23 Ch 23 What a nuisance

(Recap: Ben travelled around the Galaxy, collecting DNA samples and artifacts. Exterminated a species by pulling a Darth Nihilus. Pretty much it.)

In the Star Wars universe, the mystical power of the Force manifested in many different forms, one such form is a Force Vergence. Wellsprings of the Force, nexuses where the Force is localised around a place, object or person.

Such instances of these Vergences can be found all around the Galaxy. The temple on Lothal. The crystal caves of Ilum. Below the Jedi Temple on Coruscant. In the Mid-Rim, a living planet. And the cave on Dagobah. Even Anakin Skywalker himself is a Vergence.

But, the most prevalent of them is 'The Wellspring of Life', a planet that was the foundation of life for most of the Galaxy and what connects the Living and the Cosmic Force, the birthplace of midi-chlorians, and the dwelling of the five Force Priestesses.

Currently, Ben's destination was the Jedi Temple on Coruscant, home to two Vergences, both of which are seeped in the dark side of the Force for different reasons.

The most obvious is Anakin Skywalker, the so called 'Chosen One', but he isn't of any importance to Ben. The same could be said for the second Vergence, a natural one that originated from a mountain around which the Jedi Temple was built. But, below that temple was the remains of a Sith Shrine, built atop the Vergence in order to corrupt it to the dark side, which succeeded and is still affected to this point in time.

How does Ben know any of this? Simple, he read a lot of wiki pages. Neither are all that important in Ben's mind however, as he had only one purpose for heading to the temple...

Getting to the temple was quite simple, using an illusion to hide the Ebon Hawk from sight. He was kind enough to inform the Jedi of his approach by releasing some of his presence into the Force, which was like telling them that a ferocious beast was heading their way.

So, when the ship had arrived, there were already dozens of Jedi and Temple Guards standing with their Lightsabers in hand, ready to ignite them. The ship was still invisible to their sight, but they could feel his arrival with the Force.

"Hmpf. And they call themselves pacifists." He said to no one in particular. Turning his head, he looked back at the three girls that stood waiting for his command. "Are you ready?" He asked, receiving nods from them, before he put his mask on and suddenly placed the ship in his inventory.

Maintaining the illusion, Ben used the Force to gently glide down to the ground below, landing a few meters in front of the gathered Jedi. He then dispersed his illusion while containing his presence, revealing the four of them to the eyes of the Jedi, while disappearing from their Force senses.

Seeing the possible foe appear in front of them was a shock, but all it took was one dumbass to ignite their blade and charge at him, and they all had their Lightsabers primed to follow. The one to first move, did so while shouting. "Take this you Sleemo Sith!"

'What a fucking dork...' Ben thought as he stared at the fool that was charging him, contemp on his mind as he started to walk forward slowly. When the young, foolish, likely newly Knighted Jedi, seeing that they didn't have a Padawan braid thingy, arrived in front of him while slashing wildly, Ben simply lifted his hand, which strangely no longer wore its glove, and caught the raw energy blade with his bare hand.

This brought a great amount of shock to the surroundings, able to hear his flesh sizzling lightly. Ben didn't make a noise as he moved the blade to the side and proceeded to deliver a 'light' punch to the Jedi's stomach.

Despite putting little strength in his punch, the Jedi was lift into the air, before flopping to the ground like a sack of potatoes and no longer conscious. Due to the connection between Kyber Crystals and their owner, the young Knights Lightsaber was disabled.

One of the Jedi Masters saw this and immediately used the Force to move the unconscious Knight away from Ben. The rest of the Masters pulled the rest of the would be casualties back from their rash actions. It was clear that Ben was dangerous, and if they didn't know from his presence previously, it was now that they'd seen him casually holding a Lightsaber without a peep.

'I didn't think it would actually damage me... Oh well.' Meanwhile, Ben was staring at his slightly burnt hand that had a red glow of Mana, watching it recover in a few seconds and then re-equipped his glove. Turning his gaze to the Jedi, with derision in is voice he said. "You Jedi... Alway so quick to make assumptions. I thought you would have received my messages by now... How many of you do you actually want me to cripple before you stop attack me?" Wanting to get his point across, he used his Intimidation to scare the shit out of them. Literally, for some.

"Your point, proven it is. Come here, why have you?" From the group, a small green man arrived. This was of course the Grandmaster of the Jedi Order, Master Yoda.

"Depending on your answer, it could be highly beneficial to you." Ben said, somewhat impressed that he was handling his Intimidation so well. He was still being affected though, so Ben stopped.

The old Jedi Master sighed in relief at having the pressure lifted from his weary old body. He then looked at Ben and asked. "Yoda, my name is. Speak to, who do I? And want, what do you?"

"You may call me Tennyson and what I want is quite simple..." He said before pausing to create a tense atmosphere. 'Thank you [Acting]!' He thought gratefully, before saying. "I have business that I need to take care of and can't bring my apprentices." He gestured to the three girls behind him and continued. "Unfortunately, my business will be too dangerous to bring them with me. So-"

Ben was disrupted when the girls suddenly grabbed on to him, clutching on to his robes while looking up with tears already ready to burst and Maila asking. "M-master, are you leaving us!?"

Sighing at this, Ben started stroking their heads to calm them as he said. "I'm not leaving for good at this time, I just have some business to take care of. It will likely take some time to settle, so I want you three to stay here if Yoda agrees and then I'll be back." Seeing the girls calm down a little, Ben sighed a little in disappointment from having his character broken.

Around him, the Jedi were looking at him weirdly, not understanding what was going on. Yoda was rather curious about this close relationship between Master and disciple, sensing the emotional distress the girls felt. But, he said nothing for the moment.

Ben calmed the girls down and then looked at Yoda. "So? Are you willing to take them for a period of time or not. Frankly speaking, your just one of my options, but you can aid in their training while I'm away."

Yoda stared at Ben and the girls for a moment, before looking towards the other Masters. For Masters, it was quite easy to read surface thoughts and even project their thoughts to others, so he was silently discussing with them for a brief time, before looking back to Ben and saying. "Discuss this in private, we must. Invite you to stay, I do."

Although not what he was wanting as his first encounter with them, Ben nodded to him, but he had something for them before leaving. "Before I forget, I brought a gift..." Taking something from his inventory, a burlap sack appeared in his hand and he carelessly threw it to the ground. From inside, the decapitated head of the Zabrak that one of them knew all to well. "Next time, go for the head."

He and the girls began to walk past the stunned Jedi, who were almost all looking at either the head of Maul or at his thought to be killer, Obi-wan Kenobi. Yoda was staring at Ben's back however, an uneasy expression on his wrinkled face. He soon turned to his fellow Jedi and began organising them, sending someone to follow after and lead Ben to one of the dormitory rooms, where they were to stay until the council has decided what they're doing.

While sitting and waiting without his mask on, Ben took the time to explain to the girls a bit better. "I apologise for not telling you three my plans earlier, girls. There is trouble brewing and the galaxy will soon be engulfed in war. Before that, I have to go on a trip and become more powerful to ensure your safety." The three were gloomy at the idea of being away from Ben, seeing which made him sigh silently, then say. "But, I have a mission for you three."

Looking up at Ben, the three of them became more serious. "What must we do Master?" Despite being a bit down, they prioritise any command Ben gives more.

Ben however, surprised the three by showing a soft smile and saying. "I want you to make some friends." This made the girls tilt their heads in confusion, with cute looks of befuddlement on their faces, so he explained with a chuckle. "I've been taking you three all over the galaxy and we have barely left each others sides, and that's not a healthy environment. We need to settle down, and you three need to have some friends. So even if it's only one or two, I want you try."

Staring at Ben, the girls wanted to refute that all they needed was him, but they knew that he was doing this for them more than anything and that made them happy, so they said nothing.

Following the discussion, Ben and the girls began meditating to pass the time, during which Ben had projected his consciousness out of his body, deep below the temple and into a sealed chamber. Inside was the decrepit remains of a Sith Shrine, which was built in order to corrupt the Vergence.

Ben didn't spend long looking around and lifted his ethereal right hand, using his power to reach into the corrupted Force Vergence and begin ripping out the infection that is the darkside, claiming it for himself and bolstering his own reserves.

By the end, the Vergence was purified of the darkside, but severely weakened from the process. It wasn't a problem though, given some time it would recover and the Jedi would have a nice little holy land.

Returning his consciousness to his body, Ben continued to meditate until they figured they would be staying the night and went to bed.

---

In the morning, they were lead to the Council Chamber. Once there, Ben was told that they agreed to his request and he decided to leave immediately.

The Jedi Masters, mainly at the behest of Yoda, got up off their asses and saw Ben out. Not wanting his helmet to be the last thing the girls saw of him for a while, Ben removed his mask, before giving them a long hug as he gently stroked their Lekku as if it were their hair.

The Master looked at this strangely for a variety of reasons, but two of them were gaping as if they saw something audacious.

Soon, Ben released the girls and was ready to leave, but not before leaving a warning as he suddenly began to transform into a being that seemed to be made of the Force in their eyes. "If they aren't treated well while I'm away, you best hope you're already dead." Then he disappeared from sight with an illusion as he flew off into space.

Down on the ground, the Jedi were shocked more than ever, while the three Twi'lek girls stared off into the distance.

Soon, the Jedi gathered their wits and looked at the girls. The two previously agape Masters, Mirialan and Togruta females, went to step forward for the girls, but Yoda lifted his tiny hand and shook his head, making them stop.

Yoda himself walked forward, the tapping of his stick drawing the girls attention. As they turned to him, he asked. "The significance of your Lekku, aware is your Master?"

Hearing this, the three girls face's immediately sported blushes from embarrassment, realising that Ben had been doing it in public. They quickly began shaking their head to the side, confirming the old master's suspicions.

For some species that don't possess hair, like Twi'leks or Togruta, the Lekku and/or Montrals of females are quite sensitive to the touch, and even more so with the Force sensitive. Others touching them is considered an extremely intimate act, which is why it would usually be reserved for close family to convey affection and their life-partner, for more intimate and private moments. (A/N: Inspired by 'A Perverted Galaxy Far Far Away'.)

Another aspect of this sensitivity was that the way they feel about the toucher changed the sensation. If someone they hate touches their Lekku, it will feel disgusting. So when someone they love touches them, it is like a hit of ecstasy. There are always exceptions of course.

Yoda nodded with a groan. "Upon his return, tell him you must. Now come, test you I will. See the extent of your Masters teachings, we must." He turned and began to leave, the Masters making way for him and then girls.

---

Flying through space in his Anodite form, Ben felt completely free, not a single bit of weight on his body and no walls to confine him. There was only the matter of whether he made a mistake by leaving the girls with the Jedi.

In all honesty, he didn't actually have anyone else in mind and he didn't know how long his business would take. Where he was going, there would be no civilisations, so if he did bring them along, they would be left to take care of themselves, and while they know how, it doesn't mean that Ben wants that for them. Therefore, leaving them with the Jedi, even if he doesn't like them much, was the most reasonable decision in his mind.

As for where he is going, there is only one place truly worth going to and that is the origin of the Force, the Wellspring of Life.

It would take some time to get there, but Ben was prepared for that.

---

Almost a week later, Ben was in sight of a nebula that contained the strongest source of Force energy in the galaxy. With his destination so close, he sped up while moving around streams of gold energy, which in actuality was condensed Force, the Living Force.

Going down and into the planet, below the barren surface with geysers that expelled the streams of energy.

Inside the planet was a whole ecosystem with a few creatures he hadn't encountered yet, but they weren't important to him right now. What drew his attention was the floating ghost woman that wore a black robe and a mask of a calm face.

"We welcome you, Lord. The Force has instructed us to aid you in your endeavours. I am Serenity of the-" She was introducing herself, but Ben stopped her by lifting energy formed hand.

"I know who you are and I dont want to waste time with meaningless introductions." He said with little emotion in his voice, having no desire to deal with theatrics. He already knows about the Priestesses anyways, he'd spent most of his flight recalling the bits of information he knew.

The Priestesses, being Serenity, Joy, Anger, Confusion and Sadness, each of them appearing in the same form, but with different expressions on the masks.

They are representations of the connection between the Living Force and the Cosmic Force. The Living Force was what existed in almost all life in the universe, while the Cosmic Force was the consciousness or the so called 'Will of the Force'. One feeds into the other and that one feeds into the other, creating balance between life and death, light and dark.

Using the Force's guidance, Ben arrived at a weird wall with a hole in it. With a wave of his hand, the hole opened and revealed a chamber with markings on the walls and ground.

Entering the chamber, didn't waste time as he took a meditative position in the centre of the the markings and looked at the Priestess in front of him. "Begin." He said in a commanding tone.

From Serenity, the rest of the Priestesses emerged and surrounded Ben, before beginning to rotate around him extremely quickly. Their faces began to blur together until there was only one face with rapidly changing expressions. Meanwhile, the markings around them glowed with golden light rich in the lightside.

Ben had a fixed stare on the five expressions and could feel them trying to affect his mind, but that was the plan to begin with.

Ever since the time he had hurt the girls, Ben had tried on numerous occasions to recreate the feelings he had, so that he could learn to control it. And figure out why he was so much weaker in the lightside than the dark, when he should be able to balance it.

While trying to gain more control his power, he also wants to rid himself of his past for good. But that lead him to the discovery that the power he wants is tied with those same emotions he wants rid of.

This brought him to the meditative realisation that if he wanted the power that belonged to him, then he had to accept what he tried to reject. Because, even though his emotions from that time were sealed, it didn't stop him from hating what had happened still.

And here was his issue, the reason his lightside was so much weaker, it was because of who he was. He answers hate with hate, fueling his darkside with a spiral of hatred that didn't allow for the light to grow to its potential, only clinging on thanks to the love he feels for his family. Unfortunately, even though he still felt the love that was fostered by his body before gaining control, it and the few years he has been in control wasn't enough to outweigh a lifetime of hate.

When he first realised this, Ben attempted to connect back with his sealed emotion, but that resulted in what can only be described as chaos. The same dark fog that once hurt the girls became uncontrollable, spreading out from his body and engulfing half of an entire planet, before breaking it and the inhabiting creatures down into nothing but pure Force before he regained control moments later.

This is what brought him to the Wellspring of Life. At that time, he had fortunately sent the girls away from that planet, fearing for their safety. And now, he feared for the galaxy, because it wasn't the last time he tried, and each attempt became more disastrous. He could neither control it, nor properly break through the seal by himself, so he came to the one place that the Force could interact with the physical world, to have something to contain the chaos.

As for the Priestesses, he was using them to invade his mind and break the seal on his emotions. At least that was the intention, but there was the slight issue of his mental defences being like a fortress.

Time started to pass by and he still hadn't succumbed to their probing. This made irritation bubble inside Ben, but if there was one thing he's been learning, it's patience. So, he waited.

---

He waited. And he waited... But nothing more than a headache came from it. He sat there for days and nothing.

To add salt to the wound, he had no idea what was making it take so long. It's not like he's actively resisting, just sitting and relaxi-... Has he been relaxing? Falling into thought, Ben realised something. 'I haven't really relaxed since I was being influenced by Sloth...'

When he arrived in this Universe, he trained nonstop. Then he met the girls and began taking care of them, never letting his guard down out of concern for their wellbeing. Even when he seems to be relaxing, he is keeping a part of his attention on his surroundings or circulating his Mana. He is always expecting something to happen, ready to act in a moment.

Understanding this, Ben released a long breath and changed into his human form, a lazy expression making its way to his face. After learning that he could control his Unique skill Wrath, he theorised that he could control the rest of the Sins or at least use them in a way that his system hadn't mentioned.

For example, Gluttony requires a seventy percent chance of death before activation, so he could potentially just let the enemy deliver an almost fatal attack before killing and eating them. Or right now, he is simply using Sloth to put himself in a relaxed state.

Thanks to this, although the effect weren't instantaneous, Ben felt his mental defences begin to weaken as he continued to watch the ever changing mask, his eyes slowly beginning to glaze over as he fell into a trance.

---

After being completely entranced, Ben didn't know how long it had been or what exactly was happening outside, but he knows one thing. He isn't happy one bit.

Although it was something that he thought would happen, he never expected it to be so infuriating. In his own mind, there was no system and no alternate solution to escape.

Unlike what he'd thought his own mind would be like, imagining that it would a controlled space that he could freely manipulate, it was... "WHY ARE THERE SO MANY FUCKING STAIRS!?!?!?"

Of all things, his mind was a Lazarus trap. A multidimensional world where up can be down, but down can also be down, while down can be up and up can still be up.

Going up a pair of stairs could result in you coming out of a doorway across the damn room and walking on the ceiling. On a plus side, anything he thinks of become real, like the ball of darkness that hung over his head. Or under, depending on how you look at it.

He had thought of a black hole out of curiosity when he arrived, along with numerous other things, even people... Strangely enough, any 'people' he imagined were like dolls without any personality.

After that, he gave up on imagining anything else and started to wander his own mind, hoping that he could find something in this world of endless stairs. But it was hopeless...

There was nothing. Just stairs, stairs and more stairs, hence his current frustration. "GOD-FUCKING-DAMNIT!!!" He punched one of the many walls, but no damage was caused as he was in his own mind and possessed only what he thought, just a body that was the representation of his consciousness.

A moment after he punched the wall the world shook, but he paid no attention as he sat on one the many steps and gave an irritated sigh while hold his head. "How am I supposed to get out of here..."

Ben sat there in silence for a while, trying to think of a way out, unaware that something had formed behind him, surprising him when he heard a familiar voice.

"You could always kill yourself..." The voice was mocking, but there was no humour, just disgust and hate. It was just as he remembered, but even with that, when he turned and saw the figure, he couldn't help being stunned for a moment. The figure didn't care however and continued his comment with one word. "Again."

Seeing the person... A pasty white man covered in scars from head to toe, barely any skin left unmarred. His very being wreaks of blood and death. It was... himself, just from before meeting his timely end.

Seeing the ugly visage of his past self, Ben couldn't help but feel offended, violated and so bloodthirsty. A boiling rage burst from within him and he leapt at the vestige, bringing him down to the ground as he didn't hesitate to start punching the hell out him.

"HAHAHA!" The vestige of his past laughed madly with every punch.

His laughter just pissed Ben off though, because not once did he have the luxury of laughter and to hear it now revolted him, resulting in him lifting his hand above his head, joining them together and smashing them down on his vestiges face. "SHUT UP!"

In response, the vestige just seemed to be angered as it punched Ben and sent into a wall. He then got up and kicked Ben in in the stomach repeatedly while speaking. "What's wrong, huh!? Don't like being reminded of what you are, 'Failure'?"

Hearing that word, Ben's eyes shot open with a mad gleam. He grabbed his vestiges leg as he went to kick him again, doing a spin as he kicked the vestiges other leg out from under him and going for a kneebar.

But, the vestige just sneered he reached behind his back. "You're pathetic." He pulled a glock from his waistband and aimed at Ben. "You should just die!"

Ben however, knew himself and he always kept a combat knife strapped to his leg. Pulling out the knife and throwing it at the gun, he knocking it out of the vestiges hand and then kicked him in the face as he tried to snap his leg.

Ben's attacks were doing nothing to actually damage the vestige however. The vestige just returned the ferocity as it rolled, lifting Ben and slamming him into the ground.

The two of them separated and glared at one another, the vestige sneering at him. "You can't beat me, weakling. I know everything you're going to do. You can't even hurt me. Your hate is nothing but fuel for me!" He jumped at Ben, going to punch him in the throat, but was countered.

Knocking the vestiges arm away with a backhand, Ben retaliated by launching a kick at the vestiges head. His foot connected with the vestiges scarred face and he quickly followed it up, using the momentum to maneuver onto his hands as he began spin around and deliver a series of kicks.

The vestige was repeatedly knocked back, his face being relentlessly battered. He seem to be angered by this and tried to move, but then Ben kicked him in the chin and lifted him into the air. Quickly moving beneath the airborne vestige, Ben grit his teeth, grabbing hold of the visage and pulling him down as he lift his knee, driving it into the vestiges back.

Not stopping there, he threw the vestige head first into a wall, before then grabbing said head, twisting with all his might and a vicious snarl. "Tell me I'm weak after I snap your neck!"

But suddenly, Ben was blasted off by the visage. "You just don't get it.You can't beat me..." Standing up, the vestige was covered in black fog, making Ben growl angrily as he saw the vestige turn around to reveal a new appearance. "Because there's nothing you hate more..." A perfect reflection of Ben with a cruel smirk. "-than yourself."

The vestige suddenly shot forward and planted his fist into Ben's stomach, spit flying out of his mouth, soon to be accompanied by blood as the vestige returned the previous beating.

"SEE!? YOUR NOTHING!" The vestige said, grabbing Ben by the head and smashing his face into his knee. "YOU WANTED TO GET RID OF ME," He kicked Ben in his knee, a loud snap ringing out. "BUT WITHOUT ME," Copying Ben, he joined his hands together. slamming down on the back of Ben's head as he shouted louder and angrier. "YOU'RE WEAK!!!"

A crack resounded from Ben's neck as he flopped to the ground, vision blurred as he tried to get up, only to receive a kick. Even through the beating and the pain that shocked his system, Ben was listening to what the vestige was saying and tried to understand just what was happening, coming to a vague conclusion that it was connected to his removed sentiments and that it was angry at him, but feeling that it wasn't natural, that it was foreign, yet not knowing why.

With Ben sprawled out on the floor, the vestige looked down at him with disgust. Kneeling down, he grabbed hold of Ben's hair and pulled his head back, the likely broken neck making crunching noises. "You don't deserve the power you have, just ask them..."

In his foggy vision, Ben saw a group of people forming and all of them looking down at him coldly. Each of them were making comments that struck his heart. "You're a monster." "Murderer." "Why didn't you save us?" "You could have saved us." "You could have saved us all."

""You should just die.""

Ben looked away from the group, his eyes dim as he listened to their comments. These words from anyone else would be little more than adding fuel to a raging fire, but from people that were once the closest thing he had to family, there was no greater pain. Even if they aren't real, hearing it in their voices was a great enough pain. But, at the same time, he knew for sure that they would never really say such things and telling himself that hardened his resolve.

"You see, your nothing but a failure." The vestige continued to smirk, seeming to enjoy the disheartened expression of Ben, going so far as to slam Ben's head into the ground.

"I-I #@$#..." Ben tried to speak, but his voice was barely audible. All he could see was the still perfectly intact ground, his look in his eyes begining to frost over as he calmed his mind.

The vestige relished in Ben's suffering, so he slammed his head again and asked "What was that? We can't hear you"

With a deadly expression that went unseen, Ben's burning rage was quenched and he began to think more clearly, though it was replace with ice desire for death that lead him to still repeat what he said. "I.Will.Kill.You." This earned him another head slam.

"You'll fail." The vestige gave another slam, an arrogant smirk on his face as he thought he was winning. "What good were you when any of them needed you? You were a failure then and your a failure now." Moving closer to Ben's head, the vestige spoke directly into his ear. "So just give up. Everyone would be better off without you. The world would be better without you."

His vision blurred from the head trauma, Ben could barely hear the vestige, but his mind was still functioning just fine and the vestiges words rang in his mind. 'The world would be better without me...?' Ben questioned. His thoughts quickly drifted to the things he had seen in his life, the people that looked at him in fear and those that turned a blind eye to his suffering 'The world shook in fear at my wrath and prosecuted me for dealing out justice, I'd rather watch it burn and be the one who struck the match.'

A new light shone in his previously foggy, yet cold eyes. He first thought that the vestige was the embodiment of his past and the sealed emotions that fostered inside the depths of his subconscious. But now, hearing it trying so hard to break his Will, even implying with the idea that he cared for the world opinion on his existence, Ben now deeply felt that the entity in front of him couldn't be a part of him as it knew nothing about his views or ideals, yet knows at least a portion of his past.

With the understanding that this 'thing' likely wasn't actually part of him and was using cliche psychological attacks, he felt angry and his fingers dug into the ground that was previously unbreakable, but his hate directed toward the entity had disappeared with this understanding.

"Maybe you're right, everyone would be better off without me..." Ben said with no notable emotion in his voice, the vestiges smirk widening, only to freeze a moment later. "But I'm better off without you..."

The vestige looked down at Ben, his face twisting with fury as he went to slam Ben's head again, only to find he couldn't move him at all. Gritting his teeth, the vestige let go of Ben's hair and formed a fist, raising it and immediately trying to punch him.

"I don't know what you are," In an instant, Ben disappeared from his previous spot, the vestige hitting only the ground. This was his mind and without his hate to blind him, he could do whatever he wished here. "Whether your a product of that god or my own mental demon, but..." He stood behind his vestige with an apathetic expression. "I'm done with this."

Lifting his leg, Ben stomped on one of the vestiges leg, the bone snapping like a twig as the vestige screamed in pain. "AHHH!!! YOU BASTARD!!!"

Hearing the vestige curse him, Ben stomped on the other leg. "Based on your new response to pain, you're more than just a construct of my own mind and although I'm curious about you, your not important enough to matter anymore."

Another resounding scream erupted from the vestiges mouth. "GRAAHHH!! HOW ARE YOU DOING THIS!? YOUR HATE, YOU SHOULDN'T BE ABLE TO-!!"

Ben's leg whipped out, striking the head of thing that proved more and more that it wasn't a natural part of him. "I'll admit, you were successful in shaking my determination for a moment..." He looked at where the group of people use to be, then kicked the thing again, sending it into a wall. "But you clearly don't know enough about me and so, you can't be me. And if you're not me..." Kneeling in front of the being, his eyes held no emotion as he said. "Why should I hate something so pathetic?"

The other version of himself glared at him, hatred in its eyes, hatred that cost it an eye as Ben calmly reached over, sticking his finger into its eye socket and ripping out the eye. Whatever the entity might be, it was writhing in agony. "STOP! STOOP!!!"

Staring at the eye, Ben watched as the red iris turned white, the eyes themselves becoming beady and hollow, appearing inhuman. So when he looked at the being, he wasn't surprised when he saw it begin turning into a decrepit looking creature, pale, skinny and now with one eye.

Looking back at the eye in his hand, he said. "Y'know what your mistake was... assuming I care about other people. You clearly don't know about me or you would have known that. I came intending to finally accept and forget my past, but I refuse to accept something that I can't control, so I will simply get rid of you. Either way, my problem disappears."

Grabbing the creature by the throat, Ben stood up and started heading toward the black hole. Seeing this, the creature began to panic and squirm in his grasp. "WAIT! STOP!!! I-I'LL TELL YOU WHAT YOU WANT TO KNOW! EVERYTHING!! JUST-"

Ben ignored the creatures pathetic attemps to save itself. Whether it was telling the truth or not wasn't important to him, it played with his mind and corrupted the memories of those he cared about.

Seeing that they were getting closer to the black hole, the creature gave one last ditch effort. "IF YOU KILL ME, YOU'LL LOSE THE POWER YOU WANTED!"

Ben stopped, making the creature think it had successfully convinced him, but when it looked up and saw Ben uncaring gaze, it didn't have the chance to say anything as Ben threw it straight into the black hole. "Like I need power tied to something so pathetic."

The moment the creature was sucked into the black hole, the world shook as a crack appeared in the air, gradually spreading out until the whole space was cracked and then shattered. Ben was transported to a room with three doors that have signs on them, one of which made Ben deadpan as it just said 'Exit'.

The other two titled 'Past' and 'Future' respectively. Opening the door dubbed 'Past', an influx of memories and emotions flowed into him, and although they brought pain to his heart, they it began to fade and made way for something he'd always wished for. Freedom. Freedom from a life he had no desire to live and from everything that held him back.

Finally, he was free. The memories remained, but now, the burden he once bore from them was gone. For good.

He revelled in that feeling for some time, but soon decided to move on. For a moment, he stared at the 'Future' door, but simply shook his head and turned away. It doesn't matter what that door might hold, the future is always changing and should be left in the future, knowing what's to come only creates trouble.

So, turning to the exit, he strode forward and opened it without a moments hesitation, a white light engulfing him as he left his mindscape.

---

Outside of Ben's mind, a constant battle had been underway, one where black fog spilled out from Ben's body, its corruptive nature seeking to consume everything.

In opposition to it, the golden light from the Wellspring of Life penetrated through the darkness and into Ben's body to aid him. At the same time, the Priestesses were now being used as conduits to create a powerful Force barrier to contain the fog.

This had been going on since the moment Ben fell into the trance, which was months ago. But now, it was time for that to end.

From inside the darkness, Ben's eyes began to glow a bright red as he came to consciousness, an eruption of power coming from his body and breaking the barrier.

As a result, the fog immediately spread out in an explosion and filled the whole nebula that the Wellspring of Life resides in. For a moment, there was nothing but the darkness of Ben's fog like darkside energy and golden motes of the lightside Force energy, both perfectly coexisting with each other.

Then, with Ben at the centre, the two manifestations of the Force began to spiral and be sucked into Ben's body, which soaked it all up like a sponge. The darkside fog that he created having grown from being in constant conflict with the lightside, meanwhile, the constant supply of lightside Force energy was bolstering his own affinity to the lightside and almost equal to his darkside.

This was all happening naturally however, Ben paying no attention to it as he simply looked at his system, trying to figure out how long it had been since he left the girls and also grumbling in his mind. 'Man, I used to be one ugly motherfucker. Wait! It's been six months!? At least I didn't miss their birthday.' While eager to get back to the girls, Ben had fully absorbed the last of the ambient Force and received a massive increase to his MP, plus a whole new level of connection to the Force that he would have to test the capability of.

Blinking, Ben's eyes no long glowed and he stood up, stretching his body with a series of satisfying pops. He looked at the tired Priestesses and lightly bowed in gratitude. "Thank you for your assistance all these month, but I have people waiting for me, so I will be leaving."

Having no desire to stay longer, he transformed into his Anodite form and blasted out of the chamber he was in, using the Force and his Mana to exceed the speed of hyperspace travel through what was essentially minor space manipulation.

Soon, he would be back with his apprentices and waiting for the Clone wars to begin.

(Gotta say, I almost gave up on writing altogether because of how much of an annoyance everything has been trying to make just this chapter. But, I did it and now I'm taking a break from Ben 10 to one of my other works. Peace out.)

[Status

Name - Ben

Lv - 69 (123,060/245,000)

Title - Wielder of the Omnitrix, Anti-Hero, Idol Slayer

State - Healthy MP - 428,000

STR - 3633

END - 3734

AGI - 3633

CHA - 3635

INT - 308

LUK - 777

AP - 0 SP - 1,715,200

Primary Skills: CQC Lv-5, Marksmanship Lv-5, Intimidation Lv-5, Danger Sense Lv-4, Sneak Lv-4, Mana Manipulation Lv-3

Secondary Skills: Drawing Lv-3, Math Lv-4, Science Lv-4, Writing/Literacy Lv-4, Maneuvering Lv-5, Driving Lv-4, Engineering Lv-5, Cooking Lv-4, Pain Tolerance Lv-9, Bioengineering Lv-5, Programming Lv-5, Torture Lv-5, Acting Lv-4, Enchanting Lv-3

Unique Skill: Wrath, Love and Lust, Gluttony, Sloth, Complete Language Comprehension, Eidetic Memory, Analyse, Night Vision, The Force]

(0 Recoveries Stored)