Kevin Levin arrived in Bellwood with fire in his veins and rage in his heart.
The train screeched to a halt, metal grinding against metal, sparks showering the platform as Kevin jumped down before it had fully stopped. He didn't care about the startled looks or the shouted warnings. His skin shimmered faintly, rippling like heat over asphalt, absorbing stray energy from the rail system beneath his feet.
It made the pain quieter.
Not gone.
Never gone.
But manageable.
Kevin clenched his fists, feeling electricity crawl across his knuckles, and exhaled sharply. Bellwood smelled wrong. Too clean. Too normal. Places like this always hid something rotten beneath the surface.
And something had *called* him here.
Not a voice.
A pull.
A pressure behind his eyes that hadn't existed yesterday.
He snarled and started walking.
---
## **Bellwood — Evening**
Ben slammed the door shut behind him and locked it, heart pounding so hard it hurt. His breath came in short, panicked bursts as he leaned against the wall, sliding down until he hit the floor.
Grandpa Max was missing.
Not kidnapped in some dramatic explosion.
Not attacked.
Just… gone.
The house was intact. No signs of struggle. No scorch marks. No broken furniture.
That scared Ben more than anything.
Gwen stood in the living room, phone pressed to her ear, her voice tight. "No, he wouldn't just leave. You don't know Grandpa like that. Call me if you hear anything—please."
She hung up and turned to Ben.
"This isn't random," she said quietly.
Ben nodded. "Vilgax."
The name tasted bitter.
Gwen sat beside him, her usual sarcasm stripped away. "Ben… how does he know so much about you?"
Ben stared at his hands.
"I don't know," he admitted. "But it feels like… like he's always been watching. Even before I knew he existed."
Gwen frowned. "That doesn't make sense."
"No," Ben agreed. "It doesn't."
The Omnitrix pulsed faintly on Vilgax's warship, light-years away.
Ben flinched.
---
## **Orbit — Chimera Prime**
Vilgax observed the moment Ben faltered.
The Omnitrix responded to the boy's emotional spike, sending a ripple through Vilgax's systems. Not enough to disrupt control. Not enough to cause instability.
But enough to confirm the pattern.
"The Echo Variable persists," the AI reported. "Magnitude increasing with psychological stress."
Vilgax folded his hands behind his back.
"Good," he said. "Stress sharpens truth."
He shifted focus.
Kevin Levin's bio-signature flared on the tactical display, erratic and volatile. Energy absorption levels spiked far beyond safe parameters.
"Subject Kevin Levin," the AI continued. "Genetic anomaly. High compatibility with Omnitrix energy matrices. Severe psychological instability."
Vilgax's eyes gleamed.
"In another timeline," Vilgax said thoughtfully, "you were a blunt instrument."
He opened a channel.
"Agent Threx."
The disguised infiltrator appeared instantly. "My lord."
"Engage Kevin Levin," Vilgax ordered. "Do not recruit him. Do not restrain him. Do not kill him."
Threx hesitated. "Clarification?"
Vilgax smiled faintly.
"Push him toward Ben Tennyson."
---
## **Bellwood — Abandoned Power Station**
Kevin found the place without knowing how.
The pull intensified as he approached, the air humming with latent energy. He kicked the rusted door open and stepped inside, absorbing electricity from cracked conduits like a starving animal.
"Yeah…" Kevin muttered, eyes glowing faintly. "That's the stuff."
Slow clapping echoed from the shadows.
Kevin spun, energy flaring across his skin. "Who's there?!"
A man stepped into the light—tall, calm, wearing an expression that didn't match the setting.
"You're hurting," the man said evenly.
Kevin laughed bitterly. "No kidding."
"You don't belong in places like this," the stranger continued. "But someone in this town does."
Kevin narrowed his eyes. "What are you talking about?"
The man activated a small projector.
A green watch appeared in the hologram.
Kevin's breath caught.
"I felt that," he whispered.
The man nodded. "Everyone like you does. There's a boy here who attracts power like gravity."
Kevin's fists clenched. "Where is he?"
The man smiled.
---
## **Bellwood — Night**
Ben couldn't stay inside anymore.
The silence was crushing him.
He slipped out the back door, hoodie pulled tight, scanning the street for anything out of place. The town looked normal. Peaceful.
That was the worst part.
The Omnitrix pulsed again.
Ben grabbed his wrist. "Stop," he hissed. "You're not even on me!"
But somewhere, deep inside him, something answered.
A sudden explosion rocked the night.
Ben spun toward the sound.
The old power station.
"Oh no…"
He ran.
---
## **The Power Station — Collision**
Kevin burst through the wall like a wrecking ball, chunks of concrete flying as energy surged through his body. Sparks danced along his arms, his grin wild and unhinged.
"This place is amazing!" he shouted. "I could live here!"
"Kevin!" a voice called.
Kevin turned.
Ben stood at the entrance, breathing hard, eyes wide.
The moment their gazes locked—
The Omnitrix flared aboard Chimera Prime.
Vilgax stiffened.
"There it is," he murmured.
On Earth, Kevin staggered as if punched.
"What the hell—?" Kevin growled, clutching his head. "You're the pull. You're the reason it won't shut up!"
Ben raised his hands. "I don't know what you're talking about!"
Kevin laughed harshly. "Liar!"
Energy exploded outward.
Ben barely managed to roll aside as the floor disintegrated.
"Kevin, stop!" Ben shouted. "I'm not your enemy!"
Kevin snarled. "Everyone's my enemy!"
He lunged.
Ben slapped his wrist reflexively.
Nothing happened.
Kevin froze mid-strike.
"…What?" Ben whispered.
Kevin stared at Ben's wrist, eyes burning. "Where is it?"
Ben swallowed. "It's not here."
For the first time, doubt flickered across Kevin's face.
Then—
Red-gold symbols ignited across the walls.
A containment field snapped into place, sealing them inside.
Kevin roared. "What is this?!"
Ben's heart dropped.
"No…"
A hologram flickered to life above them.
Vilgax's massive form filled the chamber, eyes cold and calculating.
"Fascinating," Vilgax said. "Two anomalies in one location."
Ben clenched his fists. "What did you do to Grandpa Max?!"
Vilgax didn't answer.
Instead, he studied Kevin.
"You feel it, don't you?" Vilgax continued. "The absence. The theft."
Kevin snarled. "You did this to me!"
Vilgax inclined his head slightly. "No. You were already broken. I simply removed direction."
Ben stepped forward. "Leave him alone!"
Vilgax's gaze shifted to Ben.
"You still think this is about ownership," Vilgax said calmly. "It is not."
The hologram faded.
The containment field dropped.
Silence fell.
Kevin backed away slowly, breathing hard. "This is your fault," he said to Ben, voice shaking. "All of it."
Then he ran.
Ben stood there, chest tight, the echoes of Vilgax's words ringing in his head.
Somewhere above the stars, Vilgax turned away from the display.
"The variable named Kevin," he said softly, "will either break you…"
His eyes gleamed.
"…or break for you."