CHAPTER SEVENTY-THREE: UNRESOLVED TRAUMA.

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Ken glanced at the team, feeling a twinge of inadequacy. He had only managed to knock out two DNAliens, while Gwen's wrath had obliterated the rest, and Kevin had healed the remainder with his abilities. He was about to voice his concerns when he noticed something unusual.

"Up there!" Ken pointed to the top floor of a nearby building, where explosions echoed through the night.

Ben didn't hesitate as he grabbed Ken, feeling the Omnitrix's power waning, and smashed through a glass window, landing them safely inside the building. Kevin followed suit, landing softly with Gwen in his arms, setting her down gently. Ken raised an eyebrow at the sight, wondering if there was more between Kevin and his sister.

The group quickly made their way upstairs, their footsteps echoing through the destroyed alien-modified halls. The walls, once pristine, were now marred with scorch marks and twisted metal, remnants of a fierce battle. The air was thick with the smell of burning machinery and ozone.

"Gramps has been busy!" Kevin commented, admiring the destruction as they sprinted past a grotesque contraption birthing Xenocite eggs in real-time. The scene was unsettling, but there was no time to waste. They had to find Grandpa Max.

As they approached the source of the explosions, they found Grandpa Max locked in a fierce battle with a Highbreed lord. The alien's towering figure loomed over Max, who fought valiantly, but the Highbreed's strength was overwhelming.

"There's a horde of DNAliens nearby, maybe we should—" Kevin started, his voice tinged with concern.

"No! Grandpa needs us now!" Ben interrupted, pushing past Kevin and picking up speed.

Kevin sighed. "—split up, but fine."

Before Kevin could join the fray, the Highbreed lord seized Grandpa Max in a crushing chokehold. The alien's grip tightened around Max's throat, his claws digging into Max's flesh as he lifted him off the ground.

"Stay back!" The Highbreed lord demanded, his voice dripping with malice. "Or this one breathes no more."

Max struggled against the iron grip, but his strength was waning. Ben, Gwen, and Kevin watched in horror as the situation grew dire.

"Give it up! We've destroyed your factories and your trucks. It's over!" Ben shouted, his voice filled with desperation.

"Fools!" The Highbreed lord sneered. "More trucks can be here in a matter of hours, and my DNAlien army…" He gestured to a large window behind them, revealing an army of DNAliens on standby, their grotesque forms illuminated by the flickering lights of the burning facility. They stood in ranks, ready and awaiting orders, their soulless eyes focused on the building.

Kevin's patience wore thin. "I should've done what I wanted earlier," he muttered under his breath.

The Highbreed lord tightened his grip on Max, lifting him higher. "It's over for you, Plumber. You have nowhere left to run!"

Max, struggling for breath, managed to pull a small device from his bag. The Highbreed lord's eyes widened in recognition.

"A null-void warp projector!" he exclaimed, his voice laced with fear.

At the mention of the null-void, Kevin's mind was flooded with memories of his escape from the dimension's hellish prison. He remembered Khan and Fate, and the terror he felt in that place. His breathing quickened, panic rising in his chest as the thought of being trapped there again consumed him.

Gwen noticed Kevin's distress and wanted to comfort him, but a sudden spark from Max's device snapped her attention back to the situation.

"No," Max said, his voice steady despite the Highbreed lord's crushing grip. "But without the focusing lens, this thing will do a pretty good imitation of a hand grenade. I figure it'll take out half a mile."

"YOU WOULDN'T DARE!" The Highbreed lord roared, his confidence faltering.

"You'd be destroyed… along with your offspring!" The Highbreed lord tried to call Max's bluff, but there was a hint of uncertainty in his voice.

Max locked eyes with Gwen, his expression softening. "Gwen, throw up an energy field around you and the boys. Hold on tight, and… be a good girl."

"Grandpa Max… please!" Ben's voice cracked, his heart breaking at the thought of losing his grandfather again.

Max's resolve didn't waver. "It's the only way I can make sure they don't do to the rest of us what they did to Ken. I'm sorry, kid."

His words hung in the air like a final goodbye, heavy with the weight of the decision he'd made. "You'll have to take it from here. I know you can do it. I believe in you—all of you."

Max then turned his attention to Kevin, who was still lost in the dark corridors of his mind. "Kevin."

Kevin snapped out of his trance, meeting Max's gaze.

"There are reports and sightings of Fate…" Max said, his voice low but clear, cutting through Kevin's thoughts like a knife.

Kevin's heart skipped a beat. The mention of Fate sent a chill down his spine. He had hoped—prayed—that Khan had finished her off. But the possibility of her survival shattered any illusion of safety he had clung to. Kevin's breathing grew shallow as the gravity of the situation settled in. He wasn't strong enough. Not yet. He needed to get stronger—and fast.

Max's voice pulled him back to the present.

"Be careful with those wolves."

But before Max could say more, the Highbreed lord tightened his grip, determined to end the Plumber's life. Kevin's blood ran cold as he watched the scene unfold. The thought of losing another ally, another mentor, was too much to bear.

"Grandpa Max! No!" Ben screamed, but Ken and Gwen held him back, tears streaming down their faces. They knew there was nothing they could do.

With a heavy heart, Max clicked the button on the device. Sparks flew, and Gwen quickly erected an energy dome around them, shielding the group from the massive explosion that followed. The blast engulfed the building and everything within half a mile, leaving nothing but a smoking crater.

Gwen's voice trembled as she spoke, her energy field dissipating into the air.

"He… gave his life for the whole world."

Ben, still in shock, nodded slowly.

"Yes. But I don't think it's over. It's up to us now to protect this planet."

Kevin stood apart from the group, his mind racing with thoughts of Fate and the Null Void.

"I don't know…" he muttered, barely audible.

"What was that, Kevin?" Ben asked, concern lacing his voice.

"I'm not strong enough," Kevin whispered, turning away from the others. He couldn't shake the fear that had taken root in his heart. He needed to be stronger—strong enough to face whatever came next.

Without another word, Kevin took flight, his form disappearing into the sky with a sonic boom. Gwen watched him go, worry etched into her features.

"Is that your boyfriend?" Ken asked, pointing to where Kevin had just been.

"…Yes." Gwen nodded, her eyes still fixed on the sky.

"Let's go already." Ben instructed.

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