There' no point in me trying to lie to anyone... ― thought Ben.
It had been three days since he had found himself in his cave of discomfort that he called his room. Sitting on his bed, hugging his bent knees, he kept the television on waiting for the moment when they would announce that he, Ben Tennyson, was responsible for hurting all those people in Central Park.
There's no point in me lying to myself.
But the news never came. He once thought about the possibility that the Plumbers might have interfered in some way and prevented the release of his name and image.
But why would they do this?
I am no hero.
It doesn't make sense that they would want to protect me.
Unless they didn't want to protect me.
Maybe they were afraid of me.
Maybe they are at this very moment planning the best way to capture me!
After all, I am a danger to everyone...
Ben hugged his legs tighter. He felt his body trembling.
Or they must be ashamed of me...
For years they have helped and supported someone they thought was a hero, but after all...
After all, this hero is nothing more than a disturbed and junkie kid...
That's it, they are ashamed of me and are waiting for the dust to settle so that little by little everyone will forget who Ben Tennyson was.
They are ashamed of me...
I am ashamed of me...
Ben closed his eyes and wanted to cry, but he felt he didn't have enough tears left, so he just felt his eyes grow warm and a weight tighten in his stomach.
How could I?
I should have known something was wrong!
Maybe I didn't want to realize that something was wrong.
Isn't that how junkies are?
Ignoring their own reality?
He opened his eyes and stared at the television in front of him.
I am not a hero.
I'm a piece of trash...
On the other side of the locked door, a woman's voice is heard:
"Ben, dear, I brought you your dinner," said his mother.
It's already night, thought Ben.
◇───────◇───────◇
In the Plumber's headquarters Kevin's hypothesis was not so well received. Some Magistrates found logic in what was proposed by the teenager, however, most of them thought the whole story was crazy. Even crazier was the proposed solution: to evacuate Bellwood.
There was no way to propose a mass evacuation, first: the hypothesis was built only on Albedo's strange behavior. Second: All the stolen materials could be used for other purposes than building an atomic bomb, so why would Albedo build one right away? Third: It was theorized that Albedo would explode a bomb, but how would he convert this into energy for his Ultimatrix? If it were that easy, any popping that occurred near a battery could recharge its energy, and we well know that this is not how it works. It's no wonder that power plants are such huge structures and nothing so developed has been built in Bellwood in recent days, for if it had, surely the Plumbers would know. And fourth and last: we don't know where the bomb might be...
You realize that the discussion has gone on longer than it should have, don't you? Well, before the Magistrates could point out any more flaws in Kevin's theory, the young man turned to the meeting room door and headed for the exit.
"Kevin, where are you going?" asked Gwen.
"It's pretty clear they're not going to help us, Gwen, let's go after Albedo before the worst happens!"
Gwen turned to the magistrates and made one last request:
"The satellite! Let us at least use the satellites to try to track any trace of radiation or energy that might be gathering in the city!"
Kevin stopped by the door and, still with his back to the magistrates, waited for an answer.
Magistrate Patelliday looked at his colleagues for any objections, but since there were no interventions, he said:
"Very well, we will request that our satellites start a scan for any sign of energy concentration."
"Thank you very much, Magistrate," said Gwen.
"And I will ask my units to spread out across the city and assist you in your search," continued the magistrate.
"What!" Magistrate Arnux rose from his chair in clear objection. "You can't be serious, Patelliday! We need to be alert for a possible attack from the Galvanic Guardians, we can't keep diverting troops to a groundless search like this!"
"I respect your opinion in not agreeing with these kids, Magistrate Arnux, so I ask you to respect mine in believing them," Magistrate Patelliday smiled at Gwen and Kevin. "They may be wrong, but if they are right, we will have a much bigger problem than the one we had in Central Park."
Magitrate Arnux sat down abruptly in his chair and said:
"This is ridiculous!"
Magistrate Patelliday glared at his colleague and then turned his attention to the youths:
"What are you waiting for!?"
Gwen and Kevin were startled and then hurried to the exit. Before they stepped through the doors, the girl waved:
"Thank you very much, Magistrate!"
◇───────◇───────◇
Gwen and Kevin were driving through the city at high speed. Kevin tried his best to dodge cars and any obstacles that came in his way. On her tablet, Gwen could see a satellite image of Bellwood with lines and misshapen spots that marked several energy concentration points in the city.
These were not several bombs, don't get me wrong, but seeking to anticipate any start of the execution of Albedo's plan, the youngsters chose to be absurdly rigid in capturing the energy signals. Any concentration a little above normal was already a reason to move or direct one of the eight teams of Magistrate Patelliday to the site.
From the car's communicator, Azmuth's voice could be heard. In the background there were the sounds of tools and machines working at full throttle: Eunice and the scientist were working on the rocks obtained in Calcunète. What they were planning was not possible to say yet.
"I find it very difficult that Albedo will be able to break through the tadenite in just one attempt..."
"What do you mean, Azmuth?" asked Kevin, turning the car around a sharp right turn.
"As much as he uses an Entropy Regulator to destabilize the crystal structure, my calculations tell me that he could at most break the bonds between the molecules."
"Do you think he could not cause the tadenite to fission to the point of causing an atomic bomb level explosion?" Gwen moved her fingers around the tablet looking for some other sign of energy.
"Maybe not the first one."
"What!?" asked Kevin, almost running over a cyclist.
"If he uses the energy from the first explosion, maybe he can break the atomic bonds, and then repeatedly until he has enough energy to break the nuclei of the atoms."
"One explosion would be destructive enough!" said Gwen.
"It certainly would," said Azmuth. "The kinetic energy of the weakest explosion would be enough to blow up an explosives shed. But the radiation, which is the most energetic, I believe he could only get with enough intensity when Albedo reached the atomic level..."
"How can you say that so calmly?" asked Kevin.
"Believe me, my young man, I am not calm."
"Kevin, a new signal has just appeared!"
"Where?"
"We're close, keep heading towards Bellwood Forest!"
Kevin climbed the sidewalk and drove for about three hundred ft, forcing people to jump into establishments or even into the street, trying to escape from the green vehicle at high speed. Then he went back to the street, went through a red light, almost crashing into a bus and a cab, and went straight ahead on an avenue.
"How's the signal!?" asked Kevin.
"Not good. It appeared not even ten seconds ago and is already accumulating enough energy to power a soccer stadium..."
"We found the bastard!" Kevin turned left and followed the same road that once followed shimmering pink footprints.
"I hope so," said Gwen. Then she picked up her cell phone to type a message "I'll tell Ben."
"Why?"
"Because we might fail, and I want him, my aunt and uncle to be safe."
"Don't talk like that, it doesn't sound like you."
"Are you going to tell me that you didn't warn your stepfather to leave town?"
The young man was silent for a few seconds, then answered:
"Yes..."
Kevin dodged trucks, cars, motorcycles, more trucks. He took the wrong way a few times and broke two rearview mirrors as he passed through a narrow corridor formed by two cars coming in the opposite direction.
Gwen kept her concentration on her tablet, her cell phone, and the surrounding landscape, guiding Kevin along the path he should follow. At a certain moment she saw the Bellwood power station pass by them.
Where it all began... ― she thought.
The energy stain on her tablet began to grow redder and stronger, indicating that the concentrated energy was reaching alarming levels.
With about half mile to go, Kevin's car suddenly shut down completely, continuing on its way due to inertia, but reducing its speed.
"Not this!" said Kevin.
"What happened?" asked Gwen.
Kevin didn't answer. He just rested his left hand on the center of the steering wheel, on a rubberized circle, and then held Gwen's arm with his right hand. He began to coat his and Gwen's body with a rubbery surface. Gwen felt her body trapped inside a cocoon, unable to move her limbs.
"Close your eyes!" shouted Kevin.
As Gwen closed her eyes, as if in slow motion, the girl saw in the forest landscape the trees leaning together like a great green ocean wave coming towards her. The cars located in front of them were, one by one, thrown up into the air like blowing through a sheet of paper. The girl's eyes closed completely the instant the wave hit them.
◇───────◇───────◇
Ben was lying on the floor of his room. His vision was impaired by the beige-grey haze of the wreckage. A persistent buzzing sound was the only sound in his ears. The room that once lay in darkness was now flooded with light through the shattered window and the hole in the ceiling.
Slowly he tried to get up, taking care not to rest his hand on any piece of glass or shards of tile lining the floor. He looked around, but the dust was still dense, making it difficult to breathe. He coughed a few times. He put his hand on the headboard of the bed and slowly got up from the ground. There were small abrasions on his arms and legs, and a small cut over his right eyebrow, where a trickle of blood was running down. His head hurt. He brought his hand up to his forehead for a moment and then looked down at his blood and dust stained hand.
He was dizzy and his thoughts were trying to organize themselves in an attempt to understand what had happened. Then he heard in the background, behind the insistent humming, a voice calling his name. It was his mother. The voice seemed to be getting closer. Now there was also the voice of his father.
Mother? Father?
The doorknob was turned violently, but the door did not open. Ben heard his father's voice say, almost in a whisper:
"Stand back, Sandra, I'm going to break in...."
And so he did. With a heavy shoulder impact, the wood around the handle broke and the door opened in a semicircle until it slammed against the wall. The two adults came in desperate and as soon as they saw the boy, they wrapped him in a strong hug.
"Oh my God, my son!"
"Are you all right, Benjamin?" said the father "Are you hurt?"
"Look at his forehead Carl, it's bleeding!"
"Relax Sandra, it seems to be just a cut."
The boy did not know what to answer, the buzzing sound prevented him from understanding the questions properly. He was happy to see that his parents were fine, apart from the odd bruise, but he felt that his thoughts were still out of place.
"What happened?" asked Ben.
"I have no idea," answered his father, "some explosion nearby perhaps?"
Ben tried to remember the minutes before the impact. He was in bed, the TV was on, and then... Then... The cell phone!
"Gwen!"
The teenager untangled himself from his parents' arms and approached his bed in search of his cell phone. He moved pieces of tile, decorations that now lay on the floor, tried to move a wooden beam that now rested on his bed, but he had no strength.
"What are you looking for, Benjamin?"
"My cell phone. It's here somewhere!"
His mother looked around and saw lying next to shards of glass and a Sumo wrestler figure, the cell phone with the cracked screen. He picked it up and said:
"Here, my son, is this it?"
"You found it!" Ben took the object from his mother's hands and when he turned on the screen, he saw that there was no phone signal available. "Damn it!"
"What happened?"
"There is no signal."
Ben then tried to look at the messages received from his cousin, looking for clues as to where she could be. As he opened the conversation, he felt a tightness in his stomach. There were several messages from:
"Good morning Ben, I'm here if you need to talk."
"Afternoon, cousin, I told you, if you need someone to vent to, just let me know!"
"Good night, doofus, just warning you that if you feel like you need to talk to someone during the night, just call or text me. It doesn't matter what time it is!"
And no message was answered.
Gwen... I... ― thought the young man
He continued scrolling down the messages.
"Kevin is still investigating Albedo's clues, I think he'll soon be able to figure out his plan."
"Don't worry we will solve the problem with your watch."
"Kevin says hi"
Ben looked at the Omnitrix on his wrist. The light no longer flickered, it remained the usual green. It was his hand that was shaking again. He continued to scroll down to today's messages:
"Ben, I was able to get in contact with Grandpa Max!"
"And Kevin just found out about Albedo's plan!"
"He intends to blow up an atomic bomb in Bellwood!"
"Grandpa Max, Azmuth and Eunice are coming to Earth right now."
"They should be here soon.
"He'll finally be able to help you!"
"Kevin and I are going after Albedo to stop him from exploding the bomb.
"We just discovered a possible hiding place for him: in Bellwood Forest!
"Seek shelter together with Uncle Carl and Aunt Sandra"
"Stay safe!"
End of messages.
The boy was silent for a few moments.
"Benjamin? Did something happen to your cousin?"
Ben raised his head and approached his window, bent his body on the sill and looked towards Bellwood forest, located several miles away from the residential area. White smoke rose on the horizon into the sky, with greenish lightning bolts snaking uninterrupted through the smoke.
The boy went back into his room and said:
"I have to go after them!"
"What!" said his mother.
Ben approached his bed and knelt down on the debris on the floor, trying to look for something under the furniture. However, the bed had been pressed against the beam, forcing it against the floor and making it difficult to get underneath.
"My son, stop this madness! Come on, we have to get out of here! We don't know if there could be another explosion!"
"Don't you understand, Mom, right now Gwen and Kevin could be hurt and need me!" Ben stood up and tried to lift the bed, but the wood beam was too heavy.
"Carl, talk to him."
Ben's father approached his son and, holding him by the shoulders, stared at him. He had been wishing for days that he could look at Ben's face, but with him locked in his room, only now could he see the state he was in. The boy's face was absurdly dirty with beige dust, and the blood from the cut on his eyebrow had already coagulated into a streak that ran all the way down his cheek. There were deep dark circles under his eyes and his eyelids were swollen. However, his eyes... The boy's eyes were filled with a determination that was at odds with his whole condition. There was fear, but there was also the courage he needed to overcome it. It was the same look as his father's, Max Tennyson.
"Father..." said Ben.
The man let go of his son's shoulders and put his hands on the wood of the bed, trying to lift him up.
"Carl, what are you doing?" asked Sandra.
"Come on, Ben, whatever you're trying to get down there, just go, because I can't hold on much longer!"
The teenager quickly crouched down and stuck his arm under the cabinet and pulled out a green rectangular board with gray details on the ends. He had won it from Tetrax when he was ten years old, and it had been stored under there for many years. His grandfather would not allow him to wear it on Earth because it drew too much attention.
"W-what is this?" his father asked, and then let go of the bed.
"A hoverboard."
An expression of astonishment came over his mother's face, and then she began to say:
"If you're thinking that-"
"Come on, Benjamin," interrupted his father, "go after your cousin and your friend. They need you!"
"Carl!"
Ben walked out the bedroom door with the hoverboard under his arm. He went towards the exit of the room, jumped over the door that was lying on the floor and put the hoverboard on the grass in the garden.
I hope it still works...
The youth climbed on top of the board, which slowly rose from the ground and remained so.
"Yes!"
Ben leaned forward, propelling the float across the street, dodging the crooked parked cars and the fallen streetlamps, towards the white, electric smoke on the horizon.