So the group now followed Ben as he took them through the forest. He used his chitinous blades to slash through any obstacles that impeded their progress. However the normally talkative Ben was now quiet as a stone. He didn't speak a word as he continued to lead them through the forest. This had all of the members of the rescue team concerned. Ben being silent was tantamount to the end of the world. Eventually Ben lead the group to a well worn trail, presumably made by him.
"We should be safe from here on out but keep your guards up." Ben announced as they walked the hilly trail. Behind him the group followed single file, still feeling tense and awkward from Ben's stoic silence. As the group walked on they exchanged glances with each other. Finally Gwen came up and nudged Kevin in the shoulder with her elbow. Kevin looked at her confused. Gwen gave a pointed glance at Ben before staring back at Kevin. The message received loud and clear Kevin stepped up to fall in pace with Ben before clearing his throat.
"So uh Ben. What do you call this guy?" He asked with a lilt in his voice.
"What?" Ben responded back dryly. Kevin glanced at him confused.
"You know, what did you name this alien? Oh lemme guess, how about Termite-nator? Or something more simple like Slice-n-dice?" Kevin asked, miming the sword strikes with his arms.
"Oh that." Ben finally said. "I don't name them anymore." He said plainly. Gwen stopped in her tracks upon hearing those words. Her face was frozen in shock. She quickly regained her composure and ran up beside Ben, ignoring the curious looks of both Rook and Julie.
"What do you mean you don't name them anymore?! That was like your favorite part." She said. Ben cast barely a glance at her before replying in the same monotone.
"Well after a couple hundred aliens I started to run out of names. Besides, I had to focus on more important things. Ya know, like not dying." He said pointedly before striding ahead again. Gwen slowed down again concern written across her face. This of course went unnoticed by Ben but not by the rest of their group.
"Gwendolyn, is something the matter?" Rook asked in a whisper. Gwen glanced around them and kept her voice low to ensure Ben couldn't hear her.
"When Ben and I were kids we got taken forward in time to meet future versions of ourselves." She explained. "In that future Ben was known as Ben 10,000 and he was like Earth's greatest hero. Except he was a total jerk, way worse than he's ever been in the past. That was the one thing I remember future Ben saying that seemed… wrong. I don't know I guess I'm just worried about him." Gwen finished. The group remained silent as they tried to understand and process the information.
"Well it's like Paradox always says, the future isn't set in stone." Kevin tried to assure her. He strode forward to keep pace with Ben and spoke up. "Hey Ben I came up with the perfect name for this guy. Bugshido!" Kevin said enthusiastically. Ben tilted his head to look at Kevin with confusion. Kevin could feel his confidence falter under Ben's withering stare. "You know cuz he's got the blades and he's a bug? Get it?" Kevin asked. Ben simply shook his head dismissively.
"Ok sure. Anyway we're nearly at the camp. You should be able to see it over the ridge." Ben pointed forward. There in the distance was a large circular arrangement of wooden poles. High wooden walls topped with pointed ends lined up to make a secure wall. The group were thoroughly impressed. As they drew closer they noted the beams were strapped together with vines and natural rubber. Ben approached what appeared to be the front gate and removed thick heavy vines sealing the doors closed. The gates opened outward, swinging wide.
Inside the compound was surprisingly spacious. Metal nets hung above the whole area, occasionally sparking with energy. There was a central pit surrounded with stones that looked to be a fire pit. A work station was set off to the right with various tools and materials strewn about and what looked like half-finished projects. At the far end of the compound sat a large teepee made of bundles of thick branches and decorated with moss and leaves threaded together. Inside was a pile of exotic furs which likely served as Ben's bed. What appeared to be alien fish hung strung up on a line nearby, smoked and salted. To the left of Ben's teepee was a pile of metal and machines that looked to have been fashioned into a generator which powered the electrified net above them. The group wandered around in awe of what Ben had managed to construct.
"I must say Ben, I am thoroughly impressed by your work." Rook said.
"Thanks. I built it all myself." Ben said with pride, the first real show of emotion he had since they met up with him. As the group entered the confines of the camp Ben closed the gates shut behind them. He strode forward and gathered some firewood and deposited it in the pit. With a flick of both his wrist blades he set the tinder alight.
"Alright, time for a barbecue? I'm starving. What have you got to eat?" Kevin asked excited, rubbing his hands together. Ben turned back with an unreadable expression.
"Uh sorry, I don't think I have anything laying around that you guys can eat." He said. Kevin looked at him confused.
"What? You've gotta be kidding right? You can't tell me you don't have some good eats around here. That alien is made for making choice cuts." Kevin asked expecting Ben to have gone hunting with his alien forms.
"The Mantibonsai are actually an herbivorous species. They use their built in blades to cut and trim bark from trees on their home world for consumption." Ben corrected. Then picking up a piece of wood took several bites to demonstrate his point. The rest of the group looked at Ben strangely.
"Wait, how do you know that?" Julie asked.
"The Omnitrix has a built in database containing information on every alien species. It has information about their biology, physiology, culture, and history." Ben responded as if it was the simplest thing in the world.
"Wait, so you're telling me you actually did research on your aliens? Who are you and what have you done with the real Ben?" Gwen asked suspicious. Ben narrowed his eyes at the remark.
"There's not a whole lot to do here for entertainment." Ben clarified. His tone sounded offended and the group recoiled slightly.
"So, what exactly have you been doing here?" Julie asked hoping to break the tension. Ben turned back to face her and Julie could tell that there was still some anger there but his expression did soften slightly.
"Exactly what I had told you all I was going to do. I've been training." Ben said. "I went to Azmuth and had him give me the master control for the Omnitrix. Since then I've been mastering all of my alien forms. And the only way for me to do that is to live like them, exist like them, think like them. So I spend a few weeks lifeform locked as a new alien. Then when the time's up I switch to a different alien." Ben explained. "I figure I've mastered about half of them by now." He admitted. The revelation seemed to shock the group.
"But Ben that is physically impossible. There are over a million alien species contained in the Omnitrix. For you to be doing what you say it would take decades for you to master each alien form." Rook countered. Ben regarded him confused.
"I know, that's part of the reason why I chose this planet to do it on." Ben responded.
"I am sorry, I do not follow." Rook replied.
"Hazard orbits a time rift." Ben explained. "A few days here is equivalent to hours in real time. That way I can spend longer amounts of time as my alien forms without passing too much time in the real world." Ben explained. The group stared at him dumbfounded and confused. "Did you guys not know about that?" Ben asked with the alien equivalent of a raised eyebrow.
"No we didn't know about that." Kevin replied shocked.
"Well, regardless, what are you guys doing here anyway?" Ben finally asked. The group turned to look at each other before Gwen told him about the Hammer. They spent the next half hour talking about the Demiurge Hammer and the many villains who were aiming for it. They told him of the immense threat the weapon posed and how they needed Ben to help them retrieve it before it could fall into the wrong hands. They also spent much of the time complaining to Ben about his needlessly complicated goose chase he sent them on to find him. They even told him of Malware's rampage through the plumber base. Throughout their explanation Ben remained mostly silent and serious. He made no real commentary mostly just nodding along taking in the words of his compatriots. Only after they had finished catching him up did Ben reply.
"So I guess this Demiurge Hammer is the real deal huh? Or at least real enough that all my enemies are after it." He said thoughtfully. "As much as I hate to admit it I think you guys were right to bring this to my attention. And as much as I wish you didn't all come here…" Ben said casting a quick glance in Julie's direction. The young woman responded with narrowed eyes. "It's good that you did. Also I'm sorry for making you guys go through what you did." Ben finally said. "It was the only way I could be sure that I wouldn't be interrupted." He said.
The group was silent. They each felt uncomfortable speaking with this new Ben. He seemed more serious, but also more straight forward. Even his apology sounded sincere. It was clear that Ben had changed being out here all by himself. However none of them could yet tell if that change was for the better or not. Paradox's words came back to each of them. It seems his warning about Ben's precarious mental state was not unfounded. It made all of them reasses how they would handle this new Ben.
It was at that point that Ben stood and stretched, his alien arms reaching high into the sky with his already impressive stature. He walked over to his hut and gathered a bunch of the strangely colored fur blankets in his arms. He turned back to the group and dumped the pile in front of them.
"It's getting late, you should all get some rest. We'll have a long day of work ahead of us tomorrow." Ben said authoritatively. The group began picking out the furs that seemed most comfortable. When Julie had picked out hers she turned back to Ben who stood impassively over them.
"Ben?" She questioned.
"Hm?" He grunted back.
"Aren't you going to change back?" She asked confused. Ben stared at her as though he didn't know what she was talking about. His impassive cold visage was starting to unnerve her. Thankfully the others spoke up as well.
"I believe Miss Yamamoto is right." Rook said. "While it has been good to see you it is… strange, conversing with you in a form that is unfamiliar to us." Rook explained. Ben looked around at the group of four who all stared at him with concerned and questioning glances. Suddenly his eyes widened in realization.
"Oh! Uh, right." He said as he caught onto their meaning. He reached a hand up to the omnitrix emblem on his chest. "Lifeform lock: Disengage." He spoke. There was a flash of green light that blinded the group. As their eyes adjusted back to the darkness of the night, they perceived Ben's human form standing in front of them. Gwen for one looked shocked, Julie looked him up and down with surprised approval, Rook simply appeared confused, but Kevin, he burst out laughing.
"Hahahaha! Dude you've got a beard!" He managed to get out in between fits of giggles.
"What? How?" Ben asked, his voice now unfamiliar to his ears. He scrambled over to the pile of scrap metal near his generator and picked up the shiniest, most reflective piece he could find. Ben stared into his reflection with shock, he hardly recognized himself. He indeed sported a thin but noticeable beard that spread across his whole face. But he also appeared to be slightly taller than he remembered. Additionally his form had filled out some, no longer was his body that of a scrawny and lanky teenager. Ben's mouth dropped as he stared back into eyes that felt like a stranger's. He reached a hand up to touch his face. His palm stroked his beard. He was so enamored by his sudden change in appearance that he failed to notice the group behind him still talking.
"I can't believe he grew a beard! Hahaha!" Kevin continued to laugh.
"Kevin!" Gwen scolded.
"Ben's human form must have still been aging while he was transformed." Rook surmised.
"I don't know, I kinda like it. It makes him look handsome." Julie complimented with a sly smile. However her expression faded as she watched Ben stare at himself motionless in the mirror.
"Ben? Are you okay?" She asked concerned. This drew the attention of the rest of the group who once again turned to Ben with confusion and concern written on their faces. Ben stood still for a few moments longer, lost in his reflection before he jolted. He looked back at the four of his companions with a blank expression before turning back to the mirror.
"Sorry, it's just… been so long." He said quietly. None of the group knew really how to respond. Gwen realized distantly that Ben must have been serious when he said he was lifeform locked. She wondered exactly how long had it been since Ben had been human. But she didn't get to ask that question as Kevin stood up from the ground and walked over. The taller boy put an arm around Ben's shoulder in a familiar and friendly way. Ben glanced up at him in confusion. But Kevin's face held only a slight smirk.
"Don't worry, I've got some razors back on the ship. We can get you shaved up in no time." He said with a reassuring clap on the shoulder. Ben was silent for a few moments before a small smile graced his lips.
"I don't know. I think I might keep it." He joked.
"Pfft." Kevin scoffed and he released his grip on the smaller man.
"What? I think it looks good on me!" He said with more enthusiasm. The rest of the group relaxed, this seemed more like the familiar Ben they knew and loved.
"I think he should keep it. Like I said it makes you look more mature." Julie spoke up again. Ben turned to her and blushed lightly before shaking his head and walking over to his hut.
"You should all get some sleep we're gonna have a long trip ahead of us tomorrow." Ben said.
"Wait are we gonna walk all the way back to the Rust Bucket? Surely now we could just take Ship and fly back?" Kevin complained. But Ben shook his head seriously.
"I wouldn't advise flying too often here. The planet's atmosphere is super reactive. I'm sure you guys crashed because of a freak storm as you were descending right?" Ben said.
"How did you know?" Gwen asked.
"Because the same thing happened to me. Besides there are plenty of flying monsters that will be more than happy to try to take a bite out of us. It's safer if we stick to the paths I've made through the jungle." He clarified. With that, Ben turned in for the night, dimming the fire to just a low glow. The others settling in for the night as well.