Kevin Levin didn't stop running until his lungs burned and his vision blurred.
He didn't know where he was going. Streets blurred together, streetlights streaking past as his boots slammed against concrete. Every step sent pain shooting through his bones as unstable energy surged and receded inside his body like a storm with no center.
Ben's face wouldn't leave his mind.
That stupid, confused look.
That empty wrist.
*Liar,* Kevin thought viciously.
And yet…
The pull was weaker now.
Not gone—but fractured, like a signal bouncing off broken glass.
Kevin slammed his fist into a brick wall, concrete exploding outward. He roared, clutching his head as the feedback spiked painfully.
"Shut up! Just shut up!"
But the energy didn't obey.
It never did.
---
## **Bellwood — Later That Night**
Ben walked home slowly, shoulders heavy, every shadow seeming deeper than before. The power station loomed behind him like a scar in the landscape.
Kevin's words echoed in his ears.
*This is your fault.*
Ben didn't want to believe it.
But part of him did.
He pushed open the front door and froze.
The lights were on.
Grandpa Max sat at the kitchen table, hands folded, expression calm.
Ben's heart leapt. "Grandpa!"
He rushed forward—then stopped.
Something was wrong.
Max looked… tired. Older somehow. And there was a faint shimmer in the air around him, like heat haze.
Gwen stepped out from the hallway, eyes widening. "Ben—wait!"
Too late.
Max looked up.
"Sit down, Ben," he said gently. "We need to talk."
Ben swallowed and sat.
The air grew heavy.
"This isn't really you, is it?" Ben asked quietly.
Max smiled sadly. "No. Not entirely."
The shimmer intensified, resolving into faint red-gold symbols hovering just beneath his skin.
Ben's fists clenched. "Vilgax."
"Indirectly," Max replied. "This is a recorded projection—activated when you entered the house."
Ben's chest tightened.
"I needed to make sure you heard this before things got worse," Max continued. "The Plumbers are compromised. Communications are being intercepted. Anyone too close to you becomes a liability."
Gwen stepped closer. "Then why are you here?"
Max's eyes met hers. "Because you're already targets."
The projection flickered.
"Ben," Max said softly, "whatever Vilgax took… it was never meant for conquest. I don't know why, but that device reacts to you. I've seen the data. Every time Vilgax pushes it, Earth lights up like a beacon."
Ben whispered, "So it's true…"
"I don't know if it was meant for you specifically," Max said. "But I know this—if you didn't matter, Vilgax would have killed you already."
The projection began to destabilize.
"I'm going off-grid," Max said quickly. "You and Gwen need to stay mobile. Trust no one. And Ben—"
The image flickered violently.
"Don't let him convince you this is your fault."
The projection vanished.
Silence filled the kitchen.
Gwen wiped her eyes angrily. "I hate him."
Ben stared at the empty chair.
"So do I."
---
## **Orbit — Chimera Prime**
Vilgax observed the projection's termination with mild interest.
"Plumber asset successfully isolated," the AI reported. "Psychological reinforcement delivered."
Vilgax nodded. "Acceptable."
He shifted focus.
Kevin Levin had holed up in an abandoned warehouse at the edge of Bellwood. His energy readings were spiking dangerously, absorption levels oscillating between overload and collapse.
"A flawed weapon," Vilgax murmured.
But flawed weapons could still be useful.
"Deploy secondary contact," Vilgax ordered.
---
## **Warehouse District — Night**
Kevin crouched amid twisted metal and broken crates, breathing hard. His skin flickered between steel, stone, and glowing energy as his powers slipped out of control.
"Get out of my head," he muttered.
Footsteps echoed.
Kevin snapped upright. "I said get out!"
A woman stepped into the light—tall, composed, eyes glowing faintly blue.
"I'm not here to fight you," she said calmly.
Kevin laughed harshly. "Everyone says that."
She stopped several meters away. "My name is Nyssa. I work for someone who understands what it's like to be… unfinished."
Kevin's eyes narrowed. "Another Vilgax stooge?"
Nyssa tilted her head. "Vilgax doesn't use stooges. He uses outcomes."
Kevin snorted. "Then why are you here?"
Nyssa raised her hand.
A small device activated, projecting data streams into the air—readings of Kevin's energy absorption, his genetic instability, projections of his eventual breakdown.
Kevin stared.
"This is what happens if you stay like this," Nyssa said evenly. "You burn out. You die. Or worse—you hurt people you don't want to hurt."
Kevin's jaw clenched. "And your solution?"
Nyssa smiled faintly. "Control."
She changed the projection.
A stabilized version of Kevin appeared—stronger, calmer, fully conscious.
"This is possible," she said. "But not alone."
Kevin looked away. "I'm not joining Vilgax."
Nyssa stepped closer. "You already felt it, didn't you? The echo. The absence."
Kevin flinched.
"You're not drawn to power," Nyssa continued. "You're drawn to what was stolen. And the boy—Ben Tennyson—he's standing between you and it."
Kevin snapped, "He doesn't even have it!"
Nyssa nodded. "Exactly."
Kevin's breathing slowed.
"That means," Nyssa said softly, "you can take what he *represents*."
Kevin's eyes darkened.
---
## **Bellwood — Rooftop**
Ben stood on the roof, staring at the stars.
Somewhere out there, Vilgax was watching.
Ben clenched his fists.
"I won't break," he whispered.
Above him, far beyond sight, Vilgax turned away from the display.
"Good," he said calmly.
"Because broken things are predictable."
His gaze shifted back to Kevin Levin.
"But fractures…"
A thin smile formed.
"…are dangerous."