I don't own Ben 10.
Chapter 43: The Warning
5 Years Later
Omnitrix City; Tennyson Tower; January 28th, 2024; 4:30PM
After deprogramming and rehabilitating the Rooters, they were willing to agree to probation for a few years as part of Team Ten Thousand; currently the roster was growing including Manny, Helene, Pierce, Alan, Lucy, Rook, Albedo, and Cooper who had made the smart decision to integrate himself as Overwatch permanently. With all of the extra members, he didn't feel the need to suit up in his armor anymore to fight unless absolutely necessary. Acting as monitor duty for Danger Alerts across the globe.
Cooper currently had a holoscreen projected in front of him, an active Volcano threatened to wipe out an entire city built on the side of the mountain. "I need Albedo and Helene to the north pacific, Rook needs your help on an island that's about to be completely consumed by the Volcano La Soufrière; your individual speeds will help with the evacuation during the eruption."
Helene was in the room with him, lowering her visor and dashing out of the room at mach four leaving a blackish blue blur in her wake.
…
Santiago; Chile; January 28th, 2024; 4:30PM
"You may have to begin without me!" Albedo was transformed into Negative Fourarms, holding up the weight of a building by its entrance which was collapsing due to an earthquake that struck less than an hour ago. "I am a bit occupied!" children and civilians ran underneath him to safety, crowding in the open street and away from falling rubble.
Negative Fourarms transformed in a flash of crimson, using his Kinceleran form to search the entire three-story building in the span of a single second, a trail of red and black blurring in his wake; making it out smoothly with three men that had still been trapped inside.
Negative XLR8 transformed into his human state, using his natural ability to fly up above the city, scanning the destruction from a better vantage point; he sighed loudly, "I may be handling this evacuation for at least another half an hour, perhaps our faithful leader could join us?" Albedo spoke through the earpiece that connected him to the rest of their team. He was wearing nano-bot weaved suit tailored to his own Negative Omni-Energy, all black outlined with blood-red crimson; he insisted on combat boots, and a black hood of the same material so that he could shroud his head in shadow. Mostly so people didn't mistake him for the evil twin he had been in the past. The team argued that being a hero shouldn't be something to be ashamed of but, Cooper complied anyways developing a Titanium-Tadenite skintight blended suit much like Ben's.
The hero of heroes himself wasn't on Earth at the moment, he was charging his solar cells and listening, transformed into Celestial with his arms crossed he could hear all of the disturbances on the planet below along with the rest of the Solar System. His wings still shun even in the darkness of space and luminosity of the Sun, their divine white glow glittered as he absorbed the trillions of joules radiating from the star. Only a hundred miles from the Sun, he could feel the heat, a tens of thousands of degrees against the palms of his hands was like a campfire only the more energy he gathered the more power he wielded, not even including his new Ultimate form. He basked in the Suns light, taking in its radiation like a warm solar bath, his divine wings silhouette against the vast star's energy.
'Ben, I'm bouncing this off a half dozen satellite that could get me thirty-years to life; an entire island is about to be consumed by a Volcano and I thought you might wanna-'
"I know, I could hear you guys from here…" spite the laws of physics, Cosmia could hear sounds perfectly through space, even nearly a hundred-million miles away.
Celestial's eyes snapped open consumed by golden light, transmuting himself into faster-than-light particles as he bolted across the cold depths of space between the Sun and Earth in only a few seconds. A beam of energy fell from the sky like golden lightning, striking the ground with cackling electricity shrouding him in an aura with enough force to crack the ground on his impact. The foreign onlookers could swear an angel had come to answer their prayers, even after he retracted his glowing wings behind his back.
…
La Soufrière; St. Vincent; January 28th, 2024; 4:30PM
A crowd of hundreds watched as they were gathered by the shoreline, the local police had escorted them to the safest possible location. Helene had gotten faster over the years, capable of crossing the ocean in minutes as she received Cooper's distress signal; she too arrived on the island, armored in Plumber white proto-gear with her visor down, nodding towards Celestial. The crowd was dumbfounded by the expansive heavenly glow that radiated off his white-feathered wings.
An explosion of emerald light consumed the living god revealing a black and white velociraptor speedster similar yet taller and older than the younger Kinceleran Plumber; XLR8 nodded back toward Helene who followed his lead. "Formation: gamma," They both ran circles around the Volcano's area digging a perfectly circular trench around the perimeter through sheer speed and forming a vortex that funneled the toxic cloud of ash that crackled with white lightning within the darkness upwards, their opposing circular directions creating that wind-funnel which forced the smog into orbit, out of Earth's atmosphere. XLR8 and Helene both stopped on a dime next to one another, looking up as the ground shook violently, Ben transformed once again, Big Chill emerging from the light with his four moth-like wings spreading wide as he addressed Helene.
"I'm going to cool it down from the inside out! You look for stragglers and get everyone to safety! I can only slow it down for so long," he watched as the lava trickling down the mountain side funneled through the trench, though it would only last so long before overflowing. Big Chill huffed a cloud of blue mist before turning intangible and vanishing through the ground to observe the pressurized magma first-hand. He lowered himself into what was once likely a very nice, not flooded with lava, large and empty cavern, "I think I can make this work," he slapped the dial on his chest as his entire body was engulfed in a wave of genetic energy crossing his white skin and turning it hotrod-red unlike his usual transformation.
The Necrofrigian became taller, his wings became sharper, and with every breath there was a burst of cold-flames exhaling cryogenic energy so cold it took on the form of literal blue fire. Attempting to cool down the core of the Volcano before it went off from the source, Ultimate Big Chill unleashed a powerful wave of ice-blue cryogenic plasma sucking out the heat from the entire cavern, however; it looked more like fire so cold it burned. The pit of lava was too deep to freeze solid, only slowing down the eruption by casting thick sheets of ice over the opening.
…
3 Hours Earlier
Omnitrix City; Billions Tower; January 28th, 2019; 1:00PM
"You know, this St. Vincent Volcano was supposed to erupt and kill off the entire island two hundred years ago; they say benevolent aliens stopped it from going off," Mazuma was well aware of the theories having many degrees, including geological history, though Billy didn't seem to care, he only focused on completing the task at hand.
"Don't believe everything you read online, Mazuma; I'm creating a living Juggernaut that not even Ben Tennyson can beat; especially while trying to save an entire island, lets focus on that." Billy had built yet another super-villain this time an android, they increased its muscle-mass and height genetically. Injecting it with serums of strength, durability, and skill taken from Tetramand, Vaxasaurian, Appoplexian and Petrosapien DNA. Identical concoctions infusing him with the speed and flight of Kinceleran, Aerophibian, and Citrakayah DNA. Though, its body was kept in a chamber and strapped down being exposed to chemicals that flooded it with tranquilizers, though it remained unmutated unlike an Osmosion's absorption. Billy watched as the chamber opened with pressurized steam flowing out suddenly, fingers gripped the edge of the steel unit, warping the metal slightly.
"What it's status?" the genius asked prompting Mazuma to check on her tablet, swiping through the information on the screen.
Mazuma smiled, "It seems to be perfectly operational; all of the residual DNA-serums have taken full effect without damaging his interior circuitry," though this didn't seem to impress him very much, turning away from the man before even seeing his face.
Billions walked away, shouting over his shoulder, "Program him like the others, I want Ben Ten Thousand dead by the end of the day," he swirled his cocktail and stared into it when his assistant spoke up.
"Perhaps you should wait for the test trials to commence before you-"
"Mazuma, on your job description, did I accidently type out that I wanted your opinion or that your questioning me was totally of the norm?" Billy turned with a deadly glare, piercing her fragile motivation and self-worth.
"N-No sir, I just…. We've been at this for so long, perhaps taking our time would benefit-"
Billy tossed his drink against the wall shattering the glass, Mazuma backing away as she felt tears welling in her eyes from years of verbal abuse, "And yet you're still talking, do what I asked…" seeing the tears about to spill out, he rolled his eyes, "Please?" without sincerity and without waiting for her response, he turned and left the lab.
"Yes, sir…" Mazuma squeaked, she had PTSD, ASD, ADHD, and a major self-image problem; spite being a martial-artist with super model good looks and a resume that could get her any job in the city, she stayed with Billy simply because she didn't have the self-esteem to say no to him.
The programming began as this new bio-android was downloaded with the move sets of every alien Ben had been recorded using in public. It was then suited up in black military gear, much thicker and bulkier than the suits Cooper created and made only of an enhanced kevlar-steel weave. It looked like a real super-soldier, and if this new creation could take down Ben Ten Thousand, he could truly sell the blueprints to the military for trillions.
…
Omnitrix City; Suburbs; January 28th, 2024; 4:46PM
Spending the next few years raising Jennifer, Gwendolyn had never been happier; her magic spells allowed her to put herself to sleep instantly when she needed to and awaken when necessary, levitate the baby when she needed to carry her groceries inside without losing sight of her, and even occasionally training her in combat as she grew exponentially in a short amount of time. See, just as Julie had predicted, until she hits puberty her developmental stages were increased. This five-year-old, was the size, age, and maturity of a ten-year-old, and in just three years she would appear and act just as a sixteen-year-old. Walking, talking, and even acting much older than she should have been naturally thanks to the enhanced abilities Ben acquired. So far though, there were no sign of super-powers in her system; aside from her slightly increased durability and stamina… she was a completely average little girl. For example, she once jumped off the roof of the condominium to test if she could fly, very recklessly and during the five seconds Gwendolyn had taken her eyes off of her. Long story short, she could not yet fly. It was a six-story drop, she was only biologically seven-years-old, and she didn't have a single scratch on her afterwards. She didn't even cry.
Her hair grew out down passed her shoulders, vibrant strawberry brunette hair, the perfect combination of Gwendolyn's crimson locks and Ben's brown-mop. Jennifer sat watching cartoons on the holo-screen in her blue long-sleeved pajamas, lying on the couch in the loft of the suburban house, hugging a pillow and enjoying her life of harmony. It was the same loft that Ben had boughten for them all those years ago before they were even married. Living a normal life was peaceful, Gwendolyn couldn't have been happier raising her child, cooking and cleaning was simple with her abilities, however, no less taxing. Jennifer had taken residence in the guest room Ken spent his stay in, as a homage to his sacrifice, it felt like a piece of him was still with him every time they tucked her into bed at night. Setting aside her training life to set down a dinner plate on the table; Gwendolyn served a simple meal of chicken and rice, "Jen, it's time to eat!" She called out, the young-girl paused the holo-tv with the nearby remote and jumped off the couch making her way to the kitchen table.
She plopped herself in the seat and stared down at the steaming food on her plate, she pushed it around with her fork with a disappointed gaze as she stirred her rice, "Is dad going to be here tonight?" she didn't break eye contact with her side of asparagus.
Gwendolyn furrowed her brow with a somber expression, "You know your Father is a very busy man, he'll do his best to-" Jennifer dropped her fork, having heard that excuse before, she pushed her plate away from herself, turned, and made her way to the front door.
Jennifer slipped on her sneakers and grabbed the door handle, "I'm going outside to play," Jen insisted with an attitude swinging open the door and not giving her mother the chance to respond. Technically speaking, next year she'd have physically aged double that, making her twelve; her prepubescent stage may have already begun.
Really though, Jennifer just sat on the park bench nearest to their condominium building, swinging her legs casually and disappointedly. She pulled out a small slab of rectangular glass which projected images and acted as a cellphone as well, giving her access to the internet and extranet, she searched the news for mention of her Father. She watched the broadcast of the Volcano eruption and how Team Ten Thousand was on the scene but, there was no sign of her Dad.
Being a mother was Gwendolyn's dream but, she didn't expect it to be so difficult so soon; staring at the uneaten plate of food that still steamed at the dinner table. "What am I supposed to do now?" the mage exclaimed, raising a brow, and grabbing a nearby fork. She chopped a piece of the chicken off and tossed it into her mouth, chewing disappointedly. Having regained her figure and her power; her old teal-blue blouse fit her again as well as new jeans that fit her waist size, which had grown but, only a little in the rear. Her twenty-eight-year-old figure while still in its physical prime, had given her a bigger bust as well, forcing her to replace her wardrobe.
Gwendolyn could sense Jennifer outside, not needing to see her directly to know she was safe; plopping down on the couch while their meals grew cold. She licked the salt off her lips and reached for the remote to the holo-screen, it was just out of reach of her fingers, but she was too lazy to move to grab it. "I miss my telekinesis charm…" She leaned over to finally grab it instead, switching it on only to lean forward when the same news reel played on every station, an entire island was about to be completely wiped off the map. It was no guess who was on the scene, Ben Ten Thousand and his team, doing their best to evacuate the island before the eruption went critical.
"Jennifer! Come in here, baby, Mommy wants to show you something!" Gwendolyn called out as she noticed her daughter wasn't responding even though the park was literally across a single street less than two hundred feet away, "Jennifer?!" she shouted finally getting up to check, thinking her voice may not have carried over the sound of the slide or some such thing.
Gwendolyn gasped as she stepped foot into the front yard, facing three familiar stone golems infused with magenta energy lining their stone features, surrounding her daughter, a tear in reality made of mystical sparks revealed the Ledger Domain on its other end behind them.
"Mom?" Jennifer backed away, dropping her advanced cellphone as one of the golems stepped on it, cracking it to pieces. Gwendolyn ran to her side only to be intercepted by one of the golems swinging at her, normally they'd be no match but, they were much faster than she remembered… and she had to face them without her Charms and she was out of practice when she took a stone-fist to the nose. "Mommy!" Jen shouted as Gwendolyn flipped onto her back, groaning as she slammed into the ground, her air was ejected from her lungs after a follow up kick to the abdomen.
The golems grabbed hold of Jennifer's individual wrists with one hand each, from within the portal stepped out a tall woman with long glowing silver hair reaching down passed her hips. Clothed in dark-mauve shaded battle armor, lined by black nano-weave armor of her own. The Alpha Rune was hanging on a purple chain-link necklace, radiating over her collarbone, her eyes flowed with the same magenta electricity that surged through her sharpened tiara.
"Hope?! You stole the Alpha Rune from the Rushmore Base? You can keep it just tell those things to get their hands off my daughter!" Gwendolyn finally got her feet back under her, wiping her bloody nose with her sleeve, and igniting her fists with blue flames. Getting into a fighting stance and showing off her powers for one of the first times in a fight in front of Jennifer, who was both frightened and in awe.
Charmcaster finally set her eyes on Gwen, taking a few steps through the grass, "It wasn't yours to begin with, it belongs to the ruler of Ledger Domain, which is now me," taking her glance off the retired mage, Caster snake-eyed her by glaring at Jennifer while simultaneously gesturing to the right hitting Gwendolyn with a yellow beam concussive blast which knocked her off her feet again. "I have more power than you could ever dream, maybe when you were Sorceress Supreme you had a chance but, without all your trinkets your just a washed-up has-been."
Gwen stared up at the sky, her head still ringing as she listened to the taunt, that was until her daughter defended her, "Hey! Leave my Mom alone!" Jennifer shouted wrestling fruitlessly against the grip of the golems.
Charmcaster approached the young girl slowly with an ominous strut, "So, you're the brat of those two Tennyson twerps, well that's more than a little unsettling, but I guess revenge is as revenge does," she snapped her fingers prompting the mindless stone slaves to drag Jennifer kicking and screaming through the portal back into Ledger Domain.
"Revenge for what?! I thought we were like… frenemies or something? Albedo is alive! He's here-" Charmcaster frowned, opening her palm and in the same moment firing a dark-purple blast directly through Gwendolyn's chest, putting a hole right next to her heart.
"Trust me, I know where he is, and he's next," Hope watched as Gwen fell to her knees, blood spilling out of her chest, when she went to speak only a cough of blood splattered the sidewalk, "I'd tell him to watch his back; and don't worry, I nullified the time dilation, so you and your husband can take your time coming to rescue your precious baby girl," she cackled with a wicked tone whilst she sauntered through the portal it closing behind her, Gwen reached out for the tear in reality that was already gone, still injured from the three sucker punches.
"J-J-Jeni-" she choked, weakly pulling out her phone, tears in her eyes, swiping as best she could with her fingertips slicked in her own blood, setting off the emergency alarm Cooper had installed years ago.
…
La Soufrière; St. Vincent; January 28th, 2024; 5:45PM
A helicopter floated high above the Volcano, watching as the lava bubbled at almost the mountains rim, ready to blow at any moment it seemed, "This is Jennifer Nocturne live in our Channel 8 News chopper, we're doing our best to get footage of the rescue efforts that Team Ten Thousand seem to be handling quite well-" Heatblast fired a beam of heat through the mountain-side from within venting pressure as lava spilled out. He transformed immediately into a seven-foot-tall crystal creature with white pants from the waist down and a sleeveless black nano-fiber shirt covering his torso. The Petrosapien punched the ground at his feet, forming a five-foot wall of crystals all along the edges of the jungle which led to the beach, leaving minor gaps for transportation. All in an attempt to temporarily keep the lava that trickled down the mountain from reaching the civilians on the beaches.
Helene sped up to Diamondhead, stopping in front of him as she awaited orders, "What's your top speed?" he asked her.
"Mach twelve-ish, if I really sprint, why?" Helene shrugged as her tail whipped behind her.
Diamondhead pointed south-east passed the beach area, "Good, cause I'm gonna need you to really push yourself, and start running these people to the nearest island, it should only be a hundred or so miles away tops," he glanced at her when her visor slid up and an unsure expression was more visible, her eyes glancing back at the beach full of scared people.
"I don't know, I don't have super-strength…"
Diamondhead turned and struck the Volcano-side, cracking open a fractured cavern with lava seeping out and even flowing over his toes though he barely noticed, "Start with one person at a time, than come back for another… keep doing that until your legs give out, and then," he finally looked into her eye before stepping through the molten-liquid rock, "Keep running," he practically submerged himself by running waist deep through the lava unscathed.
…
Santiago; Chile; January 28th, 2024; 5:45PM
Albedo landed on the ground gently, guiding people off of an unstable bridge, and clearing a path of cars by kicking or pushing them out of the way with his bare hands. Once they were all cleared he could stop to see who or what was causing his cellphone to go berserk on him, vibrating and flashing red with an exclamation point appearing over and over again.
"Cooper, I demand an explanation, why is my device behaving this way?!" He wanted to crush it and buy a new one that wasn't so loud but, he got a response before he could do that.
'that's an emergency distress signal from Gwendolyn's phone, I don't think Ben or Helene are receiving theirs because of the electromagnetic interference from the Volcano!'
Albedo narrowed his eyes down at the phone vibrating in his hand, he tapped the center shutting it off, "And Ben is still occupied within said Volcano, I presume?" he asked, figuring he'd have to handle this himself after all.
'that's right, I can have Manny and Pierce meet you at the loft.'
Albedo rolled his eyes, scanning the ground below to ensure that everyone was relatively safe before responding, "Don't bother, send them here for clean up; I'm on my way," he turned and set off a sonic boom with his departure, cutting through the air at nearly mach two. He heard the thankful cheers of the people who watched him fly away after saving hundreds of lives, which made him smile internally, being loved was most definitely better than being feared.
…
Omnitrix City; Suburbs; January 28th, 2024; 5:47PM
Gwendolyn had crawled across the street, having not been spotted by anyone yet, she got as close to her house as she could but, collapsed and rolled onto her back staring up at the sky. An alarming amount of blood pooled around her body, staining her blouse, having enchanted her apartment building years ago she was only a few feet from having the power to heal herself. At least enough to get up off the asphalt, not even having made it across the street from the park.
The sky cracked open and a projectile came into view, a silhouette no-less of a person she recognized even as her vision blurred; he landed next to her, staring down at her without yet making a move to help her. He noticed the massive footprints dug into the ground by the grass, and the scathing shot which had nearly cut a lamp-post in two.
Albedo narrowed his eyes, using his Kinceleran speed to scoop Gwendolyn up under legs and neck, rushing her into her bedroom, placing her in her bed. "Hope, what have you done…?" he practically started biting his nails waiting for her healing factor to start kicking in.
Gwen was relatively dead, her heart was barely beating and she'd almost have bled out, however; suddenly the veins and muscle tissue quickly formed along with her skin, the mage sprung upright with a loud gasp, "She took Jennifer!" she shouted.
"What happened?" Albedo grabbed Gwen by the shoulders, though she only shouted that because she was under the impression Ben had saved her, in this case she needed to get in contact with them. She sighed and held her forehead.
Gwendolyn walked through her bedroom, still a tad disoriented but she shook it off quickly enough, recalling the insults that she'd been hit with moments ago, "Washed up, am I? Has been, am I?" she stomped her way to the ladder on the ceiling that led to the attic, Albedo floated them both up through the opening, landing as she quickly made her way to the other end of the dusty space.
At the end of the room was an amour, she used her anger to refuel her mystical aura, crushing the lock that kept it shut off to the open. Albedo was in awe as all of her mystical artifacts had been locked away and preserved; the Staff of Ages mounted to the back, all six Charms of Bezel hanging in a row, her older kevlar-sleeve folded neatly. "What are you going to do?" he questioned.
Gwendolyn grabbed her cloak hanging on the back of the door, throwing it over her old combat suit, which hardly fit her anymore but, without the Alpha Rune she couldn't summon her own more advanced suit. She settled for her original suit, sporting a cape, hood, and her cat-insignia belt, "This bitch thinks she can take my baby-girl and just walk away?!" visibly angry now, Albedo watched as she knocked the desk-lamp off the nightstand, typing in a five-digit code into what seemed like wood. Turning to glare at him from over her shoulder, "I'm gonna kick her ass!"
Albedo turned around, facing a compartment sliding open revealing a wall of weapons, some of them mystical in nature and some ordinary alien-tech; the Staff of Ages was horizontally displayed along with the six-talisman still installed into a custom sleeve. The one Ben had designed for her a decade ago. Along with these two items there was small magical book in which she stole from Charmcaster when she was ten, the Charm of Death had enchanted the entire house making it a healing zone of sorts for masters of the mystic-arts. As she pulled the sleeve over her left arm, she could feel the rush of mystical prowess. The talismans carvings lit up with golden light as her fist was engulfed in a far more powerful blue flame, she smiled at the fire that danced over her knuckles.
"What about Benjamin?!" Albedo shouted as Gwendolyn kicked her own bedroom door open and off its hinges, regaining her Keystone strength after slipping on her sleeve of Charms.
Gwen turned and watched, fighting back tears, as the holoscreen displayed the massive explosion of magma erupting twenty-feet in the air on the island Ben was trying to save, "Screw it, we're on our own," she had never been so angry in her entire life, of all the villains that had to return, it had to be her. Not just that but, after her own daughter as revenge?!
"But-"
Gwen turned around to face him, looking him In his crimson pupils and jabbing a finger into his chest, "You're either going to help me get my girl back from your psycho ex-girlfriend, or you're going to break into that Volcano and drag out someone who will! YOU DECIDE!" the Staff flew aggressively from its place on the wall and into her left palm, twirling it expertly between her fingers before stomping it on the carpet. Shaking the floor and vibrating parts of the building, not just the room, something you never unlearn.
Albedo closed his eyes, shaking his head in shame, "I guess I am the most responsible, I must deal with her, it began with us and it should end with us," knowing the risks at stake, he didn't much care to face death twice.
Gwendolyn smiled, her aura recalling back from an enraged vibe, "Glad we're on the same page," she huffed and clapped her hands together forming a mystical seal above her head, gesturing downward, and allowing it to warp her outfit. Dressing her in her old uniform which Ben had made for her nearly a decade ago, it was tighter than she remembered and couldn't for the life of her she couldn't remember what the appeal of the cape had been. Glancing back at the cabinet, the suit was gone having been transported right onto her body.
"That's quite the throw back," Albedo said hoping silently that he used the slang properly.
Gwendolyn scoffed and rolled her eyes, "Charmcaster broke into the Rushmore Base and stole the Alpha Rune, and she even found out how to use my armor… and she altered it!" she was steaming mad, turning, and swinging her staff as hard as she could through the air with a grunt. The force combined with the blue lightning which cackled around the skull of her weapon cleaved through reality, space and time opening up to her will. "I'm gonna kill her!"
Albedo followed her through quickly and not without protest, "Wait, you can't just kill her-" he was cut off as the portal closed behind him and they both vanished from the park. By this time, the neighbors had gathered around the park outside calling 911 to report the damage caused by the golems.
…
Omnitrix City; Billions Tower; January 28th, 2024; 5:50PM
"-and he hasn't been seen exiting anywhere from the island, we believe he's still actively trying to prevent the eruption from inside the core of the Volcano-" Billy hit the mute button out of aggravation, turning to face Mazuma who was waiting for him with a tablet in-hand. "He's been on TV all day long; I could cure cancer and I wouldn't get as much screentime; what's the progress on our latest development?"
Mazuma swiped to the right on her tablet connecting to the rooms holo-projector, giving him a large display of their newest project. Gene-splicing alien DNA into biological androids, more than ten different species at a time, using this method on small scales allowed the subject to remain outwardly human whilst maintaining a natural look.
"He's stronger than any recorded Tetramand, faster than any Kinceleran, can fly almost as fast as an Aerophibian, and we're guessing that this is only the tip of the ice burg," Mazuma smiled as Billy turned to her, expecting something more from her.
Billy folded his hands behind his back, "Well, where is he? I want to meet this young patriot," turning the corner, a six-foot-eleven Caucasian male with a trimmed beard and a chiseled jawline, they gave him a hefty shield to match his kevlar-weaved armor. He stepped forth and gave an American salute, looking him in the eyes but, not saying a word. "There is one th-"
"Will he obey orders?"
Before she could respond, the new experiment finished his salute and glanced down at Billy, approaching ominously didn't intimidate the billionaire in the slightest, even gaining a fraction of the soldier's respect. Making explicit eye contact with a vicious glare, "I will follow orders, sanctioned by the Government, and the President herself; right now, I have a single mission."
Billy smiled mischievously, folding his arms, "And what pray-tell would that mission be, exactly?"
"First, I'm gonna kill Ben Ten Thousand, and then… I'm gonna kill you," the soldier sauntered toward the large glass window that lead to a spectacular view of the city, "And the name is Power Man now," he shattered the bullet-proof window by simply flying through it, blowing back everything on the floor of the building with a loud boom, Mazuma catching her boss regardless of how he treated her.
Mazuma spoke up, clearing her throat, "Perhaps you didn't consider what he would do after Ben Tennyson is gone?"
"No, this one I did not foresee, this ones on me," Billy grabbed a bottle of whiskey from the floor and made his way to his overturned desk, typing in a safety code into the bottom left drawer.
A green-light suddenly flickered above a hidden door in the wall, a bunker just in case situations like these are ever a problem, "Mazuma, summon my suit, please," he was being polite out of fear not sincerity but, it still felt good for some reason to her, to receive gratitude from Billy.
"Of course, sir, right away…" she said with a smile.
…
La Soufrière; St. Vincent; January 28th, 2024; 5:56PM
Fourarms nonchalantly walked through the boiling lava, ankle deep at the moment, he hopped atop a pillar where he could get just a just bit of fresh-air. An explosion of green light left Artiguana in his place, firing beams of cryogenic energy in every which direction in an attempt to stabilize the cavern.
The sheets of ice he blasted over the openings where lava trickled down the stone quickly melted and made no head way; another transformation back into the Pyronite Heatblast only this time, he slapped the dial on his chest triggering an evolution. His entire body became a thousand times hotter turning the outline of his cratered body bright blue with turquoise flames exuding from the craters in his shoulder blades. He grew two feet taller and his fingers once blunt turned razor sharp as though he could slice through anything with claws swinging at tens of thousands of degrees.
Ultimate Heatblast clapped his hands with all his strength, sucking the heat from the cavern, absorbing it into his body through the tips of his fingers, cooling everything down in the process. He jumped into the lava with ease and soaked up the magma's heat, turning the entire pool into solid stone. All was going according to plan until a projectile moving at a hundred times the speed of sound rammed through the unstable Volcano, tackling Heatblast back into the lava where it began a flurry of incredibly powerful haymakers to the face.
Being an evolved Pyronite he could take the hits but, not without receiving cracks in his rock-esque skull, though he didn't need his hands to expel a beam of vibrant blue flames from the center of his chest propelling the attacker back into the cavern wall. The Power Man shook his head, glaring at Heatblast who got to his feet, "Who the hell are you supposed to be?" he noticed not even the suit had been burnt by the attack though he was smoking.
Power Man didn't hesitate with his response, smiling as he answered, "Your replacement!" he quickly floated up before dashing through the air forwards firing neuro-shock beams from his eyes which Heatblast rolled out of the way, exploding in an emerald light revealing Fourarms once again, his options were limited considering the active Volcano they were battling in.
Power Man dashed through the short distance between them with incredible strength, pushing his forearm against the Tetramand's neck and sending them both against the opposing cavern wall, shaking the entire Volcano. Using his extra set of arms, Fourarms uppercutted the bio-android in the chin with two fists whilst the other two kept him pinned. What the hero didn't expect was a skull cracking headbutt with enough force to slam Fourarm's head back into the stone, cracking it apart. It was this opportunity that Power Man took to begin an onslaught of jabs and haymakers, though he couldn't draw blood from the Tetramand.
It wasn't long before Fourarms had enough, taking two jabs to the jaw before catching effortlessly the next haymaker he threw; clutching his fist hard enough to crush bone. Pressurized steam snorted from his nostrils, his fanged expression full of rage.
…
Helene hadn't heard from Ben in some time and the Volcano was going to blow in just a minute or two, five at best and he was nowhere to be found. She lowered her visor and attempted contact through the comms though they were littered with static and difficult to understand, "Ben?! Are you still in there?" suddenly the entire Volcano shook vigorously, startling the crowd of few people left on the beach.
She heard grunting and clashes that matched the shockwave, "Do you need help, I could run in and-" she was interrupted.
"NO!" Diamondhead shouted now, switching from form to form, "Finish the mission, get these people to safety! This isn't important! HUGH!" the connection cut off after what sounded like Ben being struck by a powerful blow to the chest followed by parts of the island shaking vigorously once again. The trees were blown back and the leaves were stripped from their branches.
Helene gulped and began a sprint around the island, guiding lost civilians to the exit ports faster than the lava could reach them; being completely full, it was her time to start running patrons across the water to safety on an Island only a few dozen miles away. No biggie.
…
Chromastone left hooked Power Man in the chin, knocking him back a few steps allowing the hero to advance with an uppercut, however; his third strike never made contact as the soldier caught his wrist, yanking him in for a knee strike to the chest. Keeping hold of his arm, Power Man spun around two or three times slamming Chromastone through pillar after pillar only to release him sending him flying through the cavern. He landed in a pool of lava, not effecting his crystal body, the soldier approached with a smile.
"I've been meaning to test this one out…" He focused for only a second before unleashing a sonic blast from chest that deafened and forced Chromastone back into the cavern wall, his abilities from EchoEcho were clearly potent; however, the entire cave was coming down around them as the walls shook and debris fell from the ceiling.
Chromastone narrowed his single eye, transforming again via thought, this time he grew as the trademarked glow faded, a massive brown dinosaur was in his place. Humungosaur couldn't grow to full size within this cavern but, he could still fight at fifteen-feet tall. Power Man leapt into the air and unleashed a wave of flames from the palms of his hands completely engulfing the Vaxasaurian, though it had absolutely no effect. He reached out through the flames and grabbed the bio-android by the wrists plunging him into the lava without allowing him to come up for air, his durability would compromise eventually.
Humungosaur lifted him out of the pool of magma and right hooked him through several rock-pillars destabilizing the cavern even more, "Who the hell sent you!" his voice bellowing through the cave.
Power Man twitched as there were circuits revealed along his skull and arm which the skin had melted off from, he didn't say anything, simply flying forwards at top speed as a blur. Tackling Humungosaur through the air only, the hero stood his ground, digging his thick feet into the ground below the lava. In a dead lock, Humungosaur pushed back against the android but, at this distance he clearly saw an insignia on the exposed circuitry.
"Billy Billions sent you?! That lying son of a-" Humungosaur glared into the injured androids exposed eyes, flashing red as though there was something recording behind his iris, "You're watching this, aren't you? You just made a big mistake!"
After the damage he took, he wasn't as talkative as before, preferring to simply act on his main objectives programmed into his mind. Power Man was quickly overpowered by the enraged Vaxasaurian, pushing him back for a quick second, long enough for a haymaker that sent him flying back into the lava.
'Helene can you read me?' Using the Omnitrix to connect to their communication links made it easier than using any ordinary satellite coms.
The speedster skated across the water landing on the beach and coming to a stop with a view of the Volcano still spewing lava, consuming buildings, towns, most had already been destroyed beyond repair. "I read you! How are things in there?" she shouted over the rumbling and thunder from the ash cloud still expanding.
'Not great, I need to know if everyone is off the island!'
Power Man pulled himself up from the lava, now more machine than biological with all of the skin and hair completely melted off, he once again attempted to attack Humungosaur who only grew a foot or two taller, catching the android in his thick hand, squeezing to keep him pinned. 'The entire island's been evacuated; the last ship is long gone and I got all the stragglers off the beach! What are you going to do?'
'Make a point. Get yourself out of here as fast as you can,' Humungosaur severed the connection to the comm link and transformed one last time; appearing as a skinny humanoid clad in white armor that contained the nuclear energy that gleamed from the clear canisters across his wrists. His faceplate was completely expressionless and had no mouth only ominous glowing eyes. He dodged a lazy right hook that missed, allowing Atomix to round him and grab the android in a full nelson, "I hate liars…" he muttered from behind his faceplate.
The trim and outline of his armor began to glow brighter with emerald light, the canisters across his wrists illuminated the entire cavern with green light as the radiation built up within his body. Just as the Volcano was about to finally erupt and cause the largest polluted acid rainstorm of the century, Atomix began to vibrate, Power Man struggling in his grip.
The helicopters vacated the area for the eruption but, they weren't expecting an enormous blinding flash of light more than encompass the entire island itself, just before completely eradicating it from the inside out. Every inch of land was vaporized, wiping the entire island straight off the map, with not a single piece of debris left in the ocean. The shockwave leared the sky of clouds and sent large waves out in every direction but, nobody was severely injured by them.
There was a massive hole in the ocean being filled quickly by the rest of the sea, however before it filled completely, a beam of golden light flew up into the now blue sky spreading large heavenly white wings. Completely uninjured, the helicopters miles away spotted him floating high above the swelling ocean below.
Celestial narrowed his eyes with a furrowed brow, "Billy…" he growled to himself.
…
Omnitrix City; Billions Tower; January 28th, 2024; 6:58PM
Now clad in his personal orange armor, trimmed with black and large 'B' insignia on the chest plate; it was made of a titanium-gold alloy, not quite as advanced as the suits built by Cooper but, only because Billy refused to use alien technology. He watched on a large holoscreen the incident with the Volcano, they also watched the fight from the eyes of their bio-android until its demise.
"Did he just… blow up an entire island?" Mazuma asked, only a little scared of who her boss was trying to kill, considering he had that much power in one transformation, it couldn't possibly be worth it to provoke him.
Billy checked the readings on his gauntlet before shutting the faceplate on his suit, "Yes… Yes he did, and he's incoming in three… two-" they turned around to face the massive window overlooking the city where Celestial floated with a scowl and his arms crossed. "You can't intimidate me, Tennyson!"
Celestial's eyes flashed with golden light, his wings flew open with such speed and velocity that it shattered his bullet proof bay windows, sending shards of glass across the room. Billy stood strong, however; Mazuma backed away in fear, holding the tablet over her head when the glass rained down.
"Trust me, if I was trying to intimidate you, you would know it," Celestial retracted his wings, floating through the window and landing in front of the billionaire genius. He followed this up by transforming back into his base, human form, still with his arms crossed, "Why did you try to kill me?" he asked bluntly.
Billy's faceplate slid up so that he could look his enemy in the eye, "Because ever since we were teenagers, everyone always loved you while I was left behind. I was smarter, I was more talented, I was richer; yet you were always the popular one!"
Ben blinked a few times, silently taking it in and nodding, "Wait, we went to school together?"
Billy scoffed with frustration, "Yes! I was there when Vilgax kidnapped your girlfriend, I had P.E with you for three years!"
"Doesn't ring any bells," Ben shrugged, uncrossing his arms.
Billy growled and clutched his fists out of frustration, "Regardless! I was designing my suit and my company, I was a prodigy but, you got a magic watch that fell from the sky and suddenly you're the most popular hero in the world. All over again."
"It's not magic-"
Billy continued his rant, closing his faceplate as the palms of his suited hands charged up an energy of some sort causing Ben to raise a brow, "It doesn't matter anymore, once I take you out of the picture, I'll be the hero!" he turned quickly and fired ionic blasts of pure energy from his palms which Ben effortlessly sidestepped.
"I'm only going to say this once, leave me alone, I don't car whose most popular, that's not what being a hero is about," Ben turned his back on the billionaire whose gauntlets were still smoking from the beams, "If you can't see that than you'll never be a real hero." He took a step off the ledge through the broken window, floating in the air just outside the building now. "Oh yea and try to kill me again? And I'll tear that armor off you myself before handing you to the Plumbers." Ben smiled with a wink, taking off at half the speed of sound through the skyline towards his own tower.
'Ben?' Cooper's voice sounded through his Omnitrix, prompting the hero to lift his forearm up to face level, 'Are you there?'
"Yea, what's up?"
Cooper sounded distraught, his voice making Ben nervous as he spoke, "We have a major emergency… Gwendolyn and Albedo went after Charmcaster."
Ben, still floating in midair turned around to face the city, "The hell would they do that for?" he thought they'd go together when Albedo was ready, he didn't think they'd leave him out.
"It's not like that… Hope took Jennifer."
…
…