Rex in particular as she said this, both boys seemingly quite anxious and fidgety. She smirked at this as she added; "And they're quite the glaring absentees, aren't they, boys?"

Ben and Rex were about to retort… but then one of said absentees piped up. "Sorry, sorry, we're here!" Rex immediately spun straight around… and his brain stopped working for a few short seconds. There stood the former heiress in a blue two-piece swimsuit with a white sarong and her white sunhat, along with a pair of white-brimmed sunglasses over her eyes. "Sorry for the wait, but SOMEBODY was taking their time."

"Oh c'mon, Weiss-Cream. You of all people know that you can't rush perfection!" If Rex's brain had stopped working for a little bit, then Ben's mind simply crashed the moment Yang stepped out of the girl's locker room. The Blonde Brawler had her own sunglasses nestled on top of her head, and she was donned in a black and yellow bikini… that had a triangle cut top. It wasn't TOO revealing, thankfully, but like Nora's top, it still generously accentuated her chest. Noticed Ben and Rex staring at the both of them and her smirk immediately grew, sending a wink to her boyfriend afterward. "Hey Green Boy. Like what you see?"

All of this was too much for Ben to take. Long story short, he fainted after too much blood rushed to his face, with everyone crying out in astonishment. After a few seconds of silence, Weiss deadpanned to a stunned Yang. "See? I TOLD you that top would be too much for him."

"BEN!" Yang immediately sprinted over and slid to a halt next to her unconscious boyfriend, still in disbelief that simply seeing her in a bikini could do this top him. "Oh god, oh god, w-what should we do?!"

"Hold on!" Sun immediately grabbed a bucket that was usually used for sandcastles and brought it into the boy's locker room. A few seconds later, the monkey boy came back out with it filled to the brim with cold water. "Clear the way!" Everyone stood back as he splashed the water directly onto Ben, making him wake up immediately.

"AUGH! HAK-HAK! Ugh, what the—what happened?!" Ben exclaimed, the hero glancing down at himself to see that he was soaking wet. "…And why am I already wet?"

Rex bent down and picked his friend up. "You kinda went lights out for a moment there, bro."

Ben blinked and tilted his head. "Wait, seriously? How?"

Yang wore an awkward expression before clearing her throat. "Ahem, that uh… that would be my doing, Green Boy."

There was a momentary pause, the Omnitrix bearer furrowing his brow at his girlfriend. "Uh, Yang, I'm not sure if I…" Before he could finish, he saw Yang pointing downward and he followed her direction… only to once again be met with the sight of her body in a yellow and black bikini. Instantly, he remembered what happened and craned his head further down in embarrassment. "Please tell me you're kidding."

"Nope!" Neptune proclaimed with a smirk. "Yang literally knocked you out with how hot she is. That's both scary AND impressive."

"It kind of is, really." Yang admitted, giving Ben a smirk of her own as she ruffled his hair. "And Ben, just so you know, there's really nothing to be embarrassed about." She eyed Sun, Kevin, Jaune and Rex knowingly. "Because lemme guess, you guys are all ogling YOUR girlfriends, too."

"H-Hey! We're not ogling!" Sun countered. "We're… admiring."

Yang simply gave a shrug. "Eh, same difference. Either way, your eyes ain't focused on our faces."

"YANG!" Blake, Gwen, Pyrrha and Weiss all cried out at once, making the blonde bombshell laugh uproariously. Blake facepalmed and grimaced at her partner. "Do we REALLY have to go through this? I swear, YOU are the last person I expected to break out the innuendos."

With a roll of her eyes, Yang shook her head and giggled at the group of girls. "Hehe, maybe, but you know that if I don't, then Coco probably will and she'll be WAY worse with it. So pick your poison."

Unfortunately, as much as they didn't want to admit it, the girls saw Yang's point. "…Yes, I suppose that IS something to consider." Pyrrha muttered before taking up her beach bag and lifting her head up high. "Still, I think we should just put this whole awkward situation behind us and just get our beach day started. Come along, Jaune."

"Right behind ya, Pyr." Jaune complied… only to see that behind Pyrrha didn't help get his mind off the topic as he was met with yet another sight to behold. 'Goddamn it, Jaune, do NOT stare at your girlfriend's butt now, not after everything that was just said!'

As the others watched the couple head out, Ruby, Penny and Ilia all picked up their own stuff as well. "Yeah, I think I've heard enough filthy talk for the day." Ruby said disapprovingly before she and the girls walked out as well. "We'll see you guys all outside, and maybe if you get your minds outta the gutter, we'll let you build sandcastles with us." With that, Ruby, along with Ilia and Penny, all marched out to the beach, leaving the others stunned.

"…Wow, that has to be the most passive-aggressive thing I've ever heard." Neptune uttered.

However, Weiss simply scoffed and turned her own head up as well. "Well, I for one agree with Ruby's assessment. Just because we're on a beach doesn't mean that everyone has to turn into prudes. This isn't some sort of anime or something."

Rex gave her a thumbs up in agreement. "I'm right there with ya, Ice Princess. C'mon, let's head out and get stuff set up."

Weiss smiled happily as she watched Rex not only grab his stuff, but her own things as well. "Ah! Thank you so much, Rex, you're such a gentleman." This earned him a quick peck on the cheek and the two went right for the door. "Here, you did something nice for me, so I'll get the door for you."

"Aw, thanks!" Rex beamed as he went through the door, only to stop next to his girlfriend and whisper; "By the way, and this ain't some sort of innuendo or anything, but I think you look stunning in that." He nudged his head down to her swimsuit. "Even more than you usually are, honestly."

After that, Rex continued on his way, leaving Weiss shellshocked by that compliment. As he had said, there were no prudish double meanings in that statement, he just said that she was stunning in her swimsuit. 'No, wait, he said I looked even MORE stunning in it…' Weiss slowly lifted her hands to her cheeks as she felt them heat up. Granted, she was always aware of her appearance, as she always worked hard to keep it up. But the fact that Rex thought she was stunning in the swimsuit… it felt like a weight had lifted up off her shoulders. She had always been self-conscious about, to put it bluntly, the size of her chest, and the fact that Rex had said that about her in her swimsuit… it alleviated some of that self-doubt. Not much, but a little bit.

Weiss smiled widely and followed her boyfriend outside, a little extra skip in her step. "Well… thank you. And I must say, you're quite stunning yourself."

"Heh, really?" Rex chuckled as he set his sights down to his trunks. "I don't think they're THAT impressive."

"Well, I'm only half talking about your trunks…" Weiss sauntered up and nestled her head against his arm, trailing her hand along his bicep. "Because being honest, the upper half is looking pretty yummy right now." At that moment, Weiss could've sworn that Rex heated up so much that she could see steam coming out of his ears. 'Checkmate.'

As the couple went outside, that left Ben, Yang, Kevin, Gwen, Blake and Sun all standing in the hallway, the six eyeing each other somewhat awkwardly. "…Okay, I might've taken things a bit too far." Yang noted.

"Kind of, yeah." Gwen agreed as she and Kevin grabbed their stuff. "But hey, we've still got plenty of time in the day to make up for it, so let's go, huh?"

"Yeah, you're right, Gwen." Blake and Sun picked up their stuff, following the Osmosian and Anodite without hesitation.

But before they exited, Sun halted in his tracks and pursed his lips in frustration. "…Hold on a sec." The monkey boy spun around and went up to a potted plant, moving it to the side to see a trembling Neptune hiding behind it. "…Really, Neptune?" Sun proceeded to pick Neptune up and hoist him up onto his shoulder, making the blue-haired boy shout and thrash about.

"Agh! Wait! NO!" he screeched. "You can't make me!"

"Dude, come on!" Sun scolded. "You're acting like a spoiled brat. Now stop acting like a baby and face that fear head on!"

Blake put a hand to her hip and furrowed her brow at Neptune as well. "He's right, Neptune, you're acting VERY childish right now." She waved her boyfriend to set him down, however. "Sun, put him down and I'll make sure he doesn't run off."

Ben and Yang had to resist the urge to laugh as Neptune slumped in defeat, all while he walked alongside Blake and Sun. "Man, poor Neptune." Ben said with a shake of his head. "I can't imagine being on a beach while afraid of water."

"Eh, it could always be worse." Yang shrugged again. "He could be afraid of sand."

"HA! Now that would be irrational." Ben took a deep breath before hoisting up his beach bag, with Yang doing the same with hers. "So, you ready to spend the rest of this vacation under the sun?"

The Blonde Brawler pulled her sunglasses over her eyes with a huge, toothy grin. "Baby, I was BORN for this kind of weather, you have NO freaking clue." She leaned over and whispered; "Keep this under your hat, but back at Beacon, I actually called in sick a couple times over the summer JUST so I could sneak out and put in some beach time."

A gasp escaped Ben's throat, though it was obviously a fake one. "No! Yang, how could you?"

With her hands raised, Yang explained; "Hey, it was either the beach or sit through more of Professor Port's boring lectures. I decided to take my chances, and hey, I still got good passing grades."

"…You are SUCH a wild child."

"I know, but you love me that way." Yang gave Ben a peck on the cheek before going up to the door, though she made sure to put a little sway in her hips as she went. "Now come on…" She glanced over her shoulder with a wily smirk. "There's more of this waiting for you out there… because guess what?" Ben's eyes widened immensely as he watched Yang trail her hand along her back. "I need sunscreen on my back… and it's a place I can't reach."

Ben gulped as he started to sweat profusely before he even stepped foot outside. 'Yep, this woman is going to straight up kill me. She's gonna kill me and I'm gonna love every second of it.' Reluctantly, he followed his teasing girlfriend outside, and then… PING! "GAH!" THUD!

Yang yelped as she saw Ben fall straight to the ground, a volley ball having just bounced right off his face and sending him tumbling. "AH! Ben!" She dropped everything and knelt down, picking her boyfriend out of the sand. "Man, why does my boy keep FALLING over?!"

"Oh my gosh, sorry Yang!" At the sound of a familiar tender voice, Yang craned her head up to see Velvet, Coco, Yatsu and Fox all come rushing over, with Cooper bringing up the rear. Velvet bowed her head apologetically and began an onslaught of apologies. "It was all my fault, I am SO sorry! I was serving the ball and then—"

"No, Velvet, it wasn't your doing, it was mine." Yatsu interjected before bowing to Yang as well. "She may have served the ball, but I was the one who hit it back too hard. My sincerest apologies."

Ben let out a groan and rubbed the spot where the ball hit him, shaking the daze out of his head before giving the swordsman a salute. "Hehe… i-it's no problem, Yatsu, trust me. I've been hit in the head with a lot of worse stuff than a volley ball." Slowly, Ben stood onto his feet, with Yang's help, of course. "I'll be good, honest."

Coco and the others gave a sigh of relief. "Phew, well, that's good to hear." The fashionista then grinned to the couple and placed her hands on her hips. "But hey, glad to see you guys finally made it!" She raised her arms up and proclaimed; "Welcome to paradise!"

It was only then that Ben and Yang noticed their surroundings, and they had to admit, this place was pretty amazing. There were very few other people on the beach besides the team, including but not limited to the Plumber lifeguards and security staff. There was also a large open bar at the very center of the beach that was being manned by Plumber cooks, and to say that the smell that was wafting their way smelled delicious was an understatement. There were palm trees all around and there were even a couple beach volleyball courts as well. All in all, the place definitely appeared to be a paradise, just as Coco described.

"…Wow, yeah, I can see us getting a LOT of use outta this place." Yang smiled brightly as she picked up her stuff. "C'mon, Ben, let's get set up!"

Fox, however, reached down and picked up the volleyball. "Hey, sweet! When you're done, though, you wanna join us over at the volleyball courts? We could always go for another team to face off with!"

"Especially since we've been playing against no one but ourselves for about three hours." Cooper added offhandedly.

Ben rubbed the side of his head with a small chuckle. "Heh, thanks guys, but if it's all the same to you, I think Yang and I will be keeping to ourselves for the time being."

Coco immediately picked up on this and steepled her fingers together. "Ooh, is that so? Well, if that's the case, then I totally get it." She slinked her arm around Cooper and lowered her glasses, allowing everyone to see the mischievous glint in her eye. "After all, Tech Head and I have had PLENTY of alone time since we got here…"

"AHAHA!" Cooper laughed awkwardly, his cheeks flushing. "W-Well, y-you definitely could call it that, b-but I d-don't think Ben and Yang will wanna hear that, hon…"

"Aw, c'mon." Coco winked to her boyfriend. "You're not even gonna tell 'em how you found the guts to finally grab my—"

"NOOOO!" Cooper grabbed Coco and began dragging her away, all while she was laughing up a storm. "Not in front of everyone, please!"

Ben was left flabbergasted as he and Yang were left with more questions than answers, though Yang herself was laughing it up herself. "Ahaha! Oh my god, I can only imagine the time Coco's been showing him."

Velvet rolled her eyes and sighed. "You have no idea. Well, if you guys change your mind and feel like joining us, we'll be over by the courts. Have fun!"

"Heh… yeah, we'll certainly try." With that, the rest of Team CFVY followed after Coco and Cooper, leaving Ben and Yang to their business. The hero ran a hand through his hair as he and his girlfriend walked over to a pair of lounge chairs that were right near where Blake and Sun were setting up, and before long, they had set up their own umbrella and laid their beach towels along said chairs. Once they were all done, Ben took in a deep breath, letting the smell of the salty sea permeate through his nostrils. "Ah… well, now that all that's done…" He craned his head down and smiled at Yang. "Whaddya want to do first?"

"Well, I wouldn't be opposed to a dip in the ocean." Yang suggested. "But before we even do anything…" She reached down into her beach bag and pulled out a bottle of SPF 50, wagging it in her hand with a cheeky grin. "I believe that I wanted you to do something for me."

Ben's gut did a flip as she presented the sunscreen to him, his throat tightening up in the process. Now, while Yang and himself had gotten quite intimate many times before, there was one thing that had remained consistent up to this point; they were always fully clothed. Not once has there been so little clothing between the two up until this point, and to say that Ben was a nervous wreck about it was an understatement. The hero gulped down whatever nerves he could before he was handed the bottle. "O-Okay."

Thankfully, Yang saw his nervousness right out the gate, and her gaze became sympathetic. "Ben…" She reached up and grasped his hand lightly with both of hers, giving it a gentle squeeze. "There's nothing to be nervous about, really. I wouldn't be letting you do this if I didn't trust you immensely."

"W-Well, yeah, I know…" Ben assured. "It's just… I-I've never done this before with any of my past girlfriends, honestly."

"Then it pleases me to be the first." Yang winked. "But I'm telling you, there's really nothing to be nervous about. I mean, look at Blake and Sun!"

Ben's eyebrows rose up curiously and he turned his head up to see Sun applying sunscreen to Blake's shoulders, the cat girl's kitty ears having folded down in pleasure. However, Blake peaked her eye open and met Ben's eyes. "She's right, Ben. If Sun can get my shoulders, then I'm sure you won't have a problem with Yang's back."

Sun sent Ben a nod of his own. "Yeah, dude. It's easy, nothing too complicated about it."

The Omnitrix bearer blinked at the monkey boy's startling confidence before setting his sights back down to Yang… who had since shifted so that she was laying down on her stomach. The sight was enough to make Ben almost crash again, especially now that he had a full and bountiful view of her rear facing up at him. 'Oh gods, please don't let me lose my cool now!'

Yang had to stifle a laugh as she saw how flustered her boyfriend was. 'Oh Ben… you are SUCH an ass man, it's cute.' Instead of teasing him, though, she shot him a reassuring smile and nodded to him. "It's okay. I'll let you know when to stop."

Swallowing his fear once more, Ben took another deep breath, steeling himself before cracking open the sunscreen. He squeezed out a fair amount in his hand and said; "Alright… just tell me where to start."

"Middle of the back and then work your way out and up." Yang instructed, smiling to herself as she noticed his stutter was gone.

"Okay, it's probably gonna feel cold…" Ben saw Yang nod, giving him the okay. And with that, Ben finally lowered the sunscreen down to the small of Yang's back. The moment he did, he once again felt how soft her skin was, which was still pretty shocking to him considering all of the workouts she did. Still, he couldn't get caught up in those thoughts, so instead he began working the sunscreen throughout Yang's entire back, using both hands to do so.

As he did this, however, Yang had to resist the urge to suddenly gasp in shock. Not because the sunscreen was cold or anything, but because of the fact that Ben was hitting her in all… the right… spots. It was as if he was unknowingly giving her a massage while he rubbed in the sunscreen, effectively melting much of the tension in her muscles away. It was at that moment she realized; '…Oh fuck, my boyfriend has magic hands.'

Once he had made it up to the shoulders, though, Ben's hands ended up pressing up against Yang's spine a little harder than he had intended. And then… POP! "OH!"

"AGH!" Ben yelped the moment Yang did, and he shot up immediately in concern. Blake and Sun were also at full attention as well. "Y-Yang, are you alright?! Did I hurt you?!"

However, much to his surprise, Yang actually didn't seem hurt. Moreover, she actually seemed to be trying to catch her breath as her face flushed red. '…Gods, no, Ben, the absolute opposite.' She couldn't help but be a little stunned by the situation, too. '…Wow, who'd have thought? I go in teasing him about this and by the end, HE'S the one turning ME on.' Still, she shook her head and sent him a reassuring wave of the hand. "N-No, Ben, you're fine. I think you just popped a muscle in my neck."

"Hah, a pretty tense one, by the sound of it." Sun remarked. "That was one loud pop."

"I know." Yang agreed before eyeing Ben with a slight grin. "Well Green Boy, I guess we know that if the hero business didn't work for ya, you could've always been a chiropractor."

Ben rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Hehe, well, I dunno about that. Ironically, I kinda always wanted to be an astronaut when I was a kid." He reached down and continued rubbing in the sunscreen. "Anyway, let's get the last of this rubbed in…"

"Thanks, babe. Knew you could do it." Yang grinned as she laid back down on her stomach… only to see Blake wearing one of the biggest Cheshire grins she had ever seen. And she had a feeling she knew why. As much as Yang wanted to admit that was a startled yelp when Ben popped her spine… she couldn't lie, it was also one of pleasure. Thankfully, neither Ben or Sun picked up on that, but Blake sure did. Yang narrowed her eyes at her partner and mouthed to her; "Not one word."

Blake simply shrugged and stood up, beckoning Sun to follow her. "C'mon Sun, let's go see what Ruby and Penny are up to." As she and her boyfriend left, though, Blake chuckled lightly to herself at what she just heard. 'Lady, you've got it BAD.'

…..

Things got chaotic the moment the Omni-Hunters entered the water. The very first thing that almost everyone did (except Neptune) was take a dip in the brilliant blue ocean, and each of them were enjoying it in their own way. For example, Gwen and Blake had brought their own inner tubes so that they could float along the water's surface while relaxing in the rays of the sun. Ruby and Penny, meanwhile, had their own kickboards, the two racing each other as they laughed happily.

Rex, however, had actually using his Rex Ride as a makeshift jetski, and astonishingly enough, Weiss had joined in on him with that. And she was enjoying it quite a bit. "WOOHOO!" The former heiress cheered as she and Rex zoomed across the water's surface, making sure to keep an arm around him at all times. "Haha! This is amazing!"

Yang couldn't stop the grin on her face as she watched the couple go rushing along the water. "Wow, who'd have thought that Weiss would be into the extreme sports?"

"I think I heard she wanted Rex to "thrill her" with something." Ben remarked. "Guess this counts?" SPLASH! "Augh! H-Hey!" Ben spun right around to see Nora grinning wildly at him, a mischievous glint in the redhead's eyes. "Nora, what the heck?!"

"Heehee, c'mon, Ben, you guys all know that it's not a proper beach day without a splash fight!" As if to reinforce this, Nora began scooping up and splashing the hero and Yang with more water, making the blonde actually scream a little at the cold water. "Haha! Come on, let's see what you got!"

Soaked to the bone as she was, Yang was not about to refuse a challenge. "Oh, you want a Water War?! Take this!" Yang began shoveling water at Nora with her hands, and she ushered her boyfriend to do the same. "C'mon, Ben, don't leave me hanging!"

"Hah… the things I do for love." Ben sighed before joining in as well. "Remember, Nora, you asked for this!"

"Hahaha! Oh, I know!" Nora smirked. "But did YOU ask for THIS?!" The Pink Dynamo ducked just as Yang and Ben splashed more water at her… and instead hit both Blake and Gwen.

The duo each gave a loud yelp as they were startled so much that they fell right out of their inner tubes, sending them straight into the drink thanks to their splashing. Ben and Yang quickly grew pale as they realized what they did, and before long, they saw Gwen and Blake slowly emerging from beneath the waves. And they did not appear to be happy. The two eyed one another before glaring back at Ben and Yang, only to cup their hands to prepare for battle. "Any last words before we utterly douse you?" Gwen asked with a deathly tone.

"Uhhh…" Yang quickly pointed to Nora. "She started it!" She then spun around as fast as she could and began trudging through the water. "C'mon Green Boy, let's go!"

Ben yelped as he narrowly avoided getting hit with a wave of water from the two peeved bookworms. "Ack! Gwen, Blake, we're sorry! We didn't mean to!"

"It's too late for apologies, Ben!" Blake retorted. "Sun, STOP THEM!"

Ben and Yang came to a halt as they saw Sun standing opposite of them. "…Dude, really?" the hero asked.

"Sorry guys, lady's orders." Sun closed his eyes and his hair began to glow as several Via Sun copies of himself emerged from his being, all of them cupping their hands together to start their own watery onslaught. All at once, the clones began pouring on the water, much to the powerful couple's chagrin.

"Oh, come on, that is SO unfair!" Yang bemoaned before she and Ben continued running. They now had Nora, Gwen, Blake and Sun all on their tails, with absolutely no reinforcements of their own. …At least not until a massive wave of water suddenly came roaring at them, crashing straight into the four and knocking out all of the Sun's light clones. Once the wave calmed down, however, the ones responsible for it revealed themselves… as none other than Penny and Ruby.

Penny had her Mechano-Crushers activated and both girls wore playful smiles. "I'm sorry, but did we miss something?"

"Yeah, what makes you think you can have a splash fight without us?" Ruby added before nodding to Ben and Yang. "Sis! Ben! Get ready!"

Gwen quickly noticed the circumstances and began using her own powers as well, creating two large scoops made out of solid mana in order to effectively douse their opponents. "Oh, so it's gonna be like THAT, now is it?! Well, two can play at THAT game!"

"Heh, I couldn't agree more, cous!" Ben countered as he reached for the Omnitrix. Within moments, he found the transformation he was searching for and pushed the device's core down, transforming into Water Hazard in the blink of an eye. With both sides having taken their positions, the Orishan narrowed his eyes at their opponents and raised his palms. "If we're gonna go all out, might as well do it right!"

…..

As that was going on, Ren and Neptune simply watched on from the shore, the two standing by a rather large boulder near a group of palm trees. …Or more accurately, Ren was meditating on top of the boulder as Neptune leaned up against it. The blue haired boy watched in absolute apprehension as their friends in the ocean continued to splash one another with water, though at this point, it had become surges of water that enveloped everyone as the war escalated to using superpowers. He couldn't help but shudder at the thought of getting drenched himself. "Ugh, how is it they're not worried about drowning themselves?"

Ren pursed his lips at the rhetorical question before deciding to answer. "…Because they're all practically adults who're in the shallow end of the water?" He peaked an eye open to glance down at Neptune. "You DO know they're all standing up, right?"

"…Okay, good point, but just look at 'em!" Ren did as Neptune said and saw Nora practically get shoved under the water by a massive blast from Water Hazard. Admittedly, he did feel a bit of concern tug at his gut, but Nora reemerged a moment later, still laughing as she got right back into things. However, Neptune noticed this little bit of worry etch onto Ren's expression and couldn't help but smirk a bit. "Ya know, I'm surprised you aren't out there with 'em."

Ren closed his eye again and continued to meditate. "I'm not exactly much for playing in the water. Swimming I'm fine with, but I'd rather not get utterly soaked like that."

"Hm, too bad." Neptune shrugged. "Because if you DID go out there, what're the chances that you and Nora could get absolutely close?" The moment he saw Ren's eyes snap open and his lips contort in shock, he knew he had him right where he wanted him. "Dude, I'm gonna be straight up with you; you have NO idea how lucky you are. You've got a crazy, bubbly, and attractive redhead who absolutely adores you and something tells me you feel the same way back." He crossed his arms and followed that up with; "So here's my question; what's holding you back from asking her out?"

As much as Ren wanted to deny all of that, he learned a long time ago that it was futile to deny his feelings for his best friend. He sighed and his shoulders slumped. "In all honesty? Fear. Fear of our relationship not working out, of losing our friendship… of not being interesting enough for her."

That last one piqued Neptune's interest. "Interesting? Ren, the hell are you on about?"

"Neptune, Nora and I couldn't be more polar opposite if we tried." Ren stated. "She's wild, outgoing, and her laugh is infectious enough to improve anybody's mood. Me? I'm… reserved, quiet, and I mostly like to keep to myself. We've been great friends for years, but…" He set his sights back over to Nora, the water glistening her skin in the bright sunlight as her wet hair stuck against her face. It was probably the most attractive thing he had ever seen in his life. "…who's to say that'll work in an ACTUAL relationship?"

"…Dude, I know I'm not the best in terms of romance." Neptune glanced away and muttered; "Had to learn that the hard way." He quickly went back to Ren with a reassuring smile. "But even I know that Nora likes you for who you are. You know what Gwen would say to you right now if she heard you say that?" Neptune poked the side of his head. "She'd say; "that's the little voice in the back of your head talking". Ya know, the one that wants you to keep self-doubting yourself even though it's all a bunch of crap you're making up yourself?"

Ren furrowed his brow at his friend. "And just when did YOU become an expert on relationships?"

The blue-haired boy scanned his eyes around, making sure no one was listening in before whispering; "To tell you the truth… Gwen's been giving me some counseling on the side. After seeing how she was able to bring Jaune and Pyrrha, and Blake and Sun together, I figured it wouldn't hurt to try and seek out some advice."

The ninja's eyebrows rose up in surprise. "Hm, I'm impressed, Neptune. What brought that on?"

Immediately, Neptune's mind went back to when a certain Kineceleran girl had crashed into him the day that they had arrived on Earth, but he wasn't about to come clean on that just yet. "Oh, well… I honestly just wanted to know how to handle relationships the RIGHT way. Maybe if I did, I'd have better luck with girls."

"…That's actually very mature of you, Neptune." Ren commended with a smile. "And thank you for the talk." Ren slipped off the boulder with an eager expression. "I think I'm gonna take a swing at that water war over there."

"Heh, your funeral, bud." Neptune waved before walking over toward the volley ball courts. "As for me, I'm gonna see what the others are up to." With that, the two went their separate ways, with Ren shedding his shirt before charging straight into the water.

He actually managed to blindside everyone as he splashed water right in Yang's face, sending her toppling back with a loud yelp. Nora couldn't help but gasp in surprise. "AH! Renny!"

Ren smiled to her and gave her a wink. "Room for one more?"

Immediately, she glomped right onto him, her chest pressing right up against his. "EEEEE! Yes, yes, YES! One more for Team Nora!" She couldn't see it, but for a brief moment, Ren's cheeks was as red as it could possibly be.

However, a certain hero took umbrage with all of that. "Oh, no way, that's totally unfair!" Water Hazard said before craning his head toward a certain EVO that was rushing by with Weiss. "REX! Get Weiss and yourself over here, we've got a water war to win!"

…..

Back on shore, Neptune had made his way over to the volley ball courts, where Team CFVY were currently playing a game with one of the stranger combinations that Neptune had seen. On the other side of the court were Jaune and Pyrrha, along with Kevin and Ilia. Off to the side of the court was a tall officiator's chair that Cooper was currently occupying, and the whistle in his hands just confirmed for Neptune that he was refereeing the match. "Hey guys!" Neptune made his presence known with a wave, getting everyone's attention. "So, what's the score?"

"Hey, Neptune." Ilia greeted. "Nothing yet, actually. We're literally just getting started."

"Yeah, you wanna join us?" Coco asked as she jabbed her thumb over toward her boyfriend. "Might finally give Tech Head an excuse to play a game for once."

Cooper couldn't help but deadpan at that. "Hey, I'm a good ref, aren't I?"

Coco sent him a mischievous grin. "Well yeah, but if we end up crashing and burning, I'll at least be able to land on top of you."

Jaune, Neptune and Kevin were utterly stunned while Cooper blushed profusely… along with Ilia. Pyrrha was the only one to keep her composure with a bit of an eyeroll. "Coco, my word, do you just think dirty thoughts twenty-four-seven?"

"Eh, not all the time." Coco denied. "Sometimes I act on those dirty thoughts."

"COCO!"

Velvet pinched the bridge of her nose and let out a heavy sigh. "Okay, this has officially gone too far." She lifted the ball up and pleaded; "Can we just get this game going, please?"

"Yeah, lets." Kevin agreed as everyone took their places on the sandy court. The Osmosian eyed Neptune before things got started, however. "Last chance, Neptune. You want in or no?"

But Neptune just shook his head. "Nah, you guys go on ahead." He found a lounge chair and sat himself down in it. "I'll just watch from here, and maybe I'll get in on a game sometime later."

Jaune gave him a small shrug. "Alright, dude, whatever you say. Okay, let's get started!" Velvet nodded to him as she served the ball, hitting it directly over to their side. Jaune saw that it was coming right to him and he rushed to meet it, getting an underhand hit that sent the ball flying right back over the net. Fox quickly sprinted for it, though and he hit it back, sending it straight for Ilia. "It's coming your way, Ilia!"

"Already on it!" the chameleon girl affirmed before smacking the ball back with her hand.

"Velvet, back over to you!" Coco called out.

With great speed, Velvet actually jumped up and met the ball in the air, spiking it downward back toward the other side. Before it could hit the ground, though, Pyrrha dove for it. "I have it—GAH!" She managed to save the ball, but still ended up falling into the sand after hitting it. Worst of all, though, she got sand in her mouth. "Ptui! Ugh, fantastic…" She craned her head up and, much to her horror, the ball was coming back down. "Ah! Somebody save it!"

"Don't worry, I'm on it!" Kevin shouted before jumping and smacking the ball back to Team CFVY's side.

Coco quickly intercepted the ball herself and hit it back, though Ilia managed to return it to whence it came. But then, before anyone else could do anything, Yatsu charged up and leapt high into the air. He brought his hand up to the volley ball and, with a very strong SMACK, he spiked it straight back over the net. The hit was so quick that no one could meet it in time, and the ball made impact with the sand on the opposing side. Cooper blew his whistle and raised his left hand. "Point; Team CFVY!"

A slew of cheers came from the team of four as Kevin, Ilia, Jaune and Pyrrha all groaned in disappointment. "Not really the best of starts." Pyrrha muttered as she continued to brush the sand off of her.

"Should've figured that Yatsu would be a secret weapon of theirs." Kevin added. "The dude's taller than the height of the net!"

"Maybe, but while they've got the bigger player, I think we might be able to out strategize them." Jaune said with a knowing grin. He ushered the others to huddle up as he explained his plan. "Okay, here's what we're gonna do…"

As the game went on, Jaune's team found themselves able to keep up better with Team CFVY through the blonde knight's strategy. While they didn't have Yatsu's height, they DID have speed to make up for that. Specifically, Ilia was pretty much keeping her full attention on Yatsu, making sure to stop any spikes he could've made. And while he DID manage to sneak a few past her, she actually ended up stopping quite a few more. That left Jaune, Pyrrha and Kevin more than able to keep up with the others, and score a few points for themselves as well.

As such, the score was tied up about five to five over the course of the last half hour, and Cooper had decided that this last round would be the tie breaker. "Alright, whoever scores this round will be the winners of the game." He nodded over to Jaune, who had the ball in his hand. "Jaune's team has the ball, so he'll be serving. Alright, let's go!"

Cooper blew the whistle and Jaune served the ball, and before everyone knew it, they were back into their rhythm. "Remember, Yatsu, keep an eye on Color Girl over there." Coco reminded her tall teammate.

"Oh, I know." Yatsu wore a determined grin and narrowed his eyes at Ilia, who wore a similar smirk right back at him. "You've been pretty slippery so far, Ilia, but I won't let you put one over on me!"

"We'll see about that." Ilia countered. "Oh, by the way, you might not wanna just pay attention to me."

"H-Huh?" Yatsu snapped his head up to see Kevin about to spike the ball over the net. "AGH!" Yatsu quickly dove and managed to save the ball, knocking it high over the net. …But he also got his own mouthful of sand for his troubles.

Ilia couldn't help but laugh at the scene. "Haha! See? I'm not the only one here who's dangerous."

"I've got it!" Pyrrha called out before hitting the ball… only to feel a slight tremor beneath her feet. "W-WHOA!" The Invincible Girl actually lost her footing and landed on her side in the sand again, much to her annoyance. "Agh, what was that?!"

The ball ended up falling out of bounds and Cooper blew his whistle again, putting his hands in a T-shape. "Time out!"

"Pyrrha!" Jaune and the others, including Neptune, jogged over to the redhead to see if she was okay. "A-Are you hurt?"

"Mph, no, I don't think so." Pyrrha steadily got to her feet with Jaune aiding her, all while wearing a perturbed expression. "But I am a bit miffed that I keep landing in the sand. Did anyone else feel that tremor?"

Neptune raised his hand. "Yeah, I did. Anyone know what that was?"

Kevin shook his head. "I dunno, mini-earthquake, maybe? We ARE near a fault line, after all."

But Pyrrha was quick to wave that suggestion off. "No, that's not it. It felt like something was… moving beneath me. I—huh?!" All of a sudden, the rumbling from before came back, and this time, it was FAR more powerful. Before anyone could react, something huge came bursting out from under the sand, knocking away the referee chair as well as the volley ball net. The teens were all sent flying and landed with a thud.

"ACK! What the—FUCK!" Kevin belted out as he saw… one of the most bizzare things he had ever seen.

Standing before them with a pair of massive eyes and antennae pointed right toward them, was an absolutely MASSIVE carpenter ant. The giant insect's eyes glowed bright red as it came crawling out of the hole it dug from underneath them. It then belted out out a loud, chittering cry as it came scuttling toward them on its six large legs. Immediately, Velvet, Ilia and Neptune all screamed in terror as the other stared on in shock.

…All except for one. "Anyone mind telling me what's going on?!" Fox exclaimed.

"GIANT ANT!" Coco screamed.

"Oh, that makes sense… RUN!"

That statement actually managed to baffle Kevin a bit. "Wait, what?!" He spun around as the others began hightailing it out of there. "C'mon guys, we can take this thing!"

"We don't have our WEAPONS, Kevin!" Velvet shouted back.

"…Ah, fair point." Kevin conceded before feeling a hot breath on his back. The Osmosian's eyes widened as his head slowly craned around, seeing that the Giant Ant was now mere inches away from him… and what was worse was that there was another ant following it out of the sand. The Osmosian, taking note of the lack of nearby materials to absorb and being outnumbered, did exactly what a smart person should do in that situation; sprint away as fast as he could and call for his best friend. "BEN!"

…..

Just as he and the others were making their way out of the water after their Splash War, Water Hazard reached for the Omnitrix to transform himself back to normal. But before he could, he heard Kevin call out his name, and oddly enough, it sounded urgent. 'Kevin doesn't normally SOUND that panicked.' He and Gwen apparently had the same thought as both their heads snapped around to the volley ball courts… and both of them were flabbergasted by what they saw. "WHAT THE SCALLOP?!"

The moment everyone else saw the pair of massive insects as well, several screams were heard, the loudest without question being from Weiss as she hid behind Rex. "AAAAAAAAHHH! WHAT ARE THOSE?!"

"They're… giant ants?!" Ruby uttered.

"They're GiAnts!" Nora deduced.

Yang took a step back as she grimaced in disgust. "Ugh, if I weren't so busy trying to hold down my lunch, I probably would've made that pun myself."

Penny began scanning the large creatures with her eyes, processing all of this information in her mind in an attempt to comprehend it all. "This is impossible! The common carpenter ant isn't more than a single centimeter big! How can this be?!"

"I'll give you one guess as to how." Gwen spoke up. "This has Doctor Animo's finger prints ALL over it."

Yang edged over to her boyfriend, sneering at the massive insects as they continued to chase down their friends. "Okay, Green Boy, most of us are without our weapons and those things are right in the way of the resort. What do we do?"

Water Hazard furrowed his eyeridges and clenched his fists, preparing himself to do something crazy. "You guys wait here. Stay as far away from that thing as possible." He then gave Rex a nod. "Rex, you're with me. We're gonna lure those bugs away from the others and then take care of them… the old-fashioned way."

"You got it, dude." Rex said with a thumbs up. "Let's exterminate these pests!" He made sure to give Weiss' hand a reassuring squeeze before he left, though. "Don't worry. We'll handle these things."

"Please do." Weiss squeaked out in fear. "I hate bugs."

Rex nodded to her before he and Water Hazard charged toward the insects, the latter bringing up his palms to blast two streams of water at their heads. The GiAnts let out loud screeches, startled by the water before they turned to the two heroes. "Yeah, that's right ya oversized B-movie rejects!" Water Hazard taunted.

"Come over here, we're the REAL meat ya want!" Rex activated his Slam Cannon and loaded it up with a bunch of sand, taking aim at the lead ant. "And I hope ya like salty sea food!" BAM! He fired the sandy projectile at the first ant and it was sent toppling over, screeching again as its compatriot came charging at the duo. Before long, the first ant was back up as well, and with that, Rex and Water Hazard began leading both of them away from their friends. "Hah, so, I'm guessing you and I probably have the same definition of "old fashioned", right?"

"More than likely." Water Hazard placed his hand up to the Omnitrix. "Let's do this!" With that, the Orishan slapped the Omnitrix, transforming himself into a different alien while a bright blue light began to shine out from Rex's entire being, all while his entire body began to transform as well. By the time both lights died down, two enormous beings stood on the beach where Ben and Rex had been standing before… and the ants suddenly felt VERY small once more.

Before them stood a massive blue and black metallic robot that was at least eighty meters tall. It wore a face plate and had piercing blue eyes that matched the flames coming out of its head, and it had what appeared to be goggles on his helm as well. Next to him was an equally tall white alien with red armored parts along his legs, feet, arms and torso, with a large fin protruding from his head while a pair of large red blades came out of his arms. He also had two sets of green eyes, one where they normally were and a second pair on his cheeks. Both of them glared down to the ants before the alien eyed his robotic friend. "Well, Omega Rex? Shall we?"

"Yeah, Way Big, we shall." the robot responded. As if on cue, both Omega Rex and Way Big lifted their legs up over the ants and, inevitably, they brought their feet down and began squishing the pair of bugs. Granted, this had the added effect of kicking up a bunch of sand, but in the end, it still proved effective. Once the two were done, however, they made an unfortunate discovery. "Gah, gross! It's all over my boot!" Omega Rex began hobbling over to the ocean, but Way Big stopped him before he made it there.

"Uh, I wouldn't do that if I were you." The To'kustar warned. "I'd rather NOT pollute the swimming water full of sea creatures." He proceeded to bend over, scrape the bug guts off his boot, and then chuck it straight over the cliff and into the jungles instead. "There, that's the better option. I'm sure SOME animal will eat that."

"Eh, if you say so." Omega Rex conceded before doing the same thing his friend just did. The massive robotic EVO then gave a shrug. "Honestly, I don't know why we just don't go giant-sized more often. Would make fighting bad guys a lot easier."

But Way Big just shook his head. "Dude, where's the fun in that? I actually LIKE a good challenge these days."

Omega Rex thought it over for a bit before nodding. "Yeah, you've got a point." From there, a bright flash of colored light suddenly came from both heroes, and before they knew it, they were back to their regular human forms. And without a moment to spare, they were met by all of their friends, with Weiss and Yang in particular hugging the both of them.

"Oh thank GOD." Weiss breathed out as she gave Rex a kiss on the cheek. "I am SO glad that you guys took care of that. If any of those ants had gotten near me, I think I would've thrown up."

"Yeah, talk about gross." Yang added as she gave Ben a full-on kiss on the lips, all while fully aware that he was blushing up a storm given the fact that she had her bikini-clad chest pressed up right against his.

Pyrrha stepped up and placed her hands on her hips. "Well, that's all well and good, but if I may ask the obvious question; just where DID those ants come from?"

Jaune crossed his arms in contemplation. "And why HERE of all places?"

"Well, both questions have pretty easy answers." Gwen pointed out. "Like I said before; this has Animo's finger prints all over it." Everyone's attention immediately went to her as she continued; "Remember what Subdora said yesterday while we were at Teotihuacan? She said that Hog and Skull were helping Animo with a little project. How much do you wanna bet that those ants had something to do with it?"

"Yeah, and the fact that their eyes were glowing red also adds credence to that." Cooper pointed out. "Normally, ants don't have glowing eyes, so my guess is that Animo must be controlling them somehow."

Sun placed his hands on his hips. "Okay, so what do we do?"

Blake tilted her head as well. "Yeah, I mean, it's not like we know where Animo is, so… wait." The cat girl trailed off as her ears perked up, hearing something approaching from off in the distance. "Do you guys hear that?"

"I do." Velvet piped up as she and Blake set their eyes out the ocean. "Something's approaching the beach from the air, and it's coming in fast."

The others followed their line of sight, and eventually, from over the horizon, they could indeed see something approaching them. And, as it came closer, the group couldn't help but smile as they recognized it as a familiar orange and cream-colored space ship. "Hey, it's the Proto-TRUK!" Neptune exclaimed as the vehicle came in for a landing.

"And I think we all know what that means." Ben and the others approached the ship as it landed, and sure enough, a certain Revonnahgander came climbing out from the cockpit to greet them. "Hey, Rook! What a surprise!"

"Ah, hello everyone!" Rook greeted back with a smile. "I was hoping you all would be here." His smile fell away, however, his features growing more serious. "I apologize if I am intruding on your weekend vacation, but I have some urgent news from Plumber base regarding a strange anomaly happening in the Mexican desert, and considering you were in the area, I thought you should all know."

Ren quirked a brow at the young Plumber. "Uh, that "anomaly" wouldn't have anything to with gigantic ants, now would it?"

Rook furrowed his brow. "…Actually, yes. How did you…" Nora jerked her thumb over to the spot where Way Big and Omega Rex had squashed the GiAnts, pointing out the massive trenches they had dug out with their feet along with the ant-shaped imprints they had left behind. "Ah, I see. Well, in any case, yes, there have been several sightings of massive insects being seen by locals out in the desert, and I have been sent to investigate."

"And us!" The entire team perked up at the sudden shout as they saw Manny and Helen peaking their heads out from the Proto-TRUK's rear, the latter waving out to them. "Don't forget us! Hi guys!"

"H-Hey, Helen!" Neptune waved back. "Good to see you!"

"Wish we could say the same, but we're kinda on a tight schedule!" Manny hollered as he tapped his wrist for emphasis. "Rook, we gotta get out to the dessert, pronto." The half-Tetramand nudged his head toward the Omni-Hunters. "You guys are free to come if you want, but if you're gonna tag along, better get dressed quick!"

Ben let out a heavy sigh as he pursed his lips in annoyance. "Well, something tells me I had better go. If Animo and the Ministry are behind this, you guys are gonna want at least one of us as back up." He sent a reassuring smile to his team. "Guys, you all make sure to enjoy your day on the beach. I'm not about to let Animo ruin your fun in the sun, so—"

"Hold up there, Green Boy." Yang interjected, placing a hand to his shoulder. "If you're going, then so am I."

This made Ben's eyes widen in surprise. "What? B-But Yang, you were so looking forward to this. I don't wanna—mph!"

Yang silenced him by pressing her finger to his lips, giving him a small, warning gaze. "No buts, Ben. I understand what you're trying to do, and it's very sweet. But if the Ministry IS involved in this, then you're going to want more back up." She raised a hand to Helen and Manny. "No offense to you guys, by the way, it's just you haven't faced the Ministry before, so…"

"Oh, it's okay, we get it." Helen nodded. "Trust me, we don't want to get our asses kicked either. It'll be pretty helpful to have a few of you guys along."

"Helen's right." Neptune concurred before raising his hand. "Actually, I'd also like to come along. Not gonna lie, the beach ain't really my speed anyway, and I'm always up for more action."

Ben glanced between Helen and Yang before asking his girlfriend; "You're sure about this?"

"I am." Yang reached an arm around him and pulled him close for a hug. "We'll just make sure that this gets done quick so that we'll be back before sundown."

"That IS possible, actually." Rook popped in. "The Proto-TRUK is capable of great speeds, so we will be out to the desert in no time."

The hero thought it over for a moment before giving a single nod. "Well, alright, if that's the case then how can I say no?" He turned Yang and Neptune with a smile. "Let's go get changed and head out." He went back to his team and raised a brow at them. "You guys will be good here while we're gone, right?"

"Oh yeah, we'll be fine!" Ruby said with a salute, the rest of the Omni-Hunters muttering their own agreements. "We'll see you when you guys get back. And good luck with the… ugh, infestation."

"Heh, thanks. And you guys enjoy your time on the beach. We'll be back as soon as possible." Once more, Ben looked to Yang and Neptune with a determined gaze. "Alright, guys, let's gear up. It's Hero Time!"

…..

A/N: And there we have it! One beach chapter added right into the books! And for those of you who are wondering, don't worry… this won't be the LAST beach chapter by any means. The summer's still young in Ben's universe, so there's gonna be PLENTY of opportunities for the gang to head back to any beach and have a good time. That said, as you probably expected, the sights of their girlfriends in swimsuits definitely served to leave the boys stunned. Because let's face it, swimsuits are pretty much designed to be attractive. Doesn't matter which gender you are or who you're attracted to, I'm fairly certain that there are a LOT of people who are attracted to swimsuits.

Of course, though, we can't just ignore what happened at the start of the chapter either. Mercury got read his rights after he snapped at Emerald one too many times, and he got slapped for it. Hoo boy, if this doesn't convince him to straighten up his act, then nothing will. Also, Salem makes her first appearance on Earth itself! A cordial visit to reprimand her followers, but still pretty significant.

But all that aside, I'd say that the heroes' time on the beach has been pretty fun… at least so far. Ben got over a HUGE hurtle by applying sunscreen to Yang's back while Yang herself discovered that her boyfriend has magic hands (no doubt BOTH of those experiences are going to come in… handy down the line *wink*), plus we had a good old fashioned Water War with said couple teaming with Ruby and Penny to take on Gwen, Blake, Nora and Sun, all while Rex and Weiss went jetskiing! And to follow that up, we saw Ren and Neptune have a little bro talk about relationships, with Neptune actually bolstering Ren's self confidence a bit, so good for him! And of course, we had Kevin, Jaune, Pyrrha and Ilia facing off against Team CFVY in a volley ball match…

And that's where Doctor Animo's 1950's B-Movie creations decided to show their ugly heads. Fortunately, Ben and Rex handled them quite effectively, but at the same time, Animo now has to be stopped. Fortunately, the Plumbers are already on it as Rook has arrived with Helen and Manny in tow! Now, with Ben, Yang and Neptune joining the fray, it's time to enact a little payback on the good doctor for interrupting their beach day!

So with that said, NEXT TIME! The team of six head out into the Mexican desert to stop whatever Animo's latest plan is. But, will things go as smoothly as they hope… or will there be a few curveballs along the way? Join us next time as we find out, because when it comes to this mission, I think we ALL know who the culprit is… IT WAS THEM! Thanks for reading everybody and I'll see you all next time. And as always, stay safe out there!