Underground Omniverse
Gammatron: Hey guys. I own no one in this story nor the series of Sonic Underground, Ben 10 Series, or the BlazBlue series. I do own Roll Cyber Sakurai, though.
Rebel 10: The Hedgehog In The Iron Mask
"Dude, this place gives me the creeps!" Manic gulped as they snuck about the area.
"H-H-Hai…" Roll whimpered as she held onto Sonic's arm, the limb being squeezed between her impressive bust, while Yacker trembled on Sonic's head.
"Yeah, especially since it's nice everywhere else!" Sonia rolled her eyes, looking at the cobwebs about.
"Gotta hand it to Buttnik - he knows how to set a mood! Come on! If Mom was imprisoned here, the records might hold a clue to where she went!"
"Hai, Sonikku," Roll nodded.
"It's showtime!" a voice declared, causing Roll to whimper as she changed from Sonic's arm to his head buried between her breasts, cutting off his oxygen.
"Now what do we do?" Sonia gulped.
"W-w-w-w-what was th-that?" Roll whimpered.
"Oh I, why have I been so unjustly imprisoned? Unmask my face and let me look upon... er... Freedom! Precious freedom again!"
"Who is that? A prisoner?" Sonia pondered.
"Uh, future Sis? You're cutting off Bro's air," Manic pointed out, seeing Sonic's head turning purple.
"Oops! G-G-Gomen…" Roll apologized, releasing Sonic's head.
"It…It's fine. But the big question is - why a prisoner?" Sonic coughed.
"Yeah, Buttnik usually just Roboticize them!" Manic noted.
"Let me ou-ou-ou-out!"
"There's something familiar about that voice..." Sonia tapped her chin in thought.
"Yeah, sounds like Sonic's off-key singing!" Manic joked, earning a small giggle from Roll.
"Very funny," Sonic frowned, "Now maybe we can find some answers once we finally get inside!"
"Hmm... Manic, Roll, can you hack this hardware?" Sonic pondered.
"Probably. Those computer lessons we've been doin' with Ben when he's one of his techno aliens will be paying off here…I hope," Manic noted as he cracked his fingers.
"Lucky for us there are two of them here," Roll noted as the two went to work, unaware of a face resembling Dingo's appearing on the screen of Manic's.
"I'm waiting~…" Sonic used a sang-song tone.
"Hehehahaha - stop that, I'm ticklish!" 'Dingo' laughed on Manic's screen while Roll's screen turned off.
"Dingo!" Manic gasped as Sleet emerged from the shadows.
"You expecting maybe a brass band and the key to the city?"
"Sleet!" Sonia gulped as Dingo was changed back.
"Get them! Grab him!" Sleet ordered before they were, barely, able to catch them with a net made of tape.
"Where's the records about our Mom?" Sonic demanded.
"There aren't any! The tip was a fake! Part of the trap!" Sleet cackled.
"And the prisoner in the tower? What did he do?" Sonia frowned.
"Nothing - Robotnik didn't Roboticize him because he's important, but nobody knows who he is!" Dingo replied.
"That's terrible!" Sonia gasped as SWATBots began to enter.
"Time to take you three away," Sleet smirked before realizing there was a fourth member, "Hello? A mixed-breed Mobian as well? My, my, my. Seems quite the sight."
Roll shivered at the look he gave. It was then a wall exploded as Makoto jumped through with Big Chill. Big Chill seemed to be much more muscular than before with a tiny black beard, somewhat larger eyebrows, and a belt that had the Omnitrix on it. Big Chill unleashed a wave of ice from his mouth that froze the robots before Makoto began to use her tonfa, fists, and tail.
"Hold on," Big Chill informed as he put his hands on the heads of the four before going intangible with them, freeing them from the net as it froze over.
"Let's get going!" Sonic called.
"Hold on," Roll informed before picking up a SWATBot head and threw it at Sleet, knocking him over, "I'm good!"
"Nice one!" Manic laughed as they got away.
"The... the hedgehogs got away!" Sleet groaned into a radio.
=Of course they did! I planned that!=
"Yes, of course you did, a great idea, Robotnik!"
=Can it, Sleet!=
"I told them the stuff you said to tell them, Robotnik Sir!" Dingo informed on the radio.
=Excellent! I have a plan we can use to eliminate them…permanently! Hahahaha!=
"'Behind the mask of our everyday faces are secret fears and ambitions we try to hide from others. It takes courage to come out from behind the mask and let the world see who we really are,'" Makoto mumbled out the lines in the book she was reading in the van.
She couldn't help but agree with the book. She was a Beastkin and was often considered an outcast, much like the Negro race when there was still a United States of America. She had decided to just let them have their way and yet they still didn't accept her. It wasn't until she met her friends that day…
"I'm so sorry. I didn't see you there."
"…" Makoto started to stand up from the purposeful push, ignoring the small pain in her left knee.
"Oh no, did you scrape your knee?"
"Miss Nanaya. I didn't expect your blood to be red," the third of the three girls there noted.
"What a pleasant surprise…" the first student smirked before the three began to laugh tauntingly.
"…" Makoto didn't reply, 'How disgraceful. These humans who seek out those weaker and harass them so they can sustain their pathetic identities. They mistake the power that comes only in numbers for their own.' "Your eyes bad or something? Need some money for glasses?"
"Wha-?! How dare you?!" the first girl growled, "What makes you think we need to accept charity from the likes of you?! You Beastkin!"
"You're right…it's your face that needs charity. I'm not sure if you can do anything about that…" Makoto continued, giving a dark smirk.
"What was that…?!" the second girl gasped.
"You better take that back!" the third spat.
Red-faced and twitching from rage, the first girl raised her hand up to slap Makoto. To the eyes of a Beastkin, the girl's hand moved in slow motion. The attack was practically begging to be dodged.
"…Seriously…?" Makoto asked.
Dodging the attack would only attract unwanted attention and rage in Makoto's opinion. Makoto wasn't looking forward to what was about to happen, but she decided to take the hit. Suddenly, another girl leapt into the middle of the battle, placing herself between the two. The girl was none other than Noel Vermillion.
"!" Makoto gasped almost silently.
In a flash, Makoto's body moved on reflex and instinct alone. The bully's hand landed dead center where Makoto was a moment ago, hitting nothing. Losing her balance, the classmate awkwardly fell head first into a group of desks stacked away in the corner.
"Eeek!" the second screamed.
"…" Makoto just watched as the first girl started to get up.
"Ugh…"
"What the-?! Your cheek is cut," the second girl gasped.
"What's wrong with you?!" the third snapped at Makoto.
"Mmm, your blood's red too, huh? Your heart's so black, I was honestly expecting something else…" Makoto noted.
"Wha-?!" the three gasped.
"You bitch!" the first snapped.
"What's going on here?! Settle down. …?!" Tsubaki demanded before seeing the cut, "You're injured. What happened?"
"It was Nanaya…she…!" the first began.
"Nanaya pushed her over, and she got hurt," the second informed.
'That lying bitch…' Makoto thought.
"Nanaya did?" Tsubaki pondered, somewhat skeptical as she glanced at the small skid mark of a shoe on the floor near the desks that had been messed up.
"We didn't even do anything to her," the third added.
'Haha! You mean you couldn't do anything, right?' Makoto teased.
"Is this true, Nanaya?" Tsubaki asked.
"Who knows?" Makoto shrugged.
"Answer my question!" Tsubaki scowled.
"What's your problem? You're just gonna barge in and yell at the top of your voice? Who put you in power, anyway?" Makoto demanded.
"…?! Fair enough," Tsubaki calmed down, "I apologize for raising my voice. But violence really isn't the answer."
"The good ol' 'violence' speech, huh? Yes yes, I know. I was bad! It's the Beastkin's fault, right? Always the Beastkin! Now, can we all get on with our lives?" Makoto scowled.
"Nanaya…" Tsubaki began.
"What's with your attitude…?" the third classmate demanded.
"You owe us an apology!" the first one added.
"Um…" Noel nervously made her way to the center of the crowd, "I saw the whole thing…"
"Oh really…? Then why don't you tell us what exactly you saw, hmm?" the first asked.
"We're the ones with the injuries here! It's that savage who's at fault. Why are we still having this discussion?!" the third demanded.
"B-But, I saw it with my own eyes… Nanaya is not the one at fault…" Noel stammered a bit.
"Are you seriously siding with this barbarian?" the first demanded in disbelief.
"What was your name again? …Noel Vermillion? …Vermillion…I've never even heard of that family," the second noted.
"Mind your place. You shouldn't even be speaking to us," the first spat.
"But I just…" Noel whimpered.
Noel's silver of courage quickly disappeared, and her expression spoke for itself – she was on the verge of tears. Most of today's world society was governed by the nearly defined class structure established by the Novis Orbis Librarium. From the estates to the slums, one's birthplace and heritage determines how people are assimilated into society. Of course, even the Military Academy of the NOL is not immune to such segregation.
"Silence!" Tsubaki snapped.
"I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to…" Noel began to apologize.
"I wasn't talking to you, Noel," Tsubaki gently informed, giving the blond-haired girl her kindest smile.
"…Huh?" Noel blinked as Tsubaki glared at the group of classmates.
"I suggest you take a good look at yourselves in a mirror. You'll see an ugly face staring back at you," Tsubaki informed.
"Wha-?!" the first gasped.
"!" Makoto nearly gawked at that.
"I can't even stand the sight of your deformed mouths from all the foul language and your sunken eyes from looking down at others…" she turned from them, "I truly feel sorry for your so-called 'family name.'"
"That's all you care about, right? One's heritage and species… Then why don't you all just leave and go ponder how lucky you are?"
"That was uncalled for…" the first began.
"Just cause you're a Duodecim!" the third spat.
"…Indeed, I am a member of one of the 12 families in the Duodecim, which is why I choose my actions carefully. I do not wish to smear the image of my family."
"…" Makoto's eyes widened, just barely, 'She…She's defending me…?'
"The Duodecim does not exist to oppress others. Under the order of the Librarium and Imperator, we are to sustain peace and order in the world. We want to create a world that's free of conflict. The Duodecim is at the frontlines of this struggle, and we must set the example for others," Tsubaki informed, "…At least, that's what I like to believe."
Tsubaki's words were stern. Everyone in the room couldn't help but watch in awe. Her eyes never wavered, readily apparent that there is not even a bit of doubt in her will.
"…" The group of classmates shriveled up in shame, exchanging uncomfortable looks at each other.
"…Can I leave now?" Makoto asked.
"Nanaya?" Tsubaki pondered as Makoto walked out with a scowl.
"Nanaya…" Noel whispered.
'I need to disappear…if I just disappear, then there will be no more problems,' Makoto thought.
Makoto yelped as Ben's fingers continued to snap before her face. She fell over, grabbing Ben by accident. The teen gave a yelp of surprise as he fell with her. Ben groaned as he opened his eyes before both of their eyes widened. Ben had landed on top of Makoto, their faces almost inches apart. Both their faces turned red with blushes as they scrambled away from one another, doing their best not to look at the other.
"Uh…" Ben coughed, "Uh…Well…Uh…The others want our help."
"Oh? R-really?"
"Ben-san, did you tell Makoto-chan about us going out to ask everyone about her problem?" Roll asked as she poked her head into the van, "Ano…Why are you both blushing?"
"N-No reason," both replied.
"Do you know the man who was a prisoner in this tower?" Sonia asked a Mobian, who merely shrugged and began to walk away.
"Maybe an impromptu song could inspire the folks to help us," Manic noted.
"Maybe," Sonic nodded before the three summoned their instruments.
When there's trouble you don't want to face,
You disappear without a trace,
You run and hide your head in the sand.
But if you want to be a winner some day,
Gotta learn to chase the wolf away,
Gonna have to get involved, don't you understand?
You're part of the problem,
If you're not helping solve them,
Stand up and show 'em what you got!
Be part of the solution,
No reason for losing,
Just be sure you're not,
Part of the problem!
Part of the problem!
You're part of the problem,
If you're not helping solve them,
Stand up and show 'em what you got,
Be part of the solution,
No reason for losing,
Just be sure you're not,
Part of the problem!
Part of the problem!
Be sure you're not,
Part of the problem!
"Maybe now they'll tell us who the prisoner is!" Sonic beamed.
"Yeah…I don't see that happening," Ben sweatdropped as he saw the crowd didn't have any clue on the identity of the one in the tower.
"Looks like the only way to find out who that prisoner is is to rescue him ourselves!" Makoto declared, pumping her fist.
"Why do I not like that idea?" Ben muttered to himself.
"Oh, woe is me, will I never be free?" a voice sighed as Sonic ran up the stairs and stopped before a sealed door, "Help me! Free me!"
"Stand back!" Sonic declared.
He whipped out his guitar/blaster and open fired, breaking down the door. A hedgehog, roughly the size of a human adult, emerged. He wore a simple, yet regal set of red clothing over his cyan fur. Yet what was interesting about him was that the upper half of his head was covered in an iron mask/helmet, revealing just his auburn eyes.
"We're gonna have company…" Manic noted, seeing SWATBots approaching once Sonic ran downstairs with the hedgehog.
"Leave me! Save yourselves!" the hedgehog informed.
"Not without you!" Sonia argued.
"I think it's time for a little 'Upgrade,'" Ben smirked as he slapped the Omnitrix Core, "FourArms!"
Four Arms was a humanoid alien that was approximately 12 feet tall, had well developed muscles, two pairs of four-fingered arms, and red skin. A black stubble stripe went from the bridge of his nose to his neck. A second black stripe went from his chin to his lower lip, and he had four eyes: a main pair and a smaller pair below them. He sported a tiny black ponytail, black fingerless gloves, and gold cuffs on each wrist and ankle. He also had 3 short spikes on the top of his head and a mustache, wearing a black tank top like shirt as a muscle man at a circus would have with one large green stripe in the middle, and black pants. He also had a pair of jutting incisors. On his arms and shoulders were black lines. To Ben, they would remind him of the black lines that were on this alien's original outfit from when he was ten. He looked at his hands and frowned.
"I wanted Upgrade," FourArms proceeded to smirk as he grabbed four SWATBots and threw them at the other machines, "But this is much, much better. Sonic Clap!"
"Huh?" Sonic looked over at FourArms as the muscular alien slammed his namesakes' hands together, unleashing a shockwave that slammed and destroyed all but one SWATBot.
"Now what to do with you," FourArms smirked as he cracked his knuckles.
"You wouldn't hit a guy with glasses, would you?" the SWATBot gulped as he put on a pair.
"Of course not," FourArms replied before taking the glasses and bopping him on the head with it, breaking them.
"…Oh, I see where you got that. You hit a guy with glasses. Genius," the SWATBot chuckled before collapsing, sparking a bit.
"In Buttnik's world, there is no justice!" Sonia scowled.
"Yeah, there's just us!" Sonic agreed.
"Let's get going!" Makoto declared.
"Congratulations my man, you've just experienced a righteous resistance rescue! Now let's bust your noggin outta that loser headgear! It'll only take a sec!" Manic smirked before the hedgehog moved back.
"No! Don't! The mask - it's booby-trapped! If you unlock it, Boom! Hedgehog hash!" the hedgehog in the iron mask informed.
"Phew! Now that's a visual I didn't need!" Sonic cringed.
"Seconded," Ben agreed, "Don't worry, though. Upgrade can handle that."
"Who?" the hedgehog pondered as Ben activated his Omnitrix and changed.
"Omni-Kaka!" the Kaka Clan Cat declared before seeing her tail and showed her strap-covered chest to shout at the Omnitrix, her hidden face baring its fangs and the 'red eyes' giving an angry appearance, "Hey! Stupid Changing Watch, Omni wanted Boosting Guy, not Omni-Kaka!"
"Not again…" Manic, Sonia, and Makoto groaned.
"Another form?" Roll pondered, Yacker tilting his head in confusion with her.
"So who are you anyway?" Sonic asked.
"And why's Buttnik got you wearing that metal bonnet? It doesn't do a thing for you!" Sonia added.
"You'll pardon my wariness, but who are you?" the hedgehog pondered.
"Omni is Omni-Kaka!" Omni-Kaka declared.
"Makoto Nanaya, former member of the NOL Intelligence Branch," Makoto informed.
"Roll Cyber Sakurai. This is my friend, Yacker-kun."
"ZW4^*$ !"
"Hey - you are looking at the Sonic Underground!" Manic smirked.
"Manic, Sonia, and me - Sonic!" Sonic added.
"We're the children of Mobius' rightful ruler - Queen Aleena!" Sonia added, causing the hedgehog to gap.
"Can it really be you? I can't believe it - why, I haven't seen you since you were little hedgehoglets!" the hedgehog noted.
"Clarification is in order, man!" Manic informed.
"Well, I think he's saying that you're related," Makoto noted as Omni-Kaka began to slurp up a smoothie.
"You are indeed correct, madam. I couldn't expect you three to remember me, but I am your uncle! Your mother's twin brother!" the hedgehog declared, causing Omni-Kaka to do a spittake.
"Ah, the fresh air of freedom!" their 'Uncle' declared as he stepped out once the van stopped.
"Do you think he could really be Mom's brother?" Sonic whispered.
"Well, his voice does sound familiar..." Sonia noted, tapping her chin in thought.
"Besides, why else would Buttnik have him in the clink?" Manic added.
"I managed to conceal these from Robotnik in the hopes that someday I could bestow them upon you!" their uncle declared as she pulled out a set of three rings, "They bear the Royal Family Crest – wear them always!"
"I don't get it! Why the mask? And how come we've never heard of you before?" Sonic pondered as he slid his ring on.
Their uncle gave a sad sigh as he looked away from them, "It was the law back then. There could be only one ruler of Mobius!"
"Really?" Makoto pondered.
"Indeed. I was forced into exile, and then when your mother vanished, you three, Robotnik imprisoned me, afraid that I would claim the throne!" the uncle informed.
"Aw, bummer! Major drawback to royalty!" Manic frowned.
"Don't worry bro, when I'm ruler you won't have to vanish!"
"You? Hah! A ruler needs some culture and sophistication - you can't serve chili-dogs at a Royal Banquet! Besides, I will never wear a mask - talk about a clashing accessory!" Sonia snorted.
"Hey! I'm the true representative of the people!"
Omni-Kaka tackled the three, "Hey, you three! No more arguing right neow!"
"Look, Ben, just stay out of this. It doesn't concern you," Sonia informed.
"You three stop arguing right neow or…" Omni-Kaka trembled before entering a fighting stance, "I'll beat you into mulch!"
'I hope they stop it. You don't anger a Kaka Clan member further when they declare something like that,' Makoto thought.
"Sonia-sama, Manic-san, Sonikku, please stop this. You shouldn't think of things like that," Roll advised.
"Yeah. That's in the future. Plus, it'll most likely get changed since you said that you three and your Mom are to become a Council of Four, right?" Makoto noted.
"…Oh yeah…" Sonic realized.
"Dude, how'd we completely forget about that?" Manic pondered.
"Oh! Omni knows why! You guys forgot to have lots and lots of naps like meow!" Omni pointed out, causing everyone to sweatdrop, before changing back into Ben due to the Omnitrix timing out.
"…I believe there is something…peculiar about your friend here," Uncle noted, "Look out! More of Robotnik's troops!"
"Rats!" Makoto scowled.
"Hit it, sibs!" Sonic ordered.
"Just because I've lived on the streets all my life doesn't mean I can't handle the crown!" Manic frowned as they got on the bus.
"Dream on! I'll be wearing the crown!" Sonic smirked.
"You? I'd look much better in a crown - diamonds go with my eyes!"
"Enough!" Makoto barked, the group unaware of a small glint on the middle of the mask's forehead.
"Hehehaha! Ah, yes! Already the breakup has started, just as I planned! And all it needs is one more little push!" Robotnik smirked as he pressed a button on his throne, observing everything that the Uncle was.
A pipe ahead of them released a small trail of oil. The van drove over it and began to skid out.
"Give it more gas!" Omni shouted, holding onto Roll and Makoto.
"Sure! So the wheels can spin even more!" Sonic frowned.
"If you were to steer Mobius the way you steer a van, then we'd all be on the road to disaster!" Sonia pointed out.
"Yeah? Well if you become ruler I'll vanish on purpose, just so I don't have to listen to you!" Sonic informed.
"Sonikku!" Roll gasped.
"Well if that's how you feel then I'll just leave! Go off by myself!"
"Yeah! This hedgehog never needed anyone before and he doesn't now! As of now, the Sonic Underground is through - we each go our own way - and may the best ruler win!" Sonic ordered.
"Fine!" Sonia ageed.
"Let there be the rule of cool!" Manic declared.
"Mind if I accompany you?" Uncle asked.
"Hike along, Unc!" Manic nodded.
"Wh-What should we do?" Makoto gulped.
"We split up. Roll, I know you want to go with Sonic, but I need you to go with Sonia," Ben ordered.
"Hai," Roll nodded.
"Makoto?"
"I'm on Creepy Uncle Watch," Makoto informed, "He's too suspicious in my opinion. This may be one of Robotnik's traps."
"Alright then. That leaves me and Sonic," Ben noted as Makoto went off before he activated his Omnitrix, "Come on. Give me someone I can work with…"
He pressed down on the device. Time slowed in his mind as he began to transform. He could feel himself getting slightly taller and sleeker. His legs began to bend in the way the hind legs of an animal would as two black orbs formed under his three-clawed feet. A tail emerged from his rear as three claws replaced his hands. His head became more angular with his teeth fusing into two rows of teeth with fang-like extensions on the sides. His outfit turned into a black tracksuit with a green center, the Omnitrix Symbol on the center of his torso.
"XLR8!" the alien declared before looking at himself and paled, "This one…" he began to shake his head quickly, "No, no, no. Not the time for those thoughts, XLR8. We need to get to Sonic."
With that, a black and blue-detailed visor slid down over his face. In a split-second XLR8 was off as fast as Sonic.
"So much has changed since I was imprisoned! Where are we going?" Uncle asked.
"No offence, but if you wanna stop attracting SWATBot attention, we gotta get that mask off your face," Makoto informed.
"And as it happens I know this gnarly secret locksmith who can deactivate any booby-trap! Whoa-oa-oa!"
"What's wrong?" Makoto asked.
"This was not here before!" Manic informed as he pointed at the door.
"It doesn't look normal," Makoto noted as she poked it, causing it to start snickering.
"That tickles!" Dingo laughed as he changed back and grabbed them.
"Hey! Dingo! Run, Unc!" Manic screamed.
"Oh, I shall!" Uncle gulped as he ran off.
"…Did you turn azure?" Makoto asked, seeing the orange was gone from his fur and replaced with a shade of azure.
"How could Sonic and Manic possibly think they'd be a better ruler than me? I'm the one with the Queenly looks! Those other two - they've ruined the Royal reputation!" Sonia grumbled.
"But you're still family in the end," Roll noted, Yacker nodding.
"But why must my brothers be so…"
"All of you were raised differently, hai?" Roll asked, "Well, think about it from their views. Sonic's been helping lead the Freedom Fighters for most of his life now while Manic's been raised and shown what the lower class have to bear with. You were lucky to be raised how you were by a spy for the Freedom Fighters."
"I…I see…"
"Girls!" the two turned to see Uncle run up, "Manic's been captured!"
"Of course he did. Ugh! Ooh…They both just make me so angry at times!" Sonia growled.
"Now, now, what would your poor mother think?" Uncle asked, motioning to a fallen statue of Queen Aleena.
"Huh?" Sonia looked at the statue, "…Mom…"
"Sonia-sama?"
"You're right! Mother would want us to work together!"
"That's the spirit, my girl!" Uncle smiled before he continued to walk off as Sonia and Roll looked at the statue.
"This is your Okaa-chan?" Roll asked.
"Yeah," Sonia nodded before the two screamed when the trophy suddenly grabbed them both, turning into Dingo.
"Well, well. If it isn't my old flame and a new prey," Dingo noted.
"All I need to do is get the van out of the ditch, and I can go on tour as a solo Resistance act!" Sonic snorted as he approached a 'garage' with an azure bin nearby.
"Are you sure you want to do that?" Sonic turned to see XLR8, "Going solo's a pretty dumb thing to do."
"What would you know?"
"I did that a few times when I was ten and eleven. Heck, even the last two years I tried to go out on my own as a hero," XLR8 recalled, "Not once did it end well."
"How so?" Sonic frowned.
"Well, it was a bit after into the summer I got the Omnitrix. My grandpa…he got hurt bad by this biker gang," XLR8 informed, "Had to spend a few days in the hospital."
"…"
"I thought to myself 'I did this. He got hurt because of me.' I decided to run away, try to make myself just a solo hero," XLR8 frowned as he turned back into Ben, "But I couldn't do anything much against really tough opponents without his help and the help of my cousin. You can't do everything by yourself, Sonic."
"Watch me," Sonic frowned as he walked into the building, "Anyone here? I need a tow-truck! Hmm... maybe they have a wrench I could borrow."
"An excellent idea!" the two yelped as they turned to see Uncle.
"What? How'd you get here? Where's Manic?" Sonic pondered.
"And Makoto," Ben added.
"He's just not suitable as a ruler - I've decided you are! That's why I came!" Uncle replied.
"And Makoto?"
"I did not see her as I came this way," Uncle replied.
"Yeah? How'd you find me?" Sonic asked.
"Er... I... er... um..."
"Spit it out 'Uncle,' if that's really who you are! How'd you track me down? Say..." Sonic looked down at his ring, seeing it glowing.
"It's a homing device!" Ben realized before narrowing his eyes at him.
"Get him!" Sleet ordered as he emerged from a tool closet, turning Dingo back to normal. "Lemme give you a lift!" Dingo smirked as he activated the crane, lifting up multiple SWATBots.
"I'll handle this," Ben smirked as he slapped down on the Omnitrix, turning him into a tiny humanoid, robotic insect-like Alien with one 'eye,' "Nanomech. …Nanomech? Um, that's a bad choice, Omnitrix."
"Bad time for picking bad choices…" Sonic muttered as he began to fight off the robots.
=Don't just stand there you tin-faced twerp - get in there and do something! Or else...= Robotnik growled, his image appearing in one eye of the fake's mask.
"Er... right!" the fake nodded before he picked up a wrench and threw it at Sonic, knocking him out.
"Whoa, have I got a Sonic-sized headache!" Sonic groaned as he began to come to.
"Sonikku!" Roll gasped, hugging the hedgehog gently while her tail began to softly rub his head.
"Mmm…That's nice…" Sonic couldn't help but enjoy it.
"We've got worse troubles than that!" Sonia informed as she pointed at the cuffs on their arms.
"Imagine us getting sucked into Buttnik's plan like that!" Manic frowned.
"He was trying to split us up!" Sonia added.
"And it worked too - thanks to..." Sonic began before the door was opened.
"In ya go, mate," Dingo informed as he tossed the fake into the cell, his mask being removed.
"Ohhhhh…"
"Hey! That's no Uncle - that's... Luke Periwinkle, the actor! I used to see all of his movies!" Sonia realized.
"Oh! We just watched some of his films two nights ago as a girl's night!" Makoto realized.
"I'm not sure if I want to bop him or ask for an autograph," Roll added, Yacker nodding.
"Always gratifying to meet a fan or two!" Luke informed, feeling just only a smidge better about the fate he would endure.
"I always thought he was a ham!" Sonic frowned.
"Huh? I beg your pardon!" Luke frowned.
"Hey, he tricked us good. From what I could see from those films, he's one of the best actors there is, almost as if he wasn't Luke Periwinkle, but the actual character he plays as," Makoto informed.
"I come from a family of masters of disguise," Luke informed, "We are the best when it comes to becoming another character."
"The mask! It's booby-trapped!" Manic realized.
"It won't explode. It was just a surveillance camera! Robotnik forced me to play this role to trick you. I truly apologize for it, but said he'd Roboticize my wife and myself if I didn't do it - but after he caught you, he imprisoned me and Roboticized my wife anyway!" Luke growled as he kicked the mask towards the door, causing it to explode upon impact.
"Whoa! It was booby-trapped!" Manic gawked.
"You mean... my head... boom?" Periwinkle fainted.
"Tsk-tsk-tsk. That's what you get for lying," Makoto scolded, "Still…I guess you couldn't help it since your family was…and still is…in danger."
"Now's our chance! Manic, can you shed these shackles?" Sonic asked.
"Whoa, man, no exit!" Manic yelped, seeing they were surrounded by SWATBots.
"Over here!" Sonia called as she threw Sonic a sword.
"The Sonic Underground reunion tour!" Manic declared.
"All hedgehogs for one…" Sonia began.
"And one hedgehog for all!" Sonic finished.
"Time for us to get in on this," Ben smirked as he slapped down on his Omnitrix, changing him into a planet-like, humanoid alien, with a head made of leaves in the shape and color of flames, "Swampfire! …Is what I was not going to go with, but that's okay. There's a time for going Hero, and then there's a time to go Ultimate!"
With that, he slapped down on the Emblem. The four spikes emerged once more and sent a wave of energy over his body. What was once green turned a pale shade of bark. His upper body, mainly the head area, was engulfed in blue orbs with his head floating in one, resembling Heatblast's face. Three orbs went up both his lower arms.
"Ultimate Swampfire!" the evolved Alien declared before unleashing an intense blast of blue flames, "Ultimate Fire Storm!"
"Yacker, Cube Mallet!"
"Cube!" Yacker declared, turning into a blue version of himself, his 'head' in the shape of a cube with three eyes.
He zipped into Roll's blade, turning it into a large sledgehammer, the hammer part of it in the shape of his Cube Form. Roll's arms seemed to gain a bit more muscle tone as the fur on them turned blue. Her eyes changed from jade to a nice shade of blue. Roll twirled her mallet once before slamming it on the ground, creating a fissure that sent the semi-melted SWATBots Ultimate Heatblast hit into it. Nearby, Manic began to spin his drumsticks and threw them as buzzsaws that took the heads of SWATBots, Sonia and Sonic began to use the swords Sonia got to slice them open, and Makoto began to crush their heads with her punches.
"Drum roll please!" Manic smirked as he caught his sticks.
"Oh yeah! Who's bad?" Makoto smirked, "I can hear the cry of a million squirrels calling out to me!"
"They're not," Roll noted, strangely calm as she swung her mallet once more, crushing five in one strike.
"Huh? They're not?" Makoto gawked before the six barely dodged Sleet and Dingo as they tried to run them over.
"Don't dodge!" Sleet growled.
"You…You were the ones who made him lie! You were going to end him and his wife even if he did it…!" Makoto growled as she began to tremble, a dark aura starting to appear on her.
"M-Makoto…?" Ultimate Swampfire gulped.
"Astral Heat!" Makoto cried out, a white design appearing behind her, resembling a diamond with vines going up to it.
"What's this?" Ultimate Swampfire gawked.
"She's unleashing the strongest move…the Astral Heat!" Sonia replied.
"Dude, this is what you did when you beat that ice jerk, Jin," Manic pointed out.
"…I did?" Ultimate Swampfire pondered as she assumed a fighting stance, her pulled back fist erupting in energy.
"Inore, hoshi no chikara (Pray, power of the star)!" Makoto declared before she slammed her fist into the approaching vehicle, intent on ramming her with the horde of SWATBots behind her, "Tsudōe, daiyose sawa (Gather the last great strike)!" With that, she unleashed a series of 29 punches, smashing them all into the vehicle and robots behind it, "Atashi no kobushi de, hoshi ni nare (With my fist, fly up to the stars)! Planet Crusher!"
She unleashed a powerful uppercut, sending them high into the sky as a moon-sized rock appeared in lower orbit. The machines and vehicle collided with the 'moon,' leaving a fist impact on the entire front of it. It proceeded to shatter and turn into falling confetti.
ASTRAL FINISH!
"Atashi mō, katsu da (I've already won)..." Makoto punched ahead with a cold look of victory on her face.
"That was badass!" Manic exclaimed.
"She summoned and destroyed a moon…" Ultimate Heatblast continued his gawking.
"Now that I'm free, I'm giving up acting. I am going to join the Resistance!"
"You do that guy!" Manic nodded.
"Just no more lying, you got me?" Makoto threatened, making the actor gulp and nod.
"Good luck. With your skills of acting, you could easily be a spy for the Freedom Fighters," Ultimate Heatblast noted.
"I'm sure you all learned an important lesson, haven't you?" Makoto asked, giving the three hedgehogs a grin.
"Yeah, if we ever rule, we do it together!" Sonic nodded.
"But first we have to get the van outta the ditch where Sonic crashed it!" Manic pointed out.
"Me?! Now wait a Sonic Second!" Sonic exclaimed.
"Well, you were driving!" Sonia informed.
"Yeah, but you were supposed to be watching the road!" Sonic pointed out.
"It doesn't matter who did what. All I know is that we've got the van in a ditch," Roll frowned.
"I've got this," Ben noted as he slapped down on the Ultimatrix, "GreyMatter! Huh? GreyMatter?! Oh, come on!"
"…You look like a frog," Roll noted.
"I am not a frog!" GreyMatter barked before sighing, "Let's just get going to the van. At least while I'm like this, I'll be able to trick it out."
"Help me! Professor Kokonoe!" A Chibi-style Omake
Starring: Professor Kokonoe, Iron Tager, Manic, and Noel Vermillion
The curtain lifted, revealing something of a dark unlit lab…Said lab being somewhat messy. Then a spotlight sparked to life, revealing a fairly young adult catgirl with a slim body, wearing a large scientist like jacket with abnormally long sleeves that end up looking like paws, with cuts made in them allowing her slender arms to slip through, red pants with two long pink tails with white tips coming from the back, and high-heeled sandals. Her hair was pink, tied in a style consisting of a long ponytail backing up longer tufts resembling large cat ears which tend to overshadow her actual cat ears. Her eyes were a golden-amber with visible bags under them, possibly due to over-working, and she was also wearing glasses. With a certain elegancy, she began to speak.
"Hello lost children. I am Professor Kokonoe, lord and master of the Sector Seven laboratory," She paused to push her glasses back into place briefly, and then began to speak again, "…Well, OK, we aren't in the lab at the moment. This place can sort of be temporarily moved into the Boundary. Well, simply put, it's a mysterious room. A mysterious room where you can do anything you want. To be honest, it's a paradise for all those sad, little children who couldn't make it to the true ending. A sort of Avalon. If you're one of those nutbars who's all 'I don't need help,' or 'I want to unlock hidden stuff,' or 'I'll just look for a flowchart online,' then you can piss off."
She proceeded to sigh.
"Anyway, my job here more or less is to do three things every five chapters. First: Answer common questions that I believe most people are asking. Second: To do a little re-cap of what happened in the past five chapters for you idiots who decide to skip them to get to the good parts in later chapters. And finally, give out supporting information to further your understanding of the terms of BlazBlue and Ben 10," Kokonoe proceeded to glare at you, "One thing I would like to make clear now, is that none of the actions in this segment are considered cannon to the story, regardless of how crazy, funny, or even lovey-dovey it is. If I get one message asking about if this was cannon or not, I'm castrating the sender of said message with a cattle prod and a rusty knife!"
Kokonoe proceeded to sigh once more. It was rather repetitive for her at that point. She began to speak yet again to you, the reader.
"Very well. Now that that's out of the way, lost children of the day…you may enter," She ordered, and suddenly the whole lab lit up and Kokonoe took a few steps back.
As if on cue, the sound of a metal door sliding open echoed in the area. Kokonoe smirked as she hid, making sure to hold up a pancake. A green blur zipped by behind her desk with her, swiping the pancake, and began to eat it in one bite. Kokonoe shoved another into Manic's mouth before he could speak.
It was then a a young girl with long blond hair-although she covered her hair in her blue balmorals cap, making it seem like she had short hair-and green eyes walked in. She wore a NOL blue cloak with hood, long black socks, and blue military boots. Underneath, she wore a jolting sapphire NOL uniform dress with a white collar and a short red tie, with two separate long sleeves that had two heavy metal bands and a long red strap, white gloves, and carried two giant pistols linked together.
"What's with the place turning all shiny when she walked in?" Manic whispered.
"Shh. This is good," Kokonoe snickered.
"'Little kitty, little kitty… why do your whiskers extend so far… Mew meow meow…' No. 'Me meow mew.' Would that work better? Hmm…or should it be 'me-meow!'? This is a lot harder than I thought. But I feel like this phrase is essential to the poem… I need to think about this more," the girl frowned as she tapped her chin in thought.
"I'd go with 'Me meow mew,'" Manic pointed out, "Sounds the most cute."
"Eeeeeeeek!" the girl yelped as she jumped back, shaking, "Eh?! Ehhhhhhhhhh?! Where am I?! I was just thinking about what my next poem should be about…and I end up here! Why am I here…? What's going on?!"
"Well, we can be confused together," Kokonoe informed.
"That was a good start to it so far," Manic shrugged.
"Uh…D-Did you…hear…any of…that…?" Noel gulped.
"Yep. Again, I liked it," Manic noted.
"Yep. That's what I have ears for," Kokonoe added, "Look, you two, we don't have a lot of time for this, so let's get going."
QUESTIONS
"Okay. Let's start with Questions we've got in Reviews and PMs. So far..." Kokonoe looked over at the 'IN' Box and frowned, "Well…Again, not many probably have watched/played all three series."
"Well, let's start with Mr. A5L's question," Noel noted, "…What's a Kamen Rider?"
"Japan's Heroes along with the Super Sentai and Metal Heroes like Space Sheriff Gavan," Kokonoe informed, "Sorry, but this one will not have them. Trying to avoid using them this time around. The Kaijin, like Worms, may appear as Omnitrix aliens, though, since-well-Worms are aliens."
"W-Worms…?" Noel paled, thinking of the Earth worms.
"…Again, A5L?! You know what? Piss off, bastard!" Kokonoe snapped, shaking a fist at the screen while becoming flustered, "It's not like that at all!"
"He wouldn't even fit into the tuxedo," Manic snickered.
"Shut it, Manic," Kokonoe snapped.
"Maybe we should move on? Seanzilla115 has something interesting to ask," Noel pointed out.
"Really now?" Kokonoe pondered as she looked at the question, "Hmm…There may be appearances now and then, mainly as Ben's aliens if the damn author gets lazy like he did this chapter."
"The dude did say he was going to use some episodes of the series," Manic pointed out.
"And I did a lookup on the official site of Sonic the Hedgehog-related series," Tager added, adjusting his glasses, "The Chaos Emerald Crisis happened somewhat near the middle of the series, and this takes place after that three-part episode."
RE-CAP
"Okay, it's time for the Re-cap portion of our little get-together," Kokonoe informed, "Manic, not a word from you since you got distracted by the barely-covered women."
"Um…Well, I guess I can do this one…" Noel noted as she took out the script, "Um…Well…Apparently, Ben needed to recover after he turned into an alien called 'Grimlock.' But he ignored it to help respond to a call for help in the north. …He sounds like Mr. Shishigami in that sense."
"Not as loud, though," Kokonoe smirked, "Plus, he doesn't jump to conclusions."
"Well, to get to the north, we needed to call in a ride from Moby Deep. We spent the time on him telling Ben and Makoto about the time we met the big guy," Manic added, "When we got there, we got attacked by SWATBots, major bummers there, but Ben unlocked Articguana and totally froze them solid."
"Didn't I tell you to shut it?" Kokonoe frowned.
"It was then you met Ms. Prower and her husband, White, right?"
"Yep. …Wait, his wife?!" Manic gawked.
"You didn't read last chapter, did you?" Kokonoe noted, munching on a bag of candy.
"I was in the last chapter," Manic frowned.
"Well, they were taken to Ryūgū-jō and were introduced to Miyuki's family. Well, almost all of them," Noel looked down at her chest, 'Even the youngest girl was bigger than me…'
"And we lost her," Kokonoe noted.
"I'll take lead then," Tager informed, "Ahem. After they were welcomed by the family, Miyuki and White Prower began to inform the five of their current problem. It appears that Phantom brought Jin Kisaragi to the world they live in, letting Jin get stuck in the north, a place that could amplify the power of Yukianesa. He began to fight the natives, killing the majority of them and causing the almost extinction of the Sakurai Clan of Ryūgū-jō except for one Roll Cyber Sakurai. She ended up leaving the village in order to end his life as vengeance for her clan."
"Yeah. That didn't work shit," Manic pointed out, "We only saw the near end after me and bro caught up after seeing what he did to one of them while the others saw a field of them all."
"D-d-dead…?" Noel paled as she looked at the chapter's data, "Well…Oh my! Makoto tried to fight him? She got frozen and Ben turned into Heatblast to melt the ice. …He…Someone melted Major Kisaragi's ice?"
"I know. Surprised me as well," Kokonoe noted, "Seems that Heatblast comes from a sun."
"A sun?" Noel gasped.
"Just keep going."
"Oh! Um, well…After Ben defeated Major Kisaragi, Roll enacted an ancient ritual of the village she lives in, becoming his h…husband?!"
"Yeah. You know that Ranma ½ Manga you like so much? It's like Shampoo and her Kiss of Marriage/Death, but instead of her chasing and making sure she's the only woman in his life, there's a loophole involving multiple wives," Kokonoe informed.
"That would have made things so much easier for Ranma," Noel agreed.
"After that, we did a gig there for Hollow's Eve and saw Ben go all freaky Ghostfreak on us," Manic noted before shuddering.
"Ghost…freak?" Noel paled before Kokonoe snapped her fingers in front of her face.
"Pay attention. This chapter now," Kokonoe added.
"Oh! I'm sorry. Ah…" Noel looked at the script for this chapter, "The group thought they had a lead on the mother of Sonic, Sonia, and Manic, Queen Aleena. …You're royalty?"
"Yep. Just had to be separated from Mom at birth due to Ro-butt-nik," Manic frowned.
"Oh, dear," Noel whispered.
"Anyways, turns out it was a trap set by Sleet and Dingo, though why his skin's turning blue, I have no clue. Anyways, we escaped, learning we had an 'uncle' sealed away in a tower. After some talks, we eventually got him out thanks to Ben going FourArms on them. We learned that, while we were driving away in the van, that he was our 'Uncle,' our Mom's 'twin brother.' He told us that only one of us could be the ruler due to some sort of rule. We kinda ended up going separate ways after a big fight. Ben followed Sonia while Roll took off after Sonic while Makoto stayed with me and 'uncle.' Turns out, it was just an actor set up to trick us and separate us. Nearly worked too, if Makoto didn't unleash her Astral Heat; Planet Crusher. Holy shit, she summoned a frickin' moon! That one attack took down all the robots!"
"Overkill much?" Kokonoe noted.
"Well, she got really pissed off they did that to us," Manic noted.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
"So what are we going over now?" Manic asked.
"We'll be discussing about Astral Heat and Nox Nyctores," Kokonoe explained, "And from Ben's world, there will be information on the Ultimate Feature on his Omnitrix."
"Sweet," Manic smirked, "So what is Astral Heat?"
"Well, simply put, Astral Heat is an incredibly powerful attack, one that draws in every single bit of Seithr within the vicinity of the user. Though, recently, it seems that Makoto's Astral Heat absorbed energy from the Omnitrix in order to call it out, so it could mean the Omnitrix's energy is akin to Seithr," Kokonoe noted on a clipboard.
"And the Nox Nyctores?" Manic asked.
"Noel can answer that," Kokonoe informed.
"M-Me…?!" Noel squeaked out, "Oh-okay…Um…Th-Th Nox Nytores, or Causality Weapons, are a set of nine different devices created during the First War of Magic. A tenth one has recently been made."
"So what are the nine?"
"Um…Well…"
"We'll do that next time," Kokonoe informed as she brought up an image of the Omnitrix, "Though, I'm settling the eleventh Nox Nyctores is-in truth-the Omnitrix. That's what I'm starting to come to the conclusion of. Speaking of which, let's talk about its Ultimate Feature; the Evolution Matrix."
"The Evolution Matrix?" Manic blinked as a clip played of Ben going Ultimate Big Chill, "You mean the thing that makes his Aliens look even cooler?"
"God dammit! You think it just looks cooler?! No!" Kokonoe snapped, "The Evolution Matrix is something originally designed by Albedo, a Galvan that was once Azmuth's apprentice."
"Once?" Noel repeated.
"He made the shitty mistake of making a second Omnitrix when one was already about. Having two of those things could cause a rip in the fabric of existence and damn us all!" Kokonoe snapped.
"Yikes…" Manic cringed.
"Now then, where was I? Oh, yes. The Evolution Matrix is designed to isolate the DNA of the current alien in use. Once that happens, it will endure a hell unlike any before; a millennia of war simulated within an instant," Kokonoe explained, "With that, the form of the alien in use will be instantly transformed into the form that is obtained through that hell, amplifying its destructive capabilities."
"Holy shit, that's both terrible, yet awesome. The changing part, not the 'million years of war' part," Manic pointed out.
"Yes, yes, but sometimes evolution does away with things that were useful, like Humongasaur's growing powers or Echo-Echo's multiplication abilities," Kokonoe noted.
"That's so sad," Noel frowned, "To have the abilities they gain, they have to endure something terrible like war itself…"
"Indeed. One can only imagine how painful that must be…" Kokonoe agreed, "Now get on out of here, you two."
"W-Wait…!" Noel informed, "We…We forgot to do something."
"What is it?" Kokonoe frowned.
"We had a PM from a friend of ours who wanted to remain anonymous," Noel informed, holding it up, "She wanted to know what the VAs are for the story."
"What?! Son of a…! Why do we even have Voice Actors?!"
"Because, Dudette, some dudes and Dudettes want to think about how their voices sound," Manic shrugged.
"Fine…Tager!"
"Putting it on screen," Tager informed.
Ben: Yuri Lowenthal
Sonic: Jason Griffith
Makoto: Cindy Robinson
Sonia: Jennifer Douillard
Manic: Daisuke Ono
Roll: Lenore Zann
Aleena: Gail Webster
Sleet: Maurice LaMarche
Dingo: Peter Wilds
Robotnik: Gary Chalk
Ben's Aliens: The majority of them are voiced by Dee Bradley Baker, but Omni-Kaka is voiced by Philece Sampler, Grimlock is done by Gregg Berger, and Rath is voiced by John DiMaggio.
"That good enough for ya?" Kokonoe frowned.
"Yes. Thank you! Oh…um…" Noel blushed.
"Huh? You're still here? What's up?"
"Uh…um…I mean…Professor Kokonoe, I…I…I…I think I…like you," Noel admitted.
"Uh…Thanks. But I'm not interested," Kokonoe sweatdropped as Manic developed a nosebleed.
"N-No! I didn't mean it in that way…!" Noel exclaimed, flustered by her slip of tongue, "When I'm with Tsubaki or Makoto, or especially Ms. Litchi, I always feel like I'm…the odd one out…"
"What now?" Manic blinked.
"…What?" Kokonoe sweatdropped.
"But when I'm with you, I feel like I belong! It's like we're comrades-in-arms or something…It's…umm…I feel like we share a special bond…"
"Uh…" Kokonoe blinked.
"Ooh…" Manic cringed, realizing what Noel means as he noticed both were below B-Cups in terms of Bra Size.
"Get out of here!" Kokonoe screamed, causing the hedgehog and former NOL soldier to scream and dash out.
"So she's supposed to be the heroine of BlazBlue…Times sure have changed…" Kokonoe sighed.