Chapter Text
Disclaimer I do not own Ben 10 or any of its characthers, I also like to acknowledge the work from other authors specially Shadows59, Ericobard, ByteHoarder and Nate-Mihael from whom I take inspiration.
Belwood in the early days of December, it has been a cold end of fall thus far, with an early snowfall, and Gwen Tennyson looks on, she is home for the holidays, she finished her asigments early, and even started some of next year's so she can relax for the rest of the year, and enjoy her birthday, she will soon reach her eighteenth one, the same as Ben, she smiles, they had not celebrated together in some time, ever since she went off to college, although they had started to celebrate separately a little before that, diferent schools, diferent friends, and diferent partners, they knew it would happen, and she wonders since Kevin is away maybe they can get back some of the old magic ; if they don't get into an argument, and she gets a nostalgic smile, and she goes to her room to check on her laptop her notes and asigments. On another part of town Ben Tennyson is walking down the street, he seems relaxed but is in actuallity alert, he understands that despite having defeated the biggest threats, there will always be work, and when not fighting criminals there is always rescue work and what keeps him in expectation is the fact that soon he will be eighteen years old and with that milestone he will get the master control of the Omnitrix, while some of his classmates whine that they are still underage to drink alcohol he knows what he should get is more valuable, besides he knows his friends have gotten drunk, either by fake IDs, paying someone to buy them beer or drinking from their parents bars, for a while he wanted to drink but he remembered that it might be dangerous with him wielding the Omnitrix, so he discarded that idea, he would drink when he was older and be able to hold his liquor better, and once more he ponders, he knows Gwen, his cousin is in town and wonders if they should celebrate together their birthday like when they were little, but almost discards the idea, she will celebrate with Kevin, well he will celebrate with his classmates, the few ones he hangs out with, besides his soccer teammates, not that he has played a lot, at times because hero work interfires with his game time, also because sometimes his fans interrupt the game and has to be taken out and deal with them, Kai is off country, not that it matters, the way they work their relationship is more like talking two words a year, she is angry with him since he did not want to go with her on a dig, he pointed out he needed to be available in case of an emergency and she scolded him, another fight only this time it ended in break up, but she smirked saying he would beg her to return, and would join her on the dig and do her bidding, it has been more than six months, and neither of them has called the other and apologized, he knows it is the definite break up, she is too self-absorbed to be with someone with a hero complex and if they were to have children would she impose her views on them? Not that it matters since it's over and he arrives to his home and enters
"Ben! You were walking in the snow? Take off your wet clothes before you get sick!"
and Ben does and goes to his room and gets on dry clothes and then goes downstairs
"They were not that wet mom!"
"Sandra! Why don't you call me Sandra? Anyway wet clothes and cold are a bad combination!"
he chuckles and
"Okay mom!"
she glares at him but not really
"So Ben! Your birthday is coming up! What are your plans?"
"I'll spend the day with my classmates! Maybe in the mall!"
she nods and
"Gwen is in town! Maybe the two of you can celebrate together!"
he wishes they would
"No! She will spend it with her friends and....Kevin! I don't want to be a third wheel!"
"What about Kai?"
"Over before it started!"
"I understand............but if she calls....."
Ben chuckles
"Will not happen mom!"
she looks at him and wonders; over at Gwen's house she goes to the library and looks at some books when
"Silly Bean! You are on vacation! Rest!"
"I just want to be ready for next semester mom!"
"I understand and proud of you Gwen! But I don't want you to burn out!"
"I'm fine mom!"
she looks at her daughter and
"What do you want for your birthday?"
she stops and ponders
"Maybe a good lunch! And dinner!"
"You want a dance also?"
she sullens
"Kevin is not here! And I don't want to know the real reasons A dance? With who?"
"Right!.........What about Ben?"
"He'll be with Kai!"
"I wonder! From what Sandra says they haven't talked in more than six months!"
"She must be on a dig! And they probably can not talk a lot! But they must be in touch!"
and she goes to her room and Natalie wonders if there was a tone of anger and hurt on her voice.
Next day both of them are on their routine, Ben is walking in Undertown, he avoids Baumann's store, he has decided not to engage him and he knows he may be losing more money paying protection, but truth be told he talked with Max about having plumbers keeping an eye on his store and then there is a beep from the Omnitrix, he frows and
"Ben Tennyson here!"
"Kiddo! Come to headquarters! As quick as you can!"
"What's wrong?"
"I'll explain when you arrive!"
and the call ends and he changes into XLR8 and runs towrads the teleporter, meanwhile Gwen is on her laptop when she hears the beep from her plumber's badge, she frows but deep down she feels happy, she misses the job and wants to take advantage whenever she can
"Gwen Tennyson here!"
"Pumpkin! Come to headquarters! As fast as you can!"
"What's going on?"
"I'll explain when you arrive!"
the call ends and she concentrates as she tells her mother
"I'm going out mom! Be back soon!"
and she disapears and apears on headquarters on the comand center as Ben arrives
"Dweeb?"
"Doofus?"
"Kids over here!"
they look at each other and nod and follow him, they enter a room and
"What's the emergency grandpa?"
he pushes some buttons and a hologram of earth apears over the table and then a dot apears and a close-up starts and soon they see where the anomaly is
"Over six hours ago we detected an anomaly! It is not far! But once we arrive there we detect nothing and nothing is out of place!"
Ben looks at him
"Sensor malfunction?"
he shakes his head
"No! Sensors are runing fine! We tried analyzing from afar but it has been inconclusive!"
they nod and then Gwen speaks
"Mana! Magic!"
"Is what we believe! We need you to investigate Gwen!"
she nods
"Understood!"
"Go with her Ben!"
"What about Kevin?"
"He is off world investigating if there is movement from the chimera!..........And knowing him finding parts for his car!"
and in a low voice
"Yeah! Right!"
"Did you say somethig Pumpkin?"
"Nothing!"
Max looks at her and nods
"I don't want Gwen or you to go without any back-up! Understood?"
"Rook is visiting his parents grandpa! That is why I am patroling alone!"
"You should not!"
"I think I can transport us near the anomaly Ben!"
'Okay!"
"Wait you two!"
"What's wrong grandpa?"
"Get into your armors!"
"But..."
"You may need the extra protection!"
"Fine!"
and they get into their armors and
"Ready!"
"Don't take any unnecessary risks! Mantain constant comunication! Keep chanels open!"
"We will!"
he looks at them and he sighs
"I know I come off as a hen mother kids! But as you have grown, the level of danger has raised!"
Ben looks at him and
"We know grandpa! We will be careful!"
"And I have learned more spells!"
"I know! And while the academy taught you to improvise! There is something to also consider! Expect the unexpected!"
"Very Batman like!"
and they chuckle and Max gets a serious expression
"This is a reckon mission! Just get information, if you detect something off! Return inmediatly!"
they nod
"Yes grandpa!"
and Gwen concentrates and casts a teleportation spell and they vanish from headquarters.
Ben looks around once they materialize or apear on the coordinates, he believes it is a familiar scene but also foreign to him, he looks at Gwen who is concentrating as she rotates, he makes sure there are no predators nearby and he observes as she stops and looks straight ahead
"Is that the place?"
"Yes!"
"How far?"
she ponders and
"About three hundred yards!"
he nods
"Do we need to get closer or?"
she sighs
"Closer!"
"Let's go then!"
and they start walking, at first they plan not to talk but before they advance more than twenty yards
"Where will you go with Kai?"
"We broke up! I will pass the day with my soccer teammates and classmates, some of them anyway! JT and Cash are not invited!"
"Oh! Sorry! Not really!"
"She has not changed since we were ten years old! And then I understood we were incompatible!........What about you? Where will you and Kevin go?"
she chuckles sadly
"He won't be here! He has to be with his real girlfriend! And go to her side girls!"
he looks at her and
"Are you sure?"
"We know who his true love is! And I have suspected of his side girls since before we started! I thought it would be no big deal!.....But after Looma....."
he nods
"I try not to let his betrayal bother me! But sometimes I can't! I just wonder how can you do it?"
Gwen sullens
"I don't!"
"I'm sorry!"
"It's not your fault!"
they walk and Ben looks around and
"Do you detect anything?"
"The mana is off!......I can't explain it!.......Same goes with the magical aspects!"
Ben looks at his readings
"Still dificult to read and identify!"
"We better get closer!"
"Is it safe?"
she looks at him surprised
"It should be! Since when are you cautious?"
he looks at her
"I am always cautious Gwen! But usually we are already in deep doodoo to act cautious!"
she chuckles and nods and then frows as she looks at the anomaly and so does Ben and he believes he sees a point growing very fast and all of sudden he sees a diferent landscape and how the vegetation is now blue, he looks around as Gwen is also processing on what is going on
"What happened?"
Ben looks at her and
"I hoped you would tell me!"
"I have no idea!"
"We better go back!"
and he looks at her and he sees a panicked expression on her face
"I feel nothing!"
"Calm down! Just concentrate and you will be able to detect the smallest amount of mana!"
"No! You don't understand! I feel NOTHING! Not mana! Not magic! NOTHING!!!"
Ben looks at her and
"We better get back!"
and he goes to the Omnitrix and when he sees it he pales, it is dark! he moves it around an does not respond
"Is the Omnitrix...........dead?"
he sighs and looks at her
"It apears so!"
"Now what?"
he goes to his forearm and notices there is no signal and no energy
"Our armors are not functioning either!"
Gwen pales
"Now what?"
he gets out a small device and Gwen recognizes a compass, he tries to locate a magnetic pole but nothing and then he looks up and sees a blue sun
"The laws of physics are diferent here!"
"What are you talking about?"
"There is no magnetic field and there should be! Otherwise the solar winds would destroy the planet's crust!"
"What does that have to do with this?"
"We are close to this sun! We should be incinerated!"
and Gwen looks up and sees a giant blue star and a chill runs down her spine and wonders what they can do.