Ch 5 The Mercenaries

(Rewriting the system is annoying.)

- With Ben -

Ben was sitting at the table, taking apart Animo's DNA mutation device in order to see how it works and taking notes as he does so. [Eidetic Memory] coming in useful for this.

Gwen - "So, why are messing around with that thing exactly?"

Ben - "To find out how it works. If I do that, I will be able to make upgrades to the watch."

He had just taken the screws off of a panel on one of the antennas and started lifting it off, but as he did, a light purple glow came from it.

Gabriel - "CLOSE IT!!!"

By the time Gabriel had shouted, he had already closed it.

Sweat formed on his forehead and he started to pant a little bit, while his pupils constricted.

Ben - *Gulp* 'Please tell me that that isn't what I think it is...!'

Gabriel - "Corrodium..."

Ben - 'How in the Hell did that crazy bastard Animo get his hands on this!?'

Gabriel - "No idea, but you should probably put it in your inventory just to be safe."

Ben - 'Right.'

He stood up and turned into Upgrade, then absorbed the helmet into his hand to safely remove the Corrodium and put it in his inventory.

The reason for his caution is that Corrodium is a powerful, but highly unstable element in the Ben 10 universe. When human and animal are exposed to it, they will quickly start to mutate and while short term exposure will ware off, long term will leave you permanently mutated.

Once the Corrodium was removed, Ben put the rest of the device back on the table, turned back and sat down tiredly.

Gwen watched as he went through those series of action and was confused.

Gwen - "Okay? So, what was that about?"

Ben - "There was something inside that I needed removed."

Gwen - "But why do you seem so freaked."

Ben - "... It may or may not have been dangerous. I have pretty good intuition and don't want to take the risk."

With that, Ben started putting the device back together. He already new how the rest of it worked thanks to absorbing it with Upgrade. Not as well as if he took it apart, but he can try again when he isn't shaken up.

Once he was done reassembling it, he put it away and sat back down to relax.

His relaxation was short lived as he soon felt [Danger Sense] go off and he became alert.

He looked out of the window for whatever was coming and saw a person in a purple suit fly by.

Ben - 'Oh hey, it's SixSix... SixSix!!?'

He quickly activated the Omnitrix and pressed the dial down, turning back into Upgrade, who was the last one he dialed in.

Gwen - "What are you doing!?"

Upgrade - "No time!"

Without wasting time he merged with the Rustbucket and took control of everything, including steering which surprised Max.

Max - "Wha- Ben? What are you doing?"

Ben formed his head on the dashboard.

Upgrade - "Look ahead!"

Max looked and saw the purple figure, who just threw spiked balls onto the road. (Caltrops or something.)

Ben swerved to the right and went off the road, then out of the side of the upgraded RV, a laser turret was made. He started shooting at SixSix, who dodged them using his jetpack.

So how did Ben respond? More turrets, that's how.

When SixSix saw the extra turrets, he decided to make a strategic retreat. Though he got hit by a couple shots in the process.

Seeing SixSix retreat, Ben sighed in relief and took the RV back onto the road.

When he got back to the road, he separated from the RV and turned back to human, sitting in the front passenger seat.

Ben - "Well, he's gone for now."

He leaned into the seat and exhaled.

There was an odd silence in the Rustbucket. Specifically from Max, who kept throwing side glances at Ben as he drove.

Max - "..."

Ben - "... So what's with all the advanced tech in the Rustbucket?"

Max - "Uh... What do you mean...? Haha..."

Ben looked at his clearly suspicious Grandfather with an 'are you serious' kind of face.

Ben - "You realise that I literally JUST merged with every piece of technology in the RV, right? Even fixed some stuff. I also found that suit you have hidden away, along with all the weapons."

Max - *Sigh* "I guess I have some explaining to do..."

Ben - "Yeah, but later. We seem to have an issue to deal with before any of that."

Max - "Right..."

Gwen was looking at them with evident confusion, but figured that she would get an explanation soon.

Max continued to drive and they got to an abandoned town. Likely a mining town.

Ben - "I think now would be a good time to get out some of those weapons you've got hidden."

Max sighed and pressed a button on the underside of the steering wheel, this caused a cabinet to open, revealing some guns and some grenades.

Ben looked at the small armoury blankly.

Ben - 'Now that is just irresponsible.'

This was the point that Gwen had had enough.

Gwen - "Will somebody PLEASE explain what's going on!?!? First, Ben freaks out and goes alien, taking over the Rustbucket. Then, you start talking about some secret. And now, Grandpa apparently has guns hidden in the Rustbucket."

Ben - "Long story short; Somebody was attacking us. Grandpa has something to explain later. We need to get ready for whoever attacked to come back, hence the guns."

Gwen - "... That barely explains anything!"

Ben - "Well that's the best I can give you right now. Now pick a gun."

After saying that, Ben went outside and turned into XLR8. This is for two purposes, to build some cover to hide behind and to announce his location.

Once he had set up the cover for them, he went back to the RV, turned back to himself and picked up a gun.

They weren't the guns he was used to, but his [Marksmanship] Skill made it so he knew how to use them on sight.

Ben - "Okay. Everything is ready. Gwen, you should stick with Grandpa as much as possible and I will transform to fight."

Gwen - "Why can't we just run away exactly?"

Max - "I don't think that's an option. The one that attacked us was a galactic bounty hunter. Chances are, he is after the watch."

Max came out of the RV in a grey suit, with black gloves and boots, along with a utility belt.

Gwen - "How do you know that? And what's with the fashion disaster?"

Max - "I'll explain everything later, but for now let's just say, I wasn't your ordinary Plumber before I retired."

Max pulled out a rifle and it charged up, making a blue glow come from the barrel.

Max - "I doubt that he is the only one after the watch and it won't be long before they catch up to us. Let's get some cover before that."

Max started making his way into one of the abandoned buildings, with Ben and Gwen following him.

They stayed in the building for a few minutes, waiting for whoever might come.

Max was extremely focused, ready for anything to come.

Ben was also focused and waiting, but he was also keeping an eye on Gwen and was able to notice her slight shaking.

She was nervous and scared, but seeing her Grandpa and Ben, who were showing no signs of fear, she forced herself to stay strong. Though she couldn't help shaking still.

Suddenly, she felt a familiar warmth on her head, something that she had started getting used to and enjoying recently. She looked at her cousin, who was responsible for that warmth, and saw him smiling gently, causing her face to gain a red tint.

Ben - *whispers* "It'll be okay. Just trust me and Grandpa, we'll do our best to keep you safe. And if you're scared, then close your eyes, take a deep breath and think of something that makes you happy."

Gwen stared at him for a moment and then tried what he told her to.

She closed her eyes, took a deep breath and started thinking of things she like. Martial arts. Her parents. Ice cream. And then, without realizing, her thought turned Ben. Not the old Ben, who had the emotional spectrum of a toaster, but the one that was right next to her, comforting her and helping her overcome her fear.

Finally, Gwen opened her eyes and looked at Ben for a moment, noticeably more red than before and then muttered to him.

Gwen - "...Thanks..."

Ben - "No problem."

He gave her a final head pat and refocused on the current situation.

They were left to wait for a couple more minutes before anything happened. But eventually, SixSix arrived and started looking side to side.

SixSix flew around a bit and opened fire on a few buildings in an attempt to draw his target out.

When Ben saw that SixSix was wantedly destroying buildings, he figured that it was only a matter of time until he found them, so he decided he should go to him.

Ben activated the Omnitrix, quickly scrolled through and selected XLR8.

With a red flash, he transformed and ran out. He didn't go straight to attack SixSix, instead he made a few laps around the abandoned town, building up his speed.

After a few dozen laps, he managed to get up to 1800 km/h(mach1.5-ish), which he decided was enough and then headed for SixSix, who had been flying all over chasing the Omnitrix signal.

Ben ran straight at SixSix's back. When he was just 4 metres away, he gave a final push off of the ground and jumped at SixSix.

Mid jump, Ben tapped the Omnitrix on his chest and transformed into Diamondhead, quickly morphing his arm into a blade.

As Prime Ben would put it: XLR8's speed + Diamondhead's toughness = one mean punch. If only this Ben was nice enough to only punch him or rather innocent enough.

Without being able to resist, SixSix was decapitated.

[Bounty Hunter SixSix Has Been Killed - 300XP has been gained]

With another quick tap of the Omnitrix, he turned back to XLR8, grabbed SixSix and ran into a building, then turning back to himself.

Ben - "That's one."

To give the Omnitrix some time to recharge, he scanned SixSix for his DNA and also his armour. He then put the body in his inventory.

After a minute, Ben changed into Big Chill and went out into the open. He could feel a presence in the ground somewhere and wants to draw him out, which he did.

The moment Ben went outside, a figure burst out of the ground behind him. The figure or Krabb, had a large metal claw, that he tried to use to crush Ben's head.

Ben, who was prepared for such an attack, simply used his intangibility and let Krabb pass through his body, causing him to freeze.

Not giving Krabb a chance to save himself or counter attack, Ben change to Heatblast and blasted him with fire. The rapid change of temperature and the actual blast from the attack, caused Krabbs robotic body to become brittle and start breaking apart.

Krabb wasn't completely down for the count, but he was far from being functional.

Krabb - *Sparking* "I-i-is tha-at all y-you got!?"

Seeing that his enemy was still alive, Ben changed into Fourarms, walked infront of his seemingly malfunctioning opponent and pulled his head off.

Krabb - "I... Guess... not..."

His eyes dimmed, like lights without a power source.

[Bounty Hunter Krabb Has Been Killed - 300XP has been gained.]

Ben stared atthe head in his hand for a moment and then dragged the body of Krabb into the building he just exited.

When he got inside, he turned human again and looked at the body.

Ben - "And that's two. But the mission isn't over yet I suspect... Anyways, what should I do with this? I can't even get a new alien, it's 95% cybernetic implants..." 'I'll just put it away for now and use it for research I guess.'

With the two enemies that he knew about dead, Ben started making his way back to Gwen and Max. Though he did it as stealthily as he could, considering there may be new unknown enemies.

While Ben made his way to his family, two individuals situated on a building at the edge of town, were talking about what just happened

Tetrax - "Whoever it is that's in possession of the Omnitrix is quite impressive. For a Human... No offence, Spartan."

Standing beside Tetrax in green armour, with his rifle drawn was none other than Spartan John-117, aka Master Chief.

Chief - "..."

Master Chief remained silent, as was his usual attitude.

Tetrax - "Retrieving the Omnitrix will be much harder than anticipated. Based on the the way they efficiently used the abilities of multiple species in combination and how he anticipated the attacks of SixSix and Krabb, I can only assume that they are a warrior accustomed to battle."

Chief - "..."

Tetrax - "Any suggestions on how to proceed."

Chief - "We watch and wait for the Covenant to make their move. For now, keep an eye on the kid."

Tetrax - "Okay... Wait. Did you say 'kid'?"

Rather than explaining, Chief pointed at small figure moving around in the shadows between buildings.

Tetrax looked at the figure and then started pressing buttons on his gauntlet, this brought up an image of the kid Chief was referring to.

He looked at the image and then zoomed in on a specific spot, showing an image of the Omnitrix. Though it was different from what he knew about it.

Tetrax - "You're telling me that the most powerful weapon in the galaxy is in the hands of a mere child!?"

Chief - "That 'child' is clearly skilled in the usage of the Omnitrix. Don't underestimate him."

Chief then jumped off of the building and started following after Ben, while Tetrax went after him on his hoverboard.

- With Ben -

Ben got to where he left Max and Gwen, he climbed through a window and appeared behind them.

Ben - "Hey, I'm back."

They turned around in surprise.

Gwen - "Eek!"

Ben - "Heh. Scared ya."

Gwen looked at him angrily, stomped over and hit his arm.

Gwen - "Idiot! Hmph!"

Max - "What happened out there, Ben?"

Ben - "Not much. I took down that bounty hunter and another one that looked like a metal crab guy."

Max - "Where are they now?"

Ben - "...Gone..."

Max - "What do you mean? Where did they-"

He stopped mid sentence when Ben gave him a look and mouthed for him to not ask.

Max - 'I hope he didn't do what I think he did...'

Gwen looked at them for a moment, unnerved by the tense atmosphere that developed between them.

Gwen - "Uhm... So, if the bad guys are gone, can't we just go?"

Ben - "Well, there could be more, but I don't kno-"

Before he could finish, he was shot with a blue plasma beam from the window, in such a way that it went through both of his legs.

Ben fell to the floor and screamed from the searing.

Max/Gwen - "BEN!!!"

They rushed to help him, but Ben sprung at them to push them out of the way, right as more shots came through the the windows, because his Danger Sense kicked in.

Ben - "Ahg! Grr!"

While on the ground and bleeding, he reached for the Omnitrix and pressed down the dial, turning into Fourarms.

After the bright light from transformation disappeared, Max and Gwen saw the figure of Fourarms slowly stand up, towering over them with shining red eyes.

[Wrath Skill Activated - x3 Multiplier]

Due to the activation of [Wrath], Ben unconsciously started using [Intimidation], causing Gwen to started shaking.

Gwen - "B-Ben? A-a-are y-you okay?"

Rather than giving an answer, he turned to the wall and punched it, knocking it down.

Ben roared in anger and then jumped high into to the sky, towards the direction the shots came from. Almost as if it were on instinct.

A slight distance away, Master Chief and Tetrax had been watching and were now sprinting over to the build Ben was in, but stopped when they saw an enraged Tetraman break the wall and jump off. So they chased after him instead.

At the edge of town, situated at an old water tower, were the five humanoid dinosaur-like aliens with the carapace like armour from Vilgax's ship. These aliens are known as Sangheili, a species from a certain video game we all know and love, typically referred to as Elites.

One of the Sangheili with blue armour was on top of the water tower, holding an alien sniper rifle. If Ben were to see it, he would be able to identify it as the Type-50 Sniper Rifle System, aka the Beam Rifle.

(Imagine that they are speaking Sangheili here.)

Elite (Blue) - "Sir! Target has been incapacitated."

Elite Major (Red) - "And what of the other humans?"

Elite - "I was unsuccessful, sir!"

Elite Major - "GRR! You will receive your punishment for this failure later! What of the target now!?"

Elite - "Sir! They-"

*Boom!*

Before the Elite could report the situation, a large figure smashed into him, destroying the water tower and smashing into the ground, creating a dust cloud.

Fourarms - "RAAAAAAAA!"

*Boom!*

[Elite Minor Has Been Killed - 200XP has been gained]

*Boom!*

*Boom!*

Ben repeatedly punched the sniper, the force of his punches blowing the dust cloud away. Joining his upper hands together, raising them and his lower arms over his head, Ben performed a double axe handle move, while also smashing down with his lower arms.

The Elite Minor's armour was completely destroyed and his body turned to mush, his blood soaking Ben.

Ben stood straight and turned around, teeth bared and blood dripping from his fists.

The Sangheili that remained all aimed their weapons at the Tetraman and started firing at him using Plasma Rifles.

The plasma shots hit Ben's body, leaving scorch marks all over his body. With each shot, he got angrier and angrier, increasing the effect of [Wrath] up to a 4x multiple.

[Intimidation increased to Lv-3]

All of a sudden, Ben broke into a sprint, causing tremors as he charged.

The Sangheili continued firing at Ben, hoping to take down the behemoth infront of them, but to no avail. Ben continued his enraged charge, ramming into one of the Elite's like a train, instantly destroying his energy shield and sending him flying through a house.

[Elite Minor Has Been Killed - 200XP has been gained]

Without missing a beat, Ben swung around and hit another Elite in the face with the back of his fist, repeating what happened to the Elite before him.

The final Elite Minor charged at Ben and tried to tackle him at his waist, but ultimately, could barely move him.

Ben glared down at the lizard at his waist and roared like a beast.

(A/N: It was at this point, he knew. He. Fucked. Up.)

Ben grabbed hold of the Elite, lifted him up into the air and then slammed him to the ground, then he started wailing on him relentless.

[Elite Minor Has Been Killed - 200XP has been gained]

While Ben was distracted turning the Elite into a bloody paste, the Elite Major went behind him, igniting an Energy Sword and stabbed him in the back.

Fourarms - "AAAHHHHHH!!!"

Ben twisted his body, elbowing the Major and knocking him away, but caused the sword to come out of his back, enlarging the wound.

He turned to the Major angrier than before, making [Wrath] reach maximum effectiveness.

Ben growled lowly, his muscles bulged up and his veins became visible. His entire body seemed to grow a couple sizes.

He reared his arm back and then punched the ground, causing a small earthquake, preventing the Major from getting up.

With the Major unable to stand, Ben jumped towards him and smashed into him, making a small crater. He kneeled over the body and started punching him over and over, making blood splatter all over him.

[Elite Major Has Been Killed - 300XP has been gained]

After punching the body of the Elite Major for 3 minutes straight, Ben finally calmed down and stood up, his body gradually reducing to its normal size as the [Wrath] deactivated.

Fourarms - "*Panting* Haa... This stab wound... better... dissappear... when I turn back...:

He then spat out some blood that was in his mouth and started walking out of the crater with a limp.

Ben got out of the crater and saw the Elite that he backhanded, painfully making his way over to him. He sighed in annoyance and then walked over to the Elite.

Fourarms - (Sangheili language)"I don't suppose you want to surrender?"

The Elite was surprised to hear his opponent speak his native language.

Elite - "No! If I am to be defeated, let it be as a warrior!"

Ben looked at him.

Fourarms - "Fine then, I will honour your request."

Elite - "I thank you, Warrior."

The Elite ignited an Energy Sword and lunged at Ben, trying to stab him in the chest. Ben sidestepped out of the trajectory, taking hold of the hand holding the Energy Sword and redirected it into the Elite's chest.

Ben stood there, holding up the body of the Elite as they looked each other in the eye, before the Elite closed his eyes and his head fell lifelessly.

[Elite Minor Has Been Killed - 200XP has been gained]

After looking at the Elite for a moment, Ben carefully lay him on the ground.

Gwen - "B-Ben...?"

Ben's eyes widened in surprise when he heard Gwen's voice. He turned around to look at her, but his brow suddenly scrunched when he saw two unknown figures standing behind her and Max.

He start stomping over, ready to fight, but he suddenly fell to his knee from his injury.

Gwen/Max - "BEN!"

When they saw Ben fall, they were worried for him and ran over to help him.

Fourarms - "I'll be fine. Just get behind me."

He went to stand again, but failed.

Max quickly supported him.

Max - "It's okay, Ben. They're not here to fight."

Ben - "...You sure?"

He looked at Max and saw him nod affirmatively.

With a relieved sigh, he tapped the Omnitrix and returned to being human, losing the massive wound he had in his back and then stretched, finding that his legs had somehow healed as well.

Ben - "Man... That feels better. How long have you all been here anyways?"

He looked to Max with a raised eyebrow, but it was one of the other two strangers that answered.

Tetrax - "Since about the time you were stabbed."

Ben - "And you didn't think to help me!?"

Tetrax - "You seemed to have it handled."

Ben's eye started to twitch in exasperation. He took a deep breath to calm himself and then looked at the second person, who was standing there silently.

Ben - 'Wait a second, is that a Spartan?"

Then he notice the numbers '117' on the chest plate.

Ben - 'IS THAT MASTER CHIEF!!?'

His mind suddenly turned chaotic at the thought that the Halo universe was likely combined with Ben 10. Only then, he realized the fact that he just took out some Elite's, but he was broken from his thoughts by a teary eyed Gwen.

Gwen - "Are you okay!?"

He looked at her worried expression and felt bad, so he hugged.

Ben - "I'm fine. Don't worry about me, I won't be beat so easily."

Gwen said nothing and hugged him back.

Ben looked at his Grandpa and the other two, while he continued to comfort Gwen.

Ben - "So, who are you two anyways."

He already figured out who they were and he could just use [Analyse], but that would be suspicious.

Tetrax - "Right. I am Tetrax."

Tetrax tapped the side of his helmet, making it recede and revealing him to be a Petrosapien.

Tetrax - "And I, along with this Spartan, have come here to make sure that the Omnitrix doesn't fall into the wrong hands."

He pointed at the watch and then the dead Elite's.

Gwen looked up from Ben's chest.

Gwen - "What's a Spartan"

Chief - "I am Master Chief Petty Officer John-117, but most call me Master Chief. A Spartan is a biologically augmented super soldier, in the service of the United Nations Space Command. My mission was to discover the reason for the Covenants involvement with the alien known as Vilgax and impede them at all costs."

At the mention of Vilgax, Max was shocked and froze up.

Gwen - "So, you're human?"

Chief - "Yes. But not from this planet."

Gwen - "Wait! There are other planets with humans!?"

Tetrax - "Of course there are. There are humans all over the universe, they are quite common, but some have yet to master space travel."

Ben had just been listening to their conversation and taking it all in. He then looked at the shocked Max.

Ben - "Hey, you good Grandpa?"

Max - "Huh? Oh... Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine..."

Max was still unsettled, but tried to smile reassuringly.

Obviously, Ben wasn't convinced and knew the reason for Max's behaviour, but decided to leave him be for now.

Ben looked to tetrax.

Ben - "So, what are your plans now."

Tetrax - "Well, my objective was to ensure the safety of the Omnitrix, but considering your... 'capabilities'... I believe it's in safe hands. So, I will take my leave."

Ben - "Okay. Well, it was nice meeting you, though it was brief."

Tetrax pulled out his hoverboard and threw it to Ben, surprising him.

Tetrax - "A gift, from one warrior to another."

He then pulled out a remote, pressed a button and was teleported away, leaving Ben standing there confused.

Ben - 'The fuck just happened...?'

Ben looked at Master Chief as if looking for an answer, but received only silence. So, he decided to move on.

Ben - "What are you going to do?"

Chief - "I have a transport coming to pick me up."

Ben - "Okay."

He gave Gwen's head a pat and seperate from their hug, handing her the hoverboard.

Ben - "Can you hold onto this for a moment. Thanks."

Then he went over to the body of the last Elite he killed and scanned it's DNA.

With the DNA of the Sangheili that he kill after regaining his senses, he decided to loot the Elite's bodies.

Quickly turning into XLR8, grabbing all the gear from the bodies, putting the Elite Major's armour and one of each kind of weapon in the Rustbucket, while placing the rest into his inventory, along with the bodies. All out of sight from other people of course.

Once he was done looting, he returned to Gwen and Max, then changed back.

When he got there he saw the classic Halo Pelican arriving. The Pelican was on autopilot, so unmanned. Master Chief didn't waste any time, he got on board, said a brief goodbye and dipped.

Ben and the other two were left alone. Max had remained silent, still thinking about the fact that Vilgax is alive.

Looking at his Grandfather, Ben sighed.

Ben - "Hey, Grandpa. Let's head to the Rustbucket and relax for today."

Max - "Yeah... Let's go... *sigh*"

Max somberly made his way back to the RV as Gwen and Ben walked behind him. Gwen was concerned for Max.

Gwen - "Is Grandpa okay? He seems worried."

Ben - "He probably just need to think about things for a bit. We still need to get an explanation from him, so it might come up then."

Gwen nodded and they both walked in silence from there.

When they arrived at the RV, Max went straight inside and sat at the drivers seat, leaning back and covering his face with his hand.

Ben shook his head and went to get a couple of chairs for him and Gwen. He started talking to Gabriel.

Ben - 'Hey, Gabriel?'

Gabriel - "Yeah?"

Ben - 'Why didn't [Danger Sense] activate before I was shot?'

Gabriel - "The Skill wasn't high enough to register the danger before you were aware of it."

Ben - 'Oh... Well, is the mission done?'

Gabriel - "Yes, but I haven't accepted the rewards for you yet. You have reached Level 10, so you can now unlock your Anodite bloodline, which will likely cause some adjustments in your stats."

Ben - 'Which means, it would be better to level up afterwards. Thanks.'

Gabriel - "No problem."

He had now picked up the chairs and made his way to Gwen.

Ben - 'Well, can you unlock the bloodline for me now?'

Gabriel - "... Are you sure?"

He was confused as to why she asked, but ignored it.

Ben - 'Yeah...?"

Gabriel - "Okay then..."

Ben arrived next to Gwen and was about to set them up, but the Omnitrix suddenly activated.

Omnitrix - [Synchronisation with Host's DNA signature - 100% Complete. DNA limiter will now be removed. Stand by.]

He looked at the Omnitrix with surprise.

Ben - "Huh?"

Gabriel - "This will probably hurt. Don't pass out."

Ben - "Wait wha-aaAAAAHHHHHHHGGG!!!"

Ben dropped the chairs and fell to the ground, clawing at his chest, red light projecting from his eyes.

Gwen saw him fall to the ground screaming, she ran over in a panic.

Gwen - "BEN!!! GRANDPA! SOMETHINGS WRONG!"

Max came running out of the Rustbucket and Ben on the ground in agony.

Max - "What happened!?"

He went to Ben's side, seeing Gwen crying.

Gwen - "I-I don't know. *sniff* He just left for some chairs and came back, then the Omnitrix said something about a 'limiter' and then he started screaming. *sniff*"

Max looked thoughtful for a moment and then went to grab the Omnitrix, but before he could, he and Gwen were blasted away by a red aura from Ben's whole body.

They got up from the ground and went over to see what was happening, then they saw Ben's skin start to disintegrated, exposing a red and black energy body beneath.

When Max saw this, his eyes widened in surprise and then he ran into the Rustbucket, before coming out with some sort of scanning device.

He directed it towards Ben and pressed some buttons. He waited a moment for the results and then looked at it with shock.

By now, Ben's arms and legs were devoid of any skin. Streams of energy had started flowing into him from the surroundings.

Gwen - "What's happening Grandpa!?"

Max - "I'm not entirely sure myself, but everything should be fine... I hope..."

...

While Ben was going through the disintegration of his human body, Max and Gwen had no choice but to watch.

They felt awful having to watch Ben, as he screamed in agony. Gwen was in tears from wanting to help him, but being unable to. She couldn't even get close to him, because every few seconds, a blast of energy would come from his body.

For 20 minutes, Ben had been suffering on the ground, leaving him with only his head and the area around his heart untouched. Although it is a relatively short period of time, it felt like hours to him.

From an outside few, it appeared that only Ben's skin was being destroyed, when it was actually happening to every cell in his body, causing an unimaginable amount of pain.

The disintegration gradually made it's way to Ben's heart and brain, and finally into them. The moment the disintegration touched his heart, Ben stopped screaming and his body collapsed, seeming as though he had died.

Max and Gwen panicked when they saw this, fearing the worst. But, fortunately, energy was still streaming in from the surroundings and there was still energy blasts coming off his body, reassuring Max that he was at least still alive.

After another 10 minutes, Ben's entire body had finished disintegrating, leaving him in his energy form, lying on the ground.

Suddenly, the streams of energy that had been flowing in from the surroundings, started covering Ben's body like a cocoon.

After a moment, the energy cocoon started to crack and then shattered. Ben came out of the cocoon, his body having been fully reconstructed and in a state more appropriate for the use of magic.

Ben lifted his body, so that he was on his hands and knees.

Ben - "*Panting* Okay. OUCH!"

[Secondary Skill - Pain Tolerance Increased To Lv-8]

[Primary Skill - Mana Manipulation Lv-1 Acquired]

Omnitrix - [Host's DNA unlocking is complete. Transformation time limit is now - 1 hour.]

Ben looked at the Omnitrix and found that it had changed it's appearance. (I found a design I like more.)

Deciding that it wasn't that important, he stood up and took a deep breath, only for air to be knocked out of him by the impact of a body just smaller than his own.

Ben - "Oof! Hey, Gwen."

Gwen - "*Wailing* You idiot! Dummy! Stupid! I t-thought y-you were gonna-WAH!!!"

Ben was taken aback and started feeling a bit bad for worrying her. He hugged her and started stroking her head.

Ben - "There, there. I'm fine. Please don't cry."

While Ben was hugging Gwen, Max trudged over and knelt next them, taking them into a hug of his own.

Max had tears in his. He was just as worried as Gwen that his Grandson would die.

After a few minutes of hugging, the trio separated.

Max patted Ben's shoulder.

Max - "It's good that you're okay, Ben... But, you should probably get some clothes on."

Upon hearing this, Ben looked down and realized that he was butt naked. Gwen had also realized this and turn bright red.

Ben - "*Cough* Uh, right... [Clothes - Summer Loadout 3]"

With a flash from the Omnitrix, Ben was no longer naked and was dressed in; a tank top, shorts and running shoes. His clothes revealed muscles that generally shouldn't be on a 10 year old. Nothing bulky, but still obvious at a single glance.

Ben - "Let's get in the Rustbucket, shall we? I need something to eat."

Ben turned to the Rustbucket and made his way inside to start making something to eat.

While busying himself, he started talking to Gabriel.

Ben - 'So, Gabriel... Couldn't have warned me before giving me my bloodline...?'

She answered him apologetically.

Gabriel - "Sorry, but you didn't ask and I wasn't allowed to say anything if you didn't."

Ben - 'Huh? But why wouldn't you-... That A-hole... This is because I wasn't specific with my wish, isn't it?'

Gabriel - "Yes. You didn't say it should be painless, so... Also, it probably isn't wise to call God an 'A-hole'."

She sighed exasperatedly.

Ben - 'He probably doesn't care what I call him. He is probably laughing at me for my mistake. That A-hole.'

Gabriel sighed again at Ben's boldness.

Gabriel - "Moving on from that. Would you like to receive your mission rewards now?"

Ben - 'Yeah. Thanks."

Gabriel - "Okay. Also, there has been some adjustments to your stats."

[Mission Complete - 3AP, 500XP, 500SP and Programming Lv-5 Received]

[Status -

Name - Ben

Lv - 11 (870/1100)

Title - Wielder of the Omnitrix

State - Healthy MP - 1800

STR - 30

END - 30

AGI - 30

CHA - 30

INT - 40

LUK - 666

AP - 31 SP - 949,300]

Ben - 'Nice! My stats got boosted straight to the next stage and I have an additional 1000 Mana!'

Gabriel - "Mhm. And there's something that will interest you. Now that you have Mana Manipulation, when in your Anodite form it will immediately jump to Lv-3."

Ben - 'Hm. Good to know. I'll have to check it out later.'

With a much happier mood, Ben focused on cooking.

- After eating -

Having eaten and with everyone at the table, Ben looked at Max.

Ben - "Grandpa, I think now would be a good time for you to tell us about all the weapons and stuff."

Max pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. He then went on to explain all about his time as a 'Plumber', a galactic cop basically.

Gwen - "Okay... I wasn't expecting that... Then what about that 'Vilgax' guy? Why did you seem so freaked?"

Max - "He is a galactic tyrant that I fought a long time ago... And I thought he was gone, for good. But, I guess I was wrong."

Ben - "Then that will have to be rectified."

Max - "Ben- *sigh* I guess you're right... He will be coming either way. But, right now, what I want to know, is how you are part Anodite?"

Gwen - "What's an 'Anodite'?"

Max - "They're an Alien species made of pure energy or 'Mana'. They look like how Ben did before, but they are pink and purple, not red, which makes things even more confusing."

Ben - "Maybe one of by parents were one."

Max opened his mouth to refute, but was cut off before he got the chance.

Gwen - "Wait! You mean Aunt Sandra or Uncle Carl are Aliens!?"

This made Ben look at her with a raised eyebrow, both confused and slightly surprised.

Ben - "Didn't Uncle Frank and Aunt Nat tell you???"

Max looked at him slightly shocked, while Gwen was confused.

Gwen - "Huh? Tell me what? What am I missing?"

She looked between Max and Ben.

Ben - "Well, I was adopted."

Gwen - "Huh...?"

Now Gwen was shocked.

Max - "Ben... How did you...-"

Ben - "I found the Adoption Certificate ages ago. Plus, it wasn't hard to figure out. I have Black hair, which no one else does. And then there are my eyes. Red isn't exactly a common eye colour."

Max rubbed his neck awkwardly.

Max - "Uhh, oh... Well, do your parents know...?"

Ben - "Not that I know of. I wasn't exactly the type to bring things up if I didn't think it was needed. Being adopted never changed how I felt, so I never bothered saying anything. Though, I thought that Gwen's parents would have told her..."

He looked at Gwen, who had been shocked silent and spaced out.

Max - "Right... Well, you're most likely right and one of your biological parents was an alien. Unfortunately, we can't verify this anymore... *Sigh* I think that this is enough for one day..."

Max stood up and made his way to the drivers seat, muttering to himself as he walked by.

Max - "Still... What are the odds that he would be an Anodite...?"

Ben - 'Almost zero.'

Ben internally chuckled and then looked at Gwen once more.

Ben - "Gwen. Gwen... Gwen!"

She jumped in response to her name being called loudly.

Gwen - "Y-yeah- *Coughs* Yeah? What is it?"

Ben - "You okay? You seem to be taking the news badly? You don't have to think of me differently, y'know?"

She looked down at her lap, hiding the array of complex emotions in her eyes.

Gwen - "I know... This is all just a lot to take in for one day. I'm going to go lie down."

She got up and walked over to her bed, then covered herself with a blanket.

Ben watched her with some concern, before sighing and pulling his phone out.

Ben - 'She probably just needs time to get her mind around it.'

He started watching some TV shows and relaxed. He would have started messing around with his Mana, but he needed to rest after everything that had happened in one day.

- POV Gwen -

After seeing Ben almost die two time today, finding out that her Grandpa was some kind of space policeman, and then having the bomb dropped that her cousin, whome she had grown up with since they were babies, wasn't actually related to her, is too much to deal with for one day.

Then there is the fact that the other two people involved are acting like nothing is wrong or strange.

Gwen - 'Why am I the only one shocked right now!? Ben almost died today. Twice!!! And then we find out that he's part Alien, but no one acts like this is any different!!? Plus, I'm only just finding out that he isn't even really my cousin!... *sniffles* I thought he was going to die... I-I don't want to lose him...'

She silently weeped under her blanket, the stress of the chaotic day catching up to her.

- End POV -

Max continued driving for the rest of the day and stopped once it was night to get some sleep.

- The Next Day -

Ben woke up early as usual.

He went outside and started doing his daily mission, quickly completing it and without feeling exhausted for once, so he decided to save the Instant Recovery for another time.

Ben - 'Feels good to not be so weak.'

With that done, he went and made breakfast for everyone, they ate and then he went back outside.

When Max parked the RV last night, he stopped in an unpopulated area, so Ben decided to take this opportunity to try out his Anodite abilities.

With a thought, Ben turned into his Anodite form. He started checking his body out, marveled by the energy that made up his very being.

He looked at the window and saw his reflection, ran his hand through his hair and smiled.

He jumped into the air and started flying around, laughing and cheering like a kid. This type of behaviour is odd compared to his usual attitude and he had realized this, but didn't put much thought to it. It was likely just influence from his young body or his Anodite bloodline.

Max and Gwen were drawn outside by the sound of his joyful laughter.

Gwen - "What are you doing?"

She watched him doing infinity loops with a confused expression.

Ben stopped and looked at her with an excited smile. He flew infront of her face, upside-down and with his hands behind his head.

Ben - "Hehehe! Flying around~ Testing out my Anodite form!"

Gwen - "Is this a new form in the Omnitrix?"

Ben - "Nope! This is all me. I'm able switch between this form and being human. This form gives me the ability to control Energy or 'Mana' as Grandpa called it. I can also use my abilities in human form, but not as well. The best part of this form, is that I can see and feel the Mana in everything around me, which you have quite a lot of."

He then looked at Max for a moment. Max had been silent, with a thoughtful look on his face, likely making conjectures about Gwen having the 'Spark' needed to achieve her Anodite form.

Ben - "Grandpa also has quite a bit, but you have even more. About a tenth of the amount I have."

Gwen - "Is that a lot!?"

She shouted almost excitedly.

Ben - "Probably. Compared to the surroundings, you are practically glowing!"

Gwen blushed at the compliment and looked away.

[Secondary Skill - Acting Increased To Lv-2]

Of course, he wasn't just saying all this for no reason.

Ben - "Anyways, I want to practice a bit more before we have to head off."

He then floated off and started messing around with energy blasts, shields and whips. Watching this, Gwen had started thinking about about whether she could do these things as well.

- 30 Minutes Later -

Only after draining the majority of his Mana, did Ben feel that he had played around enough, so he changed back to human and went inside. (A/N: Note that he doesn't get an increase in Mana in his Anodite form, but he could drain the Mana from his surroundings if he wanted.)

When Ben got inside and sat down at the table, which Gwen was already sitting at, Max asked if there was anything they had forgotten and started driving when they said no.

Sitting at the table, Ben started meditating to replenish his Mana quicker, taking about 15 minutes to get to max.

After fully recharging, he started practicing his Mana Manipulation. Looking at the Manual in his inventory, he was brought to the first stage, which was just learning to move the Mana from your core and making it stretch to every part of the body, opening up pathways.

He almost felt like crying when he thought about how much trouble he was having before.

Getting over it quickly, he looked at the second stage. This stage showed him a particular pattern that he had to make his Mana follow, making a full rotation. This will both increase his Mana and make it move smoother throughout his body, making it easier to control. This will eventually increase his skills level and show greater effects.

Ben - 'Goddammit... What kind of cultivation bullshit is this...'

He started a short rant in his head, about how there better not be any 'Young Master's' or 'Sects' that he has to deal with and how if there is, he will turn into Alien-X and Thanos snap them out of existence. (There will not be. Maybe a cult or two...)

When he stopped his rant, he sighed and started moving his Mana.

Although moving his Mana was easy now, relatively speaking... It was painfully slow. Just one rotation took 10 minutes and it only added 5 Mana to his status.

After making that one rotation, he stopped meditating and dramatically slammed his head on the table, startling Gwen.

Gwen - "What the-! What's wrong with you?"

Ben turned his head to her and sighed.

Ben - "Nothing..."

He sat up properly.

Ben - "Anyways, would you like to learn to use your Mana?"

Gwen - "Really! You can teach me!?"

Ben - "Sure. I can move mine thanks to being part Alien, so I can probably help you figure it out."

He made a small ball of Mana above his finger and made it change into different shapes.

Ben - "So?"

Gwen - "YES! I mean, yes please."

Ben - "*Chuckle* Okay, give me a minute."

He went and got his sketch book, which he started writing down what was in stage one of the manual, with some of stage two. He also drew an example of the human body and where her Mana core is located.

Ben - "If you follow this, you should be able to control it soon enough."

Gwen picked up the instructions and nodded.

Gwen - "Okay. I'll try my best."

She then closed her eyes and started meditating.

Ben also went back meditating. Though that only lasted 30 minutes, as he was interrupted by the discontent groans of Gwen, so he opened his eyes.

Ben - "What's up?"

She looked at him while pouting.

Gwen - "Hmph! I can't find that stupid core!"

Ben - 'Hmm, I thought she would find it quite easily...'

After giving it some thought, he figured that he might be able to help her.

Ben - "Hey, Gwen. Give me your hand."

She stopped pouting and looked at him, then realized what he said and blushed a bit.

Gwen - "W-what!? No way doofus!"

Ben - "I might be able to help you~ But, if you don't want me to..."

Gwen - "W-wait! I'll do it... But, don't think that I like you or anything!"

She held her hand out while turning completely red, not even able to look at him.

Ben's eye started twitching at how much of a tsundere she was being.

He shook it off and grabbed her hand, making his Mana flow through her.

She could feel a warmth flow into her arm, but was too overwhelmed with embarrassment and happiness to focus.

Ben made her come back to reality though.

Ben - "So? Can you feel anything?"

Her eyes shot open.

Gwen - "Huh? Oh, um... Yeah, I can feel something warm."

Ben - "Great! Now, follow that feeling."

He made his Mana go further up her her arm and stop at her core.

Gwen focused on where she felt his Mana stop and after awhile, she was able to actually find and feel it properly. Her eyes opened wide in excitement.

Gwen - "I did it! I can feel it!"

She practically jumped over the table and hugged, before realizing what she was doing and quickly stopped. She started to fidget in her seat.

Gwen - "I-I mean thanks..."

Ben smiled at her.

Ben - "No problem. Now just try your best to move your Mana."

She nodded and they both started to meditate.

(I've probably made mistakes, but I can't be bothered to care.)

[Status -

Name - Ben

Lv - 11 (870/1100)

Title - Wielder of the Omnitrix

State - Healthy MP - 1800

STR - 30

END - 30

AGI - 30

CHA - 30

INT - 40

LUK - 666

AP - 31 SP - 949,300

Primary Skills: CQC Lv-5, Marksmanship Lv-5, Intimidation Lv-3, Danger Sense Lv-3, Sneak Lv-2, Mana Manipulation Lv-1

Secondary Skills: Drawing Lv-3, Math Lv-3, Writing Lv-3, Running Lv-5, Driving Lv-4, Engineering Lv-3, Cooking Lv-3, Night Vision Lv-Max, Pain Tolerance Lv-8, Bioengineering Lv-5, Programming Lv-5, Torture Lv-1, Acting Lv-2

Unique Skill: Wrath, Complete Language Comprehension, Eidetic Memory, Analyse]