'This earth was different.'
The cosmos had screwed him badly. Kevin thought about his own Earth, where wars and nuclear tests were things he could wrap his head around.
Back home, history was filled with world wars, the Cold War, and nuclear testing. It was all messed up, but it made sense in its own way. But this world? It was a different kind of crazy.
Things had taken a wild turn after Scion showed up in 1982. Kevin had found some old records that told the story. Scion was this golden guy who came out of nowhere and, just like that, wiped out all the nuclear weapons. No more nukes. It sounded great at first, but then everything went to hell in a different way.
Kevin frowned, thinking about how messed up this place was. No terrorists, but they had villain capes instead—people with superpowers who chose to use them for all the wrong reasons. And then there were the Endbringers.
Just thinking about the Endbringers made his skin crawl. They were these insane monsters that showed up and wrecked everything in their path. He'd read about Leviathan, this giant sea monster that brought massive floods and storms wherever he went. Behemoth was this huge creature made of rock and fire, causing earthquakes and volcanoes to erupt. And Simurgh, the winged freak who messed with people's minds just by being near them.
Kevin shuddered, remembering the destruction they caused. Cities reduced to rubble, millions dead. These things weren't just villains—they were like the apocalypse on legs. He'd seen some pretty scary stuff in the Null Void, met some real psychos, but nothing compared to the dread these Endbringers brought. They were like nightmares come to life.
The more he thought about them, the more nervous he got. He'd always been about surviving, but surviving here seemed way harder. Kevin knew he had to be smart about this.
He took a deep breath, looking down at the humming machine in his hands. It had gotten him out of the Null Void, and he hoped it would help him here too. He started walking down the hill, feeling the weight of everything on his shoulders. He needed to find people, get information, figure out how to stay safe. This world was a powder keg, and he had to navigate it without getting blown up.
Kevin's mind raced with thoughts of what to do next. He was just a teenager, but he'd been through more than most adults. He had to keep his wits. They might be the only thing which could keep him sane for more.
He slurped up the last of his noodles, the spicy broth warming him from the inside out. It had been two days since he arrived in this strange world, landing in a place called Brockton Bay. He faintly applauded the food. It was quite spicy, just the way he liked it.
He leaned back against the dingy wall of the small room he had managed to find, eyes glued to the flickering TV screen. The news was grim, showing videos of towns that had been decimated by the Simurgh. The footage was chilling—entire cities reduced to rubble, people driven mad by her influence. The broadcast detailed the desperate measures taken to quarantine affected areas. Kevin shuddered, thinking about how even he might struggle against such power.
The images shifted to show the quarantine zones, places filled with people who were barely holding on to their sanity. Kevin's mind wandered as the newscaster droned on. He thought about himself and the choices he had to make. He was an Osmosian, capable of absorbing and utilizing the DNA of any alien or enhanced being, he came into contact with. His years in the Null Void had left him with a vast arsenal of abilities at his fingertips. He didn't think he lacked any abilities apart from Reality Manipulation. Afterall, he had hunted and sneaked each of the powers he could get there. And barren it might be, Null Void was a treasure for an Osmosian like him, afterall it was the place he could safely steal as many powers he could.
But did he really want to play the hero in a world as screwed up as this one? Sure, he had the power to make a difference, but was it worth it? The Endbringers were a whole different level of threat, something that might be beyond even his capabilities.
He glanced at the small device that had brought him here, the inter-dimensional portal creator. He could easily leave this earth, jump to another dimension, try his luck somewhere else. But the prospects weren't great. Going back to his own earth meant arrest at the hands of the Plumbers and another stint in the Null Void. He doubted Tennyson or the Plumbers would ever let him live in peace.
Living here might offer some semblance of peace, but there were too many wildcards. The Endbringers, the villain capes, the constant threat of disaster. At this rate, humanity might not even last another decade.
Kevin sighed, running a hand through his hair. He was honestly confused. On one hand, there was a life of confrontation. He could try to be the hero, maybe even become a symbol of hope for these people. But on the other hand, he risked a life as a fugitive. No matter which earth he was on, the possibility of being hunted down loomed over him.
He thought about the people he had seen in the past two days—the scared, the desperate, the ones who still had hope despite everything. Part of him wanted to help them, to use his powers for something good. But another part of him just wanted to run, to find a place where he could live without constantly looking over his shoulder.
Kevin's thoughts were a tangled mess as he stared blankly at the TV. He knew he needed to make a decision soon. This earth was different, and his path here would be too. He just had to figure out which road to take.
Kevin slouched on the lumpy bed, his mind still buzzing from the events of the past two days. He couldn't shake off the weirdness of what he had discovered last night. While sifting through the internet, he stumbled across a word that sent chills down his spine: Omnitrix.
At first, he thought it was just a bizarre coincidence. But as he dug deeper, he uncovered something that made his blood run cold. There was a whole cartoon series called "Ben 10," showcasing the lives of Ben, Gwen, and himself. His jaw had dropped as he watched clips and read summaries. His life, his earth, was apparently just another sort of dimension or parallel earth to these people. It was freakin' mind-boggling.
Kevin had always known the multiverse theory, but seeing it laid out in such a casual, almost dismissive way was beyond comprehension. There he was, acting sappy and foolish in a cartoon that kids watched for fun. The version of him in the show was a joke. Granted, he had managed to score Tennyson's cousin, and she was smoking hot, but not once had he been as dense and stupid as portrayed in the episodes he watched.
His blood boiled as he remembered those hideous episodes. They made him look like a bumbling idiot, a far cry from the cunning, tough survivor he knew himself to be. It was another reason he didn't want to go back. He knew that if he saw Tennyson after this, he'd probably pick a fight on sight. All the frustration and anger he felt watching those episodes would come pouring out. How could they make his life into some stupid kids' show? It felt like a massive, cosmic joke at his expense.
They called the shows of that earth "Earth Aleph." Kevin had never found himself in such a position, so out of his depth. Knowing that people watched his life, his struggles, and laughed at his expense was infuriating. He wasn't some character in a cartoon; he was real, with real problems and real pain.
He had never felt so disconnected from everything. It was like finding out you were a character in a book or a video game, not a real person with thoughts and feelings. The more he thought about it, the angrier he got. But anger wouldn't solve his problems. He needed to focus on what to do next.
Kevin sighed, rubbing his temples. It was one thing to deal with the chaos of this new world and the threat of the Endbringers, but now he had to process this existential crisis. He was caught between worlds, each with its own set of problems. On one hand, he could try to carve out a new life here, maybe even play the hero if he had to. On the other hand, the idea of going back to his own earth and dealing with the Plumbers—and now this stupid cartoon mess—was almost too much to bear.
He needed to make a decision, but the weight of it all was pressing down on him. For now, he just needed to take things one step at a time. Maybe, just maybe, he could find a way to make this world his home, even with all its craziness.