Ben looks over at Gwen and Kevin and then at Aria. "You've won so many battles. But the war is mine." Vilgax tells Ben. "Bow down before me." He demands. "You got the Omnitrix Vilgax, don't press your luck." Ben refuses. "Still defiant. Why? I have beaten you, Ben Tennyson. You have nothing." Vilgax tries to assert power. "He's got friends!" Grandpa Max's voice says from behind. Ben smiles and looks at his grandpa. Grandpa Max arrived via jetpack with a laser gun. He shoots Vilgax and his bioids, freeing Gwen and Kevin. "That's my cue." Aria says, heating up her body. "As if I'm ever going to— ow!" Nega releases Aria and shakes his hand to get rid of the burning sensation. "Buh-bye!" She blasts him away with a powerful energy beam and joins the group. Gwen looks at the open spell book just as Nega charges at them, pissed. "Abeo Exorior!" A mana dome surrounds them and teleports them away before Nega could get them.
°•☆°•☆°•☆°•☆°•☆°•
The team watched what happened with Albedo and Vilgax from the TV in the Rust Bucket. Aria looks away from the TV and at Ben, who looked miserable. "Bad day to be him." Kevin comments. "Worst day to be me." Ben adds. "How are we seeing all of this any way?" Gwen asks. "Spy cubes. Standard Plumber issue. I left a few at the scene." Grandpa Max replies. "So where are we going?" Aria asks. "Away from Vilgax. We're this planet's last hope. Next time we meet him, I want it to be on our terms." Max answers. The teens turn to Ben, who was staring at his grandpa. "What's the plan, Tennyson?" Kevin asks him. "Plan? Haven't you been paying attention? It's hopeless. Vilgax has an army with all of my powers. I lost the Omnitrix!" Ben slams his hands on the table. "But you still have your whiny voice." Kevin states.
"Stop this thing, Grandpa! Stop it!" Ben demands. Grandpa Max stops the RV and Ben runs out. "Ben! Come back! Ben!" Gwen calls out to her cousin who runs into the forest. Gwen backs away from the door in disbelief. "He ran away." "Who needs him? We're trying to save the world, that's not a job for quitters." Kevin argues. "Shut the hell up, will you?" Aria glares at him. "Easy kids." Max gets between them. "Let's not turn on each other." "I'm not turning on anyone. I'm just—" Aria takes a deep breath and sighs. "I'm sorry, Ari." Kevin apologizes to the girl. "Let Ben have some time. He just needs to be alone for a while." Max suggests. "Grandpa, that's the last thing he needs right now." Gwen argues. Aria grabs Ben's jacket and leaves with Gwen.
°•☆°•☆°•☆°•☆°•☆°•
The girls find Ben sitting on a tree stump in the rain. "You're soaked." Gwen points out. "Here." Aria holds the jacket out to him. "I don' deserve that. It belongs to a hero." Ben grabs the jacket and throws it away. "Okay, rude." Aria glares at him and goes to grab the jacket back. Gwen uses her mana to make a shelter for her cousin. "How many times have you helped people?" She questions. "I don't know. Lots. But I had the Omnitrix." Ben answers. "And how many of those times was the Omnitrix out of power of broken?" Aria questions him this time. "It almost never works right. What's your point?" Ben asks them. "It's not the tool. It's the man." Gwen says. "When you're talking about the most powerful weapon in the entire universe, it's the tool. Without the Omnitrix, we don't have a chance." Ben tells her. Gwen looks down and walks away.
"Just know that we're depending on you. The whole world is. You'll come through eventually." Aria sighs and follows Gwen, dropping the shirt beside him.
°•☆°•☆°•☆°•☆°•☆°•
"When do the Plumbers get here?" Gwen asks her grandpa. "A week. 10 days the latest." Grandpa Max replies as they stare at a holographic Plumber gun. "We can't wait a week. There might not be any planet left to save." Kevin points out. "I've got a plan." Ben says from behind them. The group turns to find Ben smirking and also wearing his jacket.

YOU ARE READING
Ben 10 Alien Force: The Child of Energy and Elements
Fanfiction(Rewriting) Five years have passed since Ben took off the Omnitrix. Grandpa Max was investigating alien activity on Earth and went missing, now it's up to his grandchildren, Aria and foe turned friend Kevin Levin to find out what's happened.