A/N (PLEASE READ): Hello once again, everybody! Welcome back to Ben 10 RWBY and the fourth and final part of this Norse-themed opening arc for Season 3! And, I'll just say this, after quite a few hefty, action-filled chapters, it's time to bring things down a bit with… a decent-sized action-filled chapter to wrap it up. I mean, hey, it's the last part of this arc, so I guess it's only fitting.

But before we get started, I suppose I should share my thoughts on RWBY Volume 9 since I neglected to do so last week like I had promised initially. Overall, I thought the Volume was… alright. I mean, I wasn't really left disappointed unlike the last one, so I guess that's a plus, but I WAS left emotionally drained, so that compensated things a bit. But, more to the point, I thought the Ever After was an interesting setting for the volume itself… but I don't think it's one that would work for THIS story specifically, especially since… well, to be blunt, I kinda undid all of Ruby's trauma just by having Ben save the day at Beacon back in Dimension Twist, so that's kinda negated. Whoops.

But of course, there WERE two major take-aways from the Volume that need to be addressed; the origins of Remnant's Gods… as well as the reveal that Raven, in canon, actually WENT on that last mission with Summer Rose. …And in my story, I've pretty much established that the exact opposite is the case. Yeah, never know what kind of curveballs you're gonna be thrown when it comes to RWBY lore, eh? Well, for the sake of simplicity, I believe I'm going to keep it that way, because at this point, it'd be too much of a hassle to retcon, and honestly, with how I've developed Raven so far, I don't think I even could. So just keep that in mind; in this story, Raven didn't go with Summer on that last mission. And as for the God's origins, I thought that was fairly cool that they came from the Ever After… now I just gotta figure out how to incorporate that into this story. Might be something for Paradox to mention…

But, enough preamble, and let's begin, shall we? This is…

Chapter 64: A Forgone Conclusion

…..

Cinder couldn't believe it. They had been asked by a GOD to keep the Omni-Hunters at bay, and what happens?! Some snooty Miss Priss comes and takes at least half of them away right when they were actually on top of things. And, on top of that, she was pretty sure that the heroes weren't even the ones who DESTROYED that ice tower. Wherever that massive pillar and that flying monkey person came from, she didn't know, but at this point, she was beginning to question everything that had happened that night. 'Does this universe just hate us? Was that streak of victories just a fluke, or are we starting to lose our touch?' This was her train of thought as she continued to class against Raven, the two Maidens creating a strong whirlwind around them thanks to their exchanging strikes.

Raven lifted a leg to kick Cinder in the gut, knocking the wind out of the Fall Maiden as she was sent flying back several feet. "This is checkmate, Cinder!" The Spring Maiden pointed Omen directly at her adversary. "The Grimm are all gone, your plan is unraveling at the seams, and I believe that your deal with Loki has been called off thanks to circumstances out of your control." Her glare hardened as her eyes flared up. "I'll give you one last chance to flee. And tell Salem that if she EVER thinks about attacking Bellwood again, then she'll have to answer to ALL of us!"

"…You think this is done and over with?" Cinder replied quietly at first, her voice increasing in volume over time. "No, no it is not! Because guess what, you old bird?! You forget that, at this very moment, Bashmouth is more than likely succeeding in his end goal!" She raised her nose up at her fellow Maiden. "We WILL leave… and we likely won't attack Bellwood again…" Cinder smirked as she added a final touch; "But the rest of this world? It's all up for grabs. Salem will ensure that the Grimm terrorize every inch of this planet, even if we have to do it by one city at a time!"

Taking a deep breath, Raven summoned her power and coalesced it into an Ice Bow, drawing back the string as an arrow appeared on it. "Well then… we MUST do our best to stay on top of it!" She let her arrow fly straight toward Cinder, only for her to throw her blade directly at the projectile. They exploded in a burst of steam, taking Raven off guard.

"Hmhm…" With a dark chuckle, Cinder rushed through the mist and brought up another sword, swiping it at Raven only for it to clash with Omen yet again. "I'd like to see you try."

Down below, Gwen, Kevin, Qrow, Jaune, Pyrrha, Ren and Neptune were all standing off against the rest of the Ministry, everyone breathing heavily after all the fighting they'd done. Well, all aside from Gwen, who floated above everyone with the golem still at her beck and call. "So, tell me…" Gwen furrowed her brow at Rojo. "Do you all yield?"

"You… you just got lucky is all!" Rojo snapped. "Of all the freaking deities to have on your side, of COURSE you'd have the god damned Monkey King watching your back! How freaking fair is that?!"

"Yeah, I call fowl!" Emerald pointed her weapon at the heroes. "How is it that YOU guys get so many awesome gods and we got only one?!"

Mercury stomped his foot. "Yeah, and besides, it ain't over yet." Next to him, Neo snickered silently as the villains wore similar smirks. "It's like Cinder said, once Bashmouth gets his boys out, our business here will be over…" *VWOOM* Mercury's eyes widened at a sudden sound coming from behind him, which prompted everyone to turn their heads. "Oh… and I think that might be sooner than you think."

Gwen and the others gasped at the sight of the dark portal, leading to an even darker place. The fields were nothing but ashen grey, with massive purple crystals sticking out of the ground everywhere. In the distance, they could see a massive, black castle towering over everything, but their more immediate concern was at the very forefront of the portal. There, Eon stood on the other side, the dimension traveler decidedly not stepping through as he kept his hands behind his back. "Ah, good evening, everyone…" His eyes narrowed at Gwen. "I assume you're all getting along."

"Not even close there, dude." Neptune denied, pointing Tri-Hard at him. "Give us one good reason why we shouldn't storm in there and—"

"Ah, now, now, no need to be so hasty." Eon urged with a raised hand. "After all…" From out of the dark soil surrounding him, a whole bunch of thin, gnarled arms came thrusting out, all of them with sharp nails. No doubt they had to be Grimm, as when they emerged, Gwen visibly winced at a sudden surge of dark power. "…Salem is not too far away, as you can tell." Eon concluded.

Raven grit her teeth at that. They were essentially being threatened to just let the Ministry walk away… and it was working. "…Fine." The team looked to her in astonishment as she lowered herself to the ground, deactivating her Maiden Powers. "I would rather no more harm come to this town than take that risk. Take your underlings and go, but be warned;" She glowered at Eon as she made her eyes flare up again. "You so much as dare set the Grimm upon Bellwood again and you all WILL be dealt with using extreme prejudice. And I believe Ben will not hesitate to agree with me."

Eon hummed and nodded to her. "Duly noted. Very well, we will concede to your terms… but not before wrapping up some unfinished business…" He craned his head upward and called out; "Cinder!" The Fall Maiden whipped her head down, meeting Eon's gaze. "Bashmouth is currently out of Plumber HQ and he has his men. The mission is complete. Salem expects all of you to pull back and return to headquarters, now."

As much as Cinder wanted to continue to fight Raven, she knew that the Spring Maiden's powers weren't the objective of this assignment. 'One day, though… I WILL have them.' She spared Raven a glance, who simply glowered back. Cinder reciprocated with a smirk and a shrug. "Very well. Not like there's much that these heroes can do against Bashmouth at this point."

"You'd be surprised, Cinder." Raven returned. "I think you forget, but we have a God of Thunder on our side, and knowing Ben, he's on his way to Plumber Base as we speak."

Back in the portal, Eon gave a dark chortle as Rojo and the others stepped through. "Ah-ha, yes, that's right… remind me, though, didn't Tennyson never technically BEAT Bashmouth?" Under his helmet, the villain smirked as he snapped his fingers. "Oh right… no, he didn't. At best, he could only pummel him into submission, but Bashmouth just kept going right after that. And as for the Thunderer…" He pointed over the buildings toward the crashing lightning bolts… which weren't even close to HQ. "I think he's busy with other matters, so… best of luck."

"Indeed… you're going to need it." Flying down to the portal, Cinder peered past her shoulder, giving one last condescending wave to the heroes. "For now, goodbye, fools. When next we meet… we will not leave so easily." Before stepping through the vortex, however, she peered over her shoulder, giving Gwen an irritated eye. "Oh, and Gwendolyn… tell that catty, silver-haired witch of a friend of yours that I will get even with her. When our paths cross again, I WILL show her what happens when you cross the Ministry."

"Fair enough." Gwen retaliated with a smirk. "She'll kick your ass." A sneer graced Cinder's visage, but the Fall Maiden reserved herself to just insulting the Anodite under her breath as she entered the portal back to Remnant. Once through, Eon snapped his fingers and made the portal close… but not before Cinder stuck her tongue out and flipped Gwen off right before it did. "AAGH! Th-That bit—"

"Settle down, Gwen." Raven consoled, setting a hand on Gwen's shoulder. "She isn't worth the aggravation. Besides, we have more important matters to worry about."

Qrow jerked a thumb in the direction where smoke and fire continued to billow over the city skyline. "Yeah, like gettin' that rabid mutt an' his cronies under control."

Taking a hold of his girlfriend's shoulders, Kevin agreed gently. "The old man's right, Gwen. We got a job to finish."

Gwen took in a deep breath, calming herself and giving them a nod while changing back to her human form. "You're right. I can't let Cinder get to me." With a wave of her hand, she cast a spell on the golem beside her and made it shrink down into her palm. Gwen slipped the tiny, immobile creature into her pocket before motioning for everyone to group up around her. "Come on, it'll be quicker for us to teleport to the base."

"I only hope we're not too late…" Pyrrha mumbled in concern.

"I'm sure that Rex, Weiss and the others have been holding them back with all they have." Jaune reassured his girlfriend with a smile, sheathing his sword briefly. "Now, it's our turn to give them some help. Let's roll, Gwen."

With everyone gathered around, it didn't take Gwen long to follow through. "Right. Let's finish this, everyone." Within moments, Gwen's eyes glows bright pink and she chanted a spell, disappearing in a flash of light in an instant.

…..

As that was happening, however, Ben's group had already teleported onto the scene, all six of them ready for action. …But the moment their vision cleared up, they were met with an absolute warzone the length of at least three city blocks, taking them aback. The road was smashed up, small fires burning all around, and pieces of road signs and streetlights were strewn about everywhere, all while the chaos continued further down the street. One building had even caught fire entirely, though thankfully, no one seemed to be inside. It was enough to make Blake gasp and cover her mouth. "W-What in the world?!"

"Good god…" Sun trailed off, taking it all in. "How the hell…"

Yang was just as astonished as the rest of them, to be sure. Of course, given that this was Bashmouth's doing, it wasn't too surprising, but it was still a harrowing sight nonetheless. But, out the corner of her eye, she could see her boyfriend's lips curling into a savage, angry snarl, his features hardening into a scowl unlike anything she had seen before. 'Alright, it's time to get serious.' Yang reached for Ben's hand, giving it a gentle, reassuring squeeze. "We WILL stop him. I promise."

Ben pressed his lips together, keeping his rage in check as he returned the soft squeeze. "Yeah… yeah, I know we will. But first…" The hero brought up the Omnitrix and dialed in Water Hazard, ready to do his duty. "…I've got some fires to put out." He brought his hands up and shouted; "It's Hero Time!" before slamming it back down. And the results were… odd.

Rather than transforming into Water Hazard like he wanted, Ben became a large, stocky, alien with a hide made of smooth, dark blue metal with black details on his hands, feet and midsection. There were thick tubes running from his arms and into his back, and his biceps and thighs were covered in a heavy, segmented grey armor. He had sharp elbows and kneepads with a dome-shaped head, the mouth of which was covered in some sort-of scuba mask. His arms and the tubes leading to his scuba mask had clear parts that were actually filled to the brim with cyan blue water, and at the top of his head were another pair of cylindrical water tanks as well. His green eyes pierced through the black "mask" that surrounded them, with the Omnitrix symbol resting prominently at the center of his chest.

Ruby and Nora blinked in surprise and gasped, both pointing at their friend. "AAH! New Alien!" they screamed.

"W-Wait, wha—OH!" Ben's voiced was now echoey and somewhat muffled in this new form, given a metallic affect thanks to his scuba mask. "Um… okay, wasn't expecting THIS to happen." He inspected his dark blue-plated arms and body, noting that he was filled with liquid. "Well, I'm not Water Hazard, but I'm SOME sort of water-based alien." The new transformation narrowed his eyes at the fires and ran toward them as fast as he could, raising his hands up and holding his palms out. "Alright, time to dowse his bla—AAZE!" Unbeknownst to him, however, the water jets didn't come from his palms, but from the small nozzles at his wrists… and they came out HARD.

So hard, in fact, that Ben wasn't prepared for the sheer force behind the wake and was sent careening right back toward the others, causing them to scream and dodge out of the way. Instead, Ben hit a group of trashcans back-first, conking his head against a brick wall with a hard TONG! "Ben!" Yang went over and tried to help him up. "You okay?"

"Ugh… kinda." Once the hero's eyes stopped spinning, however, he caught sight of what he had done… and it was rather astonishing to him. He had just absolutely drenched that whole building in one blast, putting out the fire in an instant... and flooding it in the process. "Woah… what the…"

"You… overflowed it, to say the least." Charmcaster noted.

That word stuck in Yang's head the moment she heard it, and she instantly had an idea of what to call this new alien. "Hey, yeah! "Overflow"! I think that'd be the perfect name for this guy." she said as she helped her boyfriend to his feet.

The newly named Overflow rubbed his head, shaking the daze out of it. "Heh, well, "Overflow" does have a good ring to it. I'll take it." The robotic alien then hurried back onto the street, his attention moving to the smaller fires burning all around. Overflow rubbed his hands together and pointed his wrists out toward the road. "Alright, take two!" All at once, powerful jets of water came bursting out and soaked the street, with Overflow walking forward as he put the fires out. "Come on, guys, let's find that mutt!"

As the others followed, Charmcaster closed her eyes and began concentrating, focusing on any life presences within the area. "Hm… I can sense several people further down the way, actually. It seems that your teammates managed to move the fight away from Plumber Headquarters and to a more open area…"

"There's a small park not too far from here." Overflow noted. "If I had to guess, they're probably there—"

"W-Wait!" Charmcaster's eyes snapped open, her head whipping toward another building as her hands lit up. "There are two others approaching from the left! And they're coming in fast!" Sure enough, the sound of a low rumble began to get closer and closer from behind the building, growing ever louder until—

*BOOM* The group gave a shout as the front of the building exploded outward, toppling bricks across the road as Exo-Skull came charging out with Manny clinging to his horn. "GYAAAAH! Will you just freaking STOP?!" the Tetramand yelled.

"Not a chance, kid!" Skull countered, slamming him straight down onto the wet road below while raising a fist. "Yer gonna pay for puttin' ME in cuffs—h-huh?!" Without warning, something suddenly snared itself around Exo-Skull's hand… it was a whip, but not the one he was expecting. This one was made entirely of… water? "Hey, what they big ide—AH!" Just then, he was jerked back off of Manny and something jumped up on his back, bringing him down head-first onto the pavement.

"Sorry, Exo-Skull, but you're getting pulled into the undertow!" Overflow aimed his free nozzle at the rhino man and blasted point blank at his face, making him gargle on a whole jet stream of liquid. Once he was good and soaked, the hero pulled his other arm back along with the water whip, bashing him around on the ground repeatedly.

Manny's eyes widened in surprise. "Woah! Ben, great timin'!" He punched his fists into his palms as he glared at the rhino. "Here, lemme take a swing at him!"

Overflow gladly obliged. "Hah, be my guest!" Tossing Exo-Skull across the way, the hero smirked as Manny let out a battle cry and smashed his fists right into the mutant's head, making him crash down into the street once again.

Before anyone could say anything, though, another set of screams echoed through the area, leading everyone to look up and see none other than Penny flying through the air with Thunderhog hanging from her jetpack. The redheaded android seemed to be purposefully spinning rapidly as she flew, making Hog scream bloody murder; "I'M GONNA PUUUUUKE!"

Ruby brightened up at the sight of her friend and waved up to her. "PENNY! Down here!"

"Ruby?!" Penny stopped on a dime, making Thunderhog lose his grip and go tumbling down back to earth. "Salutations! I see that you have taken care of—oh… oops." Noticing her opponent's fall, Penny lifted a finger. "Give me one moment, will you?" Just like that, she shifted her Air Heart jetpack for her Mechano-Crushers and went careening down after Hog, punching him hard enough to change his course and crash right onto Exo-Skull.

"Woah!" Yang and the others covered their eyes as debris went flying everywhere, while Penny came to a dainty landing on top of the mutant pile-up with a proud grin. "Damn, Pen, might wanna give a warning next time!"

"Oh, my apologies!" Penny bowed profusely. "I simply saw an opportunity and I took it." The young robot-Mechamorph hybrid tilted her head at the sight of Overflow, however, but it didn't take her long to figure it out. "Oh! I see that you have obtained a new transformation, Ben! Congratulations!"

Overflow nodded to her. "Thanks, Penny. And good job taking down Thunderhog, too."

Right then, however, another voice chimed in; "Blake! Ruby!" The others turned around and saw Ilia come crawling over the destroyed building's rubble, hopping down to run right to her friends and hug them both. "You guys are here! W-What happened with the ice crystal? We saw SOMETHING crush it, but we couldn't get a good look."

"Oh… a bit of divine intervention happened." Blake noted with a knowing smile. "And believe it or not, it wasn't Thor's doing. But we can save explanations for later." Her gaze became sympathetic as she grasped Ilia's shoulder. "Did everyone make it out of the base alright? And what about Swift?"

Ilia let out a loud gasp, her hand flying over her mouth in realization. "AH! I-I don't know! Everything was happening so fast, I—"

"Yo!" Once again, another voice shouted toward the group from the opposite end of the street, leading everyone to spin around and see a whole group of Plumber personnel coming from the direction of the base. Leading the pack were Dr. Holiday, Bobo, Kenny, and much to Ilia's relief, Swift. The Aerophibian hybrid gave the team a wink. "Someone mention me—AH!"

The chameleon girl practically sprinted and flung herself full-on at Swift, enveloping her in a firm, concerned embrace. "You're okay! Oh my gosh, I-I was so worried about you when they broke in, I wanted to come down myself, b-but I knew I had to stay up here, but—"

Swift immediately took Ilia by the shoulders and pulled her back so that their eyes were locked. "Woah, woah, slow down, Ilia… I'm okay." She gestured down to her person. "See? Not a scratch on me…" Her cheeks flushed a darker shade of red than they usually were as she brought a hand to her neck, rubbing it anxiously. "B-But… I'm also really, REALLY glad that you came. I was honestly really worried about you, too, being out here with all this chaos going on."

Her words managed to make Ilia crack a smile. "Hah, you mean this? This is an average day for us at this point, but… i-it's nice to know that I'm not the only one worried."

As the other watched the scene go down, Blake, Yang and Ruby couldn't help but be completely frustrated by the scene. "…Good god, I just wish that they'd confess already." Blake whispered.

"I know, right?" Yang mumbled. "It's like, how much more obvious can you get?"

"Hah, I should have a conversation with Ilia about it soon." Ruby sighed before stepping up to the doctor. "But Dr. Holiday, how is everything down there? The other prisoners haven't escaped, have they?"

"Thankfully not." Holiday shook her head.

Bobo jerked a thumb over his shoulder. "We got da lanky one back there ta thank fer helpin' us outta there. Plus, those two managed ta make sure the whole prison complex didn't kick da bucket."

Through the crowd of Plumbers, Rook and Helen made their way out toward the front, smiling at the sight of the Omni-Hunters. "Everyone! There you are!" Rook waved. "Hah, I am grateful to see that you are all well…" He trailed off when he noticed the new, dark blue alien with them, but quickly realized who it was when he saw the Omnitrix. "Ah, and Ben! It would seem that you have transformed into a Cascan. Very appropriate."

"Uh… yeah, of course." The new alien cleared his throat. "But just call me "Overflow" in this form. So, anything big to report?"

Helen shook her head. "Not much here aside from the base being miraculously still intact… mostly." She jerked a thumb over her shoulder. "Alan's down there putting out the fires with another crew as we speak."

"Alright, some good news. That's always welcome." Overflow's head rotated to eye his older cousin. "And I can only guess that Winter's here as well since you are, Ken."

Kenny nodded back. "Yeah, she is. She's currently helping Six, Weiss and Rex hold off Bashmouth. And I'm pretty sure that Grandpa Max has followed them." He pointed off toward the other end of the road. "I'm pretty sure that they were headed to Rouleau Park, so you might wanna… wait." He narrowed his eyes at the suspiciously inconspicuous silver-haired woman with them. "Isn't that…"

"Oh yeah, I was gonna ask about that." Ilia turned away from Swift to squint at Charmcaster as well. "What is she doing here? Last I remember, we caught her trying to break into a museum, correct?"

"Indeed!" Penny piped up, poking the side of her head. "My memory banks have it stored on file." She leapt up and landing right in front of the sorceress, touching her fingertip to the tip of Charmcaster's nose. "I also recall how you ran away from the scene soon after. Care to explain yourself?"

"O-Okay, yes, I DID run away from my own breaking and entering." Charmcaster admitted, taking hold of Penny's hand to bring it down. "But I'm here to make up for it and help out however I can. There's no time to explain everything, but—ah!" Just then, a bright flash of pink light erupted from the sidewalk, and there, Gwen and the other half of the team appeared, much to Charmcaster's relief. "Gwen! Oh, thank goodness, you're just in time."

Before the Anodite could get a word out, though, Nora beat her to the punch by practically pouncing onto Ren. "RENNY! Ah-ha! You guys are okay! Hey, did ya see that giant pillar thingy and the floating guy with the tail? Oh, that was SO cool!"

"Hah, y-yeah, very cool, Nora." Ren concurred, only to see that the Thunderer wasn't with them. "Er, by the way… is Thor… you know?"

"Oh, yeah, he's takin' care of Frost Giants and all that. He'll be comin' back once he's done."

Gwen, however, was immediately taken aback by the large crowd, along with the fact that her brother was there. "W-What the… okay, didn't expect to see this when we got here." She gave Kenny a pointed look. "Especially YOU, mister. You know you shouldn't be here." Kenny gave her a sheepish smile, bowing apologetically. But, nevertheless, Gwen still sent Charmcaster a supportive nod. "But I'm glad we made it, Hope. Now, let's get down to… hold on, Ben?!" It was only then that she noticed her cousin's new form. "W-What in the world…"

Neptune was left similarly stunned. "Dude! When'd you get THAT guy?!"

"New alien, name's Overflow, discuss it later." The hero said in rapid-fire fashion. "Right now, we've got bigger concerns. But first, what happened with Cinder and the others?"

Jaune shook his head in irritation. "Gah, they pulled out thanks to Eon. Something tells me that he'll try pulling the same trick soon with Bashmouth and the others."

Pyrrha pointed up toward the caved-in building curiously. "By the way, what happened with this?"

"Oh, Exo-Skull happened." Manny jerked a thumb over his shoulder. "But don't worry, they're KO'd an'—"

"Uh… dude?" Kevin pointed to the ground. "…There's no one there." Immediately, the others spun around and saw that, indeed, there was a clear absence of mutant bodies. The only evidence of them being there was the indent that they left in the road.

"W-What the—GAH! DAMMIT!" Manny fell to his knees, slamming all four fists into the pavement. "They got scooped up by that witch while our backs were turned! I just KNOW it!"

Overflow clenched his clawed fingers in anger. "Grr… Eon strikes again. And something tells me he'll do the same again with Bashmouth and the others soon." His head rotated back to his cousin urgently. "We need to get to Rouleau Park FAST. That's where Bashmouth is."

Gwen's shoulders slumped when she heard that. "Oh, fantastic. Hah, and here I thought this would be easy." She scanned her eyes across the team in concern. "Well, it's only going to have to be a few of you. After that last teleport, I don't know if I'll be able to—"

"Who says you have to do it alone?" Charmcaster smiled as she offered a hand. "After all, last I checked, our collective power is quite potent, wouldn't you say?"

The redhead's mood did a one-eighty when she was reminded of that. "Oh, yeah! Of course!" She reached out and grasped Charmcaster's hand, and immediately, both of them felt a surge of power go through them both. It wasn't as incredibly overwhelming as it was in Ledgerdomain, but it was still quite strong. "Oh-ho-okay, now I'm feeling up to it."

"Good to hear." Raven commended as she motioned for the others to come closer as well. "Now come. We need to stop Bashmouth before Salem can scoop him up."

"My thoughts exactly." Overflow agreed, the Cascan moving up to the rest of his teammates. "Alright, guys, you know what time it is!"

Ilia gave a soft sigh as she reached out and grasped Swift's hand. "We'll meet back up later, okay?"

The Aerophibian girl responded by pulling Ilia in a short embrace. "Of course. And don't worry, I know you guys'll pull through. Now go get 'em!" Not needing to be told twice, Ilia went over to the Omni-Hunters, where Gwen and Charmcaster pulled their powers together and made themselves teleport away once again.

…..

Meanwhile, at Rouleau Park, a battle of immense proportions was happening. Rex, Weiss, Winter and Six were all on the offensive against Bashmouth and his crew, the two sides duking it out without holding much back. The only exception to this was Subdora, who had regained consciousness and had reserved herself to just observing from the sidelines. But, as she hid in the bushes, the eight bodies clashed against one another, with the main battle happening between Bashmouth, Rex… and the Schnee Sisters' summons. Weiss had pulled out the big guns, bringing forth her Sphynx to try and keep Bashmouth down while Rex brought the pain.

…But even then, it seemed Bashmouth just couldn't be kept down. "GRRRRAAAAHH!" With all his might, he tossed the Sphynx off of him and slammed a fist into Rex, breaking his Smack Hands and pummeling him into the ground. "Ya'll think a lil' kitty cat can keep me down?! ME?!"

"Gah! Would you shut UP?!" Rex brought out his Punk Busters, sending Bashmouth careening across the park. "Your boasting's REALLY starting to piss me off!"

Weiss herself, meanwhile, was facing off against Hoodlum and Crush with Winter by her side, the sisters managing to outwit the slower duo while dashing around them. "Gah! Would you bitches just hold STILL?!" Hoodlum blared out after missing another swing.

"Ugh, you chicks are goin' WAY too fast!" Crush bemoaned.

The Schnees came to a halt, their auras glowing with a soft light around them. "Hm… you know, perhaps they have a point, Winter." Weiss conceded, though not without a cheeky grin. "Maybe they're not ready for the Time Displacement glyphs yet."

"Oh, without a doubt, dear sister." Winter agreed knowingly, raising her sword at their opponents. "Perhaps something a little lower level would be more appropriate." Weiss mimicked her sister's motion and, before either man could ask what that meant, they suddenly felt something lock around their ankles. "There, some Gravity glyphs ought to be a bit fairer for them."

"G-Gravity? What're you—AGH!" Hoodlum couldn't even take a step forward, his legs locked in place, trapped by a glyph. "What the hell?! What'd you do to our legs?!"

"This ain't fair at all!" Crush hollered as he tried to yank his feet out.

Weiss leveled Myrtenaster at the two. "Last I checked, villains don't PLAY fair, so why should we? Talk about a double standard from you two." She waved her hand at them dismissively. "Oh, but don't worry. I'm pretty sure your leader will be here soon and we'll give him the same treatment…" As if on cue, a loud scream could be heard approaching from up above, and from over a nearby hill, Fisttrick came careening straight over and landed on the pavement between the two groups. "Oh, and would you look at that?"

"FISTTRICK!" The two thugs yelled. "Bro, are you okay?!"

The spiked-mohawked man struggled to his hands and knees, just barely able to hold himself up. "B-B…Bro… that dude is crazy—" THWACK! "ERK!" From out of nowhere, Agent Six came leaping in and hit the butt-end of his sword on the back of Fisttrick's neck, knocking him out cold.

Glaring down at the brute, Six stood up and returned his swords to his sleeves. "You don't want to know how "crazy" I can be." He turned slightly to the Schnees, giving them approving nods. "Excellent capture method, ladies. Now all that's left is to apprehend Bashmouth."

Weiss glanced worriedly back to the other end of the park, wondering how the fight between the canine criminal and her boyfriend. "Easier said than done, I'm afraid. That mangey mutt just will NOT go down no matter what we throw at him."

"He MUST have some weakness." Six contended. "Nothing can be truly invincible."

"Speaking from experience, Bashmouth seems at least to be very close." Winter noted as well. "Nothing short of an explosion could probably take him ou—AH!" Without warning, Winter's feet were abruptly swept out from underneath her and she fell right to the ground.

Six immediately went on guard while Weiss tried to help her sister. "Winter! A-Are you—"

"Weiss, no, get back!" Six went to help her, but he was too later, the other Schnee sister stumbling over something invisible and falling right onto the sidewalk.

Their concentration now broken, the gravity glyphs at Hoodlum and Crush's feet dissipated and they were free, much to their excitement. "AH-HA! Hell yeah, boy!" Hoodlum cheered as they went to help Fisttrick up, shouldering him over themselves. "Don't you worry, bro, we're gonna get the hell outta dodge!"

The agent went to take out his swords again, but quickly found himself struck directly in the chest, knocking him back into a tree. That wasn't enough to daze him, however, but as he went to move again, he began to feel something wrap tightly around his throat and then hoist him up, cutting off his circulation and air. Six's hands flew up to yank at whatever was doing this to him… and that's when she reappeared; Subdora. She was sitting up in the tree branches with her tail curled firmly around Six's throat, wearing a playful smirk. "Tsk, tsk, I think not, Mr. Secret Agent Man." Subdora wagged her finger in disapproval. "I'm afraid we have a portal to catch soon."

Right as she said that, a certain EVO boy came flying… or rather falling over to the group, slamming right into the dirt with enough force to shake the earth. And part of that was thanks to the several ton mound of metal fur on top of him. Rex was left in the middle of a massive crater with Bashmouth pinning him down, snarling right in his face. "Grr… yer outta yer league, kid! I'M the Top Dog 'round here! The Head Honcho, the Big Kahuna! An' ya wanna know WHY that is?"

Struggling under the dog alien, Rex let out a sigh and stared deadpan back at him. "Huh, lemme guess; because it's the bottom—"

"THAT'S THE BOTTOM LINE! BECAUSE BASHMOUTH SAID—wuh?" The criminal wasn't able to finish though as a bright, pink light suddenly came shining in from out of nowhere, blinding him and the others in a massive burst. Subdora shrieked and let go of Six while Rex was able to free himself from under Bashmouth thanks to the distraction, allowing him to rush over to the Schnees.

"Weiss, Winter!" He helped the two up and began leading them toward Six. "Come on, backup's finally here!"

Sure enough, from out of the flash of light, the Omni-Hunters appeared, standing firm and tall in the face of Bashmouth and the others. The Metallikanine was able to clear his vision and glare at the group, gritting his teeth in rage. "Oh fer the love a'—ya gotta be shittin' me!"

"No shitting here, big guy!" Kevin shouted as he pounded a fist into his palm. "Unless it's by YOU!"

Ruby, Yang and Blake immediately went over to assist Rex, the trio grabbing hold of Weiss and helping her onto her feet. "Hey, sorry we're late." Ruby apologized. "Are you okay, Weiss?"

"Mmph, yeah, just a small headache." The former heiress wore a relieved smile at the sight of her partner. "I'm just glad that all of you made it. …But what happened with Thor?" Weiss then did a double take when she noticed that, of all people, Charmcaster was with them as well. "A-And what is SHE doing here?!"

Wearing a sheepish smile, Charmcaster nervously waved at the four. "Uh, hehe… yeah, hi. I came to help out. Sorry about the whole museum fiasco, by the way."

There was a long pause as Rex's eyes widened in surprise. "…Okay, what the hell did we miss?"

"We'll fill you all in on the details later." Blake asserted, her focus going back to Bashmouth and his crew as she unsheathed Gambol Shroud. "Right now, we've got more important things to deal with."

Yang bashed her gauntlets together in anticipation. "Yeah! You guys all hang back. You guys have done more than enough after all that." The Blonde Brawler peered over her shoulder, seeing Team JNPR, Team SN, Ilia, Penny, Raven and Qrow all follow her example with bringing out their weapons. Gwen and Charmcaster were also standing at the ready with their hands aglow, prepared to use their magic at a moment's notice while Kevin absorbed Gravity Dust into his arms. "Alright guys, this is it! Time to—"

"Yang, hold on." Overflow spoke up, his hand resting on his girlfriend's shoulder as he stepped forward. "I think ALL of you have done more than enough tonight." The Omni-Hunters watched as the Cascan took to the front of the pack, narrowing his eyes at Bashmouth with an angry tone in his voice. "Please, leave him to me."

The others all stared at the hero incredulously. "Ben… a-are you sure?" Jaune asked.

"Dude, ya don't gotta go it alone, ya know." Sun pointed out.

"I do know… but THIS asshole is basically part of the reason this all happened here tonight." The Omnitrix bearer thrust an accusing finger at Bashmouth, who merely smirked maliciously. "The Ministry attacked MY home town and struck a deal with him… so I'm gonna do everything in my power to make sure that deal DOESN'T go through. I want you guys to keep an eye out for any portals that might open up and stop whatever comes through. Eon must NOT be allowed to get Bashmouth or those idiots outta here."

A barely conscious Fisttrick growled and shook a fist. "H-Hey! …Don't call the nice chameleon lady an idiot!"

Subdora wasted no time in whipping around and screaming back; "He was referring to YOU, you imbecile!"

Bashmouth grit his teeth and stomped his foot on the ground, cracking the sidewalk underneath. "Alright, I've heard just 'bout ENOUGH outta ALL of ya!" He focused in on Overflow, the dark blue alien widening his stance and raising his fists. "Ya want yerself a rematch, Tennyson? Well, FINE then!" Bashmouth raised his hands, getting in his own ready stance as well. "But I only hope ya worked on yer moves since our last scrap."

"Oh, trust me, I have. And for what you've done to my town…" Overflow flicked his wrists and a pair of water whips came out of the nozzles. "I'm gonna wipe the FLOOR with you!" Thrusting his arms out, Overflow wrapped the whips around Bashmouth and pulled him in with all his might, the Metallikanine taken off guard by the power behind the throw. Detaching one of the whips from his person, Overflow brought his hand back for a hard punch, only for Bashmouth to let himself fall and roll out of the way, causing the Cascan to tumble along with him.

With a dark chortle, Bashmouth flexed and freed himself from the H20, and as he took Overflow by the arm, he bellowed; "COSMIC SHORT-ARM CLOTHESLINE!" Bringing his arm up and hardening the fur on it, the alien dog SLAMMED Overflow with all his might, practically yanking him into the move and making him fall again. But, as he fell over, Bashmouth took him up again, holding him upside down and close to his body with his head between his knees. "TIBERIUS TOMBSTONE!" And just like that, Bashmouth performed a sit-out piledriver, smashing the hero's head into the concrete.

The crowd couldn't help but wince at that. "Ooh… that's gonna leave a mark." Qrow commented.

"Maybe… maybe not." Yang grinned as she watched Overflow easily roll out of the way, none the worse for wear. Not even the water containers on his head were cracked, while the sidewalk assuredly was. "Come on, Ben! You just gonna let that mutt get one over on ya in Overflow's debut?!"

"Heh… wouldn't dream of it." With another flick of his wrists, Overflow brought out a new surprise; a pair of sharp blades… that were made entirely out of water. Indeed, the weapons were made entirely out of liquid, and even then, the long swords kept their sharpness. With a loud battle cry, Overflow lunged at Bashmouth, the dog alien raising his arms to block… only to find that the water blades actually managed to chip his armor a bit.

Bashmouth was left baffled. "WHAT THE HELL?!"

"Woah!" Nora expressed the same type of shock, with the others all staring with her. "You've gotta be kidding me! How can WATER do something like that?!"

"Hydrokinesis. That's how." Kevin noted. "I've heard that Cascans have such precise control over water that they're able to make it as sharp as a razorblade if they want to."

The team were all shocked to hear that, but Neptune was the most astonished of all. 'Water… can do THAT?' He glanced down to his hands, wondering to himself; 'So… i-if I could get a hold of my—no.' Neptune vehemently shook his head, shooing the thought away. 'No, not in a million years. I-I couldn't… could I?'

With a thrust of his arms, Bashmouth sent Overflow skidding back on his heels, a low growl escaping the criminal's throat. "Grrr… I don't know HOW ya did that, but it'll sure as hell be the last time ya do!" Getting on all fours, Bashmouth went charging at Overflow and pounced at him, intent on ripping him to pieces. But, in a split second, Overflow changed the shape of one of his water blades into a shield, which Bashmouth rammed face-first into and rebounded off. "AGH! HOW?! It's just fuckin' WATER!"

If Overflow had a mouth, he'd be smirking right now. "Ever jumped off a really high dive board and hit the water? Feels less like a splash and more like ya just hit a slab of concrete!" He brought his blade down, but Bashmouth rolled out of the way, the sword instead leaving a crack in the sidewalk. "And I can get the same effect going here with just a thought."

Bashmouth snarled and roared in defiance, though, swiping his metal claws repeatedly against the shield. But with each strike, the only damage he wound up doing was just splashing the water around, only for it to reform the barrier a second later. "GRAAH! This! Is! BULLSHIT!"

"And this is exactly why Steel isn't very effective against Water." The Cascan leapt back and changed his blade back into a whip form, lashing it right at Bashmouth and catching one of his arms.

"Heh, big mistake!" Bashmouth smirked with a yank. "Get over here!"

But Overflow was hoping for that. "Yeah… a mistake for YOU!" With his water shield still at the ready, the hero came in and crashed against Bashmouth's head surprisingly hard, making the Metallikanine stagger back. He pushed himself off of Bashmouth, making him tumble again as he landed with a short flip. "Alright, time for the coup de gras!" Rearing his entire body back, Overflow opened up his wrist nozzles and the respirator on his face, letting lose an absolutely MASSIVE torrent of water that enveloped Bashmouth within seconds. And, if that weren't enough, the Cascan was using his hydrokinesis to raise the water up into a large, whirling sphere that kept Bashmouth trapped, suspending him right above the ground.

"Haha! Holy crap!" Rex gave a thumbs up. "Man, I'm really liking this new guy!" The team watched as Bashmouth tried fruitlessly to get himself out of the aquatic prison, only to find himself trapped in a perpetual underwater vortex of endless churning. There was no way to swim out… and that's when things began to get a bit concerning as everyone eyed their leader worriedly. "Uh… dude? You're not gonna…"

"Relax, I'm waiting until he loses consciousness." Overflow explained, his head rotating back to his friends. "I've come to realize that if you wanna take down a Metallikanine, you can't go about it in a conventional way."

Jaune scratched his cheek with a wince as he watched Bashmouth continue to struggle, his hands going to his neck at the lack of air. "Yeah, but… i-it just seems…"

"Cruel? Yeah, but this is the guy who helped attack my town." The Cascan crossed his arms, keeping himself concentrated on the water sphere. "At this point, if THIS is the only way to bring Bashmouth in, then I've got no qualms with—" *VWOOM* Overflow's eyes widened at the sudden purple glow that enveloped the hydro-sphere… which was emanating from the portal that opened up directly above it. "No… no, NO! NO!" He thrust his arms up, ready to shoot another torrent right into the portal while the rest of the Omni-Hunters all went to charge at it. "Guys, no! Keep an eye on Fist—"

But it was too late. Another portal already opened up directly under Subdora, Fisttrick, and his teammates, swallowing them up and then closing within two quick seconds as they screamed on the way down. And, before anyone could even make a move toward the other portal, a slew of long, black Grimm arms with decrepit, gangling fingers with long, white nails jutted down from it and thrust themselves into the hydro-sphere. In one swift motion, the arms all flexed outward and made the sphere burst like a bubble before wrapping around Bashmouth and pulling him straight up into it, closing soon after much to the horror of everyone.

Everyone was left shaking… in fear… in disbelief… and in some cases, rage. Overflow's whole body trembled as he fell to his knees, transforming back to Ben before dropping to his hands and clutching at the grass and dirt. Gwen and Charmcaster, though, were left more afraid than the others, especially after sensing the presence behind the Grimm arms. "Was… was that…" Charmcaster muttered.

"Yes… it's her." Gwen confirmed, only for another portal to open directly in front of her cousin. And when they saw who was on the other side, two sorceresses paled immediately.

There, standing before Ben with a smug grin… was Salem herself. The team were all on guard, with Raven dashing forward and her Maiden powers at the ready. But, with a snap of her fingers, Salem made another batch of Grimm arms lash out on all sides, getting in the Spring Maiden's way and blocking off the rest of the team. "Ah, ah, not now, dear Raven. I have business with the child…" Salem came to a stop in front of Ben, making the hero crane his head up with his teeth grit in rage. "…Ah, there was what I was hoping to see. Your anger… your despair, knowing that once again, you have failed."

"…How?" Ben stood up, fists clenched and teeth grit as he glared at Salem straight in her dark eyes. "How have you people been able to do this again and AGAIN?! You practically couldn't do ANYTHING to us back in Remnant and yet for some reason you just—"

"Got better?" Salem finished, running a finger across her chin. "It is quite peculiar, isn't it? You would think that you would have the… "homefield advantage" as you put it, in your world…" The witch pointed her finger upward. "Also, it helps to have constant surveillance of the situation."

Whipping his head up, Ben gasped when he saw a Seer Grimm floating high in the air, doing a little spin as if it were taunting him. "…Damn you."

"Oh, I have been damned thousands of times in my life." Salem directed her finger back to the young hero with a condescending smile. "But there is another key point, Ben Tennyson; I have come across allies who truly know your universe like the back of their hand. For a while, you were on top, but that was because we knew nothing of what you were truly capable of back then. But now…" She craned her head around, acknowledging Eon behind her. "…we have several people who know everything about you."

Ben's eyes widened fearfully at that. "…W-Wait, did you say several? Who do you mean?!"

"Ah, that shall remain a secret for now." Salem shook her head. "But rest assured, they are quite eager to see you again… when the time is right. For now, though…" With a flex of her hand, Salem made several of the Grimm hands lash out at Ben. "I'll be taking more of your Omnitrix's DNA before my leave, if you don't mind!" But, just as Ben was about to cover the watch… a loud rumble caught Salem's attention. And then…

*KRA-CHOOM*

Salem screamed as she was blinded and blown back by the arrival of a powerful lightning bolt, which arced out and incinerated all of the Grimm arms surrounding the hero and the witch. The Omni-Hunters were forced to cover their eyes as well, but they were all incredibly happy by the sight. Because when their vision cleared and the light dissipated, none other than Thor was standing between Ben and Salem with his eyes set directly on the latter. "ENOUGH!" the god bellowed, his voice echoing through the town like a roll of thunder.

"HAHAHA! THOR!" Nora cheered, followed by everyone else shouting in excitement. "Show her who's boss, big guy!"

The witch's eyes widened at the Norse behemoth standing before her, but she was not intimidated. Of course, it was not the first time she had confronted a god, and while she felt a slight trepidation in doing so, she wasn't about to back down from him. "Hah… so, you are the Mighty "Thor". I must say, my observation of you is quite accurate; you're as powerful as you appear."

"Enough words, WITCH!" Thor pointed Mjolnir directly at Salem with a threatening snarl. "You DARE to send your dark beasts to the realm I am responsible for protecting and you decide to waltz in as if you OWN the place?!"

"Ah… but I will, Thunderer." Salem retorted confidently. "Once I finish what I started with Remnant, my next target shall be THIS insignificant world, and then—AH!" *CHOOM* In a split-second dodge, Salem moved just in time to avoid an incoming lightning bolt from Mjolnir, the Norse god's glare still boring into her as his eyes sparked with power. Instead of hitting her, however, the bolt redirected upward and destroyed the Seer Grimm, exploding it into many, tiny pieces.

"I will not repeat myself when I say this, so listen well;" Thor, without any fear whatsoever, approached Salem until the distance between his hammer and her face was but a centimeter apart. Even then, as the electricity tickled Salem's nose, she didn't flinch. "You will leave Midgard now, and should you step foot in it again, I WILL come after you. I will find you…" He took Mjolnir away so that he could lower himself down to her eye level, making sure she understood his intentions. "…And I WILL destroy you."

Salem stood unwavering, though internally, she knew that she wasn't prepared to fight Thor in the least. So, instead of calling his bluff, she settled for turning back toward the portal with her head raised. "Hm, very well. My business is done here regardless." She spared Thor a glance over her shoulder. "But just keep in mind, Thor, even if I do not return to Earth, I don't intend to halt the Grimm attacks."

"Hmph, fine by me." Thor slung Mjolnir over his shoulder. "Do you have any idea how many Frost Jotnar I've slayed in my life, woman? Your so called "Grimm" are child's playthings compared to them."

That made Salem give a hollow chuckle as she stepped through the vortex. "Hmhm… that is because I only went easy on Bellwood. The next attacks… I can't promise the same." She sent a dark smile to the Omni-Hunters as the portal slowly closed. "Fare well, heroes… for now." And just like that, Salem was gone, leaving everyone to sigh and drop to the ground in exhaustion.

"Hah… oh thank GOD it's over." Rex flopped onto his back, with Weiss collapsing over his chest as well.

"Yeah… I honestly thought she was going to kill us all here." the heiress moaned.

As much as her legs wanted to give out as well, Yang wasn't about to do that yet. Not until she sprinted all the way to her boyfriend to make sure he was alright. "Ben!" The blonde practically slid down next to him, grasping him by the shoulders as he stared at where Salem had disappeared. "Ben, are you okay? Come on, Green Boy, speak to me…"

Across the way, Charmcaster hugged her arms with an uncomfortable grimace. Never in her life had she felt such a dark power. Not even Addwaitya compared to the sheer bleakness that Salem exuded from her very presence alone. She swallowed hard before looking to Gwen for reassurance. "So… that was Salem." Her voice was raspy, her throat suddenly feeling very dry. "I-I don't think I've ever felt such… malignance radiating off a single person like that before."

"I know. I felt the same way when I first sensed her… but being in the same place as her is completely overwhelming." Gwen reached out and took hold of her friend's shoulder. "But it's important that we put a stop to her plans. You think you're up for something like that… Hope?"

The use of her real name made some of Charmcaster's lingering worry disperse. Not completely, but enough to get her to smile back at the redhead. "…If it means the world doesn't come to an end, then yeah, I'm all for it." The girls shook hands in solidarity, only for Hope to feel several distrusting eyes staring at her from behind. 'Ah, right. It's going to take some time to get everyone to trust me.' Hope dared to glance behind her and was immediately met by Ruby's gaze. Much to her shock, however, the Hooded Huntress merely smiled and waved at her. '…Some might be less difficult than others, though.' she thought in relief.

Six, having recovered from Subdora's life-threatening chokehold, was left staring at where Salem had come through her portal, keeping his characteristic scowl about him. "So… that was Salem." He eyed the Branwen siblings as they walked over to him. "Tell me, is her presence always this… oppressive?"

"Unfortunately, yes." Raven confirmed, lowering her head. "And it never gets much easier. There's a reason why I was afraid of her for so many years, after all."

"Heh, honestly, I guess I can't blame ya now." Qrow admitted, running a hand through his hair. "That bitch is so damn dark that it almost makes me wanna—"

But Six held up a hand to stop him right there. "I'd rather not have visual representation of that, thank you." The agent scanned his sights across the Omni-Hunters, seeing just how tired they all were. They were emotionally and physically drained, that much was for sure… but none more so than Ben himself, who was still staring silently as Yang tried desperately to snap him out of it. "…Poor kid. The witch left her mark on him today." Raven and Qrow both grimaced at his words, knowing that he was right.

"BEN! For gods' sake, SAY SOMETHING!" Yang had been shaking him by the shoulders for a good thirty seconds and got nothing, so it was there that she had to resort to extreme measures. She pulled her hand back and SMACKED him right across the chee, which finally got a reaction out of him.

"AUGH! Ouch! Jeez, what was that—" The hero cut himself off when he saw his girlfriend's tear-streaked face, and his gut fell down to his feet in concern. "Y-Yang…" Shifting to his knees, Ben reached out and cupped her cheeks, wiping away her tears before pulling her into an embrace. "I-I'm sorry, I… I-I just had no idea how—"

Yang quickly reached up and pressed a finger to his lips. "Sh-Shhh… it's okay. I understand." She moved herself up and gave him a small peck on the lips, leaving him all the more confused. "I'm just glad that you're still with us and not like, shellshocked or anything."

A hollow breath escaped Ben's lips as he returned the embrace. "Hah… I kind of am, if I'm being honest." He screwed his eyes shut while burying himself in Yang's shoulder. "…I thought she'd be easy. Compared to Vilgax, she SHOULD have been easy. But… the fact that she and the Ministry have been beating us at every turn—"

"Hey, enough of that." Yang pushed him off of her so that she could lock her gaze with his again, her expression etched with a serious scowl. "This was NOT a loss, Ben Tennyson. At least not a total one."

"B-But… they got away!" Ben insisted, wanting to stand up but Yang wouldn't allow him. "They broke out Fisttrick and his gang! And now they've got BASHMOUTH as an ally! How can this be anything BUT a loss?" Yang sighed and shook her head… before slapping him across the cheek again. "GAH! OW! Yang, why—oof!" But the blonde poked him on the nose before he could finish that.

"Ben, listen to me; did anyone DIE tonight?"

There was a short pause, only for Ben to answer; "Um… not that I know of?"

Yang nodded. "Exactly. And did they take anything important, like the Relic?"

Ben had to admit, that was also a strong point. "Well, no, they didn't, but—"

"And most of all; did the Jotnar freeze over the entirety of Bellwood so that Loki could usher in Ragnarök onto the entire world?"

Those words were enough to make Ben reconsider his outlook, and it didn't take long for him to come to a realization. "…You know what? Now that you mention it, yeah, things COULD always be much worse."

Yang beamed at that response. "Exactly! Trust me, I think that this whole outcome is pretty crappy, too, but at the very least, the end of the world isn't happening… yet."

"And hopefully not anytime soon, if I have anything to say about it." Thor piped up, walking over and setting a hand on Ben's shoulders. "But she's absolutely right, Ben Tennyson. Everything is all about perspective." He raised his hammer up and pointed it out across the city. "You may not have won the battle with your Ministry this day, but you DID defend your home successfully against them, as well as against the Jotunns. Thanks to your assistance, Loki's plans to kickstart Ragnarök have been greatly delayed."

Ben finally cracked a smile as he rubbed the back of his head. "Aw… I didn't do much. …Besides, I think we all have our new pal with the giant stick to thank for that."

"Which I'm STILL confused over!" Sun exclaimed, scratching his head confusedly. "Seriously, who IS that dude?"

That made the entire team stare at the monkey boy in sheer bafflement. "…Seriously?" Jaune deadpanned.

"You must be joking." Pyrrha facepalmed

Blake rolled her eyes and waved him off. "Don't worry, he'll get it eventually."

Thor cleared his throat to get back on track. "Ahem, more to the point… there are certainly difficulties when it comes to fighting a war that seems impossible to win." The Thunder God gestured to himself. "I mean, not even I have been successful in every single trial I've been challenged with. Do you recall my trials given to me by the Giant King, Utgard? Or when I had to dress in drag in order to retrieve my stolen hammer?" His grip on said hammer tightened as a familiar frustration overcame him, lightning coursing across his entire body. "Or how I have still NOT BEATEN that VILE SERPENT living in your world's oceans?!"

"Woah, Thor, calm! Let's stay calm!" Nora encouraged, inhaling deeply so that Thor could follow her example. "Deep breaths, let's take some DEEP breaths…"

After breathing deeply through his nose a couple times, Thor regained his composure. "Hah… thank you, Nora… I apologize for the outburst." His focus went back to Ben again. "But in short; you cannot expect to win every challenge that you are presented with. Just remember; a war is not decided on a single battle alone."

"…Yeah, you're right, Thor." Ben concurred, smiling to both him and Yang. "You guys both are. If anything, I should use this whole fiasco to motivate me more." Clenching a fist, Ben avowed to himself; "Salem and the Ministry will regret the day decided to attack Bellwood. I swear it."

Thor hummed in approval. "Hm, good answer. And I swear to you, Ben Tennyson, that should you require my aid incase Loki dare show himself around these parts again, know that I will come to assist." He extended his hand to the young hero. "You've more than proven that you are worthy of protecting Midgard in my stead, Champion of Earth. I hope to be able to fight alongside you again soon."

Ben was all too happy to reciprocate the handshake. "The feeling is mutual, Thor Odinson. So, I'm guessing this means that you've gotta leave?"

Not a second before Thor could answer, though, a certain pink blur came zooming in shouting; "NOOOO!" and clung to the Thunderer's leg in an instant. Everyone's heads snapped down and, as expected, there was Nora, the hyper redhead staring up at Thor with the saddest puppy-dog eyes anyone had ever seen. "Y-You can't leave yet! We only JUST got to meet you! We didn't even get the chance to hand out and talk or anything!"

A soft chuckle passed Thor's lips as he knelt down, gently placing a hand on Nora's back comfortingly. "Hmhm, Young Nora Valkyrie, don't think I've forgotten about you. Out of every warrior here, you have certainly caught my interest the most. Don't think I don't recognize the similarities between us."

"Then please, stay for just a little while longer!" Nora pleaded. "I want to hear EVERYTHING about you and everything you've done! Reading the myths in books is one thing, but hearing them straight from the source is something I've been hoping for!" She craned her head down nervously. "You're… just such a big inspiration to me."

"Ah, and I appreciate that you feel that way, girl." Thor helped Nora to her feet as he moved her chin up to meet his gaze once again. "However, I'm afraid that coming here on such short notice wasn't intended on my part. I have many other duties that I have to follow through with back in Asgard, including telling everyone there about Loki's escape and his plans." He gave her a single nod. "After all, if we are to prevent the onset of Ragnarök, we must be prepared for anything that Loki tries to pull, correct? Immediate action must be taken."

Slowly, Nora nodded back in disappointment. "Yeah… I see what you mean."

"However… that doesn't mean that I won't return." Thor sent a wink down to the Pink Dynamo, who perked back up a little. "I'm quite certain that we will meet again, Nora Valkyrie. And when we do, I will be eager to share ALL my stories with you. This, I promise you." All at once, Nora's excited smile returned, making the Thunder God give a hearty laugh. "AHAHA! Well, I think I have my answer. So, until we meet again, Nora Valkyrie." He offered another handshake, which Nora was quick to take him up on.

"It's a deal!" Nora beamed. "I can't wait for that day, Thor, sir."

Once again, Thor gave a laugh. "HA! Please, no need for honorifics. Just Thor will suffice. Before I go, though, there is one last piece of business to take care of…" The god's focus shifted toward Charmcaster, looking to her expectantly. "Young lady, before you were telling me about this little relic hunt that you've been on for some time now. Care to elaborate on that?"

Hope's eyes widened in realization, quickly reaching down to her magical back and zipping it open. "O-Oh, yes, of course… I-I'm sure that once you see this, you'll realize what I'm talking about." From the pouch, Charmcaster produced a small rock that fit perfectly in her hand, one that was engraved with a glowing symbol of abstract design.

Most of the team had no idea what this was, but Ben, Kevin and of course, Gwen, knew immediately. "The Alpha Rune?" the hero's brow furrowed. "The same thing that Addwaitya used to subject your people?"

"The one that had a piece of the Map of Infinity inside it, too." Kevin furthered. "…How'd you get your hands back on it anyway?"

"It returned to Ledgerdomain once it had been used for that purpose." Charmcaster explained. "I was just as surprised as you, to be honest." Her eyes went back to Thor as she approached, holding the Alpha Rune out to him. "But that's not all that the Alpha Rune is capable of."

"I know. It's able to manipulate all forms of magic, right?" Ben guessed.

Handing the rune up to Thor, Charmcaster watched as he brought it closer to his eye to examine it. "Yes, all magic… in this realm, at least." the Thunderer elaborated. "Still, even then, its true abilities are locked when only handled by a mortal. In the hands of a god, however…" Thor closed his hand around the rune stone and, from between his fingers, a powerful glow emanated before dying down a second later. When he opened his hand up again, the Alpha Rune had changed significantly. Now, it glowed a bright, red color, and the symbol had changed into that of a Greek "Alpha" symbol, much to everyone's amazement. "…It's true power can be displayed."

Gwen was left slack-jawed and baffled by what she just saw. "I-I… I don't understand! What in the world is…"

"It's just as my research led me to believe." Charmcaster pursed her lips, locking eyes with Thor as he handed the stone back and it resumed its previous form. "This IS only but one of nine runes, isn't it? Each of them representing a notable Greek letter."

"Uh… question; how the hell does that make ANY sense?!" Weiss exclaimed.

Rex scratched his head in confusion as well. "Yeah, last I checked, Greek and Norse are two completely different pantheons, aren't they?"

"Correct. However, back in the day, Father Odin and Zeus, King of the Olympians, along with several other pantheon rulers, came together and created these special runes." Thor pointed down to the Alpha Rune, which gave a faint, red glow even in his presence. "These objects of great power were formed as a contingency plan in case any world-ending prophesies ever came to pass. In the event that none could be prevented, these nine runes were to be gathered and used to forcefully put a stop to it."

Ben tilted his head at that. "And let me guess… Ragnarök was the big one."

Thor took in a deep breath. "Hah… yes, as was the return of Typhon, the rise of Apophis, and several other catastrophes. But we soon discovered that even our enemies sought these runes. Their idea was that, if these relics could prevent the disasters, then perhaps they could insight those same cataclysms." He gestured down to the Alpha Rune. "However, we managed to scatter them before word could spread, and in time, they became nothing but a rumor before we all slipped into our eons-long slumber. I doubt even Loki knows about them."

A relieved sigh passed Charmcaster's lips. "Phew, that's a relief. That was honestly why I was in such a panic to FIND these runes in the first place, because I thought they'd be the first thing that Loki would go after when he escaped."

"Hehe, I appreciate your dedication, young Charmcaster." Thor bowed gratefully to her. "And I commend you wanting to find the runes and prevent Ragnarök. But while your heart was in the right place, I'm afraid you weren't searching in the right place."

"…What?"

Thor winked and tapped the side of his head. "Think about it; there are nine runes total, correct? So where do you think we hid them all?"

The gears began turning in the young mage's head before finally coming to the realization, her eyes bugging out as her lips fell into a frown. "…They're scattered across the Nine Realms, aren't they?" Thor gave her a thumbs up and a cheeky smile, causing her to slowly bury herself in her hands and let out a muffled scream. "AAAAAAHHH! STUPID! I'm so god damned STUPID!"

"U-Uh… there, there…" Gwen did her best to console her friend, even while everyone stared awkwardly at the scene. "We all make mistakes sometimes, Hope, it's nothing to be ashamed of."

Thor set his hand on Charmcaster's shoulder, showing his support as well. "Indeed, as I said; your heart was in the correct place, young lady. But trust me when I say that there is no way that Loki would be able to find these relics, not without additional knowledge." He smiled gently to her as he promised; "But, just to be safe, I will travel across the Nine to make certain that the runes are safe and sound. And I expect you to take extra care of your own rune as well. You and the world of Ledgerdomain are its guardian, after all. Can you do that for me?"

Taking a deep breath, Charmcaster composed herself, letting Thor's words sink in. She was the Alpha Rune's guardian… and after all this time searching, she was going to make certain she lived up to that title. "…Yes. Yes, I'll make sure the rune stays safe." she vowed with a grin of her own. "You can count on me, Thor."

*Beep-Beep*

At the sound of an approaching car horn, the group all turned around to see the Rustbucket coming toward them, pulling to a stop where Max immediately threw open the door and came sprinting out. "Kids! There you all are! I was helping some evacuees when I saw… I saw…" Max came to a halt, however, when he saw the towering monolith of a man standing with the children, and the second he caught sight of the hammer, he knew who this had to have been. "Oh… my… lord…"

Seeing their grandfather in such incredulity, Ben and Gwen smiled and went over, leading him up to the god who he himself had told them tales about since they were kids. "Hehe… Grandpa Max," Ben started, gesturing up to the Thunderer, "allow me to formally introduce you… to Thor Odinson. And Thor, this is our grandfather, Max Tennyson."

"He's a big fan, too." Gwen added with a wink of her own.

"Ah-HA! I can see!" Thor guffawed as he brought his hand forward once again. "So, you are the gentleman who was responsible in the upbringing of such fine young heroes!" Seeing that the elderly man was still stunned, Thor reached down and took hold of his hand, shaking it firmly. "It's truly an honor to meet you, Max Tennyson."

Max gave a breathy laugh as he snapped out of his shock, doing his best to return the gesture. "Hah… th-the honor is all mine, sir. I'm just… hoo boy, I'm sorry, but this is all a bit much for me to take in. I've heard your stories since I was a kid, but… wow, meeting you is such a different experience entirely."

"I can imagine." Thor acknowledged, releasing Max's hand. "I must say, though, you've done a fine job in rearing these two into the heroes they are today."

"Oh, it's nothing special." Max denied. "I just wanted them to grow up into good people, is all." He reached around his grandkids' shoulders with pride. "As any good grandparent would, you know."

"Haha, yes, my own father has attempted to provide the same with my children over the years. I'm certain that he'd find your position to be quite relatable…" Thor set his sights off across the horizon, recalling that his father wasn't too far away. "Which reminds me… I should pay him a visit soon, to tell him of what has happened here today." His attention returned to Max and he gave him a firm pat on the shoulder. "Well, my good man, please continue to teach these young heroes and guide them on the correct path. For now, I must be taking my leave."

Max's eyebrows rose up. "So soon? Ah, I'm betting that you have some official Asgard business to take care of, right?"

Taking up his hammer, Thor strode past the group to give himself some space. "Indeed, with Loki out and about, we cannot risk sitting idly by while he roams free." With one final nod, Thor turned to the group with his hammer raised above his head. "HEROES! I entrust Midgard to you until my return! Until then, keep your hopes high and your spirits even higher! For when next we meet, I may not be alone. I expect to see great things from you, but for now, go home and rest. You have certainly earned it after today. Fare well!" With the Omni-Hunters shouting their own goodbyes to him, Thor thrust his hammer upward, shooting straight up into the air and flying straight across the night sky in a flash of powerful lightning.

With the Thunderer gone, Raven let a short, tired breath escape past her lips, facing the Omni-Hunters to reaffirm what the god said. "He's right. You kids have gone through hell tonight, that's for damn sure." Raven peered over to Agent Six, looking for his approval. "They deserve the day off tomorrow, wouldn't you say?"

"I won't argue with that." Six stated plainly, giving a curt nod to all of them. "You kids are dismissed from training tomorrow. Take the day to recoup and rest."

A collective sigh rang through the group of teens, with Ilia hanging her head low in exhaustion. "Oh, thank GOD, I need sleep NOW." She craned her head over to her Anodite friend. "Gwen, you think we can hold off on our session until tomorrow morning? Please?"

"Oh, for sure." Gwen affirmed. "I think we could ALL use some sleep at this point."

"Uh… what exactly do you mean by "session"?" Ren asked, the rest of the boys appearing just as perplexed.

Ruby couldn't help but giggle as she answered; "Hehehe, oh, just a session of DnD, nothing big."

Rex, Kevin and Ben, however, were completely taken aback by that. "Wait, DnD?!" the EVO whipped his head to his girlfriend, who wore a mischievous grin of her own. "Weiss, how the heck did Gwen convince you to join in on a DnD campaign?"

"Hmhm, what can I say? The call to high fantasy was too alluring to resist." The white-haired girl raised a finger to the boys. "Also, before you ask, the campaign is currently full. We already had to deal Vernal in, so no more." It was then that Weiss' eyes widened and she remembered; "Oh, shoot, Vernal! She, Sandra and Carl are probably wondering how we're doing. We've gotta get back and tell them how things went."

"Hm, yeah, and my mom's probably wonderin' how we're doin', too." Kevin agreed. "C'mon guys, let's head back."

Rather than going with the boys, however, Ben opted to join the ladies instead. "If it's all the same to you guys, I think I'll head back to my place with the girls. I'd prefer sleeping in my own bed tonight, honestly."

"Now that, I can't blame you for, Green Boy." Yang pulled her arm over his shoulders and started leading him away. "Come on, let's get you tucked in."

"Ah… ahem?" The group was halted when Charmcaster spoke up, the silver-haired sorceress taking center stage. "Not to pump the breaks here or anything, but I think you all are forgetting something important…" She trailed off as she walked over to Max, who only now just realized that she was, in fact, here with them. "Magister Tennyson… hello."

Max's brow furrowed in confoundment. "Charmcaster? What are you doing here?"

"I came to help when I sensed what was happening. But now that that's over…" Charmcaster glanced over to Ben, whose eyes were wide in astonishment. "…it's time I held up a promise that I made." She held up her wrists to the old man, showing no hint of resistance whatsoever. "So please… arrest me."

The team were nearly speechless by the sorceress' declaration… aside from Rex, of course. "Seriously, what the HELL did we MISS?!"

…..

A/N: And there you have it! Quite the shocking conclusion to end on, eh? The Ministry got away with the goods, Thor gave Salem a VERY powerful warning, we get some revelations on what the Alpha Rune is all about, and indeed, Charmcaster has willingly turned herself in to the Plumbers. Quite a few twists and turns here to be sure, ones that will definitely have a strong affect on the story going forward.

But, to address what is without a doubt the BIGGEST occurrence in this chapter… NEW ALIEN! Indeed, everyone, none other than OVERFLOW has made his Ultimate Omniverse debut! I'll admit, I, like many people, weren't so keen on Overflow when he made his appearance in the reboot. Heck, pretty sure the entire fandom was calling him "Knock Off Water Hazard". But, over time, I've come to realize that doesn't really give Overflow the credit he deserves. Honestly, I've warmed up to his design, and I've come to believe that, if he had been any different color other than red, he probably would've been better received. Because let's face it, it's due to him being a red, bulky alien who controls water that all of these comparisons happened. Any color other than red, and I bet Overflow would've been more well-liked, which is why I changed him to Dark Blue for this story. Besides, if Ben can have at least SEVEN electric-based aliens in the Omnitrix, who's stopping him from having another water-based one, yeah?

And besides, if he can do THAT to Bashmouth with just hydrokinesis, I think he's more than deserving of a spot in Ben's playlist. Plus, it's given Neptune some ideas of his own, it seems… But of course, who else but Salem should come in to rain on the parade and pull the rug out from under our heroes yet again? That witch is certainly crafty… but thankfully, she's still scared witless when it comes to godly beings, no matter how much of a brave face she puts on. Way to tell her to get the hell outta Midgard, Thor!

But man, talk about a surprise, huh? Turns out the Alpha Rune isn't the only one of its kind! Yeah, who'd have thought you'd be getting some Alpha Rune lore with this chapter? Turns out, it's not the only one, and each realm houses its own unique rune! And of course, all nine of them are actually the key to a catastrophe contingency plan. But just how WOULD these runes be able to prevent (or perhaps even instigate if in the wrong hands) Ragnarök or whatever other travesty from happening? Hm… more things to look forward to… but for now, it seems that Charmcaster is willing to play fair and allow herself to be arrested, which in and of itself is an interesting development. Wonder how that will go?

Well, we'll get the chance to find out NEXT TIME! …But not before we spend a little more time with Thor as he attends a brief meeting with a certain someone a few miles outside of town. After all, he has to thank the man—or rather "monkey"—who gave him a helping hand. But after that, we check in on our heroes as they regroup after the attack, and Gwen, Ben and Charmcaster have a little chat about the situation they're in. But after that… a hovering alien vehicle is suddenly spotted in Bellwood, and its after… Kevin? …Uh oh, not good. Until then, thanks for reading everybody, and I'll catch you next time. Stay safe out there!