Sorry for going dark for a bit. Some stuff came up. First, holy shit, actual RWBY anime and second, PYRRHA'S BACK-

There will be a non-canon April Fools chapter released soonish. It will be more 'wordy' than the other April Fool chapters.


A lot of times, villains liked to rely on cliches. That might've made them predictable, but sometimes it worked. Using an old and abandoned warehouse for a hideout did wonders, even if it was high on the list of places to check. One of the back doors opened and, heaving a few bags of money in, the Circus Freak Trio all cheered and congratulated themselves after a successful job. The police didn't stand a chance against the three of them.

"...I still think you should've brought me with you," a female figure said, annoyed at being left behind. She emphasized that annoyance by slamming shut a heavy, leather-bound book.

"We'll bring ya on the next one. This was just to get back in the game." Thumbskull smirked as he tossed some of the bags to the ground.

"Besides, someone had to make sure that didn't open," Frightwig added, motioning over to a chained up coffin.

"I still don't understand why you're so afraid of him. He was a literal clown," the newest member of the Circus Freaks huffed.

"A clown, yeah. But he-" Acid Breath began, before someone else cut him off.

"He was a somewhat gifted engineer who had become an emotional vampire with an overdependence on joy."

That immediately put them all on edge. Frightwig's locks reared back like vipers, Thumbskull was ready to break bones, and Acid Breath was ready to melt them on the spot. Their new member was surprisingly calm, given that they'd just been discovered.

Honestly, she could use a pick-me-up right about now.

"No need for such a hostile response, the lot of you," the voice said, smooth and calming. Frightwig felt the need to lower her locks, but she just couldn't. The sound of metal walking towards them also gave her a bad feeling.

"That emotional vampire? Long gone. I can promise you that," the voice went on, before it stepped into a dimly lit corner. The newcomer could make out what appeared to be glowing yellow eyes.

"And what do you want?" Thumbskull demanded, pounding a fist into his palm.

"Simple. I want your assistance," the knight said.

"You want our help?" Acid Breath hissed. "So what? You think we're just mooks for hire?"

"No. I think you're directionless crooks who chase the most basic of motivations in your day to day lives, but what I think doesn't matter," their medieval new arrival answered. Even if his eyes were hidden behind the yellow glow of his visor, the newest Circus Freak could feel his eyes on her.

"Definitely sounds like it matters. Or do you think we're too stupid to recognize an insult?"

"It really doesn't...not when I've come to give you that missing direction."

"...I say we hear him out," the new girl piped up.

"And last I checked, you weren't the boss of this crew!" Acid Breath snarled.

"Well, the girl seems to be much smarter than the lot of you," The Forever Knight drawled. "How would you like to take your own shot at the kid who personally killed your boss?"

"...come again?" Acid Breath asked.

"I'm putting a team together to get revenge on him. You're not the only ones who've been...annoyed by him. Or by his friend in red."

The minute he said that, the rookie of the Freaks knew exactly who he meant.

"So, what? We're pulling a Sinister Six here?" Thumbskull asked, getting a look from Frightwig that just shouted 'Really?'

"What? I've read comics before."

"Not the comparison I would've used, but not inaccurate," the knight shrugged.

"And why do you care about him? He messed up one of your plans too?" Frightwig demanded to know.

"...in a manner of speaking. But I don't want to just beat him. I want to break him. Bring him down to his lowest point...and this will just be the start."

"...what's the name of this kid?" the junior member asked.

"His name is Ben Tennyson." The knight smiled. "And he works with someone named Ruby Rose. I trust that's enough info for you?"

The girl clenched her fists. "Yes. It is."

"Ok, let's say we're interested. What's the plan?" Acid Breath asked, relaxing a little.

"First, we're leaving," the knight ordered, opening up another door out of the warehouse, "for Bellwood."

Acid Breath looked over to the coffin and sighed. They brought that damn thing here to make sure he never came back, but this might actually break them out of that fear.

"Then I guess we're leaving." The rookie smirked, taking her book and walking past the knight. Thumbskull and Frightwig shared a look before following. Acid Breath gave one last look at the coffin and sighed, before joining the rest. Once he was past, the knight grabbed hold of the door and slammed it shut behind him.

The coffin made a scratching sound.

"Ben...Tennyson..."


Ruby could barely open Ben's door. Her legs felt heavy, and her body ached fiercely as she forced herself to walk up to Ben's bed. She weakly motioned for her boyfriend to move over, before flopping down face first onto a pillow. She let out a long, heavy groan as she settled down.

An equally exhausted Ben glanced over at her. "Rough day?"

"Mmmph. You too?"

"We had to stop the world from being sold to some collector so he could seal us in a card." Ben sighed. "That was crazy."

"How'd you get him to not take the world?" Ruby asked.

"Oh, easy," Ben said casually. "I showed him America."

"Ahhh, that'll do it."

"What about you?"

"Ahh, you know, the basic stuff. Grimm attacks, more grimm attacks, terrorist bomb threat, Grimm attack but this time with corrodium..." Ruby groaned loudly and snuggled further into bed.

"That explains the smell," Ben joked.

"Oh, haha," Ruby huffed, getting up. "I'm gonna go shower."

"I'll make dinner," he said before pathetically rolling out of bed.

When Ruby, now freshly bathed and not smelling like a drowned sewer rat, thought of dinner, she imagined something like a grilled cheese or some ramen. Preferably both, because that combo was amazing.

Instead, she was greeted by an interesting choice, with an even more interesting display. Mac and cheese, in a wine glass. Odd enough, right?

The garnish of dinosaur chicken nuggets really made it bizarre.

"I'd kick your ass if I didn't find this hilarious," Ruby said, digging a fork into the mac and cheese.

Ben raised an eyebrow. "You'd do this for me, you know."

Ruby smirked. "I would. And I bet your cute ass you'd have the same reaction as me."

"Lies," Ben said with a frown. "You've seen my diet."

"I know you've been eating healthier..." Ruby paused. "Scratch that, I've heard you've been eating healthier."

"You cannot force me to eat a salad," he declared, crossing his arms. "It's my choice to do so."

Ruby rolled her eyes. "Whatever."

"Oh, that reminds me." Ben pulled out his phone. "We got an email from Ironwood."

"Wait, really? What's it say?" she asked, taking one of the nuggets off of her glass.

"Nothing too crazy." Ben said oh so casually. "Except that we get tomorrow through Monday off."

"Oh shit, a full week off? Nice," Ruby drawled out. "What's the reason?"

"Listen. Listen. Once they said 'days off', I could not be bothered to read the rest of the email."

"Of course you would," Ruby said fondly. "So, what do you wanna do?"

"Well," Ben mused, "I think it's time we go to my parents."

Ruby raised an eyebrow. "Do they know about us being a thing?"

"I've alluded to it." He shrugged as he helped himself to seconds. "Not really sure if they picked up on it. But when I face-timed them last week, I made sure to be in a position where they could clearly see a red bra."

"Did they say anything?" Ruby asked curiously.

"Nooooope," Ben said, popping the P on the end. "Plus it'd be great to just chill around Bellwood again. I like Atlas and all but..."

"Too much white?"

"Yeah, that's annoying."

"Yeah, let's leave tomorrow. We'll just pack up and take an airship early in the morning to a Plumber Base," Ruby said, looking at her garnish. "Remind me again why you have dino chicken nuggets."

"Because as a rational almost adult, I can make whatever purchases I want. There are no issues with this," Ben defended.

Ruby gave him a look.

"...okay, I got nostalgic."

"...where'd you even FIND dino nuggets in Atlas?"


Ben picked up his backpack filled with clothes, his tablet, and his chargers. "Ready to go?" he asked his girlfriend.

Ruby finished shoving some clothes in a bag. "Totally!" She grinned, giving an enthusiastic thumbs up.

Ben smirked."You packed at the last minute, didn't you?"

"Maybe, maybe I didn't." Ruby frowned. "...there's a chance I may need to steal one of your shirts if I packed my dirty laundry."

"As if you don't do that enough." Ben opened the door and the couple stepped out into the hallway.

"Heading out for the week?"

Ruby turned to see Rex, wearing some casual clothes- his signature jacket, an old white dress-shirt paired with loose jeans, and a plain backpack.

"Yep!" She beamed. "Visiting Ben's parents for a few days. Gonna get some free food."

"You say that like you don't know my mom's gonna make some gross vegan thing," Ben deadpanned.

"Oh, wow, rub in the fact you have a mom," Rex said flatly. Ben and Ruby went pale white for a brief moment, before the taller teen chuckled. "Relax, I'm messing with you."

"You CAN'T do that joke, dude," Ruby said, releasing a deep breath.

"So," Ben interjected, fixing his bag, "what're your plans for the break?"

Rex grinned. "Me? I'm gonna enroll in my boyfriend's school for the week."

Ruby gave him a blank stare. "This is the part where you tell me it's a joke."

"Oh, no, I'm being serious. Like, I'm seriously enrolling for the week...all over ping pong. Why do you think I have the backpack and everything?

Ben and Ruby shared a strange look, before turning their attention back to Rex.

"Rex?" she asked.

"Yes, Ruby?"

"What the fuck?"

"Okay, okay, so-" Rex began. "Noah's three previous partners have been hospitalized in practice matches against a team from another school. He wants me because one, I can take a hit, two, I'm an Ace-Op and three...I'd be with normal people for once."

"Hospitalized? From Ping Pong?" Ben scoffed. "It'd make more sense if you said tennis. Tennis players are brutal."

"You speak from experience," Ruby sighed, shaking her head.

"Hey, you guys have your kind of fun with each other, I have my kind of fun with my partner," Rex huffed.

"Still, your idea of fun sounds like the weirdest episode of a relatively normal TV show," Ben said.

He opened his mouth to retort, only to pause. "...you know what? Fair." He shook his head and asked, "What's everyone else up to?"

"Well, Ceres and Ari are gonna take a space holiday to that secret moon hotel, Anna and Sienna are gonna fly over and meet Min's family at some dinner, Rook and Lev have their own thing going on, not sure what, and Yang and Blake went to a Hex Girls concert," Ruby listed off. "I'm kinda jealous they didn't invite me, but I don't wanna third wheel."

"Now I kinda want to go to that dinner to meet Min's family." Ben stared at the nearest wall, a haunted look in his eyes. "I have...so many questions."

"It's better to leave that to your imagination," Ruby chuckled.

Ben reached into his pocket and took out his key ring. "Come on, which one was it again?"

"Did you seriously forget which one was your house key?" Ruby asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I've been away for too long," he groaned. "I'm so used to Atlas's stupid hand scan thing I neglected keys, okay?"

Ruby just chuckled in response.


The combined plane and train trip were...a lot. Ben was glad to be back in Bellwood, honestly. It had been a hot minute, and it was more obvious with how the place had changed. New restaurants and shops...all something to check out. But first...

Ben scanned his house keys- when his parents got him the personal set, they decided to be cute and focus on Bellwood's home teams to help their son associate them with what key they went with. Ben paused- was it the Bellwood Flying Squirrels key that unlocked the house, or was that for the cabin Grandpa Max had up north?

"Try the Bellwood Raccoons key. Your dad's a big baseball guy, that has to be the one," Ruby suggested.

"Oh, right." Ben slapped his forehead. How could he forget that?

"Also, Bellwood needs to get better team names. Seriously," she added, some contempt in her tone.

"Tell me about it." Ben inserted the key and turned it, and the door unlocked with a click. "Most of the good animal team names are taken though, but that just doesn't work for 'Flying Squirrels'," he finished as he pushed the door open.

His parents were on the living room couch, watching something on TV. Or Carl was, while Sandra had a newspaper in her hands. They looked up at their entrance, surprised.

"Hey! Mind if we crash here for the weekend?" Ben joked. Ruby just smiled and waved.

Sandra immediately bolted from the couch and wrapped her son in a tight hug. "It's so good to see you! Why didn't you call? The house is a mess."

"I wanted it to be a surprise," Ben admitted as he hugged her back.

"Still!" Carl immediately joined the family embrace. "In any case, we don't remember the last time you weren't busy!"

"Ah, you know how it is." Ben smiled; it was good to be home.

"And Ruby!" Sandra immediately turned and fixed the girl with a bright smile. "We didn't expect you either! What brings you here?"

"Well, the general decided to give us a break. We have a full week off and, well, Ben and I decided to get away from Atlas," Ruby explained.

"I get that, but I would've thought you and Yang would've gone to see your father," Sandra said.

Carl blinked and smiled slyly. "Oh, I think I know why."

"Really?" She raised an eyebrow. Did he figure it out that fast?

Sandra's eyes widened, picking up what her husband was implying. "Oh, it took you that long, huh?"

Ben blinked. "What?"

"We assumed you two would've gotten together ages ago," Carl explained. "We were, what, a year off?"

"That obvious huh?" Ruby rubbed the back of her head.

"We may or may not have found Ben's shōjo drawings," Sandra giggled.

"OKAY, let's go to my room!" Ben said, dragging Ruby upstairs.

"Waitwaitwait his what-!" She squeaked as her boyfriend spirited them away.

Ruby opened the door to Ben's messy room- papers and books were strewn all over the ground, a chair was knocked over, and there were some clothes on his unmade bed. Ruby shot Ben a look.

"Sude, you are so cleaning this up," she exclaimed. "I'm fine with sleeping on an inflatable mattress, but not a pigsty."

"Come on, it's not that bad," Ben protested, used to his disorder.

"Sweetie. Babe. My beloved boyfriend. The raccoons at my dad's place are more organized than you."

"...damn, that's a low blow," Ben muttered as he pressed the Omnitrix dial. XLR8 took his place, and Ruby felt a rush of air pass over her, making her blink. When she opened her eyes again, the room was spotless.

XLR8 brushed his claws together. "New world record!" He grinned and Ruby knocked on his helmet.

"You dork." She smiled, setting down her bag. "So, we're just gonna stay here the entire weekend? Just hang out with your parents?"

"I guess so," Ben said, slapping down the Omnitrix. "Maybe we'll take them to dinner and a movie. I dunno."

"Well before we get to planning the rest of the week, care to explain what they meant?" Ruby smirked.

"About what?"

"They said you draw shōjo manga?"

Ben glowered. "You can't prove that."

"I mean I can always just ask them about it," Ruby teased. "But better to hear it from you, right?"

He took a deep breath. "If I can find some, I'll show it to you, okay?"

"Ok!" She beamed. "And I promise, Yang or Ceres won't hear a word about it."

"Thank you."

"Now, with that out of the way…"

"Let the lazing begin," Ben declared, falling back on his bed. Ruby happily joined him, making the mattress bounce a few times as she settled.

"...is it weird I'm stressed for some reason?" he suddenly asked. "I feel like I'm supposed to be saving the world right now."

"I know, right? It feels like at any minute, we're gonna get a message from Ironwood saying 'Everyone get back to Atlas now! Salem's going into full on war mode!' or something," Ruby sighed.

"It feels...alien, almost." Ben blinked. "It feels weird to be back home when there's so much going on."

"That's telling. We're so busy that just the idea of relaxing feels weird. Why am I reminded of when I first met Weiss?"

"Cuz Weiss is kind of a workaholic?" Ben snickered.

Ruby snorted. "Oh yeah. But you should've seen her back when we first met. Would you believe me if I said this is actually the more relaxed Weiss?"

"...I would not, actually."

"Oh trust me, somehow, Weiss was even MORE focused on work. One time, I caught her working on a project that the professor hadn't even mentioned yet. And I was over there trying to finish the first big essay that was due in a few days! Like, how did she DO that?!"

"Good lord," Ben said, aghast. "Hopefully she's using the break wisely."

"I REALLY hope so," Ruby sighed.

Carl poked his head in the room. "So, hey, I know you two just got done traveling, but how about we go out and eat?"

"Hmmm, yeah I could eat. You feel like anything in particular?" Ruby nudged Ben.

"...you know, I could go for a burger."


"So, let me get this straight...they gave you a few days off because an alien Shaolin monk decided to attack," Carl said, clearly in disbelief.

"Well, when you put it like that, yeah. It sounds crazy." Ruby nodded. "But that's what happened."

"All because his student left?" Sandra asked, rubbing at her forehead.

"Yep. From what Rook told us, the guy was...well...he would've preferred it if his people didn't make progress," Ben answered. "Technologically, culturally..."

"Ah, one of those types." Sandra nodded knowingly. "Hard to reason with them...even when they're not following someone to another planet."

"I can't imagine wanting to stay at square one, especially with the added benefits of technology," Carl mused. "...though I still can't fix that damn printer."

Ben groaned. "Seriously? You haven't figured it out?"

"Not even your cousin Ken knows what's up with it. It's a total mystery," Carl huffed.

"Could you go Upgrade for that?" Ruby joked.

"For something that little? Come on." Ben smirked and played along, nudging her in the shoulder.

"Y'know, I'm kind of surprised you two weren't already together earlier," Sandra teased. "From how you were so close as kids, I could've sworn you two were secretly dating at, what, age twelve?"

"Mom!" Ben blushed as the waitress at the restaurant brought them their drinks.

Ruby couldn't help but snicker, even if she was blushing.

"I'm just saying! I know every opposite sex friendship ISN'T going to end in a relationship, but still! You two were closer than most kids!" Sandra exclaimed.

"I mean...you're right, but still," Ben tried countering, only for his argument to fall flat.

Ruby just shook her head, amused at the whole thing, before taking a sip of her drink.

"Now, aside from the alien monk situation," Carl began after taking his own drink, "how's Atlas been treating you two?"

"Oh nothing too bad," Ben said, glad to change the subject. "We just have the normal stuff going on. Usual hunts, dealt with a kidnapping in orbit, fought a killer robot that tried taking someone over..."

"Also dealt with mutant monsters, stopped some crime in Hong Kong, witnessed the tail end of some alien trafficking for a fight club…uhhhh, and Ben learned how to cook, kind of," Ruby finished.

"That last one is the hardest to believe," Carl joked.

"I swear to god, it's true."

"I mean, it might not be the best but it's a start," Ben chuckled.

"And what about your friends? I know Kevin was hurt pretty bad. A heart attack or something, right?" Sandra asked, concerned.

"Yeah, but he's getting better. Figured out how to avoid those with some help," Ben explained. "Ceres is good, last I checked. Working on some top secret project. Has been for a while, now that I think about it."

"I think Weiss and Kylie are officially together now," Ruby mused. "Something about embarrassing Jacques at his own party?"

"Strategic and public use of helium." Ben smirked. "Weiss' words."

"Right, right!"

"…we have no context on who Jacques is or who Weiss is but good for them!" Carl cheered. "How's your sister, Ruby?"

Ruby's eyes widened comically. "Oh! Right, I don't think I've ever explained my team or introduced you to half of them. That can actually tie into Yang. She's doing well, she's in a relationship with Blake. Weiss and Blake are two of my friends and teammates. Weiss is the stepdaughter of General Ironwood, but her biological dad is the worst. And Blake's our resident ninja and romance novel lover. You'd probably like them."

"…huh," Carl said with a nod. "Well, we had weirder friends in college. Right hun?"

"Oh, don't even remind me," Sandra laughed. Ruby blinked. Did nothing phase these two?

Ben shrugged when Ruby turned her questioning gaze to him. At this point he figured his parents were just… desensitized to everything. They had been told that their son could transform into numerous aliens and worked for an intergalactic police force. Couple that with his girlfriend and best friend being trained to be a secret monster killer...it wouldn't be out of the question. It was still weird, but at this point not unreasonable.

"What about you guys? Anything new and exciting?" Ben teased.

"Sadly, no. It's just the same normal thing with us," Sandra sighed.

"Everything's been pretty quiet around here lately," Carl admitted.

"Honestly? Kinda missed that. Atlas is great but..." Ben trailed off.

"Too much of a good thing?" his mother guessed.

"One way to put it, yeah."

Of course, none of them knew that their quiet streak would come to an end. Looking at them from afar (thanks to his visor's zoom function), the Forever Knight stood atop a building far enough away that he wouldn't have to worry about being discovered. At the moment, he was just observing them. Worryingly, his gaze was less focused on Ben and Ruby, which would be typical of the mysterious armored rogue, but more so on his enemy's parents.

"What perfect timing," the Knight muttered.


Ben took a moment to savor the fresh air as he and his dad drove through the forested road. It was a warm and welcome departure from the usual freezing gusts of the Atlas tundra.

"Feels weird to be back here," Ben thought out loud. "It's been, what, a year?"

"Can't blame you- you've been busy, kiddo. We've missed having you and Rook around," Carl chuckled. "Rook especially- that kid knew how to cook up a storm. Don't tell your mom, but...he's a better cook."

Ben laughed. "Your secret's safe with me."

Awkward silence filled the car.

Carl cleared his throat. "Seriously though, are you okay mentally? You've been pretty busy since that accident, and...I just can't imagine what that arrow felt like," Carl finished quietly, his fingers gripping the steering wheel. "The doctor said it was made from some sort of glass, right?"

Ben rubbed the area near his heart, remembering the wound site. "Honestly? I've been doing better than I thought I would. I've been managing my time better. I work whenever, do at least a few high paying missions a week and, well, fighting IS my exercise." He chuckled, making sure his dad couldn't see his face. "If anything, the stress has only set in thanks to more work."

Carl shook his head. "It's ludicrous how they only gave you three days off. I'd make it a week if I was in charge."

Ben snorted, his laughter ringing through the car. "You sound like Kevin."


Ben loaded the last of the tools into the back of his dad's van in the parking lot in front of Bellwood's Home Depot. He was never sure what model of van it was, honestly, and this wasn't even because he wasn't a cars person like Kevin was. It was just...weird. But figuring that out was an incredibly odd discussion for another day. Right now, Ben was worried about one of the most mundane problems in a town like Bellwood, that being a broken shed doorknob.

"Alright, here we go..." Carl said. "This should be enough."

"Should be a quick fix, right?" Ben asked.

"Yeah- unless that part of the door is busted for good." Carl suggested, as he and Ben got back in the car.

The engine revved to life and Carl began the usually quick drive back to their home.

"Usually" being used because today seemed to be an odd day. Traffic wasn't usually an issue in Bellwood. Sure, you'd have traffic jams during Christmas or when there was an accident on the road, but this was different. Cars were backed up for quite a bit and there was no hint of them even moving.

"Huh...must be a bad accident..." Carl said, trying to look ahead and see what the cause was.

Further up the road, people were honking their horns at someone who was just standing in the middle of the road with several crates, like the kind you'd carry pets around in.

"Move outta the road asshole!" someone shouted.

"Oh how quickly people forget. You change a little and they forget who you are," a familiar voice said as he put on a sleek, silver metallic headband and opened one of the crates. From inside it, he pulled out a frog and set it down on the pavement.

"Now...if you'll allow me, people of Bellwood...allow to jump start your memories!" the man said, placing two fingers to the side of the headband as a red orb in the middle of it began to glow.

"...oh, no." Ben said, as the headband began to glow brighter and brighter...and a frog burst out of the ground.

"W-what the hell!?" The man yelled, before scurrying off. Ben groaned.

"And here I thought this was gonna be a quiet weekend..."

"Yes, YES! Now you all remember the power and the GENIUS of DOCTOR ALOYSIUS ANIMO!" Animo laughed manically and triumphantly. After so long doing time and concocting a new approach to his tech, refining and perfecting it, now it was time for a grand return!

Animo grinned down at them from atop his giant frog. He looked a bit different than the last time Ben saw him- the most notable difference was the lack of his sickly green skin, replaced by a typical white complexion. Ben stepped out of his car.

"Ben Tennyson!" Animo laughed. "It's been too long!"

"So, you heard I was back in town, huh?" Ben sighed, rubbing his head. "What's the plan now? Turn the science committee that voted you out into chimps?"

"What? No. I honestly just wanted to catch up," Animo admitted. "It's been a full year since I've seen you and your ragtag team, and, well, I've also been kind of worried since Max passed away."

Ben stared at his nemesis.

"...who's that in the car with you?" Animo asked, looking over.

"Oh, uh, that's just my dad," Ben said, gesturing to him. "We're just driving to pick up some supplies for...the shed out back..."

Animo nodded. "Sorry if this is awkward...uh, this is just my excuse for socializing."

Ben blinked. "...alright. What's new with you?"

"Oh, you know, typical mad science junk. Got arrested, escaped captivity, the usual. Decided to be healthier, go on walks around the area...How about you? How've you been?" Animo asked.

"Oh, me? You know, just typical hero stuff." Ben shrugged. "Ruby and I hooked up-"

"Oh, congrats!" Animo sounded pretty enthusiastic about that.

"Yeah, we've been dating for a little over a year now, but that's been a little overshadowed by uncovering the secret plot of some grand scale villain. I got stabbed in the chest 'cause of it," Ben explained, rubbing the spot again.

Animo lifted up his goggles. "Wait, really? Oh my god, how bad?"

"I was in a brief coma AND needed physical therapy. So… pretty bad," Ben surmised.

"...damn, you have been busy." Animo shook his head . "What changed, man?"

"Hell if I know." He shrugged. "I've been...I've just seen a lot. I saw a dude mutate into a freaky purple zombie, I heard the screams of a woman getting melted, and I know God's abandoned this Earth. So...maybe that happened? I...I dunno."

Animo looked down to the ground. "...so, uh...you just wanna fight it out now?"

"Yeah, I'd like that," Ben said, slapping down the Omnitrix. Tenebrous black skin crawled up his hand, shriveling his form up, as an icy blue glacial pattern appeared on his arms. The black skin covered his face, as his facial structure became more skeletal- cold slits on his face opened as wings sprouted from his back.

Big Chill exhaled a cold breath of air. "I'll just shut down your froggy friend and be on my way, then."

"Don't think that because I'm all 'buddy buddy' now that I'll just let you off so easily!" Animo grinned in that special 'Animo' way Ben was so familiar with. His frog's sac inflated before it unleashed a giant fireball from its mouth. Ben flew around it before turning to his dad's car.

"Might wanna get out of here," Ben suggested. "Don't feel like having the car roughed up by a giant fire breathing frog."

"Yeah, not sure the insurance company would believe that," Carl said casually, putting the car in reverse and getting the hell out of dodge.

"Okay, so you've stepped up your game. I'll admit that," Ben said, turning back to Animo. "But I've also gotten some upgrades!"

Ben slapped down the Omnitrix symbol once more. Blue metallic armor spread across his chest and his wings were coated in an aurora-like veil. The chest armor ran down his arms, coating his hands in the same metal as his chest.

Ben wiggled his fingers inside the armor. "Huh? Cool."

Animo stared at him. "You know, when you said upgrade, I expected...well, Upgrade. What is this?"

"No idea. First time powering up Big Chill," Ben mused. "But I'm liking the wings." He flapped them for emphasis.

Animo commanded his beast to hurl more fireballs, but Ben turned intangible- that aurora coating spread throughout his intangible body. As the fire passed through him, Ben felt a surge of energy spike through his veins.

His eyes lit up as the shimmering lights around his form got brighter. "I have no idea what you did, but I'm liking it!" Ben's hands lit up and shot out a beam of light- an explosion of light and ice blew Animo and his frog back. "Energy absorbing intangibility, energy blasts...now this is something I can live with."

Animo growled as his frog bounced up into the air, its flaming tongue shooting out. Ben avoided the attack as the polar lights surrounding his body lit up again. He breathed out a cold breath of air to cool down the animal.

While the frog itself wasn't going into hibernation, probably due to whatever mutations Animo had it undergo, the glow in its throat did subside. It tried to expel another blast from its mouth, only for smoke to belch out instead. The toad actually looked confused when no fire left its maw and croaked, as if to ask its master what happened. Animo facepalmed and had the toad shoot out its tongue to wrap Ben up.

Ben quickly turned intangible and froze the attack with ease. Ben unleashed a burst of energy, which shattered the tongue.

Animo blinked. "Uh oh."

With that, Ben dove right at the frog as it croaked in distress. Still intangible, he phased right through the frog's large chest, ice crystals forming at the point of impact before spreading over the frog. Before he was caught in the ice, Animo desperately leapt from his pet beast. Whatever he did to make himself healthier, it definitely paid off as he was able to safely land, roll to mitigate some of the pain, and then stand right back up.

"...damn," Ben muttered, genuinely impressed.

Animo spread out his arms in triumph. "Yeah, I work out!"

"T-that was honestly really cool, man," Ben appraised, clapping his hands. "I-I feel weird just having a normal conversation with you."

"You're what, 18 now? Get used to it. MY early adult years were weird like that. All adult actions are purely ad-libbed," Animo advised. "NOW!" He aimed his headband up at the sky and summoned a flurry of birds around him. "STOP THIS BIRDNADO!"

Ben gave him a look. "...what?"

Each of the birds, while still normal in size, had two sets of eyes on each side of their heads. While the birds flocked around the mad scientist, some of them broke away and flapped their wings at Ben, only to launch their feathers at him like arrows. Ben dodged and wove through the flechette storm.

"Impressive, aren't they? Like a barrier of daggers!" Animo called out with a grin.

Ben studied the birds from a sort-of safe distance away. "Impressive at that size, yeah. I don't think they can do that until they're fully grown..."

"Beg pardon?"

"Huh?" Ben perked up. "Oh uh...something else I've dealt with recently. I just thought of that when your birds did their arrow feather thing."

"...I am both concerned as a normal person, but intrigued as a scientist, mad or otherwise."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." Ben walked through the birdnado with ease and grabbed Animo's head. "So, we can do this one way- you remove the headband and I take you back to the Plumber base, or you get the world's WORST headache. Pick your poison."

Animo smirked as he was about to answer-

After Carl had driven out of the crossfire, he had parked some ways away, the sounds of combat just barely reaching his ears. He was about to take his phone and call his son to check on him, before Carl was startled by someone knocking on the door of his car. He looked out the window and saw someone best described as a punk or gang member...complete with skull face paint.

"Yo. You Carl?" he asked, muffled by the window.

Carl realized too late what was happening.

The birds were just dispersing when Ben heard his dad yell for help. He turned around, eyes wide with horror. Ben quickly froze Animo's feet and snatched away the headband. "Stay right here!" Ben ordered as he took to the skies.

"Oh yeah, sure I will." Animo rolled his eyes and quickly pulled out a second headband, putting it on and commanding the birds to chip away at the ice.

As Ben flew over, his worry grew and grew...and it reached its breaking point when he found Carl's car. The window had been smashed open on both front doors, and the back door on the right had been completely torn off and thrown a good five feet away.

"What the hell?" Ben said as he looked inside. He frowned before morphing into Upgrade. He picked up the car door and quickly repaired the vehicle back to its normal state. "Was Animo just a distraction?"

The worst part was that his dad was nowhere to be seen. The only thing left of him was his dropped phone.

Ben picked it up and looked around. "Dad..."

He walked back to Animo, who was still chipping himself free of the ice. Ben immediately snatched the headband away from Animo and groaned. "How many of these do you have?"

"I actually might have a surplus... What? You expected me not to learn from my own past mistakes? I'm a mad scientist, not an idiot!" Animo proudly declared.

"No, you're still an idiot, because your buddy let you get caught."

"...'buddy?' What are you talking about?" The mad doctor raised an eyebrow.

Ben grabbed Animo by his shirt collar and lifted him up. "Where the hell is my father?!"

Animo blinked. "How should I know?!"

-TO BE CONTINUED-


Please leave a review- like, seriously. I'm in that headspace of 'oh God, everything I write is garbage.'