"What kind of creature are you?" When the Krakken projected this soul-searching question, her massive eyes were filled with genuine curiosity about the strange being who had returned her precious children.
This unexpected inquiry caused Ripjaws to hesitate momentarily. He found himself living in what felt like a surreal dream, a legendary creature that he'd only seen in movies was actually asking him about his own nature!
This was...
He paused in contemplation, floating in the dark depths of the lake.
"Do you see this symbol on me?" Ripjaws raised his webbed hand and placed it on the Omnitrix emblem glowing on his chest, the green light casting an eerie glow through the water.
"What is that?" the Krakken asked with puzzled curiosity, her mental voice carrying confusion.
"Do you remember when I was in human form? I wore something on my wrist that looked exactly like this pattern!" Ripjaws patted the Omnitrix symbol on his chest, trying to help the ancient creature understand.
The Krakken fell into deep thought. Normally, her memory wasn't particularly sharp, there was rarely much worth remembering in the quiet depths of the lake.
But...
Ripjaws was the only being that had ever truly hurt her and made her cry out in pain during their first encounter!
So the memory was quite vivid!
After all, this was an existence she could never afford to provoke again after witnessing his devastating combat abilities...
"It seems there was such a strange device. After you struck it, it glowed, and then you transformed into a different creature." The Krakken displayed a thoughtful expression, an oddly anthropomorphic look that seemed strange on such a massive predator.
"Yes, this is called the Omnitrix! When I'm in human form, as long as I activate it, I can transform into different alien species! Not just this aquatic form!" Ripjaws explained one of the device's most important functions with evident pride.
Since this Krakken couldn't speak human language, there was no harm in being completely honest with her.
Knowing that he was an alien hero but being unable to reveal any information to outsiders created a frustrating burden of secrecy. This feeling of constantly hiding his identity was genuinely unpleasant.
"Different creatures!"
The Krakken's expression became comically bewildered as she stared blankly at Ripjaws.
This powerful little being could transform into other equally powerful creatures?
It completely shattered her understanding as an aquatic life form!
Beep! Beep! Beep!
At that moment, the Omnitrix symbol on Ripjaws' chest suddenly began flashing like a warning beacon, the pulsing red light piercing through the dark water around them.
He looked down at the flashing Omnitrix emblem, his expression shifting to alarm as he thought desperately, "Oh no, this is bad!"
WHOOSH!
Ripjaws thrashed his powerful tail and swam frantically toward the lake's surface, ascending dozens of meters in seconds as fast as a water snake cutting through the depths. The Krakken watched his sudden movement with a confused expression, not understanding his urgent departure.
"Faster, faster, faster!" Ripjaws gritted his razor-sharp teeth, pushing his enhanced physiology to its absolute limits. His desperate swimming created turbulent waves beneath the water, as terrifying as a shark hunting prey!
SPLASH!
His vision grew brighter and brighter as he approached the surface. The moment his head broke through the water, the Omnitrix's time limit was reached.
FLASH!
With a burst of familiar green light, Asher reverted to his human form. He kicked his legs frantically to keep himself afloat, wiping water droplets from his face with his right hand while shaking his hair vigorously to clear away the excess moisture. He breathed a sigh of relief.
Fortunately, Ripjaws' enhanced physical conditioning had carried over enough that he could still swim effectively. Otherwise, he might not have been able to reach the surface in time!
He still hadn't fully mastered the timing of his transformations.
"Jonah Melville's boat is still far away, so he probably didn't see me surface here," Asher thought as he cautiously looked around. Melville's yacht was roughly one hundred meters away, and Asher had emerged in a completely different area of the lake.
It would have been incredibly embarrassing to revert from an alien hero back to a human child in front of them!
Now another problem presented itself, he had to swim back to Max and the others!
"Well, time to start swimming!"
Asher took a deep breath, leaned forward into a proper swimming position, and began moving his arms in continuous strokes. His legs kicked rhythmically as he used basic breaststroke technique to propel himself through the water.
He wasn't too worried about Captain Shaw's safety. After all, as long as Shaw didn't do anything reckless, he would probably be fine with Melville. The lunatic valued his criminal enterprise above all else, and he wouldn't do anything that would significantly harm his interests.
Killing someone and imprisoning someone carried vastly different legal consequences, the costs were completely unequal.
Asher swam while thinking strategically about their next moves.
Gradually, his physical strength began to diminish. His breathing became labored and rapid, and his limbs grew sore and weak. It seemed like he didn't have enough stamina to continue swimming all the way back to Max!
His ten-year-old body simply wasn't strong enough to cover such a distance! Even most adults would struggle with this swim!
"This is terrible... I thought I might die fighting Vilgax's robot army at worst, but I never expected to potentially drown. Is this really how it ends?!" Asher's heart filled with unwillingness as his eyes focused desperately on the Omnitrix, but the device was still in recharge mode, displaying a discouraging red light!
What could he do?!
BOOM!
Suddenly, Asher felt violent turbulence beneath the water's surface, accompanied by powerful waves that created massive ripples around him, as if something enormous was stirring the lake water in this entire area!
A land-like surface suddenly emerged from the depths below, supporting his gradually weakening body!
"Friend, I'm here to help you!"
The Krakken's familiar mental voice resonated through his consciousness, and Asher realized with amazement that his new Aquatic Creature Communication ability was still active even in human form!
The massive creature had surfaced just enough to provide a stable platform for the exhausted boy, her ancient eyes showing genuine concern for the being who had reunited her with her children.
For the first time since this adventure began, Asher found himself with an unexpected ally, one whose gratitude ran as deep as the lake itself.