"Asher, you still can't use the Omnitrix to transform?" Gwen asked worriedly, her voice tight with concern after everything they'd just learned about the device.
"It doesn't matter," Asher replied while picking up one of the improvised time bombs from the table. "The bombs I made will come in handy."
Gripping time bombs in both hands, he walked directly to the open window of the Rust Bucket, leaning most of his body against the vehicle's frame with his head and arms extending outside.
The wind howled past them as the RV barreled down the highway.
The force made it difficult to keep his eyes open, but squinting against the rushing air, Asher spotted their pursuers, Kraab's mechanical form scuttling after them on four scythe-like legs, and SixSix soaring through the air on his jetpack, both closing the distance rapidly.
"The user of the Omnitrix has finally shown himself!" Kraab's mechanical voice crackled with satisfaction.
The cybernetic bounty hunter's pace suddenly accelerated, his four legs becoming a blur of motion as he surged forward with terrifying speed!
"A present for you!" Asher shouted, pressing the activation button on one of the time bombs before hurling it at Kraab with all his strength.
"What is this?!" Kraab's sensors locked onto the incoming projectile.
Without thinking, the cyborg extended his massive pincer and swatted at the device mid-air.
SixSix tilted his armored body slightly, glancing at Kraab's action, but his expression remained unchanged behind his helmet. He made no move to warn his competitor. After all, they were rivals for the same bounty, not teammates.
BOOM!!
Kraab's pincer had barely made contact with the time bomb when it detonated. A massive explosion erupted, sending a mushroom cloud of smoke billowing into the air and completely engulfing the cybernetic mercenary!
"Idiot," SixSix muttered in his alien language, sneering at Kraab's carelessness as he continued his aerial pursuit of Asher.
"And you don't get to escape either!" Asher called out, waving his right hand forward as another time bomb flew through the air toward the armored bounty hunter.
SixSix had already learned from Kraab's mistake. The Sotoraggian warrior banked sharply to the side, attempting to dodge the ticking explosive as it sailed past him.
But then,
Beep! Beep! Beep!!
Asher threw three more time bombs in rapid succession, each one launched at a different angle and with varying force to cut off SixSix's escape routes!
The bounty hunter's eyes widened behind his visor. He tried to decelerate using his jetpack thrusters, but it was too late!
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The improvised explosives detonated in sequence around SixSix's position, the concussive blasts catching him directly in their radius! The force sent his armored body spinning through the air, smoke trailing from his damaged jetpack as he struggled to maintain altitude!
Thick clouds of smoke now covered most of the highway behind them!
"Grandpa, hit the accelerator, the fastest speed you've got!" Asher slammed the window shut and dove back into his seat, urgently fastening his seatbelt. "Now!"
Gwen and Ben, sensing the urgency in his voice, immediately buckled themselves in as well, bracing for what was coming.
"Accelerator?" Max's lips curved into a slight smile, his weathered hands moving with practiced precision. His left hand gripped the steering wheel firmly while his right began pressing a sequence of buttons on the Rust Bucket's modified console.
The rear section of the RV began to transform. Like a mechanical beast awakening, panels shifted and reconfigured. A powerful rocket thruster emerged from the bottom of the vehicle, while two smaller auxiliary thrusters appeared on either side near the top. Stabilizing wings extended from the chassis to help maintain balance during high-speed travel.
The entire Rust Bucket had transformed from an ordinary recreational vehicle into something far more impressive, a road-worthy rocket vehicle that looked like it belonged in a science fiction movie!
"Alright then," Max said with quiet satisfaction, his eyes gleaming with anticipation. "Hold on tight!"
VROOOOM!!
The next instant, all three thrusters ignited simultaneously with a deafening roar. The Rust Bucket shot forward like a missile, suddenly becoming nothing more than a blur as it rocketed down the highway and vanished from sight in seconds!
"What the...?!" Asher's exclamation was cut short as the sudden acceleration slammed him back against his seat, the g-force pinning him in place.
His body pressed hard against the table in front of him before he managed to secure the seatbelt properly. Even Ben and Gwen were momentarily stunned by the incredible velocity.
Grandpa's old RV truly lived up to its deceptive appearance, looking like a broken-down wreck on the outside while hiding extraordinary capabilities beneath its battered exterior!
"When I grow up, I want a vehicle just like this!" Ben exclaimed, his eyes wide with excitement as the landscape outside became a streaking blur of colors.
Max's driving skills and the Rust Bucket's hidden modifications had turned him into something far cooler than Ben had ever imagined.
On the highway far behind them, the smoke from the explosions quickly dissipated in the wind.
Kraab and SixSix emerged from the clearing haze almost simultaneously, both showing signs of damage but still operational.
SixSix's expression had darkened considerably as he watched the Rust Bucket disappear into the distance. Despite the setback, confidence still radiated from his posture. He didn't believe that some Earth child, even with the Omnitrix, could defeat him, a seasoned mercenary who had hunted countless targets across the galaxy.
"Is this the child Vilgax warned us about?" Kraab said dismissively, his mechanical voice dripping with contempt. "He only knows how to use cheap tricks and dirty tactics."
While speaking, Kraab's massive pincer slowly extended toward SixSix's position, moving with deceptive casualness!
CLANG!!
The pincer suddenly snapped shut with tremendous force, but SixSix had already anticipated the betrayal. The armored mercenary had taken a quick step backward and drawn his energy katana in one fluid motion, gripping the weapon with both hands. The blade met Kraab's pincer with a shower of sparks!
The two weapons collided, sending hot sparks flying in all directions as metal screamed against energy!
"You think I don't know your game?" Kraab snarled, his optical sensors glaring at SixSix with barely contained rage. "You were waiting for me to get eliminated so you could claim the whole reward for yourself!"
The cyborg's voice took on a threatening edge. "Let me make this clear, SixSix, if I catch you trying to sabotage me again, I'll make sure you die alongside that kid!"
A third figure glided into view on a floating platform. Tetrax observed the two mercenaries arguing with mild exasperation.
"These two are completely hopeless," Tetrax muttered to himself, shaking his head at their petty rivalry. "If they keep fighting each other, they'll both end up beaten badly when we finally corner the boy."
Despite his words, a hint of curiosity flickered across his features. How powerful could this human child actually be? So far, they hadn't engaged in any real confrontation. The kid had shown cunning and resourcefulness, but was that enough to face seasoned bounty hunters?
SixSix's gaze shifted toward Tetrax for a brief moment, then returned to Kraab with cold calculation burning in his eyes behind the visor.
"We can't let him take advantage of us fighting," Kraab snorted coldly, retracting his massive pincer. He left one final warning hanging in the air. "The Omnitrix and that kid are mine to claim!"
Clack-clack-clack!
The cybernetic bounty hunter activated his highest speed setting. His four scythe-legs became a blur of motion, striking the pavement in a rapid rhythm as he raced after the Rust Bucket's trail, quickly disappearing down the highway.
SixSix's expression remained icy and dangerous as he slowly sheathed his energy katana. The armored warrior's posture radiated lethal intent as he engaged his jetpack and shot into the sky, pursuing from above like a bird of prey.
Tetrax followed silently on his hover platform, his crystalline features unreadable as all three bounty hunters continued their hunt.
Slaterville.
The rocket-propelled Rust Bucket gradually decelerated as it approached the abandoned town. Using its inertia, the vehicle glided to a stop right at the entrance to the settlement, its thrusters powering down with a declining whine.
The rocket boosters and stabilizing wings slowly retracted back into the RV's chassis, the transformation reversing itself until the vehicle looked like nothing more than an ordinary, beat-up recreational vehicle once again. The hood closed seamlessly, hiding all evidence of the advanced modifications.
"Whew." Asher unbuckled his seatbelt with trembling hands, fighting down a wave of nausea as he tried to adjust to solid ground again. His voice was filled with genuine admiration despite his discomfort. "Grandpa, I didn't realize the Rust Bucket could go that fast. That was incredible!"
Max couldn't help but look a bit proud, though he tried to maintain his usual modest demeanor. "Well, I've made quite a few modifications over the years. But I kept the speed moderate since I had you kids in the vehicle. If I'd really opened it up, you wouldn't have been able to handle the g-force."
"Why did we stop here?" Asher asked, looking out the window at the desolate ghost town stretching before them.
"This town is called Slaterville. It was to be our original destination for today," Max explained, his expression turning more serious as he gazed at the abandoned buildings. "There was once a productive silver mine underneath this area. But after decades of overexploitation, the deposits were exhausted and the mining became unprofitable. The people gradually moved away to find work elsewhere, and eventually the town was completely abandoned. It's been a ghost town for years now."
He gestured toward the empty streets and weathered structures. "This long-abandoned location gives us places to hide and maneuver. We won't be trapped in the open like we were on the highway. Besides, no civilians live here anymore, so there's no risk of innocent people getting caught in the crossfire when those mercenaries catch up to us."
"Grandpa really thinks of everything," Gwen said with genuine admiration, impressed by Max's tactical reasoning and his concern for protecting others.
Asher glanced down at the Omnitrix on his wrist, checking its status.
The symbol had turned green, fully charged and ready for transformation!
His expression immediately shifted, filling with fierce determination and barely contained anticipation. A fire ignited in his eyes that hadn't been there moments before.
Mercenaries hunting them down? Bounty hunters sent by Vilgax to steal the Omnitrix?
He'd show them whether the alien heroes were stronger, or if these so-called elite hunters were really as dangerous as they seemed!
Of course, Asher didn't transform immediately. Instead, he climbed out of the Rust Bucket with Ben and Gwen, following Max as they moved deeper into Slaterville's abandoned buildings. They found a large, dilapidated warehouse that offered good sight lines and multiple escape routes.
Asher intended to wait for the perfect moment. Let the hunters come to them. Then he'd spring his trap and show these mercenaries exactly what the Omnitrix could do.
The game of cat and mouse was about to reverse, and the hunted were preparing to become the hunters.