PS: The combat robots deployed by Vilgax have modular components that can integrate with biological hosts to enhance physical capabilities while simultaneously granting technological abilities to the user.
...
In the alley.
Kevin's face remained the only visible part of his human form, everything else was encased in the sleek, metallic armor of Vilgax's battle robot. The mechanical plating covered him like some kind of humanoid Gundam, transforming him into a terrifying fusion of boy and machine. His skin had taken on a faint reddish tinge, gradually shifting to match the crimson coloration of the robot components he'd absorbed. But despite this physical change, the coldness burning in his eyes remained completely unchanged.
"Roar!"
He let out a feral, guttural growl and casually drove his armored fist into the brick wall beside him.
BOOM!
The wall exploded on impact, torn apart in an instant! The structural damage spread outward, more than thirty feet of brick and mortar crumbled into rubble, leaving gaping holes throughout the alley's perimeter!
"My strength... it's so much stronger than before!!"
Kevin retracted his fist with barely contained excitement, then clenched it again, feeling the power coursing through his enhanced body. The sensation was intoxicating, raw, overwhelming force at his command!
Beyond the enormous surge in physical strength, crackling blue currents of electricity danced across his armored form, creating an especially striking visual display against the darkness!
His superpower, his electrical abilities, had returned.
It was as if he'd been injected with adrenaline, reborn with capabilities that eclipsed everything he'd possessed before!
He genuinely believed he could now defeat any alien transformation that Asher could throw at him!
"Asher, Asher... I really should thank you," Kevin's expression twisted into something icy and cruel, the corners of his mouth pulling back into an unhinged, maniacal smile. "You helped me gain such incredible power. To properly express my gratitude..."
His voice dropped to a menacing whisper.
"I'll save you for last."
The murderous intent within his heart swelled infinitely, consuming what little remained of his conscience. His legs bent, coiling like compressed springs, then he launched himself upward like a flea, a powerful leap that carried him into the vast darkness above!
He moved through the shadows like something out of a cyberpunk nightmare!
Meanwhile, at the supermarket.
After Heatblast released his transformation, he quickly rejoined Ben and the others, arriving just as the supermarket was closing for the night and the final customers were being ushered out.
The group wandered through the nearly empty aisles together, picking up various supplies, snacks, playing cards, and other miscellaneous items. They browsed leisurely, examining products with the relaxed air of people who had nowhere else to be.
It wasn't until Asher finally protested, when they'd accumulated enough shopping bags that he could barely carry them all, that the other three finally stopped their impulsive buying spree and agreed to head back to the hotel with their numerous purchases.
After all, they'd been through a lot recently. Everyone needed some way to vent their stress and decompress. After this impromptu shopping therapy session, they all felt considerably more relaxed and at ease.
By nine-thirty in the evening, Asher and the others had settled in for the night and gone to sleep.
By ten o'clock, Max had also turned in for the night.
They were staying in a large deluxe suite with five separate beds, so everyone had their own sleeping space and privacy.
The room was peaceful and quiet, filled only with the soft sounds of sleeping breaths.
But under the highway overpass across town, a very different scene was unfolding.
A chorus of terrified screams shattered the night!!
"Wh-what is that thing?!"
"That monster, Kevin was swallowed by that mechanical monster!!"
"Don't come any closer!! I'm warning you, come any closer and I'll scream for help!" one gang member shouted desperately, his voice cracking with panic.
A group of street punks who'd been living rough under the overpass kept backing away, retreating until they were pressed against the concrete support pillars with nowhere left to run!
Standing before them was Kevin, except he was barely recognizable as human anymore. His body was completely encased in alien machinery, crackling electricity dancing across his form, his expression absolutely chilling to behold. He looked like some kind of humanoid monster straight out of a nightmare!!
"Good evening," Kevin said pleasantly, his voice distorted by the mechanical components.
Then his expression went completely flat.
"Goodbye."
Kevin raised his wrist with casual indifference. Mounted on his forearm was a compact red muzzle, a weapon system integrated into the robot's design.
"No, please, "
FWOOSH!!
The weapon discharged with barely a flash of crimson light. Even the weakest energy setting from Kevin's new armament transformed into a concentrated beam that pierced straight through the gang members' bodies.
Clean through.
The punks collapsed one after another, hitting the ground in rapid succession. Before death claimed them, their faces were frozen in expressions of pure terror, fear, desperate pleas for mercy, begging that went completely unheard.
Each body bore a perfectly circular hole burned straight through their chest.
"I feel so much better now."
Kevin displayed a disturbingly morbid smile, laughing with unhinged excitement for several long moments. He even began to dance, spinning and celebrating his newfound power with manic energy!!
After a few minutes of this disturbing celebration, his expression went completely stern again. He roared into the night, "But it's not enough! They got off too easy! I need to continue! After I've eliminated every single one of my enemies, this city, no, this entire planet, will be mine!!"
Then he vanished once more into the darkness, leaving only corpses behind.
It wasn't until someone happened to pass by the overpass and discovered the cluster of cold bodies lying beneath it that anyone realized what had happened. Their horrified screams finally brought attention to the massacre.
The night passed.
"We're here live at the scene, and as you can see, the deaths of these individuals are absolutely horrific..."
Early in the morning, what pulled Asher from sleep wasn't his alarm clock, it was the sound of the television coming from the living room.
He opened his eyes groggily, squinting at Max's slightly blurred figure sitting on the couch, watching the television news with intense concentration.
Asher smacked his lips drowsily, turned over, and pulled his blanket up over his ears, fully intending to go back to sleep.
FWOOSH!!
Asher's eyes suddenly snapped wide open. He jolted awake from his groggy state, sitting bolt upright from his lying position. He wiped the sleep from his eyes and stared intently at the television screen!
On TV, a news anchor was standing at the base of a highway overpass, with police tape and barriers set up behind her. She was surrounded by other reporters, all wearing expressions that mixed fear with professional composure.
Beyond the isolation line lay the crime scene.
Several dead bodies!!
Asher studied their faces, they seemed somewhat familiar.
The wounds that had completely pierced through their bodies were neat and uniform, looking exactly like the kind of damage caused by a high-powered laser weapon!
"We still don't know who committed this atrocity..." the news anchor was saying.
Just then, someone rushed up to her side urgently and whispered something in her ear.
Her expression changed dramatically, and her tone became significantly more urgent, "We're receiving breaking news, there are multiple additional bodies discovered at an abandoned building known as 'Homeless Haven'! Same wounds! This appears to be the work of a serial killer targeting the city's homeless population!"
Two separate crime scenes, double the casualties!
"Asher," Max said, his hand under his chin in a thoughtful pose. He'd noticed Asher watching from the bedroom and offered his assessment without preamble. "These kinds of injuries could only be inflicted by Vilgax's alien technology."
"I agree," Asher said, frowning as he processed the information. "But something doesn't fit. Vilgax wouldn't do something like this."
"What makes you say that?" Max asked with genuine curiosity.
"Based on everything we know about Vilgax and his operational patterns," Asher explained carefully, "every time he takes action, it's highly purposeful and strategic. He's always coming directly after me, after the Omnitrix. This kind of random killing spree doesn't match his methodology at all. In other words, someone else must have gotten their hands on alien technology and is using it to commit these murders!"
In just a few sentences, Asher had cleared Vilgax of suspicion and identified the real nature of the threat.
The question was: who had acquired the technology?
Wait...
Asher's eyes suddenly widened as realization struck him!
After staring at the television coverage for several more seconds, he finally recognized the faces of the victims shown on screen.
They were those gang members!!
The same punks who'd been extorting and threatening Kevin yesterday, the ones Asher had taught a lesson to!
This incident definitely had something to do with Kevin!
"But I already absorbed that kid Kevin's electrical powers using Buzzshock," Asher muttered, confused. "I even enhanced my own abilities with his energy. How could he possibly do something like this?"
The situation didn't make sense.
"Wait, those are the people from yesterday!"
"Yeah, it's definitely them!"
Two surprised voices came from behind Asher.
Ben and Gwen had also woken up, and they immediately recognized the gang members on the television. Unlike Asher, who remained relatively composed, they weren't nearly as calm, they actually shouted out loud in shock.
After all, seeing people who'd been alive and threatening just yesterday now lying dead on the television was genuinely disturbing.
Their expressions showed a mixture of fear and disbelief, their mouths hanging open slightly as they struggled to process what they were seeing.
"Asher, do you know these people?" Max turned to face him seriously, asking the question with the tone of someone who needed answers.
Asher took the opportunity to explain everything that had happened with the gang members yesterday, as well as the entire situation involving Kevin and how it had all unfolded.