Chapter 236: The Battle with Vilgax is About to Begin
The group stood before a massive, brightly colored dome constructed entirely of interlocking, segmented building blocks. It looked like a giant, surreal toy structure dropped right into the middle of the landscape.
"Wow, Dweeb, is this a new alien hero? I haven't seen this guy before!" Ben stared up at the towering Bloxx semicircle, his eyes wide with genuine excitement.
Without warning, a blocky, gorilla-like head extruded itself from the nearest wall of the structure.
"Alright, enough gawking. Hurry up and retrieve Spidermonkey," Bloxx said, his voice echoing slightly from the synthetic material.
As soon as the words left his mouth, the head retracted smoothly into the wall. A moment later, a large section of the dome shifted and slid open, revealing a wide entryway.
Stepping inside, the trio immediately spotted their target. Spidermonkey was thoroughly immobilized, pinned tightly against the floor by a series of heavy blocks with only his furry blue head exposed. He chattered in mild distress.
Ben stepped forward and tapped the faceplate of the Omnitrix. A brilliant green beam shot out, washing over the trapped arachnid chimp. In a flash of emerald energy, Spidermonkey dissolved into digital light and was pulled back into the watch.
Ben glanced down at his wrist. The previously grayed-out Spidermonkey icon was now glowing a healthy, vibrant green. A surge of adrenaline chased away his fatigue. "Awesome! Let's hurry up and track down Goop and Way Big!"
Sometime later, the Rustbucket was parked discreetly on a quiet street in Bellwood.
Kevin, Gwen, Ben, and Klein wandered down the dimly lit sidewalks. The Plumber badge in Gwen's hand beeped steadily, indicating that the rogue alien was practically standing right on top of them. Yet, no matter how many alleys they checked or dumpsters they peeked behind, the street remained completely empty.
"This is weird. The signal says he should be right here," Ben muttered, dragging a hand down his face in frustration.
Gwen stopped walking and stared up at the night sky, her brow furrowing in thought. "Wait a second. The tracking map displayed by the Plumber badge is two-dimensional, right? Which means..."
She lowered her gaze, meeting Ben's eyes.
"He might be above us! Or below!"
Ben's gaze immediately snapped downward, locking onto a heavy cast-iron manhole cover resting a few feet away.
The descent into the city's sewer system was as unpleasant as expected. The air was thick, damp, and smelled heavily of stagnant water and rotting waste. The group trudged along the narrow concrete walkway beside the main sludge channel.
Taking no chances in the enclosed space, Kevin reached out and gripped a thick steel pipe running along the wall. Energy rippled over his skin as he absorbed the material, his flesh hardening into solid, gleaming metal.
A few minutes deeper into the tunnels, Gwen narrowed her eyes. She pointed toward a dark crevice near a drainage grate. "Over there!"
A puddle of viscous, glowing green slime was pooling on the concrete. Realizing it had been spotted, the puddle suddenly bubbled and surged upward, forming the gelatinous, humanoid shape of Goop. The anti-gravity projector hovered just above its head, whirring softly.
"Gotcha!" Ben grinned, slamming his hand down on the Omnitrix dial. "Swampfire!"
A brilliant emerald flash illuminated the grimy sewer walls, leaving behind a towering, plant-like humanoid with methane-producing vents on his palms.
"Swampfire? Wait! Swampfire!" Kevin yelled, his metallic eyes widening in absolute horror.
"No! Ben! Don't light a fire!" Gwen screamed, throwing her hands up.
They were standing in a poorly ventilated sewer system filled with concentrated methane gas.
Klein didn't even bother shouting. He just let out a long, exhausted sigh and slammed his hand onto the faceplate of the Another Omnitrix.
"What did you say?" Swampfire asked, tilting his head in confusion as a spark ignited in his palm.
And then... Boom.
The entire sewer system erupted into a blinding inferno.
The concussive shockwave tore through the underground tunnels, shattering concrete and sending a massive plume of fire and debris shooting up through the manhole covers onto the street above. The deafening roar of the explosion echoed through the sleeping city.
Down in the smoldering ruins of the collapsed tunnel, a massive, yellow-and-white armored sphere uncurled.
Cannonbolt released Gwen, having wrapped his indestructible plated body around her the microsecond the fire ignited.
Gwen coughed, waving away the thick smoke. "Where are Ben and the others?"
Her hands glowed with pink Anodite energy as she cast a quick tracking spell through the rubble.
A few yards away, a pile of shattered concrete shifted. Kevin shoved a massive slab off his chest and climbed out of the wreckage. His metallic body was scorched black, but the absorbed steel had completely shielded him from the blast.
As for Ben, the group eventually dug him out of a separate pile of collapsed bricks.
Miraculously, the culprit behind the disaster was relatively unharmed, having reverted to his human form just in time. Even better, he had somehow managed to catch Goop in the Omnitrix's recall beam right as the explosion went off.
Ten minutes later, they were back on the surface. Ben stood with his head bowed, enduring a relentless, stereo-scolding from Gwen, Kevin, and Klein about the basic principles of combustible gases in enclosed spaces.
Once the yelling finally subsided, Ben rubbed the back of his neck and tried to salvage his dignity. "Well... at least we got him. Now, only Way Big is left."
Locating Way Big proved to be the easiest task of the night.
With the Plumber badge locking onto the general vicinity, all they had to do was drive out to the dense forest on the outskirts of town and look up.
Way Big was impossible to miss. The colossal, red-and-white cosmic giant was wandering slowly through the trees, his massive fin cutting through the night sky. He seemed completely aimless, taking slow, earth-shaking steps just for the sake of moving.
Even when the Rustbucket pulled up to the edge of the treeline and the group stepped out, the giant didn't even glance in their direction.
"Okay, since it's the massive Way Big, I need to fight size with size!" Ben grinned, sprinting toward the towering alien while dialing up his watch. "Humungousaur!"
Green light flashed, and the massive, brown-scaled Vaxasaurian hit the dirt.
Even after transforming, Humungousaur was still a fair distance away. He charged forward, his heavy footfalls shaking the ground. With every step, he triggered his species' natural growth ability, his muscles bulging and his armor plates shifting until he reached his maximum height of sixty feet.
Yet, standing in front of the hundred-and-fifty-foot-tall Way Big, Humungousaur still looked like a toddler trying to pick a fight with an adult.
"Hey! Stop right there!"
Humungousaur leaped forward with a thunderous roar, wrapping his thick, muscular arms around Way Big's ankle in a desperate attempt to halt the giant's progress.
Way Big paused and looked down at the dinosaur clinging to his leg. He wasn't acting aggressive or belligerent. He just wanted to shake the annoyance off and continue his midnight stroll.
With a slow, deliberate motion, Way Big raised his leg to gently kick Humungousaur away. He held back, having absolutely no intention of hurting the smaller alien.
Unfortunately for him, he severely underestimated a fully-grown Vaxasaurian's raw physical strength.
Humungousaur tightened his grip on the massive ankle. The moment Way Big lifted his foot, Humungousaur planted his own feet, roared with exertion, and heaved upward, using the giant's own momentum against him.
With a deafening crash that snapped dozens of ancient pine trees like twigs, Way Big lost his balance and toppled backward onto the forest floor. The impact sent a localized earthquake rippling through the woods.
The fall didn't actually hurt the Tokustar. His cosmic armor was far too durable for that. He simply rolled over and pushed himself back up to his feet.
However, his demeanor had shifted. He was no longer just a peaceful wanderer taking a stroll.
Tokustars were naturally docile and peace-loving by nature, but that certainly didn't mean they would just stand there and let themselves be attacked.
Way Big stared down at Humungousaur. He didn't utter a single sound. He simply raised both of his massive hands high above his head, clasped them tightly together into a colossal double-fist, and brought them crashing down with the force of a falling meteor.
Humungousaur looked up. A massive shadow completely blotted out the moonlight above him.
"Oh, this is annoying..."
Bang! Boom!
The double-axe handle caught Humungousaur square on the crown of his head, driving him face-first into the dirt and creating a massive crater in the forest floor.
Seeing the dinosaur thoroughly flattened, Way Big lowered his arms. Having dealt with the nuisance, he turned around, fully intending to resume his walk.
But just as he took his first step...
"Hey! Look over here!"
Way Big turned his head toward the sound of the voice.
He barely had time to register the sight of a second Way Big—this one sporting the darker, menacing color scheme of Klein's Another Omnitrix and standing several feet taller than himself—before a fist the size of a house slammed directly into his jaw.
The kinetic force of the punch shattered the sound barrier. Just like Humungousaur a moment prior, the rogue Way Big was sent crashing back down into the dirt, completely out cold.
Klein lowered his fist, his massive cosmic form sighing heavily. He reached down and gently nudged the groaning Vaxasaurian with his toe.
"Ben, get up quickly. Scan this guy so we can go home."
"Ugh..." Humungousaur groaned, scratching his scaled head as he clumsily pushed himself up from the crater. He looked around in a complete daze. "What happened?"
He didn't need an answer. He tapped his chest symbol, and the Omnitrix's green recall beam shot out, washing over the unconscious Tokustar.
With a final flash of light, the giant vanished.
All of the escaped alien heroes had finally been returned.
A few minutes later, back in his human form, Ben stretched his arms high above his head and let out a massive, jaw-cracking yawn. His eyelids were drooping heavily.
"Alright, then next on the agenda is preparing to deal with Vilgax. But before that... I need to go back to sleep. I'm so tired."
Gwen crossed her arms and offered her cousin a dry, pitying look.
"That might not be possible, Dweeb."
"Why not?" Ben mumbled, rubbing his eyes.
"Because..." Gwen pointed toward the horizon. "It's already morning."
Ben turned his head. Through the gaps in the shattered trees, the bright, cheerful rays of the morning sun were just beginning to peek over the horizon, painting the sky in vibrant shades of orange and pink.
Staring at the dawn of a brand new day, Ben's shoulders slumped in absolute defeat. He looked like he was on the verge of tears.
"Oh, man... this is so annoying!"
[Akarin's Note:
Enjoying the story? Dropping a quick review, comment, or Power Stone means the world to me!
Want to read ahead on our official home, or unlock 50 advanced chapters to feed your addiction? Help keep this shameless translator alive here:
🌐 Read on our site: Search for Elysian Reads on Google or Check the link in my Webnovel Profile bio!
✨ Patreon (50 Advanced Chapters & Ad-Free): Search AkarinTL on Patreon
Thank you so much for reading and keeping this project alive!]