Chapter 76: Ten Thousand Monsters, No Regrets
The ground groaned under the sheer force of the impact, a massive crater spiderwebbing outward where Vilgax and Cannonbolt had crashed. Dust and debris billowed into the air, choking the battlefield.
Cannonbolt was the first to stir. The hulking Arburian Pelarota uncurled his armored plates, groaning as he dragged himself out of the pulverized earth. He heard a sharp, buzzing hum overhead and looked up. Hovering above him was Stinkfly, young Ben's current transformation.
"Maybe he saw through all your moves," Cannonbolt grunted, his deep voice rumbling with exhaustion and lingering adrenaline. "But does he know what I, Ben Tennyson, am truly capable of? I just hope you haven't forgotten everything after all this time."
A roar shook the crater as Vilgax launched himself out of the pit, his cybernetic muscles bulging. "You are both dead!"
An emerald light flashed brilliantly against the dust cloud. Stinkfly vanished, and young Ben dropped gracefully to the ground, a sleek hoverboard clutched in his hand. He shot Cannonbolt a cocky grin. "Maybe I should start learning a few moves from you."
Cannonbolt offered a knowing, heavy smile.
"Are you finally going to surrender?" Vilgax sneered, his red eyes locked onto the boy. He clearly looked down on Ben for reverting to his human form. To the galactic conqueror, a fleshy human body was devoid of any special features—fragile, pathetic, and extremely weak.
"Actually, I'm just planning to end this the traditional way." Ben walked right up to his older counterpart, reaching out to tap the Omnitrix symbol embedded on Cannonbolt's chest armor. "Follow my lead!"
With a blinding flash of green, Cannonbolt's form shifted, expanding and crystallizing until Diamondhead stood in his place. Without missing a beat, young Ben tossed the hoverboard onto the ground, hopped on, and shot forward, charging directly at Vilgax.
Vilgax roared, swinging his massive, razor-sharp claws at the boy. Ben ducked nimbly, the hoverboard banking hard to the left. While Vilgax's entire focus was consumed by his hatred for the younger Ben, Diamondhead lunged from the flank, driving a heavy, crystalline fist straight into the warlord's jaw.
Vilgax staggered, narrowly dodging a follow-up strike, but before he could retaliate against the Petrosapien, Ben zipped back around, buzzing his hoverboard right past Vilgax's face to break his concentration.
The rhythm was flawless. Ben played the bait, drawing Vilgax's furious, uncoordinated attacks, while Diamondhead capitalized on every blind spot, landing punishing blows. Vilgax quickly realized the strategy, but his burning vendetta against the boy clouded his judgment. He was entirely willing to suffer physical damage if it meant he could finally tear young Ben apart.
Seeing the warlord's tunnel vision, Ben gunned the hoverboard's thrusters, leading Vilgax on a high-speed chase away from the crater. Vilgax pursued relentlessly, his heavy footfalls cracking the pavement.
They approached a large, decorative reflection pool in the center of the plaza. Vilgax put on a burst of speed, closing the distance and swiping his claws in a lethal arc. Ben leaped off the board just in time. The cybernetic claws shredded the hoverboard into useless scrap metal, sending Ben tumbling across the concrete.
Before Vilgax could finish the boy, Diamondhead slammed both hands into the earth. A massive, jagged pillar of solid diamond erupted from the ground beneath Vilgax's feet, launching the warlord backward and sending him crashing heavily into the deep pool.
Vilgax thrashed, immediately trying to swim to the surface.
Ben slapped the Omnitrix dial. An emerald flash illuminated the plaza, and Arctiguana stood in his place. He opened his jaws and unleashed a concentrated beam of absolute zero energy. The blue freezing ray struck the water, instantly flash-freezing the entire pool into a solid block of thick ice, trapping Vilgax completely from the neck down.
Diamondhead walked over, crossing his crystalline arms as he admired the frozen warlord. "Arctiguana! That's so cool!"
"That name... cool!" Arctiguana nodded, clearly pleased with himself.
A green light washed over him, and he reverted to young Ben. He suddenly felt a renewed interest in naming his alien heroes. He definitely needed more practice, though. His previous idea of calling the alien 'Absolute Zero'was significantly worse than'Arctiguana'.
"My Cousin also has this alien hero," Ben said, dusting off his jacket.
A red light flashed beside him, and Diamondhead transformed back into the older, battle-hardened Ben 10,000.
"Is that so?" Ben 10K asked, raising an eyebrow. "How many can he transform into? Does he have ten thousand?"
"I don't know. I asked him once, but he wasn't sure either. He said he hadn't bothered counting because there were just too many."
The two Bens turned and began walking back toward the facility, chatting casually as if they hadn't just defeated the conqueror of ten worlds.
...
Sector EA Central.
Dr. Animo's disembodied head sat inside its life-support jar, his brain practically boiling with delirium. He lay on the floor, completely immobilized.
Nearby, Swampfire was busy wrapping thick, unbreakable vines around Animo's headless, mutated gorilla body, securing it tightly to a structural pillar. With a final tug, Swampfire ripped the remaining neural tentacles out of the glass jar's interface, completely severing Animo's control over the facility's systems.
Just as Swampfire finished, Ben and Ben 10K strolled into the room.
"Everything is resolved now," Ben 10K said, reverting to his human form. He stood with his hands on his hips, looking down at the pathetic sight of Dr. Animo.
"Heh heh... all resolved?! Don't even think about it!"
Hearing Ben 10K's voice, Animo's head suddenly twitched, his eyes snapping open with manic glee.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
A series of massive explosions violently shook the foundation of the building, echoing from the city outside.
The facility's automated mechanical voice began blaring over the intercoms. [Danger Alert! Sector 13D! Danger Alert! Sector 16E! Danger Alert!...]
"Animo! What have you done?!" Ben 10K demanded, his expression darkening.
"Since my grand design has already succeeded, it hardly matters if I tell you!" Animo's head cackled, his voice distorted through the glass. "I bypassed your security and stole ten thousand DNA samples from the Sector 15D gene bank! I cultivated them into ten thousand unique mutants, forming an unstoppable monster army! Did you really think I wanted to activate the Null Void Projector? Fools! I was merely buying time for my monsters to finish incubating! Now, you are all finished! Hahahahaha!"
The mad scientist's head threw back in a fit of hysterical, unhinged laughter.
"That's a really ugly laugh."
Klein stepped forward from the shadows. Without breaking stride, he casually swung his leg and kicked the glass jar containing Animo's head like a soccer ball.
The jar flew across the room and smashed violently against the steel wall. With a loud crash, the reinforced glass shattered into pieces. The life-support fluid spilled across the floor, and Animo's head rolled to a stop, instantly unconscious. The mad scientist was the first to be finished.
The sounds of explosions and distant screams continued to bleed in from the outside world. Ben 10K turned toward the exit, panic flashing in his eyes. "Damn it! There's no time to stop them all!"
"Ben, we're here too," Klein said calmly, adjusting his cuffs as Gwen and the others walked up behind him.
Ben 10K was stunned for a moment, but before he could formulate a plan, a very familiar, gruff voice echoed from the loading bay.
"No one is going to hurt my grandson!"
The Rustbucket tore through the entrance, its tires screeching against the concrete. The heavy door swung open, and Grandpa Max stepped out, clad in heavy tactical armor and wielding a massive energy rifle.
"Is assistance needed here?! Galactic Enforcers reporting for duty!"
A brilliant blue teleportation beam struck the floor, and the three-person Galactic Enforcers team materialized in heroic poses. Ultimos floated at the front, flanked by the massive Tini and the floating brain, Synaptak.
"Alright then," Ben 10K said, deeply moved by the sudden arrival of his family and allies. He quickly recovered his composure and began barking orders. "I'll take Sector 13D. You and Gwen go to—"
"No need to overcomplicate it. There are too many zones," Klein interrupted, stretching his neck until it popped. "Just go for it. Whoever finds a monster, it's theirs." A smirk tugged at the corner of Klein's mouth. "Now is Hero Time."
Klein didn't wait for a response. He sprinted toward the shattered window, leaped into the open air, and tapped the faceplate of the Another Omnitrix while in freefall.
"Jetray!"
A ghostly blue light erupted in the sky. Klein's transformed, manta-like figure shot forward with a sonic boom, tearing through the clouds straight toward Sector 16E.
Seeing his cousin take off, young Ben grinned, dialed his Omnitrix, and transformed into Stinkfly, buzzing rapidly toward Sector 13D. Gwen and Verdona exchanged a nod before glowing with pink mana, taking to the skies to cover different locations.
"Ben, I'm going first. Finally, I don't have to be the one getting beaten up by you," Ultimos joked, offering a crisp salute before flying off with Synaptak and Tini. "Galactic Enforcers, move out!"
Grandpa Max pumped his energy rifle, looking at his older grandson. "I hope you don't mind me interfering."
Ben 10K shook his head, a genuine smile breaking through his stress. "Thanks, Grandpa."
...
Sector 15G was in ruins. Ben 10K, currently transformed into Fasttrack, skidded to a halt amidst the rubble. Towering above the destroyed buildings was a bizarre, heavily mutated giant—a monstrosity Animo had clearly spliced together using Tokustar DNA.
With a flash of green light, Fasttrack's form rapidly expanded, growing taller than the skyscrapers until Way Big stood in the center of the city.
"How dare you!" Way Big bellowed.
He stepped forward, planted his feet, and delivered a devastating, full-body punch that caught the mutant giant square in the jaw, sending the ten-thousand-ton monster crashing into the pavement, unconscious in a single strike.
...
High above the burning city ruins, Klein soared through the smoke as Jetray. Below him, large-scale explosions continuously rocked the streets as hundreds of grotesque, mismatched monsters tore through the infrastructure.
Klein folded his wings and dove straight down. As he neared the pavement, his hand slapped the Omnitrix symbol on his chest.
The ghostly blue light flared. When his feet touched the ground, the heavy, metallic gears of Clockwork whirred to life.
Clockwork planted his copper feet firmly into the cracked asphalt. He tilted his bulky torso upward, and the large golden mainspring on top of his head began to rotate rapidly. A piercing, ghostly blue beam of temporal energy shot straight into the sky, expanding outward to form a massive, semi-circular dome that enveloped the entire city sector.
The energy shield pulsed, and then began to forcefully contract.
Everywhere the ghostly blue light passed, the fundamental flow of time reversed. Shattered concrete flew back into place, reforming buildings. Crushed cars un-crumpled. Fires shrank and vanished into unburnt fuel. And the rampaging monsters, caught in the temporal wash, shrieked as their bodies rapidly de-aged, breaking down into puddles of unstable genetic fluid before evaporating into nothingness.
By the time the temporal dome fully retracted into the glowing gears on Clockwork's chest, the city sector was completely pristine. The monsters were gone, erased as if they had never existed.
...
Although Animo had unleashed ten thousand monsters, their strength was severely lacking due to their rushed, incomplete genetic structures. It took very little time for Klein, the Galactic Enforcers, and the Tennyson family to completely clear the board.
Soon, everyone gathered back at the Ben 10,000 headquarters. The atmosphere was light and festive, because today was officially Grandpa Max's eightieth birthday.
Max sat at the center of the room, radiating happiness. Not only was his wife, Verdona, here to celebrate with him, but he was surrounded by three grandchildren from another timeline, and even his own timeline's Ben, who hadn't taken the time to just sit and be with him in years.
Suddenly, the headquarters' primary danger alert began blaring again, flashing red lights across the ceiling.
Ultimos subconsciously stood up and shouted, "Ben!"
Ben 10K didn't even flinch. He took a sip of his drink, glanced at Max, and then turned a deadpan look toward Ultimos. "Hey, can't you see I'm celebrating my Grandpa's birthday? It's up to you guys."
Ultimos blinked, then realized what was happening. He smiled knowingly, puffing out his chest. "Leave it to us! Galactic Enforcers, move out!"
With a dramatic flourish, Ultimos flew out of the headquarters, closely followed by Synaptak and Tini.
Gwen stood near the back of the room, holding a cup of punch. She looked over at Verdona. "So, the 'terrible crisis' you mentioned to us back in our timeline... it had nothing to do with Vilgax or Dr. Animo at all, did it? It was just Ben's attitude that needed to be corrected."
"Yes," Verdona smiled warmly, her Anodite energy shimmering slightly. "Ben can be quite foolish sometimes. He carries the weight of the world, but forgets why he's carrying it. Now, his crisis is resolved." Verdona's eyes twinkled as she leaned in slightly, looking at Gwen with a teasing smirk. "But your problem hasn't been solved yet."
Gwen looked puzzled. "My problem?"
Verdona chuckled, glancing subtly toward where Klein was standing. "I just hope your Cousin isn't too foolish either."
Gwen's face instantly flushed crimson. She knew exactly who Verdona was referring to. A wave of panic washed over her as she felt like her deepest, most guarded secret had just been laid bare. How did she find out?!
Verdona merely patted Gwen's shoulder, her smile widening. "Alright, let's go."
Klein and young Ben walked over, realizing it was time for them to return. Their own Grandpa Max was still waiting for them back in the past.
Verdona raised her hands, chanting a soft, melodic spell. Pink mana swirled through the air, tearing open the fabric of space to form a glowing golden portal.
"Wait," Ben 10K called out, jogging over to stop young Ben. He held out a carefully wrapped bakery box. "This is for you. This is something I should have given Grandpa twenty years ago."
Young Ben reached out to take it, but Klein's hand shot out, gently pushing the box back toward Ben 10K.
Ben 10K looked confused, but Klein met his gaze with a calm, steady expression. "Remember what I said? With me around, Ben won't have any regrets. Just because our Grandpa didn't have a cake on your tenth birthday doesn't mean we won't have one on ours. Keep it. Give it to him yourself."
Ben 10K was stunned for a moment. He looked at the box, then at Klein, and finally let out a genuine, relaxed grin. "It seems having a Cousin like that is quite enviable."
"Of course!" young Ben puffed out his chest, standing proudly with his hands on his hips. Even though Klein was lazy, trolled him constantly, and occasionally beat him up during training, Ben knew one absolute truth: when it mattered most, his cousin would always have his back.
...
Klein, Ben, and Gwen stepped through the golden portal, the warm light washing over them before fading away.
When they opened their eyes, they were standing just outside the Rustbucket in their own timeline. Not much time had passed since they left. The campfire was still smoldering, and Grandpa Max had not yet returned from the woods with the extra firewood.
Klein walked into the Rustbucket, opened the small refrigerator, and pulled out the cake he had secretly bought earlier. He carried it outside and set it gently on the picnic table. When he opened the box, a perfectly decorated, exquisite birthday cake sat waiting for them.
Gwen quickly arranged the candles, and Ben used a tiny spark from Heatblast's form to light them.
Just as the final candle flickered to life, the sound of heavy footsteps crunched against the dirt path. Grandpa Max emerged from the treeline, carrying a bundle of logs, his face breaking into a confused but delighted smile as he saw the glowing table.
"Happy Birthday, Grandpa!"
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