Washington D.C; April 29th, 2012; 11:44PM
It was no surprise to find that a set of medical trucks used to transport expensive drugs to hospitals across New York, deployed from a yard in Bellwood, had been hijacked the past three months straight. This left the hospitals low on pain killers, anesthetics, insulin, and even more complex drugs to treat allergic reactions and venomous exposure. Hundreds of men, women, and children were suffering with the smallest of resources left to help them all so that a gang of mercenaries could sell the drugs for a quick profit on the black market, at least, they were.
Four men watched the fenced entrance to the loading yard, having already killed the night-shift security guards dumping them in the bushes to be discovered later, their AR-15s ensured that if anyone else disturbed them, they'd be swiftly removed from the equation. Another three men swarmed the truck drivers who had just arrived for their own shifts, using their individual glocks to force the driver and passenger out of their seats at gunpoint. They were prepared to execute the innocent men, having them turn to face the wall of the garage, and placing the barrel of their gun to the back of the driver's head. Before any one of them could pull the trigger, a figure in a white hoodie dropped from above, landing with his hand on the barrel of the closest man's handgun. Shattering the aluminum-steel composite with his enhanced strength, he turned tossing it aside and side kicking the mercenary in the chest hard enough to send him off his feet, and onto his back. An explosion of emerald light revealed Diamondhead who opened his arms wide, taking the gun shots that inevitably followed his intervention to save the men slowly turning back around behind him.
Sparks flew from his crystal skin, lead bouncing off his torso and arms with no damage, they were astonished by this super-human creature until it shouted at them, "Go!" He yelled back at the drivers still cowering behind him, "Make your delivery!" Diamondhead swung his arms forward sending shards of sharp crystalline blades from his fingers into their weapons, even the rifles strapped around their torsos were rendered useless.
Diamondhead transformed back into his human form, leaping out of the glow to intercept a knife thrown with expert mastery at the driver heading to his seat. He sprinted towards the driver's side door with his hand out jumping into the air, managing to catch the blade by its rubber grip in his right-hand mid-air, landing in a roll and sprawl, he launched it with his extra strength back into the thrower's foot. "AGh!" he shouted as the blade dug through his shoe and foot, cutting into the concrete he stood on.
The four men watching the entrance turned and began open firing on the trucks with automatic fire, aiming for the doors and vigilante to keep them from departing. Ben blocked a bladed swing from one of the geared-up men with his indestructible forearm, slashing against the Omnitrix was like trying to cut through a brick wall with a butter knife. He gave a confident smirk at the attacker who backed away only a step or two, as the dial on his watch began to glow. Caught in a green explosion and subsequently blinded temporarily, it was all the time Upchuck needed to wrap oral tendrils around the assault rifle strapped around his waist with a crystal shard pultruding from it. Consuming it gave him just enough material for an orb of biological plasma which he spat into his opponent's stomach. It wasn't powerful enough to explode or cause any lethal damage but, it did propel him off the ground, twenty feet through the air, hitting the fence that surrounded the perimeter. He collapsed onto his face as Upchuck turned quickly wrapping his tendrils around the leg of another mercenary, yanking him off his feet. Transforming quickly via Master Control, he remerged in his human form as he landed back on his back with a thud, Ben quickly bent down and grabbed the man's scattered gun not too far from them, aiming up at the two remaining men that were still against the gate, firing into their upper thighs before they could react. Shouting and collapsing they gripped their individual legs as Ben dismantled the gun and tossed the parts in opposite directions.
One of the perimeter men continued to fire though, pinning down the drivers who feared for their lives, while the other one turned to fire at Ben who leaped out of the way, barely avoiding being hit, and planting his back against a thick stone divider that held up the garage. Hearing the bullets carve away at the concrete, he waited six or seven shots for the clip to empty, finally hearing the 'click' of an emptied magazine, he rounded the corner quickly. All the man could see was the flash of emerald eyes that rushed him before being uppercutted in the chin, knocking him onto his back next to his unconscious partner.
Once he hit the floor, he realized he had landed just outside the white unmarked van they arrived in, quickly reaching up to open the back doors at the glowing crimson energy which illuminated the vehicle.
Ben needed not slap the dial on his wrist anymore, transforming into the seven-foot-tall bipedal orange furred tiger on a mere whim, unleashing a bestial roar from his fanged lips, "Let me tell you something, random mercenaries that are stealing medicine from hospitals! Rath is gonna-" before he could finish, the remaining man pulled out a highly advanced energy weapon from the van, a three-foot-long cannon with bubbling crimson electricity coursing through the wires that ran across it. Firing it into Rath's chest mid-sentence before he could even finish his trademarked rant, the energy beam propelled him backwards into the same concrete divider he used as cover before, the portion of the ceiling that was held up by the support-beam collapsed once it shattered under Rath's impact dropping tons of concrete atop him.
From within the piles of rubble, an emerald explosion was slightly obscured until a crimson behemoth used his four appendages forcibly stand, tossing aside the debris that kept him pinned. Fourarms smiled and cracked all twenty of his knuckles as he approached the hired gunman as ominously as possible, looking over the weapon before firing it again as Fourarms only barely dodged his head to the left watching the beam pass carving through the garage behind him. An explosion went off behind him within the facility, starting fires that spread from car to car within the garage quickly, the Tetramand grabbed the man by his arm with enough force to dislocate his shoulder, knocking the blaster from his grip.
Pinning him by his wrists to the ground, Fourarms leaned in close growling with a visceral snarl mostly for intimidation, flashing his thick fangs in the man's face, "It's over, you lose, tough guy!" an explosion of light left Ben Tennyson looking down with eyes glowing so brightly, his face was hidden from the beaten man's view, as he looked down on him, "Who gave you this technology? it's not alien or government issue…" he glanced back at the blaster still sitting on the floor as the fire soon began to spread, cornering them.
The man chuckled as sweat dripped down his temple, laughing through his mask as he gripped Ben's ankle on his chest, "You wouldn't believe me even if I told yo- Agh!" he put the slightest bit of pressure on the man's dislocated arm but, only pushed out a gasp of more laughter that echoed through the garage and slightly confused Ben.
He became irritated at this conduct and shouted a bit louder in his face, his voice modulator making him sound as intimidating as it could, "Was it Animo? Vilgax somehow?!" Ben narrowed his eyes, this man was clearly not at all surprised by his alien forms, and yet he was only robbing hospitals, the motive confused him severely, "I want a name!" he shouted.
"Animo? V-Vilgax?" He chuckled louder once more, putting emphasis on how ridiculous that sounded, though he still choked a bit on the pain his was in, his tone, however; made it clear he knew exactly who both super-villains were, "You've got so much worse coming, and you don't even know it, he calls himself Prometheus, and he's gonna end you…" the man started giggling hysterically, becoming overwhelming as he soon began choking on his own laughter. Ben knelt quickly to pull off the balaclava mask, revealing foam exuding from his lips, likely from a cyanide pill embedded in his teeth. He was sure that one quick look around would find the same result for all the other men he just defeated, so he didn't bother.
Though he got what he wanted, a name for whoever was trafficking this new, more powerful alien technology through the black market, Ben sighed and stood up with a disappointed expression. He glanced around at the energy weapon still lying on the ground a few feet from the now dead body, sauntering over, and picking it up, he glanced over the craftsmen ship. It wasn't Galvan and it didn't look like anything the Forever Knights could've come up with, his best bet was to take it back to the Bunker and have it analyzed by the Danger Alert.
He did need to get home though, there was a ceremony tomorrow afternoon that he needed to be prepared for, having been working over his small speech all month since they announced it. He held the weapon tight to his side and exploded in a flash of light again, zipping out of the garage at several times the speed of sound in a black and white blur.
…
Washington D.C; April 30th, 2012; 1:34PM
"We're gathered here today to celebrate and honor the super-human heroes who selflessly risked their lives to stop an invasion on a global scale," a gorgeous woman in a dark blue pan suit spoke into a microphone as she looked directly into the news camera pointed at her, "Each of these five heroic men and women are receiving the Medal of Valor for their bravery defending our planet; the President should be on any moment to continue proceedings," she turned to face the heroes on the stage as they waited.
Behind her was a long pearl-white stage surrounded by eager reporters with a single podium I the center that held a microphone for speakers; Ben, Gwen, Kevin, Cooper, and Kai were all standing side by side as another man approached the pedestal, "Ladies and gentlemen, the President of the United States," he took no time sauntering off to stage right after his introduction, out of everyone's way, the most important man in America adjusted his flag-pin and took his place behind the podium into center-stage. He was holding a small sleek black case in his right hand, setting it down on the podium once he stood directly behind it.
He cleared his throat slowly, closing his eyes as he struggled to read the short speech congratulating the vigilante he had been doing his best to capture for the past several months. "Ahem, we're gathered here today to commemorate the bravery and determination these young men and women showed last month. Faced with an impending global threat, these five took decisive action and brought this apparent war to an end peacefully." He closed his eyes with a fake smile, forcing himself to be polite for the sake of the dozens of cameras facing him, "Among these five, one individual stands out in particular, personally brokering peace between two worlds about to engage in war. That individual is Ben Tennyson," he paused and turned around to give the changeling his most passive aggressive glare, clapping slowly which prompted the rest of the crowd to do the same. "As the guest of honor here, I understand Benjamin would like to say a few words before we distribute the medals, Ben?" he took several steps to the side and two behind giving the teen the spotlight to speak his mind. As he took steps forwards to approach the microphones, he noticed in the crowd that his parents were there to support him holding cameras and waiting to take pictures.
"Thanks, Mr. President, I just wanted to say that what I did wasn't for a medal, or a ceremony, or even for my Grandfather who sacrificed his life so that I could continue living," Ben paused himself, forcing down the lump growing in his throat, "I did this for all of you, each man, woman, and child that lives peacefully on Earth. I have a vision for the future, and it's a bright scene of peace and equality." He continued by glancing back at the President and the few Generals that attended including Rossem whose daughter Emily was in the audience sitting beside Gwendolyn's parents, "The Government has been illegally capturing, containing, and experimenting on alien life with no due process or regard for their safety or wellbeing. My future consists of inclusion for all peaceful peoples, regardless of their race or species. With the Presidential election coming up, I'm hoping the nation will make a wise decision and vote for change."
Suddenly, the crowd of reporters started standing, raising their hands, and calling out his name in an attempt to get their burning questions answered. "Mr. Tennyson, how do you plan to participate in this change for a more inclusive world you're advocate for?" holding her microphone out to hear his response, spite the half-dozen mics that were sticking out of the podium itself.
"Let me start off by explaining that this," Ben exclaimed with his left wrist in the air, flashing his newly evolved gauntlet Omnitrix, "Is not a weapon, it never was. The creator of this device only made it with the intention for other forms of life to walk a mile in another species' shoes. It was intended to be a tool used to unify not just Earth but, all of our sister planets across the Galaxy, there are hundreds of aliens living here on Earth but, too afraid to announce themselves because of the way the Government has been treating them… as weapons." He continued his answer with a more direct response to what she had asked him in the first place, "I'm going to personally use my Omnitrix to broker peace not just with the Highbreed, but with all sentient life… I know that there are millions of people on Earth that are tired of being oppressed whether because of their race or gender, and now even their species. Hopefully, with the help of not just the American but, with all peoples, I hope to use my abilities and influence to establish a city here on Earth that will welcome all forms of life."
Saundra and Carl were wide eyed and looking on in awe, he had never expressed such a mature and educated argument before, then again they couldn't help but feel that they never gave him the proper chance to explain it to him. As Ben quieted down, the uproar of comments and questions from reporters began again as this time, a man raised his hand and stood catching Ben's attention, "Will Harangue here with the Harangue Nation, should the people of Earth be expecting another alien invasion in the near future, and if so, how do you intend to stop such a threat?" he adjusted his glasses and waited for a response, his tone portraying himself as certainly not a fan of the teenage hero.
"In most cases, aliens are just people like us and rarely harbor ill-will against an entire planet for any reason, especially one as far out of the way as ours. But, if they do come, we'll handle it together…" with just a glance back at his comrades who helped him win the war, he looked back at Will who didn't seem finished.
The reporters didn't have enough time to speak up as Harangue responded immediately, narrowing his eyes, "And if we lose?" he announced morbidly.
Ben gave his personal confident smirk, glancing back at the four other heroes standing in a horizontal line behind him, smiling just as brightly, "Than I guess we'll do that together too."
Will took a seat quickly enough, seemingly not satisfied with the answer he was given, he folded his arms as the other reporters tried to speak up and ask more questions but, before they could Ben turned back around with his hands out signaling that he was done answering questions, "Thank you, everyone," he announced as camera flashes went off in barrages, nearly blinding them on stage. Ben stepped back into line with the others as the President began to speak again, standing next to Gwendolyn who couldn't have been prouder, she wrapped her arm around his for a moment, hugging it tightly.
"Awesome speech, how long did it take you to practice all that in the mirror?" She questioned with a light giggle, looking out into the crowd, and noticing Emily and the General next to her parents.
Ben could only chuckle in response, recalling all of the time he spent practicing in the last week so that he could pull this press conference off properly, "Five whole days, I've never studied that much in my life and I'm not much of a public speaker…" he rubbed the back of his neck as Gwendolyn reached up just a bit, placing a light peck on his cheek.
"Coulda fooled me, hero," Ben was a bit surprised as he immediately glanced out at the crowd of people, all of which definitely saw her kiss him, and it seemed obvious by now that they were related. The public didn't seem to care though, they continued with their gleeful expressions and patriotic shouts, all aside from Frank and Saundra who happened to be sitting on opposite ends of the seating behind the reporters. They both stood up from their seats next to their spouses after seeing the kiss, exiting the audience area, and vanishing into the crowd.
Noticing Gwendolyn's slightly weakened demeanor, Ben pulled on her arm which was still locked around his, reminding her that he was there for her, "Don't worry about either of them, this is our day, lets enjoy it…" he allowed his arm to glide down, lightly brushing his bare right forearm against hers until their hands met, interlocking their fingers together. Gwen couldn't helo but glance up into his eyes with a blushing smile.
the President opened the black box on the podium in front of him and sighed as he turned around with an attendant right next to him, picking up the box for him as he walked up to each hero starting with Kai at the opposite end, "I am honored to present these distinguished awards to Kai Green, Kevin Levin, Cooper Daniels, Gwen Tennyson, and Ben Tennyson for their exceptional performance defending our planet," he turned around to face them, taking one of the pins out of case and approaching her first.
As he went down the line, pinning the medal to each of their individual outfits and shaking their hands, Kevin sported his usual black short-sleeved shirt with a long sleeved one beneath while Kai had on her peach colored long sleeved crop-top, with the beige cargo pants she usually wore. Cooper decided to wear his nanotech armor that was splayed over his entire body aside from the helmet which remained off so the audience could see his face, pinning it to his armor was easier than the President expected it to be. Once making it down the line to Gwendolyn it was only a little strained and just a bit more awkward but, he managed to pin the medal to her cloaked turquoise cape and shake her hand without a word.
As he finally made his way over to Ben, he kept a distinguished smile that he had probably been mastering throughout his entire political career, "Thank you, Mr. Tennyson, for such an exceptionally distinguished performance, you deserve this," he said through his teeth as he pinned the award to Ben's thin black t-shirt just above his pectoral beside the white stripe that ran down the tee. As he hooked it in, the pin stabbed Ben's skin ever so slightly causing him to jump just a bit, however; the President never lost his smile, "Oops, funny how annoying a little prick can be, huh? With a sarcastic chuckle, he turned around standing behind Ben and Gwendolyn, putting his arms over their shoulders as the crowd began standing and shooting pictures with bright flashes of the entire group.
…
After the ceremony was completed, Ben, Gwen, Kevin, Kai, and Cooper all gathered together behind the stage to amongst themselves; the first to speak up was Ben who couldn't help but tease Kevin just a bit, "Huh, I would've thought the bad-boy Kevin Levin wouldn't want to get some dumb metal from the guy who kept you captive for months…" as approached and threw his arm around the taller teen's neck, he only scoffed in response.
"Ha-Ha, I only showed up because Kai didn't want to get up in front of her Grandfather by herself…" He quickly slapped Ben's hand off his shoulder and walked forwards out his reach, standing next to Kai who giggled in response.
"I never asked you to come, you offered…" She teased up at him, poking him in the side to get a reaction but, he only barely half-smiled back down at her. Though it was obvious that she could see there was more to it than just a fake smile, since they had met on the day of the invasion, they had become very close.
Gwendolyn approached Kai from the side, leaning into her shoulder to shoulder so that she could whisper something into her ear, "I guess love can be found on a battlefield too, huh?" now the red head could tease her about her crush rather than the other way around.
"Hey, we are not in love!" Kai responded just a tad too loudly prompting both the anti-hero and the sword-wielder to grow brightly red cheeks, though it seemed Kevin was far better had hiding it.
"Hey, you cant go back there!" the voice of a security guard or secret servicemen shouted from the front stage.
"My Dad is Colonel Rossem!" a woman shouted as she rounded the corner, catching sight of the group that had just been honored "Psycho!"
a feminine voice shouted out to the group, the only one recognizing the voice being Gwendolyn, who turned quickly to be tackled by her short-blonde haired friend, "You are so amazing! I saw you guys on TV when the big alien dude was telling us about our doom and all-that, I had no idea things were going to get so serious!" she pulled out of her embrace to grab Gwen by the shoulders, shaking her, "Why-didn't-you-tell-me-you-were-fighting-an-entire-war!" her voice became a tad higher pitched as she began speaking quickly with hardly enough time between words to breathe.
Gwendolyn's brain settled in her head after being rattled vigorously, grabbing Emily's forearms to steady herself with a wide grin and giggle, "We didn't really think it would get so crazy, we just wanted to take down their base on Earth but, things kinda got out of hand," choosing this moment to mimic her boyfriend, nervously rubbing the back of her head out of pure habit.
"Well…" Emily looked down at their shoes for a second thinking pensively for a second or two, "Next time shoot me a text!"
Ben interrupted by stepping up to Gwen, slinging his arm over her shoulder as they separated from Emily, "Hopefully, there won't be a next time," he affirmed optimistically.
Kevin stuffed his hands in his pockets, closing his eyes and shrugging, "And if there is, try to pick a new team for your suicide-squad, I'm gonna be working on my ride for a month after last month," though it hadnt been completely destroyed, the DNAliens had done a number on the mirrors, windows, and most importantly, the paint job.
"Speaking of which, if you're gonna get your car redone, I suggest a nice emerald-green coat this time around…" Ben pitched, imagining what the sports-car would like with his own trademark color scheme.
"Nice try, Tennyson," He responded as he turned around, gesturing his head toward Kai as a suggestion for them to get moving, "I'm actually going to a lot-sale to pick up some new parts for her, and if she does get repainted, it'll be a nice obsidian black."
Cooper patted Ben's back from behind, backing away with a wave as he made his way to the off-stage exit, "Yea, my Aunt wanted to take me out to celebrate so, I gotta head out too but, like I said before, if you ever need me, just call," he jogged off passing Kevin and Kai, jumping into a car with his Aunt and driving off.
Ben and Gwendolyn walked through the small set of curtains the separated the front and backstage, even with his enhanced vision, he couldn't spot either of their parents anywhere. Even his father and her mother, both of which seemed to have an easier time adjusting to seeing their children dating, had left before even saying goodbye. Frank had promised to give them a chance, to try and adjust himself to accept them for who they were but, it didn't seem to be taking very well.
"I don't think they want anything to do with us… they love you and I but, I don't think they even like… us," Gwendolyn looked down at her feet again, even as Ben kept his arm around her shoulder to comfort her.
He gave a long sigh prompting her to look up into his eyes, "I'm the richest sixteen-year-old in the country now, we have a fully functional hero base, and we have friends who are willing to risk everything to help save the world… I don't really think we need them for anything anymore."
Gwendolyn still seemed melancholy, folding her arms across her chest, feeling the kevlar fabric even through her sleeves, "I didn't want their money, or their houses… I just wanted them to accept us…" he pulled her in tighter so she could shed the tears welling in her eyes into his shirt, doing her best to miss the medal pinned to his shirt.
"I know, hun… me too," they stood silently embracing one another as Gwen sniffled into his shoulder, his hand caressing her hair from just above her neck, "Why don't we go back to the Bunker and see if we cant figure out where that energy weapon came from last night, huh?"
Gwen simply nodded into his shirt, pulling her head out and wiping her tears with her sleeve, sniffling just a bit first, "Can we stop and get Pizza from Italy on the way?" she asked being just a bit spoiled by her speedster boyfriend's abilities.
Ben chuckled a bit as he noticed a smile starting to reform over her face, he beamed a grin down at her as his eyes shun brightly, "Anything to see that smile again," he exploded without warning in a flash of emerald light, scooping her up by her legs and lower back.
"Eeek!" Gwen giggled as before he could pull his faceplate down, Gwendolyn wrapped her arms around XLR8's neck and pulled him in for yet another kiss. He would be right that it felt different kissing his alien forms but, even since they were starting this crusade at thirteen years old, all she could see when she looked at his transformations, was him.
…