"Don't just stand there, you two! Dance with me!"
Diamondhead stared down the enemies flanking him. His crystalline arms, which had transformed into deadly blades, suddenly shifted back into normal palms.
With his left hand, he seized the massive mechanical pincer. With his right, he grabbed the razor-sharp edge of the samurai sword.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Diamondhead began spinning like a top, faster and faster with each rotation.
"What are you doing? Stop this!" SixSix's voice crackled through his helmet's speakers, distorted by the increasing velocity.
The bounty hunters' bodies lifted completely off the ground as centrifugal force took hold. Both Kraab and SixSix spun helplessly in Diamondhead's grasp, their feet dangling uselessly.
"What am I doing?" Diamondhead's voice carried a hint of dark amusement. "Sending you flying, of course!"
He stopped abruptly, letting out a powerful roar as he released both bounty hunters simultaneously.
CRASH!
Kraab's mechanical body slammed into the far end of the canyon floor with devastating force. The impact created a spiderweb of cracks across the ground, and his heavy frame wobbled precariously as he struggled to regain balance.
Meanwhile, SixSix sailed through the air in the opposite direction, tumbling helplessly into the bottomless abyss below the mining platform.
"One down?" Diamondhead narrowed his eyes, watching the darkness where SixSix had disappeared. His combat instincts told him it wouldn't be that simple.
BOOM!
Sure enough, flames erupted from below as SixSix's jetpack roared to life. The bounty hunter burst back up from the chasm, suspended in midair, glaring down at Diamondhead with unmistakable fury.
Figures, Diamondhead thought grimly. Nothing's ever easy.
"One shot wasn't enough?" He clenched his diamond fists, his expression hardening. "Then I'll just keep hitting until you two malfunctioning robots are smashed to pieces."
Diamondhead raised his heavy foot and took a deliberate step forward, the ground cracking slightly under his crystalline weight.
But then Kraab spoke up, his mechanical voice carrying a cunning edge. "Kid, don't think I don't know what's going on. The Omnitrix has a time limit on its transformations. Right now, you're running out of time. When that watch times out, you'll be defenseless and easy prey."
SixSix merely hovered in the sky, crossing his arms with smug confidence. He was content to wait.
Stalling tactics.
That was their new strategy. They'd evolved from hunting individually to hunting in packs, and now to this shameless waiting game, exceeding Diamondhead's expectations at every turn.
"The time limit?" Diamondhead acknowledged honestly. "Yeah, I've probably got a minute or two left at most."
His eyes suddenly sharpened, becoming as dangerous as diamond blades. "But let me make something crystal clear, Kraab. I'll tear you apart before then. From this moment on, I'm abandoning all defense. If that's what it takes, I'll drag you down with me!"
His declaration echoed through the canyon with absolute dominance, reverberating off the stone walls.
Clang!
Kraab actually took a mechanical step backward, his crab legs scraping against the ground. The threat in Diamondhead's voice was too real, too dangerous.
He couldn't afford to gamble on whether the kid was bluffing.
"Enough with the mutual destruction threats! Come with me!"
A steady, confident voice suddenly rang out from the cave entrance on the opposite side of the canyon.
Diamondhead, Kraab, and SixSix all turned simultaneously toward the source.
A figure clad in black Petrosapien armor emerged, riding a sleek hoverboard that hummed with advanced technology. In the blink of an eye, he swept past Diamondhead, reached down, and grabbed the black and white clothing the crystalline hero was wearing.
The hoverboard continued forward without slowing.
Caught completely off guard, Diamondhead found himself lifted into the air, his entire body suspended as the mysterious Petrosapien carried him across the canyon at incredible speed. Only the stranger's firm grip on his clothing kept him from falling into the abyss below.
"Who the hell are you?" Diamondhead shouted at his unexpected rescuer, red battle-fury still burning in his eyes. "Put me down so I can finish this fight!"
His pride had taken over completely. He was too deep in combat mode to think rationally.
"Calm down first," the armored Petrosapien said without a trace of anger. "I'm not necessarily your enemy."
Together, they flew over the cable car system and reached the cave entrance on the opposite side. Ben, Gwen, and Max had already made it inside and were running toward the exit.
The mysterious Petrosapien didn't pause. He continued piloting the hoverboard through the long tunnel, carrying Diamondhead with him as they soared above the rocky ground. The cool wind rushing past them was a welcome relief from the stifling heat of the mines.
"This wind..." Diamondhead grabbed the edge of the hoverboard with both hands, securing his grip as he shouted over the rushing air. "It's cooling me off! Your alien technology is actually pretty impressive!"
The sheer exhilaration of flight at high speed was undeniable. Despite his earlier fury, Diamondhead couldn't suppress his excitement.
"Good, then you're calming down," the armored figure replied evenly. "Also, try not to move around too much. The hoverboard loses balance easily."
The stranger had clearly done this many times before. His voice carried the casual confidence of long experience.
When they finally emerged from the cave system and flew over the abandoned mining town behind the facility, the hoverboard began its descent.
Diamondhead, still several meters above the ground, released his grip and let himself drop.
BOOM!
His heavy crystalline body crashed into the earth, creating a crater and sending up massive clouds of dust.
The indestructible hero walked slowly out of the settling debris, casually brushing dust off his shoulders.
The armored Petrosapien descended more gracefully a moment later, stepping off the hoverboard with practiced ease.
"Thank you for helping me back there," Diamondhead said, looking at the mysterious figure who'd just saved him from his own reckless fury. "If you hadn't intervened, I probably would have gone through with that mutual destruction plan. Looking back on it now, that would've been a really stupid way to go."
"Don't thank me just yet," the stranger replied.
He paused, then began his introduction. "Let me explain who I am. My name is Tetrax. I've been posing as a bounty hunter, but my real mission was to find out who the Omnitrix chose as its wielder. And to help you."
"Help me?" A memory suddenly surfaced in Diamondhead's mind, triggered by Tetrax's words. Fragments of information about this character from the original Ben 10 timeline began clicking into place.
Right, if I remember correctly, Tetrax is on our side. At least, he and I share a common enemy—that bastard Vilgax.
"That's correct," Tetrax nodded slowly, his voice taking on a heavier tone. "You may not realize it yet, but the one hunting you is called Vilgax. He's a feared tyrant across the galaxy, responsible for destroying countless planets and civilizations. He's the one who wants to take the Omnitrix from your wrist."
Tetrax's expression grew grim even behind his helmet. "In my assessment, you do possess the strength worthy of being an Omnitrix wielder. But I still need to warn you—be extremely careful. What you're facing is a cosmic warlord unlike anything you've encountered before."
Is this the sense of dread that comes with Vilgax's reputation?
Even though Diamondhead hadn't faced Vilgax directly yet, he could feel the oppressive weight of the warlord's power through Tetrax's tone alone. The fear in the veteran warrior's voice spoke volumes about how dangerous their enemy truly was.
His fists clenched slowly at his sides.
A cosmic warlord? So what?
If Vilgax threatened him or hurt the people he cared about, Asher would fight back with everything he had.
'With my system in place, I'll keep getting stronger,' Diamondhead said to himself, lifting his gaze to the clear blue sky above. His eyes held a depth of determination that seemed to pierce through the atmosphere itself, as if he could see Vilgax lurking somewhere beyond. "One day, I'll reach a level of power that even Vilgax can't imagine."
His resolve was absolute.
I'm not afraid of you.
Biu! Biu! Biu!
A series of familiar electronic chirps sounded.
The Omnitrix timed out, and Diamondhead's crystalline form dissolved in a flash of red light. Asher Tennyson stood in his place, his brown hair slightly disheveled from the fight, but his determined expression unchanged.
The firmness in his eyes didn't waver in the slightest.
"I underestimated you," Tetrax said, studying Asher with newfound respect. "Your character is far stronger than I initially thought."
His helmet retracted automatically with a mechanical hiss, revealing a face that was unmistakably identical to Diamondhead's crystalline features, except his eyes were green instead of yellow.
"You... you're also Diamondhead?" Asher said, pretending to be confused as he stared at Tetrax's exposed face.
"Diamondhead?" Tetrax's mouth twitched slightly, showing a hint of annoyance. "Is that what you Earth people named the transformation? That's... creative."
He straightened up and spoke with formal pride. "Remember this. I am a Petrosapien from the planet Petropia. My name is Tetrax Shard!"
He clearly didn't want to hear his species referred to as "Diamondhead" ever again. The nickname grated on him.
At that moment, Ben, Gwen, and Max finally emerged from the cave exit. They'd taken a slower route on foot and arrived at the abandoned town one step behind the hoverboard.
Ben looked at Tetrax in amazement, his eyes going wide. "Asher! Did you transform into Diamondhead again?"
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