I got distracted by Pokemon, sorry
When Ben said that he would treat Ruby to a snack, she expected something like a burger at some shack she passed when she came into town. Not a smoothie joint for "cool teens". Though she had to admit the place was pretty nice, full of warm colors and comfortable couches, soft rock playing in the background. She could see why teenagers flocked here.
Ruby stared curiously at her drink, which Ben had selected for her. The boy in question was contently sipping at at his own, which surprised the redhead.
"Thought you hated these things," Ruby noted, taking a sip of her strawberry kiwi.
Ben stopped drinking and smiled at her. "Things change. I'm a different man now, Ruby. I have different tastes, different aliens, and a different signature outfit."
"Oh really." Ruby smiled slyly. "So, how about that Sumo Slammers reboot?"
Ben slammed his cup down on the table. "I love it. Good restart for kids."
"So, what was that you were saying about being different?" she teased.
He pouted. "Hush."
"No. So, what's the deal with this place?" Ruby asked. "Why here? I figured Burger Shack would be more up you alley."
"Oh, I got introduced to this place by my soccer team," Ben explained. "Made an impulse decision to get one, and, well, I have my picture on the wall now." He motioned over to the left of them. Ruby looked over to see a picture of Ben, with a caption underneath it: GIVE THIS MAN NO SMOOTHIES.
"Uhhh..."
"It's a joke, they find me endearing," Ben said, shrugging his shoulders.
Ruby gave him a look.
"...ok, it's because whenever a villain finds me, it's usually here, and the staff here think I'm a bad luck charm..." he confessed.
"Come on, that can't be true," Ruby laughed. "You can't be that unlucky!" Ben looked to the side and coughed awkwardly.
"...oh my god you're that unlucky," she gasped.
"Animo tried to kill me at this very table." Ben grimaced before pointing out the window, where all the outdoor seats were. "An alien elephant tried to flatten me over there, and an alien squid attacked me in the bathroom."
"You lost me at elephant."
"Most people do."
"Ok, all that sounds crazy, but I don't think they should ban you for being here when trouble happens," Ruby argued.
"I mean...I am a big target," Ben said, motioning to the Omnitrix. "I know it's been a while since we've last seen each other, but you gotta believe me. My enemies just keep learning from each of our fights. Improving bit by bit, using whatever they can to get even."
"Jesus," Ruby said, wincing. "How serious are they?"
"Eh, like I said, they just want to get even with me, society, or someone who wronged them," Ben said, shrugging. "I give them credit for improving. I just wish it was in the right direction, ya know?"
"They can't all be Kevins, Ben," Ruby said, patting his shoulder.
"I know, but a guy can dream," Ben sighed, slurping his chocolate banana smoothie. "How's your drink?" Before Ruby could answer, a scream came from the kitchen area. Ben and Ruby looked over to see two people wearing black hoodies; one was taller and the other was much shorter, presumably a female.
What really caught Ben's eye was the taller one, his hoodie had two strange holes on the sides, like they were secondary arm holes. Ben ignored that, though. The taller one was threatening the underpaid cashier with something-
"Is that a fucking gun?!" someone yelled, and the customers began to freak out. Ben and Ruby ducked down beneath their table.
"Ok, yeah, about that whole, 'people attacking whenever you're around' thing?" Ruby nudged Ben as he activated the Omnitrix. "Still bullshit, but man you have horrible luck."
"Tell me about it." Ben rolled his eyes as he slapped down the Omnitrix. With a green flash, his body began to change. His arms bulged out and became a shiny green metal. His torso widened along with his head, the latter of which turned the same green as his arms, only to be covered with a metallic, grey helmet with a lighter set of grey eyebrows sprouting off of it.
A tiny squadron of Slapbacks snuck across the floor, unnoticed by the robbers or the panicking customers. Ben could hear the demands of the taller bad guy.
"Dude, just hand over the money. No one needs to die today," he growled. There was an odd tone to it, as if he couldn't believe he was actually robbing someone. But he didn't stop the cashier from shoving money into the bag, and without hesitation he slung it over his shoulder.
Some of the clones jumped onto the counter and grabbed the gun. The gun grew heavier, weighing the bad guy's hand down so that it couldn't lift off the counter. The robber gasped, caught completely off guard.
"What just happened?" the second robber asked.
"I-I don't know!" the first panicked. Suddenly, more Slapbacks latched onto the arm of his hoodie and ripped it off, revealing red plating underneath. The man gasped, trying to hide it with his other hand. "Shit! It's wearing off!"
"Already?! I thought we had more time!" The girl said.
"Whatever! Just grab the money and let's go!" The taller one snatched the bag full of money and bolted for the door. Ruby sprang up and attempted to stall their getaway by grabbing the girl, but the girl was just a second too fast for her.
Too fast for HER, the girl with superspeed.
"...uh, what just happened?" Ben asked.
Manny hated doing what he had to do. Theft, running from the cops, and other seedy activities... a few months ago, he was just a kid in a foster home with his foster sister, Helen. One second, their father was welcoming them in, and then knocking them out.
Next thing he knew, he woke up as a weird four armed alien, like those alien heroes he saw on the news from time to time. Next to him, his sister, now transformed into a speedy velociraptor. The scariest part wasn't the whole mutation, or the fact they'd been used. It was the fact that a full year had passed, and they remembered nothing.
So, they were vagrants. They wandered the streets at night, to avoid being seen and reported to whoever could arrest them and take them to some government lab for testing. This went on for a few months, and they were cold, hungry, and willing to do anything to go back to being human...
And then, he showed up.
The boss. He took pity on them and took them to his workplace: an underground city where they could be one with aliens, and never have to worry about people finding them. He even setup an apartment for them, but under a condition.
Doing his dirty work in return for a work in progress 'cure'.
Manny felt sick after injecting the needle into his hand. It was normal to feel a bit woozy and lie down for a bit, but today, he felt the worst kind of nausea imaginable. He flopped on his bed and breathed heavily as his second set of arms retracted into his body, and his vision blurred as his four eyes became two. His body became shorter, going from a good 7 foot tall stature to a basic 5'6''.
He stared up at the ceiling, weird colors floating around the air. Another common side effect that the boss's men were working to prevent from happening. Manny watched them dance around for a bit as he built up the strength to get up and look in a mirror to see if everything was normal.
Manny soon hobbled to his drawer, and looked at his normal, human reflection; brown skin, amber eyes, and his signature afro that all the girls loved. He grinned as he posed in the mirror, relieved to be back to his normal self. But deep down, he knew it was temporary. 72 hours would come and go like a blur.
"Seriously?"
Manny looked over to see the now human Helen, standing in the doorway with her arms folded. She had pale skin with black hair that had a blue streak running through it. She was a lithe girl that didn't really catch anyone's eyes, but she didn't mind.
"What? I can't help it. I'm a charmer," he said, grinning.
"Uh huh." Helen sighed. "I wanted to ask you about...well, what happened at the smoothie shop."
"What about it?" he aasked.
"With the gun. Why'd you set it down?"
"I didn't. It was just...forced down." Manny shrugged. "I dunno. Maybe the dude had powers and we didn't know it."
"That still doesn't explain as to why he ripped off your hoodie."
"So? Why are you worried?" Manny asked, picking up said hoodie.
"I...I dunno. Just keep low for a while, will you?"
"Gotcha," Manny acquiesced. "Anyways, I'm gonna take this to Pakmar's Tailoring."
"I thought he ran a food market," Helen remarked.
"Business got wrecked. Again." Manny sighed wearily. "Seriously, who's responsible for all that destruction? Who takes time out of their day to ruin someone's reputation?"
(Elsewhere, Ben coughed.)
Going down the elevator shaft, Ben looked down at the torn hoodie piece he'd snagged. He didn't know why he hung onto it, but his gut told him it was important to the case. It was strange, but hey, his gut feelings normally led him in the right was no reason to start distrusting them.
The elevator doors opened, and Ben and Ruby stepped onto the base. It was quiet for once, save for the occasional clack of a keyboard. Ben glanced to his left to see Max and Rook filling out some files, with Blake sitting in another chair, eyes focused on a book titled Ninjas of Love.
(Ben had heard about that book, and by god there were a lot of jokes involving said book in the Sumo Slammer community.)
"Where is everyone?" Ben asked, looking around. "I know it's Wednesday, but I expected this place to be a bit more lively."
"Kevin's working at the mechanic shop, Yang and Ceres are sparing, and Kylie and Weiss went to the mall," Blake explained, not daring to look up from her book. It was getting too juicy.
"So, it's just us?" Ruby wondered.
Rook nodded. "It appears so."
"What happened with you two?" Max asked curiously.
Ben dangled the torn piece in his hand. "Fresh Press got robbed."
Max raised an eyebrow. "I thought you were banned from there."
Ben got red in the face. "No, no, not exactly," he stammered. "But still! It got robbed and the perpetrators got away with the money."
"Hm," Max said thoughtfully. "You know, the shop upstairs has some tasty milkshakes...and family discounts..."
"I'm just not a milkshake person, ok?" Ben shrugged.
"I am, though," Ruby pouted.
"I still do not see why it'd be Plumber jurisdiction," Rook said pointedly. "Basic theft does not seem alien to me."
"Well, considering the guy had red plating on his arms and the girl was literally faster than me using my semblance," Ruby explained, "I'm gonna say aliens."
"Fair point," Blake said, reluctantly closing her book. "So, what now?"
"Well, if you think it involves aliens..." Max drawled, standing up from his chair, "then you four are going to have to go where most aliens in Bellwood live."
"And where is that, exactly?" Blake asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Undertown," Ben said, smiling slyly.
Blake and Ruby shared an incredulous look. "What?"
Blake felt nostalgic for the markets in Menagerie, which was odd, since Undertown's market was completely subterranean and so, well, alien. There were so many new sights, sounds, and smells all around her; it was more than a little overwhelming. For her, at least.
Ruby was mesmerized, darting from stand to stand, ogling all the weird fruits and trinkets that were being sold. She was vibrating with excitement; she'd never been exposed to this much alien culture at once. She quickly regrouped the investigation crew.
"This place is amazing!" Ruby gushed to Blake as she started to devour something that looked like a drumstick, but bright green and covered in purple spots.
Blake kept her eyes focused on the 'drumstick', wondering where the hell that thing came from and if it was even safe for Ruby to eat. "It sure is. Where'd you get that?"
"Free sample from a vendor," Ruby smiled. "Tastes good! Wanna bite?"
"I'll pass," Blake politely declined. "So, what's up with this place?"
"Well, a few years back, following some intergalactic conquest, aliens started to flee their home planets and go wherever Plumber bases were set up. A bunch of aliens came to Bellwood 'cause of, well, me." Ben explained. "I am the guy that took out Vilgax."
"I don't know who Vilgax is," Blake deadpanned.
"Space Cthulhu," Ruby said bluntly. "Really strong, but somehow lost to a ten year old. He shoots lasers out of his eyes."
"That just raises more questions."
"Hold that thought," Ben told them as he raised arm up to halt them. Blake and Ruby turned to see some sort of alien bar, looking horribly run down and seedy. "This is our first stop."
"We will handle this," Rook said, pulling out his Prototool. "I assume we are doing the 'good cop, bad cop' situation?"
"Yep. Dibs on bad cop!" Ben grinned as he dialed up an alien on the Omnitrix. The two walked in, leaving the girls alone. Blake could hear some commotion as Ben and Rook entered the bar, but it fell silent within seconds.
Ruby lightly tapped on Blake's arm. "Are you doing alright?"
Blake sighed. "I guess so? It's just weird to be here. I mean, I just recently found out aliens exist and they have societies set up on Earth. I'm just kind of overwhelmed," she confessed.
"I get it. Ben's cousin went through a similar problem. Yours is just...a little more subdued," Ruby told her gently.
"I think the weirdest thing about the whole experience is Ben," Blake admitted.
Ruby raised an eyebrow. "Why's that?"
"Well, considering he can transform into any alien out there," Blake explained, "it kinda confirms we're not alone in the universe, that there's a lot more scarier threats beyond the Grimm, not to mention the powers on his aliens. That crab guy could read minds, you mentioned one that could make itself smaller and denser, and that moth alien that could freeze people from the inside out? It's just...scary. Not to mention, the fact you took down some eldritch alien warlord as KIDS? There's no telling what Ben's truly capable of."
"Yeah..." Ruby sighed. "Ben hasn't even scratched the surface of his powers. It can be scary to think about the entire cosmos being shoved into some tiny wrist watch."
Blake shuddered at the thought of that. "I'm just glad he's your best friend."
"Believe me, Ben doesn't have any plans to be evil. He's a pure boy." Ruby smiled reassuringly.
Just then, a crowd of people ran out of the bar Ben and Rook walked into. Infernal screams could be heard from inside, worrying Blake and Ruby, before they were abruptly cut off with the sound of a cage locking.
Something toddered out the door, Rook following behind. The creature was a green and yellow-skinned, ogre-like alien with a dark green metal cage helmet covering its face. Connected to this cage was his armor, which wrapped around his shoulders and went halfway down his chest. The armor was connected to his pants by chains. The Omnitrix was placed perfectly in the center of his chest plate.
"Well, good cop..." Ben wheezed, "Bad cop was a...bust. No one...really answered. Just screamed. A lot."
"What the hell is that thing?" Blake asked, plugging her nose. The alien's smell was pungent.
"This is Toepick, a Decipulain. They are known for their frightening faces," Rook explained.
"I am...the void that stares back," Ben coughed.
"Ok, that is the most forced 'edgy' sentence I've ever heard." Blake snickered.
"Told you he was pure!" Ruby chirped.
"What?" Ben raised an eyebrow underneath his mask as he reverted back to human.
"Nevermind," Blake said quickly. "If you didn't find any answers here, then maybe we have to look elsewhere. Do you still have that hoodie sleeve?"
Rook held it up. "I do."
Blake grinned. "Know if there's any tailors around here?"
Blake looked up at the sign; it was written in some blocky alien language she couldn't even begin to comprehend, but she trusted Rook when he said it was a tailor shop.
"Why would you want to look here?" Ben questioned.
"Well, there's a chance that if the guy wants to keep his identity a secret, he'd take his hoodie to some place like this," Blake explained. "You didn't see his face, right?"
"Good point. How'd you know this?"
"Experience," Blake said flatly before walking into the building.
"Blake's essentially our 'thinking outside the box' person," Ruby explained. "She didn't go to a traditional hunters training ground."
"That explains a lot," Ben said, as he followed Blake inside...and was immediately hit in the head with a shoe. "OW!" he cried out in pain. Ruby rushed to Ben's side, fully expecting someone dangerous inside the shop.
Ruby instead was met with a little green alien with warts on his face, standing on a table. His eyes were on the side of his face similar to a bird. He wore a small black suit with silver armor. "YOU! OUT OF PAKMAR'S SHOP! NOW!" the little alien shrieked.
Ben opened his eyes and groaned. "You again? I keep telling you, I'm not the problem!"
"DON'T CARE! OUT!" Pakmar picked up another shoe and chucked it. Ben ducked as he scurried out the door. Ruby looked to Rook for an answer.
"Ben has terrible luck," Rook briefly explained.
"I should start calling him Johnny 13 then," Ruby joked.
"Oh, fuck you, 'Kitty'!" Ben yelled from outside.
Pakmar cleared his throat. "Anyways...you were saying?"
"Has anyone ever come into the shop with the same material as this hoodie?" Blake asked, holding up the torn sleeve. Pakmar held the thing in his hands and thought for a minute.
"Not only has Pakmar seen this material, but Pakmar even has hoodie on hand!" He motioned over to a jacket sitting on a hanger in the back, with a sleeve torn and two holes cut underneath the main armholes. "Why? Are you returning sleeve?"
"More like investigating who made the order," Rook said, flashing his Plumber's badge.
Pakmar nodded. "I see. Let Pakmar pull out list of client who come in recent-" Pakmar couldn't finish his sentence as he was ensnared in an orange web and pulled into the back of his store. Rook and the others didn't even flinch, instead pulling out their weapons.
Blake's bow suddenly moved; she could detect someone in the next room. She threw her weapon and it embedded itself in the wall of the building. Using her ribbon as a grapple to pull herself in, Blake flew towards it, and at the last second drew her katana out of the Gambol Shroud's sheath, twisting in the air, and slicing the wall into three pieces. The wall collapsed, revealing a small group of alien mobsters, armed to the teeth with weaponry.
Rook activated the Tonfa mode on his Prototool and ran towards one of the larger aliens. Fistina grinned. "I could do this all day," she taunted in her strange Russian-like accent.
"I could say the same thing," Rook retorted, before ramming Fistina with his shield.
Blake faced off with the rather disgusting looking Bubblehead. The freak fired a few shots at her with his weapon of choice, but she evaded them with graceful ease.
"Stay still, you!" he hollered, right before Blake cut the blaster in two. Poor guy didn't see it coming, and Blake's yellow eyes drilled into his soul.
"Run," she ordered, and suddenly Bubblehelmet was running.
Ruby gasped as Tummyhead lifted his hammer, before he awkwardly tensed up and shook violently. The head on his chest started to convulse, as he dropped his hammer and started bashing himself in the face with his fists. Ruby cringed in pain, but she was fully aware of what was going on.
"Stop hitting yourself, stop hitting yourself, stop hitting yourself!" Tummyhead teased himself, but there was an odd layering to his voice.
"Alright Ben, you can cut it out," Ruby sighed, and Ghostfreak popped his head out of the thing.
"Sorry, sorry," Ben said. "I just really wanted to do that." He snapped his fingers and immediately it was like a poltergeist had been set loose. Clothing started to fly around the room, whacking into people and wrapping around their limbs to obstruct their movements, before finally tying around them and acting as ropes.
"You couldn't have done that earlier?!" Blake yelled.
"Hey, Pakmar told me not to come in here," Ben shot back as he reverted. "I'm willing to respect his wishes."
"Whatever," Blake dismissed, rolling her eyes.
"So, what are we gonna do now?" Ruby asked.
"Another routine of the cops?" Rook said hopefully. "Dibs on the bad cop."
"Nah," Ben shrugged. "We didn't get anywhere doing that. I think we're gonna have to think outside the box." Ben activated the watch and scrolled to a mechanical looking alien. He slapped down the watch and quickly transformed.
Ruby blinked. "This one looks familiar..."
The gear on top of Ben's head started moving backwards as a giant green cube surrounded the area. Blake looked around, confused by what was happening. Suddenly, the debris from the building started floating up and reattaching itself back in place, as if nothing happened. Something caught her eye; projections of people appearing right before the door of the building.
"Wait, what's that?" Blake asked. She looked over again to see that those people had become much more detailed...and she soon realized she was staring at the back of her own head.
"Woah!" Ruby gushed as she ran over to see her past self. "That's so cool!"
"Best recommend staying away from those things, Miss Rose," Rook cautioned. "Especially your own."
"Why? What's so dangerous about them?" Ruby wondered as she walked away from her projection.
"Let's just say the results aren't really pretty," the mechanical alien answered in his thick German accent. "Clockwork's not much of a fighter, more of an effector."
Ben continued to rewind time. Blake watched as minutes passed by in seconds. It was weird watching such simple events in reverse, especially watching people walk out facing forward. Blake looked over Ben's solid gold form and wondered how much it would cost if he was all melted down.
And then the key on the top of his head stopped turning, and the broadcast stopped. Blake looked back to see the frozen image of a young African American male, carrying that same tattered hoodie.
"Alright, there's our culprit," Ben declared as he trudged on over, the others following suit. The key began moving again, this time clockwise. The teen entered the store, and the group followed him in.
"What can Pakmar help you with?" the past projection of Pakmar asked cheerfully.
"I need a replacement for this sleeve," the teen said, laying the hoodie on the counter. "Uh, it got torn off when I got in a fight."
"Hmmm." Pakmar nodded. "Do you want Pakmar to patch up these two holes as well?" He motioned to the cutout holes on his hoodie. "And on your shirt as well?" Blake didn't even notice until Pakmar pointed it out.
"Uh, no thanks," The kid blushed, embarrassed.
"What name can Pakmar put this under?" The alien asked, pulling out a book and a pen.
"Oh, you can put it under Manny. Manny Armstrong."
With that, the projection ended, leaving the team in the ruins of Pakmar's store. Ben reverted back to human with a big grin on his face. "Gotcha."
Rook pulled out his Prototool and transformed it into its scanning mode. He typed something into the interface, and a few results popped up. "There are records of a Manny Armstrong living in an apartment complex not too far from here."
"He looked so human, though," Blake noted. "Why would he be living in Undertown?"
"I dunno," Ruby said, frowning. "Guess we'll find out."
Manny swung the door open, carrying a bag full of Chinese food from topside. "Dinner time!"
Helen grinned as she eagerly set down her book. "Finally, something that's recognizable!"
"Yeah, and it isn't alive when you put in your mouth," Manny chuckled as he pulled out the food. "Let's dig in!" Suddenly there was a knock at the door. Manny looked up from one of the take out boxes and glanced towards the door.
"You expecting company?" Helen asked.
"No. You?"
"...wait, is it rent time again?" Helen groaned.
"Aw, damn it. Think it might be," Manny sighed as he walked to the door. "Look, the money's coming, you don't need to come down and harass us-" He swung open the door to see Rook and Ruby standing there. "Oh."
"Hello, Mr. Armstrong." Rook cleared his throat, flashing his badge. "We have some questions for you involving your whereabouts this afternoon."
"...dude, why so formal? We know he was at the smoothie place and the tailor's." Ruby raised an eyebrow.
"Sorry." Rook smiled sheepishly. "Force of habit."
Manny knew immediately he was in hot water. He gave a quick glance over towards Helen, and immediately the two of them were running for a nearby window. Manny grabbed a chair and threw it through the window...only for it to be immediately sliced in two the second it smashed against the glass. Blake jumped through the window, her Gambol Shroud having gained a more notable coat of green and black. The blade of her katana was glowing a bright green. Upgrade's head popped up from one side of the blade.
"Hiya!" Ben grinned. "We have some questions."
"I still don't see why you wanted to possess my weapon," Blake said flatly.
"Thought it'd be cool."
"I mean, he's not wrong," Ruby agreed, practically drooling as she eyed the weapon.
"If we could get back on topic," Rook said sternly. "Manny Armstrong, you and your associate-"
"Sister," Manny corrected him.
"Apologies. You and your sister are under arrest for involvement in-"
"Listen, we just wanted to be normal again!" Helen blurted out.
Blake's bow wiggled in confusion. "Normal? I don't exactly follow. You two look human to me."
"Yeah, I agree." Ben eyed the two. "No signs of being aliens whatsoever."
Literally the second Ben said that, Manny's eyes started to sting. He clutched his head in pain,as his eyes started to split, to the horror of everyone in the room. "No, no, no-!"
"No! He said it was good for-!" Helen screamed in pain as her skull started to change shape.
Blake couldn't take her eyes off their mutations; it was so graphic, but her mind had gone into shock. There was no accurate way to describe what she saw, other than mentally repeating what the fuck over and over again. But the sounds she heard; the cracking of their bones, and their screams...they would be forever seared into her mind.
Manny breathed heavily as he looked down at the two sets of arms he now possessed. "That son of a bitch lied to us!"
"I thought he said it was good enough for 72 hours! It hasn't even been four!" Helen grimaced. "Sorry. We have other things to attend to right now." Helen suddenly blitzed everyone in the room, knocking them back. She practically flew through the door just as Manny jumped out the window.
"She's not getting away this time!" Ruby declared. She and Rook took off running after Helen, and Ben and Blake took off after Manny. Helen wasn't as fast as a normal Kineceleran adolescent usually was; they could reach speeds of 600 MPH, while Helen's was a failing 120 MPH. Ruby could reach 115 MPH at her current level, which proved enough to keep up with the sonic youth. Ruby jumped into the air and quickly followed by performing a downward rifle shot. A quick sheet of ice spread across the ground.
But it didn't work; Helen jumped off the ground and ran on the walls of nearby buildings. Ruby gasped as she leapt over the patch of ice, still following the girl. "CHEATER!"
Meanwhile, Ben and Blake jumped from rooftop to rooftop, hot on Manny's tail. Blake's eyes were filled with determination as she flung her weapon (and Ben) at Manny. Ben sent his hand through the ribbon in an attempt to grab Manny, but Manny quickly escaped his grasp. Manny started throwing broken chunks of roof at Ben and Blake, but Blake simply avoided them with her shadow clones.
Fuckin' Naruto, Ben thought to himself as Blake threw him again. This time he grabbed a hold of Manny's hoodie and dragged him back with him. Ben let his grab on him go as Manny prepared to strike Blake with a fist to the face-
But instead found himself shattering the head of a frozen statue. Manny gasped as Blake pulled up a hidden ribbon trap from the ground behind him, ensnaring her target. Ben binded their opponent like a snake.
"So," Ben drawled, "You gonna talk?"
"Not a chance," Manny growled as he struggled to break free.
"You better talk," Blake threatened, pointing her blade at Manny's neck. "Or you're gonna see how easily this thing can pierce flesh."
"What, you're gonna kill me for trying to be normal again?" Manny retorted, unfazed by the threat. "I'm a freak. I just wanted to be a normal human kid again, with normal human friends who don't think I'm four armed freak of nature. You don't get my situation, do you?"
"Not really," Ben admitted. "I can't relate."
Blake huffed. "But I certainly can." She reached for her bow and pulled it off slowly, revealing two cat-like ears on top of her head.
Manny raised an eyebrow. "Uh…"
"You're a Faunus?" Ben asked casually. "Huh. Didn't expect that."
"You know what Faunus are?" Blake said, taken aback. She'd expected both of them to be shocked.
"Well, yeah," Ben told her. "One of Kylie's moms is a Faunus. I know the whole backstory and the discrimination thing. That's fucked up, by the way. I'd like to cook the CEO of Faunus racism a pot of soup and then pour all of it on his crotch."
"...what?"
"So, what, you think that because you have some cat ears that we're suddenly equals?" Manny yelled, startling them both. "Am I supposed to feel sorry for you? LOOK AT ME! I'm not anything close to a human!"
"Manny, please-" Ben tried to console him.
"Oh, don't try pulling the pity card on me," Manny snarled. "I'm done talking!" He suddenly tore himself free of the ribbon. "I'm more in the mood for throwing hands!" He swung at Blake, who quickly dodged his vicious blows. She flung herself backwards and produced a hard light clone of herself, that Manny hit...and detonated, as he suddenly flew backwards.
"Did you do that?" Blake asked her weapon.
"Yep!" Ben said cheerfully. "I've worked with Dust before, but I've never seen it interact with a semblance like yours."
"Then keep doing whatever you're doing," Blake ordered, smirking. She created a few more clones, all of them running forward and striking Manny with the blunt ends of their weapons. Manny swung at them again, but they turned to ice. Manny's hands shattered them with a brief series of chops, while Blake swapped her weapon into its gun form and started firing some quick shots at Manny. He blocked the shots and ran at Blake, wildly swinging his arms in an attempt to fake Blake out.
"For a dude with such a brute form," Ben noted, "he doesn't really have much combat experience. Let's use that to our advantage!" He jumped out of Blake's weapon and splattered onto Manny, suffocating him under his form. Manny yelled as he fell to the ground, trying to pull the alien off of him.
"Believe me, the more you struggle, the harder its gonna be to take me off," Ben sighed as he poked his head out.
Ruby and Rook then hopped onto the roof, both out of breath. "We lost the girl," Ruby muttered, her pride wounded.
"Well, don't beat yourself up about it too much," Blake comforted her. "We got the big guy."
"I'm...not telling you guys...anything!" Manny declared as he struggled to get free of Upgrade's grasp.
"Better reconsider that statement, Mr. Armstrong," Rook said pointedly, pulling out his scanner. "How long have you been taking that drug?"
"Like I said, I'm not telling you guys anything!"
"Then perhaps you should listen," Rook stated, his voice low and serious. "Your body does not have much time left if you keep using that drug."
Manny froze.
"What I am looking at is not pretty," Rook continued. "Your frequent injections have caused collapsed veins. This can lead to infections of the blood vessels and heart valves. Not to mention, this could easily affect your immune system and intellectual performance. Now, answer me this: How long have you been taking that drug?"
"...a few months," Manny confessed.
"It is a miracle you and your sister are still around, then." Rook shook his head. "Now, please: where can we find the person behind this drug?"
Manny paused and took a deep breath. "There's a meeting tonight at the Black Hole Bar on the shady side of town," he answered quietly. "You'll know him when you see him."
Rook nodded. "Thank you for cooperating, Mr. Armstrong. We will send a Plumber escort to have you taken back to the labs and properly analyzed. I am sure our top scientists will have you looking human in no time."
"And then what?"
"Eh, you'll probably do some community service or something," Ben said casually. "After you recover, of course."
"So, you're telling me, this entire time," Manny seethed, his eye twitching dangerously, "I could've gone to one of your bases and asked for help?"
"...yeah, pretty much."
"Beat my boss to a fucking pulp."
Ruby grinned savagely. "With pleasure."
Helen's rampage in the bar was a brutal sight. The quartet walked into the bar to see broken weapons, dead patrons slumped against walls or over tables, and a lot of broken bottles of alcohol. The smell of alien whisky and blood stunk up the air as the quartet carefully tiptoed around the bodies.
"Damn," Ben whispered. "She was angry."
"I would be too if my only way of being considered 'normal' in the status quo was due to a faulty drug that kills me," Rook quipped. "Not that I would do that."
"You're a good egg, Rook," Blake said sarcastically.
"What does me being an egg have to do with my hypothetical?"
The four of them continued to follow the trail of bodies, before arriving at a changing room. The air seemed permanently drenched in perfume; costumes were hung on moveable racks; purple curtains indicated dressing rooms; and an enormous purple vanity took center stage, the seat holding an all too familiar face.
"YOU!"
Psyphon smiled as he finished his drink. "Oh? More unexpected guests. Are they with you, Miss Wheels?" He turned to an exhausted and beaten Helen, who was lying face first on the ground.
"You know this guy?" Blake asked.
"We have history," Ruby explained, pulling out her scythe. "This dude was space Cthulhu's partner and devoted follower. He kidnapped Kevin when we were younger and almost killed Ben."
"I got better," Ben told her reassuringly.
"...the more I learn, the more concerned I get," Blake concluded.
"As you should," he agreed.
"It's been a while, Tennyson," Psyphon said as he stood up. "Since you ruined my master's plan and sent him hurling into the voids of space."
"...wait, did I kill him?" Ben asked, legitimately concerned.
"I wouldn't know," Psyphon admitted. "I never found a body." That statement sent chills down Ben and Ruby's spines. "I grieved for a while, before deciding it was time I stopped being the 'dragon' towards Vilgax and more of a leader."
"So, what, you started a drug ring?"
"One that would ensure that I would have no competition." Psyphon smiled sinisterly. "No one can replicate these drugs except for me. Anyone who tries? I'm sure that they'll blow themselves up trying to. I call my masterpiece...Crystal Dolphin."
The room went dead quiet.
"Seriously?"
"Yes."
"That's the dumbest name I've heard for a drug. Ever."
"I suppose if you could name your aliens poorly, I could name my drug whatever I wanted without judgement." Psyphon taunted. He reached under his seat and pulled out a case of the drug. "Besides. I've been saving a special sample for myself, just for a day like today."
Psyphon slammed his hand down on the needle, and laughed maniacally as his body started to change. His bones cracked as they grew to the point they looked like they were going to pop out of Psyphon's flesh...and then he started to grow. His giant head hit the ceiling, and the building shook ominously.
Ben quickly grabbed Helen as the four of them rushed out of the collapsing building, jumping over the bodies littered on the ground. The second the four of them got outside, they could hear the maniacal laughs of Psyphon towering over them. Ben turned around to see a 14 ft tall Psyphon, with a crazed look in his eye.
"Welp, we're fucked," Blake sighed.
"Not entirely," Ben declared as he activated the watch. "Psyphon may have augmented himself with To'kustar DNA, but he didn't exactly account for the obvious weakness."
"What weakness?" Ruby panicked as Psyphon began to stomp out of the bar. "HE'S HUGE!"
"Precisely," Rook said, grinning sharply. "And so is his weak point." He pointed to the fin on top of Psyphon's head. "Hitting that thing is like hitting its brain."
"So you guys are gonna maneuver around and strike the fin while I keep him busy," Ben said.
"With what?" Blake demanded.
"With this!" Ben slapped down the watch and turned into an old favorite. Ben held out his arm, as tan scales grew up his arm. His body size and mass started to increase, as spikes grew down his back. The spikes continued to grow along his growing tail, but stopped at the end. Suddenly, a spiked mace appeared on the end of the tail, as Ben roared...
Ruby and the others stared at Humungousaur with wide eyed shock, and, in Ruby's case, excitement. "GIANT LIZARD!" she squealed.
Humungousaur roared again as he made a mad dash towards Psyphon on all fours. Psyphon swung at Ben, but Ben immediately countered with the strike with his mace tail, causing a powerful shockwave that knocked everyone back.
"What is up with that form?" Blake asked, rubbing her head from the sheer shock.
"His Vaxasaurian form, or, as he calls it, Humungousaur, is one of Ben's toughest aliens. Especially with the mace tail," Rook explained. "I feel I should let you see for yourselves and not explain it."
Ben shook his tail like a rattlesnake as he watched Psyphon move around him, waiting for an opening. Even in his 'ultimate' form, Psyphon possessed some form of intelligence. He jumped at Ben, but the teen unleashed a powerful, devastating punch to his gut, causing him to fall back, crushing the bar.
Blake and Ruby nodded at one another and jumped up on top of some nearby buildings, running in perfect sync. Rook stayed behind and swapped his Prototool into its bow and arrow form. He took a deep breath and prepared the shot.
Ben stood over the dust, watching it settle...before something red started to glow from the ruins. What was that-
FWOOM. Ben narrowly dodged the laser blast. Psyphon's head poked up from the debris. He flashed a menacing grin before he started razing the area with his laser vision, causing nearby citizens to flee. Ben jumped back as he blocked the laser fire; it would've caused Blake and Ruby's skin to boil, but for him, it just felt like a hot pad was being pressed against his arm.
No fair, Ben thought as he blocked the attack, I want laser vision! Or at least a Godzilla laser blast. That would be so fucking cool.
Suddenly the burning stopped, and Ben was met with a fist to the gut. Ben stumbled back, and Psyphon laughed again. He gritted his teeth as Psyphon took a few more swings, keeping Ben on the defensive. Ben tried to counter with his tail once more, but Psyphon grabbed it and swung him around the place like he was a flail.
I'm...gonna...hurl! Ben thought to himself as he went flying face first into a wall. Psyphon stomped over to finish him off, ready to fulfill what Vilgax could not-
"HEY, SHARKFACE!"
Psyphon turned to see Ruby reforming from her semblance and firing Crescent Rose directly at his forehead. Psyphon blocked the pathetic bullet and tried to grab her, but immediately tripped and fell to the ground with a mighty THUD!
From the ground, Rook retracted his grappler. "I...did not expect that to work."
Ruby landed right next to him. "Neither did I."
"...But you thought it up." Rook gave her a side eyed glare.
"Hey, I don't think a lot of plans are gonna work," Ruby shrugged. "I just half ass it."
Suddenly the ground started to crack and shake, and red light erupted from the debris. Ruby grabbed Rook and suddenly took him into her semblance, speeding away at just the right moment; the ground exploded as Psyphon got back up, roaring like the alpha he believed himself to be.
Ben weakly stood back up, and he felt something jump on his back and climb up onto his shoulder.
"Hey, big guy," Blake greeted. "Mind if I use you as a sniping point?"
Ben nodded. Be my guest, he thought. Ceres does this all the time. Blake laid her weapon on top of his head and carefully aimed it at the back of Psyphon's fin. Her finger did not hesitate to pull the trigger, and the bullet soared through the air and hit its target. Psyphon doubled over in pain, and crumbled to the ground again like a man made of paper.
Nice shot, Ben thought as Blake took a deep breath. Oh, wait, she can't hear me...uhh...
Ben gave an awkward thumbs up, and Blake snickered. "I'm starting to warm up to you, Tennyson."
Yet again, Servantis was disappointed. Well, somewhat disappointed. It was better than being fully disappointed. Yes, Tennyson had captured Psyphon and two of his unwilling lackies, but the area was a wreck. Would probably cost the mayor thousands to repair.
But as they say, to the victor goes the spoils. Servantis crept into the remains of the bar and whistled.
"Callows. I know you're there."
Servantis tensed up as something brushed his back and dropped down onto the floor. The man sauntered to his front, a crazed look in his eyes. Servantis didn't dare to show his fear; fear was like a drug to the crazy bastard.
"Proctor Servantis," he said as he bowed. "What a pleasure it is to see you."
Servantis raised an eyebrow. "Where is it?"
"My my, so pushy today!" Tyrian chuckled. "What's got you in a foul mood-" Tyrian stopped, his grin faltering. The world seemed to close in on him as Servantis stepped forward. Tyrian nervously chuckled. "O-of course. Let me show you where it is," he said as the room returned to its normal size.
"Thank you," Servantis said with a sinister smile. Tyrian led him to the backroom where Psyphon had met Tennyson and excitedly dug up a strange box.
"So, this is the drug?" Servantis asked, examining the box's contents.
"The specific one you asked for, yes," Tyrian told him.
He smiled. "All according to plan."