Chapter 3 - Chapter 3 - The defeat

Chapter 3 [br]
[br]
The defeat[br]
[br]
A few days later, Ben and Gwen still tried to learn more about their sinister experience, but to no avail. When they presented their anxieties to Lantara, she found that quite interesting.[br]
- Do you have any idea what happened? – asked her Ben.[br]
- As a matter of fact... – began the ectonurite and rubbed her head. – I do. Perhaps you – (she glanced at Gwen) – and Brainstorm were powerful enough to open a telepathic gateway between your mind and our mysterious friend’s. [br]
- Okay, it was our aim, but that still doesn’t explain those feelings, the cold, the pain... – reasoned Gwen.[br]
- Hmm... Maybe the gateway wasn’t strong enough to transfer actual thoughts, you could only comprehend some fragmentary emotions. – explained Lantara.[br]
- It was depressing; I’ve never felt anything alike... – said Gwen.[br]
- But I did! Somewhere in the past, but I can’t recall when or where! – exclaimed Ben.[br]
- Do you remember the reason of these feelings? – asked the ectonurite.[br]
- Yes. I felt that in someone’s presence... One of my enemies, I’m sure, but that’s not very helpful... I have a lot of them. – replied Ben and bowed his head.[br]
- If you’ll excuse me... I need to be alone now. – declared he and left the conference room.[br]
Gwen and Lantara’s eyes met.[br]
- Don’t you worry about him? – questioned Gwen. – He’s acting weird.[br]
- Yes, I know. I’m afraid he’s going to lose his sanity because of this whole situation. You’re the magician, you should feel he’s getting weaker... Well, I can feel it. – gabbed the ectonurite and put her arms together. The two females never did get along too well. The alien still couldn’t forgive what Gwen did on that black day, very long ago. She believed, partly it was her fault that Kevin 11 could end Max Tennyson’s life. In her eyes, it was betrayal; Gwen let her whole family down in the time of need, not to mention the pain she has caused for Ben. [br]
This persuasion became even stronger when Ben got close to her heart. The man tried to convince her it’s not that simple, Gwen was only a child back then, and she’s different now, everyone can count on her. But Lantara didn’t changed her mind, although she began to respect Gwen, for her development in her magic powers and the heroic acts she made on the battlefield. [br]
Both feeling was mutual; Gwen didn’t really like Lantara as well. She’s always been a thorn in her sight, a scary, incomprehensible and erratic creature, who stands between her and Ben, and she cannot be trusted. Gwen clearly remembers her encounters with Ghostfreak, however the ectonurite has proved to be a reliable comrade in battle, so she earned Gwen’s respect.[br]
- Yes, I feel it too, and what’s worse, I can see it as well. – replied Gwen after a few minutes of silence. – We have to do something about it.[br]
- Leave that to me. – offered Lantara. Gwen didn’t say a word, but an angry flash in her green eyes informed the ectonurite about her displeasure. “I should talk to him; he’s MY cousin after all!” thought Gwen at first. Then she realized she had tried talking with him before, but he did not open for her. Maybe Lantara have other ways to make him talk. [br]
They agreed and left the room.[br]
[br]
In the middle of the night, he still sat in his favorite armchair. He found very difficult to get used to these dark nights, where even the moon hides behind the clouds. His thoughts were circling about the battles he fought, and Tetrax’s demise. He still could not believe the petrosapien’s gone. He stood by his friends and suffered in every fight with them; however, Earth was not his own planet. He was mad at those aliens... They are primitive, soulless, cold-blooded killing machines; he hates them! When he was young and fiery, he thought with the power of the omnitrix, he’s able to annihilate them and cleanse the planet... He was so naive! After he defeated Kevin, there was a chance, but somehow, it didn’t happen. The human race was not powerful enough to regain control. The alien hordes kept growing bigger, and more powerful, and they even adapted new strategies. Ben figured out, there must be a source, which controls them, they can’t be that organized any other way. Unfortunately, the role of the protector chained him here, to the city. The people trusted him, he can’t abandon them, but he also knew this must end soon, or they will be consumed by the evil, and the humanity will be lost in the dust of time forever. Ben 10 000 was torn between his feelings and his duty. His instincts exhorted him to go and do something before it’s too late, but also, his task was to defend the colony. [br]
As he was sunk in thoughts, he suddenly heard a soft noise. He didn’t move, but tensed all his muscles, preparing to react. He thought of Wildmutt’s heat vision, and could already recognize the intruder’s heat signature. He calmed down.[br]
- Lantara... How many times do I have to tell you, not to sneak around like this... – said Ben monotonously.[br]
The ectonurite became visible.[br]
- You know me better than anyone else does. – smiled she. [br]
- That, and I have like ten thousand alien heroes, and sixteen different kinds of vision. – replied Ben. – What are you doing here at this time of the night? [br]
- You’re alone too much. We haven’t talked for ages. You only speak to me before a battle... Gwen feels the same. And the people too. You haven’t shown yourself to them for a very long time as well. What’s wrong, dear? – purred Lantara, on the softest voice a ghostly being like her could. [br]
- You probably wouldn’t understand... – declared Ben, then he stood up and walked to the window.[br]
- You know I hate that! Don’t turn your back on me! – exclaimed Lantara and phased through Ben’s stomach to look into his eyes. [br]
- What depresses you? – whispered the ectonurite. – Tell me...[br]
Ben hesitated for a moment, his eyes fell, and a loud sigh came out of his mouth. He looked at Lantara again.[br]
- Do you ever felt you know exactly you must do something, but for some reason you cannot do it?[br]
- You want to find the source?[br]
- Yes. But I also must stay here to defend the colony... – answered Ben.[br]
- You cannot decide which one is more important. – said the ghost.[br]
- Exactly. I don’t know what to do... – admitted the man.[br]
- Nobody can make that decision for you. It is up to you, but I’m sure you’ll choose wisely. – assured him Lantara.[br]
- You think?[br]
- Of course! Now, relax, everything will be all right... – replied the ectonurite. She touched Ben’s chin with her first finger. The man could not believe how she could do that so sensitively with those claws. Then her hands roved up and touched the scar below his eye. Illogically, her caress felt good and reassuring, not what you would expect from such creature. [br]
- You are weary of all those pointless battles... – whispered Lantara. Her chest opened, the black and white tentacles slowly cuddled the man. He returned the unusual hug. Outside, the full moon came out from the clouds and its white light illuminated the silhouettes of the strange couple. The moon was the only witness of this confidential moment...[br]
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About two hours later, Ben startled out of his sleep. It was early morning, but the dawn was still far away. He found another presence extraordinarry; Lantara was still sleeping beside him. But, her watchful ear heard the noise Ben made and she woke up after a few seconds.[br]
- What is it? – asked she. Her voice was still sleepy and hoarse.[br]
- Nothing, I just... – he didn’t finish. – What’s that? – asked he, referring to a rustling sound.[br]
- What’s what? – Their visage met and they shouted at the same time: [br]
- Trouble!!![br]
They reacted too late; a strong laser beam exploded in the room. Ben thought it was all over, but he found himself protecting his face with his arms instead. He also felt Lantara’s touch on his shoulders. When she released him, his protoplasma became solid again. He smiled at the ectonurite gratefully. Then there was a green flash, Ben transformed into Heatblast to put out the fire. There was a wide hole instead of the window and the ceiling. The pyronite stood transfixed with horror because of what he saw. Thousands of aliens were swarming on the ground, below the Omni-Tower. [br]
- Oh no... – whispered Heatblast – We need to get down![br]
- Allow me! – offered Lantara and grabbed him. They phased through the floor and reached lower levels in a few seconds. There was a big bustle; the men must have noticed the explosion and returned the fire. Even their heavy artillery wasn’t enough to cause superior damage. Heatblast met Gwen; she was firing a series of energy beams. [br]
- Gwen, what’s going on?! – asked the pyronite. [br]
- I don’t know, they just appeared from nowhere, and it seems they have developed! – replied Gwen despairingly. [br]
Indeed, the enemy lines were much more organized than anytime before. Soon, they figured out the source of the problem. An invisible dome hid the army from their eyes. [br]
- It’s a reflection generator! They’ve camouflaged themselves, so we couldn’t detect them visually! – realized Heatblast. – I wonder how they could obtain such advanced technology...[br]
- We must trash that thing, who knows how many are still under it! – exclaimed Gwen.[br]
- Hmm... – Heatblast looked around. – Aha! That should do the trick! [br]
He ran to the nearest cannon; changed into Upgrade and merged with it. The weapon grew bigger and had four spider-like legs. [br]
- I hope this will be enough! – said the mechomorph and charged up the lasers. Then he fired a powerful beam, but the dome reflected it. The other two beams went up to the sky ineffectively as well. [br]
- Oh, for goodness sake, it’s no use! – cursed Upgrade and unmerged with the cannon. – We need to destroy the source, the generator device itself! Let’s try an air raid on them, shall we? - suggested the mechomorph and went Jetray, one of the newer attainments of the omnitrix. This creature was tall, brown, and had bat-like wings. He could also fire laser beams from his eyes and tail. [br]
- Lantara! Stay here and coordinate the actions! Cover us! – commanded Jetray and jumped off the battlements. Gwen followed him. She released energy circles and struck down four alien at the same time. Jetray’s green lasers cleared the way in front of them, but their triumph was merely temporal. Five mutant Stinkfly emerged on the horizon. They carried werewolves. [br]
- Is it just me, or those Stinkflies look familiar to you as well? – questioned Jetray and fired a laser from his tail. [br]
- You’re right! Animo created such creatures from omnitrix DNA! – replied Gwen. The first Stinkfly already reached her, but she evaded it with a fancy twirl. Jetray wasn’t that lucky. A ball of slime struck him, and he fell down. [br]
- Ben!!! – roared Gwen and tried to find a way to him, but the Stinkflies surrounded and circled around her. An unexpected ultrasonic howl brought her down as well. There was a pale green flash in the seething dust, and Cannonbolt evolved from it. He rolled to Gwen.[br]
- Are you okay? – worried she.[br]
- Yes, I’m fine! What about you? – responded Cannonbolt and punched a weasel-like creature who attacked from the back.[br]
- I’ll live. – smiled Gwen. [br]
- Let’s teach these guys what does rock and roll mean! – suggested the pelarota and rolled up in a ball. [br]
- I’d rather prefer death metal! – said Gwen while she kicked a blue dog-like alien on the face. Cannonbolt smashed dozens of aliens on his way to the reflection generator, but he rolled towards too fast, and left his cousin behind. Suddenly, a group of vicious vulpimancers surrounded him. As they approached him slowly, he changed into Spitter. The flood of the green slime hit one of the aliens and opened a hole in their circle. There was another flash, and Spitter was already Xlr8.[br]
- Well, have a nice day though! – joked the kineceleran and ran back. Thanks to his sharp reflexes, he always avoided the confrontation with the enemy, and quickly found Gwen in the battle. [br]
- I can’ get near to the generator, there are too many! – declared he and rapidly kicked an orcbeast. They covered each other’s back, but the space between them and the enemy slowly tightened. Xlr8 went Fourarms and punched a few aliens; they flew backwards when he tossed them away. [br]
- We’re being creamed here! – cried Gwen. Suddenly, the alien attack stopped. Ben and Gwen were still trapped in their mass, but they showed no intention to harm them. [br]
- What’s going on? – asked Fourarms.[br]
- I don’t know... – replied Gwen and prepared an energy circle on her palm. After a few depressing moments, the alien horde diverged, opening the way for a very familiar menace. [br]
- It has been a very long time, since we have met, Benjamin Tennyson! – exclaimed a deep voice, and its owner, Dr. Vicktor evolved from the smoke. [br]
- I cannot believe it! I thought I trashed you for good last time! – answered Ben, as a tetramand. [br]
- Last time, you barely managed to hold your ground, and I’m much stronger now! – said Dr. Vicktor.[br]
- That’s not how I remember it! Allow me to refresh your memory! – hissed Fourarms and attacked with Xlr8’s speed.[br]
- Ben, don’t! – warned him Gwen, but she was too late. [br]
- Not this time! – Dr. Vicktor shouted, and threw the little knife-like machine; he was hiding in his hand. The weapon struck the omni-symbol on the tetramand’s chest. Green electricity ran through his body and he collapsed. With a red flash, Fourarms became Ben again.[br]
- Yes, the omnitrix is a magical and powerful device indeed... But what are you without it? Merely a weak human! – laughed Dr. Vicktor and raised his fists. The purple electric beam almost reached Ben, but Gwen’s force field protected him. [br]
- Taste this! – roared she and sent two energy circles, but the alien caught them and pushed them back. He even filled them with electricity, they were like flying buzz saws; Gwen had to eliminate them with an energy zap. [br]
- I do not have time for playing games! – mocked Dr. Vicktor. The two electric poles on his back grew longer. [br]
- You’re done! – grinned he and fired a very powerful electric beam. Gwen created a pink force field again, but the beam was too strong. Shiny breaches appeared on the dome, before the electricity destroyed it, and struck her down. She fell on the ground and fainted. [br]
Seeing Gwen’s defeat, Ben braced himself up to fight again. He thought of Eye Guy, but nothing happened. When he looked at the omnitrix, it was red. He realized his enemy’s device is the reason of this malfunction. [br]
- Clever, isn’t it? My invention only for you. It disrupts the omnitrix’s circuitry; therefore, you cannot activate it for a while. – smiled Dr. Vicktor arrogantly. He quickly jumped in front of Ben and grabbed the omnitrix. [br]
- As far as I know, it takes a lot of concentration to change from one form into another. – hissed he suddenly broke Ben’s left arm. The crack of the breaking bones filled his ear, and then he felt the pain beyond endurance. It was not over yet, a purple electric beam ran through his body and he flew back a few feet. Dr. Vicktor approached him menacingly. [br]
- Like they always say: All good things must come to an end once. Your end is near, but I want you to see this before that! – declared the alien and dragged Ben up from the ground. Behind them, the reflection generator was shut down; that revealed the true size of the invading hordes. It was bigger than ever, Ben knew: this time, the Omni-Tower will fall. [br]
- A small demonstration of our might! – said Dr. Vicktor coldly and pointed at an especially large cannon. He said something on an alien language to the three operators. They were from SixSix’s species. They pressed a few buttons, and watched the red instruments, as they reached the maximum. [br]
- Fire! – roared Dr. Vicktor. The creatures obeyed and with a loud bang, the gun shot the biggest, most powerful energy beam, Ben did see. The Omni-Tower had no chance against such firepower. The purple beam immediately destroyed the complete upper block, and the lower levels soon collapsed as well. Only a few battlements and ruins remained on the ground. Ben had to watch the destruction of eight year’s work and suffering, and he couldn’t free himself from the squeeze of his enemy. The operators modified the direction of the gun, and the second shot imploded the wall of the fortress. The alien hordes began to push in at once. Ben could hear the screams of his people. Dr Vicktor suddenly released him; he fell down into the dust.[br]
- Ha ha ha ha ha! You have no idea how long I’ve been waiting for this moment! Good night, Ben Ten Thousand! – laughed Dr. Vicktor devilishly and tried to stomp Ben. Surprisingly, he evaded with rapid speed and stood up. Dr Vicktor blinked; he didn’t understand what happened. [br]
- Nice plan you got! – But you did not thought of something... I almost forgot... I don’t need the omnitrix anymore to kick your butt. – gasped Ben and raised his broken arm. With an awful crack, the bone welded. [br]
- What?! This is impossible! – shouted Dr. Vicktor and fired an electric beam, but Ben avoided it with Xlr8’s speed. [br]
- You’re going to pay for what you’ve done this day! I’m gonna make you regret everything! – hissed Ben and raised his right hand. Hundreds of small Diamondhead projectiles came out of his palm. Then he opened his mouth and spat some Stinkfly goo on his enemy. His let arm was already in blaze. The Heatblast fireball struck Dr. Vicktor and reacted with the slime, which caused an explosion, the alien drew back. [br]
- Be gone! – Ben roared and dozens of green eyes opened everywhere on his body. They merged into one big eye on his chest and fired a green energy beam. [br]
- Impossible! – surprised the alien, when the beam hit him. Although, his body was very endurable resistant against injuries, he could hold his ground. His answer was a series electric wave. Unexpectedly, Ben caught and sent them back to its creator. Dr. Vicktor was vanquished by his own weapon. Gwen just came to, the next moment, her cousin was already beside her. [br]
- What happened? The last thing I remember is Dr. Monster... – whispered she.[br]
- It’s okay, I took care of him. – assured her Ben.[br]
- I don’t want to be a pessimist, but we certainly won’t take care of them... – sighed Gwen and pointed to the vicious, mad aliens around them. They began to approach them once more. [br]
- You’re rtight... Frankenfreak did something with the omnitrix, I’m still unable to make it work... – explained Ben.[br]
- And I’m too weak to fly eighter... – replied Gwen.[br]
- Hold on, I think of something! – said Ben. He concentrated on a thought.[br]
- Think fast, or we will stay here for dinner! – exhorted him Gwen. The aliens came closer and closer with every second. [br]
- Silence! I almost got it! – Ben shouted. His face distorted because of the intense focusing. [br]
- Ben![br]
- Almost![br]
Suddenly, a pair of Stinkfly wings grew out on his back. He grabbed Gwen and jumped up in the air, just when a werewolf tried to bite her. When they high enough in safety, she asked her cousin:[br]
- What took so long? [br]
- I don’t know... Perhaps I had too many emotions in my mind; the command thought was not very clear and exact. When that cannon destroyed the Omni-Tower, I sort of lost my mind, the only thing I wanted then, is to avenge the deaths of my people... and Lantara... [br]
- The Tower! We must go back and help! – exclaimed Gwen.[br]
- It is pointless. They are dead... All of them. I can feel it...[br]
- No, there’s still hope, we only have to draw them back to the wall and...[br]
- Gwen, Gwen, Gwen! Listen to yourself, you sound like a maniac! We can’t fight them like this! We’re outnumbered, you’re too weak, and have a nasty wound on your head, the omnitrix’s not working, I’m happy I can still fly us away from here! – Ben shouted.[br]
- I don’t think it’s a very chivalrous deed to abandon the people down there! – declared Gwen. [br]
- There’s no one left to abandon, Gwen! If they did not die in the explosion and the collapse of the Tower, the aliens must have killed them all by now. I could hear their last screams! [br]
- You’re right... Only we left... – admitted Gwen. [br]
- But I swear, I’m gonna find whoever’s responsible for this! I WILL find the source and I’m gonna tear him into pieces! – vowed Ben. – Now, we need a safe place, where we can hide until we regain our strengths![br]
Ben held his cousin, and they flew away on the Stinkfly wings, eventually their silhouette disappeared from the horizon. Only the sounds of destruction remained, as the alien hordes quickly set the city on fire. The orange flames consumed everything by daybreak...[br]
[br]
Ben 10 000 was right, by the time he and Gwen could escape from the deadly circle of aliens, nobody was alive in the city. The aliens were fast, precise and savage.[br]
Ben was unaware of someone, the only survivor of the bloody events... [br]
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