I don't own Ben 10.
For the most part, younger Gwen will be Gwen while the current one will be known as Gwendolyn… for the most part. I'll just have to work around younger Ben, and you guys will just have to work on context to know which I'm speaking about. It honestly shouldn't be a problem, if it is let me know in a review and I'll try to find a way to make it simpler. Anyways, Enjoy!
Chapter 65: Political
Universe C-4587; Earth; Beruddo City; December 23rd, 2044; 7:17AM.
In the heart of the sprawling metropolis, where skyscrapers pierce the smog-choked sky, a cybernetic city pulses with an eerie vitality. Although it seemed to be far more advanced than most cities, it was designed with a feudal Japan aesthetic which proved just how different this history had been in this distant reality. Neon lights cast a hypnotic glow, weaving through the labyrinth of towering structures like veins of electric energy. Holographic billboards flicker with advertisements, each pixel contributing to the dazzling tapestry of an urban dreamscape. The streets, perpetually wet from a never ending rain, reflect the kaleidoscope of neon, creating an illusionary dance of colors beneath the feet of bustling pedestrians. Thousands of innocent men and women, going about their daily lives below, oblivious to what was encroaching on their peaceful-little world. Hovering vehicles zip through the air, leaving streaks of luminescent trails, while the distant hum of automated machinery reverberates through the concrete canyons.
Glowing symbols of corporations and underground factions adorn the sides of skyscrapers, competing for attention in this neon-lit battleground of commerce and rebellion. The air is thick with the scent of synthetic food stalls, competing with the acrid tang of industrial exhaust. Augmented reality graffiti sprawls across brick walls, juxtaposed against the gleaming façades of corporate headquarters.
Amidst the chaotic symphony of lights and shadows, the city breathes with an unsettling energy—a living, breathing organism fueled by the convergence of technology and humanity, a mesmerizing yet dystopian vision of a future that is both captivating and foreboding.
Amidst the towering skyscrapers adorned with holographic displays, this reality's Ben Tennyson stands atop a panoramic observation deck. The city's augmented reality billboards flicker nervously as the ambient sounds of a cybernetic cityscape are abruptly drowned out by the low hum of approaching alien vessels. Ben was dressed in a black traditional yukata with emerald-trim down its edges, his shoulder length, messy brown hair was tied back into a wolf's-tail, and his hand was steady on the silver hilt to a sheathed blade strapped to his waist. The armada emerged from the heavens, a surreal symphony of sleek spacecraft, their surfaces reflecting the neon glow of the city below. Each vessel seems like a biomechanical masterpiece, adorned with pulsating lights and an air of menacing elegance. Ben's gaze is drawn to the intricate dance of the invading ships, their formations weaving a tapestry against the backdrop of a digital night sky. The rain only picked up as thunder echoed across the city, the citizens frozen in fear as they stared up at the darkened sky. He feels a ripple of powerlessness, his shadow silhouetted against the panoramic vista, as the once-vibrant city becomes a stage for an extraterrestrial invasion the likes of which he'd never seen before. The metropolis, once a testament to human ingenuity, now stands vulnerable beneath the impending shadow of an alien force.
"I know what you're thinking, and the answer is no, you can't stop this yourself," a voice identical to his own called out to Ben, prompting him to tear his gaze from the sky and turn around, finding he was staring at himself in the eyes.
Timeless stood with a stoic expression, his eyes consumed by emerald-light, he took a few steps and looked up at the invading ships, "You cant see them, but your entire solar-system is flooded with an invasion force the likes of which no hero could hope to stop alone."
"You're… me?" Ben asked, looking the time-lord up and down, trying to understand why they were nearly completely identical other than their choice of clothes and hair. "How is that possible? Some kind of magic?"
"The Multiverse is a vast concept, and it's in terrible danger of collapse," Timeless chuckled a bit as this didn't seem like a very pivotal point in the war overall, holding his hand out for the variant of himself to shake, which he did, "I can explain everything but, you have to come with me, Ben."
"Call me Benji, and what about my city… my world?" he questioned, turning back to watch as the horde of ships descended on the city of people he'd fought so hard through his teenage years to protect. He was only sixteen years old but, he felt like he'd achieved so much in that time, "If I cant stop this, how much can I possibly help you to save the entire Multiverse? I hardly understand what that is."
"A Ben Tennyson whose Omnitrix merged with the Galvan sword Ascalon? Yea, you'll be help plenty but, first we have another stop to make," Timeless nodded his head in the direction of the glowing emerald vortex floating a few feet behind them, "What do you say?"
Benji smiled, resting his hand on the hilt to his blade calmly, stepping forward and looking Timeless in the eye with a determined expression, "I say, it's hero time."
…
Omnitrix City; Tennyson Tower; December 22nd, 2025; 10:46PM.
After being healed by her future-self, Gwen was escorted by her down a long corridor to a guest room of some sort, as the metallic door slid open for her, the ten-year-old girl stepped into a bland room with a queen-sized bed, a holographic television already turned on and playing a local cartoon network. Lying on the bed already asleep was her doofus of a cousin, curled up into a ball on top of the covers as if he didn't feel comfortable enough to tuck himself in.
"Uh, so yea… I gotta go check on Ben… my Ben," she stopped herself and quickly course corrected with an obviously nervous scoff, "I mean, not my Ben, he's not mine or anything," Gwendolyn rambled as her younger-self just raised her brow up at her, looking into her own identical emerald eyes that now had experience in them, "It doesn't matter, you guys get a good nights rest, and I'll be back to check on you two in the morning, kay?" she gave her self a thumbs up but it didn't seem to provide her any comfort.
"Yea, okay, are you sure there isn't, like, another bed in here? Or a couch? Or a roll of newspapers for the corner?" Gwen glanced back at her cousin curled up in a ball with his shoes off on the corner of the bed, "Seriously, I'll take anything you got…"
Gwendolyn peaked into the room and noticed just how much room was on the bed, "I mean there's plenty of room on the bed, just sleep on the other side and I'm sure you'll be fine, Ben doesn't move much when he sleeps…" once again catching herself being way too obvious, she coughed into her hand quickly but nervously, "Not that I would really know, right? Anyway, g'night!" she quickly tapped the silver doorframe which illuminated and slid the door shut in front of her younger-self's face.
Gwendolyn walked away, sensing the older Ben within the armory, and heading there as she slapped her forehead with the palm of her hand repeatedly, "Stupid, stupid, stupid…" she whispered to herself.
Gwen sighed and turned around, staring at the bed where Ben slept in the corner, she honestly never really paid attention to the way he slept but, clearly her future self had at some point or another so this prompted her to spend a minute or two watching his chest rise and fall. She noticed that when he wasn't busy running his mouth, he actually seemed very peaceful in his slumber, his arms tucked into his chest for warmth.
She rolled her eyes once she noticed a quick shiver run unconsciously up his spine, the room was quite cold, probably at least sixty-nine degrees considering people likely didn't regularly occupy the room. Gwen sighed and grabbed a folded blanket off of one of the blank-white dressers, walking up to the side of the bed he faced, she looked down on him and smiled slightly, not even realizing she was. "Here…" she whispered, throwing the blanket over his lower body which his sleeping form didn't even need to wake to cuddle beneath. A smile stretched over his face as soon as he was tucked under it, flipping comfortably onto his back, a smile that was completely involuntary on his part as well, just like hers.
Gwen realized quickly she didn't have any of her facial products, spare clothes, or even toothpaste or toothbrush, the bathroom attached to the guest-room they were in being completely bare. It seemed the building's staff still hadn't returned since the initial Cosmian attack putting a massive person sized hole through every floor in the building. So, since it seemed she had no other choice, she kicked off her shoes, turned off the television, and pulled the blanket she'd laid out over Ben up so she could hurry beneath them, even she had to admit the room was cold.
For the first half-an-hour, Gwen tried to fall asleep but, the bed was simply to big and too cold, without her nightly routine she felt too uncomfortable to actually pass out. Eventually, she turned to her side to look across the bed at her cousin who slept soundly, likely unaware yet that she'd ever entered the room. She stared at him in the silence of the room's darkness, swearing she could hear his calm heartbeat through the sheets, not at all restless unlike her own. Gwen huffed and bit her bottom lip, glancing around needlessly, before slowly scooting herself towards him. It was almost an instinct, she wasn't even sure why she wanted to get closer, she rationalized it anyway she could, I mean, how dare he get to sleep so easily when she couldn't even get a wink? The audacity of that doofus!
As she got closer she could feel his natural body warmth growing in proximity to him until she was inches from him, staring directly at his shoulder while he was face up under the covers, from this perspective she could once again see how his chest rose and fell so slowly, and calmly. Like it was calling out to her and she didn't know why. Before she knew it, she'd worked her way over to him, his arm pressing against her chest, and her head placed gently over the left-side of his upper torso; bu-bump-bu-bump-bu-bump, the flow and rhythm of the beat to his heart lulled her to rest, the warmth from his chest made her unconsciously curl up into a ball next to him.
After a minute or two, she could feel the weight of her eyes pulling her down, but she still had every intention of backing away before ever being caught, and surely before falling asleep. That was until she suddenly felt a gentle hand brush its fingers slowly through the back of her hair, it almost shocked her out of her nigh-slumber but, the soothing repetition was too euphoric even though she had no idea why. Her last thought process was about whether or not this was weird or if Ben was even aware of what he was doing but, after a few seconds her train of thought had derailed and she was sound asleep.
…
Omnitrix City; Tennyson Tower; December 23rd, 2025; 9:19AM.
With the massive warships currently in their atmosphere and the nearly unbreakable dome-shielding that shrouded the skies of Omnitrix City, it wasn't surprising that the world's greatest hero had called a meeting of the world's biggest leaders. Ben Ten Thousand, Gwendolyn, and Albedo sat around a large circular table in one of the many meeting rooms within the tower, along with the President of the United States, the Prime Minister of England, President of Russia, President of the People's Republic of China, as well as the Magistrata of the Intergalactic Plumbers all on a holographic video call, each one actually appearing to be present in the room and sitting at the table despite them clearly being just projections. They had been on the call for nearly an hour discussing the invasion that was apparently not just in their own Solar System but, through-out their entire home galaxy.
"Unfortunately, we cannot spare any aid to Earth at this time, the Cosmian Empire has completely occupied Plumber space all the way out to Sector 5455-Y," A female alien humanoid with light bluish-green skin adorned in high-ranking white and red Plumbers armor, she appeared to be the same species as Xylene, "We're spread thin already trying to maintain authority and peace over the Galaxy."
The President of the People's Republic of China decided to speak up at that moment, the translator within the Omnitrix already set to automatically allow everyone present to hear their native tongue perfectly, "I was under the impression that this great Plumbers organization was meant to protect worlds from hostile attack, and now you leave us to fend for ourselves?"
"With all due respect," the Magistrata responded firmly, "There are thousands of worlds, just like your own, begging and screaming for help… the only difference is their worlds don't have Ben Ten Thousand."
Speaking of whom, he was silent in his seat next to his wife, his hands clasped in front of him and eyes darting from one person to the next as they spoke, "If I may, Magistrata," Gwendolyn addressed the high-ranking official appropriately, "If there's nothing you can do to help physically, maybe there's some information you could share?"
She turned her attention to Gwendolyn and raised a brow at her, relaxing her expression, "What kind of information?"
"Can you tell us if there are any planets that haven't gotten a visit from the Cosmians? Any species that aren't currently facing their own invasion that may be able to provide aid?" Gwendolyn did her best to sound as formal as possible, smiling up at the hologram of the rather tall alien-woman.
"Normally, that information would be highly classified, however, perhaps desperate times do call for desperate actions; I will compile the information you require and transmit it to your world with haste, in that, you have my support," the Magistrata didn't wait for a 'thank-you' before she swiped her hand through the air, disconnecting the holographic call, her image glitching before dispersing completely.
The President of Russia spoke up in the silence of her exit, asserting his country's opinion on the matter, "These aliens come to Earth many times in the last two decades, they always come for the saccharine Americana, putting the rest of the world at risk!" He slammed his fist down on the desk in his office and being a hologram it had little intimidation effect on those on the other end of the call, "The Mother-Land will defend itself; the American's are on their own!" his image quickly glitched and disappeared as well.
The President of the Republic of China immediately agreed and signed off along with the Prime Minister of England, each of their images turning to static before vanishing as well leaving only Susan sitting at the Resolute Desk waiting for a response from her country's hero but, getting none as his thousand-foot stare at the wall behind the Magistrata didn't break until she spoke up, "I could talk to them, convince them to come back," she suggested.
"No," Ben responded, giving a long sigh and leaning back in his chair, "They wouldn't be much help anyways, I wont risk their lives if they aren't willing," he turned to face the President of the United States with a somber expression, feeling guilty about all of this happening because of him, "I'm sorry…" he muttered, "The Cosmians are after me, probably being manipulated by Eon who hates my guts, and none of this would be happening if wasn't around," he folded his hands atop the oval-table he sat at, barely looking up at the president's hologram out of shame.
"Well, on behalf of the American people, I have to tell you… to suck it the fuck up," Susan had grown to know Ben very well in the last several years especially since they worked together to take down Billy Billions two years ago so, the formalities weren't as important between them.
Gwendolyn chuckled at the President's cavalier attitude as Ben raised his brow, "Wait, what?"
Susan continued, "You started this call by telling me that this Eon character tried to assassinate your younger-self in the past last night, that tells me this war has already started, and you've gone out of your way to risk your life for this planet for nearly two-decades now," Albedo and Gwendolyn glanced to one another with a smile, enjoying how Ben's constant insecurity was thrown aside for the praise he deserved, "As far as the United States of America are concerned, you say jump, and we'll ask how high."
"Thanks, Susan, I promise you I can fix this; for now I'd suggest enacting a curfew and maybe Marshal Law until these ships aren't a threat anymore," Ben responded with a more confident smile, standing up as Susan nodded to him one last time before hanging up the call, dispersing her hologram.
Albedo stood up as well now that the three of them were alone in the room, "We should head to the command-center, ask Cooper if the Magistrata has delivered the list of worlds that might be able to send aid," he walked towards the door and gestured at the doorframe, sliding the metallic door automatically up into the ceiling, and in doing so, two unsupervised ten-year-olds found their weight tipping forward. Now that their ears were pressed against nothing at all, both Ben and Gwen toppled into the war-room, landing at their adult-self's feet.
The two ten-year-olds landed atop one another before quickly pushing each other away out of what appeared to be disgust, prompting Ben to glance over at his wife as the two struggled on the ground, letting out a long sigh as he dragged his hands down his face slowly; Gwendolyn couldn't help but smile at them as they argued, "Way to go, doofus, you totally got us caught!" Gwen shouted at the boy who quickly shoved her back as they stood, folding his arms over his chest out of stubbornness.
"Don't blame me, this is my super-cool headquarters, I can put my ear against any door I want!" he reasoned, closing his eyes, and turning away from the orange-haired girl with his nose up.
"Actually," Ben interrupted his younger-self by speaking up, "It's my headquarters, and you two should be staying out of trouble, but since I was you, I know you probably wont," he walked passed them as Gwendolyn and Albedo followed behind, feeling a tug on her sleeve as she walked she turned finding her younger self staring up at her.
"What's up?" she asked with a smile, walking alongside her as even now she could tell the girl was still awestruck by her future, making her noticeably nervous. "by the way, I'm having someone come by your room later with some clothes, toothbrushes, and some other stuff I remember I used to use…"
"T-Thanks," Gwen noted to herself, while that was on her mind it certainly wasn't what she was going to ask about; her gaze was still locked forward as she spoke and her future-self stared down at her. She was focused mostly on the back of her Ben's smelly white t-shirt with a concerned expression only she could recognize on her own face, "How serious is this big war supposed to be again? I mean, we're you, we cant stay here forever…"
Gwendolyn sighed, "Honestly? Too early to tell but, don't worry about a thing, Ben's got this…" she trailed off as their small group walked through the sliding metallic doorway and into the command center where Cooper was hard at work behind his desk, adjusting different holographic screens with gestures of his hands through the air.
"Merry Christmas…" he stoically announced as they passed him, almost as if he didn't even notice the two children walking passed him, his eyes were illuminated with neon blue circuitry as he focused on the screen in front of him.
Gwen couldn't help but question her future-self's attitude towards the subject, "Please don't tell me we're still following that doofus' lead on everything?" her tone was one of utter humiliation as she groaned in response.
Gwendolyn giggled slightly, shrugging her shoulders nonchalantly, "I dunno what to tell you, he's usually got good instincts when it comes to battle, now, I wouldn't count on him to make a dinner reservation even if he owned the restaurant…" though she didn't seem to notice her slight slip-up, her younger-self certainly did, wondering why on Earth she would rely on him to make a reservation? Though, things had changed and they were just having meetings with the most powerful political figures on the planet so she disregarded it changing the subject.
"Well, at least we wear something other than that armor and cloak, blue still our favorite color?" Gwen asked with a more enthusiastic smile, looking over her future-self's outfit; Gwendolyn as dressed in a tight navy-blue black trimmed short-sleeved top that hugged her muscular figure while still accentuating her developed curves. Her black short-skirt was tied to her waist by a silver belt with a feline-face belt buckle, matched with black boots trimmed with silver lining wrapped up her smooth calves, showing off her creamy legs in the process.
"Obviously," Gwendolyn gestured to her outfit quickly with a smile, "Always will be."
Meanwhile, Adult Ben approached Cooper's hardwired control desk, getting his attention by waving a hand through one of his many screens prompting him to disperse them with a thought, staring his long time friend in the eyes, "What?"
"Did you get the Magistrata's list of potential ally worlds?" He asked with a raised brow as Cooper scoffed at him, bringing up the information sent to him just moments ago on a holographic screen reversed so that Ben could read it on the other end of the desk.
"Bold of you to call this a list, there's only five worlds on there and four them are totally out of range to even be considered…" Cooper adjusted his favorite purple-yellow jersey and sat down in his monitor-chair, "The only one worth contacting is-"
"Khoros…" Ben muttered, once again sighing unenthusiastically, and raising a hand to his forehead, "Of course, it's the Tetramands," for some reason he was more stressed than he should have reasonably been, baring something he hadn't told the others.
Gwen and Gwendolyn both looked over at the same time, the latter choosing to interject her opinion, "Wait, aren't they one of the most fortified worlds in like fifty-systems? And their species are definite warriors, it seems like a no-brainer," she shrugged, not understanding the issue with the species as far as aid for an oncoming war.
Ben glanced over at Gwendolyn before his eyes darted over to his younger-self who smiled widely at him only to remind him that he was there, "I may have met their Princess, whose the Queen now, on that trip to join the Galactic Enforcers as a charter member last year; she was there to congratulate Tiny on something, I forgot what…" he looked away and rubbed the back of his neck a bit nervously which everyone paying attention could see.
Gwendolyn furrowed her brow, not liking the way he was beading around the bush on the subject of this Princess, folding her arms over her chest, leaning back on her left leg, and adjusting her posture, "What exactly happened with this Princess, Ben?" she questioned with a stern voice, trying to act as nonchalant as possible about it but, failing.
Ben jutted his hand in the air, "Score, that's awesome! I'm clearly doing well enough on my own," the arrogant ten-year-old shouted, liking the idea of alien Princesses hanging off his arms, only to have his cousin walk up behind him, smacking him upside the head.
"Tetramands are Fourarms' species, I didn't see you too interested in Tiny last time you met," the younger Gwen's arrogant grin and snarky comment actually gave some catharsis to her adult self who smiled at the resulting boy rubbing the back of his head, scowling at her.
"I totally knew that, you didn't have to hit me, doofus!" he shot back at her quicky.
"It's not my fault you cant follow a simple conversation," she shot back, shrugging at the same time, "Maybe you should pay more attention."
They continued to bicker as Albedo and Gwendolyn huddled around Ben by Cooper's desk, away from the two children, "I can't imagine this getting old anytime soon, how about everyone else?" Ben immediately pointed out in a hushed tone.
"It is quite distracting, when I first met you, as insufferable as you were, you were already far more mature than… this," Albedo finished his comment when he peaked over his shoulder to find Ben swinging his arms wildly in an attempt to whack his cousin only to have her palm placed firmly against his forehead, keeping it just barely out of range. She pulled her hand back and he instantly fell forward flat onto his face.
"Whatever, just ignore them, I say we use Ten Million's cube to teleport out of the dome and head to Khoros; if I remember correctly, the Princess was a huge fan of mine and now that she's Queen, this should be cake," Ben looked around at the team, with nobody protesting, aside from Gwendolyn's less than enthusiastic expression on the topic of fan-girl Queens.
"Oh, I'd love to meet her, this'll be great," Gwendolyn said with the most utterly sarcastic tone she could muster.
Ben turned to the door to make his exit, ignoring her attitude and running with exactly what she'd said, "Great, than it's settled, I'll have Gideon set up the trip-log; Gwen, Albedo, we leave in ten, Cooper?" he turned at the last second as to include him but quickly ran into a problem.
The blonde technopath looked up from the screen, waiting for an order or comment from his boss but, quickly realized he didn't exactly know what Cooper spent the majority of his time doing in the command center, only that it was probably very important, "Keep being awesome," he covered up his blank stare by turning around quickly, triggering the sliding doors to open as he walked through them.
His younger-self noticing this and quickly rushing after him, leaving Gwen behind as the doors closed behind them he turned over his shoulder to give her a teasing peace sign with his tongue out as the doors slid shut in front of him. At first she was pouting but, as soon as he was out of sight, her expression softened up and a smile curved over her lips.
"So," the ten-year-old spoke up as the two of them walked down the corridor together, Ben having barely noticed him as he sprinted through the doors before they closed, "Who's 'Ten Million' and what's this cube-thing you were talking about?" he asked something Ben was hoping the boy was too busy arguing to hear.
"That would be Ben Ten Million, and you're too young for the cube, way too young by the looks of it…" they continued to walk through the building where luckily that precise line of questioning was thrown off by them passing by a massive broken through hole in the ground and ceiling, now covered over with plywood and a tarp, "Watch your step," he warned as they walked around it, though it consumed most of the hallway.
"Woah," Ben exclaimed with childish-wonder, "What made that giant hole?" the boy asked obviously as his future-self wasn't entirely keen on answering in detail, he made it as short and simple as possible.
"My face, look," Ben turned around and knelt to look himself in the eye, putting a hand on his shoulder while trying to be as nice as possible, "I have a lot of work to do, important stuff and I cant be busy answering questions about the future like this, or babysitting," he saw the boys frustrated eyes and just felt bad for him, generally remembering what it was like to be so young and clueless.
Just as he was trying to find a way to get rid of the boy so he could work, his daughter rounded the corner with wireless headphones in her ears, wearing a baggy black sweat-shirt and pajama shorts, her hair was tied into a pony-tail, she was too busy typing on her phone to notice them just yet, "Shit, wait here," he muttered to himself with his younger-self giggling as Ben dashed at super-speeds at Jennifer, scooping her into his arms and ducking quickly around the corner in a blue of black-and-white.
"Heh, he said a bad word…" the boy mumbled.
"Dad!" Jennifer almost shouted but, she recoiled and held her stomach as he shushed her and she looked up into his eyes with utter confusion, "What are you doing?! I'm still nauseous as hell," she complained, holding her abdomen.
"I need you to baby-sit for me," Ben pitched the favor to his daughter who rolled her eyes, shrugging.
"What are you talking about? Baby-sit who?" she shook her head at him as Ben peaked around the corner, finding his ten-year-old self staring at the massive hole in the ground, picking his ear with his pinky-finger. "Who the hell is that?" she asked.
Ben grabbed her shoulder and pulled her back around the corner, "That's me, twenty-years ago, give or take a few weeks… I need you to keep an eye on him, and your mother is here too, not your mother but-" he began rambling out of frustratingly confusing verb tenses when he was interrupted.
"I get it, I get it, there's a ten-year-old Mom running around," she giggled and leaned her back against the space-age white walls, "And you want me to spend the whole day watching them? Where are you guys going?"
"Your Mother, your Uncle, and I are going to another Planet to see if we can get reinforcements, its all very political and super sensitive, I mean, some of these alien-politicians we meet see children as food and i gotta say I dont know the Red-Winds that well so…" Ben explained, doing his best to make her understand why he couldn't bring ten-year-olds with him but, it simply reflected onto her, maybe there was a bigger reason he couldn't spend time with her? She shook the thought quickly, nodding her head.
"Yea, okay, and you'll be back by tonight?" she folded her baggy-sleeved arms over her developing chest hidden beneath the sweatshirt.
"Yep," he ensured her, giving her a thumbs up.
"Anything else I should know?"
Ben put a finger to his chin, looking up at the ceiling for a split-second, "Oh, right, and don't let them know Gwendolyn's your mother, or that we're married or the whole timeline might split into pieces or something, I kinda started tuning Timeless out after a bit…"
"Wait, wha-?" Jennifer couldn't even finish her sentence before her father gave her a kiss on the cheek and dashed off at twice the speed of sound towards the armory where the hyperspace-cube was docked.
"That's just great," Jennifer was about to turn the corner when the young-Ben shocked her having gotten to the corner when she wasn't looking, she recoiled, "Shit," she whispered.
Ben immediately recognized the similarities in her eyes, in her cheek bones, and now in her mannerisms, he wasn't as dumb as people made him out to be, "Who are you?" he asked with narrowed eyes.
Jennifer said nothing, pulling back her baggy-black sleeve, showing off the white-compact wristwatch lined with glowing purple circuitry which immediately send him into a starstruck frenzy, "Woah, cool new Omnitrix!" he practically shouted, and she could see it now too, only there was something lighter to him that was totally unfamiliar, this was her father at the start of his journey.
…
Universe A-006; New York; Bellwood; November 15th 2026; 2:00AM
Looking over massive holographic blueprints, displayed by a circular control-center projecting images above a large glass surface, for the reconstruction of Downtown Bellwood, following the third Vilgaxian invasion, it was turning out to be an incredibly late night for the hero of heroes of this world; he sipped a cup of hot-coffee to keep his energy flowing, reaching out to interact with the hard-light hologram with his bare hands, shifting buildings into more appropriate places.
The door sliding-metallic door opened and a man in a two-piece black and white suit, sporting an ear-piece in one ear, peeked through, "Are you going to turn in for the night, sir?" he asked politely as he was preparing to leave himself.
Ben fought back a yawn and glanced at the digitally displayed time on the glass holo-surface in front of him before responding, "Actually, I was going to finish this up first, you can head out though," the hero insisted with a casual smile.
"Are you sure, Mr. President?" the secret-serviceman questioned, it being very unusual for the USSS to leave the President or President-Elect completely unguarded under any circumstance, then again, those laws were never drafted for someone with an Omnitrix on his wrist.
Ben almost rolled his eyes, he'd never get used to that no matter how long he held the title, he only took the job so that in times of crisis he could command Earth's intergalactic-response and military defenses effectively. "I'm only going to be President for a few more weeks before Gwendolyn takes over, besides, I'm Ben Tennyson. Do you really think I need secret service watching me twenty-four-seven?" he questioned reasonably.
The guard chuckled, "I guess not, sir, goodnight!" his head pulled back into the hall and the door slid-shut leaving the great Ben Ten Thousand alone for the night.
"You too!" Ben shouted over his shoulder to him as he turned to continue his work on the reconstruction of his beloved city; he dispersed the entire map looking down on the hourglass symbol emblazoned in the center of the glass-table. He could sense the atmosphere shift as soon as he was alone, almost like someone was waiting for it, he kept quiet and listened into the quiet room.
After a few seconds, a large vortex of emerald energy split open space-time in his office, sending a pulsating wind through out then room knocking small items and papers off the large desk in the process as they flew out around the room; Ben took a step back as two figures slowly walked through.
Once the portal closed behind them, Ben could tell they were alternate versions of himself, it wasn't even their faces, he could feel it as soon as he made eye contact, "To what do I owe the pleasure, boys? I thought Paradox was managing other Ben Tennysons with Multiverse-travel tech," he watched as one of them stood next to the portal as it closed, and the other dressed in robes walked passed him, hardly looking at him.
Timeless flourished his emerald-trimmed black robes once to settle his arms by his side after having opened the portal with his hands, "Paradox is dead."
This shocked the hero, taking him aback as he was suddenly left with a sharp pain in his chest, a friend was gone, "W-Wait, what? Paradox cant die," Ben chuckled, folding his arms in disbelief, stating it as a fact even though he himself wasn't so sure.
"If he could, who would you guess-"
"Eon," Ben didn't even need to hear the entire question, he closed his eyes with a furrowed brow, "How did he return? Ben Prime dealt with him, there's no way he could be back."
Timeless paced around the office, looking at the carpet as he walked slowly, "Eon was just a consciousness with no body, an idea in the absractium until, another version of us was tricked into severing a relatively benign Eon-variant from the Hands of Armageddon at the Edge of Oblivion."
Ben, who was half-listening to the robe-wearing man pace around his office, and half-staring at the Omnitrix-dial glowing from the center of the hilt to a galvanic-grey broadsword, "Aaand… Eon's essence was able to merge with this variant once time ended and the absractium was exposed, got it… should we get Ben Prime on this or…?" he finally tore his gaze away from it when Benji pulled his sheathed blade slightly closer to himself like a woman with her handbag.
"Unfortunately, I'm only two-thousand years old-"
"Only?" Ben and Benji said simultaneously before frowning and glancing back at one another, still sizing one another up.
Timeless closed his eyes, sighing in regret, "Paradox had many epochs to master his abilities, I have… not, this is as close to the canon as I can get frankly, it wasn't easy either," as he continued to pace around the room, he was just about to walk passed Ben without looking at him once again only this time, he put a hand out to stop him from passing.
"Who exactly are you again?" he questioned with a raised brow, almost skeptical about if this boy was even really a variant of his or if he was on the side of good.
He turned and looked into Ben Ten Thousand's eyes, grabbing him by the shoulders suddenly and smiling widely as he noticed the energy glowing from his eyes left no room for the whites of his sclera or even pupils, just glowing neon-emerald eyeholes, "I'm The Timeless Ben, and you, Mister Ultimate, are needed in the Time-War!" he aggressively took one hand off his shoulder and slapped his palm flat against the hero's forehead, sending the man recoiling back.
In the matter of the few seconds that Timeless had his hand on Ben's forehead, using his other hands grip on his shoulder as leverage, Ultimate Ben saw nearly two-thousand years of conflict, endless deaths, the rise and fall of other versions of themselves, some of the events were blurred together as some of them hadn't happened yet.
Ultimate Ben was seeing directly into Timeless' memories of the war he'd seen thus far skipping from the past to the future and back. In the haunting echoes of an intergalactic war, Timeless' flashbacks transported him back to the chaos of starships engaged in hyperdrive skirmishes, the acrid scent of ionized plasma lingering in his memories. Vivid holographic projections showcased alien landscapes scarred by energy blasts, while the haunting sounds of extraterrestrial warfare reverberate in his minds, leaving indelible imprints of a cosmic conflict that transcends both time and space.
As soon as the few seconds had passed, Ben recoiled and backed away, gasping, and hitting his desk slightly before regaining his composure, "What… What the hell was that?!"
"That was the Time-War, another version of us is being targeted, and anyone who stands to help him is a target as well, past and future…" Timeless explained, glancing behind him to gesture towards Benji who was silently observing what could be his new comrade, "Benji saw firsthand what Eon will do to the worlds of any Ben who would send help."
"So, Eon got his hands on an army of warships?"
"One of the most feared in a large majority of the Multiverse…"
"And we can't get Ben Prime involved?"
Timeless closed his eyes and shrugged, "Not unless he somehow gets himself involved…" as unlikely as it was, it did rarely happen on occasion so it want totally out of the question to them.
Ultimate Ben smiled and nodded, punching his own open-palm with his slick-emerald wristwatch gleaming, "Bring it on," his determined glare shun with enthusiasm.
…
Yes, that's the exact same Ultimate Ben from UA. Ben Prime will not show up, that's just logically how he'd respond to a Multiversal adventure that cant include him.